Farewell to Misgivings

by wajag

Summary: Continuation of Farewell to Odds and Ends. Benjamin Adams tries a few new things, has his fingerprint show up on an old Roman Gladius, helps out a friend, and sets up roots.

Title: Farewell to Misgivings

Author: wajag

Email:

Rating: general

Char.: M, D, J, ofc

Summary: Continuation of Farewell to Odds and Ends. Benjamin Adams tries a few new things, has his fingerprint show up on an old Roman Gladius, helps out a friend, and sets up roots.

At SeaTac airport – Washington State

The reporters shouted over each other to get Benjamin Adam's attention and the questions were the nearly the same as the reporters at the Police station on the east coast had asked. Methos gave them the same responses before waving at the reporters as he turned to go. The Watchers and Mac quickly closed in around him and in a few moments they were at the cars that Mac and his group had arrived in. The convoy of vehicles quickly caught the freeway and headed back to Seacouver.

"Those reporters seem pretty sure that there was something more between you and Miss Thompson." Mac said with a leading statement.

Methos glanced over at Mac, amused that the Highlander was as gossipy as a girl sometimes. "You saw the pictures on the internet of her kissing me?"

Mac nodded, his smile reflecting his amusement. "Looked pretty involved to me."

"Staged. The pictures were taken by her Secret Service agents under instructions from her father." Methos said dryly. "The only one unaware that it wasn't real was me."

"I'm sorry." Mac said quietly. He had hoped for some gossip about Methos that was lighthearted and could give him fodder for teasing for many years.

"The night before the kidnapping attempt, Bev and her agents were stranded by a storm and asked to stay in our hotel suite. She slept in the bed with me, door open and the watchers and her agents rotated guard duty all night long. I mistakenly believed that I'd made my point and they wouldn't try anything. One of the Agents took pictures of us sleeping together. If I see any of them again, I'm going in the opposite direction."

Mac's face reflected his anger at the slimy political tricks that had been used against his friend.

"When I leave Seacouver, I'm going to lay low for a few years."

Mac nodded, very sad that Methos couldn't seem to get a break. It had been one thing after another for the past couple of decades.

"You take the rough with the smooth, Mac." Methos said gently. "When I met you, it was a tough couple of decades for you."

Mac was reminded of the decades that Methos was referring to. So many of Mac's dear friends and loved ones died during that time frame; Darius, Tessa Noel, Richie Ryan, Fitzcairn, Sean Burns, Koltek, Jakob and Irena. Mac had discovered the Watchers and taken a dark quickening. He'd nearly lost his sanity but Methos had shown up more than once and helped Mac get his life back together again. Mac looked over at Methos who had turned to look out the window as they traveled down the freeway. "If there's anything I can do…" Mac didn't finish because any offer seemed inadequate when measured against the debt he felt he owed to the oldest Immortal.

Methos reached over with a reassuring pat to Mac's knee. "I've got your number."

Methos stayed with Mac as he spent the next few months setting up the foundations of his new life. Methos included Mac and Joe in the planning although he refused to accept their offers to relocate with him saying that he wanted to get out of the attentions of the media.

For his new life, Methos had researched areas with coastline access where he could find a large piece of property near a community that would work with him. He'd used this community involvement process dozens of times in Greece and other parts of the world. When the community accepted him as one of them, the community acted as a first level of protection. The community watched for suspicious strangers and let him know if anyone was asking or looking for him. He could have returned to one of the other communities that he had set up in his many years of world travel, but he didn't want to make the Watchers aware of these places because they are his bolt holes for safety. Methos hadn't planned on disappearing from his friends and the Watchers, thus, he had decided to set up a new place that they would believe was his only 'home'.

Based on his research and meeting his other requirements, Methos approached an Indian Tribe in the North West area, only a few hours from Mac and Joe's home in Seacouver. The coastline that Methos was interested in was tribal land. His approach to the Tribal leaders was to lease the land for 100 years. A lease agreement gave the Tribe a large amount of money as a down payment, and a steady income, and they would still own the land. Methos was prepared with an architectural rendition of the house he wanted to build. It was very 'Green' with solar panels, processes for water reclamation, a heating system that was based off of heating water under floor tiles and sending this water through the reclamation process. He also planned a small stable and boat dock along with a gravel access road to aid getting power to the site.

As part of his presentation to the Tribal leaders, Methos introduced himself as 'Benjamin Adams, the Immortal' to the Tribal leaders and stated that he had gotten too much attention with the press and wanted to find a quiet place out of the public eye. He could buy a large piece of land but he preferred to be a part of something; a member of the community rather than just being a recluse. As part of his offer to lease Tribal land, he offered to build a store for the tribe and initially stock it with merchandise. He proposed that the store be operated by members of the tribe hired to work it, and he would hire trainers to get these employees started. After a year of training and learning operations, the store would have the potential to be self sustaining. If the store generated a profit, the Tribe could use the money to enlarge the store or invest in other businesses for the Tribe or for loans for tribal members to start their own businesses.

With his offer presented, Methos said that the tribe was under no pressure to accept his offer if they felt uncomfortable with any of the aspects. He had researched several places that would meet his needs for privacy. A Tribe on the Oregon Coast had property and needs that would be his second choice if the tribe declined his offer. He gave the tribe a couple of weeks to think about his offer with a final assurance that he had no illegal intentions, only a desire to find a place to call home.

After a week of deliberations, consulting a lawyer and financial advisor, the Tribe accepted his offer and they signed a lease contract good for 100 years.

With the contract signed, Methos had his construction company survey the site and finish the plans for the house. To keep the tribe involved in the process and keep their confidence, Methos showed the final plans to the tribal elders. With the approval of the elders, Methos authorized the builders to begin work using many of the tribe as the construction crew. The builder Methos had selected was noted for their 'Green' methods and minimal trees and ground are disturbed during the building process. It took three months for the house to be completed.

When finished, it was a beautiful house with three levels and a beautiful view of the cove that was now Methos' private cove. The ground level floor of the house contained a workout room, indoor swimming pool, large garage for several vehicles, and a wet room for bad weather that had stairs that lead up to the next level. The second floor contained a common room with entertainment center, gourmet kitchen, dining area, a couple of guest rooms, and a large apartment for Albert who would be the only Watcher staying with Methos. The upper floor contained a private apartment for Methos which included a kitchen in case he didn't want company. In Methos' apartment was a vault, safe room, and security center that operated the security systems for the house and surrounding areas.

Methos and Albert moved in after the house was furnished. After he was settled, Methos spent time with the consultants and the recently hired employees of the tribal store. They set up a process of ordering supplies and having the supplies brought in on the weekly ferry that serviced the area. This part of the process had been what prevented the Tribe from setting up their own store when they'd considered it in previous years. The owner of the ferry service had been reluctant to commit to this until they were assured of being paid for the supplies. By having the supplies paid in advance and delivered, the supply chain was assured.

In his second year there, Methos initiated the process to get a Post Office set up on Main Street, a block from the Tribal Store. Also during the second year, the school had an electrical fire and was gutted. Methos worked with the Tribal Elders to rebuild the school and add a Gym that was large enough to hold the Tribal meetings. The Gym would also work as a community center for special events and other community events.

His third year there he helped the Tribe set up a medical clinic. The Tribe was now financially stable and able to hire a doctor, several nurses, and support staff. A tribal scholarship sent two of the young tribal members to medical school to be future employees of the clinic. Methos got his doctor's license for practicing in the US and acted as a substitute Doctor when the primary doctor was ill or swamped with patients.

Three years later:

Methos cantered his horse along the trail to town he'd created over the years. He'd purchased this gelding along with another gelding when he'd settled into the house. He'd trained the three year olds himself and now they were fully trained as riding mounts. He'd chosen them for their disposition and his training had settled them even more.

The day was overcast with a promise of rain so Methos wore a long oilskin coat and an outback hat. Under the coat he wore a thick sweater and leather pants. Approaching town, he slowed the horse to a walk to let it catch its breath and cool down. He exited the trail head and approached the post office. Knowing that he rode his horses more often than he drove his vehicles, the Tribe had set up hitching posts in a parking spot of the buildings on Main Street to accommodate this. Soon there were several tribal members using horses as transportation.

Methos stopped the horse and dismounted in front of the post office. He secured the horse before he loosened the saddle girth and pulled an oilskin saddle cover out of his saddle bag. He settled it on the saddle before walking around the horse and pulling a Postal Service shipping packet out of the other side of the saddle bag. He gave the horse a pat and a command before he walked up the stairs and into the post office.

Closing the door behind him, Methos spotted three grandmotherly looking tourists perusing the postcard selection offered by the post office. They looked up as he entered. He nodded to them as he flipped his hat off his head to his back to dangle by the hat strings.

Rose, the post office clerk looked up from the postal forms she was stocking when she heard the door's bell ring. "Dr. Adams! I haven't seen you in a couple of weeks."

Methos smiled at the heavyset woman that ran the post office. He lifted the packet that he held in his hand and patted it as he set it on the counter. "I've been finishing up the latest book."

Rose slid the packet closer and touched it reverently, "Is this your next best seller?"

Methos chuckled, "Not likely; this one is close to a thousand pages comparing and contrasting Medicine from the 1800s to current. That's a subject only of interest to a few medical colleges; well below the numbers needed to hit the best seller list."

"You could be surprised; anything that you guys say is news." Rose said sagely, referring to Ben's Immortal nature.

"That would be a pleasant surprise since the proceeds are going towards the UNICEF medical supply fund." Methos said softly.

Rose stroked the packet again, "Then I hope the book sales exceed your wildest imagination." She smiled at the Immortal before getting back to business. "Do you want this to go out registered and insured like the others?"

Methos nodded, "Better make it second day, my publisher is taking a vacation to the Bahamas next week."

"Sounds rough." Rose chuckled as she prepared the packet per his instructions. When she slid the paperwork over the counter for the Immortal to sign she remembered a message.

"Before I forget, Brad asked me to pass on that he was looking for you, if I saw you. It was something to do with the school paper."

Methos nodded as he pocketed the copies of the postal papers. "I'm headed for the café for breakfast before taking a shift at the clinic. If he pops in, can you let him know?"

Rose nodded, and then she blushed. "Where has your side kick been? He hasn't been in town for weeks either."

"Albert is working on a commission job. He's trying to get it finished before the next supply ferry comes in at the end of the week."

"He does beautiful work. My sister wants me to ask him if he can build another jewelry box like mine."

"I think no one was more surprised than Albert when he discovered he had a talent for woodworking. And it all started with a fireplace mantle." Methos said as if amazed. "I'll ask him to give you a phone call when he has a chance."

"Thanks Doc." Rose said as Methos headed out of the post office.

The three tourist women had been eaves dropping on the conversation. They whispered to each other before the bravest of the three took her post card selections to the counter and boldly asked her question.

"Was that young man a homosexual? I wouldn't think that would be openly discussed in a small town like this."

Rose looked at the woman. "Well, I don't know if Dr. Adams is homosexual or not, people around here judge the man by his actions and not what he does in his spare time. The Doctor has been good for this town, starting up the store and medical clinic; he even did the paperwork to get us licensed for this post office. You may have heard of him, He's an Immortal: Dr. Benjamin Adams?" Rose said blandly, intentionally bragging about their resident Immortal.

It took the women a few moments to recognize the name. "That was Adams, the Immortal?" the first woman asked and looked at her friends who had moved closer to the counter to listen.

"One of the first four found. He was tortured for years despite being a doctor. He has several degrees and speaks 20 or 30 languages. He knows all of the famous Immortals, and I think he even dated the President's daughter for a while. He's lived here about six years now. Mostly he writes books and helps out doing community stuff. He's been on the best seller list several times now."

"That is pretty famous." The women agreed, quickly and silently communicating to each other that they were going to go down to the café for a cup of coffee and to observe the Immortal closer.

Rather than getting back on his horse after leaving the Post Office, Methos untied the reins and led it down the street to the café. At the café, he tied his horse to the hitching rail there and made sure it was comfortable before he went inside.

He greeted the waitress and headed towards his favorite booth at the rear of the café. It gave him an unobstructed view of the café and had a window that looked out over the street and the hitching post he'd tied his horse at. Because it was his favorite booth most of the towns people didn't sit there as a sign of respect. Methos held unofficial court there and was often joined by townspeople who wanted to discuss things with him.

This morning was one of those times. Apparently the chief had spotted Methos' horse at the post office and walked down. The chief walked up to the booth and Methos asked him to join him. The chief waited until the waitress had taken Methos' order before he stated his reason for dropping by.

The chief was a very direct man, a trait appreciated by Methos. With a brief good morning the chief got right to the point. "Kent's mother fell and sprained her ankle so he's going to be delayed another week, he wants to get her settled at his sister's home before he heads back."

Kent was the intern at the medical clinic where Methos donated his time. With Kent being out another week, this would strain the busy clinic staff. Methos nodded, "I'll come in and help out in the afternoons until he gets back."

"The clinic was hoping that you could help out and appreciate your time, it won't be an imposition on you?" The chief didn't want to be inadvertently taking advantage of the immortal who donated his time at the clinic rather than charging for his professional services.

"I like to keep my skills sharp. I'll let them know if something comes up and I need to be elsewhere." The Immortal responded with a smile, to show that he wasn't bothered by the request for help.

The three tourist women whom Methos had seen in the Post Office came into the café and scanned the tables for him before choosing a booth not far from his position. Their not so subtle attempt at covert watching was a give away.

He invited the Chief to linger and have a cup of coffee while Methos ate his breakfast.

The young man that Rose at the Post Office had mentioned found Methos at the café shortly after Methos finished his breakfast and the Chief had returned to his office. Brad hurried into the café and waved some paper in his hand as he approached Methos' table. He slid into the bench across from Methos and laid the papers out on the table.

"Our first edition, I wanted you to have the first copy." Brad said excitedly.

Methos high-fived Brad before picking up the papers to look at them. "Pass on my congratulations to the staff." Methos said as he scanned the paper.

"I will. The printing will be done in a couple of hours and we've arranged to distribute copies to all of the shops in town and down at the Ferry terminal. We've already got some good ideas for the next issue." Brad said enthusiastically. "We can't thank you enough for donating the computers and software."

"Just don't mention this to MacLeod next time he visits; he's a purist and thinks it isn't art unless it was created using the old typeset and press like he used in the 1800's." Methos said with artificial irritation. He knew Brad idolized Mac and looked forward to the Highlander's visits. It had been an overheard conversation between Mac and Brad that had sparked the idea of donating equipment for a school newspaper.

Brad laughed and slid out of the booth. "I'll try to keep that on the down-low Dr. Adams." With a wave, Brad left the café.

A quick look at the café's clock told Methos that he needed to get moving so that he could get his horse settled before his shift at the clinic started. He pulled out some money for a tip and put it on the table. He pulled on his coat and gathered up his hat and headed for the cash register. He nodded at the three tourist women as he passed them. He handed the money for his breakfast to the waitress who had spotted him rising.

"Thanks for stopping by Doc, see you in a few days?" She said, blushing when he smiled at her.

"I'll be covering for Kent for another week."

The three tourists watched Dr. Benjamin Adams walk out of the café' and lead his horse down the street. They whispered excitedly among themselves about how this had turned into the best vacation ever; they'd seen the famous Immortal up close and personal and they intended to keep this their little secret! If they didn't, the place would be overrun with tourists and they planned to keep this place all to themselves.

When he had decided to set up house on the peninsula, Methos and the Tribunal had discussed what to do with the Watchers that were assigned to him. Rather than have four bodyguards, or to draw unwanted attention to Methos' home, Albert would be the only watcher assigned to him full time. The other three Watchers would be on call if Methos traveled. Albert checked in with the Watchers daily and the house and land surrounding it had the latest in security systems.

For non personal correspondence, Methos used the Watchers as the funnel. The Watchers had given him a private executive secretary and a few administrative assistants with the highest security clearance to manage the outside world's reaching out to Dr. Benjamin Adams. It was through this private staff that a Hollywood investment group expressed interest in making a movie of what had happened to the four Immortals. Since the other three Immortals were still under a veil of secrecy within the Watchers and the Public didn't know where they were, the investment group had gone to the 'public' immortal with their requests.

Methos had been doubtful that the presented script, called The Four, would be anything other than a ploy to cash in on the popularity of immortals. But after reading the script the quality of the writing and the tone of the story changed his mind. The writer had only had the Watcher chronicles and the news reports to use as a basis for the biography but had captured very powerful emotions in a positive way. The script started with a quick introduction to the four Immortals; Allen as a merchant with a family, Sam as an average former jock of his high school, Rocky as a troubled gang member and Ben as a doctor. It briefly showed how each of them had become Immortal and the struggles with accepting immortality. The script was adamant about the fact the four immortals didn't have many Quickenings accredited to them; that other than Sam, the Quickenings were self-defense rather than them being players in the game. Sam's head hunting was fortunately a phase he'd gone through which had ended at his second attempt in Las Vegas.

