Broken Seashells

Juugo

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When I was three years old, I was pulled off the streets. I had only been living out on the sidewalk for a few days when the police came to pick me up. I told them I was waiting for my mother. She said she was coming to get me after she was done with work.

That was three days ago.

Mommy worked at a place with bright red lights and laughing people that didn't like seeing me around. I used to hide in the little, rust covered car whenever she went to work, but after she had to sell it she started leaving me outside in the cold, waiting on the park benches and the sidwalks. Sometimes for days on end. So when she didn't come to pick me up instantly, I wasn't worried.

But, when the police men came to get me I started to get worried. Mommy always told me to stay away from the people that were called police, because they were bad. But they told me they were good guys and gave me doughnuts and milk to eat, saying they only wanted to look out for people like me. I think I liked them. The powdered doughnuts were really good after three days without anything to eat aside from a stale pretzel the man in the park gave me.

They looked for my mommy, but couldn't find her, so they put me in a place called a foster home with a new mommy and my first ever daddy. I've never had a dad before so I was really excited to have one. He was really handsome, I think. That's what everyone else said, so I think it was true. My new mommy looked like my old mommy with the light blond hair and paint on her face, but she had dark brown eyes insteed of the light blue eyes my first mommy had. I liked my first mommy more.

They said they were happy to have me in their family, and as easy as that, I believed their lie.

I was taken into this foster family for some time before I started to notice the differences between me and the other kids. They were all so small and could talk so much faster than I could. How could they do that when they were the same age as me? Wasn't that something you were suppose to learn later on? How come I couldn't talk fast like that, and how come they were all so short? The could talk fast, but none of them could run really fast like I could.

This made me happy.

My foster parents started to get grumpy when I was older and still talking like a three year old, despite my overwhelming height. I was only five years of age when people mistook me for being nine and ten. Mommy always complained about having to go out and buy new things for me. She started buying extra big things for me, making me wear them until I grew too big for them. I didn't like walking in too big shoes for so long, but she told be not to complain, so I didn't.

At school people would run away from me on the playground, calling me a monster and screaming like they were in danger or something. I once made another boy cry by asking him where he got his crayons. The teacher sent me home with a note that made mommy and daddy mad. They fought that night. I can still remember their screams and curses, on the other side of my cheep, white paint door.

They started to fight a lot after that. Later in the year they sent me to the orphanage, and divorced each other. They said the only reason they wanted me was to preserve their marriage, and since it wasn't working, I was no longer needed. So they sent me away and split like the selfish people I think they were. I hope something good happens to them to make them better people like my new family.

At the orphanage all of the other kids were scared of me just like before. The adults said it would be hard to get a new family to take me in because I was so big. Families only liked little kids. And then there was the fact that I had a hard time speaking. I think they called it a speech impediment.

To make me look better, one of the girls dyed my orange hair bleach white. She said it made me look better, since only delinquents had orange hair. Delinquents are bad kids who fight a lot. I was still only six, but the chances of being adopted were so small that it was hard to hope.

So I didn't.

It was really hard for me to wake up in the morning. I didn't see a reason to get out of bed. I remember wanting to sleep forever, to stay in bed where people couldn't be afraid of me, or call me a freak, or run away in fear. That's how it was until I met the boy with light green eyes named Kimimaro.

He was the only one who was brave enough to stand up to me and patience enough to wait for me to form the words in my head. He came from another troubled family that had something to do with gangs and fighting, so he was used to big and intimidating. To him, my height wasn't frightening, in face, I think it made him feel at ease. Maybe a familiar feeling? I was happy to have a friend who wasn't afraid of me. When the other kids ran away, I always felt bad.

Kimimaro told me about a man who had come to visit him with a son that was three years younger than him and two years younger than me. I was six so that would make him four. Kimimaro was seven. I was still taller of course, but that didn't matter to either of us. Kimimaro was a lot more mature than me and he was super smart. He's the smartest person I know and he is also really good at fighting.

Anyway, the man that came to visit Kimimaro with his son was named Zabuza and his son's name was Haku. He came back to visit us once again and I got to see him in person. The other adults said he was very wealthy (that means rich)and the lady workers all said he was very handsome and for some odd reason they called him hot. He was wearing a jacket suite, but he didn't look like he was hot or uncomfortable.

Maybe they know something I don't.

His son was very shy and looked like a girl the first time I saw him. He had long hair for a boy and was wearing a light yellow pants and shirt set. He didn't look like a boy very well. I asked him if he was upset that people thought he was a girl sometimes but he didn't reply. He just kept staring at me, with those really bog brown eyes that remind me of a puppy dog. Then he tried to crawl up my legs and touch my hair. I sat down on the ground so that he could reach.

The next day Kimimaro and I were riding in Zabuza's car, heading towards his house by the ocean. It took a few hours since we lived in New York, but it was fun to ride in the car with Haku and Kimimaro. We played games together and ate fruit roll ups. I liked the red kind. I can't remember if it was cherry flavored or strawberry flavored, but I think it's one of the two.

