Hi guys! Sorry its been so long. But hey, go check out GirlyGeek's story, 'Home with You'. You'll love it!

Disclaimer: Self explanatory, dammit~!

Throttle, Modo, Vincent, Charlene Davidson, Rimfire, Chef Andy Steinhaur, One-Eyed Jack Monterrey are all characters from the original show. Everyone else are my characters, along with any others that pop up. Thanks!

Chapter 13

Throttle quietly slipped out from the bed, brushing back a lock of auburn hair from his lover's face as she began to stir. He smiled as she gave a soft kiss to his palm in her sleep, settling back down to her dreams. The Martian pulled on his boots and left the room, trying to keep the noise down and not wake her. He kept his silent pace up as he made his way through the mansion's hallways, heading down to the living room to try and find Modo. His sensitive ears suddenly perked at the sound of talking from the living room. It sounded like Chef Andy and Mr. Williams were talking about their old army days, with some of the younger mice listening and asking questions.

He glanced in and saw Link and Bend listening intently to the humans, sitting beside Thrash on the couch as the red Martian quietly talked with Zodia, Voxanne, and Foale. It sounded like he was explaining Martian weaponry and history, and doing a good job judging by the looks of actual interest on the younger mice's faces. Looks like we've got a teacher on our hands.

Rimfire was sitting beside Chloe on a smaller couch, the Terran leaning against the Martian's side as they listened to the older men. The young crew leader had his tail twined around her leg, and her arm was wrapped around his waist as they curled around each other. As the men talked, Rimfire leaned so that his cheek rested against Chloe's shoulder, the human girl unconsciously nuzzling into the young mouse's mane. Throttle couldn't help his raised eyebrow at the site of the young couple. Rimfire moves faster than I thought. Good for him. "Hey Rimfire?" He called softly from behind the couch, "You seen Modo?"

The teen startled at his voice, shrinking back a bit as he caught sight of the tan mouse. "He's with Aunt Auri in the garage," he answered. "They're trying to get the radio set up to contact Stoker." He hesitated a second, a squeeze from Chloe's hand helping him speak as the leader turned to walk down the hall. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry we upset Miss Charley."

Throttle didn't even pause in his stride. "I know."

He quickly made his way to the mansion's garage. He barely noticed the Ferraris and Mercedes parked to the sides as he walked, his eyes locked on the modified Airstream. He caught Auri's attention from the trailer's window, the blonde half-breed giving him a nervous smile as she motioned for her mate that he was there. The lady slipped out the door with a quick nod to Throttle that he politely returned as she hurried into the house. She knew the boys would need their privacy for whatever talk they needed to have.

But letting Silva know about it would certainly help if they needed to get the first aid kits.

Modo stepped out of the trailer, slightly apprehensive at seeing his bro. Throttle had been known on Mars for having a dangerous temper where his girl was concerned. The only time any soldier had disrespected Carbine in front of him, Throttle had sent that mouse to the hospital. Stoker had to take him to the Monks to learn to control his anger before some of the older fighters would let him back in their ranks. And Modo knew that their talk earlier today more than qualified in the 'upsetting-his-girl' department. He wasn't sure how to broach the subject, so he decided on the blunt approach. "How's she doin'?"

"Not as upset as before," the tan mouse answered. "She wants to talk to you later on. The lady's pretty ticked."

"I expected as much," Modo said quietly.

A hard crack was heard as Throttle moved faster than Modo could follow, punching the grey mouse across the jaw. The giant staggered back at the blow, shaking his head to clear the lights out of his eye. "I expected that too," he said dazedly.

Throttle was panting hard, visibly restraining himself from going farther. The tan mouse was a mass of tension. His fists were clenched at his sides and his tail was coiling and writhing around his ankles. Definitely not a good sign. Throttle's shades slid down his muzzle as he looked at his bro, the silence stretching out between them before he spoke. He couldn't help the anger in his voice as he bit out, "You made her cry."

Modo winced at that, unable to look at his bro. Hearing about any woman crying was bad enough. To have it be someone he loved and know it was partially his fault was even worse. "I know she can't un-cry them, but I'll still tell her I'm sorry."

