Gaara and Orochimaru, March 5
Characters: Orochimaru, Gaara
Status: Log closed~
Location: Near building, than to get some tea
Date: March 5, Afternoon
Summary: Gaara and Orochimaru go to get tea and catch up...over a few words. Also discuss women and schooling. Oro gets his toy back.
Warnings: Nothing, honestly. This is an incredibly innocent log...
Monday afternoon, the weather was warmer than normal, not hot, but at least not cold anymore. Orochimaru wore a violet long sleeved shirt and black pants. He moved standing in front of the Katsu apartment buildings. A good place to meet since he was sure the both of them could quite easily find it. It would be his first time in a long time to see Gaara, the long term prey that he had since his time at Sado. He knew because of the amount of neglect he had allowed himself to 'inflict' upon the young male that the reactions would be different than during that time they knew each other well. That was no matter to him, though. Patience was a virtue, and the longer it took, the more he was sure this effort would be worth it.
Gaara was also dressed in dark clothes -jeans and a long sleeved black shirt with a gray design. He was without Hoshi, having left the puppy with his brother. The small redhead walked out of the building and paused. There he was - Orochimaru. Gaara approached, face set in a in a serious mask, cerulean blue eyes slightly cloudy as he approached the older man.
That look of annoyed frustration Orochimaru had found himself missing, though it had never been quite so serious before. A bit of an expected response on Orochimaru's part, to say the least. He greeted the boy with his half-grinlike smirk, and nothing more than a small bow. "Gaara-kun."
"Orochimaru-san." Gaara bowed as well, stiff as his voice. He stared at the other, almost intensely as was his wont when he felt...angry or frustrated. Gaara disliked being ignored, he wasn't used to it - even at home, if he wanted, enough fuss had garnered his father's glance. He knew he was too old to be causing fuss, but it irked him because he did not understand it. There had been no reason - Orochimaru had simply dropped out of his life.
Orochimaru, of course, was a busy man, but there was no particular reason for him to have ignored Gaara. It wasn't as though he hadn't acknowledged the boy's existence in his absence, however, it was far different from making contact with him. "It has been awhile, have you kept busy?" he asked.
"Yes." Gaara said simply. School, admittedly, took up the bulk of his time and the rest of that was taken up with Hoshi. The puppy took a lot of time and energy. "I assume you have as well."
Orochimaru nodded and then allowed himself to take a few steps forward, as if leading Gaara, but not doing more than a small movement of his hand to let the smaller male follow. "Of course," he said. A new roommate that was an old friend, his schooling, his snakes, his experiments. He had forgotten a lot about his toys.
The younger slightly hesitated but stepped after Orochimaru. He was curious, in the end. Perhaps something he had done....or had he misread something? Gaara needed to know so that he would be able to avoid the same mistakes.
"You are well?" Orochimaru asked casually, glad the redhead had made the wise choice of following him. Toys soothed his boredom, and he was remembering why he would have killed his time in such a way.
"I am." Gaara said politely. "And you?" Maybe the man had been sick.
"Occupied," Orochimaru answered. "Very...occupied," he said. This was his final year of university before he'd continue onto a graduate program where he'd be able to work and study at the same time.
"I guessed as much." Gaara stated. His voice was still a little stiff, slightly flat. "You must have been very, very busy."
M, he was upset. Orochimaru found that more than clear, his tone, the words, everything. Gaara might as well have come out and said it to someone who could read him like Orochimaru could read people. "...Quite busy," he said. "Have had little time for things outside of working."
Gaara nodded again, but said nothing. His pale hands - slightly stained with paint - were in his pockets as he stared ahead. He was quiet for a few moments and then said, "I see."
Orochimaru turned his head, "I assure you, you have done nothing wrong," he told the younger male. His own hands were in his pockets, eyes focused forward after he said them. No reason the boy should go about moping over that, at least. He could just divert his upset to an outside source instead.
