Hello, my lovely readers!
Today is the day, my friends, after nearly four years and over 200,000 words, Kira and Gaara's story comes to an end.
This is the promised bounce chapter that will clear up any questions you might still have on a few things.
I hope you enjoy this, and please check the endnote for a few insights into this story. :)

Bonus Chapter: Held

She was woken by the rather unmistakable sound of something crashing to the ground – metallic, heavy, and probably not breakable, one could hope – followed straight away by the muffled sound of a shout. Kira twitched, blinking slowly as the fog lifted from her mind. As it did most days, her eyes focused on the large oak desk adorned with stacks of papers, a desk lamp, a clock, and a rather large baby cactus that probably needed a bigger pot at this point. Behind it, closed curtains let in a crack of light that shot across the room and over the covers. Even with them pulled, she intuitively knew it was later than normal. Glancing to the side where her alarm clock should have woken her, she found it off. Frowning, she sat up and looked to her right only to have her suspicions confirmed when she found it empty.

"He let me sleep in again," she murmured, half annoyed, half touched as she rubbed at her eyes, still shocked that somehow despite all her training Gaara still managed to get out of bed, get dressed, and leave the room without waking her up. Her. The bodyguard who was trained to wake up at the smallest out of place sound. Kira was fairly sure he did something with his sand because every once in a while, she'd find some in her hair.

Sighing, she stood, brushed hair from her face and walked over to the window, pulling the currents open. Glancing at the small clock on the desk she confirmed that yes, it was an hour past when she normally got up. She wasn't sure why she was surprised; he did this every time she had a mission away from the village that day. Hadn't she always been the one worried about him getting enough sleep? Now she only had two hours before it was time to leave.

"Stubborn," she grumbled under her breath.

Turning back around Kira made her way towards the door, finally picking out on the sounds of raised voice once again as she opened it

"-eriously Kankuro? Why are you blaming me for this?" Temari snapped.

"Because you're the one that dropped it!" the younger sibling snapped right back. Kira stared down the hall with a tiny smile, the tingles of amusement dancing across her sleepy mind. She couldn't see them from where she was, only the back half of the living room and from the sound of it, they were in the kitchen. It seemed everyone but the Kazekage was getting a late start. "Ug, I can't wait till you move to The Leaf, your nagging gets worse by the day."

"What was that!"

On and on they went. It didn't happen much these days, but when it did, Kira certainly heard about it – and not in the 'this happened earlier' sense. Today was case and point. Rolling her eyes, she moved down the hall, past Kankuro's and Temari's room to her own and turned on the light, door shutting behind her. Her bed greeted her on the far side of the room, perfectly made and undisturbed as it had been the last three days. It wasn't like she didn't use it – she saw its colorful sheets several times a week. Mostly. Sometimes. It really depended. But once certain things had fallen into place – and really, she fell asleep on his bed a lot anyway while on watch duty – it became more of a comfort to both Gaara and herself. His late work nights were normally a cause to her slinking back to her own room.

Kira dressed, applied face paint, redid her hair, and tied her headband to her waist in record time. The only thing that really took time was her switching out prosthetics and doing morning maintenance on her combat leg – some of the screws got loose when she wasn't using it do to the lack of pressure – and in the two and a half years since she'd gotten the prosthetic, it had become an easy task, much like simply doing her hair or wrapping her hands. She paused as she finished the last screw, raising it onto her chair for easier reach, running her free hand down the front of the smooth black finish. It wasn't the same leg Kankuro had originally given her back then as he'd often upgraded it or given her a completely new one about four times since then. It was his never-ending project. He told her it could always get better.

She knew it was because he worried and wanted her safe.

Not that he'd ever openly admit that to her more than the once.

Once was enough.

Her newest version featured finally molded black ceramic and clean-cut silver metal, reinforced by dark, strong wood. It was by far the easiest to control she'd had yet, and the hidden blade no longer lagged in deployment or got stuck at odd times like it had before, thankfully never when she was away from the village. Her off duty one was placed beside her desk and as she stood straight again, reaching over and grabbing her tonfa from a hook on the wall. She paused, looking at her desk with a smile, blindly placing her weapons in their holster as her eyes skated across the table, snagging on things as they went.

