Rory was leaning against something sturdy when she came around.

It turned out to be Bull.

Her head was on his lap and her legs were curled up.

She had created the perfect ball.

Rory's head ached, it was painful, but she remembered what had happened. However, Rory thought she would have ended up dead or in the hands of the Germans. As it turned out, Bull managed to get them to safety. They were currently laying low inside a tunnel, while Bull thought of what to do next. Rory was very thankful for Bull. He had saved them both.

She gave the man's sleeve a gentle tug, letting him know that she was awake.

Bull looked down.

And smiled small.

But he soon faced the tunnel's entrance again when he heard boots pound along the road. Taking in a sharp breath, the man reached for his rifle, prepared to kill off whoever started shooting. Rory's hold only tightened around his sleeve in response. But Bull did not have to fight off any Germans because the enemy walked right by them, not even bothering to search the tunnels for any Yanks.

Lowering his rifle, he looked back down at Rory;

"we're 'gonna make a move". He whispered, "can you run?"

Slowly, Rory pushed herself off from his lap.

And sat up.

She gave him a nod.

Bull's lips twitched in return;

"good". He whispered, "let's go through the tunnel. Cut through the field and head for the farm".

Again, Rory nodded.

She was too afraid to open her mouth and give a verbal response, in case the Germans heard her. So, very quietly, Rory crawled through the tunnel and followed behind Bull. It wasn't a very pleasant experience. The tunnel stunk of old sewage and they ended up covered in filth. Rory had to stop herself from gagging a few times from the smell. She was very relieved when they reached the end.

There, they could spot the farmhouse. Which sat at the bottom of the field.

"Ready to run?" Bull asked.

Rory nodded.

And soon, the pair of them sprinted off down the grassy field.

They reached a barn and headed inside, hoping the Germans wouldn't follow their path. Bull closed the door before the pair of them sat down on a pile of straw each, leaning against a stall door. The barn was empty, no cows or horses were inside with them. Bull looked around the barn where he sat, wondering if they could hideout from a higher place.

And while he looked around, Rory noticed something shiny sticking out from his shoulder.

Frowning, she whispered;

"Sarge, you're hurt".

"What's digging in me, Doe?"

Shaking her head, she mumbled;

"bit of the tank".

Bull sighed;

"you're 'gonna have to get it out".

"Me?" Rory's eyes widened, "don't you 'wanna wait 'till tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow?" He questioned, "no, it's 'gotta come out now".

And with that, he brought out his knife and handed it to Rory.

She took the knife, with an uneasy feeling.

Swallowing thickly, Rory ripped open the back of his jacket and shirt. There, she could see a gash, with a piece of hot metal inside his shoulder. Bull wasn't bleeding an awful lot, but the wound looked very painful. Biting down on her bottom lip, she tried to push the piece of metal out with her fingers, but the wound was too small.

Bull hissed;

"use the knife, boy". He grumbled.

Letting out a shaky breath, Rory whispered;

"okay".

Using the knife, she cut into Bull's skin, opening up the wound so the piece of metal would come out with pressure. Of course, Bull hissed again and grunted. But he never screamed out or begged for her to stop. So, once the wound was bigger, she used her fingers again to push the piece of tank out of his body. And it came out, with a small pop. The metal landed on the floor with a gentle thud, while Rory quickly covered Bull's gash with a bandage from her aid kit. Her fingers were covered in the man's blood. Rory wiped her hands against her trousers.

Bull grunted again and leaned back against the stall.

Nodding, he mumbled a quick;

"thanks".

Rory brought out her canteen and unscrewed the cap;

"have some water, Sarge".

Bull, sounding a little breathless, nodded and accepted the water.

After taking a few sips, he handed the canteen back to Rory;

"you too, Doe". He told her.

Rory only took one sip. She wanted to ration her water; in case they were trapped inside the barn for more than a day. Opening up her musette bag, she brought out her blanket and threw it over Bull. With a serious look, Rory told him;

"I'll keep watch, Sarge. You go to sleep".

Bull raised his eyebrow;

"that an order or a request, boy?"

Rory shrugged;

"I ain't sure, Sarge". She mumbled, "just 'wanna take care of you now, is all".

Rory then added;

"you've been dragging me since I got hit. You should rest, Sarge".

