Island Wolf: Oh - oh no, this was never supposed to have a cohesive plot...dammit. Ah ha, yes apparently these are starting to form their own little continuity...oops. WELP it's now a thing so enjoy the next installment of this - well I don't know what to call it. Really I have nothing else to do when I'm feeling so crappy, but I suppose that's the price you pay when you go running downtown barefoot in the rain - don't judge me, my sandal broke and I was dying for some 3 AM poutine.

Disclaimer: I own nothing of course...except my delicious, delicious pulled pork poutine.


It was an absolute bloody nightmare.

The trek through the desert had been brutal and by it's ending May had been in excruciating pain, radiating down her lower limbs from the small of her back. She had barely been able to stand under her own power by the time they arrived in Nimbasa City and had made an immediate beeline for the nearest medical clinic. A quick examination by the physician and an MRI sometime later had confirmed the doctor's suspicions and May's worst fear – a lumbar disc herniation caused by having her feet pulled out so suddenly from under her and then falling on her lower back. It was a relatively mild one, the doctor had assured her, and she should heal fine on her own provided she didn't over exert herself in the near future. So, now here she was, on day two of bed rest and swallowing anti-inflammatory painkillers like they were going out of style to try and cope with the pain. She whimpered and pulled the blankets over her head – Christ, what a pitiful sight I must be.

"How are you feeling?"

Maxie's voice was low and quiet as he gently pulled the blankets away from her face. She grimaced as he smoothed the hair back away from her face and tried her best not to pout. "Like shit. I've had broken bones that hurt less than this."

"Word to the wise I can guarantee it doesn't hurt as much as being shot."

"If you're trying to make me humble enough to stop complaining you are sorely mistaken my friend."

He chuckled at that and pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead, making her glad that most of the lights were off so that he couldn't see how deeply she was blushing. His hand moved from her hair to settle on her collarbone, rubbing his thumb along the bone in a soothing motion as he slid his other hand beneath her lower back. The doctor had given him a brief lesson in how to tell if the muscles in her back were in spasm and he'd taken it upon himself to check any time the pain became particularly intense. It also let him note if the tissue was still inflamed by how much heat was radiating off of her skin. It was a strange feeling having his hand slide up beneath her shirt – skin to skin contact was so intimate by nature and it tended to either make her brain stall completely, or have it running a mile a minute into some very dangerous territory.

"You're taking your sweet time," she quipped, trying to prevent her mind from wandering. "Admit it you just like the chance to feel me up."

"Maybe I do," he fired back as he traced the length of her spine and hiking her tank top up dangerously high. Her retort died in her throat, turning into a high-pitched squeak that made him laugh as he pulled away.

"You're awful."

"Hmm yes, but it's entirely your fault."

"Come on, I'm the one who's injured here – where's the sympathy?"

"That may have gone out the window when you threw your pill bottle at me and called me a, oh what was it now, an 'immeasurable, egotistical, pompous bastard'"

"...In my defence I was delirious with pain...and you are a bit of a bastard."

"Not helping yourself," he said with a grin as he sat down on his bed to finish reading the daily paper that had been delivered to their room. May huffed and settled back down into the mattress. Ever since arriving in Nimbasa City she'd been forced to rely on him rather heavily just to get around. She didn't know which had been more embarrassing, the look the desk clerk had given them upon seeing him carrying her into the hotel, or the coos of congratulations an elderly woman had given them for the entire duration of the elevator ride. Maxie, feeling apparently mischievous, had decided to play along with all of it. May had been grateful when they reached their floor – the old woman had starting talking about babies and she had felt her brain starting to melt. Once she could walk properly again she was going to get him back for that. After a few minutes he glanced at her, his eyes significantly softer than before. It made her feel curiously warm and she was hard pressed not to blush again under his gaze. "Let me know if it gets that bad again though please."

She looked at him and smiled, all plans of vengeance abruptly fleeing her mind. "I will."

"You ought to get some sleep you know. If you're feeling up to it in the morning we'll go out for breakfast."

"Sounds lovely, but if I'm not well enough?"

His grin both excited and worried her. "Oh I'll figure something out."

May rolled her eyes as he returned to his newspaper and she tried to get herself in a position comfortable enough to sleep. At least the painkillers had a tendency to make her drowsy so it wasn't long before she was yawning and the room began drifting out of focus as she drifted into a doze.

