Disclaimer: I don't own the Lorien Legacies...

Hi guys!

All right, here it is: the one shot story. Basically some will be really short and others will be long, it just depends on how i feel. Updates should be every week because this is only a side story. Obviously my other story is a bigger priority as well as exams.

Anyway, this particular one-shot takes place after the Garde have won the war but are still on Earth.

Personally, I sort of hope in the actual series they stay on Earth instead of going to Lorien because I think they won't fit in as well, especially Nine. The Loric are supposed to be peaceful and stuff but I don't think the Garde will be able to cope with that after growing up the way they did.

Also update for 'The Return of Lorien' will be tommorrow :)

So, i hope you enjoy.

Nine

"I am not getting in there!"

I shake my wet hair out of my eyes and watch Five as she hastily pulls her toe out from the water. I snort and roll my eyes.

"Oh come on. It's not that bad" I reason as she clings to the rail attached to a set of steps. She hates getting in deep water so I of course persuaded her to have a swimming lesson with me.

For some reason, she doubts my skills as a patient teacher.

"It's all right for you. You're a giant; you can touch the floor! I'm miniature!" she exclaims, a note of hysteria in her voice. I know what it's like to be scared but sometimes you have to face your fears.

"I won't let you drown" I say gently, reaching the metal ladder by the side of the pool. She backs off a bit and narrows her eyes, probably assuming I'm about to drag her in.

Which was sounding like a pretty good idea.

She sighs and crosses her arms, a frown on her face. We're at a local pool and I see kids splashing over in the corner, their laughs echoing around the room. Marina and Eight are swimming lazily in the deep end whilst John and Six are making out on the steps nearby. Typical. I'm surprised no one's told them to calm down a bit; there are kids nearby.

"Come on. It'll be fun" I persuade, trying to pull my best 'i'm-so-innocent' face. She sighs again, looking like she might consider it, but then shakes her head.

"I'm sorry but-" she begins moving away from the steps. This was also the exact time a small kid barrels down the side of the pool, eager to get to the diving boards. The kid knocks into Five, who doesn't move out of the way fast enough, and she slips on the wet floor. She splashes into the water with a shriek, her arms waving madly.

I quickly swim over to her and grab her before she begins to make a scene. The last thing I need is a lifeguard questioning me about why i'm drowning someone. She splutters and swears madly under her breath, as I wrap my arm around her, treading water to keep us above water. She clings to me, shaking from fear and cold. The kid looks on a shocked expression on his face and then he turns to run off. If Five weren't so scared and dependant on me right now, I would so give him a talking to.

You simply don't push girls over. It's rude.

"Get me out of here!" she exclaims, desperately trying to get to the side. I push off against the wall and we begin to move to the centre of the pool. Her breathing increases and she clenches her jaw. I know this is upsetting her but she does need to learn and the others are too occupied to offer. Also, I get a great bonus of spending time with a hot girl in a bikini.

Everyone wins.

"I swear to god Nine-" she begins to threaten but I shake my head and let go of her, smirking. She shrieks quietly and grabs a hold of me before she can go under.

"Stop it!" she cries, tears beginning to form in her eyes. She looks truly terrified and I stop smirking, tightening my arms around her. She must know I won't let anything happen to her, that I was only teasing.

"It's all right. This is just a learning experience" I try and soothe but she looks too upset.

"I just want to get out" she says, her voice small and plaintive. I begin to reconsider but she needs to learn how to swim. It's essential.

"Relax. Everything's fine" I say, a soft smile on my face. Her nails are digging into my arms and her breathing is rapid.

"Please get me out of here" she begs once more, tears now streaming down her face.

Shit. She really is freaked.

"I promise I won't let anything happen. Look, my feet can touch the bottom. See?" I say, trying to reassure her now. I'm not that great at it so I'm surprised when she begins to calm down a bit. She looks down and sees that i'm standing, not just floating. She sniffs and looks back up at me.

"And i'll perform CPR if you drown. I've had practice" I say. Despite herself, she snorts.

"I'm sort of hoping we won't get to that point" she mutters nervously. Her grip is still tight on my arms and I realise for the first time how close we are to each other. My skin is tingling where hers touches mine and I swallow nervously, trying not to focus on how great she looks in her black bikini.

"It'll be fun" I persuade her. She sighs and then nods.

"Fine. But if you abandon me in the middle of the pool and call it 'learning experience' I'll kill you" she warns. I'm not entirely sure if she's joking.

"Deal" I agree.

Xxx

"I told you I was a good teacher" I say, a smug smile on my face as Five slowly swims to me. I'm sitting on the steps, the water lapping around my chest, whilst she's been swimming lengths. We've been practising all week and she's a fast learner, despite her fear. Her years of training have made her naturally strong and fast; applying it to swimming was easy.

She reaches me and then grabs me, still a little nervous. I smile, needing no excuse to hold her, and pull her to me, wrapping my arms around her slim figure. We are sort of a couple but it's not official. We just realised that there's no one else for us so we might as well get together. Whihc is more than fien with me.

She smiles and then leans into me, her head resting on my shoulder, nuzzling her face into my neck. Her breath feels warm against my wet skin; it's comforting. I look around to see if anyone's watching but the pool is pretty empty; it's lunchtime after all.

