(Hi again! 'Tis me, back with another chapter! -cheers!- Even though I'm almost completely brainwashed from Spring Break, I feel like I have to have another chapter to continue the unwillingly promoted saga of Kaya's past. Did that even make sense? -sighs- Ah, well. Not much to say here, just enjoy the chapter and tell me what you think.

Disclaimer(s): I do not own Gundam Seed, I only own Kaya.)

Last Time, Chapter 5: My Past

For a long time, neither of them spoke. Kaya bit her lip but let the tears flow, staring at the once again blank screen of her laptop as she had every night for a long time. Kira didn't speak, burning a hole in the window with his gaze.

After a while, the silence was broken by an alarm and the captain calling over the speakers for everyone to get into "Level one battle stations!"

Kira stood quickly, glancing at the door and then back to his companion. Gently, he placed a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up at him through moistened eyes. "Kaya, I. . ."

"Go," Kaya replied, cutting him off as she dried her tears and smiled warily at him. "Go on, go fight- for me. For all of us. For the Archangel. Don't hesitate, okay? I know that you can do it, you've always done it before." She paused, then stood. "Promise me that you'll come back?"

He stared into her eyes. They were shining.

"I promise you that, Kaya," Kira said softly. "If nothing else, I promise you that."

---

In the next five seconds he had regained hold on the controls and attacked Athrun with extreme force. "SHUT UP!" Kira yelled furiously. "JUST SHUT UP ABOUT THE WAR! I don't want to hear any of it, I don't want to think about it! Just shut up and die!"

Athrun blocked his attack, holding him off, watching his childhood friend totally lose himself. "You see, Kira? This war. . .it's changed you. You hate fighting, and yet you fight as though it means the world to you."

"What are you talking about?" Kira spat.

Athrun remained calm and collected, pushing away the Strike's beam saber with the Aegis's.

"You know what I'm talking about, Kira. Both of us are fighting, for the same reasons. You're fighting because you care about people, and so am I. But I'm fighting this battle, right now, for one person. The one person that I have to guard myself against on the battlefield. I'm fighting, Kira. For you. And you just told me to shut up and die."

Somewhere on the screen in the Strike, another alarm went off, signaling something that wasn't fatal but should be taken care of soon. The brown-haired soldier paid no attention.

Kira froze up again, his gaze once again falling. His eyes widened as they had so many times before, out of shock. He didn't say anything. Slowly, the world came back to him, wrenching his heart into pieces. His shoulders began to shake, twitching hard, harder than they should have, and his breathing came out quicker, too quick. He was breathing irregularly now, sucking in shaky breaths and trying to save any calm he had, and his breath came out in short, quick gasps.

Kira shut his eyes tight, the tears springing from them and floating around in the anti-gravity of space.

"Kira," Athrun said. Dammit, how could he stay so calm!

With a wordless cry of anguish, Kira slammed his fist down on the keyboard, the video vanishing immediately and the regular voice message system returning online. He let the tears fall, fists clenched tight in fury, his whole body shaking with rage and pain and uncontrollable grief.

Chapter Six: Nightmare

She stood there silently, letting the burning water slide down her smooth skin, dripping off her soaked hair soundlessly. It fell in sheets, the sting of the hot drops gradually lessening as her body became used to the heat. With loud patters it slammed into the bottom of the shower, the heat that radiated bouncing off the cool sliding door and fogging up the inside and out. Her body never once moved; her face turned up to welcome the water, limbs motionless for the moment.

Her indigo eyes narrowed with emotion, lips parting slightly, pursed for the same reason. This- she couldn't remember why, but this reminded her. The way the water fell down her back, trickled down her face, it reminded her of

(rain the rain so sweet like the caress of him, the one you love)

Kaya tensed, snapped back to reality. What...? Where had that thought come from? It was so strange, yet so familiar. . .and then she understood.

Her parents.

She frowned. No. She would not forgive them, no matter what. Never. Never, never. . .

You'll never hear me crying

you'll never see me trying

To love you once again

your love is so past tense...

No matter what.

Kaya wrapped her arms around herself, her fingers gently grazing the slick, wet skin as she shivered. Memories came back to her again, and she knew it was the same sequence that she saw when she was having the

(nightmare thenightmare the one that wakes you at night soaked in a cold sweat and crying, crying out for someone. . .crying out for him. . .)

dreams that came to her at night.

