Sculpting for Dummies:
Chapter 12:
Tobi woke up in stages. The first thing he noticed was that he was in Deidara's bed (which was a very good start to his day), the second, that he was alone (which was sad). He remembered what had happened the night before (everything he'd ever dreamed about, except ten times better because it was real). He sat up in bed (Deidara's bed, he thought with a goofy grin) and stretched.
'Should I go find sempai? Maybe he just needs some space. I don't want to put any pressure on him,' the shinobi thought. He decided he'd get dressed and make breakfast. If Deidara didn't appear by then, he'd find him and bring him something to eat. That way he wouldn't be clingy. Deidara was going to have to be eased into the idea of a relationship, and Tobi didn't want to scare him off by rushing things. He had even refrained from telling the blond 'I love you' so Deidara wouldn't get freaked out.
The pale man sang enthusiastically as he showered. How could he help it? Last night, they'd finally, finally made love. Today was their first day as lovers. Maybe, if Deidara was sleeping in Tobi's room, Tobi could find him and serve him breakfast in bed. Then, they could eat it together and talk and giggle and cuddle up together all afternoon. ('Maybe we could do it again,' he speculated, then blushed at the thought.)
The bathroom door opened and the steamy warmth that had built up in the room drained out. Tobi shivered. "Sempai? Could you close the door, please?" he asked (politely, so that maybe Deidara would absorb some of his manners). No one answered. Maybe Deidara wanted to join him in the shower? They could stand under the hot streams of water together, bathing one another. They'd run hands up and down soap-slick limbs and have to lean against one another to rinse the grime away…
The door didn't close, and the warmth from Tobi's shower continued to sneak out of the bathroom and into the hallway. "Sempai?" Tobi asked again. He heard the rustling of clothes. Was the artist really getting undressed to join him? Tobi did a little dance underneath the water. Suddenly, the toilet flushed, and Tobi's warm shower water ran ice-cold. The pale man screeched. He peaked his head out from behind the curtain and saw Deidara running out of the bathroom. (He left the door wide open.)
Tobi turned off the water and got out of the shower, only to find his towel had been stolen. 'What is sempai up to?' he wondered.
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Deidara hid in his studio, staring at the towel he'd stolen until Tobi finished his shower and headed into the kitchen. He'd be a thorn in Tobi's side until the taller man snapped and left. That was the only way Deidara could stay Thorn village. It just wasn't realistic that Tobi would let him stay around forever just because he liked him.
The smell of pancakes wafted in and Deidara realized how hungry he was. Tobi couldn't cook much, but he was an expert when it came to sugary-sweet foods. The masked man made delicious pancakes, and Deidara wanted some. Maybe he could 'accidentally' spill syrup in Tobi's hair while he was getting them. That way he'd still be driving Tobi away, instead of appearing grateful for the food.
Tobi was busy cooking over the stove as Deidara snuck in. A plate stacked high with pancakes was already waiting at Deidara's place at the table. The artist didn't know why Tobi was still trying to take care of him and putting him first- he'd gotten what he'd wanted, hadn't he? The bastard probably existed for the sole purpose of confusing him.
A bottle of thick maple syrup waited on the table beside a bowl of powdered sugar, sprinkles, apple sauce, and anything else Tobi decided might rot his teeth out faster if he shoveled it on top of his breakfast. Deidara uncapped the bottle and tiptoed up behind Tobi. The bastard was humming as he gave the pancake in the skillet a flip. He was wearing an apron. Deidara's horrified gasp made Tobi turn around.
"Sempai, you're awake!" he said happily. The taller man looked down and spied the syrup bottle Deidara held. "Is that not the kind you like? I can get you more."
The dark-haired man continued rambling. And damn it, he was tall, and Deidara had to look up to face him, and he was wearing an apron and making pancakes for him! What would it be like to just wait it out, to hope that this strange truce that he and Tobi had in this house would last? He remembered that kiss he'd puzzled over last night. What would it be like, kissing without an agenda? Damn Tobi for making him wonder.