"Thank you" she says quietly, kissing my neck and sending shivers around my body. I smile and rest my cheek on her hair, closing my eyes. I'm overwhelmed by this private moment, this perfect peace inside of me. This is just me and her; no distractions, nothing.

"So any fears that you'd like to share with me?" Five teases, pulling away. I miss the warmth of her already, even though she's still firmly in my arms. I just enjoy holding her as close as possible.

"Yeah, I have an intense fear of spiders" I say seriously. Five clearly thinks i'm joking and bursts into laughter. I sit there awkwardly.

"No but seriously. What are you scared of?" she asks me, after calming down. I sigh and look away.

"Spiders" I repeat. Her jaw drops open as I lock eyes with her.

"Oh my god, you were serious" she says, looking shocked. I flush but don't look away.

"I bared my soul about my deep phobia of spiders and you laughed" I accuse, a touch of hurt in my voice. She stops smiling and takes my hand.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-" she apologises but I cut her off. I lean forward and kiss her, having wanted to do that for the past couple of minutes. She kisses back and wraps her arms around my neck, moving closer.

"It's ok. You can make it up to me" I reply, pulling back. She grins and brushes some hair out of my face. I lean in for another kiss but she pulls back, swimming away slightly.

"Oh no. I have to know how you got that phobia before you get any more kisses" she taunts, a wicked grin on her face. I bet she's going to tell John now.

God help me.

"I don't know. I just know that every time I see one, I freak out" I reply, shrugging. She laughs and floats on her back in a starfish shape.

"So you have no justifiable fear like me. I can't believe you took the piss out of me" she says, still giggling. I groan and hit my face with my hand. Why did I tell her?

"Spiders are terrifying. How can you say they're not?" I retort, beginning to swim to her. She grins and closes her eyes, still floating.

I grin wickedly and take advantage of the situation. I duck under the water and using superspeed, swim until I'm directly next to her. Then I jump out of the water.

Her reaction is awesome. She shrieks and begins flailing around, still crying out. She breathes in water and then starts to cough desperately, while still thrashing around. I'm red with laughter; clutching my side and my cheeks hurt. She finally calms down a bit and then glares at me, her arms crossed as her feet touch the ground.

"Damn you! You are so going to regret that!" she hisses but I can see humour in her eyes. She begins to laugh, seeing the funny side of my prank.

Which is why I don't take her very real threat seriously.

xxx

I lie on my bed, my earphones blaring music loudly and my eyes closed. I'm blocking out all the memories of today and trying to forget everything. All this political shit is giving me a headache. I don't understand the US Government's problem. We won the war, we want our ships to get to Lorien. Yet they continue to persuade us to stay and refuse to give us our ships back until we reach a compromise.

I'm so close to just stealing the ships. Screw the consequences.

I hear a noise and instinctively I fly up from my bed. Five stares back at me shocked as I rip my earphones out, my heart pouding. After years of fighting I had assumed she was a mog even though they're defeated. I grin and lie back down, switching my Ipod off.

"Sorry" she says sheepishly, closing the door and then sitting next to me. I shrug and she smiles sweetly down at me. I notice how good she looks in her ratty t-shirt and shorts that serves as her pyjamas. Since we won the war she's put on some weight, due to less exercise and more food. She looks great with more weight and I don't fail to tell her this (which she secretly loves though she'll never admit it). She's self-conscious and thinks she's fat but she's not. I suppose everyone has a weak point and confidence over her looks is hers.

"What are you doing here?" I ask. She smirks and looks away.

"John and Six were... um, they were busy" she says blushing. "They don't seem to realise i'm next door" she says. I laugh at her embarassment and shake my head. We've all got our own separate rooms in this Government housing but poor Five got the short straw and ended up next to both John and Six's rooms.

"Well you can always stay the night" I say, a suggestive smirk on my face. She laughs and hits my arm.

"It's gonna take a lot more than that" she answers back and I laugh. I was only teasing and she knows it.

She reaches out and brushes my hair back, her hand lingering a moment longer than necessary. Before I can even think about that, she leans down and kisses me, surprising me. She doesn't usually start things but hey, i'm not complaining. I kiss her back eagerly pulling her closer to me. I'm really getting into things when I feel this tickling sensation in my hair where she touched me. I try to distract myself with Five but it's not working. It's bugging me and I wonder what's going on.

Suddenly something crawls on my face and I pull back from Five, putting a hand to my forehead. I pull it away to see a huge spider on my hand.

I react without thinking.

I shriek loudly like a little girl and wave my hand desperately. Five is doubling over with laughter as the spider falls onto the bed and I leap up onto the ceiling, trying to get as far away as possible. My breathing has picked up and I have a feeling I'm really pale. Five laughs and scoops up the spider, waving it up towards me. I answer by backing away more.

"Aww, he was being friendly" she teases, her eyes alight with mischief. I glare down at her and back away more.

"Keep that thing away from me" I demand, my hands shaking. She laughs but goes to the window and places it gently outside. I slowly venture down from the wall when I'm sure it's gone. Five turns around with a smug smile and grins at me, her hands on her hips.

"It was a learning experience" she teases, quoting my words from last week. I groan and hit my head.

Damn her.

So I hope you enjoyed this. I enjoyed writing these two; I just love them so much.

Anyway, please I need some more ideas so please please give me some.

And please review :D