Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Naruto characters, unless otherwise stated. In this case, I only own Kimi and her village.

Author's Note: I had a bit of fun with this one. Yay for breakfast at the Akatsuki headquarters! I guess this gives you a bit of a glimps as to how Kimi's settling into the place. Again, though I don't think it's noted, a few days have passed between chapters. I've chosen to go with Deidara being a newly-joined member of Akatsuki at the ripe age of 13. This will probably explain some slight OC-ness that might take place on his part. His personality, after all, is still developing at this point. I hope you all enjoy!

To Vanya Starwind: Thanks again for your input. I'm working on Deidara's explanation in the next chapter. It's kind of interesting, I think. I actually never thought of that particular choice for Kakuzu's partner (or lack thereof), actually. I'll definitely be thinking on that one.

XIX

Deidara stood in his doorway, sniffing the air with a puzzled expression. The Akatsuki base had seemed normal enough when he and Sasori returned from their latest mission. Of course, it had been dark then. Now, in the light, Deidara could clearly see the work of their newly-employed "maid." Every surface area was spotless – at least the common ones. Deidara was somewhat relieved that his room had not been touched. He did not want anyone touching his stuff when he was not around.

At least she has a healthy respect for privacy, yeah, Deidara thought to himself. His thoughts, however, did not remain long on the cleanliness of the headquarters. That strange aroma captured all of his attention.

He had never smelled the likes of it before – especially not in this place. What could it be? After testing the air again, Deidara gave in to his curiosity and trotted down the hallway toward the kitchen – the obvious source of the scent.

As he neared the doorway, a loud hissing, sizzling sound caught his ear, accompanied by a drastic change in the smell wafting through the air. Something was burning. Deidara had barely stepped into the doorway – had barely registered the sight of Tobi waving his hands frantically and uselessly through the air like some wounded bird – when a flash of gold brushed past him.

"Tobi!" the woman – Kimi, Deidara recalled – shrieked. "I told you to watch it!" She rushed to the stove, lifting the lid of the pot that was boiling over. "Look at this mess! Do you know how long it's going to take to clean it up? Rice water is a pain to clean off of a stove, especially when it's burned in."

"Tobi is sorry, Kimi," the masked young man whimpered, sounding close to tears. "Tobi was watching it just like you asked."

Kimi sighed. "And you just watched as it boiled over? Real smart, Tobi. I know you've got a brain. Use it, please, before you burn the building down, okay?"

Tobi dropped his head and shoulders, looking rather dejected. Deidara could have sworn he heard the ninja sniffle from behind that mask. Kimi must have heard it too, for her face became pained and she heaved another exasperated sigh before placing the lid back on the pot.

"I'm sorry for yelling, Tobi," she said gently. "I just thought you'd understand what I meant by 'watching' the pot."

Deidara snorted. "Tobi doesn't understand much unless you spell it out for him, yeah," he stated with a dark laugh.

Kimi stiffened and looked at the blonde Akatsuki member as if she had forgotten he was there. Her eyes widened slightly in recognition. Before either could say anything, though, Tobi brightened suddenly from his downward spiral.

"Deidara-sempai!" he cried in a joyful greeting. "Tobi didn't know you were back so soon!"

Scowling, Deidara glanced at Tobi and snorted. Deidara was the newest – and youngest – member of Akatsuki, and yet Tobi already insisted upon referring to him as "sempai" for some strange reason. He did not really know what to think of it, though it might be due to the fact that Deidara was a full-fledged member of Akatsuki – cloak and ring and everything – while Tobi was a mere underling.

When Deidara returned his gaze to Kimi, she had turned her back on him to deal with the contents of the stove. She poured a bowl of – something – into an already sizzling pan. He watched her work for a couple minutes, attempting to ignore Tobi bouncing in place with barely-contained excitement. At least the childish shinobi was being quiet.

Finally, Deidara relented again to his curiosity. "What are you cooking, yeah?"

Kimi barely turned her head toward him. "Bacon and scrambled eggs," she answered. "I would add sausage or grits to that, but there didn't seem to be any in the market. Rice should do fine in place of the grits, though."

Deidara blinked at her. "What are you cooking?" he repeated.

Much to his surprise, Kimi laughed. "Just take a seat and find out. The eggs will be ready in a couple of minutes. Tobi, could you set the table, please? Make sure to set out six places, and try not to drop anything this time, please."

