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From: owner-arfic-l-digest@lists.xmission.com (arfic-l-digest) To: arfic-l-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: arfic-l-digest V1 #64 Reply-To: arfic-l-digest Sender: owner-arfic-l-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-arfic-l-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk arfic-l-digest Monday, December 31 2001 Volume 01 : Number 064 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 1 Jan 2002 12:10:20 +1300 From: "Anne Olsen" <anneo@paradise.net.nz> Subject: (arfic-l) Where The Winds Blow (3a/4) This is a multi-part message in MIME format. - ------=_NextPart_000_0172_01C192BD.48A2FD40 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Where The Winds Blow (3a/4) by Anne Olsen Disclaimers in Part 0 Feedback to anneo@paradise.net.nz **** Chapter Three=20 Lisa looked around as she teleported into the spaceship. The phosphorus = light reflected off the strange symbols on the walls the same way in = real life as they did in her memories. Even though she'd tried to forget = the ship, it had still been part of her dreams, impossible to completely = forget, much the same way the other Tomorrow People had been. She felt = the presence of the ship in her mind, welcoming her home as it had done = that first time.=20 Her eyes sought *him * out first, before she even realised what she = doing. He was leaning against one of the walls of the ship, his eyes = following her the same way hers did him. He'd cut his hair. He'd cut = that beautiful long hair. She looked at him again and decided it didn't = look as bad as she'd first thought. The shorter length emphasised the = lean outline of his face, the face that she'd spent hours trying to = forget but at the same time forced herself to remember. He looked older = of course, but then so she supposed did she. So did all of them. Lisa looked around the ship again, this time looking long and hard at = the others. She'd been so busy trying to hide her shock from Jamie that = she hadn't really taken in the changes. Kevin was the one who was really = so obviously different. When she'd known him he'd been a child. Now he = was a young man. He'd grown so tall, so wiry. Part of her mind found it = hard to relate the Kevin in front of her with the boy he'd once been.=20 Megabyte was taller too, and had filled out. The young teenager was gone = forever, though she doubted he actually acted like the man he now was. = From what she'd seen earlier that day she doubted it very much. Even = though he seemed a lot more subdued than he had when they'd first met = all those years ago, part of her wondered how much of that was due to = her reappearance. He moved to stand next to the blond British girl, = Jade, and Lisa smiled to herself watching the body language between the = two. Yes, Megabyte Damon had grown up, that was for sure. "You must be Lisa." A pretty dark girl pushed past Megabyte and gave her = a quick hug. "Hi, I'm Ami. It's so nice to meet you, finally." So there = was more than just one new Tomorrow Person since she'd left. Ami looked = more similar in age to Megabyte than anyone and Lisa couldn't help but = wonder how long the boys had been on their own before she'd stepped in = to fill the gap. The gap that Lisa herself had left. 'It's so nice to = meet you.' Lisa wished she could really believe that. Ami's multitude of = tiny braids flew about her face as she gestured with her hands and Lisa = noticed how enthusiastic she seemed. Lisa had felt that enthusiastic = about being a Tomorrow Person once. Before Masters had ruined it, before = he'd threatened everything she held dear.=20 Adam just stood there, unmoving. He looked at her with a sad expression = in his eyes, almost as though he suspected what she was planning. Lisa = felt her heart go out to him. Those large chocolate eyes had always = melted her intentions. In truth that had been the main reason she'd = disappeared all those years ago without telling the other Tomorrow = People, or more particularly without telling him. She knew that once he = gave her that look she'd lose her resolve much the same way she felt it = crumbling now. She forced herself to remember Jamie sitting at home waiting for her to = check in later that evening. He didn't know where she was of course, = just that she'd had an errand to run. Lisa laughed inwardly, a laugh = that reflected the anguish she was feeling inside. Is that all they are = to you now? whispered an inner voice. An errand to run? Something else = to discard as you cling onto that pretence of normality you've spent = years building up around yourself? Jamie. Remember Jamie. It would be so easy to forget him, to go back to = how things had been before. Lisa felt a wave of guilt, tinged with = sadness wash over her. Things could never go back to the way they were, = of that she was sure. Too much water under the bridge. Besides, the = reasons she had left in the first place were still there. They would = always be there. "Lisa. You look.well." Adam spoke at last, very quietly and calmly, but = still unmoving. She reached out tentatively with her mind and tried to = read him, but his mental shields were slammed down tight. Just like mine = are, she realised ironically. You and I are alike in a lot of ways Adam = Newman, so much alike.=20 "You promised us an explanation as to why you disappeared. Remember?" = Typically Megabyte hadn't forgotten what she had promised earlier. He = hadn't even let her get used to being at the ship, to being back with = the other Tomorrow People. Lisa realised her assessment of him earlier = had been right. Megabyte might be older, but his attitude, his = directness, was still the same. "It's complicated, Megabyte. I told you that before. I was scared, I had = to protect my mother. Masters threatened her. What if next time he had = killed her? I would never have forgiven myself." Lisa spoke the words = almost like a mantra. It was the same thing she told herself every night = before she went to sleep. She'd had to do what she'd done. There hadn't = been a choice. Megabyte nodded. "I get that part, Lisa. He pulled a gun on Dad too." He = came up beside her, looking her straight in the eye, and she looked = away, unable to meet his gaze. I remember that, Megabyte, she thought. = It's different for me though. It was your father's job. He knew the = risks, my mother didn't. She didn't understand. "That still doesn't = explain why you just disappeared without telling us. We're all in this = together. We're all Tomorrow People." Lisa corrected him before he went any further with that particular = argument. "*You're * all Tomorrow People, Megabyte. I'm not a Tomorrow = Person, not any longer. I decided that a long time ago." The young girl, Jade, looked shocked as her eyes flitted between them. = She stepped forward for a moment, and then seemingly changing her mind, = stepped back again sitting herself on one of the bench seats against the = wall. "Why would anyone want to stop being a Tomorrow Person? How can = you even think such a thing, Lisa? Don't you think about all the stuff = we can do, how we can make the world a better place?" How could she be = so na=EFve? Surely she'd been part of the group long enough to = understand the risks. Lisa sighed. The poor kid was in for a hard ride. = Sooner or later everyone learnt about life the hard way. If it was only = about making the world a better place, didn't Jade think she would be = still here?=20 "There's another side to all that, Jade," Lisa tried to explain. "What = about the danger we put the people in that we care about? Is it really = fair on them? I've seen that side and it scares me." 