Lost and Found

By: Junsui Kegasu

A/N: I returrrn! I'll try to make these updates come quicker, because yeah. Last time took a while…

Disclaimer: Don' own it, don' care.

Hyuuga Neji lived in quite an extravagant environment. His uncle and guardian was quite the rich one, being highly involved in politics. As a result, he and his two cousins, Hinata and Hanabi were quite spoiled.

Mind you, Neji wasn't shallow. So, being spoiled like this was an especially gleeful bonus. He liked to think of Hiashi as his father, but he knew that would never be possible.

At the moment, he was lying down on his bed (a water bed) and listening to some music on the radio. He generally liked any kind of music, so there was no point in him buying CD's of his favorite bands. The radio kept him occupied for hours.

Whenever the radio was on, it usually meant he was thinking. In this case, the subjects of his thoughts were the friends he had made only a few days ago. According to Kankurou, Thursday wasn't a good day for company. He couldn't help but wonder why Thursday wasn't, but Wednesday was.

On Wednesday, he was pretty sure the three's parents weren't home. Did they not get along well? Maybe it was one of those teenage rebellion things; he didn't know. He didn't want to pry, but he was beginning to be concerned for them.

Neji kept telling himself that he had no right to be concerned or jump to conclusions right away; he had only known them since Monday. But he just couldn't help but wonder.

He remembered as they walked home how Temari had looked like she was going to cry, Kankurou looking absolutely disgusted, and especially Gaara's look of pure terror.

That look scared him and reminded him of something. Something he wasn't willing to confront just yet. He'd deny it until he found the truth. Neji was not one to jump to conclusions and assume by appearance how people's life was.

…But he couldn't shake the thought. Were they abused?

He cringed even thinking about it, both because he hated to assume things right away and the thought of it was so horrible. He wanted to dismiss the thought, but he couldn't.

'I'm not jumping to conclusions just yet…I just know the symptoms!' he kept telling himself. He wouldn't ask about it yet. That was up to them to tell him if they wanted.

He scowled. Now it sounded like he was suspecting things. And he wasn't. Absolutely not.

Having finally assured himself of this, he sat up, pressing the power button on his stereo. It had been on for about three hours straight, and his conscience just wouldn't let him waste his uncle's electricity bill.

He had only just sat back down on the watery goodness when a knock sounded at his door.

"Neji?" came the voice of his uncle. "In a few hours, I'm to attend a business meeting with my colleague, Sabaku (Um…um…um:thinks: I CAN'T THINK OF A NAME!) Kazekage. (Shut up. I'm on brain fart.) I've been informed that he has three teenagers you and your cousins could hang around with."

A light bulb went off in Neji's head. Sabaku was Gaara's last name! He really felt he needed to gather things about their parents…as horrible as it seemed. He felt like some snotty spy, but his curiosity did not like being starved. He considered it for a moment.

"Sure, I'll go." He said casually. "Do I need to dress up?" he said, mentally groaning.

"No. I do, though."

Mentally cheering, he nodded. "Alright. That'll work."

"We leave at six. It's around four now. Sabaku-san says he will be hosting a late dinner. If you're hungry, have a light snack." Came the voice from the door, knowing Neji's horse-like appetite.

Neji grinned. "Sure. Thanks." He called, closing the conversation. Flopping down on the bed, he blessed fate for this opportunity. His…crush on Gaara, he noted, had come into terms with him even more clearly, so not only did he anticipate seeing him again, but meeting his father and figuring out what was going on. It worried him.

"TEMARI!"

The shout came from the kitchen. Temari winced, glancing over at the sleeping Kankurou and the completely out of it Gaara. Sighing, she walked quietly out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.

"Yes Dad?" she replied, announcing her presence. It took a lot to not spit the paternal title like venom, but she wanted to stay on his good side.

He merely glared at her, as he usually did. "I'm having company over tonight. Prepare a lot of food." Was the simple demand.

Temari stared, fighting the urge to let her jaw drop. "B-but…how many people?" she remembered a time when he had had a business meeting. Twenty-five of his employees. She had spent the entire day cooking food for the meal.

"It should just be me, you, your brother," she didn't fail to notice he only said 'brother' instead of 'brothers'. That meant Gaara would probably be deprived…again. "…my colleague, his daughters, and his nephew." Seven people. Not that bad. She'd also prepare something for Gaara, regardless if he were to eat with the family or not.

"Should we look nice?" she ventured, cautiously.

