((Alrighty, I am back! I've already written this next chapter and the third one is currently in progress. A bunch of wonderful fanfic-ers have favorited or put this story on their watch but only one brave soul has reviewed! Congrats on being my first, 2randomppl!))

2randomppl:

this is awesome :D :D :D please update soon ^_^

((I'm so glad you like it! I just thought of this story on the way to work and spent just about my entire night working out the first chapter. This chapter took a few days maybe... lost track of time. Anyway, thanks to sesshomarusmate54, ..heart, 2randomppl, katarauchiha653719, and slipknotgirl14 for favoriting this story. You guys rock! Well, here we go!))

Chapter 2: Cooking Catastrophe

Gaara wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel. Did she talk to him without fear because she didn't know who he was? And if so, would she act differently towards him with that knowledge? Was the only way for him to have any relationship with another human being was to keep his identity a secret?

With the snap of fingers, he was brought back to reality. Mishka had moved closer to him, her right hand poised in front of his eyes to keep snapping. "Welcome back..." she teased softly. "If we're going to be living together for the next week, shouldn't I at least know what to call you?"

"Sabaku no Gaara." She was going to find out sooner or later. It was best if she heard it from him. That way, he'd know her reaction ahead of time.

Mishka sighed. "That's quite a mouthful. Could I just call you Gaara? It's shorter. And you can call me by my name." An innocent smile crossed her features, starting another wave of want within Gaara.

She still didn't understand exactly waht he was but she didn't care. That girl was truely an angel for making him feel so wonderful within such a short time. But he wasn't ready to open his "can of worms" yet so he just answered, "We'll be able to learn about each other while we live together. And although I apologize for kissing you without your permission, I won't say sorry for stealing your first kiss."

"Why would you apologize for one and not the other?"

He smirked. "Because even if we hadn't kissed tonight, I would have been your first on another night."

Mishka wasn't sure what to make of that. Sure, she had been upset and saying whatever she could think of to piss him off and un-choose her. He'd stolen her first kiss and now he was telling her that it would have happened anyway? "Is that supposed to make everything better?" she asked.

Gaara shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. That's up to you to decide."

Her heart skipped a beat and her eyes widened. "What...?"

"I can't tell you how to feel."

The young woman shook her head. "It's never stopped people before." As she headed back in the direction of Kazekage Tower, she whispered, "But thanks..."

Mishka blinked once and somehow ran smack into a chest draped in blue and white cloth. She stepped back and looked behind her, not seeing Gaara where he'd been 2 seconds earlier. Turning back around, he wasn't there again. What kind of game was he playing?

"It's this way..."

She jumped in surprise, not expecting to feel his warm breath against her right ear. Chills of delight rolled down her spine but she chose to ignore them as she looked at him. "Not funny, scaring a girl in a strange town at night."

"I'll take you home," Gaara replied, clearly ignoring her comment."

'Not my home,' Mishka thought as she said, "You don't have to."

"We live together and I'm going home anyway. It's dangerous for a girl to wander the streets."

"I can find my own way."

"As Kazekage, I am responsible for everyone's safety."

"You're not Kazekage yet."

"Just let me take you home. It's no trouble and tomorrow, you can find you way."

Why did this girl insist on being difficult? Gaara just didn't get it. Maybe he wasn't doing the whole "escort" thing right? But he was trying his best to be charming and considerate.

He felt something grab his hand. Soft and warm against his icy flesh. It took him a moment to realize that it was Mishka's hand. She was holding his hand! Excitement flooded through him, causing his hand to accidently squeeze hers.

"It's getting a little too dark to see. Since you know where to go and seem to have better eyes... I guess it would be okay to go home together. Her voice sounded embarrassed and he was almost certain that she was blushing.

But Gaara didn't listen to her excuses. He gave her hand another squeeze, purposely teasing her before leading her home.

They soon arrived and as soon as the door was opened, Temari's unhappy face was the first thing they saw.

"Gaara, do you know what time it is? Those girls have been driving me crazy, asking me questions about you that would make Kankuro retch! Why weren't you- hey, who's this? And why're you holding hands?"

Mishka blushed at the last question. "My name is Mishka. I was the last girl picked to live with you and your brothers." And she gave a graceful bow.

