She was wearing a very flattering charcoal off-the-shoulder sweater with a ridged texture and a black pencil skirt, form-fitting, but not tight, that ended just above her knees. Her heels were peep-toes with a black button to one side, and they looked as if they were made of tweed, charcoal with black, olive, and red threads mixed in. From her ears hung delicate, long silver chains and on her wrist was a simple silver watch. Her hair was loose, and just as long as when I had last seen her. Her watery, powder blue eyes and pink lips were done up with a slight amount of make-up placed in all the right places. She was staring at me, stunned.

"Mr. Barton," she finally managed to say in her normal, high-class, breathy voice.

"Miss Catalonia," I replied, hiding my own surprise.

She glanced down at the papers in her hand almost guiltily, as if she'd been caught doing something wrong. "I… Quatre hired me a little more than a week ago."

"You've kept yourself well hidden all this time," I said. "But then again, I should have expected that from you."

Something heavy flashed in her eyes and she bent her head. Remorse? From Dorothy Catalonia? She looked back up at me then, a haunted look in her eyes that I knew had never been there in the past. "What are you doing here? Forgive me, it's none of my business. I should…" She turned to go.

"I was going to see," I called out, halting her with my voice and she froze, then slowly turned back to face me again, "if Quatre wanted to go to lunch."

"Oh," she said lightly, back on safe, comfortable ground. "He just left about twenty minutes ago. I think he had other plans."

"You look hungry," I there out there, watching her face closely.

She met my gaze, searching my face and finding something new. She was surprised… and pleased. She gave a smile, something that to the common public would have been considered cold, but something that I considered genuine.

"Starved."

She was very over dressed for where I took her. I, with my grease stained white t-shirt and my ratty, worn mechanics pants, however, fit right in. The lunch crowd was speckled with businessmen here and there, but it was mostly grease monkeys like myself, and high school kids on their winter breaks. When we got to the head of the line, the counter help, a teenage girl, with at least sixteen piercing on her head alone, smiled at me.

"Hey Trowa, how's it going? Didn't see you in the crowd. Where's the rest of the gang?" she asked.

"At the shop, working still working. Or at least, Heero and Hilde are probably still working. Duo's probably eating leftovers or his own arm."

The girl, Gigi was her name, laughed. "He and Hilde bang each other yet?"

I nodded, hiding a grin. "They finally got it together."

"About goddamn time. Jesus Christ. What can I get you?"

I placed my order and looked back at Dorothy. She shrugged, her aristocracy serving her no use here, and I ordered for her. Gigi called the order over her shoulder to a trio of guys making the food behind her and took my money. She gave me my change with a small smile and we made room for the next person in line. While waiting at the counter, Gigi continued to talk.

"So who's your fancy friend, ain't you gonna introduce me?"

I gave an apologetic smile. "Gigi, this is Dorothy Catalonia." The two girls gave small waves at each other as Gigi continued working on autopilot. "She works with Quatre."

"He still hot, rich, and single?"

I gave a small laugh. "Rich, yes. Single, to my knowledge. As for the hot…"

"That's always yes," Gigi said.

"Hey Trowa. How's it hanging. Enjoy," one of the cooks, Trevor said, handing me a Styrofoam platter with our food.

"Thanks. See you Gigi," I responded.

"Later."

Dorothy followed me to one of the tables against the window of the small restaurant. She sat in the plastic chair, poised as a porcelain doll, and watched as I handed her two wrapped up items and a paper cup full of soda.

"Thank you," she said, unsurely.

I watched amused as she unwrapped the first item. She didn't look disgusted or arrogant, simply lost. Like this was a whole new process for her. She stared down as her food was finally unveiled.

"It's a hotdog, Miss Catalonia, not poison," I said, taking a bite of my own.

"I know, I'm sorry if I was being rude, Mr. Barton," she replied, still not touching the hotdog. She was staring at the melted cheese that was oozing over the bread and onto the foil wrapper, perplexed.

