Demetrius
`First off, quit worrying your head,` Freddie's letter had said, step one and Florian had already failed. ~~Failure, useless, burden.~~ `There ain't nothing to worry about.` There was so much to worry about. That vision swam before his eyes again, claws crushing beloved bones, flesh torn from adored body. _STOP,_ he ordered his brain, his mind, whatever force had made him see those things. He didn't rightly know how he knew, but those weren't just fears. Just like the dreams of Valerian turning into a jet-black wolf had not been mere nightmares. Florian Angelo Barca was his full name, Angelo, angel, messenger of God. Florian wasn't sure it was God who was showing him those messages, but someone or something was, and Florian had a message that urgently needed delivery.

The Hirano residence loomed in the distance and Florian felt rocks settle in his abdomen. Would they even want to look at him after what he'd done? Would they chase him off, shoot at him like he may as well have done at them? Aki had been working on the cure, the very cure he'd been doubting. His own friend was a werewolf and he'd sat in her house talking about silver bullets as though they weren't designed to kill her. He'd made wolfsbane poison, not someone else, _him._ That had been all him, his horrid invention, made with help, but his sin in the end. Aki hadn't told him and he'd felt betrayed. Maybe it was really him who had betrayed her, unknowingly, perhaps unwillingly, but a traitor he was. 
_ _

They were going to find Freddie, they had to, but Florian didn't know if he'd be coming back, and he wanted to see Aki one last time. He had to try to apologize, to atone for his sins. Florian didn't deserve forgiveness, he knew that much, he didn't expect to be granted any kindness at all. Part of him wished the Hiranos would scream at him, to confirm what he already believed to be true, that he was a monster. But he wanted Aki to hear about the events from him and not someone else, he owed her that much, to try to look her in the eye as he delivered what he hoped, begged, prayed, were not Freddie's last words to her. He just hoped that Freddie hadn't come across another wolf, that Aki was still alive. That her blood was not amongst the red staining Florian's hands. It wasn't a noble color, that red, there was no righteousness in it, nor in the sickly black that had rained down on him that January night. In the end it was all the same blood, no matter the shade, no matter the source. It was all the blood of Briar Ridge. Of his home. Of Aki's home.

Florian felt conflicted; part of him was still so full of rage, but it felt _foreign_ somehow, the rest of him was submerged in sorrow, in grief, in self-hatred and in deep shame. His feelings fought one another inside his heart, a heart that was haphazardly stitched together with thread spun by Olivia Barca. She'd found him there on the ground, sprinted in and reached a hand to him just before he'd sunk into the darkest, most unreachable part of his sea. He'd cried until he had no more tears left. He didn't know how to feel, right now he just felt numb. He was nobody without his family, blood or otherwise. (Mako and Aki had once been family.) There he was, the only remaining living man who he'd looked at as something close to a father: Mako Hirano.
_ _

"Mako," His voice was weak, rough from crying, he felt his chest tighten as tears threatened to form again. Florian was unstable, incredibly so. "I-," He didn't know what to say. What should he say? _I'm sorry I looked at your daughter and saw a monster. I'm sorry my terror turned to rage and blinded me. I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to hold onto my humanity. I'm sorry I came into your house and spoke of killing as if it was a good thing. I'm sorry I created a weapon that could kill your only child. I'm sorry I doubted her without even knowing it was her. I'm sorry I poisoned people in my attempts to love them. I'm sorry that this town has so much hate. I'm sorry I'm here but I have to know. I need to know before I leave._ "Is she alive?" His breath shook. _Please let her be alive._
Carol
Home. What was home anymore? Surely these walls didn't feel like it, even though she felt the warm embrace of her father and her mother's presence. This was yet another full moon where she lived, where she had been able to hold her hunger at bay, where she hadn't committed an atrocity. But Jade had been shot, her screams and her begging to be put down like a dog were still fresh in her mind. 

Jade once told her she couldn't imagine a world without her. Aki? Aki knew what a world without Jade was like, she almost didn't make it out alive.

She couldn't help but wonder who'd done it, but even if she did know... Was she allowed to be angry?

Was a monster allowed to bare its fangs? When all it had done was to cause terror in the town? No, she couldn't become a monster in front of them, not in human flesh at least. 

