(two)

Episode 17

"Momma!" Fin gasped with a start and immediately felt a cool hand on his brow.

"I'm here baby." Angel's voice soothed. "You don't seem as feverish this morning. Are you feeling better?"

Fin nodded drinking in the sight of her. The first flush of dawn leaked through the window caressing her golden curls. Her hazel eyes so like his own…her hands strong yet delicate. She was like a girl only more so. She was a mother…His mother. Mick could argue about specifics and likely would want to; but in the end, the truth was, they shared each other's lives more completely then even brothers could.

Fin's mind whirred like a top trying to come up with any subject he could think of to prologue the time he and Angel spent together but they were literally from different worlds it was hard to come up with a topic he thought would interest her. "Do you have to work today?" Fin asked finally remembering the big folk were always concerned with 'WORK'

Mick's memories informed him mother was a 'real-estate broker' but not much beyond that. Fin assumed it must be some sort of position involving counseling or healing. Having spent time with Mick's father…Angel must be an expert at determining when someone was in a real state and have adequate skills to ensure they weren't broken beyond mending. She'd mended HIM often enough.

"I don't have any clients till this afternoon, why?" She smoothed his sleep mussed hair tenderly.

"Maybe we can go into town?" Fin suggested hopefully.

"You wouldn't be embarrassed to be seen in public with your mother?" She teased gently.

Fin pushed himself into a sitting position and exclaimed, "NEVER!" No contrary memories surfaced to indicate Mick felt differently.

"Good." She smiled. "I'll let you get ready and meet you downstairs…I'm glad you're feeling better."

"Me too." He mumbled as she left him. Fin stretched and looked around Mick's bedroom. Most of the cowboy decorations of childhood had been put away. Toys had been largely replaced by posters of far away places and motorcycle models. Fin touched the tiny replica that set on Mick's bed side table…'Harley' the other boy's memories informed him. Fin thought it was a good sign that the rich boy still gave names to his favorite toys. Though "Zo Zo" the one-eyed rabbit was nowhere in evidence.

By the window was a large salt water aquarium. Fin slid off the bed to examine that more closely. Two majestic angel fish swam like mirror images of one another past delicate finger-like corral. A shy sea horse peeked out at him from behind a rock formation similar in all but size to bone, he and his lads had just installed in the warehouse. A new sea horse sat alone in a temporary tank waiting to be introduced to the rest. It bore a hastily scribbled note that read "Hope you are feeling better soon –Dustin"

"Who would give Mick a present?" Fin wracked the fragmented shards of memory attached to the name. Mr. Nguyen owns the dojo where Mick takes lessons twice a week and his son Dustin works in the 'wild things' pet shop. Fin almost laughed out loud as the pieces slid into place. "Savage of course!" the note made sense now. He rifled through dresser drawers till he found what he was looking for; the perfect 'thank you gift' a fossil shark tooth on a silver chain.

-o-o-O-o-o-

The storm broke sometime during the night and when dawn came it revealed a hazy day. It seemed the land had finally won free of the oppressive clouds that loomed ominously over it since the day the light house had tumbled into the sea. Finger's other worldly doppelganger woke to find himself in down-world. If Mick hadn't known better he would have marked this up as yet another fever dream. He hadn't been feeling at all well this past week. As things stood, he was somewhat familiar with Fin's world and recognized it immediately. He sent most of the monitors back to headquarters to resume their regular duties but one seemed to sense something was different and insisted accompanying his captain back to the tower and Mick couldn't very well refuse without increasing his suspicions.

The wild boy gazed at him curiously from beneath long dark bangs. It was difficult to look past the boy's unkempt appearance and dirt smudged face to recognize his friend Dusty-N. Mick knew his friend sometimes chafed under his father's strict adherence to ritual and tradition but the rich boy was still surprised to see someone he knew rather well reflected in this light. Of course, Dusty also spent most of his time at work cleaning cages, which might also go far to explain his counterpart's obviously savage nature. Mick watched the other boy, tense, alert…almost sniffing the air for some unseen danger. The wild boy looked to his captain for any sign that he had felt the tremor as well but it seemed he had not.

Mick was not attuned to this world as fin was, at any rate, he was too lost in his thoughts, regarding Savage. How Fin inspired such innate trust in people always surprised Mick. Most of HIS friends were social climbers, always looking for an advantage.

It wasn't far to the tower motor pool. A Collector squad was waiting to take the cart they used out again. Mick may be a rich boy from another world but the concept of tax collectors was hardly alien to him. Even in this bizarre-o-world taxes were necessary to keep the government effective and functional. Even if they used candy and toys in place of money the concept was the same. Brad worked to distribute wealth more evenly so kids in small clubs went without while the popular clubs had excess…Apparently, Macro's machinations were more burdensome. Mick could sense the irritation Fin felt regarding the rash of new toy taxes the macho-supreme-o insisted the monitors enforce.

Mick felt safe exchanging greetings with the four guards who took possession of the cart he and Savage had arrived in. But he mostly ignored the blue suited tax collectors the guards had been assigned to assist.

Fin's memories chastised him mildly. It wasn't right to judge a kid simply because you didn't like the role the bureaucracy placed them in. That kind of narrow thinking often caused people to think the worst of Fin and his monitors…Mick tried to see the collectors as normal kids with a job to do but it was difficult. These two seemed so entirely self absorbed and annoyingly officious it set his teeth on edge. It was all he could do to wish them 'Safe journey' and even that was more for the monitors sake.

A feminine squeal caught Mick's attention. He ducked outside the motorpool to find Fin's foundling circling a bevy of girls the way a boarder collie minds his flock. "Savage!" he said sharply, the name readily available as he called the wild boy to heal. The dark haired boy left the girls reluctantly and loped back to his captain's side.

Mick frowned. "What was that all a bout?"

Savage's face split into a sharp toothed smile and his green eyes gleamed. "I suppose Mary is little lamb…But Virginia—She likes a wolf."

The rich boy's didn't quite know how to respond to that. His mind spun back to child hood rhymes and he half wondered if the boy would begin going about using 'huff-puff' as an expletive. One could never know how such observations would be taken in this world so he wisely held his tongue and promised himself as soon as he was safely inside the tower he's use the first mirror he could find to return to his proper place.

Savage frowned and looked a bit disappointed by his silence. Mick dug his hands into his pockets and pulled out a strip of leather with two silver beads strung on it. "Here" Mick said offering it to his companion. Savage held out his wrist and Mick dutifully tied it on. The boy brightened immediately his enthusiasm was contagious. Mick even found himself skipping playfully beside him. Underworld is 'a kingdom of reckless abandon.' What harm could it do if he indulged on occasion? No one that mattered would even know.