Roswell Fanatics

Author's Note: Finally I update this!!! Thank you guys so much for your patience. I know this has been a long time in coming. I have to say some of your last bumps gave me a good laugh and pushed me to write faster. Thanks to my beta for working on this so quickly! Now, on you go!


<center>Part 11</center>


Michael ground his teeth, clutched the steering wheels with both hands tightly and stared straight ahead, refusing to look at the passenger seated next to him. He was sorely afraid that if he let go of the steering wheel or if he turned to look at Maria, he would surely strangle her. It had barely been five minutes since she had sat in the car and already she was chatting away a mile a minute.

Does she even pause to breathe? Michael wondered as he, with increasing impatience, tapped his fingers on the wheel while he waited for the light to turn green at the crossing. God, how can anyone stand her?

Maria, oblivious to his mood, continued on with her diatribe about her life in Roswell. “I mean, it isn’t as if I intend to spend the rest of my life in Roswell,” she was saying, “But it isn’t easy getting out of small towns. I’d do anything to be able to go to New York and try my hands at a singing career.” She turned ninety degrees in her seat to look at Michael eagerly. “Have you ever been to New York?” she asked.

Sighing with impatience, Michael began to nod but Maria cut him off before he could even speak. “Of course you must have. I doubt any true big city resident has not been to New York,” she stated with a flippant wave of her hand.

“And what makes you think I’m from a big city?” Michael asked, slightly alarmed. Did she know about them? Had Kyle, being Maria’s friend, told her all about Liz and him?

“Oh, honey, it’s written all over you,” Maria laughed. “Usually I can spot a city man a mile away.”

“Just how good friends are you with Max?” Michael asked out of the blue, switching gear in hopes of startling her and steering her away from the direction the conversation could take. And maybe, just maybe, to get a feel of the guy who had Liz so captivated.

Maria just raised an eyebrow at him, giving him a knowing look. She had been expecting it in a way. She had been sure that sooner or later Michael would ask and she had been prepared for it. What she hadn’t been prepared for was the protective and worried look in his eyes as he asked her.

Some part of her felt touched by the depths of his concern for his friend. He didn’t appear the sort who cared easily, if at all but obviously he was very protective of Liz. Without meaning to, she laid a light hand on his arm.

“He won’t hurt her,” she promised him.

Michael glanced down to where her hand was then back up at her, his eyes cold and disapproving. She saw and immediately removed her hand feeling embarrassed and foolish that she had been thrilled by the power she felt in the muscles of his arm.

“Liz doesn’t need any complications in her life right now,” Michael replied, ignoring the warmth that lingered on his arm where her soft hand had been moments before. “She doesn’t need Max. In fact, he’s the last thing she needs.”

“Well, maybe you should let Liz decide that for herself.”

“She’ll just get hurt again,” Michael replied, forcing the anger back. “And I promised her, promised myself, that I wouldn’t let that happen.”

“Have you ever considered that maybe you can’t shield her from everything?” Maria asked, sensing that there was a lot Michael was feeling guilt over.

“Well, this is something I can shield her from!” Michael retorted. “Liz doesn’t have the time or inclination to get into a relationship. Especially one with a virtual stranger she met in a park.” He shot her a sardonic look. “I assume that’s what he wants to talk about right? He wants to have a go at her?”

Maria stiffened, feeling that he had just somehow insulted Max. “If by that you mean does he want to ask her out, then yes.” She looked at him curiously. “Is it that bad that he does?”

“Yes!” Michael automatically shot out, and then he ran his hand through his hair and sighed. “Maybe…”

Maria cocked her brow at him. “Well, is that a yes or a no?”

“I don’t know…,” Michael muttered. He knew that for Liz to get into any kind of relationship right now might not be a good idea, especially since they didn’t know how long they were going to be in Roswell. He hoped she considered that before she did anything rash. But at the same time, he had to admit to himself that the look in Liz’s eyes when she had seen Max had been…disturbing. If he didn’t know better, he could have sworn she was half in love with him already.

What a stupid thought. He shook his head wryly. Of course she couldn’t be. She didn’t even know the guy.

“Max has been my best friend since as far back as kindergarten and I can assure you that he’s the most noble, kind, caring and sweet guy you’ll ever come across,” Maria stated emphatically.

“Sounds like a puppy dog,” Michael muttered.

Maria’s eyes narrowed, anger flushing her skin. “Watch what you say about my friend here,” she snapped. “I wasn’t too happy about the fact that Max wanted to pursue Liz but I backed him up on it because he is my friend. Now if you’re Liz’s friend, you’ll back whatever decision she makes!”

“That sounded more like an order than advice,” Michael seethed, steadily growing angrier. He pulled the car to a halt outside the Crashdown and turned to glare at her. “I don’t take well to orders! Liz and I can take care of ourselves and I know how to be a friend! I’ve been taking care of Liz all this time and I’m going to keep on doing so.”

“You pompous jackass!” Maria nearly yelled, struggling with the seatbelt. “Can’t you see how unhappy she is? Even I could tell when she first came here. But now, when Max is around, her eyes don’t look so haunted. Now I don’t know what the hell happened but I do know this. Max makes her happy, and if not happy then at least he removes that pained look from her eyes! She may try to fight it, to deny it but he does and there’s no backing away from it. He cares for her and if you stop being so pig-headed and over protective, you’d see that she does too! And that maybe he’s what she needs after all!”

With that, she pushed open the door and after getting out, slammed it behind her. Then she strode angrily into the café with Michael staring after her. He stared in the direction she had gone for a long moment before letting out a shaky breath, and started the car again. He refused to think about that fact that Maria had hit a nerve.

“God help whoever dates her!” he muttered to himself as he pulled out of the lot.

<center>*****</center>

She walked about her small, cramped hotel room in somewhat of a daze. She picked up Michael’s clothes that he had carelessly left on the floor and folded them neatly before putting them on his bed. The simple act kept her mind from wandering to places she didn’t want it to. It kept her from thinking about Max, about the proposed date…about the kiss.

You’re not thinking about that, Liz! she told herself sternly when she found her mind wandering to it and remembering. It would do no good to recall this kiss.

But what a kiss it had been! she sighed internally, frozen in place, a dreamy look in her eyes as she felt the warmth tingle her lips and run down to her toes. It had felt like liquid fire had been racing down her spine. She had been so sure that she’d melt in his arms in another moment. Even now she felt her legs go weak beneath her as she thought about it.

No! She shook her head to dispel the thoughts forcibly. I’m not going to think about it!

There was no way she would even consider Max’s request for a date. It was absurd, it was unsafe… it had felt right.

Carefully avoiding looking at the desk where she had kept the piece of paper Max had given her a while back, she crossed the room and got her own clothes out from her bag. Then she headed into the bathroom to take a shower.

But it was only seconds later that she was storming back out, a frustrated look on her face. She shot the piece of paper on the desk a dark, accusing look before grabbing it and staring down at the address written on it.

Max’s address.

Liz bit her lip as she stared at it. She couldn’t deny that she felt something when she was around Max. It was more than a crush, more than attraction. It was a deep set familiarity. She should have been scared of what she felt when she was around him. She should have been wary and cautious but some part of her deep inside just knew that Max was safe, that he was the one.

It can’t hurt to go see him, she thought to herself, curling her hand around the paper tightly. One date, that’s all. How could one date be dangerous; especially when it felt so right?

“So, does this mean you’re actually considering going out on this date with Max?” Michael’s voice came from across the room. He stood leaning against the door, arms crossed, and a frown on his face.

Liz hadn’t heard Michael come in, nor had she felt him yet she wasn’t surprised to find him standing there. She looked at him blankly for a moment, considering his question. Was she considering it? Had she already made up her mind without really knowing it?

Maybe the decision had been made the moment Max had kissed her.

“Don’t you ever feel it, Michael?” Liz asked him, her eyes far away as she recalled the first moment she had seen Max. “Haven’t you ever felt like there’s something in the air when you meet someone for the first time?” She smiled softly as she wrapped her arms around herself. “And the feeling only intensifies the more you see that person again.”

Michael fidgeted slightly, recalling the moment he had met Isabel and Maria. Both had been different moments but both times he had felt something. With Isabel it had been old, forgotten yet familiar, with Maria it had been electric, mind blowing.

“It’s called chemistry, Liz,” Michael replied, not sounding entirely sure of it himself. “It’s volatile and temporary. Over in a flash, leaving one hurt and alone.”

“Maybe…,” Liz agreed, “But I’m telling you with Max it’s more. It’s different. I want to know what it is that I’m feeling. Is it just chemistry, just wild attraction or something more? And I want to know why it’s so familiar, why it stirs up memories that I can’t clearly recall yet….”

“Sometimes what feels the safest can end up causing the most damage.”

“If I don’t at least try things out with Max right now I’m going to probably regret it for the rest of my life,” Liz replied. She shook her head, her eyes pleading with him. “I don’t want to be left wondering about ‘what ifs’, Michael.”

When she saw that Michael remained unconvinced, she walked over to him and took his hands in hers. He wasn’t forcing her to stay but he wasn’t happy about her going as well. She wished he would back her in this one hundred percent but she was also wise enough to know that that was probably never going to happen. She’d just have to settle for convincing Michael that this was something she had to do.

“Michael,” she said, squeezing his hand gently, reassuringly as she looked into his eyes. “Sometimes things happen that you don’t like or approve of but then not everything will go as you want them to. Not everything is gong to stay under your control.”

Michael flinched inwardly, Liz’s words sounding like an echo of Maria’s. There was no fighting it. Liz was going to do what she wanted, regardless of what he said. The best thing for him to do would be to keep his eyes open and his senses alert.

With a sigh, he nodded finally and gave Liz a brotherly hug.

“Be careful,” he whispered.

<center>*****</center>

The sunlight glinted off the drawn windows of the house. The flowers that were planted along the side of the house gave off the sweet smell of spring. Liz bit her lip, tugging at her hair, before pushing it behind her ear.

The place looked normal enough. But then again, looks could be deceiving. She shot a look behind her at the street, tempted to turn and run. There was still time to back out of this. No one would know, especially not Max. He wouldn’t have to….

“Since when did you turn into such a coward, Liz Parker?” she asked herself with a shake of her head. “And such a rude one at that?” She couldn’t leave him hanging like this. If not out of anything more than courtesy, she had to at least tell him her decision face to face.

Pushing back all her nervousness, she shook back her hair and readjusted her skirt. She knew these were just excuses to prolong the moment but she didn’t think there was anything wrong in allowing herself time to calm her fluttering nerves. Finally, after taking a deep breath, she pushed the doorbell.

Would Max answer the door? she wondered nervously as she heard the muted chimes ring through the house, or would someone else?

Before she could think too much about it though, the door flew open to reveal a smiling Max. She startled, surprised by the speed. She hadn’t even heard anyone approach.

“Hi there!” he greeted her with an affable smile.

Liz stood there staring at him for a moment, just taking in how he looked. She didn’t think anyone could look so good in jeans and a shirt. “I-I…,” she began, slightly tongue-tied. “I didn’t think you’d be home,” she said stupidly.

Max grinned as he leaned casually against the door. “I made it a point to stay home today.”

Seeing his almost smug smile Liz’s eyes narrowed and her nervousness evaporated, changing to annoyance. The way he was smiling and talking, it made it appear that he knew she wouldn’t be able to stay away. It made her seem desperate and…unable to resist him.

“You knew I’d come,” she stated, the annoyance in her voice masking the trickle of pleasure she felt. She may be annoyed at his presumptuous attitude but it made her feel special, too. It told her that he had been looking forward to see her again.

“No, but I’d hoped,” Max answered honestly. He held the door wide open then and nodded inside. “Want to come in? Maybe have a drink or something?”

Liz shook her head, nervous once more as she recalled why she was here. “No, I just want to say this quickly before I lose my courage and my coming in would only prolong it.”

Max looked at her curiously, stepping outside to join her. “Okay, it seems like you’ve made up your mind.”

Liz didn’t bother to reply as she bit her lip, looking almost shyly down at her feet before looking back up at him. She gave him a small smile as she pushed back a strand of hair from her face.

“All right,” she replied.

For all the confidence Max had shown a while earlier, he seemed surprised by her answer right now. “All right?” he asked, his voice hopeful. “Does that mean…?”

“All right I’ll go out with you,” Liz rushed to explain, her eyes sparkling and her stomach fluttering even as she told herself it was just one date. “But it’s just one date, Max. I’m only doing this to figure out what this is between us…and maybe to try to get you out of my system. God knows I’m in deeper than I care to be.”

At this Max laughed and reached out to play with her hair while his eyes roamed all over her face, making her blush. “That might be a bit of a problem,” he told her, pulling her closer to him gently. He was thrilled by this. He may have hoped that she’d say yes but until now he hadn’t really believed she would. “Because, Liz Parker, you certainly are imbedded into my system. And I don’t want that changing.”

“Max…,” Liz stammered, unnerved by the intensity of his words and the look in his eyes. She pushed lightly against him, away from the kiss she knew this was leading to. “Rule one: We take this slow.”

“We have rules?” Max asked, amused slightly.

“Yes, yes we do,” Liz replied pulling herself free from his grasp. Taking a small step back, she looked at him seriously. “That was rule one. Rule two is that this date be as normal as possible. No pressure, no expectations for anything more.”

“No pressure,” Max repeated, nodding. “Got it. Do we have rule number three?”

Liz smiled slightly. “I’ll be sure to tell you as I think of them.”

“Do your rules include no kissing on the first date?” Max asked, his tone teasing.

Liz considered his tone, and couldn’t help teasing back. “That’s…under debate.” She smiled.

“Well, while you debate that…” Max stepped closer to her and kissed her softly. He didn’t let it go on for long but it was enough to make Liz’s knees feel weak. Liz knew she should protest but she couldn’t find it in her to say anything. She had enjoyed that brief kiss way too much.

Max let go of her quickly though, putting some distance between them. “If we’re going to do this then we’d better do this right,” he told her. “I’ll pick you up at seven tomorrow. Be ready.”

“Where will we be going?” Liz asked curiously.

Max smiled. “It’s a surprise.”


<center>TBC. . .</center>

Author's Note: Thanks for being so patient guys. The next two parts won't take so long because I've already written them lol. This part is dedicated to Cam (Vegas312) and Sharmeen cuz they were the ones constantly pushing me to write the next part. I think I would still have been procrastinating without them so this ones for you girls


<center>Part 12</center>


Kyle ran a hand through his already tousled hair as he sat at the computer, waiting for the search he had run to find some results. He sighed with impatience when the search didn’t turn up anything of relevance once again.

He had been searching the net for newspaper articles for the past hour trying to find anything that could make a connection between Liz and Michael with Max, Tess, and Isabel. So far he hadn’t found anything he didn’t already know. The articles he had found were on the crash itself and about the various conspiracy theories. The only article that had been of remote relevance had been a two paragraph long article about three children found lost in the desert. Curiously enough there wasn’t even a mention of the two other kids found only two, three weeks later.

“There has to be something on these two somewhere,” Kyle muttered to himself. “If only I could hit on some old police file recording their being found, maybe even adoption papers stating when exactly they were found…. That would eliminate all doubt!”

Kyle knew that the chances of him finding old police records on Liz and Michael were next to none. There hadn’t been any media coverage, no recollection, as far as he knew, from anyone that two more kids had even been found. Police records would be the most difficult to dig up. That only left him one direction to look at: adoption papers.

Kyle drummed his fingers on the keyboard speculatively. The only place where he could find adoption papers on Liz and Michael would be the Roswell Orphanage and he doubted they’d just hand them over to him if he asked for them. Recalling having caught Liz and Michael sneaking back out of the center, Kyle thought it safe to assume that they had already tried the legal way with no result. Maybe he could use his dad’s influence to gain access to the files at the center. His father would never have to know at all. Everyone knew that Kyle was Jim Valenti’s son and he highly doubted they would ever suspect him of any wrong doing.

But even then…, Kyle thought uneasily, if Dad got even a whisper of this, I’m done for. Not only would Dad ground me till I’m eighty, but I’ll have two aliens out for my blood as well.

No, there had to be some other way. Kyle pushed back from the computer and got up to pace the room. There had to be some way for him to get a peek at those files. Kyle paused in mid-pace as a thought occurred to him. Maybe the files were on a computer database. If they were then maybe, just maybe, he could break into the database to access the files.

But I don’t know the first thing about hacking into computers, Kyle realized with settling gloom. And I’m not even sure the orphanage has computers. “Maybe I should just head to Max with this and let him figure this out. I’m sure he can whammy his way into the adoption center and check out the files…”

Tess would have been able to do this. If only she were here, this would have been so much easier. The thought had come unbridled and without warning, startling him. He shook his head to clear the thought away, not allowing himself to dwell on it but the echo of it remained.

“I don’t love him! I love you! Did you hear me, Kyle? I love you.”

“Stop thinking about that, about her!” Kyle muttered to himself, “Gotta stop thinking about her!”

“Kyle?” Tess’s voice came floating through the house suddenly.

“Great! Now I’m hearing her voice!”

“Kyle?” The voice came again, this time louder, followed by a hesitant knock. “Kyle? Mr. Valenti? Anyone home?”

Kyle turned, surprised, and walked almost cautiously to the front door. He found Tess standing outside, dressed in jeans and a blue tank top, her hair flowing freely about her shoulders. His breath caught when he saw her and he paused a few feet away from the door. Tess saw him in that moment and instantly looked nervous.

Wringing her hands, Tess offered him a hesitant, yet shy, smile. “Hi. I didn’t think anyone was home…”

Kyle stood staring at her for a few moments, a battle of hurt and hope raging in him. Why was she here? What could she possibly want from him now? Was she here to talk to him or to break his heart further? And did she have to look so darn breathtaking while she was at it?

Tess shifted uneasily under his unflinching gaze. He looked so conflicted and uncertain about seeing her here that she took a step forward automatically, her hand reaching out to pull the screen door open and to go to him to touch him, to comfort him. But then, almost instantly she remembered the way he had jerked back from her touch last night. He didn’t want her comfort, her touch. He wouldn’t want her….

With a pang of hurt and remorse she let her hand fall back down to her side. He had yet to say anything to her as he continued to stare at her in that odd, penetrating manner. She knew he was wondering why she was here again and maybe even contemplating brushing her off. And she wouldn’t blame him for it. She deserved it; she knew that.

But I’m not going away this time until I get a chance to explain, to apologize. She thought with determination. All night she had agonized over what had happened, what she had inadvertently done. How could she have been so stupid, so blind to how Kyle would take this?

She had lain awake, rehearsing in her head what she was going to say to him. All night she had gone over her speech again and again but now, standing front of him, seeing the hurt in his eyes, everything flew out of her head. She couldn’t even remember how to begin.

“Do you hate me so much that you won’t even invite me in?” Tess finally asked softly, almost afraid that that was the case.

Kyle waited a second before crossing the distance to the door and pulling it open slowly. Holding it open for her, he replied, “I don’t hate you, Tess.”

Hope and relief soared through her as she stepped inside. Without thinking she reached out to lay a hand on Kyle’s arm. “Kyle…,” she began but she felt him withdraw from her touch. He didn’t step back or recoil but she sensed that he had pulled away.

Swallowing the disappointment Tess let her hand slip away. She turned away from him to head slowly into the den, not letting him see the tears in her eyes. What had she expected? She could not have possibly expected him to receive her back with open arms. But even though she had known that he would receive her coldly, if at all, there was no doubting the fact that Kyle’s withdrawal had hurt.

He watched her back, watching the way she crossed her arms at the waist as she turned around slowly to face him again. He watched the sunlight play across her hair, turning it to shimmery gold, watched the way she seemed to try to pull her courage together. A sharp pang of love shot through him, surprising him. He had lied to her when he had told her that he didn’t hate her. It was ironic how deeply he still loved her despite what she had done.

“Why are you here, Tess?” Kyle asked, his voice turning brusque due to his annoyance with himself. “I thought I had said everything I had to say last night.”

“But I didn’t…”

“We have nothing to say to each other.”

“We do…we have so much…,” Tess stopped herself, pausing for a second before trying again. “Kyle, please…don’t end it this way. Not without knowing why I did what I did.”

Kyle’s eyes shot up to hers, his cold and warning; hers soft and pleading. “Whatever decisions you make at least make it after you know all the facts otherwise you’ll always wonder about this, about me…. I don’t want you remembering our relationship as a lie because it never was.”

“I think I have a fair idea about the ‘facts’, Tess,” Kyle sneered, hurting at just the thought of Tess loving Max. Did it matter that she had denied it? Did it matter if Tess was right in saying that he would always wonder about her and their relationship if he didn’t let her talk?

God damnit! It does! Kyle thought angrily. He ran a hand through his hair impatiently, pacing for a moment as he debated. Finally he turned to her. “You’ve got five minutes to explain yourself, Tess, otherwise you’re out of here,” he stated flatly.

Tess nodded, too glad that he was going to listen to her to worry about the cold, flat tone of his voice. She rung her hands nervously, unsure how or where to begin. She watched as Kyle stood with his arms crossed, looking at her so coldly and emotionlessly that she had to turn away.

