Missing Kita

A story by Songstone

Songstone: I had this idea in my head a few hours ago, and decided to write it out. It's a little sad, maybe more to certain people like me, but anyway, I hope that you'll enjoy the read anyway.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

The tears were hot and thick as they slid down the side of Deidara's face, leaving their trail against his dust covered skin. He hiccuped and swiped at his eyes with the back of his hand, lip quivering while he tried to keep the rest of his tears back.

"Are you okay? Should I go ahead and...?" A soft, concerned voice lifted into the air somewhere behind where the blond sat.

Sniffling and nodding his head slowly, Deidara pushed himself up from the lip of the hole in the ground and turned around, facing his long time boyfriend fully and trying to put up a tough front even if it was blatantly clear he had been crying. "Yeah...go ahead Sasori, un..." He said softly.

The redhead he had addressed gave a small dip of the head and hefted the shovel he carried on his shoulder forward. He stepped carefully around Deidara and planted himself in front of the hole that the blond had dug. He peered down into it one last time, curious.

Kita was the name of the old calico cat that Sasori was about to bury in Deidara's backyard. She lay inside of a box that his boyfriend had written the words 'we'll miss you' on and sealed tightly shut.

It was true that Sasori never liked Deidara's cats; not only was he allergic to them, but they weren't very social creatures towards him. He often left his boyfriend's country home with scratches decorating his hands and face.

But even if he didn't care for the animals, he never wished for any of them to die. Deidara had built strong bonds with all of the animals he rescued, including the cats. So when the blond had found that one of the older felines had died in the nighttime at his feet, it had broken his heart. Sasori never would have wished that kind of emotional pain on anyone.

Sighing, the redhead pushed the end of the shovel into the pile of dirt by the small grave and gave it a light toss into the hole. As soon as the earth hit against the top of the box that the cat lay in, the redhead heard his boyfriend release a soft sob behind him.

He tried to finish this task as quickly as he was able, not wanting to prolong the event, but still, it was no use and Deidara ended up seated back in the grass, weeping. This time he had his legs brought all the way up to his chest as he hugged his knees and hid his face.

A couple of the rescued dogs that the blond kept came bounding over towards the scene at just that instant; Sasori shooed them away from the grave with the shovel as they began to eye it curiously, and they both ended up besides their master, sniffing at his long blond hair.

The Rottweiler, Aki by name, made a light groaning sort of sound from the back of his throat at the state his master was in, and pushed his nose as far as he could through the curtain of Deidara's hair. The German Shepherd, Kei, stayed by the blond's other side, licking at one of his hands and apparently trying to calm him.

"Mmph..." The blond lifted his head slowly at the invasion and glanced up at Aki with swolled, bloodshot blue eyes. He sniffled a bit and then placed his palm flat against the large dog's head, petting him soothingly. He did the same to Kei, scratching behind her ears softly.

Sasori marvelled at the sight while he patted the ground one more time with the shovel now that the hole was filled. Deidara had a way with animals unlike anything he had ever seen before. He had two supposedly fierce dogs at his side, licking at his face and trying to cheer their master up. The redhead had to give a small smile at that.

"Good boy...good girl, un." Deidara cooed quietly to both of his pets while he allowed them to lick at his cheeks and hands for a little while longer. When he had had enough of their 'kisses,' he kissed the tops of both their heads in return and then heaved himself to his feet, dusting off his backside. He glanced towards Sasori, catching his gaze before he looked down to the completed grave. His eyes teared up again.

"Shh..." Sasori hushed him gently. He set his shovel down and walked back towards his lover, pulling him into a tight embrace while he petted his hair and rubbed his back comfortingly. "It's okay. I know it's hard, but it'll be okay."

"I--I know..." The blond sniffled, sobbing directly into Sasori's shoulder. "But I'll just m-m-miss her, un..." The dogs were at his heels now, both looking up at him worriedly and waiting for their turn to comfort their owner.

"Shh...shh..." Sasori just continued to shush the blond quietly, keeping a firm hold on him while Deidara all but clung to him and wet his shirt as he continued to cry. Sasori didn't mind. He knew how hard it was for Deidara to lose an animal. The redhead had already burried five other animals for his lover and had to go through this same process before.

It was hard for the blond now, to have lost a close companion and friend, but Sasori knew that Deidara would recover soon. The blond had eight other cats, eleven dogs, six birds, three horses, a donkey, and one baby monkey that he had to take care of. He couldn't afford to mope for too long when he had the rest of his family needing his attention.

Maybe that was what Deidara needed, though. He needed to have the animals around him for comfort. They all loved him, loved being around him; they all loved being around the person who had rescued them either from being put to sleep or being sold to some sort of slaughter house.

Plus, Deidara would have Sasori there with him everyday. He would be his shoulder to cry on, and the redhead didn't mind that at all.

- - -

However, two days later, Sasori simply couldn't stand to see his boyfriend so depressed. So he went out and (even if he was allergic) bought Deidara a small calico kitten, presenting him to the blond as an early Christmas present.

And for Sasori, seeing Deidara happy and crying tears of joy as he played with his new kitten was worth every sneeze he suffered.

Songstone: I'm such a softie when it comes to animals, so this was kind of hard to write for. But I hope that I've done a decent job and that you guys liked it. Also, in case you're wondering 'why so many animals?', it's because of an AU in which Deidara owns a farm just to take care of unwanted animals that he rescues. I thought it was cute. Please let me know what you thought! R&R please.