The script portrayed the Quickenings as a kind of rape of mind and body which injures the soul to the point; in Doc's case, where he seeks out MacLeod as an anchor.

The story quickly moved on to Rocky's accidental discovery, Allen's abduction in the night, and Sam and Doc being captured, the interrogations, and the beginning of the medical experimentations. The script dealt with the drama as if the immortals had more interaction while they were prisoners (which they hadn't) and before they shut down and went into comas as they escaped from the horrors of the torture. Doc was the last to succumb after a thwarted escape attempt. There was a quick scene of the successful rescue after ten years had passed, and the story line picked back up with Doc reviving, healing and later, sitting at the bedside of the others and coaching them back into society after they revived. The script wrapped up with Doc ending up in Seacouver, meeting MacLeod and Joe and remembering who he was. On the whole, the script was very well written and if the cast and direction were as well done, the story would be impressive.

After much thought and conversations with those affected, primarily Allen, Sam, Rocky, Mac, and Joe; the Immortals agreed to endorse the project. The investors are willing to give Ben creative input and executive veto in order to get his endorsement and advisory capacity. The four signed the contract and a director and cast were selected.

The actors that would be portraying the four immortals would spend a week with their respective sources so that they could get a grasp of their characters.

The director closed the door of the conference room and sat at the head of the table. He looked around the room, taking a few seconds to look intently at each of the actors that he'd picked for this movie. He spoke when he had their undivided attention.

"The Immortals that you will be portraying have agreed to let you shadow them for a week. I don't need to tell you that this is a very special honor. Three of these guys have only done one press conference and that was many years ago. They've intentionally remained out of the public eye; you'll need to be very aware of this. Also keep in mind that there may be some defensive walls you hit when you try and draw them out about what happened and how they felt; they were tortured for ten years and it will bring back painful memories. If you hit a wall, back up and be their buddy again until they relax. Everything you learn will help this movie be a success."

The actors nodded; their expressions serious but excited. They were going to get the once in a lifetime chance to be a part of the world of Immortals!

The four actors were introduced to their immortals at the beach house where Allen and his students had lived for years. It was neutral territory and gave them a safe spot to talk until the immortals were comfortable. They'd be staying here for several days with the option of remaining here for the week. If the immortal felt comfortable, he could introduce the actor to his private life, friends and family. Only Ben lived out of the area, the others all lived and worked nearby.

Actor David Bowman and Rocky sat on the beach and sipped their beers. "This is so weird!" Rocky said with a chuckle. "I never in a million years would have thought that anyone would ever make a movie about me."

David smiled, seeing that Rocky meant that and wasn't posturing. "You don't feel like an Immortal yet?" He guessed.

Rocky shook his head, "No, I feel like just a guy. Ben and Allen have lived other lifetimes and seen their loved ones grow old and die. They've seen the world change drastically. Sam and I are still in our natural lifetimes. Our families are still here. The ten years of torture were the stuff of nightmares, but that seems like something that happened to someone else now."

"Hard to imagine." David said gently.

Rocky knew that the actor wasn't teasing or mocking him. "I was just a punk gang-banger who got shot by a rival gang. I woke up in the morgue, stole some scrubs and went into hiding. I didn't know what had happened to me until Allen found me and explained it." Rocky snorted.

"I didn't believe him at first, I mean…here's this rich white guy telling me some weird story about living forever." Rocky shook his head in amazement.

"I was a smart-ass with a piss-poor attitude and I have no idea how Allen put up with me. Then one day it hit me: I needed him more than he needed me and my bull shit. I was eating better than I had ever in my life, safe and living in a nice place, wearing clothes that I hadn't stolen and being treated like an adult, and I was being a shit. Allen never made a big deal about my getting my head straight, he continued to treat me the way he always had."

Rocky took a deep drink of his beer. "I still feel guilty that it was me that got the others taken. I caved after only a little bit of torture. I remember being tied in a chair, drugs making everything blurry and bright, and shooting off my mouth about Allen and Sam. If I'd known more immortals I would have ratted them out too."

"There wasn't anything you could have done to stop it." David said gently, needing to ease the pain he heard in Rocky's voice.

Rocky looked over at David and nodded. "My head knows that, but my heart doesn't. Ben said the same thing; even growing up in a gang I didn't have a frame of reference for the evil that those men did. The others would have talked after the same treatment, they did talk I was told. It was a good thing that we just didn't know any more immortals. Well, except for Ben, he knows everyone."

"He didn't talk?" David asked in surprise, he realized after it slipped out that he had no business asking about Ben.

Rocky smiled, "He said he created a fantasy in his mind and stuck to it. He claimed his teacher had died and he didn't know any other immortals. Because what he said matched what the rest of us were saying, they didn't continue to press him." Rocky thought to himself that being thousands of years old would have made anyone convincing!

They sat there for hours, Rocky looking at the ocean as he described some of the experiments, his constant pain and fear and the continuing guilt he felt.

Seeing that Rocky was very upset, David switched the conversation to Rocky's feelings when he'd woken from his coma after the pro-immortal group had freed the immortals.

"I was the last one to wake up. Allen and Sam had come to this house to get comfortable with being around people again. Ben stayed with me like he had the others. I was so afraid of the pro-immortal group; I didn't trust anyone but Ben. That's weird too; I'd never met him before. We'd been kept in separate cells while we were at the lab and awake, not like in the script. I knew there were other immortals around me, but I never saw them. Jim said we were all in the same room when they snuck us out." Rocky shook his head as he thought about the missing years in his life, no - better to not remember them!

"When I'd calmed down a little, Allen and Sam came and got me. We lived here and made infrequent excursions into town. It was so terrifying to be around people I didn't know. When it seemed like I couldn't take it anymore and would have to go back into hiding, Ben and Duncan came to visit. That helped. Ben's so calming and real, I was finally able to shake my anger and start to put things into perspective again. Pretty soon I was ready to get a job and go to college, I met Chloe and Bamm!"

David smiled at the happy look on Rocky's face. "Love at first sight."

Rocky nodded. "I told her what I was after we'd been dating a year; she was so great about it. I knew that I wanted to have her in my life for as long as I could and asked her to marry me. I told her family what I was right before the wedding. I've only told a couple of other people, it's so weird to have someone know me like that."

"Even with the public knowing about Immortals?" David asked in surprise.

"Yeah, people treat you differently if they know. Well, that's what the others say. I've only told people that I cared about and that care about me and they treat me like normal. I imagine Ben and Duncan have more problems with that because they're so well known."

They finished their beers and joined the group back at the house. In a couple of days, the group split up and the actor's followed their immortals home to see that side of the long-lived men.

Methos waved as Brandon moved into the departures security line at the airport. It had been a long week of allowing the actor to shadow him. Methos was accustomed to Watchers shadowing him but the Watchers had a vow of secrecy and the actor only had a contract stipulation that he couldn't disclose private information. Methos and the Watchers had checked the actors and crew for the movie out. The group checked out and seemed earnest about capturing the immortals rather than sensationalizing them.

Methos had notified the Tribal elders ahead of time so the town had expected the stranger.

Brandon had asked insightful questions about why Ben Adams would live way out in the woods when it was obvious he had money and fame. Why he'd work pro bono at a clinic and donate to charities anonymously. Why he'd felt he had to leave St Bartholomew's college and the UN translator job when he'd been exposed as an Immortal. They talked about the Ben Adams Fan Club and the charity work the group had done.

After he'd boarded the plane a week after he'd arrived, Brandon tossed his carry-on bag into the overhead storage and settled into his first class seat, compliments of Ben. Ben had dragged him around on horseback all week instead of using one of the several vehicles that he had garaged at his beautiful waterfront home. Brandon understood why Ben used the horses, it was relaxing, enjoyable, and told the Tribe that he cared about the land and nature. As if the house didn't say that in bold letters, Brandon thought! The house was beautiful and totally earth friendly.

Ben had upgraded the plane ticket and teased that Brandon would be ready for leather that wasn't a saddle and ample leg room comfort after following Ben around for a week. Brandon accepted a glass of wine from the flight attendant and stretched out his legs, agreeing that Ben had been right!

The week had been low key, but Brandon had learned a lot about the Immortal that the other three respected. Ben exuded an air of calmness that had helped the other three to accept what had happened as an exception to learn from but to move on from as well. Just a dark spot in an otherwise normal life for them. Ben's bedside manner and compassionate nature had brought out the best in the others. Ben included Mortals in his sphere of influence as well. The work he'd done in the village showed that it was a part of Ben's nature. He led by example and showed others that he believed what he said by his actions.

Brandon was sure that he could capture Ben's 'character' accurately, but he had a feeling that there was more to Ben than he'd been shown. Once or twice there had been a look in Ben's eyes that made him look like something so much more than just a man. Ben was several hundred years old so perhaps it was the centuries that put that 'something' into Ben's eyes. It just seemed like so much more than that though. It didn't scare Brandon or make him suspicious rather, it made Brandon feel a sort of awe, as if he was in the presence of greatness. Brandon had felt a similar feeling when he'd been on a movie in Egypt and had taken a tour to the pyramids. He'd looked up as he touched the stones of the Great Pyramids and felt the history of the place.

Those brief glimpses had seemed so opposite from a guy that cleaned stalls and brushed horses before riding several miles to clean cuts and scrapes for the villagers. The man that ate breakfast in a small café while casually discussing the future growth of the village with drop by visitors seemed so different from the man who had several best-selling books, high level degrees, and millions of dollars to his name. The man who gave college advice to the village teenagers didn't seem like the kind of guy who had a fan club that collected thousands of dollars for charity.

The famous Duncan MacLeod had treated Ben differently too. On their way from the beach house to Ben's house on the peninsula, they'd spent several hours visiting Duncan and Joe Dawson. Brandon could tell that there was a real friendship between the men. Brandon had caught Duncan and Joe looking at Ben and giving each other silent looks; a silent conversation. Brandon interpreted the subtext to be the Immortal and the Watcher were checking with each other to see if they thought Ben was doing okay, if he felt pressured to have Brandon shadowing him. They seemed to agree that Ben was fine with it.

The conversation had been entertaining and teasing, showing Brandon that these men knew each other well enough to tease. Brandon remembered that the follow-up interview that Jim the reporter had done indicated that Ben had gone to Seacouver to try and get his memory back and that these men had been the ones he'd turned to. Joe Dawson had been the friend of these two Immortals in secret, long before Immortals went public and the Watchers allowed Watchers to befriend Immortals. Although Albert, Ben's assigned Watcher seemed a part of the group, the friendship between Joe, Duncan, and Ben seemed something deeper.

Brandon wanted to capture the essence of Ben's compassion in the face of long lonely years, the unforgivable tortures, loss of memory and self, and his several attempts to create a normal life before being exposed again. Ben's quiet influence extended to both the Mortal and Immortal worlds and reinforced that Immortals added value to the communities they lived in and the world at large.

When the crew began filming, Methos was on set to act as the immortal consultant. The film wrapped after several months and went into editing. The release was planned a few months before the awards for the Emmys and Oscars were nominated.

The public still loved anything involving immortals and the movie release was a huge success and exceeded the millions that were anticipated. The movie was well received by the critics as well. No one was surprised when the movie was nominated for many awards for the Emmys and the Oscars, Best Drama, Best screenplay, Best actor, Best supporting actor, Best directing, etc.

When the movie had come out, Ben, Allen, Sam, and Rocky had planned see it together before seeing it with their loved ones. They met on a weekend and discretely attended a matinee showing of the movie. They spent the rest of the weekend at the beach house talking about the movie and what they thought it meant to Immortals. Having gotten through the emotions of reliving this time of their lives, the Immortals returned to their homes and prepared to share the movie with the people in their lives.

Allen nervously opened the door for Rene. He'd been dating her for over a year and found that she brought warmth and light back into his life. He'd been happy with his antique store's success and with his adopted family of Immortal students, but Rene had made him realized that he could do more for himself other than survive and be there for the others. Rene owned the small café a block from his antique store. Over the years they'd spoken often but it was when Rene asked him out to a community picnic that he realized that he'd been oblivious to her flirtations and hints.

He smiled at his remembered blindness. Rene had made the first steps and he'd been grateful; making sure that he rewarded her for her bravery in taking those first steps. After years of knowing her as a friend and the past year as a girlfriend, he was ready to see if she could be more. His first steps would be to take her to the movie that would allow him to approach the subject of his immortality.

Her reaction to the film would give him an indication of her feelings towards Immortals; something they'd never discussed.

Rene held his hand tightly during the movie, her facial expressions and body language showing her upset emotions as the 'Four' were caught and tortured. She was crying for joy when the pro-immortal group rescued them. She was grinning like a proud grandparent when the last of them awoke and healed enough to return to their lives.

They remained sitting after the lights came back up. Rene wiped her eyes and blew her nose and caught Allen looking at her. She laughed softly at herself. "You must think me a silly girl to react to a movie like that. I even knew that it was a happy ending, I just got so caught up in it."

Allen stood and offered her his hand to get up. "I don't think you are silly at all." He smiled. When they reached the main aisle he put an arm around her and tucked her in close to his side. "The movie was very well done. It was pretty realistic without overdoing the torture scenes."

"What they showed and implied was bad enough! I could never understand how someone could do that to another human being." Rene said emotionally, shaking her head in confusion.

"They didn't see us as human." Allen said carefully. Hoping that Rene would catch his careful wording.

"Extra-ordinary humans I'd say. The Watchers have shared the chronicles and there isn't any way that any of the Four could have remotely been a threat to society."

"No threat, Immortals have been trying to blend in rather than stand out." Allen said and opened the door to Rene's cafe where they were going to have a light dinner and coffee after the movie.

They were greeted by the two women that were working the floor and counter. They gave their order and sat in a cozy booth near the front window.

Rene took his hand in hers. "Thank you for the movie, I was afraid to go by myself knowing that I'd be a bigger cry baby than I was."

Allen chuckled. "There isn't anything wrong with having compassion for others."

"You seem to know a lot about Immortals, is this a favorite subject of yours?" Rene asked, they'd never discussed politics, religion, or Immortals in all their prior conversations.

Allen nodded. "Funny you should mention that. I am a bit of an expert." Allen paused, pondering how he should word it.

"How so? Do you know an Immortal or a Watcher?"

Relieved, Allen nodded. "I know several Immortals in fact, I am one."

Rene cocked her head and looked at Allen closely, trying to determine if he were teasing her.

Allen pulled out his cell phone and scrolled down his contacts list. He stopped at Duncan MacLeod's name which showed Duncan's cell, home, and office numbers. He rotated the phone so Rene could see it.

"Duncan spent some time with me and my students several years ago. Rocky was having trouble adjusting and we had questions."

Rene's eyes widened. Allen rotated the phone back and scrolled to Joe Dawson's numbers. He moved the phone back so she could see it.

"Joe gave us his contact info so that if we ever needed help, he could call in the Watchers, they have offices everywhere."

"You're an Immortal?" Rene asked and straightened her posture.

Allen was worried that this indicated that Rene wasn't as liberal minded as he had thought she was.

"What ever do you see in me?" She asked, worried that Allen was something too special for a middle aged woman with two kids and four grandkids that operated a silly little café.

"Excuse me?" Allen asked, not following her line of thought.

"You're an Immortal!" Rene said, her voice breaking.

Allen nodded. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you right off, I was afraid."

"Afraid, why? Of what?" she asked. Immortals could live forever, heal from any injury. What could scare one of them?

"Of what you'd do. I'm several hundreds of years old but I've been hiding my Immortality. Then the government found Rocky, and then me, Sam and Ben. We couldn't even be around people for a couple of years. I've been living here and learning to trust people again."

Rene suddenly clued in to what Allen had said. Having just seen the movie of the Four, the names were fresh in her mind. The Immortals in the film had glossed over the last names and careers of the Four, but the first names had been real.

"You know Duncan MacLeod and Joe Dawson." She said carefully, wanting to be sure of the facts.

Allen nodded.

"You know Rocky, Sam, and Ben." Again Allen nodded. "You are the Four, I mean the "real" Four."

At Allen's confirmation Rene squeezed his hand. That explained why Allen had been so closed off and private. She'd thought he was just shy or uninterested. She had sought to draw him out and he'd responded. He rarely talked about his private life, other than to say that he was a widower with no living children. She hadn't wanted to intrude in his old grief.

"So what does an Immortal see in me?" She asked again, afraid that he didn't care about her the way she cared about him. He was so much more worldly than she, so much older!

Allen stroked her hand, which he still held gently. "Compassion, warmth, a zest for life that reminded me what it could be like. Someone who took the time to talk to a man who was just floating along and pretending to be alive. Rene, I care deeply for you and I wanted to tell you what I was so that we could be more."

