Well, I wasn't originally planning on writing another chapter to this. Hell, I wasn't originally planning on writing anything for quite a while. But, ah… this kinda grabbed hold of me and refused to let go. So now it's 2 o'clock in the morning and I've got school in four hours. Meh. This was also supposed to be drabblish, but apparently it's beyond me to write anything shorter than six pages. Great.

I felt there was something missing to the last chapter, so I tried to convey the status of Mack and Rose's relationship more in this one. It's a direct continuation of the first chapter, so… yay for continuity. This fic was originally supposed to be a one-shot, and this chapter just kinda came out of left field. I might continue it, I might not. I'm hardly ever in the mood to write, and I'm actually surprised I managed to drudge out these two chapters. But I'm proud of them, I suppose. It's not something I usually write, and I'm having fun with it.

Enjoy!

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"There is a magic in that little world, home; it is a mystic circle that surrounds comforts and virtues never known beyond its hallowed limits" – Robert Southey

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Early Morning Traipses

She woke to an incessant tapping on her shoulder.

"Rose! Rose, wake up!"

She didn't dare move. She was tired, dammit, and she was going to sleep as long as she possibly could.

"Rose, c'mon Rose," the voice was pleading with her by now, "Seriously, I'm bored. Wake up!"

The tapping turned to shaking, and it was like trying to sleep with a tornado rampaging through her room. No one could possibly sleep through that kind of torture. Besides, it was kind of endearing, hearing him plead like that.

"I know you're awake, Rose. I can see that little smile on your face. Get up!"

She groaned and tried to turn over, but it was impossible because one of his arms was still around her, in the place it had been in when they had gone to sleep earlier. The other arm and the hand attached to it had gone back to poking her.

Since she couldn't turn over, she did the next best thing and turned into his chest so she could hide her face from him. She groaned again when the tapping didn't stop. "God, Mack, it's four in the morning. Go back to sleep!"

He shook his head, obviously dead set against the idea. "I already tried, and I can't. I'm just not tired!"

She let out an annoyed puff of air, and looked up from the perfectly comfortable position she was in to raise her eyebrow at him. "So what, I have to suffer? I'm not the one who was sleeping all day, that's your own fault. Leave me out of this."

"But what else am I supposed to do?" He gave her a look. She gave him one of her own right back.

"How the hell am I supposed to know? Go play video games or something." She shrugged.

"Boring. You're much better company than video games."

She couldn't help the shiver that tingled down her spine at his admission, but she ignored it and plowed on. "Solitaire?"

He laughed. "Sheesh, is that the best idea you can come up with?"

Rose rolled her eyes. "Go jump off a cliff."

He chuckled outright and sat up slightly with his head resting on his elbow, his other arm still firmly wrapped around her. "Exciting, but probably painful. Got a better suggestion?"

She laughed a bit. "You could go eat something."

He actually gave the idea a bit of thought, and she could almost see the gears in his head turning. But in the end, he shook his head. "I could go get some food, but you wouldn't be there, so… still boring."

She sighed. "I'm just not going to win this, am I?"

"Nope." He chuckled.

Rose rolled her eyes at the red ranger again, and gave her own small laugh, accepting defeat. "Alright, alright. Since I'm already up, I guess I'll go with you to get some food."

He laughed again, even louder this time, causing Rose to give him a strange look. "What's so funny?"

The indignant look on her face caused Mack to break into a huge grin. She was really fun to tease.

"I win. Again." His triumphant grin said it all.

She groaned and began to stand up, and instantly missed the warmth his immediate presence gave her, but that wasn't going to stop her. She stood all the way up and grabbed his arm, trying (and failing) to pull him to his feet. He wouldn't budge.

"Mack, this was your crazy idea, and I didn't get up for nothing. C'mon!" She heaved at his arm, but he still refused to move.

He laughed at her futile attempts to pull him up, and gave a sharp tug on the arm that she was holding onto, pulling her down onto the floor again.

She huffed. "Mack!"

"Yes?"

She was quiet for a moment. "I hate you."

He burst out laughing and turned to her, seeing his own smile reflected right back at him on her face.

"Of course you do!" His grin couldn't possibly be wider.

Rose shook her head at his absolute silliness, and watched Mack finally get to his feet. She took his offered hand, and stood, putting her hands on her hips in mock indignation.

He ignored her silly pose and grabbed her elbow, walking off while pulling her out of the room with him. When they got out of the room he let go of her arm, but he made a point of walking as close to Rose's side as he possibly could.

She smiled, and teased him a bit by knocking her shoulder into him, but the second she shoved him, he moved right back to her side. She smiled up at him and said nothing, simply enjoying the moment.

The two entered the kitchen, and Rose went to sit down at the table, while Mack made a beeline for the fridge. Rose's stomach growled slightly and she was reminded that neither of them had eaten dinner the night before. She laughed a bit.

Mack heard the small laugh and turned to give her a grin. "See Rose, I told you getting some food was a good idea."

