Everything
that I hold dear, you are the better part of me,
apart from you
there's no other, there will never be another.
I never knew
it could be so easy to love,
until I put my arms around you,
that's when I knew that it was.
Love is so often hard to find.
now that you are mine, I'm holding onto you, holding onto you.
'The Meaning Of' Spoken
"Hey, Sam, what is your next Cd going to sound like?" Erika asked. Her cousin shrugged.
"I haven't really decided yet, other than the fact that I was want 'Suddenly' on it," Sam replied.
"Yeah, I wondered why you haven't put it on an album yet."
"I didn't really know where to fit it in." Sam paused for a moment. "Have you released your third album?"
"It actually came out today," Erika said. "I guess I forgot to tell you. Do you want to see the discography?"
"Naturally," Sam smiled. Erika gave her a Cd case and her cousin flipped it over to the back. It looked like Erika had written the song order herself:
Fire
Emergency
Whoa
Grey
Everybody's Fool
Chemicals React
We Live
Snow White Queen
The Last Song I'm Wasting on You
Let Go
Haters
Tina
Breakthrough
Girl Can Rock
The Guy Song
Judas
Like You
She Walked Away
"It looks like it'll sell pretty well," Sam commented, handing it back.
"Thanks. Hey, why not go with an edgier sound this time? You love that kind of thing," Erika replied.
"Yeah, I'll probably do that." The door opened to the recording studio and Snively came in with a couple of heavy books. "What are those for?"
He set the books on the table. "These give a complete list of every single Senshi," he said.
"We know all of the Senshi. Aside from four of them, everyone's chosen sides," Sam replied.
"Think, Sam. If we found these Senshi, they could be very helpful to us," her husband spoke.
"I think he has a point," Erika said.
"Yeah, we need all the help we can get," Sydney piped up, coming in.
"I don't think so," Sam replied. "We have our hands full trying to train and teach the younger Senshi and the ones who don't know the history of the Moon Kingdom. Aside from that, we have Hope and Serenity to take care of, Snively."
"Sam," Snively began. She shook her head and looked at the clock.
"I gotta start dinner. See you guys later," she said, dismissing herself.
"That didn't go as well as I had planned," Snively stated, sitting heavily into the chair his wife was sitting in. "I figured she'd be pleased by this."
"She might come around later. She's still trying to figure everything out. You just need to have some patience with her," Erika replied.
"Why? She's done this before, so leading every-"
Sydney cut him off, -"actually, Sam's never led the Senshi, aside from when Sophia was dead. Sophia has always led and Sam followed. She's a warrior, a weapon."
"Why hasn't she mentioned this to me?"
"Well, she's always been looked down on so she wouldn't dare try to order who most of the universe thought to be the heir to the throne."
"I see," he said. He looked up at the clock before getting up. "I better help Sam with dinner."
- - - -
"Leo, what is the probability that these five Senshi exist?" Sophia inquired. He thought about it.
"Roughly 76.9. Why?" Leo replied.
"We'll have a huge advantage of Sam and Snively if we find them all."
"But Sophia, we have a whole army to back the Senshi up; they don't have anything aside from their Senshi."
"We don't know that," Arable snapped, coming into the lab. "We don't know what they're doing."
"I wouldn't say that. Sam has no idea how to lead her Senshi. I have always led the Senshi and she just followed orders like a servant," Sophia said. "Unless Sydney or Snively tells her what to do, Sam will not know what to do."
"I don't think that's true," Leo spoke.
"Why is that?" Sophia asked, anger flaring slightly.
"I'm just saying that Sam takes her training very seriously and she might incorporate that into her training her Senshi," Leo replied. "Now, if you don't mind, I would like to get back to work." The queen and Senshi left, planning to go after a new Senshi.
"Glad that's over," Leo muttered. He glanced at the picture of him and Melissa on his desk, frowning slightly. Things weren't going well between the two of them and he didn't know why. 'I guess I'll have to tell her eventually,' he thought sadly. He picked up a pile of papers and went to one of the other scientists...
- - - -
"Snively, are you sure she's even here?" a female's voice said loudly.
"Yes, now keep quiet," Snively whispered harshly.
"But-"
"Echo, shut up before I personally send you back to HQ," Sydney said. "Snively, do you know what kind of Senshi we're looking for?"
"I have an idea..." he looked out from their hiding spot. "There she is."
Sydney looked at the handheld computer that belonged to Erika, thankful that the Senshi of Mercury let her borrow it.
"Magical readings are almost off the scale and it's not because of us." They walked out of their hiding spot and approached the person cautiously.
"Excuse me, but are you Fauna?" Snively queried. The girl whirled around, looking very frightened.
"Why do you want to know?"
"We need your help," Echo said. Sydney suppressed a sigh of relief. 'This may go better since Echo is more her age.' Colorful lights flashed around them, causing the future Senshi to be even more afraid. Sydney formed an energy ball, knowing it would be a pointless battle. Sophia ordered her Senshi to attack the trio, who looked uneasy. Sophia grabbed Fauna gently in the middle of the skirmish and pulled her aside, speaking quickly and in short detail. Snively looked over at them, narrowly avoiding an attack from Arable. He ran to them, shoving Sophia away.
"Come on," he said, holding out his hand. She back up a little, shaking her head.
"No, I wanna go with Sophia," Fauna said. 'I can't force her to come with me, no matter how much I would like to. I wouldn't gain her trust that way.'
"Fine," Snively replied, backing off so he could look for Echo and Sydney, which wasn't very difficult. He orbed to them and orbed them away, getting hit with a stray ball of energy.
"Are you okay?" Echo asked, eyeing his wound.
"Hmm?" He looked at his bleeding side.
"Yes, I didn't realize it hit me."
"We need to treat that before we go home," Sydney said. She looked at Echo.
"Lead Crow, you are permitted to go home." The younger Senshi nodded and left in a portal.
"So," Sydney began, "what did you have Hope do to distract Sam?"
He smiled widely. "I told her to have her mother teach her something nearly impossible." The red head laughed as she began to treat his wounds.
- - - -
"Hope, why do you even want to learn origami?" Sam questioned.
"Because I do," Hope replied. She finished another perfect paper crane.
"Screw this, I'm frickin' bored!" Sam said, getting up, knocking paper onto the floor by accident. "Aw, shit!"
"Mom, we've been doing this for twenty minutes. Have a little patience," Hope said. Her mother shook her head.
"I'm gonna look for your dad. Or Sydney, whoever I find first."
"What happens if we find you first?" her husband queried playfully, coming in with Sydney. His wife walked up to him, giving him a quick kiss.
"So, my playmate is back?" she asked, letting the tone of her voice dance slightly. He kissed the back of her hand.
"I am."
"I'm out of here! I'd rather not see my parents make out," Hope said, heading for the door.
"Suit yourself," her mother murmured, then began kissing her husband until her daughter was out of the room, wanting to laugh as Hope bolted away. Sam stood in front of her husband and Sydney with her arms folded over her chest and her weight shifted on her right foot.
"Alright, whadja do?"
"Sam, what are you talking about?" Snively said. She pulled on his shirt so he could see it.
"I could smell Neosporin on you the second you walked in here. What happened?" she replied crisply. When they didn't answer, her eyes hardened into a frosty stare. "Well?"
"Sam, we went after one of the new Senshi," Snively said quietly.
"You WHAT!?" his wife yelled. The other two winced; Sam rarely got angry but when she did, it was difficult to calm her down. "I told you not to go after them! They don't exist."
"P-permission to speak," Sydney stammered. Snively glanced at her, taken back by the fact that she seemed afraid of his wife. That in itself startled him.
"What?" Sam inquired forcefully.
"Sophia is looking for the Senshi too," Sydney answered meekly.
"Anything else?" Sam demanded calmly.
"Sophia managed to convince Fauna to join her," Snively said.
"Fauna?"
