Against the other monster, Catherine had seemed so slow. When pain lanced through his shoulder, she didn't seem like it. She had moved faster than Flynn could react, shoving the dagger into another point in his shoulder with a grin. She twisted the blade deftly, then pulled her dagger free, holding it to his throat for a moment. The edge dug in, making him pause with the threat to slice before her hand dropped, shifting the hold on the weapon so her elbow could come up into his nose. As he staggered back, she propped herself up against a tree. "It's too bad you were in my way," she told him, her dagger tapping a rhythm against her leg.

"And why is that?" Flynn grit out. She may be fast, but she was still injured. With Judith and Sodia, they should be able to take her down. And they didn't walk far, the two of them should be close by-

She sheathed her dagger long enough to grab him, her lips near his. "I could be glib and say it's because you taste good," Catherine breathed in his face. "And in fact, you do. You're quite strong. But you're also... someone I could have needed a thousand years ago." She pressed her lips against him in her kiss, making his knees weak as he felt his strength flicker. The drain slowed, then stopped as she drew back. "I do like you," she told him, her voice stronger. "And you do make wonderful bait."

Yuri. It didn't make sense. "Why do you want to kill Yuri?" he gasped out, willing to stay upright. Where were Sodia and Judith? Why weren't they-?

"Because I don't want to deal with a feral vampire after your death," came the bizarre answer. "Trust me, I would much rather be bored out of my mind for a thousand years than deal with a vampire without his reason for returning." She paused, then smiled. "You're stalling me, aren't you. These woods were strange, didn't you notice? Taking longer to get to places, or shorter than you remember." Her hand dropped to her dagger, pulling it out. "They belonged to her. With her death, well, your two teammates will find us eventually. But with luck, it'll be after the vampire does."

Flynn's knees hit the ground as he finally lost his grip on standing. He was alone against her. Against a monster. "You..."

"Me." Catherine's head tilted, listening. "Well, at least someone is on their way." She reached out, grabbing his chin. "Do live," she told him, her voice quiet. "I'm curious myself who could be at Zaphias. And if it's what I think it is, after I kill your vampire, I'll help you kill it. For a price, of course."

"I won't trust..." His words broke off as her hand moved to cover his mouth, head shaking.

"Don't make me hate you for not giving you a choice." Catherine drew breath to say more before her gaze sharpened, tensing. Something warred in her face, the same he had seen each time before she had made a decision he didn't expect. Before he could react, she leaned in, lips to his ears. "It's time," came the playful whisper before she pushed him, making him slide into a tree. As she did so, she jumped back just as Yuri came running through the trees, growling as he reached for her. Feral, she had called him, he had noticed, and yet it didn't even cover how he swept at her. Each movement was mindless, heedless of how she moved. The Yuri he had known may not have been able to have stopped her, but it wouldn't have been this sloppy. Flynn reached for his sword, stopping as his shoulders screamed in pain. If he didn't stop Yuri, make him at least see-

Catherine would be the one to kill him, and she would get away. The thought spurred him to his feet. Yuri needed to be stopped. But his death needed to be on Flynn. It was... because of him that he came back. Why he was a monster. And it was his duty to bring Catherine to justice. Flynn took a few staggering steps, trying to regain the strength Catherine had sapped- as someone crashed into him, forcing him onto his back with a cry of pain. Loose dark hair filled his vision - Yuri - as hands grabbed him. Flynn could feel the cold body on top of him inhale (the first time he ever had, Yuri didn't breathe, he was smelling him his blood-) before teeth pressed against his throat.

The knowledge of where they were, of Catherine, of Sodia and Judith nearby became secondary as the sensation he had missed shivered through him, as silvery sharp as before. A moan slipped from his lips as the teeth broke the skin over the scars. It felt- so good. He could hear something, some kind of fight, but all he could do is let Yuri dig into his flesh and lap up blood. Flynn could hear the little, sane voice telling him to shove Yuri off, to pay attention to what was around him. His hips jerked a little, the only person to make him want so badly to grab him even-

Even if it killed him. He had forgotten. Flynn grabbed Yuri's hair, trying to pull him off. He had forgotten how much he had wanted this that it could kill him. Growling, Yuri grabbed his hands, pinning him as he raised his head. For a moment, the monster looked down at him, then sanity crashed into those aching features. "Flynn," Yuri breathed, his hands moving slightly as he let him go.

