A/N: I don't want to make excuses so I will just apologize for the long hiatus. I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to update, but I'm here now and my life's about to calm down a lot in about a week or so. That being said, thank to all of you that have waited so patiently and I hope that you enjoy this update. The title means 'homeland', 'ho'okahi' means 'alone' and 'makemake au 'oe' means 'I want you'. All in Hawaiian, obviously. Thank you to my followers/favoriters and to soubifan700, Mari88, and bella526 for reviewing. Said reviews are greatly appreciated.

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to George R. R. Martin and Her Interactive. Except for Sam; he is mine.

"So how was New Year's Eve? I forgot to ask."

It was January 2nd now and Sam and Sansa were walking along the shoreline outside of the hospital at sunrise. Sansa looked down at her toes when he spoke, absently watching the pastel hues of light that danced across the water by her feet.

"Oh, you know. About the same as it always has been. A bit overwhelming."

Sam nodded in understanding. "All the same, I wish I could've been there. If only so that I could've given you your midnight kiss. A girl as pretty as you doesn't deserve to go un-kissed on a night like that."

"How do you know I didn't find another man who was more than willing to kiss me?" Sansa replied teasingly, hoping that her blush wouldn't reveal the truth of her statement.

At Sam's grin she knew that the thought had never even crossed his mind. "Well, if you did, then I have a bone to pick with one of the sailors here."

No, not one of the sailors. She had stayed on the beach with Sandor for hours after midnight, telling him all about herself as he sat with his arms wrapped around her and his chin resting atop her head. And not once had she thought of Sam and wondered how he would feel if he found them there together. Only now was she feeling any guilt for her complete disregard of his obvious feelings towards her.

She laughed aside his comment and a comfortable silence followed that was broken a few minutes later by a heavy sigh from Sam.

"I was going to be an actor, you know," he mused quietly, almost more to himself than to her.

Sansa glanced over at him in surprise. True, with his bright blue eyes, wide smile, and boyishly handsome face, he could easily have been the newest poster child of Hollywood, but she couldn't picture him as anything else but a soldier.

"So why are you here?"

He shrugged slightly and stopped to stare out across the ocean at the spreading light of the rising sun. "Once the war broke out, I figured I would be of more use fighting for my country than being just another face on the silver screen. And now I'm finally going back, and what do I have to show for my time here?" Sansa opened her mouth to respond but he answered his own question, the bitterness evident in his tone. "Nothing. And one less leg than I left with."

"Sam..."

He sighed again and ran a hand wearily across his face. "I know...I know...I'm a hero. I guess it's just getting to me that I'll have to face my family like this in less than twenty-four hours. It's been easier here. Here, I'm just a statistic. At home they'll pity me."

Again, Sansa opened her mouth to respond, but since he wasn't looking at her, he missed the gesture and interrupted her once more. "Sansa."

She raised an eyebrow as he finally turned to meet her gaze. "Yes?"

"When I come back here I'm going to have something for you." He looked at her solemnly for a moment then added, "I hope you'll accept it."

It took Sansa a moment to realize what he was saying, but when she did, her eyes widened. "Sam, I—"

He smiled and took hold of her hands. "You don't have to have an answer for me yet. Just...think about it while I'm gone?" She nodded and he bent down to kiss the back of their joined hands. "Thank you."

Their walking had landed them at the edge of the jungle and Sam gazed contemplatively at the trees as Sansa stared blankly ahead, her mind still reeling from what he had insinuated. It was a seemingly innocuous question from Sam that broke her from her thoughts.

"Do you think he's really out there?"

"Who?"

"That Kāne 'Ōkala that Kahale told us about. The 'burned man of the island'."

Sansa's heart skipped a beat and she absently scanned the trees for any sign of the man in mention before replying. "I doubt it. I mean, every culture has legends to explain the seemingly unexplainable. I'm sure he's nothing more than a story." A story that certainly felt real last night. She shivered at the memory of his rough hands against her skin.

Sam raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Yeah? I'm sure you're right."

They stood together in silence for a moment longer before Sam sighed and glanced off toward the harbor.

"I should probably head over there. Spend too much more time with you and the pilot will be waiting on me to leave."

Sansa nodded absently and cast a final lingering glance over her shoulder at the forest before allowing Sam to lead her toward the plane that was waiting on the harbor to take the soldiers who needed specialized treatment back to the states.

He left her side for only a brief moment in which he retrieved a few of his belongings before wheeling himself back out onto the dock and coming to a stop in front of her. He just sat there staring at her for a moment, and it was only when Sansa began to fidget in discomfort that he broke the awkwardness with a smile.

"Well, I guess this is it. When I come back, I'll be a whole man again, and ready to sweep you off your feet." He gazed at her for a moment longer then sighed heavily and shook his head. "I can't believe I won't see for...months, at least."

Sansa just nodded, unsure of what to say.

"I'll miss you, you know." He reached out to take hold of her hand and she squeezed it with a weak smile.

"I'll miss you too, Sam."

He gestured for her to come closer and she bent down so that he could kiss her. His lips met hers with a desperation that she wasn't expecting, and when they finally broke apart, he pulled her into a tight hug, burying his face in her hair. After a moment, he spoke.

"Write me, will you? And send me a picture so I can show my family what you look like." Sansa nodded and when the pilot called for him to board the plane, he gave her another quick kiss. "And think about what I told you. I'll want you to have an answer when I see you next."

With that, he turned away and Sansa stood mutely watching as he disappeared into the body of the plane and the machine slowly rose into the sky, bound for home.

"I saw a plane leave this morning. Does that mean he's gone then?"

The question broke Sansa from her thoughts and she absently adjusted her position. "Yes."

Her answer was met with a quiet murmur of pleasure and then, "So that means we're ho'okahi..." whispered lowly beside her ear.

She shivered and couldn't help the smile that formed on her lips. "Yes."

After Sam had left, Sansa had spent the rest of the day in the hospital with the soldiers that remained, lifting spirits, easing pains, and healing wounds. It was only after most of the other nurses had retired that she had managed to sneak out and make her way to the jungle where Sandor was waiting for her. Now, they were in his underground 'home', with Sandor leaning back against one of the cavern walls as Sansa quietly knitted a pair of mittens in his lap.

Sandor's lips found her own and her fingers faltered for a moment before dropping the yarn entirely and moving to rest against his heavily muscled biceps. She sighed happily into their kiss and pulled away after a moment to give him a playful smile.

"You know I can't spend every second of the next few months with you, though, right? I still have work to do in the hospital."

Sandor frowned, his burns twisting grotesquely. "Fuck the hospital. We finally have time alone and makemake au 'oe..."

Sansa raised her eyebrows. "Hm?"

He grinned and nuzzled his face in the crook of her neck before flicking out his tongue to teasingly lick her pulse point. "I should teach you Hawaiian, manu li'ili'i."

She smiled somewhat shyly. "I would like that."

"Mm..." Sandor hummed contentedly against her throat then turned to her lips again. As the kiss deepened and he gently extracted her from between his legs to lie her down on his worn mattress, her thoughts began to stray.

"When I come back here I'm going to have something for you. I hope you'll accept it." Her stomach churned with guilt in the face of her disloyalty, but when Sandor's hands moved to grip her hips, her thoughts scattered and she focused back on the man above her. Right now, nothing else mattered. Just her, Sandor, the growing sensation in the pit of her stomach, and the time that they had to spend with each other...finally and blissfully alone.