Please see first chapter for disclaimer, rating, warnings, pairings, etc.

Special Thanks: goes out to SinShu, QueenP19, rao hyuga 18, shyprincess82, sailorangelmoon1, and lidianm for all your wonderful reviews! Also thanks to everyone who has added this story to their favorite and follows lists - you all have really helped me get back into the swing of things after being so sick. I love you all!

Author's Note: I apologize a thousand times for this late update! The mutant cold I mentioned I had last update turned into a really nasty case of bronchitis, so I'm just now feeling like getting back into the swing of things with writing and editing and such. I wanted to go ahead and get this chapter out to you now instead of waiting until the next usual update day, kind of as an apology for making you wait so long. Thank you for your patience, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

*~Chapter XIX~*

~Return~

As they approached the rock wall surrounding Suna, Hinata felt the knot in her stomach ease a little. Though they'd returned home the same less-traveled route by which they'd gone to Konoha, she'd still been slightly concerned about being attacked. Gaara had informed her things had been quiet in Suna ever since they left, but Hinata wondered if their return would bring problems once more.

At least the trouble - that trouble, anyway - hadn't plagued them while in Konoha.

"Home sweet home," Temari sighed. "It's been far too long since we left."

"It's only been a little over a week," Gaara remarked from Hinata's right.

From the look on Temari's face, it seemed the blonde thought it had been about a week too long. Hinata was very grateful her sister-in-law had come along, though. The two women had formed a kind of understanding in Konoha, and she hoped it would endure now they were back in Suna.

Regretfully, Hanabi had not been allowed to come along. Both Neji and Lady Tsunade admitted they felt uncertain about the younger Hyuuga girl's spending so much time in Suna, especially after her violent behavior at the wake. She would, however, accompany her cousin and Tenten to Suna for the Founder's Festival in a couple of weeks, so Hinata's keen disappointment had been tempered a bit by that news.

Hinata had, however, brought something new with her. In her saddlebag, a handful of custom-made kunai and a spring-loaded weapon which fit around her wrist and fired senbon needles awaited her use. Tenten had given the weapons to her right before Hinata left, saying she should have Gaara or Temari help her learn how to use them.

"I know you've got Matsuri as your security detail, and you're also safe whenever you're with Gaara, or Temari, or Itachi," she said. "But it would still make me feel better if you knew how to use a few weapons yourself. I made these especially for you."

Her fingers drifted down to the saddlebag. She felt at the same time anxious and excited about learning how to use the weapons, and she had to admit, being able to protect herself did seem like a good idea. But was she really ready to learn how to use such dangerous tools?

She was abruptly jerked from her thoughts as they approached the tall, narrow opening in the rock face. A figure dressed in the standard light brown color of Suna itself approached, seated atop a rangy chestnut which easily swallowed up the distance between them at a rapid trot. "Lord Gaara!" At his call, Hinata recognized Baki, the head of Suna's war council. "It is good you returned so quickly." He reined his horse in and around to ride along Suna's red-haired leader.

"What's happened?" At his subordinate's approach, Gaara had shifted subtly in his saddle, his shoulders stiffening slightly, back straightening. All the tiredness Hinata had seen and sensed in him the past few days vanished, and she marveled at how easily he was able to hide such things. While she admired him for that ability, at the same time it made her so very sad to know how he had developed such a skill.

"There have been no further attacks," Baki said quickly, as if realizing how his earlier words could have been taken. "But Master Itachi has returned, and..." He trailed off, his visible eye darting to Temari's face.

Temari jerked forward in her saddle so quickly Sanraizu hopped sideways skittishly. "Itachi what?" she demanded. "What happened?"

"It is not as bad as it looks," Baki started. Before he could continue, Temari leaned low over her mare's neck and urged her into a gallop, charging across the distance between the small group and the entrance to Suna with obvious single-minded focus.

"Temari!" Gaara shouted after her. Cursing softly, he made a sharp motion with his right hand which swiftly made Matsuri bring her own horse forward to ride alongside Hinata on the left. "Do you feel comfortable riding at a gallop?" he went on to ask his wife.

