I woke up, jumping up immediately when I felt cold all over my body. I looked around and saw that I was once back in the cold cave in the cold valley near the cold mountain. My body felt numb on the inside due to me laying on the ice for so long. I looked at the ground and saw that staff lying on the cold ground. I had a feeling that I would need it, but not at this moment. As I touched it, it disappeared, and I knew that I could resummon it at will.

I started to walk out of the cave, hearing the echoes of my teeth chattering. Despite this, I made it to the exit and yelled out, "I'm alive! Everyone!"

All I heard was my echo. That was a bit discouraging, but I cried out again, "Rufus! Dude, I'm here! Please come help me, I'm freezing and don't have my wand!"

Nothing. I sighed to myself and started to walk down the narrow canyon, praying that someone would find me before I turned into a popsicle. I looked above me and saw the moon shining, its light dancing with the clouds and the features around me, causing the shadows to dance too. Thank goodness it was full, or else, I would have been completely lost. Using the light to guide me, I found my way back to the main passageway and turned left, determined to get out of this mess once more.

Maybe it was the moon playing tricks on me, but I swore I saw a human like shadow on the valley's walls when I started to walk once more. I wrapped my arms around me to conserve what little heat I had left and yelled out, "Can anyone hear me? I'm right here!"

"I can, Celesti." I pivoted myself to where I thought the voice came from and saw nothing but the patterns of the shadows caused by the dance of the moon. I squinted at the shadows to see if I could notice anything out of the ordinary and wanted to go over and investigate, when a set of arms wrapped around me to stop.

My breath hitched in my throat when I felt this, afraid of being kidnapped. I turned to see who the person was and was met with bright red eyes. Tears started to form in my eyes when I saw who it was, as I whispered out, "Rogue. Thank you for finding me."

He bent down and kissed my cheek, causing me to start warming up. He then let go of me to only scoop me up, bridal style, and we disappeared into the shadows once more. As we traveled, I saw Rogue smiling, which only reminded me of what his dragon father said. Maybe I was already doing that without knowing? Rogue looked down at me and smiled, "You're welcome, Celesti. We'll be heading to the village you were working in tonight, unless you really want to head back home."

I shook my head, "Right now, I just need to make sure I won't freeze to death. When does Master Jiemma expect myself and Rufus back?"

"Do you want the honest answer or the fluffy one?"

"Honest, please. Also, how did you end up here?"

"Sting overheard the Master talking about how he knew you are a threat to how he believes Sabertooth should be, so he wanted you to..."

"To what?"

"To be killed while on a mission."

I started to laugh a bit, as my eyes started to close out of fatigue, "That git's going to have to try harder than that to get rid of me. Trolls are easy to defeat, even a few first years at my school could have handled them."

"Regardless, I'm glad that you're okay. I don't know what I would have done without you." Rogue looked down at me and saw my eyes fighting to stay awake, and I swore a single tear fell on my face as he spoke, "Are you okay?"

"Yes. I'm just...tired. It's not everyday you get told that you can summon spirits that have long passed. Plus, the cold is sapping my energy away." I blinked my eyes once more as I felt the bitter cold air once more and quietly whispered, "Are we at the village?"

"Yes, but I'll help you get to where you're supposed to be staying."

"Thank you, but I don't want to totally wear you out. I'll be able to walk a little bit, don't worry. Besides, I have a feeling that they are expecting me."

Rogue carefully put my feet on the ground, and I leaned on him to regain my balance. Once I managed to get my balance back, I hugged him quickly as I spoke, "Thank you for all that you have done. I owe you for this, and if you need help on your mission, I'll help."

"As much as I would like for you to come with us, I think Master Jiemma would be mad at us. If you stay safe, then that is all I could ask for." He let go of me and took my hand, "Where are you at again?"

"I believe my stuff is at the place where Rufus and I met the leader of this village." I looked around and saw that the moon had reached its highest peak and sighed, "But I may not get my share of the reward, unless Rufus made it back. Long story short, the leader doubted a female brawler, so Rufus and I said we would be back by sundown to ensure that his village sleeps in peace tonight."

"I'll make sure you get it, plus, you still have quite a bit left from your first mission with Sting and I. You'll be taken care of, right now, you just need to rest."

"Thanks." I saw the building ahead and rushed towards it, looking forward to the warmth of being indoors. I opened the door carefully, and saw the stout leader sitting on his throne. I heard the door quietly shut behind me, and saw Rogue was standing near it, trying to look tough.

The leader approached me, wonder in his eyes. He looked at me and smiled, "Good to see you, Celesti. Thank you for proving me wrong, and regardless, you'll get your share of the reward. Your partner has already left."

"Did he say why he left?"

"Something about Master Jiemma calling him back to the guild, with or without you. Trust me, he did not want to leave, but Jiemma was insistent, saying that the main mission was complete."

I frowned at hearing these words, the words that validated that what Sting had overheard was true. Quickly recovering, I nodded at the leader, "Thank you for letting me know that. Might I ask where my stuff is at?"

"Right over here." He gestured to where my backpack was and I walked over and grabbed it. I slung the backpack over my right shoulder and as I did, he spoke, "Your reward is already in your bag. My village and I thank you for not only solving the trolls issue, but also accepting the tamer's quest. Should you ever need anything, let us know, summoner."