While Bull brought out his rations, Rory made her way towards the window.

Turning a bucket upside down, she stood on it.

And kept a close eye on the world outside.

"I'm 'gonna kill that kid!"

"Joe, keep your voice down, huh? It's been a damn stressful day".

Running a hand through his hair, Toye sighed heavily;

"Jim…we've 'gotta find her".

Jim Campbell frowned a little;

"listen, I'd like to go find the kid too but-"

"no". Toye cut him off, "don't put a but into this shit, Jim. She's just a kid".

Jackson got up from his hastily dug foxhole;

"well, let's go find her then". He urged, "Martin saw her with Bull. They've 'gotta be together somewhere".

Jim looked back at Toye;

"she'll be fine with Bull, Joe".

Jackson shook his head;

"don't care, we've 'gotta go get her".

Rolling his eyes, Jim looked at him;

"kid, we can't just pack up and leave. We'll be going AWOL if we do that. Do you want Winters to shoot your sorry ass?"

Jackson took a bold step forward;

"at least I went down trying, Jim!"

"What the hell?! You've known this girl for what? Two months and you're already willing to take a bullet for her!"

Clenching his jaw, Jackson shoved Jim;

"shut up, Campbell!"

"Hey!" Toye snapped, pulling Jackson back, "enough, kid. Listen, there ain't no point in getting all juiced up…we're 'gonna find her, alright?"

Jim sent Jackson a glare;

"I take back what I said…Doe's useless out here. She's gotten herself lost twice. I knew she'd get us all fucking killed".

Jackson tried to get a hold of him again but Toye was a lot stronger;

"enough, Jack!" The Sargent snapped, "look, go get Heffron and Eddie. Grab a few other fellas and go and find her, alright? Me and Jim won't be far behind".

When Jackson marched off in search of a party, Toye soon turned to face Jim;

"that's right, Campbell". He muttered, "we're a damn squad. And if one of us is lost, then we're 'gonna go find that fucking person".

When Rory saw beaming headlights coming towards the barn, she jumped down from the bucket and raced to wake up Bull. The Sargent's eyes snapped open. Taking Rory by the arm, he led them to the back of the barn and hid behind the end stall.

Rory held her breath and listened anxiously, as the barn door opened.

One person walked into the barn.

Bull peeked his head around the corner of the stall to confirm this.

There, he saw a German soldier taking a piss on a pile of hay. His rifle was slung over his shoulder and he seemed relaxed, while his buddies searched the area outside.

Bull and Rory stayed completely still. Knowing that one small sound would startle the German. They had done a good job and almost got away with it. But Rory soon felt something tickle her hand. Looking own, she saw a huge spider crawl up her hand and towards her jacket sleeve. Opening her mouth to gasp, Bull quickly covered her mouth to muffle the sound. She closed her eyes, while the spider continued to crawl up her arm and into her sleeve.

The German might have left already if he hadn't spotted Rory's rifle still by the bucket.

Bull saw him pick the rifle up.

The German looked confused and eventually called out;

"hallo?"

With a tiny sigh, Bull uncovered Rory's mouth, picked up his rifle and very quietly, made his way over to the German. Rory peeked out to watch, ready to jump in if Bull needed help. But the Sargent did just fine by himself. The German didn't hear Bull. So, Bull grabbed him, pressed him up against the side of the stall and stabbed him with his bayonet, right in the throat.

The enemy dropped like a sack of potatoes.

Rory quickly got onto her feet and rushed over to Bull.

Staring down at the dead German, Bull the mumbled;

"let's hide 'um".

Nodding, she helped Bull drag the soldier towards the back of the barn.

They covered him up with hay and decided to stay near the back until the Germans left.

Bull handed Rory her rifle.

She took it with a guilty look.

The Sargent sighed softly;

"don't beat yourself up over it".

"I'm sorry". She whispered.

"Don't be sorry". Bull told her.

Suddenly, the barn lit up and they could hear a distant rumble.

The Germans were bombing Eindhoven.

Rory got onto her feet and raced towards the window.

Standing back on the bucket she looked out. And sure enough, saw a blazing city, almost eight miles away. Having never seen anything like it before, she was both fascinating and terrified. She couldn't pull her eyes away from the terrific firepower. Bull ended up standing behind her, staring out at the burning city.