"Sailor Pewter Fox."
"I see. Do you have any type of photo evidence?"
"Um, no," Sydney replied, somehow knowing that she'd ask that.
"Sydney, you know that you should do that."
"I'm sorry."
"Sam, don't you think that we should at least try to find them?" Snively asked. "Sophia already has a very large advantage over us. If we make one mistake, we're done for."
Sam paced the room, trying to come up with a remark, but found she couldn't.
/Are you still angry?/ Snively asked.
"Yeah, I'm still pissed," Sam snapped back. "But," she continued, "I'll think about your suggestions." Sydney relaxed and gave a sigh of relief.
"Glad that's over," she said.
"Don't you have training to do?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, see you guys later," the red head replied, making a hasty retreat.
"Sam," Snively began.
"Don't 'Sam' me." The frigidness of her voice made him wince involuntarily. "Why didn't you tell me? You could've been killed! And having Hope 'distract' me?"
"We didn't tell you because we knew you'd be against-"
"Damn right I'd be against it."
"-it but you knew that already. Hope heard us planning and wanted in on it."
"Right, whatever."
"It's not so easy after all, is it?" She looked at him.
"Huh?"
"Not to worry. It's so hard not to when it's me out there." He embraced her, noticing her coldness towards him. "Sam, are you on your per-"
"NO!" She shoved away from him and began walking away. She stopped abruptly, trying hard not to shake from anger. "Yes."
"Ah, that explains all of the cotton candy you've been eating."
"You can tell?"
"Aside from your attitude, yes. You smell like the inside of a piñata," Snively said. She looked at the clock.
"Maybe we should order pizza for everyone tonight," Sam said.
"Are you sure? It'll cost a lot of money to feed everyone," Snively answered.
"Yeah. Besides, I get paid a lot for concerts and public appearances."
"I suppose that's okay but I don't think it's fair though."
"Why is that?" his wife queried, pulling him gently with her out of the room.
"It's just that it seems like you're doing all of the work," Snively said.
"It's my job to take care of my Senshi. They come first before I do anything for myself," Sam replied.
"Ourselves," he answered, taking her hand. "Shall we train?"
"You? Train?" She looked like she could almost laugh.
"What?"
"I've 'never' seen you train for anything since I've known you and that's been, what, five-six years?"
"Going on seven this coming July. Serenity's turning five this December."
"Doesn't seem like it's been that long, does it?" she queried, letting him hold the door open for her.
"No, it doesn't. Anyways, let's get started; I want to know what I can and can't do," he answered. She laughed before giving him instructions and starting their lesson.
- - - -
"Sam, it's 12:30. Why did you call us at this hour in the morning?" Sydney griped. She wasn't in bed, but she was getting ready to.
"Couldn't this have waited until tomorrow?" Snively queried.
"I assumed you two would like to know first," Sam replied.
"Know what?" Sydney questioned.
"I thought about your request and I've decided to approve your request to search for the lost Senshi," Sam replied calmly, her voice unwavered.
"That's great!" Snively said, giving his wife a quick kiss. He noticed the lack of emotion on her face and the emptiness in her eyes. "Sam?"
"Yes?"
"Wha-" Sydney elbowed him and shook her head.
"Permission to speak?" Sydney asked.
"Granted," Sam answered. The brunette watched her husband's face contort into a look of confusion.
"Perhaps I can teach him how to speak to commanding Senshi and how to act accordingly."
"Permission denied."
"Wait, what's going on?" Snively asked. He wasn't allowed to any of the Senshi meetings before, so all of this was new to him. 'Is there a certain way I must speak to my wife?' he wondered.
"I will personally see to that," Sam spoke, blowing off his query but capturing his interest. "However, you are welcome to teach the younger Senshi how to speak and when to speak. Also, teach them the national languages of the Moon Kingdom; English and Japanese."
"Yes, Sam," Sydney replied tautly.
"Snively," Sam said.
"Erm, yes?"
"You will train with me since you have half of the Silver Crystal. Since you worked under your uncle for so long, I'm presuming you know a lot about war tactics. Am I correct?"
"Yes. I suppose you want me to come up with some for the Senshi?" She nodded, but the baleful look she gave told him he wasn't getting any special attention from his wife that night.
"Yes. Meeting adjourned." Sam stood and watched Sydney leave quickly and saw her husband trying to sneak out.
"Wait for me," she said, her attitude flirty. She fell into step with her husband.
"You're not upset?" he queried.
"No, it's my fault. I didn't let you know how formal Senshi meetings were. Yeah, there are certain ways to speak at these meetings and I'll try to tell you as much as I know. As for right now, let's just go to bed; I'm so tired," Sam answered, opening the door to their bedroom.
"Sounds like a plan," Snively replied, shutting the door after they went in their room.
- - - -
"Okay, Snively, focus," Sam instructed. He did so, creating a white energy ball. He stared at it.
"Now what?" Snively queried. Sam's phone rang.
"Um, keep doing whatever it was we were doing," she replied, opening her phone. "Hello?"
"Hello, Sam?"
"Yeah?"
"This is Sailor Coronis."
"What do you need, Julia?"
"Kira, Kyla, Ashley, Electra, and I have discussed the split of the Senshi. We have decided to join your Senshi. Will you accept us?" Julia asked.
"Of course. We need to meet at a safe place. Tell your Senshi to pack anything they feel they must have," Sam replied, watching her husband run from the energy ball he created but couldn't put out. "I'll call you back later. I have to help my husband with training trouble. Later."
"Sam!" he yelped. She formed her own energy ball and threw it at his, destroying it. He walked over to her. "Thanks. Who was that on the phone?"
"Julia wanting to know if she and her Senshi could join us."
"So, we just..."
"Yeah, five more Senshi." He gave her a sloppy, long kiss. She lightly punched him, a playful look in her eyes. "Boy, you really are becoming so unpredictable."
"I've been learning from a great teacher," he murmured on her lips, then began kissing her. She broke it off after awhile.
"Others still have to train today."
"Then perhaps we should move to someplace more secluded." She placed her arms lazily around his neck, moving closer to him.
"Ooh, I love how you think." He orbed them out of the gym and into a very small room. "Snively, where'd you orb us to?"
"Does it matter?"
"Well, no bu-" He cut her off with another intense kiss. 'What's up with him?' she wondered as she kissed back. The door opened, followed by a squeak. The couple jerked away from each other.
"Sydney, do you mind?" Snively inquired testily.
"I would've knocked if the lights were on. And why would you two make out in a broom closet anyways?" the red head replied. "With your shirts off and pants unbuttoned?"
"You just don't know how to have a good time," Sam said, shrugging back into her shirt.
"I think I'll pass," Sydney said. "By the way, Julia called. She said to meet her at a mall in L.A."
"Alright. Come with me. Snively, are you coming?" Sam answered.
"No, I think I'll just look for the other Senshi." She gave him a quick kiss.
"See ya later."
"Yes, later." Sam left with Sydney in a portal while Snively went to the lab, after he fixed his clothes.
- - - -
"So, he just threw himself at you?" Sydney asked. "Doesn't sound like Snively."
"Yeah, I know," Sam replied. "He's been acting really weird lately. I don't know what's gotten into him."
"Well, it's been three days since he has located a Senshi," Sydney said as the two walked down the hall to the lab. They went in, running into the subject of their conversation.
"Hey, baby," Sam said, giving her husband a quick kiss. "Julia's Senshi is settling in right now."
"All right. I located Sailor Buttress," Snively replied.
"That's great! When do you want to go get her?" his wife answered.
"Now, before Sophia get to her."
"Okay, just let me get my sais, swords, and a pistol," Sam said.
"Sam, you carry that much?" Sydney queried. The brunette nodded.
"No, we don't have the time to get all of that. Let's go," Snively said, opening a portal.
"I'll stay," Sydney said, "and make sure Julia and the others get settled in." The couple disappeared in the portal, the female looking around.
