No own no sue

Nutcracker

The spiral of steps stretched before her, glinting in the creamy glow of stained glass. A solitary broad stripe of scarlet runner cascaded down the stairway, like a river of blood. Tenten's voice echoed down to her from above. Her buns poked over the railing, followed by the rest of her head. She grinned at the silver-eyed girl, her hand sweeping upward, indicating Hinata to ascend. Hinata smiled shyly up at her, a pale hand grasping the rails.

"You should wait in the library. I'll tell Gaara where you are."

As Hinata's foot left the final step, a large hall came into view. The floor beneath her feet was white marble, like the rest of the palace, and more mythical statues lined the walls. Normally, She would've seen crimson tapestries donning the walls, but instead, ten large bookshelves of beautiful dark wood stood in their place. Filling those shelves were millions of books in all forms. A window had been inset at the opposite end of the room, causing that wall and its twin to have only two bookshelves set against them. Each of the remaining two walls had three shelves. Several ladders leaning elegantly upon the stained wood, rollers set at the bottom for easy access. Finally, a rough circle of plush chairs had been situated it the center of this hall, surrounding a lengthy table. They alternated burgundy and white.

Hinata took several slow, awestruck steps into the hall.

"You wait here, then. I'll be back to show you your room and clothes!" Tenten giggled.

Hinata scanned the lower shelves, looking for anything regarding native animals. She finally picked a book and sat down. It was a small pamphlet entitled 'About'. She opened it gingerly and read the first paragraph.

The Leaf and Sand National Library includes various historical works as well as many fictional classics. Our vast inventory also incorporates information on the geography of the area and species, both rare and common. This information can be found in the northern most shelf, to the right of the window. Fictional works are located by the door, and historical documentation…

Hinata shut the pamphlet and placed it back carefully. Her gaze turned to the bookshelf by the window.

'Animals, animals… let's see…' she thought, running a finger along the shelf. A large red book caught her eye. The gold lettering on the spine read sternly 'Official Dictionary Of Organisms Worldwide'. She pulled it out with some difficulty, considering the size of the book. She flipped to the table of contents.

'Let's see… Animalia… Chordata… Vertebrata…Mammailia …Perissodactyla…Equidae… There! Equidae Equus… The common Pegasus!'

She scanned the illustration for similarity. It looked about the same. She began reading the descritpion.

The common Pegasus was given its name when it actually was common, in ancient times. Now, this graceful animal is rarely seen, and is thought to have only 25 of its species left… It is commonly hunted by Panthera Tigris. See Panthera Tigris on Page 3297…

She turned the thin pages gently to the indicated page number. Once again, the picture matched the statue. But this time, new information concerning the species relationship struck her.

Panthera Tigris and Equidae Equus are ancient enemies, and thought to embody two gods in an old power struggle for the world…

As she read on, her eyes began to droop. The milky glow of the palace dimmed to an orange. Everything darkened as she read the final sentence: This power struggle was between two immortal deities, Shukaku the Tanuki, god of shadows, and Hinata the wise, goddess of light and wisdom, treasured for her silver eyes.

0oOo0

She awoke in soft, yet warm darkness. Her hands nervously felt their way around, divining the secrets of her location. A smooth fabric was their discovery. She was on a bed… a very nice bed. Hinata rolled over slightly to test the size. She completed two full rotations before she felt the hard ground.

"Oof! Itai…(1)"

A chuckle met her ears.

"Smooth. You fell asleep in the library. Curious about zoology are we?"

"Who are you!?" She cried, frightened by this sudden intrusion.

"You know me, silly. I'm Gaara. Tenten led you to the library yesterday. She left you some new clothes at the foot of the bed. And in case your wondering whose bed you're on, it's mine. Just so you're not surprised."

She heard the mattress shift as he sat up. A moment later, the lights flickered on. Her hands instinctively moved above her head to shield from the light. Hinata tented her legs to block the light further. She groaned at him for such a sudden change.

"I-I'll come back when you're done changing." Gaara gulped, quickly exiting the room.

Hinata waited for her eyes to refocus before she moved. Groggily pulling on the black sundress that Tenten had laid out for her, she observed the room.

Scarlet tapestries coated the walls entirely; the white beneath was not visible. There was one solitary window, but red velvet curtains blocked the view. The bed that she had fallen from was very high, and a large crimson comforter lay limply across the top, though slightly disheveled from her lying upon it. The floor beneath her feet was an intricately woven plush rug, and orange maple leaves graced the pattern.

Hinata inhaled deeply to clear her mind. This whole situation was simply marvelous! No longer would she have to deal with her stern immediate family, though she would miss her uncle, and Neji, too. Neji was very special to her. Although in public he was as stern as her father, at home (but not in front of Hiashi) he was kind, and even smiled sometimes. Neji had taught her the family fighting style, though he father expressly forbid her from learning it. He believed that girls shouldn't fight.

Sighing deeply to banish her thoughts, she ran her finger through her short midnight blue locks.

0oOo0

Gaara was clearly disturbed with himself. How could he have thought about her like that?

'Then again… Her curvaceous form, all stretched out on the floor… Her arms above her head… a slight blush on her cheeks… oh, god why did her already short pajama shorts have to become just that much shorter… and her tank top had to bunch up around her chest… oh help me…' He thought. This was definitely new to him. Did she even realize how much she weakened his stern visage?

'At least I rid myself of that cumbersome and ineffective weapon… Finally, I have my gourd.' His eyes turned to the weight upon his shoulder. Although uncomfortable at first, it had grown to become a symbol of safety. His back felt rather cold without it. Taking a deep breath, he readied himself for the low-cut black sundress that Tenten had laid out for her.

He flinched as his bedroom door creaked open hesitantly. Hinata crept out apprehensively, a sheepish smile on her face.

"D-do I look… okay?"

Gaara breathed deeply to avoid suffocation; his chest felt tight. She was absolutely gorgeous! It was a fairly low-necked black spaghetti strap that hung nicely on her hips. The hem reached just above her knees, and the neckline caused her already well-endowed chest to be accentuated. Gaara closed his eyes calmly and tried to control the blood rushing to his face. A moment later, his dark eyes opened again, a sincere hint of awe swirling within.

"You… definitely look 'okay'." He chuckled, "I'd go for a stronger adjective, however."

He stepped closer, grasping her hand. Placing a delicate kiss on the back of her hand, his lips moved to her ear.

"I would say 'beautiful'." He breathed.

She shivered at his closeness and the hot breath sweeping across her ear. Damn these 16-year-old hormones!

0oOo0

yay! Remember now, they ARE right outside his room ; ) (im so proud, i actually wrote more than two pages lol)

p.s. little vote for future chapter, lemon or no?