Xiumin heard the thud of something falling and nearly tore the door off its hinges in his hurry to get inside. Worst case scenarios raced through his head in the seconds it took, a gruesome image of Lily coated in blood like Leo, lifeless and pale, flashed through his head.

The sight that greeted him wasn’t much better.

Lily was curled on the floor, clearly in pain, hands clenching uselessly in the air. He rushed in and dropped next to her, calling her name. She didn’t respond, her eyes blinking without focusing on anything, face grimacing in agony.

‘Lily, what’s wrong?’

He had no idea what had happened. Lily had rushed inside upon seeing Rose and the girl had broken down on her sister, crying so heart-wrenchingly that it’d hurt to listen to her. He’d been reminded of Star and wondered if his sister had needed a hug too, just like Rose did.

Deciding to give the sisters some privacy, he’d stayed outside, waiting patiently. He’d almost lulled himself into a snooze when the thud had sounded. How or why Lily had collapsed on the floor was beyond him. Rose was fast asleep, curled in fetal position on her bed, so it was obviously not her doing. But Lily wasn’t even saying anything, just whimpering in pain.

He cursed. Screw everything, he couldn’t just let her suffer like this. His beast was howling wildly inside him, trying to come to the surface, closer to its mate. Xiumin didn’t bother controlling it – they were both broken parts of the same whole, after all – and instead, picked her up.

She convulsed violently in his arms before passing out completely. Her skin was burning. That pinkish sheen… had she been running a fever? Just how bad was it?

He had no idea when he started running, he only stopped to breathe when he’d reached Lay’s room, nearly kicking the door down.

The healer didn’t seem surprised to see him at all, unlike Baekhyun, who’d just woken up. The Legend let out a surprised yelp as Xiumin strode over to Lay, ing Lily at him.

‘What’s wrong with her?’ he demanded, anger building inside him.

Lay, insisting on him going to the shop, bugging him about it until he’d agreed. Ken, his foot. He’d Seen this.

‘You Saw this, didn’t you?’ he accused, ‘What’s wrong with her?’

Lay didn’t deny his accusation, getting out of his bed and gesturing for him to put Lily down.

A bolt of possessiveness went through him. Lay’s bed was covered in his scent; Xiumin might’ve been unable to claim her, but there was no doubt in his mind that Lily was his mate. No way in hell would he put her somewhere reeking of another Legend.

Baring his teeth warningly, he turned around and marched to his own room. It was exactly as he’d left it this morning. He gently lowered her into his bed but didn’t pull away, unwilling to part.

Lay cleared his throat and Xiumin blinked, reluctantly straightening.

‘What’s going on?’ he rasped.

Lay ignored him, coming around to stand right beside her. He put out a hand to touch her and Xiumin clenched his fists, trying to stay calm. Seeing its mate hurt was making his beast antsy, and he’d been far too volatile the past few months to trust himself in this state.

Right before Lay’s fingers touched her face, Xiumin growled warningly. Lay glanced at him. ‘I just need to scan her,’ he told him calmly. ‘Promise I won’t touch her unnecessarily.’

Xiumin nodded jerkily, gripping Lily’s limp hand to ground himself. Instead of looking at the healer poke at his mate and unnecessarily provoke the beast, he focused on her hand, letting his fingers trace the familiar digits.

Even the simple act was extremely soothing to his touch-starved self. He gently flipped her hand over, touching her palm. It was burning up. Did she have a fever all this time? And yet, she’d travelled through the night to show up at his doorstep, just so she could see her family.

He pressed his lips to the center of her palm, unable to resist. Why had he let her go? He knew he’d had his reasons but right now, none of them made any sense.

‘Okay,’ Lay’s voice interrupted him. ‘I’m done.’

Xiumin turned to face the healer, not dropping Lily’s hand. ‘What’s wrong with her?’

‘Simply put, she’s exhausted.’ Lay nodded to emphasize his point. ‘She’s been doing too much with too little rest and I guess travelling here was the last straw. Her body has simply given up.’

If Lay thought that would calm him down, he had another think coming. The healer seemed to read his thoughts, holding up his hand to stall his oncoming tirade. ‘I suggest we let her sleep this off. Plenty of rest, hydration and nutrition; that’s all she needs.’

Xiumin stared at the healer, trying to detect if he was hiding something. The way Lily had been whimpering in pain hadn’t seemed like just exhaustion to him. Lay’s impassive face gave nothing away, however, and Xiumin decided to drop it.

‘Heal her, then.’ He gestured at the healer to get a move on. Lay looked a bit reluctant to touch Lliy. Although that could be purely because of Xiumin growling the moment he stepped closer.

