Grimacing at Duke and Nathan, Mara held out her hand, the Maze shining like fire on her wrist. They knew what to expect this time, so they didn't panic as her body froze, feet still clutched in Nathan's hands as her blank gaze darted back and forth, scanning something only she could see.

They were still anxious though, and after a few minutes, Duke started trying to get her attention.

"Mara, baby, we're trying to be patient, but we're freaking out a little over here. Please snap out of it, we want to be sure you're okay. Come on, sweetheart."

With a shudder, her eyes snapped back into focus, and then she was on her feet, running for the bathroom. Duke held her hair and rubbed her back as Nathan wet a cloth for her face.

She had to admit, the hovering was endearing. She flushed, standing to wash her face and brush her teeth, and then she went back to the couch with her men, pulling them close on either side of her to press against them.

"What happened, baby? Was it her?" Duke was holding her hand, one arm over her shoulders so he could rest the other hand on Nathan's neck.

Mara smiled apologetically, gathering her thoughts.

"Well, Duke, your mother is definitely alive. She understandably unleashed all hell on me for being 'with' you, but she still wants to help us."

She chuckled a little hysterically, "She warned me that One was going to try and make contact. It's so her. A day late and a dollar short. I thought that was funny. She's offered to come, but I don't think she should, certainly not yet. She's managed to stay safe so far, I think she should stay safe."

Duke looked surprised. "What do you mean she unleashed hell on you? What the hell for?"

"Duke, she asked me to train you and protect you, not fall in love with you. You're her son, I expected this and I was totally willing to take any amount of trouble she wanted to give me about it, because you're worth it. It's okay."

"No, it is absolutely not okay. I'm a grown man, I can love who I want to, and she doesn't get a say in that. She disappeared for years without so much as a note, and yeah, I know, she did it to protect me and that's great, but mom or not, she doesn't get to come back after this long and try to start telling me who I can be with.

"Hell, if anything, she should be thanking you for explaining her absence. You're the only reason I know I even have a mother. I can understand why she hid and all that, but if she's going to come into our home, she's going to treat you well. I won't stand for her giving you shit for loving me. And she needs to be okay with us and Nathan, and any other kids we have along the way, too. We're a family and we belong together."

She squeezed his hand, nodding. "Okay, it'll be fine. I'll make sure she knows. But do you agree with me that she should stay hidden?"

"Yeah, I do. We're managing, and if she's safe, she should stay where she is. Besides, you don't need mother-in-law drama, you're already over-stressed and pregnant."

Mara jumped a little. "Wow, that hadn't even occurred to me. But she's not my mother in law, we're not married."

Duke shrugged, nonchalant. "That's a temporary situation that I fully intend to rectify."

Mara laughed, shaking her head. "I'll send her an orb in a little bit, tell her to stay put." She sat back, taking a deep breath and blowing it out.

"Duke?"

"Hmm?"

"You remember how you said earlier that you'd do anything I needed?"

"I do, what do you need?"

"A kiss, and then maybe a sandwich before I take a nap? I'm hungry. And if we're taking the afternoon off, we're going to do it right and make sure we take a long nap."

He laughed loudly, grabbed her and gave her a long, slow kiss. "What kind of sandwich?"

"Grilled cheese with avocado. Please. You're a lifesaver."

After she ate, they retired to the bedroom, and she fell asleep to the beautiful sight and sounds of her men making love. Even when she was too tired to participate, she still liked to watch.

Those sounds began to fade and morph, finally settling into voices as a room appeared around her- white walls, wood floor and a thick slate-blue rug. At a small table, a tiny girl and a young boy, only a little older from what she could tell, were talking. The boy held a diagram of a brain, and as he pointed, the little girl, who looked to be three or four, would say the names.

"Anterior Cingulate. Corpus Callosum. Hypothalamus. Amygdala. Dorsolateral Prefrontal. Lateral Orbitofrontal. Cerebellum. Cereberum. Temporal Love. Occipital Lobe. Parietal Lobe. Entorhinal Cortex. Olfactory Bulb. Can we please be done now? I don't want to do this anymore."

"Soon, violet. Come on, just one more. Do it for me?" The boy had such a sweet face, and his blue eyes and golden hair made him took positively angelic. He was wheedling with the little girl, who looked mutinous. Her hair curled around her in cinnamon ringlets that fell to her waist, and her eyes were bright sapphire.

