Disclaimer: I don't own the Outsiders or the song, Bloody Mary.

A/N: Thank you all for the awesome reviews. :) I cannot thank you enough!

Love is just a history that they may prove. And when you're gone I'll tell them my religion's you. When Pontius comes to kill the king upon his throne. I'm ready for their stones. I'll dance, dance, dance. With my hands, hands, hands. Above my head, head, head. Like Jesus, said.

"You look nice." Ponyboy stood by the door.

I popped my earrings in and followed him downstairs to where Darry was wrestling with a tie. "I'm surprised he's going. He's been at the hospital for a week now. It's strange seeing him here."

Pony shrugged on his jacket. "Dal's his friend too. He wants to be there for him is all."

"I know," I said, smiling at Darry. "I remember."

Darry wants me to have hope for today. Dally seems slightly confident that he'll get off easy and has tried to convince me that he wasn't going anywhere. I still have my doubts about today though. Murder is a big crime. Bigger than anything Dally has faced before and he doesn't know who he's messing with when it comes to Sam's family.

It hasn't fully hit me yet. Darry says it's because my mind's been on other things - like Soda - and that'd it'd click soon. I'd imagine he was right and sooner or later, I'd have my break. It was hard to think about that though, with everything else going on. Maybe Dally had some hope though. Maybe I was wrong about that too.

I sat on the stoop and lit another cigarette and blew out smoke. I'd become Ponyboy, going through about two packs a day now. Darry has shrugged it off for now but I was waiting for the day when he'd chew my ass a new one. It was coming closer and closer.

It told me things were getting back to normal. Normal for us anyway. Winter break had started and once Soda got out, we were getting a tree and decorating the house in tacky decorations like we do every year. Darry is smiling and laughing more than I've seen in a while and Kathy's been around more. She pretty much lived here as it was.

Things were slowly going back together. I hadn't seen Randy or Marilyn since Michael's funeral, but the day before break, they both came in to school to get their work. I'd heard rumors about Marilyn running away from home and Randy getting sent away for a year to boarding school. I didn't believe rumors too much though.

I went to Michael's funeral. Darry felt the need to make an appearance and dragged me along to do the same. No one said anything to me, just stared. There was a lot of crying and a lot of people from school were there. I could hear them whispering as I went by. I was starting not to care about what people talked about. They had no idea what was really going on behind closed doors.

"Again?" Darry asked, stepping out of the house. "I see one of those things in your mouth the rest of the day and you won't be able to sit for a month! Got me?"

I laughed and put out the bud on the bottom of my shoe. "Yes, Darry, sir."

I drank three cups of coffee before we were allowed in the court room. Everyone was getting restless - the few of us that had shown up. I only saw our side right now and Dally's friends. Not Sam's family or his many friends. They'd be here though. I was sure of that.

"How you think Winston's doin'?"

I sipped on the edge of my cup. "Nice of you to come, Tim." I examined his outfit. It wasn't every day you saw Tim Shepard in a tie. "Don't you look nice too? Pretty snazzy."

He took the cup out of my hand and hissed, "Smartass."

"Just sayin'." I took my drink back and took a swig.

He fumbled around and sank his hands in his pockets. "How's Sodapop doing?"

"He gets to come home tomorrow," I tried to hold back my grin. I didn't want to bring it up with Tim. After all, his sibling wasn't as lucky as mine.

Tim nodded, not even noticing. Though, Tim isn't the easiest person to read. "Merry Christmas to ya'll then."

"It really will be if this doesn't ruin everything." I looked at the floor, feeling disappointed. "Lookin' that way though."

Tim leaned against the frame of the door and blew out a breath of air. "Don't I know it."

There was a bandage wrapped around his arm that went from his wrist to his elbow. Above his eyebrow was a scar from getting punched and kicked repeatedly in the head. He refused to go to hospitals these days. Curly says he never will go again. No one would blame him. They aren't my favorite place in the world either.

"How's frenchy?" I asked with a slight sarcastic smirk.

He let out a growl and rolled his eyes. "He's transferring here for college next semester. Can't get rid of the stupid kid."

I decided to ask the obvious, "Have you told him yet?" His silence gave me my answer. I sighed. "He's sure as hell going to find out now that he's living here. He's going to see Jake and put two and two together, Tim. Kid is a splitting image of him and he can do the math."

Tim's cool, laid back, stance changed. He pointed a finger in my face, not threatening, just warning. "I told you to stay out of this. It's not your business and I meant it. Just...butt out, Curtis."

"I know what you're scared of."

