"Sakura, where are you?" called out a young man with shaggy red hair.

"Up here," a feminine voice was heard. The red-head looked up immediately, and smiled as he saw the pink-haired beauty up in a very high tree. "Catch?" she asked, though it was more like a statement considering she jumped off one of the highest branches of the tree.

Of course, the young looking male caught the pink-haired girl with ease.

"How did I ever fall in love with such a child?" he asked her, though grinning at her as he kept her in his arms. She simply giggled.

"Probably the same way I fell in love with such a stick in the mud," she told him, sticking her tongue out at him. He laughed, as did she; they both knew the red-head wasn't a true stick in the mud. He could be fun, but only she really knew that.

The pair had known each other for years now – since the pink-haired girl was merely five, and the red-head had the appearance of a young pre-teen. They met one, fateful day, when the red-head found the pink-haired girl in the middle of a dangerous forest.

A little girl with pink hair and beautiful emerald eyes was hugging her legs to her body, crying miserably. Her father had just got done beating her to a pulp; her eyes were both black, and she had many bruises up and down her body.

A young red-headed boy had been walking along in the forest, minding his own business and looking for his friend Deidara. However, on his little journey, he came across a little girl that was crying. Even though it wasn't really in his character to do so, he couldn't help but to stare at her, and eventually try to investigate what was wrong.

"Why are you crying?" he asked her, his voice obviously startling her as she suddenly looked up, her big emerald eyes wide with shock.

He was the most beautiful boy that she had ever seen, and she had seen some cute boys running around in the village. But this one...he was strangely beautiful – almost ethereal.

"Hello?" he spoke again, trying to get her attention. She clearly hadn't exactly heard him the first time.

"Huh? Oh, sorry!" she said, looking away from him immediately. "I, umm...I'm not allowed to say what happened."

"Why not?" he asked, oddly curious about the younger girl.

"Because, daddy said so," she said, looking up at him now as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

The apparent young boy finally got a perfect view of this little girl's face. He saw that both of her eyes were black, although one was significantly darker than the other. It was as if one eye had been beaten twice as much as the other. Either way, it wasn't a sight you would expect to see on a little girl. "Who gave that to you?"

"I'm not supposed to tell!" she told him. "Daddy will get mad-" And she immediately covered her mouth with both her hands. She had revealed the secret. "You can't tell anyone!"

"Hey...don't worry, I won't. I promise. Pinky swear," he said, smiling softly at the little girl and holding out his pinky for her. He still didn't entirely know why he was being so uncharacteristically nice to her, but he was.

"Thank you," she said, a soft smile now on her face, before she twined their pinkies together.

"So...mind telling me exactly what happened?"

She looked at him, her eyes cautious. She was wise for one her age.

"A-Alright. I, umm...my daddy, maybe a year ago...he came home. He smelled really funny, and I asked him about it. But he...he hit me...Daddy kept hitting me, and told me not to tell me. Or else."

"Or else what?"

"I don't know...but I really don't wanna' know," she said, looking down again.

"What does your mommy say about this? About the marks?"

"My daddy told me to tell my mommy that I just tripped or fell or something like that. But, ever since that has happened, my mommy has never asked me. She doesn't care. Every time it's just me and her in the house, she brings another man from town and is always in her room. Then he leaves; usually daddy comes home soon after. And mommy always tells me to not tell daddy, or anyone else."

The red-head was definitely in shock. This poor...innocent little girl was beaten by her father, and had to deal with both of her parents' lies? How old was she, anyway?

"How old are you?" he asked her.

"I'm five," she said, a cute little grin popped on her face. She was glad to be talking about something else. "How old are you?" she asked him.

"Uhh...older than you," he said, refusing to say more than that. "What's your name?"

"I'm Sakura," she got up and did a little kirtzie),"At your service!" she smiled again.

That made him smile; this little five-year old could still smile, even after what has happened to her. He got up and did his own bow to her, "It is a pleasure, Sakura. I am Sasori." They both giggled, and Sakura had a small hint of a blush remaining on her cheeks.

"Sakura, do you have any friends?" He knew it was a slightly rude question to ask, but he couldn't stop himself. She was a little girl, wasn't she? So where were her friends?

She looked down, "No, I don't have any. People think I'm a vampire because I have pink hair; because it's an 'unusual' hair color. So a lot of the kids just ignore me or tease me."

"Would you like me to be your friend?" he asked, lifting her chin so she would look at him. He still wasn't sure what possessed him to do this all for her.

"Really?" she asked excitedly, an ecstatic grin lit up her face.

"Yes, but on one condition."

"What is it?" she asked curiously.

"Take out your pinky," he told her. She held out her pinky for him, and they once again pinky-sweared, "I'm a vampire."

"Y-You are?" she asked, seeming shocked but also fascinated.

"Are you scared?" he asked her. She shook her head. "You can tell me the truth, you know."

"I know," she smiled that adorable smile that makes you want to smile right back at her. "I know I don't need to be afraid around you. You're my first friend, and even if you're a vampire, I think I can trust you."

He smiled right back at her. "Thanks, Sakura."

Since then, the two have been extremely close. He was her best friend, and even though he already supposedly had a best friend, she was slowly becoming his as well. But as they grew up, feelings began to change and develop. And by the time Sakura was a teenager, Sasori was already in love with her. Sakura wasn't far behind him, and it didn't take him long to realize that her feelings were the same as his – and that's when they decided to go out. And the pair have been happy together ever since.

The pair, Sakura and Sasori, didn't realize, however, just what a journey they would endure.