Isa dozed off for awhile. At least, he thought he did. The two lay on their backs, watching the meteors fall until everything turned to blackness. He wasn't sure how long he was out. He couldn't recall any dreams. Perhaps he'd only blinked, fading for just a second. When he came to, he found Lea in his arms, cuddled against his chest and sound asleep.

Of course he is.

They were alone on the hill. The meteor shower was over and the crowds had long since dispersed for the evening. The position of the moon suggested that it was after midnight. Isa sat up to just stare at it for awhile, taking the time to be quietly alone with his thoughts. Could it all have been a dream? The conversation, the confessions, the kiss? Isa brushed his fingertips across his lips. He could still feel Lea's warmth. He remembered his powerful scent, his sweet taste. He remembered the drumming of his heart in anticipation. The breathlessness, the vertigo. It couldn't have been a dream. The memories were far too vivid, the sensations much too strong. Every euphoric moment was undeniably real.

By chance, he happened to catch a glimpse of movement from the corner of his eye. He squinted, fixating on a figure in the distance, standing at the edge of the trees — the wolf. It stood perfectly still, staring back at him with the same curiosity and apprehension it always showed at first. Anyone else could have easily mistaken it for a statue. Isa could hardly contain his excitement. Finally, he could show Lea the companion he'd made out here. He gently nudged his friend on the shoulder, hoping to rouse him before the animal took off.

"Lea," he whispered. "Lea, wake up."

"Mmm?" Lea moaned sleepily, rolling over with a wide yawn. "Is it over? Did I miss it?"

The wolf was still in its place, eyeing the couple from several meters away. "Quickly. You've got to see this."

Lea stretched his arms as far as he could reach, rubbing his eyes and yawning some more. "What is it, Isa?"

"The forest," Isa gestured toward the trees. "Look there. Do you see it?"

"See what?" Lea blinked. "I don't see anything."

Questioning the man's vision, Isa pulled Lea upright and directed his eyes. "Look closely, the wolf is right—"

Just as he turned back to point out the creature, it was gone. Isa scanned the entire woods and there was no sign of it anywhere. It had simply vanished.

"Wolf?" Lea asked. "What wolf?"

Isa climbed to his feet, concentrating on every inch of the forest's perimeter, hoping to find that the wolf had just ducked behind a tree or was camouflaged among the greenery. "It was there, standing by the forest. I'm sure of it."

Lea put a hand to his back, peering cautiously at his face. "You sure you weren't dreaming?"

For a moment, Isa dared to consider that perhaps he had only ever imagined the wolf. For all the times he'd come outside with Lea, with Ansem the Wise, with his fellow soldiers in training, with Demyx, the wolf did not show itself in their presence. Master Ansem had mentioned seeing the animal, but his story couldn't be verified any more than Isa's. Perhaps the old man was making it up — just going along with it so that Isa could feel secure in his sanity. Or maybe he was old and senile, just as crazy as Isa.

He shook his head, rising to his feet. "Come. Let's go after it."

"Wha—? Isa, we can't go chasing after a wild animal."

Isa didn't answer and was already heading for the woods. Lea, calling out to him, stumbled to his feet and trailed a few paces behind. Inside the forest was so dark that they couldn't see but a foot or two in front of them. Isa stepped carefully, keeping to the path as best as he could. They were surrounded by pitch blackness and dead silence, and for all intents and purposes, they were entirely alone. Yet, with every step they took, they could not shake the alarming sense that they were being watched.

Lea caught up to Isa and was pressed into his back, clinging tightly to his arm. "Isa, come on, let's just go back to the castle."

Isa smirked, slowly inching along the path between the trees. "You scared of the dark?"

"No!" Lea insisted defiantly. "But there are, like, bears and wildcats and who knows what else lurking in this forest. We'll never see them coming!"

Lea was right. In that moment, they were blind, deaf, and defenseless. Any animal that decided to dine on them would have little to no trouble. Any creature that saw them as a threat would tear them apart with ease. His level-headed companion was right to be afraid, but despite the obvious dangers, Isa pressed on. Perhaps they'd run into the wolf, or perhaps they wouldn't. Maybe it was real, or maybe it wasn't. Isa was no longer content to just speculate. He was going to determine just what this creature was and why it had chosen to show itself only to him.

