Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Seed

Night Time Stroll

Kira awoke shaking in his bed with thin blankets wrapped tightly around his body. The room was pitch black as if it was covered in a curtain of darkness. The only sound was the slight humming of the ship and Kira's heavy breathing. The young pilot slowly relaxed as his bright amethyst colored eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness. It was just a dream.

"Birdy?" The small mechanical bird landed softly on the boy's shoulder, tilting its head as it examined Kira. Its orange eyes glowed with concern as it continued to chirp comfortingly.

"It's alright," Kira whispered as he shook his head. "I'm fine. All I need is a drink."

"Birdy…"

Still worried, the emerald colored bird circled above the young pilot's head as the boy slowly slid off the bed. His shoes sighed softly as Kira tiredly slumped out of his room.

During these past few days, the entire crew appeared to be overworked and edgy. They young pilot hadn't had a good rest for many days. It seemed that Kira couldn't walk into his room without the alarms going off, alerting the crew of an approaching battle. Even if the coordinator was able to fall asleep, he was always awakened by nightmares that continued to haunt him night after night.

The hallway appeared to be deserted. The lights hummed softly overhead as they flickered on and off. Kira couldn't help but feel uneasy as he strolled down the path that he normally took to the mess hall. It was unusual for the ship to be so quiet. Normally there were many people chattering cheerfully in the hallway or laughing at jokes made by crew members.

"I guess everyone else is tired too," Kira said, thinking aloud. The door leading into the mess hall silently slid open as Kira approached the room.

"Birdy?"

"What's wro-" Kira stopped mid-sentence as he gaped at the scene before him. Clustered in an undignified pile, Lieutenant La Flaga and Ensign Badgiruel seemed to be engaging in an activity that one was not welcome to walk in upon.

"Would you mind getting your hands out of my hair?" Kira heard Natarle snap angrily.

"Why don't you try keeping YOUR hands to yourself?" laughed Mu. He turned his head toward the door just as Kira leaped behind the wall. "Besides, this is too much fun."

"If my hands were free, I would--"

Shaking his head, Kira slowly, backed away from the mess hall. I think I need more sleep. Clearly I am not getting enough.

"Birdy?"

The coordinator shuddered. Or perhaps this is all a nightmare. That's right, it's another nightmare. It's just a bad dream.

At least Kira wouldn't be frightened by his usual nightmares again. Shaking his head, Kira decided that exploding ships were far better than what he had seen in the mess hall. Way better.

"Right hand --blue!" Murrue called out as she tried to smother her giggles. The captain of the Archangel nearly fell off her chair as she watched both Mu and Natarle fighting over the blue spot marked on the Twister board.

"If I may ask, why is your arm wrapped around my waist?" growled Natarle as she shoved Mu away, nearly sending him toppling off the playing mat.

"The Ensign isn't playing fair, Captain," protested the blonde haired man, pouting cutely. Turning back to the Ensign, he replied playfully. "I need you to keep balance."

Natarle gave the lieutenant a poisonous glare as she tried to position herself as far away from Mu as possible. Her look clearly told him that he would suffer greatly if he came any closer than he already was.

"This isn't funny," protested the Lieutenant as he tried to face the captain. Apparently, Murrue was too busy laughing to notice at all. Shifting his weight, he turned back around to study the small playing mat and nearly fell on top of Natarle again. He was rewarded with a punch. "Why don't you come over and try, Captain? I think it would be much more fun playing with you."

"No, it's alright. I like it fine over here, thank you."