A/N:

Hello,

This story has been running around in my head and wouldn't stop bugging me. So here it is, my first fic. Hope you enjoy it. ;)

Warning: This is a maleXmale fic. It is rated M for language, and adult themes. This is an AU fic, and characters are mostly OOC.

Neji X Gaara

Sasuke X Naruto

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, nor will I in the foreseeable future.

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A Breath in the Dark

Gardening and Reflections

Gaara's POV

The sky was crying again, I muse. I look at the open expanse of upturned earth that Temari, my sister (at least that's what the court papers state, but I have my suspicions…) gleefully calls a garden, and can't stop the automatic glare that overtakes my features every time I look at the damn plot of weeds. When we first arrived in Konoha, Temari had been thrilled to finally be able to plant her own garden, and had by pain of torture, dragged me and Kankuro along. Her precious patch of undergrowth which contained nothing more than shrubs and twigs, at least it seemed that way to me, had taken an entire day to clear and plant. By night-fall the slave driver, also known as my sister, had finally, and might I add grudgingly, let us go for the day. The fact that her favorite show was coming on at eight had nothing to do with it. Yeah right.

Once Temari lets us leave, Kankuro, my older brother (whom I also have my suspicions about) calls first dibs on the bathroom. He hurriedly makes his way to the shower before Temari decides she needs something else done. Being the only girl had gotten her own bathroom, conveniently in her room, which happened to be the largest bedroom in the house. The fact that she has a temper that packs a punch (literally) didn't hurt her claim on said room. Kankuro and I are quite fond of our limbs and would like keep them in one piece so we didn't challenge her claim; we were quite content with the remaining two choices.

Aching and sore, I grudgingly make my way up to my room all the while cursing Temari and her stupid obsession with plants. Once inside I carelessly let my body drop onto my bed face-first. I'm fine with the shower arrangements since I'm still too tired to even contemplate moving. Every muscle in my body aches; even one's I previously didn't know I had until they made their presence know with a dull ache. Damn it. I am Sabaku no Garra, I am not a damn gardener, and I can still feel Temari's response after informing her of my thoughts on the subject quite loudly and vehemently.

My side still hurts from the gardening shovel she used to smack me with. It's not like it was a large shovel or anything, in fact, it was quite small, but it was still made of goddamn METAL, and Temari was never one to show her siblings mercy once we talked back to her. I only hope I don't wake up with a bruise tomorrow morning.

I can't really hold a grudge against her since she always wanted a garden, something that was near impossible back in Suna. Growing up in the desert was not the best place to grow a garden. It was much too harsh and dry to allow the plants, she so desperately wanted, to thrive. When we had moved from Suna, after our father's death, she had made all the necessary arrangements which allowed us to stay together, and move to a new place to start over. Of course, the immense amount of money we inherited from our father did help speed things up. It was also the main reason we were not separated. Politics did have its perks, and Father had been a well-known politician back in Suna. Money had never been a problem; it was everything else that was an obstacle.

Father was a loving and caring man, who had the daunting task of taking care of 3 teenagers without the benefit of a mother. The mother had died when the youngest of his children had been born, but he valiantly struggled on for his children sake and raised them by himself to the best of his ability—at least that's what the narration given in the background of one of Father's campaign commercials had stated. The first time I saw it on TV I had almost choked on my soda. It had taken ten long minutes for my laughter to subside. It was one of those rare moments that I can remember feeling real mirth. Please. The only caring thing he ever did for us was leave us money on the table for take-out, since he was rarely home—the one real blessing we had; at least for me.

Kankuro had just turned 18 when Father died in a car accident, and Temari was 17, while I was barely 16. Our father's lawyer had helped us stay together, and if it hadn't been for him the courts would never have given Kankuro custody of both Temari and I—although Temari is the one in charge behind the scenes. We were really grateful to the lawyer, even though he only took our case because of the boost in his image and the free press he received. He was planning on running for some government office come this fall, so our case was just a pre-election press before the real campaigning started; but we we're still grateful.

We moved to Konoha about a week ago. The two-story house that Temari found on the market contained 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms (2nd story), a medium sized kitchen that opened into a fair sized dining room, and a large living room (1st story). Although it was nothing compared to the mansion we used to live in, we were all content. The house felt like a real home.

It's the middle of summer and we have yet to do much exploring, not that I want to anyways. School will start in less than a month and we all need to do some back-to-school shopping, which I'm dreading. I hate shopping, but I know Temari will drag me along.

I sigh in defeat at the inevitable.

Across the hall I hear Kankuro heading back to his room. I follow his progress with my ear until I hear him stop all movement at my door.

He casually knocks on my door before opening it without permission, and pops his head in my room.

"The shower's free, Squirt. Better get in their before Temari yells at you to come eat dinner."

I turn my head around to face him and give him my what-the-fuck-did-I tell-you-about-calling-me-that glare. He just chuckles and heads towards his room leaving me staring at the now opened door. I get up with a groan and walk across the room to close it with an audible thump before heading towards my dresser to get my clothes. Clothes in tow, I make my way to my door, which swings open just as I'm about to reach for the handle. Needless to say, I'm sent tumbling to the ground clothes and all.

