"Are you sure you're allowed to come?" Arianna asked again.

She was in a hurry; trying to leave Westbury to make a few saves. It was about 4:30 PM. Raul was out of school and had come by the clinic to check up on Arianna and Gary. When he found out she was leaving, he asked her if he could come along. She had almost said 'no', but then had a thought. He knew New York a lot better than she did. He could be useful to have along.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Nate won't mind." He answered her, "Where are we going?"

"Ah," She glanced down at the Paper, "Do you know where Gregory Road is, Raul?"

"Yeah, why would you want to go there?"

"I just do. Now, come on, we need to hurry!"

"Why?" Raul asked as they ran.

"We just do."

About ten minutes later, they reached Gregory Street, which was pretty busy. And Arianna saw what she was looking for; a man walking his dog.

Just then, the scene started to unfold; the dog would get loose from his owner, run in front of a car, the driver of the vehicle would press on the breaks as to not hit the dog, which would all result in a six-year-old boy in the back seat to be thrown through the window shield. He didn't have his seatbelt on and would be killed.

Arianna watched as the dog and owner began walking towards the street. Then it happened; the dog, a German Shepherd, tore loose from his owner. He began running for the street, his brown leash dragging the ground.

Arianna took a deep breath and began running after the trouble-making canine. As she picked up speed she could feel the muscles in the backs of her legs screaming with pain. But she had to run faster! If she didn't stop that dog, a six-year-old boy would be killed. At only six? That couldn't be right. As she ran even harder, she was suddenly reminded of what she had often heard her father say. That, "sometimes we have a say in God's plan".

She picked up even more speed and just as the dog was about to run into the street, Arianna lunged after him. She could feel her body leave the ground as she lunged after the animal. But, she was only partly aware of her body hitting the hard sidewalk when she landed. Instead, she was overcome with relief as she realized that she had managed to get a hold of the dog's leash.

"Oh, dear," The dog's owner ran over to her and asked, "Are you alright, kid?"

Arianna sat up and handed the leash to the middle-aged man, then stood up with a grunt. "Yeah, I, I'm okay. Th-thanks, mister, but do me a favor, would-ja?"

"Yeah, anything." The man agreed quickly. He felt terrible about what happened.

"Try to keep a better hold of your dog next time, alright?" Arianna said, brushing dirt off of her jeans.

"That's all you want?" the man asked, surprised, "You don't want money or, or anything?"

Arianna just shook her head. "No, just hold onto your dog. Please?"

The man nodded, thanked her again, and then left. It was just then that Arianna remembered that Raul was still there.

"Arianna, that was amazing! You saved that dog's life! He was going to be hit by that car!" He exclaimed, "How did you know?"

"I guess I was just at the right place at the right time." Arianna imitated one of her father's overused excuses.

"Arianna, you're bleeding." Raul pointed out.

Arianna looked down. He was right. There was now a hole in the knee of her left pant leg and her knee was pouring out blood. Her right arm also had a long cut on it which was also bleeding. And her clothes were smeared with dirt, mud, and grass stains.

"Yeah, I guess your right." Arianna looked back up and grimaced. It was only now that she was starting to feel the stinging pain of her injuries.

"Let's go back to the clinic," Raul suggested, "Clint can take a look at those cuts for you."

"Yeah," Arianna mumbled, "That's probably a good id-" Suddenly she stopped. Her hand went to the back of her jeans. The Paper! It wasn't there!

"My Paper!" She exclaimed.

"What?" Raul asked.

"My newspaper," She exclaimed, already searching around, "I had it in my pocket. Now, it's gone. Quick; help me find it!"

Not knowing what else to do, Raul started looking for the Paper. He was confused. He had never met anyone like Arianna Hobson before. She saves a life, possibly more than one, and she acts like it's nothing. Then, she insists on finding an old newspaper. He shook his head in complete confusion. Maybe he would never understand. He glanced over at the girl. She was walking near every person with a newspaper, looking at the front page.

