Okay! I don't own what I'm doing this story about. If I did, I wouldn't have had to have written this fanfic. So, should I continue? Sweet.

Harry couldn't believe the surge of emotion surrounding him. Why was Melfina so willing to help him? Why did she want to help him? How was this plan going to work? An even better question was would this work? Melfina was running down the sidewalk dragging Harry by his hand. Even though she wasn't wearing tennis shoes, Harry was still having trouble keeping up with her. She kept stopping quickly to check the windows of all the stores, as if she was looking for something. Suddenly, she stopped outside of a book store.

"Okay, Harry," Melfina said beaming. "You know what the plan is, right?"

All Harry could do was studder. "I... I...I think so. But are you sure he won't kill me when he sees me?"

"There's no absolute way to know, but I have a feeling this will work, Harry. Just trust me, please."

"Oh, Mel. That's all I need to hear," Harry sighed, his confidence renewed. "Okay, I'm going in. Wish me luck!"

"Good luck," Melfina said smiling.

As Harry turned around, he entered the bookstore. He immediately noticed Gene and Jim attempting to find books on ship repair. The cost was so staggering that they had been talking about doing all the ships repairs themselves. He walked over behind the bookshelf that they were looking at, hoping to spy in on what they were saying. He could understand only a small portion of their conversation.

"I'm telling you, man, we need to get one on grapplers," Gene said in a hushed whisper.

"Just give me time. I know there's one specifically for ship's like the Outlaw Star here," Jim shot back.

"Face it, Jim. There's not one book here that says How To Repair Your XGP!"

"There is, and you'll be eating your words when I find it, too. Why don't you just go read magazines and let me do this by myself?"

"Sure," Gene snapped. "Anything if we can get out of here quicker."

Harry looked backtoward the window. He saw Melfina peering through behind some books that were in the display case for people to see. As she stood on the sidewalk, looking in, she gave Harry a smile and motioned for him to make his move. He immediately grabbed a few books of the shelf and began stacking them in a column-like fashion in his arms until it was hard for him to walk. He took one deep breath and raced for the end of the shelf. As he took a hard left turn, he smacked his head straight into Gene's, sending them both to the floor in pain, just as Melfina's plan was supposed to go. Not noticing that Harry was in front of him, Gene grabbed his head and started to get up.

"Hey, guy, watch where you're going!" Gene said in a demeaning tone.

"I'm sorry," Harry said, looking down trying to pick up all his books and avoid eye contact. As Gene rose to his feet he looked down at Harry. He immediately took two quick steps back into the desk behind him and looked like he had just seen a ghost. What the hell, he thought. This can't be real. Is that... is it ... Harry MacDougall! Just as he got done thinking that, Harry had finished stacking his books and proceeded to pick them up quickly and turn toward Gene.

"Once again, I'm so ... Gene?"

"Harry?" Gene whispered. He was glad Jim didn't notice or the store probably would have turned upside-down, and since that hadn't happened yet, he was going to try to avoid it as much as possible.

"Hey, Gene! What's up?" Harry said smiling, almost seeming glad that he had ran into him. Even though Gene's right hand was dangerously close to his gun, he decided to play along.

"Harry! I ... how... how are you alive?"

"Two words, Gene. 'Genetic' and 'engineering'," he replied in his cocky voice.

"Well, uh, that's great, I guess," Gene quipped, not entirly sure of the rude comment he just made toward Harry. "What are doing here? I thought you would be with your brother."

"I would, but he went somewhere, and while my new body was recovering he wouldn't take me. So I'm stuck here."

Gene was racing in his head trying to think of a way to get him away from Jim. He could only come up with one good idea, coffee!

"Hey! I've got an idea. How about you join me for a drink and something to eat. There's a nice little cafe a block from here." Gene was obviously hoping for a good response.

"Sure. Besides, I don't think I have enough money for these books."

