A/N Let me know how you like it. Thanks. Came to me while I was in the bathtub.

Chapter One: Cassie

It would be five years tomorrow. Five years since I had received news on Jake, Tobias, Marco, and what was left of Ax, dying. And how much longer before that had Rachel died on the Blade Ship. And how much longer for the innocent victims I had killed during the war?

I knew the date exactly. I would remember it for the rest of my life. It was by chance that the date also would mark the date of my wedding. Almost comical. Such a happy day mixed with one that wasn't.

How news had reached the Andalite fleet of the broken ships, I would never guess. Why Ronnie had stood by my side through all the chaos of organizing a memorial for the Animorphs, I might have a chance of figuring out. Why I had say yes when Ronnie asked me to marry him.......that would remain a mystery to me forever.

He wasn't Jake. But he provided a comfort level Jake wasn't allowed to offer while fighting the war. A place that he couldn't find after Tom and Rachel's deaths. I needed that comfort level. I wanted to stay there. Ronnie would never understand what I had been through and never would; but he tried. I admired that. I could spend the rest of my life with a guy that just tries to make me happy. But he never would be Jake, and I wouldn't let that fact slip my mind.

I went to bed the night before my wedding, looking at a picture of Rachel and I before the war had started. We were at Rachel's house. I couldn't help but start to tear up. We were so naïve then. We were so sure that we were going to group up together, double date. She would drag me to shop for my wedding dress. It never occurred to us that we would run into Jake at the mall. It never occurred to us that we would see so much pain, go through so much suffering, and eventually be split up; Rachel would go where I couldn't, and I would remain here.

But I would never again cry an endless river of tears for her. I had moved on. I wouldn't forget her, her bravery, her friendship, but she would have yelled at me until no end if I spent the rest of my life wondering what happened to her.

I rolled over in my bed. I was at my parent's house. Ronnie and I decided to go along with the whole 'don't-see-the-bride/groom-before-the-wedding' thing. I didn't mind it. It would let me just finally let go of the strands of my old life, and just go on with my new one. It would let me just say goodbye to my friends for a final time.

There was only one way I could ever do that and be please with myself.

I pulled my covers off, and stood up beside my bed. I opened my window to let the soft breeze of the night to run over me, and almost through me. I stood in my pajamas, and I quickly changed into my morphing suit.

And for a brief moment, it felt like the old times. That we were going to meet up and go on some mission that Marco would dub 'insane' and 'stupid'.

It made me smile. And while I closed my eyes to form the picture in my mind, I kept that smile.

The first thing that happened was the wing patterns. Pencil-like sketches formed across my arms, down my legs, all over my face. I watched as they bubbled up-wards, become 3-D patterns, finally taking the shape and color of the brown and gray feathers of an owl. My arms then snapped backwards, forming the V-like wing joint of the owl. My fingers shriveled up and disappeared, become flight feather. I shrunk rapidly to the ground, watching as my feet twisted and turned, become the wicked talons of the night creature. My insides formed disgusting sounds as they shaped and reformed, my eyesight became suddenly acute to the darkness, peering at it like it was day.

I always had been a quick morpher, and I had just made the transition from human to owl in less than two and a half minutes. The night looked welcoming, and I hopped up onto my window sill. I looked down at the ground.

I knew that, as I flew from my window, Tobias would complain about me being an owl. He had hated and respected them. He was of the day; they were of the night.

So many memories went through my head at that moment. I'm not sure how to explain it. I saw the construction site, the yeerk pool, my friends, the different aliens we'd run into, and so many more things. It was like having a video tape of my life going through my head, but someone had hit the 'fast forward' button.

I flew in reverie. I didn't need to pay attention to the ground below, or the sky ahead. I had made this trip many times. I didn't need to look. I knew the way very well. Instead of concentrating on flying, I just laughed and cried some at all the memories that I caught a glimpse of.

As I flew up to the graveyard, I pulled out of my thought. I saw Rachel's memorial, and right next to it I saw another one. One for the Animorphs. I guess they government felt the need to keep everyone together. I liked that a lot. They should be together. That's how we came in to this war; together. That's how we should leave it; together.

I landed and demorphed, and I felt the wind hit me worse than it had in my room. My teeth chattered, and I remembered spending some time, way up north. That made me a considerable amount warmer. I just sat down and looked at the memorials. I knew that I had to say something, just to let them know that I loved them. But what did you say to a stone statue, merely a mimic of the people that you loved more than you could explain?

I looked up to the sky. It was a clear night out. The stars shone brightly. The stars that would never hold the same meaning since that walk through the construction site. In the sky, I saw a small light. I thought it was a plane, and dismissed it. But then, I looked again, and it was getting bigger.

A picture formed in my head. We were at the mall. The five of us. I saw Jake. Marco. Tobias. Rachel. Me. I heard the words. I watched us walk out of the mall. Through the construction site. Elfangor's fighter...

The light grew ever larger, and it was clear it was going to land near me.

They have come to destroy you...

Ever closer the ship came, and I didn't move. I felt a familiarity in the situation. We were all there, except, not really. In reality it was just me.

Jake disappeared inside the Andalite fighter, and came out with the blue box. We all touched it...

The ship landed, and I recognized it at once for what it was. The tail-like thing at the end gave it away. An Andalite fighter ship. Only it was different than Elfangor's. Not by much, but different.

Visser Three landed. Elfangor told us to run. To hide. To fight...

The hatch opened and out stepped an Andalite. Even after all these years of dealing with them, their grace and agility still amazed me completely. I watched as he morphed to human. To give me a more familiar sight? I hoped not. I had seen my share of Andalites.

The images stopped in my head. Stopped right when Visser Three chased us up the yeerk pool stairs. I was in horse morph when I stopped my memories.

The Andalite walked up to me, and stood in front of me. He seemed to glow because of the lights in the fighter. He made a bowing motion. Then, with his main eyes focused on me, he said, "You are Cassie."

I nodded.

"My name is Farangal-Lestil-Sharm. I am an Andalite scientist. I need you to come with me."

No other thoughts would come to my head until later. I forgot about my wedding. I forgot about Ronnie. I forgot about all the deaths. I forgot all the fear. I was living in the past that had come to life before me. Such a familiar sight.

"Why do you need me to come with you?" I asked. I wasn't scared, and I wasn't concerned. I just asked it to make sure I didn't look like a zombie right then.

"I believe," he replied, "that questions are not to be asked until after the debriefing. If you would, please join me immediately aboard my fighter." He smiled the andalite smile, and added, "Princess Cassie."

A/N Sorry. Hi. Me. I'm going back and editing these chapters. I know it's been awhile since I got on Fanfic...they've got this edit thing now! YAY! .