Shaking his head, he muttered;

"that's a damn shame".

Rory frowned;

"we didn't do good?"

Bull quickly looked at her;

"they outflanked us, Doe". He said, "we couldn't stick around".

"Think the others are okay?" Rory asked him, with a hint of panic.

"With Winters around? They'll be fine, kid".

Rory let that comment relax her a little.

Nodding, she mumbled;

"he's good".

"Yeah, he is". Bull agreed, with a tight smile, "can always rely on him".

Turning around, Rory looked up at Bull;

"and you". She said softly, "you saved me".

"Don't go thanking me". He grumbled, "next time, we might not be so lucky".

Rubbing her lips together, she asked;

"think we'll see 'um again?"

"Easy?"

Rory nodded.

"We will". Bull sounded confident, "we're 'gonna find 'um tomorrow, when it's light".

Her lips twitched;

"how long 'till it's light, Sarge?"

He snorted;

"how 'bout you sleep, and I'll wake you when it's time to go?"

Shaking her head, Rory said;

"too busy, Sarge".

Bull figured she was still full of adrenaline.

Either that, or she was too scared to sleep.

Rory turned back to look out the window again.

Her eyes stared at the city once more.

Frowning, she asked;

"is James okay, Sarge?"

Bull nodded;

"last I saw 'um…he was with my other boys".

"Tony and Les are nice". She said softly, "back in Aldbourne, they kept on taking James out for drinks in London".

"Yeah, I know". Bull said, "they told me…probably shared too much with their Sargent".

Rory smiled small;

"yeah…they don't tell me much".

"Good". Bull muttered, "you shouldn't be hearing that sort of stuff".

"What's London like, Sarge?"

Bull sighed;

"well…it ain't Arkansas, that's for sure".

"That where you're from, Sarge?"

He nodded;

"yeah, it is…you're from Indiana, huh? Like Miller".

"Uh-huh". Rory replied, "I didn't 'wanna go to London".

"Kids your age usually do". Bull pointed out.

She shrugged;

"well…maybe I ain't like folk my age, Sarge".

He huffed;

"yeah, maybe…they sure as hell ain't out in combat right now".

After a few moments of silence, Rory whispered;

"smell of whiskey makes me sick".

"Well…it ain't for everyone". Bull mumbled.

Rory suddenly did feel a little sick.

And her head started to hurt.

Pulling a face, she gave the back of her head a rub and felt something sticky.

Bull watched her;

"you got a small gash there". He told her, "don't worry, it ain't nothing serious".

Rory felt a little dizzy then, as well as sick.

With a shaky sigh, she leaned against the window ledge;

"I don't feel so good, Sarge".

Bull frowned;

"how'd you feel?"

"Like puking".

"That ain't good". He mumbled, "why don't you lie down".

Rory gave in and nodded;

"okay, Sarge".

Helping her off the bucket, Rory took her spot at the back of the barn.

Bull tucked a blanket around her and said;

"tell me if you feel any worse".

"Will do, Sarge". Rory mumbled.

She sounded tired.

Rory looked exhausted.

Bull wasn't sure if it was her head injury or just normal exhaustion.

Either way, he planned to keep a close eye on her.

He reached for his canteen and unscrewed the cap;

"take a drink, Roo".

Nodding, Rory took the canteen and had a few sips of water.

Settling back against the hay, she closed her eyes.

With a tiny smile, Bull gently ruffled her messy hair.

"See you soon?" Rory asked, eyes still closed.

"Yeah". He told her, "see you soon, Roo".

Tired and groggy the next morning, the two lone troopers trekked back to Easy.

Leaving the barn, they cut through the field and walked along the once busy streets of Nuenen. They passed by destroyed buildings, dead GIs and empty shells. Rory had never seen a dead body, not until she landed in Holland. Bull was in front of her, headed for the road. But Rory was lost in her own thoughts while staring at the aftermath of a battle. It hurt her heart. She could only hope that her friends got out of Nuenen okay.

Rory spotted Bull crouched down by the side of the road.

Frowning, she made her way towards him.

Nothing prepared her for what she saw next.

Bull was crouched in front of another lifeless soldier. A young man who had sacrificed his life to save the world. Rory fell to her knees beside Bull. She could feel a sob rise up in her throat, mixed in with a loud scream. The clouds covered the sky at that moment. Rory, feeling heavy and drained, placed her hands against Miller's chest. She couldn't seem to find her next breath, while she hoped to find his.

