Tony opened his eyes slowly. Everything hurt. He shifted and whimpered, the sound echoing in the room. He looked around, rather surprised that they hadn't started up the torture again. His lips were cracked and bleeding, and he was weak from hunger.

His chest throbbed, and he grunted, looking down at the battery. Everything was fuzzy around him, but he knew without needing to see proof that his time was coming. He lay back gingerly, wondering if it was time to accept that this was the end. By this time, the shards had been under the weak pull of the battery long enough that they would be extremely close to his heart. Death was just about to bestow its final kiss on him it seemed.

He feared what would happen if Doom ever learned the intricacies of the arc reactor. If he had access to its power, and knowledge of what to do to unleash it, the world would never be the same. He gasped at a particularly painful pang from his chest, and his eyes fluttered closed. He fought tooth and nail to stay conscious, not ready to give up just yet.

His eyes opened again, and he stared into the darkness, breathing slowly through the pain. His vision was darkening, but he kept his eyes open as long as he could, desperate for one last glimpse of this world, and unbidden, his mind flew to Loki. After a couple minutes contemplating what would happen after he died, he closed his eyes briefly at the thought of what would happen if the god cared enough to take revenge for his death.

He swam in and out of consciousness for a few minutes, and thus, when he made one final effort to open his eyes, he was startled to find Loki at his side, calling to him, saying something to him that he couldn't distinguish.

"Reindeer Games," He sighed in relief, his eyes fluttering shut as he finally let himself relax. He was safe. If he didn't wake up, he knew everything would be alright. Darkness claimed him and he thought of nothing more.


Meanwhile, after Tony was kidnapped...

The team was unprepared for it. They only realized something was going on after all the Doombots disappeared and Tony didn't appear to take them out for shawarma or some other unique food, as was his habit. Hours passed, and they searched for him. Their only clue was a black scorch mark, as well as drag marks that just disappeared on a rooftop.

Natasha was able to conclude that someone (suspicion rested heavily on Doom after Nick told everyone that he had been after Tony) had teleported there, knocked Tony out, dragged him a short distance then teleported away. Steve got increasingly worried as the days went by with no word from Doom regarding a ransom. The whole team feared Tony dead after the third day. When Loki got back from Helheim and started looking for Tony, he was met with spooked looks and silence.

"Brother, there is something I have to tell you..." Thor stepped forward bravely, faltering in his words, but determined to be the one to tell his brother.

"What?" Loki asked angrily, looking at the the mournful look on Steve's face. "What has happened?" He demanded, eyes narrowing.

"Brother, Tony was kidnapped three days ago by the Doctor of Doom," Thor said somberly.

The team tensed in unison as the air around Loki grew darker and crackled.

"Why was I not told of this?" He hissed.

"How was I to know how to reach you?" Thor said accusingly.

"Must I do everything?" Loki growled. "I'm going to go get him. Have medical supplies ready, my magic is not sufficient to work the spells to get him and heal his injuries." With that, he disappeared. Thor sighed in relief.

"Do not worry my comrades. Loki always finds what he goes after, particularly when he has an attachment to them. Why, there was this one time on Jotun-."

"I'd like to think I don't like Tony much as Loki does," Clint snarked, only to have Natasha smack him over the head. "What? It's the truth!"

Thor's booming laugh followed Clint's startled yelp. "My friends, Loki has a voracious appetite when he finds someone that can keep up with him, he's not likely to let go of Stark anytime soon."

"What will happen when he tires of Tony though?" Steve questioned darkly. For that, Thor didn't have an answer.


Using his magic to locate the magical tracer he had put on Tony months ago, Loki teleported to his side. The condition he found the mortal in took his breath away, even as he swayed from the drain of the spell before he steadied himself. Kneeling, he caressed his cheek gently, keeping up a shield so no one would see him or come near them. Tony's eyes had opened at his arrival, but now they were closed.

He beat down his concern when the man didn't answer, and gathered him up in his arms.

"Tony? Tony, come on, you've got to stay with me." He said softly. Tony's eyes fluttered opened, and he moaned.

"Reindeer Games," He breathed hoarsely through cracked and bleeding lips. Loki winced and looked around, eyes alight with fury. Tony slumped in his arms and Loki looked him over in concern, his gaze drawn at once to the car battery dangling from his chest in place of an arc reactor. One arm appeared to be broken without having been set, a couple fingers on the other hand were bent out of shape, and he had what looked like whip marks all over his chest, stomach, back and legs.

