There's a scratching sound at my window. I go over and open it cautiously, in case it's Elijah with another surprise message. Rhys jumps in, leaves tangled in his hair. He shakes his head to free the leaves and then looks at me apologetically, "I'm --"

"Rhys, forget it." I blurt, "I have something to say."

"Go on." Rhys says, leaning against the wall.

I take a deep breath, bracing myself for the pending argument, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Rhys stands up straight, his expression one of shell-shock, "What did you say?"

"The reincarnation -- Eliza's reincarnation... Why didn't you tell me?" I demand, hot tears running down my cheeks.

Rhys looks at me, his face unreadable, "How do you know?"

"Elijah was here." I mutter.

Rhys looks outraged and turns toward the window but I grab his wrist, "Oh no, Rhys. You're not leaving until I've had it out with you. How could you not tell me? That I'm not me, I'm not who I thought I was, I'm actually a one century old girl?"

"You are you. You are Donna." Rhys holds my face in his palms, "You are yourself, you're not anybody else. The only difference is that you have some of Eliza's memories, a part of her soul."

"I don't want them, I don't want her!" I hiss spitefully, "I want to be me! I want to be fully Donna! I want to be normal!"

Rhys snorts, "Your boyfriend is a fallen angel. You're not a normal girl, I think we've already established that."

I put my hands over my ears, "This isn't a joke, Rhys! This is serious. You hid it from me, you hid the fact that I have the spirit of your ex girlfriend in me!"

"Look at me, look straight at me." Rhys attempts to comfort me desperately.

It doesn't work.

"No." I am trembling with shock and betrayal, "That's why you're with me. The only reason you're with me. Because I have imprints of her in me. Rhys, you love Eliza, not me. You only stayed so long because of her."

"No." Rhys frowns, "I love you. You're the only reason I live, Donna."

"Did you say that to her, too? I ask, going past hysteria and dashing through the stages of paranoia, "Did you tell her that, Rhys? Did you tell her you loved her? That you'd never leave her? That you'd never let anyone hurt her? Did you?"

"Please be quiet, Donna." Rhys pushes my hair back but I shove his hands away.

"Do you only touch me when you think there's a bit of Eliza in me? You've never really loved me at all, have you?"

Rhys doesn't reply. He just crushes my lips with his to silence me. It seems like eternity has passed before he pulls back, letting me breathe. I say nothing, I just stare at him silently. The tears have stopped, there is just emptiness now. The emptiness that fills the space where we were agruing just a minute ago.

"Don't ever say that again." Rhys strokes my cheek, "I love you, Donna, because you are you. Not because somebody said that you've the soul of someone who's not even alive any more."

"You never told me. What was I supposed to think?" I ask, willing the prickly tears to stay in your ducts and not make me look even more of a cry-baby in front of Rhys than I already have.

"You weren't supposed to know. I didn't want you to know because... I thought you might freak out and run away. I didn't want to let you go. I'm not ready to lose you."

"Rhys..." I take a step closer to him, fiddling with the buttons on his shirt, "You've told me you're a fallen angel which is definitely the biggest secret of your existence. It is your existence. I never ran away then. What made you think that I would run away after you told me about Eliza? So I have a one century old soul in me..." I laugh hysterically, "I can deal with it... but only if you're with me."

"I'll be with you forever. Now you know about Eliza, I want to tell you something else. Because you have Eliza's soul in you, you're kind of going to age the way I do." He looks down at me.

"What?" I gasp.

"Yes, but, because of the chaos that can cause, the Master did some sort of illusion. To humans, we will age as they do. To angels, we will appear as we really are."

"Are you telling me that I'm going to outlive my parents? That I'm going to outlive my friends? That everyone I know is going to die... and I'm going to watch them?" I splutter, backing away, "I can't do that, Rhys. I can't watch them die."

"Is it too much? Am I -- Are you scared of me?" Rhys looks torn.

"No." I blurt, "Not of you. Of this. Of this ageing thing. I'm scared of death. I can't deal with --"

"You're not going to have to deal with anything. When the time comes, I'll take you far away from all this. For the moment, don't think about it. Forget I ever told you, just, forget it."

Rhys wraps me up in his arms, holding me close and whispering sweet nothings in the top of my head. Two hours later, he left despite my thousands of desperate bids with him to stay.

