Casey knocked on the door gently with a plate of pizza in his hand. It smelt so good to him. It was freshly baked, with love, from RJ… for Lily.

But Casey was happy to deliver it to Lily. That meant he could have a little time to talk with her before he went for his own dinner. Lily didn't eat with the rest of the group. Dinner conversations were a little loud and chaotic for her, with everyone talking at the same time. She could really only handle one on one conversations.

He knew he didn't have to wait for an okay to open the door to her room, so he did just that and stepped inside. He held out the plate.

"Cheetah special," he smiled. He walked in and placed the plate down on the desk beside Lily. He looked at the papers scattered everywhere. Lily was definitely keeping herself busy, but Casey had no idea with what.

Lily looked up at him, "Thank you."

The tiger shoved his hands in his pockets, "I take it you like your bedroom?"

Lily put her pencil down and spun in her chair. She crossed her legs and grabbed the plate. She set it on her lap and started picking at the pizza.

"I do," she nodded, "But I feel kinda bad. Now Fran and Kelly have to sleep with you guys and…"

"Don't feel too bad," Casey laughed. "Our plan for Kelly and Hunter worked. I'm sure she would rather sleep with him than anyone else here."

"I guess," Lily said. "But Fran's okay with it? I mean, now she's stuck in a room with you…"

"How many times do I have to tell you guys? I don't snore!"

Lily nodded her head, though unconvinced, "Yeah, okay, and I don't still get nightmares in the middle of the night."

"How are those?" Casey asked. He hadn't heard her talking to him about them in a few days, and yet he knew she was still having nightmares every night. He felt a little left out, but as long as Lily was happy and safe, he didn't care who she talked to.

"Scary," Lily breathed. She took a real bite from her pizza. "I mean, what nightmare isn't scary? But I'm coping. Alex is usually awake in the middle of the night now, so we talk… and RJ's always checking up on me at, like, four in the morning. I think he's got an alarm set or something."

"So you're okay?"

"Getting there," Lily smiled. "But I think I still want to get some real help. I appreciate everything you guys are doing for me… but it's been almost a month now and I'm still trying to tell myself that I'm safe at home. It just doesn't feel right to me."

"Trust me, we're all trying to find you the help you need," Casey smiled back. He took her hand and looked her in the eyes, "You just take it easy, okay?"

"Thanks, Casey," Lily nodded. She pulled her hand away from him and turned back to her desk. She placed her plate of pizza beside her and went back to work. Casey watched her for a moment before walking out of her room. He bumped into RJ on the way back to the table.

"Did you just go see Lily?" the older man asked.

"Yeah. You gave me her pizza…"

"I just found this invitation outside," RJ said, holding up a piece of paper. "It's from Hunter's ex and those Rangers. They're inviting us to a party."

"Cool," Casey smiled. "So, are you going to go?"

"I'm going to see what Lily thinks," RJ said to the tiger. "If she thinks she'll be ready to leave the house on Monday, with all of us as her escorts. She's met two of the Rangers already, so I hope it won't be bad…"

"I don't know," Casey frowned, shaking his head, "She's not even comfortable with all of us. How are we going to get her to think of us as her safety shield?"

"We need to push her, cub," RJ smiled, gently moving Casey out of his path, "Do you really expect someone to simply step out of their comfort zone?"

"It's called a comfort zone for a reason, RJ. She's not comfortable outside of it."

"We all do things we're not comfortable with, but that's how we discover bravery, courage and confidence. Do you really expect Lily to overcome her fear if you never push her to do the things that scare her?"

"Um…"

"Exactly," RJ nodded. He patted his cub on the shoulder, stepped past him and into Lily's room. "Enjoy the pizza?" he asked the cheetah.

Lily turned around again in her chair and nodded, "I did. Thanks, RJ."

"It was no problem," RJ smiled. "I was making pizzas for everyone else, anyways, and you need to eat."

