TEASER

"Daddy?" Mel repeated, huddled in that corner, her eyes swimming with tears.

Both men hurried to her side, intent on comforting her. Mark Porter snarled at Cole and his expression made it clear that he was more than ready to attack him again if he came any closer.

Cole understood the anger Mel's father must have felt at the perceived attack and did not attempt to touch her again, in spite of his desire to comfort her. Instead, he turned his attention to her father.

"I would never harm your daughter, sir," he assured him gently.

"You were trying to rape her!" Mark snarled, his hands clenching into fists. "You spend the afternoon all over Jessica and then you come to Mel's room and try to--"

Finding her voice again, Mel spoke quietly in Cole's defense. "Dad, Cole wasn't about to do anything that he hadn't been... invited to do."

Mark stared at her in confusion. "But you were crying, Princess!" he protested, cradling her still tear-streaked face in his hands.

"I was happy. I cry when I'm happy; you know that..."

"But... this is Jessica's boyfriend!"

Neither Mel nor Cole were entirely able to contain their laughter at those words. Mel composed herself first, aware that her father was only growing more confused and agitated.

"No, Daddy." She shook her head. "He is NOT Jess' boyfriend..."

"Jess is very much like a daughter to me, Mister Porter," Cole explained gently. "The things you saw pass between us today, the hugs and the hand-holding... she was very much in need of comfort and reassurance."

He paused to consider, frowning. "You're here with Mel," he realized. "That man she's been living with?" At Cole's mute nod, he protested, "But I haven't seen you with her! Only with Jess... or with her when Jess is there," he amended, blinking as he tried to process everything.

"Bad timing," Mel explained, shrugging. "Cole's been busy, meeting up with us when he could, getting into the hotel late... And he spent the afternoon with Jess because, well... Kate and I had an awful lot to discuss, Dad."

"Oh..." Mark shot Cole an apologetic glance before returning his complete attention to Mel. "How much do you know, Princess? How much was your grandmother able to tell you?"

"She didn't tell me a damned thing," Mel whispered, allowing Cole and her father to pull her to her feet and steer her towards the bed. "I had to find it all out the hard way." She looked up at him, confused and hurt. "How could you not TELL me?" she whispered, her lower lip trembling and her eyes swimming with tears.

Mark reached up and cradled her face in his hands again. "I hated not telling you, Princess, I did... But you don't know what it was like, either, growing up knowing what I knew. Mom and I wanted to give you, and Kate later on, as normal a life as possible for as long as possible..."

"If this is normal, you can have it," Mel muttered bitterly, aware that Cole had retreated to the far side of the room to give them some privacy. As glad as she was to see her father alive and well, she missed Cole's grounding presence.

"It wasn't supposed to be like this," Mark sighed, shaking his head. "When the time was right, we WOULD have told you. But... things spun out of control... Kate's mom and I were attacked. She died and I nearly did. After that, I HAD to go to ground."

"How could you let us think you were dead, though?" she whispered, no longer able to prevent the tears from coming.

"Melanie, Princess, you HAD to think I was dead. That was for your safety and Kate's more than it was for mine. I couldn't expose you by coming out of hiding. You HAD to keep believing it." He closed his eyes. "Mom went quickly. It was unexpected. When she died, I couldn't expose you by coming out of hiding to tell you about... us. Besides, for all I knew, Mom HAD been able to tell you everything."

"No." Mel shook her head. "Not a thing. Like I said, I had to find it all out the hard way." She looked up at him and whispered, "I was so scared, Daddy..."

"Princess, I am SO sorry," he whispered, hugging her close. "I... I couldn't leave Kate unguarded; she was only a child, more vulnerable. But I hired a private investigator to keep an eye on you, too, keeping me up to date: the bar, your new man, all the little fracases you seem to keep finding yourself in the middle of. I'm proud of you, you know. You've done great on your own."

She smiled faintly, bowing her head, embarrassed as always by praise from her father.

"How much did you tell Kate? How did she take it?"

"I didn't tell her that we aren't human yet, kind of lost my nerve. But other than that... she knows about the weapon and that these people will stop at nothing to get it."

"I had started to train her, without telling her that that's what I was doing..."

Mel nodded. "She can sense life-forces."

"Melanie, Princess, you're going to need to be trained, too."

Mel nodded discretely in Cole's direction. Mark frowned for a moment, then closed his eyes and let his head fall back, inhaling deeply. Opening his eyes again, he shook his head and chuckled.

"He's like Dad! My God, how did I miss it?"

"I've had this form for a long time. That makes it harder to detect," Cole contributed. "And, of course, Mel's life-force would provide interference..."

"Of course it would." Mark nodded faintly and returned his attention to the life-force in question. "My God, Princess, you're exhausted! Get some rest."

"Dad, how can I rest when--"

"We'll talk more in the morning, I promise you," he told her firmly. "I'll still be here when you wake up. We'll talk then. We have a lot to discuss."

"Yeah," Mel agreed. "We do. Like what we're going to tell Kate about her 'stalker'..."

END TEASER
ACT 1

When Mel was asleep, assisted by a gentle burst of energy from her father, Cole quietly bent to retrieve the journal and once more retreated to the far side of the room as Mark tucked his daughter in and just sat with her, staring adoringly down at her as she slept, drinking in her physical and spiritual beauty. Cole has done that enough himself to not even be slightly surprised by the behavior. He bent over the journal, watching Mel's father out of the corner of his eye.

"How long are you going to keep staring at me?" Mark Porter finally asked quietly, clearly amused. Giving Mel's throat a gentle caress, he rose and walked over to the table where Cole was sitting. "I guess this is the part where I ask you what your intentions towards my daughter are," he added, shaking his head. "What happened tonight... what WOULD have... nothing like that's happened before with you two, has it?" he asked, sitting down across from Cole.

