Jayson awoke to the all too familiar fuzziness in his heads and white walls. 'Just once I'd like to remember going to sleep normally on this mission.' He thought to himself, his heart sinking when he didn't get a reply from Orion remembering he had given him away.

He felt a series of pangs of guilt as the memories of the fights he had with Rinoa, Quistis and Squall flashed in his mind's eye, but the biggest feeling of pain came as he remembered how close he had come to decapitating Meia. These feelings were then replaced by a slow rush of relief at the realisation that Spore no longer seemed to be in his mind.

'Hey, you're awake.' A soft voice he was coming to love said by his side.

'Depends, will I regret it?' he said unable to drop his usual sarcasm.

'Only if you see Squall too soon.' Meia replied with a slight smile.

Jayson sat up wincing. 'I take it the others a bit pissed huh?' he asked, looking into her eyes.

'Well Rinoa is still out, Quistis woke a while ago but she's still a bit groggy. As for Squall he woke up hours ago but he has been sitting by Rinoa all that time. They haven't asked about you yet.' Meia told him seeing the emotions flickering in his eyes, wondering if they were always that way.

'I don't blame them.' Jayson said softly. He reached up to his shoulder, his fingers touching hard, smooth skin. 'I see my friend is still with me.' He said darkly.

'Yeah we couldn't remove it, not without killing you anyway.' Meia replied.

'Sounds like a good idea to me.' Jayson answered dryly. Meia replied with a ringing slap across his face, her face contorted in pain and fury.

'Don't you dare say that again!' she hissed, tears welling up in her eyes.

Jayson gaped at her in shocked silence, his face burning.

'It wasn't your fault, we know that so stop blaming yourself. We know Spore was controlling you.' She continued more softly.

'Spore? That's what that thing was called?' Jayson asked his brow creasing slightly in perplexity.

'Yes.' Meia said and went on to tell him everything Orion had told them the night before.

'I see, and here's me thinking I could take it on. Idiot!' Jayson said mainly to himself as she finished.

'Don't be so hard on yourself, you were right to go alone, if more of us went the world would be in a lot more trouble.' Meia told him pacing her hand o his.

'Yeah but I nearly killed you all!' Jayson told her almost wailing.

'But you didn't. I saw you, you were pulling back, stopping Spore from hitting too hard.' Meia replied.

'But I nearly killed you!' Jayson told her his voice gripped by anguish and was surprised to find his hand reaching up to stroke her hair.

Meia tilted her head into his hand as his fingers caressed her hair, her mind was on fire but she was able to reply. 'No Spore tried to kill me, you stopped him.' Her eyes closed as his hand traced the curves of her cheek and jaw, her body tingling.

'Why are you so understanding with me?' Jayson mumbled softly, finding pleasure in the look on her face as his fingers gently swept along her flesh.

'I know you're not as cold as you make out. You're just suffering from a pain so deep it shaped your whole life.' Meia replied softly, her breaths getting deeper as she got lost in his touch.

'You worked that out huh? Didn't take you long, but it's also because of what everyone else thinks.' Jayson told her, his thumb gently brushing past her lips.

'You're afraid that people will judge what you say and do and make fun of you, that's why you're so introverted.' Meia said slowly, her thoughts drifting away.

'You really do know me.' Jayson said grinning as he moved closer to her, her breath hot on his lips as he gently cupped her chin in his hand.

He felt her body jump in surprise as his lips touched hers but she soon melted into him, her lips pressing back harder yet so soft. Jayson slipped his arm down her back, pulling her closer as the kiss deepened, their tongues tentatively touching.

An embarrassed cough caused them to break away and their gazes shot to the door where Squall stood, his face impassive.

'I see you're up and well.' He said dryly.

Jayson licked his lips nervously. 'Yes sir. How's Rinoa?' he asked, his voice full of concern.

'She's fine. She's just sleeping now and her arm hurts but she's taken painkillers.' Squall told him curtly.

'I'm sorry sir, about what I said and did.' Jayson said unable to look him in the eye.