Gaara paused and then looked up, his darkly underlined eyes studying Orochimaru again. "...That is good to know." It was a calm admission - almost a dismissal. As if 'fine, that is taken care of. Let us go on to the next item.'
Orochimaru was silenced by those words. My, maybe he had made a mistake neglecting his toy for so long. It did make things considerably more difficult by doing so. He let his eyes stay narrowed and forward. Occassionally they shifted. He'd have to work harder this time, and he knew that. His mind was forming something perhaps to move onto -- walking them towards a cafe of sorts, mostly for tea, as that was his preferred thing as of late. Kept him from getting sick, wh ich he seemed far more susceptible to because of how many people he was around at classes; or the types of things that he was allowed himself to be exposed to.
Gaara was silent as well as they walked, glancing about here and there. He almost paused at an interesting tree and then moved to keep up with the other man. Gaara had about four or five projects outside of school he was currently working on - most nature studies. Ever since classes had started it was almost like he was working in overdrive. It meant less sleep but Gaara had never slept much anyway.
"...Have you read anything interesting as of late?" Orochimaru asked. That was the root of the 'friendship' that they had that existed. It was easy, in the past, at least for them to discuss matters of mythology or history. It is possible for it to have changed, though.
"I haven't had much time." Gaara admitted. "Mostly textbooks for school." He did miss his legends a bit - at least one painting was going to be about them. He was thinking of asking Juri to pose for it, if she wouldn't mind doing it for a non-school project as well.
"Text book does not void them of interesting information," Orochimaru answered. He, at least, found them just as interesting as a lot of the things he had done in his free time.
"No, but they are not my first choice." Gaara stated. He paused. "I know most of what they say already. It becomes boring."
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow. "It must be as far as you are into the program, I assure you by your third year, you will find any text that you may have just as interesting as any book you find."
Gaara glanced at him and shrugged minimally. "I hope so." he admitted.
Perhaps using a word like 'promise' wasn't recommended in Orochimaru's mind, considering that he just wasn't good with them and it was likely Gaara would scoff that, considering a lot of things. It was far too long. He stopped, though, before crossing at a street corner, nodding towards their destination across the street.
Gaara spotted the cafe and nodded, to assure Orochimaru he saw. He had not been out in a while, so it would be a nice change of pace. "So. Are you not so busy now?"
"My schedule has relaxed," he told the younger male. Finally, or not. It wasn't as though he had no time before, it was just he had more now. He moved to take a few steps across the street when it appeared safe. "Time is an unfortunate enemy."
The boy nodded slightly, following the other. His legs kept him near Orochimaru, almost along side but just slightly behind. It was slight habit - his uncle and his father had expected him to walk slightly behind and he hadn't broken out of it yet.
Orochimaru was used to it, though. Few people found it to be totally respectful to walk at his side. Nakago had been one who had when they were acquaintances, but...Orochimaru couldn't stand people thinking they were the same as him. However..those were were...still becoming his toys were allowed that spot. Equality before superiority -- a very hidden superiority. He turned his head, "It is inconvenient to look over my shoulder at you."
Gaara looked up and blinked, then walked forward a little more quickly. He did not blush, but almost seemed embarrassed as they walked up to the cafe front. "My apologies." he murmured politely.
Orochimaru said nothing further on the matter, simply opened the door to allow the smaller male to step inside ahead of him. It was...very difficult to do things and toy with the male if he always put himself in a place below Orochimaru.
Gaara only hesitated half a second before passing through. He hesitated long enough to allow Orochimaru to enter before they found a table. He sat, near a window, hands coming out of his pockets to rest on the table top.
Orochimaru sat across from this green eyed male, gold eyes intent upon the boy in front of him. Gaara had changed, a lot. Had less of that childlike curiosity and more of that teenage bitterness. It amazed him how little time it took. "You are quite different," he allowed himself to say. It was a harmless statement.
Gaara eyes flickered up and then down again. He shrugged. "...It's different." the boy murmured. "Here. From Sado. From home." Perhaps he had adapted somehow. There was less margin for error, less patience for questions.
