Author's note: Let me just say that I broke a lot of rules concerning the laws and logic of adoption in this story, and quite frankly, I don't really care. My goal for this fic is not to make it as realistic as possible; it's to entertain y'all. If you want something a little more thought out and researched, my other fic, Parallel Lines will offer you that. This is the oldest fic I've uploaded so far, and it's the least thought out, but I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. (and there will be more chapters to come, I promise!)
You know that feeling when you're really excited about something and can't think about or focus on anything else? That's how I felt when the plane landed. The moment I heard the flight attendant announce that we had landed, my body moved on auto-pilot. I can't remember the specific details from the plane to the airport terminal, I just remember getting out of my seat, eagerly waiting in line behind the other passengers to get off the plane and weaved my way through the crowd in the terminal. I wasn't in the mood to take in those details. I just wanted to see my adoptive parents again.
As excited as I was, I felt strange. Here I couldn't wait to meet my new parents, to call them mine, to experience and embrace this new lifestyle of theirs, and to finally have a place to call a home. Yet, at the same time, I hadn't completely lost hope in my real parents. My mother was out there, somewhere, she had to be, and yet, here I was across the country, possibly as far away from her as I've ever been, farther away from running into her in the street.
I sort of felt as though I was betraying them, my real parents, by moving on and living with a new family.
But all of that changed when I saw them, my adoptive parents, standing side by side waiting for me.
If anything, I thought, my real parents betrayed me by dropping me off at an orphanage. They were the ones who left me behind, and now I was leaving them behind for people who actually wanted me to be a part of their family.
Possibly the most important moment of my life thus far was a complete blur. All I remember was running up to them and embracing Konan, my new mother in a tight hug, never wanting to let her go.
"Welcome home, Deidara." Yahiko said.
"Did you have a good flight?" Konan asked me.
I simply nodded into her stomach. It was all I could manage. If I looked into her eyes, I'd probably start crying because of the emotions that this day brought with it.
Konan and Yahiko seemed to understand. "Come," Yahiko said. "Let's go meet your new siblings."
That's right. I almost forgot. When I first met Konan and Yahiko in person, they mentioned that they had a big family and would have a surprise waiting for me when I saw them again. This, I assumed, is what they had meant.
But I couldn't help but wonder what the surprise was. Were they all girls? Were they all older than me? Younger than me? Were they all adopted too?
When we got on the escalator that led to baggage claim, I soon found my answer. Sitting in the chairs by baggage claim sat five people.
Four of them had suitcases.
"The one with the red hair is Nagato, he's a close friend of ours, but starting today, the other four are going to be your new siblings." Konan explained on the way down.
"But why do they all have suitcases?" I asked her. They were all staring at me.
"They're in the same situation as you." Yahiko said. "They just arrived here today as well."
"They did?"
"Yes. The others should be arriving shortly."
"Wait, there's more?"
"Yes." Konan said. "Please find your suitcases and wait with Nagato and the others while we greet the others when they get off of their planes, okay Deidara?"
"Okay." I said.
And with that, they left just as quickly as they came.
I don't know what I was expecting. To be their one and only child whom they'd love unconditionally? To be loved so much that I'd forget the pain of being orphaned for most of my childhood and act like it never happened?
When they said they had a "big family," I guess I expected to be greeted at the airport by five other kids varying in age, with a big banner that said "welcome to the family" or something like that on it and just blend into their family over time. Getting a hug and a quick "hello" along with the same "they're in the same situation as you" speech that these other four people got was the furthest thing from my mind.
But at least I had a family and a home. Now all I had to do was make the best out of it as I headed towards baggage claim.
"You must be Deidara," Nagato greeted me when I got closer. "I'm Nagato, nice to meet you." He said with a wide smile and a firm handshake.
I wasn't sure what to make of Nagato except for the fact that his breath smelled like smoke, and his clothes wreaked of it too. In addition to that, his teeth were stained and his skin was wrinkled and sagging like an old woman's does. He looked like he could keel over any second. "It's nice to meet you too, sir." I said, returning his handshake.
"Why don't you get your bags and come sit down, take a moment to meet your new brothers here."
"Sure." I muttered and headed to fetch my suitcase.
Being an orphan, I didn't have the luxury of spending a lot of money on clothes and such. If I ever got the opportunity, I spent most of it on art supplies and accepted hand-me-downs to wear instead.
Once I found my worn green suitcase, I walked to where the rest of the group was sitting and got a crash course introductory session with everybody. "Deidara, this is Kisame, Kakuzu, Zetsu, and Zetsu." Nagato said.
"Wait, what's his name again?" I asked and pointed to one of what I assumed was a twin.
"Zetsu."
"Then who's that guy?"
"Zetsu."
"You just said that he's Zetsu." I argued. Obviously I was missing out on some sort of prank as both twins were snickering at me. "I'm confused." I relented.
"Both of our names are Zetsu." One of them answered.
