Cold November Rain
DEIDARA'S POV
I don't know why it had to end like this. I don't want to die like this. But how can my artwork ever reach true perfection when I've lost the most precious thing to me? It's so cold..
My eyes flicker open. I can feel the merciless rain slipping down my face, dripping into the cuts carved into my pale skin, slithering into the mud I lie in. I take in the surroundings in front of me. Bleak, grey trees stretch out in unending lines, each fading into another as my vision grows ever more blurry with tears. My entire body screams out in agony as I attempt to crawl forwards. Sticky, wet mud clings to my ripped cloak and exposed parts of skin, seeping into the deep gashes in my flesh. Undeterred, I continue on the path, teeth making loud grinding noises as I grit them to stop myself from crying out. I want to see him… Just once more…
"Sasori-Danna, un!" I call out, struggling to keep up with the long strides of the redhead in front. "Wait up, un!"
However he doesn't stop, nor does he slow down. I brush my blond hair out of my visible eye, and give my Danna a worried glance. Ever since we left the village, he hasn't said a word to me. He won't walk near me either. If I catch up, he just doubles his speed until he's miles in front again. I can't think of what I could have done to annoy him, unless..
No. Sasori-Danna should understand by now. He knows me… doesn't he? Does he care…?
I shake my head, then jog till I'm right behind my Danna.
"Sasori-Danna, un?" I wait for a reply, which I don't receive. Sighing, I continue. "Have I done something to make you mad, un? Because if I have, un, I'm s -"
"WILL YOU JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP?!"
Danna's yell makes me take a step back and he whirls around. "U…Un?"
"ALL DAY LONG YOU DO NOT SHUT THE FUCK UP! YOU ARE ALWAYS WHINING IN MY EAR, AND I AM FUCKING SICK OF IT! JUST PISS OFF, DEIDARA, AND LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!!" He bellows, so loudly that several birds nesting in the trees on our right take flight in panic. He then turns on his heel and stomps off, unknowing of the searing pain his words caused.
Uncaring that my heart is now tearing itself into a million tiny pieces.
Oblivious to how the burning hatred blazing in his furious red eyes made me want to crawl into a hole and just die.
The rain has soaked through my cloak, making it stick to my blood-covered skin, doubling my agony. I force my shaking hands into the wet ground, and pull myself forwards another few centimetres.
I cough violently, and see blood shooting out of my mouth and splattering on the wet ground.
Can't stop… Can't give up… Have to see him…
The tears that had been threatening to fall before did so, without showing any signs of stopping. I gulp hard, tasting yet more blood inside my mouth, feeling it slipping down my throat. I shudder, before digging aching, numb hands into the mud again and pulling my broken and bleeding body forwards, wishing that soon my pain will stop.
Whatever I did, I'm so sorry…
If Tobi can pull this off, how hard can it possibly be? No offence to him or whatever, but he's an idiot. Carefully, I place the dirty bowls and spoons into the sink, and grab a plate from a shelf above my head and a sharp knife from the drawer.
"Nothing perks someone up like a good brownie, un!" I say determinedly, leaning against the fridge where the precious rectangular tin of chocolate was cooling after being in the oven.
"Wow! Sempai's making brownies?!"
Oh no…
I grimace as Tobi runs into the kitchen, slips on a splodge of brownie mixture I must have accidentally dropped on the floor, and goes flying right onto his back. He immediately leaps back up onto his feet, and stares at me, head tilted to the side slightly.
"Yeah, un."
"Can Tobi have some, pleeeeeease Sempai? Tobi loves brownies!"
I shake my head. "These are for Sasori-Danna, un, and no-one else."
"Sasori-San?"
"Yes, un. I annoyed him when we were on our mission earlier, and this is my special way of showing him that I'm sorry, un."
"But Sasori-San doesn't eat…" Tobi says, sounding highly confused.
"He does sometimes, un." I say, smiling slightly.
Silence. For about three seconds.
"Pleeeeease Sempaiii…" Tobi whines, tilting his head even more to the side, clasping his hands in a sort of pleading look. "Just one little slice, then Tobi will leave Sempai alone, so please pity Tobi?"