Her stationary was there, sitting next to a whetstone and a nearly finished woven necklace Tenten had asked for. What caught Kira's attention the most, like always, were the photos. They had always brought a smile to her face and had more than doubled over the last year. There were photos of her friend and her family from both the Nara's and the ones she lived with – she particularly liked the one where she'd forced Shikamaru into one during a New Year festival. He'd been annoyed at first but had managed a smile for her anyway. The last thing on the wall in the middle around all of the others was a framed drawing, not a picture, signed and dated by her friend Sai, the one he'd given her that day everything had gone wrong. She'd managed to hold on to it, though it had a rather worn look to it due to having been rolled up in a scroll with haste.

She wondered how Sakura and him were doing, if they managed to finally work things out. She hoped so.

They deserved to be happy.

As she turned to leave – she really did need to get going – her eyes caught on the sparkle of gold caused by morning light that streamed in through her open currents. Glancing to the side of her door, Kira paused in grabbing the handle, instead moving it to touch the delicate creation that had once been both her identity and her prison. The former leaf ANBU mask turned Suna mockery wasn't in pieces anymore. It was rebuilt, but not in the sense that made it back to where it had once been. It was whole, but changed, and for the better at that.

It was called Kintsugi, or Golden Repair, she and Kankuro had found out when they'd asked the local potter. The idea of fixing something but not reforging it. Instead of simply gluing the broken pieces of the mask together, Kankuro had helped her mix a golden resign and then use that to seal the cracks and fill in the chips and small missing pieces. It left the once plain and tasteless coyote mask with a stunning, regal look to it, the sight holes of the mask carefully filled in to make a pair of smooth golden eyes. Kira made a small humming sound, reaching out and touching the curve of the muzzle and tracing the cracked pathway down into a larger patched in piece on the nose, then promptly straightened it from its off kilter set.

A memory of the most trying part of her life, now hung as a symbol of her freedom.

When Kira left the room, she didn't look back; she never needed to anymore.

The arguing had stopped by the time she'd entered the kitchen, in fact, Kankuro was nowhere in sight at all. A quick look around the room gave her no signs of whatever had happened to cause the uproar either, so she stored the information away for later. She'd bug her friend about it as payback for his latest action that made him a terrible friend that, for some reason, she always came back to anyways. Temari was reading a scroll when Kira entered, and the blond only looked up after she apparently finished the sentence she was on. Kira smiled in greeting and the girl only tilted her head, inspecting her.

"He let you sleep in again?"

Kira sighed and Temari gave a small chuckle.

"The cook left your breakfast in the oven to keep warm. Not sure how good it will be after an hour but," she shrugged her shoulders. "Better than nothing."

"I still don't understand why he does this," she grumbled halfheartedly, walking over to the oven and peering inside. Taking out the bowl of Oyakodon, she held her hand over it and could still feel a small amount of warmth coming from it. She turned, grabbed chopsticks from a draw and was walking to the table before Temari had answered.

"He's just worried about you." It's a familiar answer for a familiar topic – it comes up between them almost every time the event happens – but the meaning of those words hadn't lost their sincerity. "He's so used to having you underfoot where he can keep an eye on you that when you leave it sets him on edge. Kankuro says he fidgets constantly in the office. It's kind of cute." The blond smiled softly, a look in her eyes that Kira can only place as relief – that her brother finally has a sense of normalcy in a way that made him act like a regular teenager. She better get her fill in now; Kira wasn't a teenager anymore and Gaara wasn't that much behind her either. Going back to her food, she took a bite of it and grimaced at the slightly cold eggs and sticky rice. The flavor of the chicken made up for it.

"He does realize I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on him, right?" her half assed argument had Temari laughing in that 'yeah right' way of hers.

"Oh Kira, I think you know by now that your title is more of a formality these days than anything else when it comes to that aspect of it."

"Hey! I work. You make it sound like I'm a freeloader."