She smiled and nodded, and he turned back to the refrigerator, looking for something to eat. She maneuvered her head to try and see what he was looking at, but it was to no avail. "See anything good?"

"We've got some leftover fish from dinner last night, but that doesn't exactly sound too appetizing right now. What d'you think?"

She nodded her head in agreement. "I don't think my stomach is up for anything fishy right now either," an idea came to her, "Hey, do you have any cereal?"

Mack smiled, obviously happy with the idea of breakfast. "Only every single brand you can possibly imagine!" He pointed to a spot behind her. "All of it that we've got is in there."

Rose nodded and stood up, going over to the cabinet Mack had pointed at. When she opened it, her eyebrows shot up. "Man, when you said you had every brand imaginable, you weren't kidding!"

Mack grabbed the milk out of the fridge and went to grab some bowls. "Of course I wasn't," he smiled, and it lit up his entire face. "Would I ever lie to you?"

Rose grabbed some random box out of the cabinet and turned around, a smile on her face and trust in her eyes. "Of course not." Mack's smile got even brighter.

"C'mon, Rose, follow me!" Mack grabbed two spoons out of a drawer, and walked out of the kitchen, Rose following diligently behind him.

She caught up to him as they reached the stairs, and she stood close to him as they made their way up the staircase. She sent him a questioning look. "Mind telling me where we're going?"

He looked down at her, a smile on his face and his eyes bright. "The game room."

She scrunched her eyes at him in such an adorable way that he couldn't help but laugh at the look.

"Why in the world are we going to the game room?"

He gave her a look that told her that she should know exactly why they were going to the game room. "Because the chairs in the kitchen aren't comfortable at all. Duh."

He smiled at her and she laughed, shaking her head at his silly logic, but not bothering to disagree. He was right, anyways. The chairs in the kitchen were stiff, and to tell the truth, they hurt her back. For some strange reason she was sure he knew this, and that it was his main reason for taking her to eat elsewhere. Well, she wasn't about to complain.

They reached the game room, and Mack immediately plopped down on the floor in front of the couch, using it as a back rest. Rose followed suit and sat down next to him. She set down the cereal she had picked out, and turned to give Mack a questioning stare when he started laughing at her. "What's your problem?"

His laugh turned into a grin, and he flicked his hand at the box she had brought with her. "I just never thought of you as the type of person who would eat horribly sugary cereal, is all. Artificial flavoring, Rose? Just doesn't suit you."

His grin was infectious. Still, she punched him in the shoulder mockingly. "What, I'm not allowed to like sweet foods?"

He shrugged. "Just seemed to me that you'd be the type of person to eat tasteless wheat by-product for cereal."

She shook her head, laughing. "You're confusing me with Ronny. She's the one who's madly in love with granola and corn flakes."

"She's just as boring as corn flakes, too." Rose raised one eyebrow and gave him a look. He put his hands up, defending himself.

"No offense to Ronny or anything, she's a great person. But you're definitely better company, Rose. You know Ronny wouldn't wake up with me at four in the morning just to eat cereal and talk," at this, Rose grinned and smiled up at him. Mack mussed her hair and kept going, "Besides… I'd much rather spend moments like this with you. It'd be really awkward doing something like this with Ronny."

Her body tingled all over at the feeling she got from the look he was giving her. He was smiling that wonderful little grin he got when something made him intensely happy, and she couldn't help but send her own little grin right back to him. He reached his hand up and messed up her hair even more, and then bumped her with his shoulder, grinning all the while. She couldn't help but smile; Mack could be very endearing when he was in a silly mood.

But she couldn't help the smug feeling she felt, knowing he would never spend his time doing things like this with anyone else on their team. Her emotions must have shown on her face, because he chucked a bit.

She ignored the laugh and grabbed a bowl out of his hands so she could pour herself some cereal. She went for the box, but his hands darted out and grabbed it just as she was about to reach it. Rose glared up at him, but he just stuck his tongue out at her.

He poured the cereal into both bowls and then went for the milk, but Rose was ready this time and grabbed it before Mack could get it for himself. "Hey!"

All he got was a smug look in return. He let out a small hmph, and she laughed.

She gave him the milk to pour into his own cereal, and she picked up a spoon and began to munch on her breakfast. Mack followed suit, and soon enough they sat in a comfortable silence, just eating and enjoying the company of one another.

Rose finished her cereal before Mack. She put her bowl down on the ground, and set her head back on the couch behind her, trying to get comfortable. Her neck began to get sore, so just as soon as Mack put his bowl down, she scooted closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder. Rose sighed contentedly.

She could feel Mack turn his head to look down at her, and she wished she could see his expression. She desperately wanted to see if she could read on his face the same kind of emotions she was feeling.

But she didn't need to see. She got her answer when Mack rested his head on top of hers, then reached his arm down to hold one of her hands in his. She closed her eyes and smiled. They sat in silence for quite a while, perfectly content.

