Chisson was exhausted.

By the time he got home he was pretty sure that he was only keeping himself on his feet by pure willpower alone. The extra stops he had made and the resulting baggage haven't made things any easier but he was sure it would be worth it.

The vines at the door didn't grab him to make sure he took off his shoes, I hadn't for days now and it always made his chest ache, Tay hadn't refreshed the vinesnare in more than a week and so with the plants lay Motionless and wilting.

Chisson still stopped to take off his boots. He was well trained after all.

His eyes drifted over to the stairs, Tay would be in her room.

He patted his pocket, feeling the crinkle of the wrapper through the cloth

All he had to do was go up there and give her this candy pill thing.

There was no use in stalling. With a huff, he hiked his shopping bags up onto his shoulder and trudged up the stairs

Tay's mind swirled in a barely conscious, far from coherent, mess. Instincts and desire warred with frustration and failure all swimming through the sensations born of her cycling maou. She could feel it threatening to smother her sanity, her mind barely able to hold itself together amongst the torrent.

The small part of her that was still aware enough to feel anything but her burning instinctual need to condense was terrified. Terrified, but even that little bit of her wasn't one to quit. A physical body had melted awayas all of her focus went into her cycle, it had long since become everything.

If someone had asked she honestly wouldn't have been sure she still had a body or not, this feeling of disconnect was probably made it worse by the fact that she haven't consumed anything but water for more than a week now, relying on her photosynthesis to keep her sustained.

She could feel this attempt coming close to it's end. It was becoming too hard to focus too hard to keep her maou in check. She was going to fail, again. The thought Horrified her, her instincts railed against the idea. Battering at the door to her sanity wanting to leave her nothing more than a husk to be filled by them. She would be Mad.

And then she tasted it.

Sweetness with a hint of bitter herb flavors. Like a cup of tea mixed in with sugar. In an instant it had coated the tongue she had forgotten she had, then it flows deeper. The Taste left her mouth and swirled down her throat, but it didn't go to her stomach. In the center of her body between her belly button and her heart was her core, and there it flowed. The flavor sank into her soul making her shiver as it felt like a gentle breath flowing through her maou channels. And just like that, her soul numbed. The sensations, the itching, the pleasure, the frustration, the screams of her instincts, they were all still there but they became dimmer far away.

If what she'd been experiencing for the last week had been the pain of a broken bone, this was equivalent of a stubbed toe. Bearable.

Tay felt her cycling ease. Her focus was still effected, but she wouldn't take distracting over all consuming any day. She held the first drop of maou in the center of the spiral. Then a second then a third, and another and another. By now the burning itch of her instincts along with the intrusive pleasure of fulfilling them was rising steady, but unlike all her other attempts it wasn't nearly as stark. As she condensed maou the pearl of qgreen and pink energy growing with each whisp she added, the sensations became more and more intense. Even lessened it made her thoughts fuzz at the edges. Her logic and technique attempting to fall away with every growing increment.

She held tight to her will. Determined to get this over with, to preserve her sanity. She had no idea what had given her this boost but she wasn't going to waste it.

The more drops were added the harder it was to think, The harder it was to think the harder it was to cycle properly. Her instincts wanted her to rush; they wanted her to get this done; they wanted her to condense and evolve that was all they wanted.

Not long ago at all, Tay hadn't quite been able to deny them. Not anymore. She was the ruler here, not them. Her soul belonged to her not to the instincts that would make her little more than a beast.

She braced herself as she spun the final drop of her maou through the spiral of her soul. Held tight as her soul rang at the action, slowly and methodically she moved it despite every part of her being wanting to do the contrary. Slowly so slowly agonizingly slow. Inch by inch. properly. It probably didn't take more than a few seconds, but it felt like hours.

Then the last bit of maou in her core clicked into place and she felt it condense.

