The early morning sun rose spilling a shadow of yellow orange across the open land, turning the grass a shade of brownish yellow. In all the places the light reached, it did not reach inside the second tower, as it was then called, which although attached to another structure seemed to stand alone. It held a dark appearance, it’s stone burned to a permanent black hue clad with twisting thorned vines that seemed to choke the frail restructure. It was a tall, windowless piston chamber-like structure that ascended for about twelve stories before ending abruptly in a flattened top. At its base was a door forged of heavy wood and iron, barred with many locks and chains and around the construction nothing would grow for miles until the timberland edge. The inside was pitched in darkness, only the meager light of candles lighting the long flights of stairs that lead to the room at its peak.

There was another door that resembled the first in every aspect except that it could only be opened from the outside by way of a key. Behind the door was a small room the floor covered in straw to contain the little bit of heat trapped inside it. In one of the far corners of the room was a straw stuffed mattress that served as a makeshift bed and on the opposite wall was a small nook for housing a candle, the light of which only lit three quarters of the room. A young girl about the age of eight or nine, with an unusual appearance sat amidst all the straw. Her naturally white hair was ashen with dirt and her dark blue eyes faded with weariness. Her frame was thin from the lack of eating. Although she was given food daily her soul would not permit her to eat it and kept her awake each night with its talk of freedom and peace. Her looks were not the only oddity about her. She had the special capabilities to make things happen, although she could hardly control it, and the wisdom beyond her years. The people who took care of her whom she induced to be some sort of collaborated military force, all young men ranging from the ages of twenty to about thirty-five. They didn’t seem to like her, much less put up with her. Being the only female and child in the vicinity she strongly lacked companionship, though she could never miss it for who could miss what they never possessed?

Her head lifted slightly as the large oak door creaked its way open spilling more light into the small chamber and also casting the shadow of her intruder. Once her eyes adjusted to the light she recognized the face of the young man at the threshold, she had seen him around the building once or twice and was particularly intrigued with him. His eyes were hard and black; she told herself that was where his secrets must live for they always seemed to be swirling with mystery. His short hair which was the same color of his eyes fell into them framing his face as it ran in all directions about his head. He was dressed in the usual garb of black and silver, as all the men did, and carried a sword at his side. A dragon, seemingly forged from pure silver, was carved into the hilt, its hollow eyes burning into whoever was brave enough to stare into them. The dragon, she saw as the symbol of the man before her for they both had the same smoldering look in their eyes, both pointed at her. He approached causing her to shrink back towards the wall in fear. At the sight of her fear of him he ceased descending advance and stood still staring. His commanding officer had now put him in charge of the little wench since she was not eating and was suffering signs of loneliness and depression, requiring him to spend at least two hours with her daily. Although young, she was of importance and to lose her would cause them a great deal of suffering for she was said to hold the knowledge of ‘the key’, a magnate said to have remarkable powers and innumerable wisdom but was sealed away, by higher divinities due to mans irresponsibility and over all bad initiative, only to be revealed by one with a worthy heart. That one to be chosen by ‘the key’ whose power was only vanquished by the force itself.

With a growl of impatience he reached out and grabbed her by the wrist intending to pull her to her feet but as soon as their skin touched a feeling of dizziness descended upon him. The young girl’s eyes shut as a flash of images and memories flashed before her eyes. Ones that were not her’s. When she realized what she was seeing she yanked her hand away from his.

“Ta- Takujinn..” She whispered in shock. He placed his hand on his forehead to steady himself and stared at her strangely.

“What did you just say?” The word sounded remarkably like his name which surprised him since this was his first meeting with her. She was also in a state of shock for in all of the people that she’d met 

that had never happened before. She gazed up at him with wide blue eyes in curiosity. Could he be the one?

“Takujinn... is that your name?” He glared at her in distrust. He didn’t have the slightest idea what she was capable of and he was dead set on not letting his guard down. He nodded.

“How did you know that?” She looked away from him his eyes telling her that he wasn’t yet ready to know the secrets that she did.

“Someone told me.” the lie slipped off of her tongue in such grace that she would have believed herself. He snorted at the unlikeliness of that. Most of the men despised her and wouldn’t much less talk to her.

“Why have you not been eating or sleeping? You trying to kill yourself or something?” he asked with nonchalance. She shook her head in earnest. “What is it then?”

