"All that you are is what you have been givin'
I'm not the one to stop you from sinnin'
Poor boy, where have you run to
What did we do to ever hurt you"

—"Living for Something" from The Three Poisons by Elephant Stone

The hospital didn't not tell Max that four days awake weren't enough to leave safely, but they also couldn't technically stop her. She knew her rights, well. She knew that rights existed in both the human world and the pokémon world and made a few educated guesses. Now, she had three extra bottles to lug around in her bag (two had refillable prescriptions, one was expressly non-refillable) and an appointment to get her stitches removed in a week.

She needed to see Neb. Neb would help her make sense of this. Max would've rather woken up that first day in the hospital a thousand times than go through that minute after Oshton left. Her friend—a close friend she'd just remembered—left her after one mission went horribly South.

Cori and Goon had both visited the two days after, but she couldn't bring herself to bring it up with them. Maybe Eleos, but Cori said they hadn't seen it since she woke up. Did Eleos leave her, too?

Max put a paw to her aching chest and panted for air. She probably hadn't walked for more than ten minutes total. At least she'd convinced a fly-station she was healthy enough for a trip closer to Neb's town, or she might've collapsed on the road. She still might collapse on the road. Even just riding along on that bird's back exhausted her, and this walk wasn't helping.

Her last dose of painkiller was barely an hour ago, but that didn't stop her from downing another one last time, either. She needed her rib to stop hurting if she wanted to make it the rest of the way. Pain relief couldn't help her air-thirsty lungs, though. Her vision started becoming a haze, so she took a seat on her way to the nearest tree.

Sight came and went with every breath. It pulsed out of time with her hearbeat. She was barely able to stay conscious. It wasn't until she opened her eyes to a brighter sky and grass tickling her back that she realized she hadn't. She didn't bother trying to get back up for a few minutes. Her breath still felt shallow, even if it wasn't so ragged anymore. She needed more rest. Just a few minutes more and she'd be fine.

Without noticing falling asleep, she woke up again. The sky wasn't any brighter this time, but she could almost manage a full breath. Close, at least, since a real full breath tested the limits of her ribs more than she wanted to risk.

"Come on," she whispered. A bit of energy had returned to her, but she struggled to convince her body to listen to her. The grass simply felt too good, and her hindpaws ached at even the thought of walking again. Maybe if she could crawl— "Oh right." She would've slapped herself for not thinking of it sooner if it didn't have a real threat of knocking her out again.

Rolling over to walk even took less energy. She started rocking back and forth to roll over and felt a very vocal complaint from her rib when she pulled it off. Her stance instantly became less sturdy. The only reason she could stay up was that she'd fall on her rib.

Already, her breath was just as ragged as before she'd fallen asleep. Her tail slowly drooped over her back. She didn't have the strength to hold it up. She couldn't stop now, though, if only because anywhere else would be equally as far. No one responded to that thought. She raised an ear in confusion, wondering why she'd expected a response.

Right, Eleos. She forced herself to get walking, which ended up easier than standing still somehow. Since she hadn't waited for anyone when she left for Neb's, this had been the longest she'd been alone since… then. Even when trying to isolate herself in the Dungeons, she'd had Eleos.

It felt like something was missing, but the peace was nice, too. She felt like she could relax that little bit more. Especially since she didn't have to worry about Olive. Olive was nice, but she pushed every button Max didn't want to know was there. It was like when Neb kept trying to trick her into remembering things turned up to eleven. At least Neb fucked off when he told her to.

Max paused a second. He? It was herself, but also… not. It felt odd to call her old self she, even if it better aligned with herself now. Or, maybe she was still getting used to being she. She wished she had a free paw to pull out that pamphlet to check for a blurb about this that she knew wasn't there. Some questions, she'd just have to figure out herself.

True to her experience, distracting herself did wonders. She could make the blurry pokémon out and about as well as the buildings now. Some clefa tilted their head staring her way a moment before turning back to run off again.

It was then that Max remembered how she left this place. Maybe walking through the main roads wasn't the best idea. Before anyone else saw her, she ducked into the slightly more wooded area left of the path. She could still see the place easily, but she was far enough away that she'd blend in with the scenery for the most part. The stark white bandages didn't really help her there, but neither did her yellow fur.

