A/N: I know, y'all probably hate me for that last one. You'll probably hate me for this one as well, as we suffer a loss... I'M SORRY! I will say this now, it almost killed me to write this chapter. I was actually crying (and miraculously, my parents didn't see). Anyways, there will be a few time skips within this and possibly the next chapter. Just so y'all know ahead of time. I hope y'all enjoy.

gossamer: They are saving her, what do you think they're doing? ;P And you kind of reminded me of this one scene in the Peanuts Charlie Brown movie when Snoopy licked Lucy and she started running around screaming stuff about iodine and whatnot lol

Blue: Uhhh... SURPRISE! ^(030)^ ... No? ... Never mind...

Chapter Genre: Action, Adventure, Angst

Chapter Rating: K+

Rating Content: Mild Scenes of Peril

She was struggling to stay awake. She would constantly be nodding her head but then snapping back up. "Flora, you need to rest!"

She shook her head. "Don't want to fall..."

He wrapped his arms tighter around her waist, holding her closer to his body. "I got you, my dear, you won't fall..."

Redleaf had almost lost track of the time when they had left their last camping area. It was almost evening, though, judging by how cold the air was becoming. They hadn't stopped since they left.

Wolfgang had offered to ride Fiona while Redleaf held onto Flora. She was almost too weak to hold onto the Minister, so he had to hang onto her. During the time that they traveled, she had started to become almost delirious, talking a lot of nonsense. A few things about flowers, some things about the snow. And then she had said something about his eyes reminding her of chestnuts.

"Fall... Autumn..." She mumbled, a small giggle escaping her lips. "I've always liked Autumn, you know. That's when apples are picked." She leaned her head against his chest, a smile on her face. "I like the smell of apples."

He gently kissed her forehead. "I know, little flower. I know."

"Lilith, first stage has set in!" Wolfgang called up to her.

"Better pick up the pace, then!" She shouted in response.

Wolfgang flicked the reins, coaxing the Lynx to run faster. "Don't worry, Tall Boy. Your sweetheart is a strong lass, almost as strong as Lilith." He looked over his shoulder. "She'll make it."

He gave the Dark Fairy a ghost of a smile.

"You are tall..." Flora said, giggling slightly. "Standing tall and strong. Something about laughing..."

Redleaf smiled and kissed her head. "'Stand tall, laugh loudly, and be who you truly are'."

Her brows furrowed in confusion. "How can you stand tall if you're short?"

He brushed back her bangs. "How's about you sleep on it, little flower? You can tell me when you wake."

She smiled and snuggled back into him, resting her head against his chest and closing her eyes. "Mm, good idea."

As her eyes closed his smile disappeared and was replaced with a worried frown. First stage? He thought. How many stages were there? And how long did they last? It has been several hours and the first stage has finally set in, did this mean she would maybe make it through?

Redleaf shook his head. He couldn't worry himself so much! As much as he hated admitting it, this entire situation was out of his hands. There was nothing he could do about it, except maybe hope. He had to be strong, for her.

And yet he couldn't help but worry! He loved her, what else could he do but worry?

For a brief second, his heart seemed to skip a beat at his own thoughts. Where had that come from? He looked down to Flora, who already seemed to be in a deep sleep. Did he really love her? They had been courting for only four months. Perhaps it was his current state due to her condition that was making him feel like this. He perhaps had a deep liking for her, but it couldn't be love.

Could it?

"Could what, now?"

Redleaf's head snapped up. Had he said that out loud? He shook his head. "Uh, nothing. Just thinking aloud, I suppose."

Wolfgang spared a look over his shoulder, smiling at the young sparrow man. "You know, lad, you don't have to hide anything from me."

When he didn't respond, he said, "I'll let you in on a secret, Tall Boy. Lilith and I, we're an item ourselves. Have been for decades. Have a small child of our own back at the village. I've been in your position before."

He raised an eyebrow at the Dark Fairy. "And what position would that be?"

"Two young ones, both deeply in love, but afraid to say it or admit it to one another."

