As soon as we stepped out of the building and into the sunlight, Rias started to shift in my arms as if she was waking up from passing out.

"Wh-"

"Shhhhh, it's just me, Erin, Rias," I said, interrupting her with my voice barely above a whisper with a shake of my head. I picked up my pace until I was at a slow jog, and Stephen started to follow me, not asking me any questions because he knew that something was happening with her. "You passed out in the cage and almost injured yourself more than you already are."

Rias sighed annoyed but seemed to relax as soon as I told her it was me, and she rested her head on my shoulder. "Why am I covered in a blanket?" she asked, and I had a feeling that she closed her eyes. "It is stuffy in here."

I bit back a small chuckle and nodded, knowing full well that it was going to be stuffy underneath the blanket. "Unfortunately, we had to move you from where you were held to somewhere else. I didn't want to get hurt by you attacking me by accident whenever you woke up."

Rias narrowed her eyes and scowled, and she shifted a little but didn't try to get out of the blanket. "And where are you taking me?" she asked coldly, and I could tell that she did not like this at all or trust me that much.

"My apartment," I replied. "I have stuff there that will hopefully help you and to give you some comfort that you are going to need."

Rias scoffed a laugh and rolled her eyes. "I only need fire," she said tiredly, biting back a tired sigh. "I am able to heal myself with fire so that is all I am going to need."

"Then it's a good thing that I have a fireplace in my apartment; isn't it?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question while I looked at the bulge in my blanket, even though I knew that she couldn't see it.

"And why are you wanting a fire in the fireplace?" Stephen asked, jumping into the conversation between Rias and me. He looked around before he looked at me with a small frown on his face. "It's hot."

I rolled my eyes and scowled, pressing my lips into a thin line. "Very funny, Stephen," I grumbled. "It's what she needs to be able to help herself heal."

Stephen looked at the blanket where Reias laid before he looked at me. "She can do that?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question, and I couldn't help but roll my eyes and scowl, pressing my lips into a thinner line.

"Yes, Stephen," I said sarcastically. "That is exactly what she said she can do. Why would I say it if that isn't something that I haven't been told?'

Stephen rolled his eyes and set his jaw, pressing his lips into a thin line. "Very funny, Ernie," he said with a small grumble in his voice. "There is no need to be sarcastic."

I rolled my eyes and scowled, biting back a tired sigh while I shook my head. "There is always a time for sarcasm if you are going to say stupid things."

Stephen stared at me and slowly blinked before he shook his head. "Fine," he said and started to leave my side, letting me be by myself with the bird in my arms that we were trying to help. "Be that way."

I rolled my eyes, and my scowl grew deeper while I grew annoyed with him. I didn't say a word while I continued to jog toward my apartment without him beside me, even though I had a feeling that he was going to trail after me.

If he wanted to be this way, then fine. I didn't need his help anyway...

"Is that stupid boy gone and finally leaving us alone?" Rias asked and shifted ever so slightly, trying to get her head from underneath the blanket so that she could see where we were going and what was going on around her.

"He'll be back," I said with a shake of my head, knowing full well that he wouldn't be gone for long. "Don't move your head from underneath the blanket, Rias. I know it is annoying, but nobody knows that I took you out of the cage except for my father. You could cause a lot of panic amongst us humans, and I do not need that. We had way too much excitement here already today."

I picked up my pace some more while I rolled my eyes and scowled, and Rias sighed and closed her eyes while she stopped moving and trying to get out from underneath the blanket, much to my relief.

"And what happened?" she asked. "What fun did you all have to deal with before I somehow found my way here?"

"Kid fell into the gorilla enclosure and almost got caught by the main male gorilla," I said before I bit back a small sigh and rolled my eyes, pursing my lips in annoyance. "I still have to do a report on that, but I want to take care of you first."

"Hmph." She chuckled. "Is the boy hurt?"

"Minor scrapes and bruises, so nothing major," I replied and shrugged, glancing around to make sure that I was still "alone" because I didn't want anyone to hear about what had happened to me or him. "He'll be fine, though."

