Duke and Mara stared at the two babies in stunned silence, and Mara wondered why she was so surprised. Any pregnancy could result in twins, and she'd felt so much movement. Hell, it was the first thing Audrey even thought of when she felt the movement.

But it was a shock. Mara had felt beyond blessed to even have one Crocker in her belly. Having two was almost like getting an apology from the gods themselves.

Finally collecting herself, she whispered, "Do you want to know the genders?"

His eyes were still round and bright, like they were holding tears. "I do, but if you want to be surprised I'm okay with that."

"No, I want to know too. You ready? I'm going to start playing with the scan, let it show us everything."

"Go for it. I want to see their faces."

She moved her hands slowly in small, controlled gestures. Zooming in on the baby on the right, Mara altered the angle to get a clear view of the face and she smiled. She could see Duke's bone structure clearly, the cheekbones, the lips and jaw; all of these things screamed 'Duke'. But the baby had her nose.

She had a lump in her throat. "He looks just like you."

"I was about to say the same about you."

"His hair is dark like yours." She adjusted the image to see the rest of the first baby's body and smiled. She was going to be the first to give Duke a son. "I told you we were having a boy."

"Don't get so cocky just yet. We haven't checked the other baby."

"Fair enough. Let's do that and then I can take the measurements and do the actual medical diagnostic stuff."

The image moved to the other baby and she paused as she moved over, focusing on their hands, still pressed together through the membranes between them. It was beautiful, the idea that they already lived so close, squished up against each other but were still trying to get closer. She committed the image to memory before moving to focus on the other baby.

This face was a little more Mara. Fine, delicate bone structure, but Duke was still there in the shape of the eyes. The hair she could see was black and curly, just like the other baby. The image moved down, and Mara smiled, a single tear slipping loose. "A girl. I can't believe all this time I had your son and daughter inside me."

She altered the view so they could see both children again an she began taking measurements, collecting the important information.

"They're built like my people. Not so much like humans. They appear to be perfectly healthy. I had worried so much that getting dispersed would affect the pregnancy, but everything must have gone into protecting the babies. It makes me feel grateful for the scars. Every scar on my body is there so they wouldn't be hurt."

Duke's voice was quiet but he reached his hand to the picture like he wanted to touch them.

"Touch my belly, Duke. This tracks movement too. I want to see what happens."

Obligingly, Duke pressed his hand to her belly, pressing enough to feel, and the boy started wiggling, pressing back against Duke's touch. As soon as he was moving, the girl startled awake with a hard kick that made Duke laugh.

Mara willed them to open their eyes. She pressed her own fingers to her belly, pressing against the boy's head. When his eyes finally opened, Mara caught her breath. They were silver, the bright mercury of Duke's eyes when he touched Aether. Mara smiled as she stared in fascination.

"I'm so glad he has your eyes. He's so beautiful."

"He really is." Duke cleared his throat. "Can you get her to open her eyes?"

Mara moved her hand, pressing against the girl's back, and after a few more minutes she blinked sleepily and Mara's breath caught.

She was dichromatic. One eye silver like her brother's, one eye a rich violet that matched Mara's.

"Holy crap- she has two different eyes. Like David Bowie." Duke's voice was full of awe.

"That's supposed to be a good omen. He's about 7 pounds 2 ounces. She's 6 pound 13 ounces. It doesn't give me any better idea when to expect them. I've had big babies before. So it could still happen anytime. I'm just so glad they're healthy, that they weren't damaged by the dispersal."

Duke squeezed Mara against him. "Me too. Healthy is all that matters. It doesn't hurt that they're so beautiful, though."

They lay together watching their babies move, both thinking of what they'd almost lost.

"I have a call to make, you want me to keep the scan up?"

"Will it hurt you or strain you?"

"Not at all," she assured Duke, "it takes very little energy to keep it showing. I wanted to watch anyway, so I can draw pictures."

She took her phone and called Dwight, who answered on the second ring, sounding like he'd already been wide awake.

"Hendrickson."

"Chief, I have some things to report. Do you have a moment?"

"Uh, usually we refer reports to the station line so they can be properly documented. Let me give you the correct number."

"No," Mara cut him off, "this is personal. It's about people you care for."

"I'm listening." The suspicion was clear in his voice and it made Mara smile.

