Lily couldn't believe what she had done, but she knew it was apart of her and it was meant to ensure her survival, so she needed to accept it. She entered Phina's apartment nearing three in the morning, face tear streaked and hands shaking slightly. It was hard for her to get the key in the door and she was trying to be as quiet as possible. She wasn't quiet at all, fumbling about and waking Phina from herself.

“Lily,” Phina called out, “is that you?”

“I'm fine Phina,” she called out in a shaky voice, frowning slightly at how she sounded because of course Phina rounded the corner and walked right up to her.

Flicking the light on Seraphina saw that Lily was obviously not okay. “You don't look or sound okay Lily. Where have been?”

“I'm fine, really. I just ran into,” she started before Seraphina gasped.

“You're bleeding. Your shirt it getting all red,” she said wide eyed not really knowing what to say. “How can you tell me you're fine when you have obviously been in some sort of accident.”

“Phina. I'm fine. I'm going to go have my brother look at it. I need to talk to him anyway. Trust me, he'll patch me up. It's just a scratch,” Lily said quickly making her way around Phina and headed into her room.

Phina followed, “is that blood on the back of your neck. Lily you have blood in your hair. Stop right now, young lady.”

Lily stopped turning around and frowning at Phina, “I have to go. I'm sorry you have to see me like this, but I really need to go now.” She turned back around and went to the closet in the room, pulling out a suitcase and tossing her clothes into without a care as to how they went into the suitcase.

Phina went up to Lily and grabbed the girl's arm, “stop right now. This is insane. You're bleeding and you acting like it's no big deal. You're face is screwed up in pain now and you need to go to the hospital.”

Lily pulled her arm away from Phina and continued grabbing the last of her clothes and shoes from the closet before moving to grab the few things she had in the dresser draws, “I'm not going to the hospital. I'm fine, it's nothing my brother can't handle. He works in the ER so I'll be fine.”

“Lily, you can't just run out in the middle of the night looking like you've been in a car wreck. Try to see reason, at least let me look at you,” she said frantically grabbing Lily's arms again.

“No,” Lily shouted pulling away violently and pushing Phina roughly causing her to hit the dresser edge hard.

Phina gasped loudly as the dresser edge pressed into her side, pain shooting across her abdomen causing her to double over. Lily backed away looking at the woman with wide terrified eyes. “Im so sorry,” she cried tossing what she had in her hand into her suitcase and grabbing it up. She ran, right out the front door leaving it open, straight to the elevator, and out of the building.

She had no intention of going to Xander, but instead to Alex. She'd go in quietly this time, take a hot shower, patch herself up and slip into the bed beside him. She would talk to her family sometime the next day, right now she just wanted the comfort only her best friend could offer her. They had been close all their lives and he was like a brother.

She didn't here Phina struggling to get up, nor did she hear the woman calling after her. She wouldn't, couldn't go back.

She couldn't take Phina's car so she was on her own getting home and it was over an hour before she was able to successfully make it home with drawing any unwanted attention. By that time she was almost totally exhausted, her side ached fiercely and she could feel the blood drying in her hair. It took several minutes before she was able to get the door open and when she went in she left the her things at the door and headed up the stairs with the intent of getting right in the shower.

Xander woke at what sounded like shuffling downstairs in the house. He sat up in the chair he'd been in noticing he'd slouched forward onto Alex's bed. He looked over to the boy to see her was still sleeping after coming home in a bad way. He was very surprised that Alex was actually asleep, but he thought it had something to do with him being in the room.

At a bump noise Xander got up quickly checking to make sure Alex was still asleep before heading out into the hallway. He headed down the hall creeping slowly down the steps, hearing more shuffling as he want along. At the bottom, he saw someone, picking up what appeared to picking up a knocked over plant. He moved closer as quietly as possible intent on grabbing the person but noticed the person seemed familiar.

He squinted in the low light only just able to make out his sisters form, “Lily?”

Lily jumped spinning around. She knew that voice and it wasn't one she expected to hear in her house. She was worried she had woken Alex, but was now very concerned as to why Xander was there.

She backed away slightly from her brother, “why are you here Xander,” she asked even though she really missed her brother and wanted nothing more than to hug him.

Xander frowned, “I deserved that I guess. I'm hear because Alex asked me to stay. I've been here for a few weeks now. I wasn't getting much sleep looking for you and Alex didn't like that. He said I should give you your time.”

Lily frowned feeling bad and slightly selfish, as well as childish. She had caused him quite a bit of pain by running away from England and hiding from her family for just over a month.

“Sorry Xander, I didn't mean to hurt you … I just,” she said only to be cut off by her brother pulling her into a hug, to which she stiffen gasping as pain radiated through her side. Xander released her immediately.

“What's wrong,” he asked very concerned.

“I got into a fight. Nothing out of the ordinary, except things got a little nasty,” she said her hand holding her side.

Xander shook his head, frowning, and pulling his sister toward the kitchen. He pulled her right over to the sink, flicking on the sink light and told her to stay before going into the living room and rummaging through his overnight bag until he found his medical kit. He was too use to this with his sister and countless others in the city. He listened to countless stories from teens about being attacked by monsters. He was one of the ones who didn't make the teens and children feel as though they were crazy or horrible liars knowing what they were saying was very likely true. It was all about listening and trying to discern the liars from those who generally experienced the terrors they spoke off.

