A bright light colored the back of Lili's eyelids red, and she rolled onto her side to avoid the harsh shine. Something soft rustled around her as she moved. That was odd, but she tried not to think about it too hard. Her life had been anything but normal lately, so she shouldn't be too concerned about the fact that she seemed to be sleeping in her own bed for the first time in weeks. Or should she?

Her eyes flew open at once, and she sat up with a start. How was this possible? It really was her bed nestled in the corner of her room. Nothing had changed at all since the last time she had been there. Her books were lined neatly on a small shelf over her wooden desk, and her bureau stood stoutly near the foot of her bed. Even the window was still the way she had left it; open with the drapes fluttering in the slight breeze. Lili swung her legs over the edge of the bed and realized she was wearing a nightgown. Someone had changed her clothes while she was asleep.

The door to her room swung open, and Vash stepped in. His eyes went wide when he saw her. "Lili! You're awake!"

"Good morning, brother," she replied with a pleasant smile.

"Thank God." Vash hurried forward and enveloped his sister in a warm hug. "Thank God. Thank God," he murmured over and over into her hair.

"It's okay. I'm okay," Lili said reassuringly. It was unusual for her brother to be so openly affectionate, but she didn't care. Tears were beginning to form around her eyes. "I m-missed you so much."

Her brother suddenly let go and quickly stepped back, his face a mixture of both relief and unspoken tension. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better." She smiled again. "I don't really remember much, but…"

"I-I got you this," Vash said hastily, as if trying to distract her from what was really on both their minds. He held out a long purple ribbon. "The other one was dirty, so I got you a new one."

"Oh!" Lili exclaimed. She had forgotten how much she missed not wearing a ribbon in her hair. "Thank you." She quickly tied it in place with a feeling of contentment. Things were finally going back to the way they were, but there was still something that was nagging her. "How did I get here?"

Vash froze. It was subtle, but Lili definitely noticed how his entire body seemed to tense up. "They brought you here," he said in a low voice.

"They?"

"The werewolves."

Lili felt one knot in her stomach relax as another formed. Someone had made it out alive, but how many hadn't? "Where are they?"

"Well, there was actually only one who brought you here. I wasn't here when he arrived so I do-"

"Where is he?" Lili asked urgently. It was all starting to come back to her bit by bit. The fire. The storm. Ludwig. She had to see him.

"You can't see him."

A block of ice seemed to settle in her chest. "Why not?"

"They're keeping him locked up right now. You'll have to wait until-"

"Locked up?!" She covered her mouth with her hands. "Why? Why would they do that?"

Her brother never got the chance to answer because several people appeared in the doorway at once.

"Hey! Look who's up!" Alfred shouted happily. He waved a small bouquet of flowers.

"Shut up, you stupid git!" Arthur growled. "You shouldn't shout."

"H-hi." Matthew waved timidly. He had a small plush bear in his arms.

"Matthew and I are the only ones who should be allowed to see poor little Lili while she recovers." Francis pushed his way past the others and flipped his blonde hair. "The rest of you are just too noisy and bothersome."

"You want my fist in your face, frog?"

No one was expecting Lili to jump out of bed and run out of the room, so nobody did anything as she disappeared from sight. Several voices cried out behind her, but she didn't bother to stop for any of them, not even her brother. She had to see Ludwig. That's all that mattered in that moment. She had to make sure he was okay and do whatever she could to help him escape. Her feet carried her out of the house and into the open.

It had been a long time since she had last walked around Schattenwald, but nothing had changed. People greeted each other in the street and went about their lives as if nothing else mattered. She was stunned by just how ignorant all these people were, and even more appalled at the idea that she had been the same. A loud crash came from inside her brother's house. She needed to get moving before they forced her back into bed.

She picked one direction at random and began to run. Luckily, she was running toward the southern gate. That was probably her best bet at finding Ludwig since most of the horse stables were on that side of the village. Her bare feet ached as she ran over the uneven dirt road, and her sore body protested such vigorous movement, but she didn't stop. The smell of horses and manure grew stronger as she ran. It wouldn't be long until she saw the stables.

Only a few of the villagers owned horses, but Lili had gone past the stables enough to know what they looked like. She stared at the large building while catching her breath and wondered where to begin searching. It didn't make sense to keep a werewolf in with the other animals, so there had to be somewhere else nearby that was sturdy enough to shelter a werewolf, which was roughly the size of a horse. That was when Lili remembered the extra stall that wasn't attached to the rest of the stables. It was built to hold difficult horses or even sick animals whenever the need arose. That had to be where they were keeping him.

