Disclaimer: I don't own Claymore and its characters. They all belong to Norihiro Yagi.

Anime: Claymore

Title: Purpose

Warning: slight shoujo ai and some minor spoilers

Timeline: Sometime in Volume 9 of the manga, so if you haven't reached those parts yet don't tell me I didn't warn you for spoilers.

A/N: this is just a spontaneous fic that leads one character to another and finally ends up with a convo with two of my most favorite pairing. A few verses were taken from the manga.

"In other words: we are completely expendable. We are nothing but a bulwark against the north that will eventually crumble and fall." Miria watched the crackling of the bonfire after she spoke.

Helen looked at Miria, to Deneve and then to Jean and Clare for any faint reaction. But they were all quiet as if they already expected those words from their commander. Sighing she scratched her head. "So what do we do?"

"We'll stick to the mission," Miria said in a low voice as her eyes focused on the ground. The flat statement made Deneve turned to her commander as she knew that Miria won't just let them die here.

"You have a plan, don't you?" Deneve guessed. It made Helen smirked as Jean and Clare exchanged glances.

"It's something I thought for a while. . . "Miria stood up. ". . . though I cannot guarantee its effectiveness."

"Hey, wait, Miria! Where are you going?" Helen called when their leader turned to leave the cave. "What are you going to do?"

"Like Deneve said, I have a plan." With one last look at them Miria went outside. Surprisingly, none of them intended to follow as they thought she's going to talk to the other commanders.

"Wow, that was a quick exit," Helen murmured.

Deneve crossed her arms and sighed.

Silence emanates from the cave.

Helen forced herself not say anything senseless as she played with the stick from the bonfire. When she lifted her eyes from the ground she noticed that Jean was still standing beside Clare.

"Hey, you could sit if you like," Helen suggested. She rather felt awkward upon their first meeting. She just couldn't imagine crossing with Number Nine's sword anytime soon. When she saw how Jean's sword reacted with Deneve's, she realized how lethal that spinning technique was.

"I'm fine here. Thank you," Jean just said and after that another eerie silence.

Clare stood up after a while. Helen raised an eyebrow while following Jean's eye movements. She was like a bodyguard to her. It was hard thing to swallow that a low ranker like Clare had Jean under her disposal.

Helen made a side glance to Deneve. Yeah, right. Like that could happen to me.

Clare took off her steel pauldron and other protective gears. Jean watched her quietly from a distance but later turned her head to Deneve and Helen.

"I'm sorry for interrupting a while ago," Jean said and bowed her head discreetly with closed eyes.

"Well, that was not-" Helen thought she heard Jean apologizing to her and Deneve.

"I didn't mean to follow you." Jean ended

Helen's face fell. Jean was referring to Clare. Deneve remained in her observant mode until she could deduce something with her remark.

"I continue to live because of you. So whatever happens I will be always at your side to repay that debt I owe you."

After Clare finished unclasping everything with metal from her suit, she decided to stay where she is. She must admit that this weird familiarity with Jean made her uneasy for a while but in some sense there was something about her that brings back memories. . .

"There is something I wanted to tell you," Clare said in her usual radical tone. She didn't make an eye contact to Jean though.

"What is it Clare?" Jean's attention was all hers.

"Like I told you before, it was Galatea who taught me how to use and align yoki to revert back an awakened one and it was also Galatea who knew you were still alive and the only claymore that could possibly damage and defeat Duph. So, it was not just only in my own accord that you are still alive."

"That is correct." Jean replied. "I'm completely aware of that fact."

"Therefore, I'm not worthy of your life. Like I said, live for your own sake."

Helen seemed to enjoy their little argument but Deneve unexpectedly stood up and dragged her outside the cave. Outside, one could hear the faint voice of Helen arguing with Deneve.

Jean became momentarily quiet and smiled. Clare observed that. There was a confusion written across her face. "Jean, what –"

"When I entered the town before going to Mount Zakol I thought I sensed someone close by," Jean started. "Apparently, she was hiding. She was on the run for something because she thought that she had other priorities to consider. But despite that, after knowing that her own comrades were being tortured and killed, she had no second thoughts in coming to their aid."

Clare just stood there. It wasn't that bothersome, it was just Clare couldn't come up of a heavy respond to most of Jean's succeeding statements aside from what she already said.

"It was a reckless move of her," Jean continued, her face even gentler than before. "Even though she knew that she couldn't take them all down she gambled her own life, her status and her priorities just to save what could possibly be dead at that time."

Clare was caught by surprise when Jean was already beside her. Jean slowly put her hand on top of her shoulder; Clare tried to say something but no words came from her mouth. "Your kindness deserves more than my life, Clare. Don't think you're not worthy of anything. Don't let your rank or any other degrading remarks drag you down. You are strong and kind. What you did at that time gave me a purpose to continue living."

Clare knew what that irony that purpose was. For the little time they've been together, she grew a sort of bond to her. Deep in her heart, she wished that Jean wasn't that so dedicated and loyal.

Because she didn't want to feel that same way she felt before. . . at that time with Teresa.