Dialogue that is communicated with Sign Language will be italicized

Disclaimer: I do not own Planet of the Apes.

warnings: a character talks about wanting to die

She kept moving forward. Taking care with how many times she looked behind her. It was rather unnerving for her. There was a group of apes following closely behind. She could hear their faint howls and the sound of their feet against the ground. It was so strange and unsettling.

When they arrived at the dam, Ava stood in place, scanning over the structure that was in front of her. The apes had pulled together a pathway made from thick tree branches and trunks. It looked sturdy enough. No doubt the apes will have no problem with maneuvering over it, it was herself that she was worried about. Taking a glance over her shoulder, she saw Caesar and the other apes, waiting for her to make the first move.

Facing forward, she inhaled a deep breath, then started the trek over the jagged path. The wood was slick from the water, causing her feet to slip on several occasions. Luckily, she was able to catch herself before falling. Reaching the edge of the pathway, Ava glanced over the edge, finding herself peering down the massive waterfall. She swallowed hard, and gently lowered herself onto the staircase that led to the dam's entrance. She pressed her hands against the worn metal, then moved to the handle. Turning the handle, she pressed her whole body against the door and pushed.

The door opened and the hinges let out a sharp crack. She groaned at the sound. It was completely dark inside. She pulled out her flashlight and led the way in. They walked down a small set of stairs. And a little more forward, they were thrust into the main control room, which was barely light from the daylight. This prompted Ava to switch off her flashlight.

This is it.

She led the rest of the way, down the stairs. Glancing back, Caesar and the apes were still trailing behind her. And she could see the curious looks on their faces as they took in the sight of this place.

"This is a small hydro," she began to explain, turning to face the apes. "It's an industrial plant that uses water to generate power. This one used to service areas to the north. But, we've reworked the power lines in the city, that way the power generated here will power downtown." She turned and stepped up onto a platform, her eyes wandered over the control panel. "The city used to run on nuclear energy, but that ran out a long time ago. Since then we've used generators, and gasifiers to give us power. But, if we can get this dam to work, then we will be able to restore unlimited power."

When she finished, she stared at Caesar, waiting for a response. Instead, she only received blank stares. In that moment, she hesitated. Maybe they didn't understand her fully. Clearing her throat, she slowly approached Caesar, but she kept her stance on the platform. "Caesar, you understand, don't you?"

"The…lights."

Relief flooded her entire body. "The city lights." She replied, flashing a soft, genuine smile.

Caesar was caught off guard by it. That smile. It's the same smile she's always had. Granted she is much older, and her features bear the harshness she has experienced the past ten years. But, seeing that smile, he felt like he was back at home before he was sent to the ape shelter. Remembering now, Caesar recalled that Ava was always smiling when she was around him. And he always noted how her and Will's smile were the same. Suddenly, a pang of sadness jolted his nerves. Seeing her smile, it was making him think of the young girl he grew up with. And it was making him think about Will, his father.

If only Ava knew that Caesar was thinking about this. For the first time, in a long time, Caesar ached for the life he had before all of this.

The young woman moved her gaze around the other apes. They all looked suspicious of her, not one hint of trust could be detected. Understandable. Finally, she found herself back on Caesar. "I understand. This is your home, your territory. We're not here to take it away, we don't want to hurt any of you, or to cause trouble. I promise. But, if you just let us work on this,"

"You. Brought others?" The same ape that had accused her of lying earlier, began to approach her, causing Ava to stumble back. But, Caesar was quick to halt the apes' advancement.

"Just a couple of people." She answered. She focused on Caesar, giving him her full attention. "I know, it's been a long time since we last saw each other." The apes hooted in confusion at her statement, but she continued. "But, I hope you know that I would never do anything to hurt you or the other apes. None of us will. But, if you can give us permission to work on this dam, I promise, when we finish, we will leave." The next words made her pause. They were stuck in her throat, just thinking about them caused a lump to form. "We will leave and we won't come back."

It seemed like a reasonable plan, in her mind at least. Some of the apes seemed to agree, although they were all still worried about having humans on their territory. But, it was all up to Caesar. And after studying her face, he finally spoke. "No. Guns."

This made Ava blink in surprise. Was he agreeing? "No guns?" she repeated. "So, we give you all of our guns and we can stay?"

The ape gave a meager nod. And with that single gesture, it was all over.

