I don't own Roswell or any of its franchise - sadly...but my birthday is coming up, so I'm as ever hopeful.

A/N Uhm...hi...Not dead:) That's about all I can say about this epic wait I've made you suffer through. Without boring you with the gruesome details, just trust me on the fact that I wasn't in the mood to write. At all. Now, since it's been a long time since I last updated, I've put in a small summary of the last chapter for you to help you remember. This chapter will set up the scene for the next one that will be a lot more violent in nature. Once you've read this, I think you'll understand why. Now please enjoy and again, sorry for the wait!

Last time on TATT: Liz and Maria bullied Alex into joining them for the Father's Day Camping Weekend in Frazier Woods. The time travelling trio decided to participate as well. Isabel tried her hardest to get Alex to stop being scared around her. Kyle started having a mysterious headache and dissapeared into the wood in the middle of the night. The hybrids found him and were shellshocked to realize that the human teenager suddenly seemed to remember things about the original timeline...

This chapter has been corrected with a little help from marzmez! Thank you:D

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Michael's POV

Floored couldn't even begin to describe the sensation flowing through Michael's body. For the first time since he could remember, all of Michael's attention was on the person in front of him and not halfway reached out to the surroundings to check for intruders.

"Whoa," the exclamation left his lips after the silence had stretched on a little too long and no one had spoken yet. Kyle's narrowed eyes left the frozen Isabel with clear reluctance and they trailed over to meet Michael's.

"'Whoa' is definitely the right word here," Kyle agreed, flexing his muscles, "I better be dreaming. I better be dreaming that you all look like teenagers. Someone tell me that I'm fucking dreaming; this is too bizarre, even for us."

Kyle got to his feet, when no one answered him, and then his next words sent a rush of sympathy through Michael, "This is not what I thought happened after one's death. Buddhism isn't supposed to go like this; it doesn't send you back to your old crappy life!"

"You know that-" Isabel's voice cracked and Michael watched sadly as Max quickly walked over and placed an arm around her shoulders, lending her some of his silent strength.

Kyle bit his lip for a second, looking a little guilty all of the sudden, before he sighed and finished Isabel's question. "Do I know that I died? Yeah, actually I do. It's becoming clearer by the second what happened. Every last bit, and I wish I didn't remember anything. Now, please tell me that I'm just lying on that floor, completely blown to pieces by my own doing and imagining this as I travel to better places or my next life or whatever. This is just too much for me right now."

"Somehow," Max's voice was both full of genuine sadness and delight at the same time and Michael couldn't blame him, because he felt exactly the same way. "You're back in your own body the year you turned sixteen. Like us."

"What do you mean?" Kyle stood straighter, adopting the pose of a much older individual; it briefly made Michael wonder if this was what the other humans in their lives saw whenever Michael and the others' mask slipped occasionally. If so, it's no wonder they're all a lot more questioning around us this time around; it doesn't look natural…

"I mean," Max sighed, getting Michael back to the present with a small internal jolt, "that we traveled back in time, ending up in our own bodies at the time and well…" Max's smiled a bit apologetically, "it's all really technical and only Serena and Liz ever really got the full grasp of things concerning the Granolith."

Michael immediately wanted to slap Max, when Kyle's face turned pale and he apparently seemed to realize for the first time just what being in the past meant for him. "L-Liz? Serena? Are they here too?"

"We're currently sixteen, so Serena's not, but the rest of them are there." Isabel answered softly, her teary eyes never leaving Kyle's.

Kyle stood immobile for a long second, before Michael finally decided to actually speak as well. "We're in Frazier Woods right now – Your dad's here too. Still think it's bad to be back in your crappy old life?"

If Michael hadn't already been through hell, and a marriage to a dramatic Maria, the glare Kyle sent his way would've probably made him wilt, but instead, Michael simply smirked and pointed behind him. "He's there with the other fathers and Liz, Maria, and Alex."

Kyle gasped and sat down on the ground with a bump; his face clearly told all of them that he was at his limit. "I can't even remember the last time I actually thought about Alex," he whispered, after a long silence.

Michael knew what he meant, their lives had changed so drastically after they'd escaped during their graduation and when death, torture and plain desperation had slowly taken over their lives, the death of their first human friend and ally had just been one of many fatalities.

