1CHAPTER 7

DG awoke the next morning to an empty bed. She reached over and didn't feel her sister, nor did she feel any warmth from the spot. She looked over at the clock, it was after 10. She lay there for a second, willing herself to get up. After the night she had last night all she really wanted to do was curl up underneath the blankets all day and wallow. However, she had too much to do. She pushed the covers off of her. She yawned and sat up, rubbing her face. She sat there a second and listened. She could hear noises and voices from down below. She pulled herself out of the bed and then grabbed a sweater from her chair as she walked towards the stairs. The stairs lightly creaked as she climbed downwards into the lower level of the house, near the kitchen.

"Why didn't you wake me?" DG asked as she stood in the door way. Everyone stopped mid-conversation and looked up at her.

"Cain thought it best to let you sleep in for a while." Glitch said. He pushed his chair out and stood, pulling out the chair next to him for DG. "Come and sit." He motioned to the chair. DG nodded and walked over, sitting quietly into the seat. She looked around the table, everyone all up and dressed. Bowls and plates filled the flat surface.

"Thanks," she said turning to Cain. Cain nodded and passed a plate to her. She filled the plate with eggs and bacon and tried to take a few bites.

"So what happened on your date last night?" Glitch asked innocently. Az dropped her fork on her plate and looked over at DG. DG continued to chew her eggs. She looked over at Glitch, trying to come up with something to say to him.

"It went great," She lied. His face was full of so much hope. She didn't want to be the cause of his unhappiness. He smiled and ate a bite of eggs.

"When will we see him again? I kind of wanted to talk to someone other than you about what it's like living here." He admitted.

"I don't think we'll see much more of him." DG sighed. She broke off a tiny piece of bacon and chewed it slowly. She watched Glitch frown.

"Oh. Well that's a shame. However, he didn't seem to make you happy like we thought you would be. Well not as happy as you are with Cain, that's for sure." Glitch nodded and looked down at his plate, quickly scooping up his eggs to his mouth. DG looked over at AZ, with a frown. Az reached over and patted her sister's hand in reassureance. Cain looked away and out the window.

"So how are we going to get home," he said, turning back to the table. DG looked at him and shrugged.

"I haven't given it much thought really. It's been a few days. Mother and father will have searched half the kingdom by now. I'm sure within the next few days they'll hopefully figure out we're here. We really can't do much until then. I don't know how the traveling storm was created." Her eyes looked up into his. He nodded and sat back in his chair.

"Well I think we should make use out of what little time we have left here," Glitch said. He looked around the table, hoping he wasn't alone. DG sighed and pushed her plate forward.

"I have work to get ready for." She stood and leaned over to hug Glitch. "Of course we'll make use of the time we have." She gave him a tight squeeze and then left the room. Glitch turned towards the group after she'd left.

"I do think something is wrong, but I can't put my finger on it." He looked over at Azkedillia. "Has she said anything to you?" Az only shook her head. Cain and Raw also shook their heads. "Hmm," he thought. "Maybe she's just tired." He shrugged and reached in for more eggs.

An hour later DG stood at her bike when she heard someone approach her. She looked down at her feet and saw his feet as well.

"So I guess you're coming with me today," DG said turning to Cain. Cain simply nodded. DG grabbed her helmet and gestured towards the bike. "Well let's go." she muttered.

By the middle of her shift she was ready to leave. Her feet were tired, her back ached. Grabbing the order from the window, she turned just in time to see Marty walk in. Marty was one of her special customers. She wondered how long it would take before word got around that she was back. Marty was one of the touchy customers, the kind that knew no boundaries and always got what he grasped. However, a friend of the owners, DG had to put up with his crap. Cain sat hidden in the back of the diner, hand near gun. DG frowned, this could get ugly.

She walked out onto the floor carrying the dishes to table nine. she could hear him whistle behind her and she was almost certain she could smell alcohol on his breath. DG paused for a second then turned around, a fake smile plastered on her face.

"Marty," she said walking back up to the counter.

"Well if it isn't our little DG, back from her whirl wind trip to find her real family." He cackled and smacked the counter. She shook her head. If he only knew. "Why don't you come over here and give your old friend Marty a kiss." He tapped his cheek. DG swallowed and shook her head.

"I'm really busy Marty, maybe I'll take a rain check." She pulled out her order book from her apron and looked over at the man. "What can I get for you? Coffee, pie, a bath?" She muttered. Marty cackled and smacked her on the ass. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Cain stand up. "You got spunky on your little trip around the world." DG took a deep breath and tried to smile.

"No really Marty, what can I get you. I'm really busy and I have other customers to handle." She sighed and flipped the book open. He pulled her over into his lap, a sneer crossing his lips.

"I think you better let her go." Cain said from behind. Marty laughed. DG closed her eyes and wished this would be all over.

"I think you better find another place to be a hero, boy." Marty

"No really, I think you should let her go. I've had a very long day and the fact that you are making it ten times longer really gets my pissed." Marty spun around, pushing DG from his lap.

