I AM DONE! *Lapulta leaps into the air and does an ungraceful flip*

Well, just the actual story. I'm working on the Epilogue, then I have all the little italic parts to do for twenty chapters. Then the credits page once I'm completely done. Once we hit the ending chapter, I'll take a count and everyone who wants a sequel can vote. If there are more than twenty-five people who want a sequel, I'll do it. Actually, I better start counting now, although it'd probably be better to wait till later. You're probably thinking that the Epilogue is where Maddie dies. Lol. Not so, young padawans! Well, let's get to chapter forty. Then we can start voting. How's that?

NOTICE; Do not read all of these review replies. Find your name, read your reply, then skip to the story. To tell you the truth, I loved it when people replied to reviews and said everything where everybody could see. I swore when I was off the site that I would do the same thing and I would reply to every single review. Ha. Now I see why Another Artist chucked that idea. I'm trying to figure out what to do without breaking my promise to myself... I've figured out I'll send PMs to people who have accounts and reply to people who don't on the story.

Candy; Okay. *laughs slightly* I would love to say 'yes' to you. But no. Sadly, you've got *checks list* 21 more chapters to read. *rolls eyes* Good luck.

M: Hey Ed. Too early in the morning for you?

E: ~~~/W-ha-t?\~~~

M: I'll take all your misspells as a yes. It's better than me dragging you to my desk after the party at 1:00 in the morning and telling you to write then.

E: I\ll' take it/as.

M: Do you need a cup of coffee?

E: 3x /`lot-te w/ 2x *bang* caffeine whi\p-crem w/ driz coco on /\.

M: Can you- um... Attempt to translate?

E: Triple lotte with a double shot of caffeine, whip cream with drizzled chocolate on top.

M: Wow! Maybe just talking about caffeine woke you up. I'll have to remember that the next time I have to get you up at 3:30 in the morning.

E: : (

M: Not the smiley faces again... Okay, I'll start, and then you take over. How's that?

E: ; ]

Chapter Twenty-two;

The Dike

When Madeleine woke up at Two 'o clock the next day, she was annoyed.

There was clearly a noise going on in an adjoining room. A loud one. But she couldn't figure out what it was. It sounded somewhat like fifty woodpeckers, pecking all at the same time, and they had the hiccups. Madeleine listen closely for a few minutes. That was it. A person snoring. Good grief. Did anyone snore like; ZZZBUMPzzz, ZZZBUMPzzz? Ridiculous!

Madeleine wondered if she should pound on the wall and tell whoever it was doing it, to quite down. But then that might wake Edward up and the other people surrounding them. So then there was the option of sneaking into the offender's room and tickling their nose with a quill. But that posed the problem if the offender was sleeping alone.

By the time Edward woke up, Madeleine had invented 35 different plans and had also thought up 35 reasons not to do them. She was starting on her 36th. Madeleine didn't get a wink of sleep from 2-7.

M: Your turn. AND YES I'M CRAZY SORRY THAT YOU'RE NOT A MORNING PERSON! Crikey!

E: Let's see if I can manage legible sentences right now... You correct me Mads.

"Pepper in your tea?" Edward asked Madeleine the next morning.

"What? Oh-" She quickly put the shaker down before her tea could be poorly flavored. "I'm sorry. I'm not awake at all."

"So you're talking in your sleep?" Edward snickered while he bit into his buttered toast.

"Pretty much." Madeleine checked the label on the jar of jam so she wouldn't pour salt on her toast like she had with the last piece. "They need to kick the person that snores out of the inn. I'm not kidding."

Edward rolled his eyes and took a sip of tea. Everything was perfect. Exactly the way he remembered it. There was absolutely no way he could think of to make it any better. Then Madeleine pointed behind him out the window of the inn. He turned around in his seat, mildly expecting an enormous cockroach, or beetle, but there wasn't one. There was a man riding a black, galloping horse. Half dismounting while the horse was still running, he leaped to the ground and threw open the inn's door.

"The dike is breaking! Get out-" There was more, but Edward didn't hear.

Edward felt his life spin back fifteen years. In those four words, all he'd had, had been swept away. All he'd ever loved. All the people that had cared about him. Edward heard people jump up. Women screaming. Men yelling. Total chaos. Madeleine still sat though, toast in hand, watching him. Waiting for his direction, for his guidance. He couldn't let all he loved be torn away from him. Not Madeleine. Not again.

"Go get our things from the room." He was almost frightened at how fierce the French words came out. "All of them."

Madeleine didn't pause for pondering. She got up and started towards the Inn's hallway.

Edward swallowed hard. He could see all the hidden questions, the concealed fear, the obscured terror. She didn't know what was going on. She didn't know anything about Holland, or dikes, or the sea. She couldn't speak Dutch. She was following him blindly. And just then, Edward realized what she'd meant about jumping off a cliff, and how Madeleine didn't know if she could land. For a moment he wished he could run after her, catch her in his arms, kiss her, tell her everything was going to be alright. But there wasn't time.

The inn was almost empty. Only a few hurried people remained, scurrying around, gathering up last-minute belongings, or taking things other people had left. Where was that girl? Madeleine finally appeared, the separate things tied neatly into their separate bundles. Edward didn't wait, he grabbed Madeleine's arm and towed her out of the inn. They had to get to higher ground.

