I spent a considerable amount of time in shocking pain. Apparently, healing from an injury caused by my own magic was different than healing from any other wound. It was slow and excruciating, as if the edge of my magic had been laced with a poison I found I wasn't immune to.

Despite all this, I was relieved. I was relieved that the attack had landed on me and not on those who surrounded me.

Only a day had passed since the incident. After the initial inquiry of those within the mansion who had heard my screams, Levi had resumed responsibility for my wellbeing with due diligence. There wasn't much he could do beyond cleaning my wounds and preventing further blood loss. After a few hours, the pain was tolerable and I had reached a point of feverish exhaustion. I spent the rest of the night quiet between whimpers as my body began to heal on its own.

The following night, Levi was pacing in front of the bed, his shoulders tense with anxiety. He continuously threw glances between my form, still weak and injured on his sheets, and that of a folder on a nearby table. A frustrated growl erupted from his throat before he ran his fingers through his hair with irritation.

After finally coming to a decision, Levi strode over to me, leaning forward carefully. For a moment, he watched me quietly and then he reached to brush a lock of wet hair from my feverish skin affectionately.

"Are you there, Katia?" He called to me sweetly, his touch lightly running over my cheek. His words were warped and faded in my mind. I couldn't find the strength to open my eyes and respond to him.

Levi shifted closer, leaning over me before sliding his arms under my body cautiously. A flame of pain pulsed through me as he lifted me from the bed, causing a whimper to escape me, but the pain faded once I was settled in his arms.

I was unaware of what he meant to do with me. With graceful ease, he carried me through the hall quietly, his eyes watching me as I leaned into his chest as comfortably as I could behind the dull throb of pain across my chest. When he stopped in front of a specific door, he seemed to hesitate with uncertainty. Frustration wrote across his features and he spent another minute fighting with himself.

Before he could move further, the door opened roughly.

"Oliver," Levi composed himself quickly, straightening his shoulders and clearing his face of emotion. "I need your help." The words were obviously not familiar on Levi's tongue. Oliver stood in the doorway with a startled expression, but when his gaze fell on my presence in Levi's arms, his face darkened significantly.

"You can't bring her here," Oliver told Levi, breathing in only partially before sharply stiffening. He shook his head, stepping back as if meaning to shut the door on Levi and consequently me. "Nope. Sorry."

"Oliver," Levi called out in a hushed voice, stepping forward quickly. Oliver stepped back just as quickly, leaving an opening for Levi to block the door. "I need you to take care of her." Oliver glared at him.

"Are you insane? I can't stand to be in the same room as her overnight when she doesn't have an open wound. You take care of her," Oliver replied, his voice strained.

"I can't," Levi hissed with frustration, "You think I'd ask you if I could? Seb wants me to go on an assignment with Miles. I'll be gone a week. I can't leave her alone and I can't take her with me."

"What about Theo? He-"

"Theo can't. He can't feed her touch and I think she needs that more now than ever," Levi interrupted quickly. "Seb will be too busy. It's either you or Jax. I'd prefer it to be you." Oliver narrowed his eyes, but he thought over the situation carefully.

"Why me?" He finally asked.

"Because you love her," Levi stated, the words making him hesitate, "You love her like I do." Oliver was a picture of complete shock. He stared at Levi for a moment before composing himself determinedly.

"So you're playing a game, Levi?" Oliver growled dangerously.

"I'm not. It's been... so long since I've felt anything beyond the dark curse. I don't know when I stopped mimicking." Levi hesitated again, looking down at me in his arms. And then he looked at Oliver intensely. "I know it's the same for you. You haven't been fooling around senselessly with girls. And you didn't touch her. There's nothing to gain from holding back, unless you've felt what I've felt. Unless you've felt anything at all."

Oliver's hands tightened into fists stubbornly.

"Fine. I'll take care of her," He finally submitted before moving aside. Levi walked into his room and rested me on Oliver's bed carefully. He didn't move away initially. Instead, he brushed his fingertips over my face affectionately and leaned his forehead against mine.

"I expect you to be fully recovered by the time I'm back, darling," Levi muttered to me, reluctant to leave me. For a moment, his words stirred me. I opened my eyes slowly, but my vision couldn't focus on him completely. He lifted his head, placing a soft kiss on my forehead before moving away.

Before Levi could leave the room, Oliver stopped him.

"What do you think it means; to be able to feel again?" He asked curiously.

"It means Theo is right," Levi answered simply, turning away, "We don't deserve her."