'It still scares = me.' "We've seen that side too, Lisa," Adam still hadn't lost that quiet tone = but Lisa could see he wasn't convinced. Adam had always seen the good = side of everything. He had a very definite view of right and wrong. He = seemed to think it was their job to protect the world from the growing = evil within it. She for one didn't want the job of protector of mankind. = Not when it put others' lives in danger. Others she cared about. Her = mother. "It can be really hard when your family isn't behind your decision." = Kevin spoke quietly, from where he was leaning against one of the = consoles, but the tone in his voice made Lisa wonder if he was speaking = from experience. She thought she felt a sense of sadness coming from = him, but only for such a short instance that she wondered if she'd = imagined it. Why was Kevin of all people trying to support her? She had worried for = months afterwards about how her leaving would have affected the younger = boy. The two of them had felt a connection when they had broken out very = soon after each other. He and Megabyte had saved her from Galt's machine = too, she remembered. Strange how all those buried memories were = resurfacing. She'd put that part of her life behind her and tried to = forget it had ever happened. She hadn't even used her powers until she'd = seen them in the Forest Park earlier that day. Well apart from the odd = bit of teleporting when she'd been running late. 'Okay.Davis, you're not = perfect.' For all intents and purposes, and in the ways it actually = mattered, she wasn't a Tomorrow Person now. She was a normal human being = and that's what was important. It was the belief she'd clung to all = these years, what had kept her going. If she was normal no one could use = her to hurt the ones she loved, to hurt her mom. Ami nodded, and Lisa noticed the annoyed look she was giving Megabyte. = She was glad she wasn't on the receiving end of it, much as she was glad = of the support. "I'm still not convinced how happy Mum is about me being = a Tomorrow Person. Sometimes I get the impression she still thinks I'll = grow out of it. It's not a subject we tend to discuss very often. If we = do we end up arguing. She reminds me about the amount of trouble you = guys have dragged me into and I remind her how important some of that = 'trouble' is. I remind her of how many people we've helped, how many = people we've saved." The discussions that Ami had had with her mother = wouldn't have been the same as those Lisa had had with hers, as much as = Ami would like to think she could relate to what she'd been through. She = wondered how much of that trouble Ami's mum had seen first hand. Her mom = had been introduced to the concept of the Tomorrow People and the barrel = of a gun at the same time. It hadn't been a good combination. Megabyte coughed, obviously having heard enough as he shot a glare in = Ami's direction. "I can see where Lisa is going with this and I don't = buy it. What gets me is not so much the fact that Lisa disappeared. Well = yeah that does get me, especially after everything we went through = together with Masters." Lisa shuddered. 'That everything as you put it = is still gives me nightmares,' she thought. "What gets me," he continued, his eyes seeming to increase in brightness = as he shifted his glare from Ami and addressed Lisa directly, "is that = you disappeared without telling us. Dad offered to help. At least then = we would have known you were okay. Have you any idea how hard that was? = It was months before we gave up trying to find you, tried to stop = imagining what could be happening." It was months before I could stop = wondering if you guys were okay too, Lisa remembered. True, General = Damon had offered to help, but if he'd known where she was, others could = have found out too. What if someone had threatened the others to find = her? Would the man have given up his own son to protect her? Lisa = doubted it and she wouldn't have blamed him. She had also known there = was no way she could have put him in that position. She couldn't tell = Megabyte the real reason she hadn't taken up his father's offer. It = wouldn't help the situation now one little bit. Jade reached out and gave his arm a squeeze, and a look flashed between = them before she added in her two cents worth. Yes there was definitely = something going on between Megabyte and the younger blonde British girl. = "Look, Lisa, this is all in the past. You're back and that's what = counts. We know you're okay now. Things can go back to the way they were = before you left."=20 Lisa shook her head. Na=EFve much, Jade? One look on Adam and Megabyte's = faces told her a different story. Both of them had been hurt badly, as = had Kevin. Each was coping with it differently, but she knew the damage = she had done. Damage that could never be repaired. At least Kevin seemed = to understand where she was coming from, seemed to be able to relate to = it but when it came down to it she had to wonder if even he would be = able to forgive or forget. "Forgive or forget?" exclaimed Megabyte, his face turning red. "You just = don't get it do you? You've decided that you don't want to be a Tomorrow = Person anymore and to hell with the rest of us. You can't just walk away = and pretend it didn't happen, Lisa. It doesn't work like that. The = idea's a load of crap and you know it."=20 "Have you even listened to a word I've said?" asked Lisa, feeling the = anger rise. Megabyte wasn't even trying to understand her point of view. = In fact she was sure he had just rudely eavesdropped on her thoughts = too. But still, she hadn't really gotten to know them properly all those = years ago. The only one she had really gotten close to had been Adam. = She would have liked to but. "Maybe if you'd stayed more than five minutes you could have." Megabyte = sounded as angry as she felt. "You didn't even give me a chance to get = to know you before you up and left. Maybe if you'd given the rest of us = a chance instead of thinking you knew everything..."" "That's not fair and you know it!" Lisa was beginning to think she = hadn't missed much not getting to know him better. The guy was so = tactless! And hadn't General Damon ever taught him anything about = manners? The last time she'd looked Tomorrow People didn't eavesdrop on = each others thoughts without permission. Adam positioned himself between them, finally moving away from where = he'd been standing all this time. "Guys, " he pointed out. "A screaming = match isn't going to help anything. Neither one of you is trying to = listen to the other's point of view." Poor Adam. Still trying to be the = leader, still trying to make things right. It was too late for that now. = Too late for everything to go back to the way they'd been before. "I thought I was being very reasonable about the whole thing. I wasn't = the one who left." Megabyte's voice started to rise in volume and Lisa = didn't have to be a Tomorrow Person to feel the anger coming from him. = Didn't have to be a Tomorrow Person? Back five minutes and she was = starting to think like one of them again. She had to leave now before = either of them said something they'd regret later, before she lost her = resolve to do what she had to. "Megabyte." started Kevin, the hurt in his eyes evident as he looked at = his best friend and then back at her. Poor Kevin. He didn't deserve = this. They were going around and around in circles, with no one winning. = Lisa had been involved in arguments like this before and she knew where = they ultimately led. Nowhere. She didn't need this at the moment, she = really didn't. "I can see I made a big mistake trying to come back. Luckily I only came = to say goodbye." Lisa avoided the other Tomorrow People's gazes before = continuing, focusing her eyes on the view through the window above the = bench where Jade was still seated. She knew how Adam in particular would = be taking this.' I didn't mean to hurt you like this again, but I don't = have a choice. Can't you can see that?'=20 She needed to do this before he had a chance to say anything. Before he = had a chance to tell her to stay. "Goodbye."=20 The word sounded so cold and unfeeling. If only they knew how much this = was hurting her. She knew how much she was hurting them. Lisa closed her eyes and readied herself to teleport, pleased that she = couldn't see their reaction. She had to leave before any of them got an = inkling of how she was really feeling, how much this was killing her to = do this to the people she cared about. Before they had a chance to see = the tears welling up, before the dam of emotions she'd hidden all those = years burst. Goodbye.=20 Goodbye, Adam.