Deidara + Isis

Isis was in her third year at the local university in Iwakakure. She already had a bachelor of fine arts, but she couldn't really get a job without an 'actual' degree, so she was majoring in philosophy this time around. She was on her way to her favourite class, aesthetic philosophy. She felt herself getting giddy as she entered the lecture hall and took a seat in the back. There was this androgynous and eerily sexy guy in this class who drove Isis completely mental. He had long blonde hair, covering half of his face. All that was visible was one big, sky blue eye and his beautiful full lips. Isis considered herself full grown, but this guy...he made her feel like a teenager again. Her breath hitched in her throat as she watched him come in and sit a few rows ahead of her. She watched him in a daze, every moment wishing that she was sitting next to him. He looked like an artist, too.

"Welcome, class." The professor began. Isis grudgingly tore her gaze from the beautiful creature in front of her to her ordinary looking prof. "We're going to pick up where we left off last time. No more questions about what art is, please. You may ask about that closer to the mid-term but we're going to move past that now. Today we're continuing with the debate about how art should exist in our world. Should art aim to be everlasting or fleeting?"

The lecture was long, but very interesting. Isis took more notes than usual. This was a touchy subject for her. On the one hand, she would like to think art is everlasting. But art is just a component of short, mortal lives, and as such, art should reflect that. She clutched her books to her stomach and slowly walked away from campus and towards her apartment.

"Interesting lecture, eh? What are your thoughts on the matter?" Isis heard a deep voice walking slightly behind ask this poignant question. She turned around and was horrified to see the androgynous creature she beloved so much was talking to her. She had rehearsed this moment a thousand times in her head. She blushed and tucked some stray hair behind her ear.

"I think that art is temporary. It's not subtle, it's loud, abrubt, forceful..."

"...a bang, right?"

"Yeah. I guess. I can find reasons for art to be eternal, but it just doesn't make much sense. I truly believe art is fleeting. What about you?"

"I feel the same way. It's so refreshing to hear you describe it like that. I hate it when people try to preserve art because it's somehow so much better than modern art. You're beautiful." He said. Isis laughed. "What's your name?"

"I'm Isis." She said.

"My name's Deidara. You're not busy now, are you?"

"No, that was my last class." Isis stopped walking and gave Deidara a good look-over. He was even more beautiful up close. He was tall and thin, and his chin was small and round. She swallowed hard. Isis wanted him so badly.

"Could I persuade you to come to dinner with me tonight?"

"Let's skip the foreplay. Come over to my place." Deidara grinned and laughed.

"Right now?"

"Yes." Isis was surprised to hear how bold she sounded. And presumptuous! She didn't even stop to think if this guy liked her at all. Maybe he was gay, she didn't know anything about him and she pretty much just invited him into her bed.

"Alright. Let's go, then."

It had been three months since Deidara came over to Isis's apartment. Since then they became a couple. Every day, Isis woke up and was surprised to see this enigma on her pillow. At first she couldn't believe her luck, but slowly she started to make sense of it all. Her and Deidara were almost identical. School had just ended, and she had a long summer ahead of her before she started her final year. Deidara had strange habits of disappearing for a few days on end, and then coming home to her on some high. At first she thought he was a drug addict, it happens to people often in the art community, but she soon realised he wasn't. She was still puzzled about what he was up to, and he shut her out when she asked about it. She thought it had something to do with the creepy mouths he had on his hands and the scar on his chest. She felt dread in her gut about the whole situation.

"Isis?" Deidara asked. He appeared in the doorway, after being gone for four days. Isis did not greet him, instead she continued to eat her breakfast while reading the morning paper. "Isis, darling. What's wrong?" Isis sighed and leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes.

"What do you think is wrong, Dei?"

"Alright, fine. You want to know the truth about me right?"

"I'm afraid to know." Deidara grabbed Isis around the shoulders and her eyes widened in shock.

"Isis, don't say that. I'm not what you think I am. I'm not a druggie."

