AAN: yep doing a second one for RockyRoadSmith; this one is built off the ending of Deepening Appreciation. Lets see how I do here.

Life's Lessons

Holly smiled as she woke before the others, the sun was out, the birds singing; overall a beautiful day. She stretched carefully making sure not to pull too much on her injured arm. Since she had been let out of the hospital things had gotten better. The gang had made sure she got her medicine and had taken every opportunity to do things for her. She smiled as she glanced down at her new prize possession, her brand new red sleeping bag. Glancing over at the slumbering boy who got it for her she blushed remembering how he had faked being her boyfriend in order to be with her though her stitches. The simple act had meant a lot to her, though she knew Suezo was still fussing over the incident. The blush remained as she smiled thinking it would be nice if they were boyfriend and girlfriend even though she knew Suezo would have a heart attack. Genki had made sure she had everything she needed since the incident and had promised not to say a word about anything they spoke about while alone. Tiger and Hare proceeded to tease them when they got the chance but Holly didn't mind too much though she could tell it greatly embarrassed Genki. Holly rose and went about getting a few things together for breakfast, she was so focused on her task she didn't notice that Genki was up. He had awoke to find her working on getting some food ready but knew she still couldn't lift the pot to fill it with water. He rose stretching then went and grabbed the pot; silently he left to fill it with water. When he returned he smiled seeing Holly debating over how to spice this mornings porridge. He placed the pot down and got a fire going for her. After stoking the fire and making sure the pot was level he walked over to where she was. He could tell she was in deep thought though he had no idea what over. He knelt down beside her his hand coming to rest on her shoulder softly, even with the touch being gentle she still jumped; startled by the sudden contact.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." The boy looked at her apologetically, she recovered form her fright then nodded.

"It's alright. What are you doing up so early?"

"I got you some water and a fire started." he indicated behind her with his thumb. She turned to see had indeed done so she smiled to him again,

"Thank you." the simple statement meant a lot to him, "that doesn't explain why you are awake though…" he shrugged,

"Just woke up and noticed you up. Figured I should get up and help if I could." she shook her head in amusement then smiled again,

"Well how about you help me cook?" he sweated slightly, he had never done it before but he nodded.

"Alright, though I have never really cooked breakfast before." she smiled gently to him reassuring him,

"Its alright. I'll teach you." he returned her smile and helped her carry what she need to the waiting pot. He followed her instructions careful not to screw anything up. He had to admit this breakfast was easier then some of her stews but it was still done very carefully so it would have lots of flavor. He knew Holly took a lot of pride in her cooking so he wouldn't mess it up for her. Genki grew nervous as he thought about a question he wanted to ask her but he was still not sure if now was the time to ask. Giving in he decided to voice his question, speaking softly to her in hopes she would accept.

"Hey Holly… Hare said there's a town we can re-supply at up ahead right?"

"Yes, he said we'd reach it by afternoon, why?"

"Well… you said before you enjoyed spending time alone with me to talk…"

"Yes I did." she glanced over at him; she noticed how nervous he truly was.

"Would you like to have lunch with me?" he finally blurted out, making her smile. She placed her hand on his shoulder gently and gave him a reassuring glance before speaking.

"I would love to." he seemed very relieved, "why don't you help me shop while the others rest then we can get something to eat together." he nodded, he wondered what the others would do for food but then he didn't care now. He was just glad to have a date with Holly. When the food was finished he woke everyone, they seemed very groggy until they smelled the breakfast awaiting them. Hare was the first to notice the pots size.

"Holly you didn't lift this yourself did you?"

"No Genki helped me. He got the water, started the fire and stoked it, then cut the meat for me," she had the idea that Genki didn't want the gang to know just yet he had cooked the meal yet. Genki seemed thankful and just smiled when she handed him his bowl.

After the group ate they were soon on their way. It didn't take long before they were in the next village. Holly looked over at Hare as he started calculating how long they could remain in town.

"Hare how about you and the guys go ahead and get something to eat. I need to do the shopping. Genki would you stay and help me?"

"Sure Holly." he acted like he normally would though he was very excited.

"What about you two? And you need to rest Holly…"

"Suezo I will be fine, we can grab something to eat later after we finish, and the best market prices are in the afternoon." Suezo wouldn't argue with that, as it was a well-known fact. Suezo slowly nodded as he eyed the boy who seemed to be talking with Hare about supplies Hare wanted to add to Holly's list. But because Holly had asked Genki to come he let it go then hopped towards Golem as Genki returned to tell Holly what Hare wanted to add. She seemed to be debating about it then finally nodded.

"Alright we'll see you a bit later at the inn over there." Genki pointed to the near by inn. The gang nodded, and then Suezo put his two cents in.

"Make sure you carry everything heavy Genki."

"I will Suezo." so far Hare and Golem had helped Holly shop but Genki was about to have his first go at it.

The groups spilt up and the humans walked off together, once out of sight Genki turned to her. "So what's first?"

"Well I think we should look at the spices we need first since its closest." he nodded and followed her. After they had gotten the spices and the extra medical supplies Hare had asked for the pair happened upon a small restaurant. Genki smiled and took hold of her hand, he looked nervous but she knew he was just as excited as she was. The pair walked into the restaurant and took a seat where they were led. Though they would order cheap items it wouldn't take away from the fun they were having.

"Genki, what are your parents like?" he glanced over at her with confusion then smiled.

