Rosa- My most sincere apologies due to the problems that Fanfiction.net has
been given you, it also gives me the very same problems, and I hate them
just as much as everyone else. Thanks for the praise on the family
orientation. I'm actually really pleased with the way that it turned out as
well. It was always meant to have that as the heart of the story. Don't
worry about Damian and Maxie just yet. After all, the best couples in Port
Charles have always had a little strife, right?
Joy- As evident above, this website is a true double edged sword. Many things about it are good, but many more are bad. I am sorry that you are having problems with it, but I thank you for continuing to read even with those problems. I told you I'd do something with Zander that would make you happy! And I'm very pleased that you were surprised. Since I have a lot of these moments in my head all plotted out, sometimes weeks in advance, I always feel that I might be giving away too much and not have it be surprising. Glad to know that I did my job as a writer right. It took Damian some 60 something chapters to call Sonny 'dad,' but I wanted it to be something that actually held merit. Glad I did my job. Actually, Ana- Maria wasn't the only daughter, she was the baby and she was very important to both her parents. But, as Victoria said, Sonny gave them all something that they could remember their daughter through. Yes, Uncle Jason. Is it too much? I don't think it is. I'm glad you liked it, though. I really needed a break from the drama to add in some lighthearted comedy. With Faith gone, Carly appears to have become prime enemy number one, hasn't she? But, like always, Carly will change her ways. Eventually. When stuff happens. Big Stuff. Big, Big Stuff. Ah, foreshadowing, how I love thee. The talk between the newly forged nephew/uncle was a lot of fun to write. Up until then Jason hadn't really had a moment where he was around Damian and not either A) Inspecting his motives or B) Trying to keep him alive. They should have more moments like that before the end of the story. If nothing else, I got one in!
Story-
Although Michael was beyond relieved to know that his big brother was safe, he knew something was wrong. The adults, even Damian, talked around him instead of just coming out and saying whatever was on their minds. Michael, as he had told his Aunt Courtney earlier that day, was not nearly as unaware of what was going along as they wanted to make him appear to be. He didn't understand what his daddy and his Uncle Jason were involved with, but he understood that it was something that could be really scary. They all put on happy faces around him, even Carly, just to make him feel more comfortable with everything. But knowing that they were doing it and not exactly feeling it made Michael even more nervous about the situation.
Damian had only been at the house for a few hours, but he seemed much more at ease than he had ever been before. He got up from the couch and ran his hand through Michael's hair, "You know, I really should get going."
Michael shook his head, "Don't go!"
Damian sighed, "Michael, I have to go home."
"I'm afraid that someone will take you again!" Michael stated, the panic already in his voice. "I don't want to feel like that."
"Nothing bad will happen to me, Michael, I promise," Damian tried to be as comforting as possible, but he felt bad that he was causing Michael to act out like he was.
"You can't make promises like that!" Michael said. "You don't know that everything will be okay, no one does!"
The adults all exchanged glances, taken surprise by Michael's sudden outburst of doubt in the ability that his family had to protect him and the other members of that family. "How about we make a deal?"
"What kind of deal?" Michael wondered.
"Well, if your parents say its okay, I'll stay here for the night, just so you know that I'll be safe. Would that make you feel any better?"
Michael nodded, "It would." He turned to his parents, "Mommy, daddy, can he stay for tonight? Please?"
"If he wants to stay, he knows where his room is," Sonny said. "Carly?"
Carly, not at all pleased with the position that she had been placed in, succumbed quickly. Courtney was right, the last thing Michael needed now was anything to upset him. If allowing Damian to stay around again would keep Michael happy, she couldn't decline. "Yeah, sure."
Damian gazed over at her. It was too easy. "You sure?"
She glared at him, "I said it was okay, didn't it? If it keeps my son happy, I really don't mind."
Damian saw Michael's face begin to beam. He got off his knees and headed towards the door, "I'll be back."
"Where are you going?" Michael asked.
"I have to get clothes, Michael," Damian informed his little brother. "Unless I absolutely have to, I generally don't like sleeping in jeans and a t-shirt."
"But the bad people could still get you!" Michael cried out.
Damian stopped himself, this was getting much more complicated than he wanted. "Michael, nothing will happen to me. You've been to Kelly's hundreds of times, you know it's really not that far from the penthouse. I understand that you're worried about me, and I appreciate it, but I can't live my life in a box just to keep myself safe."