Describing a successful condensation in the pre-evolution state she was in would've been hard, her entire soul seemed to gasp and thrum. Her instincts rejoiced all the pressure and need suddenly released. Her soul buzzed with wonderful bliss and her mind was helplessly caught up in it. This time she didn't have to resist not that she could have if she wanted to.

It tingled. Selino's left tit, did it tingle!!! But she remained coherent enough to watch the new drop of condensed maou settle into place within her core like the rest, it was almost completely filled now. She could feel it stretching, ready to grow… to change… to evolve.

"Just a few more," she muttered to herself, smirking at her first fully coherent sentence in a few days, as the last of the waves of sensation passed over her.

Then she opened her eyes.

Utter, complete, worry marred the face that looked down at her,

Amber eyes looking like they were on the verge of tears.

"Hey Chis, what's with that face?"

He jumped as if startled by her sudden speech "Tay!? You're okay! You… I'm glad… I'm sorry…"

"Your way with words was always one of the things I like most about you" she said, a goofy grin spreading across her face.

"I eally a poet aren't I?" Chisson huffed, the annoyance in his tone belied by his own smile "I just saved your ass, so I think so i think I'm due a little gratitude. I swear you just woke up and you're already pestering me"

Tay let her grin turn evil "Oh and what form would you like my gratitude to take my wondrous and astounding savior" she made a lewd gesture with her hand while wiggling her eyebrows, taking great enjoyment in the blush that darkened Chisson's face "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Come here you" Tay spread her arms and as if that was the permission he'd been looking for Chisson practically tackled her in a hug.

"So," Tay said returning the hug, until it became a clamp that the entonid couldn't escape "what do you mean you 'saved me'? I hope you didn't have to do anything dangerous while I was out?"

Was Tay mad when Chisson explained that he had fought a pack of wolves and almost died to get her the pill candy? Yes, furious.

Was she mad that he had followed a random stranger out into the woods? Oh, yes.

Did learning that he couldn't have actually died in the pseudo-space calm her down? No, because the fact that he had died, real, or temporarily or whatever or not, proved her point.

If she ever met this Kamel guy she was going to tear him a new… Everything.

"Hey, Hey,World to Tay."

Tay glared at her boyfriend. " I'm not done with you yet. How could you do something so stupid?"

" to be fair I didn't know about the Wolves until it was too late. And while I admittedly could've turned around... I mean... it was…"

" it was idiotic. You don't even know that dying there was temporary or fake or whatever you just ran headlong into a forest full of wolves without even a thought. Apex please! Why can't I leave you alone for a week without you… ARRG!!!"

Chisson put up his hands in surrender

" okay okay you're right. I was stupid. But could you finish chewing me out later and come downstairs I have something for you"

"Chisson I swear, if you pull down your pants or something right now I am going to-" Tay growled

" Fuck, God no! What the hell Tay?!"

" well now I'm angry and disappointed whatever you have better be good."

Downstairs Chisson had Tay sit down on the couch.

After grabbing a few bags from by the door he joined her.

Tay looked at the Bags and raised an eyebrow "what's this? Trying to bribe my forgiveness with presents? I should warn you that it will most definitely work"

"I just thought since you had such a hard week. This is kind of my way of saying sorry for not doing something earlier."

Tay gave him a look, she was on the verge of once again reminding him that what he had done would have been stupid no matter how early he did it but the idea of gifts seemed to overruled her objections.

"Okay then Chisson, what tribute do you offer?"

"Well first you haven't eaten all week, I know you can survive off of sunlight and water but I thought you'd like something you can actually put in your mouth"

Tay smirked "Oh?"

"Not like that, Goatweed!!!"

Chisson reached into the bag and pulled out a layered paper container, the kind designed to carry food from a restaurant.

"sorry if it got jostled a bit, carrying all this stuff was a lot harder than I thought it would be."

Tay took the container and opened it, revealing a dish consisting of raw fish atop various sliced vegetables and rice, all covered in a sweet and spicy smelling sauce.