I'm so sorry right now. Edward was unable to write this part. He fell asleep at the end of that paragraph. If my writing is messy, it's because I'm trying to write without jabbing my elbow into Edward's face. Maybe I should just do that and wake him up... Be nice. Sometime I wonder if I'm just too considerate. But then Edward's my husband as well.

I really do need to do something about when he snores. He doesn't often, but when he does... I might as well start screaming- The British are coming! The British are coming! And wake up all the people from Boston to San Diego. Honestly.

-MC (and EC, tecnically. But he fell asleep. The person who didn't fall asleep ought to get full credit for her writing skills. Or his writing skills, but I'm not a boy.)

"Edward where are we going?" Madeleine looked around the village as they ran through the streets. "What's going on?" People were loading possessions into boats, scrambling over each other, crying children holding pets in their laps. Madeleine felt like a child herself. Like she just wanted to sit down in the middle of the street and cry her heart out, -without tears. It was so confusing. Someone ran into the inn and screamed in Dutch and then there was mayhem.

Complete chaos.

She glanced at Edward's face for comfort, but his eyes were cold and hard. All his features looked like they had been cast in marble and were making up a moving statue. It offered little to comfort her fears.

He pulled her over a bridge spanning the canal and continued running out of the village. "Where are we going?" Madeleine fought back an urge to pull away from him. This wasn't the Edward that she knew. Her Edward had been reasonable. Kind. Honest. Loving. "What's going on?"

"The dike's breaking."

The French words were cold and hard, and Edward himself didn't meet her eyes. "Why? What's happening?"

She could feel his hand grip her wrist tighter. "Save your breath."

Save my breath? A feeling of desperation swept over her. What was happening? Why was everybody running and getting into boats? Was it a disease? A plague like the one that had killed her brother? An enormous monster? Why? Why was Edward acting like he was? Madeleine had never felt so confused since Luke, Katherine, Thomas, and her, had been playing tag. She'd had to translate for the other three, since one called the other a 'wimpy pig' and was returned by a 'brick-headed scoundrel' and neither of the people knew what the other one meant. Plus she had to make sure that she didn't get caught. Complicated. But not too complicated for Madeleine Cahill. But that was in France, this was Holland. Where an entirely different language rendered her helpless. Confusing enough in France. Impossible in Holland.

Madeleine tripped as Edward suddenly yanked her off the road. He pulled her through clumps of dry and dying tulips and though a field of green grass towards a mountain. It's not a mountain... Madeleine thought. Not really... Mountains were big and tall and commanding. This was on the large side for a hill, but was a mini-mountain. Not big enough to be called a mountain, but not small enough to be called a hill. There were two little mini-mountains also. Looking almost like a camel's humps. They connected in the middle with a low slope. But the mini-mountains stood tall, ruling over the low grounds of the area. They were the tallest piece of land in the area. Thinking that way, they were the only mini-mountains close by.

Madeleine expected Edward to stop once they'd gotten to the foot of the tallest mini-mountain, but Edward didn't pause. He started pulling her up the side, zigzagging around to save energy. She noticed that he knew how to climb too.

When they'd reached halfway to the top, there was a steep slope. It could be climbed, but it needed both hands. Madeleine still had their bundles clenched tightly in her fists. She mildly wondered if Edward was going to find another way around, or if she was going to have to use her two feet and thirty-two teeth. Now that would be interesting. Edward started climbing up the ten foot slope though like he'd been doing it every day of his life. Then when he'd reached the top, he turned back around. "Toss me the things."

Madeleine obliged. Rather glad at being able to open and close her hands once more. They were starting to get stiff. But when she took her first step to start climbing, her dress would only let her get halfway as far as she needed to reach. "Curses." She muttered. Wondering if she should just forget modesty and pull up her dress. Edward wouldn't care anyway. She almost snickered.

"What's taking so long?" There was a quick snap from above.

"I've got my dress on!" Madeleine stood at the edge of the slope, looking up.

"So?"

"I can't climb!"

Edward's head reappeared over the edge of the slope, a tiny smirk marking laughter. "Of course you can climb. You just mean you can't climb with your dress on."

"You know what I mean! What's so important up there?"

"Nothing important's up here. It's just important that you get up here. Now."

"What's going on?" Madeleine stomped her foot. "I'm not taking a step farther till you tell me!" She momentarily forgot that stomping feet was childish.

Edward ignored her, but he frowned, thinking. Then he suddenly came sliding back down the slope. When he was halfway down, he grabbed Madeleine's arms and tugged her up. They managed to slip and slide the rest of the way up. Once Madeleine's dress had been ruined by falling off a cliff. Once more, Madeleine's dress had been ruined by climbing up a slope. Ridiculous.

But Edward never said a word. Grabbing the two bundles in one hand, he snatched Madeleine's wrist with the other and began dragging her the rest of the way up the small, mini-mountain.

When they reached the top, Madeleine was exhausted. She usually wasn't tired by running, and it wasn't really the running that had done her in, it was the fact of no sleep the night before, and a worrying mind. Her mind still hadn't stopped worrying. It was going on, and on, cranking worrisome facts out like ideas for waking up a snorer the night before.

