Silence.

The thing I'd been needing, craving, every single time those doctors decided to drug me instead. Drug me. I hated it, I hated it so much. But it was finally quiet, finally peaceful. I didn't hear a single thing and there were no prodding doctors in sight.

I took a deep breath, savoring the painless moment up until I heard an approaching noise. It was too far away to distinguish what was being said, but I still jumped and cowered into my pillow.

Did he come back?

The door creaked open and I grabbed the empty water glass off the side table, ready to throw it at whoever came in.

I had no choice.

I sighed in relief at the familiar huge form of Mr. Forkle. His mouth wasn't moving and I could still hear him talking. I'd already figured out that I was hearing thoughts, after what happened with the Neverseen members in the alley I knew it was possible. His thoughts were quieter though, like he was whispering, and I didn't feel any of the usual pain.

"Hello Ms Foster." He thought while sitting down. "I heard you've been having some troubles since coming back."

"What happened to me?" My voice shook. He knew. He knew about my new secret. He had to know what caused it. I needed him to know what caused it so I could get rid of it. So I won't hurt any of my friends like I did to the Neverseen.

"Create a barrier around your mind. Block out the noise." Was all he responded with. My eyebrows furrowed.

"What?" I asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Trust me. Just envision a wall around your mind."

I rolled my eyes, annoyed at his evasiveness, but still listened to him. I've known him forever, I trust him. And if the Neverseen were right and this had something to do with my parents, he might know.

I did this for the betterment of our world, Sophie.

I imagined the wall he was talking about, wrapped around my mind, except it wasn't like when I usually daydream and think about stuff. I could feel the material solidly in my head, feel the wall coming up and blocking all of Mr. Forkle's exasperated thoughts.

My eyes widened in shock. It was like all of my senses dulled from their overload with my mind reading. I felt just the same as I did before the kidnapping. I tried lowering the wall, feeling Forkle's thoughts flood back in. I winced, putting it back up quickly.

"How'd you know how to do that? What happened to me? Did my parents plan this?" I asked, his face attempting to remain neutral but I could see the sadness and sympathy in his eyes.

"Don't trust anyone, Miss Foster. And don't tell anyone anything that you deem important. This kind of information cannot get into the wrong hands." I cocked my head to the side, confusing lacing my voice as I responded.

"What about my parents, my family? Can I trust them?" He sighed, looking at his watch impatiently.

"Yes, you can trust them and your close friends, but still, don't tell them anything that could risk their safety and yours. And you'll be more watched now, which is a good and bad thing. The Neverseen won't be able to get to you, but you'll have to mask everything, especially your powers."

I opened my mouth to ask him what he meant by me being more watched, when the door opened and doctors walked in. When I turned back to face him, he was gone. But there's only one door in the room, the door the doctors just used.

I watched them carefully, still looking for Forkle but embracing the painlessness of not hearing thoughts. The doctors turned to me, shocked that I was awake and not screaming about noise. I would've been surprised too, since all I've done since being rescued is scream in pain and be drugged. My stomach turned at just the thought of it.

"Sophie?" Elwin walked closer to me. "Are you not in pain anymore?"

Don't tell anyone what we did to you. What you can do now.

"No." I whispered. "It's gone." He smiled and gently ruffled my hair.

"At least now we can actually talk to you. What happened?" When I thought back, I was surprised and scared at the clarity of my memories. Everything I tried to remember in my life has always been fuzzy or forgotten quickly, but suddenly I could remember every vivid detail of my kidnapping, and even before that. I could remember every single question on a spelling test from Kindergarten. Every single letter I got wrong. Every single detail of Gethen and the blond guy who stabbed Alvar in the alleyway's faces. The excruciating pain of my wrist being burned.

I looked down at it, my eyebrows furrowing at the sight of not a burn, but small silver lines in the shape of the Neverseen eye. No matter how much time had passed since then, it wouldn't have been long enough for the burn to go away, and even then burn scars don't shimmer silver.

Another question of what they did to me.

For your safety, I promise.

