Author Note: Thanks goes to SamanthaLyn for the wonderful review. Thanks also goes to beesaurs and courtneiduffel for becoming followers to this story. This chapter took a while to write because I wanted it to be perfectly written and capture the emotions with the right lighting. There will be some things revealed about Sera. I hope you all enjoy the new chapter and as always let me know what you think.

"I'm not strong enough to stay away

What can I do

I would die without you

In your presence my heart knows no shame

I'm not to blame

Cause you bring my heart to it's knees"

''Not Strong Enough' by: Apocalyptica featuring Brent Smith of Shinedown

Chapter 18:

"That's not true. He loves you and in his own way, he's doing what he thinks is best. Is it right? No, it's not."

Becky pulled her into an embrace, holding her for however long she wanted. She prayed that Finn would have a change of heart. She knew that he hoped that his decision would save her life from Aluxia; when, in reality, there was no guarantee that it would even work.

Ayva wiped her eyes from stray tears and pushed herself out of Becky's arms. She was stronger than this and she forced herself to think that. No matter what she did, Finn was going to do what he wanted. Fighting against it was the only thing keeping her sane. "I can't sit here and dwell on all this. I can love him all I want to; but I think he may be too damaged for even me to fix."

"Are you giving up?" Becky asked standing up from the bedside.

Ayva took a step forward, trying to figure out exactly how she felt about everything. Her heart hurt, that much she knew and it pained her even more being away from him. All the memories she held close to her heart came flooding back all at once, taking the breath from her lungs instantly. Placing a hand over her heart, the pounding caressed her palm. "No...I can't do that. He means way too much to for me to just give up on that. When he comes back...I will try again..."

"That's my girl."

Looking back at Becky, she smiled and continued on out of the room. She intended on seeing Sera with the hopes she'd wake up and give her some advice. Opening the door to her own bedroom, she could see her aunt laying motionless on her bed. The rise and fall of her chest was the only indication that she was still alive.

Her brown hair lay against the silk of the pillow, sparkling against the sun the setting across the far side of the sky. It didn't feel like a week had passed since the battle against Aluxia and her two highest soldiers. One of them being a good friend, or at least used to be.

Ayva sat down on the edge of the bed and took one of Sera's hands into her own, stroking the soft skin with her thumb. She allowed healing energy to flow through the tips of her fingers into the flesh of her unconscious neighbor. "I am so sorry that I failed to protect you." She said aloud.

The silence was so thick and Ayva wanted to cry that much more. Thinking about how the events went down, there was so much that could have been prevented had she been warned. The vision change was unclear and vague; of course, she couldn't blame it all on that. Her lack of skills were also to blame.

"You didn't fail her." Dean stated from behind.

Looking back, she could see him leaning against the open doorway. His arms were crossed over his chest and his eyes held concern behind them. She could see it and feel it. From the time she moved into the house their relationship was rocky. He hadn't trusted her in the least, was hard on her during training, and pretty much hated anything that had to do with her; but now, things were different. He looked at her like an equal...like a sibling.

"How did I not? I wasn't strong enough to get to her in time and now...she lays here and no one knows whether or not she will ever wake up again. Aluxia got what she wanted...on more than one thing..."

"Sera will survive this. You aren't giving her enough credit, A."

Hearing his footsteps getting closer, she tightened her grip on Sera's hand protectively. He knelt down on the floor in front of her, hoping that she'd look at him. When she didn't, he reached out and placed a rough hand on top of her bare leg. "She's fighting inside...can't you feel her energy swirling with yours?"

"Barely..."

"Then your mind is clouded and that's okay...you have every reason for that."

She turned her head slightly to see him wincing at his choice of words. He knew that what he said was only going to hurt her feelings more and instantly regretting saying it. It wasn't his fault that Finn decided to take the easy way out of things, nor was it hers; but it just seemed that way to her. "Don't apologize for speaking the truth. Finn is on my mind entirely. How can he not be? I don't understand why he would want to break everything we were meant for."

"I honestly don't understand either..."

He gave her leg a gentle squeeze before pulling her into an embrace of his own. The woman in his arms were clearly family now. It didn't matter if Finn went through with his decision to sever the bond. Ayva was always going to be like a sister to him and would continue to be there for her when she needed him to be.

Finn walked along the sidewalks of the outskirts of Miami. Ayva confessing her love for him was not something he had expected and it caught him off guard enough for him to leave the room entirely. She wanted to stay with him, even after everything that's happened to her since the beginning of their budding relationship. He wanted nothing but her safety and didn't think he could do that while loving her as much as he did.

