Chapter Three

When Aisling arrived the next day for her first rehearsal as Peter's temporary replacement, Mike noticed that she looked a little sad and a little tired. He wondered if there was still something she wasn't telling him, especially after the dream he'd had two nights previously, the one with the girl who looked like Aisling, but wasn't, yet was at the same time.

Aisling saw him staring at her and flashed him a shy smile as she put down her bag. She could tell he was worrying about her from the look on his face, which she thought was sweet and made her heart do a couple of back flips for good measure. But she was still a little spooked by her own dream, not knowing that Radha had made contact with Mike, so she was hesitant to say anything or do anything that might give herself away. Instead she approached Peter, gave him a quick peck on the cheek and asked him if his hand was starting to feel any better.

"It still hurts a little," he replied, "but the doctor said the pain should go away once it's started to heal some more."

"That's good," Aisling smiled. "Just be a little more careful the next time it's your turn to do the dishes, sweetie."

Peter nodded, "I will."

She walked to the bandstand and took up position behind the keyboard, sneaking a quick glance at Mike when she thought he wasn't looking. He was wearing his black button-down shirt and a pair of tight jeans, accentuating his lithe figure nicely and giving Aisling more than a little eye candy. She groaned, running her hands through her long hair and thinking, 'Stop looking at his backside, you cretin!' To make matters worse, Mike chose that moment to bend over and adjust the volume on his amp, which gave Aisling a better view, prompting her to think, 'Too late,' and letting out a small sigh. She smiled stupidly, leaning on the keyboard and resting her head on her hand, 'Well, I guess looking won't hurt, he IS worth it after all.'

Mike stood, then turned to face Davy, Micky and Aisling, and consciously decided not to embarrass Aisling by asking her why she was looking at him with a silly grin on her face and a slight blush in her cheeks. It didn't take much to realise that he was the one making her blush, whether he intended to or not, but it felt nice for a girl to notice him for a change, when all the girls they usually encountered never gave him a second look and fell for Davy's charms at the drop of a hat.

"Uh, what do you want to start with, Ais?" he asked.

"Whatever ye want, Mike," she replied. "What do ye usually start with?"

"How about 'I'm a Believer'?" Micky suggested, winking at Davy, "That one should be easy enough."

Aisling nodded, "Sounds good, I play that one all the time at home," she said.

Mike counted them off and Aisling started to play the intro to 'I'm a Believer', hitting only one or two wrong notes when the rest of the group joined in. Even though Aisling hadn't played with them before, with a little assistance from Peter joining her and whispering all the bits and pieces she needed to remember in her ear, she managed to keep up without falling behind whenever she made a mistake. Aisling's confidence grew as they progressed through the rehearsal, beginning to rely on her own abilities than on Peter's help, and she breezed through the next couple of songs with little difficulty.

It was at this time Davy decided to throw in a 'curve ball'. He sidled next to Mike and gave him a nudge. "Hey, Mike?"

"Yeah, Dave?"

"Ain't there a song you wanted to do, but you thought it'd be better as a duet with a girl singer?"

Mike raised an eyebrow, starting to get an idea of where this was heading. "Yeah, what about it?"

"Well, Aisling's a girl, and she sings."

Aisling snorted. "Whatever you're tryin' to do, Davy Jones, I'll have no part of it!" She frowned, "Besides I can't sing! I sound like a horse with a frog in its throat!" She paused for a moment, then said, "No, actually I sound like a horse with a frog in its throat in mating season!"

"Hey, now," Mike said, turning to look at her, a scowl on his face. "That's not true! You have a great voice!" He stopped when he realised what he said, his scowl fading as he looked down at the floor, before adding quietly, "I, uh, I heard you singing to yourself when I drove you home a couple days ago."

An awkward silence filled the room as Aisling processed this information. She opened her mouth to say something then closed it again, unable to put words to what she felt about the whole thing that transpired in the last ten minutes. Mike looked at her, mentally kicking himself, and thinking that he'd said too much, even though he meant every word. "Thank ye," she said at last, to everyone's relief, "That's the first time anyone's said that to me and not just bein' polite." She smiled warmly, "So what's this song ye wanted to do?"

Mike shrugged, "Just this Buffy Sainte-Marie song that I liked, I mean, I could do it by myself, but..."

"Ye wanted to try it as a duet before ye decided what ye wanted to do with it."

"Uh huh."

Now Aisling understood what Davy was trying to do, and she wasn't sure if she should thank him or throttle him. Performing with the band as a temporary member was one thing, but actually singing lead, and not just singing lead but sharing it with MIKE, of all people, was another. She could say no, and hope Mike would understand, or she could say yes, and embarrass herself in front of an audience.

Aisling chewed her lip, "Could I hear you sing it first?" she asked.

"Sure," said Mike, with a nod, "I'll just get the music and my acoustic guitar. Be right back."

When she was sure Mike was well and truly out of earshot, Aisling turned to Davy and said, "Are ye out of your MIND!?!"

Davy shook his head, "No, I'm not completely crackers, Ais, but I'm looking at someone who is."

"Who?"

"You, head over heels for our own W.H. Woolhat and not even making any attempt to admit it!"

Aisling started to reply, then stopped, struck dumb by his innate ability to read her, and just about any woman, like a book.

"I wasn't completely sure, at first," Davy continued, "Not until we had to take Peter to the hospital. The way you and Mike look at each other, there's no mistaking it, all the signs were there, man," he grinned, adding, "They don't call me Casanova Jones for nothing!"

Aisling glanced at Micky and Peter, "I take it you fellas know too?"

They nodded.

"Oh brother."

Peter smiled. "Everything's gonna be okay, Ais, we're gonna help you."

"How?"

"Same as we did for Millie and Larry."

Aisling raised an eyebrow, "You're goin' to get him to tell me that I drive him to distraction, eh? Maybe get him to say me eyes are like cupcakes floatin' in a sea of sour cream?"

"Yes!" said Micky, hastily changing his answer to "No!" when Davy and Peter both glared at him.