Ava exhaled a relieved breath and nodded. She did it. "Okay." That's when she remembered that her gun was secured in its holster. Raising a hand up at the apes, she slowly reached to her beltline and pulled the weapon from its hiding place. Then, she calmly brought the gun into sight and handed it over to Caesar. "You said, no guns."

The hard part was finally over.

Caesar had granted Ava permission for her and the others, to start their work on the dam. Now, they don't have to worry about Dreyfus coming up here and starting a damn war. On the way back to the cars, Ava remained silent, pondering on what she would have done if Caesar had denied them the permission to work on the dam. If they had returned to the city with bad news, then Dreyfus would have gone with his extreme plan. Then, Caesar, and the other apes would get slaughtered. And as long as Ava was standing, she was going to prevent a war from happening.

As she glanced up, the sight of the apes swinging from vine to vine, was a real sight, indeed. She never actually got to settle with the fact that she was surrounded by apes. Not just apes, but highly intelligent apes, that possessed enough strength to off her without hesitation. But, Ava knew that with Caesar close by, he wasn't going to let anything happen to her.

The vehicles came into view, and through the windows, she could see Malcolm and the others staring at her. She could just barely make out the terrified look on Carver's face. Typical. She walked down a small incline, and approached the vehicle, just as Malcolm rolled down his window. When she came to a stop, she could see Carver holding his gun, and she gave him a hardened stare.

"Put your gun away Carver, you don't need it. But, we need to give them all of our guns, that is the only condition."

Malcolm spared a look at the apes standing behind her, then focused his attention back on Ava. "So, what does that mean?"

"We can stay." She clarified. "But, we need to give them all of our guns. So, let's get this done, and start setting up camp."

At first, no one got out of the car. Ava had already begun to pull bags out of the truck when she realized everyone was still in place. She slammed her hand against the hull of the vehicle a few times, everyone in the car turned to look at her, and she said, "let's go!"

After this, everyone poured out of the vehicles. Alex and Malcolm went to work with untying the bags from the top of the truck. Ava and Ellie worked without pulling out coolers, and food bags from the trunk of the car.

Once everything was gathered, Ava approached Caesar, "we need somewhere to set up our camp."

The ape regarded the group, who were all waiting silently, anxiously, for his response. He gave a swift motion, telling them to follow, and started off in the opposite direction. Ava remained ahead of the group, hoping that it would ease some of their nerves if she showed that the apes meant no harm. As long as they didn't try to do something stupid, this should all go according to plan.

Caesar came to a stop near a clear patch. The entire group paused, surveyed the area, deeming it to be an adequate place for them to set up camp. And, Ava didn't waste any time. She stepped forward and began setting up her tent. The others, aside from Malcolm, followed in suit. Malcolm spoke with Caesar for a few minutes, mainly just expressing his gratitude for letting them stay.

Handing over their guns was a tense moment. Ava handed over the spares she kept with her. Malcolm was not as hesitant. But, Carver was the person she was most worried about. She saw the way he looked at them. Tense eyes were filled with suspicion and fear as he handed over the only safety net he had. It was a long stretch to ask him to trust her. But, he had to. This was the only exception that Caesar was making. They were incredibly lucky that he didn't refuse permission to stay.

It took a few hours. They got their tents up just as the sun was starting to set. The apes left with their guns. As she watched Caesar's retreating figure, she wanted to call out to him. She just wanted to talk, without any of the others around them. She just wanted to spend time with him. A small part of her thought it would bring them back to how they once were.

It's never going to happen. She thought bitterly to herself. Too much time has passed. We're not the same. Not anymore.

All of their tents were set up. The woods were starting to go dark as the sun continued to set. Malcolm had stationed himself in his tent, drawing out a plan for getting the dam functional again. Ava and the others were situated around a roaring campfire. Ellie passed around their dinner, while Alexander occupied his time drawing in his sketchbook. After the hellacious tension she experienced the past hour, it was time to just relax.

"You know the scary thing about them? They don't need power, lights, heat, nothing. That's their advantage. That's what makes them strong."

Ava continued to stare into the fire, not doing anything to acknowledge what Foster had said. Even though he was right. That was the apes' advantage. Her gaze broke when she looked up at Malcolm, as he was finally joining the group.

"Malcolm, I think one of us should stand guard tonight." Kemp offered.

"With what? They took our guns." Foster pointed out.

"We don't need to worry about an attack," Ava spoke up, keeping her gaze down at the plate in her lap. "They won't do anything. As long as we don't provoke them."

