-Oliver-

I really, really needed the rest. For several days, we just watched movies, made small walks around the forest, ate, and slept. I was feeling better and stronger with each passing day, although I still suffered from small sickness attacks. I had no other way to describe those moments when I suddenly started coughing, my strength fading until I felt like I was going to pass out. Those moments would stop as suddenly as they started, and there didn't seem to be a clear trigger for them. They could happen right in the middle of the night or while we were walking in the forest.

People kept trying to reassure me they'd find a way to fix me, but I knew there was no fixing my soul without my second part, and even then, I had no idea how we could put us back together. Even the gods were perplexed by my condition. Hades, the king of the dead, couldn't give me any answers.

But I didn't want to think about that. We'd cross that bridge once we got there.

One morning, I woke up before everyone else. I'd slept surprisingly well that night, and only woke up to cough my lungs out twice. Even the pain seemed to have faded a little, so I was already in a good mood and feeling energetic.

Too bad everyone else was still fast asleep... It couldn't be more than six in the morning. Arch and Jack were sharing the sofa-bed by the window, and we'd somehow managed to fit one more large bed for Tilly and Ben in my room. It was a little awkward to get around the three beds and my desk and TV stand, but since none of us had felt comfortable sleeping in the living room, away from the group, no one was complaining about the lack of space. My room was only for sleeping and watching TV in bed, anyway.

The irony... I'd dreamed of my own room and privacy when I was sharing the room with several other kids at the group home, and now I had my very own bedroom and there were still five other kids with me. And on top of that, I couldn't sleep alone.

And I wasn't going to sleep alone ever again, no matter what our future held for us. I wasn't even going to have the bed all for myself again... And that brought a smile to my face, and it only grew when I peered at Jaden, who I was using as my pillow. His lips were slightly parted as he took in deep, calm breaths, and his long lashes twitched a little every now and then as he dreamed. I suddenly wasn't in a hurry to get out of bed. I was very much fine with watching his sleep.

It was easy to forget the danger we were in while I stayed under the warm covers and listened to my mate's heartbeat, and the steady breathing in the room. It was so peaceful... It was easy to pretend we were just normal kids.

I wished so hard we could be just normal kids... But I didn't let that thought bring me down. I refused... We would kick Adam out of our world and things would get back to normal. This world would get back to normal. I'd see to it myself. Like I had any other choice... Not as the one Adam had handpicked as his mortal enemy.

I shook my head, scolding myself for letting the war and Adam get inside my head to ruin my morning while I could be admiring my handsome mate.

And he sure was handsome... It was actually odd that he would settle with a scrawny little rodent with unruly hair, ears that were still sticking out, pointy nose, and such crooked teeth I needed braces. And half a soul missing.

I sighed hard at myself for letting those thoughts to emerge, but I suppose it was too loud, since I disturbed Jaden's sleep. Well, maybe it wasn't the sigh, but my thoughts that were too loud, since he could hear those, too.

What a weird life I had...

Jaden spent a moment shifting around a little, his breathing changing. I smiled when he stretched slowly, then curled around me, his hold on me growing tight. He still didn't seem to be awake... He was hugging me in his sleep... It really warmed my heart...

He settled down again soon and finally opened his eyes. He stared at me for a brief moment, looking extremely sleepy, but then he smiled.

"Good morning..." he murmured, his voice low and soft.

"Good morning," I muttered back, and planted a kiss on his cheek. "I'm sorry I woke you up. It's still really early."

"Are you all right? Why are you awake already?" he asked with a frown.

"I'm good. I slept really well. I just didn't feel like sleeping anymore."

"Hmmh..." His frown grew deeper as he stared at me in the eye, his green eyes studying me carefully. I smirked at him, trying to convince him I was fine, although he didn't need any of that with his ability to know exactly how I was feeling. Eventually, he believed I wasn't acting like I was fine, smiled, and hugged me again.

"You do seem much better now," he murmured.

"Surprisingly, being able to sleep all day every day for a week really does the trick," I said, chuckling. "I kind of don't want to watch TV all day anymore."

"Maybe we can go for a longer walk in that case," Jaden suggested.

"I'd actually like that very much," I told him. "Or... If no one has anything against it, maybe we could visit your territory today. You'd get to see your families."

"I'm sure Natalie doesn't mind if Ben teleports us there for a few hours," Jaden agreed, closing his eyes and resting back against his pillow.

I stopped to watch him with a smile on my face. "You still sleepy?"

