Mai woke up to a sharp rap on a door. Opening her eyes she remembered where she was at and realized who was knocking on the door. She calmly sat up and waited for Temari. "Evening." Temari said casually. "I thought you might want to shower before we ate dinner so I came in to wake you up." "Thank you." Mai said coolly. "The bathroom is down the hall and make sure to lock the door. The boys will just walk in without knocking if you don't." "I will." Mai said with a small smirk behind her mask. She could imagine the reactions she would get if Kankuro walked in on her while showering. Mai knew that she looked strange but she was sure she was not ugly. Carefully making sure that the door was locked Mai took her shower and got dressed. She pulled on another shirt like her last except a vibrant shade of blue that she reserved for special occasions and a black pair of harem pants. Deciding to leave her armor off but keep her weapons on her she walked out with her long wet hair and started to braid it so that it wouldn't get in her way. Slowly she made her way toward the kitchen where she could hear Temari and Kankuro arguing loudly. Thinking of her past Mai paused in the hallway. 'What would her life have been like if her clan was still alive?' Brushing the thought away Mai entered the kitchen.

Once Temari had gotten back from waking up Mai, Gaara told her of his plans. Tightening her fists and biting her lip she smiled sourly. Looking at her with a question in his eyes Gaara cocked his head. "I finally got what I wanted," she explained, "you're my brother again instead of the monster you were determined to become. Yet now that it puts your life in danger I find myself uneasy about your 'new path'. However Gaara I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you when I should have been. I'm so sorry…" Temari trailed off while trying to force back her tears. Shocked Gaara looked at his older sister stunned. When had his sister started to care for him? Had she worried for his wellbeing all this time or had these emotions just appeared when he had started to change his ways? Gaara wasn't sure if such obviously strong emotions could be felt in such a short time but he was glad that his efforts were finally showing some fruit even if he hadn't expected any. Looking over his younger brother and older sister Kankuro spoke up. "Well now that Temari has started crying do we have to wait even longer to eat?" Growling and throwing a punch at her brother Temari said, "We have to wait on Mai anyway."

Standing in the doorway Mai walked the rest of the way into the room. "No you don't." She said quietly, her mask preventing her face from betraying any emotions. Looking up Temari smiled as Kankuro smirked and Gaara just stared. Disappointed that Mai had her mask on again Gaara looked away and back to their meal. He usually wasn't interested in eating too much but tonight he was actually hungry for normal food. Most nights Shukaku would start to yell in his mind at about 5 and continue on from then until the night was over. So by dinner time Gaara had a headache and would be nauseous; causing him to under eat. However on this night Shukaku was eerily silent and despite his wariness Gaara decided to take advantage of the respite. Watching Kankuro cook had been entertaining. He had always envied how his older brother could turn something so essential into an art. Temari cooked like she did everything else; methodically and efficiently. She cooked to sustain herself and not do it for the enjoyment of it. Gaara didn't cook… at all. He had never tried and considering how difficult it seemed to him he was almost positive he never would.

