Chapter 1071

Very Hands On

Young Allison decided she would get everyone's food order at the Resistance base. She wanted to personally get John's order from him. She looked over at Anna.

"I'll check in the Command Center to see what they want." Young Allison said.

Anna looked at Young Allison for a long moment. It seemed as if there would be some type of further explanation. She was a little unsure what she was supposed to do next.

"Do you want me to see if I can find out what Jesse and your mom want?" Anna asked. "Do you want me to go with you?"

Young Allison wondered what Anna just really asked her. She wanted to make sure what Anna indicated. She understood the implications on a personal level.

"I can see John alone." Young Allison said. "I'm curious to see if he will ask me anything further about the earlier operation we were involved with. I don't think it'll be a problem."

She waited to see if Anna would protest. She didn't.

Anna was sure it wasn't the only thing Young Allison would attempt to do. She understood their interaction would be a little different without her there. She noticed John spent a lot of time looking at her, when he didn't look at Young Allison. She was sure part of it was his own personal interest in the appearance of her sheath, as it was her 'watching over' Young Allison.

Young Allison left Anna behind and headed for the Command Center. She wasn't really sure what she was going to do when she arrived other than ask about the food order. She didn't really care for the way Anna looked at her when she walked away. It was a reminder everyone was always looking over her shoulder, even if they weren't. She knew she placed a lot of restrictions on herself. John wasn't one of them. Neither was Savannah or Cameron.

John Henry noticed who was about to arrive at the Command Center. It seemed prudent he should give John a heads up. He was sure John would become very uneasy rather quickly.

"I believe Young Allison will be here shortly." John Henry said.

John quickly looked at the security monitor.

"It looks like it." John said.

He wasn't sure if he was about to get an earful or not. He also remembered what she whispered to him before she left. He was ready for a new adventure as well. He did know the next time he was with Cameron, who would be forefront in his mind as he went to 'work'.

Young Allison walked in the door of the Command Center.

"Hello, everyone." Young Allison said. "I just stopped by to see if you missed me yet."

John Henry wasn't sure what was happening. He noted Anna wasn't with her. He knew whatever it was, it was going to be something different from normal.

"Hello." John Henry said

John quickly collected his thoughts.

"Hi, Allison." John said. "You're welcome in the Command Center anytime, or any place else I'm at."

John couldn't believe he said the last part of his sentence.

Young Allison picked up on the last part of John's sentence. It seemed to indicate his bedroom was one of the places he would be at some point in time."

"I'm just here to take a food order." Young Allison and said. "This time…."

John was surprised when Young Allison stopped by and asked what he wanted for dinner. She told him what Savannah and Cameron planned to do. He thought it was a good idea. He was surprised Young Allison looked like her cheerful playful self. It seemed as if she wasn't involved in the operation at all.

He was more relieved she wasn't headed out to interrogate the prisoner. It all happened at Cameron's base. Cameron maintained her base wasn't part of the Resistance operation. It gave her the leeway to conduct non Resistance related operations against future Scavengers and other 'black op' activities. The down side was, it also gave Cameron the freedom to become Skynet herself. It was a worrisome thought anytime.

Young Allison's next sentence caught him off guard. It brought him back to now. It was about the last thing he would have expected after their earlier discussion.

"We can either order out or I can make you something." Young Allison said. "I'd like to do it."

John wasn't sure how to respond to her statement. He quickly glanced over at John Henry. Maybe he needed to get his mind out of the bedroom. He knew Claire was a good cook. Maybe Young Allison was as good of a cook as her mother. It wouldn't surprise him at this point. Maybe she was better. He was aware she excelled in everything.

It seemed Young Allison wasn't the least bit phased by the earlier events. Then again, she followed the Resistance operations for a while in the background. He liked how she remained calm when he 'pushed' her. She didn't hesitate to hold her ground and stand up for what she believed in. There was no yelling or shouting or angry words exchanged during any of it. She may have been upset and angry, but she never let it seep through and interfere with her decision making or communication ability.