"…and the store here even had strawberry syrup, but I didn't know if you liked strawberries, so I just-" Deidara had to crane his neck a little to reach him, but he pressed his lips to Tobi's and cut off his talking. It was nice, not having Tobi talk. Well, the kiss was nice too. Nothing like the primal pleasure of sex, too chaste to really suit Deidara's tastes, but still…nice.
The artist pulled away and took his plate of pancakes with him as he exited the kitchen. Tobi stared after him, stunned but smiling. The pancake he'd been cooking was burned beyond recognition.
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There was a playground with a seesaw near the only grocery store in Thorn Village. Tobi sat on a bench with his shopping bags and watched as the children playing rocked up and down. 'I know how you feel' he thought to them.
Ever since he and Deidara had slept together a week before, Tobi's life had transformed into a seesaw of misery and bliss. One moment, Deidara would be affectionate, the next he'd push Tobi away angrily. The masked ninja couldn't count the number of 'accidents' the normally graceful artist had had the last few days, usually ending with Tobi being scalded with hot liquid or covered in something nasty, or bleeding from multiple scratches. At times he just wanted to walk out of their house and keep walking. But then, then Deidara would do something completely unexpected, like sneak up when he was cooking and kiss him, and then Tobi would be helplessly in love with him, resigned to whatever suffering Deidara subjected him to.
They had sex, but only at night. There had been one time that Deidara had come in and straddled him while he was trying to paint the patterns on the myriads of plates they were producing, but that hadn't ended well. The blond had kissed him and rocked until Tobi was about to burst…and then he'd just hopped up and left. That night, like the night before, he'd appeared in Tobi's doorway and crawled into Tobi's bed. The artist decided when they would sleep together, and when he didn't show up in Tobi's room, the masked man respected his space and slept alone. He didn't know what else to do. Were all artists this temperamental, or was his special?
The children soared up and plunged back down on the seesaw. They squealed with laughter. Tobi wished his seesaw-life was that amusing. He gathered up his groceries and stood up. They hurt to carry, since he'd burned his hand. Deidara had asked him to unload the kiln for him…and hadn't mentioned that it hadn't had time to cool yet. He'd been angry, until Deidara showed up ten minutes later with burn ointments and bandages and wrapped up his scalded hands without a word.
Tobi didn't know what to make of Deidara's ever-changing actions. It was like the blond's brain had been switched out with a cat's. He walked on with the groceries.
"Tobi! Wait up!" one of the villagers called as he walked past. "I need to talk with you."
Tobi stopped and waited until the man caught up. "You used to be a shinobi, right?" the man asked. Tobi nodded. "Could I hire you to escort me to Forest City?"
The masked man did a quick mental calculation. The villager was a craftsman, so he'd probably be traveling with a wagon filled with goods to sell…the trip there and back would take at least five days. Maybe that was what he and Deidara needed right now- a little space and a little time to get everything figured out. If nothing else, it'd let him get away long enough for his hands to heal before Deidara attacked him again somehow.
"How soon do we leave?" he asked.
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Deidara had won. Tobi was packing his things and leaving. For such a monumental victory, it felt hollow.
"I should be back before Sunday, but don't start worrying if I'm a day late. I've arranged for Mrs. Kin next door to bring you dinner every night, so remember to answer the door when she comes by." Tobi still acted like he cared, arranging everything so nicely for him. He'd even waited until they'd finished up that monumental order of dish sets before departing. But for all his nice words, Deidara knew the truth.
Tobi wasn't going to come back from this mission. He'd drop of his customer wherever he wanted to go, and then Tobi would keep going. Deidara could see the signs everywhere.
The dark haired ninja packed up all his prized possessions to take with him. Did he really need all those things for a five day escort mission? No, he didn't.
He cringed whenever Deidara picked up something hot or sharp, fearing that Deidara would drop it on him. The artist's plan of scaring him away had worked almost comically well.