"I-I..." I couldn't finish, an overload of memories of darkness and pain flooding my vision. Forkle said not to say anything. So did he.

"It's okay, you don't have to talk about it right now. But you were kidnapped, right?" Elwin's face showed understanding, then sympathy as I nodded. "I'm so sorry for everything you went through. I do have one simple question though. Were you fed and given water?"

Even with my newly vivid memory I couldn't remember much of that. Maybe...

"Once or twice, I think." My throat was dry as I spoke, making it crackle awkwardly. Elwin's eyes widened.

"Sophie, you were only given water twice?" I nodded, then realized what he was worried about.

"But that can't be right." I responded. "I should be dead." He nodded.

"The tests we've run have said that, too. You haven't gotten proper nutrients since you were taken. and it doesn't look like you've had water in a month or more. So, what we're trying to figure out is how you're alive. Do you have any idea if there was something they did?" I shook my head. It could've been one of the injections or experiments they ran, but I couldn't tell Elwin that. He's always been nice, but I don't know if I can trust him.

"I'm tired." I whispered, which was partly true but I also just wanted to be left alone.

"Okay. Go ahead and rest. If you feel like visitors when you wake up, I know your friends and family can't wait to see you." The doctors finished up what they were doing then left, leaving me by myself once again. I snuggled down into the blankets, clutching them tightly to me as I shut my eyes.

"Sophie. Wake up."

My eyes flitted open to the familiar voice, but I almost jumped off the hospital bed in shock at who was hovering above me. And I couldn't hear his thoughts either.

I opened my mouth, but no sound came out. I had only been awake once since escaping, and I hadn't been able to talk then, either. I only whimpered in pain as the doctors chalked it up to shock and trauma keeping me from speaking. It must've still been doing that, as I couldn't get a single sound in as Alvar backed up a step.

"Don't worry, you know I could never hurt you." I gave him a look that called out his bullshit, but I worried it was too drowned out by the fear. "Okay so yeah I betrayed you, but I never actually hurt you so don't give me that look."

As much as I didn't want to admit it, it was true. Since I knew that he was Bug, I was able to piece together that he never actually tortured me like the others, only questioned me. But that didn't mean anything, he might've just not liked to hurt people. But... he hurt me, when I escaped. He lied, he did hurt me.

"I didn't want to betray you, Sophie. I had no choice. I didn't even want to kidnap you or do any of this to you. But your powers had to be activated. I'm just sorry that it took so long, and you had to go through so much pain for it to happen."

I slowly trailed my hand over to the table by my bed, ready to grab something and throw it at the door to get help.

"I did this for the betterment of our world, Sophie. You'll understand someday, but it needed to happen. You'll help a lot of people someday. I believe in you."

I was surprised at the sudden softness of his voice, until he reached over my body and grabbed my arm, stopping me from grabbing the bed remote. His face was right near mine, our noses almost touching. My breathing sped up, nerves coursing through me. I braced myself, waiting for him to snap, but he just took the remote out of my hand and kept a hold of my wrist, bringing it away from the table.

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you make people come in here. I'm not done yet." He leaned in again, malice in his eyes. "Don't tell anyone what we did to you. What you can do now. For your safety, I promise."

I was shaking as he backed away, my breathing getting faster with all the words I couldn't let out.

"Everything I'm doing, it's for you and for our world, I never wanted to hurt people. But it's the only way, and I need you to understand that. The Neverseen are the good guys here, we just have more violent methods. But sometimes, that's necessary. The Black Swan won't help you, or anyone else. When you see that, you'll come to us." He started to walk towards the door before turning back around. "I trust you to make the right choice, Sophie. Don't trust anyone, don't tell them anything. I believe in you. Good luck." With that, he walked out.

What the hell just happened?

"Tell us everything you know. Any little detail can help us catch them."

I was so glad the doctors had turned off my heart monitor, otherwise the detective would've been able to see and hear how fast my heart was beating. I didn't know what to say, what to reveal. I wanted them caught... but Forkle told me not to trust anyone, and Alvar threatened me not to say.

