Before the doorbell even rang; Daphne dried her hands on a dishtowel and headed for the living room. "I bet that's your brother. I'll get it."

Sure enough, the moment the door was opened she saw Dr. Crane's handsome younger brother. As always happened when he was in her presence, her heart skipped a beat. It was true that she was very fond of him. Of course, they had their differences from time to time, but he was one of the sweetest men that she'd ever known. Their casual friendship soon blossomed into a much deeper friendship that she would always treasure.

She smiled, looking Niles up and down. As always he was dressed nicely, this morning in a dark suit with a green tie. It was a shade of green she'd never seen him wear before, but it certainly brought out the color of his eyes. And that in turn made her heart beat even faster.

"H-hello, Dr. Crane."

He nodded. "Daphne."

A funny feeling came over her and she could tell right away that something was wrong. He was different; not his usual self at all. And even the way he'd said her name was different. It was almost sharp… and it frightened her. Daringly she opened her mouth to ask the question she knew that she shouldn't ask. But she was worried. She had to know.

Dr. Crane, are you all right?"

"I'm fine." He replied in the same sharp tone.

Had she been in any other mood, she might have been hurt by the way he was speaking to her. But she forced herself to remain cheerful.

"Where's-."

His brother appeared in the hallway and smiled. "Oh Niles! I didn't hear you come in. Can I get you a sherry?"

"Yes, please. And make it a double."

Frasier's eyebrows rose and then moved to Daphne where they exchanged a look of concern. But neither of them questioned it. Instead Daphne watched as Frasier handed Niles the glass of sherry, which Niles gulped down in seconds.

"Um, Niles… You might want to take it easy, there." Frasier cautioned.

Daphne smiled sympathetically, hoping that Frasier would see the gratefulness in her eyes.

"I'm thirsty, all right?" Niles replied, causing another concerned look to pass between Frasier and Daphne. Niles pushed himself off the couch and headed straight for the bar where he poured yet another glass of sherry. As with the previous glass, he consumed it in one gulp and then poured another. It was painful to watch, for something was obviously very wrong.

But suddenly Daphne had a strong feeling about what it might be. Or rather, whom…

Although he'd never mentioned it to her directly, she knew that he was hurting deeply over the unexpected loss of his wife. Oh, Maris Crane was very much alive, but her marriage to Niles was not. Daphne, Frasier and Martin knew that it was just a matter of time before the marriage would end in a bitter divorce. Niles, however seemed to be harboring false hope.

As he made his way back to the sofa, he staggered, almost stumbling as Daphne and Frasier rushed to steady him. Together they guided him back to the sofa… or tried to, anyway. He stopped unexpectedly in front of the large picture window, quietly staring out at the Seattle skyline.

Ironically at that very moment, Daphne realized that it had started to rain. The sky was dark, almost black and it was startling different from the way it had looked just a few moments before when the sun had peaked out from behind white puffy clouds, surrounded by a sky of blue.

Frasier went to his brother and put his hand on his back. Together Frasier and Niles watched the rain falling in sheets outside of the window.

"Niles, talk to me, all right?" Frasier pleaded. "What's happened? Is it Maris again?"

The question worked wonders, for miraculously, Niles turned to face them. And Daphne suddenly felt responsible for the awkwardness. She started to leave and return to her work in the kitchen, but instead she stood there, watching him.

Wordlessly, Niles walked away from the window and headed for the sofa. And as before, Daphne and Frasier were there to catch him, were he to suddenly lose his balance. But surprisingly he remained steady.

He sunk onto the sofa cushion and sighed. "I just don't understand it. Every night this week I've had a dream in which Maris comes back to me."

"Comes back? Back from where?" Frasier asked. "Dear God, don't tell me she's fled to Europe again. You know Niles, she's got some nerve-."

Daphne put her hand gently on Frasier's forearm to silence him. But it didn't stop Martin from voicing his opinion.

"You had a dream where Maris came back, huh? That's not a dream, that's a nightmare!" When the old man burst into laughter, Daphne and Frasier glared at him.

"No one asked for your opinion, Dad!" Frasier shouted.

"Now who in the hell do you think you are, talking to me that way? I'm your father!" Martin shot back.

"That's right, Dad! You are my father and I think I'm entitled to talk to you any way I please!"

And the bickering went on and on.

Daphne shut her eyes as though doing so would block the sound. And when she was unsuccessful, she turned to Niles , who was slumped even further onto the sofa, oblivious to the argument between his father and brother.

Thankfully the men moved their argument to the balcony, affording Daphne some much needed peace. She turned to Niles, painfully aware of how upset he looked, the way he was biting his lower lip as though to keep from crying. Her hand moved to his back, resting gently against the Italian silk of his suit. And when he turned to look at her, she gave him another sympathetic smile.

"So what happens in this dream?" The question was soft, gentle and she hoped, not at all threatening.

Niles sighed deeply. "She… Maris… She said that she's sorry for everything that she' s done to hurt me and that she loves me unconditionally. She said that she wants to start over so that we can learn to love each other again. And that our love will last forever."

Tears filled Daphne's eyes and she smiled gratefully when Niles reached into his pocket and handed her his handkerchief. "That's beautiful, Dr. Crane. I hope it works out that way for you."

But he shook his head. "No, it won't."

She swallowed hard. "What else happened in your dream?"

His eyes darkened and for a split second she worried that she'd said the wrong thing. "Dr. Crane?"

He looked into her eyes. "Well, just when I'm about to kiss her, I wake up and realize that I'm alone and unhappy. It just doesn't seem fair."

Her hand flew to her trembling mouth in an effort to hide her escaped sob, but when she noticed that he was crying, she pulled him into her arms.

He cried softly as she held him close, her hand moving gently up and down his back, the way he'd done for her time and time again. Like a mum with a small child in her arms, she rocked Niles back and forth, whispering softly, her fingers running through his soft hair.

"I'm so sorry, Dr. Crane. I'm so sorry."

When she placed a kiss on his soft cheek, she felt a spark. It was the spark of something that she just couldn't place. Was it friendship? Compassion? A mixture of the two? Or was it something more? She didn't know, but she knew one thing. She would hold him like this for as long as he needed her to , even if it took a lifetime.

THE END