Adjusting her grip on the reins, Hinata nodded. It had been a while since she'd last ridden at such a speed, but she understood why Gaara wished to pick up the pace. "Yes, I c-can d-do it."

With her agreement, the group picked up its pace. It didn't take long for Gaara, Hinata, Matsuri, and Baki to outpace their attendants, who were laden down with the travelers' luggage. They caught up with Temari soon after riding through the narrow canyon separating the village from the open desert, since she was forced to slow down because racing through the streets was inadvisable, even at midday when almost everyone was indoors to escape the heat.

"Temari!" Gaara called again as they drew closer to her. Her head jerked briefly in their direction, but then returned forward, focused on the round tower visible above the roofs of every other building in the village. "Slow down. You'll do Itachi no good if you get yourself hurt."

"I have to get to him," Temari choked out. "He shouldn't have gone by himself, and I knew it. Now look what's happened!" She reined Sanraizu around a curve so sharply the horse's flank scraped against the lamp post there to light the streets at night. "I have to go to him. I have to see with my own eyes..."

Now they were within the protection of the walls of the village, Matsuri and Baki dropped back to ride behind Hinata and Gaara, who had pulled alongside Temari so they were riding three abreast. "Temari," Gaara repeated, his voice calm. "He's all right."

"How do you know?" his sister snapped back.

Reaching out, Gaara grasped his sister's arm, forcing her to rein in her horse so she could look over at him. "He knows his limits," he replied. "As you know yours. He is all right."

Hinata was surprised to see some of the tension ease out of Temari. She let out a long, shaky breath and closed her eyes, her shoulders slumping slightly. "You're right," she said. Raising her head, she darted a look at Hinata, apology in her eyes. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have left you unprotected like that."

Quickly shaking her head, Hinata leaned forward so she could see her sister-in-law better. "It's all right," she said. "Were it G-Gaara, I would feel the same. I understand."

At her words, Gaara's head snapped around, and he looked at her with an unfathomable expression on his face, as if he couldn't quite believe what he'd just heard. Hinata offered him a shy smile, and Temari took the opportunity to slip away from them again. This time Gaara made no move to call after her or follow her, instead continuing to gaze at Hinata as a tiny hint of hope trickled into his eyes.

From behind them, Baki cleared his throat. "Excuse me for interrupting, milord, milady, but you are expected at the tower. Directly."

Hinata felt heat race into her cheeks as Gaara tore his gaze away and nodded. "Of course. We wouldn't want to keep the Council waiting." Now she knew more about what had happened in Suna before her arrival, Hinata heard the hard note in her husband's voice when he talked about the group of men who acted as his advisors. She felt her own dislike grow in response, and spurred Kiri into motion a little harder than she'd meant. Her usually placid mare tossed her head in surprise but made no further complaint at her mistreatment.

The gates into the Sabaku estate were still open when Gaara and Hinata reached them. The guards posted there bowed and murmured words of welcome as their master and mistress rode past, then closed the gates after the last of the attendants - who had caught up when the couple paused earlier - rode through.

As they reined their horses to a stop in the sandy courtyard, Hinata's eyes were immediately drawn to the entrance to the massive building housing Gaara's office and their own home. Temari stood on her tiptoes, her arms clutched tightly around Itachi's shoulders. The Uchiha held his wife with his right arm wrapped around her waist; his left was cradled in a sling as white as the bandages wrapped around his head.

Now Hinata understood what Baki's words meant. Even with that reassurance, though, she felt concern ripple through her. Directly on its heels came a fresh wave of curiosity, and she had to bite her lip to keep from asking what, exactly, Itachi had been doing to garner such injuries.

He is a ninja, just like Neji and Tenten and so many others. Forcing her eyes away from her brother- and sister-in-law, Hinata allowed a stable boy to grasp Kiri's reins to hold the mare still while she descended from the saddle. Giving the grey one last fond pat, she stepped back as Kiri and Kaen were led off toward the stables.

