"You're all healed, Onyx. Just try to take it easy, okay? I can heal the physical trauma from where you hit your head, but you may still feel the aftermath of the concussion," Ronin says from beside the cot I'm sitting on.

Finn, who was observing from across the small infirmary room in silence, leaves the room, motioning for Ronin to follow him into the hallway. I can't make out all of the conversation, only a few words there and there such as: Concussion, memory loss, hallucinations, and one that feels like a knife in my chest- Greyson.

Whatever Ronin told Finn, he wasn't pleased by it. He looked agitated as he threw the door back open, but his eyes softened as he looked at me. "How's your head?" He asks, sitting in the chair next to me.

"Fine," I shrug. "I feel dumb. I just tripped, it's not a big deal."

Finn hesitates. "Are... Are you seeing things you shouldn't be?"

Flinching, I recall how I had thought that Finn was Greyson. "I'm so sorry about that. I-I'm not sure what got into me," I begin to apologize, but Finn cuts me off.

"Hey, don't worry about it," Finn clasps my hand reassuringly. "You have nothing to apologize for."

Except for being the reason Greyson is dead, I think to myself bitterly.

"Ronin... He thinks you should talk to someone," Finn says, and I can tell that he's trying to keep his tone light. "About what you're going through. He said your... condition will get worse if you keep ignoring it."

My eyebrows pull together. "What, like a shrink?"

Finn chuckles slightly. "Not exactly. We're a little short on people with psychology degrees, reason being that we're rogues in the middle of nowhere. But I think you could benefit from talking to Kallista and Astrid about... it."

"Why them?" I ask in confusion. Out of all of their little band of rogues, Astrid seemed like the least likely person to be helpful in talking through what happened to me. Not that she seemed mean, just distant and aloof.

Not unlike Thane.

"Kallista has a certain... Gift that helps her decipher emotions," He says, leaning forward, his eyebrows furrowed. "Astrid... She went through something traumatic as well when she was much, much younger. I think that they could really help you open up."

"No," I say quickly. "I mean, no thank you. I don't want to do that, not at all."

Finn sighs, and looks at me sadly. "You can't keep this inside you, Onyx. Just give them a chance, okay? If you hate it, I'll never make you talk to them again and I'll let it go."

I'm tempted to say no, but something on his face makes me reconsider. "Okay," I agree slowly. "But you promise you won't bring it up again if I do it?"

Finn exhales in relief. "Yes, Onyx, I promise. I think this will be good for you." He squeezes my hand reassuringly and smiles, and I feel my cheeks warm as butterflies fill my stomach.

What the heck? Butterflies? I rip my hand away in surprise. Finn may be attractive- it was the first thing I noticed when he kidnapped me- but I certainly did not have feelings for him, regardless of how nice he may or may not be.

"Um..." I say eloquently, trying to clear my head. "So when do I have to talk to them?"

"You can go clean up and change first," Finn says with an easygoing smile. "Then meet them in the library? Do you remember where that is?"

I nod. I had been there a few times to pick out more reading material. I still hadn't been able to bring myself to read A Tale of Two Cities yet. For some reason, I felt too scared to open it, read all of his annotations.

"Here," Finn stretches out his hand, an offering. "Let me walk you back to your room?"

I hesitate before taking his hand. It's just a hand, Onyx. Just take the stupid hand, I tell myself as I take the hand, ignoring the electricity I feel from our touch.

Once we get to the room, I pause at the door. "Is something wrong, Onyx?" Finn asks me in concern.

"Um, I don't want to stay in this room anymore," I say quietly. It reminds me too much of the night I came here, and therefore, too much of Greyson.

At Finn's sad look, I quickly add on to my original statement. "It's not that I don't like the room. Really, I think you did a great job decorating it and I don't even necessarily hate the color you chose, it's just that I-"

To my relief, Finn cuts off my incessant rambling. I could have gone on forever if he didn't. "Hey," He says softly, and I flinch as he cups my cheek with his hand. I hate that I don't hate the way it feels. "I told you that you don't ever have to justify yourself to me. I'll move all of your stuff to a different room; it's no problem at all, really."