Lay’s hands glowed brightly, and he gestured over her body. He rarely used this method since it wasn’t very efficient and used too much energy but Xiumin was glad.

‘That should do,’ Lay muttered, giving his trademark dazed smile and turning to leave. ‘Let me know when she wakes up, we’ll get Suho to look her over as well.’

Xiumin nodded, turning his attention back to Lily. Her breathing had eased, and her skin looked less flushed than before. He touched her forehead and it, too, felt cooler. Relieved, he sat down beside her, settling in for the wait.

…………………………………………

News of Lily’s arrival seemed to have travelled because his doorway was crowded now, and Xiumin was beginning to feel claustrophobic. He was on edge these days and having too many people around irked his beast. With its mate sick, the protective instincts were fully engaged, and he couldn’t help but see everyone as a threat.

That didn’t seem to bother Tiffany and Raina, the duo sticking around even after the rest had gone away. Mei, Angel and Kyra had shown up too but seeing Lily asleep, had left without disturbing. Raina and Tiffany, on the other hand, had decided to set up camp.

Xiumin eyed the pair, wanting to throw them out – call him immature but Lily was his mate, and this was his room. But they looked so genuinely worried that he didn’t have the heart. Both girls had spent a long time working with Lily and him; he figured he owed them this much.

An hour later, maybe longer, Lily stirred. He’d lulled himself to a daze, matching his breathing with hers, and he started when she moved. A soft sigh escaped her, and she her lips.

Xiumin swallowed, wanting to lean down and kiss her awake.

‘Should I call Lay and Suho?’ Raina asked, helpfully bringing him out of his trance before he could act stupidly.

He nodded, both praising and regretting the girl’s timing. Lily stirred again, yawning before blearily blinking her eyes. He tried to subtly pull his hand back, realizing she probably wouldn’t appreciate it.

The movement drew her attention, however, to their intertwined fingers resting between them. She stared at them uncomprehendingly, blinking slowly before deciding to ignore it and closing her eyes again.

He extracted his hand reluctantly and stood up. If her actions since arriving here were anything to go by, she would prefer to keep their distance. And his list of crimes against her was already long enough.

Tiffany and Raina were talking amongst themselves in loud whispers, and the noise roused Lily from her slumber. ‘Hmm?’ she muttered, trying to open her eyes. ‘Your drink will be done in a minute…’

So like her to dream of work. Xiumin chuckled, Raina and Tiffany giggling along. The sounds woke her up. She blinked her eyes a few times, trying to find the sound source. Her eyes landed on Tiffany and Raina and she stilled, tilting her head. ‘Tiff?’ she mused. ‘Raina?’

‘Lily!’ Raina, always the excited one, rushed forward, presumably to hug Lily, who looked alarmed at the prospect. It was hilarious and Xiumin laughed again as Tiffany held Raina back from the scruff of her neck.

Seeing as the girl was half Raina’s size, that made her stop abruptly, arms wind milling while she tried to keep her balance. ‘She’s sick, idiot!’ Tiffany reprimanded. ‘You can’t jump her like that.’

‘But…’ Raina whined, pouting. ‘I missed her!’

Lily watched them bemusedly, still looking lost. Xiumin cleared his throat, making the two girls stop their bickering.

‘Let her wake up first,’ he said, suppressing a smile at the glare she shot him.

‘I’m awake,’ she said, cocking an eyebrow, daring him to contradict her. He was sorely tempted. 

He was saved by Lay’s arrival. The healer greeted Lily with a full-blown smile, Raina fake-swooning behind him. Tiffany struggled to keep a straight face as she elbowed her friend. ‘Stop, or I’ll tell Tao.’

Raina pouted. ‘Sehun’s making you grouchy.’

Xiumin ignored them both in favor of looking at Lily. She seemed much better than before. Even more beautiful just waking up, her hair completely tousled, rebelling against their confinement; her eyes were a little puffed due to a mixture of crying and sleeping. The feverish sheen was gone from her skin, which still glowed. And her scent, mixed with his own, was heaven.

He wanted to hide her from everyone else, because no one else should get to see her like this.

‘I’d like to have a word with her,’ Lay said. ‘Alone, if it’s okay.’

it’s not, he wanted to say. Sighing, knowing he needed to trust the healer, he nodded. Gesturing at the girls to step outside, he let the door close behind him. In the ensuing silence, he took a deep breath and a stock of his situation. 

Star was back; not dead as he’d assumed all this time; not an illusion Evil had tried to trick him with but actually here. His sister was alive. And Evil was obviously using her for his nefarious purposes.

