Withdrawal Syndrome

by Wushu

/HarperTrance/ Harper is separated from the rest of the crew, while separated he suffers serious withdrawals and is confronted by demons from the past.

Title: Withdrawal Syndrome
Rating: R
Pairing: Harper/Trance
Summary: Harper is separated from the rest of the crew, while separated he suffers serious withdrawals and is confronted by demons from the past. This is an answer to Kylie's 'Withdrawal' challenge on the Slipstream Underground BBS.

Authors Note: There will be a few Gaelic phrases used; I will provide an in-text translation of the phrases used, if I can work it in. I got the phrases at www(dot)irishgaelictranslations(dot)com an awesome translation site. Thanks to Gordon Ai for Beta'ing for me.

Disclaimer: Andromeda, Harper, Trance, and the entire Andromeda universe are copyright to Tribune Entertainment Co., and they reserve all rights entitled to them under US and International law. (I spend too much time around lawyers. :))

AaAaA

He paced the small cell for the umpteenth time, he really couldn't keep track anymore. He'd already been there for 2 days, and he still didn't know why.

He'd found himself in a cell, about 8 feet by 8 feet, definitely the largest he's been in yet, and definitely not the last one he'll see.

He had been on a drift gathering supplies. Since Andromeda was making the valiant quest to restore the System's Commonwealth, the entire crew was known to almost everyone. That had turned out to be the problem.

He had been on his way back to the docked Andromeda when he was grabbed and drugged by 4 masked figures; when he awoke he found himself in this cell.

After day one, things had gone down hill. He hadn't been fed except once, stale bread and stagnant water. It hadn't been much, but he had eaten it greedily, he had after all had worse. The worse thing, however, was that he hadn't seen her in 2 days.

He sighed as he stopped pacing and sat on the floor, near the palette that passed for a bed.

Sighing again, he thought about the last time he saw her. She had been working in Hydroponics; he had needed to fix some little problem that had crept up.

Harper smiled as he remembered how she had looked.

Trance had been wearing a purplish pink tank top with her purple hot pants and suspenders, revealing her slim belly. She had been pruning some of the potted plants that she kept around the ship, humming to herself.

Harper smiled as he silently worked on his project, listening to Trance humming soothed him for some reason.

His hands quickly fixed the broken water line, while his mind dwelled on various projects he needed to finish, parts he needed, and Trance.

He sighed as he welded the pipe back together, ignoring the water that continued to flow out despite having been turned off.

"Harper," Trance's voice made him jump, the welding torch jumping from the weld seam.

"Yeah?" he asked as he focused on the pipe again, making sure it wouldn't break once the water was flowing again, hoping the weld would hold.

"Are you almost done?" She inquired as she sat next to him, avoiding the puddle that Harper was squatting in.

"Yup," he said as he stood up and moved out of the water. "That should hold it until I can get the supplies to fix it. We just need to make sure that it'll hold now. Stand back Trance."

He moved to the water main located a few feet from the break and turned the valve.

Nothing happened.

Harper's quick fix held, for now at least. Trance was able to water her plants again.

"Well Trance, it worked," he said as he looked around for his purple friend, but he didn't see her anywhere.

"Trance?" he called into the near quiet room.

"Yes?" she asked from right behind him, her breath tickling his ear.

"Geez, would you please stop doing that," he asked as he spun around to find her standing inches from him. He smiled at her to take any reprimand from his words.

"Sorry," she replied as she returned his smile.

"Uh, it'll hold for now, but I'll need to replace this pipe," he replied a little shakily. He was uncomfortable by her closeness, not that he wasn't enjoy it.

Trance just smiled and moved closer, so close in fact that Harper could feel her breath against his face as she spoke.

"Harper, I wanted to thank you for fixing the pipe. The plants would have died if you hadn't. I know that there were other projects that you could have worked on, but you helped me instead. I just wanted to say thanks," she said as she placed a kiss on his cheek.

Harper leaned into the brief kiss before pulling back and separating from Trance, taking a few small steps towards the door.

"Um, I ah, I need to go uh, do ...uh something in Engineering. Bye," he said before he ran out the doors, leaving an amused Trance behind."

Harper sighed as he remembered their last conversation. Shortly after that he had gone to the drift to gather supplies and parts; the new pipe Trance needed had been part of that load. He had just been on his way back to Andromeda to make sure the parts were delivered when he was grabbed and drugged. He knew only one thing; this group didn't want the Commonwealth restored.

He looked around the cell there were no windows and only one door, with a lock on the outside and solid metal on the inside. The only way he could escape would be to attack the guards and run, or wait for rescue.

AaAaA

Trance paced the floor of Machine Shop 17. Since receiving news of Harper's abduction; Trance had made her way to the Machine Shop and hadn't left since.

"Dylan, I'm worried about Trance, she's taking Harper's abduction extremely hard," Rommie said as they watched the purple girl pace on the view screen in Command.

"We are all taking the abduction in our own ways Rommie. But you're right; Trance is taking it harder than any of us. But they are best friends. I'm sure she misses him, that's all."

"I hope you're right," she replied as they continued to watch Trance.

"Me too, Rommie, me too."

AaAaA

Trance's pacing was about to wear the paint off the floor, and Beka was worried about her.

As Beka entered the Machine Shop, Trance spun around, an expectant look on her face; which quickly died, when she saw only Beka.

"Hey Trance, how ya doing?"

"Me? I'm fine, why do you ask?" Trance said as fast as she could, much as Harper usually did.

"Just curious, that's all," Beka lied as she stood next to the distraught purple girl. "Trance, I know you're worried about Harper, but we will find him and bring him home."

"I know," Trance began before breaking out into tears. Beka gathered her in her arms, allowing the girl to cry.

"I miss him so much Beka," she sobbed into the older woman's shoulder.

"I know Trance, I know. We will find him, don't worry," Beka reassured the girl, but she wasn't sure if she was trying to convince Trance or if she was trying to convince herself.

AaAaA

Harper looked up through swollen eyes at the being in front of him. The 'man', Harper wasn't sure if it was really a man or not cocked his fist for another blow to Harper's face. This blow breaking open his already dry and cracked lips, the blood flowing unnoticed into his blood soaked shirt.

They had dragged him from his cell earlier that morning and had proceeded to beat him no interrogation, just a beating.

Trying to look at the alien again, Harper tried to remember what they looked like. Having no reason to hide their identities, they had removed their masks, allowing Harper to see them.

They were humanoid, as close as possible anyway. They were bipedal, averaging around 6 feet in height, and possibly 230 pounds. Their skin was a deep crimson, almost a blood color; their eyes were black as space, with hair the same color pulled back into a ponytail. They had feminine facial features, making it difficult for Harper to gauge a sex, assuming this race had differing sexes that is. Their arms and legs were toned and muscled, with a bony, almost spike like protrusion just above their elbows. They wore leather pants and shirts, showing every developed muscle in their body. They were a frightening image to behold. He didn't know what they were called, so he privately called them Deamhan, Gaelic for Demon.

As the Deamhan hit him again, he felt his teeth dig into his cheek, felt the coppery warm blood flow from the wound. With the next blow he felt a rib crack and break.

The beating went on for another few hours, Harper wasn't sure how long, before he was thrown back into his cell, his broken body slamming painfully onto the stone flooring.

As he slowly crawled over to his pallet, his mind reverted back to Gaelic the language he had spoken with friends when the Dragans were around with only one thought racing through his mind; Trance, Tá brón orm; Trance, I'm sorry. That's all that filled his mind as he fell into a pain filled, dreamless sleep.

AaAaA

Trance was sound asleep in her bed, tossing in the nightmare that held her, whimpers escaping every now and then.

In the midst of her nightmare she began speaking to thin air.

"Harper, don't be sorry. It's ok, I'm here for you," she continued tossing as she spoke.

"No Harper, don't leave me, Harper cronaím thú, Harper, I miss you, " she mumbled.

"No, don't leave me. HARPER!" She woke up screaming, the horrors of her dream still fresh in her mind, Harper's death playing over and over again.

"Trance, are you all right?" Rommie asked as she materialized in the room.

"No, I'm not, Is Rev awake? I really need to talk to him," she pleaded with the hologram.