"What the fuck!" I yell.

"Gaara, what have I told you about your language."

Temari walks in and gently helps me up. I glare at her the entire time. She notices but doesn't say a word. She doesn't want to start an argument.

"Dinner will be ready in half an hour, I ordered Chinese", she says with a smile, and walks out letting the door shut behind her as she leaves.

'I really need to get a lock for that door'.

I hear the retreating footsteps and let out a sigh. Since leaving Suna she and Kankuro have been trying too make this a real home for me. They want to give me the normal childhood I never had back in Suna. I know they feel bad about what happened to me back there, for all the times I silently suffered behind close doors. This is their way of saying they we're sorry for not saving me from Father—not that they could have done anything anyways. I know they're trying their best, but I can't just magically become the loving brother they wish for, not after the years Father spent trying to break me.

He forbade me to call him anything else other than Father, formal enough for his politician mind-set, yet distant enough to demonstrate the gaping hole between father and son. Old habits die hard and I have yet to rid myself of this one.

Father had always hated me, and had made it clear to both my siblings how he felt about me. The murderer who had killed his beloved wife. Temari and Kankuro were always weary of leaving me alone at home while he was there. Even when we were young, our father was rarely home, and the three of us had to stick together, since we had no servants. Father did not want a gossiping servant to go to the press and ruin the carefully cultivated image he had constructed for himself.

As soon as Temari and Kankuro were old enough they were sent off to different boarding schools; thus, leaving me to Father's own devices. Of course, Temari and Kankuro were not aware of all the grief I went through. When asked how things were at home, during the few occasions that Temari and Kankuro were allowed to visit or call, I would simply say that everything was fine. That was far from the truth.

When I was old enough to enter boarding school, Father decided to hire a private tutor to teach me at home. He wanted to keep me away from people in order to 'protect others from my evil ways'. I was not naïve enough to believe his lies; I knew he kept me close by to better make my existence a living hell.

I was taught at home by the tutor during the day, and was even allowed a physical activity during the afternoon.

Father never did inquire what I chose to do; otherwise he would have forbidden me from pursuing my one joy in a life of suffering. Unbeknownst to him, it was this activity that actually saved me from just giving up. I learned how to channel my emotional frustration and at the same time create something beautiful. It was the only beauty in my life and the more precious to me since I alone created it.

However, in the evening when Father returned from work he would throw me in the basement and leave me there without dinner—often over the weekends. Sometimes when Father was particularly mad, he would throw me in a steel-box cell barely big enough to allow my slight body through, and leave me in the dark basement for hours. No amount of screaming would sway him.

I would scream until my voice was hoarse and ragged. Thanks to this treatment, the dark became both a consolation and torture for me. The dark of the basement was one of the few respites I had from Father's treatment of me; however, it also left me to my own thoughts. I hated my thoughts, I hated myself, and I hated the enclosed space I was left in. This I think was the pinnacle of my hate—I did not wish to be alone in that enclosed space, but during those years of torment I was forever alone.

The few instances that Temari and Kankuro found out about his treatment of me were enough to have Temari screaming with tear-filled eyes at my father, while Kankuro went after him physically. The fights they got into were never serious enough to warrant a hospital visit (something I am forever grateful for), but they were still pretty bad since Father was older and stronger than Kankuro.

The first time they found me in The Cell I was 12 years old. Father had allowed Temari and Kankuro to come down for the holidays, and it was on one of these rare occasions that it happened.

Flashback

"We're home!" The eldest sand sibling yelled to the empty parlor.

"Idiot. What if he was sleeping? You probably woke him up with your shouting," hissed the female sand sibling while smacking her idiot brother over the head.

"It's barely midnight, he's still awake," Kankuro explained with an air of confidence, while rubbing his head. Temari sure knew how to smack people that annoyed her, he thought.

"He's probably looking for a club to bash your head in—if he was asleep," Temari said with an evil smirk.

"He wouldn't…," he weakly protested. All trace of his earlier confidence drained from his voice, while his eyes began to dart back and forth through the dark corridors that surround the parlor. Unwelcome images of his little brother, club in hand, wormed their way into his thoughts.

After a minute of silence Temari became concerned, the house was just too quiet. "Where IS everyone?"

Kankuro raised and dropped his shoulders, silently stating he had no idea. The two sand siblings made their way deeper into the mansion, and were soon rewarded. Classical music could be heard coming in the direction of their father's study. They looked at each other and silently agreed to pay homage to their father before searching for their younger brother.

They crossed the kitchen but were stopped by a distant scream.

"What the fuck was that!" Kankuro asked; his heart beat erratic.

"I don't know—" Temari was cut-off as another distant but terrified scream was heard.

"I think it's coming from the basement," Temari continued in a shaken voice.

The two siblings made their way to the basement and hesitantly peered into the dark interior.

"Hello…" Temari timidly called out.

Both siblings lingered at the top of the stairs awaiting a response. After a minute of straining their ears, they heard a hesitant weak reply.