Rene was surprised by his words and evident emotions. He really cared for her!

"You see those things in me?"

Allen nodded, "and so much more. Will you be my sweetheart? May I court you?" Allen blushed. He hadn't said words like that in hundreds of years!

Rene laughed and moved around the table to sit right beside him. "Just try and keep me away." She whispered before she kissed him.

Sam and his business partner Wes sipped at their beers and waited for their steaks to arrive. Sam had taken Wes to see the Four and they'd stopped at this Tavern on their way back to the shop where Wes' car was parked. Wes had known that Sam was an immortal for several years. Sam wanted Wes fully aware of who he was in business with. The Watchers claimed that the headhunting activity had all but stopped, but Sam didn't want Wes in danger in case another Immortal came looking for him.

When told, Wes had narrowed his eyes at Sam and been silent for a few moments. Then he'd stated clearly that Sam still had to do his half of the clean up even if he lived for fricken ever. Sam had laughed and agreed and that had been that. They'd not discussed it again until Wes had brought up the movie. When Sam had confirmed that he was that 'Sam' Wes had casually said they should see it together. While watching the movie, Sam had realized that Wes wanted him to see the movie so that Sam could face those years again and know that those atrocities were behind him. A punch in the arm from Wes along with a, "Way to go guy!" pretty much took care of the emotional crap.

Sam smiled at Wes who tipped his beer bottle into Sam's. It was going to be fine.

Rocky and Chloe walked hand-in-hand from the theater to the parking lot where their car was parked. It had been hard for Rocky to re-live those years again. He remembered the fear he'd felt at the hands of the government, and his shame at being the one that gave them Allen, Sam, and Ben. He was able to push those negative feelings away when he remembered the time and attention that Ben and the others had given him to let him release his anger and fear.

Rocky glanced over at Chloe who was carefully sneaking glances at him. When he caught her looking and smiled, she moved closer.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her worry showing.

Rocky nodded. "It was hard to re-live that, but it was the past. I have so much now it's hard to believe it was only a few years ago. I would never have met you or the others if it hadn't happened."

Chloe just snuggled closer.

At St. Bartholomew's Medical College, the psychology professor flipped the lights on in the room and moved to the head of the class. "Class, your thoughts?"

Several hands went up in the air and as the professor pointed to them, they shared their thoughts on the movie that the college had gotten special permission to show in the college theater.

The Psychology departments had been very interested in analyzing this movie as it was endorsed by the original Four Immortals which gave it a level of credibility. What the four immortals had gone through was an incredible study in perseverance, psychological trauma of the worse kind, recovery, adaptability, and transition.

The class discussion was dynamic. The immortals had shut down higher functions when being tortured. That lead to the discussions of why a sane person might do that to preserve their sanity. The fear of people and being around the public was discussed along with probable counseling they might have been given. The class speculated on possible phobias that might still be there. The professor was able to offer a few real life examples since Ben Adams had been a student at the college and had exhibited several symptoms of his ordeal; the reaction to the medical devices introductory class was one of those examples. Ben's professor had been suspicious that Ben was slacking in class but after Ben went public, he realized that it had taken a tremendous effort on Ben's part to be able to sit in the classroom surrounded by tools that had been used for his torture for the entire semester.

After the diagnostic discussions began to wind down, the professor changed the subject to public immortals. Again the professor used Ben Adams as an example; Ben had been exposed as an Immortal in several of his classes. The professors of those classes reported an increase in the class scores where Ben was willing to speak as an Immortal who had been a doctor in his previous lives. He asked the class why that might be; because it was an Immortal sharing real examples or respect for an Immortal's opinions?

This conversation drifted to what other Immortals had gone through as a part of being Immortal. Long life meant seeing loved ones die; major technology changes, and in the case of the older Immortals, Methos specifically, civilizations come and go.

The class period ended with several students asking if Ben Adams would be willing to come and talk to the classes (as a former alumni of course!).

Duncan put on his sunglasses and baseball cap as soon as he reached the theater lobby. He'd dressed to blend into the theater crowds, not wanting to be noticed or identified because it would mean that he couldn't watch the movie uninterrupted. He'd wanted to 'feel' the movie in private but the movie wasn't available outside the theaters yet. It was breaking records and it had already been out nearly a month.

Duncan thought about what the movie made him feel as he headed towards his car. He'd known most of the details from talking with Jim and seeing the expose' documentary that the reporter had made. He'd read the reports and spoken with the four immortals that had lived it. But it was one thing to hear an abbreviated version of it, and to see a staged version of the events that had been taken from the lab notes confiscated by the authorities.

The actors had been well chosen for their resemblances to the four immortals. The actors had also captured the mannerisms of his friends so well that it had felt like it was the real four on the screen. Duncan realized that the reality of the actor portrayal was the most disturbing part; it had been like watching his friends be tortured in front of him and not being able to do anything about it. Not being able to help was a knife in his heart. Duncan still felt guilt that he'd been going about his life oblivious to Methos and the other's torture for years.

Methos had not attended the Hollywood movie premier presentation but months later when the movie was nominated for several awards, he'd been begged by Brandon to attend the Emmys as his guest. Brandon's wife Lisa was in Paris filming a movie and couldn't make the awards ceremony. The director and the actor really wanted Ben to come and so Methos got his tux cleaned and became the actor's mysterious 'plus one'.

The night of the awards ceremony, Methos was picked up by Brandon in his limo. They arrived in the limo queue and chatted while waiting their turn to be let out at the red carpet where they would go through the gauntlet of interviews by the networks.

Brandon looked over at Ben who was looking at the crowds that covered every square inch of the streets along the cavalcade. "How are you doing?" Brandon asked, starting to be worried that the Immortal was going to be uncomfortable in the crowds.

Ben looked over at Brandon and smiled. "I'm not the one nominated for best actor. I get to hide in the background and smile encouragement. How are you doing?"

Brandon grinned. "This isn't my first time on the red carpet, although it is the first time for my nomination."

Ben nodded. Brandon's wife Lisa had been nominated several years ago for best supporting actress. She won and her job in Paris had been one of many offered to an award winning actress.

"Thanks again for joining us in Paris last month, Lisa is still high from meeting you and having you take the cast on a tour of Paris. They really loved it."

Methos had stayed in touch with Brandon and the other actors of the film. When Brandon had mentioned that his wife had been envious that she couldn't meet 'Ben Adams', Methos had flown to Paris while Brandon had been visiting her on set. He'd gone out to dinner with Brandon and Lisa several nights after she'd finished filming for the day. On the cast's day off, he'd agreed to give the group a tour of Paris. He'd shared his knowledge and first hand experiences with the group and they'd been enthralled to hear about Paris' history from someone that had seen it first hand.

"I wish she could be here for you Brandon, I make a poor second choice." Methos said softly, knowing the young actor missed his wife.

"I'm so grateful that you were willing to get dressed up in the monkey suit and run the gauntlet with me. I'd be a nervous wreck if I didn't have you here."

Methos laughed at the nervous actor who had to take several calming breaths when the limo stopped and the passenger area door opened. They'd arrived at the red carpet.

Brandon climbed out of the limo and tugged on his tux jacket to make sure it was neat. He stepped aside for Ben. Brandon was immediately recognized by the press and the crowds. He waved to the crowds that were cheering and shouting his name.

The crowds didn't recognize Methos so he smiled and followed the actor as they moved a little down the line to the first interview station. Before the interview started, Brandon was asked if he wanted his guest introduced, at Methos' shake of the head, he declined. Methos stayed out of the camera's frame and waited quietly. The camera came on and Brandon was asked a few questions about his thoughts on being nominated. Since there were more guests arriving, the interview was brief and they were directed to stand in the queue for the next interview. As they waited, Russ and the other cast members arrived.

After a quick conversation, Brandon and Methos stepped out of the press lines and waited for the others to catch up to them. While they were waiting, other actors stopped by to congratulate Brandon on his performance. One of the congratulators was a well-known director that Brandon had worked with on an earlier film.

Methos had half turned and was scanning the crowds above them to give Brandon some privacy and allow him his moment in the spotlight. The director put a hand on the actor's shoulder and asked, "Brandon, the rumor mill says you and the others got to meet and work with Adams and the others to get your characters down. Is that true?"

Brandon smiled over at Ben who had turned back to face them, "We did. I attribute that to our successful portrayal of the characters. They were willing to share their thoughts and feelings with us and that allowed us to capture their reactions to the story line."

"What were they like?" The director asked like a kid hearing about a celebrity.

Brandon was uncomfortable because the director hadn't recognized Ben who was standing right beside him. He looked over at Ben to try and get a take on if Ben wanted to stay incognito or be introduced.

"We're just guys, just longer lived." Methos said, seeing that Brandon was uncomfortable with what to do. "I'm Benjamin Adams." He said offering his hand.

The director looked at Brandon for confirmation and when the actor nodded he grabbed Methos' hand and shook it firmly, not releasing it even after the handshake. "It is such a pleasure to meet you in person!"

"I'm pleased to meet you as well; I've enjoyed your work." Methos said with a smile at the celebrity role reversal.

The director enthusiastically asked questions and expressed his awe for the time it took for the other cast members to catch up to them. By that time the director's aide urged the director to continue down the red carpet in the name of keeping the interviews on schedule.

The director reluctantly agreed and asked to speak with Ben again once they were inside.

Methos smiled but didn't commit anything. The director reluctantly moved with his aide down the red carpet but Methos spotted the director pointing towards him several times, obviously identifying him to whomever he was talking to at the time.

The cast of The Four was directed to a press interview as a group and Methos was pulled into the group by Brandon. The press host asked several questions of Russ before moving to Brandon.

"Your performance is being hailed as this decade's stellar performance, what are your thoughts?"

Brandon blushed but jumped right in to give credit to his co-stars. "I've been very fortunate to be a part of this moving story. The script was excellent and I knew the moment that I read it that I wanted to be a part of it. When I heard that Russ was directing that only increased my excitement about the project. By casting Ian, David, Jim and Wayne we had outstanding talent that meshed well and told the story in the manner that Russ envisioned it. I think I can speak for the others in saying that our inspiration definitely came from Ben, Allen, Sam and Rocky."

Brandon put his hand on Ben's shoulder to draw attention to him, figuring that Ben had introduced himself once already and wasn't trying to hide in plain sight. "To actually meet the extraordinary men who had gone through that kind of torture and come out of it with their sanity and compassion intact is inspiring and life changing to me."

The host interviewer looked over at the man who hadn't been introduced but was being regarded with deep emotions by the director and actors that he was standing with. The striking young man in his mid twenties looked good in the tux but uncomfortable in the company of celebrities. "Can you introduce your companion to our home audiences?"

Brandon looked at the host as if he was embarrassed to have to introduce someone so important. "This is our inspiration and my hero, Benjamin Adams."

The press crew gasped in excitement and the host moved close to put a microphone near Ben. "Are you pleased with the acclaim that the movie is drawing?"

"I'm very pleased with the attention that the movie has gotten and that has only helped with the legislation that we are working on getting passed into Law. Everyone involved in the project has done fantastic things to bring it to life. It was very difficult to go back to that time but Allen, Sam, Rocky and I felt that the talents of these outstanding actors kept the focus on moving beyond the anger to the healing. That was something we really wanted to emphasize. We've all moved beyond what happened and want to portray Immortals in general as people just like everyone else. It is ignorance and fear that threaten our society, not the existence of Immortals."

The word that Benjamin Adams was on the red carpet with the cast and crew of the movie spread like wildfire. The aides were being pressured to move the group to the next interviews. Reluctantly, the host wrapped up the interview. "It was a pleasure to meet you Mr. Adams, good luck to the rest of you in your nominated categories."

As the group moved away to the next interview, the host quickly whispered to an aide to have someone catch up to Adams and try to schedule another interview after the ceremonies. The host also instructed that the information be relayed inside to the camera crews so that the cameras would be watching Ben Adams as the ceremony went on, especially when the nominated categories were announced.

The rest of the walk down the red carpet was slow and repetitive. Now that the press knew that Ben Adams was with the movie group, he was included in the interviews. Methos kept his comments to the things that he'd already mentioned. The crowd had also picked up on his presence having overheard the press hosts and Methos heard his public name being shouted from the crowds on the side. He looked over and waved up at them when they became especially loud during the group's walk towards the amphitheater.

Methos breathed a sigh of relief when they were finally seated and served drinks. "That was so much harder than a six hour surgery, how do you guys do that?" He asked whimsically of the actors.

The award ceremony began and Methos spotted his image up on the monitors several times. He shifted several times to block his face from the cameras in an attempt to discourage them from pointing it at him. He was successful for the most part but by the time the ceremony had neared the announcing of the main categories, the cameras were in a position to get clear pictures of the table where the group waited.

The screenplay was chosen as the winner, and Russ and the writer went up to accept the award. The cameras flashed on Methos when the award was announced, shifting to the rest of the group before following Russ and writer as they made their way to the stage. Methos saw that his image kept flashing on the screens as the writer thanked Ben and the other Immortals for their participation and support.

The best supporting actor award went to David, the actor that had portrayed Rocky. Rocky had been an angry young man killed in a gang drive-by shooting but he hadn't been an immortal for very long so his brain hadn't accepted that he would come back from death. His struggle during the torture was very traumatic for that reason. His mind still believed that when he was killed during the experiments, his torture was over. But each time he revived and felt the betrayal keenly. The actor was able to capture his betrayal and anger and eventual sad acceptance to his immortality when he met Chloe, his Mortal wife. Letting that meeting be the indicator that Rocky would be okay.

Brandon got the best actor award and when Brandon tried to get Methos to go up with him, Methos declined, "This is your moment. You earned it."

When Brandon got to the stage he thanked the cast and crew and Ben. He teased that his wife had never been jealous of him being with another man before but she had really wanted to meet Ben. Her filming out of the country had prevented it but Ben had gone out of his way to fly over and spend several days with them, because that is the kind of man he was. "Now I'm jealous that she has a crush on my 'date'!" The screens showed Methos laughing.

By the time the movie was selected for the best picture, Methos was ready to call it a night and get out of the limelight. When the presenter named the movie as the winner and clapped enthusiastically along with the crowd, Methos allowed himself to be talked into going up on the stage with the Russ and the rest of the cast. Russ and Brandon pushed Methos to the forefront to take the award and microphone.

"This has been a very emotional evening. I can't tell you how much we Immortals appreciate your support for this film and for the legislation we've proposed. I've lived in hiding for centuries and if someone had told me I'd be on stage and publicly acknowledging that I was an Immortal, I would have thought them writers of speculative fiction or insane." The crowd laughed and thought about his reminder of his centuries of living. "It was very difficult to relieve the years depicted in the film but the talent of this group of fantastic people has captured all of those emotions in such a compassionate way. I thank you with all of my heart." Methos directed the last statements towards the group on the stage with him.

The group moved off of the stage and to the back areas. He successfully redirected the backstage interviews to Russ and the cast. After the awards, Methos claimed that he'd reached his tolerance for crowds and parted from the group when they headed off to the post ceremony parties. He was driven back to his hotel by the limo he'd arrived in.

Methos changed back into his faded jeans and Henley before he returned the phone calls from his friends congratulating him on the film's success and teasing him about his face appearing so many times during the evening. The worse teasing came from Joe who said that for a guy who had managed to stay away from watchers, out of the chronicles and avoid photographs for millennia, he'd made up for it in just a few hours.

The next morning Methos was reading in his room when he got a call from Brandon asking if he wanted to join them in one of the hotel restaurants for a brunch. In a few moments he was being escorted to the combined tables where the group was laughing together. He smiled at their jocularity and excitement. Apparently the evening had been a huge success.

At his arrival, the group got up and went through the buffet. When they were all seated the group confirmed that they had been out until the early hours of the morning. This had been the first nomination for many of the group and they were still flying high from actually winning their awards. Their breakfast talk was full of the attention they had gotten from their peers while at the post award parties. Methos didn't miss that the restaurant staff was being very attentive so that they could be near the celebrities and award winners.

After the initial hunger-sating eating had been done, Brandon who had been sitting next to Methos tapped his coffee cup with a spoon to get the group's attention. "A toast."

When he had the group's attention he continued. He held his glass of champagne up and looked at Methos. "To Ben. A man who is more than a man and can turn a horrific ten years into a example of human perseverance and compassion. Who not only did this for himself, he also did it for the three others that were caught in the nightmare. For reaching all the way to Washington DC to try and make sure that no others had to go through the hell he'd been through. And for being so open and generous as to allow this story to be written and captured on film so that others would understand what it meant to be him. To allowing me and my co-stars to spend time with you in order for us to get it right. You are my hero."

The others clapped and shouted their agreements. A standing ovation from the other diners indicated that Brandon's words had been overheard by the rest of the restaurant.

