A/N: Chapter Five!

One month from chapter four…

1:46 AM

Crane opened his eyes. He couldn't see a thing. Where was he? He was lying on cold metal with a sheet over his body. How could he have gotten here? One second, he was coughing and everything was going dark, then poof! He was lying on cold metal. He reached a hand up and it met more metal just a few inches from his face.

Crane felt all around him and suddenly realized he was lying in a very small, enclosed space. He pushed against the metal against his feet. The, whatever he was lying on moved. A slit of light showed through. He pushed more and then was able to reach up and pull it out completely. He had been in a drawer of some sort.

Looking around in the dim light he realized the whole wall was covered in similar drawers. Turning behind him he paled. A dead body was laid out on a table. With horror Crane realized where he must be. He was dead. Or so everyone must think, he though smugly. I wonder how long I've been 'dead'?

Crane shook his head and climbed off the drawer, only to realize he was wearing absolutely nothing. Blushing, although no one was there, except dead people, he wrapped the sheet around himself.

He walked to the door and pushed it open. It wasn't locked. Of course, who would expect dead bodies to get up and walk around? No one, that's who.

Luckily the night was warm, with a cool breeze tickling around his ankles. Crane felt like he had just taken a nice long nap… a very long nap.

Looking up he saw the stars twinkling cheerfully at him. There was no moon.

"Stupid twinklers," Crane mentally slapped himself.

'Twinklers' was his childhood word for stars.

"I wanna see the twinklers!" as he could very vividly remember saying whenever he was aloud to stay up that late.

Crane strode boldly out into the darkness, until, that is, he bumped smack into a tree.

After that he walked cautiously, feeling his way around in the pitch blackness of the night. Quite a few times he fell, or tripped over his sheet.

"Stupid sheet," he said as he tripped and fell straight into a puddle of especially gooey mud.

"Stupid mud," he said as he wiped it off his face.

"Stupid flower," he added as an afterthought. He probably wouldn't have "died" if it weren't for it.

"Stupid me."

"Stupid tree stump."

"Stupid moon."

"Stupid twink- stars."

Crane continued on in this manner until he reached a place that seemed familiar. He peered around until he realized it was Rosethorn's garden. Just the… feeling of the place shouted out Rosethorn!

If this was Rosethorn's garden, then that meant… Discipline Cottage was right there! Crane perked up and wandered around until he found the door. He pushed it slowly open. To his surprise, Rosethorn sat at the table, absent mindedly stirring a cup of tea. She looked sad. Horribly sad. Crane's heart tugged at the sight of her so unhappy. What could possibly upset her like this? He just wanted to go over and tell her everything was alright, that he'd take care of everything.

3:17 AM

Rosethorn sat at the table. It was very late at night and Briar's snores were drifting into the room. She smiled wirily. He should be tired. She made him weed and water the whole garden by himself.

A cup of tea sat in front of her, long gone cold. Rosethorn stirred it absent mindedly as she thought about the past.

The door creaked open. At first, Rosethorn didn't hear and dismissed it to be old floorboards. She turned her eyes slowly to the floor at the door and jumped. A pair of feet, a pair of very muddy, very scratched feet, were standing there. She stared at them for a moment before realizing that there was a body attached.

Rosethorn's eyes traveled up the body and rested on his face. It was someone she didn't know, for she didn't know anyone who walked around covered in mud and wearing nothing but a sheet around his waist.

"May I help you s- Crane?" the look on her face turned from politeness to astonishment, happiness, wonder, and love alike.

Rosethorn stood up, knocked the chair over in doing so, ran over to him, and wrapped her arms around him.

Looking up at him she asked, "Is it really you?"

Crane replied as he held her tightly, "Who else would it be?"

"I don't know!" she answered.

"A corpse?" he asked her, running his fingers through her hair.

To Crane's surprise Rosethorn started crying, something he had never imagined, let alone seen, her do.

"I thought you were dead!" she said between sobs.

"I wasn't."

"Kiss me," she murmured, looking into his eyes.

Crane obliged.

Suddenly Rosethorn pushed away from him and glared at him, "How dare you do that to me?"

"But, I didn't do anything!" Crane said, very confused.

"You died!" Rosethorn accused, then paused, "how'd you come back?"

Crane shook his head, "I don't think I was actually dead… perhaps I was in a coma of some sort."

"Well you should at least warn me when you do!" Rosethorn ordered him.

He looked at her oddly, "and you would actually care if I died?"

"Of course I care!" Rosethorn looked hurt as she glared at him through tears, "I love you! Do you have any idea what I've been going through this past month?!"

"You love me?" Crane asked, his face a mixture of joy and wonder.