"He's asleep, but I'll wake him."

"Thank you Rommie, tell him I'll meet him on the Obs. Deck," Trance replied as she slipped on shoes and a night robe.

Rommie nodded then paused a moment as she awoke the Wayist and told him of the situation with Trance.

"I have told Rev of your situation, he said he'd meet you on the Obs. Deck in 5 minutes."

"Thank you Rommie," Trance said softly, fatigue evident in her voice, as she left her quarters for the Observation Deck.

"Would you like me to stay with you until Rev arrives?" the hologram asked the frightened girl as she walked down the corridor.

"Yes please, I don't want to be alone right now. When Rev gets here, please stay, I want you to hear this too."

Arriving in the observation Deck, Trance had to wait only a few minutes.

Moments later Rev arrived, sitting across from Trance on a bench, he waited for her to begin.

"Thank you for coming Rev, I really need to talk to someone," Trance told the monk.

"You are welcome Trance, what troubles you child?" He asked.

"Since Harper's abduction I've been having nightmares, bad dreams about what might be happening to him. Tonight I had the worse dream yet, I dreamt that he died." Trance had to fight back the tears that came to her eyes at the thought of Harper's death.

"I can see that this upsets you, I understand if you don't feel like talking about it," he said, waiting until the tears diminished.

"No, no Rev, I do want to, I need to talk about it. I have to talk about it."

"How much do you know about Harper's life on Earth?" Trance asked.

"As much as anybody on the ship, I'd assume," Rev answered, surprised by the question.

"Well, there's a lot of stuff that you guys don't know. Things that he has told only me, stuff so bad he hasn't even told Beka. When he was growing up in the camps, he and his friends would speak Gaelic when the Dragons were around. The Dragans considered Gaelic to be a human language, and therefore weak, so none of them learned it. That's what made it perfect for Harper and his friends. They could insult the Dragans and discuss raids and stuff like that without the Dragans knowing."

"And how is this bad, Trance?" Rev asked, still confused.

"That isn't the bad part, some of the things he had to endure at the hands of the Nietzscheans is so terrible I can't mention it. But what I can say is that the Dragan's would play upon his fears, use the Irish myths against him. The worst of all his tortures was the mental torture they put him through; not only was it mental but it was psychological as well. They would use virtual reality to torture his mind with pain inflicted by the demons of ancient lore, they used it to try and break him. Rev," she grabbed the Wayist's arm, tears in her eyes, "the people that killed him in my dream, they looked like old Earth images of the Devil."

Rev stared at her blankly, clearly not understanding the implications.

"Rev, we have to get him back," she was crying now, the tears staining her grief stricken face. "Even if my dream is wrong and he doesn't die, if he's there much longer, the very presence of his abductors could drive him over the edge. If we don't get him back soon the psychological damage will be beyond repair, I'll have lost my Harper forever."

AaAaA

Harper awoke the next morning to find a piece of moldy bread and stagnant water waiting for him. He slowly dragged his body towards them, arriving a few minutes later; he ate as quickly as his body would let him.

After eating, he returned to his pallet, curling into a little ball, he awaited his next round of beatings.

As he lay curled there, his mind replaying the images of his captors, the Deamhan. They looked like old Earth images of the devil. He could only think of one thing at this point: the Dragan's had used mental torture on him numerous times, and each time he'd been tortured by thesesame people, these devils, these Deamhans.

He stiffened as the lock was turned and his cell opened. He didn't need to look to know who it was; they had come to take him to torture again.

He'd learned early that there was no point in fighting; when he'd first fought he was beaten with a rifle butt before being dragged to his torture. Needless to say he hadn't fought them again.

The interrogation room had been rearranged, in previous visits he'd been strapped to a table or chair while he was beaten with fists and other blunt instruments. This time there was a bar hanging from the ceiling, he'd seen these before, not only that he'd been tortured on one as well. His blood ran cold, as he was drug towards the bar and his wrists roughly lashed to it and raised above his head so that he was barely touching the floor.

He heard the whip test crack behind him before he felt the first lightning fast, sickening blow to his back. He didn't cry out, he'd been whipped before by the Dragans, who were much more skillful at it than the Deamhans. He smiled slightly at the thought, these guys were amateurs compared to the Dragan torturers; they used different toys than the Dragans had, like the Cat-Of-Nine-Tails that was currently biting into the flesh of his back.

Eventually, after several hours of whipping him till his back looked like raw meat, they threw him back into his cell, but not before rubbing salt into the wounds, literally.

They did this, Harper realized as he lay on his stomach on his pallet, to prevent infection and help the wounds heal clean and heal faster. That made sense, what fun was a prisoner that was sick, you couldn't beat them half as well as you could a healthy one. Well, that and it hurt like hell.

He sighed again as he drifted off into a pain filled sleep, what the hell do these guys want? His conscious mind asked before he surrendered to the unconscious, and that was a question neither state could answer.

AaAaA

"Dylan, I am worried about Trance," Rev said as he and the Captain looked out the Obs. Deck window.

"So am I Rev, Rommie told me that she hasn't left Harper's Machine Shop except to sleep, and then most of the time she uses his cot. Rommie," he called to the AI, "when did she last eat?"

"Well," the hologram said as she appeared, "as I'm not sure whether she needs to eat or not, I'm not sure if we should worry. But it has been exactly the length of time Harper has been missing. Actually, the only thing she has eaten in the past few days has been a small amount of bread and a little water. In fact her sleep patterns have been erratic as well, she wakes at odd hours and remains awake for hours on end, unaware of the world around her. She talks in her sleep, Dylan, she talks as though she was talking to Harper."

Dylan rubbed his face with both hands before answering.

"And there is nothing we can do to help her?"

"Aside from getting Harper back, there is nothing we can do."

"Well then, Rommie, contact all our allies and see if they can find out anything. Get me Charlemagne, maybe he can help."

Rommie just saluted and disappeared, Rev turned to Dylan.

"I will go and pray for his safety."

"That's a good idea Rev, add a prayer in there from me," Dylan said as the Wayist left the Obs. Deck, the doors closing behind him.

Dylan sighed, and with one last look at the stars, left for Command Deck and his meeting with Charlemagne Bolivar.

AaAaA

After her conversation with Rev, Trance had completely retreated into herself. Not leaving the Machine Shop for anything. She would just wander around muttering to herself, sleeping odd hours and staying awake for even odder hours.

Occasionally she would eat small pieces of bread and drink a little water. The rest of the crew was hard pressed to not rush in there and forcibly take her to Medical. But, as Tyr pointed out, "she is much stronger than she looks, only a fool would try to force her to do anything against her will."

Dylan had just looked at him, unaware that he cared about the young girls' well being, shrugging it off, Dylan entered the Machine Shop to talk to Trance.

"Trance, how are you doing?" he asked as he approached the girl. She didn't even look up from her rambling. She'd know instantly if Harper were onboard again.

Dylan tried again, "Trance, we are doing all we can to find Harper. I've even asked the Sabra-Jaguar to find information on his whereabouts."

Even that little bit did nothing to shake her, she continued to wander aimlessly, occasionally touching the Hawaiian shirt she had started wearing. It was one of Harper's favorites, and it was a surprisingly subdued shirt. The colors were tan and olive green, with flowers and other plants adorning it.

'Trance looks good in it actually,' Dylan thought as he left the Machine Shop. He paused outside as Rommie's hologram appeared beside him.

"Rommie, what's Trance saying?" he asked her.

"I'm not sure, let me pull up a video and I'll translate," she replied as a live feed appeared on the monitor beside Dylan.

Trance could be seen wandering, muttering in a language Dylan had never heard.

Harper mo chroí, mo anamchara, grá mo chroí. Harper gráim thú. Trance kept repeating this over and over again. With each circuit of the room she would begin her litany once again.

"Dylan, the language appears to be an old Earth dialect called Gaelic. The language was once spoken widely by the majority of the world's population. Gaelic was the language of the ancient Celts, who rivaled the Romans in power. They controlled all, if not most, of Europe and a good part of the Middle East."

"And a translation of her words?" Dylan prodded the AI.