"No... Not at all..." he murmured without opening his eyes.

"Uh-huh, sure..." I said, chuckled, and snuggled against him. "It's way too early..."

"Just a little..."

I hummed and hugged him, closing my eyes as well. He was so warm... I made myself comfortable next to him, ready to get a few more hours of sleep. While I waited for sleep, I made circles on his bare stomach and chest with my finger, memorizing the details of his body and skin. Jaden did the same to me. His fingers moved on my side gently, partly massaging me, partly caressing me, and every little move sent nice little shivers through my body. His touch calmed me and erased all thoughts from my head. There were just us two in the world at that moment...

What made things better was the fact that I could feel Jaden's thoughts and feelings. He was happy... Even though I was tickling him. I tried not to, but I didn't want to stop studying his skin, either. This slow, lazy moment was so nice and calming... Focusing on such a simple, good thing took my worries away. And I could feel his love for me, and how comfortable he was next to me... I felt almost invincible next to him.

"We are invincible together," Jaden murmured without moving or opening his eyes. "You'll see..."

I smiled at his reassurance. It was so easy to believe him, too...

"That's because I'm always right," he murmured, and turned to his side to pull me tightly against his chest. "You know I'm right, right?"

"I know," I said, and I wasn't agreeing with him to humor him...

He was my strength. With him by my side, I was stronger than anyone else. Even Adam.

He chuckled gently and hugged me tightly. "Damn right... Because I'm the most awesome werewolf-Cerberus-thing there is," he said, and kissed me gently. "I will forever and ever protect those I care about. Nothing can stop me. Nothing can beat me. Not mortals, not gods, and definitely not Adam. There isn't an army strong or big enough to defeat me, and he will soon learn that."

I had a wide smile on my face by the time he stopped speaking. His cocky words made me feel so, so much better... He was even able to heal my broken soul with his playful reassurances.

"I am invincible. That makes us all invincible," Jaden added gently and kissed me again.

"Why are you weirdo talking by yourself so early in the morning...?" Jack suddenly mumbled in a sleepy voice.

Jaden and I both laughed quietly.

Several hours later, after we all had woken up, managed to drag ourselves out of the beds, and eaten a huge breakfast, I asked Natalie about letting us go visit the Blue Moon territory.

"I don't see a reason why we couldn't," she said. "I happen to know all of your parents are eager to see you guys soon, so I'm sure it's more than fine with them as well."

"Awesome," I said with a smile. "I can't be the only one getting a bit tired of just watching TV all day long."

"I mean, I'm not complaining, but maybe a few hours back at home would do us all good," Tilly said, and the others agreed.

"Then I'll send them a message and ask if it's safe to come visit," Natalie told us.

We were more than welcome to return to the territory. Everyone was excited to have us back, and apparently, they had some bigger news for us, too. Natalie didn't really know what it could be about, though, so we all were a bit nervous while getting ready for Ben to take us back.

When he did, I closed my eyes in our living room and opened them in Jaden's home. It still freaked me out a little, but mostly because of Adam.

"You know... As a werewolf, I know all this cool stuff exists, but I still won't get used to this anytime soon," Tilly spoke, flashing a smile at Ben.

"Wait until you get to travel to the other end of the world and back like that," Ben said, also smiling. "I can do that whenever I want, and I still haven't gotten used to how cool it is."

"Welcome home!"

We turned around to face Jaden's mom, who came to hug her son with a bright, excited smile on her face.

"I missed you so much," she murmured, holding Jaden tightly.

"I missed you too, Mom," Jaden replied with a happy tone in his voice. "Is everything and everyone all right?"

"Yeah, it's been... quiet," Thisalee said and sighed, her smile dropping. She stepped back to take a good look at Jaden, then at us. "Did you guys have fun at Natalie's?"

"Yeah, we did," Jaden said reassuringly. "What do you mean by quiet?"

"Too quiet," she said, her expression dropping even more. "Our enemy has vanished. We have no idea where they are, or what they are doing."

"Shit..." Jaden and Jack mumbled at the same time.

"Anyway... Did you eat good food? Watched a lot of movies?" Thisalee asked.

It was clear Thisalee didn't want to let us think about the dangers we were in, since she insisted on asking questions about our little week-long pajama party, and mostly ignored us if we tried to ask what was going on. I had to admit, if we weren't in immediate danger, and there wasn't anything we needed to know, I was fine counting how many movies we watched and how much pizza we ate. Besides, hearing that we'd had a nice, relaxing vacation on our couch made Thisalee very happy.

