Hey readers, time to grovel for forgiveness at how long it's taken me to update. I'm not going to make excuses, but I will say thanks for all the reviews and favourites; they've pushed me to get this out before you all stop reading ;) Hope you enjoy it, and as always, feel free to review if you wish.

P.S. I wrote this chapter listening to the Glee cover of Florence + the Machine's 'Shake it Out' on a loop. I love both versions, and I felt the song matched the story nicely; especially the last couple of chapters. Try listening to it whilst reading and see if you think so too : )

P.P.S. I don't own Naruto yet…

I left the hospital soon after; made my excuses; brothers to feed, homework to do, and tried to clear my head throughout the drive home with Kisame.

It didn't work, of course.

There were too many things going on. Images played on a loop in my mind: Hidan, lying there, vulnerable and broken; wearing those scars from his dad of all people, his arm around my shoulders when he was the one suffering. I felt like I might throw up with the sheer effort of trying to calm my thoughts.

On one hand, I was glad Hidan was alright; or at least, that he was still here. Even if he had hurt me, even if he had lied, to lose him would've been a thousand times more painful.

But then on the other hand, what were we now? He'd held me, and told me he'd loved me, and I'd…well, I'd wanted so badly to say those words back to him. And yet, how could I? How could I forgive a guy who'd brand my little brother like cattle; a guy who'd lie and break promises as if they were made of glass?

I hated myself for not being able to hate him.

I hated myself for even wanting to hate him.

Kisame was silent for most of the ride, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the steering wheel the only sound passing between us. He didn't even ask how Hidan was.

Occasionally I'd glance up at him; see his narrowed eyes fixed firmly on the road before us, and I'd turn away before he'd catch me staring.

Kisame I realised, was old before his time.

He had the eyes of a man three times his age, set in the face of a young man. There were worries in those eyes, lines in his forehead that shouldn't have been there, a strained set to his jaw.

Eventually he broke the silence.

'You'd do anything for your brothers, wouldn't you?'

The way he said it; so monotonously, meant it didn't really sound like a question.

I nodded, didn't look at him.

'Always.'

He sighed through his teeth.

'Well, all those guys; Hidan included, they're my family, Temari. Trust me when I say that not one of them is a bad guy. We've all gone through…shit, and all we have is each other. And 'each other' is everything to us. I know you don't like the tattoo, Temari, and I understand why. That's your brother. But understand this; he's our brother too now. Even if we never speak again, even if he moves a thousand miles away, we're there for him. For all of you. Gaara and yourself too. Whether you want it or not, you've got yourself another family. And we protect our own.'

'I don't need protecting,' I blurted out, willing the words to creep back in. I took a shy peer up at Kisame, trying to gauge his reaction.

He laughed. Laughed until the lines in his forehead smoothed out and his eyes brightened.

'No one ever said you did,' he grinned, 'We're all pretty sure you can take care of yourself, Temari. You probably have more balls than all the rest of us. Just want you to know, you don't have to go it alone.'

'Kisame,' I began, 'Don't take this the wrong way, but why do you care?'

'Because Hidan told us if anything happened to you while he was, uh, "fucked", in his words, he'd break our legs as soon as he could.'

I gulped loudly. 'Yeah, but he was joking, wasn't he?'

Kisame shrugged, 'With a guy like Hidan, is that a risk you'd wanna run?'

'…I guess not.'

'Don't get me wrong,' he went on, 'I'm not trying to make him sound like a psycho. He's just…well, like I said, all we have is everything to us. And if Hidan's got you, you're part of that everything.'

He flashed me a small, real smile. I did my best to return it.

'Well, it's your stop.'

I glanced up at my house, thanked Kisame for the lift and slid out of my seat.

'I'm going to see him tomorrow,' he called as I moved to close the car door, 'Get ready; I'll pick you up at twelve.'

'You just assume I want to come with you? What if I have other plans?'

'Well you'll change them, won't you?' he chuckled, 'I've got a bet riding on you and Hidan getting hitched in the next five years. Don't let me down, huh?'

I did my best to slam the car door in (feigned) annoyance. But as I walked up to my front door, I found myself chuckling too.

Maybe it was thought of Hidan in a suit; pissed off at having to wear a shirt. Or me in a hideous meringue of a dress.

Maybe it was just because things seemed a little better now.

Maybe happiness is just contagious.

…...

I called my brothers into the kitchen as soon as I walked in the front door. Given that we didn't have our parents, I was used to having to organise the everyone-round-the-kitchen-table family discussions.

Gaara sloped in; buried in a thick black hoodie. Kankuro padded in behind him, his eyes half-closed, mouth sloping down at the corners.

They both looked so little, so young. So miserable.

I wanted to cry, because I'd done this to them. Banned them from seeing the only friends who didn't see Gaara as a red-headed sociopath and Kankuro as an abrasive weirdo. Locked them up like princesses in our suburban ivory tower.

I was going to change that.

'Are you gonna shout?' asked Kankuro. He sounded like a little boy, waiting to be scolded by his parents for something he didn't know he'd done.

'No,' I shook my head, patted his shoulder lightly. 'I'm tired of shouting. You both know about what happened to Hidan?'

Gaara nodded, 'Hinata informed us.'

'Good,' I sighed, 'Okay. So I saw him today at the hospital. Talked to him a little. And then I talked to Kisame for a while.'

'So…?' Kankuro offered.

'So,' I set my hands on the table top, traced patterns in the wood with my fingertips, 'I'm sorry for being a bitch. Those guys are your friends. You're both smart guys, and old enough to make your own decisions and your own mistakes, and I'm not going to stop you seeing them. Just no more tattoos, okay?'

Kankuro grinned a small grin, 'No more tattoos.'

'Does this mean you and Hidan…well?' Gaara began, trailing off until his voice was inaudible and his cheeks bright red.

'I don't know what it means for me and Hidan,' I admitted, 'But we'll figure that out ourselves.'

'I wouldn't mind,' he shrugged, 'Besides, he's already in hospital, so I guess I don't need to threaten him.'

Did Gaara just make a joke?

'Thanks, guys,' I smiled, stood up to pull my brothers into a hug; awkward considering the gaping height differences between us.

'Thanks, Sis,' Kankuro drawled, 'It…means a lot.'

'I know,' I murmured back. 'I know.'

'But, how will they know?'

It was Gaara. I broke the hug to look at him. His eyebrows were furrowed as if trying to decipher some code.

'How will who know what?' I asked.

'How will Sasori, and Deidara and all the rest know that it's alright now? Do we just start talking to them out of nowhere? It seems a bit…strange. You can't just blank people for weeks and then be…best friends again, can you?'

I hadn't even considered that. For all I knew, those guys were just as pissed off as I'd been.

'I guess you're right,' I admitted. 'Maybe…no, I don't…I don't know.'

Kankuro's mouth broke out into a wicked smirk.

'Got it,' he almost purred, 'What can no teenage guy resist?'

'Please don't ask me to answer that,' I shuddered. If Kankuro was an example to go by, there could be some truly hideous answers to that question.

'House party!' he grinned, 'We'll throw a house party!'

My parental head was straight back on, 'No, we won't. think of the mess, and the puke, and-'

'Unless you want your brothers to be sad and alone,' he pouted, sighing dramatically. 'Which is fine, I guess. Oh well…'

I turned to Gaara.

'What are your feelings on this?'

He shrugged nonchalantly. 'Maybe that could work. I doubt if things could really get much worse than before.'

'Then it's on,' Kankuro beamed, rubbing his hands in manic glee. 'It's house party time!'

Why oh why didn't I just say no?

Why oh why?