KPAX: Cupid It's a Wonderful Life Despite 911, a Cupid + K-PAX Crossover fanfic

KPAX: Cupid It's a Wonderful Life Despite 911

Elizabeth Hensley 8-)

The Old Cupid can be watched at you tube and some of the new Cupid can be watched at ABC's site.

Gene Brewer's 4 K-PAX books can be purchased at Amazon. This is based on just the first 3.

Notice concerning the Cupid shows I am fudging on the dates. The new Cupid supposedly only arrived in 2009. But since the show, Cupid itself is a remake and the dates have changed, I feel justified. This idea was just too good to ignore. I set it in the New York version but use some of the names for characters from the first show as the new show hasn't given them yet plus I give RT, the last name of Pierce but keep his initials. If I find out new names for these characters in the new show which hopefully will be put back on the air sometime I will change them as soon as possible. If nothing else computer animation will become so easy and cheap to do people will be doing it at home. Quite possibly within our life times it will be possible to feed a home computer program a fan fiction story and have a video come out the other end! Go far enough in the future and artificial intelligence will bring fictional characters to life. The fan fiction and other story's we write may be creating real minds and worlds and we don't even realize it!

Also note prot doesn't capitalize anything but PLANETS STARS and GALAXIES. All other names are lower case.

K-PAX: Cupid, Despite 9/11 It's a Wonderful Life

The three messages on Claire's office answering machine were the most disturbing she had ever heard.

Message 1 of 3. Claire as you know it I am very homesick. I am standing on the ledge on the roof of One Court Square. I will leave you draw your own conclusions about why I am here. But if you, and Josie do not leave your brand new office at the World Trade Center and are not here by 8:36 the consequences will be very terrible and heart rending for all of us. Please listen to next message.

Message 2 of 3. Please bring as many people from your office at the World Trade Center. The more you bring the more I will be convinced Mortals still love me. I am very upset right now! But you must be here by 8:36 using time as NASA uses time, very precise. It is very important! You must be here by 8:46! Please listen to next message.

Message 3 of 3. "Remember 8:36. I am very upset with my Father! He is not bad, not really, but he is hungry! I can't blame a tiger for eating a whole bunch of cute, little bunny rabbits, but the trouble is I am living among the Bunny Rabbits now so my viewpoint has changed! I know the god of war has to feed but does he have to feed off of Humans this close to me? End of Messages."

Claire and Josie stared at one another with grim horror.

Jaclyn said, "I thought he was doing so well!"

Claire nodded. I also. I've pretty much given up hope that his delusion would ever clear up but I was able to give him enough insight to realize just how insane he sounds. So he was learning ways to be discrete about it. And he was starting to enjoy the challenge of being a bowless Cupid. He was uniting Lovers left and right. He's good at it. And while I gave up hope of him every realizing he wasn't Cupid I thought he would get his one hundredth couple united and 'go back to Olympus' so to speak and leave the man who was using Cupid to hide behind still here for me to help."

Jaclyn's eyes were tearing over. She exclaimed, "He seemed so happy!

Claire grimaced, "He tries to be. He works hard at it. He succeeds most of the time but you know he's very ill."

"He doesn't seem to be. He's just crazy."

Claire shook her head; "Back in his past such an agonizing event happened that he so to speak committed suicide by letting another ego take over his body. I think the original ego is trying to surface again, hence his statement that, 'his father needs to feed'. I should have seen this coming!"

Jaclyn said, "Well stop the psychobabble and help me call Folks. He said the more we brought the more he would realize Mortals still loved him."

They called as many people as time would allow. It was amazing how many people were willing to drop anything they were doing and rush to Cupid's aid. He had interacted with almost every person he met in the building from the doorman to the highest executives, "trying to spread the love around.

Clair and Josie left the world Trade Center with over a hundred people. It seems everybody loves, Love.

They rushed to the subway calling out, "Follow us. Cupid is in trouble! Almost everyone knew who he was thanks to Maggie's special interest piece. It was not like the lunatic had tried to hide his delusion from anyone. Folks went to Tres Equis just to meet Cupid. It was a big draw to the Mexican Karaoke bar and restaurant. From his boss's viewpoint it would have been a bad thing if Trevor had been cured.

It was like something out of a Frank Capra movie. By the time they reached One Court Square they had a hoard of over a 500 people following them.

Clair dialed Isaac. She explained as they ran for the subway, "Out of all the orderlies Trevor really liked Isaac. He has the best chance of getting close enough to him to wrestle him away from the ledge and sedate him."

Jaclyn was the first to see him. She pointed upwards. "There he is! Oh my God! He IS going to jump!"

Claire shook her head, "I hope not. We are here. That's what he asked. We can never climb all these steps in time! The elevator must work!

Jaclyn said, "He must see all these people down here and can put two and two together.

Claire says, "In his current mental state that might not be good enough. We have to get up there so he can see WE came.

Isaac arrived then, panting from running the whole way from the subway. Claire turned to the crowd. "We are going up. Please start shouting, 'Cupid don't jump! We Love you! Cupid don't jump! We love you!' Maybe it will make a difference."

The crowd did so as they tried the elevator.

Fortunately it worked.

They swung the door to the roof open slowly and gently. "Easy!" Claire said, "We don't want to startle him and make him fall by accident."

But he heard them and swung around. A look of relief and joy came across his face. "Claire! Josie! I am so relieved you are safe! And Isaac too! Isaac I wasn't sure if you were in danger or not but it is sure wonderful to see you!"

Clair said, "Trevor please don't jump! Please talk to me. Whatever it is that suddenly made you worse, it can still be fixed. I can still help you. Please let me!"

Trevor said, "Oh no. I'm not going to jump. I have to finish my mission. I just needed you here, safe and couldn't think how else this 'madman' could get you to leave the World Trade Center instead of seeing your Patients all day long."

He turned back towards the ledge.

"Trevor! Don't!"

He looked back over his shoulder and swung his arms in the direction of the World Trade Center. "Claire, Josie, Isaac, look at where you worked! Look at it! What a magnificent structure even by our standards! Even we gods never built structures like those! Give it a good lonnnnng look! Memorize every stone, every window! Do so because in a few minutes that, will, be, all, you, have."

The three rescuers looked at one another in worried puzzlement.

Trevor continued. "We are all about to find out if I am a nut or a god. Probably both. If my Pops didn't really call me today and say 'whatever you do don't visit your Shrink's office at the World Trade Center because I'm starting a really neat war there, then I'm nuts. If the god of war really did talk to me I'm still just as nuts. But I'm right!"

Trevor growled. "I am not happy camper right now! Oh my father is not evil really, but he's hungry. Just as I live on love he lives on fear and terror and hatred and anger. He's going to feast like a big fat Boar and I'm going to just about starve!"

Clair said, "Please Trevor get away from that ledge!"

Instead Trevor said, "Isaac, I don't need my lost omnipresence to know you must have a needle full of nice soothing medication in one of your pockets. You are standing there trying to figure out how to get close enough to me to jab me with it. Well you don't have to. I am NOT going to jump. Cupid does not give up! Besides my life span is a whole lot longer than you Mortals so I would be giving up a whole lot more. I just want a good viewpoint for what is about to happen."

As he continued to talk Claire motioned to Isaac to sneak up on him. Slowly he inched towards Trevor who was so intent on watching for the coming disaster he didn't even notice. He kept rattling on.

"It is not true that we gods can't be killed. Most things cannot kill us but we can kill each other. My Grandfather for instance killed the gods who had his position. He loves me but he isn't really a nice guy and My Pops is the same, loves his family but I can hardly call him kind to others. He is the god of war and he loves his work! It's going to be real hard on me the next few days. There is hardly enough love on Earth these days for me anyway so when what happens, happens I am just about going to starve for a few days. But I know if I just hang in there for a few weeks things will improve. That's one nice thing about you Mortals and I admit it. You get over your emotional tiffs really quickly. Not us gods. We just go on and on and on and on and on and ON for all eternity! Jerry Springfield needs to do a show on Olympus sometime. He needs to do a season!"

"Oh my Mother and I TRY to calm things down. We really do but you know we are outnumbered!"

When 'what' happens? Claire was trying to keep him talking.

When the World Trade Center comes crashing down. Hey!"

