Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy, Naruto, or any reference to Tamora Pierce.


Willow rubbed her eyes as the morning sun flickered into her eyes. Where was her mother?

Willow knew her mother was dying and if her mother was dead she thought that no-one decent would take care of the missing nin's, Akasuna no Sasori's, illegitimate love child, which is why she was brought out here. Her mother had wanted her to be raised by her father, after she died.

Mai, Willow's mother, took her away from Gaara (her playmate and best friend) the previous night and brought her out to the middle of the woods to go camping. Last morning she was abandoned, her mother nowhere to be found, but she was left with a large packet of beef jerky in her pants pocket. She had to find shelter because her mother had taken all the camping materials, she had found this cave and found two wolf puppies and that she could understand them! She knew her powers were unusual, but she didn't know they included talking to animals! Yet, why did her mother want her to be raised by her father? Chiyo-baa-sama had said she wanted to take care of the little girl if Mai's illness had progressed too far.

Willow knew more of her family's history then she let on. She knew she was a child born out of wedlock and to a missing-nin at that. The missing-nin in question was Akasuna no Sasori. Chiyo-baa-sama was really her great grandma. Mai was a down on her luck hooker at least until Willow was know about.

It was all too confusing for the little girl to think of this early in the morning. The cloak her mother gave her when she was five held a lot of significance for her. It belonged to her father, she said, and Willow had accidently burnt it once, though she had no clue how.

'Hungry, Willow.' The black one whimpered, nosing at her exposed flesh. 'Food?'

Willow rubbed her eyes and looked down at her two companions. They were cute, definitely, and good companions. Plus, talking to the telepathically was definitely a plus.

"Willow!" A masculine voice called to her, startling her. "Willow? Where are you?" He sounded not too far away, but far enough to not see her. The small girl's heart sped up. Who on Earth could be looking for her? None of the Suna-nin knew she was missing yet because civilians didn't matter as much as ninjas and that was a definite male voice. She held the two wolf puppies close to her body, trying to make herself as small as she could. She couldn't protect herself very well yet, even though Gaara had been teaching her how, and Mai had taught her simple self defense.

The redheaded man was on the lookout for his daughter. He saw footprints, clear small sneakers that were obviously a child's, near the stream bank after he had found where a camp was broken not too long ago. He had no idea why Mai would insist on taking their daughter out here, so near Sound territory, especially with her illness progressing at a rapid rate. He noticed chakra in the area, close and frightened. It was coming from exactly where he was staring at, which perplexed him for only the merest of moments. He wasn't a genius for nothing and quickly deduced there was a cave there. With several large strides he had made it over the stream and to the cave.

He crouched down and saw a little girl sitting with two wolf puppies on her lap on the he had left in the bed her slept with Mai before he became a missing-nin. With the bright morning sun shining in, there was no doubt she was his child. A hardened missing-nin like him shouldn't have cared about his love children yet he was in it for more than the moral obligation that most decent men would have.

This child, Willow, if she was his child she'd have his intelligence or aptitude for learning. She'd be a natural for the art of puppetry so she'd be of value. She could be used; a tool. Though deep within him Sasori also felt a slight affinity with the girl not due to her being his child but she would soon lose her mother due to her tuberculosis that was too far along for any medic to heal and no-one would take care of the child of a missing-nin, but perhaps his grandmother, yet that didn't matter. She was his child and he could at least find use of her if not have some sort of bond.

The young redhead's eyes widened at the sight of a man who looked very much like her. He had even called her name. The puppies snuggled closer to her, confused at the unfamiliar scent entering their dwelling. She felt something off within her gut as if something wasn't quite right and was assaulted with the feeling of déjà vu. Yet she brushed it off and cocked her head her natural curiosity sinking in. Since he was calling her name and being rather loud he wasn't here to hurt her obviously and he was looking at her for a very long time like he was assessing her.

"Are you Willow daughter of Mai?"

"It's impolite to ask who I am without introducing yourself first…" Willow responded tartly without thinking. She quickly bit her lip and looked down knowing she'd made a mistake.

Sasori glanced at her bemusedly. Though lacking his poise and elegance in speaking, which he'd teach the child, she sure had his spirit when he was young. "Such speaking out against someone whom you don't know the abilities of is unwise child. Though, I will allow you slack this one time. I am Akasuna no Sasori, your father."

"I knew that." Willow said with a self-satisfied grin. "Mother tried to keep it hidden, but she didn't do very well." She looked up at him with a shy smile. "So I suppose you're going to take me with you because you haven't killed me yet?"

She was good. He smiled, though it was only a slight upturning of the lips, it still counted. He sighed, because the wolves have not moved from her grip. "You can take those…animals with you as well."

Willow gave him a grin and for a moment Sasori felt like returning the smile. He felt the paternal stirrings but forced them down. She was a tool, not something to get attached to. Sure she might one day be his protégé but she would be a tool even then. She stood up and walked out towards him and when she fully stepped out towards him, he realized how small she was. She only stood up to his midsection and she was a dainty little thing.