Loki hissed in anger. 'Doom shall not survive the night for inflicting this pain upon you!' He vowed to himself. Tony was silent in his arms.

The god surreptitiously used his magic to find out how bad Tony's injuries were. The diagnosis wasn't good, and his expression tightened. There were tears leaking from Tony's closed eyes, and Loki was more than slightly alarmed at the pallor of his skin.

Loki soothed him before gently scooping him up in his arms and chanting a spell to get them both out of there. They reappeared in the medical bay at the Avengers tower, with Bruce standing a few feet away. He looked up at the pair, shocked, before running to Loki's side and helping him set Tony down on the bed already prepared.

The rest of the team arrived within minutes after Jarvis informed them that Loki had appeared with Tony. Taking in Tony's condition and Bruce's expression, there was a tense silence as Bruce worked over Tony, absorbing the information Loki relayed to him about internal injuries with a silent nod.

There were exclamations of dismay at the car battery being used as an arc reactor, and Jarvis directed Bruce to Tony's spare, under heavy security for obvious reasons. Loki watched with a murderous expression on his face as Bruce listened to Jarvis instruct him on how to replace it so the arc reactor was placed correctly.

Looking back at the team, Loki met Thor's eyes. Thor looked at his brother and his eyes widened upon seeing the dark expression on Loki's face. Loki ignored Thor's look, knowing full well what his expression looked like, but he couldn't take his eyes off the blood that painted his hands.

"Brother, do not-" Thor was cut off as Loki disappeared. He sighed heavily. "It would appear Loki has gone to destroy whoever did this to Tony. He cares more than I thought he did."

The team looked at him in silence before Clint shrugged. "I'd give a few things to be where he is." he said quietly, somberly. The others couldn't help but agree with him.


Loki teleported himself back to courtyard of the castle where he had found Tony, surveying his surroundings before twitching as a voice called out to him.

"Sorcerer! It seems you have taken my prisoner. What services do you offer in reparation?" The voice was arrogant and deep, echoing slightly as if coming from a suit of armour.

"Services? I will see that are you kneeling and begging at my feet for taking what was mine!" Loki roared, letting the anger he had suppressed at the sight of Tony laying on the bed barely breathing surge through him.

"Dr. Doom does not beg. Prepare to be punished for taking my prisoner, if you have nothing to appease me."

Loki saw red. His hands glowed emerald before he began shooting bolts of energy at the man hovering above him in a metal suit. Caught off guard, the creature that called himself Doom fell from the sky with a screech. The spell Loki flung at him bound him where he fell, and the god strode over, shaking with suppressed anger.

"YOU. How dare you take what I had placed a claim on. You will suffer for this." He hissed. A twist of his hands and there was a pop as bones twisted and broke inside the metal suit. The creature inside screamed, and Loki grinned in savage satisfaction.

"Tony Stark has a source of energy powerful enough to rule the world with. Join me, we can conquer them together!" Doom grunted at him. Loki snarled and broke a few more bones, twisting metal until there was red collecting on the ground. He lifted an eyebrow, mildly impressed at the resilience of the thing before him.

There was a sound behind him and he whirled, but the other sorcerer had caught him off guard with a latent spell, buried in the cobblestones of the courtyard, activated when there was blood spilled.

A strained laugh came from Doom before he summoned a vehicle with a magic of his own. He deflected a few of the Loki's own magic bolts before Doom shot one last spell at him and flew away, still laughing madly.

Loki stared after him, breathing heavily, eyes staring at nothing, but seeing Tony. He looked up at the castle and snarled before raising his hands and chanting a spell. He slumped when he was done, but smiled darkly as sounds came from the fortress looming in front of him. He frowned briefly, looking to the skies before he teleported back to the Tower.


The team looked up when he arrived, taking in his expression and the way he stumbled before silently looking back to where Tony was thrashing, still unconscious, on the table. Loki closed his eyes in pain at hearing the whimpers before he strode over, putting a gentle hand on Tony's forehead and soothing his pain.

"It is but a small reprieve," He rasped. "My magic is too depleted to help him with anything major at the moment."

"What about Doom?" Steve asked, face hard.

"Got away. He no longer has a castle to go back to however," Loki said with no small amount of satisfaction.

"Got away?" Clint said in disbelief.

