Amanda was happy to pull Mason out of the battle and bringing him home. It was surprising how fast his house had become a place she was comfortable calling home. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that there was nothing there that reminded her of Jack and her daughter, or that she was living with a friend that made it so comfortable. but she knew she needed to find a new place sooner or later. It was just too comfortable to help Mason out and have a friend around than being alone.

The redhead hadn't let go of Mason's hand since she grabbed it to pull him away from the fighting and was practically skipping and humming with joy. They were alive and well, both of them. They had injuries that needed to be properly taken care of, but she'd see to that once they were inside and warm again. Maybe they should just get cleaned off first as well, but she didn't care about that right now. No, she wanted to heal up her own arm and remove her friend's scars from her poor job earlier.

"Come on, let's get you inside so I can have a proper look at you and fix you up as good as new," she chuckled. Touching Mason's cheek lovingly, she grinned at her friend, glad that they were both there despite their injuries. Heck, maybe she'd get a proper chance to heal up her arm now as well. So she guided her friend to the living room couch before she unbound the tourniquet she'd made in the field. At least her wound had long since stopped bleeding, which was a good thing.

Healing it up properly and smiled slightly at Mason, knowing full well her next request might make him feel uncomfortable "Take off your shirt." She knew it was an odd thing to demand of her friend, but she needed to see what she was doing to remove any scarring from him. "Just trust me?" Placing both her hands in her lap, she looked at Mason with the most innocent look on her face, waiting patiently for him to do as she'd asked.

***

Leaving the fight behind, Mason kept hold of Amanda’s hand as the cut through the silent town towards his house. Amanda had been spending a lot of time there lately which had been weird but also nice. Even Jack had rarely been invited there; Mason always being one to like his personal space and keep his bedroom private just for himself.

It was strange seeing the town so dead after most people had left for safety. Both Madison and Maya had been sent away to their parents for a couple of days until Mason felt it safe to tell them to return home again. It had taken a lot of persuasion but eventually they had agreed.

Once they reached the house his parents were still paying for, Mason almost felt hesitant to enter it, seeing all the lights off and the place looking as gloomy as ever. He was thankful Amanda was with him, not exactly wanting to be alone with his own thoughts that night nor sitting alone in the dark feeling alone and cold.
He allowed himself to smile again when Amanda spoke, her words and touch comforting him before he nodded and unlocked the door. As soon as he was inside he switched the lights on and let himself be led to the living room.

The house was silent, no sound of footsteps thudding across the top landing, Madison’s music blaring down the stairs or Maya lecturing him about staying safe.
He took a seat next to Amanda, leaning his head back against the huge, plush pillows behind him and sighing in relief. He was relieved they were both there, both safe and still in each other’s company. If things weren’t so bad between him and Jack, things would almost be perfect.

He glanced to his side to watch Amanda heal her arm, wincing at the look of her wound before is disappeared before his very eyes. It still amazed him the amount of things the woman could do, feeling ever so slightly jealous of her powers and wishing it was him that was helping her instead. That was the male’s role after all, wasn’t it? But no, he was weak and pretty pathetic, or at least that is what he had been led to believe in the past few years. He had, however, had the chance to save his friend which he hadn’t hesitated in doing so that at least had to count for something.

His negative thoughts of himself were suddenly pushed aside when he heard the demand Amanda made, sitting back upright and looking at her with wide eyes. For a moment, he did truly look petrified, if not horrified, almost like that of a small boy back in school that had just been asked to kiss some girl with the dreaded lurgy.
His initial thought was to ask why before it occurred to him that his wounds still weren’t healed fully. His eyes fell to his side where his shirt was torn and covered in blood before he sighed and nodded his head. He did trust Amanda; her being the only one he had been able to trust lately. It wasn’t that he thought it weird for his friend to see him topless but more the fact he didn’t want Amanda to think anything bad of him, no matter how much Jack had complimented him on his body before.

“Umm… sure...” He mumbled as he tugged on the bottom of his top nervously for a moment. Feeling the colour rise in his cheeks, he hesitantly pulled his T-shirt over his head and dropped it to the floor before his arms wrapped around his chest in a hug as though trying to hide himself the best he could.
“You do realise I have the right to feel violated whenever I want right now?” He exclaimed, his voice holding a teasing tone as a grin crossed his face. He didn’t dare look at the damage the wolf had done so instead resorted to looking at Amanda and waiting for her to do something though the situation was all very awkward as he had no idea what to expect.