Edward was exhausted too. He wasn't really exhausted, but his body had never been fit for running. He was better off swimming, or skating. His lungs seemed like they were going to burst they were sucking in air so fast. And besides that, his mind was worrying too. It wasn't exactly worrying, they were on the mountain, Madeleine was safe. But more memories. Bitter memories. Memories that he would of rather forgotten.

Dropping the bundles on the ground, he plopped down beside them. Madeleine sat down too, leaning against him. They looked off towards the village -the North East- and a few scattered houses around it.

Madeleine waited for him to explain. And she waited, and waited. Until she thought that her mind would burst from lack of information. "Edward, what's going on? Please. I have a right to know." Edward looked over at her and Madeleine saw something that she thought she'd never see in his eyes. Fear. He was afraid. Her Edward.

M: Well, what do you know! The slumbering giant is awake again!

E: pwiueyhtpashg.

M: Why are you writing random letters?

E: I- x wake.

M: Translation.

E: I/AM-~~NOT E-WAKE~~!

M: I kind of think that's a poor translation, but I get your general drift... Hang on, let me get some water...

E: W- wha?

M: There, that better?

E: THAT'S CRAZY COLD!

M: See? I knew ice-cold water would wake you up. Always does the trick. Should I get another glass or are you fine?

E: God that's cold! I'm good. Jeeze I'm good! I'll write! I'll write!

"The dike's breaking." Edward whispered.

"What's a dike?"

Edward gently wrapped an arm around Madeleine's waist. "See that? Over in the distance. It's way out there, sticking out of the area." Madeleine looked. She could see it. Just barely, but she could see it.

"So?"

"That's a dike." Edward explained. "It helps hold the sea back."

"But why would it break?" Madeleine leaned her head on his shoulder. Her hand wriggled around and found his. She squeezed it tight.

"It's old." Edward didn't look at her. "It holds back the sea. Millions of gallons of water. It stretches for miles. And there's another one behind it. They save Holland Maddie. The land we're standing on was covered by water. We fight it. We may win for a time, for a long time, but the water will always conquer someday. Apparently it just chose today."

"You said 'we'." Madeleine whispered back. She looked up at Edward, and it was as if she was looking at him for the first time. She could see the lined face, the bright eyes, the low forehead. The ever-present, turned-up, smiling-mouth that all the Dutch seemed to have. Puzzle pieces clicked together. "You're Dutch. Aren't you."

Edward looked down at her for a moment. Madeleine could see he was struggling, trying desperately to find the emotion he wanted -but he couldn't. He turned away. "Does it matter?"

"Yes."

Madeleine felt the arms around her waist tighten, pulling her closer to him, but he didn't say anything. There were a few trees below and a robin's birdsong floated up to her on the morning breeze. It didn't seem like something dreadful was going to happen. At least not an enormous flood. Then a rumble shook the ground. It was soft, and the sound didn't reach Madeleine's ears till a few seconds later, but she clung tighter to Edward. "What's happening?"

"The dike's breaking. I told you."

"No, now." Madeleine breathed. "What's happening now?"

"It's breaking." Edward let go of her and stood up. Madeleine followed and gripped his hand again tightly. She needed something familiar in this land of un-familiarities. Edward was the closest thing she could get, but even then, she wasn't quite sure how familiar he actually was. The land shuddered again. This time it was harder and the sound followed quicker. Then there was an ear-splitting 'crack' that echoed through the valley. Edward didn't seem that worried though. Even when the silence that followed quieted the most cheerfully singing bird. There was another 'crack' then, a bit softer, and another, and another. Edward suddenly pointed into the distance. Madeleine squinted her eyes, and watched as a fountain of water poured out of the dike. She was still watching when, piece-by-piece, the dike started to fall away, letting in all the waters of the sea.

Madeleine watched as the water pounded towards them, eating up towns and houses. She could see little boats dotting the water though. Hundreds of them. At least the people are safe. Her eyes continued to glue themselves to the frothing water, and as she watched, the water began to disperse and lose it's power. It stopped a ways from the town of Tiel.

Edward let out a sigh of relief. "Now lets just hope that it stays like that."

"Why wouldn't it?" Madeleine glanced once more at the sea that was conquering the Holland countryside.

"Remember what I said about another dike being behind that one? If that breaks-" Edward didn't finish what he was going to say. "I just hope they're going to be alright." He pointed down the mini-mountain to what seemed to be a family. Madeleine could make out a little boy, and two parents that were hugging him. Then the two large figures started walking back to a cottage.

"I don't think anything's going to happen." Madeleine smiled. "It's too peaceful-" The sound of an enormous crack echoed throughout the valley. It was worse than the one before. It was larger, and it held unspoken enmity.

Madeleine looked up at Edward. His face had grown frightfully pale. "It's too late."

"But the people, can't we do something?"

He shook his head. "No."

Madeleine looked down at the little cottage again. The two parents were running out. They had clearly heard the foreshadowing crack. "Please get there." She whispered to herself. "Please." A quarter of the way, a bit more. Halfway there... And then there was an enormous roar and a wave of water. It was larger than when the first dike had broken, and it ate up everything in it's path. It pushed the water from the first dike ahead of it, throwing it, shattered, into the air like so many broken matchsticks. Madeleine looked down at the people. Three quarters of the way- run!

