Author's note: Sorry for not updating faster. I have been infected with a case of massive writer's block. I know where I want the story to progress to, but I can't think of a very elegant way to get there. I appreciate your comments. One of you reviewers suggested adding more dialogue to the story. I'm trying to take that approaches in these upcoming chapters, but I'm finding it to be pretty hard to do without compromising the character's personalities…. But I think I'm pretty happy with the way this came out.

Disclaimer: Again, I own nothing.

Chapter 3

"Gaara-sama then. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Ino wasn't sure if it was appropriate for a Princess to already drop formalities with someone she'd supposedly first met. "All was well on your trip here, I presume?".

The Kazekage just nodded. He stared intently into her eyes. His face remained expressionless. There was no sense of humility from him, but it was different from arrogance. In the years since she's last seen him, he's definitely changed. He's become more confident…. Probably a lot more powerful. His look said he could crush her if needed, but she didn't sense any hostility. Ino was started to feel uneasy under his gaze, but she would never allow herself to display it. She needed to look just as confident. That was her role.

"I trust our staff has been helpful in helping you with accommodations? Have you been given a tour of our home?"

He nodded.

"Lovely. I guess all that's left is to enjoy the evening. You must be exhausted from your travels, but I really do hope you all could join us in our celebrations. I would love for us to get better acquainted before the night is over. I'll leave you to freshen up. If you need anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask. My home, my servants, and I are at your disposal."

With that, Ino turned to leave with her crew. It would have probably been better to stay and "exchange pleasantries" a little longer, but she needed time to process the implications of this new event. There was probably a death sentence for trying to fool the Kazekage, but she couldn't think of better alternatives. If she confessed to him now, the village would probably be destroyed for their choice of actions. She had to keep her mask on.

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Gaara had no intention of joining the party. He hated having to make small talk with strangers. The conversations were never worth it. They always talked about the weather or something else that was equally insignificant. He knew it wasn't very political of him. He was fine at meetings. He had no problem discussing issues of war or alliances. He could command respect. Parties were a different thing. Parties were for securing mates and making a fool of yourself. Of course, he knew that wasn't completely true. People used parties to meet people… to establish reciprocal alliances… to gain information. Still, he was never able to make much use of those interactions. He just wasn't very good at small talk.

The 'Princess' would be at the party… was that wasn't enough of an incentive to join the festivals. Gaara was slightly disappointed when she started speaking at their "first meeting". The meeting had been short, but already, he couldn't imagine any topic of conversation he could have with her that could be evenly remotely pleasant. She was playing someone else. She was…. Overly… polite. She didn't act like the sarcastic, loud-mouth brat that she was with her friends in Konoha. She didn't act… interesting?

Still he didn't plan on staying in his room the whole time. His traveling companions had gone to the party hours ago…. Not that he enjoyed their company either. He materialized himself onto the highest point on the building rooftop, when he noticed the Ino had beat him to the spot. He was about to leave, when he noticed that she was looking at him. Too late.

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Ino decided to get away from the party. All maintance she had to do…. Making sure there were contradictions between people's image of the Princess and they way she acted…. Having to constantly be in everyone's head at one…. It was giving her a headache. She didn't want to be disturbed, so she went to the rooftop. She still needed to think about her situation with the Kazekage. He hadn't shown up to the party, so she didn't have another chance to chat with him. She had thought about it, and decided that there was really no reason for the Kazekage to play along if he knew the truth. Why would he waste his time? Why wouldn't he have just crushed the village for their deception and be done with it? Why wouldn't he just have crushed her? Maybe he didn't want to endanger Sand's alliance with Konoha…. No… she wasn't important enough to her village for THAT to even be a consideration.

The exhausted ninja was sitting on the tiles of the rooftop when she noticed someone's presence. She looked to her side and saw a gust of sand conglomerating into a figure. Great. So much for some alone time.

He seemed to notice her and turn to leave when she said "That's a neat trick there, Gaara-sama".

The Kazekage looked at her and frowned. "Aren't you suppose to be entertaining your guests?"

"Even a Princess needs a break from her audience once in a while." Ino smiled sweetly. It was true. Even people born into royalty must get tired of being in the public's eye once in a while. At least she didn't have to work very hard to come up with an excuse for why she was up here.

