The car ride to the hospital was a silent adventure filled with tensions, and Arthur's condition began to worsen. His exhaustion was getting to him, and the stress his body and soul was recently under was affecting his health. His brain would seemingly turn itself on and off, and had lost consiousness on and off the entire ride.

Arthur looked over at Lewis, catching his worried eyes. Arthur looked down at his arm he looked around the van, and saw things a bit differently then.

The metal was rusted...

Arthur frowned and slowly moved his arm to the dashboard, and ran his swollen and bruised fingers along the dash, feeling it with curiosity. His hand moved over the leathery feet before gliding to the interface. His fingers passed over a few vents before landing on the radio. His fingers touched the power, and the radio came on, playing some calm music that filled the silence.

It sounded like static to Arthur.

"I thought we...n..uncle...f-fixed th-the vann." Arthur mumbled, eyes weakly looking down at the cup holders.

"Uh... Arthur? Are you okay?" Vivi suddenly asked.

"Why...rust...gunk...." Arthur whispered, softly. "Filthy..."

"Artie I think you need to relax and take it easy. You don't sound fully here." Lewis tensed and gripped the stirring wheel.

"I don't wanna be..." Arthur spoke without hesitation.

Lewis tensed and moved his arm to drape it around Arthur as he heard Vivi gasp quietly at the line he just spoke.

"Don't you say anything like that." Lewis spoke sternly. "Got it?"

"..." Arthur blinked a few times, feeling his mind growing fuzzier. "Am I..." He trailed off, feeling everything fail to move.

Arthur slumped to the side, going limp, his eyes barely able to keep themselves open. Arthur looked to his arm, scanning over the dense bruises and bite marks, puncture wounds made with fangs. Arthur felt his eyebrows twitched as he remembered what it had said...what it asked.

How someone as unlikable as he, could be so fortunate to have someone like Lewis love him even after killing him. His eyes lifted to see an arm resting on the dashboard against the windshield. He tensed and blinked a bit before looking down at the decaying body he had. It starting to crumble away until it wasn't even there.

He was just staring at an empty seat.

"Did you hear me?" Lewis asked and looked over to find Arthur had gone unconscious.

Lewis sighed and shook his head, slowly pressing the gas pedal, beyond speeding, having his emergency lights flashing as he weaved in and out of traffic that became more and more dense.

"...Did he pass out?" Vivi asked weakly.

"Yeah." Mystery nodded weakly.

"Lewis...we need to have a very long discussion." Vivi spoke softly.

"Now isn't the time." Lewis grew visibly angered.

"No, it is the perfect time. He isn't conscious. We need to talk about us." Vivi sighed, leaning against Shiromori.

"IT'S THE WORST TIME VIVI!" Lewis snapped loudly to make everyone currently awake, shrink and wince. "Arthur is weak! He is too low on blood! And energy! To really fight his condition off! He could die and all you are worried about is US!? Come on Vivs! You are much more fucking mature than THAT! It's one of the reasons I fucked and dated you!" Lewis growled, flames exploding from his arms and hands, and had to possess the van to keep it from burning.

"WHAT the hell is your PROBLEM!? We are doing everything we can for him! I'm scared for him to!" Vivi snapped.

"NOT LIKE I AM!" Lewis shrieked, a desperate cry of someone in internal panic. "Now please! Save this for later?"

"I don't think I can! You have no idea how I feel!!!" Vivi snapped. "About all of this!! You two lied to me! Did dying change how you felt about me!? Did it somehow turn you gay for him? Huh? What possessed you to just hurt me like this!?"

"DON'T YOU FUCKING CRACK POSSESSION JOKES INTO THIS!" Lewis roared.

Mystery and Shiromori shared a look of awkwardness. They looked at the two of them. Shiromori and Mystery both opened their mouths to say something, but Vivi sat straight up, tears falling from her face.

"LEWIS PEPPER! ANSWER ME NOW!" Vivi screamed.

"I'VE ALWAYS LOVED HIM YOU DUMB BROAD!" Lewis screamed, his voice shrieking into an inhuman sound that sounded nothing like him.

Vivi flinched violently, mouth hanging open in pain. Lewis immediately felt his world get crushed and he snapped his mouth shut, flinching himself before instantly growing regretful.

"Vivi I'm so-" He begun to apologise.

