A/N – OK, so I got sucked into the drabble community. Um, welcome to me? I decided to make Dream of Smiles a series of drabbles focused mainly on – well – memories/dreams of smiles. Go figure. And I only decided this because I was sitting in my room randomly trying out a piece of fluffy cuteness, and I looked at it and saw a vague connection to that title.

And as warning for any pairings I may or may not do - no shonen-ai. I figure there's enough of those on here without me feeling the need to add to it, which I don't. Pairings will be mostly S/S, K/T, F/C(F)… (explain about that last one later…) You know, that kind of thing.

So. Now that the explanation is over, on to the second drabble!

Disclaimer – don't own, don't even know if it's worth it to keep saying it. It should be obvious.

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The princess was six, small, with a rounded, sweet face, bright, almost mischievous eyes, and a smile that seemed to add warmth to the room the moment she walked in.

"When you join the princess' personal guard, you will be expected to watch her all day, every day, and to protect her with your life, if need be," the captain was saying. His voice said that he clearly doubted that a scruffy kid like him could possibly up to the responsibility of such a job, but the boy was used to people underestimating him, generally to their eventual chagrin.

He knew they'd already hired a couple of thirteen-year-olds in the hopes of making it a little easier on the princess, the only child in a palace full of adults. He'd even seen those kids training in the yard before he'd come inside to meet her. He couldn't say that he had more faith in the abilities they'd shown than he did in his own.

So he said nothing, merely looked past the guard at the girl who had just walked into the room.

The captain, noticing his shift in attention, turned, and seemed startled to see who was there. "Ah, Princess Tomoyo! I was just about to send for you. May I introduce you to Kurogane…" He sounded like he was searching for a last name, or hoping that the boy would provide one, but Kurogane continued to say nothing, and the captain finally just had to conclude, a little lamely, "He's been trained as a ninja, and he'll be joining your personal guard starting tomorrow."

Tomoyo regarded him gravely for a moment, and suddenly Kurogane was aware of an acute case of self-consciousness. He scuffed at the floor with one worn sandal, aware of what an odd figure he must cut next to this neat little child, in his travel-stained clothes, with bruises fading to yellow and green and with a still-healing wound visible at his neck, and eyes the colour of blood.

She walked up to him, completely unconcerned, and smiled warmly up at him. "Are you really a ninja? Where did you come from? Do you want to be my friend?"

"Princess!" The captain of the palace guard seemed quite scandalized. "As a guard, Kurogane-kun is here to work, not to be a friend."

"Yes, sir." Tomoyo rose on tiptoe and whispered conspiratorially in Kurogane's ear. "You can be my guard on special days, but I still want you to be my friend and play with me sometimes, OK? None of the others ever wants to."

"Yes, Princess," Kurogane said gruffly, under the impression that he'd been issued some sort of order.

She wrinkled her nose at him, then turned to the captain and said, "I want to show Kurogane-kun around now."

"Go on, Tomoyo-hime," the guard said with an almost affectionate smile. "I suppose if he is to live here he ought to know where things are."

"Come on!" She grabbed the young ninja by the hand and led him out of the room. More than a little bemused, Kurogane followed.

She hadn't been afraid. So many people flinched upon seeing him. He'd been chased out of more villages than he could count on his way here when they'd seen his red eyes – but this girl had smiled warmly up at him, and asked, "Do you want to be my friend?"

Tomoyo chattered away to him as though they'd known each other for years, tugging him eagerly from room to room, and the young ninja felt the wariness that had followed him ever since that dark night when his home had been destroyed slowly melt away.

He was ten and a half, a misfit, an orphan, and though he didn't understand it, he'd just fallen hopelessly in love.