AN: Hi :D Hers's Chapter 4. A shoutout to GissRiver, who's been a really awesome supporter ;) Thank you for all the reviews and follows!
Temari looked down at the tray she was carrying to Shikamaru's room. There was mackerel, sukonbu and a glass of water with a bowl of rice beside it. It was at least, double of what Temari could've eaten. Shikamaru was going to turn eighteen soon, it was good that he had such a healthy appetite. But she wondered, if they were going to get married, (Shikamaru had to agree firstly) then would they move out? On top of that, who would do all the cooking? Temari didn't mind staying with Yoshino. Not at all. She had grown up without a mother's warmth and love, Yoshino was the next closest thing to her biological mother. Temari could hardly remember anything about her; she had passed away when she was only three after all.
She stood outside his door and inhaled deeply. She put on her best fake smile and knocked, then entered the room without waiting for a reply. Shikamaru was sitting on his bed, legs crossed, chin in palm and face gazing intently at the scroll on his bed. He didn't even glance up at Temari.
"Dinner Shikamaru," started Temari. She was impressed at his focus; it was rare to see him with such profound concentration.
Shikamaru glanced up at the sound of her voice. He looked at the tray in her hands and pointed to his bed. "Here," he stated while staring at her. It was making Temari quite nervous. Again, there was something in the atmosphere that made her want to run away. Was it because they hadn't seen each other for so long? Was it because he was gazing so intently at her? He had never candidly stared at her which such fascination or interest before. He seemed to follow each and her every movement with his eyes, from the moment she put down his tray and to the moment she took the scroll.
"Eat. Now," Temari attempted to say without stuttering. Relief overtook her when the words came out right. "Mmm. When will you eat?" came Shikamaru's newly deep voice. Temari was momentarily startled. 'Where the hell did that voice come from? It isn't so different, but it's deeper and more manly isn't it? How come I didn't hear this when we were outside?' Was it the atmosphere that made him sound different? Maybe she wasn't paying attention when he was speaking before, or maybe she refused to acknowledge it because there were others around at that time. Now they were alone, in an empty house. Temari could gape as much as she wanted to and nobody would notice.
"Oi. Woman. Did you lose your hearing in the past year?" Shikamru's voice broke her out of her contemplation.
"What?!" she snapped. "I asked, when will you eat?" Shikamaru replied patiently, his gaze never leaving her face. Temari looked away, afraid that if she continued, she wouldn't be able to restrict her gaze to his eyes only. "Not eyes honey! They're picturesque drops of light brown honey or chocolate! Whichever you prefer! You could just drown in them," squealed Inner Temari. Outer Temari groaned. "I'm full from the dango. Can I read this scroll?"
"Yeah. Where's okaa chan?" questioned Shikamaru while taking his first bite. "Yamanaka clan sent her a message. She'll be out for a while." For the next few minutes, there was peace as Shikamaru ate and Temari read the scroll, her curiosity perked at being given the permission to read a Nara Clan scroll. Despite feeling the persistent gaze from him, Temari continued to read the scroll, pausing only to look up and observe the Nara Clan head's room. It had changed since the last time she had visited, meaning, it had changed after the Pain attack.
