”I’m…so glad you’re back…” Upon closing the gap between them, she stepped forwards and wrapped her arms around him.
At feeling of contact, Azur instantly froze his body. It was a defensive reflex, he knew, but at least it was better than running away in deranged and uncontrolled fear. At least he had his mind about him. Or so he hoped.
The WereGarurumon didn’t dare moving when Pyra pulled away to look at his face, although she didn’t remove her arms from around him. Reluctantly, he looked her in the eye, searching for something in her eyes that he hoped would give him some peace of mind.
“Py…ra…?” he asked, confirming her real existence after a moment of silence.
The Paildramon nodded slowly, staring and trying to decipher his emotions. “It’s…me, Azur,” she said softly, refusing to take her arms from around him.
Azur shuddered at her voice. The feeling of her skin against his fur was both heavenly and terrifying. One part of his body desperately wanted to return the hug, to bury his nose in her scent, to relish and bask in her presence, to love her as he did before his torments. Another part of him, however, wanted to push her away and hide in the forest, frightened at the possibility that he was still deeply entrenched in his nightmare and that this was only a ploy to make him feel even worse. Eventually one part would have to win out.
Slowly and tentatively, the wolf man snaked his arms around her, pulling her close, his hopeful side winning out, if only for a little while. He closed his eyes tightly as he rested his head on her shoulder. “I’m…not…dreaming…?” he muttered, more to himself than to Pyra.
“Luckily, you’re not,” Pyra replied nonetheless with a relieved smile. She strengthened their hug, resting her cheek against his.
With closed eyes, they silently remained in their embrace for a moment, savoring each other’s warm body and scent, the feeling of being held by the one they love. Azur wished that he could just stop time and stay there. After what he’d been through, he would have been happy just to stay like that forever. But eventually, that moment would have to come and go.
“What happened, Azur?” Pyra suddenly asked, opening her eyes.
The wolf man stiffened once more. He opened his mouth, trying to find the words to show her the horror of what he had gone through. “I... It’s…hard to explain,” he muttered before suddenly shuddering as a strong chill climbed up his spine. He could only find one word. “It was…a nightmare.”
The Paildramon in his eyes sighed and pulled him a little closer, rubbing his back affectionately. “It’s over now,” she whispered, trying to calm him down, but at her words, Azur’s hold around her suddenly weakened.
“No…it’s not…” He just couldn’t believe that it was over. He knew that it would haunt him for a very long time, maybe even forever. It was just that terrible.
Pyra pulled away once more, looking at him with confused eyes, trying to figure out what he meant with his words. Before she knew it, Azur’s arms were no longer around her, and his head was bowed down.
“Not…for a long time,” she heard him say with a defeated voice that she never heard him use before. She had never even seen him looking so ashamed at himself before. It was unnerving.
“Azur, I don’t understand,” she said, pulling a hand to caress the side of his face softly.
The WereGarurumon raised his head to look back at her weakly. His eyes looking exhausted. “How long…was I captured?” he suddenly asked, causing Pyra to blink.
“A day,” she replied, her other hand going down to hold his hand, squeezing it lightly. Azur didn’t squeeze or hold it back, but neither did he pull his hand away. To Pyra, that was maybe a good sign. Maybe.
However, at her answer, Azur scoffed, disgusted at himself. “I knew…that it wasn’t long...but…just a day?” he repeated as he grimaced and looked down at the ground between.
‘They broke me…within a day?’ he thought to himself in self-loathing.
Pyra, however, didn’t notice the sudden self-hatred. Instead, she nodded in response to his question. “Yes…I was worried,” she told him, causing Azur to suddenly feel very guilty. “Barachiel told me about what happened. I wasn’t sure if you were alive…or dead,” she whispered. She didn’t know what she would do if he were the latter.
Azur looked away, feeling more guilt run up his body. Even more at the words that he suddenly whispered without thinking. “I would have chosen death…”
For a second, Pyra blinked and wondered if she heard him right. And then she scowled, stepping back and suddenly and swiftly socked him across his face. Not enough to make him fall, but enough to cause the wolf man to stagger back a step.
“Don’t ever say that! And don’t you dare ever do something as reckless and stupid as what you did ever again!” she yelled at him angrily. “You have people that truly care about you!” she added vehemently as Azur turned back to her in shock, a hand on his cheek where she had just struck him. Her words struck him even harder than her punch did.
“How do you think we’d feel if you died?” she added, her voice beginning to lower as she looked at him sadly. “I already know what it feels like to lose somebody close to you…and I know you do, too,” she said, frowning. She knew all too well.
Azur grimaced, his face contorting into immense pain as memories rushed in his head, of her supposedly fake hatred for him. “It…didn’t feel like that,” he muttered as he closed his eyes tightly, trying to drown out the images and voices in his head.
At his sudden vulnerability, Pyra’s anger disappeared, and guilt began to replace it. She stepped forward once more, and although Azur stiffened at the sound of movement, all she did was hold his hand once more and grip it tightly. “What happened, Azur?”