He looked her over again from head to toe and back again. He just couldn't get enough of how she looked. It was just like a slightly younger version of Cameron. He wondered what else was on the menu. Was it strictly food? There were a few things he would like to try. He resisted the urge to tell her he'd like to try a 'taco'. He was actually pleased at the amount of effort she was willing to put into it.

"You'd make me something?" John asked.

Young Allison smiled. She was well aware of what the future held for her, for them.

"Of course I would." Young Allison said. "We're going to be living together in the future. We'll all help each other. We'll do a lot of things together."

John didn't want to go anywhere near Young Allison's statement. His earlier thoughts came back to haunt him. He wasn't even sure why he thought them. They just sort of popped into his head. He took in her beauty and it made him think of Future Allison again. He realized he was looking at 'Future Allison' now, or what Young Allison would be.

He didn't want to be a problem. It made him think of one of the movies he liked to watch. He wasn't sure how it would look either when others found out about it, if it was just for him. He thought it was best not to have Young Allison make something only for him. It would be a lot of work if she needed to make things for everyone.

"Maybe I can order out something like everyone else is." John said. "I don't want to give anyone the wrong impression."

Young Allison did. She didn't think there was anything 'wrong' about it. It was going to happen anyway. What difference did it make? What difference did anything make? Everyone else did whatever they wanted. Well, everyone else except her. She planned for it to change.

"Sure, John, we'll do whatever you want." Young Allison said.

John and Young Allison held a look with each other for a long time.

Young Allison took the order and left. She said she needed to get the information to Savannah.

John watched her leave again. She was so much like Cameron and Future Allison. He was startled when she glanced back and winked at him. She knew he would 'check her out'. How could he not? She was just right there. Everything was all in front of him.

He glanced over at John Henry.

"What just happened here?" John asked.

John Henry could tell what John really asked about. It was quite evident to him who was actually in control of the conversation the entire time. It really wasn't much different than the operation they just conducted. He knew Young Allison was ahead of John and him on everything, as well for the operation. The current situation was no different even if the subject was.

"I think you got a taste of the future." John Henry said.

Based on his research, John Henry thought John really wanted a 'taste' of the future. His research also indicated a female could do things much better than a male could along those lines. He figured John would still give it a try. He might come up a little short. He would really need to give it a try then to keep things going.

John would have preferred John Henry used a different word other than 'taste'. It was one of the things which actually crossed his mind as he spoke to Young Allison. He was glad she wasn't upset at him after the earlier encounter. He didn't mean to be 'mean' to her earlier. He hoped he hadn't come off like he wanted more. He just wanted to see what she would do and how far she would go. It was evident she would do anything and go all the way, when it came to an operation. He was pretty sure it would apply to other things as well.

"I pushed her hard earlier." John said. "She seems totally unaffected."

John Henry was impressed himself. He observed all of the Resistance females were very determined and resilient. He thought Savannah would be hard to top. It appeared as if Young Allison might be able to do it. He was aware there was another.

"Cameron's making her the 'perfect woman' as a teenager." John Henry said. "She is very determined with her efforts."

John Henry believed she was also quite successful. It didn't look like John would want to hear him say it.

John liked what he saw now. He really wondered if Cameron knew what she was doing. It was clear Cameron was playing with fire. He knew when someone played with fire, they eventually got burnt. He was only human. The 'fire' Cameron was about to create was sure to burn her sooner or later. He only could hope it didn't consume her. He hoped he didn't get caught up in any of it in a negative way either.

He understood it was his personal fantasy to think about Savannah and now Young Allison. Sometimes he really wondered where those thoughts came from. Somehow they just popped into his mind like they were already there or something. He was unaware he was 'conditioned' while he slept whenever Cameron was with him.

He tried to tell himself he didn't know what exactly the future would hold. The trouble was, he did know. Maybe it wasn't trouble. Somehow it would be, even if it wasn't.