"I mean," Temari emphasized the word. "That after everything that you've both gone through together, it's only natural that you'd both have each other's backs." She rolled her scroll up. "You do an excellent job Kira, don't worry about that."

Kira swallowed her food and nodded, smiling. She already knew that, the teasing was just how they were. It was still nice to hear. "Heading out?" If her memory wasn't failing her, Kira wasn't the only one leaving Suna today in the household. The blond nodded her head and stood up, stretching an arm over her head.

"The traders should be ready by now. I figured since we were headed in the same direction, I'd give them some peace of mind."

"Do you still have the letters I gave you?"

In response Temari pulled out said letters from a pouch at her side. "Of course, I do, I'll make sure they get them." The letters in question were three in total. She'd been writing to Tenten ever since they'd become friends, but the ones to Sai and her cousin were a newer addition.

"Thank you for taking them."

"It's not a problem," the older girl told her, stopping in her trip out of the kitchen to rest a hand on Kira's shoulder. "You be careful okay? Don't do anything reckless."

"Who am I? Kankuro?"

That got them both laughing, it was short, but it had been needed.

"Seriously though," Temari reiterated. "The Land of Rain is still a bit of an unknown. So be careful." Her tone left no room for arguments or doubt that she really was worried. It was nice, in a way, but Kira mostly wished she could blow that uneasy away. She smiled at her friend and gave a single nod.

"I promise." That seemed to satisfy the envoy. "Make sure to punch Shika in the arm for me when you get there, with love of course."

"Ha!" Temari squeezed her shoulder. "With pleasure." After a moment the hand drew away and with a final wave, the blond headed from the kitchen. "I'll see you soon Kira. Take care of my brothers while I'm gone." She was out of hearing range before Kira had swallowed her next bite of food, but that hadn't stopped her from thinking her reply.

Easier said than done.

The rest of her morning was spent running around the village trying to finish all of her needed errands before she left. She didn't get to talk with the black smith like she'd wanted to when she'd gone to pick up her kunai order, thanks to a certain red head, before she was off again. She picked up rations from a store, new twine from the weaver and then headed straight back toward the tower for her final, and probably most important task.

Over the last year, Kira had started taking over some of Baki's tasks as the older man would be retiring in the next few years. It wasn't much yet – she had a primary job after all – but it helped ease his full days and gave her a chance to step away from the office for a few minutes. The hawk nest was at a branching off portion of the tower, not quite at the top but close to it. Kira was greeted but the easy chatter of bird sounds and attendants – all of which turned at seeing her.

"Good morning Lady Kira," the older of three greeted, the other two bowing their heads for a moment before getting back to work. Lady. Bah. It was a terrible tease from the man to call her that once word had gotten around the village about her and Gaara. She wasn't a lady of anything, and it was just a bit unnerving to think about the implication of what that would mean. She nodded her head at him and then followed him out into the open landing to talk.

"You're terrible Kaito," she grumbled, turning to lean backward on the railing with her elbows to make it seem to those below as if it were a casual discussion. It was anything but that. "Anything I should know about?" While Kaito and his team were of course the handlers of the messenger bird, they also served a second purpose. While not spies in the sense of ANBU or even a typical ninja, they gathered information from the streets better than most. Rumors, gossip, and general new chatter that often got lost in the day-to-day life. Kira checked in with him in three-day intervals, taking in the information and then deciding if it needed to go past her and to Gaara or not. Kaito scratched at his cleanly trimmed bread.

"Not a whole lot going on these past few days." He leaned his forearms on the iron railing as well, facing out over the city. "There is one exception of course."

"There's always at least one," Kira mused in good humor, her eyes darting to the far wall to check the time. She had fifteen minutes. More than enough time. "So, what's going on?"

"One of the village painters, Mina, died in childbirth a few days ago."

"Yes… I remember you telling me about that last time." It had been a sad piece of information, but things like this happened from time to time. At least this wasn't because of a Onetails sealing. "Did they locate who the father was?"