He rolled his head back and groaned, "Oh really now? Tell me, wise one."

I ignored his comment. "What harm is it going to do? You're just scared he'll take Jake away from you. He won't do that. Angela wanted him to know more than anything. She hunted for him for months, Tim."

He corned me against the wall. "You don't know anything. I'm lookin' out for that kid. Always have!"

"I know you do," I said. "You love him, I know you do. He deserves to know who he's dad is, Tim. You're not him. You never had a dad. Don't you know-"

"Cut it out," he snapped, rudely. "And what happens when this guys just picks up and leaves after a few fucking years? You gonna be there to wipe the kid's nose and hold his hand?"

"No," I said flatly. "But you will. He'll have you."

He backed away slowly, not saying anything. He went back to his cool and collected state and slouched against the wall on the other side of me, watching a few more people gather up in the main hallway.

I watched him. "It's on you. I'm just telling you what she wanted. What she'd want you to do."

He walked off without another word. It was like fighting with a wall. This is why Tim Shepard and Dallas Winston didn't have a friendship like normal folks. They were too fucking much alike.

People started to gather in and take their seats. We sat near the front, on Dally's side. Sam's parents were on the other side of us. Both of his parents had a stone cold look on their face, no emotions at all. From what I can remember, they were always like that. It didn't matter that their son was dead. No emotions - ever.

Pony sat beside me, chomping on a wad of gum and going on and on about useless information about the case. Darry sat with Steve and Two, down behind us. They had their heads together most of the time. It made me wonder what they had to talk about for so long. Then Darry got up and cuddled against Kathy.

Sam's lawyers and other big men in suits came in next. They got out some papers and took a seat at their table and started to whisper. Dally was next with his lawyer. He gave me a wink and a smirk before sitting down.

"Man, how did Dally get him?" Pony exclaimed, eyeing Dally and his lawyer as they look a seat with the rest of us.

I looked where he was, leaning over the bench some. "Get who?"

"His lawyer!" Pony shouted at a whisper. His eyes got bigger the more he stared at the two.

I made a face and leaned back down. "The state I'm guessing?"

Pony shook his head, his eyes still fixed on the two sitting in front of us like it was a miracle happening before his eyes. "No. Danni do you not know who that is?"

"No?"

Ponyboy huffed and finally let out, "That's Dave Millage. He's the biggest lawyer in probably the state." He gawked at them yet again, amazed. "He's a shark! He hasn't lost a case in ten years."

The guy didn't look like much. He whispered to Dally about a few things. Nothing that impressed me. "So?"

"Sooo, how did Dally afford a guy like him?"

It was a good question. I shrugged. "Dally works. He's got some money saved up. He don't buy nothing and he sold that stupid car so he probably did have the cash to get someone like that."

Pony wasn't having it. "Danni, the guy charges by the second. You'd have to be loaded to even get his attention."

I was growing impatient. I shrugged Pony off, changing my focus to Dally and how collected he looked. Collected for guy on a murder trial anyway. "I don't know, Pone. Maybe you ought to ask him about it sometime."

"I'm just saying." Pony slouched down. "With Ronnie's bail thing and all, I thought you'd at least be interested."

I eyed him. "What does Ronnie's bail have to do with anything?"

"We never figured out who paid it," he said plainly. "It's just odd. Maybe they got family money he ain't tellin' us about. I don't know. It just seemed weird to me is all. No need to make a big deal about it I don't guess."

The doors opened and the judge came out and we all stood before being told to sit.

We never did find out how Ronnie got bail.

The day had been long already. I kept thinking about Christmas and Soda's return home and having everything back to normal again. We actually had some money this year and I was pretty excited about the gifts I'd gotten everyone.

Christmas wasn't always a happy time in our house. Mom and Dad tried to make the best of what they could afford and make light of everything. Mom did cry some Christmas Eves though I remember. I could hear her late at night. I always remembered it being a fairly good time in the morning. We knew better than to ask for big things so we normally got what we wanted.

Once they died, Darry didn't make Christmas any better. He tried hard. He really did and I gave him credit for his effort. Money was tighter than ever our first Christmas without them. It really ate Darry up and we all offered to just throw Christmas out that year but he wouldn't have it.

Everyone came over the next morning. Steve, Two, Johnny, even Dally. Darry was a bit ticked they thought we needed help this year, but went along with it anyway or seemed to. We didn't get much in the amount of gifts, Soda made homemade things, and Pony gave out candy.