She shook her head fiercely, trying to ward off her conscious as she reached for a towel, not bothering to turn off the water or step out of the shower, and wrapped it around her waist. The things it whispered in her ear were sometimes enough to make her lose all control over her emotions. Who was it- what was it that made her wake up in the middle of the night with a terrified scream on her lips?

(Don't play stupid. You know exactly who and what it is.)

It's. . .no. . .no! Kaya thought determinedly, gritting her teeth in frustration. It can't be him! Kira is a friend, nothing more! He means a lot to me, but he's not-

(Don't kid yourself. You're head over heels for that guy, and you know it. You've known it ever since. . .)

Kaya's eyes widened, and then she shut them, clapping her hands over her ears in a desperate attempt to block out the sneering voice. "No! Stop it! Stop it!"

Your love is everything I live for

your voice is what I hear

Your touch is everything I dreamed of

'Cause you are

The one I need. . .

The voice continued to remind her of the constant pain and torture she was in, along with the fact that she had a crush on her troubled best friend, and she screamed, screamed herself hoarse, her nails digging into the soft flesh until it was red, until she couldn't take the pain, couldn't scream any more.

Only then did her screaming taper and fade away, as tears and dry sobs mingled with the warm water that ran down her cheeks, and Kaya slid down to the floor of the shower, closing her eyes and shivering as warm gave way to icy cold. She let out a heavy breath, tilting her head against the side wall as the freezing drops hit her skin and slid down the curves her body portrayed, sliding down her neck and between her breasts, drowning her in the bone-chilling memories and cold.

"Stop it," she whispered, her strength spent. The voice seemed to laugh in quiet satisfaction as she repeated those two words over and over and over again.

"Stop it. . .stop it. . .stop it. . ."

It had been such a long time since she'd been outside. . .such a very long time. . .

The wind caressed her bare skin, cold, but it felt good- reassuring, to the largest extent. Her indigo eyes stared unwavering across the skyline, over the water, and to the dark horizon. The night was lovely- spent, but truly filled with a serene calm that she hadn't seen in ages. Delicate breezes ran their fingers through her dark hair, lifting it off her neck to caress her cheek.

Kaya stood on the balcony of the two-story mansion where she had resided her entire life. Her lavender silken nightgown, the one that fit tighter than others, brushed against her legs, her feet bare on the cold cement. Her illness had kept her in bed for quite some time now, with a high, dangerous fever and nightmares that haunted her fitful torrents of sleep, and it felt almost perfect when she was finally able to creep outside at night again.

Almost.

But still, it wasn't enough. Because of the dreams, her mind now hungered for something more than simple thought and pleasure.

It wanted death.

Over the minutes that seemed to have convinced themselves that they were hours, as Kaya lie tossing and turning, entangled in her white sheets and soaked in fever-born sweat, the dreams that had tortured her had finally pushed her mind over the edge, just slightly. Even so, that slight nudge was enough for it to believe that death was the only way.

The only way to prove that she really was still alive. The only way to prove that it is only a dream. The only way to prove that she would be all right. The only way to satisfy her empty soul.

The only way to prove that someone would always catch her when she fell.

So now, as she stared unblinkingly at the horizon, Kaya only sub-consciously noticed as her feet betrayed her and stepped up from the cold stone floor of the balcony onto the equally cold rail, her body standing precariously balanced on top of the thin, smooth metal.

Her mind screamed at her then, realizing its mistake just in time. (Don't even think about it! There will be nobody down there to catch your fall! You will slice through the air like a knife through cheese, and then you will slam into the pavement and your heart will stop beating and you will die. . .do not do this!)

"Prove it," she whispered, her voice gentle but hoarse. "Prove to me that there will be nobody to catch my fall." She spread her arms out, rising on tiptoe, and turned so that she was facing her room. "You are wrong. He will always be there to catch me. Always. . ."

Then, she leaned backward just enough for the wind to sweep her back with its sudden gust, her hair flying as balance was lost and gravity took over, pulling her towards the earth.

The chilling air whipped against her body, defying her fall, her nightgown shining in the light of the full moon as it clung to her bare legs.

She closed her eyes and waited for the hard crash of impact.

It never came.

Slowly, Kaya opened her eyes, blinking, and stared up into the genuinely worried face of the one she loved. A soft smiled graced her paled features as she closed her eyes again, relaxing in his arms as her body gave in to exhaustion.