=20 I'm sorry.. **** End of part 3a "Stop making me repeat myself. It's bad for my health." - Duo Maxwell, = Gundam Wing. ________________________________________ = =20 http://www.angelfire.com/ab7/shadesandechoes ________________________________________ - ------=_NextPart_000_0172_01C192BD.48A2FD40 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META content=3D"text/html; charset=3Diso-8859-1" = http-equiv=3DContent-Type> <META content=3D"MSHTML 5.00.2614.3500" name=3DGENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff> <DIV> Where The Winds Blow (3a/4) by Anne Olsen Disclaimers in Part 0 Feedback to <A=20 href=3D"mailto:anneo@paradise.net.nzChapter">anneo@paradise.net.nz</A></P= > **** Chapter Three Lisa looked around as she teleported into the spaceship. The = phosphorus light=20 reflected off the strange symbols on the walls the same way in real life = as they=20 did in her memories. Even though she'd tried to forget the ship, it had = still=20 been part of her dreams, impossible to completely forget, much the same = way the=20 other Tomorrow People had been. She felt the presence of the ship in her = mind,=20 welcoming her home as it had done that first time. Her eyes sought *him * out first, before she even realised what she = doing. He=20 was leaning against one of the walls of the ship, his eyes following her = the=20 same way hers did him. He'd cut his hair. He'd cut that beautiful long = hair. She=20 looked at him again and decided it didn't look as bad as she'd first = thought.=20 The shorter length emphasised the lean outline of his face, the face = that she'd=20 spent hours trying to forget but at the same time forced herself to = remember. He=20 looked older of course, but then so she supposed did she. So did all of them. Lisa looked around the ship again, this time looking long and hard at = the=20 others. She'd been so busy trying to hide her shock from Jamie that she = hadn't=20 really taken in the changes. Kevin was the one who was really so = obviously=20 different. When she'd known him he'd been a child. Now he was a young = man. He'd=20 grown so tall, so wiry. Part of her mind found it hard to relate the = Kevin in=20 front of her with the boy he'd once been. Megabyte was taller too, and had filled out. The young teenager was = gone=20 forever, though she doubted he actually acted like the man he now was. = From what=20 she'd seen earlier that day she doubted it very much. Even though he = seemed a=20 lot more subdued than he had when they'd first met all those years ago, = part of=20 her wondered how much of that was due to her reappearance. He moved to = stand=20 next to the blond British girl, Jade, and Lisa smiled to herself = watching the=20 body language between the two. Yes, Megabyte Damon had grown up, that = was for=20 sure. "You must be Lisa." A pretty dark girl pushed past Megabyte and gave = her a=20 quick hug. "Hi, I’m Ami. It’s so nice to meet you, finally." = So there was more=20 than just one new Tomorrow Person since she'd left. Ami looked more = similar in=20 age to Megabyte than anyone and Lisa couldn't help but wonder how long = the boys=20 had been on their own before she'd stepped in to fill the gap. The gap = that Lisa=20 herself had left. 'It's so nice to meet you.' Lisa wished she could = really=20 believe that. Ami's multitude of tiny braids flew about her face as she = gestured=20 with her hands and Lisa noticed how enthusiastic she seemed. Lisa had = felt that=20 enthusiastic about being a Tomorrow Person once. Before Masters had = ruined it,=20 before he'd threatened everything she held dear. Adam just stood there, unmoving. He looked at her with a sad = expression in=20 his eyes, almost as though he suspected what she was planning. Lisa felt = her=20 heart go out to him. Those large chocolate eyes had always melted her=20 intentions. In truth that had been the main reason she’d = disappeared all those=20 years ago without telling the other Tomorrow People, or more = particularly=20 without telling him. She knew that once he gave her that look she'd lose = her=20 resolve much the same way she felt it crumbling now. She forced herself to remember Jamie sitting at home waiting for her = to check=20 in later that evening. He didn’t know where she was of course, = just that she’d=20 had an errand to run. Lisa laughed inwardly, a laugh that reflected the = anguish=20 she was feeling inside. Is that all they are to you now? whispered an = inner=20 voice. An errand to run? Something else to discard as you cling onto = that=20 pretence of normality you’ve spent years building up around = yourself? Jamie. Remember Jamie. It would be so easy to forget him, to go back = to how=20 things had been before. Lisa felt a wave of guilt, tinged with sadness = wash over=20 her. Things could never go back to the way they were, of that she was = sure. Too=20 much water under the bridge. Besides, the reasons she had left in the = first=20 place were still there. They would always be there. "Lisa. You look…well." Adam spoke at last, very quietly and = calmly, but still=20 unmoving. She reached out tentatively with her mind and tried to read = him, but=20 his mental shields were slammed down tight. Just like mine are, she = realised=20 ironically. You and I are alike in a lot of ways Adam Newman, so much = alike.=20 "You promised us an explanation as to why you disappeared. Remember?" = Typically Megabyte hadn’t forgotten what she had promised earlier. = He hadn’t=20 even let her get used to being at the ship, to being back with the other = Tomorrow People. Lisa realised her assessment of him earlier had been = right.=20 Megabyte might be older, but his attitude, his directness, was still the = same. "It’s complicated, Megabyte. I told you that before. I was = scared, I had to=20 protect my mother. Masters threatened her. What if next time he had = killed her?=20 I would never have forgiven myself." Lisa spoke the words almost like a = mantra.=20 It was the same thing she told herself every night before she went to = sleep.=20 She'd had to do what she'd done. There hadn't been a choice. Megabyte nodded. "I get that part, Lisa. He pulled a gun on Dad too." = He came=20 up beside her, looking her straight in the eye, and she looked away, = unable to=20 meet his gaze. I remember that, Megabyte, she thought. It's different = for me=20 though. It was your father's job. He knew the risks, my mother didn't. = She=20 didn't understand. "That still doesn’t explain why you just = disappeared without=20 telling us. We’re all in this together. We’re all Tomorrow = People." Lisa corrected him before he went any further with that particular = argument.=20 "*You're * all Tomorrow People, Megabyte. I’m not a Tomorrow = Person, not any=20 longer. I decided that a long time ago." The young girl, Jade, looked shocked as her eyes flitted between = them. She=20 stepped forward for a moment, and then seemingly changing her mind, = stepped back=20 again sitting herself on one of the bench seats against the wall. "Why = would=20 anyone want to stop being a Tomorrow Person? How can you even think such = a=20 thing, Lisa? Don’t you think about all the stuff we can do, how we = can make the=20 world a better place?" How could she be so na=EFve? Surely she'd been = part of the=20 group long enough to understand the risks. Lisa sighed. The poor kid was = in for=20 a hard ride. Sooner or later everyone learnt about life the hard way. If = it was=20 only about making the world a better place, didn't Jade think she would = be still=20 here? "There’s another side to all that, Jade," Lisa tried to = explain. "What about=20 the danger we put the people in that we care about? Is it really fair on = them?=20 I’ve seen that side and it scares me." 'It still scares = me.' "We’ve seen that side too, Lisa," Adam still hadn't lost that = quiet tone but=20 Lisa could see he wasn’t convinced. Adam had always seen the good = side of=20 everything. He had a very definite view of right and wrong. He seemed to = think=20 it was their job to protect the world from the growing evil within it. = She for=20 one didn’t want the job of protector of mankind. Not when it put = others’ lives=20 in danger. Others she cared about. Her mother. "It can be really hard when your family isn’t behind your = decision." Kevin=20 spoke quietly, from where he was leaning against one of the consoles, = but the=20 tone in his voice made Lisa wonder if he was speaking from experience. = She=20 thought she felt a sense of sadness coming from him, but only for such a = short=20 instance that she wondered if she'd imagined it. Why was Kevin of all people trying to support her? She had worried = for months=20 afterwards about how her leaving would have affected the younger boy. = The two of=20 them had felt a connection when they had broken out very soon after each = other.