A/N: I swear Nickell just never gives up! Well, that's ok, I was putting this off and I know some people want it out so. Here we go. Slowly, oh so very slowly, we are coming to the end. I was thinking that this would be like the third to last chapter or so, but hell who really knows with me huh?! The one thing I do know, (much to the disappointment of Kristal) this will be the final installment of my series. I really never expected it to go on as long as it has so these will be the final chapters.

            The flash back… well I'm not going to change the rating, because honestly there is nothing here that I haven't written before. Just… be warned.

            Thanks to everyone for all the reviews and such. Let's get to ch 10 now shall we?

Ch. 10  London Nights and Tales of Devotion

            He held his son tight as his tears racked his tiny body. Vaughn was at a loss. He had comforted his children before, when they'd skinned their knees or fallen and bumped their heads, when they'd had bad dreams or when the thunderstorms had frightened them, but never in a case like this. Comforting his son over the possibility of losing his mother, this was something he hoped to never go through.

            As Danny began to quiet, Vaughn picked him up, holding him close, he set him down on the chair in the corner of the room and draped a blanket over him. Content with the fact that his son was sleeping, Vaughn moved over to Sydney's bed, taking residence in the chair that Danny had vacated and took her hand.

            "I really…haven't had a chance to talk to you in a while. Everyone has been so…worried. It's been a constant rush of people comforting each other, trying not to scare the kids and just…trying to keep it all together while we wait for you." He sighed deeply and looked at their entwined hands.

            His eyes swept her body and lay to rest on her left hand, encased, as it lay across her stomach. Her bare ring finger made his stomach lurch and he reached inside his pocket and extracted the rings that Weiss had handed to him.

            "Weiss got me thinking. You know, about London. He actually came out and asked me about that." Vaughn's face broke into a soft smile. "God that was a great mission. Do you…do you remember?" He let out a soft chuckle and shook his head. "Of course you remember. That, that was one of the greatest moments of my life."

            She opened the door to her hotel room and slowly walked in, letting out a long sigh. The mission, though not overly complicated, had taken its toll on her and she was exhausted. All she wanted to do was sleep. Just curl into her bed and sleep away all the memories of her life as an agent.

            Wandering into the bathroom, she glanced at herself in the mirror, smirking at the over the top make-up adorning her face and the stylish up-do that her hair was placed in. Running the water in the sink, she waited for it to warm before washing away all the make-up and brushing out her hair, making it shine. She slipped into a pair of soft flannel pjs and collapsed on the bed, contemplating whether or not to even bother getting under the covers when a knock came at her door.

            Groaning, she sat up. "Who is it?"

            "Room service."

            Are you kidding me!? She pondered as she stood and walked over to the door. I never order room service. If this is SD-6 wanting the discs now I swear I'm gonna…

            She flew open the door and stood in shock at the person standing before her.

            "Good evening." He replied kindly, pushing the room service cart into the room as she spun out into the hall and glanced around, making sure that no one saw him, before hastily closing the door.

            She turned to him quickly and kept her voice hushed. "What are you…"

            He held up a hand to stop her and pulled out a round object from his pocket. He clicked it open, and once satisfied at hearing the two beeps, placed it on the table and smiled at her. "Bug killer."

            "What are you doing here?" She asked.

            "I am here…" He took the silver dome off the tray to reveal a myriad of electrical devices. "To copy the discs. The CIA, and by the CIA I mean me, figured it be easier to do it this way then try and do a brush pass. Those can get tricky and this time of the year the airports are always crowded. This way there is a less margin for mistakes."

            "Nice." She commented softly as she moved over to her things and pulled out the two discs. Walking back to him she handed them over. "There you go."

            "Thanks." He smiled as he began to work. "Everything go smoothly?" He asked, his eyes trained on the machines in front of him.

            "Hmm? Yeah. No glitches. It was pretty straight forward and simple. I even had time to eat on this one." She smiled.

            "Yeah? Anything good?"

            "Eh, rich people party food. Same old, same old." He nodded as she moved and sat on the end of the bed, yawning loudly.

            "Tired?"

            "Yeah." She smiled shyly. "I didn't sleep on the plane. Not like I expected to, just, jet lag and all that." He nodded knowingly. "What time did you get in?"

            "A couple of hours ago. I leave on the flight after yours, though I'm being routed through Seattle and then LAX."

            "Gross." She made a face as he laughed, his eyes still fixated on the machine in front of him as it began to finish up the copies. "I've never cared much for Seattle weather."

            "Me neither. Luckily it's just a 30 minute lay over and I don't have to switch planes. I'll probably sleep through it." He spoke as he stood and removed the discs. "Ok, here you go." He turned and handed her the new discs, a small smile gracing his features.

            "Thank you." Their eyes held for a moment before she was suddenly in his arms, his hands tangled in her hair as he kissed her hungrily. Pulling back she kept her eyes shut, leaning her forehead against his. "Oh God I missed you."

