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Chapter Thirty-Seven:
Magneto walked with Hank as they progressed onto the baseball field.
"Okay, everyone gathers up over here," Rogue proclaimed loudly. "We're gonna figure out who's on who's team." Even from across the field, he had heard her clearly. He looked over to see his girl, her arm was shot up into the air as she directed those present to her location.
"Rogue's taking the lead, interesting," Hank commented.
"Indeed," he muttered in reply as he found himself raising an eyebrow as he saw she was wearing her gloves again.
"Who put Rogue in charge of baseball?" he heard Sunspot's voice, in his native tongue, somewhere behind him. The boy must not have noticed him, given his choice in language.
"I do not know. Jean, maybe?" Magma replied in kind.
"I doubt it," he replied. "She probably put herself in charge."
'Most likely,' Magneto found himself agreeing.
"She's been really weird the last couple of weeks, don't you think?" she said.
"Rogue has always been strange," he pointed out.
"You know what I mean, Roberto."
"Yeah," he sighed in English. "I've never heard her talk so much before," switching back to Portuguese.
"I know, right," Magma responded in kind.
"Who knew she was so bossy?" Sunspot asked as he let out a laugh.
"Roberto," Magma exclaimed as she laughed. Unable to help himself, Magneto let out a small chuckle himself, which promptly ended the laughter behind him.
"What's so-?" Hank asked started to ask before a look of realization crossed his features. "Ah, I see."
"Did you see him?" she whispered.
"No," Sunspot whispered.
"Those two need to pay more attention to their surroundings," he commented, shaking his head, as he increased his pace to put some distances between himself and the two teenagers. Beast was kind enough to keep up with his stride.
Magneto made eye contact with Rogue as he managed to converge with the group. She smiled as he and Hank walked up to her. The others were still gathering.
"How's your head?" she asked.
"I'm fine, Rogue," he said giving her a reassuring nod.
"So, what was that dream you had about?" she asked suddenly. Why on earth was she asking about that?
"Some strange nonsense. Nothing important," he said dismissively.
"I dreamt a dream tonight," Rogue smirked. Magneto watched Hank's face light up.
"And so did I," he replied, his tone telling him he was now quoting something or other.
"Well, what was yours?" Rogue asked.
"That dreamers often lie," he replied.
"In bed asleep, while they do dream things true," she said, her eyes flashing to his for a brief moment before she returned her gaze to Hank's.
"Oh, then I see Queen Mab hath been with you," he finished as he gestured dramatically. The two of them shared a laugh. "Rogue, your ear for quotes is as good as mine," he said.
"Who doesn't like a little Shakespeare now and then?" she smirked.
"Which play?" he found himself asking.
"Romeo and Juliet," Rogue answered.
"I'll admit, I'm rather curious myself now what your dream was about," Hank said.
"Humor us?" Rogue asked.
"If you two must know," he said crossing his arm over his chest, "Rogue and I were having dinner with Odin and Frigga," he said. The expression on Rogue's face was beyond pleased, as the look in her eye intensified.
"Norse mythology, huh?" Hank asked.
"It is?" he asked, not having placed the reference himself. He forced himself to look away from Rogue, at Hank.
"Yes, it is," Beast confirmed. "Have you read about the nine realms recently?"
"No, not that I can recall," Magneto answered.
"How peculiar," he said.
"So, we were dining with the royal family of Asgard?" Rogue asked.
"Yes," he answered.
"Were we royalty too?" she asked amused.
"Odin called me King and you Queen," he muttered. "Yes, we were," he answered.
"Of what?" she asked. He considered that a moment.
"Midgard," he recalled from his dream.
"The whole planet?" she asked in disbelief.
"Excuse me?" he asked.
"Midgard is earth," Hank supplied.
"No, no," he said quickly. "We had enemies on Midgard. The purpose of our dinner was to strengthen our alliance with Asgard. I had made a promise to Lord Odin which was kept and this secured their support in the war we would have to face at home," he said.
"Where was our home?" Rogue asked. He paused a moment as he thought about it.
"I've no idea," he said. She let out a little laugh at that.
"You let me know when you figure that one out," she said.
"Oh, are you in the market to take over a country?" he smirked, as he glanced down at her.