"Yeah, I don't think How To Make ThePerfect Nightgown is for you anyway."

Puzzled at that statement, Harry saw the top book on the stack was that. He immediately looked at the sign for the isle he was on. It read Home Economics. He immediately regretted going down that row.

"Yeah, uh, forget the books. Let's go, Gene."

Gene purposely avoided Jim so he wouldn't notice Harry and proceeded out the door of the bookstore. As they turned left, Harry looked behind him and saw Melfina following at a safe distance so she wouldn't be noticed. She gave him a quick thumbs-up, to which Harry gave her a thumbs-up back. She immediately jumped up and took a different route to the cafe. Once there, Harry and Gene went inside and sat at a small, European-style coffee table. Once ordering something, Gene immediately began his interrogation of Harry MacDougall.

"So, Harry, how have things been going?"

"Really good, considering I thought you would have killed me by now."

"Well, I can obviously see you have made some changes. For one, where's your bionic arm?"

"I don't need one. My new body is all organic. I can still interface with compatible systems, but just basic stuff."

"You mean ... like ...Melfina?" Gene said, very nervous as to how Harry would react to her name.

"Yeah, like Mel. By the way, where is she?" Harry said, hoping Gene would at least be nice enough to say 'she's okay'.

"Oh, Melfina? She's, uh, looking around at, uh, clothes! Yeah, she's shopping."

Just then, Gene looked out the window and saw Melfina walk by. His heartbeat grew rapidly. What would happen if she walked in? What if Harry saw her? He was very sure that if Harry noticed her, all hell would break loose and he would have to kill him. He subliminaly tried to grab Harry's attention.

"So, where's Ron?" Gene said, trying to change the subject.

"Doing what MacDougall's do best, being good at what we do," Harry said smirking.

"Heh heh, yeah, you're good at that," Gene said heavily sweating about the factor Melfina would play if she walked in. Harry took a long sip of the tea he had ordered before talking again.

"So, how is Melfina, Gene?"

"Oh, she's okay. Just being herself, trying to figure the world out, and loving life," Gene replied, hoping to say something Harry would like to hear. In reality, things were the exact opposite. Melfina had been depressed since seeing Harry die. She would only smile from time to time, when something funny happened, to try to make everyone think she was okay. Gene saw how she was stumbling over herself day to day, her self-esteem getting worse, and how she cried herself to sleep every night. He figured Harry would snap if he was told this, but he already knew. Melfina had told him when they were walking to begin her plan, which was going perfectly. Harry had caught him in his lie, and wanted to kill him for lying about her, but he wouldn't get to see her again if he did. As Gene looked behind Harry at the door, he saw Melfina enter. She pulled her money out as she approached the register to order something. Gene began going frantic in his mind. Harry noticed Gene was acting abnormal.

"Gene," he asked, "Is something wrong? You look like your about to jump out your skin," he said chuckling.

"No! Nothing's wrong," Gene replied quickly. "Just thinking."

"About what, my red-haired friend?'

"Nothing. You wouldn't know about it."

Suddenly, Gene began to notice that Melfina saw him and began walking to him. The plan was going perfectly. Gene began reaching for his gun, in case Harry tried to kidnap Melfina.

"Gene," Melfina screamed in joy with a shopping bag in her hand, "Look, I got the cutest..." She stopped as soon as she saw Harry. She tried to pretend like she didn't know that Harry was alive again. Her jaw dropped in a gasp as she she grew nervous, to Gene that is. In reality, this was going perfectly.

"Harry? Is that ... is it you?" she said in shock, once again faked.

"Melfina! Hi, how are you," Harry brightly said as he gave her a big smile. He stood up from his chair slowly so as not to have Gene over-react. Gene grabbed his gun tightly and slowly began to pull it out.

"Here, Mel. Take my seat. I'll find another one."