Suddenly he spotted a rolled up New York Times lying on the ground near a park bench. He picked it up. "Arianna," He called out, "Is this it?"

She ran over to him, looked at the front page and nodded. "Yeah, this is it. Thanks, Raul."

"You're welcome. Can we go now?" He asked, "I really think you should have Clint look at those cuts. They're still bleeding. And you've got some cuts on your face, too."

Arianna's hand went up to her face. Sure enough, when she brought her hand away, there was blood on her fingertips. "Yeah, I guess your right, let's go.

About fifteen minutes later, they got back to Westbury. It took longer this time; one reason was because they ere walking and another reason was because Arianna's right side was starting to feel like one big bruise. It hurt a bit to walk, so she was taking it slow.

"Arianna," Tippy exclaimed, when the two walked in, "What happened?"

Arianna groaned as she slowly sank down into one of the chairs in the waiting room. By now, the whole bottom half of her pant leg was soaked in blood. Her right arm was in like-wise condition. She had rolled down her right sleeve completely to protect the large scrape, but it was still obvious that her arm was bleeding.

"She hurt herself saving a dog," Raul explained, "You should've been there."

"A dog?" Tippy asked, then let out a sigh, "I'll, I'll go get Dr. Cassidy. He should have a look at you, Arianna." Then she disappeared down the hallway.

"I'd better go, Arianna," Raul said, "I've got homework. I hope you feel better and I'll see you later." He waved, then left the building.

As Arianna waited for Clint to get there, she closed her eyes and leaned her head back. The pain was overwhelming and she was so tired and stressed-out; physically and mentally. If Gary could have seen her in that condition, he would've thrown a fit. Especially since it was because of the Paper. That thought brought a smile to Arianna's face for a brief moment.

"Arianna!"

Arianna brought her head back up and her eyes opened. Clint was rushing towards her, looking concerned. "What happened?" He asked when he reached her.

"It, there w-was this d-dog you s-see," She stammered wearily, "I-it was go-gonna, I had t-to get h-him, i-it would b-be too l-late."

"Never mind right now," Clint hushed her, "You can explain later. Right now, let's get a look at those cuts of yours."

Swiftly but gently, the doctor lifted her up from her chair and carried her into an examining room with Nancy following close behind them. Gently, Clint laid Arianna on top of the examining table. Quickly, he cut away the bottom half of her pant leg. Seeing the bloody mess on the child's leg, he grimaced. It was a nasty cut. Quietly, he exchanged glances with Nancy. From the look she returned him, he could tell she knew what he was thinking. Arianna, her eyes closed as she lay there, was oblivious to the glances being traded by the adults.

"What in the world happened to this child?" Clint asked himself. Oh, well. He would find out soon enough. He began to clean up the wound and was relived to find that the cut wasn't deep enough for stitches.

"Is, is it b-bad?" Arianna asked. She winced as he cleaned the wound.

"Your knee's not real bad, Arianna. It's not that deep; it's just bleeding a lot." Nancy answered for Clint, "You shouldn't need stitches. We haven't got a good look at everything else though.'

When the knee was cleaned, Clint wrapped a bandage around it and tied it off securely. Next he began to examine her arm. He grimaced as he looked at the limb. "Looks like this ones gonna need a few stitches," He said to both Arianna and Nancy.

Arianna groaned, "Are you sure?"

Clint nodded, as Nancy got his equipment ready. "It's pretty deep," He explained, "It definitely needs to be stitched up."

Again, Arianna groaned. Wasn't she in enough pain already?

"Don't worry," Nancy said with a smile, "Dr. Cassidy's real good at this kind of thing. You'll hardly feel it."

Arianna managed a small smile. But, true to the nurse's word, she hardly felt it as Clint gave her six stitches.

After he finished with the arm, Clint went to the girl's head. It was mostly a bit dirty with a scrape here and there; nothing that required anything more than some peroxide and a bandage.