"I need to dress up. I don't care what you wear, as long as you get your dumbass brother into something normal looking." The man had always despised how Kankurou and Gaara dressed. That's partially why they did it.

"And…is Gaara getting fed?" she asked, voice smaller.

"That fatass? He doesn't need shit." He spat, turning out of the room.

She resisted the urge to scream at him. How would he react upon knowing Gaara's weight? If he ever was told, that is.

Fuming, she stalked back up the stairs into Kankurou's room. Gaara was still sitting in the uncomfortable position of his hands pressed under his knees as he knelt on the hardwood floor, his head bent completely forward, probably cramping that thin, white neck. (Only KIND of stolen from 'A Child Called "It"'!) She bit her lip. That's how she had found him, with Kankurou sprawled unconscious next to him, his CD player laying near his head, blood splattered onto it. She knew what had happened.

She had convinced Gaara, who looked especially haunted, to get to her room and she managed to drag Kankurou to her bed. As soon as she closed the door, Gaara had sat back in the position.

She bit her lip, softly padding over to the younger boy and kneeling in front of him. His eyes widened slightly and his shoulders tensed almost unnoticeably.

"Gaara…" she said, her voice full of kindness. "Gaara…Please, you don't have to sit like that. He's not making you anymore."

At the kind tone of her voice, he raised his head, and Temari's sharp ears picked up the sound of his neck cracking as he did so. He looked somewhere near her chin, afraid to meet her eyes.

"Gaara…your hands…you don't have to keep them there…"

He pulled out two shaking hands, resting them on his knees, which looked far too bony even under the cloth of his pants.

Her look softened even more, and she pulled her baby brother into a soft embrace, rubbing his back slowly, in a silent request for him to loosen fear-tensed muscles.

At first, he stiffened even more, her touch snapping him out of his coma-like state before almost collapsing against her, bringing his legs out from under him and crossing them in front.

A moment later, she broke the hug, keeping her hands on the red head's thin shoulders, a small smile gracing her fair features. Ruffling his hair, she stood up, noting that he hadn't flinched at her last touch. Rather proud, she went to check on the bandage around Kankurou's head.

Gaara stared, tracing her movements with eyes masked of any emotion. She was so gentle with the both of them. It left him with a warm and fuzzy feeling. Casting his gaze down to his hands, he wondered why she cared so much.

'I…couldn't save Nii-chan…' was the sad thought.

To him, that was the truth. After their father was done with him, he had turned on Kankurou again. Unlike himself, Kankurou fought back, and finally, the man got a hold of Kankurou's portable CD player once again and bashed him in the head with it. The blow knocked him unconscious immediately.

Through that, their father had instructed Gaara to kneel on his hands and tilt his head forward, keeping his eyes locked on the situation, but rendering him helpless. So, he concluded, it was his own fault.

He was surprised at the sound of his own voice.

"Is…Is N-nii-chan g-gonna be okay?" he said, his whisper almost inaudible.

Temari turned, a small smile still on her face. "Yeah. He'll be fine. You should know by now; no blow to the head could ever take out Kankurou."

He couldn't help a tiny smile crossing his face, and he glanced up, meeting Temari's gaze for the first time since the older girl had gotten home.

Temari smiled back, but it looked a little strained. "Gaara…" she began.

"Hm?"

"Dad's having a friend over for dinner tonight. He said you aren't to be included in the meal. What do you want to eat so I can make it personal for you?" he voice held bits of anger, but they faded almost instantly.

Gaara blinked. Friends? Of course. Why should a disgrace like he – an it as his father had said earlier – be included in something so dignified as a meal gathering?

He almost scowled to himself. If Kankurou would've heard those thoughts, he would've gotten the lecture of a lifetime. He knew he shouldn't believe his father's words. But it had been going on for eleven years. He didn't have that much hope left, if he had any at all.

So, since he had believed and accepted that he was the lowest, filthiest creature on Earth, this rejection came as no surprise.

Looking up, he realized Temari still wanted an answer.

"Oh…um…what are you making?"

"I figured I'd do something with some type of elegant looking fish and vegetable side dishes."

"Anything you make is fine." He said, truthfully. He didn't really care, just as long as he ate SOMETHING. That was the one thing he still held strong. He would never give in to his father calling him fat. He got that he was severely underweight, so unless he didn't feel like worrying anyone, or he just wasn't hungry, he always accepted food.

His father called him a pig. He really didn't care. Kankurou praised him for that shred of hope and strength.

