My neck, my back, my ass.

They all came united, acting as one, aching as one. These big three had assembled a union of limbs of sorts, and they were very much not happy with me.

And to be fair, I wasn't happy with myself either… but it's not like I could just boycott myself into better living conditions now, can I? I was pretty sure that not even a die-hard drinker gets this much body-aching, head-pounding pain come the break of dawn.

As usual, I slowly fluttered my eyelids, filtering in only the slightest hint of sunlight, otherwise here comes the third degrees burns upon my retinas. Normally it wasn't much of an issue, because normally the sun wasn't a bright smoldering piece of hellfire early in the morning.

Normally...

There I was, opening them wide, thinking it was normal - it wasn't. The scorching pain came in an instant, and the tears welling up were even more instant-er. I shot my head upright from the bed of grass, hearing a monster's tumultuous roar emerging from my wide-open lips.

I think this was how Adalia felt that one time I tripped over the curtains in my rush to get better and accidentally brought a sunny day's blaze peeking out the sliding glass panes.

When I get back, I need to apologize to her more for that. Sun not fun.

I looked around me through narrow, watery slits… and saw everything was brighter, much brighter - the grass, the trees, the view up high a clear blue sky.

This wasn't a 7 in the morning forecast I was looking at like every other time I woke up from the death-sleep, and that could only mean two things - either the earth's rotation slightly sped up while I was under, or… or, hear me out, this might sound crazy… it wasn't 7 in the morning anymore.

No? Too absurd? Okay, earth rotation it is.

The moment I knew I could again, I began to move around more, and it was going all fine until I tried lifting my right hand. It was tugging something with it.

It was tugging her.

Ria's soft fiery locks entangled between my fingers, glowing. I looked at her - something was out of place, something has been moved - she's moved. Her sleeping face sideways, her hands close to mine. There were tears, I think, or traces of it… they'd already dried, but they still left a mark. Her closed eyes still looked wet.

She's never cried before… not that I've seen of her anyway, so this was a first. And her sleeping sideways… that was a first too. The memory she showed me, the happenings inside of them - was it having an effect? Does this mean this was working, then?

You gave me a lot to ponder about this time, didn't you? Sucks that I couldn't. Sucks that I have to keep from thinking about them for now. Today's the one day I couldn't let my mind wander.

To put it in your words - "Stop thinking about other girls. You're playing gentleman tonight to a fine young lady, have some tact, yes?"

I pried my hand loose, and through the gaps in my fingers beyond, there was a figure to be glimpsed. Removing the fingers in-between, I could see even more - I could see the paleness, I could see the fatigue, I could see a little motionless bundle of violet by a tree and it absolutely did not look happy at all to see me.

Sera was a mess coming apart at the seams that did all it could to not appear as such. Wearing a scowl so frightening, putting on a presence so electrifying… she truly was giving it her all.

I almost felt bad that I wasn't going along with it and running for the hills for dear mercy.

But how could I? With heavy eyes like hers, with heavy breathing like hers… she just looked like a feeble sickly kitten baring her fangs in fright. Not exactly nightmare fuel.

She looked worse than yesterday, much, much worse. So much worse that I had a sudden thought pop into my head. Y'know perhaps me oversleeping way after seven wasn't simply just my body trying to punish me for my recklessness.

I think someone was trying to punish me for something else.

Slowly, gazing sideways, I crept towards her. "Did you put me asleep... for longer than usual today?"

Surely by now she knew the usual nod and shake method, so the fact that she didn't budge her head an inch wasn't for the lack of a way to respond.

"I suppose you figured I'd miss the convention if I overslept tonight, is that what you tried to pull off here?"

Sera looked off to the side, which in the diction of body language was indeed a clear sign of admission of guilt, even if she didn't exactly mean it.

Seriously? What a sore little loser. If I can't go, then you can't either? That's like a six-year-old's way of getting even. What are we - kids at a park? If that's the case, you'd be the spoiled brat waiting a turn on the swing then.

I took my phone out. Hovering right above the translucent borders of missed calls and messages from Amanda doing her earnest to make sure I was up and ready, the clock only just recently ticked ten. Still had a full two hours left.

Pocketed my phone again, and looked back at those glaring golden eyes, making sure they caught my smarmy shrug with a smile, "Mission failed."

She probably would have actually killed me right there and then if exhaustion hadn't rendered her incapable. This was the perfect opportunity - right then I could gloat, I could sneer and condescend, and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it, and it would most certainly feel so very good.

Yet alas, we weren't six, were we?

I got as close as I could without trespassing boundaries, and knelt down, aligning our gazes… instead of getting some much-deserved catharsis, I chose to do something else that I never had a chance to do with her either.

