Authors Note: Sorry this took a while. But it is longer then the last one and its hard to find time to write between four stories and school and work. So these will kind of come slower. Sorry about it. I hope you like it and please review.

To be traded into another's care was a hard thing to get over. Ezra was no longer Baird's burden, she was Dom's. All ownership had been passed over two weeks ago when Baird passed her to Dom. It hurt too. She hadn't thought it would hurt so much but it damn well did. Like today, a cold afternoon, the unit had stopped for a breather. She sat in the back of a cargo truck wearing only a thick rough blanket she had found, and still that hospital gown, which had seen better days. Her bare legs dangled over the tailgate, and for a second she let herself feel the freedom of her legs to and fro.

"You look like a child." said Dom's gentle voice. He came to stand next to her and handed her a food pack. She wondered if Baird would ever come to visit her. "Doctor says he can take your stitches out tonight when we make camp." he said in hopes to wipe that frown off her face. She sighed and tried not to think of her angry scars, a constant reminder of the day she cheated death.

After ripping the top of the food pack open she slowly started to eat the disgusting processed military food. "Thanks" she mumbled between bites. The sooner she ate, the sooner she could get the taste out of her mouth. Chicken and rice her ass. She finished her meal within minutes and Dom took the wrapper away from her. "He might come see you tonight." he said off handedly.

Ezra turned her black eyes to look at Dom. "Why?" she asked.

"I over heard Marcus and Anya speaking about how you two almost kissed. Then I overheard Baird say to Cole he had to tell you first before someone else did." he explained as he looked over in the distance to Marcus who was discussing coordinates with Anya and Hoffman. "Bitch." was all she had to say to that. "I think you are a lost cause." Dom said as he stood up and meant to leave.

"It is too hard, Dom. I don't deserve to be happy, or to love another." she said with a sad smile.

He turned to look at her confused. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"I couldn't take care of my son. He died. Crushed beneath a Locust's boot, my little five year old Joseph curb stomped. Worst part of it, it is that I watched. He was playing in the front yard, I was washing dishes. When I looked up there he was, screaming for help, as a Locust grub knocked him down….." her voice trailed off as tears spilled down her face. "I am in the military. I could have taken care of him. But I didn't I just watched. I don't deserve an ounce of happiness. I deserve only revenge." she whispered through her tears.

"And now I am here, crying, and crying to you. You of all people don't deserve to have to hear my failures. Not after what has happened to you." she said.

Dom was so surprised, he didn't know what to say. Instead he took out a dirty rag and handed it to her. "Wipe your tears away." he commanded gently. She nodded and did as she was told. He wanted to let her cry, but he didn't want her to feel weak, and he didn't feel right as to being her shoulder to cry on. After handing back the rag, Dom left her to her dark thoughts.

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They pushed that day, further from the seismic activity to safe ground. They pushed until almost dark. They had all been lucky today not to run into any locusts. Very lucky as a matter of fact. Tonight, they had a safer place to lay their heads. After they stopped, orders were issues. "Dom, and Baird will take first watch at the east, Bravo company you split your men up and watch the west and north, and Hoffman get the rest of your men to watch the south." said Marcus as he lifted his Lancer into his hands. Everyone nodded.

Dom and Baird left to do as they were told. The took up position next to a tree that hadn't fallen yet. It shaded them gently from the setting sun. It felt like freedom for a moment. Their eyes scanned the shadows that were cast on roads and near by town. Rubble, the town was not longer a town, it was rubble. Baird sighed and looked back to the envoys. He saw her in the distance. She was speaking to her uncle. She wore an unhappy smile. Even from this distance he could see her sigh.

Dom followed his gaze and instantly he felt bad like he had earlier in the day. Her story kept playing over and over in his head. I deserve only revenge. Yes, she does deserve revenge, just like him, and everyone else who fought this war. His heart dropped when he thought of Maria. "She isn't so bad." said Baird as he continued to watch her.

