I live!!!!! I know it's been a while since I updated so I won't waste any time. My mindless blather will have to wait until the end of this chapter. But I just want to thank you all for your reviews and your patience. Waiting is never fun. Unless it's for death. Then we can wait all we want.

Dedication – to Fire Fox, the stick all Raven fans should be measured by!

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Fiona sat in the backseat of the Blade Liger while Van piloted it across the desert sand. The Blade Liger glided valiantly with each pounding step on the desert floor.

"You okay back there, Fiona?" Van asked, looking back at her from the front seat. Fiona smiled at him.

"Of course, Van," she answered, "I'm fine."

Van returned the smile and turned his head back to the front. This is what Fiona enjoyed. Riding with Van as he took the Blade Liger out for a run with Zeke running along side. No worries, no cares, no responsibilities. She always felt safe with Van around. He had always been there for her ever since he found her in that capsule along with Zeke the organoid oh so long ago. She respected and loved him very much. She couldn't imagine life without Van. And she was sure Van felt likewise.

The Blade Liger continued to run further and further under the purplish evening sky when a dark Zoid loomed over the horizon. It stood next to a large and beautiful oasis that complemented the desert prospect perfectly. Too bad the Zoid symbolized hatred and evil.

"Van…it's…the Genobreaker!" Fiona cried.

"Hm, so it is," Van said, casually, "Guess that means Raven's back in town."

Van stopped his Zoid next to the oasis and opened the cockpit.

"Come with me," he instructed Fiona. Fiona stayed in her seat for a minute, uncertain of what was going on. But she decided to listen to Van and jumped down from the Zoid with him.

Van and Fiona walked into the oasis. It was a peaceful scene, with luscious, green plants and trees all around it. Sparkling, water ran through a brook under a bridge that led to the other side of the oasis. On top of that bridge stood a raven-haired warrior, leaning on the rail and gazing out into the distance.

"Raven!" Fiona cried. Van laughed.

"Yeah. Why don't you go say hi?" Van suggested and pushed Fiona forward. Zeke let out a giddy roar. Fiona looked at Van with a "what in the world is going on?" face. Van gave a reassuring smile and motioned her to go on. She didn't know why she agreed, but she did. She walked across the path and up to the bridge to meet the warrior. When she finally got there, the warrior looked at her and gave her the warmest smile Fiona had ever seen.

Fiona leaned on the rail next to him and gazed out into the horizon. After a long silence, Raven spoke.

"Beautiful scene, isn't it?" he said quietly.

Fiona half-smiled. "Yes, it is. And," she looked up at her dark-haired lover, "I can't imagine someone I'd rather spend it with than you."

Raven looked back at her with affectionate eyes. "Likewise, Fiona." He looked down. "Oh darn. My shoelace is untied. Could you hold on for a moment?" He bent down while Fiona looked back at the horizon.

"This is the most beautiful oasis I've ever seen," Fiona commented. She put her elbow up on the rail, rested her head on her palm, closed her eyes, and listened to the serene sound of the running water underneath.

"Fiona?"

Fiona opened her eyes and looked down at Raven. Her eyes grew wide. He was down on one knee and holding up a small open ring case with a diamond ring inside.

"You're the most beautiful girl I have ever laid eyes on. You're the only one that understands me and I could never imagine loving anyone else, more than you. Fiona, will you marry me?" Raven proposed with the most sincere tone. There was no word good enough to explain how Fiona felt right now. She didn't expect this at all. She looked back at Van who only had a look of amusement on his face. Did he know this all along? Was that why he had invited her to ride the Blade Liger with him?

She looked back at Raven.

"Uh…um…I…" she said.

"If it's too early, I'd understand," Raven said, slowly getting up. Fiona grabbed his hand. Tears welled up in her eyes as she smiled.

"Yes," she said, "Yes, I do! I do Raven! I do!" She threw her arms around the man. Raven hugged her and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"I love you," he whispered to her ear.

"I love you too, Raven," Fiona said, crying tears of joy, "I love you, too."

Fiona shot up from her bed in a cold sweat. What…what kind of dream was that?!

Fiona rubbed the sweat off her forehead and breathed heavily. She was still in the bed and Shadow was staring out the window with his tail swaying side to side. It was evening. The sickness she was feeling must've put her to sleep.

She still felt somewhat nauseous, though it could have now been for a different reason. The dream she had about meeting Raven at the oasis and accepting his proposal. She couldn't stomach the idea.

Shadow didn't seem to interested in Fiona's getting up since he continued staring out the window. Like he was waiting for something.

Fiona remembered. Just where was Raven? Did he leave again?

She noticed her clothes sitting at the foot of her bed. They were neatly folded and a note sat on top of them. She picked it up and read it. It said:

Fiona:

I washed your clothes for you. Put them on when you get up.

-Raven

Raven? Fiona didn't know what to think.

Fiona threw the note down and got up from her bed. She picked up her clothes and slipped them on. It did surprise her that Raven would do this. He didn't seem to care for her at all so why would he try to be hospitable? She did remember him making and feeding her the soup earlier today. What was the boy planning? Why did he have her in his care in the first place?