"Well, first, about me. Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated. But besides that, Audrey Parker will need to be reinstated."

"I'm sorry if you hadn't heard, but Detective Parker is no longer with us." Dwight sounded so sad, and Mara hurt for him.

"That's where you're wrong, Dwight. I know you're wrong because I brought her back myself. She hasn't had time to talk to you, but I know she'll be calling,"

"Who is this?"

"Me? I'm the one who brought her and Duke back."

There was a loud clatter on the end of the line. "If this is some kind of joke, it's sick. You should be ashamed."

"Not that I don't have plenty of things to be ashamed about, but Lizzy doesn't have the market cornered on resurrection, Dwight. Duke, say something so he knows I'm serious."

"She's right, Sasquatch. I'm here. Gloria's seen me. Audrey, too."

"But... how?" Dwight was pleading, desperate for good news.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here when you needed me. Charlotte hurt me and sent me away so I couldn't stop her. But I did try, Dwight."

"But who are you?"

"Mara."

"Mara? But you're..."

"Dead? No. I'm too much of a scientific curiosity for her to actually kill me. Just delayed. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I was late and I couldn't save everyone, but I got here as quickly as I could. Please believe me."

"You sound different."

"I look different.

"So... you're not trying to get rid of anyone?"

"I never was. I wanted my body back, I wanted to be free. I wanted to get away from my mother. Did I do unpleasant things to get that? Yes. But it was never my intent to just kill people for no reason."

"I'm still dreaming, aren't I?"

"No. You're not that creative. If you want to see him, we're on the Rouge. You can bring Lizzy, she should remember Duke and I'll be fully dressed."

"How early is too early?" He sounded edgy, desperate to believe but afraid.

"Eh, anytime after 8. Duke's funny in the morning. But I'm pretty sure Audrey and Nathan are still up. They're at his place if you want to hear it from them."

"We'll be there first thing in the morning. Hey, Mara?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you. Thank you so much."

"Anytime, Dwight. Sorry about... you know, Everything."

"We'll talk tomorrow. It's okay."

She hung up, leaving her phone on the night stand.

Duke twisted his head to kiss her cheek, still watching the babies on the scan. "Why'd you tell him to come so early?"

"I think you're failing to appreciate how much these people care about you, Duke. They need to see that you're okay. I know you feel like a black sheep, but remember, it's the black sheep they wrote the song for."

He smiled at her. "That was very poetic."

She nuzzled his shoulder, yawning. "Yeah, well, we'll see how much he still likes me when he finds out the Troubles aren't gone. We'll have to take his out."

"But we can do that now, so as long as it doesn't go active overnight, I think we're good."

"How do you feel?" Mara touched his forehead, stroking the strands out of his face.

"Same as last time you asked. Lucky. Insanely, painfully lucky, actually. I can't believe I died. Well, no, that part I get. What I don't get it why it didn't help anything. Why my life meant nothing in the end."

Mara tightened her arm around Duke's waist, squeezing. "Same reason they tried to take Audrey. Same reason I'm in this body. Because the game was rigged, Duke. That's all it ever was to her, maybe even to daddy. A game, a power grab. I like to think Daddy pulled Haven in to avenge me, but for all I know that was more of a 'Just because I can' maneuver. You guys, all of Haven, got punished for taking me in. I brought the attention of terrible people to you. I tried to help you, but everything got mixed up with the intermarrying and families mixing."

She shifted to stare at the ceiling again. "None of it was your fault or responsibility, but you got punished anyway. You more than anyone because you gave me a chance. Nathan next because it appeared that he had cared for me, Momma never understood it was just Audrey, she didn't know about the Trouble, so you and he suffered more than anyone. But still, you're wrong."

Her voice was hushed, her jaw and neck tight against tears. "Your death meant everything. Your life and death were my life and death. I cared about them because I loved you, you're what gave me the perspective that allowed me to see the value in Nathan and Audrey. My desperation to save you and your children kept me alive and moving, and every step, every action, I asked myself what you would do. You're the one who saved her and Nathan, and the babies. I was just the hands that did the work." She had to clear her throat and stretch her shoulders.

Duke was very quiet for a moment, and his voice sounded like it was hiding tears, too. "Why do you undervalue yourself so much?"