The WereGarurumon opened his eyes slowly, showing the pain inside them. “It was only a day,” he started weakly. “But it felt like weeks.”
Pyra gripped his hand tighter. “Did they interrogate you?” she asked in concern.
Azur’s expression suddenly darkened. Interrogate him? He wished. He could even have handled physical torture. But what he went through…would he think of him the same? Would she think little of his faith in her?
He gritted his teeth, turning to Pyra slightly and looking into her eyes. For some reason, he couldn’t help but ask, “Pyra…do you…hate me?”
The Paildramon stared at him in shock. “How can-“ she stopped, knowing that Azur still was not fully recovered. Instead, she gave a deep breath and answered resolutely, looking into his eyes. “No,” she said, putting her free hand on his shoulder. “No matter what reckless, boneheaded thing you might do, I could never hate you, Azur. That’s something that will never change,” she said with the sincerest voice that she could muster.
The furred Digimon closed his eyes, a bit relieved. “They didn’t interrogate me,” he finally said. “They tormented me,” he whispered, the images and voices in his head coming back.
“Tormented you…? How?” Pyra questioned.
Instead of answered, Azur stepped back, using his free hand to rub his temple. “You…Galic…Fenrir…everyone,” he whispered in a pained voice as the voices of those he mentioned started to get stronger in his head. “…even Dunk…”
Pyra stared, frowning and starting to worry slightly. “What do you mean?”
Azur shook his head, her voice slowly weakening as those in his head started to grow louder and louder. “Y-you…hated me…e-everyone did,” he muttered, wrenching his hand away from his and pressing his hands against his ears in an attempt to silence them.
‘I never should have saved you,’ the sound of Galic’s voice rang in his mind.
“Everyone…d-d-does…s-stop,” Azur began to say in panic as he fell on one knee, wincing hard as his mind began to get assaulted by the visions that somehow still plagued his mind. “P-please…stop,” he gasped.
“A-Azur!” Pyra got down on her knees, putting her hands on his shoulders. “What’s wrong!? Azur!” she called out, trying to draw him back. Her words, however, didn’t reach him.
‘It’s all your fault!’ the image of a bloody and beaten Dunk growled at him, his eyes blank and lifeless.
“I’m…s-sorry,” Azur repeated. “M-my…fault…D-Dunk…s-so…sorry…” he muttered with clenched teeth, his body beginning to shake.
The Paildramon in front of him widened her eyes in panic. “It’s- it’s okay, Azur!” she said, desperately trying to think of a way to bring him back. She wrapped her arms around him tightly, hoping to calm him down.
‘I never loved you, another her, one that was in his mind and looked down at him in contempt, said. His heart began to break.
“P-please…stop…” Azur whispered as he began to get colder.
Pyra’s panic turned frantic as she felt his body heat begin to disappear. “Azur, get a hold of yourself! Whatever you’re thinking about, it’s not real! They were just trying to trick you!” she yelled, her hands on his shoulders and shaking him to no avail. At no response, her irritation came back, and she released him from her hold. “Snap out of it!” she yelled, slapping him once more.
In that instant, Azur recoiled, wincing hard. After a second, he opened his eyes wide, his expression pure disbelief. “W-what…” he muttered, unable to look at the Paildramon.
Pyra looked at him sadly. “You’re okay…”
The WereGarurumon couldn’t bring himself to look at her. “I…I thought,” he whispered as he stared down at the ground. Suddenly, gave out a yell and surprised Pyra in the process. His expression turned into one of extreme despair and anger as he clenched his fists and pounded the ground under him.
“A…Azur,” Pyra whispered, wrapping her arms around the wolf man as soon as her shock disappeared. Azur suddenly felt too weak to do anything but let her.
“I…thought…I was free,” Azur said, more to himself than her, as he pulled his fist back from the ground. As he did so, he noticed at the back of his mind that his blood was dripping to the ground.
“You
are free,” Pyra tried to convince him, rubbing his back. “You just need rest; you’re exhausted,” she told him, pulling him close so that she can rest her chin on his shoulder.
The WereGarurumon in her arms scowled at himself, feeling too ashamed and guilty to return her embrace. “I’m sorry…Pyra,” he apologized after a moment.
“So am I,” the Paildramon replied. “I shouldn’t have punched you,” she said, remembering what she had to do to snap him out.
Azur sighed and pulled away, shaking his head. “It was…necessary,” he reassured her. He hated to think what would have happened were he to spend any more time in that state. He was sure that Michael would have deemed him too traumatized to be part of the team anymore…although in retrospect, he had already been kicked out. Not much he could do there. He didn’t notice when Pyra took his injured hand in hers.
“You’re bleeding,” she observed, frowning.
Azur blinked and nodded, finally noticing the dull pain on his hand. He’s definitely felt worse…though he couldn’t really believe that he wished that it were stronger so that it would distract him from his inner turmoil. “I’m…I’m fine,” he decided as he stood back up and took his hand back.
Although not entirely convinced, Pyra stood as well and gave him a tiny smile. “I’ve been hearing that a lot today.”