When we got to his house, Zabuza introduced us to his business partner. His name was Kisame and he was really tall and he looked really strong. I wondered if I would look like him when I grew up. He had a scary grin but he liked to laugh a lot and buy us snacks that made out teeth rot, so I like him. He once took us out on a sailboat he owns and let us jump off an go swimming. Haku had to wear floaters.

Kimimaro and Haku became my brothers and they took care of me. Even though I looked liked the oldest an they still took care of me like I was the baby of the group. Haku was two years younger than me and the technical baby of the group, but he was able to talk fast and do things with confidence that I couldn't.

They were always taking care of me and it made me happy.

A year later when I was seven, another addition to our family was added. Suigetsu was always scowling and looked like he sucked on too much lemon tarts and was trying to hide it. Zabuza told us he came from a troubled family in New Jersey and needed time to open up. When he saw me he didn't think I was a monster. He though I wanted to fight and was ready to let his fists go at the drop of a hat.

After a while, he began to open up to us and in no time at all he was another perfect brother. He had the most fun when we played games. He always wanted to win and would always try his hardest to be first. I let him beat me in a few races, knowing he would be mad at me and grumpy the entire day if he didn't win. I liked playing with him, he always had the funniest jokes to tell and was always the first one to try something new.

He was the brave one.

Another year went by and Haku turned five. After his birthday party, it became obvious to Zabuza that something called the feminine touch was missing in our house. Kimimaro said that Zabuza meant there needed to be girls in our house. Suigetsu said it was because we wrestle and burped too much and didn't clean up our messes. A maid cam in every week, so I didn't see how we needed a girl to clean up for us.

I asked Haku if he thought Zabuza was going to get a mommy for us and Haku frowned, sad all of a sudden.

His mother, before she died, wanted to own an orphanage filled with children that needed love and care other adults couldn't provide. When Haku was four, she died in a car accident leaving Zabuza really sad. For a long time his papa stopped eating and got sick. Kisame helped his friend get better again and gave him the idea to carry on his wife's dream in her steed. That's why we're all here today. Thanks to Haku's mommy. She seemed like a really good person.

I wish I could have met her.

One day Kisame came home with a surprise fro Zabuza. It was a photo we weren't allowed to see. Zabuza then got on the phone and looked up some stuff on the computer. He and Kisame talked a lot in the privet study room we're not allowed to go in. They both seemed really excited about something and all of us brothers were annoyed that we were left out of the surprise.

Suigetsu was annoyed the most out of all of us.

Zabuza left that week and Kisame took us all out for a boat ride for some man to man talk. He read us a story about knights from medieval Europe and how they would slay evil, fire breathing dragons and rescue people. Kisame said they were protectors of the weak and defenseless and that they were really good guys that were liked by the king. The knights reminded me of my brothers and how they take care of me.

I wished I could be more like them and take care of someone.

Our Uncle Kisame then told us about how the knights protected the ladies of the court, and how we would have the opportunity to do the same. We would have to be knights, he said, and we would have to take care of someone. I wanted to do this. I wanted to protect someone. After that we went home and slept out on the couch watching baseball.

The Yankees were winning when I fell asleep.

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Who's she?" Suigetsu asked, pointing to her, manners forgotten once again.

"This is Sakura, from now on she's going to be your sister, a part of this family. I want you guys to take care of her for me. This is her first time being with brothers, so go easy on her, okay?"

"Where did she come from?" Kimimaro asked, referring to her as if she were an object from WalMart.

"She came to us the same way you, Jugo, and Suigetsu did." Zabuza explained pushing the tiny little doll forward.

She was going to be our new, and only, sister. She was really small compared to me, being the smallest out of everyone.

"Why here?" Suigetsu asked, blunt and uncaring as ever. She looked like she was going to cry.

I didn't want her to cry.

Sensing her distress, Zabuza quickly answered in a calmer tone, placing a hand on the top of her head. "Because there are four young boys who I know can take care of her and protect her better than anyone else."

The first time I saw her, I though she was a doll you see in a store's window, she was that cute. She looked really scared and her eyes looked like they were about to spill tears. I didn't want her to cry, but I wasn't very confident with my speech so I left all the talking up to Haku.

"What...what happened to your old family?" Haku asked, being the first to address her as a human being. Fearfully she looked up at her legal guardian and silently pleaded with him to make the questions stop before they started. She still refused to speak out, even with others her own age. It looked like she didn't want to verbalize at all.

Sort of like me.

"Maybe you had better not talk about that, Haku," Zabuza offered, saving her this one time. "Sakura doesn't talk a lot so I want you to take care of her and not ask too many questions. Can you guys do that for me?" We all nodded, Haku being the quickest to respond.

"This is her first time here isn't it guys? Why don't you show her around the beach and make her feel at home. We still have a few hours before your dad calls you in for dinner," Kisame offered, patting my head. The story about the knights came back to my memory and I felt like I wanted to protect her all the more. But, I was kind of afraid of breaking her by speaking to her, or by scaring her like all the other kids.

"I'm Kimimaro, that's Haku and Jugo and this guy is Suigetsu. It's nice to meet you. Would you like to play with us by the cove or by the tide line? We were collecting seashells, to see who could get the most. Haku usually wins, but it's fun to see what you can find in the sand."

