On the Outside (Closed)

[Azura]

She felt herself starting to fade faster and faster, her heart rate accelerating. Somewhere, in the back of her mind, she knew that it was because of him, because Legion was drawing closer, desperately trying to get to her. Yet in the moment, with her mind focused only on the feelings she had received from him as he stood alone in the room with his wife....with that blood coating her neck from the wound that no doubt she had given him, she just wanted to die.

She had no real purpose in life. Not without him. Not anymore.

She had thought she was prepared for this. That she knew what she was walking into tonight when she brought him here. However, she had not been planning on it hurting this much, on it destroying her this fully. She supposed a part of her had assumed, that after being with her, after making love...to her...that perhaps, just maybe, he would not have wanted another. But it had been there, that fleeting moment of pleasure that he gained from being in another's arms, from having her in his.

All she could think, was that for the rest of eternity, he would never again have her in his mind and only her. That girl would always be there, and for Azura, that just wasn't enough. She couldn't always share his thoughts, she couldn't always be "the other woman"...She just couldn't.

Closing her eyes, she would try her best to just let go. To let herself slip from existence, and fade into that light that she craved so desperately. Though no sooner had she done this than she felt it, that warm, tingly sensation that meant she was healing. Her eyes fluttering open as they drifted down to her wrist, forcing herself to sit up. "LEGION! NO!"

She knew it was him, she knew that he was fighting to keep her from dying, though at the moment, her understanding of why was severely limited. Tears streaking down her increasingly pale cheeks, she would whimper and force herself up and onto her knees, struggling to catch her breath, to contain her heartbeat. Falling to the side, she would catch herself with one hand, barely able to maintain a position upon her knees, and feeling herself growing steadily closer to passing out. Yet that was not what she wanted...she didn't want to sleep only to wake to the realization that he was no longer her's. That she could never, and would never be what he truly wanted. She didn't think she could bare it. She had allowed herself to harbor hope, and hope was by far the cruelest of all demons.

Little fingers curling about the handle of the knife, she would grip it as tightly as she could manage, still able to gather more strength than him due to her heightened abilities. Eyes glinting over the blood stained blade, watching as it continued to slowly drip from the tip of it. "I am sorry..." Whispering the words so that only she and the darkness around her was privy to what she said, though her emotions in that moment spoke her words for her, knowing he would understand, that he would see what she truly meant...That she was sorry for everything she had done to him, and for all the things she could never do.

One fluid motion bringing the knife upward and then a final breath before she slammed it as hard as she could into her abdomen, just below her diaphragm. A sharp, gurgled cry as the pain shot through her and blood bubbled up within her throat...spilling forth from her mouth and dripping down from the corner of her lips.

As her hands fell away from the handle, the knife staying buried within her....she felt the warmth of her blood as it began to soak through her leather outfit, some of it spilling down her flesh beneath her clothes, some of it spilling outward and down her stomach.....Only then would she collapse backward, falling back into the tree as she felt that life force draining from within her....She did not move to remove the blade, even though she knew she would bleed out faster if she did.

No, with the knife embedded into her, there was no way he could heal it, no way he could make her suffer any longer. She could finally escape, finally die and hopefully....if the knife remained in place, and her soul was shattered, she would be able to stay dead.

Feeling her body begin to grow cold, numbness starting to set in....she would allow her head to fall to the side as her red locks spilled into her face....eyes fluttering closed. Her breathing began to grow shallow and weak....the trembling beginning to cease. Death....for the first time in so very long, it was the most welcome sensation possible, and as her body began to fade, so did her mind...emotions and thoughts starting to flicker out...her connection to him starting to waiver and break as death began to separate them....Her only real thought being that at least now, without her....perhaps he could be free and the wrongs she had committed could finally be put right.

[Legion]

As he ran he could feel himself fading, could feel her fading. Bleeding out, feeling that passing out from blood loss and dying was drawing near. But he had to get to her. He had to get to his angel. He thought he could make it, get to her before she faded. That was his goal. However he was wrong, stumbling a bit as his legs got heavier and heavier. Forcing him to stop and heal himself, herself. Fortunate that not even the moon was out to keep him totally in darkness. Giving him the strength and energy to heal himself. hopefully being able to still fight his way to her, feeling her brokenness.

As he healed them he felt her in anger, moving. Not wanting him to heal this. knowing that she just wanted to fade away he gave a desperate growl. Despite what it seemed, he loved her. Desperately and dearly. She was his angel, forever and always. That's what he remembered. Remembered being born into. He didn't want to hurt her. It just happened, sure the familiarity was good, producing some positive emotions. But the truth was that it could never be what he had with her. Nothing could be.