"I'm doomed," Aisling moaned, casting her gaze up the stairs to see Mike returning from his bedroom holding a sheaf of paper and his acoustic twelve-string. "Say nothing!" she hissed at the three young men in front of her. She rolled her eyes, and suppressed the urge to laugh when her three friends responded with the universal gestures for 'See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil', in other words, their way of telling her that they understood. Turning her attention to Mike as he returned to the bandstand, Aisling smiled, feeling more than a little relieved to have Peter, Micky and Davy on her side and willing to do whatever they could to help, but also a little worried that their idea of 'help' would be more trouble than it's worth.

Mike put the sheet music on the music stand and pulled up a chair for Aisling, who sat down and studied the melody written on the staff, while he sat beside her, cradling his acoustic twelve-string in his lap. He looked at her for a moment, remembering his dream and wondering if something similar had happened to her, and whether or not he should ask her about it, in private, where three certain mischievous Monkees couldn't overhear them. Aisling must have realised he was looking at her because she stopped reading the music and turned her head in his direction, her teal-green eyes meeting his brown ones with a quizzical look.

"Is there somethin' wrong, Mike? I haven't got somethin' on me face, have I?"

"No, I, uh, I just got a bit..."

Aisling laughed. "Forget I said anythin'. Why don't ye sing this song for me, like we agreed?"

"Okay," he replied, looking down at the guitar and starting to play.

The most beautiful music poured forth from the instrument, pulling at Aisling's heartstrings. But it was when Mike began to sing that sent her over the edge. Without realising it, Aisling started to cry, because even though she'd heard him sing before, the emotion Mike used as the words came out of his mouth was awe-inspiring, and, if she wasn't already in love with him, Aisling would have been by the time she finished listening to the song.

Mike allowed the last chord to ring out, then muted the strings and looked up at Aisling expectantly. He wondered if he'd done something wrong when he saw the tears running down her cheeks.

Aisling gave a small hiccup. "That was beautiful," she said, hiccupping again, "Simply beautiful."

'So are you,' Mike wanted to reply, instead he asked, "Are you okay?"

"Oh, I'm fine, I mean, I'll be fine as soon as I stop cryin'."

"I, uh, I could get you a glass of water," he said, standing from his chair, "To help get rid of your hiccups, I mean."

Peter couldn't help smiling a little, there was something about seeing Mike and Aisling together that felt... right. He, Micky and Davy looked at each other, clearly having the same thought. "Should we clear out now, or are we still going to wait?" he whispered.

"Clear out," Davy whispered back, "I'll go first; you and Micky wait five minutes, then follow."

"Do we have to?" Micky whined.

"Yes we do."

Davy stood from the couch, where the three of them had been sitting. "I'm gonna go for a walk, if that's okay with you fellas?"

Mike looked at him sharply, "But we're still in the middle of rehearsal, Dave."

"Oh let him go," Aisling said, letting out another hiccup, "Give the guys a break while we work on this song. Together."

"So you'll do it?" he asked, looking down at her in surprise.

She nodded, hiccupping again, "I never said no."

Mike set his guitar in its stand, "Hold on, I'll go get you some water. You know, for your hiccups." He turned to Micky, Peter and Davy, "You guys, go do wherever you want, do whatever you want, just be back in, say, an hour?"

The three of them pretended to look surprised that Mike was so eager to get rid of them, because they knew he never acted that way about anyone, with the exception of Mr. Babbitt, since none of them ever wanted him to hang around for very long anyway. They looked at him for a moment, then at each other, and then shrugged and headed out to the beach.

"Okay, I'll get you that water now," said Mike, heading to the kitchen. He searched through the cupboards until he found a relatively clean glass, then quickly filled it with water. Turning around, he slowly walked back to where Aisling sat on the bandstand, careful not to spill any of the liquid. "Here," he said, handing her the glass, "This should fix you right up."

"You didn't need to go to all that trouble," she said, in between sips.

Mike shook his head, "No trouble."

"So," Aisling said once she'd finished her water, "What are we goin' to do now? Work on that song?"

"Uh, could we talk?" Mike asked, "About what happened on the balcony the other day?"

"You mean before we had to take Peter to the hospital?"

He nodded.

"Oh."

They sat together in silence, until both of them suddenly said "I have something I need to tell you!" at the same time.

* * *

"Look, you go first," Mike said at last.

Aisling shook her head, "No, you first, what I have to say can wait."

"Okay, well, you see, I, uh, I had a dream a couple nights ago..."

She raised an eyebrow. "And?"

"You were in it... sort of."

Aisling blushed. "So ye were dreamin' about me?"

"Well, she looked like you, and she felt like you, but at the same time, she wasn't you," he said, silently adding, 'No matter how much I wanted her to be.'

"What did she say to you?"

"She told me that, in the present, she really was you, but in the past, her name was Radha Crane. That's when I realised that she was the voice you said you heard."

Aisling's face turned as white as a sheet. "You've met her?"

Mike nodded. "Yeah, she told me I look like someone she knew. Do you know what she was talkin' about?"

"I do... because I've dreamt about her too, just last night."

"What did she tell you?"

"Lots of things," she said quietly, "And the more I think about it, the more frightened I get."

Mike reached forward and stroked Aisling's cheek, "But you don't have to be frightened, not while I'm around."

"I don't?"

"No, you don't."

Aisling frowned, "But what if you're not around?"

"Then we'll just have to make it so I'm always around."

Aisling's eyes widened, then smiled, blushing furiously. "In that case... Could I ask ye an honest question?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"What do you think about women who make the first move?" she asked, curling her hair with her fingers playfully.

Mike opened his mouth to reply, but stopped when his companion suddenly shot forward and captured his lips with her own. Forgetting himself for a moment, he closed his eyes, becoming lost in the feel of her kiss. It was sweet, like honey, and she smelt heavenly, like a strange mixture of roses and lilies. She snaked her arms around his neck and pulled him closer, wanting him to take the initiative and make the next move. To her surprise and disappointment, Mike ended the kiss by pushing her away, staring at her like he'd just done something terrible.

"Why'd ye stop?" she whispered, her long hair falling over one of her bright teal-green eyes.