When the applause quieted down, Methos stood and raised his glass. "You flatter me. If not for your immense talent and dedication, our story would have been an unpleasant footnote in history, most likely avoided because it reflected the worst of humanity. I cannot express my gratitude that people like you spoke up and said that Immortals were human instead of test subjects. You are my guardian angels and heroes."

The room erupted again in applause.

The group quieted down and changed to other subjects while they finished their breakfast at their leisure. Brandon spoke quietly to Ben.

"Everyone was asking about you last night. They didn't recognize you and when they finally heard who you were, they wanted to know more. They wouldn't believe that an immortal was 'just a guy' like you are fond of saying. They'd been so sure that all Immortals were like MacLeod and filled a room with their presence."

Amused by the observation Methos laughed, "MacLeod has created a huge misconception for the rest of us. MacLeod was raised to be a Clan Chieftain. He doesn't know how to disappear into a crowd. The rest of us came from very different backgrounds. We learned how to disappear and be a part of our surroundings."

"Doesn't it bother you that no one recognizes you when you come into a room or walk on the red carpet? All Immortals owe so much to you…"

Methos was amused that the mortal was indignant at 'Ben' being brushed off. "No, it doesn't bother me at all. I think that is part of the reason I spend time with extrovert personalities like Byron, MacLeod and Joe Dawson, they keep people from looking too closely at me."

"But you are so much more than you are given credit for." Brandon argued, still bothered that Ben wasn't given as much attention as he was owed.

Methos leaned closer to Brandon. "I take my example from Methos. He is the oldest Immortal; he's older than civilizations, countries, and religions. He's still out there, sane, happy and dating freely because he's not in the limelight. He can say what he wants, go where he pleases, and live some semblance to a normal life because the public doesn't know who he is and what he looks like."

Brandon nodded in understanding, having experienced paparazzi and a celebrity status only recently in the past few years. He shivered at the kind of attention Methos would have to endure if he went public.

"Have you ever met him?" Brandon asked with a twinkle in his eyes.

Methos laughed. "I'm the brunette he's dating; you'd never guess that ancient Immortals would be attracted to my classic profile. But don't tell anyone, he's very jealous and hates it when we can't be together because I might be followed."

Brandon looked like he was having trouble determining if Ben was teasing him or not. His eyes bugged out when Methos pulled a small card from his wallet and handed it to Brandon. It was a small card with a handwritten note that said, "Congratulations on the success of your movie. Can't wait to see you again, Love Methos."

Methos had actually written the card to send to Rocky as a joke, but Brandon's question had sparked the imp in him so he'd shown it to him.

Brandon grinned wickedly. "You smooth operator, you scored the most elusive bachelor ever! You are SOO my personal hero!"

Methos laughed with Brandon and changed the subject, drawing the rest of the group into conversations about their next projects. Their offers had increased when they'd received their nominations; they'd heard more offers now that they had received the awards. This group of talented people were going to be very busy in the coming years.

Hours later Methos said his goodbyes and headed back to his room. The Watchers had gotten several Watchers on the award ceremony security teams so Albert had been close to Methos all night long while remaining in the background. His room had been next to Methos' and he'd had a private breakfast not far from where Methos had sat with the cast. Albert had joined Methos in the lobby and they'd ridden the elevator together.

Albert was smiling when he pushed the button for their floor. "You told him you were dating Methos didn't you." Albert dared to tease.

Methos kept his face innocent and confused. "Why would you say that?"

"I saw Brandon's face when you were whispering to him. Then you pulled out that card you wrote this morning."

Methos laughed at the eagle eyes of his watcher. "Caught that did you?"

Albert nodded. "Unless you are making passes at married men now, you shocked him with 'Methos'." Albert stated adamantly. For such an ancient man, Methos was such a big kid sometimes, definitely a plus when one considered the horrors the Immortals had seen over the centuries.

"He is in awe that I have taken the most elusive bachelor in history off of the dating market."

Albert shook his head, amused beyond measure that the people were so in awe of Methos and never knew that they were sitting right next to the very legend they were in awe of. Albert knew why Methos did it; the people he teased with 'Methos' eased up and thought of Ben Adams as more of a guy when he pulled the legend out as an example.

Because of the problems of being recognized on a commercial flight, Methos now only traveled in private transportation. In a few hours he would be flying back home to Washington State in the Watcher's private jet.

Methos had been home for several weeks and was in his top floor apartment working on his next book when he got a warning on his laptop that his security system had picked up movement. Methos got up and went into the security room. He switched the system from several windows on a single monitor to each screen showing the view from a different camera. He scanned the monitors until he spotted what had triggered the motion detector. With the infrared camera he saw a small 25 foot day cruiser coasting up to his dock. The camera clarity was such that he was able to see that there were three people on the cruiser; an older man, a young woman, and a young girl. He noted that the man and the woman appeared to be using the tops of coolers as oars to slowly ease the cruiser towards the well lit dock.

Methos smiled when the audio devices picked up the complaints of the child, "I'm hungry, can we get something to eat here?"

The adults tried to pacify the child but Methos could tell that the adults didn't know what kind of a welcome they would receive. It was a little before midnight and they were approaching a remote house uninvited. Based on the improvised oars, they weren't going to be able to fix whatever it was that had them using the lids of coolers as oars.

Methos tucked his Glock into the back waistband of his jeans and pulled his Henley over the bump it made. With the flip of a switch he turned on all of the outside lights so that the uninvited visitors didn't fall off his dock and back into the Sound, and so that they would know their presence had been acknowledged. He flipped another switch to the intercom that went to Albert's apartment. "Visitors coming in from the dock. Conceal your weapons."

Methos waited the few seconds for Albert to grunt a response before he trotted down the stairs towards the common floor where the visitors would first approach. Before the visitors got to the door, Albert was there, dressed casually in sweats and a tee shirt and tucking his gun into his waistband. Albert also had his phone in hand, ready to call for backup if needed.

Methos waited until the visitors were at the front stairs before he opened the door.

"We're sorry to disturb you so late at night but our boat broke down and these were the only lights we saw." The older man said, his tone of voice very polite and contrite.

"We've been drifting for hours, and until we saw your lights we didn't even know which way to row." The woman added, holding the hand of the girl child.

"Could we interrupt you long enough to borrow your phone to call the boat rental place to get a ride back to the campground?" The older man asked.

Methos looked over the three and assessed the risk factor. Deciding that he could offer them one of the disposable phones he kept for emergencies, he stepped back and gestured them into the entryway.

"Been out there a while?" Methos asked as he closed the door behind them.

"Hours, we were cruising the coastline and the motor just went out. We couldn't get it going."

"I'm hungry" the little girl whined.

Before the girl's mother could apologize or ask for something, Methos offered.

"Albert, why don't you show them upstairs to the bathroom so that they can freshen up. I'll put on some soup and fix some sandwiches, you must all be starved."

"Thank you so much, we hate to be a bother." The man said gratefully.

The woman put a hand on the girl's shoulder and followed Albert up the stairs to the main common area and the kitchen.

"I'm Jason Winters, that's my daughter Jenny and her daughter Rissa."

"Ben." Methos pointed towards Albert, "Albert."

Methos moved efficiently about the kitchen preparing soup and sandwiches. He started a pot of coffee while they waited for the others to rejoin them.

"You said the boat was a rental?" Methos asked as he handed Jason the dishes and silverware to set at the table.

"Yes, in Bridgeport." Jason looked embarrassed. "I'm sorry but I'm not sure where we are now."

Methos turned down the stove to keep the soup warm and walked out of the kitchen. On the wall near the stairs the group had come up was a large wall map of the area. Methos scanned the map and pointed to Bridgeport. He tapped that spot and then slid his finger across the map to where his house was.

"You've come quite a distance from Bridgeport. I don't think you'll have any luck getting the rental agency to pick you up tonight. I'll set you up for the night and you can call them again in the morning."

Jason looked distressed to see how far they'd drifted. He turned when the others came back from the bathroom. He showed Jenny what Methos had just showed him.

"You can stay the night here." Methos said again when Jenny looked distressed. "I'm sure you are too tired to make the trek back to Bridgeport."

"Are you sure? I really hate to put you out like this." Jenny said halfheartedly. She knew that they were all exhausted and the offer was a God-send.

"I insist." He turned back towards the kitchen area. "Come and get some food and then we'll get you settled."

When the family was seated at the table and eating, Methos went to get the guests rooms ready. They'd finished eating by the time he returned. Jenny rose and carried their dishes to the kitchen. Albert had been describing the 'green' attributes of the house, apparently based on questions that Jason had asked.

Albert opened the dishwasher door so that Jenny could load it.

"Thanks so much for your hospitality." Jenny said, looking at both Ben and Albert. The two men moved in and out of each other's space comfortably. Two men living together led her to believe that they were Gay partners. Albert was the older of the two men so that probably made this his house. Ben was an attractive, younger man, so that supported the thought that the house would belong to the older man. A younger man wouldn't pick an older man unless he was rich, right?

Methos handed Jason a cell phone and the phone book. "You can leave a message at the Rental place to let them know what happened. You can call them again in the morning to decide what to do from there."

"I'll give the sheriff and coast guard a call, in case the rental place reported them missing." Albert offered before heading towards his apartment down the hallway. He planned on running a check on their visitors before letting them stay the night. A call in to Watcher headquarters night security and he had a quick summary. He returned to the common room and signaled to Methos that their names checked out.

Albert returned just as Jason had finished leaving his message with the Rental office. "The coast guard was out looking for them. I told them we'd set them up for the night and would call again in the morning. They'll call off the search now."

Methos led them down the hall to a couple of guest rooms.

"There is a bathroom here," he indicated a door across from the two guest rooms. "I thought that Rissa might be more comfortable if you bunked together." Methos looked at Jenny.

She nodded, pleased that he'd been so considerate of Rissa.

"There are some tee shirts and sweats in the dresser drawers, help yourself. Sorry, I don't have anything small enough for Rissa, perhaps a tee shirt as a nightgown?"

"We'll be fine, thanks so much." Jenny said with a smile.

"I'll be up for another couple of hours. If you need something, just buzz me on the intercom." He indicated a white box on the wall near the bedrooms.

"I'll leave the kitchen light on in case you need anything out there. Goodnight."

Albert said his goodnights and followed Methos as he left the family to their preparations.

Methos knew that Albert was waiting for further instructions but he waited until they were back in the kitchen. "Go ahead and go back to bed. I'll set the security system so we'll know if they're moving around. I don't think this is anything but what it appears to be."

"Did you want me to stay up for a while?" Albert asked, always cautious when it came to his Immortal's safety.

"No, go back to bed. We'll shut off the other lights down here and we can lock the doors at the stairwells. I want to work on the book for a while longer."

Albert nodded and they secured the downstairs, leaving the kitchen light on as promised. Albert waited until he heard the click of the lock on the stairs to Methos' rooms before he went into his living area. He checked the security cameras to make sure that everything was quiet outside before he got into bed and flipped off the light. He let his body relax and he listened carefully to get the feel of the house again. When everything was quiet and restful, he closed his eyes to sleep.

Jenny tucked Rissa into the double bed and switched off the light before crawling into the other side. They'd been very lucky to have spotted the house lights and been welcomed. She'd been hiding her fear for several hours and she was exhausted. She knew her father was worrying himself sick over the failed motor and getting them stuck out in the Sound.

A feeling of warmth flowed through her at the thought of her father. When Jenny's Marine husband had died in Iraq during an early confrontation with the insurgents, her father had insisted that Jenny and Rissa move in with him. Money was going to be tight until the government compensation came in and he wanted to help with Rissa. It had been several years now and Jenny hadn't made any steps to move out. Her dad needed them in his life as much as they needed him. Jenny's mother had died when Jenny was in high school and he hadn't remarried. He'd been lonely but never admitted it to himself. Living together worked for both of them, keeping loneliness away.

Jenny reflected on the two men that had offered them sanctuary. She'd never met any Gay men before. They were very nice and normal. Jenny had always had a different picture in mind of what a Gay man would be like. Neither Albert nor Ben acted like her preconceived notions. Jenny smiled at her silly stereotyping; both men were good looking and 'manly'. She wondered which one was the 'wife' in the relationship. Probably Ben, he seemed a little less buff with his slender build. Although he did have broad shoulders.

Jenny drifted off to sleep while imagining the two men snuggling in bed together.

Methos searched the internet for Jason and Jenny and anything that might indicate that they weren't what they appeared to be. Jason had been retired for several years and before that he'd worked for a medical device company as an Engineer. Jenny had married young and was an administrative assistant at an insurance company. Her husband had been killed in action in Iraq and she lived with her father. No alarms or triggers that anything was fabricated about their stories.

Methos closed down the internet connection and returned to the book he was working on.

Albert woke early and checked the security cameras. After confirming that everything was as it should be he showered and dressed in comfortable jeans and sweatshirt. He grabbed his laptop and silently checked the guest rooms and confirmed their guests were still sleeping soundly.

He started a pot of coffee and after he poured himself a cup, he sat down on the sofa and powered up his laptop. He pulled up the Watcher database to see if there was anything going on in the world of Immortals. He updated 'Ben's' chronicles before logging into his mail box to check his email. He was just finishing up when Jenny and Rissa wandered out.

Jenny had freshened up a little but it was obvious that she was only up because Rissa was fully awake and ready to start her day as kids are in the habit of.

Jenny looked relieved that Albert was up and she wasn't going to be uncomfortably trying to keep Rissa quiet and contained so that she didn't disturb their generous hosts.

"Ben's still in bed but don't worry about disturbing him. There's coffee in the pot." Albert said as he turned off his laptop and set it aside.

Rissa wandered around the room looking at everything while sneaking glances towards Albert. She'd been very sleepy last night but this morning her natural curiosity was working its way to the surface. She was working up the courage to start asking Albert questions when he took the initiative.

"Did you want to watch some television?" he asked.

Rissa nodded and got brave enough to sit on the sofa, leaving a cushion between her and Albert. Albert picked up the remote and turned the television on. He handed the remote to Rissa and showed her where the channel buttons were. He stood and left her as she happily flipped through the channels.

Albert nodded at Jenny's offer to refresh his coffee but declined the offer to cook him breakfast.

"I'll wait until Ben's up, but go ahead and fix something for you and Rissa if you'd like."

Jenny smiled gratefully before looking around the kitchen to find the things to fix some toast. Rissa had found some cartoons playing but came to the table when her mom asked her to. Rissa divided her attention between the toast and the television while Jenny fixed herself some toast.

Albert leaned against the counter and looked out of the kitchen window.

"How long have you lived here?" Jenny asked.

"Five or six years now."

"I thought this side of the water was all tribal land." Jenny asked, wondering if they were further down the coast than she thought they were.

"It is, the tribe is leasing it to us."

"They do that?"

"Not normally. Ben's a doctor at the tribal clinic. We're honorary tribe members."

"Oh." Jenny said, not knowing if this was usual or not and not wanting to appear ignorant. "Ben's a doctor?"

Albert nodded.

"What do you do?" Jenny asked and sipped at her coffee. Albert must have an important job if his partner was a doctor!

"I'm a security consultant." Albert said, "That's why the house and grounds have so much security. I have to try out what I recommend."

Jenny nodded, she had wondered why but again, that probably was normal for wealthy people that lived in isolated places.

Jason entered the room, running a hand through his still damp hair. He'd showered before dressing and coming out to the living area. "Was that horses I saw out the window?" He asked as Jenny poured him a cup of coffee.

"Horses?" Rissa said, looking away from the television to join the conversation.

Albert looked over at the animated child. Kids and horses, no surprise there. "Yes, Ben has two. He uses them to ride into the village to work."

"Can I go and see them?" Rissa asked in excitement.

"I don't see why not." Methos said as he walked into the room. He was showered and dressed in comfortable jeans and a Henley. He took the offered cup of coffee from Jenny.

"They are very gentle." Methos said to Jenny when she looked worried.

Jenny had actually been worried about the two men being bothered by Rissa's childish enthusiasm.

"Maybe a quick peek before we have to go." Jenny offered to Rissa. "Are you finished with your breakfast?"

Methos slipped around Jenny and began pulling things out of the refrigerator. "I'm going to fix some eggs and bacon for breakfast, do you want some?" He asked, seeing that they'd only made toast.

"If you don't mind." Jason said.

"Would you like me to get that?" Jenny asked, wanting to be helpful and thank their hosts.

Methos shook his head. "Your usual, Albert?" Methos asked and began to prepare for cooking.

Albert hummed an affirmative and started to fix another pot of coffee.

Jenny stepped aside and watched Ben and Albert working around each other in the kitchen. Albert got out plates and silverware while Ben worked the stove. They'd done this many times before she could see. Ben was apparently the cook for he knew what Albert liked and went through the motions of fixing them breakfast while continuing the conversation with his guests.

