"How did you two meet?" Azura kept her eyes on the road as she asked the question.

They had left early in the morning and were well on their way to Pleyvale. She had been quiet most of the time. The night had been short and she didn't get a lot of sleep. The mattress had been too soft with a dent in the middle, the blankets reeked and every movement in the motel sounded as if it was happening in the room next to the bed. Azura yawned and tried to shake the tired feeling away.

"Childhood friends. We met not long after you and your mother disappeared. Zahair was recovering from his paralysis attack and I found him by himself outside once. I was confused and conflicted, Zahair was lonely and depressed." Killian shot Zahair a loving glance.
"Zahair was only seven and I was twelve but despite the age gap, we became friends and eventually grew into something more than friends when we got older."

"I rmmember you telling mmme you were gay." Zahair took over from Killian without missing a beat.
"Y-you ss-said you L-L-liked guys mmore than girl-s. I did not catchh on s-straight away. I- w-was ss-six teen and had n-not thought abou it. N-not until you kis-sed me a w-week later."

Azura smiled at both men. Their love for each other had sparked so purely and it had not wavered. They were still so clearly in love with each other. Killian continued talking, pulling her wandering mind back.

"That first kiss was a bit awkward," Killian admitted. "I had developed feelings for Zahair but found it difficult to tell if it was just friendship or more. I was twenty-one at the time. Me coming out to him about being gay had not clarified my intentions as I hoped it would. A week later we were drinking and the alcohol was having its way with me, lowering my guard and it resulted in me taking a chance and kissing Zahair shortly." Killian made a happy huffing sound, a wide smile adorning his face.

"It was awkward as Zahair did not kiss me back at first. He just stared at me dumbfounded and I was convinced I had just screwed everything up. The tormenting silence that ensued felt like it would never end. In my head, it felt like hours but it was only a few minutes when Zahair asked me to kiss him again."

Azura chuckled softly as she tried to imagine the scene. It kind of reminded her of her first kiss with Lucas. She initially had not responded to him as well when he had grazed his lips against hers. It wasn't actually that much of a kiss, more a request and exploring kiss. Just like Zahair, she had given him 'permission' a bit later and that's when they actually kissed.

"What about Marric and the community? How did they react to you guys being together?" She asked.

"W-we hid it at fir-first. It wasss eassy s-since people al-ways s-saw us to-get-her as f-friends. T-they did no-t ss-see the diff-erence." The men interlinked hands and Zahair rested his head on Killian's shoulder.

That small move felt like a sword to her chest. The pain in her heart poured out over the loss of Lucas. She missed him, his presence, his jokes, his soothing voice, his attempts at trying to tickle her underneath her feet. It reminded her of the way he would place his forehead against hers. The same she and Nora always used to do. A sign of trust and love. She loved him and she had lost him. 

Azura blinked rapidly, trying to clear the water forming in her eyes. This was not the moment to emotionally break down. Not while she was behind the wheel. She put on a smile, trying to hide the heavily bleeding wound on her soul. Both men had gone quiet. Obviously noticing her shift in emotions.

"What happened when Marric found out?" The three of them had been silent for a while before Azura broke the silence.

"You sure you want to keep talking about this?" Killian carefully asked.

"Yeah. I'm sure. I'd like to get to know the two of you better." She replied and managed a small genuine smile. 

It was true. She really wanted to get to know them better. All and all, she had not spent much time together and when they had it always was under pressure of something else which needed their attention. Killian might have remembered her from when they were just kids, but she had no memory of him at all. The first day in the car they had only spoken about her, the Phoenix and the plans for what to do when they arrived in Pleyvale. This was the first moment they could actually talk about other things.

"Marric had seen it coming from a mile away. He was like a second father to me and knew me better than my actuals parents. He didn't care. Said as long as it would not interfere with my duties I could do what I wanted. It was how Zahair also came working for him but in a much different position than I was. Marric accepted our relationship, but that did not mean he was fond of Zahair." When Killian stopped talking Zahair jumped in and continued straight away.

"Ass-Aside from Killlian, t-the resst of-f the v-vill-lage av-oided me. M-my paralyss-iss isollated me, and I is-isolated mys-self. I mm-managed to learn t-to live a lif-e in sh-shadows, uns-seen. A s-skill wh-which turnned out very usse-full. I obs-serve, w-watch, l-learn, with-thout anyone kn-knowing." He flashed her a crooked smile and she could see the twinkle in his eyes.

