Disclaimer: See Chapter One. It's reallly quite tiring to write it over and over again.

A/N: Well, I don't think many people are reading this, but...

anything I said in the Author's note in the first chapter applies now and in the third chapter.

I think that's all for now.


It's the heart afraid of breaking,
That never learns to dance.
It's the dream afraid of waking,
That never takes the chance.

( ii. ) First Separation

Some say to expect the unexpected.

If anyone had told the self-dubbed Chieko-chaaaaaaaan that about Leader-sama, she would've instantly committed them to the nearest loony bin. After all, one could always count on a royal-stick-up-butt god-liness-weird-eyed person to be quite predictable. They did have Itachi, and frankly, he was predictable, to say nothing of his little brother.

Males.

But now, Chieko learned her lesson about Leader-sama.

"WHAT?!" It was the first time that Chieko had even implied that she didn't agree with Leader to his face. "B-b-but! Leader-sama! You can't—you can't—you can't just switch us around like, like that!" She wailed, snapping her fingers in demonstration.

Or at least, attempting to.

She nearly wilted under his impassive, but unpleased, gaze.

"I can." He seemed to decide to dignify her with an answer. "And I will. You and Zetsu will begin your work in the western quadrant in two hours."

"But—!" Her lavender-blue eyes darted to the side, tangling with an intense blue-gray gaze. She tore herself from its grasp. "Leader-sama!" Her tone bordered on whining.

"Amaya." He all but snarled.

Dejected, Chieko shut her mouth and slunk back to her rooms, not even waiting for the meeting to formally finish.

Blue-grey eyes watched her in heavily-veiled disappointment, but the artist did not say anything.

He couldn't do anything, after all.

She was waiting for him to come, he could see that as soon as the door was shut and he turned to face her.

"Chieko," he said gently, pulling her to her feet, "what's wrong, un?"

One look into his unusually gentle eyes made the emotionally unstable girl burst into tears. Deidara shifted uncomfortably. Crying females weren't exactly his forte.

"Chieko, what's wrong, un?" He asked again, patiently waiting.

"Spying, Deidara! In the western quadrant! There's something wrong with me! That's our most 'peaceful' spot!" Deidara frowned. It wasn't at all like Chieko to cry over something as trivial as her powers fluctuating a bit.

"Chieko." He said firmly. She buried her face in his chest.

"You're leaving." She whispered.

"But you're leaving too." Deidara pointed out, confused.

"I just…I keep on thinking…"

"Yes?" Her laugh was strangled in her throat.

"You're going to the northern quadrant…that's our most dangerous place…and…I keep on thinking…"

"Make your point, un." He sounded a tad impatient. As a 'big-bang' artist, he didn't like to prolong things—he just want things to happen quickly, swiftly, and sometimes, repetitively.

Not, of course, that he wanted her to be in tears repetitively.

"It…it never made sense…it never made sense… for you… to love me." Chieko gasped for a breath, her heart stopping as she said those words. "And…what if…"

"That's not going to happen." His voice was unusually sharp, and it lacked his usual speech quirk.

"Do you promise?" She whispered, grasping onto his cloak like it was her lifeline.

"I swear." The redhead threw her arms around his neck and kissed him, long and hard.

"I love you." She whispered fiercely as she pulled back. "And if you kill yourself, I will never, ever, ever forgive you." As if she had to worry about him getting killed. Chieko giggled after a moment, taking in the dazed look in his eyes.

"That was…amazing, yeah…" She kissed him thoroughly again.

"Art is a bang, ne?"


A/N: Remind me to slap myself the next time I get inspiration when I'm washing dishes...I cannot believe this...this...horrid...crappiness...and CHEEZINESS! PH33R THE CHEESSSEEEE!!!

-dies-

Bya-dahl, I hope you liked it! Like I said, I plan to finish it by your birthday/by Christmas for you present! XD Two birds in one stone...

And yeah, I totally know the chapter titles totally don't fit and yes, the lyrics above are STILL from "The Rose." I hope I don't exhaust it by the time I finish this long haul. Which, of course, I totally intend to do. (Finish, that is)

If you're still here, you know the drill.

REVIEW, BOB-DAMMIT!