OH.

MY.

GOD.

I'M LATE BY MORE THAN A MONTH AND A HALF?! AHHHHHHHHHHHH!

I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY (X 1000000000000000)! Oh my goodness I never expected the delay to be so long when I started cramming for exams…I know it may be considered early to cram for me but I'm a failing student and in all honesty I don't feel like dying during my end-of-years. But halfway through I got a little more hooked onto some childhood anime than I expected and this happened. I'm not even sure if Yu-Gi-OH! was to blame this time. I already re-watched the series (GX series included) before I started my crazy cramming. Could have been the re-surfaced addition to Pokemon Emerald…my classmates discovered something called a GBA Emulator and now more than half of them are playing it. I'm the only girl in class playing it and it's weird because I'm one of the fastest…(though I am a little confused with some names and move-names since I've only ever played it before in Japanese and the ROM is in English…and well, hardly any of the names match…)

OH DARN STOP RAMBLING XYLA AND GET ON WITH IT!

Argh you guys didn't come here to read about my pathetic excuses for excuses! So I'm gonna shut it right here, not counting the review replies (though today I'll just give the shortest replies I've got) and move on!

Review replies:

NickyRockit: First of all I apologize for the longest delay ever and hope that you will still follow this story. Thanks for your comment, though I still think I didn't do too well with Slam's chapter. I'll be doing a few more in the future, but I don't expect much from them. I hope you'll enjoy those too, when they arrive, that is!

YiPrincess: Ah! Yi-senpai! I'm so sorry for the stupid delay! Please don't hate me! ,., I've experienced both writer's and artist's block, though I don't draw much since I'm not good at it. Aw, sad you hear you won't be a reader, but that's okay. I won't force you and if you can't understand it it's pointless anyway. Though Yu-Gi-OH! does count as a monster anime, just, monsters in cards which become almost real… :/ Yes, the Yu-Gi-OH! dubs were awful. Actually I found a lot of the subbed episodes on a site called DailyMotion (mostly GX episodes) and Veoh, though I'm not sure if they work as I watched mine RAW…Hmm…I've never heard Funimation dubs. I don't watch much anime in English. Oh! I'd love to see your art! I'm happy you feel that way when reading my work! Well, I like cats more. I like dogs too, but they tend to jump me for whatever reason and ever since a Golden Retriever knocked me into a swimming pool…er…I stay cautious around them…I think forgiveness is a great thing. It's better to forgive and forget than to carry the burden of a grudge your whole life. I'm speaking from experience. (And hoping you'd forgive me for being late). Actually, I did consider making Zadavia's counterpart a wolf, but with Tech, a coyote, there already, I went with a cat as a wolf and coyote are pretty similar. Besides, the Shorthair name fit more. I'm glad you liked the Slam bit, but dear me he was hard to use! Because he never properly spoke I never could tell what his personality was like in full detail like the rest! I really felt like I messed up on him so I'm grateful for positive feedback! And yes I will be doing more of his point of view but not too sure when. By the way, what's with the "*shot*" thing? I don't understand it much and yet I see it online a lot. Hopefully my updates will be faster, though I'm not sure. Oh yeah, Yi-senpai, good luck for your N-levels! All the best! And wow your reviews are really long! Replying to them is a sure hassle!

Done! Now…

PART FOURTEEN: FRUSTRATIONS

Chaos was leaning against the wall as he sat on the bed in the medical room, hugging his knees to his chest, a pathetic position of self-pity and defeat. However, he didn't care about that at all. In fact, the only thing on his mind was how the Loonatics have been reacting to him. For two whole months, he had avoided them despite knowing that the threat of the Blue Guardians were coming. For most of those two months, he had been alone in the world, an existence without a meaning or a purpose. He had tried to find Ace, but found out, mostly by coincidence, that his previous host hadn't been with the Loonatics, and that all treated the absence as if it was already "normal", as in, they weren't panicked or anything like that. That could only mean that Ace really wasn't with them, that he had "died". But Chaos knew that wasn't the case. He knew he had made sure Ace would stay alive in the world, in exchange for destroying himself. Sure, he hadn't been destroyed, but he knew that that was only a matter of time. But he had been horrified about everything nonetheless. If Ace wasn't with his teammates, where was he?

