Demon Of The Woods Part 7

Back at the mansion snow was just beginning to fall as Zakuro made her way across the frounds. In the kitchen Sakura was carrying a pile of clothes. She stumbled and half the pile fell to the floor, groaning she dropped the rest. Zakuro smiled empathectically, she knew that look far too well. Bad day. She walked over and said. "Here let me help you." She gathered up the clothes.
Sakura raked her hands through her hair. "It's not your burden to bear." She said sullenly.
"So what." Zakuro shrugged. "Everyone needs help once in a while."
After a moment Sakura smiled too. "Thanks. Naruto and I get run ragged trying to keep this place going."
Zakuro and Sakura spent the next couple of hours doing the laundry and talking. Sakura told Zakuro about how her family had been serving Gaara's for generations. She told of the grand parties that used to be held here, of her likes and dislikes and other things. Zakuro listened intently, eager to make a new friend.
When Sakura asked about her, Zakuro shared her life. She talked about her village, her father, and things she liked or didn't like. She saw Sakura's green eyes brighten when she described Sasuke. Zakuro just rolled her eyes and shook her head. After recounting how she was an orphan, Sakura smiled and nodded. "Yeah." She said. "Out of our families Naruto and I are the only ones left." She said sadly.
"Wait," Zakuro said. "That would mean that contract you mentioned would end with you two, right." She paused before giving Sakura a suggestive look. "Unless...."
Sakura made a disgusted face. "Oh no way!!" She exclaimed. She covered her mouth with her hand and made gagging sounds. "Not ever!!"
"It was just a suggestion." Zakuro shrugged grinning. "I mean Naruto's kinda cute, right?"
"I suppose." Sakura blushed a little. "If you like obnoxious loudmouths." She quickly added. The two girls laughed. Sakura seized this opportunity to change the subject. She felt a twinge, she was using Zakuro and she didn't like it. Zakuro was the type of girl that Sakura could be close friends with. Nevertheless Sakura promted Zakuro with questions about Gaara. Zakuro was startled but answered anyway. She went on about how he aggrivated and enraged her, mentioning more than once how heartless he was. Sakura met up with Naruto after the laundry was finished to discuss how their sutble plan to break the curse was going.
"Well?" Naruto asked. "What did she say?"
"Either she dispises him," Sakura replied. " Or she's a very good actress." The two servants sighed.
"Well I'm not giving up that easily." Naruto said with a grin.
"Hold on." Sakura said. "Maybe we shouldn't do this."
Naruto scowled at her. "You want to stay locked in this place all your life? 'Cause I don't."
"I don't either. But we shouldn't try to force this on Zakuro. I like her."
Naruto shrugged. "Well so do I." He smiled wickedly. "And it's not being forced it's just a nudge in a peticular direction." Sakura just shook her head. "C'mon Sakura you said so yourself the master likes her right. So that's a start we just have to help it a long."
Sakura nodded. "She was blushing a lot when I asked her about him. She tried to hide it but I saw. That's a sure clue that she feels something for him."
"Alright then." Naruto held out his hand. "So we're still in this together?"
Sakura gave him a high five. "Always have been." They slapped hands twice and ended with thouching their knuckles together. "Always will be." Naruto answered. They laughed and went their separate ways. They had had that handshake since they were children working together.
Naruto offered to have Zakuro accompany him while he dusted the library. Zakuro's eyes lit up and she jumped on the chance to be surrounded by books. She's always loved books and since she was born her father had read to her everynight. She used to bury herself in books, learning more than was normal for women in her village. It was why many of the other women in her village looked down upon her, but Zakuro had never cared for their opinions. She was just being herself. Again Zakuro was amazed. The library was two floors, one large on the ground and the other smaller and up a flight of spiraling stairs. The shelves were ten feet high and ahd books on every subject imaginable. Tables and comfy arm-chairs were placed around the room and an enormous window looked out onto the grounds where snow was falling heavily. Naruto chatted non-stop while he worked. Zakuro couldn't imagine how one person was going to dust all of this room. She then noticed how he was obviously shirking a "well done" job for an "ok I did it" job. She giggled. Naruto went on about himself, Sakura, his past and the mansion's past. He made a lot of jokes and Zakuro found herself laughing more than she had in months. Zakuro looked through the shelves, searching for the perfect book. She found it and smiled. Taking it from the shelf she traced the title with her finger.