"It's weird at first," Michael said, when once again no one seemed to know what to say, "but I promise you that it's not a bad thing to be back here. We'll go back later, but first, I hate to be the one to ruin the mood, but, we need to come up with some damn good reasons for your change; the way you are now is nothing like the kid that came to this forest today."

Max nodded, and Kyle grabbed a firm hold of the hand that Michael reached down to him and let himself be pulled back to his feet.

Isabel wasn't moving with them and it was only then that Michael noticed that the air around her simmered with a pungent heat and he bit back a curse. It was no secret that Max was the strongest one of them all, but Isabel's powers were not without dangers, and she, like the rest of them, had a tendency to lose control of things once her emotions became too volatile. And judging from the way Isabel's brown eyes remained fixated on Kyle, and the almost invisible quiver of her lower lip, she was understandably very emotional.

Michael could see the moment Kyle realized what was going on, because he stopped moving and stared right back at her, no doubt remembering the times that any one of them had lost their precious control, "Iz," he started to say softly before Max took a step towards Isabel, muttering repeatedly for her to breathe deeply.

Michael could feel the oppressing force emanating from Isabel and walked over to stand protectively in front of the now panting Kyle, ready to jump into action if need be, because he just knew that Kyle's own powers hadn't travelled with him, or else he'd have used them by now.

Only Michael never got a chance to do much of anything before they all heard rapid footsteps approaching and suddenly a lone figure very inelegantly tumbled out into the small, moonlit clearing and this time Michael couldn't stop himself from muttering a harsh expletive.

Alex's POV

Alex wasn't able to sleep. He tossed and turned several times, trying to get more comfortable, but no matter how he tried, his sleep eluded him. It didn't particularly help matters that his father was snoring so loud that Alex briefly wondered if the tiny tent's structure could handle the vibrations.

With a heavy sigh, Alex sat up, running a hand through his ruffled hair. It had been some very weird couple of days and his entire worldview had shifted right along with it all. Alex bit his lip when, not for the first time, his almost photographic memory brought up Isabel's beautiful face twisted with hate and murderous intent. As always, when the memory popped up, Alex quickly attempted to think of something else before it could proceed on to the thing that really scared him.

The pain from Isabel's blow had been excruciating, the feeling of his own warm blood gushing out of him, still made him break out into cold sweats. He'd felt an odd chill creep through his bones and his sight had dimmed quickly as he struggled for air that just wouldn't come. He'd heard noises around him, but he simply had no strength left to open his eyes. Then Max Evans' deep voice had insisted that he do just that and after that things had gotten even crazier.

Alex shook his head, attempting to shed the memory like a snake shed its skin. I can't keep doing this to myself, he thought, there's things going on beneath the surface that I have no part in; Michael said so himself. I know logically that Isabel never meant to hurt me, I know that, but whenever she's around me, I can't stop remembering the way she looked just before her powers struck me down…

Sighing once more, Alex finally decided to go outside for a bit of fresh air. He grabbed his new parka, slipped it on and quietly exited the tent, although he knew from past experience that nothing short of a natural disaster would wake his dad.

The starry night cast a beautiful glow over the clearing that was filled with other tents. Aside from various snoring, it was quiet. Almost eerily so and Alex shrugged off the peculiar feeling running through him. He'd been walking a few minutes in the edge of the clearing, making sure not to wander too much, because he knew very well what kind of sense of direction he possessed, when something happened.

In a flash, Alex was bowled over, gagging harshly into the cold ground, gripping lumps of grass frantically in his clenched hands. It felt as though waves upon waves of foreign emotions rammed into him with a crushing blow that had him in its grip as if he was nothing more than a tiny leaf flowing in the air in the middle of a storm.

Fear, anger, guilt, love, crushing hope and overwhelming despair were the ones that Alex felt the most and as he lay gasping, he tried to remember what Liz and Maria had said about the bond between them and their non human friends.

As was the norm, Liz had been the calm one as she tried to explain the situation, while Maria had stood next to her, twisting her hands and muttering briefly about getting some oil to relax them all. "I can safely say, Alex," Liz had begun without preamble, "that I completely understand your unwillingness to accept what is happening inside of you. I had very big difficulties with the whole connection to another person just sprouting into life from one day to the next. What you have to remember is that it's not just a one-way street. What you feel, she feels and it can be tremendously soothing."

