"I want to be the one to stay with Quinn tonight. It makes more sense for one person to stay with her tonight, then for a couple of people to go get her when we need to go back and get supplies anyway," Santana said as soon as their entire group was in that ferret faced giant's train car. His name started with an S, but Santana couldn't be bothered to try to remember what Rachel had said it was.

Rachel had that look on her face that she got when she thought you were an idiot and needed to be set straight by her.

"Hobbit, just because you and Quinn are rubbing lady boners together doesn't mean that," Santana clinched her jaw, and sighed, "Look, Brittany doesn't want me right now. And I just can't be here without being with her, okay? So please let me go be with Quinn tonight, and tomorrow Brittany will want me. Hopefully. Please. And I won't say I told you so, even thought I totally did."

It wasn't like she'd known Quinn was immune. She had just hoped really hard, and maybe even prayed a little.

The dick that was God had listened apparently.

It wasn't like she could gloat or anything, anyway.

Tiffany was dead.

"I know I was a bitch earlier, but…I just need to get away okay?" Santana added softly.

Rachel gave her a stony look, "Nor shall you taunt me about it, or imply that I do not love Quinn because I was forced to make a very difficult decision for the sake of the group."

Santana nodded. "Can you -and Tina, probably, watch Nicholas? Brittany...is yeah. And I don't want to risk bringing him with me."

Rachel glared at her, and Santana rolled her eyes, "Because chances are in the morning there's going to be a few dozen zombies around the bus, not because I think Quinn's going to have some baby back ribs."

Rachel sighed, "I apologize. Of course I will watch him. I imagine Tina and the other's will be a great help."

After double checking with Tina, and then having Blaine translate for Lin, even though June looked like a kicked puppy and would have probably helped too, Santana went to the corner of the train car where Sam was curled up on the seat, leaning forward resting his head awkwardly on the seat in front him.

Tina was getting the stuff Quinn needed together, and wanted to look at her ribs where she'd gotten burnt, and make sure there was nothing gross the scrapes she'd gotten without even noticing.

She'd tried talking to Sam a few times on their walk.

This sucked. She didn't even know what to say.

"Sam." She flopped into the seat next to him, and said low, so no one else would hear her, "I don't understand. I don't understand how this all happens. How we go through this. I mean, we knew them, and then now there's bodies, and I don't understand why they can't just get back in it and not be dead any more. It's stupid. It's mortal and stupid. Brittany's crying and not talking, you're not talking. And we don't know why."* She sniffled a bit, biting back a sob. Crying wasn't going to solve anything.

He turned, and stared at her.

He didn't smile.

He didn't say anything.

He unfolded himself off the seat, leaned forward, and hugged her.

She hugged him back.

Her side hurt. She was sure his back and hand hurt.

Before she knew it, she was crying.

And so was he.

Her shoulder hurt. It sent a throb of pain radiating throughout her entire body that had been intensified by the burdens she carried their walk.

Quinn was going to live.

They would heal, they would rest, and they would continue towards their goal.

She could only imagine the pain Beth was in; she had liberally dozed the toddler with whiskey and it had kept her relatively quiet and sleepy. Hopefully it kept the pain at bay as well.

Stella Smythe was a veterinarian, and had quickly taken over checking their wounds from Tina. Santana had been first, then sent on her way back to Quinn, Paisley trailing behind her because the green haired girl had pointed out it'd be smart to have another person so they could take turns watching during the night.

Beth was third after Paisley.

As Stella worked on Beth's burns, she chattered as she frowned at the wound. The rest of them set about figuring out sleeping areas, and getting some much needed food made.

"These are burns, but…weird," Stella muttered.

Quinn was going to live. Even now, as a medical professional checked over Beth, that thought drummed its way through Rachel.

Rachel was hovering next to her.

She did not know this woman, and she was not about to go more than a few feet away from Beth.

"How so?" Rachel enquired as she started pulling out a change of clothing for Beth with her good arm.

Stella looked up at her from her position on the floor, and frowned, "Normally, when it's charred like that…well, there's no saving the burned part. I'm sorry, but with the amount of fourth degree burns on this toddler, she should be dead. However…while it looks terrible, it is, a far as I can tell, not penetrating the layers of skin, so it's not actually fourth degree. It'll scar, but she'll live. Even without a hospital and an actual Doctor."

