"Hey, hey." Xavier caught me. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I couldn't help smiling. "I'm with you."

"Come on, let's get you inside."

I took a few unsteady steps behind him before Xavier swept me into his arms and kicked the front door shut with his boot. "You're okay now," he murmured into my hair. "I'm going to take care of you."

He laid me on the couch in the living room.

"I never thought I'd see you again," Xavier said. "I thought the only way was to..." His voice cracked and he broke off.

"Hush," I replied, stroking his hair and noticing it was longer and the color of dark amber. "I know what you were thinking."

"I wasn't sure it would work." His voice became hard as he relived the challenge of the last months. "Living meant nothing once you were gone. Gabriel and Ivy helped; I don't think I would have pulled through without them."

"Where are they?" I looked past him into the empty house, a little less pristine than my sister usually kept it. There was a mug on the floor and a letterman jacket hanging from the banisters.

"They went on a mission ... to Romania," he said. "Gabriel tried for months to get you back."

"He did?"

"Of course. He called on the Arch, he tried bargaining with them, pleading with them, nothing worked. I think it was killing them both. So they left. But they should be back any day now."

I felt tears spring to my eyes, overwhelmed by the prospect of seeing my siblings again.

"But, Beth..." Xavier sounded suddenly cautious. "You have to tell me something.... How did you get back here? Did you run away?" His whole body tensed up. "Are they going to come after you again? I need to warn Ivy and Gabriel...."

I closed my hand gently over his as he fumbled for his cell.

"No one's coming after me. Not this time. I'm back for good."

I watched his face as he took me in for the first time, noticing my wild, disheveled state. The doubt in his eyes evaporated, replaced by concern. "What happened to you? You look like you've been at war."

I felt the weariness inside me flare up and I leaned heavily in his arms, feeling useless as a rag doll. I wished he'd been able to see me radiant and healthy instead of some invalid he needed to nurse back to health. "This will pass. I just need time for the transition to be complete."

"We can talk about it later." He slipped a hand under my legs and one around my waist, lifting me easily. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up and into bed."

Xavier carried me up the staircase and into my old room, where he now slept. His gym bag was behind the door and a pile of his books sat on the white desk under a lamp. Besides the new additions, my room looked just as I'd left it. The familiarity of the whitewashed furniture and iron bed was comforting. Phantom followed us, deciding to resume his old position curled up on the rug. He didn't close his eyes, though. He kept up a vigilant watch as if he too feared I might disappear again.

"You slept in my room?" I asked happily.

"It was the only way I could feel close to you," he said. "I hope you don't mind."

I shook my head. I loved that he'd been in my room the whole time I was away. Xavier placed me on the edge of the bed. "I'll be right back."

I could hear him moving around in the bathroom and the sound of running water. He came back a moment later with a pile of clean towels.

"Xavier, I need to ask you something. How long have I been away?"

"Awhile ... but let's talk about that later, okay?"

"I need to know. It's freaking me out." He knelt down beside me and helped me out of the sleeves of my filthy dress.

"You've been gone two years to the day," he said softly.

"Two years! That can't be right."

"Beth, it doesn't matter now...."

"No. No, it's not possible."

"I'm sorry," he said. "I'm nearly twenty-two, I graduate college next year."

"But ... I've missed so much." I felt completely cheated. Missing an hour out of Xavier's life would have been too much. Two years felt like a lifetime. "You have to tell me everything."

"There's not much to tell. I got into grad school," he said casually. "My sister had a baby. I'm an uncle now."

"Oh, Xavier, I'm so happy for you. This is what you always wanted."

"Beth, you don't get it," he said. "I was just going through the motions. Inside, I didn't feel anything, even though I knew I should."

"But I'm home now," I said.

"Yes," he said, smiling. "You were the missing piece. Everything is complete now. You know we never got to have our honeymoon. I think we should go to Paris."

"Okay," I said dreamily.

Xavier laughed. "Maybe after you take a bath."

I sat on a stool in the bathroom watching the mirrors steam up as Xavier filled the tub. He picked the remnants of seaweed out of my hair.

"Rough flight?" he said.

My whole body was rubbed raw and my every muscle screamed with pain when I moved. But I tried not to let Xavier see how much it hurt.

"You're in pain, aren't you?" he asked.

