A/N: A little bit shorter, and at the end, a little bit different. Skipping-time different. This is where I'm going to start pulling away from a plotty, timeline-consistent story to more of a series of oneshots exploring their relationship. I hope you still enjoy it - you can think of these as lone oneshots and place them at whatever time in their relationship that you want almost. I give a bit of time reference at the end.

Thank you again to everyone reading and/or reviewing this story, keep it coming!

EDITED

Daine wiped her arm across her forehead, placing her hands on her hips as she glared at a very uncooperative dog. He was a russet-colored, fuzzy creature, the kind of puppy that looked so adorable, but in reality, was a disaster to deal with. Daine was determined to get him to cooperate. He was just being stubborn, she could tell. "Come on," she pleaded, grabbing the scruffy animal as it tried to struggle out of the washroom. "It's just water, you pesky monster. You've had to deal with much worse. I know you have."

The dog whimpered, tilting his head and staring up at her with wide, pleading brown eyes. He even looked at Cloud once, who hissed and flicked her tail regally as she sat at Daine's side. Daine was sitting too, her legs crossed and her feet bare.

"Yes, Cloud's had to take baths before too, even though she's a cat," answered Daine patiently. "You don't wash yourself, so it's even more important for you to get all clean. Please. You want to get out of here, right? No one wants a puppy who smells bad."

Her honeyed words eventually had the effect she had hoped for. The dog seemed to sigh, curling his furry tail between his legs and taking a few nervous paces forward. Daine smiled kindly at him. "Good boy," she murmured, rubbing his ears. The dog whimpered pitifully, but Daine lifted him and plopped him down in the soapy tub, and he went without resistance and excessive clawing. It was a miracle. Smiling, Daine poured some soap on him and began to scrub, glad for the soft warmth under her calloused hands. It didn't take long before the puppy was a puffball of soap bubbles, and Daine laughed at the sight of him. Only his ears, eyes, and nose protruded from the white fluff. And a tail, wagging weakly in the bubbly water behind him. Daine grabbed a little cup and began to rinse him off, until all the soap was gone, and he was left soaked – but clean – in the tub, staring at her as if she had done him some great personal wrong.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Daine said, lifting him onto a towel. He shivered out of the warm bathwater. "Get used to it, buddy. You'll have do to this a fair few times in your life, you know."

The puppy moaned, but Daine just laughed and quickly dried him off before he could have a change to shake around and fling water everywhere. She kissed his damp ears, wrapped him comfortably in the blanket, and picked him up. "All done," she said, heading to the doors with Cloud at her heels. But when she reached the door, she looked up, and found three people staring at her, one of which was Onua. All of their faces bore the exact same expression: complete awed surprise. The other two people – one boy and one girl – looked around Daine's own age. Perhaps they were employees of Onua's. Their mouths were open slightly, and their eyes were wide. Daine frowned. "What?"

"Toby's never cooperated like that to take a bath before," the girl said. She had dark skin and hair, but was still paler than Onua. She brushed her bangs behind her ear. "Everyone's always had to order him. Using his name, too. You didn't do any of that, and he listened."

The boy nodded, and Onua raised an eyebrow, smiling. Daine just stared at them, confused, holding the puppy protectively in her arms.

"Good work, Daine," said Onua, nodding and turning around. Daine was left with the two other employees, who were both watching her slightly nervously. Slipping between them, Daine lowered her head and headed back to Toby's pen, leaving him in the towel as she unlocked the door. The two kids had followed her. The girl stuck out her hand.

"I'm Miri," she said perkily. "This is Evin. We've worked here with Onua for a couple months now."

Daine took her hand. It was rough and weather-beaten, which calmed Daine a little. "I'm Daine. I just started."

"We know," said Evin, sticking out his hand for Daine as well. He was tall and blond, good-looking, with sparkling blue eyes that made Daine think he would be fun to be around. His voice was light and engaging. "Nice to meet you. Next time we're on bath duty and can't get a critter in the tub, we'll come to you."

"I bet you could even get the cats in the tub," said Miri, smiling.

Cloud growled at that, but Daine nudged the kitten with her foot and whispered, "Shh!" and the cat fell quiet, though its hazel eyes were still fixed on Miri. Miri just laughed.

But before any of them could say anything, Onua's sharp voice called out from the other room, making them all jump. "I'm not paying you to stand around and talk, you know. There's plenty of work left for the day!"

