A/N: Hey guys, I'm back. I am so sorry for not writing anything for the past six months but I've been so busy and top that with writers' block beyond belief and you get my long hiatus. I'm really sorry to all of you guys who were reading Rory and Tristan: A Shakespearean Tragedy? but I can't think of a single thing to put in there! I've got like half of a chapter together, and I'm working to try and get some closer to it, and I promise that I will have something out by at least Spring Break. Sorry about talking so much, don't forget about my forum "So You Wanna Talk Gilmore?" I keep checking it as much as I can. Now enjoy this new story:-)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, especially not the rights to Gilmore Girls. However I am the owner of a small concussion. I dislike stairs greatly.

"Dad! Get the fuck away from her!" Tristan yelled at his father as he saw him approaching his younger sister.

"Don't talk to me like that son!" Mr. DuGrey turned towards Tristan, menace in his eyes.

"If you stay away from Mariana I'd stop talking to you altogether." Tristan spat. His father had been doing this his entire life, and even though he knew that it was wrong he could never bring himself to turn his dad in to the police. It's like they say with these abuse cases, the children feel a special bond to the abuser. It's a sad fact, but it's true.

"Didn't I say not to talk to me like that?!" His father shouted and swept his arm up in contempt, slapping his son down.

Tristan landed on the floor with a thump, a bruise beginning to rise out of the red spot around his eye.

"Now, what about you, little girl?" Mr. DuGrey said, turning back towards his youngest child.

"Don't hurt me! Don't hurt me! I didn't do anything, I swear!" The small girl yelled. Her name was Mariana Lee, and she had just turned 15. She had blonde hair and a sunny tan. The blue of her eyes matched her older brother's. Standing at about five foot three inches she had to look up to see her father's face as he approached her.

"What do you mean 'I didn't do anything'? Little wench!" The elder DuGrey back slapped his daughter, and she fell to the ground clutching her inflamed cheek. Mariana slowly began to crawl towards Tristan, who had stood up, and was slowly making his way over towards his father. "I just saw you with him! Do you want to ruin this family's reputation?!" Mr. DuGrey yelled.

"He was giving me a ride home from rehearsal! I didn't do anything! He was just giving me a ride!" The small girl pleaded, tears streaming down her face and mascara running with them.

"Don't lie you little-" Mr. DuGrey didn't get a chance to finish as Tristan snuck up behind him and jabbed his elbow into the back of his father's neck. Tristan bent down and helped Mariana to her feet.

"Come with me." Tristan whispered hurriedly, grabbing his sister's hand and leading her upstairs. He ran quietly down a long hallway, and turned into his room. "Here," he said shoving a duffle bag full of clothes at his sister. "Take this bag, these keys, and this license." As he named off each of the objects he handed them to his little sister.

"What is this, Tris?" She asked bewildered.

"I want you to go to Stars Hollow; it's a little town south of here. There's a ton of really eccentric people and they'll help you, okay? I need you to go there and find Rory Gilmore, got it?" Tristan instructed looking his sister straight in the eye.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because you don't deserve to be here anymore. I'm getting out, I promise, but you won't have a way out. I need you to be safe when I'm gone."

"When you're gone? Tris, what are you talking about?" Mariana could feel the tears begging to escape to her cheeks just as the others had. She didn't understand why her brother, her only friend in the entire world, was acting like he was going to leave her.

"Just trust me, okay Mare?" Tristan had two Mare's in this world, and he was about to make sure that this one was safe.

"No! Tell me what the hell is going on!" Mariana yelled.

"Shh!" Tristan whispered hoarsely, gesturing with his finger for her to be silent. "If you're too loud Dad will wake up, and if he wakes up this whole plan is screwed. There's a car out in the driveway, it's yours. Turn the car on, back out, drive away as fast as you can. Get on the highway, and go south. Go to Stars Hollow, you'll know it by the Star's Hollow sign, it's real corny, but you'll know it. Stop somewhere where it looks like there's people and ask to find Rory Gilmore, got it? Rory Gilmore." Tristan said quietly to his sister. Suddenly a drunken screech was heard throughout the house. "Mom just found Dad. Climb out from my balcony; I'll go deal with them."

"But I don't want you to go. Don't leave me, Tristan." Mariana poured; she had never been so devastated in her entire life. Her brother was just dumping her on some stranger's doorstep? She didn't understand.

"Just listen to me, Mare. You aren't safe here, can't you tell? Dad is getting more and more violent by the day. Next thing you know you're going to end up dead." Mariana attempted to interrupt her brother, but he silenced her once more with a gesture. He quietly placed his ear against the door and was frightened by what he heard. Coming up the hallway was the distinct sound of Minilo heels, his drunken mother's favorite. How she managed to stay smashed and maintain the ability to walk in those shoes was astounding, but that wasn't the problem. Hurriedly he shoved his sister out onto his balcony. Before closing the door he said "I love you Mariana. Now go!" and slammed the door behind him.