She reached into her bag to tug out an oran and scarfed it down. They didn't cure broken bones, but it did give her body the energy and nutrients necessary to heal. Or something. She didn't really know how they worked, and she'd never bothered to ask. Everyone else seemed to understand them, and she didn't want to look stupid.

The oran didn't do much to help. She stopped gasping, but that could've been from the second spent standing still. It didn't matter much, though. She was almost there. It was a long, hard journey, but she'd almost made it there. Almost.

As she got closer, she went a few trees deeper from the outer path. If anyone noticed her, she could just say it was to stay out of the hot sun… of November. At least Neb's house was close to the outskirts. Hopefully, she wouldn't need to test the efficacy of the lie. To be safe, though, she snuck a bit further into the trees.

Almost there. It had been a while, but the months she'd spent there made sure she had a good map of the place in her head. Scanning the outside, she saw a familiar sight that made her pause. The garden. She glanced around to see no one lingering around the area, then headed in. Those striking, pink and violet roses looked absent with many flowers she didn't recognize taking their place.

The sight gave her just enough energy to try working the annoying bolt on the gate. "It's to keep kids out, y'know," she growled in her worst attempt at mocking Neb's voice before blowing a raspberry. "Whatever." She used to flick it off with her tail instead of her paw, but that wasn't exactly an option at the moment. At least, not the end of her tail…

She shook her head. No, she didn't want to risk it, but she definitely couldn't reach it. Maybe if she could jump, but she was woozy just thinking of trying. She put her paws between gaps in the wood and whimpered, looking longingly into the fence.

With one last glance after turning around, she dropped down to head over to Neb's. So many little memories on the way over. She'd walked this particular path plenty, too. She wasn't great with plants, but she used to try lending a paw if anyone was there. If she'd stayed longer, she probably could've made a few lasting friends.

That train of thought started spiraling her thoughts, so she stopped it. Tried, at least, but without many other memories running around in there, the ones cropping up had basically free reign over her head space. It was hard, but she also didn't really mind. Most of them were pleasant, so long as she didn't acknowledge the way she'd eventually soured them all into oblivion.

Neb's place came in sight. If she'd had the energy, she would've picked up the pace. At least it didn't take all that much time anyway. It's not like she knew how to run like this yet. The door stood right in front of her before she knew it.

She hopped up, ready to knock, then immediately started swaying. She leaned forward to use the paw about to knock to hold herself up instead. With how hard this simple walk had been, she was starting to wonder if maybe she should've stayed in the hospital just one more day. She'd made it, though. Neb probably wouldn't mind letting her crash there for a night, either.

Shifting her paw to the door frame instead, she used the other to knock. A somewhat familiar voice called back, but it didn't sound like Neb's. It could've just been the shortage of blood to her ears, though, so she waited.

"Sorry, we're cooki—" the door opened to reveal a particular charmander. Mandy. Max instantly recognized her, and she could tell Mandy did, too, based on her wide-eyed shock. Max's mind raced through embarrassment, guilt, and a low rumbling of fear while she tried to think of how to ease Mandy's fear. "Moltres' Flame, Max! What ha—"

"I'm not gonna hurt you, sorry!" Max spewed out. She threw her paws up to mime surrender, but that didn't last long before she had to go back to leaning on the door frame.

"Did you say Max?" Neb's voice called from inside. The scare had Max's heart racing at a million miles per hour again, and her breath wasn't much better. The paw holding her up turned into the entirety of her arm by the time Neb reached the open door. "What are y—" Neb looked at her with the same wide-eyed shock, and Max realized that Mandy might not have been afraid of her after all.

"What—" Neb started to repeat the same question Mandy started when she noticed Max's tail flopped down on the ground. She tried to share a glance with Max, but the mouse's eyes were too glassy to meet her gaze. "Sweet Celebi, how are you alive?" Max forced herself almost up, but still couldn't stand on her own strength.

Max forgot why she'd come. She forgot a lot about where she was, actually, and her mind didn't particularly seem willing to help her. She tried to focus, but felt her consciousness slipping with her breath. If it weren't for the oran, she probably would've fainted then and there.