Standing in the middle of the current of activity going on around her as luggage was unloaded and sorted, Hinata felt something deep in her chest seize a little. Seeing this physical evidence of how dangerous a ninja's job was made her cousin's career choice seem all the more grim. How many injuries had Neji gotten and had to hide from her over the years, all because she did not know ninja existed?

The knowledge was both a blessing and a curse. As Gaara's hand settled at the small of her back so he could guide her toward the house, Hinata realized she wasn't sure which was the better description.

Her gaze slid to her own husband, who looked so strong and commanding as he listened to the barrage of information released upon him the moment they stepped into the house. She studied his unmarked profile, from his hairline to the slope of his jaw to the point of his chin, and then allowed her gaze to drift lower.

Did his clothes hide evidence of his own life as a ninja from her? She felt sick at the thought of sharp blades piercing his skin, of fists and feet and cudgels impacting his body. A chill raced up her spine and across her shoulders, leaving her fighting to keep from demanding right then and there to know if he was marked by his past. Her fingers itched to reach out and touch his back, his arm, his chest, to see if she could feel scars through his clothing. Her fingers twitched as her hand lifted, following her mind's instinctive prompting...

Swiftly, Gaara caught her hand, and she blinked at the sudden contact. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I've got to go straight into meetings. I know we just got home, but..." He shook his head, green eyes truly regretful. "I promise I'll see you for the evening meal, if not before that. Will you be all right?"

Somewhat glad her strange urges had fled at Gaara's reassuring touch, Hinata forced a smile onto her lips and nodded. "I'm g-going to help Matsuri unpack and then rest a while," she said. "G-Good luck at your meetings."

Gaara quickly looked around at the activity around them, then leaned forward and kissed her cheek, ignoring the sidelongs looks of surprise the action garnered. "Sleep well," he whipered huskily, then was gone around the corner in a swirl of red and black.

The pulsing throb of a migraine just behind his left eye made Gaara prop his elbows on his desk and gingerly drop his head into his cupped hands. The burnt-orange glow of the setting sun shining through the high, round windows on his wall made him flinch, and he shifted so his hands covered his eyes. His stomach churned, and he wished he hadn't promised Hinata he'd see her at dinner. He would rather go up to his room, crawl into bed, and wait until this horrendous pain passed then spend a few hours more pretending everything was normal and he felt fine.

The Council had been nothing short of impossible. Gaara's extended absence had left them with ideas above their stations, and their handling of affairs had left all things bureaucratic in such a snarled mess he wasn't sure he'd ever get them straightened out. If things didn't look so bleak, and he wasn't in so much pain, he'd almost be tempted to laugh at the Council's proclivity to obsess over the most unimportant matters and let the truly important things fall by the wayside. It was for that very reason - and many others he neither wanted nor felt like thinking about - why he hated leaving Suna for any significant amount of time.

At least they'd been kept out of the loop of certain crucial investigations. Despite their attempts to get involved in choice military matters, Gaara and Baki had always managed to head them off before they became too knowledgeable, or too involved. And heaven forbid they stick their noses into ninja matters...

A sharp knock on the door made Gaara draw in a deep breath, and with it his tenuous control. Lifting his head, he straightened his shoulders and made sure no sign of the excruciating pain battering at his defenses was visible on his face or in his eyes before he called, "Enter."

Gaara was unsurprised to see Itachi, Temari, and Kankuro come through his door. Undoubtedly the three had been waiting for him to enter his office so they could descend and other things - falling under the category of "need to know" (as in he did, and the Council didn't) - could be discussed.

"Better hurry," Kankuro remarked as he dropped uninvited into one of the chairs across the desk from Gaara's. "It's almost dinnertime, and I've missed seeing certain angelic faces at the table this past lonely week."

Fortunately for Gaara, who could feel a snarl building deep in his chest, Temari smacked her younger brother across the back of his head and then dropped into the chair between Kankuro's and the remaining one, in which Itachi seated himself after his wife was settled. "So nice to know you missed me so much," she said lightly.

