Chapter Thirty-Four: Broken Wings.

"These are badass."

The pain was gone. Pyramid Head had helped her clean off all the blood. Her pullover was ruined, but that didn't matter anymore. The bogeyman had told her that her dragon on her back hadn't been touched, either. "I seriously hope I get to keep these," she said, stretching them out and then bringing them against her back. "But why are they below my shoulder blades?" The soft black wings were just below where they would normally be, as far as she'd always pictured it.

I do not know. Her friend shrugged. Your body did not let them grow there. That is why the process took so long.

"Well, I always have been different." the wings felt so natural to her. She could easily control them with only half of a thought. They stretched with her arms, feathers going a whole foot past her fingertips. They were slightly small.

Her stomach growled suddenly, and she laughed. "I need food," she said, and looked around her apartment. She knew she didn't have food here. "What do I do?"

Hunt. That's all you can do.

"Oh, that's just great." She reached around and plucked one of her onyx, glossy feathers. "How do I deceive idiots with these things?"

Not people. You will not have access to the outside of your apartment. I will bring things to you.

"Then why call it hunting?"

Because you'll only have time to eat during the night.

She stopped, dropping the feather onto the dark carpet. "What?"

I must go now. I will bring food when I come back.

He was outside the apartment before she could ask again. Damn, without that oversized butter knife, he was actually kinda fast.

She opened up her bag, walking into the bedroom. Might as well load her gun again and wait for Walter to show up.

She wondered how it was still daytime, but then remembered that the Otherworld was a strange dimension. Walter must have wanted to keep her in her human form.

The bed was the same: squeaky. At least it was comfortable. The blanket smelled the same, aged, cigarettes, sex and sweat. If tears had a smell, she'd be able to know they were there.

It was just bloodier than she remembered. She knew she'd washed it before she left, and there had been no blood on it then. So why now…?

She got up and, holding her gun ready, made her way back into the living room. She was curious about what else had changed. she just had to be careful to make sure the new wings didn't' knock over any of her shit.

Nothing else was different, not really. None of her various items were moved around, at least not that she remembered.

Suddenly, she heard something. Something she'd only heard in nightmares for the past year.

Sirens.

She looked out of the kitchen window, the window Walter had given her to see Forest, Subway, and Water Prison World. She could even see Silent Hill in the distance. Apartment World was the only one darkening. The only one changing. The rest of the worlds were staying the same, the fog staying the same thick, light grey.

The paint was peelling off the walls. The carpet was disappearing, being replaced by various sheets of metal.

"What is going on?" she asked aloud.

She heard the familiar whirring of an industrial fan in the bedroom. That was common. She'd grown used to the window disappearing to make way for that loud bastard. She closed her eyes, waiting patiently for her transformation.

Ten minutes passed, and she opened one eye. She'd never transformed. Was this a trap? Was she supposed to be fooled by this?

She ran into the bedroom for her ammo, prepared to leave and find out what was going on, but stopped short in the doorway. Her eyes widened in shock. So this was what Walter had planned.

The bed was moved to the center of the room, facing the fan where the window used to be. The blankets were black and dripping with blood. The headboard was gone, too. It was simply a mattress on a frame.

"Shit."

She turned to leave. The front door was chained shut, similar to Henry's apartment upstairs. Locked from the inside and the out. Her apartment was like Henry's was now. She was another Henry Townshed.

She must be Eileen Galvin's replacement.

It was at that moment she heard the bending of metal wire. She turned toward the sound, gun aimed and ready. Nothing. Then where…?

The barbed wire shot from the open door of the bedroom, disarming her. She struggled, feeling the double-barbs rip through her clothes and into her skin. They wrapped around all four of her limbs and even her brand-new wings. As she fought back, it began to rain ebony feathers.

"No!" she shouted, slowly being dragged into the bedroom. She made sure to manage to get onto her side. "I'm having a baby, Walter! You can't kill me, too!"

If she wasn't pregnant, though, she would be able to escape this. She'd done it before.

She could hear his laughter. She was grabbing at the metal sheets desperately, starting to cry. She had to remember to hold her pain away from Hiei. He didn't need to know. Not this.

She was thrown onto the bloody bed, and the wires loosened slightly. She could move if she pleased, but honestly didn't dare. Not when she didn't know what to expect.

"My, you've gained some weight, my dear."