"Hippocampus." The girl remarked in a sullen voice. "Can we be done now?"

The boy grinned brightly. "You got them all! I told you you could, you're the smartest girl in the entire world. Come here now, and I'll brush your hair."

With a smile that lit up the whole room, she jumped up and sat in his chair as he stood, turning back to her with a large silver brush, lovingly brushing through every curl and strand.

"Why do we have to study and work all the time? Yesterday during my piano lessons, I heard the children next door playing. Why don't we ever get to do that? It's not fair."

The boy tenderly brushed another lock.

"Not all people are born the same, little violet. Some of us are born with higher callings. People have higher expectations of us. I know it's hard, and I'm sorry. At least we're together."

"I don't want a higher calling! I just want to play. Will you play with me? Just a little. We finished out anatomy lesson."

The little girl looked up at the boy with wide, soulful eyes and a quivering lip. He looked so torn, biting his lip, but he finally nodded. "Alright, just a few minutes."

She jumped up, delighted as she ran into his waiting arms, hugging him with all the power her tiny body could muster. She dragged him out to the center of the room, straightening her spine as they waltzed around the room smiling happily at each other. They didn't need the music, they just needed the dance.

They jumped and froze as the door flew open, a very, very tall (to them) woman with long brown hair and wrath in her eyes striding into the room.

"What is this? You're supposed to be working on your studies!" She turned her glare to the boy. "I put you in charge because I trusted you! This was her doing, wasn't it?"

The girl, trembling in fright, began to nod, but the little golden boy stepped in front of her, loudly announcing, "No. This was my choice. She did nothing wrong."

The woman eyed his with a strange mix of sorrow and scorn. "If you get attached to her, she will drag you down and ruin your life. Don't fall for that pretty little face. It won't be pretty forever." She took a deep breath, face red with anger.

"But if that's your story, that's your choice. Put your hands on the table."

The boy turned to obey, leaning with his hands against the workdesk with a determined set to his chin. The tiny girl had her hands up over her mouth in horror as the woman reached into the closet, pulling out a long metal rod about half the diameter of her pinky. Frowning darkly, she brought the rod down against the boy's back and the girl jumped, realizing he'd bitten his tongue to stay silent.

The tall woman brought the rod down on him again and he grunted, blood dripping from his mouth. As the woman moved her arm back again, the little girls eyes flared bright violet and she ran forward in a fury, hitting and kicking any piece of the woman she could reach.

There was a moment of shock before the woman spun her glare to the girl and brought the rod down right across her face. The little girl fell to the floor with the next blow, and then she just tried to curl tighter, making the smallest possible target as the strikes fell like rain. Splotches of blood began to seep up into her dress over her ribs, her hands and arms were riddled with welts and slices.

She didn't cry, both children knew there was no point. It had never helped before, why would it now? She did let out one scream when the rod bit into an open wound she'd already caused on one leg. That single show of weakness further infuriated the woman, who struck repeatedly, harder and harder, until the rod broke and when her arm came down again, the sharp end of the rod tore into the girl's calf, piercing it all the way through.

The adult was breathing hard, trying to pat her own hair back into place. "Since you're disinterested in your normal studies, you can study practical application. You fix this." She looked at the girl once more, her expression pure disgust. "I wish they'd take you." She spun, her long skirt twirling around her as she slammed and locked the door.

The boy ran to the girl, who was obviously his sister- the woman must have been their mother- dropping to his knees to cradle her against him. "I'm so sorry, little flower, you shouldn't have tried to help me! I could have taken it."

"You only played because of me! You didn't start it at all, I was the one who asked!" She clutched her leg tight to her chest, the rod sticking through at a grotesque angle.

The boy had tears in his eye as he held the girl closer. "I don't care, violet. I would take a thousand beatings if it kept you safe. I love you, and I'd rather protect you with my body if it's all I have. I promise I will get this out of your leg, baby girl."

The lovely girl bit her lip, tears in her eyes as she stared up at him. "I'm so sorry. Thank you for not being angry with me. You're the best brother ever, William."

He looked at her seriously, kissing her head. "I could never be angry with you. You've done nothing wrong. It's going to be alright. I love you, Mara."

She woke suddenly and completely, her eyes snapping wide open. Nathan and Duke were curled up next to her, asleep. It was dark, but the clock said it was 11:11.