I sigh heavily, blowing the strands of blond hair resting across my mouth at the time gently forwards. I open the fridge and carefully pull out the metal tin. Tobi watches me fixatedly as I place the tin on the counter in front of both of us, and cut the mixture inside into nine rectangles.
"You think Sasori-Danna will like them?" I ask, taking a rectangle of chocolate brownie and dropping it in Tobi's surprised hands. The newest member of Akatsuki looks up at me.
"If Sempai made them for Sasori-San, then Sasori-San should love them! Tobi thinks though Sempai, just to be safe, Sempai should write Sasori-San an apology note as well!"
I grin. "Thanks Tobi, un."
Can't stop…
Have to see him…
Have to let him know I'm sorry…
I walk along the corridor to Sasori-Danna's room, the plate held tightly in my grasp. The eight brownie rectangles are piled up on one side, with a corner of the note tucked under one of them to keep it there. I smile, just knowing that this should stop Danna being mad.
I knock on the door, hoping that he won't be working on one of his puppets. If he was, I was as good as dead. If there's one thing Sasori-Danna hates, it's being interrupted while he works. However, there's no noises from within the room; no sounds of bench legs scraping against floors as they are pushed backwards, no yells from the puppeteer himself, just nothing. Maybe he's not in there.
I shrug my shoulders, and let myself into his room. I'll put the brownies on his bed, that way he'll see them when he walks in, I decide, and casually wander over to the bed laying in the middle of the room, and gently place the plate in the centre. That's when a shiver runs down my spine. I've never liked being in Danna's room, his puppets creep me out. The way they dangle from the ceiling, just watching. Scares me.
I shudder, and start on my way back to the closed door I came through, this time not as carefully as I had before. When I was first coming in to deliver my gift, I had been tentative, because I didn't want to trip and ruin the brownies. But now, I was much more careless.
Suddenly, my foot got tangled up in something; I couldn't tell what, the room was too dark. I struggled, trying to free myself, panic rising. In my haste, whatever I was trapped in moved, and I fell over… Right on top of one of Danna's most prized puppets. I heard the sound of splintering wood and dull clunks as parts bounced off the floor and walls.
"Shit, un!!" I squeaked.
"Shit is right, brat."
My heart sank. I lifted my head up to be greeted by Danna's cold, fury-filled eyes.
"Danna, I can explain!" "I don't want to hear any pitiful excuses, brat."
"Please listen Danna! I was just -"
"SHUT. UP." Sasori spits, before storming forwards and grabbing me by the front of the cloak. "As far as I am concerned, we are no longer partners. Now LEAVE."
He then lifts me up and throws me from the room. I sprawl in a heap on the carpet outside as his door slams shut. I place a shaking hand on my chest. My heart hurts. It feels like it's cracking.
I freeze, my legs so numb it hurts to drag them further. My heart is pounding unbelievably hard against my chest as the cold of the rain and wind sends shiver after shiver up and down my spine, turning my entire body to ice. The mud seeps into the rips in my shirt as well now, soaking into the most painful gashes on my stomach.
I whimper, tears still rolling steadily down my face, mixing with the rainwater. The wind blows harshly over my already quaking body, and with it dropping yet more rain on me. Even worse, it picked up a few loose tiny chunks of soil from under the leaves of the trees, and they are now sliding into my cuts and gashes, making my pain almost impossible to bear.
I tuck my legs up against my chest and sob uncontrollably.
"Danna.." I whisper softly. "Sasori-Danna.."
ARGH!
That couldn't have gone worse if I tried..
I pick myself up from the floor, and rub my cheek where I slid on it when I landed. It stung as my fingers grazed it. Ouch. I shake my head and stare at the door in front of me. Now I have to apologise again.
I knock timidly on the door again, flinching when I hear movement inside because I thought Danna might come out and beat my brains out. When nothing happens, I gulp past a lump lodged in my throat, and try again. This time, the noises of Sasori-Danna fixing his puppet from within the room get louder. I realise with a pang that he's ignoring me.
Shaking slightly, I knock once more.
"Sasori-Danna, un..? I know you're mad at me, but I just want you to know that I'm so sorry, un. I didn't mean to annoy you un, or break your puppet, I just wanted to show you that I was sorry, un. That's what the brownies are for, un."
