"Last time you fell and you hit hard
Your wounds have healed by now
But you still see your scars…"

            Three Doors Down

            "Let's get out of here," Brennan says, following Shalimar and Jesse into Adam's hotel suite. 

            "Brennan?"  Emma calls, walking out, surprised.

            "Hey, Em.  Sorry about the sleeping thing," Brennan apologizes, enfolding her into a hug. 

            "It's okay, I'm awake now.  I feel pretty rested, too, so that's good," Emma replies, examining him worriedly.  His flashing eyes startle her but not as much as the dark block she finds when she tries to probe his mind.

            "You probably don't want to go in there right now," Brennan whispers to her as he walks past her. 

            "Brennan, how are you feeling?" Adam questions, trying to keep his cool demeanor and not show his anxiety.

            "I'm hanging in.  I needed a little time to gather myself…I didn't get as much as I would have liked, but it'll do.  Now I'm ready to go home," Brennan replies, his face calm except for his flickering eyes. 

            "You seem to have made a quick recovery," Emma says, concerned.

            "I'm not recovered, Em, just a little more reality-based.  I was really out of it for a while…I'll probably lose it again at some point, but right now, I'm hanging in," Brennan replies, his voice colder than his friends' recognize. 

            Adam is unconvinced.  "Brennan, I don't want to take you back if you're not ready.  You obviously felt like you needed to get away…"

            "It wasn't Sanctuary that I needed to get away from," Brennan interrupts, quietly.  Adam flushes.

            Emma starts to speak but Brennan waves his hand at her.

            "I needed to get away from all the attention," Brennan replies.  "I didn't have control and I was getting all these emotions from everyone around me.  Even if you weren't there, it was like the feelings settled around me and I couldn't shake them off…I can't explain it.  I had to be by myself for a while so I could sort out my own feelings and remember how to block off my senses.  I'm better now.  I need to rest.  I feel like I haven't slept in weeks."

            Adam is silent, thinking and trying to interpret Brennan's strange demeanor. 

            "Well, it'll save you the money on a plane ticket back, right, Bren?"  Jesse says, breaking the silence.

            Shalimar and Emma go into the adjoining room to gather their things. 

            "I guess we're going home," Shalimar says, unsure.

            "I don't get Adam at all…does he want Brennan to stay here, in Vegas?  I thought we came out here to get him and bring him home…" Emma says.

            "What did Adam explain to you when he woke up?"  Shalimar questions.

            "He said that I had talked in my sleep and told him what Brennan heard.  He said you connected with me and read my dreams.  That's all.  What's up?"

            "I said some things to Adam that made him doubt his decision about Britt.  I think he was wrong…now I know he was wrong…" Shalimar remembers Brennan's earlier confession.  "But maybe now, he's trying to make it right.  Brennan wouldn't let Adam in his room yesterday, he was still so upset, but today he walked right in and started talking to him.  There's a lot of tension but it's better that I ever expected this soon," She admits.  "If Brennan needs a few more days to get himself together, we should give it to him."

            "Brennan…he talked to you and Jesse…what's changed since yesterday?  Why is Brennan stable now?"  Emma questions.

            Shalimar hesitates. 

            "I won't tell Adam," Emma says, reading her friend's face. 

            Shalimar glance up as Jesse enters, closing the door behind him.  "Brennan's going to get his things.  Adam's checking us out of the room."

Jesse explains.

            "What, Shalimar?"  Emma urges.

            "Britt's dead," Shalimar says. "The memory manipulation didn't work completely, there were leftover memories and it was too much for Britt to handle.  He couldn't connect the images in his brain and he thought he was going nuts.  He shot himself in the head."

            Emma sighs, realizing the impact of Britt's death to Brennan.  "If that's true, then why do you two think Brennan's in control?  It should have pushed him over the edge entirely," She says.

            "I think it brought him back," Shalimar says.  He realized that he hasn't been living his life for Britt in a long time.  Maybe he remembered that we're his family now…"

            "Girls, maybe Brennan is just better," Jesse interrupts.  "As a guy, I can testify that it sucks to let your friends see you when you're weak.  Maybe he just got the perspective that he needed and decided to be strong, whether it's fake or not.  I think we should let Brennan do whatever he needs to do.  He wants to go home, so we go home.  That's all that needs to be said," Jesse says, leaving.

            "You think he's right?"  Emma asks.

            "I don't think anyone's right anymore," She replies honestly.