Well, this is the last chapter of Arc 2. Be on the lookout for Arc 3 next Wednesday.

The quote at the end of the chapter is one I became familiar with through the musical piece "Where There Is Light In The Soul" for women's voices by Elizabeth Alexander. I highly recommend you look it up on YouTube. It's a lovely setting of some lovely words.

See you next week for the adventure to continue in some new and exciting directions. Some of you have made guesses. I can't wait to see what you think of all that is to come.

Enjoy!


Simon was packing up his bag, grateful that Friday had come at last. It had been a brutal week with no end to the reports and explanations needed for the Stratton case. Even without giant Sentinel-Guide-energy-manifestations-of-who-only-knew-what up in the mountains, there were still plenty of difficult things to have to rationalize. At least in that Simon had had an ally – Blair Sandburg. The "consultant" to the department had flexed his new DHS muscle with superb talent, easing the way any time Simon found himself hard-pressed to come up with a plausible answer to the unanswerable. How had Jim and Blair located their bomb? Clearly the Quests had done something with satellites and that information was classified. How had the fire in the northeast been put out before any of the local fire crews had arrived? Agent Fritz was prepared to swear that he had mobilized "other resources."

Simon glanced out into the bullpen. Blair wasn't there – he'd also had to handle catching up with his classes at Rainier and providing a plausible excuse on that side as well. But again, the SELF excuse was still holding water. In the one interview allowed by Agent Fritz, the local news had painted an oddly positive picture of the whole situation, somehow insinuating simultaneously that there was more to SELF than anyone would admit, but also that its careful application of its "specializations" had been largely responsible for saving countless lives. Blair hadn't been named specifically; in fact, the press had been handled by Benton Quest directly. But that all served to reinforce the building consensus that Blair was ultimately on the side of the angels, and anything fishy that had been in the news previously clearly had been a mean-spirited attack based on partial or inaccurate information.

All in all, Simon considered, if I didn't know which way to look, I'd be dizzy with the spin being expertly employed all around the whole situation. Never thought I'd be so glad for those interfering Feds.

And he wasn't the only one. The entire department seemed to have turned on its heads when it came to Blair. Who could have known that five minutes of well-executed authority would change the timbre of the rumor-mill in Sandburg's favor? There were still more questions and speculations than answers, but now they were tinged with acceptance. If Sandburg couldn't talk openly about his work, well, that was all right then. He was being viewed more like a brother in blue than an outsider now. Identifying a potential terrorist, mobilizing federal resources without federal interference, and disarming a bomb would do that for one's reputation.

Simon still didn't understand what exactly had gone on in those woods, though. Neither Ellison nor Sandburg would say more than they already had during the big debrief on the day in question at the lodge. When asked, Blair had obfuscated like a master, saying a whole lot of nothing, and Jim had feigned deafness. Simon understood that they couldn't exactly explain it, but he still wanted to know what had happened.

Maybe this weekend I'll figure it out, Simon thought. He'd been invited up to the lodge for some time to relax and also dig himself a little deeper into this other world into which he'd fallen. And if he was still slightly unnerved by the Sentinel-Guide stuff, he was not going to say no to a weekend with his friends in the most exclusive spot in the Pacific Northwest.

There was a knock on his door-frame. "Dad?"

Simon looked up in surprise. He'd thought Daryl had gone home an hour ago. "Come in, son."

Daryl shut the door behind him before standing across from the desk. There was something in his posture that was unfamiliar. It took Simon a moment to identify it – Daryl was standing at attention.

"What's on your mind?" he asked cautiously, sitting a little taller himself.

"I have to tell you something," Daryl said, only a hint of nervousness leaking through. "I…there's something I didn't tell you."

Simon raised an eyebrow and waited.

"I…well, I was accepted to Rainier University."

"You what!? When?"

"Last spring," Daryl answered. "Blair helped me apply last winter." At the astonishment in his father's face, he smiled. "Blair talked me into keeping my options open, and he promised to keep it a secret. But he also wrote me a letter of recommendation and read over my essay and everything. When I got the acceptance letter, he talked me into deferring for a term instead of forfeiting my spot."