The answer, the last piece of the puzzle had been unveiled for her. Akira wasted no time to just keep on working as she took a pencil to write on her diary, a name easily read to many turned into elegant Kana on the paper. 

Aki remained quiet, with both her legs crossed as she sat on the couch in her living room, stopping herself when she realized she had been biting into her cuticles and more. It was the hunger again, a price to pay for not taking another life. 

They only had a little more than a month left, Alma's rage reminded her of that. 

As Aki heard the knock on the door, she flinched a little. Ever since that day, she had become less excited about having guests. She cowered for a moment, watching her father shuffle across the room to answer, he had a gun and plenty of ammunition. He didn't need silver bullets. 

"...." There, Mako stood, glancing over the scratched and ruined paint on the wood before turning to Florian. His kind eyes looked hollow and exhausted, ready to fight a war he never asked for. His okasan often talked about how lucky he was to be too young to remember the Boshin War, and now there he was, gettin' old and

Tasting it for the first time. 

With not a whole lot to say, the old man searched Florian from head to toe for any kind of weapons he'd be carrying. He had been more than vocal about his views on werewolves, of course he had to make sure his daughter wouldn't go through _that_ again. Not in his home, nor as long as he lived.

Over the corner of his eye, he saw tears forming in the eyes of the youngest of the Barcas, that puzzled Mako, of course, his expression even managed to soften up a little bit. 

"Yes." He said. "She's alive. You didn't get to shoot her" Part of Mako thought Florian _would've loved to so_, but he bit his tongue.

What a relief, ain't it? Not quite yet, as the man crossed both his arms to still act as a human shield between him and the living room.

"What do you want from her?" 

Akira wasted no time to recognize Florian's voice, even if she faced the back of the doorway from her position in the couch.

"Flor..?" She spoke, her voice unchanged by the horrors, something admirable .... Or rather, it was almost scary how unchanged it sounded, how meek her mannerisms still were, it was the same gentle tone that'd turn into howling every full moon. 

"...If he just wants to talk... Let him in." 

Mako sighed, giving the young man room to get inside. He decided stay in the porch, armed to watch over his home, his family, his blood.
Demetrius
Aki and Mako had been there for him when both Valerian and Olivia had moved from Briar Ridge, leaving Florian alone. Florian, who feared abandonment and being left alone above all else, had been the one to abandon the Hiranos. He hadn't even known he was doing it. When the werewolves were just monsters, when he was able to pretend that there was not a person hidden deep inside the beast, it had been so easy to turn to killing. But now, he couldn't, not anymore. Perhaps it was weak, that it took his own brother being a werewolf to finally make him realize that the curse didn't discriminate, that it would take and take, that the Barcas were not the exception. Perhaps he was never as kind as people used to describe him, he had been ready to kill for that desperate loyalty to his siblings and to Freddie- _Freddie..._ His love had shot someone, for him, for Florian. That was _his_ fault. And now he was lost in those caves...

Florian allowed Mako to search him, he was unarmed, the rifle and pistol both had been placed in a crate in their shed. He sighed in relief when Mako told him Aki was alive, the remark about him shooting her stung like no other. He deserved it. He would have shot her had her wolf broken into the Lovejoy cabin, he knew he would have. He still didn't know how to navigate things next full moon, part of him just wanted those wolves to rip him apart. "I want to talk, to apologize, to-" His voice caught in his throat, Aki's voice came from inside the house. _Flor..._ How could she call him by a nickname, a sign of affection, after all he'd done? He suddenly felt hate inside him, along with disgust. There was a rage that wasn't his, he loved Aki and Mako like family, he didn't feel this way towards them, he knew he didn't. Then why did he feel such malice now? He rolled across the threshold and suddenly felt the anger leave again. _What on earth is goin' on with me..._
_ _

There he was, inside the house where he'd spent so much time the first time Valerian left. This time he didn't come bearing anger or resentment, this time he came bearing sorrow and sins. He didn't understand why Aki was so calm. He didn't understand why Mako hadn't screamed at him to get out of his sight. Perhaps they were just better people than Florian could ever hope to be. He had believed he'd been doing the right thing, but looking at Aki now, thinking of Valerian, he couldn't have been more wrong. Demanding blood for blood wasn't justice. Revenge would not fix any of this. How easily terror corrupts a mind...

