A boy sat on the top of a building, overlooking a graveyard, staring up at the night sky. It really doesn't do to call him a boy though, as he was nearly eighteen. He lay on his back, counting the stars. After reaching the one hundred mark, he took another look at what his grandfather had left him. The package held a necklace, silver with the Latin engraving 'In Pax Vigilantia. In Bellum Victoria. In Mortis Sacrificium.' and a smaller package that was labeled 'To: Sam'. At first he had wondered who this "Sam" was, and why they had meant so much to his grandfather, but he had met her earlier that night. She had the look that only came about when someone had met his grandpa. He still had no idea why his granddad wanted her to have whatever was inside the box, but it must've been important. The first duty of the new head of the order was to fulfill the wishes of the last head. He sighed. Three days until leadership fully passed to him. He sighed again. He didn't really want it, but it was his "duty" to take it. Still, it would at least give him something to do.

Sam flung the door open wide to see Carly look up at her. In her face, she saw the quickest change of expression that she had ever seen. Not that she got to see it for very long, as she was tackled not but two seconds later. Carly was beside herself with joy, nearly drowning Sam with her tears. Sam was a little confused. She had been the emotionally unstable one just a few hours ago, but now she had become the pillar between them. Crazy. It took Carly a couple of minutes to get a hold of herself, at which point she stopped choking Sam. They looked into each other's eyes. Sam was the first to break the silence.

"I'm back."

It wasn't much to say, but she didn't really care. Carly just nodded. They embraced then, Sam breathing in Carly's scent. She smelled of wildflowers in bloom. Sam made a promise to herself that she would never leave again. When they finally broke apart, Sam spoke again.

"Um, can I come inside now?"

That gave Carly a laugh. To Carly, the sound was strange, as if it hadn't been used in a very long time. She'd have to get used to it again. She let Sam in anyway and soon they were locked into each other's arms again, only this time they were sitting. Carly was fully vested in their kissing, giving everything she had, trying to convince Sam that she loved her, and she was doing a rather good job of it. Sam's thoughts, however, were somewhere else entirely. They were on Carly's butt to be exact. Carly hadn't changed since she had left. A chill shot down her spine. She would have to face it eventually, but it could wait for another few moments.

Freddie approached the door. It had been swung open and nearly blown off of its hinges. He started to enter, but stopped at the sight before him. They were kissing, a look of absolute bliss on both of their faces. Neither noticed him. Now he finally believed Carly. Sam was the one for her. He smiled then, and went home as silently as he could.

They broke apart several times to catch their breath, but neither wanted to be out of contact for long. Finally, Sam decided that she needed to say something.

"Um, Carly?"

Carly was breathing rather hard. So was Sam.

"Yes Sam?"

Ask the next question would easily become the hardest thing that she had ever done. Her mouth went dry. Her mind raced.

"Do you, um, do you…?"

She was finding it very hard to make words. Carly knew what she wanted to ask.

"Not if you don't want to. You don't have to do anything."

"I know, but if I don't do it now, I never will."

It was a realization that she had come to when she had talked to the old man. She would have to face it immediately or she would never face it. Carly looked at her for a moment, long enough to get Sam nervous, very nervous. Eventually, she nodded. Sam's heart beat even faster. Carly stood up, allowing Sam to take her by the hand, and led her to her room. She gently pushed Sam onto the bed when they arrived, but she didn't immediately join her.

"Are you sure that you want to do this?"

Sam looked straight into her eyes, confirming her wants. Carly sighed, but on the inside she was excited.

"I trust you Sam. Know that."

"I know."

Carly slowly put herself across Sam's lap, sensually as she could. Sam began to blush. She looked down at Carly.

"I'm ready Sam."

Sam gulped. Now she had to face her worst fear, hurting Carly again. She sat frozen. Come on Sam, do something! She thought to herself. Her hands moved slowly, as if they had just thawed. She decided to take baby steps and began to rub Carly's skirt. This elicited a moan from Carly, causing Sam's blush to spread and darken. Okay, you've got that down, now do something else. She gulped again. There was only one thing left to do. She raised her hand.

Carly felt her hand lift away. She was so excited. It was finally going to happen. The warm glow had returned to her stomach. She heard a swish, and braced herself.

