"Out of the question," Major Monogram said firmly.

"But sir, she helped us defeat ARCHANGEL," Perry protested. "And she saved my life."

"Out. Of. The. Question. I find it absolutely absurd that you're even asking."

"Sir, I really believe that Portia can benefit from being allowed to roam OWCA free."

"Agent P, may I remind you that you are very close to being on probation for that stunt you pulled," snapped Major Monogram, jabbing his finger at Perry. "In fact, it's only thanks to Kane that you're not on probation. So I suggest you keep your bill shut and don't say another word about that platypus being allowed to go free."

Perry shut his beak obediently but he definitely wasn't happy. He stormed out of Major Monogram's office and ran straight to his office, where he collapsed into his chair and hit the desk with his fist in anger. He had a very angry, and very quiet, ten-minute rant about Major Monogram, which included some colourful language. He wished the major would see that Portia was changing. In a few days or so, she could be ready to join OWCA.

A knock on the door interrupted his hissed rant. He snapped, "What?" without looking round.

"It's me," said Pansy's voice.

Perry turned and saw Pansy standing at the entrance to his office. He sighed. "Sorry, Pansy. I'm just really annoyed right now because Major Monogram just won't consider letting Portia out of the prison and it's not fair."

Perry expected Pansy to take Major Monogram's side and list several reasons why Portia shouldn't be allowed to be free but Pansy just nodded. "I understand."

"You do?"

"I saw her save your life on the battlefield earlier," Pansy told him. "After that, I think she can be reformed."

"Will you come down to the cells with me and visit her?" Perry asked before he could stop himself.

Pansy gave him a surprised look. "Are you sure you want me along?"

Perry nodded determinedly. "I need to sort several things out. Like my feelings."

Pansy felt her heart skip a beat. If that meant what she thought it meant, Perry was finally going to decide if he loved her or Portia. And though she knew that she was desperately hoping that Perry would choose her, she really did just want Perry to be happy.

Perry took Pansy's hand and led her to the prison cells. Ellie the Eagle was on guard yet again. Perry found himself wondering if she ever did anything else. She was on guard with the rhino agent, who gave Perry a look as the platypus took his ex-girlfriend through the doors.

Perry felt a twinge of sadness in his chest as he saw Oliver's and Georgia's empty cells. He had been so preoccupied with trying to get Portia to trust him again that he had almost completely ignored them. He certainly should have visited them more. They must have felt even just a little bit bad when they saw Perry going to visit Portia so often.

Perry and Pansy stopped in front of Portia's cell. The dark teal platypus was curled up on her side on the bed, facing away from them. Perry suddenly realised something. "Oh, shoot. There's something I have to tell Pinky."

"You go," said Pansy. "I'll stay here."

Perry looked at her in surprise. "Really?"

Pansy shrugged. "Yeah, sure. I need to talk to Portia anyway."

"Okay." Perry looked doubtful but Pansy waved her hands in a shooing motion and he left.

Pansy sat down in front of the cell and crossed her legs. "Hey," she said, as if they were old friends.

"Hi," said Portia's miserable voice. "Are you here to hate me?"

"Hate you…?" It took Pansy a good ten seconds to realise what she was talking about. "Oh, about the-no. I don't hate you. The way I see it, we're equal."

Portia rolled over and frowned at Pansy. "What?"

"I said some pretty cruel things and you threatened my life. We're equal."

Portia kept frowning, and Pansy knew that the teal platypus was searching for any sarcasm in her voice. Pansy hadn't put any sarcasm in her voice, and it was this conclusion that Portia seemed to come to. "Okay…thanks."

Pansy looked away and gazed at the ground. "I think Perry's going to tell us who he loves."

Portia got up off the bed and knelt down on the opposite side of the glass to Pansy. "Really?"

Pansy nodded. "I love Perry with all my heart but I just want him to be happy. I'm sure he's going to choose you."

Portia lay her head on the glass. "But how can I love someone I don't even trust?"

Pansy copied Portia's movement. "I know how hard having your heart broken is. Before I met Perry, I was in a relationship with this macho platypus called Pally. Now that I look back on it, it's obvious that he was abusing me. I was constantly scrambling to impress and please him but he never showed signs of either, not even when I bought him presents and did everything for him. He sometimes hit me too. Then he cheated on me and broke things off with me. That scarred me pretty badly, but it was even worse when half a year later he asked me back and I believed he had changed and said yes. But of course, he hadn't changed. He kept on physically abusing me and I never believed it was wrong. I believed I deserved it."

Pansy paused, lost in the memory of her abusive boyfriend. Portia watched her sadly. "So what happened?"

"In the end, he cheated on me yet again and sent me packing. Two days later, I met Perry, and it was obvious that he cared about me. He wasn't using me, like Pally was. When Pally tried to take me back about four months into my new relationship, Perry beat him up and made him promise to never come near me again. That proved to me that I could learn to trust again. My trust was shattered after Pally used me and cheated on me twice, but Perry healed my heart and allowed me to love again." Pansy gave a small smile. "So even if Perry doesn't end up choosing me, it won't be the end of my world, because he helped me in ways I can never repay. He deserves to be happy."

Portia gazed at Pansy in admiration. "You've really made him happy. There's a real chance he will choose you, you know. You obviously have real feelings for him."

Pansy nodded. "I do. I love him with all my heart. But the question is: do you have real feelings for him?"

Portia furrowed her brow in thought, as if actually listening to her heart. "Yes," she said eventually. "I do. I love Perry. I've loved him since I was little."

"I knew you would say that," Pansy said, smiling. "And I think that either one of us will make Perry very happy."

Portia managed to grin. "May the best platypus win Perry's heart."

That made both female platypuses laugh. They were still laughing when Perry came back and sat beside Pansy. "You sound like you're having fun," he said amusedly.

"Oh we are," Pansy said with a mischievous look at Portia, who grinned back.

Perry was confused. "Okay…well…" He hesitated, not quite knowing how to get the words out. "During these past few days, I've had time to think about things. My heart has sorted itself out. I know exactly who I love, and…I'm confident I'm about to make the right decision."

…

Please don't hate me for that cliffhanger…*innocent smile* love you guys!