"Once this is all over, I'll have to ask Natalie if she'd let me spend a few nights at her place as well," she finally said with a big smile. "I sometimes do miss living with humans in their nice homes."

"I mean, we could move into the town too," Jaden suggested.

"Would that make you happy?" Thisalee asked softly.

Jaden gave it a thought. "Like... Maybe half of the time? I mean, I love this territory. It's my home, but... I wouldn't mind if we had a home in the town too."

"I see," she said gently. "Well, maybe after this all is over, we can talk about that with your father."

"Yeah," Jaden said, but I knew both of them were unable to see that far into the future.

Because we all feared this world didn't have a future.

"Right! I shouldn't hog you guys all to myself," Thisalee said. "Let's go see if Aurora is back home, hmm? She took her hunters and went to get us food, and she doesn't know you're back. She's going to be so surprised."

Both Tilly and Jack were very happy with that plan. Tilly was much more open about it, while Jack tried to maintain his cool, though he was still smiling a little when we exited Jaden's home. But he couldn't hide anything from me. He was very happy to see Aurora again. His excited, bouncy spirits gave it away.

We arrived at Aurora's house a moment later. It looked like she'd just gotten back home. When she sensed us coming, she basically threw the door open, still wearing her shoes.

"What are you doing here?!" she asked loudly in her excitement and hurried down the stairs to greet us.

"Hi, Mom! We wanted to come see how you guys are doing," Tilly told her.

Aurora didn't have time for replies and quickly pulled Tilly into a hug, then grabbed Jack and hugged him as well.

"I missed you so much..." Aurora muttered, holding her babies tightly against her chest. "So you guys are all right?"

"We're all good," Tilly said reassuringly. "Just getting a little claustrophobic indoors, that's all."

"That's good. Means you've rested enough," her mom said, and reluctantly let go of her and Jack. "Jack? How are you?"

"I'm good," Jack said with a smile. "I've had a lot of fun."

"That's good, sweetheart," Aurora spoke tenderly. "And everyone else?"

And again, we got to talk about all the movies we'd watched and pizza we'd eaten. While we talked, Aurora ushered into her home, made us sit down in the living room, and made us all large cups of hot chocolate.

"And... That's about it," Tilly said after we'd told Aurora everything there was to know about our past week. "So? You guys had some news for us, right?"

Aurora and Thisalee exchanged looks, then turned back to us.

"Are you sure you want to hear about all that boring stuff?" Thisalee asked. "The enemy has gone into hiding, but we'll find them."

"Mom," Jaden said sternly. "What's going on?"

I think we all could tell that whatever these two women had to tell us, we weren't going to like it.

"It's... More of a logistical issue..." Aurora said slowly. "We've made new allies, thanks to the vampires, and... Our little territory is getting quite cramped."

"What does that mean?" Jaden asked with a frown.

The women looked at each other again.

Thisalee sighed.

"We are building a new base for your allies," she said slowly.

"Far away from humans," Aurora added. "Where we don't have to worry about getting innocent people involved."

"Where?" Jaden asked.

"Somewhere very, very far away," Aurora said. "Even we don't know where it is. But it is already well protected, according to the gods."

"So what does that mean?" I asked.

"It means we're all moving," Thisalee finally admitted. "The peacekeepers have agreed to move our entire territory there one building at a time."

"The whole territory?" Jaden asked in shock.

"Everything we need," Thisalee said. "Once this is over, we will come back, of course, but right now, we need to stay together. We need more space for our new allies. And if that area is as well protected as the gods claim..."

We all just stared at them. To move the whole territory...?

But it did make sense... Here, the humans were in danger. Adam had already used them to attack us. And we couldn't fit in any new people in this territory.

"And who are these new allies?" Jaden asked.

"Well, they are supposed to start moving into the new base in the next few days, so maybe you all would like to come watch and meet them?" Thisalee asked.

"Sure, of course," I said, feeling suddenly hopeful. "How many new allies did we get?"

"Many," Thisalee said, giving us a smile that had a little bit of relief in it. "Mother Heidi and the other leaders of vampires did us a huge favor. They're the ones who made this new alliance happen."

"You didn't say who they are," Jaden said with a raised eyebrow.

Again, Aurora and Thisalee exchanged looks, but this time, they were both smiling.

"Let's just say they have perfected the art of war."

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