When Maxie heard a soft snore from the other bed he smiled to himself and set down his newspaper. A glance to his left saw May sleeping soundly now that the painkillers had finally kicked in. The poor girl really had gotten herself into quite a state – it wasn't often the hero of Hoenn had to swallow her pride and let her former nemesis carry her over the threshold as it were. He was hard pressed not to laugh at the memory of the elevator ride to their room on that first night in the city. Her wrath would be terrible no doubt, when she was able to move under her own power again, but whatever revenge she unleashed on him that moment he'd rendered May Maple truly and utter speechless was well worth it.

He glanced at the sleeping young woman again and felt his smile falter somewhat. It had been far too easy to pretend that she was indeed his blushing bride and that was...concerning. They'd been flirting with that delicate boundary between them very frequently in the past two weeks and that line in the sand was rapidly becoming blurred. Maxie rose and crossed the room, standing by May's bedside. Her smoky brown hair was spread in a messy halo around her head, one lock stretched over her pale face. Compulsively he brushed it aside and took a moment to study the delicate features it had hidden. She'd always been a small and slight individual, and time hadn't changed that very much. She'd gained a few inches in height, filled out a little in her hips and her face had become thinner and more mature, but the feature that had changed the most were her eyes. Those azure orbs that had blazed so brightly behind a haze of smoke and embers were still that same breathtaking shade of blue, but they seemed deeper somehow, burning with an entirely different kind of fire than they had years ago. She hardly seemed real sometimes, this vision of light and strength that had materialized back into his life like some fae thing.

When had she grown up into such a beautiful woman?

...A beautiful woman who had entirely too much power over him.

It was troubling really, how much he cared about her. He was quickly realizing that there wasn't much he wouldn't do for her, and her smiles – he'd started craving them like a drug. He'd do anything to have her smile at him and see those blue eyes dance with their otherworldly light and he was starting to think that maybe, just maybe she was starting to feel just a bit fond of him. That in itself was troubling. May Maple was a goddamned hero, a Champion, a paragon – certainly not the type to become involved with jaded and bitter old men like him.

He dragged a hand over his face with a soft groan before snatching up his coat and putting it on. Gabriel looked at him questioningly from the foot of May's bed.

"I'll be back later. Watch her while I'm gone."

The Mightyena nodded his head once before laying back down and letting Maxie take his leave. It was just past midnight and there was a bitter chill in the air, but Nimbasa City was far from asleep. Lights glittered brightly in the cold night air and the city centre was aglow with streetlamps and skylights from the skyscrapers and large buildings that surrounded it. He walked until he came to the town square, marked by a set of three extravagant and immaculately carved white marble fountains displaying a variety of mythical and legendary pokémon surrounded by nymphs and sprites of all kinds. They really were works of art, lit up beautifully by lights both beneath the shimmering waters and around the stone lips of the basins. Around them buskers and performers practised their craft, hoping to earn a few extra dollars before the night ended.

Maxie reached into his pocket and pulled out a carton of cigarettes, placing one between his lips before lighting it. He'd been careful to hide the habit from his companion, but on a night like tonight when his thoughts ran wild and gnawed at him relentlessly, he needed it. He stared at one of the statues, a water nymph frozen in dance beneath one of Lugia's outstretched wings, but when her ethereal features started to remind him of May he wrinkled his nose in distaste and exhaled smoke like a dragon. Quickly finishing the cigarette he flicked the butt onto the concrete and ground it out with the heel of his shoe. What on earth was he going to do...

He started walking again, away from the brightly lit square and towards the darker side streets, turning up the collar of his coat against the cold. By rights he should leave, disappear and leave her to be free of him and continue on her journey alone as she'd originally planned, but just the thought sent an almost physical pain lancing through his chest. He'd been alone for eight years until she'd found him on the deck of that ship, strange fateful creature that she was, and made him laugh more than he had in the last decade.

"There."

Maxie felt the hair on the nape of his neck stand up as every survival instinct he possessed started ringing alarm bells in his head, but he kept walking, not allowing his gait to falter. Glancing into the side window of a parked car he confirmed his suspicions when he noted two men in dark clothing tailing him. Putting his hands in his pockets Maxie smiled grimly to himself. Team Plasma no doubt. Ghetsis was likely not pleased at his and May's show of force on the road and had sent someone to take care of the problem. Well, if that was the case he would lead them on a merry chase.