After having the table set the four shinobi paid their respects and dug in. Mai hesitated before starting to eat and cautiously pulled off her mask. She had assumed that Gaara had told Kankuro and Temari the truth about what was behind her mask and since she had nothing else to hide she decided she might as well eat comfortably. Temari and Kankuro stared when she took it off. Unable to stop themselves from gaping at the girl's numerous tattoos. Staring back at them coolly Mai turned to her dinner and started eating. Gaara looked at her as well if only to admire her features. He wanted to know where she had gotten the tattoos and why she had them. What kind of jutsu allow the user to push a nonliving drawing from their skin into the world with as much life as any other creature and reverse the process? Once the group had finished eating they all settled on the couches in the living room to talk. Realizing how little the sand siblings knew about this girl who had joined them on their mission the three turned to Mai for answers. "So how did you come across Matsuri?" Temari asked with curiosity burning in her eyes. After dinner Mai had kept her mask off and allowed her hair down from her tight braid to dry. "I was traveling in the area after having dealt with some personal business when I ran across the battle in the clearing." Frowning she continued, "I don't know why I couldn't leave the girl to die." Realizing that she truly did not know why she stopped and helped Matsuri, Gaara's eyes widened slightly. He didn't understand how someone could not know why they did something. Gaara had performed various cruel and destructive acts in his short lifetime but for each one he knew why. Even if they were reason's that would only satisfy a madman Gaara knew the nature of Shukaku and knew why he acted as he had. Shaking himself from his thoughts he turned back to his sibling's and Mai's conversation. Carefully explaining her past without revealing her sensei Mai told the three siblings her story. Again she didn't know why she was, only that it felt like the right thing to do. "As a child I was part of a small clan that lived in the Land of Rivers. Our village was small and hidden between various rock formations that had been carved by the rivers and creeks of the land. When I was young my clan was slaughtered by various missing nin that were looking for gold and treasure that we had been rumored to possess. Despite our skills in battle no one survived that night except for me. To avenge my clan I learned the ways of the shinobi and mastered the dao swords." Pausing to take a breath Mai stopped herself from choking on her emotions. Remembering where she was before she had helped Matsuri Mai lost herself in memories.

It had been a year since she had last seen her sensei and she stilled hunted the last of those that had killed her clan. Since leaving her sensei and finding the ruins of her old village Mai found the last sacred tattooing needles of her clan buried in the burned out shell of her home. Weeping openly in the dirt Mai gathered all that she could salvage after the past years of erosion had corrupted everything even remotely left intact. That night for the first time she gave herself a tattoo of a pack of coyotes to symbolize her never ending hunt for her clan's killers. Mai had other tattoos but all of them had been given to her when she was very young by her parents and she had not yet continued in her clan's jutsu. Following the clues that were left to her about her clan's murderers brought her to several run down towns filled with wanted missing nin. As she hunted her prey she taught herself the jutsu that had been handed down to her. During her hunt she had killed most of the men and women who had raided her village but yet a few remained. Word had spread quickly about the strange nomad that was killing the nin that had formed a raiding party on the strange clan in the Land of Rivers many years before. The remaining survivors rallied together to try and defeat the nomad that hunted them but they failed just as all their predecessors had before them. Covered in the blood of her enemies Mai cried for what she promised herself would be the last time. She had finally exacted her revenge and now her life was empty. She had nothing else to live for and yet she still wanted to live. After having rested a full day Mai set out in search of a purpose when she stumbled across a battle in a clearing. Just as a shinobi was about to behead a young girl, Mai stepped in and stopped them. Without knowing why she did it Mai fought them with everything she had left and eventually help arrived in the form of three sand shinobi…

Shaking herself from her memories Mai continued on with her story. "I was coming back from having visited my village's ruins when I ran into Matsuri." Mai finished lamely. "Wait what?" Kankuro said. "That is quite a time jump…" Temari said. Mai shrugged, "It takes time and skill to master the blades." "So you still haven't killed the men who slaughtered your entire clan?" Kankuro asked seriously. "I have." "So when did you…" Mai looked at Kankuro and said nothing but her gaze said she was not quite ready to divulge that information. Despite wanting to know what had happened they left it in hopes that one day she would tell them. Making herself more comfortable Mai looked at the siblings. "So who are you in relation to the village?" "No one." Kankuro lied defiantly. "Bull shit." Mai said her face betraying no emotion. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to but don't lie about it." Temari's chin rose and she said, "We were the previous Kazekage's children." Gaara's eyes flashed in emotion. Even though Temari hadn't called him father Gaara still didn't like it when his older siblings spoke of his father. Nodding in satisfaction despite knowing that Temari hadn't divulged their entire past as well Mai decided the change the subject. "I've noticed that you have chosen strange weapons for your main combat pieces." Slightly smiling, knowing that Mai had changed the subject on purpose the two older siblings started to explain their weapons. After having enjoyed each other's company the group got ready for bed. "Do you want your room back?" Mai asked looking Gaara in the eyes like only a few people had. "No, you can continue to use it." Gaara said in a firm tone. He knew he wouldn't need it throughout the night and he had decided that it might as well go to good use. Truth be told he felt a strange warmth from his chest when he thought of Mai sleeping in his bed. Granted she didn't seem to know about the monster that he held but he was glad that he could do something for someone.

