The Aftermath

By Icelightning

Chapter 6: The Beginning and the End

Author's note: Oops, this POV was supposed to be Nosedive's, but I started it as Wildwing.. So I guess I'll just have to do both of the brothers, then, rofl. =P Just giving you a heads up on that.

I cannot even begin to express the amount of joy I felt when I woke up with Nosedive hunched over me, his eyes shining in worry. I had thought I would never see him again, alive anyways, and I didn't believe they'd ever manage to rescue me, with the mask on the fritz and Dragaunus threatening to kill me if they tried anything.
But, thank the stars, I was wrong. They came to my rescue when I needed them the most. Just when I thought it was all over, I felt Nosedive's arms holding me close, his voice whispering in relief as Tanya told him I was going to be okay. I couldn't do anymore than smile weakly at him, but Nosedive knew I was overjoyed at seeing him. It meant I didn't have to go through anymore of those torture sessions . . . .
Truth be told, I had never been more afraid of anything in my entire life. I was afraid I would break and betray all of my loved ones, especially Nosedive. I was afraid I would seal all their fates to slavery or worse for the rest of their lives. Dragaunus had all the power and I was helpless . . . Completely helpless. He could do anything, absolutely anything to me, and I would be unable to stop him or fight back in the slightest.
My greatest fear is losing control of any situation, especially one that could have potentionally fatal results. As the team captain, I have to be in control of myself and others at all moments, on and off the ice. I can't let my fear show, regardless of how afraid I am at any given moment. Their lives depend on me keeping my cool. With Dragaunus, I thought I had lost control of the situation. I thought I would break and tell him everything.
However, I didn't break and I kept my fear in control. I gave up with trying to hold back my screams, knowing they would come forth anyways. With controlling my fear, I had to focus every bit of my strength. Letting out a scream or two or three meant little in the long run. I could scream, but as long as I didn't tell, it didn't matter. And I didn't tell. I didn't break. I was in control.
I won.
Dragaunus didn't get a bit of information out of me before I lost consciousness. He failed to break me and that made me all the stronger. Sure, I'll probably have nightmares, many nightmares, about him torturing me, but I'll always know that he lost and I won.
With all my heart I can only hope I can keep my screams quiet when Nosedive and I sleep in the same room once more. He's already been through enough and I couldn't bear to make it worse with my screams of terror. But I managed to keep them muffled before and I'll do it again. I hope.
Some people would call me selfish for not letting my brother know how afraid I really was in that ship. Shouldn't I let my brother help me like I've helped him so many times before? But I'm not selfish. If I am afraid once, who could my brother turn to when he's terrified? Nosedive would worry that I'd be frightened too, and then what? He'd keep his fears to himself and become so afraid of the world he'd be unable to face the Saurians.
But sometimes . . . Sometimes I wish I could tell him everything about myself. I wish I had someone with whom I could confide my deepest fears. But I know if I did, Nosedive would suffer. There's no way I would ever do that to him. I have to keep it to myself in order to keep him safe. It's okay for the younger brother to be scared, but the older brother? No, he has to be there for his little brother one-hundred precent, all the time, all day, every day. I have to be there for my brother, and I can't show my fear, least it make his own grow and magnify. I must be his pillar of strength when he is weak. And I can never be weak. I must always be strong.
The pressure is sometimes so immense that I feel like I'm going to crack, that I'm going to break in two. I've told Duke a little about how it feels, but not a lot, although it was still more than I've ever told any of the others. After all, he was the one that pushed me the most to put on the mask after we came to Earth. Heh. He wouldn't let me rest until I did, and he's at my side the minute I start doubting myself.
Duke's hard to read. You really can't tell what he's thinking most of the time, or at least that was how it was at first. Now, I can guess what he's going to do about half the time. And now he feels more a part of the team than he did before. More like a family member and less like a lonely thief, I suppose. I think he likes brothering Nosedive a little too much, however. Ah well, I can share. I know Duke can't replace me in Nosedive's heart, and Duke didn't have a good family life in the first place, from what I'm guessing, so letting him brother Nosedive every once in a while won't hurt. Not to mention he's told me that Nosedive went immediately to him for comfort when I was kidnapped. He was almost afraid I would be angry, but . . . He took care of my brother while I couldn't be there for him, why would I be angry about that?