“God, this isn’t easy…,” she stammered. She took a deep calming breath before speaking. “You have to understand that this…whatever I’m about to tell you does have everything – or almost everything – to do with Max…” She shot Kyle a quick look and seeing his eyes cloud over with anger and hurt, she hurried to explain. “But not in the way you think.”

“How about you explain that part to me, Tess?” Kyle asked in a silky smooth voice that had chills running down her back. “Because I, for one, cannot see what way this is.”

“You-you know that I’m different…that Max, Isabel and I have shared a special bond ever since we hatched from the pods,” Tess began carefully. “You have to understand, Kyle that my relationship with both of them goes way back, even before we were born here on Earth, back to Antar.” She shrugged slightly, smiling faintly as she spoke, “To me, they’re all the real family I have, my only link to who I once was.”

“As much as I love the emotional history lesson, Tess, how about you get to the point,” Kyle snapped. “I already know all of this. How does this have anything to do with us?”

“It does, Kyle,” Tess replied softly. “It’s because of this bond that I share with Max and Isabel that I did something that pushed you away.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I wonder if I ever told you how Max, Isabel, and I met,” Tess asked suddenly. “We met in kindergarten, in the classroom. I remember sitting in class with Cory Mitchell who was trying to borrow my crayons again…” She laughed, shaking her head at the memory. “Oh God, I was so mad at her because she never got her own and always lost mine…. Anyway, I was in class with the principal came in followed by two little children. He introduced them as Max and Isabel Evans, and told us that they had just come to town and that he was hoping that we’d welcome them.” She looked at Kyle then, her eyes seeing a distant memory, yet shining with warmth and joy. “I took one look at them and I just knew. It was like my eyes had been opened for the first time and a flood gate of memories just rushed at me. Image after image, memory after memory I saw them…I saw us. I was so young but I knew then that I was different and that so were they. I guess they experienced what I had too because they came over and sat down next to me without saying a word. We’ve been together since.”

Tess paused now, tugging at the necklace she wore. Explaining all that she felt, sensed and feared would not be easy, she had no idea how to do so but she knew she had to try or she’d lose Kyle and she wasn’t going to let that happen.

“Over the years my bond with Isabel and Max strengthened, but more so with Max.” Tess went on, “I’m not sure why but we began to connect, without any conscious effort on our part, to each other on a level more…intimate I guess than friendship. Maybe it was because the basic instinct in us to survive, to procreate, was starting to kick in. It wasn’t love or want, or even need and desire, it was just our reaction for survival. Isabel never really felt it because there was no other male for her to connect with on such a level. It was just down to me and Max, or so it felt.”

Tess looked up at Kyle again and saw his jaw clenched tightly, as if he was fighting off anger.

Or hurt… Tess realized. “Kyle,” she began softly, reaching out for him but then letting her hand fall, “Nothing ever happened between us. He never wanted it to. We tried, I won’t lie and say we didn’t but it just felt…wrong, like there was more for us out there.”

“Tess, don’t lie to me,” Kyle shot at her. “You’d always been in love with Max.”

Tess shook her head, her eyes begging him to understand. “No, Kyle. I may have wanted it to work between us but the truth is it never did or would and I knew it. There’s only one person I’ve ever really loved…and that’s you.”

“At this point I don’t believe that matters,” Kyle responded coldly, leaning almost carelessly against the sofa. “Now, before I begin to see the point in all of this, how about you tell me what you came here to tell.”

Tears pricked the back of her eyes at Kyle’s cold, flat tone but he swallowed hard, pushing them back. She was not going to cry, of that she was adamant.

“It started on the day I first saw Max with her…with Liz. I remember that Max was already at the table when we showed up. I felt it almost immediately though I wasn’t certain then what it was that I had felt. I had felt a tremor of it the night before but I had shrugged it off then. But I could sense it now practically radiating off Max, the change, the subtle shift in power,” Tess murmured, caught up in the memory, the feeling of that power.

“What do you mean?” Kyle asked curiously, “What kind of shift?”

“It-it…I don’t know how to explain it. It was just different. I couldn’t place it then and right now I’m not sure what it means but I felt my connection with Max had altered,” Tess told him. “For the better or worse, I wasn’t certain but it worried me.” Tess shrugged, recalling that day, the feelings. It had put her on her toes then but now it captured her in it. It made her wary yet it made her want to let go and feel safe…like she was complete. She could still feel the change in the connection even now but it was more subdued as she had gotten used to it. Somehow it didn’t make her uncomfortable anymore.

“I couldn’t understand why it had happened or what had lead to it. I don’t think Isabel felt it or she would have told me,” Tess went on. “The basic link between us was still there but that connection Max and I had shared, the one that was more…intimate, that had shifted. It wasn’t until I saw Liz walk into the room that I knew why.”

Kyle instantly went alert, straightening abruptly from his position, his attention caught by this piece of information. “Did you know it was because of her? That Max felt some connection with her?”

Tess glanced at Kyle, taken aback by the question. It was a very odd thing to ask but something in Kyle’s expression stopped her from asking why he asked. She ran a hand through her hair, considering the question and imagining the scene at the Crashdown in her mind. Finally she shook her head slowly.

“No, I didn’t,” she replied. She turned her head to look at Kyle, who had now moved slightly closer to her. “But I did feel Max’s connection and energy shift the moment she came in. And when he got up to go talk to her, I followed him, somehow knowing something was up. I saw them together and almost instantly I saw the spark between them. I don’t think even they themselves knew just how obvious their attraction to each other was.” Here she paused to frown and shrugged. “I guess I was worried by what I saw in both their eyes, especially Max’s. He was smitten by her.”

“It’s his life to live, Tess,” Kyle pointed out.

Tess met his gaze frankly and shook her head. “No, Kyle. It isn’t; it never was for anyone of us.” She moved closer to him now and touched his shoulder lightly, almost as if in apology. “When it concerns bringing in someone new into our lives, none of out lives are our own…not even yours.”

Kyle held her gaze with his for a long moment, letting all that she had said shift and settle. It all made sense now, didn’t it? It explained, even though she hadn’t really put it into words, why she had acted like she had. Could he blame her?

“You were scared,” he stated finally. “You thought you were going to lose him to someone who wasn’t a part of all this, of what he is.”

Tess looked away now, the tears that she had been fighting for so long now shimmering in her eyes. She didn’t dare to hope but she could swear that he sounded like he believed her, that he understood.

“Scared, yes,” she agreed. “But also there was something about that girl and the guy that bothered me.” She pressed her fingers against her eyes to stop the tears from falling. “They just…I don’t know, seemed familiar to me.”

Kyle’s gaze shot to her, instantly recalling his theory that Liz and Michael may be from the same crash as Max, Tess, and Isabel. “Have you ever seen them before?” Kyle asked carefully.

Tess shook her head. “That’s just it. I know I never have and yet…for some reason I felt a pull towards them. It was weird.”

“But you don’t know where or how you know them?” Kyle pressed.

Tess looked puzzled as she shook her head. “No, not a clue. Why?”

“I was just asking, that’s all,” he replied. He got up now and went to her, taking her hand in his. Relief was spearing through him now. Tess was here with him, she was his and she loved him. The thought struck him hard now and made him smile. She loved him.

Tess looked up at him in surprise and to her relief she only saw acceptance there. “Kyle…I’m so sorry about all of this,” she began tearfully, gripping his hands tightly in hers, savoring the feel of them. “I never meant—”

Kyle cut her off abruptly by placing a soft kiss on her lips. He grinned at her when he pulled back and reached out to stroke her hair. “It doesn’t matter. It’s behind us,” he told her firmly.

Tess wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close to her. Love swamped her and she tightened her grip on him. She couldn’t believe she was lucky enough to have someone like Kyle in her life. She couldn’t believe that she had almost lost him.

“I guess we had our first major fight.” Her tone was wry and amused, laced through with relief.

“I guess we did,” Kyle agreed, just as amused. He looked down at her, smiling teasingly, and asked, “So, who won?”

“We did,” Tess replied softly. She paused now to look straight at him. “I love you, Kyle.”

All humor evaporated from Kyle’s eyes, replaced by love for her. “I love you too, Tess.”

His arms tightened around her, pulling her against him even as his eyes locked down at her lips. He felt her breath catch and he smiled. Gently, so very gently he leaned down to nip at her lips, teasing her. He skimmed his lips down her cheek, along her jaw before pausing at her mouth. Her eyes fluttered close in anticipation, but instead of stopping, he moved past them to the side of her mouth. He let his lips linger there in soft kisses, feeling her impatience and desire build. He smirked to himself enjoying himself.

Tess knew what he was doing and refused to let him toy with her when she’d waited so long to feel his lips on hers again. Her arms came up to play with his hair at the base of his neck, tugging gently before she pulled his head down into an impatient but searing kiss. Instead of controlling the kiss, Kyle found himself being controlled. He would have laughed if he wasn’t so busy trying to find his balance again.

“Now that we have that out of the way…” Tess laughed as she pushed Kyle lightly down onto the sofa. She straddled him now, wrapping her arms around his neck and looking down at him mischievously. “Let’s get busy…”

She leaned down again and this time let him control the kiss. His lips moved over hers softly, tenderly and lovingly. It pulled at her heartstrings, made her stomach dip and made her feel as if she was floating. Her mind was beginning to cloud when she felt Kyle’s hands run up her side and then to the buttons of her shirt.

“Tess…” Kyle murmured as his lips moved to her throat, pausing over her pulse, feeling it pound. He moved his lips back to hers and pulled her into a deep, drugging kiss even as he unbuttoned her shirt. Tess let herself loose, enjoying the attention. Kyle wrapped his arms around her now, rolling her so that she was lying on the sofa beneath him.

Tess looked up at him and grinned. “Won’t your dad be home soon?” she asked, not worried because she knew there was time yet.

“Not for a few hours,” Kyle replied.

“That’s the best news I’ve heard all day,” Tess answered, grabbing his shirt and pulling him down for another kiss. But just as his lips touched hers, Tess felt the air around her change. She only had time to gasp and whisper Kyle’s name before she felt herself pulled under by intense flashes.

** Flash **

She saw Liz and Michel sitting on the sofa with Kyle across from them.

** Flash**

She saw Liz and Michael traveling through some city in their car, a worried look on their faces.

** Flash **

She saw herself, Isabel, and Max breaking out of their pods as children. She saw Max and Isabel both pause to look at the three pods that were still unhatched. Tess watched as Max put his hand almost sadly on one of them before Isabel did the same with the other. Looking at the third pod Tess felt a pang of remorse go through her younger version but she pulled at Max and Isabel gently, signaling them to head out.

** Flash **

She now saw herself standing in the desert, with the stars out and the V constellation shining overhead. Turning she saw Liz, Michael, Isabel and Max all standing in the distance, each looking up at the sky.

** Flash **

She saw Isabel stand next to Michael and smile at him. Puzzled, she turned around to find Max and Liz standing with their hands intertwined. She again felt a sharp sense of loss as all four of them held out their hands to her, in a way calling her.

** End Flash **

With a gasp Tess pushed away from Kyle, getting to her feet. Sweat trickled down her face as she spun around blindly, the images reeling in her head. Her gaze fell on the sofa where Kyle was now getting to his feet.

“Tess?” he asked with worry. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

They were here, in this room, Tess thought frantically. They were with us from the start…in the pods. Could it…?

“Tess! Tell me what’s going on?” Kyle asked, nearly shouting with worry.

“It’s not possible!” Tess muttered to herself aloud. She ran a hand through her hair even as her eyes wildly searched Kyle’s face. “It can’t be!”

“What? What can’t be?”

“Liz and Michael!” Tess stammered. “I think they might be one of us, of me!”


<center>TBC...</center>

A/N: Thanks guys! And so as to not let you wait long, here's a brand spanking new part! Actually I'm heading out of town for a week and I wanted to leave you guys something!:D I wanted this to be a slightly fluffy part and I had so much fun writing it! I'd love to hear what you guys think about it:D


<center>Part 13</center>


Maria hummed along to the song playing in the café as she wiped down the counter. Lunch hour had just ended and now the only customers at the Crashdown were a couple of late lunchers and Maria assumed that Courtney could handle that. Alex and Isabel were also sitting in their favorite booth but she doubted they could be counted as customers as they were there to keep her company.

It had been a busy day but then it usually always was. With the Crashdown being one of the few main eateries in town it tended to attract a huge crowd. She was just glad that her shift was nearly over. Her feet ached and she wanted to rest for a while but more than that she was dying to head over to Max’s place to find out if Liz Parker had agreed to go out with him on a date.

She caught herself glancing out the door once more, hoping to find Max coming over to tell her the good news. Maybe she was being too optimistic in thinking Liz had said yes but she had a gut feeling that she was right. And if Maria knew to trust anything, it was her gut instinct.

Because her fingers were itching to pull off her apron and run for the phone to call Max, Maria deliberately began to wipe the counter more enthusiastically. She had promised that she wouldn’t call him until he gave her the all clear. Though she had no idea why he had said so, she had sighed and agreed.

“I think you’ve made it as clean and shiny as you possibly can, Maria,” Alex’s amused voice came from where he was sitting with Isabel.

Maria stopped abruptly in her work and looked at him in puzzlement. Alex and Isabel both were watching her with thoroughly amused looks on their faces. Alex nodded to the rag in her hand and then the counter.

“The counter,” he explained. “I think you can see your own reflection in it now.”

Maria glanced at the cloth in her hand and then at the counter. As understanding dawned a slight blush spread across her face. Letting out a small, embarrassed laugh, Maria dropped the cloth and moved out from behind the counter to where Isabel and Alex sat.

“Kinda got lost there,” she explained as she sat down next to Alex.

“So it would seem,” Isabel laughed. “Are you done for the day?”

Maria glanced at the wall clock behind her and sighed gustily. “Another hour and then I’m outta here! I thought I might head over to the mall.” While talking, Maria snatched Alex’s spoon from his hand and dug into his ice cream.

“Hey!” Alex protested as Maria went for a second spoonful. “Get your own!”

Ignoring him, Maria popped the ice cream in her mouth. “Do you wanna come with?” Maria asked Isabel, making sure to keep the spoon from Alex’s reach.

Hiding a grin at Alex’s offended expression, Isabel nodded. “Sure. I need to buy myself a pair of shoes anyway.”

“Maybe if I’m lucky no one will turn up and I can beg my mom to let me off early,” Maria mused. But even as she said so, the bell above the door chimed, indicating a new customer. “Great! Just great!” she muttered as she got to her feet. “I spoke too soon. See, this is what happens when I make….” Her voice trailed off and caught in her throat however when she turned around and saw who had just come in.

Michael Guerin had come striding in, his hair all rumpled and his clothes creased and untidy. He looked absolutely mouth watering to Maria. Michael paused in stride to rake a gaze over the empty café, his gaze pausing briefly at their table before he went and plopped down in the nearest booth.

Maria stared at him for a moment, debating whether or not to go over there. She knew very well that Courtney could take his order but for some reason the thought of that peroxide blonde talking to him made her want to clench her teeth. She wasn’t jealous, of course she wasn’t. Knowing Michael he wouldn’t even spare Courtney a second glance and hopefully would only snap at her but even then she wanted to be the one to wait on his table.

“Maria, you can let Courtney get that,” Alex pointed out to her.

“No, that’s all right,” Maria found herself saying hastily. “I got it.”

Grabbing a menu from the counter on her way, Maria had to take a deep breath to calm the butterflies in her stomach. For some reason, this guy unnerved her. He was so rude that it was a ridiculous notion to even go talk to him but she couldn’t deny that she found herself attracted to him. And just as she knew that she also knew that the chances of him brushing her off with some rude comment were very high.

“Guess I’m just a sucker for romance,” she muttered to herself as she stopped at where he sat.

“Did you say something?” Michael asked, looking up at her curiously.

“No. I mean, yes…,” she corrected hastily. “I asked if you would like to look at the menu.”

“I’ll just have some Cherry Coke,” Michael replied.

“Sure, one Cherry Coke coming up.”

As Maria turned to go, Michael watched her for a moment. There were a number of places he could have gone to get some Cherry Coke but for some reason he had walked the extra block and come here. He would have liked to think that he had come here because of its good food but he knew it was just because of Maria. There was something about her that just…pulled at him. She annoyed the hell out of him and yet here he was.

Annoyed with himself for being weak enough to come here for her, he tore his gaze away from Maria, looking anywhere but at her. He looked at the paintings on the wall and felt a faint sort of amusement at them. They were more close to the truth than they knew. Suddenly Michael felt a faint prickle at the back of his neck. It was the same one he had felt for a split second when he had entered the café. But right now it was more pronounced.

He had felt it before, had felt it in an even higher intensity than right now. It came with a feeling of familiarity and the sense that someone was watching him. Michael turned away from his perusal of the paintings and slowly looked around the café. There were only two booths occupied. In one there were a couple of middle aged ladies sitting and chatting away over desert. He felt nothing odd from them but as he turned to look at the other booth, he paused abruptly.

His gaze locked with the gaze of a girl who looked to be around his age. She was staring at him with the faintest trickle of fear and recognition in her eyes. She looked so familiar but Michael had to grasp at where he had seen her before. Then it hit him. He had seen her at Kyle’s.

Isabel! Her name was Isabel! He recalled.

Even then he had felt this strong pull towards her and as he stared at her, he felt that same tug that he had then. Only this time it was different. It wasn’t as strong or as controlling but it was enough to unnerve him. He couldn’t seem to tear his eyes away from her however and for some reason she was staring back at him. She looked just as unsettled as he was feeling.

Isabel couldn’t have turned her gaze away even if she tried. There was something holding her captive, something that made her heart hammer in her chest. There was something about this guy that made her want to go to him, to wrap her arms around him. A wild sort of panic would rise up in her when she would see him, as if something was fighting inside her to tell her something. But what it was she wasn’t sure. She wasn’t even sure if this was dangerous or not. Whatever it was though, she seemed to be pulled in by it every time.

“Iz, you okay?” Alex asked, tugging her hand gently.

“Huh?” Isabel stammered, looking away as Maria walked up to Michael’s table. “Yeah, I’m fine…” With another quick look at Michael, she turned to give Alex a bright smile. “I’m fine, just got lost in thought there.”

“Here’s your Cherry Coke,” Maria said as she came up to his table and plunked the drink in front of him, startling him and twisting his attention away from Isabel.

“Huh?” He glanced at the soft drink and then ran a hand uneasily through his hair. “Right…thanks…”

Maria paused and stared at him for a moment before saying in a surprised tone. “Do you know that’s the first time you’ve said thanks.”

“What do you mean?” Michael asked, his tone irritated. The feeling was still humming through him and though he didn’t dare look, he knew that Isabel wasn’t looking his way anymore.

“I mean that every time you and I have crossed paths, you’ve snapped, shouted or stormed off,” Maria replied with a wry smile. “Looks like since I saw you a couple hours ago, things have looked up for you.” Then, as if a thought just struck her, Maria’s eyes went wide. “Is it because Liz said no to Max?” she asked. “I mean, you couldn’t be in a normal mood if she said yes…”

This had Michael fixing a cold and furious gaze at her. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” he snapped.

“And we’re back to the snapping,” Maria sighed. “Look, just tell me already. I’m sure you know.”

“Why don’t you go ask your friend, Max?” Michael asked. “You know if it weren’t for him, we would’ve been well off on our way out of here within two days!”

“Ohhh…,” Maria sang gleefully as she understood. “She said yes, didn’t she? And that’s pissing you off!”

“It’s not pissing me off!” Michael nearly yelled at her, feeling thoroughly pissed off. “And I didn’t say she said yes!” Looking highly irritated, he got up and threw some bills on the table. “Would you just butt out of our life? Why do you have to be such a pain in the ass?”

Maria gaped at him, insulted. “Why you…jerk!” she sputtered angrily. “How can you just go off on someone like that? Don’t you have an ounce of manners in you? I was just being nice and polite!”

“Yeah well it’s bordering on annoying and prying! Quit it!” Michael snapped.

“How could I have thought that you were a nice guy deep inside?” Maria shot back, blinking back tears of insulted fury. “There’s not a nice bone in your body, no matter how deep you go! You can never say anything nice to me or anyone else I’m sure! Ugh! You infuriate me so much, it’s ridiculous! God, I hate you!”

“Ditto!” Michael yelled back, feeling angrier at her than was accounted for. Without another word he stormed out of the café, the door swinging wildly behind him.

Maria wrapped her arms around her waist, forcing herself to take deep calming breaths. God, how could she have misjudged him? How could she have set herself up for that? If this hadn’t taught her a lesson then nothing else would.

Once she felt she was in control enough, she turned around to head back to Alex and Isabel, and found them staring at her in wide-eyed wonder. The two other patrons had also stopped to stare at her.

“Sorry about that,” she apologized to the ladies. “Just…sorry…”

Wearily she pushed back strands of her hair from her face as she walked slowly back to Alex and Isabel. They stared at each other for a long, silent moment before Alex gently pushed his ice cream towards hers.

“Bad day at the office, huh?” he asked quietly, a soft smile on his face.

Maria blinked back the sudden oncoming tears and nodded. Taking the spoon from his hand and silently accepting his offer of not talking about the incident, she dug into the ice cream but didn’t scoop it up. With a last glance towards the door she nodded.

“Yeah…really bad day.”