It was good that they still had each other. In fact, Mason had been there for her when Jack hadn't and it was a relief to not have to hide anything from him anymore. A relief to be able to be who she'd become and try to teach him a thing or two as well, which was all she'd ever wanted. She didn't have a lot of friends, so she liked to take good care of the ones she had to make sure they were all good. Amanda truly was grateful that Mason had come out, he did save her after all and she owed it to him to heal him up properly now that they were away from the danger.

The look on Mason's face made her giggle slightly. She'd never expected him to be so utterly petrified from her simple request. After all, she only intended to heal him up again, it wasn't like she'd assault him or anything. So she waited patiently for him to comply, disregarding the rising color in his cheeks. It was a lot more awkward than she'd expected it to be, mainly because Mason was so awkward about the whole thing, the way he was wrapping his arms around his chest to hide the best he could once his shirt was off.

"Well then, you let me know if you feel violated then," she said with a chuckle. Looking at the poor job she'd done fixing him up in the field, she bit her lip slightly before leaning across him so she could gently place her hands on his side. "This might burn a little," she said softly as she started working on his wound. Keeping her hands perfectly still, she worked as swiftly as she could to ease whatever discomfort Mason might have with the situation and focused on making sure no mark was left behind this time, unlike when she'd healed him from Jack's assault.

It took a few minutes, and his skin was all raw in the area he'd been wounded, but at least there were no marks anymore. Giving Mason a big hug when she was done, Amanda looked up at him and gently brushed her hands across the area that was now almost good as new. "That wasn't so bad now was it? Good as new," she grinned at him and released him from her hug.

Mason raised an eyebrow at Amanda’s reply, suddenly wondering if he should forget about being healed and put his shirt back on and just bleed to death before he told himself to snap out of it and to stop being so silly. She was his friend and friends joked around right? Besides, her chuckle should have been enough to tell him she was only joking.

With his body still tense, he watched as she bit her lip, only now glancing down to his side to see how bad it was. Again, he looked slightly horrified, the ugly scar looking bigger than he had thought it would be. He prayed deep down that he wasn’t going to be left with something so ugly across his body and already started thinking of ways to kill himself if there was no way to remove it.
Whining, he looked as though he was ready to start crying before he quickly pulled back as Amanda leaned over him; his heart beat stopping for a split second before it started racing.

Feeling her hand against his side and hearing her words, he prepared himself for the worst as he always did and bit down on his lip as though something truly painful was about to be forced on to him. However, he only winced slightly as a rather odd burning sensation tingled at his skin. Whilst Amanda worked on healing him, his mind was wondering elsewhere.
There was something strangely familiar about being the whole situation; him being topless as someone had their warm hands against his body and as his mind began to drift, he had to literally shake his head to put a stop to the silly ideas he was toying with.

Slightly relieved when Amanda finally pulled her hands away, Mason realised he’d been holding his breath the whole time and quickly let it out before he was pulled in to a hug, his body tensing yet again as he stared over Amanda’s shoulder with even wider eyes than before. Hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around her too and for a moment, buried his head against Amanda’s shoulder. It was then he started to wonder if all girls actually smelt that nice or if it was just Amanda.
“Wait… what are you doing?” he asked himself, his own voice making him jump slightly as he quickly looked up again. When Amanda let go, he was almost hesitant to let her, his hands falling to her sides before he realised what he was doing and pulled them back quickly.

Looking away again, he cleared his throat and decided on trying to change the topic before Amanda asked any questions about his strange behaviour and hoped his friend couldn’t read his mind.
“No! No it didn’t hurt at all. You did a brilliant job as always with your lovely hands… I mean your hands. Maybe we should check for other wounds just to be sure?” He exclaimed without thinking.
For a moment, he froze, hardly being able to believe he had just said that. Inside his mind was telling him to shut up, to stop talking or even better to just stop breathing all together.

