Hi all!

Thank you all for your patience. Things have been rather hectic on this end, but I will try much harder to get chapters posted more quickly.

This story is coming to an end soon, but don't worry, I am already planning a sequel staring the twins (as per the requests of a few readers :) )

Thank you guys for everything!
Enjoy,

Failte


After making sure Erik was going to be okay, Josie, Vince, and Henry had returned to the Alexander home. They offered their support and promised to check in, but the fact of the matter was that they felt as though they were impeding on a very personal, family moment. Not to mention that Josie had an appointment in a few hours and Vince had hoped to stop in at the office.

Keith and Allura decided to accompany Cady and Tristan back to his parent's house to meet with the police. After promising Sven, Romelle, and Delora that they would be back later, they followed Tristan and Cady to the car.

"Now my father offered to stay and act as your attorney," Tristan explained as they cut across the parking lot to his car.

"Do I really need an attorney?" Cady asked.

"It can't hurt," Keith said. "Just to keep you covered."

The ride back to the house was spent preparing Cady for her interview. Everyone had advice to offer, but it did little to alleviate her worries. She sat beside her mother in the back seat, nervously twisting her hands in her lap. Cady was suddenly hit with the overwhelming need to be home. The pull to return to Arus was extremely strong and she wished more than anything that Tristan was driving to the space port instead of his house.

Tristan pulled in beside a strange, dark car that was parked in the driveway. "Looks like they beat us here," he muttered.

Allura reached over and patted her daughter's arm reassuringly, "Everything will be just fine, Sweetie."

"I know," she replied. "I just want this to all be over."

"It will be soon, Cady, I promise."

Henry opened the front door as they approached, stepping aside to allow them in. "Mr. and Mrs. Alexander are in the front parlor with the two officers, they said you are to join them right away."

"Thank you, Henry," Tristan nodded to him before turning to Cady. "You ready?"

She nodded.

He took her hand in his and led them to the formal front room where his parents were speaking with two gentlemen in suits. All four of them stood when the others entered the room. Josie took charge.

"Detectives, this is Princess Cady Whitaker, our son Tristan, and Cady's parents, Queen Allura and Commander Keith Whitaker. Cady, Tristan, Allura, Keith, this is Detective Marks and Detective Higgins."

Detective Marks was the older of the two, tall and rail thin with a fringe of gray streaked brown hair encircling his head. Higgins was a few inches shorter, stockier, and ten years younger. His blonde hair cut in a close buzz and his eyes intense.

"Miss Whitaker," Marks stepped forward, a friendly smile on his face. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you," Cady replied, habit making her curtsy.

"There are plenty of seats for everyone," Josie said. "Come in, all of you, have a seat."

Cady sat on the couch with Tristan to her left, holding her hand in his, and Allura on her right. Keith chose to forego a chair and stood behind his daughter, watching the two detectives as they settled into the two chairs opposite them. Josie sat on the edge of the loveseat, ready to watch the action, her husband sat beside her at attention, ready to jump in any time Cady needed it.

"I'm glad to hear you're doing well," Marks said as Higgins took a notebook and pen from the inside pocket of his jacket. "We'll make this as quick as possible, I'm sure you're all quite busy."

Cady nodded, "Uh, what…what do you need to know?"

"To the best of your recollection, we need you to tell us exactly what happened last night."

"Okay, well, we all went to the club for dinner. After we ate…"

"When you say 'we all'," Marks interrupted, "who are you speaking of?"

"Oh, um, well, myself, Tristan, my parents, his parents, and Erik and Sky. After we finished eating, the Alexanders took us on a tour of the club. I went with my mother, Tristan, and Mrs. Alexander. We walked around the grounds, seeing the gardens, talking. I, uh, I needed to use the restroom, so Tristan showed me to the ladies room." She paused and swallowed hard. Tristan gently squeezed her hand and she continued. "When I was…in the stall, I heard the door open. I didn't think anything of it, there were still people in the club, so I just assumed it was another woman. I remember hearing the sink being turned on and then off and then the hand dryer turned on. When I left the…the stall, I thought he had left…"

"He?" Marks asked.

"Well, I know now that it was Brian."

"Brian Sebold?"

She nodded. "I washed my hands and was about to leave when…he, uh, he grabbed me from behind. Before I could react, he wrapped his arm around my waist, put his hand over my mouth and lifted me off the ground. I tried to fight him, but he was too strong. I tried to scream, but I was so tired."