=20 He and Megabyte had saved her from Galt’s machine too, she = remembered. Strange=20 how all those buried memories were resurfacing. She’d put that = part of her life=20 behind her and tried to forget it had ever happened. She hadn’t = even used her=20 powers until she’d seen them in the Forest Park earlier that day. = Well apart=20 from the odd bit of teleporting when she’d been running late. = 'Okay…Davis,=20 you’re not perfect.' For all intents and purposes, and in the ways = it actually=20 mattered, she wasn’t a Tomorrow Person now. She was a normal human = being and=20 that’s what was important. It was the belief she’d clung to = all these years,=20 what had kept her going. If she was normal no one could use her to hurt = the ones=20 she loved, to hurt her mom… Ami nodded, and Lisa noticed the annoyed look she was giving = Megabyte. She=20 was glad she wasn't on the receiving end of it, much as she was glad of = the=20 support. "I’m still not convinced how happy Mum is about me being = a Tomorrow=20 Person. Sometimes I get the impression she still thinks I’ll grow = out of it.=20 It’s not a subject we tend to discuss very often. If we do we end = up arguing.=20 She reminds me about the amount of trouble you guys have dragged me into = and I=20 remind her how important some of that ‘trouble’ is. I remind = her of how many=20 people we’ve helped, how many people we’ve saved." The = discussions that Ami had=20 had with her mother wouldn't have been the same as those Lisa had had = with hers,=20 as much as Ami would like to think she could relate to what she'd been = through.=20 She wondered how much of that trouble Ami's mum had seen first hand. Her = mom had=20 been introduced to the concept of the Tomorrow People and the barrel of = a gun at=20 the same time. It hadn't been a good combination. Megabyte coughed, obviously having heard enough as he shot a glare in = Ami's=20 direction. "I can see where Lisa is going with this and I don’t = buy it. What=20 gets me is not so much the fact that Lisa disappeared. Well yeah that = does get=20 me, especially after everything we went through together with Masters." = Lisa=20 shuddered. 'That everything as you put it is still gives me = nightmares,'=20 she thought. "What gets me," he continued, his eyes seeming to increase in = brightness as=20 he shifted his glare from Ami and addressed Lisa directly, "is that you=20 disappeared without telling us. Dad offered to help. At least then we = would have=20 known you were okay. Have you any idea how hard that was? It was months = before=20 we gave up trying to find you, tried to stop imagining what could be = happening."=20 It was months before I could stop wondering if you guys were okay too, = Lisa=20 remembered. True, General Damon had offered to help, but if he'd known = where she=20 was, others could have found out too. What if someone had threatened the = others=20 to find her? Would the man have given up his own son to protect her? = Lisa=20 doubted it and she wouldn't have blamed him. She had also known there = was no way=20 she could have put him in that position. She couldn't tell Megabyte the = real=20 reason she hadn't taken up his father's offer. It wouldn't help the = situation=20 now one little bit. Jade reached out and gave his arm a squeeze, and a look flashed = between them=20 before she added in her two cents worth. Yes there was definitely = something=20 going on between Megabyte and the younger blonde British girl. "Look, = Lisa, this=20 is all in the past. You’re back and that’s what counts. We = know you’re okay now.=20 Things can go back to the way they were before you left." Lisa shook her head. Na=EFve much, Jade? One look on Adam and = Megabyte’s faces=20 told her a different story. Both of them had been hurt badly, as had = Kevin. Each=20 was coping with it differently, but she knew the damage she had done. = Damage=20 that could never be repaired. At least Kevin seemed to understand where = she was=20 coming from, seemed to be able to relate to it but when it came down to = it she=20 had to wonder if even he would be able to forgive or forget. "Forgive or forget?" exclaimed Megabyte, his face turning red. "You = just=20 don’t get it do you? You’ve decided that you don’t = want to be a Tomorrow Person=20 anymore and to hell with the rest of us. You can’t just walk away = and pretend it=20 didn’t happen, Lisa. It doesn’t work like that. The idea's a = load of crap and=20 you know it." "Have you even listened to a word I’ve said?" asked Lisa, = feeling the anger=20 rise. Megabyte wasn’t even trying to understand her point of view. = In fact she=20 was sure he had just rudely eavesdropped on her thoughts too. But still, = she=20 hadn’t really gotten to know them properly all those years ago. = The only one she=20 had really gotten close to had been Adam. She would have liked to = but… "Maybe if you’d stayed more than five minutes you could have." = Megabyte=20 sounded as angry as she felt. "You didn’t even give me a chance to = get to know=20 you before you up and left. Maybe if you’d given the rest of us a = chance instead=20 of thinking you knew everything..."" "That’s not fair and you know it!" Lisa was beginning to think = she hadn’t=20 missed much not getting to know him better. The guy was so tactless! And = hadn't=20 General Damon ever taught him anything about manners? The last time = she'd looked=20 Tomorrow People didn't eavesdrop on each others thoughts without = permission. Adam positioned himself between them, finally moving away from where = he'd=20 been standing all this time. "Guys, " he pointed out. "A screaming match = isn’t=20 going to help anything. Neither one of you is trying to listen to the = other's=20 point of view." Poor Adam. Still trying to be the leader, still trying = to make=20 things right. It was too late for that now. Too late for everything to = go back=20 to the way they'd been before. "I thought I was being very reasonable about the whole thing. I = wasn’t the=20 one who left." Megabyte's voice started to rise in volume and Lisa = didn't have=20 to be a Tomorrow Person to feel the anger coming from him. Didn't have = to be a=20 Tomorrow Person? Back five minutes and she was starting to think like = one of=20 them again. She had to leave now before either of them said something = they'd=20 regret later, before she lost her resolve to do what she had to. "Megabyte…" started Kevin, the hurt in his eyes evident as he = looked at his=20 best friend and then back at her. Poor Kevin. He didn't deserve this. = They were=20 going around and around in circles, with no one winning. Lisa had been = involved=20 in arguments like this before and she knew where they ultimately led. = Nowhere.