Author's Notes: Hello, all! This is my first Konjiki no Gash Bell (Zatch Bell, for all you dubbed fans)) fic. I just finished watching the entire series as well as the movies and I have quite a few ideas rolling around in my head. I have found there are not nearly enough fans of this show out there, and therefore, not nearly enough fanfiction. If anyone knows of any good fanfiction sites for this show, please let me know. I've already exhausted the one here. Anyway, I'm planning more fic ideas in my head even as I type this, so hopefully there will be more to come. Enjoy!

Oneshot

No spoilers

Characters do not belong to me. Note the sad face that this format will not let me do.

Ikanaide

Gash slowly blinked his eyes open and stared out into the darkness. He lay there for a few moments wondering why he was awake. He almost never woke up in the middle of the night. He was about to roll over and go back to sleep when he heard a sound from the other side of the room. Frowning, he sat up in his bed and listened for the sound again.

It came a moment later and Gash recognized it a whimper. The only other person in the room who could whimper was…Gash's eyes widened in alarm. Kiyomaro! Immediately concerned, Gash jumped from his bed and ran to his partner's. Kiyomaro didn't whimper. No matter how much pain he was in, it was something he never did. For him to make that sound, Gash knew something was very, very wrong.

"Kiyomaro?" Gash whispered, laying his hand on the older boy's shoulder. "Kiyomaro, are you all right?" Squinting against the darkness, he peered down at the brunet. He became even more alarmed when he saw Kiyomaro's face was pinched in pain. "Kiyomaro!"

Gash almost jumped out of his skin when Kiyomaro choked out his name. "G-Gash…"

"Kiyomaro?" Gash looked down at his partner and saw that his eyes were still closed. Was he having a nightmare?

"Gash, no…I'm sorry…"

The blonde frowned, again noticing the distress on Kiyomaro's face. Whatever he was dreaming wasn't good. "For what?"

"…book…"

Gash leaned closer. "What about the book?"

To Gash's shock, tears began to fall from his partner's closed eyes. "…burned…couldn't protect…sorry…"

"Kiyo--"

"Don't leave…alone…"

Gash felt his own eyes well with tears at the raw pain in Kiyomaro's voice. "Kiyomaro, I'm right here." He grasped the older boy's hand. "I won't leave you. You won't be alone again, I promise."

Had he really come to mean that much to the middle-school boy? He knew he was Kiyomaro's first friend and partner in the fight to become Demon King, but was he that important? Kiyomaro had always protected and guided him, but he would do that for any of his friends. Then again, if Gash hadn't come, he wouldn't have any of those friends.

He looked down at Kiyomaro again, noticing he seemed calmer than before. Breathing a sigh of relief, he tried to step back but realized he was unable to move. His gaze moved to their joined hands. Kiyomaro had a firm grip on him and it didn't seem he was going to let go anytime soon. Gash felt his eyes water once more. This was how Kiyomaro really felt. He didn't let himself show these emotions during the day, so Gash never realized. But the darkness lets people reveal their inner selves and Gash was finally seeing Kiyomaro. Gash finally knew how important he was to his friend. He felt a hole inside him close that he never even knew was there. Kiyomaro had always been his important person, and now it seemed he was Kiyomaro's.

Eyes brimming with tears and soul brimming with happiness, Gash settled down next to the bed, never breaking his contact with his partner. If it was what Kiyomaro needed, he would stand guard over his dreams. He had once promised to be his shield, and that's what he would always be.