Shikamaru was the head of his clan now, so there were papers littered on a desk in a corner of the room with a table lamp. There were numerous scrolls stacked below the table, almost as if they were there so they were easily accessible. Instead of the one wall bookshelf that used to be there, there were two walls complete with shelves stacked with books to the brim. His bed was next to the window. The mechanism that controlled the drapes was right in Shikamaru's hands reach. Temari smirked at this small detail. That meant that Shikamaru could control the amount of sunlight coming into his room without getting up and walking; the perks of having a bed beside the window. There was a bedside table with an alarm clock. The room was finished off with a shogi board and two mats in the centre and five pictures on the wall beside his bed. There was one of Shikamaru, Shikaku and Yoshino that was the biggest and right in the centre of the others. The next one that caught Temari's eye was the one of him and her. Yes, there was a picture of the both of them together. Tsunade had made them take it when he was first assigned to be her guide. At that time, she was still in her old outfit, when she wore a really short skirt with a red obi and light purple full sleeve. Shikamaru was beside her in his Chuunin outfit, not smiling but wincing. Temari had hit him right before the photographer clicked the button. She couldn't help it; he was staring at the clouds when he should've been smiling for the camera. Not that Temari was any better; she hated photos so she was frowning indignantly. The last time she had been to his room, that picture was not on his wall, so she wondered what made him put it up there and when he did. There was a picture of Team Ten and another of the Konoha 11 and Sai. The last picture, and the most endearing, was of a child. The child looked to be around a year old with black tufts of hair and piercing red eyes. Those eyes seemed fitting for a genjutsu type. Temari was puzzled about the picture… Was he a new born cousin?
"Hey… Shikamaru. Who's that kid in the photo?" she asked, all hesitancy lost.
"… That's Hiruma Sarutobi, my god kid," replied Shikamaru instantaneously. Temari smiled in response.
"Asuma's son ehh? How old is he now?"
"Just turned one. Can you put my plate back in the kitchen?" Shikamaru asked while staring directly at her, almost as if waiting for her response to such a question. Temari hissed and turned to face Shikamaru.
"Me? Put your dish back? Oh hell no you lazy ass! You go put your own plates back. And you better wash them as well! I'm going to take a bath." retorted Temari as she walked out of his room. She could hear him sigh in relief, it was a un Temari question to ask, he just wanted to get a rise out of her. Four years back, she would've taken out her tessen and attempt to beat him up but no, she was a woman now. She had to show that she had matured. "In mind AND in body darling!" yelled Inner Temari. Temari ignored her and entered the washroom opposite to Shikamaru's. She filled up the tub and undressed, the lukewarm water soothing her tensed joints and calming her. "Exactly what I need after a tiring journey," Temari thought to herself.
Temari realized that she had made a humongous error, a life changing error, a potentially terrifying and embarrassing error that nobody ever wanted to make. Darling Temari had entered the washroom without bringing in a change of clothes. After entering the Nara house, she let her guard down. Talking to Yoshino made her forget about unpacking and one thing led to another. Besides, she was busy ignoring Inner Temari when she entered the bathroom. She was doomed. There was a (although not so) hormonal, teenage boy/man ("what is eighteen anyways?" she thought to herself) sitting across the corridor, quite literally since the washroom was right opposite his room. She could simply wrap a towel around her and make a wild dash to her room. Or, she could tell Shikamaru to give her clothes to her. But that would mean him opening her suitcase and seeing all her *gulp* lingerie.
"Damn. Damn. Damn. I'm actually stuck. Sand Jounin. Desert Princess. I'm stuck. Damn the world." What could she do? She thought of twenty ways to get her out of the washroom, but the problem was even if she ran to her room, her suitcase wasn't in there. She would have to go the living room, take her suitcase and run back. She could, ask Shikamaru to give her the suitcase, but that would mean swallowing her pride, for that chauvinistic idiot? Oh hell no. Her eyes frantically searched the washroom. Anything. Anything she could put on? Her eyes fell on a cupboard. "Kami sama. Please, let there be clothes," she muttered hopefully. She opened it.
There were Nara Clan tee shirts and shorts in it. "Oh thank the heavens!" Temari exclaimed. She grabbed one of the tee shirts only to realize that it was at least three sizes too big for her. "Damn. Damn. Damn. This must be Shikamaru's." she thought. She grabbed the next one. Wasn't there any of Yoshino's clothes? Of course not! Why would her clothes be inside a washroom across Shikamaru's room? Temari groaned. "Oh god. This isn't good."
Temari didn't even bring in a change of underwear. The thin fabric wouldn't hide her overly protruding… Temari blushed at that thought. "I'm screwed. Damn."
