Rabbit Princess [Gaara] [3]

☾ Interlude: Gaara ☽

It was a cold night in the desert, and there was not a single cloud in the sky that could deter the moon from showing off its fullness. Over the desert, the moon was almost like a goddess, and it was very much loved in the village of Sunagakure. The vastness of the Land of Wind gave it all the permission that it needed to bear down upon them with its greatness.

The revering moon looked down upon the silent village of Sunagakure, tucked snugly within a fortified valley behind cliffs of rock. Bored yet vigilant men stood guard over the single cleft between two cliff faces, the only passage in and out of the village.

Right in the middle of the village was a large, round, sandy coloured building with several rows of windows and the Kanji for 'Wind' painted on the side of the building in a circle.

Inside the Kazekage's Residence, down several corridors, a young boy laid snugly in his own covers.

Gaara, the boy, was not having a peaceful night. His eyebrows were knitted together, his nose scrunched up and his arms reaching out to the empty air above him.

Within his dreams, however, Gaara found himself staring up at a beautiful woman with sandy brown hair and indigo eyes, smiling lovingly down at him. She was saying something, tickling his stomach lightly. Gaara tried to reach out for her but found himself pulling out of sleep.

Darkness was heavy in Gaara's bedroom, but the shard of moonlight that flowed into the room through the round windows. They sent a turmoil through his heart.

This turmoil built up, wanting prompting at him to get out of the bed and do something about it.

But Gaara stared at the ceiling, seeing that there was no woman in the room, or anyone where but the picture frame that set on his bed-side table. He felt his heart squeeze and tears began to spill down his cheeks as he realised that he was truly alone in bed.

"Mama... I... I..."

Morning arrived several hours later and Gaara felt a bit tired from the lack of sleep. It was not something he was not used to but it still made him feel sick. But when he realised that he would be able to play outside with his siblings, Temari and Kankuro, it all went away.

Behind the Kazekage's Office was a large circular sandbox for children to play in, and it was all free for them as no one else was there. Gaara loved playing with sand.

Or rather, the sand was the only thing that Gaara listened to what he had to say. It did everything that he wanted to. Almost like it was there to serve him and only him.

"Hey, you're so cool!" yelled Kankuro, and Gaara jumped slightly, blushing as he looked around to see that the older boy had seen the majestic sandcastle he had made.

"Wow!" Temari agreed, looking at the sandcastle with a lot of positivity.

"Can you do food, too?" Kankuro asked.

Never before had Gaara gotten to play with anyone, and he was rarely ever allowed in the presence of his siblings. He felt very shy but he eagerly did as Kankuro asked, using the Sand to manipulate it into the shapes of the food that he has had and also liked.

"Whoa, grilled squid!" Kankuro exclaimed, guessing all the food. "Ramen! Cherries! Lobster! Hmm...sea urchin and rice bowl! That's so cool! That was terrific! You're amazing! Okay then... How about a big pile of poop? Can you do it?"

Shaking her head at the boy's request, Temari stood up from the sandbox, not wanting to see that even though Gaara seemed very eager to show it to them both.

"Temari!" called out a sharp, firm voice, and Temari turned around to see it was their father.

Rasa was a tall man with deeply auburn hair and dark green eyes. He never smiled at them and his expression was always very stern. His eyes had recently acquired dark markings around his eyes and he seemed to resemble Gaara in that manner.