That probably would've been better. After all, Neb and Mandy were both close enough to catch her. Her luck, though, didn't work like that. She knew that well, by now.

Instead, she actually managed to barely hold on. She pushed herself upright, only leaning on her paw again, and looked up with glassy eyes at Neb. Neb. Why was Neb here. No, wait. This was Neb's place, so that explained why Neb was there, but it left Max with no idea why Max was there. Her swaying made her tail try to correct her balance, its bandages barely grazing what remained of her peripheral vision. Right!

"Girl," Max mumbled.

Despite all the memories that had come earlier, she hadn't prepared for the most likely. Like so many times before, her attention was on exclusively Neb. She was completely distracted. Vulnerable, especially considering her current inability to react. She was doomed against what was to come without her normal, lightning-fast reflexes. In fact, the beast had already begun its call.

"MMMMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAX!" Sam screamed as she barreled towards the injured mouse. She threw her arms around Max to tackle her into a hug and knocked her out before they'd even reached the ground.


"I can't be the one to make you see the light of day
It's all within you
This I pray"

Max felt her chest trying to implode. It didn't hurt enough for shock to kick in, so she went from unconscious to wide awake in an instant. Her scream came out as a rasp, lungs unwilling to expand more than absolutely necessary. She looked around to see that room she'd woken up in all those months ago, almost identical except for Mandy. It felt nostalgic, especially because of the agonizing pain.

Reminiscing could wait, though. She needed to find her bag, and it wasn't far. It sat right there at her hindpaws. So close, yet so far. If she just rolled up, she could get her pain medicine. In fact, how long had she been out? Did she need to take her other medicine, too?

"Don't try to get up," Mandy said. Max hadn't even realized she'd seen her. "You're really hurt. You need to save your energy." Mandy sat far enough away that she probably couldn't stop Max in time. After considering her options (thinking the phrase 'pros and cons') Max did the most agonizing sit-up of her life to grab the strap of her bag, then yanked it over as she collapsed back to the ground.

"Max!" Mandy shouted, rushing over, but it was too late. "What are you even looking for?" She dropped down by Max's side. Rather than answer, Max flipped her bag open and started digging through. She immediately noticed the three missing items. If she even had any adrenaline left, it had already run out. "Max?"

"Hurts," Max grunted. "P-painkiller."

"That's why you tried to get up? Max!" Mandy said, slapping a paw to her forehead. "Neb has them." Max soured her grimace a bit to give Mandy an accusatory whimper. Mandy threw her arms up in frustration. "We didn't know how long you were gonna be out!" Perhaps Mandy hadn't quite forgiven her. Max didn't remember her being quite so aggressive.

Not that she didn't have every right to be. If Max wasn't in such pain or had the electricity to spare, she might have felt enough embarrassment for her cheeks to spark. In that light, she started wondering whose safety Mandy had in mind when she told her not to get up.

Neb flung the door open and walked in. "Good, you're already awake," she said. Despite walking with urgency, she had a half-lidded gaze. She marched right up behind Mandy, who scrambled to get out of her way in time. Neb stared down at Max, barely resisting a sneer. Max would've flinched if she wasn't already grimacing so hard. "You have some explaining to do."

"I—my rib, please," Max whimpered. "It hurts."

"Thought you might say that," Neb said. Like magic, a white tablet floated out from behind her, but she didn't lower it to Max. "I'll give this to you, and you'll explain why you'd already taken two full day's worth of doses when you got here."

"W-what?" Max hissed. "Sure!" The pill dropped into her maw before she could say more, and Mandy quickly gave her some water. It wasn't fast acting, though. Usually, the promise of relief helped plenty, but not this time. Even though she'd had worse pain in the hospital, she felt so utterly exhausted, bereft of the energy she'd use to power through.

Ever patient, Neb laid down right where she stood. "Mandy," she said with a nod toward the door. "Go cover for me in the kitchen."

"Got it," Mandy said. She kept a concerned eye on Max while getting up then headed out, closing the door behind her.