I jump as the door is opened with such force, it sends an echoing bang all around the base as it slams against the wall. I take a slight step back as Sasori-Danna stands in the doorway, holding the plate of brownies. For a second, I think he's decided to forgive me. But then he throws the plate to the floor, and raises his foot and stamps repeatedly on the chocolate snack I'd spent most of the afternoon perfecting. He then looks up at me, his eyes still blazing brightly with a look of absolute hatred.
"That's what I think of your fucking apology, brat." He snarls, then slams the door in my face once more.
I shudder, my breath coming out as a cloud of condensation as it hits the air. Reluctantly, I push my legs backwards through the thick mud, and slowly place my aching hands in the mud just below my chest, and push upwards. I have to try and walk.
My body screams out in protest as I force it into an upright position, each movement a battle on its own. I take one shuddering step, before I cry out in agony, and collapse into the mud again, the broken ribs becoming even more shattered.
"Sempai?"
I continue to stare at the wall straight in front of me, not even aware of Tobi's presence.
"Sempai, what's the matter?"
My body begins to shake as I remember everything that happened today; the trauma with the mission, annoying Sasori-Danna, trying to make it up to him, having it blow up in my face.
"Sempai, please answer Tobi!"
I feel sick. So sick. If I'd just let him cool off on his own, he would have stopped being mad with me by now surely. Instead, because I tried to force him to forgive me, he is now even more pissed.
I hear Tobi take an intake of breath to speak again, but he is interrupted by the sound of a door creaking open behind us, and someone walking into the kitchen. I turn my head just in time to see the flash of red hair. Instantly, I leap to my feet and scurry after Sasori-Danna, desperate to make up.
I find him standing by the sink, gulping down a glass of water.
"Sasori-Danna, un…?" I say, my voice trembling out of fear.
He says nothing, but glares at me, those horrible eyes of total loathing piercing straight through my already shattering heart.
"Can you please forgive me, un…?"
He slams the glass down onto the counter. I start, and begin to shake.
"Please Danna, un…" I beg.
He starts to walk towards the kitchen exit, but as he passes by I grab his arm. He stops and turns back to me, eyes blazing once again.
"Let go." Every syllable is filled with poison.
I shake my head. "I can't Danna, un. If I do, I'll lose you again.." I say desperately.
"You never had me, brat."
"Please, Danna un!!" I scream, tears forming in my eyes once more.
"I don't have the time to play games with you, you foolish brat."
"Danna please, un!" I beg, tears rolling down my cheeks. "I.. I love you, un.."
I never wanted to tell him like that, it just slipped out. Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck..
Laughter.
I looked up into Danna's face, and saw him wearing a huge grin. Before I can say anything, his balled fist comes out of nowhere and makes contact on the same cheek as the carpet burn. I cry out, and release his arm, falling chin first onto the tiles kitchen floor.
"Grow up, brat." He growls, then leaves.
Leaves me sobbing on the floor, whatever pieces of my heart that were remaining now tearing themselves into tiny little shreds.
I try to stop another sob escaping my throat. I swallow, and wipe my eyes with one of my arms. I have to be stronger than this. I have to see him again, just to tell him how sorry I am..
I force my ice cold hands back into the mud, and use them to pull myself forwards once more. Before I can move however, a foot slams into my hand, painfully trapping it underground.
Two more pairs of feet join the first.
Finally, release from the pain.
Danna…
SASORI'S POV
I push off from another thick tree branch, my cloak billowing in the strong wind as I run, the rain that had soaked into my hair being left behind in a trail of dew as it slipped down.
"Damn you, brat.."
I give the wood a final polish, and allow my arm to rest at my side, looking down at my handiwork. I give a small smile as I lay the newly repaired puppet on the bed, and drop the cloth I was using to polish it next to it. I stand, and stretch my arms.
"Guess I've let the brat suffer enough.." I say, heading for the door, and stepping out into the living room. Laying on the sofa, I spot Kisame trying to talk to what looks like a panicking Tobi who has his back to me, and a sleeping Itachi. Deidara is no longer there. I cross over the room and look into the kitchen, but he wasn't lying where I left him.
I double back, and head along several corridors until I reach the room I'm looking for; Deidara's. I knock, then after getting annoyed at being made to wait, open the door and look in. He wasn't in there.