"I... I..." he swallowed, his throat suddenly feeling very dry, "I don't know."

He reached out and brushed her hair out of her eyes until it fell gently behind her ear, then drew her close and resumed their kiss, to her delight, returning it with the same amount of passion she'd displayed when she kissed him the first time. He didn't hesitate to deepen the kiss, feeling that this was what she wanted before he'd acted so stupidly. They continued like this for a while longer before, somewhat reluctantly, coming up for air.

Aisling had a small, silly grin on her face after they broke apart. "I've been wantin' to do that for ages, if ye don't mind me sayin' so."

Mike smiled. "No, I don't mind, just give me some kind of warning next time, okay?"

"Okay," she replied, kissing him again softly, "Is that warnin' enough?"

"That's more than enough."

Aisling beamed. "So ye won't mind me doin' this then," she said, kissing him deeply, letting out a small sigh when he kissed her back. "There's something I want to show ye," she said when they parted, "At the library, if you'll let me."

"What is it?"

"A book," she replied, "There are a couple of pictures in it that I think might interest ye. If ye want to see them, that is."

"I dunno... What's this book about?"

She hesitated. "If I tell you, promise you won't laugh?"

Mike nodded. "I promise," he said, kissing her gently.

"It's called 'An Illustrated History of Slavery' by Conrad Jenkins."

He frowned. "If it's a book about slavery, what's in it that might interest me?"

"One of the photographs. You might find the three people in it very familiar."

They sat together in silence as she waited for him to give her an answer.

"All right, then," he said suddenly, "Show me this photograph."

Aisling smiled her small, silly grin again, relieved that he'd chosen to take her up on her offer.

Mike quickly found a pen and paper, then wrote a short note and left it on the kitchen table. He grabbed his jacket and the keys for the MonkeeMobile and followed her outside to the souped up Pontiac GTO. Within minutes, the pair of them were on the way to the library, aware that anything that happened from that point onwards would change their lives... permanently.

* * *

When Annabelle saw Aisling walk into the library for her third visit that week, she was not surprised. She'd had a small inkling that the young lady would return, but she became a little shocked, then a little proud, then the tiniest bit jealous when she saw the young man who'd walked into the library by Aisling's side. She hadn't seen him before, but she could tell from the way Aisling looked at the man on her arm, that this was the one they'd spoken about the previous day. She smiled when Aisling looked at her and lead the young man to the front desk.

"Hello, dears," she greeted both of them warmly. "I take it you want my help again, Aisling?"

"Aye," said Aisling, "I do. There's somethin' that I want to show me..." she looked up at Mike and grinned, "me boyfriend, if that's not too much trouble?"

Annabelle shook her head, "No trouble at all, dear. What do you need?"

"That book, the slavery one, is that still here?"

"I believe it is, it should still be on the shelves where you found it the last time you wanted it. Would you like me to find it for you?"

"No, I think I can find it," Aisling replied, "But thank ye for helping me again, Annabelle."

"You're welcome, dear."

"So," said Mike as they walked away from the front desk and headed deeper into the library, "I'm your boyfriend?"

Aisling blushed. "Was that wrong of me? Should I have said somethin' else?"

Mike took a quick look around, making sure that they were alone, then kissed her soundly, "Nope."

This made Aisling more determined than ever to tell Mike she loved him, but she wasn't sure if telling him too soon would scare him off, so she smiled and remained silent, continuing to look through the shelves as they walked. She wondered if Radha might lead her to the book again, but Aisling wasn't holding her breath to find out, especially since Mike was standing right there with her and could probably hear anything and everything that Radha might say.

"I think this was where I found that book," Aisling said, recognising where they were. Quickly rummaging through the books on the shelf, she grinned and plucked one of the books from its place, then showed it to Mike, "This is it!" she exclaimed, "This is the book I wanted to show ye!"

Mike looked at the cover and nodded, "Okay, but do you think we could look at it somewhere private?"

She nodded. "Sure, there's a few private study rooms at the back of the library, we can go there and not be disturbed," Aisling took his hand, "Come on, I'll show ye where they are." She lead him to the back of the building and into a small room with four chairs on each side of the table in the middle of the room. Placing the book on the table, Aisling sat down while Mike dragged one of the chairs over so he could sit next to her. Aisling looked at Mike, smiling sadly, "Well, here goes nothin'..." she sighed, opening the book to the correct page and sliding it towards Mike.

Mike's eyes widened as he stared at the photograph in shock. He'd immediately recognised the woman sitting down as the one he'd met in his dream, but it was the appearance of the two young men standing either side of her that shocked him the most.

"That's me..." he murmured, beginning to understand why Radha had told him he looked like someone she loved. The man in the photograph was his exact double, from the way he stood and right down to the wave of hair that fell over his left eye. "But how?" he asked, looking up at Aisling, "How can that be me!?!"

Aisling bit her lip, knowing that she'd have to face this question sooner or later. "Honestly, I don't know," she replied, "Although, there is one possibility I've considered, but I'm not sure if I should tell ye, Mike, because I'm terrified that you'll think I'm crazy or..." She looked at him sadly, "Or make ye decide that ye never want to see me again."

"Don't be scared, Ais," he said, caressing her cheek, "Say what you need to say."

She nodded, and took a deep breath before asking, "Do ye believe in reincarnation?"

"Well, I understand the basic principles behind it, mostly from listening to Peter," Mike replied, "But I can't say I believe in it."

Aisling's face fell, and tears started to form in the corners of her eyes. "I knew this was a bad idea from the start," she moaned, "I should've just left it alone, forgotten about it."

Cupping her face in his hands, Mike kissed her tenderly, then said, "But that's just not like you."

"I know."

"So, if I said I do believe in reincarnation, what would you tell me?"

"That we're the reincarnated souls of Radha and Gareth Crane."

Mike looked down at the photograph, "I can see how you'd come to that conclusion, babe."

Aisling sniffled. "Does that mean ye believe me?"

"Almost," he said, then pointed to the other young man looking up at him from the page, "What about him?"

