Ma-Ti stirred and blinked himself awake. He'd fallen asleep with his head on Gi's shoulder. He sat up sleepily and smiled as he saw the way his friends had all slumped and fallen together.

Wheeler was at the end, both arms wrapped tightly around Linka and his cheek resting on top of her head. He still looked pale, but his face was relaxed and peaceful as he slept soundly.

Linka had burrowed into him, balled up beneath the pile of blankets arranged around her. One of her hands, however, lay exposed on top, held securely in Kwame's warm palm.

The Earth Planeteer had fallen asleep sitting upright, his chin drooping down on his chest. Ma-Ti winced when he realised how stiff he'd be when he awoke, but he left him to sleep – one hand holding Linka's, his other arm wrapped carefully around Gi, who was stretched out beside him, her head against his chest. She'd hooked one leg carefully over Ma-Ti's knees, keeping him close to her.

Awake, Ma-Ti?

He rubbed his eyes and spoke back to Captain Planet silently. Yes. Where are we?

We're nearing Hope Island. Do you want to wake the others?

Ma-Ti reached over Gi and patted Kwame's shoulder gently.

He muttered something incoherent and lifted his head, his eyes fluttering. He groaned when he felt the stiffness in his neck.

"We are nearly home," Ma-Ti whispered to him. "How do you feel?"

Kwame just sighed in response and gave him a weary smile.

Ma-Ti grinned back at him and gently shook Gi awake. She frowned and burrowed further into Kwame's side, but he pulled her up and she was soon sitting beside him, her hair tousled and her eyes sleepy.

"Are we home?" she asked huskily.

"Just about," Kwame answered. He looked over to Wheeler.

Their murmurs had already disturbed him. He was blinking slowly, and after a moment he lifted a careful hand and stroked his thumb down Linka's cheek. She looked up at him immediately and smiled.

Kwame watched as she whispered something to the Fire Planeteer in Russian, and felt a surprising surge of pride when Wheeler chuckled and responded in kind.

He smiled and turned away, though he kept hold of Linka's hand, glad to have proof of her presence again.

"Do you think Blight's got all those other Planeteers back yet?" Gi asked weakly, tilting her head up to look at Kwame.

He swallowed uncomfortably. "I suppose so."

They all sat up as the wrecked geo-cruiser started to descend. Through the shattered windows they could see the peaks of The Crystal Chamber.

Captain Planet deposited the ruined vehicle carefully in its usual place, and the Planeteers scrambled out, stiff and aching.

He grinned at them. "Smooth flight?"

"No need to brag about it," Wheeler muttered.

Captain Planet turned his grin to Wheeler and then spun as Gaia called out to them.

"Planeteers, are you all right?" She was frowning in concern and Ma-Ti took a step towards her.

"Gaia, Zarm is coming with Planeteers from the dimension he was banished to," he said worriedly. "He's coming here to destroy you."

"I know, Ma-Ti." She touched his face gently and ran her eyes over the others. "They will be some time yet."

"What are we going to do?" Gi asked desperately, hugging herself tightly in an effort to ward away her fear. "These Planeteers are scary, Gaia. They're giant and powerful..."

Gaia finished assessing them with her eyes and gave Gi a soothing smile. "First things first," she said. "You are all exhausted."

"We slept on the flight back," Kwame said.

"Not enough," Gaia said sternly. "You're going to need your strength, Planeteers."

"They're okay, Gaia," Captain Planet said cheerfully. "They're amazing."

"I know they're amazing," she sighed, turning to him. "You need to go and recharge."

"Nah," Cap answered breezily, "I'm fit as a fiddle."

"Now," Gaia said, sounding unnaturally short with him.

The Planeteers blinked as Captain Planet took an astounded step back. They suddenly felt as though they were witnessing their parents arguing for the first time.

Cap shook his head, looking annoyed. "They're coming back here," he said. "They're going to head straight for here."

"You know as well as I do that they're going to take a while," Gaia said with a slightly impatient sigh. "Go and recharge and the Planeteers will call you again when we need you." She raised her eyebrow at him and Wheeler grinned.

"Better do it, Cap. Gaia gets pretty thunderous when she's mad."

Captain Planet sighed and gave the Planeteers another quick grin. "I'm proud of you guys," he said. "I know a lot has happened to you since I saw you last, but time doesn't really mean that much to me. It's like I woke up and watched you take on a problem that would have been too big for you yesterday. Watching what you did over the past few days..." He trailed off and shook his head, looking pleased and slightly self-conscious. "I'm proud of you," he said. "The power is yours."