The familiar fear. Trauma. Flashbacks. Not again. Not again!

"Walter, don't kill me!" she cried, searching about the dark room. "I'm no good for the ritual! I-"

"Why would I kill you?" His voice was soft. She could feel him approach. "I'd never take your life, Tamara. I love you."

"Fuck you! You don't love me, Walter! You're crazy!"

Was that a knife in his hand? Shit. Shit!

"Is that any way to speak to me? He asked. "I have a surprise for you."

The wire's grip tightened, again immobilizing her. She gritted her teeth as she felt it dig deeper into her skin. She tried to struggle, but it wasn't helping. The pain was too awful.

Walter was barely visible, but she recognized the glowing red rose in his hands. "No!" she shouted. "I won't let you brainwash me again! I'll fucking destroy you!"

"Relax, Tamara," he said. "This isn't going to brainwash you." She couldn't see his expression for the darkness. "This is going to repress your psychic abilities. I want that 'mate' of yours to feel everything I'm going to do to you."

"No!" she cried in response, holding back angry tears. Not Hiei. He couldn't know. "Don't, Walter! It's not his fault! Please!"

More barbed wire went about her neck and the top of her head to keep her from struggling. Walter's figure bent down over her and began to weave the flower's stem into her hair, making sure the thorns broke her skin. Anything to shed more blood, right, Walter?

Tamara could feel the barrier she'd been setting up since last night begin to crumble. Soon enough Hiei would be able to feel everything. Maybe he'd hear everything. See everything.

She willed herself to keep it up, but failed again. The barrier was gone. He would know everything. The only chance she had was keeping her mind off of the pain. To just stop thinking about it, sometimes.

The barbed wire released her head. That helped her a little, she supposed. But it didn't stop the ripping sensations that she felt in her limbs.

"Now, before I get to the finale, I need to do this." She secretly wished she could see his madman grin. Wished she could read his expressions.

A gun. It hadn't been a knife. Or did he have a knife, too, and just hasn't decided to use it yet?

He shot the top of her left wing, severing the bone but leaving the wing itself intact. The barbed wire kept its grip around it, but loosened it so she would be able to sit up. She screamed. He laughed. He shot the other not two seconds later. Another scream and a string of angry curses escaped her mouth.

He was in her face, then. She could finally see the madness in his eyes. "Why don't you cry, my dear?" he asked. "I would love it if you were to cry for me. I would forgive you if you were to shed a tear and apologize."

"And if I don't?" she hissed, hiding her fear and her pain. "There's nothing else you can do to me. You took my innocence and turned me into a freak. You brainwashed me, and then made me learn the truth for your own sick pleasure. There is nothing else you can do."

"Oh, there is." He moved away moving in front of the bed and blocking the dim light from behind the fan. She saw the knife again. "You can apologize to me. For leaving me here all alone, for making me suffer this whole year. And you can cry." He sighed, and shook his head. "I'll make you my lover either way. But if you do not apologize, if you do not cry, I will cut out your unborn child and devour her in front of you."

Tears sprang to her eyes, and tears were shed then. But only a few. She felt something strange kick in, but it wasn't her own. What could it be? It was similar to the instinct she knew Hiei would feel when she was in danger. She knew what his instinct felt like. Like she had to protect something with her life.

Tamara's hair burned away, the new rose implanting itself into her skull. Her skin grew hot and her nose and mouth began to melt. She could feel her fingers turning into razor-sharp blades. Her clothes were burning away, also. This wouldn't be good when she became human again. She'd be naked and in front of Walter.

"You're such a bastard," she growled. Her voice was changing. "I hate you."

"I saw those tears, Tamara. Now, all you have to do is-"

"Go suck your dad's dick, you twisted, mommy's boy pedophile!" She wasn't herself anymore. She hated being restrained like this. She suddenly felt claustrophobic, and it wasn't helping her mood. Usually she would have a little more mercy, more sympathy. But when she was a monster, why should she care? She only acted on instinct. And she had to protect her child. Plus, it was time Walter Sullivan heard a few things.

"Do you know what you're causing, Walter? You're not bringing your precious 'mommy' back! That apartment upstairs isn't your mother and you're an idiot if you think that it is! Your real mom didn't want you! That's why she left you there in the first place! This ritual isn't going to bring her back to you. The Twenty-One Sacrements is going to make Alessa start the goddamn apocalypse! Dahlia gave you that bullshit all those years ago because she didn't have the balls to go kill innocent people!"

