disclaimer: same as always, i don't own Naruto, jus the character Maida lol

Neji was laying on his side on the floor. His hair band was gone and blood seeped from some wounds along his back and sides. The pack he carried was at least off and to the side but he was breathing a little harder than usual.

"Oh my god. Neji?" I ran over to his side and touched his shoulder.

He looked at me from the corner of his eye then closed it again.

"I would ask what the hell happened, but that's too cliché so I'll settle for you look like shit."

He let out a sound that almost seemed like "ch"

Well at least he's still got his sense of humor, I thought. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

I was about to reach for his arm, but he was already getting up so I grabbed his pack and followed close behind him to make sure he didn't fall. When he reached his room I gave him his pack.

"Now, when your done cleaning up, let me comb out your hair for you."

He gave me the strangest looks that his tired eyes could give.

I just looked sternly back. "Your half dead as it is and most likely fought everything imaginable, let me fight your hair for you so you can rest."

Neji looked at me a little more then shrugged and walked into his room.

"I'll be in the courtyard and if you try to skip out then I'll skin whatever hide is left off of your body." Without waiting for a response I left and got the food Hinata left out for him and took it to the courtyard and continued drawing.

After about 15 minutes he came out and sat by me. His hair was wet.

"Trade you food for the comb," I said without looking up.

He rolled his eyes and held out the comb. I gave him the food and situated myself behind him and started combing his wet hair.

"If I'm hurting you, tell me and I'll stop."

He just continued eating.

Neji's hair was so long and so ratty it wasn't even funny. It took me probably 5 minutes just to get the bottom 1/4th untangled before I could get into the upper part. I wish I had hair like his though because when I saw it earlier it didn't look all that ratty; maybe a tangle here or there. I wonder what his secret is. We remained silent, I combing and he sitting quietly. By the time I was done there was a small hair pile that had built up beside me. Now all I was doing was running the comb all the way through to make sure I got all the last tangles out. When that was done I took a glance at him. His eyes were closed like he had fallen asleep. I went back to my drawing.

My drawing was of a lone tree in a forest clearing. I had just started putting in the shadings when I noticed something was missing. I glanced back at Neji then stared. I had never seen him in a t-shirt let alone a pair of shorts yet he was wearing both and without the normal bandages he wrapped on his arm and leg. His muscles shown brightly, but not like a weight lifter, more like the sinewy muscles that looked harmless yet you knew it could do damage. I looked back at my drawing. Neji shifted and lay down facing me, slightly curled. I was surprised he lay so close let alone sleep near me. His face seemed so peaceful, but I wondered why he still had his headband on. Did he ever take it off? I looked back down at my drawing and smiled. If he was going to sleep like that, he was a perfect model for drawing and I had found what I was going to put at the base of my tree.

Hiashi's POV

I entered my home and stopped looking at the extra pair of shoes. Realizing that Neji was home I closed the door quietly in case he was sleeping. Walking to my nephew's room I stopped and looked out into the courtyard. Maida-san was still there drawing, but beside her was Neji, sound asleep in the shade. I couldn't believe it and my eyes widened slightly in shock and I stood there staring for a bit then walked away quietly.

Maida's POV

Lunch time came and went, but I didn't dare get up because I know ninja are light sleepers and I didn't want to find out if Neji was a morning person or not. So, I sat there and continued drawing. It was hard to capture all the correct shapes of his face and body, but after some persistence and the sacrifice of my eraser I was able to get it good enough to finally start in on all of my shadings. I decided to shade his body first in case he woke up before I got there. I had just finished and was starting in on the surrounding trees when he woke up, or at least he moved his hand, but he was rubbing his eyes so I assumed he was awake.

"How long have I been out?"

"Not that long. Maybe 4 hours tops."

I saw him sit up from the corner of my eye. His hair had long since dried and it wasn't frizzy. I was a little jealous.

He looked over at me drawing. "What are you drawing?"

"A forest." Hey it was partially the truth.

He raised his eyebrow. "A forest?"

I didn't look up. "Yes. Is there a problem with that?"

"Nope." He yawned then rubbed his eyes again.

"Something wrong with your eyes?"

"A bastard caught me off guard and threw dirt in them." He continued rubbing them.

I looked up. "Let me see."

He looked at me. "What for?"

"So I can see if there are any big pieces."

"Whatever."

