A/N: This one is the longest I've written yet. I'm sorry I took so long to put this to paper, but I noticed I put Naomi OOC too much. This one is set between Seeking Atonement and Journey's End. It is still within the same universe as the other two fics, this one just takes place first. I hope you all will notice the improvement in my writing, I tried to make it with enough harshness to contrast the sappiness. I also just got Second Opinion and that brings some insight to her character. Let me know what you think.

P.S. I was formerly known as Angel's Loyalty, but decided to change along with my fandom :)

Click.
Click.

Click.

The second hand on the dingy clock on the wall of the old ward moved as slow as molasses, as if the fabric of time was warping to some supernatural force hell-bent on tormenting her.

Naomi hunched over in one of the creaky wooden chairs, idly tapping her phone on her forehead in rhythm with the ticking of the clock. She dared not look up, lest her phone ring, with Alyssa on the other end this time.

Alyssa...

That's the whole reason why she was sitting here in this dump, waiting for news that may never come.

Because some poor little child had gotten caught up in her mess and now she had to clean it up.

But...

She had to admit, that girl deserved better. I mean, she saved my life for Christ sake. The least I can do is say thanks.

And maybe, just maybe...

She cared about her. Just a little. Why else would she attempt to leap into an inferno?

Ah, hell.

She didn't notice Tomoe's presence beside her until a delicate hand gingerly laid itself on her shoulder. Naomi picked her head up, and Tomoe met her gaze with a warm smile.

"Room 147. She'll be awake soon."

Naomi expressed her wordless gratitude with a small nod, and then eased herself back onto her feet. And so she began her first steps towards her biggest fear.

Fear.

There. I said it. I'm afraid. I've just dealt with a diseased crazy bitch who tried to blast me to kingdom come and I'm scared of an unconscious little girl.

What the fuck.

Naomi was so used to being the doctor. So used to picturing a star and fixing everything faster than you can say "begin the operation".

That was sultry, confident, mysterious Naomi.

But this time, it was different. That kid could wind up dead and there wouldn't be a damn thing she could do about it.

This time, it's broken, lifeless, somber Naomi. A shell of what was.

She couldn't even remember the last time she'd used that goddamn curse of hers.

And to put icing on the proverbial cake from hell's bakery, she was dying.

Maybe it would have been better if the bomb had just taken her. Gotten it all over with.

But there had to be a reason why fate allowed this.

Naomi could have pondered all day, but, almost too quickly, she was at her destination. She began to steel herself before entering.

Okay Naomi, you're a master surgeon with magical powers and the ability to communicate with dead people. You can talk to an eight year old.

And with that, Naomi screwed her eyes shut, pushed the door open, and took a few tenative steps into the room. Alyssa was still sleeping, thank God. She almost looked like some kind of mummy, swathed head to toe in bandages, save for one untouched side of her face. Naomi carefully lowered herself into a chair beside the bed, and waited.

Secretly, she was panicking.

What do you say to a kid in this situation?

More importantly, why is she here and not me?

She was interrupted by the nearly undetectable sound of fabric rustling. Naomi watched as Alyssa propped herself up with almost painful slowness and looked expectantly at her.

Shit.

Let's start small. "Hello Alyssa." Naomi spoke with her definitive, confident tone, careful not to betray any worry to the child in front of her.

"Hi N'ohmi." Alyssa got used to her battered body. "Where am I? And why do I hurt so much?"

"You're in the hospital. There was a bomb in the teddy bear you were holding. It exploded and you were injured."

"Ooooohhhhhh." Naomi's explanation clicked in Alyssa's head. "Hey N'ohmi?"

"Yes Alyssa?"

"I'm sorry." Alyssa drooped her head.

"For what?" Naomi asked.

"For taking your teddy. I shouldn't have taken what didn't belong to me."

Naomi was amazed at how innocent this little girl was. "Oh no, it's quite alright."

"You-you're not mad?"

"No, do I look angry to you?"

"You look kinda sad, N'ohmi."

Naomi tensed. How did she know? She opted to change the subject.

"So how do you feel?"

"Everything hurts. I wish Mommy was here, she always kisses it better!" Alyssa looked up in realization. "Hey N'ohmi, where are my Mommy and Daddy?"

Naomi froze. She wasn't prepared to answer that question. But she had to.

"Alyssa..." She tried to put it delicately. "Your parents...won't be coming back."

"Why?"

"...They...died. They got hurt too much by the bomb. I'm sorry, Alyssa."

Alyssa just sat there. Slowly, one tear leaked out of her uncovered eye. Then her lip quivered. And then she started bawling.

Fuck.

Then, in the very back of Naomi's mind, some instinct awoke. It niggled around in her head, and she began to feel things she had never felt before.

Naomi awkwardly began to wrap her arms around Alyssa's quaking frame. She pulled the small girl close to her, and rested Alyssa's little head against the exposed skin of her neckline. She had read somewhere that skin-to-skin contact is soothing to children. As all of this quickly became more natural for her, she rested her own head on top of Alyssa's and soothingly stroked her hair and rubbed circles into her back.

"Shhhhh Alyssa it's alright." her voice was now gentle, flowing, different from her strong tone where each syllable stood out. Naomi rarely spoke like this, but this sudden command in her brain brought it out. "Just cry now, it'll be okay."

Somewhere within that moment- her heartbeat as Alyssa's lullaby, drawing her deeper into the embrace- it hit Naomi. It hit her like a ton of bricks swinging on a crane during a typhoon.

Alyssa didn't just save Naomi's life. Alyssa defined it.

There was no use hiding from it now.

Naomi Kimishima truly cared for Alyssa Breslin.

And Naomi now knew how to atone both for Alyssa and her past sins.

From now on, Naomi would be Alyssa's everything. She would give whatever life she had left to this little girl and love her with every last breath in her body. She would remunerate each scar the child bore with countless kisses. For now, Naomi knew that she could be human too.

And she planned to cherish the living shit out of her remaining days.

Without even realizing it, a few tears of her own began to fall. Naomi cried for what she had lost, what she had become, and what she had now.

And she began to visualize a star.

Naomi felt energy flow through her fingertips as Alyssa began to heal in her arms. It wasn't as powerful as it used to be, but it was enough to restore some strength to the eight year old's body. Tiny scars melted away as the woman's fingertips trailed over her cheeks and brought her jade eyes to meet her cerulean gaze.

"N'ohmi?"

"Yes, little one?"

"What's gonna happen to me?"

This time, Naomi knew the answer.

"I'm not letting anything happen to you. I will always be here to take care of you. And I will never let you go again." Naomi pressed a protective kiss on Alyssa's bandaged forehead. Alyssa returned to her previous position: snuggled against the steady beat of Naomi's heart. Silvery whisps of the older woman's bangs tickled her cheek.

"I'm so tired, but I can't go to sleep."

"Well, Alyssa" Naomi's lips brushed her forehead. "What did your mother do for you when you were tired?"

"Uhhhhmmmmmm...Ooooh! She used to tell me a bedtime story!"

Naomi racked her brain for a moment. "I know just the thing!" She moved to sit next to Alyssa on her bed and pulled her closer. "My mother used to tell me this story when I was a little girl." Naomi grinned and tapped the child on the nose, making her giggle.

Oh how Naomi loved that sound.

"Once upon a time, there was a little bird, and he went one day to save the beautiful princess Alyssa..."

The rest is history.