"You missed lunch. You're lucky I had enough food for a big dinner," Neb said. If it was an attempt at levity, it was weak without even a forced chuckle. Her visible frustration cut Max especially deep considering that conversation with Oshton. That cut would only get worse. "Though, I'm tempted to give you scraps, anyway."

"Why?!" Max screamed. Energy she didn't have left her barely able to mumble the rest of her frustrations for a minute.

"I'll answer your question when you answer mine," Neb said. She hadn't even flinched at the scream. "How much morphine have you been taking? How often?"

"As needed," Max growled. "It's pain medicine! I've been taking it when I'm in pain." Even growling left her dizzy.

Neb watched Max as if waiting for a realization to dawn on her. Concern started to break through her frustration when Max stared confused back. "Did this happen during a Blackout?" she asked. "You usually know when you've slipped."

Max flinched. Even if she already knew it was some kind of relapse, an example made it hard to ignore, particularly when that example was right in front of Neb. A very frustrated Neb. Max could only imagine the earful Neb had ready at this point. It hadn't been a week since Neb thought she was doing well enough to manage on her own.

"All right," Neb said. As Max flinched in preparation for a lecture, Neb got up and turned around. "I don't want you starving, so one of us will bring you some food when it's ready." Max peaked an eye open. Neb started walking away. All the urgency from earlier had left. Her gait looked familiar. Painfully familiar. She felt the memory clawing at her throat already and couldn't bear it when the door opened.

"Chu!" Max begged, almost biting her tongue off at the slip. "P-pi-p-l-ease! Please! Wait!" Neb paused in the doorway, but she didn't turn around. "Y-you, she, Oshton—I—why?!" Her throat ached as the tears started falling. She brought a paw up to rub her eyes while she sniffled. "Why do all my friends hate me?"

The slip reached her ears this time, but it didn't matter. She couldn't hold it back anymore, nor could she hold back the tears. They ravaged her chest without mercy. Her eyes stayed squarely on Neb, though, who still stood in the doorway with her back turned.

Neb raised her head to take in a deep breath, then lowered it with a deep sigh before reluctantly turning around. Her callous frustration had run thin, allowing the hurt to peek out from behind. "I can't keep doing this," she said; Max froze. Oshton had said nearly the same thing. "I told you to be more careful, didn't I? You promised you'd at least try, right?"

Max recoiled as much as she could, but tried not to flee. Of course she couldn't leave, but more than that, she wanted to be present, to actually listen. She hoped it could show Neb she cared. As terrified as she was, she tried to keep her eyes on Neb. She couldn't lose another friend.

She couldn't lose Neb.

"You really were doing so well," Neb said as her voice wavered. "Are." She looked Max right in the eyes; Max struggled to avoid shying away. "But what does it matter if you're just going to hurt yourself like this?"

"W-wait!" Max shouted, eyes shooting open in realization. A misunderstanding—Neb thought she'd done this on purpose! Even if Olive insisted this had been, on some level, intentional, Max knew better—and she knew Neb would know better, too. "None of this was on purpose! The mission just went South!"

"Is that so?" Neb asked with a pointed glance to her tail. She didn't linger on it, though, and looked right back up to Max's eyes. "You were as careful as you could've been? Didn't throw your badge away to play hero?" Max's will finally broke, and she looked away in shame. "Eleos came by while you were out of it and told me the basics." That explained the oddly specific accusation.

"E-Eleos?" Max asked. It hadn't visited her since she'd woken up.

"It didn't stick around, but it didn't say why," Neb said, answering Max's question before she asked it. Maybe it really had decided to leave her, but that didn't explain it coming around in the first place.

"You're not a hero-" Neb started before cutting herself off. "Just because you've saved the world once doesn't mean you can do it again." Max started having more and more trouble staying present. "It doesn't mean you have to." Max wanted to raise an objection, but she had none ready.

"I care about you, Max," Neb said. She didn't take a single step closer, even when another harsh sob wracked its way through Max. "I care about you a lot." She turned around and started to leave before stopping to look back over her shoulder. "But you need to care about yourself. I love you, but that won't help anything if you can't love yourself." With that, she left, shutting the door behind her.

At least she hadn't slammed it. Ironically, Neb had done exactly what Max came here for. Max wanted to figure out what made Oshton so angry, and now that she'd hurt Neb in the same way, she had her answer. The same reason Neb yelled at her a few weeks ago. That conversation in the bathhouse played in Max's mind.