All three of them sighed, then traded small grins as they looked around for another job they needed to do. Some of the animals' food bowls were empty, so Daine turned to where the food was stored, and Miri and Evin followed her. "We can always talk later," Evin said, falling into step beside Daine, with Miri at his other side. He tilted his head towards Daine. "Want to join us after work for a while?"

Evin winked, and Miri kicked him. Daine tried to remember if she had extra lessons that day or not – but then decided that it didn't matter. "Sure," she said.

Miri and Evin both smiled broadly until yet another shout from Onua got them moving to another part of the animal shelter. Miri and Evin waved goodbyes to Daine as they turned down a different row of animal pens. Daine waved her hand at them too, and when they were out of sight, she looked down at Cloud. Seeming to shrug her tiny shoulders, the cat prowled ahead with her tail waving regally in the air. Daine smiled. It was always good to have Cloud's approval, after all.

"You're late," frowned Numair as she walked in, shaking wet rain off of her boots and hair. Cloud liked the water even less, heading straight towards Numair's roaring fire.

"I was with some friends," Daine said, throwing her coat onto the arm of Numair's couch and her boots by the coffee table. She looked up at him for his reaction as she sat down.

His eyes were warm, and he sat beside her, smiling. "Who were you with?"

"Miri and Evin. I met them at work."

"Onua's talked about them before. They're good kids, she said."

"Why does everyone call us kids?" asked Daine, irritated. "We're not. We're working, we're earning money for ourselves, and we - "

"I know," said Numair hurriedly, placing a hand on her arm. "I know, Daine. It's the rest of the world that doesn't seem to."

Daine sighed. She wished it didn't have to be that way, sometimes.

Daine propped her legs up on Numair's coffee table. Cloud settled comfortably on her toes, keeping them nice and warm. Even now, Daine hated to wear shoes, and every time she came inside, she'd throw them off at once and insist on having all her lessons barefooted, ignoring cold or rough ground. She'd done it so much that Numair had given up trying to convince her out of it.

"Hungry?"

Looking up, Daine saw Numair standing in his messy kitchen, holding a box of pasta. He grinned. "My cooking skills are limited, but I can feed someone in need."

"Thanks," Daine said. "Pasta's fine. Anything's good but meat."

"Anything's good except meat," corrected Numair, pouring the pasta into hot water. He took a wooden spoon and stirred, glancing over his shoulder. "'But' is a contraction; it's used differently."

"Oh, whatever," grumbled Daine. But she smiled, and Cloud gave a soft purr.

In a few minutes, the pasta was ready, and Numair poured it into two bowls, came over to the couch, and delivered a dish to Daine. "Top quality dining, this is," he said as he propped his feet up on the coffee table beside hers. Scooting close, his arm brushed against hers. He looked over at her bare feet.

"You know," he said at last, in a very thoughtful tone, "sometimes, Daine, I think you might have the right idea."

"What?"

Numair kicked off his shoes and then crossed his legs like Daine's, bright-colored socks glaring against his dark jeans. Daine stared at them, then laughed.

"Wow, Numair. I really like your socks."

"My socks?"

Daine pointed, suppressing a renewed fit of giggles. His socks were pink, purple, and green, striped, with dots at the toes and heel. Every color was vivid and distinct. They looked like something that would be part of a clown's costume or an elementary student's drawer. It was so Numair, to wear something like that. Daine couldn't help but laugh, bumping her head against his shoulder.

"You're great, Numair," she said amusedly, smiling. "You really are."

"I don't know what you have against my socks," Numair replied, a carefully innocent expression on his face. "But, yes, I do agree that I am quite remarkable. You made an astute observation."

Daine shook her head and scooted a little closer to him. It was a bit cold in his house today; she appreciated their proximity and the warmth. Numair wiggled his colorfully clad toes, his mischievous gaze fixed on Daine's face. Once again, Daine dissolved into laughter, her pasta forgotten as she looked back up at his teasing, friendly face.

Fumbling around in her pocket, Daine cursed loudly, making Numair frown.

"When did you start talking like that?"

"When I started spending time with you," she retorted. "Do you have a quarter?"

Numair leaned over, reached his arm behind her head, and produced a quarter from behind her ear. "No." He grinned, flipping the coin deftly through the air. "But you do."

Gaping, Daine snatched the coin from air and stared at it, then back at Numair, amazed. "How'd you do that?" she demanded, one hand going up to her ear.

"A true magician never reveals his secrets," Numair said, winking. Daine stuck her tongue out at him, then slid the quarter into the vending machine and pushed the button for a cherry soda. Clanging and rolling, the can appeared in the opening at the bottom. Daine took it and popped it open at once. It fizzed cheerily, some of it spilling onto her fingers, and she took a sip, smiling.

