TKAD Sez: Ah, it is the spring of fanfiction. Or something. Inspiration strikes at the DARNDEST times, and it was all I could do to get to a computer and write it all down.

This is dedicated to HeartlessTheif, since she inspired me with all her DeiTobi, so I drew her a pic, and wrote her a fic, and then she drew me a pretty picture of Deidara and Tobi, with rainbow socks, un, so I had to write this for her. Its like this whole big cycle of DeiTobi! –So not complaining- (The picture in question is here  A DeiTobi friendship fic! Whoooboy, I'm just full of them. Yesiree. Right, so I'm going back to my normal style (it was quite hard to write my last fic without being sarcastic), so prepare yourselves!

Rubix Cube

(Clack…clack…grumbles, muttered curses…) what time is it? Where am I? Who is up in the dark this late? ... Is that Deidara-senpai? Why is he up? I should get some sleep. (More muttered curses and clacking) Aaah…no choice now, better wake up and see what's happening.

A light flooded the room, as a gloved hand reached over and switched on the lamp. Deidara, red in the face and fiddling with something small in his hands, looked up from his intriguing device with an air that said he was not sorry at all for waking his partner. Tobi, however, was quite used to this treatment, and skipped across the COLD floor in an attempt to reach the marvelously warm rug that was under Deidara's desk.

"What are you doing, Senpai?" He asked cheerfully, masking his slight annoyance at being cast brutally out of bed at three AM. He was having a good dream too. Tobi yawned and bent over where Deidara was determinedly ignoring him. Ah, now he could see! "A Rubix Cube!" Tobi exclaimed happily. "I haven't seen one of those in YEARS!"

"They're IMPOSSIBLE, un!" Deidara spat, apparently giving up his futile attempt to ignore his git of a partner. He threw the Rubix Cube across the room and leaned back, eyeing the harmless puzzle as if it would pull a gun on him. Tobi, however, laughed and trotted across the floor to retrieve his favourite childhood toy.

"They're not impossible, Deidara-senpai! You just have to know how to work them!" Tobi said brightly, appraising the cube for a few minutes before twisting it furiously, finishing as he got to the Iwa-nin's desk. Deidara just stared, open mouthed.

Tobi, decidedly not commenting on Deidara's amazement, held the cube up to the scant torch-light, smiling. "Where did you get this from anyway, Dei-senpai?" This seemed to shake Deidara out of his stupor long enough to answer.

"Itachi gave it to me. He bet I couldn't finish it in a day. I hate to let him win," Deidara said. "I can usually get one side, but I can't do the rest without messing it all up." Tobi smiled and pulled up a chair from his own desk. "Its not about getting one side, Dei-senpai. Its about lining everything up! See, you did the green here, but since this piece is red and green, it needs to go on the opposite side, or it'll be wrong…"

And there, at three AM, two members of the deadliest organization in existence started a day long struggle with a plastic cube. Tobi taught his senpai all the tricks to 'do the cube' he knew (Dam goes down, water out, dam up, water back in, or; Up, across, down, across, up, across, across, down, across, across) and soon Deidara was twisting it like an expert, though he could never do it as fast as his partner.

Morning saw the two of them slipping down the halls of Akatsuki in their socks, racing madly to Itachi's room. They caught him closing the door of his room, looking well rested and formidable. Tobi slid right past him and crashed into the wall, but Deidara grabbed Itachi's sleeve and threw the rubix cube at him. It bounced off his nose, and Deidara was shoved brusquely into Tobi, where the two of them lay on the floor, laughing madly out of lack of sleep, and euphoria of their success. They probably would have kept giggling there, but Kisame came out, looking worse for wear, and dragged the both of them back to their own room.

It was later, when the giggles had subsided, they were both lying on Tobi's bed watching the birds out the window, when Tobi sat up with a grin that stretched his gaunt face.

"Hey, Deidara-senpai…you ever tried Sudoku?"

FIN

TKAD sez: Okay, so the first fic since 'Sunset' that I really like! Sweet! And yes, I had a Rubix cube out, and was testing all the moves I listed before writing them down. I have a friend who is a whiz with the cube, and is teaching me. I can usually get through lining up the corners before I get bored :-P

And dude, mood music is seriously important when writing fanfiction. Over the course of this fic, I was listening to "Grow Up" by Simple Plan, "Numa Numa" By some band I can never remember the name of (O-zone, maybe?) and "Voice for You" sung by Shikamaru and Temari's seiyuus. Why is it when I write, I have to have music? The world may never know. Anyway, ALL OF YOU! Review!

TKAD