He disappeared quickly, as though feeling embarrassed about his closing speech. The Planeteers watched him go, feeling a mix of surprise and anxiety. He had been a constant strength and hope the past few days, and not having him there beside them suddenly felt unnatural.

"Gaia, Zarm is coming after you," Linka said after a moment, drawing attention back to the problems at hand. "He has other Planeteers. He has given them the gauntlets he tried to give to us the first time we met him."

"We have time, Linka," Gaia answered, giving her a reassuring smile.

Gi shook her head desperately. "The other Earth Planeteer arrived just before Captain Planet flew us out of there," she said. "They're coming, Gaia. Blight's sending them all back with her ray gun, and Zarm is coming too."

"They will be here any moment," Linka said worriedly, her eyes darting to the ocean over Gaia's shoulder.

"How long were you gone, Linka?" Gaia asked gently.

Linka frowned. "Four or five hours? I am not sure."

Gaia turned to Wheeler. "How long was she gone, Wheeler?"

"Four days," Wheeler answered firmly.

Gaia nodded and smiled. "What takes Zarm's Planeteers an hour is going to take them a day, here. It's going to take them time to get used to that. They're going to need extra effort and strength. Zarm, too. It will take him time to reassess his energy needs." She looked at them all carefully and smiled. "I'm not saying we have all the time in the world," she said. "I'm not saying they won't hurry. But you have time to get a proper night's rest."

She waved them towards their huts. "Believe me – I'll call if I need you."

Wheeler kicked the door to Linka's hut closed behind him, his arm still slung over her shoulders. She was tense and fretful.

"They will not wait," she whispered. "They will come..."

"Gaia will call us," he answered, pulling her to him.

She sighed and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. "I missed you, Yankee," she mumbled after a moment, her voice half-lost against his shoulder.

He nodded, his face buried in her neck. "Missed you, too. Thought I'd lost you again..." He gave half a sob and held his breath, forcing it all back again.

She stroked her fingers over the nape of his neck. "Was I really gone for four days?" she asked softly.

He nodded. "I had time to waste on Plunder," he answered.

She felt him quiver slightly and she hugged him tighter.

"Where were you, babe?" he asked after a moment. "What was it like?"

"Scary," she whispered, closing her eyes and swaying slightly with him. "The moon was like a hundred moons and the grass was silver and the water purple... There was a monster with teeth and tentacles and a sky that shifted like smoke."

He frowned and shook his head, unable to imagine anything like she was describing. "I'm glad you're home," he said.

"Me too."

He gave a slight grin into her shoulder. "I think Ma-Ti is kinda disappointed we didn't get to use his ray gun."

Linka chuckled and nodded slightly, moving her head so it was tucked beneath Wheeler's chin. "I am glad he did not get time," she admitted after a moment. "I am glad I did it myself."

He ran his fingers through her tangled hair and she looked up at him and gave him a small smile.

"I wish Viktor could have seen," she whispered. "I wish he knew how strong I was."

Wheeler frowned slightly. "You still think of him?"

"It has not been so long," she answered softly. "It just feels like it has... He is still in my head..."

"Well, get him out of there," Wheeler muttered, kissing her temple.

She shook her head and looked up at him. He felt her thumb glance over his inner elbow and his heart skipped a beat.

"Still there," she whispered, "In your head."

He nodded, his mouth dry.

"You overcame it, but it still haunts you," she whispered. "For the first time I feel like I have overcome some of the obstacles Viktor put up – but that does not mean I feel free of him, yet."

"I know," he admitted, resting his forehead against hers. "Maybe he's still in there, babe, but you got home, despite him."

She smiled up at him, feeling ridiculously pleased with herself. Maybe it hadn't taken much careful planning or finesse, but she had found her own way home.

"Plunder says our relationship is unhealthy," Wheeler whispered.

Linka closed her eyes. "Maybe it is," she admitted. "But it is healthier than my relationship with Viktor."

He chuckled and squeezed her. "We should get some sleep."

She leaned away from him, taking a step back and holding his hands. "I need a shower."

He tilted his head and smiled at her. "Do you think so?"

She smiled and nodded, tugging at his hands. He followed her, one hand letting go of her fingers to move to her waist as she walked backwards to the bathroom.

"I wanted to follow you," he said softly, curling his fingers into the material of her shirt. "I wanted them to shoot me with the teleport beam so I could find you."

"Find me and save me," she sighed, closing her eyes as he drew her shirt up over her head. She let her arms fall back around his neck. "Like Russia."

