A/N: A part of me really doesn't want to write this, because that would mean it is the end of this story. It is so bittersweet to finish this. I want to thank everyone who read, reviewed, followed, or made it a favorite story. Your support has been amazing, and I couldn't be more grateful. And now, the epilogue.

1954

"I can't believe we're going back there," Helga muttered under her breath, crossing her arms. She stared out the window, watching the once familiar landscape pass by her. The vibration of the train chugging down the tracks can be felt throughout the car. While some passengers may find it soothing, Helga's nerves triumphed.

She could feel her husband's arm wrapped around her shoulders. "I know you never wanted to go back, but I believe this will be good for us. Not to mention, you do have a job there, Mrs. International Bestseller."

Helga glared at him. "How did I allow you to persuade me to do this, Football Head?"

Arnold chuckled at his wife's attempt at being angry. "I think deep down, you want to do this. Not just for you or me or our friends, but for her as well." He nodded to the seat directly across from them. Curled in the seat was a little girl with blonde hair, soundly sleeping. Helga looked at her and couldn't help but smile.

"You're right," Helga admitted. "She needs to not only know what happened to us, but see it for herself. They all do."

Helga looked over to the other side of the train to see Harold and Patty with Timberly and their son, Joshua. Timberly was almost ten and Joshua was eight. Harold and Patty remained in Stockholm where Harold now owned the most successful butcher shop in the city. Joshua on occasion would help out in the shop. Patty continued to help out at the synagogue along with Timberly, who worked with the younger children.

Behind them were Phoebe and Gerald with their adopted twin sons, Dominik and Karol. The now fifteen-year-old twins were part of the Dr. Mengele's experiments. They lost their entire family in Auschwitz eleven years ago. Since the liberation, they were placed in an orphanage for about eighteen months until Gerald and Phoebe decided to adopt them. Gerald and Phoebe were married for four months when they started the process, and they loved the twins as if they were their own children. Dominik and Karol were raised Jewish, and their parents continued to raise them in that way.

After erecting a memorial for her family in Nagasaki, Phoebe and Gerald decided to return to Sweden. They found a house near their friends and settled in. Gerald continued to work for Fuzzy Slippers, who was the one to tell them about Dominik and Karol. At that time, Gerald and Phoebe had recently married and were looking to adopt. When they found out that there were twins who were in Auschwitz, they knew they wanted them.

"Helga?" Arnold asked, waving his hand across her face. "Can you hear me?"

Helga shook her head out of the thoughts of her friend's children and came back to reality. "I'm sorry. What did you say?"

"I asked if you knew everyone was going to be there," Arnold said.

Helga blinked a couple of times. "Um, yeah," she replied while rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Sid and Stinky are already there, setting up. Eugene will be coming later tonight, and everyone will be there tomorrow while we are at the bookshop."

"How do you feel about doing a joint book signing with Eugene?" he asked. After leaving for Denmark with his now wife, Eugene started talking to the small nation about his experiences. His talks began to spread throughout Europe. He became a sought-after speaker about the Holocaust. When Helga's book was published about their story several years ago, the two had gotten together several times in several locations for some signings and discussions, but this will be the first time either of them will be back. When they told their friends, they all agreed to go and support them, and then made the decision to go visit the place that brought them all together.

"The signing isn't what I'm concerned about," Helga answered honestly. "I'm used to that. It's the location and where we will be going the day after that has me most anxious."

Arnold held her tightly. "I know it's hard. It's hard for me, too. I never thought we would come back, either."

Helga placed her hand over Arnold's left forearm, directly over his former identification. "I shouldn't complain," Helga said guiltily. "Not when you had to be there for months. I can't imagine the horrors you've seen there."

"But you saw them, too," Arnold reminded her. "And your father worked there. You have been affected by this as much as we have. It's just different than me, the Bermans, and Eugene. And I'm sure Sid is anxious about going there as well, with his father and all. You have every right to feel how you feel."

The train came to a halt at the platform outside. The small group got up and grabbed their suitcases. Helga went to the small blonde who was still asleep and shook her softly. "Abby, time to wake up."

Abby slowly opened her eyes. "Are we here, Mama?" she asked in a soft voice.