Rubbing the back of his head, Kankuro glared at his sister and muttered something too low and garbled to understand - probably a good thing for his continued wellbeing.

Relieved to see his sister's return to good spirits, Gaara allowed his gaze to shift from Kankuro to Itachi. "All right," he sighed. "Which one of you wants to report first?" And make it fast, please.

Itachi blinked but said nothing, a wise decision since Kankuro immediately leaned forward in his seat and forged ahead with his own report. "Your hunch was right, little brother," he said smugly. "It was the Akatsuki who attacked the village right before you left."

Gaara felt neither relief nor dread at having been proven right. "How did you discover this?" he asked. The question was rhetorical, since he knew Kankuro would enlighten him one way or the other.

"It's funny how I did, actually," Kankuro said, once again rubbing the back of his head. "Well, actually, I didn't, but I was the one who discovered his name, since he's in the Bingo book one of our operatives stole from Cloud a few months ago-"

"And what was his name?" Gaara asked pointedly, wishing to steer the conversation into clearer territory as quickly as possible. He was not in the mood for one of his brother's usual rambling explanations.

"Hidan." Kankuro allowed the name to float in the air for a few seconds before he continued. "He's a fugitive ninja from the Rain village. According to his profile in the Bingo book, he led a double life as a ninja and a professional assassin before he decided to pursue the latter career exclusively. He's wanted for almost thirty high-profile murders, and several dozen others in various villages. The book didn't mention his affiliation with the Akatsuki, though," he finished thoughtfully.

Remembering the crazed look in the man's cranberry eyes, Gaara could very much believe everything his brother had just told him. "Seems like the type," he agreed.

"Yeah. Apparently he has - had a fetish for blood. Went through this whole weird ritual after most of his killings, the least disgusting part of which included painting himself up as a skeleton." Kankuro shuddered. "If you ask me, it's a good thing that creep's gone."

The pain in Gaara's head spiked as a brief, horrible image of Hinata trapped in one such ritual ripped through his mind, threatening to shatter his already fractured composure. His imagination, fed by years of experience offered by his own bloody past, had no problem filling in details Kankuro had thankfully left out. Gritting his teeth against the pain and the image, he shoved both away and forced his slightly unsteady vision to focus on Itachi. "Anything to add?" he asked.

"On that subject, not really." Itachi shifted his arm, a hint of pain tightening the corners of his mouth and eyes.

"Even though he was the one who discovered Hidan's dealings with the Akatsuki," Kankuro added helpfully.

Temari scowled. "Your turn's over," she said. "Shut up."

"As for the subject of your mission...?" Gaara clenched his hands together in his lap, hidden by his desk, and forced himself to keep focused. And I still have to sit through an entire meal... His stomach gave yet another unhelpful roll at the thought.

"There's not much to say," Itachi replied, subdued. "It was a failure." His lips twisted, and he lifted his left arm slightly away from his body in demonstration. "Obviously."

Gaara really, really hated to hear that. Itachi had been a nearly invaluable addition to Suna's ninja ranks, keeping his record as close to spotless as humanly possible during his years of service. That he would fail this mission - this, of all missions! - so badly left him feeling slightly off-kilter, as if the world itself had tilted slightly on its axis. He truly had expected Itachi to complete the mission, perhaps not without a hitch, but without too much trouble. The fact he hadn't disturbed Gaara in a way he couldn't quite name.

"It wasn't a complete failure," Temari said, her voice filled with soft encouragement. "You found out some very important information while you were out there."

"It's not enough." The frustration in Itachi's voice was very nearly palpable. "Information won't keep Suna safe. Or Konoha. Or-" He halted abruptly, a muscle in his jaw ticking angrily.

"It might," Gaara said quietly. "What information did you uncover?"

