Uncomfortable now that she was once more alone with her thoughts, Charlie tapped her fingers on the edge of her plate. She wanted this to be easy, calm. Tensions were already strained enough without another argument, and she hoped to whatever was out there to hear her prayers that things would finally start to settle, and that she could find her place on this bizarre and winding path.

From upstairs came the scrape of an old doorknob followed by a faint squeal. She looked up to the railing, already knowing just who she'd see, but her breath still caught in her chest as she caught Reiem staring down at her. His hair hung over his shoulders like strands of the palest gold, throwing shade over his features and further deepening the weary darkness around his eyes.

In silence he descended the stairs and moved—his legs shaking a little—into the kitchen. He pulled out a chair and sat down, staring blankly ahead as his hair obscured his profile. Feeling the anxiousness blooming in her chest was more from him than herself, Charlie got up and headed to the master bathroom. She returned with a brush and some hair ties.

Putting on a gentle smile when Reiem glanced to her in confusion, she said, "So, this is going to be a little weird, but my stepmom would brush and braid my hair when I felt really…well, anxious. Not sure how, but I know how you're feeling, Reiem. So, would you mind if…?"

Charlie gestured to the items for emphasis, feeling more than a little awkward. Arching his brows, he sent her a curious look. She remembered feeling her stepmom's fingers raking through her hair, turning and rolling the pieces over in her hands until she tied them off in a long braid had melted away whatever stresses and anxiety ate away at her. And Maliu had only ever asked to do it when Charlie seemed at her worst. Not that Reiem's face betrayed his emotions or anything, but she could feel them.

Reiem caught her meaning and looked away, nodding once before closing his eyes.

"Do as you wish."

Gently, softly, she gathered the silver-blonde hair into her hands, running her fingers through first, then using the brush. Whether she pulled too hard with each pass or not she never knew for Reiem sat in complete silence. Every now and then his head would bob back with the motion, his shoulders slumping down little by little. The initial awkwardness melted away as Charlie found her eyes moving to each of the tattoos she could see poking up over the wide neck of the shirt. Bindrunes. Blocks of words in some runic language she didn't know. Black bands arcing in geometric patterns. Even some that looked like constellations.

Satisfied, she gathered Reiem's hair into her hands, separating and weaving it over until it was finally pulled back from the man's face. She tied it off and slid back into her seat.

"I want to thank you again for saving me," she said.

"Words of praise are an ill-fit for a creature such as I. I was simply doing my duty." Reiem's voice seemed disconnected.

She felt the soul-sucking cold break through her defenses and creep into her bones. A violent shudder raced through her. While the events came only in fragments after the move, she was lucid enough now to put them together. But there were still gaps—ones she wanted filled, and the only one who could tell her what really happened was finally before her.

As if sensing her thoughts, Reiem squeezed his interlocked fingers together.

"Do you remember what happened?"

Charlie shook her head slowly. She met Reiem's eyes. His expression was a little clearer, his eyes a little less dull.

"Not all of it. I remember lessons with dad, the party, the soldiers, and…pain. I was terrified. And then just…cold. This soul-sucking cold. Rushing water and…screaming." Oh, sweet Erde, the screaming… By now her voice had petered to a trembling whisper. "What was screaming?"

"Lost souls," Reiem answered, calmly at first. "Destined to forever linger upon the line between the world of the living, and the First Gate of Death. Never to know peace, and never to find rest."

This time it was his voice that fell into an almost inaudible hush. Charlie wanted to understand—not knowing terrified her more than the nightmares—but hearing Reiem say those words with such defeat quashed any conflict she held. Instead, she felt pity for those souls.

"That's terrible," she heard herself whisper. "Isn't there something they could do to—"

"Egregious sins require atonement." Just like his eyes, Reiem's tone held no emotion—no light, no life. "For some, the punishment never ends."

He stood and gathered what remained of the dishes from the table. After washing them, he took in a shaky breath.

