"Before All This."

Disclaimer: Okay, instead of a stupid, inpatient disclaimers I usually post, I have to do an extra one today. First, I don't own Young Wizards. It belongs to Diane Duane and Magic Carpet Books, and all that. Also, All of the flashbacks (accept for one, which I wrote) were taken straight from the books, with a few things cut. I did NOT write them, and take no credit for them. The only thing that I wrote were the typos, Diane Duane wrote the rest. I repeat, I DID NOT WRITE MOST OF THE FLASHBACKS. Diane Duane wrote them, and I just typed them up for my fic. Thanks! But I did write the parts in between flashbacks, so don't get it mixed up. Mmmkay?

A/N: And now! I run to fetch all....five books that I have, so the I may accurately type flashbacks! Alright...now after a whole week of reading the first book over and over, now, of all times, I can't find it. Me oh my.. Oh wait, this is me half an hour later. I found it folks...where was it, you may ask? On my coffee table. Yes it was. Anyways, this chapter is EXTREMLY long, so brace yourself, and get ready for some N/K.

Shout out time: (Haven't done this in awhile!):

AerinBrown:

Lol. Yes. Let me tell you though, I don't intentionally make it a cliffie, it just kind of works out that way. You see, if I leave it a cliffie at the end of one chapter, it builds suspense (especially mine) and I have somewhere sharp and important to leave off from. I dunno. Yeah, I know. But keep in mind that they aren't really all that young. Nita and Ronan are sixteen, Kit is fifteen and Dairi is fourteen. I probably would have made them older, but I didn't really want to, and we also have to keep in mind that as Wizard's age, their free lance power goes down, and they probably wouldn't be up to facing the Lone Power. Also, this fic is based on Dairine's shut down, and if I had made Dairine, say, seventeen, that would have been six years that her power wasn't on track, and that doesn't make any sense. Mmmkay? Thanks for reviewing!

Jen:

lol! Yay! I missed your extremely long, funny reviews. Yes, I'm getting giddy writing these chapters. 0_o..never mind. Lol! Guy of Ultimate hottness? (Dairine: -_-....) I think his attitude it more hott than his looks. (Not that his looks are BAD or anything...*dodges Dairine's punches) Yeah. But you know...this is the Lone Power we're dealing with, and his tittle isn't anything small either. Also, I the main point that the Lone Power is trying to put across is that love makes you weak. And Ro was a perfect example of that, because he fell into darkness easily. Why did Kit get out of it? Well, Nita's love for Kit is concentrated, right? Kit and only Kit. But because Dairine's love is split, Dairine's love isn't as concentrated on Ro as Nita's would be on Kit's. Because Dairine loves Ro and Ronan equally, but she still has love for two people instead of one, no matter how close those people might be. Plus, Nita gave Kit the pep talk, which Dairine couldn't do for Ro because..well..she was unconscious...but don't fear Dairine and Ronan are going to get through to him but...I won't say anything more because it'll ruin it. umm..yes... Oh don't you worry, Dairi's commin' back and with a kick. ( I mean, she's pissed). You like flashbacks? Have fun! This chapter is PURELY flashbacks. OOOPPPS! So I did! Bah. I MEANT to put Cruccio...but I was reading a HP fanfic at the same time and...Hermione was using accio!!..oh well.. Alright! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Katie janeway:

he he...yup!

______________________________________________________________________________

"No!" It shouted. "NO!"

"Yes!" Nita hissed, before murmuring a few words in the speech, and they were all enveloped by something they couldn't see.

"Neets." Kit whispered into the darkness. "Where are we?"

"In the Lone Power's mind..well...sort of."

"Where are..."

"Right now, they're in Ro's mind. But since Ro's mind is currently in control by the Lone Power, we should be able so see them as soon as they start working. so we can't see them but they can see us."

"But the Lone Power can see all of us."

"Yes."

He reached out to touch her hand, and was surprised when he could. He brought her hand close to his face and frowned.

"Nita. You're solid!"

"No!," She laughed. "You're not!."

He looked at his own hand. "Oh.."

She smiled, and patted his head, before turning around in the darkness, keeping her eyes on him.

"Now, I want you to think exactly what happen the first day we met, or what you remember of it.""

"You mean.."

"No..not in the cafeteria when you were being made fun of..in the woods. Ready?"

***

"Hi." She said.

The boy looked at her uncertainly, as if trying to place her. "Hi."

"Uh..I uh..don't see the oak leaves. Or the string."

The boys dark eyes widened. "So THAT's how you got through."

"Through what?"



"I put a binding spell around the edges of this place." He said. "I've tried this spell once or twice, but people kept showing up just as I was getting busy, and I couldn't finish."

"I thought I blew the binding, too." He finished, eyeing her once again.

"Maybe you can't bind another wizard out."

