MAJOR SIGH… I can't believe how long it's been since I updated this and I am SO sorry to all of my readers and reviewers. School has been a royal pain in the rear and then my family decided to go on a month long vacation, so this is the first I've been on a computer in AGES. (grovel grovel grovel) I'm not worthy of my devoted readers, who sent me emails begging me to continue, but fear not! This will be continued. Anyway, enough of my blather. Go read!

Standard disclaimer still applies and so forth, la. I stake no claim to JN and do not wish to be sued. Now on with the story, woo.

To Cross the Rubicon
By: pottergal

Chapter Eleven: Secrets Revealed

"Jimmy?"

He turned slowly in his chair at the sound of his name being called, quickly sending the program back to work, but leaving the file he'd been reading open. To his surprise, he found Cindy standing in the doorway, her hands clasped together and her eyes fixed on him apprehensively.

"How'd you get back in here?" he asked, standing, and she took a few steps into the room hesitantly.

"I kept some hair for your brush, thinking I might need it later," she said, looking away, and Jimmy frowned.

"Cindy, what's wrong?" he asked, silently analyzing her actions. She was shifting her weight from foot to foot and wringing her hands while her gaze flicked in every direction but his. "Why are you so nervous?"

"Can I…" she began, her eyes finally locking on his. "Can I hug you?"

This is new, he thought as he raised a single eyebrow in confusion. What made her start asking permission?

"Um, do you mind me asking why?"

"You made me swear that oath thing where I wouldn't touch you, remember?" she said, an impatient tone to her voice, and he frowned in confusion. "But I have to break it, so I'm asking you if I can. I can't take it! I feel too awful…"

"I meant why you suddenly have to hug me, not why you have to ask for an okay," he said, half musing and half stalling. He really didn't want to be subjected to any of Cindy's death grips. He was sure he had bruises from the last one. "And what do you have to feel awful about? Unless you have been kidding around this whole day and you've come to apologize?"

"Jimmy, please?"

Puking Pluto, it was that accursed note again! That single pleading note that turned his insides to mush and made him sigh in slight frustration. He looked up at the ceiling before squeezing his eyes shut and bracing himself for the absolute worst, his whole body tensing in preparation.

"All right, you may," he muttered, setting himself against the force he knew was about to smash into him. He heard a soft sob from Cindy, which made him pause, and he cracked open an eye curiously. He caught a glimpse of her coming towards him before he slammed his eye shut and locked himself in place.

But the blow never came. Instead, to his great surprise, he felt Cindy gently wind her arms around his neck, her cheek coming to rest on his shoulder. He timidly opened his eyes to stare down at her, a small frown crossing his features. Why… why was she shaking so badly?

It was then he realized that she was crying, and he absolutely froze. A yelling Cindy, a teasing Cindy, heck, even an "I'm-Going-to-Kick-Your-Butt" Cindy he could take in stride. But a crying Cindy?

Okay, calm down. Take a deep breath, he told himself, completely unsure of how to handle the situation. Think, what does someone normally do when confronted with a sobbing female? Aside from flounder helplessly, that was… what did his mother normally do whenever he was upset? She'd hug him while trying to figure out what the problem was so she could try cheering him up… but would it work with Cindy? And more importantly… did he have the courage to even try?

It's okay, you can do this, he thought, gritting his teeth in determination. It really shouldn't be so bad, unless she suddenly decides to punch you or something, which is bound to be worse than that slap she gave you...

Sucking up his courage and uttering a silent yet fervent plea for things to turn out well, Jimmy hesitantly slipped his arms around Cindy. He patted her back gingerly, which seemed to be the wrong thing to do, as her grip tightened and her crying grew worse.

Jumping Jupiter, now what? It isn't working! He thought, fighting off a sudden bout of panic. Maybe if I try talking to her? But it doesn't sound like she's in any shape to respond... oh I wish my genius was more help with girls!

"It's…" Cindy said at last, her sobs dying down enough for her to speak. "It's true, isn't it? I've undergone some kind of change and none of this is real."

"What?" he asked as she pulled away slightly so she could look him in the eye. "What are you talking about? What happened to make you so upset?"