He felt her struggling to get up, why he was unsure, but that made him shamble forward now all the faster. Unable to run at this point but he was getting closer and closer. To his angel, to his love. The one he remembered quite fully. Feeling her brokenness increase he struggled forward. Putting one foot in front of the other. He was so close. His legs feeling like weights as he pushed himself forward, more and more. As he did though he felt her apology. Perhaps more clearly then he had ever felt anything from her. He knew she had never meant any of it. And for that he was sorry that he made her hurt over it. She had never meant to do any of this. And it was true. It wasn't her fault.

At the same time though, there was more, though he couldn't put his finger on it. That is until he feel that pain in his gut. The feel of a knife entering into him, although he was clear. That only made his stumbling more desperate as he felt blood gurgling in his lungs. Growling through the pain he continued onward. Desperate to get to her, feeling like he still had a knife in him. Blood pooling at the corners of his mouth, running down his body as he fought ever so hard to get to her.

Fading fast, his vision began to darken as he rounded the tree to finally see her lying there, about to pass out and fade of. Truth be told he was beginning to feel the fires himself. Of where he was going, knowing that with that knife there, it was where he was going to stay, that was something he didn't want. Though fortunately for him he collapse to his knees only when he was right in front of her.

Barely able to see her at this point, because she was in the dark he knew where the knife was, hand grasping the handle, pulling it free. This was a wound that even though the knife was gone he couldn't heal, but she couldn't die permanently now either.He could see her again. That hand now soaked with her blood dropped the knife on the ground, hand reaching up slowly to brush her hair back behind her ear, holding her cheek softly, his other hand holding hers. Whispering softly, "I love you me an...gel....."

Fading into those flames that he deserved ever so much...

[Azura]

She felt him drawing closer, she felt his distress and yet it refused to register within her mind. All the guilt and shame she felt, all the sorrow and emptiness she suffered from day in and day out imploding upon her and clouding out any sense of reason or understanding. It had happened once before, the permanent scars on her wrists a reminder of what happened when the weight of the world became too much for her to handle. Tonight, with him, it had been the last straw that finally broke her. The final weight that made it all too much to bare.

Coughing in a failed attempt to regain her breath, she would try to open her eyes. She heard him, drawing closer, struggling to get to her. Yet no sooner had they opened than they again fell closed, the weight of them too much it seemed, and her energy completely depleted. Softly her breath began to grow uneven and nothing but a mere whisper...

Then there was a slight crash in front of her, something falling onto the Earth. She did not have to look to know it was him, and somehow she managed to open her eyes, seeing the blood that poured from his wound and from his lips as he reached out and jerked the knife from within her. Only then did it finally dawn on her that she was killing him too, though it was too late.

Shaking her head the best she could, tears rolling down her face, she would feel his fingers brush her hair from her face, another pained cough given as she struggled to get to him....Now that he was here, all she could think of was being with him, of being near him. Yet her vision was fading, the light was growing closer...consuming her. Weakly her fingers curled about his hand, holding onto him as the light surrounded her. "I..love you...." Barely able to get the words out before she collapsed, her head landing upon his chest, hair pooling around her head and over her face.....and the light fully surrounding her, taking away the pain, if only for awhile.

TWO HOURS LATER

A sharp inhale would be heard from her lifeless form. Air filling her lungs and burning as it washed down her throat. All around her was that thick heady scent of her blood mixed with his own, the last bits of it having dried upon her flesh and soaked into the Earth below. As her eyes struggled to open, she could feel him coming to life beneath her, yet she did not have the energy just yet to lift her head.

Softly she whimpered and managed to nuzzle into him. Her hand, still in his grasping his tightly. She knew now what she had done, and as always, guilt came...only to be washed away by his darkness as he came back to life.

She didn't know what to say, didn't know if there was anything she could say...though eventually she would speak up in a soft, hoarse tone...barely able to manage just yet. "I..I want to go home..." Blinking back tears as she tried to gear her emotions toward how she felt for him, trying to ignore the pain she still felt as memories of his pleasure with his wife came back to mind. "The...The safehouse. Please." She couldn't go back to the lab, not like this. She just needed to lock herself away for a bit, find her center once more....make herself whole again.

[Legion]

Barely hearing those words as he faded into the flames. Feeling her fingers curl around his and her head laying on his chest just as everything started to fade. For once there was a sense of discomfort in Legion, one that could be closely associated with guilt. All for overreacting and causing her pain, because the truth was that he loved her, more then anything in heaven or earth, hell even hell. This feeling that he had, he was sure that it was only for her, and it could only ever be for her. Perhaps it was a feeling that only came because with her he had a soul. He didn't know, that was just a thought that he had as he faded away...

TWO HOURS AND ONE MINUTE LATER

He gave a sharp inhale as he came to again. That burning of lungs feeling his air allowing him to know that he was alive. Feeling her already starting to stir on top of him, the first thing he noticed, even before he was able to open his eyes, was the smell of blood. There was his and there was hers. To him, there was nothing really special about the smell of her blood, but her blood. That was a different story. Her blood smelled heavenly and now after having had a taste of hers, none else could compare. That girl Kazumi's, er, his wife apparently, was good, different from most, but Azura's was on a scale so much greater. There was no comparison really. To him, her blood made Kazumi's seem like everyone elses. In fact smelling it now aroused something in him, causing things to stir inside of him, but that was held at bay by this sense of discomfort and the fact that they were now returning to life.