Isaac had grabbed him and wrestled him to the ground. Claire herself rammed the needle in.

"Rotten trick! But you may be wanting the key it's in….." He was out like a light."

The three friends started to breath again. They stared at him, "What could have brought that on?"

Claire took off her jacket and put it under her beloved Patient's head to pillow it. She realized her face was wet with tears. "I did think he was doing so well!"

She pulled out her cell phone and dialed 911.

"What is the nature of your emergency?"

I am on the roof at One Court Square. I am a Psychiatrist. We were just successful at stopping a jumper. We have him sedated but he metabolizes medication rapidly. I need a strait jacket and a restraining stretcher up here as soon as possible."

"Understood. I'm sending them."

Jaclyn turned to Claire. "Do you think that is really necessary?"

Claire nodded grimly, "I think so. Back at Sachs-Gordon Medical Center he hardly felt the medication he was given. No matter how strong they were he was still bouncing off the walls. You know how he is. He still does it. It is rather charming actually. But I suspect what we just gave him isn't going to keep him sedated long and when he comes to I need him restrained for his own safety until I can ascertain his mental state, that he isn't' going to do something like this again."

Suddenly Isaac shouted in horror, "Look!" He pointed at a much too low flying plane.

Suddenly it was the World that had gone mad not the Lunatic.

The three friends crumpled in a heap next to their unconscious Companion, hanging on to one another for all the comfort it could bring them.

Finally Isaac spoke in wonder, "He knew! Somehow he knew! He stared at the unconscious mental Patient who was sprawled out like a rag doll a drugged smile on his lips. "Cupid you just saved our lives! Most of the People down below too. You knew! You are crazy like a Fox!"

Jaclyn's eyes grew wider as that realization hit her, "He DID know! But, how? Claire do you think he really IS a god?"

Instead of scoffing at this, as she would have just a few minutes earlier Claire said, "If he is, he needs our help far more than we need his." She stroked his forehead.

Jaclyn said, "I am so scared! If he is a god all the things I learned in Sunday school are wrong!"

Isaac said, "Not necessarily. I am interested in fine architecture. I suspect one of my ancestors might have been Imhotep the wonderful genius who designed the pyramids. So I am interested in all things ancient Egyptian. I read the Egyptian Book of the Dead. It says all the little gods make up the One Big God."

Jaclyn brightened at that, "It is like 1 Corinthians 12:27. "Do you not know that we are the Body of Christ and individually members of it?"

Isaac nodded, "Yes we are ALL part of the same Big Being. Cupid's People, us, Animals too I suppose. Some Scientists talk about the Gaia hypothesis."

Clair shuttered, "You realize that ambulance isn't coming any time soon? We are going to have to get him down off this roof ourselves. Isaac you grab him under the arms. Josie you help me carry his legs."

Isaac said, "My, Cupid! I think you must be putting on weight."

Jaclyn asked, "How do you know that?"

Despite their sad circumstances Isaac grinned, "When he was first brought into Sachs-Gordon Medical Center the policy is to always assume the involuntarily committed patients are unwilling and potentially violent and carry them in and strap them down until a Doctor can examine them. As it was I am sure he would have walked in on his own if a bit reluctantly. I was one of the Orderlies who helped carry him in and strap him down. He was such a trip! He wasn't happy about being committed and carried and strapped down but he wasn't holding it against us. He was cracking jokes and said, "If it weren't for the honor of this I would just as soon walk!"

Clair pointed out. "He was quoting a comment by Lincoln."

Isaac looked at her, "And gods aren't allowed to read history books?

Anyway when it came time to medicate him four of us orderlies came at him with the needle to put on a show of strength. We didn't' need to I don't think or maybe he was just intelligent enough to realize fighting that many of us would be futile. He was teasing us about 'So now you Mortals are shooting Cupid!' He pulled down his pants himself and held steady as a rock, and said, 'Even Mortals can't fail to hit a target this big! Ouch!' Then he started crying and we thought it was from the pain or fear of what the medication was about to do to his mind. Instead they were tears of joy. He said, 'You Kids are growing up!'

We excused ourselves and went to the restroom and just howled with laughter. But we were a bit worried. We were afraid that was the last we were going to see of that kind of behavior. But he never did the Thorazine shuffle and he never stopped thinking he was Cupid much to our delight. The meds just calmed him down just a little bit, but not much. The next day he started his sing a longs and Ward B became a much happier place."

Claire sighed. Isaac you do know don't you, that his psychosis is due to hysterical delusion, not a dopamine imbalance so neuroleptics can't help him. That's why I don't want him in the hospital! We weren't helping him there. It is better he is forced to cope with the reality beyond the hospital and he seemed to be doing so. So I don't understand this abrupt set back!"

Suddenly the second plane came and did what it did.

Slow motion. It seemed to happen in slow motion.

This time they watched in utter silence. No one could think of a thing to say.

Moments passed.

Finally Isaac said, "That's two planes. There could be more. This is the roof of a building. We are not safe. We have to get him down! WE have to get down."

They hauled him to the door and Isaac tried to open it, "Locked." He said grimly.

Claire said, "Trevor was as usual one hundred percent thorough. He tricked us to the top of a building with a locking roof door so there was NO chance of us leaving and being harmed.

Jaclyn said, "Just before he passed out he said, 'the key is…"

Isaac asked, "Now if I were a god where would I hide a key?"

Claire said, "I found it. It was in his pocket."

Isaac said, "Fancy him hiding it there!"

Despite their circumstances they laughed.

They hauled him to the elevator and down and out the front door. Most of the crowd had left to find loved ones, dig, or try to help or flee the city, but a few remained, "Claire spoke to a young, Asian Lady with pig tails, "Would you help us get him to the hospital?"

She looked at him shocked, "You didn't have to sedate him. He isn't crazy. He knew what was going to happen! He tricked you up there to save our lives! I was on the way to the World Trade Center when you asked me to come help HIM. But he helped us instead!"

Gently Claire said, "This is very hard on him. He thinks he is the god of love and he just watched us Mortal's hate ourselves like nobodies business. Plus he thinks his Father; the god of war is responsible. He may be a god but he is a very disturbed god right now. Please help me get him to a place where I can keep him safe."

Crying, she nodded, "yes."

Date 2001 9/10. Place: Manhattan Psychiatric Institute.

Dr. Gene Brewer sat at his desk refreshing himself about prot's files. He shouldn't have been in such a great mood. The relapse of a Patient was not a good thing, really. But it was just he had so missed prot. It was disheartening that Robert Porter kept relapsing and disappearing into his Alien friend but prot was always cooperative in therapy and doing everything possible to return his Host to proper functioning. It was very clear the Alien "Worm" was not interested in being a Puppet Master. It was also clear Robert Porter's latest regression was caused by the death of his mother. But how could he have known his mother died living 7000 light years away from EARTH on his Alien friend's paradisal PLANET? But Dr. Brewer couldn't help being happy. He had missed prot.

The phone rang.

He leaned his chair back and put his feet up on his desk as he answered it. It was his old friend Dr. William Siegel, head of the Long Island Psychaitric Hospital where prot had first been committed.

"Hi Bill. What's up?"

"I've got another one for you."

"Another what?"

Another impossible Patient like prot."

"What? Another K-PAXian?"

No. This one claims he is one Clarence OdBody, Angel First Class and he needed to be committed to Long Island Psychiatric Hospital so when his 90 days of observation were over and I realized he was too tough nut for me to crack he would be transferred to Sachs-Gordon Medical Center so he could help prot and Cupid. I swear, Gene that is what he said! I told him he was a tad confused because prot wasn't on Earth any more and he had been at MPI not Sachs-Gordon Medical Center. And if he wanted to see Cupid he could just go down to Tres Equis and buy a ginger bear because the whole, big, little town of New York is Cupid's lunatic asylum. He wasn't at Sachs-Gordon Medical Center. Anymore and hardly needed to be. He is perfectly competent to manage his own affairs and the entire city is perfectly willing to accept he's Cupid. He's very competent about being crazy too."

Gene Brewer started to laugh, "Sounds like how I used to think prot was before I realized he was a real Alien." Wasn't Clarence in a movie?"