He turned to look at Amanda, his lips slightly parted as though he was about to say something but his voice seemed to have disappeared. Struggling and very much on the spot, he did the only thing he knew would stop him from rambling on more and making a bigger fool of himself.
There wasn’t even chance for a warning before he had taken Amanda’s face into the palm of his hands and pressed his lips against her own, pretty much throwing himself at her in most awkward manner possible. He had his eyes squeezed shut as though preparing for a nasty pain to the side of his own face any given minute but seconds later he had pulled away looking mortified at himself.
“Amanda… I am so sorry! Crap… I am really, really sorry… I-I didn’t mean to… No, I did mean to but I have no idea why… Just don’t kill me…”

Amanda had hoped Mason wouldn't have to see how poor a job she'd done in the field, but was glad she was given a second chance to fix it. After all, her only goal before had been to keep him from bleeding to death while right now she wanted to restore him to his perfect self. It would kill her to be the cause of such a big ugly scar on his beautiful body. It really was a challenge to keep her hands perfectly still and not try anything silly now that he was so close and they were all alone.

The hug was actually quite a relief after the day they'd had, and she was glad she could count on Mason to always have her back. They were a good team, too bad they caused just as many problems together as they solved. Her mind was racing by the time she pulled out of the hug and she couldn't help but chuckle at how eager Mason was to be checked for other wounds just to be sure. The strange thing was, she found that she wouldn't mind at all, just to make sure he was ok. And as a perfect excuse to run her hands across his smooth skin all over again. Wait... that wasn't right.

Amanda was taken by surprise when Mason practically threw himself at her like that and his lips were pressed against her own. She was shocked to say the least, but for some unfathomable reason, it felt so right at the moment and she didn't want him to pull away when he did. When he spoke, looking absolutely mortified again, Amanda couldn't help but place a gentle hand on his chin and turn his head gently to make him look at her. "I could never kill you, Mason, no matter what you do," she said softly, running her thumb gently across Mason's bottom lip.

Why she wanted to kiss him again was a mystery to her, but she couldn't stop herself from leaning in and kiss him before she pulled back and looked at Mason curiously. She owed this man her life and he always had her best interest at heart. When she wouldn't listen to anyone else, he got through to her and it seemed most days it was the other way around as well. "We're a lot alike, you and I," she muttered and smiled at the other witch.

Mason was sure there had never been a point in his life where he had done something so stupid he’d actually made himself feel sick. This was probably the first time he actually understood when people explained the knots that tied through theirs stomach after doing something they knew they shouldn’t. This was something he needed more subconsciously than he thought right now though.
He missed the feeling of having someone to be close to and care about him and even if this wasn’t the same and it had all been read wrong, it was still close enough and he wasn’t going to fight it. He’d had time to think lately and although he had very much hoped Jack would give him the opportunity to apologise again, it clearly wasn’t going to happen. Maybe it was about time he just gave up and let go? There was no getting through to Jack once his mind was made and the way the man had been acting as of late, Mason felt himself being pushed away more as each day passed.

With those thoughts in mind, Mason didn’t attempt to pull himself away as his head was turned back to face Amanda, his eyes meeting hers yet again and his cheeks burning just that little bit more when he felt her delicately touch his bottom lip. There was something very comforting in Amada’s touch, a feeling he had missed over the last few weeks since Jack had cut all ties with him and although he felt it was wrong, he also felt it was something he needed. Her words helped in easing his guilt, not really wanting to drag his best friend into his own selfish way of mending his broken heart but what she said made it seem she already knew why he had done what he had done in the first place.

It surprised him slightly when she leant forward to kiss him again, feeling his heart skip yet another beat but this time without tensing up and having his mind carry him away with guilt. He had absolutely nothing to feel guilty about anyway, nothing he was doing was wrong and that was the honest truth.
He kissed her back with more confidence this time, having to resist the urge to let his hands wonder as thoughts that had never occurred to him before started to creep in to his mind. In some ways it was a relief when she pulled away, but in other ways it was hard to ignore the urge to pull her back again.
Over and over he had to reason with himself, try to pinpoint and explanation as to why it was only now that these feelings had come to surface. He knew a lot of it was down to him being selfish and craving for someone’s attention, the only other things that sounded reasonable enough to explain this irrational behaviour was due to the powers plus the fight. Admittedly, he still felt a little light headed after being faced with a pack of ravage monsters but usually he wouldn’t act this irresponsible no matter what reasons he had to use.