Hell, she'd almost died in the bathhouse, too. She threw herself between Neb and the water even though she couldn't swim, and Neb probably wasn't even at risk of falling in anyway. It might have been an accident, but she didn't hesitate to throw herself into that situation. She hadn't considered her own safety for an instant. It felt like she'd made the same mistake again, somehow.

If not the exact same mistake, it was the same outcome. She left herself drowning in water that couldn't even reach up to her chest if she'd just stand up. If she'd just stop flailing, wait one second to find down, find up, she'd be perfectly fine. Instead, she made Neb drag her waterlogged remains out of the water.

Again. Again, again, again and again. How many times had it been, at this point? How many times had she put Ithos, Goon, and Oshton through the same thing? Cori? Eleos? She'd even begun to test Eleos' life-debt love, it seemed. It talked about her like she was its deity to worship because she'd made the most basic ethical decision in the world of choosing not to kill someone weak and fragile.

No wonder Cori had been so hesitant to join in her excitement. Yet, it all felt so wrong to her. Even if she finally understood her impact on others, her very soul cried out for this new life she'd finally found for herself. For the first time, she'd found a way she actually could love herself like Neb needed.

Was she too late? She couldn't blame Neb, at this point. Max knew she'd promised to take care of herself for Neb again and again, yet here she was again. She could hardly celebrate a new life when her friends had no idea if it would last until the end of the week.

Four knocks came from the door before Mandy came in, saying, "Food!" Max panicked for a moment—was she going to scare Mandy again?—until she saw Mandy's soft smile. Smile, wait, she was smirking. "What, need me to do the whole routine?" She closed half the distance with the plate in her paws and stopped. She was waiting for permission.

Sarcastically.

"C-come in?" Max mumbled. She started trying to push herself up but immediately shot herself in the paw by leaning too hard on her rib.

"Entei, would you just wait a second?" Mandy grumbled. She set the plate to the side, yet still in tortuous proximity to Max's face, then offered her paws. "Need some help?" Max nodded, but her eyes stayed glued to the curry. It took all of her energy not to throw herself face first into that plate. "Come on," Mandy chuckled, grabbing Max's shoulder as if reading her mind.

"Easy, easy," Mandy said as she began to guide Max up. Max grabbed her arms to help pull herself up. She had just enough energy on offer to sit up with Mandy's help rather than have Mandy sit her up. "There ya go." Mandy brushed Max off and helped her nestle against the wall.

A familiar wall. A tidal wave of emotion had Max gasping for air. Neb had said that Mandy had forgiven her, but that felt utterly absurd. Even with Mandy sitting right there, happily helping at the drop of a hat, it felt like a fantasy. Every bit of kindness from her felt like a new knot tied into her stomach. Maybe Mandy had forgiven her, but Max couldn't ever forgive herself.

"I'm surprised you wear this," Mandy said. She had Max's left wrist in her paws, rolling it a bit to see the bracelet. "Everyone else only wears them for gettogethers like an obligation." The beads gleamed with the light streaming in from the window above as Mandy turned it with a gentle paw. She looked up with a smile that fought her eyes. "Thank you."

The gentle touch of Mandy's paw felt strong enough to pull Max out of the storm. After all the times clutching it had saved her from blacking out, this felt completely backwards. Her heart stuttered while her mouth hung half-open. She wanted to thank Mandy in retaliation, but she couldn't shake the memory of leaping on top of her before blacking out completely.

"Hey, don't worry about slipping, all right?" Mandy said, reaching forward to pat Max on the shoulder. "I can't really understand like you can, but I-"

"Sorry," Max blurted. "Or, thank you, but, I'm sorry." Finally, enough energy had returned for her cheeks to spark in embarrassment, furthering her humiliation. She had a thousand different words running through her head, but none of them felt right, so she fell back on Mandy's advice. "Pi chuu ka pika chuuka, ka Pi pichu."

"Oh, that," Mandy mumbled. She flinched and looked away, dropping her paw from Max's shoulder. "I'm trying not to think about it, to be honest." A shiver worked its way up Max's spine, and she watched Mandy resist the same.

