Pairings:

SasuNaruSasu/Magnet Shipping
NejiGaa/ Chance Shipping
KyuuMina/ Seal Shipping

Warnings:

Shounen-Ai, Language, I'm afraid this is more expository/recap than anything. We do get some important character info.

This is short, yes, but considering that the planned update was all the way in December... Better this than wait that long! (also I don't get why FFN updates fics when you delete/re-update an old chapter).

Mood Music: Kokoro by Rin and Len Kagamine, Music Box version.

Morning

~Sasuke's POV~

The walk to Gaara's home was a placid one. After we had set out, Naruto had calmed down greatly to take in the sight of the city changing to that of a a more urban setting. When we finally got to Gaara's house, a dark brown townhouse surrounded by other townhouses, Naruto seemed quite tired with looking around and instead began staring at Neji who had been side-eyeing him the entire time.

Occasionally, his eyes flicked to me with a questioning stare but I would just shrug, turning the glance into a glare. I imagine that Neji's confused and is trying to analyze just who Naruto is, but his questions will just have to wait until we've reached a secure place. Without a word, Gaara opened the front door and waited until we were all inside before coming in himself and locking the door.

"Feel free to leave your stuff on the couch over there. My dad won't be home till late." Gaara pointed at a loveseat in the corner of the room. Quickly, the rest of us shed our outer wear (though, I told Naruto to keep his hat on) on the couch. While doing so, I couldn't help but think about what I knew of Gaara and his home.

Gaara's home is small and for the most part, very simple. There was the standard needs such as a kitchen and two bathrooms. However, there was hardly any customization of anything else. Gaara tilted his head upstairs before going up. Silently we followed behind him. As we ventured further into the townhouse, I felt the stirrings of emptiness that usually arose in my heart when I visited Gaara's house.

Honestly, I don't that much about Gaara. He's an incredibly private person, the main reason we talk to each other is because Neji's my cousin and his boyfriend. His family is quite distant from each other. His father was busy in politics as a councilmen and his mother had died when in labor with him. He had told me once that he had two siblings away in college, but other than that, he hasn't said anything else about them.

I heard that he used to be caught up in all sorts of bad business; gangs, fights, the works. Then, suddenly it all just stopped right before he was transferred to my school. Aside from being incredibly quiet and unwilling to socialize with those who don't agree with his personality, Gaara has done nothing "harmful" to himself or others, or at least I don't think he hasn't. As said before, we don't really hang out much.

Naruto stayed close to me, though his eyes were locked on the back of Gaara's head. I wanted to flick him for staring at the redhead. I get that to Naruto, Gaara's black leather pants, black wristbands, snake eye piercings, and t-shirt with obscene writing and art on it appears really out there to him, but that doesn't mean he should stare so obviously.

When we walked passed a couple rooms, Gaara nodded his head to the inside of a dark-lit room. Once everyone was comfortably filed inside, he flicked on the lights and closed the door. The room was pretty quaint with little decoration. A standard twin bed with a dark green duvet and a desk with a computer were nestled together far away from the door. A closet and another door lay on the opposite walls I knew that inside the closet were tons of posters that Gaara had once commented that he was too lazy to put up. A black faux rug covered the hardwood floor. In one of the corners was two bins, one for laundry and another for trash.

Neji and Gaara quickly took the bed and I took the chair at the desk. Naruto seemed more than comfortable to spread out on the rug if his soft sigh as he rubbed his face against was anything to go by. I gave a snort that made him look up at me. "What?"

I just shrugged with a fond smile (I'm pretty sure Neji's eye brows just left the atmosphere). "You're weird sometimes."

He made a face but didn't have the chance to retort as Neji cut in with a blatant, "Do the both of you mind informing us what the hell is going on? And who the hell is he?"

At the sound of his voice, Naruto cast the two teens on the bed a glance before going back to snuggling the rug. Seeing as I've been left stranded to talk about this (damn you, Naruto), I answered for the both of us. "Remember when I told you of those eyes from the forest way back when I first got to Konoha?"

Neji frowned as he tried to recall the memory. "Kind of. What about it?"

I gestured to Naruto, "Apparently, Konohagakure has - had," I corrected myself, Naruto is no longer in Konoha and probably won't be for a long while. "A demigod deity who protected them and the surrounding forests for millenniums." I turned to face Naruto who gave me a impish grin that I couldn't help but return with another fond smile. "That demigod is Naruto here."

"..." Neji stared between me and Naruto almost incredulously. "... Are you for real?"

I sent a glare at him. "You think I'd lie about this?"

Neji sneered, though the tone of his voice was more of a stern scolding than him being really mad at me. "I'd think you'd come up with a better excuse to hide your new boyfriend. You really think I'd give a shit where he came from?"

"No - I'd think you'd give a shit if you knew who he actually was." I damn near rolled my eyes; my cousin has always been a no-nonsense person. While it's nice to have a level-headed person who checks his facts before picking a side, it's also annoying since he's a real stickler for whatever the "standard" is. Apparently, a demigod who happens to be his cousin's boyfriend is not up to his "realness" standard.

Prick.

Neji scoffed but didn't say more. His continued refusal to believe me was tickling at my patience. Out of my peripherals, I could see Naruto in the middle of a staring match with Gaara. They weren't glaring at each other, but they were definitely lost in some sort other dimension if the amount of concentration they're putting into the stares was to go by. Neji seemed to notice this as well as he put a hand to Gaara's shoulder. The movement made Gaara blink a few times before he seemed to return from whatever strange dimension he had been in. Naruto blinked too before scrunching his nose in what seemed to be confusion.

Unsure of what he was thinking about, I called out to him. "Naruto?"

He turned to me. I stretched out a hand to him. Naruto blinked again, as if he was trying to figure out the meaning of the action. After a few moments, he got up from the ground and came over to the desk, his face still holding that confused expression. "Sasuke?"

"Hm?" I made a small hum of encouragement while trying to ignore the stare Gaara was aiming at the both of us while ignoring Neji's questions on what had just happened.

"... How did Sasuke become friends with a Blessed One?"

... A what now.

I didz it guys.

This had been in my doc manager for a good six+ months. And I finally finished it. Oh yeah, it's short as shit, but it's a start.

Let me sleep.

~Kitsune-Ohime-Sama~