"Is that all?" Arianna asked hopefully.

"Just 'bout." Clint said, "We've got one more thing to do."

"What?"

"Well, to avoid the risk of infection, I'm gonna give you a shot." The man explained.

"Do you have to?" Arianna asked fearfully.

"Afraid so," He said, swabbing some alcohol on her arm with a cotton ball, "But, don't worry about it. It'll be over before ya know it."

And he was right. Much like the stitches, she hardly felt it a bit.

"Hey, that wasn't so bad!" Arianna exclaimed when she saw that he was through.

"Now, what'd I tell ya?" Clint replied, smiling.

"Now, am I done?" She asked.

"All through. And by the way," Nancy said, picking up a duffel bag, "Tippy ran over to Clint's and got your bag. Why don't you go change?"

Arianna nodded, thanked Clint and Nancy, and went to go change. When she was through, she disposed of her ruined shirt and pants and went to go sit with Gary again.

"Hi, daddy," She said quietly, sitting beside him, "I'm back. Don't worry. I'm taking care of the Paper and everything's fine. That little boy I told you about; he's okay. I caught the dog before he got into the street."

The girl sighed as she looked upon her father's face. He looked so peaceful; just sleeping there like that. But, she still wished more than anything that he would wake up.

"Daddy," She said, "You'd better wake up pretty soon. I know how much you wanted to visit the New York Times building!" Arianna tried to joke, but it wasn't easy. At that point the only thing that could make it easy would be for her to be able to hear her father laugh.

Arianna glanced at the clock. It would be time to leave pretty soon. In a way, she wasn't sorry. She was tired; tired from worry, tired from work. What she really wanted at that moment was to crawl under some blankets and go to sleep… in her own bed. But, she couldn't do that. She had more saves in the Paper and her own bed wasn't here. She wasn't home in the loft above McGinty's; she was in a hospital in New York.

Again, guilt plagued the young girl. Oh, if she only hadn't begged her father to come, hadn't asked him to at all, he wouldn't be hurt, unconscious, possibly dyin– No! She wouldn't think such thoughts! He would live; he had to live. But, her mind kept going back to that day; that day she had come home from school… excited because she had been chosen to go to NYC. She had been chosen! She remembered how her father had teased her because she was excited about school. She remembered that he had laughed… and smiled. She remembered how it felt to have him kiss her goodnight and she remembered all the times when they would go on easier 'saves' together. Thinking of those things, brought tears to the girl's mud-green eyes. To think that they may never be able to do those things together again; it broke her heart. How she wished he would wake up!

A little while later, Clint announced that it was time to go and Arianna halfheartedly stood up. She was so discouraged. She wished more than anything that her father would just wake up and tell her that everything would be okay. It hadn't happened. As she picked up her coat, she took one last look at Gary before she left the room.

"I love you, daddy." She whispered quietly. Softly brushing a kiss across her father's forehead, she followed Clint out of the room.

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Clint absently stared into the crackling fire in the fireplace. The room was warm and comfortable, as a cold, February wind blew outside in the night. It was later that evening, around 10 o'clock and Arianna was fast asleep. Though he hadn't yet tried, Clint knew he couldn't sleep.

The doctor, his chin resting on his hand, glanced over at the sleeping young girl on the couch. She looked very peaceful, lying there, covered by a warm quilt; the glow of the fire flittering across her youthful face. Though she looked peaceful, Clint had a feeling that she was not. He knew she was worried; he knew it very well. He also knew she had a secret; a secret she wasn't sharing… with him, that is.

His mind went back to earlier that day; on the way home. The girl had managed to keep three more people from certain, intimate danger. And again, she acted as if she hadn't done anything on purpose; or anything important, for that matter. And the doctor grew restless as he tried to figure the issue out.