"Neb told me you had some kind of… history with another charmander?" Mandy said. She squinted in thought before shrugging it off. "I guess the details don't matter, but she was… oddly cagey?" Shrugging it off again, she glanced at Max's scarf with a chuckle. "Well, I guess that guy knew a charmander, but that's a bit of a stretch, to say the least." She started chuckling a bit at her own joke.

"H-huh? Who's that?" Max stammered. She crumpled into herself, staring at the ground with wide, nervous eyes. Neb had actually gone through the effort to keep that secret for her, and Max had the chance to keep it while she was already flustered to hell and back. "Is, do guys—is purple a guy color or something?"

Mandy's expression went from amused to bemused. She looked at Max with baffled scrutiny struggling to make out Max's truly unbelievable response. A kind girl, however, Mandy tried to give Max the benefit of the doubt, but her concerted expression made it increasingly obvious she couldn't come up with another explanation. "You're just… embarrassed about the association, right?" she asked.

"S-sure," Max mumbled. Even with the partial language barrier, it was more an indictment than denial.

"Entei's flame," Mandy mumbled. "You. You're actually him, aren't you?" Max whimpered before she could deny it. So baffled at her complete inability to keep any secret, Mandy noticed her own slip before Max did. "Or, sorry, her?" The correction, though, had just as much uncertainty as it did guilt.

"Sorry?" Max asked, still a few sentences behind. Only once she saw Mandy's glance to her bandaged tail did she understand. "Oh, thanks." Her damn cheeks wouldn't stop sparking. "I mean, I used to think I was that. I'm not really… sure how that works, either." This attempt at mending the mistake only served to confuse her own feelings further. She had a much more pertinent matter, anyway.

"But, that, it's not important," she said. Mandy clearly still looked beyond baffled, but she at least tried to nod along. Max tried to say the same words over and over again, but kept stopping herself before it could come out until she finally cinched her eyes shut. "I was awful."

That was a step closer. Closing her eyes made it feel further away, but it was the only way she could get it out. "I hurt you," she said. "I hurt you, and I was awful, and you didn't deserve it, and I know it's too late and not enough, and Neb said you already forgive me, but I'm sorry." Tears had started to leak from her closed eyes; the flood of emotions started to creep over her mouth.

Mandy grabbed her paw with two of her own. "Thank you," she said. Max peeked her blurred eyes open and had to wipe them with the non-captive paw. "A lot of us were worried. It takes some courage to say that, even if it's too late."

Every fiber of her being demanded Max throw herself at Mandy to hug her. If she hadn't pushed Neb to the brink with her complete disregard for her own well-being minutes earlier, she probably would have anyway. She felt the flood rage around her, but Mandy's grip held her well above the waves. That security only made it harder to keep herself from the most painful hug of her life.

"Thank you," she finally squeaked out. With such a storm flying around her, it was all she could manage to say. Even if it was pika-speak, the way Mandy's smile softened showed she understood.

Mandy pulled her into a very ginger hug. The familiar smell of her tears sizzling off Mandy's back made Max cry hard enough to whimper from pain in her chest. Mandy sat her back against the wall too soon, but Max couldn't deny it was for her own good. They stared at each other a moment, then Mandy turned to put the plate in front of Max.

"Here, you need to eat," Mandy said. "And so do I." She started to get up, but couldn't take her eyes off Max thanks to the sudden, pleading look she gave.

Again, Max had to stop herself from throwing herself at Mandy. She wanted—needed—to eat with them, but she couldn't get herself to ask. The question stuck in her throat while tears blocked any words from getting through. She could only desperately stare in hopes that Mandy could read her mind.

It was a useless endeavor. No matter how much she wanted to say, she couldn't get it out. Mandy waited for a truly awkward amount of time before glancing around the ground and giving Max a quick pat to the shoulder.

"If you need anything, just shout, okay?" she said. Max could only nod; her heart sank at the failure while desperation built to the point she could burst into flames. She thought she might already have once Mandy turned to walk away. The door between rooms felt like a portal to another world. The closer Mandy came to it, the harder Max's heart beat against her chest until it would surely dislodge her healing rib.