"Besides Hidan's involvement with the Akatsuki?" Itachi blew out a tired breath, and while his tension didn't visibly ease, Gaara sensed some of the other man's frustration release with his exhale. "Hidan's not the only one who's been hiding his dealings with that particular group. I shadowed him for a while before I tried attacking, and during that time he met a few other people. I'd recognize them all if I saw them again, but I don't have names for most of them. One of them, however, I have seen listed in our own Bingo book as a suspected member of the Akatsuki: Sasori."

The name immediately brought an image of the man to the forefront of Gaara's mind. Though Akasuna Sasori had left Suna several years before, he returned every year for the Founder's Festival. Since Sasori's grandmother, Chiyo, was still alive and a resident of Suna, he was allowed to take part in the horse race even though he didn't technically live in the village. They'd suspected his involvement with the Akatsuki for almost two years, but until now had been unable to prove anything.

If Sasori does show up for the race this year - and, undoubtedly, he will - we will have to keep a very close eye on him. He was the perfect person to execute an attack on Suna, since he was not only from the village, but still allowed to come and go almost as he pleased. He was still watched covertly every time he visited, with the target in question seeming to remain none the wiser. This year, Gaara would post extra lookouts. And, if Sasori did anything even slightly suspicious, they would finally have the proof they needed to nab him. Unfortunately, even confirmed involvement with the Akatsuki did not give Suna probable cause enough to do anything - unless he committed a crime against or within the walls of Suna. It had been the source of a major frustration for Gaara for years now. But this might very well be the opportunity for which we've been waiting. He found comfort, slight though it was, in the thought.

Itachi's thoughts seemed to have traveled much the same lines as Gaara's, for he remarked, "If he shows up for the race again this year, we'll have to be extra careful. His affiliation with the Akatsuki means he could very well be a plant, and his lack of wrongdoing the past couple of years just something to lull us into a sense of false security."

Gaara nodded his agreement. "I was thinking much the same thing. Knowing what we do about the Akatsuki - frustratingly little as it is, unfortunately - it seems like something they'd do."

"But surely they'll know we'll have heightened security this year because of their attack on the village earlier, when Hidan was killed," Temari said. "What do they hope to accomplish?"

It was an excellent question, one to which Gaara wished he could give a solid answer. "We still have a couple of weeks to think about it and plan something," he said at length. "Right now, I think we're all too tired from our various pursuits to do much of anything." Turning to Itachi, he nodded toward the surface of his desk and added, "I'll expect a full report of your mission on my desk within the next couple of days."

Itachi nodded. "I'll get it to you first thing tomorrow," he promised. "I've had a few days to work on it already, so it won't be too hard to finish it up."

Kankuro bounced to his feet. "For now, it's dinnertime, and I don't know about you all, but I'm hungry. Let's go!" He marched toward the door, muttering something about being expected. Or expecting something. Gaara couldn't quite be sure, since he was too busy trying to stave off the attack of dizziness which struck when he stood.

Fortunately, Itachi and Temari were too busy speaking in low tones with each other to notice. As the dizziness passed, Gaara moved around the desk and followed his sister and brother-in-law out of his office, pausing only long enough to lock the door behind him before he left. The journey from the areas of the building reserved for business and those for more domestic purposes left him feeling tireder than the journey from Suna to Konoha and back combined. The migraine continued to pulse behind his eye, and he inhaled and exhaled a few deep breaths to try to ease his ever-growing nausea. It had been quite a while since he'd had a headache this debilitating, but he was loath to go see a Healer. If he could just deal with it for the rest of the night, it would undoubtedly be gone by morning, especially if it followed the pattern of other, similar headaches he'd suffered in the past.

The smell of food wafting through the doors into the dining hall nearly made him retch. Swallowing hard, Gaara set his jaw firmly and strode purposefully across the room to his customary seat at the head of the table. To his relief, everyone else was already there, meaning the meal wouldn't be further extended.

As everyone took their seats, Gaara stole a glance at his wife. She looked quite refreshed from her afternoon of rest, her skin glowing with a healthy peach flush and the dark circles under her eyes less pronounced, though not completely gone. He knew there were several things still weighing heavily on her mind, and he wished he could do something about them. But he also knew he would be lucky to make it through the meal stretching ahead of him like an interminable torture session. Talking out matters of high emotional stress was beyond his capabilities at the moment, even despite his keen desire to help his wife.