After everyone had gone to bed Gaara was on the roof like always. Breathing deeply he smelled the inhabitant of his house. His sister smelled of the untamed winds that shaped the sand dunes. Kankuro smelled like the wood he used for his puppets; cedar, cherry, and ash along with the metal of his tools came to mind when Gaara thought of Kankuro. Mai smelled of running water and the trees that covered the forests of the Land of Rivers. Breathing deeply Gaara let a small smile settle on his lips. Looking back at the stars in the sky he rejoiced at the new moon that kept the sky strangely empty. Leaning back against the roof with his gourd nearby Gaara settled in and waited for a new day to dawn.

Once more Mai felt at home in a strangers room. Walking in she felt like she had when she was little and was being held in her father's arms. Rubbing her face tiredly she settled into the bed without her mask. It had been so long since she had showed someone her face it felt good to have the mask finally off. Stretching out on the bed Mai mercifully fell into a dreamless sleep.

Upon waking Mai heard raised voices down the hall. Dressing quickly and putting on all of her gear and her mask once more she walked to the front door where all the commotion was. Kankuro was yelling at what seemed to be a messenger while Temari was clenching her fists and gritting her teeth with the messenger cowering in the doorway. Gaara was the only calm one of the bunch and he quietly raised his hand. "I accept." Was all he said and then he shut the door on the petrified messenger. "Gaara." Was all Kankuro said when Gaara interrupted him. "I know." He stated calmly, "Still, I must try." Sighing in defeat Kankuro lightly put his hand on his little brother's shoulder and said, "I know." At that point Temari stalked out of the room. Gaara, looking as if he was about to follow her, was stopped by Kankuro's hand on his chest. "Don't," was all his older brother said, "she needs to blow off some steam." Nodding slightly dejectedly Gaara disappeared in a wave of sand. Sighing once more Kankuro padded off toward some unknown part of the apartment. Seemingly forgotten Mai decided to follow Temari. Even though Mai hadn't spent much time around people she knew that women sometimes just needed other women to talk to. After following her trail for 15 minutes Mai found Temari at a training ground where the kunoichi was taking out her frustrations on a helpless hoard of practice dummies. Walking into the training grounds Mai made her presence known. Turning toward her in blind fury Temari attacked. Ready for the retaliation in knowing that the older girl wasn't in her right mind Mai defended herself. She let Temari take out all her frustration on her quietly dodging the girl's strong attacks. Finally, after it seemed as if Temari had calmed down, Mai tried to speak to her. "So, is there something you need to talk about?" Mai asked coolly as if she hadn't just been dodging ferocious attacks all morning in the hot desert sun. "Panting hard from her anger Temari swallowed. "I can't stand it!" She growled and launched another jutsu. "Stand what." Mai asked calmly avoiding the dangerous chakra winds that howled on the practice field. "He needs this! He needs to change and they're trying to stop him!" Temari threw a few kunai, her fury finally boiling down. "That's not the only thing, is it?" Mai stated keenly. "And damn it I can't even protect him! This all rests on him being able to do this himself and I'm sick of sitting back and watching him get hurt!" Temari ground out, almost sobbing. Guessing that Temari was talking about Gaara, Mai walked up to Temari as she fell to her knees. Realizing that neither she nor Temari were fully healed from their previous injuries Mai knelt down next to her. Looking into Temari's tear filled eyes she said, "I haven't known Gaara but for a few days. However from what I have seen he seems able to take care of himself and from the look in his eyes he's ready to take care of both you and Kankuro. Right now I think what he needs most is your support to get him through whatever it is that is causing him trouble. He may not need you to physically protect him but he will need your emotional support more than anything." Hoping that she had done more good than harm Mai got up gingerly and ignored the faint pains in her arm and side. Nodding Temari's gaze hardened and she said firmly, "I can do that." Once both girls had dusted off they started on their way back toward the sand siblings apartment. When both girls were back Gaara suddenly appeared in the living room and Kankuro snuck out from whatever corner of the apartment he was hiding in. Looking toward Gaara Temari walked up to him and suddenly hugged him forcefully. "Be safe little brother." Was all she said but it conveyed her approval as well. Still unsure of what was going on Mai just watched.