Walking back into the kitchen he went over to his sister, he pushed the side of her shirt up, instructing her to tuck it into her bra strap and keep her arm out of the way. He frowned looking at the angry red gash that looked severely aggravated and grabbed a cloth to clean the gash with water and then with antiseptic.

Lily spent those moments gritting her teeth and baring the pain as the tender spot was cleaned. She had wounds before and this one was not one of the most severe. It hurt less than a broken collar bone and far less than Sassolite's arrows. She could see her brother's unhappy expression screwed up in concentration while he worked. He didn't like seeing her like he was currently seeing her, but always patched her up anyway. It made her feel even worse for her selfishness, but at the same time she needed to do what she had done.

“I'm sorry Xander. I really am. I have to ask though,” she said pausing and waiting for her brother to look up at her. When he did she continued, “did you tell our parents about me, about my being well you know.”

Xander's frown deepened, “of course not,” she said feeling extremely indignant. “I would never do that. I promised I would keep your secret and I did. I promised you wouldn't be alone in all this, but I didn't keep that promise.”

It was Lily's turn to frown because it was true. When Lily had fought about going back to England Xander hadn't tried to help her even though he knew the real reason she was so desperate to get back. She was angry with him for that and it was part of the reason why she thought he had spilled to their parents.

He pulled out a needle and some clear thread, “this is going to hurt,” he said before starting to stick up the gash on his sisters side. He was really happy she seemed to heal at a faster rate than most because the stitches could come out much sooner that most peoples would.

“I'm sorry. I knew you wanted to come back and fight with your friends and you feel like you need to be an active part in all that's going on, but I'd had quite enough of seeing my little sister in the state you are currently in. I didn't think you would be so unhappy. I especially did not think you would just disappear. Lily I've never been so scared in my life. What if something happened to you and we never found you?”

Lily could feel herself tearing up. He was right of course, if something happened to her and they never found her it would have been so terrible for her family. Tonight was the first time she had been out as Maia, but look what it had gotten her.

“I'm sorry,” she mumbled going silent as he finished her stitched.

“I forgive you Lily. We were both wrong, but you did what you thought you had too and I'm just glad to have you back. I knew you were fine though, for a little while though. Your friend Zee told me you were okay, but she wouldn't tell me where you were. Apparently she runs around at night with a bat,” he said chuckling lightly. “Alex also told me he helped to get here.”

Lily screwed up her face momentarily, but then smiled at her brother. She loved her friends, they really were the best friends anyone could never possibly as for.

“You were looking for me at night, then,” she stated more than asked. “It wouldn't have done you much good. I haven't been going out. Actually tonight was the first night. I hoped to avoid this.” She motioned to the now stitched up wound her brother was wrapping. “My emotions got the better of me though.”

Xander nodded, not sure if he wanted to tell his sister just yet, the other reason he had been running around that night and pretty much every night. It was too much for one night and Xander thought it was better discussed after a good nights or rather a good days sleep.

“Anything else, I should check,” he said eying the dried blood on the back of his sister's neck with a frown.

Lily nodded, “I think I have a gash on the back of my head, can you check the back of my head and try to get all the dried blood out please.”

Xander nodded turning his sister to the sink and turning the water out. She told her to lean forward and he parted the hair trying to find the gash. He found it, not to deep, but long and have cut away part of her hair and scalp. “This is going to sting,” he said guiding her head under the faucet to rise her hair of the blood, dirt, and debris.

Lily winced not enjoying the stinging feeling, she felt it was pay back for her making him worry, and wished it to be over.

“It's not bleeding anymore and its not to bad. I think you can get away with letting it heal on it own. No one will notice, a benefit of having such curly hair. You didn't hit your head to hard did you,” he asked totally Dr. Jacobs at the moment.

Lily shook her head because the wound hadn't been caused by her hitting her head at all. She yawned feeling her exhaustion more acutely now that she wasn't in as much pain as she had been before. She started to rummage through the cabins looking for an aspirin so she could head upstairs and finally go to bed.

Once she found it, she took it, and headed back to the entryway to grab some pajamas Xander right behind her. “I feel like a giant bruise,” she mumbled more to herself than to anyone in particular.

Xander chuckled slightly to himself, only because now he knew the feeling. He waited for his sister to change in the downstairs bathroom and put away her damaged clothes before helping her up the stairs.

“Your not going to run off again in the morning, are you,” he asked a frown fixed to his face, but Lily shook her head.

“I'm going to talk to mom and dad tomorrow. I'm going to tell them everything and hope my world doesn't fall apart. I do not think they will handle it well.”

Xander nodded, “don't worry. I will be right there with you, the whole time. You're stuck with me too because I'm staying right her in Destiny City with you.”

Lily smiled at her brother happy to know he would forgive her even after all that happened. She was glad the statement of blood being thicker than water rang true with her brother more often then not.

At the top of the steps she headed straight for Alex's room not even caring whether Xander was sending disapproving glance or not. She walked right over to his bed, shaking him lightly, with a frown on her face because his face was screwed up in a frown.

“Alex, wake up. It's a just a dream,” she said getting into the bed and pulling her best friend into her arms. She looked up surprised to feel the other side of the bed dip and more surprised to see Xander sitting at the top of the bed leaning against the headboard.

“Go to sleep. I'm not letting you out of my sight right now. You ran off once,” he said with a sleepy smile before letting out a big yawn. It was obvious that he would be asleep in a few moment no matter what he said.

Lily have a small laugh, hugging Alex, “not going anywhere Xander.”

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