"Woah!" Bear began. "Are you okay?"

    Aedona immediately pushed herself out of Bear's arms. She brushed herself off. "Yeah. I'm fine."

      Bear's gaze caught on the blood that trickled between Aedona's fingers. "Is that-" She stopped. "I need to-"

     Donnie cut Bear off. "I'm fine. I swear." She pushed her away further from the Warmonger. She rubbed her head. Her gaze drifted up toward Bear once again. "I know I asked about it before… But…" Donnie swallowed. "Did you only save me because you wanted to marry me? Is that why you saved Pyotr? Because he was my brother?"

    "Nyet!" Once again, Bear grew upset by this topic. "That's not why!"

    "Then what was the real reason, Bear?" Aedona said Bear's name somewhat condescendingly.

      "Do you really want to know?" The Warmonger questioned the younger siren.

      Donnie nodded. "I do."

      Bear took a deep breath, her eyes watering. "I didn't just pick you because I wanted to marry you, Aedona! I didn't just pick Valeryan and Pyotr because you cared about them! By the time of the assault on Osowiec Fortress began, I was already there! I was engaging in hand to hand combat with the Germans… I was trying to protect our soldiers."

     "The grenade…" Aedona began, thinking back to the battle at Osowiec Fortress. "One of the Germans threw a grenade… It almost got me, but someone caught it and threw it back in the nick of time." She wetted her lips. "That was you, wasn't it?"

      Bear nodded, her lip still quivering. "That battle was-" She inhaled heavily. "I-I've never seen something so horrible as I saw there… The way they just dispersed the gas canisters into the fort… The way they just let those people rot alive…"

     "You still haven't answered my question," Aedona pointed out.

     Bear exhaled. "After that battle, I went across the battlefield and tried to tend to the wounds of the soldiers… On both sides…" She swallowed, her hands shaking. "I tried to convert those who lay over… I wanted to end their suffering." Bear sniffled and wiped her eyes. "N-None of them made it… They were too wounded."

    Aedona stood silently for several moments, avoiding Bear's gaze. Finally, she declared, "I need to take a walk." With that, Donnie turned and walked away from the camp.

    ─┉─¡! • !¡─┉─

      Over the course of the next week, Donnie remained at the camp, hoping that Pyotr would awake. She spoke with Valeryan, Dagmar, and Roman, but she tried to limit the amount of interactions she had with Bear.

     Aedona sat close to Dagmar—-every five seconds gazing off in the direction of where Pyotr lay, comatose.

     Valeryan—-who was about eight feet away from Donnie, facing away from her—-just stood staring at the ground, holding a rifle. He looked disappointed.

    "Valeryan," Aedona called out to the boy. "Are you okay?"

    Valeryan continued to pout.

     Roman called out to the young boy, "Are you gonna practice shooting it or not?"

     Valeryan said nothing as he continued to stand still.

    Bear's gaze traveled over to the boy. She inhaled. "Valeryan…" She called.

     Valeryan's head raised just the slightest bit.

    "Did your commanding officer never teach you how to shoot?" Bear asked Valeryan as she approached the boy, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

     Valeryan shook his head. "Nyet."

      "Okay," Bear began. "Firstly, relax. Relax your shoulders… You're not gonna get a hit in if you keep tensing up like that."

      Valeryan relaxed his shoulders, steadying his grip on the sniper rifle.

       "Keep your eye on the target… don't get distracted," Bear said before walking over to a nearby tree. "Now," she started. "Shoot for the tree…" Then she clarified, "Not me."

     "What happens if I do get you?" Valeryan questioned, sounding a little concerned.

     "Well," Bear began, "It'll just rickashay off me… as long as it's a normal bullet and not one that's been coated in the waters of the Mirror Aegean in Xuviphas…"

     Valeryan closed his eyes for a moment before inhaling deeply. He opened his eyes again, gazing through the scope. Then he squeezed the trigger.

     The bullet soared through the air, hitting the tree.

      "Way to go!" Bear began running up to Valeryan again. She had her hand out as if she was waiting for a high-five from the boy.

     Valeryan ignored her hand and hugged Bear instead. "Spasibo."