Savannah called everyone and found out what they wanted to eat. When she went to call John, a message appeared on her phone, it said Young Allison already covered it. She looked at the message for a few long moments. She wondered if it was something Young Allison did on her own, or if she was prompted to do it. She figured it didn't really matter at this point since she already did it. She called Young Allison and got all of the information from her as well. She didn't ask about John when Young Allison gave her the information. She didn't know if Young Allison just tried to be helpful, or if it was an unspoken challenge.

What was she thinking? Why did she always think the worst possible thing when there were questions about something? She was the one who filled in the answers without finding out what actually occurred. Was she jealous? Was she upset with John, or with Young Allison? Right now she was upset with herself. She needed to get everything taken care of for the orders. She was going to have some assistance to do it.

CamNet monitored Savannah's calls. She placed and paid for the orders for everyone at multiple eating establishments along 'restaurant row'. All the girls would need to do was stop and pick the food up. Everything should work smoothly.

Cameron was pleased she would still be able to give the girls at least a little bit of a special dinner tonight. It wasn't what she planned, but it would work. It seemed Skynet and its offshoot always got in the way of her plans.

She always noticed when she went out with the human females they seemed to interact and have a better time with each other than they did around the Resistance base. The more pleased they all looked, the more pleased she felt. They would usually also do some other type of activity. Usually the activity led to some type of a personal challenge they urged her to conduct and use her Terminator abilities to their fullest, but still maintain the look of a teenage female. It always pleased her immensely to do it. She figured as long as she wasn't challenged to a swimming contest or some other type of activity involving water, like surfing or diving, she could prevail. She could do one thing in the water. It would be to hold her breath longer than any human could, since she didn't actually need to breathe. Her program could simulate breathing activity so it didn't draw suspicion if anyone noticed she wasn't breathing.

They stopped at five locations and picked up all the food CamNet ordered and paid for. There was extra food from each location in case anyone wanted something someone else liked. It always seemed to be the case when they were out and got food. Everybody wanted to try a little of everyone else's.

Cameron looked at all the food inside of the SUV after the last stop.

"This is a lot of food." Cameron said.

Savannah didn't want it to be just a gathering of the humans in the commissary. She wanted to include everyone at the base. She would set a simple stipulation she wanted all the Terminators to follow.

"You and the Metal girls can all try a taste." Savannah said. "I want all of us to share. Variety is the spice of life."

Cameron looked at Savannah and was sure her last statement projected a double meaning.

Savannah was aware she 'shared' with almost all of the females and Metal girls with 'other things'. She didn't regret a second of it. She was very content with the pleasure her body could both give and receive with another female. She still was a little wary about being with a male, but she was going to give it a try no matter what. Even if it was only one time, she wanted to know what it was like. She didn't want to find out the same way Vanna did. It was how all of the girls from the future found out the hard way.

Cameron wanted to reaffirm Savannah's dual meaning statement. She wanted all of the females to have as much pleasure as they wanted, whenever they wanted it. She understood the value and need for a dedicated couple. As long as those relationships were 'open' there was plenty for everyone to share. At the end of the day, everyone still knew who they belonged to. Meat and potatoes was good, but dessert was always a nice way to finish things off.

"I want everyone to share." Cameron said.

Savannah wanted to tell Cameron it included her too, but she didn't. She knew all of her messages were already out there. Things would happen when they happened.

Cameron thought the same thing Savannah thought. She wanted the same thing for Savannah and Young Allison. She wanted them to be loved by everyone, both humans and Terminators. They would both have love and the personal loyalty of everyone. It wouldn't matter if they were human or a machine.

Cammy and Gail looked at each other as they drove back to the Resistance base. They both knew what Cameron meant.

Gail didn't know everything Savannah did, but she had a pretty good idea. As far as she knew, Cameron and Savannah were never together. She didn't understand it. They clearly loved each other and wanted each other, but for some reason it never seemed to occur. She was lucky and was able to be with Savannah once. She was with Savannah on other occasions to do other things and found a great amount of pleasure doing them. Savannah opened her eyes up to there was more to a relationship other than just sexual relations.