"Tired?" Higgins asked.

"I kind of remember his hand felt strange over my mouth, like fabric…"

"You think you were drugged?"

"I think so. The next thing I knew, I was waking up in a dark room, my arms were tied behind my back, my mouth was taped shut, and there was a blindfold on me, well, it had slid up a little so I could see with one eye and I was able to remove it by rubbing my face against the rug."

"You don't remember anything about how you got back to Sebold's room?"

Cady shook her head, "I…I didn't know how much time had passed or where I was. I laid there a few minutes until my eyes adjusted and I could make out some shapes. That was when I heard someone breathing and I…I saw Erik…" She broke off as her heart skipped a beat at the thought of her cousin. "He, uh, he was tied up more securely than I was. He was also blindfolded and his mouth taped shut. He was able to push the blindfold up too, but we couldn't talk to each other, we tried, but it just came out all muffled."

Tristan noticed the tremor in her voice. Wanting to offer support, he released her hand and slid his arm across the back of the couch, taking her hand with his other. He could feel the slight shaking that was moving her body and wished there was some way he could take her away from this. She shouldn't have to relive what happened.

Cady continued, telling them about Brian snipping off locks of their hair and stashing them in a box. The detectives shared a look when she told them that. She went on, her voice growing quieter as she explained how she tried talking to Brian, how he had placed the towel over her face and that she couldn't see, but she could hear how Erik had tried to stop Brian and she could hear what Brian was doing to Erik, even though she had no idea how bad it was until much later.

Neither detective interrupted her as she relayed her story. They both watched as the tears filled her eyes, but she blinked rapidly, not allowing any to fall. She was obviously a strong young woman who had undergone a horrible ordeal. They were both very impressed with her poise and her ability to recall the previous evening's events clearly.

Higgins flipped through the pages of notes he had taken throughout the interview. Marks glanced at him and then turned back to the princess, "Your highness, thank you very much for your time. I believe we have enough information from you. If there is anything at all that you remember, or any questions, here's my card, don't hesitate to call."

Cady nodded and accepted the card he offered, "Thank you."

Higgins glanced at his notes before asking, "Mr. Johansson is still in the hospital?"

"Yes," Keith replied. "He is going to be laid up for quite a while, I'm not sure he will be of much help right now, he can only communicate with basic 'thumbs up/thumbs down' gestures."

Marks nodded as he and Higgins stood. "We'll be in touch," he said. "When he is able to, we would like to speak with Mr. Johansson."

"We'll see what we can do," Keith promised, coming around the couch to shake hands with the two detectives.

Taking the hint, everyone else stood, Tristan keeping a protective arm around Cady's waist. They bade the detective goodbye and watched as Vince escorted the two men to the front door, speaking in hushed tones as they left the room.

Allura patted her daughter's arm, "You did wonderfully, dear, and now it's all over."

Tristan squeezed her shoulders and flashed her a reassuring smile.

Cady looked over her shoulder at her father, "Can we go back to the hospital now?"

"Sure."


Sky sat beside Erik's bed as he slept. Not more than five minutes after she had sat down, he had drifted off to sleep. His one visible eye was closed and his chest rose and fell rhythmically. She still clasped his hand tightly in hers, watching him. His skin was blotchy and bruised, the bandages bright white. The heart monitor beside the bed beeped steadily, as she studied him.

Sky had no idea how much time had passed, nor did she care. Erik was alive and he was going to be well. Relief had washed over her and dried her tears. Now she was thinking of their future. She was going to have to find out how long he would have to stay here, when could they return to Arus? Becca could take care of him. If he needed surgery, they would find the best in the universe. He would be back on his feet in no time.

"Hello."

Sky looked up, blinking the dazed look from her eyes, "Yes?"

An older gentleman with a head of thick white hair entered the room and lifted the chart from the end of Erik's bed, "I'm Dr. O'Reilly, I came to check on Erik. And you are?"

"I'm, uh, I'm Sky Collier," she stood, still holding Erik's hand.

"You're a friend of his, I take it?"

"His girlfriend, well, fiancée now."

"Recently?"

"Yes, a couple of weeks."

"Well, congratulations," he moved around and took Erik's hand from hers, checking his pulse. "We'll have to see what we can do to get Erik back on his feet soon so he can take you out on the town."

"I'd appreciate that," Sky replied quietly.