"I, um... I-" I stuttered, trying to buy myself time from the awkward silence. It didn't help that I just had woken up and hardly had enough time to collect my thoughts before a notepad was shoved in my face.

"You can write it if it makes you more comfortable." My hand shook as I grabbed the pen. I thought back to every small detail, every distinguishing thing, then handed it to them

"This is the man who took you?" The second detective asked. They analyzed the drawing I made of his face, his crooked nose, the sweeping of his hair, every detail brought to life with my new memory. I had never been able to draw well, but it was like my memory went through my arms and fingers into the paper. What was left on the paper looked exactly like him, the man who 'stabbed' Alvar in the alley.

"Do you know a name?" I shook my head, taking the notepad back to write out a name on another piece of paper.

"One of the kidnappers' names is Gethen?" The detective confirmed. I nodded. "Is there anything else you can tell us right now?" I shook my head. I needed more time to think over, and know what to tell people. "Then we'll be leaving, but we will come back to check on you. Call and let us know when you're more comfortable talking."

A detective who had been in the corner of the room, most likely in training, approached me as the other one started to leave. He held out another notepad to me.

"Would you mind signing this? My wife is a huge fan." My face twisted in confusion. What was he talking about?

The other detective came over and smacked the back of his head. "Remain professional. She went through trauma, leave her be." He turned to me. "I'm sorry for my trainee, he gets ahead of himself. Hope you have a nice day."

They left in a rush and I stared after them. What was he talking about? The only reason he could want my autograph was... but no, there's no way. I-

"Sophie, are you feeling up for some more visitors? This time your family." Elwin peeked in and asked. I nodded eagerly, forgetting all other thoughts in favor of seeing my family again.

Hardly any time later my parents came running in and launched themselves onto me. Tears overwhelmed me, from both my own eyes and theirs as they gripped me tight like they couldn't live without holding me. I didn't mind, I squeezed them just as hard. No words passed between us in those moments, but we had all the communication we needed through our sniffles and tear-soaked smiles.

"I love you mom and dad." I whispered and I felt them cuddle into me even closer. When I was taken, I had regretted not saying it more often. Both 'I love you' and calling them mom and dad.

"I'm so sorry." Grady—dad, whispered. "I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you, I couldn't keep you safe." I leaned my head on his shoulder, moving to hug him more fully.

"It's not your fault. You couldn't have saved me, they would've gotten to me no matter what. They had been planning it for months." I couldn't believe he blamed himself, not when it was entirely my own fault, and partly my biological parents for whatever they did to me that the Neverseen wanted. I didn't even know how he could blame himself, but I also couldn't believe I put him—and Edaline—through the pain of losing another daughter, their only kid left.

"We could've helped you, why didn't you tell us what was going on?" My mom asked. I figured Dex found a way to see the texts, but after the news of my 'suicide' I gave up hope. He must've shown them all, so they knew how I was getting harassed.

"I was scared." I admitted. "I didn't want anyone else to get hurt. I thought I could figure it out on my own, but I couldn't, and I still hurt you anyways."

"You didn't do anything to hurt us, Sophie." Dad said. "It was the people who kidnapped you, they're the ones to blame."

"It was so scary." I whispered after a beat of silence. "I didn't know what was going to happen to me, I didn't know if we were gonna live, when I was going to be hurt. And I escaped, too, like a month ago. They had the entire thing planned though. They planned for every single detail."

My mom sobbed harder and squeezed my tightly to her. My dad gently stroked my head.

"You're here now." He said softly. "You're with us again. They're never getting close to you ever again. Sandor and your bodyguards will make sure of it."

"But I only have Sandor and the others for Moonlark concerts?" I thought back to the detective who asked for my autograph. "Wouldn't that give me away?" I knew what they were going to say before it even left their mouths.

"The entire world knows who you and Dex are now." Mom said. "Dex revealed it when we thought..." Her voice cracked as tears filled her eyes. I leaned into her, letting her know I'm here because it was the only way I could think of to cheer her up.