He shook his head slightly. "We've only been courting for a little over a season, Wolfgang."

The soldier took a long look at the Minister, giving him a blank stare. "Listen here, how long have you known each other for?"

He shrugged his shoulders slightly. "A year and a half, almost."

"And you say you've been 'courting' for almost four months?"

"Yes."

"And you think because of the time you've been courting, you can't be in love?"

Redleaf opened his mouth to respond, but then quickly shut it. Wolfgang had a point. They had been very good friends for so long, and he had only really considered their romantic emotions towards each other until after they started courting.

Wolfgang chuckled. "Exactly." He turned his attention back to the direction they were moving. "Listen, I know for a fact that, on the 'Mainland', humans marry in a lot shorter time than you two have known each other-"

Redleaf sputtered. "Wha- Marriage?!"

"Let me finish, lad!" He snapped. "Humans often marry in a lot shorter time than you two have known each other, and they are deeply in love with one another. Love isn't measured in the time you have courted, it's measured in the time you have spent with one another and in the time you have been apart, thinking about each other. Love isn't always an emotion, it can be a choice. And now, you're choosing not to love her, because you don't want to worry so much or get too involved."

This much was true. He didn't want to worry. And he didn't want to get too involved. He didn't want his emotions to get in the way or to cloud his judgment.

Wolfgang continued. "That's a mistake. I made the same mistake, once, with Lilith. It was after we both left our former Master and formed the Crows. We were caught and she had nearly died. I hadn't told her about how I felt." He paused for a moment, collecting himself. "If she did die, and I hadn't told her that I loved her... I don't know what I would've done with myself."

He heard Wolfgang sniffle as he straightened his shoulders. The Dark Fairy was determined not to cry. "So, listen when I tell you this, Redleaf," He addressed him by his real name, gaining his full attention. "Tell her how you feel, no matter how difficult it may be. Tell her, before it's too late."

Redleaf swallowed a lump in his throat, the collar of his shirt suddenly feeling very tight around his neck. Wolfgang was right. Every word he had spoken. Although, Redleaf couldn't admit it. Not in the moment, at least. Somewhere, deep down, he truly did love her with the whole of his heart. But he couldn't say it. Blast it, why couldn't he say it?! Well, it wasn't like Flora could understand him anyhow, not in the state she was currently in.

Perhaps, once she's in a better state of mind. Then he'd tell her.

Lilith suddenly swooped down beside them, making sure her wings would not hit any of them. "How's she doing, Tall Boy?"

He looked down to Flora, now fully asleep in his arms. "I managed to get her to go to sleep." He replied.

She nodded. "Good, keeping her relaxed is key." She suddenly handed him two sunflower seeds, which he took. "Once the moon rises, nibble on these. We've decided not to stop at all tonight; it'll save us a lot more time in the long run. Besides, if the first stage has already set in, we may be running out of time a lot quicker than we think."

He looked up to the Dark Fairy, narrowing his eyes slightly. "She will make it, Lilith."

She sighed heavily. "I know. Just prepare yourself, alright?"

"I wasn't prepared for this at all, how can I ever be prepared for if she..." He trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

She nodded in understanding. "None of us were prepared for it. It just came up, suddenly. We don't know how she caught it, either. We never knew how anyone caught it. The last thing we were expecting was for a human to catch the Plague after so many years."

"And would this friend of Hawthorns' have the cure?"

"I don't know. But if he doesn't, he would definitely have something to at least delay it, so we can find the right ingredients for it."

Redleaf paused for a moment, thinking back to when Hawthorn had mentioned Venom. "Is he a Dark Fairy?"

Lilith shook her head. "No. Not exactly."

He tilted his head. "Well, what is he, then?"

"A mutant."

"And what are mutants?"