There's another one I owe the kid, Simon thought. He cleared his throat. "So…why are you telling me this now?"

"Well, I was talking to Jim and…I think I want to enroll for the upcoming spring term."

Simon glanced out his window to where Ellison sat at his desk, ostensibly doing paperwork. He glanced up long enough to wink at his boss.

Simon turned back to Daryl and asked neutrally, to keep from rejoicing, "Oh, really?"

"Yeah," Daryl said, standing a little straighter. "I still want to go to the Academy someday, dad. I think I want to do this more than ever." He took a breath. "But I want to know more before I do. Jim and Blair thought I could get a criminal justice degree, maybe. And after watching Doctor Quest and Jessie and all of them, I kind of want to look into computer science, too. Rainier has a Digital Forensic Science program and Blair thought maybe Doctor Quest might teach me a little."

"I'm sure he would," Simon said.

Daryl took strength from his father's reaction and added, "And Blair said I should take one of his classes too – he'll be teaching an introduction to anthropology and he thought I might learn something in it that would help. He says I can do a criminal justice major and a computer science minor but I should also spread out and learn as much as I can about the world so I'm ready to handle whatever comes at me."

"He's right about that," Simon agreed. "There's so much out there that you can do and you'll get the chance to explore your options…"

"No," Daryl interrupted. "I want to be a cop, dad. I just want to be the best cop I can be."

"Why?" Simon asked. And he realized he should ask a different question if he didn't want to rehash all the same old ground. So he changed his focus. "Why is it so important to you to skip the Academy for now so you can be a cop later? What changed your mind?"

Daryl shifted his weight before he met his father's eyes with conviction. "I've been around dangerous stuff before, dad. You know that I've seen it up close what being a cop is like."

Simon winced thinking of the times his son's life had been at risk.

Daryl plowed on. "There's been a lot of times you got between me and something bad. Or Jim did. Or Blair. And you all, you stand between the bad thing waiting to happen and the good people it will happen to." He lifted his chin proudly. "When there were bombs up in the mountains, you guys ran towards them. Blair and Jim stood there with one counting down to one second. Because you all wanted to keep the fire from getting to anyone else."

Simon nodded.

"That's where I want to be, dad. I want to look out for people. I want to be the one who holds the fire back so nobody else has to go into a building like Jonny and Hadji and Ngama did. And I know now that there's ways to do it that aren't all about shooting people and car chases and stuff. Jessie and Doctor Quest saved a lot of people by looking stuff up. I want to do that. I want to help in any way I can."

He leaned forward with his hands on the desk, looking so like a younger and unjaded Jim Ellison that Simon wondered if he'd been taking lessons.

"Jessie said her dad protects Doctor Quest, but Doctor Quest protects people too. Like Blair does with whatever he's doing." He paused. "And I still don't know all of it, but I will figure it out," he vowed. "And when I do, I want to be able to help them. And this is how I can do that. I can go learn enough to be right there with them next time."

"Sounds like you've got your mind all made up," Simon commented.

"Yes, I do, dad." Daryl's assuredness faltered. "So…I know I don't need your permission, but…can you be okay with this? Can you, you know, get behind me on this?"

Simon owed his son an honest consideration. He still wasn't thrilled with the idea of his son in the line of fire or being a cop. But the path that Daryl wanted wasn't necessarily as bad as he'd thought. If Daryl was thinking about approaching what he wanted by emulating Doctor Quest, well, there wasn't much better in the way of a mentor out there for him. And Simon felt pretty sure Benton would be willing to let the kid into a few of his projects. Forensic computer science was a lot safer an option than walking a beat, and it would be easier on Daryl, too. And, then, of course, Daryl would have gotten a full college degree as well. God bless Sandburg, he thought gratefully.

When he looked up, it was with honest pride. "Yes, Daryl. I can definitely get behind this. I think working with Doctor Quest and going for that computer science stuff would be a real asset to protecting people." He gave his son a heartfelt smile. "I'm really proud of you."