"Where are we?" Sam asked, transforming.
"One of the moons of Jupiter." They roamed the moon for an hour, not having any luck.
"I thought you know where she was."
"I said I located her. I didn't say I knew exactly where she was." They saw a small village with the villagers milling around, trying to fix the damages there were.
"It looks like there was a battle here," Sam whispered.
"Exactly what I was thinking. We should find out what happened," Snively muttered in reply. They walked over, seeing the villagers back away as soon as they noticed the couple.
"Excuse me, could you tell me where I could find a teenage girl that goes by the name 'Jenie?'" Sam inquired an older lady.
"Stay back, Senshi!" the woman howled, backing away.
"Hey, wait!" Snively grabbed his wife by the arm.
/I don't think you should press on/ he said.
/And why not?/
/Because it seems they don't trust Sailor Moon./ Sam orbed away, leaving her husband long enough to transform back into her civilian form. She orbed back, seeing her husband talking to the old woman.
"This is my wife, Sam," he said as Sam walked up. "We're searching for someone by the name 'Jenie.' Is she here?"
"Yes, she's here. We had the queen here about an hour ago looking for her," the elder replied.
"Is that what happened here?" Sam asked.
"Yes, she and her damn Senshi destroyed our village, looking for Jenie. Then, just now, Sailor Moon came looking for her. I must say, she's really matured since her last appearance." Snively noticed his wife tense up and gave her a 'cool it' look.
"What I don't understand is why Queen Sophia's sister didn't ascend the throne. I guess it doesn't matter, considering she's dead now."
"I didn't take the throne because I felt I couldn't handle it. I am very much alive, however," Sam said stiffly. The woman gasped then dropped to her knees and bowed. The other villagers noticed and did the same. "Get up. You do not bow to one who has no title of royalty."
"I cannot, my princess."
/Sam, ask for Jenie. This could help./
/Why don't you?/
"Your princess," Snively said to the village, "wishes to see Jenie and her guardians. A bright red haired girl stood and walked over to them and kneeled down.
"I am here at your command," she said.
"Where is your guardian?" Snively queried.
"She is here," Jenie replied, nodding towards the old woman they had been talking to.
"We must speak to both of you," Snively said, "alone."
"Why doesn't the princess say this herself?" the old woman sneered.
"Because my husband wishes to speak. Is that a problem?" Sam asked sternly.
"Husband?"
"Yes. Now, I need to discuss Jenie's future with you." She looked around. "Where can we discuss this?"
"What's this for?" the woman said.
"Jenie's training to grasp her powers," Snively answered. "She's a Senshi."
"WHAT?"
"Of course, the final decision is hers."
"Jenie, the woman began.
"Grandmother, I want to help them," Jenie said.
/Grandmother?/ Sam said. /They look nothing alike!/
/Easy, Sam./
"If you would like, you are welcome to come with us," Sam told the old woman.
"Are you sure about this, Jenie?"
"Absolutely," Jenie replied. Sam smiled warmly.
"Why don't you go pack?" Snively suggested. The two walked to their small home while Sam and Snively waited patiently.
"You guys can do whatever you were doing before now," Sam said, looking at the still bowing crowd...
- - - -
"Hey, Nicole, pass me one," Hope said as she was driving. Nicole passed her a lit cigarette and she puffed it.
"So, Hope," a boy said, "how'd you get away from your 'rents?"
"They weren't even home. I told Sydney I was going to hang out with you guys," Hope replied.
"Yeah, 'you're' a rebel, Hope," Nicole said. "Elrick, you really need to teach her something."
"That's what tonight's for," Elrick replied. "Hope, turn right." Hope did as told. She pulled the black hybrid SUV into the parking lot of a bar. The teenagers walked into the building. A bouncer stood at the entrance, looking down at them.
"May I see your ID's?" he queried throatily. They did as asked, receiving a curious look but were let in. 'This is it,' Hope thought nervously. 'This is what I've been waiting for on several weeks' ends.'
"Hope, c'mon," one of her friends said, urging her to the bar.
"I'm coming, Amanda." After a blissful hour and forty-five minutes, Hope grew horrified when she saw someone familiar walk through the door. Hope grabbed her boyfriend and dragged him aside.
"What?" he asked.
"Sydney's here!" she exclaimed, pointing.
"Shit! We gotta get out of here!" Elrick motioned for the other four.
"What's up?" Nicole queried.
"Hope's babysitter is here," Elrick replied, rolling his eyes.
"She's not my damn babysitter! She's on a stupid date!"
"Still," Elrick said, "we can't take any chances. We have to leave." They hurried to the door, Hope bumping into someone.
"Oh, I'm sorry-" she began then stopped when she recognized the woman.
"Hope?!" Sydney exclaimed when she turned around. Hope ran out, scared. She flung the SUV's door open and slammed it shut after getting in the driver's seat. As soon as she locked the doors (she didn't want Sydney to get in) and did a quick head count, she drove off as fast as she could.
"Hope!" Sydney yelled, chasing after her.
"Hey, Syd, what's wrong?" her date inquired.
"I'm sorry, Bane, but I really need to call a friend," the red head said, pulling out her cell phone and dialing a number...
- - - -
"Hang on, my phone's ringing," Sam said, picking her phone up from her bed stand. "Hey, Syd. Aren't you on a date?"
Snively looked up from his book. It was boring him and whatever Sam was talking to Sydney about seemed more interesting than the book. He yawned as loud as he could, receiving a dirty look from his wife, who looked downright furious. He thought about something to make her feel better. He leaned over to give her a kiss but stopped when she shut her phone.
"Is something wrong?" he queried.
"That's just the beginning. You should stay here in case something goes down," Sam replied. She got up and dressed, her husband's focus now solely on her. She got up in his lap.
"Give me a kiss and a hug," Snively said. She did as asked, wishing she could stay in that position all night. "Sam, what happened?"
"Guess who Sydney caught at a bar with five of her friends?"
"Oh no."
"Yeah." He held onto his love a moment longer before letting her go. She played with his bangs after seeing concern on his face. "You okay, baby?"
"Just...bring Hope home," he replied. She gave him a gentle kiss.
"I will. Get some rest." She began to walk out. "I love you."
"I love you, darling." She paused before continuing to leave. 'She's so beautiful.' He sighed before getting up and grabbing Sam's guitar. He took the pick and tried to play it. Frustrated, he set it down and went back to reading. 'I'll figure that out later,' he thought.
- - - -
"Hope, hurry!" Amanda squeaked. "The cops are catching up!"
"Don't rush me! I'm freakin' out as it is!" Hope snapped. She saw a flash of silver behind the cop cars. 'What is that?'
"Hope, speed up," Elrick pressed gently.
"I'm goin' 90 on the freeway."
"Just a little faster." She did it and saw the silver thing behind her. "What is that?"
"It looks like a silver lambo," on of the boys said. Hope felt the color drain from her face.
"W...what's the license plate say?" she inquired.
"Uh...SB, space, SK, 36. Why?"
"Because, Nick, that's my mom." She floored it, pushing the gas pedal down as much as she could. She saw something on the road and cursed. 'Those tack- things that cops put on the road! What the hell are those called?' She swerved and flipped the SUV, causing it to roll down a small hill. "Tire deflation devices?!"
"Hope!" she heard her mother scream before losing consciousness.
Sam slammed her brakes and got out of her lambo and sprinted down the hill. She pulled on the door's handle, trying to get in.
"Hope! Answer me, damn it!" Firefighters, cops, and medics surrounded her, pulling her away. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Sydney and Bane.
"You okay?" Sydney asked softly.
"No, I'm not. I need my husband," she replied, just as quiet. An officer walked up.
"Are any of these kid's-"
"The driver is my daughter. What's the body count?" Sam answered gravely.