His feet carried him into the park where they met for the first time since he told her about Damien's death. A death that still weighed heavily on his heart. The demon part of him was silent, not saying a single word on what he was feeling. Despite it being about him as well. The memory of her standing next to her car that day caused him to stop walking completely.

"So you're a photographer now?" He asked trying to make conversation.

"Yeah...I decided that I needed to do something with my time."

She was studying him without meaning to or knowing why her heart was quickening. He could hear it even at the distance he was away from her. Her empathy was working on his emotions, the swirl of her untapped energy caressed his skin in attempts to read it. "That's good. I'm glad to see you're doing better." He finally stated looking away from her.

It wasn't about the guilt he felt about the situation that he looked away, it was because he couldn't understand why someone so innocent was going to develop powers she had no idea how to deal with. If only he had known a few more things about the truth, then maybe things would have played out much more differently.

Sitting down on the bench, he could see the sun slowly starting to set. He had been walking around for quite awhile not knowing what else to do. Running a hand over the top of his head, he remembered the day he told her about his own powers.

"You can trust me. You aren't the only one in the world with gifts."

"I'm not?"

"No."

He held up his hand, mentally willing a tigerlilly to part from the ground. It floated in the air, hovering just above her open hands. Blinking, it dropped directly into her possession. Her blue eyes widened the second the velvety petals touched her skin.

Finn had done his best to answer her questions and stood up from the ground, holding his hand out for her. She hesitantly took it and was effortlessly brought up to her feet. The tigerlilly in palm was tucked behind her ear. His blood began to pump faster through his veins. It was then that he knew that he wasn't going to be able to shake her.

The memories kept coming at a rapid pace and now he beginning to question his decision to sever the bond. Could he really live without her? Could he really continue on without being the one to give her what she wanted? The answer to that was no and her declaring her love for him made sure he couldn't go through with it.

"You are going to do the same thing. Sever out bond because you are afraid I may get hurt, that's just idiotic. It's war! We are all going to get hurt at some point; so go ahead and sever it. I will always come back to you."

"That's the point of severing...you won't feeling anything for me anymore."

"Damnit Finn! I love you and I will continue to love you through everything, including a severed bond."

Hearing her declaration of love out loud hurt more than he thought it would. He never expected her to say it; but here she was crying tears for him and admitting that she loved him. She recoiled her hand to her side, clenching both hands into fists. The anger swelling collapsed her to the floor. "Please just think about it. If you still think severing it is the best course of action, then I will go with you. I just didn't want you to never know that I love you. You've been everything to me. No matter how many times you tried to push me away, I continued to fight for what I wanted. I still want this."

Finn opened his eyes to the sound of his own heart pounding against his chest. He knew what he needed to do now; but the question for him was how he was going to approach it. Looking around to see if there was anyone around, he shimmered out of the park and arrived in the middle of the living room of the house.

Becky was sitting on the couch with a magazine in hand. She was flipping through the pages trying to ignore his presence. "Where is she?" He asked softly.

"Not here." She replied sharply.

"What do you mean she's not here?"

"Like she said...Ayva isn't here because she went out. We really couldn't keep her cooped up waiting around for you to figure out what you're doing." Dean stated coming into the room.

He really couldn't blame them. After all, he was the reason she bolted in the first place. Walking passed them, he began his ascent up the stairs. Once he got to his room, he could see his bed was made and every sign that she had ever been there was gone. Not even her scent was lingering, which meant she purposely erased it all.

"Ayva..." He whispered closing his eyes in attempts to locate her.

The only thing he could see was a void of black. She was blocking him somehow or someone else was. Mentally cursing, he through his hands his hands and began to pace along the wood lines on the floor. He was going to have to wait until she came home to speak to her. That is if she came home at all.

Ayva couldn't keep pretending like everything was going to be alright, because in her gut she felt like things were very wrong. She had appreciated Becky and Dean's comforting gestures; but it just wasn't enough anymore. She needed Finn. He was in her veins, consuming every rational thought that had ever existed.

The sound of her heeled sandals clicking against pavement echoed across the crowded parking lot of her favorite night club. Normally she wouldn't go alone but tonight there wasn't anything that could hurt her more than Finn already had. The line was shockingly shorter than usual and she made it inside quicker than she expected.

Music instantly rushed across her sensitive skin, giving her goosebumps along her arms. There were several people she recognized from the life she once lived before all the chaos started. Several lust coated stares came in her direction from men that had no clue who she was or what she was. She wore a pink sequenced tank top and a black mini skirt, exposing the long legs she usually kept hidden.

Taking a seat at the bar, the tender approached her quickly and took her order of a rum and coke. With a smile he placed the glass in front of her, obviously taking the hint that she didn't want to be flirted with.

