Magnolia's eyes fluttered open dreamily. "Dakota." She gasped, breath unsteady.

Dakota looked down at her fearfully. "Shoot. HURRY UP, MAN! She's conscious!"

"Dakota? What's wrong?" Magnolia slowly tried to sit up but sudden pain and agony tore through her back and she winced.

"Hey, hey. You're going to be okay. You're going to be alright. Just lay back down. Just lay back down, okay?" Dakota looked out of his mind, glancing around desperately. It seemed as if he was reassuring himself more than Magnolia. Magnolia swallowed, knowing it must not be good.

Phoenix ran over with a large canteen of water and a white t-shirt in his hands, sitting down next to her quickly.

Dakota cleared his throat, making eye contact with Magnolia. "Um, this is going to hurt. I'm sorry, Princess, I'd thought you'd be unconscious so-"

"Just get it over with." Magnolia said through gritted teeth. Dakota nodded at her sympathetically, and it was the first time Magnolia saw him not trying to hide his emotions. Phoenix slowly poured the water over her bloody back and large wounds.

Magnolia's head shot up, and she screamed in pain, her voice scratchy and uneven. She stopped herself from telling them to stop, holding back her tears as she bit down on her lip. Dakota watched her scream, and he cringed inside, hating himself for not reaching her in time back at the castle.

Magnolia reached out suddenly, grabbing Dakota's rough fingers in hers. He looked down in surprise, quickly squeezing her hand. "You're going to be okay."

Magnolia nodded, even though she couldn't quite believe it at the time. The warmth of his fingers on hers made her realize there was something worth living for. Tears swam her eyes as Phoenix began touching the wounds gently with a t-shirt. Hudson walked over and gasped, kneeling down beside her and helping Phoenix immediately.

Phoenix and Hudson began to dab more forcefully, draining the blood out of the wet wounds. Magnolia arched her back, suffering the stinging pain as if she was reliving the lashes. She whimpered, drawing blood from her lip. Dakota rubbed his thumb over her hand, watching her slowly begin to silently cry.

He looked away, letting go of her hand to stand up and get River. He couldn't find her, so instead asked Brylee to help.

"Why?" Brylee asked, jumping down from a large tree, wiping her hands against her shirt.

"Because she needs you to wrap her wound. Just... please, Bry." Dakota didn't know what else to say, and surprisingly Brylee just shrugged and walked over. When she saw Magnolia she didn't change her expression one bit just said, "Please tell me you beat up the other guy."

Magnolia didn't answer, couldn't bring herself to even think about it.

"Leave, boys." Brylee said, and they all listened. Brylee took a long t-shirt and lifted Magnolia's stomach off her dress, tucking it under and wrapping it around her chest and torso. Tightening it hard, she watched Magnolia whimper in pain.

"Sorry." Brylee muttered, tying it efficiently. She slowly zipped the dress back up, "You can barely even tell you got anything under there. Nice dress, by the way."

Magnolia looked at her, confused. Brylee was never this nice to her. "Thank you." She managed to get out.

Brylee's gaze softened as she nodded, standing back up and heading away. Magnolia heard her say it was all done, and heard Dakota's familiar footsteps. He squatted down, taking her hand in his and rubbing his other hand over it assuredly. Magnolia closed her eyes softly, falling into a deep sleep.

"Hey, Dakota. Maybe you should get some rest. I can watch her for a while and tell you when she wakes up." Phoenix said, placing a hand on Dakota's shoulder. Dakota's eyes were droopy and tired, but he was not allowing himself to fall asleep. He was still squatting in front of Magnolia, watching her every breath as if it somehow would help him stay awake.

Dakota shook his head at Phoenix, not wavering his eyes away. Phoenix sighed, looking at the sky. The sun was descending, the clouds melting together, causing the sky to look like a painted picture.

"Alright, if you change your mind, I'll be with the others." Phoenix walked away, joining Hudson and Slate as they argued.

"It's not even moving, it's like it wants to be eaten!" Slate said, pointing at the wolf sitting before them. It's eyes were open but bored.

"Who would want to be eaten, Slate? Magnolia bandaged it's leg, so we need to wait and see what she says." Hudson argued back, placing his hands on his waist.