She took a minute to catch her breath. Just a dream. Too much stress, not enough rest. All the images jumbled up and reorganized in a way to try and make sense of her problems.

Even the excuse sounded hollow to her ears.

She could save the psychoanalysis. She could just use science to solve the problem. It's what she knew, what she'd always know and it had never let her down.

Mara sat up, careful not to wake the men. She'd feel so foolish waking them for a stupid dream when she could easily discern if it was real or fake all by herself.

She checked her hands and arms first. It wasn't obvious, certainly not clearly noticeable, but there were thin, pale scars- clearly defensive wounds- decorating her arm, the arm that had been injured in the dream.

Breath coming a little more quickly, she pulled off her clothes, staring down at her body. Now that she knew what she was looking for, the other stripes were much easier to locate. Ribs, hip, legs... her breath came faster and faster, shallower each time.

This wasn't real.

This wasn't possible.

She was all one tightly strung nerve as she brought her leg up, looking at her calf.

She held her breath completely as she looked, finally spotting the gouge in her calf, the matching exit wound on the other side.

nonononononono.

She didn't know enough. Some scars, one possible beating. It didn't mean that her mother had hated her. It didn't mean One was her brother.

Mara understood science. She needed more information.

Hesitant at first, she switched over to her Aether-sight, letting everything around her turn slightly greenish, but projecting the information she was looking for- medical in this case; scars, fractures and physical defects. She stood and made her way to the large mirror, standing naked as she stared at herself.

She thought she might be sick again, but she refused to lose another meal today.

There were hundreds upon hundreds of scars that were invisible to the naked eye. A long gash from hip to hip. Another that could only be an impalement through the gut.

Another slice across her throat in an apparent attempt at her jugular vein.

Beneath those though; the dozens of fractures. Too many to count on her ribs, at least 16 between all four limbs. Her jaw, cheeks, 4 fractures to her skull. This body told a story if you had the medical training to read it.

This story wasn't unique. A child who had been despised by her mother, who had been beaten, almost killed, and likely experimented on, if the dream was real.

That woman had injured her a dozen different ways a hundred different times, just to see if she could make her brother repair her. And he had repaired her every time.

He was her brother, trying to protect her. Keeping her alive. That's how he knew her name, why he was after her. Their ages- if William had been the first success, and they had waited until she was six to take Mara, that explained the difference between being first and last. It explained why she has been such a success. If he had been convinced that she was in trouble, being buried under a constant stream of false identities and unable to save herself, of course he had come to save her.

It's what he did. What he had always done. William saved Mara.

And she had forgotten him.

The tears flowed fast and relentless as she tore her eyes from the mirror, looking to the men on the bed. The comfort of warm, loving arms.

She took a step toward the bed, and another, trying to fight the wail that was pushing through her chest, but she just heard the beginning of the hound when the room tilted and spun before everything went black.

She woke to the feeling of hands rubbing her scalp and clever fingers manipulating the pressure points in her feet. She blinked repeatedly, noticing she was in Nathan's lap.

"Duke, she's awake." Nathan's light eyes met hers, a relieved smile lighting his face.

She looked down her body toward Duke, and some of the scars seemed to stand out, mocking her.

Dear gods, her brother.

"Baby, what happened?" Duke's sweet, questioning voice made the tears come again.

"I had a dream. From my life before I was given up. I- I can't. I'll show you."

She held her hand up, the fiery Maze that she shared with William- and that finally made sense- shining from her wrist as the dream began to play over her hand. After just a few seconds, Duke and Nathan exchanged a glance, and Duke murmured, "That's you, isn't it?"

She laughed darkly. "You figured that out before I did."

She tried looking away, but her eyes were repeatedly drawn back to the dream, trying to see if anything would actually make her remember. She was trying, she looked at everything, but the only thing that made it real for her was the matching scars.

She heard their breath stop as little her attacked her mother, watched the sickening beating, but Mara could hear the unspoken words clearly this time- when her mother had said, "I wish they'd take you." she had meant, "I wish they'd take you instead of him". It was obvious the awful woman preferred her son, but the girl- Little Mara- had been so small. Barely more than a toddler. She had no power over what was happening around her. Why was she taking the blame?