It seemed that was also the wrong thing to say as tears once again welled in her eyes.

"Wait, don't start crying again," he said in a rush, anxious to keep her from lapsing back into her sobbing state. "If you do, I can't help, all right?" She nodded a little and he breathed a small sigh of relief. "Now listen, why don't you start from the beginning? It'll help me understand."

It finally seemed like he'd done something right, as she nodded again and stepped away from him. Goddard appeared at her side, as though he'd been waiting to see how things turned out before showing himself, and he gently moved Cindy over to Jimmy's chair and handed her a box of tissues.

"Thank you, Goddard," she whispered after blowing her nose, and she gave the dog's head a friendly pat. He barked happily as Jimmy pulled up a stool and sat down before her, imitating something he'd seen people do on television when they were in for a serious conversation.

"As for why I'm so upset…" she began, her voice shaking slightly, and she wiped her eyes before continuing. "Libby and I went to the Candy Bar, right? And the moment I walked in the door, people just came up from everywhere to tell me what they thought of the joke I was playing on you. I couldn't believe it!"

Jimmy winced inwardly, silently wondering how prudent it had been to tell that to the class before he managed to get Cindy back to normal.

"I told them that it wasn't a joke, but they just laughed at me," she went on, hiccupping slightly as she clasped her hands together. "They told me that they knew I couldn't stop pretending yet, and all of them wanted to know when I was going to call it quits and go back to fighting with you. I told them that I'd never fought with you, and then they looked at me like I was crazy."

Jimmy sat silently as she shut her eyes, seeming to be fighting off the memories. After a moment, she reopened them and looked him seriously.

"It really got me thinking, you know? If everyone, even those who aren't in our class, tell me that I fought with you constantly and was always playing jokes on you and just generally making your life miserable, then… then maybe it's true," she said, her voice dropping back down to a whisper, and she bowed her head in defeat. "Maybe something has happened to me to make me forget all of it and to reverse my feelings towards you, and that you've been right all along."

"But…" she said, looking back up at him, a familiar intensity back to her gaze. "But I know what I feel, Jimmy, and I know how much I love you. Nothing could ever change that; you've got to believe me!"

"Cindy…" He wasn't quite sure how to respond further, and he could feel Goddard nudging him slightly, almost egging him on to reply.

"After realizing this, I suddenly understood your response to my hugs, kisses, and so on," Cindy said, saving him from continuing, and he could detect several trace amounts of bitterness to her voice. She turned away from him then, allowing a view of her profile, and he watched her swallow.

"I mean, from what everyone has told me, I was basically a bully, and who in their right mind could… could…" Her voice was breaking as her tears returned, and he sighed softly as several slid down her cheek.

"Look, Cindy," he began, and she glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "You may have made my life miserable at times, sure, but…" he trailed off, biting his lip slightly. "But you weren't a bully. Not like Terry. I mean, I didn't have to invent something to keep you away from me, right?"

"You… you mean that?" she asked, her definite note of hope to her voice, and he smiled a little.

"I do," he said, and she sniffled, a tiny smile gracing her lips. "I want you to take a look at something I just found, all right? I think it just might help explain this whole thing." At that he stood and reaching over to his keyboard, he returned to the beginning of the file he'd been reading.

"After reading this, I'm not sure what to make of the necklace," he said, noting that Cindy was scanning the screen quickly. "Maybe… maybe Libby was right," he added reluctantly, having to force the words out of him. The admission stung, partly because he wasn't accustomed to being wrong, and partly because it meant that he wasn't going to be able to fix things as easily as he'd been hoping.

"Maybe there is a curse on that thing after all," he said quietly, secretly glad that Libby wasn't present. He really didn't want to put up with any 'I told you so's" at the moment.

"So… what does it do exactly? This is just telling me about the history," Cindy said and Jimmy scrolled down a little.

" 'The Isis Amulet contains a frightening power, one that forces the wearer to reveal their darkest secret, or act upon their deepest desire…' " Cindy read, trailing off as her mouth fell open in shock, and he nodded a little. "Jimmy, this is impossible! You said repeatedly that it can't be a curse!"

