I didn't know what to say to that.

But then again, I did know.

I slid my arms around him, holding him close. "I know," I whispered. "I'm scared too."

I helped Scipio climb to his balcony, and we had a few close calls during the jumping part. Finally, though, we made it safely to his balcony and slipped inside without much incident. His room was dark and silent, his door locked. He silently lit a candle and then placed his mask and jacket under the bed.

I waited by the glass doors, snuffling every now and then because of my runny nose. Finally, after trading his shoes for some spiffy new ones, he turned to me.

"Scip..." I stopped, trying to phrase it correctly. "No matter what, don't let him get to you. Try to avoid giving him any reason to harm you."

His face fell, a look of utter misery coming onto it. "It's hard to not exist," he said bitterly.

I took his hands in mine and made him look at me. "I don't want a dead boyfriend on my hands, alright?" I asked him. His lips twitched--but no smile. I glared at him sulkily. "That deserved a smile at least." I pouted. "I thought you were my boyfriend."

He smiled at that, and held me close. I had my ear to his heart and I could hear it beat swiftly as the sound of a slamming door downstairs reached our ears. He put his face in my hair, breathing deeply. "Rae," he said softly. "I promise I won't die...I'd miss your humor." I pulled away, arranging my face into a scowl.

"I'm serious!"

He looked at me with his perfect, serious face. "So am I." He pressed his lips to my nose gently, and then whispered, "Rae, I don't think I could live without you."

Just as I was about to reply, footsteps reached our ears. They were heavy, angry stomps, coming ever closer. Scipio practically threw me out the doors onto the balcony.

"Run!"

I tripped and fell, unable to catch myself after being pushed so hard. He tried to help me up, but banging on the door made him freeze like a statue, eyes filled with terror. Suddenly the door burst open, just as I had managed to stand and get myself onto the rail. Scipio and I stopped again, staring at the purple-faced Dottore. I could just imagine horns, hooves and a tail on him--he resembled a bull so well. Or maybe I was thinking about the Devil?

My eyes narrowed at him as he began to charge at Scipio, who cringed and stumbled backward, throwing his arms up to protect his face, which was only just healed! Couldn't this man (I use this only in the vaguest, crudest of terms) just leave the poor boy alone for five minutes?

I took one of the potted plants that was next to me and I threw it at Bull-Face. It shattered on impact with his chest, but he didn't even falter. Scipio, freed from his immobile state by the shower of clattering pottery on the floor, looked at me with something like anger on his face. "Get out of here!" he shouted at me. When I hesitated he launched himself at me, forcing me to jump. I heard a strangled yell, as though the Dottore had grabbed Scipio by his collar.

"Scipio!" I turned and looked up, glaring at the horribly tinted face that was glaring down at me.

"Get away from here you brat!" he screamed at me. I jerked away from my spot as spittle rained down on me. "Never come near my son again!"

Well...I guess you could call that love...or maybe just being possessive?

"Run, Rae!" Scipio shouted. His voice was shrill with fear and something like fury. The Dottore whipped around to deal with Scipio. I spat in his direction and then turned, disappearing into an alley. I couldn't do anything, I knew that.

And I hated it.

Angry tears slid down my face, but I didn't feel them. My fists were clenched so hard that I wasn't surprised when I felt warm liquid slipping down between my fingers. I hated that...man...with all my being--I hated him! My new mantra: I hate him, I hate him, I hate him, I hate him!

I kicked at a rat, but missed, making myself slide on the slick pavement and fall. My bloody hands scraped against the cold ground and I curled them into aching fists again, slamming them down in anger. The next time I saw the Dottore I would--

Tears splattered against my hands, making them sting. Reality checked in and I realized how much I hurt--physically and emotionally. I bet none of you have seen your boyfriend getting hurt so much, knowing that he would be beaten to an inch of his life, and not being able to do a damn thing about it. I bet none of you have been thrown from your normal life into an entirely made up one, not being able to see the ones you love. Finally realizing how much you took for granted, how you even miss the ones you said you'd never miss...