"Where's your sense of adventure?" Isa turned and kissed Lea's hand. "You know I'll protect you."

Taken aback by the sudden show of charisma, Lea giggled, blushing slightly under the thick veil of the leaves above them. "I'm holding you to that, good sir knight."

With a shared laugh, they resumed their search, treading at a snail's pace. With their eyes unadjusted to the darkness and their ears picking up on nothing but the sound of twigs cracking beneath their feet, even Isa was beginning to wonder if they shouldn't just turn back. After awhile, it seemed that they were running in circles, having passed by the same landmarks again and again. His stomach began to sink in his belly as he came to the realization that they were probably lost. He could no longer see the faint glow of the moonlight through the canopy and hadn't a clue which direction the exit was from their position. With his shirt in Lea's desperate clutches, he took a breath and turned off the beaten path, hoping the change in direction might knock them out of the endless loop they'd been traveling. Much to his dismay, only moments later, he recognized the same sad-looking tree they'd passed a hundred times already. They'd somehow managed to walk themselves into another circle.

He led Lea in yet another detour, fixing his sights on a gap in the foliage ahead. Just as they reached the small clearing, they were met with a glowing pair of eyes staring intently in their direction. Isa froze, halting Lea in his tracks beside him. He could not determine what sort of creature possessed such eyes. They were perfectly round orbs, a series of orange and yellow hues with the smallest black pupils at the center. They were like no eyes Isa had ever seen, but something in his gut confirmed that they were indeed watching the two men from behind a stump in the distance, low to the ground, waiting to see what they might do.

"Isa," Lea hissed. "Why did we stop?"

"You don't see them?"

"See what?"

The eyes flickered rapidly before blinking out of existence. Isa tugged at Lea's hand and followed after them. Some small part of him hoped that they belonged to the wolf. Isa had first met the animal in this very forest, and it sat and watched him in the very same way that these mysterious eyes did. But Isa did not feel the same warmth or security when he saw the eyes studying them as he did when under the wolf's curious gaze. This particular creature, whatever it was, had an expression just blank enough to be somewhat foreboding, almost sinister. There was no emotion to read, no thoughts to interpret. There was no curiosity or trepidation — not like an animal, sizing up a threat or planning a meal. In fact, the presence he sensed was not really animal at all, but it wasn't human either.

Isa's every instinct told him to turn around and run as fast as he could before they encountered the eyes again, but he couldn't risk getting even more lost by doubling back now. He continued, dragging Lea along as he approached the stump. There was nothing to see — no creature, no eyes. Isa scanned the darkness and found no trace of any being that could be spying on them in hiding. He turned, choosing a new path to take, stepping over a few downed trunks along the way. When he cleared the obstacles and returned his sights ahead of him, the eyes had returned, glaring at them, no longer hovering down by their ankles and waiting to pounce, but directly at eye-level, daring them to take another step.

Isa gasped, stumbling backward and shielding Lea with his torso. The eyes didn't blink, and neither did he. They didn't follow him as he backed away, and they didn't flicker like they did before. The expression hadn't changed, and yet in a way, Isa could sense more intention behind the haunting stare. There was no questioning look about them now, instead replaced with one of warning. The message was clear — Isa and Lea were trespassers, and whoever or whatever this thing was, it wanted them gone.

"Lea," he breathed, hoping the beast wouldn't hear. "Run."

They barreled out of the clearing without a glance backward to see if the creature was in pursuit. Isa led the way, sprinting along whatever path he could find, darting between trees and hopping over roots as they raced into the black void together. Nothing he saw was familiar now — none of the landmarks from before, no more beaten path to follow. They were hopelessly lost, running full-speed into oblivion with no telling when they'd ever escape these woods. Isa dared not look back, but he could feel the eyes on them. Picking up the pace, he changed direction and dashed through another thick collection of trunks and branches, trying to lose the creature. He could hear something. A faint rattling. Not like a snake, but more like a collection of beads jangling on a string. The sound seemed to follow them, growing louder and louder every second. He gripped Lea's wrist tightly and whipped around another corner, yanking him in a new direction until he saw something that made his breath hitch.

Moonlight.