"Is she in pain?"

Rachel certainly was.

Stella nodded, "That's another thing. Usually with third or fourth degree burns, there's no pain because the nerves have been burned as well as everything else. But you are all in pain, with varying degrees of burn. It's…weird."

"Maybe that lasers are designed to cause pain?" Blaine said quietly from where he was setting up bedding a bit away from Rachel.

Stella sighed, "Your brother might be right. Those…sphere's are something else. I don't think the degree of pain you're feeling is what you should actually be feeling with burns. I saw that load you were carrying back to the train, there's frankly no way you would have been able to manage it if you had a…proper, for lack of a better word, third or fourth degree burn. As soon as I'm done with her, I want to look you over. Then you two can get some sleep, you look like death warmed over."

Neither Rachel nor Blaine bothered to correct her. Rachel was too tired, now that she knew Quinn would be alive in the morning she wanted nothing more than to have a cry and then a hopefully dreamless sleep.

Lin was taking the first few shifts with Nicholas, and Tina was taking the next few because she wasn't injured that badly.

"Burt needs me to work over time this week," Finn shoveled his dinner into his mouth so fast Rachel was quite sure he wasn't even tasting it. Which rankled, because she'd spent extra time, despite the children and household chores, on it, wanting tonight's meal to be special.

She was fairly certain he'd forgotten what tonight was, "Very well, even if you've been working over time the last two months. Burt does realize you have children and a wife who enjoy spending time with you?"

Finn swallowed, and grinned at her, "That's why I'm getting the overtime and not any of the single guys."

"Well, it can only help," Rachel turned up the baby monitor's volume, then sat down at her chair, where her untouched dinner sat, "I have started looking at apartment's in New York, trying to maintain an equilibrium between price and area. I-"

Finn looked at her with a frown, "New York? Uh, why Rachel?"

She sighed.

Clearly, he had forgotten.

"Today is our fifth anniversary. And you promised me that we would move to New York in our Fifth year of marriage, Finn, so that I may continue my dreams of Broadway. A dream I put off because we got married."

Finn shoved his plate away, "Rachel, we have two kids. When I saw the fancy dinner I thought you were going to tell me you were pregnant with the third baby we've been trying for. Why aren't we enough for you?"

She took a deep breath, "Finn, there is no reason I cannot have it all. You, our family, and Broadway. It will take a lot of work, from us both, but once we're in New York -"

He shook his head, "Rachel, I'm not going to New York. And you aren't taking the kids. If you want Broadway, you're picking it over us."

"You promised," she hated the thread of desperation in her voice.

"I was a dumb kid. I'm a man, now, and we have to do what's best for our kids. Our family." Whatever words she was about to say died in her throat, and he continued, "Do you think it'd be good for the kids to be tossed in daycare, while I work even more just to pay for a New York apartment while we never see you because you'll be busy rehearsing? God, how selfish are you? You're a mother now Rachel, it's time to think about someone other than yourself."

Their youngest started crying, and without another word to her, he stood up and left the table.

She put her face into her hands, and sobbed.

Rachel woke up with tears on her face. It took her a moment to realize it had been a dream.

Just a dream.

She sat up carefully in the front row of train seats she'd claimed for her own -after pushing the arms up.

Beth was in a nest on the floor, and was still sleeping. Next to her, Sarah (with the poodle in her arms) and Kyle were sleeping in their sleeping bags.

Despite the odd…she wasn't even sure it could be called a nightmare, the dream she'd had, she felt much better this morning. Well rested, and ready to face the day.

Because she knew she would not return to the bus to find Quinn a zombie.

It was amazing how having that knowledge made her feel so…chipper.

Likely it was a form of shock or some such thing from her wound and yesterday's events.

She reached into her messenger bag, and pulled out her clipboard.

There had been some hopeful talk of getting the train running and driving it up as far as they could.

Rachel had no idea how to drive a train. She highly suspected no one else did either.

She was neatly writing notes on how much of their supplies to gather when they returned to the bus, depending on if they were walking verses riding the train when Beth woke up with a little sob.

"Shah, shah, I'm here," Rachel cooed to the toddler. Mindful of Beth's burn, which spanned from her back, to her right shoulder, to her upper arm, Rachel set about trying soothe toddler as she changes her bandages, put her in clean clothing, and changed her diaper.