=20 She didn’t need this at the moment, she really didn't. "I can see I made a big mistake trying to come back. Luckily I only = came to=20 say goodbye." Lisa avoided the other Tomorrow People's gazes before = continuing,=20 focusing her eyes on the view through the window above the bench where = Jade was=20 still seated. She knew how Adam in particular would be taking this.' I = didn't=20 mean to hurt you like this again, but I don't have a choice. Can't you = can see=20 that?' She needed to do this before he had a chance to say anything. Before = he had a=20 chance to tell her to stay. "Goodbye." The word sounded so cold and unfeeling. If only they knew how much = this was=20 hurting her. She knew how much she was hurting them. Lisa closed her eyes and readied herself to teleport, pleased that = she=20 couldn't see their reaction. She had to leave before any of them got an = inkling=20 of how she was really feeling, how much this was killing her to do this = to the=20 people she cared about. Before they had a chance to see the tears = welling up,=20 before the dam of emotions she’d hidden all those years burst. Goodbye. Goodbye, Adam. I’m sorry…. **** End of part 3a</DIV> <DIV>"Stop making me repeat myself. It's bad = for my=20 health." - Duo Maxwell, Gundam=20 Wing. ________________________________________ = &= nbsp; &n= bsp; &nb= sp; &nbs= p; = ; =20 </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><A=20 href=3D"http://www.angelfire.com/ab7/shadesandechoes">http://www.angelfir= e.com/ab7/shadesandechoes</A> ________________________________________= </DIV></BODY></HTML> - ------=_NextPart_000_0172_01C192BD.48A2FD40-- - - To unsubscribe to arfic-l, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe arfic-l" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 1 Jan 2002 12:31:04 +1300 From: "Anne Olsen" <anneo@paradise.net.nz> Subject: (arfic-l) Where The Winds Blow (3b/4) This is a multi-part message in MIME format. - ------=_NextPart_000_001D_01C192C0.2DD38EA0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Where The Winds Blow (3b/4) by Anne Olsen Disclaimer in Part 0 Feedback to anneo@paradise.net.nz ****** "Megabyte, that was rude." Jade sounded very annoyed, and she had every = right to be. Obviously Lisa's disappearance had affected the redhead = more than he'd ever let on, and her reappearance had caused all those = buried feelings to come straight back up to the surface and out in = anger. Still it didn't make it any easier to watch, or decrease the feel = of the after effects. "Adam, are you okay?" Ami asked. The Australian had leant against the = central column of the ship and grown silent as Lisa had said her final = words and disappeared out of their lives again. Adam was hurting. Kevin = didn't need to be empathic to sense that. His friend's shields might be = strong but one look on his face had given away exactly what he was = trying to hide. Adam smiled a small slow smile that said he was anything but. "I will = be," he said. "The trouble is I can see some of where Lisa is coming = from. I don't agree with what she's done but I can understand why she's = done it. When someone you love is in danger, you don't always act = rationally. You don't always do what you should." A shadow swept across = his face momentarily and was gone.=20 Adam always had to try and see the good side of people and come to their = defence, even when it was killing him inside. He might have been trying = to justify Lisa's actions as much to himself as to the rest of them but = he didn't really believe what he was saying. Adam wasn't as good an = actor as he thought he was. Judging from the emotions coming from the = other Tomorrow People, no one was buying it. Adam always tried to fall = back on platitudes but unfortunately things were too far gone for those = in this situation. Kevin grimaced as he realised how cynical he'd become = over the last few years. His initial excitement about being a Tomorrow = Person hadn't lasted very long, especially once a few home truths had = hit home. Being different wasn't always as much fun as people liked to = make out. "Yeah but you've got to think of the big picture too," pointed out = Megabyte, still staring at the spot where Lisa had been standing moments = before. The American was calmer now, but still far from losing his = initial anger. He blushed. "Okay maybe I did come on kinda strong back = there." Kinda strong? Understatement of the century.=20 "Kinda strong?" asked Ami, echoing his thoughts. "Come on, Megabyte, you = practically drove the poor girl away." She shook her head in disgust and = rolled her eyes upwards as if to accentuate what she was saying. "Mr = Tactful strikes again." "Gee thanks, Ami. Lay on the guilt trip, why don't you?" Megabyte glared = back at her for a moment and then settled himself down on the bench next = to Jade, leaning back against the wall his eyes half closed. Oh great, = just what they needed, another round between Ami and Megabyte. Even = though Ami was right, this wasn't the time or place for this. Kevin = could see Megabyte was hurting but he was far more worried about Lisa = and Adam. You would've had to be blind to miss the way the two of them = had been looking at each other.=20 "Maybe we need to look at this from Lisa's point of view," He told them, = trying desperately to get the conversation back on track. Why was he so = determined to stick up for Lisa? Maybe it was because he'd been there. = Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. "I know what it's like to have = to choose between being a Tomorrow Person and not being a Tomorrow = Person." "But you are a Tomorrow Person," Jade sounded puzzled as she tried to = understand what he was getting at. Jade had been lucky, the way her mum = had just accepted the whole TP gig. Kevin felt a slight pang of jealousy = sweep over him, not for the first time, but ignored it. "That's because I decided it was more important to me than other things = in my life. Maybe Lisa couldn't make that same choice I did. I gave up = my family to be a Tomorrow Person. She couldn't." The words were out of = Kevin's mouth before he even thought about what he was saying. He'd = never told the others why he'd disappeared from their lives for a period = of time. He'd never told them why his family had suddenly decided to = take an extended working holiday overseas. Overseas. So that he would be = as far away from the others as possible before they made him choose. Of = course at that stage his mum had still been convinced it was just a case = of taking him away from the friends who were trying to fill his head = with rubbish. She had been going to make him choose between reality and = fantasy. She just hadn't wanted to believe just how real that so called = fantasy had been. Adam gave him that patented look of concern he used when one of them was = in trouble. The 'I don't understand, but how can I help look,' that = Kevin knew so well. "You gave up your family? Kevin, what do you mean? I = thought you decided to stay with Aunt Ruth after your family shifted = away." 'You make it sound so easy, Adam. I decided? If only it had been = that way, if only things had been that simple.' Kevin corrected him, trying not very successfully to keep the emotion = out of his voice. "My parents, or rather my mother decided that if I = couldn't give up being a Tomorrow Person then I wasn't part of their = family anymore. She seemed to think that that whole thing with me being = bitten and nearly dying from that mutant mosquito was a punishment for = me having my powers." That was the simplified version of what his mum = had said. The actual words she'd used were going to haunt him for the = rest of his life. He'd thought she'd taken the news okay at first. Not = really okay to be honest, but that she would be able to live with it. = She'd given him a while to ponder the 'error of his ways', as she'd put = it, lulled him into a false sense of security and then hit him with the = ultimatum. Still he wondered if maybe she hadn't really believed up to = that point. Up to that point when he'd insisted months later that she = had to see what he meant, had to see his powers in action. That he = wasn't just telling her a fairy story. Every time he'd tried to explain = properly or show her before that, she'd just change the subject and not = wanting to upset her any more than she already was, he hadn't pushed it. "That's crazy," pointed out Megabyte, watching Kevin closely. Crazy? = That was one word for it, he supposed. Parents were supposed to support = their kids, not turn against them. They weren't supposed to make them = choose like that. "You've met my mum. You know what's she's like. I never told her about = my powers until that affair with Culex. After all I had to tell her = something when I came out of the coma. Aunt Ruth seemed to think I = should." Kevin shook his head as he remembered the look on his mother's = face when he'd eventually demonstrated his powers to her. The fear he = picked up from her, as she watched him teleport. She was scared of him, = scared of her own son. Aunt Ruth had no idea her sister was going to = react that way, no idea of all. Looking back the whole denial thing = should have been a clue, but Aunt Ruth hadn't seen what was really = coming any more than he had. She'd tried to take Kevin's side and argue = on his behalf but Mary Wilson hadn't listened. Poor Aunt Ruth, she'd = been so convinced that telling his parents had been the right thing to = do.