“I have horrible nightmares that won’t let me sleep and I can’t stomach the food anymore, I only end up throwing it up again.” He swallowed the growl that was intent to force itself from his throat.

“Alright, what would you like to eat?” he said through clenched teeth. Her eyebrows furrowed together in thought. “You wouldn’t happen to have any fruits and vegetables, would you?” she asked in a low voice as if she didn’t wish for anyone else to hear. What did she think this was some kind of bed and breakfast?

“I’ll see what I can do..” He looked away already knowing his superior’s answer to that request. Fresh fruits and vegetables were hard to come by these days and to waste valuable expenses on a skinny little brat was considered out of the question. She nodded in appreciation of his word.

She looked up at him with curiosity in her dark blue eyes before her eyes rested on the dragon hilt of his sword taking in all of the details from the curved frown of its mouth to each of the delicately carved scales, not overlooking the way the eyes seemed to follow hers.

“Your dragon is beautiful. What does it mean?” She asked while her eyes never left the design.

“It doesn’t have a meaning.” he said gruffly. She smiled to herself as he fell into his lesson like she intended him to. “Everything has a meaning and reasons, no matter how obvious or obscured, understand?” She looked him straight in the eyes, letting him know she was serious. He didn’t nod back or anything but at the same time didn’t draw his eyes away from hers. She got the feeling that he understood.

“What does it mean?” she repeated. “Bravery, searching, a warrior, the entity of myself and my spirit and a reminder of my barriers and my trials past and ahead.” his voice was dazed and homogenous. Although it came from him it seemed not his. Takujinn shook his head the understanding seeping in to his consciousness, not enjoying the fact that a child had the power to force answers from him. He felt like the sanctity of his mind had been violated.

He blinked himself out of the stupor her eyes had lulled him into as anger possessed him.

“You will never do that again.” He half growled, half sneered the words at her but she seemed unimpressed.

“Not even with your permission?”

“No.” She looked away slightly ashamed. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to know the truth.”

He turned to stare down at the hilt of his sword, the dragon’s eyes burning into him as well. “Honesty is built on trust. If I can’t trust you then all you will receive is lies, understand?” She nodded and looked away. That had been stupid of her to believe that he would automatically trust her. Even if she was the key, his trust would not be easily gained, for she had seen inside of him and felt the heat of the barriers he had erected around himself. She could easily just force her way through, she had the power. But that would accomplish nothing only his resenting her even more. She wanted him to let her in of his own free will. She looked up at him with a small grin.

“I’ve learned your name but have not taught you mine. Don’t you wish to know it?” He stared at her like she was insane. He didn’t want her friendship and he could care less what her name was.

He shrugged anyway.

“My name is Sakura, at least from what I remember, actually I have many names but that is the one I prefer.” He snorted at the useless information. She pushed herself closer to the wall and pulled her legs up to her chest.

“You hate me just like the others, don’t you?” she leaned her head against her knees and stared at him with a small smile. “It’s okay if you do I understand, you taught me something about humans today. They don’t trust what can’t be explained or understood, like me and why I’m like this...”

Takujinn stood in silence although he listened to her every word. They did hate her. All of them did. They hated her because they knew that she held all of their futures in the palm of her hand and had the power to make or break them, and the fact that she hadn’t released any information on where the power lie. “That’s not why they hate you,” he said gruffly, “It’s because you’re not doing anything about it. You have all this ability and you sit here waiting for people to cater to you before you decide to do anything, and that’s why they hate you.” She looked up at him with confusion in her eyes, and shook her head enthusiastically.

“Not alone, I can’t do these things by myself there is only one person who can understand where and how all of this works and without that person I’m useless so don’t go blaming this on me! I’m the only one who is trying! If you could all look past your hatred and jealous envy then maybe you wouldn’t -”

She let out a startled gasp as he drew her up by her wrist; his eyes were like the dragons. “You spoke of another person who is it?!” Hot tears filled Sakura’s shut eyes as she struggled against his grip.

“You will never know, you don’t deserve to know!” She growled through clenched teeth. She opened her eyes to reveal a blinding white light. Takujinn had to release her to shield his eyes from her wrath. “Stay away from me!” She yelled, waves of shock blue energy radiating off of her throwing him back into the distant wall. The candle tottered slightly before collapsing over into the straw lighting it afire. He held his head which was throbbing in pain, his vision blurring so that all he could see was the moving color it produced.