"As best as my translators can tell, she is saying 'Harper my heart, my soul mate, love of my heart. Harper I love you.' Apparently she's had these feelings for him for a while, but why she's acting this way, I have no idea. She does however, appear to be delusional, and if I could scan her, I'd say she would have a rapid heart beat and possible fever. If you watch the video Dylan, you'll notice she's trembling."

"In your opinion, what's wrong with her?" Dylan asked as he watched the monitor.

"I'd say she was suffering from chemical dependency withdrawals. Much like a drug addict experiences when they clean up."

"And what would cause this, withdrawal?"

"From all outward signs, I'd say its Harper," she answered.

"Then that would mean he could be experiencing the same thing!" Dylan said as all the pieces fell into place.

Harper and Trance spending every waking moment together, always going on leave together. The other looking weak when they were separated for long periods of time. The touches, the looks, the intimacy of their friendship, it all came crashing down on Dylan with this realization.

"Oh no, if Trance is being affected like this, how would it affect a human?"

"I have no idea how this would affect Harper, his symptoms could be less, or they could be worse. I have no way of telling," she sadly replied.

"Rommie, I want Harper found before the week is out. If I'm right, and I pray I'm not, he'll be dead before next week."

AaAaA

Rommie had no way of knowing how badly the withdrawals would affect Harper, sadly, his withdrawals were far worse than Trance's.

He currently lay curled into a ball on his pallet, convulsing and delusional, hallucinating that Trance was there with him.

The Deamhans hadn't bothered him in over a day; he has now been kidnapped for 4 days.

Harper was in the gripes of a raging fever, his heart was beating erratically, and his breath was coming in shallow spurts. At this rate, he'd not last another 3 days.

Harper slowly forced his fevered eyes open, to his mind; Trance was standing there, unable to help him in anyway, a spirit giving comfort to his tortured soul, a soul about to die.

The Trance spirit kneeled next to his head and stroked his damp hair from his eyes. She then leaned to his ear and began whispering to him, Harper mo chroí, mo anamchara, grá mo chroí. Harper gráim thú. She repeated this litany over and over again, giving his mind hope, a reason to hang onto life.

Slowly he uncurled a hand from where it had rested, gripping his stomach as he shook with tremors. With his hand he reached for the spirit Trance's face, hoping to banish the worry from her eyes. Needless to say, he was surprised when his hand made contact with her cheek. She leaned into the gentle caress, her litany never stopping.

Harper jumped slightly as the cell was opened, and in came his captors. They picked him up and took him back to his torture room, this time strapping him to a table standing in the center of the room. A few minutes later a Deamhan came into the room, instead of beating him, this one sat in a chair across from him.

"I don't suppose you know who we are, do you?" the man asked in a pleasant voice with only a hint of an accent.

Harper could only shake his head no.

"Well, we know who you are, Seamus Harper. In fact we've been watching you for a while before grabbing you. We are the Pra'c'tha, we tend to be isolationists, but this once we made an exception for you. Now we know all about you and your life on Earth, this surprises you I see."

The man got up and moved over to stand next to Harper, his eyes taking in the various wounds.

"Don't be surprised by what we know about you, we've been following your family their entire life. You see, the Pra'c'tha are a watching species, we watch others and only interfere when it serves our purpose too. You may wonder why we've watched you, and I believe that if you could speak right now, you'd ask. My people are a mildly precognitive race, we can only see glimpses of the future, but these glimpses let us know whom to watch. We saw you, helping to restore the Commonwealth. While this, to you, is a noble goal, to us it would be the destruction of our species. We have been interfering in the affairs of all the races that would join your little Commonwealth, and once they unite, they'll hunt us down to a man. As you can see, we can't allow that to happen."

Harper just stared at him blankly, his mind still delirious. The Trance spirit still stood beside him, lending him her strength.

"Why me?" he managed to ask through dry, cracked and bleeding lips.

"Because you will be instrumental in the formation of a new commonwealth, if your Captain sees what we've done to you, he will abandon his quest. Now that we've had this little conversation, you'll be taken back to your cell." He waved his hand and two Pra'c'tha came forward and untied him, dragging him back to his cell and throwing him to the floor.

As he once again crawled to his pallet, Trance was there beside him, telling him they'd be arriving soon to find him. That soon, she'd hold him in her arms, now and forever.

He only wished that was true, but he knew, deep in his heart, that he'd die here before they found him. He could already feel the withdrawals returning, only another day or two, and then he could rest, forever. If only he had trance with him, then he'd be happy. He sighed as he fell into a fevered sleep, full of nightmarish devils beating him.

AaAaA

Back on the Andromeda, Dylan and Rommie continued to monitor Trance. Her condition had grown worse; she now lay on Harper's cot, unmoving. Several times Rommie thought she was dead, but when Beka checked, she was still breathing.

Trance was in a dream state, her memories of time with Harper playing, as she remained unconscious.

"Trance?" Harper had asked as he lay on the grass next to her. Hydroponics had been chosen for their picnic, which lay spread on the blanket around them.

"Yes?" she answered, taking a bite of a ham sandwich.

"How do you do it, how do you keep Hydroponics so green?"

"The same way you keep Andromeda running, a lot of time and patience, why do you ask?"

"Just curious, that's all," he replied as he stared off into space, enjoying the sound of her voice.

Trance gave a little laugh and putting her sandwich down, lay next to Harper on the grass, her tail absently wrapping around his leg.

They were laying on a small rise; over looking the stream that ran through the back parts of Hydroponics. The rise was obscured from view by big oak trees planted by the original crew.

They continued to lay there together, lulled to sleep by the stream and the artificial wind in the trees.

Trance gave a small smile as she slowly breathed in and out, lost in the dream word.

That was but one of a hundred memories that assailed her as she slept.

AaAaA

Beka had been busy going over the information coming in from their contacts; so far the most likely was from the Sabra-Jaguar. Their information mentioned a race of beings called the Pra'c'tha. They resembled in every way the devils Trance had mentioned, and Bolivar was sure it was them that had Harper.

While Charlemagne didn't know their home planet, he sent information that might help find it.

They require a hot, humid temperature to be comfortable. The report began, find the most inhospitable desert planet you can, and that should be their home planet. They have been interfering in our affairs since the fall of the Commonwealth, and I'm sure they have had dealings in the affairs of other worlds as well.

Beka smiled as she reviewed the report, it wasn't much, but it was a start.

"Rommie, locate the worst possible desert planet you can, and then set a course. That's probably where Harper is being held. According to the Sabra-jaguar, he's probably being held by the Pra'c'tha. I'll explain more when I get to Command." Beka said as she moved towards the door, and on to Command.

AaAaA

In Command, Beka had to recount her suspicions to the others; even Trance had been dragged from the Machine Shop for this.

Trance was still comatose, so she was leaning against the front of the Captain's Command Console, Dylan stood at the console with Rommie beside him. Tyr was at weapons, looking like he could care less what happened to Harper, Rev was standing next to Beka, waiting for her to speak, she had all their attention at her first words.

"I know where Harper is," she smiled at the startled expressions she received, but frowned when Trance remained motionless.

"According to the Sabra-Jaguar, he is possibly being held by the Pra'c'tha, a race of people that have been interfering with other races since the fall of the Commonwealth. They live on a desert planet called, ironically, Purgatory. The planet boasts 120-degree temperatures as a low and almost 200 as a high. The surface winds are about 50 miles per hour, on average. Basically there is nothing but sand, sand, and more sand. Rommie has already set course for the planet and we'll be there in," Beka looked to Rommie to fill in this part.

"We'll be arriving in 5 hours, 39 minutes, and 12 seconds."

"Thank you Rommie, so Beka, how did you learn all this in the time it took to get from your quarters to Command?" Dylan asked with a smile.

"Rommie filled me in with info from the archive," she admitted sheepishly.

"Good enough, Beka prep the Maru for a surface landing, Rommie I want the Tweedlebots hitting dirt as soon as we arrive in orbit. Tyr, I want all weapons armed in case of any resistance. Rev, help Trance to Medical and watch her for any changes. Let's do it people."

As everyone scrambled to follow his orders, Dylan silently prayed to the Divine that Harper would be in one piece when they arrived.