Daryl grinned. "Thanks dad." He moved around the desk and grabbed his father in a hug before he could even get all the way out of his chair. "Thanks for believing in me."

"Not a problem," Simon said roughly, holding his son tight as he straightened up. "I will always believe in you, son. And I'll always be there for you."

Simon's eyes trailed over Daryl's head and out into the bullpen. Jim was watching them and when he caught Simon's eye, he nodded once firmly. And Simon understood Jim's unspoken promise to look out for him, to keep an eye on wherever Daryl might go, and that Benton would probably be watching closely, too. That the whole of SELF would throw their support behind Daryl just as Simon had given it to Jim and Blair all along. That they were a tribe and a tribe takes care of its own.

-==OOO==-

The group gathered at the lodge had just finished dinner when Benton's phone beeped. He jumped up and strode into the greatroom from the dining hall, calling, "Race? Jim? Blair? It's Ivan."

Simon, Jessie, Hadji, and Jonny exchanged ruefully amused glances. Apparently that meant they were stuck with cleanup. After they'd dropped Ngama at the airport to meet his father in Maui before heading home, they'd cleared out any remaining DHS agents from the lodge itself, though not the guards on the outer perimeter, because they'd wanted some real privacy for a while. So there was no one else around on whom to foist the dishes and leftovers.

"On the plus side," Jonny said cheerfully, "the big pressure washer looks fun to use!"

"Heaven preserve us," Simon implored.

Out in the greatroom, Benton plugged his phone into the massive big-screen TV, turning it into a full two-way communication device with only a few setting adjustments. In moments, the faces of Ivanna, Dmitri, and Dominik met them.

"Good morning," Benton said politely. "It's rather early where you are."

"It is very early where we are," Dominik nodded with a smile. "But as our decision was made last night, we did not wish to wait to inform you."

All four Americans held their breaths. They had left their Russian friends with the understanding that any and all options were open and they should be in contact when they knew what they wanted. Privately, Benton and Jim and Blair and Race were all hoping at least a few of the Fokino Sentinels would be willing to come to Cascade. Besides beginning in what they had formed SELF to do, they wanted to be able to permanently dismiss the DHS agents at the lodge location and replace them with the people they wanted to own it completely.

Dominik spoke. "Colonel Barkov has been commissioned to take a very old, almost defunct Soviet ship and use it to attempt to employ some 'new' techniques for those Sentinels who are of the proper age and usefulness to utilize it. He will be taking a complement of 70 into the Pacific for the exercise. Sentinels and associated civilians as the only crew, all on a volunteer basis. Without pay, of course. The General who oversees Sentinel postings was fairly open to the mission after that caveat was confirmed."

Dmitri grimaced. "To be frank, we are not expected to survive. Many of those who will be joining the crew are those Sentinels whose senses problems make them almost beyond help. They have already contributed genetic materials, so their only possible future would be as part of a negotiation, and for some reason," he feigned confusion, "our government has paused in their dealings of Sentinel exchanges."

"So your country gets to off-load a large number of Sentinels without arousing any suspicions on the parts of your enemies or allies, for just the cost of the derelict ship they're sending you on?" Race asked.

Dmitri nodded. "And if we do happen to come upon a way to restore ourselves, of course, we would be welcomed back."

"Does this mean you're coming here?" Blair asked eagerly.

"Yes," Ivanna said. "Dominik will remain here and we will maintain contact with him, not only to pass what we learn onto others, but to aid us in resuming our own posts for those who choose to return to them." She tipped her head. "It is possible we will fall in love with your Cascade, gentlemen, but already we love our homeland. We wish always to have a way to return to the people we have protected for so long."

"I understand," Jim nodded sincerely.

"But we have one remaining condition," she continued. With a glance to Dominik and Dmitri, Ivan faced the four men unflinchingly. "Doctor Quest, while we appreciate all you have done and will do for us, we will not be your little army."

"I never suggested that!" he protested.