=20 "You mean she thought it meant you should give them up?" Adam seemed = shocked. "She made you chose between being a Tomorrow Person and your = family? Did you try to explain that being a Tomorrow Person is part of = who you are? You can't just give it up." Try telling that to his mother. = Kevin wondered, not for the first time, if Adam's own family knew about = his powers, about who and what he really was. He doubted it. "I tried explaining it, tried till I was blue in the face. I told her I = had responsibilities, that I couldn't just switch them off. Even if I = didn't use them, they'd still be there." Kevin shook his head sadly. = "When she started screaming at me and calling me evil I left. I wasn't = going to hang around for the spawn of the devil speech I knew was coming = next. I haven't been back since." The hardest thing to take had been his = father's reaction the whole time his mum had been ranting on at him. His = father, whom he'd thought he had a good relationship with, had just = stood there and said nothing. He hadn't even tried to stand up for his = own son. When push had come to shove he'd just stood there, in his = wife's shadow as usual. He'd been so worried about keeping the peace = he'd just let Kevin leave. He hadn't even cared, or if he had he hadn't = shown it. His father had made a choice that day too, and it hadn't been = the one Kevin had been expecting.=20 He glanced around the ship, taking in the shocked faces of the others. = Megabyte was sitting upright now, a look of disbelief on his face. He = had an arm around Jade to reassure her, as her distress at what she was = hearing became obvious, their argument of earlier that day seemingly = forgotten. Adam's posture had visibly slumped even further than when = Lisa had left, the expression of shock still on his face. Ami was trying = to reassure him with one of those soft smiles of hers as he felt her = mind brush against his own. She was trying to find out how he was = coping, really coping with what he'd just shared. "I'm not saying that = Lisa's mother said that to her. Just that when faced with a choice like = that, not everyone makes the same one. Besides I'd known you guys longer = I guess. I knew I had your support. Lisa had just been through all that = stuff with Masters threatening her mother, I hadn't." And now he was = sounding like Adam, trying to make excuses for her. 'Lisa, why couldn't = you have made the same decision I did?' Because she had a mother who = cared about her and he didn't. That's what it boiled down to, of that he = was sure. Jade pulled away from the American and threw her arms around him. "Oh = Kevin, I'm so sorry. I didn't know." Of course Jade didn't know, she = wasn't a mind reader. Kevin grinned in spite of himself. Somehow that = saying didn't have quite the same ring to it that it was supposed to. = Adam wasn't the only one who hid things under strong mental shields. = They all did that, to a certain degree. They seemed to need to, to = survive. What would happen if they couldn't? Even though they were = telepaths the thought of sharing everything including all his fears = completely scared him the same way he was sure it scared all of them. "It was a while ago now, Jade. I've come to terms with it, honest I = have." Who was he trying to kid? He'd never come to terms with it. = Still, she didn't have to know that, did she? It might be in the past, = but for part of him, it would always feel like yesterday. Kevin gave = Jade a small smile of thanks before continuing. "I guess what I'm trying = to say is that we need to show Lisa that whatever her decision was or = is, we'll be there for her. We mightn't like her decision but she knows = where to find us if she ever changes her mind." Adam finally seemed to come to life, moving away from the column he'd = just about been glued to since Lisa's departure, a hesitant look on his = face. "Are you sure you're okay, Kevin? I mean do you mind if I.?" Kevin nodded. He knew what was coming next, as he was sure they all did. = "Go after her, Adam. I'll be fine. After all I have friends here. Lisa = has no one." He watched as Adam initiated the teleport, following the psychic trial = Lisa had left barely ten minutes before. 'Go after her, Adam.' The = Tomorrow People were a family, Kevin had had that feeling reinforced = since he'd returned to the fold. They'd welcomed him back without = question, and just believed the reasons he'd given for his absence. They = could do that for Lisa too, he was sure. She had to know whatever she'd = done in the past, whatever her decision had been, it wasn't too late to = come back. At least if she didn't return, Adam would know he'd tried to = convince her, wouldn't spend the rest of his life wondering what if. He = needed to do that, if he was going to get through this, whatever way = things turned out. As Megabyte cleared his throat, Kevin could feel the growing feeling of = guilt coming from his friend. He was obviously regretting some of what = he'd said. They were all guilty of that to some degree. That was one of = the things about being human. Funny how *they * still thought of = themselves as human even though there were a lot of people out there who = didn't. "I hope she listens to what Adam has to say," Megabyte put Kevin's own = thoughts into words. She'll listen, Megabyte. But whether she actually = takes any notice and really hears it, that'll be the thing. The redhead shrugged as three pairs of accusing eyes met his own. "Hey I = can't be perfect all the time.After all I'm still hanging out with you = guys aren't I? You okay, Kev?" 'I'm trying to be, Megabyte.' Kevin nodded. "Sometimes I just wish that things were different that's = all. Life sucks sometimes, you know?" And it didn't get any easier to = deal with as time went on. It didn't matter how much he tried to forget, = those memories were going to haunt him. Even though he knew he'd made = the right decision, it didn't make the hurt go away. Nothing could do = that. He just had to pretend to move on, pretend it was in the past = where it belonged. He'd become very good at pretending since becoming a = Tomorrow Person, a bit too good in fact. Ami moved over from where she'd been leaning against the far wall and = put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. As Megabyte and Lisa had started = talking or rather arguing she'd moved away from them, watching the sea = swirling outside the ship. It was almost as though she wasn't sure she = should interrupt, wasn't sure what to do exactly.=20 Kevin sat there for a moment just enjoying the telepathic presence of = the others and of the ship, all giving their unspoken support in their = own way. Megabyte grinned as he broke the silence. "If the world didn't suck we'd = all fall off." Kevin groaned. He knew he could count on his friend to throw a bad joke = in there somewhere. "Remind me why I'm still a Tomorrow Person again = someone?" Watching his friends, his family, it wasn't an option. They were all in = this together and he wouldn't have it any other way. Yes, it had been = hard to walk away from his other family, but he'd make the same decision = if he had to do it again too. In his mind there hadn't been a choice. = How could he even consider leaving people who actually cared about him? As he watched Megabyte duck as the girls threw mock punches at him, = Kevin's thoughts went back to Adam. If anyone could reach Lisa, it would = be him. 'Bring her back, Adam,' he thought. 