The flames growled angrily as if it intended to destroy the entire world once more as it once had. Its snake like movements twisted and turned slowly consuming the room but preserving the two alive for the time being. Sakura gasped and pushed herself further against the wall her eyes catching a glimpse of Takujinn lifting himself from the ground in an unsteady stupor but remained in silence. She hadn’t meant to set the place on fire. She looked over to the strong wooden door but her hope quickly died with the realization that it only opened from the outside.

The smoke and the heat of the flames seemed to choke at her as if it sought to pull the life from her body. Takujinn gathered his strength, leaping over the flames that reached up to grab him skillfully until he was at Sakura’s side. He lifted her up into his arms and even though she was blinded by the thick screen of smoke that was building, and despite their previous dispute she could make out his hard black eyes and they held a sort of comfort to them. He moved towards the door, wary of the fire. When he was in front of it he drew the dragon sword from its sheath, its eyes glowing with a 

sense of life. She clung tightly to him as he swung determined at the stubborn door only succeeding in hacking chunks out of it. Over the span of a few minutes the force behind his attacks became weaker and weaker. She knew that if she didn’t do anything soon they would both burn to death and poor Takujinn was doing all he could to get them both out when he could have just left her to parish in the flames. He was just about to swing once more at the door when she leaned forward and placed her hand firmly against the hot and chipped wood, peeling most of the layers down to make it thin enough for him to hack his way out. The hole wasn’t big enough to fit both of them trough at once so he placed her gently on the ground that was now also absorbing heat, scorching the bottoms of her shoeless feet, and squeezed through the opening before reaching in and pulling her through. Not out of danger, yet he stumbled down the long stone staircase, until he reached the bottom and stumbled down the stairs and out onto the fading grass, taking deep breaths of fresh air. Sakura had already passed out from exhaustion and was still clinging to his shirt even in her unconscious state.

II

The bright morning sunlight shone in through the glass windows in the sickbay of the main building, its warmth throwing hues of yellows and oranges over the small white room startling the young girl that lie there. Her blue eyes snapped open with a sudden urgency at the unfamiliar light that flooded through glass which she was not accustomed to. She pushed herself up on her elbows and shielded her face from the horrifying yet comforting brightness. As she turned away from the light she got the chance to inspect her surroundings. The bed which she was laying on, with its white sheets and blankets and its fluffy pillows was more comfortable than she had realized. The whole room was white and gave off a sense of comfort and security as a soft scent wafted in from the half open door. The floor was of light blue tile which to her was a welcomed contrast to the theme color. Her eyes fell on the bed which was located next to hers where Takujinn lie in peaceful silence, his eyes closed the light shining slightly on his features making him appear ever so angelic.

She slipped from her sheets, finding the tile cold to her feet, and padded over to his bed side before falling to her knees, staring intensely at his closed eyes, willing them to open so that she could gaze into the eyes of the dragon once more. Even after their slight disagreement she still felt intrigued by and drawn to him. He took in a deep breath before exhaling in his sleep. She wondered what he dreamt of that made him appear so relaxed.

Even she had to acknowledge that she found him to be rather comforting in this state. When the dark circles of his eyes that burned holes in her soul whenever he gazed upon her were locked away behind smooth lids. The instant that thought came to her mind, the dragons eyes were opened and stared up in slight shock that was gauzed with solace and serenity. She watched his pupils dilate in the morning sun, as he blinked away the pain of light. The dark orbs shifted to look at her in slight uncertainty and indecisiveness. She only stared back blankly. This continued on for a few moments until she willingly broke the silence in a whisper.

“Thank you for saving me... Takujinn.” He continued his stare without movement before snorting in disgust.

“Save your gratitude, I didn’t have a choice in the matter. Why would I willingly save a destructive little runt like you? If you didn’t hold our entire future in your grubby little hands I wouldn’t have given your life a second thought. You’d be ashes right now.” he ended in a snarl.

She stared back impassively, seemingly not affected by his words. “I didn’t mean to start the fire.” Her voice came in solemn stoicy. Her eyes fixed on his, trying to discover and unveil the secrets that hid there. She looked so innocent and apologetic until it made him want to wretch, until he couldn’t bear to look any more. He turned his head away. He knew she didn’t mean to do it but she was angry at him and the flames were a nice way of saying ‘go burn in hell for the way you all treat me!’