He felt his own lips crease in to a small smile, understanding perfectly what his friend meant by her words. They were a lot alike, sometimes maybe a bit too much so that it caused arguments and problems but nothing that they could never laugh of afterwards. She was the girl he could turn to about anything and tell her things he wouldn’t even ever tell Jack. She never let him allow his temper to control him either, mostly due to the fact she did scare him at times but also because she listened and supported him rather than ignore him and lash out like certain other people did. She kept him grounded and he hoped he did the same for her too, especially when no one else seemed to have the time of day to put others before them anymore. She didn’t think he was weak and pathetic like most and for that he held her very close to his heart.
He’d always thought she was beautiful too and knew how to dress to compliment her figure but wasn’t annoyingly high maintenance like a lot of the other females he knew, he’d just never really thought anything more about it. As he looked back at her though, his eyes searching hers to try and understand what she was thinking, he found it weird that he had never looked at her in this way before and wanted to act on it.

He quickly pushed those thoughts aside, allowing his smile to turn in to a grin as he took a long, shaky breath and concentrated on not thinking the things he was.
“You mean like we’re both rejects of society who have a knack for getting in to trouble and making people unconditionally hate us right?” he asked with a chuckle, hoping to ease a little bit of the tension in the room. He subconsciously picked at his nails, this action helping him not reach out for Amanda again as he let his eyes wonder over her once more, appreciating everything she had to offer with a smug look crossing his face.

Amanda had gone from having Kailah most of the time to not having her at all and after the fight all she wanted was to have the comfort of someone she truly cared about one way or another. She knew deep down that it was wrong to seek comfort in Mason, but she she didn't care at the moment, it seemed he needed the comfort just as much as her anyway. There was no point in fighting it really, their loved ones had pushed them away and all they had was each other.

When Mason kissed her back, she really had to fight herself not to push things too far. It seemed she did need him more than she'd thought. She certainly didn't need another stranger in her bed at this point and she didn't know why the thought had never crossed her mind that Mason was actually someone who understood her. Nowadays it seemed people were afraid of her, but he wasn't. When her family had shied away he was there. Sure, they got each other into just as many problems as they solved together, but it worked out just fine really.

Mason didn't judge her, he kept her grounded and she really hadn't hurt anyone since they'd started looking out for one another. Except for the wolves and a misfortune cemetery worker. In a way they were good for each other that way as they were making sure the other didn't get into too much trouble. Even if they did argue, but that were just the signs of a healthy friendship. Friends weren't supposed to get along perfectly all the time and as long as they sorted it out later it was all fine.

Amanda couldn't help but want to know exactly what was going through that pretty head of Masons, thinking the other witch very clever and much stronger than he gave himself credit for. The fact that he'd come to help her and even saved her proved as much and she'd been right to show him he wasn't as weak as Jack seemed to think. Mason deserved to be able to stand up for himself against the selfish, raging werewolf and to know that he wasn't someone's property no matter how hard people tried to make him so. There were just better ways to go at it than to go on a rampage, which she was slowly learning herself. No matter how much fun it could be or how much better she felt afterwards.

A chuckle escaped the redhead at what Mason had to say. Of course he had to say something to try to ease the tension and it worked. At least for a little while, until she started giggling and wasn't paying attention to where she put her hands. Looking down, she realized she'd placed a hand on his thigh and quickly placed her hands back in her own lap, blushing slightly. "I..." She didn't know what to say either really to excuse herself, especially since she didn't want to stop.

Knowing she should get out of there before she did something completely reckless, she just couldn't make herself move. It was like she was glued to the couch and she couldn't even look at Mason right now, because she didn't know how to keep to herself if she did. She'd always prided herself on being strong-minded, but her determination was slipping and she couldn't help herself from looking up at Mason, searching his face for any clues as to what he wanted. No, what he needed. "Please don't be mad," she barely managed to whisper as she reached out and caressed his cheek, finding that she needed him in a different way than ever before. She needed the closeness he seemed so willing to offer. Before he could get a chance to pull away, Amanda snuggled up to him and buried her head in his neck.