Most of the dishes presented on the table before him made him feel even sicker just looking at them, so he deliberately avoided them as he reached for things which appealed only slightly more. Some steamed rice, a little bit of stir fry fragrant with the scent of ginger, and lastly a cup of tea made up the total contents of his own meal. He ate slowly, allowing the conversation to flow around him as he robotically picked up some food, put it in his mouth, chewed, swallowed, sipped some tea, and then repeated the process. Fortunately he had never been particularly verbose during mealtimes, even when it was just family (as it was tonight, save the presence of Baki), so no one seemed to think twice about his silence.

Gaara had never been so relieved as he was when the meal ended and everyone said goodnight and went their separate ways. For a few moments he thought he'd get away without having to do or say anything too fancy, but only a few seconds after he left the dining hall, Hinata caught up with him. She didn't say anything, merely twined her arm with his and walked alongside him as they passed through the halls and climbed the stairs leading to their connected suites. He hadn't had a chance to go to his room since he'd gotten back to Suna, so he wondered if a servant had unpacked his luggage, or if he had to look forward to doing that, too.

They turned the corner, and Gaara fixed his gaze on the door to his suite. Almost there. Almost there.

Hinata suddenly tugged gently on his arm, guiding him toward the door to her own suite. "C-Could you c-come in for a moment, please?"

The pulsing throb in his head intensified, but Gaara swallowed back the pain (again) and managed what he knew was a sickly smile. "Of course."

After opening the door, Gaara hung back and let Hinata enter first. He followed directly, surprised when Hinata flicked off the light switch in the main room and headed straight for her bedroom. "Hinata?" he asked uncertainly. He closed the door behind him but left his hand on the knob, watching her silhouette where she stood framed in the doorway of her bedroom.

"Hmm? Oh, just a moment." The overhead light in Hinata's room went out. A moment later, the soft golden glow of the lamp on her bedside table spilled across the carpet in a long rectangle, broadening as it stretched away from the doorframe. "Okay, you c-can c-come in now."

"How did you know?" he asked, pausing in the doorway. The light stung his eyes, but not as badly as the overheads had. Hinata really did know the right things to do in certain situations.

His wife looked up from where she was arranging her pillows into a nest at the head of the bed. "I d-don't think anyone else noticed, if it helps," she said. "B-But you d-didn't eat much, you look really tired, and you kept squinting. I realized it must b-be b-because of the light." Climbing up onto the bed, she settled back against the pillows and patted her lap. "I'll help."

Gaara didn't need any further urging. Going around to the other side of the bed, he climbed onto the mattress, then reclined with his head in her lap, eyes sliding closed as her gentle hand immediately moved to his hair. As she had done before, she began stroking her fingers over his head, swirling them through his hair, carefully feeling for the places with the most pain.

She hesitated when he hissed. "Is there the worst?" she asked.

"Hn." He forced himself to relax again, allowing himself to get caught up in the feel of her hands in his hair, her warm softness beneath him, and the smell of her surrounding him. The last time she'd helped him out with a headache had been an amazing experience. In fact, he wasn't sure if it was her efforts or her presence which made him feel better last time.

"How's that?" Hinata asked eventually.

He slowly pried open his eyelids, which felt pleasantly heavy. "Better," he murmured. And it did. Even though she hadn't been working long, already the sickening pain in his head had eased to a more manageable ache.

"D-Don't sound so surprised," Hinata said, laughter evident in her soft voice. She looked down at him with a smile filled with such fondness, Gaara felt his breath catch in his throat. The affection in her eyes brought out soft lavender hints in their otherwise pearly white depths. Her silky blue-black hair fell over her shoulder in a wavy waterfall, smelling strongly of lilacs. Her delicate china-doll features flushed with the softest hint of a tan, offering her a slight glow in the light of the bedside lamp.