"Yes, sweetie," Helga answered while picking her up. "We made it to Krakow."

Sid and Stinky arrived to the station and picked up the three families. They packed up the two cars tightly and made their way to the house.

"How did you manage to get it?" Helga asked Sid from the back seat, sitting next to her best friend and her husband. Their children were in the other car with the Bermans and Stinky. "I thought some family would have moved in."

"Fuzzy Slippers owns the house," Sid explained from the driver's seat. "He thought it was important to keep it just in case."

"It's going to be a tight fit," Arnold chimed in, holding Abby in his lap. "It was cramped when it was just nine of us, and now it's going to double in size."

"We were able to get more cots for the adults," Sid answered. "And we figured the kids could camp out in the living room."

"Yay, indoor camping!" Abby cheered, clapping her hands. The adults laughed at her joy. She looked up at her father. "Daddy, can I see the numbers?"

The car suddenly went quiet. They all knew what numbers she was talking about. Helga and Arnold have talked to Abby about what happened to them before she was born. They didn't go into the full details because most of them were inappropriate for a young child to know, but they did tell her Arnold was there because he was caught trying to hide friends from bad people, one of which was Big Bob. Arnold showed her his tattoo one time, but that was years ago, and he figured that Abby forgot about it.

"Sure, Abby," Arnold replied. He rolled up his sleeve to reveal the blue numbers. Abby rubbed her fingers over them.

"Does it hurt?" she asked him, keeping her eyes on the tattoo.

"Not anymore," Arnold answered. "It did when I first got it, but it's fine now."

"Did Big Bob put them there?"

"No, sweetie. Big Bob wasn't there when I got there." He tucked her hair behind her ears. "He came later."

"And then Mama and Uncle Curly saved you," Abby stated, looking at her father for confirmation.

"They did. With the help of Uncle Sid, Uncle Gerald, and Auntie Phoebe," Arnold answered.

"Are we going there today?" she asked around the car.

"In two days, Abby," Helga said. "Today we're going to the hiding house."

Abby looked at her mother in confusion. "How are we going to find it if it's hiding?" she inquired innocently.

The car laughed again at the child's logic. "The house itself isn't hiding," Sid replied. "We call it the hiding house because we hid there to stay away from the bad guys."

"Oh," Abby responded.

The reply must have been good enough for her because she stayed quiet for the rest of the ride to the house. When they pulled up, the adults were amazed to see the house looked exactly the same as when they left it. The inside was no different. It housed the same furniture and appliances. It was as if they had stepped back into 1942 to when they first got there. The children ran around looking at every part of the house. The families began to settle in while Sid went to pick up Eugene from the station.

"I can't believe you're planning on going to America," Helga said to Phoebe while they sat at the kitchen table. They finished unpacking the luggage. The men were in the living room with the children. "What happened to never setting foot on that soil?"

"I was a wreck then," Phoebe told Helga. "I just learned that half my family died and I was mad at America as a whole for killing them. Over time I came to the understanding that they did that to end the war. I'm not happy about it and I don't condone it, but I understand it. And I want the boys to see where their grandmother lives."

"Well, I'm glad you're doing this," Helga said. "And I'm glad you and Geraldo came here with us."

"This will be the first time we actually visit there," Phoebe admitted, getting tearful. "I'm actually quite nervous about going there and seeing what my sons endured. I don't know how I'm going to react."

"I don't think any of us know how we'll react," Helga said truthfully, "but we're here for each other no matter what. We have been for years, and this is just one more thing we're doing together."

Sid and Eugene arrived to the house. Helga and Phoebe greeted them and then made dinner. The adults sat together, catching up on what has been going on. Both Sid and Stinky wedded widows from the war who also worked together. Their wives took this time to take their kids on a trip together to visit their families. Sid and Stinky still worked together, but their business was legitimate. They would sell products grown on Stinky's family's farm to people on the city. They still kept in touch with Fuzzy Slippers and gather information from him. Eugene's wife was a nurse and had to work, which was the reason why Eugene came by himself. He had three kids who had school and weren't able to come.