After the emotional outburst everyone was starving but it turned out the fridge was about as barren as the desert. Deciding that to repay some of her debt from staying with the siblings Mai volunteered to go to the market and cook their meals that day. Realizing that she didn't know where the market was she was looking for help when Gaara stepped up to go with her. Astounded by their little brother's actions the older siblings had yet to regain the power of speech when Mai and Gaara headed out the door.

Gently pushing their way through the market they walked silently as Mia gathered food while Gaara followed. Unused to the hustle and bustle of the crowded market Gaara felt uncomfortable. Yet it seemed that most of the villagers there were too busy to take notice of who was around them. So Gaara was left unseen by the villagers and shopped with Mai in relative peace. After gathering all that they needed for lunch and dinner the two started to make their way out of the market when a man hurriedly ran into Mai full force. Or at least he would have if Gaara's sand hadn't knocked him on his back. The man quickly got up, about to start trouble when he realized what he had run into. "You almost ran over her and she has unhealed injuries." Gaara said in a cool tone. He hadn't want to cause such a fuss but he could tell the only way to get out of their current situation was to head off any attacks the villagers could start. Swallowing hard the man apologized and backed away, trying to blend into the crowd. Feeling the tension in the air Gaara and Mai continued on their way out of the market. Silence followed them until a rock, thrown at Gaara, hit his shield and deflected onto Mai's injured arm. Without even stopping the two continued to walk toward the apartment. Once out of sight from the crowd Gaara paused and Mai stopped with him. "How's your arm?" He asked quietly placing the blame on himself. "It's fine… It'll get better." She said suddenly. Looking defeated, "Will it?" was all he said. Nodding to herself Mai smiled under her mask. "It will."

When they were back to their apartment they found Temari and Kankuro literally fighting for the remote. Kankuro was about to declare victory when Temari dove into his stomach and grabbed the remote before scrambling away. Smirking triumphantly Temari finally noticed that Mai and Gaara were back while Kankuro moaned on the floor. "Will he be alright?" Mai asked suspiciously while looking at Kankuro who was still on the floor. "He'll be fine." Temari said, rolling her eyes. "Did you get everything?" The oldest sibling asked in an eager tone. Nodding Mai took off her mask and started prepping the food. After getting up from the floor Kankuro sat down heavily on a kitchen table chair and eyed the darkened bandage on Mai's arm. "What happened to you?" He asked calmly. Hesitating only slightly Mai looked at Gaara, "Nothing much", she said, "we just had a little trouble in the market." Upon hearing that Temari and Kankuro demanded the whole story, which Mai gladly allowed Gaara to tell. Starting to boil some water Mai realized everyone's eyes were on her. Ignoring their ravenous looks Mai continued to take her time. "Can I help?" Temari said in an effort to speed up the process. She was starving and the aroma of the food only worsened her appetite. "No!" Kankuro protested loudly, everything she touches has as much flavor as sand." Shaking her head and turning toward the older girl Mai smiled slightly and pulled some cleaned vegetables from the counter. "You can chop these." She said and set them down in front of her with a knife. After a few minutes of muttering and Kankuro making unhelpful comments Mai walked over to help Temari in her struggle. Putting her hands on Temari's she stopped Temari from using the knife as if it were a kunai and showed her how to chop vegetables properly. Enthralled Gaara just watched. No emotion showed on his face but his eyes followed every move Mai made. Noticing this Kankuro spoke up, "Hey Mai give Gaara and I something to do will ya? We're bored over here." Gaara glared at Kankuro. He wasn't bored, he could watch Mai cook all day. Without even acknowledging that he spoke Mai gave Kankuro a fish to fillet and handed more vegetables to Gaara. Somehow Mai knew that Gaara would have trouble getting used to being in a kitchen let alone cooking. Mai soon realized that Gaara had the same problem as Temari and went over to correct him. Coming up behind his carefully Mai put her hands on his and changed the position of his knife. "Like I said with Temari", Mai spoke softly, "it's not a kunai, it's a kitchen knife. Don't stab at the vegetables, chop them." Once she felt that Gaara had a grasp on how to chop and not stab she went back to the stove. Kankuro looked over toward Gaara smirking. His younger brother looked stunned at the fact that Mai had just helped him cut vegetables. Temari caught Kankuro's eye and smiled. Maybe watching their brother form his new path wouldn't be as bad as they thought it would.

