...

06.
eleven years old, unaware

...

Her eleventh birthday party - and indeed, her eleventh year altogether - passes by in a blur. There are important guests whose hands she needs to shake and there are unimportant guests whose children Kankurou tries to play with. It's useless; they're the children of the Kazekage after all and everyone else seems to recoil in fear.

Baki starts taking extended missions too, personally requested by the Kazekage. She doesn't know what they entail, just that he leaves for weeks at a time and returns without so much as a scratch. Sometimes, she likes to imagine his sharpening his skills for the day he'll inevitably be asked to off Gaara. Kankurou laughs in her face when she answers truthfully once, to the question of 'whatcha thinking 'bout?' and she doesn't mention such dreams a second time.

Her father, too, seems to make himself scarce. First, he's away for a friendly meeting with the newly-formed Hidden Village of Sound, then he's stuck in month-long negotiations with the other members of the council. Either way, he paces about the palace sometimes and she knows to keep away when he's up and about.

Not, thankfully, out of any fear for the man himself, but rather, because of Gaara. Her youngest brother has taken to appearing behind the Kazekage at the most inopportune of times, all quiet chuckles and open leers - he's pushing for a reaction, Temari knows.

Sometimes, Kankurou will take notice of Gaara's presence. This is only because Gaara wants Kankurou to notice him though (and, looking back, Temari doesn't recall a time where she noticed Gaara without him purposely drawing attention to himself) and not, on the contrary, because of any increase in ninjutsu, as Kankurou is quick to argue. Nonetheless, her brother is making quick strides; he managed to apparate a single chakra string before his tenth birthday.

When Baki is away and her father has no need of her and Kankurou is busy toying with his puppets (these occurrences are more frequent than her pride will allow her to admit), she will sit in her room with a piece of charcoal and a scrap of parchment and sketch out their escape plans.

Their 'grand escape', she's taken to calling the whole thing.

...

"As soon as is necessary," Kankurou hears at the edge of the door.

It's been so long since he'd heard his father's voice; he almost doesn't recognize the man.

Closing his eyes, he strains his ears, pressing up against the woodwork and praying the servants were preoccupied with Gaara's latest mess. Or not becoming Gaara's latest mess. Either one.

"And when does Kazekage-sama see this as being necessary?" a different - and distinctly deferential - voice asks.

"She's not yet twelve," is the crisp reply. "You know as well as me that the primary purpose of such a union would be to beget children."

"Correct me if I'm mistaken," a third voice cuts in, "But I was under the impression such a union would be a show of good faith. A sign of solidarity between the two villages, if you will."

"There is nothing that we stand to - "

"Oh, now you're questioning your leader's decision?"

"I've never - "

"Now listen here - "

"The girl is far too young anyways!"

The voices rise to a clamor as speakers four, five, six, seven - possibly more? - join in. Already having difficulty making sense of the conversation, Kankurou is practically swimming in unintentional half-statements.

All the speakers are abruptly cut off and he finds out why moments later when a kunai shoots cleanly through the door, nicking his ear.

He bites down on his bottom lip, dropping down and scrambling to switch places with Karasu.

Too little too late at this point; the door opens fully and a nin from the Hidden Village of Sound peers out at him.

"It's not very nice to eavesdrop on your father," the glasses-wearing ninja says, grinning all the while.

Kankurou sprints out of the hallway, dashing into the closest 'safe' room.

"Kankurou?" Temari asks, looking up from her scribbles on parchment. She gets up and walks over, double-checking his figure for cuts and bruises. "What's the matter? Why were you running? Who gave you that cut on your ear?"

Not yet twelve.

Out of all the phrases to have ringing in his ears.

"S'nothing," he gets out, rising to stand on his feet. He catches his breath (tries to throttle it too) and properly shoulders Karasu, ignoring the clench of fingers over fan.

"Nothing? Half your left face is covered in blood!"

"I just ran into one of the walls," he lamely lies.

Once, Temari had beat up a councilman's son because he had called Karasu bad names. She hadn't told him what names the child had called Kankurou, but he can guess at most of them.

"Kankurou..." she growls, just about ready to beat the answers out of him.