~...~

I awoke alone and confused. For a moment, my mind reeled as my eyes struggled to take in my surroundings. And then I began to recognize where I was. I blinked as though dazed, my mouth dry and my skin hot. The wound across my shoulder and chest ached loudly, reminding me of its presence. I struggled to sit up and winced in pain.

"Don't push yourself," Oliver appeared beside the bed, reaching out to help me lean against pillows into near-sitting position. He moved to give me a glass of water, which I gratefully accepted. After a few gulps, I gasped with exhaustion and leaned my head away before looking back at him.

Oliver looked terrible. His clothes were tugged at and barely put together. His hair was a mess of red curls and as wild as his raven eyes. He was a statue of intense lack of comfort. It was very unlike the carefree Oliver I was used to. Despite my pain, I cleared my expression of negativity to give him a gentle and hopefully reassuring smile. It did enough to soften some of the intensity in his frame.

"Oliver," I said, the name enough to warm the despair that had weighted my spirit. I rolled my eyes over my surroundings again, searching briefly. "Where's Levi and Theo?"

"Levi was sent on an assignment," Oliver told me carefully, "He'll be gone for a bit; a week or less. Theo is probably in a corner in his room somewhere, writing horrible poetry or something." I closed my eyes for a moment, remembering the fight scene between Theo and Levi. It left a pain in my gut unrelated to my flesh wound.

"They were... fighting," I told Oliver, my voice wavering with emotion, "I don't want them to fight. I don't want any of you to fight." He suddenly reached for my hand, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Don't worry, Katia," Oliver told me, his voice gentle. I blinked tears from my eyes as I looked at him. "Sometimes we bug each other and argue. Sometimes we fight. It's what brothers do; especially when it comes to pretty girls. But we wouldn't truly hurt each other." He smiled at me reassuringly, but his words only reminded me of the conversation Theo had with me just before the fight.

"Theo told me one of your... brothers... he said one of you was killed," I admitted quietly, knowing the subject was probably taboo. Oliver didn't tense or otherwise shutdown. He only watched me for a moment before smiling sheepishly, looking away and messing up his hair further with his free hand.

"You got me there," Oliver replied teasingly. He then faced me again. "What I mean to say is we don't usually hurt each other. Shiloh was an exception." Oliver hesitated almost immediately after speaking. My mind was slow to catch up, but when I heard his words, I frowned.

"Shiloh," I said quietly, "Was he the one who went wild?" Oliver's expression darkened.

"He was the one killed," He answered honestly, "I think you might have liked him. He was the kid of the group. He was probably fifteen to seventeen when he turned. His family was attacked by vampires and when he tried to shoot one, he missed and hit his brother. The curse has always been brutally black and white, though.

"I suppose his last human thought was to be with his brother. That was how he sought his humanity as a vampire. He was always around, trying to get us all together. He mimicked as if we were a true family. In the end, he was at the wrong place at the wrong time. If he had just done what we all were doing, just ignored us and done his own thing, he might be alive still."

Oliver looked pained suddenly, which twisted my heart in my chest. If I had the strength, I would have embraced him then just to try to hug his pain away. But before I could attempt it, a sudden expression of realization appeared over his features. He looked downed at his hand curiously and a small smile slid over his lips.

"This is interesting," Oliver stated carefully, "I've never really felt anything when thinking about Shiloh before. Usually it's just a list of information; nothing but empty facts. Things like the fact that we needed to be together to not go wild. If we go wild, we can't even mimic humanity and therefore we can't hope to get it back. Shiloh was killed and the man who killed him could have killed us if we didn't exile him. I never felt angry about it until I met you. And I never missed him until now."

I didn't know what to say. It was as though he were happy about this discovery; that much like how he could taste food again, he could feel something as well. It was a fact I had already taken for granted, refusing to believe the men in my life were truly heartless. But something in his tone also held a quiet sadness; almost hopelessness.

"Are you okay?" I asked him with concern, causing him to laugh with amusement.

"You're the one injured, silly devil," Oliver told me easily, "I was just thinking Levi and Theo might be right about what we do and don't deserve. You weren't supposed to be with us and we stole you away anyway. I guess that makes us villains, hmm?"

I widened my eyes with surprise.

"I can't imagine being anywhere else," I answered honestly, the idea that I was meant to go elsewhere not even registering in my mind. The exhaustion was starting to pull at me again, making my body heavy, but I still managed my next words. "Stop pretending you stole me. If anything, I stole you."

My eyes couldn't stay open any longer and my words mumbled on without my mind.

"All of you..."

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Music: Beautiful Pain by Eminem feat Sia

I added a new cover, so don't panic. :P