"Running from the shadow, lost in the night.
Gotta be brave and have no fear."

"What is your problem?" I questioned Nathan as I pushed him away from me.

We reached the ground with a thud and we're now surrounded by forest and trees.

Also... I could have sworn that I just heard Nat whimper. I swear, he's like an overprotective dog today.

Nat looked up from the empty space I had just been in and faced me.

His eyes were going back to the brownish black they were before.

"What are you talking about? Nothing's wrong with me. What's wrong with you?" He snapped back.

I've heard him snap before...
But this time it was like he was trying to hide something.

Whatever it was, I was going to find out.

"What do you mean what's wrong with me? I'm not the one going around and growling at people and messing up our chances of survival! There are freaking fallen angels up there!" I yelled, pointing at the sky we had just fell from.

"Our chances of survival? Since when we're you no longer a part of our survival? Wherever you go, I go. Meaning you were not about to send me and Kenz back home with the slight chance that Jake would be coming after us!" He yelled back.

I hadn't thought about that.

I thought that Nat just used that excuse to stay with me when something fun was happening.

"I... I didn't-"

"No you didn't think about that, did you?" He grabbed me by my green pyjama shirt and continued to yell at my face.

"You may think that you are being selfless, but you don't see things from others point of veiw. You are not the only person who has a mind! We want to protect you just as much as you want to protect us. So stop being difficult!" He slapped me right across my face on his final words.

I looked down. He had a point.

If it was me, I would have rather stayed and helped than be sent home.

He let go of my shirt and put his hands on my cheeks, delicately lifting my head to look at him.

"I'm sorry. I just don't want to leave you here." His gaze was so intense that I couldn't look away. "I would regret it for the rest of my life if I left you here to become somebody else's mate." His eyes flashed gold again as the word 'mate' left his lips.

His hands were so warm...

"Yeah. I get it." I shrugged him off and walked away.

'I really wish you did get it...' He thought.

"Kenz, how are we going t..." my scentece trailed off as I turned to face Kenz who was quietly squealing to herself with her eyes wide.

"Kenz?" I walked closer to her and heard her mutter to herself.

"He said 'sombody else's mate'..."

My face went a deep shade of red, but was soon cooled down by the force that of wind that came from above.

'Not them again...'

"You cannot run from us darling. You shall be mine." Jaely called in a sickly sweet voice.

'Kenz, if there's anything we can use to get rid of these guys, i'd sure like to see you use it.' I thought to her.

'I'll see if there is.' Came her response.

Nat moved forward only to be stopped by my arm across his chest.

'Let me deal with this one please.' I asked.

He relaxed a little and I went forward, Nat folowing close behind as Kenz backed into the forest.

"I see you brought your loyal dog just to meet us." Amber chuckled.

"All of you will listen to me right now. I will not be Jaely's third mate. Nor will I be his first, second or any other number after second. Jaely, you disgust me. To have more than one mate is thoroughly revolting, just like you." I declared.

Jewel and Amber looked shocked, but Jaely just smirked.

Nat noticed, and I could sense the same aura from before beginning to build again.

"You may find me 'thoroughly revolting' now, but after you become my mate you will see me and only me as your love." He chuckled.

"If I only see you for the rest of my life I will surely kill myself. Having to look at your ugly personality is literal visual pollution." I replied.

He chuckled at my outburst.

"You may believe that if you wish." He smiled and as he did so, somehing began to appear beneath him.

A black figure spread itself out on the ground as if it was reaching for me with both of its hands outstretched.

It was dark.

It was malicious.

It was... his shadow.

It reached me and creeper it's way up my body till it grabbed hold of my neck and brought me to face Jaely.

A blue light began to emit from his eyes and reach out for me, but before they reached mine, my body was replaced.

In my place, was Nat.

The blue beam connected with Nat's eyes and he let out a howl of pain as the beam shone down on him.

I his thoughts were so pain filled that I couldn't figure out what was happening.

"Get away from my friends!" Kenz screamed as she ran past me with a stick of fire in her hands.

"Kenz, get back!" I yelled.

She didn't listen. Instead she ran directly at Jaely and then threw the torch at his side, hitting him directly in the side of his stomach.

As soon as the torch came into contact with with him, the shadow seemed to vanish in a puff of black steam.

The blue beam died down and Nat dropped to the ground.

"Run!" She yelled, turning back and running into the forest.

I ran to Nat's side to pick him up before quickly following her.

However, we were followed by Jewel and Amber... and their shadows.

We found a place to hide in a giant cave like hole beneath one of the tall forest trees and took refuge there.

I was out of breath from carrying Nat and lay him down in a part of our cave.

Kenz made a small fire that allowed us to see in the dimly lit mini cave and we all went to sleep.

But I couldn't sleep.

Nat hadn't opened his eyes since he fell to the ground in front of Jaely. I was worried.

'Nat?' I called.

'Yeah...' He replied.

'So you're alive? Yet, you couldnt make that known to me untill now? You just wanted a free ride. You lazy dog.' I replied, teasingly.

'Dogs aren't lazy though...'

'Well being a dog seems to suit you best with all of the growling you've been doing lately. What's that all about?' I asked.

'It's nothing.' He replied shortly.

'Okaay. How did you replace me with you so quickly earlier?' I questioned, changing the topic.

'All I did was pull you.' He still hadn't opened his eyes to look at me.

'Nat.'

'What?'

'Open your eyes.'

...

'Why?'

'Because you haven't opened your eyes since you got dropped earlier. You can open you eyes... right?'

'Yeah...'

'Then do it.'

I moved so that I would be able to see his eyes as soon as he opened them. I wanted to look him in the eye and say that everything was going to be okay.

If not for him, for me.

But all of those dreams were shattered as soon as he opened his eyes.

What was once a blackish Brown...

Was now a bright blue.

((A/N: Pfft. Open your rice... NCT jokes))