She glided stealthily as a panther in the darkness, her footsteps never making even the slightest of sounds. By the time she had reached her destination, a bead of sweat had formed on her slightly pale brow. She quickly wiped it off and knocked hesitantly on the large, orient door.
"Hello, Konan." The orange haired male greeted her in an almost monotone voice.
"Nagato, may I come in?" she met his eyes and for the briefest of moments, saw her old friend; the one whom she used to caress in the middle of the night when he had nightmares about his parents.
Nagato, or rather, the Deva Path led her into his bedroom and she walked in slowly. The tall man in front of her was so different from who he used to be, and not just physically. Konan, however, knew better. She knew that inside of Yahiko's body there existed Nagato, her childhood friend and almost lover. Days of long gone came back of her as Nagato wrapped his arms around her and she felt as if she were crying on the inside. There were days of great joy, like when the three of them had gotten started as a group. She remembered the smile on Nagato's face as she invited them into their shelter. She could still smell the rain on that day and feel the warmth that emitted from Yahiko and Nagato. She could still feel the embrace of her boys. There were also days that hadn't been mentioned since Nagato became Pain and Konan his faithful partner. Those were the days of her tenderly holding him when his body was wracked with sobs from the heartache of his departed family. But she knew that pain too and she knew it just as well as he did. The day she saw Nagato smile was a memory that was forever burned into her heart and she hoped that he remembered how happy she used to be.
But not all memories are meant to last. Even now, in Yahiko's arms, Konan could feel herself forgetting how he sounded and that frightened her. Yahiko used to be able to speak in a way that made everyone want to listen and she always thought that his speeches would be something that she never forgot. She shuddered at the terror of forgetting her beloved's most notable characteristic.
"Are you cold?" It was Yahiko's voice and Yahiko's body, but it wasn't Yahiko. Instead it was Nagato. She refused to acknowledge him as Pain.
"No, but I'm starting to forget how you used to sound." She knew that Nagato would realize who she was talking about.
Nagato's words brought another memory to her mind and it was one that Yahiko shared as well. Nagato, even though in control of the now-deceased shinobi's body, did not have access to the memory that lay within.
It was a rainy and bitter cold night. Konan remembered the icicles that had formed on her hair and the fear of being slowly frozen to death. She and Yahiko had already been together for a decent amount of time and she could feel his gaze on her turned back as she curled into a tighter fetal position.
"Are you cold?" Yahiko's words sliced through the dull air and she had instantly jolted.
"No, I'm fine. It's not anything worse than usual," Konan had tried to smile to reassure him, but her facial muscles had been numbed to the point of immobility.
"Here," he had shed his own sleeping back and was busy wrapping it around her shivering frame.
This action brought Konan to bolt upright in protest.
"Don't be such an idiot! You'll catch your death!" she scolded him before peeling off the layer of warmth and forcing it back to him.
"Well I can't exactly sleep with your teeth chattering," Yahiko joked before accepting the blanket.
Konan stuck out her tongue playfully at him and settled down to try and sleep. A moment later, she could feel a warmth next to her body and looked over to see Yahiko with a light pink tinge on his cheeks.
"For warmth," he had insisted.
Whatever the reason, Konan never forgot the night that she had slept so intimately with her friend. And she never forgot how exhilarating it felt to wake up the next morning with a lean arm slung protectively over her.
Yahiko's lips found her hair and the kunoichi was snapped out of reverie. She felt herself relax into Yahiko's arms as she had done so many times before. But this time was different, there was more fidelity in his clutch and Konan relished every second of it.
"What did you come here for?" his tone was clipped but Konan could hear the fervor in them.
"I want a piercing," she stated, still melded into him.
Nagato straightened himself and she followed suit.
"You don't need a piercing to satisfy me," Nagato told her almost sternly. "You are fine just the way you are."
Konan sighed and walked over to his mirror, taking a look at herself.
"Perhaps I want one," she said to her senior and turned to him.
Nagato couldn't help but feel hopeless at Konan's words. Her angelic face was just so innocent and pure that he couldn't help but not want to mar it with something as insipid as a piercing.