"No, you did not," she nodded, "but others may see it that way. Accordingly, as with our own traditions, we will establish a Council to lead and govern us. You may be a member of it, but you will not solely determine our future. Your SELF organization may belong to yourself and to Professor Guide Blair, but it is not synonymous with our people, not yet. Perhaps one day."

"I completely support this idea," Benton said genuinely. "I think it's the best way to ensure you all have the option to choose your own destiny. SELF should be aligned to what you want, not the other way around."

"Who will be on the Council?" Race asked.

"Dmitri and myself, Doctor Quest, plus perhaps one or two others who will be joining us on the ship," Ivan answered. "And we want you as well, Sentinel Ellison. And Blair, of course."

Dmitri looked straight to Jim. "You will be the leader of the Council, though we all will vote and discuss. That is your right."

"As is ours," Ivan nodded to Blair, "to choose not to be ruled by you."

"What, a Guide not listening to his Sentinel?" Jim said wryly, slinging an arm around Blair's neck. "Totally unheard of."

In the background, Jonny's bright laugh echoed in the kitchen.

"Is there anything else you would like to arrange?" Benton asked.

"Not at this time," Ivan said with a serene smile. "We have several months to plan our excursion in addition to close to three weeks on the sea to come up with ideas, however."

"I welcome them all," Benton said sincerely. The three Sentinels nodded at all the signs that he was telling the truth.

"Then we shall talk some more soon," Ivan said. Her eyes fell on Jim and Blair. "Guard our territory well, Sentinel. Lead its people with wisdom, Guide."

Jim didn't know he was going to answer until he did. "The watch is mine until you come to share it, Tribe Mother and Brother Sentinel."

Blair grinned brightly even as his own response came to him. "The ancient ways will be preserved in honor until we meet again to seek new wisdom together."

The Russians ended the call.

Jim looked wonderingly at Blair who shrugged. "Mysterious times, man," was all he said.

Then came a loud crash from the kitchen area. Jim was already running, Race on his heels and Benton just behind him. Blair didn't need to be a Sentinel to hear Jonny loudly proclaiming at the top of his lungs that it "wasn't his fault" and "nothing big got broken anyway" over Jessie cackling like mad. Hadji appeared a moment later, one whole sleeve dripping wet and visibly fighting not to laugh.

"A dog that walks around will find a stick," he recited solemnly even as his face split into a grin. "And Jonny left to himself will find trouble in the most unexpected ways."

"Nobody's hurt, though, right?" Blair asked just in case.

"Oh no," Hadji shook his head. "Although Captain Banks will need to change his shirt. As do I." He nodded politely before heading up the stairs. A moment later, Simon emerged grumbling to himself and with a chest covered in lime green suds. He, too, headed upstairs, stomping with irritation.

"It's not really his color, is it, Chief?" Jim asked, sidling up to Blair with a grin.

"Oh, I don't know. I think the whole electric-shamrock-exploded look could really take off!" he said gleefully.

"I can still hear you!" Simon roared, leaning over the railing. A huge dollop of suds fell and splashed on the floor a story below.

Blair and Jim exchanged glances and then started to laugh. They laughed long enough for Jonny and Jessie to make it out of the kitchen with their respective fathers. Jessie was still giggling, and the absolutely murderous look on Jonny's face set them off again.

However, even as they laughed, Blair noticed Jonny tracking Hadji with his senses, his head tipped as he listened to his Guide move about upstairs. And when Blair finally roused himself enough to go grab a rag to clean up Simon's last green plop, he knew even from the other room that Jim was listening to him, too.

A whole life of wandering and teaching and talking and sharing, and it turns out all I wanted was to be heard by one person – the right one person, he thought to himself.

It must have looked so unfair from the outside, Blair considered. Sure, his Sentinel was the big strong one, swooping in like an old-time hero to kick butt and save the day. This was a man who had given him a home when he had none, loaned him money when he was strapped for cash, supported him up against an entire world willing to ridicule him. For a man who was not considered to be particularly soft, that looked like a lot of unearned generosity. It had even bothered Blair for a while – before he knew any better.