She put on one of the tee shirts, it was olive green with the Nara Clan symbol on the back. It was so big that it covered half her thighs. Next, she grabbed a pair of his shorts. By definition, they were definitely shorts. By Temari's standards, they were three quarter pants that were way too big for her to wear. They kept falling down. She highly doubted that there was a belt in the washroom. This was her best shot, she pulled the tee shirt that was showing a considerable amount of cleavage due to being so big for her, and opened the door slightly. She peeked outside and saw that Shikamaru's room door was closed. She sighed in relief. She crept out of the washroom towards the living room, hoping to Kami that he wouldn't exit his room.
She pulled the tee shirt further down, to cover more of her thighs. She reached her suitcase. Very good, the coast was clear till now. She opened the purple coloured suitcase and grabbed a white tee shirt, black shorts and the first pair of undergarments that came into her view. She closed her suitcase and crept back quietly in the direction of the washroom.
Now, everything happens for a reason. Temari did make it to her suitcase, the cold breeze drifting in through the open windows and making her feel chilly. However, nothing ever goes as planned. At the very precise moment that Temari was halfway up the stairs, she heard a cough from the bottom. She cringed and turned back, to find Shikamaru staring at her with slightly red cheeks. His eyes widened at the sight of the lingerie she was holding.
"Holy. Is that black underwear?! I could never imagine her wearing such feminine stuff. Why the hell is she pulling down the tee shirt? How much more chest does she want to show? Her legs are so… shit. I've got to stop staring at them. She'll kill me. Stop. Stop." Shikamaru thought frantically, staring owlishly at her. He gathered his wits and brought his eyes up to her face, a gesture that took a lot of effort and willpower. She stared back at him, her teal orbs wide open and utterly endearing. Shikamaru tried to look away, in a poor attempt to stop blood from rushing to his cheeks and down there. Stupid hormones, stupid, stupid. The tee shirt was doing such a poor job of covering her upper assets.
"So… How's my tee shirt?" he started. Temari blinked, trying to process the question.
"…. Fuck. Stop looking baka," Temari stuttered incoherently, pulling on the tee shirt even harder, failing to realize that the gesture exposed even more cleavage to the poor eighteen year old. Shikamaru blushed further at that action and turned away, cuing Temari to run up the stairs and bang the washroom door close.
She leaned against the door and collapsed slowly onto the floor, her clothes falling around her and the tee shirt riding up her thighs. Her chest moved up and down due to her rapid breathing rate and her cheeks were flushed. The temperature was suddenly extremely hot. She wasn't ready to get married yet. No way in hell. But one thing was certain, Shikamaru was definitely attracted to her, there was no doubt in that.
A fully clothed and reddened Temari stepped out of the washroom and walked to the kitchen to find that Shikamaru was not downstairs anymore. He was probably in his room. She just didn't want to bump into him at the moment. Temari sat down on the olive green couch and grabbed a book that was sitting on the centre table, '150 strategies to outdo your opponent in a desert environment'. There was a bookmark at the 23rd page, the 20th strategy. The book perked her interest. She settled into the couch and started to flip through the pages, digesting every word and phrase that was thrown at her. About an hour into the book, Yoshino returned home. Temari looked up at her and gave a hesitant smile. She had decided, while in the shower, that Yoshino had the right to know about the nature of her visit. She was going to tell her about the Suna Council's proposal.
"Is everything alright at the Yamanaka's, Yoshino?" Temari asked.
"Yes dear. Ino's mother wanted to speak to me about some medicine that's all," Yoshino started, "Oh! That reminds me. Ino told me that she's planning a girl's day out tomorrow, she wants you to meet them at the theatre."
Temari grinned. It had been a long time since she'd seen all of them. She felt a pang in her stomach, "I may not be able to go Yoshino. I think it's time… that I tell you why I'm here…" Temari finished. She gestured to Yoshino to sit beside her and the older woman did so and stared curiously at her, her eyes baring into her and observing her intently.