Confused, I walked back to the living room. During the short time I had been gone for, Tobi has disappeared, and Itachi was sitting up, rubbing his eyes vigorously. Unable to think of anything myself, I walked over to the two, and leant on the back of the sofa Itachi was sitting on.
"Either of you two seen Deidara?"
Kisame shakes his head. "Sorry, not since this morning."
Itachi, however, is not as helpful.
"You worried about him Sasori?"
"Hell no!" I spit furiously, glaring at the Uchiha. "I just want to have a word with him about our mission, that's all."
"Awh, it's sweet how one person can worry over another, isn't it?"
I hiss angrily, and storm out of the room, Itachi's cackling laughter ringing in my ears. I couldn't let either of them know that I really was worried. Deidara was my inspiration. I had to find him.
I pause, my hand resting on a thick tree trunk. Something on it had caught my attention when a lightning bolt flashed, but now I couldn't make out what it was. Luckily, a few seconds later, another fork of lightning made a jagged path across the sky, and lit up the area of forest I was in.
I ran a finger along the scratch in the bark. My eyes narrowed as I reached into a pocket and pulled out a kunai. I ran the sharp blade along the scratch. It fitted inside it perfectly. Someone had tried to attack another person, or something.
I replaced the kunai, and was about to carry on with my journey forwards, when I spotted something else. A couple of trees down, was a kunai. I could spot it as the lightning made it flash. The end of it was darkened by something, but that wasn't what was interesting me at the moment. Fluttering in the wind, was a strip of material. The material was jet black in colour, and one side was jagged, as if it had been ripped. Along this side, was a blood red cloud, outlined by white.
"That's.." I look down at my cloak. "Deidara.."
I storm back into my room and slam the door loudly, before throwing myself to the floor and sitting with my back against it. I snort angrily, the calmer mood I was in when I left the room before now long gone. Usually I would have carried on my search for Deidara, but I was on a short fuse all the time, and Itachi's teasing didn't help. My anger had clouded over my worry for the blond. I glare at the smashed plate just in front of me, and my mind wanders back to mine and Deidara's mission earlier.
Leader had heard about the Kyuubi was rumoured to have been seen, so he decided to send me and Deidara to check it out. The place was a quiet little village not very far away, but this didn't stop Deidara moaning every step of the way there. After ten minutes of walking, he was whining about how his feet hurt, could they take a break, and why did his Danna have to be so mean and cruel. And then as soon as we got to the fucking place, he spotted this trio of ninja, and just turned and ran.
I ball my fist up and slam it against the wall of my room in anger, trying to calm myself again. Stupid brat. And as for him saying that he loved me.. What a liar. I sigh, my hand running through my hair. He didn't understand what love was, so how could he say it so calmly? Did he have any idea of how much it hurt me to laugh, and then to hit him? I care about him so much, and he throws it back in my face.
"Stupid brat.."
I jump down from the trunk with the kunai scratch in it, and land on the mushy floor beside this new tree. I touch the material from the Akatsuki cloak, and felt a damp patch on it.
My eyes widened, and I pulled out the kunai securing it there. My worst thoughts were confirmed when I looked at the end of the sharp object. Stained on it were several smears of deep scarlet blood.
I throw the kunai to the floor, and examine the rip from the cloak instead. Splattering up from the jagged side was the same sticky red substance as that on the kunai.
I grit my teeth together. Something inside me just snapped. Deidara had been attacked.
Deidara was hurt.
My Deidara needed me when I wasn't there for him.
My mind wandered back to the mission, when Deidara had spotted the three ninja. I delve deep into my memories, trying desperately to figure out why he acted in such a way. I curl both of my hands into tight fists, and slam them against my forehead hard.
Suddenly it clicks.
They were Iwa nin…
"SHIT! If he dies, I'll never forgive myself.." I whisper angrily, before allowing the fabric to flutter to the floor and taking off running even faster than I had done before.
Fresh air should do me good, I decide. I sit cross-legged on the grassy floor, staring straight ahead. In front of me lay a dense forest; the one me and Deidara had gone through going to and returning from the mission. Just beyond that is the village, and the leads turned out to be total bollocks, so there was no point in us heading out. It was a waste of time.
I lay back, staring at the slowly darkening sky. Judging by the blackness of the clouds, and the way the wind has picked up, I guess that there will be a pretty violent storm later.