"These are just a necessity that comes with living through Yahiko's body," he motioned to the Deva Path's piercing-covered body.
'I know," the words she spoke were enough to sway Nagato.
However, it was going to take more than words for him to subject his beloved to such pain. He leaned forward and gently brushed a strand of her cobalt blue hair away from her eyes. Those eyes were brimming with emotion, yet Nagato was unable to decipher any of it. He closed the space between them as Konan turned back to her reflection.
"Where would you want it?" he asked softly.
In the end both knew that Konan would get what she wanted. Nagato always gave her what she wanted. She had supposed it was due to the fact that life was so fleetingly short that Nagato never wanted her to be unhappy. When the three were with Yahiko they suffered constantly and now that they had everything they needed, Nagato didn't want to make Konan regret being saved by the ambitious orange-haired ninja. Everything he did was for her as much as for him. The Deva Path was to provide comfort for her and became an outlet to means of socialization for him.
"I was thinking a labret piercing," Konan said, tentatively stroking his own snakebites.
His eyebrows rose at the fact that she even knew what it was called. He looked at her reflection, trying to picture his cherished Konan with a piercing. She knew all about how it worked, she had watched him pierce every one of his six bodies and had even helped with a few. If Konan wanted a piercing Nagato was sure that she knew what she was talking about.
"Are you sure?" he reaffirmed.
She nodded, turning back to him with determination in her compassionate deep amber. eyes.
"Very well then. Come," he lead her to his bed and beckoned her to lie down.
She complied while he opened a small box containing the piercing. Out of another, he pulled a small needle, almost nervous as to what he was about to do.
"Lie still for a minute," he commanded gently as he studied her profile.
The piercing had to be placed just right both for her safety and her comfort. Nagato couldn't help but let his eyes linger over Konan's visage; she was so breath-taking in his mind. Through Yahiko's eyes he saw two amber pools, a deep, rich color which he could feel himself getting lost in. He forced himself to look at her lips, near the spot where he would soon be piercing and saw pale pink lips that perfectly suited her. They weren't too plump, nor were they thin. He was tempted to lean over and capture them with his own, but feared her reaction. Instead he forced himself to reel away from Konan's captivating beauty and focus on the task at hand.
Nagato made a mental note as to where the piercing would go and grabbed a pen to mark it with. Once satisfied with the location of the piercing, he found a small hand mirror from under a pile of papers and handed it to her.
"Is this ok for you?" he asked.
Konan took the mirror and glanced at it for the briefest of moments before responding.
"Yes, it's perfect," she said, handing back the mirror to him.
He nodded and quickly sterilized the needle with a fire jutsu. He blew on it for a moment to let it cool down before positioning the head at the mark.
"It'll hurt," he warned her.
"I'm fine," Konan assured him, though he heard the tone of anxiety in her voice.
He nodded and let the head rest against her unblemished skin before pricking her skin and easing it through the rest. He watched as her face twisted in agony and his heart instantly sank. He was the one who had done this to her, he was the one to inflict this torture upon his angel. Her miserable expression lasted only a second, but Nagato knew that he would never relieve himself of the memory of her ethereal face consumed by pain.
Now, he slowly slid the needle out halfway and gingerly pushed the head of the piercing in. Konan breathed hard beneath him, but he continued none-the-less until the piercing was fully in place. As soon as his hands wavered from her face he saw her take a deep breath of relief.
"You look beautiful, just as you always have," he murmured above her, his lips close to her ear.
"Thank you," she replied breathlessly, though whether it was for the compliment or for the piercing she wasn't sure.
Nagato then leaned down and gently captured her lips with his. She responded just as chastely and when he pulled away, he kept his face within close proximity of hers. She was surprised when he leaned down and kissed her again, lower this time so that it was on her new piercing. It throbbed with a dull pain, but Nagato soon pulled away.
"Stay here tonight," he pleaded quietly.
"Of course," and she gave into her body's wants as he leaned to kiss her again.