By the time Cacopheny lay still, tired but awake and with no more tears left in him, Akija's restless fingers had untangled the sleeping-tangles in the half-demon's hair. Chario and Kenjista had gone outside, to Sentio's mild relief and the little daemon's reluctance; he didn't think he could deal with her, not right now. He didn't sense and malice, or fear, or even blame in Cacopheny, just sadness, and even that was fading with the tears, either abated with the comforting or at least withdrawn to be dealt with further later.

With a soft little sigh, Cacopheny finally moved, shifting a little, wincing at some lingering ache or another, and opened reddened eyes to focus up at Akija; looking at Sentio, his bond felt, would put him in too awkward and painful a position. Sentio was just glad he was even considered.

For the first time, Cacopheny actually saw Akija. Apparently he didn't like what he saw. With a wordless little whimper he lifted a trembling hand, touching very carefully just beside one of the claw marks on her face. "Tid-- tid I--?" he whispered, sounding horrified at the thought.

"No, no, not you," she answered reassuringly, and his hand fell again with a little sigh of relief. "Those are from Rao. You pulled me back. Well... one of your shadows."

For a moment he shut his eyes. "Vat-- vat happen't? I to not-- to not rrrememper.... Sentchio?" He twisted, hissed with pain, gave up and went limp again, relying on voice rather than vision. "Iss he-- are you--"

"I'm fine," he assured him, smiling a bit. "She didn't even touch me."

"Goot... goot. Vat-- vat happen't?" he asked again, looking back up at Akija.

"To get me these?" she asked, head tilted slightly, reaching up to touch and then scratch at the claw marks. Sentio lifted a paw to swat gently at her fingers, shaking his head; if she scratched, she might open them up again. "--or everything?" she continued. "When the one shadow-- came out?"

"Tiker," Cacopheny corrected, voice vague though his attention was as focused as he could make it. "Hiss name. Yess. Eff'rysingk. I... I vas unhappy viss him, he zhut me out, ssso I to not-- I to not rememper."

"Tiger? Well then thanks go t'him for helpin' like he did...." Akija rested her hands to either side of Cacopheny's face on her lap, looking upwards as she thought. She took in a breath, sighed it out again, as if she were thinking; Sentio didn't have any idea where to begin, himself, though he would be willing to try if she couldn't decide. She finally spoke, so he didn't have to. "Well, after you-- Tiger said no t'Rao... I couldn't just stand there... so I undid the spell Rao'd put on me an' Sentio's feet an' tried t'... well, I tried t'... heck, I dunno what I was tryin' to do," she admitted, somewhat sheepishly. Sentio didn't know what she'd been trying to do, either, but he only just huffed lightly in agreement.

"But I pushed Rao away from you an' she clawed me like this," Akija continued, "an' then Tiger pulled me back 'fore she could claw me any worse and brought down all this shadow everywhere... led me an' Sentio back, usin' the shadow like a shield t'keep Rao off... she was clawing at it then, until she tore it down." Akija twitched her wings, and Sentio shivered, remembering the huge, black demon snarling down at them all. "An' then... then my family came an' rescued us. Chario'd run for help, an' a whole bunch of my family came an' drove Rao off--" She stopped then and looked back down at Cacopheny. "You were back then... you remember that part, or no?"

"I-- no-- I vas?" he asked weakly. "I to not rrrrrememper," he repeated, fretfully, as if disturbed by the lack. "Vat tid I to?"

"Yeah, you came just for a little," Akija said, putting a hand on Cacopheny's hair again. It seemed to soothe him a little, to both of their relief. "You just summoned up more shadow an' put out the light Rao made, knocked most of my family over with it somehow-- but didn't hurt 'em!" she hurried to assure him when he twitched in fearful regret. "--and Rao used the shadow t'escape. Then ya collapsed-- you'd used up all your magic. So we brought you here... an' you slept all the way up 'till now."

"Oh," Cacopheny said softly after a pause, after his tired mind digested all that. "I-- sssssank you."

"Just glad t'help a friend," Akija answered, then closed her eyes and shook her head with a little smirk.

"Vat?" was Cacopheny's immediate, nervous reaction.

"I'd do it again if I had to," she replied with a broader grin. "So you an' me get t'be crazy together."

For a moment Cacopheny looked almost funny, he was so shocked and puzzled by that. After a moment of laborous thought, he gave up thinking about it and smiled back. "Ssank you," he said again, softer, then his gaze grew a little vaguer. "I ssink...." Whatever he thought took a long time to come out, but when it did, it made Sentio giggle just a little: "I ssingk. I am too tir't to sssink," he sighed at last, shutting his eyes again.

Akija chuckled, too, and even Cacopheny managed a tiny, tired smile. "So go back t'sleep," Akija suggested, stroking his hair again. "You kin sleep here all the way t'next week if ya need to."

As if those words of permission unhinged the last of his attention, Sentio could feel Cacopheny's thoughts start to blur. "If-- if it isss not trrrrouble for you," he managed, curling up a little tighter, instinctively searching out his usual sleeping position without having to move too much. That he found himself comfortable and unwilling to move, snuggled between his dragon-bond and daemon-friend, was even more heartening than their whole conversation. "I vill... trrrry not. Not. To sssleep. Too rrrong."

"Sleep as long as ya need," Akija smiled, but added, "But if yer gonna fall asleep on me, at least scoot back so I kin be on the blanket too, hey?"

"Mmmph? Oh. Sssssorrry." Sentio found himself squished against the wall as Cacopheny wriggled back obligingly, blinking blearily at Akija. Oh well, he thought, might as well be bored in here, as bored in Akija's room. At least it's a little cooler in here.

Grinning, Akija settled down in a half-curl on her side, tucking one arm beneath her head, and chuckled, "Go back t'sleep, Coffee." He blinked at her again, then took her up on the suggestion, sinking back down into the bedspread, shutting his eyes, and curling up as tightly as his lanky body could manage, his backbone pressing into Sentio's side and head burrowed into Akija's shirt, just under her chin. It didn't take more than a moment, and he was asleep again.

::I think we're gonna be in here a while, Char,:: he sent out to the Fire, amused and resigned to spending a few hours pretending to be a soft, furry wall.