Quick note: Found a couple of mistakes in previous chapters so I updated and fixed them for clarity. If any more pop up feel free to leave a comment. I'll try and be more diligent in the future.
Anyway here's another chapter. Sorry for the wait. Enjoy!
Chapter 5 (Make You Feel My Love)
The mission is complete, neither of them suffer from injuries, and Akira is trying to balance with one foot on a fence beam when Gaara comes out of the informant's tavern and nods to her. They had arrived at the small town at dawn, having started their traveling again after dinner and only stopping when the night had reached its darkest to rest for a moment. Gaara had been quick to find the informant and as they start to travel back he wonders why it was a two-man mission.
That is until he sees tracks of them being followed and quickly signals to Akira who nods back. Gaara estimates around four people trailing them but Akira points out an extra track silently and they bring the count to five.
"So, I hear your brother wants to meet me?" The grin on her face is a cover as Gaara watches her hands as she signals the suggestions of a trap.
"Kankuro is interested in meeting someone who has become close to both Temari and I." He draws closer to her side and silently uncorks his gourd.
"Well I'll be glad to meet him, unless he's as weird as you two." She teases as she draws out those blue hued kunai and disperses them outward. The trap is almost set as they finally leave the small town completely.
The town is in a small clearing of trees just outside the Suna border and even now the trees are thin and sparse. They stop signaling about the trap as they venture away from it. Usually a mist would cover the ground but today with the bright sun overhead there is barely any cover. Akira glances at a tree and toys with the idea of her arm possibly being thicker than the trunk of it.
"Everything comes in threes." Gaara mutters more to himself as Akira whips to look at him with some surprise.
"That was in my book, I didn't think you actually read it." Another grin spreads across her face and she looks forward again before turning towards him again. She needs to pretend to be oblivious anyway she reasons and takes the chance to look away from the distance tree line.
Besides it's been a few nights since Gaara has started coming over to just read, and she likes the idea of teasing him about that particular book.
"I can't believe you read something with those scenes in it!" She's laughing now, full blown laughing, and Gaara stops to wait for her even as he listens and manages to keep a smile off his face. He's amused as she doubles over and must wipe at her eyes a bit, even as he fails to find some of the humor, he is pleased to know he helped cause this.
The trap is set, and in place, but it doesn't matter as Akira now stands, calmer, only to receive a senbon to the throat and collapse.
Gaara freezes for a moment, just a moment, before sand flies out and around.
They were right about the number of bandits as they come out weapons drawn, and Gaara spreads sand over Akira to protect her. He berates himself at not having done so sooner as senbon and kunai fly at him.
"Let's have some fun shall we?" Gaara grimaces at the voice and as he fights he feels the familiar rush of pleasure as sand wraps around one of the bandits. They are dead before they can even scream.
"Where's the fun if they don't scream?" Two of them fall together as one tries to sign a jutsu only to be swept away along with the other.
Water blasts him from behind and he grimaces again, he needs to focus on the fight. There's only three left and he's not even sure Akira is alive and-.
"LET ME HAVE MY FUN!" Shukaku screeches and Gaara, once more glancing at Akira on the ground unmoving, lets out a small puff of air. He gives in.
Shukaku's glee at his temporary release fills Gaara's senses and he almost grins from it all. He can imagine the carnage, the mayhem, the pain he could-would bring until he spies Akira out of the corner of his eye.
No.
He is stronger than this.
He has changed.
He is in control. He needs to be in control as Shukaku's sand makes quick work of the remaining ninja.
Akira is paralyzed but she is not unconscious and she watches as Gaara finds and kills all the mercenaries, and bandits surrounding them. Watches as his face contorts with anger, and some pleasure as he takes their lives and for a moment understands. Understands the fear directed at him, but as he stops and turns to her, and pulls out the senbon carefully and holds her she doesn't understand the hatred towards him. She can't understand how no one saw the difference.
Shukaku is the killer, the one who loved to hurt and destroy.
Gaara is just a boy, a boy with a soft heart who cares so deeply even for newly made friends as he looks at her pleadingly.
"Medicine right side of my pack. The needle." Akira has healed herself enough to answer but she still isn't sure what is running through her veins exactly. Gaara's fingers tremble a little as he uncaps the needle.
"Ok roll up my sleeve. In the vein. There." She pants as nausea rolls over her. Gaara nods and injects her and he doesn't have to wait long before the medicine kicks in and the paralysis wears off.
Gaara is still holding her and pulls Akira closer as she tries to push away, before shooting off from the ground. Her head starts to pound as he carries her away and she manages to get some words out to him as she tries to analyze what was going on with her body.
"Where are we going?"
"Somewhere safe for the night." Is all he says, and Akira lets herself relax a bit as she tries to heal herself and use the medicine to her advantage. She trusts Gaara even if she has no idea where he is heading even as she loses track of time from the pounding in her head.
Gaara hates how helpless he is and how quiet Akira is being as they race away. He knows of an inn close by, but away from the town they were just at. Akira is warm in his arms and he senses her charka spike occasionally, which helps calm his nerves.