The group retired for the night and went to bed. In the morning, Helga and Eugene prepared for their book signing. Most of the adults were going to attend. They managed to get Dominik and Karol to babysit the kids. Sid and Stinky stayed behind to pick up the rest of their friends from the train station.

The book signing took a turn no one expected. When the hoard of book buyers realized most of the group was actually there, they requested to get everyone's signatures. The buyers praised them for opening up about their experiences and many people had their own stories to tell. It was the most emotional signing that either Helga or Eugene experienced. It was understandable since many Poles were directly affected by the invasion.

When they got back to the house, they were greeted by Curly, Rhonda, Lila, and Nadine. They exchanged hugs and pleasantries. Rhonda announced that she and Curly will be treating everyone to dinner at a local restaurant. As they dined, the remaining members of the group talked about their times in England.

Curly became the head doctor at a hospital in Wales. Rhonda's parents blessed their union and had an extravagant wedding. All their friends attended and spent time in Rhonda's parent's castle. For holidays, they would come back to Stockholm to the manor and visit. The Gammelthorpes have four children, all who are back in Wales, being watched after by their nanny.

Lila met a man in London whose family ran a farm in the country. They had a small wedding ceremony and Lila moved to the farm. The couple had two kids who helped on the farm. They didn't have much money, but they were happy together. Lila almost didn't come, but Rhonda insisted and even paid for her trip. Lila's family stayed behind to work on the farm.

Nadine continued to work in Fuzzy Slippers' network. While working, she developed a partnership with a wounded soldier that eventually led to marriage. They had one child together, and they went to visit family in Liverpool.

The group cheered for being back together and making this important trip. Dinner came and went as they went back to the house to get ready for bed. It was a restless night for all of the adults and teenagers as they anticipated with anxiousness their journey the next day.

When they woke up, they had a light breakfast since most were unable to eat because of their nerves. They quietly went to the train station and boarded the hour long train ride to Oswiecim. Very few words were exchanged among the group, with the few words being directed towards the children. They left the train and boarded a bus that took them to their final destination.

Once they arrived, they got off and walked along the familiar railroad tracks. At the end was the Gate of Hell, or the entrance of Auschwitz-Birkenau. They entered past the gate and saw the unloading dock. The former prisoners and Helga could still visualize families being separated from one another as SS shouted at them to go either right or left. One way led to work, while the other led to death.

They walked through the camp, discussing different parts. Harold and Eugene found their old barrack, and showed everyone the inside. Wooden bunk beds lined the walls. "Hundreds of men would be packed in here," Harold said. "At some points, we would be sleeping on top of one another. It was a breeding ground for diseases."

They walked near the end of the camp. They came across a large field. Multiple brick rectangles filled the field. "Canada," Patty whispered, moving towards the edge of one of the brick perimeters. "I used to work here. When new prisoners arrived, we would sort out the luggage into piles. One building actually stored hair from the prisoners. A lot of the stuff would be shipped out for other uses."

Lila looked down at the map. "It says here they have exhibits of the belongings over in Auschwitz I. We should go over there after here."

"I want to go over there," Sid announced, looking distraught. "I need to see where my father was killed."

"We'll get there," Arnold assured.

They soon found a distant group of barracks. Dominik and Karol hesitated to move forward.

"What is it?" Phoebe asked her sons.

"This is it," Karol replied, shivering.

"This is where we stayed, along with hundreds of other twins," Dominik added.

"Oh dear," Phoebe sighed. She and Gerald went into the barrack, followed by the rest of the group. It looked similar to the other barrack they viewed, but it had a different temperament than the one before. The fact that children were held and died here made everyone uneasy. The twins showed their parents where they slept, and Phoebe burst into tears. Gerald comforted her as everyone left to give them some space.

When Phoebe was consoled, the group continued walking to find another field with a pile of rubble. A plaque was erected, with the words "Bunker 2- Little Red House" at the top. Helga could immediately hear the screams once again. The shouts of people being poisoned to death that slowly dissolved to silence. Helga fell to her knees and covered her face, crying into her hands. Abby looked to her father, confused at her mother's cries. Arnold bent down and whispered to Abby the importance of the rubble. Abby ran to her mother and wrapped her small arms around her mother.