Legion felt her nuzzling into him, an arm coming up to wrap around her while his other hand gripped hers tightly. Enjoying the moment of closeness, feeling her guilt and trying to take that away from her. Stroking her hair softly, and weakly as strength slowly began to fill his body. Listening to her hoarse words he would nod, still unsure if he could force words out just quite yet. Lingering with his arm around her for a moment, enjoying the moment he would give a little sigh before slowly sitting up.

Slowly he'd stand, cradling her in his arms, turning towards the safe house and making his way there...

[Azura]

As he stirred to life, she felt those urges, those needs rising within him..and though she wanted nothing more than to give him what he needed, she could not do so just yet. Barely having managed to get the words out, she would simply curl into his arms as he finally stood and hoisted her up against him. Her head nestled softly against his chest, those dark, raven colored locks spilling down across her face as she closed her eyes and tried her best to just focus on his energy, that darkness that surrounded him.

Moving now toward the safe house, she would remain quiet for the longest time, before finally managing to speak up in a tone much closer to her own. "I am sorry...t..that I took that life away from you." She whimpered, feeling the guilt once more, though feeling it easily washed away within his darkness.

Softly she would lean her head upward, her nose brushing against his neck as she nuzzled into him and purred rather weakly. Even though she worried that he would want his wife back, she could not deny that she loved him, that she needed him and wanted nothing more than to be with him, for the rest of her existence. But then...that was the effect of being near him...to want such things. Was it not?

Softly she would sigh, curling up to lay her head against him once more. Not sure what else she could say other than she was sorry, and sure that those words did not do her feelings justice in this moment. Though, she would continue to try, continue to work to make him feel better. To make this, this mess she had put him in....better.

Anything for him. Anything in this world or the next. No matter what it took.

[Legion]

Holding her in his arms Legion made his way towards the safehouse, as she requested. Feeling her nestling against his chest, he looked down at her, only to smile softly. As she took his darkness away, these were the only moments he could actually feel some levity. Yeah, they had just come out of a serious situation and they were both still soaked in blood, but he felt that all the same. She was the one who gave him his soul, and he loved her for it. With her he didn't have to be the demon, he could just be like everyone else.

After a long time of silence she would speak, causing him to stop and look down at her. Had he been angry? Yes. There was a life that was before this that he had been taken away from. The demon inside of him wasn't angry so much at the injustice of this, rather the lack of his own choice. He had been angry with her that she didn't tell him. That she let him believe that this was all he was. Legion couldn't deny he was very curious about who he was, or at least had been, but not at the expense of her feelings, not anymore at least. How could he hurt the one that gave him his soul? The very fact that he had caused this made him feel an unexplainable sense of discomfort.

After a moment though he'd say with a smile, "I don't blame you my angel."

If she was sensing his emotions then she'd be able to tell it was the truth. The darkness she took from him was some anger, though it would be clear to her that it was not anger at her, rather the people who had created him, whoever he was, whatever that meant. Still standing still he'd frown after a moment as say, "I'm sorry I made you feel that way and do that to yourself."

It was the truth. To her was perhaps the only time he could say it and mean it. That he was sorry. He could lie, and make anyone believe it, but not to her. To her he didn't need to lie, nor did he want to. He really was sorry. That he hurt his angel so grievously. He smiled weakly as she nuzzled into his neck, purring weakly. He tilted his head into that nuzzle, nuzzling into her hair softly himself. Waiting for her to sigh and curl into him once more he would begin to move forward again when she did. Moving forward silently in the night once more...

[Azura]

She felt him come to a stop, her body remaining pressed into his own, she simply continued to lightly nuzzle against his neck, breathing in his scent and trying to allow that to wash away the guilt she felt inside. "I wish I had known Legion. I would never have allowed for this." She knew he was speaking the truth, just as she did now. If she had known that they were planning this, she would have done something, anything, to prevent it. She would have tried harder to ensure that he did not get taken, even if it meant surrendering herself to their will for the rest of her eternity.

After a long moment, he would apologize to her, and though she felt it inside of him, knew it to be truth, she still paused. Pulling back just enough to allow her eyes to meet his own, she looked upon him with confusion and uncertainty. "You have nothing to be sorry for. It is I who was wrong in my actions." She paused, lowering her head and looking down at her wrists at the scars that had long since healed, the ones he could not take away. Sure, they were hidden beneath the tattoos she had, had placed there, but whenever she looked, all she saw were the scars. "It is not the first time this has happened, nor shall it be the last. I suffer guilt for every wrong I commit in life, for all the wrongs those around me commit. I feel pain for those I cannot save and the judgment I bare is a heavy, heavy burden. Sometimes, like tonight, it simply becomes too much."