"I know." Isis shrugged his hands off of her and she grabbed her empty plate and brought it over to the sink. He followed her and when she was done he literally picked her up and walked with her over his shoulder into the bedroom. He placed her on the bed, put his hands on her shoulders and one thigh on either side of her.

"I love you, Isis. I've never told anyone what I'm about to tell you. You know my little exploding sculptures?"

"Yeah,"

"Well, I make them in big sizes. And people like to buy them. They use them for...well, I don't know exactly what for."

"Oh my god,"

"Isis,"

"You're the terrorist they're all talking about. You're a criminal, Deidara. You've killed people."

"I'm a shinobi, of course I've killed people." Deidara replied darkly. "I'm not exactly proud of what I do, but it's what I do. I can't live without it. This is my art, and I will let it be appreciated anyway it can." Isis started to cry, and when Deidara saw Isis crying, he started crying too. Isis looked him right in his blue eyes.

"I love you anyway." She whispered. "Nothing could keep me from you." Deidara laughed and cried happily.

"For once in my life, I see pure love staring right back...right back at me. At me." Isis smiled. He was reciting their poem. They wrote it together one evening a few weeks ago, when Isis complained that the wimpy recitation of 'I love you' wasn't strong enough to convey her feelings. "You are my angel, you are my diamond, you are my guiding light."

"I've seen the future, I've been to the bottom, but you keep my head above." Isis said.

"You are my Jesus, You are my saviour, You are all that is love."

"You're all that is love. You are my diamond, You are my angel, You are my guiding light." Isis quickly wiped her face dry.

"Speaking of diamonds," Deidara said. "I got you a little bauble while I was gone." Deidara fished in his pocket and took out a small box. He slid off of Isis and onto the floor, kneeling in front of her. "I knew that if you could accept me for who I am, then you were the only one for me. There can't be anyone in this world who could make me happier than you. I love you terribly, Isis. I want you t be mine forever." He took the lid off the box and inside was a tiny, thin, silver band. In the center was a small, blue diamond. "Will you do me the immense honour of marrying me?" Deidara asked quietly. Isis shook her head with disbelief.

"Is this a dream?" She asked rhetorically. She lied down, leaving Deidara on his knees next to the bed. "What's the rush? I've only known you a few months."

"What's the point of waiting? We're in love."

"Love is like our art, Deidara. It won't last forever." Isis said.

"Don't say that."

"It's true! It's true and you know it."

"No. I don't believe that for a second. True love never dies. I will always love you." Isis sat up and Deidara sat on the bed with her. He put his arm around her, and she put her hand in his lap. He slid the ring on her finger and smiled with satisfaction.

"Let's get this over with as soon as possible." Isis said.

"We'll get married tomorrow." Deidara replied. He kissed Isis deeply. She was suddenly reminded at how physically attracted to Deidara she was when they first met. Those feelings flooded back as she felt a heat that was burning to have him inside of her. He could sense her change and he slipped the straps of her dress off of her shoulders. It was nine in the morning, Isis was already late for work. They made love the rest of the day anyway and didn't put clothes on until the next day, when Isis went to work completely tired from not sleeping and explained to her boss she was too sick to come in yesterday.

When Isis got back home from work, she ran to her bed and went to sleep. She woke up at four the next morning. Deidara wasn't anywhere in the apartment. Isis was worried that he had left again. Then Isis took a good look around her at the apartment. Chairs were turned over, coffee was spilled on the counter from a broken mug, papers and magazines were on the floor everywhere. Isis didn't have to be a shinobi to realize there had been a struggle in her apartment. Suddenly filled with fear, she ran out of the apartment and to the police station nine blocks away. She was still wearing her work clothes, but she had been in such a hurry that she was barefoot. "I need to report a missing person!" She said breathlessly to an officer at the front desk.