"Well, back then he was Radha's brother, but now... he's our own Peter Halsten Tork." She closed the book, and rest her head in her hands. "I'm sorry I got ye into this," she sobbed, "I'm so, so, sorry. First there was the voice, then the ghost, then that dream I had last night!"

Mike frowned. "You mentioned that, back at the Pad. What happened in it?"

"I dreamt that I was on a hill, and I was watchin' things that happened over a century ago as if they were happenin' now. I was there and you were there, and Peter was too. We were helpin' people, slaves, hidin' them mostly, then Radha started talkin' to me, and showin' me places that I recognise, yet I shouldn't be recognisin' because I've never been to them before!" Aisling sat up and wiped her eyes. "Then she told me that if I don't find out what happened to them - to us - by midnight on the anniversary of their deaths, history will repeat itself."

Mike stared at her, letting her story sink in. 'She can't be lying' he thought, 'Because she's never had any reason to lie about anyone or anything, therefore, Aisling is telling the truth, and I believe her, so I'm not going to abandon her, whatever happens.'

He embraced her. "Whatever you need to do, shotgun, I'm here for you."

"I need to go somewhere," she said quietly. "And I was hopin' ye and the fellas would come with me, but I understand if ye don't want to, ye don't need me bringin' more trouble than - mmph!" Mike had seized the opportunity to kiss her while she was distracted, and, when the shock wore off, Aisling didn't hesitate to kiss him in return. "I love you," she whispered against his mouth, before letting him kiss her again, "I love you so much."

Mike smiled. "I know, Ais. Took me a while to figure it out, but," he kissed her again, "I love you too." His smile grew when he saw the look of disbelief she gave him. "I bet you didn't expect me to say it so soon, did you?" She blushed and shook her head. "Well, I have and I mean every word."

"Then will ye come to Kansas with me?" she asked earnestly, "Because that's where I need to go, but I don't want to go there alone."

"I'd have to talk to the guys about it, but if we show them this," he pointed to the photograph, "We could convince them to go on a road-trip, I guess, but after what happened in Mexico, letting Davy out of the house might not be such a good idea."

Aisling laughed. "Since when has THAT stopped ye?" she asked, "Ye 'chained him to a chair once', remember?"

"Yeah, I know," he chuckled, "At least I don't get us into trouble, not like Davy."

"But I could be gettin' ye into trouble, we've no way of knowin' what's goin' to happen when we get there!"

"Then we'll just take it one step at a time." He looked at her sharply, but she could still see the warmth in his brown eyes, "I'm not going to abandon you, Aisling. We're gonna figure this out. Together." Mike picked up the book as they stood up, "I think you should borrow this," he said, handing it to Aisling, "We'll use it as proof for when we tell the guys."

Aisling hugged him. "Thank ye for believin' me," she said, "I don't know what I would've done if ye didn't."

Mike took her by the hand. "Come on, let's get back to the Pad, the fellas'll probably be waitin' for us."

Together they walked back through the library, where Annabelle was waiting at the front desk. From the way she looked at the couple, Aisling could tell she was waiting for them. Walking towards the front desk, Aisling couldn't help feeling like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders, like she could do anything with Mike on her side. But she also felt a little worried about telling Peter, Davy and Micky everything that occurred over the past three days, and she hoped that they would believe her. She briefly thought about telling Jesse about her fledgling 'relationship' and weighed up the pros and cons of telling him everything she learned about the voice and what it had to do with her and two of the Monkees. 'I've told Mike, I'm going to tell Peter, Micky and Davy,' she thought, 'So I'm not going to keep Jesse in the dark too. He has the right to know just as much as the others do.' She smiled. 'Besides, I can't wait to see the look on his face when I tell him he was right!'

* * *

It was no secret that Peter loved Aisling, it was actually quite a well known fact, considering the amount of time they spent together laughing and making music, but he wasn't 'in love' with her in the same way that Mike and Aisling were 'in love' with each other in the romantic sense. No, his love for Aisling fell along the lines of familial love, where the two of them loved one another like brother and sister. Although neither of them could figure out why they were drawn into such a relationship, it wasn't a subject they deemed particularly important enough to discuss, content to continue spending time together without a care in the world. However, at the current point in time, while Aisling was with Mike at the library, Peter was returning from a walk on the beach with Micky and Davy. The three of them were talking about their ideas for new songs, using each other as a sounding board to figure out what worked and what didn't, but they soon found their conversation turning away from their music, instead focusing on the 'potential' relationship, which was far as they knew at the time, between their wool-hatted leader and the beautiful Irish colleen.

"So what do you think they're doing up there?" asked Peter as they got to the foot of the stairs that lead back to the Pad.

"I can make a pretty good guess!" Micky replied with a wink, flashing him a sly grin.

Davy snorted. "Are you two like this whenever I'm with a girl?"

"Nope," Peter replied, shaking his head. He grinned. "But I can't vouch for Micky."

"HEY!" Micky cried indignantly. "I'm not THAT bad, am I?

Peter's grin grew wider. "No," he said with a chuckle, "You're worse!"

Davy smirked. "He's got a point there, Mick."

"What, so now you're ganging up on me?"

"Nah, we're just kidding around, man, it's a joke."

Peter held up his thumb and forefinger, bringing the two digits close together until there was only a tiny gap between them. "Little joke," he said, smiling serenely, "about this big."

Micky laughed. "Very funny, Pete."

"You still didn't answer my question though, guys," Peter continued, "What DO you think they're doing up there?"

"How are we supposed to know, Peter?" asked Micky, taking a seat on the steps, "Do Davy and I look like we're psychic?"

"Of course not!" Peter exclaimed, sitting down next to him, "That's not what I meant, Micky, and you know it!"

"He's right though, Peter," said Davy, leaning against the railing, "We can't tell you what we don't know ourselves."

Peter frowned. "But I didn't ask you if you KNEW what they're doing, I asked you what you THINK they're doing!" His frown turned back into a grin. "It's a totally different question, man."

Davy blinked, beginning to understand what Peter meant. "Well..." he began, "I think they're, uh, talking, yeah, 'cause that's what I'd do if I'd been left alone with a girl."

