Author's Note~

Hey so this is my very first fan fiction to be published, so the formatting might be weird, like the spacing and everything- so please bear with me x)

Also, to anyone who happens to be reading this, I beg for honest criticism I can take it

So thank you for giving my story a chance I hope you enjoy

Chapter One *** Blossoming Friendships.

The desert sun glinted cruelly off of his steely sea-foam green eyes. The child's glare was so matured with hatred for the people around him, for the ground he walked upon, for the entire village itself and he radiated with such a blood thirsty aura that no one dared to come within strangling range. But behind that unforgiving stare- deeper and deeper past the One-Tailed beast that lurked in his subconscious, was a broken seven year old boy, crying out for the love that he was consistently being denied of.

Gaara of the desert was doomed to grow up a true monster- alone, with no one to live for but himself. Guided by the voice of a demon.

It had been an uncommonly long and painful day for Gaara. He twisted idly on his wooden swing. No children dared to come near his swing ever since he breathed upon it, even though it happened to be the only swing in the village. With bitter eyes he watched the other children run and play, completely comfortable with each other, their faces brimming with sunshine, while he loomed in the back round, a shadowy presence that they all struggled to ignore.

Their sunshine is what angered Gaara the most. While they were happy, laughing and smiling, he was sad and locked in his room of darkness. When they were embraced by loving, protective, arms- he was being shunned away no matter how hard he pleaded, and left to cry with no one to comfort him. If he couldn't feel the joy they felt- he didn't want anyone to feel it. It wasn't fair.

It's not fair!

"What not fair?"

Surprised, and more then a little scared, Gaara's head snapped up in the direction of the voice. In the first place, he hadn't realized that he'd been speaking aloud- much less expecting that anyone would hear him. Everyone in the village gave him a wide range, and if he tried to reach out to them, they shied away. His feelings didn't matter to them, and even if a soul had heard him mumbling to himself, they wouldn't have answered. He would've heard them scream. They loved to scream at the mere sight of him.

His gaze fell upon a small girl, no older then himself. She had tangled, messy blonde hair that flopped over her forehead and curled around her shoulders, and bold blue eyes that reflected the azure sky above. Her petite rose petal mouth was pulled into a tiny smile, and Gaara noticed that several of her teeth were missing- yet to grow back in.

"Who are you?" Gaara demanded, ignoring her first question. He had briefly considered ignoring her all together, but he got the gut feeling that she wasn't the sort of girl who could be so easily put off.

Her smile widened, and, increasing Gaara's shock, she sat at his feet and began talking a mile a minute.

"My name is Yumi. I'm actually quite unsure of my last name, because I'm an orphan. I don't mind being an orphan though, because I didn't know who my parent's were to begin with. I'm perfectly happy with my foster family. Or, my foster mom, anyways. She's the greatest! When the merchants come to trade we go and buy cloth and thread- but we don't actually make anything with them! We just like the pretty colors. What about you? What's your name?"

Gaara blinked several times, as if making sure that the girl wasn't an illusion, before replying. "My name is Gaara of the Desert."

"Gaara," Yumi hummed, "I like that name!"

His lips quirked, just a little twitch. Something close to a smile, and yet not quite.

"I have an idea Gaara of the Desert! How about you and me be friends?" Yumi asked, her brilliant blue eyes wide with earnestness.

"What about the other kids?" Gaara demanded before he could stop himself.

"They're frightened of me," Yumi said bluntly. A millisecond later her features contorted into an expression of worry. "You aren't scared of me to, are you Gaara of the Desert?"

The question was almost laughable- and Gaara was so taken aback that he simply stuttered, "N-no…"

Yumi sighed in relief. "I'm glad. So that means were friends, right Gaara?"

Gaara closely examined his bare feet- heart racing. I cannot lie, he should sadly, and took a deep breath.

"You should be afraid of me."

Yumi's brow furrowed. "How come?"

His words were whispered so quietly they were almost torn away by the other children's shouts and the faint whistle in the wind.

"Because I am a demon."

"That's okay," Yumi spoke without hesitation, and Gaara's breath caught in his throat.

"But why?" he choked.

"Because I'm one to."

Gaara's hope was shattered by the fist of rage and disappointment. He jumped to his feet screaming. "Don't make fun of me! Just go away and leave me alone! Never come back! I don't want to see you!"

Yumi's reaction was so unpredictable it left Gaara speechless. A moment before she had been a bright eyed, grinning, humorous child. But when she stood up to look Gaara in the eye, her eyes were darkened with anger. She shouted right back at him-

"You think I'm joking? Is it really that funny that I'm the exact same as you? Because I'm dead serious! Because- because I'm…just like you Gaara, in more way's then one…I'm-"

He saw tears beginning to well in her large eyes, just as suddenly drained of emotion and replaced with innocence.

"I'm all alone." She whimpered.

Acting on an instinct he didn't know he possessed, Gaara reached forward and pulled the sobbing girl close to his heart.

It was amazing, the effects that the two children had on each other's lives. Gaara kept Yumi's temper and random mood swings under control without either of them realizing it- and in return Yumi slowly shipped away at Gaara's brick wall of hate, bit by bit, every single day. The two were inseprable, they did everything together without question.

Through Gaara Yumi also got to know Kankuro and Temari- his older siblings.

Family was a sensitive point for Gaara, Yumi knew. Kankuro and Temari basically ignored their little brothers existence so that they to wouldn't become village rejects. However the tiny girls presence was so strong and her laughter so infectious, wherever she was (which was always with Gaara), Kankuro and Temari were drawn to them. At first the hostility that crackled between the three siblings was so strong it could be seen burning coils of smoke into the air.

But with patient tender loving care that Yumi directed towards Gaara, his two older siblings began to see him in a new light. As soon as they had accepted eachother, the four children became close friends.

However, it was still Yumi's and Gaara's bond that continuously puzzled the villagers.