Loki snarled. "Not before I inflicted some harm, but I needed enough magic to get me back here and pursuing him wouldn't have left me such energy. Rest assured, he will not be forgotten." There was a dark note in the gods voice that made the rest of the team wary, bodies automatically twitching into slightly more defensive positions.

"Guys, let's not get hasty now." Bruce, surprisingly, was the voice of reason amidst the tension. Steve took charge, ordering Natasha and Clint to go update Fury and to stop them from tearing each other and Loki apart. He hadn't missed the way Natasha looked at Loki, calculating, but without the hard air she usually carried around him.

Thor clapped a hand on Loki's shoulder and rumbled something reassuring at him. Loki didn't hear it, his eyes only for the broken mortal on the bed before him. When he finally looked up again, everyone had left the room except Thor.

"Brother, you need rest." Thor said quietly, silently supporting Loki as he swayed to the side.

"I won't leave his side." Loki whispered raggedly.

"I will hold vigil over him while you rest. I am sure I will be joined by the others. They care for him too, you know."

Loki drew in a breath to retort, but thought better of it and turned, gripping his brothers arm in thanks before slowly making his way to Tony's bedroom and falling into it fully clothed. He buried his face in the sheets and inhaled, Tony's scent still strong on them. Before he could start thinking too much into what had happened, his body relaxed, comforted by the familiar scent of his lover and he closed his eyes to sleep.


He woke up a few hours later, tearing himself out of a nightmare where Tony was dying in his arms. He stared into the darkness for a few seconds before pushing himself out of the bed and practically running to the medical bay. It was dark, lit only by a few lights that gave off a dim glow. Loki strode into the room, making his way to Tony's bed as quickly as possible. His heartbeat only started to slow down after seeing the steady in and out motion of him breathing and he grabbed Tony's hand to reassure himself. The back of his neck prickled and he whirled, alert and wary.

"Relax, it's just me." the low throaty voice came out of the darkness and Loki sighed, slowly pulling back into a casual posture.

"Widow." He greeted.

"Come now, let's not do that. Call me Natasha at the very least." She said, making her way from a dark corner of the room.

Loki lifted an eyebrow, taken aback by the courtesy. "Natasha then," he agreed softly. "How has he been?" he asked anxiously, looking back at Tony.

"Hasn't moved since I took over watching," she said grimly. "Steve took over after your brother went to eat, and I volunteered when he got tired."

Loki looked at her, not sure how to thank her for reassuring him as she was doing. She smirked at him and waved a hand minutely, letting him know she understood without any words what he was trying to impart.

"Has Bruce said anything?" He questioned, knowing of any of them, he was the one to ask.

Natasha shook her head. "He said he'll check in a few hours. This was a bit ago."

There was silence as they both turned to look at Tony, the beep of the machines a steady hum in the background. A couple minutes later, Bruce walked in. Natasha smiled and nodded at him. He muttered a quiet greeting to them before walking over to Tony, looking at him worriedly when he saw Tony hadn't moved from his position.

Loki watched with curiosity as Bruce performed several tests, opening his mouth to protest at one as Bruce pinched and then slapped Tony lightly, before Natasha stopped him with a shake of her head. The grim set to her mouth during and after the tests told him the prognosis wasn't good and a knot formed in his stomach.

Bruce finally turned to them, taking off his glasses and rubbing a hand wearily over his face. He put his glasses back on after cleaning them, and Loki barely restrained himself from screaming at the man to get on with it.

"Tony... well... I think we all knew he was in bad shape." They all looked at Tony. He had been cleaned up, and dressed in a hospital gown, bandages covering most of the wounds, but Loki still cringed as he saw the red edges of cuts, and the way the casts jutted out awkwardly.

"Bruce... please, tell us, what's wrong?" Natasha asked, her voice business like while a hand gripped the back of Loki's shirt, holding him back... from what, he wasn't even quite sure, but he knew they all probably wouldn't have liked it. He was raging inside, barely keeping himself in check.

"Tony has fallen into a coma." Bruce said bluntly, giving Loki a look that made him rethink a few things.

"What exactly is a... coma?" He asked.

"It looks like they kicked Tony around, and a few too many of those jolted his head. I don't know how he was able to remain conscious until you brought him back, but the head trauma caused him to fall into a coma. I suspected when you brought him back, but I needed more time to determine if he was actually in one, as well as running a few tests."