Cole shook his head unabashedly, closing the journal and regarding Mark curiously. His love for his daughter was obvious, which only furthered the Cirronian's confusion over their estrangement. But, as Mel's father, he had every right to quiz Cole extensively over his involvement with her and it was only proper for Cole to submit to these queries before offering up any of his own.

"And Jessica? Your involvement with her?"

"Our ties run deep, but as I told you before, my love for her is more paternal than anything."

Mark nodded imperceptibly, able to tell that Cole was telling the truth not just because he was Cirronian or because he did not hesitate to admit that he loved Jess. The man's life-force told the whole story. Turbulent though it was, it was the life-force of a gentle, honorable man.

"Fair enough. You love my Mel?"

"More than I know words in your language to explain." Cole shrugged. The journal entry had come close, but even that had not seemed entirely adequate. "For ten years now, I have thought that I would never find it in myself to be happy again. Mel gave me that back. Love is... not enough to explain what I feel."

Mark nodded and regarded the man before him thoughtfully. His eyes widened as he noticed, for the first time, that Cole had a black eye and a cut lip. Both, no doubt, inflicted by Mark himself in 'defense' of Mel.

"God, I didn't even notice those before. I'm sorry."

"In defense of my own daughter, I would have attacked with more violence," Cole answered simply, shrugging. Distracted, he had not noticed the injuries either until they had been pointed out.

Mark leaned towards Cole and covering his face with both hands. Cole submitted to the healing for what it was, more a gesture of apology and good will than any kind of medical necessity. It was a show of acceptance and Cole was duly grateful.

"You have a daughter?" Mark asked when he had completed the healing.

"I did. She was killed many years ago."

"Your wife?" Mark asked, curious. Cirronians mated for life, which made Cole's affection for Mel confusing.

"Nallia died trying to protect our Ashi from her attacker," Cole answered quietly, rising and walking to one of the room's window. He pulled back the curtain only far enough to stare up at the star-lit sky. "Will Kate be safe unguarded?" he asked abruptly.

"She is never unguarded. I still have SOME friends."

Cole nodded faintly, letting the curtain fall. "She is a beautiful child, sir. They are both... wonderful."

"Thank you," Mark whispered, nodding.

"You have lost two wives now?" Cole asked quietly.

"Yes." Mark sighed and nodded faintly.

"You have my sympathy." Turning to face him, the Cirronian continued quietly, "You must be very strong. I know what it is to feel such loss. I... I don't know if I could survive it a second time."

Mark sighed deeply and glanced at Mel, knowing that she was whom Cole was referring too. "They're both too young for this, Cole, too innocent..."

"It will be harder for Kate," Cole said softly. "Mel was not unprepared for the truth when it came. She had seen many things, accepted many. Kate... she knows nothing yet of who or what she is." Shaking his head, he walked over to Mel, spending a moment admiring her sleeping form before looking up at Mark. "She needs her father. So does Mel."

Mark nodded, closing his eyes. "But how do I stay a part of their lives and still keep them safe?" he sighed.

"They are not safe now," Cole told him quietly. "A man tried to kill Mel last year because of this legacy of hers. Now others who used to work for him target Kate... She will find no protection from her aunt. She needs YOU."

"I know... that's why I stay close, but..."

Cole shook his head firmly, leaving Mel's side and returning to Mark. "If you have stayed hidden and distant to keep them safe, you have failed," he told him firmly, his expression apologetic.

"I know," Mark whispered, nodding and sitting down. His eyes shone with tears as he spoke again. "I didn't even know that there had been an attempt on Mel... my intelligence is incomplete by necessity. I can't just call up a PI and tell him to keep an eye out for anything alien-related that she may get herself into!"

"I know. I understand. And I do all in my power to keep her safe, but she STILL needs you." Pausing, he added, "And I don't mean that she needs your protection."

"I know." Mark closed his eyes and nodded. "There are times when I hate myself."

Cole sighed. "Do not hate yourself. LOVE your daughter. She deserved this much."

"She deserves a hell of a lot more than I've ever been able to give her," Mark sighed, shaking his head. "I look at her, I touch her, I feel that life-force... she's her mother." He ran shaking hands through his hair before continuing. "She must hate me for the way I treated her. Hell, I hate MYSELF for it... I love her so much, but I can't go near her. God help me, every time I hug my baby, it HURTS. I love her, I do, more than you can know but... her mother..." He trailed off, weeping and making no effort to hide his tears.

"Oh, Daddy..." a gentle voice whispered, startling both men.

"Princess," he whispered, looking up at Mel, shocked. "I... I thought you were asleep," he whispered, struggling to compose himself.

Mel looked up at Cole. "Cole, could you..."

"I will go watch over Kate and Jess," he told her. "Should I tell them--"

"No. Not yet." Mel shook her head. "Not yet, Cole."

He nodded and silently left.

"Daddy," Mel whispered, pulling a chair next to his and taking his hands.

"Princess, I'm so sorry..." he whispered, shaking his head.

"So am I, Daddy, but what's past is past. I don't hate you... how could I?"

"Because I've been a cold, distant jerk your whole life?" he suggested, shaking his head. He bit his lower lip against the tears that once more threatened, not even noticing the taste of blood.

"Look at me, Daddy," Mel ordered, reaching up and cradling his face in her hands. "TOUCH me. Feel my life-force. I am NOT my mother. I am... a lot of things, but... I am also an individual. Yes, I DO have something of her, but I have something of you, too, and something of Gran, and something of your father..."

Mark stared at her with wide eyes, cupping her face in his hands for a moment, then dropping them to her throat and her chest, resting one over her heart as the other tenderly stroked her face. The fingers of the hands over her heart moved restlessly, lightly tracing the hollow of her throat.

