Thankyou to BlueNovaBunny for the review, I hope I don't disappoint.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

It had been a long, emotional, exhausting day for Hinata. As soon as she came into the village and made her way into her little home, everything just overwhelmed her. She had never felt so helpless before, not knowing what to do. She couldn't go back to her original village, for the same reasons she had come to Suna. She had no one left here, nothing left here. Soon she would either have to marry, or find a life in another village, the chance of making it there by herself being slim, not to mention when she did find another village, she would have to find a place to live, food, a form of work. This past year had just been a huge change from her previous life and now it would be even worse. 'How can I survive without mother?' She asked herself. She sat on the floor in their little one room apartment and stared at the wall, tears running down her face, quietly sobbing so the people in the neighbouring apartment couldn't hear her.

After letting her emotions out, Hinata became determined. She wasn't going to go without a fight, Hinata Hyuuga is stronger than that. She swiped at her eyes and started towards the main tower, she was going to speak to the Kazekage directly, all while running past the blonde haired boy making his way to her house.

Gaara hadn't felt so angry in a long time, he usually kept his emotions in check, becoming emotionless so he wouldn't get tempted by the bloodlust again. He walked to the basin of cold water in his study/bedroom and splashed his face, trying to calm himself lest he make a mistake. Patting his face dry he looked in the mirror, trying to see what others saw. Blood red hair with unruly spikes that he could never keep down, not that he had tried more than once, bright aquamarine eyes with dark black rings around them; something that was there from birth. A tattoo with the kanji for love in the corner of his forehead, something he had covered with locks of his hair, it was a constant reminder of what he was. It wasn't love in the fantastical sense, it was self love of a monster, as he is the only person who would ever love a monster like him.
He went to touch it and then thought better, shaking his head he put on his official Kazekage robes and walked to the council room, going to straighten this mess out.

~~~
Three hours. That's how long she had been waiting to see even a glimpse of the so called tyrannical leader. She had come here so determined and now she just felt exhausted, and wanted to rest.
Hinata stretched her legs and stood up, knowing somehow she just wouldn't see the Kazekage today. Or ever. Since half the village hasn't seen his face in years.
So she left the tower, giving up for today, but determined to come back tomorrow, and the day after, and however long it took for her to make him see her. She needed this, she wouldn't back down just yet.

After walking out of the tower, Hinata started thinking about her little, empty house in the village. It had never had much stuff in it, but somehow when her mother was there it always felt like a home. She had made it a home. Now the thought of returning made her spirits decline again; she remembered the words that were spoken in the clearing. She had a place to go, somewhere she could possibly sleep without crying and somewhere where she could feel peace.

~~~
Three hours. That's how long he had been waiting at the front of her door, assuming she would be coming back. Though the village was prospering it wasn't that large, surely she wouldn't be out that long. Naruto sighed, kicking his foot at the sand in front of the small apartment. He had taken a while to find it, as well, as everyone he had talked to had just snickered and hadn't told him where his bride-to-be's house was located. Eventually he had asked an elderly woman, who had told him where the quiet, stuttering girl lived. "Sad little thing," she had said, "she and her mother hadn't been very welcomed by the villagers here and now her mother is gone. She probably has no one left."
He felt sympathy towards the girl he hadn't even met yet, knowing how hard it is to not have anyone to support you. He hoped he could give her a little comfort, letting her know that someone was working on their marriage situation and that she didn't have to worry about it.
Now he just felt hungry and tired, vowing to come back tomorrow when she should be home, he went to find a restaurant that sold his favourite; ramen noodles.

Gaara was exhausted, it had taken him hours to get the council to agree, regardless of the fact that he was the Kazekage and he should have the final say, he still had to argue with the old members.
"Hyuuga Hinata's fate was decided in the best interest for the village, she doesn't contribute anything, and some villagers have found her very uncomfortable to be around. Now that her mother is dead, the best option is to marry her off to another village." One of them had said. "It was a council decision to use your seal, knowing that the other village wouldn't be as receptive if it wasn't a request from the Kazekage. We assumed you wouldn't care, as you haven't taken notice in the villagers' matters before."
Gaara banged his fist on the table, regardless of how stoic he seemed, seeing fear in the council members' eyes that brought an old satisfaction. "From now on, you will come to me about these matters, I will look through them, I will approve them. You will NOT use my name to contact any of the villages or you will regret it." After he thought he got his point across, Gaara sat back in his chair. "Now, concerning the matter of Hyuuga Hinata, she will not marry Naruto Uzumaki. She will not be forced out of the village and she will be treated like a real citizen of Suna." The councilmen grumbled and started arguing. "But she's useless!", "She can't contribute anything!", "What will she do to earn her keep?"