"Forgive me, Miss Charlotte. It was my fault. Were I to even attempt saving you, I had to had to put an end to your suffering first."

That was the part she couldn't remember. Even when she heard Ignis say it to Griff it didn't bring with it any mental clarity. But hearing it now from Reiem's lips… Bleeding out on the floor, with Lori, Ignis, and that soldier in black all looming over her. As her vision began to fade, Reiem's face filled what remained—and then she was gone. Dead. Only to open her eyes a second later to see that hellish place. Hear the rushing water, the cries…the laughter.

 

 

‡    †    ‡

 

 

The whole town had gone mad, it seemed. Demons running rampant. Sprites all in hysterics. And then there were the soldiers. He'd felt their presence the moment they stepped into the hidden mountain tunnel. From afar, he watched, listened, but he could sense nothing ill in either their presence or intention. If anything, they felt…otherworldly. Lingering specters of futures past, seeking retribution for unknown transgressions.

He'd been called away right before the village fell under attack. Master needed herbs, crystals, for something she'd been making. He had to obey. To question was beyond him. The town…would have to fend for itself. At least for a time. Master would see them safe…right?

By the time Adagium had finished his task and stepped through his portal, he stood dumbstruck by the sheer carnage and confusion around him. Demons, soldiers, townsfolk, bodies, blood. He moved into action, quickly destroying the creatures nearby. He cleaved them in two, their halves spraying a fine black mist into the air as they shrieked their death cries.

Gunshots from within the community center pulled him from the remaining demons. The children were inside.

Miss Charlotte!

Even as he ran for the doors, he heard his name being screamed by a voice he did not know: "REIEM! LORI!"

As he entered the main room, his heart dropped at the sight before him. Little Charlie lay on the floor, surrounded by Lori, Ignis, and a stranger dressed in soldier's battle gear. Blood bubbled from Charlie's mouth, and she had a sickening pale to her sun-kissed skin. The soldier stayed at her side with his hands pressing down atop Lori's to keep pressure while Ignis cradled her head, stroking her hair. All the while Charlie's eyes were glazed with pain and every now and then she would let out a horrible choking noise only to go silent once more. Apart from that, she was almost lifeless—her body barely twitched even when the pair pressed harder in an attempt to stem the blood flow.

"Can you get her to the healing chamber?"

The soldier's eyes burned into Adagium's own. That chamber was secret knowledge; how did an outsider—an invader, no less—have access to that information? Regardless of how or why, the point of his inquiry was valid…but impossible.

"I'm far too weak to teleport again, let alone bring someone in such a fragile state safely along." His voice a low rumble.

Lori shot him a wide-eyed look before practically pleading, "A potion?"

Adagium looked back to Charlie. "None. Master refuses to grant me leave to gather personal ingredients." There was no point in panicking. He kept his voice calm, no hurry nor pain—just the somber notes of someone who has known death. And fear.

"Bind yourself to her," the soldier said quietly.

"Who are you?"

"Hey, hey! That doesn't matter! She's dying. You can save her. So do something!"

It was Adagium's turn to look shocked, but another weak cough from Charlie had his attention returning to what was most important here: keeping the girl quiet, still, and calm.

"I am already bound. Unless Master wills me to break the contract, there's nothing—"

"Fuck Marianne! Master or not, she treats you like dog shit and doesn't deserve you! You deserve better! Charlie…deserves better…"

"Please just do something," Ignis quietly begged into the ensuing silence. His hands wrapped around that of his friend's, squeezing until her teary green eyes met his. "It's okay, Charlie. Mom and…and…they'll think of something. This'll be over soon."

"Be strong." Lori's voice was low and miserable. Her hands were shaking. She was no longer looking at Charlie—wasn't looking at anyone. It was unnerving to see her so anxious and insecure, so unsure of her own thoughts. It wasn't right.

But it was as if none of them had spoken. Charlie's eyes were barely open and they were staring at nothing, so blank that Ignis fumbled for her wrist and didn't take a breath until he found a pulse fluttering weakly beneath his fingers.