She knew it was very different from her relationship with Jesse. Everything they did was based around sexual gratification in one form or another. She understood Jesse, like all of the girls from the future, sought sexual pleasure to escape from the reality of life. She thought it was an effective strategy. There were also the times when Jesse and her went out in search of future Scavengers. Those normally dealt with individuals who seemed to single out females for various forms of abuse. They were things Jesse told her they couldn't talk about or tell the others. Jesse said they wouldn't understand why she needed to do those things. She wasn't really sure why. They all seemed perfectly logical to her and protected the future going forward.

Earlier:

Young Allison stopped by and spoke with Derek and Riley and took their order.

Samantha got Precious ready to go out. She studied Young Allison and was fascinated by her. She wondered about Young Allison. She was clearly different from Allison in many ways, and identical to her in others, except for a few physical aspects. It was like the differences and similarities with Vanna and Savannah, however their physical development was almost identical. Well, until Vanna took on her new role. They were clearly visual differences now for anyone to see. She understood Savannah experienced those same changes with her two previous pregnancies in two different futures.

Samantha looked forward to see the gathering of the Resistance. It would be all the humans and the normal base Terminators as well. She was new to the base because her creation was new. Her sheath was in the process of Resequencing. She wondered what her place really was or would be. She was fairly certain Riley would prefer her to share her DNA. It seemed as if Sarah was interested in the idea as well. She understood all of the mothers were worried about their children. She didn't need to look any further than the animal world to see how defensive some mothers were of their young. Most of them were willing to put up a fight, at least until the point of self-preservation took over. If they were still alive, they could produce more offspring. If they were terminated, they were terminated.

Sheila and Ally were given the task of taking the female prisoner to Cameron's base.

Ally wasn't happy about it.

"We have to deal with this Bitch." Ally said.

Sheila didn't want Ally to be distressed over it. She thought of a quick solution to the problem.

"Let's just kill her." Sheila said. "We can say she tried to escape."

Ally liked the idea. The problem would be solved.

"She's going to be terminated anyway." Ally said. "At this point, what difference does it make?"

Ally drove the SUV. She glanced back and saw the captive start to stir.

"Are you going to choke her out again?" Ally asked.

Sheila looked angrily at the captive. There were a lot of things she would like to do to her besides just choke her out.

"I don't want to hear her mouth." Sheila said. "I didn't like what she said."

Ally knew the issue arose over the female coming around while Sheila 'checked her out'. It was something Sheila did with all the females whether they were human or cyborg. The cyborgs were normally deactivated without a chip. Humans could regain consciousness at very inappropriate times. It was one of those times for Sheila with her recent 'interaction' with the female captive.

"It was only because you were 'examining' her." Ally said. "I don't think she liked having her pants down and her shirt open. I don't know if it would have been worse with a male Terminator or not. You really seemed to set her off."

Sheila didn't think it was too big of a deal. She told herself she wanted to verify there were no other injuries to the female they hadn't discovered yet. It also gave her the opportunity to get a few close up views of 'other things'.

"Everyone is different." Sheila said. "I like to see."

Ally watched Sheila do more than 'see'.

"And touch her in a few private places." Ally said.

Sheila didn't see a problem with it. She was who she was.

"I'm very hands on." Sheila said. "A thorough examination is necessary to make sure there are no hidden damages to the individual."

Ally didn't believe it for a second. She wanted Sheila to know.

"Keep telling yourself that." Ally said. "You might actually believe it yourself one day."

Sheila was just about to respond when they received a phone call.

Young Allison called them and asked what they wanted for the party.

Ally was surprised to receive the call. She liked Young Allison's inclusiveness. They already knew about the party, but didn't think they were invited. Now they were.

"We're transporting a prisoner for interrogation. We're stuck on guard duty." Ally said. "Cameron wants us to remain with her."

Young Allison considered asking them to come and get her. She could slip away from the Resistance base and they could take her to Cameron base. Even though she was tempted, she figured she'd better not. She refrained from asking.

"I want you to come to the party." Young Allison said. "I'll ask CamNet to take care of it."