AaAaA

Three hours after the Andromeda began her journey to Purgatory, the Pra'c'tha that had spoken to Harper earlier now stood over the engineer's weak and broken form.

He leaned down and lifted one of Harper's eyelids, his eyes were rolled up into his head and his breathing was labored.

"He won't last but another few hours, maybe less, but I do know that he could go at anytime. Leave him be, when he dies we'll return and prepare his body," he then led the other 2 Pra'c'tha out of the room, Harper never knowing they were there.

All that Harper knew was that Trance was telling him not to sleep, not to go towards the light, to stay with her.

A single tear rolled from his eye and down his face, he so desperately wanted to stay, but the weakness he felt wouldn't let him. He cried his solitary tear at his failure to be with Trance when he finally died.

As he felt his life slipping away, images of Trance began to filter into his mind, her smile, the sound of her voice, her beautiful multi-colored hair, her tail, her innocence. The one regret that he had was that he'd never told her that he loved her, never experienced her soft lips pressing against his, her lithe body nestled against his as they kissed. Of all the regrets in his life, this was his biggest.

His mind began to slow as his body started shutting down; system-by-system he was dying. As his body began the final shut down, he took his last breath, thinking of Trance and how much he loved her.

AaAaA

In Medical, Rev was startled to hear Trance take a deep breath and then stop breathing all together.

"Rommie, Trance has stopped breathing, she's dying," the monk exclaimed as he rushed to her side.

"Understood, my Avatar is almost there."

"Hurry," was all he said as he began trying to revive his friend.

A moment later a harried looking android rushed through the door and took over, less than a minute later Trance was hooked to a respirator and was breathing again.

"What's wrong with her?" Beka asked as the crew stood around Trance's bed.

"It's her link to Harper, something must have happened to him, she was almost dead when we got her on life-support, in fact that's all that is keeping her alive."

"Rommie, how long until we reach the planet?" Dylan asked after absorbing that news.

"A few more minutes, Tyr is doing an impressive job of piloting, he shaved off almost an hour," she paused, "Dylan, we are within range of the planet."

"Good, everyone back to Command. Rev, stay here and monitor her."

The crew then left for Command, leaving a worried Wayist to watch the dying Trance.

AaAaA

"Dylan," Tyr said as they entered, "the planet appears to have no life, yet there are small fighters closing on our position. May I blow them out of the sky?"

"Yes, Tyr, you may, fire when ready."

Tyr just smiled as he took his position at weapons, while the others assumed theirs. Weapons were already prepared to fire, Tyr having made sure of that earlier. So he just opened fire, the fighters were unprepared for this and were destroyed instantly.

"Dylan, those fighters match the description the Sabra-Jaguars gave of the Pra'c'tha ships. This is definitely their planet."

"Good, then land the bots, and let them clear a place for the Maru. Beka, Tyr, with me. Rommie, you have Command."

AaAaA

The moment the Planetary Warfare Bots hit the planet's surface, they began eliminating the surface defenses, clearing a path for the Maru.

She touched down a few moments later, allowing Beka, Dylan and Tyr to emerge in full battle armor.

"Now everyone remember, these people kidnapped Harper and have been torturing him. Don't kill all of them, just most of them. Let's bring it!"

With that they moved towards the entrance to the underground complex and the missing engineer located somewhere inside.

AaAaA

When the trio entered, they were met with little resistance, the Pra'c'tha had been expecting them and were leading them right to Harper.

Rounding a corner, they saw a gurney being moved by two Pra'c'tha, Tyr took them down before they even had a chance to turn.

"Beka, contact Andromeda, tell them that we've found Harper. Apprise them that his condition is dead, and that we are bringing his body back with us. Once the Maru has cleared the surface, retrieve the Tweedlebots. I'll give further details once we're back onboard."

"Yeah, sure," she replied while trying to hold back her tears.

"Dylan, I will carry him, we must get back to the Maru as soon as possible, I can hear footsteps approaching."

Dylan just nodded as he led the way to the Maru, with Tyr carrying Harper's body and Beka crying silent tears.

AaAaA

Once onboard, they wasted no time in lifting off, and were on the way back to Andromeda in less than two minutes, there was silence the entire trip.

"Rommie," Dylan said once they left the Maru for Medical, "Are the Tweedlebots back aboard yet?"

"Affirmative. Dylan there is fire coming from the surface, return fire?"

"No, move us away and destroy the planet, let all ships leave, but destroy that planet!"

"Affirmative, moving us away and arming weapons."

"Very good, Dylan out."

He had reached Medical by the end of the conversation, and there was Harper's body lying on the bed next to Trance.

"Dylan," Rev began when Dylan joined him next to Harper. "From the scans, it appears as though Harper died at the same time that Trance stopped breathing. But, there is something strange, feel his skin."

Dylan reached over to feel Harper's skin, expecting it to be cold and clammy like all the other bodies he'd seen. But he was surprised to feel a slight warmth there.

"Rev?" he asked.

"I cannot explain it, his scans show that he is dead, yet you can clearly feel that he still has body warmth."

"Rev, continue to watch them, notify me if Trance's condition changes."

"I very much doubt it will, but I will watch her."

Dylan then left for Command to watch the explosion of the planet, leaving Rev alone in Medical.

Rev silently moved to Harper's bed, he began giving him last rights, it was the least he could do for his friend.

As he was praying, he heard Trance take a deep breath. He turned towards the purple girl and saw her eyes flutter and open.

She slowly sat up and removed the oxygen mask; she then looked at Harper and smiled.

"Hello Rev, I see that Harper's back," she said with a smile as she slowly walked to where he sat praying.

"Yes he is, but he's dead, I am sorry Trance, I know how much you cared for him."

Her smile grew even wider and she gave a small giggle.

"He's not dead Rev, not yet. I wouldn't let him go, I made him stay. He was almost dead when Dylan found him, but being here is helping him."

"I don't understand," he admitted.

"Don't worry Rev, you don't need to, now stand back, I'm going to wake him up."

She then moved to Harper's side and gently began stroking his face.

"Harper?" she whispered in his ear. "Harper, you need to wake up now, don't die on me now. I love you and I fought death to keep you here. So please, wake up."

She then leaned over and gently kissed his lips.

"All we can do now is wait, his soul will find its way to his body."

"And if it doesn't?" Rev asked.

"Then both he and I will die, our lives are that intertwined."

AaAaA

And so they began the waiting process, Dylan was informed of Trance's recovery, and the Sabra-Jaguar were informed of the Pra'c'tha's destruction.

"Hello Dylan," Trance said as he entered.

"How'd you know it was me?" he asked her.

"The way you walk, your boots hit heel first and make an echo," she replied with a small smile, her eyes never leaving Harper.

"When did you put him on the respirator?"

"After I woke up, I didn't want him to die. There's life in his body Dylan, I can feel it. It's just that his spirit got separated and needs to find its way back."

"How long could that take?"

"Minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years. There's no way of telling. But I will stay with him until he wakes."

"Even if he never does?"

"Yes, even if he never does. I love him Dylan, and I will never leave him."

AaAaA

Harper was floating on the sea, the sun was warm on his face and chest, and he floated with his eyes closed. He couldn't open them, even if he wanted to, but he just wanted to float and let the sun warm him.

He became aware of a nagging little voice in the back of his mind. It pulled at him, gently at first, then more insistent. He tried to ignore it, but he couldn't.

He was still floating on the water; the voice was still calling him, when he was pulled under the surface of the water. He couldn't breathe, he was drowning.

He was pulled further and further beneath the surface, the pressure was building, it felt as though his lungs would be crushed at any time.

Suddenly the weight pulling him down was gone, as was the water. He was lying on a bed, where he didn't know, but there were ghostly voices around him.

He was aware of people talking to him, but he couldn't make out their words.

This went on for what seemed to be several hours, but in that time a few words became clear. He understood his name, but that was all.

After another couple of 'hours' Harper was able to understand an entire phrase that was whispered into his ear; Harper, you need to wake up now, don't die on me now. I love you and I fought death to keep you here. So please, wake up.

He tried to focus on the voice, but it was gone. He so desperately wanted to sleep, but the words spoken voice kept him from sleeping. Slowly, he was able to recognize the voice, it was Trance.