I hid an amused smile. "Please, call me Trowa."

"Only if you stop calling me Miss Catalonia. It makes me feel like I'm in school."

"You've got a deal… Dorothy." She was still staring at the hotdog. I looked form her to it and back. "It's dead, Dorothy. You can touch it. It's not made of real dog."

"Oh I know," she responded with a nod, transfixed by the steaming, overly yellow cheese draped over the meat. "It's just…" I stared at her, waiting. "Well, it's just that… I've never eaten a hotdog before."

I took in her words for a full two seconds before I threw my head back and laughed for a long time. Dorothy stared at me, a smile creeping onto her face. She waited for me to finish laughing and then shrugged.

"Well, in that case, you really don't want to know what a hotdog is made of," I said, still laughing a little bit.

"Well that's… reassuring. Thank you for taking me to such a lovely little place and laughing at my ineptness. Now show me how to eat this… thing."

I started giggling again, which turned out to be contagious because Dorothy began to giggle too. "I can't believe you've never eaten a hotdog before. Just… grab it."

"Grab it?" she repeated.

"Grab it," I replied, demonstrating with my own hotdog. She watched me chew with one eyebrow cocked. Then she sighed and twitched her brow.

"Grab it. Okay."

She daintily put her fingers around the bun and lifted it off the tray, droplets of cheese left behind on the foil. She brought the hotdog up to her mouth and looked up at me as if for approval. I nodded her on. She opened her mouth and slowly took a bite. I watched her as she chewed.

"Oh my God," she said, her voice muffled as she brought a hand up to cover her mouth. She swallowed. "This is delicious." She took another big bite and moaned happily. "Jesus. Why didn't Cook ever make these at home?"

I smiled. "Here."

I squirted some ketchup onto the foil and motioned for her to dunk the hotdog into it. She did so and another happy moan escaped her. I watched her devour the first hotdog as I finished my second. I handed her some fries. She tried them too, scooping up the excess cheese with the fries. I stole some cheese and she gave me a false glare. After marveling over her root beer, she ripped open the next hotdog and stared down at it.

"What is this?" she asked.

"That's a chili cheese dog."

"I've never had chili before either," she said, shaking her head as she looked at me with wide eyes. We both started giggling like idiots then as she picked up the hotdog. She bit into this one and reveled. I laughed harder. She almost spit out her food, taking huge gulps of air to stop her own laughing. When she finally swallowed, she laughed with me and shook her head.

"Aristocracy sucks," she managed to say between laughs.

"I can't believe you've never eaten chili!"

"You ass! Stop laughing at me."

But she laughed all the same as she finished her second hotdog, licking the chili off her beautifully manicured fingers.

"Want to try another?" I asked.

"Um…" she looked eagerly at the counter and then back at me with a little shrug.

"Hey Trevor," I called out to him.

"Tell me," he called back, wiping his hands on his apron.

"Can I have an all-around?" He turned, worked at something for half a minute and then tossed a foiled hotdog to me. "How much do I owe you?"

"On the house."

"Thanks. Here you go."

Dorothy ate the last hotdog. I watched amused, as she delighted in the simplest of pleasures. When she was finally finished and began balling up the now empty foils, I spoke again.

"Do you want to go somewhere?"

She looked at her watch for a second. Then she met my gaze. "I don't know. I have to get back to work. Don't you have to get back too?"

"They won't care and if I know Quatre, he won't either."

"Maybe, but I just started. Won't they think-"

"Since when does Dorothy Catalonia care what anyone else thinks?"

Something flashed in her eyes briefly. "I'll get in trouble."

"You're second in command. Who is going to say anything to you?"

The streets were curiously empty. Even on a business day, there should have been more life about, but for the most part, it was just Dorothy and me. She walked beside me quietly, heels tapping on the pavement. I turned into the opening of a small park, empty of all living beings at the moment, and Dorothy followed. We walked down the small, beaten pathway, my hands behind my back, hers crossed primly in front of her.