"It's okay, Mama," Abby cooed. "They're in heaven now. They're not hurt now."

Helga sniffled and looked at her child. She hugged Abby close. "That's right, baby. They're not hurting." Helga composed herself and rejoined the group. Multiple hugs were given to her and the former prisoners. As they left Birkenau, Curly saw a familiar sight.

"Helga," Curly began as he pointed to a corner of a brick building. "Look familiar?" Helga looked to where he was pointing and chuckled softly.

"How can I forget?" she laughed. "I shoved Brainy into that corner when he refused to give Eugene to me. That was after the punch."

"Is that how he got the scar?" Gerald asked.

"You bet!" Curly hooted. "Boy, was that a sight!"

"Mama hit someone?" the little innocent blonde asked.

Helga blushed. "I did," she confessed, "but it was because that man was going to hurt Uncle Eugene, and I wasn't going to let that happen."

"Then how come I got into trouble for shoving Lars into a trash can?" Abby inquired, crossing her arms and pouting.

"Looks like someone got her mother's spunk," Stinky joked.

"Shut up, Stinky."

They decided to walk the three kilometers to Auschwitz I. This was the first time any of them had visited the camp that started it all, and none knew what to expect. Upon arrival, they came to a metal gate. Overhead were the German words "Arbeit Macht Frei," or "Work Shall Make You Free."

"Talk about irony," Rhonda muttered under her breath as they passed under the metal archway.

They decided to go to Block 11 first. Sid slowed his pace, afraid to see the execution block where his father was shot. As they turned a corner, a black wall stared back at them. On the ground were candles and flowers. Sid shuffled towards the wall while the others held back. Sid leaned his head against the wall and closed his eyes. He raised his arm to his head and began banging on the wall. Over and over he hit it, screaming at the top of his lungs. The screaming soon died down, and the banging softened into taps. Sid took a deep breath and turned to face the group. His face was stone cold and his hand was bloodied, but he didn't care. "Let's move on," Sid spoke softly.

The next stop was the gas chamber and crematorium. They stood around the darken room that was used for their murderous plot. Even though it was dead silent in the room, they could have sworn they heard a soft scream echo across the walls. They gathered around one of the furnaces that were used to burn the bodies. They all joined hands and offered prayers to those who have died there.

It was near the end of the trip, and everyone was emotionally exhausted. The final part was seeing the exhibits of belongings. Some of the former barracks were renovated to store the haunting memorabilia. They passed by displays of luggage and artificial limbs. One display case held human hair from the victims. The last display caused Helga to stop in her tracks. Behind the glass were shoes. Tens of thousands of shoes. According to the placard, 43,000 pairs of shoes were recovered by the Soviets. Helga could barely catch her breath at the sight. Everyone else could barely move from the unexplainable spectacle that stood before them.

Somehow, the rest of the group regained mobility, and mechanically left the block. Helga stayed behind for a moment. She looked down into her satchel and pulled out the small pair of shoes that have followed her around all these years. Giving them one final squeeze, she gently placed them in front of the display. With a final breath, she slowly left the barrack, leaving the little shoes behind.

A/N: And it's over. I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. While I am sad to be done with this story, I am excited to work on my second project, Iceberg, Right Ahead! I will be revising the first chapter and will post it along the second one.

Q&A Session

One thing I'm a little confused about, maybe I missed something when it happened, but how did Helga cause his scar when she punched him? Did she knock him into something?

I totally forgot to mention how Brainy got his scar, so I tried to incorporate it here.

Do you think there are similarities between the path to WWII and today (Islamic fundamentalism fascism, appeasement, land grabs, economic depression, government intimidation, etc.)?

Awesome question! I can definitely see some similarities between events leading to WWII and today, especially what is happening in the Middle East. With Islamic terrorist groups, they target everyone who doesn't believe what they believe and show no mercy. I also see them targeting Jews as well, particularly those who live in France.

So Phoebe is going to Japan when they killed innocent people as well when they bombed Pearl Harbor?

The main reason Phoebe went back to Japan was to mourn for her family that was killed by the atomic bomb. She doesn't prefer Japan to America, but her anger for the States was correlated with them killing her family. I hope I cleared it up in the story.