But the water got there first.

Madeleine could hear the little boy's scream easily from where she was standing. She could see the parents' hands, rising up, trying to grab something, as they were swept underwater. She could feel the total, undying, cruel, terror that enveloped her as the boy's boat swept past below her, riding on the water. She could hear the echo of the scream ringing in her ears. That scream of horror, of fright, of anger, of sadness. "It's not fair," Madeleine whispered, burying her face in Edward shoulder. "It's just not fair."

"Life isn't fair," Edward whispered back, but he wrapped his other arm around her and rested his chin on her hair. They stayed that way till the waters around them had calmed down. Edward knew the currents underneath hadn't died, but he had to take the chance. "Stay here." Letting go of Madeleine, he started down the mini-mountain.

"Edward! Where are you going?" Madeleine caught his sleeve before he could get far enough away. "You can't leave me!"

"You're Eighteen now," Edward smiled. "Aren't you?"

"But this is Holland!" Madeleine pleaded. She gripped Edward's tunic tighter. "Not France!"

"Alright." Edward glanced to the West. Madeleine followed his gaze, but only saw a few boats dotting the water. "Look, the Van Gekks, ought to be here soon. If not someone else. Tell them to take you to the Tulip Inn." Edward pronounced the name in Dutch. "They'll take you there. I'll see you soon." He managed to pull his sleeve out of Madeleine's grasp while she was preoccupied, and he darted away, down the mini-mountain's slope.

"Edward... Edward! Get back here! Please!" Madeleine wished she didn't have her dress on, and then she could go chase after him. She started to yell something after him, but stopped when something hit her. She didn't know Edward's last name. Or her own, for that matter. Madeleine decided to say what she was going to say anyway. "Edward Cahill! If you don't come back here this instant you'll never get another kiss from me in your life!"

Edward stopped dead. He didn't turn around though. Madeleine waited, her heart stinging as she watched him. Then he turned around, blew her a kiss and continued down. When he'd reached the edge of the water, he took off his boots and plunged in, not even giving her a backward glance.

Madeleine stared after him, desperate and alone. She spun around on the little island that her mini-mountain had created. She had never felt so completely alone in her life. After being constantly with Edward for almost four months, she missed his presence. And being in a country she knew nothing about -that only made her more afraid. That's a good start. She thought wryly. I'll just sit here and- and wait I guess. For the Van Gekks to take me to the Tulip Inn. I hope.

Madeleine plopped down ungracefully on the dirt. She didn't care whether her dress was clear or not. It didn't really matter did it? With her being surrounded by water and all. Time passed. Sometimes bits of wood floated by her, and once in a great while, a larger piece of flotsam. Madeleine sighed and placed her head in her hands. It had to be at least an hour since Edward had left. Why hadn't anybody come?

"Hallo!"

Madeleine jumped up and frantically brushed off the worst dust spots on her dress. She knew what everyone greeted each other with in Holland at least. She waved at the boat, then picked up the two bundles lying next to her.

Once the boat had pulled up close enough to the mini-mountain for Madeleine to step on, she saw that there were two people inside. There was a man at the helm, he had brown hair. And a woman, sitting inside, with black hair. His wife. Madeleine guessed. Even though she knew it wasn't her business to be thinking such things. They both had the same blue eyes. The color of the greenish-blue water around them. The woman asked Madeleine something in Dutch.

Madeleine paused for a moment, not knowing what to say. "I- I don't speak Dutch." She finally whispered with a sort of half-smile.

"You speak French!" The woman instantly exclaimed. And stood up so suddenly to hug Madeleine that she almost upset the boat. "I haven't heard my own language for so long!"

"But-"

Madeleine couldn't even get a sentence in edgewise. Her two bundles were quickly taken and she was settled comfortably in the bottom of the boat. "I married into the country, but Holland is a nice trading port. Nobody ever thinks of traveling. But I'm being a magpie. What's your name?"

"Madeleine." Madeleine watched as the man at the helm began to row. Down where she sat though, she had to keep leaning forward every other stroke so she wouldn't get poked in the back with the oars. "And you?"

"I'm Mrs. Van Gekk. You can call me Margaret. And that's my husband Hans."

"Nice to meet you." Madeleine smiled, and then looked out over the water. "I haven't been able to talk to anyone. I can't speak Dutch at all."

Mrs. Van Gekk leaned forward. "Then why are you here?"

Now that was a story. "My husband brought me." Madeleine wondered vaguely where Edward was. "He speaks Dutch." For a moment, Madeleine was unsure of wether to ask something. It was asking what she thought was right, but what Edward had said wasn't. But her heart had been right more times than Edward. Maybe... "Edward mentioned you might be by. Do- do you know him?"

"Edward?" Mrs. Van Gekk shook her head. "This is Holland. There are more Edward's here than you could shake a stick at. Which one are you talking about? Give me a dicription."

"I..." Madeleine bit her lip, trying to think. "He has blond hair and blue eyes."

"Like Mr. Haft? Or Mr. Von Depple? Half the people in Holland have blond hair and blue eyes. What does he act like? That might narrow it down a bit more."

"Ahh..." Madeleine looked out the side of the boat as Mr. Van Gekk rowed Southwest. "He- he can swim, really good. And skate. He can skate good too. Um... He's always laughing?" The last suggestion was added almost jestingly. But Mrs. Van Gekk paled.

