A while back I sort of participated in a 30-day OTP Challenge. I never actually finished, so the drabbles ended up forgotten in the depths of my hard drive.

A reader commented on Third Time's the Charm that they would like to see more of Trowa/Luna, and I remembered these. I'll post one each day, and maybe I'll actually get around to finishing the challenge. :)

As far as I remember, all ficlets are set in the Third Time universe, but they may not be in chronological order. If you have not read "Third Time's the Charm" I recommend you do as some ficlets do build upon it.

Enjoy.

Day 1: Holding hands.

Trowa didn't like to sleep.

He would close his eyes and see nothing. He didn't dream, per se, but he remembered.

The nothingness that had swallowed him up, the darkness of space as he struggled to stay calm.

He would wake gasping for breath, shuddering as he wrapped his arms around himself for the warmth.

The memory of cold emptiness still clinging to his bones.

"Trowa?"

The voice had him tensing, sitting up and wiping all signs of weakness from his face before the speaker registered – friend, female. relaxed minutely, offering a small smile as reassurance.

Luna frowned, stepping into his room. "Don't give me that," she scolded, arms folded at her chest. "I know the scent of Seliwigs when I hear it."

Seliwigs? Was she talking about the nightmare? Trowa wanted to deny it, but he wasn't sure enough about what 'it' was. "I'm fine. You should go back to sleep."

It wasn't a lie. He was fine. The memories were always there, lingering in the back of his mind, and he'd grown used to sleeping lightly enough to escape when they emerged.

He'd survive. Like he always did.

Luna's face softened, her bright eyes almost childish as they dropped to the floor. "I get them too, you know. Nightmares of memories." Her voice was unusually serious. "It helps to have someone to remind you that they're not real. At least, not anymore."

Oh. Trowa watched Luna shivering in her kitten-patterned nightgown, her eyes dimming as she waited for an answer. He didn't know what had happened to Luna before she had ended up on his doorstep, but he knew that it had been bad. Still, he hesitated, unable to bring himself to risk it.

He didn't let others see him sleep – or at least, he didn't really sleep where others might see him. He faked it when it was necessary, but he couldn't bring himself to be truly vulnerable where someone might take advantage of it.

"I'm sorry," Luna whispered, turning to go. "I shouldn't have-"

"No." Trowa raised his arm as if to catch her, as he forced his instincts down. This was Luna. She wouldn't knife him as he slept or use his memories to torment him anymore than the other pilots would. "It's alright."

Luna turned back, eyes narrowed as she searched his face. What she was looking for, Trowa couldn't tell, but she must have found it, because she smiled. "Yes, it is," she nodded. "Seliwigs only go after the ones who sleep alone. They don't like crowds – I think it scares them."

"Ah," Trowa found himself smiling back as he pulled back the covers in invitation. It felt good to be able to decipher her Luna-speak. "You'd better get in then."

She grinned, darting across the room and sliding into the bed like an eager child. Trowa started when she grasped his hand in hers, "All the better to keep the Seliwigs away."

Her hand was warm, smaller and more slender than his own; her grasp tight as she laid her head on his pillow. It was a strange sensation, but Trowa found himself squeezing back as he burrowed back underneath the covers, letting her head come to rest under his chin.

When he closed his eyes, the darkness was filled with the warmth of her hand and her breath at his neck and the silent beat of her pulse beneath his hand.

He wasn't alone.

He wasn't afraid.

For the first time in as long as he could remember, Trowa slept soundly until morning.