"Gods, how you have CHANGED, Princess," he whispered.

When Jess had said the same thing the other day, Mel had uneasily denied it. But Jess had been right, she realized. The ability to, for the first time in better than ten years, actually carry on a conversation with her father without becoming an emotional basket-case was a clue in itself, but not the only one. Not by a long-shot. Jess had not been the first to comment on the differences in her in recent months, but it had taken her father to make her believe it herself.

"I grew up, Dad," she said simply, shrugging.

"Yes, you have," he agreed, nodding. "But you've done more, too... like a caterpillar out of a chrysalis. Oh, you are GLORIOUS, Princess..."

She blushed and bowed her head.

"Some things never change, though. Your mother always used to turn bright red if I'd try to compliment her, too."

Mel looked up cautiously, but there was no pain evident in Mark's voice or on his expressive features. It was as if he had finally, somehow, accepted her mother's death and could look at Mel without being hurt by the resemblance.

Mel had never understood that her father's increasingly aloof behavior towards her as she had grown up were the result of any resemblance. Physically, Mel was a Porter through and through. Emotionally, though, she had been her mother's daughter for a lot of years: shy and retiring and just a little too eager to please. Unable to understand this and needing SOMETHING to explain her father's distance, Mel had fallen back on what had seemed, to her, the reasonable conclusion.

"I thought that you hated me for killing her," she confessed, not able to look at him as she spoke.

Now that she could sense life-forces herself, Mel knew better, understood her resemblance to Bridget Porter and what it must have done to her father. Listening to him speaking to Cole tonight, she could no longer feel even a little animosity towards him for it. In fact she was amazed that she could have believed such a thing of him in the first place.

"Princess?" he whispered, staring up at her with wide eyes. "Oh, honey..."

"I'm sorry. It was silly. I should have..."

"No, Melanie. If anyone should have done anything differently, it was me. I should have done a LOT of things differently with you."

She reached across the table, covering one of his hands with one of hers. "I love you," she whispered. "I didn't say that enough. I was hurt, angry... It was wrong of me. I'm sorry."

"So am I," he murmured, rising and drawing her to her feet. "I don't think I've said it once in the past ten years, either, and that was unforgivable of me," he sighed, gathering her into his arms. "But I do love you, Princess. That NEVER stopped being true."

"I love you, too, Daddy," she whispered, hugging him close. "I... I've missed you. It was good to see you again. I'll... miss you."

"No, you won't," he promised. "Cole's right. You girls need me in your life. I'm not going anywhere this time."

END ACT 1
ACT 2

It was almost three in the morning when Jess stumbled into the living room, intent on getting herself a glass of water from the kitchen. She started to let out a yelp when she realized that she was not alone in the room. The man on the couch was on his feet and at her side in an instant, one hand gently covering her mouth.

"You'll wake Kate," Cole murmured gently, waiting a moment for Jess to absorb his words before dropping his hand and releasing her.

"Sorry, Cole. You startled me. I... With things being what they are, and... well, I wasn't expecting anyone to be here..."

"No, of course not. I'm sorry I startled you, Jess." He gave her an apologetic smile.

"Why aren't you with Mel?" Jess asked, frowning. She shifted slightly, uncomfortably aware that she was wearing nothing but a long tee shirt.

"We thought that Kate should have someone to watch over her tonight," Cole explained.

"What about Mel? If someone broke into her room last night..."

Cole smiled and shook his head. "Mel is not unguarded. She will be safe where she is." Frowning faintly, he touched her forehead. "Can you not sleep?"

"Not really." Jess shook her head. "Spent a few hours crying after you left and now I'm just all wrung out, but I STILL can't sleep." She shrugged.

"Sit. I will make you a glass of warm milk. This sometimes helps Mel."

Jess smiled up at him. "Thanks, Cole. I've missed you."

"And I have missed you, Jess."

He smiled down at her and steered her towards the couch. Warm milk, followed by a small measure of soothing energy would allow Jess to sleep. Crying over her past was something she had needed to do for a long time now, something he could understand the need for. That and a good night sleep would go a long way towards healing the still-raw wounds that she bore.

"Thanks, Cole," she murmured as he handed her a glass of warm milk a few minutes later. "I appreciate it."

He gave a faint nod of acknowledgement, sitting down next to her. "There is more than you told me tonight, Jess."

"Yeah, and if you don't mind, I'd rather keep it that way, thanks," came the defensive reply. Jess shifted under the blanket she had thrown over her legs, gathering it tighter.

"If you wish it, Jess," he agreed. "But when you are ready to talk, you will always know where I can be found."

"I know," she whispered, lapsing back into silence.

"Drink your milk, Jess," Cole directed gently when he noticed that she was just staring at the glass instead of drinking.

"Right. Sorry." Jess nodded faintly and took a long swallow of the milk. "It's sweet," she noted.

"I put half a spoonful of sugar into it. Mel likes it better that way."

"Oh." Jess nodded again and took another sip. Putting the glass down on the end table, she looked up at Cole again. "You are... you're not like any guy I've ever known, Cole, you know that?"

He smiled faintly. "I am... fairly unique," he confessed. "Does that trouble you?"

"It used to," she admitted, shrugging. "I couldn't quite figure you out and... well, I worried about Mel."

"Of course you did. You are her friend. It is natural to be protective in a situation such as ours was. Do you still worry?"

"Nah." Jess shook her head. "You'd as soon die as hurt her. I'd have to be blind not to see that every time you look at her."

"I would never hurt her," Cole agreed. "And I would die before I would see another harm her." Pausing for a moment, he added, "I would also do the same for you or Kate."

Jess frowned at the pronouncement. "But why?"

