"Daddy." Lisa said, simply.  Just that one word.

"Why did you summon me, Little One?"  His flinty eyes were almost soft when he looked at her, but when he turned and saw Ray and Calisto, they went hard and cold.  "Virals!  Interesting…"

"What is it?" Calisto rasped. 

"Codemaster." Ray frowned.  "A Codemaster – here?  Impossible!"

"Nothing is impossible for a Codemaster, Virus."  The gold-haired man stepped between us and the others and turned back to Lisa.  "Are you all right, Child?  Are you injured?"

"No, Daddy." Lisa said softly.  Her father reached out to her and she gave him her hand, silently.  "The game we were in was infected, Daddy.  Enzo saved my life."

The Codemaster turned his black eyes on me and I felt about as tiny as a null.  He looked me up and down for a nano.  "Indeed.  If that is true, you have my gratitude, Boy.  You were wise to call me, My Lisa – these viral scum are the product of Daemon, and she is not to be trifled with."

"You know about Daemon?" I gasped.

"Even the web is not free of her filthy infection.  The sooner she is eradicated the better."

"You can't stop her, Mate!" Ray spat.  "Not you or your pathetic society."

"The ways of viruses are not my concern, nor the concern of any of the Seventh Brotherhood." The Codemaster laughed.  "Not unless they are so foolish as to anger us.  You have threatened the daughter of Avatar the Doom-Bringer – and that makes me very angry.  It will be your last mistake."  He raised his pike, and the others took a step towards us.

"Daddy, Wait!  You can't delete them!"

"They are viral scum, Child-"

"It's not their fault they were infected, Daddy – you can't!  Ray is our friend – he was infected trying to help us!"

Avatar looked at her for a nano, then sighed.  "Very well, Child – I will consider."  He raised his pike casually, and Ray and Calisto were swallowed up in some sort of shimmering silver casing.

"What's that?"

"A stasis field." Lisa said softly.  "Thank you, Daddy."

Avatar left Ray and Calisto suspended in their cocoon and turned to us.  He put a hand on Lisa's cheek gently.  "You have grown, My Lisa."

"It's been four hours."

"You are certain you are well, Child?  The virals have not damaged you?"

"I'm fine.  Just a little scared…"

He turned to me.  "And who is this youngling who saved your life, as you say?"

"Uh…"

"This is Enzo, Daddy." Lisa squeezed my hand.  "He's my friend.  He's very smart and very brave and he did save my life in that game."

Avatar chuckled.  "He doesn't look like much, does he?"

"Daddy!"

"She was the one who saved my life, Sir." I said when I could finally get my voice to work.  "She's amazing."

"She is my daughter."  He lifted Lisa in his arms as easily as I'd lifted the golden child in the game.  "Why have you waited so long to call me, Little One?  Are you not bored with the ways of sprites yet?"

"I'm a sprite.  This is my home, Father."

"Will you refuse me again?  Will you not return to the web?"

"No!" I blurted out.  Avatar shot me a glare and I nearly peed myself.

"No, Daddy.  I don't want to live in the web.  Not even with you."

"Foolish Child."  He looked angry, but he was still very gentle when he set Lisa down.  "You know nothing of what you turn your back on.  Such power-"

"I don't want it!" Lisa scowled.  "You could stay, you know.  You don't have to go back to the web.  You can help us fight Daemon!  You could come back to Wozniak-"

"Laughable!  I cannot, Child – you know this.  No more than I can force you to come with me."  He looked up, towards the great hall, where several more sprites were coming towards us on zip boards.  "Ah, they come – scurrying like software bugs.  I think perhaps it is time for me to leave – to stay would surely involve tedium of the highest order."

"I'll miss you." Lisa said softly.

Avatar smiled for the first time.  "I will always come when you call, Daughter.  And I will always hope you change your mind.  I never give up, and I am very patient."

"Good-bye."