Wearily, he rubbed his temples. How could one child get into so many situations… all in one day that is? And how did she know these things? What gave her the notion to go to all of those places; and at the right time? And that Fishman fellow; he knew something, too. Clint was sure of it. He had seen the looks exchanged between him and Arianna. Oh, it was all so very confusing. Then there was that newspaper; the child was attached to it as if it were her head. Thinking of that, the doctor became even more confused. Finally, so fed up with everything, he stood up, switched off the lamp, and went to his bedroom. There, he tossed and turned restlessly until he fell asleep.

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"Meow!" Thump.

Groaning, Arianna rolled over and pulled the pillow over her head. Then, she cautiously opened one eye and looked around. Yes, she was still at Clint Cassidy's house. And inwardly, she groaned. She had had a dream, a nightmare really, that her father had died; that he never woke from unconsciousness. It had frightened her terribly. She had tried to wake herself up, but all was in vain because all through the night, she was haunted by nightmares; horrible nightmares that now left her feeling drained of any energy she might have had.

Yawning, she pulled herself up from the couch and made her way over to the door. As quietly as she could, she unlocked it and pulled it open. As usual, the tabby cat sat on top of a newspaper; tomorrow's newspaper. Yawning again, Arianna bent down and pulled the Paper out from under the cat. Somehow sensing with his feline ESP that he had better not try coming in this time, he turned and ran away down the hall. Arianna shook her head in wonder at the cat, and then turned inside, shutting the door behind her.

Sticking the Paper under her arm, Arianna picked up her bag and made her way into the bathroom. Quickly, she slipped into a clean pair of jeans, a flannel shirt, and her hiking boots. After that, she quickly brushed her teeth and hair.

Emerging from the bathroom, she was startled to see Clint pouring cereal into two bowls at the table.

"Good mornin'," He greeted her with a smile. Noticing the Paper under her arm, he was quickly reminded of his latest thoughts and wonders.

"Good morning." She returned the greeting, again yawing.

"Sleep good?" He asked her, handing her a bowl as she sat down.

"Not really," She admitted, "I kept having terrible dreams about my father. He, he died. Clint, wh-when's he going to wake up? I'm so worried!"

"I know ya are," He sighed, setting his spoon down, "But, ya gotta keep your faith up. He'll pull through; I know he will. It's just gonna have to take some time, that's all."

"But, how much time?" The girl questioned, though she knew deep inside that the man didn't have an answer, "Days, weeks..?"

"I don't know for sure, Arianna," He admitted, "But, your dad's healthy and strong. You'll see; he'll be up on his feet again before you know it."

"I sure hope you're right."

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"Arianna?"

Arianna turned her head away from her father and looked at the door behind her. Nancy had her head poked around.

"Arianna," The nurse said again, "There are some people here to see you."

Two people stepped inside. Arianna instantly recognized them as Rose and Mrs. Parker. They were, of course, both dressed in their designer clothing and each held genuine leather purses "all the way from Paris, France".

"H-hi, Mrs. P-Parker, R-Rose," Arianna stammered nervously, standing up. She never seemed to know what to say around these people, "How are y-you?" Inwardly, she winced at the nervous stutter. These people were so… so perfect it seemed.

"Hello, dear," Mrs. Parker greeted her, walking into the room, "Rose and I just thought that we should check up on you," She wiped a manicured finger across the table, then examined it, looking for dust, "Find out how you are doing."

"I-I'm doing fine, th-thanks." Arianna replied, forcing a tiny smile.

"That's good, dear." The woman replied, looking around the room.

"How's your father, Arianna?" Rose stepped forward and asked softly.

Arianna's eyes widened in surprise. Rose had almost sounded… human; not like the rich snob she had sounded like before.

"He, he's about the same," Arianna replied, glancing over at the man in bed, "But, Dr. Cassidy thinks that he'll wake up soon."

"That's good to know," Mrs. Parker nodded, "Well, it was nice talking with you, Arianna, but Rose and I really must be going now. We have a plane to catch."