Tobi didn't show any indication of wanting him any more. The moron didn't kiss him anymore, didn't try to cuddle up and hold his hand, didn't even bother seeking him out when Deidara didn't throw himself at him. The only time they ever touched each other was when Deidara initiated it. Tobi didn't want him, and it was only a matter of time before someone new caught his eye. Deidara would get rid of Tobi now, before he had to witness it. He had a feeling it would hurt, being replaced. ('I wouldn't care,' he told himself).
No, Tobi was leaving in the morning, and it would be the last time Deidara ever saw him. When the pale man told him, Deidara decided it would be fine if he stopped abusing Tobi so much. There was no need to expend the effort anymore.
That night, Deidara cooked dinner. Tobi was visibly shaken when he saw Deidara standing beside a boiling pot, with sharp knives glinting in his hands. The man didn't have to worry about Deidara hurting him tonight, though. The artist just wanted to do something ni- wanted to practice his cooking. The next-door neighbor wouldn't be cooking for him forever, and he'd have to get used to making meals on his own. He hadn't been completely alone since he'd left Iwa.
The silence hung heavy over the dinner table. Deidara served their plates, and they ate, neither knowing what to say to the other.
"Ah…is there anything you want me to bring you back from Forest City, sempai?" Tobi asked. Deidara snorted. He wished Tobi would just stop pretending.
"Nothing, un," he replied tersely.
"Oh," Tobi said, and kept eating. Deidara couldn't eat, so he abandoned his plate for Tobi to clean up and left the kitchen. He went to his haven, the studio.
Deidara kneaded a lump of clay and sat it on his potter's wheel. The spinning of the wheel and the feel of the clay were soothing to him, but he couldn't form the vase he was envisioning in his mind. His hands were shaking too much. He gave up and put the clay back into storage.
Back on the shelves, he found the box with his Tobi voodoo dolls. There were only two left, and he didn't have the fabric to make more. He took the box out and set it on his workbench. He straddled the bench and pulled out one of the dolls. It had a stupid orange mask and dark hair and a black fabric body (although nowadays, Tobi didn't wear nearly as much black). Deidara felt a flash of anger toward it.
His set of clay-sculpting tools was lined up on the counter. He grabbed the sharpest-looking one and stabbed the doll with it. How dare Tobi leave! He stabbed the doll again. How dare he make Deidara think that there might be another way! The doll's stuffing peaked out of the holes in the fabric as the artist stabbed again and again. How dare Tobi raise Deidara's hopes that they could be happy together!
The doll lay in a mutilated pile of fabric scraps and wisps of stuffing. Deidara kept stabbing until his tool lodged itself in the bench and he couldn't pull it free. He wanted to blow the whole thing up, but he couldn't make explosions anymore. He found a match and lit the remains of Tobi's effigy instead. He left the ashes on the bench and turned his attention to the last Tobi-doll. He picked it up, but placed it back down in the box where he'd found it. He'd probably need it more tomorrow.
He left the studio and took an hour-long shower. Tobi knocked on the door and told him he needed to use the bathroom too, but he never tried to come in. He ran in as soon as Deidara opened the door to leave. The blond went back to his bedroom and brushed his wet hair.
He didn't want to go to Tobi's room tonight. He was still mad at the stupidfuckingbastard, and he didn't want to have Tobi touch him so gently like he cared and then leave in the morning. He didn't want to have to be the one to initiate contact on their last night together.
The bathroom door opened and closed. Deidara stood up to follow Tobi back to his room. He would, of course. He wanted Tobi to come to his room and prove him wrong, but he knew Tobi wouldn't, and he couldn't handle the rejection. He walked over to Tobi's room and let himself in.
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Deidara acted weird the morning Tobi left for his mission. Not 'conspiring to be a pain in your ass' weird like he'd been all week, but weird all the same. He didn't say a word when Tobi made breakfast, or got dressed, or packed his things. He hadn't been acting this strangely last night- he'd come and gone before Tobi fell asleep, as usual. Had Tobi done something wrong? At least the abuse had stopped.