Rissa finished her toast and nodded her head when Ben offered her some scrambled eggs and bacon. Jenny and Jason thanked Ben as he filled their plates. When Ben and Albert were seated they all began to eat.

"Albert said you were a doctor." Jenny said, wanting to know more about these interesting men. She wondered if the tribe or neighbors cared that the men were Gay.

Methos nodded at Jenny's question. "Trained in England but I got recertified when I decided to live here."

"I wondered at your accent." Jason said between bites.

"The family's from Wales but I've traveled a lot. I met Albert in Paris." Methos offered with a smile at Albert.

"And you've practically filled my passport with all of the traveling that you do." Albert responded.

"Just another thing you love about me." Methos said flippantly. He'd spotted Jenny's evaluating looks between he and Albert.

"What brought you to the states?" Jenny asked, wondering if it had been meeting Albert and falling in love since Albert appeared to be an American.

"Some friends live in Paris half the year and the other half in Seacouver; I visit them frequently. The peninsula is close to them but not too close."

Albert knew that Methos was referring to Duncan MacLeod and Joe Dawson.

Methos caught Albert's eye and smirked. "Albert would have run the other way if he'd seen me coming." Methos intended to play on Jenny's assumption.

Albert wondered what Methos was implying but decided to go along with it. The old Immortal had an unusual sense of humor but whatever made Methos happy, made Albert happy.

"Like I had a choice." Albert said with an amused snort.

"Exactly!" Methos said with a beaming smile.

Jason looked between the two men and it occurred to him that their might be different living arrangements here. It hadn't occurred to him last night that there were two grown men living together in this big house. He looked at the men in curiosity since this was his first exposure to an alternative lifestyle. Ben and Albert had been nothing but gracious and kind and they were okay in his mind! Jason finished his food and stood to take his plate to the kitchen.

Jenny collected the rest of the plates as everyone finished. She carried the dishes to the kitchen and rinsed them before loading the dishwasher.

Methos added the soap and started the dishwasher before asking, "Did you want to call the rental place and see if they had any instructions for you?"

Methos didn't think that Jason or Jenny were uncomfortable with the thought that he and Albert might be partners, but they probably had realized that they were interrupting their routine or plans.

"If you wouldn't mind." Jason said. Albert handed Jason the disposable phone that they'd used last night.

Jenny and Rissa went to the guest rooms to change into their clothes.

Jason got off the phone with the rental company. He sighed heavily as he sat at the kitchen bar counter.

"The manager said the boat engine had been regularly maintained so he can't understand why it broke down. He says he can't get down here for several more hours to tow the boat back. Do they have a rental car agency nearby?"

Methos shook his head, no. "There's no need for rental cars way out here. We could tow you back." Methos looked over at Albert. "Drop in and stay with Mac for a few days before the carnival."

Albert nodded. They had planned on a trip to Seacouver for the Ben Adams Fan Club fundraiser in a few days. They'd have to get a rental car since Bridgeport was several hours drive from Seacouver.

"Good, I'll put a picnic lunch together for us and we can plan on taking off in an hour or so."

Jenny and Rissa came back into the room. "Did you want to go out and see the horses now, Rissa?" Methos asked.

"Yes!" Rissa said and jumped around in excitement.

"I'll check the boat and move it out to the dock." Albert said.

"I'll help you." Jason offered.

The group put on their coats and went outside. Albert and Jason walked over to the boathouse where a large cruiser was tied up and Methos lead Jenny and Rissa in the direction of welcoming whinnies.

The two horses were standing at their turnout fences alertly watching their approach. "Breakfast." Methos said with a smile.

He slid open a large barn door and led his guests down an aisle to a closed door in the middle of the barn. The horses hurried into their stalls and stuck their noses through the barred stall doors.

"They want their breakfast?" Rissa asked, reaching up a hand to stroke the nose of the nearest horse.

"They do indeed. The hay dropped down automatically at six this morning, but they don't consider themselves fed until they get their grain." Methos scooped some dry cobb from a large feed container in the smaller room and poured that into two tubs. He added a few supplements before he moved to the stalls and poured the contents of a tub into the manger of each horse. The stable grew quieter with the sounds of horses chewing their grain instead of pacing their impatience.

Jenny and Rissa watched the nearest horse eating.

"They are so big." Rissa said in awe.

"There are some breeds of horses that are much bigger. These two are average size for riding horses." Methos looked down the aisle and out of the stables when he heard the sound of a bicycle approaching. He watched as ten year old Ron stopped his bike and leaned it against the stable wall.

"Morning Doc!" The young Indian boy said cheerfully. "You got visitors?" He asked in surprise. Doc rarely had strangers stay at his house.

"Good morning Ron. I've given the boys their grain." Methos said referring to the horses. "Ron, this is Jenny and Rissa. They had some trouble with their boat and ended up staying here last night. We'll be taking them back up to Bridgeport in a bit."

"Boat trouble huh? That must be why the Tribe boats were out yesterday evening." Ron commented, pleased to be in the 'know'.

"Do you live here too?" Rissa asked Ron, coyly smiling at the cute older boy.

Ron smiled at the girl and stroked the nose of the horse that poked his nose out to say hello to Ron. "I wish! I'd get a room to myself instead of having to share a room with my younger brothers. Doc lets me clean the stalls and take care of the boys in exchange for riding privileges. We can't afford to have horses but this is almost as good."

"You live nearby?" Jenny asked, knowing that at this boy's age she'd have loved to work out stable chores in exchange for the chance to take care of and ride horses.

Ron nodded. "Just a couple of miles down the road. My dad works on the island ferry and my mom runs the Post Office. I'm the oldest; I have two younger brothers and a younger sister." He said, his nose crinkling up at the mention of his younger siblings.

"Albert and I will be gone for a few days; you okay getting them on your own?" Methos asked.

"Absolutely!" Ron said excitedly, he liked being in charge of the horses when Doc and Albert were away.

"You've got my number if anything comes up." Methos said before turning to Jenny. "Are we ready to go back inside? I need to put a picnic together."

Rissa said goodbye to Ron and walked backwards so she could continue to look at the horses and Ron. Jenny shared a humorous smile with Ben who had noticed the girl's fascination with Ron.

They wiped their feet and returned to the kitchen. Rissa watched television while Jenny helped Ben in the kitchen.

By the time that Albert and Jason came back into the house the food basket and cooler were ready to be taken down to the dock.

Jenny directed Rissa towards a large cruiser that was now idling at the dock. It was much larger than the rental boat that they'd used to get here. The boat looked fast but comfortable with a large cabin area. After the food and drinks were loaded, Jenny followed Rissa as she checked out the interior of the large boat. It had an upper bridge area with an enclosed cabin and a canvas enclosed aft deck area. A hatch led to a small living area that was as comfortable as a travel trailer or RV. A sleeping area large enough for a double bed, a bathroom with a standup shower in addition to the sink and toilet, a small kitchen and dining area in addition to a sitting area with entertainment system. A big step from the day cruiser that they'd rented!

With the rental boat secured by two tow ropes, they cast off from the dock and headed north towards Bridgeport.

It took them several hours to make the trip. Albert commanded the wheel while Jason kept him company in the bridge. The sun was out and warming up so Ben, Jenny and Rissa sat in the stern area seating. Ben pointed out local landmarks as they cruised and gave them some of the area history.

"I'm surprised that you know so much about the area when you haven't lived here that long." Jenny commented, hoping that she wasn't insulting Ben or Albert by commenting on it.

"I made a point of researching the area before living here. The tribe has been very diligent about keeping the area's history alive and vibrant."

"I grew up on the other side of the mountains; I had no idea that this area was so rich in native culture." Jenny commented, determined to do some research of her own to learn more about this area.

When they were an hour out from the rental place, Jason used the cell phone and called in to let the manager know when they'd arrive with the rental boat. The manager mentioned that the coast guard wanted to talk with Jason in order to complete the search and rescue paperwork.

Methos took the phone after Jason had hung up so that he could reserve a slip at a public dock in the area. He also arranged to have a rental car brought to them at the public dock.

They spotted a small Coast Guard cruiser docked at the rental place as they approached. Albert waved to Methos and pointed out a news van that was hanging around waiting their arrival.

Methos and Jason hung out the bumpers and secured the lines when Albert coasted them alongside the dock. The Coast Guard officer and a crew member offered a hand to tie them up. The rental boat staff moved to secure the non-working boat. The Coast Guard officer offered a hand to Jason, Jenny and Rissa as they moved to disembark from the cruiser to the dock. Methos and Albert remained on boat to continue to secure it, keeping the engines idling.

"I have some questions for my report shall we go to the office?" The officer asked Jason after confirming that he was the wayward boater. By now the rental boat manager had joined them.

When Rissa indicated that she needed to use the restroom, the group moved quickly to the rental office. The news crew set up outside the office in preparation for the interviews.

Methos and Albert stalled getting off of the boat until the news crew was distracted with their set-up.

"I'll check to see if the Coast Guard needs anything from us." Albert offered. He gracefully jumped to the dock and sought out the highest ranking Coast Guard crewman.

The crewman took Albert to another officer who hopped off the Coast Guard boat and followed Albert back to Methos' boat. After fifteen minutes worth of questions, the officer thanked them and gave them permission to leave. By now the other officer had completed his interview and Jason and Jenny were being interviewed by the news crew.

"Did you want to say goodbye?" Albert asked Methos, thinking that Methos wouldn't want to get anywhere near the news crew.

"Why don't you tend to the social niceties."

Albert nodded and hurried off to speak with Jason and Jenny. After a short conversation, Albert hurried back and untied their boat from the dock. Methos put the boat into reverse and slowly motored out to the traffic lanes before opening up the throttle. Twenty minutes later they were tied up at the public boat slips and signing for the rental car. Methos and Albert drove into Seacouver in time for an early dinner with Mac and Joe.

They had an enjoyable evening at a local restaurant and returned to Mac's house late.

The next afternoon Methos and Albert headed to Joe's bar to meet Angi and Sharon to talk about the BAFC fund raiser scheduled for the next evening. Mac and Joe had both agreed to attend, with Mac trying hard to talk Amanda into attending as well. Over the past several years since Methos had first attended, his presence had increased the event's attendance. They've had to move to larger ballrooms for the event.

Methos always left the ladies to the details of the planning, but they liked to include him in the overall planning so that he wasn't uncomfortable when he showed up at the event.

Insert something about the event?

This year's carnival was another success and Methos was relieved to have that event behind him for another year.

Having completed the things he wanted to on this side of the water, Methos and Albert headed back up to where their boat was docked.

Several days later when Jenny and family got home and settled back in to their normal routine, Jenny got curious about the two men who had been so gracious to them when they'd been stranded. Jenny logged onto the internet and searched for Ben and Albert. There were so many hits for the name Doctor Benjamin Adams.

A doctor, an author, … a fan club? She clicked on that link and her jaw dropped.

"Dad, come and look at this!"

**

Vicky finished painting her nails with polish. She glanced up and admired her beautiful prom dress that was hanging on the outside of her closet door. Her mother and family had recently moved to this area and Vicky didn't know anyone well enough to ask to the dance but she really wanted to go. Because they'd seen him on a recent trip through the area, her mother suggested she ask 'Uncle Ben' because he looked like he was in his mid twenties.

Liking the idea of going with Uncle Ben, Vicky immediately begged her Aunt Chloe to ask Uncle Rocky to approach the other Immortal with her request.

Knowing that he couldn't say no to a request like this from Vicky even if it was asking a favor of Ben. Rocky nervously called Ben's cell and after a short catch-up conversation, Rocky tentatively introduced the request.

"I feel embarrassed to ask this, but Chloe made me promise. As you know, Vicky and her family recently moved to a new area. It was a really good career move but the kids had to change schools late in the year. Vicky's school is having a formal dance and she doesn't know anyone well enough to be invited or to invite them. Her mom suggested she invite you and she's excited about the idea."

When Methos was silent, Rocky blurted, "Of course you can feel free to decline the invitation since what fun could a high school dance be? I'd just promised that I'd ask…"

Methos laughed to relieve Rocky's obvious discomfort. "I'm easily amused. A few questions; when is this dance, what is the manner of dress, and do I have to rent a limousine?"

Rocky was silent for a moment as his brain processed the information that the oldest Immortal was willing to go to a high school dance to make his niece feel better.

"You're my hero!" He blurted out.

Methos laughed again. "You, my friend are easily impressed. So, give me the details so I can plan out an evening to remember."

Methos rented a tux and made reservations at a restaurant before he called Vicky to make the final arrangements to pick her up on the night of the dance. At the appointed hour, he drove up to Vicky's house and was greeted by Vicky's mother who took several pictures of Methos in his tux and Vicky in her prom dress. On schedule, Methos slipped the corsage onto her wrist and they went to dinner. Dinner was delicious and relaxing but Vicky began to get nervous again when Methos drove them to the hotel that was hosting the prom.

Methos parked the car and went around the car to open Vicky's door for her. He helped her out of the car and offered his arm as they headed into the hotel. He took her wrap and checked it at the coat check before escorting her to the ballroom entrance.

A couple of students in formal dresses were seated at a table and taking tickets for the event. Their conversation stopped when they spotted Vicky and her 'older' date. Vicky felt like the walk to the table was miles when it was only a few yards. Ben must have felt her tension because he gently squeezed the hand she had on the crook of his arm.

Methos offered the tickets to the nearest girl who took the tickets without looking anywhere but at them. Methos nodded politely and turned to Vicky and offered her his arm. "Shall we?" He said with a smile.

"Are the seats assigned?" Methos asked to distract Vicky from the whispers that erupted from the table behind them as they moved into the ballroom.

She chewed her lip, "No, I don't remember anything about seating being assigned."

"Hmm, then strategically speaking that table near the refreshments but away from the restrooms would be the best choice. Plenty of opportunity to be seen, the refreshment table as an excuse for conversation, and not too far from the dance floor." Methos offered.

"Um, Okay?" Vicky said and let herself be led to the table he'd indicated. Methos pulled out her chair for her before taking a seat himself. She was so nervous. "Vicky, it's okay, I've got your back." When she looked at him gratefully he smiled.

"I don't know how to thank you for this; coming all the way here, giving up your weekend and coming to a silly dance with me…"

"I had to play the knight in shining armor to my favorite girl, I'll be able to tease Mac with this for years; you invited me instead of him."

Vicky blushed. She didn't want to say that she'd considered Mac but the very famous Immortal was larger than life and she'd feel like his shadow, rather than his date. Ben was almost as famous, but he didn't command the room when he walked into it like MacLeod did. She didn't want to be overshadowed by her date at this first social outing at her new school.

Methos watched the embarrassment and guilt play across Vicky's face and correctly assessed the reasons for it. "Mac's a bit flamboyant but I'm good date material, I clean up nice if I do say so myself." He said and tugged on his tux lapels to show her that he knew but was okay with that knowledge.

Vicky smiled and relaxed, "You clean up very well, that girl at the front table couldn't take her eyes off of you."

"She can just stare from afar, I've got a date. May I get you a drink?"

Vicky glanced over at the refreshment table and nodded, thinking that she should probably have a drink in front of her to look relaxed and in control.

Methos rose and in a few moments was back with plastic cups of punch. After he'd returned to his chair he leaned closer. "So, are there any subjects that are taboo? Like politics, religion or the fact that your room is decorated in celebrity icon memorabilia?" Methos mock shuddered at the last item.

Vicky giggled. "You sound like my brother, Nate, but his room is full of sports memorabilia, which is worse in my opinion."

Methos kept her engaged in conversation as the room began to fill up with people. His apparent age caught the attention of several people who had chosen tables near theirs. A group of three couples whispered among themselves before approaching their table.

"Is anyone sitting at these places? We want to be able to sit together and this is the only table that has enough seats left." One of the young men asked politely.

Methos responded for Vicky. "Join us."

The young man that had first spoken held a chair for his date which sparked the same behavior in the other two young men. When everyone was seated the first young man introduced himself to Methos before introducing the others.

Methos introduced Vicky first and then only gave his first name.

The young man tilted his head slightly before asking a question. "Aren't you a little old for a high school prom? No offense intended."

Methos nodded, amused that they thought his mid-twenties face and body was 'old'. "I am but I couldn't say no when Vicky asked, she has me twisted around her little finger as the saying goes." Methos said, letting Ben Adam's British accent show a little. I'm a friend of the family and Vicky's unofficial big brother."

That relaxed the group who had apparently been thinking that Methos might be a pervert to date someone younger than he.

Methos knew that Vicky would be shy about entering into a conversation so he drew the group in. In a short time he had the group interacting with Vicky like they'd known each other for awhile.

Vicky joined the other girls when they made a trip to the restroom. They left the guys talking about computers and only got nods when they declared their intentions. One of the girls sidled up to Vicky and asked, "Your friend is cute for an old guy, is he seeing anyone?"