She numbly nodded following behind at a much slower pace. Haku talked to her and gave her one of his shells. She seemed to be weary of Suigetsu, but I don't think she was in any danger of crying anymore. She followed with a shiny gray shell in hand, falling into steep alongside me. Standing next to me, she really did seem like a doll.

I wanted to say something and opened my mouth to do so, but felt my chest constrict in fear. It took almost a year for me to feel comfortable speaking with my brothers and the fear was coming back. I wanted to say something like, 'you're cute', or 'I'm glad you're my sister' but, I knew it would come out sounding like 'cute', or 'glad sister'. Too afraid I turned away, red in the face.

I walked away, looking at the sand for a while thinking about what I didn't say when I head a hiss of pain.

"Don't do that, the salt from the ocean will only agitate the wound. You need this." I turned around to see my moody brother pouring water from his water bottle, (he worships that thing and never let's any of us near it), over Sakura's red hand. She was bleeding?!

Kimimaro came over and gave her a bandage and helped her wrap it up. I trailed close behind.

Sakura, did you hurt yourself on one of the shells?" Haku asked with concern, seeing the bandage on her hand, red seeping out from underneath. Not waiting for her to nod in reply, he grabbed her uninjured hand and began to drag her towards the house. "We have to tell papa before you die of blood loss!"

Frightened at the thought of loosing my brand new and only sister, I followed closely behind, making sure to stay close to Sakura. She was so much smaller than any of us she started to lag under Haku's pull. Maybe at this pace we wouldn't get to the house in time? What if she didn't make it? What if I failed at protecting my sister?

Filled with fear, I picked up the weightless doll and hoisted her onto my back, surprising her.

Her voice cracked, struggling to make it past her throat. "Why?"

'Because I want to protect my younger sister.'

None of us seemed surprised to hear her speak."You're our younger sister, and papa told us to protect you."

Suigetsu and Kimimaro merely nodded as they trudged up the hill on either side of her. They seemed to agree just as strongly as Haku. Feeling empower by my brother's words I stuttered, trying to form words that she could understand. "We...family."

'We're family.'

When Zabuza looked over her cut he smiled and said she would be fine, letting us all heave a sigh of relief.

That night, the five of us camped out in the living room with sleeping bags and home made smore's to celebrate Sakura's homecoming. It was really funny to watch Sakura stare in awe as the marshmallows in the microwave expanded to twice it's size before being sandwiched between chocolate and gram-crackers. Suigetsu, being the trouble lover he is, left his marshmallow in the microwave too long and made it explode. That was on purpose. When Sakura saw that her brother was without a marshmallow, she gave him some of hers.

I was tempted to blow mine up as well.

I have a stuffed teddy bear with a pink nose and a really fuzzy tommy that I like to sleep with, even though Suigetsu says I should be too old for stuffed animals. None of my brothers sleep with stuffed animals, so I hide him a lot. When it was time to crawl into out sleeping bags (after the four of us fought over who would sleep next to Sakura) she caught sight of my bear and pointed to him before pulling out a snow white bunny with pink ears too long for its body. Her bunny was missing and eye and it looked like it was just washed after years of staying in the dirt.

"...Shiro...," she whispered, holding up her bunny.

"...Thomas...," I replied, pointing to my bear.

Haku and I were the lucky ones that got to sleep on her left and right that night.

After that Sakura and I talked a lot. We both had trouble speaking without voices, so we used our Nintendo DS consoles to talk to each other. I was really good at reading and Sakura liked to write a lot, so it was something we did a whole lot. I think Haku and the rest of my brothers were a bit jealous of all the time we spend together talking. This made me feel proud.

Sakura became the pride of our entire family as we lovingly doted on her every whim and need. Zabuza spoils all of us out of love, but when it came to Sakura, nothing was too much for her. Even Uncle Kisame, who was known for blowing wads of cash on us boys, took his spending up a notch. None of us guys minded it. Seeing Sakura's smiling face whenever she receives a new doll or dress is more of a gift for us than it is for her.

Three weeks later, sakura went to school with us. I was put in a special class, so I didn't see her very much, but Haku and Suigetsu were both in the same class as Sakura, so I didn't worry very much. But, I did worry...a lot of the time. I didn't like being separated from my younger sister. I wanted to be there to protect her all the time.

One day Haku and Suigetsu both got sick from the cold and had to stay home to rest. So, naturally they weren't at school with Sakura. It was on that day that I saw her getting bullied behind the tire swing on the playground. A girl and two boys were making fun of her forehead, calling her a freak. I got angry remembering how sensitive she was about it. They were going to make my little sister cry and I wasn't about to stand for it.

It was the first time I was happy to see kids run away in fear after seeing me.

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AU/ This is something I wrote for a fan fiction contest at the library. I had tons of fun writing this, especially since Sakura's with my favorite characters. Something about this Mizu boys just gets to me.

Juugo's story. I really love this guy too much, even more so when he doesn't know what hot means. Sad but true.

Please REVIEW!

Vesper chan