Maria had nodded and then said when Alex's face had remained dubious, "Believe it or not, I'm actually not freaked about the bond I now share with Spa…Michael. In fact, I think it's nice to know that there's someone out there able to connect with me like that. Okay," Maria had smiled briefly, sharing a knowing glance with Liz before continuing, "I'll admit, I wasn't that good at handling it initially, but, now that I'm used to it, I don't think I could just cut it off, like Liz did."

"Wait, what?" Alex's insides had filled with cautious hope at the thought of perhaps killing the link that he somehow had with the girl that had almost killed him.

Liz had sent Maria a withering glare, before taking a deep breath and piercing Alex with her big russet eyes; it had been clear as day that was she was about to say was very serious.

"I will not recommend it; in fact, I'll even beg you to not ever consider it. Trust me in nothing else but this, it is not the right solution. I reacted poorly and I was stupid and self-centered when I made that call and it nearly broke me when I found out how much my refusal had hurt Max. I understand your reservations like no other, but please, don't even suggest that she close the bond between the two of you. It'll only be that much more horrible when you inevitably re-open it. I know, Alex. I also know that she'll do it to make you happy, no matter how much it'll cost her in the end. Just…" Liz had looked almost desperate as she attempted to make him understand. "Just try and breathe deeply and send calm back if things ever get to be too much for you; that's the best way for both of you, I swear."

The memory of his two best friends' quiet intensity about the mental connection between him and Isabel ran through Alex's confused mind in a split second and he tried to do as Liz had suggested; growing more and more desperate to alleviate some of the paralyzing emotions running through him without his own free will.

Breathe in, Alex thought and drew in a shaky breath, while trying to think about happier times. Unbidden, the memory of that night where an obviously shaken Isabel had showed up on his doorstep, came to him, and Alex exhaled deeply, recalling with a portion of his mind how concerned he'd been for her and how much he'd wanted to help her.

When he let himself focus on that memory of having Isabel in his arms, clinging to him like he was her lifeline, Alex finally started to lose a little bit of his fear and as that happened, he could feel how his growing calm oozed out of him and as a result the viciously pouring emotions from Isabel dimmed just a bit and slowly transformed into something else; something a little more healthy to his system.

'This can't be happening…Oh my God!'

The words seeped into Alex's mind, like a broken whisper and he recognized it as being Isabel's voice. But never had he heard so much agony in anyone's voice, and it was in that moment that all of his fears and doubts evaporated and Alex wanted nothing more than locate Isabel and help her. Because there was no doubt in his mind, Isabel needed him.

Before he was even aware of it, Alex was up and on the move. Running through the darkened forest with only the barest of moonlight to guide him, the lanky teen never once stopped to wonder how it was that he never hesitated in the dark, how it was possible that he knew without a shadow of a doubt just where Isabel was.

Finally, Alex could see movement ahead and only a few seconds later, he came to an abrupt stop, completely confused at what he was seeing.

Michael was standing in front of a panting Kyle, who looked ill and nauseous, while Max was trying to get Isabel to breathe, her coffee eyes widened almost comically as they stared intensely at Kyle.

"What's going on here?" Alex asked, keeping Isabel within his eyesight the whole time; he had a sudden urge to grab her and just walk away until she once again resembled the girl that had tried so hard to get under his skin during the bus ride to the forest.

The reaction to his unexpected arrival was imminent. If Kyle had looked ill before, it paled in comparison to how his entire face turned pale at the sight of him standing there. Michael and Max looked nothing short of frantic, a look that Alex had never seen before on either of the notoriously stoic guys. Isabel didn't seem to notice his arrival at all, her eyes still fixated on Kyle.

"A-Alex?" Kyle's voice seemed off somehow, but Alex didn't care too much about the jock at the moment; instead he was quickly being overwhelmed by the flood of emotions running out of Isabel and into him. She was so heartbroken and yet indisputably happy and confused at the same time that it nearly knocked him off his feet.

"I-Isabel," Alex whispered her name, feeling like the air was being squeezed out of him for some reason. The blonde didn't react, still too engrossed in Kyle, whose eyes were now locked on Alex's face. It was making the lanky teenager very uncomfortable.

"Isabel!" He raised his voice a little and finally got a reaction out of her. Her entire body shuddered and her face turned a fraction in his direction. It wasn't much, but it was something and Alex walked closer, ignoring Michael's quiet cursing and Max's warning to stay back.

