Tristan found Kira in her usual spot. She was tending to a sunflower at the back of her greenhouse, where an intense circle of light had managed to form. Her hair shimmered in brilliant waves of gold whenever she stepped inside, then darkened to its normal orangey state when she left it. She looked up when Tristan approached and wrinkled her nose.

"Yes?" She asked, immediately turning back to her flower.

Tristan swallowed. "I'm leaving."

"Uh huh," said Kira, half paying attention. "When are you getting back?"

"I don't think I will be."

This time, Kira stopped. "What?" She spun around and crossed her arms. "Do you mean you're leaving for good?"

"That's exactly what I mean." Tristan kicked a bag of soil underneath the table.

Kira pursed her lips for a moment, then brushed past him to the door. It shut with a loud click. "When?"

Tristan shrugged. "Soon as possible."

"Are you gonna give me a reason? Considering that we're about to start moving against the King." Kira flipped her hair over one shoulder. "Or just vanish like my brother did?"

Despite having the emotional intelligence of a bag of soil, Tristan shuddered. "That sounded harsh."

Kira shook her head slightly. "It was. Because I'm actually kinda mad now."

Tristan stepped around her and opened the door. "Don't be. I'll be gone by morning. Then you won't have to pretend to care anymore."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kira shouted, grabbing Tristan's shoulder and spinning him around. "You think I bother to pretend to care about people?"

"You're half the reason I'm leaving, Kira." Tristan growled, literally.

"Oh, that's nice." said Kira. "Any other insults you wanna throw before ditching?"

A low rumble sounded in Tristan's throat, but only momentarily. "No. And I'm going because I don't belong here. Everyone knows it. I'd rather be out in the forest, even if it's with a pack of wild dogs. Sorry I can't help you with the King, but my kind shouldn't mix with yours."

Kira didn't say anything, so he walked back up towards the house. Kira was about to storm back into the greenhouse and let him go, but then she got a better idea.

"Hey." She caught him before he went inside. "What if I came with you? Who knows, maybe we'll find a pack of werewolves."

Tristan's eyes narrowed. "You don't want to. You wouldn't leave your friends. Or Harley. You have a mission to complete."

"Please." Kira rolled her eyes. "I spend ninety percent of my time in a concrete box growing plants. If you don't belong here, neither do I." She tipped her head to the side. "Besides, I'm not giving you a choice."

Tristan snarled. "Didn't you hear what I said? You're half the reason I'm going in the first place."

Kira let out a growl of her own. "I don't get it! I don't get you. You've literally followed around me like a puppy recently, and now you can't wait to get away from me?"

"That's not what I said." Tristan countered, to which Kira scoffed.

"Then what is it?" She asked, stepping forward. "Don't tell me you're neglected, because you know how valuable you are to the team. And you're fully aware that you're appreciated and acknowledged here. If anything, you abuse that by running away all the time and returning days later. So what, the hell, is it."

"I don't know how I feel about you!" Tristan suddenly shouted.

The following few moments were silent, until Kira squinted. "What... do you mean?"

Tristan's body quivered slightly, like a jolt of electricity had run through him. "I don't know. And I'd appreciate it if we didn't talk about this." His body started visibly shaking.

Kira recognised the warning, but pressed her luck anyway. "Is a werewolf thing, or a human thing?"

This seemed to calm Tristan down a bit, as he slowly stopped shaking. "Werewolf, I think. The first time I saw you, something... clicked, in my head. I had this weird feeling that I needed to be around you. To protect you." He looked down at his hands, where a set of sharp claws were slowly shrinking back into his skin. "I only started following you now because it got stronger after the whole battle thing. I guess fighting together made a difference. Either way, I hate what I can't understand. So, I'm leaving. And I'm not coming back until I know what's wrong with me."

Kira closed her eyes. "Humans would call it something stupid, like a crush." She studied Tristan closely. "But I don't think so. Whatever it is, it sounds like a bond of some sort. And I think leaving would only make it worse."

