Chrystal

"Rogue, what are we going to do with her?" I heard quite a soft male voice speak.

Silence.

"I know what you're thinking but no, we can bring her to Lakota once she is awake and he can decide what to do, it is not our place to make such decisions. If we were to decide to hide her we will get banished or worse." Another male voice suddenly answers, a little bit rougher this time.

'Who are they talking about? What's going on?' I groggily try to recollect my thoughts but the extreme headache I have seems to be getting in the way. I slowly try to move and get my bearings *on what's going on*. As I slowly open my eyes a shabby wooden ceiling comes into view and I'm quickly made aware that I'm not in my house.

"Hey Rogue, she's waking up. Are you okay, woman?" I look down to see who just said that and come face to face with two males. I sit up slowly due to my muscles aching all over and manage a small nod. My eyesight is still a little bit blurry from waking up, so I rub my eyes and give myself a moment to think.

I'm sure I had drowned, what's going on? I either somehow survived and these two pulled me out or I died and I'm in heaven. But I doubt anyone would trespass our property and save a drowning girl and then wait for her to get up unless they're kidnappers. Would kidnappers ask if I'm okay?

My hands still over my eyes, I quietly ask "Am I in heaven?"

I hear a snort coming from one of them.

"Heaven is only reserved for truly pure and holy creatures like dragons, I don't see any scales on you, missy."

Dragons? I lift my head in confusion and take a clear look at my two rescuers or maybe kidnappers. I scan over the peculiar clothes they're wearing; they seem extremely shabby and dirty but on closer inspection, they remind me of medieval time Vikings. From what I've seen in history books the outfits match perfectly. Dark brown, short-sleeved tunics going just over the thighs. The waist is adorned with a skilfully crafted belt and beige pants tucked into their leather boots.

I meet eyes with the blond-haired man sitting to my right on a wooden chair. His green eyes capture my attention right away as they seem to have a bright shine to them, but the man beside him, standing nearest to me, is the one who truly has my full attention. This man's hauntingly familiar features have made me forget about whatever nonsense they were speaking of previously. I recognize his rich jet-black hair tousled over to one side. He had a perfectly straight nose and strikingly pitch-black irises that only had a minor distinction to the pupils. I could recognize his face anywhere.

"Theo?" I barely get the name out. My throat constricts a little as painful memories resurface and make their way to my eyes in the shape of teardrops. Did I really die, and I am able to meet Theo again? Or did he have a twin I never knew about? But that's impossible, he was an only child. My shaky, doubting hands reach out to him but he swiftly steps back in confusion.

"Are you a madwoman, don't touch me?" The man who owns Theo's face responds in almost what seems to be disgust and anger.

"I don't recommend that if you value your life, missy." The other male warns me but all that I can focus on is Theo's impersonator. Anything else doesn't matter, nothing mattered to me more than him.

My heart grows heavier by the second, feeling every inch of my being fill with grief. If I have in fact died, then this must be a chance given to me, to be able to apologize, one last time. Real or not it would be stupid not to take this chance. Call it delusional or crazy but I know I don't want to have any more regrets.

I jump off the bed and in two quick steps forward dart into him, engulfing his larger frame in an embrace. My cheek thumps hard against his chest meeting his skin that is just above his tunic, and I wrap my hands firmly around his waist. He goes completely stiff and doesn't move an inch, but I still rest my head against his warm chest and with a clarity of an insane person say, "I'm so sorry for what I did to you."

I notice that his hands have started to shake as he grabs me by the shoulders and forcefully jerks me back off of him. He looks me dead in the eyes with horror and deep-rooted sorrow. I get frightened by the sudden yank backward and freeze in my spot not wanting to upset him any longer. Whom am I kidding, Theo must resent me, so surely, he wouldn't even want to touch me, let alone hear my apologies.

"I'm sorry." I manage to say before he visibly starts to panic.

"No, no, no! Not again, Rogue! No, I'm the one that's sorry!" He chokes out shutting his eyes and averting his head to the left as if not wanting to see me at all. He's sorry yet he doesn't want to look at me. Do I disgust him to that extent? Shouldn't I be the one apologizing?

A few moments pass and I downcast my eyes in surrender not wanting to look at his frightened state any longer. I slowly step back and sit back down on the bed I had been lying on before. It creaks slightly and I finally recognize that I've been lying on a very soft and comfy animal skin that had plenty of straw cushioning underneath it.

"Nexus, open your eyes, right now." I hear the other male by the name of Rogue nervously speak. At that moment I lock eyes with the black irises again and his eyes widen in disbelief. I stare back at him in puzzlement. It dawns on me that in those few seconds I got to hug "Theo", I could hear the thumping of his heartbeat. He was warm and seemingly alive. On top of that, this place smells extremely humid and dense. I run my hands through the animal fur in understanding. All of this just feels too real. I decided to ask seeing as these two are the only ones around and I have no other way of knowing.

"Is there something on my face or did I completely misread the situation and I'm most definitely not dead?"