"What can you do for him?" Loki burst out.

Bruce sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can make him comfortable and monitor his condition. This is his body's way of healing itself from the severity of all these wounds. In the long run, perhaps it's for the best, because he doesn't have be in agony whenever he wakes up."

Loki turned away, distraught. The knot that had formed in his stomach when he found Tony now grew, going from a tiny knot to a tangle in under a second. He whirled around, eyes wide but with an inner flicker of barely contained hope.

"He will wake up, won't he?"

Bruce winced. "People have been in coma's for as little as a few hours to a couple years. This wasn't medically induced, his body did it of his own choosing, and I don't want to rush anything."

Loki stared at the doctor and then looked at Tony. He noticed small white cuffs on his wrists, as well as rails on the side of his bed. Bruce noticed his gaze and reassured him.

"They're only to ensure he doesn't hurt himself." Loki nodded before turning around, expression tight. Natasha leveled a look at him, watching him warily before letting him walk out undisturbed.

"I don't believe I've ever seen him like that," Bruce said thoughtfully.

"And I think we've misjudged the level of attachment they have for each other," Natasha said quietly before leaving the room, leaving Bruce to turn and look at Tony contemplatively.


Natasha caught up with Loki, walking silently with him for a few minutes before speaking up in that way of hers that demanded your attention.

"He'll be fine, you know. You shouldn't stress too much. Rest, we'll keep an eye on him. I'm sure Bruce is bringing in whatever experts he can to work with him, to give Tony the best care possible."

Loki stopped, still not looking at her. "But I can't help him, Natasha. My magic..." He trailed off and reached a hand up to tug at the hair on the back of his head, a twisted expression crossing his face just long enough for Tasha to catch it. She knew in that moment the Loki was cracking on the inside without his magic, without being able to help Tony.

"Loki, you're not the only one going through this," Natasha reminded him softly.

He looked at her fleetingly before nodding once more and striding away. Natasha watched him, wondering what the next few days would bring.


Tony slowly opened his eyes. 'Where am I?' He wondered. He sat up slowly, taking in his surroundings. It was white, all white, everywhere he looked. He rubbed his eyes, not sure what he was seeing, if he was seeing at all. Unless that was the fabled white light, in which case, no way in hell was he walking into it.

"Tony Stark. You should not be here." A smooth as silk voice said. Tony turned and his eyes widened at the sight before him. A woman stood a couple steps behind him. She was taller than him, but that wasn't what startled him. It was the dark blue color of half of her body that drew him in with it's familiarity. One side of her body was dark blue, faint runes marking the skin that was visible, while the other half was fair, golden locks weaving gently down her back, in contrast to the straight black silk that originated from the other side of her head.

"You... are you... what-" Tony stuttered.

She smiled gently, the other half of her face lighting up with amusement. The side that wasn't dark blue glowed, while the reddish eye of her other half glinted with dark humor.

"My name is Hel. I think we have a mutual acquaintance. Come with me, Tony Stark, you are not supposed to go down that particular path yet."

Tony nodded his head silently, shock making him go quiet for once. There was a cloudiness preventing him from naming why she was so familiar, or why he knew her, but he trusted her without knowing why. He proceeded to follow her when she beckoned, walking towards a solid red door in the distance.


The next two days were torture for Loki. Experts were flown in, but they took one look at the extent of Tony's injuries and told them to give it time before trying alternative methods to wake him up. Bruce told everyone that ultimately they couldn't just wake him up, as badly injured as he was.

Every word was just a kick in the gut to Loki, as his magic had barely started trickling back. He was vulnerable and weak without it, performing many tasks himself that he would never actually do without magic. The team was amused when he came stumbling into the kitchen for food, hair still messed up from sleeping on a chair next to Tony's bed. The positions he slept in staying next to Tony had garnered a wince from Steve and Natasha before they ordered a bed brought in for Loki so he could sleep close to Tony.

The last two days had also given the team much to think about as they saw the vulnerable side of Loki while he stayed by Tony's side, not eating until Thor or Natasha reminded him to. Clint wrinkled his nose at the sappiness of it all, but let it pass. Steve wasn't quite sure what to think, but gave Loki a chance, and plenty of space. Thor and Natasha were the only two who checked in on him and Tony every couple hours, occasionally finding Bruce sitting reading a book while the god slept at Tony's side.


