The hardest part about moving every seven years was coming up with new names and histories. She couldn't just waltz into town and find a job without having something to back her up. Her first step was finding someone who could forge those documents that would look real and convince anyone who asked any serious questions that she was who she said she was. She didn't want any suspicion raised when she went to look for a job, or if she was to somehow become involved in law enforcement for one reason or another.

Picking a name was the hardest. Once, she had just pulled a name out of the census, picking the first one she saw. That hadn't been a good idea. At the beginning, she had a hard time answering to that name. Whenever someone would call for her attention it would take multiple tries. After that, she had been more careful. She picked names that meant something to her, one that she would easily answer to.

Each name had become more unique as time went on. It was never enough to spark too much interest in those around her, but they were unusual enough that no one else would have the same name.

Eura, her first name, given to her by the people that had raised her.

Nancy had been her next name, chosen because of its popularity and desire for her to fit into the world.

Melvina, or Vina to her friends, wasn't as popular of a name, but it was common enough not to be questioned.

Elizabeth, the name she had pulled out of the Census and had a hard time living by.

Luvenia, in which she finally felt safe enough to not look behind her back every step she took. It was also her first identity in America

Nova, in which she became interested in space, stars, and the changes in which the universe was going through.

Ruby, when she let the color of her hair rule the name she chose for herself.

Charlotte, the name she had the longest after moving from England to America.

Astera, because it sounded cool.

Victoria, simply because a dear friend once said she looked like that could be her name.

Athena, goddess of wisdom and war. After over one hundred years of life, what name could be more fitting?

Freesia because flowers were always so beautiful.

Meng, because she needed to leave the country.

Dawn, because she was finally able to return to America.

Sigyn had been picked after she had become interested in Norse mythology. This would be the last name she would give herself.

So many lives, so many names, and so many friends. By the time she had taken the name Meng, she had become weary of having to leave everything she knew behind. When she had picked Sigyn, she was ready to give up on life.

Sigyn watched in fascination as Liz's figures flew across the keyboard, looking through records and public files to find the information that Sigyn had requested. She studied the way Liz typed, how she pulled the information she wanted onto the screen and made the information she didn't want to disappear. Sigyn, standing behind Liz's chair as she sat at a table, couldn't help but be amazed.

Before everything, before Sigyn had been taken from the world, computers were only just starting to become something that large companies would have bought. The technological advances that had been in the time she was captured was amazing. Sigyn needed to catch up on technology if she wanted to be successful in this new world.

"There!" Liz suddenly exclaimed. Sigyn was slightly taken aback by the sudden burst, but quickly leaned forward as a photo appeared on the screen.

There was a family, mother, father, and two children. Sigyn's eyes raked over the photo, looking first to the mother who she recognized instantly. It was Barbara. Sigyn, Thomas, and Barbara had started as coworkers in the same office. Barbara had been a secretary, Sigyn an assistant to one of the Lawyers, and Thomas had been studying under the firm as he was in his last year of school. The three of them had become fast friends that had lasted until Sigyn disappeared.

Sigyn's eyes darted to the man's face, surprise causing her eyebrows to raise and eyes to widen. "So, she did marry him."

David had been Barbara's long time boyfriend. Barbara had told Sigyn on several occasions that she didn't think David would ever propose. The last that Sigyn had known, Barbara had been considering breaking it off with David and finding someone else because she wasn't getting any younger.

Sigyn looked at the children next, a boy and a girl who looked as if they had inherited their mother's dark hair. They couldn't have been any older than six, though they looked close in age. Sigyn's eyes caught the caption at the bottom of the picture.

"Mr. and Mrs. Carson, and their two children, Daniel (6) and Mary (5) celebrate as Mr. Carson becomes CEO of Griffon Electronics."

"Their current residence is listed in a small town about a two-hour drive from here." Liz turned to Sigyn, watching the other woman as she continued to stare at the picture of her friend. "Should we leave now?"

"Yes," was Sigyn's simple answer.

"I'll get the team ready." Liz jumped up from her seat at the table and started calling for other agents. "Gareld, get the car ready, Woods, I need you armed and geared up in five minutes, we're taking a trip!"

Liz's voice faded as she walked down the hall. Sigyn turned from the photo on the screen and walked down the hall to the room she had been sleeping in. Despite the comfort of the sweatshirt and leggings Sigyn was wearing, she felt that she needed to dress a little less casual if she were to see her friend again. Sigyn knew that she couldn't talk to Barbara, that it would bring up questions that couldn't be answered for everyone's safety.