"I could keep you safe!" Michael declared as he ran up and grabbed his jacket.
"What?" Damian asked.
"Nothing bad ever happens to me! I can keep you safe, like a good luck charm!"
"Michael, it's getting kind of late. You really shouldn't be walking around this late," Damian said.
"If I can't, then why can you?" Michael asked.
"I'm not going to win this debate, am I?" Damian wondered, his head tilted back and looking at Sonny.
Sonny grinned, "When Michael wants something really bad, he knows how to get it. He wants to keep you safe, and he thinks he can. The easiest thing for you to do would be to take him to Kelly's with you and then bring him back."
"I give up. Come on, Michael." Damian held the door open. "We'll be back in a little bit."
When the door closed, Carly looked at Sonny, "Are you sure that's wise?"
"What?"
"Sending our son out in the open without anyone to keep him safe."
"He's got Damian."
Carly snickered, "Because Damian's such a good protector. He couldn't even keep himself from being used in Faith's game."
"Jason," Sonny called out. "If you could."
"I'll watch over them again," Jason said.
Sonny nodded, "Just give them a couple minutes before you head after them. Michael will feel better about himself if he doesn't know that you're helping him keep his brother safe." He turned to Carly, "Better?"
"Much," Carly quickly replied.
"You're absolutely sure that he can stay?" Sonny asked. "I told you before that I won't try and force my son on you."
"He does that on his own," Carly retorted, somewhat bitterly. "But I meant what I said, Sonny. He makes Michael happy, really happy. I'm not going to deny my child happiness because I don't like the guy that much. Besides, it's only one night."
"Maybe it would become more," Sonny said softly.
"What was that?"
"Michael's right, Carly. Damian's going to be in danger from now on. He might not realize it, but I do. People are going to realize that they can attempt to use my son against me like Faith did, and they're going to go after him. The only way that I know to keep him safe is to get him back under this roof."
"You can't just post some guards around his apartment?" Carly asked.
"Would your mother like having armed guards walking around Kelly's all the time?" Sonny asked. "I don't think she would. Besides, there are too many other factors that come from the other people that are renting apartments up there. They could get a judge to kick him out because he's endangering their safety simply by being there."
"There's nothing else that you can think of?" Carly asked.
"Outside of killing all my enemies, which would never happen because I'd always get new ones, I don't have any other ideas."
"I need some time to think about this," Carly admitted.
"I understand," Sonny replied. "And I want to thank you for at least giving it some thought. Before you'd just say no based on principal alone."
"Carly," Courtney called out to her best friend. "Sonny's right, this is the only option that he has for keeping everyone safe."
"I'm going to go feed Morgan," Carly announced as she walked up the stairs.
Sonny looked into the fire, "That could have gone better."
Courtney took a few steps up and grabbed his shoulder lightly, "But it could have gone much worse, too."
Kelly's-
Although Elizabeth had since long ended her shift at the restaurant, she hadn't yet left. She was going to stay for as long as she needed, waiting to see if he would come through those doors like he had plenty of times since she met him. She hated that she was right. She hated that Damian's life was at risk because of the fact that he was Sonny's son. She wouldn't apologize for telling him the truth about his father, about that family, but she just wanted to make sure that he was all right. She looked into her tea, she had lost count of what cup she was on. She looked into the tea and watched her reflection swirl around in the drink.
"Elizabeth?"
She looked up and saw Ric standing there above her. He had snapped her out of her daze, but she hadn't registered that it was his voice. She wanted to believe that it was Damian's. "Ric," She said softly.
"I know you're not still on duty here," Ric said lightly as he took a seat. "Even you know better than to work yourself that hard."
"You're right," Elizabeth said sadly. "I've been here, just waiting for hours. I'm still worried about him."
"Elizabeth, my brother might be a horrible person to a whole lot of people, but if there is one thing about Sonny Corinthos that I've learned since I came back into his life it's that he's not going to let anyone hurt any of his children. Believe me, Sonny was tormented as a boy, he'd never let anyone do the same to his kids as long as there was some breath in his body." Ric turned away, "He's always going to be strange like that. One minute the ruthless killer, the next the angelic father figure. It's what makes him so dangerous."
"Do you regret telling him?" Elizabeth asked. "I know how much you two still don't like each other. Even though you're not out to destroy him anymore, I know that I can't just expect that hate to go away."