"I know, I know," he told her, sighing a little. "Granted, I still have my qualms with it, but keep reading. It gets interesting."

She huffed slightly in impatience, but obliged. " 'The cursed one has no idea that their actions are out of the ordinary, as what they're doing or saying is something they've always wanted to let out. The curse merely erases their inhibitions and makes them forget that they ever did or said otherwise.' "

"Sound familiar?"

"It's just coincidence," Cindy said with a wave of her hand and Jimmy shook his head slightly.

"Cindy, you've completely forgotten about all the pranks you pulled on me, as well as all the times you've insulted and/or embarrassed me. If that description didn't fit this situation as well as it does, I'd dismiss it as coincidence too," he said as he began pacing back and forth across the room. "If you read further, you'll find descriptions of several early cases, and many of which match ours eerily."

"Do tell."

"Apparently one of the princesses started chasing one of her father's attendants around, proclaiming her everlasting love for the guy. Needless to say it didn't end well," Jimmy said with a wince. "Thankfully your father can't have me beheaded for 'bewitching' you."

"I wouldn't let him," Cindy said with a sniff of disdain. "And you haven't done anything to me. If this manuscript is to be believed, then it was the necklace that's the cause of all of this," she added, gesturing towards the computer screen. "So what's the brilliant plan to undo this?"

"Well…" he began as he stopped pacing, and Cindy raised an eyebrow. "The information so far gives no way to lift the curse. I've restarted the program in hopes that the rest of the book is about different ways to put things back to normal, but until it's finished translating, we won't know for sure."

"So we just sit and wait?"

"I guess so," he said, rubbing the back of his neck absently. "It seems kind of inadequate to simply sit around, however, so I'm going to go back to helping…"

Wait just one Neutronic second.

Jimmy froze, feeling as though he'd been hit by a ton of bricks.

The curse makes a person reveal their deepest secret?

The full meaning finally clicked in his oversized brain and he spun away from Cindy, his heart suddenly racing.

If that's to be believed, then... she meant everything that she said over the past day.

The thought shook him so badly that he grabbed the edge of the nearest work bench to steady himself. His knees felt like jelly.

Deep down, Cindy Vortex is in love with me.

No, no, no! He felt like screaming in frustration. This couldn't be happening! Curses didn't exist! And Cindy wasn't supposed to be really in love with him; it was supposed to be because of either her sick practical joke or her addled brain!

Get a grip! I have to think about this calmly; take some deep breaths. I have to relax and think things through. Everything has an explanation; I simply haven't found one yet!

"Before you go, Jimmy, I'd like to ask you something."

Cindy's voice sounded miles away and he felt himself nod. "Why are you working so hard to get me back to my old self? I mean, wouldn't you enjoy not being picked on, teased or embarrassed?"

"I don't know," he whispered, feeling slightly panicked for the umpteenth time that day. He squeezed his eyes shut and his fingers tangled themselves in his hair. "This whole ridiculous situation is making me grapple with matters I'd never imagined would exist, even in my wildest dreams, and nothing… nothing is making sense!"

"Is something wrong, Jimmy?" he heard Cindy ask, and he could feel her questioning gaze upon his back.

"I don't understand it."

He was pacing again, up and down and up and down, trying to work off all the pent up anxiety he suddenly felt. "I can't find an answer that fits with all rational, natural laws, you're either under this curse thing or you've suddenly decided to seriously confound me, and I can't seem to figure out why I want the old Cindy back so much!"

"Jimmy…?"

"But that's the million dollar question, isn't it? Why should I even bother trying to turn you back to normal? You're nice to me, you don't insult me, and you stick up for me. You even lie to Miss Fowl and share your lunch with me," he continued, ticking things off on his fingers. "But every time I go over this, part of me just rails against it, telling me that it's wrong. I shouldn't be enjoying it, because it's not really you!"

"Jimmy, stop."

"And now, if this curse thing is to be believed, then everything you've said to me is something you've always wanted to say, and all of your actions are something you've been longing to do. But you're not supposed to be in love with me!"