"Knew you'd catch me. . ."

The young man, his dark hair blowing in the wind, hazel eyes studying her in concern, spoke her name, his lips pursed and taut with worry, the fear of her death from such a fall evident.

"Kaya. Kaya, answer me! Kaya!"

A wet hand shook her hard, in a strong attempt to break her from her silent reverie. "Kaya! Come on, dammit, wake up!"

Reluctantly, fearing that her dreams were real, the young girl opened her eyes. "Stop. . ." she murmured, shivering as her body made the connection that the water had run cold, snapping her senses into overdrive.

She saw three sets of eyes- an amber set, a blue set, and another of a lighter blue color, all of them gazing down in concern.

The hands that reached for her next belonged to the same person as the light blue eyes- a man dressed in a unique uniform with blonde hair. She vaguely remembered seeing him somewhere, and then once again her senses came to the rescue as her memory found its connection to her brain.

"Creuset," she muttered, flinching away from him and wrapping her arms around herself. He paused, a hand nearly to her shoulder, ready to shake her again.

Startled, Fraga glanced back at Miriallia. "What in the...?"

Miriallia sighed, fiddling nervously with her bushy chestnut hair. "I- I don't know," she admitted. The word scared her- how did she know about Creuset? Kaya had never heard the others talk about him- at least she didn't think so- and she doubted that Kaya had ever seen his face, even in battle.

Then again, there weren't very many of the younger soldiers- Sai, Kuzzy, herself- that actually had seen him. Kira had, of course, and so had some of the superiors.

"She must be delirious." Both Miriallia and Fraga were surprised when the Lieutenant spoke up. "Haww, get her in some dry clothes and make sure she's all right. Fraga, you have your orders."

Miriallia hesitated, then nodded. "Yes, Lieutenant Badgiruel."

(Several Hours later, ZAFT)

"Athrun. ATHRUN!"

Athrun blinked, pausing with the fork of chicken halfway to his mouth. "What?"

Yzak snorted. "So you finally got through to him, huh Dearka? Impressive."

"Shut up, Yzak," Dearka retorted, leaning forward absently and directing his attention back to Athrun. "I asked you a question."

Athrun shook his head, sliding the chicken off the fork and chewing it thoughtfully. "I'm sorry, I had my mind on other things. . ."(He paused to a sneered, "Obviously," from Yzak.) "What did you say?"

Dearka shook his head, swallowing drink before he answered. "I'm beginning to worry about you, Athrun. You seem to space out quite a bit more than you used to. One of these days, it's going to cause a major loss on our side of the battlefield." He put his drink down. "Anyway, I was asking about the day Nichol died."

Athrun tensed, his grip on his forkful of salad tightening a little. Even after he'd gotten over Nichol's death, it was still hard for him to deal with. "I- I don't really like talking about it, Dearka."

Yzak stepped in before Dearka could say a word. "Probably because your supposed-best-friend was involved," he snapped bitterly. Dearka shot him a cold glare, but it barely scratched Yzak's bitter facade.

"Look, Athrun, I don't mean to invade your personal life or anything, it's just that. . .well, I never got all the details from you. I get the feeling you left out a lot."

Athrun shifted his gaze. "You were there. You saw it."

"Yeah, but seriously," Dearka pressed a little. "Sure, we saw Nichol. . ." He trailed off, searching for a word other than the one that would immediately have escaped, and, finding none that would suit him, gave up, "die, but we didn't see your initial reaction."

"Or the reaction of that stupid Strike pilot," Yzak added, trying to sound as though he didn't really care and missing his mark by a fraction of an inch. There was a small amount of what could be remorse in his voice, barely detectable even by the easiest of body-language readers.

Athrun finished his dinner and made to stand, but Dearka's hand on his arm forced him to stop. Great, now he had no means of escape from this discussion.

Dearka nodded to the chair, his voice firm as he released Athrun's arm and commanded, "Sit down."

Much to the Buster pilot's surprise, Athrun obliged without protest, sinking back into his chair with a sigh. "What," he muttered, running a hand over his face.

Dearka grinned ruefully. "You're not leaving until you tell me about Nichol's death."

Athrun frowned at him. "Why the hell is it so important to you? It's not like we don't have other problems to talk about, not like other people didn't die."

