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She only woke to drink some water, eat a piece of bread from her pack, and restart the fire for the day. Her head still throbbed, and her boy hadn't woken yet, so she decided to stay at his side and sleep. The fire had died during the night, waking her to the chill that had descended on the cave once again.

Once the fire was lit, she had nibbled at the bread. Her stomach was still nauseous, and after a few bites she put the rest back in her backpack. The cold water was comforting, and she wiped the sweat from her surprisingly warm brow. Fever? Perhaps.

Golden sunlight from the sunrise shone from the entrance of the cave, but she turned away from it to slowly fall back asleep, snuggled up against the boy in the blanket.

—

The next time she woke it was almost sunset. Her head didn't hurt as sharply as it did before, but it still ached. More water, bread, and wood for the fire. The wet clothes from yesterday were now dry, and she put the boy's shirt on him. He was warm enough under the blanket, but she felt like she was truly taking care of him if he was fully dressed.

"I wish you'd wake up," she slurred as she lay down beside him again, this time closer to the live-giving fire. "I'm so lonely. I wish you could light the stupid fire that's keeping us alive."

No response. She reached up and poked his nose. Still no response.

"Party pooper," she mock-pouted, then turned away from him as she coughed, feeling phlegm deep in her chest. Don't be sick, she begged herself as she faced the crackling fire, letting her eyelids fall. Don't be sick!

—

She was sick.

Shivering, coughing, and feverish. And she still couldn't remember anything.

It had been two days since she had woken up in the snow. Or had it been three? She didn't know. Maybe she was delirious. Maybe everything was a dream.

Wouldn't that be wonderful? Just a dream, and she would wake up somewhere warm and dry, not alone and not in danger.

But the pain was too real. That skull-splitting pain was hard to ignore. But maybe this was one of those dreams where everything was super real, and when you woke up you really think the events in your dream happened and Sunday was really Thursday and that pink lion in front of you was -

She stared with dilated eyes at the creature standing before her, his light pink mane thick and beautiful in the firelight. "Who are you?" She mumbled, blinking dumbly at him. He began sniffing her, his great nose hovering around the base of her neck for a little longer. She stayed very still, very confused but aware that this giant animal might eat her. Turning to her, his large eyes stared deep into hers. She stared back, then sneezed. He opened his mouth, and gently licked her face. And she smelled a familiar smell.

"You smell like strawberries," she grunted, and began to have a coughing fit. He made a deep moaning sound and laid a paw on her back, as if to help her.

She laughed and coughed harder. The boy behind her still didn't stir. She looked up at the creature and said, "I don't know who I am."

The lion looked at her, unblinking.

"I'm lost."

He began licking her face.

"I'm sick."

He stopped and looked at her, leaning forward and peering at her as if checking her for symptoms.

"And I need you to get help, or to help me."

He must have been just a dream lion, because at that moment he turned his large head, as if listening. Then he stood and leapt out of the cave, disappearing entirely.

—

The third or fourth day. They were almost out of firewood. Nothing else had changed, except she ached more and was less feverish. She shivered less, curled up next to her boy. She had pushed him onto his back so that his side wouldn't get sore, and now her head rested on his chest. It rose and fell gently, reminding her that yes he was still alive and healthy next to her. His heartbeat was steady too, and that soothed her loneliness.

Just sleeping, she kept telling herself. He's just sleeping.

That's a lie, came a little voice inside her. That's a lie, he's dying and you are too weak to save him. You couldn't save him the first time, now you can't save him either.

What didn't I save him from? She argued back, taking a fistful of his black shirt in her shaky hand. The star crinkled in her fist, but it felt real, and grounded her. What really happened?

No answer. That little bratty voice had amnesia too.

—

The fifth/sixth day. After almost five days straight of sleeping, she was able to shakily get to her feet and take a few steps. She sat at the entrance of the cave, her jacket warm around her shoulders, looking at the sky. It just felt healthy as she breathed in the fresh, cold air and looked at the clear sky.

Her head didn't ache as much, but she still couldn't remember much either. Her cough had rested in her chest, and it gurgled uncomfortably each time she felt a tickle in her throat. She looked down again at the phone in her hands. The flashing light said "Please wait for two hours before trying passcode again".

She sighed. She was trying to be patient, but hope was fading.

Suddenly a loud noise startled her. A crashing sound, shaking the ground and startling the birds in the trees so they flew away.

She stood up, knees wobbly, to see a monster looking towards the setting sun. It was ginormous. Towering over the trees with purple, blue and red fur that the wind blew lazily to and fro. It's giant jaw had giant fangs, and it's paws knocked trees out of it's path.

Don't find us, she prayed to no one in particular, her hand over her mouth. Don't find us.

Was that maybe what they had been searching for here? Or the thing that had found them?

That big thing couldn't sneak up on us, she thought. So who did?

Suddenly a roar startled both her and the monster. A flash of pink lit up part of the forest, and she recognized the lion from her dreams. Was this a dream?

The monster roared back in a challenge, and the lion leapt away, with the monster giving chase.

He's leading the monster away from us, She thought, eyes widening. "Thank you," she whispered, and felt relief wash over her.

—

Day seven. Her headaches were getting to be duller and duller, and with lots of sleep she was beginning to feel much better. She ate more today than she had in a long time, and so she felt more energy flowing in her veins. Her cough remained, but she tried not to worry about that.

She turned the boy over again, making sure he didn't get sores from laying in one position. He seemed perfectly healthy; he simply wouldn't wake.

"I wonder if you are dreaming," she said softly, voice deep from not talking much and from her cough. "And I wonder what you are dreaming of. Could it be us? I wish I knew what we are. What I am."

She slowly got to her feet, putting her jeans over her leggings and stuffing the hand warmers in her boots. She needed to hunt today, as their food had run out.