Bill chuckled. "Yup. 'It's a Wonderful life.' By Frank Capra. That movie is a Psychiatrist's dream. It's prevented more suicides than the entire suicide prevention hotline program in the entire U S of A. My new Patient says the movie was a true story and they made it about him. He looked so serious and he actually does look quite a bit like the Actor who played the Angel. It was all I could do to not laugh and ask for his autograph!"

The two friends chortled together.

Then Bill added, "If he hadn't been confused about what mental hospital prot was at, or even what PLANET he is on I'd have probably believed him. He showed up clean and fresh as a daisy in old-fashioned clothes that look new without even a hint of perspiration in the middle of June. I don't think anyone dropped him off because really, who drops a Patient off at a mental hospital and then drives off like he had just dropped a Guy off at work? He had nothing with him except a big box of books. All of them look and smell new and all of them are first editions, some of them of books published two centuries ago. How can that be? He said it was so he would have something to do to pass the time because he likes to read. He's been reading to the other Patients. I didn't know some of those old classics could be so entertaining. Like prot he is perfectly willing to take meds but they don't do a thing for him. He was already perfectly calm when he got here but they don't cure him of any delusions. But like prot he seems sane unless he brings up his point of origin. He's just sure he's an Angel and for all I know, he is, but kind of a weird one though. There is something about him that is very cheerful but just not quite right. He's got a calendar in his room and he checks off the days until I send him to the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center. I figured I would send him to you instead. After all if prot WERE on Earth he'd be with you instead of at the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center, and that is a short term facility anyway like our own, not a long term facility for hard to treat patients like MPI. The little guy didn't seem to realize that."

Then, "Gene you do work for MPI and not the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center don't you?"

Gene laughed, "Yes, but he's not completely wrong. Prot is back.

Suddenly there was a series of screams coming from the Patient's outdoor recreation area, (known as the Back 40). Gene slammed down the phone and headed for the elevator.

It was Cassie.

Dr. Chakraborty had been eating his lunch at one of the tables so he was first to reach her. "Cassie what is wrong?!"

She pointed at the World Trade Center. "It's coming down!" she said. "Airplanes! Two of them! The Pentagon gets hit too." She melted into his arms and he embraced her, comforting her. But he needed comforting himself.

The Indian doctor asked, "When?" and shuttered. He knew Cassie was never ever wrong!"

"Tomorrow at 8:36."

Dr. Chakraborty exclaimed, "Gayatri Madid SAHAAYATA!" Then, "How come you didn't know sooner? You usually know things weeks ahead of time."

"They blocked me."

"Who?"

"The ones who tell me the future."

"Cassie, who are they?"

"I must not tell you. If I did they would quit talking to me."

Dr. Chakraborty bit his lip, "Come. Let us go tell Dr. Brewer.

"You know I'm not crazy."

"You are not delusional. You won't take care of yourself. If we didn't shelter you and coax you to eat you'd starve and be homeless. But you have never been wrong about the future. Maybe Gene will be knowing what to do."

They almost collided with Gene Brewer as he bounded out the elevator.

They Patients and Staff all gathered round and listened as Cassie reported what the future held for them. They didn't bother to hide it. It would have been futile to try. Mental hospitals like all small towns have grape vines strong enough to swing Tarzan.

Gene said to Cassie. "If I call up the President or even the Mayor of New York and report 'I am a Psychiatrist at a mental hospital and one of our Patients who has never been wrong says the World Trade Center is coming down tomorrow' they'll commit ME! Plus how can I stop it? Your future history seems to be written in stone Cassie. You can't predict something that isn't really going to happen."

Grimly Cassie nodded.

Dr. Chakraborty stared out the window. "Gene we are going to have to evacuate all the Patients. We are too close to the World Trade Center. At least we can do that."

Gene shrugged helplessly. "We would be taking them to Sachs-Gordon Medical Center I guess. But how do I convince the head of Sachs-Gordon Medical Center to let us evacuate to their hospital on the whims (and that is what he would call it Cassie, sorry), of one of our Patients?"

Dr. Chakraborty said, "Prot! You can mirror beam them, can't you?

Prot nodded. For once his usual grin was gone. "Yes. But where? I'd have to have a really wide landing spot for all of us at once.

Gene gave Dr. Chakraborty a skeptical look.

"Gene you know he can really do it."

"Yes, he can mirror beam, but that many, that quickly? And as he said where would he put them? He would need a field as a landing pad. But where we would we find a field close to Sachs-Gordon Medical Center? This is New York city!"

Dr. Chakraborty said, "a Friend just happened to drive me by there yesterday. The West parking lot is being blocked off for repaving. He could beam them there tomorrow by 8:30. By the time they have it all sorted out the World Trade Center will be down and they will not be arguing with us."

"Prot accidentally landed in a tree once!"

Prot gave his Doctor an embarrassed grin. "My landing target was smaller, gino. I was aiming for my room. I don't think even moi could miss a big old parking lot."

Gene Brewer sighed and reluctantly nodded. Ok. I never thought I'd be making plans to suddenly invade anther mental hospital with all our Patients, without warning, before dawn! Man! It sounds like the invasion at Normandy!"

He turned to the friendly Alien, "Ok. Prot go do your calculations for beaming or whatever it is you do. I'll go alert the staff we have to evacuate. Cassie would you be willing to go to the infirmary and take an oral sedative? I think it would be good for you."

She nodded and willing followed Dr. Chakraborty to the infirmary.

Gene Brewer stared at the phone. He called Bill Siegel back, "Sorry for hanging up on you suddenly like that. Have Clarence Odbody, Angel first class sent to Sachs-Gordon Medical Center after all.

"Why?"

"You know about Cassie?"

"Your never wrong Prophetess? Yes. What about her?"

"Well let's just say it would not be a good idea to visit the World Trade Center tomorrow.

"Oh no!"

Gene frowned, bowed his head and closed his eyes in sorrow. "Yes!"

***

The weird, little Angel sat in front of his Psychiatrist calmly grasping his huge box of books and smiling gently.

Bill Siegel stared at his strange Patient and said, "Alright Clarence Odbody this is our final session. As you stated in your first session with me you were destined to go to the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center to help prot and Cupid. Prot is at the Manhattan Psychaitric Institute not Sachs-Gordon Medical Center but the Director at MPI thinks something is going to happen later today that will result in prot's transfer to Sachs-Gordon Medical Center. So with considerable amazement I am very respectfully humoring you and arranging your transfer there also. You can't say we don't aim to please!" Bill reached in his desk and pulled out a sheet of paper. "Here are your transfer papers. I'm signing them now. To make sure our fine government pays for your stay there I'm making it an involuntary commitment. I am sure you don't mind. Since it is involuntary the only official way you could get out before your Doctor declares you competent would be to stand before a Judge and contest it.

"I won't. It is where I want to go."

"I know. But I just thought I would make that very clear."

The little Cherub brightened, "When do I leave?"

Bill gave his patient a Cheshire cat grin. "Any time you want to. Due to our current budget crunch we can't even spare an ambulance. You got yourself here. You'll get yourself there."

Clarence stared at Bill Siegel. A slow grin crossed his face. A few seconds of silence passed. Than he said, "I didn't fool you one bit did I?"

"Well, only at first. And anyway even if you were mentally ill you are so harmless I'd trust you to baby sit my new granddaughter."

Clarence got a pained look, "Please don't! I'm all thumbs. I'd end up sticking the Kid with the diaper pins."

"We don't use diaper pins these days Mr. Odbody. We use tape and paper diapers."

He smiled, "What a practicable development! Bet one of my kind thought that up.

"An Angel?"

No. I was referring to something else. It is possible to be more than thing at a time. For instance you are a good Psychiatrist, a saxophone player, a pretty good golfer and you love the TV show, 'Touched by an Angel,' which is why you are handling me so calmly. So you see it is possible for the same being to be more than one thing. I'm an Angel, one Clarence Odbody, Angel first class. I was born in the late 18th century and I died in the 19th century and found all those cute little Sunday school stories were true because far in the future Science fulfilled Faith. My Father was a hatter and he brought a lot of mercury home with him inadvertently. I was heavy metal poisoned sometime during my development. So besides being a heavenly being I also have what you call Asperger's syndrome. I'm slightly autistic. That is why I come across as so weird and why it took me so long to get my wings. It is also why I love to read so much and why even when Folks believe me I come across as one weird, little Angel. Your facial expressions mean nothing to me and I can't respond to them quickly enough. I smile a lot because I know that is what friendly beings do. Prot has almost the same problem around here but it is due to his not being in his Being's usual host. He CAN read facial expressions, in fact VERY well, better than Humans can, but he can't respond back to them quickly enough either. Like me he can't, "face dance." He tries but he's faking it. So he spooks people out and they understand on a deep instinctive level that he really is an Alien, or crazy, or both. As for me, like many of my kind I am hyperlexic. I was reading at five and can't be found without a book in my hands. I love People but social skills were never my strong point."