"Listen I don't know who you think I am." Marty stood up, stumbling to stand straight. Cain still had him by a foot, and DG really wish he'd back off. Cain looked down at the man. "I practically own this town and if I want to mess around with sweet things like Miss DG here then I think I can." To prove his point he reached around and grabbed her ass. DG yelped and slapped his hand away. Cain's jaw tightened and he reached in his jacket. "So what are you going to do?" Marty slurred.

Cain pulled back and threw a punch at the man. DG watched as Marty stumbled back onto the counter, knocking over glasses and bottles. Cain looked over at her, expecting a look of happiness that he helped, but all he saw was horror. Marty staggered forward and lunged for Cain, but Cain punched him again, sending him crashing into a table. Marty stood up and came towards Cain again, this time managing to punch Cain on the shoulder. Cain punched the man in the stomach, leaving Marty gasping for air on the floor.

He remembered fights like this shortly after Azkedillia, came into power. He'd visit seedy bars and fight men who used to be once honorable. He watched as those men leered and drooled over helpless girls. However, this wasn't the O.Z and DG wasn't some helpless girl. However, here he was, fighting a disgusting man who had his paws all over his girl. This hardly seemed like a fair fight as the man went down on three punches.

DG watched as chaos erupted in the diner, bottles breaking, guests cheering, punches being thrown. She wanted this to stop immediately. Risking getting hit by a punch, she moved in and grabbed Cain by his arm, pulling him out of the restaurant.

"What in the hell do you think you are doing?" DG yelled at Cain when they reached the parking lot. DG could hear customers coming outside, curious about what had occurred.. "You don't just go and beat up a man in a public restaurant. Damn it Cain." Normally Cain would back down, let DG get her anger out and then cool off himself. However, now was not the time to be quiet.

"What am I doing? What are you doing? That man had his hands all over you and you let him. What was I supposed to do? Just let him?" DG could see Cain's face fill with concern. She couldn't cave though, not now. This was her world and he was over stepping so many boundaries.

"Cain, people don't do things like that. You can't just do that. Sure Marty is a shitty guy, but this is my job, you can't let a little thing like that piss you off. I've had to deal with him for years. You weren't around then to help me, so why do you think I need you now?" she yelled.

"Are you more upset that I embarrassed you or more upset that you can't have me?" Cain yelled back at her. Without thinking and without hesitation, DG pulled back her hand and slapped him across the face. It was such a soap opera thing to do, she thought afterwards. She should have done something more, like knee him. Still, she stood there, her hand stinging from the slap, her face full of rage. His face was bright red. He stood there looking down at her.

"Go home Cain." She calmly said. "Take my bike and go. I'll get a ride back from Carter." She sighed and looked away, her eyes on the verge of tears. She looked back at Cain, his face full of pain. She knew what she was doing was wrong, keeping him from doing his job. However, this was not the time or place to do it. They weren't back in the O.Z being chased by papays or running from longcoats. Cain took a step forward and DG took a step back. She crossed her arms, chilled by the cool air. "Just go." She pointed to her bike. She watched as Cain grudgingly walked over to her bike and drive away. She took a second to gain some composure, then she walked back into Hilltop Cafe to do damage control.

DG walked into the house feeling tired and lousy. She felt bad the entire shift and all she wanted to do was apologize to Cain. She hated being mad at him and he was right. She was more angry at the fact that she couldn't be with him as opposed to the embarrassment.

"I brought home food," She said, setting a brown grocery bag on the table. Raw lunged for the bag out of nowhere, dispersing the contents on the counter. He picked up a package of hot dogs, sniffing them carefully. DG looked over at Glitch as he entered the kitchen. "Where is everyone?" she asked him. Glitch shrugged. Raw opened the package of hot dogs and took a bite out of one.

"Mmmm," he said. DG's face turned to disgust.

"Ugh, Raw, those have to be cooked." She took the hot dogs from him. She reached up in the cabinet for a plate. Placing them on the plate, she popped it in the microwave and set the time. Spinning around, she looked carefully at Glitch, realization kicking in.

"What do you mean? Where are they?" She stared Glitch down.

"Well I thought Cain was spending the day with you, but he came home in all a fuss. So he and Azkedillia went out." Glitch said piecing the puzzle together. He looked through the contents on the counter. "Oh cookies!" he exclaimed picking up the package. DG reached out and knocked the cookies down. Glitch frowned.

"Out?" she asked. Glitch nodded. DG searched her own brain. Though there were only a few places in the town they could be, DG still had no idea where they could be. For all she knew they could be in another town. What was she going to do? She rubbed her throbbing head and looked over at Raw and Glitch. The timer to the microwave beeped. She walked over and retreived the food from the microwave.