"Zero; one of the boys is severely injured and the others have minor injuries that we know of. They will have to be taken to the hospital, regardless, because-"
"Of protocol, I know. I'll meet you there." She looked at the other two. "Sorry about your date."
"It's fine; this is more important," Bane said. "Besides, I have a feeling we'll go out again soon."
"Really?" Sydney questioned.
"Yeah. Listen, I'll catch you guys later." He kissed Sydney's cheek and walked up the hill.
"He likes me. He actually likes me," Sydney said.
"Yeah, hey, we need to get to the hospital, remember?" Sam replied. The two trudged up the hill, not wanting to go where they had to go.
- - - -
"Mr. and Mrs. Kintobor?" a nurse queried.
"Uh, just Mrs. Kintobor; my husband isn't here," Sam replied. "Is Hope okay?"
"For the most part, yes. She has a few bumps and bruises. She's recovering as we speak. If you don't mind me asking, how old is Hope?"
"Fifteen."
"Her BAC is 0.10. Is there any way for her to have access to alcohol in your home?" the nurse queried.
"No. Whenever I drink, I leave so there won't be any dangers to my four-year-old drinking something she shouldn't."
"Um," Sydney interrupted, "I saw Hope at a bar."
"What about cigarettes? Do you-"
"NO, I do not smoke!" Sam snapped. "And I don't do drugs! Anything else?!"
"No, because we didn't find any other toxins in her system." Sam relaxed some but not completely.
"So what are we supposed to do?" Sydney questioned.
"Wait until Hope wakes." The nurse walked away, leaving the two in the waiting room.
/Snively?/ Sam asked. She didn't get an answer, so she tried again. /Snively?/ 'Screw it, I'm callin' him,' she thought as she began dialing his number. It rang two and a half times before he picked up.
"Hello?" his tired voice answered.
"Were you asleep?" she queried.
"Yes, now what do you need?"
"Um, I can't put this lightly, but...we're at the hospital waiting on Hope to recover," Sam said.
"WHAT!" There was a pause. "Sam, I'll be there as soon as I can. Just...hang tight."
"Okay, but wha-hello?"
"What'd he say?" Sydney inquired.
"Well, before he 'hung up' on me, he said he'd be here as soon as he can." As if on cue, Sam's husband came striding into the waiting room quickly. He gave his wife a hug, checking her over for any injuries, thankful he found none.
"Sweetie, Hope was the one in the wreck, not me."
"Sorry, just a habit." He looked around. "What are we supposed to do?"
Sam flopped down into one of the chairs. "We sit here and wait. Sydney, will you please go back to HQ and take care of things since we're here?"
"Yeah, I guess. Call if you need anything," Sydney replied, leaving.
"So," Snively said, sitting beside her, "what exactly happened?"
As Sam explained everything, his expression grew more somber than it was before. He put his head in his hands, staring at the floor.
"Sam, what did we...what did I do wrong?" She kissed his temple, putting an arm around his shoulders.
"We're in this together. We've tried our best," Sam replied.
"I suppose you're right." There was a restless silence for five minutes.
"Man, I frickin' hate hospitals," Sam grumbled. He looked at her in curiosity, unnerving her. "What?"
"We're sitting here waiting on our daughter and this is what you have to say?" he inquired.
"Yeah. Whenever I have to be at a hospital, something bad always happens."
"Like what?"
"Uh-for one, my 'death,' our divorce started here, Taylor's alcohol poisoning, and now Hope. I'm tellin' ya, this place has cursed written all over it."
"We should try to get some sleep."
"No way! The last time I tried to do that here, I died. I'll just...work on writing a song or something. He nodded and tried to get in a comfortable position and drifted asleep. After awhile, Sam got bored and looked at the clock; 4:35. 'C'mon, Hope, hurry up. She got up and began walking, eventually finding herself in front of the nursery's window. She stood there and watched the newborns. 'I should have one in there,' she thought sadly. She felt someone touch her shoulder and looked up. Snively.
/I was worried/ he said.
/Sorry. I was bored so I walked around and found myself here./
/I figured you would be here./ They saw a baby in the case where they put premature infants or unhealthy ones.
/Wanna sneak in?/ Sam queried.
/We can't do that and you know that. Let's see if we can find our daughter/ Snively replied, leading her away. They went back to the waiting room to collect any of their left behind belongings and went to the check-in desk, seeing the parents of Hope's friends.
"Snively...Sam," a man said, "any news?"
"Unfortunately, no. we're trying to find out about Hope," Snively replied.
"You may all see your kids if you will have some patience." One by one, each set of parents were given directions to their child's room. When Snively and Sam got to the door of their daughter's room, Sam stopped.
"You're going to have to be the one to talk to her," she said.
"Why me?" Snively questioned.
"Because if I try to talk to her, I'll blow up."
"I see." He opened the door and walked in, pulling his reluctant wife with him. Hope was sound asleep in the small bed.
"Hope, get up," Sam said. Her husband frowned and shook their daughter awake gently.
"Dad? Mom?" she asked.
"Ready to go home?" her father replied.
"I don't feel good."
"That's because you're wasted," Sam snapped.
"Sam, calm down." She glared at him but said nothing more. Her husband helped their daughter out of the hospital after Sam signed the release forms. As soon as they were where people couldn't see them, Snively opened a portal and took his family home to get some much needed rest...
- - - -
"Hope, what were you thinking? You could have been killed," Snively said. Hope looked down. Her parents had her seated in the middle of the kitchen on a wooden chair. Her father was the one talking to her. Her mother stood by the counter, leaning against it, her arms folded tightly over her chest. She hadn't spoken to her since they were at the hospital.
"I was just having fun. It's not that big of a deal, Dad," Hope replied.
"That's just it, Hope!" Sam snapped. "You almost KILLED Elrick last night! You all were very lucky. Hope, if that SUV flipped one more time, it would've killed you!"
"Sam," Snively began.
"Don't you dare interrupt me, Snively," Sam warned darkly.
"Mom, didn't you ever-"
"No! I knew better than that. You apparently don't! How the heck are we supposed to trust you?"
"Hope, I want your cell-phone," Snively said, trying to get a word in." You're grounded for a month times two."
"So I'm grounded for two months?" Hope exclaimed.
"Would you look at that; now you're grounded for four months," her father replied.
"Wanna try for eight?" her mother queried. Hope rolled her eyes with a dramatic sigh. "Go to bed, drama queen."
"Whatever," the teenager replied, getting up and going to her bedroom, slamming the door.
"Think we should get some sleep?" Snively asked.
"I can't really function without it...Wanna cancel morning training?" Sam replied.
"Might as well." Sam wrote up a letter and posted it on the door of the gym. The couple walked wearily to their massive bedroom and went inside. They snapped their fingers, bed clothes appearing on them. They got in their bed, Snively on the left and Sam on the right, and curled up to each other, falling asleep almost instantly.
- - - -
"So, when are we going to go after Theta?" Alex queried later that afternoon.
"As soon as I can locate her," Snively said tiredly. He had only gotten an hour and a half of sleep because Serenity wanted his attention. Sam had just woken up and was getting some coffee.
"Hey, baby," she greeted him, along with a kiss.
"Hey," he replied. The computer beeped, startling them. "She's on Earth...in Alaska."
"Screw that! I'm not going," Sam said.
"Sweetie, you have to come. Right now, you're the strongest when using magic."
"Fine, I'll go." They rounded up some of the Senshi and opened a portal to Earth...
- - - -
Snively was fighting with Arable, slowly gaining ground. His wife had brought down her sister, going around slowly, helping her Senshi some.
"World Shaking!" Arable cried out, knocking him back several feet. He got up slowly, trying to regain his bearings. He saw Sam talking to the one who was Sailor Theta, looking very desperate. The younger Senshi shoved her away and ran to Sophia, making it clear that she had chosen Sophia's Senshi over theirs.
/Sam, we have to retreat/ Snively said.