Azura realized Zahair probably knew even more than Killian. He was always there, in the back, either in Snow leopard form or human form. He was smart, more than she gave him credit for, and she was glad he was not her enemy. Zahair would never be a leader, but he would the perfect second in command. Marric was a fool for not seeing it. She smiled internally at the idea that Marric was not the all-knowing, strong, untouchable man he appeared to be. If he had one weakness, he was bound to have more and she might just be able to exploit them to find a way to get Lucas back.

"I'm glad you guys are on my side." She replied relieved. 

The plan in her head was coming together, and the more that happened, the more she felt herself calm down. She had a goal, a purpose and she would stop at nothing to get there. The desire burned inside of her; the soothing flame calm and content. As long as she had her emotions under control, the flame was under control. She was still aware that the slightest change could throw her off and let her loose control again but at this moment she felt more in control than she had ever felt since Lucas had killed her. Maybe the Phoenix's tactic of slowly easing its power into her was working after all. Maybe, just maybe she could dance on this delicate balance between madness and nothing. Then again, it was not the first time she had felt confident about finally mastering the connection between her and the Phoenix and it had backfired on her before.

"Likewise, sis. After seeing you in action and from what you've told us, I would hate to be on your bad side again." Killian patted her on the shoulder and she turned to face him, red dancing in between the blue of her eyes. He froze and she could smell the faint hint of fear coming off him for just a moment.

"Red is not always a sign of danger. I'm doing just fine actually. More than fine. I can just switch emotions quick. My mind moves fast and my emotions follow suit. I'm in control, full control." She focused back on the road and slowed down to leave the highway. They would reach their destination in just a few hours now.

"I'm sorry. I just find it hard to read you at times. You used to be so easy for me to read when you were a child but you've grown up to become a beautiful woman and something else than you were before. I don't mean that in a negative way but I can't help comparing you to how you were as a little girl. You're still the same only... stronger and..." He didn't finish what he was saying. Killian just shook his head and groaned. "I'm just saying all the wrong things aren't I?" 

Azura laughed loudly at him. Zahair gave her a knowing look, enough for her to know what he did not say. They would get along just fine for sure when all of this was done. 

"Zahair thinks you are but we're both highly amused by it." Azura snorted.

"Wait, What?!" Killian glanced between Azura and Zahair. "You guys are banding together against me now?!" 

Zahair gave him something that should resemble a smile but stayed silent for the rest. He was clearly done talking. During the ride, Azura had heard the most of him talking ever since meeting him. She knew he was not keen on it due to his speech impairment and yet he had spoken a lot during the drive. It had only added to the respect she held for him.

They made a quick lunch stop on the way and had kept on driving as soon as they were done. It was a relaxed drive, the two of them talking and the third of the trio talking in gestures and looks. Azura was picking up on them rather quickly and even though only two voices could be heard, the third was there keeping up with the conversation. It was nice just having a casual talk for once. 

The last few hours of the trip flew by and the last half an hour was spent in silence. All three of them were feeling the tension that was slowly filling the atmosphere within the car. They had agreed on a plan but to execute it was another thing. The biggest risk was exposing themselves to someone who would not be able to keep their mouth shut. Even though Azura was sure and had convinced the two men that Rose could be trusted, she was not a hundred percent sure that Rose would not slip up. She was their biggest liability. Someone they could not control but was needed for their plan to work.

Azura made the last turn away from the main road leading to pleyvale and after another ten-minute drive, parked the car just a bit outside the city. Here, they would not be able to pick up on their smells. Azura was a known person in the city now, but the two men weren't and since they were blue-eyed, they would not receive a warm welcome. For now, they could not enter the city. Azura grabbed her old cellphone. She had turned it off before she and Lucas went towards Marric's territory and she had not turned it on since. Now she needed it, and she prayed turning the thing on would not alert Lucas in any way possible.

The screen turned white for a second before the brand name and Android flashed across the screen. She just nodded to the guys and got out of the car. The pristine white snow around her calmed her a little but not enough. She was so close to home and yet it had never felt any further away. Azura entered her PIN into the phone and waited for it to complete the start-up process. No sooner than it was done, tons of messages and missed calls filled up her notification bar. She dismissed them all as quickly as possible, not wanting to see or read any of the messages. That was done; in the past.

"Ready?" She asked Killian and Zahair who just nodded in return.

Azura opened her contact list and scrolled to Rose. She took one last deep breath and pressed the call button.