When they heard the names, she felt Nathan's shocked inhalation and a tic in Duke's jaw. "He was my brother, and I forgot him. How many people have suffered and died all because I couldn't remember my own brother? How could I do that to him? How many beatings did he take for me, look how many times he must have healed me! At least a dozen of those injuries would have been fatal. Of course he's after me, he thinks I'm still locked up, helpless and being tortured."

She bit her lip and threw up the Aether-scan of her body, pointing out the different injuries it had revealed. They looked sick, and Duke wiped his eyes but fury rolled off of him in waves. He couldn't even speak- it was Nathan who said, in a voice as cold as the grave, "You were being beaten. Regularly."

Duke's voice was hoarse. "You said you were what, six when you were given to the Cause? You look like you're three in that dream, and you already seemed used to it. My god, what the hell kind of person does that?"

She shook her head, frustrated. "We all know that. We all lived it. But I don't understand how I could have forgotten my own brother, when he obviously did so much for me. How could I do that? How could I be so heartless? All those people are dead because I didn't remember my own brother! No wonder he went crazy, he suffered so much. The things the Cause did to us alone could have made him crazy. The abuse alone could have made him crazy."

"No, stop." Nathan's voice was powerful and serious, and he squeezed her leg. "You want to take the blame for repressing memories? Then you have to share it. Because I know I was abused, but I don't remember anything really about Max. I don't remember getting beat. I had no idea Dad wasn't my biological father until Max showed up. I don't even know what he did, but I blocked it. Do you fault me for that?"

Mara shook her head. "Of course not! He was a cruel man who did terrible things to you. That's not your fault."

"And your mother was a cruel woman who did terrible things to you. Simon was a cruel man who did terrible things to Duke. You know what? I wish like hell that his abuse had stopped as young as mine, so that maybe he could have blocked those memories. If he had forgotten me and our connection because of it, I would still want that for him. You were a young child, it's not uncommon to repress traumatic memories when you're that young."

Duke reached to squeeze Nathan's hand, smiling lovingly. "And hell, Mara, for all you know, they took those memories when they were doing all those experiments on you. You said yourself that you have no memories from that time. How many times have they altered your memory? You know it's not only possible, it's probable. You should ask my mother when you send her the orb, beautiful. Make you feel better."

Mara rested her head against Nathan as she started at Duke. "How do you always know what name to use at different times? I've wondered that a lot. I've been very clear that I don't really care, that they're all applicable, but there are some times where I honestly feel more like one than another, but you still somehow always call me by the one I feel most like. How?"

Duke smiled like he was proud of himself. "I can usually tell by either the topic or from the look in your eyes. You're always the same person, obviously, but your eyes look different sometimes. When you start getting really mad or think we need big protection, your eyes turn purple."

She cocked her head. "Violet. Of course. When I get really, super angry my eyes turn red. If I keep it under control, they don't go all the way red, they mix with the blue and turn violet. That's why William kept calling me that!"

"Nate, we're the luckiest guys on the planet. We've got the own woman who has warning colors in her eyes." He moved the blankets so she could get comfortable in the middle, both of them cuddling up against her on their sides, hands resting on her belly.

"You're right." She said finally.

"Who's what now?" Nathan asked.

"Duke is right, I need to ask Illeana if she has any memories. See if I'm the oddity for forgetting, or if William is unusual for remembering."

She rested back, trying to relax.

"Hey, Mara?"

"Yes, Duke?"

"Can you replay anything?"

"Anything that I saw and remember, yes. Why, is there something you want to see?"

"Hell yeah!" He sounded like a kid on Christmas. "There's a ton of stuff I want to see!"

She laughed. "Like what?"

"Well, could you show us the message from the orb you got?"

"Sure. But no getting cranky when she yells at me, we've already discussed it so the point is moot."

"Fair enough. Movie time!"

Laughing quietly, she relaxed between them and brought up the message from the orb.

A lovely woman, roughly the same age as Mara appeared. She had long black hair in a braid that hung to her waist, pale skin like a china doll and large dark eyes. She was absolutely beautiful, and Mara thought she looked like a cross between Snow White and Jordan. Even in jeans and a simple blue sweater she was stunning. Such beauty, but a hardness borne from a lifetime of strife and fear had her sharp and honed as the edge of a knife.

And boy, was she angry.