/Exactly what I was thinking/ Sam replied.
"Retreat!" he yelled. He turned, seeing a woman in light blue, explicit clothing. It was something he'd hoped Sam would wear for him at some point. Regardless, he had never seen her before. "Who are you?"
"Aluminum Seiren," she replied. 'Her voice,' Snively thought. 'It's so beautiful.' "Come closer."
Sam looked over to her husband with a look of horror. She threw Arable down, running to her love. "SNIVELY!"
He didn't pay attention to her. The Senshi he was with was talking to him, luring him closer to her. Sam ran harder, seeing Aluminum Siren place her hands on Snively's head. She was singing to him and he apparently liked it. She suddenly screamed, he trying to draw back in pain. Sam threw a large, white energy ball, hitting A.S. and launching her back. Her husband fell to the ground, his hands over his ears.
"Snively," Sam asked, collapsing by his side. His eyes were closed. /Snively?/ She orbed him out and to HQ's infirmary.
- - - -
"Did you see the look on Sam's face?" Sailor Aluminum Siren laughed.
"Shut up, Dayanara. It wasn't that funny," Morgan grumbled. She felt horrible about it and she had nothing to do with it.
"Melissa, may I have a word with you?" Leo asked, walking up. "Alone?"
After giving him a curious look, she replied, "yeah, sure." They walked away, the newest Senshi watching.
"Are they dating?" she asked.
"Don't worry about it, Laka," Sophia said sternly.
"YOU'RE WHAT!" they heard Melissa yell. Leo was knocked backwards, soaked with water. The Senshi of Neptune stormed up to him, looking like she demanded an answer.
"That is how I feel. I'm sorry you can't accept that," Leo replied. He nodded at the others before walking out of the palace.
- - - -
Sam sat outside the infirmary, her head in her hands. 'I wasn't fast enough. All of that training and for what?' she was trembling from anger, taking long deep breaths to calm down, like her doctor had told her to do when she was upset. 'It was my fault. I hope Leo can fix this.' She heard footsteps but didn't look up until there was a pair of legs in front of her.
"What is it, Sydney?"
"We took the liberty of locating another Senshi," Sydney replied. "And to take your mind off-"
"I'M NOT LEAVING!" Sam snapped. "I'm not going anywhere without my husband."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah." Leo walked out, papers in his hands.
"Sam, he's out of surgery and stable but he's resting," Leo said. Sam got up and looked at him with pleading eyes.
"Please, I have to see him," she replied. The technician nodded, allowing her inside. She sat by the bed, caressing her husband's face. She lay her head on her husband's chest, sobbing. She clutched the blanket with one hand, draping her other arm over him.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for that to happen...please forgive me, I'm sorry," she wept.
/Sam?/ Snively asked, placing his hand gently on her back. /What's wrong?/
"I'm sorry. I didn't..." She saw him looking at her with confused eyes. "Snively?"
/Sam, I know you're talking to me but I can't hear you. Everything sounds so foggy/ Snively said, pulling his wife into a hug and held her.
/I'm sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen./ She was sobbing harder now. He gave her a kiss, rubbing her back, trying to get her to relax. She was so upset anymore. He didn't really know why either.
/It's not your fault. I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing and let her control me./ he looked at her notebook, which was sitting on the table. /What have you been working on?/
/Oh, just this song. I don't have a song for the first track./ She sat up and picked her notebook up.
/Perhaps I could help you./
/Have at it./ She gave him the notebook. He flipped through it, seeing seventeen songs.
/Sam, how many songs are you putting on it?/
/Eighteen./
/Isn't that a bit much?/
/No./ He found the song she began writing and tried to figure out how it sounded.
/I wish I could hear you sing this./ She seemed to be thinking so he fell silent.
/Maybe I can help you heal faster./ She put her hands over his ears, not touching them, and began to heal them. She took her time, not wanting to do any damage by rushing to heal his hearing. After twenty minutes, she stopped and pulled back.
"Baby?" she asked. He smiled.
/I heard you./ She gave him a kiss of happiness and then a look of confusion.
"Why didn't you speak out loud?"
/I might be too loud./ He picked up the notebook and put it in her hands. /Now, about that song.../
"I'll get my guitar." She orbed out for a moment and returned with her acoustic guitar. She began playing, he listening in enjoyment.
"Where
are the people that accuse me?
The ones who beat me down and
abuse me?
They hide, just out of sight
Can't face me in the
light
They will return, but I'll be stronger
God, I want to
dream again
Take me where I've never been
I want to go
there
This time I'm not scared."
"That's it?" Snively asked.
"Well, there's a little more. Hey! You talked."
"Yes, I suppose I did. Am I too loud?" She smiled.
"Just perfect."
"Can I hear the rest of the chorus?"
"How could you even tell where I was at?" Sam queried.
"By how you were singing. Please, continue," Snively answered. Sam struck a chord on the guitar and finished:
"Now
I am unbreakable
It's unmistakable
No one can touch me
Nothing can stop me."
"It sounds good," Snively said. "I love it."
"That's good."
"What's it called?" he asked. She looked at him.
"What?"
"What is the title to this song?"
"Oh...I guess 'Unbreakable.' I didn't really think about that."
"It seems to fit."
"Yeah, I suppose," she sighed. He saw the sadness in her eyes and knew something was wrong.
"Sam, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, why?"
"You have that look that suggests there is something wrong."
"It's nothing." They were silent for a moment.
"Please tell me what's wrong."
"Drop it, Snively."
Later on that evening, they were eating dinner with their daughters, enjoying the time they were spending with them. They didn't get to spend much time together so they cherished what little time they did spend together. Sydney came in quietly, trying not to disrupt anything. Sam saw her come in and looked up from her meal.
"What is it?" she inquired testily.
"We lost Titanium Kerokko," Sydney replied.
"So I guess that's it," Sam answered.
"Not quite," Snively said quietly.
"What do you mean?" his wife queried.
"Mommy, can I go play?" Serenity asked. Her mother sighed.
"Go ahead." Hope looked up. She was finished eating and was just sitting there. "You too, Hope."
As soon as the kids left, Snively began to explain. "There's one more Senshi left. I have read up on her a few days ago and it seems like it'll be extremely difficult to find her."
"Why is that?" Sydney queried.
"The last one to ascend the title of Sailor Astarte was killed," Snively replied gravely.
"All of these other Senshi sounded familiar but this one...I don't know," Sam spoke.
"It said this Senshi works alone because of some unknown temptation," Snively said.
"I guess we should start looking," Sydney answered. The other two nodded grimly...
- - - -
There was a minor tragedy in the three weeks they were searching for Astarte. Hope's parents relaxed Hope's punishment to an extent. She was permitted to be on Earth outside of school but had to be home by six and had to be at places her parents deemed acceptable. She still wasn't allowed to have her phone. She wasn't allowed to go to parties or games...and she hated it.
"They're so unfair!" she whined to Elrick at lunch. He gave her a sympathetic look.
"We're still on for tonight, aren't we?" the junior queried.
"Of course." The wind blew softly, cooling the early September day. "Five thirty?"
He nodded in agreement, "five thirty. Your parents won't hear?"
"Oh please!" Hope scoffed, flipping her curls behind her, "Mom has all of the bedrooms soundproofed. Besides, she'll be too busy with Dad to do anything like check up on us."
"If you say so," Elrick replied. She stole a quick kiss from him.
"I do say so." Their friends rolled their eyes, deciding to talk about the party that Friday night.
- - - -
"Caress
the one, the Never-Fading
Rain in your heart - the tears of
snow-white sorrow
Caress the one, the hiding amaranth
In a land
of the daybreak.
"So, what'd you think?" Sam asked.
"It was great!" Alex said. They were recording Sam's third Cd and they were half finished.