Any progress they had made towards potty training Beth had gone out the window, she realized with a sigh.

Finally, Beth was grumpily playing with a ball, moving it with her feet and one arm, because it clearly hurt too much if she used the other one, and Rachel set about preparing breakfast for everyone, keeping Beth in view at all times.

Stella and Sebastian's source of smoke had a portable wood burning stove that, despite weighing slightly over thirty pounds and being rather bulky, Stella had insisted on taking with them wherever they went.

It felt quite odd to use it now, after using the fireplace in the apartment for so long.

June was neatly stacking sticks she had obviously just went outside to gather, despite the sun only just now starting to rise.

If she were anyone else, Rachel would chide her about not resting.

Instead, Rachel simply gave her a nod, and started stoking the coals, gently electing new flames to rise with the sticks.

Several times, she was certain June was about to say something to her but lost courage.

"I'm going Shawn. I need to help, I'm not useless." Violeta said patiently to her husband.

"You're helping by staying here with the kids, keeping all of you safe," Sludge said gruffly.

They had been bickering back and forth for five minutes now. Everyone was going back to the bus, except for one person to stay with the children. Sludge wanted his wife to be that person. Violeta had a different idea.

"Just let her go already," Terri finally snapped, "I want to visit my daughter's grave, and we're wasting time. It's probably good for the only doctor to stay safe anyway,"

"Well, I am a veterinarian," Stella pointed out.

"Who specializes in felines," Sebastian pointed, licking his lips pointedly when he caught eyes with Rachel and saw her watching him.

Rachel made a point to very visibly roll her eyes at him. He had been doing such things all morning, and Rachel had yet to find a good time to inform him that she was taken and while he was incredibly attractive, his whole persona was not something she wanted in a partner. Let alone a partner to survive the apocalypse with.

"Whatever," Terri shrugged on her emptied backpack, "Let's just go already."

Rachel felt badly for Terri. Somehow, the other woman had all three children that could drink breast milk before they started out.

Rachel did not believe she would have been that strong to feed another child so soon after her own had died.

Terri would have scars on her chest, going from the top of her breasts to her neck.

She had survived what had caused them.

Theresa, an infant, had not.

That was how the world was now.

"I'm going." Violeta said, glaring at Sludge.

He finally grunted his approval, no doubt sensing just how annoyed and upset some of them were getting.

Rachel quickly assured Beth, and Sarah both that she would return shortly -and promised Sarah she would remember the book the younger girl had forgotten to grab, and had shyly asked Rachel to get if she could.

Finally, they were on their way to the bus.

And Quinn.

She would not quite believe that Quinn would be okay until she saw her with her own eyes.

"It hurts so bad Santana," Brittany whispered, leaning against her.

"I know Britts. I know."

They were almost back to the train, taking their last break. When Santana had gone to pee behind a tree, Brittany had followed her.

One they had taken care of their business, Brittany had wrapped her arms around Santana.

"You have to be strong. For Tiffany. For that baby waiting for us. And for me, okay? It sucks, but that's what you have to do." Santana's tone wavered.

Brittany sighed, then admitted, "I thought about letting a zombie eat me. But then I realized that would make you really sad you'd probably let a zombie eat you, and then Quinn would be sad, and so would Sam and Blaine and Rachel. And I didn't want to be the cause of so much more sadness in the world."

They stood there in silence, before Brittany added, "I don't know if I can be strong."

"You kicked the ass of one of those freaky hunter zombies by yourself. Strong is fighting. It's hard and it's painful and it's every day. It's what we have to do, and we can do it together.** You're strong, baby. And you make me strong."

"Is fighting enough Santana? I don't want to live in a world where all we do is fight, a world where's there's no joy or happiness or future." Brittany pulled away from Santana and looked at her seriously, "No amount of Buffy quotes are going to change that."

Santana ran a hand through her pony tail, fluffing out the hair while she thought. "We're going to have to fight, because that's how we're going to earn every moment of peace and happiness we get. We've got our future, Britt's -if even we're fighting, it doesn't matter as long as we're together. It's Quinn and Rachel and much Rachel's changed and Quinn seems to fit in her skin better. It's Beth, and how she looks like a tiny grumpier version of Quinn. It's Sam. It's Tina. It's Dahlia. It's Kyle. It's even Terri...it's that baby waiting for us. He's not a replacement for anyone we've lost, but..."

