Summary: How would it have been if Saya had showed Diva the love and care that she needed?…

Genre(s): Romance

Character(s): Diva, Saya O., Haji

Disclaimer: I do not own Blood+

Author's Notes 9/12/10: I gave this story a much needed stylistic and grammatical overhaul! Enjoy!

* Thank You *

'Where is that song coming from?' Wonderment flooded the mind of a young black haired girl as she ran down a moss covered corridor. 'And what is this place?' she thought as she glanced around at the unfamiliar, moss covered walls. The song that lead her to this place kept getting louder and louder until the passage opened up into a ruined courtyard surrounded by four castle walls with a single tower standing towards the back. As the girl walked out into the open, the strange song stopped and silence fell over the area.

'Who could have been singing that song?' she wondered as she slowly drifted over towards the tower.

"Who are you?" the girl called out as she came to a stop at the base of the tower. The only reply she received was silence until she heard a faint whisper-like voice.

"Who are you?" the voice repeated the girl's question back at her. She thought this was rather strange but did not want to be rude to whoever this person was.

"I'm Saya," Saya smiled happily as she waited for a reply.

"Saya…" the voice trailed off. "I'm…" again the voice trailed off.

"What's your name?" Saya asked.

" Name?" the voice replied quizzically.

"You don't have a name?" Saya replied, shocked that the girl did not have a name. "Then I'll just have to give you one!" Saya said excitedly. She began to pace back and forth at the base of the tower, trying to come up with a name for the girl.

The song began again and Saya sat down against the base of the tower to listen to it.

'The song is eerie yet beautiful, divine almost,' She thought as she listened intently, then the perfect name came to her.

"I'll name you…Diva!" Saya cried out happily, she felt proud of herself for giving someone a name; after all, everyone needed a name. "It's perfect for you, since your voice is so divine," she continued as she tentatively waited for a response from the girl in the tower.

"Diva?" the girl questioned. "I'm Diva?" the newly-named girl sounded happier.

"That's right, Diva. Let's be friends," Saya replied. No response came, instead a small object gently floated down and landed in Saya's lap. "A blue rose?" She blushed slightly as she picked up and examined the flower. She was very flattered, no one had ever given her a rose before, especially one as beautiful, and rare, as a blue one. She took the rose as an acceptance to her offer of friendship and smiled.

By then it was late into the afternoon and the sun had already begun to set. Saya noticed this and knew Joel would be very upset if she had not returned before dark.

"I'm sorry but I have to go now, Diva, but I promise I'll be back tomorrow!" Saya said sadly then her voice picked up at the end. She did not want to leave her new friend all alone in the tower, but she had no choice.

"Goodbye, Saya," Diva replied as Saya hurriedly made her way back to Joel's estate.

* BLOOD+ *

Over the next few days Saya made sure to visit the tower every afternoon so that she could talk to her new friend. Each time she learned more and more about her. In particular she found out that Diva had been locked inside the tower for her entire life, and that she was always alone, except for a man that would come a few times every week. But she would not say anything else about the man, it seemed to be a sore subject for her and Saya did not want to push it. She did not want to make her new friend upset with her.

Saya wanted to help Diva get out of the tower and bring her back to Joel's estate so that she could live happily, just like she did. Saya felt a close bond form between herself and Diva as she continued to visit her over the week.

On one particular day, while Saya was sitting in front of the locked door to the room where Diva was being held, she was telling Diva about HajI for the first time. She then remembered something important she had wanted to ask her.

"Diva, my father, Joel's birthday is tomorrow, could you please sing for him at his birthday? I'd really love it if you would," Saya asked through the door. The quiet reply came shortly.

"How can I?…I've never been outside this tower." Saya blushed as she had forgotten that little fact and felt stupid for it.

"Maybe Joel has a key to this door somewhere? And I could get it and let you out!" She did not know why she had not thought of it before. The idea was brilliant but dangerous, if she was caught taking something of her father's she would be in a lot of trouble.

"If you let me out of this place…I'll sing at your father's birthday…for you Saya," Diva replied as Saya clasped her hands together and smiled excitedly.

"Alright, I'll go and try to find the key now, I'll find it and let you out Diva, I promise!" Saya said as she stood up and ran down the corridor and down the tower stairs. She needed to hurry if she was going to get Diva out of the tower before dark.

