Chapter 4: Sickness and Silence.

Previously: TenTen had long forgotten about her encounter with the raccoon. Was it a dream, or did she really die and come back? She didn't know if she even remembered any of it.

She wasn't sure why, but she leaned up to Gaara's ear and whispered:

"There's no more darkness…"


Gaara blinked his eyes in disbelief. "There's no way on Earth that she could've remembered that," he thought. "Even I don't…"

"What'd she say," asked Sakura, coming in with some pillows. She rested them behind TenTen's head as the weapons' mistress fell asleep, peacefully for the first time in months. "I didn't quite catch it," he lied.

"Oh. Oh well. She should be fine. Just let her rest a couple of days, but I'm going to ask you to leave," continued the medic nin. "Why," Gaara snapped.

"Well, first off, you nearly killed her. Second, she's one of my best friends, and third, I don't trust you," she said with a satisfied grin. Frowning, Gaara replied, "I'm not asking you to trust me. And I told you, it was an accident. I never meant to hurt her. I swear—"

"Well, according to your history—" Sakura added. "I know what happened, but the past is the past. And…..she's the only person that can…fix me…" Gaara concluded. "Please, I—"

"I'll be watching you," Sakura snapped back, "If you even think of doing something, you will wish Konoha had no ties with Sand, and that all we'd do was kill you," then left, quite happy to get away from the sand nin.

Gaara had stayed up just watching TenTen and thinking of those haunting words she said. He tried telling himself that she said something different, but the words just kept flooding back into his mind. "You still remember TenTen, don't you," he questioned the sleeping beauty in front of him. "It seems like so long ago, but you couldn't have remembered."

"I have never forgotten, but what my uncle did, was the cruelest thing anyone has ever done. But you can't remember since that jutsu he placed on you. I'm sorry, TenTen. For everything. Ever since that day by the Willow Tree, when we were little kids. It seems like only yesterday," he said to her sleeping form,

"Can you hear me, TenTen?" he asked. "Give me a sign if you do," he pleaded, but she only slept peacefully. He slowly reached over and touched her arm softly, and the memories poured in like fresh daylight in a darkened room.

--Flashback--

"You can't catch me!" shouted a young Gaara. He was about 7 years old, and he had made his first friend.

"Yes I can," shouted back a little girl about his age wearing a yellow sundress. She had her hair in two little brown buns that looked like rolls of chocolate laced up with a white-chocolate ribbon. Her name was TenTen.

She formed her hands into a small symbol and disappeared. Hiding in the shadows of the trees where she just transported herself to, she giggled softly. Gaara closed his eyes and his sand moved around the area until –

"Hey," shouted the little girl giggling still as the sand poked her from behind and Gaara shouted "Now you're it!"

"That's cheating," she said. "Well, you cheated too," he replied smiling, "you used 'the specialie' as what they called the ninja arts and Jutsus as little kids." They both laughed. Then, out of nowhere, came a huge crash and a huge grey cloud appeared, making the sky grey, cold and dark.

Gaara immediately dropped to the ground and covered his ears and closed his eyes. "What's wrong," asked TenTen. "It's getting darker," he said trembling. "What's wrong with that," she replied, "there's nothing to be afraid of – there's nothing wrong with the dark. Plus, this is just a storm." Gaara looked up slowly and trembled; a look of pure fear was on his face. Then, the lightning struck again and Gaara covered himself up again.

"Are you afraid of the storm?" asked TenTen. Gaara looked up and was surprised to see, not a look of ridicule and spite on her gentle face, but kindness, and sympathy instead. "It's ok," she said and kneeled down next to him, "you know it's not really that scary. Even with lightning because the lightning lights up the whole place and makes it brighter." Gaara looked up and saw her smiling face and, for once, didn't feel afraid of anything. Not even the dark, or his uncle, or the village, or anything else; he found his special person.

--Meanwhile--

Gaara's uncle looked out to the field and saw Gaara and his new friend TenTen running and laughing, even with the lightning and thunder and darkened sky. He spat into the ground and looked upon the happy children with disgust and glared at Gaara with pure, menacing hatred. Then, looking back at TenTen, a vicious smiled plastered over his lips and he disappeared.

--Later--

"Gaara," said Gaara's uncle. "Yes," replied a quite cheerful Gaara. "I don't want you around that little girl TenTen anymore," he said coldly. "All she's doing is filling your head with lies and stupid dreams."

"What," said Gaara becoming outraged. "No," he continued, "she's the only friend I have," he pleaded.

"You don't need friends, Gaara. You're a monster and she's only making you worse. People like you will never love and never feel, so you're not going to waste any time with her. I forbid you to see her. If you disobey me, she will suffer the consequences."

