Installment number four! Yes, I have been working on other stories. Cross my heart. Longer stories (of course, they would kind of have to be longer than 100 words, wouldn't they?) that will be posted when I'm finished with them. Which would explain why this installment took longer than the others. As of right now, I have been working on the Hannah-centric ficlet and one set post-Auntie Venom (which may be combined with another post-AV story that I never got around to completing), and a Taylor idea that has 2 parts written so far -- just waiting to post it.. There are a few (okay, more than a few) others I've been playing with, but those are the ones I'm trying to finish/further for posting. At least... the ones in this fandom. As always, I've been working on other fandoms (including an older one I haven't written or watched in years that has decided to revisit me) and, of course, my original work. There just are not enough hours in the day... and I really, really, really need to get a laptop soon. It would help so much! Especially since I've been working almost every single day for weeks!

Enough of my babbling... Onto the drabbles!

Drabble # 57

Maddy bit back a chuckle as Zoe and Dan looked at each other and simultaneously shook their heads. Neither of them wanted to believe what she said ... but they really did. It was obvious. Every wistful glance, each electricity-charged touch... Everything pointed to a chemistry that had definite potential to be explosive once they admitted it to themselves (and each other).

They just weren't ready to admit it yet. But that was okay ... it's what life is all about, right?

Realizing one day that what was right under your nose all along if what you always wanted.

Drabble # 58

Marcos wandered through the too-empty rooms of his home. Once his childhood home, it had never seemed 'lonely.' Even when his parents had sold it to him and moved south and he'd moved in sans-family ... the familiar hallways and rooms had continued to fit him.

He'd never known how quickly that could change.

He'd always enjoyed being a bachelor, his work not only being what he felt was his 'path' but fulfilling and giving him some of the contact with children he craved.

Now it seemed lacking... Dissatisfying.

He didn't want to be alone.

Drabble # 59

Candy walked over to where her choreographer was talking in rapid-fire Spanish to his skimpily clad dance partner. "Carlos?"

He turned. "Yes, Candy?"

"Can we talk?" She cast a pointed look at his partner. God, even that word hurt right now. "In private."

He nodded and put a hand to her elbow, guiding her.

"Carlos, I can't stay here."

His face darkened. "I already told your agent that you could not break your contract with me, Ms. La Rue. Even for a part in 'The Producers.'"

She used every acting skill she had to radiate innocence. "The Producers?"

Drabble # 60

Zoe sat in her car in the parking garage, staring blindly out the windshield.

What a curveball Dan had thrown her.

Part of the conversation she'd just had with Candy floated through her mind.

"And then I remember... Marcos loves me."

Not that she loved him. That he loves her.

What did that say? She not only wasn't sure ... she didn't know if she wanted -- or was ready -- to know.

Oh, well.

She'd never stuck her head in the sand before and she wasn't about to start now.

She had to be honest.

To everyone.

Drabble # 61

Cliff looked up at his shadowed ceiling for long moments, wondering what had dragged him to awareness. The wind howled outside the safe haven of the house and rain beat staccato on the roof, a wall of white noise for him, since his bedroom was what was once the attic.

Another fear-filled shriek filled the house, barely heard above the storm, and he levered himself up and down the stares quickly. He was met by Taylor at the partially open door of their younger sister's room and they both entered.

"It'll be okay, Hannah. We're here."

Drabble # 62

Strong, sinuous bodies wrapped around themselves as they rolled, struggling to get a hold. Solid muscles tensed and scales glowed with every movement, a flickering pattern in the dim light. Soft whispers filled the room, muffled beneath the slap and slide of numerous bodies.

The light went out.

A gentle touch against skin.

Zoe sat up abruptly, her chest heaving as shivers shook her frame. She looked around and found no danger. Instead she was surrounded by the impersonal walls of her cabin on board the cruise ship.

She'd checked earlier. She was safe from the snakes.

For now.

Drabble # 63

The office was immaculate, not a paper out of place as neat stacks graced her new desk.

The walls here were opaque. There was no having to wonder or worry about prying eyes.

Now, her eyes were the ones that were looked for. She was the boss. The new Intimidator.

A part of her wished she was still in her glass-enclosed office bantering with both of her partners. That her office wasn't upstairs, a sign she was no longer one of 'us,' but one of 'them.'

Wishes and horses, she reminded herself as she turned from the window.

Drabble # 64

God, Zoe felt like such a fool. Sure, she'd known that Melanie would benefit from her snake of an ex-husband's death... And yeah, said snake had fingered her in what was essentially a deathbed confession... But she still hadn't believed that Melanie had killed him. She wasn't that cold-hearted, ruthless, or a hundred other less-than-complimentary adjectives.

She also hadn't thought Melanie would callously use her. Why should she? Zoe always helped anyone -- especially friends -- when asked (or not)!

But she'd done both.

And now Zoe had to live with it.