And Lily. He’d been the one to call it off, thinking he could give her an out no other Legend could, a chance to back out of this stupid war that had nothing to do with her. Yet, Rose was possessed, and Leo injured.

And being the one to end it was no use because he was still so hung up on her. She’d barely been back a couple of hours and he was already messed up, losing control of his emotions, his beast getting antsier by the minute, wanting to claim her.

He was so screwed.

……………………………………….

Lily had a pleasant dream.

Which was an anomaly since she rarely dreamt. Rarely slept deep enough these days to go that far. And if she did dream, they were nightmares. About the battle, seeing Xiumin’s guts spilling out, the horrific images of Legends getting overwhelmed with abbies while she stood in the sidelines, unable to do anything, to even assure herself that Xiumin was alive. The other mates crying, waiting in the deathly silence inside the mansion while the battle raged outside. And Baekhyun’s cry in that final moment, the desperate scream of a man who’d lost everything before the blinding white overwhelmed them all.

Oh sure, they’d all woken up healed and recovered after that; and ultimately, there had been no casualties. But living through it had been hell. She still had trouble sleeping. Not because of the fever – though it certainly didn’t help – but because she invariably ended up reliving that horrible, horrible day.

Nothing had gone right for her after that. They’d broken up, something she hadn’t even deemed possible. She’d assumed she was his mate and he’d never given her any reason to consider separating. It had been serious enough that she’d been considering officially introducing him to her family – as her fiancé.

And Rose. Even though she’d woken up after her yearlong coma, her recovery hadn’t been without its hitches, her psyche scarred along with her body. Then, for her family, Lily’d decided to separate herself from them, left behind her friends. And a well-established business, practically the only source of income she had to support her family. She’d given all of that up, just so they could be safe. Only to hear that her brother had nearly been killed. Attacked by the very thing she’d been trying to protect them from. Her sister was… possessed.

Really, with the way her life had been going – to hell –  a pleasant dream was the last thing she expected. But she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth; instead, she’d enjoy it while it lasted. She turned, relishing every moment.

There was no pain. With the constant bouts of fever she’d been suffering over the past few months, she’d forgotten what it felt be without it. It felt wonderful, her body feeling refreshed for the first time in a long while.

And she was in Xiumin’s room, in Xiumin’s bed. That was impossible, she knew. She and Xiumin weren’t to be – he’d made it abundantly clear. That didn’t stop her from wishfully imagining it on occasion and this dream was the perfect specimen. Not only was she in his bed, surrounded by his comforting scent, but also holding hands with him.

If she were awake, she’d cringe at the cheesiness of her own dream. As it was, she stared longingly at the beautiful picture their intertwined fingers made before deciding to snuggle further into her bed and sleep some more. Heavens knew she needed it.

The image didn’t last too long as she felt the hand pulling away, but she couldn’t bother to chase after it, too comfortable and too sleepy.

After who knew how long, voices penetrated her ears. She tried to ignore them, but the voices sounded achingly familiar and she became curious. Surely this was too good to be true.

Her vision was bleary. She blinked several times, trying to bring her surroundings into focus, and more importantly, locate the owners of those voices. Finally clear, her gaze landed on a familiar twosome. She blinked, not sure if she was truly awake. ‘Tiff? Raina?’

‘Lily!’ Raina’s exclamation was jarringly loud, effectively waking her up. The tall girl was bouncing happily, looking eager to rush forward and knowing Raina, hug the heck out of her. Alarmed, abruptly recalling the pain that’d hit her after touching Rose, she sat up just as Raina attempted to rush forward.

Tiffany, bless her soul, had grabbed her from behind, efficiently stopping her. Raina whined and nostalgia bubbled inside her at the familiar sounds. How many times did she have to hear Raina whine while Tiffany tried to talk sense? Both of them invariably ended up being foolish anyway but it was always fun to watch them bicker.

The sound of a throat clearing made her glance around. Xiumin looked like he was trying hard not to smile. He was failing spectacularly. ‘Let her wake up first.’ 

It felt like he was laughing at her, irking her to no end. She raised her chin, eyebrow cocking in challenge. ‘I’m awake.’ An incoming yawn nearly ruined the effect but she suppressed it, eyes watering slightly. Xiumin smirked as if he knew what she was doing, and she might’ve just snapped at him but they were interrupted by a light knock on the door.

Lay stepped inside, a wide smile blooming on his face, cheek dimpling and making him look angelic. Lily became instantaneously suspicious, having learned not to trust him when he looked that innocent.

