Rain pattered unceasingly at the lone window of a bedroom. Lightning flashed, illuminating the outlines of two figures.
"I still don't see how the girl is important,"
The first man hissed. It was easy to picture the scowl that twisted his lips.
"Do not question me, Sasori,"
The other male spat back. His piercings shone dully against the artificial lamps, and flickered white whenever lighting chose to strike outside.
"I know what she is worth. Once we have her, you will make sure she is trained. We do not have the time to fool around; you know at least that much. And I want her trained well."
The man so clearly in charge turned to leave, cloak fluttering as he headed to the door. He paused after gripping the knob, as if he were thinking again.
"I want her with you in no less than three days. Three days, Sasori."
Then he made his leave, leaving Sasori alone to brood sullenly.
A small child opened her eyes to gaze at the black ceiling above her. She sat up, the comforter around her slipping down to rest in her lap as she turned to gaze out her window. Rain spattered in taps against the glass, and a rumble of thunder shook, causing the girl to shudder. She moved to get up, her bare feet hitting the wooden floor. She winced lightly at the cold. Maybe she should have worn socks to bed.
Standing, she headed to her door. After stepping out of her room, she rubbed at one eye as she headed to the staircase. She vaguely remembered that her mother had been sleeping downstairs for a while. Her feet hit the carpeted stairs without so much as a soft rustle of her nightclothes.
"Momma?"
The child called out, moving to go down the hallway alongside the staircase. She called out again. Still no reply. She frowned lightly, but froze at a shift from behind her.
"Your mother's not here."
The girl turned sharply, eyes widening in surprise. When had someone entered the house?
"W-What?"
She squeaked, taking a step back.
"She's not here. You're to come with me."
"No!"
She ran around him and towards the stairs. No was was she going to leave without Momma! Two strong (yet oddly gentle) hands wrapped around her waist. She struggled as he lifted her up off the ground, kicking and hitting the man with her tiny hands and feet.
"Stop."
She froze at the harshness of his voice, and then broke into quiet tears. The man scowled, shifting the girl closer to his shoulder. What had the file said about her? There was some kind of music that she was calmed with… singing? He gave a wry smile, moving to rest her head against him.
He watched as the child visibly relaxed into him as he hummed, and he reached up with a hand to brush her dark hair away from her face. He wasn't going to sing to the child, let alone get caught singing to her in the base. Tobi could do that instead; he was sure the masked idiot would happily do anything of the sort to make someone else happy.
"Momma,"
She murmured, burying her face into his neck. The man paused, then turned, stepping outside onto the porch. He opened an umbrella, frowning again at the fact that it was raining.
"Base, here we come,"
He muttered, shifting the girl in his arms before heading off. He wanted to make it back by morning.
