Chapter 14

I was led away to the medical wing and asked to wait for the doctor. I recognized him as soon he walked in and worried he would recognize me. I forced myself to calm down before the doctor looked up with a kind smile. He asked what was wrong so I told him about the ambush and my reset shoulder. He examined my shoulder and decided to take an x-ray just to make sure it had been properly reset. I smiled in amusement but didn't object and changed into the provided hospital gown. There was a knock on the door as I finished changing after the x-ray.

"Come on in."

I turned around to see Jinx and Snake standing in the doorway. Smiling I placed the hospital gown in the dirty laundry bin. Jinx reluctantly thanked me for saving her after Snake poked her. I merely shrugged my good shoulder.

"You don't need to thank me. Does the Blind Master know I'm back?"

"No. He knows there's something important I'm not telling him but he does not know you are here Luna."

"Excuse me ma'am? Your shoulder will be fine so long as you don't move it very much for the next day or so."

"Thank you doctor."

I wondered if the doctor had overheard us but there wasn't much I could do about it. Jinx told me that the Joes had been contacted and told the mission was successful and that Snake and I would return in the morning. I thanked her for letting me know before leaving. I didn't pay much attention to where I was going and ended up on the roof. I sat down on a bench and stared blankly at the stars.

"Beautiful night I'm sure. Bit chilly though isn't it?"

"Are you the Blind Master?"

"Yes. But who are you? Why were you with Jinx and Snake Eyes?"

I hesitated before telling him my codename. For some reason he didn't press about the details of my disappearance like I expected. He only welcomed me back before inviting me inside for some tea. I accepted and followed him to a commons area. We didn't talk very much which was a little strange for me since I wasn't with Snake. It felt strange being with someone and not talking at all.

Snake walked in at dawn and found me sitting on a couch. He came over to to wake me, thinking I had fallen asleep. I tilted my head up to stare at him and he noticed my glazed over eyes.

'Did you get any sleep last night?'

"Why?"

'You look really tired. Are you ready to go? I have your things.'

"Yeah, thanks."

Snake helped me up and waited a moment to see if I needed help to walk. I began to walk in a random direction but didn't get far since Snake was still holding my wrist. I slowly turned to look at him half expecting to see Senji in my sleep deprived state. I thought I heard Snake sigh before he led me in a different direction. I barely made it onto the plane before passing out on one of the seats.

I woke up sometime later and looked around. Realizing I was in Snake's room I looked at the clock and saw it was just past one in the afternoon. Sitting up my face turned red when I noticed someone had changed me into pajamas. A few minutes later the door opened and Snake came in carrying a tray of food. He set the tray down before coming over and feeling my forehead.

'Are you feeling alright? Why didn't you get any sleep last night?'

I huffed and scooted away from my friend before hugging my knees. I knew Snake was worried and wanted an explanation but I hadn't figured out how to tell him about Senji. 'I wonder if I'll ever figure out how to tell him.' Snake poked my arm so that I would look at him.

'Please tell me what had you so scared that you didn't sleep last night. I want to help you but I don't know how if you won't tell me.'

I raised an eyebrow upon noticing he had taken off his mask. Without it I could see just how worried he was for me in his eyes. I my stuffed bear sitting on Snake's dresser and went to grab it. He handed me the toy bear and sat down cross legged on the bed next to me and took my hand. I was glad he was next to me. I wasn't sure I would be able to look at him. He waited patiently while I gathered my thoughts.

"You remember Senji? That kid you would train with a lot when you weren't sparring with me or Storm Shadow?"

I turned my head just enough that I could see Snake's reply before turning back around.

'I remember Senji. Why? What does he have to do with you disappearing that night?'

"He was the one that kidnapped me. He threatened to go back and hurt you if I tried to escape from him. I've spent years trying to figure out how to get away from him but. . ."

I trailed off because I noticed Snake had gone still out of the corner of my eye. I turned to him only to stop in surprise. I had never seen him so shocked and angry. He slowly stood up and headed towards the door but I grabbed his hand. 'This is exactly why I never wanted to tell him. He looks like he's going to track down and kill Senji.'

"Please don't. I don't want to lose you again so soon after finding you."

I felt Snake relax before he turned and enveloped me in a hug. He traced onto my arm so he wouldn't have to pull away. 'I'm sorry Lenne but I get the feeling he hurt you a lot more than you're letting on. He needs to pay for whatever he did to you.'

"Then you can beat the crap out of Senji if we happen to run across him while we're on a mission. Don't seek him out Snake. You don't know what he's capable of now. Promise me you won't go looking for him."

Snake didn't reply at first but he nodded when I lifted my head to look at him. I sighed in relief and tried to pull back. Snake wouldn't let me go and carefully sat us on the bed. He leaned over and grabbed a cookie from the tray and began eating it. I pulled away just enough to look at him in bemusement.

'What?'

"We damn near have a fight and you're eating a cookie. I'm torn between questioning your sanity and laughing."

'I'd prefer it if you laughed. My sanity is not in question right now thank you very much.'

I snorted and muttered that he could have fooled me. I also grabbed a cookie and curled up next to Snake. We sat in awkward silence until I suggested we go pick out a movie. Without waiting for Snake, I got up and headed to the library. Immediately going to the P's I again checked for Phantom of the Opera and frowned when I didn't see it. Grumbling I began looking at what else there was but couldn't decide on a movie. I turned around to look for one of the Percy Jackson book series and almost walked into Snake.

'What's wrong?'

"Can't find anything to watch. They don't seem to have Phantom of the Opera so I was gonna check for a book series I really like and start rereading it if it's here."

'We have Phantom of the Opera. Someone must have it right now.'

"Man! I really want to watch it. Well, why don't you pick a movie? I'm going to go see if that book series is here. Meet back in your room?"

'Sure. See you in a bit.'

I nodded at Snake and went off to hopefully find the book I wanted. I found The Lost Hero and decided to grab it when I didn't see The Lightning Thief. Slowly making my way back to my room I wondered what movie Snake had picked. Entering the code when I reached my door I was stopped by Cover Girl.

"Luna! Glad to see you up and about. I saw Snake Eyes carrying you towards your room early this morning. Did something happen during your mission?"

"I, uh, fell asleep on the plane ride home. Snake wasn't able to wake me up so he decided to carry me to my room. Do you know if Snake debriefed General Hawk on our mission?"

"Yes. General Hawk was notified of your mission's success. The rest of the Alpha Team hasn't finished their mission yet though. We're waiting to hear from them."

"I hope they're doin' alright. Well, I'll see you later Cover Girl."

"Alright. I'll see you later Luna."

Back in Snake's room I saw he had chosen The Lion King. Snatching the remote from his bed I sat down and set up subtitles before starting the movie. I didn't really pay attention to the movie. Instead I wondered what my life would have been like if Senji had never kidnapped me.