Throttle looked away for a moment. "I know you didn't mean to do anything to hurt her, I know you never meant to make her unhappy. It just ain't in you to do something like that." Suddenly he lunged forward, grabbing the grey mouse's chest armor and forcing him up and back against the trailer wall. A huge clang of metal sounded as the cybernetic arm smacked against the side. "Just so you know, I'll still be pretty pissed at you for that for a while. And if you ever hurt her like that again, bro or not, I swear to the Almighty himself I'll rip your tail out," he growled.

Modo's one eye went wide in shock at how fast his bro could move. Gods, he hadn't even seen him coming. "I promise you, I won't," he said, sincerity ringing in his voice. "We just wanted her to know how much we love her, bro."

Throttle just shook his head as he lowered his friend back down to the ground. "Yeah, well, your method could use some work," he snapped, moving to stand beside him and leaning back against the cool metal.

"Sorry," Modo said quietly. "Honestly, bro, if she had been a Mouse, you would've had to deal with this anyway."

"I know!" The tan mouse bit out. "I know if I had stayed with Carbine, the exact same thing would have come up. For the record, I'd still be nervous about doing the siemdath with her. But Charley, she's different. There's no prejudice there, no memories, no rumors, no one telling her things about me. She never once looked down on me for my history, Modo, she wished she could take it from me." He hung his head, the remembered weight of cruel words and crueler actions pulling at him. "She just accepts me for who I am, and the only history that matters to her is the one I've made for myself."

Modo smiled. "Just proves that she's a smart girl. That's the only history that should really matter to anyone when they fall in love, bro. You think I never heard what they all said about my clan for taking in rat half-breed? Or when I made Auri my mate?" He shook his head. "If it weren't for all the damn memories, I think we'd be a better people as a whole. No holding onto so much hate."

Throttle blinked, pushing his shades back into position on his face. "Glad to know I'm not the only one that thinks that. So, do you still want Charley as part of your clan?"

"Of course," Modo answered instantly. "I can't think of any clan that wouldn't want her. Short of the raging bigots, of course."

"Ah yes, can't forget that bunch of inbred stuck-ups," the tan mouse said wryly. He gave a sidelong look at his bro. "So I'm the only obstacle to that?"

"Bro"--

"Just asking if that's the only thing stopping you."

"Bro, I never once thought she'd say yes to us," Modo argued. "Not once I explained things to her. I knew she would never do anything that would take her away from you. I just didn't think it would bother her so bad--I mean, I thought she had her own clan to fall back on--well, no, I mean--I--aw, hell, bro."

Throttle's eyebrows raised before he gave a small chuckle to himself. "I still think you should have asked her first, but hey, no use crying over spilled milk. And you know, that's exactly what Charley said, about not leaving me. She said I was first in her heart."

Modo regarded his friend in mild shock. "You're surprised? She loves you more than anything, has for the longest time. Even Vinnie saw it, way back when."

Now his brows were up in surprise. "Vincent saw it before I ever knew she liked me like that? These eyes must be more messed up than I thought."

The grey mouse couldn't help his laughter. "Only you, bro. See everything out in battle field, all the angles and shots to take. Can't tell jack about girls. Maybe it's the shades."

"Yeah, yeah, yuk it up, wise guy," Throttle groused. He then went oddly quiet for a moment, catching Modo's attention with his sudden solemnity. "I want Charley to be happy, bro."

Modo cocked his eyebrow at his friend, surprised at the turn of the conversation. "I know."

"No, I"-he stopped, visibly gathered his thoughts-"I mean, I want her to have what you're offering. I know that would make her happier than she's been in a real long time."

The grey Martian's jaw dropped. "You want her to say yes?"

Throttle nodded. "But I don't want to ask her to choose. Its cruel to ask that of her. So I want to be sure that if I say I want her to say yes, that she won't have to make a choice like that."

Modo's jaw dropped even lower and his eye went as wide as a dinner plate when he realized what the mouse meant to do. "Bro?"

Throttle turned so that he looked his friend right in the eye. "I want to try the siemdath."

Modo was completely stunned. This was the ultimate test of friendship, or of any bond that existed among Martian Mice. This could make or break everything they'd ever gone through together, years of brotherhood riding on a thin line.