After Rhys left through the window, I had a shower and then clambered into bed, ready for a well-earned rest.

The Next Day...

I stride down the the stairs, feeling all hazy and fuzzy round the edges. I stumble into the kitchen and slouch over my breakfast. Dad walks in, dark Gucci shades perched on his head. He bends down to kiss my forehead gingerly, "Good morning, baby girl."

"Morning, Dad." I smile up at him, "Daddy, where's Mom?"

"Emergency at work." Dad ruffles my hair and sits down opposite me, "She argued for an hour, saying she didn't want to go but then they said something and she agreed in this reluctant yet hilarious tone."

There's a sharp knock at the door.

Dad slides out of his chair and goes to answer it. Who could it be? Dad walks back in, a big satisfied grin painting his face. Behind him, Rhys strides in. He's carrying a bouquet of roses. His first 'official' visit since I have come home from hospital. "Hi." Rhys beams and hands me the roses, "For you."

"You didn't have to." I look down at them. The roses are blood-red, some of them fully blossomed, some of them just beginning to open, some of them still closed buds of splattered red.

Rhys squeezes my shoulders, "I wanted to."

Dad clears his throat uneasily, "I'll leave you two to it. I need to do something upstairs." Meaning he's feeling awkward in front of his daughter's first boyfriend. Dad leaves. I stand up and turn to Rhys.

He looks at me silently and then sighs, "I'm sorry I never told you. I should have told you -- I should have trusted you -- but... I honestly thought I was protecting you. Us. Our relationship. I thought I was doing the right thing."

I reach up to hold his cheek and Rhys leans in to my touch, "I would have preferred it if you told me but as long as I know now, I don't care. I trust you. You won't lie to to me." Rhys smiles gently and turns his head to kiss the palm of my hand.

Then he takes it and holds it in his own, "Donna, I really am sorry. For everything. For our arguments, the way I treated you -- when you were ill -- I don't know how I could do that to you. I -- I'm sorry."

"I told you, it's fine." I squeeze his shoulders, "Honestly. If I was still angry, you would know about it."

Rhys chuckles, leaning his forehead against mine.

That Night...

My eyes open and I note where I am. In the Tower, in the main room. I stretch and stand up, looking around myself. There's a creak and I look towards the entrance. Rhys walks in and then stops when he sees me, "Hey. You found your way down here again?"

I shrug, grinning.

"I guess locks don't stop you, Miss Dream-Walker. Come on, let's go upstairs." Rhys leads me over to the panelling at the back of the room and presses the combination. The wall hisses and slides back. Rhys and I step up the stairs, opening the door to his room. We freeze, identicals masks of astonishment.

Standing in the middle of the room is Elijah with two other people -- rogue angels -- flanking him. Rhys pushes me protectively behind him, his whole body going stiff and his face darkening, "What are you doing here?"

"Don't worry." Elijah holds his hands up, walking forward as if to greet us, "We come in peace."

"I don't really care. Leave right now. You're not welcome here, Elijah. Neither are your little friends." Rhys sneers spitefully. I clutch on to his sleeve, my hand trailing down to hold his hand, the other one firmly grasping his forearm. Fear slithers down my spine, making it tingle with ice-cold electricity.

Elijah tilts his head to a side and maliciously grins, "Hello there, Donna. I trust you two love-birds have made it up. How sweet of you, Rhys!" Elijah mock-swoons. Rhys growls and I feel his muscles all bunch together, as if he's getting ready for a fight. The only thing stopping him is my grip on his arm.

"So, Donna. How are you?" Elijah beams as if he's actually happy to see me and isn't the reason I crashed my car less than two weeks ago. I retreat further behind Rhys, trying to keep myself from meeting his gaze. Elijah steps forward, his arms raised as if to hug me, but all of a sudden, Rhys has him by the collar, his eyes blazing with fury, "Do what you came here for. She's none of your business so don't even think about touching her in any way."

"Rhys..." I say softly. He turns his head slowly and then a relaxed expression seeps into his face. He lets go of Elijah's collar, pushing him back.

"Stay away from her. I won't warn you again. Go back to where you came from." Rhys backs up so he's standing in front of me and he finds my hand which I latch on to like a life preserver.

