It was so cold. The freezing cold spread from her raised wrist and her waist over her entire body. Her breath hitched in her throat as she felt all the power leave her body. Her knees buckled as something or someone was restraining her. Immobilizing her.

Her brain was on lockdown, she could see but nothing registered. She could feel herself go down on her knees, her hands in the cold snow, someone holding her from behind. The burning and raging heat inside her withered to the cold. It was taking her over, killing the rage inside. She tried to fight it but her body and mind seemed separated. When she believed she pulled her arm free, she only gave a weak pull. Meanwhile, breathing became increasingly more difficult but she could not think of any reason why.

"Stop fighting, Azu."

That voice was so familiar. His deep warm voice soothed her but it couldn't be real. It wasn't real. She was being tricked and she had to fight it

"No! You're not real..." The words left her mouth slowly with every deep breath. She struggled more or tried to. This was not real, it was just another nightmare

She felt herself being pushed down on the ground. The cold snow touched her face, it melted underneath her, drenching her.

The voice was next to her ear. She could feel his warm breath brushing against her ear. It gave her goosebumps. It felt like home. It felt like she wanted to give in, to surrender to the nightmare but she could not do it. It wasn't real. The Phoenix was, the flames were.

"I'm here. I'm real. You have to come back to me as I came back to you."

It was so tempting. But he was not real. He was dead. The fire had welcomed her, that had been real. She had reached out, embraced it, felt what it enthralled. That was real, it was the only real thing right now.

"No! You're dead! I killed you! You're dead!" In her head she was screaming but what came out of her mouth was a mere weak answer.

"I'm not dead, Firestarter."

At the mention of that name something snapped. Azura blinked; white light entering her head. It blinded her from within as an antagonizing pain struck her brain. She started trashing against the force that held her own; the pain feeding her strength. More screams erupted from her throat and she kept it up until her throat became so raw she could not scream any longer.

When her voice died down, so did her body. Exhaustion washed over her again as the pain subsided. A strange form of calmness washed over her as her chest slowed down with its rising and falling. Her eyes were closed as the awareness of the snow started to creep into her skin. Her cheeks became cold, her breath crystallized as soon as it left her mouth. Despite being held down, she could feel herself relax.

The corners of her lips tugged upwards when the pressure from her back lifted and she felt the presence of someone laying next to her. When he entwined their fingers together her eyelids fluttered open. Warmth, love, and bliss raced through her system as blue met green.

Home.

Peace.

Safe.

She blinked slowly, content and happy as the smile grew bigger. "You're alive." She whispered.

If she was in her snow leopard form she would be loudly purring for sure. Now she did feel something that resembled something like that deep within in. Just... it wasn't a snow leopard. The Phoenix seemed content, sharing her feelings and her calm state.

"Yeah, I am, Sunshine. Very much alive." Lucas smiled back at her as they were still on their stomachs down on the ground.

*

The rays of the sun caressed her face, waking her up. Azura turned around with a grunt and pulled the blanket up a little higher around her body. The mattress felt so soft and comfortable, the pillow perfectly supporting her head and the blanket snug around her body. Her eyes closed again from exhaustion and a small satisfied smile graced her lips.

It took a few moments before her brain caught up with where she was. Her eyes flew open as she sat straight up in bed. In Lucas's bed. Her heart hammered in her chest and her hand had moved to the flat area between her breasts, clutching the fabric that coated her upper body. She scrunched an eyebrow as she looked down and noticed she was dressed in her old red pajamas which she used when she had first stayed here.

The spot beside her was empty. She was alone and confused. The last memory she had was of her fighting him. Of him, in the flames, as they consumed them both... of him... dea-

Azura gasped and jumped out of bed, stumbling as her foot caught hanging in the sheets. She cursed but managed to free herself while hopping on one leg before going to the window. The sun warmed her face as she peered outside. The white fields with the mountain range just beyond was a view she would never grow tired off but that wasn't the reason she peered outside. Azura moved her hand in front of her face, narrowed her eyes as she tried to discern anything out of the ordinary. Any sign that this was a dream, or a nightmare for all that she cared. Just anything that would prove this was not real.

When she placed her forehead against the cool glass after seeing nothing strange, she knew this was real. Relief washed over her, a giggle escaped her lips as she pressed her cheek against the cool glass with her hand next to her head. Her fingertips tapped the window as she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

After a while, she pushed herself away from the window and made her way to the door. She opened it and walked to the railing, looking down onto the living area but saw no sign of Lucas. The fireplace was burning though. Muffled noises were coming from the kitchen though. Azura cocked her head to the side to try and discern what she was hearing but it was too faint. She made her way downstairs and to the kitchen but before she reached it, two voices reached her ear.

"All results came back good. You're doing fine, Lucas." Nicolai. The voice was unmistakably him.

"Nothing abnormal? Then what is causing the headache! It woke me up, only growing worse the longer I was in bed, and only now that I'm here is it slowly going away. But it gets worse when I reenter the bedroom; when I see her."

When Lucas was talking, Azura crept closer and noticed the kitchen door was ajar. She pushed it open a little further and peeked inside. Lucas had his elbows resting on the table, his head buried in his hands. Nicolai was standing beside him, a hand on Lucas's shoulders.

"It could be some after-effects from whatever it was they did to you back there. Plus, it's only been a day. I don't sense anything strange within you regarding your emotions. Your stable and going strong as if you never died." Nicolai patted Lucas's back and took a seat next to him. "How is Azura doing?"

"I'm fine." She pushed the door open and walked inside. Lucas shot up surprised at first but happiness took over as a big smile crept on his face.