"Uhh....I guess not." He paused. "I'm Kit. Christopher, really, but I hate Christopher."

"Nita," She said. "It's short for Juanita. I hate that too. Listen- the trees are mad at you."

"The TREES?"

***

She smiled teasingly at him. "That's all you remember?"

"What? You expect me to memorize in exact detail, something that happened four years ago?"

"I guess not."

"Wait..how did you see what I was remembering?"

She laughed. "Haven't you figured it out yet, El Nino?"

He growled for a second, ignoring her other remark, 'You sound like Ponch.', before nodding in understanding.

"We're showing It all the emotional stuff? So this.." He assessed the darkness, "Is like a movie theatre. So the Lone Power is seeing it, and so can we?"

"Yup."

He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Your turn."

She grinned.

***

"Neets. Get out of that for a minute."

"Huh? Oh-"

It was a moment's work to drop the whale shape; then she was reduced to dog paddling. Kit was trading water a few feet away from her, his hair slicked down with the water. He looked strange- tight, somehow, as if he were holding on to some idea or feeling very hard.

(A/N: I tried VERY hard to get my mind out of the gutter while reading that part. ^_-)

"Neets, I'm not buying this."

Nita stared at him. "Kit," She said finally. "Look, there's nothing we can do. I've bought it. Literally."

"No." Kit said. The word was not an argument, not even defiance; just a simple statement of fact. "Look, Neets. You're the best wizard I've ever worked with-"

"I'm the only wizard you've ever worked with." Nita said with a lopsided grin.

"I'm gonna kill you" Kid said-and regretted it instantly.

"No need," Nita said. "Kit-why don't you just admit that this time I've got myself into something I can't get out of."

"Unless another Wizard gets you out of it."

She stared at him. "You loon, you can't!"

"I know! And it hurts! I feel like I should volunteer but I can't-"

"Good. 'Cause you do and I kill you."

"That won't work either." He made her own crooked grin back at her. "All for one, remember. We both have to come out of this alive."

And he looked away.

"Let's go for both." Nita said.

Silence.

She took a deep breath. "Look, even if we don't both get out of this, I think it's gonna be alright, really."

"No." Kit said again, and that was that.

Nita just looked at him. "Ok," She said. "Be that way."

And she meant it. This was the Kit she was used to working with: Stubborn, absolutely sure of himself- most of this time; the person with size-twelve courage packed into his size-ten self, a courage that would spend a few minutes trembling and then take on anything that got in it's way- from the Lone Power, to her father.

'If I've got to go," She thought, in sudden irrational determination, 'that sheer guts has go to survive- and I'll do whatever's necessary to make sure he does.'

"Look," she said, "What're you going to tell my folks when you get back?"



"I'm gonna tell them that we're hungry." Kit said. " and that you'll fill them in on the details while I eat."

'I did tell him to be that way...'

***

He grinned, the same one as in the vision, and kissed her cheek.

"That really did mean a lot to me, Kit."

"I was scared shitless." He admitted, suddenly hugging her to him, and shuddering at the memory.

"Oh, Kit." She sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. "Your turn."

***

She ran to the trailer door, and threw it open. On the bed, Kit looked up in surprise, blinked at her.

"Hi, Neets. What's the scoop?"

Nita stood there with her mouth working, and nothing came out.

"What are you doing here?"

Kit opened his mouth, too, and closed it and then said. "I thought you'd be glad to see me."

"You turkeybrain, I am glad to see you. But what are you doing HERE? I thought-"

"Oh." Kit turned red, then started laughing. "Neets,uh, I feel like a dork."

She withheld comment for the moment. "Oh?"

"Well, I mean, you promised your folks that you wouldn't come back to see me. But I never said anything of the kind. No one asked me. So I said to my mom, 'I have to go out for awhile, I'll be back for dinner.' and she said, ' Fine..have a nice time...'"

Nita climbed into the trailer, sat down on the bed and began laughing.

"You're kidding."

***

Nita smiled and he grinned back at her.

"I'm actually glad I did come. Despite the stuff that happened, it was uh...your friends....up there that made me realize I liked you. Really. Or at least, they planted the idea in my head."

"Oh, no. Wouldn't it have been the kids at school?"

He scowled. "No. Because I knew they were idiots who thought it was funny. But the kids in Ireland were being serious. Even your aunt knew."

She raised an eyebrow. "This was going on behind my back, huh?"

"While you were out prancing around with Nolan."

She sighed, patting his head again. "Now it's Dairine who does the prancing."

"Yeah..." He growled again, this time unlike Ponch, and Nita shook her head.

"Oh, KNOW your protective of her."

"Well-"

"Wait hold on. My AUNT knew?"

***

(A/N: This is the flashback that I wrote. MMMEEEEEE. So don't go looking in the books for this, people. You'll be dissapointed. Again, this is the only flashback part that I wrote)

"Kit?"