"Aki..." He started, unsure where to even begin. "I-" Tears formed in his eyes. "I'm so sorry for who I've become." He couldn't even look her in the eyes, all he felt was shame and heartbreak. "For what I've said, for hurtin' you. I know it's much too late now, and I know I ain't deservin' of none of your forgiveness but I-" He couldn't hold the tears back anymore. "Aki I ain't never regretted somethin' more." He'd placed a death sentence on his brother, he'd gotten Freddie attacked, he'd betrayed one of his closest friends. Florian Barca, once kind and gentle, was a traitor. "It's, it's Freddie," He stuttered. "I'm goin' ta bring him home, I have to, but he-he left a letter, there was a note for you, I need to-I need to tell you." He probably didn't make much sense to Aki, rambling as he was, but Florian hadn't been thinking straight since the full moon. Thinking about Freddie out there, it broke him. "I-I wrote it down, I wrote-" It was just one line of text, but Florian had feared he wouldn't be allowed into the house. A trembling hand held out a small piece of paper. 
`I'm sorry we never got to have that tea party.` Words he feared were amongst Freddie's last. "I never wanted to hurt you, Aki, and neither did he."

|| he's all sorts of messed up I fear
Carol
Akira was fixated on her diary, but only momentarily after Florian got inside. She looked up, only to meet with the eyes of someone stripped away of their hatred, replaced by anguish and horror, two kinds of poison. The woman sat there, listening to the poor man's broken words as they tried to make sense. No, something changed.

She blinked a few times. What on Earth happened to him? Freddie? Did something happen to him? Did he get attacked in their safehouse? 

'I'm so sorry for who I've become.' Becoming what, exactly? Florian's hatred against her kind were more than justified, wasn't it? Akira was no human, she was a traitor who became an asset to Briar Ridge, a pawn in a bigger puzzle to find the cure, a poor attempt for her to redeem her own sins. 

Akira looked at the piece of paper, her head tilting before she grabbed it. 

" Florian. I am a threat, I know that fact after being told multiple times, after being branded a traitor, after being this... Thing for almost nine months, I know I can't be near the rest of the town. You wanted to get rid of all of us, didn'tcha? What made you change your mind so suddenly?" 

Her words didn't come with resentment despite how sharp they were. Akira was simply laying out a fact, backed up by evidence of all the destruction she and the pack had brought upon. She didn't deserve to be angry, nor cry like Alma or Florian did.

Didn't Aki have people to return home to after each full moon? Of course she did. Mako waited for her, Mitica always sighed in relief when he found out she survived, and now Jade... Sweet Jade... The night before the full moon they spent it together... They never left each others side, looking into the sky with dread as the dark sky tainted the ridge. 

They shared a long, goodbye kiss, a hug that they both wished it lasted an eternity. Akira begged Jade to follow her, but the later thought she could be restrained somewhere else. 

Didn't their love have the same value as

Florian and Freddie? 

Love, it was the only thing that made them feel human.

Akira took the piece of paper and read it. Her expression softened. Right, their tea party. It never came to fruition, Aki wondered if it was because Freddie already knew.

He must had been so disappointed, as his hatred only filled his heart even more.

"...W-what's the meaning of this?...Is he... Is he okay? Did one of us attack him?"

Akira had no idea. She had no idea of their mission, the plan where, had Freddie found their hiding place, could had ended with the pack being exterminated... Or with him dead.
Demetrius
_You wanted to get rid of us all, didn't cha?_ A dagger driven into his heart by the loving hand of Aki, a woman he considered a friend, a woman who now saw him for what he really was: _Poison. A traitor. A murderer. A monster._ 

He _had_ wanted that, had he not? He had wanted them all gone, so that Briar Ridge could be safe again. So that Briar Ridge could sleep through the full moon nights without their hearts racing at every sound, without their lives hanging in the balance, a delicate scale that monstrous claws could so easily tip this way or that. Selfishly, so that his family could stop cleaning blood from their floors and carpets every month, so that Freddie never had to see that violence, never had to experience looking into the yellow eyes of something that could kill you in an instant without much effort at all.

