So, you know what I've discovered I have a really bad problem with? Getting distracted while writing. Honestly, I'll just be sitting there, typing away, and BAM! "I wonder what's the point of a unicorn's horn? Let's google it! Oh, nobody knows? Okay then. Now, what was I doing...? That's right! Writing about Gaara and Nari. Duh!" *Starts typing* Five minutes later: "Do octopi poop out of their mouths?" And that, my dear readers, is why I normally have such a hard time updating. You wouldn't know that with this story since I waited a couple chapters before I put it online but normally...

Anyway, thanks for listening to me rant. Enjoy!

I sat along the back wall, as far as I could get from the village entrance. That was where Kankuro and Temari were frantically searching for me. I had been on the move since midafternoon. I'd probably only have a few moments of peace before I had to flee again. While I waited, I stared down at my arms, rethinking my theory.

I had come to the conclusion that my recent lack of control over my shape shifting was due to the extent of the damage I had suffered. As a nine-tailed fox, I was small and therefore healing would take less time and energy. Not to mention, I could shrink to make up for the loss of blood. I had probably taken human form so that my body could finish healing. Since it took more energy, I figured that when my human form fully healed, my nine-tailed fox one would too.

"They're looking all over for you," a cold voice told me from behind. Gaara had started tailing me after he finished working. He had decided to leave me alone, figuring I'd reveal myself when I felt like it but, with the sun setting, he felt a need to quicken the pace. He refused to have both his siblings searching inside and outside of the village at night.

"I'm well aware of that," I sighed. He waited for me to go on. I had a suspicious feeling he'd stop talking altogether when he felt I could differentiate what he wanted a response to and what he didn't. I wouldn't mind that, it just meant I'd have to open my mind towards his more. It'd also give me an excuse for checking in on him.

You and Matsuri got into a fight on the way back from the hospital, he pointed out, wanting to get this conversation moving. I crossed my arms and peered at him as he sat down beside me. "Yes, I suppose we did." He made a silent usher for me to continue. "Our opinions are just very different. And she had some misinformation. It happens."

"Then why haven't you come back?"

"Because I didn't feel like it yet. I'm just hanging out for a little while." At this, he was perplexed. He knew I was more of a solitary person but I rarely just sat around. Unless I was really thinking about something, I had to be in action whether that be training, fighting, or simply walking around. "I had some things to figure out."

"Nari, you don't have to hide things from me." I was surprised by this sentence. It was so… normal. I hadn't been expecting anything like it all.

"I know that…"

"Then why are you shy around me?"

"Shy? I'm not shy. I mean, I like my privacy but I'm not shy. In fact, I'm extremely open around you. You know more about me than anyone else does." The only things that came to his mind were this morning and whatever I had been told during the medical exam that neither Temari nor I were sharing. Apparently, he hadn't been given the chance to interrogate Matsuri.

"You're not going to give me an explanation," he assumed. I sighed and pushed a stray wisp of hair back.

"Look, there are just some things I, as a female, don't want you, a male, to know about. That's not a crime, is it?"

"You have access to all my thoughts and memories and yet you won't share with me the results of a medical exam?" I glared over at him.

"While I might have access to it, I do not delve through your memories at any given moment. In fact, I still know almost nothing about your childhood and how you went from a sad, little boy to a cold-blooded murderer. Don't accuse me of abusing me abilities like that."

"Nari, you know that's…"

"I know," I breathed, resting my chin in my hand and strumming me fingers against my cheek. I gnawed on my lower lip as I tried to come up with the right response. "Alright, so Matsuri and I got into a little bit more than a simple disagreement." He nodded, glad we were finally getting to the point of this conversation. "I'd do anything to protect my village and those I care about. I'd sacrifice everything for them because they're all I've ever had. Why is it, then, that I'm disrespected like some worthless, little brat who's in way over her head?"

"Because everything good you've done, you've been unable to take credit for." My head popped up and I glanced over at Gaara. Pale blue eyes peered back into mine, waiting for some sort of reaction. Is he right? Has everything that I've done been done in secret? I really thought over it for a while and realized he was right. No one knew that I was the one who got the Council to consider peace with Konoha. No one knew about the countless decisions I helped make for the good of Suna, including the one about making Gaara the Kazekage. Even I didn't recognize the countless missions I did with, and without, the help of a team for the good of Konoha. I had never taken credit for any of it.

"But ninjas aren't supposed to flaunt the good things they've done. They're just supposed to be pleased with themselves for their accomplishments and people are supposed to respect them because they know that they've devoted their lives to help the people of their village."

"Yes, but every time something unfortunate has happened to you, you were blamed. The deaths of Miu and Takeo were blamed on you, even though we both know it was their own fault. They had plenty of time to follow your instructions and you were just trying to complete your mission. The explosion you're still recovering from was my fault, in a sense, but you've been accused of abandoning your teammates on an important mission. It is the lack of understanding in those that surround you that have condemned you, not you yourself."

I smiled a little and hugged him. As always, he was slightly shocked, but soon returned the love. There were so many feelings welling up inside of me, so many things I wanted to say. How could a mere "thank you" express the gratitude I felt? Not only that, but as I remained in his arms, I couldn't help but to feel like this was right. This was where I belonged. After so long, I think I've finally found someone I love. And maybe, just maybe, he actually loves me back.

"Nari? Gaara?" I jolted out of Gaara's embrace as I heard the newcomer's voice. Kankuro stood there, gaping at us, while Temari crossed her arms and smirked. "What…? How…? When…?" Kankuro couldn't even figure out a question to ask.