"Busier, yes," Orochimaru said. "It is not a negative thing," he assured the teen. "Noisier. A lot more seems as though it has been placed on the line." Gaara would understand that. Tokyo University was different from Sado -- very different. "You have adapted." A very good quality, "A lot stronger." A compliment.
Gaara's eyes flickered again but his jaw line relaxed somewhat - he was pleased. "People don't like questions." he said after a moment. "I have to find the answers in other ways."
"I...like questions," Orochimaru said simply, noting the male's reaction. Those words, made him at least seem less...upset. More as though he would have expected Gaara to react when Orochimaru gave him a compliment, except...in more of a way that was adapted to the new type of person he had become. Questions...gave him time to give answers, and mold the answers to make them convenient.
The boy looked at Orochimaru longer this time and then gave a slight nod, as if deciding something. "I will keep that in mind." His almost smile - something that never fully bloomed but gave you a hint of what it might look like.
Orochimaru's smirk twisted almost awkwardly into his own half-grin. "...I am sure that you will." Questions and answers. It had been awhile since he had an opportunity to do something like that. It always was a good way to help the new found toys of his get acquainted with him. "And I do speak the truth on matters." Or at least...parts of the truth. It was not a lie to omit information.
"..." Gaara looked out the window for a few minutes and then back at the other. He frowned a little more seriously and leaned his head to the side. "....Women are strange."
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow. "Hm?" he wondered quietly, peering up at the waitress and ordering a simple green tea for himself. Void of sugar, he preferred it to taste slightly bitter, after all. "How...did you decide that?"
Gaara nodded to the waitress to indicate he would have the same and then shrugged as the girl left. "I've talked to some."
"...Strange because they are women or strange for other reasons?" Orochimaru said. He wondered if it was female troubles he was having, which, while particularly amusing, he knew he would have to lie his way through. Most females he had around were toys or extremely hostile towards him. Or both.
Gaara leaned forward, chin resting in his hands. For a moment, with his face relaxed, he looked more like he had when he came to Sado. "I think they are strange because they are women. They...are very different."
"Would said person be less strange just because of one gene?" Orochimaru asked. It made very little difference, he knew, in his studies, but he was curious to see how Gaara responded to that.
The boy considered this. "I'm not sure." He admitted after a long while. "I do not know science very well. But it seems to me..." He paused, as if trying to figure out how word things. "It seems to me that I am expected to act a certain way because I am male at times. Perhaps women are strange because they are expected to act so differently?" He shrugged.
Orochimaru nodded, that answer...was a well formed one on Gaara's part. "Perhaps," he said. "A lot of one's personality is genetic," he said. "However, males and females aren't that terribly different. We all start off as the same gender." He thanked the waitress who brought them their tea. "It is just difficult for most males to understand the female mind. I assure you, though, that I find that males can be equally as strange and difficult to understand at times."
Gaara took his own tea bowl and thought before nodding slightly. "I suppose." He didn't really understand Kankuro but that didn't seem to make him as nervous as not understanding Juri-san or a female teacher.
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow, sipping at his tea and then gently setting it back onto the table. "...There is...however, a confidence associated with that," he told Gaara. Perhaps the younger male had only appeared to of changed a lot, and there was only some changes.
"...Associated with what?" Gaara asked quietly, paying attention to Orochimaru, heedless of the people in the cafe and passing by the window that would have usually caught his eye.
"Comfort with members of the other gender, perhaps you lack confidence with them?" he asked. Or just confidence with the person in general, regardless of gender.
Gaara shifted and considered. "...Perhaps." he sounded hesitant to answer. He found it difficult to talk to certain people regardless of gender - loud people for instance startled him.
Orochimaru looked mildly amused. "That is normal," he assured the teen. Many people were not considerate of the person they were associating with's natural boundaries. Orochimaru quickly learned the toys' boundaries, to allow himself to slowly break through them. It kept comfort levels high.
"...I don't like most people." Gaara admitted quietly after a few moments.