“I’m sorry, anyway.” she said tearing her gaze away from him. The fact that she apologized made anger flare up inside of him. It was as if she were trying to trigger his guilty coincidence into forgiving 

her for almost taking his life. His hand itched to take up the cool silver dragon and enact his revenge and quench the burning that was eating away at his state of mind.

She turned away at his silence, seeking her bed as comfort to his sword like ignorance. His hand shot out and grabbed her by her wrist.

“You spoke of a second key earlier...” He said in low tones that were somewhat soothing.

She nodded even though he didn’t turn to look, “Why did you say nothing about it before?”

She shrugged and gave a small smile. “You were not then ready to know. You learn more and more knowledge is gained.” she nodded at her logic before he released her with a frown, her words not making a bit of sense to him. Instead of going back to her side of the room she stood by his side. “Do they hurt?”

He growled softly still trying to figure out her previous riddle. “Does what hurt?”

“The burns on your back and arms. That is why you lay that way to minimize the pain.”

“No.” curtly after his short answer he winced and a painful sensation ran up his back as he turned to look at her. A small smile enveloped her face, which Takujinn figured fit her better than the sorrowful frown she sported. “Bad karma? Lying is bad for you, you know.” He frowned at her, not becoming the biggest fan of her advice and remarks. “We got off to a pretty bad start too, didn’t we?” Grunting at her comment, he pushed himself up off of the mattress, painfully and balanced himself on his elbows.

“Stupid little wench... I don’t want anything to do with you, now what part of that don’t you understand?” he responded through clenched teeth. Sakura drew away, slightly taken aback by his words. Although slightly fearful she drew up her strength and stepped forward once more.

“Ryu Takujinn-dono!” she stated in a rather forceful tone. He turned to her and raised an interested eyebrow at her choice of words and the tone she took with him. She called him ‘ryu’? And she used the honorific ‘dono’ which he was most certain he didn’t deserve.

“What?!” his answer came in a rather annoyed tone of voice.

She closed her eyes and with clenched fists said rather loudly, “I like you Takujinn- dono! I know that you hate me, but I still like you! And I just wanted you to know that no matter how much you try to push me away or discourage me I’ll always like you and I’m never going to stop trying to be your friend even if you don’t want to be mine!”

He blinked rather shocked by her bold statement as she ran for cover to her own bed and threw the blanket over her head, incase his reaction should be an unpleasant one. Takujinn returned to his previous lying position and stared up at the ceiling with slight discomfort.

“Stupid little wench...” he repeated softly. Were all women that way or was it just her? So persistent? It was just so annoying but a little admirable once he thought about it. He threw a glance her way but retracted it. Why should he feel sorry for her? She was the cause of all this anyway but alas, his feelings were beginning to take him over.

“What is it with you kid? What are you so interested in me for?” He muttered under his breath the words that she was not intended to hear.

Sakura pulled the blanket from over her head and stared at him. “You are special Ryu Takujinn-dono. You’re not like the others. I see something in you that is rare yet subtle and that is what makes you so.” she smiled at him completely dropping the blanket she was clenching, “You are like your sword: Strong, unyielding and noble.”

He grunted at her words. Well that explained the name calling. There was nothing special about him but before he had a chance to react to her thoughts of him, the door swung open to reveal another man a bit older than Takujinn dressed in the traditional colors but this one sported a striation of yellow and gold above the pocket on the side of his chest. A doctor. His hair was of a brownish tint and his eyes reflected a sense of autumn with their calming hue of amber and flashes of green. His face was slender, almost femininely so, and held a sort of kindness to it, so thought Sakura. He stepped in and closed the door slightly behind him before glancing at the clipboard in his hands with a frown.

She noticed how Takujinn eyed him warily and got the feeling that either he didn’t trust this person, Doctors or people in general. The doctor pulled up one of the chairs that lined the outskirts of the room and sat beside him, turning completely to block her from view.