'Just forget about it. We know Spore was just using your body and whatever he found in your mind to get to us.' Squall replied softly his voice slightly edged with annoyance.

'Yes sir.' Jayson replied relieved.

'Now just get some rest. We'll sort out what to do about Spore later.' Squall told them turning and limping slowly out the room.

Meia gazed at Jayson longingly.

'Well that wasn't too bad.' He whispered to her.

'What do you mean too bad? You saying I wasn't good?' she said shoving him.

'No the kiss was great, I meant Squall.' Jayson replied grinning.

'Oh.' Meia replied blushing. 'I think he's just annoyed that you beat him.'

'He'll probably tell himself Spore made me better to make it acceptable to himself.' Jayson replied.

'Though it isn't true, he just used your body and skills plus you pulled your punches.' Meia told him whispering.

'So you know the truth. You seem to have been studying my fighting I see.' Jayson replied and pulled her on top of him making her shriek.

'Only for three years.' She told him giggling as she sat up.

'Oh really?' Jayson said arching an eyebrow before starting to tickle her.

Meia giggled trying to squirm away. Jayson relented, his hands sliding down to her hips.

'You know Orion's making fun of you.' She told him.

'Well he can talk.' He said grinning then wincing as the parasite dug deeper into his arm.

'We really have to get that off you, it's feeding off you.' Meia said her tone suddenly becoming serious.

'Well cutting it off won't work I know that, we'll have to make it come off itself but we can't suffocate it, it doesn't seem to breathe.' Jayson replied staring down at the black creature, its legs making bumps in his flesh where they had dug in.

'How about poison?' Meia asked.

'It's just spit it into me.' Jayson replied before lapsing into silent deep thought.

'Actually there is a way we can poison it but its risky.' Jayson said finally.

'What? How?' Meia asked getting up off him.

'Alcohol. If we can flood it with alcohol it might let go. The risk is we'll have to tourniquet my arm so it doesn't just send all the alcohol to me and gets me drunk.' Jayson explained.

'Okay but I want a doctor here.' Meia told him.

Meia left and came back with Laguna and Dr. Odine, the latter a short bald man of oriental complexion with a huge red and white ruff around his neck.

'He's a doctor?' Jayson asked surprised.

'Vat? You no zink I good enough?' Odine asked in his strange accent.

'Don't worry, he's the best we got.' Laguna replied placing a restraining hand on the incandescent Odine.

'Hmm strange creature.' Odine muttered as Meia tightly tied strips of material around Jayson's arms above and below the parasite.

Jayson felt his arm going numb as the blood was cut off and watched the parasite move uncomfortably.

Jayson watched Odine produce a big syringe full of clear fluid.

'We be getting zis zing drunk pretty soon.' He said and pushed the needle into the gash on the parasite and pushed the alcohol into it.

The parasite squirmed its tail swishing Jayson's neck.

'What did you give it?' Jayson asked as blood poured form his arm as the parasites legs began to pull out of him.

'Ninety-seven percent ethanol.' Odine said simple.

'What!? I was expecting something like vodka! You trying to kill me?' Jayson replied yelling.

'You shud be ok. The nasty little creature shudn't be able to prozess the alcohol to give it you before it dies.' Odine replied matter-of-factly.

Jayson felt the parasite's legs slide out of him as it began to thrash wildly. There was a stinging pain in the back of his neck as the tail prongs slid out of his neck. Seizing his chance, Jayson wrenching it off his shoulder spraying blood onto the sheets as its mouthparts came free and he threw it at the wall.

It bounced off onto the ground twitching. Jayson grabbed a scalpel from a tray beside him and threw it at the parasite cursing. The blade went straight through it pinning it to the floor and it stopped moving.

The others stared wide-eyed at the scene until Laguna said slowly 'Ok, lets get him cleaned up.'

They spent the next ten minutes cleaning and stitching his wounds making sure no parasite parts remained.

Laguna and Odine left once they had done, leaving Meia bandaging up Jayson's arm.

'Odine wasn't happy you killed it.' She told him as she wrapped the white material around his upper arm and tucked it in.