Pat.

A pat was all that came of it. Carly was confused. Sam was much stronger than this.

Pat. Pat. Pat.

She looked up at Sam and giggled a bit. Sam's entire face, from the ears to her chin, was as red as a brick. Well, it was a start at least, but she wanted more, and she knew how to get it.

"You hit like a cheerleader."

Much like a fox's, Sam's ears perked up, and she paused mid-swing. Had Carly just compared her to a cheerleader? A giggling, no brained, prissy, arrogant, cheerleader?

WHAP!

Her hand came down with much more force.

"Ah!"

Her comment had had the desired effect. It had woken Sam up. Sam hated cheerleaders.

WHAP! SMACK! SLAP!

Carly kept yelping, but with pleasure, not pain, coloring her voice. Sam noticed it. This isn't so bad. She likes this. Sam positively beamed inwardly. She could do this without hurting her. She renewed her efforts, experimenting with her aim. Carly was completely entranced. She had never felt so good. It wasn't really because of the spanking though. Yes she enjoyed it, but having Sam back, truly back, was the greatest thing that she could ever experience.

Nearly fifteen minutes later, Carly was finally allowed to get up. She was smiling when she tackled Sam. Sam's grin however, put anything that she could muster to shame. She had done it. She had faced her fear, and won.

"See? That wasn't so bad was it?"

Carly always knew exactly what to say. It was quite the talent. Sam nodded. She couldn't really say anything. Her mouth wouldn't work right. She drew Carly into a slow kiss.

Sam awoke the next morning with a wide smile on her face. She turned to see Carly still asleep. She made sure not to wake her as she got up. Her grin turned mischievous as she took the only robe. She walked down the stairs of the apartment building to get the mail and the daily newspaper. Reading the paper was one of her private pleasures. When she got back to the apartment, she made coffee, knowing that Carly would want some when she awoke. She had never really liked coffee. It was just too bitter. Carly, however, loved the stuff so she made it dutifully for her every morning that she was at her place. While the coffee maker did its job, she flipped open the paper to see what all was new to the world. She only read the first headline before she dropped it.

Carly slowly opened her eyes. Sam wasn't in bed. She'd probably gone to make coffee. She was always grateful for that. She slowly pushed herself out of bed and made her way to the closet. Her robe was gone.

"Oh Sam," she giggled. She reached behind a box of old things and pulled out her spare robes. She was always a step ahead of Sam. She slowly made her way down the stairs. Sam was sitting on the couch, staring at the wall. The television wasn't on. She wasn't eating breakfast. Carly nearly asked what she was doing when she saw the newspaper. It was flipped to the headline. It read:

Man Dies in Tragic Accident

Norman Carter, age 72, died during the night, when a bulldozer exploded while he was trying to protect a tree from being bulldozed to make way for a corporate warehouse. Police investigated the scene and found that a leak in thee gas line of the dozer probably caused the explosion. "He loved that tree," says Norman's only grandson and living relative, Daniel Carter.

She didn't read anymore. She just sat by Sam.

"What's wrong?"

"He was the one who helped me get back here last night."

"Who?"

"Norman Carter."

Sam recounted the adventure that she'd had the night before. Now Carly understood. She flipped through the paper.

"Do you want to go to his funeral?"

"What?"

Carly showed her the date.

"It's at the end of the week. We can go if you want to pay your respects."

Sam looked up to Carly's eyes.

"I'd like that."

And so, they showed up to the Nature Cemetery three days later. There was only one other person attending. It was the boy she'd run into that night. Now she knew why he had looked so familiar. He was a spitting image of his grandfather, though maybe a bit younger. He said a simple hello when they sat. The service didn't last very long. When it was over they shook hands with Daniel. She thanked him for his help. Just before they left, he requested to talk to Sam in private, which Carly obliged, stepping away for a few minutes. He didn't say anything to Sam. He just handed her a small package and left. She looked down at the tiny box. It was indeed labeled with her name. She opened it carefully. Inside there was a note and a seed of a great oak. The note said 'I'm glad that you decided not to let your tree die, Mrs. Puckett. – Norman Carter.' She smiled, not caring how he had known her name. She took the seed out of the box. She knew exactly where she wanted to plant it.