Swan Song Of The Sand: Aria And Gaara
Prologue:
Aria pulled down the shutters of the little glass shop she worked in and waved good bye to her boss. "Time to go home" she thought to herself, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her coat. Turning up her coat collar to guard against the swirling sand, she took a long look at the sparkling night sky framed by the skyline of the sand village. The large round moon gleamed with the light of a thousand stars, signifying the bright new start of the lunar cycle. Aria's eyes blurred with tears as memories of her haunted past drifted back to her mind. She blinked the tears away and turned away from the sky. Somehow, the memories she most wants to forget never seem to fade with time, no matter how many years have passed.
Gaara walked behind his siblings silently, moodily thinking about the disastrous battle with Kimimaro. He had gone to Konoha, thinking he could repay the debt that he owed Naruto but has instead almost gotten himself killed. It was by pure luck that Kimimaro's body had given out at that very moment or he would have suffered a fatal blow to the head. Moreover, he realized he was nowhere near understanding what Naruto had told him about protecting people precious to himself. He wasn't even sure if he would fight to protect his siblings, much less a complete stranger. Gaara was beginning to think that there would be no way he would understand the bonds between people. Like the bonds between Gai-sensei and Rock Lee, or those between Sasuke and Naruto. He didn't even feel a thing when he was faced with death. Maybe he just wasn't human after all. Maybe he was nothing like Naruto. He was just a cold-hearted monster built for destruction, devoid of emotion. just like everyone said and he would remain unloved for the rest of his life.
"We're finally home!" Kankuro's voice penetrated his hazy thoughts and he looked up to see the familiar buildings of the sand village. The dome shaped huts, the baked sand smell and the dusty wind, all part of the village he called home.
Turning his head to the left, he noticed a hunched female figure walking toward them, heading in the opposite direction. He watched the girl, with her bowed head and sorrowful gait, walk listlessly toward the gate. There just seemed to be such an air of sadness around her, as if she knew the feeling of being treated like a monster. MONSTER. The word reverberated in Gaara's head.
As if reading his thoughts, the girls head jerked up, looking straight at Gaara, revealing a pair of the most intense eyes Gaara had ever seen.
MONSTER. Aria's thoughts were interrupted by the sudden ringing of the word MONSTER In her head. She was flooded with strong emotions of pain, something like the pain she always felt. She jerked her head up, to look into a pair of the loneliest eyes she had ever seen, staring straight into hers.
"Those eyes... they are just like mine".