The rattling was deafening and Isa was certain they were about to be eaten alive by whatever creature they'd managed to offend. They ran for their lives, staggering toward the exit so quickly that their legs and lungs burned with exertion. The menacing presence was hot on their tail, so close that they could almost feel its breath on their napes. It could have been his imagination, but Isa could have sworn he heard a sickening, high-pitched giggle. Just when he was sure they were goners, they broke through the trees and tumbled into the grass outside the forest, huffing and panting heavily.

"Isa, you jerk…" Lea wheezed. "What the hell were we running from…?"

Isa couldn't answer right away, though not just from breathlessness. He hadn't the foggiest idea what they were running from. An animal? A spirit? A monster? A hallucination? Already he would have to explain the wolf — one that only he could see. How could he possibly describe the experience with the eyes and the rattling? Could Lea really not see or hear any of it? It was as if the forest was a house of illusion and trickery, but only Isa had been fooled. He sighed in defeat, accepting that perhaps he was crazy after all.

After a few moments, he'd caught his breath and stood, extending a hand for his still-winded friend. "Lea, I'm sorry. I was startled by something. Are you alright?"

After being lifted to his feet, Lea wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Yeah," he croaked. "At least I got in my workout for the year." He picked his head up and smiled. "You know, that was kind of exciting."

Isa grinned, clasping his hand. "It's been an exciting evening."

"I'll say."

They took a casual stroll, walking off the lingering soreness, and found themselves standing at the shore of the lake. It was still and quiet, like a sheet of glass. The moon and the stars reflected a perfect mirror image of the sky on the surface of the water. The two stood with their fingers linked, letting their feet sink into the sand, listening to the songs of nighttime birds, the croaking of frogs and the rolling of waves. Several times, Isa was compelled to pinch himself. In the thrill of the chase, he'd forgotten all that had transpired over the course of the evening. It hadn't yet hit him that he and Lea were together now. He couldn't fathom that he'd somehow earned back the man's affection after all they'd been through. But every time Lea turned to look at him, his expression was filled with such devotion that Isa's knees threatened to buckle and drop him to the ground. He hoped against all hope that he wasn't dreaming.

"It's so pretty at night," Lea observed softly. "Like a painting."

With his attention fixed only on Lea, Isa couldn't have agreed more. The man was a flawless work of art at any time of day, far prettier than any lake he'd ever seen. Isa tugged at his hand, prompting him to come closer, and Lea approached him with a dazzling gleam in his eyes. Isa took a moment to just examine them, admiring their bright emerald color. They were lovely, but what drew him in was everything he could see behind them. He could see years and years of memories, of emotions, of desires. Lea wore his feelings openly, and was unapologetic about his hopes and dreams. Isa had always loved that about him — it made him easy to read, easy to trust. He reflected those same thoughts, those same emotions as he gazed into his old friend's eyes. Isa longed to touch him, to take him into his arms, but he jammed his hands into his pockets, resisting the temptation with all his willpower. As pent up as he was, he didn't trust himself to be gentle, to handle him as carefully as he deserved. The nerves were clouding his thoughts. The elation was so powerful that he feared losing himself again. He needed a diversion — a shock to his system to snap him out of it before he went positively mad.

"Let's swim."

Lea gaped at him. "What? Isa, that water is probably freezing."

Exactly. "And?"

"And Flurry of Dancing Flames really doesn't care for cold or water!"

Isa had already shed his jacket and was stripping off his shirt. "Where's your sense of adventure now?"

Lea gulped, shielding his eyes as Isa cast off more and more clothing. "Haven't we had enough adventure for one—?"

He never got the chance to finish his sentence, as Isa had already sprinted to the end of the dock and dove head-first into the water. Shocked, Lea took off to find him just as he broke the surface again, whipping his hair from his face and beaming widely.

"Isa! Are you crazy?!"

Isa laughed, wading a few feet away from the dock. "Absolutely bonkers," he waved his hand in invitation. "Join me."

"No way, man," Lea crossed his arms, shaking his head. "You know I can't swim."

"Sure you can. I taught you. Didn't you get it memorized?"

Lea remembered quite clearly those days where Isa had insisted on giving him swimming lessons. The water was always cold and dirty, the lake was too deep, and the sickening brush of seaweed against his feet was enough to make him swear off swimming for good. Most sessions ended with him clinging tightly to Isa and refusing to let go, and Lea had no intention of ever repeating such lessons.