"Farewell, Daughter."  Avatar glanced at me and I thought about offering him my hand, then decided against it. 

"I wish you could stay for once." Lisa said, so softly I almost couldn't hear her.

It was only then that it occurred to me just what the implications of Avatar's presence were.  Lisa's secret was out now, most likely – even if Zip or Calisto didn't spill the java beans there's be some serious explaining to do.  Codemasters didn't just walk through the door at nanos of crisis and save the day for the fun of it.  Did I want to stay at the Academy without Lisa?  But it wasn't like I could follow her home, either – and no one would believe we were really in love.  We had no control over our own lives.  Crash – sometimes I really hate being a kid!

Of course I was getting way ahead of myself anyway – once everything settled down Lisa would probably think about what I'd done and she wouldn't cross the street to spit on me.  And we were both lucky to be alive, besides.  You can't help what enters your mind sometimes, though.  And that's what I thought about as I watched her say good-bye to her Dad.

I'd never seen a Codemaster before – well, not counting Mr. Pearson – and it was weird to think that "Avatar the Doom-Bringer" was my girlfriend's Dad.  As scary and intimidating as he was, he was gentle with her.  Like a father.  He knelt next to her and lightly touched her face.  "You know I cannot stay any longer, Child.  My presence here will only complicate things further for you."

"I know, Daddy." Lisa sighed, running her fingers over his smooth skin.  "Thank you for saving us."

"You are certain you would not like me to atomize these virals?"

"No, Daddy!  I told you – this isn't their fault.  It's not fair to delete them for being infected."

Avatar didn't look happy.  The others were almost on us, now – I saw Laser and Mouse among a group of teachers.  "I leave them to your friends to sort and file, then – and good fortune to them."  He straightened, tall and powerful.  "One cycle you will return to the web with me, My Lisa – it is certain.  You cannot deny yourself forever."

"If you say so, Dad.   I'll miss you."

"Farewell, Child."  Avatar opened another rip in the air with his pike, like he was pulling down the zipper on a jacket.

I looked at Lisa and saw a tear on her cheek as her Dad took a step into the portal, or whatever it was that Codemasters used to travel the web.  I started to go to her, just to put my arm around her or comfort her or whatever – and that's when I saw the hand.  It was covered in blood, and shaking, and of course when I followed it backwards I saw it was attached to the arm that was attached to Zip – barely.  And it was reaching for Lisa.

No one else saw it – just me.  And even though the hand was moving pretty slow I could see there wasn't time to warn Lisa – the bloody fingertips were practically touching her elbow already.  I felt really calm, surprisingly – when I think about it now I figure I should have been terrified or panicky or whatever – but I wasn't.  I did the only thing I could think of – well, that's probably giving myself too much credit 'cause there was no time to really think of anything.  Probably it's better to say I reacted the only way I could – I shot my arm out and grabbed the hand before it could touch Lisa.

There was just a nano of feeling disgusted by the slick feeling of the bloody hand, and then a kind of shock, a buzzing on my skin like software bugs were crawling over it and sinking their tiny little teeth into it, and at the same time the sound a scream building in Lisa's throat.  And then nothing – not a thought or even a dream, just total black emptiness.  Exactly what death must feel like.

The next thing I remember is being cold.  I remember feeling myself shivering and someone pulling a blanket up over me and even though there was absolutely nothing in between that cold feeling and the black emptiness which was the only thing I remembered at first, I knew some time had passed, maybe a lot.  I'm still not sure how I knew that – how I sensed the passage of time when I wasn't sensing anything.  But I did.

There were a few nanos when I felt really fuzzy and stupid, then everything started to come back to me in a rush and I opened my eyes.  Everything was way too bright and I brought my hand up to shield my eyes and I was breathing heavily, and someone was telling me to take it easy, everything was fine.  After a nano I recognized the voice.  "Laser?"

"Calm down, Son.  Take it nice and slow."