Shon fish, her favorite. They didn't have it often because Chisson insisted got it was too expensive to eat regularly.

"Chis?"

" it's fine. It's worth the Lincs to get you something you like. Go ahead and eat unless you want to waste my money."

Tay smiled, not quite knowing what to say except for " you really do worship me don't you?." Before she started eating.

It was delicious. After not eating for a week it was like her taste buds were on high alert in the flavors of the meal hit her like a speeding wagon.

"MMMMMMMmmmmm, sho ghood." Tay said grinning as best she could with a stuffed mouth.

Chisson returned her grin, " if you like that you're going to love this" he reached down and handed her the second bag and Tay saw the name of the bookstore she always shopped at stamped on the side.

Tays eyes widened "Chis you didn't."

Without any hesitation she plunged into the bag retrieving what was inside. As soon as her assumption was confirmed she let out a squeal of delight

"The Lord's and lies of lady Napt, book three"

It was the next book in the series she had been reading, she han't had time to go get it before this whole debacle with her Evolution had started.

" I'm glad you're excited" Chisson said with a shy smile " with your reaction to the end of the last book I honestly thought it was a 50-50 shot"

Tay gasped in shock and offense, feeling like she had to plead to one of the Apexs is for forgiveness on Chis's behalf for such sinful words.

" I would never drop a series halfway through no matter how bad it got" Tay rebuked "and" she added "just because the ending was bad doesn't mean it didn't set up an interlocking web of intrigue and theory fodder that I have been dying to figure out"

" does that mean you like it?" Chis asked sounding genuinely confused.

"Yes, dummy, I like it" Tay said leaning her hand against his shoulders, it was a little uncomfortable all due to the fact that he was shorter than her but she still smiled as she felt him squirm nervously under her.

"Um, Well then," Chisson finally managed after a moment "get comfy and start eating," he said, taking the book from where Tay held it in her lap and opening it to the first page.

" what are you doing" Tay asked her looking at him navigate to the first chapter

" I'm going to read it to you, obviously"

" do you think I went blind from all that cycling? I can read it myself." she pouted, " plus you'll get all the voices wrong" she whined petulantly only half joking.

"So you want to get sauce on your brand new book"

"Of course not!!!"

" then you want to wait you're done eating to read it?

"Well no but-"

" wait to eat then?"

Tay sighed, "No…"

"Then I guess I'm reading it to you" Chisson said with a triumphant grin, which Tay wasn't sure if she wanted to kiss or punch.

"Fiiiiiiiiiiine~" Tay relented, slouching back comfortably into the couch and stuffing a piece of fish from her meal into her mouth "get on with it then" she said with a purposefully still full mouth.

Chisson read for a while, Tay occasionally, well, often stopping him to correct the voice he was giving a character or his mispronunciation of names and places. She relaxed, and felt the weeks constant strain start to melt away. They just sat there him reading and her listening until Chisson finished the third chapter, then he stopped and asked a question

"So was this the last condensation you need before you can evolve or…"

Tay frowned at the question. Chis knew that it wasn't, if it has been she would have been in the midst of evolution already. She looked into her core, mentally measuring down the states that would need to be filled before she could leave her birth stage.

"I I think it will take a bit more condensing to get there"

"How much?"

"A few more times?"

"Can you be more specific…?"

"Is not really an exact number, chis. I can feel I'm close but I'm not quite there that's about all I can say" a flare of Suspicion spiked in her "why?"

"Uh ...I'm just...curious." Chisson answered not quite meeting her eyes.

There was beat of silence Tay squinting and Chisson sweating until she dropped it. For now.

" either way it shouldn't be a problem with this pill you gave me seriously. It went from absolutely mind-melting to doable just like that. As long as it stays in my system condensing it's just a problem of time. How long does this pill last by the way?"

Chisson dutifully studied the wall to his left, grimacing as he answered, " it'll last… a couple hours"

" a couple?! You mean like 6 right?"