He had felt nothing but hate for the werewolves. It was a hate deeply rooted in fear, a hate spurred on by _something_ outside his control, but hatred nonetheless, and it had poisoned him. Florian hadn't known, and still didn't know anything about the cure, other than the fact that even thinking about it made him feel sick to his stomach. There had been no evidence that it had been real, and so he turned to the only other option he found when he was blindly reaching for a semblance of safety: violence. He had regarded the wolves as wholly separate from the person they sprung from. How wrong he had been.
_ _

"You ain't the threat Aki, _I am._" It had been him who created the wolfsbane poison, who's love had spurred Freddie on to go out there. Florian may never have shot a werewolf, may never have done anything beyond slash at one with a butterknife, but his actions had led to harm. He'd spurred on the violence inside Ruth, inside Freddie, inside God only knows who else. "It's Val he-," His voice broke. _It's my fault, I killed him._ "He's _gone._ He left me a letter, said he was a werewolf and he's, he's lookin' for the cure, he, he left. It's my fault, Aki, he's goin' to, to get shot because of me. I got him c-cursed, I got him killed, I ain't never wanted that-" Please let him be safe. Please. _Please._ "-not then and not now, and I ain't _never_ wanted to, to kill you either," He said, tears rolling down his cheeks, following the barely dried paths of those he'd shed earlier. "I was so blind, t-this whole time." Blinded by hate, by fear, by being surrounded with those who craved revenge the same as he did, by being unable to see the bigger picture; stained with blood both black and red. "I'm sorry it took me this, this long to start seein' again." He just hoped it wasn't too late.
_ _

"I don't know. I don't know if he's okay. He's still o-out there. He, he got attacked, he tried ta hide, he did, he didn't want to s-shoot that wolf, but, there, there's more, it's **Worse**," He stammered. Freddie _had_ been attacked. Florian didn't know how exactly, but he was certain of that. He had _seen_ it happen, muffled and hazy but he saw it nevertheless. The crunch of bones, the cry of pain, the sound of a bullet shot, hitting its mark. Freddie had tried to hide, it hadn't been the wolf he was after, and it still came for him. And it was Florian's fault he was out there to begin with. "He went out to the c-cave, Aki, I couldn't stop him, I tried, I did, Aki I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. It's all my fault," He said, overwhelmed by guilt again. "H-he, he tried to, to hide. He didn't want, want to shoot that wolf. I swear!" But he had wanted to shoot another wolf, to protect Florian. This wasn't Freddie's fault, this was his. _Don't be mad at him, be mad at me, yell, scream, hurt me if you must, but **Please** Don't be angry with Freddie._

|| gonna lay on the floor now
Carol
A traitor, a monster, a murderer. Akira was those things, not Florian. Half the town hated her for good reason. The coalition were heroes who wished to eradicate the infestation and protect their families, weren't they? It was Briar Ridge that was in danger, and she wasn't part of it anymore. 

There were to sides in this brewing war, and Aki didn't want to fight it, not like her father was.

She closed her journal to pay more attention to Florian and put it down, the same journal she had translated the more important entries to Val himself. He knew of her vision. The young woman didn't even flinch at the revelation that the oldest of the Barcas had been cursed. She knew it all and more. What she didn't know, was of their plan for revenge. 

Freddie was sent to the cave kill to them all, the only place where werewolves could hide to stop themselves from hurting the good people of Briar Ridge.

Freddie shot Jade. Her cries still rattled in her head, loud as ever.

_'Just kill me! Make this end! Just fucking kill me!'_

He shot her. 

_'Kill me...!! End it now!'_

It was him.

Akira's hand curled into a fist, it tightened around the note, it looked as if a vein would pop outta her neck at any moment, yet she said nothing. She swallowed her vile, held back her tears. The beast had its leash tightened around its neck, its teeth were pulled.

"Let me tell you, Flor... This ain't your fault."

Akira stood up, her expression was hard to read, yet her voice ever so quiet.