Gaara listened for a moment and then said with deadly calm, "Hyuuga Hinata will be offered a position in the tower, she will do her duties and she will choose where she will stay, but she will have paid work, and stability. No one is to go against her in any way, and if they do they will speak to me. Am I understood?" He stared blankly at the council members. A couple of them had offered complaints but in the end all votes went to Gaara.

After he had dismissed the meeting, he had gone back to his study and breathed a huge sigh of relief. He looked outside, feeling the soft breeze and looking out at the dark sky. Knowing that he probably wouldn't sleep tonight either, he started walking towards the one place he could relax.

~~~
Hinata made it to the building and knocked softly on the door, not hearing anything, she walked into the house. Instantly she felt more relaxed, the quiet, calm atmosphere. The simple yet warm furniture. The only place in the 2 bedroom house that didn't have much furniture was the library, which she thought was strange, it only had a desk and a lonely chair surrounded by books. Hinata felt a breeze come through the window and quickly decided to make a fire; the desert got freezing cold at nighttime and it wouldn't take long for the temperature to drop. Last night it had felt warm in the house, but perhaps that was only Hinata's imagination, as she was distraught. 'Don't think about it,' Hinata said to herself, 'you'll only make yourself sad again.'
After starting the fire and closing all the windows, Hinata decided to look through the bookcase, there must have been hundreds of books here, as the bookcase went all alongside the two walls. She finally picked out a big book, 'The History of Suna' looked relatively new, but she ran her fingers along the edge of the book, finding rugged edges where it looked like someone had ripped out the pages. Hinata found it strange, but she didn't care, she sat down on the floor by the fire and started reading.

Gaara made it to the little house in the clearing with no problem, his training when he was young had made him stealthy, no one even realized he was walking past them, even in the dead of night. He walked through the hidden back door of the cottage and felt the heat suddenly, a warming, calm environment. It was a strange feeling coming to his resting place and already having a person here, but he didn't feel uncomfortable, for he knew it was Hinata, the female that had constantly been on his mind since she left that morning. Gaara made his way to the hidden compartment behind the bookcase and watched her. She was sitting by the fire, reading a book that she had to balance on her legs, for it was so big. She looked so delicate, the firelight bouncing off of her, causing her to look almost ethereal. He just sat there and watched her, watching her mouth as she softly spoke out the words she was reading, he eyes move and her facial expression change when she found something interesting. He could see her start to become chilled, regardless of the fire, and remembered that she wasn't originally from Suna, so she wouldn't be quite used to the temperature yet.
"There's blankets in the bedroom, you can use them to keep warm." He told her through the bookcase. She jumped, the book holding her in place but her head shot up.
"Did I scare you?" He asked, feeling almost contrite about not telling her he was there. But then she tilted her head and looked around.
"N-No, just surprised me." She said, with barely a stutter at all.
"You came back." He was surprised by the fact, and his stomach started to feel a bit funny after thinking about the fact that someone willingly came back, knowing that he was there. 'She doesn't know who you are,' he told himself, 'you know that if she did, she wouldn't have come.'
But she just looked straight at where the bookcase was, and did the most amazing thing. She gave him a smile; a small one, but a smile. It made her look even more like a fairy nymph, her mouth delicately turning up at the sides, a dimple slightly showing in her left cheek. He stared at it, for some reason trying to imprint it onto his brain.
"Of course, I-I feel safe here." She replied.

~~~
Hinata was surprised, she didn't know if the voice was going to come back. But she still wasn't frightened, instead its deep baritone voice sent pleasant shivers down her spine. She was starting to get cold, but she was sure her goosebumps weren't from the temperature.

After telling the voice that she felt safe here, it didn't reply for a while. She just waited, knowing somehow that it would speak. She hoped she hadn't made it feel uncomfortable.
But then, after the silence, she was relieved, and also happy when the voice replied:

"I… am glad."