If I had younger siblings, I would totally bother them the way Temari does in this chapter.

Anyway, this chapter took a bit of a different turn when I reworked it. Hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, so get the lawyers off my lawn before I sic my very vicious bichon frise on them.

Oh wait. That's the CIA. My bad.

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Just Like Sleeping Beauty!

Temari was torn between wanting to hug her youngest brother and burst out laughing at the robotic look on his face.

Of course, the look was in place because he had been forced yet again to carry a certain kunoichi, one who plainly refused to listen to her own body and give in to its inevitable weakness, one who denied normal habits (like sleeping) to keep up with his invincibility (at least against the lure of slumber), one who completely screwed with his head, his emotions, his damn hormones without even knowing it.

As the cherry on top, Gaara had been forced to carry her all the way across town to his home. Sure, he'd been traveling by rooftop, but Suna was surprisingly busy at night. He'd heard more than a few catcalls as he made his way through the village. Now all he wanted to do was dump her in her room and have some tea.

His sister was smirking unhelpfully as he headed for the stairs. "Uh, need a little help there? Want me to call Kankuro?"

"Oh, shut up and make yourself useful. Go find her a room or something."

Temari shook her head. "Ah, but it's already been done. I guess I have no choice but to follow you around and make fun of you instead."

"Or you could go put fresh sheets on her bed. Or you could make sure she has a clean towel. You could even draw her a little map of this cavernous house so that she can find her way around when she wakes up. Does any of that sound like a nice way to occupy your time?"

"Not really. But don't worry, little brother. I get what's going on." Gaara stopped and looked straight back into a gut-wrenching grin that would have put the Cheshire cat to shame.

Temari stuck a finger in his face triumphantly. "You just want to be alone with her!"

Gaara grimaced, moving towards the stairs once more. "What are you, stupid? I was just alone with her for three days. Big whoop."

You'd think I would've known this would happen… Learning how to be a normal boy really takes the intimidation out of you, and Temari isn't one to just let that kind of opportunity slip. How long she must have waited…

Gaara shook his head, trying very hard to ignore his sister's cheerful chattering.

"Don't even try to be like that. I can see it in your eyes! It's LOOOOOVE!" She skipped ahead of him and flopped dramatically against the banister. "Oh, I'd always hoped to see some kind of storybook romance like this unfold… And now, right here in my very own house, with my little brother playing the part of the-"

" 'Storybook romance'? What kind of fucked-up fairytales are you reading?"

Temari dropped her hand from her forehead and sighed. "You can't take it all literally, the romance gets lost that way! No, see, you are the dark prince, and you have lived a life of trials and suffering only to grow up to be the ruler of a barren wasteland. A lonely ruler. Then, one day, out of nowhere, a damsel gets into a distress and you come to her rescue like the wonderful guy you are. You save her from peril and most certain death, and the two of you fall in love and get married and have lots of sex and babies and live happily ever after."

"…Like I said, what kind of-"

"Look, I know your moods. The current one is uncharted. I can think of no better explanation other than that you're falling in love! Well, I could, but I choose to deny sensibility. So it's love!"

Gaara stared. "So you're saying that in three days, I… me, the boy who couldn't control his bloodlust until the age of 13 and grew up with everyone hating me… that I have fallen in love with a girl I pretty much just met? I would honestly have to say that even hoping for friendship is really pushing it."

Temari winced slightly. She hated when her brother talked like this. It wasn't like he was lying, but it made her feel awful remembering that she was partly responsible for how Gaara was back then. She was partially responsible for that poor, shattered soul of his. Shaking herself, she threw on another smile. "What's the problem? It makes even more sense when you put it like that. You don't know what love really is, so how would you know if you were in it? And isn't it probable-"

"No! No, it's not probable. It's bogus. Stop harping on it."

Oh great. And I've made him feel disheartened once again, Temari thought, grinding her teeth. Then she groaned loudly. "Argh, stop being such a weenie! You know I'm right. You, Mr. Dark Lonely Prince, have found love at last."

She was trying. She'd taken it too far, but she was trying to take it back as much as she could. And she could see in his eyes that he wanted to believe her. He wasn't completely bogged down just yet. He really wanted to be able to believe everything she was saying.

If she worked, she could fix things. If she worked, she could make his fairytale happen. He deserved it. But his eyes were still sad. He let out a small sigh.

"I'm just a bodyguard, not a prince. And Sakura is no damsel either. And there's no love going on. Camaraderie, maybe, but not love."

"…You've been listening to your voices again, haven't you?"

Gaara rolled his eyes and continued up the stairs (fairly sure her room was at least in the vicinity of the third floor, where all the bedrooms were). He really wished Temari would stop talking. She made him hopeful about things with her unconsidered speeches.

"I know I just can't shut up, but I keep trying to tell you that their banter is even more unhelpful than mine. Gaara, come on! Of course they won't know if it's love or not…they're a part of you. And if you can't figure it out, how are they supposed to? Honestly. Not only am I your older sister, but also I'm a girl. I can see these things with incredible ease. So you should listen when I say-"

"Oy. Temari. Listen to your brother when he says he's had a long walk with a heavy girl over his shoulder and wants to put her down. Where is she staying?" Gaara looked surprisingly weary, but his eyes had a bit more perk in them than they'd had a few minutes ago. Perhaps he was warming up to the possibilities that were being described to him.