" I know about Val." She said. "I've known he was family when I sniffed him out in the hospital back in January. I had to tell him myself... Not everyone knows they're cursed until they shift an' start feasting on their family... The curse doesn't care, no one is an exception to it. I didn't want that to happen to him. He said he wanted to help in the cure, I'm not surprised he left. He probably wanted to open up the possibilities and finding new options. I've found everyone who can make it, we know

The cure works now... But it ain't gonna be as easy to concoct as we thought it would be."

A sacrifice, something Akira wanted nothing to do with it. Hadn't Briar Ridge buried enough bodies already? Why kill an innocent soul to save the lives of many? One could make the argument that the Abram twins deserved it, but Akira herself didn't believe she could take the cure like this. Her soul was tainted enough.

"Freddie... H-he went to the cave knowing the dangers... Of us.." Aki said, her voice trying not to sound accusatory, instead she wanted to be soothing. If this was gonna be the last time she'd see Florian, she didn't want this to be a fight.

"If he found us, we would've known... I don't remember my time as a wolf, but I know if I ever sank my teeth on someone... When I shifted back, I saw no Freedie in there, no signs of struggle or battle, not even silver bullets. Chances are... He never reached us." 

Their mission was a total failure from the beginning, Freddie didn't even get to the werewolves lair. 

"This ain't your fault, Flor. We hurt you... Hurt Val, we tried to stop ourselves from doing so but our hunger was stronger." 

Hunger, that hunger, Akira knew it was coming at her for holding it at bay. She felt the pit in her stomach, the empty void that couldn't be satiated.

She had to reject the calling, soon she would pay for it, she could see it on her bitten cuticles.

_'He didn't want, want to shoot that wolf. I swear!'_

"Don't be sorry... I-I don't deserve to be angry." Akira continued, her voice quivering. "I don't even... Deserve to shed tears for what I've done."

Even if she repeated that it wasn't his fault, it looked as if Aki were to crumble at any moment. Florian and Freddie wanted to kill them, that fact weighted on her heavily She'd understand if they saw no humanity in her, but Jade? Her Jade? She was innocent until April attacked her. 

Akira fought to push the thought away. 

"How did ya know Freddie didn't wanna shoot her? Were you there?"
Demetrius
Aki said it wasn't his fault. She was lying. She had to be. There was no way this wasn't his fault. It had to be his fault. If it wasn't his then it was the fault of Freddie or Valerian or a werewolf and he couldn't blame them. He could never get himself to be angry at Freddie. He could never accept that Valerian was to blame. But he had to blame someone, he had to point that accusatory finger somewhere and the only acceptable person on that guilt-ridden list was himself. It _had_ to be his fault, he couldn't accept that it was someone else's. If he couldn't be useful as a person he would serve a purpose as a scapegoat.

He looked up in shock when Aki told him that she'd known about Valerian. That Valerian had known about Aki in return. The pain inside him found a tucked-away corner where a yet-undestroyed part of him had taken refuge, and smashed it to pieces. Neither of them had said anything. Neither of them had deemed Florian **Enough** To be trusted, to be let in, to help. _I could have done somethin'! Does nobody see how hard I am tryin'! Why does nobody believe that I am anything but a broken child!_ Why would nobody let him help... Why did nobody tell him anything... Did they all truly believe he was nothing but a burden... Was he really right in that fear... The small part of him that still clung to the belief that he was useful, that he could add to the world, that he was worth taking up space, was it really wrong, was it truly feeding him false hope? _They would all be better off with me gone..._ 
_ _

"Why didn't he tell me..." He couldn't blame them, could he? Florian would have found some way to ruin things. Maybe he truly was nothing but a discarded, broken toy, the adults were talking now, who did he think he was trying to meddle in their affairs? _This doesn't concern you, Florian._ People had always kept things hidden from him, why would this be any different? _This isn't up for debate, Florian._ Why had he fooled himself into believing that this time things would change, that this time maybe, _just maybe_, he'd have performed his tricks well enough to be looked at as an adult capable of independent function, and allowed to have a voice? _I will not have this discussion with you, Florian._ The Coalition hadn't listened to him, Valerian hadn't listened to him for months, Freddie hadn't listened to him. He wondered why he still kept trying.