Good thing the base wasn't far from here. She'd get tired holding those pups. "How old are you Willow?" He asked needing to know how to plan her training, based on her age and current abilities.

"I'm five father…." She replied quietly, trying to keep up with his large strides, but not making a fuss. He was going slower for her, but he decided it might be best to just pick her up. Not to coddle her of course but it was merely for the sake of connivance. He hated to be made to wait and he also was impatient when he knew he could go faster. He scooped her up into his arms and she made no noise, but merely looked surprised. "I've had very little training except that I can cook, clean, and sew for the best of them. I also know some really simple healing jutsus mainly to reduce fevers and prevent coughing. I know a fair deal about herbs and chemistry and I love to read and do math and crack codes."

Sasori was surprised at the amount of her knowledge. He didn't expect so much from one so young, but he could guess she was a solitary child with few friends. The healing jutsus were surprising along with the herbs, but he knew the necessity of her knowing them so she could at least ease her mother's pain. With no money to pay for medical care, especially the extensive type that Mai needed, Willow must of felt compelled to at least ease her mother's pain. Chemistry was a good sign, it was needed very much so in making poisons along with herbs. Cooking, cleaning, and sewing would make her useful around the base. There was doubt that this young child was intelligent and crafty.

"You seem to know a lot…How did you come to learn this all?"

Willow's face flushed slightly. "Nobody really notices the civvies, nor cares about them in a hidden village. So, when I go into the library no-one cares that I'm reading restricted materials and learning how to use chakra nor really notices. I have only one friend, but he's the best! He even kinda looks like me…but when I told him I was leaving he was really sad but he understood. I promised to go back though, cause I can't abandon someone I love!"

Great; another bleeding heart. He had a hero on his hands, a white hat, and he'd have to corrupt her slowly or she'd rebel. Sasori shook his head. "Don't worry, you'll see…what was his name again?"

"Sabaku no Gaara, I promised to marry him too! I told him that's the way the bestest friends do it." Willow said with a grin as the two puppies cuddle into her warmth.

'Where we go? Who is male? Not familiar…Not like, don't trust. Careful.' The white wolf pup thought to the redheaded girl and Willow pet her.

'Patience. Mommy said he might be odd at first, but we'll get used to him. Don't worry, you'll be with me and I'll feed you every time you want until you get big enough to feed yourselves…' Willow thought back petting the pure white wolf.

Sasori stored that at the back of his mind as information that might be useful. "Willow, I'm going to set rules without that should never be broken, now."

Willow nodded. She expected as such. Her mother had rules with her to but the sick woman wasn't very good at enforcing them.

"First of all, you cannot leave the base grounds without my permission. You must head every member as if they were me and especially Leader-sama. You must keep those animals in line. You must be clean, which means baths every night and you must keep your clothing mended and in good repair. I am going to teach you but sometimes that responsibility will fall to others, but you must mind them. Your bed time is eight o'clock at night and you must rise at seven in the morning. Do not talk back to me or the others and don't speak unless spoken to. If you do not follow these rules know that there might be dire consequences." Sasori said to her. She merely nodded and didn't look phased.

Perhaps she was used to stricter authority or perhaps she was an obedient child. Sasori didn't care, as long as she did as he said. Willow was used to having her own control over her fate but didn't mind having an adult telling her what to do. It made her feel recognized and loved in some twisted sense of the word.

The pair quickly made it in the base and Willow got put down in the sitting room of Sasori's quarters. She put the puppies down and they sniffed around the area always making sure that Willow was at least in the corner of their eyes, because they had accepted her as their dominant leader. "This is where I live. Your room is the door on the left…Konan insisted on decorating it, saying that men don't know how to decorate little girls' room. You can wait there until I come and get you."

Willow nodded and wandered into the pink spotted door. Personally she disliked the colour pink, it clashed with her hair and it was such a stereotypical girl colour. Yet she'd deal with it perhaps her father would allow her to paint over the bright colour. She opened it without much hesitation and was greeted with the sight of a double bed with a black canopy over it with red trimming. The bureau was a simple, the only decoration was the polished wood of a rich brown, and there was a vanity tucked in the corner besides a closet with wooden slatted door.

Simple and serviceable. The walls were thankfully a mural, a tribute to the forest. Origami animals hung from the ceiling in various places. Willow didn't mind this new place too much, but she looked upon the giant bed slightly frightened. The room was large and she hadn't slept by herself due to her mother needed the extra warmth and them only having one futon in their possession. A cold nose touched her naked ankle and Willow grinned.

She wasn't completely alone in here. "Well, I do suppose we are stuck here…he must have forgotten we haven't had breakfast yet." Willow mused as she looked in the closet. There was clothing in there, formal with many pieces. She never had seen so much finery in one place and it overwhelmed her slightly as she looked at herself in the full-length mirror. She was a pretty girl-child to say the least, a pixie-ish face with a petite body and her clothes were threadbare but in good repair. They were a cast-off from someone, she didn't know who, and it took her about a day to fix them to her liking. It was a simple white dress, which she had transformed into a long sleeve shirt with a pouch attached to the side. Her pants were made out of a heavy fabric more for winter than anything, but they kept her knees from getting scratched up and they didn't fall to disrepair easily. Suddenly she felt very self-conscious and dirty.