"For Kate, because she is of Mel's blood and if harm came to her, it would hurt Mel also. For you... it is enough that you are very dear to me, Jess."

She looked up at him uncertainly. "Most guys who tell me things like that... it's because they want something from me."

"I am not most men," he pointed out gently. "It is true that you are very beautiful, Jess, but I have no desire to share anything more than your friendship."

Jess smiled shyly up at him. "You're a good man, Cole," she murmured.

Cole frowned faintly as she spoke those words, startled by the way her life-force reacted to them. She believed it to be true, that he was a good person, but... she did not believe it of herself! He stared down at her with wide eyes for a moment before gathering her into his arms.

Jess started to tense under the unexpected contact, but quickly found herself relaxing into his arms instead. Why such simple words should have evoked so powerful a response was beyond her, but there was no denying how comforting Cole's embrace was to her. Exactly when she needed it, too...

"You ARE a good woman, Jess," he sighed, shaking his head and holding her close. "I don't know what happened to make you believe otherwise, but you ARE a good woman..."

"You're pretty damned perceptive, Forrest," Jess muttered with a bitter smile, shaking her head.

"Would you like to talk about it?" he offered.

"No." Jess shook her head, abruptly pulling away.

The Cirronian sighed gently at the abrupt shift in her behavior and mood. She was upset with him for having pried, defensive because he had, perhaps, come too close to a raw nerve.

"You should go to bed now," Cole directed gently. "You will feel better when you wake," he promised, fully intending to back that promise up with a burst of soothing energy as soon as her eyes were closed. "Come, Jess. Your body is near exhaustion. You will feel better when you have slept."

Sighing in defeat, knowing that he was right, Jess allowed Cole to usher her down the hall and into her room.

***

Mel came awake feeling well-rested, calm, and, for the first time in ages, completely at peace. Sighing softly, she snuggled deeper under the warm covers, hugging a pillow to her chest.

"No Porter was EVER good about getting out of bed first thing," an amused voice noted.

Mel chuckled and opened her eyes, searching the room for her father. He had availed himself of the other bed and was still laying there, staring at the ceiling. He turned his head and smiled at her.

"Good morning, Princess."

"Morning, Dad," Mel returned the greeting quietly, yawning and sitting up. "Sleep well?" she added, grinning as she noted that his hair was sticking in at least fifty different directions.

That rumpled look reminded her of mornings as a VERY young girl, stumbling out of bed to the smells of breakfast and coffee and finding her father and grandmother in the kitchen, still wearing robes and house slippers, whatever they were discussing invariably put on hold until later, at which point Mark would resume his interrupted putterings and soon have an enormous breakfast on the table. Mark had always been the one to cook; Adelaide always claimed that her own cooking skills were abysmal and said that Mark's fantastic skills had definitely come to him from his father. His father the Cirronian...

Her smile fading slightly, she asked, "How much sleep do you actually need, Dad?"

"A few hours a week is enough." He shrugged. "I usually do it more often, though. I enjoy dreaming. Cirronians have very vivid dreams."

"Cirronians DON'T dream," she pointed out. "They don't sleep."

"We don't REQUIRE sleep, Princess, but some of us enjoy it from time to time. It's fun, seeing images in your heads: places you've never been, people you'll never see again..." His smile faded slightly.

"Our mothers? Kate's and mine?" Mel ventured carefully, rising and sitting on the edge of his bed.

He nodded faintly. "I know you never forgave me for falling in love again, Princess, but Kate's mother was a good woman..."

"I can't blame you for not wanting to be alone, Dad. I know how bad that feels, and how nice it feels to have someone to fill the emptiness..." Mel shook her head. "If she made you happy, I can't complain."

"She did. She really did, Princess."

"That's all that matters, then," Mel murmured, lightly brushing her fingertips across his throat before rising again. "Why'd you run the other night, Dad?"

"You were scared... I hadn't intended on you waking up and I... panicked." Mark shrugged. "I had planned on not revealing myself to you, so I couldn't let you see my face."

"Until you thought I was in danger," Mel said.

Mark shrugged, yawning and sitting up. Scratching his shoulder through his undershirt, he explained, "It has taken ALL of my resolve not to come to the two of you before now... I've risked exposure to Kate more than once now in the past because she was in danger. I couldn't do less for you."

"And a big guy like Cole 'mauling' me definitely qualifies as danger." Mel nodded faintly. "Where were you watching from?"

Mark nodded towards the window. "There's a building across the street. I have a scope. I can't see the entire room, but I can see your bed.

"So you had no idea that Cole had been in the room for hours." Mel smiled and shook her head. "Where is he, anyway?"

"Still with Jessica and Kate, I should imagine."

"Kate," Mel repeated, paling. "Dad, what are we going to tell her?"

"Everything. It's the only way she'll ever be able to guard herself adequately."

"Cole says he thinks Kate's aunt might look the other way if Zin's people try something."

"Wouldn't surprise me." Mark's expression turned distasteful. "Breakfast time. What is my little Princess having today?"

"Some things never change," Mel chuckled, pulling on and belting her robe. "You're still the one making breakfast."

"Well, breakfast... reservations as the very least." Mark winked, but his expression quickly became grave again. "But we have other things to make that are more important."

"Plans?" Mel guessed, nodding faintly.

"Plans," Mark agreed quietly.

END ACT 2
ACT 3

"Oh, thanks for breakfast, Cole," Kate yawned, smiling up at him as she helped clear away the dishes. "It was fantastic. No wonder Mel keeps you around." Frowning faintly, she added, "Damn. We really should have invited her..."

"Mel had other plans this morning," Cole said simply, shrugging and relieving her of the dishes in her hands. "I will clean the kitchen. You join Jess in the living room."