"Well that means we better start hunting then, so we don't starve another day." Phoenix spoke up, tossing Slate his handgun. Slate glared at Hudson one last time before storming away to his tent. Hudson sighed, nodding at Phoenix, "I'll go get our stuff."

Phoenix ran a hand through his thick blonde hair before sitting in front of the wolf. It made eye contact with him, and Phoenix slowly placed his hand on the wolf's head, petting it.

"Strange." Phoenix muttered, standing back up.

"River, can you watch the wolf? Make sure no one kills it." Hudson asked, sliding his knife into his pocket, handing Phoenix his bow and quiver. River nodded, glancing at the wolf tiredly. She was fumbling with Slate's radio, turning it to the specific station she liked. She looked as if she was going to fall asleep any minute.

"Come on, ladies. Let's go." Phoenix teased, waving Hudson and Slate along into the woods. Brylee watched them leave before she headed into her tent without another word. She was weary from all the travelling they had done and very hungry, losing her energy fast.

When Magnolia woke up, Dakota was right there at her side, hand in her hand. She gasped, yanking her hand out of his and flailing it around, trying to scoot away from him, "NO! Get away from me!"

Hurt flashed across Dakota's face, but only for a second. Magnolia narrowed her eyes at him, "Dakota?" The nightmares felt so real when she slept, so she sighed a relief when she saw Dakota next to her. She began sobbing, unable to control her tears. "I'm so selfish. I should've never left the castle. What was I thinking?" She placed her head in her shaky hands.

Dakota reached his hand out, but thought better of it, and recoiled. Magnolia, not having seen it, curled up next to him, crying into his t-shirt. "I need to leave. I need to go back."

Dakota rested his strong arms around her back, careful not to hurt her.

"No." He muttered into her hair. She shook, trying to stop herself from crying. Backing away, she slowly wiped her face before looking into Dakota's eyes.

"Everyone I get close to either dies or leaves. I just need to give up." She looked upward, finding that the sky was cloudy and it looked as if it was about to storm. She always enjoyed storms, but that was when she lived in the castle, and wasn't living outside.

"Hey," Dakota said softly, placing a hand on her shoulder, "I don't plan on dying anytime soon, or leaving you. And there's no way in this hellish kingdom that I'm letting you give up on me." Dakota reached down and helped her sit up, his hand gently guiding her back against a tree. Magnolia flinched in pain when her back hit the trunk, swallowing hard. She knew he meant what he said, and that's what pained her even more.

"You okay?" Dakota let go of her hand and stood up beside her. Magnolia nodded, biting down on her lip. Wiping her eyes, she gathered her hair together and began to braid it down her back as Dakota watched. He noticed that it began to hurt her once she got lower down her hair, her scars getting to the best of her as she just gave up and dropped her hands.

"Here, um, let me." Dakota stepped toward her, carefully lifting her up and over so that her back was against his legs. She relaxed against him as he reached down and began to braid her long wavy hair. The remembrance of how to do it was fresh in his mind as if all those years in between had never existed. Tears swelled in his eyes as he wove the hair together and pulled the rubber band off of Magnolia's wrist, wrapping the bottom of her hair tightly.

Magnolia wondered where he learned to do that, but didn't try asking. "Thanks." She murmured, looking up at him in awe.

"I used to braid my sister's hair." His coarse voice came out like he was choking. Magnolia should've looked away but she didn't. Instead, she grabbed onto the tree and stood up carefully so that she could be closer to him, knowing he wouldn't sit down. She placed her thumbs under his eyes, wiping his tears away gently.

Dakota broke the eye contact when he felt a drop of rain fall on his face, and he looked up at the stormy sky. The rain was just barely spitting at them, and it didn't phase him or Magnolia. Dakota gave her some water, taking her back to where the others would be to find out the boys had gone hunting and the girls had went to sleep. Slate's radio still played, a woman's voice singing slowly even though the rain began to pick up.

Magnolia placed her head in her hands, frustrated. She shouldn't have come back. She should've stayed strong and stayed put. She let Dakota escape her when she knew the whole time that doing so was putting all of the runaways in severe danger, especially now that the King knew who they were. She felt something soft hit her knee and she looked down in astonishment. Arrow was looking up at her, as if he'd been waiting for her this whole time. She sat down, the rain spilling over her, drenching her hair, skin, and dress. She placed her head into the wolf's soft neck, whispering, "I just don't know anything anymore."