"Te-ma-ri …?" The stranger's voice stuttered out before being engulfed by a fit of violent coughing.

"Oh MY GOD! It's GAARA" Temari shrieked as soon as she recognized the voice in the dark.

Without a second thought she ventured into the dark interior of the basement and franticly searched for her younger brother. Meanwhile, Kankuro anxiously searched for the light switch, but his nerves were slowing his progress.

"GAARA WHERE ARE YOU?" Temari yelled hysterically unable to locate her little brother in the enormous basement.

She heard a rustling of clothing to her left and sprinted in the direction of the noise only to be met with cold steel.

"GAARA! GAARA! WHERE ARE YOU!"

Another brutal episode of coughing was her only reply.

Desperately trying to hold back her tears, she concentrated on finding an entrance in order to reach her little brother, but the box-like metal was solid.

Back at the top of the stairs, Kankuro was having better luck; he had finally found the light switch and quickly flipped it.

Bathed in light, Temari now noticed that the metal box which had prevented her from getting to her little brother was actually a metal cell. It was solid except for a few air holes scattered here and there. The front, at least what she assumed to be the front, of the cell had a large metal lock. From inside she heard her little brother whimpering, having recovered from his coughing fit before Kankuro turned on the light.

From the stairs Kankuro was able to see the cell in the middle of the basement, so out of place compared to the tools and other accessories that lined the dank walls. From his view the cell was solid, the only indication that his little brother was indeed inside it was the occasional whimpering that Gaara hopelessly tried to hold back.

Seeing her panic-stricken baby brother in that horrible metal cell was too much for Temari. The tears she had so valiantly tried to hold back came rushing uncontrollably down her face.

Using a wrench, located a few feet away, Temari frantically tried to break the metal lock holding her little brother captive.

"SHIT." Kankuro hissed as he watched the scene below him unfold itself.

He rushed down the stairs and ran to his sister. Desperately trying to calm her down he wrapped his arms around her; all the while whispering to her—

"Shhh…"

"It's okay."

"We're going to get him out of there."

"Calm down Temari"

"Shhh…"

"You need to be brave for him"

"Here give me this, you know you can't break that metal lock with this" As he said this, he gently took the wrench from her hand.

"I'm going to get the key to unlock the cell; you stay here and try to calm him down, okay." He looked his sister in the eyes and once he was sure she would be okay he hugged her tightly before letting her go—with that he ran for the study knowing full well who had locked his little brother in that abomination.

End Flashback

He had purchased it just for me, or so he told me the first time he locked me in The Cell at age six. Temari and Kankuro had never found out about it 'til then because they were never home when father would place me in there.

On this occasion, I had broken a vase while trying to get away from his rage, and he was more than happy to lock me in that metal prison—he knew how much I hated it. He threw me in the basement—which he designated as my real room—and put me in The Cell. I had been screaming for about an hour before my brother and sister found me down there.

Temari had freaked and tried to get me out, but it was nearly impossible without the key. Kankuro had gone after Father and started yelling at him to let me out. I barely remember what happened after that since I started to have a panic attack. The next thing I remember I was in Temari's room. Kankuro had her in a fierce hug trying to calm her down. She was shaking uncontrollably and crying profusely.

There were a few more incidents after that but they were all pretty much the same. My siblings would find me in the basement and would freak. I would have a panic attack and black out. I always ended up in Temari's room. At least they didn't know about the beatings, or that one attempt on my life, I didn't want to cause them unnecessary suffering since they could do nothing to stop the beast who called himself our Father.

For years, Father degraded me and repeatedly told me how worthless I was in many different forms. He would beat me, but only in places that were not visible and could be easily covered up by clothing. Father was many things but he was not stupid. Evidence of his abuse could be turned into the police and even though they couldn't pin anything on him (that's why he had such an expensive lawyer), the tarnish it would make to his image would be irrevocable. So, I grew up with little to no social skills and an innate conception of my insignificance. Years of silent torture cannot be ended in such a short amount of time; but neither can I deny my brother and sister's obvious attempts to give me what I never had as a child—normalcy.

As I proceed to take my shower my thoughts once again linger toward my siblings. If I want my brother and sister to be less concerned over me, then there's really no choice but to act less eerie and frightening—at least in front of them.

Maybe less glares—that sounds about right. I could even try to be more brotherly towards them, try being the operative word.

I get out of the shower and dry myself out. I change quickly and go downstairs before Kankuro eats my portion of Chinese food—he's sneaky that way. I look at the calendar as I pass by and see the date Temari has circled in black marker. A couple more weeks left before we start school I notice. How wonderful.

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So, there it is; I hope it was okay. I already know what I want to do with this story and how the fic will end, I just need to write it. I would rather not try to write a summary since I prefer to surpsrise the reader. There is a plot just stick with me a little. I will try to update at least once a week, seeing as I have to go back to school in a couple of days.

I'm already working on the next chapter, which describes the trio's first day of school, and new characters will be introduced.

Reviews are appreciated. Thanks.