But James Miller was gone.

Left to lie out in Holland alone.

A strange noise left Rory. Caught between a moan and a cry.

Bull grabbed Miller's tags and pulled them away from his neck.

Staring at them in silence for a few moments, he soon placed them inside Rory's front jacket pocket. They belonged to her. Bull knew Rory would do the right thing. She'd write to Miller's parents and send them back his tags. Rory would send back any personal belongings Miller carried with him. And while she reached into her friend's pockets, Rory pulled out a watch, two letters and a photograph. Silently, she stuffed them inside her jacket, right next to Miller's tags.

Bull wouldn't have said anything if she started to cry.

But Rory didn't.

The sound of a jeep coming towards them caught Bull's attention.

Standing up, he held up his rifle.

And the jeep stopped.

The driver gave Bull a wave.

Bull nodded in response before his attention turned back to Rory again.

He didn't need to tell her to get up, Rory did that by herself.

Head lowered to the ground; she made her way towards the Sargent.

His arm went around her shoulders and she leaned into his side.

They hopped aboard the jeep and squeezed in at the front together.

"Fellas were worried about you". The driver said, "they've been up all night, looking for you".

Bull looked down when Rory buried her face into his side.

Frowning, his arm went back around her shoulders.

The driver continued to tell them of what Easy got up to while he drove them back. Bull only half paid attention, aware that Rory was trying her best to keep it together. His features did lighten however when he saw familiar faces walk over to them.

"Where the fuck have you been?" Hoobler asked.

"Glad to see you boys". Bull greeted them.

"Not as glad as us". Said Cobb, "bet you thought we'd given up on you there, huh, boss?"

Pulling a face, Hashey said;

"shut up, Cobb".

"What?"

Webster then noticed Rory, who was still hiding her face from the world.

With a tiny frown, he said;

"I think we should go back now".

The driver beamed;

"hop on in, fellas! Plenty of room up back".

"Bull!"

"Hey, Johnny!"

Johnny Martin and a few others raced towards the jeep.

Martin looked more than relieved to see him;

"get a little lost?"

Bull snorted;

"something like that".

Before Martin could say much else, Bull turned to face Rory.

Giving her arm a tiny squeeze, he murmured;

"we're back, Roo".

Pulling herself away from Bull's side, Rory jumped down from the jeep. While men went over to shake Bull's hand, Rory took a step away and left them to it. She felt a little lost, knowing that Miller wasn't there among the crowd of happy and relieved men. However, pushing themselves through the crowd was Joe Toye and Eugene Jackson.

"KID!" Toye practically screamed, "I'm 'gonna fucking kill you!"

Frowning a little, she watched, while the two of them raced towards her.

And she was a little taken-a-back, when Jackson wrapped his arms around her, pulling his startled friend into a tight hug. Rory's hands remained by her side, for all of ten seconds, until they wrapped themselves around his waist.

Jackson pulled back and looked at her;

"are you okay?" He asked, pushing her hair back from her face, "huh? You had me worried fucking sick, Roo".

Staring up at him, Rory nodded.

Toye sighed heavily;

"you get hurt?"

Her hand went to the back of her head.

Toye moved around the back to check it out.

Frowning, he mumbled;

"go see doc, alright? Jack, make sure she does. I'm 'gonna let the fellas know Roo's back".

Jackson led Rory away from the jeep and towards their medic, Roe, who was already tending to Bull. She sat herself down beside the Sargent. Jackson sat on her other side, frightened to leave in case she got lost again. He planned on keeping both eyes on her from now on.

Also relieved to find both Bull and Rory back with the Company was Winters.

A great weight had been lifted off his shoulders when he saw the pair of them.

And, wanting to make sure they were both okay, he walked over to his two soldiers.

Bull noticed him first and smiled;

"morning, sir".

Winters huffed;

"you caused quite the search party…both of you".

Bull shrugged one shoulder;

"no cause for alarm, sir…we were both fine".

Roe had finished patching up Bull's shoulder;

"you're good to go, Randleman". He said, "take it easy for a few days, huh?"

Bull gave the doc a wink;

"if I can, doc".