She remembered her dream about accepting Raven's marriage proposal. She let out a sardonic chuckle.

"Married to Raven," she said to herself as she put on her clothes, "Was that really a dream or a nightmare?"

*    *    *    *

"Here you go, young man," said the merchant as he handed Raven his purchase.

"Is this enough?" he asked, handing the man his money.

"Actually, it's more than enough."

"Keep the change, then."

Raven took his leave and walked out of the pharmacy. He wore a hood over his head to conceal his face. He hadn't been sighted for days and he wanted it to stay that way for now. He wasn't ready to mess with Van just yet.

He wanted to get this to Fiona as soon as possible. He didn't want a sick girl to be on his hands for a whole week.

He tried to convince himself that her survival meant nothing to him. He didn't care if he ruined Hiltz's plans. It was of little significance to him. However, he had a gut feeling that this was what he had to do and it would benefit him in the end.

"Who knows?" he said to himself as walked the town streets, "I could use her to my advantage."

"Somebody stop him!" yelled a voice.

Raven looked over his shoulder. A child was running at breakneck speed, being chased by a man. Presumably a merchant.

"That little thief stole my papayas! Get back here, punk!" the old shopkeeper yelled.

Raven scoffed and walked about his way. He wanted to get home fast and not be bothered. But that wouldn't happen. The child bumped into him, catching him off-guard and making him fall flat on his face. Raven turned around and shot daggers at the boy.

"You stupid kid!" he yelled in fury. His hood slipped down revealing his face making everybody around him freeze in their tracks. The old man's face was drained of his blood and turned blue.

"It-it-it-it-it-it's…" he stuttered.

"Raven!" finished another fearful cry. Raven panicked. This was not supposed to happen.

The child smirked.

"Thanks, Mr. Raven. Now all eyes are on you and the lil' thief can run away, scot-free." He said, taking a bite out of the stolen papaya. Raven seized the boy's neck and started squeezing it violently.

"You bastard! I'll kill you!" he shouted.

"Look, he's going to kill a kid!" shouted a lady.

Aw, crap, I made it worse. he thought.

He had to get out there fast. The last thing he wanted to do was attract the attention of-

"Raven?"

Raven's head twirled around so fast it could have spun off.

"No not you!" he said, but it came out in a low, tiny voice. He looked up at the figure of Van Flyheight, his enemy and rival. Raven let go of the kid and stood up, facing in him. Van scowled.

"So you've finally shown your face," he said seriously. Raven smirked.

"As much as I'd love to banter with you, Flyheight, now's not really the time. I'm not one to do this, but-"

Raven took off in a run. Van called after him, but did he really expect him to listen? None of the people would get in his way. They were all dead afraid of him and actually moved out of the way.

Some help, Van cursed them as he ran after his rival. Raven tried to swim through the sea of people, in hope of losing Van, but he wouldn't let him out of his sight.

He turned a corner and ran into an alleyway. He stopped at the wall and looked it over. Van caught up to him.

"There's no place to run now, Raven," he said through heavy breaths, "Come with me now and I'll make sure they give you mercy."

Raven turned around and laughed leaving Van confused.

"You actually think I'd run into an alley without any means of escape? I'm insulted!" he mocked. With swift speed he jumped over the wall and escaped. Van clenched his teeth in anger. He slammed his fist against the wall.

"Great! First Fiona, now this. What else could go wrong?"

* * * *

Raven sprinted out of the city and back to his hideout, hoping Van wouldn't follow him.

"That's just great," Raven said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "Now Van's on to me. But why did he have to show up now? I guess I should've expected him to start his search for that dumb blond as soon as possible. I just hope he doesn't put two and two together so quickly. I really don't need him breathing down my back right now."

Raven stopped in his tracks and suddenly remembered something. He felt around his waste and inside his pockets anxiously. After finding nothing, he smacked his forehead.

"Damn it!" he cursed, "I lost the medicine! I must've dropped it when that stupid kid bumped into me." He kicked the ground in frustration, sending dozens of dirt clods soaring through the air. A calm, icy, wind blew causing Raven to shiver a little. It was getting cold. He decided he'd better get back to his hideout and check on Fiona. Hopefully she wasn't too sick and could last one day without medicine.

He finally reached the hideaway. The air had gotten colder. It was obvious winter was on its way. Raven hated winter. He hated how it would get cold, causing water to freeze into ice and how it would get darker earlier. Kind of funny and ironic that such a cold and dark teen would hate the cold and dark.

Once inside, he closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. It was nice to be indoors again.

But the relief ended once he opened his eyes. His organoid stood in front of him, a fresh red liquid dripping from his red-stained teeth.

"Shadow?" Raven raised an eyebrow, anxiety rising in his voice, "What happened? Where is Fiona?"

Shadow looked behind him and pointed to red puddle that laid in the center of the floor. A bloody trail led out of the room and into the den. Fiona was nowhere in sight.

Raven pushed aside the organoid viciously and stared at the puddle of blood. He looked back at his companion with furious eyes.

"What did you do to her?" he demanded. Calmly, Shadow licked his teeth clean. Raven made a face.