Six months pregnant and with a fiancé declared a missing-nin, Isis left Iwakakure. The memories were too painful. Two months into school she couldn't take it, and gave up on getting a degree. She packed nothing but a change of clothes and her entire savings. She emptied Deidara's bank account, too. She ended up in Konoha, rented a small apartment, and bought baby clothes, a crib, and more diapers than any one store would every carry. One morning, a few days after moving in, she had a craving for ramen. She decided to go to her new favourite stand in town. She walked a few blocks down her street when it came into view. She took a seat, the only customer inside. "Hello," She said to the noodle-man.

"Hello, Isis. What would you like?"

"Miso ramen, please." She said. A man came and sat next to her at the stand. Then, a woman she took to be the noodle-man's son brought two bowls of miso ramen to Isis and the man beside her.

"Hi! I'm Naruto." The man greeted her. He smiled widely and Isis involuntarily smiled back.

"Hi. I'm Isis." She said. He looked down at her belly.

"Wow, are you pregnant?"

"I'm six months along." Isis told him.

"Boy or girl?"

"Both," Isis said solemnly. "I'm having twins."

"Wow! That's a handful." Naruto and Isis started eating their ramen. "Where are you from? Wait, don't tell me, Iwakakure?" Isis was surprised.

"Yeah, I am. How can you tell?"

"Well, you're beautiful. The Iwa are well built." Isis started at Naruto. He started back, eyes full of curiosity. Aside from the weird, paint brush strokes on his cheeks, he kind of looked like Deidara. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Isis sadly looked down to her ramen. "What's wrong?" Naruto asked. Isis could see that Naruto was the kind to walk into strangers lives.

"Nothing." Isis said, as she ate her ramen some more. "I don't know why I'm eating this, I used to hate ramen, but since I've been pregnant I can't get enough." Isis said, trying to change the subject.

"I've always liked ramen. It's pretty much the only thing I eat." Naruto watched Isis eat. She was amazing. Maybe all women look good when they're pregnant, but everything Isis did was beautiful and graceful. Like she was from a painting. She was the complete opposite of Naruto. She moved fluidly. If Naruto tried to imitate her movements, he'd look like a retard; it just wouldn't suit him. But this Isis was like a freeking swan or something. "Can I ask you a question? I bet you get this all the time, but I'd really like to be your friend, and as your friend it's a perfectly normal question."

"But you're not my friend now, are you?"

"Can I be from now on?" Isis laughed.

"Okay, friend. Ask away, but I think I already know what you want to know."

"...father," Naruto asked. "I guess I want to know if you're single is all." Isis breathed deeply, unsure of how to explain her predicament.

"Six months ago," she began. "No, must begin earlier. I was almost finished my third year in philosophy when I met a man. He was perfect, except he was like me. We love each other. He asked me to marry him a few months later. The next day, I saw that our apartment was in shambles, like he had been in a struggle, or someone had looked in our apartment for something. He used to go out of town for a few days on end, then return, but I had this feeling that he wasn't coming back. Like he couldn't. Like someone was standing between him and I. A few weeks later I found out I was pregnant.

"I made plans to come here, rent an apartment and such, and I found out I was having twins. So I stayed a bit longer than I wanted to, making sure to sell everything I had, and empty all my accounts. I had to drop out of school. And I came here. I haven't seen or heard anything about him since that night he proposed. I just left for work, came back, and my life was upside down." Isis was surprised to find herself spilling her guts to a complete stranger, but Naruto seemed like someone Isis could trust. Besides, they were friends now.

"What do you think happened?" Isis knew exactly what had happened. He must have gotten into some sort of trouble with his illicit art sales. Someone must have killed him. Isis shrugged and fished around in her bowl for the last few pieces of tofu. "Isis, if there's anything I can do for you, let me know. You're my friend now. I want to help you-"

"I don't need help."

Isis grew fond of Naruto, and he hung around her all the time. When he wasn't busy training, he came to her house as early as she would open the door for him, and he left when she went to sleep. He kept asking how he could help her, but she flat out refused. She enjoyed his company, but she wanted her kids to know that their mom was strong for them, and did it all on her own.