To answer my silence, the other one replied "Our parents were hippies." He beamed.
"Do you have different middle names?"
"We don't have middle names." The other one said.
"No matter what, we'll both come running when you call us."
Okay. This was officially weird. I knew that my life would be a little different once I moved across the country and became part of a new family, but four siblings who were adopted on the same day, and a pair of twins with the same name was just ridiculous.
"Where're you from?" Another kid asked me, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"Phoenix, Arizona." I told him. "What about you?"
"Miami, Florida." He said. This was the kid who was smirking at me when I came down the escalator with Konan and Yahiko. He was tall and muscular, an athlete I assumed, and tanned, really, really tanned. He looked like he was from Miami.
"What about you guys?" I asked the twins.
"Wichita, Kansas." They both answered. One of the twins was paler than the other and more upbeat whereas the other one seemed to be more serious. Other than that, they looked alike, but I couldn't tell if they were identical or fraternal. It didn't matter if I could tell them apart or not, they both had the same name.
"And you?" I asked the last one.
"San Antonio." He spoke in a low voice with an accent. "Texas." He added.
"Look, boys, here comes Yahiko and Konan with your new sibling." Nagato said, pointing at the escalators.
There at the top of the escalators stood Konan and Yahiko behind a pale, dark haired boy. Both Konan and Yahiko were smiling and pointing at us, most likely explaining to the newcomer that he wasn't signed up for the type of family he was expecting and he didn't seem too happy about it either.
That was me not too long ago, in that same spot.
"Itachi, meet your new brothers, Kakuzu, Kisame, Deidara, Zetsu and Zetsu." Yahiko said, reciting the names of everyone sitting by the baggage claim from left to right. It was the first time I'd heard the names of the other two which gave me a chance to try to learn them. Kakuzu, Kisame, and Itachi, I repeated in my head.
"Itachi, this is Nagato, a close friend of ours." Konan said.
"Hi, I'm Nagato, nice to meet you Itachi." He said, standing up enough to shake Itachi's hand before sitting down shortly afterwards.
"It's a pleasure meeting you too." Itachi said.
"Why don't you get your bags and get to know everyone, Itachi?" Konan prompted.
"We're going back upstairs now to meet the next flight. Stay here with Nagato, boys." Said Yahiko.
"Just how many more people are they waiting for?" I asked the others when Konan and Yahiko were out of earshot.
One of the twins shrugged. The other replied "beats me."
"I was ready to go home once I got off the plane." Kisame said. "And when I asked what we were waiting for, they said 'your brothers' and told me to wait here. I was surprised when this guy came," he said, and nodded his head in Kakuzu's direction, "even more surprised when those two came" and then towards the twins who were too busy talking amongst themselves to hear him, "and now I just think it's funny."
I can imagine, I thought to myself, but I wasn't laughing about it yet.
At that time, Itachi was returning with a large black suitcase rolling behind him.
"Rich kid." Kisame chuckled under his breath.
"What makes you say that?" I asked him. Itachi didn't look like he came from a rich family. Yeah he had a big suitcase and his clothes fit him well, not like the hand-me-downs that I always wore. Perhaps his parents died recently or something? Or maybe he came from a wealthier part of the country than we all did, or at least, a wealthier part of the country than I did.
"So, where are you from?" I asked him when he sat next to me.
"New Haven, Connecticut." He answered.
"Wow. That's way on the other side of the country! I'm from Phoenix, Arizona."
"You're right. We live pretty far from one another. You're a long ways from home, aren't you?" Itachi asked me.
"Yeah." I said, attempting not to let the confusion of the past thirty minutes and the homesickness I was feeling show through.
"You think that's far?" Kisame interrupted. "I'm from Miami, Florida. Beat that!"
"Nuh-uh, Phoenix is farther from here than Miami!"
"Sorry kid, I hate to break it to you, but Florida's further south than Arizona and Miami's at the tip."
I was too busy arguing with Kisame to notice that Konan and Yahiko had returned again until one of the twins spotted them. "Head's up! Two new adoptees on the horizon and steadily approaching!" He announced loudly enough for the rest of the group to hear him.
"Okay, this is just getting ridiculous." Kisame said.
Nagato, who had been sitting back in his chair with his arms crossed, teeth clenched, and was bouncing his right leg the whole time, quickly stood up to greet the newcomers.
"Nagato, this is Sasori and Hidan." Yahiko said, first placing his right hand on Sasori's shoulder and then his left on Hidan's to indicate to Nagato who was who. "Sasori, Hidan, this is Nagato, a close family friend of ours. He's here to help out with the luggage."
"Who're they?" Sasori asked. He was really skinny, wearing worn charcoal colored skinny jeans that bagged at his sneakers, and a striped gray V-neck shirt. His hair was an unnaturally bright shade of red, probably dyed that way. It made me wonder what his real hair color was.
"They're your new brothers, starting today." Konan answered.