He ignored his companion and followed the trail. It led into the den, but didn't stop there. It continued into the kitchen. Another puddle collected there and a drawer was opened above it. It looked like something was taken out. It continued again into the bedroom. Raven followed the entire path and saw Fiona, sitting on the bed, wrapping a towel around her bloody left leg.

"Damn that organoid." Raven cursed under his breath. He saw Fiona look up at him, then look away. The towel was nearly soaked. Whatever happened didn't happen too long ago, he figured. Raven stood there for a few seconds, watching her try to fix her own wound. He was surprised that he felt slight shame in finding amusement in this.

"Care to explain?" he finally asked. Fiona didn't look at him.

"He was sleeping. I tried to escape. He stopped me." She said no more. It was easy to guess the rest of the story.

She expected him to smirk or mock her or tell her off. But instead he left the room.

Fiona lifted the once white, now red towel off her wound. Still bleeding.

Fiona winced. Shadow's bite wasn't hard enough to crush her leg or break a bone, but it did leave mean puncture marks.

Raven came back into the room with another towel, some bandages, and a bottle of rubbing alcohol. He knelt at Fiona's bedside and uncapped the bottle. He dabbed the small towel with some rubbing alcohol and hovered it over Fiona's leg.

"This'll sting a little," he warned. He pressed it against Fiona's leg and cleansed all her cuts. Fiona's winced even harder. It did not sting a little. It stung a lot.

However, there was something that could take her mind off the pain and that was Raven's display of concern. The look on his face wasn't of anger, but of worry. Worry for her?  Was he mad at Shadow for doing this to her?

Fiona shook her head. Get a grip. Remember what this guy did to you. What he is doing to you.

Raven finished wrapping the bandages around her leg.

"You might have a limp in your walk for a while. But it should heal in a matter of days. You'll be fine," he said softly. Normally, Fiona would give a person a polite "thank you" after doing this for her. But this was no person. This was Raven. A guy who did something she could never forgive him for.

So instead, she gave him a swift kick in the face with her good leg. The impact and surprise knocked Raven down on the floor. He touched his cheek where the kick connected. He should've known he would've been vulnerable, kneeling down like that. But how was he supposed to know Fiona would gather the courage to do a thing such as that?

Fiona eyes shot daggers at the raven-haired warrior.

"I don't like you, Raven," she spat, her voice seething with a nasty hatred. Something very uncharacteristic of her. "You think you can win me over with compassion? After what you've done? Don't think I forgot. I'll never forget. You slaughtered my best friend and kidnapped me. No amount of compassion would make me forgive you for that. If you plan to kill me, do it now 'cause I will never comply with whatever you want. And if I ever get out of this and see Van, I will personally ask him to kill you myself. If he already doesn't have that idea, of course." Fiona folded her arms. Her emotions saturated in nothing but anger.

Raven looked back at her. At first he showed no expression. Then, slowly, a half-smile crept across his face. Soon that half-smile became a full smile. He chuckled. That chuckle became a small laugh. Then the laugh grew bigger. And bigger. Until it became a full-fledged, hearty laugh. He had to throw his head back to withstand the laugh. He placed a hand over his gut. He was laughing that hard. He couldn't contain himself!

Fiona felt small because of his booming laughter. He wasn't taking her seriously at all, it seemed. Foolish. Why did she try to stand up for herself in front of this monster? The past kind acts were flukes, she figured. There was no hope left. She felt like crying all over again.

Raven's laughter died down after awhile, until his face returned to it's serious look. He stood up and wiped a tear from his eye.

"Well, princess, I didn't expect you to say something like that. You must have guts after all. It's not everyday somebody is able to kick me like that and live." He walked up to her and looked her in the eyes. "However, I can assure you that you're friend is not dead."

"What are you talking about? I saw you slaughter her in front of my very own eyes!"

"I'm a warrior. I know exactly where to stab someone when I want him dead and where to stab him when I just want him out of the way."

He turned his back to her and walked towards the door.

"Where are you going?" she asked, her voice soft again. He looked over to her.

"To prove it to you," he said and left.

He passed Shadow on his way out. He sent him an icy glare and said with seething ire, "Don't do anything to harm her like that ever again. I don't want her dead, bleeding, or hurt. Got that?"

Shadow tilted his head in confusion. He was asking, "why?"

"I don't know," Raven said softly, "I just…don't."

He took his leave without saying another word. Once his companion was out the door, Shadow's mouth formed into a smile, letting out a small giggle.

Giggling organoids? What is the world coming to? I'm so sorry for the delay. But school is a total bitch! That's all I can say about it. Add to that random bouts of laziness and concentrating on video games and you have what's kept me from working on this story. Anyway, I'm apologize for any out-of-character-ness that happened (Raven going soft, Fiona's little death threat and Shadow going "too far"), but keep in mind what type of situation they're in. Or not and I'm just messing up. I hope it's not that. Anyway, more Raven/Fiona action coming up next chapter so stay tuned! Thank you for reviews and don't flame me, please. Nobody likes a flamer! Thank you so much and I promise to update when I get a chance. Catch ya later!