Audrey sat there on the ground, unmoving for what seemed like forever. She had finally gotten her trembling to stop after Byrne had left her alone and had stemmed the bleeding of her wrist. The four long, thin cuts on one side from his fingers, accompanied by a slightly deeper one on the other side from his thumb, were red and stinging, but other than that they would heal in a few weeks time. The pain wasn't what had unsettled her; she'd had worse before (a broken arm from when she had fallen out of a tree at the age of 7). It was Byrne himself that had frightened her.

He had appeared to have no control of his actions and as she thought before, had not even been himself. He had taken on a completely different demenor; usually he was stealthy and limber in his posture, with light footing and bright, sharp eyes. But moments ago, all that had changed. He had taken on a threatening stance and had walked up to her, shoulders hunched and fists clenching, with what seemed like a harmful purpose. But the worst part had been his eyes, which had morphed into something she hadn't seen even in her darkest nightmares. He had truly looked demon-possessed and she had feared for her life.

Was this a part of his power? Had he meant to do that, or had he unknowingly changed into, what could only be described as, a beast? Audrey had no idea what had happened, and she really didn't want to stick around to find out. She had been too cautious and timid on the way here to make an attempt to escape, but she would have to act soon if she wanted to get herself and Zelda to safety. She would have to put her fear aside and focuse on the problem at hand. Byrne was not to be trusted, even if she had seen some good in him before, he was obviously, and now unpredictably dangerous. She would keep her distance.

Audrey slowly lifted her head to look around and her eyes once again fell on Zelda's unmoving body. She seemed to be unharmed, other than being unconcious, and Audrey was thankful for that. If any harm had come to the princess, she could never forgive herself. She unwrapped her arms from around herself and slowly stood on shaking legs. Looking around a few more times for any sign of Byrne or Cole, she started walking towards the pedestal where the princessess' body was laying limp. She reached the steps that led up the platform and was about to take the first step when she heard a voice right behind her. She felt all the blood drain from her face as she recognised Cole's pitchy shriek.

"What do you think you're doing you little worm?" His voice was full of taunting malice and Audrey felt her body freeze up in panic. She was alone with Cole, and she had left her sword on the train. Her heart was hammering in her ribcage, yet she couldn't bring herself to take a single breath. She slowly turned as much as she could to face him, and was greeted with sharp jagged teeth and beady, black eyes.

"I asked you a question human." He growled, but Audrey couldn't find the words to reply. That seemed to make Cole even angrier, because he drew his arm back, and before Audrey could even register what was happening, she was struck across the face and let out a painful cry as she was sent skidding across the stone ground. Her cheek was pulsing and she could already feel the bruise forming, along with a trickle of blood that ran down her chin from her now split lip. She pushed herself up onto her knees as quickly as she could and held a hand to the side of her face, angry tears now slipping from her eyes; for such a small creature, he was quite powerful.

Cole flew up into her face and let out an amused cackle, no doubt taking joy in her pain. She felt a spark of painful anger at this and swung out with her own fist, aiming right for his jaw. Unfortunately, she missed as he flew backwards and dodged her fist. She caught herself before falling flat on her face and looked up to see his face full of fury. He let out a screeching growl and held both his hands up, once again summoning the familiar dark magic he possessed. It shifted into orbs at each of his palms and his black soulless eyes were locked with her frightened hazel ones. This was bad. This was very bad.

-

Byrne had teleported to the next level below them in hopes of checking on his old room. He hadn't seen it in over a year and hoped it wasn't in as bad a shape as he expected it to be. If it had been kept clean, he would know by who. As much as he hated to admit it, he would be greatful if it had indeed been taken care of. He had put Audrey through enough, and wanted a safe place for her to rest. It was strange to him that he would care so much for a humans wellbeing, but he could not doubt the strong feelings that swirled within him at even the mention of her name. Having her somewhere safe where he could keep watch over her was important now, and would bring him an immense feeling of reliefe.