"Yup, I think we've definitely pinned down why Mel keeps you around." Grinning up at him, she turned and left the kitchen.

"How you holding up, Kate?" Jess asked quietly as the girl flopped onto the couch next to her.

"I've been through worse." Kate shrugged. "I don't know. It's weird, Jess, but I really don't feel like there's a damned thing wrong here. It all feels... just... RIGHT, I guess."

She shrugged, at a loss for words to explain her perception that everything was finally falling into place exactly as it should. That feeling was exciting, anxiety-provoking, and a relief all at once. It was as if everything to have come before was just a rehearsal and opening night was soon upon them. Kate smiled to herself at the comparison. Some plot...

99% of the action was taking place off-stage and the back-story was more important than any of the actor's current actions. Invisible hands were manipulating everyone until they were at cross-purposes. Kate was the heroine solely because she was the one that the villains seemed to want dead, though for no reason she could see... Some plot indeed.

"Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow," Kate sighed, shaking her head.

"What?" Jess asked, frowning faintly.

"Oh, sorry. We're studying Hamlet in my Lit class." Kate shrugged. "Not sure why, but it seemed appropriate. Life is but a wandering shadow, a poor player who struts and frets his hour on the stage and then is heard no more. Out, out, you sodding candle..."

"Oh." Jess nodded faintly, frowning. "Morose sentiment. What brought it to mind?"

Kate shrugged. "Just thinking about how active a hand fate seems to be taking in all of our lives just lately." She shook her head. "Wonder if this is how the characters in books feel when the writers start in on them?"

"Who knows." Jess shrugged. "Probably. Worse, more likely. Writers do seem to enjoy torturing characters."

"You know, Jess, it's funny. I've spent the last two and a half years since Dad died trying to convince the world at large that I was an adult. Now, though? Knowing what I know?" She shook her head. "I'd give up an awful lot to be just another clueless kid again."

"But COULD you?" Cole asked gently, joining them in the living room with a tray of tea. "Knowing what you know, could you really turn your back on the human race?"

"No," Kate admitted quietly, bowing her head. "But I do miss that feeling of security."

"I know you do. And innocence, once lost, can never be restored as it once was. But this is not always a bad thing. You have reached a new stage of your life, Kate. You stand at a crossroads."

"So do I go left or right?" Kate murmured, shaking her head in confusion. "Or back?"

"Why not take the other path?" Cole advised gently. "The one that lies directly before you, at your feet if you will have it."

Her hands came up to cover her face and she sighed again, shaking her head and not looking at them.

"You're going to be okay, Kate," Jess promised, pulling the girl into a hug.

Kate's hands came up to return the hug and she buried her face in Jess' shoulder, shaking her head. "I... I can't even protect myself. How am I supposed to protect this weapon?"

"With bravery and Faith. You are less alone than you think, Kate," Cole murmured, placing a gentle hand on the back of her neck and releasing soothing energy. "You are well-loved and there are those who would give everything to protect you."

Frowning faintly, Kate looked up at him. "You mean my stalker," she guessed.

Cole smiled faintly, nodding. "I do. Jess was right to tell Mel that he is no threat to you."

"You know him?" Kate asked, her frown deepening.

"Not as well as I would like to," Cole said simply. "Perhaps in time."

"He's a lot like you in a lot of ways," Kate added quietly.

Cole acknowledged this with a small smile. Since Mel had asked him not to tell Kate about her father yet, he decided that it would probably be wise to change the subject.

"Did you sleep well, Jess?" he asked.

"Yeah, Cole, thanks. That warm milk really helped."

Jess nodded faintly, wondering what Cole was playing at trying to change the subject. Obviously he knew more than he was saying, but WHAT? The look on his face decided her to drop the matter for present, but she was determined to broach the subject again as soon as possible.

"What about you guys?" Jess added, aware than an uncomfortable silence had fallen over the room and was just begging to be broken by Kate's curiosity over how much Cole knew and HOW. "How did you and Mel sleep?"

Cole considered before finally answering, "Mel's sleep was undisturbed."

"My, isn't THAT descriptive," Kate muttered, shaking her head.

Cole frowned slightly. "It is, Kate. She was without troubling dreams and no one intruded on her rest."

"Guess when you put it like that..." Kate shrugged and shook her head.

"You did not sleep so well," Cole added, his frown deepening. "You should rest now."

"How do you know how I slept?" she demanded defensively. If it was not for his totally different build, she would have been almost sure that this man was her stalker. There were differences, to be sure, but not so many to outweigh the fact that he knew FAR more than he had any right to.

"Your eyes." Cole lightly trailed his finger along one of Kate's cheekbones as he spoke. "Mel also develops such dark smudges under her eyes. You have... many things in common."

He dropped his hand and rose, walking to the window. A human girl who looked like Mel but behaved and believed much as a Cirronian might. Was this how a child who shared his blood and Mel's might be? he wondered, sighing deeply and staring down at the pedestrians below. Any one, or several of them, could have been sent by Haag to 'take care of' their problem with Kate. He comforted himself that Mel was safe in the hands of her father, especially as there had been no indication that their presence in London had been noticed by anyone BUT Mark Porter.

Kate and Jess both stared at him with wide eyes, wondering both at the tender caress and Cole's abrupt shift in mood.

"Cole?" Jess asked quietly, rising and moving to stand by him. "Cole, what's wrong?"

He turned to face her, giving her a sad smile and absently pushing a stray lock of hair out of her face. "Nothing is wrong, Jess," he assured her gently. "I was just... thinking."

"Thinking?" she repeated gently.

"Of that which might have been."

Jess did not need to think about that long to realize that he was talking about Mel. "I don't get it, though, Cole. Why don't the two of you just--"

"There are... other things to consider," he interrupted, shaking his head. "It doesn't matter, Jess. It's not important."