I slowly uncovered my eyes and blinked, trying to adjust to the light in the room.  I was in a bed in a room I didn't recognize and Laser was sitting in a chair next to me, arms folded.  "What…  What happened, Sir?"

"Quite a few things, actually." He smiled.  "But you're safe now."

"Lisa!  Omigosh, is she-"

"Lisa is fine!"  Laser gently pushed me back down in bed and my heart was beating a million times a nano.  "But you won't be if you get yourself worked up. You've been through quite a bit.  Now relax – that's an order!"

"Yes, Sir." I rasped.  My panic was receding a little but I still wasn't quite ready to believe everything was fine.  "Is she really OK?"

"She is.  Thanks mostly to you, I might add.  You saved her from infection."

Saved her…  But not me – obviously.  "Where am I?"

"The infirmary."

"How long-"

"Just a couple of cycles."

"A couple of cycles?"  Crash – that was an awful lot of my life to be missing.  I was only 1.3.

"As I said – you've been through quite a bit."  Laser put one of his calloused hands on my forehead softly.  "We had to take things slowly – not take any risks.  A couple of cycles don't mean much, in the larger scale of things.  When you're older you'll understand."

I could sense that this was one of those times when Laser was my grandfather more than my Headmaster.  I grabbed his arm and pulled myself to a sitting position.  "What happened?  Was I…  Was I, you know… infected?"

Laser stared at me and stroked my forehead with his thumb, like he had in his office.  "In a way, yes.  But Avatar spared you from the worst of it."

"Avatar?  Really?  How?"

Laser chuckled wearily.  "Have you ever heard of a Ultra Near-Field Time Lock Mechanism?"  I guess I looked pretty dumb, because he chuckled again.  "I'm not surprised – you don't run across one every cycle.  The only way to generate one – or dispel one, for that matter – is with a Gibson-Coil Pike."

"Gibson-Coil?" I rasped. "Lisa's-  Uh – I mean…"

"I know who he is, Lad.  A UNFTLM is a total time lock – a perfect stasis field, like an absolute vacuum in time.  As soon as you touched the infected cadet he encased your entire body in one."

"Dude – really?"  Damn – I'd called the headmaster "Dude" again…

"Yes.  Very quick thinking on his part – not entirely surprising, given the processor speed Codemasters run at - but quick nonetheless.   Not even Daemon's infection can process in the absence of time, so he effectively froze it before it had a chance to reach your processor.  It was confined to your arm – to just below your right elbow, as it happens."

"Cursors and crashes!"  I stared at my arm but there was absolutely no sign that anything unusual had happened to it.  "That's amazing!"

Laser tousled my hair softly.  "You should feel honored, Son – Codemasters are loathe to involve themselves in the ways of sprites.  But then I suppose Avatar has already showed himself an odd Codemaster. It was the pleadings of your girlfriend, I suppose."

"My…  My girlfriend?"  Laser really wasn't supposed to know about that.  "How-"

"Enzo, I'm not basic.  Nor is my faculty.  It's been obvious for some time that you and Lisa are… fond of each other.  When two cadets are constantly holding hands that's usually a fairly reliable indicator."

"Oh."  I felt myself go red as Mouse's hair.  "Am I in trouble?"

"We have rules, Enzo – but we don't have rules against sprites being sprites.  I'm not so naïve as to think we can throw a hundred teenagers together and no hearts will go a-flutter.  As long as you don't cross certain boundaries and your studies don't suffer I won't consider it an issue."  Laser smiled at me.  "You did surprise me, though – you're so young!  Or so I thought – but old enough to feel the pull of the heart, I suppose."

I returned his smile.  Whenever Laser showed me the little bits of Bob he hid inside it made me feel closer to him.  "Thanks."

"She's a remarkable girl.  She refused to let her father leave while you were still in danger – she begged and pleaded with him to stay and care for you.  As I said, the only way a UNFTLM can be removed is with a Gibson-Coil – and once it was removed the infection would spread throughout your entire body.  We had to remove the time-lock from only the infected arm – which was a ticklish thing in itself.  And it was no easy task to convince Avatar to remain here while we debated your treatment."

