I woke up in Escal's arm, really hot, urging to pee, but I didn't want to move, especially because he slept so calmly. I wanted to keep staring at him, but my bladder was very insistent, so I climbed gently and slowly over him and tip-toed across the floor.

When I came back, he lay looking at me with kind eyes, but I could feel something troubled him.

"We need to talk," said he. Instantly, I knew what he wanted to talk about.

"Not yet. Please," I begged. I closed his objecting mouth with a kiss. "Just, let me have this moment. We'll talk, I promise." So he waited, and I waited, and we both stopped waiting at the same time, holding each other tight.

"This complicates things," he said. Said as a simple, unchangeable but somehow uninteresting or even boring fact. And I knew why. Sometimes you needed to distance yourself from stuff, or you'd break down. This was stuff.

"I know."

"What do we do?"

"Isn't it obvious?" My voice was empty, resigned.

"No, it isn't obvious."

"One of us must be sacrificed." He caught my eyes, trying to remove the grave sincerity in my eyes.

"I had rather hoped you had another idea," he whispered. His distancing was failing.

"Like what? Like maybe the Tooth Fairy will come to safe us?"

"I would do it for you, y'know."

"Make the Tooth Fairy safe us?"

"No. Die." I wasn't surprised by his worse, but I hesitated answering anyway. I had to say this right. Had to make him understand that I wasn't going to let him.

"Escal, I don't want you to interrupt me, so just let me finish before you say anything, kay?" He nodded and I continued. "You are not going to die, Escal. I forbid it. If it turns out to be necessary, I will hex you and kill the others while you're hidden in here. But since it would probably be easier with you around, I will give you a choice. Let me die, or have me die anyway. What do you choose?" He rolled over so he was lying on top of me and stared me down, but I didn't flinch.

"No," he snarled angrily, took a deep breath and continued: "You wouldn't leave me defenceless anywhere. You're bluffing." He had a point. I had really hoped that I wouldn't need to do this. But I wasn't going to bend.

"You saw what I did to that girl yesterday." My voice was barely a whisper.

"You wouldn't." He didn't sound so sure this time, though.

"Yes, and I'd do more." I had him now, I knew I did, and I hated myself for it. I remembered the happiness in every corner of my mind, working so hard to cover up the nagging, the little, tiny undermined thought that tried, and failed, to tell me, I was trapped. I felt like I was going to get sick again, but I suppressed it and kept my voice calm. "I could make you kill me. And if that's what your survival would need, then I would do it. So don't make it necessary." The blood had left his face completely, leaving his face so white that I would think him dead if his breathing wasn't blowing into my ear.

He was speechless.

I had won.

"You'll live," I promised threateningly.

Hi guys ^-^

I'm sorry it's been so long since my last update, I feel so horrible about it o.o

This chapter is both short and cheesy, but don't despair, I'll get back to killing people off soon enough :3

I'll continue with next chapter immediately! (And I'll update as soon as I possibly can manage!)

Oh, and please leave a review, I really love to know what you guys think, and that you're there o.o