It was settled then, he would say goodbye to Aki and go into those woods to find Freddie, and it wouldn't matter if he did not come back. JD, Dallas, Ruth, and Owen would need him for information, and if that voice required a sacrifice, Florian would be there to serve that purpose. His life for Freddie's, it was a simple trade, one he'd make without any hesitance. 

"Aki, I could have killed you," He reminded her. "Any of us could have. You deserve to be so much more than just _angry._" He didn't understand why she wasn't screaming at him to get out, why she didn't wish for him, for all of those who thought like him, to drop dead on the spot. 
_ _

"I _saw_ him," He said, knowing he must sound crazy. That Aki likely wouldn't continue listening if she processed what he was saying. He sped up, not giving her the time to kick him out before he'd said what he needed to say. "I don't rightly know how, but I know it was him and I know I was there, I saw him hide in that cave and then that wolf-" A broken sob interrupted him and he felt anger again, but this time it was his own. Why couldn't he stop crying, why was he so weak! _Stop!_ A strangled sound of anger slipped past his lips. He had to tell Aki about this, he had to! "Aki I've been seein' things, things I cain't explain. I've seen Valerian turn, I just thought they was nightmares. I had this _dream,_ there was a lady's voice, and and-" He gasped, trying to gain control over his voice again. 

"I heard it again, it spoke to Freddie, I-I tried to tell him not to light that candle, that she was lyin', but I lost sight of him then. I don't know where he is, I don't know what it means, I don't know what's happenin' to me." He was scared. He was so scared. "But I know Freddie ain't wanted to shoot that wolf, that weren't the one that attacked Valerian and me. He only shot it when it was on, on top o' him, tryin' to-to _k-kill_ him." He couldn't speak anymore, the screams of his love echoed through his mind, reminding him of Freddie's pain. Pain that he had caused.
Carol
"Why didn't he tell me..." To that, Akira didn't know how to respond. Knowing Valerian, one would think he'd tell his family about it all, but he kept it a secret. It was him who stopped her from giving herself into the coalition, yet it was him who killed Eli, he didn't vote for the cure to be searched and found, he refused to follow the pack to the cave.
Val's actions and moves puzzled the woman, there had been a few times where she had lashed out at people, raised her voice, the oldest of the Barcas had to see it when confronted.

Velerian wasn't the exception he thought he was. They were all followed by the same shadow, their hands had been stained in blood.

"I-I could've killed you all, too. I have no control over my actions as a werewolf and I might be as good as dead while I'm turned into it..."

Speaking of shadow-

"You saw Freddie... And... And Jade?" Akira didn't show skepticism, rather, she raised an eyebrow in pure curiosity(and shock), as Florian unraveled what he knew. She had no filter to reveal that it was Jade who went for Freddie, that it was her who he shot. Of course her lover wouldn't do this out of malice, it was all hunger. Everyone knew that she would never hurt a fly.

 But if Florian knew what he saw, that begged the question, was he like her? Was Florian some kind of witch? No, something about his visions don't match up with hers. 

The mention of the candle struck something in Akira, as Mitica's voice recounted the steps to follow for the cure ritual.

_Only light the candle. She will be beholden to finish Her end of the ritual for as long as She remains lit. Entrust the task of lighting Her wick and guarding Her to one you trust. They need not be of witch's blood, but one whose soul is resolute is necessary. She will lie. Do not let Her. _

"Flor... I believe you." Now Akira stood right in front of the youngest Barca sibling. Human and Beast. Seer and... Who was Florian, now?

The woman then grabbed him by the shoulders. "What else did you see? The candle... What did she do to Freddie after she was lit?"
Demetrius
"I know you don't have control..." He admitted. He'd known since the beginning of April that the werewolves couldn't control their wolf under a full moon, that it was the wolf who craved destruction, not the person. But he still struggled to believe it, still struggled to accept that people didn't remember anything, that nothing they'd tried had worked. That people stayed despite knowing they'd hurt others, time and time again. Florian didn't know if he would ever understand. He didn't know if he could ever forgive the person who hurt his brother. Even if the werewolves weren't willing, the pain they caused was very real. The intent or lack thereof didn't change the fact that his right leg was covered in jagged scars. The hunger in those yellow eyes didn't lessen because the person trapped inside didn't want it. The blood spilled on the floor of his house, the shattered windows, doors and walls didn't magically become whole again because those infected were unwilling. He didn't know how to feel, and he wouldn't know how to feel for quite some time. But he knew he didn't want to hurt Aki, or Jade, or Valerian, or Rhett. But something inside him, something had buried its hateful teeth into his heart, and that _something_ did want to hurt them. 