Gaara had been struggling with his feelings for this woman for years. As a child, he'd found her a staunchly loyal friend; during his growing up years, she was an example he kept in the forefront of his mind when he wanted to give up; and now, as an adult, he found himself seeing her in yet another light. The fondness deep inside him was growing and morphing, and with a jolt he realized it had changed yet again.

I love her. The insight hit him with the force of a punch to the gut, and he grunted a little at the shock. When did that happen?

Hinata's fingers froze against his scalp. "I'm sorry," she breathed. "D-Did that hurt?"

"No," he hastened to assure her. "I just - thought of something."

She smiled down at him, her fingers continuing their soothing motions as she innocently asked, "What?"

The temptation to tell her was almost too great to ignore. But he swallowed the words back, knowing it was not the right moment. I'm going to do this right. Nothing else in our relationship has been done the right way, at the right time. In this one thing - perhaps the most important thing - I am going to do it right. "How thankful I am," he blurted out, realizing he needed to say something.

"Hm? For what?" Hinata's fine eyebrows lifted questioningly.

Gaara felt the corner of his mouth tilt upward in a smile. The motion had never come so naturally before. It felt good. Right. "You," he said simply.

Bright red suffused her face from her neck to her hairline. "I-I d-d-don't think..." Hinata retracted her hands to cover her cheeks, her eyes suddenly wide and vulnerable.

Propping himself up on his elbow, which he left casually pressed against the side of her leg, Gaara reached up with his opposite hand and ran his fingers through her hair. It was as soft as it looked, he noted dimly. "Thank you."

"For what?" The question sounded oddly breathless.

There were so many reasons he could list. So many things he could say. But, again, this was neither the time nor the place. In lieu of saying any of those things, he said the one thing he knew covered all of them without giving away any specifics. "For being you."

When Gaara went into his own room a few minutes later - alone, regrettably, but he knew that wouldn't last too much longer, so he could handle it for now - he did so feeling better physically, mentally, and emotionally. His head still hurt, but the pain was no longer that of a crushing migraine. Hinata's touch had soothed away his hurt, as well most of his concerns. There was still a lot for him to think about, and he needed to make several plans, but he would do that later.

For now, he actually felt like he could go to bed and sleep without the threat of nightmares. He was halfway to the bed when he realized his luggage was not lying on the floor or his bed, as he'd expected. Confused, he went to open the door of his bureau, surprised to see his clothes carefully unpacked and hanging organized within. A small note was pinned to the sleeve of one his tunics, and he smiled as he pulled it loose and read it.

Gaara,

I know you'll be working until late tonight and you don't like the servants going through your things. I hope you don't mind, but I thought I'd unpack your things for you. I hope I organized them correctly!

Sleep well, my husband, and dream only of good things.

Your wife, Hinata

Closing his eyes, Gaara lifted the note to his nose and inhaled the traces of her scent left on the paper. Dare he allow himself to think this meant she shared at least some of his feelings? Dare he think (hope) she was beginning to love him, too?

Still holding the note, Gaara flicked off the light and moved across the dark room by memory to lie on the bed. Closing his eyes, he pressed the note to his chest and let out a long breath, releasing the last of his tension with it.

Tomorrow, things would be back to normal. He'd go back to being the most powerful man in Suna: dealing with the Council, settling disputes, and attending to a hundred other duties.

But for tonight, he was going to pretend he was an ordinary man - an ordinary man in love.

For the first time since he was a very young child, Gaara slept through the entire night without a single nightmare.

*~To Be Continued~*

Author's Ending Notes: A thousand pardons for the lateness of this update! The mutant cold I mentioned I had in the last update turned into a really nasty case of bronchitis, and I'm just now starting to feel like getting back into the swing of things. Hopefully I'll be able to go back to the normal posting schedule again with the next chapter, but I wanted to go ahead and post this one as soon as I got finished with it to apologize for making you all wait. Thank you so much for your patience with me, I hope this chapter was worth the wait, thank you for reading, and I hope to see you again for the next update!