"Well… my mom's a really kind woman, she like to help all kinds of people out. She's really smart too; she works for a law firm as a lawyer. Dad's a nice guy but he's quite around people he doesn't know. He's big and strong; he has to do a lot of heavy lifting in the factory he works in." Holly smiled to him,

"They sound really nice. Do you think…they would like me?"

"Yeah, I'm sure they'd love you, especially mom." Holly smiled again happy with that answer. She noticed he wasn't asking about her mother, sure he knew some of her father but she had never mentioned her mother to him. "I think my little brother would be the only one protesting, he always gets jealous when I'm not hanging out with him. He'd probably think you'd take me away from him. He gets silly that way some times." Genki sweated slightly, his brother could be annoying at times but he loved him. Holly's eyes widened, she hadn't realize he had any siblings.

"You have a brother?"

"Yeah… sorry I know I never mentioned him before."

"No it's alright… it just never came up. I just didn't think you'd have any siblings." he gave her a confused glance but left it alone. "Genki how come you never asked me about my mother?"

"Suezo told us not to ask…" she sighed, her over protective monster had a habit of making things more difficult then they needed to be.

"Would you like to know?" he nodded, she could tell he did want to know. "My mother died when I was young so I don't remember her much, but she was a very kind and gentle woman. I know she was stubborn though as I remember her arguing with father once and winning that argument. She grew ill after she gave birth to me, the doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong. Though ill she still managed to live for six years and lead a somewhat normal life. Father and I were very saddened when she finally lost her battle but we knew there was nothing we could do." Holly spoke so only he could hear her. Genki moved to rest his hand on top of hers to give her comfort; he knew it was a hard memory. Holly smiled to him, "I wanted you to know even if the others don't." he nodded and returned her smile.

After they ate they proceeded to get the meat and vegetables they needed. Genki kept his promise and carried all the heavy items to make sure Holly wouldn't strain herself. As they walked and Holly double-checked her list, she suddenly asked,

"Genki… when Hare and Tiger were doing things for me for a week why were they doing that?" he stared at her, he wasn't sure if Pixie wanted Holly to know but he couldn't not tell her when she was giving him a pleading look. He sighed, * I hope Pixie won't kill me… *

"Well… Pixie made them do it. She threatened to zap them if they refused. She came to our rescue when you got really sick. We were really lost with out you and we screwed just about everything up. She helped us get your temperature under control then helped us find out way to a hospital. She was very upset with Hare and Tiger for having that stupid competition while you were sick…"

"What competition?" she blinked confused while Genki sweated,

"Remember when Suezo told Hare and Tiger they deserved to be sick because they slept with you?" she nodded, "that was the completion, they said they were doing it to keep you warm but they were both taking advantage of the situation. I tried to keep any fights from breaking out but…"

"Its alright Genki… I know you tried." she paused, "So they both slept with me?"

"Yeah, and they got into a fight over the sleeping bag cause of it. I'm not entirely sure why they were so adamant about it though." she smiled to the boy; she loved the fact that Genki wasn't as perverted as those two. She placed her hand on his arm in affection causing the pair to blush at the contact.

"Thank you for trying your best…"

"Your welcome." he smiled,

"Genki you didn't… sleep with me did you?"

"Me? No! I gave you my blanket to keep you warm… I didn't think I needed to be perverted to do that. Besides Suezo didn't murder Hare and Tiger because they could fight back really well but I knew he would murder me if I even mentioned it… beside I got enough embarrassment out of those two…" he blushed making Holly wonder what happened; she appreciated the fact that he hadn't even thought of sleeping with her though, it was comforting.

"Genki… what do you mean?"

"Well… at one point when Hare was laying next to you… you were dreaming or something and said my name…" Holly blushed remembering the dream then he eyes widened, * wait… I dreamt I was kissing him then did I? *

"Genki was that all?" she was crimson and so was he.

"You kissed Hare…. and I got harassed for the next few hours about you wanting to kiss me," she felt sorry for the boy even though she was very embarrassed. The others must have tormented him, as she knew how they loved to tease. The news about Pixie was a surprise though, after all Pixie never showed a tender side before but then she had little time alone with the her. Holly wasn't sure what to feel; astonishment, wonder, guilt, embarrassment, or happiness. Things were a lot more complicated then she thought they'd be. The couple walked in silence for a bit then finally Genki spoke again. "Though I was very embarrassed and I didn't like dealing with the others… hearing you call for me gave me hope that we could date at some point… but it wasn't till we talked in the tree that I realized you enjoyed being around me." she blushed and nodded, she felt much better knowing her slip up had helped him atleast.

"I've liked being around you for awhile now… I just never said anything. Thank you for spending time with me Genki."

"Your welcome, I really enjoy it," he blushed again though smiling gently and reassuringly to her. The duo knew they couldn't spend much time like this but they would try to do this again.

"Genki… next time we do this… lets make it a real date and not just a shopping trip." he gawked at her in surprise a moment then nodded and gave her a trademark grin.

"You bet." he continued to grin at her as she giggled at his antics. The pair made there way to the inn where their friends waited knowing their relationship had changed forever. All the lessons they had learned over the past few weeks had taught then that. Life was always changing but the pair planned to let their lives change together and for the better.

AAN: yeah not much going on, kind of a first date thing for them. Kept it simple and wanted to bring about the emotions Holly might have felt had she known what happened. Hope you enjoyed it!