The scowl never left his face. "Isn't it dangerous for you to be up here alone, Princess?"

"For a moment of peace, it's a risk I'm willing to take. My home is very secure…. Why don't you join me for a while." Ino indicated to the spot beside her. At least Ino didn't have to keep her mind extended. There was no way Ino could have penetrated his mental shield without making it obvious.

Gaara looked at the spot for a few seconds as if contemplating whether or not he should accept her offer. He then took a seat next to her. Ino went back to looking at the stars.

"You don't get a very good view of the stars here. There's too much light here. It's much better in the desert." Gaara had offered an opinion. Ino tilted her head to the side to smirk at him. He was staring into the night sky. She was pleased that he seemed to be making an effort to be pleasant.

"Do you star-gaze a lot?"

"It's something to do at night. I don't sleep much."

Ino recalled hearing that he had something in him once. A demon of some sort that prevented him from sleeping. If he really didn't recognize her, his odd sleeping patterns probably played a role. Normal people can't go through even 10 sleepless days without succumbing to hallucinations. Even though the Kazekage appeared functional at the time, he couldn't have been overly perceptive. She wasn't good enough years ago to have sensed it's presence when she had last seen him. From what she could tell, the Kazekage was now alone in his bodily vessel.

"I like the sky. I use to spend hours with this friend just staring up at the clouds." Ino mentally slapped herself. She must have been extremely to let a clue about her real past slip out like that. He must have known who Shikamaru was. Shikamaru was dating his sister. Ino just hoped that he didn't know much about her team mate's habits. They sat a few minutes in silence. Then she asked, "what do you think of this arrangement?"

"… It gives my village access to a few more sources of water. There's always a shortage of water in the desert."

"I meant the marriage arrangement."

"… It doesn't matter either way."

Ino was pleased to hear that… although a little saddened for some reason. She was glad that the alliance meant more than just this arrangement. That mean that if the wedding plans didn't work out, he probably wouldn't just abolish the village. She still wasn't too sure how he'd react to the deception however.

"What about you? You must have an opinion on this."

Ino let out a short laugh and looked at Gaara. "Well, all I can say is that no girl ever dreams about an arranged marriage. They're always waiting for a prince on a white horse to sweep in and save her from a fire breathing dragon or something…. Regardless of how tough they may act."

The ends of Gaara's lips turned up into something like a smirk. It was probably the closest thing he had to a smile. "That's a stupid generalization. How many Princes' can there be in this world. That would mean that 99 of the women in this would die disappointed."

"I think the odds are a little lower than that. Anyway, the Prince is just figurative. I think all anyone really wants is to be saved. Not just silly girls." Ino stated this claim in a "matter-of-fact" kinda voice.

"From a dragon?"

"From anything. Mostly from yourself? I think every women, regardless of their age, still dream of having someone come in and fix everything about them. They would have to understand everything about them without needing words. There would be no misunderstandings. Life would be perfect. Their lives would suddenly become ordered. They would suddenly have the motivation to work-out, to clean, and to have the motivation to achieve everything they've ever wanted in the world. There would never be a sad moment. There'd just be a happily ever after. It isn't just women. I'm sure guys are like that too."

It was kind of odd how Ino could converse with him like he was an old friend or something. He never seemed like he was a welcoming kind of guy. Maybe it the mere fact that he was the only thing left in her world that resembled anything in her past…. From her real identity.

"So… basically, there's no way for any one man… any one person to make their mates truly happy?"

"Yea, it's a ridiculous thing to ask for from anyone. I don't think complete happiness can ever be achieved. It's just not a part of human nature. Even if you have the world, there's always more to ask for."

"… You want to be saved from your own nature."

"Doesn't everybody?"

With that, Ino turned back to face the stars. They spend another two hours in silence under the stars. There aren't many moments you can sit in complete silence with someone and be completely comfortable. Maybe it was the exhaustion, but for some reason, Ino didn't mind the silence. She welcomed it.

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Author's notes: Keep the reviews coming! I don't I would have been motivated enough to continue with this if it wasn't for all of your support.