<center>TBC. . .</center>

Author's Note: Hey guys! I know this has been a long time in coming but I barely get time to write anymore. I love this story and want to do it justice by giving it my full attention rather than qriting quickies to end it. Yes, the end is close by...not too close but I definately can see it But since that's still some ways off, here's a brand spanking new part!


<center>Part 14</center>


Liz entered her hotel room humming and smiling to herself. Throwing her purse on the bed she called out to Michael, “Michael? You here?”

When she got no reply she shrugged to herself and peeled off her jacket, deciding to head into the bathroom for a shower. As she stepped into the spray of water, she wondered at how changed and happy she felt. She didn’t think that she would have felt so light hearted and excited about her date with Max tomorrow, but she did. Max made her feel things - things like joy, pleasure, attraction, comfort – things she hadn’t felt in a long time, and she welcomed the change.

Only a week ago she would have felt worried and suspicious about Max. She would have tried to run from it and would have wondered if this all was as innocent as it seemed. But there was just something about Max that made her feel she could trust him. She recalled how she had felt around him that first night they had met in the park. And with it she remembered the comfortable familiarity she had felt around him then. That feeling had only increased over the past few days and she refused to let herself obsess and worry over the why and how. For the first time in a long while she was happy and at ease, and she was going to let herself enjoy it.

Tilting her head back to let the water cascade down her, she allowed herself to imagine, just for a moment, what it would be like to have more with Max. She had no illusions about their date. She knew that it wouldn’t be - or rather couldn’t be - anything more than a one time date. And she was going to make sure Max knew and understood that, too. There was just too much at stake, too many uncertainties in her life, to allow for anything more. And though it disappointed her, she was just going to have to accept that and so would he.

Liz shut off the water and quickly grabbed a towel to dry off. She pulled on the hotel bath robe and headed back into the room to grab some clothes. She was just rummaging through her bag when she heard the door open. Looking up she found Michael striding in, his face stormy. Michael slammed the door behind him and stomped across the room and flung himself on the bed.

“Crazy, blonde female!” he muttered angrily, yanking out his wallet from his pocket and throwing it on the bedside table with force. “What the hell does she know?”

Liz just raised an eyebrow at him. “Problem?”

Michaels shot her a quick side-ways look to assess if she was making fun of him. Determining that she wasn’t he said grumpily, “I just don’t get why people can’t mind their own damn business!”

“Because then their lives would become boring and meaningless,” Liz replied with a laugh, not really worried by Michael’s mood. She knew him well enough to know that he could get worked up over the tiniest things. She picked up the clothes she had taken out and headed to the bathroom with them. “Besides,” she said, her voice muffled due to the closed door, “It’s a small town. People tend to be nosy here. So, who’s the unlucky person who committed this dire error?”

Michael scratched his eyebrow uneasily as he replied, “Oh, that Maria girl from the café. I was at the Crashdown and she kept asking me about what you said to Max.” He snorted disdainfully. “Like Max isn’t her friend or anything! Why the hell couldn’t she have called him up?”

Liz popped out of the bathroom wearing shorts and a t-shirt and a smirk on her face. “That Maria girl?” she asked. When Michael ignored her comment she suppressed a smile and asked, “And you were at the Crashdown? Why? We’ve already had lunch.”

“I wanted something to drink,” Michael replied defensively.

Liz arched an eyebrow at him. “We have a vending machine down the hall,” she pointed out.

“Yeah, well I thought I could use the walk.”

Liz kept looking at Michael funny for a moment before replying in a confused tone, “Okay…,”

A silence fell between them before Michael spoke up. “So, you talked to Max.”

It was a statement more than a question and Liz hesitated before answering. “Yes, I did,” she answered slowly. She sat down on the bed next to Michael and folded her hands in her lap nervously. “We have a date for tomorrow night.”

“Oh…I see.”

Liz looked up quickly at Michael, worried by the quiet tone in his voice. “Michael, are you sure you’re okay with this?” she asked him anxiously. “And I mean really okay with this? I know you said that you were but I want you to tell me honestly.”

Michael sighed and turned to look at her before taking her hands in between his. “Even if I wasn’t I told you that I’d back you up no matter what you decide,” he told her. “And I’m sticking to that. If you feel this is something you have to or want to do than so be it. I trust you, Liz. I trust whatever decision you’re going to make.”

Liz gave him a soft smile and squeezed his hand gratefully. “I do and…thank you.”

They fell into a comfortable silence for a while, sitting with their hands intertwined. So much had happened to them since they’d come into this town. Most of it unexpected and unplanned, and even though some of these things had been causes to worry; others had only proved to be pleasant surprises. Such as Kyle Valenti.

How they had met him could have occurred through a better situation, but Liz wasn’t sure they would have asked for his help if they had met in a different way. It might not have been a very safe choice to trust him, even with a partial truth, but every fiber in Liz’s body told her that they were on the right track. To her, such instinct was as good as any premonition she might get.

“How long do you think Kyle will take to get back to us?” Liz mused aloud.

Michael turned to look at her, a bit surprised by the sudden change in topic but then he shrugged his shoulders. “I dunno…. A few days, a week maybe?” He looked at her with some concern and scratched his eyebrow. “Do you think he’s just a waste of time? I mean, we have no guarantee that this guy can get us anything.”

“That’s true,” Liz replied carefully, pausing to consider how to word her answer. “But there’s something there, Michael. There’s something about this guy, this entire scenario that just makes me feel that it’s going to work.”

“I sure hope you’re right, Liz,” Michael replied. “Because we’re running out of options.”

“This place feels right,” Liz mused. She shifted suddenly on the bed so that she was sitting sideways instead as she gave Michael an amazed smile. “Michael, do you realize it’s been nearly three days since I’ve had the nightmares?”

“Really?” Michael’s voice was filled with pleased surprise.

“Yeah.” Liz tucked her hair behind her ear as she bounced on the bed like an excited child. “The last one I had was on the night we got here. In fact I’ve had no flashes, premonitions or dreams. For once I feel…free!”

“How…I mean, what did you do that made them stop?” Michael asked.

Liz shrugged now, frowning slightly. “I’m not sure I did anything. I think it’s this place. I don’t know…. Something over here seems to be blocking them. I don’t know if that’s necessarily a good thing because if it can block my dreams maybe it’s been blocking my premonitions as well, because I’ve not had those since we’ve come here either.”

“Liz, don’t start thinking like that because then you’ll just start becoming paranoid,” Michael told her. “Your nightmares stopping, that’s a good thing and as for your premonitions…well maybe there is nothing more for us to be warned about just yet. Ever think of it that way?”

Liz bit her lip and nodded slowly. “Maybe you’re right,” she agreed. “Maybe we should just take everything at face value.”

“This place has got a good vibe about it. I sensed it when I first decided to come here and then felt it when we reached this place,” Michael told her. “Didn’t it feel like coming home when we first came here?”

“Yeah…I guess you could say that,” Liz pondered. “Well whatever it is, I don’t think we should get too comfortable. Face value or not, it could just be the calm before the storm.”

“I’m not asking you to not be careful because for all we know, Kivar could have traced us here. But let’s not start looking over our shoulder at every shadow.” A stricken look passed Liz’s face at the mention of Kivar and Michael hurried to assure her. “It’s very unlikely though, Liz. We were very careful this time.”

Liz didn’t say anything but just nodded uneasily. “Michael…when can I talk to mom?” Her voice was soft and hesitant and Michael heard the tears in them.

He knew how close Liz had been to both her parents and how being away from them this way was hurting her but he knew there was no safe way of contacting them right now. Not with Kivar probably keeping a close watch on their homes.

He wouldn’t lie to her and tell her that she could talk to them tomorrow, because even Liz knew that wasn’t possible. But he could try to make sure that she was able to talk to her parents again as soon as things got a bit safer.

So, pulling her close to him, he pressed a brotherly kiss on her forehead. “Soon, Liz,” he promised. “Soon.”

<center>*****</center>

“You know what to do right?” Tess asked Kyle, her voice slightly nervous as they stopped outside the adoption center.

Kyle nodded, his eyes fixed on the doors leading inside. “Yeah…” He swallowed hard and then looked down at Tess worriedly. “You sure you can hold the mind warp long enough?”

Tess nodded more confidently than she felt. “Trust me.”

“I do,” he replied then leaned down to place a quick but lingering kiss on her lips. “Let’s do this and get out of there. Good luck!”

“You, too,” Tess replied as she started to head inside while Kyle waited outside, partially hidden by the trees as he waited for Tess’s signal.

Tess took a deep breath to calm the nerves in her stomach before she pushed open the door and walked up to the counter. The lady sitting there looked up from her work and gave Tess a smile.

“Hi, how may I help you?”

Tess returned the smile and replied, “Hi, my name is Tess Harding and I go to Roswell High. I was wondering if you could help me out a little. You see, as part of our term project we’ve been assigned to do a report on Roswell and its community. I thought that why not do mine on the kids over here…you know show how Roswell supports these poor kids and encourages its citizens to take them into their homes.”

The lady’s smile brightened considerably and she gushed, “Oh, how lovely! I’m sure we’d be glad to help you in your report. Just tell us how we can help you and what you need.”

“That’s great!” Tess exclaimed. Her voice faltered slightly but the woman barely noticed as Tess begun her mind warp. She projected images of herself talking to her, explaining what she wanted and how she hoped to go about her project. Once Tess was sure that the lady was deep into the mind warp, she gave Kyle a missed call on his cell.

Within seconds Kyle was rushing inside. He paused to make sure Tess was all right as she looked strained but she waved him off, telling him to hurry. He didn’t waste any time, knowing that Tess wouldn’t be able to hold her mind warp for long. Though she was probably the strongest of the three aliens, even she couldn’t use her powers for long periods of time.

Kyle immediately headed to the back where he knew all the old records were kept. Shutting the door behind him, Kyle stared at the room and the file cabinets with despair.

There must be hundreds of files here! he thought. How the hell am I supposed to find the one I’m looking for when I have no idea where to begin?

But he knew he had to try. He couldn’t let this all be for nothing. Kyle quickly got to work by attacking the file cabinet nearest him. He had hoped that maybe there was some sort of order in which the files were kept but to his frustration he couldn’t figure out what the order was, if there was any at all to begin with.

File after file, cabinet after cabinet Kyle searched but as the minutes passed his despair increased. There was no way he would ever find that file. He wasn’t even sure if it was here at all! Glancing at his watch, Kyle saw that nearly twenty minutes had passed and the thought of Tess began to pull at him. He knew that she couldn’t have held the mind warp for this long. Ten minutes maybe but not twenty. She had never been able to hold it for this long.

And if she had stopped then that meant that he didn’t have much time anymore. Someone could come walking here any minute! Sweat began to trickle down his back as every sound he heard now had him thinking that this was it, he was caught. That’s why when he heard the door creak open slowly he froze, his heart stopping for the barest of seconds before beginning to race at a maddening speed.

He was so terrified that he couldn’t even duck or hide. Instead he stared with wide-eyed horror down the row, expecting a guard to come catch him, clutching the files desperately in his hands. As the soft footsteps got closer, Kyle was sure he would pass out.

This is it… I’m dead! he thought as he closed his eyes and waited. When a hand touched his shoulder, he opened his mouth to shout but a hand clamped down on it before he could.

“Ssshhhh,” Tess hissed. “Do you want the guards to hear you?!”

Kyle opened his eyes and turned around to find Tess glaring at him. Relief seeped through him and he felt his heart beat slow down a little. “Tess!” he whispered thankfully. “Oh God, it’s just you!”

“Who did you think it was?” Tess asked, smacking him lightly on the head.

“With you creeping in like that I was sure you were the guard,” Kyle replied. Then a thought occurred to him. “Wait, what are you doing inside? You’re supposed to keep watch!”

“Well, I sent that woman out for at least an hour and I figured you could use the help,” Tess replied. “Did you find anything?”

Kyle shook his head. “No and from the looks of things we could be here all night.”

Tess shot a look around and felt the same despair settle in her. “Yeah…but we have to keep looking. Let’s spilt up.”

By starting off from two different corners, they began their search. More than fifteen minutes passed but they found nothing. Tess was just about to suggest that they call it quits, when, by sheer luck, a file caught her eye.

Roswell - 1987

As an odd feeling settled in her, she reached for the file and flipped it open. Her eyes scanned the first few lines and her breath caught. She read about herself, Max, and Isabel. Flipping the page she found two more documents…this time about two more children found in the desert two days later. A boy and a girl named Michael Guerin and Liz Parker.

“Kyle!” she hissed. “Kyle!”

He came running to her and she jabbed at the file with shaking fingers. “I found it…oh my God, I found it!”

Kyle snatched the file from her and read it over quickly. His eyes shot to meet Tess’ as the implication hit them both. This essentially proved his suspicions…and at the same time opened a whole bunch of possibilities, questions, and opportunities for Max, Isabel, and Tess.

“I think it’s time we called a meeting,” Kyle told Tess shakily.


<center>TBC. . .</center>

Author's Note: Hey all! Thanks for being so patient with me! I know I'm terribly slow with updates but I'm here now with a new part! Hope you enjoy and just a heads up that the next part is the date that you all are so eagerly awaiting!

behrlyliz - Thank you so much! I'm glad you love this story. As for your questions I hope I can answer them satisfactorily!

timelord31 - Your wish is granted in the next part!

I am a dreamer - I may be evil but I'm a dreamer at heart

Camilla - still waiting for tha long feedback im still have to go read ur story!

Ellie - I'm glad you noticed Tess and her pod connection cuz that is still in a way linked to this story. it is a key reason as to why Tess would be more eager to accept Liz and Michael as family as for Khivar...well I'm still debating if I should deal with this in this story or not (I'm playing with the idea of a sequel...im not sure yet). It's just a reason for Liz to run and I would like to think that she's safe now!

Michelle in Yonkers - Was it last night? I thought that dream occured the 1st and 2nd night they were here and accoridng to my timeline it's been around 4 5 days since they have been in Roswell...hmm...I'll go check this out. Thanks for brining it up!

Nadine - I love us working together! We're fabulous lol


<center>Part 15</center>


They had to wait until the next morning before they could call everyone. Kyle and Tess took the evening to reconfirm their findings and to try to see if they could find some more information on Liz Parker and Michael Guerin. Now that they had something to work with, it wasn’t as difficult as before to dig up more information. Even though what they found was hardly more than a few incidents, it was a start.

As Kyle stood staring out across the water, he wondered if Max and Isabel would even welcome the news he had. He wasn’t sure how they would react when they found out that two people who were virtually unknown to either were such an integral part of their past as well as present lives. His thoughts shifted to how Max would take the news of Liz being like him. Would he welcome the idea or would it just make him wary of whatever it was that was between him and Liz?

“I think that’s them,” Tess spoke as the distant sounds of cars grew louder.

Kyle turned around and walked slowly to his car as Tess jumped off the hood and together they both stood waiting anxiously for everyone to arrive. Soon two sets of cars had pulled over next to Kyle’s: Isabel and Max in Max’s jeep and Alex and Maria in Maria’s Jetta.

As Isabel got out of the jeep she shot Kyle and Tess a questioning look, and when she noticed Tess’s hand curl tightly into Kyle’s she smiled to herself, glad that everything was fine between the two of them.

“So, what’s this about?” Maria asked once they were all together. “Why’d you call us out here, Kyle?”

“Because this is the only place safe enough to talk without being overheard,” Kyle replied. “And what I’ve got to say is not something I want others overhearing.”

“What’s going on?” Max asked, immediately sensing that something was wrong. Automatically he took a step forward, almost as if ready to absorb the impact of whatever it was that Kyle had called them here to tell them. Max had no illusions of this being some happy gathering. Whenever they came here to this spot, it was due to one alien related reason or another. And those were rarely, if ever, joyous meetings.

That’s a loaded question, Kyle thought even as he paused to wonder at how to begin.

Where did he even start? Was there really anyway to break the news to them gently, especially when he wasn’t sure how they would take it? Tess may have taken it well but then again she had always been more open to the thought of them having a family, a home on some other planet. Max and Isabel had always been more closed off about the idea, had always felt abandoned. They both might have been raised in a loving and caring family but even that didn’t stop the feeling of abandonment from burgeoning. How would they feel when they found out about Liz and Michael?

“I know you guys often wondered if you were alone out here, if it was only the three of you that were sent here to Earth.” Kyle could see the confusion on all their faces, each wondering where this was going. Taking a deep, hesitating breath, he asked, “What if I told you I could answer that for you?”

“You-you can’t…” Isabel took a step forward to stand besides Max. “There is no way you could know; no way you…,” she trailed off; her eyes darted from Kyle to Max, as if looking for some assurance.

“But what if I could?” Kyle repeated. “What if I told you that I have proof that you guys are not here alone?”

“Kyle,” Maria spoke up now, her voice a little unsteady. “Do you realize what you are saying?”

Kyle nodded. “Yes, I do. Look I know this may not be easy for you to accept but trust me. I know I’m right and I just need you to work with me here.”

“All right,” Max replied. “Show us what you have.”

Tess pulled out the files she had photocopied at the orphanage from the car. She gave them to Max and as he reached out to take them, she put her hand on his, her eyes locked on to his. “Max, this is a good thing,” she told him with a soft smile. “I know you think I tend to be more eager to believe in our past but maybe, just maybe, that past is what makes us being here so important. What you find out today is connected to that past, to our past. Don’t be afraid. You just might be surprised by how…complete you’ll feel.”

Confused, but more than a little curious, Max flipped open the file with Isabel, Maria and Alex hovering close by. He scanned the first few lines on the page and looked up at Kyle and Tess. “So?” he asked. “We already know all of this. We’ve gone over our file a thousand times. What’s so different now?”

“Keep going, Max,” Kyle encouraged.

Max flipped over the next few pages, scanning what he already knew about his, Isabel’s and Tess’s files but the next document had him pausing abruptly. It was another file from the orphanage, a file that he hadn’t seen before. But it was the name that grabbed him, that had him nearly dropping the folder he was holding. In silence he read over the document and then the next one. With each word he read, he felt something hit him hard. A memory, a feeling, a feeling of incredulity.

“It-it can’t be!” Max stammered his eyes wide with disbelief when he was done. He looked at Kyle and Tess in amazement. “There is just no possible way…”

“What is it, Max?” Isabel asked, fearing the worst. “What’s in those files?”

Silently Max handed them to her and both Alex and Maria crowded around Isabel to read. While they read, Max turned his attention to Kyle, still at a loss for words and not sure whether he could believe what he had read.

“How long have you known about this?” he asked. “How did you even find this out?”

“Not more than a couple of days. And let’s just say the answers found me!” Kyle shot Max a smile but then grew serious. “You never found what you were looking for in your own file because the answers were in someone else’s.”

The others had finished reading now and were looking as stunned as Max. “How do you know that this is true? That this isn’t some game or ruse?” Isabel demanded, her fear of being caught making her curl her hand tightly around Alex’s for support. “For all you know it’s just another couple of alien believers out to get some attention!”

“She has a point,” Alex pointed out. “We all know how common such a thing is here in Roswell. People have done this kind of thing before.”

“But this time it’s different,” Tess spoke up. “Don’t you feel it? Can’t you feel the energy around them? Don’t you feel…something go through you every time you are near Liz Parker or Michael Guerin?” She shifted her gaze from Isabel to Max. “Don’t tell me that you’ve not felt some weird connection with Liz every time you’re around her! I’ve felt it too! It’s like something is tugging the back of my mind, a memory, a feeling…an instinctive knowledge. It’s more than just attraction that has you going to her! It’s a connection…just like the one the three of us share!”

“If that’s true then why haven’t you guys felt anything before now?” Maria asked. “As far as I know, this connection of yours does not stop at city limits.”

“She has a point,” Isabel told Tess, not ready to let herself believe. “Why haven’t we even gotten a hint of this before now? I can still feel our connection even when we’re cities away, like that time Max and I went to New York with our parents. I still sensed you, Tess! Why didn’t we sense these people before now?”

“Maybe because we’d been separated too long,” Max spoke up for the first time. “Maybe all we needed was to be around each other once again to become in tune with one another. And that would mean that they must have felt this…connection too, whether they realize what is it or not.”

“You actually believe any of this, Max?” Isabel asked incredulously.

“Why not, Iz?" he asked. “We’ve all felt something different when we’ve been around these two. I know I have. And I’m ready to bet that you have, too. What if Tess and Kyle are right? What if they are one of us?”

“You’re just dying for an excuse to be with her, aren’t you?” Isabel sneered. “The only way you can see her without any feelings of guilt or having to lie is if she is one of us. That’s why you’re so eager to believe all of this!”

“That’s not true!” Max’s voice was low yet anger flashed in his eyes. “You know that’s not true! Don’t try to tell me you haven’t felt something stir in you since these guys came into town.”

“I felt it too, Isabel,” Tess replied. “A-a weird pull, I guess towards both Michael and Liz.”

Isabel fell silent as she recalled that strange and scary sensations she had gotten every time Michael was near by. Could it really be because of this? Wouldn’t it be a relief to know it was, and not because she felt attracted to him? She was in love with Alex, she knew that. Yet, she had felt pulled towards Michael. It would make sense if it was their connection.