Somehow, I wasn't surprised when he told me about it. Him and Nosedive have grown close over the past year on Earth. I was jealous and afraid Duke would steal Nosedive away from me, but then I realized I was also growing closer to Duke as well. When I realized that, I was more relieved than I thought was possible about such a matter. I really thought, for a moment, that I was going to lose my brother to Duke. I know I was paranoid now, because Nosedive's love and need for me never decreased the entire time, and still hasn't. Maybe he doesn't need comfort every night, but he still needs me as much as he did before, although maybe not in the same way.
Nosedive . . . I'm not sure what I would do without him. I know I couldn't live without his jokes, without his laughter, without his smiles . . . Why would I have any reason to live? Without him, I'm nothing but a leader. I'm a faceless nobody undeserving to wear the Mask. But with him by my side . . . I feel like I can do anything. I can believe in myself. I can rise to the challenge of everyday, and not so everyday, life.
But it still doesn't explain how he and the others managed to find the Raptor so quickly, only a day after I was kidnapped. How could they have done it so quickly? Tanya said Nosedive had been told the location of the Raptor in a dream, but how? Who told him? And how could they have found me in order to tell him where I was in the first place?
Was it those mysterious strangers that kept me from dying all alone in my cell? Did they too help the others rescue me? And how could either of them had made such a fire to liquify metal? And make water appear out of thin air . . . It's impossible. At least, it's impossible according to science. Either way, I owe them my life.
I just wonder what the price is of their help. What do they want with me? And will it hurt Nosedive? I can only pray that they're truly on our side . . . .

If it wasn't for the help of the strangers, we never would have been able to save my brother, much less discover where Dragaunus had him. They had made the difference between surrender and victory. Without them, Wildwing would still be their prisoner . . . No, he wouldn't have been their prisoner. H-He would have been dead. My big brother would have died without their help!
But they helped me, and I'm grateful. Wildwing has his doubts about them, but I don't. I know they want Wildwing to help them with something, that's what they said, but I know they wouldn't do anything to hurt any of us. The guy that came to me in my dream was simply too nice. And . . . For some reason, I just know I can trust him. There was something about him that seemed so familiar . . . Someone I knew I could trust, someone I knew was on our side.
I would have lost Wildwing without their help . . . He brushed death's cloak again. You could see it in his eyes when he stared up at me for the first time since the kidnapping. He was so weak, so tired. And I knew he had been afraid, even though he won't ever admit it. He thinks he's doing me a favor by not telling me his true feelings, but he's not. I appreciate the fact that he loves me enough to protect me, but not when it hurts him. He's my older brother, but that doesn't mean he has to hide his fear from me! I don't want him to always protect me . . . He's done that all his live. I want to be able to protect him from his fears for a change. Why won't he let me do that?
. . . . He's so afraid that his fears will hurt me that he's blind to the fact that not telling me about them is hurting me. I want to be able to take care of him like he's taken care of me. I never had to deal with my fears alone, so why should he?? I want to be able to help him! Why can't he understand that? I want to be able to take care of him like he takes care of me . . . .
Why must he suffer because of me? I don't want him to suffer because of me . . . I want him to completely open himself up to me. I know he was scared! He thinks I don't know. Really, I may be dense at times, but not that dense! He's my brother, shouldn't I be able to help him when he needs me? Why can't he just admit it?
I can hear his muffled screams, even though he thinks I can't. I can hear his sobs after his stops screaming. I know when he's had a nightmare. But he refuses to let me help him when I ask if he's okay. He forces back his tears and clamps down his cries, acting like nothing happened. It's so hard to stand my brother crying to himself late at night. I know I should be there, comforting him, but I can't! I'm not a kid anymore, doesn't he see it? I'm ready to help him like he's helped me . . . .
I just want to be able to help him. That isn't asking for too much, is it? I hate feeling so helpless! I know I could help him if he just would let me! I know it . . . .
Oh Wildwing, why are you pushing me away when you need me the most? You and I both know you can't keep this up forever. You'll break eventually. Please, let me help you! It's better than making me worry about you! It scares me more than anything in the world when you hide your pain. Don't you know that? I love you so much, please don't do this to me anymore . . . It breaks my heart to see you hurting! I love you, I love you . . . Why won't you let me help you?
I'm not asking for you to tell me everything, not right away, big bro', but you should tell me at least a little about what happened. How you felt, what scared you . . . Anything that'll help take away your pain. I don't want you to be in pain anymore.