The soldier looked up at Adagium. "You know what to do. I know you do," he said, his voice low. With a miserable look in his eyes, he flicked his eyes down to Charlie and back up again. "We came here today to try and stop this, but fuck us, right? Seems she's supposed to die, no matter what. So, take that stupid pouch of ash out of your coat and draw the symbol for Loire on her head."

The color drained from Lori's face. Pouch of ash? No, there had to be another way. There had to be some way to stop the bleeding and keep Charlie alive just long enough to get to the clinic. What this man was talking about… He couldn't possibly mean for Charlie to just die like this—slowly and painfully. It would traumatize her—she would never forget how it felt, how terrifying it was to fight for each breathe, facing the possibly that every single one she drew in might be the last. No, there had to be something…

But as Charlie drew in another shallow breath and twisted beneath the weight of their combined hands, Lori began to sob. Charlie was going to die no matter what they did, but at least one of them had the power to bring her back.

"Miss Charlotte, I need you to listen carefully to me." Adagium knelt down by the girl's side, the little red pouch of ash in hand. He dipped his fingers into the fine substance, drawing delicate lines across Charlie's forehead. "I know you are tired and in pain, but this is very important," he continued, and Ignis gently patted Charlie's cheek. As Charlie's eyelids opened a little more, Adagium nodded his thanks. "We have no potions, and no way to get you to my tower in time. I'm sorry."

"…hurts," Charlie whispered with little effort to hide the fear and weakness in her voice. Tears fell freely now but the single sob which tried to escape only made him choke on the blood rising in her throat. It flew from her mouth in one horrible splutter and landed on Adagium's cheek. Lori winced at the sight.

Adagium didn't even flinch. "Shh, little one, I know it does, but it will all be over soon. Do you remember the tale of Basriel and the Bunny? We have to do something just like that, but you'll be back and safe before you know it."

"You can't do that, she's still alive!" Ignis's voice cracked a little on the last few words, tears streaming down his face.

"Ignis, sweetie, please…go outside," Lori whispered, tears of her own flowing freely. But Ignis remained in place, his eyes glaring at Adagium.

"Bunny?" Charlie slurred, and her eyes took on a little more focus as they met those of the pale man in black. "I'm…gonna die?"

She started to shift weakly, but the movement was unexpected and Ignis watched as the soldier's hands slipped enough that blood began to pour once more. There was so much of the stuff; on Charlie's hands and shirt, on Lori's hands and the front of her shirt. There couldn't be much blood left inside Charlie at this rate.

The words caught Ignis off-guard. He was sure none of them expected Charlie to really understand what they were saying, not when she was so weak. But she had and that hurt, because who wanted to tell another human—especially one as sweet and kind-hearted as Charlie—that they were going to die? Even the promise of resurrection couldn't take the fear from that…

"No, you're not gonna die," Ignis growled. Adagium slowly raised his dark eyes to meet his vibrant blues. "We're going to help you and you'll be just fine. Right!?"

But Adagium shook his head, like he couldn't take much more of listening to such mindless optimism in the face of honest and true tragedy. He turned his gaze back to the emerald greens of the girl.

"Miss Charlotte, if you want this pain to stop, I can help. But this must be your decision."

"There's…no decision," Charlie sputtered weakly. "Do it…please."

Ignis gripped Charlie's hand tighter, trembling as more tears streamed down his face. "Charlie, there has—"

"Listen to my voice."

As Adagium began talking about the ocean and the apple orchard, the deep western forests and the glorious view of town from the summit—all the little places Charlie loved to go—he drew the same symbol upon his own brow in white ash.

While he talked, Adagium wrapped his power around Charlie's heart—the strong, stubborn heart that was still beating in the clearly spent body. The lull of his low voice while he concentrated his entire will on keeping Charlie's heart still made the others tremble.

The small wisp of a girl took slow, wavering breaths. For a brief instant a black hue raced through the veins on her face, and she took one long, shuddering breath, and was still, a thin line of dark blood running out of her nose.

