First chapter. It's my first real fan fic, so I hope you like it. Suggestions for later chapters are welcome, but I already have an idea of what I'm doing.

It was getting chilly outside as autumn neared its end and winter approached. The grass in the back yard was cool on Giroro's feet. He looked up to see a red leaf floating down from a tree in the Hinata's back yard, which had almost completely gone bare.

He was cooking sweet potatos for dinner as usual in his campfire. Giroro never got enough of the sweet roasty smell. He always hoped the scent would entice Natsumi enough for her to come down for a visit, even if just for a few minutes.

It was quite aparent by now that the invasion plan wasn't going anywhere, as the entire platoon developed bonds with the Pekoponians, and the planet itself. Contact from headquarters became few and far between.

A white cat purred as it hopped up to where Giroro was sitting, and rubbed against his side to get some warmth.

"My girl." Giroro pet the soft fur on the cat's back. "What has made you stay by my side all these years on Pekopon?"

Giroro felt like he could speak so openly with Neko, but why not? It's easier when the the one your talking to never responds and simply gives unconditional love.

"Heh. I see. You're just hungry. Here." He tore off a bit of sweet potato and blew on it until it was cool enough for the small cat to eat. The cat nibbled at the potato piece happily. "Easy to please, as always eh?" Giroro chuckled.

As the smile faded from his face, he closed his eyes. He could feel the warmth of the fire on his chest as his thoughts wandered. To be a dedicated, ruthless soldier was his goal since he could remember. Giroro idolized his older brother, who was the epitome of a true warrior; the kind of warrior Giroro desired so much to be. But, after comming to Pekopon, Giroro had been at odds with himself. Quite often his ideal warrior self was challenged by other emotions. Emotions he did not see fit for the battlefield. "Feh. Thinking like that can get you killed." But was he truly living otherwise? Giroro continued to ponder as Neko stared at him with a confused smile.

The sky darkened as Giroro sat by the dwindling campfire, unsure of how many hours had passed. It was obvious what kept him here on Pekopon. The person that filled his thoughts on a daily basis. The girl who made him play along with his borderline psychotic Sargeant's schemes for invasion.

"Giroro!" The sound of her voice had Giroro jumping out of his skin. Giroro had to stop himself from instinctively grabbing for his dagger that he kept near his tent. "N-n-natsumi!" He collected himself after a few shakey breaths. "Natsumi...what brings you outside this evening?"

The pink haired girl grinned at his surprise. "Didn't mean to scare you there, Giroro." He turned away from her, embarrased, and poked at something imaginary in the fire with a nearby stick. The girl knelt down by Giroro as a cool breeze brushed by both of them. "Giroro, how can you stand it out here during the cold months? It's not even winter yet and it already feels like it's freezing outside." Natsumi had a look of concern on her face.

"Well, a soldier must always be prepared for battle regardless of weather condition. You could call it a part of my training." Giroro spoke with his eyes closed, trying to put on an air of confidence.

"Training. I see." Natsumi had an unsatisfied expression as she looked at the fire. They sat in silence for a few minutes. Giroro couldn't help but think Natsumi had something more on her mind. "Sweet potato?" He scewered the last sweet potato with a stick and held it in front of Natsumi.

"Oh, actually I didn't think you would have any left at this hour. Maybe just half since I've already had some dinner." Giroro split the golden brown potato in two and handed the larger half to Natsumi.

They ate their morsels together, letting it warm them from the inside out. Giroro was quite content just being close to Natsumi on this autumn evening, regardless of the temperature outside, but what she said next surprised him.

"Giroro, if you'd like..." the girl hesitated a bit as Giroro glanced over at her with a raised eyebrow. "...you're quite welcome to stay in the house tonight. It's just so cold out and I hate thinking of you being out here when it gets like this." She thought Giroro was certainly going to go on one of his tangents about a soldier's honor, so she tried to beat him to the punch. "If it makes you feel any better, you can stay in my room and no one would have to know about it."

Giroro had stopped chewing his sweet potato, and practically forgot he had even taken a bite in the first place. Natsumi had never been so direct with him, especially not when it came to anything positive regarding their relationship. Hell, he assumed she hated his guts a majority of the time anyway, so being offered a place in her room even for a night was like a dream.

"I mean, we've known eachother for a while now...as friends of course...I mean... so it's only polite of me to offer." She sputtered out.

Giroro stared at the girl, still shocked and silent, mouth slightly agape with the half chewed sweet potato inside.

"But if you're just going to be stubborn, you can forget about it!" She was getting flustered at the lack of response from Giroro, and stormed off embarassed that she opened herself up like that only to be met with a blank stare. Giroro had a lot to register in that instant, and his mind was practically having a major information processing meltdown. When the information sunk into the soldier's brain, he managed to finally swallow his bite of sweet potato, but could only call out her name as the back door slammed shut.

"Natsu–!" *SLAM*

He stood there stunned, staring at the closed back door, hand still out stretched toward where Natsumi had been. "Damnit, what is wrong with me. Where were my words? Ugh I must have looked like a damned fool..."

"Ku ku~" A derranged cackle came from behind the tent made Giroro jump to attention.