Speeches weren't her thing.

She honestly had no idea what to say to Brittany, how to make any of this okay, and Brittany talking about killing herself made Santana want to break things.

"I...okay Santana. You're right. We're together, and that counts for a lot. And Nicholas. Let's go back to the other's, we have a minute until Rachel's going to send out a search party."

They held hands back to the other's, and their heavy packs.

Quinn was still sleeping, like she had been since Santana and Paisley had gone back to the bus and forced fed her medicine. There had been only four zombies around the bus, which had been a surprise.

Paisley had taken out two by herself, no hand holding required.

It made Santana a hallow type of sad, wondering how good of a zombie killer Tiffany would have been if she'd been able to grow up a little more.

Sebastian, Sam, Blaine and Sludge gently set down Quinn. They'd been carrying her in a king size sheet, each holding a corner.

Well, not simply a corner.

It had to have been quite tiring for the four, with their wounds, and their heavy packs.

None of the complained.

Rachel made sure to stop for a quick break often, even if it slowed their return to the train by roughly thirty minutes.

She felt elated.

There had been only one zombie around the train in the morning, stumbling towards them as they had finally left for the bus.

Quinn was sleeping much more peacefully then she had been when they'd set out on their return trip.

Quinn was alive.

Rachel's shoulder, despite carrying a very heavy backpack, did not seem to be hurting as much as it could be.

That last part perhaps was simply adrenalin or psychosomatic.

No matter.

Things were looking up for them.

Bacon was barking.

Something seemed off by it, but before she could puzzle it out Stella turned towards them, dropping a rock she'd been holding.

"Hello," Stella said.

Rachel stared at the woman. Something seemed different.

She'd changed her shirt. Likely Nicholas spit up on it. Rachel made a mental note to, as thanks, offer to include Stella's laundry when they did their own.

Not that they would be doing it any time soon, but eventually they would.

Sebastian stepped forward, swinging his pack down, "Aunty, what's with the rock? Did that dumb cat get out again?"

Stella cocked her head to the side, seemingly analyzing every word that came out of Sebastian's mouth. "Zombies. In this train car. I'm trying to get them to one side."

Sebastian nodded, "Like what we did in Cleveland? Let me go grab my bat, I can help."

Stella barked out, "No." Then coughed, and added, "No thank you. They'll keep. Everything okay? No trouble?"

"Everything was as well as could be expected. I trust you had no issues with the children?" Rachel asked, swinging her backpack down, wincing at the pain from her wound, then again when her rifle bounced off it.

"They were...fine. Sa..Sarah was trouble. Wouldn't listen. Brat." Stella glared at the train car.

Bacon was still barking.

Something was still off about it, but Rachel couldn't put her finger on it.

"Sarah was acting like a brat? I am sorry, but I find that difficult to believe," Rachel glared at the older woman. How dare she say that Sarah was a brat.

Paisley set her pack down, and walked forward, "Do you guys here that? I think that's Bacon, but why does it sound like he's..." she trailed off, and finally stopped next to Stella, "He's in this train car? But how could he-"

Stella pulled Paisley into a hug, her face hidden by Paisley's head.

Rachel clinched her jaw.

She did not say anything simply because technically, Paisley was a stranger to them all and Rachel did not feel as though she had the right to intercede.

Santana didn't have any such qualms, "Hey Doctor Touchy Mc Touch, Parsley is a little old to just be swiping hugs from. Ask first. Paisley pull away if you want to, it's okay, or blink twice if you want help."

Paisley opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

Just a drop of blood.

The drop quickly changed to a flow.

The light died in Paisley's eyes in an eight of a second.

Rachel grabbed her rifle, and raised it.

Stella dropped the green haired girl's body, and turned to them.

Blood covered her mouth, and spilled down the front of her shirt.

She grinned at them, and walked to the train car housing their young, and opened the door.

They could only watch in horror as first Kyle, then a crawling Dahlia stumbled down the stairs and towards them.

Kyle had a bite mark on his torn wrist. He was covered in spattered blood, his swollen body was lumped and misshapen.

In one swollen mitt of a hand, Rachel could just barely make out his inhaler, still grasped by him even in death.

Behind Rachel, Santana made a choked sobbing noise.

Dahlia -looking at her hurt Rachel in so many ways. The poor toddler -not quite a year old yet, was not swollen looking like most zombies they had seen.