Mack began tracing circles on the back of her hand with his thumb. Then he reached over with his other hand, and began to massage her palm with both of his hands. She watched as his did this, and marveled at the size of his hands compared to hers. His hands were ever graceful, always moving. She was practically hypnotized.

Rose tore her glance from his hands to look up at his face. Mack had a curious look on his face that she had never seen before. She became concerned, and with her free hand, cupped his chin to turn his face toward hers. She let her hand fall to the floor. "Are you okay?"

He gave her a small smile to assure her he was fine, and turned his gaze back to the hand he was massaging. Then he let out a small sigh, "What are we doing, Rose?"

He stopped the movement of his hands and clasped her small hand in his much bigger one. She looked away from his face and rested her head on his shoulder again, staring at their joined hands.

She closed her eyes, trying to think up an answer. She found nothing. "I don't know, Mack."

He blinked, but didn't move at all. She knew he wasn't opposed to whatever it was that they were doing; he just wanted to know what it all meant. But she was just as confused as he was.

Rose glanced back up at his face, and then returned to stare at their hands once again. She started over. "I don't know, but I… I don't want this to stop, whatever it is."

He nodded, and she was relieved to see a smile on his face again. He looked down to see her shyly smiling up at him, and he smiled down at her softly.

He got to his feet, pulling her up with him. The second the two had made it to their feet, Mack reached out and grabbed Rose into a tight hug. She closed her eyes and leaned into Mack, resting her head on his chest and drawing comfort from the steady beat of his heart.

Mack felt her lean into him and relaxed his grip on her, but didn't let go. He leaned his head down onto her shoulder and sighed. "Thank you, Rose."

She looked up at him and smiled, conveying her thoughts through her bright brown eyes. Mack smiled back and tightened his arms around her once more before letting her go.

Rose leaned down to pick up the bowls and spoons they had left on the ground. Mack grabbed the milk and the cereal. "Better go put these away before Spencer kills us for leaving them out." Rose laughed in agreement.

The walked down the flight of stairs and made their way into the kitchen. Rose rinsed the bowls and the silverware and put them in the dishwasher while Mack put the milk in the refrigerator and the cereal back in the cupboard. Their tasks took a minute or so, and when they were done, the two made their way back up to the third story of the mansion.

When they made it to Rose's room, Mack let out a sigh and turned to face her. He grabbed her hands with both of his. She smiled up at him and let out a laugh, knowing how frustrated he was at the thought of having to leave.

He sighed again. "So… I guess this is goodnight, huh?"

She looked up at the conflicting emotions on his face. She knew he didn't want to leave, and frankly, she didn't want him to go either.

"Stay with me."

It was the last thing he was expecting her to say. He dared to look hopeful. "I… are you sure?"

She gave him a small grin and nodded. "You don't want to leave, and I don't want you gone. So… stay."

He didn't need any further encouragement. He practically skipped into her room and plopped onto her bed, much like he had done the day before. She laughed, and leaned down to pick up the pillow and comforter they had left on the ground. She made her way to the bed and climbed over Mack so she could be closer to the wall.

She faced away from him momentarily to grab her comforter, but before she could turn back around, Mack looped an arm around her waist and pulled her up to him so her back was to his chest.

She tried to turn over, but Mack would have none of that, and held her against her will. She laughed and attempted to wiggle out of his grip, but seconds later his hands were at her sides, tickling her.

She tried to stifle her laughter by smothering her face into the pillow, but Mack refused to let up. Rose tried to pry his hands away from her, but he was persistent and his fingers continued to run up and down her sides, drawing her into a laughing frenzy. Finally, it was too much, and she gave up. "Okay, okay! I give!"

She was breathless from the surprise tickle attack, and she leaned her head up to try and look at Mack's face behind her. "Sheesh, I let you stay here in my room, and this is how you repay me?"

He smiled back at her, amused. "You've got to stop letting me stay here, or someone's bound to notice that something's going on."

She was silent for a moment. Time stood still.

Finally, Rose spoke. "Mack, there is something going on between us, right?"

His answer was immediate. "God, I hope so."

She was all smiles, but slightly smug. The thought of losing him to someone else scared her more than she thought anything else ever would. It was a comfort to know he wouldn't share nights like these with anyone else. "Good."

She laid her head onto her pillow, suddenly realizing how tired she actually was. Mack yawned, and she knew he was feeling the effects of their late night too.

Rose couldn't see it, but Mack was smiling widely, finding comfort in the security of their budding relationship. He tightened his hold on Rose, and kissed the back of her head tenderly. She looked up at him and smiled, then lay her head back down and pushed herself as close to him as she could get. She reached her arm down to the hand that was clutched around her waist and intertwined her fingers with his.

He knew they both had to get up in a few hours for training, but until then, he would stay as close to her as he could. He wasn't looking forward to waking up, but he knew that it wouldn't be so bad. Waking up with Rose in his arms could never be the start of a bad day. He knew that as long as she was there with him, the harsh practices and early mornings would be easily bearable.

So, with one last smile, he let his eyes rest, and allowed himself to fall asleep to the rhythmic sound of her light breathing.