But then Blair had seen through Jim's eyes for a time, had connected with him in that endless profundity that defied explanation. And what he knew now changed his understanding. From Blair's perspective, Jim had given him everything – home, a purpose, his holy grail, a best friend, security – but Jim's view was the opposite. From Jim's perspective, Blair had brought immeasurable things to his life, too. And not just the control over the senses, or even the incalculable relief of knowing he wasn't, in fact, going insane. No, Blair had given Jim some of the first honest kindness and the first unconditional admiration and enthusiasm and affection of his life. Blair had dashed into Jim's life with all his color and joy and openness and undying curiosity and he had lit it up like Technicolor. As far as Jim was concerned, giving him a place to live and backing him up when he needed it was the very least he could do to repay the fact that his life now contained someone who was constant, someone whose first response was neither fear nor defensiveness, but trust and hope and loyalty. Jim might have given Blair everything he needed for his life, but Blair had given Jim everything he needed to keep living.

What they contributed was totally different, of course. And to those who didn't know how to see, it would have been easy to assume that Jim was being taken for a ride by the noisy free-loader who'd never paid rent on time and had less credibility than he had respectability, but Jim knew – and Blair did, too – that they failed to truly understand. A partnership wasn't made of two people who gave exactly fifty-percent in every single thing, meeting in the middle with unrelenting dedication to bean-counting their equality. It was made by complimentary balance, one carrying the weight that was too much for the other, and one lifting the burden as only they could. Sentinels and Guides were, by necessity, not perfectly equal. They had different gifts, different abilities, different interests, different functions. But they were still binary, still a pair in harmony. And between them, there was nothing they could not accomplish.

And in that harmony, both Sentinel and Guide could find everything they had ever wanted.

When Blair returned to the room, he just caught the end of the conversation as Hadji and Simon came back downstairs.

"So we'll have 70 Sentinels here?" Jessie asked. "Are we ready for it?"

"Not right now," Benton shook his head. "But by the time they get here, we will be." He looked around. "I'll be counting on all of you to help make this place what it needs to be."

"Of course we'll help!" Jonny said brightly.

"Jim?" Race turned to him. "You okay with this?"

"You know what," Jim said, glancing at his Guide, "I really am. I wasn't sure before we met them, but now the idea of having a whole bunch of Sentinels out here actually seems right. Like it's the way it's supposed to be." And if anyone in the room marveled at the famously stoic and skeptical Jim Ellison openly and without apparent discomfort accepting something as intangible as that, no one said anything.

"I'm glad to hear it," Benton said sincerely. "I really am."

"In other news," Blair's face was alight with a very happy grin, "I pulled some strings so I could deliver these in person."

"What are they?" Jim asked, looking at the three fat envelopes he had drawn from his ever-present backpack.

Blair's grin only widened as he handed one envelope each to Jessie, Jonny, and Hadji. He looked up to catch the eye of Benton and gave a very slight nod. Benton suddenly grinned, too, and slapped Race on the shoulder.

"You never tell me anything!" his bodyguard complained even as he was smiling cautiously.

"For good reason," Benton replied. "You like surprises. Don't even pretend otherwise."

Meanwhile, the three recipients of the envelopes were ignoring their fathers and friends in a unified single-minded attempt to get through the thick paper. Almost simultaneously, they spilled the contents into waiting hands, eyes rushing over the pages within. As one, they drew in a deep, amazed breath.

Blair had never seen three kids respond quite the way they did. He'd seen shouting, crying, dancing, stupefied shock, and gloating.

Jessie, Jonny, and Hadji all looked up at one another, turning their precious letters around so each could ensure the other two had the same fantastic news. They said nothing aloud, but it was clear all three were anxious until they knew they shared the same fate.

"Congratulations, Race," Benton squeezed the hand he'd left on Race's arm. "You are now the proud father of one – or is it three? – accepted students for next semester at Rainier University."