"SASORI-SAN! TOBI FOUND YOU AT LAST!!"
Oh great. What does he want with me?
I sit up, and glare at the fast approaching idiot in a mask.
"What do you want?"
"Tobi heard that Sasori-San was looking for Sempai!"
"I was. Why?"
"Tobi knows where Sempai went Sasori-San!"
"Wait second, WENT?!"
The masked idiot nods. "Tobi saw Sempai leave the base after Sasori-San yelled at him and hit him."
"Where Tobi? Where did he go?"
Tobi points to the forest I had been studying a few seconds before. "Sempai ran off in that direction. Tobi caught sight of Sempai's face, Sasori-San. Sempai was crying."
Just then, the rain begins to pour, and the first rumble of thunder is heard, almost deafening me and Tobi.
The rain seems to be getting harder, the gaps between the lightning and the thunder shorter. The wind billows my hair and cloak behind me, and makes my eyes water.
Shit, shit, shit, shit, SHIT!!
He can't die, I won't let him.
Why the hell did he run off in the first place?!
Well, whatever it was, I can't lose him. I just can't.. He means too much to me.. "DEIDARA!! JUST HOLD ON UNTIL I CAN GET TO YOU!!" I yell.
I grimace as the smell wafting off from the sofa me and Deidara are sat on reaches my nose. Blood. Thanks to Hidan. I've lost count of the amount of times I've told Leader we need a new one, but he always points out that Hidan would only ruin that one too, and then Kukazu would flip out about the waste of money.
I click on the button that changes the channel of the TV and sigh when I'm hit with another wave of commercials.
Beside me, Deidara yawns and slumps down a little, so that the level of our heads is equal. I give him a side glance. His eyelids are half shut, and his breathing has become quite heavy. He looks shattered. I glance past him at the clock, and my eyes widen. No wonder he's almost asleep, according to that clock it's half three in the morning.
As I watch him, his pupils slide to look back at me, and he yawns again, before dropping his head onto my shoulder, and falling asleep.
"What the..?!" I mutter, staring down in disbelief at the mass of blond hair below. Deidara shifts the position of his head a little, and in his sleepy state, he curls both arms around me.
"Sasori-Danna is comfy…" He mutters groggily, before beginning to snore gently.
I feel my heart beating twice as fast as Deidara sleeps, completely oblivious. I sigh, staring down at him, and smile, my hands beginning to shake. Just being this close to Deidara makes me nervous. I'm so worried that I'll do something wrong or hurt him in some way, and that is something that kills me just by thinking about it.
I stare over my shoulder, making sure no-one is about, before turning back to the sleeping blond, placing my head on his, and allowing sleep to take me too.
I try to speed up even more, my breath coming out in short, sharp gasps. My feet began to ache as I pounded them without mercy again and again on the floor, trying my best to keep moving as fast as I could. If I slowed down, Deidara could die…
Suddenly, the trees disappeared from around me, and I found myself on the edge of a pathway.
Lying on the floor in the middle was Deidara.
My Deidara.
His body was soaked in blood, bruises were etched all over his face, I could see from where I stood that this right leg was badly broken, and as I cast my pupils away from him to the left, I spotted a wet trail of blood; the rainwater having made it run.
I turn my head back to Deidara, and spot the three ninja from before. Each towers above him, oblivious to my presence.
"Just fucking DIE!"
My eyes blaze as one of them speaks, and kicks my Deidara in the side of the head. I watch as all three raise kunais, and stab him in various parts of his body.
Something inside me snaps.
My fists clench so hard my fingers click loudly.
Just as another bolt of lightning illuminates the scene, I step forward, the urge to kill burning in my eyes.
DEIDARA'S POV
Unable to hold it in any longer, I scream out in agony as the sharp blades pierce into my skin. I feel them in both of my arms and legs, the broken one causing even more pain, and in the small of my back.
"Sasori-Danna… Please…" I call sadly, knowing that it's useless. He's not there.
"Shut up."
"DANNA!!" I yell, tears pouring down my face.
"DEIDARA!!"
My eyes snap open as Danna's voice reaches my ears.
The last thing I hear before darkness overtakes is the horrified gasps of the ninja around me, and then the splattering of what I'm guessing is blood landing on the ground.
