Everything went back to normal for the most part, or at least that's what everyone thought. Temari and Kankuro passed the incident off. Matsuri avoided the subject. The general staff was too scared to ask. They were all just happy he was acting normal again.
Baki, however, wasn't so quick to go without explanation. He cornered Hinata in the hall.
"What is it that you did to stop his rampage?" Baki asked skeptically. "He can take weeks to calm down completely after he's had an episode, and you seemed to have made this disappear overnight."
"I…" Hinata blushed. "Maybe this is something you should ask Gaara. This is my first time dealing with this, so I'm not sure if I did something right or just something that worked this time." Baki narrowed his eyes on her. "This incident may not be a good example because my trip seemed to cause this incident, which we hadn't expected. He assumed he would be fine."
"So what is it you did that caused this?" Baki asked.
"You'll have to ask him. All I know is that Shukaku-san bothered him senselessly." Hinata held her hands to her chest. It hurt that she caused him such pain.
Baki nodded, leaving her without as much as a farewell.
"Kazekage-sama," Baki said pointedly.
Gaara looked up at the man who trained him with some irritation at his formal scolding behavior. "Yes?"
"I think we need to talk," Baki stated.
Gaara inwardly growled. "We are."
"About the recent incident." Baki clarified.
Gaara was hoping he could avoid this. "What about it?"
"What caused the meltdown, what did she do to stop it, and how might we prevent this in the future?" Baki listed.
"Shukaku reacted violently to Hinata's absence. She came back and promised us she wouldn't be leaving again. Her keeping the promise should be all we need." Gaara told him dismissively.
Baki narrowed at him. "That's all? The beast just listens to her?"
"If I understood what happened, I would tell you more. The bottom line is Shukaku disliked her being gone, and he was going to drive me insane until she came back." Gaara rubbed his temples. "Hinata is just as confused, if not more so than I am. No one is at fault. It is just something we will deal with like I always have."
Baki's harsh look broke as he rubbed his temple. "I do not like relying so heavily on her. She has no ties that hold her promises."
"She does." Gaara denied. "She's my friend, my fiancée, and will be my wife. She doesn't want to go home. She even disliked her stay, according to Kankuro." He would keep her.
"Friend." Baki snorted. Gaara was surprised at his teacher's reaction. "Sure," Baki mumbled, amused, waving his hand through Gaara wasn't sure he could so easily brush it off. He wasn't sure if he was going insane again or if everyone around him was.
"Hinata! I found it!" Temari ran toward her, holding up a tattered flat box, giddy.
"What did you find?" Hinata asked.
"Mother's headpiece! It's perfect!" Temari opened the old box, showing her a dusty silver string of chains. Simple and elegant, with no massive jewels, small polished non-precious stones, and clear glass settings. Likely from a poorer time. It was beautiful and fit Hinata's need for simplicity.
"It is, though it needs some cleaning." Hinata touched the dusty metal in wonder. Gaara's mother once wore this. She hadn't dared ask about his parents, knowing that at least his father held bad memories for him. Since Temari was excited, she hoped it wasn't a touchy enough subject. He would reject her wearing something of his mother's.
"What was that saying for your weddings, something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue?" Temari wondered idly.
"Not really a worry of mine, but this would be old and borrowed." Hinata liked to ignore that one because many women make their 'something blue' a garter, and she would not be wearing one for removal if she could help it.
Hinata collapsed in her spot, freshly showered and sore. She tried not to make any noise of discomfort, but it was clear she was hurt.
Worry washed over Gaara. Had he hurt her? Had he held on too tight? He mentally berated himself and Shukaku for being so possessive.
"Gaara?" Hinata asked. Gaara looked up to see her worried eyes as she leaned over his desk. How long had she been trying to get his attention? "Is something wrong?"
Gaara was causing more problems by not just voicing his concerns. Now she was worried about him. "You're injured."
"Oh, just a little sore. I've gone back to working on your present. It's odd physical work, not muscles I use in training, odd bending. Kankuro-san is pretty sore, too." Hinata tilted her head knowingly. "You didn't think it was you, did you?"
Gaara inwardly cringed. She was getting too good at reading his discomfort. "I did."
"No. I didn't even wake up with a sore neck." Hinata assured him. "How did you sleep? I didn't get to ask." They started late, she forced him to eat a large lunch and dinner, and both rushed off to their duties.
"And I didn't ask about your trip." Gaara agreed. He looked at the already forgotten paperwork that was boring him on his desk. "Walk then?" Hinata nodded with a smile.
They left his office, walking in circles through the halls. Hinata told him of her time, though he felt like she was making it happier than it seemed or leaving whatever Kankuro had mentioned out. If she was avoiding it, it was likely better to keep to herself.
Shukaku's purring was much more soothing than his constant growling, and he was enjoying the color of her cheeks and her smile.
"I think this one will have to be a real address to the council." Temari rubbed her face, placing the paper in front of Hinata.
"It may be a difficult point to argue," Hinata mumbled. "But I didn't think it was going to be easy."
"Okay, we will make an appointment then." Temari took note. "Think you can make him wet himself this time?" Temari chuckled in reply.
"I'm not sure. That's a goal someone should have." Hinata countered.
"Ready?" Kankuro asked though it seemed he was way more nervous than she was.
"Yes." Hinata entered first, knowing where she had to go now. The podium now had a stool that sat at the podium's height. They assumed this was going to be a long meeting. She didn't sit. She instead moved the chair under the podium and stood tall at the podium, setting her papers where they needed to be.
Hinata felt the room stiffen. Everyone, even Kankuro, sat. She was already showing power over them.
Hinata greeted the council. "The Hyuga negotiations went well, in my opinion. My clan can be difficult, though I don't believe anything here is unreasonable, and all will strengthen relations with Konoha." She flipped idly through her papers rather than looking up, disinterested, another power play. "I pressed them to benefit Suna. The Hyuga has much they can offer."
"We're not sure why the Hyuga require a living space or why we should give it to them." The speaker bit out as politely as he could.
"I'm not sure if you are aware of Hyuga customs." Hinata continued dismissively. "We are protective of our secrets. The seal provides protection, even when it is out of the reach of the compound. Seeing as I am part of the main house and have stayed unbranded even in the marriage. I require protection."
"Does the Hyuga assume that Suna cannot protect you?" The speaker tried to back her into a corner.
"That's exactly what they think," Hinata answered. Kankuro flinched with the rest of the room. "As much as I may trust Suna's protection. The Hyuga have made a point to never trust anyone outside the clan for the protection of our secrets."
"So they want us to make them a place to live, so they can protect you?" The speaker was starting to lose his patients.
"If you read the documents, which I am sure you have, but maybe you just didn't make a note of it." Hinata opened the correct folder. "The Hyuga only ask for land to build themselves a small compound. Every member who comes to the new compound can be transferred to Suna-nin and will serve with the same dedication as Konoha." Hinata explained. "I found the medical facilities in Suna could use improvement compared to what Konoha has, even standard. I prompted them to offer their help in return for the inconvenience." Hinata nearly pulled her teeth out to get that approved.
The head of the council chewed on his tongue furtively. "How gracious."
"How did you stand for all that?" Kankuro rubbed his back. "I was sitting, and I'm sore." Kankuro was beyond tired, and at one point, she had had to address him just to keep him awake.
"I've had to stand through longer meetings than that," Hinata admitted.
"Ugh." Kankuro flopped comically onto the couch, making her giggle at his dramatics.