"Who will be fine?" Stephen asked, appearing beside me a second time like I thought he would, much to my amusement. "Are you talking about the boy?"

"Great," Rias said, and I couldn't help but bite back a small snort because I could tell that she did not like him at all. "He's back. Yay."

"Yes, I am talking about the hoy," I said, trying but failing to hide the chuckle that wanted to escape my tight lips. "I am happy that he is safe."

Stephen scowled and narrowed his eyes when he heard the chuckle that was in my voice. "Why are you chuckling, Erin?" he asked and narrowed his eyes further. "What did I do?"

"Nothing," I said and shook my head, biting back another small chuckle. "Why did you leave me alone?"

"Because you are being mean to me, duh," he said and gave me a pointed look and raised both eyebrows in unison, and I rolled my eyes and scowled, pressing my lips into a thin line. "Did the bird say anything about me?"

"Shs is pleased and so excited that you are back near us," I said and gave him a sarcastic look, and Rias scoffed and rolled her eyes while Stephen wrinkled his nose and pursed his lips in annoyance.

"I am not," she said with a small grumble in her voice. "Why would you say that to him?"

"I guess she isn't my biggest fan then, huh? What did I do? I didn't do anything to her. Heck, I didn't even put her in the cage."

"He was there when I was brought into the room. He told those other people to put me in the cage and then left without saying another word to them even while they were struggling to put me in there," Rias said coldly. "It was his character that made me not like him."

"She says that you were there when she was brought into that room. You told our other coworkers to put her in the cage and then left without saying another word to them, even while they struggled to put her in there," I said. "It's your character that has her not liking you."

Stephen wrinkled his nose and pursed his lips in annoyance. "Ya... I was trying to find you," he said and rubbed the back of his neck, sheepishly. "I knew that if anyone could calm down an animal then it would be you, especially with Rias's wing being the way that it is."

"Hmph." I pressed my lips into a thin line, and a look of worry filled my body for the people that were helping her. "Did anyone get hurt?"

"Not bad," Rias said and shook her head, biting back a tired sigh. "I only did minor scratches to them before I was sedated by something that they had given me. When I woke up, everyone was gone, and I was on this little wooden thing. I flew as best as I could to that branch, where you saw me when you entered the room, planning my escape."

"Only minor scratches," Stephen said and shook his head. "She was sedated and left on the little wooden platform before everyone was told to get out of the cage and those that were hurt were told to get checked out. The vet wants some of her blood to make sure that there isn't anything contagious or whatever, but I think that is the least of our worries."

Rias grew tense and was about to squawk, but she stopped as soon as I shifted her from side to side, silencing her. "Ow," she said with a small hiss in her voice. "What was that for, Erin? I thought you were a friend."

"I am a friend," I said and nodded, "and I am sorry that I had hurt you when I did that. However, you were about to squawk loudly, and I do not think it would have been a good idea."

"And why not?" Rias asked and narrowed her eyes, and she started to grow slightly warmer in the blankets as if she was trying to break free from them. "Why was it a bad idea for me to squawk?"

"Because we are still out in the open, and no one knows that you are in the blankets," I said with a small hiss in my voice, narrowing my eyes. "Now, would you stop moving and stop heating up, please? You are safe. Ok? I am going to make sure that you get healed as soon as we get to my apartment."

"And Isaiah is going to meet you there," Steephen said, and I glanced at him from the corner of my eye. "He wants to see the bird and make sure that she is safe."

Rias sighed, and the heat from her disappeared as fast as it came while she grew weaker with each passing second. "Tell your friend that I am not going to hurt anyone and that I apologize for what I have done to the others."

I nodded and pressed my lips into a thin line while I picked up my pace until I was going faster than I had in the past, making sure that I was not hurting her, and Stephen followed my lead and picked up his pace. "She says that she isn't going to hurt anyone else and that she apologizes for what she had done to the others before this," I said.

Stephen nodded and pressed his lips into a thin line. He didn't say a word and set his jaw, and I could tell he was worried about the bird just as much as me.

Oh, Gods, please keep her safe and let her live so that we could get her home safe and sound...