"Crash." I whispered.  "How'd you finally get rid of the infection?"

"Simple enough, really.  We ran the code in your arm through a series of filters until we were satisfied it was clean.  Than we did it again, just to be sure.  Treatment is a whole lot easier when the processor isn't infected.  After that we removed the time-lock and waited for you to come around.  That took several milliseconds.  The time-lock slowed your healing from that sprained ankle of yours, but it should be fine in a few cycles."

My head was spinning from all this information and there were a million questions I wanted to ask, but at that nano one pushed all the others out.  "Oh User!  What about Ray?  Is he…"

"We're doing what we can."  Laser sighed and patted my arm.  "Ray and the others are in containment fields now.  We have options – not without risk, but options.  Don't concern yourself – they'll get the best possible treatment."

"Just tell me Sir – please.  It's kinda my fault Ray was infected.  I need to know what's gonna happen!"

"How is it your fault, Cadet?"

"I sent out the distress call.  That's why he came…"

"Don't be stupid." Laser snorted.  "If it weren't for you two kids the entire Academy might be infected now.  Lisa told me all about your trials in that game."

"But-"

"But nothing.  You did what you had to do – and so did Ray.  His job is the protection of the Academy and the students – he was the first one to respond, that's all.  He'll pull through this.  Besides, if this…  If it's anyone's fault it's mine."

"Sir?"

Laser took a deep breath and all of a sudden he looked really old and tired, like he sometimes did.   "I'm very proud of both of you, Cadet – you were placed in a seemingly hopeless situation and you managed to survive it through bravery and ingenuity.  I should expect it from you by now…  But I'm still proud."

"Um…  Thanks.  I-"

"Wait."  He forced a strained smile.  "Enzo, its no one's fault that game cube was infected – there's no technology at anyone's disposal that could have predicted it.  But it is my fault that Lisa and yourself were placed in the danger you were, regardless of the infection.  You could both have been deleted.  I want you to know that I'm very sorry."

Even as bewildering as the last few micros – well, cycles really - had been, this had me truly confused.  "I don't understand, Sir.  Why are you sorry?"

"Enzo…"  Laser ran a hand across his brow and looked away from me, towards the door.  "It's due to my carelessness that Cadet Jobs and yourself were in that game with sprites who were capable of such savagery.  It's entirely my fault that you had to suffer like that."

"What?  Why?"

"To begin with, Son, I had no idea that Zip and Calisto were as far gone as they were.  I didn't think their behavior would extend beyond schoolboy pranks and an occasional fistfight.  I thought they were salvageable, spammit!"

How much did he know?  I wasn't sure if Laser knew about Zip and Calisto's plans for Lisa, but it didn't seem like my place to tell him if he wasn't.  Only Lisa had that right.  "It's not your fault – you didn't know-"

"It is my fault.  I underestimated Zip.  In many ways, I'm afraid.  He was more ruthless and brutal than I imagined.  And much more clever as well."

"Clever, Sir?"

"He engineered the whole thing, Enzo." Laser sighed.  "Getting you and Lisa into that game with he and Calisto – that was his plan all along."

"His plan?"

"You don't think I'd have intentionally sent you into a game with both of them after what happened, do you?"

"I…  I wasn't sure.  I thought it could be a test or something…"

"A test?" Laser laughed bitterly.  "Some test!  You were tested all right – no child should have to endure a test like that.  No, Son – he doctored the game rosters – hacked into the central computer and manipulated them.  It was ingenious, the young bastard."

In a strange way, I actually felt better knowing Laser hadn't set me up.  "Sir, it was my fault – I should have said something-"

"No it wasn't, Boy – it wasn't your place to question orders.  It should never have been allowed to happen in the first place."

"I still don't get it, Sir.  How did he do it?  Where was Mr. Garamond?"

