A/N: Wow, I didn't think this story would be so highly liked… Thanks go out to all my reviewers, especially the very helpful Reana, and the consistent Fireblade K'Chona…

NitaGirl99- Yeah, the chapters really should be a bit longer… I'll have to work on that. I'm glad you enjoyed this fic so far…

Elfin2- Of course.

TCF- Right now.

Reana- Thank you… yes, critical is good. But being non-critical when you're really critical is good, too.

CrEsCeNtMoOn19- Trials of the Heart? Hmmm… Idea for a sequel coming on…

Fireblade K'Chona- Of course. I'm not the kind of author to abandon my readers… unless, of course, the story is downright horrid…

This Chapter is dedicated to yayalulu, a great friend, writing consultant, and person to be around. Thanks, lulu, for everything!

Chapter Four

Six AM, Sunday Morning

The first thing Nita saw when she opened her eyes was the none-too-comforting red glow of her digital alarm clock on her nightstand. And she stared in utter disbelief.

"What am I doing up at six in the morning" she moaned to herself, rolling over onto her stomach and staring out the window, contemplating the mysteries of life, love, and malfunctioning biological clocks.

The rain drummed a steady tattoo against the windowpane, dripping down to add to the sibilant hiss that rose up from the sidewalks slick with the downpour. A sudden roar of thunder shook the Callahan house, rattling the windows in the frames, and Nita groaned as the lights flickered twice, then went out.

A sudden, hauntingly dead silence filled the house, causing Nita's ears to ring in the unusual quiet.

She sighed. "There goes the microwave… so much for a quick breakfast…" she muttered, half to herself.

"What was that about breakfast?"

Startled, she whipped her head around and received a cricked neck for her efforts.

"Owwww… morning, Kit. Sleep well?"

Kit sat down beside her on the bed, bouncing experimentally and causing it to creak in protest.

He rolled his eyes at the bed and shrugged. "Not too well… I guess I finally dropped off at about two… You snore really loud, you know that?"

Nita threw a look at him, and, as an afterthought, a pillow as well, knocking him over.

Scrambling to sit on top of him, she looked down at his smirking face, struggling to hide the wide grin threatening to take over her face.

"Girls don't snore, Kit. It's just heavy breathing. You, on the other hand…"

She prodded him in the ribs, and he flinched away, laughing.

Nita raised a mischievous eyebrow.

"Ticklish, huh? Well, we'll just have to change that…"

l l l l l l l l

Kit, red-faced from his laughter and thrashing, glared at Nita from across her living room.

"How do you know every single one of my sensitive spots?" he inquired irritably.

Nita shrugged with all the innocence she could muster. "It's a girl thing," she said offhandedly.

Behind his back, Kit picked up a pillow from the couch.

"Really. Interesting. Well… um, Neets?"

"What?"

"Catch."

Nita had no time at all to react before Kit was pinning her to the ground, sitting on top of the pillow atop her stomach.

He grinned wickedly down at her. "It just so happens Dairine and I had a small… conversation… about you the other day… for more information to add into the matrix of the new mass-transit spell… and, look what she gave me."

Storm gray eyes went wide as Kit brushed auburn strands of hair from behind Nita's ear.

"Why you…" she got out, before Kit slowly ran a finger down the skin behind her ear. Nita shuddered, then shrieked and squirmed under him, laughing uncontrollably all the while.

She successfully threw him off, and she heaved herself to her feet, gasping.

"Kit… you're a dead man. You know that?"

He shrugged in that amazingly irritating way he had. "Like I said before, you're gonna have to catch me first."

Shaking her head smilingly, she punched him lightly in the shoulder and went to go see about her shower.

l l l l l l l l

Kit looked up from holding a match to the right rear gas burner and grinned at Nita.

"Hola, Neets. Seems you finally woke up… nice towel, by the way."

Nita glared at him, unwrapping the towel from her head and letting her wet hair cascade down her back.

"Happy now?"

Kit's gaze seemed transfixed on a dry section of her hair. "No way it just dries like that… does it?"

Nita blushed. "Yeah, it does. What's it to you?"

"It's beautiful," Kit blurted, before he could stop himself.

His partner in wizardry went an even deeper shade of red. "Thanks… oh, here, let me make breakfast… go home and take a shower. Powers know you need one," she needled him affectionately, poking him in the ribs as he gratefully handed her breakfast duties and passed her. He glared at her, then rolled his eyes and dropped a transit circle.

The gas flame sputtered in indignation as the air imploded on where Kit had been moments ago, creating a gentle breeze that stirred the curtains.

Nita sighed wistfully, then tucked her hair behind her ears and set about making breakfast.

l l l l l l l l

8 AM, Saturday Morning

Breakfast was a leisurely affair, consisting of eggs, bacon, Callahan hashbrowns, salsa, and, in Nita's opinion, a little too much teasing from Kit about her slightly burnt hashbrowns.

But, Kit being Kit, they both knew he thought well of her cooking skills.

Through another mouthful of hashbrowns, Kit sighed. "So, what's on the agenda today?" he inquired, looking expectantly at Nita.

"It's rude to talk with your mouth full. And I'm not sure. What with the power out… I'm not sure I want to do much… maybe go for a walk."

"In the rain?"

"Yeah… with no shields."

"Nita, I don't like rain. I thought you knew that."

"Oh, Kit, stop being a spoilsport… It'll be fun," Nita persisted, giving him the big-soulful-eyes treatment she'd learned from Ponch.

"Aaaagh, Nita! You really do know me too well… Oh, all right…"

His friend brightened considerably. "Well, okay, then. Let's go…"

"Now?"

"C'mon, Kit…"

l l l l l l l l

A/N: Okay, maybe not a good place to end… but it's eleven thirty, and I'm dead tired. School is approaching fast, and, well… my update intervals might decrease a bit. But, then again, they might increase, due to a lot of beta readers…

8-30-04: Aaaagh, just got through reading this online, and found out the upload somehow erased all my transitions… fixed that. Thanks go out to the current three reviewers, and I hope more will come soon to meet the update quota of five.