A hand gently set on my shoulder as I saw a talk stature in my peripheral vision. Kuza knelt down to my level, speaking softly, "C'mon, let's get you cleaned up." He offered me his hand, which I took. Kuza helped me to stand up, continuing, "They don't have enough rooms for everyone to have their own, but you can have mine. I'll sleep on the couch."

          I sniffled, wiping my eyes, "Mike, it's okay. You don't have to do that."

          "I told you, it is my job to protect Chris, which means it's now my job to protect you, too. Please take my room." He insisted.

          Sighing, I agreed. It wouldn't be appropriate to let him stay in the room with me, considering some of our history. Ghost and I have shared a bed before when we were in tight quarters but that was different. Him and I are a lot more comfortable with each other. I'm starting to get over what Kuza did. He wasn't himself when he did it and I understand that. It's the images in my head that I can't seem to forget. The way he grabbed me, the way his voice threatened me, it's hard to hear the same voice and feel the same hands trying to be sweet to you.

          Kuza is trying his damnedest to earn my trust. After knowing he had a very long affair with my husband, it's hard to act like he's wholesome. When you see the redemption in his eyes, you want to trust him. He's so docile for someone that I know is capable of great violence. Despite how hard it's been to learn to see him as a friend, I am forever grateful for how he's helped Chris and I through this.

          As I walked towards Kuza's room, I jumped to hear a door slam suddenly. Ghost made a little screech of frustration as he held his head. I just kind of stared, not knowing how to take that. I'm assuming that had to do with Ricky. Who else would it be? When he realized we were standing there, he was quick to change his composure.

          "I'm sorry. Someone's just being an asshole again." He scoffed. "How's Chris?"

          "They had to put him into a medically induced coma and put him on a machine that's going to breathe for him. It was getting too tiring for him to do himself." I explained.

          "Fuck, I guess I should go tell Ricky." He sighed.

          I grabbed his arm, getting him to look back at me. "I'll tell him. Go sit down in Mike's room and I'll meet you in there in a few minutes."

          Ghost hesitantly walked towards his room. We've got enough issues right now. I don't want another blow up between those two. Not that I want to take sides or anything, but I do feel sorry for Ghost more. He's the only that just lost a child and had to find out how much his husband has been lying to him. From what I've seen, all Ricky's been doing is attacking the situation with anger. He's not given Ghost one ounce of understanding. It's not always a bad thing to be bullheaded but in this situation it is.

          When I approached the door, I could hear yelling on the other side. He wasn't yelling at Felix exactly, just yelling about Ghost to him. My first knock when unheard, it seemed. I knocked again and thankfully Felix came to the door. Ricky was still rambling on about Ghost. His eyes met mine with anger.

          "What?!" He yelled at me, "Are you here to yell at me again?"

          "No. I just came to give you an update on Chris." I murmured.

          Ricky sighed heavily, setting his hands on top of the dresser. "I'm sorry, Ange. I didn't mean to snap at you. It's just, all of everything going on."

          "It's alright. I understand, you're under a lot of stress." At least your partner is still alive and healthy, prick. Go 'head and keep taking that for granted. I decided it was best I played this at a neutral ground. We can't let this rip us apart. "They sedated him so he's in a coma now, and they've put him on a vent to help him breathe."

          He looked over to me, still pissed. "A vent? That's life support!"

          "Don't you think I know that?!" I snapped at him, "I'm trying to be as nice as I can to you but you're being a real pain in the ass! I know he's your best friend but he's my husband. Get over yourself already."

          "I know he loves you but you couldn't even fathom the shit we've been through together." He seethed, "He's never been this weak before." 

          "His heart is giving out. Of course he's going to be weak. Don't try and act like just because you have more history with him, that gives you the right to be more upset." I replied, turning to leave.

          Everyone reacts to sickness and death in different ways. It's obvious Ricky has taken the anger path but I don't have to put up with his bullshit. He is Chris' best friend and that's why I allowed him to come here. If he keeps this shit up, I'm going to let Ghost push his ass through a portal back to the farm. I don't give a fuck who he is. Maybe if he gets some time to sulk, he'll realize how he's acting. Felix must've had the same thought because he followed me out of the room. That, or he just wanted to get the fuck out of there. Either way, I hope Ricky takes a good look around and realizes he's made himself all alone.

          We returned to Kuza's room, where he and Ghost were having a hushed conversation. I wouldn't be surprised if they heard Ricky through the walls. The two rooms were right beside each other. Ghost stood up off the bed as I walked in, approaching me.

          "The extra clothes I brought for Ange, they're sitting on the chair in our room. Will you please go grab them for me?" He asked his son.

          "Yeah, but right about now I wish I could turn invisible. Dad is pissed at everyone." He grumbled, turning for the door.

          "I'm sorry, Sweetie." Ghost responded as he left. "I'm going to go see what the others might have to help me clean up your wings. Really the most important thing to find is pixie salt, which they should have. Everything else I can find substitutes for."

          "Alright. I'm going to go take a quick shower to wash my hair out and find my skin under all this dirt." I chuckled.