"Dear gods, Four, have you lost your mind? That's my son! When I asked you to teach him and protect him, I didn't mean about sex! You're pregnant with my son's child? Why not just paint a target on his back? Now One will end up interested in Duke, and I spent all this time away from him to keep him sheltered from our world for nothing!" Frustration evident in every move, she rubbed at her temples, pressing her lips together.

"I can't believe you drug him into this. He's so young,he should have a pretty little human wife, someone safe who adores him and cooks him dinner, not someone like one of us- lab rats who never age and never stop running! Okay, okay. It's fine. Maybe you fell for him when you thought you were human and now you're just trying to make it work. It's fine. I swear to the gods, though, if he gets hurt because of you, you will wish One had found you first."

She talked with her hands, the way Duke did, but the movements were a little more understated. The similarities between the two were impossible to miss though, and even when she was being threatened, Mara couldn't help but smile.

"I'm safe. I'm surrounded with safe people. When my sector got wiped out, some of the Aether-touched families and children who had moved away before the attack started coming back. We've actually got a small town going again, so I'm taking care of them like I did before. Someone has to. We occasionally even take in refugees who have to leave your sector. People who wear our emblem, I think they call themselves 'The Guard', they bring people who can't stay in your sector because we're so remote. I've met a couple of them- one more than the others, dark blonde, big guy, his name is Dwight? He's the one who usually comes. He doesn't know what I am, and I don't even know if you or Duke know him, but he's a good person.

"I can come to you, if you want. Maybe I can help. It has to be better than facing One alone. If you want me to come, just say so. I wouldn't just abandon you, no matter how angry I am. Tell me whatever you need and I'll do my best."

She pushed her sleeves up and the frosted blue and grey Maze on her wrist showed before she stuck her hands in her pockets.

"We've got one Touched boy here- he hears things from inside the Void- he told me that he heard One talking about you. Said that he had to go through someone named Audrey Parker to get to you. I think he's going to try and make contact with you, so please be careful. Maybe you can find this Audrey and see what she knows, why he'd need to go through her to get to you. The message made no sense to me, but hopefully it will help you.

"Is Duke happy? About the baby, I mean. Is he excited? I bet he'll be a wonderful father. I daydream about him all the time. I have no pictures, but the orb you sent, he looks so handsome. Strong and brave. I want him to be safe, but if you're what makes him happy, fine. Just keep him safe. If it works for you, maybe we can each send an orb every week, so if a week goes by without a message, I'll know something is wrong and I'll come. Let me know how I can help, whatever you need me to do.

"Let him know I love him, and that I'm thinking about him. When you decide you need me, I'll come. I am happy for you, truly. I'm just worried about my son. But I trust you to keep him safe. Please. I love you, Four. Mara. I guess I should use your actual name if you're family now. Are you married? Are you going to get married? Never mind, I'm just rambling now. Protect him for me. I hope to hear from you soon."

Illeana blew a kiss, and then the recording stopped.

Mara looked at Duke. "Are you alright?"

He closed his eyes, swallowing hard, but he smiled after a moment. "She's really pretty. Kind of scary. I thought you had a temper. But she seems nice. She talks like she loves me."

"She's very smart. Of course she loves you. If you want to send her a message, I'll send the orb with my questions in a couple of hours. I need to think about how to ask the questions I need answered."

Nathan reached over to poke Duke in the ribs. His eyes gleamed and he had a devious smile. "Remember all those times when we were little and you'd talk about how you thought my mom was pretty? Your mom is hot, Duke. If Dwight weren't dating Jennifer, I'm try to hook him up with your mom. Then Dwight could be your stepdad."

Duke went pale, then red. He pointed at Nathan seriously. "Dude, that is so not funny. Don't even talk about things like that. I can't even- no. Absolutely not. In fact, I think I'm going to start urging Dwight to propose. Yeah, that's what I'm going to do."

Nathan laughed. "We've got the day off tomorrow. Let's get some sleep. If anyone has a bad dream, we're all right here. No running off alone to investigate, okay? We're a team." He leaned in to give each of them a kiss and Duke switched the light off, keeping his head against Mara's on the pillow. She felt a soft kiss on her temple and her body relaxed, sleep creeping in.

She was safe with her boys and her baby, and knowing who William was could only help her. She'd find a way to make them all safe. Maybe she could even help William. They'd come this far, she wouldn't let them lose now.