RJ hid the invitation in his pocket. He was going to wait a little bit before asking her if she felt ready to leave the house. He was hoping to get her feeling a little more comfortable so she would consider the idea. He knew the odds were good that she would immediately decline, but it would be easier to change her mind if she knew she was safe with him.

He approached her at her desk and looked over her shoulder, "What are you doing?"

Lily looked up at RJ, "Just writing."

"Writing what? If I may ask."

Lily reached across her desk, grabbed one of the papers and handed them to RJ. She spun around in her chair as RJ sat on the bed to read what she had written.

"This is the day the Venjix hit," he frowned, quickly glancing up at her before reading more. Lily nodded her head.

"I'm doing a journal," she said. "What I remember from the Venjix attacks… I know it's not exactly the real story… but it's how I remember them now… the dreams, the nightmares, the flashbacks… everything's going in here."

"I think you're pretty spot on," RJ told her with a smile. "The day the Venjix hit was a pretty scary thing. To be honest, I'm surprised you're the only person I've encountered who's mentally suffering from him."

"Thanks, RJ…"

"I don't mean it like that," RJ said. He put the paper down on the bed and reached out for Lily's hand. He held it gently, "I just mean… with everything going on, I thought it would be a more common thing, you know. I figured we'd see people freaking out on the streets. But pretty much everyone seems to be holding it in. But… I think… this is a good idea, Lily."

"I thought so," Lily nodded.

"You could use this to help other people," RJ smiled. "Of course, it's your work, you can do with it as you please, but I know I would like to read the finished version. You'll surely touch on something I can relate to. I'm already moved by the first page."

"Are you saying I should publish it?"

"It's your tale, do what you would like with it, Lily. But you're going through a hard time, and you've got all of us here to support you. There are a lot of people out there suffering just like you, and they don't have anyone to help them. Maybe, when you're back to your old self, you'll want to help those people. Show them that it's okay to feel scared. Write about your own fears and how you overcame them with a little determination and a little support from those around you."

"I might," Lily nodded with a smile. She took the paper back from RJ and set it back down on her desk before she lost it.

RJ took this time to reach for the invitation, "Maybe you can start overcoming your fears now?" he told her. He presented her with the invite, "It's from Hunter's friend and the Rangers. You remember Summer and Flynn, right?"

Lily nodded as she read the paper, "It's a dance…" she shook her head and handed the card back to RJ, "I… I can't do it."

"C'mon, Lily," RJ smiled. "You love to dance. It'll just be you and people who care about you. Nothing's going to happen."

"I just… I'm sorry, RJ, but I can't do it. I don't want to go."

RJ sighed as he got up from the bed. He placed the invitation down on Lily's desk and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Alright, cub, I'll let you think about this a little more before you give me your final answer. But Hunter, Kelly and Alex are going to want to go for sure, and I know Casey, Theo, Dom and Fran will follow them as well. You don't want to be left out, do you?"

"I don't want to go, RJ," Lily said. She grabbed the invite and tossed it on the floor. "I'm not going."

RJ knelt down and picked up the invitation. He presented it to Lily again, "I'm not going to make you go. All I'm asking is that you consider it. You know just as well as I do that there's no danger, and nothing to hurt you. In fact, I think this party is going to be where you'll be safest! You'll have three Rangers in training, their ninja mentor and her five ninja friends. And that's on top of us Jungle Rangers."

"I'm not going," Lily stated firmly with a slight growl in her voice and tears in her eyes. RJ smiled as he handed her the invitation and held both her hands in his. He looked into her eyes.

"Do you trust me?"

Lily nodded.

"Yeah."

"Then think about it," RJ said before getting up. He kissed her forehead and grabbed the empty pizza plate as he walked out. Lily looked down at the invitation in her hand and sighed. She didn't want to go… she couldn't go. The people, the noise, the stares… it was all too much. Even thinking about it made Lily's heart race, her palm sweet and her breath stop.

But she knew she had to consider it. For RJ. He wanted her to think about it. So, even though she knew it was going to hurt, she was going to take her time with this decision and seriously consider leaving the house.