But now all he could feel was guilt and remorse. He still couldn't understand what had come over him, he had never lost control of himself like that and it seemed to be getting worse lately. He would admit that he'd always had a short temper before, but this was ridiculous! He felt angrier and colder with each passing day and wondered if resurrecting Malladus had anything to do with it. He was, after all, the demon king. Maybe some of the dark magic had just gotten to him, that was probably what was putting him off. Such power would effect even someone of his race.

Byrne shook his head and continued down the corridor to his old quarters. It led to a large, dark blue door that seemed cleaner that it probably should; no dust or spiderwebs could be seen and he half wondered if the old sage had been taking care of it in his absence. He placed his flesh hand on the knob and turned it, but it wouldn't budge. "Locked…" he mumbled under his breath. He closed his eyes, concentrating his power on the latch withing the door and imagined it coming undone. After a second, it produced a satisfying 'click' and he turned it completly, opening the door slowly. He peered inside and noted first that it was very dark. He opened the door a bit wider and quietly stepped inside, his eyes quickly adjusting to the unlit room. All the furniture looked spotless and he silently thanked the Goddesses that it had been taken care of. The bed was made with dark wooden headboards and a canopy of dark green curtains hung around it. He walked up to it and pushed them aside, seeing that the bed's sheets were also the same dark green her remembered, with a few pillows at the head of the bed. They looked clean and obviously hadn't been slept in for some time.

He moved on to the rest of the room, noting that the curtains of the window had been drawn which was most likely why it was so dark. He pushed the black drapes aside and was greeted with the evening sunset. It was growing late and he would soon have to go back to Audrey and bring her here. He tied the curtains back to stay and took one last look around before spotting the door in the corner of the room that led to the adjoining washroom. He walked over to it and pushed the door open, poking his head in to see what had become of it. To his reliefe, it seemed to have also been taken good care of just as the bedroom had been and he breathed a sigh of reliefe. He stepped back out and pulled the door closed again.

He took a moment to observe the room now with more light available. The walls were the same dark blue, just as the door and the furniture was made of dark stained wood. Before, it had always been an escape for him from a hard days work and the stress of life, but now it was strange and foreign to him. He felt changed, and not in a good way to be honest. He had felt farther away from himself than ever before, and wondered for a moment if he really had chosen the right path. He wanted the power he knew he deserved, he was sure of that. But maybe he was going about it the wrong way?

As he went through all his thoughts and doubts, a small voice in the back of his mind seemed to whisper to him, reminding him of how he had been cheated of what was rightfully his, and of how inferior other creatures were to him and his power. It almost felt like an unnatural anger was boiling in his blood, one that had only recently made itself known. It was as if someone was telling him how to feel and it unsettled him. Not to mention how he had completly lost himself earlier and had harmed the human girl. Never in his many centuries would he have harmed someone so innocent intentionally, but it had happened and he couldn't explain it. The mere thought of their plan coming to a halt and losing his chance for power had sparked something within him and he had felt a deadly calm come over him with rage bubbling under the surface, like a predator stalking it's prey, waiting the right moment to strike. But it had confused him, and at the last moment he had pulled himself back to reality, only to witness Audrey bleeding and crying in front of him. He was unsettled to his core and dared not look back to where her blood would now be dried on his razor sharp fingers.

Byrne shook his head to clear his thoughts and was about to turn and leave the room as it was when his sensitive ears picked up something. It was faint and he had barely caught it, but he could tell it was coming from above. He listened closer and realized that it was someone's voice. A girls voice…..Audrey's voice! It had cried out and it sounded as though she were in trouble. "Cole!" He cursed and closed his eyes, focusing his energy as quickly as he could. Not a second later he had transported to the top of the tower where he had left her.