Tristan furrowed his eyebrows. "And what makes you an expert?"

"Don't start." Kira warned. "I don't want to hear it."

"Then what do you want?" Tristan asked. "What do you want me to do? I'm not staying, so you can rule that out."

Kira thought for a moment, then nodded. "If you won't stay, then I want to come with you. Whatever you're feeling, it involves me too. And truth be told, I don't like the idea of you out there by yourself."

"I do it all the time."

"Do I look like I care?"

Tristan shrugged. "Fine. You ready to go?"

Kira hesitated for a moment. "Gimme a few minutes to talk to Harley. Actually, meet me by the tree line."

Tristan shrugged, then jogged off down the hill towards the forest.

---------

"Sorry for storming out." Ruby said to Harley after the meeting. "I just didn't want to think about it. 'Stella going mad, I mean."

"I'm sure she's not mad." Joel reassured her. "There's got to be a way to bring her back, right?"

Harley shrugged. "I'm no expert on sociopathic grandfathers. However, I don't think she's mad either. She's stronger than that. In fact, I honestly thought she was dead for a while so in a way, I'm relieved. We just have to keep reminding ourselves that she's in there somewhere, and we'll do whatever it takes to bring her back."

Ruby took a deep breath and nodded. "I get it. Seeing your family suffer is just hard to deal with. But, this line of work is never easy, is it."

Harley and Joel both chuckled.

"Right you are." Joel said before placing a kiss on her forehead. "But that's why we love it."

"And as someone who's actually lost a loved one," Harley put in, "I'm here if you need to talk about anything."

A ghost of a smile appeared on Ruby's lips. "Thanks."

At that point, Kira emerged from the back yard and approached the group in the kitchen. "Hey guys, can I talk to Harley alone for a minute?"

"Sure." Joel replied, taking Ruby's hand. "We'll be out the front."

The two siblings watched them go, then Harley slumped on the counter and faced Kira.

"So what's up?" He asked.

Kira sighed. "Tristan's leaving. He doesn't belong here, we all know it, and I'm going to help him find somewhere to stay."

Harley blinked a few times. "Um. Are you serious?"

"Duh." Kira rolled her eyes. "I won't be gone for long, hopefully, but we'll have to count Tristan out of the battle plan."

"Hang on." Harley held up a hand. "Are you sure he wants to leave? And you? Especially now of all times. Can't he just talk to me about it?"

"He could," said Kira. "But we all know he's not much of a talker. Besides, surely you've noticed that he's not the type of person to work with a group of criminals."

"I have." Harley admitted. "And I understand. It just lowers our manpower significantly." He sighed. "I know it's selfish to only think about his powers, so if he wants to leave, I have no problem with it. What I am concerned about-" he poked Kira in the sternum- "is you going out there while the Shadow Court is around."

Instead of a snarky comment, Harley received a hug. "You know I'll be fine. The Chase family is invincible, remember? And I'm not disregarding all of our problems, I'm just prioritising something else because I know you can handle this while I'm gone."

Harley chuckled, hugging his sister back. "Yeah, I know. Just be careful, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever." Kira broke away, smiling. "I'll be back in time, that's a promise."

Harley nodded. "Got it."

And without another word, Kira left.

---------

Tristan watched her walk down the hill, auburn hair glowing in the sunset. He wasn't thrilled about having a companion, but at least Kira was tolerable. He also wanted to make sure she was safe, so keeping her by his side was the best option. Not that he'd ever tell her.

"Ready to go?" She asked upon reaching the tree line. "It's getting dark, so you'd better let me sleep on your furry back."

"What?" Tristan raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, get over yourself!" Kira snapped. "I'm sleeping on you, not with you!"

Tristan growled quietly. "Whatever, can we go now?"

"Yes. God." Kira said, gesturing for him to lead the way. "Let's go find you a pack."

"Or at least a nice cave." Tristan added, already making a path through the trees.

Kira turned back for a moment and silently prayed for her team before following him into the forest.