11: OOO

Sasori couldn't stand it and had surrendered all hopes of getting his boyfriend back. He'd fallen asleep next to the blonde thinking that Kisame was an interfering liar, that Deidara would be okay given time and rest and care. When he began to bleed again, and those hateful words spewed from Deidara's mouth like Sasori was the worst person in the universe, Sasori cleaned the blood away and convinced himself that this was the hard part that Deidara would have to push through. In reality, it was probably a relapse - and that brief calm interlude they'd shared was probably the last he'd ever have.

When Deidara tugged ceaselessly against the chains, the bed cracking under the strain, Sasori begged him to stop. When he started convulsing again, the black veins standing prominent against his pale skin, he was out of encouragements and soothing words. He lifted his weighted feet all the way to Kisame, wondering if his brother would offer sympathy or help first.

"It's okay" Kisame said standing up, taking out his phone and aiming for the stairs - up to Deidara.

"He's in pain, isn't he?" Sasori winced as another one of Deidara's bone-shattering yells wracked the halls. "He's actually dying" Kisame didn't bother answering him, probably because nothing he could say would make any difference to Sasori's internal pain. Sasori wandered into the living room, immediately facing his grandmother. The judgement was there in her eyes, not condescending, just disappointed.

"Don't start," He warned her, heading to the kitchen before she could give him an answer. Konan wasn't in there. There was a bowl of half-mixed something, clearly interrupted, and the idea that Konan had simply adandoned it to help him made him feel aweful. She'd usually be cooking or baking something, her usual distraction for everything, but the kitchen had been left mid-work. Whatever she'd been doing, she hadn't returned to it. Sasori instantly blamed himself.

There was a monster in her house, in the form of his boyfriend; why would she come back? He'd scared her out of her own home, what kind of person did that make him?

Kisame came and went within the hour - back to him 'damsel' project after taking a quick video of the suffering blonde - for 'research' apparantly.

Deidara was back in Zetsu's lab under constant sedation, though he was more lenient with the chains than Kisame had been. Sasori kept away, despite the frequent visitors to his room he had no motivation to do anything. He couldn't eat, didn't want to move or cry or yell. The sheets that Deidara had been on didn't even smell like him; it was nauseating.

"Eat this" Kakuzu plated something in front of him and he thought it smelled like Chiyo's soup. "We don't need anybody else dying under this roof; eat the soup, or I won't tell you anything" Sasori picked at it under his brothers scrutinising gaze, sure that he'd throw it back up in less than half an hour.

Once he set the almost-empty bowl aside, Kakuzu nodded in acceptance.

"Kisame has a plan. There should be news of possible treatment in the morning" It gave him a numb feeling; he wasn't sure whether to allow the smallest inch of hope creep into his body, or whether or not to ignore it completely until Deidara was his usual lively self.

"Hidan and I will be gone for a while - helping Kisame with a … chaotic situation" Which usually meant they'd be helping to cause the chaos. "We won't be long" Kakuzu took the bowl and left and Sasori threw it up five minutes later. He didn't know how much longer he could cope. And Konan still hadn't returned.

OOO

He ran his fingers over Deidara's exposed skin, back to its usual chilled temperature albeit with a slightly off colour. Zetsu had let him in for a while; Kisame or Konan hadn't been in contact to agree or disagree and Chiyo - as the nearest of kin to Sasori - was okay with it as long as he was supervised. So Zetsu stayed in the shadows as Sasori tried to gather his thoughts.

Even if Kisame did come back with some magical cure, he was sure Deidara wouldn't be the same. His body had been through too much, even Zetsu agreed that unless there was a healing agent inside the medicine, Deidara could recover from the "illness" and still be left with its damage. His internal organs were pretty much dead or decaying now, his "blood system" the only thing weakly keeping everything else ticking over.

Kakuzu had apparently already confirmed that the blood which had been decaying and regrowing before was now doing nothing; Deidara would run out of blood to feed the rest of his body. When that happened, they all seemed certain he'd die. Cease to exist.

Chiyo had suggested putting the blood directly into his system, but there was then the possibility of it being rejected. At that stage, it would either be the virus or the inevitable violent rejection that would kill him.

"He can't feel it, can he?" He asked Zetsu, Deidara's cold skin burning against his own warm hand. "My touch?"

"We'd say not" His brother quietly. "But there's been a lot of things he shouldn't be able to do which he's overcome. It's possible he could"

"I don't think so" Sasori knew when the hairs on Deidara's arms didn't rise to his touch. There was nothing about that almost-corpse on the bench that recognised him.

It was an agonizing wait. Sasori wasn't sure how long Kisame would need to get the cure, or even if he could - though secretly he knew that if anybody could, Kisame was the best option.

He was sat on the work bench, his body pulled as close together as he could make it as he watched over Deidara's body. He could feel Zetsu getting restless, probably bored, and supposed he should probably leave…but he couldn't bring himself to move away.