"Depends on the country," she muttered so softly, he was fairly sure he was the only one who heard her comment. He looked at her inquisitively as she stepped away from him to address the group at large. "Okay, people, listen up," Rogue said loudly. "Here are the rules for today's game. When your team's up to bat, powers can only be used to hit the ball, to make your way from base to base, and to defend yourself against any attacks from the opposing team. Anyone up to bat cannot use their abilities in an offensive manner against the fielding team or affect the ball once it's motion. Defense only," she said strongly.
"Pitchers can use their abilities to throw the ball but can't affect the ball once it's in motion. That's up to the rest of the fielding team to catch it and to attack the batters to keep them from reaching the next base. The fielding team will be on the offensive. Hank, would you mind acting as our referee and umpire?" Rogue asked.
"I'd be happy to," he replied.
"If anyone is caught acting against these rules, Hank will be the only one able to call fouls. His word on any issue is final. Any transgressions from the batting team will result in an automatic out for the inning and any issues from the fielding team will result in either a walk or that player being benched at our umpire's discretion. Hank, any additional rule you'd like to impose?" she asked.
"No, I think you've about covered it," he replied with a small smile.
"Does anyone have any issues with the rules I've proposed?" Rogue asked as she glanced around.
"One team on the offensive and the other on defense. Seems pretty balanced to me," Cyclops commented.
"With Hank calling the plays, it'll be a fair game," Wolverine said.
"I could not put forth a more impartial judge myself," Magneto said. His girl smiled at that.
"I agree," Storm said as Jean nodded.
"Okay, next is teams," Rogue said. "We're gonna do this seventh-grade dodgeball style with two team captains: Kitty and Wanda," she declared. Magneto watched the two girls look at each other.
"Hmm, okay," Shadowcat said.
"Yeah, fine," Wanda agreed with a shrug.
"While you two are picking out team members," Rogue continued, "I want you to consider the skill-sets of everyone here. You're not just picking your teammates, you're also dictating what skills your opposition won't have access to," she said as she started to walk towards him as she gestured to all around to make some space. All those present moved, leaving his daughter and Shadowcat standing in front of the group with a large gap between them.
"Any new member can help weigh in on the next pick," Rogue said as she came to stand by his side. "However, the team's captain has the final say. Choose carefully," she finished. He glanced down at her.
"Did you just turn this friendly game of baseball into a strategic exercise?" he asked amused.
"You bet your ass, I did," she smirked as she crossed her arms over her chest. He let out a loud laugh at that.
"Why am I bothering to teach anymore?" he asked.
"You have more free time than I do," she responded matter-of-factly. Their gaze met before they both burst into laughter.
Wanda watched as her father and Rogue laugh together and her eyes narrowed at the sight.
'I don't like the way she acts with him- I can't put my finger on it. It just- rubs me the wrong way,' she thought to herself.
"Wanda," Rogue said, amusement still in her voice, and her eyes snapped to hers. "The first pick is yours."
"Hey," Kitty objected. "How come she gets to go first?" she said with her hands on her hips.
"If you wanna go best two of three in rock-paper-scissors with a witch who specializes in probability hexes, sugar, be my guest," Rogue smirked and Wanda felt her eyes widen at the ease in which Rogue referenced her powers.
'Maybe I should take her up on the lessons or I could call Agatha and ask her to teach me and Amanda,' she considered.
"Wanda," she heard Pietro yell.
'Huh?' she thought as she looked up at her brother.
"You're picking first," he said.
"Oh- right," she said quietly. "Hm, Amanda," she blurted out absentmindedly.
"Amanda," Kurt exclaimed alarmed.
"Wait, how did the non-mutant get picked first?" Bobby asked.
"Actually," Amanda said as she moved to stand next to Wanda. "I do have powers," she said. "But I have no idea how to use them. I probably wasn't the best first pick," she said with a nervous smile.
"Hey, we witches should stick together, right?" Wanda asked with a smile. The other girl's face light up.
"Absolutely," Amanda responded with a giggle.
"Wait, what?" Kurt exclaimed confused.
"Lance," Kitty called out.
"Quick," Amanda whispered. "Get Kurt before Kitty does."
"Good idea," Wanda said. "Kurt," she called out.
"Oh, that's how you want to play it, huh?" Kitty asked. "Pietro," she called out.
"You took my brother," Wanda said.
"You should have picked him first," Kitty said.
"Well, I'm taking Jean," she retorted.