"Like hell it isn't," Kate protested, rising and glaring at Cole, her hands on her hips. "This is my sister's happiness you're toying with!"

"Hers and my own, yes. But there is so much more at stake than the happiness of two people."

Kate stared thoughtfully at Cole for a moment, then nodded sharply. She could tell in that way she had that Cole was deeply in love with her sister and that he felt nothing but pain about his inability to have a relationship with her. It was, in Kate's mind, incredibly confusing. A lot of things about this man were confusing, not the least of which was the 'buzz' she got whenever he was close, not unlike that from her stalker, but stronger, too. And then there was the fact that he was unnaturally knowledgeable about too many things: about her, her aunt, AND her stalker. She found herself no longer able to contain her curiosity.

"Who are you? How do you know the things you know?" she demanded tersely.

Cole hesitated, glancing from Kate to Jess and back to the younger Porter sister again. "It is a very complicated thing, Kate."

"Yeah, I've been hearing that a lot just lately," Kate noted bitterly. "Complicated or not, though, I want some bloody answers!"

"I understand this." Cole reached for her throat only to have her jerk away. "Kate, the truths you seek are not mine to reveal. Mel is your sister. She loves you and wants nothing but that which is best for you. As soon as the time is right, I am sure she will tell you all there is to know."

"She's told you about the... thing," Kate finished weakly, aware that Jess was still in the room. "You know the one... downstairs?"

"I am aware of it, yes."

"What thing?" Jess asked, frowning from one to the other. "Come on, you two. What is going on here?"

Kate sighed and gestured towards the couch. "Some stuff Mel was explaining to me last night, Jess. Sit down and I'll tell you all about it."

END ACT 3

ACT 4

"You sure about this, Dad?" Mel asked uneasily, her hand hovering over the phone.

"Mel, Princess, Marguerite has been making Kate's life miserable for too many years and I've let it pass because I knew that it wouldn't be for very long. This willingness of hers to look the other way where Zin's men are concerned, though..." Mark shook his head firmly. "You just get her up here and she and I will have a nice, reasonable conversation about the importance of family."

"Dad, you do this and your cover is blown," Mel pointed out, shaking her head and staring at him with wide eyes. "I lost you once. I can't go through losing you again."

"Oh, Princess," he sighed, gathering her into his arms. "I have MISSED you..."

"I've missed you, too, Daddy," she whispered, burying her face in his chest. "Please don't do this. There has to be a safer way."

"I'm done hiding, Melanie." He shook his head, reaching down and gently forcing her chin up. Sighing, he shook his head and regarded her with a combination of love and apology. "I have so many things to atone for, Princess, and letting Kate end up with Marguerite is right up there." Sighing, he planted a gentle kiss on her cheek and added in a whisper, "Almost as bad as letting you go."

Tears in her eyes, she nodded and bit her lower lip. "I love you, Dad."

"I love you, too, and I'm sorry I didn't say it more often."

"Me, too."

"I know, Melanie." He paused, smiling. "You know what that means? In Cirronian?"

Mel's eyes widened faintly and shook her head. "I... I have a Cirronian name?"

"More or less," he chuckled, nodding. "'Melah en'i'. Hidden beauty. Beautiful here." He gently touched one hand to her heart. "Dad picked it when your mom was still pregnant. Even then, he used to tell me that you would grow to do great things. I had... hoped that he might be wrong."

"But why, Dad?" Mel asked, frowning.

"I never wanted you to be a part of all this, either of you. I hoped against Hope that you wouldn't, that these outsiders wouldn't find out about the Chicago Vault, that I could find the lost Bloodlines... It's just so much fear and responsibility for a child to grow up with." Mark gave another laugh, this one bitter. "You're both too young. Hell, half the time I think that I am." He shook his head, closing his eyes. "How do you do it?" he whispered, shaking his head again. "Don't you ever want to just... turn your back on it all?"

"Of course I do, Dad," Mel said, shrugging. "But I can't, not any more than you could. This is who we are."

"Makers of Legend, Keepers of Light," he agreed with a faint smile. "I'm done hiding, Princess. It was wrong of me. This'll start to make things right. Call Marguerite."

Sighing and squaring her shoulders, Mel nodded and picking up the phone, dialing.

***

Marguerite Braxton hung up the phone with shaking hands. Usually composed in the extreme, this time she was visibly rattled. Mel Porter, Kate's American sister... In London and DEMANDING to talk to Marguerite immediately. About Kate. If those two put their heads together, the Firm handling Kate's Trust would have some very problematic questions, especially if anyone thought to check on the bank accounts. Admittedly she had been judicious in her use of Kate's money, usually repaying what she took, but the books were a mess all the same and she was looking at Fraud charges at the very least.

Still, there was no getting around the necessity of meeting with Mel as she had requested. To do otherwise would be to raise suspicions and questions. She would just have to do her best to assure the woman that Kate was quite well and happy where she was and still had no desire to see Mel.

Struggling to compose herself, she poured a double Scotch and drained it in two gulps. Her throat burning, she hit the intercom and ordered Rebecca to call her a cab and cancel her remaining appointments. She poured herself another shot of scotch and used it to wash down a Xanax before picking up her purse and going to meet the cab. Her hands were still shaking slightly when she paid the cab-driver and entered the hotel, but she presented every other appearance of being a calm, collected individual as she strode across the lobby to a bank of elevators.

She took a moment to compose herself before knocking, but Mel opened the door before she could.

"Mrs. Braxton," Mel greeted her quietly, falling back a step. "Come in, please."

