Summary: Gaara has got his heart broken, but can he love again? Can she mend his heart, while mending her own? Gaara X OC. Set before Chuunin exam.

Author's note: I know it's weird to set it before the chuunin exam, I have a reason for it. First time doing fanfic so I don't expect very good reviews. I try to keep the characters real and true to their personalitites, and I don't bother saying that "I don't own Naruto" because if I did, I would make more scenes on Gaara. D

Hurting

Everything was covered in red.

No one was moving.

Her kimono and hands were stained.

Fearful eyes darted around the area.

She watched Enzeru reach out.

"Okaasan..." She whispered, tears flowing.

Enzeru stared at her with hatred in her eyes.

"Houseki...

...Bakemono!"

-

Seki Raion looked out at the endless desert, her element blowing and scattering more and more sand on her clothes and hair. Said Genin ran her fingers through her cropped brown hair with orange highlights and walked a few meters before stopping again, this cycle continuing on for the next hour.

Chikushou! Where the hell is Sunagakure?!

Her ruby eyes scanned the dusty area, frowned slightly, and then she tried to brush off the white grains off her sleeveless polo t-shirt – the same color as her highlights – and her black ¾ pants, that hit her fishnet covered legs due to the strong wind. The left leg of her pants was adorned with an orange cat design and on the right was a strapped on kunai holster. Swinging her right arm over her shoulder, Seki reached for her bottle and finished the last drops of water with a groan. After throwing it back into the black sling bag she always carried, Seki set a determined look on her gentle features.

Come on Seki! You can see sand now, Sunagakure shouldn't be too far.

The Land of the Wind is nearly, completely covered with sand.

Shut up, who are you?

I'm a voice in your head, just trying to keep you sane.

I'm sane as it is, baka.

Oh right, I wouldn't want you insane.

BAKA! That's crossing the damn line...

I see people.

Seki snapped out of her reverie and looked ahead. Indeed, there was some form of human life up ahead, three, to be exact, the shortest one had particularly red flaming hair that made it easy for her to see. Seki squinted harder to see where they were going, just making out the gates of, thank heavens, Sunagakure.

Yosh! I found it!

Seki thought estactically, adrenaline pumping in her veins. She started to walk towards the Hidden Sand Village, ignoring the increasing amount of sand in her worn, traditional sandals. Seki's walk turned into a jog, then she was running, until finally she was practically sprinting towards the entrance gates of her uncle's home.

-

"I see someone coming," Kankurou noted as Temari showed the Sunagakure's entrance gate guards their passports. Temari turned to where her brother was pointing.

"Aa, it looks like a girl."

"No way, look at the short hair. It's a guy."

"Girls can have short hair."

"That's too short for a girl."

"Guys," Gaara interrupted softly, but cold nonetheless. Temari and Kankurou stopped talking. Gaara turned his teal eyes towards the fast approaching stranger, "I don't think she's going to be able to stop..."

The three sand siblings watched as the girl came closer and closer. Maybe it was the heat, the sand, or even her's exhausted mind, but Gaara predicted correctly and soon she came too close, too fast. So fast that she activated her wind shield half a second before she crashed into Gaara, who was closest to her...

...Just as the sand shield activated itself, to protect Gaara.

With a loud BOOM, the impact threw both teenagers almost 10 meters away from their original spot. Temari and Kankurou rushed to Gaara's side, while the entrance guards rushed to stranger's. Temari offered to help Gaara up, but the sand pushed him on its own accord. Gaara regained his normal breathing rate and slowly looked up at the cause of the impact. The brown headed girl gave the guards a reassuring wave and supported her arms on her knees. Then, she too looked up at Gaara after her heart rate dropped to normal.

-

"That was amazing. Her shield was able to overpower Gaara's."

"But, she was also thrown back," Temari said quickly as Gaara glared at Kankurou. Kankurou nodded his head and looked to the side, while Temari took the innitiative and walked up the new girl.

Seki watched the blonde haired girl stroll towards her, taking a mental note about her appearance as she tried to catch her breath. Her blonde hair was tied into four spiky ponytails and she was taller than Seki. She wore a white outfit with a red sashe around her waist that strapped a large fan behind her back. Fishnets covered her shoulders, right thigh and left lower leg, and Seki could see the forehead protector around her neck. She grinned as she saw the inscribed sand timer – the symbol for Sunagakure's shinobis – and stood up straighter as the blonde girl arrived in front of her.

"You're a Sand shinobi too?" Temari asked, refering to the forehead protector the stranger wore on her neck as well. Nodding, she thrust her hand forward and introduced herself.

"Hai. I'm Seki Raion, I live outside of the village, but came here a couple of years ago to take the academy exam."