He casually took a turn down another side street, using the opportunity to glance back at his tail and was suddenly aware that there was only one man following him now. Maxie turned away and furrowed his brow – why would they have split unless...

Fear hit him like a blow to the gut. They had noted that he was alone, which meant they had probably and rightly assumed that May was also alone and in her condition she would stand no chance. The other man must have broken away to circle back to the hotel – if his companion failed to dispose of one target they at least had a chance of taking out the other. He felt his hands start to shake from the terrible rage he felt burning in his chest. Oh, they would regret this.

Maxie broke out into a run down a darkened street and the ducked swiftly into a side alley, listening as the running footsteps behind him grew closer. Just before the grunt was about to pass he stepped out of the alleyway and brought his arm up. The man tailing him slammed into the outstretched limb with such force that his legs came out from underneath him and he went crashing down to the pavement. He'd barely hit the ground before Maxie seized him by the collar and dragged him upright, slamming him against the alley wall as he hissed. "Alright you sack of filth, who sent you!"

The grunt sneered and Maxie saw him preparing to spit so he abruptly threw him down and put his foot on the back of the man's neck, pressing down mercilessly. "I asked you a question and you will answer it unless you want to protect your master with your life. Are you with Team Plasma?"

"Y-Yes!"

"Where did you partner go?" When he received no answer he grabbed hold of the man's right arm and started to pull in backwards. There was a loud pop and the man screamed. "Where did he go!"

"To - to the hotel! Please, please let m-me go! I'll do anything!"

"You can crawl back to Ghetsis and tell him that if he pulls a stunt like this again, I will bury him with my own hand! Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes, God yes just p-please!"

Sneering, Maxie let him go and dealt him a swift blow on the back of the neck that knocked him out cold. He left the grunt lying face down in the alley and started sprinting back towards the hotel, praying that he wasn't too late.


May wasn't sure what had woken her up, but she did so with a start and sat up despite the pain rippling through her lower back. She looked around the room groggily, feeling ill at ease and just knowing that things were not as they should have been. A look to her right saw that the bed was empty – in fact there was no sign of Maxie in the room and his coat was missing. Almost immediately a lump formed in her throat and she threw back the covers with a barely contained sob. Gabriel whined at being disturbed and barked, trying to get her attention, but she ignored the fussing canine as she scrabbled to turn on the light. She could barely see through the tears starting to build up in her eyes as she struggled to put on her boots find her coat, completely disregarding any and all pain as she did so. All she knew was that she had to find out where he'd gone, because something deep in her psyche told her that things were terribly amiss.

An odd clicking sound at the door made her freeze and Gabriel immediately stopped his whining, instead jumping down from the bed with flattened ears and a growl rumbling deep in his throat. Cautiously, she edged towards the door and tried to look through the peep hole. Without warning the door was flung open, knocking both her and Gabriel to the ground. Pain exploded in her lower back with such intensity that black spots danced across her vision. When it finally cleared she looked up and saw a man, darkly dressed and hooded, looming above her with a switchblade in his gloved hand. He leered at her, baring crooked and yellowed teeth.

"Hello there gorgeous. It's going to be a real shame to carve up that pretty face of yours, but orders are orders. If you hold still, I can make a quick job of it – you won't feel much I promise."

Paralysed by pain and fear there was little she could do as he started leaning down towards her. Gabriel shook off his daze and leapt in front of her, baring his teeth and snarling savagely. The man sneered and brandished his knife menacingly. "Back off mutt or I'll open you up from gut to jaws."

The Mightyena was not cowed in the slightest and snapped his jaws fiercely. The man rolled his eyes and huffed a sigh, then moving quicker than May would have that possible, darted in. His knife flashed and she heard a yelp before something warm and wet splattered against her face. Reflexively her tongue darted out to clean her lips and she tasted salt and copper as Gabriel fell back with a deep knife wound over the red ruin of his left eye. Half blind with blood streaming down his face the canine could do little between his whines and snarls as the man started leaning down towards his trainer again. A scream bubbled up in May's throat, but just as the man's reddened switchblade brushed against her cheek he was suddenly and violently pulled backwards.