She was now, unquestionably, dead.

Ignis shrieked at the stillness, shouting for his mother and the soldier in black to keep their hands at the wound, but even in his grief, he knew. It was all Lori could do to pry the boy's hands away from Charlie's, hands that turned to fists he aimed to bring down on the soldier for starting it all, on Adagium for killing his best friend. A brilliant flash threw the boy back onto his backside right as his fist made contact.

Unbothered, Adagium raised both hands over the child's form.

As he parted his lips to speak, a gentle light coated his hands. Countless threads of purest gossamer white stretched from the tips down to the crown of the child's head, her forehead, throat, chest, abdomen, her pelvis. A flash lit the room as the glowing threads covered Charlie entirely. As Adagium whispered a word older than the earth beneath them, the ash disappeared from both Charlie's forehead and his own.

Lori stared at Adagium, seeing the black had gone from the man's eyes, now replaced by the pure white light as it crept up his arms, throat, and face before it poured into his eyes, rendering the once-black orbs a shade of brilliant teal. The same green-blue light spilled from the back of the man's neck as a series of looping lines cut their way into his flesh.

 

 

‡    †    ‡

 

 

"I entered Death after you, and through my pleas to the Loire Tree, I became bound anew and returned you once more to the world of the living."

Listening to Reiem's whole confession was so much harder now that she was fully aware the nightmares were just her fractured mind trying to tell her the truth. A strong urge to pace overtook her, but she remained confined in her chair—she was sure it was because her shaking legs would give out should she even try to stand. And she was silent throughout.

Every now and then Charlie would shoot him a look as if asking him to confirm this was just some horrible dream. But he wouldn't look at her. Even when he'd reclaimed his spot at the table, he stared down. Unsettled, she finally looked away.

"Please say something," he begged when the silence became too much.

Charlie opened her mouth once, then closed it. Her throat was too constricted right now for words, but she tried again. "What do you want me to say?"

"Anything. Scream at me, tell me I am a monster, that you want me gone from your sight. Just…something," Reiem urged, and Charlie finally turned her head back to make eye contact.

She immediately regretted it because now the man looked afraid, terrified, like she'd never seen him before. The look made her feel sick, and she slowly stood, finding strength somewhere within her trembling body to carry her over to the back porch sliding door.

"Charlotte…" Reiem said in a frail tone. "Please understand that this wasn't a decision made solely on my own. We all believed that it was the only way to ensure you didn't suffer more than you already had, and that you come back to us in one piece. There was no malice in my actions."

"I know," Charlie said softly, her voice a little cracked. "I mean… I guess I kinda knew? There's a lot that I remember that I can't explain, and things I don't remember that I know I should. But I'm still here…thanks to you," she added with a faint smile.

She watched Reiem's reflection in the glass. His eyes were on his lap, one arm wound around his abdomen like he'd done so often years ago. It was like he never fully healed from a wound he'd received, like he always feared one wrong move would rip it open and he would bleed out. Maybe he didn't have a wound at all, but just remembered the pain. That wasn't something Charlie would ever forget—she'd never forgotten the pain of the dagger, after all.

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence. Neither knew what to say which could make the situation better or even less difficult, which was fine since this wasn't something so easily diffused. More than anything, seeing the complete and utter fear on Reiem's face was like torture.

Finally, Charlie walked back to the table. She reached out a hand to touch Reiem's arm, but a flinch stopped her hand mid-air. His eyes finally met hers.

"You forgive me?" he whispered, sounding almost confused.

"Reiem, I really don't know what you're expecting me to do, but… I just don't know. You did what you did. You saved me, and I'm thankful for that, okay? That's what matters…to me, anyway."

Reiem still looked incredibly uncomfortable, but the visible fear seemed to have passed. He looked at her for a long moment, and the gratitude in his eyes was obvious. But there was something else there too, something that made her stomach twist up into a painful knot. She couldn't quite define it—wonder, maybe? Whatever it was, it vanished in an instant when Griff poked his head in through the front door.