Naruto pushed aside the books from the other side of the shelf. He placed his chin on the shelf and grinned at her. "What 'cha doing?" He asked in a childish tone.
"Looking for a book." Zakuro played along in the same tone.
He continued in the same voice. "Did you find one?"
"Yes." She giggled. He was such a goof, Zakuro liked the way he made her laugh. She walked to the end of the shelf and met Naruto on the other side. He was at the top of a ladder now dusting the top of the shelf.
He glanced down at her. "You can borrow that book if you want." He said.
"Your master won't mind?" Not that she cared much.
"Nah," Naruto waved a hand. "He never comes in here. At least I never see him." He caught Zakuro's questioning look. "We told you before he's like a ghost. He's here but he's not."
Zakuro thought for a moment. What if Gaara was a ghost? She shook her head. No. He was human enough, but that vanishing act he'd pulled earlier was definately not human.
Naruto slid down the ladder and landed at her feet, startling her. "So what did you find?" He asked. Zakuro held the book out to him. "The Phantom Of The Opera by Gaston Leroux." He read. "Is it good?"
"It's my favorite." Zakuro held it close to her chest. "Dareing romance, jealousy, murder and music. I love it."
Naruto's blue eyes sparked with an idea and he smiled. "So you like music?" He said. Zakuro nodded. He was about to say something else when he glanced at the clock on the wall. "Oh shoot I've got to get moving. I'm not gonna get my chores done today." He quickly bid Zakuro goodbye and took off.
Zakuro decided to explore a little bit. She wandered through the first floor, going through a small study and a huge ball room. The second flor proved to be a labyrinth of passages. She got lost twice but managed to find her way back to the stairs. She kept wandering till she came upon the doors which Gaara had disappeared behind the night before. Zakuro remembered his warning, but disregarded it. There could well be some clues to the mystery that was him inside and she wasn't going to let any clue go unfound. Besides this place was huge maybe he wasn't even in there. She took a deep breath and turned the doorknob.
Peering inside she didn't see or hear him. She stepped inside and closed the door behind her and was shocked by the state of this room. Dust was everywhere and cobwebs hung in the corners of the room, her shoes crunched over shards of glass and the rugs and walls were splattered with what to Zakuro's dismay she identified as dried blood. Her shoe traced over a torn up photograph on the floor, reaching down she pieced it together. It revealed a young man with sandy hair and a little red headed boy with large blue eyes, Gaara. This picture looked at least a hundred years old, the color faded and it felt just as grainy as it looked. It couldn't be that old. Could it? Zakuro shook her head. She recalled all the pain in his eyes earlier and how he spoke about being alone. But he wasn't alone in this photo and he looked so happy. Zakuro stood a little more confused than before and spotted the organ against the back wall. She remembered the music from last night. Maybe she hadn't dreamt it, maybe Gaara had played it. She recalled the copy of "Don Juan" which he said he'd written. Turning she saw one of those black roses, on a small table in the middle of the room. She walked over to it and placed a hand on the glass case that covered it. The rose looked sickly, bent over at a strange angle and Zakuro gasped softly as one of its petals silently fell.
"What are you doing in here?"
Gasping again she whipped around to see Gaara standing in the doorway of a balcony, thick snowflakes clinging to his hair. He had taken off his dark jacket and stood before her in his white shirt and red vest. His shirt was unbuttoned slightly, Zakuro's eyes drifted to his chest and her face turned hot. "I... I was just-" She stammered.
"Didn't I tell you to stay away from here?" The soft rage in his voice frightened her more than if he'd shouted at her. Gaara took a halting step toward her. "Well?" He said ominously. Zakuro made the mistake of looking into his eyes, his gaze cut her like a knife.
She took a trembling step backward. "I...I'm..s..sorry." Zakuro glanced at the rose. "What's wrong with that rose?" Her voice was barely a whisper and she couldn't stop trembling. "It's dying."