Chaos didn't dare ask the Loonatics. He wanted to, but believed it to be a futile attempt. They all hated him, they had to, right? That was why he tried to search for Ace instead, hoping he could find the only host who had been able to break him, break his madness. He hoped that in doing so, he would be able to redeem himself. Along the way, he tried to find out as much as he could about the Blue Guardians, since he knew that they would launch an attack sooner or later. He hadn't known why he knew until he met Nutrix and had her tell him the details, though most of the truth was only revealed to him a short while ago, along with the Loonatics. He hadn't expected that the Blue Guardians were actually formed because of him, his energy to be exact. Nor did he expect Ace to have completely lost his memory and somehow become a target to the Blue Guardians. All of it was simply too confusing.

Chaos just didn't get it all. What was the reason for him to be so scared the face the Loonatics? Why did the Blue Guardians have to come into existence? Why did Lexi tell him to stay?

...why was he still even in existence...?

He should've died back then. He should've died when Ace had been ready to kill him, at the cost of his own life, in order to protect everyone and everything around him. Ace should've killed him. He should've let Ace perform the task. But no, in the end, he chose to use his power, which had become unstable after he regained his sanity after so long. He hadn't realized. His insanity had been what was stabilizing all that power he held. Without it he couldn't control his power like he used to. Whatever happened, it resulted in Ace losing his memories and kept Chaos alive. He shouldn't have been alive. Not after all that. Chaos was extremely sad, guilty, ashamed, angry...all those negative emotions were eating him up. Why did it become lime that? He wanted to save Ace, who had freed him from the cage of madness he had been sealed up in for so long. Without Ace, he would've never regained himself. And yet...

"It's...all my fault...I dun...I dun desoive ta live..." He muttered, then he cringed. He hated the fact that "his" voice sounded like that. He hated looking in anything that could show his reflection, as his prism-like eyes didn't belong on that body. All of that, the voice, the accent, the appearance, nothing belonged to him. All of it was Ace's. He was a pathetic copy, that was all. He wasn't supposed to exist. He didn't deserve to even pretend to be "alive". He was the consciousness of a colourful rock, nothing more.

Suddenly he heard Rev's voice in his head. The roadrunner's words, which were actually said to him earlier, sounded distant but serious, spoken slowly, very unlike how the youngest member of the Loonatics normally spoke.

"You know I don't hate you right?"

Those words had been a shock to Chaos, and he was extremely astonished. They had been walking to the medical room together after Lexi allowed him to stay, and when those words were said, just as the two reached the door of the medical room, everything seemed to stop still for the replica of Ace. He asked Rev what he meant, but the roadrunner only shrugged and made his question into a statement.

"I don't hate you."

Four powerful words. Four syllables of pure sincerity. Chaos was dumbfounded and unable to speak. Rev then told him to hurry and rest while he needed to return to the others, not explaining himself at all. Chaos had tried to call him back but his voice, no Ace's voice, had refused to work right when he wanted it to. In the end he entered the medical room himself and lay on the bed, but it hadn't taken him long to realize that there was just no way he could sleep so he just decided to sit up and think about things, which was how he ended up in the position of someone who was extremely depressed and confused.

Chaos had no idea Rev didn't hate him. Sure, the roadrunner was the only one to get him water when he coughed and actually seemed to care for him, but Chaos hadn't thought that the desert bird wouldn't hate him. It had just seemed so natural and right for them all to hate him for those long two months he lived through with his own sanity. And even right as he thought that, that still felt right. Rev not hating him felt...wrong...but Chaos couldn't help but feel just slightly relieved. No! He shouldn't be relieved! Rev shouldn't not hate him! Not after all he's done! How could Rev not hate him?! It didn't make sense, especially since he was sure the roadrunner had the most reason to hate him. He had attacked him as well as his family members on top of destroying their home. In fact they wouldn't even be alive had Ace not interfered with his malicious plans before. He had come this close to killing off Rev's entire family and yet the roadrunner didn't hate him?! Why?! It wasn't right!

