Disclaimer: Primeval does not belong to me, this is fan fiction, not for profit.

Any references to people, places, businesses etc is entirely fictitious.

31.5…

Back at Abby and Connor's home…

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Abby woke early, the house was still quiet. She gently disentangled herself from Connor's arms and climbed out of bed trying not to wake him. He mumbled and reached a hand out for her, but she kissed him lightly and promised to bring back a cuppa if he'd only stay still. She picked his boxers up off the floor and chucked them into the laundry hamper before she stepped into the shower. She smiled as the hot water hit her shoulders, relaxing tense muscles.

Dressed in comfortable blue jeans, a green tank top and a blue and green over shirt, Abby quietly went down stairs. She turned off the security features, removing the homes private lockdown, as she headed towards the kitchen. Abby nearly fell when she tripped over Jack.

He sat up, rubbing his head where it had thumped on the tile floor. "Ow," he moaned.

"What are you doing on the floor?" Abby asked "You were supposed to be on the cot…"

He looked at the door to Connor's lab and shook his head.

"Well, make yourself useful then," she said "put the kettle on please, I'm going to check email."

Abby opened the door to Connor's lab and flipped up the laptop screen. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched as Jack stood up and rubbed his back, then went to fill the kettle.

"If you're quiet," Abby suggested "you might get up to the bathroom and take a shower while there is still hot water."

As he headed up the stairs, she opened the email from James Lester.

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Abby carried the tea tray upstairs. The morning quiet was only broken by the sound of water coming from the bathroom. Jack was still in the shower she thought with annoyance… there would be no hot water for anyone else this morning at the rate he was using it up.

She opened the bedroom door and smiled at the sight of Connor snuggled back under the covers. Setting the tea tray down on the nightstand, Abby reached a hand out to Connor's shoulder and shook him gently.

"Connor," she said "we need to talk."

His eyes snapped open.

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Abby quickly told Connor about Lester's email. James and Vivian had gone out for dinner, a waiter caught his eye. The man looked remarkably like Nick Cutter. James had talked with him and realized: this man was a clone, free of Helen and with no identification papers, he had been earning a living in this resort community as a waiter. He'd been there five years.

Lester had already written a stinging report to the minister, their friend Lucien who was the International ARCs current head of operations, and the head of the Australian branch of the International ARC. He didn't care how bloody short handed they were, the anomaly alert five years ago had been handled sloppily.

When Helen and her clones had arrived at low tide, they had damaged the barrier reef by standing on it. The release of liopleurodons into the surrounding seas was still causing havoc. The creatures seemed to like the south Pacific and not all had been captured. But really, to have left a clone unattended and wandering freely about was just too much. What if it had been a Stephen Three?

"A Cutter clone," said Connor wistfully as he sipped his tea "alive."

"It's not the real professor," Abby reminded him.

"Course not," agreed Connor, but he still had that look in his eyes that Abby recognized from long ago, sad and hopeful both at the same time.

"The Lester's will be bringing him back to London as soon as they get his travel papers," continued Abby, "they want us to meet with the clone, interview him… see if he's dangerous or not."

"Do they know when they'll get here?" asked Connor.

"Lester said they should arrive in London Monday night," Abby replied "he wanted to set up a meeting Tuesday morning, but I told him you had a doctor's appointment… I suggested that Jenny and Sarah meet with him Tuesday. We could go to London the next day."

"What?"

"Jenny knew the real Cutter… perhaps better than any of us," replied Abby "and Sarah's doing that research project on the clones…"

Abby didn't think she would mention the question Sarah had asked her last night, whether Abby thought the advanced clones were capable of independent thought. In Abby's opinion, for the Cutter clone to survive on his own for five years seemed to indicate he was quite capable of independent thought.

-x-x-x-x-x-x

In the back yard garden, the air shimmered, fractured and an anomaly opened. A familiar figure stepped through on to the patio. The anomaly closed.

Upstairs Connor and Abby looked at each other in alarm. Abby made it to the window first.

"It looks like Danny," she said. Turning, she quickly headed for the door. As the sound of Connor's plastered foot thumped on the floor behind her she looked back at her husband.

"Best get some pants on before you come downstairs," she said "yeah."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

The noise of the anomaly had roused everyone in the upstairs part of the house and on the ground floor too. Abby entered the kitchen to find an older Danny, with white hair at his temples, facing a fireplace poker at his throat. This time, it was her brother-in-law holding the sharp tool.

"Danny?" she asked hesitantly.

But her mother-in-law spoke before anyone one else. The petite white haired woman was leaning on her walker, the door to the study open wide.

"Danny Quinn," the octogenarian exclaimed "you're looking the worse for wear. You've aged twenty years since yesterday."

The tall lanky man chuckled. "Feels like longer," he replied, "but you might be right."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

The ARC team members were sitting around the long dining room table. Becker had helped Connor down the stairs and seen him seated at the head of the table. Questions had to wait while tea and toast were brought to the table.

Beth had called the Forest of Dean facility, to let them know the anomaly was closed, but they hadn't even registered it. No team would be coming out to investigate. She had ordered them to start a systems check and left to go oversee the details herself.

When Danny sat down next to Connor, he could contain himself no longer.

"Danny," he said "I'm really glad you're back, but you shouldn't have taken the prototype… I hadn't calibrated the timing mechanism…"

Danny burst into laughter. He had been a little tipsy that long ago day when he had taken the anomaly opening device… or at least it had been long ago for him. For his friends, it had been just yesterday.

"Yeah Connor," Danny agreed "It was off by four years give or take a day. I meant to go back to your wedding… really sorry to have missed that… but I wound up at your house in time for your fourth anniversary." Danny didn't tell Connor about the modifications that had been added to the device since then. A young woman from the future, excited to be holding a genuine antique in her hands, had fixed the calibration and added a shielding device.

Connor's eyes lit up with the memory. "Oh yeah," he replied "all those diictodons… in Lester's jaguar…"

"But Danny," asked Abby softly "you left the next day after helping us move… where have you been all these years?"

"Here and there," chuckled the big man "now and then."

Matt looked at the former team leader. He remember a day about fourteen years ago when the former team leader had appeared, demanding he come with him.

"What are you looking for this time?" Matt asked.

-x-x-x-x-x-x