"I think we should stop for tonight. We don't want to wear out your voice," Snively said. Sam came out of the recording room, taking the headphones off. She yawned loudly, covering her mouth. She sighed after she looked at the clock.
"Dude, I must be getting old if I'm tired at 8:30," she said.
"Don't say that!" Snively whined. "That would mean that I was getting old and I'm older than you by five years."
"Yeah, you're thirty one, aren't you?" Alex asked him.
"Yes, why?"
"So you'll be turning twenty-six this year, Sam," Alex said. Her phone rang, the ring tone revealing it was her sister.
"Hey Erika!" Alex greeted.
"Ask her how her tour is," Sam said, revealing the sadness in her voice.
/Sam, is this why you're so upset? Because you want to go on tour?/ Snively questioned.
She glared at him frigidly. /Don't start that./
"Sam, if you want to go on tour, then go. We'll be fine without you, I promise," Snively said, getting everyone else's attention.
"Snively," Sam replied, frustrated.
"You should go on tour," Alex said. "You haven't been on tour for two years."
"If you don't agree now, we'll keep pushing you until you do it," Sam's husband said.
"Fine!" Sam said, exasperated. "I'm gonna check on the girls and make sure they're in bed."
Snively nodded. "Tell them I said-"
"-goodnight. I know." She left the room and walked down the halls until she was in her family's corridor or, its formal name, the Royal Corridor. She went into Serenity's bedroom, seeing the child on the floor, asleep. She couldn't help but smile as she knelt down and picked her daughter up, carrying her to her bed. She lay her down and went to the dresser and pulled out some pajamas. She quickly but carefully dressed Serenity for bed, covering her daughter with the comforter. She tucked her in, laying her tattered stuffed rabbit beside her. She kissed her forehead.
"Goodnight, Serenity. I love you," Sam whispered. She turned on the nightlight beside the bed. She left, shutting off the light and closing the door quietly. She walked across the hall to Hope's room. She knocked on the door a couple of times.
"Just a minute!" Hope answered. She cracked the door open, tying her robe around her. "Hey, Mom."
"Are you okay? You sound tense," her mother replied, looking concerned.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just studying." Sam gave her an odd look.
"Don't study too hard. Night, Hope."
"Night, Mom." She closed the door as her mother turned. Sam waited for ten minutes by Hope's room, knowing she was up to something. She opened the door, feeling her blood boil.
"HOPE ELIZABETH KINTOBOR!" she yelled, seeing her daughter shove her boyfriend off of her. She pulled the blanket up to her neck.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Sam continued to yell.
"M-mom, this isn't what it looks like," Hope said.
"Then what's it supposed to look like?" Sam asked testily, trying to keep her temper under control.
"That's a good question," Elrick muttered, trying to keep covered up as much as possible. Sam glared at him.
"Elrick, right?" she queried, seeing him nod feebly. "What's your mom's name?"
His eyes widened. "No! Don't call her!"
"Why not?"
"She'll kill me!" Sam frowned; something wasn't right.
"Get dressed, both of you." Hope's face was flushed. She was about to get up when she noticed her mother still standing where she was.
"Mom, aren't you going to leave?"
"I obviously can't trust you to be alone, so no."
"Elrick will be here."
"All the more reason to stay." /Snively./ There was a long pause.
/Yes?/
/What is Elrick's mom's name?/
/Caroline, why?/
/Do you have her phone number?/
/Yes, but why?/
/Her son is here...in Hope's room, both undressed./
/WHAT?/
/Don't orb in here. I'm watching them get dressed. Call Caroline and tell her the situation at hand/ Sam replied.
/Fine./ The conversation was dropped after that. By then, the teenagers were dressed and were watching her.
"C'mon," Sam said curtly. She led them to the gym, receiving a look of curiosity.
"Twenty suicides," she spoke gravely. "On the line."
"You can't-" Elrick began.
"NOW!" The two obeyed, hurrying to the line she had referred to. They began their suicides, tired by the fourth.
"Sam, what are you doing?" Snively inquired. She hadn't really heard him come in.
"Handing out punishment," she replied, not taking her eyes off the kids.
"It's not your place to punish Elrick and you know that," he said.
"What about Caroline?" she asked.
"She's...here and very confused."
"Elrick Theodore Black! Front and center, NOW!" Caroline Black snapped as she stormed into the gym. Elrick met his mother with his head down. Hope stopped where she was to listen.
"Keep going, Hope," her mother barked. She sighed but did as ordered.
"I'm sorry," Caroline said. "I'm going to take him home and make sure he's severely punished."
"Sydney will take you home," Snively said. As soon as they were alone, Sam glowered at her daughter.
"I'm sorry but I should go before I do something to her that I'll regret." He kissed her forehead. "I'm going for a walk."
"Be careful," he said. He watched her orb out and began to decide on what to do with Hope...
- - - -
'It's been awhile since I've been here,' Sam thought as she walked through the Great Forest. She walked into a clearing, feeling slightly more at peace than she was. She sat down on a boulder and performed some breathing exercises that her doctor told her to do when she was upset. After five minutes, she was relaxed. Sam heard a faint sob and decided to ignore it. She heard it two more times and finally decided to follow it. The sobs led Sam to the outskirts of Knothole. At first she thought it was someone she knew but as she got closer, she figured out she was wrong.
"Are you okay?" she queried softly. The person whirled around and backed away.
"No," the person whispered, revealing themselves as female.
"What's wrong?" Sam asked. She noticed the blood on the ground, barely, and thought she was injured.
"Stay away!" the girl said.
"I'm not going to hurt you," Sam said, holding out her hand. The girl turned towards her, revealing a symbol on her forehead. "You...you're a Senshi?"
"What?" the girl asked, looking up.
"You have to be Sailor Astarte because everyone else has been found."
"N-no," the girl replied. "That's not my name."
"No, but it's your title. Where do you live?"
"K-knothole."
"Hmm, haven't been there for awhile. Shall we?" Sam replied, offering her hand again. "By the way, I'm Sam."
The girl took her hand and smiled as Sam helped her up. "I'm October."
"Nice to meet you, October," Sam smiled, pulling October off the ground. "Let's get you cleaned up." As they turned and began to walk off, October looked back to the bloodstained body she was with.
- - - -
(October's P.O.V.)
Sam led me back to Knothole silently, her footsteps not even making a sound. We walked into Knothole, evading the night guards easily. We walked past my hut; she didn't even glance at it. We walked into a hut kind of on the outskirts of the village. She turned on some lamps. She went into another room, leaving me alone. I looked at some of the pictures on the walls, seeing Sam with some overlander man, holding a baby. There was a girl standing beside the man and a handsome green hedgehog. There were individuals of the kids and groups of them as a trio. There were a couple of laidback pictures of the girls and of the hedgehog with a yellow furred mongoose. There were several pictures of the man and Sam. They looked so happy together. If only I could find someone like that.
"Having fun?" I jumped; Sam was standing behind me. I didn't hear her come in.
"Who are these people?" I asked.
"Well, the youngest is my daughter, Serenity, and the other is my daughter, Hope." There was a sharp edge to her tone when she mentioned Hope. "The hedgehog is Mecha and that mongoose is-"
"-Mina. I know who she is."
"And that man..." she smiled happily, like she was in a daze, "that man is my husband."
"You used to live in Knothole?" I questioned. She left the room, me following after.
"Yeah." We were in the kitchen. "And you weren't ignored?"
"No, we have a lot of good friends here. Why? Are you?" Sam replied, picking an envelope up off of the table.
"Yeah, because of what I am," I said bitterly.
"What? A wolf?" she questioned while opening the envelope. She took out a picture of Mina and Mecha together, Mina holding a baby hedgehog. There was some writing on the back.
"No." I looked down, fighting tears. "A monster."
She was at my side immediately, holding me in her arms, like I was her own daughter. It felt...good. "That's not true."
"Yes it is. I killed someone. They were lying on the ground with me when you came. I drank their blood...and I liked it," I cried.