"So books are one of your autistic perserverations and even on assignment you have to have a big pile of them. That's what gave you away, Mr. Odbody." Bill Siegel reached in his desk drawer, pulled out a book and slapped it down on his desk, "I purloined one of them. It smells and looks new but it's a 19th century first edition printed on old-fashioned paper with Victorian era ink. The expert in Victorian novels I consulted just about had a heart attack. I'm seeing him next Wednesday for supportive therapy. He was an Atheist and he isn't taking you too calmly."

Clarence grabbed up his book and started laughing. "I never even realized you'd swiped it. Some Angel I am!" He glanced at the title, "'The Time Machine' By H.G. Wells. It's more appropriate than you realize."

Bill smiled, "You could have told me you had Asperger's syndrome. I could tell you were not, shall we say, 'normal.' So knowing your proper diagnosis would have made me realize you weren't delusional sooner.

Clarence giggled, "And spoil the thrill of the chase? It worked for me. I needed you to let me stay here."

"Ah, Clarence, do you think I would toss a real Angel out on his wings? By the way notice you don't have your wings on, now."

Clarence leaned back in his chair and grinned, " You can't help being a Psychiatrist now can you? Even when you believe the Patient you have to try and figure him out! Well, you don't have a tux on either but I bet you own one or could rent one."

"Touché."

Clarence leaned forward in his chair. "They are really quite uncomfortable. The Human body wasn't really designed to have wings and they sure aren't necessary for transportation. Quantum entanglement takes care of that. But People expect them at fancy occasions. It's traditional. Neurotypicals thought that one up, of course. If all of Heaven were ran by Aspergians we'd show up at major occasions in old T shirts and levy's sans wings and probably shoes too."

Bill started laughing, "Please understand I'm not laughing because I don't believe you. I'm laughing because (pity me Father Freud) I DO!

They both laughed together for a while. It was therapeutic.

"So they do not cure Aspergers syndrome when you are? What word should I use? Translated?"

"'Upgraded to a better hardware system' would be more technically accurate. No. Aspergers syndrome isn't what I have. It is what I AM. Glorified or not I still want to be ME. My neural nets have been pruned but what is left is very, very strong. I'm a bonsai tree being."

Bill stared at him, "But the same could be said for folks with multiple personalities. What happens to all their multiple operating systems when they are uploaded?"

"Let's just say we have some very interesting souls running around loose in Heaven."

"Clarence, where exactly is Heaven? Is it a planet like K-PAX? "

Clarence shook his head, "No, it exists far in the future and was build by Humanity. 1 Corinthians 12:27, 'We are the body of Christ and individually members of it.' All Carpenters use their bodies to build things. Heaven is a 15 hundred mile long cube covered in precious stones. The Geeks who were the part of the Body of Christ who built it just had to mod the case of course. That is what Geeks like to do. You can read about it in the last two chapters of Revelation. You were never lied to. It is just up until now you lacked the words to understand that Heaven is a computer."

"But if Heaven is built in the future how are you sitting here now? Oh stupid question. Time travel. Silly me. A Scientist named Ronald L. Mallett, is working on a real one right now. (Author's note go to Youtube and google, "The Real Time Machine)."

Clarence said, "At first it was just the same kind of time travel we are both doing now;

One second per second time travel towards the future. So at first only those born after John's Cube was invented got uploaded. But time and space curve, bent by the gravitational mass of the Universe due to General Relativity. So eventually John's Cube simply reached the past by sticking around long enough. Then things got REALLY interesting. It was designed to withstand the Big Crunch and the Big Bang and we "morning stars" got to make absolutely sure the Universe stayed life bearing: The Strong Anthropic Principle and all that. It is really the same as the Gaia hypothesis except it works on a Universal level. When life started evolving again we started uploading all plant and Animal Life. Life is too valuable to waste. Each being is unique. To lose even a single celled being would be a tragedy."

So I take it we never completely cure hoarding type OCD?

Clarence smiled, "Nope. Thank God! Or where would I be? Also some of my best friends are amoebas."

"Spoken like a true Aspergian!"

Big grin. "Yup!"

"What about Jesus?"

Clarence smiled, "The Galilee Carpenter is a real Human being like you and I, an organically produced operating system except He's evolved to true omnipresence. Jesus is Lord because His terrible death drew all Men to Himself, just as He plainly stated and because He deserves it and because the vast majority of Humanity wants Him to be. We could have had anyone in top position. But just, Who else would we have picked to rule us, but Jesus?" Clarence smiled.

"What about Buddha?"

"On permanent vacation in Tibet." Clarence frowned, "Absolutely no ambition; a shame, really. We could use his help."

Bill Siegel glanced at the clock, "well Clarence, sad as this is for me I have to treat you just like any other Patient. Our session has to be over due to time constraints. Now I've got to be seeing a hebephrenic schizophrenic who will keep me entertained for the next hour with a rapid fire string of jokes but none of them will make any sense and we can't get him to take enough medication to slow his fine mind down to a sane level. Which is a shame. He was a Physicist and just on the verge of inventing a major step towards quantum computers."

Clarence smiled, "Don't worry. You succeed in successfully treating him. He WILL. He' designs one more link in the very long chain that will lead to us"

Bill suddenly felt a whole lot happier. Playfully he eyed his patient. "Just get yourself to the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center. I know you can. Hey wait, take your transfer papers with you."

Clarence smiled, grabbed up the paper, crumpled it and stuffed it in his pocket. Bill winced at all those crumples but Clarence didn't notice. "I'm not supposed to go anywhere without being escorted by the orderlies. Do I have your permission to break hospital policy and leave without Ted and Fred?"

Bill Siegel sat back in his chair and waved his hands. "Oh, absolutely! Go for it."

"Ok." Clarence grinned. He grabbed his box of books firmly. Then he was gone.

Bill Siegel didn't even blink. He just muttered to himself, "didn't even need a mirror or a flashlight" He got on the intercom, "Ok Mrs Tibble, send in the next Patient."

"What happened to Clarence?"

"He beamed up, Mrs Tibble."

Oh blimey! He was real!

"Does it surprise you?"

"No."

"Me neither. There is something about New York, Mrs. Tibble. It attracts all sorts of crazies."

***

Jerry frowned at the black stuff on his shoe. "Dirty!" he exclaimed.

Gently Betty said, "Yes Jerry. It is tar and it is very dirty. But we are safe now.

"Wanna go home!"

I am sorry Jerry you can't! We'll get you to a brand new room soon and we'll get you a big pile of Popsicle sticks. You can build something again."

Suddenly the thing they feared started to happen. Most of the Patients screamed in horror. But so did the Staff. It would not have been possible at that moment to tell the most disturbed of the Patients apart from the most serene of the Doctors. Prot quietly started crying. Gene Brewer stared at him. He had never seen his Alien Patient cry before. He hadn't even realized prot was capable of it.

Jerry said, "Bad plane!"

Nurse Betty said, "yes. But it is the hijackers inside the plane who are bad, Jerry not the plane. Humans do things. Things don't do things."

Jerry said firmly "I am going to need a whole lotta sticks. I must rebuild it."

Gently Betty said, "That many? I'll see what we can do."

Gene Brewer said, "Let's get them inside before the second one hits.

Jerry overheard. He started screaming, "Second one! Second one! Second one!"

Gene nodded at Roman who quickly gave Jerry a hypo, and gently hugged and held him until it took effect. Navarro helped him carry him over to the to the grass next to the parking lot and laid him down.

Prot said grimly, "I want one too!"

Roman shook his head, "Sorry prot. We are about to be at war. Who knows how bad it will be? We may have to ration these."

"You darn, violent, savage, blasted, meat eating, war mongering Humans!" Prot sank next to the grass next to Jerry. Alien and Autistic lay next to one another sharing a common bond and a common sorrow.