Maxie was standing at the doorway with a look of cold fury on his face that sent a chill running down her spine. The man with the knife cursed and rolled back onto his feet, slashing out with his blade as he did so. Maxie nimbly dodged it and managed to plant a solid right hook to the man's jaw, sending him staggering with a crunch and a spray of blood. Using the man's daze to his advantage Maxie grabbed his wrist and twisted until he dropped the knife. Losing his weapon only seemed to anger the would-be-assassin and he managed to bring his knee up into Maxie's side, winding him and forcing him to let go.

Maxie snarled and immediately gave chase as the assailant ran into the stairwell, trying to head to a lower level, but he seized the back of his coat and pulled him back. The man spat and twisted out of his grasp, shoving past him to the stairs leading up towards the higher floors and the roof. Maxie bared his teeth in a savage grin – perfect, there'd be nowhere to run. He heard the bang as his quarry shouldered open the rooftop access door and took the last few steps three at a time, trying to catch up. He emerged onto the rooftop, but the man was nowhere to be seen.

"Dammit, where'd he -"

An arm curled around his throat and quickly started choking off his air supply while putting pressure on his carotid artery. For a moment Maxie almost gave in to the blackness encroaching around the edges of his vision, but like a switch memories of his days as a cadet in training came rushing back and he stepped into the mindset of a soldier again. Using his greater stature Maxie pushed back, forcing his attacker to slam into the door frame of the rooftop access. The choke hold loosened and he managed to twist free, grabbing the man's arm and flipping him over his shoulder as he did so. Still dogged as ever the man rolled back onto his feet and brought his leg up to land a blow to his solar plexus. Winded, Maxie staggered back and dropped down onto one knee. Struggling for air there was little he could do but watch was the man vaulted over the side of the rooftop and down onto the fire-escape. Pulling himself back onto his feet he ran to edge of the roof and swore when he saw that his foe was already nearing the bottom – by the time he gave pursuit he would be long gone.

He turned and was shocked to find May standing at the doorway, her face and pyjamas still covered in blood.

"May," he said hoarsely, wincing at the soreness in his neck and throat. When she heard him speak the tears that had threatened to spill started to roll down her cheeks. He abruptly forgot about the man fleeing down the road and walked over to her. Shrugging off his coat he draped it around her shaking shoulders and pulled her close. "Shh, it's alright. Look at me May, you're alright lass."

"G-Gabe he's hurt and you -" she sobbed into his chest, pale and shaking from shock. "I don't know what to – I don't -"

He felt her legs start to give out before he heard her pained gasp and quickly gathered her up into his arms. She clung to him desperately as he carried her. "There you go, stay with me now. It's going to be alright, I promise."


Maxie grimaced, the fluorescent lights of the police station were starting to give him a headache.

They'd been there for nearly two hours now. Once the hotel had realized what was going on they'd immediately sent for the police and an ambulance. With Gabriel in the capable hands of the nearest pokémon centre and the paramedics giving both he and May the all clear, the police had insisted on dragging them down to the station to get formal statements from the both of them. Maxie had agreed, albeit reluctantly – their room was now a crime scene and it would be a little while before the hotel could provide them with another one. Still, with his record he wasn't fond of being anywhere near persons of legal authority. His agitation had increased ten fold when the Inspector in charge, a man who insisted on simply being addressed as 'Looker' had ordered them to be separated to give their own personal statements. He was not fond of leaving May, just barely recovering from the shock of the entire situation, in the hands of strangers but there was little he could do.

So, here he was in said Inspector's office quietly hoping that he didn't end up in handcuff's before dawn.

"Sorry for the delay, your companion had a great deal of information that I needed," the policeman said as he stepped inside the office and closed the door behind him. He took a seat behind his desk, opposite to Maxie and laced his fingers together. There was a knowing sort of look in the man's dark eyes and it immediately set Maxie on edge. "Now I just need your sentence to corroborate her story and the pair of you can be on your way. Please state your name for the record."

Ah, this was what he'd been fearing all night. His name might not have been all that well known to Unova's general populace, but the police force would certainly have heard of him. Still, there was little point in lying – he had a feeling this 'Looker' fellow was already well aware of just who was sitting across from him. "...Maximilian Asher."

"I appreciate the honesty," Looker said, jotting the name down on a form in the open dossier on his desk. "Now, were it up to me I would have you arrested right here and now, but as you are a Hoenn citizen extraditing you would require more paperwork than I am currently willing to put in with the current state of affairs right here in Unova...and the testimony of a former Champion didn't hurt. Besides, your testimony will be quite valuable when I finally get my hands on the ring leaders behind Team Plasma. I've been after them for quite some time."