Vicky giggled when she remembered the scandal when the President's daughter had been seen with him. "He was seeing a celebrity a couple of years ago, but its been a while. He lives on the peninsula, he's a doctor."

"It's so cool that he's a doctor. The only doctors that I know are old."

"He's older than he looks, but thank goodness that's not how he acts." Vicky said with a smile, these girls would never guess that Ben was centuries old.

One of the girls snorted in humor, "I thought I was going to gag if I didn't get away from their geek talk!"

"Who was the celebrity?" One of the other girls asked.

"A politician's daughter. He said that her security was always right there and when he kissed her, he was sure he was going to be tackled and handcuffed." Vicky said lightly, to underplay the significance of the 'celebrity'.

Since the conversation had taken place in the public area of the restroom, other girls had overheard the conversation and when they'd returned to their tables, they were able to give some information on the older guy with the new girl.

When the band had warmed up, Ben asked Vicky to dance. Vicky was surprised that Ben could dance since it wasn't a Minuet' or some old dance. He managed to blend in with the other male dancers without embarrassing her. When they'd gone to the dance floor, the other kids at their table had gone with them. The group danced in a cluster near the stage.

Vicky was having a great time. The group at their table was very outgoing and they seemed to all have things in common. Vicky didn't feel like a third wheel or uncomfortable not really knowing anyone, and the band was great! Ben was smiling and laughing as he spun her around to the music and the others began to copy their dancing.

Tired and thirsty, she signaled to Ben that she'd like to take a break. He must have sensed her thirst for as soon as he had her seated, he headed for the refreshment table and had returned with two glasses. While he'd been getting the refreshments, Vicky spotted one of the guys in her math class staring at her. He smiled tentatively and quickly blushed and looked away. He'd come to the dance with a couple of other guys that didn't have dates. He was pretty cute, and good in math Vicky thought. She smiled back at him.

Methos set Vicky's cup in front of her and glanced at the young man she'd smiled at. "A prospective?" He asked softly.

Vicky blushed. "He's in my math class. He didn't have a date." She said before realizing that she'd given enough information to indicate that she had been paying attention.

"Leave it to me." Methos said and rose before she could stop him. He crossed the room towards the young man. The young man looked sheepish as if he was worried that he was going to be harassed for staring at someone's date.

Methos approached the last few feet with a friendly smile. "Hi, I'm Ben, and that's my friend's niece." Methos indicated Vicky. The young man introduced himself as Ryan.

"Ryan, I have a favor to ask and I was hoping that you might help me out?"

The young man looked hesitant. Methos forged ahead. "As you know, Vicky hasn't been at this school for very long and she's a little shy. When I agreed to escort her, I promised her mother that I'd get her to dance with a couple of people so that she'd feel better about being new. Would you mind dancing the next dance with her?"

"You want me to dance with her?" Ryan asked to make sure he'd gotten the request right; the pretty girl's date was asking him to dance with her?

Methos nodded. "If you wouldn't mind."

"Sure." Ryan said, pleased that he had gotten it right. He'd wished he'd felt brave enough to ask her on his own but she was so pretty and he was kind of shy.

"Great!" Methos said and tugged on the young man's arm to get him moving towards Vicky. When they reached the table he introduced them and urged them off to the dance floor.

Seeing that he was now available for a dance, several girls headed his way but Methos spotted them and instead moved to an elderly chaperone and asked her to dance. It was a slower dance so she blushingly agreed.

"Your friend is pretty cool." Ryan said as they began to slow dance.

"He is pretty cool to come to a dance with me. He's probably bored out of his mind." She offered.

Ryan smiled, "Nah, I don't think so. He seemed to be having a good time dancing earlier."

Vicky smiled. "Yeah, he did."

"You dance very well, Ben. Have you taken lessons?" The older woman, Lynn asked.

"A very long time ago, it was considered proper training for an educated young man." Methos said.

"You aren't that old!" Lynn chuckled. She was 56 and formal dancing had been going out of style when she'd been in high school.

"I was educated in Europe." Methos offered, knowing that she probably had no idea of what a European education consisted of.

"That explains your good manners." Lynn said with a smile.

"Why thank you." Methos said with a grin.

"You came with the new girl, Vicky?" Lynn asked, having noticed her dance partner sitting with a group of kids and paying more attention to Vicky.

"The niece of a friend, I've known her since she was very young. She's a little shy about the new school. I offered to escort her and act as an ice breaker."

"That is so nice of you; many young men can't be bothered."

"Vicky is very special."

"What do you do when you aren't escorting shy young girls to dances?"

Methos knew she was fishing so he thought about what he'd be willing to share. "I'm a doctor; I have a practice in Washington State. I took some time off to visit and my vacation coincided with Vicky's request for an escort."

"You look very familiar." Lynn said as she stared at Ben's face.

"I'm told I look a lot like Brandon Wheeler, the actor." Methos said with a smile. Then the song ended and he thanked Lynn for the dance and escorted her back to her table before he headed for the refreshment table. He could tell she was still thinking about who he reminded her of because her expression was still distracted.

Methos got his drink and roamed the ballroom, keeping his eye on Vicky while she danced. By roaming, Methos was able to avoid other offers to dance. As long as she was enjoying the dance he was willing to watch and not participate.

It was sometime later before Vicky need to take a break and she and Ryan returned to the table along with the other kids they'd been sitting with. The group was laughing and having a very good time. Methos was pleased that Vicky was getting along now that the ice had been broken. As he watched, Vicky and Ryan stood up from the table and approached him.

"Ben, I think I'm ready to go now. Ryan has to work tomorrow so he's calling it an evening and I'm danced out." Vicky said with a beaming smile to Ryan.

They walked together to the coat room and then out to the parking lot.

"Ryan, it's been a pleasure meeting you and I hope to see you again. Thanks for keeping Vicky company so that I could rest my older bones."

Vicky giggled and Ryan smiled. "My pleasure Ben."

Methos went out and got the car to bring up to the front door so that Vicky and Ryan could say their goodnights. On the way home, Vicky chattered non-stop, a wind down of her excitement level.

Methos went into the house with her and stayed for a couple more hours as Vicky told her mother all about the dance, Ryan, and the kids she'd met and made friends with. It was after midnight when Methos said his goodnights and returned to his hotel.

Methos slept in until midmorning before he showered, dressed and ate a room service breakfast. He drove over to Vicky's house and went with the family to Nate's soccer game. It ended up being two games and then they followed the team to a pizza place and stayed for several hours. Methos parted from the family and returned to his hotel to relax and prepare to fly out in the morning. Albert met him at the airport.

"How did it go?" Methos asked as the co-pilot closed up the small jet in preparation for take-off.

"Allan and Sam were receptive. Rocky was very helpful at convincing them that the Watchers were okay."

Methos nodded, Rocky had met Albert in Greece so Methos hadn't anticipated any issues with Rocky supporting the Watchers request to put Watchers on Allan and Sam. They'd both agreed as long as they always felt that they still had their privacy and the Watchers were there as support and help if needed. Albert had been the Watcher asked to perform this first contact since he'd been watching 'Ben' for years now and had already met Rocky and Chloe.

They were back in Seattle in a few hours, choosing to stay with Mac overnight before making the last leg home.

The following Monday Vicky went to school with a lighter feeling, knowing that she had some new friends, a potential for a closer relationship with Ryan, and fun memories of her first dance at this school.

**

Methos was brushing one of the horses when Albert found him. Albert picked up a soft brush and moved to the other horse in the cross ties and began to brush.

"The family that was stranded by their rental boat and a teacher at Vicky's high school have googled Benjamin Adams." He said, trying not to reflect his concern in his tone of voice. Only Methos could have given any of these people enough clues to be able to link him to Immortal Benjamin Adams.

"I thought they might."

Albert waited for Methos to add more but when he didn't, Albert felt as if he had to ask. "Why? I've seen you go hours without giving out your name just by redirecting the conversation or answering a question with a question."

Albert began to think that Methos wouldn't answer his direct question when Methos surprised him.

"An archeologist in Rome has found a gladiator training site and more alarming, an undisturbed room with relics in it. One of the relics is a sword with my fingerprint on it. They sent it to Interpol and the fingerprint came up as a match to Benjamin Adams."

Albert stepped away from the horse in an alert posture. "Benjamin Adams isn't old enough to have his fingerprint on a Gladiator sword."

"Precisely. We're heading for Rome on Friday; the others will meet us there. We'll fly private charter and we'll use false passports. Ben Adams now has a couple of sightings here in the States if I need them. The time will be blurred enough that I can bring them up if I need to."

**

Rome: Several months earlier:

Dr. Sean Reed grinned from ear to ear when he looked around the until recently sealed room his team of archeology students had found on their dig. Months before, several older and unsafe buildings had been demolished so that a modern building could be built. When excavations occurred, it was not unexpected that once the rubble had been removed and excavation for the new building foundation had been started that some evidence of ancient buildings would be revealed. The ground under most of Rome constantly revealed treasures of the ancient past. Construction crews took this fact in consideration when setting their construction schedules. Once something was uncovered, the government would assign a trusted and respected group to come in and capture the history and relics before releasing the site to the construction crew.

This site had revealed what looked like a Gladiator training facility. The writings and wall murals revealed this theme along with several Gladiator names that were already recorded in other documents of the time. This particular chamber appeared to have been sealed long before the training facility had been abandoned. Because of this, the room's treasure cache of weapons was undisturbed. The room had held many baskets of dull practice weapons along with some armor that were in less preserved condition. The most valuable relics were in several stone caskets. The weapons in these caskets had been well oiled and stored with materials to pull the moisture away from the metals. There was only slight rust and corrosion on these treasures.

Dr. Reed knelt by one of these caskets with several of his students. He excitedly pulled on a pair of white cloth gloves he had tucked in his shoulder pouch. Carefully he shifted aside the fragile cloth protecting the topmost sword and lifted the Gladius that had been concealed.

"It's beautiful, and well preserved!" he observed. He shifted it to a single hand and rotated his wrist to feel the short but deadly blade's balance.

He let the kid in him play with the sword for a minute before he brought it closer to take a better look at it.

"There's a name etched in the leather wraps on the hilt, Remus."

"He's on the list." One of the assistants commented after quickly scanning the clipboard she held. "There was only one Remus listed, a Gladiator that won his freedom. He also drove a chariot for the Blue Team. He's mentioned several times as a crowd pleaser. He disappeared from the lists a couple of years after he won his freedom."

Excited about the find and eager to look at the other contents of the casket, Dr. Reed shifted his hold on the sword and extended it towards another student wearing white cloth gloves.

"Cool! This sword's condition is incredible; it doesn't look like it was put aside thousands of years ago." After a pause, the student exclaimed, "there is even a distinct fingerprint on it!"

"Wow!" another student exclaimed while peeking over the shoulder of the student with the sword. "I have a friend in Criminology classes; wouldn't it be cool to load this fingerprint into the database?"

Dr. Reed chuckled, "Go for it; that will be the first time a Roman Gladiator appeared in the INTERPOL database. We can make that part of the documentation process, Remus, occupation: Gladiator."

That said, the group continued to examine the contents of the caskets.

One month later:

"I'm serious; your Roman Gladiator, Remus is in the database, as an Immortal named Benjamin Adams. He was fingerprinted by the government when he was captured and tortured like a lab rat for years."

"Oh my god! He's still alive, that's incredible!" The student was thrilled to hear the Gladiator's print belonged to an Immortal that was still alive and discarded the rest of the information that had been relayed. Thanking their friend, the student hurried to a phone to call the professor.

Dr. Reed was also excited by the news. "This is BIG. We need to have the sword authenticated by an independent expert, get a forensic expert to validate the fingerprint, get INTERPOL to validate their database…what are the chances that the fingerprint we find belongs to an Immortal still living in this day and age! He's thousands of years old!"

It took another month for the validations to happen. Dr. Reed and his students were diligent and determined to get their proof so that they could approach the Immortal. They anticipated hearing about Benjamin Adam's experiences as a Gladiator in Ancient Rome. It never once occurred to them that Benjamin Adams might not be as excited about their discovery as they were.

Present:

Albert brought Methos a cup of coffee and sat down beside him in the sitting area of the Watcher safe house. The oldest Immortal and Albert had been flown in on a Watcher jet and were staying at a secret location so that there was no trace of their arrival. They might want to deny that they had been in Europe. The rest of Methos' Watcher security entourage had been waiting for them at the safe house when they arrived.

The Watcher organization had been petitioned by Professor Reed wanting to contact Immortal Benjamin Adams. After hearing what Professor Reed wanted, the Tribunal had contacted Methos who had already known about the excavation. After collecting updated details on the excavation from the Watchers who had been monitoring the site, Methos planned an anonymous visit.

The next morning Methos and his Watchers joined the other interested bystanders and tourists at the fence overlooking the excavation site.

Several large poster boards showed photographs of the team at work, the first shots of the discoveries, later shots of the site after the rooms and relics had been revealed, and lastly, some of the treasures found.

Methos' sharp eyes spotted the picture of the stone casket with his name on it. A caption of the picture said that it belonged to a Gladiator named Remus and contained weapons in an excellent state of preservation.

A couple of students assigned to the dig sat at a table to the side of the main overlook area. They answered questions and gave brief historical lectures on what the site and relics had been used for.

Methos moved closer to a group of tourists that were standing at the table asking questions.

"So what is so special about this site if most of Rome has these old buildings?" A bored teenager asked.

Oblivious to the slight sarcasm, one of the students answered enthusiastically. "This site is special because we've found validation that the Gladiators recorded to have fought in the Coliseum actually trained here. One of the rooms contained a treasure trove of their weapons."

The other student jumped in with what the excavation team considered the most exciting bit of information, "We pulled a fingerprint off one of the relics and discovered that the owner was actually an Immortal that is still alive today! This site has the potential of being a landmark find in that a living witness can describe what we've found and fill in the details thousands of years after that same person had last stood in this place."

Methos mentally groaned at the archeology team's determination to contact the Immortal despite the Watcher's efforts to discourage them. Methos did not want Remus and Benjamin Adams to be identified as the same person or his actual identity might be in jeopardy.

When the group had returned to the safe house, Methos contacted the Tribunal.

"Dr. Reed has been adamant that he wants to get contact information for Benjamin Adams, or find out where he is so that he can contact him directly.

He argues that as a public Immortal, there shouldn't be any issues that prevent him from talking to Benjamin Adams and he's threatening to just go public with his information."

Methos was irritated at the blackmail attempt. Sometimes he missed the days when it was acceptable to just order someone's death. "Tell Dr. Reed that Benjamin says that he touched the relic in the 1800's when all kinds of scavengers were excavating relics and selling them to museums. He and a group of like-minded fellows resealed the room to protect the relics and to keep opportunists away from them. Benjamin Adams denies the allocation that he is as old as Dr. Reed implies."

"The building on top of it was older than the 1800's."

"We had a tunnel underneath. The excavation destroyed the upper building and Dr. Reed's group destroyed the seal so they can't prove I wasn't there when I say I was."

"He's managed to convince a few others in the field that the sword is legitimate."

"The sword is legitimate but the fingerprint was added much later. No technology exists that can determine the age of a fingerprint." Methos said casually, thinking he would give Amanda a call and promise her a pretty trinket in exchange for a little midnight excursion to the museum to make the sword disappear.

"I think Dr. Reed's disregard of Ben Adam's wishes deserves a little payback to disrupt his conclusions." Methos said after a momentary pause.

"Did you want me to check the Watchers for someone that could do this?" Albert offered.

"I think Adam Pierson might be the man for the job." Methos said with a smirk.

In support of Methos' plan to deal with this problem, the Tribunal ordered their facilities put at his disposal.

Methos and his Watcher entourage passed through the lobby of Watcher Head Quarters and were quickly escorted to the situation room.

Kathleen Huber was one of a dozen administrative assistants at Watcher Head Quarters. At 27 she didn't consider herself anything but average. She lived with her mother, had no siblings, did routine administrative tasks and wasn't authorized to view any of the more classified Watcher documents. She didn't have the security clearance to view any of the files that were kept in the great vaults in the other buildings. She knew who she worked for and their purpose in observing Immortals, but that wasn't a part of her life. Immortals were still the never seen celebrities of the outside world.

The day had been routine up until the point where the European Director led a group of men in dark suits swiftly through the room.

Kathleen returned to her filing but speculated on who the men in suits might have been. It had been rumored that auditors were expected to review the financial records, that was probably who they were. She'd seen one of the men looking at her as he walked across the room. She'd blushed at first, not able to think of a reason he might have been looking at her exclusively. She shrugged and mentally told herself that he had been looking at someone else.