"Experience and dedicated teachers. Why do you?"

"Are you crazy? Have you not listened to Nathan, ever? I'm unreliable, unpredictable, a danger to everyone and a screw-up."

Mara chuckled quietly. "Of course I listen to Nathan. I listened to him cry about how you willingly gave your life to try and keep my father from using the Troubles in you. I listened to him scream, weeping after his nightmares of killing you, begging you to forgive him for not telling you how much he loved and valued you all his life. I listened to the Aether in him tell me how he still keeps his window open for you, even after you died he couldn't bring himself to close it.

"With my own eyes, I saw that he slept on your boat every night just to feel close to you. He feared and hated me, but the moment he knew I was back he hugged me, he embraced me and told me how grateful he was that I was pregnant, that your line would continue even before he knew I could bring you back. He slept next to me, holding my hand, just grateful that someone could understand how he felt.

"I saw Gloria accept me without reservation the moment I came to town. Her tears when she saw I was pregnant and her shame that she couldn't bring you back to life. You saw her when she saw you alive again. You listen to the words on top, Duke, when you should be listening to what they don't say. It's not because they don't believe it, it's simply because they don't think it needs to be said. They assume you know. Hell, Dwight was ready to take my head off when he thought I was jerking him, and you never even call him by his name. The others are emotionally stunted idiots, but they love and value you. Now value yourself."

His eyes were red, his body unusually still. "You believe that?"

"I know it for a fact. They forgave me for your sake, Duke. Not for any other reason. Saving you was the only thing they wanted. I got Audrey back before the first 24 hours was up, but it wasn't okay, not for anyone. She hurt too. She was so broken hearted over you. Not more than me, none of them more than me... but I admit, Nathan came close. This bond has me a little concerned. It's strange feeling so much concern for him, it feels weird. I didn't want to tell them, you know.

"When I got yanked out of our dream, in was because Nathan was trapped in another nightmare, watching you die, and when I realized I forced myself awake and called to make Audrey wake him up. The cat was out of the bag by then. They showed up at the boat. You want to hear something silly?"

Duke sniffled a little holding her closer. "I could use some silly, yeah."

"When I got up and looked for that safe you told me about, I stood there for several minutes until I could decode it, and when I did, it made me cry. That even through death, you and he were as bonded as ever. I know, I know for sure, that you and Audrey were the two people he has always, always loved the most in his life. That love has never wavered, even through fights and punches and death. Seeing that tattoo all abraded, scrubbed with steel wool, it made my chest ache."

"Thanks for telling me that. It really does help. I loved him so much, when he got that damn tattoo-"

"I know. It was a stupid, schoolyard prank that came around to bite him in the ass. He never really wanted to kill you. I think he was relieved when he realized you were in love with her, too. He knew he could at least trust you to try and save her."

Mara was quiet again for a second. "He asked me, he asked why you asked him to do it. and I felt certain that I knew why. Because he would have done anything to stop someone else from hurting you. That you knew you'd only get what you wanted by asking Nathan."

"Yeah." Duke took a shuddering breath. "You're right. I didn't want anyone else to get hurt. I didn't even think about that fucking tattoo until..."

"You saw it. Nathan told me. He felt it when you saw. He cried so much. When I made the tattoo go away, he went to hug me, and he looked so sad when he realized he couldn't. They both slept over last night so we could go for you immediately."

"So, you're free for the first time in 500 years. What's that like?"

Mara laughed, her hand on his chest. "You think Audrey is the first personality I've broken through? Give her some credit, she's a strong personality. No, I got loose before. The difference was, I had nowhere to go, nobody to go to. I still wanted to help. I tried to run farther a few times, but my mother always got me by sheer manpower. I've been loose. I just always got retaken. My hope is that with Charlotte dead, they won't try to come for me again, because I'd feel a little guilty if I had to kill Vince and my father.

"I was loose during the Lucy time, about half that time. Nathan was so traumatized from Max and he wasn't coping. Garland had Dave help him call me up and asked me to help hide the memories from Nathan. Of course I did it, to me he was still someone I loved. That's when I gave Garland my ring to pass on to Nathan. I always wondered how he thought it came to him. Audrey has a ring. How did he not understand it wasn't hers? But that was also when I met you, and I adored you so much. I had to keep an eye on you. So I watched you grow up through the dreams, and then I realized I was in love with you."

