Strife was very excited about her sight being returned to her. She started skipping around the ship and humming. She giggled when she thought to herself that you never really miss something until it was gone. She was thinking about all the situations that phrase could be applied to when she had a realization. That was why Drok'ti had gone back for her. She smiled and peered around the ship at Drok'ti. He was still sitting on the log. She walked over and looked at him smiling. Her thoughts wandered to the situation at present. What should she do first? Climb a tree of course. She hadn't done that in a while. She headed straight for the first tree she spotted. It was a massive one of a genus that was unknown to Strife. She wrapped her hands around the lowestbranch and swung herself up.

"Wee!"

She hoisted herself up to the next branch and kept her ascent at a steady pace. She stopped when she was halfway up the tree and looked down at Drok'ti. He was looking up at her strangely.

"What?"

"Be careful."

"I am careful."

"Not always."

"Shush! I have it all under control buddy boy."

Strife giggled when she heard Drok'ti snort. Funny, funny! She looked around to get a better view of the area. She liked what she saw. Lots of trees, a pretty lake. She turned her head and could see the fire from Alvorus' camp. She stood up to move to the other side of the tree. There was a cracking noise and she froze.

"Uh oh."

The branch snapped and she fell out of the tree. She covered her head, ready for the impact. She landed in a strong pair of arms and looked at Drok'ti.

"Hi."

She giggled. Drok'ti grumbled.

"I told you to be careful."

"I was being careful, it was the tree that wasn't careful."

Drok'ti laughed a little. Strife wrapped her arms around Drok'ti's neck and laid her head on his muscled chest. His heart was beating a little fast at first, then it slowed down to normal again.

"My knight in mesh and no pants."

She burst out giggling when Drok'ti started tickling her. She started wriggling around in his arms trying to stop him. She got hold of his thumb and held it at bay with all her strength. She got the feeling that if Drok'ti wanted to he could still tickle her. He just looked at her and purred. She purred back and nuzzled his neck. His body tensed up again.

"Am I making you nervous?"

"No, of course not."

"Ok. Then why are you all tense?"

She looked in Drok'ti's eyes.

"I just do that sometimes."

Strife kissed Drok'ti's cheek and felt him tense up again.

"Do you like me?"

"You are a good friend."

Strife shook her head at Drok'ti and smiled. She poked his forehead a few times like he had done to her earlier She remembered how she felt earlier, she was so afraid of Drok'ti. She put that out of her mind and focused on the present.

"It's more than that. What's going on in there?"

Drok'ti put her down and started to walk away. She stood there for a few moments contemplating what she might have said to offend Drok'ti. She figured out that it wasn't anything she had done or was doing. It was something in his own mind. She smiled and followed after him. She wants some answers and she's going to get them. Strife walked in and cocked her head to the side. Drok'ti was sitting on the cot with his head in his hands. Strife's nose crinkled up and then she giggled to herself. It felt funny when she did that. She walked over and hopped up onto the cot next to Drok'ti. She put her chin on his shoulder and stared at the side of his head. He lifted his head and looked down at her. She smiled and poked him in the ribs.

"You're going to tell me, you know. I wont leave you alone until you do."

"What if I roar at you?"

"That was just a bluff, you would never actually hurt me."

"How do you know?"

Strife laughed.

"Ok tough guy. Seriously. What's wrong?"

"I've always thought of myself as a loner. I like being by myself, I like to hunt by myself. In the last little while that you've been around I realized that I've come to treasure companionship. Not just any companionship, just yours."

Strife was shocked. That was the longest thing Drok'ti has ever said without her having to pry. She smiled after a minute or two as soon as the information soaked into her head.

"Ok."

"Ok?"

"Yeah, ok. I wont bug you about it anymore."

Strife moved away from Drok'ti and sat there staring at the wall. She could feel Drok'ti's eyes on her. She was trying her hardest not to smile. She bit her lip. Drok'ti let out a very unthreatening roar and tackled her and started tickling her. She was screaming and laughing at the same time. She liked it when Drok'ti tickled her.

"Why you little!"

Drok'ti pinned her down on the cot and loomed over her. She smiled up at him as he stared down at her. He moved his face closer to hers and stayed there. Strife put her hand up and ran it down his cheek. She watched him close his eyes and smiled as she heard him purr. She sat up momentarily and kissed his chin. He opened his eyes and stared down at her. She could tell he was having an internal conflict. She wanted him to just let go of the things that bothered him and be able to be happy. Drok'ti laid down next to her and she wrapped her arms around him and nuzzled his neck. She listened to Drok'ti purr and soon fell asleep there in his arms.

She woke up for a few moments later on and watched Drok'ti. He opened his eyes and smiled at her.

"Are you all right?"

"Yep. Just watching you."

"Why?"

"Because I like to and I can again."

Drok'ti smiled and Strife relaxed again then slowly fell back to sleep.