How can you think you're tricking me into believing you're okay? You don't smile anymore, and when you do, it rarely reaches your eyes. You don't eat as much as before, either. And you sometimes just sit there, staring into space, without moving or blinking . . . What am I supposed to think? That you're getting sick or something? No, I know it's more than that, Wildwing.
Let. Me. Help. You! Stop being so secretive about your emotions! I've lived with you for so long, I know what you're thinking, what you're feeling. Don't you think it's about time you stop pretending when we both know the truth?
Please, brother, please let your feelings flow free. You already have enough pressure on your shoulders--you don't need to add to it. Please don't hurt yourself by holding back your tears anymore. For me?
I can't stand it! I wish I could hit you or something when you hide your emotions from me! I know you can't be this alone! So damnit, Wildwing, talk to me! Don't just sit there and fade away from the world! Let me protect you like you've always protected me! I know I can help you, so why won't you open your feelings to me? I love you so much, Wildwing . . .
What am I supposed to do? Let you fade away?! I c-can't lose you! Please, don't leave me all alone! By the stars, please . . . I beg you to let me help you! Before I lose you again . . . Please! I've nearly lost you more times than I can count! Please don't make me lose you for real! Please! I beg of you . . . Let me help you!
I-I'm scared, 'Wing . . . I'm scared that I'm losing you for real this time . . . We both know you're hurting inside, s-so why won't you let me help you?! I-I'm so worried about you, Wildwing. Now I can't even be happy anymore . . . Is this what you feel like whenever we're seperated?
Please, stop seperating yourself from me. Let me help you, please Wildwing, please . . . Just let me help you.
Please . . . .

Sleep eluded the mallard and he rolled over again, sighing softly. In truth, he was only half trying to fall asleep. Half of him recognized the exhaustion his body felt, but the other half . . . The other half recognized what would happen if he slept.
The memories would haunt him again and he'd wake up screaming. Each time he fell asleep they haunted him even more and eventually he wouldn't be able to keep his nightmares secret from his brother. He had to be strong--his brother had already been through too much. . . .
Wildwing glanced over to Nosedive's still form across the room, sighing softly as the boy slept peacefully. He never thought he'd envy his little brother so much--all he wanted was a few hours of sleep, and he couldn't even get that. He'd have to stay up until he was completely exhausted in order to avoid them, but then the others would worry and he couldn't let them. After all, he was their leader and he had to be strong. Didn't he?
Realizing that train of thought was getting him nowhere fast, Wildwing rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. By the stars, why couldn't he sleep peacefully for a change? Wincing, he shook his head and tried to banish all his thoughts from his mind. But his fears and worries kept on coming back to haunt him. . . .
"'Wing?" Wildwing blinked as a voice mumbled his name and glanced at his brother to see Nosedive stirring. "Can you sleep with me?"
"Something wrong, baby bro'?" Wildwing asked, worry flarring as he sat up to look at his brother.
There was a moment's pause, before Nosedive spoke again, voice shaking. "P-Please?"
Responding almost unconsciously, Wildwing slid off of his bed and walked over to Nosedive's, sitting down on it. "Of course, 'Dive. Anything for-"
"-Me. I know, 'Wing, I know . . . " Nosedive sighed, glancing up to his brother. "Just lay down with me?"
Wildwing nodded silently, lying down in the bed as Nosedive pulled back the covers and drapped them over Wildwing. The older brother gave him a quizzical look and Nosedive smiled slightly, shrugging. He then pressed into Wildwing, resting his head next to his brother's.
"Didn't want you to get cold, you know . . . " Nosedive stated after a moment, whispering softly. "Now go and get some sleep."
His brother only nodded in response, letting his eyes slide shut after a minute. He was too tired to care, or even notice, that Nosedive was babying him. At the moment all Wildwing wanted to do was sleep, and with Nosedive next to him, it wasn't hard to convince himself to give into his exhaustion.
Nosedive sighed in relief as he watched his brother drift off, glad that the sound of Wildwing tossing and turning finally ceased. Now the both of them could actually get some sleep, as long as Wildwing didn't have any nightmares.
He sighed and took comfort in Wildwing's presence, listening as his breathing slowed to the gentle rhythm of sleep. Nosedive's mind began to wander, his worries about Wildwing fading away as he felt the gentle rise and fall of his brother's chest against him. After a while he too succumbed to sleep and joined his dreaming brother.