"Of course I love you, you dodo-brain, where have you been?" Rosethorn exclaimed.

"Dead?" Crane asked dryly. Rosethorn gave him an accusing look, although it didn't quite work because she was also trying to smile.

Crane leaned down to kiss her. Afterwards they just stood there in each other's arms. Crane whispered in her ear, "I love you too."

"I should go, uh, get cleaned up," Crane said remembering he was covered in mud and wearing nothing but a sheet, "Now I've got you all muddy too."

"I don't care, a little dirt never hurt, as Briar always says," Rosethorn said with a shrug. She walked over to the cupboard and got a lamp so that Crane wouldn't have to feel his way through the darkness.

She then got a match and lit it handing it to Crane, "Here you go, don't be gone too long, I don't think I'd be able to stand it."

"I won't, don't worry, one can only die so many times," Crane assured her, "You should clean yourself up a bit as well."

And with that he left. An hour later he came back, looking fresh and clean. And more handsome, Rosethorn's mind told her. He was never not handsome! Rosethorn told her mind.

Crane sat down at the table next to Rosethorn who poured him a cup of tea that she had apparently made while he was away.

"So how did you die and how come you're not dead right now?" Rosethorn asked him setting down her cup of tea.

"I'm not quite sure, but I believe I died because of the smoke," he told her.

"Smoke?"

"I was reading in a book about a flower who's smoke healed, so I burned the flower, its smoke, depending on how much you get, puts you in a coma of sorts," Crane said thoughtfully.

"Yes, but when you're in a coma you're still breathing and stuff," Rosethorn argued.

"Then perhaps it, time-stops your body, or stops it in time," he said, "does that make sense?"

Rosethorn nodded her head, "Better not let anyone know that, or else this flower will become illegal."

"We'll have to make it illegal anyway, just in case some one accidentally burns it, we just won't tell the public what about it is illegal," Crane.

"Speaking of the flower, what are we going to name it?" Rosethorn asked.

Crane thought for a moment then a smile lit up his features, "Roscra."

"Where'd that come from?" Rosethorn asked.

"First three letters of our names," Crane told her, "you first because Craros doesn't sound right."

"I like it," Rosethorn said then smiled, "For a moment I was thinking we could name it Briar, but then I remembered that his name already was a plant."

Crane smiled.

For the rest of the night and well into the morning, that is until Briar stumbled into the room, they talked.

His eyes were closed and he stumbled over to the cupboard and got a cup and filled it with water, then he glanced at Rosethorn, opening his eyes a crack, and proceeded out of this room with his cup of water.

There was a thud and then a splash. Briar ran back into the room.

He pointed wildly at Crane, "Rosethorn, there's a dead body sitting next to you!"

Crane tried very hard to keep and straight face and succeeded.

"Nonsense, he's not dead, what makes you think that?" Rosethorn told the boy.

"Lark! Rosethorn's gone nuts! Crane's dead body is sitting next to her and she is talking to it!" He shouted through out the house.

"I'm not dead," Crane said.

"Ah! It can talk! What did you do to it Rosethorn?" Briar was going hysterical.

The girls and Lark entered the room.

"Hello Crane," Lark said, "Crane?!"

"I told you!" Briar said shaking Lark's shoulders.

"There must be a sensible answer to this," Sandry said in a not quite believing herself voice.

"I have the weirdest dreams," Tris announced rubbing her eyes.

"You can say that again," Daja agreed with Tris.

Lark walked to the center of the room, "All right, everyone sit down while Rosethorn and er Crane explain what is going on here."

Her eyes flicked back and forth from Rosethorn and Crane.

Once everyone was seated, Crane stood up, "I am not dead, I am alive, and I'm not a corpse, I never was dead, Rosethorn and I have talked and our theory is that the flower's smoke, depending on the amount you get time-stops your body for a certain amount of time."

There was silence then Sandry spoke up cautiously, "So, you've just woken up from your time-stop?"

Crane nodded.

"And you're not back from the dead?" Briar asked.

Crane nodded again.

"Alright then," Lark said, "I suppose we had better inform the Hospital that there is not a corpse walking around."

Rosethorn spoke up, "I've been up all night, I think I'll go to bed now."

Crane shook his head, "I've been doing nothing for a month, I'm wide awake."

Briar, who had been thinking said, "What was it like in the corpse place?"

Crane blinked, "Cold, and quite unpleasant."

Briar muttered under his breath, "just like you."

"And I'd prefer not to talk about it," Crane said and strode off.

"Anyone up for breakfast?" Lark asked.

A/N: You see, we couldn't possibly kill him! Tee hee. Thank-you all you people who have reviewed our story! When we have _ _ reviews we'll put up the next chapter.