As the days passed, Suzume learned much about her new home and adoptive family. The Kazekage mansion was divided into two, the shinobi headquarters and the Kazekage quarters. As she learned before, they weren't allowed to enter through the front door and were forbidden to enter the hallway that led to the public part of the building and the opposite was true for the suna shinobi.

The young girl found that the fourth step of the staircase always creaked and that the faucet in the powder room leaked. She also found a hole in the wood flooring when she stepped on a newspaper that had been strewn carelessly on the floor in the mudroom. At first she had thought it was to wipe the dirt off their shoes but it turned out the paper was being used to hide the rotting wood panel. In addition to this, the newspaper itself was about twenty years old and an article on the front saying that the third Kazekage was declared dead.

While exploring the home, she found interesting quirks about it. Since the idea of a Kazekage was an old one, it was no doubt that the mansion would be stuck in the time they invented the concept. She saw modern renovations that mixed naturally with the old quirks of the house. The tile in the restrooms and the kitchen were a bit outdated but the wood flooring was relatively new, well, as new as it could be if it was rotting. Some of the doors had a strange style to it, with gold furnishes including the doorknob or the fake crystal knobs, but others had the sleek design of the times with silver or black simple knobs. The appliances were upgraded as well, which was a big contrast to the brick wall behind the ancient oven/stove.

There was also a dumbwaiter that connected to the main floor, the second and third floor, and the basement. She would be lying if she said she didn't secretly ride it when nobody was home. There was also a separate staircase from the main one. Temari had told her that when they had had servants, the servants would use it to go up and down the floors while staying out of sight. It was supposed to be curtesy to the guests and the family. Now, it was Suzume's own form of travel.

A room on the first floor was also discovered by the young brunette. A wall of rice paper sliding doors that were painted with cranes, tsunamis, mountains, and blossoming trees hid away a large sparring room. Bamboo mats laid out across the floor, a little dip in the entrance where a person was expected to leave their shoes, floor to ceiling wood paneling, and high ceilings. She'd sometimes spy on the Sand Siblings while they practiced their taijutsu.

As they coexisted, Suzume slowly learned that Temari, who was the oldest, was very outspoken and blunt. She was very logical and responsible. Suzume would usually see Temari studying, writing up a report, or doing household chores. She seemed to know how to take care of herself by herself, never asking for aid from Kankuro or Gaara.

Kankuro, from what Suzume observed, watches over both of his siblings in the shadows. He seemed to understand that Gaara and Temari both had pride about being able to hold their own but still wanted to look after them. He was more expressive than his fellow relatives and used his punk demeanor to hide his own weaknesses in order to keep from hindering his family.

Gaara was very quiet, often observing rather than acting. But when he did speak, it was very impactful and held great importance. Suzume thought that he was attempting to learn how to socialize with other people as much as she was.

Suzume was assigned chores and was incorporated into the household responsibilities cycle. Every Monday and Wednesday she'd vacuum the rooms and do the laundry. Every Tuesday and Thursday she'd wash the dishes and cook breakfast and dinner. She offered to do more since the siblings were working while she was not, but Kankuro had insisted that the workload had lifted immensely simply by giving her the tasks she had now.

But, despite this, the siblings would find that they didn't need to do their own chores when they came back from work. Often finding no laundry to wash, no dishes to clean, and hot food on the table. They told Suzume that she didn't need to do such things but she responded by saying that she had nothing better to do and that learning to cook was interesting and came almost instinctively to her. The three shinobi gave up on trying to persuade her after realizing she was doing it to lessen her guilty conscious. They just assumed that after some time, she would stop and they would have equal duties again.

Suzume's room was on the far left of the first story corridor. Temari's was in the middle room on the second floor and Gaara's was on the third floor. She discovered that Kankuro's room was in the basement and when she asked him why, he had told her that it was quiet and he preferred the dark. And when she asked Gaara why he was living separate from the rest, he said it was to make sure nobody sneaked into any of the floors and try to attack them. She accepted the answer, observing the fact that each floor, except the first, had been covered by each sibling before she came along. It made her a bit pleased by the fact that she was able to complete the system.

Gaara was the only one that knew that Suzume sometimes rode the dumbwaiter. He'd come home and spotted her climbing in and a sparkle in her eye, showing her excitement and anticipation as the contraption started its ascent. He also knew that she didn't sleep much. He'd sometimes spot her in the garden behind the mansion at night when he was sitting and watching the moon as he does every night. When it happened every night for almost a month, he wondered if he should tell Temari and Kankuro about it.