"Like I said – Zip was very clever.  He intercepted the rosters before they were sent out, changed them.  He sent Garamond a roster showing Ray Tracer going into the game with you, and sent Ray one with Garamond's name on it.  And the rosters that went out to the staff showed the cadets with their original assignments – only the students saw the one you did.  And no one put two and two together and came up with four."

"Wow." I whispered.  The most amazing thing was that Zip would go to all that trouble just to humiliate me - and I hadn't even really done anything to him!   "That's…  It's unbelievable.  I knew he was smarter than Calisto, but-"

"It was a good plan.  He's a clever little hacker too, the worthless null – but I can promise you this sort of thing will never be repeated.  We were complacent, and it's my fault.  I've asked Mouse to make sure this never happens again."  Laser finally looked back at me and grabbed my hands.  "I'm sorry, Cadet – sorrier than you'll ever know.  This was a failure of the highest order."

"No it wasn't!  You couldn't have known he would do that, Sir.  No one could."  He really looked tired and old and helpless then, and I felt terrible for him.

"You're a good boy, Enzo.  A good boy…"

"Sir, I still don't understand why.  Why did Zip do all this?  I never did anything to him – I only punched him after he tried to beat me up!  And after that I just tried to stay out of his way."

"I know, Enzo – you don't have to convince me."

"I just don't understand why." I scowled.

"Don't obsess over it.  Some questions don't have easy answers.  I think he was jealous of your experiences, Son – your time with Bob, Mouse, Ray…  Perhaps he knew you and I are…  Related.  And sometimes people can't look past what they see of a person at first glance – and he saw someone small and young and innocent and couldn't believe that person earned his way in here on his merits."

"My experiences?  I wonder how he'd like having no parents and being a backup and growing up with no friends!"

"I know." Laser said softly.  "Sometimes people have dark places inside them we don't see.  I didn't see that the dark places were all there was to Zip, in the end."

My little burst of anger had made me tired for a nano, and I had to lean back and close my eyes.  "What will happen to him now, Sir?  I mean, if…  You know."

"He'll get the best treatment we can give him.  They both will.  We've already repaired the damage to Zip's arm as best we can – if he recovers it will heal, more or less.  Hopefully we'll be able to cure their infection – but even if we do, they'll both be expelled, I can promise you."

I opened my eyes and felt a little thrill to hear that.  "Definitely?"

Laser nodded.  "Even if it were all there was, their manipulation of the game rosters would be sufficient grounds for that – they placed themselves and two other cadets in danger by sending them into a game unsupervised.  We'll send them back to their home systems – where both of them will face charges of attempted rape."

I heard a little gasp escape my chest. "You know?"

"Yes.  Lisa told me – she didn't want those two to go unpunished for what they tried to do."  Laser's face hardened and he sighed grimly, eyes shining.  "That's the most shameful thing of all – that a cadet at this academy was subjected to that kind of degradation.  I'm sorry you had to witness it, Son – but I'm glad for Lisa's sake you were there.  She's a remarkably strong child – you both are.  Remarkable children.  Remarkable…"

"Will…  Will Lisa have to leave, Sir?"  I said it in a choked little voice.

Laser's eyes were wet, and now they widened in surprise.  "What?"

"You know – because of her father.  Please let her stay, Sir!  I know it's against the rules but she's not a Codemaster and-"

"Enzo-"

"I'll delete if she goes, Sir!  She's so amazing, and-"

"Calm down, Son.  That's an order!"

I took a few deep breaths.  "S-sorry, Sir."

Laser smiled like he was relieved to have the subject changed.  "You really are in love with her, aren't you?"

"S-sir?"

"Enzo, listen to me for a micro.  There are no written rules in place that a Codemaster can't be a Guardian.  But there are things we have to consider – risks.  A full Codemaster has certain abilities… Which might prove troublesome when combined with the Guardian protocols.  And there's the matter of philosophy – the ideals of the Collective ran directly counter with the tenets of Codemaster societies."

