Turning point: Chapter 9

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The morning sun beamed into the silent room through the window on the far wall, the thin, white curtains hung over the glass; floated gently on the breeze that made its way through the open frame and into the quiet sanctity of the house. The sounds from outside were also starting to invade, the chirping of the birds in the tree in the street nearby and the stream just beyond the wall of the leaf's boundary. It seemed having a home on the very edge of the village had its advantages, primarily being out of the way of the hustle and bustle of the village center. Her eyes opening slowly and being shielded by her arm from the rays of sunlight aimed at her face, Tayuya awoke from her surprisingly pleasant night's slumber and groaned as she felt the warmth from her wake-up call washing over her skin; almost egging her to start her day.

Letting her arm drop to the side; the half awake teen squinted her eyes, only to widen them again as she noticed that her face still appeared to be in shade. Glancing over at the window revealed a hand blocking out the light over her eyes, silhouetted against the sun and attached to the arm of a figure that sat in the window frame; back against the side with one leg arched over the other which lay flat against the windowsill.

The realization that she was being watched hit her hard and fast, Tayuya rolled as quickly as she could off the bed and stood to face the person in her room in a defensive stance with one arm held close to her chest and the other holding a fist towards the intruder. All her actions granted her was a chuckle from the person who now lowered their arm to their side.

"You really are a heavy sleeper, it's not good to be so easy to sneak up on y'know."

That condescending tone along with the familiar taunt, It could only be one person.

"Fuck Temari, you could've given me a little warning for something like this. Why are you sneaking into my room while I sleep anyway? Keeping tabs on me like the rest of the leaf?"

The sand shinobi slid off the windowsill and stepped closer, the light breaking nicely around her as she walked to the opposite side of the bed. From here Tayuya could make out the stupid grin she was wearing on her face and was about ready to leap over to give her a taste of her bad temper when Temari spoke up.

"You can relax, I'm just here to make sure you're settling in alright."

Her eyes drifted down to the redhead's form, which now stood with her hand on her hip in a defiant posture.

"Seems like you're already pretty comfortable here."

Giving a strange look to the girl in her room; Tayuya glanced down at herself, her eyes opened wide as she looked over her completely naked body and then to the bed where the towel she had been wearing last night lay crumpled up on the sheets. Her hands instinctively throwing themselves over her body to cover herself, Tayuya quickly turned her back to the blonde who simply started laughing while she crouched to further obstruct the view.

"What the fuck?! Did you fucking undress me?!"

Temari held her own hand to her hip; which stuck out to accommodate the sassy look she was now giving.

"Oh come on, I may be a tease but I'm not gonna assault a sleeping girl. You may not believe it but we do have standards in the sand."

Tayuya shot her a dirty look over her shoulder, gritting her teeth as she held out her hand.

"Whatever, just throw me the towel and look away."

Seeing another opportunity to play with the girl, Temari picked the towel up and held it to her side.

"Oh? You don't want to come and get it yourself?"

The fire sparked in the naked redhead's eyes.

"Just throw me the goddamned towel bitch!"

This was the time to really get her target to react, the sandy blonde's lips pulled up into a smirk and her eyes set themselves on the glare being shot at her.

"Make me."

Tayuya's whole body felt hot with anger, she had a foul temper to begin with but being taunted was the direct way to get her into the fighting spirit. Her toes curled against the wood floor as she tried to hold herself from attacking the girl, but her natural instinct overruled her reason and the flash of red before Temari's eyes was all she could catch before landing hard on the floor behind her. Looking up at the enraged face of the fiery redhead she was teasing, the suna girl found herself pinned to the hard wood by the body now sitting on top of her. Tayuya had managed to force her target to the ground and now straddled her waist, her arms holding Temari's above her head with a grip that caused the blonde to wince as she tightened it around her wrists.

Struggling slightly against the hold of her captor, Temari looked up at the eyes that were focused on her own. Tayuya's hair hung from her shoulders and created what felt like a space of isolation between the two girls' faces, the blue eyes that were so full of confidence just a moment ago now showing the shock and fear of what had just happened.

"Look, Red. It was just a tease, you don't have to flip out over it." Temari's voice was somewhat shaken as she spoke. "Surely you're not that immature."

The vice-like grip clenching around her arms seemed to almost bring tears to her eyes as her breath caught in her throat, the body atop hers tensing up to the point it began to shake. It took just a moment, but the hands holding her down loosened and Tayuya slowly pulled herself off the blonde's form; standing up with her head hung down in a way so her hair obstructed her face. Temari stared up at the girl for a moment before she too pulled herself to her feet, patting her black dress as she stepped forwards.

SMACK!

The look of shock on Temari's face was accompanied by a stuttering silence as she looked over at the pained glare from the girl before her, the red hand print that quickly made itself visible on her cheek pulsing with pain while she tried to comprehend what hit her.

"What do you know?"

Tayuya's voice was low and cracking as she stared at the stunned blonde in front of her, her body starting to tense up once more as she grit her teeth and tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"What the fuck do you know about me?! Huh?!"

Temari couldn't help but say nothing, she had been totally unprepared for anything like this.

"You think just because you know how to get to me, that you instantly know who I am?! What I've been through?!"

Her hand balled into a fist, she was about ready to throw a punch at the other girl's face.

"Red... I-"

Tayuya cut her off before she could finish.

"Just leave... Before I do something I might regret..."

Unable to think up anything to say in response, Temari simply glanced down at the floor and nodded. Without another word she walked over to the window she'd entered from with her head hung and her face stinging. Placing one foot up on the windowsill she paused for a moment, turning her head just enough to see the redhead who was staring at the floor with dull eyes.

"I..."

Her words failing her, Temari simply sighed and leaped from the window.

Tayuya lifted her head to look at the sky outside her room, only a few clouds obstructed the deep blue on this bright and sunny day and the same gentle breeze brushed her hair against her face. Her chest tightening more and more, the lone girl simply let herself fall to her knees and lower her head to touch the floor where Temari had been standing. Her fist pounded hard against it before she let herself go and broke into tears, alone in her room and full of regret.