"A lot more common a statement than you may think," Orochimaru offered. Yes, back to putting Gaara into that state of normality.
"If people don't like other people why do they pretend to do so?" Gaara asked. He looked at Orochimaru, still slightly hesitant.
"Convienence, security, fear," Orochimaru told him. "People do a lot of things that are driven by those feelings. To protect themselves. It is human instinct..." A predator made friendly with his prey to survive, and prey made friendly with a predator in hopes of being spared.
Gaara leaned forward slightly more. "I can understand security and fear." he said slowly. He could very well. That was why he had been so quiet, so obediant when he first came away from home.
Orochimaru was not the type of man who could fake a grin, he could only wear a smirk. "I would have guessed you would. You are very bright, Gaara." Mostly just idle flattery.
"My teachers say that." Gaara leaned his head to the side, cerulean eyes sharp for just a moment and then it faded as he shrugged.
Orochimaru leaned back into his seat, folding one leg over the other. "I believe they were speaking the truth."
"Yes, but do they think I'm bright because I do all my work or because I have real talent?" Gaara stated. His chin rested in his hand again.
Orochimaru shrugged. "Talent can only take one so far," he said. "You are bright because you know how far you can use that talent and how much of it you have to use as work. A teacher can see that."
Gaara was quiet as he considered this and then looked at Orochimaru. "I suppose that is a good answer."
"I...however," he started, "believe you are bright because you have insight. You understand and perceive things differently than most."
The boy was quiet for a long time, an interesting look coming over his face. It was softer than his usual expressions and lasted only a few moments before he looked down at his tea.
Orochimaru just watched him before decided upon sipping at his tea. That physical response meant to him an acceptance of Orochimaru's words whether or not he believed them to be true himself. It was...strange, yes, and Gaara was different, but...Orochimaru could still use his same methods of getting the boy's trust...to be on the same level as it had been.
"I have missed your company." Gaara said after a few minutes. His eyes looked back at the other, sharp again.
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow. That verification was verbalized for him. "Indeed I have missed yours," Orochimaru partially lied.
"How long until you are very busy again?" the boy inquired. He took a sip of tea, but his intense gaze never wavered.
"Perhaps partially into the next year of schooling," he answered. "So it will be a couple months, but...I will...attempt," he said, though he would not say the word promise. It would make him lose validity. "To make time if you do wish to see me."
A pause and then the redhead nodded. "I do." he said honestly. Candidly. There were few people Gaara felt comfortable with. He did not always understand Orochimaru but he felt more at ease with the other man than others.
Orochimaru lifted up his tea and nodded, sipping it. He let his lips linger against the glass before nodding towards Gaara. "I will make time, I assure you." There would be no more of that forcing Gaara to be comfortable with him again.
Almost smile. The boy seemed pleased as he nodded. "Thank you; I would like that."
Orochimaru nodded. That much, he was expecting from Gaara. "Why dodge the company of someone who appreciates it, ne?" he asked, though it wasn't really for Gaara to answer.
The boy only gave the slightest of nods and then looked down at his cooling tea. He lifted the bowl and took one last sip before glancing outside. "I should get back soon. I did not tell Kankuroniisan where I was going." Not taht his brother would notice exactly - he seemed more in his own world at times than Gaara did.
Orochimaru nodded his hed, "I am not keeping you here," he assured. Yet, anyway... "It was just a time...that I figured would be appropriate to catch up."
"I appreciate it. And we should do it again, very soon." Gaara stated, putting the bowl down.
"We will," Orochimaru nodded. "I assure you...we will make plans. Do not hesitate to contact me."
"I won't." Gaara promised softly and stood. He pulled out some money and placed it on the table, bowed slightly to Orochimaru, murmuring "Till then" and turned away.
Orochimaru's eyes followed the male only briefly before staring down at the table for a few moments, slightly amused. It was so much easier now, Gaara had grown, quite a lot. More than he'd care to admit without being at fault for it. He'd finish his tea, and perhaps...go back to his long forgotten notes cataloging people he had met and knew.