Dressed in a dark suit like the others in his entourage, Methos had been briskly escorted to the situation room in an effort to reduce his exposure. Methos was amused at the subterfuge since every eye in the room looked up and watched them walk across the room, so much for invisibility! Near the aisle that he was led down, he spotted a woman with lovely brown hair and deer brown eyes. There was something about her. He looked over to her several times as he crossed the room with the group.

In the situation room, they tapped into the databases that they planned to alter. With the help of the Watcher hackers, Methos sent an updated data file to Interpol to replace what they had. Interpol would find the original data if they went into the archives, but surface checks wouldn't reveal the switch of data. After the data transfer, the room's noise level became normal as they waited for a server in New York to go down for maintenance. They had altered the pending data packet that would be uploaded when the server came back on line.

Having nothing to do now that they were in waiting mode, Methos decided to go see the woman he'd spotted in the secretary pool and get her name. Followed by Albert, he left the situation room using the excuse of a stretch and to get coffee. Seeing that she was at her desk he waived off Albert and walked to her desk, smiling when she looked up at him.

"May I bother you for directions to coffee?" He asked pleasantly.

Kathleen blushed when she recognized the man who had gone into the situation room. She nervously shuffled some papers on her desk, and didn't notice his eyes scanning the items on her desk.

Methos cataloged the things on her desk, her name, refreshment preferences, and type of work she did and spotted a postcard on her desk from Greece. She cleared her throat and pointed to the far right of the room where the refreshments were kept. Not really wanting the coffee, Methos used the postcard to initiate a conversation. He introduced himself as Adam Pierson since he'd planned for Adam to be seen here in Europe while Benjamin Adams remained in the United States.

She responded that her mother had vacationed in Greece with some elderly friends. Taking that offering, Methos sat in the visitor's chair at her desk and commented about his last visit there along with several antidotes that kept her interest. Kathleen became more animated while talking about her mother's trip.

Albert put his hand to his ear to block out external noise when he heard an update on his earphones. He walked several rows up from where Methos sat so that Methos would see him. When he knew that Methos had spotted him he said quietly, "New York is on line." Albert said vaguely.

Methos nodded and excused himself. They returned to the situation room and monitored the data packet updates. By the time they come out of the room, the administrative assistants including Kathleen had gone to lunch. Not having a reason for hanging around, Methos returned to the safe house. He pulled up his laptop and searched the Watcher database for information on Kathleen.

Methos' check confirmed that Kathleen wasn't married, had a small flat and a small but adequate income. Her mother lived with her but often traveled with a senior's group.

The next afternoon, Methos took a couple hours and went to the market near Kathleen's home and as he anticipated, saw her mother shopping for groceries for the evening meal. He initiated a conversation with her and was invited back to the flat. He helped the mother prepare some Greek food for her daughter. He was prepared to leave before she got home but the mother insisted he stay to eat the food he had helped to prepare.

When Kathleen got home she was surprised to see the man she'd talked to at Watcher Head Quarters. They had a pleasant dinner and Methos excused himself early when Kathleen's mother started to yawn. The next morning Methos and his entourage went into Head Quarters to follow up on the Interpol files prior to approaching Dr. Reed. After Methos had done what he needed in the situation room, he eagerly approached Kathleen with the thought of asking her for coffee in prelude to asking her out on a date.

Kathleen stood up as soon as he stopped beside her desk. "Look, I appreciate you cooking with my mother last night, but I don't want you to do it again. My mother is very trusting and vulnerable and I don't want you around her."

Methos was silent for a moment as he thought about how his actions had been misinterpreted. "I'm sorry you feel that way, I talked with her and she invited me back to your flat."

"That's another thing, what were you doing talking to my mother, its creepy! That's like a stalker."

Ouch! Methos thought and tucked his emotions away. "I apologize. I was interested in getting to know you better. I had no intentions of making you or your mother uncomfortable. I can see my interest is unwanted and in the future I will keep my distance." Methos stepped back from Kathleen and started to walk out of the room. He saw Albert start towards him but he raised his hand and indicated that he needed a moment or two alone. Albert froze in his steps and sadly watched Methos leave the room.

Albert couldn't help the glare he gave the young woman. She was still standing in a posture of anger with her hands were on her hips and a glare in the direction Methos had walked. Albert spotted Dr. Amy Zoll moving intently towards the woman.

Zoll gave Albert an acknowledging nod before she concentrated her full attention on the woman. The woman had resumed her seat, still huffing in irritation. Zoll approached her desk and sat in the guest chair beside the woman's desk.

"I'm Dr. Amy Zoll, the head researcher in the Paris office." She said as an introduction.

Kathleen put her hands on her desk and turned her concentration from her irritation and to the doctor. "How may I help you, Dr. Zoll?"

"Oh I don't need anything. I just wanted to get a closer look at the most foolish woman I've ever met."

"Excuse me?" Kathleen asked in surprise. What was this stranger thinking, calling her foolish?

Zoll nodded. "You weren't very discrete with your temper tantrum and you obviously don't know much about the company you work for."

"It wasn't a temper tantrum; I was telling a stalker that I would report him if he didn't leave me alone." The woman growled, irritated that she felt like she had to defend herself. What did the pompous Doctor Zoll know about anything!

"It was a temper tantrum." Dr. Zoll said. She tipped her head and considered how to explain the woman's foolishness to her. "We've had some very important visitors here the past few days."

"I know that." The woman said, trying to relate the doctor calling her a fool and telling the stalker to bug off. Then she realized that the man she'd told off was a part of the group that had been taken into the situation room. Her eyes widened. "Am I going to be fired for telling a stranger to leave me alone?"

Zoll shook her head no. "He'd never insist on it and he'd react negatively if anyone tried to do anything about it." When the woman looked unconvinced Zoll continued. "The man you so rudely called a stalker and insulted is one of the Immortals this organization was created to record and observe."

The woman put her hand to her mouth in horror. "He's an Immortal?" Her stomach tightened into a hard ball.

Zoll nodded. "Most Immortals are very reclusive and uncomfortable around Watchers because we know who and what they are. Immortals that get to be a couple of centuries old get very jaded and if they see something special in you, you are being given a great compliment. That he approached you, a Watcher, was something very rare and special."

"And I called him a stalker and told him to leave me alone." Kathleen said in a quiet, distressed voice.

"You did." Zoll stood and shook her head at the woman, her look pitying. "The compliment of a lifetime; so foolish."

Zoll walked to Albert and patted his shoulder.

Albert turned his back on the stupid woman, "He can do much better than the likes of her." He practically snarled. He turned and went in the direction that Methos had taken. He found the immortal pacing outside; Albert kept a polite distance to give Methos privacy.

Methos had walked far enough to get out of the Watcher building and distance himself from Kathleen. He paced slowly as he thought about the woman's anger. He'd been too confident and had scared her without meaning to. These modern women didn't respect aggression or forwardness despite their liberal tendencies. Woman still wanted to be wooed and romanced. Perhaps he needed to do some research before he tried that again, maybe a degree in Psychiatry was in order? He smiled as he remembered his awkward first steps with Alexa Bond. He was too old for such foolish eagerness but it was refreshing to feel again.

Methos looked at Albert who was hovering a safe distance away. Albert wouldn't have missed the woman's dismissal of him and without a doubt his watcher was simmering in indignation for 'his immortal' being rejected. Having another personal cheer leader amused Methos.

A movement at the lobby doors drew Methos' attention from his musings. It was Kathleen, ashen faced and nervous. Methos sighed; someone had told her what he was.

She glanced nervously at Albert who continued to glare at her before she approached Methos cautiously. She stopped a few feet from him and twisted her hands nervously. She looked at him imploringly, probably terrified that she'd be punished or lose her job for rejecting him.

"I'm very sorry for being rude to you sir. I wasn't thinking clearly." She said, not meeting his eyes.

"You don't need to apologize for being honest. I'm sorry I scared you and made you feel uncomfortable."

"Perhaps we could talk over coffee?" She offered, still not meeting his eyes.

"No, thank you. I can see that you are still uncomfortable. I assure you, there is no penalty for saying No to a man who makes unwanted advances."

"I didn't know who you were…"

Methos raised a hand to stop her next words. "I didn't want you to know what and who I am. People treat me differently when they know. I'm vain enough to want to be accepted for myself."

"The coffee offer is still good." She said, finally meeting his eyes.

Methos smiled and shook his head no again. "I'm afraid we've passed that point. I saw something special in you and hoped to get to know you. But your earlier reaction was an honest one. I don't want you to feel obligated or pressured to humor me. My ego is capable of hearing No." Methos held his smile so that she would relax. "I've nearly completed my work here and I'll be returning to Paris. Please, forgive my attentions and trust that this ends the matter in my mind."

Albert had moved close enough to the two to overhear the conversation. He waved their driver forward and their rented SUV pulled up to the curb near Methos.

Methos nodded to Kathleen and got into the passenger side of the vehicle, ending the conversation.

Albert hurried to get into the back seat and patted the driver to tell him to drive off.

Methos didn't look back as the SUV left Watcher headquarters.

Kathleen stared after the SUV long after it was gone from sight. She wished that she had never gotten out of bed this morning! She was sure that she was going to lose her job over this, and if she didn't, she'd be the subject of office gossip for months if not longer.

Kathleen had been blissfully ignorant of the visitors, but the office grape vine hadn't been so lax. When Kathleen returned to her desk she saw the disbelieving looks of her co-workers that apparently agreed with Dr. Zoll's assessment that she was a very foolish girl to have rejected the Immortal's attentions. In retrospect, she had been a drama queen about the whole thing. Kathleen's mother's praising of the man who'd introduced himself as Adam Pierson had made her uncomfortable. She didn't date because her previous dates had been displeased with her taking care of and sharing a flat with her mother. They'd encouraged or dropped hints that her mother should be in a home for the elderly.

Adam had been the opposite, talking with her mother and always including her in the conversation. Her mother had been his strongest advocate this morning when she'd gotten ready for work. It must have been his approach before she'd worked it out in her mind that set her off. She hadn't had enough time to process his attention. Although, he hadn't been outwardly pressuring her if she had to be completely honest with herself. He'd merely approached her for conversation. The pressure had been self inflicted because she didn't believe anyone would want to be in a relationship with her; she wasn't pretty, she wasn't rich, she took care of her mother and wasn't in any way special.

The Immortal's words came back to haunt her. He'd said that he'd seen something special in her. He'd picked her out of a room full of Administrators. Dr. Zoll had said nearly the same thing.

She forced herself to return to her desk and go through the motions of returning to work. She had the sinking feeling in her gut that something incredibly precious had just passed her by.

She didn't know it, but the room full of people was thinking very much the same thing.

Ready to implement his plan, Methos arranged to visit the excavation site again.

Dressed in faded jeans and a university tee shirt, Methos approached a bored female student at the information table.

Methos introduced himself as Adam Pierson, a student of ancient studies. He asked many questions about the dig and the things they'd found, and easily drew the woman into a long conversation about the time period to reinforce that he was what he claimed. When the young woman dropped her careful responses and accepted him, Methos directed the conversation back to the relics.

"A friend of mine was here a few weeks ago and said that one of the swords belonged to an Immortal that is still alive?" Methos said, leading the conversation where he wanted it to be.

She nodded. "We haven't been able to get a hold of him. The Watchers won't give out information on Immortals still living. Dr. Reed has requested the Watchers contact the Immortal on his behalf. It would be so cool to get a chance to hear from someone that had actually been in Ancient Rome."

Methos sighed in a daydreamer sort of way. "Is he big and muscular? He must be big like a wrestler or a football player if he was a gladiator."

The young woman smiled at the goofy smile that Adam Pierson had on his face. "A few of us thought too, but when we 'googled' him to see if he was a gorgeous Brad Pitt kind of guy, we could only find a few grainy distance shots of him. He was one of the Immortals that the U.S. was doing medical experiments on. Later he was 'outted' at some medical college in England. In those pictures he was wearing glasses and a hat. He didn't look very buff to me, but then again, he was standing next to Duncan MacLeod." She paused and fantasized on Duncan MacLeod for a moment before continuing.

"Later Adams was in the news again when he was shot at an attack at the United Nations building. The report blurred his face or he was sitting in shadow. He still looked kind of scrawny when they showed him being rescued not too long ago. Of course, the guys that kidnapped him had removed his heart a couple of times so I don't imagine any Immortal would look very healthy after that. Then Hollywood made that movie about the four immortals that were tortured. He was at the awards ceremony with the actors that played the immortals but even those pictures were at a distance or blurred. You'd think Hollywood could take better pictures than that!"

"So what makes you think this scrawny guy is the same as the gladiator, I mean, it doesn't sound very plausible that they could be the same. Mr. Adams sounds like he's more academic than athletic."

"The sword is dated to the right century, his finger print was pretty clear, and INTERPOL confirmed that it was Adam's. It does sound kind of strange that they are the same. Remus, the Gladiator, was praised as being like a super athlete and earned his freedom by being undefeated in the arena. Later, he kicked butt in the chariot races. Maybe he's more imposing in person." She shrugged.

Methos saw Dr. Reed approaching the table. They'd never met and the pictures of Benjamin Adams were distorted as soon as the Watchers found them. Dr. Reed showed no signs of recognition.

"Pamela, how is it going? I saw that you've had a visitor for the past hour." Dr. Reed said, fishing to see if Pamela was being harassed or flirted with.

Methos smiled and introduced himself as Adam Pierson. "This is so very interesting. I haven't been to an actual dig yet, the program at the University doesn't do that until our third year."

Dr. Reed smiled at the young man with the earnest expression. Good looking in a classical way, he thought to himself.

Research into Dr. Reed had given Methos enough information about Dr. Reed's preferences so that Methos would be able to easily manipulate him. With innocent pleading eyes and being touchy-feely while they discussed the find, it was simple to convince Dr. Reed to give Adam Pierson a personal tour of the actual site and the relics.

Dr. Reed moved his hand from a comradely touch on Methos' shoulder to the small of his back to direct him towards the site. The two of them were soon in the large tent that held the tables and crates of site relics. Methos made a point of touching several of the relics to get his fingerprints everywhere.

"Pamela said that you had one sword in particular that you were excited about." Methos said.

"Yes, a Gladius with the gladiator's fingerprint on it. When we submitted the print to INTERPOL, we had a hit. It belongs to an Immortal that is still alive today. He's been in the news recently, Benjamin Adams."

"But how could that be? Pamela said the Immortal wasn't supposed to be that old." Methos finished.

"That's what the Watcher record says, but our evidence indicates that Adams is much older than he admits. We're trying to get the Watchers to contact Adams or let us contact him."

"I don't think you'll get anywhere. If it were me, I wouldn't like it if it became public knowledge that I'd had to kill other slaves for the enjoyment of the Roman public." Methos said in a confused but sympathetic manner.

"Why would that matter now? It's been thousands of years." Dr. Reed stated, not understanding why an Immortal wouldn't want to tell his story to interested people.

"Think about it, Gladiators were slaves until they earned their freedom, if they lived that long. Why would anyone want to be reminded of that? Besides, there are groups out there today that would hold something like this against an Immortal. It makes all of them look bad."

"That wouldn't be the case. This is an Immortal that was around when the Romans ruled the earth! The recording of history is more important than the few groups that would make a stink of it."

"I'm sure the Immortal and the Watchers don't feel the same way."

"They should. It is their obligation to help us uncover the truth and share the facts of everyday life back then. It's even part of their motto: to observe and record the truth and history of Immortals."

Methos put down the pottery bowl that he'd been holding. "I'm on the Immortal's side. Rome at the time of the sword was a violent and ugly place. The Watchers and the Immortals won't want this dragged out into the public eye."

The professor looked at him in disappointment. "This is my site and I'll decide what is revealed and what isn't. My benefactors and sponsors haven't expressed any hesitations."

"If they really don't want this to get out, you risk being publicly discredited." Methos said gently as he picked up another relic.

"The Watchers can't do that, the sword has been dated and the fingerprint was confirmed by INTERPOL."

"That may be true, but you can't verify when the fingerprint was put on the sword." Methos said. He discreetly slid a hand into his pocket and pressed a button on his phone to make it ring. He pretended to view a text message. "I've got to be going Professor, thank you for the tour. Good luck with your site." Methos turned and left the tent.

Dr. Reed followed and watched Adam Pierson as he walked from the site. Something felt strange about Adam's last words.

Several blocks away and out of sight of the dig, Methos got into the dark sedan that the Watchers had waiting for them. His cell phone rang.

"I've got it honey. Its someplace safe until you tell me you want it back."

"Thanks Amanda. I'll pick it up next time I'm in your neighborhood. I owe you a nice dinner out at the place of your choice so dress up, something to make that ruby necklace stand out."

Amanda laughed. "I'd have done it just because, but I'll take the dinner and the necklace."

