The Cliffhangers were seated in chairs placed in a circle, all facing one another. Peter stood behind their circle. Another group session was in process

"Alright group," Peter began. "Anyone have something they want to address before we begin?"

"Yeah," Scott spoke up. He subsequently grinned. "How's Dan doing?"

"Scott.."

"No, I'm serious," Scott insisted.

"Yeah, he got knocked pretty bad," added Auggie.

"You want to address the fight that broke out?" Peter questioned.

"Hey, I was just asking," Scott replied.

"Well if Scott doesn't want to address it, then I do," said Daisy. "I saw it begin. What the world is coming to, I have to wonder."

"The Erikaster did kick his sorry butt in the end, but still, man," said Auggie.

"So the moral of the story is," Erika interrupted, "you guys know what I'm capable of. Don't underestimate what I can do."

Peter sighed heavily. "Erika, are you sure that's the vibe you should be advertising considering what I told you earlier?"

Erika shrugged. "Probably not."

"I think we can address this. The moral of the story is, violence doesn't solve anything, no matter how much you would like it to," Peter said.

"I have a question," Adrian said.

"Shoot."

"It's for Erika," he replied, turning to her. "Where'd you learn to fight like that?"

"Experience," she dismissed.

"What kind?"

"Life."

Seeing that Erika's vague response was the only one she was willing to offer, Peter voiced, "I think also, what this teaches, is that revenge doesn't solve anything either."

"An eye for an eye, and the world is blind," Daisy replied.

"Exactly, Daisy," Peter responded. "Auggie, your thoughts?"

"Ah, nothin', just glad it ain't me."

"Alright," Peter assessed. "Anyone else have thoughts on the subject?" A vapid pause. "No? Alright, tonight we'll start off with something easy, and progress into a discussion. Complete this sentence: I feel.. And then, add in what you're feeling and why. Erika."

It was a moment before she replied. "I feel weird," she stated finally.

"And why is that?" Peter questioned.

"Because that's what life is, weird."

"You can never anticipate what life will bring," Daisy added. "Without the aid of tarot cards, of course."

"Daisy," Peter volunteered to follow suit.

Daisy shrugged. "I'm feel like my usual self, and the reason for that should be evident."

The Cliffhangers proceeded to share what they felt at the particular moment.

Once each Cliffhanger revealed what they were feeling, Peter said, "Alright, tonight's topic of discussion is something you all have something to say about. Parents."

A chorus of groans proceeded.

"Well isn't that our favourite topic of discussion," Ezra replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Ezra? Your thoughts?" Peter said.

"Parents are *supposed* to be there for you, *supposed* to love and support you," he began.

"According to who?" Shelby interrupted. "The Brady bunch?"

"Yeah, right," Ezra replied. "My point is, 'parents' aren't supposed to adopt you just to save their marriage. Some parents I had, huh."

"Man, what are we doin' this for?" Auggie complained. "Our parents all gave up on us, remember?"

"Handing you over to me, doesn't mean they gave up on you," Peter replied.

"Yes, I have to say, dragging me here was the best decision my parents ever made," said Daisy.

"Daisy? Your thoughts?"

"My parents had no business having me."

"What?" Kat asked, taken aback.

"They're alcoholics, in case you've forgotten," Daisy began. "Parents are supposed to be some kind of role model, show you the right path. My parents did everything but that. How can you call someone mom when she's emptying out her stomach contents in the bathroom because they had too much to drink the night before? How can you be thankful to someone for raising you when you can't watch them drive you home from school because they're so drunk?! I didn't have parents. What I had were some pretty lousy excuses. What were they thinking? They couldn't support themselves, let alone a child with needs."

"Well you grew up in a house right?" Adrian asked.

"A place of dreary memories," she replied.

"They could have just dumped you off the side of the road," Adrian pointed out. "I think they did care about you."

"If they cared about me, they wouldn't have let me grow up in the household that I did. That house was supposed to be my shelter, my harbour. It was anything but."

"Imagine growing up homeless, huh? Be thankful for what you had."

"A roof over my head doesn't constitute for a home. I grew up in world war 3, not a real home," Daisy stated. "My final thoughts on this subject, are that my parents are people I want to leave behind completely. If anything brings me down in life, it's not going to be them. I am not going to continue the rigorous cycle. Who am I to be responsible for another human life?"

"C'mon Dais," Kat argued. "Just because your parents weren't top of the line, doesn't mean you shouldn't have kids. If anything, you can learn from your parent's mistakes, and make sure you don't make the same ones."

"As much as I wish it weren't so, your parents impart something of theirs to you, even if it's just their genes, that's enough to discourage me from reproducing. Who's to say I'm not going to be an alcoholic?" Daisy continued.

"What the hell is with you?" Erika chided. "You're going to let your parents bring you down, just because you're stuck with their genes."

Daisy shook her head. "I'm not letting my parents bring me down, I'm merely accepting reality as it is, Erika."

"Reality is what you make of it, hun."

"Yeah, and I'm just accepting the cold hard truth. The odds are against me, 'hun'. I am not a fantasist, and to believe that things are other than what they are is ignorant and stupid," Daisy stated.