Status: Log closed~
Location: Near building, than to get some tea
Date: March 5, Afternoon
Summary: Gaara and Orochimaru go to get tea and catch up...over a few words. Also discuss women and schooling. Oro gets his toy back.
Warnings: Nothing, honestly. This is an incredibly innocent log...
Monday afternoon, the weather was warmer than normal, not hot, but at least not cold anymore. Orochimaru wore a violet long sleeved shirt and black pants. He moved standing in front of the Katsu apartment buildings. A good place to meet since he was sure the both of them could quite easily find it. It would be his first time in a long time to see Gaara, the long term prey that he had since his time at Sado. He knew because of the amount of neglect he had allowed himself to 'inflict' upon the young male that the reactions would be different than during that time they knew each other well. That was no matter to him, though. Patience was a virtue, and the longer it took, the more he was sure this effort would be worth it.
Gaara was also dressed in dark clothes -jeans and a long sleeved black shirt with a gray design. He was without Hoshi, having left the puppy with his brother. The small redhead walked out of the building and paused. There he was - Orochimaru. Gaara approached, face set in a in a serious mask, cerulean blue eyes slightly cloudy as he approached the older man.
That look of annoyed frustration Orochimaru had found himself missing, though it had never been quite so serious before. A bit of an expected response on Orochimaru's part, to say the least. He greeted the boy with his half-grinlike smirk, and nothing more than a small bow. "Gaara-kun."
"Orochimaru-san." Gaara bowed as well, stiff as his voice. He stared at the other, almost intensely as was his wont when he felt...angry or frustrated. Gaara disliked being ignored, he wasn't used to it - even at home, if he wanted, enough fuss had garnered his father's glance. He knew he was too old to be causing fuss, but it irked him because he did not understand it. There had been no reason - Orochimaru had simply dropped out of his life.
Orochimaru, of course, was a busy man, but there was no particular reason for him to have ignored Gaara. It wasn't as though he hadn't acknowledged the boy's existence in his absence, however, it was far different from making contact with him. "It has been awhile, have you kept busy?" he asked.
"Yes." Gaara said simply. School, admittedly, took up the bulk of his time and the rest of that was taken up with Hoshi. The puppy took a lot of time and energy. "I assume you have as well."
Orochimaru nodded and then allowed himself to take a few steps forward, as if leading Gaara, but not doing more than a small movement of his hand to let the smaller male follow. "Of course," he said. A new roommate that was an old friend, his schooling, his snakes, his experiments. He had forgotten a lot about his toys.
The younger slightly hesitated but stepped after Orochimaru. He was curious, in the end. Perhaps something he had done....or had he misread something? Gaara needed to know so that he would be able to avoid the same mistakes.
"You are well?" Orochimaru asked casually, glad the redhead had made the wise choice of following him. Toys soothed his boredom, and he was remembering why he would have killed his time in such a way.
"I am." Gaara said politely. "And you?" Maybe the man had been sick.
"Occupied," Orochimaru answered. "Very...occupied," he said. This was his final year of university before he'd continue onto a graduate program where he'd be able to work and study at the same time.
"I guessed as much." Gaara stated. His voice was still a little stiff, slightly flat. "You must have been very, very busy."
M, he was upset. Orochimaru found that more than clear, his tone, the words, everything. Gaara might as well have come out and said it to someone who could read him like Orochimaru could read people. "...Quite busy," he said. "Have had little time for things outside of working."
Gaara nodded again, but said nothing. His pale hands - slightly stained with paint - were in his pockets as he stared ahead. He was quiet for a few moments and then said, "I see."
Orochimaru turned his head, "I assure you, you have done nothing wrong," he told the younger male. His own hands were in his pockets, eyes focused forward after he said them. No reason the boy should go about moping over that, at least. He could just divert his upset to an outside source instead.
Gaara paused and then looked up, his darkly underlined eyes studying Orochimaru again. "...That is good to know." It was a calm admission - almost a dismissal. As if 'fine, that is taken care of. Let us go on to the next item.'