“Look, I know this is hard to believe but these guys came to me, asking for help,” Kyle said. “Their story is just too darn similar to your own for it to be a coincidence. You guys were found in the same area only a couple of days apart, in the exact same condition! Besides, those weird incidents at the orphanage and at their foster homes should be more than proof that these guys are aliens.”

A silence fell as they all let it sink in. It was hard to accept, there were still doubts but it wasn’t impossible to believe either.

“So, what do we do now?” Maria asked, breaking the silence.

“We can’t go up to them and confront them,” Alex pointed out. “It might scare them away.”

“Alex is right.” Max ran a hand through his hair, uncertain whether to be wary or to be hopeful. “We need to be careful here.”

“Max, don’t you have a date with Liz tonight?” Isabel asked suddenly.

“You what?” Tess cried out, more in surprise than anything else. “When did this happen?”

“Boy, you sure move fast,” Kyle grinned.

Max shot him a withering look but a smile lit up his eyes as he nodded reluctantly. “Yeah, I do. What the hell am I going to do?”

“Maybe this is our chance to try to tell them about us…and that we know,” Tess pointed out.

Max looked at her nervously. “What do you mean?” he asked. “I can’t really ask her if she’s an alien over dessert!”

“No, but you can check things out, see how she is to the idea,” Kyle replied. “Then if they seem open to it, I can take it from there. They trust me…maybe it’ll be better if it’s coming from me.”

“Makes sense, I guess. So much for a normal date!” Max grinned. He felt nervous yet excited about tonight. Though he wouldn’t admit it, it was more because of the simple reason that he was going on a date with Liz than anything else.

Maria locked her arms around his and laughed. “Honey, with us, nothing’s ever normal!” She patted his arm as she said, “Who knows, Max. Maybe normal isn’t such a great thing after all! Maybe there’s more than one reason for us having stumbled onto these guys after all!”

<center>TBC. . .</center>

Author's Note: Here it is! What you all have been waiting for. So without further ado...may I present...the date!


<center>Part 16</center>


Her hands shook ever so slightly as she stroked the mascara wand on her lashes. Her lips trembled as she dabbed a rosy pink gloss to them. Nerves fluttered in Liz’s stomach, her heart beating at a slightly faster pace as the clock’s hands swung closer to seven. Pulling the brush one last time through her hair, she stepped back from the bathroom mirror to assess herself.

Her hair fell in long, loose waves past her shoulders, her earrings glittering from behind the dark curtain of hair. Her pink top flew down her curves; melding into the pink and white floral skirt she wore which fell in gypsy layers at her knees. Her heeled shoes added an inch or two to her height which more than pleased her. The bright sparkle in her eyes had her pausing to take in the reality of the moment. She was going out on a date with Max Evans.

What are you getting yourself into, Liz Parker! she silently berated. There were hundreds of reasons why she shouldn’t be going out on a date with some guy she had just met in a strange city and the fact that she chose to ignore them just added more to the reasons.

But its just one date…, she told herself as she stepped out of the bathroom. Just one harmless date shouldn’t be that much of a big deal. She could handle it. But then why am I feeling so light headed? Like this is so much more than a simple date?

Before she could allow herself to think about that, a low whistle came from behind her. Whirling, she found Michael sitting on the bed, obviously waiting for her.

“Do you have to look so damn gorgeous tonight?” he asked her with a mutter.

Liz laughed, blushing slightly at the compliment but feeling immensely pleased. “For your information, I always look gorgeous!” Liz’s eyes sparkled with mischievous humor as she twirled for his benefit. “But thanks for the compliment.”

Michael nodded gruffly, feeling an unexplainable tightening in his chest. Watching Liz move about the room anxiously waiting for Max had him feeling that she was slipping from him, and that she was slowly coming to a point where she wouldn’t need him anymore. And that made him feel desolate and helpless. He had come to be more like a brother to her than a friend and he had always held on to the knowledge that Liz needed him. But now, with Max Evans around, he wasn’t sure that would be true for long.

It made him want to hate Max, made him want to scare him off so that he never came to within a mile of Liz but he knew that Liz wouldn’t like that. She had always been adamant about making decisions about her life herself. And Michael had learned to respect that.

But just because I don’t have any say in this doesn’t mean that I can’t give this guy a good once over, Michael thought to himself. No way was he going to let anyone hurt Liz again. So when the knock came on the door, he bolted to his feet and had gotten to the door before Liz could even react.

Pausing for just a second to compose his face into a slightly stern and unnerving look, he swung open the door. Liz, who understood why he was doing this, stood back quietly, biting her lip to keep from laughing. It might have had been annoying if she didn’t find it so endearing.

Max, who appeared startled and slightly unsure upon seeing Michael, hesitantly smiled at him in greeting. “Hey, I-I’m here for Liz.”

“You’re late,” he stated flatly, ignoring the greeting and looking down at his watch then back at Max. “By three minutes.” Then, looking down at the flowers Max held, Michael snorted slightly. “Flowers, huh? Typical…,” he muttered, making sure Max heard as he stepped aside to let him enter.

Michael’s hyped up performance of a disapproving brother and Max’s increasing bewilderment and worry had Liz desperately trying not to laugh. But the moment Max stepped up to her, with a shy smile on his face, all thought fled from her mind.

“Hey,” he said softly. As he said so, he could have sworn Michael mutter darkly from behind him, “Not too close there pal.” It had Max immediately stopping at some distance away from Liz.

“Hi.” She smiled shyly, aware that Michael was watching them both. “Are those for me?” she asked, pointing to the flowers.

Max nodded and held them out. “Yeah. I hope you like lilies.”

Liz sniffed them delicately. “I love them, thanks.” Max was watching her with such radiant joy that she felt almost embarrassed at meeting his gaze. Her own adrenaline was rushing, her skin feeling heated. “Just let me get a jacket and then we can leave.”

Max nodded, watching her get the white jacket she had placed on the chair. Once she was ready, he shot Michael, who was still watching the two of them, a quick look. “Shall we go?” Max asked, directing the question to no one in particular because he wasn’t sure if he should ask Liz or Michael!

Liz solved the problem for him by answering in the affirmative. As they passed Michael who had taken his position by the door, Liz stopped and brushed a quick kiss on his cheek and used the opportunity to whisper, “Nice touch with the flowers comment.” And then more loudly, “Don’t wait up.”

Michael managed to hide the chuckle that escaped him as a cough but the moment the two were out the door, his face split into a wide grin. It had been more fun than he had imagined. Not bearing to let Max go without a parting shot, Michael yelled out behind them, “Make sure she’s back before one and no sex on the first date!”

This time he didn’t bother to hide his laugh as Max nearly stumbled at those words and Liz shot Michael an amused but exasperated look.

<center>*****</center>

“Sorry about Michael,” Liz said once they were in the car and on their way. “He tends to get a little over-protective about me. But trust me; his bark is worse than his bite.”

Max glanced over at Liz with a grin. “Maybe it was my imagination but I could have sworn he was enjoying himself.”

At that astute observation Liz let out a laugh. “You’re right. He was thoroughly enjoying himself. I’m surprised you were able to notice. You looked as if you were going to turn around and run right out the door.”

This time when Max turned to look at Liz, there was a soft, yet determined, light shining in his eyes. It made something catch in Liz’s throat. She couldn’t look away from his eyes and felt herself being pulled into their depths and the promises that radiated from within.

“Trust me, Liz; you are one person no one can make me run away from.” His hand slid over to between the seats to hold hers and the moment their hands met, a sudden surge of emotions shot through her and had her gasping out loud. With wide eyes she looked at Max, wondering if he felt it, too.

“It’s undeniable, Liz,” Max said, “This connection we have. It’s going to be interesting trying to see where it leads us.”

It never ceased to amaze or unnerve her, this connection that seemed to ignite between them at the merest touch of flesh. And even though she was just as curious as Max to see what it all meant, she wasn’t ready to promise him more than this one date.

“Max, please…,” she replied softly, “You promised to take this slow.”

Max looked as if he was contemplating saying something but then thought better of it. Then he nodded and squeezed her hand gently. “All right, we’ll go slow.”

Satisfied with his promise, Liz allowed herself to relax and settle back. She could not ignore the warm yet intense emotions she was feeling by just being close to Max but she could allow herself to adjust to them and just enjoy the moment. She wasn’t sure if there would be another moment such as this with Max afterwards. It made her sad to think about it, that she might have to leave in a couple of days, leaving Max behind. She didn’t want to. It was strange that before coming here, Roswell was the place she least liked to even think about going to, and now she didn’t want to leave. It felt comfortable, it felt right…it felt like home.

Max watched the strange sad emotions cross her face, just like they had when he had first seen her at the carousel and again he wondered what she was thinking about that had her so sad. This time he didn’t just wonder though, he asked.

“What are you thinking about just now?” he asked her.

“Hmmm…,” Liz murmured, pulling herself out of her thoughts. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”

“I asked what you were thinking of just then. You had such a sad look on your face.”

Liz didn’t answer for a moment, wondering how, if at all, to tell him what she was thinking. It didn’t seem right to spoil their evening by mentioning that she might be going away in a few days so she just shook her head. “It’s nothing, nothing important at least.” She smiled then, forcing herself to just focus on tonight. “I’m sorry I got slightly distracted. So, where are we going?” she asked.

Max realized that she didn’t want to talk about it and he let it pass. She would tell him in her own time, and he wasn’t going to push her. “We’re going to Senor Chow’s. It’s this Chinese place, one of the nicest in town, and it’s even got an entertainment area where we can just relax and hang out. How does that sound?”

Liz smiled warmly at him, feeling excited and yet nervous at the same time. “It sounds perfect, Max,” she replied. And it did. At the moment she didn’t care where they went, just as long as they were together.

When they got to Senor Chow’s Max helped her out of the car and led her inside, towards a private table he had reserved earlier that day. Liz looked around the dimly lit place with red and gold decorations mixed here and there with flowers on some tables and lit candles on others. She caught sight of a slightly separated area where a handful of people were shooting pool or were on the small dance floor.

She turned her attention back to Max and smiled, “Max, this place is great!” she told him honestly. “Thanks for bringing me here.”

“My pleasure.” Max grinned at her, watching how the light hit her hair and turned it into a shimmering cascade. She looked so beautiful sitting here before him that for a moment he forgot all that he had learned earlier about her and Michael. It didn’t matter who or what she was. It certainly was a relief to know that she would understand him when he told her about himself, and may even be pleased, but in his opinion it didn’t matter. He would have found her anyway regardless of her heritage.

He wanted to tell her right now that he knew about her. He wanted to tell her that she wasn’t alone, that he was one of them but he held back. It didn’t seem right to go into something like that at such a place and occasion. He wanted to enjoy tonight, just let it be about a boy and a girl who were attracted to each other and out on a simple date.

“What would you like to order?” Max asked her as Liz perused the menu.

Liz scanned the list and shook her head with a slight laugh. “I don’t know,” she replied. “It all looks amazing.” She put down her menu and shot him a shy look. “Why don’t you order for me? You would know what’s best.”

“Sure,” Max answered. “I know just the thing!” Signaling for a waiter, Max quickly ordered for both of them and once the menus were whisked away, Max turned his attention back to Liz.

“It sounds like you come here often. You sure do know the menu well,” Liz teased, though privately wondering if he brought all his dates here.

As if he had read her mind, Max replied sheepishly, “Actually I come here with my family for any and every special occasion. My dad and sister love this place and we always end up here.”

“Your sister? Would that be Isabel?” Liz asked, recognizing the family resemblance.

Surprised, Max asked, “Yeah, how do you know her?”

“We met at Kyle’s when Michael and I went there to ask Kyle some advice on something,” Liz told him, feeling a little guilty at having to lie about why she had gone to Kyle’s. But of course she couldn’t tell him the real reason.

“You went to Kyle for advice?” Max laughed. “Now that is something I never thought I’d hear!”

Liz rolled her eyes at him, though she couldn’t help but grin. “Come on! He’s not that bad!”

“Wait till you get to know him!” Max replied sagely. “He’s got the corniest sense of humor this side of New Mexico!”

“Maybe I happen to like a corny sense of humor in men!” Liz shot back playfully.

“For a moment you had me worried. If its just corny men you like then you’re safe!” Max laughed. “Kyle is hardly more than a boy. I don’t have to worry about fighting him over you…not that he’d win in any case.”

Liz arched her eyebrows at his confidence, finding it slightly presumptuous but incredibly sweet for some reason. Hesitating slightly, mustering up her courage, Liz reached across the table and covered Max’s hand with her own. “There’s no reason for you to fight anyone over me,” she replied, keeping her eyes on his. “There’s only one clear cut winner…”

Surprise flickered in Max’s eyes for a moment but it was quickly replaced by a shining warmth as he turned his hand over to entwine his fingers with hers and squeezed lightly. “That sounds like a promise, Liz Parker,” he warned quietly.

“No,” Liz shook her head, a slight smile touching her lips. “But it’s the truth.”

“I think I can take that for now.”

His thumb caressed the back of her hand as they stared at each other for a long moment. Liz felt something shift between them, an unsaid moment descending between them. She didn’t analyze it or worry about it rather just let her self become enraptured in it. There was such depth in Max’s eyes and she was sure that it mirrored his soul. It had her wondering if she’d ever be able to know the full extent of both. She wondered if she’d ever even have the opportunity to find out.

I could if I wanted. I don’t have to leave. I could stay here in Roswell…with Max.

The thought had come unbridled and without warning, startling Liz. Previously she had never even considered the option of staying but something had changed in that moment. Suddenly it was all she could think about, all she could focus on. Staying here, being close to Max. She didn’t worry about how dangerous it could be, or that Max himself could be dangerous. It just felt so right and safe with him. She felt so sure that this was where she belonged and that she was safer here with him than anywhere else in the world!

“I wish I could stay, Max,” Liz told him abruptly.

“What do you mean?” Max asked, confused. “Do you have to go somewhere right now?”

“No, not right now,” Liz replied with a shake of her head. “I mean, stay here in Roswell…”

“Then why don’t you?” Max asked. “Nothing’s stopping you.”

“But there is,” Liz whispered, her eyes appearing distant as she recalled all that she had left behind and the reasons why she had. “There are so many things stopping me.” She turned to look at Max again, a torn look in her eyes. “But then there are so many things making me want to stay here, too. I-I don’t know what to do, which to choose.”

Max wasn’t sure what things Liz was talking about but he read the faint fear in her eyes when she talked about them and he instantly wanted to reach out to her, to pull her to him. Maybe if Liz knew there were more people like her here in Roswell, she’d have more reason to stay but just watching the fear in her eyes, Max wasn’t so sure. He didn’t even know what it was that she was so scared of, or why she was traveling alone with Michael anyway. He wanted to ask, to know, but was too afraid to push.

“I wish I could tell you what’s right for you, Liz,” Max replied. “I wish I could tell you that staying here with me is what’s best but I’m not sure.” Though it cost him to say it, Max felt that Liz needed to hear what he felt was the truth, not what he wanted for himself, or even both of them. “But I can tell you that it’s no good to agonize over the decision just yet.” He held on tighter to her hand and smiled gently at her. “Choices become more obvious and easier when you give them time. It’ll be clear to you soon enough.”

Hopefully that will be when Kyle tells you about us, about your family, Max thought to himself.

“Maybe…,” Liz replied, unconvinced but feeling relaxed.

A moment later their food arrived and they both fell silent. Liz sat back and watched Max as he conversed briefly with the waiter for a moment. It pulled at her heart to hear him say what he had. It made her feel as if he understood and, regardless of what he wanted, he wanted her to do what was best for her. She just wished it was easier for her to see what that was.

During dinner they avoided all serious conversations, rather just enjoying their meal and each other. Liz teased him about his job at the Convention Center and Max told her about the numerous pranks he and his friends, especially Kyle, had pulled on tourists. Liz asked him about his parents, Isabel, and his friends and Max told her he and his sister were actually adopted. Liz was surprised and told him that she was as well and told him as much as she dared to about her life back in Boston.

Once the dishes were cleared away and Max had discreetly paid, he got up and offered his hand to Liz. “Would you like to dance?”

Slipping her hand into his, Liz nodded shyly and Max led her to the dance floor. They were basically alone in the restaurant and it suited them both just fine. It made it all seem much more private and personal. The soft strains of an Edwin McCain song filled the dance floor and Max and Liz stood staring at each other awkwardly for a moment.

Taking a breath, Max moved closer to Liz and slipped his hand to her waist and she hesitantly put hers on his shoulder. For a few moments they kept each other at a distance, shuffling back and forth. To Liz it was highly amusing but frustrating as well. Finally, unable to take the distance, Liz pulled away from Max and regarded him wryly.

“Max, don’t you think it’s a little bit silly that even though we’ve kissed a couple of times, we’re dancing as if we were back in junior high and this was our first dance?”

Max chuckled, seeing the irony in the situation. “You’re right,” he declared. “This is stupid.”

Then, without warning, he slipped his arms around her and pulled her against him so fast that she had to grab on to his shoulders to keep from falling, a small gasp slipping past her lips.

“Relax, I got you,” he murmured, looking down at her, a devilish glint in his eyes. “This any better?”

Liz found her voice stuck in her throat and she had to force herself to speak. “Y-yeah…,” she nodded. “This is much better.”

They were so close to each other, that had Liz tipped her head up a little more and stood on her toes, she would have been able to kiss him. And at the moment she was wildly tempted to do just that. Maybe it hadn’t been a wise move to have Max move in so close to her. Her mind had become instantly fuzzed and she felt more tongue-tied than she ever had before. But as they began to move slowly to the music once more, Liz started to feel more at ease and wrapped her arms around Max’s neck before hesitantly letting her head rest against his shoulder. She didn’t pause to wonder at why she felt so safe in his arms; why it felt like she had been here a million other times, in a million other lives. All she knew was that nothing had ever felt more real and right as being with Max did.

The moment Liz laid her head against him, Max’s hand instinctively curved around her waist more firmly and the other hand went to stroke her hair softly. This girl in his arms made him feel things that he had never felt before. He knew it wasn’t because of their alien connection but something more basic, simple, and true. Being with her, being around her, stirred emotions that partially excited and partially scared him. How could he feel so intensely about someone he had just met? From day one she had made him feel as if he had known her all his life, had known her like no two people had ever known each other before. He could have sworn that he knew all there was to know about her.

Tonight had just strengthened those feelings. Listening to her talk, watching her laugh, holding her close, all felt so familiar and comfortable, as if they had done this a million other times and yet at every moment she never ceased to surprise him with something she said. He felt as if he knew everything about her and at each moment he would find out something new and fall in love with it… fall more in love with her. Without his knowing how or when, Max realized that he had fallen in love with her.

And I’m just falling deeper at every moment. The realization had Max pausing for a second which caused Liz to look up at him with a puzzled smile.

“Max?” she asked, feeling Max suddenly tense and then relax. “Everything all right?”

Max looked down at her with new wonder, mixed emotions swirling in his eyes for her to see. “Perfect,” he whispered, a slow smile spreading across his face that had Liz’s breath catching. “Everything’s perfect.”

Watching the intense emotions shining in Max’s eyes, Liz felt enraptured. For a moment she felt as if they just mirrored her own feelings and she wondered if what she thought she saw in Max’s eyes was true or just her imagination. She didn’t want to believe it for fear of getting hurt. She already knew that she was falling for him and if she held on to the hope that he was as well and it turned out to be false, she knew she’d be grief stricken.

“Max…,” she whispered, wanting to ask something but unsure of what exactly. She searched his eyes for a moment and felt herself being drawn into them. For a moment she lost track of what she was trying to say as Max’s lips moved an inch closer to hers.

“Max…I…” Her voice was a breathy whisper, her eyes falling to his lips and unable to look away. “Max…”

And this time his name was an invitation. She forgot all that she had been thinking as Max swooped down to kiss her. Their lips touched softly at first, like a caress, both asking permission from the other and giving their own. The kiss was gentle and sweet. Max let it linger, drawing her lips into soft, gentle kisses again and again until they both felt they would go mad with the sweetness of it.

Emotions swirled in each of them as something old and forgotten began to move inside them, clawing to get to the surface. Just as that feeling grew, so did their kiss. Max pulled her tightly against him, forgetting where they were; only knowing that it was the two of them. Liz didn’t help matters any as she cupped his face in her hands before wrapping them around his neck.

“I feel as if I’ve been waiting a lifetime to kiss you again,” Max gasped in between kisses.

“You don’t have to wait anymore,” Liz whispered, this time standing on her toes to kiss him fiercely.

Max deepened the kiss, feeling a desperate need grow inside him. It felt as if sparks were literally flying between them; as if every touch allowed him to see into her, and for her to see into him. He felt connected with her at every level and he knew without having her tell him that she was feeling the exact same way.

Then, it happened. Without their intention they began to get flashes of each other’s lives and memories of a life long ago on a distant planet…


** Flash **

Liz smoothing down her dress and hair before stepping out of the bathroom to find Michael waiting in the room for her.

** Flash **

Max rifting through his closet, discarding one shirt then the next.

**Flash **

Liz crumpled on the pavement, sobbing uncontrollably as Michael held her close and promising it would be okay.