"Well, we'll take Scott then," she bit back.
"Really," Lance exclaimed next to her as Scott let out a rather annoyed sigh as all of those who had been picked made their way to stand with their team. Kurt pulled Amanda off to the side away from the teams so they could speak and Jean came to stand next to her. Wanda looked out at those who were left and shifted from foot to foot as she considered who to choose next.
"Do you want any suggestions?" Jean asked.
"Hmm-" Wanda muttered. "I know what most of us can do. Just- what about that little kid over there?" Wanda asked.
Magneto stood with Rogue as his daughter and Shadowcat made their selections.
"Why Wanda?" he asked.
"Kitty's dating Lance, right?" she asked and he nodded in response. "I figured with the two of them choosing it would give the brotherhood boys the best chance at being on different teams," she answered.
"So as not to pit the brotherhood against the X-Men," he smiled. "Well played, dear," he said pleased. She just glanced up at him with a smirk.
"Jamie," Wanda called out. Rogue's face quickly turned back toward the teams.
"There is no other mutant who fully balances Jamie's abilities to have extra players on the field," Rogue called out. "Wanda, great job figuring that out before Kitty. This gives your team a significant advantage," she said. A smile came to his face as he watched his daughter celebrate with Jean, the two girls giving each other a high-five.
"We have to make smarter picks," he heard his son say, and he switched his focus to the other team.
"How about Bobby?" Cyclops suggested. "He hits at least one home run per game."
"Yeah, when he not too busy breaking the rules," Shadowcat countered.
"That's only when we're playing with no powers. He'll be fine," he replied.
"I hate to say it, but Summers is right," Avalanche said. "We could use some heavy hitters on this team," he said before she nodded.
"Okay, if you guys are sure," she said. "Bobby," she called out.
"Yes, Iceman's on a team," he said as he ran over to them. "Hey, quick question," he said before he began to whisper.
"Amara," his daughter choose next.
"Nicely balanced, Wanda," Rogue called out.
"You're offering her a lot of praise," Magneto commented.
"She's making good choices," Rogue replied.
"Hmm, Logan," Shadowcat called out. "Are you playing?" she asked. Magneto watched Wolverine glance at his girl, who just smiled at him. Wolverine let out a sigh.
"Yeah, I guess, I am," he said annoyed before he started to walk.
"Well done, Kitty, for figuring out that most of the instructors can be chosen," Rogue applauded.
"We got Wolverine, we got Wolverine," Bobby chanted mockingly.
"Knock it off, Drake, before I change my mind," he said as he joined the group. Iceman sheepishly rubbed the back of his head before Magneto shifted his view. He watched Wanda's team huddle up but all he could hear was the hushed whispers.
"Storm," she called out a moment later.
"This is going to be a very interesting game," Ororo said amused as she sauntered towards her team.
"Ah, okay, then like, Magneto," she said immediately. Magneto glanced over at Rogue.
"Have fun," his girl smirked as she gestured towards Shadowcat's team with her head. He gave her a look before walking over.
"Freddy," he heard his daughter call out as he stood next to Wolverine.
"Kitty, Rogue next, if you'd please?" Magneto asked. "We don't need such a versatile skill-set on our opponent's side," he pointed out. She gave him a nod.
"Rogue," she called out and he noted the smirk on her face as she started to walk.
"Roberto," Wanda said as Rogue joined him, standing by his side again.
"Sam," Shadowcat said as he noticed Rogue was looking down and waving her fingers around her left arm.
'What on earth is she doing now?' he asked himself.
"Ray," Wanda said.
"Toad," Shadowcat said.
"Ah man, how come I always get picked last," the boy complained as he hopped over to join their group.
"We picked you, wart-boy, that should be enough," Pietro replied.
"It's Wanda's loss, sugar," she said kindly as she looked down at the boy. "I'm expecting you the use that tongue of yours to catch the ball. You can cover a lot of ground by yourself and with your precision, it'll help us stack the odds against Jamie's ability. I'm glad Wanda didn't realize that or our offense would've been worse off."
"Yo, the Toad's got you covered," he said happily.
Magneto stood, his arms crossed over his chest, next to Wolverine in front of their side of the bleachers. It was the third inning, their team already had one out, and neither team had scored a point yet. The first two innings had been a quick succession of outs on both sides. Pietro and Jean had pitched their own versions of a fast-ball, which was making it very difficult for anyone to make it onto the field.