Gene Brewer stared at them thinking deeply. Quietly he said, "If all the world were like prot and Jerry there would be no airplanes flying into buildings and no dress code either.

Dr. Chakraborty nodded. Then he started crying. He tried to stop it but the tears just flowed. Gene Brewer hugged his fellow Doctor and then suddenly realized Betty and Cassie and a dozen of the other Patients and staff were joining him in one big group hug. Somehow they were going to all get through it, and they would do so because of love.

Amazingly none of the other Patients needed sedating. Shock was doing it for them. It was not so much that they had been mirror beamed. They were used to prot's mirror beaming and some had already taken unauthorized side trips with him. It was just why and where.

It was about then that the folks at the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center got around to paying attention to the hoard of people messing up the new asphalt in their parking lot. The security guards came running out with their hands on their guns and it took a few minutes for them to figure out the sudden hoard in their parking lot were more mental patients and their staff, not part of the horrible thing that had just happened in the sky. They rushed out to find a parking lot full of People hugging one another, Autistics staring at the sky and rocking and flapping to comfort themselves, Schizophrenics complaining vehemently to their voices about the disruption in their day, one Patient jumping up and down trying to fly, and another making little tar babies out of the fresh asphalt. The disturbed Patients who were starting to wake up from having been sedated and straitjacketed for their trip had started complaining vehemently about suddenly finding themselves in the strait jackets and two Patients laying prone in the grass, unconscious. Gene Brewer rushed forward, "We are from MPI. Prot beamed us all here because we were too close to the World Trade Center."

The security guards radioed the Director, Dr. Greely "ah, you aren't going to believe this. But they aren't terrorists. We've just been invaded by another mental hospital.

"Hostile take over?"

"Sir, don't be ridiculous! They are war refugees."

"War refugees!"

Sir you might have not have noticed but we are at war. MPI is so close to the World Trade Center they were in danger from the dust if nothing else."

"But they got here before the plane struck!"

"I have no explanation for that sir. You will have to ask them."

"Oh you bet I will! I'm coming down."

Dr. Brewer explained their situation. We had to leave. It isn't safe at MPI right now. Fortunately prot…""

Dr Milton Greely asked, "Yes, your MPD with the REAL Alien stuck in his brain! I know about him. I've read your books. But your People beamed in here BEFORE the plane struck!"

Dr. Brewer said grimly, "Yes! We did. And there is going to be another!

Sure enough, right on cue the second plane came hurling in.

Dr. Greely watched in mouth opened amazement and horror. Dr. Brewer just frowned and went over and hugged Cassie who had burst into tears again.

Dr Greely asked, "How did you know they were coming ahead of time?"

Dr. Brewer, trying to protect Cassie said, "Dr. Greely do me a favor and don't ask me that again, please?"

He frowned, "Dr. Brewer If you knew something that should have been told to national security!"

Dr. Brewer gave his fellow Shrink a frightened look, "The problem is the source of the information would not have been believed. And once it happened a Patient's well being and freedom would have been jeopardized." Ironic he thought to himself, but that last part was true. At MPI Cassie was free to do just what she wanted, which was gaze serenely at the sky most of the day, listening to her mysterious source of future knowledge and not be bothered any more than maintenance of her body required. If her talents had become known someone would have exploited her and taken away her "freedom" to be merely a harmless, locked up mental Patient which was all she wanted to be.

They started moving Patients in. Roman called, "hey Doc. This is weird. I did NOT sedate prot even though he asked me to. You saw that, but he does seem to be sedated anyway. I can't seem to wake him up."

Dr Brewer stared at him, a worried frown on his face. Catatonia? He bent down and lifted prot's right arm and to his relief it plopped back down to the grass again. It dawned on him what prot had done and with it a flicker of relief crossed is face. He sat down in the grass next to his Alien Patient and said quietly, "prot, listen to me. You are going to wake up feeling calm and happy. 5.4…"

Before he could get to 3 prot's eyes popped open, "Hey the sessions over!"

Dr. Brewer frowned at him, "You weren't in a session. You put YOURSELF under! Don't do that! What if I hadn't figured it out or I had been called away?"

Prot shrugged, "You know I would eventually have woken up anyway. No one does anything under hypnosis they don't want to do. When I got hungry enough I'd have woke up, believe you me. Hypnosis has nothing over me that a banana can't overcome."

Dr. Brewer laughed. "Oh prot!" He laughed and then he started crying again.

Prot stared at the sky, thinking, "Why do I feel so calm and happy under this circumstances?"

"I couldn't resist. I did that to you. Not my fault. You are the best hypnotic subject I've ever encountered."

Prot smiled and put his arms on his Doctor's shoulders, gazed lovingly into his eyes and said, "Thanks for the mood lift Doctor Gene Brewer."

The Doctor smiled. Prot seldom called him by his full professional name. "Any time, star patient!"

Roman said, "Come on you two. You are taking longer to get in the building than some of the disturbed!"

"Oh sorry!" Prot and Doctor Brewer said it together. They helped one another up and headed into Sachs-Gordon Medical Center.

Isaac, Claire, Josie and the still sedated Cupid alias Trevor Pierce arrived at the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center at the same moment the hospital was trying to process the 400 MPI'ers. "What is going on?" Claire asked.

Isaac who had worked at MPI for a while put two and two together. "I recognize some of them. These are Patients from MPI, which is very close to the World Trade Center. They must have had to evacuate. There's prot, or Robert Porter" He walked over to the calm, sun glassed Mental Patient, "Hi there. Which one are you today?"

"Prot."

"Hi, prot."

"Hi Isaac. Glad to see you. Sorry 'bout why."

"Mutual."

Dr brewer called, "prot come help with Jerry He's waking up."

"Gotta go play patient advocate. An alien's work is never done. Sorry. Bye." Prot turned and rushed off.

Claire stared at him, "So that's the famous prot. He doesn't look that much different from the other Patients. The long term, contentedly institutionalized have a "look" about them and prot's got it. Trevor never had it. He always had that hungry tiger look of a Person who just HAD to be free. That is why I decided to help him live elsewhere than the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center though up until his board hearing he refused to back down on being Cupid and he even turned out to be faking that short regression. I kept quiet because they would have over drugged him again and by the time the Hospital Board found out he'd only been faking sanity he not only had a job he was turning Tres Equis around and that special interest piece had been done about his situation so everyone knew he thinks he's Cupid and apparently almost everyone loves him for it. Since he definitely counts as harmless and ironically is VERY competent even if still very delusional, the board reluctantly let it slide. I don't know what they are going to think about this. He was raving!"

Isaac pointed out, "I'd rave too if I knew the World Trade Center was coming down and the only way to get my beloved Psychiatrist and Friends away from it was to threaten to jump off another building far away from it. Claire, he KNEW. It was just a ruse to save us. He pulled a true, 'Howlin' Mad Murdock,' and he did THAT skillfully too!"

She stared at the orderly thoughtfully, "Isaac you could be right but I'm keeping him in restraints until I hear that from his own lips and I can tell he's telling the truth!"

Off in the shadows of Sachs-Gordon Medical Center admittance room among the bedlam of 400 hundred new very upset mental Patients being admitted and found room for by Doctors and Staff almost as upset, no one noticed a small sparkle of light and a sudden smiling Figure appearing out of nowhere clutching a box of books. One Schizophrenic noticed but the gentle Angel smiled at him and he shrugged it off. He had seen far worse and this one wasn't worth calling attention to. Meds were soothing but sometimes the more harmless hallucinations were less bothersome than a head full of cotton.

Clarence Odbody walked into the light and blended in with the other new Patients. Dr. Brewer and the staff from MPI thought he was one of the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center s and the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center thought he was one of MPI's.

He stood there patiently clutching his books and smiling at anyone who came near him. He was competing quietly for attention with Screamers and Fighters and those who were simply sobbing their hearts out. He was not a squeaky wheel at all. It took a long time for anyone to even notice him.

Isaac finally noticed him standing there patiently and gently asked him, "Hi there, Little Guy. What's your problem?"

Clarence Odbody told the truth, "I am an Angel sent to help here."

Isaac nodded, "Ok. Harmless. You want to room with prot?""

Clarence smiled, "sure."