He hadn't the chance to protest before he felt droplets of water being flung toward him as Isa, snickering, splashed him repeatedly.

"Cut it out!"

"Come on, Lea, it's only water. It won't hurt you."

Lea stood his ground, glaring at his friend from high above him on the dock. The water looked just as gross as it was back then, and even deeper than when they were kids. But Isa's smile was contagious. It had been so long since Lea had seen him looking so bright and happy, since he'd exhibited such charm. Perhaps if he just dipped into the water for a few seconds, the man would be satisfied. Lea heaved a long sigh, hoping he wouldn't regret his surrender. "Alright, alright… You better make this worth it."

Isa floated in place, patiently waiting as Lea ducked out of sight. He could just barely see the man's arms as he pulled off his shirt. His heart started to pound as he wished for a better view. His mind was painting the picture for him, suggesting the images of Lea bent at the waist, sliding his jeans down to his ankles and kicking them aside, then his arms reaching high in the air, exposing his lean torso as he lifted his shirt over his head. Isa swallowed hard as the clenching in his throat threatened to choke him out right then and there. He sank under the surface, letting the cold water smother him, tickling the back of his neck, seeping into his ears. He couldn't lose control now. He'd surely scare Lea off. Just as he came back up for air, Lea had poked his head out, keeping the rest of him mostly hidden behind the dock.

"Is it cold?"

"Freezing. Now jump."

"Are you gonna catch me?"

Isa smiled. "Of course I will."

There was a long pause while Lea hesitated, working up the nerve to go through with it. Isa arched an eyebrow, folding his arms and goading him on. "I'm waiting."

"Give me a minute!" Lea shouted, peering down at the water's surface with notable trepidation.

Isa grew more impatient with every second Lea spent stalling. "Lea, I'm going to come up there and push you in if you don't jump."

"You wouldn't dare!"

Isa's lips curled into a wicked grin. "I would."

"Okay, okay!" Lea capitulated with notable exasperation. "I swear, Isa, if I drown…"

"You know I won't let you drown."

A few moments later, Lea was crawling to the edge of the dock, still staring at the water, mentally preparing himself for the sensation of its icy chill on his skin. He cautiously sat down and let his feet dangle over the edge. His toes barely dipped beneath the surface and he flinched. Isa was right — it was freezing. Like a menacing shark on the prowl, Isa swam toward him and effortlessly lifted himself onto the wooden ledge until his face was inches from Lea's. He dripped cool water onto Lea's legs as he suspended himself there, silently beckoning him to let himself fall in. Lea swooned at the stunning image of his glistening body, bare and soaking wet, slippery to the touch. He couldn't resist, and he leaned in to kiss him eagerly. Isa's lips were wet, but warmer than he expected. A slick hand began to slide up his thigh, raising goosebumps on his skin from the cold. Before Lea could react, that same hand reached around the small of his back and yanked him off the dock and into the water with a splash.

Lea's skin burned with the frosty temperature. He wasn't sure how any body of water could ever be this cold in the middle of summer. He started shivering immediately as he reached for the warped light of the moon, dragging water behind him as he swam upward. He was livid and ready to let Isa have it, but the second he broke the surface, the man was pressed tightly against him, warming him back up instantly. He hadn't the chance to catch his breath before they resumed their kiss and floated under the dock where even the starlight couldn't reach them. Without the luxury of sight, Lea could only fantasize and explore Isa's body by touch. His fingers slid into every crevice between finely toned muscles, as if the man were chiseled from marble. Isa's hands were strong and determined as they grasped at his skinny frame, just powerful enough to express desire without hurting him. With all of the heat radiating from their skin, the freezing lake suddenly felt much less cold.

"See?" Isa asked between kisses. "The water's fine."

"You're an ass."

"Are you not enjoying yourself?"

The question required no answer. Lea was silent, and the man shot him a mischievous grin. "You can't be that cold."

"I'm going to dunk you in a minute."

Lea could barely stand the sight of that twinkle in his eye, the glint in his teeth, the lift in his brow as his smile widened with intrigue. The sound of Isa's voice whispering his challenge directly into his ear sent a shudder down his spine. "Be my guest."