Her words trailed off, her voice lowering as she gave a soft little sigh and curled into his arms once more. Again her head laid upon his chest, listening to his heart beat within, feeling her own match in rhythm perfectly. She loved this, being in his arms, feeling his heart beat within herself...yet deep down, even when she was with him, she knew it was not right. She had stolen from him and from his wife and child, and she had to, in some way, make it right.

Closing her eyes, she struggled to allow his darkness to consume her emotions. Not wanting to make him suffer more than she already had this night, nor wanting him to feel the determination she held in righting this wrong. This injustice. For that is what it was, and nothing else. Something that she, a being of justice (in some right) could not stand to see carried out, regardless what it meant for her.

Softly her hand would press against his chest, remaining silent the remainder of the trip back to the safehouse, fingers delicately tracing over the lines of his muscles beneath his shirt, her mind, in many ways, a million miles away. Nothing left to say just now, not when she felt so out of place, so dark and unnatural. No, in fact she would remain silent until they had reached their destination, slowly slipping from within his arms so that she could lead the way inside, making sure to secure the door behind them.

"There are fresh clothes for you in the bag in that bedroom there." Her hand motioning toward one of the open doorways. The place was rather plain, just a three bedroom apartment of sorts, basic furnishings, nothing overly fancy by any means. A kitchen, food stocked in the cabinets and fridge, and all the basic necessities of life and nothing more.

Stepping away from him, she would move toward her own room, one which was clearly her own due to the fresh white paint on the walls, as well as the white bed coverings and white dufflebag which laid upon the bed. "I wish to shower, then we can talk." Sure that he had questions about tonight's events, sure that she would have to answer them, but wishing to feel and look more herself when doing so.

Stepping into her bedroom, she would push the door closed with her foot, moving to lean up against it as a soft whimper rushed past her lips. She hated separating herself from him, especially now when all she wanted was to be close to him, and yet she knew that it was best. A few moments given to allow for the unsettling feeling of being without him to sink in before she would move toward the bathroom so that she could shower and wash away the blood and dye that soaked her hair, to wash away the physical reminders of the nights horrible events.

[Legion]

Feeling her nuzzle into his neck as she spoke those words he knew those to be true to. And had he not been holding her he would have stroked her hair, or reassured her through touch in some kind of way as he spoke quietly trying to do the same, "I know Azura, I know"

Looking her in the eyes would frown as she told him that he had nothing to be sorry for. Yeah he did, he hurt her. For him that was enough, and you know, the thing was that he was okay with being sorry. He had wronged the one person he truly didn't want to hurt. He continued to watch her, even as she looked away, and down to her wrist, where he saw the outlines of scars, that even he was unable to take from her. Listening to her, his frown remained on his face. Knowing exactly what she meant, or at least the reason why there were scars on her wrists. Because the one thing that he couldn't empathize with was her guilt. The guilt of all of her wrong doings. Legion didn't feel any of that, though she knew this. That was just part of being a demon. In fact, feeling sorry for what he made her feel, that was the closest to guilt he'd ever come.

"I feel sorry for hurting you, making you feel that way, because I love you more then I could love anyone or thing else," Legion said, shrugging at the next part, "I feel sorry and I guess in a sense I feel glad to, because I don't think I could feel sorry for anything else I do."

He felt her curl into his arms more, laying her head against his chest. Legion loved the closeness, and he knew that she did too but there was something wrong. He just wasn't able to put his finger on it. Nor was he going to ask. Legion knew full well it was just one of those things that you just let be, for now at least. Though he had the sneaking suspicion that he'd have to address it at some point, he just didn't know when. so they would walk the rest of the way in silence, Legion feeling her hand on his chest, over his heart and tracing his muscles, loving the contact as they finished that almost painfully long walk back to the safe house.

When they got there he would feel her slip out of his arms so that not only could they get into the safe, but she could make sure that it was closed behind them. As she directed him towards his room and towards clean clothes he nodded without saying a word. There really was nothing more to say. Nodding as she mentioned her wanting to take a shower before they talked. Nothing left for him to do but go into his room and change into a pair of clean clothes, lay on the bed and wait...

[Azura]

Azura took longer than she really needed too in the bath, sitting on the floor and watching as the black hair dye and remnants of blood swirled about and ran down the drain. A soft sigh passing her lips as little fingers shoved into her hair, holding it back from her face as the water cascaded down her. In fact, it wouldn't be until about a half an hour later that she finally emerged, towel wrapped around herself as she moved toward the bed to get dressed.

Slowly she would slip on her underwear and bra, followed by her long white gown that she was accustomed to wearing at the nights end. Unlike her usual dresses, this one flowed all the way down, past her feet and pooled upon the ground when she stood, almost identical to the one she was wearing on the night she first met him. Next, of course, came the steady, slow brushing of her hair, counting out the one hundred times which she ran the brush through her hair as she sat upon the end of the bed.