Lili ran to the back of the stables and saw what looked like a large, sturdy shed built right up against the walls encircling the village. She couldn't see what was inside from where she was standing, but there was no doubt that there was something inside. It moved slightly as she walked closer.

"Who's there? Look, I ain't gonna tell you nothing, so screw off!"

Her heart sank. It wasn't Ludwig inside the shed, but she did recognize that voice. "Lovino?"

"Eh? Oh, it's you." Feli's brother scooted into the light and grasped the iron bars of the door. "Looks like you're doing better. You were a real mess when I brought you here."

"You're the one who brought me here?

"Yeah, who'd you think it was?" He quirked an eyebrow at her. "You don't remember anything, do you?"

"It was...raining," Lili said in a daze. She remembered Ludwig's fur becoming dark as it got wet, but she now realized it must have looked that way because it was actually Lovino carrying her all along. "And then…" She touched her left shoulder as if checking for bite marks.

"You were in pretty bad shape," Lovino said with a sigh. "They were pretty freaked out when you wouldn't wake up, and I told them it was because of the bites. Humans don't react well with werewolf bites, but no one would listen to me. Nope, those stupid bastards just threw me in here to rot. Hardly ever feed me either. I can't even remember the last time I had a decent meal…"

"Wait…" Something wasn't right. His words weren't making any sense. "How long have you been in here?"

Lovino looked at her like she was crazy, but then he seemed to understand. An expression of almost pity came over him. "It's been over a week since we attacked Ivan's pack."

Lili stifled a gasp that threatened to take with it all the strength that she had. How had it been a week already? That would explain her brother's odd reaction to seeing her awake. "H-how…?"

"Werewolf bites are nothing for us since we heal fast," Lovino explained. "But they're like poison to humans. They take longer to heal and are super painful. You should be glad you slept through it all since you had so many. The only way to heal them quickly is to become a werewolf yourself, and since you were bit, you were already halfway there."

"Turn into...a werewolf?" It should have been such an obvious thing to think about, but the thought had never crossed Lili's mind before. "How do you become a werewolf?"

"What're you asking me stupid questions like that for? What? You wanna be a werewolf or something?"

"I'm just curious," she said, but that wasn't entirely the truth.

Lovino watched her closely, but she tried to keep her expression as innocent as possible. "Becoming a werewolf is a blood exchange. You drink the wolf's blood, and it drinks yours. It doesn't have to be a lot, but it doesn't work if you're the only one who drinks. You also have to do it around the same time. It won't work if it drinks your blood and you wait a few days before drinking its blood."

"So that's what happened to Elizabeta," Lili whispered.

"She told you about that?" Lovino asked in surprise. "Listen, girl. I don't know what you're up to, but it's better if you just don't get involved. Forget about all this and go home."

"I'm going to get you out," she told him as if she hadn't heard a thing he just said.

"You dumb or something? Get outta here already!"

"There has to be something I can do. You saved my life!"

His face froze in a mask of suppressed embarrassment. "You should worry more about yourself, idiot. I'll be fine."

Lili didn't know what to do. She knew she had to get Lovino out, but she didn't have the strength or knowhow to accomplish it. Instead, she gently placed her hand over one of Lovino's. "Thank you," she said softly.

"Don't mention it," Lovino muttered as his face turned a bright shade of red. "Seriously, don't mention it to anyone or I'll pound you."

Suddenly, they could hear voices calling in the distance, but they were growing closer with each passing moment. Lili suspected they were looking for her, so she didn't have much time left. There had to be something she could do.

"I'll think of something," she promised.

"I won't hold my breath," he replied. He stepped away from the door and out of sight just as someone showed up looking for Lili.

"Hey! There you are!" Alfred put his hand on her head and tousled her hair. "Where have you been?" He finally noticed the extra stall with Lovino inside. "Oh, you came to see the werewolf, huh? He might seem kinda cute, but he's totally dangerous! He bit me when he showed up with you. See?" Alfred held up his bandaged hand for her to see.

Lili was fairly certain that Lovino could hear every word the energetic man was saying and was probably fuming in the dark. It would have been funny if he wasn't trapped. She turned to leave without another word to either of them.

"Hey, wait! Where are you going?" Alfred called.

"Home," Lili said. "I think I need to lie down."