I choked on tears, coughing and spluttering as I breathed them in, and they were only followed by more. I laughed bitterly to myself. I'd never cried so much before. I closed my eyes and pulled my knees up to my face, crying into my dirty jeans. I realized how badly I needed new clothes--my jeans were dirty and ripped in the knees, fraying and muddy at the bottoms, my black jacket was frayed in the slightly long sleeves, and it was getting a bit threadbare. I could feel the ground through the bottom of my shoes, and my laces were drippy and wet…

Just like a girl to think about clothes when her boyfriend's dying! I thought vehemently.

The tears kept coming.

And I was all alone.

Scipio

Everything hurt--my arms, my throat, my jaw, my head... Even my eyes. I coughed up something--gunk from my throat...or maybe blood? I don't know. I only knew that with each breath it felt like my lungs were on fire.

How could he do this to me? He was killing me; even if not from these physical beatings. How could he do this? My hands curled into fists, my nails digging into the palms of my hands. Tears were pricking at my eyes; I hated him... But I wanted, more than anything else, for him to accept me. For one kind word...

The doors opening made me open my eyes. Even doing that hurt.

Rae, looking like a drowned cat, stepped inside. Her face was pale, but her eyes were red. It was obvious that she had been crying. She took off her wet coat and draped it over the foot of the bed, and slid off her shoes. She sat down on the bed, almost as if she was consciously choosing to be as far away from me as possible. "I'm sorry," she said as she pulled her knees up to her chin. "I probably got you into more trouble than you would have been in."

"No, Rae," I reached out a hand and took one of hers. It was freezing cold and her fingers were unresponsive. Her skin was blue under the pink-red stains on them, and I could feel scabs forming on her palms. "It doesn't matter. As long as you're real, I can deal with it. I'm still afraid that I'll wake up one day and find that you were only a dream."

She looked up at me, and shook her head.

"What's real?"

3rd POV

Rae gave him a pair of sunglasses, whose lenses were tinted blue. She switched a tiny switch on one of the lenses and there was a small beep. She took out a pair of her own, green-tinted glasses and put them on. "Alright. Just sit tight," she murmured. He rolled his eyes behind the glasses.

"What else can I do?" he asked.

She didn't answer as she pulled on her coat. "What house should I rob?" she asked.

He blinked. "Uh..."

"What house? You must at least know some rich households," she explained.

"Oh...yeah... Alright. Try...the house that's two blocks from here. The house in the middle."

Rae nodded and grimaced as she turned to the doors. She had only just managed to get her socks dry...her shoes were still wet. She didn't want to go out into the rain again--it was so warm in here… She shook her head and before she could fight with herself she opened the door and had stepped out into the rain.

Scipio's mouth fell open. Looking through the glasses he could see what she was seeing--the balcony, the houses across from it, the gardens below.

Amazing.

Rae followed his instructions and came to the house. It was even more...dauntingly rich than Scipio's house was. And that was just the outside. Rae muttered something to herself and then clicked a small thing on her glasses. A small microphone extended from the glasses so that it was next to her mouth.

"Scip, can you hear me?" she murmured.

"This is amazing Rae, where'd you get them?" she heard his amazed voice in her ear.

She chuckled. "That's for me to know and you to not," she replied, and then sobered. "Alright, so I want you to take note of everything I do. Then, when I get back, I want you to tell me the essentials of a thief."

"Ok..."

"Now, shut up. Don't blow my cover...I'm going in."

She clicked off the microphone and the night-vision kicked in. She quietly walked up to the door, her footsteps silent, and peeked inside. There were no alarms that she could see. No red, blinking lights or little electrical boxes. Good. She took out her special key with adjustable teeth and stuck it into the lock, twisting it to see if it worked. She pulled it out again and moved the teeth; she placed it back into the lock and twisted. There was a click and she smiled.

She took the key out and placed it into her pocket again, and then opened the door silently--it didn't creak, of course, because it was well taken care of. She stepped softly, the sound of her wet sneakers sounding awfully loud on the marble floor. But the fountain in the center of the room masked her steps, and she scanned the room, not particularly caring. She looked down the hall, making sure there were no lights on, and then she quietly walked up the stairs.