Wildwing blinked his eyes open and was startled to find himself outdoors and not in his room. The frigid temperatures were a shock to his body and he shivered, wrapping his arms around himself. He briefly regretted that he and the others had shed most of their feathers after arriving on earth to adjust to the climate, but then realized just how cold it was.
-It's colder than Puckworld . . . - He shook his head at that thought, sighing softly. -Where am I?-
A smell came to his senses and he blinked in surprise. Frowing a little, he tested the air again to be sure. It smelled like home; was this Puckworld?
He froze at the thought. Where was he? Was he really on Puckworld? Slowly, his mind registered that he was, and he decided not to worry about how he had gotten there, because that question was best answered when one wasn't in mortal peril of freezing to death.
-I have to be on the upper continent . . . Only it would be this cold this time of year.- Realizing that standing there didn't help, Wildwing begam to walk slowly across the snow-covered plain, almost at a crawl against the harsh winter winds.
Blinded by the snowstorm, he didn't notice the form curled up in the white powder until he had tripped over it. He fell with a shout, sprawling onto his stomach when he failed to catch his balance in time. Wildwing winced and picked himself up, glancing back to see what had caused his fall.
His blood ran cold as he stared at the corpse, blood still seeping from the woman's fresh death-wound, painting the snow around her crimson. He quickly climbed to his feet and stumbled away from the corpse, eyes widening. That young woman wasn't one of his teammates . . . No, this had to be Puckworld . . . Did the Resistance lose despite all the fact they blew up the Master Tower?
Wildwing's heart sank and he looked around as the blizzard began to clear. He took in a sharp breath of air, muscles seizing up in shock. What he saw made his stomach turn yet again.
Bodies. Bodies everywhere. Bodies litered the ground--both Puckworlder and Saurian alike. All young, all pale, all devoid of life. He couldn't even hate the Saurians whose blood stained the ground, as they looked as scared and terrified as he had during their first battle. They didn't want to fight--they just wanted to live and grow up. So why did they have to die?
Suddenly, he couldn't help but feel pity towards the Saurian race, despite what they had done to his people . . . Hadn't they lost their homeplanet or something of the like? He remembered something he had read in a history book and nodded to himself. The Saurians had traveled the cosmos for thousands of years after that, being either repelled or rejected by all intellegent species for a new home, despite the fact their attentions were peaceful at first. In fact, Puckworld was the first planet they had tried to conquer, after they had finally given up hope of a peaceful solution to their problem.
-It's tragic, really,- Wildwing sighed, shaking his head. -We would've readily given them our tropical belt--very few of us liked living down there, and at the time of the first invasion, the Saurians numbered only in the hundreds. They could've lived down there without a problem . . . And even now, they can't all be evil . . . There must be some with pure hearts, right? An entire race can't be evil--there has to be an exception!-
-These Saurians aren't cold-blooded killers--they're all no more than children, both Saurian and Puckworlder alike. None of them wanted to fight and they especially didn't want to die . . . Has it become such a desperate battle between our people that we've sunk to using children to fight our battles?-
A sob mixed in with a cough brought Wildwing back to the present and he turned around, eyes falling on a Saurian that couldn't be a day older than Nosedive. The boy, Wildwing was sure it was a boy, let out another sob, crying out in the strange native tongue of his ancestors. His grayish skin and mohawk of black hair was covered in blood. Wildwing didn't need a translator to know what the boy was saying.
-He wants his mother . . . The boy doesn't want to die alone.- Wildwing's mind screamed at him to stay away from the child, since he belonged to the same species of those who had tortured him; Wildwing's heart, however, could not turn away from such suffering.
He found himself kneeling besides the dying Saurian and he froze in fear. What was he supposed to do? The child probably wouldn't understand him and he didn't have any idea how Saurians comforted their young. Or if they even still comforted their young at all.
The teenage boy stared up at Wildwing with eyes full of terror, even as they started to lose the gleam of life. Wildwing knew that the boy didn't have much time left--he had a life-span that was measured in minutes instead of years. He had already bled too much for Wildwing to save him . . . The child was going to die. It was now only a matter of time.