"Careful they are hot." She placed the plate on the counter. "There are buns in the bag, if you. . ." she stopped as she saw Raw grab one in each hand, gobbling them up. "need them." She couldn't help but smile at the two in front of her. Raw enjoyed his meal while Glitch ripped into the bag of cookies. She tapped her fingers on the counter and eyed the room around here.

"What are we going to do now?" Glitch asked, mouth full of cookies. DG looked over at him. She didn't want to leave without knowing whether or not Cain and Az were safe. So we went over and grabbed a broom and mop from the pantry.

"We're going to clean." She nodded. Glitch frowned. He'd never had to clean before. "Trust me, it'll be fun."

Later that night DG folded the last load of laundry and stuck the pile back in the basket. She sat back on the couch, feeling so tired. Other than cleaning the house, DG spent hours pacing back and forth in the hallway. She set her head back and closed her eyes when she heard the bike out front. She immediately sprung from the couch and bolted to the door, leaping over piles of laundry. She threw the door open and watched as Cain helped Az off the bike. Glitch walked up beside DG and watched with her. Cain and Az swayed up the yard towards the porch, tripping and slurring with each step. DG gasped.

"They're drunk! I'm the one in need of a stiff drink and they are the ones drunk!" She stood on the porch, both hands on her hips. She glared down at her sister and Cain. The two laughed and screamed as they reached the porch. DG rolled her eyes.

"My wonderful sister DEEG!" Az called out. "How are yoooooooou," DG reached out for her sister, seconds before she nearly tripped on the first stair. Holding her in her arms, the two watched as Cain missed the first step entirely and fell on his face. Az brust out laughing and pointed at the fallen man. DG sighed and handed her sister off to Glitch.

"Go get her inside and up to my room. I'll be up in a second to help you." Glitch nodded and threw Az's arm around his shoulder, pulling her to the house. DG listened as Glitch walked her into the house

"You're a funny looking man," Az said. DG cringed.

"Leave the zipper alone!" Glitch yelled. She turned and watched Raw come out on the porch. He and DG looked down at Cain as he tried to pull himself up. DG frowned and bent down to help him, Raw getting the other side of him.

"You smell like lemons," Cain said, sniffing the air as DG and Raw pulled him into the house.

"And you smell like ass." DG muttered. She looked over at Raw. "We'll put him in your's and Glitch's room for the night, then we'll go from there." Raw nodded and dragged the man into his room. They put him on the bed as best they could, considering how much dead weight he had. DG sighed and shook her head at the sight before her. Cain, sprawled out in the middle of the bed, a black eye on one eye and a busted lip. DG turned to Raw.

"Raw sees much pain in DG. Heartbreak and pain."

"Cain loves DG very much. Cain wishes he could be with her forever." They turned to the bed, where Cain muttered in his sleep. DG turned to Raw, her head cocked to the side, her eyes filled with confusion. Did she really just hear that right? She stood there for a second and listened for any other confessions. He lay there silent, passed out for the night. She reached over in the closet and found a pair of pajama pants that Henry wore. She passed them over to Raw.

"Would you mind getting him out of those clothes? I feel like I would overstep some line if I did." She looked over at Raw, her eyes pleading for him to help. Raw nodded.

"Will do for DG. Cain good man. He would do same for me." DG nodded and reached over to hug him. Raw returned the hug and lightly tapped her back. Without meaning to, he was able to see everything that had happened to DG since they had arrived. When DG pulled away and turned to leave, Raw stopped her. DG looked into his face and she knew what he had seen.

"You will find truth." He looked into her eyes. "DG find happiness." DG attempted a smile and then turned to leave the room, heading towards her bedroom. She ran up the stairs and saw Glitch sprawled out on the floor, his zipper half undone.

"You're sister is quite a strong woman." He said, gasping for air. DG bent down and helped him to his feet. She pointed to his head and he quickly zipped himself up. "I forgot what she was capable of, and this is without the ugly hag inside her."

"Why don't you go down and help Raw with Cain. I'll be down shortly." She watched as Glitch nodded his head and then walked toward the steps. DG turned her attention to here sister. Az was laying diagonally across the bed, an arm and leg dangling off the side of the bed. DG walked over and began taking off her sister's dirty clothes. She grabbed a night shirt off the chair and slipped it over her sister's head.

"What were you thinking?" She asked her sister allowed, not really expecting an answer. She threw a blanket over her sister and backed away, letting her get some rest.

"Well, Az has completely taken over my bed." DG said coming down the stairs. "I guess I'm crashing with you-" She stopped in the living room and smiled. Glitch was curled up at one in end of the couch, blanket throw haphazardly over him. Raw lay on the floor, his head propped up with a stack of folded towels. She walked over and threw an extra blanket over him Both of them lightly snored as they slept. It had been a long day for both of them..

"What a mess," she whispered as she sat at the empty end of the couch. She pulled a blanket out of the basket of clean clothes and wrapped it around herself. Within a few minutes she too closed her eyes to sleep and the house became silent, except for the light breathing for 5 tired adventurers.