Nowhere in the room was a mirror, nor would she want one. Her room back at The Facility was lacking in such as well. She couldn't stand her reflection, couldn't stand looking upon herself, looking into her own eyes and knowing the wrongs she had committed that she would never, ever be able to make amends for. Yet, that was another small trait about herself that few people ever took the time to pick up on, and one that she did not ever care to share with another living soul....if she could help it.

Finally, once she had finished brushing her hair, laying the brush down onto the bed beside her, she would glance toward the door. Hesitation guiding her movements as she slowly rose to stand, brushing her hands along the skirt of her gown and softly worrying her lower lip between her teeth. Knowing that she couldn't exactly put off the inevitable for long.

Eventually, she would move forward, reaching out to grasp the doorknob and twisting it slowly. The slightest sound of it creaking causing her nerves to increase and that strange feeling at the pit of her stomach to start to rise. But, regardless of how she felt, she would draw in a deep breath, pulling the door open just as she straightened her shoulders and stepping out into the living room area.

She didn't even have to look to know where he was, and would find herself moving toward him until she stood a good three or four feet from him, her head down, she folded her hands together in front of herself and let out a soft, almost disparaged sigh. "So what would you like to discuss first? You ask, and I shall answer to the best of my ability. Though I do not promise to hold all the answers you seek."

So badly she wanted to move toward him, to wrap herself in his arms and just forget this whole mess. But in her mind, no matter how much she felt that she loved him, she could not help but wonder if that was simply a bi-product of what had been done to him. In fact, she was almost certain that it was. Which, despite what her natural instincts told her to do, was the reason that she held her distance, refusing to get too close for fear of losing herself in him as she had before.

[Legion]

Legion laid on the bed, looking upward at the ceiling as time slipped slowly by. To be fair, the time didn't really matter too much to him as he was lost in thought. He lay there in clean clothes, although he was still covered in dry blood from tonight's events. To be honest, it didn't really bother him, what did was what had happened. It was proving to be quite confusing to him. Sure he had been upset at what he had heard, felt betrayed by the only person he could trust but as he had listened to her words he had known that she was telling the truth. He knew that willingly she would never hurt him. That she would never have done what she did to anyone unless she had a good reason. He trusted her, fully, more then a normal human could trust anyone really, but then again he wasn't exactly human, at least so he had thought.

That too was something that he was thinking about. Before tonight he had never considered there to be any existence for him before his birth. That just made sense right? You didn't exist before you were born. Then why did he have these memories of past events? They had to be from the past right? They certainly couldn't be from the future, that didn't make sense. That led him to wonder if he was ever really born. Azura and that woman Kazumi said that his name was Patrick O'Connor. And Kazumi has said that she was his wife? That the child he had collected was his? Azura had nodded. That meant that Kazumi had to be telling the truth because Azura wouldn't lie to him. That and he remembered seeing Kazumi naked, after intimate moments, remembered her biting him, and him her. He remembered putting that gun to his head, remembering that at the time he did that there would be no coming back. Not like now.

Apparently he felt strongly enough to kill himself for her, according to Kazumi before they got married, apparently. But he didn't remember the marriage, nor did he remember having the child. He knew that according to the things that he had that he should feel something for her, but he didn't. He only remembered fragments of memories, not the whole things. Not the emotions. But if he had those memories before he was born, then didn't that mean he wasn't born? Something happened, but what? Supposedly he was taken? By force? By who and why? Why him? Whoever he was.

Legion was confused. And quite concerned. What did that mean about him and Azura? Did that mean that they weren't actually in love? That what he felt wasn't real? Could he be losing her? There was a sense of tremendous unease at the thought. That thought prompting a thought concerning what she meant by they would talk. That didn't sound good. Paranoia running through him, his foot beginning to shake in a little bit of anxiety. Waiting for her, lost in thought staring at the ceiling he would remain until she entered the room.

As she asked that question, her unease only fueling his further as he shifted uncomfortable on the bed, before sighing and asking slowly, "What am I?"

If there was a life before this he wasn't born when he thought he was. Did that mean he wasn't a demon? Because didn't a demon have to not be a demon? He didn't know...

[Azura]

She stood there, her stomach doing flips as the waves of his unease washed over her. She tried her best to take it away, to use the light inside of her to steal away that uncertainty, that confusion. But to be honest, she could only do so much right now. She was still very weak from the nights prior events, that being evident by the fact that despite her being Resurrection, the scars on her wrists, the ones she had slit open earlier that night, were still very fresh looking. In fact, if not for the fact that they both knew she couldn't be still wounded, it would seem as though she were still cut, just not bleeding.