Lilith sighed heavily and then swooped around, landing herself gracefully on top of Fiona so she was facing the sparrow man. "Mutants have been around for far longer than any of us have lived. They are Dark Fairies, in a sense, but they are... twisted. Formed into half-creatures. They still have their wings, of course, but they will pertain qualities of whatever creature they've mutated into. The same goes with the rest of their bodies. They could have wolf ears, or snake scales. Because they are half formed, some can forget who they were, who they knew, and who they belonged to. Others, they do remember, but they aren't very accepted by us Dark Fairies."

"And why not?"

"They tend to give in to their more... beastly natures. They are half formed creatures, and the instincts of that creature can sometimes take over, making them almost creatures themselves. We lost a lot of Dark Fairies to a wolf mutant, once."

His brows furrowed. "If the wolf mutant was a form of a Dark Fairy, could you not stop them from hurting anyone?"

"No, Tall Boy." She snapped. "If you thought wolves on their own were dangerous, a wolf-mutant is ten times as dangerous! They have the instincts of a wolf, but the mind and body of a Dark Fairy. They can overpower over a dozen of us if determined enough. The same goes for any other carnivorous-type mutant."

Redleaf shuddered at the thought. Carnivorous animals were already frightening enough, but with what Lilith was describing to him, it sounded like mutants could be an absolute nightmare!

"Hold onto something!"

Fiona suddenly came to a screeching halt, nearly tossing off Lilith, Flora and Redleaf. Lilith's head snapped around, shooting a deathly glare at Wolfgang. "What gives?!"

He hopped off of the big cat, rubbing at the back of his neck. "This does."

Redleaf flew off of Fiona, careful as to not wake Flora. "What even is this?"

"A giant obstacle, Tall Boy!" Hawthorn hissed at him. "That's what it is."

Milori and Hyacinth landed alongside them along with Missy, immediately dismounting from their birds. "What's going on?" Milori asked.

For a moment they all stood in silence, allowing the weight of the current situation to settle in. What Hawthorn had said was true, it was a giant obstacle. One that could hinder their journey.

A giant wall of thorns. Not as bad as it sounds, but it blocked a large majority of the path that they needed to take in order to get to the Misty Creek. The branches twisted and turned in and around each other, creating an almost impenetrable barrier. The thorns were wickedly sharp and pointed, some small, some as long as a wolf's tooth. If anything snagged on even just the tip of one thorn, that could end with an easily mutilated fairy.

"Could we not just go around?" Hyacinth suggested.

"And travel for an extra three days?"

He huffed. "Forget I said anything, then."

Redleaf slowly filled with dread. "Well, what do we do? We simply can't go through, not with Flora in this condition."

Wolfgang broke off an end of a thorn, which immediately grew back. "This was placed here by magic. I think someone might be onto us."

"Who?"

He shrugged his wings. "I don't know, Lilith. But whoever it is, they don't want us to get through to Misty Creek."

Raven placed his hands on the back of his head and began to pace. "Why is everything working against us?"

Milori took a look through the twisting branches, which seemed to weave tighter in response to his gaze. "Is there another way?"

Hawthorn raised a wing, much like a child would raise their hand in a classroom. "Well, now that you mention it Frostbite, there is." She placed her wing back down, giving a short glance to Lilith. "I'm not sure what our leader would have to say about it though."

The Dark Fairy reacted immediately. "We are not going down that path, even if my life depended on it!"

"Yours doesn't, Lilith." Hawthorn gestured to Flora. "But hers does. It'll cut back the time by about a day. We could be there by tomorrow morning, or in the afternoon at the very latest!"

Redleaf tried to reason with her. "I'm certain that whatever Hawthorn may be suggesting, it may not be as bad as it seems."

Lilith stomped over to the sparrow man, who nearly shrunk back in fear. She stared straight into his eyes, glaring pure ice daggers at him. "You looking for a deal with a demon, boy? By taking that short cut that Hawthorn is suggesting, you're signing a contract with death."

"Us fairies are tougher than you realize, Lilith." He countered, not ready to back down from the Dark Fairy. "We have faced death before, stared it straight in its eye, but we have not backed down from it. We have overcome impossible odds. I'm certain we can beat this challenge, as long as we work together."