"Always laughing?"

Madeleine nodded. "Both of us laugh a lot."

"But- but that's impossible!" Mrs. Van Gekk looked over the water too, then back at Madeleine. "Where is he?"

Madeleine shrugged. "He left. I haven't seen him since. He just said that you would most likely be by, and for you to take me to the Tulip Inn."

"The rascal!" Mrs. Van Gekk exclaimed. "That's just like him!" Then she seemed to remember Madeleine and her question. "Do you mean Edward Von Anderson?"

"I don't know." Madeleine shuffled her feet on the floor of the boat. "I was asking you. But he never told me anything about himself. I mean, not really. He never told me that he knew Dutch, or he could skate, and he taught me how to do both. And when he talked about you, I... I thought perhaps you knew each other. He couldn't of met you. We just got here last night."

Mrs. Van Gekk smiled wryly. "We know each other. In fact-" Her voice broke out into excited Dutch as she talked to the man behind Madeleine. There was a quick reply -in Dutch, and she turned back to Madeleine. "You mean he never told you anything?"

Madeleine slowly shook her head. "Nothing. Should he of?"

Mrs. Van Gekk paused for a moment. It seemed like her excitement lowered. "It's not exactly my position to say. I can tell you what happened, but I can't say Edward will be happy with you in the end. When did you get married?"

"In Spain, about six weeks ago. Why? And who is Edward then?"

"Married," Mrs. Van Gekk murmured. She shook her head in astonishment. Then turned back to Madeleine. "Edward's Dutch. And he lived here, in Tiel, on the outskirts. Not too far from this mountain actually."

Madeleine focused on trying to smooth the wood seat without getting a splinter in her finger. "But who is he? What happened? Truly. I don't want everything hid from me."

E: Ha! I always knew you started asking her for more info about me!

M: Um... I can't exactly deny that now can I...

E: Liar, liar, pants on fire...

M: HEY! No, no, no, no. She wanted to talk too! It wasn't like I could just say; I don't want to hear anymore. Shut up.

E: Well of course not. Dutch people are smart enough that if you stop listening, they'll stop talking. It's as simple as that. Or at least it was... It's been a while. Maybe we're not as socially centered as we use to be...

M: You used 'we' again.

E: Alright fine! I give in! I'm not awake! Start writing Mads.

Mrs. Van Gekk sighed and thought for a moment. "Edward was young." She finally murmured. "When he learned how to skate. His Mother put him on the ice for the first time. I was there. We were his closest neighbors. I remember how he took to the ice. It was like the skates were molded to his feet. He would skate all day if his Mother would let him. He learned how to swim the same way too. He could swim like a fish. And he use to scare us by diving underwater and holding his breathe for as long as humanely possible. He always got a scolding afterward, but he never cried because of it. It was his idea of a joke. The rascal." She murmured again, shaking her head. "And he could joke too. Good jokes. And even before that, he could laugh. He was always happy. Always smiling. That I remember."

"So what happened?" Madeleine bit her lip. "If you're saying that, then there has to be something that happened. What?"

"Patience." But Mrs. Van Gekk looked over the water again. "The dikes broke." She whispered softly. Madeleine noticed her hand reaching out of the boat and letting her fingers run through the water. "Both of them. Edward was four." There was another pause.

"Well what happened?" Madeleine was reaching the end of her nerve. "Did he die? Tell me!"

"If he died," Mrs. Van Gekk shot back. "Would he be your husband right now?"

Madeleine realized how stupid her question had been and tried to reign in her impatience.

"They all loved each other." Was the next whisper. "Dearly. Edward loved his Mother more than anything. His Father too. And they loved him back. When we got the word that the first dike was breaking, we got out the boat. This one actually." Mrs. Van Gekk smiled and patted the wooden boat's side. "And we were all suppose to get in it. And be safe. You see?"

Madeleine nodded. She didn't see how any of this could refer to Edward though. "So..."

"His-" Mrs. Van Gekk choked on the word. "The first dike broke, but the water didn't get very far. Like it didn't today. His parents went to go get a few things, and then the second dike collapsed. It went down faster than it did today, and there wasn't any warning."

Madeleine stared at the woman in horror, realization dawning on her.

"They never even got halfway. The water hit them." Mrs. Van Gekk paused. "They- they drowned."

Madeleine felt like she was almost shrinking inside. Edward couldn't of gone through this. Not her Edward. He loved her too much. But the feeling didn't go away. It stuck with her.

Mrs. Van Gekk shook her head slowly, almost as if trying to rid herself of the horrible memories lodged there. "We took Edward in, but he never got over it. At least I don't think so. He would cry himself to sleep, night after night, for weeks afterward. And he would have nightmares." Mrs. Van Gekk shuddered. "Horrible nightmares. I would get nightmares if he described them to me. And he never laughed. That was the worst thing of all I think. He lost all his laughter with that. He didn't laugh, rarely smiled." The woman thought for a moment, trying to gather the words she wanted to say. "I don't think he felt sorry for himself. He didn't advertise it, but it cut him so deeply that he couldn't be the way he was before. Nobody who has ever lost their parents to the water, ever forgets what happened."

