The Winds of Change (CC TEEN/MATURE) Ch 32 9/18/05 Complete

[majiklmoon]

Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. If I was lucky enough to own them, you just know the show would still be on the air, and you be watching that instead of reading this.

Rating: TEEN to MATURE for inappropriate language and some violence.

Chapter Eleven – Proof of the Thesis

Liz sat on her patio, wrapped up in a blanket, rereading the journal entry she had just written. A cool breeze blew, causing her to pull the blanket more tightly around her.

Max Evans told me something today, she read. I’m not sure if I believe it, but how can I not? As a scientist, I shouldn’t reject any theory out of hand, but everything inside of me screams that this can’t be true. Max Evans cannot be an alien. He was not brought to Earth in the ‘47 crash, and he did not emerge from some sort of incubation pod ten years ago. It didn’t happen, it couldn’t happen. This is real life, not some bad science fiction television program.

And it isn’t just him, it’s his sister Isabel Evans, the Ice Queen of West Roswell High, as well as Maria’s new nemesis, Michael Guerin.

Liz paused from her reading to remember some of the interactions and byplay that occurred between her best friend and Max’s best friend. If she didn’t know any better, she’d swear there was some deep hidden passion lurking underneath their animosity. She lifted her glance to the starry sky above and wondered at the rest of Max’s pronouncement. Was it possible that one of those far away distant planets was actually home to Max Evans? With a sigh, she returned her gaze to her journal and continued reading.

Maria did not handle Max’s announcement very well, in fact she insisted we leave the quarry immediately.

“Liz? Liz, are you up there?” a voice called. Liz, blanket and all; walked over to the edge of the roof and looked down to see Max Evans standing on the street below.

“H-hi,” she called, trying to quell the nervous, but exciting feeling that enveloped her each time she came in contact with Max. “What are you doing here?”

“We didn’t really get to talk today,” said Max, climbing the fire escape to her rooftop patio. “I know you said you had some questions.”

“Some?” said Liz. “More like thousands, especially after our conversation today.”

“Yeah, look about that,” said Max.

“Don’t tell anybody,” said Liz. “Don’t worry, I mean, who’d believe me anyhow?”

“What about Maria, can she be trusted to keep quiet?” Max asked.

“Quiet, no,” said Liz. “But can you trust her with you secret, of course.”

“Can you come for a ride?” Max asked.

“Now?” asked Liz. “I don’t know, it’s kind of late.”

“Please, Max asked. “It’s really important.”

Liz looked into Max’s brown eyes and felt her resolve wavering. She remembered Michael’s taunting comments about her never doing anything wrong, and she decided to throw caution to the wind.

“Give me a minute,” she said. “I’ll meet you downstairs.”


** * ** *

“Hey,” Max said softly, when Liz opened the back door of the CrashDown. “Thanks for coming down.”

“Yeah, well,” Liz said, feeling suddenly shy. How did one talk to an alien anyhow, or at the very least, someone who thought he was an alien.

“Yeah, well,” Max repeated, unsure of what to do next.

“Do you want to go for a walk?” Liz asked while at the same time Max asked,

“Do you want to go for a drive?”

The two laughed self-consciously and Max smiled down at Liz, the dark night masking the two spots of color that burned on his cheeks. There was something about this girl that drove all intelligent thought right out of his mind.

“A walk it is, then,” he said. He reached down in an unconscious gesture and took Liz’s hand in his and they began to walk down the deserted city streets.

“So, where are we going?” Max asked.

“I don’t know, the park, maybe?” Liz offered, pointing to the darkened entrance.

“Sounds good,” said Max. “That is if you trust me enough to go into a deserted park late at night.”

“Max, you saved my life,” said Liz. “How can I not trust you?”

“What?” asked Max. “Liz, what did you just say?”

“I said you saved my life, but that’s not right, you saved Maria’s life,” said Liz. She sat down on the edge of the fountain and trailed her fingers through the chilly water. “Max, I keep having all these weird, God, I don’t even now what to call them. It’s just weird.”

“I know,” said Max. He put his arm around her shoulder and squeezed gently. “We’ll figure this out, I promise.”

Liz sighed gently and relaxed against the strong lean body of Max Evans. She felt safe in his arms, which was odd as she’d never been in his arms before. Nevertheless, being with him evinced a feeling of safety and security like she’d never felt before, didn’t think she’d ever feel again.

“Max? How did you heal Maria?” Liz asked, hating to end the quite moment she shared with Max, but knowing it had to be done.

“We, Michael, Isabel and I can manipulate molecular structure. I’m not really sure how it works, but I could just visualize the bullet dissolving inside of her, and the damaged areas of her body healing.”

“That’s like incredible,” said Liz. “What else can you do?”

Max removed his arm from Liz’s shoulder and stood up. She watched as he walked away from the fountain, missing the weight of his arm more than she cared to admit. He touched a street lamp and the light began to revolve, almost like a glittery disco ball. A kaleidoscope of dazzling light danced around the park.