Kankuro noticed that she'd never go out if she didn't have one of them beside her. He thought it was cute, but on the other hand, he was worried. He thought she should be able to walk around the village without any fear and disquiet.

Temari was very aware of the fact that Suzume never stepped out of the house, even if she was with someone when the sun was out. When the sun was covered in clouds, it was a different story. She'd be eager to go out shopping with her or the guys. Temari wanted to ask why but she would always forget to.

All of the siblings found it adorable and almost comforting to see Suzume waiting for them to come home outside on the doorstep. Her face would light up at the sight of them and she'd rush over and relieve them of their weapons. Once, she tried to lift up Gaara's gourd but barely lifted it up an inch. She'd looked so disappointed that Gaara's mouth lifted up in a small, indistinguishable smile and he told her it was fine. If the trio didn't come at the same time, Suzume would wait for each of them, even if it was past midnight and Temari had nagged at her about coming in because it was too cold and that Kankuro and Gaara could take care of themselves.

They also loved her cooking. She got better each day and made huge progress. Her eggs and toast in the morning became soups, a bowl of rice, and mouthwatering side dishes. Her rice and spam for dinner became full course meals that left them stuffed. It helped with the fact that before she had come to live with them, they had relied on Kankuro's decent cooking and fast food restaurants which was hardly a real meal. But it couldn't be helped since Temari was a horrible cook and Gaara was ten times worse. Suzume had been delighted to find out that Gaara loved her cookies and Temari had to restrict her from baking them too often since she became concerned that Gaara would gain cookie weight. When Temari told that to Suzume, she was absolutely horrified and researched about balanced diets until she was an expert.

Suzume never smiled or laughed. The only way they could tell she was happy was when her expression lightened up. They didn't necessarily think it was a problem but Temari had informed her brothers that they needed to teach her how to express emotions. They too were horrified at the prospect.

But there was a certain detail that bothered them about Suzume. She wouldn't stop calling them with honorifics. Even as she became more relaxed with them by the day, she'd always call them Kankuro-sama, or Temari-sama. It was almost cringe worthy. But they hesitated in telling her. As stated before, none of them were very open about their true feelings.

_

It was very rarely when all three siblings had a day off. The academy they were working at for the time being had an incident with a foolhardy kid and a couple of bomb tags. He was fine, but it was doubtful he would ever try to blow up the toilets in the restrooms anymore.

Suzume had been delighted when they told her that they would be at home for an entire day. So delighted in fact, that she'd asked Kankuro to accompany her to the grocery store to get some food for a feast. The kitchen counters and the table was stacked with plastic bags filled with fresh produce.

"Suzume," Temari chuckled, examining the bags. "Do you really think we can eat all of this?"

"Why? Is it too much?"

"A bit."

Suzume thought about it then held her fist in front of her in determination. "I'll make it work."

Temari clapped her on the shoulder. "You can do this, imoto."

That was when Gaara stepped into the room. He surveyed the groceries with wide eyes. "This seems unnecessarily extravagant."

Suzume sulked, blue lines over her form.

Gaara became flustered. "Suzume, I didn't mean to-"

"Gaara, look at what you did," Kankuro appeared behind his little brother. "You made our imoto sad."

"You're not making the situation any better, Kankuro," Gaara shot at him. "Didn't you accompany her to the grocery store? Why didn't you prevent this?"

Kankuro laughed, completely avoiding his brother's question, and went over to wrap an arm around Suzume. "To compensate, Gaara will eat twice as much as he usually does, jan. That'll cheer you up, right, Suzume?"

Gaara was about to refute the statement when he saw Suzume look up at him with hopeful eyes. He was defeated even before the battle began. He sighed and rubbed his temples. "Fine."

Temari and Kankuro sniggered as Suzume eagerly began to cook the food.

"Can we do anything to help, Suzume?" Temari asked.

Suzume stared over her shoulder at them, calculating. "Yes." She walked over to the cupboards and pulled out the dishware. She walked back over to Gaara and presented a bowl to him. "Please wash this and keep away from the food, Gaara-sama."

Gaara was deeply offended. When he didn't respond to her words or make a move to accept the bowl, Suzume reached down, grabbed his hand, and placed the bowl on it. Temari and Kankuro were finding it hard to breathe, trying to keep their laughter in to spare Gaara of any more embarrassment.

"And Temari-sama," Suzume dug around in the plastic bags before pulling out a couple of vegetables. "Cut the green onions up and don't do anything else. Only. Cut."