She loves me? His mind asked as he drew closer to consciousness. No, she couldn't love me, no one loves me. My parents said they loved me and they died, so did Brendan and all my cousins. Why would any one love me?

His mind continued on this tirade until there was a blinding light and a new sound filled his mind. He was remembering an important event, but he couldn't make it out clearly, then he saw it clear as day. It was Hydroponics and his conversation with Trance before his ill-fated parts run.

Harper smiled as he silently worked on his project, listening to Trance humming soothed him for some reason.

His hands quickly fixed the broken water line, while his mind dwelled on various projects he needed to finish, parts he needed, and Trance.

He sighed as he welded the pipe back together, ignoring the water that continued to flow out despite having been turned off.

"Harper," Trance's voice made him jump, the welding torch jumping from the weld seam.

"Yeah?" he asked as he focused on the pipe again, making sure that it wouldn't break once the water was flowing again, hoping that the weld would hold.

"Are you almost done?" She inquired as she sat next to him, avoiding the puddle that Harper was squatting in.

"Yup," he said as he stood up and moved out of the water. "That should hold it until I can get the supplies to fix it. We just need to make sure that it'll hold now. Stand back Trance."

He moved to the water main located a few feet from the break and turned the valve.

Nothing happened.

Harper's quick fix held, for now at least. Trance was able to water her plants again.

"Well Trance, it worked," he said as he looked around for his purple friend, but he didn't see her anywhere.

"Trance?" he called into the near quiet room.

"Yes?" she asked from right behind him, her breath tickling his ear.

"Geez, would you please stop doing that," he asked as he spun around to find her standing inches from him. He smiled at her to take any reprimand from his words.

"Sorry," she replied as she returned his smile.

"Uh, it'll hold for now, but I'll need to replace this pipe," he replied a little shakily. He was uncomfortable by her closeness, not that he wasn't enjoy it.

Trance just smiled and moved closer, so close in fact that Harper could feel her breath against his face as she spoke.

"Harper, I wanted to thank you for fixing the pipe. The plants would have died if you hadn't. I know that there were other projects that you could have worked on, but you helped me instead. I just wanted to say thanks," she said as she placed a kiss on his cheek.

Harper leaned into the brief kiss before pulling back and separating from Trance, taking a few small steps towards the door.

"Um, I ah, I need to go uh, do ... uh something in Engineering. Bye," he said before he ran out the doors, leaving an amused Trance behind."

She does love me! His mind screamed in triumph, the voice of doubt having been banished. But now there was a new, gentle voice to take its place.

Of course I love you Harper, why wouldn't I?

It was Trance's voice, but where was she, was he imagining her voice before he died?

I'm right here Harper, I'm right beside you, no you're not imagining me, and you're not dying. He could swear he felt a smile in her reply.

Why is she answering me? His mind asked confused.

Because I can hear your thoughts, and because you're speaking out loud.

He heard her laugh and felt a gentle hand brush his face.

Harper, I need you to wake up now, I don't want to be alone. Please wake up.

Yes Trance, I will, anything for you. His mind answered as his spirit returned to his body. He felt his back pressing against the mattress, felt her breath on his face as she stroked his face. He smelt the climate-controlled air of Medical, felt the soft blanket covering him, the machine keeping him alive, forcing breath into his body. The most important sensation was the touch of Trance's hand on his face, each caress sent electricity flowing through his body.

Slowly, very slowly, he tried to open his eyes. Surprisingly they obeyed and as his vision cleared he saw Trance smiling at him, he smiled back.

"Hello Trance," he croaked out of a dried throat past cracked and split lips, past the oxygen mask delivering life-giving air.

"Hi Harper," she replied before quickly hugging him as tight as she could. He winced as the hug squeezed his healing injuries.

"Trance, pain," was all he was able to say, she quickly let go and moved to get a hypodermic of painkillers, with which she injected him. He let out a sigh of relief as the medication took effect.

"I've told the other's you're awake, they'll be here shortly to say hi. But you need your rest, so it'll be a short visit."

Even as she finished saying this, the doors opened and the remaining crew walked in, Tyr as well.

"We'll talk later," she whispered in his ear before moving to intercept the visitors, he just nodded, removing the oxygen mask as the other's approached his bed.

"Harper!" Beka cried as she ran to embrace him, only to be stopped by Trance's body.

"Don't hug him, well not too hard anyway, he has a lot of broken bones, you could injure him more," she warned as she stepped aside and allowed the others to visit with Harper.

"Hey there Sport, how ya feeling?" Beka asked with concern etched on her face, as she gently hugged the small engineer.

"Like a pair of Pyrian Capital Ships used me for a tennis ball, not counting that, I'm good," he grinned to prove he was as 'good' as he said.

Beka returned the grin, but knew that he was lying. Her face then grew serious as she grabbed his shoulders and looked him squarely in the eyes.

"You are never leaving on a parts run by yourself again, do you understand me?"

"Yes mom," he replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes, for which he received a slap to the back of his head. Beka then moved aside to let the others through.

Rommie was next to engulf him in a non-painful embrace. She then looked into his eyes and then hugged him again, an artificial tear falling from her eye onto his shoulder.

"I'm glad to have you back, I missed you," she whispered in his ear, he smiled as he whispered back.

"I missed you to Rom-doll."

Next came Rev, who silently stood by his bed and looked at him.

"It is a joy to see you feeling better, Master Harper. The Divine has blessed you," the Wayist then leaned towards him until only Harper could hear him, "he has also blessed you with the gift of friends who love you, and one who loves you more than the others, I'd guess."

Harper shot a glance towards where Trance stood watching, a smile on her delicate features, her eyes lit up when she saw Harper watching her.

"You know what Rev?" he whispered back, "I think you're right."

Dylan came up to him and shook his hand.

"Mr. Harper, Andromeda wouldn't be home without you, I'm glad you're better."

"Thanks Boss," Harper replied as Dylan moved to talk to Rommie about Harper's recovery.

"Little man," Tyr said as he approached from behind him.

"Tyr," Harper replied as he turned to face him, waiting for the Nietzschean remark that he knew would follow.

"Your recovery is excellent news, soon you'll be able to return to work and fix the ship."

Harper hid his smile when he heard the characteristic words of Tyr.

"However, I must agree with Captain Valentine, you are never going on a supply trip alone again, you are too valuable to this ship. I will go with you from now on to ensure your survival."

Harper's mouth hung open when Tyr said this, for behind the normal Nietzschean sounding words, Harper caught the fact that Tyr truly wanted to make sure Harper survived, and not only because he could fix the ship. Harper knew it was that Tyr actually cared about Harper, well as much as Tyr could care about someone that wasn't Tyr.

"Thanks Big Guy, that means a lot," Harper replied, a small tear fighting to fall down his cheek, but losing in the end.

"Well, now that everyone has seen that Harper is fine, you all have to leave, he needs his rest and can't get it if you all are here," she then ushered them out amid Beka's promises of stopping by as soon a he awoke again.

When Trance returned, she sat on the edge of the bed next to Harper, just watching him while he watched her.

"So Trance, can we talk now?" he asked after a few minutes of studying her eyes.

"Sure, you have questions and I have answers, fire away!" she replied with an old Earth saying that Harper had used a few times before. He grinned at her as he formulated his first question.

"Ok, let's start at the beginning, what happened?"

"Well, you were kidnapped and tort..." she was cut off as Harper gently placed a hand over her mouth.

"I remember that part, Trance, all too well. I mean what happened to me, how was I able to hear you in my cell?"

"Oh," she said as she paused to carefully choose her words. After a short moment she began speaking.

"Well, we've always been close, ever since I first met you we were best friends. My race develops a bond with people that are close to their hearts. This bond allows them to feel the other person's spirit energy, or life force. Our friendship forged a bond between us, I can feel your life force and you can feel mine. This bond helped to save you when you were ... ill." Trance stopped to gauge Harper's reaction.

He sat in silence for a moment while this sunk in, then another question formed in his mind.

"When you say 'close to their hearts', how close do you mean? I mean what kind of relationship do the bonded usually have?" he asked after phrasing and re-phrasing the words in his head.

At this question, Trance became visibly uncomfortable.