“Looks like you’ve really out done yourself this time, Matsuda.” he said all in good teasing while Takujinn snorted un-amused. “You shouldn’t even be sitting up, how badly burnt you are.” he stated, pointing at him with the clipboard. Sakura sat across the room, watching in silence. Taking it all in as the two continued to ignore her presence, to her, in good cause. It gave her time to see if she liked this new person who had yet to be introduced to her.

Ignoring the man in front of him, Takujinn focused his attention on Sakura in slight suspicion before reluctantly turned his attention back to the good doctor. He despised doctors. He could never figure out why. He just didn’t like them.

The man stood and pulled out something from the deep pocket in his coat. Although she had to lean to one side to see the young girl recognized it as a stethoscope. Takujinn pulled away almost instantly as he reached for him. A look of slight annoyance covered the doctor’s face.

“ Relax. S’only a stethoscope and it’s not even cold. I sat it on the heat just afore I came in here.” he argued obviously used to his objections, “ Never ceases to amaze me how much wear and tear you soldiers can endure and still live. This is the bloody 15th time you’ve been in here since you were found crawling up the-” Takujinn cleared his throat before the other man could finish his sentence and threw a look in the girls direction. The doctor noting his stern anxiousness changed the subject. “How did you manage to set the second tower afire, anyway?” his voice reflected his curiosity.

“I didn’t.” At Takujinn’s blunt answer all heads in the room turned to the little white-haired girl that sat across from them. Sakura withdrew deeper into her blankets, squirming beneath their gazes. The other man stood up straight a look of slight bewilderment etched on his face. As he walked towards her, although she felt as if death were approaching she didn’t shrink away, but stood her ground. The man squatted before her and pulled the blanket away from her face.

“So this is the little pint, is it?”

“I didn’t mean to...” She whispered hoarsely once she had rediscovered her voice. A look of surprise enveloped his face followed by sudden laughter which she decided that she rather liked.

“Of course you didn’t. Mistakes happen; it’s a part of life. Now what would your name be?”

She gave a small smile but didn’t put down her guard completely. “Sakura.”

“Well done, Sakura! Burnt it good, you did! Serves ‘em right too!” He retorted with a grin. Sakura looked up at him, her eyes wide as he ruffled her hair, finally placing his odd accent. “You’re from England!” she exclaimed.

“Right smart one!” he complemented her while looked at the other man, “I was from England. Or else would be if there still existed a bloody England.” his voice quieted to a solemn silence and a look of pain flashed across his features before it was gone. “All’s well, cut your losses and count you’re blessing as the saying goes.” he stood and stretched a bit. “Well your friend there seems top shape if not a bit ornery.” Takujinn growled a warning at him and he smiled back pleasantly before extending a hand to her.

“Well anyway it’s been a pleasure, miss...” he said as she took the offered hand and shook it lightly before exiting. Sakura looked after him with growing interest. He treated her like a person instead of some wild cadged animal. Like everyone else did. It crossed her mind that she hadn’t asked his name and didn’t know it. She turned her attention back to the other occupant of the room who was staring at her intensely. “Who’s he?” she asked Takujinn who glared hard as ever at her.

“He is none of your concern.” Sakura tilted her head at his response. She got the odd feeling that he was protecting the strange former Englishman, though it didn’t seem like him to do so. Then the previous awkwardness at the mentioning of his past resurfaced in her memory.

“Ryu Matsuda-kun...” She started not failing to notice the look of slight surprise that rose in his eyes when she used his last name, “Did something happen to you when you were younger?” He looked away, his silence intriguing her. His eyes hardened as he stared down at his lap, freezing all the secrets where they lie, as he clenched his covers in his fists. She could see how in pain he was and even though she knew that he would never accept it she wanted to help him. Despite how cruel he had been. Sakura pulled the blankets away and proceeded to his side, set on healing the surface she had wounded. Climbing up into his bed she placed her arms around him, wary of his wounds and surprised that he didn’t push her away immediately, being too deep in disturbed thought to do so. The memories from his past resurfaced, back to that day. That place. His thoughts were broken as Sakura began to softly sing.

Takujinn looked up slightly bewildered, besides the fact that her voice was quite alluring, that song sounded so familiar; Like he had heard it somewhere before. He stared straight ahead registering the lyrics in his head. She smiled slightly. “It’s a lullaby.” she responded despondently after some time. She chided herself softly for bringing up the topic of his past at such a moment. She knew he didn’t remember the truth about it and she wouldn’t reveal it until he was ready.