Usually, he was able to take away any signs of damage to her body. But the problem here, was the guilt she felt would not allow his darkness, the very thing that healed her when he healed himself, to consume her enough to take away the damage inflicted upon herself. No, in her mind, she very much deserved the wounds she had received and so until she was able to release that guilt, they would take a very long time to vanish. That mark on her abdomen just as bad as her wrists, only hidden by her gown.

Her hand absentmindedly fluttering over the area as she spoke, only to fall suddenly still when his question was issued. What was he? That was the million dollar question was it not? But how did she answer that? Or more to the point, how did she answer that honestly? The uncertainty of this making her take a bit longer than usual in responding...the silence of the room dragging out between them to the point that one could argue the silence itself was deafening.

Eventually though, she would speak. Her tone was soft, soothing and gentle. It was that very same tone she used whenever she spoke to him or anyone for that matter, when she was trying to sooth them. The tone which showed her age where her body would not. "That is a very complicated question to answer I am afraid Legion."

She sighed, her small hands gathering up the skirt of her dress just slightly as she moved to take a seat upon the edge of the bed toward the area where his feet were. "You were born a man, many years ago. I am not certain the exact time, so forgive me if I do not know your precise age. But I do know that you were attending the high school here. Public High School eight zero one one. The very one which we have been instructed to take over."

She paused, her hands in her lap, her eyes cast down upon them. "I did not know you then, only knew you as a name in a file. But I was instructed to bring you in, or risk losing Raven to another series of vicious tests he was certainly not meant to survive." She sighed, closing her eyes to fight back the tears which already began to build within them. "You were a name and a picture in a file to me. Nothing more. I used your family to persuade you to come with me. They were never really in danger, it was all false imagery, but you believed it and you came."

Finally, eyes would open to lift toward his own, barely managing to remain calm as she basically continued to drive a wedge between them with every single word she spoke. "From there, I do not know what was done. Only that I died, and when I woke, all I could think to do was to get to you. Truthfully, I did not know it was you I was seeking until I walked into your room, but once I saw you, I knew that it was you that I was meant to find. That they had done something to you, to bond you to me in a manner that would ensure you were like me."

She bit her lower lip, lifting her head as a single tear escaped her right eye and rolled down her delicate little cheek. "You fought so hard not to forget them, and I regretted what I had done the moment I saw you. Not because of you, but because of what I had stolen from you. I loved you, the moment my eyes laid upon you in that room, I knew that you were the missing part of me that I had been searching for, for so long. But I also knew, that it was wrong. I still know....that it is wrong."

She felt more tears run down her cheeks, her head turning away as she struggled to get out the final bit before allowing him to ask another question. "They wished to turn you into a demon, to turn you into the very opposite of what I am, but you would not let go. For a week you fought, and for a week they kept me drugged and strapped to my bed. I died every time you did, I suffered through every surgery they gave you, through every bit of pain they inflicted upon you."

At this point, she began to shake, fear welling up inside of her, mingled with shame, uncertainty and a large amount of regret and sorrow. "The final day, before you...Legion...were born. They brought you into the operating room once more...only this time they brought me as well. The doctor, doctor Cole...he did not touch you, B..But he did start to touch me. He stabbed me, and he kissed me...he...he put his hand between my legs and he....t..touched me...there. You were livid that he would touch what you thought to belong to you, and though I tried to be strong, I was simply too weak, too terrified and ashamed....and it was then, that Patrick O'Connor faded from existence, and my demon...my Legion was born."

She gave a soft whimper, pushing herself from the bed and wrapping her arms about herself as she began to move toward the window on the farside of the room, her eyes cast out over the city, what little she could actually see of it. "If I had been stronger, if I had not allowed him to violate me, to ruin me in such a way, perhaps you would not have been pushed so far. But to answer you question....you are my Legion and somewhere, deep inside of yourself...inside of your heart...you are her Patrick." Nodding as she hugged herself tightly and kept her back to him, unable to face him just yet.

[Legion]

Legion's eyes glanced over to Azura, noting the wounds on her wrists. He knew that they weren't bleeding, because his wrists weren't either. It was simple really. Although a quick look to his own wrists would reveal that his wrists weren't marked like that. Interesting, or perhaps it would normally be if he weren't filled with such unease. He felt her trying to take it away, but she was too far away really. And as much as he wanted to walk over to her and wrap his arms around her, he knew that he could not. That this was something that had to be discussed. For her to take his unease from him was to get lost in her eyes, to have their bodies touch was to have all of their troubles slipping away, including this one. But he knew just as well as she did that it would only be a band aid. And so he simply asked that question, and waited.

And waited. The silence as she said, was deafening. It would drag on until she would finally speak to tell him that it was a complicated question. But he was here, waiting and listening all the same. Quite curious and not entirely unconcerned, not sure what the answers would bring, but curious to know what he was. As she sat on the bed he'd sit up beside her, fighting the urge to hold her hand, knowing that it would be all over if he did, but still sitting up out of respect for her.