Dr. O'Reilly smiled at her, gently laying Erik's arm back on the bed. "I am going to ask you to do a favor for me."

"Yes?"

"As you know, Erik is going to need some reconstructive surgery. They did a good job last night, but I believe he is going to need a few more operations. In order to help us, can you please find some recent photographs for us to use as a guideline? I'll personally make sure the pictures are returned to you, but it would be helpful to us if we could see what he looked like before this incident occurred."

Sky looked up as the door opened and a nurse entered with a tray of supplies. "Yeah, I can…I can do that."

"Good, good, thank you dear. Now, if you'll excuse us, Nurse Raines and I are going to check his wounds and replace the bandages."

Sky looked down at Erik, hesitant to leave him.

"I'll come and talk to you when we're done here," the doctor assured her. "But I think it would be best if you left the room for now."

Sky nodded stiffly and left the room, knowing she wasn't ready to see what was beneath the bandages. She made her way to the waiting room where his family was still seated.

"How is he?" Romelle asked.

"He's sleeping," Sky told her, sitting in the chair beside Delora. "He fell asleep a few minutes after I got in there. Dr. O'Reilly just kicked me out so he could check his…injuries."

"I would like to go in and see him then," Romelle said.

Sky nodded, resting her head back against the wall. "Dr. O'Reilly also asked me to get together some recent pictures of him, a sort of guideline for when they next operate on him."

"I can call Bandor, have him send us some."

"And Tristan, Cady, and I all have pictures we've taken here, we can get them developed and see what we have there."

"Dat sounds like a good idea," Sven said. "Deir on dere vay back now, you can talk to dem vhen dey get here."


After visiting hours had ended, Sky and Tristan and Cady had gone to get all their rolls of film developed. The evening had been spent with everyone around the dining room table going though the pictures, talking, sharing stories, and even a few quiet laughs.

Darcy arrived the next morning on Terra. Keith and Allura went to meet her at the space port, Sky had returned to the hospital knowing her mother would understand her need to be with Erik.

It had become a bit of a contest between Sky and Romelle to see who could spend more time with Erik. They both arrived at the same time in the morning, then they both insisted on being in the room with him and both stayed at his bedside until they were asked to leave.

"I brought the pictures you asked for," Sky said, jumping to her feet when Dr. O'Reilly walked in.

He took the manila envelope from her with a smile, "Thank you, we'll keep this with his file and I'll make sure you get them back."

"Um, any idea when he might be able to go home?" She asked quietly.

"It's too soon to tell. Dr. Woodhall is planning to operate in a few days. Once he recovers from that procedure, he should be well enough to travel, but he will still have a long road ahead of him."

"So another couple of weeks?"

"I would guess at least three more weeks, probably more."

Sky nodded, "Uh, what operation is Dr. Woodhall planning to do?"

"I think you should speak with her about it, I have never actually done this procedure, but Dr. Woodhall has, several times."

"What procedure?"

"As part of his first round of reconstructive surgery, she is planning on reattaching Erik's retina. She spoke with him and he agreed to it."

Sky furrowed her brow, "What? Why? What will that do? With the severed nerve, I thought he couldn't see, so what's the purpose?"

"If there is a way to fix the optic nerve, if a way is ever found, it would behoove him to have his retina reattached. Erik spoke with Dr. Woodhall…"

"He can't speak," Sky hissed, lowering her voice so Erik and Romelle couldn't hear her. "What are you guys doing to him? What if it can't be reattached?"

"Oh, it can be reattached and Dr. Woodhall discovered that if Erik is given a pen, he can clearly communicate by writing his thoughts down."

"Did he ask for this procedure or did she suggest it?"

"He asked her if anything could be done."

Sky ran her hand through her hair and let out a breath, "Is there a way to fix the optic nerve?"

"There are medical advances being made on an almost daily basis, maybe, in a couple of years, there will be a way to give him his sight back. And Erik wants to have his options as open as possible. This was a decision he made."

Sky chewed on the inside of her cheek as she digested everything the doctor had just told her.

"I would like to examine him now," Dr. O'Reilly said, laying the envelope of photos on the tray table. "So if you'll excuse me."

Romelle patted Erik's hand and laid it gently on the bed. He waved his fingers at the two of them as they left the room.

Sky crossed her arms and leaned back against the wall beside the closed door. Closing her eyes, she sighed, worrying about Erik receiving false hope.