SASORI'S POV
I glare at the three bodies, disgust filling my face as their blood pours into the ground.
"Serves you fucking right."
I then immediately run to Deidara's side, and drop to my knees. I run a shaking hand across one of his pale cheeks, and an emotion wells up inside me; an emotion I had not felt for years. I breathe in deeply, trying to gulp past the lump in my throat. I place two fingers on the side of Deidara's neck, and wait for what feels like hours before I finally feel a weak pulse.
"Thank God.." I mutter, gently picking him up from the floor. Mud and blood drip from him, and his head lolls against my arm as I hold him close.
"I'm sorry Dei.. So sorry.."
KISAME'S POV
I watch as Tobi paces the living room, wringing his hands and muttering quietly under his breath. His mind seems too preoccupied with other things to notice he's behaving oddly.
"Tobi, you're going to ware a hole there if you keep pacing." I say dryly, laying back on the sofa looking tired.
"How can Tobi stop?!" He yelps, turning to face me.
"Well it's easy. You just stop moving your feet." I reply.
"Kisame-Saaaan!!" He squeaks, flapping his arms by his side.
"What?"
"It's Tobi's fault!! Tobi should have stopped Sempai, but Tobi didn't! Tobi thought he was a good boy, but he can't be!! Tobi is a bad boy!!" He yells, dropping to his knees and wailing.
I sigh, and rub my forehead with my hand.
"Tobi, you're not a bad boy, how could you have stopped Deidara?"
"Tobi could have grabbed Sempai, or talked him into coming back! Instead, Tobi just sat there and said nothing!"
I slide off the sofa, so that I'm kneeling in front of Tobi. I place a hand on his shoulder.
"Look, Sasori went to look for him. He'll be fine okay?"
It's at this moment that the storm, which has moved directly over the base by now, decides to let loose a rumble of thunder that shakes the walls, quickly followed by a flash of lightning that fills the room me and Tobi are kneeling in with bright white light.
This sets Tobi off, who seems to be terrified of thunderstorms. He yelps, before burying his masked head in his hands. I sigh. Dealing with Tobi is like dealing with a hyperactive five year old child on Speed.
"Tobi, storms are nothing to be scared of. It's just a lot of rain, some lightning, and thunder. Nothing to them, nothing to be scared of. Okay?" I say reassuringly.
BANG!
SASORI'S POV
I stagger into the base, Deidara clutched bridal style in my arms. I have rainwater dripping from my hair and face, and my cloak is sodden with both mud and water.
"Anyone?! Hey, I need some help here!!"
I walk shakily with Deidara to the living room where at least I could leave him to lie before running to get help. That's when I see the two other members already in the room. Kisame has wide, anime eyes, one of which is twitching madly, and a sweat drop halfway down his head. He is on the floor, backed up right against the wall. Tobi's head pokes out from behind the chair.
"Fucking hell Sasori!!" Kisame growls, standing. "Don't slam the door like that next time you -"
He freezes in mid sentence as he catches sight of Deidara.
"Fuck.."
"What is Kisame-San swearing at?" Tobi asks, also standing. He then spots Deidara.. And screams.
"WILL YOU LOT JUST SHUT THE FUCKING HELL UP?! SOME OF US ARE TRYING TO FUCKING SLEEP, YOU BUNCH OF FUCKING BASTARDS!!" Hidan's furious yell echoes down the stairs.
"Kisame.." I mutter, placing Deidara gently on the sofa. His face has paled even more, and when I was carrying him, I could barely feel a pulse at all.
"Yeah?"
"Go and wake Kukazu. Tobi, you get Konan. Kukazu can stitch up the open wounds and Konan will hopefully be able to heal any internal injuries better than we can."
Without another word, both disappear. Pretty rare for Tobi to just do what he's told without questioning. Maybe because he realises his Sempai's life is genuinely at stake. I sigh, and brush some of Deidara's hair away from his face softly with my hand. His eyes were closed gently, and his face had almost no colour in it. Worriedly, I pressed my hand against his cheek. It felt icy cold and soaking from the rain.
"You can't die… Please don't leave me.." I whisper into his ear.
"Wow, he does look pretty bad."