Half her face -mostly around one of her previously delightful chubby cheeks, was missing.

Another item for her nightmares.

She raised her rifle, but Blaine ran forward, and shot his sister in the head with a pistol. He dropped the gun, and dropped to his knees, staring at the body.

Kyle's walking corpse was drawn to him.

It started stumbling towards him.

None of them could move.

Until, finally, Terri did. "Tell Kendra I'm sorry I couldn't protect you," she said, then jabbed him through the eye with her hunting knife.

The body fell, and that's when Rachel noticed Paisley's body was sitting up.

As the newest corpse started trying to stand, Rachel fired.

She hit it in the head, and the corpse fell again, still at last.

"Where's Stella?" Tina asked.

"She went back into the train car," Sebastian said numbly, "I don't know what's going on. She couldn't have been bit -we're the same blood type. She's immune. Army confirmed it."

"She's dead," Rachel said quietly, "Even if she hasn't been bit."

Holding the rifle ahead of her, Rachel stomped to the train car, and up the stairs.

Stella wasn't even attempting to hide.

She squatted over a box, eating something.

It was the box that was being used as Nicholas's makeshift crib.

Seeing Rachel, the woman dropped what she'd been gnawing on.

A tiny arm.

Rachel swallowed back bile.

She raised the gun, and fired into Stella's head.

Stella's fell backwards, still. Rachel walked forward, and kicked her in the leg.

Once she was sure Stella was dead, she dared look into the box.

Nicholas, missing his legs and one arm, snarled gummily at her.

It was not frightening.

It was horrible and grotesque.

As much as sometimes she did not like Santana, she would not force her to see this.

Rachel pulled out her knife, and slide it carefully through the infant's soft spot.

Nicholas stopped snarling, and went still.

That was for Santana.

For Brittany, Rachel wrapped the little body up in the nearest clean thing she could find, leaving only a portion of his face showing.

She smashed the bloody box, and shoved it under a seat along with the dropped arm, setting the body on top of another seat.

Beth.

She did not want to look at the nest of blankets she had left Beth in.

She could see it wiggling and moving from here.

She should go get Santana or Sam or Tina or Sludge or even June.

Anyone else.

So she would not have to see this.

She swallowed hard.

She loved Quinn so very much.

So she would be the one to give Quinn's baby her peace.

She stepped forward, holding the knife loosely in front of her.

With her toe, she kicked the blood-soaked blanket up bracing herself for what she was about to see.

Churchill stared at her, in pain, blood dribbling out of her mouth, wheezing with each painful breath.

Rachel made a little 'oh' noise.

"You poor thing. You tried to protect them from whatever happened here, didn't you?" Rachel bent down on one knee, and rubbed the German Sheppard's nose and ears. Churchill closed her eyes and Rachel jabbed the knife into her quickly.

The dog breathed her last breath, and her body stilled.

Tears were dripping down her face as she stood up, Rachel walked down the small hall.

"Beth?"

Maybe she was hiding.

She stepped on something, and realized it was a bloodstained body of a cat.

She poked at it with her toe, wishing she had brought a light in with her.

It was quite dark, and she didn't realize just how dark and gloomy it was in the train car before now.

The cat could keep.

She needed to find Beth.

"Beth?" She said, her voice breaking a bit. "Beth? I bet you're hungry and tired and want your Mama. Mama's outside, waiting for you."

She nearly slipped in something, dropping her knife and letting her rifle tightly bounce against her side when she grabbed the train seats to stay upright.

She picked up the knife, and held it close to her face so she could see.

Blood.

"Beth? I know you are scared, but it is going to be alright. I'm going to sing your special song, to make you not scared."

Quinn had started singing Beth the very same AC/DC song Puck had sung to her and the rest of them when Quinn was pregnant. She sung it most nights to help Beth sleep, or bits of it if Beth was scared or being extra grumpy. It was a way for Quinn to give Beth a chance to connect to Puck's memory.

Something she'd picked up out of one of the books Rachel had insisted the group all read.

Rachel had quite forgotten about the song last night.

"I am sorry I did not sing it to you last night," Rachel stepped forward, slowing down with each step.

She was only six seats away from the last seat.

She did not want to see what was there.

