One More Surprise
Temari grabbed a pineapple from her counter top and began to slice it. "What a jerk!" she grumbled. It was almost Christmas and Shikamaru had left six days ago for a mission without telling her where or when he would be back. She was more than a little miffed that he hadn't said a word about it before hand, and was trying to keep her anger up so she could unleash it when he returned.
She made another quick slice with her huge knife, pretending that the fruit was Shikamaru's head. Juice drained out from it onto her counter, and then leaked off onto the floor. Temari snarled in disgust, and dropped a paper towel onto the liquid. Hoping it would sop up the mess, she finished cutting up the rest of the offending Shikamaru look-alike.
Once all the of the spill was cleaned up, Temari grabbed a bowl of lactose-free cottage cheese, cursing her stomach's digestive problems. She dumped some of the pineapple into it that she had slaughtered and took a seat on her old, falling apart couch. "One would think that with two shinobi in this household we could afford some decent furniture."
"Yeah, sorry bout that." Temari nearly did a spit take when she whipped her head around. It was Shikamaru, standing in the open door way, but what was more surprising was that he wasn't alone. Behind him stood Kankuro, who was holding up his young daughter.
Kankuro grinned. "Merry Christmas!" He set his offspring onto the floor and took off his winter gloves, putting them away into his warm pocket. The little girl ran over to the couch, pulled herself onto it, and then hugged her aunt with all her two-year-old might.
"Auntie!" she cried gleefully.
"Where's the lovely wife?" Temari asked Kankuro jokingly, ruffling her niece's hair.
"She wanted to meet the Hokage with Gaara, and I said 'Go right ahead!'" Temari smiled heartily when she heard her youngest brother's name enter the conversation, but then frowned.
The irritated woman turned to Shikamaru, forcing a blank expression onto her face. "Why wasn't I told about this?"
"Uh… Surprise?" She tried to glare, but then burst out laughing at his coward-like expression. He sighed in happiness.
"This day is only looking up," Temari commented, taking a bite of her food and not even minding the taste.
"I have one more surprise." Shikamaru smirked, gesturing out the doorway to something that stood on the short walkway in front of their house.
Temari's eyes lit up. "A new couch!" She cackled gleefully and jumped up from her broken lump of a seat, hopping across the room. She laid a kiss on Shikamaru and then sped out the door, leaping onto her brand new piece of comfort. She smiled and called to her family, "Best Christmas ever!"