Dom turned back to the darkening shadows of the east. Nothing. That was good to see nothing. He couldn't wait to get back to fighting though. Once they had the civilians safe, or as safe as they were going to get, Delta was going to go back and finish what they have started. "Yeah she isn't so bad." said Dom, not really know what else could be said about Ezra. It wasn't his place to tell Baird what she had told him.

"I think I like her." admitted Baird as he looked up at Dom. He expected Dom to look surprised, but he just looked pleased to hear Baird admit he liked Ezra. "Like I don't love her or anything, I just think she is a cooler person than we all thought she was." explained Baird, trying to redeem himself for saying he liked her. "Her stitches are being removed tonight." said Dom, turning the conversation a little bit.

Baird looked back at her. He wanted to be there to comfort her while it happened, but he wouldn't be. Even if he could be he wouldn't be there for her. He sighed and turned back to his job. He had to just forget about her.

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She laid naked on a makeshift table, in a makeshift tent. The doctor told her to have her hands over her head so it arched her back, so it would help him remove the stitches in her stomach. It hurt too and he had only begun. She wished someone was there to comfort her, to make her tears and pain go away. And her prayers were answered as Cole entered the tent. "Oh sorry." he said as his dark eyes flickered over her battered body. She wondered if she would look seductive like this if she didn't look so bad.

"Please Cole, can I hold your hand?" she asked before he could leave. His mouth worked in protest because she wasn't decent but her eyes won him over. They held such a need not to be alone in this that he walked deeper into the tent and came to stand near her hands. He looked at only her face, her dirty tear stricken face. He squatted down and gave her his hands, and he kept his eyes glued to her face, afraid to look at the rest of her. He didn't want to feel even more sorry than he already did by looking at her body.

She flinched when the doctor pulled too hard at her skin. His hands hurt after a few minutes. Damn, she has a grip on her. After ten long minutes, all the stitches were out of her stomach. She looked down at herself and frowned. Cole looked at her on accident and his stomach did a quick flip. It was red with irritation, and not only did she have thick angry scars, the stitching holes also scared, or were beginning to. She really did resemble a badly sewn together doll.

After a minute at gazing down at herself she turned her eyes back to Cole. Thankfully he was there still waiting to comfort her with his big brown eyes. "Thank you" she whispered. He nodded and smiled down at her. She really wasn't all that bad after all. Baird told him she wasn't as bad as she seemed and at first he didn't think that could be true. But now in her presence he understood. She was still strong, and somewhat abrasive, to the doctor, but she was still a woman who needed to be comforted.

Then he started to feel guilty. This should be Baird, comforting her, not him. This was not his place, and it made the tiny hairs on his neck stand on end. But did it really matter? It wasn't like Ezra and Baird were in a relationship, or even that they admitted they sort of like one another. So was this place? He sighed not sure how to feel.

Five minutes later the stitches in her leg were gone. Cole was almost sure that after this entire ordeal with this woman he was going to need to have stitches in his hands. Her nails were digging into him hard. Damn, it hurt too. Five more slow minutes, and she was done. "Well SSG Morg you are good as… well you are good that is all that matters. I would give it another week until you get back in uniform and even then two weeks until you are fully active." he said with a gentle smile as he stood up from his stool.

He went to a basin and washed his hands as Cole fetched her a blanket to cover herself as she sat up. Cole wondered what she would look like without being riddled with scars. She took the blanket with thanks and wrapped it around her shoulders. "Of by the way. You will have a permanent limp. It might hinder you in battle so you might want to consider a desk job, well more along the lines of what Anya does." said the Doctor nonchalantly.

Ezra glared daggers into his back. Oh by the way you have a limp. She made a psh noise and stood up. "Doc, can I wear some clothes now?" she asked. "Yeah, talk to Marcus or Hoffman though. They will know where to find you some supplies." said the Doctor as he waved her away.

Outside the tent Cole found himself laughing as Ezra stormed towards her uncle, well limped, clothed only in the blanket he had given her. He was right, she wasn't that bad. Halfway to her uncle she stopped and turned to look at Cole. "Thanks again!" she called as she whirled around and went off again.

"Welcome." he called behind her.

