Your subconscious mind can be your own enemy. It can't be controlled easily and therefor is a mysterious place and holds many secrets and things you don't understand or feel for yourself yet.

Cottony clouds littered the endless sky, and the sun was half raised. The morning was beautiful. Deidara rode atop his clay bird, following Sasori's shadow in the verdant forest below. He watched his beloved teammate closely, zooming in on him with his eye scope to completely see Hiruko.

"I wish he wasnt in that damn thing all the time. Un." the blonde said flatly to himself.

He sat down on the back of the bird, bored, and trying to relax for the short period back to the Akatsuki base.

Suddenly Hiruko stopped in his tracks below and looked up. It was too late.

Deidara suddenly shifted to his right, barely dodging an oncoming kunai to the back of his neck. A girl with red hair, clad in Hidden Mist attire grabbed Dei by the shoulders before he could react. She stared deep into his ice blue eyes, and whispered, "Kill him."

Pain shot through Deidara's head like a sudden headache. He couldn't feel himself in control of his own body anymore. He started to panic. The mist ninja had disappeared as quickly as she had come in those few moments.

Sasori, still looking up from inside his puppet, sighed to himself, "That brat..."

Deidara's mind was racing, not understanding what was going on, he felt like he could just cry. The bird beneath him did a nose dive at Sasori under the thick canopy hundreds of feet below.

"Move! Un! " Deidara yelled as the bird soared closer and closer to his teammate.

The blonde jumped off the bird into the trees before impact, Hiruko was smashed into a billion pieces. "Danna!" he screamed, tears near the edge of his eyes.

"I'm right here." a voice came from behind on another tree branch.

Once again a pain shot through Deidara's skull, forcing him to throw miniature bombs at the redhead shaped as spiders.

The last thing I wanna do is fight you Danna...

Sasori ripped off his cloak and caught the explosion in it. "Whats going on?"

Deidara began fighting his teammate in close quarters, not especially good in taijustsu but was being forced to do something.

"That girl did something to me. Un! She's a mist ninja." he said between breaths as Sasori blocked all of his attacks.

Sasori's eyes narrowed, and focused on the sound of the extra pair of footsteps running away.

"Try not to kill me." I don't want to have to kill you... Sasori jumped from tree branch to tree branch through the thick forest, away from Deidara, who was throwing bombs in all directions, and towards the footsteps of this...manipulator.

The puppet master was experienced and significantly older than most of the Akatsuki. He'd seen all kinds of justsu...but this... Usually those types you had to kill the caster to break the jutsu, and that's what he was going to do.

It seemed like hours, but only minutes had passed until Sasori caught up to his prey. He grabbed her around the waist with his abdomen's cord and pulled her back into him. There was a screech, a terrible loud shrill of the enemy's voice box before her body fell limp in the puppet master's grasp. Deidara was close behind, kneeling on the forest floor, coughing, out of breath and near out of chakra. At the moment of the ninja's death, another wave of pain overtook the blonde, he cringed and felt like his spinal cord was on fire. "Gahh!...Un." he belted out, clutching the back of his neck. After a few seconds the fire cooled and only left a slight tinge. He didn't feel the urge to kill Sasori anymore...the justsu...whatever it was, was gone.

Thank you Danna. Un. Everything started to become fuzzy, and Deidara wobbled to his feet. Sasori walked over to him and offered an arm to help him stand.

"There's a village not far from here. Lets stay the night there." he proposed at his partner.

"Yeah. Un." Deidara took his arm and leaned on it as they walked on a few miles. Maybe a little more than he needed but he enjoyed the redhead's momentary affection.

Sasori looked over at his teammate, "I thought I would have had to kill you..." I'm relieved I didn't.

The bomber nodded his head.

Sasori and with the little chakra Deidara had left, used a transformation jutsu to check into the small inn for the night. They spent the night and morning there to make sure Deidara recovered enough to make it the rest of the way to the Akatsuki base that day.

The base bordered of the Hidden Rain Village and the land of fire, that took the rest of the day to get to, leaving them to return late evening. They had an apartment style house, where all the Akatsuki members returned to when not on missions, on the outskirts of a small town. The towns people were kept under a constant genjutsu to ensure the Akatsuki could pass through without question.

They were greeted by an overly affectionate white Zetsu, "Helloooo! Pein is waiting for youuuu!" The partners entered Pein's 'office' in the base, which was merely another room converted into a makeshift workplace. The six paths stood at the back of the room, silent, as Tendo stepped forward to address the two. Sasori explained what had happened and why they were late, but they had completed their mission in the land of fire. Deidara handed over his scroll from his clay bag to Tendo Pain which contained the information he needed.

"Good. You're dismissed."