Getting onto his feet, he shot Rory a worried glance.

Winters followed his worried stare.

And felt himself frown.

Roe crouched in front of Rory and asked her kindly;

"where you wounded, petit?"

Wordlessly, she gestured to the back of her head.

"It don't look bad". Jackson voiced for her, "she'll be okay…right?"

Sending him a warm smile, Roe nodded and moved to the back of Rory;

"she'll be fine, Jackson. Could you run off and get me Spina? 'Gonna need more bandages".

"Sure thing, doc". Jackson replied.

He then gave Rory's hand a squeeze;

"I'll be right back, Roo".

When the worried friend left, Roe started to clean Rory's small gash with a damp flannel. She didn't wince or hiss with pain. She remained as still as a statue. Winters crouched in front of her, worried she was in a state of shock after seeing Miller.

"How's it looking, doc?" Winters asked their medic quietly.

"Should heal up on its own, sir". Roe replied, "Roo ain't 'gonna need stitches".

Before Winters could say anything, Rory mumbled;

"Vernon's dead too, huh?"

Roe shared a worried look with Winters.

Eventually, the Captain said;

"yeah…yeah, he is, trooper".

"And Lieutenant Buck?"

Winters shook his head;

"no…he's going to the hospital. He got shot in the ass".

Rory frowned a little.

Thinking that was a strange place to get shot.

"One bullet, four holes". Roe commented from behind her.

But then she thought back to Vernon.

Rory felt tears fill her eyes;

"he turned twenty, ten days ago". She mumbled thickly.

With a deep frown, Winters took hold of her hand;

"I lost a good friend too, trooper".

Rory's watery eyes looked up at him;

"you did, sir?" She whispered, sounding heartbroken. "I'm sorry, sir".

"Lieutenant Diel". He told her quietly, "he was your Platoons old Platoon, Sargent, before I promoted him".

"Fellas used to call him Punchy". Roe added.

A sad frown reached her face;

"it not fair, sir". She almost whined.

"I know". Winters agreed quietly, "you're right, it isn't fair".

Bottom lip quivering, Rory felt a tear roll down her cheek.

Biting down on her lip, she sniffed and quickly wiped that lone tear away.

"The grass again?" Winters whispered.

With another sniff, she nodded;

"I'm allergic, sir". Rory croaked.

Jackson returned with more than Spina. Heffron, Eddie and Jim all rushed over to see Rory.

Sighing, Heffron mumbled;

"thank God".

Eddie frowned;

"we thought we lost you, Roo".

Rubbing the back of his neck, Jim sat himself down next to Rory.

Clearing his throat first, he said;

"Bull told me what happened…you did good out there".

Rory shrugged in response.

With a tiny sigh, he said;

"look…for a kid, you're alright. And for a girl, you're even better. You took care of old Bull out there. And even though you got lost, you found your way back, right? What I'm trying to say is that…you ain't so bad after all".

Jackson smiled small;

"told you".

Rory remained silent.

Winters cleared his throat;

"I think Private Doe will appreciate that in a few days, Corporal Campbell".

Jim frowned a little;

"right yeah…look, I'm sorry you lost your buddy, Roo. We all are".

"We know what it's like". Jackson added quietly.

"You still got us". Heffron reminded her, "we ain't known you as long but…we're 'gonna look out for each other. We're a squad, Roo. It's what we do".

"That's right". Eddie said, "we've already lost Vernon, so, we've 'gotta stick together".

"Besides". Heffron added lightly, "Guarnere's running our Platoon now. We'd best keep an eye on him, huh?"

"Yeah, he's 'gonna need our help". Jim said.

With a tiny sigh, Rory looked up at Jim.

And she gave him a tiny nod.

With a very quiet;

"thanks".

Jim clapped her shoulder;

"we'll leave doc to it, Roo". He said, "come find us when you're done".

Rory watched her squad leave.

Though they had lost a good friend, they were trying hard to remain positive. Everyone had lost someone out in Nuenen. Rory's feelings towards grief was not isolated. The men shared similar feelings, only, they buried their grief. Rory figured she would do the same. But it was difficult.

James Miller meant a great deal to Rory. He was her first friend after her Grandpa passed away. And in James, she found a family. He promised she'd never have to go back to her parents. And with him gone, Rory felt alone and uncertain.