-

The chancellor was floating above Audrey now, squealing for her to stop moving. He had attempted to shoot her with an orb of dark magic and had almost succeeded, but at the last second she had rolled out of the way and ran to the edge of the tower, clinging to the rail and staying as far away from him as she possibly could. Her heart was hammering in her chest and panic was coursing through her veins. There was no way out of this part of the tower, and she had no plans of jumping to her death, so all she could do was be quick enough to evade each of Cole's attacks without getting hit.

Cole currently had her cornered at the edge of one of the railings and Audrey couldnt see any way out. "Now you'll get yours, worm" he sneered and conjured another orb of black magic that was not doubt aimed her way. Audrey let out a panicked whimper and shut her eyes as tightly as possible, waiting for the pain that would soon take over her body. But it never came.

Cole let out an annoyed screech and Audrey couldn't help but open her eyes to see why he hadn't attacked her. A surprised and somewhat confused look spread on her face as she took in what was before her; what looked like a thin, purple wall of energy was between herself and Cole, blocking his dark power. Audrey stared at it for a moment and wondered if the Goddesses had answered her prayers, but was shaken from her thoughts by a familiar deep voice sounding beside her.

"Cole!" Byrne growled, his gauntlet raised out to control the energy of his force-field. "I warned you not to harm her!" Audrey could see pure anger in his eyes, this time directed at the chancellor and she couldn't help but feel greatful that he had shown up. She took a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding and watched Byrne stare him down. Cole's glare turned into a taunting grin and he cocked his head eerily to the side, playing innocent.

"We were only having a bit of fun, nothing to worry about my friend." He snickered and sent a glare Audrey's way. She took a step closer to Byrne, never taking her eyes away from the floating demon. He turned to see her move closer and his heart fluttered at being near her again, but his blood froze in his veins when her spotted the tricked of blood coming from her lip. Audrey could see his eyes go from concern to anger as he looked at her lip and bruised cheek and his head whipped around to glare at Cole with rage. He moved to stand in front of her, blocking her from the chancellor's sight.

"I should cut you down right here" Byrne snarled at him and took his force-field down, his hand now conjuring a purple orb of energy, similar to the one Cole had threatened her with only moments ago. Byrne took a threatening step towards him and looked ready to attack. It was confusing to Audrey. They were supposed to be partners, right? She thought they were both working together; why would Byrne go against Cole to protect her? It was all overwhelming to her and all she really wanted was to get away from the chancellor and somewhere safe. She was only human afterall.

Audrey took a step towards Byrne and tried to get his attention. "Byrne" she called out, barely above a whisper. He seemed to be in an angry daze, not moving or acknowledging her, so she cleared her voice and tried again a little louder. "Byrne, he's not worth it."

That one clearly got his attention, because his head snapped to look at her from the side, a pulsing vein having made itself prominent at his temple. Audrey hesitated as he stared at her with wild eyes, not knowing weather to continue on. The look of hatred slowly left, being replaced by concern as he realized it was her. She took this as her chance to try again, and spoke softly so to not startle his enraged mood.

"Everything is okay" she lifted her hands to show him that she meant no harm, "we should just go." She watched as he slowly began to relax and stood streighter, lowering his arms and calling off his power. She lowered her hands as well and looked up into his eyes. So many different emotions were swirling within them that she couldn't imagine how he was even sane right now, but she shook the thought from her mind. He was confusing to her and she couldn't help but feel the urge to know everything about him. He was a complete mystery and she was once again forgetting just how dangerous he really was, but as everyone knew, curiosity killed the cat. And she was a very curious cat.

Byrne watched as she looked up at him, her eyebrows knit together in what seemed like confusion and he blinked down at her. She continued to stare up at him with a faraway look in her eyes and he realized that she was trying to read him. An amused grin tugged at his lips, but was wiped back into a frown when Cole's voice pierced the air, "I don't see why we can't just kill her now and be done with it. She proven to be nothing but a nuisance, and you know Byrne, dead men tell no tale."