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" Chaos exclaimed and he turned to punch the wall. Fortunately his energy levels were too low for him to release any of his power when he did that, so the wall didn't shatter on impact. Perhaps that was an exaggeration of what may have happened but with his instability there was really no way of saying that nothing would've happened for sure. He shook his head and clutched it with his hands. He had to calm down. Another episode right there would probably cause trouble for not only him but the Loonatics as well.

"Stop...dun...dun say ya dun hate me...I...I juz dun desoive it...!" Chaos was actually sobbing as a few tears escaped his eyes. The guilt had finally become too much. He became like a lost child crying for his mommy. He wished Nutrix was with him. She had been the only person he ever really opened up to about his conflicted feelings. Maybe it was because of the fact that she was created because of his power, or maybe it was due to the fact that she 'loved' him. No, it wasn't really love. Chaos knew that much. The 'love' she felt for him was merely a reflection of Lexi's relationship with Ace, which was more 'special' than the rest's.

No...it wasn't right. Nothing was right. Chaos knew he was getting way too depressed, and at the moment it wouldn't help anyone. But really, the pain was getting more and more unbearable. He really needed someone by his side.

Suddenly he heard something. It was a soft knocking. It seemed like it came from the door to the medical room. He called, quietly, for whoever it was knocking to just come in, but the knocking just didn't stop. It got a little louder, like suddenly whoever it was out there was getting anxious or impatient. Chaos felt a chill run down his spine.

Following the knocking came the sound of something shifting. It sounded like someone was just shifting in the position he or she was standing in. The knocking continued, but after a while the shifting sound stopped.

"H-Hey...who's d'ere...?" Chaos asked, but the only response he got was more knocking. It started to fade, then the sound of footsteps came, like the person outside was pacing back and forth in front of the door. After a while Chaos couldn't take it anymore and practically flew towards the door. He opened it swiftly, and to his surprise there was no one there. He became just slightly frantic, looking around for the source of whatever it was was causing those sounds. It may be an intruder or something. It was near sunrise but the HQ tower was still plenty dark and the Loonatics should all be still resting up after all.

He heard the shifting footsteps again, slowly heading down the hall. He wondered if he should follow them, but in the end decided against it. If he did so, it would appear suspicious to the Loonatics. He wouldn't be able to explain his intentions and they would believe that he was betraying the little trust they gave him, more so if it turned out that there was no intruder and he was just hearing things due to his depression. As much as he believed that the trust he got was something he didn't deserve, he knew he couldn't afford to lose it there. He needed the Loonatics if he wanted to beat the Blue Guardians and bring Ace back. So he turned to go back to his assigned bed, that is, until Lexi materialized in front of him.

"What are you doing out of bed?" She asked coldly. Chaos jumped, not expecting to see her at all. At once he was sure she would accuse him of trying to sneak around, but she didn't. Instead she asked him a simple question.

"What did you hear?"

Chaos was baffled. How had she known he heard something? "What...?"

"Answer me." Lexi demanded, "What did you hear?"

Chaos decided that arguing or playing dumb would be a bad idea. He chose to just give her what she wanted. "Er...I hoid...somethin' like knockin'...and weird footsteps...juz outside dis door..."

Lexi's eyes widened and the coldness in them faded a little. She nodded, then grabbed his arm. "Then follow me."

He didn't really have a choice in the matter as the female bunny just pulled him along.

Before long they got to the hall that connected most of the rooms of the Loonatics, and all the other anthros and Zadavia were there as well. Chaos couldn't help feeling nervous at the oppression due to being outnumbered. Rev gave him a subtle, comforting grin, but while the gesture was appreciated it didn't really help the feeling of butterflies in his stomach. However, more than anything he was confused. Why would they all gather there in the middle of the night?

Then, he heard it. The knocking returned. Chaos jumped at the sudden sound. It was coming from Ace's room.