“Where- did you learn that?” his answer came in a silent whisper. Sakura’s mouth opened but no words would come out. She tried again and it resulted in a soft sob followed by the words that she forced through her vocal cords.

“I don’t - remember.” Lies hid the truth so well and there was never any question to scrutinize them. A drop of moisture hit Takujinn’s skin followed by another. His head turned to look at her.

Down her face, from her eyes, streaked silently delicate tears.

“You’re crying.” he stated informatively. She pulled her arms away from him and began wiping furiously at her eyes, trying to sedate her sobbing. Takujinn looked on in shock. He had finally succeeded in making her cry, and with one question, of all the horrible things he had said to her a simple question had brought her to tears? This intrigued him more than anything. “Why?”

Sakura peered at him at his questioning of her motive for tears before pulling further away from him. “Because I’m sad.” came her silently blunt reply. Taking that as a hint he didn’t push the issue but turned away from her after which she retreated to her side of the sickbay room. He resumed his 

previous lying position, ignoring her silent sobs as best as he could but not unaware that his wounds and burns on his arms and back were completely recovered.

III

Takujinn stared at the little white haired girl in hatred as she sat quietly on his bed, staring blankly back at him. Since the burning of the second tower, which was used to house the little deviant, she had been forced to wonder around the main building by day and stay housed in the sickbay by night. Sleeping with whatever poor, hapless, wounded men that wondered there. But as the quests for humanity continued more and more wounded came back with: sores and bruises, bites and burns and all the various illnesses caused by unsupervised radioactivity; leaving the room filled, the good doctor’s hands tied and no eyes to watch over the one unwanted female child with remarkably supernatural powers amongst them. And so it came that now she was ordered to room with him. It did not appease him to spend any night housed with the likes of her and yet still she looked at him so expectantly as if awaiting orders. He breathed a heavy sigh and ran his fingers through his untamed locks. There was nothing he could do about it now. Orders were, in fact, orders. He lifted his head once more to look at her in all seriousness.

“Alright, here are the ground rules: firstly, you’re not allowed on my bed, so get off.” As she did so, positioning herself beside it instead, he continued with the rules. “You will sleep on the floor in the living room. Secondly, you are not allowed in my bathroom. You want a bath, there’s a metal tub under the sink. Use that. You have to go to the bathroom, go to sick bay. You’re not allowed in my kitchen, if you’re hungry you’ll just have to wait until I get home. Understood?”

She said neither a word of protest or agreement but continued to stare. He reached down and grabbed his jacket from where she had been sitting and put it on. “I’m usually not home during the day but I expect you to uphold the rules. If not there will be consequences.” the seriousness of the matter never left his voice. He looked at her once more expecting some kind of response but still received nothing. It was like talking to a brick wall. Accepting that she would not comment he turned and stepped out of the room leaving her alone to do as she wished for the entire day. Looking curiously about the small apartments, which there were numerous ones in the large building, she guessed identical to it, she wondered over to the middle of the living quarters. It had only been a few seconds after Takujinn had left and she had already found flaws in his iron law. If, as he had said, she was not allowed in neither the bathroom nor the kitchen, how was she to locate the metal basin that was set under the sink of one of the forbidden rooms. She made it a point to ask him about that when he returned. Since she wasn’t one to break rules without proper reason the objective of bathing was out of the question. Thus came the next objective on her list: eating. She figured she would ask the good doctor if he knew where she could find something edible with a sort of nutritional value, since he had been so nice to her as of lately; Which was more than she could say for the rest of the residence in the main building who had been acting particularly hostile ever since she came to room there. Sakura looked toward the half opened door where her temporary care taker had just exited, took a deep breath and ventured outside of it. The familiar feeling of cold tile against her feet jolted them to motion in the direction of the sickbay area. Usually like Takujinn the rest of the buildings inhabitants went to work as whatever their striped badges identified them as. Some of them, like the doctors in sickbay and the chefs and the commanding officers got the privilege of working indoors and the unfortunate ones like the soldiers and the ventures and landscapers had to work outside in the heat riddled radiation.