"Before or after you've sucked her face off?" asked Micky.

"After," Davy replied with a laugh. He grinned. "You fellas should know me well enough by now!"

Peter rolled his eyes. "Yeah, Dave, we know you a little TOO well, or do we need to remind you about Angelita and El Diablo?"

"Or Wendy Forsythe and Prince Ludlow?" Micky added, picking up on Peter's train of thought.

"Or Ellie Reynolds and the not-quite-haunted house?" Peter continued.

"Or Susan, the Ringmaster's daughter?"

"Or Lorelei, the vampire?"

"Or Fern, Mrs. Badderly's daughter?"

"Okay, okay, fellas, I get it!" Davy cried in annoyance, cutting them off, "I know I'm always getting us into trouble, and yes, there IS usually a girl involved, but we're not talking about me, we're talking about Aisling and Mike!" He frowned, "Although, it sounds pretty quiet up there, you'd think if they were talking, we'd hear something."

Peter shrugged. "Maybe they're being quiet in case they think we're spying on them?"

Davy and Micky exchanged a look, both of them raising their eyebrows. The possibility that Mike and Aisling thought the trio were going to spy on them was something that hadn't crossed their minds until Peter, whom they normally thought to be 'the dummy', brought it up.

Micky stood from his seat. "I think we should investigate," he announced. "Just to make sure they're still in there, of course." He turned and began walking up the stairs, Davy following close behind him.

"But... but..." Peter started, quickly standing up and following them up the staircase, "Shouldn't we be respecting their privacy?"

"Pshaw, where's the fun in THAT, Pete?" Micky called back. "It's not like we're not gonna let them see us!"

Peter sighed and continued up the stairs, expecting to join Micky and Davy on the balcony, only to find them going inside the beach house. "Hey!" he cried as he walked through the door,, "You said they weren't going to see us!"

"Relax, mate, they're not here," said Davy, picking up the note Mike had left on the kitchen table and showing it to Peter. "Aisling wanted to show him something, so they've gone to the library. But Mike didn't say when they'd be back." His attention was drawn to the sound of a car parking outside. "That's probably them now," he mused, going to the front door to find out who had arrived. Since his height made looking through the peephole useless, Davy opened the door and looked outside. It was Jesse, walking up the path towards the house. "Hey Jesse," he greeted from the doorway, "If you're looking for Aisling, she's not here."

"I know," Jesse replied, as Davy let him into the Pad, "She called me from her house, told me that Mike was waiting for her and then asked if I could meet them back here. She sounded really happy though, and from the experiences I've had with her in the past, if she's really happy, and I mean REALLY happy, then something's up." He looked back at the road through the front door, when the familiar sound of the MonkeeMobile's engine filled the air. "And if something's up," Jesse continued, a mischievous grin on his face, "I think we're about to find out."

He didn't realise just how right he was.

* * *

Half an hour later, after exchanging pleasantries and small talk, Aisling, Jesse, and the Monkees gathered in the living room. Once they all found a place to sit, there was a brief silence, then, at Mike's gentle encouragement, Aisling began to recount everything she'd been through since she first heard the voice at the library. There was a slight quiver in her voice as she spoke, Peter noticed, and he saw there was the faintest trace of tears in her eyes whenever she glanced in his direction. He sensed the sadness she felt about bringing it all into the open, and a small part of him wanted to comfort her because of it, but, from the protective manner in which Mike held her in his arms, close to him with no intention of letting her go, Peter realised that comforting her wasn't his job to do. Not now. He watched her lean back against Mike, who pressed a soft kiss to her ear. It was this simple gesture that brought a smile to Peter's face. It also confirmed what he, Micky and Davy suspected since the two of them had returned from the library.

Aisling and Mike were now 'together'.

But while Peter, Micky and Davy were pleased by this development, Jesse, on the other hand, looked at them in shock. "Well, it's about time!" he cried, a wide grin blooming across his face, "I was beginning to think the two of you'd be dancing around each other for the rest of your lives!"

Aisling smiled and rolled her eyes, her initial sadness melting away. "Have ye listened to a word I've said? Or is Mike's apparent inability to keep his hands off me distractin' ye?" Mike gave her a playful swot on the arm, making her giggle. "See?"

Jesse laughed. "I was listening, Ais, but I'm a little shocked, that's all. Although..." His eyes darkened in mock seriousness, and the hint of a grin flashed across his face, "If he hurts you," he continued, pointing at Mike, "Count on me to be the first in line to pound him into the ground."

Mike grinned. "I'd be surprised if you weren't!" His grin faded. "But seriously now, fellas; do you believe her?" he asked, directing the question to all of their audience.

The four young men looked at each other carefully as if they were deciding what they were going to say, and which one of them was going to say it. At long last, they mutually agreed that Peter would be their spokesman.

Peter stood from his seat. "We believe you," he began, looking back the others, "We all do, but, uh, Micky and Davy and Jesse..." he paused, and looked at the floor, "They want to see some kind of proof."

Aisling and Mike looked at each other grimly. They'd been expecting something like this, and thankfully, by going to Aisling's house first and picking up all the books she'd borrowed, they could provide the proof they needed. Reluctantly, they separated and Aisling stood to retrieve her backpack from its place by the door. She brought it to the coffee table and took out each book, placing them on the table top.

"Everything ye want to know is in these books, fellas," she said, returning to her place beside Mike on the psychiatrists couch, "But if ye don't want to read through them all, open the first one with the bookmark in it. I think you'll be surprised by what ye find."

Micky and Jesse moved quickly trying to reach for the book at the same time, but when Jesse didn't get there fast enough, Micky snatched it neatly off the top of the stack, and opened it to the page which Aisling had marked. What he saw nearly made him fall out of his seat, before passing it to Davy, who almost did the same thing when handing it to Jesse.

Jesse took one look at the page and swallowed. "I think you should see this, man," he said, handing the book to Peter. "I really think you should see this."

