I feel utterly suffocated. I wake feeling a weird sensation in my nose and something basically strangling me. My first thought that it was Anne again, octopus-limbs snaked around me. But when I open my eyes, I was met with a mix of hollow disappointment and shock as she isn't here.

I was in some sort of clinical hospital room that lacked windows. I was in an actual bed, instead of the Station-thing...A single ceiling light switches on, as if it could sense that I was awake. I look over to see a weird beeping heart rate machine and heaps of wires and tubes all directly attached and surrounding my body. Was this what was strangling me?

Was everything a dream?

Was I in some sort of coma in a really bad dream? Then...where am I? Where is everyone? How long was I out? Wait...I remember helping a stupid asshat...was that the dream?

I look down feeling something staring at me from my lap. I see a big black and blue glowing tiger stares back up at me. Surreality and reality crashed into me as my situation smashes into me. I...lost Cody...Anne...Markus. Then I-

'Dreamer!' She immediately gets her head off my legs, avoiding my chest as she cranes her neck to get her face literally in my face.

I was curious for a second as to why she...oh. I felt the tube running from my nose to an...oxygen tank? Ah fuck, I can't even breathe properly. What the fuck did I do?

'Dreamer awake. Dreamer bad.' She frowned.

I think she was annoyed with me.

'Dreamer scared Lady.' She presses her face into mine.

'I think I scared myself.' I reach up to her head and slowly stroke her cheek. 'I'm sorry.'

'Dreamer does more than what should be done. Dreamer needs to learn restraint...' She floods me with an image of a bird on a branch, unaware that Lady was stalking it. It was resting in the darkness. Lady was inexperienced in hunting and got impatient and went for it and the bird flew away. She then showed herself hunting a few more times and how she learnt to be patient.

I almost roll my eyes, 'Yes mum.'

I look down at my body, at least it's still intact. My stupid-ass arm is still demonic...But I remember the last time I was conscious that it was both my arms. But here it is, left arm normal with that weird thingy-clip on my finger that measured my heartrate; and the right arm still sporting French-tipped claws.

I wanted to sigh but my chest hurts like fuck. What the fuck did I do? A cough rattles in my chest, laced with pain and I look over to the monitor that was taking my heartrate. This pain was familiar...I cast my mind back to when I first met Lady. I did something to my ribcage?

I don't remember...oh. I took that stupid Hexer shit from that stupid twat, Rain...-

"You did not stop there."

I look over my other side, opposite Lady. X sat in a chair next to me, staring at me for a moment and Lady steps back to give him room, "Your ribcage almost shattered. Bone fragments pierced your lungs, you were coughing up blood as you literally almost drowned in it." He was frowning. Was he angry? I've never thought of what an angry X would do. Should I grab the IV stand and use it as a warding-off stick? I don't know how he's going to react and that's making me nervous.

I couldn't meet him in the eye. If he's going to scream at me, be done with it already.

Silence stretches on for an eternity.

Ok, this is worse than the 'I'm disappointed in you' look mother's give.

Scream.

Throw a damn plate.

Do something. Anything.

I force myself to look at him, opening my mouth to demand something out. Instead his face softens as he reaches over to...hug me?

Taken by surprise, I'm literally paralysed. But I eventually got over the shock and ignore the pain to wrap my arms around him. If this is him angry, I don't wanna know what happens when he's happy. Now that I think about it, I don't think I've ever seen him actually smile.

"I'm sorry," I finally say...(well, croak).

...I've done something like that before...somehow managing to take injuries and make them mine...I did the same thing when I first met X.

His scent fills my nostrils and it was so good, something sharp and earthly...for some reason it reminded of the smell before rain...but mixed with soap.

"You are foolishly reckless. ...Kae, you are going to end up killed by it one day."

I feel myself tighten my hold on him, trying to show that I really am sorry.

"Please stop going on your own and taking it on all by yourself." He responds with a kiss to my temple. "I'm here. I will always be with you no matter what, so please just..." he didn't finish his sentence as he pulls back to rest his forehead against mine.