"Wha...What da heck is tat?" Chaos couldn't help but ask. The Loonatics and Zadavia all looked uncomfortable. Then Lexi spoke.

"It's something we really don't understand." She said vaguely. "It's been happening ever since that day two months ago." - Chaos felt really bad at the mention of that day - "We told Zadavia about it earlier. It happens very often, though not all the time. We would hear sounds like scratching and knocking, and sometimes something like something being dropped or, like what you heard, footsteps. It always comes from...Ace's room...Normally it just happens once in the middle of the night, but now...it's early morning..."

Chaos carefully took in every word she said. He bit his lower lip and glanced at the closed door to the former Loonatics leader's room. The knocking was still there, slowly and rhythmically like the tick-tock sound of an antique clock from over 700 years ago. He looked over at Lexi.

"Can...Can I go in...?" He asked cautiously. The current Loonatics leader eyed him suspiciously, but nodded her head. No one else protested either and Chaos noticed Rev give him another comforting look accompanied by a thumbs-up. He nodded at the roadrunner, using just a little of his power to send a soft "thank you" to him through telepathy. Rev jumped a little, telling Chaos he received the message and got surprised by it in the process. Then Chaos approached the door. After a split second of hesitation he pushed it open, flipping the light switch on as he stepped inside.

The knocking didn't stop.

The Loonatics were obviously surprised, as Chaos could feel the emotion radiating off them. They evidently didn't expect the knocking to continue. Chaos looked around the room, after realizing that the knocking wasn't on the door or the walls. Instead, it seemed to be coming from one of the drawers of Ace's bedside table. Raising an eyebrow, he shifted closet to it and when he did, he could swear there was a soft glowing, multi-coloured like his own prism-like eyes, coming from the top drawer, but it faded right as he saw it.

Without much thought he reached for the drawer, a sudden need to open it almost overwhelming him. He barely noticed the fact that he was holding his breath as he pulled the drawer open. To his surprise, inside was nothing more than a simple, sealed envelop. He picked it up, and when he did, his mind was filled with visions.

He saw Ace, happy and smiling as the Loonatics leader, having fun with his teammates, his friends. He saw how they all fought together during their missions despite some minor disputes and disagreements. He saw the day Ace and the rest went to the research facility to try and destroy him as the Chaos Crystal for the first time. He saw the fight he had with Ace when the former Loonatics leader separated them into two. He saw the final moment before he tried to destroy himself and save Ace, the final moment before everything truly went wrong. Last of all, he saw Ace writing something down on simple paper in black ink, then sealing it into an envelop and placing it carefully into his drawer before leaving his room. Chaos heard nothing as he saw all this, that is, until that very last image with Ace leaving the room. Ace's voice rang loud and clear in his head.

"Wonda if d'ey'll eva even find tat..."

With that, Chaos snapped back into reality. He gasped, blinked a few times, then looked around the room. He glanced down at the envelop. Ace had written whatever was inside. He obviously left it for his friends. Perhaps it had been the source of all those strange sounds. Maybe somehow, there still had been some of his power left in Ace's fake body after he split them up, and while he wrote the letter some of it was transferred into his writing. It sounded like some fantasy, but Chaos knew that with his power, practically anything was possible. He turned to the Loonatics and Zadavia, who were all still at the doorway, watching him intently. He walked straight up to Lexi.

"I t'ink Ace must've left dis fer ya." He said, handing the envelop over. The female bunny's eyes widened in surprise, as did the rest's. "I found it in his draw'a. Guess ya neva checked d'ere huh?"

After saying that and placing the envelop into Lexi's hands, Chaos excused himself and made his way back to the medical room, his conflicted feelings still hanging over him like a dark cloud that wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon.

~X~

Jack slowly opened his eyes. The light in the room blinded him, as his electric blue eyes haven't had the chance to adjust to them yet. He shut them again and put his arm over them as he tried to remember what happened before he lost consciousness. He couldn't remember a thing aside from the fire earlier. He felt like there was something significant that he should be remembering, but there was no memory of whatever happened after he went nuts and ran away from Lyra after saving the nurse. It was extremely frustrating.