"I'TS NOT FAIR, UNCLE! I WONT JUST GIVE UP LIKE THIS. YOU ALWAYS TELL ME TO BE AFRAID AND I'M NOT GOING TO BE AFRAID ANYMORE!" he shouted. Slamming the door, Gaara ran to his bed and held on to his favorite teddy bear, and cried. He felt like he would only cry forever. Wiping the tears away, he slowly and carefully climbed out his bedroom window and ran for the place where he met TenTen for the first time – the Willow Tree.

--Meanwhile--

"TenTen, dear," said TenTen's mother. "I think you should stay inside tomorrow."

"Why?" asked the small child. "But I'm going to play with Gaara tomorrow."

"That's why," her mother continued. "I don't want you to even go near him anymore. You don't even know how dangerous he will become…."

"What? What do you mean how dangerous he'll become? He's nice and kind and he's a good person. Gaara wouldn't harm a fly."

"TenTen, honey, there are just some things you won't understand. He killed many people. I forbid you to go near him. I will NOT have my daughter playing around with a, a…psycho!"

"Mommy, he's not like that! He's different," she retaliated.

"Oh, he's different all right," her mother replied. "I will not stand for it. I will not sit here and watch you put yourself in harms way, by playing with that little demon child."

"HE'S NOT A DEMON! HE'S MY FRIEND. THE ONLY FRIEND I HAVE! NONE OF THE OTHER KIDS WANT TO PLAY WITH ME ALL BECAUSE I LIKE WEAPONS AND NINJA ART, BUT HE DOES. AM I A DEMON TOO, MOMMY, BECAUSE I PLAY WITH WEAPONS?!"

"TENTEN!" her mother exclaimed, but her daughter had already stormed off to her room. For the first time, a tear fell from her eye. She grabbed her blanket and her teddy-bear and jumped out the window. She ran to the place where she met Gaara for the first time – the Willow Tree.

--At the willow tree--

"Gaara?" asked a sad little girl with chocolate brown hair.

"TenTen," he replied in question. The two children smiled and gave the other the biggest, warmest hug they could. "How did you know I would be here," she asked. "I didn't," he replied.

"My uncle said we can't play anymore," he said. "My mommy said that too. She said that you killed people…." Then she paused, for reasons she didn't know or understand. "Is it true?"

Gaara looked up at the girl once more, and saw a hint of fear in her eyes, but he mostly saw something else that edged on sympathy and similarity. "Yes."

"Oh," she said. "I killed somebody too."

"Really," he questioned, wiping away the remains of his tears. "Yes," she said. "But it was because that stupid Kinosou wouldn't stop hitting me. I got real mad and I hit his neck with a chu-ree-ken A/N: translation shuriken. They're still little kids and then he didn't get up. But I was afraid to tell because then I would get in big trouble."

"I was afraid too. He was a big, tall man and he tried to take me away. He tried to hurt me too, and I got mad. All I remember is sand everywhere and his breath was gone," he answered, "I still feel so alone and so afraid, though."

"It's okay!" she said. "You don't have to be afraid, and I'll always be here! Best friends?" she said and put out her hand to shake his. "Forever," he asked. "And ever and ever, until clocks don't tick anymore!" she exclaimed happily.

"Deal," he said and smiled. They shook hands, then laughed and hugged each other. Gaara handed TenTen his teddy bear.

"Here," he said. "Take him so you can pretend he's me and hug him when you're sad."

TenTen took the small red sash from around Gaara's waist and strapped it around the bear like the way Gaara's other sash attached his gourd to him. "Now he looks just like you," TenTen exclaimed gleefully.

TenTen gave Gaara her teddy bear. "Here," she said, "Whenever you find yourself in someplace dark, hug her and pretend she's me." Gaara took the two ribbons out of TenTen's buns allowing her hair to fall down to its full length. He took the two ribbons and tied them around the bear's ears like her two buns.

"Now she looks just like you," Gaara said, smiling brightly. "Now we'll never forget each other no matter what," said TenTen.

"I could never forget you, TenTen," he said to the young weapons mistress and clutched the bear tighter. "Don't worry," she said and smiled. "There's no more darkness." And for the first time, Gaara felt safe but mostly, he felt alive. They embraced into a warm much-needed hug.

Suddenly, there was a rustling in the bushes that made the two children jump out of their hug. A small white rabbit came from behind the brush. The two children sat down and pet the rabbit, giggling. It was only after the animal ran away swiftly did the two children notice that there was another presence.

Gaara's uncle came from out of the brush with the most angered expression Gaara had ever seen…