When the depressed feeling of 'impending doom' prickled his body, Sasori's first thought was to lock the door. He'd keep Gaara out, why let his cousin make this any worse?

But then he could hear yelling and made his way with heavy footsteps into the main room. It was almost worth leaving his almost-dead boyfriend for - because Gaara had made contact.

A dark haired boy was flailing, angry, but Gaara was more than furious.

"Open the fucking portal!" The dark haired one demanded.

"I'm not a fucking taxi. He had his chance, he didn't move"

"It's my brother!"

"And he's with Kisame. Couldn't be more safe"

"Gaara," The dark haired boy gripped Gaara's hand - which was clamped solidly around his wrist. Contact. Sasori might've been happy if his boyfriend weren't dying and these two children interfering with any possible hope of a recovery. "Take me back"

"Give me the papers" Gaara's other hand shot out.

"Take me back!"

"I can't. There was a reason Kisame had to open it"

The boy slammed the papers to the floor, his foot whipped around to kick Gaara - a futile move. The boy went flying, Gaara remaining intact and unmoved until he bent to retrieve the papers.

"They've been translated by a reliable source, I'm told" He said quietly. "But it's work in progress, and trial and error. You'll have to make it from scratch". He passed them to Zetsu with a look that Sasori couldn't read. The demon then went back into the lab and Sasori made to follow.

"You don't want to follow" Zetsu said, his voice deep and sure. "We can't have you watching"

"Sasuke, we're leaving" Gaara put his ring to the wall and motioned his friend closer. A chill crept up Sasori's spine when the boys eyes flashed an angry red in rebellion.

"You're a Uchiha" His head swam; it was their fault that his boyfriend was dying on a slab in the basement.

"Oi" Gaara tugged Sasuke in a fist full of sand, throwing him into the portal first and holding up a hand to ward Sasori's advancements. "Kisame has plans for him too. I can't kill him, and neither will you"

"I hate you" Sasori couldn't understand. His cousin was changing too rapidly - he was on a first name basis with The Enemy - and as much as Gaara hated Deidara you'd think there'd be some support for Sasori at least - and now he was siding with them? Kisame too? "Screw this" He made for the front door, bursting out and pacing the grounds. He longed to leave and stay, to fight or run, to cry or laugh and yell without having an ounce of energy to do so.

A cool hand slipped into his shaking one and he immediately felt numb. It was a calm from the torrent raging inside of him, and Konan's stillness at his side made his anxiety melt away.

OOO

Sasori and Konan stayed outside until it was cool and the sky had gone dark. He felt guilty because despite their shared warmth and their joined hands, Konan looked tired and pale and was more than due an explanation and a severe apology. Whenever he tried to approach it, she smiled softly at him and shook her head - as if it didn't matter. As if she hadn't-…..

"I don't blame you" She said quietly, her hand tightening around Sasori's. "I'd have done the same"

"No you wouldn't" Sasori smiled at her, but it was clear her emotions were in turmoil. "I'm sorry you got involved - I know you didn't-"

She shook her head again and Sasori accepted the finality. She didn't want to talk about it and clearly he was forgiven for his misdeeds. He briefly wondered at what cost - her trust? Her faith?

When the chill got too much, Konan wordlessly pulled Sasori up and walked him back inside, the warmth hitting and enveloping them instantly. Sasori felt better wrapped in the safety of his house and the heat, and in Konan's good-books too…but his heart felt like ice as she took him towards the basement.

"Kisame's just got back…" She said quietly, and then frowned. Sasori wasn't sure if that was a sign for him to choose - to go and see if Kisame was alright, if his mission went okay, or if it was an excuse for him to change his mind.

"I'd like to see Deidara, if that's okay with you" Sasori said surely, and Konan opened the basement door with a warning to Zetsu that they were coming down. Each step felt like a death sentence and Sasori debated running back up and hiding. He didn't want to know anything other than Deidara making a miraculous recovery and being perfectly fine. He couldn't handle Zetsu telling him that all of their efforts had been for absolutely nothing.

"You have a friend, there" Konan stopped at the bottom of the stair, her body still with shock. She knew whenever anybody was in the house, intruder or not, and Sasori felt instantly on guard. Konan was going to be on eggshells for the rest of the week, at this rate.

"We needed his help" Zetsu said, passing his 'friend' a few things. "Some of the ingredients are out of our….knowledge. He has been helping us to find them. I apologise" Konan's wariness of the stranger was no secret. She didn't move any closer inside Zetsu's lab and because of it, Sasori was cautious too. But Deidara was still lying unchanged on the table.

Sasori couldn't see a change and could tell by Zetsu's quiet concentration that he was still working to his limit. There was no point in interrupting him. Sasori sat on the steps, watching silently as Konan studied the stranger in confusion. When the stranger quietly said something and Sasori barely caught the word 'Zet' - he knew it was the same friend from before, that had lured him out of the basement for the 'ten minutes' that Sasori had seen Deidara.