Lea didn't hesitate, allowing Isa no time to catch a breath before laying both hands on his head and shoving him forcefully under the water. It was when he felt hands and lips in places that made him tremble with delight that he realized his mistake, and when goosebumps erupted throughout his body that he admitted to himself that it was no mistake at all. Isa was a perfect gentleman, never straying below the waist no matter desperately Lea wanted him to, but the delicate tease of his fingertips dragging over his skin, even in such modest regions, was nearly unbearable. By the time Isa had come up to breathe, Lea was panting just as heavily as he was.

"What's wrong?" he inquired with curiosity and concern.

"N-Nothing…" Lea answered in a strained voice, concealing his plight for the time being. "I'm trying not to drown."

Isa responded with a tender smile. "I've got you, Lea. Just relax."

Isa found his own advice difficult to follow. Lea was hugging him so closely, naked and shivering, clinging tightly to his shoulders in an effort to remain afloat. In the dark, everything was left to his imagination, and what an imagination Isa had. For everything he touched, his mind rewarded him with an image as clear as a photograph. He could see every freckle on Lea's fair skin. He could trace every curve from his collar to his hip. He could place every hair, every pore, as if drawing him from memory. Not one feature was out of place. Lea was irresistible, and it required all of Isa's restraint to keep from devouring him on the spot.

His heart stopped with a heavy thud when he felt Lea wrap his legs around his waist, enveloping him in heat unlike any he'd felt before. It was a perfectly innocent gesture — Lea couldn't swim. And for the moment, Isa couldn't either. He seized up at the desperate grip of the man's thighs clamping onto him, lost in the memories of those countless times they'd danced this dance before. Back when they were young. Back when it was new. Many a night they'd locked into a similar embrace, with Isa's undulating form enfolded inside Lea's wiry limbs, heels digging into his back in a yearning plea for a closeness they'd long surpassed. He closed his eyes, listening for that familiar sound of panting and whimpering in his ear, waiting for those fingernails to claw at his shoulder blades like they used to. The imagery was so vivid in his mind that he could have easily believed it was happening all over again. He let the scene continue to play, watching with anticipation for that moment when the torso beneath him would arch violently in his grasp, accompanied by the exquisite song of release so expertly performed in Lea's sonorous voice. At that moment, the test of his own resolve would cease, the agonizing wait would be over, and at last it would be his turn to—

There was an ear-splitting crack and Isa's eyes sprang open. It was dark and it was cold. He was fully submerged and could not breathe. He was paralyzed, sinking. Someone or something was caressing him. Something inhuman. Something incorporeal. A warm presence, soft enough to soothe, but sharp like thorns around the edges. He recognized it, but could not identify it. It spoke softly to him like a swindler, charming at the same time that it was sinister. It clasped around his ankles and was dragging him into the depths, and for whatever reason, Isa was powerless to resist.

Hands reached for him, hooking under the pits of his arms and pulling him to the surface. He gasped for air, coughing and sputtering, taking a moment to scan his surroundings and remind himself where he was. Radiant Garden. It was the middle of the night. This was the lake. There was the dock. Lea was with him. Ten years had come and gone. They didn't have hearts, and then they did. The moon hung overhead, beaming down on his face. Everything was alright. He was awake, alive, and human. Pitifully human. Painfully human.

"Isa, are you okay?" Lea was tapping his cheek, flailing his limbs to keep from going under. "You're not supposed to let go of me!"

Isa's hazy memory was clearing up and he realized that he had lost himself, just as he'd feared. All it took was just a few erotic thoughts, a brief glimmer of lust and he almost completely dissociated. What a fool he was to think that he'd ever manage to climb to such heights again. Fate had been generous in giving him a third chance at humanity, with much of the pleasure and pain that went along with it, but that generosity only stretched so far, and it was reckless of him to test those limits now.

Lea was desperately splashing and kicking as the distance grew between the two of them. Isa reached for him, taking his hand and squeezing it tightly.

"I'm right here," he sighed, quelling Lea's protests. "I won't let go."