‘I’d like to have a word with her,’ Lay said. ‘Alone, if it’s okay.’

Xiumin looked like he wanted to protest, clearly not happy about the idea but he nodded and opened the door so Tiffany and Raina could step outside. The door closed with a snick, leaving her alone with the healer.

‘Good morning Lily,’ Lay greeted her warmly.

‘Thank you,’ she interrupted him, but she had to get it out of the way first. She owed her family’s lives to this man. ‘For saving Leo. From what Xiumin told me, he couldn’t have made it without you.’

‘It was my pleasure,’ he replied sincerely. ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t avoid the scar.’

She shook her head. ‘He’s alive, that’s what matters.’ There was momentary silence before she spoke up softly. ‘Was it bad?’ Her voice trembled against her will.

Lay stared at her quietly for a few moments, perhaps contemplating how to answer her. She hoped he wouldn’t try to sugar coat it for her, she needed to hear the truth.

‘We came very close to losing him,’ he eventually replied, honest. ‘For a few moments, I thought we were too late but…’ He looked at her with a soft smile. ‘Rose was very determined not to lose her brother and I couldn’t let her efforts go to waste.’

Lily let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding; it was shaky, just like her limbs, aftershock setting in. ‘But he’s going to be alright, right?’ she asked, trying not to sound desperate but failing.

‘He’ll be up and about in no time,’ Lay reassured her. ‘My power just tends to make people woozy.’ He grinned cheekily, dimple deepening. ‘Probably why I’m so out of it all the time.’

Lily let out a choked laugh, not expecting him to poke fun at himself. Lay hummed, looking pleased with himself. After a moment of quiet, she spoke up again. She had a feeling Lay had deliberately come here to help her out and she was beyond grateful.

‘What’s going on with Rose?’

Lay pursed his lips, eyes distant as he looked at something only he could see. Lily continued. ‘Don’t try to hide anything, okay? Whatever it is, I can take it.’

Lay nodded. ‘How much did Xiumin tell you?’

‘He said… well, that she is possessed. By the ghost of his sister, Star?’ It sounded ridiculous, saying it aloud.

‘Soul,’ Lay muttered, frowning thoughtfully.

‘Hm?’

‘Rose is possessed by Star’s soul.’

‘But Star…’ Lily didn’t know how else to say it. ‘died…’ Xiumin blamed himself for killing her.

‘Physically, perhaps. Her soul evidently survived… just like Chen.’

Lily pursed her lips. ‘Does… this mean that what Xiumin saw that day was true?’

‘Some of it, for sure.’ Lay nodded. Lily sat in horrified silence. She’d only heard what Xiuimn had told her but even listening to it had been awful; the thought of going through those terrible visions over and over was bad enough on its own. That even a small chunk of it could be true…

‘That’s horrible!’ she exclaimed, feeling sick. Lay didn’t say anything.

‘Why did she… how was she able to possess Rose, though? I’m assuming she got out just like Chen did, but Chen had his body to return to. Why did she come to Rose?’

There was a strange look on Lay’s face, like he didn’t want to say anything. ‘What?’ she demanded. ‘What is it?’

‘It’s just a theory,’ Lay began pacifyingly. ‘But it’s the only thing I can think of that would explain it.’

Lily nodded, not sure if she could take any more bad news.

‘Chen’s body was an empty vessel, devoid of its soul. Anything could’ve possessed it, which is why Evil had been able to use him before we kicked him out.’

Lily did not like where that was going one bit. She shook her head but Lay didn’t stop. ‘Rose… well, I have a feeling that she’d all but left her body as well, which is why there was enough space for Star to…’

Bile rose to and she felt sick. ‘That’s why she wasn’t waking up.’

‘Well, yes.’ Lay sounded apologetic, like it was his fault somehow. ‘But then, Baekhyun borrowed my powers and did what he did, so everyone was healed. And Rose’s soul became strong enough to come back but Star was already there and so…’

‘She’s been possessed since she woke up.’ Lily finished.

‘This is just a theory, though.’ Lay ended, shrugging. ‘I might be completely wrong.’

Lily shook her head. Everything made sense this way. It also explained why none of them were able to pick on her possession immediately. But that meant…

‘She must’ve thought she was going crazy.’ Poor Rose, her baby. And she’d left her alone. Tears pricked at Lily’s eyes. ‘And I…’

Lay didn’t let her complete the sentence. ‘It’s not your fault, any more than it’s Xiumin’s fault that Star is possessing her.’

Lily didn’t necessarily agree with it but kept quiet. Instead she pushed off the covers to get up. She needed to see Rose but Lay, to her surprise, stood up as well. ‘We need to talk about you.’