Dearka's grin faded into seriousness. "Nichol was more than just another person. He was part of our team, Athrun. His death can't just slide and disappear like another casualty."

Athrun stood once again, annoyed. He placed both palms flat on the table, staring Dearka in the eye. "It was, though. He died in war, just like all the others. There's nothing we could do to change that."

Yzak was pissed. He lunged forward and grabbed Athrun's shirt, spinning him around and pinning him to the wall with both hands.

"Dammit!" he screamed, glaring at Athrun, keeping firm on his hold. "You think this is all some game, Athrun Zala? That Nichol's death was nothing more than a casualty?"

Athrun glared back, placing his own firm grip on the Duel pilot's shoulders and throwing him backwards, turning him to face the wall. "No!" he cried. "God, no! Nichol's death can never pass as nothing more than a casualty! Never! If it were to be as such, if we had never known Nichol, if he was just another person that we never came across then. . ." Athrun trailed off, breathing hard. He let go of Yzak, who tripped and stumbled forward, glaring heatedly at him.

"Then what?"Yzak asked, unsure whether he really wanted to know the answer or not.

Athrun sighed, turning his back on the soldiers and walking out of the room. He stopped at the door to finish his sentence.

"Then maybe we wouldn't be discussing his death."

They stared after him in silence as the door shut. Dearka whistled. "Touchy on that subject, isn't he?"

Yzak leaned against the wall, draining the soda he'd picked back up and crushing the can. "It's all because of the Strike pilot. Something about them being friends before the war, I've heard that much picking up on their conversations in space. He killed Nichol while we were back on Earth, and then a few months later Athrun took the lives of one of the EA's pilots, maybe out of revenge."

Dearka nodded stiffly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah. I remember that," he replied dryly.

"There was a nice explosion," Yzak muttered, tossing the crushed can in the trash and pushing off the wall, crossing his arms. "Big, and really bright."

Dearka turned on him, crossing his own arms, his voice clipped. "Explosions are always big, and they're always bright. But they're never," his face darkened, "never nice. I don't even see how you could make such a statement, since Nichol's death was the same way- and you seemed pretty pissed off about it afterwards, if I remember correctly." Dearka nodded to himself. "Yeah- your locker still has the marks to prove it." He walked out of the room.

Yzak huffed, growling in frustration, and he sank into a chair only after Dearka was gone. One hand immediately shot up to his temple, massaging it and willing away the intense headache he'd just gotten.

Coordinators shouldn't be allowed to get headaches. They shouldn't be allowed to feel such pain. Dammit...

(EA, Archangel)

Kira took another sip of coffee and leaned back in the chair, closing his eyes and letting a resigned sigh echo through the room. He paid no attention to the sound of the door opening or the click of footsteps on the floor pausing in front of him, not until a familiar voice spoke.

"Your little girlfriend fainted in the shower today." It was a sneer, as though taunting him. A cold voice, one that he'd taken to ignoring to a certain extent. The green eyes that accented it were just as cold.

Kira opened his eyes and stared up at the tall figure deemed Fllay. "How the hell would you know that?" he asked dryly, temporarily setting aside all forms of concern.

Fllay laughed. "I have my...sources. Why would you bother asking such a question? Word spreads around pretty fast on a ship like this." She snickered. "Apparently, she was thinking about you. I think you love her, Kira Yamato."

Kira stood up fast, spilling what remained of the coffee (it was ignored by both of them) as his hands clenched into fists and he stared her down angrily. She didn't flinch or avert her eyes- just gazed back at him with that leer still plastered on her face. "I do not!"

"Oh, yes, you do," Fllay replied, reaching to touch his face. "You're obsessed with her. Her thoughts, her actions, her moves-" Kira blushed inwardly, "-and you can't even tell her because she's too busy crying or worrying or fainting. That's not the kind of girl you want, Kira."

Fllay leaned in closer, so that Kira could feel her breath hot on his face as she spoke.

"You want me."

In the next three seconds, Kira was at the other side of the room, clinging to the wall for a support and glaring weakly at Fllay. "No! No, I don't! You're wrong! I don't!"

Fllay's lips curled into a smile again, and she raised her hands, shrugging and continuing to the counter, "Well, say what you want," she remarked in an almost teasing manner.

Kira bolted from the room, the door slamming shut behind him.