"But Sir, please-"

"Hush up, Boy!" Laser said sternly.  I closed my mouth and looked down.  "I know this is an emotional issue for you, but when a superior officer is addressing you interruption is against the rules.  Got it?"

"Got it, Sir.  Sorry."

"Good."  He tousled my hair and I heard him laughing softly.  "We'll let it slide this time.  The reason I'm telling you this is so that you'll understand what a complex situation we're dealing with.  Lisa isn't a full Codemaster, and she's expressed no interest in becoming one.  She wants to be a Guardian, and her conduct thus far has been exemplary, and under the worst circumstances possible."  I looked up, hope starting to build, but I didn't dare interrupt him again.

"It would seem unfair of me to send her home now – she's been the victim in all this.  And since we never expressly asked her if her father was Codemaster, she never expressly lied to us – although withholding that information is of dubious ethical stature.  In any case, life isn't fair, not most of the time – so that couldn't be my final barometer.  I decided to let Galileo decide."

I stared at Laser's forearm.  "Galileo, Sir?  Your…  Your keytool?"

"That's right.  Galileo is linked to me and will be until I'm deleted or infected, so it's not a perfect test – but I gave him the opportunity to reject her, if he so chose.  Keytools are wise, Enzo – wiser than we are in most ways."

I could barely get my voice to work.  "What…  What happened?"

"Other than her initial nervousness at using a keytool, not much.  Galileo merged his code with hers and did not reject her.  Based on that, and her demonstrated bravery and loyalty, she'll be staying."

"Alphanumeric!"  I was so happy I bounced up and threw my arms around Laser's neck, which would have horrified me if I'd taken a nano to think about it.  He stiffened for a nano, then softly patted my back.  Then I did think about and I fell back in bed and I was horrified.  "Sorry Sir!"

There was a glint of a smile in Laser's eyes.  "Don't concern yourself, Son.  Understandable in the circumstances."

"Sorry."  I was almost able to keep a smile off my face, but not quite.  "I'm just very relieved, Sir.  Cadet Jobs has become very important to me."

"I know.  She's a courageous young lady – I know she'll get through this, but what happened to her was very traumatic.  Try and understand that, Enzo – she'll need you to help her as much as you can."

"I will.  I promise!"

"Good lad." Laser smiled.

"Make…  Make sure Ray gets better, OK?"

"I have faith in my people, Enzo.  We'll find a way, I'm sure of it."

"Please."  Ray's infection was the one big cloud that kept me from feeling totally happy.  "Is the Academy safe?  We're OK here, aren't we?"

"I believe so.  We don't really understand how the communication between Daemon and these infected sprites works – if there even is any real-time communication.  Her infection may simply execute a stream of pre-written commands to control their behavior.  But it's also possible that they can communicate, somehow – we know they can communicate with each other, locally."

I gulped.  "So Daemon might know where we are?"

"Possibly." Laser said softly.  "None of the cadets were given the address of this system – Mouse sends scrambled commands to their navigation systems when they come here.  Ray is another matter.  But even if Daemon does know, there's nothing she can do about it.  Mouse's algorhithms have turned the tide – Daemon hasn't successfully infected a protected system in the last hour.  And this is the most heavily protected system in the net."

"Good."

"Good."  Laser patted my hand softly.  "We've talked too long – you need to rest, now.  You've had a difficult minute.  And I need to let Dot and Bob know you're all right."

"Dot?"  My heart spontaneously leaped about halfway up my throat.  "She knows what happened?"

"I had to tell her, Enzo – she's your Guardian.  I had a responsibility."

"Oh."  I closed my eyes and suddenly felt very tired.  "It's just – I know Dot, and-  Well…"

"She had to know, Son.  I couldn't keep this from her.  But she'll also know that you're safe, now – and how well protected the Academy is."

"I know.  It'll be all right."  I wasn't sure I believed that, but I wanted to.