Isaac unlocked the door to the harmless ward, swung it wide open and the new Patient walked right in without fear, accepting confinement without a peep of protest. That was a good sign he had been long term committed. Isaac told the Cherub, "He's going to be in room 318 soon as he gets done helping us with some of the more disturbed Patients. It's just down this hall, ninth door to the right. You can introduce yourself later. Right now we would appreciate it if you WOULD act like an Angel and keep yourself soothed and out of the way. That really would help us. We're swamped. Sorry. We're just too busy to give you the grand tour."

Clarence smiled at him, "That is alright. I am here to help, not make the situation worse."

"You and prot are going to love one another." Isaac ran off to resedate one of the violent ones.

Clarence thought to himself, "don't be so sure. He's an Agnostic!" He giggled at the very thought.

Prot had a long day and was cheerfully willing to spend some time in his room alone, as was his custom before settling down for the two hours of sleep he needed each night. He swung the door open to his room grinning at the thought of a little quiet time and was surprised to see the cheerful, gentle Angel already inhabiting the other bed.

He stood there and stared at his new roommate, smiling pleasantly but suspecting he had a problem here.

"Hi there!" chirped his new roommate. "I am Clarence Odbody, Angel first class. They are letting me have the privilege of rooming with you. I have heard so much about you. I am so very pleased and honored to meet you!"

Prot smiled and said, "I am ab so LUTEly certain we can be friends. But there's a problem. I only need two hours sleep a night. At mpi I finally got that fact inserted in the staff's heads and they did what they could to accommodate me. They either would give me a room without a roommate or let me stay in the quiet room or rec room unsupervised at night even though it was against policy where I would work on my report or read or even color coloring books. One night I noticed betty, (one of our nurses) had left her camera phone behind. I took all the packs of cards, made a big card castle that went all the way up to the ceiling and took a picture of it. Then I carefully put all the different sets of cards back in their proper little boxes and went and got my two hours. I am sure betty was amazed to find what she found in her camera the next time she checked. I never caused any trouble unless you call that harmless prank trouble. So they let me do so. Tomorrow I will ask for permission to stay in the quiet room or rec room here too. But tonight if I have to stay quiet in this room while you sleep for eight hours I'm going to be pretty stressed. Anybody would be."

Clarence Odbody grinned, "I am an Angel. I only need three hours sleep. Can you manage to be quiet for just one hour?"

Prot grinned, "Now what are the odds of that?"

"It isn't odds. I was deliberately sent here to help you and Robert. Cupid too."

Prot smiled gently, not believing a word of it but too polite to argue. It was a mental hospital he was living in after all. Even now there were many who did not believe him about being from K-PAX. He shrugged, "I would be a fool not to accept all the help I can get! So what kind of help did you have in mind?"

Clarence started speaking to prot in paxo.

Behind his dark glasses prot's eyes grew wide and his jar dropped. He plopped down on the bed and an even bigger grin than usual spread across his slightly unshaven face. "Now there is something I didn't expect to hear on EARTH. You are mispronouncing almost every single word and BADLY too! But the wonder of it is that you can speak paxo at all! My Doctor had paxo translated into English. But that was the written language not the spoken language. No one on EARTH has heard more than a few phrases of it. Gino knows more of it than anyone but you just went way beyond what he knows! How in the UNIVERSE?"

It was Clarence Odbody's turn to give a Cheshire cat grin, "I told you. I am an Angel."

Prot stared at him skeptically, "So you know everything?"

Clarence shook his head, "Oh no. I am not omnipresent not at all, but I was briefed for this mission."

Who taught you to speak paxo?"

"Another Angel who spent some time on K-PAX."

Either he or she or is it, speaks it very badly or you are lousy at languages." Prot grinned. "But it was a sound for sore ears as the humans would put it, never the less."

Prot added, "And you can't exist you know. There is no such thing as Angels!"

Clarence had a twinkle in his cherubic eyes, "And you can't exist either you know. There is no such thing as life in outer space."

Prot grinned, "Now that is true. I never met anyone from outer space."

What do you mean by that? YOU come from….."

"K-PAX, which is a beautiful PLANET. It does float in space, but so does EARTH. So if I am from outer space so are all the EARTHlings. And so, where are you really from? There is no such thing as Heaven!"

You dremers build libraries where the operating systems of your dead go.'

Prot nodded, "But there is a scientific explanation for that. We are the ones who build them, not some God."

Clarence giggled, "Humans build Heaven too, far in the future. But because of General Relativity it already exists. God evolves out of us and space/time circles.

Prot grinned, "Robert used to suspect that. He got the idea from another mental Patient we encountered at mpi. So what you are saying is you are like me? You are a dead human instead of a dead worm who is borrowing a human host? I assume you have some ethics too and the fellow does not mind any more than robert does."

Clarence shook his head, "No prot. This is my own body. At my death enough of it was translated into Heaven and retranslated back down again when I needed it. Matter into energy and energy back into matter. It only takes a few cells as a genetic template to reconstruct my physical body when it is needed."

Prot scratched his chin in wonder, "Sounds like star trek! Humans love star trek so much they must have worked and worked and worked with their incredible predatory tenaciousness to figure out that secret about the UNIVERSE. We didn't bother to. We obtained mirror beaming and that satisfied us."

Clarence nodded, "There are more ways to skin a Cat."

Prot frowned, "Who would want to?"

Clarence grinned, "Not me. I love Kitties."

Clarence munched on one of prot's bananas and continued his little future history lesson. Humans didn't go extinct like the organic dremers did. They went around curved space-time and uploaded everybody including you guys.

"Jesus was uploaded just like everyone else. He is Lord because we want Him to be. No other reason is necessary. He's evolved to omnipresence now. That's just what evolution does.

Prot nodded, "Leave it to humans to build governments even in their afterlife and ALL the way around the time/space curve! Sigh. You never learn!"

Clarence grinned, "but unlike the organics amongst your species WE survive! We eventually incorporated your library system into our own"

Prot grinned, "Resistance was futile?"

Clarence giggled, "and it's shaped like a cube too!"

Prot stared at him, "You caught the reference! You know about star trek?"

Clarence grinned, "Using AI technology we bring fictional characters to life too. I've met Captain Kirk. I've met all of them. They are as self aware as we are. I've got riding in a virtual starship Enterprise. I've been to a virtual Vulcan and Organia."

While prot was handling that news suddenly Doctor Brewer came to their door. "Prot I hate to do this to you, but you are still needed."

Now what Coach?" prot grinned, "Your wish is my command!"

Maintenance needs you to put this dust mask on and beam them over to MPI to salvage, beds, chairs, medical equipment, medicines, and even food. We don't have enough of any of that here and there are Patients with no beds tonight."

Prot got up and walked out the door leaving Gene Brewer to trail after him. He no longer wondered how prot knew where to go without having to be told first. Hardly anything about his Alien Patient surprised him much any more.

Clarence was a little miffed. He spoke into the air, "I could have helped too you know!"

Out of same thin air a fellow Angel said gently, "They don't know that yet Clarence. Gene Brewer still thinks you are crazy. Just pray for them. Things are very hard right now for some of these Patients. Not all of them want to be here as you and prot do and not all of them can adapt to this overcrowding and no outside nature time."

Gently Clarence bowed his head and did so.

The soft, loving presence of God filled his brain like a warm Cosmic Muffin and Clarence willed It to extend to all of Sachs-Gordon Medical Center.

It was the first time the maintenance crew from Sachs-Gordon Medical Center had met prot. They stared at the gently smiling sun glassed Alien dubiously. One said, "He doesn't look any different from any of the other Patients. He's kind of weird like they are. You sure he can actually beam us to MPI, help us get stuff and beam it all back here again?"

Dr. Gene Brewer nodded, "Yes he can. Prot is my Friend and Partner in trying to help his Host Robert and it is Robert who is the real Patient. Prot is neither delusional nor particularly emotionally disturbed and does nothing all day but help us. Any emotional disturbance he manifests is par for the course for a plant eating Alien from a peaceful world being surrounded by unpredictable, violent carnivores especially now!'

"He means us George."

"I got that."

Prot grinned, "I feel fairly confident you guys aren't going to eat me any time soon, carnivorous though you are. I'd taste awful! Surely you have more sense than that. Let's go get the loot!"