"Oh, oka– a plane to catch? B-but the class trip; it's not over, yet." Arianna reminded them, confused.

"I am well aware of that, Arianna," Mrs. Parker said, "But Rose and I am leaving early. Come, dear." She said to her daughter.

"Just one moment, Mother," Rose said, "You go ahead. I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Rose, dear, we don't have time for this. Come now."

"Mother!" Rose exclaimed, "I am not ready. I want to talk to Arianna for a moment and I am going to whether you want me to or not. I'll meet you outside in a few minutes!"

Arianna's eyes widened even more. She remembered a time that she had dared to talk to her father in that tone of voice. She had received a punishment she wouldn't soon forget. She tried to be careful of how she spoke to people for now on. Silently, Arianna watched to see what Mrs. Parker would do. Surprisingly, the woman was silent and left the room.

"Arianna," Rose said quietly, after her mother left the room, "I, I wanted to say that I was sorry… for the way I've treated you."

"It's alright," Arianna replied, "Don't worry about it."

"It was wrong of me," Rose said, "Could you forgive me?"

Arianna smiled, despite her awe. "Sure," She said, "Sure, I forgive you."

"I suppose you're wondering why my mother and I are leaving so early." Rose said nervously, looking down at her expensive shoes.

Arianna couldn't help, but nod.

"My father suffered a financial hit yesterday," Rose said slowly, "His Company has gone bankrupt and much of our own money has been lost. We, we can't afford to stay here any longer and… and we won't be moving to New York." She added softly.

"I-I'm sorry." Arianna whispered, in shock.

Rose nodded, "We, we'll be staying in Chicago and I won't be attending Garners anymore." Garners was a private school in Chicago; the best and the most expensive, "I'll be attending a public school. I, I've never attended a public school before."

"I go to public school; Franklin," Arianna said, "It's not that bad. I like it."

Rose nodded, "Yeah, well, maybe I'll go to Franklin. But, right now I'd better go. Mother's waiting. Good bye, Arianna; I hope your father gets well."

"Good bye, Rose, and… thanks." Arianna replied.

Rose gave a faint smile, waved, and left the room, leaving Arianna to wonder what would ever become of the Parkers.

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Arianna peeked cautiously around the corner of Westbury's hall. She had a save to make and didn't want anybody going with her this time. Too many people were beginning to get suspicious of her whereabouts already. She didn't need any more of that. She would have to go out on her own for now on.

The only person she need concern herself with was Tippy, but Tippy was busy with a patient and didn't notice as the young girl slipped pass and out the door.

Once outside, Arianna let out a sigh of relief. Subconsciously, she noticed how her warm breath appeared in the cold winter air. Glancing down at the Paper, she broke off in a fast paced run. She had only 15 minutes until a two year old boy would toddle into the street, unbeknownst to his distracted mother. He would be struck by a semi and be killed instantly.

Thinking of the horrible outcome that would unfold, Arianna picked up speed, running down the sidewalk as fast as her legs would take her. Finally, she reached the place where the Paper had spoken of. After glancing around for a few seconds, Arianna finally spotted the toddler… walking right into the street!

Quickly, but as if in slow motion, Arianna ran after the boy and managed to grab him right before he would step off of the sidewalk. Startled, he screamed for his "mama" and his mother ran over to his side.

"Young lady!" The woman exclaimed, "What do you think you're doing with my son?"

"H-he was going t-to walk into the s-street," Arianna tried to explain,

"I won't hear another word!" The woman said sternly, "I am calling the police."

"What? What for?" Arianna asked, shocked.

"For attempted kidnapping!" The woman replied.

"Wh-what?" The girl cried, "Th-that's ridiculous! I'm just a kid!"

"My sentiments exactly," The woman, said, "What's this world coming to? How all could you possibly be; 10, 11, 12?"

"11," Arianna replied, "And if you'd only listen to me, I wasn't trying to –"

"Enough, is enough," the woman said, pulling out a cell phone, "I am calling the police," Quickly, Arianna tried to run away, but the woman took her by the arm; the one without stitches, "And you are staying here, young lady." The lady said.

