So...this is short, and, um, apparently its been sitting, already written, on my computer for a LONG time. I just...um...forgot about it. Whoops. Anyway, it's short but here's another chapter. Sorry for the long wait.


By the time Hiroto made it back to Aliea, he was exhausted. The stranger – a boy, he'd discovered after an unfortunate slip a few minutes into the trip back – was still thrashing, though not nearly as hard as he had been at the beginning.

He'd already missed the start of practice, and couldn't find the energy to go for the rest of it. Besides, he still needed to figure out what to do about the stranger whose fighting was getting weaker and weaker. He should tell his father, but the man was gone today. Something about final preparations.

He'd tell him when the elder male got back. For now, he needed a bath. And so did the boy in his arms. Hiroto hoped the bath would go over better than the trip back had. Otherwise he might have to ask for help from some of his teammates.

Reina might take pity on the boy to help, but that was only if she'd listen to him first. Ever since the teams were formed, she was upset with him being chosen as the captain. Speaking of the elder female, Hiroto sighed when he found her banging on his door. "Gran! Practice has already started!"

"I'm not in there," He said, causing her to turn and glare at him. Before she could open her mouth to yell at him, he hoisted his struggling package into her view. "I need your help."

The blue haired girl crossed her arms. "What did you do?"

Shaking his head and attempting to reach for his keys, he explained how he'd found the boy. Reina's expression softened as she looked at the now still form. Only the ragged panting and twitch of the legs kept the two from taking off the hood to check if he was still alive.

"We need to get him cleaned up and check for any injuries," Reina said, finally taking Hiroto's keys from him and opening the door. She followed him in and began digging through his clothes. "He'll have to borrow your clothes for now."

Hiroto set the boy down on his bed and made his way to the attached bathroom. It was one of the things he was grateful for at the moment – each room had its own personal bathroom. Starting the shower, he waited until the water was warm before heading back out. "We should shower him off first. Otherwise he'll just be sitting in dirty water. Do you want to change first? I need a shower anyway, so I can handle washing him." He glanced towards the bed. "So long as he stays still."

Pursing her lips, Reina eventually nodded. "I'll also get the first aid kit. He'll more than likely need a doctor, but we'll do what we can for now." She tossed a pair of his shorts and one of his shirts at him. "Have him wear those when he's clean."

Not feeling like arguing with the elder female, Hiroto simply nodded and grabbed some more clothes for himself before bringing the stranger to the bathroom. Praying he wasn't about to be scratched or bit, the redhead slowly removed his jacket from the boy and set him on the ground near the shower. Stripping out of his own clothes, he grabbed the boy once more and stepped into the tub.

Hiroto was glad that the showerhead was removable. It made washing the unconscious stranger so much easier. It still took time, trying to get all the caked on mud and dirt and other things the redhead really didn't want to know from the stranger's body and hair. He'd used nearly half his shampoo on the boy's hair, trying to get it clean. Not to mention all the conditioner he'd put in in hopes of helping with the horrid tangles.

By the time he was finished, the hot water had gone cold and he was even more exhausted than before. Shutting the water off, he returned the showerhead to its original spot and wrapped the stranger in a spare towel. Quickly drying himself off, he slid into his clean clothes and used his own towel to wrap the mass of soaking green hair on the sleeping boy. Drying the darkly tanned skin, he carefully dressed the smaller boy.

When he was finished, he picked the slumbering boy up and headed back into his room. Reina was waiting for him, reading one of his books. "Finally finished?" She asked, snapping the novel closed and setting it aside.

"The mud was really caked on – and don't get me started on his hair." Hiroto laid the boy down and got his first good look at this stranger.

"He's actually pretty cute," Reina commented. Picking up one of his hands, she held it up so Hiroto could see it better. "Except for his claws." And claws they were. The nails were long and pointed at the ends, resembling those found on dogs or cats more than humans. A glance as his feet showed similar nails.

"No wonder he drew blood." The redhead rubbed his arm where he'd been scratched. Luckily it hadn't been deep and already stopped bleeding. The blue haired girl gently pried the slumbering boys mouth open and blinked.

"Sharp claws and pointy teeth. Are you sure he's human?" Hiroto wondered if she was joking. He couldn't tell. "He doesn't appear to have any major wounds, just some cuts and bruises. He does feel warm though. Probably a fever."

She lifted his shirt to show his exposed ribs. "My guess is he passed out from a combination of hunger and this fever." She turned to look at her captain. "He might have died if you'd left him."

The redhead nodded. "What should we do with him? We don't know who he is, or why he was out there in the first place. And I wouldn't be surprised if he attacked us when he woke up. He doesn't seem to be in his right mind. I don't think he understood me earlier either."

"I don't want to tie him up. He might freak out more if we do. We don't really have anywhere to put him though." Reina turned back to the stranger and nodded. "He'll have to stay with you then."

"Why me? He might attack me in my sleep."

"You're the one who found him, so he's going to stay with you until father gets back and decides what we should do." Standing up, she made her way to the bathroom and grabbed Hiroto's brush. Gently lifting the boy, she slid in behind him and took the towel from his hair. "Green hair." She grinned up at the redhead. "Maybe he really is an alien."

Shaking his head, the teen straightened his room a bit before grabbing one of his books and sitting at his desk. Rather than read, he sat watching his older sister figure gently brush out the tangled green hair. For a while, the room was quiet.

"You seem to like him already," Hiroto commented. "Why doesn't he stay with you?"

Reina glared at him. "This is not open for discussion Gran. He's staying with you until father gets back. Now go get a glass of water. I want to get some medicine in him before his fever gets worse."

Sighing, Hiroto got up and went to get a glass of water as asked. He wouldn't have minded sharing his room with the stranger, but he wasn't fond of the idea he could essentially be attacked while he slept. Bringing back the glass of water, he sat on the edge of the bed while Reina finished brushing out the green hair.

"I wonder who he is."


I'm trying to finish this story (or at least work on it), I promise. I'm just...also trying to finish about 15 other stories as well because I keep getting distracted by new fandoms/ideas. So, hopefully updates won't be years in between anymore, but yeah. No promises that they'll be fast either.