Disclaimer: I don't own any characters that you recognize from the show, nor do I own the immortality concept. I just write because these stories keep rolling around in my head and I need to get them out and unfortunately, there is no money to be made from that.

Thanks to SouthernChickie, onlyGodcanjudgeme, and Neoinean for reading and reviewing. I love feedback.

At ten o'clock the next morning Duncan was pacing his loft. He had awoken at six-thirty and gone for a run. He came home, showered, read the paper, ate breakfast and cleaned the kitchen. Finally, when he could stand it no more, he grabbed the phone and dialed Gwen's number.

Instead of her normally cheery voice, what he heard on the other end of the phone line was a muffled, "What?"

"Gwen? Is that you? Did I wake you up?" Duncan was concerned. Gwen was usually up very early. Sleeping in was just not like her. "Are you alright?"

"Duncan? What time is it?" she asked through a yawn.

Now that he knew she was safe at home, he relaxed a bit. "It's after ten. I was just calling to see how it went last night."

"It's just ten? I was hoping to sleep at least until noon," she groaned. "I didn't get home until almost four. I forgot how exhausting all this is."

Duncan started to get worried again, "What were you doing until four in the morning?"

"We played until the bar closed at two, then we had to load everything up and wait until the manager got the receipts counted up so he could pay us. It took some time," she explained, yawning again.

"Well, how was it? Did you do fall on your face or were you as great as I think you were?" he asked impatiently.

Stretching, she sat up and rubbed her eyes. "I don't think I was great or anything, but I didn't fall on my face. It was okay."

"GWEN!" Duncan practically yelled into the phone. "I need to hear more than 'it was okay'! Give me some details!"

"Duncan, I am barely awake. I can't even remember any details right now," she grumbled. "God, I need coffee. And food. And a shower."

"Well, I can at least help with the coffee and food," he offered. "You take a shower and I'll stop and pick up coffee and doughnuts. We'll eat and you can give me all the details."

Smiling at his persistence, she replied, "Make it bagels and you have a deal. See you in about half an hour?"

"I'll be there," he answered.

Twenty-five minutes later, Duncan pulled up outside the duplex with a dozen bagels and three large coffees. He balanced the drink carrier and bag in one hand as knocked on the door. Seconds later, Gwen opened the front door and waved him inside.

"Is someone else joining us?" she asked eying the three cups. "You didn't tell Richie, did you?"

"No, I didn't tell Richie," he said as he placed the food on the table. "You sounded so out of it, that I thought you could use an extra cup. Also, I wasn't sure what kind of bagels you liked so I got an assortment. And three flavors of cream cheese."

"Wow, I feel special!" Gwen remarked, reaching for a cup of coffee. She removed the lid and took a gulp. "Ah, nectar of the gods!! Yeah, I'll need the extra cup. Thanks."

Gwen took a whole wheat bagel and spread strawberry cream cheese on it. She munched on her breakfast while Duncan watched her expectantly. When she had eaten half of the bagel and had a few more gulps of coffee, she finally got the hint that he was waiting for her to speak.

Swallowing another bite, she grinned at him and said, "Okay, it was really fun. I didn't realize how much I missed performing until we were three songs into the first set. I kind of hope that Kevin doesn't get better anytime soon."

As she continued to regale him with the details of their performance, he couldn't help but notice a light in her eyes that he had not seen before. Even when she got excited about a new martial arts move or some aspect of her research, she didn't glow like she was now. Duncan couldn't wait to actually see her in action.

"So, when are you playing next and can I come this time?" he asked when she stopped to pick up the other cup of coffee.

"We're playing next Saturday, which is the twentieth, I think. It's at the same bar, but they are having a Christmas party." She took another big drink of the coffee, "We've got to work on a few Christmas tunes sometime this week."

"Sounds fun. I'm planning to be there and I think that Richie and his girlfriend would love to come, too," he hinted.

"Okay, okay! I'll let him in on the big secret," she smiled at him. "Right now, though, I have one more exam to finish grading do that grades can get out. I would like to work out later if you don't have any plans."

"I'm all yours," he told her. "Just give me a call when you are on your way over."

As Duncan stood to leave, Gwen hugged him, "Thanks for everything. I'll call you in a few hours."

Richie was thrilled when Gwen finally told him about the band. He agreed to ask Andrea to come to the show on Saturday. Then he informed Gwen that Duncan's birthday was on Sunday.