"Yo, this is boring," Toad complained as Magneto turns his head to glance at that boy. He was seated next to Rogue. "Is baseball always this boring?" he asked. "At least Wanda can't take her eyes off me," he said before chuckling as he ran a hand through his hair.
"Sorry, Toad, she's looking at me," Rogue said as she continued to wave her fingers around her left arm.
"Why?" he asked.
"Cause of this," she said pointing to her arm.
"I don't see nothing," Toad said.
"But Wanda can sense it," she said.
"Sense what?" Magneto asked.
"The spell I prepped for later," she said, her eyes flashing to his. "We'll need it if the bases are loaded," she answered.
"A spell?" Magneto asked as he took a step towards her.
"Ah-huh," she smiled as she ran her hand up her left arm, green light swirled to form multiple circles of various sizes around her left arm. "So, these symbols' are all ruins," she explained as she pointed to her arm. He leaned down as he focused on the small ciphers embedded within the circles. "Each ruin has a meaning and when certain ones are cast together, they form the spell," she finished. "I've been working on it since I got picked. It just needs a couple of last touches," she said as more ruins appeared. "Perfect," she smiled.
"Where did you learn this?" he asked.
"Frigga," she answered. "She taught me everything I know about crafting spells," she said as she waved her hand and the circled disappeared from view.
"Hilarious," he said dryly, his voice dripping with sarcasm, as he stood up straight. The smile on her face dropped.
"I wasn't," she started to say.
"You're a riot," he added as she stared at him intently.
"I wasn't mocking you," she said.
"Weren't you?" he asked irately.
"No, you asked me a question and I told you the truth," she said strongly. He opened his mouth to protest her statement. "How's your head?" she asked, cutting him off.
"I'm fine, Rogue," he answered, for the umpteenth time, his tone stein, although he was feeling the faint traces of another headache coming on. He took a deep breath, needing to get his anger under control.
"Hey, Scott hit the ball," Shadowcat exclaimed happily as he put aside his conversation to turn back towards the field. Cyclops had bunted the ball directly at Jean. Since she was not allowed to interact with the ball once it was in motion, she wasn't able to catch it and Cyclops had made it to first base before Amanda Sefton could collect the ball.
"Excellent exploitation of the rules, Scott," Rogue called out. "That's the kind of strategy that's gonna help us win this game."
"Who's up next?" Iceman asked.
"According to the batting order," Shadowcat started to say. "Magneto is, then Pietro and after that Rogue."
"Very well," he said, relieved to have been provided with an outlet to expel his anger. 'Just add it to the list,' he thought as he shook his head. As he walked past Wolverine, the brute fixed him with a questioning look. He walked past him without a word before he felt Wolverine march towards Rogue.
"Who's Frigga?" he distantly heard Wolverine ask as he brought one of the metal bats to his hand with his abilities. Unable to hear Rogue's reply, he turned his attention towards Jean as he stepped onto the home plate.
'Direct your shot,' he thought as he took a breath and aligned himself with the earth's magnetic field. 'Perfect, the curvature leads away from Ororo, 'he thought pleased as he summoned magnetic energy to his hands and coursed it through the metal bat. Jean threw the ball and he swung. He fueled all of his anger into his swing as he made contact. The ball was flown into the natural curve of the earth's magnetic field with such intensity, in a blink of an eye, it was hurled upwards and out of sight.
"Where did it go?" Magma asked as he dropped his bat and started to walk towards the first plate.
"I don't know," Nightcrawler said.
"Far away from here, I'm afraid," Magneto answered as he gestured toward Scott who started to walk towards the second plate. "Earth's orbit most likely," he guessed.
"Are you kidding me?" Sunspot exclaimed.
"No way," Nightcrawler said.
"Does- does that count?" Cannonball asked. "I feel like that shouldn't count."
"It's a fair play," Hank announced. "But since the ball is dead, Scott takes third, Erik takes the second base. Wanda's team, now that you know what to expect, decide how you'll deal with it before Magneto's up to bat again," he ruled and he and Scott took their respective bases.
He watched his son take to home plate with a wooden bat in his hands.
"You can give it your best shot, Jean, but nothing gets past me," Pietro said.
"Oh, we'll see about that," she replied as she lined up her throw, the ball floating in front of her.