It was the evening of the fifth day when Natasha walked down the hallway to Tony's part of the medical bay, but paused as she heard what sounded like a choked back sob. She walked forward cautiously, unsure of what she would find. She peeked around the curtain, and just stared, not knowing how to respond.

"Loki?" She called softly, uncertain if she should intrude.

The god stilled, his back to her, head leaning against the wall. She couldn't see his face to be certain, but it had sounded like... Natasha shook her head in confusion at what she had heard and what the obvious conclusion was, in connection with the person in front of her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the door open and Clint walked in silently. She held up a hand and motioned for him to stop and not come any closer. He was hidden by the curtain from Loki's view, but she wasn't sure how alert the god was, and Clint rubbed him the wrong way on a good day. This wasn't a good day.

"Bruce... Bruce took some X-rays today and found something. He hadn't x-rayed the reactor before because he didn't have any reason, but he did now to make sure nothing was wrong, and he has discovered what the trouble with Tony's heart is." Loki relayed numbly.

Natasha lifted an eyebrow, intrigued. "What happened?"

"When he was injured fighting that despicable creature with arms, it was jarred, shaken enough that he is vulnerable. His condition was only worsened by the torture... the damn shards have done terrible damage while under the weakened influence of the car battery Dr. Doom had him attached to. The shards...they've moved closer to his heart, closer than they should be." Loki's voice was hoarse as he told the assassin the news.

Natasha inhaled a sharp breath. With what the god had told her about not being able to help Tony with removing the shards, she knew it wasn't good.

"He's still alive, he's got the arc reactor now, and he's got you." She reminded Loki cautiously. She didn't know how off balance Loki was, but she had seen the emotional connection, and didn't want to push Loki over the edge when he was so distraught.

"What if he never wakes up?" Loki whispered, fist coming up and banging against the wall solidly. Natasha raised an eyebrow at the impressive dent he put in the wall with that one hit.

"He will. His body has only shut down so it can heal, I'm sure Tony will come out of it when he's ready." Natasha said with as much conviction as she could muster.

"I pray you're right," Loki said softly. There was something unsaid hanging in the air that gave Natasha a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she dismissed it, turning her thoughts to making sure the unstable god in front of her didn't go on a rampage if his lover didn't wake up, or worse, died.

She winced at the thought. Tony was brash, and acted five years old sometimes, but he helped keep the team alive, and always had something to say in the darker moments. She wasn't used to knowing she would miss someone if they died, but Tony was one of the few people she would miss, and she wasn't sure how to handle this revelation.

"Bruce is here with him, and once his injuries have healed a bit, I'm sure the experts will consider waking him up. The methods these days have good results."

Loki sighed and turned to face her. Clint was still hidden from his view, listening to their conversation with an odd expression on his face. Natasha took in the weariness on Loki's face and almost reached out a hand as he swayed.

"Go rest," She said abruptly. Loki looked at her, defeat in his eyes and just nodded. She was surprised when he only raised an eyebrow at Clint's presence behind the curtain before he walked into the room connected to Tony's, where he had taken up residence. He had only

She heard the bed in the room squeak slightly as if he had fallen into it, and motioned for Clint to follow her as she walked away after checking to see if Tony was being watched over. Steve was by his side, sketching as usual. She was quiet until they reached the doorway, before taking the chance to elbow Clint in the side.

"What was that for?" He yelped.

"I felt like it." She replied. He gave her a dark look, but she only looked back at him dispassionately.

"Fine, fine, so I'll give him a second chance. Doesn't mean I have to like him after hearing all that."

Natasha just shrugged and smiled, walking away. Clint muttered to himself and trotted after her.


Loki woke up to the desperate shouts of the team coming from Tony's room. He was there in a flash, throwing himself out of the bed and running through the doorway that connected their rooms to find chaos.

"What is happening?" He questioned harshly, trying to quell his fear at the sight of Tony so pale and lifeless looking.

"He's going into cardiac arrest." Bruce replied shortly, dragging forward a machine. Loki could only watch in silence and some horror as they pressed metal to his chest around the reactor and electricity crackled through the small paddles, akin in a way to what his brother would do. He dismissed the thought as soon as it presented itself though, fearful of what something so powerful would do.

A machine started beeping, and he realized it had been missing, where previously it had been constantly there. He watched something on the screen careen up and down.