"Are you guys having a party or anything?" she asked the younger man.

"We haven't talked about it yet," he replied. "I'd like to do something, though. Maybe Joe has an idea." Just then his cell phone rang. "Excuse me…. Hello?… Hey, Adam! … You are? When are you getting into town? … Yeah, that would surprise him. He's not expecting you until sometime next week. … Well, we are all going out Saturday night if you can make it by then. … Cool!! Call me back on Friday and I'll give you the details… Okay, bye." He hung up and turned back to his friend, "Looks like we DO have a party going on!"

"Adam? I've heard him mentioned him a few times. Isn't he an old friend of Duncan's," she asked innocently.

Richie laughed in spite of himself, "Yeah, that's a good description. Actually, you guys need to meet. He's taken a teaching position in your department."

"Are you talking about Dr. Adam Pierson?" Gwen's eyes went wide in surprise. "I've read some of his work. The translations he's done on some of the story tablets were nothing short of extraordinary."

Richie looked at her with an amused expression on his face. Shaking his head, he remarked, "I have a hard time remembering that he actually does any work. I usually see him sprawled out on Mac's couch or mooching beer from Joe. But, yeah, I guess he's pretty smart."

She contemplated this description for a moment, then turned back to the matters at hand, a birthday celebration for her friend. After all he done for her, she wanted to make this special. "Okay, Rich. Any idea what I can get Duncan? I'm not sure where to start."

At nine thirty Saturday night, Duncan, Richie and Andrea ordered another round of drinks at Dusty's. Gwen had been right about the crowd, they were young. Richie and Andrea seemed to fit in all right, but Duncan was feeling every one of his four hundred and eleven years. He hoped he didn't appear too out of place with all of the college age kids in the bar.

They had managed to get a spot near the stage, but close enough to the bar that getting drinks wasn't a problem. The place was starting to fill up and Duncan overheard several people talking about the band and how much better they sounded now that they had a new guitarist.  He smiled. 'Gwen has some fans!' he thought.

Outside, Adam Pierson was circling the block looking for a parking space. Since the bar was packed he wasn't having any luck finding one close to the entrance. Cursing in several languages, he finally parked four blocks away on the opposite side of the street. Had he realized how close this place was to his apartment he might have walked. Richie had not told him exactly what was going on tonight, he had just given him an address and told him what time to be there. He had been to this particular watering hole a few times when he had previously worked at the university. It wasn't bad and they usually had decent live music.

He felt the familiar buzz of two immortals as he neared the entrance - MacLeod and he assumed Richie. Paying the cover charge at the door, he stepped inside and scanned the crowd. Near the bar he spotted his two friends and a woman he didn't recognize. He stopped at the bar for a beer before joining them.

Duncan had felt the buzz of the oldest immortal before he came in the door, so by the time he was at the table, he was over his surprise. "I though you couldn't be here until at least Christmas!" he exclaimed, giving his friend a hug.

"Well, my plans changed and I thought I'd get here in time for your birthday," he said, looking around the bar. "Why are we here anyway? This is a far cry from Joe's?"

Nodding in agreement, Duncan replied, "Yes it is. However, a friend of ours plays in this band. So, we're here supporting her."

"Yeah!" Richie piped up. "You'll really like her. Apparently, she's a big fan of yours. When I told her that you would be teaching in her department, she started gushing about translations or something." Getting a nudge from his companion, he added, "Oh, yeah, Adam, this is Andrea Corelli, Andrea, meet Adam Pierson."

Andrea shook his offered hand and said hello. Then she turned back to Richie, "Are all of your friends this good looking? I mean, I have single friends that would love to be fixed up…"

Richie stopped her with a kiss. "I don't think so Andrea. Neither of these guys have ever had trouble getting women."

"So tell me more about this friend of yours, MacLeod," Adam said to Duncan. "She must be special to get you into a place like this. I mean, this really isn't your style at all."

Duncan smiled, "She is special. I think you'll really like her. She teaches Ancient history and religion in the Near Eastern studies department, so I'm sure the two of you will get to know each other."

"An ancient history professor who plays in a rock band…" the old immortal mused. "I thought I'd seen everything."

Just then the lights dimmed and the band came out on stage. Gwen saw Richie and Duncan in the audience and winked. She noticed another man with them, but Jack banged the drum to start their first song and she forgot everything except the music.