"And now you've brought me back from the dead. And you're having my babies."

"Yep."

"I'm sorry I wasn't there for the whole pregnancy. I really hate that."

"We've talked about it, Duke. You didn't need to see me like that, and all that matters is you being here now. I just want to start over. We've been given such a huge gift. Audrey and you, these babies and now I get to see James grow up. He'll actually be James Wuornos. And no fear or Arla coming back. We finally won one, Duke."

"You had to pay for it, though. I hate that you're in pain."

"No. If that was the price, a pound of flesh to get you all back? I'd pay it still."

"I don't deserve you."

"No, you deserve better, but you're stuck with me. Get used to it. Try to sleep, Duke."

"I'm not sure I remember how."

"I can drug you if I have to, but let's try this first." Mara slowly shifted around, laying on her back so she could pull his head to her chest so he could hear her heart. She pulled his hand to rest on her belly and he slid his leg up over hers. She switched off the light and held him, stroking his hair and humming an old song from her world, even after she felt his body relax in sleep. Once she was sure he was down, she fell asleep holding him.

Mara woke in a long, dark hallway, and she was alone.

Curious, she walked forward, but there was no doorway to be seen, and she realized she felt off, everything at a strange angle. She couldn't move her head, but in her peripheral vision, she spotted her feet and realized she wasn't her.

Oh Nathan, not again. At least she couldn't see Duke.

She stayed tensed, ready to force herself awake to call Audrey if things went south, but there was a faint light shining in the distance, so she stayed as Nathan walked on, the light getting brighter.

And then she saw herself. Absolutely not Audrey. And she had wings. Angel wings.

Mara snorted, amused, but the angel-Mara just stood, smiling gently.

He was absolutely incapable of not over-dramatizing her in some way. She was either devil or angel. Apparently she'd switched teams in Nathan's subconscious. But it was very, very strange to tilt her head and see it from Nathan's perspective.

It wasn't like looking in a mirror, he was too tall, she was too short, it was like a carnival mirror if anything. Nathan approached NotMara slowly, reaching out to hug her, and she felt the odd sensation of being hugged by herself. They held onto each other in the dark hallway, in the only spot of light.

"Thank you so much for helping me." She/Nathan said, face pressed to her hair.

"I've always helped you. I always will."

"But I was so mean to you, I hurt you so much."

"Yes, you did. You hit me and called me names. You shocked me and threatened me and tortured me, but I still saved you. You stole my baby. I saved everyone and look what you did to me."

Nathan stood back to look and Mara was horrified. Her face was beaten black and blue, her throat slit open wide, one wing bent at an unnatural angle. Frustrated, she wrenched herself out of the dream, scrambling for the phone on the nightstand and dialing Audrey again.

"Mara?"

"Wake Nathan up. Quick, please." The sheets felt like sandpaper and she grabbed for the pain medication, swallowing the pills dry. Duke must have woken as soon as she rolled away, and he handed her his water bottle, holding his arms out for her. She tossed the sheets off and climbed into his lap just to make sure she wasn't touching anything but his skin.

"What's going on?" Duke murmured, wrapping his arms around her when she shivered, grimacing at the goosebumps.

"Nathan has a guilt complex. Now he's having nightmares about when he wanted to kill me."

Duke just shook his head, holding her while she waited on the phone. Audrey finally picked up again. "What happened, I thought you got rid of the memory?"

"I did." Mara snapped, cranky with Audrey's tone. "He wasn't dreaming about Duke, he was dreaming about me. You cannot expect me to anticipate everything that he might feel guilty for!"

"Okay, sorry, sorry. I'm just worried."

"Can you put him on the phone?"

After a moment, his voice came on the line, a little gruff, but seemingly under control. "I'm here."

"Nathan, I'm fine. Please, I know you can't control what you dream about, but you have to take a breath and honestly forgive yourself. I'm not mad, you didn't hurt me. Honestly, not even at your very worst. And you never beat me. You never cut me."

"But the baby..."