He was practically shouting now, his pacing quickening. "I mean, you can't be! Cindy just isn't programmed that way. You're supposed to yell at me and tell me how stupid my big head is, and then maybe you'll be nice to me occasionally, like when you're sure that no one is watching. That's the way things are supposed to be!"

"Why?"

Her question stopped him dead in his tracks and he blinked at her, his mouth hanging open slightly. It was as though his mind, having been so set in one track, had stalled completely, leaving him without a single thing to say, and she stared right back at him. Her head tilted to one side slightly as she watched him, and a curious expression was present on her face.

"Why am I supposed to be mean to you?" she continued, sliding off the chair and walking towards him slowly. "Why can't things ever change between us? Aren't things always naturally changing?"

"But… but…" he stuttered, feeling like he was sinking in some horrible quagmire, with no way of saving himself. "But Cindy doesn't change. Nothing ever changes between us, no matter what we do."

"And why is that, you think?"

She stopped about an arm's length away from him, and he twitched slightly when she touched his shoulder gently.

"Why can't I be in love with you?" she asked, smiling a little, and he felt that if his eyes could widen any further, they would pop out of his head. "It makes me happy to be in love with you."

"It… it does?" he asked weakly and she nodded, still smiling. He felt her hand slide down his arm until it met with his hand, and she clasped it firmly.

"It really does," she said warmly, and he met her intense gaze. Suddenly he felt like he had during the dance, all breathless and shaky, and completely not in control of his body. She slowly embraced him then, her arms once again winding around his neck and her cheek pressed against his shoulder. He tensed at the sudden contact, but before he could fight back and escape, his mind clouded over and all coherent thought was lost.

It was exactly like the dance, he decided absently, his body finally relaxing. He couldn't seem to stop his arms from wrapping around her, or his head coming to rest on her shoulder. He felt oddly calm and contented, like this was something he was meant to do all along, and he shut his eyes for a moment, as his eyelids suddenly felt very heavy. He could feel a smile tug at the corner of his lips and he was unable to stop himself from memorizing her soft scent.

"Are you afraid of things changing?"

Her voice was no more than a whisper as her grip on him tightened slightly, and he shrugged, not really registering what she'd just said. He felt like he was floating, suspended in a sea of sweet jasmine, all of his cares and worries vanishing with her touch. It didn't matter why he felt like he did, just that he did, and nothing else was of any importance at all.

"Jimmy?"

Cindy pulled away from him slightly and he opened his eyes languidly to find that they were nearly nose to nose. He felt his face heat slightly from the closeness and Cindy's eyes twinkled in laughter.

"You haven't answered my question," she asked softly, her expression becoming shy, and a faint blush staining her cheeks. "Are you that afraid of things changing?"

"Maybe," he said, unable to fully comprehend what was going on. He felt as though large portions of his brain had just decided to shut down rather than deal with his current state and actions.

"Do your answers always have to be so enigmatic?" she asked with a giggle, brushing her nose against his playfully, and Jimmy swore that he was bright red to the very roots of his hair. It certainly felt like someone could fry an egg on his face.

"Cindy, what's-" he began in a vain attempt to regain control of himself, but she shushed him.

"Don't think, just do what you feel is right," she said and he swore that her face was closer somehow. He could feel his blood pounding in his ears as his heart rate sped up, and she was closer still, her eyes drifting shut. He gave up trying to figure out what was happening and let his eyes close as well, suddenly feeling a strange force pulling them together. Their noses brushed again, sliding past each other as their faces neared, their breath mingling… and then… then…

Cindy gave a sudden jerk, a violent shudder running through her body as she pushed herself away from him, and he heard her gasp in pain. His eyes flew open to find her clutching her head, her eyes squeezed shut and her fingers digging into her hair.

"Are you all right? What's wrong?" he asked, concern laced in his voice, and she shook her head rapidly before falling to her knees.

"Cindy!"

He knelt beside her and she grabbed his shoulders, her entire body shaking slightly. "It… hurts…" she gasped out before shuddering once and collapsing against him. He caught her with difficulty and quickly discerned that she'd lapsed into unconsciousness before frowning slightly in thought.