Gene said, "prot your are going to have to handle this on your own. I'm needed elsewhere.'

"No sweat gino. I know my way around mpi better than you do and you know it. You just work there. I live there."

As Gene walked off He turned to the maintenance crew. "You know my name. Who are you guys?"

"I'm George."

Mischievously prot said, "And you must be gracey."

"No, I'm not gracey! I'm Bob Sangia."

With firm playfulness prot insisted, "Nope you're gracey. We can't have a george without a gracey, now can we?"

Bob Sangia alias "gracey" said, "I thought your Shrink just said you weren't crazy!"

Prot grinned mischievously, "He said I am not delusional nor emotionally disturbed. No one has ever said I wasn't crazy, not even my own species! Let's go." Prot took out his flashlight and mirror.

The maintenance crew tensed up and shut their eyes tight.

A few seconds later prot said, "You can open your eyes now george and gracey. We're here."

They did. They were amazed. "I didn't feel a thing!" George exclaimed.

Prot grinned at them. "It is mirror beaming not vaccinations." He hurried away to the Patient's bedrooms.

'Gracey" asked, puzzled, "what did he mean by that?"

George said, "They always tell you when they jab you, 'you won't feel a thing.'"

"They lie."

"But this time we really didn't feel a thing!" George smiled with relief.

Yes. We'd better hurry after prot!"

Prot started going in Patient's bedrooms and beaming over beds to the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center parking where fortunately the new asphalt had mostly dried. It was still being blocked off from traffic for this use. Then he went to the elevator and punched in the code for the fifth floor. The Patients weren't supposed to know that code though many did. He went to medical supply. The stuff was locked behind glass.

"Locked." He lamented. "And gino forgot to give us the key."

George shrugged, picked up a copy of the PDR and smashed all the glass. "My responsibility" He reassured the shocked Alien. They made a huge pile of medications, hypodermic needles, alcohol and cotton swabs on Dr. Chakraborty's examination table and prot beamed the whole lot to the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center's medical clinic.

Next they raided the food pantry.

George said, "prot I know you don't like meat but it's just going to spoil so the poor Animals would have died completely in vain. So don't just take the veggies."

Frowning prot nodded, "Ok, but YOU handle the dead bodies. Prot does not DO gory, forensic scenes!

With a sick look on his face he beamed that pile to the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center kitchen much to the surprise of the Janitor who happened to be cleaning the counters at that time.

Prot said, "One more item." He ran back to the elevator and took it to third floor and ran to the craft room. He hunted through the craft supplies until he found what he was looking for and hefted a huge bag of Popsicle sticks out of the cabinet and to his feet. He carefully angled the mirror so it included everyone's reflections including the sticks and aimed his flashlight, "These go with me personally." He explained.

Back at the Sachs-Gordon Medical Center prot didn't even say good-bye to George and "gracey" He grabbed up the Popsicle sticks rushed to the disturbed ward and knocked on the door. When Tom answered he said, "This will calm jerry down better'n anything you can stick into him."

Tom smiled, "You can give them to him yourself prot. Come on. Don't worry We will let you out again. Unlike other poor unfortunate souls. Some of them shouldn't be in here."

Prot listened at the door to one of the isolation rooms, "I believe that is the words to the brady bunch theme song."

"We know. He's been singing it over and over again. I am about ready for sedatives myself!"

Prot shrugged and honed in on Jerry. Tom noticed he didn't even have to be told which room the Autistic was in.

Jerry was on the floor rocking back and forth and moaning. Prot plopped the big bag of sticks next to him and sat down next to him.

Jerry surveyed his present, "Glue?" he asked.

"Whoops."

Tom said, "I'll call our own craft supply room. I think we should have some there."

Prot said, "jerry I was just at mpi. It's still there. It is ok."

"MPI OK?"

Prot nodded, "Yup!"

'Good." The Autistic stared away from prot but he smiled. 'Good, good, good, good, good!"

Isaac came up in a few minutes with some glue.

Jerry set right to work, "I'm rebuilding." He explained.

Ed said, The Normals are tearing down and the Crazies are rebuilding. Figures."

Prot nodded, "A most interesting and poignant obserVAtion. I'm going to my room now and actually sleeping! Isaac you want to do the escorting business? I really don't need it but I would like the company right now."

Sure prot. "We know you don't need it but you know we are supposed to."

Dr Claire Mc Crae walked into the isolation room where Cupid, alias Trevor Pierce had been confined and restrained.

Tom commented, "He's starting to wake up. How did he end up in this mess? I remember him from when he was here before. He was the most cheerful patient we've ever had here. He was running sing a longs all the time. It was amazing how everybody suddenly knew all the words and even some dance steps. Uncanny. I heard he was working at some bar and doing very well. How did he end up back here and in disturbed?"

Claire frowned, "He thinks his father, the god of war brought the Towers down."

Tom whistled, "That would make anybody disturbed!'

Claire nodded sympathetically, "We are all very disturbed right now, Patients and Staff alike. I saw a lady sobbing in Ward B and speaking almost incoherently. I knew she was from MPI because I didn't know who she was. Another MPI member was hugging her and trying to comfort her. I thought she was one of the Patients and it was a Therapist comforting her. It turned out she was a Nurse and her Lover died in the South Tower. The Person hugging her was a paranoid Schizophrenic who has lived in MPI's for 20 over years. The Staff and Patients at MPI do seem to get along. I wish our hospital was doing as well in that area."

Trevor made a noise

Tom said, "He's waking up."

Trevor groaned and tried to feel his head but his right arms wouldn't move. He opened up his right eye and stared at the nonworking arm. It had a leather strap around it. He opened up his left eye and gazed at his left arm. Same situation. "Hey!" he protested vehemently, "Let me go! I am the god of love and I don't deserve to be in such an undignified situation!"

Claire smiled at him, "You did it Cupid! You saved us!"

He closed his eyes again and whimpered, "So I'm not crazy after all, just the Mortal Realm. I want to go home!"

She knew he meant back to Olympus not just the Tres Equis bar. Claire said, "I am sorry, CUPID. She stared at him firmly to make sure he got the point."

He groaned, "I can't believe I'm saying this but please just go back to calling me Trevor. I got used to it and I miss the sound of that name on your lips.

"Ok then, Trevor. Are you going to be ok?

No! I'm homesick, powerless, and extremely hungry. My head pounds like a bunch of Unicorns are using it as a tap dance stage, and you've got me strapped down. How undignified and humiliating! I used to have omnipresence and omnipotence. Now I'm in a mental hospital and to add insult to injury I'm strapped down like I'm dangerous or something."

Claire said gently, "The headache is from the sedative. I am sorry we had to sedate you but I didn't dare risk losing you, Trevor. At least it will pass. It is a good sign you are hungry. Maybe you DO want to live. The kitchen is swamped but I'll run outside to that guy with the cart and get you a hot dog. You like his hot dogs."

Trevor growled, "They're good I admit, but that wasn't the food I really need."

"Trevor the whole town is being bombarded with an outpouring of love from everywhere but from the Taliban. The whole World is on our side right now."

Trevor closed his eyes and groaned, "But that is storing up their hate against the Taliban and vice versa. So there still is just as hate as ever. It has just been moved around a bit."

"I never thought of that."

Trevor shouted at the top of his lungs, "I JUST WANT TO GO HOME, THAT AND YELL AND YELL AND YELL AND YELL AT MY POPS UNTIL I AM BLUE IN THE FACE!"

Claire said gently, "Your Father didn't do this one, Trevor. We Humans did this to ourselves.

Exasperated Cupid said, "Claire, how do you think I knew about it ahead of time?

Cupid alias Trevor shook his head. "Nope. My Pop did this and I'd like to pop him one, too!"

Claire nodded, "I can see why you might."

Cupid/Trevor said, "Except I won't. Much as I want to I'm a Lover not a Fighter. You can certainly remove the restraints now. You must realize I said what I said to trick you into leaving the death area."

Claire rushed forward and started unbuckling him. "Everybody's been saying that. I suspected it. I just needed to hear it from your own lips."

Well read my lips. He pointed at them, "I won't….be….jumping….off…any…buildings. At least not any higher than a foot or two."

"Trevor, jumping off a building for a foot or two does not count as jumping off a building."