Orochimaru was silenced by those words. My, maybe he had made a mistake neglecting his toy for so long. It did make things considerably more difficult by doing so. He let his eyes stay narrowed and forward. Occassionally they shifted. He'd have to work harder this time, and he knew that. His mind was forming something perhaps to move onto -- walking them towards a cafe of sorts, mostly for tea, as that was his preferred thing as of late. Kept him from getting sick, wh ich he seemed far more susceptible to because of how many people he was around at classes; or the types of things that he was allowed himself to be exposed to.
Gaara was silent as well as they walked, glancing about here and there. He almost paused at an interesting tree and then moved to keep up with the other man. Gaara had about four or five projects outside of school he was currently working on - most nature studies. Ever since classes had started it was almost like he was working in overdrive. It meant less sleep but Gaara had never slept much anyway.
"...Have you read anything interesting as of late?" Orochimaru asked. That was the root of the 'friendship' that they had that existed. It was easy, in the past, at least for them to discuss matters of mythology or history. It is possible for it to have changed, though.
"I haven't had much time." Gaara admitted. "Mostly textbooks for school." He did miss his legends a bit - at least one painting was going to be about them. He was thinking of asking Juri to pose for it, if she wouldn't mind doing it for a non-school project as well.
"Text book does not void them of interesting information," Orochimaru answered. He, at least, found them just as interesting as a lot of the things he had done in his free time.
"No, but they are not my first choice." Gaara stated. He paused. "I know most of what they say already. It becomes boring."
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow. "It must be as far as you are into the program, I assure you by your third year, you will find any text that you may have just as interesting as any book you find."
Gaara glanced at him and shrugged minimally. "I hope so." he admitted.
Perhaps using a word like 'promise' wasn't recommended in Orochimaru's mind, considering that he just wasn't good with them and it was likely Gaara would scoff that, considering a lot of things. It was far too long. He stopped, though, before crossing at a street corner, nodding towards their destination across the street.
Gaara spotted the cafe and nodded, to assure Orochimaru he saw. He had not been out in a while, so it would be a nice change of pace. "So. Are you not so busy now?"
"My schedule has relaxed," he told the younger male. Finally, or not. It wasn't as though he had no time before, it was just he had more now. He moved to take a few steps across the street when it appeared safe. "Time is an unfortunate enemy."
The boy nodded slightly, following the other. His legs kept him near Orochimaru, almost along side but just slightly behind. It was slight habit - his uncle and his father had expected him to walk slightly behind and he hadn't broken out of it yet.
Orochimaru was used to it, though. Few people found it to be totally respectful to walk at his side. Nakago had been one who had when they were acquaintances, but...Orochimaru couldn't stand people thinking they were the same as him. However..those were were...still becoming his toys were allowed that spot. Equality before superiority -- a very hidden superiority. He turned his head, "It is inconvenient to look over my shoulder at you."
Gaara looked up and blinked, then walked forward a little more quickly. He did not blush, but almost seemed embarrassed as they walked up to the cafe front. "My apologies." he murmured politely.
Orochimaru said nothing further on the matter, simply opened the door to allow the smaller male to step inside ahead of him. It was...very difficult to do things and toy with the male if he always put himself in a place below Orochimaru.
Gaara only hesitated half a second before passing through. He hesitated long enough to allow Orochimaru to enter before they found a table. He sat, near a window, hands coming out of his pockets to rest on the table top.
Orochimaru sat across from this green eyed male, gold eyes intent upon the boy in front of him. Gaara had changed, a lot. Had less of that childlike curiosity and more of that teenage bitterness. It amazed him how little time it took. "You are quite different," he allowed himself to say. It was a harmless statement.
Gaara eyes flickered up and then down again. He shrugged. "...It's different." the boy murmured. "Here. From Sado. From home." Perhaps he had adapted somehow. There was less margin for error, less patience for questions.