The rabbit anthro cautiously lifted his arm a little and opened one of his eyes slightly. The light didn't seem as bright anymore and he allowed himself to open them both fully. He blinked a few times as his vision cleared and saw the familiar white ceiling of one of the hospital wards. It wasn't his own, since that one crashed and burned, literally, but the new room he was assigned to looked pretty similar. Not that he liked his old room, or his new one at that.

Jack really did hate the hospital, which felt more like a prison to him. But without his memories, what could he do about it? Where could be possibly go? The answers were simply nothing and nowhere. Jack sighed.

"What's da point of dis all anyway...?" He asked no one in particular. No one was in the room aside from him anyway. He rolled to his side on the bed, staring out the window near his bed. One glance was all it took for him to realize that it was thick glass sitting there. Good choice of room, Jack supposed. If he went hysterical again at least he wouldn't jump out the window and fall to his death on cold, hard concrete. Not that he would've cared. He was really starting to just get sick of his life in the hospital without any recollection of his life up until that moment. He was beginning to get desperate to know what his life used to be like. It was killing him inside not knowing.

"Why am I still here...I shoulda died in tat fire..." Jack said to himself quietly, putting his arm back over his eyes in hopes of blocking out the offending light which reminded him of the life he was currently being forced to live.

"You're here because you're supposed to be here." A sudden voice said. Jack jumped and saw both Lyra and Sylene next to his bed, Lyra supporting herself on a single crutch. Strange, he didn't hear them enter, but then again, he had been seriously lost in thought and had a tendency to block out anything that wasn't the same topic as whatever it was he was thinking about.

"Ah, Lyra, Sylene...didn't see ya d'ere." He said with a nervous laugh. Lyra sighed as Sylene just fidgetted with her sleeves like she usually did.

"Jack, you should stop being so down all the time." Lyra said, "You deserve to be alive as much as everyone else. And if it wasn't for you I would've died. So stop beating yourself up."

"Oh yeah...how're yer injuries Lyra?" Jack asked. The senior nurse sat down beside him on the bed, placing her crutch against it as Sylene took a seat on a chair nearby.

"I'll live, thanks to you." The senior nurse said. Jack sighed at the praise. Lyra really wasn't going to let him forget he saved her. Of course, he didn't regret doing so, but the frustration and pain he felt at being unable to remember what happened to him after that was preventing him from feeling any pride whatsoever.

"Hey...Lyra...?" Jack asked quietly after a while.

"Yes?" Lyra replied, looking up at him. Jack bit his lip, feeling like a little child who was scared of the dark or something.

"Do ya t'ink I'll eva be able ta rememba my life...from before...?" He asked her, glancing over at her with pleading electric blue eyes. Lyra's eyebrows raised slightly, in a sad way rather than surprised though.

"I honestly don't know Jack." She told him honestly, "I want to tell you that you definitely will remember and be able to go back to living your own life outside the hospital. But as you know, the doctors still have not found the cause of your memory loss or your panic attacks. It really may be a while before things look up."

Jack sighed, expecting such an answer. "Yer really too honest, ya know tat?"

"You asked for it when you first came." Lyra replied, "You told me not to lie to you when you asked something, regardless of what it was."

"Did I...? Oh yeah...guess I did...I fergot." Jack said. The two of them shared a smile, though Jack's was weak. He then looked over to where Sylene was sitting. As usual something seemed off about the cat anthro but he wasn't going to be mean to someone who helped take care of him.

"Sylene...ya wanna join da conversation?" He offered. The cat anthro jerked up with surprise all over her face. Jack raised an eyebrow. Was asking her that really so weird? Then he noticed that Lyra was looking at him curiously too.

"That's new." She commented after a second of silence. Jack blinked and was about to ask her what she meant, but she answered the question even before she heard it. "Normally, you'd only chat with me and never ask anyone else to join in, no matter who it was, even if it was Sylene."

