AN: This is Krillin and 18's chapter: Winter. This is a pair I've never written until now, so it'll be interesting to see if I can get them down right.

Samusa Fuyu

"Winter Coldness"

18. A girl with a number for a name and no past to speak of. A machine created to kill and destroy…

And she was sat on a beach. How had that happened? And how had it become winter all of a sudden? Wasn't it summer not so long ago? And weren't they fighting not so long ago? How had that happened?

A rush of cold wind surged against her, and she huddled closer together, though she didn't feel any colder.

Winter was strange when you were on an island, because all the seasons seemed to melt together. You wouldn't get snow on Kami's island, or frost, and rain only came along on the rarest of occasions.

But still, it did get a little colder when the year was drawing to a close. And the current was stronger, making the waves crash against the beach, rather than the usual gentle lapping.

The winter suited 18 well.

Another gust of wind and 18's blond hair was swept up and around her. It was very windy today. She pulled her legs closer up to her chin and stared out at the ocean.

Krillin laid the last plate out on the low table. There was only tree of them: one for Master Roshi, one for himself and one for 18.

It was simple really, why he had asked her to stay. It wasn't only simple, it was obvious. Of course he loved her. Even Gohan had known that.

Krillin cringed at the memory. The kid was going to pay for that stupid remark upon Kami's lookout…

He shook his head and retrieved his master from the living room, ushering the old man to the table, where he promptly began devouring the eggs and bacon on his plate. He rolled his eyes good-heartedly, then began his search for 18. She kept to herself mostly, and Krillin hadn't had a real conversation with her yet, even if they had been living together for nearly three months.

"18? Are you out here?" He stopped on the porch when he saw her, huddled up on the edge of the beach, a too large grey jumper falling around her slight form. He watched as the wind toyed with her blond hair, picked it up and spread it over her shoulders. He walked onto the sand and came to stand beside her, trying to see her face.

"Are you… alright, 18?" He asked nervously, but she didn't reply, didn't even acknowledge the question. "Um… breakfast is ready." Nothing. He looked into the ocean where she was looking.

Krillin shivered. It sure was cold out today. Even his long sleeved shirt wasn't enough to keep out the chilly air.

"Do you…Would you mind if…if I sat with you?" He asked with a blush, but 18 didn't say anything. Figuring that if she hadn't wanted him to, she would have said so, Krillin sat down on the sand, leaving a good distance between the android and himself.

He watched her for a minute. She was so pretty. He blushed and averted his eyes to the horizon. Still, he couldn't help sneaking peeks at the woman beside him; it wasn't often he got the chance to see her up close like this.

There really wasn't a single flaw in her. Not in appearance anyway. She was perfectly formed. The "Deadly Beauty": Android 18. Her gold blond hair spun around her, her brilliant blue eyes gazing dreamily at the sea.

"It isn't fair." Krillin jumped in surprise at the sound of her clear, sharp voice.

"W-what's that?" He stuttered.

"He wouldn't give me anything of myself. I don't have anything of myself. That's not fair."

Krillin stared openly at her.

"What do you mean?" She was quiet for a moment.

"Dr. Gero put a lot of information into me. How to fight, how to access chi. He even programmed me on how to behave, not that that worked very well. But he wouldn't give me anything about who I am. I don't even know my own name."

Krillin could only blink at her. Her voice, normally so unreadable, was full of hate and anger. It was kind of frightening. But underneath she sounded… hurt.

"I-I'm sorry."

She turned her eyes to him for the first time. Krillin gulped, her icy gaze penetrating his own dark eyes. She stayed like that, watching him. Maybe she was trying to work out if he was lying to her. Maybe she thought he wasn't really sorry.

"Do you know the worst part?" She asked. Her gaze became less brutal.

"What?"

"The worst thing, the thing that hurts most, is that I know more about Goku, about Vegeta… about you than I know about who I am." She buried her face in her knees, her next words coming out muffled. "That is the worst thing."

Krillin just stared at her. What could he say to that? So, for a long time he didn't say anything. 18 just sat with her head on her knees, and he just watched her. He didn't notice he was shivering from the cold.

At last he looked back to the ocean and, as if he had drawn some wisdom from the water's depths, he spoke.

"You know what? I'm glad Dr. Gero made you into an android."

18's head shot up and she glared angrily at him. Realising his mistake, Krillin turned red, his arms flailing in front of him as he tried to explain.

"No, no no no no! I-I didn't mean it like that! What I mean was that-erm-that I'm glad he made you into an android because if he hadn't-well-if he hadn't I-I wouldn't have gotten to meet you!"

Her glare disappeared. And she just looked at him, trying to read him again.

"You're so wired." She said… and smiled.

Krillin laughed nervously.

That morning, their breakfasts were cold by the time they got to eat. But neither complained, because neither cared.