Tell that to Félix's dogs. I used their doghouse as a stepping stool a few days ago to reach one of Tres Equi's back windows so I could clean it. When I was done I jumped off. Doesn't a two-foot doghouse count as a building? If it doesn't count as a building what IS it?"

Claire giggled. "I guess you are back to your normal abnormality. I'm relieved!"

Cupid gave her a lop sided grin. "Enough to give me a roll in the hay?

"Trevor!"

Well it would do me good! I've just been through such trauma!" He put his hands up to his forehead and tried to look stressed.

Clair said, "You'll live. But do you want to go home? By that I mean back to Tres Equis

"Yes!" He grinned at her teasingly, "You are my Shrink and you had to ask that?

She nodded at him trying to repress a smile, "I'll sign your release papers. We are doubly crowded here and need to free up every bed we can. They had to evacuate MPI."

Trevor groaned, closed his eyes and lay back on the pillow. "I should have seen that coming. Before I leave I want to visit an old friend.

"Prot is here too."

"Never met him. I meant someone else. Dremers are usually such bores. But I've heard prot is not as much a bore as usual so I guess I'll look in on him. We can revile in each other's celebrity lunatic status. Not that I bet he actually does revile. Don't ever invite dremers to a party. Their idea of a good time is to chew nopka and fall asleep under a balnok tree. They would never have flown planes into buildings."

Clair sighed, "So prot's been telling us over and over and OVER again. He says he sure picked the wrong time to bring his Friend back. Catatonic or not Robert Porter would have been better off on K-PAX. He's right about that. Go see him, Cupid. Misery loves company. You are homesick. He's homesick. We'll start a support group for homesick gods." She grinned mischievously.

Cupid snorted, "Prot is not a god. He is only a 'worm' who doesn't know anything interesting to do with a Host when he's got one. We gods know fun things to do with ours! Which brings up an idea."

Quickly Claire said, "I'll see you later Trevor." She left the isolation room and deliberately slammed the door, locking her Patient in. But she did it out of mischief not concern for his safety. He was going to be ok.

Claire made a note to herself, "god or not, Cupid just finally admitted he is using a Human as a Host which is still just as much for all practical purposes multiple personality disorder as the real prot is inside of the catatonic Robert Porter. So my treatment plan really has not changed. I still have to help him get his one hundred Couples. Because delusional or not Cupid still has to leave for the body's original Owner to regain control."

She went and got Trevor his hot dog and one for herself too. She went back and stood just outside the isolation room, grinning with mischief. Trevor was howling at being locked in and pounding furiously at the door. The god did not take confinement well.

She slid her card and opened the door. "Hmm she said, scratching her chin. "This one seems very disturbed. I'd better call for more sedation."

Trevor growled, "Very funny! Give me that hot dog and let me go! I've got a bar to tend and Lovers to unite!"

"Can I walk to go get the paper work or do I have to run?"

"You can walk if you will just take me with you!"

She said, "well come right on then.

He followed her down the hall meek as a little Lamb now that he wasn't locked in.

She left the disturbed ward with Trevor practically crawling inside her skin.

"Trevor it is considered polite to walk at least a foot and a half away from a Lady."

"I don't want to be separated from you and end up locked up here again due to the confusion."

Trevor I am not going to lose you. They passed an Orderly, "Tom, isolation room 10 is free."

"Thank God! We are having problems with some of the new MPI'ers. They got some really weird Patients there and some violent ones too."

Claire went to the office, grabbed some release papers and signed "Trevor Pierce" out. Once he had them in his hands he hung onto them like they were Snakes trying to escape from him.

So are you going to leave now? We could really use your help calming and cheering up the other Patients."

Cupid shook his head. OK. I'm going to go visit my Friend. Then I'll do another sing a long. I don't mind being here for a while." He waved his papers in the air, "Now that I have THESE to prove I can leave anytime I want!"

Trevor made his way to his old digs; ward B, the harmless ward. He got there and several of the long-term Patients recognized him and ran for a hug. For a few moments he got all the love he needed. He asked, "I'm looking for one of the new Patients, one of them from MPI. Anybody see Cassandra?"

A long bearded Schizophrenic with hair as white as snow pointed towards a forlorn figure in white sitting near the window staring at what was left of the World Trade Center.

Trevor's face fell. He could see she was miserable.

Quietly he went over to her speaking gently in Greek.

He sat down next to her and put her hands on her shoulders, "Little Love why are you so sad?"

"As usual only the crazies would listen to me. So I could not save anyone."

"Damn that curse! Uncle Apollo ought to be horse whipped and hung upside down from a tall tree by certain unmentionable parts of his body!" Trevor reached out his hands and wiped a tear from her cheeks with his finger. "You have a right to reject someone if you want to! And a pox on my Pops for what he just did! I sure found out what you felt like all the time before you thought of just dwelling with the crazies who can believe you. I too today knew something I knew no one would believe if I tried to tell it. I had to act mad to get my Mortal Friends to act on a truth that was madder than I ever could be even if I really was delusional. And you went through that every single day of your life for almost 3000 years! It's a wonder you aren't REALLY crazy after all of that."

Cassie put her head on Trevor's chest. "They could not have believed me if I'd said the sky was blue! So of course they couldn't believe me when I said I'd been raped! Cupid why do we exist? We don't do the Mortals any good or ourselves either! We are a plague upon them, not a blessing! Look at yesterday. Your Father started another war!"

Trevor frowned, "I know he did."

"The Universe would be better if we didn't' exist. We are so mean!"

Cupid said, "Now Cassie that is not always true. People love you and they love me. It doesn't matter whether you are a god, or a Puppy Dog or a Mental Patient or a Tree, if you give love you deserve to receive it, and you have always been loving. You don't have to have anyone believe you about the future to be worth something and we aren't responsible for the sins of our entire species or even our own Family any more than Mortals are. Some of us do bad but some of us do try to do good, and the BIG GUY loves you. Isn't that enough? The buck stopped with Him."

There was a tiny meow at their feet. They looked down. "Snuggles!" Cassandra exclaimed, "I forgot to even ask. So Sachs-Gordon Medical Center let us keep our Animals!"

Trevor beamed, "Now that is what we needed when I was locked up here. Nothing is more loving than a four foot Critter." He picked the little Kitten up and his motor started. He held the Kitten up to Cassie's ear. Hear the coffee grinder going? Now is that worth living for or not?"

Cassie couldn't help herself. She started to smile.

He smiled at her, his face beaming with affection. "You did a very wise thing, finding the one kind of population who COULD believe you. I bet you help them all the time, don't you? After all it was your warning that got everybody In MPI to safety ahead of time. That's not small Potatoes babe." He said the last in English like Humphrey Bogart.

She smiled some more.

Cupid gazed at the office building next to the hospital. You know what would be nice? If Sachs-Gordon Medical Center could buy that land, tear down that building and put in a garden or at least a huge solarium with some fishponds and some water falls. You give Dr. Brewer lottery numbers and he buys tickets and then stuff for MPI don't you?"

Cassie nodded, "But he says only to give him numbers for small wins and we don't do it often because we don't want to draw attention to me."

Trevor said, "You know even People who aren't so connected occasionally win a big pot. Get all the Patients to chip in a few cents and get ONE big lottery ticket and get these poor, cramped folks some outdoor time. Any one would be mentally ill if they have to be locked up 90 days without any nature. Do tell me about it! I was about ready to permanently NEED medication if Claire hadn't helped me get out. And there wasn't anything wrong with me. What if there had been? How could I have stood being under all these fluorescents all that time if I really was crazy?"

Cassie giggled, "You ARE crazy. You just aren't delusional. If you weren't crazy you wouldn't be able to believe me either. Even prot believes me about things. Think about that!"

Cupid exclaimed, "Oh my! You bet I am! You know its true, sometimes my Psychiatrist sounds like my Mother. They BOTH think something is not quite right about me and I may have been kicked down to Earth so I could get help from Claire. But oh how I love you Cassie!"

"You love everybody. You can't help it. You are what you are."

"True, and ain't it grand? Love is what is right about me! He got up and started dancing and singing "Love is what makes the world go round!

Open your eyes and take in everything that you see

Look at all the colors like , yellow, blue, & green

We can take an airplane and fly across the globe

Look down upon the colors, everyone come on, let's go

Because

Love, love, love, la la love