Madeleine thought of the little boy she and Edward had watched. She remembered the scream and the hands, reaching out from under the water, but being swept away. Nightmares. She could see the hands reaching up to grab her, to pull her down with them. But she knew if she pulled up the hands, it would be worse. A grinning, hollow skull stared back at her from her imagination. Madeleine stifled the urge to scream. "Please," She whispered, trying to force the image back down. "Go on."

"Edward stayed with us till he was seven. And then one morning, I woke up- and he was gone. There was just a note saying that he'd left." Mrs. Van Gekk smiled wryly out at the sea. "I always wondered what had happened to him."

Madeleine reached out and took her hand. It was rough, and more than a bit worn. Like Michelle's. But the creases were still soft, the hands were still gentle, caressing.

"When you adopt an orphan, or a child of the water," Mrs. Van Gekk murmured softly, looking more at the sea than at Madeleine. "You can't tell the him what to call you. He could call you a lazy horse. But it always reflects who you are. They call you by your name most of the time, then Auntie, but the highest honor you can get, is when they call you by the name of who they lost."

"Did... Edward ever-?"

Mrs. Van Gekk shook her head. "It's rare. Very rare, when they find someone who can replace who they lost. And it's not really a replacement. You can never replace love. But you can find someone who can help you fill the hole in your heart. Then that's not a bad trade. Edward never found that person. I'll admit, I spoiled him." The two women shared a smile. "But he lost too much to be replaced." She turned to Madeleine. "Have you-"

Her words were cut off by a large jerk as the edge of the boat struck soft ground. Mrs. Van Gekk jumped out and quickly stopped the boat from rocking as Madeleine grabbed her bundles and stepped out.

To Madeleine, the entire Dutch world had almost been swept away, and it seemed like the whole population had gathered in one little spot. It was the Tulip Inn. The Inn had apparently been built on a higher patch of ground. It was almost as high as the mini-mountain. But now it was an island. Boats were docked around the island, hundreds of them. She recognized a few from the village. But she didn't see the one that the little blond haired boy had been swept away in. Madeleine hoped that he was alright.

"Now this," Mrs. And Mr. Van Gekk stepped out of the boat. "Is one of the only places in the valley that won't be flooded if the dikes break. So, coincidentally, most people come here. It'll be crowded, but everyone will soon spread out. You'll be safe here. Tell Elizabeth that we sent you. She'll be pleased as punch."

Madeleine bit her lip, "I don't speak Dutch."

"Oh! Silly me!" Mrs. Van Gekk laughed. "Don't worry. She won't mind a whit. We'll be here before sundown too." She jumped back into the boat. "I'll see you then! And then we can talk more!" There was a wave.

"Thank you!" Madeleine waved back. But the encouragement didn't improve the tossing of her stomach. She felt sick at heart. Madeleine turned around and faced the Inn. It was full of people, almost stretching at the seams. There was a little patch of land next to it though that hadn't been flooded. It wasn't indoors, and it probably had bugs, but it was better than nothing, and there were no people there. Madeleine walked over and set the bundles down under a large aspen tree. Then she sat down -Indian style- beside them.

She was instantly bored.

Madeleine knew how to crochet, but she didn't have any yarn or a crochet hook to do it with. She knew how to knit, but she didn't have any needles. She knew how to embroider. But what's the point of doing that anyway? Madeleine tried to think up else something to do.

She was completely engrossed in that pastime when there was a little cry and something toppled from the tree straight into her lap. It was a child. The two of them stared at each other with wide eyes. The little blond-haired girl recovered first. She asked Madeleine something in Dutch. Madeleine shook her head.

"French?"

Madeleine's eye lit up. Someone else who spoke French! "How do you know French?"

"My Mother's French." The child adjusted her legs so she was sitting on Madeleine's lap. The little girl couldn't of been more than four. "She was swept away by the water, but she told me not to worry. She'll be back."

There was a cheerful smile. As if to cheer Madeleine up and convince her that her Mother was coming back. But the water claimed it's victims. Madeleine had seen that with her own eyes. The hands reaching up out of the wave came back to her. She pushed the image away. "Of course she is. Is your Father here too?"

"No, but he's coming back too. I know so."

Madeleine wanted to hug the little child close to her. A child of the water loses the things that can never be replaced. "I lost my parents when I was little too." It wasn't that long ago, truly. "They haven't come back yet either." They never will. I'm a child of the fire. Madeleine thought ruefully, folding her legs so the little girl was more comfortable and closer to her.

"When you were little? My parents will come back sooner than that!" Big, brown eyes blinked rapidly. "I can climb trees!"

Madeleine smiled a bit at the childish pride. "Can you?"

"I can climb big trees! And little ones, and ones that touch the tip of the sky!" The girl's eyes were wide open and excited. "Do you know any stories? Any new ones? Ones I haven't heard before? My Mother use to tell me stories all the time."

Madeleine couldn't resist. She thought for a moment, then turned back to the girl, eyes twinkling in delight. "Alright. So this story happened in another world. It was a lot like ours, but it was hilly, and all this, as far as anyone had ever walked, was sand." Madeleine motioned out at the water. And with the sun shining off of it, it was easy to pretend that they were sand dunes, stretching into the distance. The girl's eyes widened. "The sand was broken by water-holes over the desert. It was called a desert. They called a water-hole, an oasis. And lot of trees grew around them. Around the oases, lots of cities and towns grew. Now, in one of the towns, there lived a boy. His name was Luke Starkiller. He was brave. Braver than anybody in the town! And he decided to search for the end of the desert!"