Audrey felt here's pace quicken for the thousandth time that day at the thought of being murdered by a floating, psychopathic leprochan. She look over at the sneering chancellor and then back to Byrne, seeing the anger return to molten gold eyes. "You will hold your tounge." He spoke in an eerily calm voice, with a deadly undertone. Audrey had a bad feeling that if Cole continued to speak, Byrne would lose what little composure he'd managed to hold on to. If another one if his angry blackouts were to occur like earlier, there was no telling what would happen. She knew it was best if they both just left. After Byrne's warning, Cole scowled and slowly floated back and away from them, staring daggers at Audrey.

She watched him cautiously and took a step towards Byrne and spoke to him once again in a calm and quiet voice, "Byrne, can we please leave?" She could tell her voice had wavered from nervousness, partly due to a menacing glare aimed at her from the chancellor. Byrne turned to look down at her once again and he could see the fear in her eyes. He knew that her being up here would only cause more problems, and his room had appeared to be in decent condition. He would keep her there from now on, away from Cole. He regretted leaving her up here alone, where Cole could get to her, but he wouldn't let it happen again. It still confused him as to why he felt so strongly about her, but he wasn't going to deny it any longer that he cared for her in some way or another. But now was not the time to dwell on such thoughts. He needed to get her to safety.

He looked down into her shining hazel eyes and nodded his head to her, before spoke softly, "I will take you somewhere safe, if you will allow it." He lifted his flesh hand out to her and watched as she looked from it to his eyes, seeming to be searching the truth in his words. It was a good quality, he thought, for a human to have. So many of them were far too trusting, but she was cautious and he was secretly thankful for it; there were many evils in this world, he knew that first hand.

Audrey looked from his yellow eyes, which had softened immensely after looking at her, to his outstretched hand. She guessed that he meant to teleported them, but to where? 'Then again, anywhere is better than here' she thought. With that in mind, she raised her own hand and placed it in his, noticing once again how abnormally cold his skin was. 'Definitly not human' she mused, then nodded her head to him, signaling that she was ready. His long fingers wrapped around her own and she closed her eyes, waiting for the weightless feeling from before to kick in. Byrne's grip tightened ever so slightly as they teleported, and when she felt her feet on the ground again, she slowly opened her eyes.

The first thing she noticed was that it was much darker, and that they were in what seemed like a long hallway. Byrne was still standing in front of her, cradling her hand in his, and she squinted up at him while trying to see him better. He looked down at her and a low chuckle sounded from his chest, which did not fail to send a tingle up Audrey's spine. She could barely see a thing because of the sudden decrease in light and tried to blink away the fuzzy darkness.

"Doesn't this place have any windows?" She mumbled while looking around, slowly regaining her sight. He watched her closely as she looked up and down the corridor, curiosity and a tinge of annoyance shone in her eyes. "Not in this part" she heard him say and felt him gently tug her hand in his direction, "If you will follow me, I will take you to a brighter place." She looked up at him and could see his face a bit better now, since her eyes had only slightly adjusted. As she looked up into his eyes, she couldn't help but notice the golden irises almost glowing in the dim corridor. She blinked a few more times to reassure herself of what she was really seeing, and her eyebrows knitted together.

"What ist?" Byrne asked her quietly as she stared up into his eyes and a rather flattering shade of pink filled her cheeks as she realized she'd been caught staring. "Oh, uh…your-um…your eyes, they're…..glowing." She looked sheepishly down at her had in his and she felt like slapping herself for having stared at him. She knew better, and it appeared that she was once again forgetting that this man was most likely a killer. At that thought, the blush drained from her face and she took a small step back from him. This appeared to confuse him, because he cocked his head to the side and his own dark brows were now knit in confusion. Why did she always seem to be thinking something one moment, and then something completly different the next? It made him wonder if he would need to keep an even closer eye on her, after all, she was a friend of Zelda's. She would most likely try to take the body when no one was around, and he could not allow that. He would simply have to see to it that she remained in his room until everything was complete.