"You're a half vampire, so what?" I looked at her.
"Half?"
"Yeah. There's no way you could be a full blooded vampire and a Senshi."
"I can't fight it very well," I moaned. She went to the counter and got a glass out of the cupboard. She took a knife-like thing from a hilt (I didn't notice it before) and cut her wrist, letting drops of blood flow into the glass. I stopped myself from moving. She made it so tempting to go over and drink from her wound. She put her hand over the bleeding wrist and healed it. She gave me the glass. Sam looked at me expectantly.
"What?" I asked nervously.
"Aren't you going to drink that?" she queried. I reluctantly lifted the glass to my lips, seeing her nod in approval. I began to drink, gulping the blood. It was so sweet and so delicious. I doubt anything will taste as pure as her blood. Sadly, it didn't last as long as I'd hoped. I looked up at her, expecting more.
"Careful," Sam said, "you don't want to succumb to blood rage."
"What's that?"
"It's when you're so overcome with the thirst of blood that you cannot stop feeding." I shrank back.
"Oh," I said weakly.
"Listen, I should go. I'll come back for you tomorrow." She led me out of her hut, shutting off the lights and locking the door. I noticed she had the envelope in her hand with the picture sticking out of it. She walked me to my hut and watched me go in. I yawned and crawled into bed. I was asleep almost instantly.
- - - -
(Normal P.O.V.)
"Sam, are you sure about this?" Snively queried as they walked into Knothole.
"Very sure," Sam replied. They were gawked at as they passed, eventually coming up to a hut. Sam knocked on the door quickly and then stood back. After a moment, the door opened slowly.
"Hello?" Her face was not visible and her voice was weak.
"October, it's me, Sam." The door opened slightly more and her face appeared some.
"Come in, please," the wolf whispered. The couple walked in, noticing the darkness of the hut. The curtains were torn some and the window was cracked. The wooden floor was rough, not having been sandpapered. The bed was broken; the mattress was on the floor while the rest of the bed stood crooked.
/Sam, we have to get her out of here/ Snively spoke, seeing his wife nod in agreement.
/If anything, at least help her get things repaired/ she answered.
"October, what happened?" Snively inquired. She looked up at him. He recognized the look of hopelessness on her face. He'd seen Sam wear it so many times before. The small cuts and scrapes indicated he was right.
"It's nothing," October said.
"Do you have a guardian?" Sam queried.
"No, not really," the wolf answered. "Geoffrey St. John checks on me more than I want him to."
"Sounds just like him," Sam grumbled.
"Easy, Sam," Snively said. "October, how would you like to do this?"
"Well, with all due respect, I'd like to stay here for awhile. I'll go home with you when I feel like I'm ready," she replied.
"What about your training?" Sam questioned.
"I'll still go with you so I can train and stuff but I'm not ready to move again."
"That's fine but we need to discuss this with Sally," Snively said. His wife nodded and the couple led the young Senshi to Sally's hut. Sam knocked quickly, the door opening just as rapid.
"What are you doing here?" Geoffrey St. John sneered.
"Shut up before you give me another reason to knock you down," Sam snapped.
"Where's Sally?" Snively said quickly before his wife started a fight. The skunk let them in, shutting the door.
"Snively, Sam, what are you doing here...with October?" Sally queried.
"Sally, October is a Senshi. We would like for her to train with us so that she can grasp her powers correctly," Snively said. "However, she would like to live here. Is there anything about this that is unacceptable?"
"You will only drop her off and pick her up?" Sally questioned. Sam nodded.
"Yeah; so is it okay?"
Sally noticed the hopeful look they all wore, though Sam's looked expectant as well. "Yes, I suppose it's okay."
"Thank you for your time," Sam spoke, ending the brief meeting. October did a cartwheel as soon as she was outside.
"C'mon, kid," Sam laughed as her husband opened a portal.
"Go where?" October questioned.
"HQ. I figured you'd like to see it and besides, I need to get your books to you so you'll have something to study," Sam replied.
"Oh," October answered. She walked into the portal cautiously with her new mentors.
"Guys, Hope ran away," Erika greeted gravely.
"What?" Sam breathed.
"Sam," Snively began, taking her into his arms.
"What's going on?" October asked.
"Their daughter ran away," Erika said.
"Erika, can you keep an eye on things here and show October around?" Snively queried, sounding tired suddenly.
"Yeah." The couple left in a portal, leaving the other two. "So, I guess we should get started."
October nodded. "I guess."
- - - -
Hope put change into a pay phone and quickly dialed a number, subconsciously scratching the center of her forehead.
"Hello?" a female voice said.
"Hey...Sophia? It's me, Hope," the teenager replied, looking around nervously. "Is it okay if I come live with you?"
"Yeah, of course it's okay. Where are you?" Sophia asked.
"Well, I'm using a pay phone on L.A.'s strip."
"Hope, where are your parents? I know we're fighting and all, but that's usually not like them to leave you alone."
"I ran away."
"Don't be doing that. You could get yourself killed."
"You sound like my mom," Hope retorted. There was a pause.
"Just stay where you are. I'll come get you." Sophia hung up. Hope put the phone on the receiver, turned around, and froze.
"Come here, Hope." Sam and Snively stood outside the phone booth.
"No, you can't make me!" Hope snapped.
"Hope, get your ass out here now," Sam replied icily.
"Sam, she wants to come home with me," Sophia said calmly, walking up to them from behind.
"What?" Snively asked.
"I wanna live with Sophia," Hope said.
"No, you're going home and you're going to like it," Sam replied sharply.
"You can't make me go with you!"
"Sophia, will you take good care of her and make sure she goes to school and gets good grades?" Snively said.
"Snively, no. she is not going with Sophia and that's final," Sam said.
"Sam, she's old enough to choose what she wants to do with her life," Snively replied tiredly. "If Hope wants to do this, then we should support her decision."
"Snively."
/Sam, she needs some time away from us. She needs her space./
"...fine," Sam said quietly.
"You mean it?" Hope queried, coming out of the phone booth.
"Yeah. Let's go get your stuff," Sam almost whispered.
"Um, I used one of your storage ball-things," Hope answered sheepishly. "I just forgot my purse."
"Let's go get it right now. Sophia, you don't mind waiting, do you?" Snively asked, opening a portal.
"No, it's fine." The family went into the portal and into HQ.
"I gotta...gotta go check on somethin'...See ya later, Hope." Sam pulled Hope into a hug, trembling. They stayed that way for a moment before Hope's mother let go.
"Bye, Mom," Hope said. She tried not to look into her mother's eyes. She glanced up momentarily and saw the heartbreak in her mother's eyes and it nearly crushed her.
"I love you," Sam said.
"Yeah," Hope replied. Sam walked off briskly. She caught Sydney by the arm as she was walking by and pulled her into a room. Hope went into her bedroom, grabbed her purse quickly, not wanting to stay long. When they passed the room Sam and Sydney were in, the pair heard sobbing. It sounded like Sam.
"Let's go," Snively said. He opened a new portal and let his daughter through before crossing back into L.A.
"Uh, bye Dad," Hope said. Her father brought her in for a hug. He held her for a moment longer, stroking her hair, before reluctantly letting her go.
"I'll take care of her," Sophia said. He nodded.
"I...love you, Hope."
"I love you, Dad." Snively watched as Sophia and Hope walked away before leaving in a portal. 'I have to go calm Sam down now.'
- - - -
The next two weeks passed too quickly for Snively. He wasn't ready for Sam to go on tour yet. She had her third album done in three days and everything else finished as well. He didn't know why she was kicking off her concert on her twenty-sixth birthday.
"Hey, baby," Sam greeted. He smiled.
"Did you get everything packed?" he asked. She sat down in his lap, letting him caress her as much as he wanted.
"Mmm, yeah," she replied, going in for a kiss. He stopped her.