And so Temari clapped him on the unburdened shoulder and skipped ahead of him happily. "Pshaw. You're a knight in sandy armor and she's your delicate desert flower."

She performed a small pirouette on the third floor landing, allowing herself to become slightly giddy. "Where is she staying? In the room right across from yours, of course. As you are her bodyguard, no other place is more fitting, lest it be in your very own room. And as much as I approve of that, I don't think you're quite ready yet."

Gaara grumbled in return, hiding a light blush while pretending to ignore his sister. He halfway hoped that she might go to bed herself, but she only smiled and led the way down the hall to Sakura's room, just like a bellhop, despite the fact that Gaara knew very well which room she meant. Even if he hadn't remembered (somehow) where his own room was situated for reference, he knew Temari wouldn't put a female guest in any other room but the one Sakura was staying in. The fact that it was close to his room was just a bonus.

The house in general was a very masculine one; only two rooms in the place would suit the tastes of your average girl. One of those was Temari's room (strangely enough, some might say), the other a spare bedroom.

And that spare bedroom plainly reeked of femininity. Upon entering it in full light, Gaara had to let his eyes adjust for a moment. A fruity scent similar to the one he had encountered in Sakura's house pervaded each square inch, and everything in there was decked out in cream, pastel pink, bronze, mauve.

Ugh. And I'm reminded once again why I always keep this door shut.

He darted in, quickly setting Sakura down on the bed. Within a moment, he was back in the comfort of the hall. Temari just stood there, giving him a funny look. Gaara narrowed his eyes at her.

"What? Those colors make me dizzy; plus, it stinks in there. Seriously. You should really open up a window, just so Sakura doesn't choke in her sleep."

"See, that's the problem. She's sleeping."

Gaara stared at his sister, nonplussed. "Yes, she is. So? You should be too."

"But you left her in her icky travel clothes! And she's on top of the covers and sheets. You should take better care of her than that." She tutted with mock disapproval.

"Oh, what, you want me to dig up some pajamas for her, change her, then tuck her in?"

Of course she does, sick girl.

Temari grinned and winked. "Only because I know you want to."

Gaara threw up his hands. "Look, if you're so concerned, do it yourself. I'm going to my room."

And he did.

Temari just shook her head and went to turn off Sakura's lights. As she shut the door, she left a thought with the slumbering girl.

"I wonder if you even have a clue about what you've started…"

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Gaara didn't get it. What had he done to deserve that kind of abuse after such a long journey?

Well, long with Sakura. The trip to Konoha had been fast, since it was just Gaara; as he still didn't sleep, he'd been able to cover much more ground. Leaving Konoha, the trip had turned into the regular three-day jaunt.

But he didn't mind so much. It hadn't been that bad, he realized as he shut his door and went to open his window.

She's not that annoying, I guess. At least, when she's not making me carry her most of the way.

Oddly enough, no other voices interjected. So he pondered having a few hours of peace to watch the moon go down.

"Hey in there."

Apparently WAY too much to hope for… Gaara turned his eyes back to the doorway of his haven. In it stood his sister, holding a tray and looking surprisingly down.

"I brought you some tea. It was ready for when you got home, but you came up here without even glancing towards the kitchen and bringing tea is one of my many sisterly duties. So welcome back."

"What's with the face? Having mood swings?"

Temari barely reacted. "Nah. I just feel pretty low."

"What for?"

"I always do this to you, don't I? I push things on you that you aren't ready for. I ruin good things that you've got going for you. I mess you up and hardly ever bother to try and fix you." She shook her head and looked at him strangely. "Am I a bad sister? If I'm too much, you can tell me to lay off, you know. I won't mind. I mean, I never really learned, so…"

Gaara looked out the window again. "You aren't a bad sister. Not… not anymore. And the things you say make me feel good more than they make me feel bad. As for today, I messed myself up today. I was messed up before I even entered the village. Of course, you didn't help, but then you kind of did. Does that make any sense?"

"A little. And it makes me feel better."

"Good. I'm just taking my time becoming normal is all. I actually contemplated hormones on the trip back from Konoha."

"Ah! A definite start to normalcy. I'm proud of you. I also have no doubt that Sakura is a very lucky girl."

Gaara looked down at his sister. She was resting her head on the windowsill, staring at the courtyard below.

"…Lucky how?"

Temari looked up with a small smile. "Lucky to have a great guy like you keeping her safe. And, I don't doubt, lucky to have a great guy like you as her friend."

With this, she got up, pecked him on top of his head, and left. Gaara felt oddly elated.

As much as she doesn't think before she speaks, she has a way of picking you up, doesn't she?

Yeah. She also makes a lot of sense. Didn't we have a conversation earlier in which we all agreed that we were clueless about the inner workings of the heart? Don't worry, boy. Let her say it's love. For all we know, it just might be.

You know, I do believe that is the most eloquent thing I've ever heard you say.

Oh, but of course, 'cuz I done been practicing, dickwad.

And there it goes…