Then the spell broke and the trio reacted more like Blair had expected. Jonny grinned and pumped his fist triumphantly. "YEAH!" he cheered loudly, swinging an arm around Hadji's shoulders. "This is going to be AWESOME!" Jessie began her own victory dance, pulling the boys into motion with her until the three were bouncing and stamping and laughing. They made one pass around the room before reaching out to haul the adults with them.

Even Jim found himself in some sort of spinning celebration, and truth be told, he didn't resist it too much. The laughter echoing from the rafters of the lodge was too wonderful a sound to spoil.

When they at last slowed, Jessie proudly showing her father her acceptance letter while Hadji handed his to Benton and Jim swiped Jonny's to inspect it himself before passing it to Simon after the captain caught his breath, Blair rocked on his feet happily. "It's going to be out of this world having the three of you on campus full-time," he said, still smiling.

"Are you teaching in the spring?" Jessie wanted to know.

"Yup, I've agreed to take an Anthro 101 and a few upper-level classes." He smiled wickedly. "As good as you are, only Hadji gets a pass from the department on the 101, though. You two have some catching up to do."

"Why does Hadji get a pass?" Jim wanted to know.

"Because Hadji's been amassing credits as my assistant for years," Benton explained. "I believe he only lacks a single year's worth of study at Rainier before he can claim his degree."

"That may be true," Hadji tipped his head respectfully, "but I shall not be so quick to miss out on my opportunities to learn. I may avail myself of multiple majors to round out my understanding and thus increase the duration of my undergraduate experience."

"Whew!" Simon spoke up at last, still trying to hide the smile that had broken out the moment he'd been pulled into the celebration. "Gonna set some kind of record, kid?"

Jonny's head snapped up. "That's an interesting point." He looked over at Jessie with an almost predatory smile. "What do you say, Ace? Three?"

"Two and a half and you're on!" she proclaimed, holding out a hand and tossing her hair.

"Deal!" Jonny shook on it with her.

"Oh, god, you gave them ideas," Race rubbed a hand over his face.

Hadji's face mirrored Race's for somewhat-amused despair. "May the fates deliver us," he said fervently. Then, at the almost manic glee of Jonny and Jessie, he gave up all pretense and simply banged his head on the nearest hard surface – one of the solid support beams scattered through the room.

"I'm missing something," Simon shook his head.

"Chief, how long did it take you to get your undergraduate degree?" Jim asked.

"Uh…technically two years," Blair considered, "but I'd already started on my graduate classes by then."

"Maybe we should…" Jessie began.

"No," Race crossed his arms. "You'll be way too busy with the SELF stuff to try to beat Blair at his own game on top of it. Stick to your already completely unreasonable bet."

"I can't believe you two just bet to finish college in almost half the time it normally takes," Jim shook his head ruefully. "I mean, for Einstein over there, it was one thing, but…" He gave up and shrugged helplessly.

"The only thing worse than this incredibly unwise wager is the completely reckless things they'll do to ensure they keep it," Hadji moaned. "Already I can envision the nights before finals. You wouldn't think studying could be competitive, but with these two around, it is!" He leaned in to bang his forehead on the beam again.

Jonny was at his side in a flash and intercepted the blow, turning his brother away. "Don't do that," he chided with a small smile. "It's not good for your turban." The care and gentleness in his voice was unmistakable, even if he did try to hide it with humor.

"Just make me one promise," Benton looked at his son and Jessie firmly. "If Hadji or Blair decide you're working too hard, promise me you'll cut back. I don't want anybody burning out, and you'll be busy enough without trying to outdo one another."

"We promise," Jessie said promptly. Jonny looked less likely to acquiesce until his Guide elbowed him in the side and he reluctantly echoed the vow.

"Wait, you'll be starting at Rainier in the spring? This spring?" Simon asked. As realization struck, he felt a powerful desire to imitate Hadji and bang his own head into a wall.

"Yeah, why?"

"That's when Daryl starts. He deferred for a semester but now he's decided to pursue a degree of his own," Simon explained.

"You mean Daryl is going to be in Sandburg's class with these two?" Jim's eyes got wide.

Blair darted to his fellow Guide and gripped his shoulder. "Hadji, you have got to take that class!" he said desperately.

