Vixen: Okay, different area for me. This time, it's Naruto. I've had this idea bouncing around in my brain for a while; so, after about two days of writing and an anxious sister looking over my shoulder, here it is! Summary: Just after the fight with Naruto, Gaara meets a strange girl. She's suffered some horrible hardships, but she still manages to be extreamely cheerful and optimistic. Could she possibly help him? Or will she just annoy him to no end? And I need the song "Arms of an Angel," by Sarah McLaughlin; but, if you can get the version done by Lorrie Morgan, well then, more power to you.
Gaara's Angel
Confusion. It tore at him, ripped at his mind until he could barely think; tore at his beliefs and shattered all of his confidence away. Who was this kid? This Naruto Uzumaki? Who was he that he could destroy anothers abilities to believe their ideals with mere words and such strong faith in his beliefs?
Heaving a frustrated sigh, Gaara stared up at the desert sky, locating the familiar constellations. His icy blue eyes narrowed as his thoughts ran rampant. He felt as if he'd lost himself, and he had; he'd lost sight of the demon in his soul since he had battled Naruto over two months ago. He couldn't help it; a sardonic smile crossed his lips as he thought about the kid. He's different, the sand ninja thought; But then, he's like me. So is he really that different? Am I that different?
Catching a small movement from the corner of his eye, Gaara whipped his head around, scarlet locks in his face. His eyes narrowing further, until they were mere slits, he waited. A furtive movement in one of the darker shadows caught his attention; who ever they were, they weren't of the Sand Village. Quietly getting to his feet, the ninja decided to find out just who this late night visitor was.
Watching from the shadows, a smile appeared on pale lips. The idiot, the thought ran across a mind as bright as the blue-violet eyes behind the dark, sooty lashes; He left! Why'd he do that?! Giving it up as a bad job, the visitor turned; and a startled, hoarse scream tore itself from their throat, burning it raw.
Gazing at the stranger with calm eyes, Gaara reached over and whipped off the cloth covering the other's head. As the fabric fell to the cool sand below, he felt a mild shock of surprise as he saw heavy raven locks fall well past the slim shoulders.
Meeting the girl's eyes, he could see the intelligence behind them as she let the azure pools roam up and down him, almost like she was sizing him up. He could feel the chakra that the girl possessed; the potency of it surprised him; she didn't look like she was any older then he was. Unsure of what to think, he asked in a suspicious tone, "What, is this suppose to be some sort of assassination attempt?"
Locking her blue-violet eyes back on his icy-blue, she asked in a surprisingly bright tone, "Assassinate? Like, kill? Why'd I do something as dumb as that, huh? I just wanna talk to you!"
Completely taken aback, Gaara's surprise showed on his face as he said blankly, "What the...?"
Unable to hold it, the girl started laughing. Gaara was shocked at this; he'd never heard such a beautiful voice, or such a clear laugh. She sounded like a bubbling brook; such a fresh, clean sound that he couldn't help but smile. Seeing his mouth twitch, the girl giggled even more, sending another strange chill up his spine; just what was going on?
Catching her breath, the dark haired girl breathed, "I'm sorry... it's just, the look on your face... was priceless..."
She was so cheerful, so completely new and different, Gaara couldn't help but chuckle at her obvious enthusiasm. An even bigger smile on her face now, she stated in her alto voice, "Ahh, so you can laugh after all. Maybe you aren't that weird after all!"
Shaking his head slightly, he asked her, "You said you wanted to talk, right? What about?"
Pulling a stray blue-black strand away from her face, she replied, "Just why do let that mean ol' 'coon boss you around, huh? For the sake of all living Shinobi, he'd be dead without you! So why do let him act like such a mule?"
About to answer, Gaara asked in an amazed tone, "Wait, how do you know about that?!"
"It's a gift, or a curse, depending upon your view," the girl replied as she plopped down in the sand; "I can sense a person's inner-self; I also know that Uzamaki kid has the nine-tailed fox. You know what, scratch what I said about that ol' 'coon dog; he's as sweet as a newborn kitten compared to that nasty ol' nine-tail demon."
Slightly wary now, Gaara asked her, "And what do you see... with me?"