And then all of a sudden it began to rain. We stopped dead in our tracks and looked up, water splashing on our faces.

"I'm guessing you didn't watch the weather report this morning," she said.

"No," I answered.

"Me neither. It looks like they scheduled rain."

"Yes."

She nodded. "Is it just me or are you wet? Wet and freezing?"

I laughed and grabbed her hand, feeling what I imagined a schoolboy would have felt like running around in the rain, and led her towards shelter.

"Wait, wait!" she pleaded, hopping behind me as she took her heels off. She finally retched them off and ran behind me, head bent against the downpour and laughing.

"This way," I said, making a sharp left off the path. We pushed past bushes, under trees and to a small, unnoticeable cave, the entrance partially covered by two thick bushes. I pushed back the branches and jumped down the lip of the cave, landing in the dirt below with a grunt. I turned back as Dorothy threw her shoes into the cave behind me and reached out to me. I held out my arms, grabbed her by her waist, and swung her down beside me, the leaves whipping back into place above us.

The cave was empty, the only echoed and amplified sound our breathing. There was a little bit of light coming in from the opening, but it was mostly gloomy, shadows falling from the walls. Dorothy gave a small laugh as I met her gaze. We were sopping wet, water dripping from our hair and clothes. She was shivering.

"Jesus," I muttered, rubbing warmth into her arms. "Here." She let me peel off the wet coat she was wearing.

"Thank you," she chattered. "Aren't you cold?" I shrugged, avoiding an obvious lie. "At least take off your shoes and socks."

I complied. "How much did that skirt cost?"

She understood immediately and plopped onto the floor. "Not enough to keep me from sitting. I'll dry clean it."

I sat beside her, resting against the wall of the cave. We weren't touching, but I could feel her body heat radiating off her skin from even this distance. Her perfume mixed with the smell of fresh rain gave the air a sweet scent. She had one knee up, the other leg folded under it. She hugged her knee, resting her chin on it and staring at the cave wall in front of her. Her hair fell forward, not blocking her face, but shielding it from clear view. For a long, long while we sat in silence listening to the sound of the rain pounding outside.

"Why are you here with me?" she asked suddenly in a tortured whisper, the small sound amplified by the cavern walls. I said nothing. "Why did you bring me here?"

I paused for a moment and opened my mouth. "Because-"

She cut me off with a shake of her head, sending the platinum looks shivering in waves over her shoulders. "You know what I mean. You know."

"I know."

"Then why? Why are you so nice to me? How can you laugh with me and take my hand and be near me when you know what I did, what I tried to do? What I almost did." There was a long moment of silence and when she spoke again, it was in a steady voice, but one that was being forcibly kept that way. "I thought I loved war. I didn't really. I loved my father. I loved him very much. When he died…" her voice cracked for a moment, and then it was normal again. "When he died, I didn't know what to do and in the end, I twisted everything around. I ended up claiming to love the thing that stole him from me.

"Treize hated war too, you know. He was my technically my cousin, but more like my older brother. I know that to all of you he was the enemy, and with good reason, but to me… He believed in you. In all five of you. He believed that you were going to save us all and he was right. I never heard him speak better about anyone else. He set up the entire ruse so that in the end, you would all succeed. He sacrificed himself, you know."

She was silent for a moment as she put a hand on the ground on either side of her. I looked at her and I realized suddenly that she was crying. Dorothy Catalonia was crying. She spoke again in a tear-filled voice. "I miss him sometimes. I miss him so much." She sobbed then, hanging her head and crying freely. Her face was covered by her hair.

After a moment I reached out and took her hand in mine. She glanced up, shock clearly written on the beautiful features. I smiled genuinely at her, pushing her hair out of her face and wiping the tears off her cheek with my thumb.

"I'm here with you because I want to be," I said softly.

She stared at me before giving a shaky smile, sniffing, and responded. "Quatre said the same thing."

My smile widened and she rested her head against my shoulder, her fingers still intertwined with mine. She played with my fingers gently for a while, as I rested my head lightly against hers.