Dakota glanced at her, knowing he shouldn't even try to brighten her mood. He wasn't one for lifting people up, or showing compassion at all. But there was this sudden pull and urge to go over to her and at least try.

Dakota's dark mop of curls fell into his face, water dripping down onto his cheekbones. He quickly ran a hand through his hair, getting them out of his eyes so he could see her. A new song began on the radio as he approached.

He stepped up to her silently, and she didn't even look at him. Dakota cleared his throat, reaching out his wet hand. "Dance with me?"

Magnolia slowly moved her eyes up at him, loosening her hold on the wolf next to her. She looked at him with a slight concern that he was teasing with her, but when he didn't move, she finally clasped her hand over his. Slowly and gently, Dakota raised her to her feet, wrapping a hand around her waist as she placed her extra hand on his upper back. Biting his bottom lip, and having no clue what he was doing, they began to step and sway to the slow beat of the song. Rain fell down onto Magnolia's long eyelashes, clouding her vision.

Sudden happiness flooded her and she couldn't focus on anything but Dakota. He stood before her, gazing into her eyes thoughtfully. She was almost frightened of the new emotions that happened to trump every other feeling. Her pain seemed to dissolve away as she was suddenly aware of the warmth Dakota's hands were providing.

Magnolia slowly rested her head on his chest, and he swallowed roughly at the gesture. His hand tightened a little on her waist, their sways slowing down as the song came to a stop. She backed up a little, not wanting the moment to end. It was the first time in a long time she had stopped thinking. Stopped remembering.

Magnolia drew closer to him, until there was barely enough space for even one drop of rain to fall in between them. Dakota tensed as her hand slowly released his, sliding up his arm and onto his shoulder. He gazed into her eyes, which were watching her own hand move. She clasped her hands together in the back of his neck, the wet dark curls at the end of his long hair tickling the tops of her fingers. Dakota relaxed under her touch as rain dripped from his long eyelashes, his gaze dropping to her mouth. He placed his free hand on the other side of Magnolia's waist, causing her to shiver. He had no idea why or how he suddenly felt like there was no one else in the kingdom but Magnolia and himself, the risks and possibilities endless. He felt like the sun was finally coming out, even in the midst of the downpour. His heart sped up, and he didn't know how to explain the sudden burst energy he was feeling, like he'd just been electrocuted.

He ducked his head a little, closing his eyes. Hesitating, leaving about an inch in between the two of them, he reopened his eyes slightly to see her expression.

Magnolia watched the water drop heavily from Dakota's mop of hair and over his face, widening her big blue eyes at him as he bent low. She nodded slightly at him, moving into that inch left. A bit frightened, his lips just barely brushed hers carefully.

Magnolia, finally accepting what was right in front of her, placed her lips onto his gently. Dakota sucked in a breath under her lips, kissing her back without hesitation. Tilting her head slightly, Magnolia reached her hand up to the back of his head, running her bony fingers through his thick hair. Dakota slid his right hand up her back gently, and she fell into it a little, arching her back.

To Magnolia, it wasn't just a kiss. Unlike Archer and Chase, it wasn't a sorrowful expression, or a distraction. It was the first big step into trusting and opening up to someone. They both knew it was going to take time for each other to fully open up, but the feeling of utter aloneness disappeared in the both of them, and it made it feel like as if being alone was just a figment of their imagination. And for the first time, the horrible doubts and regrets seemed so distant.

Dakota opened his lips up a little onto hers, hardening the kiss desperately. Finally, he stepped back, breathing heavily, gasping for air. Magnolia regathered her breath, biting down onto her bottom lip. She tried hiding her joy because she didn't regret the kiss at all. In fact, she craved more.

Dakota looked down at Magnolia, backing up but unable to move his hands from her. "I-"

Magnolia took the step back toward him, placing one hand on his chest and one in the back of his head. "Shh, it's okay. We're okay." She murmured, her breath tickling his chin.

Dakota's gaze softened before he looked away from her, shaking his head. His hair flopped right back into his eyes, and Magnolia reached up and ran her fingers through it, moving it off his soaking wet face. Dakota relaxed again, slowly moving his eyes back to hers.