            "Me too." He whispered back. "Thank God we got those out of the way." He smiled as he tossed the discs on her bags in the corner. Leaning down he kissed her again, softly, relishing in the feel of her.

            "Mmm." She sighed as she pulled back. "I love you."

            "I love you too." He smiled as he kissed her forehead. "This past week has been hell without you."

            "Same here." She sighed as she leaned against him, his hands rubbing her back soothingly. "Michael?"

            "Hmm?" He smiled as he heard his name. God, he loved the way it sounded coming from her.

            She stood back up straight, holding his gaze. She opened her mouth to speak, closing almost instantly as she found she was lost for words. Instead she leaned in and kissed him, opening herself up to him, drinking him all in.

            He moved a hand into her hair, running his fingers through the silky strands as he kissed her deeply. All thoughts of sleep and relaxation flew out of her mind as his hands began trailing down her neck, followed by his mouth. She sucked in a deep breath as his lips found a particularly sensitive spot as his hands began to work the draw-string on her pajama bottoms. Her hands deftly moved to his button up shirt, prying the small iridescent buttons from their wholes one by one.

            Before they knew it, they were falling backwards towards the bed, his shirt lying forgotten on the floor next to her pajama top. They slowly melted into each, taking time to learn everything they could about the other.

            Hours later, she lay against his chest as he sat semi-straight, his head against the headboard. "I have to go soon." He whispered as he trailed his hand down her arm that lay across his abdomen.

            "I know." She sighed, snuggling closer. "I don't want you to."

            "Me neither." He whispered, placing a soft kiss in her hair. "But I have too." He sighed as he moved out of her embrace and slowly began to put on his discarded clothes.

            She stood and slipped back into her pjs, a soft frown on her face. "Hey." He whispered walking over to her and lifting her chin. "I love you."

            She smiled and kissed him. "I love you too. I'll see you back in LA?"

            "Definitely." He walked towards the door, the room service cart with him. "I love you. Don't forget that, ok?"

            "I won't." She smiled as his face broke out into a grin. "What?"

            "Nothing. Just… I have a new found love for London." He smiled as she laughed and pulled her into a deep kiss. "Just to tie me over." He whispered as they broke away. "I love you." He kissed her forehead before turning and opening the door, slipping out into the hallway.

            His eyes were fixated on the wedding rings in his hands as tears built in his eyes. "I'm going crazy here Sydney. I need you to come back to me. I'm not…I'm not very good at losing people and I don't really care for it."

            He toyed with the rings in his hands as tears began to slide down his face. "I said some pretty horrible things to you. I said the worst possible things I could say. To make you think that, for even a moment, I regretted marrying you, it makes me sick.

           "You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I cherish every moment that I've ever had with you. I was so stupid to let myself get angry with you over something as trivial as you forgetting. I mean, we all forget things. To think that I put my own, discrepancies about your mother over you and the kids… It's inexcusable."

            He sighed deeply as he pushed the tears off of his cheeks. "Sydney, loving you, having you love me back, has made me the luckiest man in the world. I thank God every day that someone so loving, so gentle and kind, and understanding, and beautiful could ever think to love me.

            "I watch you with our children. I mean, how lucky am I to have you as the mother of my children? I never have to question about you about your loyalties. You are so… there are not words to describe you Sydney. Because to do that, would mean putting something pure and beautiful and so full of love into words and that…that's just impossible.

            "I need you to come back to me. To come back to Danny and Bella and Evelyn. I can't do this without you. I can't go through everything that you do. I can't be the kind of parent I know I can be without you standing there next to me. I can't be the kind of man I know I can be without you next to me.

            "I love you, so much. So much baby. I hope you know that. I hope you know that I would never regret you. Never. I need you to come home Sydney."

            Tears were streaming down his face as he placed the rings on her stomach. He leaned down and placed his head on their entwined hands. "Please baby, come home to me. I love you."

            She pushed her way through, the air thick and suffocating. But it was there, just a little ways in front of her. She could see the brightness of the room around her, her sleeping son in the corner. And she could see him sitting next to her.

            She wanted to be with her children. More than anything she wanted to hold her children and let them know that she loved them, that she would never leave them. But she was still so scared. The words he had spoken to her… She had once heard that in times of heated anger, true feelings come bursting through. And to think that maybe he had meant those things, scared her.

            She stood staring at the light in front of her as she contemplated what to do. And then… his voice filtered through. The love, the sincerity that flowed through each word, each syllable, pulled at her heart. As she heard him speak his words of devotion, she made up her mind and took the final steps into the light.

            A/N: Well? I hope you all enjoyed that. Because I enjoyed writing it. Let me know. I'm thinking… two more chapters after this. After all, while angst-ville is a happenin' town… Fluff-land is the greatest there is.

            Let me know. I hope to get to 200 by the end of this fic (I'm already over 150!! SCORE!!) And your reviews are the only way I can get there.

            Merci,

            -SAG