They could be deadly enemies after this. "Are…..are you sure?"

The tan mouse nodded. "Yes, I am. She's worth it, bro. Besides, we've been through different dimensions, time vortexes, prison camps, and battle fields. Hell, we've even stopped a few Apocalypses together. Have a little faith, bro," Throttle said in quiet seriousness. His antennae began to glow as he stepped forward.

Modo found himself nodding in return. He understood. After all, he'd done the same for Auri. "Then lets do this."

&*&*&*&*&*&*&

Charley stirred slowly, reaching out across the bed as she stretched. It couldn't have been more than a few hours since they'd laid down. She frowned as she felt empty bed where her mouse should be and reluctantly sat up. The girl couldn't help her slight pout as she realized that he'd been gone for a while already, and headed for the bathroom to clean herself up.

After a quick shower and a change of clothes, she headed down the hall. The Terran had barely gotten to the top of the stair before she was stopped short. Silva looked up at her from the middle stair, biting her lip pensively. "Charley?"

The mechanic pasted on a smile. "Miss Silva."

The elder mouse's face fell a bit at the formal tone. She had hoped to come and talk to the mechanic, to try and explain. But it may well be too late for that or apologies. "May we talk?"

Charley swallowed hard. No point in putting it off. "Sure. My room or yours?"

"Oh, yours is fine, dear," Silva said hurriedly, coming up the last stairs and walking beside the human. They stopped at the door, Silva speaking before Charley even reached the handle, "I'm sorry."

Charley felt a part of her crumble at the sadness in the Martian's voice. Another part of her began to get very angry. "Silva…..why? Why did you ask me to be a part of your family, but at the cost of Throttle? You know what he means to me! Why would you do that to me?!"

"I'm sorry, Charley," the grey lady repeated, pleading growing in her voice. "Modo said that you would turn us down once he told you about what the bond would mean, but I had hoped that it wouldn't hurt you so badly. We do love you, Charley-girl, and we do want you as part of our clan. We would never have even thought to ask if we didn't, dear-heart, never doubt that."

"Then why?!" The girl cried, a hot tear tracing down her cheek.

"Charley, every Mouse must make this sort of decision when they fall in love," Silva said. "They must take the risk with the siemdath, knowing that they may be betrayed in spite of all their love. That's why there is almost no such thing as divorce in Martian Mice. If your family was alive now, and didn't approve of Throttle, what would you do?"

"Leave them and go with him," Charley answered, no hesitation at all in her reply. "I'd be sad, but I'd have him. That's all that would matter to me."

Silva leaned back a bit in shock. "You would leave your clan? Leave everyone behind?"

"For the sake of the one that loves me, yes," she replied. "If they could be so cruel as to cast him out just because he's different, then they aren't the people that I loved all my life. The only thing that matters is that I love him and he loves me."

Silva stared at the girl--no, the woman before her. "You truly mean that, don't you?"

"Absolutely."

The grey mouse shook her head with a bemused smile. "Maybe humans have the right idea about it. May the gods smile on you both, my dear girl. I pray you will be happy with him."

Charley found a real smile for the Martian. "Thank you, Silva."

"Can you forgive a selfish old mouse?" The lady asked softly. The human felt her throat close around the words she wanted to say, and could only nod. Suddenly both were embracing, apologies and tears flowing between them. A short cry later, the women headed downstairs, surprised to see an anxious group heading out of the living room.

"What's going on?"

"Miss Auri just told us about Throttle and Modo in the garage," Link answered.

"And they've been in there for a while, with no sound out of them," Rimfire said worriedly.

"Look, you're blowing this way out of proportion, I'm telling you," Vinnie said, shaking his head. "They're just working some stuff out"--

"Working stuff out does not go like that!" Rimfire exclaimed. "And could you please stay out of it!"

"What is the big deal about all this?" Foale asked Mr. Williams. The old guard shrugged. "Beats me. Must be a Martian thing"--

"Modo offered to make me part of his clan," Charley said over all the noise.

Dead quiet suddenly reigned, Auri and Silva wincing at the human's bluntness. "What?" Vinnie asked blankly.

"Part of his clan?" Rev asked. "Is that like adoption?"