Drabble # 65

He wandered the mall, looking into shop windows as he nimbly avoided the other shoppers. The passing throng went by unnoticed for the most part. He was a man on a mission as he braved the pre-Christmas rush and shopping fever that infected the city. He had five days to find the perfect gift for the woman he loved. Five days to find something that sent the message he wanted but wasn't personal enough to freak her out. The theme to 'Mission Impossible' ran through his mind in counterpoint to the holiday music. 007 had nothin' on him!

Drabble # 66

She frowned at the insistent hands pulling at the comforter and stubbornly kept her eyes closed. "I don'wanna," she half-moaned, half-whined.

"Come on, Aunt Zoe," Cliff answered as he helped Hannah shift the covers. "It's morning."

"No!" Zoe pulled her pillow over her head and burrowed deeper into her mattress.

Cliff and Hannah shared a look before continuing in earnest.

Hannah shrieked as the prone body came alive, the pillow flying as strong hands pulled her onto the bed, fingers tickling mercilessly.

Cliff shook his head slightly, wondering just who the adult of the house was.

Drabble # 67

Dan moaned and kept his eyes closed as restless warm fingers trailed over his bare skin in exploration. They were relentless, seeking each and every reaction that they could cause. He sighed and relaxed into the curiosity of his bed-mate, images of a beautiful woman flickering behind closed lids. She was looking up at him with warm eyes full of equal parts fun and pleasure, contentment and love, her blonde hair tousled from their earlier antics. He opened his eyes and looked over, having to see her instead of just imagine her, and nearly groaned in disappointment.

Wrong blonde.

Drabble # 68

White flakes fell from the gray overcast sky onto the frozen ground. Pedestrians huddled deeper into winter coats and picked up the pace, hurrying to their destinations.

One woman stopped mid-stride and looked to the sky, a smile lighting her face as soft flakes fell to melt on her skin. This was her favorite time of year and one of her favorite parts of it.

The first snowfall. It was magical. The beginning of a pure blanket to soften the world into a wonderland.

She couldn't wait for what came next. Signed in anticipation, she began walking again.

Drabble # 69

Tick... Tock... Tick... Tock... He looked at his watch for the tenth time in two minutes. It seemed completely ridiculous, but he was willing to swear that time was slowing to an actual crawl. Slower than a crawl. Each second was a single drop of water torture between the eyes, making him tense, purposely relax, and tense all over again.

He'd never experienced anything quite as slow and it was driving him insane. Why had he arrived so early? Why wasn't she ready yet?

A noise caught his attention and he turned.

It was definitely worth the wait.

Drabble # 70

Candy La Rue blinked back tears as she settled into the cramped seat. Her trip in fantasy-land was over and she had to go back to the real world. One where she wasn't alone but she was lonely in the glittery world of Vegas, her best friend thousands of miles away, and the daily struggles she'd hoped to leave.

She should've known. Did know but ignored it. That'd teach her to ignore her instincts.

The real life 'Banger Sisters' were living true. Zoe had moved on to a family... and she was left standing alone.

Drabble # 71

Polly flinched as her name rang through the office, strident tones reaching into every corner. She hurried to the woman who signed her paycheck, wishing that she could fade back into the background. She liked it there. She was safe there.

She came upon Ms. McGuire and the two star investigators of the firm and almost immediately stumbled, dumbstruck by the dazzling smile turned her way. Warm, capable hands grasped her arms, steadying her, and she smiled shyly, painfully, as she pulled away from the too-brief contact.

Maybe sometimes being visible wouldn't be as bad as she thought.

Drabble # 72

"How can you be so hopeful, so upbeat? Don't you know what's going on out there in the world?"

Of course. I read the papers, watch the news. I worry about a million things that could happen and a million more that can't. How can I miss the destruction, devastation, the insanity infecting out world?

How can lack of hope help? What can that accomplish in the face of what we're seeing?

The real question here is... Why are you so cynical? What turned you into a glass-half-empty-and-cracks-growing kind of guy?

Drabble # 73

The night was straight out of every horror film ever made: shrieking wind, pounding rain, and strobing lightening cutting through chilly air.

Almost everyone was safe at home, comforted by familiar surroundings and loved ones, television programs and relaxing music.

Not everyone. A few braved Nature's wrath, intent on doing what they had to before going back to their own homes, safely removed from Nature's wrath by thick walls and ceilings.

One such man turned his collar up, hands buried in coat pockets as he made his way to where his car was waiting. It was almost time.

Drabble # 74

Leo Lombardi closed the latest file to come across his desk. Another crime solved, the perp caught and behind bars where they belonged. As cliched as it was -- he loved doing some good.

Not that he'd ever admit it to anyone -- especially the two investigators who'd become simultaneous thorns in his side and breaths of fresh air in the sometimes stagnant world of the police department.

Their flair for the unusual often clashed with his own by-the-book approach to investigations but like his Mama'd always said... It took all kinds to truly make a difference.

Reviews are welcome. More to come sometime in the future.