Later that afternoon

"Diner's ready kids." Cherokee announced from the kitchen. Shysie and Liz stood in response and began walking towards the kitchen. Abruptly Liz stopped and turned around to face Michael where he continued sitting.

"Are you coming?" she asked in a whisper. Slowly she extended her hand in invitation to him.

He wanted to take her hand, he really did. His heart told him she was family, someone to trust. His brain, however, continued to warn him about attachments. He wondered also if he would somehow be considered disloyal to Max and Iz if he let her in.

'She is like us though,' Michael rationalized in his mind, 'they will welcome her too, one day.' Just when he had decided to take her hand, she pulled it away dejectedly. He looked into her sad rejected eyes, and he felt sorry that he had hesitated. Looking into her brown doe eyes he realized exactly how sad and lonely she was. She had wanted the some things he had always wanted for himself, a home, a family and a sense of well being.

"Yeah," Michael muttered in an almost inaudible voice. Quickly he sttod up and walked to her grabbing her hand.

The two stood and stared at one another for several moments. No words were exchanged, but they were speaking loud and clear to one another. From this point on they were going to be each others family, each others home. They wouldn't let anyone change that or take it away. They were brother and sister.

"and sister." Liz added, breaking the spell and the silent understanding the two had been sharing.

"Shysie" Michael again muttered. How could he leave her out? She seemed to be the most vulnerable of all of them, and yet Michael even in his head couldn't help but emphasize the word "seemed".

Michael had been watching her since he had gotten here a few hours ago. Why didn't she talk? She was hiding something , he knew that for sure. Does she know who or what they were? Does she know where home is? Or is it a different kind of secret?

Sometimes she would look at him and he would feel that sense of recognition again. Of course he had the same feeling with Liz, but with Shysie it was different, it was almost as if she were in his head looking for something. He felt naked when she looked at him, he wasn't in anyway frightened of her, but he couldn't understand her. She seemed at times to be trying to communicate with him, the way she looked at him it was as though, at times, she were saying things. He just didn't know how to listen.

"So…..um…..we should probably get in there." Liz interrupted his train of thought. Shaking his head in agreement, they made their way to the kitchen. Together.

"There you two are!" Cherokee exclaimed with a smile setting down two plates of plates on the table in front of the chairs Michael and Liz were to occupy. "Shy and I were just discussing what happened to the two of you."

"Shy said that she thought the two of you had run off and joined the circus," the older women added, "Don't worry though Michael, I assured her that a young man like yourself wouldn't be caught dead in a purple sequined jumpsuit!"

Liz began to giggle to his left, where she had taken her seat . He also noted that Shysie was also laughing silently across the table, her aqua blue eyes sparkling.

"I thought she couldn't talk?" Michael demanded in a confused voice. Looking at the females in the room for an answer.

"It was a JOKE, Mikey." Liz told him matter-of-factly, "You know your supposed to laugh." she added rolling her eyes.

"Besides, she can talk, she just chooses not to." Cherokee corrected him taking a seat next to him.

"So she has talked to you before?" Michael asked now thoroughly confused. Picking up the cheese burger that lay in front of him, he mentally prepared himself for the bland taste that always came when food wasn't spicy or sweet enough.

As he was about to take a bite of his burger a bottle of tobasco sauce slid across the table to him. Looking up, he suddenly decided that Shy was his new favorite person. He noticed that she had already smothered her own food in the spicy sauce and silently he thanked her.

"No, she hasn't said a word to anyone, ever. As far as I know." Cherokee continued as Michael generously covered his own food in Tobasco.

"Jeeze, Mickey SHARE!" Liz yelled ripping the bottle of Tobasco from Michael's hand. Looking up at Cherokee she apologized for cutting her off.

"BUT," Cherokee continued, "now that her family is here I hope that she will have something to say."