"I know you would have, but I'll get the pleasure of your company while you tell me all about how you got past the Museum's security."

Methos heard Amanda's pleased laughter as he ended the call.

Dr. Reed slammed the phone down in frustration. The Watchers were sticking with their story of Benjamin's exposure to the relics in the 1800's and denying any responsibility for the missing sword. He turned to the group of students that filled any available space in the tiny office and met each of their eyes in turn.

"I don't know what else to try. Even Interpol says their provenance was based on matching the fingerprint, not what era it came from."

One of the students spoke up. "In all of the interviews with him, Benjamin Adams didn't seem like an asshole; couldn't we try to contact him again?"

"The Watchers were quite adamant that Adams didn't want to talk about the site publicly." Dr. Reed said petulantly.

"Maybe…" another student started out tentatively. "Maybe that's where we're approaching this wrong."

"What do you mean?" Asked another student. "Either he goes public as Remus or he admits that he was here in the 1800's. He probably has a warehouse full of valuable relics he salvaged and doesn't want to admit to taking them."

"I don't think he's that kind of a creep. We know Benjamin Adams went public only because he had to. The government kidnapped and tortured him, he lost his identity for a year, he had to leave Medical College, he was shot during an anti-immortal attack at the UN, and he was kidnapped again and his heart was stolen several times. Duh! He's terrified of any kind of publicity."

"Yeah, it's been one thing after another in the past ten years or so." Another student offered.

Dr. Reed nodded slowly, "I see where you're going with this. He may not want to revisit his days as a Gladiator slave because he didn't want to be blamed for killing other Gladiators for the amusement of Roman Senators. He's had so many terrible things happen to him and he probably believes this will come back on him." Dr. Reed said, remembering the conversation with Adam Pierson.

"Can we get him to tell us what he knows if we don't expose him as Remus?" A student asked.

"What good would it do us to do that? We have to validate and cite our sources in order to publish what we discover. We couldn't use any of it."

"But WE would know." An idealistic student said.

"That won't get us a passing grade." An angry student said.

"There has to be a way…" Dr. Reed said looking around the group.

Dr. Reed looked at the handwritten invitation again, wondering what it could possibly mean to have Dr. Amy Zoll, a Watcher Researcher invite him to lunch.

He hoped that it meant that Dr. Zoll was willing to feed him information in the name of science despite the stance the Watchers were taking as an organization. More likely Zoll was going to warn him off.

He arrived at the small outdoor café and spotted the middle-aged woman he recognized from her publicity picture. He'd looked her up and discovered that Dr. Zoll had been a museum curator who had worked with Roman Immortal Marcus Constantine before his death. She spoke several times a year at Ancient Studies seminars. He joined her at her table.

"Dr. Zoll, It's a pleasure to meet you in person, I hope the pleasure won't turn into a travesty." Dr. Reed said, hoping to bypass the social pleasantries and get right to the point. He wasn't going to waste an hour only to hear that Zoll wasn't going to cooperate.

"Direct, I respect that. I hope what I've got to say will be good news for you."

"Oh? Benjamin Adams has agreed to go public as Remus the Gladiator?"

"No. Dr. Adams is very adamant that he's not the Immortal that you're looking for."

"Then I don't see what we have to talk about." Dr. Reed said and leaned back in his chair.

"In the interest of cooperation I've come to offer a compromise."

"There's nothing to compromise on."

"There's always something to compromise on. The Watchers have existed for thousands of years, observing Immortals through the years. We've recorded what we could, but there's still so much more that we don't know. Very few Immortals are willing to talk about their history. Like Remus, they fear retribution for past sins."

"The statue of limitations can hardly hold them accountable for what was done back in ancient Rome." Dr. Reed said sarcastically.

"Actually, it can. The statute of limitations doesn't apply to Murder. If you continue to press the issue Adams will keep to his story of innocence and deniability, and you get nothing and your credibility is jeopardized. On the other hand, we can negotiate or compromise."

Dr. Reed gritted his teeth to hold back his anger. His validation case for Adams being Remus was falling apart. If Adams kept to his story and got public opinion on his side, Reed's credibility would be suspect and that could cost him his funding. "What are you offering?" Dr. Reed asked, not believing that it was a true offer or anything that he'd want.

"The Watchers have access to several very old Immortals. It might be possible to convince them to give a presentation to you and some of your staff, as well as other experts in the field. The presentation would be closed to the public, but using our chronicles, the Watchers could authenticate the sources under their names during that time frame. One of the conditions would need to be the anonymity of the sources themselves. They don't want to be known publicly."

Intrigued, Dr. Reed leaned forward. "What would the presentation consist of?"

"A personal presentation of what life was like in ancient Rome by Immortals that lived then, a viewing of authentic relics that are the personal property of the Sources, the chance to ask questions of the sources, and the Watcher's validation of the sources."

"A show and tell by Immortals who lived in Ancient Rome?" Dr. Reed restated, leaning back in his chair and rubbing his chin as he thought through the implications of this gift. And Dr. Reed had no doubts that it would be a gift. No ancient Immortals had come public.

"And the Watchers would authenticate the sources." Dr. Zoll stated, seeing that Dr. Reed was weakening his defiant stance.

"Could we use questions that would validate our site?" Reed queried, thinking about the other relics at his site that were now in jeopardy since Benjamin Adam's fingerprints were now mysteriously on many of the site pieces. After the Gladius dispute, Dr. Reed had gotten nervous and had the other items checked for fingerprints, and they'd found them even on items that were not as old as the Gladius.

"That would be up to the sources, if they felt it put their identity at risk, they might decline to comment." Amy shrugged, "but if they did answer in a way that validated your site and findings, it would be the best kind of resource; a first hand observation from an expert."

Reed nodded. "When is the presentation scheduled for and how many can I invite?"

"Two weeks from now if that's acceptable. Send me a list of who you want to invite and we'll run a background check on them. If they pass the security checks, I'll issue them an invitation. The Watchers will be recording the event, but no other electronic devices will be allowed. We don't want to irritate our sources; we hope to convince them to try this again if we find it was a success."

"If you keep to the terms you've mentioned here, I agree." Dr. Reed said.

Dr. Reed felt as giddy as a school boy when he walked past the security check at the Coliseum. He'd had to surrender his cell phone, watch, wallet and everything else in his pockets. The serious looking security guard had scanned him with a handheld device that found every metal rivet in his clothing. A final walk through an x-ray trellis and he was inside. Just standing in this ancient structure made him feel like he was going back in time. The walls were crumbling and the coliseum flooring was missing in many places but the feeling still invoked a timelessness that filled him with the sense of history.

Dr. Reed followed the plastic stanchions draped with velvet cords that led towards an area that had chairs set up in neat rows. After submitting his invitation list and their subsequent security checks, Dr. Reed had been allowed to include nine students in addition to himself. A quick count of the chairs indicated that there would be ten other experts attending. Dr. Reed chose a chair in the center front and sat down. His students began to trickle into the coliseum and took seats around his position. Other familiar faces began to take seats; experts in their fields. He'd taken classes they'd taught, or listened to their lectures. They nodded politely to him when they noticed his attention was on them.

No one wanted to be late for this event, so the seats were quickly filled. Reed watched as security people with guns and radios took up positions. The anticipation of the group spiked when Dr. Zoll came from a partitioned area with two men, one dressed in Gladiator fighting gear, his head and face covered by a helmet that looked well used. The other dressed in gear more representative of what a soldier would have worn with a decorative helmet that concealed most of his face. Both were armed as they would have been if they had fought or marched in Rome's name.

"Welcome to you all, I'm glad you could make it. We have two special guests with us today but before I introduce them, I want to remind you that the use of any electronic devices will be grounds for immediate expulsion. Our guests insist on this in exchange for their time and knowledge."

"Without further delay, let me introduce our speakers as they were known in the past. Our first speaker was a Roman soldier who marched against Britannia. He visited this very coliseum many times as a spectator before he followed his legion to what is now Great Britain. He'll tell us his thoughts and impressions of this time."

"Our next speaker is a man who fought here as a slave. The clothing they are wearing and the weapons they carry are authentic to this time period. Please hold your questions until they ask for them."

Amy moved to a place on the side where she could watch but not get in the way. The two immortals looked at each other and slapped their fisted hands to their chests as a salute to each other. The soldier stepped forward first, his voice clear enough to be heard with the small microphone that he was wearing.

At the first words it was clear that the microphone had a voice distorter on it, hiding the immortal's real voice.

The soldier was not as tall as today's average man, but he had a barrel chest and broad shoulders that reflected strength. His stance and confident movements convinced the audience that he had been a Roman soldier.

The soldier talked about his childhood in Ancient Rome. His foster father had been a soldier and there hadn't been any doubt in his mind that he would follow in those footsteps. He talked about the belief in the Gods, the politics of the military, and his belief that Rome was the greatest power in the world. He talked about his first death in battle and his Immortal teacher who was a blacksmith for the army. He talked of his continued support of Rome, as a soldier who would stay for a few decades before leaving only to return several decades later. He looked at the Gladiator several times as he told his tale, as if at that point he was sharing a common story with the Gladiator. He ended his story with his service in Julius Cesar's army. He talked of being killed in Alexandria and on his way out of Egypt he'd met a woman and settled down. It was several centuries before he was tempted to return to Rome and it was no longer the glory that he remembered. He traveled to other countries and only visited Rome infrequently after that.

He took questions for the next half hour. At a signal from Dr. Zoll that his time was up, he stepped back to his original position and saluted the Gladiator.

The Gladiator stepped forward, helmet also hiding his features. He was taller than the Roman soldier, broad of shoulder but not as stocky. His arms and legs were encased in leather braces that hid most of his body, but that let enough show through to indicate that he was muscled steel even if he wasn't bulky. His voice was also distorted.

"When I was a gladiator, I defied Rome with all that I was. I was taken prisoner and forced to fight for the entertainment of Romans. I was already immortal, so I eventually staged my death to escape. I was thrown out with the other dead slaves and when I revived, I escaped to Thrace. I was recaptured and escaped several times before being sent here to this coliseum. I fought here for many years."

The Gladiator was Methos, but he didn't want to tell the parts of the story that matched what Dr. Reed and his group had discovered. He skipped those years and referred to the other times that he'd visited Rome. Some of those times he'd had a Watcher following him and these times were covered in the second Methos chronicles. He'd returned as a merchant or advisor to many of the influential senators of Rome. He'd met or worked with many of the Caesars or leaders of Rome. He talked about the inventions and religions. He described the culture and plays from the prospective that the soldier had not been exposed to.

"This coliseum and others like it stopped representing the glory of Rome and became the symbol of her decadence. Rome may have been the great power and culture that created the roads that can still be found today, she may have created aqueducts that brought water for the great roman baths, or that powered the mills and temple tricks, or allowed the city to be decorated with fountains. But Rome was also the civilization that bathed in the artesian water that they should have been drinking instead of the lead contaminated water they used. That developed a culture that binged on disgusting and decadent foods and required vomitoriums. A dying culture that could allow promotion through murder and Gladiatorial games to the death."

"In all things you take the good with the bad. As historical scientists you want to understand history to avoid repeating the mistakes. As long as you don't make the mistake of glorifying history. Rome was great only because of the people who lived there. People like the soldiers that loved her and believed in her glory. The People that worked hard all day long and sat by the campfires or cooking hearths and told the stories of the history of their people. People like the Watchers who were a part of history, even if only as observers."

"I remember Rome, but I don't revisit it." Methos ended his prepared presentation and looked at the audience for questions.

The experts that had studied the Methos Chronicles had recognized some of the events that the speaker talked about. As soon as he indicated he was willing, he was bombarded with questions as they tried to determine if this unknown ancient Immortal was indeed Methos. He answered for half an hour before he stepped back and Dr. Zoll stepped to the center stage position.

"Thank you for your time and attention. Our guests of honor have generously loaned us relics from their past which are available for viewing behind you."

Dr. Zoll turned and followed the two guests as they walked towards a large RV that was parked nearby.

Dr. Reed tried to follow the two immortals but was stopped by the armed guards. His attempts to talk his way past the guards was coolly ignored. Dr. Reed was dismayed to see the RV pull away from the coliseum.

Methos and Troyus went to the back of the RV and changed out of their armor. Methos changed into his standard faded blue jeans and sweater. Troyus changed into the expensive wool trousers and cashmere sweater that he preferred.

They returned to the sitting area of the RV and took the drinks that Dr. Zoll offered them.

"That was a strange feeling, wearing that uniform again." Troyus, now known as Troy Kerrigan said.

"Bad memories?" Dr. Zoll asked, thrilled to be sitting here with two ancient immortals but trying hard to hide her excitement.

"No, I never had it as bad as Remus did. I knew what a soldier's life was like. I just hadn't thought about those days in so long, it was strange to think back on what it was like." He shivered. "I much prefer my wool and cashmere to the louse and flea ridden rags we wore."

Methos smiled at Troyus and they clinked their glasses together.

Dr. Zoll would have preferred if the two ancients had continued to discuss their past, but after Troyus' comments, the conversation shifted to stocks, investments, and portfolios. To her surprise, the two were partners in several investments. They drove around Rome for over an hour before the RV pulled over and Troyus got off. He hugged Methos. "Don't be a stranger, Remus." He said with a smile as he climbed into the limo that had been waiting for him.

Methos got back onto the RV and they headed for the airport. As Methos stepped out of the RV he was met by his Watchers.

Albert nodded to indicate that everything was ready. Methos turned around to face Dr. Zoll.

"You'll get my things shipped to me?" Methos asked. He didn't plan on loaning the gladiator items because his DNA was all over it. He wasn't taking any chances that it would be tracked back to him like the sword had been.

Dr. Zoll nodded. Methos had agreed that the Watchers could take pictures of the items for the archives before sending them to the address that Methos had indicated. "I'll call you in a few days to let you know how the presentation went." She said.

Methos turned and headed into the airport followed closely by his Watchers.

Dr. Zoll sighed. The presentation had gone well; the final indicator of success would be based on what Dr. Reed did. If he tried to go public with Benjamin Adams being Remus and much older than he claimed, the Watchers would discredit him. Ben Adam's fingerprints were now all over the other relics and the site itself. Dr. Reed would be ruined and Dr. Zoll couldn't be proud about her part in that. But Methos was too important. He had to be protected at all costs.

It was just as well that Methos had started a new life away from the public eye. Still, Dr. Zoll was disappointed that he wouldn't be returning to translate any more chronicles; she would kind of miss him. She didn't like him as a person, he was arrogant and irritating, but he was also a strong man that had continued to survive despite all of the horrible things that had happened to him. He was history and there was a lot that a five thousand year old man could offer.

More than ready to leave Italy, Methos and Albert returned home and got back into their routine. The Watchers kept an eye on Dr. Reed to make sure he didn't make a scene about the dig at Rome and the relics that could no longer be authenticated. The attendees of the Presentation were still ecstatic that they'd been invited to the presentation. They were begging the Watchers to continue the practice.

Albert observed his Immortal closely. Methos had had his romantic interest rejected and he'd been reminded of a less than pleasant time in his past, yet Methos acted like everything was normal and nothing painful had happened while they'd been in Rome. Methos had always been a private man but Albert found himself wishing that he knew what the Immortal was thinking and feeling after that ignorant woman had insulted him. Albert was still angry that the woman hadn't been fired, but Methos had been very clear to the European Director that the matter was closed and there were to be no retributions. Dr. Zoll had smiled and assured Albert that the Watchers would do nothing, but that the woman's peers would see their own kind of justice was enacted. That made Albert feel a little better.

Methos was spending a lot of time on his computer. Albert suspected that he was deeply entrenched in writing another book. Despite the educational aspect of some of the books Methos published, he never had any difficulty selling them to publishers. The Academic world wanted to hear everything this particular Immortal had to say, and the public bought record numbers of his books that weren't specifically for the Educational world.

Carolyn Marsh was still bugging to meet with the old Immortal so that she could write a Romance novel about 'Doc'. Albert enjoyed seeing Methos wind her up with tantalizing bits and pieces without any real meat for her to write about. She'd have to totally make something up in order to flesh out a plot, which was probably Methos' plan all along.

The writer of the Movie screenplay was still sending emails and phone calls to the Watchers in an attempt to talk Ben into another collaborative effort. The public wanted to know more about Immortals and they were especially interested in Benjamin Adams. Albert had been told that Duncan MacLeod had also been approached but had declined, he didn't want to advertise his more violent side and he had more evidence of this in his lifetime than Ben Adams had.

It worried Albert that he couldn't guess what Methos was planning. He thought that after the years they'd been together, he'd have a better idea of what went on in the Immortal's head.

Albert continued to wait for the other shoe to drop and it was with trepidation that Albert made travel plans when Methos announced one morning that he wanted visit MacLeod in Seacouver.

To be continued in Farewell and Good Luck