I hope you enjoy this. I don't think I'm right about Lina staying with Doctor Hester, but it worked for this story. This takes place roughly a few years after Diamond of Darkhold.

Btw, I own nothing to do with this book series, or movie.

At first she didn't recognize the man standing before her. But when he stepped into the light, Linda realized it was Doon. It surprised her that she had thought him to be a man…Doon was still a boy, wasn't he? But she hadn't seen him, really seen him, since spring. He was a lot taller then she remember, and broader. He looked stronger, and older.

"Doon…?" She opened the door wider, and he started and stepped in.

He hadn't seen her for ages…not since the beginning of the summer, anyway. Her hair was so much longer, and it wasn't tied back in a string like she used to wear it. She was wearing a sweater in a delicious orange color, and the way it fit snugly to her soft curves startled him…when had he started noticing these things? Doon realized he was still standing in her doorway, and quickly moved inside.

"Lina"---he couldn't look her in the eyes. Why, when they had been such good friends before? He didn't understand the awkwardness. "I need to see the doctor."

In the light of the room, Lina now noticed Doon's sweater was torn and dirty. "Are you alright? Did something happen?"

He grimaced. "I was mending our roof today, but it wasn't strong enough to hold me. When I fell through I must have got stuck with splinters—I can feel them in my back but I can't get them out."

Lina hurried forward, pulling out a chair from the table for Doon. "Dr. Hester isn't here. She's at a neighbor's. But maybe I can help."

He sat down, and Lina carried over a bowl of water, some rags, and disinfectant. She set the supplies down and turned to Doon. "You're going to have to take your sweater off." She blushed, although she didn't know why. Lina regularly helped Dr. Hester treat other patients, and Doon was her friend. Lina looked away as he started peeling off his shirt.

Lina gingerly picked out tiny shards of wood from Doon's back, and she couldn't help but look at him now that his face was turned away. She was surprised that a man could be so beautiful. The thought had never occurred to her before. But the dim firelight was flickering against the sculpted muscles on his back, his shoulders, his chest…Lina willed herself to look away, and immediately felt embarrassed with herself. As she tugged at a particularly stubborn splinter, Doon growled. "I'm so sorry!" she squeaked, gently touching his skin. "I'm fine", he muttered.

Honestly, Doon hardly noticed the splinters and cuts. The soothing touch of Lina's fingertips combined with the warmth of the fire was almost making him feel drowsy. But when Lina said, "I'm done…are those all the cuts?" he jumped.

"Er, no…" he motioned to his chest. Lina gasped,

"Doon! I've got to clean that." There were two rather large scrapes across his chest, and stomach. The bleeding had dried up, but the effect was still rather gruesome. He rested one elbow on the edge of the table, gingerly, while Lina hunted down some bandages. It took her several cupboards before she found what she was looking for. On her return, she pulled up a chair beside him and picked up a cloth.

"This may hurt a little," she said, pressing the rag to his chest, right beside his heart. Doon breathed through his nose, which didn't help at all since all he could smell was the wonderful scent of Lina's hair. He shivered as she continued to wash him, gently removing the dried blood. The bite of the antiseptic didn't even bother him. Doon didn't even realized he was shaking until Lina stopped her ministrations and looked up, saying, "I'm sorry…is the water too cold?"

Her face was so close to his. If he had wanted to, he could count her freckles. What had she asked him? The water… "It's fine. I'm fine." He said. She got up anyway, to retrieve a fresh sponge and he followed her with his eyes. She was pleasantly slim and plump in all the right places for a girl to be. Lina was lovely, and he no longer felt ashamed to admit it.

Lina wrung out the sponge and bent again, trying to be careful. Even with the crude scrapes slashed across his torso, you could tell Doon was a hard worker. She couldn't help blushing at a little as she cleaned the last bit of the cut. It curved from his side, across his stomach, and down, stopping just above the waistband of his pants. Feeling incredibly embarrassed, Lina switched her sponge for a cloth, and dipped it down.

She felt the muscles across his stomach tense, and she whispered, "Sorry. Does it hurt very much?" before ducking her head, and cleaning the end of the wound. Her kneeling position on the hard floor wasn't very comfortable, and as she leant against him to rest her knee, she got knocked slightly, and somehow her hand slipped…just under his waistband, along his hip. Doon growled rather frighteningly, and Lina hurriedly dropped the washcloth.

Doon hadn't really thought that Lina would clean, well, all of his scrapes. The fact that he was perfectly capable of reaching his stomach seemed to escape her. She knelt beside him now, leaning against his thigh, carefully scrubbing off the blood that had dried over the cut. He felt her fingertips along the edges of the cloth slowly moving downward along the wound that would surely leave some sort of a scar. She was looking away

determinedly, but didn't seem to be embarrassed about where she was headed.

After all, wasn't she used to helping Doctor Hester care for her patients? The pressure on his thigh lifted, as Lina turned to replace the cloth. When she turned back, he thought he noticed a faint flush on her cheeks. He had to look away as she placed the wet rag against him, slowly rubbing along his abdomen.

Without meaning to, he tensed, and she must have felt it, for she murmured "Sorry". And then she gently stroked the cloth to the end of the mark, rubbing along by his hipbone. Doon closed his eyes, demanding that he think of something else…anything. But her fingers suddenly slipped down, inside his trousers…just under his hip, but still. He couldn't stop the groan that slid from his throat, and quickly looked away, embarrassed.

Lina dropped the washcloth, and jumped up, feeling most horribly awkward. Snatching a towel that was drying by the fire, she tossed it to Doon. "Here," she said quietly, not looking at him. She didn't watch him as he rubbed himself off, or when he pulled his sweater back over his head.

They might not have seen each other for several months, but they were friends. Things weren't supposed to be strange. Perhaps…she thought. But no. She peeked at Doon from the corner of her eye (he was looking away), and he was the same. Beautiful.

He would never feel the same way, she would have to be careful. Doon must not know. Behind her, she heard Doon walk to the door. Lina turned and walked with him. "I hope you feel alright," she said, looking away.

"Lina." His voice was sharp, and she met his eyes for a moment.

He saw it in her eyes as well--- it wasn't just him. She too, was feeling awkward, full of new feelings. She kept his gaze. The door was open, and the cold wind was blowing in, but neither of them bothered to close it.

"Doon?"

He didn't bother answering her. Instead, he lifted one hand, and slowly…so slowly, touched her hair. "It's longer---your hair, I mean." he said.

"And you're taller," she replied, as if that made perfect sense.

He wanted to touch her face…he really wanted to kiss her.

Lina hesitated in the doorway with Doon. The slight uncomfortable feeling she'd had was replaced with something different. He met her eyes, and touched her hand. She clasped her fingers with his slowly, relishing each small touch, never looking away.

She wanted this more then anything.

And without further ado, Doon leaned down and kissed her. She was so still he worried it was a mistake, until he felt her lips smile against his. She pulled back slightly, and laughed, bringing her free hand up to touch his cheek.

"Doon", she said.

"I know," he said, and then grinned as she stood quickly on tiptoe and pressed her lips to his.

She was his. He could not believe it. This glorious girl, this beautiful woman, belonged to him. Doon simply held her against him, feeling her softness press against him, and closed his eyes.

He was hers. She could not believe beautiful boy, this courageous man, belonged to her. Wordless, Lina let him pull her against him. She was content to stay there, her hands marveling at the newness of his body, her smile turned into his shoulder.

Reveiw if you enjoyed! If you have any ideas for future Lina/Doon fics, I'd love to know! I running out of ideas. XD