** Flash **

Both Liz and Max staring at each other across a room, only this time they were wearing clothes they had never seen before and at a place that was definitely not anything like they had ever seen before, but which felt familiar and like home.

** Flash **

Max as a young boy, feeling lost and scared as a kind looking woman comes to him and offers her hand with a smile.

“Would you like to go home with us, Max?” she asks. “Isabel is waiting for you outside, too.”

** Flash **

“Liz, I’ve told you a million times not to do that in public!” A younger version of Michael scolded Liz as she just laughed at him and continued to hold the CD up to her ear and listen to music.

** Flash **

“Zan, do you love me?” a girl who looked just like Liz asked.

“You know I do, Crysania,” Zan answered. “I’m telling my father about us tonight.”

** Flash **

“We have to stick together,” Max was saying to Isabel and Tess. “No one can ever know about us.”

** Flash **

“Max, you have to learn to trust us!” Maria cried out as Max tried to move past her. “Alex and I are your friends!”

“It’s not safe, Maria!” Max told her.

“To hell with safe, we know what we are getting into!”

** Flash **

“Sean…,” Liz whispered as she turned her head to look over at him. “I trusted you!” Liz cried out.

“I know,” Sean replied with a cold smile.

“"What do you want?” Liz asked quietly, her voice shaky.

“What I want doesn't matter,” Sean replied with a careless shrug. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun, taking aim at her. “It's what Kivar wants that does.”

** Flash **

A six year old Max standing in a pod chamber, his hand resting in anguish against one pod, still holding it’s inhabitant inside.

Two girls stand by and watch before pulling gently at him, signaling that it was time to leave. Max looked at the pod sorrowfully one last time before turning around and heading out.

** Flash **

“Mom! Dad!” a girl’s voice shouted as blasts rocked the palace walls.

“Run Vilandra! Take the granolith! Get Zan and Crysania and run! You’re our only hope!” her parents shouted as they stood blocked by guards.

“Vilandra, Zan, let’s go!” Ava and Rath were shouting to them as they dragged Crysania and Goreth out of the room.

** Flash **

“Well, I guess we all have out little quirks,” Liz grinned at Max.

Max raised an eyebrow at her. “Oh? And what might your ‘little quirk’ be?” he asked.

Liz batted her eyes innocently at him. “What makes you think I have one?” she laughed.

** Flash **

Max ran his hand over the hood of his jeep and instantly it changed color.

** Flash **

“Don’t you feel it? Can’t you feel the energy around them? Don’t you feel…something go through you every time you are near Liz Parker or Michael Guerin?” Tess demanded of Isabel and Max. “Don’t tell me that you’ve not felt some weird connection with Liz every time you’re around her! I’ve felt it, too! It’s like something is tugging at the back of my mind, a memory, a feeling…an instinctive knowledge. It’s more than just attraction that has you going to her! It’s a connection…just like the one the three of us share!”

“Maybe because we’d been separated too long,” Max said. “Maybe all we needed was to be around each other once again to become in tune with one another. And that would mean that they must have felt this…connection, too, whether they realize what is it or not. We’ve all felt something different when we’ve been around these two. I know I have. And I’m ready to bet that you have, too. What if Tess and Kyle are right? What if they are one of us?”

** Flash **

“Where are we heading?” Liz asked as the desert rolled by.

Michael paused, as if hesitating to tell her then replied, “Roswell.”

Liz shot up straight and fixed him with an incredulous look. “You’ve got to be kidding me!” she exclaimed, both horrified and amused.

“Could it be that you’re scared about going back? Back to where we crashed?” Michael asked her, watching her carefully.

“I just don’t know if I’m ready to go back, Michael,” Liz replied after a long pause.

** Flash **

“Will we meet again, Zan?” Crysania asked through her tears, clinging on to him as his life ebbed away.

“In this life and in every other,” Zan promised weakly.

“The pods have to work, Zan. It’s my only comfort of us ever finding one another again, all of us!” Crysania sobbed as she held on to Zan. “Please, don’t leave me…”

Zan smiled and slowly traced a finger down her face. “I will never leave you, Crys. I will always love you.” He gasped before going limp in her arms.

“Zan!” she cried. “No!”

** Flash **

“Maybe this is our chance to try to tell them about us…and that we know,” Tess pointed out.

“No, but you can check things out, see how she is to the idea,” Kyle replied, talking to Max. “Then, if they seem open to it, I can take it from there. They trust me…maybe it’ll be better if it’s coming from me.”

** End Flashes **


They both broke away, with Liz pushing away from him with a frantic and horrified expression on her face.

“Oh God…,” she whispered, her hands shaking as they covered her mouth to stifle the sobs. “Oh God…what…how…”

“Liz…” Max took a step towards her, stunned as well by what had happened but recognizing that Liz was more shocked. He had known about connections before as Alex and Isabel had claimed it had happened to them but never had he experienced one or even thought it would happen to him.

But Liz abruptly backed away from him, a fearful look on her face. “Don’t you dare touch me!” she cried out, holding an arm up to hold him back. “Don’t…don’t come anywhere near me!”

“Liz, please…let me explain!”

“Explain what?” she cried as she took another step away from him. “Who are you? What do you want from me?”

“I’m just like you and you have to trust me when I tell you that I don’t want to hurt you,” Max replied.

“Don’t want to hurt me? Like me?” Liz asked with a frantic shake of her head. “I don’t know what you did, how you made me see all of that stuff with you and me and someone who look like us but are not… you saw into my thoughts, my soul, my private memories! God, how could you!?”

She was terrified about what had happened. She didn’t understand what had happened and why it had. She was afraid that this was the one mistake she’d regret all her life, if she had a life after this.

Max knew what she must be going through but he knew what had happened. They had connected. “Liz, what happened just now was us connecting,” Max told her. “Neither one of us has any control over it. It just happens.”

“Shut up!” Liz cried. “Shut up! God, you’re gonna get me killed by Kivar…he’ll find me again…,” she sobbed, unable to hold on to any one thought. And then her head snapped abruptly up to look at Max with a stunned look. “You knew about me! All this time you knew who I was. You and Kyle …all of you!”

Max looked away, unable to meet her eyes. “I just found out today…”

“And none of you bothered to tell us?” Liz let out a dry laugh. “I’m not even sure I believe you are like me but…God…those things I saw.” Her eyes filled with tears as a flood gate of memories opened. “I was there. I was there on Antar with you…all of you. I saw you die…I saw all of you die…”

Liz shook her head and slowly backed away, horror filling her eyes. “And now we’re here…and…and you lied to me…”

“I never lied to you, Liz,” Max argued desperately. “Please Liz let’s go somewhere and talk. You need to know what’s going on.”

But Liz shook her head. “I am not going anywhere with you! I don’t trust you!” she told him. “I don’t even know who you are! You lied to me. All this time you knew…and you never even told me…. You made me into a joke, wanting to see if I felt this…this…connection with you…”

“It wasn’t like that!” Max pleaded. “Please, Liz…”

“What ever it is I don’t want to hear it. I don’t want anything to do with you ever again! Just…just leave me alone, Max,” Liz shot out at him as she turned and ran out of the restaurant, more than one curious pair of eyes following her then looking back at Max.

“Lovers’ spat,” Max explained as he quickly left the place as well. He briefly thought about following Liz but something told him it wouldn’t be a wise idea. Following his instinct, he instead headed straight to Kyle’s house.

This was not how he had planned it to turn out. This was not at all what he had wanted…. And now he may have lost Liz.


<center>TBC. . .</center>

Author's Note: Hey guys! I seem to be on a roll lately cuz I'm can't stop writing lol. You won't have to wait long for the next part either cuz its finished and betaed even! (Thanks MJ!) This story is drawing to a close. I guess only a couple more parts and we're done. Kinda makes me sad But then I do have a new story I'm currently writing! Anyway, more on that later...without further ado...



<center>Part 17</center>


The fear and pain struck her before anything else. Those were the only two words she could use to describe what she was feeling at the moment. They enveloped her, running through her, making her heart beat at a maddening pace as she looked around groggily at where she was. Her head throbbed and her hands were bound tightly behind her. She felt the ropes cut into her skin as she shifted, making her wince.

"You're awake," Sean's voice echoed in the deserted underground parking lot.

"Sean…," Liz whispered as she turned her head to look over at him. He was standing nonchalantly, propped up next to his car but even in the dim light, Liz could see the cold look in his eyes. Liz stifled a gasp as everything suddenly came rushing back to her.

"Why?"

The word came out on a choked sob as she stared up at Sean. Even though she saw the cold glee in his eyes, her mind refused to believe he could do this. Even though her wrists burned from where the rope bit into them, she refused to accept that he would do this to her.

"Why do you think?" Sean sneered.

"I trusted you!" Liz cried out, her heart shattering, the tears slipping down unstoppable.

"I know."

He said it so carelessly, so smugly, so uncaringly, that to Liz it was like a slap in the face. It made her wonder if he was really the person she had known. Her head was throbbing from where Sean had hit her to knock her out and she felt her back ache from lying in an uncomfortable position, with her hands tied behind her back on the cold floor. She knew that she had to get out of here. She had to get away from Sean.

“Don’t struggle,” Sean said with some amusement as he watched her tug at the ropes binding her hands. “It’ll be no use.”

Liz shot him a glaring, hateful look. Her eyes swept the entire deserted parking garage, looking for a way out and to her dismay she saw none. There was only a door and stairway at the opposite end and she was sure she'd never be able to make it that far.

"Michael's going to come for me, you know," Liz told Sean, praying fervently that it was true.

"He'll never find you," Sean replied with a pleased smile.

Liz knew she had told Michael that she was at home today and Michael had intended to drop by. Surely he would know something was wrong if she wasn't there when he came over. She tried to recall if there had been a struggle; maybe something had broken - any tell tale signs of a fight. She fought back tears as she lamented her parents’ choice to leave today for their trip.

She closed her eyes, refusing to let the tears fall. "What do you want?" Liz asked quietly, her voice shaky.

"What I want doesn't matter," Sean replied with a careless shrug. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun, taking aim at her. "It's what Kivar wants that does."


Liz pressed her shaking hands to her mouth, trying to stifle the cry that threatened to erupt. She couldn’t believe what had happened, couldn’t believe that she had let her guard down only to be deceived once again. The fact that Max was like her, that he was from where she was, seemed secondary to the fact that someone she had thought cared for her and someone she had begun to trust had lied to her…again.

God, why did she always end up making the wrong choices? Why hadn’t she been able to learn from her previous mistake? Hadn’t it been hurtful enough before? Hadn’t it been a strong enough warning for her? Had she really made the same mistake all over again? Why couldn’t she have listened to Michael for a change? What if this time it was worse? What if this time it was too late? What if this time there was no place to run?

It’s already worse. It’s already too late, she thought with a desperate sob, wrapping her arms around her waist. She was already in love….

She was in love, so deeply in love. How did she ever fall this fast and this hard for Max? She wasn’t sure; all she knew was that over the past few days she had come to love Max. She barely knew him but at the same time, she knew him so well. She knew just how his eyes filled with warmth when he looked at her, how his mouth curved into that kissable smile. She knew how it felt to run her fingers through his hair, how the feel of his body close to hers sent thrills running up her spine. She knew how persistent and yet patient he had been when it came to her. She knew how thoughtfully and lovingly he had planned this date. She knew he wondered how exactly it had ended so badly….

Had she over-reacted, she wondered. Should she have held her hurt and fear at bay long enough to let him explain?

No, she thought with a shake of her head, I couldn’t have stayed, couldn’t have acted any different. How could she have when she had been blind-sided by this revelation? When she had agreed to go out with Max she had known that after the date everything would change for her, for both of them. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined that the change would be such as this one. Never had she even thought that Max would provide the answers she and Michael had been searching for their entire life.

She allowed herself to recall the flashes. Until now she hadn’t allowed herself to dwell on them; on what they meant and most importantly, what they told her of her home. But she was finding it more and more difficult to ignore the latent memories that had suddenly awakened with one soul-searing kiss. They pushed at the edges of her mind, forcing her to see, to remember. She was too drained to fight them back, too tired by the emotional upheaval she had gone through. So she let them come, at first a mixed jumble of images, unconnected and undecipherable. It took some effort on her part to force them into focus and what she saw, what she remembered, had her falling to her knees weakly, tears streaming down her face.

As if a gate had been opened, the memories rushed through making her see every moment. Sometimes the memories were of sweet, gentle times like the ones of her parents laughing as she ran through the garden, playing with Ava. At times the images were filled with pain and horror at having to watch her love being snatched from her. She saw everything: the day she first met Zan as a young child, the first feelings of attraction and then their betrothal. She saw Rath and Vilandra’s marriage and saw the attraction, the spark between Goreth and Ava. She saw Kivar and the attacks he made on the palace. She heard Zan’s promise to keep her safe only to die in her arms, just like her brother Goreth.

By the end of it, she was weeping. She wept over the loss of her home; she wept over the death of her family, her brother. She wept for the pain and senseless destruction she witnessed in her memories. But most of all she wept for Zan and her old self, Crysania. To have started so much like a fairy tale, only to end in tragedy.

They had found one another again, just as Zan had promised Crysanina they one day would. They had found each other as Max and Liz, and both their souls and hearts had recognized each other, had called to one another. But even though she had fallen in love with him once more, she wasn’t sure she was brave enough to face not only their future together but their past.

What if it ended the same way, with Kivar tearing them apart? He was already looking for her. It wouldn’t be foolish to think that he was looking for Max as well. She didn’t think she could handle the separation again, especially since she now remembered how it had been before, how soul wrenching it had felt to have watched Zan die, to have watched all of them die.

It seemed like an eternity had passed since she had felt that familiar soul-searing love sweep through her, and in a way it had been an eternity, a whole life time. She ached to go back to what once had been such a blissful and happy life back on Antar but she knew that was a foolish and misty dream. She could never go back.

Hadn’t Crysania known that all along as she had designed the pods after Kivar’s first attack? Hadn’t she known that even though she had cloned all their essences and placed them in the pods to be sent to Earth that this final step had ensured there was no looking back? Liz recalled how Crysania had ordered her project to be put to use by sending it to Earth after Zan died. She remembered the anguish Crysania had faced when she realized that she would never see Zan or any of the others in this life time again, never again as Crysania. When and if she saw anyone of them again, she would be Liz Parker….

In a way it made Liz feel as if she had been manipulated into loving Max; that her feelings, her heart, and her thoughts weren’t really her own but Crysania’s. Crysania had sent a part of herself here too so that she and Zan might have a chance in a new life, a new home. And yet…did that mean Liz had to follow that dream of hers? After all, Liz was Crysania. Her essence pulsed in Liz. Her DNA, her memories were all here inside her. And yet, at the same time, Liz knew she was her own person as well. She had her own dreams, aspirations, memories and relations that had nothing to do with Crysania. Just the fact that it was Michael who she regarded as her brother now, not Goreth proved that. But it was still so difficult not to wonder if she would have found Max regardless of their past.

Her thoughts tormented her, made the sobs come harder as she desperately tried to stop her tears. With great effort she pushed herself off the ground, her legs shaky beneath her. Her hair swung across her eyes, partially shielding her tear-stained face. She had to get back home. She wanted Michael…; he would help her stay grounded, stay sane. She needed him to help her understand all this. Almost as if in answer to her prayer, she heard feet pounding on the pavement behind her. She heard his voice even before she turned around and let herself rush into Michael’s embrace.


If the gun being aimed at her had not rendered Liz motionless, then the sound of Kivar's name would have. Her eyes wide with terror, she looked at Sean, shocked by such betrayal.

"You-you work for Kivar?" she asked shakily.

He cocked his head in mock surprise. "Why, darling, didn't I mention it before?" Then he grinned. "He's waiting for my call. Just imagine Liz, your death is just one phone call away."

Liz felt a sick feeling twist her stomach and she thought she'd choke on the anger and disgust. How could someone she had once cared for so much be so cold hearted and cruel as to so calmly speak about her murder? How had she never seen this side to Sean before? How had she never known he was alien…like her?

"How'd you manage to block everything from me?" Liz asked, determined to finding out how she and Michael had been duped. "How did you manage to stop us from finding out you're an alien or a skin? How did you stop me from seeing?"

"I didn't," Sean replied. "I'm human." He waved the gun slightly, bringing her attention to it. "I'm holding a gun not my hand up, aren't I?"

"You're human?" Liz asked, not entirely sure if she was relieved or not. "But you work for Kivar…"

"He isn't really picky who gets the job done for him," Sean told her with a shrug. "I was available; I was good so I was chosen as the lucky one."

"You've been leading us on…since the moment we met; you've been leading us on," Liz said in a state of panic and increasing anger.

"I'm surprised it's taking your incredibly smart brain this long to get a grip on this," Sean said with an irritated sigh. "Liz, pay attention! Everything, all of it, the how, the why and when…it was all set up! Everything was pre-determined."

"To get to us…," Liz whispered faintly. She and Michael had been in danger for so long and they didn't even know it.

"About time you got it," Sean said. Still keeping the gun aimed at her, knowing that she couldn't do much with her hands tied behind her back, he pulled out his cell phone. "Guess I shouldn't keep the boss waiting."

Seeing the phone in his hand made desperation spring up in her. She knew that if Kivar got his hands on her, he could always use her to get to Michael. And she knew without a doubt that Michael would give himself up if it meant keeping her safe. She didn't know much about Kivar but one thing she did know was that once he had them, they were as good as dead.

"No! Please Sean!" Liz cried, struggling against her bonds. "Don't do this…"

But her words were cut off by a loud explosion. Shrieking, Liz ducked her head as debris from the exploded door rained down on her. Lifting her head she saw Michael standing there, having just blown the door open with his powers. She also saw Sean swiveling to aim at Michael.

She opened her mouth to scream at Michael, to warn him but Sean was fast. She heard the latch of the gun.

"Michael!" she yelled out. Her voice came out as a shriek of terror and anguish at what she knew she couldn't do anything to stop. But it was drowned out by the loud, deafening sound of the bullet being fired.


“Michael!” she cried out to him even as he rushed to pull her to him.

“Liz!” His voice was filled with worry and concern, his face and eyes only mirroring the feelings. “Are you all right? I felt you…I felt your pain…”

He hadn’t felt her emotions this strongly since the night Sean had kidnapped her. He had just been walking back to the hotel after going to the Crashdown when he had felt a crushing weight settle on his heart. It had immediately been followed by an intense pull. He knew, instantly knew, that something was wrong. He had felt such an intense emotion just once before and he had hoped never to feel it again. But here it was. Liz was in pain, she needed him. She was calling out to him.

He had run then, as fast as his feet would allow, letting his connection with Liz lead him to her. With each step that he was closer to her, he felt her anguish radiating off her until it became almost unbearable. It panicked him to think of what could have caused Liz this much heartache and he had just spurred on faster until he had finally reached her. And now, with her in his arms, he tried to find the words to ask but couldn’t bring himself to for some reason.

Liz buried her head into his shoulder and clung to him tightly as he stroked her hair, desperate to ask what was wrong. “I remember…he made me remember it all…,” she whispered, finally looking up at him.

Michael searched her haunted eyes for some clue as to what had happened. He had been shaken by the intense need he had felt from her, calling to him. “Remember what, Liz? Who made you remember?”

Her fingers just dug more deeply into his shoulder as she whispered, “Max…he made me see…everything….”

“Max?” Michael asked with some shock and confusion. “Liz, what the hell happened?”

Liz pulled away from Michael now, wrapping her jacket tighter as she stared at a distant point, her mind searching for a way to explain. Shaking her head slowly, Liz turned her attention back towards Michael.

“You were right about Roswell,” she replied with a faint, wry smile. “It’s the only place we could have gotten our answers.” A dry laugh slipped past her lips as she shook her head in amazement. “But having all my questions answered this way was the last thing I had expected.”

“What do you mean by that, Liz?” Michael asked, feeling a sense of foreboding settle.

“We kissed, Michael,” Liz blurted out abruptly, ignoring the uncomfortable look that flashed across Michel’s face. “We kissed and for the first few second it was the most earth shattering kiss I have ever had. But then something strange happened…” Her eyes grew distant and troubled as she thought about it. “Max and I connected…I began to get flashes of his life, my life…our life…”

She trailed off and whipped her head up to fix Michael with eyes wrought with emotions. “I saw everything. I saw everything there was to know about Max and his life. But I also…I also remember everything about our past…and it’s not what I expected at all.”

“Our past? You mean on Antar?” Michael asked, startled and deeply worried about all that Liz was telling him. If Liz had seen so much about Max, then Max had seen everything about Liz. Was that safe? Who the hell was he anyway? Before he could ask, however, Liz went on.

“Yes, on Antar. I saw all six of them. I saw them as kids, as teenagers and then as adults. I felt their fears, their hopes, and their love. I know their dreams, their aspirations and secret hopes.” Tears had begun to cascade unknowingly down Liz’s cheek as she felt overcome by the intensity of emotions and images she had seen. “Ava, Vilandra, Rath, Zan, Crysania and Goreth. They were all so young, so innocent. Zan and Crysania especially. To take on the burden of an entire kingdom and then to face war…only to lose each other in the end; it was all so tragic.”

