A/N: I tried making this longer. Sorry if the update was a little long; I'm getting mountains of homework so high that if I climbed up and stuck a flag on top I could officially name them.

But I don't think doing that would earn me an A.

Oh, and guess what? It's my BIRTHDAY tomorrow! (October 16) I'll be sweet sixteen.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Chapter 2— Out of the Picture

A five year-old Gaara stood in the center of the kitchen, staring up at one of the walls. Pinned in the exact middle of the wall was a glass picture frame, and behind that was an image of five faces, and one empty space.

To the far left of the photo, Gaara's uncle stood smiling with his eyes closed. He held a smaller and younger Kankuro, who was without his face paint and wide-eyed, as if he was looking at something he'd never seen before. To the right of these two was a woman Gaara never met. He once asked his uncle, Yashamaru, who the woman was, and he had answered simply: "She is the reason you are alive on this Earth right now." When Gaara asked if he could see her, Yashamaru just shook his head and said he was going for a walk.

In the portrait, the woman's hands were on a small girl's shoulders. Gaara recognized this girl as a younger version of his sister, Temari, who looked slightly shy, like she didn't want her picture taken that day. Gaara wondered why Yashamaru didn't allow Temari and Kankuro to be near him most of the time.

The entire right side of the picture was missing, and the edge was crinkled.

Gaara heard slow-moving footsteps and turned his attention to the entrance of the kitchen. Yashamaru now stood there, yawning. When he opened his eyes he looked a bit surprised. "Oh. Hello, Gaara," he said. "You're up early, today."

"I don't sleep," Gaara replied softly.

There was a short pause. "Are you hungry?" Before Gaara could answer, Yashamaru was entering the kitchen and heading toward one of the cupboards. "Sit down, I'll make you some breakfast." Gaara silently obeyed, climbing up one of the chairs next to the table. Yashamaru placed a clean gray plate on the table in front of Gaara and then began cooking.

Gaara peered down, examining his reflection in the plate. He often questioned his appearance. If it were his choice, he wouldn't have chosen dark rings to circle his eyes. He saw himself in his light blue eyes, trapped within black circles since birth, never to be freed. But he didn't know why this was.

Whenever he was outside, people would swiftly walk past Gaara and avoid eye contact. He came to the conclusion that the dark rings scared the villagers away, and wondered if they were also the reason Temari and Kankuro were frequently kept away from him.

Gaara got on his knees and turned around in his chair. "Yashamaru?"

"Yes, Gaara?"

Gaara pointed at the wall where the portrait was hanging. "I'm not in the picture."

Yashamaru stopped what he was doing and looked to where Gaara was pointing. Gaara waited for a reply as his uncle slowly took a few steps toward the wall. He studied the picture for a moment, then said, "It was taken before you were born."

"Some of it is missing," Gaara added.

Yashamaru carefully took the portrait off the wall and examined it in his hands for a moment. "Yes," he said. His tone explained how he knew why this was.

"Why?" Gaara asked. "What's missing?"

His uncle didn't answer. He placed the portrait on the counter and went back to cooking breakfast. Gaara's mouth was prepared to repeat the question when he heard Kankuro's voice by the entrance of the kitchen. "Father."

Yashamaru whirled around. Gaara's head turned and he saw his older brother entering the kitchen with an expressionless face. "Kankuro—" Yashamaru started.

Kankuro shook his head and took a seat next to Gaara. "Never mind that," he said to his uncle rather snappishly. Gaara was only five, but even he could see the hurt in his brother's eyes.

Yashamaru came over and picked up Gaara by the armpits, then placed him in the chair furthest from Kankuro.

That was close, Yashamaru thought, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

Yashamaru didn't want Gaara angry. Even the littlest bit, he thought, could make Gaara an unstoppable killing machine with Shukaku inside of him. For the past five years all was well so far, but he didn't want to take any risks. This meant he wasn't going to let Gaara know, or Temari and Kankuro find out about Gaara's demon, at least until they were old enough to know about it. It also meant that he wasn't going to let Gaara know about what his father did to the family, or why his mother died the day he was born.

Yashamaru sighed with relief as Temari walked into the room. "Good morning, Temari."

"Morning," Temari yawned tiredly, rubbing her eyes.

"Sit down at the table," Yashamaru said, "I'm making toast."

Temari's eyes opened to see the same scene she saw every morning at breakfast: Kankuro sitting on one side of the table while Gaara sat on the other. Temari sat by Kankuro, knowing that if she sat by Gaara, Yashamaru would just pick her up anyway and place her on a chair across from him.

Usually Temari didn't notice it this early in the morning, but today Gaara's eyes made it clear as he stared at the reflection in his plate: he really was alone, and he could feel it.

Temari and Kankuro barely ever had as much as a conversation with Gaara; Yashamaru always kept Temari and Kankuro at a distance from him.

Temari looked at Kankuro, whose eyes were fixed on the tabletop, then to Yashamaru, who was making toast in silence. Finally she examined Gaara's facial expression as he stared down into his plate, and she knew what she had to do after breakfast.

She just had to be sneaky, and make sure that Yashamaru wasn't around.

A/N: What is Temari up to, you ask? You'll just have to find out in the next chapter!

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