Over the next few moments, Lea's frantic paddling slowed to a steady, gentle wading. Isa kept his promise and held him tightly, keeping him above the surface. Keeping himself above the surface. In all the time he spent awash in memories, he had forgotten that Lea made him a solemn oath just hours ago to drag him back down to earth if he strayed too far into the atmosphere. Tonight, Lea had done just that, yanking Isa out of the water just in time, snapping him back to reality where he belonged. Isa chided himself for his pessimism, for failing to remember how he could trust the man. He was perfectly safe to lose control, to fall to pieces, as long as Lea would be there to restore him. And now, Isa returned the favor, acting as his friend's anchor and giving him the same opportunity to feel secure as he did. He supposed that was what being together was about — keeping each other together when the pieces of themselves threaten to drift apart.

"Look," he smiled. "You're swimming."

"No I'm not!"

"You're doing great."

"I want to get out!"

"Come here," he swam back to Lea's side and slipped his arms around him. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"Can we be done swimming? I'm cold and pruny."

"You're always cold and pruny," Isa snickered, earning a playful slug on the shoulder in return. "Alright, we can go back. I wonder what time it is?"

"You got some place to be?" Lea asked as they swam back to shore.

"You do know I train every morning at dawn," Isa responded, dreading just how soon his morning training session would arrive. "You should join me for a run."

"Ha! Sure," Lea laughed. "I'll ride on your back while you run."

The air was chilly on their wet skin, and they made quick work of dressing themselves. Though they endeavored to avert their eyes, each of them stole a glance or two at the other while his back was turned, ogling broad and well-defined shoulders and plump backsides for as long as they could get away with. They huddled closely together as they trudged back to the castle, and Isa could feel Lea trembling against him beneath the collection of blankets they'd draped over themselves.

"You're shivering."

"It's just the hypothermia."

Isa leaned in, cupping the man's chin and lifting his face so that the starlight would strike it just right. "Poor thing," he tutted. "Your lips are blue."

Lea arched an eyebrow, seeming almost repulsed by the observation. "You don't have to use cheap lines like that if you want to kiss me."

He dipped down as if to take the man up on his offer, only to come to a deliberate halt before he could meet his lips, instead whispering under his breath. "Master Ansem has a lovely fireplace in the library."

With a feisty glare, Lea impatiently darted forward to complete the kiss. "Now you're speaking my language."

With how many times they stopped for a kiss or several, their journey back to the castle must have taken twice as long. They paused at every stair, every doorway, and around every corner, unwilling to part for an instant along their journey. The fire was already lit by the time they'd made it to the library, and the blankets they'd brought were swiftly laid out into a nest in front of it. Lea lived up to his title perfectly as the subdued light from the flames danced beautifully across his skin. Isa had lost track of how many times he kissed him, each one burning hotter than the last. The mind-blowing friction of their bodies rubbing against each other startled him with its intensity. Lea was getting more brazen, more impatient. His eager hands were pulling at him, beckoning him. He carefully swung his leg over until he was on top of him, staring down into his eyes. Lea was giving him that look again, and if Isa were any semblance of a normal person, he would have been out of his clothes in a heartbeat. He wanted it just as much, more than anything in that moment, yet he hovered there, frozen, lost in the spiral and unsure what he should do.

Lea graciously took the lead, gently lifting Isa's shirt over his head and tossing it aside. The heat of the fireplace spread a pleasant warmth over his bare skin, but could not compare with the inferno inside him, boiling fiercely in his veins. He could melt just being so close to Lea, feeling him, reading the message in his eyes, knowing what they were about to do. As he straddled him, quaking in his jeans and holding his breath, he couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so vulnerable. There wasn't time to ask himself if he was ready. He doubted his restraint, the precision of his touch. He wondered if he could even remember the steps. It was now a matter of whether or not he ought to just dive in without hesitation or continue to let Lea guide him, moving the encounter along at his pace. And then, Isa questioned whether he could even keep up with him.

Exhibiting merciful patience, Lea took his hands and set them on their course to explore. Isa reacquainted himself with the man's body, rediscovering all those favorite spots he had — the ones that made him jump and gasp. The places that sent a shudder all through him. Places he hadn't touched in so long. Isa didn't want to stop. He wanted to touch all of him. He wanted to draw out more of those soft whimpers. He couldn't bear to miss any of it. He bent down to kiss him, daring to be bold, letting himself taste Lea's exquisite breath. He could feel the tension rise as his mouth wandered down his neck and settled at his collar bone. Lea's hips were rolling against his own, and his thundering pulse was thrashing against the walls of his heaving chest, threatening to burst through his ribcage.

