It was cold, so very cold. Shiori thought that her entire body had been replaced with a chunk of ice, fixed in that one position. Lethargy tugged at the edges of her consciousness, and the idea grew increasingly tempting. All the brown haired girl had to do was let go and she the cold sensation would disappear. A feeling of peace settled inside her chest. Shiori was about to sink into oblivion when a voice shattered the darkness around her.

Wake up.

"Who…" The brown haired girl thought weakly, her consciousness crawling slightly out of the shadows.

Don't leave.

The voice sounded so familiar, so much that a name was at the borders of her memory. It struck a chord in her heart and longing enveloped her. She wanted to be with the owner of that voice. Shadowy hands created from the darkness formed chains that took hold of her arms and legs, keeping her from reaching out.

Shii-chan!

She fought those chains that held her until she felt them give way. A bright light shone above her and Shiori strained towards it. It seemed so far away, but she knew that it was her only option out of the obscurity. The more she stretched, the closer she got. White filled her vision as her fingers brushed against the light. As soon as she touched whatever it was, it surrounded her in heat.

Shiori gasped awake and her eyes snapped open. An artificial light stared back at the girl as her heart slowed down from it's panicked state. She was so disorientated that she couldn't figure out where she was. Warmth surged around Shiori like a warm blanket. It was especially focused on her back, like a mini source of heat was right behind her.

A face appeared in front of Shiori from over her shoulder. But rather than a female face, this one was masculine. Seconds passed without realization clicking in her mind. It wasn't until she heard her name whispered from that face that she connected a name with it. Shiori was that befogged.

"Shii-chan?" The voice was barely louder than a whisper and shook with emotion. Shiori recognized it as the same one that had spoken to her in the darkness, saved her from a fate of fading away.

The brown haired girl reached upwards with a trembling hand. "Suga-kun...?" When she touched his cheek, he leaned into her palm and tears spilled from his eyes. Suga's silent crying turned into uncontrollable sobbing. Alarmed, Shiori sat up only for a sharp pain in her brain to bring her back down. She clutched her head tightly as little needles pricked at multiple points in her mind. "Ugh."

Shiori didn't notice what Suga was doing until he gently stroked his fingers over her temples. His hands were cool compared to her heated skin. He pulled back and rested his chin on her right shoulder. Although the tears had slowed down, water still trailed down his cheeks. The soothing motion managed to make the throbbing fade and Shiori slumped back onto the source of warmth. She froze when all the dots finally connected. Suga had been the source of heat from the very beginning. When the brown haired girl peeked back, she discovered that his torso was completely bare. Does the tall man even realize the situation they were in?

All at once, Shiori's face exploded with color. She felt her cheeks heat up quickly. "S-Suga-kun? What's going on?" The stutter in her voice was unavoidable, she was too embarrassed at that moment.

"You-" Suga choked on his words and tears. His arms constricted her, becoming something close to a death grip. The darkly dressed man hid his face in the side of Shiori's neck. She felt a wetness before hearing the louder sobs. Shiori was not expecting this kind of response. She thought he'd blush and become sky, not becoming a pale and shivering figure.

Whatever happened, the tall man's reaction told Shiori that it wasn't anything good. "Suga-kun, please tell me. What happened?" As Suga tried to compose himself, she took in where she was exactly. The two were still on the couch with a blanket wrapped around them, the exact same blanket that Mochizuki had given her. An old heater sat on the ground nearby, positioned so that it produced a wave of heat towards them.

Instead of answering her question, Suga twisted Shiori's face and kissed her. His lips were fiery compared to her cold ones. This kiss went on longer than all of the others they've shared before. There was also desperation in his touch. It was almost as if Suga were trying to reassure himself that she was truly there. Which he was. "I nearly lost you…" he finally whispered after they broke apart from their embrace.

Shiori's entire face was bright red from the kiss, but the tall man's words caused her to instantly pale. "How?" She forced herself to remain calm, taking deep breaths to steady her heart.

Suga searched the room and then leaned forward, shifting Shiori in his arms. He grabbed his signature pad of paper off the coffee table and looked sheepishly at her. Answering the question with words must not be easy for him. The tall man scribbled onto the paper and held out the entire pad in front of Shiori.

You were soaked when we found you. The cave's cold temperatures did not help.

She noticed a quiver in his hand while he held the note. "I'm sorry," Shiori whispered. Going down into the underground library was an impulse, there was no preplanning. And now she had to face the consequences.

Suga ripped off the note and set it on top off the blanket. The point of his pencil was on the paper, ready to write, but the tall man kept it there. Whatever he wanted to say next must be very difficult to get out. When he finally decided how he was going to write it, each letter was written slowly and carefully.

Your entire body was frozen stiff. You-

The tall man left the sentence unfinished and instead pressed his face into Shiori's shoulder. Shiori combed her fingers through his black hair and kissed the crown of his head. "You don't have to say anymore. I get it." The brown haired girl stared at the last word and imagined the rest of the sentence in her mind. A thought came to her all of a sudden; she had to tell Suga what she had experienced while unconscious. It wasn't something she could hide from him. "Suga-kun...I saw her again." Shiori didn't have to explain herself, Suga knew who she was talking about because he tensed behind her.

"Where?" That single word came out clipped and stern. Suga grabbed Shiori's upper arms and turned her body forcibly so that she could easily see him. The tall man tugged back an edge of the blanket far enough that it revealed the top part of her chest. Below her neck, pulsing a faint blue, was the silver-chained necklace. Both of them finally took notice of the crack in the stone. Suga's eyes widened and he shuddered. "Where...did you see her again, Shii-chan?" His voice left no room for argument.

"In a dream," she mumbled the answer, her gaze still fixated on the cracked blue stone. "While I was unconscious, I dreamt I was in the forest by the small pond with the dock. Where it all started." Shiori lifted her chin and stared at Suga with shock filled eyes. "In my dream...I was being pulled deeper and deeper into the water's depths." Retelling what she went through brought the suffocating feeling bubbling up. Before she could continue, Shiori had to take a deep breath to push down the panic. "That's when I saw her, the Kotori Obake."

The darkly dressed man was silent for a while, his eyes unfocused. "Shii-chan…" he started, his voice lowered. "You can't stay here."