"You're not like those other girls, are you?" the blond woman with spikey ponytails asked.

Golden orbs met dark green. "I don't know. I guess not... wait, what do you mean by that?"

Suddenly, the frowning blond woman smiled. "Definately not like them. And if you keep it up, I may not be obligated to hate you."

Mishka blinked in surprise. "H-hate me? Why?"

"Well, you're one of the girls who might be taking my brother way. Therefore, I must hate and torment my brother's wife. Since it's between five girls, I have to hate all of you."

The white-haired girl laughed. How long had it been since she let out such a vocal sound of joy? "I think you're talking about the hostile duties of a mother-in-law. Of course, I've never met my mom so... okay! Feel free to nag and complain to your hear's desire."

Temari tilted her head. No, this one was definately different. With those other twits, they were more focused on Gaara to listen to anything else she had to say. Granted, they were all there for the chance to marry her younger brother but there were more important things. Life goes on, after all.

"Mishka, right? Well, sorry but you gotta share a room with me." She was waiting for the same reaction she'd gotten earlier. It was obvious from the outside of the house that there was plenty of rooms in the house. The girls were quick to point this out and boy, did they bitch and moan until Temari "gave in" and let them have their own room.

But Mishka's smile didn't fade. "Of course. Wait, I wouldn't want to put you out of your room. Is there a couch? I could sleep on that just fine."

Temari couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Uh, we've got one but it's not very comfortable."

"That's okay. It's not like it'll kill me."

Now the blond felt bad. "No, no, don't. I was lying. This house can easily fit 10 people comfortably."

"Oh, I get it. You were playing the evil mother-in-law, right?" the white-haired girl said with a happy laugh. "I don't care either way. The orphanage was quite crowded. I'm used to sleeping 3 to a bed. Sadly, I was proposed to one bed-mate for about two weeks until he finally took "no" for an answer when he got adopted."

"Find, you're sleeping in my room with me," Temari replied, not looking at Mishka. It wasn't like she was being mean or anything. She just figured that the girl would be lonely if she was given her own room.

"She'll have her own room," Gaara interjected. There was no way he was going to let Mishka share with anyone. He wouldn't be able to court her, flirt with her, or tease her after she runs away from his relentless courting, flirting, and/or teasing. And he couldn't forget the traditional spying on her while she changed her clothes and bathed. If she shared a room, he'd have to spy on his sister. And damnit, he knew the difference between right and wrong!

His sister was about to argue but one look made her shut up. He may be trying to become a good Kazekage but he wasn't going to bend to everyone's will. His reasons were just and he wasn't going to explain them to his sister.

Luckily, Temari let the matter drop. Unluckily, she went into the kitchen. Both he and Kankuro had the same fear- Temari in the kitchen. She could barely boil water but if Kankuro pointed out her failures at cooking, the kitchen knives went right for him. Gaara could handle knives just fine. But if it wasn't for take-out, he would have starved.

Figuring she was making supper now that everyone arrived, the redhead had a new idea for his survival. He quickly looked at Mishka and practically begged her to save their supper.

"Temari can't cook." Gaara really was begging... as any Gaara could. His wife should at least be able to make him rice, right?

Mishka had been silenced for a while, examining the two siblings conversation and facial expressions. Temari, the sister sibling, appeared quite confident but it seemed that when Gaara put his foot down, there was no argument or discussion. She held an array of emotions as opposed to her brother who finally expressed a twinge of fear when his sister disappeared into what looked like a kitchen. His mouth frowned deeply for a moment and his eyebrow twitched. And when he faced her to inform her of Temari's inability to make food, his eyes showed all the terror he held inside.

"Okay. I'll go help her," Mishka replied with a smile. And off she went to try as best she could with a slight bounce to her step.

Inside the kitchen, she was immediately threatened with a low-flying skillet. She dodged it but she couldn't cover her ears in time to avoid listening to it slam against the poor door. "T-Temari?" Mishka asked in alarm, her eyes wide in fright. Several strands of her long white hair hung in her face.

The blond fan-mistress heard her name and looked over her shoulder. "Oh, hey. I thought you were my brother so I reacted fast."

"R-Reacted?" Was that how Temari treated her family?