"Sempai…I'm leaving now." Deidara didn't respond. "I'll be back soon. Try not to isolate yourself, ok? The people are really nice here, and they'd like to get to know you more."
Deidara stood up as he headed toward the door. "…Tobi…" he whispered. The taller man paused.
"Bye, sempai."
Deidara stepped forward and pressed him back against the closed door. "…bye Tobi," he said. He pulled away, shook his head, and then closed the distance between them with a kiss. "I hate you," he told Tobi as he stepped back and allowed him to open the door. Tobi pulled his mask on and headed out. He wondered if five days would be enough to time to heal whatever was wrong with Deidara. At times, he wondered if there was any amount of time that could accomplish that.
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Tobi-less life wasn't so hard. It was unnervingly quiet, but Deidara could talk to himself and hear his voice echo off of the walls of his studio. The silence and the emptiness of the house were survivable; he just had to keep busy. He spent his days in the studio, making pots and clay figurines and masks for an upcoming festival. He wouldn't be able to paint designs on them as well as Tobi could have, but there was no helping that. He kept the kiln constantly full of baking clay. At nights, he cleaned the house until he was exhausted enough to fall asleep.
The neighbor, Mrs. Kin, always brought him too much food. It was enough for two, so half of it went uneaten. Sometimes he'd nibble at it for breakfast or lunch, but mostly he found he didn't have an appetite, so it ended up thrown out. He didn't deal with the villagers more than he needed to to take orders and to buy groceries.
On Saturday, he felt too queasy to get anything done in the studio. He spent the whole day straightening up the house, just to give him something to do. He scrubbed the bathroom floor, scoured the oven, even aired out Tobi's bed (it smelled like him, and made Deidara's stomach churn even worse). He couldn't sleep on Saturday night, so on Sunday morning his eyes had circles underneath them. He didn't even try to eat Mrs. Kin's meal.
There was nothing left to clean, so Sunday afternoon, Deidara went outside and began trimming the bushes that grew in front of the house and washing the windows. Villagers walked by and waved. Sometimes Deidara waved back, but mostly he focused on his work. Mrs. Kin wasn't making his meal that evening, so when dinnertime rolled around, he went inside to cook for himself. He didn't know the proportions for a single serving of rice and curry, so he made enough for two. He hadn't eaten since lunch yesterday, so he figured he could eat that much. He set two plates on the table by habit, and served food onto both of them because it would save him the trouble of getting up and walking back over to the stove to get a second serving.
Only a few mouthfuls of rice and a single bite of curry made it to his mouth. He just didn't feel hungry. Deidara waited at the table for a while, in case his appetite returned, but it didn't. At around nine o'clock, he stood up and left the table. He took a shower, brushed his teeth, combed his hair, trimmed his nails… he stayed up until well after midnight. The house was still empty when he finally fell asleep.
The next morning, he stopped kidding himself. He didn't have the energy or the motivation to get out of bed, so he didn't.
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Tuesday morning, Tobi entered through the gates of Thorn Village, pulling behind him a small cart. It'd slowed him down on the return journey, but Tobi hoped it would be worth it. Deidara hadn't seemed like he wanted Tobi to come back in a hurry when he'd left, so he didn't see the harm in it.
He pulled the cart down the street and greeted all the people he saw along the way. He saw Lin and her mother, and stopped to chat with them. They asked if he'd gone to a restaurant that a cousin of theirs owned, and he said he hadn't (but promised he would next time he was there). He also met Mrs. Kin, who looked a little shocked to see him.
"Back so soon, Tobi?" she asked. Beneath his mask, Tobi's forehead wrinkled.
"Yes…why do you say that?" he asked her. She shrugged.
"I thought you would've been gone longer, is all, the way your lad is pining away. I went over yesterday- he was still in his bedclothes, in the middle of the day!- and I asked him when you'd be back, and he said you weren't be around any time soon. Are you planning on surprising him, then?" the little old lady wondered aloud.