I wanted to question more, be more shocked on why Dex would reveal himself too, but my mom needed me more. My parents needed me because I scared them and I hurt them. So I held in all my other questions, content to just sit there and be with them.

"Dex!" I laughed with relief as he came running towards me. He hugged me tight and sniffled into my hospital gown's shoulder.

"I'm so happy you're alive. So, so happy." He mumbled almost incoherently. I looked over his shoulder as I squeezed him back, seeing a familiar blonde standing in the doorway.

He was slouched against the wall awkwardly, his hair oddly a complete mess. He looked nervous, his eyes darting everywhere except at me. I smiled slightly and waved him over.

"Sophie." He whispered as he hurried over and lifted his hand just an inch away from mine. I closed the gap and pulled him into the hug Dex hadn't yet detached from.

"Keefe." I whispered back. My eyes filled with tears. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I hurt you both." Dex finally lifted his head, looking at me in confusion.

"Soph, none of this was your fault. We saw the texts, you were protecting us. You thought it was the only way, and all of us would've thought and done the exact same thing. It's not your fault, and none of us are mad at you. We're just glad you're back."

"I do wish you hadn't listened to them and broken up with me, though." Keefe added, a hesitant smirk on his face.

"You jerk." I joked, pushing him. "I was trying to save your life. Would you rather be dead?"

"Almost." He replied, leaving me shocked. He climbed up into the bed next to me and leaned his head on my shoulder. "Never do that again."

I only nodded, not about to make a promise I didn't think I'd be able to keep. The Neverseen would still be after me, and I would never let them hurt my family. Not after all I had already gone through to keep them safe.

"Why were you screaming when we first saw you?" Dex asked, hesitance in his eyes. "You were talking about noises, but no one was talking."

I felt Keefe stiffen beside me, which made me do the same. He knew just as much as Dex, maybe more, but did he put it together? Did he somehow know exactly what I'm able to do?

"I don't know." I replied quickly. "I don't really remember that much of it, but I was on some heavy drugs with the N-kidnappers and I was in a lot of pain. I was probably hallucinating." He seemed to partly believe me, but there was doubt on his face.

"Do you know who took you?" Keefe asked, changing the subject.

"No." Forkle said I could trust them... but did I want them to know? Did I want them to know that I was some lab rat, able to read minds, some monster able to bring people to so much pain by just feeling my emotions? And... how would I explain Alvar? The part he played in my pain? I couldn't explain it, and he threatened me not to. I had to leave it be, for their safety. "I was able to give the face of a guy and name of another to the police, but I don't know anything else. I was drugged most of the time I was there."

"That's why you didn't want to be drugged again." Dex said, pity reflecting in his eyes. I wanted to throw up. I nodded instead. "I'm sorry." His voice was barely above a whisper, truly sorry for his part in it. I just shook my head, hugging him close to me. My head darted up as I remembered yet again when I had learned.

"You told people I'm Moonlark?" I asked and he paled slightly.

"I figured it was better to tell them, when we didn't know you were alive. They would've found out eventually, and I thought you would've wanted them to know. I'm sorry."

"No, don't be sorry." I smiled slightly. "That's exactly what I would've wanted." He smiled back then cleared his throat.

"I've gotta go pick up the triplets and bring them here to see you, I'll be back soon." He rushed out quickly, trying to hide how much he rubbed his eyes.

"Why'd you lie to Dex?" I turned my head to Keefe, painting a confused expression on my face.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I know what really happened, when you were talking about the noises. Why didn't you tell Dex? He's your cousin. And you know you can trust me." His expression turned soft as he gently squeezed my hand. "Did they do something to you, to make you able to read minds?"

All the blood drained from my face and my chest felt fuzzy with fear. I was really hoping he hadn't known, hadn't noticed. How was I supposed to explain this? I didn't even know what had happened, why the Neverseen gave me this... this curse. There was no way for me to explain it to someone else.

"I, um..." I couldn't finish my thoughts, I was too nervous. What if he thought I was some weird monster-lab rat thing?