"Is where he belongs, Nathan. Good gods, think about it. At least now I get to see him grow up. He's with you, which is what I would have wanted in the first place. It's not like I got to raise him the first time around. This is a good situation, Nathan. I'm free. Audrey is safe, Duke is home. You didn't hurt me. Duke loves you, I love you, Audrey loves you. You want to make things up to me, just be a good dad. I have faith in you. Now have some in yourself. If you can't trust yourself, trust me. You know I have no reason to lie to you."

His voice was very quiet. "I'm sorry I woke you up."

"Don't be, Nathan. I had to get up soon anyway. Nobody told Dwight, and he's supposed to be here soon. Everything is fine, I promise. Get some rest before the little man gets up for the day. You can come see us later if you want to. We're here for you."

"Thanks, Mara. I'll... I'll call you later."

"Bye, Nathan."

She hung up, leaning her head against Duke. "That poor man. Messiah complex, guilt complex... I told Audrey he had PTSD, but it's like she thought that could be cured just be removing one visual memory. Hell, if it were that easy, I could make it my life's mission to just travel the country and fix every PTSD patient. At least she's always patient with Nathan. It's going to take time."

Duke tilted her head to kiss her and she relaxed into him, wrapping her hand around the back of his neck and winding her fingers in his hair. Moments like this, every bit of pain was worth it for moments like this.

When he pulled away just enough to talk, she gazed into his eyes.

"You're amazing. You care so much, even though most of us gave you absolutely no reason to."

"That's not true, Duke. Yeah, we all fought when you knew who I was, but I was around the whole time Audrey was, I was there. When you treated her well, you treated me well. I got to know everyone, I loved everyone. You guys didn't know me, but I knew you. Honestly, that's most of the reason I was so awful when I did get free. I thought you guys would want to help me, to hear the real history. But nobody wanted to talk to me, nobody asked me anything except how to get Audrey back and I got so angry. You know the rest.

"But still, I loved you, I loved all of you. You most- you already know I've been obsessed with you forever. But I still want good things for all of them. And Nathan, even without the bond- he's like... like a brother, I guess? I love him because I loved him once before mistakenly, but I loved him when he was a child, and I feel how much you love him, so I love him for those reasons, too. I feel protective of him."

He took her hand, looking at the ring on her finger. "I can't believe you said yes. Will you take my name, too?"

Mara snorted, her laugh full of disbelief. "Why on earth would I want to keep 'Cross' when I could be a Crocker? Of course I'll take your name. We'll just have to find a way to get me legal on paper. Apparently I'm not a real girl."

Duke's eyes glinted, and his hand ghosted up to her breast. "You feel like a real girl. Those meds kick in yet?"

"I think so, but you might have to touch me to make sure." She smiled a little, arching against his hand.

She twisted in his lap so she was straddling him- they had a little time before they had to get ready. His hands stroked her sides and then up her back.

"Does that hurt?"

"Not at all. Keep trying."

He shifted to lay back against the pillows, looking up at her as he ran his fingers up her thighs. "How about that?"

"Doesn't hurt." She rocked her hips, rubbing against him, teasing him.

His hands gripped her hips, fingers wrapping around her. "Now?"

"Duke, I need you."

He grinned, pulling her up so she could sink down around him. Her head fell back in bliss, long hair brushing against Duke's thighs as they both sighed.

It was amazing, when he was inside her, nothing at all hurt, not even the bits of her that touched the bed or sheets. She gripped his hands in her own, pushing up to come down again, rolling her hips.

The faces he made as she loved him, these precious, secret looks that only she got to see made her feel overheated and sensitive. She rode him harder, studying his face.

It wasn't just the sex- not with him, not for him- it was the knowledge that she loved him, that she wanted him enough to marry him, that she carried his children inside her. It was the fact that she had fought to bring him back from the dead because he needed him so much. The sex was just an outward expression of that love. Mara saw a tear drip from his eye and she moaned, rocking harder.

She was so close already, too close, and she couldn't control the movement, in the grip of crazed need she pushed down hard, trembling and jerking as she wailed, clenched tight around him.

His arms came up around her, rolling so he was above her, taking control without missing a beat, smoothly driving into her just right so he could draw her orgasm out, one hand moving to caress her face as he watched her. Duke groaned low in his chest , pulling one of her legs higher so he could change the angle.

Mara clutched at him, digging her fingers into his shoulders before one hand wound into his hair. She pulled hard enough to hurt a little and he moaned, driving into her harder, turning his head to kiss her wrist.