After lunch the group napped and then woke up for dinner. At dinner Mai found out that Gaara was to leave for another mission early the next morning without his older siblings. Sensing that this had been the issue that had caused the commotion that morning Mai kept quiet. After dinner Mai once more took Gaara's bed while the red head went out onto the roof like he did every night. Looking at the stars Gaara wondered what his mission would be like the next day. It felt strange prepping for a mission and knowing that neither Kankuro nor Temari would be there with him. Turning his head Gaara felt another presence on the roof. Mai moved to where she felt Gaara's massive amount of chakra sitting. She had felt bad for the red head. She knew that he was trying to change his ways for some reason but he was getting resistance from his village and himself. Sitting down next to him Mai looked up at the sky and smiled. She had left her mask off again and the starlight made her tattoos look more elusive than ever. In his experience if he kept silence people would fill it with their voice and talk. However Mai seemed happy with the silence and she simply sat with him without saying a word. When the sun started to rise Mai got up and looked down at Gaara who was still sitting. "Good luck", was all she said and then she hopped back down into Gaara's room. Gaara's eyes widened as he looked at Mai's retreating form. Maybe this mission wouldn't be so bad. Gaara thought as he jumped down from the roof. It was time for him to meet his teammates Yaoki and Korobi.

After only getting an hour of sleep before the other sand sibling woke up Mai pushed herself sleepily into the kitchen where she had breakfast with Temari and Kankuro. "So what are we going to do?" Kankuro asked grumpily. "We aren't cleared for missions yet but we're gonna go crazy if we spend another day in here." Putting her fork down Mai turned her gaze toward Kankuro." "Well I think that I need to find another place to stay at least until I need to move on. I can't just keep using Gaara's room." Temari nodded in agreement and said, "You're right, eventually Gaara's going to need his room back." Motioning to Kankuro and herself she said, "We'll help you look." Before Kankuro could back out Mai nodded, "Thank you." "No problem." Kankuro muttered. He didn't want to spend another day in the apartment but that didn't mean he wanted to go apartment hunting. When they were all finished they got dressed and went on their way. At about noon the three ninja still had no luck finding a relatively nice apartment for weekly rent that wasn't completely disgusting or overpriced. Deciding that they needed to eat before continuing the group stopped at a nearby food stand with shaded seating. Unlike when Gaara went out crowds didn't part for the two older siblings but Mai could still feel the stares on her back and the cruel whispering voices that seemed to follow them. Temari and Kankuro acted as if they couldn't feel them but Mai knew from the look in their eyes that each glare and hushed word cut into them like a kunai or shuriken never could.