"Sam, are you sure about going on tour on your birthday? Wouldn't you rather spend it with everyone here?" Snively inquired.
"I'm here right now and all you wanna do is talk," she replied, trying to kiss him again.
"Sam, love, I just want to spend some alone time with you before you leave for three months," he said.
"Finally! You get it!"
"Get what?"
"This!" She pulled his face to hers, giving him a passionate kiss. She let him go, seeing his dazed expression.
"Happy birthday," he muttered. She laughed. "We should take this somewhere else."
"I gotta leave in an hour. How is that enough time?" He sighed.
"Want to go to the broom closet?"
"Only if you orb me there." He orbed the two of them into the same broom closet they were in weeks before. He sat down on the floor. He felt her lay on him, her arms around his neck. She sighed contentedly as he began kissing her. He ran his hands up and down her back after pulling her shirt off. The door swung open, light swooping in.
"Whoops." Snively pulled his mouth from his wife's.
"Echo, what is it?" he asked, trying not to sound annoyed.
"We...we were looking for Sam because she's fifteen minutes late and she only has ten minutes until Showtime." Sam looked at Snively's watch.
"Shoot! I'm sorry, but I have to leave," she said, starting to sit up.
"Wait for me to leave first!" Echo yelped, shutting the door.
"I'm sorry," Sam said, trying to fix her bra from behind. She gave up, took it off, and put it back on.
"It's fine. Here's your...shirt," Snively replied, giving her the aforementioned object. She slipped it on with ease.
"Aren't you coming with me? You at least have to see my first show of the tour," Sam said while getting up. He followed her out of the closet. They quickly opened a portal and walked into a dressing room. She began pulling clothes from the closet. "Quick, help me find an outfit."
"Sam, I know nothing about clothes."
"Never mind, I found something." She was putting on some skin tight dark blue jeans. She carelessly threw her shirt on the ground and put on a white buttoned up shirt and a black vest over it. She slipped on some black high tops, tying them quickly.
"Ready?" he asked.
"I have to warm-up."
"Warm-up?"
"Yeah, I need to warm up my singing voice," she said, dragging him into what he'd consider the greenroom. He watched her warm up, seeing how happy she was. She walked up to him before she went on stage.
"I gotta leave almost right after this, so give me a kiss," Sam said. He did as asked and embraced his wife as well.
"I love you so much," he whispered in her ear.
"I love you too," she replied, trying to hide her tears. "Now, I left a list of things to do while I'm gone by Sydney's bed and on my dresser. You two are in charge of things while I'm gone. I'm going to have my cell-phone turned off and you won't be able to contact me through telepathy. I'm going to block that. I will come if there's a serious emergency."
"Alright," he said. "I guess I'll see you in three months."
"Yeah. Bye, baby," she said, quickly giving him another kiss. He returned it, trying to smile for her.
"Bye, Sam." She walked over to someone, who helped her get into a box. He watched as the box went up and then walked over to the stage, watching her rise from it. He stood and watched the entire concert, seeing how happy Sam was. He had to admit, it did look enjoyable. Of course, he'd never tell his wife that. She'd push him even more to join her on stage. After the big finale, Snively waited for an hour outside the stadium, hoping she'd show.
/Sam?/ She didn't reply. There was a small rumble of thunder and then it started to rain. He sighed. 'I guess she did leave right after the concert after all,' he thought. He tried the door to the stadium, not getting in. 'I need to find someplace secluded so I can use a portal.' He walked around to the back of the stadium, trying every door he saw. He saw a huge bus and people getting into it. He sprinted over and quickly embraced someone, sending them both to the ground.
"Snively, what are you doing? Playing football?" Sam groaned.
"Sorry," he replied sheepishly. The crew left them alone, knowing the departure was difficult for both of them. Snively helped Sam up and walked her over to the tour bus. He gave her a hug, despite him being soaked. She didn't seem to mind but returned the embrace. They stood in the rain, not wanting to part.
"Maybe I shouldn't go," Sam whispered softly.
"No," Snively said, pulling away from his wife but held her hands. "You have to do this. I want you to do this. You look so happy on stage."
"Yeah, but," she began. He put his hand to her face gently.
"You can do this, Sam. I'll see you soon, okay? I love you," he said, kissing her forehead.
"I love you too," she whispered. He gave her a long kiss, finally sending her off. He watched her get on the bus slowly. She peered out of the window, smiled, and waved. He smiled back and watched as the bus rolled off. He looked around, opened a portal, and quickly disappeared into it. He walked down the halls of HQ, suddenly tired. He heard something come from Sydney's room and stopped. He knocked on the door, waiting for Sydney to answer.
"Come in," she answered weakly. He opened the door, going into the dimmed room. He saw her lying on her bed, her hair splayed out from the usual ponytail.
"Sydney, what happened?" he queried in concern, sitting next to her. She didn't reply. He pulled her up, cradling her. He didn't know why he did it. 'Maybe Sam is rubbing off on me.'
"H-he broke up with me," she sobbed into his chest. She was clinging to his already damp shirt, not willing to let go of him.
"Who did?" he inquired. She started coughing.
"B-Bane," Sydney whimpered. Snively couldn't believe how...different she was acting compared to when he had first met her. 'She used to be so vicious,' he thought.
"That's too bad," he replied, running his fingers through her hair.
"No kidding," she said shakily. She sat up, still not letting go of him.
"He's missing out on someone great," he said.
"You think?"
"I know he is," Snively smiled. She looked at him and curled up into him. "Uh, Syd?"
"Yes?"
"You know Sam would kill me if she found out about this."
"It's just us." He looked away. "You act like you're terrified of your wife."
"We have a good reason to be, don't we?" She looked around. She leaned over and kissed his cheek, close to his lips. She got up quickly and strode swiftly to the other side of the room, feeling like an idiot.
"I'm sorry," she said. She turned around, seeing him in front of her. "Sni-"
He pulled her to him quickly, crushing her lips with his. He held it for a moment before releasing her. They stared at each other for minutes in awe.
"Uh oh," they said.
"Syd," Snively muttered. He put his arms back around her.
"Snively," Sydney began.
"Shh," he murmured on her lips. He began kissing her softly, growing more passionate by the second...
Now
you are mine, I'm holding onto you my love,
there is no other,
there will never be another, now you are mine,
I have found the
meaning of love, the meaning of love.
The End.
Q.N.
Wow, didn't see that one coming, did you? Here's Erika's song list:
Fire- Krystal Meyers
Emergency- Paramore
Whoa- Paramore
Grey- BarlowGirl
Everybody's Fool- Evanescence
Chemicals React- Aly & Aj
We Live- Superchick
Snow White Queen- Evanescence
The Last Song I'm Wasting on You
Let Go- BarlowGirl
Haters- Hilary Duff
Tina- Flyleaf
Breakthrough- Hope 7
Girl Can Rock- Hilary Duff
The Guy Song- BarlowGirl
Judas- Kelly Clarkson
Like You- Evanescence
She Walked Away- BarlowGirl
It's a good line up. Since I didn't mention Sam's third Cd (and I probably won't any other time), here's her song list as well:
Unbreakable- Fireflight
Amaranth- Nightwish
Dangerous to Know- Hilary Duff
Action- Fireflight
Hole- Kelly Clarkson
Cassie- Flyleaf
Good Behavior
Insomniatic- Aly & Aj
Missing- Evanescence
Maybe- Kelly Clarkson
Something New- Fireflight
The Only One- Evanescence
Suddenly- Superchick
Myself- Fireflight
Song for the Broken- BarlowGirl
Taking Over Me- Evanescence
Weight of the World- Evanescence
Haunted- Kelly Clarkson
You may remember song 13 being mentioned waaaaay back in the first series (five or six I think). That's it for now!
Later!
M.P.
'The Meaning Of...' is by Spoken. (These guys came to my church! They're awesome people.)