"Yeah, my brothers don't think I can cook. And while I know I'm not the greatest chef, would it kill them to try encouraging me or helping me out? Instead, they just complain and insult. Well, only Kankuro does that. I think Gaara orders out every night and doesn't eat my food..."

Mishka heard the sadness and anger in Temari's voice and a grin reached her soft face. Shoving the hair out of her face, she declared, "Tonight will be different! I'll help out and your brothers won't complain or order out! They'll have to eat our food!"

Temari's dark green eyes widened in surprise before her confident smirk returned. Dropping the wooden spoon and letting it fall to the floor, the older woman rushed over and hugged her white-haired guest. "Thank you! You're so right!"

"Temari-"

"We're gonna make Gaara rue the day he ever prefered take-out over a homecooked meal!"

"Tema-"

"Some 'mother-in-law' I turned out to be, huh? I can't even make a meal by myself and I have to have you help me."

"Temari, the water's boiling over!"

"Okay, hot water, check!" Temari replied cheerfully, turning down the heat of the burner. She finally had a helper and it was a fellow girl so supper was going to be awesome.

Her helper seemed a little lost, though, wandering about the kitchen, looking in all the cupboards and the fridge. "Temari, you don't have too much to work with..." Mishka commented softly.

The blond nodded. "Before you arrived, I had a bunch of missions so I didn't get to go food-shopping. What do you think we can make with this chicken?"

The younger girl smiled and showed Temari a seasoning packet. "Curry. It should taste okay with this and I used to make it all the time. Curry usually makes large amounts so it's best to eat it with a large families or a group of friends. At least... that's what the packet says on the back," she answered.

"That's probably just a sales pitch but let's make it anyway."

Mishka nodded and began giving Temari instructions on how to cook it. "Could you cut up the chicken while I chop the vegetables?"

A few seconds later, the female fatale announced that the meet was cut and the white-haired girl took one look. "Temari you hacked it to death. It's like ground chicken.

The blond just shrugged and started seasoning the poor chicken. It'll taste the same. Meat's meat after all." And into the slightly boiling water it went.

"Temari, you aren't supposed to boil the meat. Your seasonings can't stay on in the water." A strange odor filled the kitchen. "W-what did you season it with?" Mishka asked nervously.

The older woman showed her a variety of unlabled shakers from which she smelled and tasted. "Um... why sugar?"

"That's salt."

"It tastes sweet. And this smells like nutmet."

"It's not curry?"

While the girls tried to come to agreements on what exactly had been added, a large brown bubble began to rise up and take on more gasses.

This one smells like flour."

"Why would I add flour?" Temari demanded to know.

"I don't know. None of thses shakers are labled..."

Turning back to the pot of boiling meat and such, Mishka gasped at the sight. "T-Temari..." she whispered, tapping her on the arm.

As soon as both girls were looking, the bubble burst, spreading colored flour water all over the kitchen and the two girls.

Temari moved quickly to turn off the burner. Thankfully, the mixture hadn't been too hot. She then knelt by Mishka to make sure she was okay. The white-haired beauty was on her knees, shaking.

It was only when the blond was next to her, the girl was actually laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"HAHAHA! Temari, I... I've never h-had anything e-explod in the kitchen b-be-before! HAHA! We were j-just ma-making curry an-nd- KABOOM! AH-HAHAHA!"

It took the blond kunoichi a minute to realize that she was not being laughed at and ended up joining in. About five minutes later, the laughter slowly died and Temari helped Mishka up. "I'll order out and tomorrow, we'll go grocer shopping."

"Gaara will have to wait for his homecooked meal..." the girl agreed, starting to clean up the mess. That brought back memories of when she was just learning to cook. The kitchen was always a mess and the orphanage workers always yelled at her for making more work for them. Good times...

When Mishka fell back into reality, the redheaded bachelore was right in front of her, looking around at the brownish slime all over the place. "I'm guessing dinner is off?" he asked in that soft deep voice of his.

She nodded. "We experienced some difficulties but tomorrow is another day. Your sister is ordering take-out right now."

Gaara looked at Mishka and smirked. Leaning forward, he licked at one of the various brown areas on her face. "Hm... not bad compared to what she normally does. Definately an improvement."

And he left a blushing Mishka behind to clean up the mess she'd made.