But Sigyn wanted to see her, maybe her children or her grandchildren as well. She wanted to know that the friend she had left unwillingly behind was alright, and that she had lived a full life.

She changed quickly, pulling on some jeans and a navy blouse under a grey sweater, and sat on her bed after finding the pen and notepad she had used before. Sigyn wasn't sure how to start the letter, but once she started writing she found that she just couldn't stop. She wrote quickly, letting her thoughts and feelings flow through her hand. When she finished, Sigyn reread the letter, finding that she had somehow put everything she had wanted to say on that one piece of paper. She folded the paper before pushing it into her pocket and left her room to find Loki.

He had said that she could come and go as she please as long as she took Liz, but Sigyn wanted to find him before she left. Over the past several days, their connection had grown stronger and Sigyn couldn't resist the need to be around him. Something about Loki made her want to draw closer, to get to know him, to push past that rough and sad exterior to reach the man beneath.

There was so much going on in his mind, more than Sigyn would have been able to handle so she never pushed him. She sought him out, but she could tell when he wanted to be alone and when he didn't mind her presence. She didn't need his permission, but she owed him the courtesy of knowing that she would be leaving.

She found him in the main room, observing the progress of the metal contraption that was being pieced together. Loki was sitting on the floor, his legs crossed slightly as he held his scepter in one hand.

"I have been informed that you are going to visit an old friend." Loki didn't look at her as he said it, his eyes just following each person that walked past.

"Yes," Sigyn said simply, standing beside him and watching the others as well. She wasn't all that surprised that Liz had already told him where they were going. "Will you come?"

"I'm afraid not." He paused for a moment, looking up at Sigyn as she turned her head to stare down at him. "I have other plans to attend to."

Sigyn nodded, turning back to look down the aisle of machines. She was disappointed. This trip was going to be rough on her, and while she was prepared, she wished he would come so she could have a little extra support. But Sigyn also understood. While the progress they had made on his mind was good, he still wasn't able to resist the control. The goal he had been set to achieve still pressed on him. He could ignore the little things like killing everyone who wasn't helping him, but there was still the main target.

Sigyn gently laid a hand on his shoulder, her voice serious as she asked, "Will you be okay with me gone?"

Loki turned his head to look at her again, his face surprised and almost grateful. Sigyn only saw it for a second before that blank mask wiped his expression away.

"I'll be fine." His voice was harsh, cold. But Sigyn could feel that he was actually very appreciative of her concern.

Liz approached the pair, turning her eyes to Sigyn. "We're all set, the car is waiting."

Sigyn nodded, following Liz as she started toward the car.

"I expect her back unharmed." Loki's voice caused Liz and Sigyn to pause and glance back at him. His face was still blank, but he was glaring at Liz.

At his words, Liz stood straighter, blue flashing through her eyes. "Understood."

Liz and Sigyn weaved their way out of the main room, up several flights of stairs before finally coming to a door. Liz opened it and Sigyn stopped, her focus on the rays of light that entered the doorway.

Sigyn took a step outside the door, turning her face up towards the sky as the sun started to warm her skin. It had been so long since Sigyn had seen sunlight and felt it warm her. She had fantasized and tried to remember what that warmth had felt like while she had been stuck in all those cells with artificial light. It was an absolutely wonderful feeling to be able to experience it again.

The car was waiting just a few feet from the door, a driver and another man sitting in the passenger seat. Liz opened the back door, climbing in and gestured for Sigyn to follow. Sigyn climbed in, closing the door behind her. The car turned on the road and Sigyn settled down for a long drive.

Out of the corner of her eye, Sigyn saw the small rectangular computer Liz was smiling at. Sigyn had overheard someone call the small thing a phone, but she had yet to see anyone dial a phone number and talk to someone.

"How do those things work?" Sigyn asked, pointing towards Liz's phone.

"Oh, well it's like a small computer. There's a lot it can do. Here, let me show you."

Liz moved over to sit closer to Sigyn as she started showing her the basic functions of the phone.

For the entire ride, Sigyn watched and focused on learning how Liz used the phone. After she thought she knew the basics, she asked Liz if she could try it on her own, hoping to distract herself from the uncomfortable feeling in her mind. She was concerned by the way her mind seemed to stretch and pull, tugging her back. The sensation became stronger the farther the drive went, and while still watching the phone screen, she dipped into her mind, looking for the source.

It was the bond that connected Loki and Sigyn. She could see the bond churning, flexing, as if being pulled. It tightened with each passing second stretching until Sigyn wasn't sure it would stretch much more. Would the bond break? The only thing that had changed since she last saw Loki was the fact that she had been driven away from him. Was it the distance? Is that what was causing the strain on their bond?