Ric shook his head, "Like I said then, you care about Damian and I care about you. It would hurt you to know that he was killed, and I want to protect you from ever being hurt by anyone, even myself."
Elizabeth heard the door open and looked up. His face was there as he held the door open for Michael. She smiled, "Damian!"
He turned to see Elizabeth, but all he saw was her hair as she hugged him. "You know, if I knew that I'd get this kind of reaction, I'd do it more often."
Elizabeth pulled away, "You'd better be joking about that."
"I am," Damian replied. "I never want to go through that again."
Ric got up, "I'm glad that you're safe."
Michael looked over, "Stay away from my brother, bad man!" While Michael was incapable of calling Ric worse, he had enough hatred for that man to last him and several other people a lifetime.
Ric was mortified. He loathed himself for putting Michael through such pain, and was sad that he couldn't be forgiven, but he understood the way Michael's mind worked.
Damian reached into his pocket and pulled out his key, "Michael, go to the room with this number on it and open the door for me, I need to talk with them for a couple minutes, okay?"
"But-"
"Michael," Damian cut in. "Nothing's going to happen. Look at all of these people. No one would try anything with all these people around. I'll be fine."
Michael looked at Ric, "If you hurt him, I'll tell my daddy." With that threat, which held much more than Michael understood, the boy turned away and walked up the stairs.
"So young, yet filled with so much hate for you," Damian remarked, sadly. "He shouldn't feel anything like that. Ever."
"He has reason, sadly," Ric remarked.
"I know he does," Damian said. "I'm well aware of the hell that you put Carly through. But, thank you, Uncle Ric. I know you were the one that told my dad about Faith's plan to use me against him. You need to realize that you not only saved me, but you saved my grandparents and Maxie as well. I might not agree with the things that you've done in the past, even though I wasn't even here to see them happen, but I owe you for helping me and the people that I care for."
"You're welcome," Ric said after a long second pause. "Did you just call me 'Uncle' Ric?"
"The way you people act it's like you've never heard anyone call people those names before. You're my father's brother. That makes you family. Family doesn't always have to get alone, and I really doubt that you and dad ever will, but it doesn't change the blood that runs through our veins. Now, if you'll both excuse me." Damian walked away and up the stairs.
"Did you hear him call me that?" Ric asked Elizabeth.
"I did. How does it feel?"
"Good, actually. It feels really good."
98
Joy- As evident above, this website is a true double edged sword. Many things about it are good, but many more are bad. I am sorry that you are having problems with it, but I thank you for continuing to read even with those problems. I told you I'd do something with Zander that would make you happy! And I'm very pleased that you were surprised. Since I have a lot of these moments in my head all plotted out, sometimes weeks in advance, I always feel that I might be giving away too much and not have it be surprising. Glad to know that I did my job as a writer right. It took Damian some 60 something chapters to call Sonny 'dad,' but I wanted it to be something that actually held merit. Glad I did my job. Actually, Ana- Maria wasn't the only daughter, she was the baby and she was very important to both her parents. But, as Victoria said, Sonny gave them all something that they could remember their daughter through. Yes, Uncle Jason. Is it too much? I don't think it is. I'm glad you liked it, though. I really needed a break from the drama to add in some lighthearted comedy. With Faith gone, Carly appears to have become prime enemy number one, hasn't she? But, like always, Carly will change her ways. Eventually. When stuff happens. Big Stuff. Big, Big Stuff. Ah, foreshadowing, how I love thee. The talk between the newly forged nephew/uncle was a lot of fun to write. Up until then Jason hadn't really had a moment where he was around Damian and not either A) Inspecting his motives or B) Trying to keep him alive. They should have more moments like that before the end of the story. If nothing else, I got one in!
Story-
Although Michael was beyond relieved to know that his big brother was safe, he knew something was wrong. The adults, even Damian, talked around him instead of just coming out and saying whatever was on their minds. Michael, as he had told his Aunt Courtney earlier that day, was not nearly as unaware of what was going along as they wanted to make him appear to be. He didn't understand what his daddy and his Uncle Jason were involved with, but he understood that it was something that could be really scary. They all put on happy faces around him, even Carly, just to make him feel more comfortable with everything. But knowing that they were doing it and not exactly feeling it made Michael even more nervous about the situation.
