"Fellow Guardians!" Ash starts the next morning, taking the lead on another mandated, headquarters-wide meeting. Trent stands on stage, in line with all the other new Council members. Valery can't take her eyes off him as he fidgets, clearly unwelcome with the feeling of so many eyes on him.

I thought he was going to turn it down.

"The city has been flooded with missing people reports since the attack. We are under the impression that the Devil's Own has taken them. We are going to find these people and bring them home." Ash continues.

What? Valery snaps her attention onto Ash. First, I couldn't rescue him, now they are going after a bunch of unknown city folk?

"We selected a group of twenty of our best warriors." Ash starts listing names. Each Guardian steps up to line the front of the stage.

Trent, Angela, Helen, Alan, Savannah, Sandra, Albert, Natalie, Masson, Keith, Matt, and ten others all file onto the dais.

Valery now stands alone in the back of the room, her friends being the only ones daring to stand close to her. Valery rubs her arms, trying to rub away the feeling of being alienated. She should be up there too. But instead, she is stuck living out her life in the healing ward.

"Let's hear it for our fighters!" The crowd cheers and applauds. "Our warriors will rest tonight and head out early tomorrow morning before daybreak." Ash turns to face the lineup of twenty warriors. "Do whatever you must to succeed. Those not fully gone to them can be saved. Remember, as a team you are unstoppable. Work alone and you will be picked off one by one. So, stay together and work like a team, no matter what. You are all dismissed with our wishes of good luck to prepare, eat, and get a good night's rest."

They file off the dais. The crowd parts, allowing the warriors to pass through easily. "Val." Ash calls as he leaves the council room. Valery huffs as she freezes in the middle of the steps. 'Can I talk to you for a moment?" Closing her eyes, she turns around and makes her way down the stairs. Ash starts to look uncomfortable as Valery comes to a stop in front of him. "You know your dad and I were friends, right?"

Valery nods. "You always knew the other had your back, no matter what."

Ash clears his throat. "About that. Taking care of you is no different. I promised your dad I would look after you if anything happened to him, as he made the promise for mine. Now, Cora and I never did. But. I can still follow through with my part of the deal. Me looking out for you is the only reason you're not going on this mission, ok? I know how far you have come, your staying back has nothing to do with that, ok? All I want to do is give you the time you need and deserve to grieve. Going back too soon will be bad for your well-being.

"I already had a dad. I don't need you looking out for me." Valery turns back for the stairs, right to her room. She sits down at her desk, pulls out her diary that Liana gave her, and starts to write.

My friends are leaving on some mission without me, leaving me stuck here to wonder and worry. I'm stuck sifting through Olivia's notes, to become someone ready for trouble.

Her resentment boils. And Ash, playing at being a dad... He doesn't get it. That role isn't his to play. Tears prick her eyes, and she closes her eyes tight, refusing to let them fall. I should be with them, not stuck here learning someone else's role. I wanted to be a dedicated Guardian, reliable, but I'm sidelined, and useless. I'm no healer if people won't seek my help, no true warrior if I'm kept here.

Valery's anger fueled her words, but her grief and frustration didn't weaken.

A knock sounds on the door. Valery closes her diary and slips it back into her desk, not wanting wandering eyes to catch her thoughts. She stands and faces him, leaning against her desk as Trent walks in and closes the door.

"Trent." She sighs, forcing her muscles to react.

"I am fully packed and ready to go." He tells her as she stands at her desk, unsure of the feelings bubbling within her. Valery takes a deep breath and runs to him. She throws her arms around his neck and kisses him passionately. "I am going to miss you." He murmurs, pulling away and burrowing his face into her hair.

"You're going to take the south on?" Valery asks softly.

"If my brave and ambitious fiancé can take the North on as a group of three I don't see how the South can be much of an issue as a group. It's going to be alright." Trent murmurs, stroking the back of her head.

Valery pulls away a bit to look at his face. "Why were you up there today? I thought you didn't want to be on the council." She asks, not wanting to speak of the worry that claws at her heart.

"I don't want to be on the council. Being in charge during a mission is bad enough. But I remembered something you once said."

