It had been a week. Connor was still limping around their new home trying to be helpful. His obedient attitude had never bothered Abby up till now. She wished that he'd just rest so his ankle could heal. She feared that it was broken but Connor had stopped complaining long ago. That had to be good. Right?

Abby swung her foot up gracefully into the log rig. Connor had set it up on arrival so Abby could practise her kickboxing. She was their best defence at the moment – and he liked to watch her moves. Connor stood by her side. He was a little too close for comfort but over the time they'd spent together he'd grown better at dodging her blows. The latest one had been a near miss however.

"Connor will you please sit down? You're getting in my way!" Abby snapped.

"Testy." Connor muttered but did as she said. "This brings back memories." He admitted, wincing as he sat down.

"Of what?"

"D of E."

Abby laughed. She remembered how Connor had told her on their first stakeout together that he'd broken his ankle on the first day of camping out for the Duke of Edinburgh.

"Connor why did you do it in the first place? I've said it before and I'll say it again, you're not the outdoors type."

"I can try can't I?" he replied indignantly."Look at me now!"

"Yeah, desperately missing your laptop." Abby retorted.

Ignoring this comment Connor answered the original question.

"My mum was into the outdoors kind of thing. She pressured me into it."

Abby knew for a fact that Connor could be easily persuaded to do almost anything and remained unsurprised.

THWACK went her foot against the wood.

"You never talk about your parents. Why's that?"

"Not much to say really."

Abby wasn't convinced.

"Go on."

"What about you? The only part of your family I've met is Jack." Connor pointed out.

"Not the best example." Abby agreed. "But you first.

"My dad brought me up to be a true geek. He educated me in Star Wars, Blake 7, Doctor Who and loads more including comics. He was brilliant – taught me not to care what other people said. As for my mum she always knows what to say. She is VERY outdoorsy and often forced me and dad to go on long walks with her. To this day I can't understand how they got together but I'm glad they did."

Connor glanced longingly at Abby; his parent's relationship reminded him a lot of their own.

"They sound great."

"Yeah."

"What happened to your dad?"

Connor was taken by surprise.

"What makes you think anything happened to him?" he asked nervously.

Abby stopped, her foot in mid-air. She gave him a look.

"I'm not stupid Connor. It's written all over your face. Plus your tenses gave away a fair bit."

He looked away from her.

"I'd rather not talk about it."

"Come on Conn!"

There was a brief moment of silence.

"He died."

"Oh. What from?"

"I don't know. I just know he isn't here anymore. When I visit mum its never quite the same."

Abby listened intently, wondering if she'd probed too far.

"Right, my turn!" she announced.

Abby's babbling filled the air as she tried to lighten the mood. It took a good twenty minutes before she made Connor laugh with her step mum's amusing Christmas dinner story.

By now she was thoroughly tired from her workout session and together they went inside their hideout.

From the shadows a man watched. His brown eyes mirrored Connor's and he sighed, brushing a tuft of blonde hair out of them.

"I'm sorry son, but someday you will understand."

The man's face brightened as a glistening light was cast on him. Connor's father stepped through the anomaly by his side and disappeared back to his home realm, back where he was known by another name.