Sophie sighed as she struggled to unwrap the bandage around her leg. She was exhausted. It had been a week since the first monster incident, and she and Zack had only gotten about ten hours of sleep combined. Hopefully tonight would be different.

Sophie's hands shook. She didn't have the energy to unwrap the simple cloth around her thigh. Luckily, Zack was used to this and was able to help. He silently removed the guaze from Sophie's leg and winced at the deep, scabbed gash. He looked up at Sophie. "This looks terrible."

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Sophie retorted, rolling her eyes. Zack cleaned it up and began wrapping the wound in a clean bandgae.

"Sometimes I wish life could be easy," he mused, "because, if it were, I could be celebrating my birthday with you instead of running from monsters."

"Oh my gosh, your birthday is today?"

"Yup: I came into this world--I mean, my world--May eighteenth, 1989. I have a little brother three years younger than me. I wish I knew how he was doing." Zack remained silent after that as he finished wrapping Sophie's leg. Sophie looked at the ground. This kid's life sucked.

"There," Zack said when he finished. "All fixed, Marmalade."

"That your new nickname for me?" Sophie laughed. Zack grinned. Sophie smiled back. "Then I get to call you whatever I want, got it?"

"Yes, master." Sophie giggled and shoved Zack playfully.

"You're such an idiot."

Zack crossed his eyes and made a duck face, waving his arms around like an octopus. "DEEEEERRRRRRRP," he said loudly. Sophie laughed and shoved him again. Zack pushed her back.

"Don't push me!"

"Who? Me? Why would I do such a thing?" Zack pushed her again. A jolt of electricity jumped from his hand to her arm.

"Ow!" Sophie complained. "You shocked me!"

"I did not!"

"Ow! Stop that!"

"You stop!"

"I'm not doing anything!" Suddenly a low growl rumbled through the forest. Sophie and Zack looked up as a dark shadow drifted through the trees, absorbing the moonlight like a sponge. Sophie inched closer to Zack. "Please tell me that you don't see that," she whispered.

"See what?" Zack asked innocently. "The giant shadow demon headed straight for us?"

"Yup. Any ideas?"

"How about RUUUUUN!!!!" Zack grabbed Sophie's hand and pulled her off the ground, pushing her forward to get a headstart on the monster. Sophie stumbled over brambles, pain flaring up her leg every time it hit the ground. She could hear Zack running behind her, but didn't dare look back.

The demon panted raspily through the trees as it ran, taking on the form of a huge wolf to increase its chance of catching the two friends. Its eyes glowed radioactive green. Each step it took turned the plants into withered stems, and the trees turned gray and charred.

Sophie sped up. "Zack!" she called. "How dangerous is that thing?!"

Instead of an answer she got and angry cry. Sophie whipped around. Zack had been forced back by the demon. He had something that looked like a light saber in his hands, except it was a sharp blue blade of pure electricity and not light. He stabbed at the demon, but the blade did nothing, and the demon took a swipe at him. Sophie narrowed her eyes. "That giant hellhound isn't going to kill my friend as far as I'm concerned," she muttered. She grabbed a rock and threw it at the monster. She balled her fists. "Hey, Cerberus!!!" It hit the demon in the head and it whipped around to growl at her. Sophie's eyes widened and she held up her hands, backing away. "Heh heh, n-n-nice dog..."

The shadow demon lunged at Sophie, who screamed and shot off through the trees. Zack took off after the two.

Sophie kicked off her sandals, trying to get better traction. Tree branches and thorns tore into her bare thighs and shins below her shorts. Sophie tripped on a rock, cutting up her feet and legs as she tumbled, but ran on regardless.

Suddenly the demon materialized in front of her and knocked her to the ground, digging its claws of pure night into her arms. She cried out in pain.

And then Zack was there, on top of the demon, with a sword of literal darkness piercing the demon's skull. The monster whimpered and melted away into nothingness, Zack falling and landing on his feet. He pressed a button on the hilt and the darkness disappeared, leaving only what looked like a high-tech flashlight. He ran over to Sophie and helped her up. She winced as her gashed feet touched the ground. Zack looked her over. "Is it bad?" Sophie asked, cringing.

Zack hesitated, then forced a shrug. "Could be worse."

"Well, you look pretty terrible yourself." Zack looked down. His legs were cut, his hands were bloody, his arms were bruised. His sleeves were ripped and red gashes shown through the crimson-stained fabric. Multiple bloodstains covered his clothes, and his shoes were falling apart. Zack looked back up at Sophie and cracked an exhausted grin.

"You may not want a mirror, Sophie," he commented. Sophie rolled her eyes.

"I have a pretty good idea of how I look judging from every place that hurts," she grumbled. "Now come on, you idiot, so we can find some place to sleep."

"Yes, Your Marmaladiness Majesty."

"Zack, I will hit you."

----

Zack had set up a small, temporary campsite on a hill. Sophie sat on a rock, staring down into the valley that stretched before her. Zack sat down next to her and handed her a S'more. Sophie took it from him and bit into it blankly, her mind elsewhere.

They were silent for a few moments. Then Sophie breathed a halfhearted chuckle. "Zack," she said, locking eyes with him, "what are we gonna do? The fate of both our worlds is in our hands, and our hands alone. No one can help us."

Zack was silent. He stared down into the moonlit valley, the houses sitting peacefully. His heart hurt. Seeing those homes, knowing that if he and Sophie failed, those innocent lives would be lost.

"And on top of that I can't fall in love with you," Sophie added quickly, drawing in a sharp, pained breath. She furiously wiped away the tears that tried to escape her round green eyes. She gave a shaky laugh and swallowed, sniffling. "That's a lot of pressure. We can't get sentimental toward each other or else we all die."

"Maybe not," Zack said quietly after a moment. He looked into Sophie's eyes. "Maybe we can still rewrite the rule book as well. A little rebellion. Cuz as far as I know..." He smiled. "...I'm hopelessly head-over-heels pathetically in love with you. Maybe we can still save our worlds and...who knows? Maybe we'll stay together."

Sophie couldn't process this. Maybe they could get away with falling in love and still save everybody. She managed a weak smile toward Zack. "Maybe. I know it's too late for the both of us now. We were in love before we even met."

Zack grinned. "Maybe."

"You say that a lot."

"Because there's never a will be or a will not, but a chance there could be or a chance there could not. That's why I say maybe."

Sophie looked at him, cracking a tired smile. "That's a good thing to live by," she praised. "MAYBE I should try doing that."

"Yeah," Zack laughed. "MAYBE."

"MAYBE things will turn out alright in the end."

"MAYBE I'll wake up and this will all be a dream."

"MAYBE we'll be friends if this is all a dream."

"MAYBE someday we'll get tired of saying 'MAYBE...'"

"I doubt it, Zack."

"MAYBE it'll happen."

"Okay, shut up, you idiot."

Zack laughed. "There's your new nickname for me," he grinned. "You're always calling me 'idiot'."

"Because you are one," Sophie shrugged. She stood up. "I'm pretty tired. I'm heading off to your pathetic excuse of a bed, Zack."

"I'll be there in a bit...MAYBE."

"Remember what I said about hitting you earlier?" Zack laughed and stood up, heading back to camp with Sophie.