"Well… I will be turning 21 in a week's time…" Temari stopped as Yoshino interrupted her gleefully, "We must have a huge party! Ino will be delighted at that prospect!"
Temari cringed. She hated big parties. Being the Kazekage's daughter growing up meant huge parties all the time. Rather than inviting her friends, most of the Council members found it the ripe time to invite potential suitors. It was a time for Temari to act more feminine and tone it down. Of course, the brash younger Temari never bothered with such niceties. People were always afraid of her being Gaara's sister and the daughter of the Kazekage. No one really enjoyed being in her presence.
"Umm.. Well.. You see, there will be a huge party. The reason why Gaara and the rest of us have come to Konoha is because of the Suna Council."
"And what would the reason be dear?" asked Yoshino. Temari hesitated before replying.
"Ano… Yoshino.. The Council wants me to get married since I'm turning 21…" said Temari. Yoshino blinked, she didn't seem surprised.
"Well… In today's times, that usually doesn't happen. But why do they want you to get married right now?"
"Gaara, Kankurou and I are the only living members of our clan. The Council wants me to have children. As you may have noticed, our clan does not have any specific heritage. My children may or may not be born with the ability to control the wind. In fact, they may even be able to control sand. Since only three of us are alive, we don't know the full extent or vastness of jutsus our clan possesses," explained Temari.
"So. They want to turn you into a baby making machine?" retorted Yoshino.
"That's exactly what I said! At first they were adamant that I marry someone from the Chizoku Clan," continued Temari.
"Wait. So you're going to marry someone who you don't know? In this era?!" exclaimed Yoshino. Temari shook her head.
"Thankfully, Gaara interfered and told the Council that he wouldn't allow that. Those old geezers were talking about my duty to Suna but he wouldn't hear of it at all," Temari stated.
"Bless that child. So, did you choose your husband?" Yoshino asked.
"… The Council wants to make the alliance stronger so Gaara told me to choose from the Leaf. Umm…" Temari said hesitantly.
"You chose Shikamaru didn't you?! He's the only logical choice! Both of you already act like a married couple. Both of you are such good friends! You're like Shikaku and my daughter and… Shikaku had anyway predicted that both of you would get married," Yoshino squealed. Temari sighed. Yoshino took it much better than she expected her to.
"But Temari, both of you haven't seen each other for a year," started Yoshino.
"That's what I'm worried about. He's different now. I'm afraid he won't accept... Because it's me.." Temari mumbled.
"Nonsense! It's not you, it's him. He hasn't been the same since the war. No one's been able to get through to him. He'll definitely say yes Temari, you don't need to worry about that. But, he does things that he usually didn't do… So are you sure that you want to marry him?" Yoshino asked.
"If he accepts, then I'll be very happy. Shikamaru is a good man. My brothers would also be very happy if he accepts. But he has to accept firstly.."
"He will definitely. Shikaku foresaw it. I can't wait till the wedding! I'm going to have a daughter!"
Temari smiled. It was true that Shikamaru had changed. He seemed more serious and tired now. Plus, he had a smoking habit that Temari had to get rid of. She was pondering in silence when there was a knock on the front door.
Yoshino got up to answer it and came rushing back into the living room; it was an Anbu Black Op. Tsunade was summoning Yoshino, Shikamaru and Temari to her room. Yoshino yelled out Shikamaru's name and the lazy ass came down two minutes later, his hands in his pockets while slouching. There was a cigarette between his lips once again and Temari cringed at the smell of it.
Shikamaru's cheeks became red at the sight of Temari but he willed himself to listen to the Anbu's report. He nodded as the Anbu disappeared in a puff of smoke and started to walk towards the front door, only to be stopped by Temari. He raised an eyebrow. Temari glared at him, despite her reddened cheeks, swiftly snatched the cigarette from his lips and crushed it in her palm. She winced at the burning sensation but refused to look at Shikamaru and stalked away, walking deftly towards the front door and towards the Hokage's office. It was time to hear his response to the proposal.