Sickbay was dark and quiet. Opening one eye he peeked around cautiously, a satisfied smile curving his lips. He was alone. With them taking out the IV lines the day before there was nothing to keep him tied down. Sitting up (wincing slightly) he pushed back the covers and carefully slipped out of bed, biting his lip to stifle the hiss of pain when his feet touched the floor. They'd said his legs had been pretty badly burned, and he'd probably have to relearn how to walk, but right now that wasn't a problem. He'd noticed that the doctors and Murrue-san sort of floated when they came to visit - with the ship still in space there was no gravity. Unsure of how he knew that but pleased anyway, he kicked off from the deck, which caused more pain but also a grin of triumph.

Now the second puzzle. Where do I go from here?

Ideally he wanted to find Murrue-san's room....she'd probably be sleeping right now but he never got to spend enough time with her. With her being so busy, and sickbay visiting hours being what they were, she could maybe only spend an hour with him each day. In the corridor outside the tiny room he looked left, then right, then decided on that direction. The place did sort of seem familiar, though oddly, not if he focused too much. If he didn't think about it, he found he knew where he was going. Without really understanding how he threaded his way through corridors and even up elevators until he stopped at a particular door.

Now what? If I knock and wake her up, she'll probably frogmarch my ass back to sickbay.. Closing his eyes he placed a hand on the numberpad beside the door, fingers brushing against them until he tapped in a pattern that felt familiar. To his satisfaction the door slid silently open, releasing a swirl of warm air, and as quietly as he could he slipped inside. It took a while for his eyes to readjust to the darkness, but gradually he was able to make out her figure curled up under the blankets on the bed. Floating to the small dresser against the wall he peeked in the mirror, pursing his lips slightly then began to poke about through the items in the drawers. Hairbrush, tubes and bottles that might be make-up, a necklace... It was an unusual shape - coffin-shaped, his mind said - with an embossed image of a flower on the front. It was just a necklace, yet something told him he shouldn't open it or even be holding it, and he set it carefully back where he'd found it. In another drawer, right near the front as though it had been put back recently, was a photograph in a wooden frame, which he carried to the door to see the image more clearly in the chink of light.

Is...that me? His reflection in the darkened mirror had shown only bandages and tousled hair, so he hadn't had much to go on. But the picture.. Murrue-san was there, not in her uniform but a pink blouse, it's colour matching the colour in her cheeks, and she was smiling. And the one beside her was also smiling, holding her so close her face was pressed against his. White T-shirt, messy blonde hair, blue eyes, and no bandages. Reaching up he touched the bindings over his face. I wonder if I'll ever look like that again...

"Hey, La Fllaga! Can I borrow you both for a minute?"

He grinned. "Depends on what you're borrowing us for." Beside him, Murrue looked suspicious, probably with good reason, as the Director made her way toward them.

"I want a picture of you both."

Murrue frowned. "Why?"

"Why not?"

"Good enough reason." Reaching out he pulled Murrue onto his lap, holding her close, and despite her earlier grumbles she smiled, even laughing when he rubbed his cheek against hers. "Can we have a copy of this?"

"Sure you can. I'll make sure to get one to you."

He nodded, nuzzling a kiss to his girlfriend's cheek. It would be a reminder of the time they'd spent here in Orb, whatever happened later.

That's right... we were in Orb. Behind the images of themselves was a blurred mass of green and blue...trees and sky. If he closed his eyes he could see them, and white sand, smell the scents of flowers, salt and sunscreen. A memory. He leaned back against the door with a smile. Murrue-san had been right.

"She was right.."

"I usually am." The voice was sleepy but full of smiles, and he smiled himself.

"Did I wake you?"

"I woke up when I heard you come in. You know you shouldn't be out of sickbay." Pushing back the covers she floated across to join him, glancing down at the picture he held.

"Erica took this," she mused. "I didn't want her to at first, but I'm glad she did. She gave me it a couple of days ago - she'd forgotten she had it."

He nodded, closing his eyes to bring back an image of the other woman. Red hair clipped back, blue eyes, red jacket and green trousers. And... "Nosy."

Murrue-san laughed softly. "Yes, she is. But she's a good friend. She's visited me a lot. And she's offered to let me stay at her house when we get back home."

"While I'm in hospital?"

She nodded. "And until I find a place for us both to live."

"I can live with you?"

"Of course. You can't stay in hospital forever."

"I guess not."

She smiled and took his hand, leading him over to the window and pulling up the shade. What he saw...took his breath away. There was Earth, the planet they'd both grown up on, the place they called home, all green and blue and streaked with white clouds. For a moment he wasn't able to speak, and judging by the gentle squeeze of his hand it seemed as though Murrue-san understood.

"It's beautiful."

"Yes, it is."

"We're going back to Orb?"

