Greg looked at Merri with an apologetic expression, "Matt is not always like this. To be honest, I don't even think he knows why he is so bothered by all of this." He shrugged, "I don't have a problem with you sticking around. I mean, how could I when you did some sort of trick that healed my shoulder. I have to say that shit was awesome!" He gave her an encouraging smile. "Matt will come around. He just needs time to process all this." He nodded while smiling but Merri didn't seem so convinced.

Merri stood without an expression, even when Greg smiled at her. There was no issue as far as she knew with Greg. It was Matt. Whatever was going on with that guy, there had to be a way to have some type of understanding? She sighed softly while kicking her feet at the floor. "I don't get it." That is all she wanted to say. Her thoughts were not easy for her to share. She used to just have spirit friends to speak with. Having living people, the opposite gender, made this very awkward. So, she kept staring at the door waiting for Matt to come back. She very much hoped that this was not how her vision was going to play out. Just thinking about it gave her concern, "We should check on him, both of us." She looked at Greg who already shook his head, "Without him knowing somehow?"

Greg continued shaking his head, "Not a chance. If he says leave him alone, trying to sneak around would get him more pissed." He saw the worry in her face, "Look, Matt can take care of himself. If he needs help, we'll know." He also watched the entrance to wait for his friend's return.

Matt leaned up against what was left of an old crumbled down building. Why was this so difficult for him? He freaked out because the bitch healed Greg? "What the fuck is wrong me?" He crouched down to sift through the rubble. "I got pissed because she helped Greg?" He then smacked himself on the head. "I am such a fucking idiot." He threw a chunk of cement at an adjacent building just to watch the smashing affect. "How the fuck did she do that, though?" Now, he began pacing while attempting not to trip, "Is this bitch human?" He flung his hands in the air with exasperation, "I have no fucking clue!" He sighed heavily, "Greg will hate me forever if I don't let her stick around." He groaned, "Damn it!" He kept pacing but slowed his pace when he noticed that his lungs were starting to burn. "Shit, I remember someone talking about this before. Fuck! What did he say?" His head snapped up with realization, "No fucking way! This bitch is a witch!" He stopped short, "If that's true, she is more dangerous to have around." He sighed again, even though it burned, "They kill witches, don't they?" That realization just reminded him of what Greg said earlier of how this would stick to his conscious. "For fuck sake, there's no winning! If we let her stay, we'll all get killed or some stupid shit will happen. If she goes, she'll get herself killed on her own." His head started pounding, "Fuck, they're both going to want some kind of answer. This sucks ass." He submitted himself to the only thing that would be the best option. He hated it but either choice was a shit one.

Home for now started looking a bit more like a hideout. While Matt was gone, Greg got Merri's help in fixing things up a bit. Moving around would keep their minds busy but also a bit warmer than just standing around idly. They found some bricks scattered around, so built a couple of chairs. It was a bit difficult to walk around outside, not knowing where Matt went off to. They did not want to disturb him but at the same time, they did not want the whole day to go by without having done anything to improve their situation. They found some sort of metal scrap that would hold the debris for burning. There was even an old grate that fit on top to keep the smoke minimized. They worked slow but steady.

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Merri glanced into an old truck trailer then squealed happily, "Hey! Look what I found!" She climbed into the trailer then threw a bunch of stuff on the ground. There in the pile was an old stained mattress. It smelled horrible but it was something they could use. There was also a few cushions to a couch that was broken. The broken couch could be burned for warmth. She smiled happily. "This stuff is great, right?" She grabbed one of the couch cushions then headed back to the hideout, "Can you grab the other one, please?"

Greg smirked, showing off his muscles, "As you wish!" He was happy that Merri was around. This would have been tedious without someone to talk to. Then again, Matt would have been around. He shook that thought out of his mind as he grabbed the other cushions. They made quite a bit of progress. When he entered, he found Merri placing the cushion on one of the brick chairs. "That actually looks comfortable." Greg placed a cushion on the other chair, "We seem to have an extra one. We should get another seat made."

Merri stopped him, "Let's just wait until Matt gets back. I hope it's soon. I don't want to have to walk around at night. I get lost easy." Merri went back outside while Greg hurried to follow her to the mattress. Greg was going to carry it himself but Merri grabbed the other end. They both brought it to the building. Once they hefted it into the entrance, it was tough to decide where to place it.

Greg smiled, "I haven't said thanks for the help yet." He placed the mattress on the side wall, "I wouldn't worry too much about what Matt says." He stepped slowly to Merri then flicked her with his finger on her nose, "I won't let you be out there alone. Especially at night." The flick wasn't flirtatious, it was more a sign of affection from an older brother.

Merri wiggled her nose then rubbed at her face with her hands, "That felt weird." She was about to start speaking again but Matt entered.

Matt took a look at what the two of them had done. He nodded before placing his hands on his hips, "Greg, I think this bi..." He stopped himself from saying the rest of that word, "I think Merri is a witch." Greg was going to speak up but Matt held his hand up, "Which doesn't really matter right now. What really matters is our safety." He glanced at Merri, "While I really don't want some type of power using girl here raising Hell, I also don't want your blood on my hands." He cleared his throat, "You can stay. For now. One fucking incident where that fucking whatever this light thing is hurts either of us, you are gone. No questions asked, and Greg, no arguments." He gave a hard stare at Greg, "I mean it." He sighed, "I still think you will get us killed, but you dying because I kicked you out would be just as horrible." He gave another look around the building, "Looks fucking good in here."

The trio kept working together until it was time to settle down for the night. A fire burned close to the entrance so they all took a spot on the mattress by the doorway. They slept well and warm. Merri had visions during the night of what happened while she got drugged up. It was hazy but enough to scare her into waking up. At first, she was confused, not knowing where she was until Greg gave a snore. This was going to be difficult but she was happy that these two guys were not going to send her away.