Title: Sleep Tight

Pairing: JackOz

Summary: Tired and unable to sleep, Oz finds peace with the most unlikely person.

Disclaimer: Do I really need to say? I don't own

Beta'd by skepsis66

Oz sighed, his shoulders slumping, and leaned against his chair in boredom. He was alone in his room right now; silence almost engulfed the blond, who was normally never by himself. His bright green eyes stared at the outside world, at the moon and the stars that were sparkling on and off, watching as light poured down around him. The sky was pitch black but he could make out a cloud or two when they got close enough to the moon.

It was really quiet right now, something that was extremely rare for him. Usually, it was very loud with Gilbert and Alice fighting constantly, arguing over anything that could be thought of, and then there was Break, who would make remarks in the background, encouraging the fighting. He would provoke them when they paused, turning their attention towards the albino before they went at each other again. Last of all, Sharon would be chuckling to the side, sipping on some tea and eating desserts with Break when he came over to sit down. Soon after, Break would eat everything on the platters and leave nothing for anyone else. That left Oz standing between the two who were fighting, trying and hoping to break them apart, despite the fact that nothing he did really helped, his efforts ignored as they continued to fight.

The blond ran a hand through his short hair, pushing his bangs back away from his eyes. It was really nice to have some time alone, however, it didn't matter much right now considering he couldn't get to sleep; he just couldn't bring himself to do so. As he continued to sit in his chair, his thoughts were running wild within his mind for no reason that he could determine. One thought would start, and then he would move on to another one, maybe concerning a completely different topic, before he shifted to yet another. Oz couldn't control his train of thought, couldn't stop his mind from focusing on such a dizzying number of things.

So he sat wide awake in his chair, his bed right behind him, and stared outside with a blank expression.

'At this rate, I'll never get to sleep.' Oz brought his legs up and wrapped his arms around them. Burying his face in-between his legs, he allowed his normal mask to crumble, showing his real expression for the first time in a long while. He could allow himself that much until there was a need to put it back up again. He closed his eyes, feeling safe in his position, and just sat there, not caring at all. Still, it didn't help his current problem, and his mind continued its cycle of moving from thought to thought. Reopening his eyes, he peered behind him at the comfy looking bed, its covers crumpled. 'It'll probably be easier to fall asleep if I'm in bed…'

Sighing at that revelation, he detached himself from his chair and went straight to his bed, nestling underneath the covers, trying to make himself comfortable. He closed his eyes and yet as minutes passed, he didn't find himself even the slightest bit closer to being visited by the sandman. It was actually getting quite ridiculous.

'Are you having trouble sleeping, Oz?'

Immediately, Oz sat up, eyes open from the shock of realizing that someone else was with him. He glanced around the room; his mask was back on, there was no way in hell he was going to allow anyone to see his true self. But he didn't see anyone in the room, nor did he feel anyone's presence.

'Oz, close your eyes.' A voice spoke from the recesses of his mind, almost echoing.

Oz hesitated to follow the directions but eventually did so after lying back down. He recognized the voice; it took him a while but he did so. It had been a long time since he'd last heard it. The moment he closed his eyes, everything went black and he felt his consciousness being pulled away. He could feel himself losing control of his body and when he opened his eyes to see where he had landed, he found himself standing on top of a wide expanse of black water, his surroundings all the same color and empty. Everything was dark but in the distance, Oz spotted something appearing, something bright. Ripples disturbed the water when he moved his feet, spreading out from under him, and in front, that bright light transformed into a figure that was making its way towards him. It didn't take much for Oz to recognize the person who was slowly approaching; not that it was hard, seeing as there was only one person who could possibly be in this place.

"Jack?" The younger blond called out, not budging from his spot. His normally peach-colored skin paled as he started to make out the other man. No, he didn't want to be here. Not right now. Oz took a few steps back, tempted outright to run away, but he knew it wouldn't do him much good. There wasn't much he could do here, not in a world that Jack controlled with such ease despite it belonging to him. So Oz remained where he was, watching as the older blond came forward, his long braid swinging back and forth with his movements.

Slowly, Jack came to a stop two feet away, looking at the smaller blond with soft jade-colored eyes. He repeated the same question from earlier. "Can't sleep, Oz?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Oz tightened his mask and gave a smile. "Apparently so. Guess I'm not tired."

"Then, if you like, I could keep you company for tonight." Jack took a few more steps forward until he was right in front of his fellow blond, a small smile gracing his lips.

But the response from the other made Jack freeze to his spot. Oz's attempt at comforting was without a doubt not reassuring. "I'm fine." He smiled brightly; ever so fake, yet so real that anyone else who wasn't familiar with his antics would have been fooled. He took a step back, about to turn away, when Jack stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder. The younger blond froze but didn't push the hand away, ears open to his words.

"Oz, you don't need to lie to me. I can see through you. I exist within you, remember?" The hero stepped closer and maneuvered himself until he stood directly in front of the younger blond so that he could stare into his green orbs. However, the expression he got from the other was carefully blank – the mask, then. Jack sighed again; he was going to have a hard time getting through to his descendent without making the other tense up even further.

Oz smiled again, eyes lightening; he knew how to display fake emotions very well. "I told you I'm fine. Nothing is wrong." He gently pushed the hand off his shoulder and began to walk away, not wanting to stay any longer. He had to get away before he fell. The kindness that Jack showed him would eat him alive from the inside if he continued to stay. He couldn't allow that to happen; he needed to get away, far away. His footsteps made more ripples appear on the water's surface. He could feel Jack's presence behind him, leisurely following along. "Jack, I'm fine. You can leave me alone."