Jack's eyes widened. Really? He didn't know that. But then again, what did he know, or rather, remember? Bits and pieces of his memory always just came and went. He couldn't remember anything from his past and his mind was so jumbled he could never be sure of what he remembered and forgot, of what had occurred and what didn't. But to think that, even though he was never exactly comfortable around anyone except Lyra and found Sylene especially…difficult to be around, he had ignored the cat anthro? She was also one of those in charge of taking care of him and had shown nothing but kindness towards him no matter what. He hadn't realized how cruel and ungrateful he seemed to have been to her.

"I…I dun rememba tat…" he admitted softly, glancing down for a moment before looking back up at the junior nurse, "I'm sorry Sylene…I neva meant ta…"

"No no, it's fine." Sylene said quickly in a bit of a flustered tone, shaking her hands in front of her, "I don't mind just sitting here! Thank you for considering me this time but it's really okay. I like watching you and Lyra chat anyway. It makes me pretty glad to see you being energetic."

"…Are ya sure…? Ya can juz join in any time. Besides, I shouldn't be unfair ta someone who has ta take care of me right?" Jack told her. She sighed and her cats ears drooped a little.

"You're too kind Jack. But really, I'm fine. I'm not too good with conversations anyway…I get too…er…edgy…I guess." She told him with a nervous smile, and Lyra laughed a little.

"Are you sure? You seem downright frantic most of the time." The senior nurse commented and Sylene blushed with embarrassment. Jack didn't laugh, but he grinned. As much as he hated the hospital, at least his nurses made him feel better most of the time. He didn't know what he would do if Lyra wasn't there, and even though Sylene made him uncomfortable for whatever reason, he knew he needed her as well. Who knows, he may have already lost himself if not for them.

"A-Anyway, Jack, how are your own injuries…? You really gave me a scare when you fainted earlier at the rooftop." Sylene asked, effectively changing the subject, but when she said that Jack felt confused and his frustrations returned.

'Rooftop'? When did he go to the rooftop?

"Whadd'ya mean Sylene…? I dun rememba goin' d'ere…" Jack said, slowly, and the two nurses looked at each other worriedly.

"Jack, how much do remember this time?" Lyra asked, and Jack sighed, his suspicions of losing more pieces of his memory confirmed, before he told her that he only remembered running away from Lyra after saving her from the fire. The senior nurse looked sad, then started to tell him what had occurred, or rather, what she was sure had occurred. When she finished, Jack's jaw was hanging open. It wasn't from shock or disbelief, he was just a little…overwhelmed…perhaps? He had met the Loonatics, and ended up fighting with Lexi Bunny, but he couldn't remember any of it?

"Oh come on!" Jack yelled in complete frustration as he threw himself back onto the bed and covered his head with the pillow like a spoiled brat who didn't want to face the world. He heard a faint squeak from Sylene when he did that, but nothing from Lyra, as expected. The senior nurse probably guessed that he would do something like that.

"Are ya kiddin' me?! I met dis city's supa-heroes and lost my cool in front of d'em?! Argh!" he exclaimed, not entirely sure why he was even acting like that. Even if he did adopt a more childish personality while in the hospital despite his (assumed) age, what he was currently doing was really out of character.

"Jack…? Did you hit your head really hard or something?" Lyra joked. Jack pulled himself off the pillow and frowned at her.

"How am I suppose ta know tat?!" he questioned, causing Lyra to roll her eyes.

"Jack, you're acting like a two-year-old." She commented, and Jack flinched. Ouch, that stung. He pouted and turned away, though he did catch Lyra's amused smile from the corner of his eye.

"Jeez Lyra…ya dun hold back at all huh…?" Jack said after a while.

"No, I don't." Lyra answered bluntly, causing Jack to pout again and Sylene to giggle slightly, "But I am surprised. I thought you'd be more upset about what happened. Don't think that I am unaware of your interest in them Jack."

