Newkirk jerked his head up to look at him again.

"Sir?"

"You said Thomas only comes out when someone threatens you. But he planned to poison me. I don't know what it was I did that made you feel threatened, but -"

"No sir please, stop," Newkirk looked wide eyed with concern, "You didn't do anything, I promise. There's not alway logic to it, not always a real threat. I think - I think he used to come out when I was a lad and steal things for me that he thought I needed. I used to find food hidden in my room and I couldn't remember how it got there. Or I'd be seeing a bird who had some big older brothers, and everything would be going along fine and one day I'd meet her and she'd give me a smack for something I couldn't remember saying. Sometimes it just the potential of a threat that seems to do it."

"Comes to the same result though," Hogan said, "What did I do to potentially threaten you?"

Newkirk stayed quiet for a moment, seeming to consider his response.

"Nothing any other CO wouldn't be required to do in wartime sir. And I don't think originally putting me in harm's way was the problem, I think that just… recently there was a little more harm than normal."

"The Gestapo," Hogan said flatly, "I put you in danger, and you ended up being thrown around by the Gestapo."

"That was the connection, yes, sir," Newkirk said and looked at his boots again, "At least the connection that Thomas saw. He thought you'd put me in a situation where it would happen again, so he decided to eliminate the threat. He thought you meant to put me in danger and keep yourself safe."

"Is that what you believe too?" Hogan asked, trying to keep any emotion from his voice.

"No," Newkirk looked up and met his eyes again, "I do not believe that for a minute. If I did, I'd never have been able to stop Thomas in the end."

Hogan held eye contact with Newkirk for a moment and then nodded.

"Okay," he cleared his throat, "So I think I understand the why. Now what about the how? How did Thomas hire an assassin in the first place?"

Newkirk looked relieved again.

"I don't know for sure, but I think he… I think I have been sneaking out of camp in the night. Those two said I met them at the Hofbrau and hired them to come here and deliver the poison."

"And the Underground? What's their involvement?"

"Unwitting participants. Thomas wrote that message tonight, and somehow convinced them to deliver it back here. And… and he was the one who put it in your hand tonight sir. I'm sorry. I was trying to stop him, I was battering on the walls, but I took too long to grab control back."

Hogan felt unsettled at the thought that the man he'd conversed with earlier that night had not been fully Newkirk at the time. What other times had he not been fully Newkirk?

"Well, I am certainly glad you got him under control in the end."

"Me too sir," Newkirk gulped, "Me too. Even if it did require smashing meself in the head to do it."

Hogan looked at the marks on Newkirk's face again, and the last pieces of the puzzle finally clicked. Now he just had to figure out what to do with the finished work.

"Newkirk, what am I supposed to do now? We can't have you leaving camp unknowingly, and we certainly can't have you attempting to assassinate me."

Newkirk nodded, clearly expecting this question.

"He's gone now sir, I swear it. He was in control early, but I was able to break through. I haven't heard a peep from him since, and I don't expect I will."

"That's a lot of trust I'm going to have to put in you. A thousand things could go wrong if you ever lose that control."

"Maybe we ought to cuff me to the bed for a few weeks just to make sure."

"Will that even hold you?" Hogan raised an eyebrow, all too aware of Newkirk's lockpicking skills, "Or Thomas?"

"Unlikely sir," Newkirk said without a hint of sarcasm, "But maybe we block up the tunnel entrance at night for awhile. You don't tell me what you've done, and you put something in place where you'll know if it's been moved just in case I do get through. If I ever do, you ship me back home right quick."

"Alright," Hogan said carefully, "I trust you. And I don't want to lose you. We'll try it your way, but if there is even a hint that Thomas is still there… I can't risk the operation on a loose cannon like that."

"I understand that sir, believe me. Thank you though. I won't let you down again, I promise."

As Hogan headed back up the tunnel, he considered if he'd made the right decision. The truth was, he had no idea. This… split of Newkirk and Thomas, well, he'd never heard of it. But he needed Newkirk, and if Newkirk was willing to smash himself in the face and tie himself to his bed to try to keep doing his job, Hogan was willing to give him that second chance at least.

But he couldn't help worry that they might still be living with a stranger.

88888888

Four weeks later.

It was early morning after roll call, and Newkirk was in the tunnel, tidying the spare uniforms. Things had been relatively quiet since the Thomas incident. They had gone about their lives as normal, or at least as normal for Stalag 13. Colonel Hogan had insisted Newkirk explain what had happened to the other men on the core team, though he had allowed Newkirk to keep the details of some of Thomas' earlier exploits to himself, which Newkirk was grateful for. And while the other had also struggled to understand Newkirk's reality of living with two minds, they had eventually accepted it. In fact, Carter had even turned it into something of a game as they designed different ways of ensuring that Thomas wasn't making anymore secret plots.

And so far, so good. Every morning Newkirk woke up, and whoever set their devices last night would confirm to him that everything was as it should be, and he would breathe a sigh of relief. He really felt like he had done it this time. It had taken everything he had, and risked the life of the best man he knew, but he had finally rid himself of Thomas for good. He smiled to himself at that thought - while his reputation was not exactly untarnished anymore with Colonel Hogan, he had at least finally been able to stop Thomas from making it any worse. And he felt that he could finally keep everything together, finally live his life without having to worry about what Thomas might do to destroy it without his knowing.

He heard a noise behind him, and saw Hogan making his way towards him from the direction of the emergency tunnel entrance. Hogan smiled at him.

"Everything looks good Newkirk," Hogan stopped and put his hand on Newkirk's shoulder, "I think you were right. Thomas is gone for good this time,"

"Glad to hear it sir," Newkirk grinned back.

"Finish up here and then head upstairs alright? Klink's got a visitor soon, we should listen in on the coffeepot."

"Righto guv'nor, be up in a tick."

Hogan headed off, and after a moment's more of brushing sleeves and straightening collars, Newkirk went to join him. He headed for the exit that led to the barracks, and as he did so he unconsciously spared a glance for his reflection in the new mirror that had replaced the one he had broken.

And his reflection winked at him.

The End... For Now.