"Why do I have to get in such trouble?" Arianna asked herself.

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It was half an hour later and Arianna was standing beside the woman who had accused her of kidnapping. The police had shown up and Arianna had been happy to find out that Nate was with them. He would stick up for her. She knew he would. He had to.

"I'm sure there is a perfectly good explanation for all of this, Mrs. Johnson," Nate was saying, "I know this young lady and I know she wouldn't try to kidnap some kid. For goodness sakes, she's only 11!"

The woman was speechless at that moment, so Nate took that time to speak again.

"I'm very sorry this frightened you, ma'am. It won't happen again." And before she could protest, Nate took Arianna by the shoulders and walked away.

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"Arianna, there you are!" Clint exclaimed, when Nate walked in the clinic's door, with Arianna in tow, "You 'bout scared us to death!"

"Sorry," She apologized softly, looking down at her shoes.

"We'll talk about this later," Clint said, then looked at Nate, "What'd she do?"

"Ah, some woman accused Arianna of kidnapping her son. I told her I didn't think Arianna would do that, but she wouldn't believe me." Nate explained.

"Well, thanks for bringin' her by." Clint thanked him.

"No problem," Nate said, "I'll see you two later." With that, he left.

"Come on, Arianna," Clint told, "Come with me."

Silently, Arianna followed the doctor. She felt terrible. If only she hadn't ran off without telling anybody where she was going; then this wouldn't have happened. She followed Clint into his office, where she was told to sit down in a chair. She did so.

"Now, tell me why you ran off, Arianna." Clint said.

"Well, it's kind of hard to explain, Clint." Arianna said slowly.

"Well, don't worry about that; I'm listenin'." He said.

"Alright; well, you see, I, I've got this friend i-in New York who t-told me that they have this friend, this lady, who, well, doesn't keep a very good eye on her son. So, anyway, when m-my friend found out I was r-right near where her friend would be, she asked me if I would go and kind of m-make sure the son d-didn't walk into the st-street... or anything else." Arianna exhaled loudly when she was finished with the confusing message.

"Ya know; I couldn't make head or tail of what you just told me." Clint said.

Arianna didn't say anything. She just sat there, hoping he would let her go.

"Do ya promise that you won't do anything like that again?" Clint asked the girl.

Arianna nodded, "Yes, sir."

"Okay, then, you can go."

Quickly, Arianna stood up and left the room. She wasn't about to give the man to change his mind. She made a mental note to not run off like that ever again; at least not anytime soon.

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It was later that day. Arianna was sitting in her chair next to Gary's hospital bed. Tired and worn out from the day's happenings, she was asleep; her head resting on her father's bed. She was totally unaware of what the next few minutes would bring.

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He opened first one eye, then the other. Ah, the room was so bright! Gary squinted. Now, where was… oh, yeah; the hospital. Why… oh, right; now, he remembered. A faulty banister; he had seen it in the Paper right before he fell through. Gosh! Did his head hurt! How long had he been out?

He suddenly noticed Arianna; her head lying on the bed, her eyes closed. He managed a small smile through the heck of a headache he had. He then noticed that his left arm was in a sling and his stomach… it felt like one gigantic bruise!

With his good arm, he gingerly stroked the top of his daughter's head. She stirred restlessly for a moment then lifted her head. When she saw her father; his eyes open, her eyes filled with tears. He was alive! He would be okay!

"Shhh," Gary said soothingly, embracing her, "It's alright, Ari. I'm okay."

"Oh, daddy, I was so scared!" Arianna cried.

"I know, but I'm alright now. Everything's going to be fine." Gary replied.

Arianna put a brave smile on her face and stood up. "I, I'll go g-get Dr. Cassidy." She sniffled, wiping away her tears.

Gary gave her a weak smile as she left the room. Who was Dr. Cassidy?