"No," he said with a sigh. "From what I can tell she never told anyone, and none have stepped forward. The baby boy has been taken to the village orphanage. Thanks to Lord Kazekage's adjustments, we have more than enough supplies for the children to be taken care of."

Well, at least there was that. When Kira thought of the orphanage she often was thankful to her parents. That could have easily been her if she had never wandered into that room and if her father had never taken a liking to her. He had though, and even if he had died soon after, her mother had raised her until Kira was able to take care of herself. She wished she'd had more time with the elderly woman, but time heals all aches, or at least lessens the pain enough to be grateful for the time she'd had.

Frowning she glanced to the side at Kaito.

"It's a sad tale, I'll give you that. But as heartless as it may sound, it's not really anything that concerns me on a level to be brought back up again." She was supposed to be ensuring the safety of the village, not mourning the loss of every misfortune that might occur. She was a ninja – she dealt with ninja related things for the most part and while she often liked to hear about what was going on, Kaito wasn't one to repeat tales just to talk about something. "I'm guessing there's more to this than that?"

He nodded his head, shifting his weight as if trying to get comfortable. The air was getting cooler by the day and the man wasn't wearing very thick clothes.

"It's just gossip, and something that was only mentioned once but…" He turned his head to meet her eyes. "One of the caretakers insisted she saw black dust swirling in the air near his crib one night." The heavy sentence left Kira's mind clicking things together in rapid succession. Dust ninety percent of the time came from sand in Suna, so black dust could mean black sand and black sand meant… she shook her head. It wasn't a high probability, extremely unlikely, but the world had a way of repeating itself.

"Could be something. Could be nothing." She shrugged her shoulders. "If it was nighttime it could have simply been the trick of the eye." She bit her lip, thinking for a moment and glancing at the clock. Five minutes. "Contact Baki. I would but I have prior engagements that can't be stalled. Tell him what you told me but relay that Gaara doesn't need to know yet. Without confirmation of anything, there's no point in concerning him. We might need to look into the father a bit more."

"Sound choices as always Lady Kira."

She scowled.

"Knock it off Kaito. The joke is getting a bit stale and if the council ever found out they'd have a fit."

He chuckled. "The council needs to be shook up a bit I think." Pushing off from the railing he rolled his shoulders. "I'll get that message out right away."

"Good."

"Till next time then, Kira."

She huffed, pushing off from the railing, taking a step forward and promptly slipping into the inverted world through the man's shadow. She heard a small, startled sound at the action before all sound faded into nothing and, satisfied with her payback, she began her quick journey across the village. She reappeared on the edge of it, near the only entrance to the village and swept back a nonexistent hair from her face out of habit.

"Kira!" Aya's voice called out as she turned to where her team was waiting in the shadows of the looming rock cliffs. Kira raised a hand, taking a small step forward before pausing for a moment and looking back, her eyes homing in on the tower's fourth from the top level.

They never said goodbye on the days she left for missions. Goodbye was too permanent, too worrying. Welcome home was much better. It gave her something to look forward to. Turning back to her team, she jogged over to meet them, Shura pushing off from a rock he's been sitting on and nodding to her.

"Everything set?"

"Wouldn't be here if it weren't. Close call, but I'm still on time, aren't I?"

Aya smirked at her. "With one whole minute to spare." She sidled up to Kira's side and elbowed her lightly. "He let you sleep in again, didn't he?" The disgruntled look she got in reply had her giggling. Kira thought she could see a smile under Shura's veil, but she could never be quite sure. He nodded towards the entrance, all business as usual.

"It's time to go."

With a nod, both girls pulled up a half mask from around their necks that had a small veil like motif over the front of it to hide expression completely. They adopted it after both girl's masks had been broken and even though their leader had rolled his eyes dramatically at the similarities, Kira was quite sure he was secretly happy about it. Kira tapped the toe of her prosthetic, using chakra threads that weaved into the inner works that click a leaver meant for fast travel.

Then, they were gone.