Damian had only been at the house for a few hours, but he seemed much more at ease than he had ever been before. He got up from the couch and ran his hand through Michael's hair, "You know, I really should get going."
Michael shook his head, "Don't go!"
Damian sighed, "Michael, I have to go home."
"I'm afraid that someone will take you again!" Michael stated, the panic already in his voice. "I don't want to feel like that."
"Nothing bad will happen to me, Michael, I promise," Damian tried to be as comforting as possible, but he felt bad that he was causing Michael to act out like he was.
"You can't make promises like that!" Michael said. "You don't know that everything will be okay, no one does!"
The adults all exchanged glances, taken surprise by Michael's sudden outburst of doubt in the ability that his family had to protect him and the other members of that family. "How about we make a deal?"
"What kind of deal?" Michael wondered.
"Well, if your parents say its okay, I'll stay here for the night, just so you know that I'll be safe. Would that make you feel any better?"
Michael nodded, "It would." He turned to his parents, "Mommy, daddy, can he stay for tonight? Please?"
"If he wants to stay, he knows where his room is," Sonny said. "Carly?"
Carly, not at all pleased with the position that she had been placed in, succumbed quickly. Courtney was right, the last thing Michael needed now was anything to upset him. If allowing Damian to stay around again would keep Michael happy, she couldn't decline. "Yeah, sure."
Damian gazed over at her. It was too easy. "You sure?"
She glared at him, "I said it was okay, didn't it? If it keeps my son happy, I really don't mind."
Damian saw Michael's face begin to beam. He got off his knees and headed towards the door, "I'll be back."
"Where are you going?" Michael asked.
"I have to get clothes, Michael," Damian informed his little brother. "Unless I absolutely have to, I generally don't like sleeping in jeans and a t-shirt."
"But the bad people could still get you!" Michael cried out.
Damian stopped himself, this was getting much more complicated than he wanted. "Michael, nothing will happen to me. You've been to Kelly's hundreds of times, you know it's really not that far from the penthouse. I understand that you're worried about me, and I appreciate it, but I can't live my life in a box just to keep myself safe."
"I could keep you safe!" Michael declared as he ran up and grabbed his jacket.
"What?" Damian asked.
"Nothing bad ever happens to me! I can keep you safe, like a good luck charm!"
"Michael, it's getting kind of late. You really shouldn't be walking around this late," Damian said.
"If I can't, then why can you?" Michael asked.
"I'm not going to win this debate, am I?" Damian wondered, his head tilted back and looking at Sonny.
Sonny grinned, "When Michael wants something really bad, he knows how to get it. He wants to keep you safe, and he thinks he can. The easiest thing for you to do would be to take him to Kelly's with you and then bring him back."
"I give up. Come on, Michael." Damian held the door open. "We'll be back in a little bit."
When the door closed, Carly looked at Sonny, "Are you sure that's wise?"
"What?"
"Sending our son out in the open without anyone to keep him safe."
"He's got Damian."
Carly snickered, "Because Damian's such a good protector. He couldn't even keep himself from being used in Faith's game."
"Jason," Sonny called out. "If you could."
"I'll watch over them again," Jason said.
Sonny nodded, "Just give them a couple minutes before you head after them. Michael will feel better about himself if he doesn't know that you're helping him keep his brother safe." He turned to Carly, "Better?"
"Much," Carly quickly replied.
"You're absolutely sure that he can stay?" Sonny asked. "I told you before that I won't try and force my son on you."
"He does that on his own," Carly retorted, somewhat bitterly. "But I meant what I said, Sonny. He makes Michael happy, really happy. I'm not going to deny my child happiness because I don't like the guy that much. Besides, it's only one night."
"Maybe it would become more," Sonny said softly.
"What was that?"
"Michael's right, Carly. Damian's going to be in danger from now on. He might not realize it, but I do. People are going to realize that they can attempt to use my son against me like Faith did, and they're going to go after him. The only way that I know to keep him safe is to get him back under this roof."
"You can't just post some guards around his apartment?" Carly asked.
"Would your mother like having armed guards walking around Kelly's all the time?" Sonny asked. "I don't think she would. Besides, there are too many other factors that come from the other people that are renting apartments up there. They could get a judge to kick him out because he's endangering their safety simply by being there."
"There's nothing else that you can think of?" Carly asked.
"Outside of killing all my enemies, which would never happen because I'd always get new ones, I don't have any other ideas."