"You..." Vivi growled. "Broad huh...? If I'm a dumb broad, than what does that make you? Hm? The dumbass who fell head over heels over the friend if his girlfriend? We never even broke up and you moved on like I was no one!" Vivi hissed.

"No one?? Don't make me laugh. I almost killed him for tearing us apart." Lewis shook his head, gripping his steering wheel as black tears formed in his eyes. "I was going to kill him the way he killed....killed me. I dropped him, in the cave, to die by the same spikes. But I caught him because he didn't remember doing it. I was so blinded by revenge, for us. I almost killed him. But I didn't. I fell for him. I've always had feeling about him. I've always been partly gay. I'm bi...did you forget? I... I love him, because I can't give you the family you crave. You want kids...I can't give that to you. You wanted us to grow old together. I'm already dead. I won't age." Lewis shook his head.

Vivi stared him down, pain in her face. She looked over to the passenger seat, only seeing Arthur's hair. She blinked a few times and gripped onto her scarf, hiding half of her face within it.

"I was going to purpose..." She mumbled weakly

Lewis felt everything freeze, flames vanishing and mood instantly plummetting. He began to sweat. He looked up into the rearview to notice her staring at her feet in sadness. Lewis blinked a few times and looked back down at his lap, before paying attention to the road, shaking his head.

"..." He bit hit lower lip before letting it go, looking to Arthur, feeling his heart swell with love. He looked to Vivi and it wasn't the same. "Vivi, what we had was amazing. They are some of the best memories of my life. Really. But ever since my death, I've changed. My personality's changed. My entire outlook has changed. My mannerisms are the same and I still mother you guys, but...I'm not particularly kind. I'm no longer Innocent. Im always angry, and always two seconds from blowing up because I can't control it. I'm always tempted to mess with the both of you just to hear you guys scream. I'm a different man than the one you loved." Lewis explained. "It would be like dating a stranger. One who cannot provide for you. Besides...my heart...it..." Lewis trailed off.

"Doesn't feel the same for me?" Vivi whimpered.

"No...not anymore. I can't help it. Arthur...H-He-..." Lewis began, weakly touching his locket.

"He has your heart." Vivi finished. "Paranormal beings love differently than humans do. It becomes.their purpose for existing...if done research and read about this. It's a deep connection that could kill them, should they be parted." Vivi sobbed and shook her head. "You can't help it."

The vehicle fell silent again, and the tension and awkwardness only grew as a result. Mystery and Shiromori looked at one another before going to Vivi's comfort. Lewis sat silently in the driver's seat, his deadbeats working on keeping Arthur's shivering body as warm as they could without burning him. Lewis kept glancing at Arthur despite just learning about Vivi's feelings towards the entire situation.

Arthur was right about the mess this would make... Lewis thought to himself miserably.

"Do you have sunglasses?" Mystery suddenly asked.

"Hm? O-Oh, uh, yeah, I uh...yep." Lewis hummed, not fully paying attention as he dug through the glovebox, minding Arthur, only to grab his sunglasses, popping them on. "Better? "

"Much better. I have a service vest underneath the seat so I can come in. But you will need to have me on a leash. Mori can't come in because she is...well...blue. Lewis are going to have to carry the two of them inside if Arthur doesn't wake up but the time we get there."

"..." Vivi let out a heavy exhale, but kept her disliking of the current situation to herself.

"Yeah...I know. Vivi, you are gonna sit on my arm, and hug my head because I'm too tall. I'm going to have to duck inside the hospital's ER doors. I'm also going to have to sling Artie over my shoulder." Lewis sighed and shook his head. "Damn how are we gonna explain this shit?"

"Animal attack. He has bites in his arm. Say it was a bear." Vivi shrugged.

"..." Lewis deadpanned through the side window as he drove into town. "Really...? A bear?"

"Well it's better than saying nothing now isn't it?" Vivi folded get arms. "Don't worry about the medical costs. I have seriously good insurance, as does Arthur. We can get it covered." Vivi hummed, looking up at the ceiling of the van.

"Alright." Lewis mumbled, his eyes farting over to see Arthur visibly wince and stir in his sleep, eyes weakly opening, them still being bloodshot. "You here bud?" Lewis asked desperately.

"..." Arthur remained silent, and looked at the dashboard. His breathing being laboured due to the pain he was feeling, the soreness his body was groaning under.

"He awake?" Vivi asked.

"I'm not sure he's fully conscious. He isn't responding like he can hear." Lewis stressed, gripping the stirring wheel. "We are almost there. Hang tight Arthur." 