“Max showed me all of that for when I connected with him I realized that Max was Zan, just like you were Rath and I, Crysania. It all seems so simple now. Why didn’t we see it before, Michael? Why didn’t we realize who they were before?” Liz’s voice had grown stronger and she had stopped crying. To her, as she talked, only one thing seemed clear, that they had found what they had been looking for.

“Max is one of us?” Michael asked doubtfully. Unconvinced, Michael let that notion lie for the while. “And you remember everything that happened on Antar?” When Liz nodded, Michael hesitated before going on. “I want to believe you but it seems too…perfect.”

He needed some proof to help him figure out if everything he had been told was true or not. He didn’t doubt Liz but he did have to wonder about Max. What if he wasn’t who he said he was? What if he had manipulated Liz?

“I know,” Liz agreed. “But for once I’m positive that what I saw, what I remember is real. There is no way that Max could have planted those memories or what I feel when I look at him. I recognize him, Michael! I’m sure you do too on some level. Isabel, Tess…from what I saw they are all a part of this. Think back and try to remember if you didn’t feel something between them and you at some point!”

Michael fell silent, recalling with stark clarity the unnerving feelings he had when he had been around Isabel, like he had recognized her and she him. Questions, doubts and fears that raced in his heads faded as the implication of all that this meant sunk in. Hope flared briefly but warily. They had been betrayed and fooled before, and Michael wasn’t willing to trust that blindly again, especially to let anything or anyone hurt Liz like that again. He had almost lost her to Kivar and he had sworn that day never to let him get close to her. If this was some new plot on Kivar’s part then Michael would do anything to stop Liz from falling into it.

“I can’t deny that I do feel something when I’m around them,” Michael began slowly “But I’m not going to blindly follow them. They have to prove to me that they are really who they say they are.”

“How can they do that?” Liz asked. “What possible proof could they have when we, ourselves, have none?”

Michael shot Liz a staunch look. “That’s their problem, Liz. And I’ve got a feeling that they have proof. We just have to know where to look and what to ask.”

“To get that proof, we have just one option,” Liz realized.

Michael nodded. “We have to meet them…”


The sound of the gun going off reverberated throughout the entire parking garage. Even as Liz’s scream tore out, an answering cry from Michael could be heard as he shouted out to her, telling her to run.

But Liz was transfixed with horror and terror as she watched Sean fire again and again in Michael’s direction. Liz saw the bright green flare of Michael’s shield go up but then saw Michael falter and his shield drop as he tripped. Sean now loomed over him, gun aimed directly at his heart. Something in Liz snapped then as wild rage coursed through her. With a single desperate cry, Liz focused all her powers into her hands, burning the rope off them. With her hands finally free, she waved a hand over her feet and the ropes instantly sprang free.

Liz jumped up to her feet and broke into a run where Michael had been, where Sean now was, standing over him with a smug smile.

“Sean!” she shouted, determined to tear his attention away from Michael. “Leave him alone! It’s me you want!”

She saw Michael look at her with pleading, silently begging her to leave, to get away. But Liz would not leave him to die. He had come to save her and she was not going to run so that Michael could die in her place.

Sean now turned to look at Liz, unbothered by the fact that Michael could attack him as well. “That’s where you’d be wrong, Liz,” he replied. “I want you both!” Smiling coldly at her, Sean continued to aim the gun at Michael. “Kivar wouldn’t mind too much if I presented him with one dead alien. As long as I give him to you unharmed, Michael’s death should be of no consequence.”

“What do you say, Liz?” he laughed, “You might as well do him the favor and spare him the torture that Kivar has intended for him.”

Liz never knew what came over her at that moment. Maybe it was seeing Michael lying helpless on the floor or maybe it was seeing the cold gleam of murder in Sean’s eyes that had her raising her hand and letting loose the most powerful blast she had ever conjured.

It seemed to have been emitted from her entire body like a silent sound wave and not just from her hand. Sean’s only warning had been the bright flash of light seconds before his eyes went wide and he was thrown with extreme force against the pillars. His body had hit the pillars so hard that the pillar cracked, pieces falling down, along with Sean’s body.

For a moment there was an eerie silence as Liz stared in shock at what she had done. Numbly she watched the blood begin to pool around him and she dimly wondered if he was dead. She couldn’t see his face as it was turned away from her but she was sure she had killed him. How could any human survive that? Michael slowly got to his feet, as shaken as Liz but more in control. He went over to check on Sean, afraid of what he may find. To his relief, and immense surprise, Sean was alive, if barely, and unconscious.

While Michael checked on Sean, Liz stood rooted to where she stood, watching the blood and feeling the energy still surging through her. What had she done? God, what had she done? Was he dead? She was so sure she had killed him. She hadn’t meant to…she had just wanted to hurt him, to keep him away from Michael.

She had lost control over her powers, such strong powers that she hadn’t even known she possessed. She felt her knees give way from under her as her stomach churned sickly at the sight of Sean’s bloody body. Her shock gave way to horror over what she had just done. Even as Michael made his way quickly to her, her body shook with sobs. Within moments her sobs had turned into uncontrollable crying and she couldn’t stop shaking. She cried heart-wrenching tears over what she had just done, over all that had happened and, though she hated it, she cried over Sean and what he had done. But most of all, she cried over what she knew she had now lost.

There was no way she could go back to being who she had been before this. She knew at that moment that nothing in her future would ever be like she had imagined. In those moments, everything had changed.


The voice on the other end of the phone sounded nervous and uncertain while Liz’s was flat and cold.

“Kyle, it’s me Liz.”

“Liz!” Surprise filled Kyle’s voice and she could almost imagine him scramble to an upright position. Clearly he had not expected her to call, not after what had happened. And Liz knew, without his telling her, that Max had already told Kyle all that had transpired between him and Liz. “I-…”

“This isn’t a social call, Kyle. Nor do I want any explanations from you.” Liz cut him off coldly, not giving him a chance for any explanations. “I just called to tell you that Michael and I are willing to meet Max and the others tomorrow. We need answers and clearly you people seem to have all of them.”

“We don’t know everything, Liz,” Kyle began, “but we want to help you in any way that we can.”

“Just tell us where we can meet, Kyle,” Liz replied.

There was a pause on his side and a brief murmur. Instantly Liz knew that Max was still over at Kyle’s and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that, knowing that Max was so close by. Closing her eyes against her warring emotions, Liz let out a deep breath to calm herself. Kyle came back online.

“Liz, you still there?”

“I’m here.”

“We can meet at the pod chamber,” Kyle told her. “You remember where that is?”

Something pushed at her memory and it took a moment for her to put her finger on it. But then, it came to her. The pod chamber, the rocks…where she was born.

“I-I remember…,” she almost whispered, shaken by the image. It seemed so surreal. It seemed like it hadn’t happened to her at all, that she had never been there and this was all a dream but she knew that the pod chamber was real.

“We’ll be there at seven tomorrow morning,” Liz told Kyle, cutting the connection before Kyle could even reply. She took a moment to gather herself together before she turned back to Michael who had been listening and said, “We meet at the pod chamber…Do you…do you remember it?”

Michael thought a little before nodding slowly. “Yeah, I do. I remember waiting for you to…hatch,” Michael replied as a small ironic smile came upon his lips. “Even then I wanted to protect you.”

Liz went to him then, feeling as lost, scared and alone as she had the day she had been born. Slipping her arms around him in a comforting hug, Liz let herself be washed by his strength and safety. “And even then I turned to you for comfort.” She smiled softly up at him. “Thank you, Michael. For everything.”

Michael just held on tighter to her, just as scared as Liz of what was going to come tomorrow but refusing to show it to her. Together they both would face whatever came in their path, just like they always had.


<center>TBC. . .</center>

<center>Part 18</center>


The sun cast a pinkish glow on the rocks that held the pod chamber. An early morning breeze ruffled Liz’s hair, pushing it away from her face as she stood staring up at the rock formation with a feeling of awe, trepidation and nervous excitement.

Liz hesitantly placed a hand on the rock and was instantly stunned by what she felt emitting from it. It housed power; she could feel it, could sense it all around her. This place, this moment, felt momentous to her. It promised Liz a safer future, peaceful and happy. Without really any conscious effort on her part, Liz felt herself begin to smile. All her fears about what the morning and their meeting would bring were already being laid to rest without her knowing or understanding why or how. She turned to Michael with a smile now bordering on eagerness.

“It feels like I’m being welcomed back.”

Michael nodded in agreement with her, feeling what she was feeling. “I remember this place,” he told her, staring at a point above them with an unreadable look on his face. “I remember standing here for a long while, just staring at a door that was there up on the ledge,” Michael pointed to a place above them. His voice had gone soft, his eyes distant as if he was not just recalling a memory but experiencing it at the same time. “I felt so sad. It felt like I was leaving everything I loved behind and in a way I was. Yet I knew I couldn’t stay; I knew I had to leave.” Michael now looked at Liz with a small smile. “I knew I had to take care of you.”

“They had already left by the time I had come out of my pod,” Michael continued, now remembering everything with stark clarity. It was as if coming here had opened a part of his memory to him that had been untouched and forgotten. “I searched the pod chamber for them but deep down I knew they had gone. I felt hurt, abandoned…but I also understood why they had left, too. I didn’t blame them. I just wished I could have gone with them for even then I knew that I might never see them again. But even though they were gone, you were still here. So I sat down to wait for you, to watch over you as you slept….”

Michael trailed off, his eyes still fixed to the spot above him. Liz touched his arm lightly, pulling him out of his thoughts.

“And now here we are yet again,” she told him. Offering him a smile, she gestured to the ledge above. “Should we head up there? They are waiting for us.”

“If only they had waited for us then, too…,” Michael whispered, in a way already believing that Max, Isabel and Tess were who they said they were.

They hadn’t waited down near their cars for Michael and Liz and both understood why. In a way it was a test. Just as Liz and Michael were here to test Max, Isabel and Tess, so they were being tested by the three. They wanted to see if Michael and Liz even remembered their past. Up until this moment they hadn’t but coming here they wondered how they had ever forgotten.

Liz and Michael made their way carefully up the rock formation, the path to the pod chamber vivid in their minds. It seemed well trodden, like it had been used many times before and Liz knew that it was Max who came here the most often. In the flashes she had had, she had seen more than one memory of Max coming here to this place. She hadn’t understood at that moment what this place had been but when her memories began to come to her, she had known and understood his need to come here. It was the closest he could get to his home, Antar.

Once they reached the ledge, both Liz and Michael stopped, their hearts now beating nervously. Liz bit her lip as she regarded Michael.

“What if it doesn’t open?” she asked.

“It will,” he replied confidently, more confidently than he felt. “It has to.”

Stepping up close to the rock, Michael hesitated only for the barest of seconds before he waved his hand over a spot on the wall. He held his breath for what seemed like a long moment as he waited for the handprint to appear. He felt Liz tense behind him in anticipation.

Five seconds. Ten seconds.

Nothing happened.

Fifteen seconds, twenty….

Michael felt disappointment and frustration edging closer and then…there it was. Glowing brightly, where just moments ago there had been nothing but cold hard rock was a silver handprint, The Seal of Antar.

Michael let out the breath he had been holding and whipped around to shoot Liz a smug smile. “I told you it would open.”

“Easy there, wonder boy,” Liz replied with a roll of her eyes, but a smile edging the corners of her mouth. “You just got it to glow. It has to open.”

To her surprise Michel stepped back. “I think that should be something you do,” he stated seriously. “After all, you were Zan’s wife, Crysania…Queen of Antar. It seems fitting that you use the Seal to open the door.”

Liz blushed at the words, feeling embarrassed for some reason. Somehow it sounded like Michael was talking about someone else and not her. She couldn’t relate to that person. She felt much more comfortable as Liz Parker.

“I’m nobody’s Queen,” Liz murmured but then she hesitantly placed her hand over the handprint, unsure what to do next. As it turned out Liz didn’t have to do anything. The seal automatically began to glow beneath her hand, as if it recognized her and Liz felt a warm surge from it, engulfing her.

The rock trembled beneath her hand and she felt it shift. As she removed her hand, Michael and Liz watched in wonder as the rock began to pull back, as if a door was opening. Silently it moved until before them was a doorway, a big, gaping hole in the rock formation that they knew led to the pod chamber.

Nervously they stepped inside and before Liz had taken more than two steps inside, her head snapped up, her eyes wide. She knew instantly that Max was here. She felt him. And she knew by the way Michael tensed that he had felt something – or someone – too. Her eyes searched the dimly lit cavern but couldn’t see anyone. With each step she took forward the feeling intensified until Liz was sure that Max was right in front her. But he wasn’t.

Finally frustration had her calling out, “Max?”

There was no answer and for a moment it worried Michael and Liz. Had they walked into a trap? Where were the others? But then they noticed something strange. The cavern, which had been dimly lit before, now pulsed with a soft and muted blue-green light. The cavern suddenly appeared brighter than it had been and the source seemed to be coming from the small passage directly in front of them.

Exchanging a quick glance, Liz and Michael silently headed to the passage way, both already knowing what they would find there. The passage led to another, much larger cavern. Though the sheer size of the cavern briefly startled Liz and Michael, it was the pods that the cavern housed that stunned them into silence.

They were hung on the far side of the cave, six in all; three on top, three on the bottom. The blue-green light that seemed to throb through the entire cave seemed to be emitted from the pods. The delicate cocoons were broken from where they had pushed their way out into the world but apart from that they still seemed intact and exactly as they had left them years ago.

They had been so entranced by the pods and the memories that it triggered that they hadn’t really noticed the small group of people standing to the side of the pods. It wasn’t until Kyle spoke that Liz or Michael realized that they weren’t alone in the pod chamber.

“Liz! Michael!” Kyle called out. “You found it.”

Liz pulled her attention away from the pod chamber to look over the small group, surprised to find Kyle, Maria and a tall, gangly boy there was well. She had been under the impression that only Max, Isabel and Tess would be coming and she wasn’t sure what this meant that there were three humans here as well.

“What are they doing here?” Michael asked with a disapproving frown as they approached the group of friends. “I thought this was between Max, Isabel, Tess, and us.”

“It is between us,” Max replied calmly but firmly. “These people are as much a part of our group as any and we trust them with our lives.”

“I didn’t think that you were careless enough to trust humans,” Michael replied. “Or do you not know that dangers associated with people knowing about us?”

“We do know,” Isabel interjected a little angrily. “We don’t go around just telling people but Maria, Kyle and Alex are our friends and won’t do or say anything to jeopardize us.”

Alex, so that was his name, Liz mused, looking over at the dark haired boy discreetly. There was such warmth and understanding in his eyes that Liz instantly felt at ease. And the way he seemed to be hovering so close and protectively over Isabel had Liz instantly knowing that to her he was more than a friend.

“Don’t let Michael irritate you,” Liz put in quickly. “We’ve had some…um, bad experiences with trusting people.” She offered the group a small smile. “It’s good to know that there are people we can trust.”

“We wouldn’t do anything to put you guys in any danger,” Maria spoke up. Her eyes lingered briefly on Michael before falling away.

Michael stared at Maria briefly, his eyes then moving to look over at each person before he jerked his shoulders into what could be considered as a shrug. He turned and walked over to where the pods were. They now seemed to be glowing even more brightly than he remembered.

“Why are they glowing?” he asked with a frown.

Max came and stood besides him, also staring up at the pods. “I don’t know,” he answered. “They just began to emit this light a while back…I think around the time you guys came inside.” He turned to give Michael a puzzled look. “They’ve never done anything like this before.”

Michael looked at the pods thoughtfully, his eyes drawn to his own pod at the bottom. Hesitantly he took a step forward and placed his hand gently on the pod, feeling a sharp sense of loss and yet comfort run through him.

“You’ve been here before,” he murmured more to himself than the others. “All of you…you come here a lot.”

“It’s as close to home as we can get,” Isabel replied, echoing Liz’s earlier thought. She also had come to stand and look at her pod, fondness and lingering sadness touching her eyes. “Every time we hope that it might give us some answers, some way to contact Antar but…,” she trailed off with a shrug.

“We know this place is important,” Tess added. “But we don’t know how or why.”

Liz, who had been standing a little behind everyone, found her gaze locked at the pod on the right topmost corner. It was right next to her pod and was still un-hatched. She could see the dark, blurry form inside the pod and it made something clutch her heart, squeezing tightly. Without knowing it, she took a few steps forwards, towards the pod, her eyes locked on it, unable to tear away.

“Goreth…,” she whispered, recognizing the form inside. She felt a surge of sadness and grief sweep through her as she stared at the dead form, still trapped in his pod.

Michael, who had turned to watch Liz closely, saw the emotions flicker across her face and the lone tear slip down her cheek. Concerned, he came over to her and slipped an arm around in support.

“Liz?” he asked gently, so very gently that it had Maria staring at him in surprise but he barely noticed anyone expect Liz. “Are you okay?”

Liz swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat and ignored the sting of tears. “Yeah,” she answered with a shaky breath. “I’m fine.”

“You-you remember Goreth?” Tess’s question was hesitant and full of emotions Liz couldn’t identify.

Liz turned to look at her, noticing the way Tess had her hands clasped tightly in front of her, and the sad look in her eyes. “Yes,” Liz replied. “I remember everyone…including Goreth.”

“Who’s Goreth?” Alex asked, confused, never having heard him being mentioned before.

“Liz’s brother,” Max spoke up, recalling him now. He turned in surprise suddenly to look at Tess as he recalled another relationship. “And Tess, I mean Ava’s husband…”

The silence that fell was explosive as everyone’s head whipped around to look at Tess in surprise. Each wondered why they had never thought to question whose pod it was and each wondered why, if Tess had known all along, she had kept it a secret.

“Tess! You never mentioned you had a husband!” Kyle joked, trying to ease the mood. “You don’t happen to have any kids do you? Because if you do then the deal’s off!”

“How come we never remembered his name before now?” Isabel asked, confused. “I mean we’ve been here so many times and we always saw this pod, wondered about it but never really gave it importance.” She blushed then as she realized how that had sounded. “What I mean is—”

“It’s all right, Iz,” Tess replied with a smile. “I know what you meant. And as far as why you didn’t remember…well there are a lot of things we still don’t remember. It’s not a surprise that you didn’t know his name.”

“It sounds like you knew his name all along though,” Maria pointed out.

“I did. I’ve always known,” Tess answered, shocking her friends.

“What?” Max looked at her in surprise. “Why didn’t you ever say anything, Tess? Why didn’t you tell us? It might have been of some use!”

“Would it have, Max?” Tess asked quietly. “Would knowing his name have made any difference? You would have maybe felt a little sad that he didn’t make it and you would have felt sorry for me but aside from that would it really have mattered? Besides, I didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for me. Ava and I are two different people. Goreth may have been Ava’s husband but he didn’t have anything to do with Tess Harding. And who knows, if he was here maybe we would have been forced into the roles of who we had been before and I don’t want that.”

While the others listened in silence to Tess, Liz felt Tess’s words move her. It was all so similar to how she looked at all of this. At that moment she felt that maybe it wouldn’t be so hard to get along with Tess after all.

“So…” Alex broke the silence that had fallen. “What do we do now?”

“I don’t know,” Max answered honestly. “I was hoping that maybe all of us here would help things to become clearer…and while it has opened some new information, it’s not really what we were looking for.”

“There has to be something that we can use here,” Liz murmured, running her hands over the pods. “Some clue, some…I don’t know!” She sighed in frustration.

Then, suddenly she gasped as she felt the familiar tug of a premonition engulf her. Her eyes clouded over and she barely heard the shout of surprise from the others as she was pulled into the vision.

** Flash **

Six crystals lay before her in two rows, five of which glowed a bright yellow. The image melded into an image of the pods and she saw the crystals now placed in a small notch in each of the pods. The pods pulsed with a purple light as Liz stood staring at it in awe.

** End flash **

“Oh my God,” Liz whispered as the vision ended, leaving her breathless. “Oh my God…”

“Liz!” Michael cried. “What did you see?”

Liz straightened now from her position and grinned at the others. “I know what to do!” Then her smile faded. “But…I don’t know where to find them. I don’t know where they are!”

“Where what are, Liz?” Max asked.

“The crystals!” Liz cried out in growing frustration as she realized that she had no idea if they were even in the pod chamber. “I saw six crystals in my premonition…they are to be used for something…but I don’t know where they are or how to find them!”

“Crystals?” Isabel said suddenly, her head snapping up to look at Max and then Tess, a look passing between the three. “Max, could she mean…?”

“What?” Liz asked, having caught the look. Excitement flitted across her face. “Do you have them?”

“What we have are not crystals but rather healing stones,” Max told her. “I don’t know if they are the ones you meant…but there are six of them. We were given them by Riverdog, an old Indian who we first got to know about Antar from. Before he died he gave us these stones and told us that they came from where our planet only he didn’t know what they did.”

“How did this Riverdog get a hold of them?” Michael asked.

“He mentioned something about a visitor, Nasedo he called him, putting them in his care before he disappeared. Nasedo told Riverdog that they could only be passed on to those like him, apparently us,” Max explained.

At Nasedo’s name, Liz and Michael exchanged startled glances. “Nasedo?” Liz asked shakily.

“Yeah. Why, do you know him?” Tess asked.