"Beth I hear you calling
But I can't come home right now
Me and the boys are playing
And we just can't find the sound

Just a few more hours
And I'll be right home to you
I think I hear them calling
Oh Beth what can I do
Beth what can I do"

Tears were falling steadily with each step.

The knife was slick in her hand, the blood sticky.

She was walking through puddle path of blood, with only one destination.

"You say you feel so empty
That our house just ain't our home
I'm always somewhere else
And you're always there alone

Just a few more hours
And I'll be right home to you
I think I hear them calling
Oh Beth what can I do
Beth what can I do"

She repeated the last lyric, letting the last note die slowly.

The other's would be in the train any moment, she was quite sure.

She needed to find Beth.

She pushed herself forward, practically running the last two seats.

She slide through the blood, stopping at the final seat. She forced herself to look.

Beth was sitting on the seat, curled up.

Her little body was pale.

She was breathing.

She stared up at Rachel, raising one arm -the arm that wasn't burnt, and grasped at Rachel. "Up," the toddler slurred out tiredly.

There was a bite mark on Beth's wrist.

She was immune.

Just like Quinn.

Immune.

"Oh Bethy, you will be okay sweetie I've got you now, and Mama's just outside," Rachel shoved the knife in its holder, and slung her rifle on her back.

She picked up Beth gently, and walked carefully back towards the front, tossing someone's clean sweatshirt over Beth's face so she wouldn't see anything.

"Tina, Beth needs you. June, help her." Rachel barked out, "Sam, Sebastian, get Bacon out of that car. Last think we need is more zombies drawn to the barking."

Rachel turned to Santana and Brittany.

She opened her mouth, then finally just shook her head.

"I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry."

Brittany sat down, heedless of the mud, and started crying.

Santana looked down, then at Brittany.

She swallowed, blinking rapidly, then looked back at Rachel, "How's Beth?"

"Immune. And in quite a bit of pain, I imagine," Rachel said, looking at the train car Stella had been standing by when they'd arrived. Sludge had the door open, and the quivering poodle in his arms.

Sarah burst out of the doors, past Sam and Sludge, to where Santana and Rachel stood.

She was sobbing.

"She..." Sarah sobbed out, "She got bit but said she was immune and it was okay," Sarah kept trying to breath but would start crying instead, "And she was for a little while. But then she wasn't anymore. I had gone to the other train car with Bacon to reread the book I had with me. She was different. She was smarter. She even changed her shirt when she realized I could see the blood on it." Sarah sobbed out in a garbled breath, and Santana wrapped her arms around her. Sarah's words were confused and half sobs. Rachel hoped she could get the full story from her later, when things were calmer.

Tina and June returned with the medical supplies. "Lord Tubbington's hiding under the wood stove," June said quietly to Santana as Rachel handed Beth to her, "I think he's okay."

Rachel wrapped her arms around Sarah and Santana both.

"It's okay Sarah. This is not your fault," Rachel said, reassuring the girl over and over. Santana did the same.

Tina and June hovered over Beth, Tina finished bandaging up toddlers wrist and was now, presumably, searching for child friendly antibiotics.

Beth stilled.

Tina sat back, and stared at her, then yelled something.

Time seemed to slow.

No.

No.

She's immune. That means this is not going to kill her, like it had not killed Quinn.

She realized she was saying that over and over out loud.

"Blood loss, I think. She just...she just lost too much blood Rachel. That, coupled with the burns, it was just too much for her little body to take," was all Tina could offer her.

The words, and their logic, barely register to Rachel as she looked at Quinn's sleeping form.

What was she going to tell Quinn.

A/N: Beth by AC/DC not owned by me yada yada.

RIP Beth, Nicholas, Kyle, Dahlia, Dr. Stella Smythe, Churchill the German Sheppard.

*This is Santana purposely bastardizing an Anya quote from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, episode 'The Body."

**Santana's quoting Buffy the Vampire Slayer again, episode 'Amends'.

Everyone's pretty traumatized, and in shock, if you were wondering why no one seems to be thinking much during their POV's.

At a certain age, if you've got the blood type to be immune, if you are bitten you turn into the most difficult and terrifying zombie. The zombie that still looks and somewhat acts alive.

Hard mode is hard.

Review and let me know what you think. I'm going to try to get the next chapter up soon. Two left! (Unless I get away from my outline).

This chapter was supposed to be start of a much longer chapter, but I felt it worked better separated.