The radio cut in and out in that moment, and Lewis's eyes darted down to the stereo, listening as the music changed from light rock to alternative music. He tried to change it back, but it absolutely refused, even when he had possessed the stereo. He sighed and looked forwards at the traffic.

Lewis spotted the giant hospital building around ten stories high if not taller. He turned into the parking lot and gripped the wheel tightly before letting it go. Flame consumed his body and changed his clothes for him into something more casual instead of business formal and found a parking spot.

Lewis worked fast.

He unbuckled himself and Arthur before flying in the back, finding Mystery's service vest. He gently removed Vivi's feet from him and harnessed the dog before clicking his leash onto his collar. Mystery pounced the back van doors and watched as they swung open. He then leapt out and watched as Vivi scooted to where her legs dangled out the back, minding them as she was sweating from pain. Shiromori had to hide under a blanket incase someone decided to glance inside the back of the van. 

Then came time for Arthur. Lewis moved the the passenger door and opened, getting rid of his deadbeats before gently slinging the man over his shoulder. Lewis looked down at himself, and willed his clothing and skin to come off as scuffed and ragged. He then moved over to the back and grabbed Mystery's leach with his pinky, and let Vivi climb onto his arm, flexing it to have her use it as a chair. Once she hugged his head, she slammed the door shut and made haste towards the hospital, sense they were parked a little ways out.

"You two comfortable?" Lewis asked.

"Mhm." Mystery hummed.

"Fine. How about you? Lewis your pulse is racing. You need to calm yourself down. Alsoooo, let me do the talking mkay? Pretend to be mute. Your voice is..." Vivi trailed off.

"Other worldly." Mystery spoke quieter as they neared some people who stared at them intensely. 

Lewis sighed and looked over at Arthur, tensing as he neared the hospital doors, having not been in one in forever. He walked  to the doors and they slid open, he then fucked in, feeling his pompadour drag against the doorway. He also felt Vivi crouch around his head to avoid getting hit by the lip of the doorway as well.

"Alright here we go." Vivi sighed, looking around the ER waiting room.

Lewis approached the desk and knelt down, shaking and stressing over Arthur. Vivi would be fine he was sure, but he was seriously worried over his...friend?

What should they even call themselves...?

"Hello! Ma'am!" Vivi spoke hurriedly to the woman behind the desk.

The lady took her time adjusting her shirt before looking up, only to let out a blood curdling scream at the sight of Arthur, him having no arm, and the skin around it being singed and burnt, bone visiblen in the wound,

"Oh dear God!" The woman cried and ran from the office and out to them. "Don't carry him upside down!" The woman snapped and tore Arthur gently from Lewis's shoulder.

"Please help us!" Vivi begged. "we were attacked on a hike by a huge bear! It was the largest animal I've ever seen. It broke my feet but it ripped my friend's arm off. We had to stop the bleeding with a our grill! Please help him he's unconscious!" Vivi begged.

The other nurse within the office had already called for immediate emergency aid, and out of the back doors, came a hospital bed, and a few nurses, along with one of the hospital's many doctors, whom of which had just finished a surgery.

"Over here!" The nurse called. "Anything wrong with you sir?" The nurse worriedly looked Lewis over.

Lewis opened his mouth but closed it again, only shaking his head, his eyes not leaving Arthur's marred shoulder and pale flesh.

"Sorry, he's mute." Vivi sighed softly.

"You two are going to have to wait out here while we fix him up. He is going to need to get this wound looked at and dressed. We will get you in when we can." The nurse spoke, as others swarmed Arthur, lifting him up carefully from the floor to the hospital bed.

Lewis shot up and walked a few steps forwards, pausing with his hand slightly outstretched as the carted Arthur off and out of sight.

Mystery whined and barked lightly, rubbing against Lewis as a show of support and reassurance. Lewis looked down at him before moving across the room and to the row of wheelchairs. He then carefully moved Vivi into one of them and let her get herself situated. Lewis himself, stumbled backwards into the many chairs behind him, and collapsed Into one against a wall, and leaned his head back, staring at the ceiling.

He was visibly worried, and keeping himself from running after Arthur. His locket was blue still, staying blue and slowly cracking underneath this stress. Mystery walked alongside Vivi as she wheeled herself near him.

She was pissed off at him and Arthur both, but it didn't prevent her from providing comfort.