"How the hell do you know anything about them?"

Ava's grip on the fork tightened. She strained her eyes to stare at Carver.

"You seem so trusting of them. When they are probably just waiting for the right opportunity. Then, they'll come in and kill us all."

Ava dropped her plate down next to her chair. The impact made the fork clank against the metal, startling everyone. "How about you just stay quiet, alright? The last thing we need is you causing any more trouble."

"Me, causing trouble for them?"

"For all of us." Ava snapped, silencing Carver from saying anything else. "If the apes wanted to kill us, they wouldn't wait. Besides, they would have done long ago."

Footsteps from the woods caught everyone's attention. Ava's back straightened, her head craned over her shoulder to see where the noise had come from. From the darkness, three apes stepped forward, their faces illuminated from the fire. Everyone remained quiet and still, for fear that any small movement would trigger some form of attack. Although, the way Carver stared at the animals, he thought these were his last moments.

The main ape looked at each member of the group before his eyes settled on Ava. The ape stepped forward and signed, "Ava?"

She nodded her head and stood up from her chair. She then signed, "Yes. What's your name?"

"Rocket." The ape gave a low grunted. "Caesar wants to see you."

"What is it?" Malcolm asked.

Ava, while keeping her eyes on Rocket, said, "Caesar wants to see me."

Malcolm hesitated, then stepped over to her, his hand gently took hold of her arm, prompting Ava to look at him. "Maybe that's not the best idea. It's almost dark, plus we have a big day tomorrow."

"I'm going." Ava cemented her decision. "I'll be fine." She assured him upon seeing the anxious look on his face. "He won't hurt me."

Ava went into her tent to retrieve her bag. While it wasn't necessary for her to bring it, it was better to be safe than sorry. Once she was settled, she motioned for the apes to lead the way. Before following, she turned back to Malcolm and said, "don't wait up for me."

She kept herself behind the party, noticing how each ape would spare a look back at her. They were tense, unsure. They were probably curious as to why Caesar would want to see her. Honestly, she was a little surprised herself. Caesar wasn't the same ape she had known from fifteen years ago. He was older, wiser, a leader of his own colony. For a little over a decade, he's maintained this colony, made decisions based on what was right for the apes. He's been a leader, a protector. While she wanted nothing more than to speak with him, she never expected him to want to. Surely, the tensions at his own camp were high. The fact that he had sent for a human would definitely garner all the ape's attention.

They arrived at the came with ease. All the apes were spread out, a bigger group was resting near a huge fire. Yet, she could all of their eyes immediately on her, scrutinizing her every move. Just waiting for her to screw up, that way they could pounce on her. Rocket pointed up towards the huge tree and gestured for her to follow. She did. As she passed a group of apes, she could spot the ape with the terrible scar on his face. The look he gave her was enough to make a chill go down her back.

She followed Rocket, who took her to a little spot on the other side of the tree. Caesar was there, sitting on a boulder that had an overlook of the entire forest. He signed his thanks to Rocket, then dismissed him. However, Ava remained standing, not wanting to do anything that might seem offensive, which made her feel stupid.

Caesar looked at her, rather peculiar as to why she was still standing. Finally, he motioned for her to sit down next to him. She stepped forward, slid off her bag, and sat down on the boulder next to him. For a moment, they both said nothing. Content with just staring out at the forest below them. She didn't know how to talk with him, which made her feel incredibly uneasy. It shouldn't be that difficult, not for the both of them.

She spared a glance in his direction, taking in his features. He looked worn down, paying testament to what he went through. There were faint scars decorating other parts of his body. Definitely, ones he's obtained either by defending himself or hunting. She can only imagine what he went through in the aftermath of their escape.

Ava cleared her throat and focused her attention back on the scene in front of her. "Why did you ask for me?"

"Talk."

"Talk." She repeated and huffed out a laugh. "Okay, what do you want to talk about?" She finally turned to him.

Cesar hesitated, his expression turned somber. Then, he signed, "Will. All of them."

This was what she had briskly prepared herself for. Of course, he would want to talk about their family. He has absolutely no idea what happened to them, unfortunately, that meant Ava would have to recount what happened. "What do you want to know about them?"

"Where are they?"