"Look at me, Isabel. You're freaking me out here. I just barely got over my stupid fears, so I'm not really keen on letting you pour fresh panic into me now. Come on, Isabel, look at me."

'I'm so sorry, but I just can't believe this is happening to me' Once again, Isabel's voice sounded crystal clear inside Alex's head and he couldn't quite stop himself from flinching.

"There's nothing to be sorry for," he muttered, deciding rightfully so that whatever was going on was something alien related that he was better off not knowing the details. All he cared about at that point in time was getting Isabel over whatever it was that was affecting her so much. He had this weird feeling that he just might be the only one that could help her right now.

"Just breathe deeply and stop staring at Kyle so much." Alex forced a smile on his face, trying to lighten the mood, "I mean, I thought I was the guy you sort of liked, right?"

'I love you Alex, I wish you'd know that without any doubts' Isabel was still looking at the pale Kyle, as the words drifted into the teen's mind and he swallowed harshly. Suddenly, Alex's concern melted into a flare of happiness that he somehow sent back through the link he shared with the gorgeous girl.

With a start, Isabel finally broke the stare she had leveled on Kyle, only to fix her dark brown eyes on Alex. The teen straightened up, trying to hide his apprehension when Isabel suddenly launched herself at him, throwing her arms around him and planting her face in the nook of his neck.

Too distracted with the six foot woman in his arms, Alex barely noticed the odd pressure in the air return to normal. The woodland creatures came out of their hiding places and once again started making their nocturnal sounds, enveloping the four people in a much more peaceful quiet.

The moment was surprisingly serene and Alex couldn't help but hate himself a little for actually having feared the shivering female, who was latching on to him like he was her only hope of survival. I won't ever let this freak me out again, Alex promised himself inwardly, scary or not, Isabel is this wonderful person that I've been in love with since she showed up in school so many years ago…

Isabel started a bit in his arms, and briefly, Alex feared that he'd spoken out loud, but then he heard her melodic voice in his head again, and this time he didn't feel afraid at all, 'I didn't know you'd cared about me for so long…So many years wasted…'

"It's okay," Alex whispered in Isabel's ear, not quite sure about his newfound ability to read and send thoughts to her, "you know now."

He could feel her smile at his neck, her warm breaths tickling his skin. "Yeah," she muttered back, "I do."

Alex had no clue how long he stood in the clearing with Isabel, but eventually, his eyes left her to travel towards the other guys, who hadn't said a word since Isabel had turned to him so fervently.

"Uhm, so should we go back to camp?" Alex looked over at her brother. Max was standing immobile next to Kyle, his eyes shifting between the amazingly still pale jock, to Isabel and him before quickly scanning the environment like he was keeping watch. It's like he's making sure we're not being surrounded for some reason, Alex realized, frowning a little to himself as his perceptive nature returned to him a bit from the wonderland, Isabel's confession had sent it into.

It was Michael, who answered his question a few moments later. "Probably should. Don't want the sheriff to wake up and find out his only kid's missing, do we?"

At the mention of Sheriff Valenti, Kyle reacted visibly with a flinch and his eyes widened impossibly. Are that tears in his eyes? Alex's mild frown turned deeper, but Isabel's grip tightened and retook his attention.

She spoke, her voice a bit muffled from its' secure place by Alex's neck. "I'll go with Alex in a few minutes. You go ahead. We'll talk soon, okay? About...About everything right, K-Kyle?" her voice faltering at the other human's name.

Kyle nodded his agreement and Michael took him by the arm to lead him back towards the campsite; he sent a quick, almost grateful look at Alex before swiftly leaving. At first, Max hesitated momentarily, but then sighed and disappeared silently as well.

Alex took a deep breath and tried to end the hug, but Isabel merely gripped on to him even tighter and whispered, her voice sounding a little desperate, "Not yet, Alex. Please. I just wanna stand here a little bit longer…"

Copying himself from an evening not too long ago, Alex placed his arms around the girl he was now sure he loved and said firmly, echoing the words from that night again, "It's okay; I'll just stand here with you for as long as you need it, Isabel. Take all the time you want, I'm not going anywhere."

