Hey guys! Sorry. I wrote this literally in twenty minutes. I hope you like it, though. Thanks for the reviews!

~Blaze

Theme: Waiting

Timeline: Start of third season; "Raetsel..."

Spoilers: Not really.

His back was up against the tree, his entire body relaxed and his eyes shut tightly as he breathed in the scent of the wind with hungry lungs. His puffy hair was messy and a wonderful nest for grass and leaves, but he didn't care. His chest had welled up with memories and emotions that he couldn't make out, and they all made him feel as though he was home at last.

Rook ran his hand through the grass beside him as if they were locks of hair. He was glad that the place hadn't changed. The green plains that seemed like they spanned forever, and the Stonehenge in the distance that dazzled as the setting sun touched it - it was as if it had been plucked straight from his memory. Even the tree had remained, even if it had gotten slightly larger since he first came here.

Rook heard a slight shuffling beside him, and he inwardly winced out of instinct. Really, he was being ridiculous; he had nothing to fear of Nonoha Itou.

"Did you have a good rest?" He asked, smiling as she rubbed her eyes. She had fallen asleep to his left, her body curled up into a tight ball. He wanted to comment about her ruffled hair, but thinking it was rude, he didn't. She did look cute like that, though.

"Yes. Thanks," she said with a tired smile. "Man, Kaito really is taking his time, don't you think?"

"Yeah," Rook replied. He allowed the conversation fall into a comfortable silence. She seemed to sense he wasn't in the mood for talking, anyway.

Nonoha Itou began to break through his thoughts - not in ways of attraction, but those of curiousity. He snuck a glance at her carefree smile, her golden brown hair that seemed to have caught fire in the bright sun, her bright brown eyes that seemed to drink in everything. This was the first time he had ever directly spoken to her without Kaito being beside him, and he was sort of fascinated by her. The only thing he knew was that she was one of Kaito's closest friends - although, apparently not too close, when he had asked both if they were, quote on quote, "together". (Although, when they had vehemently refused, Rook was sure they had something that he could easily call intimate.)

But one question still remained: Why did Kaoto like a girl who was completely disinterested in puzzles?

She was definitely smarter than most, and yes, she was charming and quite beautiful... But she absolutely sucked at puzzles. There was no sugarcoating it. Vaguely he remembered her struggling to do even a simple maze, her brain going kaput at the very mention of sudokus. If Kaoto was such an avid puzzle doer, then why... Why her?

Maybe it was because of their bond as children? Rook pushed that thought aside. Kaito enjoyed puzzles ever since he was born. If that were the case, he wouldn't have even looked at Nonoha. So then...?

"Hey, Rook?"

Nonoha pulled him from his thoughts. "Yeah? Sorry. I sort of... Zoned out."

"It's fine. I just... I'm sort of getting ansty is all." Nonoha shrugged with a smile. "Kaito's been a while, and I really hate waiting."

"So then why do you wait?" Rook asked, sitting up slightly. "You could just go back to the others."

Nonoha shrugged. "I... I dunno. I guess, maybe, Kaito needs someone to wait for him all the time." She looked at Rook with a calm face. "He's always reckless you know. I don't know how many times he has always nearly gotten himself killed. I - we all worry, you see. We think that Kaito may get himself killed one day, and he'll leave us without saying goodbye."

"But... Why do you wait?" Rook asked, not fully understanding.

"If... If I can give him something to live for, then he will come back. I've known Kaito since he was a kid, and you know... I know he cares. About me - I mean, about all of us. And if I can wait... If O can show him that he's important, that he matters, that I lo - "

She stopped, her eyes widening. Rook watched as she put a hand over her mouth in surprise. Then, just as quickly, she gave him a sheepish grin, knocking her head with her fist.

"Sorry. I sort of ramble a lot." She sighed, staring at the ground. "Basically... I wait because then I know that he'll come back."

And then Rook understands, and he can tell that Nonoha only realized it now. Kaito didn't see Nonoha as a person with qualities. He saw her as a person that fixed his flaws and brought out his strengths, someone who caught him when he fell. And Nonoha - well, she saw him the same way. In Nonoha's perspective, having someone to worry about, to cry with, to love and to save kept her sane and secure. No doubt Nonoha had faced her own hardships in the past, and she definitely needed Kaito to give herself a reason to matter. It was interesting: they were each other's strength and weakness at the same time.

"When did you realize you mattered to Kaito?" Rook asked, not meeting her gaze.

"I don't know." Nonoha shrugged. "Maybe since the day I met him, I always had."

He stared at her warmly lit face as she slipped into memories, raising his eyebrows. Kaito had somehow done something right for once. Nonoha seemed to have finally understood her own feelings for Kaito now.

That was one thing Rook could agree that the two of them had in common: cluelessness.

He watched as Nonoha ruffled Kaito's hair, the way Kaito cringed and shouted at her for being so childish. She berated him for showing up later than he had promised, while he questioned her about her antics with Rook. By the end of it, their cheeks were red and their eyes were soft.

Rook and Jin exchanged glances, a bright grin lighting both of their faces as the sun began to set.