He shook himself from his deep thoughts and moved to have Audrey follow him. He gently tugged on her hand again, leading her down the hallway, but she pulled back a bit after a few steps, seeming to suddenly realize something. "Where are you taking me?" She asked nervously, attempting to stay rooted to her spot. He turned back to look down at her and saw the worry in her clear hazel eyes. "I am taking you to a safer place here in the tower, it's just a spare room down this hall." He didn't feel the need to mention that it was 'his' old bedroom; he wouldn't be using it anyway. As far as she knew, it really was just a spare bedroom for whomever needed it. He watched as she contemplated what he was saying and she slowly nodded her head, letting him lead her forward again. She took timid steps behind him, her hand still in his.

After a few moments of walking down the dark hallway, they finally reached the dark wood door of Byrne's old room. He stopped in front of it, with Audrey still behind him, and used his metal hand to open the door. It opened without a sound and he stepped inside, turning around to face Audrey and gently urged her inside. She let him lead her forward, never taking her eyes away from his. She thought it was strange that he had made sure to hold her hand the entire time, considering the fact that he was practically a dangerous criminal; he was attempting to resurrect the demon king after all. Why was he being so gentle with her? And why had he seemed to regret hurting her when they were at the top of the tower? She was just a human and he was someone of a different race with obvious power, why did she matter? Her mind had been spinning with so many questions and more confusion than she thought she could handle. This day had proven to be the craziest she had ever experienced and she was honestly surprised she was still alive. Dealing with a person like Cole had made her realize that there were very evil people in the world, and she couldn't help but be thankful for Byrne showing up when he did.

Byrne made sure she was all the way in the room before moving behind her to shut the door, reluctantly letting her hand go. He stood beside her, looking down at her face, and noticed that there was confusion and curiosity in her expression and he cocked his head to the side, silently inquiring as to what was on her mind. When she showed no signs of coming back to her senses, he decided to check her injured wrist. He leaned down and gently took her cut arm in his flesh hand and observed the angry looking red lines leading down her forearm. The guilt still turned his stomach and pulled at his heart, but he tried to push it out of his mind. The least he could do now was clean and bind the cuts before they became infected.

He looked back to her face, but she still seemed deep in her thoughts, so he tried getting her attention.

"Audrey?" He asked quietly, not wanting to startle her. She slowly blinked her eyes and shook her head, seeming to come back to the real world. She looked up at him in question and he watched her closly. "What troubles you?" He asked her with a hint of concern in his eyes. She couldn't help study him closer at that, trying to read whether it was genuine or if he was faking his worry. His golden eyes were hard and unwavering, which confused her even more. 'Why does he care?' She wondered to herself and shook her head at him, remembering what he had asked.

"Just thinking….." she mumbled and looked down to see his hand gently holding her cut arm. It was a bit of a shock that she hadn't noticed it sooner and she mentally slapped herself for letting her guard down around him again. She didn't pull it away at first, but watched him cautiously. He seemed to ignore her guarded look and stared down into her hazel eyes, unblinking. "About?" He asked curiously, inquiring her statement earlier. She blinked up at him and furrowed her brow before giving him a reply that wasn't completly untruthful. "Just…..about today", she got out slowly, watching his piercing eyes read her. "I see" he said hesitantly, not seeming very satisfied with her answer, but he didn't pry further. She was thankful for it and watched as he looked back down to her arm that he was holding, seeming to remember what he was doing. She looked up at him questioningly and nodded towards a closed door in the corner of the bedroom, "I will clean and bind your arm if you will allow it." His voice was still quiet but she could hear a sort of strain in it, something that sounded guilty. 'So he does regret hurting me?' She questioned herself and looked from her arm back to his strange eyes, seeing a kind of remorse gleaming in them and it brought a sort of calm over her. She felt less tense around him at knowing that he did regret his actions, and that maybe it really wasn't him that had done it. Well it was his actions that had caused it, but he wasn't 'him' when it had happened. She had thought that he looked possessed when it happened, so maybe he was just under a kind of spell? She wasn't sure, but she would give him another chance, and see how he would react when she asked him about it…if she got the chance.

