Eternal Moon

A steady beeping filled my mind as I began to cough. Waking from a dead sleep I rolled over in my bed as I struggle to breath. All around me I hear only the crackling of flames as the blaze grows larger. A cold terror fills me as I try to cover my mouth and nose, trying to breath while desperately looking for a way out. The right wall of my room, seemingly so large just hours ago seemed to shrink as the flames crawled closer.

Down the hall my sister screamed. Her high pitch voice echoed above that of the crackling flames. Hearing her I summoned my wits and stumbled toward the bedroom door. Grasping the door handle I yelped in pain as the metal burned my flesh. Knowing that it was the only way out, I bit my lip and quickly turned the door handle and dashed out into the hall. The flames, ten times worse here were glaring back at me as they filled the room with thick black smoke. Frantically I looked around for my sister.

"Temari!" I screamed only to begin coughing. From down the hall I heard a faint voice. "Gaara?" Konkaru my elder brother was laying on the floor of his bedroom, a fire-scared beam pinning his legs. With a strangled gasp I ran to his side. "Konkaru! Where's Tem?" I asked, the fear in my voice apparent as I struggled to lift the beam. Konkaru only shrugged, his face contorted with pain. "Hurry Gaara!" He gasped in pain. Looking around frantically I spotted Konkaru's katana. With a rushed movement, I slid the sword's sheath under the beam, with a loud grunt I quickly lifted the beam high enough for my brother to struggle out from under it. "Hurry!" I urged him as I swung his arm over my shoulder to support his weight. "We need to find Temari!" Konkaru nodded painfully and began to shuffle forward.

Still struggling to breath, I carried Konkaru out of his bedroom. "Gaara!?!" Temari yelled. Suppressing a joyful sigh, I began to stumble toward my sister's voice. "Tem? We're over here!" I coughed. Out of the hazy smoke Temari hurried toward us. "Hurry both of you. The walls will collapse soon!" She urged. I nodded, fully aware that the blaze was getting worse. "The stairs are our only choice!" I coughed. Temari nodded and quickly gripped Konkaru's arm over her shoulder. "Ok lets go!' As quickly as we could, Temari and I blindly made our way to the stairs. The fire, now covering all the walls of the house had barely touched the oak stair well, however the flames were just as bad below.

Outside sirens blared as the local fire department prepared to hose the flames down. With a crash we watched the front door burst open as five heavily clad men rushed in. Frantically the three of us headed over to them. Each of the Firemen carried an oxygen tank and as two took Konkaru the others offered the oxygen masks to me and Tem. With a starved look, I sucked in a deep breath of clean air as they yelled over the crackling fire. "IS there anyone else?" Temari shook her head no as it was true. All though our short trek we had seen nothing of our parents.

Above our heads a loud crack sounded. Fire seared our skin as a large beam fell from the floor of the second story. Screams sounded from outside as part of the roof fell. Each second felt like years as I watched my life spin before my eyes...before every thing went black.

~*~

Temari's eyes opened slowly, her vision blurry. A glaring light blinded her as she slowly sat up. All around her was a blinding white light and for a moment her heart beat wildly. Am I dead? Her mind screamed. Frantically she looked around for her brothers. "Gaara! Konkaru!" The medical gear beside her began to beep as her heart continued to rush. Women dressed in all white rushed into the White Room to her side.

"Calm down Miss. Sabaku." A black haired nurse gently held Temari's hand as she spoke to her. "Miss Sabaku, they're fine. Your brothers are in the next room. They just haven't woken up yet." Slowly Temari began to calm down. With nervous fingers the young woman started to twist her blond hair. "H-how are they?" She asked. The raven haired nurse smiled. "Both of the Masters are quite alright. Master Gaara has a few bad burns but he's find. Master Konkaru on the other hand has suffered a broken leg. We've put it in a cast but it will still take a while to heal." Temari sucked in a harsh breath but after a few minutes of the nurses gentle reassurance she finally calmed down.

"What of our parents?" She asked slowly, eyes down cast. The nurse shook her head. "I'm sorry miss but there has been no word." Temari's eyes filled with tears. "You mean they're...dead?" The nurse gasped, "No ma'am! I never meant that. We've had no word at all. The house has been put out and the house has been searched however we haven't seen their bodies." Temari nodded slowly, her mind spinning. Why weren't they not in the house when the fire began? Where were they now? Questions tumbled though her head as she sat back. Beside her, sitting in the Guest Seat sat the raven haired nurse.

"What's your name?" Temari asked quietly. The nurse's eyes widened in shock then she smiled. "Hinata Hyuga." Temari smiled a bit. "Well thank you Hinata." The nurse smiled at her once more. "Tell me Hinata...when will I be able to see my brothers?" Nurse Hinata looked out the door and out into the hall. "Well miss Temari they should be waking up soon. I do know that Master Gaara was simple placed into bed after his burns had been dressed. Master Konkaru however had to go though a small surgery and was put to sleep. If you wish, I can take you to master Gaara's room now."

Temari's eyes glistened. "Thank you so much Hinata...may we go now?" The raven haired nurse nodded quickly and got up. With a quick stride the nurse walked to the door and turned the corner. After a moment or two she came back pushing a wheel-chair. "I have one rule however." She spoke quietly. "I need you to sit in this. We require all patients who have just woken up to use them." With a slight glower the youthful blond nodded. "As long as I get to see them." Hinata smiled at her, "I promise you will."

Temari practically glowered at everyone they passed as Hinata pushed her chair though the halls. Knowing that Konkaru had just gotten out of surgery, Temari insisted on going to see Gaara first as she didn't want to wake Konkaru. Hinata had only smiled and patiently pushed the grouchy blond to the elevator. Now just a few doors away from Gaara's room, Temari jumped out of the chair and rushed toward the door. Gaara lay sleeping peacefully on his bed. Shaggy red hair fell over his teal eyes and for once, Temari saw him without his mouth set into a frown.

Slowly Temari sat down on the bed. A large burn rested on Gaara's right arm, a white bandage ran up from his elbow to the shoulder. Gently Temari brushed a strand of hair away from Gaara's eyes and tucked it behind his ear. "He's the youngest..." she murmured as a small tear slipped down Temari's cheek. Hinata quietly clasped her hands as she watched. "Should I give you a moment?" Temari said nothing but nodded.

~*~

Temari had been discharged two days before me, Kankuro however was required to stay a week. Not only did he break his leg, my brother had suffered some bad burns like I had. Fortunately mine healed quickly and I was released into the care of my aunt and uncle as was my sister. Our home coming was less than welcoming as our aunt had never been fond of our mother. It had been said that she practically begged our father not to marry our mother. Temari had laughed at this when we had over heard some of the towns people snickering about it.

Aunt Mary was not a woman who liked children, much less one who would tolerate the children of a woman she had hated. As ordered by the court, Aunt Mary was forced to offer us a place to stay as she was our closest living relative even if she was unwilling until the time that the court decided what to do with us. The room that we were given to stay in small holding only two beds. When our brother came home it was clear that either I or Tem would be sleeping on the floor. Less than two days after Kankoru was released...we were paid a visit by our Lawyer.