Deidara sighed as he and Sasori finally returned to their own room for the first time in a week. Either side of the room was littered with either clay or puppet parts on their owners work stations. Deidara pulled off his black Akatsuki cloak and shirt, and layed on his back on the bed, quickly falling asleep. Sasori on the other hand sat on his bed, shirtless as well, and stared at his hands.

What if I would have had to kill him...I would feel it...I would feel losing him. The redhead gripped his fists tight still staring at them. I kill everyday...Why do I feel like he would be different? Frustrated, he lied back on his bed and glared at the ceiling. There was a burn mark above his bed where Deidara had a faulty explosion. His eyes got tired of staring into the black room and let himself fall asleep for once.

A shadowy figure peered out from the darkness in the two artists' room. Interrogation time. The figure flashed to Deidara's sleeping side. They put a hand on his head, emitting a blue glow. With a gasp and huff the shadow retracted its hand quickly from the blonde Akatsuki's forehead. Again, it flashed over to Sasori, doing the same. The figure smiled. This one is weak.

An Akatsuki's mind is protected by all kinds of justsu to deflect interrogators but when they're stressed or weak... You can break them down a little easier.

Sasori's subconscious itself was a trap normally, but now... Frustrated and confused it was an easy slip for a dream walker. The figure closed their eyes and began reading into the puppet. Still nothing...Hope their dreams aren't too bad now that they've been tampered with. The manipulator stepped back into the shadows and into the night, unseen.

Sasori ripped off his cloak and caught the explosion in it. "Whats going on?"

Deidara began fighting his teammate in close quarters, not especially good in taijustsu but was being forced to do something.

"That girl did something to me. Un! She's a mist ninja." he said between breaths as Sasori blocked all of his attacks.

Sasori's eyes narrowed, and focused on the sound of the extra pair of footsteps running away.

"Try not to kill me." I don't want to have to kill you... Sasori jumped from tree branch to tree branch through the thick forest, away from Deidara, who was throwing bombs in all directions, and towards the footsteps of this...manipulator. Soon after the chase begun, it ended. The mysterious nin's footsteps disappeared. Sasori searched frantically for them, for a scent...for something that meant he wouldn't have to kill Deidara.

Another bomb climbed up the tree towards Sasori's leg. He jumped again, "Deidara fight it!"

"I can't! Un!" the blonde yelled. "I'm trying Danna...un..." No...

"NO!" Sasori screamed, as he wrapped his abdomen's cord around Deidara, drawing him near.

"I'm so sorry...Dei-"

"It's okay Danna, un...you did what you needed to...I lov-"

He drew his sword and pulled his partner towards him until it pierced him through the heart.

Sasori shot up in bed, breathing heavily, with tears tinging at his inhuman eyes. What the hell...was that? He looked around the room for his teammate frantically. Deidara laid asleep in his bed, curled up in his blanket like always. He sighed, never again. (1)

Another bomb climbed up the tree towards Sasori's leg. He jumped again, "Deidara fight it!"

"I can't!" the blonde yelled. "I'm trying Danna. Un." I'm sorry Danna...I've tried...

"NO!" Sasori screamed, as he wrapped his abdomen's cord around Deidara, drawing him near.

"I'm so sorry...Dei-"

"It's okay Danna, un...you did what you needed to...I lov-"

He drew his sword and pulled his partner towards him until it pierced him through the heart.

I love you.

Deidara woke up, eyes wide but still laying down, not wanting to disturb his partner if he were sleeping or hard at work on a puppet. He slowly got out of bead, holding his head with one hand and letting his long hair fall around his face and shoulders. He felt like he was hungover. What the hell? un.

Deidara looked around the room, expecting to find the redhead somewhere within, but he was gone. He shrugged, better that he wasn't around after whatever that was.

The main room's clock boomed with eight rings. It was morning and the Akatsuki were all moving about. Deidara grabbed his towel and headed to the bathroom to get ready for his day. Once there he started to strip, pulling off his pants and wrapping the towel around his waist, right below his hipbones.

He brushed his teeth, then his hair, guiding it perfectly in front of his left eye. Deidara dropped his towel and was halfway into the bath when the door opened, and he turned around to see who came in.

"Uhm! Un!" he sputtered, on sight.

Sasori, said nothing, became beet red, and turned, closed the door and walked back down the hall.

Deidara sank into the bath, redfaced and embarrassed. Like this isnt awkward enough. un...but his face... Could he-? No. Nope. Never. Un!

Sasori walked down the hallway to the main corridor. He was embarrassed, bright eyed and bushy tailed. He felt his face, it was hot. From the main corridor he entered the small kitchen where Hidan and Kakuzu sat talking. Well...Hidan talking.

The redhead took a glass of water to try and cool himself down and chugged it quickly. Then trying to make his way back to his room as fast as possible.