She hissed the last bit of her little speech, her eyes burning with tears she couldn't cry. The serial killer was astonished. He didn't know what to say. The knife clattered onto the metal floor, and she could feel his guard being let down. If only she wasn't bound by this fucking wire. She could easily chop off his head, devour him, and go about her business for the next six days. Bastard.

Tamara knew that she was transforming back when she felt the tears begin to pour down her face. That transformation had been brief, but she no longer felt threatened.

"I'm sorry, Walter." She was holding back the sobs she wished she could let out. But not in front of him. No, that couldn't happen. "I'm sorry, but this is all in vain. You're going to fail. Move on. Get over it. I was abandoned, too, remember? And I'm fine now. I'm okay. I have a family. I found my mom. I'll help you, Walter, I promise… I'll help you…"

He was sobbing, she could hear it. Oh, god. Had it worked? Had the truth saved him? Had it saved her baby?

"I have a family." She could only see his outline still, but he was wiping his face, bending down to probably pick up his weapon. "I have you, Tamara. We've always had each other, for the last several years…"

"I know, Walter. Let me go. We can help each other."

He began to laugh then. Shit. He raised up the knife. She saw the flash of his green eyes.

"Wrong answer."

When Hiei had felt the fear, he wasn't sure what to do. He wasn't sure how to react, knowing that there was nothing he could do about whatever was happening. And when he felt the pain in his arms and legs, he had to bite his lip until he'd tasted blood.

He was trying to block out the pain of whatever the hell his mate was going through. Kurama was there, merely for support. The fire demon could tell her wall had been broken down. And here Hiei thought she was doing so well.

It had been going on for awhile now. The pain was lessening the more he was focusing on blocking it out. He had a high pain tolerance. This agony was simply annoying. Like an itch he couldn't quite scratch. But what the hell else was he supposed to do?

And then he heard that man's voice:

"… and devour her in front of you."

Hiei went into instant territory mode. What had that bastard meant by that? He didn't like how threatened she was feeling. He had to hold his breath until the feeling went away.

His arms and legs felt like they were being ripped apart. Even though he was keeping his composure, Kurama could see his body shaking. She was going through something terrible.

Kurama had read Tamara's letter twice already, and now he was eyeing it carefully once more as it sat on the coffee table in front of them. "Maybe we should follow," he suggested, raising an eyebrow."

"Ch'. That would just piss her off." His voice was shaky as well, and he had to clear his throat. "She told me not to. It's the least I can do for her."

"Until you get fed up with the pain, or get curious as to where she is, and decide to find her."

"Shut up." Kurama was right, though. Hiei would go if he wanted to, or felt like he needed to.

He almost fainted, doubling over when he felt a deep pain in his lower abdomen. Somewhere, he felt a part of his wife's mind break, and his demon instincts kicked in again. He wiped his eyes to keep the tears from falling. What the hell?

It went away after a few minutes. Kurama had his hand on his friend's back, looking concerned. Even though the physical pain was gone, Hiei felt a strange sense of depression. A depression he hadn't felt in a very long while.

He pulled his headband away and began to concentrate. No matter how angry he was going to get, he had to know what was going on. He at least had to know. And fuck asking that Alessa woman. He didn't even know her.

Seems when Tamara's barrier had gone down, Hiei had finally gotten the ability to read her very thoughts, enter her mind and make it his own if he pleased. But he wasn't going to do that. He had other things in mind. He just wanted to see, to hear.

Darkness. Blood. A shadowy figure. The vision was blurry. It seemed her head was shaking from side to side. When he could hear, it faded into the sound of screeching metal and what sounded like a large steel fan. She was screaming, crying, shouting.

"No!" The shout sounded like it was coming from a little boy. The vision stopped moving then, and focused. There was a huge fan in the middle of the wall, giving off a dim light beyond. He could see the outline of two figures there, beyond Tamara's flat stomach. One was a child. He was holding something that was dripping with blood.

Everything smelled of blood, too. His back felt slick, like he was covered in it.

"Run!" he heard Tamara shout. The taller figure had a gun aimed at the little boy, apparently staring. "Take her to the Holy Mother! Don't stop until you get there, Walter! Go!"

Wait… Walter? There were two of them?