Saya returned to the estate without anyone noticing her and snuck into Joel's private study.

'I'm sure I saw the key around here somewhere…' she thought as she rummaged through the Joel's desk drawers until she found a very elegant box. Her heart thumped against her chest as she opened the box, an elegantly inscribed steel key was inside.

'This has to be it! It looks just like the lock on the door!' Saya was ecstatic, she was so close to freeing Diva. Saya left the estate without being noticed and ran as fast as she could back to the tower.

* BLOOD+ *

Saya panted heavily as she climbed the final stair of the tower's staircase. She stopped to rest before continuing down the hallway towards the locked door.

"Saya…" Diva said as she sensed Saya's presence outside the door, she sounded scared, almost frightened as Saya neared the door.

"I'll have you out soon, just wait a bit longer," Saya said, barely managing to keep the excitement in her voice from overflowing.

"I'm scared," Diva said, her voice now full of fear.

"Don't be scared Diva, I'll be here with you, I promise you'll never be alone again," Saya replied comfortingly as she held the door lock, inserted the key, and turned it. The lock clicked and popped open, clattering to the floor.

Saya's heart pounded as she pushed the door open with a creak. The room was so dark that Saya could barely see, and it smelled horrible.

'How could anybody keep her locked in here?' She thought, angry at the injustice that her friend was forced to endure.

"Diva?" Saya called out softly as she slowly walked into the room. She spotted a cell in the corner of the room and a pile of rags inside the cell. She approached the cell door and the rags stirred slightly. "Diva? Is that you?"

The rags stirred again until Saya saw a head of black hair appear from beneath them, the rags appeared more like a make-shift cloak now.

"I'll get you out of there Diva!" Saya still held the key that unlocked the main door and fitted it into the cell door, hoping it would work for it as well. She was overjoyed to see that it did as the cell door clicked. The cell door groaned and creaked as Saya pushed it open. She rushed over to Diva, kneeling down next to the girl.

"Are you alright, Diva?" She asked. Diva moved slightly from her slumped position against the wall then fell face forward onto Saya's lap. Saya gently turned Diva over in her lap and pulled the rags covering her face back, revealing her long black hair and piercing blue eyes.

Saya felt like she was looking into a mirror - the only difference between herself and Diva was the color of their eyes.

"Diva…you look just like me," Saya said softly with slight shock in her voice. Diva, who had been staring blankly up at the ceiling, looked up into Saya's eyes and smiled weakly.

"You really came for me…" She said as her smile grew. She sounded weaker than she ever had before, but she really did not ever speak much to begin with. Saya smiled down at Diva in return.

"Of course, I couldn't just leave you up here to live like this," she replied softly as her own smile grew as well. She was so happy that she had freed her friend. Saya was startled when Diva wrapped her arms around her midriff and squeezed her in a loose hug. It was weak, but it was still a hug, which made Saya even happier.

As Saya caressed Diva's hair, she tried to get a good view of her body. Diva looked so thin and frail that it sickened Saya.

'If I told Joel he'd make whoever did this to her pay!' she thought angrily. Saya pushed her angry thoughts aside and looked out of the tower's window and saw that the sun had started to set. She knew that she had to hurry if she was going to get Diva to her room before dark without anyone noticing.

"Diva…" Saya said softly as she carefully set her up in a sitting position. Diva looked at Saya questioningly.

"We need to go now if I'm going to get you back to my home before dark." Diva slowly nodded in understanding as Saya stood up and helped her to her feet. She had a hard time standing and had to lean on Saya for support, but they both managed to make it down the tower stairs and halfway to the estate before the unexpected happened.

"Saya!" Haji called out as he hastily searched around in the forest surrounding Joel's estate.

'Where could she be?' he wondered worriedly.

"Saya!" he called out again.

"Oh no," Saya gasped as she stopped abruptly in the middle of the forest pathway, which caused Diva to give her a worried look.

"What's wrong, Saya?" she asked.

"I can hear someone calling out for me." Saya looked increasingly worried. She frantically searched the surroundings and spotted a thick patch of bushes.