Although, Shukaku's antics of wanting more bloodshed as he smashes against his cage walls doesn't help matters.
By the time Gaara finds the small inn, Akira is well enough to stand and checking in looks less suspicious. He sends a message to Baki and decides to stay put for the night when Akira's head starts to pound again.
"But the mission is done, we just need to get home I can-." She moves to stand and winces in pain and a glare from Gaara has her silent and laying back down on the single bed room. Others were available but seeing how they look like a couple, and that Gaara himself doesn't need rest, he had settled on the single bed hoping to be more inconspicuous.
Akira watches silently as Gaara paces the room, and mutters to himself. She tries to hear what he is saying but gives up after a particular throb makes her sight go blurry.
"How much rest do you need?" He asks quietly as she sighs.
"They injected me with a basic paralysis poison, the headaches are just my body's way of dealing with it since it was injected so close to it. The medicine and antidote I took should help relieve me of pain in a few hours. I just need to rest since I already used more charka than I should have to speed up the process." Gaara nods once and sits on the bed.
"I'm sorry I-."
"Don't be sorry I let my guard down too much." She shifts slightly and closes her eyes, "I'm more upset with myself than anything since we had the trap ready."
Gaara looks at her a moment and shifts. His chest is tight, and he wants to trust her considering she is the medic, but he almost lost her. This friendship is still new, but the nights with her so far have helped him so much, and he doesn't want to give up this new comfort. He doesn't want to lose her and maybe it's the concern that has his chest tight as looks at the ground.
"You are going to be ok correct?" He asks a tad hesitantly and Akira opens her eyes and smiles at him.
"I'll be fine. I'm going to get changed so I can rest easier. That and it took you a while to get us here." She gestures to the window and Gaara realizes nightfall is approaching.
"You're heavy." He states giving her a look as Akira chuckles.
"I doubt it. You're just slow. And it's your gourd that's incredibly heavy." Gaara tilts his head in question at that as Akira looks away her ears turning pink.
"I may have maybe tried to lift it one day while you were in the bathroom." She says before clearing her throat and shifting off the bed.
"Oh and before I forget, are you ok?" She asks as she looks at him scanning him over once and he feels the corner of his mouth twitch. He stops it though before he nods once.
"I'm fine." He lies and Akira's eyes narrow for a moment before she makes her way to the bathroom.
Shukaku has been nonstop since he had to protect Akira. Since he had to kill. Claws scratch and paw at his thoughts and he could feel himself slipping. Killing had been so damn easy like it used to be-.
He takes a wavering breath and clenches his fist. He needs to stop thinking like that, it is dangerous and reckless. Gaara reminds himself that he has changed, that he is different. He has his siblings, (traitors), his village (liars), to think of, to believe in. He rubs a hand over his face as the bathroom door opens and he glances up through his fingers at the door.
He has almost forgotten his newfound friend.
(Victim).
He needs to hold her, feel the warmth of blood beneath her skin, and he's taken aback by the thoughts, despite already moving towards the door.
Towards her.
Akira turns to smile at him as she pulls the towel away from her shoulders. She feels better having washed her face but stops when she sees Gaara's face.
And his yellow diamond eyes.
She moves as he stumbles past her and tries almost desperately not to touch her. Sand follows in his wake like a giant wave and she pauses to look down at it and as it closes the door before she can leave.
"Gaa- Shit!" She yells as sand blasts her against the door. It holds but her right shoulder now bleeds freely and Gaara freezes sand dispersing as he sinks to the floor.
He's hurt her. He's hurt the one of the only friends he has. He's losing control. Shukaku's laughter shakes him more than he cares to admit, and he watches as she looks at him with wide shocked eyes. How the hell can he be Kazekage if he hurts his friends? If he hurts the people closest to him? How can he gain the trust of the village if he can't keep his damn demon under-?
"There's still no fear." Shukaku growls suddenly, furious, and Gaara uses the amazement, the anger, from the realization to take back control.
Because he's better than those doubts that swim in his head. He's better than Shukaku and the person he used to be.
He's changed damn it.
Akira mutters something, but Gaara's stare is vacant as he reigns Shukaku back into his damned cage and presses it back into his subconscious. Even if he is changed it is too late. Akira will leave, and he refuses to look at her knowing Shukaku would be wrong. There would be fear and he would lose his only other friend. Because what he has done is different than simply yelling now and he doesn't deserve forgiveness.
"I'm sorry-" He starts to mumble. He wants to at least try and make things right, but instead Akira surprises him as she throws her arms around his neck where they now both kneel on the floor.
"I'm ok. I forgive you. It's ok." She mutters softly and gently against his shoulder, and he feels her fingers slid through his hair in calming strokes. She hugs him for a second longer before pulling back and showing her arm. Blood is still caked on it, but the wound is gone.
"See? I'm a medic remember? And I know Shukaku was just being an ass again. Just breath. I'm not going anywhere. I promise." Her voice is like velvet as though she can read his fears. Gaara doesn't realize he is shaking until he pulls her in for another hug. He mumbles another apology against her shoulder and she simply hugs him a bit tighter.