She looked up and nodded her head once to him, allowing him to lead her to what happened to be a small washroom. It was mainly browns and tans in color, and it felt warm.

Audrey walked over to the white sink as Byrne turned the hot water on and moved to dig around in the cabinet in the corner. She looked down at her arm and moved to touch around the cuts. It was tender, but not very painful. She traced her finger over the deepest cut on the other side of her arm and hissed when it stung.

Byrne came back with a clean rag and a roll of white cloth bandages, sitting them on the sink edge and turned towards her. She was still poking around on her arm and his shoulders fell in guilt, "is it very painful?" He asked in a low, quiet voice and she had to fight back the familiar tingle that went up her spine at hearing his voice. She turned to him and looked u into his eyes, refraining from poking at the cuts for a bit. He almost looked nervous while asking her, as if he dreaded the answer.

She shook her head slightly and reassured him, "it just stings a little, but other than that I can't really feel it." She spoke in almost a whisper and watched as his eyes studied her face, looking for any lies. He seemed to accept her answer and his shoulders were now slumped less, as he nodded and set about wetting the rag with hot water. She moved to sit on the side of the white tub located just across from the sink and watched as he rubbed some kind of soap into the rag, then turned to her and knelt before her, gently taking her cut arm into his and gently placed the hot cloth over the red lines. It stung at first and she couldn't help but let a sharp breath escape her lips and her eyes squeezed shut, willing the annoying burn to go away.

Byrne watched as she tensed lightly and she scrunched her eyes shut, but didn't pull her arm away. He let the rag set in it place to allow the stinging to pass before he place his hand over it and began to very gently move it in small circles.

The stinging was beginning to ebb and Audrey was surprised at how gentle her was being with her. One look at him before and she would never have been able to tell that he could be so caring. He continued to amaze her and she did want to tell him that what had happened wasn't his fault. But it worried her that it had happened at all and she felt the need to tell him. He didn't seem to understand what had happened, at least not what she had seen. Had he felt himself change, of was he oblivious to it? She could at least tell him what had happened to his eyes.

She looked down at his hands softly working on her arm before hesitating, and was about to speak when his own deep voice filled the room.

"Audrey…..i-" he began before pausing, and a quiet sigh left his scarf-covered lips, "I want to apologize for…for what happened." He paused again and lowered her arm, but still holding it. She looked down to see her arm completly clean; all the dirt and dried blood had been wiped away to reveal clean pink skin around the long cuts.

She had been taken aback by his statement and could only look down at her arm, noting how much better it felt after being properly cleaned. She glanced from her arm to his face, and saw sadness and a bit of nervousness in his face. She felt something tug at her heart at seeing him kneeling before her with so much sorrow in the piercing yellow depths, and slowly shook her head, "Byrne….I don't believe you did it…..knowingly…" she said in a quiet, hesitant voice and watched as his brow furrowed and he slowly raised his head to look up into her hazel eyes. He seemed confused at her words, so she continued, "What I mean is….you werent…'you'." She realized how crazy she was probably sounding and lowered her head, not wanting to see the skeptical look that would surely be on his face.

Byrne didn't understand what she meant, and inquired, "Audrey? What are you talking about?" He wanted to know what she was trying to tell him. Did she know something that he didnt?

He watched as she hesitantly looked back to his eyes and continued speaking barely above a whisper. "When you….." she swallowed thickly, " 'got angry', there was something about you that changed." She began to fidget nervously with her hands and wouldn't look him in the eye anymore.