…

Gaara couldn't concentrate. The drone of the council meeting had been dragging on for over an hour now, most of the conversation not even including him as the elders of the village went back and forth on a subject he couldn't even remember anymore. His hands twisted on his arms from their crossed positions, wanting nothing more than to rub his face and brush back his hair in a most non-leader like manner. Behind him, he heard Kankuro shift restlessly; he was getting a bit tired of this too.

Glancing out the large window that faced the dropping sun, he eyed it's position even though he could have just looked at the clock. A couple more hours and Team Fukaru should finally, finally be back. Maybe then he could relax. He really should have been used to it by now, it wasn't exactly fair to her or himself to disrupt his days every time Kira was out of the village. Two years they'd been together. Two years and he still found it hard to not want her constantly at his side. It was a habit, a comfort after such a long time to know she was there, not just as his guard or his friend.

Sometimes he regretted not seeing her off, not pulling her aside for a moment alone before she went off into danger, that lingering fear that she'd never come back haunting him till she returned. Yet not saying good-bye was better than saying 'good luck'. She was also, he reminded himself, more than capable of taking care of herself. He hung on to that point, his eyes trailing over the buildings of Suna before slowly he turned to the meeting at hand once more.

"Moving on to the next topic on our list," Ebizō started, the old man's voice steady despite telling Gaara he had perfect timing. "Regarding the idea of changing when Genin can be put out in the field for missions." He seemed a bit disgruntled at that, looking at Gaara as heads swivel to follow his lead. "While it's an interesting idea Lord Gaara, I think you may find that a hard pill to swallow. What age were you thinking?"

"Sixteen," the redhead said easily, thinking back on a conversation he'd had with his brother and Kira months ago. The whole idea had started out from the idea of Kira's 'perfect world' during the events of the war. She'd brought up the idea of changing the age again not so long ago, concerned and wanting a change. That was, of course, easier said than done and Gaara knew that eighteen was an impossible feat, suggesting fourteen instead. They'd debated for a while before his Kankuro had suggested a halfway point in the form of the announced age. The group glanced at each other, each wearing a slightly different look of either disbelief or unease.

"If I may," one of the few women on the council started, "What brought this to your mind, my Lord? It is quite a move to break a standard that has been engraved in our society for so long." She had a point, but Gaara certainly wasn't going to tell them his girlfriend had come up with it. Besides, he agreed with her.

"Sending children out into danger at such a young age, as you know, ends up with more deaths than anyone would like to acknowledge. The schooling they get to learn the basics before being put on teams and sent on missions may not be enough. The thought is, that once they are put on teams, they are trained on them for a while longer to learn to work together and grow in skill. As a grandparent of a young ninja, I would think you could see the merit in his Ayama." Addressing the member by name wasn't something that was uncommon for him. He found speaking to them as a person rather than as a group helped breach the gap in their age. The elder's eyes softened slightly at that, pressing her lips into a thin line as she started to nod, only to be cut off by the first man.

"A stirring argument to be sure my Lord, but I'm afraid that it isn't that easy." He steepled his hands in front of him, leaning forward on his chair. "Even if we could pass it here, the idea wouldn't transition well. You'd have to convince the rest of the village to change their ways as well, less our people be behind in real world experience and ranking. They would become jealous and unhappy and perhaps we would lose numbers even more because of that."

That was... true. Gaara hadn't really thought about that factor, and convincing all of the other Kage to do so might be an impossible task. Perhaps he could bring it up with Kakashi the next time he visited the Leaf Village. Looking back to the man, he bit back a sigh.

"Very well, Ebizō. We will table the idea for now, but I don't want to dismiss it entirely just yet."

"Of course, my lord."

Kira would be disappointed, he knew, but they'd both known – via Kankuro's own words – that it was a long shot. Having ninja out on the field at age thirteen was too ingrained to be broken so easily. Maybe one day, but not today.

"On to the last topic for the day then," Ebizō went on, dropping the last topic so easily after they'd debated on the one before for far too long. Well, at least Gaara could escape soon. Sometimes he wished he could be like Kakashi, who according to Naruto, often either didn't show up or suddenly would disappear during a meeting like this. Gaara just couldn't do it; he feared they'd pass something ridiculous. "Hakuto of the Hōki family, has agreed to meet with you my Lord, about the prospect of marriage some time down the line. We only need to make a date."