"They'd be proud of you," I said softly against her hair.

"You think?" she whispered back.

I shook my head slightly, as best I could against her. "I know."

I woke up in slightly damp clothes, something warm pressed against me. Dorothy was still asleep. There was a fresh breeze coming through the opening of the small cave. I shifted a little and my sore muscles cried out to me. I ignored the pain. Dorothy murmured slightly, shifted her head, and opened her eyes. For a moment, while she grew accustomed to the dim light, she was confused. Then she jerked up and knocked her head against the wall behind her.

"Ah!" she cried out and bit her lip. She raised a hand to the sore spot and looked up at me. Last night registered back to her and she gave a faint smile. "Good morning."

"Morning. Sleep well?" I asked.

"Mental note: Never sleep cramped in a cave again."

"Ditto." She started as my phone rung and I hid a smile. "Hello?"

"Hey buddy, where'd you disappear to last night?"

"Hello Duo. Was it busy yesterday?"

"Not really, just being nosy."

"Duo! I told you to leave him alone."

There was a sharp smack on the other end and a faraway "Ow! That one hurt!" then a slight scuffle and finally Hilde's voice.

"Sorry Trowa," she said with an exasperated sigh and I knew she was glaring at Duo. "You know Duo."

"Don't worry about it. So what are you guys up to?"

"We were all going to the – AH! NO!"

I heard the phone drop, then a shriek, another call, and a thud. Then someone grabbed the phone again and this time, Heero spoke into the receiver.

"Trowa?"

"Duo tackled her?"

A sigh. "Yes. We're going to walk around the pier."

"You three?"

"Quatre went to go pick up Cathy and Sally and Wufei were going to meet us there. Do you want to join us?"

I looked at Dorothy, who was watching me. She gave a little smile. She couldn't hear what was being said.

"Sure. I'll catch up to you. I have someone with me."

"Fine. Hold on." There was jostling as the yelling and thumping became louder, then a giggle and muffled noises. "We'll meet you there."

I hid a smile as I said goodbye. I looked at Dorothy. "Want to go for a walk?"

I waited for Dorothy at a small hotdog stand at the entrance to the pier. She showed up exactly on time, in dry clothes with a small smile. Without heels on she was shorter, short enough to have to look up to meet my gaze. She gave a hesitant smile up at me.

"Ready?"

She thought a moment before giving a little nod. "Let's go."

The others greeted her warmly. When Wufei finally registered, something passed across his face, but he clamped down on it and gave a rare smile with a soft greeting. It was guilt. Wufei had been the one to kill Treize. It was a battle he had been expecting to loose. Dorothy got swept up into conversation first by Quatre, then by Cathy, then Duo took over. Quatre walked beside me.

"You took her to lunch?" he asked.

"She needed it."

"She's different." He looked at me for a moment as we stopped a little behind the others who had paused to converse. "Only fitting."

Hilde came over to us with a smile. "Okay, we're making a pot. How long until Dorothy pushes Duo into the water?"

Quatre bit his lip, looking over her head. "Uh, I don't think that's a very good pot."

"Why not?"

"Well, one because Dorothy has very little patience and two because…" he pointed, "she just did."

"What?" Hilde exclaimed and wheeled around. She bustled over to Dorothy, who was looking surprised at herself and embarrassed for having shoved Duo off the pier, and Heero who wasn't even trying to hide the smile on his face. "Damn it! Couldn't you have controlled the urge for another three minutes?"

Dorothy was flabbergasted. "I'm so sorry, I-"

But Hilde had turned to Duo who was spluttering and treading water. "And you! Couldn't you have been less annoying?" Now she wheeled around to face Heero who had his palm out towards her. She slapped a bill into it. "I hate you. You and your correct guessing. I should've known that Duo was much to annoying to have lasted five whole minutes."

"Hey, I'm completely lost. I said ten," Cathy remarked.

Heero grinned wider. "Come on Dorothy. I'll buy you lunch."