Silence. Ava stared at Caesar, from the remaining light in the sky, he could see that her eyes were glazed over. And she felt the sting on her water line. But, she didn't falter or looked away. Her lips pressed into a thin line, the painful memories resurfaced. "They, uh," her voice wavered, forcing her to swallow several times. She could barely form the words. It still felt incredibly raw. "They're dead." She whispered the tears in her eyes threatened to spill. "All of them."

Caesar felt numb. Will and his human family became a distant memory as each year passed. They settled to the back of his mind and only came out when he allowed himself the moment of nostalgia. He had settled with not knowing what happened to them. A part of him felt like they had perished. But, it was never certain. And he came to terms with not knowing. It was only that chance encounter with Ava in the forest did it bring back everything. The first thing he thought of was, where were the others? He had to find out. Now, he wished that he hadn't.

"Grandpa died a few weeks before you escaped the sanctuary." Ava began to divulge the details, wanting to get over it as quick as possible. "After you all escaped, the Simian Flu just ravaged the entire planet. San Francisco was ground zero." She dragged her teeth across her bottom lip, the tears finally fell. "Caroline died within the first year."

Caesar sulked in his position, exhaling a deep sigh.

"Then, my mom a couple of months later." Ava pulled her knees up to her chest, not caring to wipe the tears from her cheeks. "It was just me and Will. We had to evacuate the house and for about three years, it was just the two of us."

Ava and Will shared living quarters, growing closer than they were before. They were all they had left. She had no idea if her father had survived. After her parents divorced, her father moved to New York and she hardly saw him after that. He was too busy with his new wife and two daughters. Hell, Ava didn't even know if they were alive.

"When he got sick, he didn't want me to be around him. He wasn't gonna survive it, so he left. I don't know where he went, but I know he probably didn't get far." The more she had thought about it, Will probably ended up back in the neighborhoods, wanting to be closer to something that was familiar to him. Not once did she think to go out and find him, she wasn't prepared for what she would have found.

"You are sure that he is dead?" Caesar signed.

Ava nodded. "He had all the symptoms. There's no cure for it. He was on borrowed time." She cringed at how blunt she sounded. The torment she went through when Will left, made her blunt. Not afraid to tell off someone if they deserved it. Carver was an excellent example.

"You. Lived."

Ava could feel herself start to grow bitter. She lived. "Yeah, I lived." She clicked her tongue and curled her hands into fists. "I spent most of that time waiting to die. Whether it was the hands of some random person, or the virus itself. I just waited." Talking about it so openly, Ava could feel that familiar darkness start to billow in her gut. "I actually wanted to die."

From the corner of her eye, she saw Caesar turn to her, confusion adorned his face. "Why?" His gruff voice dripped with his own disbelief.

She flinched. "I lost everything, Caesar." Finally, she looked at him. "I spiraled down this dark hole and I," a harsh ache caught in her throat, forcing Ava to gather herself. "I just wanted to be with my family. You know, I'm not sure if there is such a thing as Heaven. But, there has to be something after we die, right?" She shrugged, nonchalantly. "I thought being dead would be much better than living in this screwed up world."

"You still. Want to die?"

"When I met Malcolm, he helped me through all of that. It wasn't easy." She explained, seemingly skipping over his question. "But, do I still want to die? I think a part of me does. I feel like I'm on borrowed time and I'm just letting it all play out."

Something about the finality in her voice chilled the ape to his core. She was so different. Ava, before the pandemic, was carefree, vibrant and loved life. Now, she was hardened, tired, and clinging to the remnants of her will to survive. At any given moment, she could just give up. She had that look about her and it concerned him, deeply.

"I wish Will could have seen all of this." She smiled, looking in the direction of where the other apes were residing. "To see how much you've grown, to see you thrive with your own colony." She laughed, still amazed by how far Caesar has come. "He would've been proud of you. I know that I am."

Caesar felt something that he hadn't felt in so long. The pure elation that came with receiving praise from them. He could remember it so well. When he was a younger chimp, still developing at rapid speed, Will and Ava would always vocalize encouragement whenever he did something right. He would smile and laugh. He had completely forgotten what that felt like.

"Do you have a family of your own?" She asked, her dreary mood had nearly gone away. Now, her eyes were bright with curiosity.

Caesar nodded. "Two sons. And wife."

Ava smiled widely at the thought of little Caesar's roaming around. All she could think about was which of the apes were his sons. God, she wished Will could be here.