'Tough. That thing helped destroy me, it's too dangerous to be left alive.' Jayson said bitterly.

'Well its gone now and you're back again. You shouldn't dwell on it so much.' Meia said softly.

'Sorry, habit of a lifetime.' He said absentmindedly rubbing the back of his neck.

'One I intend to break.' She told him smiling.

'Oh? You really think so? When you can't stop yourself biting your nails?' Jayson said laughing.

Meia gave him an evil look 'How did you know that?' she asked.

'What, so it's okay for you to watch me but I can't watch you?' he replied grinning.

'Oh if that's the case why didn't you ask me to the ball?' she asked.

'Do I really need to give the answer to that?' Jayson replied raising a quizzical eyebrow.

'Hmm maybe not but I still want to hear it.' She told him sitting on the bed next to him.

'Well I didn't really know you so I was too shy to just go and ask you, besides I figured you'd laugh in my face.' Jayson replied, his hand taking its place at her cheek once more.

Meia placed her hand on his. 'I thought as much. I would've asked you but I thought you never noticed me.' She said softly.

'We both acted stupid didn't we?' Jayson said laughing softly. 'Oh and tell Orion if he doesn't stop laughing at me I'll let out his secrets.' He added.

'He stopped now, I think you got him scared.' Meia told him giggling. Jayson pulled the covers off him so he could move closer to her. 'I see I got to keep my clothes on this time then.' He said as he swung his leg over the side of the bed.

'Umm yeah I figured you wouldn't want me taking a peek.' She replied grinning.

'Hmm well didn't stop you taking my top off!' Jayson retorted.

'Yeah but I've already seen you topless so I can get away with that.' She told him sticking her tongue out. Jayson went to grab it playfully but she pulled it back in.

'Fine but you won't get away so easily next time.' Jayson warned her and then pinned her down on the bed, tickling her.

Meia shrieked and tried to push him off as his fingers slid up her sides.

Jayson continued to tickle her as struggled under him, shrieking and laughing. He stopped tormenting her and lay next to her as she tried to get her breath back.

'Meanie!' she said to him gasping. Then she got her own back by pinning him and tickling him.

Jayson tried to ignore the tickles keeping his face straight. 'I'm not ticklish.' He told her.

'Oh well I'll have to torment you some other way then.' She told him moving her hands to her top and slowly started unbuttoning it.

'What are you doing?' Jayson hissed as he grabbed her hands, his face burning hot and blushing.

Meia stopped, laughing. 'Got you! I wasn't really going to strip!.' She told him and stood up.

'Evil woman.' Jayson muttered.

'And proud of it!.' She told him laughing.

Jayson sat up his stomach growling.

'You're not hungry again are you?' Meia teased.

'Hey I haven't eaten for a day!' Jayson replied standing up looking for his shirt. 'Oh and could I have Orion back now? I don't want him getting too comfortable and telling all my secrets.' He added.

'Sure.' Meia replied and there was a faint figure of Orion hanging in the air between them giving Jayson a betrayed, hurt look before moving into Jayson and fading.

'Thanks a lot!.' Orion whined in Jayson's head.

'Hey can't have you getting distracted, we got work to do.' Jayson replied.

'Yeah, yeah. But you owe me.' Orion muttered.

'I take it he's not glad to be back?' Meia giggled.

'Not really. He doesn't get out much.' Jayson replied.

'Don't use him huh? So how come he's so compatible with you?' Meia inquired slipping off the bed.

'I've always had him junctioned to me ever since I found him.' Jayson replied finding a shirt, slipping it on and buttoning it up.

'I see. So where we going to eat?' she asked, opening the door.

'The kitchens. I'm sure they wouldn't mind if we cooked for ourselves.' He answered, strapping Fixxer to his thigh whilst Meia gave him a quizzical look.

'A comfort thing?' she joked as he walked through the door.

'Maybe.' He replied grinning and went to push her playfully. She dodged, laughing as he stumbled.

'That'll teach you to behave.' She told him.

The two of them made their way to the kitchens each deep in their own thoughts.