“You could say that,” Liz replied. “He was our protector…before he ran off and abandoned us.” Anger crept into her voice as Liz briefly told them about how Nasedo had approached them, taught them about who they were and helped them harness their basic powers before suddenly disappearing.

“I wonder what happened to him,” Maria mused.

“Well, I don’t,” Liz answered sharply. “Let’s just see those stones. Maybe they are what I saw.”

Max hesitated only slightly before nodding at Alex to go get them. Alex went to the bags they had placed in the corner and after rummaging in one came back with a simple wooden box. Opening it he held it out in front of Liz. She gasped when she saw them; they were the crystals she had seen.

“Are these them?” Alex asked.

Liz reached out to take one in her hand, rolling it and carefully scrutinizing it. “Yeah…,” she nodded. “These are them!”

“Well then…,” Kyle spread his arms wide, “Do what you know.”

Pausing a moment to calm her nerves, Liz picked them up and then headed to the pods. She searched the frame of the pods with her fingers and then, finding what she was looking for, placed a crystal in the rounded dent she had found. To everyone else it had seemed just that – a dent, or niche, but they were actually formed to fit the crystals in perfectly. One by one she placed all six crystals next to niches found in the frame of each pod. When the last one was in place, she stepped back and waited, knowing what would come next.

As the others looked on with bated breath, five of the crystals began to glow a soft earthy yellow. Pretty soon the light grew brighter, now pulsing with an energy that they all could feel. As the light spread, the blue-green light being emitted by the pods began to change color until it turned a deep purple, tinged with a silvery green. Suddenly the entire cave went pitch black and the only thing that could be seen were the pods, still pulsing with a purple light, the now muted lights of the stones next to invisible.

“Wh-what’s happening?” Maria asked nervously, grabbing in the dark to hold on to someone, suddenly afraid. The arm she grabbed however sent a jolt through her and she yelped slightly only to hear Michael growl from besides her.

“What the hell! Would you stop that!”

Realizing that she had grabbed Michael by mistake, Maria dropped the hand quickly, about to retort back when suddenly a pure silver light started to shine from behind the pods and before they even had a chance to wonder, a holographic image appeared before them, startling them.

The image was of an elderly woman with long blonde hair flowing down her back and she was wearing a light pink gown. Even though she was old there was still a graceful beauty about her that told them that she must have been gorgeous when young. She smiled at them and when she spoke her voice was breezy, calming and sounded almost musical.

“My children…, it seems that you have found this message that I sent down with you. That can only mean one thing and that is you all are together and unharmed,” she began. “I do not know if you remember who I am and I’m not sure if it is better for you or not that you don’t but I may as well introduce myself. I am Laurana, once Queen of Antar.”

“Mom!” Isabel whispered as she stared at Laurana with sudden recognition.

Almost as if confirming Isabel’s words, Laurana continued. “I am Zan and Vilandra’s mother but I consider all of you my children. And as a mother would, I have been grieving for my children that I still hope I will one day meet again…. Antar has been under attack for so long that I wonder if that will ever be truly possible. I can only hope that when you get this message the war has long been over so that you don’t feel forced to come back here to save us, to save your kingdom, for that’s what you are, rulers, the Royals of Antar.

“When you were sent to Earth it was with the hopes that you would be able to live the peaceful lives that you were so cruelly denied here. We sent you with your mates, Zan with Crysania, Vilandra with Rath, and Ava with Goreth. We hoped that it would make it easier for you to live on a planet that may not understand your existence. It may have been selfish of us to send you to Earth with memories of your past but we didn’t want you to always be left wondering about whom you were and where you came from. We just want you to be happy and safe. We don’t expect you to come back and fight a war that we may never win. We don’t even expect you to choose the same people as your mates as your predecessors. Do and live as you want as this is the purpose of your long journey.”

Her voice fell silent and a worried look passed over her face as she went on. “Kivar might come after you, thinking that the purpose to send you here was so you could come back and fight him. To save you from such a situation we sent with you a protector whose job it is to keep Kivar off track and away from you. I can only hope that he has done his job. I don’t know what else to tell you except that I love you, and pray and hope that you find the happiness that you got so briefly here.” She was smiling again as she held out a hand almost as if to touch them. “Crysania, Goreth, Ava, and Rath, your parents send you their love and hope you are happy. Don’t be afraid to live my dears, for rarely does anyone get a second chance at life.”

With those final words Laurana’s image wavered and faded away, the pods no longer emitting the purple lights, nor the stones glowing. Silence had settled amongst the group and for a long moment they tried to let everything they had just found out sink in. It wasn’t very different from what they already knew but somehow it now seemed clearer, more vivid.

“Well, that was…,” Kyle began, still looking dazed and stunned. “That was…wow! You guys sure know how to dazzle a guy, not to mention render him speechless!”

“Hey, I don’t know about you but I was kind of disappointed,” Alex put in with a grin. “I mean here I thought you had come here maybe to save the human race from some deadly virus or something and turns out you’re just here to party!”

“Yeah, talk about anti-climatic!” Kyle laughed.

Alex and Kyle’s joking seemed to bring everyone out of their silence and there were a few laughs and smiles around.

“I may not be here to take over the world or anything but any more wise cracks and I can make your life hell,” Tess reminded Kyle sweetly, wriggling her fingers at him for effect. “How would you like to wear pink underwear all week again?”

Kyle looked at his girlfriend in genuine panic. “Tess, did I ever mention just how great I think you really are!”

Maria snorted with laughter and looked at Tess, impressed. “You actually turned his underwear pink once?” she asked. “How come I didn’t hear about this?”

“Oh, he got me mad at him once and in retaliation, I made his underwear pink,” Tess laughed. She gave Kyle a sly wink as she replied, “He made up for it so well that I decided not to mention it…until now.”

“There goes my reputation,” Kyle grumbled good-naturedly.

“I missed this,” Liz spoke up softly. When everyone turned to look at her she blushed as she realized she had spoken out loud. Pushing back a strand of hair nervously, she laughed slightly. “What I mean is that I missed this comfort, this kind of friendship.” She smiled at Michael while rolling her eyes. “Michael and I can only talk about so many things.”

“You guys are always welcome here, Liz,” Isabel told her with a smile.

“I never said anything about wanting to be a part of this!” Michael grumbled, refusing to admit that he was already looking forward to being a part of this small family of sorts.

“Oh, who are you trying to fool?” Maria asked with a roll of her eyes. “Admit it, you love us!”

When Michael just raised an eyebrow at her, she laughed. “You’re not fooling anyone, Michael Guerin!”

“Whatever!” he muttered, for some reason feeling unable to come back with a retort. In worried him a little that around Maria he couldn’t make his brain work. Not wanting to think too much as to the reasons why, Michael turned to look once more at the pods. “What do you think happened to Antar?” he asked after a moment’s pause. “Do you think the war has stopped?”

Max looked thoughtful for a moment before shaking his head. “Who knows? We can only hope that it did.”

“Maybe it did,” Liz replied. “Kivar is here, we know that. If war was still raging on Antar or if he had won, he wouldn’t be here on Earth looking for us.”

“Maybe, just maybe, Nasedo actually is out there, keeping us safe,” Tess pointed out. She looked at Liz. “Maybe that’s why he left….”

Liz kept quiet for a moment before nodding slightly. “Maybe…,” she conceded.

“I don’t understand one thing though,” Isabel spoke up. “How come the message appeared? From what I got, it needed all six of us to be here for it to appear. We are five. Even only five crystals glowed.”

“That might have something to do with the energies the crystals have, Isabel,” Alex explained. When others looked at him in confusion, he explained patiently. “Riverdog told us that the crystals need our energy to activate. Well, since Goreth is dead, his crystal can not be activated. But the latent energy in the crystal is still there. Energy can neither be created nor destroyed but rather it changes forms so to speak. Maybe the energy in Goreth’s crystal shifted and spread into the remaining crystals. That way technically all six of your energies were combined to activate the message, as required!”

For a moment everyone looked at Alex in silence, before Isabel laughed and kissed him hard. “My boyfriend, the geek!” She giggled. “God, I love that about you!”

Alex blushed but seemed immensely pleased, pulling Isabel in for another kiss. Max just shifted uncomfortably at the sight.

“I’ll never get used to seeing them do that.” He muttered then, more loudly added, “Ahem, brother standing right here!”

“Oh, go find yourself a girlfriend, Max!” Isabel teased, smiling up at Alex.

Max instantly tensed and his eyes shot to Liz who looked away, uncomfortable. He wanted to say something to her, more than aware that Liz had essentially ignored him the whole time but he didn’t want to push her so he quickly changed the subject.

“I don’t know about you guys but I’m exhausted after everything,” Max said. “We all found some of the basic answers we wanted…the others can wait till tomorrow at least. What do you say?”

Michael hesitated, eager to look around some more in hopes of finding anything else but then he nodded. From the looks of things, he was here for a while. He could always come back and search the place. Right now, he just wanted to rest.

“I guess we can wait,” Michael agreed, after glancing at Liz to make sure it was okay by her. “I think I already understand a lot of things now. Like why we felt drawn to you guys, why I felt…this vibe from Isabel when I first met her.” Here he blushed a little and Isabel did, too, recalling the moment. But then he cleared his throat loudly. “I guess the next step would be to see if we can fill in the gaps for each other.”

“Sounds good to me,” Isabel agreed, already moving to the entrance with Alex. “I think Alex and I will head to the Crashdown. I could use some food!”

“So, tell me Michael,” Maria asked as she stopped besides Michael, “Do you like your food as they do? Extra sweet and extra spicy?”

Michael held her eyes with his own for a long moment, something beginning to happen inside of him. Then he smiled a slow smile at her that had her breath catching. “Even more than they do, I’m sure. I’ll be sure to let you know.”

“Y-yeah…,” Maria stammered feeling flustered all of a sudden. “You know where to find me.”

Michael watched her leave with Tess and Kyle, suddenly finding himself wondering how things would be between them if he and Liz stayed in Roswell. Not wanting to deliberate on that and what it entailed, Michael turned his attention back to Liz who was putting the crystals away carefully. Liz handed the box back to Max, startling slightly when their fingers brushed inadvertently. Her eyes flew to his and held. Something intense burned in his eyes and Liz had to look away, uncertain if she wanted to know what that emotion was.

“Ready to go, Liz?” Michael asked.

“Yes, sure…” Liz’s voice was a little breathless and shaky but Michael barely noticed much to Liz’s relief.

She was just about to follow Michael out when Max touched her arm lightly, trying to get her attention. A jolt shot up her arm at the contact and she automatically pulled her arm away. Hurt flashed briefly in Max’s eyes and Liz was instantly sorry for her instinctive action.

“Liz, could we talk,” he asked quietly, his eyes begging her not to leave. “Please.”

Liz hesitated a moment, debating. She was torn between wanting to stay and talk to Max while at the same time panicking. She knew what he would have to say to her and she wasn’t sure she wanted to hear it, wasn’t sure if she knew what she wanted. After a short internal battle however, she realized that she owed this much to him at least.

“All right,” she agreed softly, her eyes falling away from his. She turned to Michael who stood waiting for her. “You go on outside. I’ll be right there.”

Michael looked at both of for a moment before nodding and leaving them alone. Maybe it was time they talked, he decided as he waited for Liz in his car.

Once Michael was gone, Liz took a deep breath to calm her jittering nerves before facing Max. She didn’t want to be doing this. She would have avoided it if she could but she also knew that that wouldn’t be fair to Max, or her for that matter. She just wished she had the courage to face him and to explain herself to him.

“What did you want to talk about, Max?” she asked, shooting him a nervous half-smile.

Max took an inadvertent step closer to her, reaching out to touch her before abruptly letting his hand fall away, realizing that she might draw back from him.

“Liz, are you all right?” he asked suddenly.

Liz blinked, surprised by the question. She hadn’t thought he’d ask such a thing and it touched her that he had. “Yeah, Max. I’m fine.”

“No, what I mean is, that with everything that has happened over the past two days, I know things have gotten a bit…,” Max trailed off searching for the word.

“Overwhelming?” Liz supplied with a laugh. “I guess it has been a weird and eventful two days to say the least! But yes…I’m all right.”

“Liz, I just wanted to tell you how very sorry I am for what happened last night.” Max ran a hand through his hair, sighing. “I didn’t want anything to ruin our date but I’m not sure how that went wrong. I wasn’t trying to connect with you on purpose, and I hadn’t planned to spring this ‘surprise’ on you in such a way…it just happened and I couldn’t control it. And I really had just found out about you and Michael that very day, only a few hours before and I just wanted last night to be perfect, without anything hanging over us. I knew that telling you about all of this would only mar it. I may have told Kyle that I’d test waters with you so to speak but the truth was that I was just glad I wouldn’t have to tell you immediately. I wasn’t sure how you’d react…”

“Max, you don’t have to apologize,” Liz cut in. “I know now that you didn’t mean it. I think I knew last night too but I was too upset. In fact, I’m sorry that I just ran out on you like that.”

“No, Liz! You don’t have to be sorry,” Max told her.

But Liz just shrugged, letting the debate go. Instead she gave him a smile now, recalling last night while it had been good. “Up until things got ruined I was having a wonderful time last night. I wanted you to know that since I didn’t get a chance to tell you that then.”

“It was one of the best nights of my life,” Max confessed. This time, he moved closer to her and when Liz didn’t pull back he took her hand gently in his. “Liz, I’d like us to try again at a first date. Kind of liking starting over again.”

Liz fell silent, her eyes dropping away from his. She knew this was coming and she had dreaded it, already knowing her answer to it. She just wished that she could voice it somehow. It hurt her so much to have to do this but she wasn’t sure if she was ready. She knew she’d hurt Max too and that bothered her more than she cared to admit.

“Max…” She looked up at him then with eyes full of tears. “I’m sorry, but I can’t…”

When Max looked at her in surprised confusion, she shut her eyes against seeing the hurt she knew she’d put there. A tear slipped out from her closed lids and she tugged her hand away from Max’s to wipe it away. When she re-opened her eyes, she saw that Max had understood what she was trying to say and looked…

Devastated. Liz realized with pang. “Max, I can’t do this with you. I can’t date you, can’t be with you….”

“Why?” The question was asked softly but with such confusion and pain that it squeezed Liz’s heart.

“Because I first need to figure out everything in my life. With everything that I just found out, with what I’ve just gone through, I need time to figure out for myself what I want, what I need,” Liz replied. “I haven’t really had time to even be able to think about my future, about what I want to do because I couldn’t afford to before. But now…with what we just learned I may have a shot at a future.”

“In Roswell?” Max asked.

“Maybe. I honestly don’t know yet,” Liz answered. “Max, how can I be with someone when I’m still finding myself?”

“I’ll help you, Liz!” Max argued. “I’ll do whatever it takes to help you. Just please give us a chance.”

“I want to, I really do but I’m not sure that would be best.” Liz shook her head sadly as her voice cracked.

“You can’t deny this chemistry between us, Liz,” Max shot back at her, desperate to not lose her. “No matter how last night ended, you can’t tell me that you didn’t feel something! That you didn’t feel—”

“As if we were made for each other?” Liz asked, cutting him off. “That’s because we were, Max! We were made for each other on some planet and were sent down here together.” She took a step back and wrapped her arms around herself to ward off the chill that had suddenly settled deep inside her. “That’s another thing I need to figure out. I need to know if what I feel for you is genuine or not. What if it’s what Crysania felt for Zan?”

“What if it’s not?” Max asked. “Crysania and Zan hold no power over us!”

“Don’t they, Max?” Liz asked. “No matter what our DNA says, we’re as human as any other person. We feel, we get influenced. What if this is just that? Influence. Their love was so strong and powerful. What if that is what makes us so attracted to each other?”

“How will you know what it really is until you give us a chance to find out?” Max asked in frustration.

“This is something I need to figure out by myself, by separating Crysania from myself.” Liz now looked at Max pleadingly. “Please Max, don’t push me…”

“Liz, I love you…God, please don’t do this,” Max whispered, his eyes shining with grief and pain and yet till managed to hold intense love in them for her.

A sob caught in her throat as the words that came automatically to her tongue she had to push back. Instead, she took another step away from him, tears rolling down her cheek. “That doesn’t change a thing.”

“It changes everything!”

“No!” Liz shook her head adamantly, this time the sob slipping past her lips. “It doesn’t. I’m sorry, Max. I’m so sorry but I can’t!” Saying that she whirled around and ran outside.

Max hurried after her, calling out her name but she was already half way down. He stood helplessly watching her run down the rock, feeling as if someone had crushed his heart. He wished he could say or do something to make Liz change her mind but he wasn’t sure that there was anything he could do. He’d never felt more helpless or pained in his life.

Liz paused to look over at him one last time, her heart aching with what she had done but having no other choice. He looked so forlorn and heart broken standing all by himself up there, watching her. Covering her mouth with her hands to stop herself from crying, Liz turned away and hurriedly got in the car. Michael took one look at her and silently started the car, driving away from the pod chamber and Max.


<center>TBC. . .</center>


Please don't kill me...it gets better!

Author's Note: Here it is guy, the last of the story. I had an absolute blast writing it and hope you had one while reading. Thanks for all your wonderful and boosting feedback. I am playing with the idea of a sequel that focuses on Michael and Maria cuz there is a lot undone there but let's see .
Also don't forget to catch my latest Kyle/Isabel story coming soon in the CC forum!
Thank you so much for reading.



<center>Part 19</center>


~ 3 days later ~

The stars winked brightly in the sky as Liz tilted her head up to watch them. She let her back lean against her car’s windshield as she sat on its hood, trying to collect her thoughts. It had been such a long, tiring few days, weeks, months and all that had happened over the time had finally caught up with her. She felt exhausted and drained of any energy. Her head felt bogged down with incessant thoughts and images of Antar, Sean, her home, Max, the pod chamber and countless other details. She had long given up trying to block out her thoughts. Too much had happened for her ignore them.

With a sigh, Liz’s eyes sought out the stars for the answers her mind and heart demanded she give. In a way, it was ironic how they always had seemed to pose frustrating questions to her, about who she was, where she had come from and why she was here. And now they seemed to be the only comfort she had. They were now the only answers she was sure of. She had gotten the answers she had been searching for over the years when she had sat and gazed at them but now new, much harder questions had taken their place.

Her gaze automatically searched out the now-familiar V constellation, focusing on the star that she knew was Antar. It had always stood out to her before and she had never understood why. Now, with all that she had learned and all that she was slowly remembering, it all made sense to her. She had recognized, if not remembered, the constellation and its significance. It was part of the many clues that she had failed to recognize.

Liz curled her feet under her and pulled her jacket closer around her as she realized that she had everything going for her now. She had most of the answers she had wanted. She remembered, if not clearly or entirely, her life on Antar. For all thoughts and purposes, she was safe from Kivar and Sean. She had even found a home, people she could consider friends and maybe even family.

Then why do I feel so unhappy? she wondered glumly. Why do I feel like in gaining these things, I’ve lost what matters most?

It had barely been two weeks since she had first seen Max; barely eight days since she had first talked to him and already he held so much importance to her. He had so easily and effortlessly slid into her heart, mind, and soul that, despite everything that had happened, he was all she could think about.

Max Evans, with his dark brown hair, and deep, soulful eyes, was creating havoc on her heart. How could anyone feel so intensely about anything, let alone any person? What made her feel so drawn to him? Was it because of the relationship Zan and Crysania had or was it simply because she, Liz Parker, had fallen in love? Had she turned away from Max because she had been scared of these emotions? Had she run because she couldn’t accept that she was not only capable of such a powerful love but also that she deserved to be loved the same way in return?

“Hey, Liz,” a voice broke into her thoughts.

Startled as she had not heard anyone come up, Liz turned around to find Tess standing next to the car. “Tess!” Liz said in surprise. “Hi!”

“I hope I’m not disturbing you,” Tess said nervously.

“No, not at all.” Liz slid off the car’s hood quickly, pushing back her hair as she gave Tess a reassuring, if slightly puzzled smile. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes, of course. Everything is fine,” Tess told her. Hesitating slightly, Tess gestured down the road, “Do you mind if we take a walk?”

“Um, sure…,” Liz answered, more confused now as to why Tess was here. She still remembered the confrontation she and Tess had had outside the Crashdown and though Tess had been nice enough to her at the pod chamber, Liz was still wary of her.

They walked for a minute in heavy silence, both unsure of each other. Liz waited for Tess to say something, lost as to why Tess had come all the way down here if she just wanted to take a walk with Liz. As the silence stretched, Liz decided to say something, anything at all to end this awkwardness. But as it turned out, she didn’t have to say anything at all as Tess finally spoke up.

“Have you decided what you are going to do now?” Tess asked. “I mean, are you and Michael going to stay in Roswell?”

“Michael and I have talked about it,” Liz told her. “We both think it’s best to stay here. Besides, there’s no where else we can go to really.”

“What about your home? Your parents?” Tess asked, recalling that Liz and Michael had come from Boston. “Aren’t you going to go back to them now that your purpose here is accomplished?”

Liz shrugged, stuffing her hands in her jacket as she forced herself not to think about her home. “There’s nothing to go back to.” Liz’s voice was quiet and edged with pain as she realized just how true her words were. “If we go back we’ll never be safe there.”