"I see. I'm Temari. Those are my brothers, the one with the face paint is Kankurou, and the one with red hair is Gaara," Temari shook Seki's hand and gestured towards the two guys who were heading this way. Seki nodded slightly, scrutinizing every detail about the approaching teenage boys. Kankurou wore black all over, with a red and yellow circular symbol on the front. He carried on his back something that looked like a bandaged dummy, and had a headress that made him look like he had cat ears. Although it looked weird, the red head was the one that had drawn Seki's attention. Other than his flaming red hair, he had a red kanji 'Love' tattoo on the left of his forehead. He wore black as well, with fishnets revealing itself at his sleeves and neck line. He also had a white sash that went over a brown strap that helped him carry his gourd. Seki watched him walk up to her with an intense look in his eyes. His eyes, unlike his siblings, were teal coloured rather than black. It also had dark outlines that showed his lack of sleep, with the exception of Kankurou. Temari waited for the two before facing the guards that had been standing there, looking rather out.

"You two! Tell the Kazekage about this. He'll need to know there'll be an extra member of Sunagakure."

"Hai, Temari-sama," the two guards disappeared and Temari placed a hand on Seki's back to lead her in. Seki stared at Temari, "Wait, are you sure I can... How do you know I'll be staying?"

"Well, you did run all the way here, nearly knocking down Gaara..."

"She did, knock him down," Kankurou interrupted, earning yet another glare from Gaara, this time it looked almost murderous. Kankurou tried to hold his stare, but Seki could see the fear in his eyes. Seki blinked, feeling the animosity between the two boys while Temari tried to calm Gaara down. Seeing as it was futile, Seki made her own attempt to ease the tension.

"Erm, gomenasai, Gaara-sama. I didn't mean to do it."

Gaara whipped his head around and faced her, glaring with as much hatred as he could to a stranger. Seki didn't jump or shiver, instead she felt curious at what she saw in his eyes. It was, confusing. Gaara finally turned his back on her and said coldly, "I'm going for a walk."

"Ah, but Gaara..."

Gaara sent Temari a death glare, cutting her sentence short. He closed his eyes and soon disappeared in a whirl of sand. Silence ensued and Seki frowned at the spot she last saw Gaara. There was something about him that was so mysterious and, intimidating. She wondered what had happened in his past that made Temari and Kankurou fear him this badly. The two seemed to be the older siblings. Seki shook her head fiercely.

Its none of my business. Its their private matters, I suppose. I shouldn't pry.

But you so want to, right?

Righ... HEY?! What are you, coming here and putting words in my mouth?!

I believe I said something about 'voice' and 'head'.

Chikushou, just what I need, an annoying perky voice to tell me what to do.

I'll take that as a compliment.

"Seki-chan?" Temari's voice cut through Seki's thoughts. Seki looked at Temari shyly, apologizing for her behavior. Temari giggled and patted her shoulder.

"It's alright. I was just saying I know your uncle who lives here, Keimyou Raion. I assume you're here to see him?"

"Well, yes. Since you said I have permission to live here, I'm hoping to stay with him."

"Aa, well, if he doesn't let you, you're welcome in ours."

"Temari..." Kankurou warned. Seki looked at them, puzzled. Temari looked as if realization just hit her and bit her lip. Kankurou shook his head and muttered something about a 'karasu' before disappearing in thin air. The two girls continued their route to Keimyou's home, Temari still looking nervous.

"Ne, Temari-chan, thanks but I'm sure my uncle will let me. We're quite close."

"Oh, Hai," she replied, relieved.

-

Gaara... He doesn't seem too fond of strangers... Seki thought to herself, recalling his cold and distant gaze at her when she first met him. She also thought about his sand shield. Usually, her wind shield would cushion any impact Seki had so that it could feel like a mere tap on the back. However, this was the first time the shield backfired. Had it not been the soft sand, Seki could have gotten injured.

His sand was strong, not to mention he didn't look like he felt anything at all.

Seki frowned once again, oblivious to the fact that they had finally arrived at Keimyou's home. Seki's eyes widened as she saw Keimyou opening the door to throw some rubbish.

"Keimyou-san!" Keimyou's head snapped up at the familiar voice and Temari noticed the worried expression that crossed his face for a moment, before it burst into joy at the sight of his niece.

"Seki-chan! What a surprise! What are you doing here?"

"What, can't a girl visit her favorite uncle and sensei?"

"Sensei?" Temari inquired. Seki nodded and got out of the embrace she was in to explain, "Keimyou-san was my sensei, who trained me well enough to pass the academy exam when I was 10. After that, he opted to stay here, in Sunagakure," Keimyou nodded and thanked Temari for escorting Seki.

"Arigato, Temari-chan. You have a good night, tonight."

"Hai, Keimyou-san," Temari replied, smiling. She liked Keimyou for one reason, he understood Gaara's predicament and was probably the only one who didn't think he was a bakemono. If only Gaara would believe her...

"Arigato Temari-chan, for bringing me here!" Seki exclaimed happily, before she and her uncle went inside. Temari smiled, and turned to go home. A small frown showed on her face, revealing the confusion she felt when she saw Keimyou's worried look.

-

p.s. Seki is short for Houseki, or Jewel. D