The words had Gaara stiffening, stunned at the man's forwardness about a topic the Kazekage had thought was closed. Kankuro cursed behind him and Gaara echoed that sentiment. The first time it had come up, months ago, he'd soundly shut the old man down and dismissed him from Gaara's office. He had retreated without argument and Gaara had taken it as him giving in. It appeared the old man had been moving forward with plans behind his back. Gaara's eyes narrowed slightly. The rest of the council remained silent, perhaps stunned as well by the lead counciler's words.

"That was unnecessary. As you are aware, I'm currently already in a relationship." Thankfully, Gaara had gotten over the embarrassment of saying such things to people over a year ago. It was silly to be so when he cared for Kira the way he did. Ebizō nodded his head good naturally.

"Yes, we are all aware of your attachment to your bodyguard," he stated evenly, purposely avoiding her name in order to make her seem less important. "And perhaps we let that go on far too long, at the time it seemed like a good way to let you grow as a person. No matter your feelings on it though, you must remember that such marriages as yours should be used as a way to solidify relations with other allies."

Sometimes, Gaara really wished the old man would either go senile or pass on like his sister had.

"You'd do well to remember Kira in a Nara from Konoha with a rare bloodline trait as well." Not that it had mattered to him at all, but Gaara had hoped it would stop something like this. He hadn't mentioned anything of this matter to her, she didn't need to know when it clearly didn't matter. At least to him. Once again, Ebizō nodded his head.

"Yes, and while that is something that would normally work out, the fact is that it would seem your sister will likely marry the new head of the Nara clan, making that match up much more suitable." He spoke as if they were pieces of a shogi board and it grated at Gaara's nerves making his hand curl slightly on his arms.

"My father wasn't in an arranged marriage last time I checked." No, he'd been allowed to marry someone he'd loved.

"We were not as concerned during his rule about forming lasting ties with other nations. As you'll remember war was much more common back in those days." To think peace would mean less freedom for the leaders of the world. "That is not to say that you must cut your ties with your bodyguard completely, but to the public eye and with the prospect of heirs, it's vital that-"

"Let me make myself clear," Gaara cut in, his voice turning flat and cold, anger seeping in. "Kira isn't someone I'm willing to even consider replacing and I grow tired of you insulting her in front of me." He glanced around the room, meeting each face before landing back on Ebizō and finding his eyes nearly hidden under his long eyebrows. "Your advice has been noted, but as it is only advice from an advisor, I'll do with it what I please. If something changes, which I doubt it will, I will bring it up again. You would be wise Ebizō, to remember the difference between your place and mine."

The tanned faces of the council went slightly pale at his tone, one that probably reminded them of just how powerful their leader was and that agitating him probably wasn't the smartest idea. Well, everyone but Ebizō it seemed.

"My Lord, the need for an heir…"

"Can be covered at a later date when we are ready to consider something of that manner." Mostly because that train of thought made Gaara a tad bit uncomfortable at the idea of it. He might have not had a problem with most physical aspects of his relationship with his girlfriend, but that on the other hand... It was something to discuss at a point in time later, and certainly not with his council present. "If that is all," he went on. "I believe this meeting has come to an end. You are dismissed."

Even with the slight hesitation by Ebizō, everyone still followed his command, standing and moving to leave the room. Gaara thought that, as she left, he saw Ayame try to hide a smile in a way of bowing her head slightly. Well, at least someone agreed with him. Once they'd all left, the door clicking shut behind him, Gaara let out a long breath and finally rubbed his face, moving to his eyes after a moment. He'd never wished to be a normal ninja more than he did at this moment. Behind him, Kankuro let out a low whistle, walking forward to stand by him.

"Damn bro, that was impressive. A bit terrifying, but effective. Kira would be flattered." His words have the redhead turning his head to look at him, a frown still on his face.

"Do not tell her."

His brother waved a hand.