"Of course! Tobi's a good boy!"

Deidara was not sure rather to be annoyed or amused by Tobi's antics and willingness to do whatever Kimi told him to. She was a civilian for God's sake. If anything, she should be following his orders, not the other way around. The blonde boy remained in the doorway, watching Tobi lay out plates. Interesting, he puzzled. She had him set for six. Who else is here?

Someone cleared their throat behind him, and Deidara turned to see Konan giving him a blank stare. She arched one eyebrow. "You're in the way."

Deidara quickly moved out of the doorway. Konan walked into the room and slipped into a chair without sparing Kimi so much as a passing glance. The woman at the stove turned and smiled.

"Tea, Konan?" The kunoichi nodded, and Kimi poured her a cup before glancing over at Deidara. "Would you like some too?"

"Water's fine, yeah," Deidara said dully as he pulled out a chair and dropped into it.

Kimi smiled warmly and fetched him a glass. As she placed it in front of him, she said, "I'm Kimi, by the way. I don't think we've been properly introduced."

"Deidara, yeah," the boy grunted in return.

She grinned, saying, "It's nice to meet you," before returning to her cooking. A few minutes later, Kimi transferred what Deidara assumed were the "scrambled eggs" from the skillet to a large serving platter. With Tobi's eager assistance, she moved the food from the counter to the table.

Deidara stared at what she had cooked. The rice he knew, the bacon he had never seen cooked like that before, and the eggs? He blinked. Was that even edible? It looked like just a slop of yellow, white, and brown stuff.

"Dig in," Kimi said brightly, though she glanced at the door with some degree of uncertainty.

Konan nodded to her and began serving her plate. Kimi remained standing, an almost weary expression on her face. "I take it – er – Leader won't be joining us again this morning?" she asked haltingly.

Deidara blinked in surprise, looking at Konan. The kunoichi merely shook her head and took a bite of the crispy bacon. Kimi took a deep breath and turned to fetch a tray from one of the cupboards. The way she fixed a plate, poured some tea into a smaller pitcher, and arranged the tray suggested some degree of practice. Did she do this every morning – or for every meal?

"Be right back," Kimi stated as she carried the tray out of the kitchen.

The blonde boy watched her leave with a shred of curiosity. The woman appeared to have made herself at home in the Akatsuki base, even taking their Leader his breakfast in the morning. Deidara faintly wondered if she actually saw the man face to face. He had only seen their Leader in his astral form, which gave away little to none of his features.

Returning his gaze to the table, Deidara realized that Tobi was watching him almost expectantly. "What, yeah?" Deidara growled softly.

"Well, aren't you going to eat?" Tobi asked. "It's not poisoned or anything. Tobi knows. Tobi already finished, see?" The masked young man tilted his plate up.

Deidara scowled. He had eaten already? But he had not even see Tobi serve his plate. Was he that fast? Tobi interrupted his musings, however, offering to serve his plate for him. Deidara snorted and batted the masked man's hands away. "I'll get it myself, yeah."

Kimi returned by the time he finished loading his plate with food. She walked slowly into the kitchen, muttering, "Must still be asleep." Without looking at any of them, she fixed herself a plate, sat down, and proceeded to eat.

Konan watched the woman through the corners of her eyes as she lifted her cup of tea to her lips. She did not, however, drink. Instead, the kunoichi paused and then lowered the cup back to the table. Speaking not a word, the Akatsuki second-in-command rose and strode out of the kitchen.

Slightly startled by the sudden movement, Kimi looked up from her food in time to see the last of Konan's cloak sweep out of the doorway. Her eyebrows furrowed. "Is something wrong?"

Tobi shrugged, rocking back and forth in his chair. "Leader probably called her for something."

She blinked, obviously puzzled by the statement. "Oh. Okay."

Deidara glanced between the two of them, grunted, and took a bite of eggs. He paused mid-chew, staring down at his plate and then at Kimi.

"What do you think?" the woman asked.

The boy finished chewing and swallowed. He blinked at her several times before wiping the look of surprise off of his face and shrugging his shoulders indifferently. "It's alright, yeah," he grunted, returning his attention to his plate and shoveling another bite of eggs into his mouth.

Kimi grinned.