"Which time?" he asked with a wry smile.

She smiled back at him. "Like the first time," she whispered, pressing kisses against his neck. "The time I did not know you were there... The time I really realised you loved me."

"I didn't really know it was love," he muttered, moving his mouth over her shoulder, nibbling his teeth against the strap of her bra. "I just couldn't face the idea of you not being a Planeteer anymore."

"Well, you did all those things behind a mask," she said, sliding her hands beneath his shirt. "You did not do them to be a hero or to be praised. You did it all anonymously. You did it for me."

He smiled at her. "Course I did." He touched his nose to hers gently. "You kissed me," he murmured.

She nodded, her lashes dark against her pale skin as she closed her eyes and breathed deeply.

"You kissed me on our last day here, too," he whispered. "It broke my heart that all the kisses you ever gave me were ones you said goodbye with."

She wrapped her arms tightly around him and pressed her mouth to his, pulling him down to her and kissing him deeply.

"I will never kiss you goodbye again," she breathed.

He backed her against the bathroom counter and pressed his hips against hers, feeling her legs spread to bring him closer. He lifted her and she sat on the edge of the counter, her knees clamped to his hips as she drew his shirt up over his head.

"So you knew I loved you and you never said anything?" Wheeler asked with a grin, tracing his fingers over her back.

"I was afraid," she admitted. "And rightly so, da?"

"I guess so, in the end," he said, looking down at her. "Though if I'd known for sure that I had a chance with you, I'd never have slept with Gi."

She lowered her eyes and nodded.

"Not your fault," he insisted softly.

She nodded again and he lifted her chin gently and kissed her.

She smiled at him. "I still need to shower," she whispered pointedly.

He chuckled and reached through the shower curtain to turn the water on.

They stood under the spray together and he ran soaped hands over her skin, searching for the places that made her squirm and smile against his neck; places he planned to trace time and time again over long nights and lazy afternoons in their future.

She let the water smooth her hair away from her face as she looked up at him, her arms around his neck and her body pressed close and wet against his. She closed her eyes when he ran his hands over her again, tracing the arch of her spine and the curve of her hips. His palms were slippery with suds and he moved them over her breasts and under her arms, tickling her and grinning down at her when she twitched and shivered against him.

They were silent, and comfortable and excited as they shut the water off and wrapped themselves in thick towels.

She wiped fog off the mirror and ran a comb through her hair carefully, wincing at the snarls and tangles that caught in its teeth. They brushed their teeth side-by-side and he watched her smooth moisturiser into her skin as he (under her watchful eye) carefully rubbed salve onto the welts on his wrists.

"Did Plunder do that?" she asked softly, taking his hands and running her thumbs over his skin.

"Technically I did it," he said, looking down at the marks. "Don't think they'd be there if I hadn't struggled so much."

She frowned and rested her forehead against his chest. "I'm tired," she whispered to him in Russian. "Come with me to bed, Wheeler."

He pulled the sheets back and they slipped between them, naked skin against cool cotton. She stretched out on her side, facing him.

"I have only ever been with Viktor," she said softly.

He reached over and brushed his fingers over her waist. "I know," he said. He wanted to tell her he didn't expect anything – especially then, at that moment – but he had a feeling that wasn't why she had spoken.

"It was nice, being close with him," she admitted, "but I still did not like it much. It was just better to have him hold me like that than push me away. But I was always confused, afterwards. Because he was so affectionate. And because it seemed like he loved me so much."

Wheeler propped himself up on his elbow and ran his fingers slowly across the bare skin of Linka's stomach.

She smiled up at him. "You love me no matter what," she said softly.

"Course I do," he answered, brushing his lips over hers.

"Touch me," she whispered.

For a moment, a niggling seed of doubt planted itself at the back of Wheeler's mind, and he wondered if Linka's reasons for such close affection were right. He wondered if she was truly ready and if she was truly prepared – and truly repaired from everything that had already happened.

He ran his hand carefully down her thigh and she moved her body beneath him, winding herself around him slowly, her arms around his neck and her legs parting to draw his body close to hers.

"Please do not be afraid," she breathed, her mouth against his neck. "I want you."

He smiled at the way she had read his hesitance, and closed his eyes, relaxing into her touch, moving his hand up along her smooth skin to her hip, steadying her before he let his fingers trace further and press inside her body.

She let out a soft breath against his ear and he felt her lashes flutter against his cheek.

All the times he had pictured this moment – pictured being with her – it had certainly never taken place on a day like the one they'd had. In his dreams they had never been exhausted or worn, or thin and pale. Their minds had not been stretched to breaking with stress and the possibility of the world ending the very next day.