"Then what is it that you want to know exactly?"

"We need to go back to your first run in with Team Plasma. You and Miss Maple were on the road between Castelia and Nimbasa correct?"

"Yes. We encountered two men who demanded we release our pokémon, when they refused they attacked."

"And that is when Miss Maple sustained the injury to her back?"

"Yes. One of the men had a whip and used it to pull her to the ground. The fall is what caused the injury."

"Alright, now looking at the events of this evening. I need you to start at the beginning."

"I left the hotel room just after midnight to go for a walk."

"Any particular reason for this sudden outing?"

"No," Maxie replied tersely. "I left the city centre and started towards the industrial side streets, I noticed two men tailing me. I decided to handle the situation."

"Handle it how, exactly?"

"First I tried to lose them, but then I noticed that one of them had split off...I presumed he would be heading to the hotel."

"And what happened to the other man?"

"I...incapacitated him. I asked him who he worked for, he confirmed that they were sent by Team Plasma."

"And they were specifically targeting the two of you?"

"Yes, presumably for our show of force on the road."

"What happened next?"

"I returned to the hotel and found the second man in mine and Miss Maple's room. He was threatening her with a knife. I pulled him out into the hall way, we fought and I disarmed him."

"And after you disarmed him, what did he do?"

"He ran to the stairwell, trying to get to the lower floors, but I pulled him back and blocked off the lower stairs."

"Which left him no where else to go but the roof."

"Yes. I pursued him, there was another fight, but I was overpowered and he managed to climb down the fire-escape. That's the last we saw of him."

"Hmm...alright I think I have all I need. You have confirmed Miss Maple's version of events and therefore I have no more reason to keep you here," the Inspector said, jotting down a few more notes before closing the dossier. "A word to the wise. I would try and leave Unova as soon as possible. Once Team Plasma targets people they have a habit of...disappearing. You're lucky they underestimated your competence, but they won't do so again."

"I would love to take your advice Inspector, but I doubt Miss Maple will be willing to leave."

"Oh?"

"You try telling a hero not to rush in...besides, there are people here she would like to ensure stay safe."

"I see," Looker mused. "Well, in any case I hope you'll continue to look after each other. If you find out any more information regarding Team Plasma's movements please inform me. Miss Maple is in the waiting room, you're both free to go."

Maxie gave the Inspector a curt nod and left the office, navigating the narrow hallways until he came to the open waiting room. May was sitting down in one of the chairs, a cup of coffee cradled in her hands. Her face was pale and drawn, the dark purple smudges beneath her eyes a testament to just how late it had gotten. He called to her softly. "May?"

Her relief was palpable when she saw him and set aside her coffee. He came forward and helped her to her feet, trying to take most of her weight so she could avoid straining her back more than it already had been tonight. He held her close and used one hand to smooth down her hair. "Any word on Gabriel?"

"I called the pokémon centre a little while ago, he's stable and doing fine. His eye is a lost cause though," she sniffed. "I was so worried about you. You wouldn't believe what I had to say to convince that Inspector not to arrest you!"

"Well I'm grateful for it in any case. Come on, let's get back to the hotel. You need to get some sleep."

May nodded drowsily and allowed him to lead her out of the police station where he hailed a cab and helped her inside before getting in after her. "Sheridan Hotel," he instructed the cab driver quietly, wrapping his arm around May's shoulders as she leaned into him. The cabbie, an older gentleman, glanced at them in the rear-view mirror.

"Rough night?"

"You have no idea."


Fate was being unnecessarily cruel, May decided when they arrived back at the hotel. She struggled to keep upright against the pain throbbing in her lower back, leaning heavily on Maxie's arm. He looked almost as exhausted as she felt as he argued with the desk clerk. Apparently the only rooms left in the hotel had only one bed. The clerk had said the hotel would gladly put them up, but that was all that they had available.

"That's fine, we'll take it."

Maxie looked at her with a mixture of surprise and apprehension. "May -"

"It's fine," she repeated, ignoring him and giving the hapless clerk a reassuring smile. "Something with a queen hopefully?"

"Of course Miss...ah here, room 503. Here are your key cards, we'll have your belongings sent up immediately. Again, on behalf of the hotel we want to extend our deepest apologies for what happened here tonight and rest assured our security has been tightened considerably. I'm sorry I couldn't be more helpful in finding a suitable replacement room for you."