Nodding as she explained that as were his initial suspicions that he was at one point human, age unknown, but a student at the school he was supposed to be taking over. Listening intently as she mentioned at the time he was just a name on a file. That she was leveraged into doing this mission threatening Raven. But what was more interesting was what she said about his family. No, he wasn't upset about what she did. How she leveraged him with them. That he believed that they were endanger and followed her with out a fight. Now that was curious. These were people that he didn't know, but he figured at the time he did, and apparently loved them. Enough to throw away his life for them. A decision he probably wouldn't make for anyone today. Well save Azura, then that got him to thinking on how deeply he must of cared for his family. Because for Azura at least with the whole coming back to life thing the rules could be bent. Before he was born as a demon, if he died he died.

His eyes met hers, attention fully on her as she continued her story. No judgement in his eyes, only curiosity, and well concern, but curiosity of this strange person that he had been piquing. He had to wonder, had he been a good person then? To sacrifice himself like that? Then how did he become the demon?

They bounded him to her? What did that mean? How? Make him like her? That didn't make any sense to him. How could humans operate on a plane of existence above them? How could he be placed there by them? It seemed that she was only raising more questions then she was answering.

Legion was trying to keep his mouth shut, he really was, to just listen as she spoke. He fought so hard not to forget them? Was that why he felt those memories when Kazumi touched that scar? Was that the only memory his former self had hid away? His features softened as she said that she loved him. Listening her talk about him being the missing part of her, he had to ask, "We're you my soul then too?"

As she spoke of Patrick fighting hard he couldn't help but think that the man was quite resilient. Knowing that the doctors could really work a number on them, the experiments, let alone a human. It wasn't to unreasonable to think that they'd break a human. Because everyone had their limit. Nodding as she mentioned feeling every pain his former self felt.

His facial expression turned to a frown as she spoke once again, though this time there was shame in her voice, along with that sorrow and regret. Listening to her tell him of the day that he was born. Knowing it to be true not only because she couldn't lie but because now he could remember bits of it himself. Remembering her being strapped to the table across from him. And the Doctor insinuating something, he just couldn't remember what. He just remembered wanting the man dead. But she filled the blanks in for him, and that made him angry all over again, as he remembered that more clearly, although he didn't remember this Patrick fellow, let alone being him. He remembered being born and his existence as Legion.

As she pushed off the bed saying if she had been stronger as she walked towards the window, Legion would only frown. Though this was not from her saying that he was both Legion and Patrick, but reassurance, "It didn't matter how strong this Patrick was. Everyone has a breaking point, even us. Humans are just weaker right?"

He had to ask, seeing as his every core belief was being challenge today, though quite hesitantly he'd ask, "Was Patrick O'Connor a good person?"

[Azura]

She paused as he interrupted her, glancing at him with a pained, confused look in her eyes as she shook her head just slightly and tried so hard not to whimper, yet failing almost instantly. "I don't know anymore..." She lowered her head once more, tears rolling down her delicate little cheeks as her hands continued to fidget together within her lap. So badly she wanted to say yes, she had been....but now. "Before tonight, I would have said yes. But after tonight....I question if you would have ever been able to love me of your own free will. To be honest, I do not think so."

She nodded, the words hard for her to admit to, even harder for her to believe...but it was the only logical thing to believe when faced with all the facts. She understood that to him, there was no life other than one in which he loved her...and only her. But Azura on the other hand, she knew that this life he knew of was nothing more than a lie.

Did she genuinely love him? She thought she did, but then at the same time, she had witnessed first hand how powerful The Facility was when it came to manipulating a person's emotions...who was to say the same had not been done to her? After all...she had said it herself. Patrick O'Connor had been nothing but a name on a file to her before they got their mitts on him. Right?

Still, in the back of her mind, she wondered if he really was just that to her any longer. After all, it was Legion she was in love with, and for what little time he had existed...he had existed only for her. Again, something her foolish mind tried to use to reason out to hold onto what she felt for him, to not cast it aside, or to not try to cast it aside at least.

Once at the window, she would finish her story, eyes looking out over the rather obstructed view of the city, yet not really seeing anything out there. No, her mind was far, far away...lost in thoughts about what it was she felt for him, what he felt for her...the reality of it all, and the overpowering fantasy that she wished so badly they could stay lost in.

But then he spoke, and again her attention shifted back to the present, though this time she did not look at him. Instead, she remained silent for awhile, trying to think on how to answer that, again not wanting to lie, even on accident. "From what I understand, and from what little I saw, he was trying to be. Yet his...I mean...your file indicated that there was a rather violent past surrounding him, a very amoral one. From what I can gather, he....you were not a good person,but chose to try and change that for her....." She felt her stomach turn, that lingering emotion he had felt as Kazumi had kissed him coming to mind and that uncertainty soon following.