In his dreams everything had been different, but there with her then, between the cool cotton sheets with her body warming and twisting beneath his, he wouldn't have changed a thing.

The worries they had both held just hours earlier had all torn apart and all he could focus on was the way her breathing shifted and the way she was biting her lip and trying to hide her face against his neck so he couldn't see the gentle flush of pleasure on her face.

He curled his fingers inside her and used his other hand to cup her breast, trace her waist or shift her body closer to him. Her breath was growing louder and her fingers were in his hair and raking down his back as she rolled her hips against his hand.

He could hear his own heart thundering in his chest and he could feel his muscles all coiled and tight like wire as he shifted against her, finding nerves and places that made her whimper quietly. He grinned with satisfaction as she gave a sudden jerk and her breath exploded against his shoulder, her hips moving in quick rhythm.

"Bolshe," she whispered. More.

He wrapped his arms around her, moving his tongue into her mouth as he eased inside her. For a moment she wrapped herself so tightly around him he couldn't move himself against her – all arms and legs tightly trapping him, her fingers curling and clenching in his hair, holding him to her until she let her feet touch against the mattress again. She pushed up against him and he broke the kiss to breathe and bring clarity and focus back to his mind.

She didn't stop for him, pulling his hips back to her quickly, her breathing quick and shallow. He pushed his body back to her desperately, aching to cover every inch of her as they squirmed and rocked together.

When she came again, she cut her cry short, pressing her teeth against his shoulder, her body shuddering and bucking beneath him violently.

He let a moan fall soft and full against her ear before he slowly sank his full weight onto her tiredly, one hand alongside her cheek. He ran his thumb slowly over the blue shadows of tiredness beneath her eyes, watching her gain her breath back as his heart thundered and gradually slowed.

She looked up at him with a gentle smile.

"Am I heavy?" he whispered, wondering if he should roll off her.

"Yes," she answered dreamily, hugging him to her again.

Wheeler stirred, sighing a slow breath out through his nose, the scent of Linka's skin warm and close against him.

He frowned as he heard someone knocking softly, and then the memory of the Planeteers' current challenges flew back into his mind. He sat up, leaning on his elbow, and looked down at Linka, curled up on her side beside him.

The door opened, spilling morning light into the room, and Gi tentatively poked her head inside.

"Hi," she whispered.

He grinned sleepily. "Hey. You okay?"

"Yeah. Actually, I wanted to talk to Linka, but if she's still asleep, I can come back."

"Is Gaia wanting us in The Crystal Chamber?"

"Not yet – but the others are awake, if that makes any difference to your plans." She smiled at him. "I'll come back in ten minutes."

He gazed across the room at her. "I'm glad you're okay, Gi," he said softly. "It scared the hell out of me when you disappeared. And I was such a jerk to you..."

She shook her head. "I'm used to it."

He threw a pillow at her and she laughed and closed the door hurriedly.

Linka sat up, holding the sheet to her chest. "What are you doing?" she asked sleepily.

"Waging a war," Wheeler muttered, flopping back onto the mattress and wrapping his arms around her. "Gi wants to talk to you."

Linka rested her head on his chest with a sigh. "Why?"

He kissed the top of her head. "You'll have to ask her, babe."

Linka frowned and ran her fingers over his collarbone. "Maybe we should get up," she said. "Zarm has probably had enough waiting around..."

"I'll go and find Gaia," he agreed quietly, kissing the top of her head again. "You talk to Gi."

"Wheeler..." Her protest trailed off as he threw a clean t-shirt at her.

"Please," he requested softly. "If somethin' horrible happens today..."

"Nothing horrible will happen," she said immediately. "We have come through so much... We will survive this."

He gazed back at her and leaned over, kissing her gently. "I love you, Linka."

She ran a hand through his hair. "I love you too."

Linka was sitting on the side of the bed pulling socks on when Gi knocked again.

"Hey."

"Hello." Linka gave her a small smile and motioned for her to come in. "How is your arm?"

"Oh, fine," Gi said, shrugging. "I think I just sprained it a little. It's okay now."

Linka nodded and Gi sat on the end of the bed. "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Of course," Linka answered, turning her attention back to her socks.

"Linka..."

She bit back a sigh and looked up at Gi again.

The Water Planeteer looked a little lost, unsure of how to begin.

"Do you know how I got this scar?" she asked after a moment. She pointed to her upper arm, a clean, pale, crescent-shaped scar visible on her skin.