The small sigh of relief that Alex felt from her, told him that he'd finally done the right thing and he smiled softly into her hair. I won't let you down again Isabel. I swear…

Max's POV

A couple of days later, Max entered the school and expertly ignored the stares he knew was being sent his way. The reason for the stares was the teenager walking next to him, looking for all the world like he didn't give a crap about anything.

"I can't believe they're so bent outta shape about us hanging together," Kyle's voice was faintly amused and Max swallowed a smirk of his own, knowing just how he felt. "I mean, we hung out before in the other life of ours, admittedly it was over a longer adjustment period, but still. Us being friends shouldn't be such a shock to them."

"I think it's more the fact that you have completely ignored your other friends ever since Frazier Woods," Max said calmly, reaching his locker and started opening it. He knew it looked weird to anyone not in the know about what was going on.

The popular jock, Kyle Valenti suddenly attaching himself to the school's most reserved guy, Max Evans and shunning his former in-crowd of friends. It must have looked severely odd. But Max honestly didn't care. I'm just happy that I've got my old friend back, he thought, grabbing his books and shutting the locker again.

While Michael would always be his brother in all but blood, Max had found a very close friend in Kyle over the years and without saying it out loud, he knew that Kyle felt the same way about him. Or why else did he come to me that time with Isabel? Max asked himself as memories of the past assaulted him. With a tired sigh, Max shut the door in his mind that was eager to open and shove his past into the forefront of his mind.

"So, are you planning on sleeping at your own house tonight?"

Kyle's face turned grim and he glanced away. "Err, nah, you know. We've still got so much to talk about and I need to catch up to everything. Hell, I still need to beat my urges to not choke Tess whenever I see her."

Max nodded mutely, remembering exactly how much Tess' reappearance in their lives had shocked the somehow time jumping human; how much everything had shocked him.

When they'd all reached the campsite, Michael had pointed out the tent Kyle shared with his dad. Max's heart had ached with pity when Kyle's scared eyes had found his, trying to understand that his father wasn't dead anymore. That he was back in a time where the sheriff was suspicious and where the relationship they had was a mere shadow of the one they'd had in the original timeline.

Max had walked over to his shivering friend and started to say something comforting, only to stop when the sheriff suddenly started rustling and had opened the zipper in the tent and looked out at them with a distrustful glint in his steely eyes.

"Hi Boys," he'd greeted and Max had felt the jolt that went through Kyle's body as keenly as it had been his own at the sight of his currently living father. "It's a bit too late for a midnight stroll, ain't it?"

Within moments, Kyle had been told to go to bed and the tent firmly reclosed. Max had walked over to the silently waiting Michael with a mixed feeling. On one hand, his heart was both heavy at the new set of problems that would arise, but on the other hand, he could barely recall a time when he'd been so thrilled. Despite the problems it'd no doubt cause, his friend was back.

"How do we tell him about Tess?" Michael had asked bluntly when Max finally reached him. "He's bound to try and kill her before she gets a word in and he realizes that she's not the Tess we dealt with already."

Max had been about to say that he would tell him on the bus when the camping trip was over the next day, and there was so much other noise that Kyle's undoubtedly numerous curses would be easier to overhear, when he heard one such distinctive expletive coming from Kyle and his dad's tent.

Max had spun around, muscles tensing and his fingers already clenched for anything and out of the corner of his eyes, he'd seen Michael adopt his own instinctive battle stance. But seconds later, they had both straightened up to seem more natural when many of the other campers put their sleep ruffled heads out of their tents to witness a now furious Kyle Valenti stomp out of his tent and towards a completely surprised duo of time travelling hybrids.

"He's being an ass," Kyle had hissed, crossing his arms and sending one of the deadliest glares in his arsenal towards the curious onlookers. "Weren't you all supposed to be sleeping?" he'd roared unapologetically before turning back to Max and Michael.

"Evans, I'm crashing at your place the next few days – now go make me a sleeping bag, it's fucking freezing out here."

It was the sound of the bell that brought Max back to the present and he looked over at Kyle, who was watching him with a small smile on his lips. "What?"

"Just nice to see that some things don't change; you're still not much of a talker, you know." Kyle teased and followed Max inside the classroom where they were about to have Spanish.

"I talk," Max defended and sat down in his usual seat where he knew he could survey the entire room and still have easy access to at least two escape routes. Some habits are very hard to kill, Max thought ruefully, silently watching as Kyle unceremoniously took the seat next to him, completely ignoring the huffing girl that had just been about to sit there.