Fllay laughed derisively to herself. "Almost there, Kira. We're almost there."

(Elsewhere)

Kaya stared blankly out the window, not really seeing anything at all. Her eyes were glazed and unfocused, a little clouded over as a result of her thoughts and not-so-well-being.

The door opened without a knock, and she paid no attention to whomever it was until they rested a light hand on her shoulder.

Kaya's eyes flickered to the corners of her visual perception, and then she sighed. "Something wrong, Sai?"

He smiled at her lightly. "No, not at all, I just brought you some dinner." He hesitated, pushing his glasses up on his nose and setting the tray down, then added, "Is everything all right?"

Kaya picked up the glass of water and swirled it around, the water spinning inside. She stared at it carefully, her expression dull as she watched the bubbles rise to the surface dizzily. "I asked you first," she responded dryly.

It wasn't meant as a joke.

"And I responded. So why won't you answer me?" Sai sat down next to her and watched the water, too, for a while. When he realized that she wasn't going to answer, he turned his gaze away, to her laptop. "That's impressive," he remarked, and she glanced at the portable computer with all her files stored away.

"Nah, it's not much," she sighed, sitting up and poking at the meat with her fork. "The officials who came to take me away so I could join the Earth Alliance told me to bring only what I could carry in my hands, and, well. . .that was it," she finished, stabbing at a green bean and putting it into her mouth, chewing carefully.

Sai nodded. "I see," he replied, watching her.

After a few minutes of silence, Kaya paused with the fork halfway to her mouth and looked over at Sai, raising an eyebrow. "Don't you have something to do, or had you planned on sitting there and observing my eating habits for another hour and a half?"

Sai stood up, giving her a little smile. "Okay. I get it," he laughed. "I'm going, don't worry." He walked to the door, pausing briefly to add, "Hey, if you've ever got a problem or anything, the rest of us are always here for you," before walking out.

Kaya set the fork down, slowly turning her gaze to the closed door and staring intently at it for a while.

(Falling falling faster and faster with no end in sight just like the war it won't ever end)

With a feeble cry she shook her head, wrapping her arms around herself in a protective stance. Suddenly she was freezing, waves of dizziness crashing over her. "Nnn..."

(You're going to die and he won't feel any pain because of it he'll be happy that you're out of his life and he'll go back to that girl that girl you know who)

Kaya was trying hard not to hyperventilate- that was the last thing she needed in space. Hyperventilating always made her head hurt.

So she didn't hyperventilate, and she didn't feel her head throb as it would have done.

Instead, a strange feeling of vertigo came over her. She opened her eyes (when had she closed them?)and took a deep breath, then another, willing the feeling to leave.

It did, and that was when she realized she was floating in the air, having pushed off her bed in her desperate attempt to shut out the

(Curse you're cursed you always will be)

voice that so desperately wanted to help her lose her mind.

Shivering, Kaya sat down again on her bed and looked at her food again. Suddenly she felt queasy, worse than she'd been since first boarding the ship, and had to swallow repeatedly to keep her food from making a second appearance in the gravity-less air. When she had succeeded, she let out a breath she couldn't remember holding and looked away from her food, pushing the tray away from her, appetite gone.

Sighing, she leaned forward and let her forehead rest against the wall. It felt cool against her skin. For a minute, there was a fleeting thought that maybe she had a fever, but a quick check proved that incorrect, and the thought vanished.

There came a knock on her door, tense, and she glanced at it from the corner of her eye. At the sound of Fllay's unnaturally sweet voice, she flinched.

"Kaya? Are you in there? I wanted to talk to you."

Oh, great, what's she here for? I suppose maybe it's to throw insults at me again. Then again, maybe Kira's finally convinced her that she needs to--

(Hurt you- causing you pain is what she does for a living. She's going to destroy you and then take her boyfriend back, she hates you for taking Kira from her and she won't hesitate to kill you. I'll bet she's got a gun in hand waiting for you to open the door, just so she can kill you.)

Kaya pressed a hand to her head, as though it would ward off the voice. "Shut up," she mumbled, standing shakily and turning to walk to the door. When she reached it, she paused, so that the shadow of her form wasn't visible under the door.

From the other side came Miriallia's voice. When had she gotten there? Had she just been with Fllay all along?

Yeah, probably, Kaya reasoned. I don't think that anyone would have let Fllay just come to my room alone- who knows what wrath she may have under that red hair.