"Duke, please. I need you, I need to see you, I need to feel you. Harder, please!"

His smile was brilliant, his loose hair falling into his face as he thrust harder, the movement exquisitely smooth yet jarring at the same time, and his breath sped up, the hushed groans running together until they sounded like music, the slap of skin on skin the drumbeat of the song.

"Mara, I love you. You're so fucking beautiful I can't even- I can't-" His breath stuttered and he was moving harder, his own need taking over, and her mouth opened in a silent scream as she came around him, listening to his loud, unrestrained moans as he thrust erratically, coming for her, deep inside her. It seemed to go on forever, and she cried out as the light started to fade around her, Duke thrusting with one last harsh exhale and a groan.

Her eyes slid shut and she gasped for air as he stayed sheathed inside her, only pulling out when his arms were to shaky to support him, and she curled into his arm, wrapping herself around him in a hug.

She kissed his chest as he pulled her closer. "I love you so much, Duke. That was amazing."

"You're amazing. You're everything I ever wanted, and you're here, you want me- hell, you even fought to get me. It's almost too much for my brain. I don't know what I did to deserve you."

Mara laughed quietly. "Yeah, the guys are lining up around the block for a date with the quasi-immortal non-human who people believe cursed a town for fun, who looks like a science experiment gone horribly wrong. I'm the lucky one. I honestly still can't believe how amazing it is that you love me back. That you loved me even when you thought I was just evil."

Duke's eyes narrowed and he frowned at Mara. "You watch it. You're talking about the woman I love. She never hurt anyone for fun, she's taken every punch the universe threw and punched back every single time. She's beautiful and amazing and she needs to get used to it, because she won't be able to talk like that in front of our kids. Don't want to give them the same self-esteem issues we have. And the unaging thing? That just means I never have to let go. When we talk about forever, we can really mean it.

"I know it's hard for you to see, because of the pain, but your scars are still beautiful. They not only show who you are and how much you've gone through to get here, but the shapes and patterns are really pretty. I've seen people get tattoos that don't look half this pretty. Mara, there's nothing about you that I would change except the pain. I hate that you hurt."

"You're going to make me cry, Duke, and then you'll have a mess of crying, hormonal pregnant woman on your hands. You don't want that."

"I want you however I can get you. But since you mention it, are the babies always this rowdy? Seriously, it feels like they're having a mosh pit against my side."

She chuckled, running her lips along his chest. "They're always active, but sex makes them more active. The release of dopamine and oxytocin- happy chemicals- and the feeling of the uterus spasming makes them happy. But there were so many times since they started moving that I thought there was an octopus in there instead of a baby. I never even considered twins until Audrey said something the first time she felt them, right after I brought her back. Now it seems so obvious." She nestled her head under Duke's chin, hugging him.

"What do you think about houses?"

"Objectively or subjectively? Why do you ask?"

"We're about to have twins. You know I love the Rouge, but I was thinking it would be nice to have a house, land for a yard. Maybe even something with our own dock."

Her eyes slipped closed and her lips began to curl up. "I haven't had a house in so, so long. I love this boat, but yeah, I really like the idea of a house. We can go through my papers, I'll sign the cashiers check over to you when they get your life-status fixed up and we can buy it together. Imagine. Duke and Mara Crocker and their kids, living in their house. Fixing people. It can be like I dreamed of when I came here, but better because you're with me."

Duke kissed her head, speaking against her skin. "I'm gonna give you the world."

"You already have, Duke. We better get dressed. It takes me a few minutes."

Duke groaned. "Oh, Sasquatch is lucky I like him, I'm starting to get into your idea of leaving port."

She smiled and kissed Duke before pushing herself up, stretching. "Come on, Crocker. I have to look through the stuff Dave left me anyway. I'm not going to bother hiding myself. The only people who might stop by are your friends, they'll just have to adjust to how I look."

That made Duke smile. "That's my girl. You've got nothing to hide."

She was digging out clothes and paused. "If you tease me, I swear you will pay. Understood?"

"Why would I tease you?" Duke stood, digging out jeans and an undershirt, pulling on one of Mara's favorite denim button ups. She couldn't look away for a moment, distracted. He was so damn beautiful she could barely breathe.

