Season Three: Episode Eight (Strange Brew)

"Dad should've caught up by now." Ben said out of nowhere. No one wanted to say it, but it was true; Tom should've caught up, unless he was captured or worse, killed. Ericka and Ben were scouting the area, looking for the Rebel Skitters while Hal waited back at their small camp with Matt. It was quiet until he spoke up. They hadn't really talked since the conversation they had about the pain killers. She eyed him cautiously, raising an eyebrow. "You think he's been captured?" she asked, though it was more of a statement. He nodded, ending their short conversation. Was he mad at her? She didn't see it as a big deal, but apparently it was too him. Sighing, she spoke up, "Ben, I'm sorry about the pills. Can you just…talk to me?" she apologized. "I thought we told each other everything, but it's not fair to be mad at you for this. After all I put you through with the Rebels…let's just forget about it." he suggested. She smiled and was just about to reply when Ben suddenly stopped, gazing up at the sky. Beside him, Ericka halted her horse to a stop as well. There was a grid over the sky, no doubt created by the Eshpeni, but why?

"What the hell is that?" Ericka gasped with wide eyes and a hint of fear in her voice. It was probably another weapon, which they knew nothing about. "We have to get back to Charleston." Ben replied, ignoring her question. He didn't know what it was either. Hopefully, someone it the new capital would know something. They raced back on their steeds, the wind slapping their faces.

Arriving back at the camp, everything was already packed and the boys were ready to go. Hal and Matt saw the grid too; and Hal's first thought was to head back. Ben and Ericka slowed to a stop in front of them. "Did you make contact with the Rebels?" Hal questioned. He shook his head 'no'. Almost directly after seeing the grid go up, they hurried back to them. "We need to go." Ericka said sternly, she didn't like not knowing what that was or what it did. "What about Anne and Lexi? We can't just leave them!" Matt shouted, frustrated that they were just giving up on searching for them. Ericka frowned and gave him a sympathetic look. They didn't have time to continue to search for the two of them. She knew the older Mason brothers were feeling torn. Neither of the boys knew what to say. So, Ericka responded to the eleven-year-old, "We aren't leaving them, Matt. But we do have to go back. We need to know why the Eshpeni put it up and what it does." She was trying to reason with him. It worked too, because he nodded and hopped up on his horse. Hal gave her a gracious nod, thankful that she talked Matt out of an argument. The last thing they needed was him running off trying to find Anne and his half-sister by himself. It was going to be a long trip back to Charleston.

...

The silence was slowly annoying Ericka. All of them were disappointed that they hadn't continued with their mission to find Anne, even Ericka, though she had a feeling that Anne and the baby would be just fine. She thought about how Alexis was half-alien. How was that even possible?

What would life have been like if the aliens hadn't come, she wondered? This was a thought that everyone had at some point in time. She had thought of this before, but not too in depth. She gave a soft chuckle, causing Ben to look over at her. They were riding side-by-side with Hal and Matt in front of them. "What?" he asked, curious as to what made her chuckle. "I was just thinking about how life would be." she answered.

"I would probably still be dating Rita." Hal said, inserting himself into the conversation.

"I would be in grade 5." Matt added.

"I would still be a nerd." Ben offered with a nostalgic chuckle. He was joining in too now.

It was her turn to say something. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She didn't know what life would have been like. Would she have turned into a popular bitch? Would she have ever dated Ben? They waited for her to speak. All of a sudden the horse neighed, standing up on its hind-legs. Ericka let out a scream as she fell off the back of the horse, landing harshly on the ground. Her head hit the pavement with a crack, making her vision go blurry before everything faded to black. Ben didn't hesitate to jump off his horse and move over to her. The spikes on his back allowed him to move swiftly and quickly than he ever would have before. He felt the back of her head, finding a large bump forming; luckily there was no blood though. Her horse slowly calmed down. None of them had any idea what riled it up. "Is she alright?" asked Matt with a concerned tone. Hal's dark brown eyes watched Ericka's chest hesitantly rise and fall. She was breathing, which meant she was alive. "She will be fine, but she'll be out for a while." Ben replied. The eldest brother sighed in annoyance. They hadn't gotten as far as he would've like for the day, but with Ericka out they would have to make camp.