"That's none of your business. Now get out." Zakuro tried to say something else but his eyes silenced her. "Get out." He repeated.
Still shaking Zakuro fled from the room and didn't stop till she reached the door. She desperately wanted to escape and to her surprise the door was open again. Grabbing her cloak from the living room she ran outside, without a glance behind her. The snow was still falling in large flakes and she was immediately chilled to the bone. Up on the balcony of his room Gaara watched her go, leaning against the stone wall with his arms folded. He sighed heavily and turned away when something caught his eye. A pack of wolves in the woods were heading right for Zakuro.
Zakuro ran through the woods as fast as she could, wishing for nothing but the comfort of her bed. Where she would wake and this would all have been a dream. She would tell Sasuke about it and he would laugh, telling her she had the craziest imagination and she would giggle right along in agreement. Home. She felt a bit of remorse at leaving Naruto and Sakura behind, she liked them. Soon Zakuro had to stop and catch her breath. Resting her hands on her knees she watched her breath rise in white puffs before disappearing, each breath of cold air stung her lungs and she coughed. Suddenly she heard a rustle behind her and then a twig snapped breaking the silence of the forest. She looked around and listened, nothing but her heavy breathing could be heard. It must've been her imagination kicked into high gear because of her fear. She continued on at a walk, hoping she was going the right direction, everything had looked different in the dark last night. However the forest seemed even prettier now with a light dusting of snow. Zakuro would have enjoyed it more if she weren't still trembling, her instincts telling her something was wrong. She heard another rustle behind her, turning she gasped as a large white wolf emerged from behind the trees. The wolf gazed at her with wise dark eyes and Zakuro noted how noble it looked, beautiful. Now six more wolves emerged and surrounded her in a half circle, she took a few trembling steps back and nearly fell into the ravine. She looked down into the thirty foot drop. She hadn't noticed how close she'd gotten to the edge. Her mouth went dry as the white wolf growled at her and she noticed the dried blood on its maw. Zakuro suddenly remembered that she kept a few weapons in her cloak. She slowly reached inside and grasped three senbon in her hand and as a small gray wolf growled loudly at her, she threw the needles. One struck the wolf in the throat, another in the chest, and the third in its hind leg, the wolf dropped down dead. The white one sniffed at the gray one and realized it was dead. It turned to Zakuro and growled fiercely, bareing its fangs at her. Reaching into her cloak again she found that she didn't have anymore senbon. "Okay don't panic." She thought. The other wolves started moving toward her, but the white one growled at them as if to say "she's mine" and the others backed off. The white one sauntered toward her it fur bristling and growling deep in its throat. Then bending low it showed all its teeth which could easily tear her to pieces. Zakuro stood her ground, ready to fight her way out of this. Finally the wolf leapt at her, its dagger like fangs aiming for her neck.
Suddenly Gaara appeared in front of her. His upheld arm caught the wolf in mid-leap and swinging hard, the wolf landed a few feet away in a heap. The wolf got back on its feet and roared at Gaara. Zakuro flinched but Gaara was unmoved. He stared all the wolves down and they seemed frightened of what they saw in his eyes. Quickly they all scattered, heading back into the woods. The white one was reluctant to leave the gray one behind, it gazed at it for a long moment before following the others. "That wasn't very smart you know." Gaara said condesendingly to her.
Zakuro's temper flared. "Don't talk to like I'm a child!" She snapped. "I'll make my own decisions. I didn't need your help. I would have been fine."
"No." He sadi you would've been torn to shreds by the wolves or the ravine."
"I would've fought my way out." She insisted.
"And that wolf would have killed you even if it killed him." He stepped toward where the gray wolf lay dead the snow was stained red with blood. "he was the vengeful type."
Zakuro was confused. "What do you mean?" She asked.
"You killed his mate." Gaara stated.
"Oh." Zakuro understood now. Only when the gray one had fallen by her hand had the white wolf attacked her and how it had looked at the gray one before fleeing.
"And don't say you're sorry," Gaara added. "Because it won't bring her back." He removed the senbon and started stroaking the wolf's thick gray fur.
