Megan

She was going to get a little sister. She wasn't exactly sure why she called Marika's baby her sister.

She had had a family once. She had a mother, a father, a big brother, and a grandmother. What was her brother's name? What did her father look like? What perfume did her mother smell like? What did her grandmother wear to church?

Megan knew they were dead, all of them. She had seen them die in front of her eyes, and then she had left. She used to let her brother push her around, but not any more. Megan made her own decisions now.

Megan had a new family here. People who took care of her, like a family should. Sam could have been her older brother. Sam was her older brother. And if Sam was her brother, then Cassie must be her sister. What did that make Evan, Marika, and Ben?

The older ones took turns tucking Megan and Sam in at night. She clearly remembered Ben's words from the first night at Marble Falls.

"Megan, Sam, you cannot call me Zombie any more. Ringer is Marika, and Sam, you are no longer Nugget. We cannot let them win."

Ben had taken the least bad fall at the base. Marika was next to recover. She spoke to each of us separately.

"Megs," she said quietly as she pulled her aside one night. "The six of us, we're family now. Benjamin Parish. Samuel Sullivan. Cassiopeia Sullivan. Evan Walker. Me, Marika Kimura. And you. Megan."

"Megan Jones," she mumbled.

"Megan Jones," Marika agreed. "We are a family unit. We have to trust each other now. If you have any problems, don't keep them inside. We are here for you, Megs. I am. Ben is. Evan and Cassie, when they feel better. We're a family now, Megs. There are no more scary aliens. We are a family."

Marika gave the little girl a hug, and then pulled something out from behind her back. "Ben and I found these in a nearby toy store. It's for you."

Megan's eyes widened at the three Barbie dolls that Megan handed her. Her little arms wrapped around Marika. Megan hadn't had a hug in a very long time, and it seemed to her that Marika might not have had one, either.

She studied Marika. "Will you bring me a little sister to play Barbies with?"

Marika looked startled. "How did you know I'm going to have a baby?"

Megan thought about it. How did she know?

"My mommy looked like you," she said finally. "She said I was going to have a little sister to play Barbies with. But my sister never came. The aliens came first."

Marika hugged her tighter. "I hope she's a girl. I want you to have a little sister to play Barbies with, Megs."

Megan smiled. It was the first time she'd felt like smiling since she'd lost her family.

Evan Walker

He had recovered before Cassiopeia, and he was bored out of his mind. Ben, Marika, and even Sam had tried to fill him in on his memories, but it didn't work. Those were their memories of him, not his own memories of his life. Every so often, he could grasp at snatches, but they were from before. Before the aliens showed up, before Cassie Sullivan was a thought that crossed his mind. As pleasant as those were, he didn't think they would be very helpful.

Marika told him that Cassie had his memories, his true memories, inside of her. Ben and Marika often talked in low whispers about the best way to get them out. Evan didn't know if they knew-or cared-that he could actually hear them during these discussions.

All Evan knew was that he loved Cassie. He tended to her, as Ben told him he had done before. He wanted to be the first face she saw when she was fully aware of her surroundings.

He had only been in the bathroom for one minute when Megan gave a cry from the front room. "Eh-van! She's waking up!"

He thought of the irony. He wouldn't be the first person she saw. It would be Megan of all people. Megan, who had no choice in being here. Evan, who had all the choice, wouldn't be Cassie's first face.

Cassie

My eyes fluttered open. I'm in the pod. I'm not in the pod. I'm falling, but Ringer's got me. Evan's got me too. But Evan is dead. So that must mean Ringer's dead. And that must mean I'm dead.

"Eh-van! she's awake!"

Megan. Shit. I had hoped at least Ben and the young ones had survived. Apparently not. If Megan was calling for Evan, we were all dead.

There was a clatter. "Cassie! Cassie! Cassiopeia Sullivan, can you hear me?"

If dead people can talk, then I really must be in Heaven. Evan Walker is dead. I am dead. But dead people can't talk. They're dead. It was too confusing.

I looked around the room. There was a couch, and carpet. I could smell something simmering on the stove. Three faces swam above me.

Megan was there, in all her four-year-old glory. Sammy, my Sams, was leaning over me. And Evan was there. Evan! Evan Walker. My savior. Twice. No, more than that. Evan Walker had one true motivation for everything he'd done: me. Evan Walker loved me.

"Am I dead?"

"No." Evan sounded surer than he ever had.

I puzzled it over. "Evan, if I'm not dead, neither are you."

"That's right."

"How….?"

Two more faces floated in. "We killed a clone," Ringer said. "Oh, Cassie, we were sure you wouldn't make it. Evan and I tried to save you, and then Ben and Sam and Megan helped us, but Cassie….it would have been my fault!"

She launched herself onto me, but Evan and Ben dove forward to pull her off. "She's still hurt, Mar," Ben said quickly.

Huh. Ringer must have been going by Marika now. And Ben had a pet name for her. Just like Mayfly. Speaking of which….

Evan wrapped his arms around me and hoisted me onto the couch. "You were out for three days, Cassie. Marika was right. We didn't know if you were still with us."

There was only one thing on my mind. "How are you….here?"

"Vosch erased my memories, but he couldn't erase my soul. As they started General Order 4, he said something about pestilent rain. Then they left me, but I remembered the pestilence. I connected from there until I realized I was here for a reason. I found Marika, and we went from there."

"But I killed you," I whispered.

Evan shook his head. "You killed a clone. One that had all the Evan taken out of it."

"Okay." Strangely, it made sense. And then something made me jerk my head up. "You lost your memories?"

"Marika, Ben, and Sam filled me in on some stuff, but they said you'd be able to give me the rest."

"For sure." I located them in the sea of memories contained in me."True love's kiss?" I was flirting now, but I suspected it would work.

Evan shrugged. "Let's give it a shot."

I kissed him with more passion than ever before. I had known Evan Walker, truly known him, and I had wished I could apologize. This was even better.

Evan blinked. "You saved me, Mayfly."

Evan was back. I was back. And everyone was accounted for.

Marika brought me a slab of chocolate cake. "I baked it yesterday."

I'd ever tasted anything better. "Where did you find cake mix?" I wondered, my mouth full of chocolaty goodness.

Ben laughed. "This house came stocked. Also, you wouldn't believe how many people left all the foodstuffs they'd have to prepare. Cake mixes are a dime a dozen at the corner store.

It was great to be back.

A/N: I like writing happy fanfictions. Fics where people who were supposed to be dead, live, and where everyone lives happy ever after. I can't do the depressing stuff, but I like to have a lot of conflict. Still don't know where I'm going with this. Suggestions wanted.

~Hufflepufferfish (for now)