You can trust them and your close friends, but still, don't tell them anything that could risk their safety and yours.

I can trust Keefe.

"You don't have to tell me anything you're not comfortable with." He quickly said, wrapping his arms around me and leaning into my shoulder. "But I'm right here for when you want to."

"I don't know what they did to me." I turned to him, my eyes wide and face blank. "But when I woke up here, I could hear thoughts and they hurt and I couldn't stop hearing them. And when I escaped, I did something else and I don't know how I did it but it was so scary, Keefe. And I feel like there's more to it but I don't know and apparently my parents have something to do with it but I don't know, I don't know." I cried, turning and tucking myself into Keefe's side.

"Did you... when you escaped, did you kill someone?" He asked tentatively and my eyes widened more in horror.

"I... oh my God I don't know." I cried harder, words hardly getting past the sobs. "I just ran, but I might've. They were just laying there. Oh my God, oh my God." I gripped at my chest and my throat, they were tight too tight and I couldn't breath and I was dying just like they did, just like the people I killed and left on the ground and-

"Sophie, breath. Breath for me." His eyes were locked on mine, the ice blue a comfortable reminder of who was with me. "What happened? Can you tell me exactly what happened?"

I took deep breaths, steadying the rising and falling of my chest. Keef stayed next to me, holding me, helping me. When I had finally collected all the vivid memories, he was still ready to listen.

I told him exactly what happened after I made it into the alley, except without mentioning Alvar. I didn't know what to do about him, how to go about telling people. So naturally, I just didn't say anything at all.

"Okay." Keefe said after a beat. "So, you can read minds and... sort of inflict pain onto people?" I shrugged.

"I guess. I don't know though, I feel like there's more going on." Why put me through everything just for that?

"Probably. Maybe there's some way we can test it? Make a superpower testing montage." He joked. I nodded, a small smile spreading across my face. It made me feel lighter, that small amount of happiness that Keefe just gave me. Like things aren't actually so bad, it'll all be okay as long as he's with me.

"Oh." I said, suddenly remembering something else. "I think they also gave me photographic memory." He instantly brightened up, something he could relate to and help me with.

"Can you describe it to me?"

"Well I've already told you how bad my memory was, like I couldn't remember a single thing. But suddenly I can remember every single thing I've ever learned, every question I've gotten wrong on tests. And my memories are so vivid. I can picture faces perfectly, and remember the exact words that were said. Even little details like what they did with their hands that I didn't even notice when I was there." He looked a little puzzled, but mostly relieved.

"That definitely sounds like photographic memory, except more extreme. Photographic memory is more seeing memories like they're a picture, so anything you've seen you should remember completely clearly. It's like they gave you the ability to remember absolutely everything perfectly, even stuff you haven't seen and just learned and heard."

"So basically..." I paused, "You're saying I'm genius level smart now?" He chuckled and leaned closer to me, resting his head against mine.

"You'll never get a low score again." He pressed his lips and nose against the side of my head, then quickly backed away. "Are we... is that..."

"I didn't want to break up with you." I said after knowing he wasn't going to finish. "I only wanted to keep you and my family safe. So, if you want to, I would love to be boyfriend and girlfriend again." I watched as his smile grew wider and wider, then he leaned his face closer to mine. I looked down at his lips, then back up to his beautiful eyes.

"You know I would love that more than anything." He closed the distance between us and I felt that same warmth as the first time we kissed. Our lips felt perfect together, like they were meant to be with each other. Like we were meant to be with each other.

Everything was right, everything was peaceful and happy and safe as we broke apart for a breath then reconnected. I hadn't even realized I closed my eyes until I opened them to see Keefe's eyes as we pulled apart again.

"I can't believe you're really here." He whispered. "You're really back, alive. Safe now." He breathed deeply, running his hands over my face and neck and hair like he was feeling that I was actually there.

"I love you." I whispered into the small space that remained between our lips. His eyes sparkled.

"I-"

"EW!" A screechy voice cracked in the doorway. "LEAVE ROOM FOR JESUS! MY GOD! THERE ARE CHILDREN!"