"Well if it isn't Ayva Bradly. I was wondering if I was ever going to see you around." An unfamiliar male voice entered her ear.

She spun in her seat to meet his gaze. He was tall with long dark brown hair and jade colored green eyes. A tattoo covered the entire length of his right arm and was dressed in dark colored jeans and a tight fitted t-shirt that framed every muscle curve. Raising a confused eyebrow at him, she wondered how the man would even know her name when she was pretty sure that they have never met before.

"Do I know you?" Ayva asked holding her glass firmly in her hand.

"No; but I know your aunt...Sera Castello." He replied.

Just hearing her name made the guilt return full force, crushing her heart under the weight of it all. He could tell there was something she wasn't saying when she bit her bottom lip. A trait they both shared when he thought about it. "How do you know her?" She asked trying to remain as calm as possible given the situation.

"It's a long story. Perhaps we could talk?" He asked.

"What's your name?"

"Roman."

Getting off the seat she had been sitting on, Ayva took a step in his direction. Her energy coursed through her veins giving a shimmer to her eyes, giving him a warning. He responded the same way, exposing what he really was. The red of his eyes reminded her of Finn's. The softness behind them gave her a sense that he wasn't there to do her harm.

Not even thinking about it, she followed him to a quiet table on the far side of the bar. She was curious as to what he knew about Sera. Roman sat down across from her with a bottle of beer in hand. Several chunks of hair fell over his shoulder, falling into his face, framing every feature that stood out on his face.

"You can relax Ayva, I do not work for Aluxia. I'm a half- demon like the friends you live with." He explained.

"How? Finn said Aluxia killed all the half-demons beside himself and two others."

"I've been in hiding for quite a while. Sera is the only one that knows I'm alive...well besides you now."

Taking another long sip of her drink, the burn of the fluid coated her throat. She was trying to wrap her mind around the idea of another half-demon being in the fray. She didn't know if that was a blessing in disguise or a warning that things weren't ever going to be easy. "I came looking for answers to Sera's whereabouts. I haven't heard anything from her in over a week."

The worry he was feeling took a hold on her heart and squeezed tightly. There was more to his worry than he was saying; but she could feel it mixed in with all the other emotions swirling around. He loved her. Somehow that gave her a little more hope in her own life, considering they all knew angel and demon relationships were forbidden.

Thinking about how Sera was laying in her bed unconscious and unmoving, it brought tears to her eyes. How was she ever going to explain something like that to him? He deserved to know what happened and maybe he would blame her like everyone should be.

"She was attacked by Aluxia. I couldn't...get to her fast enough..."

"She's alive though." He interrupted.

"Yes...I've tried everything I know to heal the injuries; but she just won't wake up."

He clenched his hands into fists out of frustration. Looking at Ayva's guilt stricken expression, he knew that she was blaming herself for what happened; but he knew Sera, there was nothing she wouldn't do for family. That was one of the things he loved about her. Family meant the world to her, despite not being able to spend as much time with hers as she would have liked. "It's not your fault...so stop the blame game on yourself."

"You don't understand! I..."

"Oh I understand perfectly. She'd do anything for family and protecting you was one her main concerns in life. You need to understand that!"

"Why are you so forgiving?"

He let out a soft chuckle, lifting the bottle to his lips. The woman in front of him was indeed related to Sera in every way. Their similarities was almost scary. "Don't be so surprised by that. You may feel guilt for her injuries; but she put herself into the coma herself. It's a recovery method we came up with years ago. Her soul needs healing from her mate."

"You?"

"Did you think that you and Finn were the only angel-demon soul mates in existence?"

Lowering her head down, she avoided his gaze not wanting to think about her own issues with Finn. It hurt so much to think about him wanting to give everything up, especially when she could see how much Roman loved Sera. She wondered how much longer she had left to feel love for someone like Finn. "I just thought it was forbidden so no one wanted to try to make a relationship work." Ayva answered continuing to look away from him.

"True in the fact that it's forbidden; but that's what makes the relationship unique and exciting. Sera and I had to fight to stay together for as long as we have; but we've managed and our feelings have never diminished.

"I wish I could say that about us. Finn wants to sever our bond because he feels that he can't protect me from Aluxia."

Instantly getting up from his seat, Roman walking over and took a hold of Ayva's hand. He lifted her up to stand in front of him. There was an intensity in his eyes that was completely unfamiliar to her. She couldn't understand what he was doing but before she knew it, they were outside in the warm humid air. "What are you doing?" She asked pulling her arm away from his grasp.

"We need to get to Sera. I can feel her slipping further into the coma."