"No more animal crackers until you finish your sandwich," Logan said. "That's your tenth box in two days."
"It's the only thing that sits well," she answered. Over the past couple of days, she'd managed to eat normal food, but only when buffered with animal crackers before, during, and after each meal. She'd also been up and about the apartment, still weaker than normal but healing rapidly. Mostly, though, she slept. Finally with no dreams, apart from the standard flying/at work in her underwear/turning into a duck variety.
Poking at her sandwich, Max steeled herself to ask the question that had been lurking in the back of her mind since she realized thisI/ wasn't a dream, after all.
"Logan?"
He looked at her quizzically. "You're eating the sandwich and that's the end of it."
"No, not that. What..." she faltered, her heart pounding, "what happened to the rest of them? Zack, Syl, Krit?"
Logan smiled, relieved. "I can't keep track of what you remember and what you don't. I thought you knew. They're fine. They'll be in touch, eventually."
Max's heartbeat returned to normal.
"After the first two days," Logan continued, "when they were sure you'd be OK, and sure that my pitiful human self would be able to keep you that way, they split up. Zack went off to wherever it is Zack goes. Syl," he faltered, watching Max's face, "Syl went to find Charlie."
Max's relief dimmed. "I should have been the one to tell him."
Logan nodded. "I agree, but it wasn't fair to let him hope any longer than he already had."
They sat silently for a minute, until Max asked, "And Krit?"
Logan grinned again. "Krit went back to find his boyfriend."
Max's jaw dropped. "Boyfriend?"
Logan laughed. "You should've seen Zack's reaction. Krit managed to slip that one past him, I guess. Truthfully, I don't think that Zack cared who Krit was with. He was just pissy about "tactical exposure."
Max was grinning too. "Yeah, that's Zack all over. God, I wonder how Lydecker would have handled that, if we'd never left Manticore to begin with."
Her face fell as she remembered. Lydecker was dead, trying to help her.
"Lydecker can be so annoying," she said, looking down at the quilt. "I escaped Manticore and I never stopped thinking about how he would see things. Now he's dead and I still can't stop."
Logan stroked a bit of hair back from her face. "I know," he said, and handed her the box of animal crackers.
"It's the only thing that sits well," she answered. Over the past couple of days, she'd managed to eat normal food, but only when buffered with animal crackers before, during, and after each meal. She'd also been up and about the apartment, still weaker than normal but healing rapidly. Mostly, though, she slept. Finally with no dreams, apart from the standard flying/at work in her underwear/turning into a duck variety.
Poking at her sandwich, Max steeled herself to ask the question that had been lurking in the back of her mind since she realized thisI/ wasn't a dream, after all.
"Logan?"
He looked at her quizzically. "You're eating the sandwich and that's the end of it."
"No, not that. What..." she faltered, her heart pounding, "what happened to the rest of them? Zack, Syl, Krit?"
Logan smiled, relieved. "I can't keep track of what you remember and what you don't. I thought you knew. They're fine. They'll be in touch, eventually."
Max's heartbeat returned to normal.
"After the first two days," Logan continued, "when they were sure you'd be OK, and sure that my pitiful human self would be able to keep you that way, they split up. Zack went off to wherever it is Zack goes. Syl," he faltered, watching Max's face, "Syl went to find Charlie."
Max's relief dimmed. "I should have been the one to tell him."
Logan nodded. "I agree, but it wasn't fair to let him hope any longer than he already had."
They sat silently for a minute, until Max asked, "And Krit?"
Logan grinned again. "Krit went back to find his boyfriend."
Max's jaw dropped. "Boyfriend?"
Logan laughed. "You should've seen Zack's reaction. Krit managed to slip that one past him, I guess. Truthfully, I don't think that Zack cared who Krit was with. He was just pissy about "tactical exposure."
Max was grinning too. "Yeah, that's Zack all over. God, I wonder how Lydecker would have handled that, if we'd never left Manticore to begin with."
Her face fell as she remembered. Lydecker was dead, trying to help her.
"Lydecker can be so annoying," she said, looking down at the quilt. "I escaped Manticore and I never stopped thinking about how he would see things. Now he's dead and I still can't stop."
Logan stroked a bit of hair back from her face. "I know," he said, and handed her the box of animal crackers.