"Please, Isa…" he moaned. "You're driving me crazy."

The sound of Lea begging set him off, and Isa released a shaky exhale as he let his hands slide under his shirt at last. He could remember every detail as he dragged his fingers all along Lea's bare torso, still hidden beneath the thin fabric. As always, the man was lean and delicate, almost fragile. Too much force and he could snap in half, but not enough and he would plead for more. Using a tantalizingly light caress, Isa prepared to sneak around to the small of his back when he caught something. His fingertips brushed against a surface that he hadn't remembered being there before. The skin was rough, uneven. He could feel a deep crevasse and jagged lines. As if the skin were damaged and then healed. He stopped, speechless, pausing long enough to divert Lea's attention.

"Huh?" he asked, lifting his head and following Isa's eyes. "What is it?"

Leaning back to let the light fall on the area, Isa's jaw dropped when he saw it. Along Lea's flank was an enormous, gruesome scar. The skin appeared mangled and discolored, and the shape suggested a violent slash and a deep puncture. Lea hastily tugged his shirt down, covering it up with a guilty look about him.

"It's nothing, Isa. Don't worry about it."

"Where did you get that?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Lea, please," Isa breathed. "Tell me."

Backed into a corner, Lea sighed heavily, avoiding eye contact as he finally relented. "It's from when you…"

His words trailed off and Isa picked up where he left off, dreading the response he knew was coming. "You mean… You kept the scar?"

"Yeah," Lea admitted sheepishly. "I've been covering it up. The makeup washed off in the water, I guess."

The wound was vicious. Savage. Where Lea might usually have flinched at his touch, ticklish in such a place, he now lay there stiff as a board, his head turned away in shame and unable to feel Isa's caress through the thick scar tissue. Isa examined the grisly crater carefully, tracing his fingers along its borders, making its acquaintance for what he realized was the second time, fighting off his memory of the first. He had caught the man releasing Kairi, the Organization's prisoner. The moon had him in its clutches. There was no warning, no forethought before the attack. He swung his claymore in a blind rage, striking him down while his back was turned. Axel made a quick escape after that, and it wasn't until much later that Saïx realized just what he'd done. That guilt tormented him once again, smothering him with its unforgiving grasp around his throat.

His voice began to waver as he spoke. "Lea… I'm so sorry…"

"Isa, don't—"

"Is this what killed you?" he asked urgently. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I knew you'd react like this," Lea huffed, pushing him away and sitting upright. "I don't think I'll ever know what the final blow was for me. It doesn't matter anyway, Isa. It's just a scar."

Isa absentmindedly ran his fingers along the sigil on his own face. There were times when he'd forget it was there. Some days, he couldn't feel the awkward pulling and stretching as much. He didn't always notice the numbness. He figured it was just as well that he was used to it, that he was finally coming to terms with it. Just a scar. Lea's message resonated with him. It was something he had to tell himself every day. There was no sense assigning a deeper meaning to the marks — not for Lea. He had every opportunity to blame Isa for it, to resent him for the attack that left him in such a state, but he didn't, because it was just a scar. The mistakes made back then — the wounds and the damage — were in the past, and it was clear that Lea intended to leave them there.

"I'm sorry," Isa whispered, hoping that he wasn't too disappointed with how the evening turned out. "I killed the mood."

Lea turned with a sympathetic smile and laid a hand on his back. "We said we'd take it slow. It's okay. We've got time."

They sat in silence for a long while, watching the logs in the fireplace burn away. They were still reeling from the events of the evening, still coming down from the high, still catching their breath. Although the room was quite warm, Isa could feel Lea shivering under his arm. He'd pulled up his knees and was resting his head as he stared contemplatively into the flames. Isa could sense that he wanted to speak, but did not rush him into sharing. His expression, though familiar, was difficult to read. His mind seemed to overflow with thoughts, a mixture of pleasant and painful, heavy enough to suffocate him.

"I really missed you, Isa," his words were thick with emotion. "I wanted you back so badly… It took all the will I had not to give up hope. When I heard you showed up in Ansem's lab, I was so nervous… I almost didn't want to believe it was really you."

