Gaara/Lee. Because rivalry is hot. :3

[slr2moons]

So here is that bit of fanart inspired by Star-chan's completely wonderful giftfic for me. You know I've been working on it for months, and now it's finally finally done. YAY!!

What's interesting is that I posted this to the Leegaara community. Normally that comm has 2 or 3 posts a day. But after mine...none. For five days. *blink blink* What, did I scare everyone else away?? D= It isn't that good! Ttaku mo!!

But anyway, here 'tis, in my own journal:

Work Ethic, by stariceling

The cut was shallow, little more than a glancing blow to the wrist that sliced bandages more than skin. Yet, it was impossible to ignore. Even such a slight stain of half-dried blood was hard to resist, and for once, Gaara wasn’t trying to keep himself from taking in the sight or smell of it.

He had something of an excuse. There was no water to spare for cleaning Lee's blood-smeared skin. That much was simple fact. Seeing Lee wet one of the unsalvageable shreds of bandage in his mouth, knowing he intended to clean it anyway, Gaara suddenly hadn't been able to resist. He had caught Lee by the hand, pulling his arm forward to clean it properly, with his tongue.

There was more to be fascinated with than the rich, salt-sweet taste of Lee's blood. His fingers ended up exploring the hand he was clasping. There was a small callus on the inside of Lee's index finger, a light scar in the webbing between his finger and thumb. Gaara hadn't realized such fascinating little imperfections were there, covered by the ever-present bandages.

Slowly, Gaara became aware of the tension in Lee's hand. Lee’s fingers were rigid in his grip, though he made no move to pull away.

With his free hand Lee lifted what was left of his bandages, what had survived or been patched together. He started to wind them back around his arm, starting at the elbow. His message, ‘you've had your fun, let's get going now,’ was clear enough that Gaara wished he had never learned to read Lee's body language.

Instead of letting go, Gaara clasped his other hand around Lee's captive hand as well, fingers brushing the underside of his wrist. He pressed closed lips to Lee's skin, beside the wound, in a soft apology for whatever had made Lee suddenly uncomfortable. He thought it might calm Lee if he could appear harmless, even if only for a moment.

It was enough to make Lee pause, midway through his task. It was even enough to make him break the suddenly tense silence. "What are you doing?"

Gaara paused a moment, searching for words that Lee would want. "Admiring your work ethic."

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Admiration, by slr2moons. (My first attempt at manga toning! Eeee...shoujo sparklies!)