He ran his tongue along his lips, "But-"

"Shut up." Magnolia shook her head against his, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.

"Did you just tell me to-" Magnolia cut him off, replacing her lips back onto his. He moaned, running a hand along the outline of her torso. He reached her braid, pulling the tie out so that her hair released around her shoulders, down her chest and back. Tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, Dakota moved his lips along hers hungrily.

The rain never stopped, and neither did they. Dakota didn't know what or how this was happening, but he couldn't bring himself to let go of her. And it was obvious she didn't want him to, as she drew so close that there was no room left between them at all.

A fake cough interrupted them completely, and they both turned their heads toward Slate, who quit his coughing as soon as the attention was directed at him. "Um, wow. Nice one, Dakota."

Magnolia jumped back, watching as Dakota gave Slate a death glare that made him look like a mass murderer. Hudson was smiling ear to ear, eyes flickering back and forth between the two of them. Phoenix had two rabbits hanging from between his fingers, his eyes wide in shock, his left eyebrow raised high at Dakota.

Dakota glanced at Magnolia apologetically, placing a hand over his eyes shamefully.

"Hey, man, don't stop now just because we arrived. Carry on." Slate said, smirking. Dakota looked as if he was going to behead Slate right there. Before any of that could start, Magnolia grabbed his hand, tugging him away from the three boys who were frozen in surprise.

"Come on." She whispered, and he gave in, following her.

They reach the familiar field of flowers and tall grass, the rain stopping almost completely. Dakota shook out his sopping wet hair, letting water droplets fly all over the flowers.

Freedom.

Magnolia didn't feel it when she stated her opinion in front of a crowd. She didn't feel it when she got the right to choose what to wear, where to sit, or how to act.

She felt it in the breeze.

She felt it when the damp wind crashes against her tan skin, sending shivers up her arms.

Freedom reigned most when she listened to the birds chirp around her, the grass blowing up against her ankles.

She felt more free than ever when she stopped, closed her eyes, and released her worries. Magnolia stretched her arms outward, her long wavy brown hair blowing behind her.

Dakota watched her in amazement as she dropped her arms, turning her head slightly at him. Realizing he wasn't right behind her, she ran over next to him, shivering from the cold breeze.

"You done flying?" He whispered in her ear, causing goosebumps to form on her arms.

"Soaring. I was soaring. There's a difference." Magnolia corrected, turning to face him. He smirked slightly, "Yeah?"

"Yeah." She whispered against his chin, eyes widening up at him as she tugged her arms around his waist and rested her head on his warm chest. She realized she would never get enough of him, would never want to stop touching him. It was like touching him cured her pain and her heartache.

Dakota had never been touched the way she did it, and it caused him to lose all train of thought until he could only think about her.

Dakota's eyes shadowed over, "I'm sorry about the three idiots back there."

Magnolia didn't answer, just shook her head as if it hadn't bothered her at all. It really hadn't, it just interrupted something that she didn't want to stop. Though seeing Dakota embarrassed was worth it all.

"No, I really am sorry." He added, running a hand through her hair gently.

Suddenly, the happiness and pain-free moment turned into something else entirely. She tried to resist, but it came out naturally.

Magnolia smiled.

"Oh, God." Dakota stepped back, letting Magnolia's arms drop to her sides.

"What?" Magnolia frowned, confused. Dakota rubbed a hand furiously on his forehead, glancing back at her carefully as if one look at her would be the end of him.

He shook his head, the corners of his mouth twitching upward. "Don't ever do that again."

Magnolia furrowed her eyebrows, "Do what?"

Dakota stepped closer, running a hand through his hair, trying to keep his wild eyes off of her. "Dang, that smile. Princess, that smile is going to make me go insane."

"My smile?" There it was again. Magnolia's lips curved up, the joy no longer hiding.

Dakota's gaze dropped to her smiling lips, his eyes looking sleepy with hunger, "Yes. God, Maggs, it's beautiful."

Magnolia laughed out loud, the sound unknown to her. Dakota's eyes widened out of their sockets, "Okay, I need to literally forget the last minute and half. You're making me lose my mind, Princess."

Magnolia puckered out her bottom lip, teasing him. Tired, she sat down in the flowers, looking up at him daringly and questionably.

And he sat down.