Yuri was back. Flynn looked up at him, dumbfounded. If Yuri was back, didn't that mean he didn't have to be killed? But- Flynn's throat throbbed a counterpoint as thoughts started to stutter. He could figure it out later. He was just so... tired right now. Flynn let his head list to one side, seeing Judith aim a kick at Catherine that drove her towards Sodia's waiting attack. So that was what he had been hearing. He could feel Yuri bending back down to his shoulder, lips against the wound as the blood called to him too strongly. He should have stopped him but- the rush of strength he had gotten came to a halt as his vision started to darken. Just a little rest.

Then Yuri pulled himself off. "Yo, bitch," Flynn could hear him say, making him open his eyes slightly. Both Judith and Sodia came to a halt, whipping around to look at him with disbelieving eyes as Catherine shifted her balance. "Think you want to pick on someone your own size?"

"If you can find someone that isn't a towering giant, that would be very nice," she purred, her posture the most wary it had been. "But you will do." Catherine shoved Sodia out of the way, making her crash into Judith as she threw herself at Yuri, dagger sweeping in front of her. He grabbed her easily and twisted, throwing her into the trees before rushing after her.

No. No, that's not what needed to be done. Flynn struggled to a sitting position, starting to feel numb. He had to go after them, had to-

"Sir!" A hand grabbed his shoulder, pushing him back down. "Judith, do you have any more Gels left?"

"One." He had never heard her voice so grim... The sweet smell of apple tickled his nose as Sodia pressed an Apple Gel against his lips. Flynn swallowed it, knowing after the fight with the Lady and Catherine, he needed it. And he needed to go after them, to stop them. "If we don't get him either more Gels or some real attention, he's going to bleed out."

"I know." Sodia sounded equally grim. As he closed his eyes, he could hear something ripping. "Sir, open your eyes. We need to get you back to town. Sir- Flynn!"

"I'm just resting," he told her quietly. "And I can't. Yuri-"

He could feel something being packed against his shoulders and firmly wound around his neck. "Isn't worth your life," Judith told him. Someone picked him up, holding him close. "You can find them later. Right now, you need to live."

If he could have refuted her words before darkness claimed him, he would have.

Waking to the sensation of pain started to be very familiar. It wasn't as sharp as it could be, so someone had fed him Gels, but his shoulders still felt sore and when Flynn shifted his head, shivers of pain to the point of pleasure rolled through his throat. The bed under him squeaked as he sat up slowly, passing a hand over his face. He had been so close to ending this. Yuri and Catherine had been right there, and they had taken down what had been hunting this town. Flynn felt his hand shake as his breathing quickened. He had been so close!

And now not only were they still out there, still able to kill a mass number of people again, there was someone in Zaphias. If Catherine was to be believed, there was another player. Flynn grit his teeth, running his hands through his hair. When was this going to end? When was it going to go back to the worse thing he had to worry about was human thoughts and hatred? He took a deep breath, trying to even it out. What had he stumbled upon?

No matter what it was, he needed to put it together, and fast. Zaphias would fall apart if he didn't find who was still controlling his Knights and terrorizing Estellise. Once he got that under control, he could get a squad together to hunt down Catherine and Yuri. It needed to be done quickly, though.

His thoughts were interrupted as the door opened, making him reflexively move for a sword not there before he realized it was Sodia. "You're awake," she said, her voice full of relief. "Sir-"

"Sodia." Flynn waved a hand at a nearby chair wearily. "You saved my life."

She sat stiffly, nodding. "Of course, Sir. Judith and I- we couldn't leave you to die."

The two of them... Flynn rubbed his face, nodding. "I understand. Sodia..."

"Sir?" Her voice held a note of apprehension as her spine went military straight.

"You're not my second in command anymore." The words hurt to say. It had felt so right to fight next to her again, her and Judith. "You don't have to call me that."

