Chapter 342: Supplicate

v. to seek or ask for by humble entreaty.

Disclaimer: I do not own that which belongs to another.

Gaara was determined to do what it took to help Kagome. It was unfortunate that the one thing that would help Kagome required utilizing the skills he felt he lacked the most.

Despite his resolve, it took many weeks and more than a few missed opportunities before Gaara was able to approach Kagome. With twisting gut and hammering heart Gaara shyly made eye contact with a curious Kagome who had glanced up from her calligraphy at the kotatsu table.

Gaara could see the question in her eye, and subtly gulped shoring up the needed resolve to broach the sensitive topic of emotions.

"Kagome…" Gaara started his voice weak and soft. He had hoped that simply starting talking would help the right words come to him, but this tactic utterly failed.

Kagome tilted her head, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips that drew Gaara's eyes and stalled his mind further. Uncharacteristically Gaara moistened his lips and pulled his eyes back to Kagome's eyes. Talking was not his strength, even as a Kazekage he relied more on silence and actions to lead his people, but Kagome needed more than that.

"You must have questions; you may ask them."

"Since I jumped into the well and came back out, how long was it for you?"

"Five years."

"What happened with Konoha, after the exams?"

"We became allies once it was discovered we shared an enemy."

"Who was the enemy?"

"Orochimaru."

"Where has Kankuro been the last few days?"

"A mission, he is in charge of a new division, this is their first mission."

"Where…" Kagome breathed in deeply, her words faltering before asking the question she was most afraid to hear the answer to, "where is Temari?"

"Konoha."

"Oh! Does she live there now?"

"Part of the time. Her fiancé is from Konoha."

"Awe! How did they meet?"

"At our first Chuunin Exam."

Kagome giggled softly as she moved to sit next to Gaara, her head resting on Gaara's shoulder. Her breathing was soft and steady as the many questions that had been circling her brain for the last month finally found an outlet. The kotatsu was warm and the relaxing legato of Gaara's voice swept over her. Before long, her eyes drifted closed, Gaara's concise words flowed over her, washing away the vestiges of anxiety that still clung in her mind, and pulling her into a dreamless sleep.

Gaara's words dropped off as Kagome's breath puffed against his sand covered neck. Scared to move and awaken the slumbering girl he tried to catch a glimpse of Kagome from the corners of his eyes. Kagome seemed heavier as she slept, fully relaxing into Gaara with her arms hugging his left arm tightly to her.

Curiosity thrummed through Gaara as his eyes locked onto where Kagome's hands rested on his forearm, his attention caught on that point of contact.

What must another person's skin feel like? Wondered Gaara, his lower lip catching in his teeth, eyes carefully tracing Kagome's knuckles and fingers.

Glancing around, Gaara cast his awareness out, seeking nearby nins. Finding none, Gaara deliberately peeled away his suit of sand, taking care to remove all the sand from his left forearm. A small sphere of sand hovered in the air before Gaara turned his attention back towards Kagome's hands.

Like everything else about Kagome, her skin was warm and soft, although a few rough callouses brushed against his skin sent a shock across his nerves. The feeling of skin on skin sent a shiver sweeping through his body, bumps raised visibly where the sand had been stripped away.

Hours based by while Gaara alternately contemplated Kagome's hands and the decision to move her somewhere more comfortable. While stuck in this stalemate Kagome stirred with a sleepy huff. Her arms tightened around his arm before she removed them. Gaara barely registered a feeling of loss before he reached out to steady a wobbling Kagome.

"Hi," whispered Kagome, her eyes at half-mast as she looked directly into Gaara's dazed teal eyes. Gaara felt the now familiar tangling of his tongue, the words stuck behind his teeth. Kagome stretched, her back cracked along her spine, before she leant forward to prop her head up with her elbow on the kotatsu, eyes unwavering from Gaara's own.

"Gaara, can I ask one other question?" murmured Kagome, nervously biting the inside of her cheek as her eyes roamed across Gaara's face. Feeling the words still stuck, Gaara nodded his consent.

"What happened to Shukaku-sama?" Kagome's eyebrows drew down in concern. Gaara opened his mouth, contemplating what question Kagome was asking.

"Shukaku got better after you left. The threats ended and he would actively help me protect the village."

"But… where is he?"

"He was extracted from me about 2 years ago."

"How?" gasped Kagome.

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