'Help her to make the same = decision I have.' ******* End of Chapter Three ****** "Stop making me repeat myself. It's bad for my health." - Duo Maxwell, = Gundam Wing. ________________________________________ = =20 http://www.angelfire.com/ab7/shadesandechoes ________________________________________ - ------=_NextPart_000_001D_01C192C0.2DD38EA0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META content=3D"text/html; charset=3Diso-8859-1" = http-equiv=3DContent-Type> <META content=3D"MSHTML 5.00.2614.3500" name=3DGENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff> <DIV> Where The Winds Blow (3b/4) by Anne Olsen Disclaimer in Part 0 Feedback to <A=20 href=3D'mailto:anneo@paradise.net.nz"Megabyte'>anneo@paradise.net.nz</A><= /P> ****** "Megabyte, that was rude." Jade sounded very annoyed, and she had = every right=20 to be. Obviously Lisa’s disappearance had affected the redhead = more than he'd=20 ever let on, and her reappearance had caused all those buried feelings = to come=20 straight back up to the surface and out in anger. Still it didn't make = it any=20 easier to watch, or decrease the feel of the after effects. "Adam, are you okay?" Ami asked. The Australian had leant against the = central=20 column of the ship and grown silent as Lisa had said her final words and = disappeared out of their lives again. Adam was hurting. Kevin didn't = need to be=20 empathic to sense that. His friend's shields might be strong but one = look on his=20 face had given away exactly what he was trying to hide. Adam smiled a small slow smile that said he was anything but. "I will = be," he=20 said. "The trouble is I can see some of where Lisa is coming from. I = don’t agree=20 with what she’s done but I can understand why she’s done it. = When someone you=20 love is in danger, you don’t always act rationally. You = don’t always do what you=20 should." A shadow swept across his face momentarily and was gone. Adam always had to try and see the good side of people and come to = their=20 defence, even when it was killing him inside. He might have been trying = to=20 justify Lisa's actions as much to himself as to the rest of them but he = didn't=20 really believe what he was saying. Adam wasn't as good an actor as he = thought he=20 was. Judging from the emotions coming from the other Tomorrow People, no = one was=20 buying it. Adam always tried to fall back on platitudes but = unfortunately things=20 were too far gone for those in this situation. Kevin grimaced as he = realised how=20 cynical he'd become over the last few years. His initial excitement = about being=20 a Tomorrow Person hadn't lasted very long, especially once a few home = truths had=20 hit home. Being different wasn't always as much fun as people liked to = make=20 out. "Yeah but you’ve got to think of the big picture too," pointed = out Megabyte,=20 still staring at the spot where Lisa had been standing moments before. = The=20 American was calmer now, but still far from losing his initial anger. He = blushed. "Okay maybe I did come on kinda strong back there." Kinda = strong?=20 Understatement of the century. "Kinda strong?" asked Ami, echoing his thoughts. "Come on, Megabyte, = you=20 practically drove the poor girl away." She shook her head in disgust and = rolled=20 her eyes upwards as if to accentuate what she was saying. "Mr Tactful = strikes=20 again." "Gee thanks, Ami. Lay on the guilt trip, why don’t you?" = Megabyte glared back=20 at her for a moment and then settled himself down on the bench next to = Jade,=20 leaning back against the wall his eyes half closed. Oh great, just what = they=20 needed, another round between Ami and Megabyte. Even though Ami was = right, this=20 wasn't the time or place for this. Kevin could see Megabyte was hurting = but he=20 was far more worried about Lisa and Adam. You would've had to be blind = to miss=20 the way the two of them had been looking at each other. "Maybe we need to look at this from Lisa’s point of view," He = told them,=20 trying desperately to get the conversation back on track. Why was he so=20 determined to stick up for Lisa? Maybe it was because he'd been there. = Been=20 there, done that, got the t-shirt. "I know what it’s like to have = to choose=20 between being a Tomorrow Person and not being a Tomorrow Person." "But you are a Tomorrow Person," Jade sounded puzzled as she tried to = understand what he was getting at. Jade had been lucky, the way her mum = had just=20 accepted the whole TP gig. Kevin felt a slight pang of jealousy sweep = over him,=20 not for the first time, but ignored it. "That’s because I decided it was more important to me than = other things in my=20 life. Maybe Lisa couldn’t make that same choice I did. I gave up = my family to be=20 a Tomorrow Person. She couldn’t." The words were out of = Kevin’s mouth before he=20 even thought about what he was saying. He’d never told the others = why he’d=20 disappeared from their lives for a period of time. He’d never told = them why his=20 family had suddenly decided to take an extended working holiday = overseas.=20 Overseas. So that he would be as far away from the others as possible = before=20 they made him choose. Of course at that stage his mum had still been = convinced=20 it was just a case of taking him away from the friends who were trying = to fill=20 his head with rubbish. She had been going to make him choose between = reality and=20 fantasy. She just hadn't wanted to believe just how real that so called = fantasy=20 had been. Adam gave him that patented look of concern he used when one of them = was in=20 trouble. The 'I don't understand, but how can I help look,' that Kevin = knew so=20 well. "You gave up your family? Kevin, what do you mean? I thought you = decided=20 to stay with Aunt Ruth after your family shifted away." 'You make it = sound so=20 easy, Adam. I decided? If only it had been that way, if only things had = been=20 that simple.' Kevin corrected him, trying not very successfully to keep the emotion = out of=20 his voice. "My parents, or rather my mother decided that if I = couldn’t give up=20 being a Tomorrow Person then I wasn’t part of their family = anymore. She seemed=20 to think that that whole thing with me being bitten and nearly dying = from that=20 mutant mosquito was a punishment for me having my powers." That was the=20 simplified version of what his mum had said. The actual words she'd used = were=20 going to haunt him for the rest of his life. He'd thought she'd taken = the news=20 okay at first. Not really okay to be honest, but that she would be able = to live=20 with it. She'd given him a while to ponder the 'error of his ways', as = she'd put=20 it, lulled him into a false sense of security and then hit him with the=20 ultimatum. Still he wondered if maybe she hadn't really believed up to = that=20 point. Up to that point when he'd insisted months later that she had to = see what=20 he meant, had to see his powers in action. That he wasn't just telling = her a=20 fairy story. Every time he'd tried to explain properly or show her = before that,=20 she'd just change the subject and not wanting to upset her any more than = she=20 already was, he hadn't pushed it. "That’s crazy," pointed out Megabyte, watching Kevin closely. = Crazy? That was=20 one word for it, he supposed. Parents were supposed to support their = kids, not=20 turn against them. They weren't supposed to make them choose like = that. "You’ve met my mum. You know what’s she’s like. I = never told her about my=20 powers until that affair with Culex. After all I had to tell her = something when=20 I came out of the coma. Aunt Ruth seemed to think I should." Kevin shook = his=20 head as he remembered the look on his mother’s face when he'd = eventually=20 demonstrated his powers to her. The fear he picked up from her, as she = watched=20 him teleport. She was scared of him, scared of her own son. Aunt Ruth = had no=20 idea her sister was going to react that way, no idea of all. Looking = back the=20 whole denial thing should have been a clue, but Aunt Ruth hadn't seen = what was=20 really coming any more than he had. She'd tried to take Kevin's side and = argue=20 on his behalf but Mary Wilson hadn't listened. Poor Aunt Ruth, she'd = been so=20 convinced that telling his parents had been the right thing to do. "You mean she thought it meant you should give them up?" Adam seemed = shocked.