Hope you enjoy, as always reviews are always wanted and appreciated. And agian, Don't own anything.

Fi stifled a yawn as she met with the realtor. She was exhausted, but she had to go back to work after signing the papers. She really needed to pull another all-nighter but knew she wouldn't manage it. She had been pulling too many of them lately and was at her breaking point. She wanted to kill Will. He might have given her the go-ahead to work with Dorian but he was doing everything he could to let her know that he and the council were pissed. In other words, he was drowning her in work.

"Are you sure you don't want me to show it to you, Miss Phillips? I mean it's a pricey investment and you haven't even viewed the place," pressed the realtor.

"I'm sure, now where do I need to sign?"

"But Miss-"

"Ma'am, I appreciate the concern but the price isn't an issue for me and really it's just a place to sleep for now, if I decide I don't like it later, I'll sell it," she shrugged. "Now, where do I sign?"

It really was just a place to sleep, sadly. She never left the office before ten and she had to be back there by eight, which really sucked when your commute was an hour. At least having a place a block from the office would help with that. As for her weekends, well, they were devoted to her research with Dorian, which was making no headway. They'd been at it for close to two months now and they were still mired down in the preliminary research. It also meant, more often than not, she crashed at his place too tired to drive. She even had drawer space there, the only draw back was the couch, it was hell on her back because despite Dorian's promises to be a gentleman she refused to share a bed with him. Sleeping in the same bed as her ex-fiancé when they weren't romantically involved was a can of worms she did not want to open. Granted, he had offered to take the couch instead but she felt bad perpetually forcing him to sleep on the couch in his own home. Not that her refusal had done anything, after seeing how stiff she was the first weekend, Dorian had taken matters into his own hands. She'd fall asleep on the couch and, inevitably, wake up, alone, in his bed. Still, she refused to willingly take his bed from him, if he wanted to continually move her do to his misplaced sense of chivalry that was his concern. She wasn't going to make it easy on him and she certainly didn't find it romantic!

"Alright, that covers it, here's your copy of everything," smiled the realtor, " and you can move in starting tomorrow. Oh, and your keys."

"Th-thanks," yawned Fi, pushing the folder into her computer bag and the keys into her purse.

Fi stood and quickly gripped the back of the chair, waiting for the room to stop spinning. She really needed to sleep.

"Are you alright, Miss Phillips?"

"Oh I'm fine, just stood up too quickly," Fi smiled. "Thanks again."

Ignoring the nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach, Fi headed out in search of a very large cup of very strong coffee before heading back to work .

"Fi?... Fiona? Come on Fi, wake up."

"Wha?" mumbled Fi, trying to figure out what the rocking sensation was.

"You need to wake up Fiona!" said Will, shaking her again.

"Hm? Ima awake," she murmured, forcing her eyes open.

It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust and realize that Will was crouched by her desk, which she was resting her head on. She jerked up.

"I…" she paused, peeling off the piece of paper that had gotten stuck to her face. "Sorry. What time is it?"

"Eight-thirty."

"Crap," she groaned running her fingers through her hair.

"How long were you out for?"

"Forty minutes or so, I think."

"Maybe that's your body telling you to take a break," he suggested.

"Maybe I'll take it up with my boss, seeing as he's the one giving me all the work I'm trying to get through," she grimaced. "I'm not super woman Will, even I can't go twenty-four-seven non stop."

"I know Fi, and I'm sorry but you're the best, I don't trust anyone else with the jobs I'm giving you."

"Please, we both know why you're giving me all this work," she snapped.

"Fi, I meant what I said. However much I might disapprove of your weekend activities, I am not trying to punish you for them," he told her. Then wilting a little under her glare amended, "Well, not completely. I may be breathing down your neck, Fi, but the council is breathing down mine, too. They are… less then happy with your display of power, a few months back. They want you kept in line, and you should be grateful they've left me to do it. My methods are downright pleasant in comparison to what they've suggested, Fi."

"Kept in line?" she bristled. "And just what methods did they have in mind?"

"Let it go, Fi," he warned, sounding tired.

"No."

"Fiona, the council demands order and obedience from our kind, and you defy that at every turn-"

"I do not!"

"Yes, you do! You may comply with their wishes in the end Fi, but when you disagree with them you make it abundantly clear."

"That's called having an opinion."

"The council doesn't want you to have an opinion, let alone do they care what it is!"

"Well then maybe they should have chosen someone else!"

"They didn't have a choice, Fi!" he yelled.

"And neither did I!" she yelled back. "I never chose any of this. I tried my best to get out but that obviously didn't work! I am not meant to be tamed!"

"Unfortunately for you, the council disagrees and if you don't start toeing the line a little more, they'll not only tame you they'll break you!"

"I'd like to see them try," she scoffed.

"Careful what you wish for Fiona," he said, somewhat deflated. "Look, I know you're unhappy with me but I am trying to look out for you, you're just making it extremely difficult."

"I know," she said, her anger receding- her screwed up life wasn't his fault, mostly.