He was openly crying now, nearly breaking Isa down right along with him. "While you were adjusting, I was really worried… You weren't eating, you couldn't sleep, you were depressed and scared… It was like Saïx all over again, and I felt just as powerless to help you as I did back then. I thought I'd lose you again…"

His voice broke and he cut himself off, unable to speak any more. There was a time when Isa would have hated the sight of Lea crying like this, but there was no room in his heart for that old aversion now. "Lea, look at me," he was gentle with his request as he touched Lea's cheek, brushing away the falling tears. At times, he half expected to still see those purple marks there, but as he took in the sight of his best friend unapologetically weeping for his sake, fully experiencing the uncomfortable mix of emotions he could finally feel, and at last shedding all the tears he couldn't back then, Isa was glad the marks were gone. For the first time, he smiled in response to those tears, leaning in and blotting a kiss under each eye. "You've helped me in more ways than you could ever know. If it weren't for you, I don't know where I'd be now."

Isa was still shaken from the incident in the water, incredulous that he would just watch himself drown, frozen like a block of ice. It wasn't entirely unfamiliar to him. He'd spent ten years drowning, paralyzed as a statue of stone, a helpless bystander to his own deterioration. But in a welcome twist of fate, he'd been rescued. Lea had pulled him out of that freezing lake more than once, and Isa knew he'd do it all over again for every time Isa got himself lost. There in the depths, he was overwhelmed. He had lost himself in emotions, lost himself in memories, just as he'd lost himself in Saïx. But, without fail, he found himself in Lea, reaching to pull him out of trouble and back to safety, always there to protect him from himself.

He spared one more kiss for Lea's forehead. "Thank you for dragging me home."

Lea sniffled, wiping his smiling face with the corner of a blanket. "I promised I would… You belong here."

The fire died down until it was just glowing embers. The two were wrapped snugly inside the blankets, restful, but not asleep. Isa was propped on an elbow, watching the steady rise and fall of Lea's chest as he breathed. He would soon take on a dangerous mission, one which weighed heavily on his mind more days than not, but Isa was determined to keep his promise. Lea's efforts to rescue him would not go to waste. He wouldn't let the man grieve another loss, now that he was home and they were together at long last. He was happy. He had everything he could ever want, and he refused to throw it all away.

"Do you think there's a chance we can save Braig?" he pondered aloud. "Drag him home?"

Lea paused before answering. "I think there's always a chance."

Isa smirked at a sudden fond memory. "You remember all the wild stories he used to tell us?"

"About how he lost his eye?" Lea's face lit up. "My favorite was the one with the pack of angry hyenas. He was always so animated when he told that one."

"I actually wanted to believe he shot himself by accident. But once he got to the part about the ricochet…"

"Remember when he told us he still had it and that he kept it in a jar somewhere in the castle?" Lea laughed. "And we grabbed Ienzo and went looking for it?"

Isa chuckled along. "He never let us live that down."

They reminisced about Braig and his tall tales until the wee hours. Isa could just barely see the first glimpse of sunlight peeking out from the horizon. As he closed his eyes and attempted to catch at least a few moments of sleep, he couldn't get the old man off his mind. They'd always had an odd relationship with Braig — the same could likely be said for all who knew him. But as callous and cheeky as he could often be, Braig was not evil. Isa could recall a fair few times when the man had yanked the two of them out of danger just before they got themselves into real trouble. It was in those brief moments that they saw genuine concern in his demeanor, if only for a split second at a time. Much like Saïx, Xigbar was an amplification of all the worst parts of Braig's personality. He was a caricature, an exaggerated imitation of the original man. Perhaps, Isa thought to himself, Braig had lost himself as well and needed to be found. And perhaps they owed it to him to drag him home.

"Maybe," he contemplated, expecting no response from a snoring Lea. "Braig belongs here, too."

Full steam ahead! Hope the glass didn't fog up too bad for you. Thanks SO MUCH for reading and for your reviews and favorites! They mean the world to me and I can't wait to continue this story so we can all see where it goes!

Note: ReMind will have little to no effect on this. The story I have written will stay as it is, and I will not change it whenever Nomura waves his magic plot wand haha. This is our unique adventure, so let's enjoy it together! 3