"To let anyone get to you like that is ignorant and stupid," Erika argued. "Just because some shit-ass genetics point towards you becoming an alcoholic doesn't mean you have to frickin give up and succumb to it."

Peter turned to Erika. "Erika? Your thoughts?"

"I had some shit-ass parents too, you know. One of them was too frickin lazy to take care of his own ass and didn't think shit of me."

"Erika, watch what's coming out of your mouth," Peter warned sternly.

"You know where he is now, huh?" Erika continued, not giving any indication that she had even heard Peter's words. "Know what he's doing with his life? Shit, that's what. I've never even seen the guy. My other parent was just some little hopeless woman who let everything get to her. Believed everything that seemed factually correct. I'm the opposite of that, and thankful to God that I didn't turn out like she did. You learn from your parents' mistakes, you don't have to succumb to them."

"Yeah, but look where you ended up," said Shelby. "A lock-down for societal rejects."

"Shelby? Your thoughts on all this?"

"I'm better off without my parents. I think we all had messed up parents, or else we wouldn't be here. I know that I wouldn't."

"But you had both parents," Erika interrupted. "What the hell are you complaining about?"

"What am I complaining about? Excuse me, you have no idea," Shelby replied.

"Well enlighten me Shelby."

"Step off, Erika," Scott said forcefully.

"Abuse, being traumatized, being so scared you didn't know what to do with yourself. You want a father so bad, why don't you take mine?" Shelby invited, her voice raised. "I've wanted to get rid of him all my life. He's the very reason I'm here, Erika."

"Is your father in jail, huh?" Erika challenged. "Doing shit with his life? That's all mine ever did. I don't care what the hell he was convicted for. A girl needs a father."

"A girl does need a father, but not mine," Shelby persisted, almost yelling. "He wasn't a father. Oh, and to answer your question, yes my father's in jail. Do you know what for Erika? Do you know what for, huh?" Shelby rose from her chair to enforce her point. "I put him there! Sexual abuse, years of it!"

Erika dismissed Shelby's words."You know what mine's in there for huh?" She too, was now yelling, and rose from her chair. "Try three counts of first degree murder!"

Juliette emitted an audible gasp, as the two blonds just stared at one another, having no words. Shelby fled from the scene, as did Erika, each running in their separate directions.

"Shelby, Erika!" Peter called after them uselessly.

Scott instantly jumped to his feet to run after his one true love, Shelby.

"The truth is, it doesn't matter if you have parents at all," Daisy said in the midst of it all.

"Or a house," Adrian added.

"It just matters there's someone there for you who has gone through it already, and is there to give you love when you need it."





"Shelby!"

Shelby heard her name called behind her. She had run out to the docks, where she could sit and be alone. She turned her head to find Scott was pursuing her.

"Scott, what are you doing?" she questioned when he neared.

"Chasing after you," he responded. "What do you think I'm doing? You didn't think I'd let the most beautiful thing in my life run off did you?"

Shelby was on a short fuse. "Shut up Scott."

Scott took a good long look at Shelby before he asked, "Why'd you run off?"

"I can't believe that girl," she replied.

"Listen, Shel. She's not a bad person, I know that. I spent like a day with her, I know. She's just so desperate for her father, Shel. You know she never even told me about her father, not until you got into her face."

"Now everybody knows, Scott," Shelby stated.

"Hey it doesn't matter," Scott said as he put his arms around her. She didn't resist. Her anger lessened at his touch. "Everybody knows everything here."

"Except for, uh, your little secret," Shelby said with a small smile. Only Scott was capable of that- evoking a smile out of pissed-off-Shelby.

"Oh, yeah, sorry."

"I know, it's a guy thing, you guys don't like to show weakness."

"Just a guy thing, Shelby?" Scott smiled, remembering Shelby's hard-as-nails attitude when she was first brought to Horizon.

Shelby chuckled. "I was the one who came clean today, Scott if I remember correctly."

"Eh.. Yeah, alright," Scott said. Their eyes met, and Scott brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes. "I love you, you know that Shel?"

Shelby smiled smugly despite herself. "Yeah, I know."

"I'm proud of you Shel," Scott said seriously.

"It feels so weird."

"What?" Scott asked.

"To have everyone I care about know, and even some people I don't care about," Shelby replied.

"Erika?"

"Well, obviously," Shelby responded. It was a moment before she spoke again. "I can't believe you keep coming back to me."

"What?"

"The night of the morp. You didn't need to."

"You didn't think I would?" Scott asked. "Come back to the one beautiful thing in my life?"

"When you left I was pretty sure you were gone forever, to get on with your life," Shelby admitted.

"But how could I get on with life when the most important person in the world wasn't with me?"

"Scott.. But don't you realize what you gave up for me?"

"Don't you realize what I would have given up if I had left? Something better than the world," he said seriously, holding her close.

Shelby shook her head, not entirely convinced. Scott had missed out on a scholarship on her account. "But Scott-"

"Shhh."

Shelby smiled. "Alright."

"I love you.. You know that, don't you Shel?"

"Yeah, I know. Scott?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."