It was typical of Mason to change the subject when he found his nerves were getting the best of him and Amanda probably knew this more than anyone. They both sat giggling together, the tension easing up considerably easier than Mason had thought it would. It wasn’t like what they had done was wrong anyway nor should he have anything to worry about; they were simply friends that didn’t want to be alone at that moment in time and for good reasons. Things like that happened all the time, right?
Of course, it didn’t matter how much Mason tried to tell himself this, he still felt that something was eating away at the back of his mind and making his stomach churn with guilt.

He stopped giggling when he felt Amanda’s hand against his thigh, his breath catching yet again as he told himself not to get ahead of himself. A kiss or two was pushing it as it was, especially when it could jeopardize his chance of ever winning Jack back. With Amanda and Jack’s history, Mason knew he was already walking a thin line. The whole situation would Jack should he ever find out.

He forced a smile to his face and shook his head, the easier way of saying “it’s fine” as his voice didn’t seem to want to work. His head was filling up with questions and all the different paths this whole thing could lead to, none of which he wanted because of the long run, and quite frankly it scared him. This wasn’t one of those times he could push his feelings aside and run away from them, it wasn’t like he could just up and go and leave Amanda sat by herself without an explanation. He couldn’t exactly talk to her either. Again, it was just more proof that he was weak and pathetic when it came to facing his feelings. Hell, he wouldn’t have even be in that position in the first place if he had faced them with Jack to start off with rather than letting it build up like he had and let it out in the most stupidest way possible.

When their eyes next met, his expression softened at her words, realising he couldn’t be mad at her if he even tried. They were both in the same boat really; both had lost someone close to them and needed something, or someone, to replace the hole that had been left. He didn’t flinch when she touched his cheek, leaning in to it instead and appreciating the warmth and security it made him feel. He missed those feelings the most, the feeling of actually having someone care for you and having that be enough.
When Amanda moved in to snuggle close to him, Mason stopped trying to reason with himself. Jack wasn’t coming back and he really needed someone to hold and help ease the pain it was causing. Never in a million years had he ever have thought he’d find himself in this position before, up until a few weeks ago he had had everything that he had needed and more but now it had all gone, it seemed Amanda was the only one who could fill the empty void it had created.

He sighed and wrapped his arms around Amanda, one hand daring to move fingers through her hair in a comforting way. He leant back against the back of the couch and took a deep breath to ease his troubled mind and stop his body from shaking. It was all rather over whelming and change wasn’t something Mason enjoyed. He gaze the redhead a small squeeze before he leant his head against the top of hers.
“Amanda?” he asked in a small voice, the curiosity clearly noticeable behind it. “Do you think we’ll ever get back the things we want? Like... if things will ever go back to normal?”

It was a random question but with no one else that understood or that was in the same place as him, Amanda seemed the best person to talk too. He also worried for her, especially as it was technically his fault that Kailah had been taken from her. It always made things worse when someone else was dragged in to it. Even if she had given him the boost, it wasn’t like she had expected him to lose it with Jack whilst the baby was in the house. He hoped that they would at least sort their differences out so Amanda could see Kailah again, even if he never got what he wanted. He didn’t want to admit it yet but it seemed everything he wanted was slowly slipping further out of reach and it was slowly eating away at his sanity.
“I’m sorry Amanda…” He whispered, sighing in defeat as he yet again blamed himself. “But I’ll always be here for you. Just promise me you aren’t going to leave when the time comes for me to really need you?”

It was good that they'd changed the subject and stopped themselves from taking things beyond repair. No matter how much she managed to not care about things at the moment, she cared too much for Mason's happiness to truly do anything that would jeopardize it completely. And the kisses truly were pushing it where Jack was concerned. Which made her hand slipping up like that all the much more awkward.

Amanda knew that if she'd just let Mason tell Jack how much she'd changed, none of this would've happened and the guilt was eating away at her. She'd tried to convince herself she had nothing to feel guilty about, but when she knew she was the reason why Jack was so mad at her friend she couldn't help it. She wanted to make it all good again, even if she thoroughly enjoyed the safety of being all warm and snuggled up to Mason. In a way, she was the reason he'd lost Jack and he was the reason she'd lost her daughter. No wonder no one else could comfort her at the moment. Especially since she couldn't be mad at Mason for what he'd done, even if she truly tried.