"Miss Porter." Marguerite inclined her head and entered the hotel room. "What can I do for you?" she asked in her best business-voice, polite but brusque. "I hope you'll understand that my schedule really is quite cluttered and I have a very pressing engagement later--"

"For this, you can make time, you cold-blooded bitch," Mel told her flatly, slamming the door.

Marguerite spun to face her, her eyes wide. "Miss Porter, I'm afraid I don't understand..." she began.

"Like hell you don't, Madge," Mark interrupted in a low voice, moving to stand behind her.

Marguerite let out a startled shriek and backed into the nearest wall. "You," she whispered, her face pale. She raised on shaking hand and pointed at him. "You... You're... You died," she finally managed.

"Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated," he told her with a mirthless smile. "I have been watching you VERY closely, Madge, and I am NOT a happy man." He shook his head faintly. "I know we've never gotten along, but I thought I could at least trust you to keep Kate safe. I even looked the other way when you started funneling money out of her Trust, you bitch!" he snapped. "And how do you repay us? Do you even KNOW what Zin's people are capable of?" he demanded, clenching his fists. "What they would do to her?"

"Dad," Mel whispered, resting one hand lightly on his shoulder. She had never in her life seen him this angry.

"So much for the importance of family," he muttered angrily, shaking his head. "I knew you were capable of a lot, Madge, but I never thought you'd sink low enough to look the other way if someone posed a direct threat to her. And what do I find? You've been working with them all along! I can not believe that you are related to my wife. You make me SICK, Marguerite."

Recovering somewhat from her shock, Marguerite drew herself up to her full height, trying to look affronted. "How dare you--"

"Oh, don't go playing the wounded party with me, Madge! I know you too well." Mark shook his head. "I'm taking back what's mine," he told her simply.

"Wh..."

"Now remove yourself from my sight and NEVER go near my Kitten again," he ordered in a tight voice.

"I am her legal guardian, Marcus!"

"And I am her FATHER!" Mark snarled, glaring at her. He cleared his throat, taking a moment to compose himself before speaking again. When he did, his voice was calm and professional, a lawyer drawing up a deal. "I mean this, Madge. You sever ties with Zin Industries, forget you ever HAD a niece, and I won't mention the fraud, or the neglect, or any of the other legally questionable actions that I've discovered you've been engaged in over the years."

"Sever ties with Zin Industries? That's a death sentence," she whispered, her eyes widening faintly.

"Better you than Kate." Mark stepped around her, pulling open the door. "Now get the hell out."

"Mark," Marguerite began in a mollifying voice.

He shook his head. "Don't bother, Madge. You make me sick. You could have ended this before it started, and even so you were given more than one chance. Game over. Get out of our lives."

"And don't EVER try to come between me and my sister again," Mel added bitterly, helping Marguerite find the door with a not-so-gentle shove.

"You'll regret this, Marcus," Marguerite snarled.

"Oh, somehow I don't think so, Madge," he answered calmly, smiling faintly. "I have all the evidence I need to put you in jail for a VERY long time. You'll be a sitting duck for Zin's people in there. Cut your loses, take all the money you've stolen from Kate and your corporate partners over the past two years, get the hell out of England, and never come back. That'll START to square us. You have two days."

Marguerite turned and stalked off without a word.

"Bet that knocked her off her hind legs," Mark murmured, closing the door and walking over to the phone. He picked it up and quickly punched a number. "Jay, it's Mark. I just talked to Marguerite and you officially have my permission to completely ban her from accessing any of the Trust items."

Mel stared at him with wide eyes. "Who's Jay?"

"Old law-partner. He administers Kate's Trust. I called him last night after you were asleep. Once I convinced him that it wasn't some hoax and told him what Marguerite had been getting up to, he proved very helpful." Mark smiled faintly, a nervous smile. "Guess that just leaves one more thing to do."

"Kate," Mel agreed, nodding. "She's with Cole and Jess at the Flames."

"Wonderful. Let's go."

***

Jess was still absorbing everything Kate had told her when both Kate's head and Cole's shot up.

"What?" she asked uneasily, glancing from one to the other.

"Someone's coming," Kate murmured, closing her eyes and feeling.

"It's Mel," Cole provided. "And another."

"My stalker?" Kate whispered, frowning.

Cole nodded faintly, giving both young women a reassuring smile. "He is no threat to either of you," he said, mainly for Jess' benefit.

"Cole, he's not..." Jess hesitated. "I don't think..." She shook her head, unable to articulate or even, really, understand what it was that set Kate's stalker apart.

"You guys up here?" Mel's voice filtered into the apartment.

Kate was on her feet before either of the others could respond, clambering to the front door and pulling it open so quickly that the hinges groaned in protest. She was unprepared for the sight awaiting her. Mel was walking up the stairs with a suited man walking close behind her. A man whose face Kate would have recognized anywhere. He gave Kate a nervous smile and Kate felt her grip on consciousness slipping.

***

"Dad, I think she's coming around," Mel's voice filtered into her awareness.

"Oh, thank God."

The second voice was familiar, too, but could not possibly belong to who she THOUGHT it did. She cautiously opened one eye, taking in her surrounds. She was no longer in the foyer, but in the living room, laying on the couch and surrounded by people. Her sister, her sister's boyfriend Cole, Jess, and...

"Dads?" she whispered uncertainly, making no move to get up.

"Yeah, Kitten, it's me." Mark nodded slightly, helping her to sit up and accepting a glass of water from Mel. "Here, luv, drink this."

Kate nodded and slowly sipped at the water. "Dads, is it really you?"

"Yeah, Kitten," he whispered, pulling her into a hug. "God, I've missed you."

"Me, too, Dads," Kate answered, burying her face in his shoulder. "Why'd you have to pretend you were dead for, anyway?" she demanded abruptly.