Amazingly, she was quiet for a moment as he took a seat next to her. Then, she said in a slightly more serious tone, "You've been a wanderer all of your life; just looking for someone that would give a damn about the real you, and not be turned off by the monster that was forced on your soul. The thing that you long for is acceptance, but you've been rejected so much that you don't think that will ever be possible; you don't even know if you can get your own family to accept you, and that hurts you deeply. Until recently, you thought that your only mission in life was to kill, so that you could feel alive. But now, even that has been taken away from you because someone has shown you that there's a better way to feel alive; now you've got enough confusion to knock over even Chief Toad. But what you want most is love; but you've had so many hardships in your life, you don't know it; or, if you do, you just push it to the side because you think that it's the last thing in the world that you'll ever get."
Floored by her answer, Gaara sat in mute silence. He didn't know that anyone existed that could read him so openly; he didn't even think that he'd known himself that well. Forcing himself to speak, he asked her, "How... how do you know all of this?"
The bright light suddenly coming back to her eyes, the girl replied, "I already told you, silly! I can sense a person's inner-self! And I can tell that you're really just a big sweet heart; you just need someone to bring that side of you out!"
He was curious now; he wanted to know more about what kind of home had made this girl. So he asked her in a quiet tone, "What about you? What about your life?"
If he had thought she was serious before, he was wrong. Dark clouds rolled into her eyes, turning their twinkling brightness close to charcoal black. When she spoke, it was in a voice of pain, with an undercurrent of bitter betrayal. "We're a lot alike, in ways. You were shunned because of the demon inside your soul; I was shunned because of my powers. People didn't want me around because they felt that I'd use my gift for the wrong reasons. I feel like my cousin was the only one that was ever really nice to me; he was kinda shut-out as well, so he never judged me.
"But one day, when I was out, his brother killed everyone in my clan. It... it was horrible; all the bodies... my mom and dad..." Breaking off, her shoulders shook as she started to cry. Pity and compassion tugging at his heart, Gaara put his arm around her and pulled her closer. The contact felt strange; and yet, it felt right at the same time to him.
The bitter tears finally dying of, she choked out, "Why would he do it? Why'd his brother have to do that? I still dream about that day; I can't get it out of my head. My cousin told me to run, and not to let his brother know I was alive; I had to change my last name. I changed it to Masquerade, because of the lie that I'm forced to live."
Appalled at this, Gaara asked her softly, "But you seemed so cheerful earlier. How can you manage that?"
Some of the shine coming back to her eyes, the girl replied, "Because I know that their watching; they want me to succeed. I feel their tears, you know; they say that there's holes in the floor of heaven, and that rain is actually the tears of those who are waiting for their family to join them. I love the rain; it makes me feel close to those that I've lost. And I've learned that, no matter what sort of horrible things that life throws at you, you should try to make the best of it. Don't let Shakaku be a curse; turn him into a blessing. Use your powers to help others; you'd be unstoppable then."
Standing, he offered her a hand as he said, "You know, I think you're right; about everything. I just drew so far into my shell, it seemed like I'd never come out of it. It took a couple of real hard knocks, but I think I'm getting it now."
Smiling, she said softly, "I'm glad that you feel that way." Grabbing his hand, she pulled herself up quickly.
Looking at the smaller ninja, Gaara couldn't help but feel that things were starting to look up for him. After all, if a stranger that seemed to know more about him then he did didn't run for the hills, maybe he could get the village to like him.
Meeting her eyes, he couldn't help but be drawn into them. They were the clearest blue that he had ever seen; with a hint of violet near the pupils that was simply intoxicating. Her nose and cheeks were finely boned, but they held a strength and will so powerful that you would be a fool to mess with her. But no matter what, he was always drawn back to her eyes. They shined like diamonds, and they seemed all the clearer because of how dark her lashes were. Feeling compelled to, he leaned forward, until his lips touched her's.
Whether a few seconds or a few years later, he couldn't tell, he broke it off. Feeling distinctly embarrassed, Gaara scuffed his foot in the sand. When he heard soft laughter, he looked up at her as she said, "See? I told you you're a sweet heart! I really hate to kiss and run, but I need to go; who knows, maybe we'll meet again someday!'
Gaara had to admit, he didn't want her to go. Catching her wrist, he asked her softly, "Will you at least tell me your name? I don't think you've mentioned it. And I mean your real name; you can trust me."
Nodding her head, she said, "Uchiha; Tenshi Ame Uchiha. And I know I can trust you."
Satisfied, he let her go. Watching her leave, he whispered, "Tenshi Ame. Angel of Rain. It fits."
Vixen: Okay, like I said, it's my first. So please, if you like it, leave a review!