"Want us to come back?" Temari offered.

"That's alright. We're done here." Gaara looked at me, silently making sure I agreed as he stood. I nodded and followed suit, smoothing out my robes.

"So, Nari…," Temari began, thinking about the secret she thought I should tell her brother.

"Give me a month, Temari. If it's not better by then, then I'll tell him. Otherwise, it's pretty much a worthless worry."

"You may not be here in a month!" I shrugged.

"They said my arms wouldn't heal and look at them, not even a scar."

"Your arms?" all three questioned at once.

"Oh, that's right. I never told any of you. The explosion that killed my teammates during the invasion also tore my arms to shreds. See? It was pointless for me to tell you because they healed."

"Nari, you do realize that extreme healing can shorten your lifespan, right?" Kankuro pointed out.

"The father of my species is immortal and the average lifespan for a nine-tailed ninja is about two-hundred-and-twenty years. And that's only because most blow themselves up. In fact, the supposed last nine-tailed ninja before me even wrote in his scrolls that there's a high possibility that there are more nine-tailed ninja out there he's never heard of because they were born so long ago. There are even some suspicions that the original nine-tailed ninja is still alive in the wild somewhere. I doubt I have to worry about shortening my lifespan because of my healing abilities." He didn't have a comeback.

"Two weeks," Temari argued, completely ignoring mine and Kankuro's exchange.

"Fine." Gaara just stood there, watching us. He felt out of place but I was glad he was there. That way, at least, he knew I'd be willing to share if it was important.

"We going to go eat dinner now?" Kankuro suggested after a few moments of silence. I laughed and nodded. We headed back to the Kazekage building and into the dining room. Temari offered to cook and I eagerly joined her, curious about how people actually went about preparing normal meals. I found it to be a strange process, especially when she started discarded parts of the animal.

"Why would you do that? You can eat it, can't you?"

"Maybe you can, Nari. But we humans do not eat the kidneys of a chicken." I frowned and crossed my arms. What a waste! I scoffed silently. "I mean, if you really want to, I could cook them for you but the rest of the chicken is much better." I sighed and just let it be. I really wasn't in any mood to eat. In fact, I think the injuries were starting to catch up to me again. I felt nauseous and moving was starting to become a struggle. I closed my eyes and breathed, forcing the pain to subside.

Finally, after about an hour and a half, dinner was served. They each dished their own plates but Temari refused to allow me to dish my own. She made me a plate, saying that I had to eat all of it, even the plants. Thankfully, it was a small meal compared to their own. I guess she figured I probably wasn't that hungry.

"Anything interesting happen today at work, Gaara?" Kankuro asked, trying to start conversation.

"No." The puppet master narrowed his eyes but tried again.

"Discover anything about yourself, Nari?"

"I can't shift into a nine-tailed fox until I'm fully healed."

"Why not?" I shrugged.

"I think it's because the human body takes longer to heal than the fox body. Therefore, when the human body is fully healed, the fox body will be also, whereas when the fox body is fully healed, the human body still needs time. Well, that's just what I'm guessing, anyway. Yourself?"

"I discovered my baby brother has a girlfriend." Both Gaara and I froze. I could read minds and I still didn't see that coming.

"Really, Kankuro? You couldn't have given them more time to figure things out," Temari scolded him.

"They were hugging!"

"That doesn't mean anything." As the two of them got into an argument, I did my best to keep eating and ignore Gaara's thoughts. He was secretly wondering what I thought of the situation, and what exactly having a girlfriend entailed. The churning in my stomach and the strange sensation in my chest got worse. That combined with physical pain, was too much for me to handle. I stood up abruptly.

"I'm going to bed," I announced, stopping the bickering siblings in their tracks.

"Why, Nari?" Temari asked.

"I'm tired," I lied.

"But you didn't do anything today and you slept last night," Kankuro protested.

"I'm healing."

"You're in pain," Temari realized. "I thought you were being unusually quiet."

"I'll escort you to your room," Gaara offered, wanting to get out of this situation as much as I did. I just nodded and followed him out. We strolled through the halls side-by-side. "May I ask you a favor?" He was thinking about the night before. He had sincerely enjoyed the peaceful slumber. No, he wasn't exactly tired, but he wanted to stay with me and if I were going to bed, he'd join me.

"I don't mind," I answered. "And I can lull you to sleep again, if you want?"

"You lulled me to sleep?"

"Not really. I just kept bad thoughts out of your head and soothed you with peaceful memories." Why did you do that? "Because I didn't want you to have nightmares. I wanted you to enjoy your sleep." He was shocked by this act of kindness. That's when I realized the strange sensation I felt in my chest, he felt too, but he had a name for it; love. Yes, I had finally found someone I loved.

We silently agreed to sleep in his bedroom. As I lay there, once again in his arms, my hand on is bare chest, I couldn't help but to think over my realization. Gaara knew that he loved me. It was the depth of his love he didn't understand. That's why he thought of me as a pet, especially since I was always trying to push him away. Temari had been right. "Gaara?"

"Yes?"

"I…," I almost confess my feelings but I couldn't seem to do it. "I'm glad I'm your pet." That's good enough for now, I suppose, I thought to myself. I then curled up tighter against his side, making it obvious that this wasn't up for discussion. I felt his gratitude before I smoothed his thoughts out for sleep.

Sorry that this chapter was short but I'm very pleased with it. It only took me THREE WEEKS to write, but I think it's perfect now. Well, thanks for reading and please review.