He turned to face the voice, smiling politely at Nita's aunt. She reminded him of Nita, especially when her accent wavered, swaying to her American side. But unlike Nita, she was plump. Not fat, or overweight, but comfortably round, just like his mother. She smiled back. Fussing around in the kitchen for something. Kit turned back to the conversation Ronan's friends were having.

"Hey, Rodriguez."

"Yeah?"

"So you and Callahan..." The girl, who looked oddly like Ronan, made a gesture with her fingers, making Kit take in a sharp intake of breath. (A/N: Take in an intake....)

"No!"

"But you want to?" A boy nearby grinned.

"No..."

"That sounded unconvincing."

"Oh, shut up." He mumbled.

This was how he dealt with the people at school who bugged him about it. Argued with them, either until they left, or he gave up and told them to shut their mouths. But today, it seemed different. Maybe because he wasn't used to the friendly smiles he was receiving, not usual when this topic came up. Or maybe it was because a family member of Nita's was in the room. He felt uneasy. But what was worse, was that he found himself actually thinking about it.

"Not..not THAT." He amended, mockingly making the gesture back at the girl, who flushed.

"Dating, then."

"I dunno..."

The two, apparently a couple, grinned at him and then at eachother.

"You can't fight it, mate."

"Fight what?"

"I don't think there is a single partnership between opposite sex( and sometimes same sex, but we won't go there.) wizards out there that didn't turn into something more."

"You're kidding..."

"See. You're even beginning to talk like her. That's the first sign."

He closed his eyes, his mind whirling. He didn't want this..he didn't...or..did he?

"Whatever happens," Nita's aunt set tea in front of them, which Kit eyed distastefully. "If you do start to have feelings for her...Tell her, Kit. Tell her before it messes with your friendship, or even worse your wizardry. Because chances are, if you feel that way about her, she'll feel the same."

Kit shrugged uncomfortably against everyone's gaze, his head spinning so fast he thought he was going to be sick.

"Don't let it get to you," The guy said. "Sleep on it."

"Yeah...yeah I think I'll go to bed."

"Sleep tight." Nita's aunt said.

But Kit heard the joined thoughts of the three as he left the room.

'Tell her, Kit. Tell her, or she'll get hurt.'

***

"Kit!" She exclaimed. "After all the fighting after we got back from Ireland and all the problems, you knew how you could have solved it? And you didn't?! How dare you!"

He grinned sheepishly. "The seed in my head was growing, Neets. And I was scared of it."

She sighed, hugging him again, enjoying the feeling of having him back, after such a short time, after an eternity, of being lost to him.

"Well...I was scared. My aunt told me once about partners drifting...I thought that was happening. I never knew it was because you had feelings for me! You SHOULD have told me."

He sighed, and grinned at her, leaning forward and kissing her forehead.

"You're always complaining about males being the dominant species. Why didn't YOU tell ME."

"When?" She said quietly. "When I was so terrified of losing you, that I avoided you? When I tried my best to avoid doing spell work. Our fighting terrified me, Kit"

***

(A/N: Ha ha! I was trying to find the page when they fight. And I landed on the one where Nita's talking to Dairine. When telling her about the fight, Dairine asks Nita if she has PMS. Go Dairi...Go Dairi..hem hem..)

"Oh, NOW you apologize"

"I wasn't apologizing."

"Well maybe you need to!"

"Neets," Kit said, also frowning now. "What do you want me to do? Tell you I think it's gonna be fine, when I really don't think so?"

............................

"Fine," She said tightly. "Then you go right ahead and handle this yourself. And just leave me out of it until you find something you think is simplistic enough to involve me in!"

***

"Oh, Neets." He whispered, stroking her face with his finger tips. "I'm sorry. I was just so confused. And when I'm confused, I'm a jerk."

"No, it's okay. You were right anyway. I was just...dealing, too."

"No, but...I should have been there for you when your mom-"

"Shut it. Don't go there."

He sighed, and finally settled for kissing her, wiping her tears away with his lips, and nuzzling her neck affectionately, and action she was used to, and it held comfort.

"Hey, love birds. Cut it out, will ya? It's our turn." Ronan's voice carried out over the darkness, like a call travelling over the surface of an ocean. Kit smiled.

"Yeah, and what have you been doing, Nolan?" Kit cat called, and Nita grinned at the sudden friendship between the two.

"Shut that Spanish mouth of yours, Rodriguez. Or I'll wipe that grin off your face that I currently can't see."

"Then get your Irish hide over here, and we'll see whose grin is going to be wiped. Let me tell you, if I see you touch the Squirt..."

Then, there was only laughter.

Tbc....

______________________________________________________________________________

Wow. That was a reeeeeeeaaaalllyyy long chapter, and I worked hard on it, so please review!