The taller blond shook his head, his long braid swinging back and forth. "No, you're not okay. I know better than anyone else."

Oz blinked, his steps slowing down for a second before he unexpectedly broke out into a full run, fully intending to sprint away from the place, from Jack, as fast as possible. He ground his teeth together in frustration, eyes staring ahead into the darkness, clueless as to where he was going. In his panic, he had forgotten for a moment that he didn't know this realm within his mind but that Jack did. Not only that, but the older blond was taller and much faster due to his body size, an important factor that he had not considered.

The moment Oz had started to run, Jack went right after him, dashing to catch up.

And it didn't take long for the hero to get within a close enough distance to grab the younger Vessalias by the collar and yank him back into his chest. A surprised cry came from Oz; shocked by the sudden movement, he clearly had not expected it or the two arms that extended to wrap around his body, keeping him from moving any further. Oz's green eyes widened in shock and he went still as he felt a long braid fall over his shoulders.

"Got you," Jack whispered, tightening his hold, afraid that Oz would try to break free. The younger blond only came up to his chest and he fit perfectly against his own body. "Now, don't try to run away anymore."

"Get off…" Oz whispered, staring at the murky waters beneath him, his bangs shadowing his eyes. Jack blinked and then shook his head. He strengthened his hold, pretty much knowing that Oz was going to try to escape.

"No, Oz, we need to talk."

"No, we're not going to! Let go of me!" The teen elbowed Jack in the stomach, hard enough to get the other to loosen his grip. A gasp escaped the taller blond and he faltered at the force of the hit as sudden pain exploded in his midsection. Dark green orbs watched as Oz ran off again and he had to take a second to cradle his side, closing one eye in pain. He coughed a couple of times, his breath taken away, and gasped as he tried to regain his bearings. Jack bit down on his bottom lip, mentally cursing himself for being so clumsy.

Once he got himself together, he dashed off again, though wincing here and there. Trying to catch up to Oz once more was harder this time with the extra distance he had to cover but Jack was up to the task. He was much faster than the teen after all. This time, instead of immediately grabbing the other, wary of getting elbowed again, he tackled Oz to the ground, the other letting out a cry of surprise. Jack managed to maneuver their bodies so that they would land on their sides before he once more wrapped his arms securely around the smaller body.

"Got you… again…" Jack muttered. Oz's back pressed against his chest and as he took several deep breaths. "Please don't elbow me."

Oz lay there, exhaling raggedly, before slowly relaxing into his grasp. This time he wasn't going to fight back, there was no use since Jack could easily catch up to him. The watery floor against his cheek was cold but it didn't feel wet at all and the warmth from Jack's body was… pleasant.

But how was someone who had been dead for one hundred years and had no body of his own able to give off such warmth? Was it possible?

Oz sighed, knowing that his thoughts were never going to be answered; it was impossible. He decided that even if he did get an answer, it probably wouldn't make any sense to him whatsoever. So he remained in his spot, sedate, trying to catch his breath.

"Okay, you don't want to talk. I can deal with that…" Jack muttered into Oz's ear. "But you shouldn't keep yourself silent like this. It's not good for you."

"Oh, shut up." A harsh whisper came from the younger blond. "I just wanted to be alone and you're not really helping."

Jack faltered for a moment, not expecting such an answer. His grip loosened but Oz didn't take advantage of it. "O-Oh…" The hero didn't know what to say so he remained quiet; it felt as if he had been struck by something horrible.

Oz found himself sighing, recognizing the cruelty of his words. He decided that maybe he shouldn't have said such a thing – it wasn't right; Jack had only meant well. "Its fine, forget it." He felt Jack moving against him as he made a small noise of confusion; Oz relaxed and closed his eyes. "I'm just tired, so let me sleep."

"Al… right…" Jack blinked and then watched as the smaller blond shifted a little in his grasp. On reflex, he tried to grab Oz's arm to prevent him from running away but quickly released his hold. The younger blond stared at the other questionably but didn't move away. Instead, he turned around so that he was facing Jack and retreated back into his arms. His head was nestled into the crook of the older blond's right arm, using it as a pillow as he curled up against the other man. Jack's eyes widened in both curiosity and shock, not entirely believing what he was seeing after trying so hard just to get the teen to stay still. "O-Oz? What are you doing?"

"Laying here. I'm just... sleepy, okay." Oz pouted, closing his eyes and tucking his head underneath Jack's chin, burying his face into the warm chest before him. He could already feel himself getting sleepy and didn't mind the darkness that continued to surround them.

Jack stared and ever so slowly brought his hands together, wrapping them tightly around Oz's body, pulling him closer. He blushed slightly at the contact; it had been so long since he had felt someone this close to him. He brought his head down, burying his nose into Oz's hair, breathing in the sweet scent. It was nice and warm and he didn't want to let go anytime soon.

"Oz…" Jack whispered, reaching up with his free hand to run his fingers through the younger man's hair. A minor noise came from the petite teen and it didn't go unnoticed. A small smile appeared across Jack's lips as he tugged Oz closer, his braid lying behind him, resting gently atop the water's surface. Before he realized it, Oz had fallen fast asleep in his arms.

Chuckling quietly, he observed the way the other blond clutched at the front of his coat, gripping the lapels tightly as he slept. 'If only he could be like this most of the time and drop that mask he always wears. But on the other hand, I wouldn't get to see him like this.'

Closing his own eyes, Jack leaned down slightly to press his lips against Oz's forehead. For some odd reason, he felt himself growing tired as well. Jack smiled one last time at the unfamiliar sensation that warmed his chest and allowed himself to lull off, cradling Oz in his grasp.

This is the first time I've ever written this pairing. Was it alright? I sure hope so.