Okay! Firstly, I'm so sorry for the major gap in updates - my life has suddenly gotten very busy and I've been struggling to find the time! I'm back in work now though, which means there should be more updates as most of these are written in my lunch hour!

Secondly, I know there's a few errors lurking about, I haven't had any internet so have been updating via phone - this should be resolved as soon as my connection is back up and running and I can use my laptop again!

Thirdly, I hate this chapter. So much. It just wouldn't come out the way I want it to. I'm going to revisit it soon - however, it's also stopping further chapters from coming out! Anyway -

Enjoy!

Matsuri

Matsuri stops just short of Suna's gates, taking a moment to take in the welcoming sight of the sandstone towers; she has been away for nearly six months and she is glad to be home. She raises a hand in greeting to the guards, and they nod back. The gate keeper smiles kindly at her, offering a kind "Welcome Home!"

She picks up her pace a little; excited to get home and see her Sempai. The last time she had seen him, he was rambling on about being forced in to some arranged marriage, and she can't wait to hear how he got out of it.

The first thing she notices are the pair of women's boots, lazily kicked off in the hallway. They do not belong to her. As she walks in to the kitchen there is a medic cloak draped over the counter. She is instantly panicked.

"Sempai!" She calls out, taking the stairs two steps at a time.

Standing in the hallway is that medic from Konoha; she instantly recognises her from the war. She become renown for both her healing and fighting skills, making her way in to several bingo books. It's not like she was an easy person forget; the pink hair messily tied in a bun only confirmed this.

She gives Matsuri a soft smile; "Welcome home, Matsuri-chan! How did your mission go?"

She is suddenly at a loss for words, her earlier panic subsiding to a deep worry. He must be really bad for Sakura to have come all the way from Konoha. She can feel tears brimming at her eyes.

"What's the matter? Did it not go well?" Sakura moves to embrace the crying girl, pulling her down to sit on the hall window seat. She gently rubs her back, a grown etching it's way on to her face as footsteps are heard making their way up the stairs.

He instantly crouches in front of her, shooting a look to Sakura to see if she knows why Matsuri is crying. Sakura shrugs her shoulders and raises the hand not rubbing her back; no idea, she seems to signal.

"Matsuri." He raises a hand to wipe away the her tears, and suddenly finds himself tackled almost to the floor.

"You're okay? I thought something must be really wrong!" Matsuri manages to blurt out between sobs.

Gaara sighs deeply, embraces the girl and gives Sakura a look that she can't quite figure out. She takes it as a signal to leave them, and mouths that she'll be at the garden.

Matsuri has calmed somewhat, and leans back from her Sempai. She is no longer crying, apart from soft, evenly spaced hiccoughs.

He manages a small smile, he had been dreading this moment ever since his marriage to Sakura had been finalised. He wondered briefly if the reason he had sent her on such a long mission was to avoid this.

Matsuri is looking at him expectantly; "So, you're okay? Why is she here?"

He sighs again, "She's my wife."