"It's going to be alright." Vivi smiled weakly.

A nurse approached them with clipboards filled with paperwork, one of them being for Arthur and the other being for Vivi herself. Vivi and Lewis both exchanged glanced before they began to fill out the information the needed to provide.

Lewis knew the majority of what there as to know about Arthur, but medication history he didn't know fully, as Arthur used to take meds for his shoulder stump that was now non existent. After that, Lewis turned the info in for them and waited very impatiently.

Lewis chewed on his finger nails, eyes gazing through his sunglasses and at the floor, biting and biting away. He felt horrible for just tearing the arm off, but he didn't even think twice before doing it, so maybe it was the best and quickest way. His eyes then darted to the double doors, to see a nurse walk out of them.

"Mrs. Yukino?" The nurse asked, him looking around the room.

Lewis glanced upwards and stood. Despite Vivi's dismissive gesture, he grabbed the handles to the wheelchair and pushed her towards the nurse holding the door open for them. Mystery trotted along, panting some due to his own stress. He glanced up at the nurse, who was looking at him with a soft form of judgement before catching up with Vivi's wheelchair.

Lewis followed the Nurse into a room, and helped set Vivi down on the hospital bed to be examined before a doctor could see her.

The routine questions were asked and answered, the routine poking and prodding and annoying repeating questions once again.

"The doctor will be with you soon. We may have to do x-rays." The nurse hummed. "They are most definitely broken." He spoke softly before exiting.

"Well he was quite rude." Mystery grumbled.

"He was staring at me funny." Lewis complained lightly.

"I mean, you are dressed in magenta clothes, and your hair and eyebrows even." Vivi shrugged simply.

"You hate it too?" Lewis got defensive fast.

"What? No! No no of course not. But some would jump to conclusions about you." Vivi hummed.

"What kind of conclusions?" Lewis squinted at her questioningly, folding his arms in a single flawless and we'll practiced way.

"The queer kind." Vivi answered calmly.

"Well uh, hm. They aren't fully wrong though." Lewis chuckled to himself lightly.

Vivi looked away from him by laying across the hospital bed, her face growing tight with anger and pain, pain being mixed with physical pain as her feet felt like they were going to pop. Her shoes were off, as her feet got too swollen for them to fit comfortably.

Lewis watched her and looked down at his hands, sighing and rubbing his eyes from under his sunglasses. His mind went back to Arthur's condition, his state of well being. He gripped onto his knees tightly before shooting to his feet. Vivi flinched an looked over at him with confusion.

"Lewis? What are you doing...?" Vivi sighed.

"I'm going to go look for him." Lewis hissed.

Vivi watched him before shrugging and looking away. "Go right ahead. They got him in surgery probably. Probably going to stay there for a while."

Lewis ignored her words and left the room, looking up and down the halls before sighing and closing his eyes, hand gently going over his locket. He then opened them and began walking down the halls, past the many hospital rooms filled with all kinds of different situations.

Situations he couldn't care less about.

Lewis followed the signs above that directed staff where everything was. Lewis explored, until he found one "operating theater" sign pointing down the hallway.

Bingo.

Lewis paced himself quickly as he dodged nurses and whenever through a small group of citizens who stared at him funny. Lewis whimpered weakly as he approached the door leading to the operating theater. He weakly placed a hand on it, before pushing the door open and walking inside.

He was met with a sterilization room, hospital aprons hanging on a wall, with cloves, an entire wall it sinks, but on the far end, with the other door, was a wall of windows. Lewis hurried over and placed his hands on the glass, staring through the nurses, trying to see who it was they were working on.

Spikey hair...

His spikey hair...

Arthur...

"Artie..." Lewis whispered.

He watched as a doctor worked on his arm, cutting away and sewing things, his gloves covered in blood. There was a pop holding IV bags. One of them was a clear liquid and a couple others were bags of blood. His heart seemed to be on the slower side and his breathing was being controlled by a machine as they operated on his shoulder.

His other arm had been bandaged and fixed up. Lewis chewed on his thumb and paced, watching with a worried face as the doctors cut bits off and repaired other places. He looked to Arthur's face, to find it pale and exhausted looking, but some how at peace.

He wasn't feeling anything.

Lewis relaxed and fell to the floor, shaking his head and curling up with his back against the wall. He wanted to be closer, right with him, but he couldn't and he would only get in the way of the other's who were trying to help him.

...

...

Please be alright.