Demon Storms
愛
Kankuro woke up the next morning with doom hanging over his shoulders like a heavy cloud. It had personified itself as his older sister. Sleep groggy he had only half understood her whispered ranting. After five minuets of watching her paced his room he was able to coherently put together a full thought. Gaara had a baby. His second realization was that Temari wanted him to inform their younger (slightly psychotic) brother that a baby was not like a pet and that he could not keep it.
The ensuing battle was short livid and Kankuro found himself in the awkward position of trying to strike up a conversation with the younger sibling that he usually only had a one sided conversation with. Walking into the living area munching on an apple he noticed that his younger brother, as usual, looked as though he hadn't slept at all the pervious night. This of course was obvious, as Suna had seen the light of another day. Glancing at the window he realized this thought was actually inaccurate. Thick dark clouds obscured the sun and heavy rain obscured any view but faint lights from the surrounding village.
Kankuro took the distracting and walked over to the window. He could not remember the last time Suna had seen a storm like the one currently raging. Lighting momentarily lit the streets and Kankuro blinked and shook his head against the shadows the light had created. He turned back to his brother.
Gaara sat cross legged on the floor the baby in his lap dressed in what Kankuro recognized as an outfit Gaara had worn as a baby. Looking at the baby Kankuro noted things he hadn't before. Currently the baby had her face tilted to the side mimicking Gaara and Kankuro saw clearly three white scars that ran vertically down her throat from behind her ears. They were clean and looked as if inflicted on purpose, but healed.
She laughed then reached out and touched Gaara's cheeks.
Kankuro watched emotions play across his brother face and saw the smile spread across his face that for once was not foretelling death, but laughter. He moved his gaze away from his breather before he died from the shock and noticed the mess that surrounded the two. It looked as though Gaara had tried to feed an angry raccoon.
"What happened?" Kankuro blurted out.
Gaara glanced up at him then at the mess around him. He looked down at the baby and lifted her from his lap. He held her up towards him and Kankuro noticed for the first time that the infant and his sibling were both covered in what looked like orange and yellow mud.
"Sayuri decided she was more interested in playing with her food then eating it." Gaara said setting her back down in his lap "Didn't you? Yeah, playing in gooey carrots and banana's was much more enjoyable then eating it, wasn't it my aiko?"
Kankuro chocked on his apple and he stared at the child he had watched murder entire squads of ninjas without a backwards glance, the same child that harbored an insane single tailed demon. He could not believe his brother had just spoken down to the level of an infant.
"Chew Kankuro." Gaara suggested covering his face with his hands.
"Ah," Gaara said, "Where did Daddy go?"
The baby, Sayuri, burst into laughter as Gaara uncovered his face, "Peek-a-boo."
Kankuro swallowed with difficulty and fled the room. Temari was waiting for him in the hall.
"Well?" she asked.
"He's playing 'Peek-A-Boo'." Kankuro said.
Temari's face registered shock, then resignation.
"Hey 'Mari." Kankuro said his tone serious.
"What?"
"Um..about Sayuri-the baby-" he clarified, " I..I don't think we should give her back to whoever she belongs to."
Temari stared at him as if he had just grown an extra head and suggested she lend him her arms.
"She..um..has these, scars. I don't think whoever had her wanted her alive."
Temari looked alarmed, "But Kankuro. We can't keep her! None of us are adults.
Kankuro sighed, "But…Gaara seems to know what he's doing. Sayuri…I dunno, seems to calm him down bring out a fraternal instinct?"
Temari groaned and stalked past her incompetent puppet wielding brother and into the living area.
"Gaara." She announced staring, not at her sibling but the window, "You can't keep- WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!!??" Lighting flashed outside illuminating what looked like a face pressed against the window pain. The lights flickered as thunder rumbled and crashed above them. Gaara stood in one fluid motion shoving the baby into her arms then leaping towards the window pushing it open and hoping out into the elements.
Temari stared at the being she held at arms length. The baby looked at her confused, tears began welling in her eyes and her face began to scrunch up. Temari brought her closer trying to copy the hold she had seen Gaara do and tried to make reassuring sounds. She was distracted though by the white scars Kankuro had mentioned. In the exact same spot on each side of her neck were three vertical white scars, perfectly clean cuts as if carefully and deliberately made.
Temari felt faintly sick at the idea that anyone would do something like that to a baby. The baby flailed and screamed jogging loose something from beneath her cloths. A lily white sea-shell strung on a length of leather cord hung around her neck. Temari recognized the shell as the ones that littered the shore of a beach her family had visited in the wave country once when she was younger.
Sayuri let out an monstrous wail and wind and rain wiped round the two of them with impossible force. The rain began taking shape before Temari's eyes and she felt Sayuri slip in her arms.
"TEMARI DON'T LET HER GO!!"
Temari pulled the screaming baby closer as Kankuro burst into the room throwing himself between the two of them. There was a scream that sounded vaguely like someone had stuck a microphone to a drain and the water fell to the ground life less. Gaara stood by the window locking it with a definite click.
"What was that?" Kankuro asked faintly.
Gaara shook his head crossing the soggy carpet carefully. Sayuri reached out for him and he quickly relieved Temari of her. Sayuri's wails softened to whimpers as she huddled into his soggy shirt.
"It looked like a water clone of some kind." Temari said staring at the wet spot on the ground.
"I did not feel any chakra." Gaara said quietly.
"A water demon?" Kankuro suggested.
"The desert is far to dry for one to survive." Temari muttered, "water demons live in the deep oceans and the occasional lake. None of our oases are large enough for one."
"No, but the storm is strong enough to sustain a short stint here." Gaara said and they all turned to look at the raging beyond their window. "It isn't a normal storm."
Temari frowned, "It…tried to take baby."
Gaara face hardened and he held Sayuri closer, "Sayuri is mine. No one can take her from me."
Temari sighed, "Gaara, she isn't a pet. You can't just keep a baby like you would a stray. We have to find her par-a uh more suitable home."
Temari eyed the scars, either her parents were dead or monsters, either way she wasn't going to waste energy trying to find them.
Gaara stalked past them angrily without rebuttal shutting his door with enough firmness to clearly indicate that they took their life in their hands if they disturbed him
Temari looked to Kankuro for help but found him eyeing the wet spot.
"I've never been near a puddle that was filled with such ill intent." Kankuro said.
Temari almost rolled her eyes but remembering the feeling of something lifting the baby from her had her shivering instead.
"Come on help me clean up this mess."
Temari headed towards the hall closest not checking to see if her brother followed. It was going to be a long day; abandoned infants, strange scars and now water demons, and it wasn't even lunch time.
A/N: Okay updated :D lol, sorry, been busy with summer classes. Thank you soooo much for the reviews! i am sooo glade everyone enjoys it. I was looking over the reviews and decided that even though I'm dog tierd I'd go ahead and update, so, at 9 at night this is what my brain came up with. I hope you like it and i hope this doesn't spin anyone for a loop. I have kind of an idea where this is going, though if anyone has an suggestions about what they kind of wanted from a gaara/baby fic please let me know. and if anyone knows of any other let me know :D
Please review! they make me want to update! I love reviews! I'm thrilled with the response I have gotten already and thank you so much all who have reviewed again:D