Darkness.

No sight, no sound, no smell. Barely any touch, just a slight pressure on his arm where Shikaji had grabbed it.

He tried to speak; he did speak, but the words were gone the moment they left his mouth, swallowed up by the black around him. He stood still in what felt like an endless time. But his ever calculating mind ticked off the seconds in his head.

1...

2...

3...

Then with a rush of light and a pounding of blood in his brain he found himself staring at walls of rock, a small fire jumping merrily as it cast sinister shadows on ancient walls.

Thud

Clink

Shikamaru spun around towards the source of the sound, only to see Temari slumped on the ground bonelessly, her fan next to her. Her eyes were wide, staring into an image he couldn't see, and he could see her shaking slightly. Silently he padded over towards her, kneeling down in front of her unseeing eyes, With a hand on her should he whispered her name.

"Temari?" Softly. Carefully. Her eyes flickered slightly, slowly focusing in on his face hovering before her. She stared at him for a moment, before inhaling deeply. The air brought the color back into her cheeks and awareness to her eyes, removing the corpse-like feel she had gained. Still trembling, she pulled herself up from her slump on the cold ground. As she stood she swayed, stumbling slightly, like a drunk weaving his way home in the wee hours of a morning. The image brought a small smile to Shikamaru's lips, one he suppressed quickly. Then her legs gave out beneath her weight, and she dropped into his waiting embrace, weakly grasping at his steady frame.

"Thanks," her voice was weak and quiet, none of her usual power echoing through it. Still holding her, Shikamaru formed the proper hand signs, extending his shadow until he reached her fan, bringing it back to his waiting hand. Grasping it clumsily with his untrained hands he brought it up, placing it onto her back. The weight visibly soothed her, a sense of safety and security returning to her face. She leaned into him, still shaking, but now calmer.

"Are you all right?" Shikaji, silent up until now, inquired with his resonating voice. Shikamaru turned to him, holding Temari in the protective curve of his arms.

"Sorry," she muttered into Shikamaru's chest. She drew another long breath. "It's an old problem of mine, a remnant of my childhood. Sudden darkness, that I'm not expecting sends me into shock. It's better than it was though."

"No," Shikaji's deep voice was comforting. "I apologize. It was not wise of me to surprise you like that. I did it to amuse myself with your reaction." Shikamaru glared at him, and Shikaji cringed under its malicious fire. "Hey, nephew, I said sorry." Shikaji held his hands up in a sign of peace. Temari pulled away from Shikamaru, straightening her dress and securing her fan correctly. Shikamaru pursued his lips in amusement; he still had no idea how her fan holder worked. His tension faded away in a breath that he had been holding since their arrival. Temari was fine now. He could turn his attention to his other problem.

"What the hell was that?" He asked Shikaji his voice laced with the proper amount of killer intent. The bored Nara look that had been on Shikaji's face vanished, replaced by a solemn visage and a humble look in his eyes.

"Shadow Transport," he answered. "It's a technique that allows me to move from shadow to shadow. The greater the distance or the greater the mass, the more chakra is required to execute it, but it's a useful technique. Anyways," he extended his arms to indicate their surroundings. "Welcome to my humble abode," he announced with an exaggerated bow and a flourish of his arms.

Darkness swallowed her body. Fear swallowed her mind. Her mouth opened and she let out a scream that was never heard. She could tell that Shikaji was still grasping her arm, but it was just a light brush of a thought; it did nothing to assuage her fear. Her breath quickened, her blood pounded in her ears as memory flowed over her, bringing back things she would rather forget.

Flashback

A young Temari sat in a brightly colored room playing with a dulled kunai. The sun shone in through the many windows that lined the room, bathing her in a golden light and painting her blond hair with an air of the unearthly. Two sets of soft footsteps echoed up to her ears, and she turned towards the door expectantly, soft eyes still innocent with youth, unhardened by danger and the turmoil of life. A small Gaara with sadness in his eyes and a vibrantly clad Kankurou wearing an air of mischief cane in, Gaara walking while Kankurou seemed to slink.

"Heya Temari," Kankurou drawled. He kept his hands behind his back, hiding something. Temari didn't notice.