I smile ruefully. He's sweet- much too sweet, and for some reason, it freaks me out. "Just wait out here, okay? I'll get you some fresh clothes and I'll take you to a different bathroom," Finn smiles at me before going into the cursed room.

He returns a few moments later, clothes clutched in his arms. "Can... Can I have one of your hoodies?" I ask shyly.

His eyes widen, and I quickly go back on my request. "Err, never mind. It's actually a little too warm outside for that. I mean seriously, is anyone focusing on global warming these days? For one, I'm concerned about the polar bears. Did you know that-"

Finn's hand covers my mouth, and I gulp. "Onyx- it's fine," He laughs, and his green eyes are glowing in happiness. "I have more in my room. I was going to take you there anyways to wash up."

I nod, my eyes as big as the moon as he removes his hand. To my surprise, the journey to his room was a short one- he's staying right next to me. In hindsight, it shouldn't be that surprising, given his clinginess.

My mouth drops as he opens the door and we step inside. Intricate trees are painted along the walls, so detailed I can see every swirl on the bark, every vein on the green leaves. The ceiling is what truly blows me away. It's black, but bright stars are painted all over, and it looks exactly like the night sky I've been staring at the last few nights.

"Did you paint this yourself?" I ask in surprise, running my hand along the wall. It looks so... Lifelike.

Finn nods, a small smile gracing his face. "I did. It took weeks but... I like the way it turned out."

My throat suddenly feels dry. "Why?" I whisper. "Why did you paint it like this?"

His eyes soften as he looks at the painted walls. "Do you really have to ask, Onyx?" He asks quietly.

I freeze. "I don't know what you mean."

"You're my other half. You know why I painted it like this."

"I have to shower," I blurt out, and run into the bathroom, locking it behind me, though I doubt he would have followed me. Something about Finn gets under my skin. It's unnatural- the way he seems to know me.

I shower quickly, using his shampoo and body wash, and I'm overwhelmed by the smell of him. It's nearly intoxicating. I dry off using a clean towel from the cabinet, and get dressed, pulling on clothes Finn picked out.

When I leave the bathroom, I'm surprised to see that Finn is laying down on his bed. I thought he would have left. He sits up, holding out a navy blue sweatshirt. Hesitantly, I walk towards the bed, and take it out of his hands.

Finn stares at me intensely. "What?" I say defensively as I pull on the hoodie, letting it fall to right above my knees.

"You smell like me," He remarks quietly, his face unreadable.

"Oh," I realize now. "Sorry. It's just that-"

Finn abruptly stands up, and both of his hands move to the side of my face. I feel frozen, trapped in his gaze. I take a shallow breath. Is he going to kiss me? Even worse: Did I want him to?

"Onyx, I know you aren't ready for this- for me- but when you are," He pulls me in for a hug, and I'm so surprised, I don't pull away. "I'll be here. I'll always be here."

He pulls back after a minute, and I don't know what to say, so I decide to keep my mouth closed before I start babbling incessantly. "Are you ready to meet up with Kallista and Astrid?" He asks, and I'm glad he didn't say anything else related to his emotions.

I nod, and we leave his room, heading for the library. I'm thankful that he's taking me, because I realize now that I would have had a difficult time finding it.

"Why did you design the house like this?" I ask curiously. "The hallways are so confusing."

"That's precisely why I designed the house like this," Finn explains. "It would make it hard for an intruder to find whatever- or whoever- they're looking for. Not to mention, it would take them awhile for them to find an exit."

"Spoken like a true kidnapper," I tease, earning a boisterous laugh from him.

"Fair enough," He admits, and a lovely blush spreads across his cheeks. We reach the door of the library. "I'll be in the movie room, if you want to see me after you talk with Kallista and Astrid."

I nod, opening the door. The two women are sitting on the floor, laughing about something when I walk in, and stop when they see me.

"Hey, Nyx!" Kallista greets me with a smile.

"Hi," I say quietly and sit on the floor across from them. "So Finn roped you guys into being therapists for the day?"

"For the time being, you must address me as Dr. Phil," Kallista laughs, flipping her short blonde hair.

Astrid rolls her dark eyes. "He's not even a real doctor."

"Neither am I!" Kallista scoffs, elbowing her. "Okay, Onyx, let's get started. How are you feeling right now?"