Jack was silent for a moment, already knowing who the senior nurse was referring to. Wow, Lyra was like a really observant (or really nosy) mother or older sister to him alright. He didn't think anyone knew about how curious he was about the Loonatics. He had snuck out of the hospital to read up on them for goodness's sake, and he never really talked about them when he was still within the white walls of the medical building. So…

"Wait, how'd ya know about all tat…?" Jack asked, slightly afraid of the answer. As expected, Lyra stared at him for a moment before she casually told him she had been stalking him. Jack stared at her until she admitted she was kidding (It was pretty obvious, but Jack did not expect her to say that).

"Let's just say you talk in your sleep." Lyra explained vaguely before continuing, "Anyway, I have to say I'm really curious to see that your only reaction to what happened resembles that of a kid who missed the last episode of some superhero show."

Jack felt as if a giant boulder had just crashed onto his head, killing any bit of pride he had left. Sylene was giggling almost uncontrollably at the side while Lyra sat there waiting for an answer, cool as a cucumber.

"I…I dun know…" Jack finally said, becoming a little more serious, "I juz…I guess I've wanted ta meet d'em, cuz it seems like d'ey may have somethin' ta do with my past, but…I…I really dun know…I could be imagining thin's fer all I know…"

Lyra fell silent, and Jack noticed her eying him carefully, like she knew something he didn't. Then, a gentle smile appeared on her face and she reached out and patted his head, making him jump.

"H-Hey! Lyra! Ya know I hate it when ya do tat!" he exclaimed in annoyance. Lyra laughed.

"Well, too bad. You really should act your age."

"I'm not even sure what my age is!"

"I'm sure you'll find out soon enough. Just be patient."

Jack could tell. Lyra was definitely hiding something from him. The knowing smile on her face told him that. They were close enough for him to know how she acted already. However, it was clear that it was something she wished she could share but couldn't for some reason. As much as Jack wanted to question her about it, he knew he couldn't. Even if he did ask, he wouldn't get an answer. Lyra was someone who never kept secrets unless she felt that she had a proper reason to. Nothing else would satisfy her in that sense. Jack sighed yet again.

"I'll try…I guess…but tat pattin' my head thin's still really annoyin'." He told her. Lyra laughed and Sylene giggled as she watched. Then Lyra glanced at the clock.

"Oh look at that, it's almost dawn." She commented, then stood up, supporting herself on the crutch carefully as the cat anthro nurse went to help her, "Due to my injuries the hospital has given me a few days' leave, so I will be going now. You've had a pretty eventful night Jack, you should get some sleep."

"Yeah…if I can, tat is…" Jack said with a bit of disappointment in his tone. He doubted he would be able to sleep. He never could do that very well in the day. Sometimes he wished he had enough patience to just sit around and meditate or something for a short period of time, but unfortunately, he wasn't that good with waiting.

"Sylene, I'll leave the rest to you okay? Make sure he takes his medications later." Lyra said before she left, and suddenly an unsettled feeling formed in Jack's chest.

"Bye Jack, I'll visit you tomorrow okay?" Lyra said, and Jack nodded, though he really didn't want to see her leave. However, he didn't protest because he felt that he shouldn't allow her to push herself for his sake, with her injuries and all. So he went with it.

Lyra exited the room, Sylene following to see her out, then the rabbit anthro was left alone in his room. He laid back and tried to get himself to relax, but the instant he closed his eyes, he saw an image of Lexi Bunny's face, looking hurt and angry at the same time, and he gasped. Was that, was that a memory of what had happened after the fire? When he argued with her? Jack let out a frustrated groan and threw his pillow over his face. When he did, he heard a barely audible 'thud', and curiously lifted the pillow slightly. Then he came face-to-face with someone he had never seen before. Someone dressed in blue.

Alright.

Just so you know, this may or may not be my last chapter with Lyra. She's the only OC I actually care about but she is only a side character. Whether she'll come back at least one last time will depend on how I write the later chapters out. And as for Dr Trueman, you'll see that guy who appeared in chapter one soon, but first, someone else needs to make an appearance. This person's been hidden long enough. Now I just have to worry about getting the next chapter out soon enough. Thanks and final apologies. Xyla out!