‘But…’

‘Rose is sleeping. And with the night she’d had, I think it would be a good idea to let her rest before… well.’

Right. The Legends must have their questions too.   

‘I’m fine,’ she said, holding her arms out. ‘Been worse.’  

Lay bit his lip, staring at her before sighing. ‘Does he know?’

Lily blinked. ‘Who?’

‘Xiumin?’

She stared at the healer. ‘Come again?’

‘I’m assuming that,’ He pointed at her neck where the cloth had come loose, exposing the reddened bite mark, ‘is from Xiumin?’

‘What does that have to do with…?’ Oh. She tended to run a little fever these days and she’d passed out, after hugging Rose. ‘It’s not infected, I had it tested.’

‘I know that.’ Lay waved his hand dismissively. ‘But you should know better than to touch anyone in your state.’

‘How…?’

Lay ignored her. ‘I know your instinct is to comfort your family but try to keep it less physical,’ Lay was reprimanding, ‘Be glad that you just passed out and nothing worse happened. But if you do something like this again, I cannot guarantee anything.’

Assuming it was one of those things Lay just happened to know about – he was weird like that – she shrugged. Not that she liked the pain but, well… ‘You can heal me,’ she pointed out.

Lay shook his head. ‘I can’t even touch you, let alone heal. Can you even imagine how painful that would be?’

She could, actually. Lily grimaced. ‘I couldn’t just let her cry.’

‘You cannot help her if you’re indisposed.’ Lay stated plainly. She kept mum, knowing he was right.

Seeing how he seemed to understand what she was going through, she figured he knew whatever was going on. ‘What exactly is this? I mean, I know it looks like a bite mark but it’s not normal, right?’ She had her own theories, but she wanted to be sure.   

Lay shook his head. ‘Definitely not normal. It’s called the Beast’s mark and is basically a very primitive and very under-the-belt move on the beast’s part to make sure it doesn’t lose its mate to a rival beast.’

It took Lily a few moments to process that.

‘So… you’re telling me that he marked me?’ she clarified, ‘So that no one else could come close… and then, broke up with me?’ Irritation sparked inside her.

‘Yeah…’ Lay stretched the word out thoughtfully. ‘I’m not sure he realized he was doing this…’

Lily ignored him. ‘And then he had the nerve to tell me that I was not his mate, so I could suffer through this cycle of torture on my own?’

Lay merely blinked, not saying anything.

‘That son of a…’ she muttered, cursing Xiumin for all her worth. That , jerk, sonofa, how could he do this to her? She had been in so much pain, she’d seriously considered asking her doctor for morphine shots on multiple occasions. Lay let her curse to her heart’s content, only speaking when she’d run out of steam.

‘Keep the anger if it helps but I must tell you, this cannot go on much longer. Your body will- has started giving up.’

‘It’s unfair!’ she exclaimed, feeling like crying.

‘Of course, it is. That’s kind of the point.’

She slumped dejectedly, very angry and feeling very much like she’d burst into tears. First Leo, then Rose and now this? She’d had enough.

‘If it helps,’ Lay began comfortingly, making her look at him, ‘he’s suffering too.’

Lily snapped. ‘I’m sorry but I don’t see him curling up in pain because he accidentally brushed against someone!’

Lay smiled. ‘Perhaps not but right now, you’re his every fantasy come to life.’

Lily shut up abruptly, cheeks flushing. Of all the preposterous things to say! ‘What are you saying?’

‘Just that he cannot act on any of his instincts, if he wants to stand a chance with you.’ Lay wiggled his eyebrows meaningfully, looking a bit too much like Baekhyun. This sounded promising. Lily leaned forward. 

‘I’m listening.’

Lay smirked. ‘Why suffer alone when you can drag him with you?’

A smirk of her own began to form. ‘Thank you, I think I’ll do just that.’

‘You’re welcome.’ 

………………………………………………

A/N
How's everyone doing? I hope you enjoyed this update. How's everyone holding up with EXO's teasers for Don't Mess Up My Tempo? I'm so excited because it seems amazing! Speaking of amazing, has everyone seen Namanana? My man's been slaying me with this third album. I really really liked Give Me A Chance and last night, I saw his life performance which is amazing, just like him. And Namanana is a total bop, with an amazing beat and dance to boot. Like, can he stop? Actually, no, don't stop. We need his awesomeness to save the world.... and I'm rambling. But my point is, be ready to support the heck out of EXO when they comeback and in the meantime, support Lay with his solo activity. 

Okay then, I'll see you guys soon. Bye ^^