"Kaya? Hey, are you awake?" Miriallia called quietly, lightly rapping on the door again. "Kaya?"

Kaya took a few silent steps backwards, just to make sure she wouldn't sound as though she'd been expecting them- which she hadn't, of course, but Fllay was known for her ability to convince people of things that weren't really true. . .

Taking a breath, she called back, "Yeah, I'm here. Come on in."

The door slid open, and Miriallia entered with Fllay, who glanced around the room and tried not to frown.

"Hey," Miriallia greeted, giving her a smile, "How are you?"

Kaya managed a grin. "You make it sound like we're on the phone or something instead of you two being in my room." Then she paused, and added, "Fllay, you wanted to talk to me about something?"

Fllay glanced over at Miriallia, who nodded. Her gaze slowly returned to Kaya. "Um...yes, yes I did." She paused. "It's about Kira."

"Oh." Kaya sat back down on the bed, motioning next to her. Obliging, Miriallia and Fllay took a seat. "What about him? I see he's quite the fighter when it comes to battling."

Miriallia flinched a little, and Fllay blanched, coughing weakly to cover it. Kaya glanced out the window, her expression a delicate frown.

Oh no. I hit something.

"Yes, he is," Miriallia smiled uncertainly. "But...uhm...lately, he's been...I don't know... weaker. I think maybe all the fighting is taking its toll on him."

Kaya stood up. "He's not weak!" she cried.

Fllay came to Miriallia's rescue. "No-! No, he's...he's not. Just...just sit down, and we'll explain what we mean by that," she said quickly, gesturing to the bed.

Kaya frowned inwardly. What kind of ploy is this? I sincerely doubt that Fllay and Miriallia would be working together over something like this.

(Then again, maybe they're both concerned about Kira, and nobody else can do anything about it,) her brain reasoned.

"Maybe," she replied aloud, still standing.

Both girls took this as a half-and-half response to Fllay's comment, and they glanced at each other.

"Maybe? Kaya, standing won't help you think or anything," Miriallia remarked, in that same uncertain tone.

"What, you think we can't explain what we meant?" Fllay protested at the same time.

Kaya shook her head. "No! No, I- I'll sit down. I'm sure you guys can tell me what you're talking about, since you brought the whole thing up in the first place." She sat down on the bed again, tipping her head back to work out a crick in her neck. Then she looked pointedly at Fllay, gazing into her eyes. "So, what's this all about?"

Fllay glanced at Miriallia again before looking back to Kaya. "Well, he just...hasn't been himself lately. He avoids me," she admitted sadly, shaking her head.

"Not just you, Fllay," Miriallia added, "Everyone. Kuzzy, Sai and I haven't seen him since three days ago, when we- er- met- in the cafeteria. It wasn't under the best of circumstances, either- he seemed really ticked off about something. We could tell, and all of us agree that he's working himself too hard over this war."

Kaya nodded. "Well, I have to agree with you on that. All of it. Kira does seem touchier than usual, and he avoids me too, when he can help it. 'Course, training forces him to be with me, but..." She trailed off, then shook her head vehemently, realizing she'd gotten off track. "Anyway, I'm worried about him."

"Us too," Miriallia agreed.

"So, what are we going to do?" Fllay asked, twisting a lock of her hair. "I mean, we can't just go up to him and tell him that we think he's avoiding us on purpose..."

Kaya thought for a while, and neither Fllay nor Miriallia said a word, lost in their own thoughts.

A few minutes later, Kaya straightened up, snapping her fingers and making the others jump, startled.

"What, what is it?" Fllay questioned, almost eagerly. She leaned forward, as did Miriallia.

Kaya smiled. "I've got it." She retrieved her laptop and opened a word processing program, fingers flying over the keys. The others read what she had written:

Avoidance Step No. 1

Beside the number one, the cursor blinked expectantly. Kaya nodded to herself as she looked up at the others.

Miriallia raised an eyebrow. "I don't get it," she declared, and Fllay nodded. "What's so special about 'Avoidance Step No. 1?'"

Kaya pulled the laptop onto her lap. "Okay, here's what we're going to do. . ."

(Whee. Cliffhanger! Fun-fun. You're welcome to make guesses on what they're going to do...and suggestions, too, since I don't even know what they're going to do yet...

Heh. Later.)