"I…..changed?" Byrne asked, a little confused, and scooted a bit closer in front of Audrey, trying to her her to look at him. Her hazel eyes timidly lifted and met his yellow ones, and he could see a hint of fear in them at her remembering what happened. The last thing he wanted was to frighten her again, but he needs to know what she was trying to tell him. He lifted his flesh had very slowly, and ever so gently placed his finger under her small, soft chin. Audrey felt the feather-light touch and raised her head slightly to face him again. Him kneeling before her while she sat on the edge of the tub made them about the same height and she only had to look straight forward to be evenly facing him.

Her heart fluttered at feeling his gentle touch and she felt that little spark dance through her at looking him fully in the eyes. They really were mesmerizing to her; no one she had ever known had had such an eye color. She was only ever around Hylians her whole life and had only witnessed blue, brown, green, or in her case, hazel eyes. Byrne's eyes were other-worldly and she couldn't help but get lost in them. The golden-almost glowing- irises that conveyed all his emotions to her were breathtaking and she had to admit that they were one of the most beautiful things she'd ever seen. What race was he from? And who was he exactly? She did know his name, and what he was working toward at that moment, but that was it. Did he have a family that knew he was doing this? How old was he; maybe his race aged differently than her's?

Her curiosity of him only seemed to keep growing the more time she was kept under his watch, but she reminded herself that it was none of her business. They were not friends and it would be foolish of her to want to be; he was dangerous. But she still felt that there was a kind heart somewhere under that muscled, armor-thick exterior.

Audrey caught herself blushing at those thoughts and shook her head, trying to bring her mind back to reality. A concerned look crossed Byrne's face as he watched her. "Are you well?" He inquired in a worried tone, trying to get her to look into his eyes again, "you look flushed, are you ill?" His voice almost took on a frantic edge at the thought of her falling sick, so she waved him off quickly, pushing the confusion at his obvious concern out of her head.

"I'm fine" she mumbled, willing her pink cheeks to stop their nonsence, and looked back to him. "Forgive me, there are many thoughts running through my mind at the moment." She calmed herself and attempted to remember what they had been talking about in the first place before she had become so 'distracted'.

As she gathered her thoughts once again, his smooth, deep voice sounded quietly, "That is…..understandable." His head bowed forward and guilt pulled his shoulders down, "I have put you through much this day" sorrow filled his voice and she felt her own heart tug at hearing it; he may be a dangerous criminal trying to resurrect the demon king, but she couldn't help feel that he had some sense of compassion and caring, as crazy as it sounded. He had shown her that her regretted hurting her and he had even cleaned her wound, so now that he was expressing sorrow at putting her in harm's way only added to the glimmer of hope she had towards him.

Audrey watched as he sat there with sorrow swirling inside him and couldn't help but try to reassure him in some way, "Byrne, I know what you did wasn't intentional" she spoke softly to him, "because I don't believe it was you." He raised his head and looked into her eyes, trying to understand what she meant. She felt more confidence now to explain to him what she was going to say earlier, "when you became angry, your eyes…well…they 'changed'" His confusion was clear at her use of the word again and she reiterated, "they changed…..color. Well, they sort of…morphed, into something I have never seen before." A trickle of fear made its way onto her face at imagining the way his eyes had looked, but she continued, "they looked like the eyes of a demon." She shivered and instinctively wrapped her arms around herself, remembering how those eyes had looked upon her with what could only be described as a thirst for blood.

Byrne saw her a parent fear and wanted to try to somehow comfort her, but he knew taking her into his arms probably wasn't the best idea, so all he did for now was place his flesh hand gently on her left arm, trying to console and reassure her. She watched him warily, but did not flinch away and he was thankful for it. She eventually lowered her arms from around herself and placed them in her lap, reverting back to softly wringing them together. She looked from them to his face once more and he nodded to her to continue.

She sighed softly and began speaking again, "I don't know if it's what really happened, but it almost seemed as though you were…possessed."