"I forgive you." She mutters and even though they have hugged before it feels like the first time. Her scent wavers over him and he clings to her warmth and how soft she feels against him. He swears he can feel his soul steady finally and as he peels away from her she tucks her shoulder under his arm. Together they finally move out of the bathroom and once he's sitting on the bed, she goes back to finish washing the blood off her arm.
Gaara and Akira sit on the bed shoulders touching and he feels more peace than he has at the start of the mission. When he glances at her though, he can see her mind working as she bites her lower lip. She shifts then and pushes her shirt down to reveal her shoulder as she points to a tiny thin white scar on her left shoulder.
"You see that?" She asks softly as he nods. "My brother gave me that scar when he shoved me through a glass door." Gaara's eyes widen and she chuckles.
"We were roughhousing, and he didn't realize how hard he shoved me until I went through the door. It was an accident, so I forgave him." She slides her shirt back into place and sighs. "This wasn't an accident. Shukaku wants me dead and I know that. But you need to start letting us help you." She looks him in the eyes and sees confusion in his mint colored stare.
"Us?" He asks gently tilting his head as Akira shrugs.
"You know. Temari, Kankuro, and me. I don't know what it's like having someone press on you to go back to things. To make you change back when you're fighting so hard to be better than you were. But I know talking helps." She shifts bringing a knee up on the bed to face him more as she reaches for his hand.
"When I first got my memories, I didn't want to talk about them and it made it worse. Talking about them helped me process what had happened to me. I'm not saying you have to open up and trust us completely, hell," She pauses as she looks up at his eyes with a smile that doesn't reach her eyes. "We just recently became friends. But if you need a distraction, if you need someone to talk to even if we don't understand completely…. We are here for you. Gaara your siblings love you. Let them love you." Her voice is soft again as he looks at her with wide surprised eyes and nods once. She grins at him then and shifts on the bed again, so they are once more shoulder to shoulder. She realizes then she still has his hand in hers but when she goes to let go Gaara entwines their fingers and leans his head on her shoulder.
The peace he felt before has seemingly multiplied when she has reminded him about his siblings. Ever since they had fixed their bond, Temari and Kankuro have been supportive and protective. He should have known this, it seems obvious now.
But having not been loved before, and feeling this now, he can't help but feel….
Everything?
Overwhelmed?
Hell, he doesn't even really know what to call this.
"How do you cope? With all these feelings all the time?" He asks quietly as Akira blinks having frozen out of shock when his head touched her shoulder.
"Well it depends on what you're feeling, but normally you just breath and go with the strongest one." She says though her tongue feels fat in her mouth and she clears her throat.
"Let's lay down and I'll help distract you for a while." She tilts her head to catch a sight of Gaara's face who turns to give her a look. She feels her face heat up as she blinks and mockingly glares at him.
"You know exactly what I mean you pervert." She hisses despite the smile on her face as Gaara shakes his head amused and sits up.
Akira curls up under the covers and Gaara lays next to her on top of them. She leans her head against his shoulder and tells him of her brother when they were kids. Of the adventures, and misadventures, they went on, and the times they accidentally hurt each other. She takes his mind off what happened with Shukaku and later when she yawns and falls asleep he thinks of her stories. Of the protective brother he hasn't meet yet, and how he wishes he and his own siblings had a better childhood.
Baki glares at the two teens in front of him and sighs deeply. After Akira had rested, and her injuries were healed enough for them to continue, her and Gaara had raced back to the village. He had wanted this mission done sooner thus leading him to send two insomniacs instead of regular ninja. Instead he has an injured medic and a boy who should have protected his teammate better.
"And after the bandits attacked?" He asks scanning the report and Gaara opens his mouth to speak when Baki gives him a look. Gaara's mouth closes when he sees it and glances at Akira who swallows.
"Gaara took care of them sir." Is all she says and is all she was going to say until Baki looks between the two of them and waves Gaara out.
He leans forward arms resting on his desk and stares at Akira. She fights off a shiver at the soul piercing gaze as his voice lowers.
"Was there any sign of control being lost?" He asks and Akira knows he doesn't mean control loss of the situation.
"No control was lost today sir." She lies and meets his gaze willing him to believe her as Baki glances her over once more before dismissing her.
Baki turns to watch out the window as the former Konoha shinobi leaves and he takes a minute to blink making sure he isn't hallucinating when he sees Gaara waiting for her.
He stares with his mouth slightly ajar in a comical fashion as the two walks away. He had heard the rumors, had saw them nod to each other in acknowledgement the other day but this?
Baki turns away and mutters to himself about paperwork and being overworked as he shakes away ideas of the new Suna couple.
-End- Song Choice: Make You Feel My Love by Adele was more for after he lost control of Shukaku and for the scene of them simply lying in bed. I like to think of the song as Gaara still being unsure deep down of Akira's want to help him until she hugs him and tries like hell to be understanding. But if you want for the beginning I had Natural by Imagine Dragons for the fighting. (Also that is a foreshadow, they are not a couple, just a village rumor for clarification.)
Well I hope you enjoyed it. Until next time!