"Geez, I was just training okay!" he irritably replies, moving to exit the room. "I already told you: I'm supposed to be the one good at close-range combat, so you shouldn't have to cover for me at all!" And then he stalks out of the room with Karasu in-tow.

"Brat," Temari mutters, going back to her sketches of escape. Of course, everyone knew that the ears bled excessively. He seemed alright and since he was growing up...

She shrugs, flicking the charcoal between fingers and coating her hands in black.

...

This is stupid.

This is stupid and ridiculous.

No wait, this is stupid and ridiculous and suicidal.

Not yet twelve, he hears his father say.

The primary purpose of the union is to beget children, he hears the glasses-wearing nin say.

It makes his skin crawl, really. To hear of his older sister - one of the youngest graduates of the academy, the prodigal child of the family - talked of in such terms. And of course his father would be at the head of the operation; it wasn't as if there was a universal maximum for amount of fucked-up in a single family.

The idea of having children in two years - of Temari having children in two years - he shakes his head violently to clear away such thoughts and, in the process, walks in on the scene of carnage.

He has witnessed Gaara in his episodes, multiple times. But always with Temari.

You're going to be a ninja, he screams internally, choking down on the bile. There's a bone sticking out from... from what's evidently a mound of flesh and oh god oh god oh god he thinks he sees himself in that bloodied fracture of a face.

Gaara's skin is glistening with perspiration with little droplets of blood clinging here and there.

There is a wildly crazed look in his eyes as he sniffs the air, taking notice of Kankurou.

His smile widens and he approaches his older brother.

Kankurou remains rooted to the spot.

"What do you want?" Gaara asks without intonation.

With difficulty veering on incompetence, Kankurou tries to find the right words.

"They... they want to... they're..."

Gaara stares patiently. For about three seconds.

"Tell me or I'll kill you," he says.

"I want you to stop our father from marrying our sister off."

For the first time, Gaara shows an emotion Kankurou can relate to. He sees a flicker of genuine surprise though it is immediately squashed. Shuukaku's doing, no doubt.

Gaara closes his eyes then and Kankurou panics. The slow smile that spreads across his face - while his eyes are still closed! - doesn't assuage much. His brow furrows (and this is while smiling) and his lips press together tightly and Kankurou stops observing then, finding it much more comfortable to cower in the corner.

He's talking to Shuukaku, the older brother realizes belatedly.

Like a hovering parent, the sand wipes away at the bloodstains, greedily mopping up all traces of murder on Gaara's immediate vicinity. It finishes with a condescending pat on the head. Gaara's eyes open then and he focuses immediately on Kankurou.

"A favor for a favor," he says, stepping forward.

Kankurou flinches.

"What?"

"A favor for a favor," Gaara repeats, rasping slightly (and smiling wickedly). "I will ask something of you and you will do it."

How is that any different from usual, Kankurou is tempted to ask. He shuts his mouth and nods vehemently instead.

"Good."

Gaara leaves and Kankurou takes the opportunity to vomit.

...

"What?!" Temari shrieks, throwing the scroll to the floor.

"Temari-sama," the handservant pleads, "Be reasonable..."

"Be reasonable?! You... you... how am I supposed to be reasonable when my father has requested I be put on a team with him?!" She makes a strangled noise and a strangling motion left eye twitching violently.

"You should be honored," Baki dictates, opening the door without warning. "It means the Kazekage believes you to be capable enough to handle any situations. Should they arise."

"Bullshit," Temari snorts, tossing her head and pouting crossly at the instructor. The handservant flushes, about to reprimand the girl for her language, but she is dismissed with a careless wave.

I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die.

"Kankurou will be a part of your team too," Baki points out.

"Great. Now I know we weren't chosen for any belief in our ability to stay alive." She casts a sidelong glance his way, quirking her lips weakly upwards. "And what about you, Baki-sensei? What'll you do then? More outside missions?"

"Perhaps." He refrains from explaining he had volunteered to be the official instructor of their three-man team.

"I see," Temari replies, lips pressed in a hard line. She's not yet twelve, Baki knows, and already there are lines under her eyes. The desert is cruel to her children - indeed. And still, Temari dreams of the sweet taste of escape.

...