"Strike one," Hank broadcasted a moment later.
"I thought nothing got past you, Pietro," Blob said mockingly.
"Shut up, Blob. I was just getting warmed up," his son replied bitterly.
"Yeah, sure you were," he retorted.
"Pietro, ignore him," Magneto instructed. "Concentrate on the task at hand, son," he said before glancing at Cyclops for a brief moment. Pietro's gaze followed his. "And take the best course of action." He watched a thoughtful expression past his son's face before a look of determination replaced it. He nodded before took his stance again as Jean lined up her throw. He gestured to Cyclops with his hand who replied with a quick nod.
His eyes darted back to home plate as Jean threw the ball. This time Pietro bunted the ball. Three events occurred simultaneously, the ball bounced off of the ground making an immediate out impossible, Pietro's bat hit the ground and Pietro himself arrived on first base.
"Yeah," Shadowcat cheered. "Go team, let's get some runs," she said as Nightcrawler teleported to catch the ball before throwing it back to Jean.
"Bases loaded," Hank called out. "Next batter up."
"Now what?" Pietro asked.
"We see what Rogue's been planning," Magneto answered. "It should be interesting, at the very least," he commented dryly, still somewhat annoyed with her.
Jean watched as Rogue took to home plate with a wooden bat in her hands.
"Rogue's been crafting some kind of spell. I have no idea what'll it do," Wanda informed her team from the outfield.
"Everyone, be on alert," Ororo ordered. "We don't know what to expect." Jean watched her teammates nod at each other as they all posed for the play.
"Oh, you mean, this?" Rogue said smugly as she raised her arm, the green circles of various sizes appearing along her entire arm.
"What is that?" Amanda asked.
"It's beautiful," Jean muttered as Rogue ran her hand along the curve of the bat, the spell now encasing the base instead.
"You'll see soon enough," she smirked as she took her stance. Green energy emanated between her hands as she held the bat in mid-air about a foot in front of her, no longer physically touching it.
"Is that allowed?" Sam asked in disbelief.
"If Jean can throw the ball with telekinesis, Rogue can do the same for batting. I'll make my overall call after I see the play in action," he answered.
"Don't you worry, Hank, I designed this spell with the rules in mind," she said.
"Alright, people, play ball," he called out.
"Jean, do not go easy on her," Ororo instructed.
"Oh, I won't," she replied easily. She lined up her throw, the ball directly in front of her face. With a push of her powers, she launched the ball towards home plate. Rogue swung her arms and the bat reacted in kind. It made contact, the ball became encircled with one of the green circles, as it flew straight back at her face. For a split second, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rogue running towards first base. She refocused on the ball in front of her readying herself to dodge it. Before she had to, the ball disappeared in a flash of green light.
"What?" she asked confused before it reappeared back at home plate, only to begin its' trip towards her face again. She moved to the side as she noticed the bat had remained vertical in the air, imbued with the same green circles that encompassed the ball.
"This is new," Jean commented.
"Safe," Beast called as Scott made it past home plate. Jean smiled at her boyfriend as he rubbed his hand behind his head.
"Kurt, try and catch it," Ororo said.
"On it," he said before porting a few feet in front of the pitcher's plate. "Hi, Jean," he said as she watched him readying himself to catch the ball. Jean heard the ball make contact with Kurt's glove.
"Got it," he said before the vanished from his glove, only to rematerialize in front of home plate. "Or not?" he said asked confused. "Hey, what gives?" he asked.
Magneto ran onto home plate, size stepping the floating wooden implement.
"Safe," Hank said again as he came to a stop. He moved to the side, as he examined the baseball bat in more detail. "Safe," he said again as Pietro was only a moment behind him.
"What is that?" Pietro asked. Magneto observed the ball's progression: how it vanished and reemerged, only to take the same path over and over again.
"Some kind of time-loop?" he guessed.
"Freaky," Pietro laughed.
"Indeed," he agreed, fascinated.
"Rogue," Sunspot called out as Magneto glanced up to see Rogue running past second base. "What the actual hell?" he asked as he ran next to her.
"Magneto guessed it," she answered.
"So, time-loops can exist?" Jean asked.
"Yup, time-loops are definitely a thing and we're all stuck dealing with one right now," Rogue answered as she rounded past third base.
"Yeah, whose fault is that?" Wanda asked irritated.
