Disclaimer: I don't own them; they belong to TNT and Warner Bros. I don't make any profit from this story, so please don't sue me. My parents would so totally ground me until the year 3000!!!

Note: This is the first fic I've ever finished or published so be nice. I also had no point of reference for this fic except for the comic, so following the comic Sara's DOB is Nov. 18th 1970. I also made Ian to be only a year older roughly because in the comic he's 4 years older then her, and that wouldn't work here.

Note: Edited for grammer. Thanx
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Young Sara Pezzini was celebrating her 5th birthday today. It was perfect! She got to take the day off school, and go walking with her father in Central Park. The day was perfect too. It was sunny and warm, but had just the right amount of wind to prevent it from getting humid or hot. A perfect November 18th. Although it had snowed, only small fragments remained on the grass. And to top it off, Sara's father let her go play on her favorite playground.

"Sara!" her father called. "Yes?" Sara replied as she came down a long slide. "Time to go sweetie," he informed her. Sara gave her best puppy-dog face and pouting said, "Can't we stay a little longer. Please daddy!" 'How can anyone say no to that?' Sara's father thought. "Ok," he relented, "but only a little while longer. I've got to go back to the station. You're pretty lucky Joe's covering for me."

Sara smiled and went back to the playground, simply happy to be a kid. She climbed up a ladder to the main deck, and saw the monkey bars, her favorite. Quickly walking over to them, she was just about to reach out to the first one, when a little boy caught her eye. He was about Sara's age, but maybe a little older. While all the other children were playing and laughing together, he was quiet and still, content to just watch them, but looking like he wanted to join in.

She didn't know what it was, but there was just something about him. She also noticed he didn't have any parents by him. Sara's instinct won out, and she jumped down, putting the monkey bars temporarily out of her mind, and walked over to the boy. "Hello," she said sweetly. Apparently he wasn't expecting anyone to talk to him, because he almost looked frightened when she said it. "Hello," he said unsure of himself. "Wanna play?" Sara asked. The little boy nodded slowly, but began to look more comfortable and the two ran over to the monkey bars. Sara paused to let him go first, but when he stood still she asked, "What's wrong?" Looking slightly embarrassed, he replied, "I don't know how."

Sara let out a small chuckle. Who was this boy? "Watch me," she instructed. And watch he did. Sara did the whole length of the monkey bars without any hesitation or slip-ups, and he had no doubt she had done that so many times that she could probably do it blindfolded. Once she reached the other side, she yelled over to him, "Now you try!" Hesitating only for only a split-second, he reached out to the first bar and made his way to the second and so forth. It took him longer than Sara, but he did it without falling. "Good job," she congratulated him. The boy smiled.

"I'm Sara," she said suddenly, wanting to know his name. "I'm Ian," he told her. Then, a old lady from behind them exclaimed, "Oh my! It's almost 2:00! We've got to go!" and then proceeded to drag off an unhappy boy. Ian looked worried. "I have to go too," he told Sara. "Why?" she asked, visibly upset.

She liked this boy, even if he had never done the monkey bars before. "I'm not allowed to be here. I have to get back before anybody knows I'm gone." At this Sara looked very upset, but before she could say anything else her father tapped her on the shoulder from behind. Not expecting this, Sara was startled and whipped around. Sadly, her balance had yet to develop and the young girl fell off the main level of the playground and onto the small rocks below.

Sara's father immediately rushed to her side. "Are you ok honey?" he asked kindly. Sara nodded, but then pointed to her knee. Even under her jeans, it had been scraped badly and was bleeding. "Come on," her father said picking her up. "Let's go home. I'll call the office and tell them that I'm not coming in today." Sara attempted to smile, even though her knee hurt really badly. All of a sudden, she remembered Ian! When she struggled against her father to look around, he was nowhere to be seen. She hadn't even got to say good-bye!




Epilogue:

Sara went home with her father, and when Joe got off work, he came over, along with Maria, to have cake and open presents. She got a coloring set from her father and a sweater from Joe. She got a pretty Christmas ornament from Maria. "I hate it when my relatives give me ornaments for the tree that I have to take off in only a few days anyway," she explained, "so now you can enjoy it for all of December!"

Except for her small cut, she had had the perfect birthday. Even though Sara didn't know why, she never told her father or Maria or anyone about the boy she had met, Ian, like he was her special secret that she would remember forever. But no matter how much she wanted to, eventually over time and the years, she forgot about Ian, the sweet little boy she had met on the playground.

Ian on the other hand, returned home, if that's what you could call it. Like he guessed, nobody had noticed he was missing, but somehow Ian Nottingham could sense that Mr. Irons knew. But it was an extremely close call. Irons always visited Ian at exactly 2:30, and if he had been a few minutes later getting home then he had, Ian would've been in for quite the punishment. When he saw Sara fall he had desperately wanted to help her, but knew it was the right time to leave.

'She was special' young Ian thought. Something about her just clicked with him. They would meet again someday. He knew it! Like Sara, he promised himself never to forget her, but unlike Sara, he held true to that. There was a reason though. While Sara had a normal childhood with friends and family and birthday parties, Ian was a prisoner in this place he was told to call home. Through all his training and pathetic excuse of a childhood, he remembered her, and when she had first sweetly said, "Hello."

But no matter what would happen to them in the future, all that mattered was that night. Both of them lay down onto their beds at the same time, and drifted off to sleep. But right before Sara closed her eyes for the final time that night, she whispered, "Goodnight Ian." At the exact same moment in time, on the other side of the city, Ian whispered, "Goodnight Sara."


The End