          Ghost and Kuza both excused themselves to give me some privacy. I waited for Felix to come back with my clothes, which he did pretty quickly. I'm sure he wanted out of there as fast as he fucking could. The bathroom was rather small, especially for someone with a wingspan like mine. What can you expect from a structure built by elves? They prefer efficiency over comfort.

          I stripped down my clothes as the shower warmed up. The water here was blue and silver, like the colors of the night sky. It came from the magic in the grounds, making it much more cleansing than the water on Earth. A nice, hot shower was the best way to clear one's mind. I could finally feel like my head wasn't so crowded. All my stress and frustrations got to be washed away for at least a short time.

          As I was getting dressed afterward, there was a knock at the door. "Come in!" I called, knowing it was probably Ghost.

          He opened up, walking in with a few wash rags and a wooden bowl. Setting them on the counter, he told me, "Feeling any Deja Vu?"

          "Hm, that feels like a century ago." I responded, pulling myself up on the counter.

          The last time Ghost had cleaned my wings was the night they rescued me from Roron. Chris and I had yet to fully confess our love for each other and he was trying his best to impress me. It was so cute. Even know, he constantly does what he can to make me happy. Finch was a good man and after I lost him, I never thought I'd find someone like him. Not only did I, but Chris is even better than he ever was. Chris has no other passions or projects to distract him. All he cares about is me and that is something that I am forever grateful for.

          Ghost took off all his rings, setting them on the shelve beside the mirror. He didn't look at them with as much love as he used to. Chris told me they've had worse fights but it's hard to believe that. This one seems pretty fucking bad. After all they've been through, they must find it impossible to leave one another. I would, at least.

          "Bret and Maxine are making some dinner for us. JC already went to sleep. He wants to get as much rest as he can for tomorrow." Ghost said as he began to wash off my feathers.

          "I don't know what we'd do without their help." I replied.

          "You have no idea how much I owe them. They're the only reason half my kids lived as long as they did. Tokyo and London were born too early. From the time they were babies, Maxine monitored their growth with the help of a pediatrician that used to work in their office. London was the stronger of the two and he didn't have too many problems. Tokyo, though, when he hit puberty his hormones bottomed out. It caused his body to almost shut down but Maxine nursed him back to health."

          "She seemed very upset when she learned about his passing. I understand why now. JC said they spent a lot of time at her office but I never knew it reached that extent." I responded.

          "He went to her office more than he needed to." Ghost mused, "Especially after she came out as trans. When she first came out, she did get a lot of acceptance, but there was bound to be some haters. Someone broke into her office, tore it apart, and spray painted these awful words on the wall. Tokyo convinced his older brothers to help fix her office and he brought her flowers. He was always very sweet on her but he'd never admit if anything was going on between them."

          "There was." Maxine's soft voice spoke as she stopped at the bathroom doorway. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude, but Bret wanted me to come tell you dinner would be ready in about ten minutes."

          "It's not a bother at all. Really Max. And thank you. I've still got a ways to go on Angelo's wings. Maybe you'd like to enlighten us on what exactly you and my son had been up to when my back was turned." Ghost's tone was very playful. He wasn't mad or upset about it at all. In fact, I'd bargain to say it made him happy to know Tokyo had someone to love in life. 

          Maxine relaxed against the doorway, getting a gentle smile as she reflected back on the past. "He was always really sweet to me, but after I came out it became a different kind of sweet. He started trying to win me over and it didn't take long for it to work. We were together up until the war started and he ran off. I never saw him again after that and I eventually learned to live with the fact that he was gone."

          "Why did you two hide it from us? He knew Ricky and I would've been ecstatic to welcome you into our family." 

          She hesitated, "The reason why was his reason, so I don't feel comfortable telling you without his permission. Obviously that means I'll probably end up taking that secret to the grave with me."

          "Let's just hope that's not anytime soon." Ghost replied, "I was telling Ricky about how much you and the others have helped our kids." 

          "I didn't do anything compared to the others. Knox was born with a caved in chest and JC did the surgery that reversed it. And Bret did a few prenatal surgeries on you that probably saved your babies lives." 

          "He did for both my girls, but don't ever count yourself any less than them. Tokyo's health problems made him battle depression his whole life but you made him happy. I'd argue that you kept him alive." He said. 

          Maxine shyly looked down, "I'd like to hope that's true. Nothing could've ever kept him alive after he lost his brother."

          Ghost sighed as he began to dry his hands, "I know, but let's not talk about it. I feel like talking about death brings death and that's the last thing we need right now." He emptied out the bowl of solution into the sink, then started the tedious process of putting his rings back on. "All done."

          "That feels so much better. Thank you." I replied.

          "Now let's just get you some food and some sleep. That way you can start fresh tomorrow." He set his hands on my arms in a comforting manner, "It's going to be okay. Chris will be okay. He's a fighter. I have seen him survive things he shouldn't have. He's like a cat; He has more than one life, and I know he has many more left." 

          "I hope you're right." I hopped off of the counter, keeping my head low. It felt natural to look at he floor at this point.

          Everywhere I go, everyone pities me. I'm very thankful for the help they've given me but I can handle myself. I don't want to keep getting those looks. He's not dead yet. Chris has a good chance of pulling through this, despite his age. It has been tough on me to face the reality that I could lose him. He'll fight, goddamn it. He's got to, for me.