I closed my book and kneeled in front of him staring him in the eye. "I don't see nothing." I looked in the other. "Nope. Not a thing. Try flushing them out with water." I shifted my position so I was sitting in front of him.

He went back to rubbing.

"You'll continue to irritate them if you keep rubbing like that."

"What do you know?" He continued rubbing.

"Plenty. I used to always get dirt in my eyes when I was a kid and that's what my mom said every time, and she was right." I looked away fighting back the tears. Why did I always have to cry in front of him? I've never cried in front of someone yet here I was crying for the second time in front of Neji.

Neji's POV

I stopped rubbing and kept them closed letting the moisture build up. It seemed to help, but I wasn't about to admit that. A sobbing sound came from in front of me and when I looked up I saw Maida-san trying not to cry.

"What's wrong?"

She shook her head.

"Maida-san, what's wrong?" Why did I care?

Another sob escaped from her. "Will I ever get to go home? Will I ever get to see mom and dad and argue with my friends?" She started bawling.

It's not like she has anything to cry about. I'm living with my uncle who is in the main branch and I have the curse upon me. I've never really known my mom and my dad died when I was young. Why should she cry? But why do I want to comfort her?

Maida's POV

I couldn't stop crying. Here I am, the one who always fought with her guy friends, crying in front of a boy. What the hell's wrong with me? But would I ever get to go home? Would I ever see my family and friends or will I be forced to live in this world where there's no life for me?

A cool hand touched my face and wiped away some tears. I looked into Neji's eyes. They were actually sincere for once.

"Don't cry. It doesn't really suit you Maida-san. You were threatening to skin me earlier yet here you are bawling. You really are weird."

I couldn't help it. I laughed. Neji smiled. It was small, but it was the first true smile I had seen on his face. A smile erupted on my face as I wiped away what was left of the tears then I froze as my stomach growled loudly. I blushed and looked at Neji. He had a slight accusing stare on his face.

"You didn't eat lunch did you?"

I smiled embarrassed as hell and shook my head no.

"Why not?"

"I didn't want to wake you."

He rolled his eyes and stood up. "Come on, let's get something to eat."

I smiled, picked up my book then followed him to the kitchen.

When we all went to bed (Neji looked like he was about to drop dead when he thought no one was looking) I couldn't get to sleep. No matter how much I tossed and turned, my mind always drifted back to my previous life. It's amazing how different I am from then and now. I was always bull-headed and didn't really budge in a fight yet, here I'm the follower and I'm crying a lot. Maybe it's something I'm eating? That's stupid. I remembered Neji's face when he wiped away my tears, how kind those eyes actually were and his gentle touch. What the hell am I thinking?! I got out of bed and walked into the courtyard again. Cloud's slowly passed in front of the nearly full moon. There was no breeze yet it wasn't muggy out. I walked to the tree that Neji and I spent the morning under. This place has become my little sanctuary since I came here. I leaned back against the rough bark and closed my eyes listening to the music of the night. The tune was a little different, but almost the same like home. The tears started to come and I just laid down and wept.

Neji's POV

I woke up in the middle of the night thirsty. Unable to ignore it I walked out onto the walkway that surrounded our courtyard and stopped. Lying under a tree was Maida-san. A cloud moved past the moon and it shined on her face. She seemed to have cried herself to sleep because I could see the moisture still on her face. I walked quietly towards her and crouched down in front of her. She curled up tighter into a ball against the chill and mumbled something. She seemed so frail lying there. I reached to touch her face, but stopped just short. What was I doing? A lone tear escaped and I automatically wiped it away. Her skin seemed to shine in the moonlight and her long dark hair embraced her like the night hugging the stars. What was I thinking? I stood up and started to walk away, but her crying face from earlier in the day appeared in my mind. Why is she affecting me like this? She's nothing but a crying weakling. The threat she made rang in my head and I smiled. No weakling would make a threat like that. I turned and picked her up gently and carried her to her room and laid her gently under her blankets. As I was about to leave, my foot hit her drawing book. A week ago I would've looked through it without a care, but now I couldn't even think of hurting her feelings by looking at her private drawings. What am I doing? Why do I even care for her? I glanced back at her sleeping form then left.

any questions, send them through and i'll try to answer (unless they are answered later in the story :grins evilly:)

comments welcome! and i never know what the heck to put in these AN's, i normally do on my other profile (on another website) jus not here lmao