Dally was there that day. We went outside after the gifts and smoked. It'd been just weeks after he had taught me how to smoke and I was still wasn't mastering the art of it. He talked about ponies mainly and racing and promised to take me out there one day and teach me how to ride (which he did a few months ago.). Then, right before night fall, he pulled out a small wrapped box and handed it to me and left.

My first pack of cigarettes.

Dally never actually admitted to the cops about being in the opposite car that hit Sam. That gave more room for his lawyer to play. Dally's lawyer was a shark, Pony was right about that. He moved every second, doing something with his hands or feet. We were going hours in and it seemed like no progress was being made.

Sam's lawyers had talked all about the night of the accident. They said that the speed of the opposing car was too high for them to just be cruising through town. Dally's lawyer argued that the opposing driver could have been drunk or on drugs. Sam's lawyers said it was highly unlikely though they had no other comments.

Dally was called to the stand and asked simple questions like where he was that night and other things. He said he was at work and his boss backed him up. He told me it was to save me from going up there and saying I was with him. He didn't want me to get involved in this so I let him have it.

Sam's lawyers went on a rampage with basically nothing. Their only argument was that the person left the scene and that someone saw the color of the car and model and that matched Dally's and Dally got rid of his car shortly afterwards. The shark brought up that Dally's car didn't have a scratch on it when he sold it.

My hand was sweating the whole time. I dozed off through some of the arguments though. People got up there, saying how much Sam was loved and all kinds of junk. Did they not know Dally was too? They had him pinned as the monster of this.

I tried my hardest to listen to the proceedings, but I couldn't stop watching Dally. His knee was bouncing nervously as everyone talked. I searched the room again for signs of Randy or Marilyn. They weren't here and that shocked me. This is what they've been waiting for and neither of them was here to see this.

The shark attacked harder and was starting to convince everyone that Dally couldn't have possibly done it and there was no motive considering the two never met or knew of each other. Sam's car crash was just a result of slick roads from the rain and losing control. I started to believe every word myself. Sam couldn't have been murdered that night. It was a silly theory. Just something to throw our minds off. Sam died in car accident. Nothing more. I was starting to believe that.

Sam's parents were about in tears towards the end once the night Sam died was replayed and Dally took the stand for the last time.

"Is there anything else you wanna say, son?"

Dally looked out into the crowd. He knew it was over just like the rest of us. He hid his smile and opened his mouth for his closing remarks. "Uh, yeah. I'd, uh, to Sam's parents….I'm uh, sorry about your kid. I'm sorry it happened like that. Um, really sorry."

I walked through the mud and trees. Sam always talked about this place. It was his favorite place to go and just hang out. He took us here all the time. The boys played with footballs and kick balls and Marilyn and I would watch and gossip.

It's always beautiful here. I enjoyed coming here with them. I came here by myself just to get away a few times, running into Sam and having talks about life with him. He was a good listener from what I can remember. It was peaceful here. I haven't been here in two years. I haven't gone near this place in two years. Never wanted to until now.

Dally got three hundred days. Turns out you can't pin a murder on someone without proper evidence, or when they have lawyer that could argue his way out of a paper bag. Only thing they got him for was a year's worth of unpaid parking tickets of all things. No connection to Sam at all. With good behavior, Dally's lawyer thinks he'll be out by spring. I didn't ask where the guy came from. It wasn't my concern right now. Dally was. Dally was coming home. We had won. We'd won this war. Sam was finally dead in this town.

I never thought I'd come to this spot and be as happy as I was right now - with so much hope for the future. There is always a calm before a storm, but there is also a rainbow at the end of that storm and I was enjoying this rainbow.

Normal. You could say we were back there. No one talks about the fire anymore or Sam. Everyone talks about Soda over coming death, and Dally getting off with just a slap on the wrist for parking tickets. Darry is looking forward to spending the holiday with Kathy, and we all know what that means, and Pony is just excited to have Soda back. He's over Cherry I think. I catch his eyes sometimes when a pretty girl walks by. He's slowly moving on.

And I stand here.

There are a few things that need to be cleared up before we can officially say this is all over. There are some things that still need to be said and overcome. I'm almost there. I'm almost ready to put this behind me and move forward.

There are just a few things I need to do before I can be at peace. Before everyone can be at peace.

I won't cry for you. I won't crucify the things you do. I won't cry for you, see. When you're gone I'll still be bloody Mary. We are not just art for Michelangelo. To carve. He can't rewrite the agro of my ferried heart. I'll wait On mountain tops in Paris cold. Je ne veux pas mourir toute seule.

A/N: Please review for a quick update. :)