"I'm glad you've made a life for yourself. That's all we ever wanted for you." She said. "For fifteen years, all I could do was hope that you were still alive. That you were safe. I had no way of knowing. I mean, I guess I could've come up to the woods myself but I didn't think you would be here." She messed with the sleeve of her jacket, letting out a low chuckle. "Will, he had this hope, that one day he would be able to see you again."

She couldn't count the number of times Will mentioned Caesar. Nearly every day, the two of them would talk about him, sharing their thoughts on where he could be if he was alright. She knew that it drove Will crazy not knowing anything about Caesar. And if she was honest, it did the same to her. Will kept that hope with him, right up to the day he left. For Ava, however, that hope dwindled with each passing day. When she established herself with the colony, which was a few years ago, that hope became an afterthought. Something that she would think about while lying in bed. It became wishful thinking.

"Did you ever think about us?" The question had been hanging in the air, just waiting for Ava to pluck the courage to ask. But, it was a thought that had plagued her mind for so long. Of course, Ava and the others would never forget Caesar. But, would he?

"Sometimes." Caesar's answer provided instant relief to the tension in her shoulders. "I would think."

"Did you think that we were all dead?"

The question hit a nerve. Caesar flinched, he felt ashamed of himself. A few times, when he thought about his human family, the thought would cross his mind. That, maybe, they were all dead. However, knowing that Ava was the only one left, it left a throbbing ache in his chest. As if merely toying with the possibility somehow made it all come true.

"Sometimes. But, I had. Hope."

Ava smiled, but the bright curiosity was now replaced with a somber expression. "You know, I had hope that I would be able to see you again. Of course, over time, I started to push that thought to the back of my mind, but it was always there. Before I die, I wanted to see you one last time, to be able to actually say goodbye." She frowned, feeling another round of tears beginning to form. "Last time I saw you, was at the ape sanctuary. You ignored me, refused to look at me, I thought that you were mad at me. That you blamed me for being taken to that place. I stormed out of there, hurt and upset, and I didn't say anything else. Then, a few days later, you escape into the woods and I never got to see you again." Her lip trembled. She was reliving events she had turned her back on. This wall she had built to keep her emotions contained was slowly being chipped away. "That was my biggest regret."

She didn't expect this. Ava had no plans on just pouring out everything, and she didn't plan on being this emotional. It couldn't have gone any other way. It was emotional for them both. Each them they looked at each other, they're reminded of how their lives were. Caesar thinks about Will, his family. The people who showed him, unconditional love. And Ava is reminded that she lost everything. That she was the last remaining survivor of her entire family. That she was alone.

But, she wasn't. Not really.

For years, Ava had waited for something to kill her. Whether it was the virus or one of the humans, she waited. Ava never understood why she was the one who survived. Why couldn't she have died along with all of them? While she didn't create the virus, she's associated with the man who did. Didn't that count for something? Yet, sitting next to Caesar, she couldn't help but think this was the reason why she hasn't died. Ava was never too sure about the whole idea of fate and destiny. But maybe, just maybe, she survived all of that trauma to get to this moment. There was a purpose for her reuniting with Caesar. There had to be.

They remained quiet. Caesar didn't know what to say. He was still processing the information about Will and the others. He didn't know what to do or say.

In the distance, a bolt of lightning caught their attention. Ava watched the sky light up a few more times. She had to leave before the storm got here. "I need to get back before it starts raining." She stood up from the boulder and slid on her bag. "Thank you for the talk."

"Ava."

Ava blinked. It felt so weird, hearing Caesar actually saying her name. She still had to get used to hearing Caesar talk. She took a moment to ground herself, then turned to look at Caesar.

The ape hesitated, knowing that he wouldn't be able to adequately vocalize what he wanted to say. He raised his hands and signed, "I never blamed you."

Ten years she's spent living with this regret. Thinking that Caesar blamed her for being taken away. It was a gut-wrenching guilt that she never got over. But, she no longer had to hold that burden.

"Thank you for telling me that." A part of Ava wanted to give Caesar a hug, to fully show how much his words meant to her. But, she refrained from doing so. "I'll see you tomorrow."

….

Ava made it back to camp, with Rocket being her guide. While she was more than willing to leave by herself, Caesar made sure that she didn't. He asked Rocket to go with her, make sure that she got back to her camp safely. Rocket agreed albeit he was rather hesitant on it.

She turned to the ape and smiled, "Thank you."