And a flat stomach? Tamara didn't even look like she'd been pregnant to begin with. But he could see the faint line down her entire stomach. When she craned her head up, he could see another across her lower abdomen.

The boy was gone. The tall figure came toward her slowly, putting the handgun away.

"At least I was kind enough to heal you." Walter. "I couldn't leave you deformed like I do with the others. Your body is too perfect." He ran a finger along the incision. Hiei felt Tamara's disgust. His face came down next to hers, and the vision went black. She must have closed her eyes. She was scared.

"It's just too bad you couldn't watch me eat your child right out of the womb."

Hiei had to pull out of her mind, then. What the fuck had just happened? His child… his daughter… had Walter really intended to eat her? Surely he wasn't some kind of cannibal.

Then again, Tamara was a cannibal, in a way…

He stood and went to the bathroom, ignoring whatever the hell Kurama was saying. He didn't care about that at the moment. He just wanted to know… he had to…

He gazed into the mirror for only a moment, and then began to look around every corner of the bathroom. This is usually where Tamara talked to Alessa. Why would it be different now?

"Where are you!?" he snarled. "I want her back, you bitch! Bring her to me right-"

"That's no way to speak to me, Hiei, Jagan Master of the Mekkai."

He spun toward the mirror once more, Jagan Eye glowing with demon energy. Alessa was there, all right, coming out of the new full-view mirror on the wall. Materializing in front of him. Brave girl.

She was pale and both her hair and eyes were dark. She wore all white robes, sleeves draped until they touched the floor. On the side of her neck, Hiei could see burns that he knew were extremely painful.

Her sleeves and the front of her clothing were bloody. She held a bundle, in bloody grey cloth, to her chest.

"Your child will be safe," Alessa told him. "She will be returned to Tamara's womb upon her departure."

"Hn. So you're the Holy Mother." He placed his hand on the hilt of his sword and took a step forward, acting as if he hadn't heard a word the woman had just said. "Let Tamara go."

He saw her smirk, but only briefly. "It is not my decision for Tamara to be free. She belongs to the Assumption."

"And the Assumption belongs to you, right?"

"No. Walter's world is combined with my own, but I let him keep his own rules within mine. Like a state in a country's central government."

"Do you not know what he's doing?" Hiei growled. "Do you not know what you're allowing to take place?"

"Tamara knew the consequences of her actions, Hiei." How could she act so calmly? "I warned her. Either way, she was going to be punished."

"How long?" he asked. His hands went to his sides and became fissts. "How long, then, will we have to endure this misery?"

"Well, for you, it will be endured all night." she absently looked down at the bundle in her hands, and rocked it. "For her, it will be all day. It's impossible for him to rape her when she needs to feed."

"What?" He suddenly could feel the pain of someone biting hard into his neck repeatedly, breaking skin and drawing blood. The sun was down now, he supposed. Guess it was time.

"Although she is bound to her apartment, I will not let her go hungry, either. The bogeyman will be sure to feed her at night."

"And her transformations?"

"I'm sure she will choose to stay in her monstrous form even after feeding, if she wants to heal her wounds. Even though the Assumption won't let her die. But because of her recent diet in this world, I fear that it will be harder to satisfy her in the Otherworld."

The arousal the fire demon felt was forced. He was seriously trying to stimulate her. Hiei had to try his best to block it out. He swore he could hear her begging for mercy, struggling at the cost of her arms and legs.

He growled again. "What the hell am I feeling at my arms and legs, anyway?" he asked, shaking his head. "What the fuck is this?"

"Would you like to see? You'll know everything if you do that."

He hesitated. Tamara had told him not to look. Said he'd see something terrible. But… Tamara… she was…

"It's only barbed wire, demon." She was smirking again. "Block out what she feels. Try and figure things out. She's forgotten her mysterious photo album, you know. Do your research."

"By looking at pictures?"

"There's more than pictures in that scrapbook. Tamara has everything about both Otherworlds in there. Take a look for yourself."

She turned around then, and began to merge back into the mirror. He didn't try to stop her. If what Tamara said was true, then this Holy Mother was a god. She could not be destroyed or injured.

But he was going to take said god's advice, and look in that damn scrapbook. Not like he could get in trouble if Tamara wasn't here.

He was going to have to wait until the morning, though. He was in too much pain. He felt trapped. He felt lost. Like he would never be able to leave again. That this pain that he was all he would ever know.

Like his own wings had been broken.