"You should try this stuff, Numair."

"Do you even know what this is?" Ignoring Daine's protests, Numair grabbed the can out of her hands and turned it around to the label. "It's corn syrup and bubbles and artificial color. It's not even real sugar that makes it so disgustingly sweet, you know."

"So? It's good," insisted Daine. "Just taste it?"

Numair sighed, but an involuntary smile worked its way onto his face, and he didn't refuse. He took a sip and passed the can back to her.

"Well?" Daine asked, drinking more. Her lips were bright red with the soda's touch, contrasting against her soft face and vivid eyes.

"I think you could sell it as top-rate makeup," said Numair dryly. Daine laughed, the sound light and clear over the noise of the night around them.

With a shake of her head, Daine grinned again, her eyes focused and bright. She grabbed his wrist and looked directly at him. "Thank you, Numair."

"For what?"

"For the quarter," she said calmly, her eyes not leaving his. "What else?"

She let go of his wrist, and Numair, not altogether sure what had just happened, followed her as she set off down the sidewalk.

"Daine?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you ever wish for something else?"

"What?"

Daine looked up from her work, seeing Numair leaning against his kitchen counter with his arms crossed. Cloud, much bigger now, stood, brushed against Daine's curled legs, and settled below her stomach. Putting down her pencil – Daine was tired of math problems anyway – she picked up the cat so that she could sit up on her knees and see Numair better. She turned and crossed her arms over the back of the couch, tilting her head at him. "What do you mean?" she repeated.

"I mean…" Numair ran a hand through his hair and stood up straight, apparently struggling for words, which didn't happen to him often. "You work, you come here for lessons, you hang out with your friends. Don't you ever want to try regular schools, not working, or graduating from high school?"

Something like fear started to snake icily into Daine's heart. She frowned "Do you – do you want me to go to school? Regular classes, I mean?"

"No," said Numair hurriedly, coming over to the couch. He bent and crossed his arms on the couch's back like hers were, turning his head so they were facing each other. "I love our lessons here. It's so much better than enormous university classes. I only wondered what you wanted. I'd thought you would have gotten bored of this much faster."

"You do the same thing every day," Daine pointed out. "You teach, you teach me, you do whatever else it is that you do. How is that any different?"

"Well - "

Numair stopped, puzzled, and both of them grinned. Daine nudged him pointedly. "See. Doing the same thing isn't always bad."

"Fine, fine, you win - I was just making sure," conceded Numair, straightening. Daine followed him with her eyes as he stood. The fear in her heart was a little less now, but another, different fear had quickly taken its place, and she had to do something about it. It was too familiar.

"Numair?" Daine asked quickly, before she could rethink her decision. Numair turned.

"Yes?"

"Today's my birthday."

For a moment, Numair's face didn't change – and then a broad smile stretched across it, his dark eyes lighting up. "How come you never told me when your birthday was? I've got to get you a gift. What do you want?"

"Nothing," laughed Daine, amused at his boyish expression of delight. "I just thought you'd want to know. I don't want anything, though."

"How come you never told me before? asked Numair again, coming over to the couch. He was trying to sound stern, she could tell, but his suppressed smile somewhat ruined the effect.

Shrugging, Daine tried to sound nonchalant, and hoped Numair wouldn't notice her sudden nervousness, her eyes flicking back and forth from the ground to his face. "I guess – I was worried. I thought you and Onua wouldn't want me around when I was fifteen and could work on my own. I was afraid Onua might kick me out of her house."

"Is that why you would never tell anyone?" said Numair, shaking his head and laughing too. It was a deep, warm sound that made Daine's anxiety vanish. He took her shoulders and pulled her to her feet, meeting her eyes. "Daine, Onua would never get rid of you. You're the best worker she has."

"And you?"

Numair pushed a stray strand of hair gently behind her ear. "These lessons are my favorite parts of the week. Don't worry, Daine. I'd never want to kick you out."

"Promise?"

"I promise," said Numair, grinning. He pulled her into a brief hug, his arms tight around her shoulders for a few seconds. "Happy birthday, Daine."

"Thanks, Numair," she replied, hugging him back. He smiled at her as they pulled apart. Daine reluctantly lifted her math work back into her lap, while Cloud resettled around her knees. Numair crossed his arms, his eyes flashing mischievously.

"What?" Daine said cautiously.

"I'm still going to get you a present, you know."

Daine groaned.