"You'll have a lot to talk about when you see her next minute."

"Next minute?"  Crash – the school break!  "Has it been six minutes already?"

"Almost, Son – six eventful ones.  I'm sure she'll be glad to see you."

"Oh, yeah!  I'll be glad to see her, too!  And Bob, and Frisket, and Matrix and Andri…"  User, I'd forgotten how much I missed them – all of them.  Suddenly Dot's absence was an aching hole in my gut again.

Laser chuckled.  "Get some more sleep – you need it.  I'll let Dot know you've pulled through.  She'll be very relieved, I'm sure."

"Uh, Sir?  You didn't, um, tell Dot about Lisa, did you?"

He looked confused for a nano, then smiled.  "I didn't tell her that you two were – well…  No – only that you were in the game together."

"Thanks." I sighed.  "Would you mind not mentioning it?"

"I doubt it will come up in conversation."

"Thank you, Sir!  Can I see her - Lisa?"

"Later.  It was hard enough to get her out of this room so the med-techs could do their jobs – she didn't want to go.  And she and your roommate have been pestering us to see you ever since.  We'll have the M.T.s check you out and if you're cleared, you can go back to the dorm."

"Please, Sir – couldn't I see her now?"  There was one more big doubt still hanging over me, and I couldn't wait to have it resolved.

"Later, Cadet.  After you're cleared."

"Please, Sir?  Please?  I won't be able to sleep until we talk.  There's…  There's stuff we need to say."

Laser scowled at me and I wilted just a little, I couldn't help it.  When Laser wanted to look stern he was very good at it.  But he softened back up – I think he felt sorry for me.  "I'm getting weak in my old age.  All right, Boy – I'll let her know you're awake and you can have a few micros.  But just a few, got it?"  He winked.  "And take it easy on the kissing, too – you're still recovering!"

"Yessir."  I was as red as it was possible for a green sprite to be, but at least I'd be seeing Lisa.  "Sorry."

"I'll send her in."  Laser started to stand and head for the door.

"Sir?"  He turned back to me and stared, expectantly.  "Uh…"

"What is it, Cadet?"

"Just – please don't feel bad about what happened, OK?  It wasn't your fault.  You're a great Headmaster and everything and I-"

"Enough." Laser sighed.  "I appreciate that, Enzo.  I'm going to have to live with this as best I can – it's myself I have to answer to.  I've gotten quite used to it."

"OK.  But I meant it.  And thank you – for everything."   I know it wasn't regulation but I leaned over and hugged my arms around his neck.  "Thanks."

"Enzo-"

"You're not supposed to care more about me than the other kids, but I know you do.  It's OK - I promise I won't tell anyone."  It was pretty stupid to say something like that to my Headmaster, but somehow that just didn't seem important after what I'd just been through.  Not saying anything seemed a whole lot worse.  "Not even Bob."

"I…"  He didn't say anything for a few long nanos, just kind of sat there.  Then his arms were around me and he was hugging me back.  "I hope Bob realizes what a lucky man he is."

"Yeah.  He has a great Dad."

"Enzo, you don't know.  You weren't there-"

"No – don't."  I didn't want him to say anything else – I knew how he felt about himself as a father but I didn't want to hear it.  The only Laser I knew was the one who was hugging me right then and there. 

He didn't try and argue with me – we hugged for a few nanos and then he lowered me back to the bed, smiling ruefully.  "If people know, Cadet…  It'll just make things worse around here for both of us."

"Yes, Sir.  I'll never say a word."

He stared at me for a moment, then chuckled and tousled my hair.  "All right, Kiddo - it'll be our secret.  And you've certainly earned my trust."

"Yessir.  Thanks."

"You're welcome, Son.  You relax, now – I'll send Cadet Jobs in and after that you can have a rest before the med-techs examine you."  I squeezed his hand and he left with a wave, then I settled myself down to wait for Lisa.