Chapter 8 is here! Hope you'll enjoy and also thanks for all of your kind reviews, I really appreciate it! Please leave some more ;)
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She woke up several hours later, stretching her crisped body on the bed, yawning at the same time. Lydia scratched her eyes lazily before looking around the room; she was alone, as she expected. God did she need a cigarette. She walked to the basin of water that Orion brought her when she was asleep and sat on the stool that paired with the big cabinet in a corner of the room. Her small hands cupped the cold water and splashed it on her face; she was completely awake now. Lydia ripped a piece of rag from the "dress" she had, plunging it in the water; washing away the last residues of makeup she had under her eyes. She looked at her reflection in the calming water, turning it; trying to see where she was cut. What did Orion give her? She thought she'd ask but, did it really matter? She was alright and that's the most important thing. With the same piece of rag she washed herself lightly, trying to make herself feel clean. She needed a hot bath more than a cigarette right now. The creaking sound of the door startled her, making her look at that direction. Orion, Basso and a beggar came in, all greeting her one after the other. She replied with a genuine smile, trying to discreetly look behind them if he was there. She looked away when the fat man gestured something, forgetting about the thief.
"Here Amos, that's the girl you saved man!" Basso slapped him hard on the back, laughing as the beggar almost lost his footing. The homeless man walked limply to her, handing out his dirty hand. Lydia shook it with the tip of her fingers, smiling at him.
"Pleasure to meet you Ma'am." His breath smelled like alcohol. She nodded, still smiling at him.
"How are you feeling?" Orion got closer to her, examining her skin.
"Very good, thank you." She almost bowed to him in respect, he smiled in response.
"Well that's perfect!" The bearded man stated, "You'll be good to go back home now." Lydia didn't know if he just wanted to kick her out of the weird inn room. The thing that scared her the most was being caught by the filthy animal that almost killed her. Basso read her insecurity.
"Worry not miss, Amos here heard that your father took care of things with the Thief-Taker General." His hands rested on his hips, stating the information proudly. Did her father know she was alive? Even if he knew that she wasn't; he would've still took care of thing. That was a relief; she sighed. Orion seemed sceptic about your situation.
"You know, if you need something you know where to find me, Miss Carver." Her eyes narrowed slightly when she heard her last name, did she even tell him? It didn't really matter I guess; anyway, it wasn't hard to know the last name of someone these days.
"I'll remember that." She nodded once again. A guiding hand deposed itself on her back, making their way outside. It was the first time she ever stepped out of the room actually. People were roaming around, trying to get warm around a fire, others drinking at tables, they all looked miserable, but the smile on their face said the perfect opposite. Orion guided her to the large wooden door, guarded by two tall men. He talked with them for a couple of minute, leaving Lydia detailing their characteristics. They had white and red-blood paint over them, making the colors look like a cross. Lydia already saw this once in the papers... She couldn't recall the name unfortunately.
"Well I guess it's time for you to go my lady!"
She almost thought he really wanted her out of there. Maybe they just wanted to keep clear from her father who was probably scavenging every inch of the city. Political men were pretty scary when they wanted to... Were they really going to let her go out on her own? The wooden gate opened; making Garrett appear at her sight. She smiled and waved at him softly. The cloaked face of the thief masked every emotion that could've shown. He crossed his arms; she took it as a greeting. He walked in the light of the fire near them, as Basso touched the thief on the shoulder. Garrett glared at the hand, making the entrepreneur remove it at the same time, laughing sheepishly.
"You didn't actually think that we were going to leave alone, were you?"
Lydia shrugged laughing uncomfortably, under the heavy gaze of the thief. He intimidated her even more now; she tried to contain it by looking away. Garrett was examining her, she felt it; making her shiver from the core of her body. She peered at him, seeing his mechanical eye reflect the light of the fire; it was blue like the mushrooms... Garrett turned and went for the exit, his body telling her to follow him; it was time to go. A shy goodbye slipped out of her mouth as she trotted behind the thief. Amos looked at the pair, crossing his arms and finished by looking at Basso, who was also staring at their disappearing shadows. Garrett seemed to look straight, as Lydia looked at him. The beggar laughed at the view; making the fat man peek at him.
"What a weird couple."
"Couple?" Basso almost spitted the question; remembering the Garrett he knew.
"Don't tell you're fat and blind mate!" Amos patted him in the back in return, making his way to the fire; surrounded by his friends. Basso kept looking at them until the wooden door closed on him. Something had definitely happened with the thief; but to say they were something, he wasn't really sure. He trailed the beggars, forming the circle, brushing the thoughts out of his mind.