"We'll be alright. Thank you very much for your help, it's appreciated," she said, accepting the two plastic key cards. She shifted her weight from one foot to another and cringed at the pain that shot down her leg. She looked at Maxie imploringly and felt her face heat up as she did so. "Ah, would you mind? I don't think I'm going to be able to walk much further."

His coffee dark eyes softened and she suddenly found it hard to hold his gaze as he nodded and kept on arm on her back and very carefully slid the other behind the crook of her knees so he could carry her. She felt herself blush and did her damnedest not to look at the clerk as they headed for the elevator. The steel doors slid shut and she rested her head against his chest. "Maxie...you saved me tonight...thank you."

"May I'm so sorry I wasn't there in the first place," he said morosely. "If I had been -"

"Then there would have been two of them there at the same time and we probably would have come off worse than we did," she said, cutting him off. She looked up at the purple bruises forming on his throat from where he'd been placed in a choke-hold and sighed. "I – I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't shown up when you did. I was absolutely useless...bah, some Champion."

"May you're being far too hard on yourself. You've never had to be faced with this kind of thing before. I'm sure you recall, but none of us ever tried to hurt you."

"I - I suppose," she muttered. "I just wish I'd been more useful, maybe you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

"I'm fine, I'm just glad I got there in time," he said quietly and May swore she heard his voice tremble. The elevator chimed softly and came to a halt at the fifth floor. Maxie carried her down the hall, stopping at the door marked 503. May pulled out of one the key cards and used it to open the door. The room really was lovely, a slight upgrade from their previous suite it would seem. It was fantastic aside from the single queen-sized bed, so pristine and white it seemed almost mocking as he laid her down on it. She closed her eyes as the pain gradually started to ebb away. When she opened the again she saw that Maxie had removed his coat and was settling down into the desk chair, leaning back as he prepared to fall asleep.

"Oh no you don't mister, get over here."

"What?"

"Why do you think I asked for a queen? Get in this bed!"

"May I hardly think it appropriate -"

"Appropriate? Maxie someone tried to kill us tonight, you saved my life. Appropriate has pretty much been thrown out the window. Now get over here!"

"But -"

"Please."

"I – oh alright," he grumbled and carefully eased himself down onto the bed beside her, still looking wary. May rolled her eyes and moved closer to him until she could rest her head on his chest. She sighed softly, listening to his hard beating hard behind his ribs.

"You okay? Your heart's going a mile a minute."

"Yes, I'm fine," he replied quickly. "How is your back?"

"Hurts like a son of a bitch. That second fall did not help."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing," she sighed. "It wasn't your fault. Now, if you're still feeling sorry for yourself you can put your hand up my shirt again."

His splutter of surprise made her laugh and she splayed a hand across his chest to steady herself as she dissolved into a fit of giggles. "Y-you should s-see your face, p-priceless!"

"Now you just aren't playing fair," he huffed. He maintain a feigned expression of annoyance until she leaned up and gently pressed a kiss to his cheek. It was different than the fleeting, playful pecks she'd given him in the past. Blaming it on her fatigue May let her affection bleed through and made this kiss soft and lingering. He inhaled sharply, "May..."

"I was scared when I woke up and you weren't there," she said quietly. "I thought you'd left and...I didn't know if you were coming back. That really scared me."

"May I'm not going to leave you, not unless you want me to."

"Than you're going to be sticking around for quite a while."

"That's just fine by me," he chuckled as she nestled herself more firmly into his side. They lapsed into silence and May breathed in deep, taking in his scent. She listened as his breathing evened out and deepened as he started to fall asleep. Taking advantage of the rare opportunity she looked up and studied his sleeping face. People were always supposed to look younger when they slept, but May decided that wasn't quite right. Maxie didn't look younger per se, just less worried and less burdened than he was in the waking world. A fiery wing of hair fell across his pale brow and she gently swept it back with a soft sigh.

"You really are a bastard," she grumbled and laid her head down on his chest. "How dare you make me feel this way."

Of course he was asleep and she received no answer, but if he were awake she imagined it would be dripping with sarcasm and that made her smile. Huffing a laugh she closed her eyes. "I really think I'm starting to love you, you know...now isn't that a funny little thing."