"Usually they are related or ... or in love," she said the last part in a rush, hoping it was too fast for him to hear, it wasn't.

"In love?" he asked, "Trance, do you love me?"

When he asked there was no sarcasm in his voice, no sign that he was making a joke, just the hopeful anticipation of a 'yes' answer and the dread of a 'no'.

Trance just sat staring at him for a moment before answering; when she did she tried to keep as much emotion from her voice as she could.

"Harper, what I'm about to tell you isn't easy to say, in fact it's probably the hardest thing I've ever had to tell anyone. You've been my best friend since we met, I've always felt safe with you, I love being with you. You're always smiling and laughing, you're so much fun to be around," she paused as she thought about her next words. "And that's what makes this so difficult to say."

She sighed as she once again tried to form the words she wanted to use, but she didn't get a chance to finish as Harper just looked at her for a moment, his eyes held complete and utter sadness and acceptance, before he began speaking.

He looked at her as she struggled to find the words she wanted to say, the words that would destroy him, that words that said she didn't love him like he loved her. His eyes searched her face for some sign of what she would say next, but found nothing. His eyes at first held a deep sadness, then slowly that turned into complete and utter despair, and behind the despair lurked the knowledge of impending death.

"It's ok Trance, I understand, girls have always thought of me as just a friend, even those I've loved with my whole heart," he sighed as he thought about what she was going to say.

"Listen Trance, I'm sorry for putting you through this, I know I'm just a worthless mudfoot kludge, and you deserve better than that. You should have just let me die, you wouldn't have died, the bond would have been broken, I'm not worth your love, and you would be free to live your life without me. I'm sorry to burden you with my unwanted love, if I'm still alive, I hope we can still be friends," which won't happen, cause death is better than seeing her everyday, knowing my love isn't returned, I should have died on the planet, it would have been better than this. Harper thought as he silently planned a solution to that problem.

Harper looked into her stunned eyes for a moment then turned onto his side, looking in the opposite direction so she wouldn't see his silent tears. Trance continued to share in shock at his back and the scars that were revealed by his gown. She very slowly and very gently, reached over and ran her fingers over some of the scars, causing Harper to stiffen.

"How did you get these, Harper?" she asked as she continued to examine his back.

"Earth," was all he said, the struggle to control his tears apparent in his voice.

"Do you want to talk about them?" she asked, her hands returning to her lap.

"Maybe some other time," he told her before sitting up and looking her in the eyes again, "why are you still here Trance? Do you want to rub in the fact that I'm not good enough for someone like you? Or are you trying to drive home the fact that I should have died on Earth, and that I'm worthless," he said angrily as silent tears began to fall down his face unnoticed.

She looked him straight in the eyes and placed her hands on his shoulders, she began speaking, saying the words that were in her heart.

"Harper, like I told you before, you were my first and best friend, you've always been there for me, please don't take that away, don't kill yourself," she said, trying to get him to want to live.

"Why Trance? What is there here for me that's worth living for? I don't have your love, Dylan and Beka can always find another engineer, and Tyr, well, he never liked me anyway. So tell me, what do I have that's worth staying for, Trance?" He said as he pulled from her grip and just sat glaring at her.

"Me," she said softly as she grabbed him and gently kissed him.

The kiss lasted only a few seconds, but in those seconds all the pain and frustration that Harper had been keeping inside melted away.

"Trance," he began weakly but was cut off.

"Harper, I do love you, that's what I've been trying to tell you. I love you with all my heart; it was difficult for me to tell you because I wasn't sure how you felt. I ... I didn't want to scare you away if you didn't feel the same, I didn't feel I was good enough for you," she admitted as she began to cry.

"Trance," he said as he slowly crawled to where she sat and took her in his arms, letting her dry her tears on his gown. "How can I not love you? You're perfect: kind, caring, loving, beautiful, I'm the one that isn't good enough."

"Harper, I love you, and you love me, neither of us is too good for the other, so let's just be happy.

Harper gave a small laugh, followed by a huge yawn; the emotions of the previous few moments had drained his limited energy. Reluctantly he released Trance after kissing her forehead, and laid back on his pillow. He pulled the sheet up over his body as Trance got up to make sure he was comfortable.

"Harper?" she asked as his eyes drifted close.

"Yeah?"

"Can I sleep with you, I've missed you so much and I don't want to lose you again."

"Sure Trance," he said sleepily as he turned on his side and made room for her on the small bed. She crawled under the blanket with him and snuggled against his body, the contact easing them both to sleep. The last thing either of them was aware of was Harper putting his arm over Trance's body and pulling her closer. Andromeda lowered the lights and engaged privacy mode.

AaAaA

They were awakened the next morning by a throat being cleared. Opening her eyes Trance saw the smiling face of Beka, with Rommie standing behind her.

"Morning Beka," Trance said as she gave a small yawn.

"Morning Trance, sleep well?" Beka quipped, the innuendo dripping from her voice, which Trance thankfully missed.

"Yup, I slept very well, Harper is very warm," she replied with a shy grin.

"I'll bet," Beka replied as she looked over at Harper.

Trance got off the bed and gently began to shake Harper awake.

"Mmmm ... five more minutes Rommie, ok? Then I'll fix whatever it is," he mumbled as he struggled to stay asleep.

"Wakey wakey, Harper," Beka teased as she shook Harper awake, she was much less gentle than Trance was.

"Huh, what?" he asked as he sat up, he grew sheepish when he saw Beka. "Hey Boss."

"Morning Sport, sorry to wake you, but Dylan is on his way down to talk to you and Rommie thought it'd be a good idea for him not to see you two sleeping together."

"Uh, yeah, sure, whatever you say Boss," Harper replied with a yawn.

Beka just grinned as the doors opened to admit Dylan.

"Good morning, Harper, sleep well?"

"You have no idea," Harper replied with a veiled glance at Trance. Dylan didn't notice, he was too busy being brought up to speed about Harper's condition.

"So Rommie tells me that you'll be in here a few more days, is there anything you need? Anything you want us to get for you at the next Drift? We'll be stopping at Ticonderoga Drift to pick up some supplies tomorrow."

"If you could, I'd like an entire crate of Sparky cola, I really need a Sparky!" he said in a tone that showed he was desperate.

While Dylan was adding that to the list, Trance leaned forwards and whispered in his ear; "How about something 'sparkly' instead?"

"Later, right now I need a drink," he whispered back, causing her to grin and move away. She went to the refrigeration unit and took out an ice cold Sparky and returned to Harper's side. She presented him with the drink, causing his eyes to light up and a smile to form. He took the drink and gratefully kissed Trance on the cheek before opening the can and drinking it in one go.

"Ah," he said as he placed the now empty can on the tray by his bed. Dylan smiled at his engineer, happy to have him back, and apparently no worse for the wear.

"Need anything else Harper?" the Captain asked as he filled out the 'shopping list' on the flexi.

"Well, the repairs that I started before I was ... er ... detained, they need to be finished. If you don't have the parts from the Maru, Rommie can give you a list. I'll start on the repairs as soon as Trance lets me out of here."

"Which won't be for several days," the purple girl replied, forcing a glare to her face, even thought her eyes sparked with laughter. "now I need everyone to leave so I can run some scans."

"Yes ma'am," Dylan and Beka replied in unison, drawing a smile from Trance and Rommie as the two left.

Trance then began a scan of Harper while Rommie talked to him about repairs that need to the done.

After a few minutes, Rommie left with the list for Dylan, leaving Trance and Harper alone once again.

"So Trance, what are we gonna do?" Harper asked after Rommie left and he had engaged privacy mode.

"Do, about what?" she asked confused by his question.

"About us, where do we go from here?"

"Well, once you're better we should go on a date, we should be at Ticonderoga until after you recover, Dylan's giving everyone shore leave. So you get better, then we'll go out and see where it goes from there. Ok?"

"Sure Trance, sounds good," he didn't get to finish as he was cut off by a series of coughs. Trance quickly handed him a cup of water once he was able to breathe again.

"You need to rest Harper, you're still not strong enough to be up and about. I put something in your water to help you sleep."

"Will you still be here when I wake up?"

