Voices wavered up from the living room, bits of conversation as well the TV. To Lizzy though, it only sounded like grumbles of noises that wouldn't go away. They were the only thing keeping her from falling into the dangerous place of nightmares though, and for that she was only a little thankful. Shaky, hic-up like breaths forced their way through her lungs making her both light headed and more confused than ever. Images lodged and dislodged in her mind, the order of it all nonexistent it seemed.

In the other room, Kamua and Maddie pressed against each other, knowing that they were the only ones who could ever understand the nightmare called 'the labs'. Only they could understand the terror and grief that always burdened them when they remembered them.

Maddie soon drifted off after the tears had run out, but Kamua remained wide awake with the images of the tortures that he had witnessed other people go through. Then, he recognized the sound he thought had been part of the images. He's only heard it one other time in his life, and it defiantly wasn't from his memories in the labs. It was an unforgettable sound that slowly made him uncurl Maddie and then limp out to the other room.

Kamua

My leg beat with pain, but it was worth it if this sound was what I thought it was. When I looked at the source though, I saw only Emmy. I knew this was Lizzy though, because no one sounded so strong when they cried. It was like hearing an animal force its way up her throat as she tried to press the sadness into her as she had once done with all of Maddie's unwanted emotions.

It all made sense now as I look at my sister, huddled and alone, on that old couch. She ran for more reasons than Him. Liz was always embarrassed of needing any sort of help or being looked with pity because of any weakness. She must have known she was pregnant, and that was the final needle that made her run. He was a much bigger part of the reason though I knew. She never let Maddie see it, but He scared her more than anything else in the world. Death is stupid to fear when you know he's coming for you and only you.

I limped over closer and collapsed onto the ground. Liz could have heard me from the bed with my noise, but it couldn't be fixed. My leg was bulky and in pain with all this ice underneath the bandages. I watched her a little longer until the pain faded enough to talk. Underneath all her disguise, I knew for sure it was Lizzy with her curly hair, neck scars, and face. She ran to be alone, but I still couldn't let her suffer like this. It is not right.

"Liz," I hushed softly so only she could hear. Her eyes flashed open and stared at me with fear and shock before another shaky breath escaped her puffed up chest.

"Don't call me that," She said softly, her eyes darting around to the corners of the room she could see without moving her body or head.

"You are not alone," Was all I could say to her, but I knew it meant everything to her. I took one of her cold hands and gently squeezed it, knowing I could easily break every single bone there with a simple squeeze. I've never done it, and I was always careful. No matter what she said, Lizzy was just as delicate as every other person.

I saw her resist, and I could see the conflict insider her eyes. She wanted to seek comfort from me as she usually did when neither she nor I wanted to worry Maddie, but she needed to keep her distance from everyone to maintain her disguise. She chose comfort though.

Her embrace was tight, but not uncomfortable. She had pushed herself up and gave a sort of sideways hug because of her belly, but still I knew she was trying to feel stronger than she was right now. She was always trying to be strong even though she wasn't. I was always the strong one she said. It takes courage to be strong, I didn't have that. I never had to overcome fear like she, I just always did.

Lizzy sniffled and snuffed into my dusty shirt, unchanged from the disaster, and I cautiously weaved my arms around her. I've broken her enough in our lives; I didn't want to do it anymore. She always saw my strength as nothing, but I would always see it was a constant worry for life threatening mistakes. Her body was still broken from the labs; it doesn't need to be more.

Alan always said we could not have children, but Lizzy….she's going to have one. I only had one hope, and that was it wasn't His. Lizzy was an excellent liar, and tended to not say all she had to say when it came to protecting us from Him. There was always more to her stories than she told anyone, we were always told the most out of everyone though.

"Kamua, I'm-I'm sor-sorry," She hushed in a broken voice. I closed my eyes and didn't say anything for a long while as the pain in my heart swelled up. She was talking about this; the loose of the institute. Lizzy was not one to feel guilt, because she rarely ever did anything that she thought was wrong. She wasn't one to cry either. She actually thought she caused this to happen, and I know she didn't think this was a possible thing that could happen.

"Liz, you didn't do this," I responded in a calming voice that was still quiet. Liz hadn't thought her plan though all the way, but that was normal. No one had died or got seriously hurt, so no harm was done in her haste. She cried more and then calmed down after a little. Finally, she pulled away looking pale and completely worn out. "Do you want Maddie?" I asked.

"I don't want anyone to know," She said after a few minutes of thinking. Again, I saw the conflict. The difference though is Maddie can't keep a secret at all.

"I know you didn't leave just because of Him, but there is no shame in this," I said and placed a soft hand on her belly. She closed her eyes and nodded her head in agreement. She put her hands over mine, they were deadly cold. For someone made of fire, she should be dead from the cold. Her hands were usually like fire, something must be wrong.

"Alan-" She started but then gave up. I understood though. We were not built to have kids Alan had said. For Lizzy, this could be dangerous if something tiny goes wrong. Alan was a doctor, but even his skill might be tested with this. Lizzy can lose her life….and I had to accept this for Maddie's sake.

"I won't say," I told her. Kurt was in enough pain knowing she ran away. If he knew she might die because she was pregnant…the worst was very imaginable and bloody then. He would feel unnecessary guilt, and that would be harder to watch than these past months have been.

"Thanks," She said tiredly in her normal voice, not Emmy's high pitched one. She slowly lowered herself back onto the couch and fell asleep. I watched her longer as I listened to the TV downstairs shout stupidly funny things and everyone laughing at them. It was almost repulsive how easily amused they were and how they had bounced back from the tragedy of our pasts.

Logan and the Professor silently retreated to one of the downstairs bedrooms as Alan kept everyone distracted with the TV. It hadn't taken much to get everyone away from the sadness that grew from the story of the labs, but it hadn't left the Professor at all. There was still anger there just waiting to be sparked, but he knew he couldn't act on it now. For now he needed the opinions of certain individuals on what they should do about the multiple situations happening all at this moment.

"What should we do about Lizzy?" The Professor asked Logan. He knew what he wanted to do, but he wanted to know what his friend was thinking and let him know that he knew that Lizzy was Emmy too. Logan sat on the bed heavily and thought.

"She wants to be left alone," Logan stated and looked at his friend. Charles nodded his head in agreement. Lizzy was a very straight forward person when it came to her actions. It was obvious she didn't run away to be with people. Even though he now knew what Alan knew, he wasn't sure on what to do. There was a grave possibility in his head that Lizzy could die, and Alan's logic wasn't flawed in the slightest with this.

"Do you think it's a good idea to leave her alone though? That's what I'm wondering," The Professor asked. He was thinking of letting Lizzy be on her own for a while, but he feared that if she did die soon then she should spend whatever time she had left with the people she cared about. There was still the mystery surrounding those three that needed to be investigated. He needed to know what happened and why it was from any of the three themselves, not from what Alan had collected over his years of working with various children. Alan did know one helpful thing though: the three will only talk together just like every other child. They never talk alone.

"We shouldn't do anything she doesn't want. She's got some type of plan so let's see what it is," Logan stated, staying heavily on the 'leaving Lizzy alone' side. Charles nodded his head slowly in agreement then. He could always see how it all played out and talk to Lizzy at a time when she rejoined them, if she did that is. Charles thought for a few silent moments before going out the nearest door to the living room. He could ponder this among happier places than the dark bedroom.