"Busier, yes," Orochimaru said. "It is not a negative thing," he assured the teen. "Noisier. A lot more seems as though it has been placed on the line." Gaara would understand that. Tokyo University was different from Sado -- very different. "You have adapted." A very good quality, "A lot stronger." A compliment.
Gaara's eyes flickered again but his jaw line relaxed somewhat - he was pleased. "People don't like questions." he said after a moment. "I have to find the answers in other ways."
"I...like questions," Orochimaru said simply, noting the male's reaction. Those words, made him at least seem less...upset. More as though he would have expected Gaara to react when Orochimaru gave him a compliment, except...in more of a way that was adapted to the new type of person he had become. Questions...gave him time to give answers, and mold the answers to make them convenient.
The boy looked at Orochimaru longer this time and then gave a slight nod, as if deciding something. "I will keep that in mind." His almost smile - something that never fully bloomed but gave you a hint of what it might look like.
Orochimaru's smirk twisted almost awkwardly into his own half-grin. "...I am sure that you will." Questions and answers. It had been awhile since he had an opportunity to do something like that. It always was a good way to help the new found toys of his get acquainted with him. "And I do speak the truth on matters." Or at least...parts of the truth. It was not a lie to omit information.
"..." Gaara looked out the window for a few minutes and then back at the other. He frowned a little more seriously and leaned his head to the side. "....Women are strange."
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow. "Hm?" he wondered quietly, peering up at the waitress and ordering a simple green tea for himself. Void of sugar, he preferred it to taste slightly bitter, after all. "How...did you decide that?"
Gaara nodded to the waitress to indicate he would have the same and then shrugged as the girl left. "I've talked to some."
"...Strange because they are women or strange for other reasons?" Orochimaru said. He wondered if it was female troubles he was having, which, while particularly amusing, he knew he would have to lie his way through. Most females he had around were toys or extremely hostile towards him. Or both.
Gaara leaned forward, chin resting in his hands. For a moment, with his face relaxed, he looked more like he had when he came to Sado. "I think they are strange because they are women. They...are very different."
"Would said person be less strange just because of one gene?" Orochimaru asked. It made very little difference, he knew, in his studies, but he was curious to see how Gaara responded to that.
The boy considered this. "I'm not sure." He admitted after a long while. "I do not know science very well. But it seems to me..." He paused, as if trying to figure out how word things. "It seems to me that I am expected to act a certain way because I am male at times. Perhaps women are strange because they are expected to act so differently?" He shrugged.
Orochimaru nodded, that answer...was a well formed one on Gaara's part. "Perhaps," he said. "A lot of one's personality is genetic," he said. "However, males and females aren't that terribly different. We all start off as the same gender." He thanked the waitress who brought them their tea. "It is just difficult for most males to understand the female mind. I assure you, though, that I find that males can be equally as strange and difficult to understand at times."
Gaara took his own tea bowl and thought before nodding slightly. "I suppose." He didn't really understand Kankuro but that didn't seem to make him as nervous as not understanding Juri-san or a female teacher.
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow, sipping at his tea and then gently setting it back onto the table. "...There is...however, a confidence associated with that," he told Gaara. Perhaps the younger male had only appeared to of changed a lot, and there was only some changes.
"...Associated with what?" Gaara asked quietly, paying attention to Orochimaru, heedless of the people in the cafe and passing by the window that would have usually caught his eye.
"Comfort with members of the other gender, perhaps you lack confidence with them?" he asked. Or just confidence with the person in general, regardless of gender.
Gaara shifted and considered. "...Perhaps." he sounded hesitant to answer. He found it difficult to talk to certain people regardless of gender - loud people for instance startled him.
Orochimaru looked mildly amused. "That is normal," he assured the teen. Many people were not considerate of the person they were associating with's natural boundaries. Orochimaru quickly learned the toys' boundaries, to allow himself to slowly break through them. It kept comfort levels high.
"...I don't like most people." Gaara admitted quietly after a few moments.
"A lot more common a statement than you may think," Orochimaru offered. Yes, back to putting Gaara into that state of normality.