"Didn't you just say he could pass ahead of it?" Race asked, smirking.

"No! Never mind! I need you in that class to save me from them!"

"It's not just Sandburg's class I'm worried about," Jim said with a broad grin. "I'm not sure the whole of Rainier can cope with the combined powers of the Sandburg Zone, Jessie and Jonny's competitiveness, and Daryl's propensity to get into trouble. And you," he pointed at Hadji, "you pretend to be a calming influence, but we all know you're just a dark horse in the same race. You're as bad as the rest of them!"

Hadji smiled serenely. "Like the poet said, 'Into every life some rain must fall.' Cascade is well-accustomed to rain already, is it not? I believe the university can handle the likes of us."

"Yeah, but can we?" Simon looked to the other adults in the room, dubiously including Blair in the glance.

"We better," Race said with a smile of his own. "Because like weeds after a storm, that rain is going to end with these guys taking over the ground."

"Did you just call us weeds, dad?" Jessie glared, even if she couldn't keep the laughter from her eyes.

"I prefer to think of us as saplings," Jonny said then, his voice oddly serious. "And the time really has come for us to grow into our own." He glanced to his brother. "Together, of course."

"Together," Hadji echoed.

Jonny still had an arm around his Guide, so Jessie moved to his other side and took his free hand. Blair linked an arm with Hadji on his side before turning to the remaining men.

"You guys in?"

Jim felt it. Looking at the three kids and his own Guide, he could feel the path to the future unfurling at their feet. He didn't need to be a Sentinel, didn't need those odd hints and visions, to know where he stood in relation to that.

"Count on it," Jim nodded. He crossed the distance to where he could link arms with Blair. Then he raised an eyebrow to the remaining three. "Coming?"

Race grinned and grabbed Jessie's hand, slinging an arm around Benton as well. Only Simon didn't move right away. He looked at the mostly complete circle, lacking only himself. And there was a place for him in it, literally and figuratively. He didn't share the easy comfort that seemed to define the others, and he knew his reputation as a hard, cold captain was about to be ruined forever, but right then, he didn't care.

Simon completed the circle, putting an arm around Jim's shoulders and allowing Benton to wrap a hand around his arm warmly.

"So who's next?" Jessie asked. She looked from one face to another in their ever-expanding circle and felt a deep contentment settle inside. Family, friends, tribe – no word could capture it enough, really.

"Oh, I don't think we're going to go much longer without bringing Joel in," Blair said lightly. "It's kind of way past time."

"Don't forget Ngama," Jonny said. "He'll be here soon, too, and he wants to be part of this."

"And somebody will have to tell Daryl eventually," Simon put in quietly, "but only if it keeps him out of trouble. I'd rather he not be anywhere near all this craziness, but even I know how unlikely that is if he's going to be hanging out with you. I'd like to think keeping him informed might help prevent him from wandering into trouble on his own."

Jim looked around and thought about the new Sentinels and the people like Ivan the Terrible that were on their way to Cascade even now. What had Jonny said? They were saplings?

As if reading his mind, Benton spoke. "If this is the root of the tree to grow, I think it's going to be good and strong." He smiled around the circle. "A tree this big becomes a home to countless creatures that take shelter in its branches. I'm honored to be a part of that home for us and for those who will come after us."

"A tree of this strength will endure even the worst fire," Hadji said softly. "And from it will come the new growth that will restore a damaged land."

"You said it, my brother," Blair said, knocking their shoulders together. Then he looked up and read the words on the little plaque they had hung over the fireplace. It was a Chinese proverb of indeterminate source, and when they had commissioned it both Blair and Benton had known it would be a good statement of their hopes for SELF, for Sentinels, and for the work they had begun.

"If there is light in the soul, there will be beauty in the person.
If there is beauty in the person, there will be harmony in the home.
If there is harmony in the home, there will honor in the nation.
If there is honor in the nation, there will be peace in the world
."

The sun was setting, but a new world, a world they could build and nurture, was beginning for them all. Together.

-==OOO==-

End of Arc 2