"Thanks, Harry," she said, still in her fake shock. Gene began to slip his gun back down once Harry walked over to an empty table to get a chair. Once back at the table, he pulled himself to table in his chair. Both of them were acting exactly the way they were supposed to. Gene had no clue they had met at the pier or that this was staged. They began to talk with Gene, having a seemingly normal time. Gene was beginning to let his guard down. After a few minutes, Melfina decided now was the time.

"So, Harry," she asked, "Where are you staying? If you tell us, maybe we can do this again. You know, the three of us."

"Well, Melfina, I just moved out of my apartment I had with Ron because I can't pay for it. As an outlaw, and a notorious one at that, I can't go asking for a lot of jobs."

"So," Gene said, "That didn't answer the question.Where are you curently staying?"

"Oh, I, uh, don't really have a place to stay. I'm looking for one though."

Gene couldn't believe what he was hearing. Harry, the man who had almost unlimited resources to hunt them down with before, didn't have a place to lay his head. Gene then said, "So that means you're..."

"Homeless! Yeah, I am," Harry said, finishing Gene's sentence so he didn't have to hear the same thing twice in one day.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Harry," Melfina said with a certain sadness in her voice. This time it was real. She was hurting knowing Harry had nowhere to go, but it also fell into place with her plan.

"I know, Harry! Come stay with us!" she said loudly with a smile across her face.

Gene began choking on his food when he heard that. What was she thinking? Harry? Live with them? It didn't sit well with Gene.

"Melfina, can you come here for a second?" Gene asked her.

"Um, sure, I guess," she said worrily.

Melfina and Gene walked across the restaurant toward the restrooms to a distance where Harry couldn't hear them. Gene put Melfina's back to the wall so Harry couldn't lip-read, either.

"Melfina, you can't be serious!" He said with a hushed whisper. "This is Harry MacDougall were talking about. The guy who tried to kidnap you. The guy who tried to kill us. He's a psycho!"

"No, Gene, you're wrong!" she said in an anger she had never used before. "Harry's changed. I know he has. Why else wouldn't he have been calm this whole time? And what were you doing drinking coffee with him?"

"I just tried to get him away from Jim before he had a heart attack and freaked out!" he said just as angrily back to Melfina. "There is no way he has changed. In fact, if he were to stay with us tonight, I guarantee he would put a bullet in our heads and hurt you!"

"He wouldn't! He loves me!" She may have regretted saying that.

"Yeah, he loves you. He loves to get his creepy hands on you and do what he wants to you."

"Gene, please. I know he won't hurt you, I just know it. It's like my heart is telling me he's changed."

Gene took a few minutes to think about it before coming to a decision. He glanced up at Melfina who was begining to shed tears. No one could eversay no to that face unless they didn't have soul.

"Fine. If things get sour, though, he's gone," he said sternly.

"Oh, Gene, thank you!" she said with elation. "Besides, Harry could fill that 'Help Wanted' sign you guys have outside the building."

"Hey, you're right. I highly doubt it, but maybe this will work, Melfina."

"Trust me, Gene. You won't regret it."

As Gene turned around and walked towards an obviously concerned Harry, Harry saw Melfina jump up in the air waving her arms in victory. He knew it had worked.

"Harry," Gene said with suspense, "Do you want to come live with us? I think we may be able to find you a room and get you a job. We need some help at 'Starwind & Hawking Enterprises, and you may have the skill we need. So what do ya say?"

Harry was shocked. He couldn't believe it had worked.

"If Melfina says it's okay, I'll do it," Harry said. That wasn't part of the plan, but he knew what her answer would be. They both turned back to Melfina who was beaming at Harry.

"Sure, I'd love it if you stayed with us!" Melfina exclaimed.

"Then that settles it," Gene said, "Harry, welcome to our, uh, 'very ecclectic' family."

Well, that's part three, I know I said it's an action/adventure, and it is, but there gonna be a lot of chapters and I'll get there eventually. So, Harry's the newest member of the group. What's next? Keep coming back to find out!