He never called it that. He just called it common sense. It was something he knew to be true.

Shrugging it off, he turned as Kankurou began to wake up.

"Ow…son of a bitch my head hurts…" he mumbled, turning over.

"Kankurou." Temari said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"….Mmph…ten more minutes…"

"No! Not ten more minutes! Dad's having one of his dinner parties; you need to find something that isn't strait outta Hot Topic!" she said firmly, shaking his shoulder slightly.

This appeared to wake the sixteen-year-old up.

"What the fuck? First he bashes me over the head, knocks me unconscious, and now he wants me to attend his godamned dinner party?" he exclaimed, sitting up and rubbing his bandaged head.

Temari sighed, nodding. "Yeah…Gaara's not invited, as usual."

This appeared to only anger Kankurou further. "Damn it! I hate how he makes you pretend you don't exist!" he almost shouted, but caught himself knowing their father could be nearby.

Temari sighed again, closing her eyes and massaging her temples. "Kankurou…" she trailed off, knowing that a lecture would be completely fruitless.

Kankurou looked down into his lap. His head was beginning to throb. He'd need to take some pain killers later. He groaned, realizing that his headache would probably get worse at the dinner later.

Leaning back into the mountain of pillows, he glanced at Gaara. The younger boy was sitting against the wall, knees pulled up to his chest, with his chin on his knees. From the incident earlier, he sported a black eye, a nasty bruise on the left side of his head, a split lip, and four small crescent shaped cuts on his neck.

The sight of those little cuts made Kankurou's anger flare again. That bastard had been choking Gaara; he could've killed him this time. Kankurou had intervened, costing him a few brain cells and a headache, but that was okay.

He was also sure there was a bruise on his side and probably quite a few on his chest, and as he tallied it up, he realized just how bad the kid got it when Kankurou wasn't around to stop their father.

Well, that just meant he'd have to be around more often. He'd protect him.

A light bulb went of in Kankurou's head. '…Protect…' his eyes widened. He had broken his promise. He promised Gaara he wouldn't let the man hurt him. Feeling slightly sick, he rolled over, ashamed.

"N-nii-chan?" Gaara whispered, hardly audible. Kankurou's sharp ears picked it up though, and he turned to face his brother.

"I'm…s-sorry you h-had to get h-hurt…" he mumbled, keeping his gaze locked on his knees. "I w-was the one b-bein' b-bad…"

Kankurou's heart wrenched. Forcing the lump that had made its way to his throat down, he slid off the bed and knelt in front of the smaller boy.

"Gaara…I'm the one who broke the promise. I said I'd protect you, and you still got hurt. Stop blaming yourself; not everything is your fault." He said gently.

"Y-you d-didn't break the p-promise…y-you s-still p-protected m-me…" Gaara objected shyly, raising his gaze a little.

"Yeah…I suppose so…but if I didn't break the promise, it is NOT your fault I got hurt, okay?" he said, a little firmer.

Gaara hesitated, and then nodded, not quite meeting Kankurou's eyes, but seeming a little more confident. "You…you sh-should go g-get ready."

Almost beaming at the decrease in Gaara's stutter, Kankurou reluctantly nodded. Standing up, he brushed himself off before walking out of Temari's room to his own. Gaara heard the sound of a few drawers being slammed and knew Kankurou was going to have difficulty finding something without chains or anything 'inappropriate'.

Ten minutes later, he heard Kankurou swear, then walk out of the room and into the bathroom. He blinked. He couldn't recall Kankurou owning anything that wasn't from Hot Topic. Maybe he was mistaken.

"…Neji, I said you didn't have to dress up." Hiashi said, taking a glance at his nephew. The boy in front of him was dressed in a pair of nice slacks that he would never wear on free will and a white collared short-sleeved polo shirt.

"Well…I figured that since this was a business meeting with your boss…I should look nice. Plus, Hinata and Hanabi are dressing up, I'd feel awkward not." He said, blushing slightly.

Hiashi smiled. He had always loved the boy's courtesy. It was so much like his sister, Neji's mother.

"Well, as soon as your cousins get down, we can leave." He said, warmly.

Neji smiled. He felt so lucky to be living in this family. When Hinata and Hanabi came down the stairs, they walked out together, with the seating arrangement as usual: Hiashi driving, Neji in front, Hinata in the middle seats and Hanabi in the back seats. (They has a prettyfull van.) It then struck Neji that they didn't need to drive.