"I'll be back, don't worry," she said, adjusting her sword strap across her chest. "I will never leave you behind, and hopefully you'll wake in time for rabbit stew."

As she trekked in the snow, she wondered how she knew how to survive out here. Tracking the footprints of small game, she seemed like a natural, honing in on skills she couldn't remember learning. She traced some rabbits to their burrows, following their footprints to their tiny hiding places. Swift and mercifully she dealt the blow that would bring her precious boy supper, feeling a familiar grim and nauseous feeling as she did.

It felt strange. Had she killed before? She didn't know. It felt so natural and familiar that she wondered if she was the good guy in this story. She had a beautiful sword, but did that mean she was a force for good? Or was she a maniac killer on the loose, rising up from a near death experience that should have brought balance to the universe?

The rabbits lay in front of her, and she sat before them, dazed. So many questions. It overwhelmed her.

Suddenly a crash next to her woke her from her stupor, and seizing the rabbits she whirled to see what was coming towards her.

The beast from before was fifty yards away from her, but it was but it was twice the size of a polar bear on it's hind legs. It was sniffing the air, making gruffly noises as it did. She slowly lowered herself to the ground, staying very still. She couldn't see it's eyes, so assumed that it was relying on it's sense of hearing and smell.

How do I know that? She wondered again.

The monster turned and seemed to look straight at her. Time stopped, and she felt her heart skip a beat.

A sudden roar split the silence, and the pink lion jumped out of the underbrush, clipping the monster with a giant pink paw. The monster roared, and gave chase as the lion led it away from her.

She let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. It made steam in front of her face in the cold, icy air. She swallowed several times, trying to mute the cough threatening to sound. Slowly she got to her feet, and backing away, snuck back to the safety of the cave.

—

Rabbit stew was really good after nothing but protein bars and bread bits. It was kinda bland, but with a small bit of pine needles with it the stew tasted like medicine, and because she was sick that seemed comforting.

But eating alone was…lonely.

She sat with her back against the cave wall, staring at her sweet boy with tears running down her face. Her cast iron saucepan was still resting in her limp hands on the floor from supper, and her sniffles echoed in the chamber walls.

"Why can't you just wake up."

She hiccuped, then coughed, and a small sob came out of her and she let go of her saucepan to hold her face as she began to cry harder. "I just want to talk to you!" She cried, anger and despair overtaking her. "Why can't you just open your eyes and come back to me?!"

No answer came to her, and she realized she hadn't heard another voice in a week, maybe longer. She couldn't remember before.

"I-" she gasped out, "I need you!"

The cry echoed around the walls, bouncing back to her ears. It sounded pathetic and weak. Then it turned into a coughing fit that left her wincing and rubbing her throat in pain. She cried harder, and crawled to him, laying her head on his chest and sobbing into his shirt. "Come back. Come back to me!"

Suddenly something touched her back, and she turned her head to see that he had reached up and laid an arm around her, pulling her close in his unending slumber.

She calmed slowly, laying her head back down on his chest. He seemed to want her there. She whimpered softly, the silence unbearable. But then she re-situated so that her ear rested over his heart, and the comforting sound helped her to calm down.

"It's not fair. You get to sleep, unaware of the danger," she said, voice low and mournful. "All alone in your dreamland, far away from this torture."

He didn't answer. His hand was warm on her shoulder where it rested, and radiated life into her as she shivered.

"I wish you'd help me," she murmured, lonely and looking for someone to blame for her pain. "I wish…" she trailed off, realizing the truth. Without him, she would have given up and died already. Because he was here, she was fighting for them.

If she died, he died.

She lifted his shirt to peer at his gem. Could he die? What was that thing?

She couldn't remember. But a sneaking suspicion told her he was mortal, and so she had cared for him as if he was as fragile as she was. Which is why she bothered waking up at all. Tending the fire if it got chilly in the cave. Feeding herself.

As he lay there, he was giving her a reason to live.

"The sun is bright," she whispered, a small tune coming to her. It was familiar, and though the words made no sense a song gently flowed from her as naturally as breathing.

The sun is bright

Our shirts are clean

We're sitting up above the sea

Come on and share this jam with me

Her eyes were slowly closing, but the gentle pressure of his arm on her back helped her to continue calming down. Her breathing was ragged, and she suddenly wondered if she was getting sicker. And then like most of her thoughts, they were lost in the fogginess of exhaustion and fatigue, and she slept soundly.

As she slept, Lion entered the cave. He licked his wounds from the fight with the monster outside, and gazed thoughtfully at the two precious cubs of his that he guarded every night while they slept. He wasn't human, so his thoughts had no words. Only images and feelings.

The girl coughed and moaned in her sleep. For all her impressive inner strength, she was not well.

The boy gave a sleepy sigh, and pulled her closer, sharing his warmth. Neither one opened their eyes, but Lion knew that amid dreams and unconsciousness that the boy was worlds away, fighting to reach help. The girl was trying to fight for her life as her body fought for sleep.

He rolled another log into the fire. In her sickness the girl didn't notice that the fires never died during the night since he had found them in the cave. Lion was protective of her, and did not let her sleep without a guard to faithfully watch the fire and the door to their backs. He came to them and licked each of their faces. Neither stirred, and he crooned softly to them, as if blessing them for the night.

He heard the roar in the distance, and turned to leave. It was time to lead the monster away again. It was tracking the girl after the hunt, using the same way that she had followed her own supper to its den.

Lion was a good guardian, but not a good hero. Things would have been simpler if he had brought gems with him, or even picked up the girl and the boy one at a time in his big mouth to portal them home.

But he was just a lion. His cubs were in the cave, and he didn't know human ways. Only lion ways. They would be safe, sleeping in the cave, as long as he made the danger go away.