Chapter 17, whooooo! Review, I command it!

Riki walked in the door, both his and Kaeri's kids in tow. Kaeri came out from the kitchen and smiled. "Hey, you guys! How was the speech? Did you leanr anything?"

The mongrel laughed and said, "I didn't pay much attention to the speech, but I have a surprised for you… actually, we have a guest tonight."

Kaeri frowned. "Really? Oh. Well tonight isn't really a good…" She was cut off as Iason stepped through the door. "HOLY JUPITER!" She yelled. Then the doctor shot forward to shake the Blondie's hand.

Iason lifted her hand to his lips and kissed, it, meeting her eyes as he did. Ever the charming man, he smiled and said, "You must be Kaeri. I'm supposed to thank you for taking my friend in."

The girl blushed. "Oh, don't… don't mention it. I just couldn't leave him and his children out in the cold. I'm kind like that. You know ever since I was a little kid I took in stray dogs and cats. I guess taking in stray people isn't much different. I also donate to several charitie-" Riki elbowed her in the ribs for babbling, and Kaeri shut up.

"Indeed…." Iason said, pulling his hand away but keeping up the charm. "Well if you'll excuse me, I was promised dinner but I cannot stay long. There is something of importance that Riki has to tell me."

"I'll go make dinner, you two can talk in the sitting room!" Kaeri said before rushing into the kitchen. Riki laughed softly.

"I'm sorry, she can be a bit overexcited at times." The mongrel apologized for her before leading Iason into the sitting room. They took spots on couches facing each other, a coffee table between them. The Blondie stared at Riki, and Riki stared back. Both were unsure of where to begin.

Finally the mongrel spoke. "So…. We used to know each other. It started about…" He had to think. "..eight or nine years ago. I was a mongrel in Ceres. You found me trying to steal something from a car…." He started his story, trying to explain as clearly as possible. When he reached the part about them becoming lovers and having a child, Iason cut him off.

"I wouldn't be so stupid as to have that sort of a relationship with a mongrel. I am a Blondie."

Riki held up a hand, effectively silencing Iason. "Just let me finish. We lost the child. You let me go back to Ceres…" It took him a moment to get to telling him about Guy. He was still ashamed of what his best friend did. But Iason stayed quiet and respectful.

"…And then Jupiter took me away from you. I was dumped on the outskirts of Ceres and someone thankfully called an ambulance. You were taken to the special elite hospital and your mind was erased. I had my sons Rion and Guy, and then here we are." As if they heard their names, the twins suddenly came running into the room.

"Daddydaddydaddy! We found a frog in the backyard and it jumped on me! It was big a slimy and gross a-" Riki clapped his hand over Guy's mouth and kept him quiet while Rion just laughed.

"Look at them." Riki said to Iason. "Rion has your blonde hair and your blue eyes. Guy has your pale skin and your features. They're your children, there's no doubt to it."

The Blondie, still silent, moved forward to kneel in front of the two boys. He grabbed Guy's chin and studied his face. He did see some sort of a resemblance… but it couldn't be. "I… I remember killing a mongrel name Guy. I don't know why I did it, but I was doing justice of some sort."

Riki paled. "W-what? You killed Guy? Wait, this could just be a mistake. Describe him."

"Long brown hair, brown eyes, tall and quite strong."

"He was the one that raped me." Riki said quietly. "You were so angry about it, and you always avoided the subject when I brought Guy up or mused about how he was."

Iason stood and put a hand over his eyes. "I'm sorry… I can't believe this. This is entirely too…. Unbelieveable."

Riki stood as well. "Iason, please. We… you…. we were in love! Think about it! What possible reason would Jupiter have to erase your memories? Four years, we were together for four years!"

"My apologies, but I don't believe I can stay for dinner. There should be no reason to contact me, but if you might need to get in touch then you can talk to a secretary in my offices to set up an appointment. DARYL?" The furniture came in from outside where he was playing chase with Kaeri's son. "We're going home."

The furniture was sad, but he didn't show it. He felt bad for Riki and new that this was hard on him. Kaeri was a bit confused when the Blondie left the house before dinner, but she walked into the sitting room to find Riki with his head in his hands, crying. Rion and Guy were pulling on his shirt, asking what was wrong.

"Hey, you little munchkins, leave your momma alone, we need to talk for a while. Go play in the backyard, okay?" The boys took off at Kaeri's instructions, and the woman immediately hugged the mongrel tightly. Riki buried his face in her shoulder and bawled.

Iason and Daryl reached the apartment, neither saying a word. When the penthouse door opened, the furniture was ready to scurry off to the kitchen to prepare a meal. But Iason stopped him. "Daryl. I want you to tell me the truth. Did you hear anything that Riki and I talked about?"

The furniture shook his head. "No, Sir Mink."

"Then I want to tell you exactly what you know about him. How does he know me?"

Daryl gulped. "Umm... Sir… well, he was your pet for a few years…. And then I suppose you were pairing partners because he became pregnant with your child."

Iason paled. So it must be true. Daryl would have no reason to lie to him. "That is all. I don't need any dinner tonight. Just a glass of wine." The furniture rushed to fulfill the request while Iason walked to his bedroom. When the door opened he looked around. Then in his mind he saw Riki sitting on the bed, his hand on an obviously pregnant stomach. But it was just a flash.

The Blondie shook his head. He was getting another one of his headaches.

Sorry it's so short! Please don't hurt me! cringe