"Um…Uncle? The Sabaku's live around the corner." He said.

"Really?" Hiashi asked, glancing at the address. "So they do. How did you know this?"

"I already know his three children, Temari, Kankurou, and Gaara." Neji replied. "Would it be too undignified to walk?" he asked, with a playful smile.

Hiashi seemed to consider this. None of his colleagues had ever lived this close before. "Well...I suppose not. It seems silly to drive anyways."

"But Daddy! I don't wanna get my dress ruined!" Whined Hanabi.

Neji rolled his eyes. She was such a brat sometimes. "You won't, it can't possibly go any higher." He said, noting the dress couldn't be any longer than mid thigh.

Fuming, the nine year old flipped her hair and started to walk, swaying hardly developed hips as she stalked off.

Snickering, he shook his head. "Hanabi?"

"WHAT?"

"Wrong way."

Turning around, the nine year old stomped past him and Hiashi, going in the correct direction.

Hiashi frowned. "…Hanabi?"

She turned, putting on a suck up face. "Yes, Daddy?"

"I'd rather you not stomp like some toddler over to Sabaku-san's house."

Hanabi's face fell. "Fine." She said, angrily, reverting back to her hip-swaying walk.

Hinata giggled shyly, placing a delicate hand over her mouth. Hanabi and her had such a stark personality contrast. Hinata was shy and had an interesting record of 'quietest student of the year' awards, while Hanabi was loud, obnoxious, and snobby. Looking at Hinata, you'd never be able to tell she was rich. She didn't really dress primly, like her sister. Neji didn't really either, but he was a lot louder than his cousin.

As they approached the door, Neji thought he could hear yelling, but he shrugged it off. Hiashi was the one to go to the door, ringing the doorbell and stepping back.

Out of nervous habit that he had no doubt picked up from his younger cousin, Neji chewed on his nails. Glancing at Hinata, she had begun to do so also. It was just a stupid little habit he and her had picked up from meeting so many unfamiliar people in their houses, and the ringing of the doorbell always made them feel awkward; like they were intruders. (If this is confusing, yeah…I get like this too. I'll chew on my nails until the person comes to the door, then I'll compose myself.)

It was almost a minute and a half later before they heard someone come down to the door. Neji, again, thought he was hearing yelling from inside the house, but he came to the conclusion that his ears were playing tricks on him.

"Uh…Hi! Dad's in here…"

Neji stared. Kankurou wasn't in black. Kankurou wasn't in spikes. Kankurou looked halfway NORMAL.

…And it was scary.

The boy in front of him was wearing a pair of off-white cargo pants, unadorned with chains of any type. His shirt was white with long sleeves under an over shirt type thing (You know the kind…the pretty button up ones that people leave opened over shirts) that was blue patterned with icy flames.

He wasn't listening as Kankurou made small talk with Hiashi, but he did snap back to reality when the older boy moved to let them into the house. As he passed him, Neji couldn't help a snicker.

"Shut up. It took FOREVER to find this!"

"You seriously have no dress clothing?" Neji asked, appalled.

"Well, none of us ever need dress clothing for anything except his dinner parties." He shrugged, like it was normal to not own something dressy. "I don't know, we just don't."

Neji shrugged, and then followed him into the living room. Temari was on the couch, wearing a simple pink dress and talking with Hinata and Hanabi. Temari was like the median between them, not being as boisterous and Hanabi, but not being as quiet as Hinata.

Something seemed out of place. Gaara was missing.

"Kankurou, where's Gaara?" It was Gaara he really wanted to see. His crush was really getting out of control.

"Um…he's…grounded." Kankurou said hesitantly. "So, he's not aloud to come down and socialize."

"Oh." Neji said, not missing Kankurou's hesitation. "What'd he do?"

"He…uh…he…mouthed off to dad." Kankurou said after a moment or so.

Neji didn't miss the almost desperate tone Kankurou had used. He tried to shrug it off, but found it was a bit difficult.

"So…can I go up and see him?"

Kankurou considered this. "I don't know, I'll ask him."

With that, he ran up the stairs. Neji glanced over at his uncle and their father. They weren't really paying attention to anything in the living room.

Neji was astounded by how much Sabaku Kazekage looked like his youngest son. Although his hair was more leaning towards a brown color, the facial structure looked the same.

The only difference other than his hair was his eyes. While Gaara had large, black ringed, masked aqua marine eyes that every so often shone with a thousand emotions, his father had cold, uncaring dark green ones. Those cold eyes sent shivers down his spine, and not the good kind.