Lilith huffed, knowing she was beat. There was no changing this sparrow man's mind. "I warn you, boy, the Devil's Mouth is no trail for the faint of heart. Or the loud of voice. It's a long and treacherous cave, and because of the stalactite, you speak even above a whisper, and it will fall directly on you. Step the wrong way, you fall down an endless pit. Go the wrong direction, and you'll be lost forever in an endless maze. You die in there, we can't stop, we can't give you a burial, and we can't go back."

He was already scared out of his wits at the stalactites, but he wasn't about to show it. He tilted his chin up defiantly, looking down at the Dark Fairy. "Is there a challenge in there somewhere? Or did you decide to leave that out?"

Lilith sniffed. "Have it your way, Tall Boy." She snapped her fingers at Hawthorn. "You better start leading the way."

/ / /

The moon had risen over the horizon, casting a silver light over the travelers. Redleaf slowly nibbled on the sunflower seeds Lilith had given him, having begun to feel drowsy. Flora had slept for the entirety of their journey to the Devil's Mouth, occasionally opening her eyes and asking him where they were. He doubted that she even heard him before she fell right back asleep. Upon asking Wolfgang, he simply said, "It's good that she's sleeping at this stage in the Plague. Normally, when delirium sets in, people can't sleep at all. This gives her body a chance to fight against the Plague."

Although not as reassuring as he had intended for it to be, it was still good to know that Flora was doing better than most would be. Perhaps it was because she was a human, that her biology was somewhat different that it gave her a better chance at fighting off the disease.

Lilith suddenly landed at a mouth of a cave, holding up a hand, signalling for everyone else to stop. Wolfgang hopped off from Fiona, signalling for Redleaf to do the same. Once Milori, Raven, Hawthorn and Hyacinth had landed, she began to explain what they were to do. "Alright, if anyone has a death wish, by all means, follow us in. If you have something you've wanted to say to a loved on in case you die, do tell us so we can tell them for you."

She was trying to scare them, they all knew. It was a good tactic, but they were far braver than what she gave them credit for.

"Because if you make even half of a wrong move, and you could be dead within a second. Nobody is held responsible for anything that may happen. You all follow my lead," she pointed to the birds, "not a peep out of any of you, unless you want to kill us," she pointed to Fiona, "don't you so much as scrape your claws against the ground. The rest of you, you do as I do, and not as I say. And if I do say anything, you either fly or run straight ahead. Understood?"

Nobody responded.

"I said 'understood'?!"

They all suddenly agreed or nodded their heads.

She huffed and ruffled her wing feathers. "Good. Now, let's get going. If all goes well, we should be out of there in about an hour."

Wolfgang nudged Redleaf and handed him a bottle filled with a clear liquid. "Essence of Poppy. Put this under her nose for a few seconds, should keep her sleeping until we get out of there."

He took the bottle and popped the cork. "Will this hurt her?"

"Not as much as it would if she woke up while we were in there."

He nodded. "Right, then."

He placed the lip of the bottle underneath her nose, counting up to five and then pulling it away. He placed the cork back on the bottle and handed it to Wolfgang. "How do we know she's really asleep."

Wolfgang pocketed the bottle and shrugged his wings. "Give her a bit of a shake, call her name, I don't know what gets her up."

Redleaf sighed and looked down to Flora, who slept soundly. He almost hated to do it, but he needed to be sure she was really asleep. He gently shook her in his arms. "Flora, love?"

She didn't respond. She didn't even so much as stir.

He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "We'll make it out of there, I promise."

"Alright, if everyone is ready, let's get going! Walk behind me in pairs, in case we get separated. Hawthorn, you're with Flowers. Raven, you're with Frostbite. Wolfgang, you're with the sweethearts. The animals are staying behind us in case we need to get scooped up." She pointed at them with her wing. "Anthros, you pick up Tall Boy, Frostbite and Raven. Charlie, you pick up Flowers and Hawthorn. Missy, you just fly on your own because we don't want you getting slowed down. And Fiona? You pick up Wolfgang and I as well as any stragglers that may have fallen off. You four understand that?"