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Baird his displeasure when he found out after his shift that Cole had seen Ezra naked. He understood the circumstances, but it didn't make him feel any better about it. It should have been him standing there to comfort her. What am I saying? We are not an item and never will be. In the distance he watched as the sky lit up with battle. That is why we won't ever be together. There is a war going on. We don't have time to be love sick puppies.

But no matter what he thought, he still went to seek her out. He found her sitting by a scorched tree. The poor tree had seen better days, just like her. He was pleased to find her clothed in a grey t-shirt that was a little too large for her, and some black cargo pants that fit under COG armor, and black leather boots. It was a blessing that Hoffman had been able to find her clothing. But when the time came armor was another problem all together. He doubted that they would be able to find her armor.

He sat down beside her and leaned against the tree. "Nice to see you in something that fits better than a hospital gown." he said sarcastically. She made a noise that sounded like a sigh mixed with a laugh. He laughed awkwardly and looked at her. She was cleaner too. She had been able to wash up a little bit. Her hair unfortunately was still dirty. But so was his. In fact is blonde hair was taking on a red orange tint to it from dirt and locust blood. When you chainsawed one of those ugly bastards you always got it in your hair. But her face was clean and that is what that mattered.

He could see her more clearly this way. She was prettier then he actually knew. Nice creamy skin. He looked away quickly, he couldn't enjoy looking at her that much could he?

She made a content sigh as she stared up at the sky. It was cloudy with smoke, not a star in sight. So unromantic. That was good though, she couldn't afford having a romantic night. "What is your story Baird? Why are you such an asshole? Not saying I think you are an asshole, just saying word in this envoy is you are a major prick." she said, breaking the silence before it became uncomfortable. He laughed. But it was a gentle laugh, not one that said "I am upset."

"I'm not an asshole, I just am brutally honest, and I am….. Bitter." the words flew out like she had cast a spell over him to tell the truth. He looked surprised that he admitted it to her. "Why the bitterness?" she asked.

He sighed. He was going to regret this. He knew he was.

"I was going to marry her. Gloria. I was going to marry Gloria." he started. "I loved her so much. So much that when she said she was three weeks pregnant I tried to move the wedding dates up. She told me no……. Then she told me it wasn't mine. I didn't think about it at the time. I had been off on duty for a month in a half, and she was three weeks pregnant. My Gloria had cheated on me. She broke my heart. But I loved her so much, when she begged me not to let her go, I didn't. I stayed by her side. All through the pregnancy too. I swore I still loved her and I did. And even thought the baby wasn't going to be mine. I would have loved it. Both her and the child died. But they didn't die because of this war. They died in child birth. The cord had been wrapped around the babies throat. And Gloria died from blood loss."

His voice was so void of motion that it made Ezra tear up. "I didn't loose anyone to this war." he whispered as he stared up at the sky. She wiped her tears away. "My husband Luke died of rust lung a year after we married. And my son…. My son Joseph died under the boot of a locust, while I watched." she explained, bursting into tears. It was so hard to hear his reasoning for being the way he was and think of her Joseph and Luke. She couldn't hold herself together anymore. Instead of comforting her, he just watched as she hid her face in her hands and cried. He was too void to feel that pain about Gloria. "Turns out… Gloria never cheated on me. I tracked down the guy she told me she had had sex with, and he said he didn't have sex with her. I asked the doctor and turns out she was more than three weeks pregnant when she had told me. The child had been mine. Worst of all, her mother told me Gloria knew the baby was mine. Stupid bitch lied to me. And I will never in my life understand why." he said as he looked away from her.

His words only made her cry harder. Who would do that to someone? She looked at him but he kept his face turned away from her. "What was Joseph like?" he asked, not wanting to dwell on Gloria any longer. He wanted to know more about her anyways. "He was my everything. He was the only reason I am still here today. Joseph was beautiful….." her words faltered as she began to cry more. "I watched him die from my kitchen window. My hands in dirty dishwater. I should have been able to save him. But, but…" this time he cut her off by putting an arm around her shoulder. "It is okay." he whispered as he drew her into his chest. "They will die. All of them" she whispered into his chest through her tears.

"They will. We will kill them all." he said.