"Oh yeah, you're a regular chatter box," Kyle grinned, before he looked around the room and his expression turned blank. Max didn't have to look to know that he'd caught sight of Tess, who was also in this class.

Trying to distract his friend, Max spoke a little louder than was his norm. "I was just thinking about the Convention…It's just like I remembered it, crazy and busy. Wanna lend a hand? You know, this way you could pay me back for letting you crash at my place?"

His tactic worked, and Max swallowed a victorious smile when Kyle looked over at him with raised brows. "The only reason I'm even a little comfortable is 'cause Iz used that special skill that you're too lazy to use for me and made me a decent sleeping spot. Your floor and a sleeping bag is not my idea of comfort."

"Michael never complained," Max pointed out; loving the banter that he'd barely known he'd missed so much.

Kyle snorted and pointed out that Michael was a special case just before the teacher came in and class began.

0o0o0

A few hours later, Max was basically dragging Kyle with him over to the UFO Centre where his alien obsessed boss was running around frantically, weaving in and out of the crowd. His beady eyes lit up with profound relief when he caught sight of him and Max repressed the sudden urge to flee. I lived through this once, he reminded himself firmly, and I've lived through a lot worse than this. Just take it easy.

"EVANS!" Milton's voice rose loudly above the others' and Max cringed inwardly. He discreetly sent a glare at Kyle, who was snickering. For the first time since Kyle's return so to speak, the human didn't look burdened. But then again, Max thought, he never knew Milton and has no ties whatsoever to this place like I do. Lucky him…

"There you are," Milton sounded a little out of breath when he caught up the them, his eyes scanning Kyle briefly before turning towards Max with a seldom seen desperation in his eyes. "I'm getting overrun here. I need you to pitch in. And if your friend here is a true believer like us, he's more than welcome to join in the festivities."

Both Max and his fidgeting boss could hear Kyle's muttered, "I'm a true believer, alright," but Max didn't warn him about Milton's obsessive personality. Fifteen minutes later, Kyle was sent outside wearing a green alien suit that Max was more than happy to never enter again, to hand out flyers and Max was saddled with the responsibility that was the ego of one Jonathan Frakes.

Max had just finished making sure the actor was at least somewhat content with his accommodations and he had reluctantly started his shift in the dreaded information booth, when he suddenly felt a spike of pure fear impale him and the bottle of water that he'd planted on a small table in the booth exploded soundlessly, splashing his pants with water.

Max didn't care, he barely even noticed his powers acting out in response to what was happening inside of him, all that the once upon a time King could process was that Liz was scared. Within seconds, he was outside of the UFO Centre and in route to the Crashdown Café where he knew Liz was working her after school shift.

Moments that felt like forever passed as Max ran faster than he could remember to get to Liz's side. His imagination thinking up gruesome scenarios; Khivar had somehow followed them to the past, the Skins had arrived despite their efforts to lay low, Pierce was in the diner, hell he even imagined that yet another shooter was back to finish the job of killing the woman he loved.

I can't lose you again, Liz, Max thought as he finally reached his destination, I will do anything…

Liz's POV

"Gosh, I hate this time a year," Liz muttered, weaving through a bustle of customers to get to the kitchen where José was screaming for her to pick up her latest finished order.

She nearly bumped into Isabel, who was looking annoyingly immaculate as ever, while Liz knew she probably looked like something had spit her back out after chewing on her a bit. Plus, she was sweating in the blistering heat. The air-condition was broken, and although Isabel had promised to look at it, there simply were too many people around for her to do it without getting noticed.

"Watch it!" one such would be witness sneered irritably when Liz stepped on his foot to avoid bumping into Isabel and thus getting soaked in the platter of sodas that the tall blonde was carrying.

"Sorry, sorry," Liz mumbled, hoping that Isabel hadn't heard the guy's comment, because for some reason, the beautiful Czechoslovakian was almost as protective of her as Maria was. And to add to it, Liz knew that Isabel had been going through some kind of hard time lately; her eyes were always shadowed with some dark emotion that only Alex seemed to be able to dim a little.

Fortunately, Isabel was already in the middle of delivering her beverages so Liz didn't foresee any more problems and heaved a relieved sigh as she finally picked up her finished order.