Sheila didn't want any more trouble from Cameron. It seemed she said enough things over the com system to create more than a few problems. She was sure some of her actions would be questioned as well, even though she wasn't sure which ones.

"Maybe we better take care of it instead." Sheila said. "I'm already on Cameron's 'list'. I don't need any more trouble. You'll have to party without us."

Young Allison wanted them to come. She didn't see why they needed to watch over a detainee. They would be dumped in a holding cell. They shouldn't be able to go anywhere if they were locked in a box. It was her plan for all of the females to gather with each other. It didn't matter if they were human or cyborg.

"I want all the girls there." Young Allison said. "I can help with the interrogation later."

Sheila and Ally looked at each other. They didn't want it to happen. They didn't want to be the ones responsible for allowing Young Allison to watch an interrogation. They certainly didn't want her to be a part of it with them involved either. They would take her up on her offer to get them to go to the party.

"Maybe the interrogation will happen while we're at the party." Ally said. "Someone else can deal with it. I really don't like having to clean up the mess. I usually need to trash my clothes because they're so wasted."

Young Allison understood what the mess was. It didn't seem like a good place for her mind to go right now. She wanted to make sure there was something for everyone. She asked if they wanted anything specific.

Sheila couldn't help herself. She said what she wanted.

"For you to sit on my lap is all I need." Sheila said.

Ally punched Sheila in the arm. She was afraid it would unleash the fury of Cameron and Savannah on Sheila or worse, CamNet.

Sheila knew she was already in hot water. She tried to backpedal some.

"I'm just kidding." Sheila said quickly. "We'll just try a taste of a few things there. It never hurts anything to try a little taste."

There was a loud dull 'thud' as Ally punched Sheila in the arm.

Sheila shrugged her shoulders.

Young Allison told them not to worry and she would take care of everything.

At this point Ally and Sheila didn't know what to expect.

Ally wanted to make sure Sheila's com was off as was hers now.

"You're going to end up getting me deactivated as well as yourself if you don't watch it." Ally said. "You're going to step on someone's toes, even if you don't try."

Ally couldn't help but think about her recent encounter with Savannah when she touched Young Allison inappropriately. Savannah made it clear what would happen to her, or anyone else who attempted to do anything sexually with Young Allison.

The desire inside of Sheila was strong. She knew there were rules and boundaries. They weren't always things she followed.

"I can't help it." Sheila said. "Since I examined the female captive, all of my inner desires have been awakened."

Ally didn't want any trouble from anyone.

"Just remember to tell them the same thing when you submit to chip extraction." Ally said. "You're on your own for that one."

Ally would try to make sure she put some distance between what Sheila did, and what she did, going forward. Their interaction with the female prisoner would be no exception.

Claire worried she was spending too much time with Jesse and everyone else too. It seemed her clothes were off more than they were on anymore. The more she was satisfied, the more she wanted to be satisfied. It was like an endless circle. There were other things she needed to attend to.

"I need to check on Summer." Claire said. "I've been neglecting her."

Jesse didn't think it was a problem. She figured in a few years Summer would be telling all of them what to do.

"I'll go with you." Jesse said. "Our Metal girls will be back soon."

Claire gave Jesse a final kiss as they finished dressing.

"It looks like we're in for another round of satisfaction." Claire said.

Jesse looked Claire over.

"Life's good in Paradise." Jesse said.

Claire liked to hear what Jesse was willing to say about the future. The other girls weren't inclined to talk about it. She could understand why. She could also relate to some of the stories from some of her own personal experiences. None of those were traumatic in the same sense the girls from the future faced. There was never a gun to the side of her head on a knife pressed into her throat as someone pounded away on top of her. She wanted to hear things from Jesse's point of view.

"Will you tell me some more of those stories later?" Claire asked.

Jesse realized she would have to be careful which stories she told Claire. They were more than a few of them she didn't want her to know about. There were things she did to people on purpose, just to hurt them.

"I could." Jesse said. "Some of them are pretty intense."

Claire was able to get a look at Cameron's future when she was there to deliver Destiny for Future Allison. She was kept very isolated from what was going on outside of the Connor compound.