There were no lights on upstairs either. She walked, slightly bent as she walked in the shadows. She came to a door and opened it a crack, looking inside. It appeared to be the study. She took a deep breath as she slid inside. Her eyes widened behind her glasses--she had had only a limited view of a desk and a chair in front of a window, but now she saw how big the room was. And how beautiful.

There was a medium sized pool--not a swimming pool, but one of those beautiful, crystal clear pools that were like mirrors. The water was right up to the brim, not spilling over at all, and if it did there was a small ledge that would catch the water, but it was placed in such a way that you would never have noticed it. There was a larger ledge around the edge of the pool that you could sit on, and Rae thought that if she weren't here for stealing she would have liked to get a closer look.

The room was carpeted with a thick oriental rug that reminded Rae strongly of home. Her gaze swept the room, taking in the shelves of books, the armchairs...the displays.

Bingo.

She walked over to one of the pedestals. It had a beautiful display of earrings and a necklace--all made with diamonds and rubies. She carefully picked up the jewels and placed them in her bag which she had taken from her other pocket. It was padded so that the loot wouldn't jingle and give her away. She moved to the next display--also jewelry. She took three more displays and then deemed that enough. As a certain friend of hers said, a thief must never be greedy--or else she'll get caught.

She turned and began to head for the door...but a glint of silver light caught the corner of her eye. She turned and looked at the pool.

The moon had come out from behind the dark clouds and the rain had lessened briefly. The silvery rays of light hit the black satin waters of the pool and she felt hypnotized by its still beauty. She wanted to go over and sit by it and touch it...it was hypnotizing. She took a step toward it before she caught her reflection in the windows that let the moon come in. Her current job came back to her and she turned on her heel, and walked out the door.

She turned and listened for any sound of snoring or such. When her ears picked up the steady sounds of sleeping, she was sure that the people who lived there were still unaware of her presence. She turned to the stairs and continued down. Her feet had dried a bit upstairs, and now her footsteps were completely silent. The sound of the fountain reached her ears and she glanced at it as she headed toward the door. The fountain was of a Greek goddess, she guessed, and she was awed by the beauty in her marble skin, the folds of her white gown...She looked away and continued to the door. She opened it and slid out, locking it behind her with her adjustable key.

As she walked away, her steps proud but quiet, the clouds slid over the moon again and the rain came down again. The microphone slid down to her mouth once more. "Mission accomplished. Now, what are the essentials?" she asked him as she turned the corner.

"Um..."

"Take a guess."

"Well...be quiet?"

"Yes..." Duh.

"Have the right tools; don't wear noisy shoes...um..."

Rae nodded. "Those are the basics...yeah. How about 'dress appropriately' instead of just don't wear noisy shoes? Yes. Anyway... Now tell me the steps one takes when on a raid," she said. She walked under an overhang as the clouds burst on her. She shook her wet hair out of her eyes.

"Alright...Hmm. Make sure there are no alarm systems, see that there is no one to see you enter the house, tread quietly, and don't be greedy."

"Good job, Scipio," Rae said with a smile. I can't think of anything else… Then again, I'm not a thief! She pulled up her collar and hunched her shoulders so no rain would go down her back. Then she set off again.

When she stepped inside, the lights were out except for the single candle at his bedside. She draped her coat over the foot of his bed again and then kicked off her shoes. "With this money I'll be able to get new clothes," she said, gesturing to her shoes and her jeans. He rolled his eyes.

"Is that all girls think about? Clothes?" He asked.

She lay down beside to him and gave him a light push. "No. I usually try not to think about clothes and fashion. But sometimes a girl has to get a new outfit, I mean, I can feel the ground through the bottoms of my shoes, I can hardly tie them because the laces are practically falling apart in my fingers, and the rest of my clothes are thin and cold."

He nodded. "I see." She yawned and closed her eyes for a moment, relishing the warmth of the room and the softness of the bed... She felt him roll over onto his side and wrap an arm around her waist. "Promise you'll be there when I come back to the Star-Palace?" he murmured. "Promise you'll be real?"

She smiled slightly and relaxed, pressing her lips to his bruised skin.

"I promise."

What's real?