"That… wasn't the impression I got. He said you would be able to get one condensation done and properly fall asleep, so I would guess two or three hours….?" The statement slowly shifted to a question by the end, and Tay felt frustration grow in her chest.

"And we just spent all that time lazing around??!! I have so much more cycling to do, Chis. How long did that one condensation take one hour? two? I can't afford to lose time if this is going to wear off soon." It wasn't just that she didn't want to go back to that state of instinct and mindlessness although that was a very large part of it.

The thought of failing, of falling to Evolution Madness horrified her on a deeply personal level.

She would end up just like… No it was worse than that if she failed and went mad she would be proving that bastard right.

Chisson's face fell "Tay you've been cycling for almost a week straight… you can't keep going. You're going to strain your soul. I can get more pill candies and tomorrow you can cycle all you want but for tonight at least you need to rest" Chisson saying that was the pot calling the kettle black if anything was but Tay chose to focus on another part of his statement.

"Get more pills by risking your life in the weird magic wolf Forest."

"Again... I can't actually die in there."

" that's not my point and you know it. I don't want you to get hurt especially not from me. Not for this."

" you need this. And this is the only way I can help."

" just being here helps."

"No it doesn't, not enough. I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that I'm going to stop. We both know you would do the same for me."

"Thats different I'm-"

"Strong?"

She was going to say that she was able to use techniques. But she knew in chis' mind those two statements were pretty much synonymous.

" I'm strong enough to do this Tay. It's not like I have to succeed I just have to try."

"Chisson…" Tay sighed, she wanted to say that it wasn't worth it, but if she could she would be doing whatever she needed to get those pills herself. Right now she wasn't in a position to do that but that didn't mean that Chisson should be doing it for her. How did she Express that in a way that didn't sound demeaning towards him?

The entonid interrupted her before she could formulate her thoughts " you're not going to be able to convince me, and for once I don't think that you could stop me even if you wanted to."

He was right, she had barely recovered any Maou after condensing and by the time she did the pill would likely have worn off and you probably wouldn't be able to focus enough to use a vinesnare on him.

" if you die I find a way to bring you back to life just to kill you. And then I'll do it again for making me kill you"

" that seems fair." Chisson smirked " but tonight I think you should go to bed before the pill wears off. You can't kill me if you're dead on your feet, and we all know how much of a masochist I am."

" first of all, you you joke but this whole stunt is only proving me right on that front. Secondly don't tell me what to do" Tay said putting on her most bratty tone, " thirdly…fine."

Tay couldn't say she wasn't absolutely exhausted, and if Chisson was right she didn't have enough time to do any more condensing anyway. A good night sleep would only do her good right now.

Chisson lead Tay to her room where he watched her fall asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. He stood there watching for a couple minutes and then started to feel like a creep and so headed to his room.

He managed to maintain his composure long enough to get to his bed, and then he collapsed onto the mattress.

Relief for Tay, The fear he'd felt for her. The fear he'd felt for himself. Hope. Anger. Confusion. Curiosity. All swirled inside him like a turbulent sea, his mind lost in its currents.

Then there were the memories. The pain, the terror, the sensation of death... feeling himself fading and thinking that this was the end, that everything he had worked for was over.

That was when Chisson began sobbing , he lay there for a while stifling his cries and screaming into a pillow until he couldn't anymore. Then silence.

Then a familiar feeling rose in his heart. Aimed at the wolves, aimed at the pseudo-space, aimed at Kamel for giving him the challenge.

The feeling that had caused him to fight someone again again even after they had already beaten him up once. The feelings that had gotten him bones broken, organs bruised, his lifeline emptied and always coming back for more.

A feeling that kept him cycling his maou and trying techniques despite the failure of every single attempt.

It had no place in the heart of someone like him, but there it blazed.

He would not be defeated. he would not give up. he would not lose. He would succeed.