"I find them intriguing." Claire said. "Allison would seldom say anything about the future to me, even when I asked her."

Claire could see the pain Allison felt to relive the future.

Jesse thought there were a lot of differences between the future Claire was in, and the future Vanna, Allison and her were in. Cameron indicated their future was worse than hers for the females. It appeared any future was bad for a female, some of them were just worse.

"The future was hard on all of us." Jesse said. "You need to remember you weren't in Allison's future. It was very hard on me too with my parents and sister all being 'taken away'."

Jesse currently kept a few photos of her family. She didn't keep much, but it was something she didn't have before. She was separated from her family because they were all 'sick'. They all died. She didn't have anything other than memories to remember them by. It always bothered her. It was almost as if they never existed. She was forever grateful to Cameron for giving them all back to her, especially her sister.

Claire looked at the images. She knew the same thing happened to her in all of the other futures.

"You showed me their photos before. Young Jesse and your sister are beautiful." Claire said.

Claire hoped for a three way with Savannah and Young Jesse at some point. She didn't verbalize it with Jesse. Then again Jesse would want to make it a four way.

Jesse thought of her family.

"I need to see them again." Jesse said. "You don't know what it's like to have your family back from the dead. It's all of the same people before any of the Skynet madness affected anyone. There are no divergent timelines until Skynet happens and then there are changes which no one can control."

Claire was a little disturbed by her statement. She was one of the family members who was 'back from the dead' for Allison.

"It must be mind blowing." Claire said. "I can tell you from personal experience it's great to still be alive. I know in the other timelines I was dead shortly after Skynet took control. It's not a very comforting thought."

Jesse needed to remember it as well. Claire didn't make it in their future, or in Future Allison's future.

"It's mind blowing." Jesse said. "It makes me afraid it's all going to happen again and they'll all die again. I don't want them to die again. Don't want them to all get sick. I don't want Young Jesse to go through what I needed to go through. I never want her to be me."

Jesse felt she needed to do more to stop Skynet.

Claire could see Jesse was a little distressed. She felt a little distressed herself.

She was painfully aware she was dead in every Allisons' future. It was a sobering thought. She was dead along with billions of others. Why? What did she ever do to anyone to deserve to die?

Claire took Jesse's hand and they headed out to find Summer.

"Well, we're all alive still." Claire said. "I intend to stay the same way."

It did make Claire wonder for how long. How long could they remain lucky for?

The Resistance group began to gather in the commissary and recreation room.

Young Allison checked to make sure everyone was there. She made sure Bob and Jim were there. John and John Henry hadn't arrived yet. She headed to the Command Center. She wasn't about to tolerate any lollygaggers.

John saw her coming and quickly excused himself.

Young Allison smiled at him as she passed. She was going to get John Henry too.

"Come on, John Henry." Young Allison said. "Your computer self, JH, can watch everything. John isn't here to interface with. CamNet is watching things as well.

John Henry was aware Young Allison communicated further with CamNet after the operation concluded. He wasn't sure exactly about what.

"You spoke with CamNet." John Henry said.

Young Allison wanted to get everything straightened out for the way she wanted things to be.

"You know I did. I needed to ask for her help with a couple of personnel issues." Young Allison said. "I need to be careful I don't get carried away again."

John Henry saw the way Young Allison tried to include everyone who was at the base.

"You're very thoughtful." John Henry said.

Young Allison felt she had many teachers. She was grateful for all of them.

"I try to do what everyone has taught me and I've learned on my own." Young Allison said.

John Henry expected Anna to accompany Young Allison. This was the second time that Young Allison was in the command center without her since the operation concluded.

"Let me do a final check and communicate with CamNet." John Henry said. "Where's Anna?"

An idea popped into Young Allison's head.

"She went to wait for Savannah and Cameron to help carry all the food in." Young Allison said. "I'm going to help them too."

John Henry did the update and was satisfied everything was in order.

"I'm ready." John Henry said.

Young Allison wanted to mess with John Henry a little bit.