"How do we stop it?" Jean asked.
"Rogue, don't answer that until you're safe," Magneto ordered.
"Yes, sir," she smiled as she barreled down the field. She slowed her pace as soon as she crossed home plate, stopping directly in front of him. She smiles up at him, looking rather pleased with herself. He had to admit it had been a good plan. Magneto glanced at Hank, curious why he didn't make the call. Hank met his gaze.
"I need to consider this," Hank said as he took his umpire mask off. "Rogue, can you explain how the time-loop works?"
"Of course," she said, turning to face him. "So, the spell I crafted took effect the instant the bat and ball touched, consuming the finite amount of energy generated from the bat hitting the ball," she explained.
"When the inertia ceased, and gravity would have taken effect, the loops reset?" Hank asked.
"Exactly. My spell made that exact moment repeat to give each of our team members enough time to make it back to home plate," she said.
"Hmm," Hank said as he placed his hand on his chin. "How long with this last? It is infinite?" he asked.
"No, I wrote a limit into the ruins so I wouldn't have to interact with the spell after it was cast. It'll have thirteen rotations in total," she answered. Hank nodded thoughtfully.
"Given all of that," Hank started to say, "Kurt caught the ball on the time loop's third rotations. If I allow the repeated moment to stand for the three points to be scored, I must also take into account that Kurt caught the ball before it hit the ground. Even it was only during one of the rotations," he said.
"That's fair," Magneto said.
"I figured it would be three or four points. Either way, it put us in the lead," she said. Hank nodded at that.
"Okay, people," Hank called out. "Kitty's team has scored three points," he ruled as their team let out various cries of celebration.
"Nice, Rogue," his son said.
"Thanks, Pietro," she replied with a smile.
"We're going to wait out the time-loop and then resume play," Hanks said before the three of them headed back to the bleachers.
"Go, Rogue," Shadowcat exclaimed as she pulled his girl into a hug. "That was so cool. How did you do that?"
"A little bit of magic," Rogue smiled
"Any- ah- any other surprised you got up your sleeve, Rogue?" Cyclops asked, a little uneasy.
"A few, maybe," she started to say before she stopped herself and shook her head. "Yeah, no several- several more surprises," she answered, her tone taking on an earnest tone.
"Where all this been?" he asked.
"The way things played out when I first got to Bayville and when I first joined the X-Men- it's complicated- and not at all how I wanted things to go- But from my own protection, I had to hide nearly all of the skills I have under my belt," she said. "I've hated it. I don't like having to keep secrets or hide parts of myself. That's never what I wanted to do," she explained. "I've started talked to Charles about it and its' part of the reason why me and him ain't getting along so well right now," she said.
"I was wondering what was going on," Cyclops said.
"Yeah," she sighed, "And Magneto understands that he fucked up by stepping into that enhancer and turning off his emotions for two years," she said dryly before her eye flashed to his an incredulous look met his.
"It was a mistake, yes," he agreed. "I've apologized for the part I've played in the measure you've had to take to ensure I didn't learn of your skillset. Must I do so again?" he asked crossing his arms over his chest.
"No, course not, sugar, but as more people figure out that there's something to know- as I have ta explain things- this is gonna keep getting brought up," she said.
"That's to be expected," he said with a nod as he returned his hands to his sides.
"Maybe it's time to meet as a group," Rogue said.
"Have it all out once and be done with it?" Magneto asked.
"Yeah," she said with a nod.
"I'll take to Charles about it tonight. See how he feels on the matter," he suggested.
"Thanks," she said.
"Of course," he said pleasantly before he watched her turn towards the field.
"Okay, the loop's broken. Who's up next?" she asked.
Okay calling it here! Please let me know your thought!
Guest reviewer: Thank you! I glad you're liking it! Things are only going to get more crazy from here on out! I hope you continue to let me know your thoughts :)
Little Red Dove: Thank you! It's been such a joy to write again. I forgot how much I missed it! I'm so glad I've spent the last year writing these chapters. I'm looking forward to the next 18 chapters and the next year of writing! I have so much more story to tell! ^.^
Thank you so much for your review back in March 2020! I don't think I would have started working on this story again if it hadn't have been for you! I really thought the ship was dead and that no one would read my work anymore because the ship had sailed but OMG is that NOT true! I'm so happy I started up again. Thank you so much! :)