Lydia followed silently; she wanted to talk to him so much but what could she say? She felt he was uncomfortable; his body language was even more closed than before. He helped her get up the high rooftops, making their path much easier. He didn't even look at her when he did; it looked like he wanted to shut her out completely. Lydia was burning from the inside, trying to figure out what she did wrong. Maybe it was the kissing scenario that he didn't like; but then again, he would've probably kissed her if they didn't get interrupted. Lydia rolled her eyes; they were interrupted. Did he need her as much as she started to need him? How could you long for a stranger like that? After all she'd been through; the worst thing that happened was that she couldn't kiss him. She sighed; he didn't react. Lydia frowned. She sighed louder; she saw something in him twitch at the sound, it seemed like resistance. She stopped following him; crossing her arms. Garrett heard that her footsteps weren't following him anymore; he half turned, looking at her from above his shoulder. The bright lights behind him made it hard for her to distinguish the slight amount of flesh above his mask.
"What's wrong?" She sighed, raising a palm as an interrogative movement.
She felt his glare intensify while he spun on his heels, black cape flowing behind him, to continue their way. Lydia almost jumped on him, seizing him by the hand tightly. He turned around again, eyes closed by frustration. He took a deep breath before opening them; that's when his eyes went wide open, startled at his view. He was facing Erin. He stood there, looking at his apprentice, breathing stopped at the view. What was happening right now? The feminine thief wore her usual suit, but something about her eyes was different. They had the same color as Lydia's.
"Don't let her go, Garrett." Erin spoke softly, taking the thief's hand in hers, placing it on her cheek. Garrett's eyes narrowed slightly at the view.
"Garrett?" He snapped at the different voice, blinking twice before realising that a confused Lydia was in front of him; his hand cupping her face. She was almost afraid of him at this moment; his eyes seemed so empty for a second. A shaky hand went and placed herself on top of his, cocking her head a little to make the contact more real. Lydia enjoyed his touch more than she should, she'd take anything he'd give her. The tip of his agile finger touched the silky charcoal strands that felled behind her ear. Was Erin connected to her? He didn't really want to think about it... She reminded him of Erin in some ways, but on the other side they were completely different and he somehow appreciated that. His hand slid to her lower back, pulling her slightly closer to him, as his other hand went around her neck. It felt like a reluctant hug to her, but she knew that he didn't do things like that regularly. The silence of the night was complementary as the one that was in their head; emptied from all the thoughts that kept them apart since the moment they shared. He pulled back, looking down at her; as she slowly reached at his face, pulling the piece of clothing down. She smiled at his view; and she almost saw a smirk crack from his expressionless mask. Her soft hand reached at his face, touching his dark tinted skin, brushing against the roughness of his stubbles alongside his jaw. Garrett was standing straight as she pushed her weight lightly on his chest.
"Let's get going." A smile decorated her face at that statement, slipping away of his grip like a snake. He peered at her trotting away before looking at the sky; those little moments were killing him more than they should.

They walked a couple of quarters away from where they were. Garrett kept his slow, silent, paced walk as she was bursting out of energy; she looked exited. Sometimes she grabbed his hand; sometimes she just pushed him around, trying to make him smile, even if it didn't work most of the time. Lydia was astonished at how he had so much patience with her; she looked like a child at moments like this, and him... Well he always looked so cultivated and mature. She was exited to go back home, even if she hated the luxuries, she still loved the feeling of a long hot bath. Lydia decided to go straight to her father's place, knowing he'd be devastated if he knew she'd got home without telling him; she also needed security. The pair walked a couple of miles until she finally saw the family mansion. A smile gratified her face as she fastens the pace; Garrett falling behind. He helped her get down and walked her to the front door. She turned at him, leaning on the wooden door.
"Thanks." She whispered. Garrett couldn't read the emotion on her face; he couldn't tell if it was melancholy or sadness... He nodded at her politeness. Lydia had difficulty distinguishing his traits in the dark, it's like she was looking at a shadow in front of her. Was this where they parted? Lydia couldn't bring herself to ask him while he was standing in front of him; she couldn't bring herself to speak anymore actually. With every bit of strength in her, she turned her back to him, knocking hardly on the front door after being hesitant a couple of seconds. She thought it would be less painful if she didn't hear the answer. The lights switched on as she heard footsteps getting closer. The door unlocked; it opened, restrained by a safety chain, her father peering in the gap. His eyes widen; he almost ripped the chain off, opening the door in the fastest way possible. Lydia smiled weakly.
"Father." She spoke as the man walked out of the house, grasping her in a tight hug; crying, spinning her around. She embraced him; his scent reassuring her. Lydia couldn't help but smile; she was finally home. Two days since she'd been abducted and it felt like an eternity. She then remembered the thief that accompanied her, feeling eyes looking at them. She looked over the shoulder of her paternal figure, exploring the environment. She saw the shadow crouched on the rooftop; Garrett got up and left at the view when the hug was over and she went inside with her father.

Basso took a drink from the bottle that just been passed to him by one of the beggars next to him. He looked around and saw Orion who was talking with two other guards. The corpulent man decided to go see him, drunken maneuver in his walk. After a while, he finally got to them, attracting the attention from the leader.
"Oh, Basso..." Orion greeted, annoyance touching the end of his saying as he smelled the alcohol off the man.
"Say mate..." He hiccupped. "I just wanted to know something really simple."
The bearded man looked at the guards and looked at his acquaintance once again. With a gentle hand, he guided the entrepreneur away from the guards, walking with him. Orion waited for his question.
"You know..." He paused, rambling something beyond understanding before clearing his throat loudly, "the liquid you gave to the lady, what was it? I saw that if healed her injuries in less than 24 hours man... Nothing normal in that." Orion laughed at the curiosity of the man.
"You know my friend; curiosity can get you killed sometimes." Basso narrowed his eyes, almost scared at what that meant.
"But just because we are, you know..." He gestured a link between them "friends, I'll tell you."
Basso laughed sheepishly, feeling stupid for being scared of him for a second. Orion leaned in.
"Some mixture that the book told me to do... Liquid Primal." He whispered. Basso pulled back at the revelation. Does that mean a link was created? Would that explain why Lydia saw Erin?