Wordlessly, Peter looked at the photograph on the page, and saw... himself. More precisely, he saw his doppelganger. He looked at Aisling, now understanding why she'd looked so sad when she told them her story. Not only did the photograph contain HIS double, it also contained hers, AND Mike's. He turned to Micky, Davy and Jesse. "Could you fellas leave us alone?" he asked. "I want to talk to Mike and Aisling, in private."

Jesse nodded. "Sure, Peter." He ushered Micky and Davy out to the beach, despite their protests, leaving Peter, Aisling and Mike alone to work things out.

"So," Peter said after the others had left, "Want to tell me what this has to do with me?"

"They're us," Aisling replied simply. "Or we used to be them, depending on how ye want to look at it." She leaned against Mike, "We, that's to say me and Mike, were married to each other, and ye... ye were my brother." She sighed. "I know it sounds crazy, Peter, but if there was ever a time I needed you to believe me, without question, it's now."

"She's right, good buddy," Mike added, "We need you to help us convince the fellas to go on a little road-trip with us. Everything's gonna get sorted out when we get there, but we want to be sure you'll help us first."

Peter looked torn. "Is this your idea of a joke?" he asked, "Because if it is, then it's a really bad joke."

Aisling shook her head. "No, Peter, this isn't a joke." She stood, then walked towards him. "Will you help me?" she pleaded, embracing him, "Please?"

"I can't refuse you, can I?" he sighed. He ran a hand through his long blonde hair, "All right, I'll help."

"Oh I knew ye would!" she cried happily, before kissing Peter on the cheek. "Hold on a sec," she said, walking to the door that lead to the balcony, "I'll go and get the others, then we'll tell them all about the trip!"

"This is going to get us into trouble, isn't it Mike?" Peter asked quietly, when Aisling was out of earshot..

"Yep," Mike replied. "If we're not already."

Peter rolled his eyes. "At least it's not Davy, for a change."

"Yeah, but now I know how he feels when it's his fault." Mike smiled. "But I'm not goin' to complain about it, though, because I love her."

"Hold on," Peter frowned, before smiling playfully, "Who are you, and what have you done with the real Mike Nesmith?"

Mike laughed. "I am the real Mike Nesmith, and don't you forget it, shotgun!"

"But seeing you with a girl, even a girl like Aisling..." Peter scratched the back of his neck, "It's not bad, just..."

"New?"

"Yeah."

"Nothing wrong with feelin' a little uncomfortable for a while."

"I'm not uncomfortable with it, Mike, in fact I think it's GOOD that you've got a girl, but," Peter picked up the book and looked at the photograph again, "Something about this thing worries me. Where is it that Aisling wants us to go?"

Mike looked uncomfortable. "Uh, it's in Kansas."

"Kansas?"

"That's why we want you to help us convince Micky and Davy to go on a road-trip with us."

Peter grinned. "Well ,they're not gonna take much convincing, man, just mention the words 'road' and 'trip' in the one sentence and they'll agree to it in minutes!"

Mike smirked and rolled his eyes. "I know THAT, Peter, but none of us know Jesse as well as Ais does, so I don't know if he'd be as willing, or eager, to go with us as much as Mick and Dave might."

Peter nodded. "Yeah, there is that."

"We'll just to play it by ear, good buddy, and see how everything turns out," Mike said, leaning back on the psychiatrist's couch. "Then we'll know what's goin' on." He looked over at the back door in time to see Aisling lead Jesse, Micky and Davy into the house.

There was a big grin on Aisling's face when she came and sat down next to Mike. "I've told this lot over here about the road-trip to Kansas," she explained, pointing to Micky, Jesse and Davy. "They latched on to the idea straightaway!"

"So when are we gonna go?" Jesse asked.

"Straight after the gig coming up," Mike replied. "We should all fit in the MonkeeMobile, so that's no problem, but I'm not sure what to do about our equipment."

"Just bring it with ye," Aisling said, shrugging her shoulders. "The MonkeeMobile's big enough for all of us, and for all of our things." She giggled, "Though it does surprise me, on occasion, how ye managed to have two bench seats AND a trunk, when ye should only have room for one or the other!"

"Don't ask me, shotgun," he said with a grin, "I'm still tryin' to work that one out myself!"

"Well," said Jesse, standing from his seat. "I think it's about time I split. Besides, Micky and Davy said you guys have a rehearsal to finish and I don't want to get in the way."

Mike frowned, "You don't have to go yet, Jesse. Why don't you stay and watch us?" He smiled, "It might make Aisling feel more comfortable about the gig."

"You sure it's okay?"

"Yeah, it's cool."

Aisling looked at Mike with mock annoyance. "Oi! Don't I get a say in this?"

Mike caressed her cheek. "No."

"In that case," she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder, "If ye want me to play any music with ye again," she continued, grabbing a cushion off one of the nearby chairs, "You have to catch me first!" she finished, using the cushion to hide their faces from the others while she stole a kiss. "I might make it worth your while later if ye do," she whispered breathily, kissing him again.

"Let me try and catch you first," he replied, "We'll talk about the rest later."

Aisling put the cushion down on the psychiatrist's couch. She smirked. "All right then, just don't keep me waitin'!" Upon saying this, Aisling gave Mike a kiss on the cheek, then turned on her heel and fled, the peals of laughter coming from her friends echoing in her ears. Shooting a quick glance over her shoulder, she saw Mike scrambling to his feet and following her. She lead him all the way around the house, to the other's amusement, before running out to the balcony and down the stairs to the beach. When it became clear that the only one actively chasing her was Mike, which was what she'd wanted regardless, Aisling slowed to a walking pace, stopping only when she felt Mike come up from behind and wrap his arms around her.

"I caught you," he said quietly, pressing a kiss to her hair.

"I know."

"I love you."

"I know."

Aisling sighed. "I'm sorry I did that, I just wanted to get out of the house for a moment or two."

"It's okay. I thought you might've wanted a chance to breathe. But why did you say I had to chase you?"

"I just wanted to do somethin' funny, I suppose," she said, turning around to face him, resting her hands on his shoulders. "Besides, this is the one thing I do not wish to do in front of an audience," she added, pulling him into a passionate kiss.