"Hey," her voice was soft and light, not yet roughed by the tough life she would live. Gaara sped up in order to clumsily climb into her lap, leaning his back against her. She smiled, and started stroking his hair. As she looked down at her brother the memory of her mother that he would carry forever entered her mind. She loved him anyways. Always family.

Clank...

Clank...

Clank-clank-clank-clank-clank.

Darkness surrounded her, as the last few slots clamped shut. Temari, still holding Gaara in her arms, widened her eyes as if doing so would bring the light back. Where was the sun? There should be sun, not darkness. A giggle floated in through the walls of the chamber they were in.

"Gotcha!" A gleeful Kankurou gloated. She swallowed shakily.

"Kankurou, you nig dumb ass, let us out! What did you do?" She shouted. More giggling.

"Grandma Chiyo gave him to me. His name's Kuroari, he's a giant puppet! She showed me how to move him with chakra strings!" Temari attempted to calm herself as an unfamiliar rage bubbled up inside her, tinged with a fear that she ignored.

"Let us out!"

"Nuh-uh." Gaara began to tremble in her arms. She heard the sound of shifting sand, and felt a strong emotion fill the cage in which they sat; murderous intent. Now Temari began to shake, the rage pressing down on her as she shrank within herself.

When Kuroari exploded minutes later, she remained seated, lost in her overwhelming fear.

That was the first time she felt Gaara's bloodlust.

End Flashback

Light replaced the darkness, brightness invading her eyes. Her muscles felt as solid as water and as slick as oil. She collapsed, the fan held loosely in her fist slipping out and noisily clattering against the ground The darkness had enveloped her again, darkness when their should be light. That time with Knakurou had been the first time she lost Gaara to his true power. It was a feeling that always returned, that fear of losing one you cherish, when unprompted black came down upon her.

She felt someone approach her, but she couldn't react; she was locked in the haven of her mind.

"Temari?" the question echoed in her blank mind until it finally struck a chord of rememberance. Awareness began to flood back. A face formed in front of her eyes; dark hair framing a pale face, punctuated with wise, brown eyes. Worried eyes. Eyes that were worried for ... her? She knew instinctively that she didn't want those eyes to worry. One deep breath; she pushed herself off the ground, small pebbles digging into her calloused palms as she forced her shaking limbs to work. She stood, and immediately stumbled. Her face hit soft cloth, and muscled arms wrapped around her back. Shikamaru.

"Thanks," her voice was high and thin, like it had been when she was younger. Shikamaru shifted, and she soon felt the comforting weight of her fan resting against her back.

"Are you alright" Another voice. She wondered whether the two Nara's realized how alike they sounded. She clung harder to her shadow user.

"Sorry. It's an old problem of mine, a remnant of my childhood. Sudden darkness, that I'm not expecting sends me into shock. It's better than it was though." She explained.

"No," the voice was gentle. "I apologize. It was not wise of me to surprise you like that. I admit I did it to amuse myself with your reactions. Hey nephew, I said sorry." A small smiled turned up the corners of her mouth. Shikamaru usually let her fight her own battles, but it was nice he knew when she needed him to be strong for her. Another breath, and she pulled away from his comforting warmth. She fixed her fan; Shikamaru never really understood how her holder functioned. She fixed her dress to keep her hands busy. Slowly, she felt the fire return to her eyes as her usual power flooded back into her fighter's body.

"What was that?" Shikamaru asked.

"Shadow Transport. It's ..." Temari loosely registered the following explanation as she began to observe her surroundings.

She found she was standing in a cave, and only a cave. No decorations, sparse furniture. Just dirt with a straw mat in the corner and a fire in the middle. There were a few arches that led to other parts of the apparent cave system. The first allowed a faint breeze of fresh air to enter; most likely it led outside, although all she could see was darkness. From another came the soft roar of running water, and Temari could see the faint reflection of the fire light on a glassy surface winking at her out of the gloom. There was one more arch; but she could see nothing there. Temari tuned back into the conversation, having complete her evaluation of their location. She noticed Shikamaru's eyes begin to travel the same path hers had just traced, taking in the same sights she had, and most likely noticing more. Temari could tell he was settling down, relaxing as his face resumed its typical emotionless state.

"So where are we?"