A/N- thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, I can't believe people are still reading this. I would think you all had given up on me ever updating any of my stories (I am a bad bad author). On the plus side I have 12 sewing projects done… anyone want a patchwork purse?

Thanks-to aimless for her ideas (they were great) and betaing this part, and all the people who emailed me with encouragement. It meant the world to me. And Nuri who sent me inspiring pictures of Aragorn while I was typing this

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They hide in the dark so you can't see their tears

They hide is the light, so you can't see their fears

Hell is for Children

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Harper sat on the only patch of visible floor in his room between the door and the bed with his back against the wall, sweat forming on his brow. The time had come for his first real interface with a computer. After the surgery, there had been tests to check the connections, but those had been mild and doctor monitored. This was the first big one, no medical staff here. The lackey for the client carried a small, hand-held computer with a wire going to an adapter to fit into Harper's port. I could see Harper trying to contain his fears. It didn't help that the three of us were crammed into the tiny storage closet that severed as his room.

He had been quieter than normal these days. He was still trying to fight the memories of what happened to him on earth, but the nightmares at night were wearing him and me down a little more each day. Harper was hiding behind his protective wall again. After I had spent so long breaking it down. Three years of work and the boy still didn't completely trust me, maybe he never would.

The man knelt beside Harper on the small bed that filled the room and the plug aimed at the port. Harper closed his eyes in preparation, but jerked away at the last minute.

"You want to do it?" the lackey questioned irritably. Harper gave a quick nod and slowly placed the plug outside the port, he just sat there biting his lip. "Come on kid, ether you do it or I force it in."

I clamped my hand down on the guys shoulder with my other hand firmly on my gun. He gave a half smile and raised up his hands shifting his weight, ready to run if needed.

"Calm down girly, he can do it." I looked over the man's head to find Harper sliding the plug in with a grimace on his face. His body slumped back on the wall. His eyes moving behind the lids like he was dreaming. I let out the breath I had been holding, but I continued shifting nervously from foot to foot until Harper's eyes opened again and he pulled out the jack. He handed it back to the lackey who grunted and left with the same stupid smile on his face.

Harper crawled the few inches to his bed and curled up into a ball around his pillow, his face completely drained of color. "You okay?" I asked, sitting on the edge of the bed. I put my hand on Harper's arm but he shrugged it off. I took in a deep breath, trying to contain my frustrations. How could one person have so many walls and them so closely guarded? Before I could form the words to another question, Harper was asleep. The simple act of downloading the files had exhausted him. The doctors had warned me about side effects that could occur until his brain got use to the port, but they didn't say he would get tired this quickly. I wandered back the main room to let Harper sleep.

It was a few hours before I came back to check on Harper and found him trapped in the middle of a nightmare. He was covered in a cold sweat and completely wrapped up in his sheets. I shook him to try to wake him only to be met by a shove and scream. "What have you done to me?" He screamed, crawling into the far corner of the room. "Don't touch me!" He put his back to the wall sitting with his knees pulled up tight against his chest. He buried his head into his knees with his hands behind his head. It looked almost like the tuck position for crash landings. I could hear him muttering but the words were hard to hear. I wanted to go to him and pull him out of his nightmare of the past, but I was sure that going to him now would only make the demons attack harder.

"Harper! Come on shorty, it's me, Beka. I would never hurt you, please calm down," I pleaded.

Harper continued to rock back and forth. I could make out a little of the mumbling, "Always hurt…live to hurt us…never safe."

"Harper, I won't hurt you, you're my friend. Remember your friend, Beka?"

"No friends…no friends…Neitzcheans don't befriend humans."

"Look at me Harper, I'm not a Niezchean, I'm your friend, Beka." I said kneeling down front of the small mattress that completely filled the room.

Harper slowly lifted his head and looked at me. "What is a human doing with them?" he questioned?

"With who?"

"Them…the doctors…you know, the ones who do the tests."

I swallowed, wondering if I wanted to know the answer to my next question. "What tests?" I asked as I inching onto the mattress that filled the small room and approached Harper.

"The tests…the ones that did this to me." He said rolling up so he was balancing on the balls of his feet, bouncing maniacally.

"Did what to you?" I asked slowly sitting next to Harper who was almost jumping up and down.

"I don't know, but they did something," he said, shaking his head back and forth in his hands.

"What?"

"I told you I don't know!" He had leaned down so the words were yelled right into my face. He then pressed his back against the wall again and slid down into a sitting position. I was taken back, not sure how to handle his ever-changing personalities. Harper went back to shaking his head, more slowly now, once again muttering to himself. "It's all a mess a jumble…can't sort it out…all a mess…" Harper trailed off as he laid down and curled up in a ball with his head in my lap. He was asleep again, and I was trapped, puzzling over what I had just seen.

I looked up at the open door to see Trance and Rev looking at me from the doorframe, concern filling both of their faces. Trance studied me and Harper for a moment before giving me one of her knowing and understanding smiles. She joined us at the far end of the room, without even disturbing the mattress as she walked on it. She gave me a look that made me feel as if, somehow, it would all be alright, even though I didn't know how it could be.

Trance sat down in front of me and began gently running her hand through Harper's hair, talking softly in a language I didn't understand or recognize. The look of fear slowly faded from Harper's face and he fell into a peaceful sleep. Next, I found myself waking up with Trance gone and a peacefully sleeping Harper in my lap.

It had been so long since I had seen him like this. I lifted his head up and moved out from under him, feeling the effects of spending the night sleeping sitting up. I limped into the main room as the movement started to ease the stiffness from my knees and back.

Rev was sitting at the table in the main room with a book in front of him. "Your coffee is on the counter." I nodded and got my cup before sinking into the chair across from Rev.

"Is master Harper still sleeping?"

"Yea, and peacefully for once, but I am sure it won't be for long." I said staring into my coffee cup, like inside it I would somehow find the answers to Harper's past and how we could help him.

"He still has demons he must fight." Rev said in a soothing tone. Putting down his book, I didn't have to look up to know the understanding look that would be in his eye. Full of more patience that I could ever find

"If only he would let us help." I vented rolling the rim of the cup on the table, letting the coffee slosh around inside until some spilled out onto my hand. I dropped the cup back to the table. Annoyed with the coffee for burning me and more myself for being stupid. I almost felt trapped inside of my skin, and wanted to scream. I began drumming my fingers on the table trying to contain my emotions.

"You can't give him help if he doesn't want it." Rev said taking my hand and stopping my drumming.

"But he needs it." I cried out, pulling my hand away.

"He has managed this long without you," Harper said, stressing the words so hard he was almost yelling as he walked into the main room. Bags still loomed under his eyes and he slowly shuffled over to the counter and out of my line of sight.

"Harper," I called, trying to decide my next sentence and the tension in the room mounted.

"What?" he asked, almost yelling.

"Lay off the caffeine." I reminded him, trying to be as gentle as possible. I heard a muffled curse and the sound of liquid being poured down the sink. He made his way back to the table empty handed.

"You want something to eat?" I offered, standing up and pulling out a chair for him as he shuffled to the table.

"Why you think I need something to eat?" he growled, giving me a dirty look before sitting down in another chair

"Harper, I'm not the one waking the whole crew up with my screams every time I go to bed." I pointed out too tired to have any sort of tact left.

"Boss I'm fine."

"Harper you're not fine. I know you don't want to talk but maybe you need to."

"I don't need to do anything." With that Harper stormed out of the room. I started after him but a fury hand stopped me.

"Don't Beka, he will come when he is ready."

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"and if by life or death I can save you, I will."

-Aragorn

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