* * *

Once Aisling and Mike returned from the beach, the rest of the rehearsal progressed without further incident. This gave Aisling the chance to relax, basking in the warmth of her friends, and her love. She looked at Mike from her position behind the keyboard and smiled. 'He loves me,' she thought, 'He really does love me, even after everything I told him.' She sighed. 'I don't deserve him really, I don't even know what he sees in me that's worth loving!' She sniffled, blinking back tears. "I don't deserve him," she murmured, "I really don't deserve him. But I love him, and that's all that matters."

Putting his guitar on its stand, Mike came and sat next to Aisling at the keyboard. "Hey," he said noticing the tears threatening to fall from her eyes. "What's wrong, babe?" he asked, gently putting his arms around her.

"I'm okay, just... trying to think of what I did to deserve you."

"You're you," Mike replied. "Does that count?" Listening to their conversation from his seat behind the drums, Micky started to make gagging noises, which prompted Mike to glare at him, "Now cut that out!"

Micky laughed as he got up out of his seat. "Sorry, Mike, it's getting a bit too mushy for me," he said, before heading upstairs.

Jesse grinned. "That goes for me too, sorry Ais."

"No, it's okay. We'll try and tone it down a bit, or wait until we're alone."

"Forget it," he said with a shrug, adding, "I think I'm gonna split anyway. Bye Ais, see you later fellas."

"Bye Jess," Aisling called, "Don't forget about the gig, or the trip."

"I won't!" he replied, heading out the front door.

After he was gone, Peter smiled and turned to Davy. "Hey man, I think we should go work on some music with Micky," he said, but from the look on his face, he clearly meant 'Let's leave the lovebirds alone.'

Davy nodded. "Yeah, all right," he agreed. It made perfect sense to him that Peter would use working on their music as the best excuse to leave the room, and he followed Peter up the stairs and into Micky's room without question.

As Aisling watched them leave, she leaned closer to Mike, using his chest as a makeshift headrest. The gentle thumping of his heartbeat caressed her ear. She closed her eyes, listening to it. Listening to him. It was like the sound had a calming effect on her, leading her to slow her own heartbeat until the two of them fell into near perfect sync with each other. It gave her the sense that, for one fleeting moment, they were as one. Before she knew it, Aisling fell asleep in with her hand over Mike's heart.

Scooping her into his arms, Mike carefully navigated his way off the bandstand and carried Aisling to the psychiatrist's couch, laying her down on top of it. 'She looks so peaceful,' he thought. 'I know I should take her home, but I don't want to disturb her. I think I should call her mom, let her know she's staying the night.' He walked to the kitchen, picked up the phone and dialed. "Hi Mrs. O'Callaghan," he greeted. "I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"Hello Michael, " she countered, "No, you're not disturbing me," she reassured him, adding with just a hint of amusement in her voice, "Though ye CAN call me Bridget, ye know."

Mike chuckled. "Yes, ma'am. Uh, I mean, okay, Bridget."

"That's better. Now, is there something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong," Mike replied. "But..."

"But what?" Bridget asked, beginning to sound a little concerned.

Mike froze, and tried to think of the best way to explain to Bridget that her daughter was asleep on his couch. "Well, uh, you see, Aisling is..."

"Aye?"

"She's... uh... she's asleep... on our couch."

Bridget laughed. "Oh, is that all?" she asked, "I was beginning to think she'd fainted again!"

"Wait a minute," said Mike, a little confused by her reaction, "You're not angry?"

"Of course I'm not, you silly boy!" Bridget admonished. "I'd rather she be asleep on your couch, than dead in the street somewhere..." she continued, "and I think you feel the same way, if I'm not mistaken."

"You're right, " he replied softly. "If anything happened to her..." he trailed off, unable to find the words to properly articulate what he meant. But it didn't matter, because he realised Bridget already understood.

He could almost picture the smile on Bridget's face when she said, "You're a good lad, Mike, one of the few I'd consider good enough for me girl. I trust you, and your friends, to keep her safe."

"Thank you," he said, relieved that she had confidence, not just in him, but in Peter, Micky and Davy as well. "I'm glad you feel that way."

"You're welcome," she replied. "She can stay with ye tonight, so ye can bring her home in the morning. Just don't do anythin' I wouldn't do."

Mike smiled. "I won't. Thanks again, Bridget."

"Well, I better let ye go," she said, "I think I've kept ye long enough. That was all ye wanted to tell me, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, that's it. Goodbye Bridget."

"Goodbye Michael."

Mike heard her put down the phone with a click, and then hung up the phone himself. Putting the telephone back under its cover, he glanced at Aisling, who was still asleep. As he watched her, she folded her arms across her body and drew her legs to her chest, contorting herself into a ball. There were goosebumps forming on her arms, he noticed, and she was shivering from the cold. Kicking himself for not thinking about it sooner, Mike quickly went to the linen closet, grabbed a couple of blankets and took them back to the couch, covering Aisling with both of them. 'Now I better tell the fellas Ais is staying the night,' he thought, standing and heading upstairs, walking towards the bedroom he shared with Micky.

"Oh, hey Mike," said Peter as he saw Mike enter the room. "Aisling still here?" he asked. "I thought you'd have taken her home by now."

"Yeah, she's still here. Fell asleep in my arms. I didn't want to wake her, man, so I called Mrs. O'Callaghan and let her know I'm lettin' Ais stay overnight."

Peter looked surprised. "She's staying the night? Isn't that a little fast?"

Mike folded his arms against his chest. "It's not like I'm goin' to DO anything to her, you know." He shrugged. "Besides, her mom trusts us to keep her safe." He shot the three of them a pointed look, "I am NOT goin' to betray that trust, and neither are you. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Anyway," Mike continued. "I think we should change sleeping arrangements, just for tonight. I don't wanna leave her down there by herself."

"She can take my bed," Peter offered. "I'll take the couch."

"And you can take my bed, Mike," added Davy. "That way you can stay with her."