The fingers moving through her hair was comforting and she listened to what her friend asked her. "Mason, we can have anything we want. We just have to work a little harder for it at times," she said, trying to be all brave and comforting for her friend, knowing they'd really have to work to get back what they'd lost. "If it's meant to be, we'll get the things we want back, if not then life will just have to move on." She knew she wouldn't be able to move on so easily if she never got to see her daughter again, she might actually go completely off the wagon regardless of what Mason said or did, but she would try. Whatever sanity was left after the power trip she'd had recently would certainly be out the window in a heartbeat if it turned out it was no way of every getting her back.

Despite the dark turn their evening was taking all of a sudden, Amanda couldn't help but giggle slightly at Mason's apology and what he said next. "Stop blaming yourself for what I did, Mason. Jack would've learned the truth sooner or later anyway. I'm the one who should apologize for not letting you just tell him to begin with, rather than messing everything up for you." It seemed she was just a lot better at hiding her guilt than Mason was, or maybe it was because it was lost alongside part of her humanity in the sea of magic she seemed to be drowning in these days. Kailah had been the one thing keeping her tethered to her feelings and she knew she was using Mason as a life raft not to drown.

"You've always been there for me, why should I do any less for you? I'm not going to leave you, even if you beg me to," she smiled and hugged him tightly, really enjoying the simpleness of their closeness. "I promise I'm not going to leave you, no matter what," deciding to be a little bolder, she leaned up and kissed Mason's cheek, smiling slightly at him, not making any moves to get away from his all too comforting embrace.

Mason was lucky to have a friend such as Amanda and he didn’t deny this. She was one of those who always knew what to say to give him hope, even if he did annoy her with his constant worrying at times. Her words gave him some comfort though he knew the only person that could truly help him in getting back what he wanted was himself and everyone knew that he had a habit for digging bigger holes for himself no matter how good his intentions were.

He sighed in defeat, accepting the fact that there was no chance he was ever getting Jack back or the happiness the man brought to him if things were left in his hands.
“Maybe I don’t want to move on though…” He mumbled quietly into Amanda’s hair, his voice muffled to the point it was barely audible. It was true, that was the last thing he wanted to have to do. Up until meeting Jack his life had been a mess and he’d had nothing that he could honestly say made him happy.

Hearing the redheads giggle, he moved back slightly to look at her, a look of confusion across his face as he tried to figure out what she found funny. As she spoke, it still didn’t make sense. He still blamed himself for everything and no matter how many times Amanda told him not too, it didn’t make a difference. He’d been the stupid one who freaked out and in turn scared Amanda, none of this would have happened if he’d kept cool and heard his friend out. This made him feel like a bad friend too.
Jack would have eventually found out the truth and if Mason hadn’t over reacted then it would have probably been a lot less messy that this. He wouldn’t take the full blame though, it had been Amanda that had surprised him to the point he had felt threatened in the first place, a side of his friend he had never wanted to see. Lately though, the other witch hadn’t shown that side which Mason had to feel gratitude for, he hated to think the redhead could ever have a bad bone in her body.

Outside the sun was starting to set casting shadows to creep across the room. Mason gazed out of the window on the other side of the room at the dim glow that seeped between the trees in a slight daydream. He heard Amanda talking and smiled without thinking about it, something that lately had taken effort. He squeezed his arm gently around her appreciatively, feeling very lucky that he had a friend like Amanda who always helped ease his mind. At least she was someone he could rely on and everyone needed someone like that.

He felt his cheeks glow again when Amanda placed her lips against them. Feeling his heart flutter, he quickly cleared his throat and attempted not to look so mawkish. His fondness towards the witch had grown immensely since their first ever meeting and although he didn’t feel the same towards her as he did Jack, he still held her closer than anyone else.
He grinned and shook his head, amused by how she was making him feel. Like Jack, she had a habit of making him forget his problems.
“I have no idea why I’d ever beg you to leave me…” He started, turning his attention back to the window. “You’re the only one I have that put’s up with my whining now… without you, I’d have no one to annoy or pick me up when I’m down.” He subconsciously kissed the crown of Amanda’s head, an action he didn’t realise he had done until it was too late. He shrugged it off though, seeing their closeness as being completely innocent for two friends. “But I hope what you say is true. I really do appreciate you being here for me lately and I hope I’ve been doing the same for you. My heads just been stuck in a cloud so I’m sorry if I haven’t seemed to be listening… if there is any way I can help then I will, you do know that don’t you?” he asked quietly, his voice unmistakably caring and genuine.

