"Why shouldn't I be okay? Dawn, what happened?"

Sky was confused.

His friends were acting really weird and there was a distinctive feeling that something was very, very off.

Suddenly, he was being crushed in a hug, his face squished in a broad chest, a tie brushing against his cheek. He looked up, his puzzled soft eyes peering over the edges of his shades at Bodil, who seemed to be on the verge of crying.

"You're back, that's what happened."

—-

Ty, with his red and tear-stained cheeks, began slowly putting things back in their place. He couldn't stop beating himself over it, though.

He had one thing to remind him of Sky, and he went and lost even that. He'd probably wake up tomorrow and think that it was just one big dream.

The vision alone made him lose it again and he slid to the ground, face in his hands as he weeped.

—-

"How the Hell did you even manage this?" Sky asked, eyes wide as he listened to Ryan explain his situation. He went to ruffle his wings, but remembered he didn't have them anymore, shoulders slumping.

"Magic," Ryan shrugged. "Listen. You are now an outcast. You aren't human, because you don't have any records here, and it's too dangerous to make you any, so you won't have a guardian. Bodil will be there, though." Bodil nodded.

"So…?"

"You are mortal now, Sky," Ryan explained, sighing, "Be careful, will you?"

Sky nodded a grin on his face. He flapped his wings, waiting for a moment and then pondering why wasn't he floating yet, then remembered he didn't have his wings. "Damn, this is gonna take some time getting used to," he mumbled.

"Do you want to go down now?" Ryan asked, "You should, really."

"Sure. Can I see Ty?" Sky asked, suddenly giddy again.

"That's the whole point of this," Bodil mumbled, kneeling down in front of Sky. "Come on, you know how this works. Don't pull my feathers or you're dead. Again."

"Dawn, please go and look if it's safe," Ryan said, taking the orb from its place, putting it away into a box of sorts. Dawn nodded, her wings leading her up the stairs and through the labyrinth of corridors. The main hall was empty though, so she whistled back.

Bodil sped past her, Sky holding onto his back for dear life. Now he knew how Ty had felt while they were flying. It wasn't very pleasant, he had to admit.

—-

"Hey, Ty! You still home?" Jason asked as he entered the apartment, locking the door behind himself. Ty's shoes were sitting next to the doormat, so he must've been still inside.

"Hey, Ty? Where are you?" he questioned, taking off his shoes. "Okay, seriously, are you here? You're kinda freaking me out…"

He put his school bag into the kitchen, looking through the house for Ty. He found him in the living room, on the floor, with tears streaming down his cheeks. He rushed to his brother, kneeling next to him and pulling him into a hug.

"What happened?"

Ty sobbed unashamedly, burying his face into Jason's small shoulder, "I… I-I… I lost S-Sky's sha-des…" he mumbled brokenly, holding onto Jason's shirt.

Jason's eyes widened as he patted Ty's head. "It's gonna be okay. Where did you last seen them?" he asked, knowing how much they meant to him.

"W-When I went to t-the mall with Bo-Bodil and Bash," Ty said, wiping away the salty liquid from his face. He tried to gain at least a bit of his respect back. "I had them in my pocket."

"Did you try calling one of them?" Jason asked.

Ty gazed sadly at his phone, which was sitting on the floor not too far away. "Yeah. No one's picking up," he mumbled.

—-

Bodil landed in front of Ty's apartment perfectly, bending over to let Sky get down more easily.

"How do I tell him that I'm… Well, alive?" Sky polemized, scratching his arm nervously.

"Dude, just walk up to him and be like 'Yooooo'", Bodil giggled, his accent thick and obvious.

"This better work, Bidol," Sky mumbled, walking up the stairs. He turned around at the top, "Thanks."

Bodil waved his hand dismissively, ushering him upstairs.

—-

The doorbell rang, making the brothers jump. Jason untangled himself from Ty, smiling a little at him.

"I'll get it. It's probably the mailman," he muttered, leaving Ty to nod and continue cleaning up.

Jason walked to the door, rolling his eyes at the relentless knocking. "I'm coming, coming, calm down," he mumbled under his breath.

He opened the wooden door, peering outside. It wasn't the mailman.

Sky was standing in front of the apartment, looking antsy and nervous, twiddling his fingers behind his back. His shades - the shades that Ty looked for so hard - were sitting on his nose, innocent. Jason blinked at the tan man, eyes roaming his body.

"W-What…?" he asked, wide eyes looking Sky up and down unbelievably. "Sky…? But- You're dead!"

Sky chuckled nervously. "Well, you see…" he trailed off, scratching the back oh his neck, not looking at the shorter boy.

Jason's eyes narrowed as he stepped out of the house, looking up to glare into Sky's eyes through his shades.

"I- I-" Sky was cut off by a sudden pain on his cheek, the outline of Jason's hand now imprinted on his tanned skin. "W-Wha-"

"You little fucker!" Jason yelled at him. "Do you know how fucking worried Ty was?!"