Maria cut in front of her, wiping a beat of sweat of her glistening forehead with a towel she carried for such purposes. "How is it that I always get roped into this stupid shift every year?" Maria complained, taking a brief break as she waited for José's helper to finish her order.

Liz smiled when her dad, who just happened to be walking by with a new order, commented with a grin, "'cause you love us and we supply you with the means for your addiction for certain clothing."

Liz let the familiar sounds of her dad and Maria's friendly jibes flow over her, and she quickly made her way to her waiting table with the hot food.

Just as she finished putting down the plates, a fresh batch of customers started strolling in and Liz looked over to do the habitual headcount when her heart stopped.

"Oh no," the words left her lips without her really realizing it; her heart had begun pounding with the speed of a startled rabbit. She must have looked completely freaked out because it didn't take long before Maria and Isabel abandoned their customers and came rushing to her side.

"What's wrong Liz?" Maria asked, putting her hand on Liz's forehead as if to check for a fever. "Are you gonna throw up? Are you stressed, I have some scented oil for that in my bag in the backroom if you want some."

While Maria went into motherhenning mode, Liz saw Isabel scan the diner for threats, evidently having read her expression as the fear it really was. The second Isabel spotted the reason for Liz's mild public freak-out; her taller frame froze as well.

Maria, who was completely oblivious, disappeared to get the oil and placate a now hoarsely screaming José. Isabel immediately turned towards Liz with a blank expression on her face and asked, "Aren't they the two tourists that were here the day of the shooting."

"Yeah," Liz nodded and tried getting her fright under control; she could feel it being tripled the second Max felt her fears and she knew he was thinking the worst. "Um, I'll go get their orders. They're probably just here for the Convention and got hungry. Right?"

Isabel didn't answer, but her dire look didn't do much to sooth the nervous brunette. Liz had just handed the staring pair a set of menus with a smile that was admittedly brittle when the doors to the Crashdown were slammed open from the outside and Max all but stumbled inside.

The crowded diner stilled and watched curiously as the tall guy quickly regained his balance and started looking for and found Liz. She could feel his crushing relief at finding her psychically fine and then his own startle rush through her when he too recognized the nosy duo.

"Isn't that the guy that helped you that day?" The stocky guy, Liz remembered to be Larry asked. His eyes never blinking as he stared from her to Max and back at her, it was obvious he had no intention to leave right away.

"Hi, I'm Isabel and I'll be your waitress until Liz gets back from her much needed break," Isabel smiled flirtatiously down at the now gobsmacked looking Larry, "I hope that'll be okay with you? We're kinda busy these days."

Liz smiled and gestured for Max to follow her into the back. The second the door closed behind them, Max took her in his arms and all of Liz's fears mysteriously floated away into nothingness. As long as I'm in his arms, nothing can be that dangerous, she thought with an internal smile and then she grimaced, I just hope he won't think I'm disgusting, I must smell awful right now.

"You smell fine," Max's deep voice startled Liz out of her thoughts and she looked up with wide eyes. "And you look as beautiful as ever. Antenna's are a really good look for you." He smiled; his breathing already back to normal from his run.

"Did you read my mind?" Liz blurted out, feeling pretty sure she hadn't spoken out loud just then. Max smiled again and hugged her closer as he answered her.

"I just know you well, I guess," and Liz put the matter behind her for now, perfectly happy to just enjoy a rare moment with her sort of boyfriend.

It didn't last long before Maria burst in with a small bottle in her hand and a wide eyed look in her eyes. "Liz! There you are! Hi Max, didn't know you were here. Oh, Liz that reminds me; you have no idea who I just saw Isabel talking to!"

Liz reluctantly let go of Max and tried to calm her best friend, who looked just as freaked as she'd been herself only minutes ago. "Larry and Jennifer; the two tourists that were the only one close enough to actually see Max do something to me after the shooting."

"Yeah that about covers what I was about to say," Maria nodded, sniffing deeply from the oil with an ease that came from much practice. "What do we do now? This stupid convention always brings out the crazies and I have this feeling that not even Amidala's looks will deter the guy for long. He looks way too shifty for that."

Max furrowed his brow in bemusement and looked down at Liz. "Amidala?"

"Don't ask," Liz advised him and then she straightened up as a plan came to her. "We're just gonna act normal around them and then, when the convention ends, everything returns to the way it was. Easy as pie."