A lively tale sprung up, and both Madeleine and the girl grew entranced. Madeleine's imagination finally had a job to do, and it cranked out the wildest, craziest tale she had ever told. There were enormous monsters, twenty feet tall, that had gray wrinkly skin, and noses that brushed the ground. There were amazing buggies that sped across the sand so fast you could wink an eye and they were gone -that weren't pulled by horses. There were beams of light that could chop off someone's arm faster that a hatchet. And ships that could carry someone off into the sky, to the stars.

"...Luke grabbed onto the princess, and then leaped off the ship!" Madeleine paused for a drama build-up. "They landed on the Jedi-Windo ship, and Hans pulled them both to safety. The evil Dang-Louis-the-14th was destroyed as the dark battleship blew apart into a million tiny smithereens. And Luke and the princess Katherine were saved. They went back to Tattoine and lived happily ever after, in Luke's old home by the oasis. The End."

The girl stared at her, eyes so wide Madeleine hoped they wouldn't fall out of her head. "But- but that can't be the end! You never said what happened to the town of Karachi! And what happened to Luke's uncle?"

"Well..." Madeleine drew it out, "Lars, he went into the sailing business. He sailed people from one star to the next. And the town of Karachi? It was saved from destruction and became the biggest boom-town the star of Tattoine had ever known."

The little girl looked at the sun. By it's constant time table, Madeleine judged it was about four o'clock. "I wish I could do that." The little girl finally said. "Shoot up into the stars and save Tattoine from an evil emperor. That would be awesome-"

"Lillia!-" There was something else, but it was in Dutch. Both Madeleine and the little girl looked up. A man had walked out of the Inn. He waited for a minute, then called again.

"I've got to go." The little girl stood up -Lillia. "Mr. Van Gekk is calling me." The Van Gekks? Madeleine grabbed her bags and scrambled up after Lillia. I'll go with you. I have to talk to Margaret about something."

"Alright." Lillia scampered ahead of Madeleine and quickly greeted Mr. Van Gekk in a flurry of Dutch words that Madeleine couldn't understand. Mr. Van Gekk greeted Madeleine with a quick nod, and then motioned inside the Inn. Madeleine understood. She went inside to meet his wife.

Inside the Inn, on the right hand side, was a long couch. In the middle of the room were about five tables with chairs circling them. It was a bit like Michelle's Inn. Madeleine noted. With a brick counter separating the kitchen from the main room. She guessed the kitchen area was a lot like Michelle's Inn too.

Mrs. Van Gekk was talking in Dutch over the brick counter to -who Madeleine guessed was- the innkeepstress. She nodded and shook her head to her words and intervals, but looked sad through-out. Then Mrs. Gekk turned around and noticed Madeleine. Her eyes lit up and she switched to speaking French. "You are here! I was wondering where you'd gone!"

A small smile started twitching over Madeleine face. "I was kept busy telling a story for the whole afternoon."

Mrs. Van Gekk laughed. "Lillia? That girl always did love stories. She can spot a person who would tell her a tale, a mile off. She knows three languages too. So she can edge them out of people that way as well. I've used her as my translator many a day." Her eyes sparkled laughingly, but Madeleine saw the sadness hidden in them too.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"Well..." Mrs. Van Gekk bit her lip, thinking. "They're starting work on the dike. It'll be repaired soon. Meanwhile they're pumping out the water into another reservoir as fast as they can. It'll be a few months, but it's taken a lot longer for other breaks."

"No," Madeleine shook her head. "I meant with the children. What's happening with the children? Have any of the parents been found?"

Mrs. Van Gekk looked away. "Some."

"But that's a good thing, right?"

"The bodies." Mrs. Van Gekk swallowed hard. Madeleine could see tears starting to form in her eyes. "When the water comes, it claims it's victims."

"But what about Lillia? Did her parents-" Madeleine couldn't force herself to say the word. "Were they swept away too?"

Mrs. Van Gekk only managed a nod. She was trying hard not to cry. Madeleine fell silent. Quiet voices in the room whirled around her, mainly the voices of children. Children, who had lost their parents, but didn't know about it. Madeleine glanced at Mrs. Van Gekk. She had the horrible job of telling them so. She looked around the room again. Mrs. Van Gekk had a horrible job, but a job that had to be done.

Suddenly Madeleine heard a cry outside. She took a step to the side to look out the window. It was Lillia. She was running back towards the side of the house where Madeleine had first met her. Mr. Van Gekk was staring after her. There was a pained expression in his eyes. While he was saying nothing, they spoke volumes. Madeleine knew what had happened instantly.

Dropping her bundles on the floor by Mrs. Van Gekk, she quickly strode forward, and left the Inn. Walking around the side of the Inn, she was greeted by... Air. There was nobody there. Lillia was nowhere to be seen. Madeleine looked around, then happened to glance up into the tree. Lillia was sitting on a rather large branch, clinging tightly to the trunk. Madeleine could see big, fat tears running down her cheeks while sobs racked her body. Lillia's dress was torn, and dirtied. Worse than Madeleine's usually was, if that was possible.