...

Sometime during the night, Ericka woke from unconsciousness. Her stomach growled, aching for food. She found a pack of crackers stored with the rest of the food. Without giving it a second thought, she polished off the crackers. There was a pounding throb coming from the back of her head. Feeling around with her hand, she found a small lump. The memories flooded back to her like a whirlwind; he horse panicking and throwing her off, her hitting her head. Then there was the strange dream she had. It was a week before Christmas and everything seemed so perfect, the invasion never happened in this dream. Perfect, she hated that word. There were people (before the aliens came) that called her "perfect" or said she had the "perfect" life. Granted, her life was good, but it was far from perfect. Her dad was always overseas and when he was home with his family, he would occasionally ridicule some of their choices; like Chris deciding he wanted to be an artist or Ericka spending some money she earned on a cute pair of shoes instead of saving it. Her mom was always seemed to be working too, whether it was part-time at the hospital or at her bakery. It was like she was constantly looking for an escape. She would give her children a list of chores to accomplish before she got home. On top of that Ericka had an annoying little brother she had to care for and look after, as well as piles of homework. Her life was never perfect, but she went along with everything that was thrown at her. Ericka was good at putting on a smile and lying through her teeth.

Hal stirred, slowly opening his eyes. The first thing he noticed was that Ericka was awake. "Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked, sitting up in his sleeping bag. "Like I wish I still had those pills, my head is killing me." Ericka answered honestly. They sat in silence for a few more minutes until Hal spoke up again. "You never said your 'I would...'." he said, his voice barely above a whisper so he didn't wake his brothers. "I would have been pretending..." she trailed off. For a second, she was lost in her thoughts. His voice snapped her out of it. "Pretending?"

She nodded, "Pretending that my life was...perfect."

She looked to Ben and Matt, both sleeping so peacefully. Ericka stood and stretched; they probably wasted a lot of time stopping for her. Her head injury wasn't too serious, just enough to knock her out. Now that she was awake, they should keep heading to Charleston. "We should go." she added.

...

Ericka watched Maggie and Hal's joyful reunion. She got off her horse, glaring daggers at the creature that threw her off. She felt a hand rest on her back. Craning her head to the side, she saw Ben. All they had to do now was wait for Tom to return. They all had faith that he would come home. Who knows maybe he would even get Anne and Lexi back too? His other hand moved to the back of her head. When he felt the part of her head that hit the concrete, he frowned. "You should get that checked out." Ben stated. He gently pushed her head forward as his lips managed to find hers. Her cheeks flushed at the sudden contact, but excitedly kissed him back. They hadn't exactly kissed in a while. There wasn't a place they go to for privacy like before, where they could make-out in her room. Ben didn't care about privacy at the moment though. Hal and Maggie got a cute 'I missed you' kiss reunion sort of thing. Besides, Ben and Ericka were a couple, it didn't really matter whether or not who saw them kiss.

AN: OMG, it's done! I had so much writer's block with this chapter. While I LOVED the episode (seriously a favorite), I had little inspiration for this chapter. Then when it came to me, I was like "let's do what they did in the episode". She would hit her head, have a dream about what life would have been like, then I could finish the chapter. So, I started writing and I loved it. I knew how I wanted everything to play out EXACTLY. Then I changed my mind, because after I read it...I just didn't like the chapter. So, I had to rewrite the majority of it. But it's up! I want to personally thank blamethegnomes for following this story and Guest for the review. Please please pleeeeeeaase review this chapter!

Now for more news. I WANT (key word) to do a What If story. As if the alien invasion never happened, which would deal with both the Masons and Ericka's family. And I WANT to do a future fic. Though I doubt those will ever happen, I have started both because I was bored...and nothing good was on tv.