Sighing softly, Wildwing reached over and stroked the boy's hair, whispering softly. "I won't hurt you . . . You're safe, and I'm not going to let you die alone . . . . "
Slowly the Saurian relaxed under Wildwing's hand and the fear disappeared. They couldn't understand each other's language, but they still understood one another. He shivered and Wildwing smiled sadly to the boy, taking off his jacket to wrap around the dying teen, holding him in his arms. A smile of thanks warmed the boy's lips and then he pressed gently into Wildwing, closing his eyes and letting out a relaxed sigh. The boy knew he wasn't going to be alone, and that was all that mattered to him at the moment. Wildwing wouldn't let him be forgotten and he wouldn't leave him until the end. The child hung on to life stubbornly for a few minutes, comforted by Wildwing's presence, but soon his strength faded and he slipped into sleep. Then, he died.
Wildwing sighed, gently lowering the body to the ground, resting it on the cold winter floor. What little heat that had been left in the body was soon gone and snow began to cover it, sticking to it in an eerie picture of death. Another innocent life lost to the void. One more life for Wildwing to mourn.

Wildwing blinked and glanced around. He was no longer in the snowstorm, kneeling next to a dead body. Instead, he was floating in a black void.
"Amazing. You really are as kind as the others think you are." Wildwing turned around quickly, surprised to see the elder of the two brothers standing, or more rather floating, behind him.
The leader of the Mighty Ducks blinked to the stranger, thinking back to the experience he just had. "That was one of the tests you spoke of, wasn't it?"
Laughing, the figure nodded. "Yes. And you passed."
"Why are you testing me like this? Why do you need my help?" Wildwing questioned, and the Puckworlder gave him a lop-sided grin.
"We had to make sure that you'd know what to do without us having to tell you exactly what to do. We needed to make sure you were loyal to your heart. So far, so good. Only a few more tests left and then we'll reveal ourselves." There was a silence, and Wildwing sighed, shaking his head.
"What's my next test?" Wildwing asked, reluctant to know--what else would he have to go through?
"Talk to your brother."
"What?" Wildwing blinked, taken by surprised.
"Talk to your brother," the other Puckworlder repeated, smiling softly. "You're not any use to anyone in the state you're currently in. You need to recover, and your brother can help you do that. He needs to help you through this like you've helped him through his trials."
"But-" Wildwing objection was cut short with a fierce nod of the Puckworlder's head.
"No buts. You need to talk to him. He can handle what you need to tell him." his quick speech gave Wildwing no time to interrupt him. "You'll be waking up in a second and I expect you to speak to him."
Wildwing couldn't help by smile softly. "You . . . Sound like a dad."
The Puckworlder's eyes softened and became a bit sad. "I was one . . . once, a long time ago."
"I'm sorry," Wildwing sighed, feeling bad for upsetting someone that had done so much for him.
"Don't be--I'll probably be babying your little brother, and you, sometime soon," laughter returned to the stranger's voice. "You two both need a father."
"But you're my age!" Wildwing protested and the Puckworlder began laughing.
"Maybe in body, but my mind's a lot older. I've been through a lot more than this . . . current body." he shook his head. "Enough talk. It's time for you to wake up."
"But-"

"-what are you talking about?" Wildwing eyes fluttered open and he found himself staring at the ceiling of his and Nosedive's room. "What the . . . ?"
He sighed and shook the sleepiness from his head, turning to glance at his brother as the teenager stirred quietly in his sleep. Wordlessly, Wildwing raised a hand to stroke his brother's hair, sighing softly. Remembering what the stranger had told him, Wildwing slowly began to shake Nosedive awake. It was best to get this over with while he still had the nerve.
"'Wing?" Nosedive yawned, stirring under Wildwing's touch, sleepily blinking his eyes half-way open to look up at his brother. "What is it?"
"We need to talk . . . I need to talk to you." Wildwing replied nervously and Nosedive suddenly woke up a bit more, staring at his brother in surprise.
"You mean . . . ?" Nosedive couldn't believe his ears.
"Yeah, about what happened in the Raptor," Wildwing sighed, looking away and becoming nervous again. "One of the strangers, the older one, contacted me in my sleep and said I should."
"Them again?" Nosedive smiled softly. "They're kinda babying us a little, aren't they? They helped us out so much . . . And now we're listening to them like children."
"He wasn't adverse to the idea of us being like children to him," Wildwing stated with a weak laugh and Nosedive smiled a little wider.
"Figured as much. I wouldn't actually mind that too much . . . It would be like having a real family again," Nosedive smiled at the thought.
