Disclaimer: Naruto's not mine…neither is the song "Not While I'm Around"

A/N: This is a sidefic to my AU that started with the story "Finding Myself In You." If you want the story of how Gaara met and married his wife, read that one.

I needed to write this as a way to break through a tiny spurt of writer's block for another story of mine.

This takes place during the sequel to the first fic. That one's called "Something To Come Home To."

On with the story, I hope you like it.

Only For You

Cries and whimpers echoed through the night and disturbed one of the occupants of the otherwise quiet apartment.

Okay, so "apartment" really meant "horrendously elegant suite of rooms." But when you're the Kazekage, you couldn't really get away with living in a small house on the edge of the village. Although sometimes Gaara thought it would be better to raise his ever-growing family away from the pressures and constant attention that came with living in the Kazekage Mansion.

The cries steadily got louder and the redhead looked over at his sleeping wife. Kina's long hair fell around her body and he noticed dark circles of weariness forming under her eyes. A silent sigh flew from his lips as he swung his feet over the edge of the bed.

I can't have both of us looking like pandas, he thought to himself. After seven years of knowing the woman—six of which they spent as husband and wife—Kina still insisted that he looked like a panda bear, much to his embarrassment and his siblings' amusement.

Gaara opened the door that connected their room to the nursery. Moonlight came in through the windows and fell across the small figure of his oldest daughter, Lilith. He smiled as he remembered the small tantrum she threw when she found out that she had to share a room with her newborn twin siblings.

At first he was appalled by his child's lack of discipline, but Kina turned the tantrum around by promising the girl her own room. Gaara wasn't sure how it happened, but an hour after his wife's promise to their daughter, he was dragged from shop to shop finding the right bed, the right bed sheets, and the right colors for Lilith's new room.

Tonight was the first night the three-year-old redhead was supposed to be in her new room.

Key word being "supposed."

He smiled as he drew her panda blanket back over her shoulders after he tucked her stuffed red kitty-cat under her arm. Kina told him that this was likely to happen, so he hesitated in removing the small bed from the room just yet. A snuffling noise from the other side of the nursery brought his attention back to his original reason for getting out of bed. He walked over to the double bassinet and looked down at his week-old twins.

It shocked the hell out of his wife when she learned she wasn't having one, but two babies. He got a good scolding from the woman and, thanks to the fact that she was a demon vessel just like he was, became deaf for the better part of a month. It was kind of nice, though. When he was deaf, no one asked him stupid questions and Kankuro took care of all of the paperwork that came with being Kazekage.

The infant that was making the noise was his daughter, Maayo. Ayo, his son, was sleeping in the same manner he did everything—which was to say: peacefully. The name Kina gave their daughter was from her father's homeland and meant "fair" while their son's name meant "order."

It didn't surprise Gaara that the child making the pitiful sounds was his daughter. Since the moment she was born, Maayo couldn't keep quiet for more than a few moments. The only time she was totally silent was when she was asleep or being fed. He leaned over the crib Maayo shared with her twin brother and picked her up.

Clear green eyes blinked up at him in surprise and then contentment as Maayo recognized the features of her father. He ran his hand down her dark hair and carefully sat down in the rocking chair near the bank of windows. Both of the newborns had his pale skin and their mother's raven hair. Lilith and Ayo both had the violet eyes of their mother.

Only Maayo, and Maayo alone, had his eyes.

Papa, a soft voice echoed in his head.

Gaara looked down at the infant in his arms and grinned. Since both he and his wife were demon vessels, all three of their children had demons of their own. But since they were a part of their humans since birth, the children's demons were much more behaved than their parents' and especially more behaved than Naruto's Kyuubi. After all, their demons were newborns as well.

The result of newborn demon residing in newborn human meant that the three Sabaku children learned at a faster rate than normal children mentally; physically, they grew the same as every other child in the world. The presence of their demons also made it possible for mother and father to speak to their children using their demons and vice versa.

Yes, pet? he answered his youngest child.

Can you? Maayo asked. Her head tilted in a way that reminded the older man of her mother and she blinked impossibly long lashes at him. Please?

Gaara sighed, kissed her soft forehead, and held one of her hands in his much larger one.

Alright, he said. But only for you.

The little girl looked up at her father with love, adoration, and trust in her eyes as she heard and felt him sing to her in a rusty, but soothing voice.

Nothing's gonna harm you
Not while I'm around
Nothing's gonna harm you
No sir, not while I'm around

Demons are prowling everywhere
Nowadays
I'll send 'em howling I don't care
I got ways

No one's gonna hurt you
No one's gonna dare
Other's can desert you
Not to worry, whistle, I'll be there

Demons'll charm you with a smile, for a while
But it time,
Nothing can harm you
Not while I'm around

Maayo curled her tiny hand around Gaara's finger and he felt a tiny string tie itself around his heart. It was only one of the many strings that the former killer knew bound and held his heart together. It wound itself with the other strings and became the pattern of his new life.

Lilith and Ayo's strings were there, as was the thick string that represented the love Kina had for him. Kankuro and Temari's lay along the pattern, as well as Shikamaru's now that he and Temari were married. Naruto, Kina's foster sister Temeki, and even Sakura wove their way into his heart.

He wasn't alone anymore.

The knowledge humbled him and brought weight to his voice as he sang.

He sat there rocking his daughter to sleep and stared out the window. He thought of the plans he had for his family and worried about the plans Akatsuki had for him. The report his spy gave him left little room for error and if the worst-case scenario came true, he didn't know how he could protect his family.

He was brought out of his thoughts by a warm hand on his shoulder.

Gaara looked up and saw the kind and beautiful face of his wife. Their son lay in her arms and she smiled at him. She knew the thoughts that ran through his head because they echoed the thoughts that went through her mind. But as she looked down at her husband, she could only repeat what he sang to their youngest child.

No one's gonna hurt you
No one's gonna dare
Other's can desert you
Not to worry, whistle, I'll be there

Demons'll charm you with a smile, for a while
But it time…
Nothing can harm you
Not while I'm around

Husband and wife spent long minutes staring at each other, each holding a newborn in their arms. Moonlight surrounded them and neither heard the quiet sound of a camera shutter click in the darkness. Lilith smiled as she lowered her trusty camera from her violet eyes.

She'd ask her Uncle Kanky to take her to the photography store tomorrow to develop the film—it was too important for her to try and do it herself.

Sabaku no Lilith was a very advanced three-year-old.