Temari observed the onion in her hands, looking confused with her eyebrows knitted. "Shouldn't there be a specific method? Do I hold the knife a certain way? Or perhaps I have to add some spices-"

"Simply. Cut," Suzume repeated emphatically.

Kankuro sweatdropped as Temari and Gaara submissively followed Suzume's instructions. She's only been here for a month and she's already figured out our family's greatest flaw...

"Kankuro-sama," Suzume's voice drew Kankuro's attention and the sand shinobi looked over at his sister's blank expression. "I will allow you to assist me in preparation of the meat."

Gaara and Temari's eyes blazed like the devil's. Kankuro felt shivers crawl up and down his spine.

I sense a bit of hostility from behind...

As they worked, Kankuro noticed Suzume yawning repeatedly and her eyes were getting droopy.

"Hey, you okay?" he nudged her with his elbow.

"Yeah..." Suzume yawned again. "I'm fine... I think..."

"You wanna take a break?"

"Maybe after I'm done frying the tempura," Suzume adjusted the pan. "The oil's almost ready."

Kankuro nodded and Suzume picked up a piece of shrimp and prepared to place it on the spitting oil. Her vision became fuzzy and her limbs heavy. She shook her head a bit, attempting to clear it up, but it did nothing to help.

There was a clattering and many things happened at once. As Suzume fell, she hit the handle of the pan, making it teeter on the edge of the oven. Kankuro yelled out her name and rushed into action as the boiling oil fell.

What resulted was Kankuro shielding Suzume underneath him and Gaara's sand above his brother having intercepted the oil before it made contact.

Kankuro sighed a breath of relief as Temari replaced the pan onto the stove and Gaara retracted his sand.

"What happened?!" Temari yelled.

Kankuro sat up and pulled Suzume into his arms frantically. "Oi, Suzume!" he shook her roughly but still got no response. "Suzume!"

. . .

Suzume woke up to see a sterile white ceiling. She sat up, incredibly confused. She was in a stiff hospital gown and metal bed. Curtains were on either side of her and on the other wall there was a cart full of fancy equipment. Question marks appeared around the girl's head spontaneously, her head coming up empty when trying to remember what happened.

A woman in a uniform, flipping through a clipboard, was passing by when she noticed Suzume. She smiled blandly.

"Look who's up. Sleeping beauty decides to awaken from her slumber."

"Um..." Suzume watched as the nurse came up to her bed. "I-"

Suzume flinched when the doctor slapped her hand on her forehead. "Temperature seems normal..." she muttered under her breath as she jotted something down on the clipboard. "Turn around."

Suzume blinked at her. The woman lifted an eyebrow. "Do you understand Japanese?" the doctor unwrapped the stethoscope from around her neck. "Turn around, little girl."

The brunette did as she was told and jumped when she felt a metallic chill on her bare back.

"Breathe," the woman instructed.

Suzume took in a deep breath and then released it as she did when Temari had taken her to the doctor's.

"Lungs and heart seem fine," the doctor shifted some papers around. "You're quite the specimen, sleeping for a week straight."

Suzume didn't seem surprised. "Can I leave?"

The doctor speculated her before tucking the clipboard under her arm. "I don't know. Can you?"

Suzume lowered her gaze, uncomfortable. "May I?" she said quietly.

"You'll be welcomed to remove your useless presence from this already fully occupied hospital," the doctor disappeared around the corner before coming back and throwing a shirt and shorts at Suzume. "Change then get out."

"Um, excuse me!" Suzume said before the woman could leave.

"What?" she snapped.

"I was just wondering... if... if anybody was... was..."

"If you're talking about the shinobi who brought you in and constantly came to visit you, we banned them from coming in on your third day."

"Oh," Suzume's eyes widened.

The doctor's eyes softened and her irritation seemed to ebb away. "You know how to get home?"

Suzume nodded and she looked down at the clothes in her hands. Home...

Thankfully, it was night time when Suzume left the hospital and she was able to, well, leave it. She used the alleyways that she was familiar with to get to the Kazekage mansion. Once she got to the building, she sat on the doorstep since she couldn't quite open the door like the others.

There weren't many things on the side of the Kazekage mansion. It was mostly sand and a single forlorn tree. The tree was dead. Nothing but a hollow trunk and branches that no longer held itself in its radiant green robe. A swing hung from one of the branches. The seat was made of a plank of wood and the ropes creaked when the wind blew through. It would most likely break if someone were to sit themselves on it.