"Diva, hide here," Saya said quickly as she rushed over to the shrubbery and ducked Diva behind them then hurried back to the middle of the path. Just then HajI came stumbling out of the forest into the path, he spotted Saya and relief washed over his features at finding his mistress.

"Saya, there you are," he said. "Joel was starting to get worried, you have been staying out late a lot lately, so he sent me to come find you," he continued as he approached Saya.

Diva peered out at Haji and Saya from the bushes. She instantly felt animosity towards him, yet she did not know why, maybe it was just the way he looked at Saya.

'So…lovingly,' she thought bitterly. She did not know why but that thought made her grit her teeth in anger.

"Oh, I'm sorry Haji." Saya laughed awkwardly as she tried to avoid her recent absences. "I've been out looking for a special flower to give father for his birthday." That excuse sounded plausible enough.

"Oh…well alright Saya." Haji seemed to buy that excuse as he visibly relaxed. "I'll just see you at home then?" he asked. Saya eagerly nodded in reply as Haji turned and headed back towards the estate.

Haji stopped dead in his tracks as he heard something rustle in the nearby bushes and whirled around to see what was there. Saya simply gave him an odd look and acted like there had not even been a sound. Haji assumed that it had been his imagination and turned again to leave, though he could have sworn he saw a pair of glowing blue eyes staring at him from the bushes.

"I'm sorry about rushing you Diva, but I had to get you into the bushes quickly," Saya said as she headed over to the bushes once Haji had left. Diva looked up at Saya from the bushes and what she saw caused her to gasp from shock and back away slowly from Diva.

'Her eyes are…glowing!' she thought, fright evident on her features. The glow in Diva's eyes faded as tears welled up in them. Saya realized how stupid it was to be frightened of her friend and rushed to Diva's side.

"I'm sorry Diva, your eyes just startled me a little is all," Saya said softly in an attempt to console the girl. Diva's expression rapidly changed from hurt to joy.

"It's alright," she whispered as Saya helped her back up to her feet. Both girls began their trek down the path again. The sun had nearly set by then and they were not even out of the forest yet. Saya began to worry that Joel would send HajI out again to look for her, but Diva had other things on her mind.

"Who was that man?" Diva asked as the pair neared the edge of the forest.

"Oh, that was Haji, I told you about him earlier, remember? Saya replied with a smile.

"Are you two together?" Diva asked bluntly. Saya halted in her tracks and tried to hide a growing blush.

"Oh no, we're just friends, that's all. I've known him since he was very young," she replied as she started to walk again.

"Oh," was Diva's simple reply, but her features brightened slightly, though Saya did not notice.

* BLOOD+ *

Saya had amazingly managed to sneak Diva and herself through the courtyards, into the main hall, up the main staircase, down three hallways, and into her room without anyone noticing.

'I really should tell Joel how easy it is to sneak around here…' she thought as she set Diva down on her bed and thought about what to do next.

'Well, she's been locked in that tower all of her life…' Saya watched as Diva bounced up and down on the bed with a look of total amazement on her face.

"You get to sleep here every night?" Diva asked excitedly as her eyes light up, almost literally.

"Yes, and now you will too," Saya replied with a warm smile. Diva stopped bouncing and looked at Saya with such admiration that she blushed. But Diva said nothing and just laid back onto the bed.

'I'm sure she's really…' Saya looked Diva's body over - she was still in her tattered make-shift rag clothing, covered in dirt spots, and her hair was matted. '…very dirty,' Saya thought with a sigh. 'I guess I'll have to get her cleaned up.'

"Diva?" Diva's attention turned from the colorful wallpaper back to Saya. "You should get cleaned up. I have my own personal bathroom, so you can take a bath." Diva tilted her head to the side and gave Saya a perplexed look.

"Bath?" she asked with bewilderment.

"You've never taken a bath?" Saya was definitely shocked - how could anybody go their entire life without a bath?

"No, I've never taken a 'bath'…" Diva replied as she became distracted by the wallpaper again.

"I…guess I could help you bathe," Saya said after a long pause. Diva reverted her attention back to her yet again. "Ok, Diva, I'll go get a warm bath ready for you," Saya said as she headed over to the bathroom door.

"You get out of those rags, ok?" Diva nodded in understanding and Saya entered the bathroom and got a warm bath running. Saya put her hand under the water, and to her satisfaction it was nice and warm.

