'Auw! Dammit!' Dahlia cursed as she stared at the cut in her hand. She knew she should've been more careful when repairing that mosquito. But somehow she still managed to hurt herself.

'What happened?'

Mahad walked up from another ship he had been working on.

'Nothing, Mahad, just cut myself. That'll heal.'

He took her wounded hand. 'Are you sure? It looks pretty bad...'

She pulled her hand away, somewhat regrettingly. 'It isn't as bad as it looks, really. It's nothing.

'Pretty big nothing.'

'MAHAD! It won't kill me alright!'

'Okay okay, sheesh, I'm only trying to help.'

She sighed. 'I know. It's mostly me.'

He raised an eyebrow. 'What is it? Something wrong?'

'Just slept badly last night. That's all.'

She turned her attention back to the mosquito as Mahad walked back to the one he had been repairing. Oh hell, I'm blushing. PLEASE tell me he didn't see that.

She continued working on the ship, being more careful this time. She was nearly finished when one stupid screw stubbornly refused to go back to it's place, no matter how she turned the screwdriver. Then a bigger hand gently took her and turned the screw with extra strength. Dahlia felt Mahad's warm chest against her back and turned around. The screwdriver was still in her hand and his hand was still covering hers. She placed her free hand - the one with the cut - on his chest to push him away, but then she felt his strong heartbeat and she just couldn't. Something stopped her from pushing him away. And she knew exactly what it was.

He placed his free hand under her chin and made her look up at him, then bowed his head and kissed her.

It felt good, his warm lips on hers. He took the screwdriver from her hand to make it easier for both of them. She let her wounded hand rest on his heart as she gently stroked his jawline with her other hand.

Mahad's unoccupied hand slid down her arm and then gently wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

And then he dropped the screwdriver he completly forgot about.

Dahlia was startled by the noise and broke off the kiss, then jumped back when she realised what she had just done.

Mahad picked up the screwdriver and put it back in the toolbox.

'You kissed me back.' he said, half accusingly, half surprised.

'I was surprised okay!' she hissed. It was wrong. She shouldn't have kissed him.

'So, you don't love me?'

'Not in that way.'

He walked up towards her. Dahlia kept backing up untill her back was against the mosquito, leaving her no escape route.

'So you don't want to kiss me.'

Her answer was a firm 'No.'

'And you don't want me to kiss you.'

Another no, but this time less convincing.

'So you really don't want me to do this?' he said, placing his hands on the mosquito, trapping the blonde Pirate between the ship and his own body.

'N-mmmm!' was the only sound she could make as he pressed his lips on hers again.

This time she gave in much faster, placing one hand in his neck and gripping in his hair with the other as his arms slid around his waist again, pulling her closer, intensifying the kiss. Soft moans of joy escaped their throats.

When they broke up the kiss again, both were out of breath.

'God...' was all he managed to say.

Dahlia was breathing so heavily, she couldn't even speak.

It was wrong. It was completly wrong. She really shouldn't do this.

Something was bothering her. I wasn't that hard to tell. Yet, she looked so pretty as she stood there in his arms, thinking.

She gently freed herself from his embrace.

'No.' she softly said. He took a step back.

'Dahlia, what is it?'

She looked up at him with a hurt look in her eyes. 'This is just not right, Mahad. I'm sorry, I...' She didn't know what to say and instead just ran off, leaving Mahad behind in a confused state. She had kissed him back. Twice. What was it that stopped her?

'Why did you do that?' Dahlia heard a voice say behind her. She had just ran untill she reached the edge of the block, where she slumped down on her knees.

She'd recognize that accent everywhere. 'You now why, Cortes.'

'That didn't stop Davina. Or Alida. Or Mackenna.'

'Yeah. And look where that got them.'

'It is never prooved that they gave in just because they had a child.'

'No, but it makes sense! As I understand, it does give them great power. And I assume that mothers try to protect their children.'

'Dahlia...' he said as he sat down. '...you're strong, stronger than your mother was. It's not because you have a...an interesting bloodline, that you're doomed or something.'

'Look who's talking.'

'That's diffrent. At least I can accept what I am.'

'Yeah yeah, you're probably right.' She turned her head. 'But that doesn't change a thing about what I am.'

'And what you are doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is: do you love him?'

She nodded. 'I do. And that's the entire problem. I wouldn't be able to lie to him. Hell, it's hard to lie even when we aren't together.'

'Why are you so interested in that Dahlia woman?'

'Because she's a very interesting person. A very interesting family, actually. The Damiano women always stood with one foot in the shadow. All they need is a little push...'