Tobi shook his head. "No, I'm actually a little late. I'd better get back to him, then," he said, and pulled his load down the street faster than he'd been going. Deidara was 'pining away'?
Tobi noticed the yard was looking more well-kempt than usual as he left the cart on the grass. The door swung open without a key. It wasn't like Deidara to leave it unlocked. Tobi took off his shoes and walked down the hall.
When he peaked inside, the kitchen was spotless, except for the plates Deidara had left on the table. The bathroom sparkled, and Tobi's room had even been cleaned. Maybe having the house cleaned from top to bottom was Deidara's way of welcoming Tobi home. The ninja would've preferred his sempai just opening the door for him and asking how his mission went.
The door to Deidara's room was closed, so Tobi didn't intrude. He headed to the studio, where Deidara was likely to be. It was empty. The counter and workbench were lined with unfired pieces waiting for their turn in the kiln. Deidara had certainly been busy. Tobi went back to his sempai's bedroom door. He knocked.
A haggard-looking Deidara opened the door and blinked at him. "You…came back…un" he mumbled.
"Of course I did. I said I would, didn't I, sempai?"
"Well, you're two days late! What was I supposed to think, dumbass!" Deidara snapped. The blond glared at him. Tobi looked him up and down, noticing his darkened eyes and paler-than-normal skin. He really had been 'pining', huh?
Their stomachs growled simultaneously, and they both looked in the direction of the kitchen. "That was food I saw on the table, right?" Tobi asked.
"I wouldn't eat that, moron. It's two days old, un," Deidara responded. He stepped out of the doorframe and headed for the kitchen.
"Two days old? Really, sempai, what would you do without me here to take care of you?" Tobi teased. He followed the blond and foraged through the pantry to find something he could heat up and devour with minimal effort.
"It would have been fresh if you'd been here on time."
Tobi looked at the two plates and realized what they meant. Deidara had made dinner for him when he thought he'd be home. Had he sat at the table, watching it cool and wondering where he was? He grabbed the artist from behind and wrapped his arms around him.
"I'm sorry, sempai. I wanted to bring you back supplies, and it took longer than I thought coming back with a cart. I've got everything you'll need to make porcelain, if you wanted to try," he explained. Deidara leaned back a little and relaxed into his arms.
"If…if you want, you can…you can come to my room tonight," Deidara said. Tobi nodded and smiled.
"Food's ready, sempai. Let's eat!" he said.
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Deidara paced around his bedroom, waiting for Tobi to arrive. He didn't know if Tobi would come- if Tobi still wanted him. But…he'd come back, hadn't he? That had to mean something. Deidara watched the clock tick seconds away.
Was Tobi planning on making him wait around all night? Did he not want to come? (If he didn't, he wasn't going to be sleeping on his own bed- Deidara had shoveled a pailfull of sand in between the sheets. He hadn't been sure if Tobi would want to join him tonight, but he wasn't above evening the odds.)
He was being ridiculous; Tobi was going to seek him out. He'd sounded excited that Deidara had given him permission. He would definitely come there.
But it was ten-thirty now, and they usually went to bed around that time (the curse of living in a simple village that got up with the sun was they couldn't stay up late like they usually did, because there was nothing to do).
The knock on his door, when it finally occurred, had Deidara sighing in relief. "Come in," he urged, and Tobi entered his room and joined him on the bed.
And because he was half-convinced that if he let Tobi out of his sight, he'd leave again, Deidara let him stay when they finished. "Are you sure this is ok?" he asked, offering to go back to his room if Deidara didn't feel comfortable. The artist was thrilled that Tobi didn't know about the sand in his bed- that meant he hadn't hesitated about his decision.
"It's fine. You can stay, un," Deidara told him casually. And somehow, even though he'd never slept with a person after sleeping with them, he managed to doze off in Tobi's arms.
"Sempai, is that a Tobi-doll?" Tobi woke him up to ask. It must've been tangled up in the sheets. Deidara had fallen asleep with it the night before.
"Mm-hmm. 't's th' last one. Have t' think of a special way t' kill that one," he yawned.