Madeleine hesitated for a moment, then leaped up, grabbed a low branch, and lightly swung herself up into the tree. She clung tightly to the trunk for a moment, trying to regain her balance. Then she forgot she was in her dress, and stepped forward. There was a ripping sound. I hate dresses. Madeleine instantly thought, but dismissed it. Settling down beside Lillia, she waited for the little girl to notice her.

"G-Go a-away." There was a hiccup between the words, thanks to Lillia's sobs.

"It's just me."

Lillia turned her head for a moment, glancing at Madeleine. Then she turned back away, hiding her face in the tree's rough bark. Nothing was said.

Madeleine stayed quiet. She knew the pain that came along with losing something. She had lost far too much to not understand. After a while, her arm crept around Lillia's shoulder. "I lost my parents too." She whispered. "They're not coming back either."

The little girl suddenly loosened her hold on the tree and flung her arms around Madeleine. Madeleine wrapped her arms around her and pulled her close. The sun was setting. Madeleine looked up into a pale gold sky. It reflected off the water, making a day far too beautiful for what had happened in it. "I-I miss them." Madeleine suddenly heard the little girl murmur.

"I miss my parents too." Madeleine whispered back. She curled her arm even tighter around Lillia. "But they are here, with us."

Lillia's head shot up. "Where?"

"No," Madeleine shook her head, shifting her weight so Lillia was almost balanced on her lap. "Not here, in person. But they will always be here." She tapped her chest. "Inside you. And they're always watching over you. You'll always have them close."

Lillia stared into the sunset for a while, taking Madeleine's words in. "I guess you're right." She breathed. "I still miss them, but it's not as bad. I-I guess that's true."

Madeleine nodded. "Of course it is."

Lillia was quiet for a while, then suddenly she perked up. "What's your name?"

"Madeleine."

"Maddie? Did Luke and Katherine really live happily ever after?"

Madeleine thought for a minute, gathering things in her mind. "It's funny you ask that. I was thinking about it just after we ended the story. They really didn't have a happily-ever-after. Because right after they landed on Tattoine, a giant alien landed right next to their ship! And do you know what he ate?"

"Something disgusting?" Lillia suggested. Her troubles forgotten in five sentences.

"Blood." Madeleine's eyes twinkled impishly as Lillia cringed. "Luke and Katherine were in the gravest danger once again. But what they didn't know, was that the evil Dang-Louis-the-14th hadn't died at all! He had taken an escape ship at just the last second and escaped the exploding black ship. And he was living in secret on the planet of Endor. Now, lucky for-"

Another wild tale sprung up. But this time, Madeleine used it to keep Lillia's mind off her problems. She avoided the hard topics, and stuck to a impossibly imaginative sequel of the story she had told before.

The story ended when the sun set, and when the air around the two girls got too cold for them to stay out any longer. "So Luke was separated from Katherine, but they both knew they were together. Dang-Louis-the-14th was critically wounded in the fire, and was so sick that there was the chance he would never recover. Lars repaid his nephew, and the planet of Endor was saved. The End."

Lillia's eyes were almost popping out. "But what happens next? Dang can't win! You have to make Luke and Katherine have a happy ending!"

"I don't have to," Madeleine reminded her, jumping down from the tree. "It would be nice if. But sometimes, stories don't always have a happy ending. You can't please everyone."

Lillia jumped down from the tree. She was thinking hard. "I guess so. That makes sense. You can't make everyone happy, but it's worth it if you make just a few people very happy."

Madeleine nodded as they walked towards the Inn together. She glanced out over the water though. There was no boat in sight. She bit her lip worriedly. Where's Edward? She thought. But she reminded herself of the words she had just told Lillia. It's worth it if you make a few people happy.

Madeleine clutched Lillia's hand tighter and raced her to the Inn's door.

E: Why did you even get me up at 3:30 in the morning anyway? I'm at least half awake and beginning to realize your actions.

M: Ahem. We have a party to go to at ten. I need to get the children fed by eight, get the house clean by nine. Jane's going to be here at nine thirty, and you and I will have to speed to the party as fast as that poor run-out Honda Accord can go.

E: Poor Honda Accord is right.

M: I agree. Anyway, let's start getting ready. Fiske was driving me crazy with all his phone calls yesterday. He doesn't really approve of the party. I don't think it's a bad idea.

E: Well considering how your last one turned out, I don't really blame him.

M: BEAN SPILLER!

E: Sorry, sorry, sorry... It is true.

M: Alright, fine. Whatever. You have to tell me if the blue sweater makes me look fat and if I should wear the red one.

E: 2010 oriented... I wonder who... Let's sign off of this...

My gosh that's a long chapter! I was reading it and it just seemed to go on, and on, and on, and on. So if you're tired of reading long chapters, sue me. Well, I'm probably not worth suing. So don't sue. Give me flames. That's it. Flames.

Question; Does anyone reading this feel sorry for Edward right now? (Again...) Do you mark any resemblance from the story Madeleine told to... a movie? How do you think Maddie's party will go? Do you like the snorer that kept her awake all night? Did you like Edward's unable-to-wake-up-ness?