Unintentionally they had stopped at the hospital where Matsuri had been staying since she had arrived in the hidden village. The young girl had been emotionally scarred by the circumstances surrounding her parents' death. Half way through their meal the three heard a commotion around the hospital. Then, dressed only in a thin hospital gown, Matsuri sprinted toward them. Eyebrows raised in amusement Temari watched as the girl immediately spotted Mai and made a beeline for the tattooed warrior. Mai watched calmly from behind her mask as Matsuri rushed toward her and hid behind her back, as if using her as a shield. Soon after a few assorted hospital personnel ran out of the hospital and started searching for (what everyone assumed was) Matsuri. After a few moments they caught a glimpse of the girl hidden behind Mai's back and started toward the small group. Standing quietly as if to better guard Matsuri; Mai turned toward the approaching medical personnel. "Mam," one of them started, "Matsurisan needs to go back to the hospital for further psych evaluations. Keeping her face blank behind her mask Mai said, "who is she to live with while she lives in Sunagakure?" Startled at being asked such a question the medic stuttered, "W-wwe are not permitted to give out such information to unauthorized personnel." Before Mai could say anything else Temari spoke up in a firm tone that held no room for argument. "Tell her." "Her grandparents Fumio and Akari." The medic looked down as if ashamed. Nodding Mai looked toward the two sand siblings. "I think that it's time Matsuri went home. If you would excuse me I will escort her and then rejoin you for lunch when I have finished." Temari smiled coyly, "We'll go with you." Kankuro grumbled into his noodles. He hadn't even finished his meal when the two girls wanted to go off again. Seeing Temari's determined expression and Mai's cold mask Kankuro sighed. He knew it would be futile to argue so he just threw down money for their meal and they set off. After having got their address from the medic nin the small group quickly made their way across Sunagakure.

When they got to the address the three older ninja stopped, startled. What stood before them was a small toy shop, not a home. Confused and wondering if the medical nin had given them the wrong address they almost startled when an elderly man stumbled out of the store. "Woman!" he yelled toward the entrance, "I can't bend to your every whim! You have to pick if you want her room painted or not, you cannot have it both ways. Until then I am not going to buy paint we won't use!" Throwing his hands in the air the man turned and spotted the four adolescents staring at him. Grinning as if caught with his hand in the cookie jar the man introduced himself. "Hello, I'm Fumio the shop owner. If you're here to shop we're closed for the night but we'd be glad to have you back in the morning." "Fumio!" a voice yelled from the shop, "we can let a few people in to look at the store, you can't turn everyone away or we'll never sell anything!" Rolling his eyes the man turned back to the store where the other voice was emanating. "Akari we're closed! We can't just let everyone in whenever we please, we have store hours!" "We own the store baka! We can let anyone in that we want to!" "Well I don't want to!" The man yelled, a vein popping out of his head. Stomping out of the store came a heavier set woman with sharp muscles that could only come from crafting new items day in and day out. "Did you even ask them why they're here baka?" Akari asked, "They might not even want to come in the store and you're harassing them about store hours!" Huffing under his breath Fumio looked at the group who were now amused beyond belief. "Are you here to come in the store or not?" Keeping her cool Mai looked up at the man and smiled behind her mask. Matsuri would need some characters to keep her from brooding. "We're here to deliver your granddaughter Matsuri into your care." She said motioning to the girl who was now hiding her face under her short bangs. Completley taken off guard the elderly couple stayed quiet for a moment before exploding into a flurry of action. Before they knew it the three older companions had been hurried into a small apartment that connected to the store and food was set in front of them. Decidedly happy at the turn of events Kankuro dug in like there was no tomorrow. He had been grumpy ever since they had left their meals unfinished. Not that the two girls would have noticed while they were on their mission to find Matsuri's home.

Temari quietly ate, listening to the elderly couple talk. After a while Mai spoke up. "What caused Matsuri's parents to move out of the village?" Looking at each other sadly Fumio spoke up, "Matsuri's mother was our daughter. Her husband decided that he didn't want his family exposed to the lives of shinobi and so they moved out of the village. They had decided to move back when they realized they couldn't get away from the life of ninja. That was when the attacks started. They were harassed by other ninja until apparently they were…" Fumio stopped and swallowed hard while Akari choked down a sob. Looking down at her food Matsuri let a tear fall from her eye. She knew she would never be able to forget her parents death. Just before the three shinobi left, Temari looked toward the broken family. "Would either of you know a place to rent out for a few weeks at a time?" She addressed the elderly couple, "Mai has been looking for a descent place to stay for a few weeks." Smiling broadly Fumio turned toward Akari and nodded. "We have a small space above the store and our house that we've been trying to rent out for months now but not many people want to live above a toy store. "Would you be interested?"