Birds flew down and perched on top of Suzume's shoulder or hopped around her feet. She absentmindedly held up a finger and a bird flew and landed on it. The girl stared vacantly at it. Suzume felt the desert wind blow through her and the swing began to fly around wildly.

The young girl began to think. Why had she been so desperate to know where the shinobi were? Why had she felt a surge of fear when she woke up alone?

Freak!

Suzume took in a small breath.

Nobody wants you around! Hurry up and die!

Because she expects them to realize that she wasn't worth taking care of.

"Su... zu... MEEEEEEH!"

The birds took off in a flurry of feathers and startled tweets.

"Eek!" Suzume started in fright when she realized Kankuro's infuriated expression was right in front of her.

"Who said you could escape from the hospital without waiting for us to get off work, huh?!"

"Escape?" Temari's eyes were cut in half as she observed her brother scaring her sister. Gaara was next to her, just as unimpressed.

"Gomenasai!" Suzume shrieked in the face of Kankuro's wrath.

"You're going back right now, jan!" Kankuro began to drag Suzume off, stomping in rage.

"Wait...!" Suzume choked out. "Kankuro-sama...! There's no need!"

"No need, my ass!"

"Really!" Suzume kept struggling. "It happens every month!"

Kankuro paused in his rampage and turned around incredibly slowly. Once he faced forward entirely, his eye was twitching and blue lines graced his forehead. "W-what... did you say?"

After calming down, the group went into their house and sat down for dinner.

"What?" Temari's eyes grew two sizes. "You sleep for a week every month and for the following week you don't sleep at all?" she repeated incredulously. "Is that even possible?"

Suzume's eyebrows creased. "Is it?"

"That's what I'm asking you!"

Suzume gazed down at her plate of food. "I don't understand it myself..."

Kankuro sighed, somewhat relieved. "That clears everything up."

"And you!" Temari growled at the puppeteer. "What were you thinking she meant, my dear brother?!"

Kankuro shrunk under her aura. "N-nothing, ma'am."

Gaara turned to Suzume as Temari hissed at Kankuro. "How long has this happened?"

"Ever since I can remember," Suzume answered.

"The doctors told us you were in a coma," Kankuro said to her after Temari had settled down. "To think you were just sleeping. I feel silly for being worried, jan."

Suzume's eyes widened a fraction. Worried?

"Why didn't you tell us this before?" Temari queried of the younger girl.

"I was hoping it wouldn't happen again."

"Well, it doesn't seem harmful. Still doesn't make sense though," Temari held her chin in her hand. "Hey, you can keep Gaara company. He never sleeps."

Suzume regarded the redhead curiously. "Why is that, Gaara-sama?"

Gaara hesitated. They had been able to avoid the subject of Gaara being a jinchuuriki and the three had been waiting for the best time to tell Suzume. Gaara didn't really think she was ready. His siblings caught his reluctance and jumped in to help.

"It's something he was born with," Kankuro said quickly. "It's a sort of gene mutation."

"Ooooh," Suzume accepted the answer. "That makes sense."

Temari sweatdropped. Does it?

"Anything else you want to tell us?" the blonde asked. "While we're on the subject, that is."

Suzume sat in her seat, thinking carefully. "I can't stand the heat."

"...Huh?" Temari and Kankuro chorused.

"Whenever I go out and I'm under direct sunlight, I always faint," Suzume rephrased her statement.

"Wait, wait," Kankuro gestured in a slowdown motion. "You're saying, as a citizen of the Sand, the Village Hidden in the Sand that's located in the desert, that you can't handle heat?"

Suzume bobbed her head up and down in answer.

To the Sand Siblings, this fact might've been even stranger than Suzume's sleeping habit.

"Is that too weird?" Suzume said worriedly.

"Yeah," Kankuro deadpanned.

A metal pan hit Suzume over the head.

Temari crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "Undeniably."

Another pan struck Suzume on the head.

Gaara nodded.

Five more fell from out of nowhere and collided with her head.

"But, we can work with it," Temari smiled. "You just need to be under shade, right? We'll buy you an umbrella."

Suzume's lips parted. It wasn't really a tactful way to reply to her, but... that's just the way these people were.

"You all lack delicacy, don't you," Suzume stated frankly.

"Where does delicacy get you?" Temari scoffed. "Nowhere. If a person can't take the harsh truth, they're just a weak minded pushover."

"Oi, oi..." Kankuro grimaced. "We shouldn't be teaching her our messed up philosophies."