"You were sleeping with it, weren't you?"
"Shut up 'r I'll send you t' your room, un."
"Ok, sempai. It's sweet that you missed me." Tobi curled up next to him and Deidara was too drowsy and comfortable to kill him right then. He resolved to do it in the morning. (With the grip Deidara had on the other man, he was certain to still be there when he woke up).
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"Kaka-sensei, this is a waste of time! Sasuke is getting away! We don't have time to go back to the village!" Naruto whined. Kakashi groaned internally.
"Naruto, it's Hokage's orders! Besides, we need to regroup with Team 8," Sakura retorted before Kakashi had to explain. Thank god for one team member that could listen to reason.
Kakashi didn't want to return to Konoha any more than his students did at the moment. He was tired of this whole mess with Sasuke and Akatsuki and Orochimaru…he wanted it over with. But Team 8 had been called back to the village for a special mission that required their talents, and they needed to return in order to meet up with the rest of their Sasuke-hunting squad.
"I'm not sure that the Hokage will allow us to continue our search if we come back empty-handed, though," Yamato mentioned. That was Kakashi's fear as well. Every time they got close to Sasuke, he'd set them on a false track. That was how they had ended up in the tiny Land of Forest in the first place. Without a hard piece of evidence on Sasuke's whereabouts, Tsunade would probably consider their failure the last straw and insist they stay in the village.
"We aren't due back for almost two weeks," he mentioned to his squad. Most of that time would be just traveling back to Konoha, but it left a little bit of leeway. "If we can gather information on Sasuke by that time, Tsunade-sama might let us continue our mission," he said. Naruto clenched his fists.
"I'll find the information we need," he growled. His eyes were glowing red, and Kakashi glanced at Yamato. The younger man shook his head. The seal wasn't leaking too badly. Good.
"Where can we out where Sasuke is, though?" Sakura wondered.
From the back of their entourage, Sai spoke up. "There's a big festival coming up in this country's capital. If there's anyone in the area that knows anything, they'll be there," the young artist explained.
Kakashi nodded. "We'll head there," he agreed.
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The next morning, Deidara was still asleep when Tobi woke up. The dark haired man slunk out of bed and tiptoed off to make breakfast for them. On the way out, he grabbed the doll he'd found the night before.
When Deidara finally woke up (almost an hour later; he must not have slept well when Tobi was away), Tobi was there, sitting up against the headboard sewing. He pointed out the breakfast he'd made Deidara- toast with jam, which wouldn't taste too bad if it was cold.
"What are you making, un?" he asked when he swallowed the last bite of toast. Tobi held up the nearly finished doll to Deidara.
"That's…me," Deidara pointed out. Tobi nodded. He'd sewn on blond fabric for hair, and stitched little blue eyes and everything.
"I didn't want the Tobi-doll to be lonely anymore. It's almost done. It still needs something of yours, though. A lock of your hair?"
Deidara shook his head. "I'm not cutting off my hair for that stupid doll, un," he protested. He reached under the bed and pulled out one of his pouches of clay instead. The clay in his fingers molded into the shape of a perfect heart, complete with ventricles and atriums. Tobi took the wet clay heart and put it inside the doll's chest with the stuffing. A few stitches later, it was sewn shut.
"It's done. Great, now get it away from me before you make me puke with all you sentimental rubbish, Tobi," Deidara ordered.
"It's not done yet, sempai. It needs one more thing." Tobi threaded his needle with a strong red thread. He poked it through the stumpy plush hand of the Deidara doll, then through the equally stubby hand of the Tobi doll. He tied the thread off in a circle, so that the two dolls were separate but connected by the thread.
"There," he said, handing the linked plushies to his sempai. "So you never forget that I'll always come back to you. You're stuck with me forever, sempai," he said.
"Idiot," Deidara said. But he didn't destroy the dolls.
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AN: Next chapter: what at least a good chunk of you have been waiting for: Kakashi enters the picture! How suspenseful!