"Sort of," Link said, his face absolutely stunned.

"I don't understand," Voxanne said, frowning at the various reactions of the native Martians. "Is that something bad?"

"It could be," Vinnie said, his voice high in shock. Thrash nodded dumbly in agreement.

"How?" Chloe asked in confusion, the look echoed on Zodia's face. "How could having more family be bad?"

Rimfire grimaced. "Its not that, believe me, Chloe-love. We want Miss Charley as part of our family, but it might mean that she can't be with Throttle anymore. Its complicated," he said at her look of growing bewilderment. "But we"--

"What's all the ruckus about?"

"Did we miss something fun?" Came another familiar voice from the hallway. Two tired looking mice walked in, grinning from ear to ear. "'Cause if someone started a party without us, I'll be very upset."

Everyone stared at Modo and Throttle. They were covered with sweat, their antennae drooping almost to their ears, both supporting each other as it looked like they could barely walk. "Otaku, you alright?" Charley asked in worry.

If anything, his grin grew wider. "Better than alright, darlin'," he said, slowly coming over to her side and kissing her cheek. "You can tell them yes," he whispered in her ear, the smile coloring his voice. "Everything'd be fine."

"Throttle?" She asked, a frown on confusion forming.

"We did the siemdath," he explained quietly for her ears alone. He noticed Modo pulling his--their clan off to the side to explain in private and he moved to do the same. They settled on the couch where the younger mice had been sitting, the leader leaning heavily on her side. She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his muscles tremble in exhaustion. "You sure you're okay?"

"I'm good," he said, a smile still pulling at his mouth. "But the siemdath takes a lot out of you."

"You really did it?" She asked incredulously. "Why? Why would you risk it?"

He cupped her cheek in his hand. "I want you to be happy, Charley. Now you can tell them yes. You can have a family again."

"I didn't want it if it meant loosing you," she said.

"I know, baby. But I wanted to try. You're worth it."

Charlene felt her jaw drop in shock. She knew how much Modo meant to him. Vincent and Modo were the closest thing to real brothers he had ever known, the closest thing to family he'd ever had, and he risked so much of it for her. She hid her face in the crook of his neck so he wouldn't see the sudden tears that welled up. "I swear, I'll never understand you."

"The feeling is mutual," he zinged back, laughing when she mock-hit his shoulder. "We're clan, Charley-darlin'," he said. "We found our ancestors in our memories. Modo's my cousin, on Mom's side. Way down the line, but its there. I still have a clan," he said in wonder. "I always liked Silva, and now I know why. She's not just a sweet lady, she's my clan's tabia." He leaned fully against her side, eyes closing as he breathed in her scent. "I think my mom would had liked her."

Charley smiled as she ran her fingers through his short mane. "No doubt they'd have a lot in common."

"No doubt. But its safe to work the clan joining. A linking of minds," he explained. "They'll see your memories and you'll see theirs. Just allow things to flow between your minds and you should be fine. Its more about forming trust than anything else."

"That's all?"

"Basically."

"So, when do we do this clan joining?"

"Big fella figures sometime tomorrow." He yawned, closing his eyes just for a moment to clear his thoughts. "Preferably in the morning so we all have time to recover and get…. ready for the… Flyer….." The mouse was asleep less than a minute later.

"Early mornings are against my religion," Charley muttered, curling up against his side. She looked up as Voxanne and Bend came over to her.

"Is he alright?"

The human nodded, resting her head on top of his. "He's fine, just tired. Martian mind tricks take a lot out of him."

"Mind tricks?" Bend asked in curiosity.

"Throttle's rather talented at Martian mind abilities," she explained. "But it can be really hard on him if he does too much at once. He'll tell you more about it tomorrow morning. For now, I think he needs to be put to bed."

Bend shook his head, "How can he sleep through this racket?"

Charley laughed softly. "Lots of practice when he was in growing up in the Freedom Fighters' camp."

"Freedom Fighters?" Voxanne asked curiously.

The human smiled. "You two better sit down. Its time you learned a little more about your big brother."