"I need some time to think about this," Carly admitted.
"I understand," Sonny replied. "And I want to thank you for at least giving it some thought. Before you'd just say no based on principal alone."
"Carly," Courtney called out to her best friend. "Sonny's right, this is the only option that he has for keeping everyone safe."
"I'm going to go feed Morgan," Carly announced as she walked up the stairs.
Sonny looked into the fire, "That could have gone better."
Courtney took a few steps up and grabbed his shoulder lightly, "But it could have gone much worse, too."
Kelly's-
Although Elizabeth had since long ended her shift at the restaurant, she hadn't yet left. She was going to stay for as long as she needed, waiting to see if he would come through those doors like he had plenty of times since she met him. She hated that she was right. She hated that Damian's life was at risk because of the fact that he was Sonny's son. She wouldn't apologize for telling him the truth about his father, about that family, but she just wanted to make sure that he was all right. She looked into her tea, she had lost count of what cup she was on. She looked into the tea and watched her reflection swirl around in the drink.
"Elizabeth?"
She looked up and saw Ric standing there above her. He had snapped her out of her daze, but she hadn't registered that it was his voice. She wanted to believe that it was Damian's. "Ric," She said softly.
"I know you're not still on duty here," Ric said lightly as he took a seat. "Even you know better than to work yourself that hard."
"You're right," Elizabeth said sadly. "I've been here, just waiting for hours. I'm still worried about him."
"Elizabeth, my brother might be a horrible person to a whole lot of people, but if there is one thing about Sonny Corinthos that I've learned since I came back into his life it's that he's not going to let anyone hurt any of his children. Believe me, Sonny was tormented as a boy, he'd never let anyone do the same to his kids as long as there was some breath in his body." Ric turned away, "He's always going to be strange like that. One minute the ruthless killer, the next the angelic father figure. It's what makes him so dangerous."
"Do you regret telling him?" Elizabeth asked. "I know how much you two still don't like each other. Even though you're not out to destroy him anymore, I know that I can't just expect that hate to go away."
Ric shook his head, "Like I said then, you care about Damian and I care about you. It would hurt you to know that he was killed, and I want to protect you from ever being hurt by anyone, even myself."
Elizabeth heard the door open and looked up. His face was there as he held the door open for Michael. She smiled, "Damian!"
He turned to see Elizabeth, but all he saw was her hair as she hugged him. "You know, if I knew that I'd get this kind of reaction, I'd do it more often."
Elizabeth pulled away, "You'd better be joking about that."
"I am," Damian replied. "I never want to go through that again."
Ric got up, "I'm glad that you're safe."
Michael looked over, "Stay away from my brother, bad man!" While Michael was incapable of calling Ric worse, he had enough hatred for that man to last him and several other people a lifetime.
Ric was mortified. He loathed himself for putting Michael through such pain, and was sad that he couldn't be forgiven, but he understood the way Michael's mind worked.
Damian reached into his pocket and pulled out his key, "Michael, go to the room with this number on it and open the door for me, I need to talk with them for a couple minutes, okay?"
"But-"
"Michael," Damian cut in. "Nothing's going to happen. Look at all of these people. No one would try anything with all these people around. I'll be fine."
Michael looked at Ric, "If you hurt him, I'll tell my daddy." With that threat, which held much more than Michael understood, the boy turned away and walked up the stairs.
"So young, yet filled with so much hate for you," Damian remarked, sadly. "He shouldn't feel anything like that. Ever."
"He has reason, sadly," Ric remarked.
"I know he does," Damian said. "I'm well aware of the hell that you put Carly through. But, thank you, Uncle Ric. I know you were the one that told my dad about Faith's plan to use me against him. You need to realize that you not only saved me, but you saved my grandparents and Maxie as well. I might not agree with the things that you've done in the past, even though I wasn't even here to see them happen, but I owe you for helping me and the people that I care for."
"You're welcome," Ric said after a long second pause. "Did you just call me 'Uncle' Ric?"
"The way you people act it's like you've never heard anyone call people those names before. You're my father's brother. That makes you family. Family doesn't always have to get alone, and I really doubt that you and dad ever will, but it doesn't change the blood that runs through our veins. Now, if you'll both excuse me." Damian walked away and up the stairs.
"Did you hear him call me that?" Ric asked Elizabeth.
"I did. How does it feel?"
"Good, actually. It feels really good."
98