"Of course, I'll always be here when you wake up, always and forever," she replied as the sedative began taking affect. She gently brushed a lock of hair from his face as he settled into his pillow almost asleep.

"Promise?" he mumbled.

"Of course, I'll never leave your side. Good night Harper."

"Night Trance," he then fell asleep, Trance remained there stroking his face until she herself fell asleep once again, her head resting on Harper's chest. Comforted by his steady heartbeat, she fell into a peaceful sleep.

AaAaA

The week passed slowly for Harper, he spent most of his time sleeping, and whenever he'd awake, Trance was there by his side, ready to help him.

In-between his 'naps' Rommie allowed Harper to work on small projects. During one of his work moments Harper managed to redesign the water supply system of hydroponics to be 5 more effective and less prone to breaking.

Harper would normally be trying to sneak away and do work in a machine shop or in engineering, but he stayed where he was. The reason wasn't because he wanted to follow orders, but because every now and then Trance would stop by and give him a small hug and a kiss, and he did not want to miss that.

On his fourth day in medical, both Trance and Rommie were looking between his latest scans and him. They both had huge smiles on their faces.

"Harper, I have good news," Trance said as she approached him and placed her hand on his arm. He normally wouldn't let people touch him, but since his 'death' he had allowed Trance and Rommie to touch him, mainly Trance.

"I can leave?" he asked, the joy apparent in his voice.

"Yup, you're back to normal, well as normal as you get. So you are free to return to duties."

"Ah, thanks Trance, you're the best," he said as he jumped off the bed and grabbed her in a hug and kissed her. He quickly released her and moved towards the door. Just before he left he turned back to her. "Hey Trance, be ready at 2000 hours, we've got a date tonight."

"Ok Harper," she replied as he left and the doors closed shut behind him. Rommie just looked at her amused.

"You have a date with Harper, any reason I should know about?"

"Not really, just that I love him and want to be with him forever, and I hope that he will ask me to marry him." Trance replied in one breath.

"Trance, I have no doubt he loves you the same, but remember, emotions are difficult for him. He grew up on Earth and is scared to love for fear of losing those he loves."

"I know, I just hope he realizes that he'll never lose me no matter what," Trance replied with a sigh as she went back to cleaning Medical up. Rommie just watched her for a few moments before she left Trance alone with her thoughts.

As the doors closed behind her, Rommie checked her internal sensors and came to a resolution; she realized that she had work to do. So with a determined step she set off to put her plan into action, she was an android on a mission, and no one would stop her.

AaAaA

Rommie caught up to Harper just as he was entering the airlock leading to the drift, she called his name.

"Harper!" Rommie yelled down the hall.

"Yeah?" Harper replied as he stopped to see what the android wanted.

"Harper I need to talk to you," she said once she reached his side.

"Can't the repairs wait Rommie? I have some things to take care of on the drift."

"This has nothing to do with repairs, Harper. I need to talk to you about Trance," she explained as the young man began walking towards the shops.

"Oh, you don't mind if we talk while I take care of my business, do you?" he asked, obviously not going to take no for an answer.

"Sure Harper, what business do you have?"

"Um, just some things for my date with Trance tonight, nothing big," he explained as they approached the Restaurant District. "I need to make reservations tonight for dinner."

"So, tell me Harper, do you love Trance?"

"Not one for banter are you Rommie?" he asked, she just shrugged. Harper sighed before answering.

"Yes, Rommie I do love Trance, more than you will ever know. I love her with all my heart, she is my heart. I couldn't imagine living without her. I was planning on proposing to her tonight, but I don't have enough money to buy much of a ring. Dinner I can do, a ring, no way."

"Harper, I'm glad to hear that, Trance told me much the same thing before I left her in Medical," hearing this Harper's face brightened. "I have an idea, Harper let's go make those dinner reservations then I'll help you with a ring."

"Really? You're not just saying that?" he asked as he gave her a huge hug.

"Yes, I do mean it. Now where were you going to have dinner?"

"This way, I'll show you," Harper said as he grabbed her hand and dragged her to the restaurant he had chosen, it was the most expensive on the Drift.

After making the reservations, Harper and Rommie left the restaurant and walked towards the business district looking for a jeweler.

"Well you can sure pick them Harper, that restaurant is going to set you back a few months paychecks."

"Three months actually, but I figure that Trance is worth it. Ah, here's a good jewelers. Are you really gonna help me with the ring?"

"Yes, Harper, I'll take care of it, just pick one out."

"Well, the problem with that is that I designed one for her."

"That's ok Harper, Dylan wouldn't have a problem with it, not after I 'explain' the situation to him," she replied with a smirk.

The two entered the shop and approached the owner behind the counter.

"Welcome, welcome, how may I help you?" the Persied asked.

"I'd like to have this ring made, I need to have it ready before tonight," Harper explained as he pulled a drawing from his pocket and handed it to the jeweler.

"Ah, yes, an elegant design. I can have this completed before 9 tonight."

"I need to have it before 7, anyway you can do that?"

"I'm sorry, a ring like this takes time to make, I am truly sorry, but it won't be ready until 9," the man replied apologetically.

"It's ok, I understand. Hey, get it done when you can," Harper said as he left the store.

"Listen," Rommie began once Harper was out of earshot, "we really need that ring done as soon as possible. Are you sure there's no way to get it done by 7?"

"Well, for another 100 Thrones I could make this my top priority, that's all I can do, I have other projects that require my attention."

"Well then, let's talk," Rommie began as she started to discuss payment and delivery with the jeweler.

AaAaA

Harper slowly walked the streets between the shops, occasionally stopping to look at another over priced piece of plastic designed for tourists.

His mind was thinking about Trance, more specifically his mind was thinking about how to tell her he loved her. He kept practicing the words he'd say at dinner over and over again, finding just the right phrase.

He was totally unaware, and completely surprised, when he found himself standing in the middle of the Hanger Bay housing the Maru.

Taking a deep breath which trailed into a sigh he walking into the Maru, and went to where he was most comfortable, the engine room. Settling down amidst the pipes and parts, he fell into a thoughtful and dream filled sleep, and that's where Rommie found him several hours later.

"Harper," she said as she gently shook his shoulder, "Harper wake up."

Rommie was used to Harper's sleeping patterns, but even she wasn't ready for the speed at which he disappeared from her grip and appeared several feet away brandishing a knife she never knew he had, or could use.

"Rommie?" Harper asked as he looked around warily, his eyes focusing on the android in front of him.

"Yes Harper, it's me, can you put the knife away now, please?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," he replied as he slipped the knife back into it's hiding place.

"So, what's up?" he asked once he regained his composure.

"Well, I came to get you ready for your date, and don't worry about the ring, it's all taken care of," she replied as she led him from the Maru towards the Andromeda's machine shop, the place he called home.

"Thanks Rommie, I don't know what'd I do without you," he quipped as he gave her a quick hug.

"Well, first of all you'd probably suffocate because as Dylan is so fond of saying 'I am the air you breath, literally.'"

Harper just laughed as they entered the doors to his domain, the piles of clothes having been picked up and washed by the Marias in anticipation of his date.

"Um, Rommie, where are all my clothes?" Harper asked when he saw his floor, a thing he hadn't seen since he moved in.

"My bots cleaned them and hung them up, you may have something nice to wear in there for your date."

"I see," was all Harper said as they set about picking the perfect outfit for him to wear when he proposed to Trance, half an hour later he was ready. Rommie had dressed him in a nice pair of cargo pants and a clean t-shirt the same color, she had decided to not make him wear a suit, knowing how much he hated formal clothes.

"Ok, so, I'll see ya later Rommie," Harper said as he left for his date.

"Good luck," the avatar whispered as the young man disappeared around the corner.

AaAaA

Harper arrived at the restaurant 10 minutes early, he followed the restaurant manager to his selected table, set off in the corner, almost isolated from the rest of the restaurant. He sat down as the manager left and began playing with the utensils set out. He did this for the entire time he was waiting for Trance, 10 minutes, she arrived exactly on time and was shown to the table.

Harper's mouth dropped open and his eyes nearly popped out of his head, she looked gorgeous. He quickly stood as she approached the table and met her by her chair.