'She'll love this,' she thought happily as she turned the taps off and called the girl in. Diva immediately appeared in the doorway - definitely out of the rags, she was stark naked!

"Diva!" Saya cried as she turned away, blushing hotly.

"What?" Diva asked, unable to comprehend what was wrong.

'I didn't think being locked in a tower for so long could do this to a person…' Saya thought as she her gaze wandered to the naked girl then she turned away again, her blush growing hotter. '…She obviously doesn't understand this is indecent,' she thought, saddened at the state of her friend.

"I'm sorry, it's nothing," she said as she tried to keep her gaze from wandering back to Diva's naked body.

"Just…call me if you need anything," Saya said as she got up from the edge of the tub. "Soap is there, and the towels are over here," she said as she gestured to the various items' locations. Saya walked past Diva out of the bathroom, keeping her gaze averted, with Diva giving her a curious look the whole way.

As soon as Saya closed the bathroom door she heard Diva splashing around in the bathtub. She went over to her dresser and began to undress in preparation for bed. Saya happily thought of how much fun it was going to be to have a female friend now. None of the maid servants were her age, so aside from Haji she did not have any friends to play with.

'But she acts so odd, almost like a child,' she thought as she slipped into a night gown that she had laid out. Her thoughts were interrupted as the bathroom door opened, revealing a still naked Diva. She smiled brightly at Saya.

"That felt so good!" she said happily as her eyes began to glow from joy. Saya, however, was trying her best not to blush again as she looked away from Diva. Diva gave her an odd look, still not comprehending what the problem was. Saya went over to her dresser again and pulled out an extra night gown and threw it onto the bed.

"Put that on," she said simply as she kept her eyes on the wall. Diva eyed the garment strangely as she tried to figure out how to get it on; finally she managed.

"It feels so nice…" she said wistfully as she rubbed the fabric.

"It's silk, it's nice I know," Saya said brightly as she could now look at her friend again.

"We should get to bed now," Saya said after a few moments pause. Diva nodded as she followed Saya's over to the bed.

"It's a big bed, so we should both be able to share it," Saya said as she pulled back the covers and let Diva crawl in first. Saya followed her and got her to scoot over to the far side of the bed then laid down herself.

"Goodnight, Diva," she said as she extinguished the oil lantern on her bedside table.

It was very quiet and peaceful, yet Saya was unable to sleep. She could feel Diva moving around a lot. 'Probably just enjoying the comfort of a real bed,' she thought with a small smile. 'I don't blame her, this must be a lot of new experiences to take in.'

"Saya?" Diva's timid voice reached Saya's ears; she sounded almost as timid and scared as when she had let her out of the tower. Saya hoped nothing was wrong and rolled over.

"Yes Div-?" Saya was startled into silence as she came face-to-face with Diva; somehow she had stealthily slid across the bed and gotten right up next to Saya without her noticing. Diva's eyes were glowing bright blue again, but it was softer and not as eerie as before, in the dark it was comforting.

"Saya…" Diva whispered as she moved even closer to Saya, wrapping her arms around her arms around her in a loose hug.

"Thank you…" she continued, her cheeks becoming increasingly red as she slowly inched her face closer and closer to Saya's.

Saya was completely stunned, as if her brain had gone on vacation. She knew what Diva was going to do but did not try to stop her.

"…For everything," Diva finished as she closed the distance and locked her lips against Saya's with a passion that shocked Saya further. She did not make any response at first, but when her shock wore off she eagerly returned the kiss. When they finally broke apart they were both panting and blushing intensely. Diva laid her head against Saya's chest and hugged herself tighter to her.

'Yeah…having a female friend is going to be nice…' Saya thought as she laid her head on top of Diva's. Neither girl wanted to move from their comfortable position together so they both drifted off to sleep in each others' arms.

END

Author's Commentary: This is just my envisioning of how it would've been if Saya hadn't run off to Haji calling her and actually showed Diva the love and care she desperately needed. All feedback is happily welcomed.

Author's Commentary 9/12/10: I re-wrote this story nearly from scratch to enhance the original idea of it, I hope that the re-write made it more enjoyable for you all to read!