Maria nodded, putting away the bottled oil in her uniform and Max kissed her cheek. "I've gotta go back; Milton's probably having a coronary without me and Kyle's no doubt ready to kill me for getting roped into helping out. I'll see you later, okay?"

Liz nodded and watched in silence as he slipped out the backdoor; obviously eager to avoid the prying humans sitting out in the diner with Isabel.

"Am I the only one still not really on board with his friendship with Valenti?" Maria's question brought Liz back to the real world and she looked over at her best friend.

"I think we should just stay out of that one for now. Kyle was never a big fan of Max and the others, so having him on our side now is a good thing. At least that's what I think."

"I know," Maria agreed, surprising Liz with the serious look on her face, "but I just worry that they've done some kind of mojo on him or something. I mean, yesterday at school he was practically staring holes in my back and," Maria raised a finger, "he asked for my help in geometry. How the hell does he know I'm good at that? I mean, we've gone to school together all our lives, but we haven't exactly run in the same circles."

Liz shrugged, trying not to remember the weird vibes she too had been getting from her once upon a time fling, "I don't know, Maria. But I guess we run in the same circles now, if Max and he are getting friendly, so maybe Max told him."

Maria was about to speak again, when the door opened, and a frazzled looking Jeff Parker stuck his head through. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but we're getting swamped out there. More working and less talking, please."

Liz shared a suffering glance with Maria before they both dove out to continue their shifts. And Liz found time in-between serving to fill Isabel in on the plan they'd concocted about acting normal in front of the still staring Larry and now slightly annoyed looking Jennifer.

I can't wait to go to sleep tonight, Liz thought with a yawn before smiling widely at her newest customer, who apparently expected her to read the damn menu for her and have a big debate about whether the Sigourney Weaver Special was in any way less realistic looking than the Will Smith one.

Max's POV

Max was feeling pretty stupid as he returned to the UFO Centre. Kyle had intercepted him on his return and was grumbling about cruel and unusual punishments as they made their way inside.

"I saw you speed through earlier; what's up?" Kyle asked when he finally seemed to be running out of curses.

Max smiled contritely and quickly explained about feeling Liz's distress and about the two tourists. Kyle nodded knowingly; he had had enough experience around the two bonded couples in the other timeline to know what it meant.

"Gotta say, I'm still happy I don't have one of those things myself," he commented and Max smirked, knowing that his friend was lying through his teeth. "I'm my own man, always have been and always will be."

"Sure you are," Max said still smiling a little before turning serious again, "I just wish I could somehow stop things from exploding in our faces all the time. I mean, we're doing our best to make sure things don't go like the last time and then those two show up and threaten everything."

"Well, Evans, let's be happy about one thing at least." Kyle said, slapping Max gently on the shoulder with a cautious look about him. Evidently, he still had trouble remembering that Max's back was no longer a map of aching scars and that he was now free to touch him without risking Max bursting into a scream of pain.

"Oh, what's that?" Max asked and waited for Kyle's reply that came promptly.

"At least it can't get any worse now, right?"

Max winced, knowing just how much those words always tested fate. And sure enough, two things happened at the same time a few seconds later, which proved Kyle wrong. A small, curly haired blonde suddenly appeared in front of them and greeted Kyle with a timid looking smile, while Milton's voice called for Max's attention.

When Max looked over at his boss, he immediately forgot all about Kyle's lack of anger control around Tess. All his attention was on the middle-aged man standing quietly observing, next to Milton.

"Evans, there you are. I've been wanting to introduce you to one of the big boys around here. I mean, he's a real catch for the convention for one thing. This is Everett Hubble, he's an alien hunter. Hubble, this is my go to guy, Max Evans that I told you about."

It took everything in Max to act casual as he reached out a non shaking hand. "Hi, it's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Hubble."

Hubble's eyes narrowed and he smiled insincerely, as he returned the handshake, "Oh, I assure you, the pleasure is all mine."

TBC…

Next Time On TATT: Max and co. brew up a plan to deal with Hubble that will show just how transformed they really are while simultaniously starting to mend some fences with the ever suspicious Sheriff...

A/N I smell trouble...Now, please review and tell me what you think, good or bad - it'll help me guilt me into faster updates:D

Until Next Time

Ditte Mai