“So, there’s no going back for you guys…” Tess felt her heart constrict in pain for Liz and Michael’s predicament. She placed a hand on Liz’s arm in a gesture of sympathy. “I’m sorry…”

Liz nodded her acknowledgement and they continued to walk for a while in silence once more before Liz stopped abruptly and turned to Tess. “What are you doing here, Tess?” she blurted out. “We’re not exactly friends and I doubt you came here to ask about if I’m staying in Roswell. So, the question remains…why are you here?”

If Tess was startled by the hastiness of the question or offended by the rudeness, she didn’t show it. Instead, she stopped as well and fidgeted nervously, knowing she had to say what she had come here for. Liz was watching her closely, waiting and Tess struggled to best phrase what she was here to say. Finally Tess said, “Look, this is really hard for me to say and I’m not sure how to say this so I’ll come right out and just…say it.”

Liz nodded slowly in agreement. “Okay,”

“I have made a lot of stupid mistakes over the past few days; mistakes that have cost me dearly. And I’m trying to rectify those mistakes.” Tess paused for a moment before going on. “One of those mistakes was going off on you like that the other day at the Crashdown. I was totally out of line and I said a lot of things I shouldn’t have said. I’m really sorry about that.”

“It’s all right, Tess,” Liz replied, surprised but touched. “I think that in the face of all that’s happened, I’m long over it.”

Having Tess just come up to her to apologize was the last thing Liz had expected and just the fact that she had done so anyway made Liz realize that maybe Tess wasn’t such a bad person after all. “I’ve got to ask though, why did you say those things?” Liz asked, needing to clear things up. “What is Max to you? Are…are you in love with him?” The question was asked so hesitantly, so nervously that Tess smiled to herself at the tone, wondering just how deep Liz’s feelings really ran for Max.

“In love? With Max?” Tess laughed with a shake of her head. “No, nothing like that. I’m very happily in love with Kyle.”

The relief Liz felt at those words was something she couldn’t explain. “But then, why?” Liz asked.

“Because when it comes to the men in my life, be it Kyle, Max or Alex, I tend to get selfish and over-protective. Especially with Max.” Tess rolled her eyes at herself, an amused smile on her lips. “I guess I just got really…territorial when I saw how Max was so drawn to you. I didn’t want to share him with you.”

“What made you change your mind?” Liz asked quietly, resuming their walk. “Not that I’m implying I want Max….” Her eyes widened at how that came out and she hastily added, “In the strictly non-sexual sense!”

Tess laughed then, amused by how flustered Liz appeared and had to bite her tongue to keep from asking if that was really true. Her questions about how deep Liz’s feelings evaporated. Tess would have to be blind not to know that Liz was just as in love with Max as he was with her. If anyone was blind, it seemed it was Liz. Tess wondered when she would realize just how deep she already was.

“What made me change my mind was Kyle,” Tess confessed. “I realized that in trying to keep everyone around me to myself, I was pushing away the one person who mattered most of all.” She shrugged, remembering with a pang how she had nearly lost Kyle. “So I figured sharing wasn’t such a bad idea.”

They had now turned around and were walking back to the hotel and both felt a lot lighter and peaceful than they had when they had left. Liz understood Tess’s action and found that she could forgive and forget what had occurred between the two. Tess meanwhile kept glancing sideways at Liz, amused while at the same time exasperated by the way Liz seemed to deny what she felt for Max.

“Liz, can I ask you something?” Tess asked, determined to make Liz open her eyes and, in her own way, make up for all that she had done.

“Sure, Tess,” Liz answered.

“Are you in love with Max?” Tess asked point blank.

Liz halted abruptly, shaken by the blunt question, her head snapping around to stare at Tess, wide-eyed. “Ex-excuse me?” she nearly croaked.

“Do you love Max?” Tess asked again patiently, not in the least concerned that Liz looked pale and panicked. She figured those were good signs.

For a long moment Liz didn’t answer, at first too shocked by the question to answer and then, when the shock wore off, too scared to. She ran a shaky hand through her hair, tugging at it as she deliberated her answer. Was she in love with Max? Hadn’t she been asking herself that very thing before Tess had turned up?

Well maybe not quite so openly and bluntly but nevertheless… Liz bit her lip in thought, her mind racing. Hearing someone else voice the same questions she had asked herself made it seem much more unavoidable and real. She found that though an answer seemed to be burning the tip of her tongue, she just couldn’t bring herself to voice it.

“Liz?” Tess ventured softly, when the silence turned tense.

“I-I’m sorry, Tess,” Liz replied with a shake of her head. “I don’t know how you expect me to answer.”

“How about with the truth, Liz,” Tess said, looking at her unnervingly. “Why are you scared of saying what you really feel? Why can’t you admit to yourself what everyone knows, and I know deep down, you know as well?”

Liz squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block the painful constrictions of her heart. Why couldn’t she admit it? Why couldn’t she say those three simple yet life altering words?

“Because no one can fall in love in with someone in less than a week. Because I’m scared that what I feel may be a lie,” Liz whispered more to herself than Tess. When she opened her eyes again, Tess saw the tears brimming in them. “What if it’s Crysania’s feelings that I’m channeling? What if this has nothing to do with Max and me at all, and everything to do with Zan and Crysania?” Liz asked Tess desperately, her voice full of panic.

“You can’t ignore that Crysania is a part of you, Liz but you have to know and accept that just because she is, you don’t become her!” Tess explained. “You’re your own person, Liz. It’s your life, your memories, your feelings. In fact didn’t Laurana say that she wanted us to live as we wanted and with whom we wanted? This second chance that we have is about us, not about Crysania, Ava or whoever.”

Tess’s voice then went soft and she placed a comforting hand on Liz’s arm. “You don’t have to feel guilty or doubtful about what you feel for Max. Didn’t you fall in love with him before you knew any of this?”

Tess’s words and logic affected Liz like no one else’s had. Somehow it seemed so obvious and simple coming from Tess. Maybe it was because she had been the only one who had remembered part of her life back on Antar and had lived with it most of her life. Or maybe it was because Tess had said everything with such silent conviction that Liz had no choice but to believe her and see things for what they really were.

For the first time Liz allowed herself to really feel what she felt for Max and what she felt left her stunned and breathless. It all seemed so simple and clear to her all of a sudden. She didn’t have to dig deep or think hard to know that she was in love with Max; irrevocably, head over heels in love with Max. Tess was right, it had nothing to do with Crysania and Zan, and everything to do with her and Max.

She loved Max not because of a tragic past, but because he was the kind of person you only had to know for five minutes to fall in love with. He was sweet, kind, gentle and caring. She recalled the immediate spark that she had felt when their eyes had first met across the Crashdown. A smile tugged at her lips as she remembered how nervous and uncertain he had seemed when they had met for the first time at the park. He hadn’t known her and even then he had taken the time to ask if she was okay and had made her laugh and feel at ease. She remembered his shy confidence as he confessed he’d known she’d accept the date. She remembered the kiss they had shared. Her lips still tingled from recalling it and she felt a warmth rush through her at the very thought of it. He had been so open, so trusting, so…perfect.

Those moments hadn’t been about Zan and Crysania. Those feelings hadn’t been latent emotions. They had been real and powerful, and had been about just the two of them. Their love transcended galaxies, transcended life and death. It was love in its simplest and purest form. It was the love of a soul mate. How could it be anything but perfect?

“I guess I don’t have to wait for your answer,” Tess laughed, watching the intense emotions sweep over her face and her eyes. “It’s written all over your face and in that smile in your eyes.”

Liz turned to Tess then, embarrassed slightly that she had totally forgotten about the petite blonde standing there. “Tess…,” Liz began but Tess cut her off with a knowing smile.

“You’re welcome. Now go!” Tess ordered, smiling at Liz. “What are you still doing here? Go to him, Liz!”

“I don’t know where he is!” Liz realized, suddenly looking panicked. “How will I find him?”

“Listen to your heart, Liz,” Tess replied. “You’ll find him.”

Liz didn’t have to be told twice. Whirling, she took off; almost running towards Max’s house, figuring it was her best shot. But then she suddenly stopped and hurried back to Tess pulling the surprised blonde into a quick hug.

“Thank you, Tess!” Liz whispered, grateful to her more than she could express. Without waiting for a reply Liz then turned and hurried away to find Max.

On her way to Max’s house, Liz’s heart pounded with excitement and fear. What if he had changed his mind? What if he had decided that she wasn’t worth the time or effort? What if she spilled her heart out to him and he rejected her? The fear of being rejected was so great that it had Liz pausing to calm herself and shake such thoughts away. She couldn’t think like that. She had to believe that Max still wanted her, that he loved her.

He loves me! Liz thought, the thought striking her as it hadn’t before, leaving her in awe and filled with pleasure. To have someone like Max love her was unimaginable.

She was halfway to Max’s house when she stopped suddenly, getting the strangest feeling that she wouldn’t find Max there. She didn’t know how she knew that but the feeling was so strong that she had to pause and consider if she should even try at his house. Then, without any set destination, she turned and began to walk; doing what Tess had told her to do: follow her heart.

It wasn’t until she saw the familiar street that she realized where she was heading. She should have been surprised but she wasn’t. It seemed so obvious that she should find him here, where they had first met. The Crashdown was dimly lit, the chairs neatly stacked up and the door, Liz was sure, locked from the inside.

It was past closing time and yet she knew he’d be here. The closer she got, the faster her heart beat. He was here, she just knew it, could sense it. When she was just outside the cafe, she stopped to pull herself together, smoothing her hair and clothes. Her eyes were shining with hope and fear as her gaze swept the area inside, searching for Max. Her eyes locked on to his figure where he sat at the counter, nursing a shake while Maria wiped down the counter.

Liz felt her heart lurch at the sight of him and she felt her gut wrench at the thought that she was the one who had put the sorrow in him that was so clearly visible, even from where she stood. She didn’t have to see his eyes or his face; his posture said it all. It terrified her that she had the power to do that to him. And yet, a small, smug part of her relished in that power as well. It also made her realize that it worked both ways. She could hurt as well; she could hurt if for no reason other than that he hurt.

Everything had been set in motion for them from the moment they had laid eyes on each other here and Liz was determined to see it through tonight. Slowly she walked towards door, the sound of her thumping heart loud to her ears. She was so sure Max would be able to hear all the way inside where he sat, but apparently neither he nor Maria noticed her. It wasn’t until she rapped lightly on the door that both of them turned to look in her direction.

Maria looked surprised to see her but Liz barely noticed. Her eyes were held captured by the look in Max’s eyes as they met hers through the café door. In those seconds that it took Maria to open the door for her, Liz read the fear, hope, love and confusion in Max’s eyes.

“Liz,” Maria’s voice was full of surprised confusion and just a bit of warning, “What are you doing here?”

Maria held the door open but stood in the center of it, blocking Liz’s entrance. She might have liked Liz, might have even felt sorry for her but Maria’s loyalty lay with Max. Liz had hurt him and Maria wasn’t prepared to allow her to come in here and do so again, especially when it was so obvious that just Liz’s presence had amplified Max’s hurt.

Liz tore her eyes away from Max to focus on Maria. “I know its past closing time, Maria, but I would really like to talk to Max,” Liz told her, interjecting her voice with determination. She knew what Maria was doing and didn’t really blame her for it. If it had been Michael in Max’s place, she would have done the same thing.

Maria’s gaze slid over to Max who seemed to have frozen in his place, unable to tear his eyes away from Liz. Doubt clouded her eyes as she hedged, “I-I don’t think so, Liz. I think it would be best if you leave—”

“No!” Max blurted out, hastily cutting Maria off. He shot Maria a small, reassuring look when she looked with concern at him. “It’s ok. Let her in.”

Maria hesitated for a split second, torn between wanting to protect Max and understanding that he had to talk to Liz, if for nothing else other than for closure. Finally, she stepped aside, letting Liz enter, her gaze wary.

Liz stopped a few feet away from Max, noticing the way his eyes seemed guarded and hurt, and yet shot with longing and love. It made the tears burn the back of her throat, made her want to rush into his arms and beg him to forget all that she had said. Instead, however, she clasped her hands tightly around herself.

Maria stood watching, growing acutely uncomfortable in the tension that surrounded Max and Liz. Not sure if she should stay or go, she shifted on her feet, hoping to get a sign from Max.

“Um…should, I…I think I’ll leave you two alone…,” Maria mumbled, making a move for the back. Her gaze swiveled from one to the other but neither Max nor Liz paid any attention to her. Realizing that Max was barely aware she was even here, Maria decided that it was best that she leave and let them hash it out alone. Not bothering to say anything, she turned and headed to the back room and shot up the stairs to her room.

Downstairs, Liz couldn’t seem to move as for a second she just took in the sight of him. She was only washed over with love for him and could not fathom how she had ever found the courage to push him away. All she wanted to do right now was slip her arms around him and beg him never to let her go. Knowing that she could not do so, however, she held back.

“I wasn’t sure you would let Maria let me in to talk to you,” Liz said quietly.

“Neither was I,” Max stated simply. His eyes sought hers, probing their depths for answers to the question he couldn’t – no, wouldn’t – ask. By asking he was just opening himself up for more hurt should they not be what he hoped to hear. No, he wouldn’t ask her, he thought.

Because he found himself nearly asking those questions anyway, he snapped, “Got something let unsaid, Liz?”

Liz winced slightly at the bite in his tone and the instant cold look that crept into his eyes. She hadn’t expected him to be nice and understanding with her, had been prepared to be turned away even but it still affected her. Forcing herself not be deterred by his tone, she took a step closer to him.

“There are a lot of things left unsaid, Max,” she said. “A lot of things I should have said to you that day only.”

Max hadn’t realized that he had been hoping she had been here to tell him she had changed her mind until he felt the hope drain out of him at her words. Turning abruptly away from her, once more staring down with a frown into his drink, he forced that bitter disappointment away. He could have asked her to leave, could have told her he didn’t want to listen to what she had to say anymore, couldn’t have his heart break one more time, but he was a glutton for punishment. If this was the absolute end for them then he would listen to her; he would listen to her voice and the way it just rippled over him softly, would take in the sweet strawberry scent of hers, remember the way she bit her lip when nervous, like right now. He would take all he could get of her and then, when she left Roswell and his life, he would take comfort in them.

“Well then, go on with it, Liz,” Max replied, still not turning back. “Don’t let me stop you.”

“Max, will you at least look at me?”

Her voice was soft, unsure and yet determined. It was the hint of desperation he heard in it as well that had him turning around to face her. The sheer terror and uncertainty in her eyes had him pausing and wondering. Something about them had him looking at her with assessing and quietly demanding eyes.

“What could you possibly have left to say, Liz?” he asked her softly, dropping all pretenses and games. No matter what he told himself, he wanted to know why she was here, had to know. He didn’t want to believe it was to hurt him again.

Tears that she had been so desperately trying to keep at bay now brimmed in her eyes even as she told herself she wouldn’t cry. “Max…,” she cried, her voice shaking.

She gripped her hands tighter together, unable to voice what she wanted to say to him. She resorted to staring at him with such desperation and regret that Max instantly wanted to pull her to him, forgetting for a moment that, only days ago, Liz had rejected him. He only wanted to soothe the pain and the sorrow he saw lurking in her eyes. Everything else could come later.

He got up and went to her then, his hands reaching out to pull her towards him in a soothing and yet desperate hug. Liz let herself be enveloped in his arms, let her head rest on his shoulder as tears raced down her face. Clutching at his shirt now, Liz let herself just revel in the feeling of having Max’s arms around her. It felt so safe here, so peaceful. She didn’t want him to let her go but she reluctantly pulled away slightly to look up at him with a tear stained face, knowing she had to tell him what she had come here to say.

“I’m sorry, Max,” she said simply. She didn’t hedge, or beat about the bush but rather jumped into it head first. Liz held his eyes with her tear-filled ones. “I’m so sorry for pushing you away like that.”

Max cupped her face in his hands and wiped the tears away with his thumbs. Her apology seemed to tear down the layer of sorrow, hurt and aloofness that he had been depending on. At this moment, with her in his arms, he couldn’t seem to recall why he had tried to keep his distance from her. “You don’t have to be sorry, Liz,” he told her with a shake of his head. “You have nothing to be sorry for. I guess I’m the one who’s sorry. I pushed you when I shouldn’t have; rushed things when I knew, deep down, that it wasn’t they way you needed, wanted, or deserved to be loved.”

But Liz shook her head, briefly placing her head on his shoulder before looking back up at him. “It didn’t matter what I wanted, or thought I wanted and needed,” she told him. “I knew from the moment I saw you that you had something I needed, some power to heal me…in here.” She touched her heart to show him, and then lay her hand on his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart.

“You’re all I have been thinking about, Max. I just couldn’t stop missing you and hating having to do what was best for us,” Liz confessed. “And during all of this, and after some help, I’ve realized that maybe it’s time I stopped trying to do what’s best for me and instead do what makes me happy. And that’s you, Max. You’re what makes me happy.” Her eyes never wavered from his as she spoke. “I need you in my life, Max. I never realized just how much. I need you to help me find myself, I need you in my future, I need you in my life right now…I just need you! I can’t imagine my life without you. I need you because I love you and I want to be with you.”

At those words, Max’s eyes smoldered with love, showing just how intensely he loved her. He tipped her chin up to look into her eyes as he asked, almost reverently, “You love me?”

Liz smiled then at him almost shyly and nodded. “Yeah, Max...I love you, more than I ever thought was possible.”

“God, I love you, too,” Max breathed out as his lips swooped down to capture hers, kissing her with all pent up emotions.

Liz’s arms instinctively reached up to wrap themselves around his neck and she let her hand bury itself in his hair. Stars exploded behind her eyes and she felt dizzy with the sensation of having Max’s lips on hers. Breaking away for air, Max trailed his lips across her cheek and down her jaw.

“And to think I thought you were here to tell me that you were leaving Roswell and walking out of my life for good,” Max murmured, resting his brow against hers.

Liz smiled and pulled him closer with a soft, lingering kiss. “I couldn’t leave, not when I love you so much, not when I’ve just found you.”

“Good thing you said that,” Max grinned, tightening his grip around her waist. “Because I don’t plan on letting you slip away so easily.” Then, he jerked away slightly as a thought occurred to him. “Michael’s not going to like this very much…and I don’t think he’s the kind of guy you want to irritate.”

Amused, Liz rolled her eyes. “Well, he’s just going to have to get used to it. I’m not going anywhere, Max,” she replied firmly, her voice and eyes turning soft and just a little misty. “Not when I’ve finally found my home right here… with you.”

<center>Epilogue</center>


“Max, where are you taking me?”

Liz’s voice bubbled with joy and laughter as she gripped Max’s hand. The silky blindfold on her eyes deterred her from seeing where she was going and she had to depend on Max to lead the way. Not that she minded having to lean on him.

“You’re really rotten with surprises, Parker,” Max said lightly, a grin spreading across his face as he carefully maneuvered her around the hedges. “Just relax, we’re nearly there. Then you can see for yourself.”

“Well, for one, it’s really late at night to go out on a date. And second if you wouldn’t be so hush-hush about it then maybe I wouldn’t ask so much,” Liz pouted. She paused for a moment and then flashed Max a sweet and charming smile. “How about just one teeny, tiny little hint? It can’t hurt.”

“No way!” Max laughed. “You aren’t going to get anything out of me, even with that smile of yours.” He stopped her then, kissed her softly on the lips before removing her blindfold. “Besides, we’re here.”

Liz had to blink a couple of times to shake of her disorientation. But when she looked up at where she was, her breath caught and she whirled to look at Max with an excited smile.

“Max! The carousel!” she exclaimed. “How did you…?”

Max just smiled mysteriously and tugged her hand gently to lead her on the carousel. It lay in dark as always, but this time there was a small picnic basket lying on it and dozens of roses lying scattered on and around the carousel. Once they were on it, Liz stared in wide-eyed wonder as Max picked one long stemmed rose and offered it to her.

“Max…,” Liz sighed, taking it and breathing in deep. “This is…wonderful, amazing! More than amazing!”

“I figured the best way to celebrate our one month anniversary was to come here, where we first got to know each other,” Max replied. He nodded to her watch, shifting her attention to the time. “And its right around the time we met too. I was jogging and you were just…here, waiting it seemed for me.”

“Maybe I was…deep down, maybe I was,” Liz murmured, smelling the flower in her hand delicately and smiling.

“There’s just one thing that’s missing…,” Max told her with a slight frown.

“What?”

“This…,” Max whispered.

He laid his hand on the closest horse and concentrated for a second. In moments the carousel sprang to life. The soft lights flashed, the muted sound of music wafted through the over head speakers even as the horse around them swayed up and down, the carousel moving at a slow pace.

“Happy one-month anniversary, Liz,” he whispered, looking into her eyes with love and blissful happiness.

Tears of joy sparkled in Liz’s eyes as she wrapped her arms around Max to pull him in for a deep kiss. “Happy anniversary, Max,” she replied once they broke away. She looked around her, laughing. “This is perfect…so beautiful and just…perfect.” She shifted her gaze back to him and smiled. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, Liz,” Max replied bursting with contentment. He kissed her again one more time, lingering over it, pulling her in deep. “To us, Liz,” he murmured in a way of a toast. “To us, and to more anniversaries to come….”


<center>The End</center>