"I'm going to get some coffee, would you like anything?" Romelle asked.

Sky shook her head, not opening her eyes.

This was how Darcy found her daughter when she, Keith, and Allura arrived at the hospital. She felt her heart break for Sky, she remembered being in this situation many years ago when Lance had been hit with one of Haggar's spells that had left him unconscious for nearly eighteen hours and then temporarily paralyzed. "Hi, honey."

Sky slowly opened her eyes and turned to look at her mother. It took a moment before recognition registered in her tired, stressed mind. "Mom! Hi, how are you?"

"I'm fine, sweetie, how are you? How's Erik?" Darcy asked as she hugged her daughter tightly.

"I'm okay and he's…well, he's still the same."

Darcy pulled back and held Sky at arm's length, studying her pale face and red rimmed eyes. "Are you getting any rest at all?"

"I'm fine, Mother, really. How was your trip?"

"It was nice, but I am glad to be on solid ground again."

"Did the doctor have any news on Erik?" Keith asked.

"He said that Dr. Woodhall spoke with Erik last night," Sky said wearily. "She is planning to perform another operation on him to reattach his retina."

Allura furrowed her brow, "She spoke to Erik?"

"She figured out that he can communicate by writing, which reminds me, I want to go get some paper and a pen. The gift store should have something, right?"

"Yeah," Keith replied. "I can go grab you something in a minute. She said that he agreed to this operation?"

"Dr. O'Reilly said Erik asked if there was anything more she can do and she told him they could reattach his retina which would get him a step closer to regaining a sight if they can find a way to fix the optic nerve."

"How lucid was Erik during this discussion?" Allura asked. "He's been on some major pain medication."

Sky shrugged, "I'm planning to talk to him when Dr. O'Reilly's done and Dr. Woodhall this evening."

"Any idea how much longer he has to stay?"

"Dr. O'Reilly said at least three more weeks, probably longer."

"When are you planning to return home?" Darcy asked her daughter.

Sky looked at her as though she didn't understand the question, "I'll go home when Erik does."

"But honey, you've already missed nearly a month of training and school…"

Sky cut her off, "It's not up for discussion."

Darcy pursed her lips, she would wait until Sky was thinking more clearly to talk to her about this. She knew it would be difficult to leave him, but they needed to be rational. Darcy was sure Romelle and Sven were planning on staying, it wasn't like Erik would be alone. But that discussion could wait for another time.

Romelle returned, carrying a steaming cup, and flashed her friends a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Hi, guys. Darcy, how was your trip?"

"It was fine, thank you. How're you doing?"

"Oh, as well as can be expected."

"Where's Sven?" Darcy asked.

"He took Delora down to the cafeteria to get something to eat."

"What do you think of Erik's operation?" Keith asked her.

Romelle looked at him, surprised, "What operation?"

"You don't know?"

"I didn't get a chance to tell her," Sky explained. "Dr. O'Reilly just told me."

"What's going on?" Romelle demanded.

Sky filled Erik's mother in on everything the doctor had told her. She watched as Romelle's expression changed from confusion to worry to irritation.

"Why wasn't I told about this?" The Polluxian princess demanded.

Sky shrugged, "Erik and Dr. Woodhall had discussed it just last night and Dr. O'Reilly just mentioned it in passing. He doesn't even have all the facts yet, I was hoping to speak with Dr. Woodhall about it tonight."

Romelle nodded curtly, "I think that's a good idea, Sven and I will be there too."


Declan licked his lips nervously as he looked up the massive pedestal upon which sat Black Lion. His heart pounded in his ears as he studied the giant robotic lion that had always played a major part in his life. Memories of flying with his father flooded over him. Keith had taken them all up with him many times over the years, that had always been 'special Dad time' for each of them. He was in awe of Black, terrified and excited.

"You okay?" Brina whispered, appearing at his side.

Declan smiled softly, "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Are you going up?"

"Yeah, I just…wanted to see her."

"I can join you. In Green, I mean. We can go over some formations or…"

Declan shook his head, "Thanks, Brin, but this is something I have to do by myself."

"Okay," she stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. "I'll be waiting for you."

Declan stood staring up at Black. A breeze swirled around him as a chill filled the air. He closed his eyes and felt an electric wave wash over him as a pull had him stepping closer to the pedestal. Slowly, his eyes fluttered open and he turned back to the castle, jogging up to Castle Control and into Black's entry tube.