When the car finally entered a small town, Sigyn felt as if she had been moderately successful in learning how that particular piece of technology worked. She couldn't do the fancy things she had seen Liz accomplish on it, but a basic understanding was always a good start. She was also happy to note that once the car slowed, the bond she shared with Loki did not grow tighter. The only explanation for that uncomfortable stretch could be the distance that was now between them.

Sigyn handed the phone back to Liz, then looked out the window. They were parked in front of a house, two stories, a large porch, and windows that interrupted the white panels of siding. A flower garden ran along the walls of the house with decorative ornaments and a few birdbaths sitting in strategic places.

"This is her house?" The words were quiet out of Sigyn's mouth, but Liz still heard her.

"This is it."

Sigyn stepped out of the car and onto the sidewalk, looking around. The house was situated in a neighborhood, full of homes that looked similar to the one she now stood in front of. After a moment, Sigyn took a step on the walkway that led to the front door of the house. When she reached the door, Sigyn pressed a finger to the doorbell and heard a faint chime as it echoed throughout the house. She waited a moment before casting her mind out, probing the rooms to see if there was anyone there.

There was someone there, younger than she would have expected, and the mind certainly didn't feel like Barbara's. Sigyn wasn't surprised. Most likely it was a child of Barbara's or even a visitor. The mind grew closer and finally on the other side of the door.

The door swung open revealing a woman of middle age, a duster in one hand. She had dark hair that reminded Sigyn so much of Barbara's, and her eyes were almost the same shade as well. The facial features were far different than her old friends, but not all children looked like one, or even both, of their parents.

The woman's eyes swept over Sigyn, then Liz who stood just past the steps to the porch. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, I'm looking for Barbara Carson."

"Oh, well, she isn't here. She took the kids to the park. Can I have you call her? Maybe take a message?"

Sigyn gave a faint smile as she shook her head. "No, today is the only day I will be in town. Which park would she be at?"

The woman opened the door a little wider, taking a small step to show the front room of the house. "There's only one park in town. Would you like to come in and wait for her?"

"No," said Sigyn faintly. "I couldn't impose on your hospitality. Thank you. But, would you give this to her?" Sigyn took the letter from her pocket and handed it to the woman. With another small smile, Sigyn turned and passed Liz to walk back to the car. She stopped when the woman called out.

"Wait! I'll tell her you stopped by! What was your name?"

Sigyn looked over her shoulder and simply said, "I'm just an old friend," before walking the rest of the way back to the car.

Liz wasn't far behind her. "To the park?" Liz asked as soon as her door was shut.

"To the park."

It wasn't a long drive, but Sigyn spent that time looking out the window as houses passed by slowly. They reached the center of town where almost every business was on the main strip of road before turning down a different road. The park was small, a playground for children, a basketball court, a large green patch of grass in which some kids were throwing a frisbee.

The driver parked the car in the small lot, and Sigyn got out and studied the area. There, on a bench next to the playground, was Barbara. She was older, fifty years had passed after all, but she still looked like herself. Her hair was white now, her skin wrinkled, her eyes old, but her stature and demeanor were the same. She had grown older, but Barbara was still the same person Sigyn had known.

Sigyn didn't approach her and instead took a seat on an empty bench adjacent to the one Barbara occupied. She watched the children play, then looked at her old friend for a few moments, studying her without gaining attention. Barbara looked happy, content, as she watched the children play as well.

Sigyn watched the group of children more closely, picking out the two that looked most similar to Barbara. She smiled to herself, happy to see children playing, laughing. In a world that had been hell for almost a lifetime, Sigyn was happy to hear the sound of children, of birds, of people being happy. She could feel the soft touch of the wind as it gently pulled her hair, and the sunlight as it graced her skin with its warmth. She closed her eyes, reveling in the small pocket of peace that surrounded her.

She was pulled out of the moment when a woman's voice sounded close. "Sigyn?"

Sigyn's eyes flashed open, her body jerking in recognition as her eyes landed on the woman that now stood in front of her. Barbara.

Barbara gasped, looking directly into Sigyn's eyes. "It can't be. It's impossible."

Sigyn didn't react to the whispered words, just watched her old friend as she struggled to understand how Sigyn could be in front of her.

"Hello, Barbara," Sigyn finally spoke, her voice soft.

Barbara took a step back, her face confused, sad, angry. "How do you know my name?"

Sigyn looked down to her fingers, twined in her lap, a sad smile on her lips. "You already know that, old friend."