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"So is he going to be alright?" Arianna asked hopefully, as Clint examined Gary.

"Yeah, he should be fine," Clint replied, "'Course, he won't be gettin' out of this hospital bed right now or anything, but he'll be as good as new eventually."

Arianna sighed with relief. That was great news.

After a few more minutes, Clint left the room. As soon as he did, Gary asked the question that had been in his mind for quite sometime. "Uh, Arianna," He said, "Where's the Paper?"

Arianna grinned. She knew he would ask that question eventually. She pulled the newspaper from her pocket and handed it to her father.

Gary carefully took the Paper. He started flipping through it. What? That was strange. No saves? But, there should have been… wait a minute.

"Arianna," He asked, confused, "Did you..?"

She nodded.

"Oh, Arianna," He said, "Y-You handled the Paper by yourself… all this time?"

Again, she nodded, "But we've got to be careful, daddy. I think Dr. Cassidy is getting suspicious."

Gary nodded, tiredly. That's just what he needed; somebody else who knew about the Paper. Well, Dr. Cassidy wasn't going to find out about the Paper; nobody was. This was going to stay a secret. Nobody was going to find out about the Paper.

As Arianna sat with her father, she informed him of everything that had happened in the past two days. Well, almost everything, anyway.

"There's something you're not telling me, Arianna." Gary said after a few minutes.

Arianna didn't say anything. How in the world did he know that stuff all the time?

"Arianna…"

"Okay, okay," She said, "Remember that dog I told you about?"

Gary nodded, "You didn't get bit, did you?"

"No, no!" Arianna replied, "Well, when I kind of dove for his leash, I got scratched up a bit…. okay, a lot. But, I'm alright, daddy. I'm staying with a doctor remember? Clint fixed me up real good."

"Well, as soon as I'm out of this bed, I'm handling the Paper, okay?" Gary said.

"Oh, don't worry, daddy," Arianna waved her hands in the air, "You can have it. Trust me; you can have it! That thing's caused enough trouble as it is. We wouldn't be in this mess if it weren't for that Paper… and me." She added quietly, looking down at the hard tile floor.

Gary gave his daughter a quizzical look, "Arianna, what on earth are you talking about?"

"Daddy, this is all my fault. We wouldn't be in this mess if it weren't for me!"

"Arianna, that's not true." Gary assured her.

"Yes, it is," Arianna argued, "I asked you to come on the trip. If you hadn't come you wouldn't be here. It is true."

"No, it's not," Gary said firmly. His mud-green eyes caught her similar ones, "Arianna, in case you don't remember, the day before we left, it wasn't the Chicago Sun-Times that showed up at the door. It was the New York Times. Arianna, the Paper wanted me to come to New York. It's not your fault. This," He pointed to his injuries, "This has nothing to do with you, Ari; nothing."

Arianna smiled and wiped away a few stray tears. She felt better. She was glad she had told her father what she was feeling.

A little while later, Clint announced that it was time to go. "You can stay here if you'd like," He said, "But I think you'd be more comfortable back at my place."

"Oh, don't worry," Gary said, "She's not staying here. She won't get any rest. No, take her with you, Dr. Cassidy. Please."

Arianna grinned. She should have known he would say something like that. Here he was laid up in a hospital bed and he's worried about how much rest she got. He would never change.

After Arianna and Clint left, Gary closed his eyes and sighed. He was tired; physically and mentally. He glanced at the Paper Arianna had left lying on his bed and he shook his head. That newspaper caused more trouble than anything else he had ever seen. What was with that thing?

After a few moments, he forgot about the Paper and settled down to rest. He was so tired…

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"Well, your dad seems like a pretty nice guy." Clint said, as he and Arianna walked down the streets of New York.

"Yeah, he is," Arianna agreed, "Daddy's special." She added.

Clint nodded as they reached the apartment building. He wondered; would Gary Hobson magnetize trouble as well as his daughter?

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