She pulled out a short grey cotton skirt and a lilac tank, brushing her hair and leaving it long and loose. She was blushing when she turned to face Duke, not meeting his eyes. "Well? How bad is it?"

He walked up slowly, sliding his hands under her shirt to rest on her waist. "If I can't stare at you naked, this is the next best thing. I've never seen you in a skirt, and you look beautiful. That shirt really makes your eyes stand out. Can I ask a question?"

She was smiling shyly, pleased by the compliment. "You can ask anything,"

"How does your eyeliner stay on even through the showers?"

"Because it's not eyeliner. It's Aether. I just let it show there. Silly to waste money on makeup."

"You're amazing. And that ring looks like it was made for you."

Mara paused thoughtfully. "May I try something? If you don't like it, I can take it right off, I promise."

"Sure, whatever you want."

"Hold out your hands, please."

He held them out and she took his left, letting the Aether in him link to her, focusing and directing it. Duke watched in fascination as Aether started to move through the skin on his hand, finally settling into a band of tiny flowers that matched the ones on his arm, the initials 'M.C.' in the center, circling Duke's wedding ring finger.

"Mara... this is beautiful. Did you, I don't know, draw it, like your eyeliner?"

"Yes. I just wanted to have a mark on you, like your ring is for me. The letters are my handwriting."

Duke's smile lit up the room and he kept his arms against the skin under her shirt as he hugged her. Even with the smile, he sounded just little teary. "This is exactly what I needed. I don't know if dying changed my perspective or what, but I wish we'd have been honest. Loving you, you loving me, it's amazing. You make me feel strong and special. I'm not used to feeling loved, you know? Only by Lucy, in my whole life- but that was you. It's always been you."

Hugging him back with her arms around his neck, she murmured, "Hearing you say that, knowing that you understand, it's everything I ever wanted. I hated seeing you so unhappy, unable to see how much people really do love you. You're important, and not just to me. I hope you finally feel that."

There was a knock at the door and Mara grinned deviously before she let go. "While we're talking to Dwight, just keep in mind- I can still feel you inside me. Now, sit and behave. You're supposed to be resting." She let go and went for the door, Duke laughing behind her as he followed and sat on the couch.

Mara opened the door, craning her neck to look up at Dwight. "Bet you never thought you'd hear me say this, but I missed you. Come inside so we have room to greet you guys properly."

She led the way into the living room and Dwight followed, Lizzy behind him. He paused, frozen as he saw Duke, and as Lizzy pulled off her coat, she got her first glimpse of Mara. Her eyes went wide and round, and she flew, suddenly sobbing, into Mara's arms, her jacket falling to the floor, forgotten. The men wore identical expressions of shock, but Lizzy just cried. "Auntie Mara, you're really here! He said, he kept telling me that you'd find a way to make it better and after I was alive again, he said you had to be here, that if magic was happening again that you would be here, but I didn't believe!"

Mara hugged Lizzy tight, and she was so focused on soothing the child that nothing else registered for a minute. But when it did, it hit hard.

Lizzy's skin didn't hurt her.

That was the common denominator, the people whose touch didn't hurt, they'd all spent time in the land of the dead. Alive, they were all as different as they could be, but they hadn't always been alive. Duke, James and Lizzy had all spent actual time being dead. Nathan had died, but he'd been brought back almost immediately.

But Lizzy obviously remembered much more, and that had Mara confused.

"Lizzy, sweetheart, take a breath, I'm right here, we can talk as long as you want to. But who is 'he'? How do you know about me, darling?"

"He was my only friend besides Jenni, all the others moved on so fast. But he told me stories and he could make videos play and he taught me so much. He said being dead was no excuse to stop studying and learning, because one day you'd find a way to bring us back, so we had classes."

Her heart was thudding so hard it was difficult to hear and those stinging, painful goosebumps broke out over her body. Mara sank gracefully to one knee, her hands still on Lizzy's shoulder so she could look up at the girl.

"Lizzy, sweetheart, slow down for a minute and answer me. When you say 'he', who do you mean?"

Lizzy looked at Mara like Mara was being incredibly dense, but her voice was still sweet and her hands clutched onto Mara's bare arms.

"I mean Noble, Auntie. He took care of me."