[Legion]

Legion frowned as she looked at him with that confused and pained look in her eyes. A slight whimper of his own given at hers and her words, sense of discomfort and unease increasing at her tears. Raising his hand lifting it and moving it to place it on hers, he would hold it above hers as she finished her answer to his question, about how tonight had changed everything. For him it hadn't. It had been a confusing and probably what some people might call, a painful experience. Learning that there was a life that he had lived before the one he remembered. But to him, nothing changed. She was still the only one that could make him whole. Give him a soul. It was only with her that he didn't have to be the demon.

Legion would sigh and pull his hand back at her words. Not sure that this was the right time anymore. He didn't see it that way. He didn't see it as she did. Apparently there had been no free will in choosing to love her. But he didn't agree with the idea that he wouldn't have been able to love her of his own free will. Because once again he saw her as his soul, though he truly believed that even if his hand hadn't been forced, as apparently it had been, he would have been able to love her on his own. She was beautiful, smart, caring and kind. All those things that Legion couldn't be on his own and envied. Legion truly believed that he would be able to love her anyways.

But was she talking more about herself then her words led on? That was another possibility he had to consider, as painfully uncomfortable as it was. What had she said? That he was just a name on a file, before all this. Legion knew that she loved him, but he had to wonder, was it just as faked? Just as forced? Some sort of combination of chemicals that made them love each other? Something that some how in moments of clarity she was able to overcome and realize that she wasn't actually in love with him. That perhaps she couldn't love him on her own free will. That was something that he really couldn't blame her for, as much as he hated to admit it. She was an angel and he was a demon. What angel would ever possibly choose to love a demon?

Though he'd force himself to pay attention as she continued her story. Watching her look out the window as he asked his question, in her silence of thought he'd stand up, stepping to the window, standing next to her. Wanting to be close to her, but knowing that now was not the time to touch. Knowing that this was something that they had to do. Hating it, and yet at the same time, curiosity pushing him onward.

Listening as she explained the morality of Patrick O'Connor, Legion would note that she kept changing the person of her pronouns. Telling him about his past. Though there was one thing that was gnawing at the back of his mind. He wasn't a good person before. He was a demon now. They were both evil. Was that why he was chosen? Amorality would seem to indicate a lack of a soul. At least with immorality you rejected moral actions but accepted some form of morality. So he had to ask, "Did Patrick O'Connor have a soul? Could he have become a good person?"

The question of "why me?" carefully avoided...

[Azura]

She saw his hand move to hover over her own, and with every part of her soul she wished for him to touch her and yet even as she wished this, she found herself pulling away. She was terrified of what would happen if they avoided this conversation, scared that he would someday resent her for all the things she could have prevented from happening, had she just been strong enough to carry on...not been weak and failed him as she had before.

Now, standing by that window, she felt him draw closer, and so badly did she want to curl into his arms, to rest her head against his chest and to hear their hearts beating as one. To know that they were a single being, and that all of this, regardless how it came about, was right. How could something so perfect be wrong? A question which plagued her mind, though she did not dare speak it. No, there were a lot of things she was not saying in this moment, both out of fear for herself and fear for where it could lead.

Finishing her story, and answering his question, she would raise a single, shaky hand to her face and brush away the tears that rolled down her cheeks, trying in some way to stop the tears from falling. Yet, when he spoke again, she would find it much easier to answer, even if the entire situation in and of itself was tearing her apart, "Yes, he had a soul....You...had a soul Legion." She nodded, turning to look at him and barely managing to force her eyes to his own. "If you had not, you would never have surrendered your own freedom to save them. You would never have come with me."

She nodded, and would step away, moving toward the bed, but more specifically toward the bag that she had placed here for him. Digging through it, she would open up a hidden compartment at the bottom and produce two black knives, each of them sheathed in black leather and wrapped together by ties that would allow one to strap them to their person, wherever they chose.

Moving back toward him, she would stop and hold them out to him, something very odd happening to her emotions at that point, well, odd for him to feel no doubt. She would close them off. It was hard, and it killed her to lose that connection to him, if only in such a fragmented way...but she did it just the same, to avoid him feeling the pain and utter fear she felt right now. "The first night, that I went to you...while you were still Patrick O'Connor. You had vowed, that you would kill all those responsible for doing this to you."

Her head lowering a bit, while her hands rose to hold the knives out toward him a bit more. "I know that I cannot stay dead, but a vow is a vow. It will only be a matter of time before the demon inside of you demands payment on those words." Her voice trembled. She knew that inside him was the same thing which prevented her from breaking a promise. It would leave her helpless, weak. It would break her down inside until she had no choice but to fulfill her promise to whomever it was she had promised. He would suffer the same way.

She could not allow that to happen, not because of her, not when she had done so much to him already.

Her hands trembling, she would keep her head down and her hands raised. Every breath a bit weaker, a bit more shaky than the last. "It is alright Legion." Feeling that she had to reassure him that she understood and was okay with it. True, it terrified her, but at the same time, if it meant sparing him pain, then she would gladly lay down her own life.