"Thank you so much." I bowed and started to walk out of there, planning on taking the train back to Sabertooth, except, I had to walk back to Margaret Town. I was not looking forward to that in the middle of the freezing night, especially since I couldn't Apparate without it or do any magic, but Rogue had different ideas. Once I had walked out of the building, he grabbed onto my hand once more, and the sudden warmth shocked me, "Is everything alright?"

Rogue nodded at me, "Yes. I'm just glad that everything worked out for you."

"Would Rufus leave like that under his own willpower on missions usually? I left my bow, quiver, wand, and your cloak with him when I went to lure the trolls out into the sunlight. Has the Master done something like this before?"

"It does sound a lot like Jiemma, but I would always ask Rufus first. I'll make sure to be around when you do that."

"Might I ask, why are you so protective of me?" I looked up into his red eyes and saw them looking at my own. I sensed that he didn't expect that question, so I blurted out, "I'm sorry if that's too personal for you! I'm so sorry if I did something like that."

Rogue shook his head and slightly smiled, "You did nothing wrong, Celesti. Truth is, I'm still trying to figure that out myself. I can't recall feeling this way about anything else, beyond wanting Frosch to stay safe and sound. However, this much I do know: you're special to me. I don't even remember caring this much for a human before."

"Not even Sting, your so-called twin?"

"Nope. He's kind of like a brother to me."

"Then who am I to you?"

"Someone I want to spend an eternity with, but I want to make sure of that. Also, considering we just met a few days ago and the fact that our guild master has a vendetta for you, I don't want to hurt you. Anyhow, if you want you can tag along with Sting and I on this mission, so then the Master can cool off for a few days. Or, you can go back to the guild tomorrow. Not until you rest up though."

I nodded at him and smiled weakly, "Thank you for being honest with me. Until I met you, I didn't know darkness could feel so warm and welcoming. I always feel safe around you and never worry about what's to come. Thank you for everything that you do. Where are you two staying at?"

We were approaching an inn near the station, and Rogue pointed at it, "Here. Will this do for the night?"

"As long as I can warm up, then yes! Thank you for letting me crash with Sting and you once more. I'll know what I want to do tomorrow, so then I feel better." We walked into the inn and I followed Rogue up a hallway to the very end of the room, where I heard loud snoring.

Rogue opened the door and I saw Sting passed out in bed, sleeping rather loudly. I couldn't help but laugh a little bit when I saw Rogue walk over to Sting and say, "I'm back. Celesti is here too, so would you keep it down?"

"No guarantees..." Sting then rolled over and went back to sleep, not even caring that he was just awoken by his partner.

This only made me laugh even more. I smiled as I set my bags down near a pullout couch, while Rogue got ready for bed. I managed to set up the bed and did not even care that I was still in my outfit for the day when I saw the comforter that came with the bed. I started to get into the bed when I felt Rogue grab my right wrist carefully. I looked up at him and he nodded at my outfit, "Celesti, go change into drier clothes. I'm not going to barge in on you."

"I sense some concern from you." I smirked at him, "But you're right. I forgot that snow and ice are just frozen water. I'll be out in a few." I walked into the bathroom and noticed that my outfit was soaking wet, and was grateful that Rogue pointed this out to me. I came out a few minutes later wearing a t-shirt and some capri pants. I didn't even care about the colors because they were the warmest sets of clothes that I had.

I sat on the side of my bed and nodded at Rogue, who was looking at me, "Better?" Without even giving him a chance to respond, I retorted, "I would recommend you do the same, since you helped me. I'm going to bed though, so don't worry about me barging in."

I heard him walk by me into the bathroom and I pretended to close my eyes, smirking and laughing to myself. With this smile on my face, I slowly started to drift off to sleep, knowing that I was happy, healthy, and safe, minus being a bit chilly. I was so tired that I didn't even notice myself reacting to the cold.

I was awoken when I felt someone picking up my body. I opened my eyes and saw Rogue carrying me over to his bed. He looked down at me and smiled, "You were shivering a bit, so I wanted to make sure you were warmed up."

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me! I just need some sleep, and I'll be okay."

"Here." Rogue gently put me on the other large bed in the room. I laid on the bed and turned to face him as he laid on the other side. He rolled over to face me and kissed my forehead, "Get some sleep, alright? You'll be warmer here than on the pullout."

"You don't mind?"

"I actually like it better this way. Now get under the covers and get some sleep."

I slipped underneath the covers and rolled to face away from him, "Thank you. Good night, Rogue."

"Good night, Celesti. Please let me know if you need anything."

I felt his eyes on my back, as I tried to doze off. Eventually, I rolled back over and faced him. I frowned a bit at him as I spoke, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just thinking."

"About what?" I sat up in the bed as I stifled a yawn with my hand, "It's too late to do any serious thinking though."

"I'm thinking about you. Is it bad that I want to hold you as you fall asleep?" My face started to turn red at this, but in my mind...it sounded really nice.

"No, not at all. It might help me stay a bit warmer too." I smiled at him as I laid back down, facing him, "Regardless, I'm going to try and get some shut eye."

I felt two arms wrap around me, and I got pulled closer to Rogue. I opened my left eye and saw his two bright red eyes smiling at me. Rogue whispered to me, "Get some sleep, Celesti."

"Same to you." It did not take me long to doze off, the warmth of his darkness cradling me into a deep slumber. If I could stay in this moment forever, I would.