Rocket didn't acknowledge her gratitude. The ape merely stared at her, gave a low grunt, then turned and left.

It almost made her feel silly, for trying to establish some form of trust with the other apes. She wasn't going to be here that long, so what was the point? She couldn't help herself. Establishing trust with the others apes would help to diffuse the tension between the two groups. The less tension there is, the easier they would be able to co-exist for the next few days. However, Rocket's disinterest with her should be a sign for her to stop.

Ava quietly walked towards her tent when she heard shuffling coming from one of the other tents. Malcolm poked his head out and she sighed. "I told you not to wait up for me."

"Kinda hard not to knowing you were going alone."

Ava casually rolled her eyes, but any annoyance was covered up by her smile.

"What did he want?" Malcolm asked.

She shook her head and shrugged. "Nothing. Just wanted to make sure that everything was in order. That we're willing to hold up our end of the deal."

Malcolm narrowed his eyes, not fully accepting the half-assed excuse he just made. "Are you sure everything's alright?"

"Yeah." Before Malcolm could say anything else, Ava said, "get some sleep, there's a lot we gotta do tomorrow. We need all the rest we can get."

Without saying anything else, Ava stepped into her tent and shrugged off her bag. After, stripping down to her tank top and pants, she climbed into her cot. She pulled the blanket to her chest and sighed, her mind still buzzing with her conversation with Caesar. Only now, was she able to truly relish having a connection with him again. While it will never go back to how it was before, she's going to enjoy it was much as she could. Once that dam is running, she'll leave and never come back. That's what she promised him and she's going to keep her side of the deal.

The forest lit up from the lightning and thunder rolled overhead. It was loud enough to make Ava jump. As the rain started to pour down, she curled up and closed her eyes, hoping to get a decent enough sleep.

2011

….

Caesar yelped and sat up in his bed. The rain pounded against the window and the thunder was relentless. He remained frozen until the thunder roared outside, causing him to jump out of bed. He opened the attic door and climbed out. Standing in the hallway, he took one look around before trotting towards one of the bedroom doors. He pushed open the door and saw that Ava was sleeping soundly in her bed.

Her mother had been working late that night. Like many times before, Ava stayed over in the spare bedroom Will set up for her. And Caesar was more than elated when he found out she was staying. Caesar's mood always depleted whenever Ava would leave to go home.

A flash of lightning illuminated the room, causing him to jump onto her bed in surprise.

Ava sat up and gasped at the unfamiliar weight on her bed. The ten year old was frightened at first. But, as her eyes cleared, she saw the small form of a frightened Caesar, sitting at the foot of her bed. "Caesar?" She rubbed at her eyes. "Are you okay?"

The young ape raised a hand and signed, "Scared."

Ava blew out a tired sigh. Helping Caesar to get over his fear of storms was still a work in progress. Some days, when the storms aren't as bad, Caesar can tough through it. But, hearing the wind howling and the rain against her window, Ava could hear how bad it was out there. She ran a hand through her messy hair, "You want to sleep in here with me?"

Caesar was all too eager. He answered her question by settling himself under the covers with her. As she laid back down, Caesar cuddled up next to her, his head resting against her chest. She smiled and secured an arm around him, before falling back to sleep.

Caesar remained awake. Each time thunder rolled in the sky, he flinched and settled closer to Ava. To combat his fear, Caesar focused his attention on the sound of Ava's heartbeat. The single beats combined with her breathing calmed him. It was a different form of a lullaby. When Caesar was much younger, Will would often play lullabies, to help the chimpanzee to fall asleep. And it worked every single time.

Ava woke up momentarily. She could feel how tense Caesar was and she tightened her hold around him. "It's okay, Caesar. Go to sleep."

He listened. Caesar closed his eyes, allowing sleep to finally take over.

A/N: Hello, everyone. It's been a while and I apologize for how long this update took. After updating chapter three, I experienced one of the worst writer's block, ever. To the point where I couldn't even write any of my stories. It was really bad. I eventually started a new story and I've been focusing on that since November. However, my muse for this story slowly came back and I managed to finish this next chapter. I really don't like how it came out and I'm sorry that it's not my best. But, I hope you all enjoy it!

Not sure when the next update will be. I'm hoping it won't be another five months! Also, this is a shameless plug, but if any of you are a fan of Stranger Things maybe check out my new story. Only if you want, you absolutely don't have to! Reviews are also highly appreciated, it's what helps motivate me. Until next time!