Mariana had no choice but to run out of there. Tristan had never done anything to harm her before, well there was that one time when they were really little, but he made up for that. She'd never doubted him after that, why should she start now? Carefully she shoved the fake I.D. and the map in the duffle bag and slung it over her shoulder. Pocketing the car's keys she gracefully stepped off of the balcony and onto the trellis to the right. Taking a deep breath she climbed down slowly and jumped the last three or four feet. Landing safely on the ground, Mariana ran to the driveway and hit the unlock button the car's keypad. The lights of a small Dodge Neon glowed from underneath a tree in the corner. 'This is it,' she thought as she ran over towards the car and out of her parent's house.

:-)

Back in the house Tristan casually lay down on his bed awaiting his mother's arrival. As usual he could smell the vodka on her breath before the door even opened. "Tristan!" She screeched when she saw him lying leisurely on his bed. "Your father has been injured!" She cawed waving her arms insanely in the air.

"I know," he said calmly as he picked some lint from the front of his blue shirt.

"Who did it?!" she screamed, her voice rising in pitch with each syllable.

"I did." Tristan retorted with the same sense of cool, although on the inside he was having a time keeping a straight face at his mother's antics tonight. They were particularly funny today.

"Why would you do that?" She asked, swaying with each word.

"Because he was gonna hurt Mariana." Tristan replied, again with a cool visage.

"You do know what this means don't you son?" His mother asked, attempting to look stern in her intoxicated state.

"No, what mother?" He asked, finally allowing a smirk to grace his handsome features.

"Military school, young man. Military school." She smiled. She'd always liked the idea of Tristan going away. There would be a substantial amount more liquor in the house if he didn't drink as much of it. However unlikely that was in real life, it's the way that Mrs. DuGrey saw it.

"Well then, I best go say good bye to some of my friend's then eh?" Tristan stood up, crossed his room, passed his mother, and left the house. He walked down the pathway or stone steps back to the garage where he got into his silver Porsche and drove off. He was supposed to be at Romeo and Juliet, but he wasn't. Rory wouldn't like it, but she didn't like him anyways, isn't that what she said?

:-)

He arrived at the school ten minutes after he left his house. He'd smoked almost an entire pack of cigarettes and was completely restless as he pulled into a parking space in the lot at Chilton. 'It's now or never,' he thought and stepped out of his car.

Rory saw him. He was walking down the hallway with his hands in his pocket and looking straight at her. She began walking towards him, and they met next to a bank of lockers. "Where were you?" She asked hurriedly. They had about fifteen minutes before they had to be on stage and he was standing there in his normal clothes.

"Just listen quick, okay?" He said putting his hands on her shoulders and pulling a bit farther away from the opening. "I sent my sister to your house, okay? Just, take care of her."

"Tristan, what? Why?" Rory was thoroughly confused.

"Just, please do this for me Mary. My sister is gonna be in real trouble, and my parents are shipping me off to military school. They don't know that she's gone, but they really won't care either. Can you please, please take care of her?" Tristan's eyes were moist and his compassion was radiating off of him.

"Yeah, okay." Rory couldn't help but see that compassion in his eyes and she melted just like she always did around him.

"Alright, thank you Rory. I gotta go though; my dad's looking for me. I can tell." He turned to leave and Rory saw the side of his face that had been hit earlier that day.

"What happened to your face?" Rory questioned, her hand reaching to touch his bruised cheek.

"It's nothing." He said quickly grabbing her hand and not letting go. Tristan and Rory looked into each other's eyes "I won't be back for awhile." Tristan said.

"I figured when you said military school." Rory said looking despondent. "I... I didn't mean it when I said that it meant nothing. I didn't mean it when I said that I hated you. I don't know what I'll do without you." Rory confessed, looking at the ground.

Tristan put a hand under her chin and brought her face up to look him in the eye "I know." With that he kissed her gently, the first truly gentle kiss he'd ever given. It lasted all of three seconds but it was well worth it. "I'll write to you." Tristan began to turn around but stopped and turned around, "Thanks for taking care of my sister, Mary." He smiled a genuine smile and left the building.

Paris came running up behind Rory "Was that Tristan?" she asked loudly.

'Way to ruin the moment,' Rory thought, and turned to look at Paris. "Yeah, he's in some trouble. He's getting thrown into military school. What're we going to do?"

"Well, let's just say that you better start sucking down some Altoids."

:-)

Mariana was just reached the Star's Hollow sign when the clock struck ten. 'Great,' she thought, 'I'm here all alone, and no one's going to be around at ten o'clock.' If Mariana, or as her license said, Jenn had been on the verge of tears for the past hour as she attempted to find Stars Hollow in the dead of night, she didn't know what this was.

She drove along and looked for lights on, and came across a guy smoking a cigarette. It reminded her of Tristan so she stopped the car and got out. She walked over to the guy who looked about 17. He had scruffy black hair and brown eyes. He obviously didn't like her there by the way he looked at her. She recognized him from somewhere, but she couldn't place it. "Do you know Rory Gilmore?" She asked.

"Who wants to know?" Jess responded.

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