They all chirped or growled in response.

After lighting a torch with flint and her dagger, she nodded sharply. "Alright, let's go."

Wolfgang leaned over to Redleaf. "Whatever you do, don't trip and don't drop her."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

/ / /

They were walking almost painfully slow, so slow that it was bothering Redleaf to a large degree. He wanted to speak, wanted to tell them to go faster, but he held his tongue.

He looked up to the pointed rocks that hanged from the ceiling. They looked sharp. Almost too sharp. Why was everything so sharp on their journey?

He felt Flora stir in his arms and he hissed between his teeth. He leaned in close to Wolfgang and whispered, "I thought the essence would keep her asleep?"

"I did and it does!" He growled. "I can't speak for her dreams, though."

The rub that lied within their current situation. Flora had still been having nightmares whenever she slept, and he supposed that this evening was not going to be an exception.

"She has had nightmares for the past week."

"You should've told Lilith that before we went in here!"

Someone snapped their fingers, making them both stand at attention. Lilith dragged her fingers across her lips. 'Zip it!'

Flora whimpered, making Redleaf stiffen. He readjusted his grip around her, holding her closer to his body. He could hear Lilith growl and the group suddenly stopped walking as she made her way to them. "What's wrong?" She hissed.

"I think Flora is having a nightmare..."

"Is she prone to these?"

He nodded.

Lilith suppressed a groan. "Why didn't you say something?"

"I didn't think of it. Lilith! Do not pin this on me!"

Hawthorn tapped Lilith's shoulder. "Uh, Lily?"

"Not now!" Lilith hissed. "Boy, she might just be our undoing!"

"Forgive me for being concerned for her life!" He countered.

"Guys?"

Lilith handed the torch to Wolfgang and then she crossed her arms. "Her life isn't any good if we're all dead, now is it?"

"I realize that, but try to understand-"

"There isn't any excuse! You should've told us!"

"Guys!"

"What?!" Lilith barked.

Everyone stood still then, and Hawthorn quickly covered Lilith's mouth. Not like it did any good, really.

They all looked up to see the stalactites wiggling in response to the sound waves that Lilith's voice had created. Rocks began to fall from the ceiling as they began to crumble.

Lilith rolled her eyes and shouted. "Get going!"

They all broke out into a run and the animals immediately started picking up their designated 'riders'. Anthros had to slow down in order for Redleaf to get on his back, but Milori and Raven had simply flown onto his back, permitting him to fly ahead. Redleaf looked back to see Charlie simply run into Hawthorn and Hyacinth, using his head to scoop them up (in a sense) and then make them roll onto his back. It took them a moment to get adjusted on the turtledove's back, but Hyacinth was eventually able to grab onto the reins.

Lilith and Wolfgang had grabbed onto Fiona's fur, hanging on for dear life as she ran.

Redleaf held tightly to Flora as Anthros dodged and weaved through the falling debris, folding his wings and rolling to avoid a falling stalactite.

"Head straight for the end of the tunnel!" Lilith shouted. "Once we get there, we'll be safe!"

Far easier said than done, of course. The rocks seemed to be falling a lot faster, as if they were almost alive, wanting to cave them in, to claim their lives for disturbing their rest. Redleaf covered Flora's body with his own, not wanting for her to get hurt by any falling debris should it fall directly on top of them.

"We're not going to make it!"

Hawthorn smacked the side of Hyacinth's head. "Then how's about you jump off now!"

Milori harshly flicked at the reins, a stiff growl emanating from his throat. He wasn't about to give up. Not now! He couldn't! "We will make-"

He was suddenly cut off as a massive stone hit Anthros' wing, causing him to plummet to the ground. The were flung across the stony ground, rolling and tumbling. Redleaf had lost Flora in the process, but she did not roll too far from him. Somehow, miraculously, she was still sleeping. It was odd, all things considering.