Despite everything they'd been through, they seemed to keep each other going. No matter how they'd gotten to become friends to begin with. "I don't want to either," she admitted. Amanda knew full well that she would never be the same if she was forced to move on and just try to forget that she had a daughter. Heck, people called her mad now, it would be a disaster if she was forced to give up all hope of seeing her daughter, no matter how good she was at hiding her worries.

They could play the blame game all night, but in the end it was her fault for putting Mason in the position of being freaked out to begin with. She'd never intended to show Mason her dark side, at least not without explaining everything first. She'd freaked out herself the first time it had happened that she'd just given in like that, so why shouldn't Mason be allowed to do the same. Who could blame him really for freaking out. She should've handled it better and just let him run off and tell Jack. Things would've gotten out of control either way and Jack would've learned the truth one way or another.

"You've kept me sane the past few days, making everything so much easier to deal with," she smiled sincerely and enjoyed the closeness. With friends like Mason to keep her head out of the dark places it liked to travel when people got on her nerves, she had no need for anything more and could just lean into him and relax. She didn't need anyone else to keep her safe or sane or even human. Not at the moment anyway. Helping Mason keep his good spirits was helping her maintain her own.

"I almost lost you today, don't ever frighten me like that again," she chuckled, despite the fact that it wasn't amusing at all. "I really don't know what I'd do without you. Without someone to talk to and to keep me from losing control again. You make me want to do better, to be better, and not just some monster." It was all very sweet actually, probably without realizing, Mason had made her able to go quite some time without causing trouble for anyone, until the fight that she just hadn't been able to keep herself out of. The fact that Mason's shirt was still off didn't even phase her anymore as she enjoyed the warmth of being so close to someone.

Maybe if things didn't work out, she could go back to work for vampires in addition to her shop, leave herself with very little free time and be able to keep her mind off things, that way at least she wouldn't have time to hurt anyone. Or energy for that matter. Though she really hoped that one of these days she would be able to get Jack to talk to her so they could try to work things out for their daughter's sake.

"I failed you, I promised to keep your mind off a certain werewolf and that certainly didn't work today. I just want you to be happy, Mason. That's all that matters to me."

It took a weight of his shoulder hearing he’d done some part in keeping Amanda’s head screwed on in the last few days. Mason felt that even if Jack never came around then maybe he could put some things right for Amanda again, even if it just meant being there for her. He would talk to Jack at some point, to ask for forgiveness and to try talking the man into at least letting Kailah see her mother again. It felt like the right thing to do if it meant Amanda being happy again.

He smiled to himself over these thoughts for a while; putting someone else first was never an easy thing for Mason but as it was him that had endangered both Jack and Kailah he felt it only fair he take it on himself to fix things between the witch and the wolf. Amanda’s words made his determination grow and it felt strange to have a friend who genuinely cared about you as much as she did. Maybe that was the reason behind his selfless attitude lately. That and the guilt.

“Well as long as I keep doing whatever it is I am doing then you have no reason to be a monster, do you.” He said simply, shifting himself to sit up a little better and brushing his hair from in front of his eyes. “And you wouldn’t have lost me that easily; I had it all under control. I could have handled it quiet well myself thank you.” He added quickly with a slight, playful huff in his tone.
It was one of those things were if you knew you had someone to fight for or someone to return to after, you’d always win no matter what. If you didn’t, you at least did your part in keeping them safe which is what mason had gone to the fight for in the first place. He and Amanda both knew he wouldn’t have done as well as he did and leave the field alive if Amanda hadn’t been there to patch him up but there was no way he was going to admit that.