"What's that?" She asks. He looks down at her, his eyes sparkling with love. Taking in every detail of her.

"That the council needs to be reworked. I can help with that, I think. The only way to know is to try. As much as I don't want the job, I need it so we can start being the change that we want to see."

"Oh," Valery whispers lost for words. "Th-thank you." She hesitates, takes a deep breath, and decides the words in her heart, in her mind, need to come out. "Trent. I." She stammers. She takes another deep breath and closes her eyes for a moment as Trent pulls her close. "This feels different." She comments, the sound of Trent's heartbeat in her ear soothing her.

"I know." Trent agrees. "I feel it too." He tightens his grip around her, crushing her against him. "It's the first time we have been separated since you've rescued me. There's bound to be some anxiety."

"I wish I could come with you."

"You're too valuable to lose." He presses a kiss onto the top of her head. He hovers there a moment, enjoying the fresh scent of rose petals in her hair. "I can't focus when you're in danger. Going into battle with you the other day, you right next to me, me watching you go down and there being nothing I could do. That was ONE of the hardest days of my life. It's funny. Watching my mom and dad killed right in front of me, and out of the top five of my worst days, I think they ALL are because of you."

Valery is quiet for a moment, letting herself absorb his words. Wanting them forever in a part of her memory. "But." She starts slowly. "But what about me worrying about you?"

Trent releases his hold on her to move to her bed, patting beside him. She makes her way over. Trent wraps an arm around her and holds her close. I won't promise to come back. We both know better."

"I know." She sighs. She rotates, throwing her legs across his lap. "We both know I wouldn't accept such a thing anyway. I know better."

Trent nods in agreement.

"There is something though." Valery comments as a blush starts taking over her face. She bites her lip, full of uncertainty as she eyes Trent up. He gives her a one-sided smirk.

"You look adorable and unsure. That normally spells trouble for me. You want something. What is it?"

"I want you to make love to me."

Trent groans and throws himself backward across the bed. "See? I knew better than to ask. You're trouble." He keeps his eyes on the rough texture of the ceiling above him, knowing one look at her face and he is going to crumble.

"You're stalling." Valery points out." She crawls across the bed, putting her face directly into his vision.

"Val." He whispers gently as he reaches up and strokes her cheek. "I want to. God, it crosses my mind every single day. I'd be dead for it not to. But Val, you know how I feel about this. Not even that. How the council feels. It should wait until after marriage. We really shouldn't." He says one thing, but the way he is looking at her says another. A sense of power washes over Valery, swings her leg over him.

"Hm." She murmurs as she looks down at him, straddling his waist. She slides the shirt off over her head and throws it to the floor. Trent groans in frustration, closing his eyes tight.

"Val, you know what you are doing to me, right?" He groans.

"Do you really want to die without seeing ALL of this?" She whispers as she leans into him. His eyes open, full of hunger. Valery's smirk grows. She got him. And they both know it.

"Hell. You're gonna send me straight to hell." Trent growls as he yanks her mouth to his. She smiles against his kiss. 

Valery bolts out of bed as a scream rips out of her. Her chest tight, she closes her eyes against the images of the same dream replaying in her mind. Blindly, feeling a chill from beside her, she reaches out for Trent. Instead, she finds a note. She flips on the light on her nightstand and reads the note, not wanting to touch it.

Val, my love, I had to leave. I'm sorry that I didn't wake you up. Thank you for the best night of my life. I will think of you every moment of the day, wanting to sleep so that I can see you again. I promise to make you proud and return to you as soon as possible. Please, for me, take care of yourself. Eat three meals a day and keep track of your energy level. While I am out there, I will do what I can to find the answers to the dream that plagues you. I may be over a hundred miles away but a part of me will always be there with you. Use that knowledge to make you stronger. I love you with all my heart. Goodbye, my sweet tiger.

"Oh, Trent." She whispers, crumbling the note as she picks it up, tears in her eyes. She holds the note against her heart as tears start to fall. "It's war. You may not make it back home." She says, finally admitting the truth to herself. She lays back down on her pillow, holding the note tight, letting her tears flow until she falls asleep.