"You know what? Neither would I . . ." Wildwing replied, his voice trailing off as he looked at the clock, which dimly read: 3:51 AM.
"So . . . Are you going to talk to me now or what?" Nosedive urged his brother after Wildwing's voice trailed off, nuzzling Wildwing's cheek softly. "That is, i-if you're ready."
Wildwing looked back to Nosedive, gazing into his brother's eyes for a moment, calming himself with their steady gaze. Quietly, he reminded himself that the brother was right--he needed to do this. He needed to get this off his chest or he'd never be any use to anyone again.
"It was awful, baby bro'," Wildwing whispered softly into the darkness and seconds later felt Nosedive's arms wrap around his waist in a protective hug. "I couldn't stop screaming . . . "
"What did they do to you?" Nosedive asked quietly, eyes softening as his brother trembled in his arms. "What did they do to you, big bro'?"
"I can't remember--it's all a blur . . . But it hurt so much . . . " Wildwing trailed off and Nosedive pressed a bit closer into him, nodding in understanding.
"But you survived it," Nosedive stated with conviction.
"But I survived it," Wildwing replied, sighing softly.
"And you didn't break," Nosedive added with certainty.
"And I didn't break," Wildwing repeated his brother's words.
"And you're here with me now," Nosedive pointed out and this time Wildwing smiled.
"Yes, I'm here with you now," Wildwing turned onto his side, pulling his brother into a hug. "I'm here with you and I'm not going to leave you again."
"Promise?" Nosedive voice became suddenly pleading. "Y-You'll stay with me?"
Wildwing blinked, realizing that the tables had suddenly turned, and he smiled softly. "Of course, baby bro'. I'll never let that happen again."
"M-Me neither . . . I'm not going to let you out of my sight until you're at a full strength again," Nosedive nuzzled his brother, relaxing again.
"If you must," Wildwing let out a sigh, but he was smiling.
"You don't have to tell me everything, big bro' . . . You know that, right?" Nosedive broke the ensuing silence after a minute's passage.
"I know . . . You'll help me through, won't you?" Wildwing asked and Nosedive quickly looked up at him again.
"Of course I will! Big bro', I know how much you really need me, even if you won't admit it yourself," Nosedive stated. "And I'll help you through the nightmares, too. I'll be there to hold you like you've held me through all of mine . . . You won't be going through this all alone."
Wildwing sighed. "I guess I couldn't hide them from you as well as I thought I could . . . "
"Nope," Nosedive's eyes softened. "It hurt to hear you crying all by yourself, Wildwing. I couldn't stand it . . . "
"I'm sorry," Wildwing replied weakly, wrapping his arms tighter around Nosedive. "I should've told you sooner."
"You're right; you should have," Nosedive nuzzled Wildwing's cheek with his bill. "But that doesn't matter now. All that matters is that we're together again and we're going to get through this together, right?"
"You're right," Wildwing smiled, resting his head on top of Nosedive's shoulder. "I should have."
"Just relax, okay, 'Wing? I'll take care of you." Nosedive ran a hand through his brother's tuft of hair and Wildwing grinned softly.
"Gladly, baby bro', gladly," Wildwing yawned softly, closing his eyes. "Love you, baby bro'."
Nosedive nuzzled his brother's forehead. "Love you too, 'Wing. Sleep tight, okay?"
Wildwing nodded, waiting a minute before he spoke again, shifting softly. "'Dive?"
"Yeah, Wildwing?" Nosedive glanced to his brother's still form.
"Thanks," Wildwing let his body relax gently into his brother.
"You're welcome," Nosedive replied, stroking Wildwing's hair as his brother drifted off.
And for the first time since returning home to the Pond, Wildwing slept peacefully. And for that, Nosedive was greatful.

Author's End-note: Look! It's finished! FINALLY! I thought I'd never finish this chapter.. *Sighs happily.* I'm so glad that I finally got to finish *any* chapter fanfic. You see, I've never managed to finish a chapter fanfic before, so this is a real accomplishment for me. Now if only this hadn't been shadowed by me misplacing my medicine, I'd be truly happy. Ah well, you can't have everything in life... I'd do shout-outs now, but like I said, I'm bummed out about that. Ah well, I'll have to add them into my next "Casualty" chapter. Someone poke me to remind me about that, k? Thanks!