He shook his head when Amanda put herself down, still smiling at the feeling of being cared about by someone.
“Look, Jack and I have argued a lot in the past. I’m not saying it’s good but it’s something we have to work on. It’s not every day you have your daughter taken from you so I think first we need to concentrate on you getting Kailah back. Me and jack can wait. I don’t think he’s going to be forgiving me anytime soon anyway.”

He sighed now and lost the smile he had been holding but focused on what he was going to do about Amanda and Jack to take his mind of feeling sorry for himself. He knew it would be a while before Jack talked to him again, let alone forgave him and although he didn’t want to wait, he knew it was best for everyone right now to give Jack his space. In the meantime, he would concentrate on Amanda and keeping her spirits up.

Amanda couldn't help but appreciate Mason's new-found selflessness, wishing she'd had some of that herself recently. Things had changed long before Kailah was born really, she'd changed. And now she was trying to change back into someone fit to raise a little girl. So far she still had lots to do, but she had a plan for how she would get Jack to listen to her. Hopefully she'd be able to see her girl at least under supervision, it would be better than nothing. If she could just channel her magic into doing good rather than just destroying things, he'd find it in his heart to at least listen to her. She knew things would never be the same as they'd been before the fire thought.

The only reason she'd even gone to fight was to have a useful outlet for her energy of late and be able to help others. It had turned out she'd only been there to make sure the town was safe for her daughter and Mason though as she didn't give a damn about everyone else really. She hadn't been able to let herself care about strangers the way she'd tried to make friends with everyone before. "I'm glad you had my back today," she said with a smile, knowing full well that despite her helping Mason, she wouldn't have fared so well herself without him there.

"I hope everything works out for the two of you though, I know he won't truly be able to move on either until you've at least talked things through. Hopefully he'll get around sooner or later. He's not going to forgive me either just like that, not until I give back some of the powers I've taken. Still, I'm sure no matter what we do, it'll be a long time before he trusts me enough to be with her, if he'll even let me talk for long enough to apologize," she shrugged slightly. If Jack didn't let her see Kailah, well, then she knew a perfectly good way to get by and not care about anything but her friend and herself. Though that would be to go back on her word of trying to change. Heck, she might even be forced to change by someone else if she went down that road again as there would be no stops the next time.

"You know what, let's just forget about all our worries. We're alive, we're safe. Let's just appreciate that tonight and worry about tomorrow later. No more gloomy talk about the future or how things could've been, it isn't really helping anyone anyway." And just like that, her mood had changed again and she was in a happier place. It seemed pushing everything to the back and just appreciating that she had a friend like Mason and that they were both alive and well was all she needed to turn a crappy day into a good one. Or at least for the moment. "You got anything to drink?"

It was fair to say that the pair had a lot of work to do if they were going to succeed in getting things back to normal. Mason had grown tired of things being so hectic in his life in the last few years and it was about time he admitted to himself that it was partially his fault to and that he was going to have to make some changes. Amanda was right, it would take a lot to bring Jack around to either of them again but that was something Mason was prepared to take on no matter how much he got pushed away and ignored.

He tightened his arm around Amanda for second in a reassuring way as he had nothing he could say to her that would make things better right away. There was nothing either of them could say to each other that would put things right again. It was something they were going to have to do rather than talk about it and feel sorry for themselves.
He was more than happy to drop the subject when Amanda suggested forgetting about it for now. He found that thinking about it only made him impatient and that was never a good thing. He nodded his head and allowed himself a small smile; they were both alive and that should be enough for them to be grateful for.

His smile brightened when asked if he had anything to drink, having to stop himself from laughing as he squirmed out of Amanda’s cuddle and stood up.
“You’re asking a bar tender if he has anything to drink?” He asked, a slight mock in his tone as he shook his head and turned to the kitchen. “I hope to god you don’t mean tea or coffee because after the day we've have had I think we deserve something a little stronger.”

Walking to the kitchen, he pulled out two glasses and three different bottles from the cupboards before heading back to the lounge. In his hands he held both the glasses and under his arms a half a bottle of vodka, a full bottle of whisky and a bottle of lemonade. He placed them down on the table before quickly switching the light on to brighten up the place. “I say we drink to a new beginning.” He said, pouring the first drinks and handing one to Amanda. “...A fresh start and this time we’ll get it right.”