Sakura peered around the sickbay door not wanting to interrupt him if he was working. It seemed that the good doctor was with a patient at the moment a burly man with a ragged beard and mustache that seemed to blend together until she couldn’t tell which one was which. The hue of it seemed to be a little of every possible hair color mixed in one large hairy rainbow mass. The man had somehow hurt his leg and was having it wrapped by the doctor who patted it in assurance after the job was completed.

“It’ll be good as new in no time.” she heard him say. His patient’s eyes spotted her lingering about the door and narrowed as he emitted a rough growl.

“Little ruffian troublemaker. What’s she doing roaming these halls?”

The doctor’s autumn brown eyes looked at her in surprise before sending her a small smile. “It seems she likes to visit her doctor just like you do, Whitley.” he motioned her in and she timidly obeyed noticing that the so named Whitley’s eyes never left her.

“She should be locked somewhere in chains, for what she’s done...” he gritted out through his teeth. The doctor sent him a reprimanding look. “Whitley, she’s just a little girl.” deciding to change to topic, he patted his leg once more. “Like I said your leg should heal up nice enough. I’ll need to see you in say two weeks for a checkup, right.” He helped Whitley to his feet and ushered him out the door as he sent reassuring glances at Sakura to counteract the other man’s deadly glares. As soon as the man had left he let out a relieved sigh.

“Sorry about him, love. He could be a bit of a brute at times but most of those outside workers do seem to have a temper about them anyway so never you mind.” The young girl looked shyly down at the floor.

“Sorry to be so much trouble sir-” she started but was cut off by his surprised look.

“Sir?! That won’t do. Didn’t I tell you my name, when we met? Now that I think about it I guess I didn’t, did I?” he smiled at her, “In any case you don’t have to call me sir. You can call me Dalton or doctor or even Dr. Dalton if you prefer.” She only nodded in acknowledgment.

“Now, my young friend, what was it that you needed?”

“I was wondering if there was anything to eat around here.” she said looking at him earnestly. He smiled as he turned around and reached into one of his cabinets and rummaged around a bit. “I had some fruit around here somewhere...” his voice came muffled before he withdrew from the console with a red delicious apple in hand. He tossed it to her and she caught it.

“An apple a day keeps the doctors away. Well hopefully not this one.” he winked and Sakura blushed slightly. “Why are you so nice to me?” she found herself blurting out then realized how rude that sounded and clasped both of her hands over her mouth in shock at her outburst. The apple dropped out of her hands and rolled to rest at Dalton’s feet. He bent down and picked it up before polishing it off on his shirt and offering it to her once again. “Why not?” He answered her question with another question.

“Well it’s just that everyone’s really mean to me and I just wanted to know why you don’t act like them.” Sakura took the apple from Dalton and he straightened up with a light smile. “Being mean to people doesn’t really accomplish anything. It’s just a waste of time and perfectly good energy, besides it’s really not healthy to be mean all the time. I should know, being a doctor and all.” She smiled as well as he hefted himself up onto the examination table.

“So how are things living with Matsuda? He’s not driving you up a wall now is he?” The smile on the little girl’s face faded.

“I don’t think Takujinn-dono likes me very much.” her voice came in a soft whisper. The doctor sat up straighter in a slight alarm.

“What makes you think that? He’s not being uncivil is he?” he frowned at her silence, “If he gives you any bit of trouble-”

“No, not Ryu Takujinn-dono, he’s no trouble at all it’s just that I- I guess I’ll just have to get used to him.” she sighed. “Don’t take it to heart, love. Like I said before, those outdoors men can be quite the cantankerous sort. The more he gets to know you the more that will change. If you ask my opinion I 

do believe you’re starting to grow on him already.” Sakura looked up at him with a smile. Dalton did seem to be a rather optimistic type of person, she found herself admiring that about him. The good doctor’s head eased at an angle, while he observed the young person in front of him, noticing for the first time that she had been donning the same clothes for the better half of four months. And to say they looked the worse for wear was an understatement.

“I guess you wouldn’t happen to have any spare clothes about, would you?” He said aloud, more to himself actually, than to Sakura. The young girl shook her head earnestly slightly befuddled by his odd question. He pondered for a second before standing with a smile, “I think I have something that might fancy you. Follow me.” Sakura obeyed although she wondered where they could be going and if it was alright to leave the office closed for a while. Whomever go hurt next would just have to recuperate in the halls until his return, as dr. Dalton made sure to lock the sickbay door behind them as they left.

IV