"Zetsu has a friend - an actual different friend" Sasori said quietly, and Konan eventually came to sit on the step next to him.

"One they can both agree on" Konan nodded, and Sasori quickly noted that she was right - that both of Zetsu's personalities seemed to like and work with him. "Kakuzu and Hidan just got back" She said, loud enough for Zetsu to hear it.

After five minutes, Kakuzu came down drying his hands and stopping at the stair the two were sat on.

"The UCF is no longer a concern" Kakuzu said quietly, lingering on the staircase. "The Uchiha is still in there with Kisame - they seem to be closer" Konan nodded slowly and Sasori reassessed his words.

"Closer?" He echoed. Kakuzu flopped a hand on Sasori's head - a brief moment of reassurance - before indicating upstairs to Konan. As she stood up, Kakuzu went to help Zetsu and his friend and Sasori wobbled to a stand. He followed Konan out, his mind elsewhere until he heard faint chattering in the living room.

It was clear from the way Kisame was talking so casually to him that he was fond of him, almost…proud? As Sasori breathed quietly, he caught the Uchiha's scent and realised he was some kind of wolf breed. There was nothing familiar other than the faint trace of having shifted recently - and it was new- A kiss?! He listened, hearing something about 'South of France' and automatically remembering the sweet little place with the front gate and the wonderful kitchen.

"They're flirting?" Sasori murmured in disbelief, watching Kisame's reactions and the way he stroked the others hair back.

"Sasori," Konan warned, but the red head was already marching ahead. He'd whacked Kisame's solid face before he could think of an insult. Kisame's reflexes were flawless and that hit had been allowed.

"You hate my boyfriend but you'd happily take in a lying, murdering, degenerate of a fuck-up?" Kisame stood up, being sure to keep in between Sasori and the Uchiha wolf. "Deidara is dying because of him!"

"He also helped get the information that could save him" Kisame said slowly.

"It might not even work - he could have been lying! How could you trust him?"

"You trusted the vampire" Kisame said evenly. "I trust Itachi. I get it now"

"You can't even- that's not the same! I've known him for years, you've known him a few days?!"

"How long did it take you to be sure to trust your vampire? A few hours?" Sasori wouldn't admit that Kisame was right. It hadn't taken long, and Sasori had always trusted his instincts - Deidara's concluding trustful act had been when he'd safely guided him back to his grandmother, having been just eight years old in a totally different world, separated and lost for over an hour.

"You don't realise how difficult it was for me to trust Itachi with something like this" Sasori couldn't think of an immediate comeback, or any comeback at all. "Knowing what Deidara meant to you-"

"Means" Sasori scowled. "He isn't dead yet"

"You were going to leave!" Kisame growled. "You think I'd risk that so easily?" The anger filtered onto his face in seconds. "To risk losing you, by trusting someone that yes - could have been lying, or spying, or damn well wasting my time? You think that was a split second decision?" Sasori's anger settled. "I used him as a last resort - Kakuzu told me countless times that I had a fucking ace in my pocket, I could have risked it earlier. I didn't. I exhausted every other fucking option, Sasori. Don't you dare think I didn't weigh up the consequences"

Sasori eyed up the Uchiha, clearly an older, longer haired, stoic and fightless version of the younger, flailing child that Gaara had brought along.

"You're defending him" Sasori murmured, turning to Kisame. "After all those times I defended Dei and you shot me down…looked at him like he was a threat. You expect me to … to just accept him?"

"He isn't like the others, Sasori" Kisame's voice was sure and honest. "Itachi can't do anything else"

"Neither will Dei, because he'll be dead - and it'll be his fault" He wanted to be angry at Kisame but he couldn't, so the Uchiha was his best bet. He was still and silent on the sofa that Kisame was stood in front of, watching him with those red eyes. He couldn't trust him, not yet.

"I'd like him to stick around" Kisame said cautiously. "Not here, not yet. But with me"

"I don't care what you do" Sasori said bluntly. He did, really. He wanted Kisame to be happy and if being with the Uchiha made him happy then so be it. But Sasori couldn't be a part of that just yet. He needed his boyfriend alive, and even then it might take time.

"If you're mad at anyone, be mad at me. I made the decisions"

"Okay" Sasori nodded once and could tell it wasn't what Kisame had been expecting. "Enjoy France" He turned on his heel and left, marching up to his room and hiding under his duvet like a child. Sorting out his emotions would take time - he couldn't hate Kisame completely, didn't want to trust the Uchiha - but he knew if Kisame did then inevitably they all would sooner or later. He wanted Dei to pull through, then the Uchiha's information would have helped and maybe there would be one less reason to hate him or be annoyed with Kisame. But he was sure Deidara wouldn't feel the same, and Sasori couldn't lie to him.