"Kate, Mel's explained what this family is up against. I honestly thought it would be the best way to keep you safe." Sighing deeply, he added, "But there is still more that you need to know..."

"We'll just be going now," Mel murmured, giving Kate and Mark each a quick peck on the cheek in turn before turning and following Cole and Jess down the stairs.

***

"Not human," Jess whispered, staring from Mel to Cole. "You're... joking, right Mel?"

Mel shook her head faintly. "Wish I was, Jess. Wish none of this were true, but it is. And now you know everything," she added with a sigh, shrugging and taking a long sip of her latte. "Lucky us. By a mistake of genetics, we're stuck preserving the well-being of two solar systems."

"Wow," Jess whispered, swallowing hard. "This is... it's bloody huge, Mel."

"Yeah, it is." Mel nodded faintly. "Thus all this damned secrecy."

"Wow," Jess repeated, staring at Cole. "I... unbelievable."

Cole smiled warmly at Jess, lightly caressing her throat. She was not entirely distressed, more awed than anything.

"I know how you feel," Mel assured her. "I was in the same boat when I found out, too."

"I'll bet. No wonder you were always so hush-hush about Cole. Takes cloak-and-dagger to a whole new level, doesn't it?"

"It really does," Mel agreed, smiling hesitantly at Jess. "So are we still..."

"Friends?" Jess asked, startled. "Always, Mel. And more than friends. It's like you and Kate said. The three of us are bloody sisters."

"Still so eager to come back to the States?" Mel asked quietly.

"I... I don't know. Sounds to me like London isn't that safe either. I... I'll need to think on it."

"Of course you will," Mel agreed, nodding faintly. "Either way, just keep in touch."

"Oh, I will, Mel. I will," Jess assured her. She looked up as Kate and Mark walked into the café. "One way or another," she promised Mel.

Mel smiled up at her, then hazarded a glance at Kate who looked positively serene in light of everything that Mel knew she had just heard.

"You could have told me," Jess added as Mark and Kate made their way to the corner that they were sitting in. "I would have kept it quiet."

"I know, Jess," Mel whispered. "We wanted to keep you safe. In case you haven't noticed, being a Porter is a dangerous job."

"Oh, I noticed," Jess murmured, nodding faintly. "I definitely noticed." She grinned at Mel. "But the occupational hazards are more than made up for by the company you get to keep. I love you both, Mel. Cole, too. I won't go blabbing your secrets to anyone and maybe I can even help a bit."

"You keep an eye on Kate and Dad for me," Mel told her. "THAT will be the most help you can give me."

END ACT 4
TAG

"You take care of yourself, Princess," Mark murmured, hugging Mel tightly in the crowded waiting area. "And you, too, Cole." He smiled faintly at the Cirronian. "You take care of her, too, yeah?"

"Of course, Mr. Porter. It is always a pleasure and honor to take care of Mel," Cole assured him.

"I'll bet. You just do right by my little girl. Otherwise, you're going to find out exactly how unpleasant I can get when my girls are in danger." Mark winked at him to assure him that he was joking.

"You stay in touch, Mel," Kate murmured, hugging her sister close. "And I'll do the same."

"Likewise," Jess added, joining the hug.

Mel smiled and nodded. "I will. I haven't been in touch with either of you nearly as much as I should have been."

Cole and Mark smiled at the three women.

"They're very much alike, aren't they?" Cole asked Mark quietly.

"Yeah." Mark bobbed his head in agreement. "I never realized how much like Kate Mel really was. And this Jessica..."

"Jess is a good woman who has suffered much. I wish I could help heal those wounds," Cole sighed softly.

"Such things take time," Mark noted quietly. "Her wounds already seem less raw."

"They do," Cole agreed, nodding. "Mel says that they are as like sisters," he added.

"They are," Mark told him, shrugging. "Some ties run deeper than those of blood. Marguerite proved that. Jess is a better friend to Kate than Marguerite would ever have been."

"The ties that bind," Cole agreed, nodding. "Our relatives are ours by an accident of genetics. Our friends... those are tied to us by far more than blood."

Mark nodded faintly. "Kate says she wants to move back to Chicago," Mark told him.

"I know, Mr. Porter," Cole said quietly. "But this choice must be hers to make. I have a feeling that she has her own role to play in all of this. She will be where she must be when she must. In the meantime, take care of her for me."

"I will, Daggon." He nodded faintly. "She's a good kid. Mom told me all about her and I have no doubt that she, too, is capable of great things."

"Sisters, all," the Cirronian murmured, nodding. "My people have a belief about siblings, that they are one soul in many bodies."

"Yeah, Dad told me that one." Mark nodded. "You stay in touch, Cole Hauser," he ordered with an ironic smile.

"I will," he promised. "If you do the same."

Mark stared at his shoes for a moment, then glanced up at Cole, his expression abashed. "I will. Mel and Kate are my daughters, Jess too now it looks like. I will do everything in my power to defend them. And this time I promise to take a more active hand."

Cole smiled and nodded. "This is good, Mr. Porter. I will continue to guard Mel from harm and will stay in touch with you."

"We can learn a lot if we combine our resources," Mark agreed. "Quite aside from the fact that I can now speak to my firstborn, there's a tactical advantage to be had. No more cutting ourselves off from each other. I'm still looking for the lost lines and I'll keep you up to date on everything I find about them and about our uninvited guests."

"In mass is found strength." The Cirronian smiled at the father of the woman he loved, nodding. "Together, the five of us may yet succeed."

"Have more faith than 'may'," Mark advised, smiling faintly. "Something tells me that our girls are more than up to the task of taking on a few alien thugs."

Watching Mel say her final until-we-meet-agains to Kate and Jess, Cole could not help but agree.

END TAG

RavenKat

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