"Pain is temporary," I replied. "Nothing hurt worse than losing you."

"What did they do to you?"

"Nothing I didn't ask for."

Xavier regarded me suspiciously. "Turn around," he said eventually. "Let me see your back."

"Why?"

"You know why."

I bent over at the waist. Xavier slowly lifted the tattered fabric and groaned. I felt his fingers trace the thin white scars behind my shoulder blades. When he spoke, it was hard to miss the escalating anger in his voice.

"What is this? Who scarred you like this?"

"No one. It was my decision."

"Where are your wings?"

"Gone."

"What do you mean gone?" His face paled. "They took your wings?"

"They didn't take them; I gave them up."

"You did what?"

"I had to."

"How could you do that?"

"It was the easiest decision I've ever had to make."

"How did that even happen-"

"It doesn't matter," I cut him off. "All that matters is I'm here."

Xavier stared at me for a long moment. "Are you saying you're..."

"As human as you are."

"I don't believe it."

"Neither did I at first. I wasn't sure I'd make it back in one piece. All the odds were stacked against me, but somehow it worked. Someone must have been watching over us."

A wave of guilt fell like a curtain over Xavier's eyes.

"It kills me," he said, "thinking about what you had to give up."

"No," I replied. "Even though now I'll eventually die, at least I'll have lived. In Heaven, I might have had eternal life, but I was dead inside. You've brought me to life. It's a gift."

Xavier bent down to kiss my forehead. Then he helped me out of my wet things and lowered me into the tub. The hot water burned at first, bringing tears to my eyes, but a few moments later the warmth seeped into me, helping to ease the aching deep in my bones. I was still a little self-conscious about being such a wreck, but Xavier hardly seemed to notice, he was so intent on taking care of me. The warm, scented water relaxed me. He got a ceramic blue jug from my dresser and used it to rinse the salt water out of my hair. He washed me gently, from head to foot, until I was completely clean. Afterward, I sat on the bed wrapped in a bathrobe as Xavier found one of his oversize T-shirts and a soft pair of sweatpants to wear. When I lifted my arms to help him dress me, he stopped for a moment, looking down at my torso.

"Well, that's new," he said.

"What is it?" I asked in alarm. Had I developed some horrible disfigurement on my journey?

"You seem to have grown a belly button ... just like the rest of us."

"Wow." I looked down at my belly and he was right. Where there had only been smooth skin before there was now a small dent. Xavier used the pad of his finger to circle it. Even in my debilitated state his touch had the power to send shivers through me.

I climbed into my old bed, letting my head sink into the downy pillow. My body relaxed instantly as the fluffy blankets enveloped me. Although I ached with exhaustion, I couldn't bring myself to close my eyes.

"Are you hungry?" he asked. I thought about it and realized I was. "You stay here," Xavier said. "I'll go fix you something."

I must have dozed off while he was downstairs but I woke to the smell of brewed coffee and bacon. I sat up and looked at the loaded tray he placed carefully on my lap.

"The famous Woods fry-up?" I said.

"Of course. It cures everything. And please note, scrambled eggs this time, just the way you like them." I took a tentative mouthful of the fluffy eggs. The taste exploded in my mouth and I felt it revive me.

"It's really good," I said. "Are you just going to sit there and watch me eat?"

"I'm never letting you out of my sight again," he said. "You'd better get used to it."

As I ate, Xavier studied my face.

"There's something else that's different about you. I can't put my finger on it."

"There are a lot of things that have changed now."

"No, it's your skin," he said. "It doesn't glow like it used to."

"Good," I replied. "Normal people aren't supposed to glow."

"You really are human," he breathed.

Through the French doors I could see the sky already changing. There was only a sliver of moon and the midnight blue was diluting, broken by streaks of carnation and gold.

"Can you open the doors please?" I asked.

"Are you sure? You'll get sick."

"I want to hear the ocean."

I remembered how often the sound of the waves had lulled me to sleep in the past.

Xavier got up and did as I asked. The breeze fluttered the pages of the books on the desk and set the curtains billowing. Xavier sat on the edge of the bed, lost in thought.

"Are you angry with me?" I asked.

"Of course not. I'm in awe of you."

"Really?"

"Yes. You said you'd find a way and you did. You saved my life by coming back."

"That's what we do," I told him. "We look after each other."