I talked.

"You know, Sera, you're not exactly what I call a very nice person."

She pulled onto her hood, sparing her oh so delicate sight from the frustration abomination that was me.

"From day one, you've been belligerent, awful, stubborn… and you fucking took my dead cat and made it yours, which I don't really appreciate you doing - " She snarled, pulling onto her hood even tighter. " - and you don't really wanna hear any of this anyway."

As if on cue, a bright pink dot poked out from under her cloak, sniffing the air with a little wriggle.

"Point is, I think you're awful for doing that," I tried peeking at her from below, succeeding only briefly, locking eyes with her for just a second. It was a long second. "And you think I'm awful for trying to make you stop doing that."

She had buried her face into her knees. Once again, I'm reminded of a kid having one of their temper tantrums. But you know, like all kids… they're very easily appeased.

"You think I'm belligerent, you think I'm the one that's awful, stubborn - I'm the bad guy, yeah?" I tried speaking her language, and stretched my palms out towards her, raising my brows. "Why's that, I wonder? Why am I bad? What's so bad about me? I already know what's bad about you, I know you to a tee… but you… well, you don't exactly know me now, do you?"

Slowly but surely, like a turtle poking out of its shell, Sera poked out of hers - her gleaming amber eyes just barely jutting out from above her knees.

"Nod, alright? Nod or something, you're not dead, well… technically," I told her, shifting subtly closer. "What's my flaws to you? You think I'm keeping Ash in check cause I want her for my own personal use?"

Finally, a reply. Finally, a nod.

"Well, you're wrong. Very, very wrong, I'm telling you now."

She growled.

"What's another - uhh - you don't like that I'm ordering you around?"

A loud and clear yes yet again.

"Too bad. You kinda did this to yourself. You're the one trying to get me to relinquish my ownership or whatever the hell. My hand's been forced. Does that really make me bad?"

Sera nodded, firmer, harder, her eyes fully uncovered once more.

"Then I can say the same, couldn't I?" I fired back, nudging my head at her. "I summon you here at the risk of nearly killing myself and the first thing you do is try to take away a dear friend from me while I'm asleep! Who the hell do you think you are trying to start shit?"

There were moans, there were groans, and some more garbled nonsense coming out from her growing more vocal and intense by the second. I had no idea what she was saying.

So I guessed.

"That's no excuse! She might be your friend too, but what gives you the right to decide what's best for her, huh? Besides, she isn't the same Ash you know. She's not the same person. She certainly ain't evil like you!"

A roar. That's a first.

"See? You might think you're doing good, but all I see is bad. You're bad! Take now for instance - trying to make me miss my event just cause you couldn't go. What kind of person does that?"

Sera folded her arms, huffing.

"Oh, I'm still going. I ain't late. And I'm taking Ash, I'm taking Adalia, we're going to see so many fascinating, interesting wondrous things, how does that make you feel?"

With a glare like that, words weren't even necessary. I know I said I wouldn't gloat, but - I'm the bad guy, right? What bad guy doesn't gloat?

"So much fun we're gonna have. All day long. We won't be in this boring park, that's for sure. No, it's all just fun, fun, and even more fun."

She looked almost ready to scratch the smirk from my face. Almost. Like if I opened my mouth again - that was it. I'm dead.

So I opened them again anyway, just as snarled, just as she lurched, I spoke, "And you're going to be coming along with us just to see how much fun it all actually is."

Her eyes froze. She looked absolutely speechless, if that's even possible.

"Surprise?" I tilted my head at her. "See, will a bad guy do that? Would he really allow someone who has given him so much trouble to come along with him? Would he?"

She still looked baffled. Seriously, it was kinda amusing to see. She probably thought I had malicious intentions or something, or maybe I was pulling her leg still.

But I wasn't. I made sure she could see it - me, standing back up, offering a hand out towards… with a smile on my face and not a smirk.

"So if I'm willing to give an awful evil person like you a chance, don't you think you should be giving an awful evil person like me a chance too?"

Honestly, I didn't expect an answer right away. It was fine if she was reluctant, it was fine if she still had doubts.

Me with my hand out didn't mean she had to reach for it. I never expected her to. It was just for show.

Never even in my dreams, did I ever expect for her to actually go on and raise her own... slowly reach for mine, and actually take it. But it seems sometimes reality is stranger than dreams...

"Wow," I stifled a chuckle. "You're easy to forgive and forget, aren't you?"

Her eyes suddenly gleamed danger, and before I could react - suddenly a crackle, a pop, and all things bone-sounding related erupted from my hand as she squeezed it without any effort on her part.

Okay... maybe not so easy.