"And I can't protect you from everything, especially if you don't start being more careful."

"I know," she told him sadly.

"Are you coming home?" he asked, concerned.

"No, I've got a lot still to do tonight," she told him.

"I'm sorry Fi, a couple more weeks and things will die down some, get back to a normal pace, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," she shrugged, "and then something else will come up. Just the way our lives work in this business."

"If it helps any, I really am sorry, about all of it. If I can do anything?"

"Just don't hurt my mom."

"That's the last thing I want Fiona, I really do care about her."

"Good, it's been too long since she's had someone to make her happy like you do."

"You two will sort things out, you know."

"Sure," she snorted, "Oh, here, it's my preliminary findings on that Native American sight."

"Thanks," he said taking the folder. "I'll see you at home."

"Here," said Fi, setting down a cup of coffee on the back patio table.

"Thanks, baby. Don't you usually leave by now?"

"Dorian's picking me up a little later today."

"For an ex, Fiona, you two are spending a lot of time together," her mother pointed out.

"I know. It's just work."

"And you wish it was more?"

"No, yes, maybe," sighed Fi. "I don't know what I want. My head knows we shouldn't be together but…"

"Your heart maybe wants to be with him?"

"Maybe," she conceded, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Fiona, are you falling in love with him again?"

"I'm not so sure I ever stopped loving him," she answered, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice and failing.

"How serious were you two, baby?"

"We were engaged," said Fi, her voice breaking slightly.

Molly stared at her daughter, trying to keep the shock off her face and reminding herself that she didn't tell Fi about her engagement either.

"Baby if you still love him and you were engaged before, maybe it's worth trying to sort out? The heart isn't just a switch you can turn on and off."

"It's just… too complicated."

"All good relationships are, Fi. Any relationship worth having is hard; you have to fight for it."

"I'm not sure the fight is worth it."

"Well, baby, that's something you have to come to terms with because staying in limbo with him, isn't good for you, either of you… Just, don't let go of this relationship if it means to you what I think it does because in the end, all the fears, all the complications, all the hardships, they're worth it, I promise."

"I wish I could believe that," said Fi, her voice bitter.

"Well baby, whatever you decide, just be sure."

Fi nodded and pushed the folder she had been carrying towards Molly, "What do you think?"

"It's beautiful," said Molly looking at images and floor plans of the spacious apartment.

"I bought it."

Molly nodded.

"Mom, I'm not trying to hurt you, I just…"

"Have grown-up. I know, baby. I know haven't made things easy on you, and I don't want to be difficult it's just… when I agreed to let you go live with your aunt, it was like I lost you, for six years, and that was hard. And then I got you back only I didn't because you had grown up, with responsibilities, and priorities I didn't want you to have. You were right, I wanted my fifteen year old Fiona, I wanted back the time we lost and I hated that we couldn't have that. Fi, I'm not saying things are going to get better between us overnight, but I'm going to try, okay?"

"Thank you, mom."

"So, how far is it from the office?"

"About ten minutes."

"That'll be good for you… When are you moving?"

"I packed up my stuff this morning, Dorian and I going to drop it off on our way… Mom, it's not like I'm never going to be over here again."

"It feels that way."

"I'm sorry… Maybe, who knows, maybe things will be easier when we're not living together anymore?"

"Maybe… So, have you picked out furniture and all that stuff yet."

"No, I mean, I ordered a bed, but as for the rest," she shrugged. "I've still got a couple weeks before my schedule calms down, which means it's going to be a while before I'm there for more than a few hours at night. I'll worry about it then."

"How much time till Dorian gets here?"

"About fifteen minutes, why?"

"Because you still need some basics- towels, mugs, bedding. I've got some spares I can pack up for you. Actually I think I have a spare coffee maker, and some paper plates I can send you with."

"Thanks, mom," smiled Fi.

"It's what moms are for, baby.

"You seemed in a better mood today," observed Dorain as the two of them sat at his dining room table at one in the morning.

"My mom and I, we started fixing stuff this morning."

"Even with you moving out?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

"Good," smiled Dorian as he stood up, "You want more coffee?"

"Yes, please," she yawned.

"Be right back," he said, yawning as well and grabbing their mugs.

Fi rubbed her eyes as the words blurred with her tiredness. She couldn't afford to lose focus now, they were close, she could feel it. She started to re-read the paragraph, knowing she hadn't taken any of it in the first time but paused half way through.

"Dorian!" she called.

"Yes, love?" he said, setting her mug down.

"Read this," she told him handing over the paper, and gratefully taking a gulp of her coffee.

"My God," he murmured, hurrying over to his bookshelf, and grabbing an ancient looking tome.

Balancing it precariously on the arm that was holding his coffee, he frantically flipped through the pages. Finally, he stopped and started reading through it, following the words with his finger. A smile began to spread over his face and he hurried back to her.

"I think this is it, Fi, I think this is what we've been looking for," he told her excitedly, placing the book in front of her.

Fi read where he indicated, smiling as well. This was it, what they had spent weeks searching for. They finally had their lead.