Milori crawled over to Anthros, who warbled in pain. "Are you injured?" He asked.

"Grab onto your owl!" They heard Lilith shout.

Redleaf quickly picked up Flora and bounded towards Milori and Anthros, just barely making it in time before Fiona picked the owl up by the scruff of his neck, carrying them as she ran. Wolfgang quickly climbed along the body of the creature and grabbed onto Flora's waist, holding her close to him to give Redleaf more of a grip on Anthros's feathers. "I got her, lad. Don't you worry!"

Redleaf could only hang onto Anthros as Fiona bounded through the cave, deftly moving through the various falling rocks and rubble. She growled loudly before suddenly jumping, just barely making it as the last of the stones caved in at the mouth of the cave. She skidded across the moist earth, dropping Anthros as she did.

Redleaf and Milori's grip slacked and they fell from the creature, rolling across the ground. They were just barely missed by Charlie, who skidded across the ground, tossing Hawthorn and Hyacinth off of him.

They finally stopped sliding across the ground and Redleaf breathed out, almost sounding like a laugh. Slowly, everyone started to laugh and shout for joy as well. "We kicked that cave's rear!" Hawthorn shouted, pumping her fists into the air. She bounded over to the pile of rubble the blocked the entrance to the cave. "Here's one Dark Fairy you're never going to get!"

A rock suddenly moved and she yelped, quickly jumping out of the way.

Lilith laughed brightly. "No harm in it trying again, eh?"

Raven laughed along with her. "Naw, just showing her who gets the last laugh."

Wolfgang carefully carried Flora over to Redleaf, who took her back into his arms. "Unscathed." He stated.

The sparrow man nodded. "Thank you, Wolfgang."

Milori immediately started doing a head count of everyone. "Including the animals, there's only eleven of us. We're missing someone!"

Anthros warbled at Milori and he stroked the bird's feathers. "Slow down, what's wrong?"

He chirped again.

The Lord of Winter started looking around. "Where's Missy?!" He demanded.

Lilith stood and brushed herself off, looking around the small area. "I doubt she's far. She was flying fast, but not that fast."

Hyacinth shrugged helplessly. "I didn't see her."

"I think I just did..."

Hawthorn walked over to the group and showed a deep blue feather, stained with blood. "I found it in the rubble. I don't think Missy... I think she might've..."

Redleaf gasped, finally realizing what the Dark Fairy had meant. "You don't mean... she couldn't have!"

Hawthorn shoved the blue feather close to his face. "Does this look like she survived?!"

He looked down to Flora. Still sleeping, her brows furrowed. It was as if she almost sensed the conflict, sensed what was wrong. He shook his head. "Flora... she won't..."

Charlie hopped over to Hawthorn and took the feather from her hand, setting it down gently on the ground. He inspected it closely before flying over to the pile of rubble, clawing at the smaller pieces of rock. All the while, he would chirp and trill. Hyacinth sighed and flew over to Charlie, gently stroking his neck. "Charlie, I understand she was your friend. But she's... gone."

The turtledove stopped clawing at the rubble, landing on the ground and chirping sadly. He gave one last peck at a stone before hanging his head and turning away. Hyacinth gently stroked his head. "I know..."

Lilith sighed. "We can mourn later, alright? I am just as sad as the rest of you for our loss. Missy was a sassy bird, something that I liked about her. But we have other pressing matters at hand." She patted the Lynx. "You doing alright?"

Redleaf looked around at the group. The fairies, they seemed... almost unaffected. Although Missy's death was sad, none of them had any real connection to her like he and Flora did. Or like Charlie, Anthros and Fiona did. And he knew for a fact that animals would often talk among themselves, just as fairies would. Missy was their friend, and they had taken a harder hit. And Flora? She wasn't awake, and he didn't know when she would. But he knew that she would suffer the greatest blow after she discovers Missy's fate.

After all she has been through, this was the very last thing she needed. And, for once, he hoped she would never wake.