"If people don't like other people why do they pretend to do so?" Gaara asked. He looked at Orochimaru, still slightly hesitant.
"Convienence, security, fear," Orochimaru told him. "People do a lot of things that are driven by those feelings. To protect themselves. It is human instinct..." A predator made friendly with his prey to survive, and prey made friendly with a predator in hopes of being spared.
Gaara leaned forward slightly more. "I can understand security and fear." he said slowly. He could very well. That was why he had been so quiet, so obediant when he first came away from home.
Orochimaru was not the type of man who could fake a grin, he could only wear a smirk. "I would have guessed you would. You are very bright, Gaara." Mostly just idle flattery.
"My teachers say that." Gaara leaned his head to the side, cerulean eyes sharp for just a moment and then it faded as he shrugged.
Orochimaru leaned back into his seat, folding one leg over the other. "I believe they were speaking the truth."
"Yes, but do they think I'm bright because I do all my work or because I have real talent?" Gaara stated. His chin rested in his hand again.
Orochimaru shrugged. "Talent can only take one so far," he said. "You are bright because you know how far you can use that talent and how much of it you have to use as work. A teacher can see that."
Gaara was quiet as he considered this and then looked at Orochimaru. "I suppose that is a good answer."
"I...however," he started, "believe you are bright because you have insight. You understand and perceive things differently than most."
The boy was quiet for a long time, an interesting look coming over his face. It was softer than his usual expressions and lasted only a few moments before he looked down at his tea.
Orochimaru just watched him before decided upon sipping at his tea. That physical response meant to him an acceptance of Orochimaru's words whether or not he believed them to be true himself. It was...strange, yes, and Gaara was different, but...Orochimaru could still use his same methods of getting the boy's trust...to be on the same level as it had been.
"I have missed your company." Gaara said after a few minutes. His eyes looked back at the other, sharp again.
Orochimaru quirked an eyebrow. That verification was verbalized for him. "Indeed I have missed yours," Orochimaru partially lied.
"How long until you are very busy again?" the boy inquired. He took a sip of tea, but his intense gaze never wavered.
"Perhaps partially into the next year of schooling," he answered. "So it will be a couple months, but...I will...attempt," he said, though he would not say the word promise. It would make him lose validity. "To make time if you do wish to see me."
A pause and then the redhead nodded. "I do." he said honestly. Candidly. There were few people Gaara felt comfortable with. He did not always understand Orochimaru but he felt more at ease with the other man than others.
Orochimaru lifted up his tea and nodded, sipping it. He let his lips linger against the glass before nodding towards Gaara. "I will make time, I assure you." There would be no more of that forcing Gaara to be comfortable with him again.
Almost smile. The boy seemed pleased as he nodded. "Thank you; I would like that."
Orochimaru nodded. That much, he was expecting from Gaara. "Why dodge the company of someone who appreciates it, ne?" he asked, though it wasn't really for Gaara to answer.
The boy only gave the slightest of nods and then looked down at his cooling tea. He lifted the bowl and took one last sip before glancing outside. "I should get back soon. I did not tell Kankuroniisan where I was going." Not taht his brother would notice exactly - he seemed more in his own world at times than Gaara did.
Orochimaru nodded his hed, "I am not keeping you here," he assured. Yet, anyway... "It was just a time...that I figured would be appropriate to catch up."
"I appreciate it. And we should do it again, very soon." Gaara stated, putting the bowl down.
"We will," Orochimaru nodded. "I assure you...we will make plans. Do not hesitate to contact me."
"I won't." Gaara promised softly and stood. He pulled out some money and placed it on the table, bowed slightly to Orochimaru, murmuring "Till then" and turned away.
Orochimaru's eyes followed the male only briefly before staring down at the table for a few moments, slightly amused. It was so much easier now, Gaara had grown, quite a lot. More than he'd care to admit without being at fault for it. He'd finish his tea, and perhaps...go back to his long forgotten notes cataloging people he had met and knew.