     Bear, who had been shocked by the hug, blinked a couple of times before hugging the boy back. "Pozhaluysta, Valeryan."

      Aedona, who had been watching the whole thing go down, was in awe. So, she's not completely heartless, Donnie began to think about Bear. Honestly, Bear's not that bad… She seems like a genuinely nice person. Donnie swallowed, feeling guilt weigh down upon her.

     Valeryan ran over to Aedona, the biggest grin upon his face. "Did you see that? Did you see that?" He bounced a little before sliding into a spot right next to where Aedona sat. "Mamochk-" Valeryan stopped, abruptly.

      This caught Donnie's attention.

      "Nyet… I'm sorry," Valeryan hung his head embarrassed.

       Donnie placed a hand, reassuringly, on the boy's back. "No, it's okay. I don't mind."

      Valeryan took his hands away from his face and looked in Aedona's direction again. "Are you sure?"

     "Mhm." Aedona nodded. "Besides, it would be an honor to be your mother, Valeryan."

       "... So-" Valeryan stopped. "What does this mean?"

       Am I seriously deciding whether or not I'm going to adopt this orphan?, Donnie thought to herself. Yes. I am. Aedona smiled softly to Valeryan before wrapping and arm around him. "It means that you have a family now…"

      Valeryan's eyes grew wide. "Am I Valeryan Stavayev now then?"

      Aedona nodded. "Yes." Then she clarified, "Only if you want to be, of course… I'm not going to force you into my family if you don't want it."

     Valeryan lurched forward, catching Aedona off-guard with a tight embrace. "I do. I want to be part of it."

     Aedona hugged him back, smiling down upon him. "Then may I formally welcome you to the Stavayev family, Valeryan…"

    After a few moments past, Dagmar came over, poking Valeryan's arm. "Tag!" She shouted before running off.

     Valeryan looked off in the direction that Dagmar had gone before looking back to Aedona, unsure of what he should do.

     Aedona flapped a hand in Dagmar's direction. "Well, go," she told Valeryan. "You don't want her getting away… You gotta tag her back. That's how the game works."

     Valeryan grinned before launching himself out of the seat and running after Dagmar, who was currently giggling.

     Aedona's gaze trickled down to her wound. She sighed before getting up. She drug her feet in Bear's direction. "Bear?" She called out, softly.

     Bear turned around to face Aedona. "Hmm?"

     Aedona nervously kicked dirt around with her boot. "You were right. I'm hurt…"

     "I can treat it…" Bear began before adding, "If you're willing, that is."

      "Can you?" Aedona asked, confused.

      "I may not be a nurse like you are," Bear started to explain to the younger siren. "But, I have dabbled a bit in health sciences."

      Aedona hesitated before nearing Bear and showing Bear her abdominal wound.

     Bear's eyes grew wide upon seeing it. "I must've missed one of your wounds when I was treating you." Bear began to pace around in a circle. "Dammit! How could I have missed that!" Bear forced herself into a rhythm of punching herself in the temple, repeatedly. "I'm stupid! I'm stupid! I'm so stupid!"

     Aedona lurched forward, grabbing one of Bear's arms to keep her from punching herself anymore. "You're not stupid, Bear… You just didn't look everywhere that you could to find wounds simply because you respect my privacy."

    Bear sniffled, still looking a little disappointed in herself. "I-I can treat your wound now." She tilted her head off to a place a little ways from camp. "Come on."

    Donnie followed Bear all the way to the spot and then laid down when she was told to.

     Bear examined the wound, pressing her fingers near it.

     Donnie felt pain wash through her before she inched herself away, getting up. "On second thought… Maybe this isn't such a good idea."

     "Aedona…" Bear began. "You know I can't help you if you won't let me."

      Donnie sighed before laying down once again.

      Bear continued to look at the wound. "Yeah… There's some shrapnel in there."

      Aedona's eyes widened. "What?"

      "I have to get this out fast… Otherwise, it has potential to do way more damage than it's already done," Bear told Donnie. "I'm going to need to put you under to do this, okay?"

     Donnie breathed heavily. "O-Okay…"

     Bear began to sing softly to the other girl—-shortly after, Aedona found herself drifting off to sleep.