"_Jade?_ I-I just saw a wolf, not the same one what hurt me. Was that Jade? _Shit,_ Aki did he shoot Jade..." Good. It was good that he shot her. That monster tried to kill Freddie, it was the least she deserved. He should feel angry, he should feel rage. Those beasts had hurt his family. Those monsters took Valerian from him. Aki could have been the one who killed Valerian. Why was he sitting here and apologizing to her! His own scarred leg could have been her doing! _No. No. No, that wasn't right. She was, **Is** His friend. Aki is his friend._ Can those monsters truly be your friend, if they look at you as food? _Stop it! Aki wouldn't even kill a bug if it wandered into her house._
_ _

Aki grabbed his shoulders and Florian was briefly snapped out of his spiral. She'd asked him a question. He could answer that, yes, he could do that. "There was a, a circle of stones, I seen it in another dream before," He began, confused at Aki's sudden urgence. He wiped his tears away, a useless action, the moment he'd done it, new ones had already started forming. "The cave it was, _humming,_ reacted to Freddie's blood I think." He had been bleeding, all alone. His little violet, injured and lost. "It was hard to focus," He explained, his voice shaking. "Some type, type of altar, I think I saw human bones there but I cain't rightly be sure," He confessed. He'd been too focused on trying to hold on, whatever had been talking to his love had not wanted Florian there.

"She? The, the candle?" He asked. "I reckon he did light it, I couldn't stop Freddie. I called out to him but I, I-" _"Violet!"_ "I got sent away, Aki. I couldn't hold on, I tried to stop him, I promise, I tried... I tried, but I wasn't strong enough." He'd abandoned Freddie in that cave. _I'm so sorry Freddie._ "She promised she was goin'ta guide, guide him. I ain't trust that voice none, but Freddie, you know him, he's, he's so kind and carin'. He trusted her. I don't know what she did. Aki, what do you mean _do to him?_ What is goin' on? Is he gone? I don't want him to be gone..." I don't want to live without him... I want him back. Give him back! 

Aki and Florian. Werewolf and human. Seer and... He didn't quite know either.
Carol
Something about Florian didn't seem quite right when Akira tried to meet his gaze. Something about the way his voice sounded as he came to the realization that Freddie had shot her lover, the energy she felt in her own house, the way youngest of the Barca's didn't seem to be quite... There, at least not until he came back to his senses to give her answers.

And boy did Aki get answers. 

"An altar... Human bones... The candle.." The woman let go off Florian's shoulders. She pondered, hard, tapping the side of her head as if something was _connecting_ in her brain. 

Yes, of course Akira knew Freddie. He was kind, he was loving. But that was in the past, wasn't it? It was his choice to have the resolution within his soul to kill her and everyone in the cave, he shot Jade. He made the stupidest decision into going there, alone, where werewolves tried to hide from hurting their loves ones, to not hurt Briar Ridge, to not hurt people like Freddie even if he wanted them all dead.

Freddie wanted her dead, but she wouldn't give him or the coalition the pleasure of pulling the trigger. If her life were to end, it'd be by her own hand if the cure couldn't be found. 

"He sure started something..." She said, turning back to Florian, feeling _heavy_ just by looking at him. 

"You see, the cure... It's a- more than just concocting medicine. It's a ritual, and Freddie may have found one of the locations needed for it. What I don't understand is why-or how, it was able to react to his presence... I thought we were supposed to follow steps!..But, I believe in you, Flor, because I too can see things... I see people's true nature every full moon."

And that begged the question. Who was Florian Barca now? If only she could see through him now..

 She took a deep breath. "No wonder you want to go and find him, he might still be in that altar?..."

Akira lifted her one index finger up, pointing to herself.

" I'd love to go with you,

Regardless of how Freddie sees me, I know to him I'm no longer a person... But the last thing I can do now, it's my way to make up for my own sins."