Mike regarded his two friends with disbelief. "I didn't expect you to go THAT far, guys!" he said, shifting uncomfortably, "I thought we could bring her upstairs and I'd let her take my bed, to tell the truth."

"That's nice of ye," a voice said softly from the doorway. "But I don't want to put ye, or Peter, out of your beds."

It was Aisling. Upon waking up to find herself on the couch, covered in blankets, she remembered the last thing she'd done was to fall asleep in Mike's arms. Then, when she heard the Monkees talking about changing their sleeping arrangements, she came upstairs and listened from the doorway, touched by each other's insistence that she should take their place.

"So," she said as she stepped into the room. "Stayin' the night, am I?" The smile on her face was warm, and she spoke with amusement in her voice. "Who's decision was that, eh?"

Micky, Peter and Davy all pointed at Mike. "Thanks a lot, fellas," he grumbled.

Aisling laughed, embracing him. "I thought it was," she said, tracing circles in his sideburn with her finger, "Your decision, I mean." A growling noise came from her stomach, making her blush. "Em, I guessin' I'm a little hungry," she said, a look of embarrassment on her face, "and it's not exactly late, so going back to sleep is out of the question..."

"Food!" Micky cried, striking a melodramatic pose. "Our lady needs food, my fine feathered friends!"

Davy clapped his hand over his eyes. "He's gone crackers, crazy, man."

"Feathered?" Peter asked, looking confused.

"Micky," Mike groaned. "Quit foolin' around."

"Oh leave him be," Aisling said, giggling as Micky continued his posing, "He's only tryin' to be funny!"

"He's always tryin' to be funny," Mike replied, rolling his eyes. "But he doesn't know when to stop."

Aisling grinned. "He'll stop when he feels like it," she said, "In the meantime, shall we get somethin' to eat?"

Mike nodded. "Yeah, c'mon, before he starts breakin' things."

Micky stopped what he was doing, and frowned. "Hey, I'm not gonna start breaking things!"

"That's why we're goin' downstairs, Mick," Mike said with an amused smirk, "So you DON'T start breaking things. Okay?"

"Okay."

Once Micky stopped bouncing around, the group finally headed back downstairs, discussing what they were going to have for dinner as they went.

* * *

Later that night, after a meager, but satisfying dinner, the time came for the five of them to go to bed. Micky, Peter and Davy quickly excused themselves from the table and once again, Mike found himself sitting in the kitchen, with Aisling by his side. Without saying a word, she rose from her seat, then allowed him to pull her into his lap. They stared at each other for a moment, as if contemplating what they should do next, then leaned into one another and kissed tenderly. It was like nothing around them existed anymore, and all the fear and heartache Aisling felt because of her discovery seemed to melt away while Mike held her in his arms.

"Can I stay here forever?" Aisling asked quietly, kissing him again.

Mike smiled. "Here, in the Kitchen?"

She giggled. "No, in your arms, ye silly goose," she replied. "Would ye hold me in you arms forever?"

"I don't know," he said, dotting kisses down her jaw line as he spoke. "They might get a bit tired, once in a while. Forever IS a long time, after all."

Aisling smiled sadly. "Aye, it is," she agreed. "Did ye really mean it when ye said you'd let me take your bed and you'd sleep on the couch?" she asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah, I was," Mike replied, "I thought you'd be more comfortable that way."

"But then I wouldn't be with you."

"I know."

Aisling got an idea. "We could share your bed?" she suggested. "Just the two of us, asleep in each other's arms, and nothing more." She grinned. "And in the morning, if we wake up to find Micky making fun of us, we can just remind him which one of you had the pretty girl in his bed!"

"That's a thought," Mike said, running her hair through his fingers, "Don't know why I hadn't thought of it before."

"Now that's because you never had a pretty girl in your bed before," she countered, "Asleep... or otherwise."

He kissed her gently. "Girls usually don't go for me," he said, "They take one look at Davy and they're gone."

"I didn't," she replied, then she smiled. "But then again, the first one I saw, when we met, was you. So Davy never came into it at all." She let him kiss her again, savouring every moment they were joined. "I think that I fell in love with ye from the minute I first saw ye."

"I think it took me a bit longer to realise how I felt about you," Mike replied. "But like I said at the library..."

"And at the beach."

"And at the beach," he echoed, smiling then kissing her again, "I love you, Aisling, and I'm not goin' to abandon you. We're goin' to see this thing through."

"So you're goin' to be my protector?"

"If you'll let me."

Aisling grinned. "I think that can be arranged."

"Um, Ais?" Mike begin, but he stopped when she pressed a finger to his lips. He kissed it, making her laugh,

"Shh," she said, when she stopped laughing, "I've had enough of talkin', just kiss me. That's all I want to do right now."

Slowly, she leaned forward and brushed her lips against his own, running her hands through his hair. Meeting her halfway, he deepened the kiss, pulling her closer to him. She whimpered against his mouth, sucking on his full lower lip eagerly. As they broke apart, she gingerly climbed out of his lap and gave him her best 'come hither' smile, then walked to the couch. The blankets he'd covered her with were still lying on it, and after moving them to one side, she sat down, then beckoned him over to sit beside her.

She cocked her head and smiled again when he came over and sat down. He could tell what she wanted from the way she looked at him, and, for some reason he couldn't fathom, he wanted it too. He kissed her slowly, gently, deeply, until his emotions got the upper hand and his kisses became more passionate, more heated. She wanted - no - needed him, and he needed her, just as much as she needed him, if not more.

"I love you," she whispered in between kisses, even though they both knew it didn't need saying. As in all things, actions spoke louder than words. So much had happened to them that day, passing by like a whirlwind, and the love and support he'd given her before, and after she'd shown him the photograph, made her go weak in the knees, and she loved him even more because if it.

In one moment, everything became clear to her, and she realised, whatever happened in the turbulent times to come, she didn't want to let him go, and the only thing that could separate them... was death. But at the same time, she knew death, namely Radha and Gareth's, was what had brought the two of them together, so she knew it wasn't something to be feared. 'Death brings life,' she thought, 'and life... life brings love.'

They never did get back to Mike's room in the end...

* * *