I jump as Konan walks around from behind the sofa. I see her eyes scanning Deidara's body, analysing what needs to be done, and what she can repair, or what needs to heal by itself.
She then takes one look at me, and throws a fluffy white towel, which hits me clean in the face.
"Get yourself dried up Sasori. I need you to tell me what happened."
I sigh, reluctantly placing the towel on my head and rubbing ferociously at my hair. We're wasting precious time..
"He ran into a group of Iwa nin, and they tried to kill him. That's all I know.."
"I see."
"You woke me up, for this?!"
"Pleeeease, Kukazu-Saaaan! Sempai needs help!!"
"It's only Deidara."
I snap. Leaping to my feet, I stomp over to Kukazu, and grab the front of his cloak which he has put on, and pull so that our eye levels are the same.
"HELP. HIM." I snarl furiously. "IF. HE. DIES. YOU. WILL. FOLLOW."
I watch as Konan rolls up the sleeves of her cloak and sighs, straightening up.
"I've done the best I can, Sasori."
"Will Sempai be okay now??" Tobi butts in before I can speak.
Konan smiles. "He'll be fine, as long as he gets a really good sleep and food in his stomach. Now guys, I need my beauty sleep." She says, before turning around and leaving the room.
I breathe an almost silent sigh of relief.
He's going to be okay.
He won't die.
I watch as Kukazu files out of the room also, followed by a happily skipping Tobi. Kisame, who is about to trudge after them, turns back to me, and gives me a half smile.
"Make sure he sleeps Sasori."
I nod, and watch the shark man leave. My eyes then turn back to Deidara who is still lying on the sofa. His cheeks have regained a little colour, and I can hear him breathing now. I smile to myself, then take a look at the sofa. There are holes and gashes carved into it where Hidan caught it with his scythe. It reeked of blood. You couldn't move on it without any of the dried substance sticking to you.
"He's not going to sleep properly here.." I mutter, gently picking him up once again. "I'll let you sleep in my room tonight, but only because of the situation."
I carry Deidara into my room, and after gently prodding the puppet I'd been working on before off the bed, I place the sleeping blond on it instead, before settling down on the floor.
I watch in silence as Deidara remains completely immobile, the only movement made being his chest gently rising and falling as he breathes gradually. I sigh sadly, seeing the many cuts decorating his face, Kukazu's stitching jutting out of his skin. I gulp, feeling my heart tighten when I realise it was all my fault.
All of his suffering, all of his pain..
It was all because of me.
My entire body froze as I saw my vision blurring for a split second, before something fell and splashed on my lap. I bring my hand up to my eyes, and draw away a single tear. It dangles from the end of my finger, before dropping like its partner before it, and bursting in my lap.
"I'm feeling emotions again…" I whisper to myself, before looking up at Deidara's unmoving form. "Because of you.."
But how could I tell him all of this?
How could I get him to understand?
I'd never be able to tell him in person, would I?
How..?
I glance around my room, and on my workbench I spot a pad of paper, along with a pencil. I quickly cross the room and gather both things up, before returning to my spot on the floor beside the bed. As first light breaks through the window, I place the pencil on the paper and begin to write.
DEIDARA'S POV
I open my eyes slowly, and instantly shut them again as light pours in from the window. My head is killing me. It feels like there's several drum kits all being whacked over and over again inside my brain. Urgh..
I try to sit up, but my bones feel as heavy as lead, and refuse to obey me. Groaning slightly, I push my head up and stare down at my stomach. A faint blush heats my face when I see what's creating the warmth.
Sasori-Danna's head is laying on my stomach, and he's fast asleep. His hand is clutched tightly in mine. My pink blush deepens to a full scale deep scarlet, and I twitch involuntarily.
This tiny movement jerks my Danna awake, and he stares at me in the eyes for a few seconds, before giving my hand one last squeeze, then getting up and leaving the room, closing the door softly behind him. I frown sadly, and the hand he was holding curls into a loose fist. I feel something sharp-ish touch my palm, and it makes me jump. I move my hand, and see a folded up piece of paper. Curious, I pick it up and unfold it.
I blink. It's a letter in Sasori-Danna's handwriting.
To Deidara,
I owe you one hell of an explanation. So here goes. Truth is, I don't have the guts to tell you any of this in person, or face to face, so I decided to let you know with this. Sorry if you think it's pathetic, I can't help it. Here goes..