There was a door she didn't notice before. She opened it and was relieved to find a bathroom with a shower, soap, towels, everything that she needed. Willow smiled slightly as she went to the bureau and found less elegant pretty clothing. There were black shorts that she paired with a black skirt and a soft green t-shirt. These were things she could fight in, train in, walk in, pretty much do anything in. She pulled a pair of white panties that were surprisingly her size, out of the drawer.

Willow went into the bathroom and left the door open not caring who saw her but also because the door to her room was closed. As the hot water ran down her body she closed her eyes. It had been such a long time since she had a hot shower. Her last day started to process within her mind and she kept a shuddering sigh from her lips.

Her crimson ringed eyes scanned around the playground, searching for something, almost as if something was pulling her close. There was something tugging her towards something, something that she could neither control nor explain. So, not knowing any better, she followed her intuition.

A little boy was standing about fifty feet away from the group. Loneliness stalked him like the humidity before a rainy span.

Willow approached him slowly with a smile. "Hello! My name's Willow."

The little boy looked around him, as if she was talking to someone behind him, yet she was looking him in his forest coloured eyes; directly. He clutched to his teddy bear.

"I'm talking to you, yes. Like I said, my name's Willow! What's yours?" She asked holding out her hand.

The little red head looked at her strangely, before taking her hand. Confused on what to do, he kissed it, as he had seen couples doing in the streets.

Willow blushed slightly. "You're supposed to shake it silly, not kiss it."

"My name's…Gaara. Why are you being nice to me?" Gaara asked quizzically, looking at the pretty red head girl. "Nobody's nice to me except my Uncle."

"Well, make that two people now, because I'm one. I needed a friend too. I don't like people like," She gestured to the other's playing. "That 'cause they're normally mean to me to, 'cause I like chemistry and stuff like that."

"Oh…So…you're now my, friend?" Gaara said curiously.

"Yes, I'm your friend!" Willow said with enthusiastic.

Willow felt the tears build around the corner of her eyes as she turned off the hot flowing water. Her long crimson hair fell to her mid-back and she fingered a short strand. She had cut it only three days ago…

"Why do you have to leave Willow? I don't want you to leave! Everyone always leaves me." Gaara said his voice getting more melancholy, his eyes getting darker.

Willow frowned and forced Gaara to look at her gently. "Gaara-kun, I'm not abandoning you. I'm leaving, but not the forever kinda leaving. Besides…you know where I'll always be?"

"Where?"

The little girl's rose lips pulled up at the corners forming into a grin. She placed her palm flat where his heart was in his chest. "I'll be here, in your heart." She took his hand and placed it on her heart. "And you'll be here in mine."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Willow then proceeded to take a kunai out of the pouch at her side. She rose it up to a strand of her hair and swiftly ran the blade across the strand. She wrapped it in a circle and held it there. "Wanna see some magic?"

"Magic doesn't exist…"

"It does to and I can show you some." Pride laced her voice as she whispered something. "Imbue my hair with lasting love and remembrance so he doesn't forget me. Make a ring of hope, of love, and of happiness."

A glow enveloped the hair. Gaara's eyes became the size of dinner plates. The glow was the brightest white he had ever seen and the roots of Willow's hair were becoming the same color. Then, the magic was over. A ring as crimson as Willow's hair lay in her palm but it was faceted, almost liked a gem all the way around.

"This is for you." She took out a piece of black string and put the ring on it. "Boys don't normally wear rings, so you should wear it on this necklace…Remember me by it, kay? I'll come back because you wear it."

He put it on and put it under his clothes. As it touched his skin, he was enveloped in the warmest feeling he had ever experienced. It was Willow, her essence, her love, her everything. "Thank you Willow…"

She had fallen asleep, exhausted, on his lap.

"I guess I'll stay…"

Willow shook her head as she brushed her teeth. She shouldn't think about Gaara or she'd end up bawling like a baby. She pulled the clothes over her now clean body and brushed and braided her hair carefully. She looked in the mirror.

There, now she didn't feel like such a ragamuffin. Presentable to the people her father worked with and perhaps passable as well. There was a pouch, unfilled of course, but she strapped it to her belt anyways. She got the contents out of her shirt and securely placed them there.

Her door was creaking open and as Willow was looking for a barrette in the vanity to hold back an annoying strand of hair, a hand touched her on the shoulder. She looked up expecting to see Sasori, but instead someone completely different stood in her field of vision.

Who is it? Eh...Really new at cliffhangers so it wasn't that good. Willow's show of power was a bit over the top, especially for a young one such as her but don't worry, she won't go Sue on you. She has her strengths and weaknesses like everyone else. Till next time.