I blink. Astrid stares at me, her eyes burning through me. She's the most intense person I've ever met. "Um, fine."

"You're confused," Kallista murmurs, her head cocked to the side as she examines me. "Let's start there. What are you confused about?"

"What's your Gift?" I ask, answering her question with a question.

"I can tell how people are feeling. Read their emotions," Kallista explains, and pauses. "But even now that I answered your question, you're still confused. What are you confused about, Onyx?"

Stammering, I say, "U-um, I don't know."

Astrid's eyes are still focused on me like a hawk. "It's Finn, isn't it? You're confused about your feelings for Finn," She says, her voice smooth.

"No!" I quickly deny it. "I already know that I don't have any feelings for him."

Kallista grabs my hand. "Physical contact will help me better read you," She mutters, and closes her eyes momentarily before opening them. "Tell me about your friend, Greyson."

My heart drops, and I yank my hand away. "I can't talk about that," I hiss.

"You need to," Astrid says bluntly, and I can see her fists tightening. "It's the only way to work through trauma."

If she didn't scare me so much, I may have asked her what exactly happened to her. "Close your eyes," Kallista instructs gently, and I hesitate, but ultimately close them. Her warm hand grabs my much cooler one once again. "Tell me something about Grey, Onyx. How did you meet?"

The memory of Greyson coming into my home comes back with a vengeance.

What are the odds that the first cabin in the forest I break into belongs to the prettiest rogue I've ever seen?

"H-He broke into my cabin," I stammer out. "I told him to leave and not come back, but he showed up the next day and never left."

"How did you feel about him, Onyx?" Kallista asks, and her voice is calm, soothing. It sounds like she's a million miles away.

"I loved him," I choked out, and I can feel tears streaming down my face. "He was my best friend- my only friend. His face was the only one I saw for years."

"Why don't you tell me about the night you came here, Onyx?" Kallista asks, and her thumb strokes my hand softly.

My ribs were shattered. I was so focused on Greyson, I couldn't even hear the bones crack. I was paralyzed from his magic, but I could still feel the way my bone splinters dug into my heart.

"Please," I begged him, but I could tell, even from that moment, that there was no chance for Grey. I had never seen eyes that cold, that emotionless. "Don't do this, Thane. I'll let you Mark me, anything you want. Just don't do this."

It was desperate, I knew it. But I would have done anything to save Grey, given Thane whatever he wanted. Part of me still hoped that Thane wouldn't do it. We're mates, he can't just kill my best friend in front of me so heartlessly. Mates don't do that.

I hadn't spoken out loud, too terrorized by the flashback, but Kallista coaxed me gently, "It's okay, Onyx. Astrid and I are here, you're safe. You are not in Blue Moon, you're safe, deep in the woods, far away from that place."

Breathing in deeply, I try to get the words out through sobs. "I-I begged him not to. I told him I would let him Mark me. You have to know that I would have done anything!" I cry out, beg them to understand that I never wanted any of this.

"I know you would have, Onyx," Astrid says, and I'm momentarily caught off guard by the softness of her voice. "Can you tell us what happened next? Remember, nobody can hurt you here. It's safe to tell us."

Thane didn't hesitate to shove his hand into Greyson's chest. It's almost like my pleading made him angrier, as if it was what put him over the edge. Greyson inhaled sharply, and I realized in agony that it was the last breath he would ever take.

There were no emotions on Thane's face as he sharply twisted his hand, and pulled out a bloody heart. I was screaming. It was so loud, it felt like my throat ruptured.

"Greyson!" I scream, and suddenly it feels like I can't breathe. There's too much magic- Thane's magic- and it's suffocating me. I start hyperventilating, but my ribs are broken and my lungs are punctured.

"Shit," I hear Astrid say, but I'm still paralyzed, and I can't move, can't breathe.

"You know why you can't control your magic?" Thane sneers, and his hand is bloody. Greyson crumples to the ground. His eyes are frozen in his last emotion: Fear. He knew what was coming, and I couldn't stop it.

"You fight the Darkness instead of using it."

I'm clutching at my throat, gasping for air. My eyes are open- but all I see is darkness.

I think I'm still calling out for Greyson when I pass out.