Zakuro's eyes filled with tears and she bit her lip again. "I am sorry though. I...I didn't know." She whispered.
"Well now you do." He said simply. "And it's too late."
Zakuro thought about how he'd frightened her between now and last night. All the cruel things he'd said to her. She cried even harder now from anger. "You didn't have to play a hero and rescue me!" She shouted. "I don't need your help! I don't need anyone! I can take care of myself!" She broke off, giving way to a sob.
"Trust me," He yelled back. "You do need other people in your life! People to care and comfort you when you need it the most! No one can make it on their own!"
Zakuro sobbed again watching Gaara mourn the wolf made her cry harder. His words filled her head and she cried for all the pain she had seen in his eyes earlier. "I'm sorry I snapped at you." She whispered. "I was taking a lot out on you that I shouldn't have. Thank you for saving me."
Gaara stood and faced her, his eyes soft again. "You're welcome."
She then noticed the blood stain on his shirt sleeve. "You're bleeding." Zakuro said. The wolf must've caught his forearm and he was bleeding badly.
Gaara looked at it as if feeling it just now. He just shrugged." It's no big deal."
"No big deal?" She repeated looking pointedly at the blood driping off his hand and making red dots in the snow. "You'd better let me help you." She took his other hand, his touch seemed even colder now. Together they started walking back to the mansion.
"I don't need your help." He mocked, a slight smile on his face.
"Shut up."

the sun was already setting as they walked back and by the time they reached the bridge it was pitch dark out. Zakuro ran a pan of water she'd found in the kitchen till it was hot and after grabbing a dish towel and some bandages from a bathroom she went to the living room. She sat down in front of the fire and looked back at Gaara. He rolled up the sleeve of his shirt to the shoulder and sat down beside her. Zakuro took in the contors of his bare arm. From farther away she thought he was thin, but actually that "thin" was all lean muscle. She felt her face warm with a blush that she prayed he wouldn't notice. "Well.." He said breaking her revierie."
"Well what?" She snapped. Picking up the towel she submerged in the hot water and took his cold hand. The wound had already stopped bleeding, but the trails of blood down his arm were still there. Zakuro started washing the blood from Gaara's hand.
"You know I really don't need your help with this." He said
Zakuro scowled at him. "Just be quiet and hold still. You made me feel bad now because you got hurt saving me and I owe you some form of apology for going into your room. So consider this making up for it."
He shrugged one shoulder. "Fair enough."
Zakuro finished cleaning the blood from his hand and wrist. The wolf had caught his forearm, but the wound didn't look that bad. She rinsed the towel and was about to clean the wound but Gaara fliched and drew away. "I haven't even touched you." She said. He looked away from her and folded his arms, wincing. Zakuro smiled. "Well well Mr. Big-shot is a big wimp." She teased.
"Shut up." He mumbled. "I just don't handle pain well."
"Well cry me a river you big baby," She took his hand again. "Now hold still." To her surprise he actually listened and didn't object. Zakuro went right to washing the wound, Gaara gave a sharp intake of breath, gritting his teeth he clenched his hand around hers tight enough to break bones. He immediately loosened his grip when she glared at him. "If this is hurting you so bad now why didn't you react at all when the wolf actually bit you?" She asked.
He watched her, cringing in pain. "In the heat of a battle you can't stop because you're injured." He said.
Zakuro nodded. "You know you're very lucky that wolf wasn't rabid."
Gaara chuckled and looked away. "Yeah," He shook his head. "That would be the worst of your worries."
"What do you mean by that?" He didn't answer her. "Great," She thought. "Another piece to this puzzle." She finished cleaning his wound and inpected it closer, it wasn't very deep. Zakuro picked up the bandages and wrapped it around his arm.
"Am I going to live?" Gaara asked with a teasing smile.
Zakuro rolled her eyes and tied the bandage. "You're going to be fine." She said. "Melodramatic." She muttered. Gaara gritted his teeth again as she tied the bandage tightly. Then Zakuro laid her hand on his arm gently. "There." She said. She looked up with a smile and their eyes met again. His eyes reflected the fire's light and had taken on that strange softness again, and once again Zakuro was mesmerized. Gaara stood up and Zakuro did too after gathering up the pan and towel. She put the things away and walked back into the living room.