"Can I unplug you?" Young Allison asked.

John Henry tilted his head slightly. It seemed like a highly unusual request. It was something he always did himself. He didn't see any reason why she couldn't.

"If you want to, you can." John Henry said.

Young Allison thought of sitting on his lap and face him to do it, but decided not to.

She decided she would save it for another time. She might need to distract him at some point. She figured it would do it. It seemed to distract everyone else. She would be distracted with a female sitting on her lap with everything right there in front of her, especially if most of it was showing.

Young Allison moved over and touched John Henry's cheek as she carefully unplugged him. Her hand lingered on his cheek as she set the cable down.

John Henry could feel the 'allure' Young Allison radiated. He stood and she reached out and took his hand and led him away. He really wondered what she was going to be like very soon. He was sure it would be a lot sooner than anyone anticipated. He knew John wasn't going to be able to resist her. Nobody could

"I will assist you with the food." John Henry said.

Young Allison saw an opportunity for a challenge.

"In that case, we're going to need to race." Young Allison said.

John Henry knew he was faster than Young Allison. He wanted to remind her he was superior.

"It won't be a fair race." John Henry said.

Young Allison looked up at him and smiled.

"For you maybe it won't be." Young Allison said. "You can't go any faster than my normal fastest speed. It looks like you just got the brakes put on."

John Henry realized a severe restriction was just placed on him.

"You're very shrewd." John Henry said.

Young Allison was no stranger to dealing with Terminators and limiting them to her ability.

"It will be fun. Try to keep up." Young Allison said. "Let's go."

Young Allison took off running down the back corridor. John Henry was caught off guard and wondered how he was going to keep up.

Young Allison looked back. She wanted to give John Henry a chance. It would make her victory sweeter.

She slowed so John Henry could catch up. The halls were empty of everyone. As they neared the carpool, Young Allison laughed and sped up. She beat John Henry to the door.

"I win." Young Allison said.

Anna saw them coming and watched them. She looked over at John Henry.

"I see she gave you the business too." Anna said.

John Henry was sure he was played. He reviewed the challenge and rules set forth by Young Allison. The play was in the wording, 'You can't go any faster than my normal fastest speed.' She was able to run faster than her 'normal fastest speed' for a short distance.

"Apparently…." John Henry said. "She's very cunning."

Young Allison could see the SUV approaching.

"Here they come." Young Allison said.

John Henry remembered it was all in the wording. They hadn't actually entered the carpool area yet.

"Let me get the door for you." John Henry said.

John Henry reached for the door but Young Allison slipped through as he started to open it.

"Nice try." Young Allison said. "I was waiting for you."

John Henry was going to try and pull one over on Young Allison.

"You knew I was going to try and go in front of you." John Henry said.

The smile on Young Allison's face said it all.

"I gave you a chance to try anyway." Young Allison said. "I try to be fair."

Gail pulled up and Savannah exited with an armload of food.

"Take it from her." Young Allison said to John Henry.

John Henry stepped forward and did.

"Thanks." Savannah said and turned back for more food.

"Not so fast." Young Allison said.

Savannah turned back and faced her.

Young Allison moved up and gave Savannah a hug.

"I'm glad you made it back OK." Young Allison said. "I was very worried."

Savannah hugged Young Allison back.

"You watched out for us, all of us." Savannah said.

Cameron looked over and smiled. It was what she wanted to see, the bond that would be unbreakable. It was already there. It was formed on the day they first met, in any future, in any past, or in the present.

The story was the same every time she heard it.

Cameron felt very pleased now.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Very Hands On

What's a friend
What's more than a friend
At what point does one know
If there will be a dividend

Sometimes the feelings grow slow
They happen a little by little
Away at one's heart
They began to whittle

The same person that always was
Somehow looks better and better
Loving eyes are blind to one
As a heart is held by a fetter

Maybe a hand is held
Soon the lips are kissed
The more that there is
The harder it is to resist

One thing leads to another
Closer together each is drawn
It doesn't take long
Before both are very hands on

Nobody