Barbara didn't answer, just stood there for a moment before sitting down next to Sigyn.

"So, you married Derrick Carson." Sigyn knew it was a statement, but she couldn't think of anything else to say. She couldn't ignore Barbara, but she didn't want to answer any hard questions.

"You disappeared."

Sigyn sighed, closing her eyes as unwanted memories surfaced. She pushed them down, now not being the time to re-live those.

"I did."

"You didn't say goodbye."

Sigyn closed her eyes once more, memories of the last time she had seen Barbara flashing through her mind. "I couldn't."

"Couldn't, or just didn't want to?"

Sigyn's eyes snapped open, her gaze landing instantly on Barbara's face. When her voice came out it was harsh, much colder than Barbara's had been. "I wasn't given the choice."

There was a heavy silence between the two for some time. Barbara finally spoke again. "Where were you?"

"I don't know."

"Why do you look the same as you did when I met you fifty-six years ago?"

"I don't know the answer to that either."

"Why didn't you come to see me sooner?"

At those words, Sigyn couldn't hold back her frustration at her friend, or the anger she had towards the people who had kept her imprisoned. Those emotions came out in a sharp but small whisper. "Because this is the first time I've seen sunlight since I was abducted!"

At Barbara's sharp intake of breath, Sigyn closed her eyes again, breathing deeply and pulling her emotions back into herself.

"My life has always been complicated. I've had over a dozen different names, a dozen different lives. I've lived and died and was reborn, but you made me want to stay. I was going to tell you, I was so tired of hiding." Sigyn looked at Barbara again. "I'm so sorry."

"I was so worried about you, everyone but Thomas. He didn't seem to care that you had gone missing. I always wondered what happened to you. I thought you had to have been murdered. You wouldn't have just disappeared. But no one could find answers. You were just gone."

Sigyn nodded, then stood, knowing that her time here was ending, that the fact she had talked to Barbara at all was a miracle. From her pocket, Sigyn drew out the letter she had written so quickly earlier that day.

"I can't explain everything, it would put you in danger if you knew. I left a letter for you with your daughter. It won't explain everything either, but I hope it will help. I have to go, Barbara. I never meant to speak to you, I only wanted to know that you were happy, that you had a good life."

Sigyn saw tears gathering in her friend's eyes, and with her mind, she reached out and soothed Barbara's emotions. The fear, guilt, and sadness had consumed the forefront of her mind. But farther down, Sigyn could tell that her friend was happy, happy with her life, happy with knowing that Sigyn hadn't just disappeared without saying goodbye. Sigyn pulled that happiness to the surface of Barbara's mind, making the sadness and guilt feel old, the wound that Sigyn's disappearance had caused healing and scarring over.

Tears slipped down Barbara's face as she asked, "Will you say goodbye this time?"

Sigyn smiled, both happy and sad to see her friend. "You won't see me again if you're lucky. You'll be okay, and so will your family." Sigyn withdrew her mind completely from Barbara's emotions, backing away a few steps as she did. "Goodbye, old friend."

Sigyn turned her back on her friend, walking away with smooth steps. "Goodbye, Sigyn."

Several days later, Barbara Carson received a call from a friend, a call that was becoming more and more common. Her friend told her that Thomas Robert had died. So, Barbara sat down at her computer to find Thomas Robert's obituary. She didn't expect to find over a dozen articles that read "Thomas Robert Found Brutally Murdered!" and "Lawyer Thomas Robert Murdered! Police say no Leads."

Barbara clicked on the first article by a newspaper she knew to be reputable, and started reading.

"When Thomas Robert woke Saturday morning he didn't expect to be murdered. His wife had gone out that morning to start preparing for a family reunion and when she returned she found her husband, dead and brutally beaten.

"According to the Police department, preliminary reports say that not only was Robert beaten, but stabbed repeatably. Based on these reports, the medical examiner has concluded that while each injury would have killed Robert eventually, none of them would have caused death immediately. It seems that whoever broke into Robert's house was intending to torture the man before finally killing him.

"Despite the crime, police have found no evidence of who it could have been. In a short briefing this afternoon, police chief Gonzolos said, 'We are working on finding evidence. As soon as we have something we will hunt down the perpetrator. We will continue to update the public on this crime as more evidence comes to light.'"

Barbara and the rest of the world didn't know that no evidence would ever be found. Not one fingerprint, hair, or fiber would lead investigators to arrest a suspect. Only two people knew who had killed Thomas Robert, one being the victim himself, and the other who wouldn't tell another soul that he had gotten revenge for the woman who had saved him.