She shook her head. "I know, Sir. It just... still feels right."

Flynn took a breath, nodding. "Sodia, I-" What did he need to say? He paused, putting his thoughts in order. "What are you going to do now?"

The question seemed to throw her. Sodia blinked, confused. "I was going to go back to what I was doing," she told him cautiously. "Helping those who needed help. Making the world better from where I could."

He couldn't accept that. There had to be a way that he could work with her again, even- "You can't be allowed back into the military," he told her, watching the pain cross her eyes at the reminder. "And I can't outright hire just you to work with me when we need the extra help."

"I understand," Sodia said slowly, realizing he was thinking about something but not sure what. Knowing he was thinking of something so they could work together again.

Flynn nodded at her, helping it along. "Is Judith nearby?"

"Yes, she- You can't mean I work for a guild! And that one!

"I do." He let out a breath. It was the best option he could think of. "As it is, I can't hire you directly if we need civilian help. Not with your history. But we can hire a group, and if you happen to be in it... and as it is, Brave Vesperia was founded on the same principles we try to uphold. They're trying to help those who need it, and they do what I can't. Sometimes... I don't want to know what it is they do. But they're the only guild I trust to hire if we need outside help." He looked at her seriously, watching the look on her face change. "You and Judith worked together very well. Against each of the monsters... I can see you working with Brave Vesperia, and continuing to help those who need help."

"Sir..."

"Flynn."

Sodia paused, then continued uncomfortably, "Flynn. It won't be that easy."

"Please think about it," he told her softly. "I- haven't had a good second in command since I lost you."

She stood slowly, her hand moving to a salute before realizing what she was about to do. "I will," Sodia said, her words thoughtful. "And Sir- Flynn?"

"Yes?"

"That was a low blow."

"Are you ready?"

Judith tied her pack shut. "Ready." But instead of picking it up, her fingers came up to gently stroked his chin, taking extra care not to touch the bandages still around his throat. She hadn't asked about what had happened, about why he hadn't fought back as Yuri ripped into his throat, and while he appreciated it... "Are you ready, Flynn?"

He gently took her hand, lowering it slightly as his thumb brushed over her knuckles. "Why do you ask?"

"You've been quiet since the woods." Her hand squeezed his slightly as she moved closer slightly. "Are you ready to leave this behind? Are you ready to go back to Zaphias, back home?"

He couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips. "It wasn't much of a vacation, was it?" Flynn said, watching a sparkle of humor enter her eyes. "There's something I need to do there. There might be... something like Catherine still there. And you-"

"I'll tell Karol to watch for Sodia," she finished. "I don't guarantee he'll hire her, not after what she did, but he won't turn her away just because of it." Her eyes shadowed a bit as memory crossed them. "We've all done things that would keep us from being part of Brave Vesperia if he did that."

Flynn cupped her cheek. All done things... his lips met hers in a soft kiss, wanting to melt that look from her face. "As long as he'll give her a chance," he told her softly. "Judith..."

"I care for you, Flynn." Her other arm came up around his shoulder carefully, long fingers tangling in his hair. "And I know I'm not the only one. Just... don't let what's going on blind you to that." She pressed her lips against his one more time. "I'm not the only one that loves you," she whispered against his skin. "So don't make all of us that love you sad."

"I know." He released her slowly, the two of them stepping back out of the embrace. "I wish I could end this trip with you returning to Zaphias with me."

Judith smiled at that, hefting her pack. "And distract you from your work?" Something about what she said made him blush. It wasn't any part sexual, and yet- "Next time I'm in town, we'll have a proper date. This time with no bodies and a nice comfortable friendly atmosphere where I don't have to beat sense into you. Sound good?"

If his cheeks were any hotter, he could cook off of them. "It does," Flynn finally said, making her grin grow wider. "We should go," he told her, turning away. "If we want to get where we want to by nightfall, we need to leave now."

"You're right." She swept by him, giving him a grin as she did. "Let's go spend our last day together."

Flynn answered her grin with his own smile, following her out. For all that had happened, with nearly dying, finding Catherine and Yuri, the blood loss... the vacation hadn't been all that bad.

Not at all.

The End