"Wow, Trance you look fabulous, absolutely fabulous," Harper said in awed tones to his date. Trance just blushed and giggled, Harper quickly pulled out her chair so she could sit, never once taking his eyes from her.

She was wearing a dark purple dress the same color as the highlights in her hair, the dress was almost a cocktail dress but not as fancy. It looked to be made of velvet, a material Harper thought to be perfectly suited to fit Trance.

Once Trance was settled, Harper returned to his own chair, but he didn't have a chance to speak for the waiter appeared with their menus.

After looking over the dishes, they made their selections.

"Wow, Trance, I can't get over how beautiful you look in that dress, you look perfect."

"Thank you Harper, you look nice too," she replied shyly causing Harper to look down in embarrassment. After that they sat there for a few minutes, just staring into the other's eyes. No word needing to have been spoken between the two, every thing they had to say was perfectly clear to the other.

They sat there until the waiter returned with their meals, which they began eating in silence. For Trance the silence was pleasant, she could watch Harper all she wanted and not have to say a word. For Harper the silence was unbearable, he kept practicing his proposal over and over and over again, each time discarding the words. It wasn't until the meal was finished and they had just eaten desert, a nice orange sorbet, that the words came to his heart.

Harper waited until the plates were cleared away before he made his move. He got up from his seat and moved to stand in front of Trance, he then bent down on one knee. Before he had the chance to say anything, the Manager came over and interrupted him.

"Sir, a package arrived for you just now," he whispered in Harper's ear as the young man stood to confront the manager. The manager then handed a small package to Harper and left. Harper looked stunned as he open the small box, tears nearly came to his eyes as he saw what was inside. Inside was the ring he had ordered, and with it a little note from Rommie;

Harper, I made a deal with the Jeweler, so he finished the ring early. I hope you haven't proposed yet, you can't do that without a ring.

Love Rommie

Harper smiled as he removed the note and put it in his pocket, he then gently closed the box lid and returned to his knee in front of Trance.

"Trance," he began slowly, "we're best friends, and you know that I love you. Trance I love you with all of my heart, you are the air I breathe and the blood in my veins, you are what gives me life. Trance, I know you love me, you said so earlier, so I was wondering..."

He broke off to take a deep breath and clear his mind, the whole time he watched the expectant look on Trance's face, she seemed to know what he was doing.

"Trance, will you marry me and complete the hole that's missing in my life? You don't need to answer right away, there's no one else around, that's why I choose this table, no pressure. Trance if you say no, I'll understand and I'll leave your life forever, but if you say yes, I'll stay and make you as happy as you could ever want. So Trance, I'll ask you again, will you marry me?"

There was silence from her for what seemed like an eternity, and in that time Harper felt his hopes and dreams die in a fiery demise. He began to move from his position, moving to both place the box in his pocket and leave the restaurant but was stopped when Trance said one little word that would change his life forever.

"Yes," she said barely above a whisper.

"What?" Harper asked not sure that he heard her correctly.

"Yes, I will marry you," she said loud enough for him to hear her. This caused the biggest smile she had ever seen on Harper to spread from one ear to the other. He took the box and opened it, presenting her with the ring nestled inside, she gasped when she saw it.

The ring was a small gold band with a heart shaped gem in the setting. The gem however was special, on one half it was a purple amethyst and on the other a light pink ruby, the ring was a reflection of her hair.

"Harper, it's beautiful," she stammer out as he took the ring and placed it on her finger.

"Not as beautiful as you, my purple pixie," he replied as he gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Trance blushed a darker shade of purple and rose as Harper pulled her to her feet.

"What do you say we get out of here, huh? I want to talk to you some place more private."

"Ok, sure, but what about the bill?" Trance asked as Harper led her from the restaurant.

"Already taken care of, paid it when I made the reservations, the rest that didn't cover the meal is a tip," he replied as they made their way towards Andromeda.

AaAaA

Arriving a few minutes later on board Andromeda, Harper led Trance to his quarters so they could talk.

"Andromeda, don't bother engaging privacy mode, I want your input on this as well," Harper said as he led Trance to the only chair in the room and sat her down.

"Ok, Harper, I'm all ears," the hologram said as she appeared in the room next to Trance.

"Harper, what are you planning?" Trance asked when he remained silent.

"Trance, I love you with all my heart and will do anything for you, you know this. Here's the thing, we've know each other for several years, and I love you so much, I don't want to wait to get married. My idea is to have Dylan marry us, I've been reading the High Guard rules and regulations, and he has the power to marry people under Commonwealth law. Even though the Commonwealth no longer exists, for now," he added when he saw Rommie begin to say something. "Now here's the other part, since Rev is a priest he can also marry us, so either way we'll be officially married, what do you say?"

Harper then paused to let the information sink in, he didn't have to wait long for her answer; she ran to him and threw her arms around his neck and kissed him, drawing a smile from the hologram.

"Of course, Harper, I love the idea," Trance gushed as she continued to hold her fiancé.

"So Rommie, could you please tell Dylan and Rev the plan as soon as possible?"

"Of course Harper, I'll tell them right now," she said as she fizzled from view.

"Well, now all we do is wait," Harper said as he held Trance gently against him, awaiting the reply.

They didn't have to wait long as Rommie reappeared minutes later with a grin on her face, with obvious good news.

"Well, they both liked you idea and would be honored to perform the ceremony, just name the time and place."

"Next week, the Obs. Deck, I need to make some arrangements before then," Harper explained as Trance cuddled into his chest, a happy smile on her face.

"You got it," Rommie replied with a nod as she disappeared once again. Harper smiled down at Trance and hugged her closer to him, if that was possible.

"Trance, would you care to dance?" he whispered in her ear.

Her reply was a radiant smile that could light the darkest parts of his soul.

"Rommie, begin playing some slow music," he called out to the air and immediately the soft sounds of violins began to fill the air as the young lovers slowly danced into the night, all other commitments and worries forgotten in this one perfect moment in time.

AaAaA

One week to the day of their engagement, Harper and Trance were standing in front of Dylan and Rev, each performing the wedding ceremony in their own way.

After Dylan had completed his part, he waited for Rev to finish, then together they performed the marriage vows. Once the rings were exchanged, they presented the newly weds to the assembled; which consisted of Tyr as best man, Beka as maid of honor and Rommie as the flower girl.

As Harper and Trance moved from Dylan and Rev, they were assailed by Beka, who wrapped them both in a hug.

"I'm so happy for you two. I always knew you two would be together," Beka said as she slowly squeezed the air from the couple's lungs.

"Umm, Boss, can't breath here," Harper said as he began to see spots.

"Oh, sorry," she replied as she released them and moved aside for Rommie to have her turn.

"Harper, I'm so glad you're not alone anymore. Trance, I'm pleased to see you so happy, I want you both to take care of each other," the android said as she gave them a hug almost equal to Beka's.

"What do you mean Rommie?" Trance asked once she let go.

"Well, now that you're married you're leaving the ship, I'm not setup for children."

Harper just laughed when he heard this.

"Rommie, it'd take at least 5 Nietzschean Capital ships to pull us away from you, we'll be back in a week, after the honeymoon."

"Speaking of honeymoon, where are you two going anyway," Dylan asked as he joined them.

"That's a surprise, but we'll send you a postcard once we get there," Harper explained as Tyr joined the group, standing next to Beka.

"Which means he has no idea where they are going," Tyr whispered for Beka's ears alone, but Harper caught it.

"Actually, Tyr, I do know, I made the reservations last week. I just want it to be a surprise."

"And speaking of honeymoons, we should be going, we do have reservations after all," Trance said as she began dragging Harper towards the fighter bay, and the Slipfighter that Dylan had given them to use.

AaAaA

"So, Harper, where are we going?" Trance asked once they left the Andromeda and Harper had set in the course.

"Infinity Atoll, the most beautiful planet in the universe, perfect place to honeymoon with the most beautiful girl in the universe," he replied with a grin.

"Harper, I love you," she said as she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"I love you too," he replied, returning the kiss, he then went back to the boring task of flying the fighter through slipstream, which they entered shortly after their kiss.

And so the two began their adventure along the path that destiny set out for them, happy and content in the presence of the other.

AaAaA

Fin