"Goddard!" he called out and the dog was at his side almost instantly. "I need to run an analysis of the hormones and/or chemicals present in her blood," he said as he struggled to his feet, holding Cindy. "I suddenly have a feeling that things might not be so supernatural after all."

Goddard barked a few times before bounding off to get the necessary equipment while Jimmy managed to get Cindy to the couch he had resting against the wall. He set her down and plopped to the ground beside her; that had been harder then he'd ever imagined it could be. Maybe he really did need to start thinking about getting in better physical shape…

But first I have to figure out what happened, he thought, his frown deepening a little. Once again he had no explanation for why she would suddenly collapse, but…

If I work quickly enough, I'm pretty sure I'll find my answer.

A little while later, Jimmy sat before the main screen, silently analyzing the tests done on the sample of Cindy's blood. Beside it was the same analysis done on a sample of his own for comparison, and though he knew it wouldn't be exactly the same, he had done the tests anyway to have a control in the situation.

Let's see now. Her insulin levels are relatively normal, as are her estrogen levels. Adrenaline levels are rather high, however... but mine appear to be as well. That's interesting, he thought as he read, his gaze narrowing slightly. It made sense though, for her body to react as though she were in danger when whatever it was had caused her to collapse.

Mine are probably just as high because I was worried about her, he thought as he continued reading through the data. Everything else appeared to be normal… wait. What was that?

He scrolled back up and frowned. Unknown hormone?

"Goddard?" he called over his shoulder and heard the dog bark twice in response. "Do you know what this 'unknown hormone' means? Was there actually something that you couldn't classify present in Cindy's blood?"

Goddard gave a bark of assent and Jimmy spun in his chair to find the dog carrying a small piece of paper towards him. He snatched it up, read it quickly, and finally looked back up at Goddard.

"You know, suddenly I have the feeling I'm missing something," he said, his hand closing around the paper. "This compound is unlike anything I've ever seen before, and it's made up of elements that aren't native to this planet."

Goddard gave a soft whine, tilting his head slightly as Jimmy turned back to the main screen, his eyes scanning the analysis once more. How and when could Cindy have been exposed to this? And where had it come from?

There might be something more behind her actions than you may realize.

Jimmy straightened in surprise as the words floated back to him and he turned to Goddard, his lips sealing together in a thin line.

"Pick her up, Goddard," he ordered as he shut down the translation program and plucked the book from the scanner set up. "And let's get to the hover car. We're going to go pay Mrs. Ojufemi another visit."

Goddard barked, voicing his question, as he and Jimmy made their way from the lab.

"Right before we left, Mrs. Ojufemi told me that maybe there was something more to Cindy's actions. I never thought about it until now," he explained as Goddard gently set the unconscious Cindy in the back of the hover car and then hopped in himself. "It insinuates that she knew exactly what was behind Cindy's sudden change of heart, don't you think?"

Goddard barked sharply, clearly still confused, and Jimmy sighed in impatience.

"She told me that she didn't know anything about the necklace. Yet how would she know that Cindy wasn't just pretending, and was in fact, under the influence of an alien chemical?" he said as he slid into the driver's seat, and Goddard whined faintly. "I have a hunch that she knows a lot more about this than she's been letting on."

Goddard gave another faint whine as they rose into the air and Jimmy plotted out the fastest route to the Ojufemi household.

As for why... well, that's going to have to wait until we get there and she can explain herself.

Hm, okay, so I lied again. This isn't the last chapter. It was supposed to be, honest, but I take longer to write things than I normally should. : So what do you think is going to happen next? I'm giving up on the whole 'the next chapter is the last!' thing because honestly, it might not be, seeing as how I keep drawing things out. Bah.

Anyway, how do you like this chapter? Am I going to be speared and maimed for giving you false hope over the kiss? (Chuckles evilly while dodging putrid fruit) So what do you think is going to happen next? Is Mrs. Ojufemi going to turn out to be some horrible twisted mastermind? Stay tuned and review and I'll love you forever.