Azur’s only reply to that was a nod and a rub of the back of his neck. “…Pyra…I…”
“…Yes?”
“Can…can you tell everyone…that I need some…some time to myself?” he asked, turning to her with a weak gaze.
The dragoness nodded understandingly. “Of course,” she answered, taking his hands in hers. “But promise to let me know if you need me for anything,” she requested.
The WereGarurumon nodded, offering her a tiny smile as she squeezed his hands. And then to his surprise, she leaned close and plants a soft kiss on his lips. After a moment of hesitation, Azur returned the short kiss before pulling away with a wider smile.
“Thank you,” he whispered, sighing. “I…needed that…”
Pyra smiled. “I think we both did.”
Azur nodded, feeling a bit relieved, as he reluctantly let go of her hands.
“I’ll be over by the fire,” she told him, turning to the bonfire. “When you’re feeling better, there’s something I want to tell you,” she then added after a few moments of silence.
“O…kay,” Azur replied, blinking but nodding. He was…slightly frightened at what she might want to tell him, but…he guessed it must not be too terrible since Pyra just kissed him a while ago. He turned back to the woods. “I’ll be…over there,” he told her.
“I’ll try to keep Shoon off your back.” Pyra gave him a slightly mischievous smile before walking back to the others.
Azur watched her back before shaking his head. He turned to the woods, walking slowly as his mind drifted towards his predicament and what he needed to do…he needed to think.
-
Aeria was sitting down in front of the bonfire, staring into the bright, entrancing fire. How long she had sat there, she didn’t really know. She had been lost in her thoughts for way too long, thinking on what Tyr said happened and what went through in her mind when she blacked out after the battle.
It was terrifying and eye-opening.
She had spent so many months being afraid of what was inside her because she was told that…that she had killed someone so close to her.
The WarGreymon looked down at her hands, which were playing with a ring that had a tiny diamond on it. It was quaint, and it was definitely not much when compared to a lot of other such jewelry. But it was special to her. She sighed and looked back into the fire.
Roman. The so-called killer inside her called Tyr…Roman. How…how could it know that?
“It’s…all so…confusing,” she muttered to herself.
“What is?”
Aeria squeaked in surprise, her body flinching in reflex. She accidentally threw the ring into the air, and she stood up abruptly. “Ah!”
She turned to her side, her eyes panicked. “My ri-” she stopped, putting her hands on her mouth.
Scharlach grinned at her. “Aww, not even a minute since we met and ye’r already givin’ me stuff,” the ShadowWereGarurumon said, showing her the gold diamond ring. “But I’m not into these things, so you can have it back if ya want,” he told her, winking as he offered her back the piece of jewelry.
Aeria blushed under her helmet and rubbed her arms nervously. “Th-thank you,” she muttered, walking over and and about to take back her ring.
To her surprise, however, Scar had taken her hand and inserted the ring in one of her fingers. “Ah, that’s better. That’s where somethin’ that pretty is s’posed to be, right?” he told her, grinning at her as she took back her hand, blushing even more.
“I…um,” she muttered to herself. “W-was there anything y-you needed?” she asked, battling her nerves.
“Nah, jus’ wonderin’ why a beautiful lady like yourself was all on her lonesome,” Scar told her, hands on his hips and smiling handsomely. “Thought maybe you wanted some company,” he added.
“N-no. I’m fine,” Aeria replied, stepping back and glancing away. “J-just…thinking.”
“About?” Scar asked as he sat down in front of the bonfire and gesturing for her to do the same.
The female Greymon warrior bit her lower lip. “S-some…stuff,” she answered, sitting down.
“What kind of stuff?”
Aeria didn’t answer, not knowing if she should say anything.
“Well, if you won’t say what’s buggin’ ya, can I talk to ya?” Scar asked, turning to her.
The WarGreymon didn’t give him any indication of a negative answer.
“I’m kinda worried for me cuz,” Scar said, looking into the bonfire. “I mean, just a few hours ago, he jus’ looked at me like I were one of his worst nightmares come tah life. That…hurts, yanno?” he said as he rubbed the back of his neck.
Aeria rubbed her hands, twisting the ring around her finger. She understood that…everyone looking at you as if you were a monster.
“Man, what am I sayin’?” Scar then said. “A beautiful lady sitting beside me and all I can do is mope,” he said, chuckling and turning to her. “Mind if I just sit and bask in the moment?” he asked, winking.
Aeria blushed once more but nodded. Just as long as he wouldn’t…try anything.
-
Cresil gave an exaggerated shrug at the answer given to him by the acolyte. The words that Samael spoke were true enough; both Barachiel and Guinier were already too close to Caradoc for them to believable just act of their own accord. Announcing it would only reaffirm that thought.
“Interesting idea, Samael. What experiences must have you gone through to think up of that,” Cresil thought as he walked back to the shadows.
“I suggest that all of you heed the lightning god’s words,” he announced as he started to sink into a puddle of black, too dark to be a normal shadow. “Mephistopheles…
will not be happy now that his plans have been altered.”
He grinned as his head disappeared into the abyss.