I care about you. So much. Seriously, it's not even funny how much I care about you. I don't ever want to see you hurt. I felt this way as far back as I can remember; even when you first joined Akatsuki. I know I acted cold and distant back then, but that was because I was scared of what was happening to me. Now, after spending a lot of time with you, I have grown to accept how I feel.
Because, in all honesty, I never want to be without you. And I'm more sorry than I can put into words. It killed me, Deidara, to be so cruel to you. Looking back on it now, I realise that the reason you're hurt in the first place is because of me. If I had just accepted your apology, which I should have done straight away, then none of this would have happened..
But in a way, and don't take this the wrong way please, but, in a way, now that I know you're going to live and be okay, I feel sort of happy that this happened. Not that you got hurt and nearly died, that almost killed me to know. No, it's just that, if I hadn't been scared out of my comfort zone by being terrified I was going to lose you, I would have probably kept these feelings bottled up forever.
Because Deidara, I never want you to leave my side.
I want you to stand by me in everything, and to know that I'll do the same for you.
I don't want to lose you.
The very thought of you in pain breaks my heart and rips it into little shreds.
Thinking that I've been the cause of that pain is unbearable.
What I'm leading up to Deidara.. And trust me when I say my heart is actually hurting It's beating so hard, is that well..
I love you, Deidara.
With every nerve and cell of my being, I completely and totally love you.
Sasori
SASORI'S POV
I sigh shakily, placing a hand over my eyes. The television blares on in the background. Why did I do that?! Why did I have to tell him?! Oh my God, he probably thinks I'm a freak.. I mean I'm a freaking puppet. And he's a normal human being, minus the mouths in odd places.
"Why did I do that…?" I mutter, tucking my knees up against my chest and burying my head on them.
I jump as I hear a door creak open, and uneven footsteps on the carpet, heading towards me. Oh he didn't..
I stand and turn, starting when I see Deidara limping slowly towards me.
"Deidara!! You're supposed to be resting!!"
He shrugs, staring at me. I'm still so relieved that he's alive, words cannot even begin to express it. But he has to sleep. He has to follow Konan's instructions.
I walk over to him, my face twisting into a slight frown.
"Go back and lay down, Deidara. You need sleep."
He grins, and my heart does flips in my chest. Then, without warning, he leans down, and presses our lips together for a fraction of a second, before pulling away. He blushes like mad, smiles properly, then turns and limps back the way he'd come.
DEIDARA'S POV
I smile as I head back to Danna's welcoming bed. It's comfy, and just the effort it took to drag myself up and over to him drained my energy, and I need to sleep again.
Just as I reach the open doorway, I feel something grabbing the back of my cloak. I turn, and see Sasori-Danna gripping my cloak tightly, his head bent slightly. I turn my head to the side, asking him silent questions. His eyes are locked on mine, and I swear to God he's blushing. I don't get a proper chance to find out however.
Before I can speak, Danna slips his hand in mine gently as if not wanting to hurt me, and entwines our fingers tightly together.
"I'm never letting you go again." He whispers.
I blush a little, and Danna rests his other hand on the back of my neck, and pushes down, before softly kissing me on the mouth.
Thousands of butterflies exploded in my stomach, and my heart was thumping so hard against my ribcage, I swear it was going to break through very soon.
Still keeping his hand locked in mine, I curled my spare arm around Danna's shoulders, and held him close, and he did the same.
Please let us stay like this forever..
NORMAL POV
"HAH! Tobi told you!!"
"Oh shut up.."
"Fucking…"
"I can't believe I bet my money against something so obvious.."
Tobi grinned as the rest of the Akatsuki members handed over notes of money into his hands.
All except Konan, who was peering over the banister at the puppeteer and the bomber who were still locked in their embrace, a pair of binoculars over her eyes. She grinned as the two held the contact.
"Oi, Tobi." Itachi said.
Tobi looked around. "Yes Itachi-San?"
"How long do you bet until they fuck each other senseless?"
Tobi smiled. "Tobi says a month!"
"What?!"
"No fucking way!"
"You're on."
Tobi smiled as they all bet against him. Now all he had to do was create a situation where that would be the outcome in one month's time..