He looked back when Kankurou came back down, standing next to him.

"Yeah, it's okay if you go up there. He should be in…my room, which is the second room to the left. All right? I'll call you down for dinner."

Neji nodded, then walked up the stairs, quietly.

Temari noticed the exchange of words concluded by Neji running up the stairs. She knew what that meant. Alarmed, she pulled Kankurou away to a discreet part of the room.

"Kankurou, do you know what'll happen if Gaara's caught socializing?" she asked, panicked.

"…Yeah, I know. But what's the possibility of Dad caring? I'll call him down for dinner. If anything, he'll be in the bathroom. Okay?"

"Yes, but for that long? Kankurou, sometimes you don't think! You try to be rebellious and you don't realize the consequences! Dad won't let YOU take the blame or let ME take the blame or even let NEJI take the blame!" Kankurou chose not to comment on her first usage of the boy's actual name. "He'll still hit Gaara, and force him to believe that it was HIS fault! Like always! Kankurou, why do you keep doing this to him?"

"Temari, was I caught the last time I gave him some freedom?"

"No, no you weren't. But still, Kankurou, that's not the point. The point is that you're risking his life because you think he should have some fun!"

"Well, if that's my problem, then yours is living in complete fear of the man supposed to be our father. I can't stand living like that, and I don't want Gaara to either. I know asking him not to be is a lot, but by giving him that exhilaration of doing something 'wrong' without getting caught, it's like you're floating. Because you know you can get away with it."

Fuming, the older girl stalked off, to go talk once more to Hinata and Hanabi. Kankurou let out a wry smile.

'Sometimes…I just wish she wouldn't live in fear too.'

Neji counted off the rooms, noting that the door to second room to the left was closed. He knocked lightly, did his nail biting habit as he waited for Gaara to answer the door.

A moment later, the tiny red head turned the knob and peered out, almost as if bracing himself for some blow, before looking up and seeing who it was.

"Oh! C-come in." he stammered, surprised.

Neji walked in the room and sat down on the bed. Kankurou's room had blue walls, but the rest was basically black, including the bed he was sitting on. Silence washed over the room for a moment, and Neji remembered their last meeting.

"So…Kankurou told me you were grounded." He ventured.

Gaara blinked. "O-oh…yeah. G-grounded." He stuttered. Neji frowned at this.

"How's dinner going to work for you?" He hoped the small boy wasn't skipping the meal. He didn't look like he could afford to miss anything.

"Temari's bringing a dish up."

Neji nodded. "Oh, okay. Kind of odd that your dad is my uncle's boss, hm?"

The older boy didn't miss Gaara's flinch at the words 'your dad'.

"Yeah…I guess that is kinda weird." He mumbled. "I wonder how many business meetings they'll have…"

Neji shrugged, happy that he had struck a conversation with the normally almost silent boy. "Who knows?"

Gaara also shrugged, playing with a piece of the quilt on Kankurou's bed. "When do we go back to school?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Tuesday, I believe. What's today?"

"Thursday, still."

Neji nodded. "So, we still have four whole days of freedom." He said, grinning.

Again, Gaara flinched. "Y-yeah…freedom."

"Are you sure your dad wasn't mad…? You seem kind of eager to go back." He asked, brow furrowing.

"Well…he was a little bit upset, but I want to go back…because…uhm…because my grades will probably re-really suffer, and I kind of d-don't want that…I'm stupid."

"No you're not!" Neji exclaimed. "You're very intelligent. Whoever told you that is a bastard."

Again, the smaller boy flinched. "But…it's not like I'm in honors classes or anything…like Temari…"

"So? That doesn't matter!"

"Are YOU in honors classes?"

"Well…yeah, but that doesn't mean anything, okay?" he said firmly. "You are a very intelligent individual." Saying these words, a faint blush tainted Neji's cheeks.

Gaara's ears turned red. He wasn't used to compliments from anyone. "Th-thanks…" he stammered.

Embarrassed, Neji was about to change the subject, when a knock sounded at the door.

Looking fearful, Gaara slid off the bed and slowly opened the door, peaking his head out as he did before. (DOOR AND BEFORE! THEY RHYME!)

"Hey, Gaara. Are my painkillers in there? Also, Neji needs to come down for dinner." Kankurou.

Gaara walked over and pulled a bottle out from under the bed. Handing it to Kankurou, he accepted the plate of food and can of pop, opening the door wider for Neji to get out.