I shut my eyes at the comfort and warmth he always seems to give me and it felt like time stopped and I could just stay here forever. My eyes open to feel him tilt my chin up with his fingers only for him to give a light kiss on my lips. My arms are still around his neck, so I instinctively pull him in closer for another go. This time his kiss turns deeper and though I'm clumsy, he didn't seem to care and...seemed to be waaaay more experienced. Where the fuck did he learn? Who did he learn it with- but my mind went blank as his tongue licks my own, completely pushing me into unknown territory.

He tasted sweet, warm and his force is completely overpowering as he takes control. As an unfamiliar heat pools in my gut, I was taken aback by the feeling but it didn't stop X from devouring me. I didn't know how to breathe and my brain and X weren't really giving me much of a chance to figure it out, so I pull back, almost choking as I cough for breath back into my battered lungs and feeling a bit annoyed at myself that I was the one who broke it first.

"Sorry," he mutters, probably thinking that it was hurting me.

...Well it was, but I wasn't going to stop because of that. I shake my head, unable to talk. My brain kinda went into overdrive, and stopped, so words...thoughts, evening except the memory of his taste and a complete desire, basically went out the non-existent window. My mind was buzzing as I try to catch my breath.

I catch a glance at the heartrate monitor and see the it had really spiked. I look back at him, completely embarrassed. He pushes some of my hair out of my face, "What's wrong?" He genuinely asks.

"I..." never done that before and know I have no idea how I'm supposed to act. My cheeks started radiating and I felt way too hot under the covers, I wanted to throw them off but also just hide under them.

And I did this in front of the cat! Overloading in temperature, I look over to where I last saw Lady, but she was nowhere to be seen. Only an open whoosh door into a dark hallway.

I frown, this wasn't the medic area, the last place I remember being. In fact, I could feel I was back in that underground area.

X must have caught onto my thoughts, as he sits a bit more comfortably on the bed with me that he managed to climb in next to me during our 'fiesta'. "This is the only safe area far enough away from everyone." He reaches for my hand and starts playing with the knuckles, messaging them between his rough fingers. "It's another remade area in the Abandoned Grounds. This building is specifically for medical use but it hasn't been properly revamped on purpose. In case the Tower falls, it has its own power generator to supply it with electricity."

Should the Tower fall? I think back to that big scary 'Eye of Sauron' tower that was in the smack bang in the middle of Bolin. A shudder crept up my spine just thinking about it.

"The Tower supplies every form of power in this City." He continues as though I had spoken out loud. "This includes the Fence."

I feel my spine stiffen at the mention of that thing. But something rose to the surface of my mind, my voice breaks, straining in my throat which hurt, "But Belasera's Tower was still intact."

"...I cannot say how the mechanics work...just what we have been lead to believe. The Miasma Storm could have very well severed a connection between the Tower and the City."

I shake my head, "Things were still working..."

"I do not have an answer that can satisfy your curiosity, Kae. I can only relay what I know...or what I have been fed as 'fact'."

I cough as I breathe out, "I'm just thinking out loud."

"I know."

"...What about flying cars? Do they also run on the energy from these Towers?"

"Yes. But with the Hollow Kite and airships it is a little different. The energy within the ship is similar but its...different as well. Like it has a soul of its own." He frowns, I don't think he was satisfied with his own answer.

I half smile, leaning my head back into the pillow while looking up at the ceiling, it wasn't like he needed to answer me. But I am...happy that he's even bothering to speak to me in whole sentences. Normally he'd be answering in riddles and I'd have to take an extra thirty-seconds to unravel Yoda-X's words of wisdom.

I entwine my fingers in his, as I couldn't really look at him. I just fucking tongued him then talked about the Tower's like I was talking about Lady having stripes. This guy is playing with my emotions and I'm dancing to it...with mini-heart attacks every six seconds when he does something. And I'm a sucker for just wanting to go along with it.