&*&*&*&*&*&*

Rev stared out the conservatory window at the lights of the Vegas strip. He rested his head against his arm as he leaned against the wall, dozens of thoughts going through his head. The old lady-mouse, Silva, she said that they would be doing a clan joining in the morning and they should get their rest. Vincent had said it was the Martian way of making someone into family. But wasn't it blood that made a family? People that were related to you? He had formed strong bonds with Little Brother--(Bend, he reminded himself)--but they'd had no one else to rely on at the time. He knew he was protective of the kid, and knew that he cared about him. Did that mean that they were family?

And what about that siemdath thing Modo and Throttle had done? It sounded like a huge deal, but no one would tell him just what it meant. And what exactly were 'Martian mind tricks?' Did that mean anyone could do them, or did you have to have training? What was all that about clans? God, there was so much he didn't know about his own species. It was enough to severely frustrate a Mouse.

"Can't sleep?"

He turned in mild surprise at the sound of Foale's voice. "I figured you'd be asleep after all that drama earlier."

"Same to you," she said, coming over to stand by his side. "I thought Vinnie was going to have a cow. Guess that siemdath thing's pretty important, huh?"

"Guess so."

She gave him a sidelong look. "Voxanne's worried about you."

"She is? Why?"

"Said you looked like a lot was on your mind. But Charley's been filling them in on everything under the sun, so that leaves me to talk to you. "

"Don't strain yourself, sunshine."

She gave a beatific smile. "Its all part of my sweet disposition." He made a show of looking around to see who she was talking about, and she smacked his arm. "Wise-guy."

"I try," he said sardonically.

"So what's on your mind?" She asked.

"My god, you're subtle."

"Extremely. Now spill."

He shot her a look. "Dr. Phil you are not." He sighed. "What the hell is a family?"

Foale blinked her pink eyes in surprise. "What? A family?"

"Yeah. What the hell is that? We're family because we're related, right?"

"You and me? Um, yeah."

"But me and Bend, we called each other brothers for as long as I've known him. Does that mean we're family too? And is he just family with me, or with you too because of me? And you call Silver and Gold Jewels your sisters, so are they my sisters too? Does that mean if I date Voxanne, its incest?! What"--

"Whoa, bro!! Take a deep breath before you pass out on the floor!" Foale said in concern. "Okay, now you chill for a second. You're making this into way too big a deal." She sighed. "Look, I don't think I'm the best one to ask about this, but here goes. From what I understand of it, the definition of family are the people that you're related to by blood, and the people that care about you and take care of you. I asked Mr. Williams about it, and he said that just because someone's related to you doesn't make them family. The most important part of it is if they care about you, and if you care about them. He said your relatives you're stuck with, but your friends are the family you choose."

He frowned in confusion. "You can choose your family?"

"Vinnie did," she said. "He chose to take us in."

"He said that I was his twin, but I was just born late," Rev said quietly. "We share identical genetics, and you do too. Isn't that being related?"

"Not the way that's normal," she replied. "Most people think of a clone like a thing, whether it's a person or not. He didn't have to want us around, or even accept us. He chose to. And you know, we chose him too, or we wouldn't be worried about any of this. Throttle chose Voxanne and Bend, and they chose him. Same for Zodia and all of them. And they chose Charley, too."

"So you think you can make your own family, regardless of who you're related to?" He clarified.

She shrugged, "Why not? I think of Bend like a little brother, so I treat him like a little brother. Zodia does too. That doesn't mean that we suddenly share blood, or anything. Just that they're the family I choose."

Rev found a smile. "So we make our own families? I like that idea."

Foale smiled in return. "So do I. The clan joining thing is supposed to be the Martian way that Mice do that. I overheard Silva explaining it to Zodia," she said to his look of surprise. "Its about building trust by showing the memories and secrets that our blood family has, and sharing in part of that history. Or something like that."

Rev looked pensive as he thought that over. "Its our choice to accept or not whether we want to be his clan, right?"

"Right."

"Then I guess my choice is made," he said in quiet certainty. "I wonder if we have a last name."

Foale smiled. "I think that's part of the whole clan thing. Now that that mini-breakdown is over with, anything else on your mind?"

He almost told her the truth, but figured enough was enough for one night. "Nah, I'm good. Go on and get some rest, sis. We got a big day ahead of us tomorrow."

*&*&*&*&*&*&*&