"C'mon, Neji, chow time!"

Neji smiled, a billion butterflies attacking his stomach. It was official. He was infatuated with the enigmatic red head that was his uncle's boss's son.

Where did this week go? I said I'd have it out soon, and it wasn't! Kyaah! But, yeah, I've been really busy lately. I'm in the process of moving my room to my parents', and they're getting my room, and I have a project due the 23rd (That I haven't even started on n.n;;), so I'm swamped. I'll still try to have the next one out on Friday though. It'll be a birthday present to me.

HAWPPI!

Hurricane-rider – I didn't know you could get high on crumb cake. O.O; You must teach me your ways…Yes, BAD KANKY, BAD! But, that's all cleared up in another sibling moment. I swear, there's gonna end up being more KankyGaa brotherly love than there is NejiGaa! (Joking…joking…) My dearest brother made me watch that episode. (Sam:in background: DON'T CALL ME DEAREST BROTHER!) My sisters watch Drake and Josh. You should totally do that, from what I've seen, it's an interesting show. I only remember one scene type thing about it. (Girl: So I guess we're boyfriend and girlfriend. Josh: Only on one condition! Girl: What's that? Josh: I GET TO BE THE BOYFRIEND!) It made me laugh. Oo…cake!

spork ai – Dude…like…I didn't get a review alert for your review. I only know you reviewed because I actually checked the pages on FF.N. o.o;; Yeah, some people are squeamish. Gaara's seen enough of his own blood to not be, I guess. I want to start the KankyGaa story while I'm still working on that, but I don't think I'll be able to do that right now, because I'm being swamped. If this story runs into the summer, then that'll be a good time to start it. Until my loving cousin, known as Kanky-chan, comes to visit. We fight over the computer when she comes n.n;; There is hardly any KankyGaa sandnincest…it's so sad.

Chronic-fever – That's how my friend always puts it. That and 'THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOUR HEAD!' Poor Kanky's hand…and Kanky's head. Ha. I win. Mixed emotions:feels accomplished: Oh, and don't worry about that. That's not what pressures me at all. It was just before when I was really trying to get it out, but I had writers' block, and I was freaking out.

narroch06 – Is he? I think Shika's cool. I love his attitude. I can just really see Kankurou as this tough guy trying to block it all out. I used to wear my hair down on a daily basis, but I don't now. Now, if I keep it down I get hit on T.T Lazy people are awesome.

Burning tree – No, you didn't ask, but it was explained in an earlier chapter. Since that was a LOOOOONG time ago, like…chapter one, I'll explain again. The sand demon within Gaara owes a debt to the Kazekage for taking him out of the teakettle and into a 'better' host. So, he lets him do what he wants to Gaara, as long as the boy doesn't die. TemShika is one of the only non-Yaoi pairings I enjoy.

Kanky-chan – Of course. …WHADDYA MEAN I DON'T GET OUT OF A PRESENT:runs to find money now that she has to buy a gift: Kanky, Tsugaru on standard…uhm…….:maniacal grin: Try heavy, it's easier; trust me.

DoeEyedHyuuga – Okay…the beginning of that review is kind of like…yeah. But anyways. I didn't really understand your review, but I'll try my hardest to respond to it. Chapter titles do not come easy to me. It's getting a little easier, but yeah. Rika, my chapters are on the long side, I do believe. This one is 13 pages of actual chapter (not counting the reviews and the A/N's). Which chapter are you talking about? If it's the first, then Gaara was in a dream for the first section of that chapter. Reality starts at the gray line break. Again, what chapter do you mean for the A/N's? I happen to know a lot of people that do that; put a lot of A/N's in the story while the readers are reading it. Maybe chapter six…? Well, if you read the one up top, I was writing that one on the road, so I put the A/N's in to humor my readers. A lot of them were amused. Just a little jaded. As for Shika, I think you were the only one there, because everyone else loved him. In…con…gruent? O.o;;;

Dragon Man 180 – No, inflicted vomiting is not fun. Well, breaks are quite uncommon in the life of an abused child. Have you read 'A Child Called "It"'? Yeah. They don't get breaks. It was a personal sized one, as seen in this chapter. Uhm…I don't have a set date. I'll tell you when I can. o.o;;

littleanikaze – Gaa-chan is kyoooooot:sparkle eyes: I hope this is soon; a week!

Reviews are FUN to give. They're also fun to respond to…