She smiled back at him but stayed in the door opening. She wanted to trust him but this moment just felt strange. Nicolai gave her a smile and beckoned for her to come closer.

"You've been asleep for over a day." As she came in, he met with her halfway. "How are you feeling?"

Azura groaned and rolled her eyes in dismay. "I'm doing fine as I said before. Considering my body hadn't gotten any rest for a couple of days, I don't find it strange I've been out for over twenty-four hours."

Nicolai just nodded and placed his hand on her shoulder too. She gave in to his emotional probing, trusting him and showing them both she was doing alright. He touched her only for a few seconds before he let go and urged her to sit down on the same seat he had been sitting in prior. Lucas remained quiet during the whole thing but watched as Nicolai fussed over Azura.

"Can I see that shoulder of yours?" He touched her right shoulder again, but this time not to gain access to her emotions but more as a physical examination.

Another small groan escaped her lips as she opened the top buttons of her pajama and bared her shoulder. She glanced at it herself and tried to hide the shock that blasted her mind as she caught glimpses of the dark webbing on her shoulder. She touched it herself, barely feeling it as her fingers moved around.

"Occupational hazard..." She simply stated before pulling her pajama top back up.

She glanced over at Lucas who had averted his eyes from her. She could see his muscles tense in his jaw as he rubbed his temples as if wanting to ease a pain.

"I just want-" Azura silenced Nicolai with one finger.

"I'm fine like I stated two times before." Turning her attention back to Lucas, she reached out and gently took hold of his arm. "Are you alright?"

He looked up and grimaced at her. His expression unreadable as his movements did not match what his eyes were telling her. He gave her a small kiss on the lips, probably to assure her he was fine, but she could tell he was in some sort of pain.

When his lips left hers, his face kept hanging just mere centimeters away from her own. Azura waited for him to look at her, but he never opened his eyes. A pang of pain flashed through her heart at his lack of acknowledgment. He should be cured, back to his old self by now! When he suddenly jumped up from the table and stormed outside she and Nicolai were left in a daze.

The kiss he had given her was just a kiss, there was no emotion behind it. The way he had smiled at her as she had entered though, that was genuine. She had seen the love reflect back at her. It was like he was two different beings.

"You're thinking the same as I am." Nicolai was the first to speak up. The middle-aged bald man adjusted his glasses before coughing.

"It's still affecting him." Her voice defeated as she lowered her eyes to the table.

"Most likely it's only temporary."

Azura slammed the table with her fist as a flash of anger raged through her. "Temporary?! How do you know for sure?!"

Nicolai flinched at her outburst but recovered straight after. "Temper, Azura. Remember what we have been working on since you first came to me." Letting out a sigh, she leaned back and nodded, focusing on her breathing to calm down.

"I don't know for sure," Nicolai continued when he was sure she indeed had calmed down. "But it's normal to have... fall-backs, or drawbacks after brain trauma. To be honest, this whole ordeal, we can call it brain trauma. Give him time."

He got up from the chair and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder before collecting his coat. "I have to go. If there are any problems, you know how to contact me. Either Vicky or I will answer the phone."

Azura bit her lip to silent a groan at the mention of the old hag Vicky. That woman had always been a strange one she thought. Rose had not shared the same beliefs on the woman when Azura had vented to her about the old hag. Nicolai tipped his hat at her as he put it on before leaving. As the door fell shut behind him, a deafening silence filled the kitchen.

She had no idea where Lucas had stormed off to and if Nicolai was right, she would just have to leave him alone for now. Something she did not want to do at all, in fact, she wanted to throw herself into his arms, rip his clothes off, and feel him. Every inch of him. Then again, the longer she sat at the table, the more her body started to protest. Muscles started aching, her stomach growling, and massive exhaustion took over despite having slept for over twenty-four hours.

After sitting there for what felt like forever, Azura forced herself to move. As she glanced at the clock on the wall she groaned. It had been almost over an hour since Lucas had stormed out. Right as she averted her eyes, the doorbell rang loudly. The piercing noise something she was not familiar with after such a long time. Startled, it took her a moment to react but as it rang for a second time she finally sprang into action and rushed over to the front door.

"Pizza delivery." The young man before her smiled as he handed Azura two boxes. He was clearly young, trying to grow a beard, whether to hide some pimples or just to look older, Azura could not tell. She just stared at him, her mouth open a tad as he grabbed his helmet and turned to walk away again.

"Wait!" Her mouth worked faster than her brain. "Who ordered this what about payment?"

He shrugged as she spoke. "I'm just the delivery guy. It's already been paid for with the online order." With that he just walked away, clearly not in the mood for a social chat.

The smell of fresh pizza lodged itself into her nose making her mouth water and her stomach growl even louder. Even though she had not ordered it, the timing of the pizza was dead on. The fact that it was two pizzas was strange though since she was alone. Half expecting someone to show up at the house, Azura waited at the door until the smell of pizza could no longer be ignored.

She wandered back to the kitchen, kicking the door open with her foot as she made sure not to drop the boxes. As she looked up her eyes connected with Lucas's.

"Good, you got the pizzas. I got your favorite, Diavola, for you and four cheeses for me. I figured you probably were hungry." Lucas sat down on the far end of the table.

Dumbfounded, Azura stared at him, unable to utter a single word. She places the cardboard boxes on the table before setting herself on the opposite end of the long table. He was acting so out of character, she really could not tell what was going on. His face was stoic, betraying no emotions but his eyes had their normal look to them. Silently, she opened the first box and slid the pizza box over to him as she took her own.