Gaara stopped staring at the fire to see Zakuro stifle a yawn and pick up the blanket from the couch. "That won't be necessary." He said.
"What do you-," Zakuro broke off with another yawn. "Mean?"
"Follow me and I'll show you to your room."
She raised an eyebrow. "My room?"
"If you want to stay in the living room be my guest." He said. "Or maybe I'll just put you in the cellar where you can keep the spiders company."
"I'll follow you." She replied.
Gaara smirked. "I thought so." He led her up the stairs and down a hall opposite the direction of his room. He stopped in front of one of the numerous doors.
"I'll never be able to find it again." Zakuro looked around trying to memorize the look of this hall and how she could get back to the stairs from here.
"Sakura and Naruto will help you." Gaara said. He shifted from one foot to the other and didn't look at her.
Zakuro noted how odd he was acting all of a sudden. She just shrugged and sighed. "Well, thank you for this." She gestured to the door. "And for saving me." She pouted and added sourly. "Even if I didn't need it."
Gaara chuckled and shook his head. "You're ridiculous."
"So are you." She repiled. Gaara just stared at her. "Well goodnight Gaara." Zakuro felt a pleasant shiver travel down her back as she said his name. She placed a hand on the door knob and it was immediately covered by his. Zakuro turned to him just as his cold lips met her forehead. Her heart skipped a beat as his lips brushed across her forehead and softly traced their way to her ear. He was so close to her that Zakuro could feel the sheer cold radiating from his body, he smelled like the woods and those black roses.
"Sweet dreams Zakuro." Gaara whispered in her ear, his cold breath made her skin break out in goosebumps. He placed something in her hands. "Let me know if you hear the Angel of music tonight." Without another word he disappeared down the hall.
Zakuro watched the spot where he'd last been for a long moment, her face was warm and her heart thudded in her chest. She looked at what Gaara had handed her. It was the copy of The Phantom Of The Opera, she had dropped it earlier in his room when he had frightened her. She held it close and smiled. Walking into the room, she found it to be decorated like the rest of the mansion. Dark walls and thick rugs in deep reds and black, a fire place against the back wall and a canopied bad in the middle of the room. Zakuro set the book down on the bed an opened one of the doors off the rrom revealing a bathroom in marble and white tile. She picked up an orange bottle on the side of the large tub, it was peach bubble bath. Turning the faucets ahe poured in the orange liquid as hot water rushed into the tub. Zakuro took off her red dress and kicked it aside, damning modesty and wishing she could just wear pants instead. She stepped into the steaming water and slid under so just her nose was barely above the bubbles. Breathing in the rich scent of peaches she let the water relax her tired muscles. Finally Zakuro dianed the tub and dried off with one of the thick towels hanging on the wall. She wrapped it around her slim frame and after finding a comb on the sink counter, combed the knots from her hair. She then picked up her dress and sighed. It was the same dress she'd worn yesterday, the hem was torn from walking in the forest and it was stained. Walking back into the bedroom Zakuro set the dress in the red velvet chair in the corner and eyed the large dresser beside the bed. She opened it and wasn't surprised to find it full of dresses, blouses andeven pants all in her size. In the drawers beneath she found stockings, socks, nightgowns, and underwear. Moving to the door next to the dresser she revealed a closet stocked with cloaks, jackets, suits, shoes, along with gloves, scarves, and boots. Zakuro went back to the dresser and chose a pair of black pants and a wide sleeved white blouse. Donning her new outfit she went to admire it in the full length mirror in the bathroom. She grinned glad to be free of that irritating dress. It was unheard of in her village for women to wear pants and Zakuro wished that she could strut through the village and hear others whisper about her behind their hands so she could laugh. She playfully mussed her long dirty-blond hairand gave herself a devious look. She looked wild, like a Joan of Arc figure she'd only read about in books. Laughing she took up The Phantom Of The Opera and sat in bed. Within minutes Zakuro was lost in Gaston Leroux's thrilling tale of the tortured musical genius who once haunted the Paris opera house.