"I haven't come here by my own will." Elijah snaps and then smiles at me, "But I didn't mind coming. It meant I could see my girl here."

"Elijah!" Rhys growls, trembling with fury. I press myself into his back, trying to send the signal that he shouldn't get into a fight with this cheap rogue.

"Rhys, you really need to control that temper." Elijah tuts, "I was only referring to Donna as my friend. You know me. I'm a sucker for the little pretty ones." He winks at me. I just grab Rhys' hand more tightly, securing myself to him like a handcuff.

Rhys squeezes my hand reassuringly, "Elijah, what did I warn you about? Can you -- Just leave before I do something I may later regret in my existence." He's shaking again; it's taking all of his effort and concentration not to leap across the room and tear Elijah to shreds. I peek past Rhys' arm to see Elijah. He is staring Rhys down, an evil smirk twisting his sharp features. Rhys growls and then Elijah breaks eye contact, turning to his cronies who have been standing in feral crouches ever since Rhys grabbed Elijah by the collar.

"It's okay, boys. I have it in control." The 'cronies' relax, but not very much. They regard Rhys and I with open hostility. They look wild, as if they haven't been amongst human civilisation for a few centuries. "As I was saying," Elijah clasps his hands together. "I haven't come here by will. I was ordered to come."

Rhys stiffens as he asks, "Ordered by whom?"

"Why, our Master, of course!" Elijah grins, "He wants to see you. More importantly, he wants to meet your girlfriend. The reincarnation of your girlfriend."

"Elijah, I'm not going to say it again. She's mine, stay away from her."

"Okay, but I think you should know." Elijah shrugs, "Our Master wants to see her. In Riré."

There's a shocked silence. In that silence, Rhys' eyes narrow into dark slits and he pushes me further behind his back, his hold on my hand tightening. "Why?" He demands.

Elijah shrugs, "It's the Master. You never do know. I'm just the messenger, I'm not involved in decisions."

"All of a sudden, Master wants to see her?" Rhys doesn't believe him, I realise.

"Yes. He does." Elijah snaps impatiently, "Right now, Master said. It's urgent."

Rhys looks back at me anxiously. I just stare at him, biting my lip nervously. "No." Rhys says, "She's not going to Riré. She's human and alive. There isn't one chance that she will come back in one piece. She's not coming. I will come. Donna doesn't need to come."

"Master thought you'd say that. That's why He told me that He would make a deal with you. If you come without any objection to Riré with her, she'll live. However if you don't, you'll find yourself alone again."

My eyes widen, my eyebrows drawn together. This Master dude threatened Rhys. If he doesn't come, then He would... He would kill me. Rhys growls, "No!"

"It's your choice." Elijah shrugs, "Come and she'll live."

Rhys figets for a while, torn between two decisions. My safety or my life. He turns to me, "Donna. Do you want to go?"

I nod. I don't want to, but if I die, Rhys will be broken. I can't let that happen. I can't let him suffer through that pain again. Rhys looks even more confused than then his face sets in a stony decision and he turns back to Elijah, "Fine. But the Master has to give me the guarantee that she will return to Earth intact."

"She will. Master has already promised that." Elijah is all business.

"Good." Rhys snaps, "I don't want her to see the journey. Can you leave while she gets to sleep?"

"Of course. We'll be downstairs." Elijah and his cronies file out of the room, brushing by me. Rhys cups my face in his hands.

"I won't let anything happen to you, I swear. We'll go and we'll come back straight away. You'll be fine."

I clutch his hands, tears spilling out of my eyes, nodding, "I'll be fine. Please don't worry about me."

Rhys smiles ruefully, "I worry about you, it's what I do." I sigh and wrap my arms around him, wondering if this will be the last time I get to be held in his arms. Rhys kisses my forehead and then pulls back, "Now, come on, Donna. You have to get to sleep."

"But I don't mind seeing the journey."

Rhys raises his eyebrows expectantly at me and I sigh in surrender, trudging over to the bed, bouncing down on it. Rhys half-sits, half-lies on the bed, an arm wrapped around my shoulders. I lay my head on his chest and wind my arm around his waist, closing my eyes and muttering quietly, "I love you, Rhys."

"I love you too."

"Please take care of yourself." I plead.

"I will." I think I hear him say but I'm not certain because I fall asleep...