"Wasn't planning to, she worries enough about her position in the village as it is." He crossed his arms smiling. "Doesn't mean I can't be proud of you though."

It made all the difference to Gaara that his family was at least behind him in his decision on the matter. Not that he would have ever doubted it, given they were both close to the shadow user as well. Pushing away from the table, Gaara stood, meeting his brother's gaze once more, in a much less angled view that he was still trying to get used to. Much to everyone's surprise – including himself – a year ago Gaara had gained a few inches in height. Not much, but enough to stand even with Kira. It was something he teased her about on occasion since she'd always used her height to her advantage over him… till he used his sand it even things out.

"I'm going to take a break," he said with a sigh, his brother nodding in understanding as they left the conference room. As they walked towards the stairs leading upward, Gaara could tell his brother had something to say, but he stayed silent as they passed ninja and workers alike in the busy halls. It wasn't till they were up in the private quarters for his family, standing in front of the door to his greenhouse, that Kankuro finally opened his mouth.

"If it's any consolation Gaara, I think Kira would make a great Lady Kage… and that you guys probably wouldn't be too bad at being parents either." He smirked and even though warmth spread through Gaara's chest at his words, he knew his brother was about to ruin the moment. "You know, if you guys ever get up the nerve to do more than just kiss that is."

There it is.

The teasing was normal, something he'd gotten used to and that he knew his brother only did because he cared… in some weird way. Maybe he was a terrible brother just like Kira said he was a terrible friend? He shook his head, ignoring the way his stomach twisted at the prospect of what Kankuro was suggesting and reached out opening the door, only for a hand to rest on his shoulder.

"Hey," Kankuro said, his voice softer. "You guys don't have to do anything you don't want too, despite what I or anyone else says. If you're happy, maybe that's enough." His hand dropped and he shoved them in his pockets. "I'll be out here if you need me."

After a moment, Gaara nodded his head and let the door swing shut behind him. The green house was one of the few places Gaara truly felt like he could relax and after checking things over and turning on the drip system he wandered over to the stool at the back of the room and picked up the book laying on top of. Sitting down, he flipped it open to the page he'd bookmarked, and let his mind concentrate on a fictional world rather than the reality of his own. It was an interesting story he admitted, but it wasn't one he would likely read again unless the protagonist somehow became more observant.

He could see why Kira liked it though.

Time ticked by quickly and after a chapter he turned off the drip system and went back to reading. He wanted to get done with the current problem facing the characters before dinner time. After the third chapter the door opened and the almost silent sound of footsteps alerted him to who it was, allowing him to finish his paragraph. Arms wrapped around his shoulders and the familiar feeling of a nose and forehead pressing into the back of his head had his eyes flicking away from the page.

"I'm home," Kira announced quietly, though it was obvious. His lips twitched up and his free hand lifted, bending at the elbow to touch her arm.

"Welcome home."

He heard her shifting on her feet, probably tired from the long run back from a mission that had taken a week with little sleep.

"Enjoying the book?" she asked, and he glanced back down at the text for a moment.

"It's better than reading the reports on my desk," he teased, smiling completely now as she huffed, warm air ruffling his hair and skating across his neck. "I can see why you like it," he relented. "It's an easy read."

"You make it sound like I have trouble reading." She laughed. "Where are you at?"

"Three paragraphs from the end of chapter fifteen."

"That's not what I meant…"

"I know."

She huffed again, finally pulling away and reaching out to grab and snap the book shut with quick hands. Gaara blinked, turning his head to see her standing next to him, her free hand on her hip. He just gave her a slightly sheepish smile and reached up to run a thumb along her jaw.

"I missed you," he said, knowing that would get him out of just about anything. She narrowed her eyes for a moment before sighing tilting her head into his touch before grabbing his hand with hers and leaning in to kiss him quickly before pulling back, or so she thought. Gaara's free hand snapped up to her neck and stopped her, allowing him to really kiss her. She twitched, eyes widening briefly before simply stepping forward and complying. At least she seemed to understand now just how much he meant his words from before. Despite Kankuro's words, he really did need to think about trying to take things further, if only a little bit. Kira so often seemed like she was tentatively careful around him, and he didn't want her to have to be. Pulling back, she sighed, pressing her forehead against his, eye still closed.