"That's his heartbeat." The Captain spoke from beside him. He glanced at him briefly before looking at the machine closer. "It tells us that his heart is still beating." the Captain added. Loki had a new found respect for the machine, and felt slightly comforted at the steadiness of the noise coming from it.

Slowly the team trickled out after Bruce declared Tony safe, leaving Loki to stare down at his lover in despair. His magic was taking too long to replenish itself, and not being able to do anything was infuriating to no small degree. He dragged a chair closer and slumped down in it.

"Tony... come back to me. Please." He whispered hoarsely. A whisper of sound drew his attention, and he whipped his head around, staring at Tony's face, waiting with baited breath. Tony's hand twitched and Loki stared at him with comically wide eyes until it hit him and he ran to the door.

"Bruce! BRUCE!"

The doctor arrived at a run, face pale until he saw the quiet figure on the bed with machines beeping steadily.

"His hand... it moved!" Loki exclaimed. Bruce lifted an eyebrow and strode over the bed, examining the chart and readings the machine gave him.

"There's no difference for the last couple minutes..." Bruce said slowly. Loki's expression fell, and he slowly approached the other side of the bed.

"Tony." he sighed.

Bruce watched with amazement as Tony's eyelids fluttered. "Loki... talk to him." He said softly. Loki looked at him sharply, but nodded slowly.

"Tony, you've got to come back to us. Nothing's the same without your bad jokes and egotistical chatter."

Bruce snorted at that but kept an eye on Tony as his eyelids fought to open.

"Tony? Tony, if you can hear me, do something. Anything." Bruce said in that calm way of his.

Tony was still for a few moments, during which Loki didn't breathe, until he took in a gasp of air upon seeing his lovers hand twitch. Bruce immediately started bustling around his bed, running tests and taking measure of things until Loki was watching him through narrowed eyes. Bruce stopped and looked at Loki. "I'm just making sure things are normal, and his body doesn't have any adverse effects from being in a coma. He's still going to have a long recovery time." He said soberly. Loki growled. "Not if I can help it. My magic is almost recovered enough, I will not let him lay in this bed helpless while he recovers. Never mind the fact that he wouldn't stay in it for that long, and would probably re-injure himself."

Bruce raised an eyebrow in amusement, but nodded in silent agreement. He was slightly relieved to hear it, having known Tony as he did.

Tony's eyelids fluttered again and they both turned their attention to him.

"Tony?" Loki breathed out tentatively. Tony's eyes opened, dragging as if they were connected to weights before his gaze finally met what it was searching for. Tony made an effort to move his mouth, and managed a semblance of a smile before his eyes fluttered shut once more. His hand squeezed once on Loki's before it loosened and Loki glanced fearfully at the machines, making sure Tony's heart was still beating before he gave a sigh of relief and collapsed onto the chair beside the mortals bed.

Bruce raised an eyebrow and examined a few things, checking Tony's vital signs and ensuring no wounds needed to be rebandaged. "Right. Looks like he'll be fine for the next few hours. Give a shout if anything beeps too loudly or stops beeping." Bruce tossed over his shoulder as he headed out the door. Loki was already half asleep, relief making the stress of the past few days suddenly weigh heavily along with the exhaustion that sought to pull him under.

The god mumbled something under his breath before his head nodded to the side, and he too entered the world of dreams.

When Natasha came down a couple hours later, she was greatly amused by the picture that greeted her. Loki had slumped forward onto the bed, and had a line of drool trailing out of his mouth. Clint joined her after a couple minutes and shook his head.

"At times like this, he looks incredibly human." the archer commented gruffly. Natasha shot him a glance.

"Yes, very unassuming of him, to fall asleep next to his lover after everything they've been through." She agreed innocuously. Clint just glared and both silently left after a couple minutes, wondering what the future would bring.


What. A. Monster. This chapter has kicked my ass, I can tell you that. Also, I can't stop examining it for some mistake or another, so please, if you see one let me know. If I keep editing, you guys would never get an update, and I feel terrible for making you wait this long after that last chapter. *hands out conciliatory gifts to her readers* Anyways. I have one more week of high school work before winter break, so I'm not able to update until either later next weekend, or a mid week update after that. Hopefully things will be steadier after that for a while at least. Enjoy, and as always, I love feedback! Kisses to all of you still with me ;) Also, if you have a Tumblr, I'm Hiddleschallenged ;) My beta is AnElementalistsDarkLove ^^ Look forward to hearing the response!