[unedited]

Micah didn't make a move to greet Sandra when she entered the room an hour later. He continued taking a blood sample from Rafael, unable to apologise for the last time they spoke. She looked older, more mature, but a lot of time had passed since they last saw each other. No longer did she have those braids he was fond of, instead she had a fade. She still had her scrubs on, meaning she came here straight from her shift at the hospital.

"Have you slept, Micah? You should sleep." She broke the silence, as she started flicking through a file on one of the patients. He had already explained the emergency over the phone, or else she wouldn't have come to help. He had appealed to her soft heart.

"Is doesn't matter. I need to be here when he wakes up." Or else he will attack you, Micah thought silently. He didn't know what else to do, and he didn't want to live with the death of another sibling hanging over his head.

~*~

Rafael blinked rapidly, wishing someone would switch off the bright fluorescent lights. He tried to get up but found him strapped down to the bed.

"Micah," he growled.

"Welcome back, brother," he greeted in Greek. Micah quickly started unbuckling the leather straps. The table was usually used for tortured victims that Rafael wanted to keep alive longer, but this time it was used on him, as Micah had been unsure as to whether he was going to have another episode.

Rafael sat up. He felt complete, with his wolf lurking under his skin. Whatever the fuck had happened, had made him lose connection with his wolf and he hated that. However, now was not the time to ponder on the how, he needed to see her.

"Where is she?" His voice was husky from the lack of use. His answer was given when he looked around the room. He started pulling all the wires and needles connected to his body to get out of the medical web.

"Drink this," demanded Micah, handing him a glass of water. He sighed and started switching off the machines.

Rafael sipped on the water, as he approached her. She had to wake up. He wanted answers from Aiko, if that was even her name. He didn't know what was real or not.

Everything has been in his mind.

The fog had lifted.

But he was yet to see the reality.

Rafael didn't even know he has been holding his breath until he saw her eyelids fluttering. The harsh light wasn't going to help her.

"Switch the lights off."

Micah complied but growled as Rafael as he reached for her. He should know better then to interfere with his patients. Rafael growled back.

"Aiko, it's me." Rafael stroked her cheek tenderly, with his free hand. She coughed in response and tried to sit up. Micah adjusted the bed settings to put it into a comfortable upright position.

"Aiko?" Rafael could see she was finally awake, even though it's dark. She was the girl he saw.

"Rafael, she just woke up from a very long time. Who knows when she last used her voice," Micah explained her lack of response. She needed to be checked up and fed some soup. There was a lot of unanswered questions but those could wait.

"What's going on?" Sandra switched on the light as she entered.

Rafael didn't think, he reacted.

His instinct demanded to protect.

He shifted.

~*~

Aiko gasp was masked by the sound of broken glass. That man became a wolf. The one from her dreams, no her nightmares.

Rafael had been replaced by a dark grey wolf. She must still be dreaming. This wasn't real.

Nothing was real.

A man became a wolf.

She must surely be losing her mind slowly.

She didn't move, as she watched the wolf snarl at another girl. The girl stayed froze in her place.

There was another man here too. He stood between the wolf and the girl. Both of them doctors, by their clothes.

"Rafael, she isn't a threat. Control yourself. She's been helping me." Micah calmly explained.

Rafael snarled in response. He was ready to remove any threat from this room.

Micah growled a warning. He had brought Sandra here and he would protect her too. His brother must control himself.

Rafael and Micah stared at each other, neither one backing down. Micah wouldn't move until Rafael got his head straight and stopped thinking like a wolf.

What felt like an eternity to Sandra and Aiko, who stayed frozen during the stare off, was only around ten minutes before Rafael seemed to get some resemblance of control.

Rafael snarled one last time before transforming back. He didn't have clothes. He was very nude.

Sandra vanished from the room and Aiko suddenly found the ceiling very interesting.

Even if this wasn't real, Aiko decided she was going to be polite and not stare at Rafael nude form.

"Go get dressed and don't go near Sandra. I'll check all her vitals," Micah ordered.

Rafael rolled his eyes and walked out without a care of who would see him. He could take a quick shower and return to her. Sandra was something he would take care of later.

~*~

When Rafael returned to the room, he found Aiko alone. She was staring deeply at a bowl of soup.

"Aiko." Rafael announced his presence. She hadn't run away screaming after seeing him transform into a wolf yet so he was all for small victories.

She looked away from the bowl to him but made no other move.
Rafael sat down on the bed and picked up the hot bowl. She was still terribly pale and weak.

He carefully brought the spoon to her lips. She accepted. He was going to make sure she recovered, even if he had to feed her himself. He repeated the motion until the bowl was finished.

"I'm never going to wake up, am I?" She broke the silence. She was just tired of it all.

"Aiko, you're awake," Raphael replied. He knew for sure.

"No, you became a wolf." Her argument was very logical but there was more to the world than meets the eye. She was only discovering this. It was easy for reality to mesh with nightmares, but not so easy for fiction to do the same.

"I am a wolf, this is real." Rafael didn't see the point in denying. She had seen a lot. They had both seen a lot but the confusion was too much right now.

"I'm going insane," she said more to herself than to him. Confused, lost but not alone.

There was no way Rafael's words was going to reassure her of anything. She had to come to terms with reality herself.

He growled, everyone who did this to her would pay dearly.

~*~
Sandra, the threat?