"I missed you too," she finally, a smile lingering across her lips. At least Gaara knew she was happy, and for now, that was all that really mattered to him. A few seconds ticked by before she finally took a step back, squeezing his hand and using her other to rub the back of her neck in a way that told him it was sore. "I left the mission details on your desk," she said off hand and he nodded his head.

"I'll debrief your team tomorrow then." He glanced at the clock above the door. "Dinner should be really soon." His words felt slightly off, even to him as he tightened his grip on her hand, Thinking about how time had run so fast, so far and nearly left him behind. Nineteen years old, and sometimes he felt as if he'd already lived an entire lifetime. Maybe he had, maybe when Naruto had changed his life, it had restarted it as well. But even if it had, something had stayed the same, things like a meaning to his life and the place in which he wanted to be. Even after being Kazekage, there had been something missing, something creeping along the edges of his vision, he just hadn't seen it, hadn't realized it could be there at all.

"Everything okay?" Kira murmured, always knowing when things were off with him. His eyes shifted hers and he remembered something they'd talked about the day of her mother's funeral, when he'd asked her about the tattoo that spanned her entire shoulder blade. He'd seen it a handful of times since then, but the first time was still what he remembered most. It was still the first time something had clicked in his mind, though he hadn't realized in the moment.

'The sky has room for every star.'

He'd been grasping for that spot for so very long, that it had taken him time to understand what the line really meant. He'd already had that spot, he always had, and always would. That meaning in his life that he'd been missing, wishing for, reaching out to – she'd been standing right next to him all along, just like now. She truly was…

He took in a deep breath and shook his head at her, smiling.

"No. Just realizing something."

"Yeah?"

"It's just something Tenten told me once." 'She's your miracle, isn't she?' "She was right."

Kira laughed again, nodding her head.

"She normally is – don't tell her I said that though." She winked and he shook his head, pulling her towards the door. She was right most times too, but he didn't need to tell her that, not when he already had. There were a lot of things they didn't have to say to each other, he realized, not when they already knew, and yet… and yet.

"Kira?"

"Hm?"

"I love you."

She blinked at him, surprised before she gave him that smile – his smile – and he thought that even if he didn't have to say it to her for her to know, that with something, they should still be said. Over, and over, and over again, because they both deserved it and everything else they'd fought for, everything they'd reached for and taken from the sky.

Held tight in both their hands.

FIN

There's clear skies after the rain, now we can swim in the clouds

Even if I shut my eyes, even if I doubt, it's a mobius jet coaster

In the sky that reflects your heart, a gentle wind blows.

- Cascade by Unlimits

THUS... it ends. I kind of want to cry. This thing has been my baby for way too long, up to the point where I wanted to hug it and toss it out the window at the same time. I may at some point add a few more bounce chapters, but that is not a sure thing so as of now, this story is on complete status.

A small side note for how things ended for these two and what you might be wondering. For me, Gaara and Kira don't actually have that much of a physical/sexual relationship. Do they eventually get around to it? Yes. Is it probably the most awkward thing in the world? Definitely. The thing is, that because of who they are, I feel like their dynamic is more towards the side of companionship love, rather than a highly active sexually charged one. They trust each other and depend on each other completely, but they also maintained a kind of self instead of becoming the 'one completely person', if that makes sense. They just don't have that hallmark style ending, which leads me to my next point: They never get married. Nope. Not in my head at least. They are together and they are never with anyone else but the need for marriage never really becomes something they feel they need to do. They talked about it, I'm sure, but in the end, they realized that they knew they loved each other and that all of Suna already considered her the Lady Kazekage so, despite what the elders might thing - they never tye the note in the normal manner - they don't need rings to make sure everyone knows.

I know this will probably bother a few people, but well, this is my story so... :)

Anyway, thank you all so much for reading this story, and I hope you enjoyed it. I look forward to hearing what you think.
Until later,

DROH