She leaned into him a little, closing her eyes when he placed an arm around her waist. "We don't have anywhere else to go. But if I could choose, I think I'd want to go there anyway."

"What about your family?"

"They're alright. They're in California - in San Francisco. You arranged it so I could talk to them a few weeks ago - I hadn't been able to since we left the military."

"Why did we leave?"

"They left us to die," she answered matter-of-factly. "I guess we'd outlived our usefulness. You were the one who found out, and you came back to tell us so we could get away in time."

He nodded, still gazing at the planet spinning slowly beneath them. "You won't be able to see them again?"

"Yes, I will. I've been able to talk to them since - Erica helped me with that - and told them what happened, and they're going to try and move to Orb. Since we're deserters, they're not safe back home."

"Did I ever meet them?"

"Only when you called them, not face-to-face. But you'll be able to."

He frowned a little. Surely if he and Murrue-san had been together he'd met her parents? "How long have we been together?"

"Four months."

"That's all?" When he'd woken up and seen her he'd been convinced he'd known her for years, everything about her feeling familiar and comforting. I didn't even know my own name but I knew that I loved her. I know it now. It certainly didn't feel like it had only been four months. "How long had it been when that picture was taken?"

Murrue-san took the framed photograph from him, tracing the images with a smile. "It was just before we left for space, so it was just a month or so. It does feel like longer, but we'd known each other for a couple of months before we actually got together."

"We were friends?"

She nodded. "Good friends. It was tough work being captain, but you were always there to lean on - I don't know what I'd have done without you."

"I'm glad."

"You were also a pain in the butt."

He laughed. "I'm sure you put me in my place."

"Of course."

He looked much better. Still tired, but the bruising and swelling around his eyes and nose had gone down, the bandaging around his arms and legs had been reduced - he had as strong a constitution as the doctors had ever seen. They said that by all rights, he shouldn't have survived the explosion or the injuries it caused. He was in surgery for over twelve hours....Kira-kun wouldn't even tell me he was alive until they were sure he was out of danger. But here he was, alive and mostly well, and just a little bit different from before. He's.....innocent, somehow. Because he doesn't remember all the sad stuff that happened when he was younger, it doesn't affect him. Leaning a little closer she kissed him gently, smiling when he instantly returned it.

"You're going to be all right, you know?"

"Yeah, I know."

She nodded, reaching up to run a hand through his hair, straightening it out. "Now, what should I do with you? The sensible option would be to take you back to sickbay, but you did come all this way, so I guess I can let you stay for tonight. Here," she took his arm and drew him over to the bed. "You sleep there, and I'll take the sofa."

"No."

"No?"

"C'mere." Sitting down on the bed he pulled her down beside him, winding arms around her waist to keep her close. "This is why I came here."

"But doesn't it hurt?"

"No, not really, and even if it did I wouldn't care."

"You're impossible."

"Good." Lying on his side to avoid the burns on his back he brought her close to lie beside him, nuzzling his face into her hair with a happy sigh. "I do love you, you know."

She smiled. "Yes, I know."

"Do you?"

She brushed a hand over the bandages on his face. "Yes."

Mwu smiled and kissed her, the exchange so passionate it made her toes curl. Reaching up she wound arms around his shoulders, being careful to not touch his injuries, and giggled when he kissed her neck. "Stop that, pest."

"Don't wanna."

"You came in here to sleep."

"Did I?"

"I thought you did."

He grinned, settling down beside her. "Doesn't mean I can't have fun."

"Behave, or I'm sending you back."

"Yes, ma'am."

He winced, shading eyes with a hand until she placed the straw hat on his head. Ever since they'd landed on the ocean he'd been asking if he could go outside, agreeing to wear a long sleeved shirt and hat and as much sunscreen as she wanted to daub him with, but she'd had an inkling he didn't remember how hot Orb could be...and she'd been right. He blew upwards at messy blonde fringe to clear it from his face, peeking at her with a plaintive expression.

"You're the one who wanted to come out here."

"I did. And I'm glad I did." He pushed the wheelchair toward the deck railing, leaning on it to squint at the distant island. "Is that it?"

"Yes, that's it. The main island, anyway. There are a group of them."

"How come it's so hot?"

"Sub-tropical. According to Erica it doesn't get much colder than 14 or 15 degrees even in winter, so we definitely won't get any snow."

"Aw."

"Do you remember snow?"

Mwu frowned slightly, then nodded. "Sort of. It made the whole place white."

"And cold?"

"Oh yeah. I remember that."

She leaned on his chair. "What else can you remember?"

"Not much yet," he admitted softly. "Bits and pieces. I remember that picture being taken, the one in your room, but not much else concrete."

"You will."

"I know. Will you help me? Tell me more stories?"

"Of course I will." As many as you want to hear.

"I think this'll be fun."

Murrue laughed. "So do I."

( random chapters are the best kind.

please read and review! )