"I want to be there for you." Naruto repeated for the hundredth time to Isis, one night at her house. She was a few days late now, and she was due to pop at any moment. "You're the size of a house," Naruto mumbled.

"Why are you so interested?" Isis laughed. "What is it about me that you feel the need to hold my hand through it all? I'm a smart girl, Naruto. I have almost two degrees. Anything you can do you can do, I can do better." Naruto was quiet for a moment while Isis watched him.

"Yeah, you're probably right. I grew up without parents, Isis. I see that you're hurt because you're fiancé is gone. That's going to affect your kids if you live life looking over your shoulder for him. I want to be there so you and your kids have someone."

"You are no substitute for a father, Naruto." Isis said sternly.

"I know, that's not what I mean."

"I wanna go for a walk." Isis said. She tried to get up, and Naruto was beside her in a flash, helping her off the couch. Isis opened her eyes wide as she felt wet trickle down her legs and an unbelievable pain in her abdomen. "Oh no," She said.

"HOLY FUCK! They're coming!" Naruto yelled. Slowly and gently, he picked her up and carried her out of her apartment, walking quickly towards the hospital. "Holy fuck, Holy fuck," Naruto muttered.

"I can walk." Isis said, refusing to hold onto him as he carried her. Naruto ignored her.

"Hopefully they're expecting you." He said. He kicked open the doors of the emergency room and half a dozen orderlies and nurses teetered over to them. Twelve hours later, Isis was finished pushing out her kids. It felt like she had the million-year flu. She had the chills and was so tired she could barely keep her eyes open. She told Naruto to name the twins, and she fell asleep. Naruto stood at the counter with the nurse. "Can't you wait for her to wake up again?"

"She asked you to do it. Don't you want to pick their names? You're the father, right?" Naruto stared at the nurse.

"Yeah." He said decisively.

"With all that blonde hair, they sure look like you." The nurse said. "So, what are you going to call them?"

"The girl is...Raina. And the boy...is...River." The nurse wrote them down and gave the birth certificates to Naruto, who walked back into the room where Isis was. She opened her eyes when she heard him come in.

"How long have I been asleep?" She asked.

"Like, twenty minutes." Naruto said. "I named them." He handed the birth certificates to Isis who snatched them and greedily looked at them.

"Raina and River?"

"Is that okay?"

"That's perfect. Thanks so much." Isis looked at the certificates some more. "Uh, Naruto. They wrote you down as the father." Isis said. Naruto looked at Isis. He put his hands in his pockets and switched the weight from one leg to the other, staring at her. Isis' eyes widened. "You can't mean that." Isis said.

"Believe it."

"But we can't, it's a lie." Isis said.

"If you give this to me, Isis, I will give you all I have and more. There is nothing I want more than you," He pointed to the two babies in the plastic crib next to her. "And them. If you let me be in your family, I promise that you will have me forever." Isis heard his words and knew that they were not empty promises. Naruto was strong willed and true, and Isis trusted him. Raina gurgled from the crib. Naruto and Isis looked over.

"You can hold her." Isis said. Naruto carefully picked her up and brought her over to Isis so she could see her daughter. "Look at your blonde hair," Isis said, petting Raina's head. "Just like daddy's," Naruto's eyes met her gaze and Isis softly ran her fingers through Naruto's hair. Isis laughed, and Naruto cried tears of amazement as he held his daughter.

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What Deidara told Isis was the truth, true love never dies. There wasn't a month that went by her whole life after the twins that she didn't think about Deidara. Her love for him ran deep. Naruto became a father for Raina and River. He loved them more than he could have loved his own children. By the time the twins were two, Naruto became the Hokage, and he asked Isis to marry him. Thinking only of her children and of Naruto's reputation, Isis accepted. The first kiss she shared with Naruto was on their wedding day. Isis began to love him just as much as he loved her, and with each year that passed, Naruto slowly filled the void Deidara had left in Isis' heart.

Isis + Deidara's poem is from the song "The Guide" by Borne