Linka shook her head in surprise.

Gi stared down at the blankets as she spoke. "A couple of months after Jin and I got married, I was walking home from work. I'd stayed late because Jin and I had argued that morning about me taking time off so I could get pregnant."

She rolled her eyes and gave a helpless smile. "It was dark, but I knew where I was going and it was a walk I'd taken hundreds of times before. But..."

Her smile faded and her voice grew soft. "I was so caught up in how I was going to win the next inevitable argument with Jin, I didn't pay any attention to what was happening around me."

She fingered the scar absent-mindedly. "I got grabbed from behind," she said. "I never really registered what was happening. He took my wallet, and my phone... He was yelling at me, pulling my hair..." She shivered, her eyes wide. "I never even felt the knife go in – I tried to hit him and it just... glanced by me..."

Linka watched silently, not sure what to do or say.

Gi continued anyway, almost unaware that Linka was there. "I got home and Jin noticed all the blood... It looked worse than it really was, but I went into shock, I guess. I hadn't even noticed it. He took me to hospital and I got it stitched up."

She drew in a deep breath. "From then on, he told me it wasn't safe for me to walk to and from work like that. And I believed him. He started telling me it wasn't safe to go to the market, or to go to coffee with friends from work. Anything could happen..."

Linka frowned. Viktor had used similar lines on her.

"He just wanted me safe," Gi breathed, "he wanted me home and safe, and pregnant. And by the time I realised how much I'd really given up, it was all lost anyway."

She raised her eyes to Linka's. "Jin never hurt me," she said. "But he made me feel trapped. Maybe I'm stupid, thinking he always meant well. Maybe he was more like Viktor than I'd like to admit. But I loved him with all my heart, once, and I know how hard it is to leave the security of something like that even if you know it's not entirely healthy."

Linka swallowed and nodded silently.

"He made me feel safe," Gi said softly, "even if he went about it the wrong way."

Linka failed to keep her tears back. She wiped her eyes quietly and Gi shuffled carefully along the edge of the bed and opened her arms.

Linka rested her head against Gi's chest and sobbed. "You left him," she sniffed. "I could never leave Viktor; I was not strong enough."

"You did leave Viktor," Gi soothed. "You just needed somewhere else to go. As soon as Wheeler provided a place, you found the strength to go with him. Right?"

Linka wiped her eyes again and failed to voice an answer.

"I mean, I had to go all the way to Australia to finally feel like I'd escaped the cage I'd been kept in," Gi said wryly. "When I started a new job and got new friends I thought I'd be able to breathe again."

"Could you?" Linka asked, closing her eyes.

"Not really. All it did was remind me I was taking another step away from Hope Island and the Planeteers. I think I kept trying to find new ways to patch the wound, and nothing worked. My marriage with Jin was probably the same – something to rush into. Something I glossed over – trying to ignore the rough patches because having my marriage fail meant I had to figure out what to do next. There was never a way back. Only forwards. That scared the hell out of me."

She kissed the top of Linka's head. "Not sure what I would have done if Gaia hadn't come to me that night. I felt close to burning out. Keeping busy kept me sane and it wasn't having the right effect anymore."

"Is that why you are so upset about Jin being married again?" Linka asked quietly. "Because it is another door closing?"

"Yeah, maybe..." Gi hugged her a little.

Linka sat up and rubbed her face. Gi kept a hand moving soothingly over her back, and eventually Linka had settled herself enough to give her a shaky smile.

"Wheeler did not like Jin," she said, half a question in her voice.

"He didn't like me with Jin," Gi clarified. "I couldn't figure out why until the divorce. He was right, though."

"For once," Linka added.

Gi laughed. "Yeah."

They smiled at one another.

"Are we okay?" Gi asked softly.

Linka nodded carefully. "You did not have to tell me any of that," she said. "We do not need similar circumstances to bring us together again, Gi. We have enough already. We were friends before, for good reasons. I think a lot of those reasons are still there. They are just taking their time to resurface."

"I guess so," Gi whispered. "I'd take us back there if I could."

"I know," Linka answered. She smiled and shook her head. "There is never a way back. Only forwards. We should stop being afraid."

Gi wrapped her arms around Linka tightly, tears prickling behind her eyes as Linka returned the embrace.

For the first time in ten years, she felt truly whole again.

She drew in a shaky breath. "We should find the others," she whispered. "We still have work to do."

Linka nodded and they walked towards the beach together, tentatively repaired and happy.

On the horizon, however, storm clouds were brewing.

Zarm was coming.