"-the fuck?" The other kid said. He had a sturdier build than Sasori, and was proud of it judging by the way he wore a sleeveless shirt that exposed his muscular arms. He wasn't as muscular as Kisame, but I wouldn't pick a fight with him. But what stuck out the most about him was his transparent blonde hair and bright magenta eyes. He was an albino.
"Hidan. Language." Konan hissed. "I thought I told you to cut down on your profanity months ago. Did you forget?"
"Yeah, sure, whatever." He muttered and went to get his bags.
"Why do they all have suitcases?" Sasori asked Yahiko.
"They all have suitcases because like you, they're joining our family today too. Go ahead, introduce yourself. Konan and I are waiting on one more person." He said, pat Sasori on the shoulder a few times and waited for Konan to meet him at the bottom of the escalators.
"Hi Sasori, my name's Nagato. Nice to meet you." Nagato said, extending his hand to a dumbfounded Sasori.
Sasori let Nagato shake his hand, not bothering to put in any effort to return the handshake and just stared at everything around him before asking "Are they fucking serious? I mean, what the fuck? I didn't sign up for any of this!"
"Hey!" Hidan yelled from the baggage claim. "How come he gets to curse without getting in trouble and I can't!?" He screamed, dropping his suitcase back onto the conveyor belt and hurriedly making his way over to Sasori.
"Sasori, language." Nagato scolded. "Yahiko and Konan don't allow profanity."
Shaking his head, Sasori turned towards the baggage claim area and muttered under his breath fuck this."
"-the fuck? How come he gets to swear without getting in trouble!? Get back here you bastard, I've got a problem with you!" Hidan raved.
His anger was only made worse by Sasori flipping the bird in his direction without so much as turning around to look him in the eye.
"Boys! Calm down now and Sasori, stop using obscene language before Yahiko and Konan get back or you're going to be in trouble before you even get home!" Nagato exclaimed, walking fast in order to prevent them from fighting if it came down to it, which it looked like it would any minute.
It was sort of comforting to know that not everyone liked Konan and Yahiko's little "surprise" when they got here.
"Hey, Kisame." I asked the tan muscular kid from Miami sitting next to me, hoping that that was his name.
"Hm?"
It was. "Did he just say that they were waiting for one more kid to arrive?"
"Who? Yahiko?" He asked. "Pfft. I won't believe it until we leave. Actually, I wouldn't put it past them to drag us back here again tomorrow to pick up another ten kids."
The thought scared me. Looking around, I counted eight of us so far, the kid that hardly ever talks, the twins, the two newcomers, the dark-haired kid, Kisame, and myself, plus one more made nine. To add any more than that, they'd have to be out of their minds or filthy rich. Or both.
"How big do you think their house is?" I asked Kisame.
"It's probably a mansion if they're gonna adopt this many of us." He chuckled. "Hey, look, here they come with kid number nine right now."
So far, I'd seen Konan and Yahiko appear at the top of the escalators where the flights arrive with a kid dressed head to toe in dark colors who looked less than thrilled to be here, a skinny kid with cherry tomato dyed red hair, an albino with a foul mouth, and now a kid with a mask on his face.
"What's wrong with his face? It's all scrunched up." One of the twins observed.
"He's wearing a mask, idiot." The other corrected.
"Why?"
"There's probably something mentally wrong with him."
"Is this the last one?" Nagato asked Konan and Yahiko but was looking at the newest addition.
"Yes. Nagato, this is Tobi; Tobi, this is Nagato, a close friend of ours." Yahiko said.
Tobi didn't speak, instead, he clung to Konan's side and attempted to hide behind her.
"Go on, say 'hi'." She prompted. "He's shy." She said with a smile to explain Tobi's actions.
Nagato waved it off. "That's fine. I'll get to know him soon or later."
"Let's go get your bags, Tobi, okay?"
Tobi nodded and followed Konan over to the baggage claim, never once letting go of her. The pair reunited with the group a few minutes later with Tobi's shiny dark blue suitcase rolling behind him.
"Alright guys, listen up." Yahiko called over everyone to draw in their attention. "Now that everyone's been accounted for, we're going to your new home."
"Finally." I heard Kisame mutter.
"We brought two vans with us today. I will be driving the blue van that you and Konan will be riding in and Nagato will be driving the white van that will be carrying all of your luggage. When we leave here, stay close to one another, do not run off and pay attention to your surroundings. You are not little kids that we need to look out for so I expect you to behave like adults. Understand?" Nobody objected. "Good. Make sure you have everything and let's go home."
As crazy as the day started out, things seemed like they were slowly falling into place. I got off the plane expecting to be met with my new mother and father, and five or so siblings with a welcome banner. Instead, I got a new mother and father, a smoker family friend/babysitter, and adoptive brothers who were in the same boat as I was heading to our new home. The last part threw me off, and I can't tell if how I feel about it yet, but in some ways, it could be worse.
Right?
And that's a wrap. I hope you liked it!
Until next time!
~Sasori33-001