"Uh, hey? There's something weird out here."

She turned to him, an expression of concern on her face. "What do you mean 'weird'?"

"The apples," Ignis said from out of sight. "They're glowing."

Reiem was at the door before Charlie even had time to process the words.

 

 

‡    †    ‡

 

 

Charlie scanned her property and confusion immediately lined her face. There was a faint pulsing light, like some sort of enormous heartbeat. Every tree in the southern section lit up like giant fireflies, seeming to communicate with one another in some language humans couldn't understand.

"Something shrieked out there," Ignis said.

"An unwelcomed intruder." Reiem descended the steps, walking towards the trees with a deadly focus on his face. "Charlotte, please go inside. I will handle this."

That was all he said before he vanished into a literal cloak of shadow. A faint sound of clinking chains accompanied a horrid shriek that belonged more in a nightmare than it did reality. With that lighting fire under their feet, the three went inside.

Charlie was silent as she stared through the glass. The pulsing flashed brighter, jumping from section to section with more hellish shrieks accompanying it. She was unable to look away, pressing on the glass with limp fingers.

"You don't have to watch," Griff urged, gently placing his hand onto her lower back. "Reiem's got this."

"You don't know that. He just woke up! He…he couldn't even see a few hours ago!" Charlie turned around swiftly, eyes scanning the room for anything she could use as a weapon. Ignis caught onto this and stepped to block the door.

"Charlie, no," he hissed.

"I can't just leave him alone!"

"Don't be reckless! You don't know how to fight! Or what's even out there!"

"I know that, but—"

"He's coming back."

She spun at Griff's voice. Reiem's slim form came into view from the darkness, the same scowl as before on his face. A black-purple substance coated the set of dagger-tipped chains wrapped around his arms. She watched, terrified and amazed all at once as they vanished, first the blades and then the chains, link by link.

"All is quiet once more."

"What even was…" She released a short breath. "Well, whatever, I guess. I'm glad you're okay."

His eyes momentarily lingered on her face, a faint light of curiosity within them. It faded as he spoke again. "Tomorrow I will go into Forest West and work on strengthening the barrier. It has weakened during my slumber. Please forgive me, Master," he added, turning to her and bowing with a clenched fist raised over his heart. He aimed his gaze to the floor.

"Don't. Call. Me. Master," she griped. "Can't you just…be normal? Please?"

"Force of habit," he muttered quietly.

"What was that out there, anyways?"

"A demon."

"And it…broke through the barrier?"

Reiem nodded.

"Well," she sighed. "Guess that settles it." The guys looked at her—Griff curious, Reiem understanding, and Ignis seeming upset at what she was about to say. "What? They don't care that there's a new Guardian. There's just no changing their nature, right?"

Reiem nodded once more. "I will keep you safe, Miss Charlotte."

"No, you're not. If I'm gonna live here, then I need to learn to defend myself. I'm not going to have you do everything. It's not fair."

"Why must you insist—"

"Drop it! I'm the Guardian, and you guys are my friends. I'd feel terrible if I had someone else saving my ass 24/7!"

As if sensing her resolve in that very moment, the immortal sighed. "Very well. Allow me time to recuperate, and I shall begin teaching you everything you need to know."

Looking to Griff, then to Ignis, Charlie turned back to Reiem. "You staying here tonight?"

"No. My home."

"Okay." She wanted to ask further on the whole demon thing, but decided it was too late to make an issue out of it. "Just…be safe."

He didn't reply.

Offering their goodnights, the guys each claimed a bedroom upstairs, outright refusing to venture out despite the demons being dead. Charlie saw Reiem out the door. In silence, he ripped open a portal—the sucking winds and peal of thunder took Charlie by surprise, but it quickly faded as the immortal vanished within.

Alone, she stood still and silent, eyes scanning the trees for even the slightest hint of light. Finding none, she went back inside and made sure the door was locked.