=20 "She made you chose between being a Tomorrow Person and your family? Did = you try=20 to explain that being a Tomorrow Person is part of who you are? You = can’t just=20 give it up." Try telling that to his mother. Kevin wondered, not for the = first=20 time, if Adam's own family knew about his powers, about who and what he = really=20 was. He doubted it. "I tried explaining it, tried till I was blue in the face. I told her = I had=20 responsibilities, that I couldn’t just switch them off. Even if I = didn’t use=20 them, they’d still be there." Kevin shook his head sadly. "When = she started=20 screaming at me and calling me evil I left. I wasn’t going to hang = around for=20 the spawn of the devil speech I knew was coming next. I haven’t = been back=20 since." The hardest thing to take had been his father's reaction the = whole time=20 his mum had been ranting on at him. His father, whom he'd thought he had = a good=20 relationship with, had just stood there and said nothing. He hadn't even = tried=20 to stand up for his own son. When push had come to shove he'd just stood = there,=20 in his wife's shadow as usual. He'd been so worried about keeping the = peace he'd=20 just let Kevin leave. He hadn't even cared, or if he had he hadn't shown = it. His=20 father had made a choice that day too, and it hadn't been the one Kevin = had been=20 expecting. He glanced around the ship, taking in the shocked faces of the = others.=20 Megabyte was sitting upright now, a look of disbelief on his face. He = had an arm=20 around Jade to reassure her, as her distress at what she was hearing = became=20 obvious, their argument of earlier that day seemingly forgotten. Adam's = posture=20 had visibly slumped even further than when Lisa had left, the expression = of=20 shock still on his face. Ami was trying to reassure him with one of = those soft=20 smiles of hers as he felt her mind brush against his own. She was trying = to find=20 out how he was coping, really coping with what he'd just shared. = "I’m not saying=20 that Lisa’s mother said that to her. Just that when faced with a = choice like=20 that, not everyone makes the same one. Besides I’d known you guys = longer I=20 guess. I knew I had your support. Lisa had just been through all that = stuff with=20 Masters threatening her mother, I hadn’t." And now he was sounding = like Adam,=20 trying to make excuses for her. 'Lisa, why couldn't you have made the = same=20 decision I did?' Because she had a mother who cared about her and = he=20 didn't. That's what it boiled down to, of that he was sure. Jade pulled away from the American and threw her arms around him. "Oh = Kevin,=20 I’m so sorry. I didn’t know." Of course Jade didn't know, = she wasn't a mind=20 reader. Kevin grinned in spite of himself. Somehow that saying didn't = have quite=20 the same ring to it that it was supposed to. Adam wasn't the only one = who hid=20 things under strong mental shields. They all did that, to a certain = degree. They=20 seemed to need to, to survive. What would happen if they couldn't? Even = though=20 they were telepaths the thought of sharing everything including all his = fears=20 completely scared him the same way he was sure it scared all of = them. "It was a while ago now, Jade. I’ve come to terms with it, = honest I have."=20 Who was he trying to kid? He'd never come to terms with it. Still, she = didn't=20 have to know that, did she? It might be in the past, but for part of = him, it=20 would always feel like yesterday. Kevin gave Jade a small smile of = thanks before=20 continuing. "I guess what I’m trying to say is that we need to = show Lisa that=20 whatever her decision was or is, we’ll be there for her. We = mightn’t like her=20 decision but she knows where to find us if she ever changes her = mind." Adam finally seemed to come to life, moving away from the column he'd = just=20 about been glued to since Lisa's departure, a hesitant look on his face. = "Are=20 you sure you’re okay, Kevin? I mean do you mind if I…?" Kevin nodded. He knew what was coming next, as he was sure they all = did. "Go=20 after her, Adam. I’ll be fine. After all I have friends here. Lisa = has no=20 one." He watched as Adam initiated the teleport, following the psychic = trial Lisa=20 had left barely ten minutes before. 'Go after her, Adam.' The Tomorrow = People=20 were a family, Kevin had had that feeling reinforced since he'd returned = to the=20 fold. They'd welcomed him back without question, and just believed the = reasons=20 he'd given for his absence. They could do that for Lisa too, he was = sure. She=20 had to know whatever she'd done in the past, whatever her decision had = been, it=20 wasn't too late to come back. At least if she didn't return, Adam would = know=20 he'd tried to convince her, wouldn't spend the rest of his life = wondering what=20 if. He needed to do that, if he was going to get through this, whatever = way=20 things turned out. As Megabyte cleared his throat, Kevin could feel the growing feeling = of guilt=20 coming from his friend. He was obviously regretting some of what = he’d said. They=20 were all guilty of that to some degree. That was one of the things about = being=20 human. Funny how *they * still thought of themselves as human even = though there=20 were a lot of people out there who didn't. "I hope she listens to what Adam has to say," Megabyte put = Kevin’s own=20 thoughts into words. She'll listen, Megabyte. But whether she actually = takes any=20 notice and really hears it, that'll be the thing. The redhead shrugged as three pairs of accusing eyes met his own. = "Hey I=20 can’t be perfect all the time…After all I’m still = hanging out with you guys=20 aren’t I? You okay, Kev?" 'I'm trying to be, Megabyte.' Kevin nodded. "Sometimes I just wish that things were different = that’s all.=20 Life sucks sometimes, you know?" And it didn't get any easier to deal = with as=20 time went on. It didn't matter how much he tried to forget, those = memories were=20 going to haunt him. Even though he knew he'd made the right decision, it = didn't=20 make the hurt go away. Nothing could do that. He just had to pretend to = move on,=20 pretend it was in the past where it belonged. He'd become very good at=20 pretending since becoming a Tomorrow Person, a bit too good in fact. Ami moved over from where she'd been leaning against the far wall and = put a=20 sympathetic hand on his shoulder. As Megabyte and Lisa had started = talking or=20 rather arguing she'd moved away from them, watching the sea swirling = outside the=20 ship. It was almost as though she wasn't sure she should interrupt, = wasn't sure=20 what to do exactly. Kevin sat there for a moment just enjoying the telepathic presence of = the=20 others and of the ship, all giving their unspoken support in their own = way. Megabyte grinned as he broke the silence. "If the world didn’t = suck we’d all=20 fall off." Kevin groaned. He knew he could count on his friend to throw a bad = joke in=20 there somewhere. "Remind me why I’m still a Tomorrow Person again = someone?" Watching his friends, his family, it wasn't an option. They were all = in this=20 together and he wouldn't have it any other way. Yes, it had been hard to = walk=20 away from his other family, but he'd make the same decision if he had to = do it=20 again too. In his mind there hadn't been a choice. How could he even = consider=20 leaving people who actually cared about him? As he watched Megabyte duck as the girls threw mock punches at him, = Kevin’s=20 thoughts went back to Adam. If anyone could reach Lisa, it would be him. = 'Bring=20 her back, Adam,' he thought. 'Help her to make the same decision I = have.' ******* End of Chapter Three ******</DIV> <DIV>"Stop making me repeat myself. It's bad = for my=20 health." - Duo Maxwell, Gundam=20 Wing. ________________________________________ = &= nbsp; &n= bsp; &nb= sp; &nbs= p; = ; =20 </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><A=20 href=3D"http://www.angelfire.com/ab7/shadesandechoes">http://www.angelfir= e.com/ab7/shadesandechoes</A> ________________________________________= </DIV></BODY></HTML> - ------=_NextPart_000_001D_01C192C0.2DD38EA0-- - - To unsubscribe to arfic-l, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe arfic-l" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ End of arfic-l-digest V1 #64 **************************** - To unsubscribe to $LIST, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe $LIST" in the body of the message. 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