Audrey watched as Byrne turned his head to the side, looking down at the white tile floor and seeming to contemplate her words. He took his hand away from her arm and slowly stood. Audrey watched hesitantly as he turned back to the sink and took the white cloth badages from where he had sat them, unwrapping a few small strips. Along with that, he grabbed a tube of what looked like some kind of clear salve and turned back to her, eerily quiet, his eyes now hard and hiding his emotions. It frustrated her that she couldn't read him anymore and all she could do was watch his rigid movement.

Byrne knelt down before her once again, uncapping the tube of transparent gel and squeezing a decent amount onto his long, pale finger. He gently took her arm in his metal hand and looked at the cuts before spreading a thin line of the substance directly over each red line. His touch was so light and gentle on her skin that if she didn't know any better, she would believe that this man wouldn't hurt a fly. But she did know better. She knew his intentions and that he was working with someone like Cole. But even with that knowledge, she could not deny the feeling that there was some goodness in him, even if only a small flicker; it was there nonetheless and that is why Audrey decided, right then and there, that she would do her best to bring it forward within him and prove, if only to herself, that he was a good soul.

With new determination in her heart, she gently reached her uninjured hand out and lightly placed it around the wrist of his that was administering the medicine, making him freeze in his actions. She softly whispered his name, and Byrne couldn't help the shiver that went through his entire body at feeling her delicate touch and hearing his name being whispered by her sweet voice. He slowly looked up from his administrations on her cuts and his breath caught in his chest at seeing her pink lips slightly parted, her long lashes brushing her soft cheeks as she slowly blinked, seeming to choose her next words carefully.

"Yes, Audrey?" His voice came out low and husky and it made her flush once again. She swallowed quietly and inhaled softly, trying to compose herself.

"I just wanted to say that…I forgive you…for this-" she nodded down to her arm and watched as his eyes widened slightly and he watched her carefully. She looked timidly into his golden eyes and continued quietly, "I do not believe that they were truly your actions." She watched as disbelief spread in his eyes and his brows lifted ever so slightly in suprise. He looked down at her small, soft hand gently holding onto his pale wrist and a sense of gratefulness swept over him; before him was this small, fragile human who he had not only kidnapped and thoroughly frightened, but also injured and here she was forgiving him in the same day. He was at a loss for words and felt something warm swell in his chest.

Without a second thought, he moved to take both her small hands gently into his and looked straight into her beautiful hazel eyes, unblinking. She took in a small, soft breath at his touch and looked back into his own golden eyes, waiting for him to speak. "Though I do not deserve any shred of your forgiveness," he began in a deep voice that still did not fail to make Audrey shiver, gently squeezing her hands, "I gratefully accept it." His voice was so smooth and unwavering that Audrey could only nod to him that she understood. "I vow to you that I will never harm you again, Audrey. I swear it to you." His eyes were piercing and determined and Audrey knew she could trust him, at least with this.

She gently squeezed his hands back and offered him a small smile. His heart fluttered uncontrollably in his chest at seeing this and could only stare like a fool at her lovely face. She seemed to notice this and let out soft laugh and blushed down at her small hands still being cradled in his large ones. He shook himself from his daze and mentally slapped himself, realizing that he had completly forgotten about wrapping her injury.

He reluctantly let her hands slip from his, careful of the razor sharp edges on his left hand. She watched as he took the bandages and unrolled them, placing one end on her arm and bringing the other side to securely wrap around it. He continued this until no more of the cuts could be seen and he tied off the last end, not too tight to be uncomfortable, but secure enough to stay in place. She looked down at her now cared for wound and stood from her spot. He stood as well from his kneeling positing and looked down at her. Audrey now had to look up to see his golden eyes and blinked a few times before speaking in a soft voice, "thankyou Byrne." She watched as his eyes softened at her thanks and he nodded his head to her, his deep voice rumbling in his chest. "You are welcome, Audrey."