The instant Mandy's paw touched the door knob, Max reached her paw out and screamed, "Wait!"

A weight suddenly dropped off Mandy's shoulders. She stood a bit taller as she turned half-way around. Her expression looked the same, but she looked relieved for some reason. "What's up?" she asked.

"W-wait," Max wheezed. Her paw went to her chest while a wince screwed her left eye shut. She really shouldn't have screamed. Already, she felt the same reticence building to stop her from speaking her mind. "I—can I please eat with y'all?"

Mandy tapped her chin in slightly overacted thought as she hummed. It barely looked more natural than Eleos would, but she still had genuine worry in her eyes. Max felt her soul waiting on trial for a sentence. She'd eaten meals alone before, but she desperately needed friends around her right now.

"I really don't want you getting up," Mandy finally answered. She looked at Max with a certain shine (was it a challenge?) in her eyes. Max couldn't take it.

"Oh," Max mumbled. The paw at her chest stayed to catch her broken heart. Her chest still throbbed from her scream. Even the threat of soul-rending loneliness couldn't convince her to try defying Mandy's advice. If she even tried, she'd give up her friendship with Neb in the same breath. Her eyes fell to her plate, though she didn't look at it. "Sorry."

"Max," Mandy chuckled. She made Max jump by grabbing her chin—she'd snuck over without tripping Max's awareness. She stared into Max's eyes with a smirk and her own light-blue, almost green eyes, trapping Max's gaze with her own. "I don't think you're listening, hero."

"S-sorry," Max stuttered, cheeks sparking up a storm. She didn't particularly like people mentioning that, but she cared a lot more about apparently not paying enough attention. "I'm, I didn't mean to not, or, I-I'm just—did I miss something?"

"Raikou's thunder, take a breath," Mandy chuckled. She pulled back and let go of Max's chin, but Max didn't let herself move an inch for fear of giving the wrong impression. "I said I don't want you getting up." Mandy continued to give an expectant stare, all but crossing her arms in wait.

It was some kind of bizarre test, and Max had completely whiffed it. Mandy wanted Max to ask them to come eat with her since she couldn't come eat with them. Even knowing the assignment now, though, Max had no idea what this was meant to test. That is, until she tried to ask and felt a boulder of guilt lasso around her throat before plummeting. Mandy's smirk grew when Max's eyes widened in horror.

"I-I… can you…," Max mumbled. She tried to say it, but Neb's tired eyes from earlier cut her off. Of all her selfish asks, could she really beg Neb to drag her waterlogged corpse up again so soon? "I…." Her eyes finally fell out of Mandy's grasp. She felt her will die with her hope and shook her head in shame. "I'm sorry."

"Close enough," Mandy said with a shrug. Max started babbling apologies and clarifications in pika-speak, but Mandy's moderate understanding was completely insufficient. Even if she was fluent, Max was cutting herself off and speaking too fast for any meaning to make it through. Mandy chuckled at the sight, but eventually had to hold a finger up to Max's lips to silence her.

"Calm. Down," she said. Max remained panicked, but she stopped spouting nonsense. "Half-way there," Mandy chuckled with a roll of her eyes. "Listen, you might have Neb at the end of her rope, but us?" She winked. "We're just getting started."

That was hardly comforting. Max almost voiced as much, but that turned into an embarrassing squeak when Mandy grabbed her by the chin and yanked her into her gaze once again.

"Just know, hero," Mandy said with a hint of a growl creeping in to her voice. The comforting veneer slipped ever so slightly to reveal the beginnings of a threat. "I've got a much shorter rope than her. Capeesh?" Max froze until her overwhelming terror let her nod—nod as much as she could with Mandy's vice grip on her chin.

"Great!" Mandy cheered. She dropped Max's chin with a bright, muzzle-defying smile. "I'll go get her." Then, she did.

At first, Mandy had seemed like a pillar of support against the surrounding storm. She'd kept Max just above the waves, holding tight until the storm finally relented. Now, though, Max was starting to feel like Mandy made the still raging storm seem tame by comparison. It was… embarrassingly appealing.

Max started to wonder if Eleos had decided to leave her for… other reasons.