I turned to see Dex with his hands covering the triplets' eyes, which failed drastically since there were six eyes and two hands.

"Grow up Dex." I rolled my eyes.

"I don't grow up, I grow up. And when I look at you I throw up."

"You said grow up twice." I stared at him unimpressed as he crossed his arms.

"Nope. I said 'I don't grow up, I grow up.'"

"Yeah exactly. You said it twice."

"No."

"Yeah"

"Nope."

"Yup."

"Nuh uh."

"Yuh huh."

"You're so embarrassing, Dex!" Bex shouted then charged towards me, ripping free from Dex's arms. Rex and Lex followed, all three crawling into my lap and arms. "I missed you." She whispered directly into my ear before clinging onto me like a koala.

"I missed you too. All three of you." I responded and squeezed them all tight. I felt sharp, stabbing pains in my body from my motions and the pressure of their bodies but I ignored it in favor of getting to hold them again.

"Please don't ever die again." Lex begged. I held in my laugh at his impossible request, instead just ruffling his hair.

"I'll try as hard as possible." I said. Dex walked over to sit in the chair next to the bed. I had never felt more at home, with five of the people I loved the most. My family.

"It really was you?" His teal eyes were filled with tears before I even answered.

"Yeah." I whispered.

"I'm so sorry." Fitz cried. "I should've believed you, if I had then you would've been saved sooner, you wouldn't have-"

"Fitz, I forgive you. It's not your fault." I rested my hand above his, where it was resting on the side of my bed. He had come with the rest of my friends to visit me for the first time and I had told them as much as I thought was safe, including me getting a phone and calling some of them.

"You all saw the body and there's no way any of you would've believed me if it was any of you that would've answered. I don't blame you, Fitz." He smiled slightly through the tears.

"Biana might've believed you." I shook my head and leaned over to hug me.

"I would've been disappointed in her if she did. It would've meant she hadn't moved on, hadn't accepted my death yet. I'm glad that you thought it wasn't true, it meant you were in a better place. You weren't clinging to any small bit of hope." He wrapped his arms around me, muffling his cries on my shoulder.

"How're you feeling?" Linh asked tentatively.

"Better than yesterday." I admitted. "Ate solid, not-through-a-tube food for the first time in a while, and most of the bruises and cuts are healing. The new drug addiction and withdrawal is pretty great." They didn't seem to find my joke too funny.

"It's good that you're doing better." Linh finally said after even the crickets got quiet.

"Nothing was the same without you." Were the first words Biana said. She still hadn't looked up from her hands, but speaking was progress. "I didn't know what to do with myself. No one close to me has ever died before."

"C'mere." I held my arms open not expecting how quickly she darted over and snuggled into my arms. "I missed you too."

"Is no one gonna talk about the most important thing here?" Marella asked from where she was sprawled at the foot of the bed.

"We were just talking about her health." Fitz replied.

"No, obviously she's fine, look at her. I was talking about the world famous singer thing." She turned so she was laying on her side, looking at me. "Tell me everything."

I liked the distraction, and needed it from the serious talk. So I told them everything about Dex and I being singers, even seeing them backstage at our concert and how they're the reason we had a concert in Eternalia. I told them about the meaning behind songs we had written, and answered all their questions.

Everything was back to normal. No pitying glances or sympathetic touches. Only pure interest in what I was telling them. I hoped it was that easy for everything to go back to normal for everything in my life, but I knew it wouldn't be. I just embraced the peace with my friends.

5089 words. Guys, i'm too good. I haven't even gotten to 4000, but this one is over 5000. Hope you had fun reading this monster. There's a lot going on, and it took a lot of time, so i really hope you liked it. and they're finally all back together and okay! thanks for reading! and i appreciate all your loving comments, they make my day so much, i don't think anyone can actually understand how much i love reading your comments. with how many i've been starting to get i hardly reply to any, but you can bet that i'm reading almost all of them. since you guys take the time to read this it's only fair that i read your comments. so thanks again!

Avery, out ->

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