Liz brought her hand up to her mouth and laughed gleefully at the shimmering display of lights.

“Max, stop it, what if someone sees you?” she whispered.

As quickly as it began, the dazzling light display ended and Liz sat on the edge of the fountain looking bereft.

“What’s the matter?” Max asked.

“I don’t know,” Liz admitted. “Seeing that made me realize how alone you must have felt, keeping this secret to yourself.”

She stood up and walked the short distance to the lamppost where Max still stood.

“But you’re not alone anymore.”

Max took her in his arms and held her tightly, looking down into her soulful brown eyes. He lowered his head to kiss her when the blaring of a nearby car alarm jarred them apart.

“We, uh, we should probably be getting back,” he said regretfully.

“Yeah,” said Liz, her voice ripe with disappointment and longing.

“Thanks for talking with me,” Max said as he and Liz began to walk down the path. “You’re right, I always have felt so alone. Talking to you really helped.”

Behind a tree, Nicholas watched, his face contorting in an evil grimace. It wasn’t working, they were still coming together. He had to keep them apart, he had to make this time line a reality before he died. He felt himself grow weaker and weaker with each passing hour. If he died before he killed Liz, all hope would be lost.

[majiklmoon]

Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. If I was lucky enough to own them, you just know the show would still be on the air, and you be watching that instead of reading this.

Rating: TEEN to MATURE for inappropriate language and some violence.

Chapter 12 – Jigsaw

Liz grabbed the large bin of dirty dishes and carried them to the kitchen. She stifled a small scream when she realized that Michael Guerin was standing there, tying on an apron.

“M-Michael,” she stammered. “What are you doing here?”

“Working,” Michael replied, in his usual taciturn manner.

“Since when?” Liz asked.

“Since now,” said Michael.

“Oh,” said Liz, faintly. She dropped the dishpan full of dirty dishes in the sink and went back into the café. She seated some new customers and brought them some water. While she performed the routine tasks, her mind went over the events of the past few days, including Michael Guerin getting a job at the CrashDown.

There’s something strange going on, she thought. We all feel it. Why can’t we figure it out?

Liz was so distracted by her thoughts that she failed to notice Maria come in for her shift. The petite blond was at her locker fixing her hair when she noticed Michael Guerin standing at the grill.

“What are you doing here?” she asked. “Liz, what is he doing here?”

“Michael works here now, Maria,” said Liz, walking into the back room.

“Since when?” demanded Maria.

“Since now. You got a problem with that?” asked Michael.

“Yeah, I do, but since nobody asked my opinion, I guess it doesn’t matter,” said Maria.

“That’s right, it doesn’t,” said Michael. He turned back to the grill, but not before Liz caught a glimpse of pain in his eyes.

“Maria,” she whispered. “I think you hurt his feelings.”

“Him, he doesn’t have feeling,” Maria said.

“If you say so,” said Liz, her voice filled with doubt. “I have to get back out there,” she added, motioning towards the café.

Maria watched as Liz pushed through the swinging doors that led back to the café. She turned and walked over to the grill, and stood next to Michael, waiting for him to acknowledge her.

“Uh, hello, standing right here, you know,” she said after waiting several minutes.

“Yeah,” answered Michael, looking over at her, briefly. “I’m hoping if I ignore you long enough, you’ll go away.”

“Nice,” said Maria, glaring at Michael. “Have you ever wondered why you don’t have any friends, Michael?”

“Look, was there something you wanted because you’re really starting to get on my nerves,” said Michael.

“I’m getting on your nerves?” Maria shouted. “Oh that’s rich. Here I am, trying to make you feel better, and this is the way you act. Nice, really nice.”

“This is how you try and make someone feel better?” asked Michael. “Man, I’d hate to see you try and piss someone off.”

“Listen, Michael, I don’t have to stand here and take this crap from you. I don’t know what your problem is, I only wanted to say,”

“I don’t care what you wanted to say,” Michael interrupted. “I don’t need you; I don’t need anyone, so just leave me alone.”

“You know, I just don’t get you,” Maria said, pushing Michael’s arm. “I’d think that someone who was just starting a new job would want to make an effort to, oh, I don’t know, get along with the people who have worked her forever.”

“I’m not here to get along with you people,” said Michael. “I’m here to earn enough money to pay my rent, get it? So why don’t you just leave me alone, and let me do my job?”

“Rent?” Maria snorted. “On what? Wait, let me guess, you’re trying to save up to rent a personality, right?”

“Aren’t you just the funny one,” said Michael, turning back to the grill. “It’s for an apartment. I was declared an emancipated minor, and I have to support myself now.”

“Oh,” said a now deflated Maria. She didn’t know what it was about Michael Guerin, but she vacillated between wanting to hug him and wanting to kill him. Right now, she wanted to hug him. Imagine being responsible for yourself completely and totally. Sure there were times when her mom drove her absolutely crazy, but she couldn’t in a million years imagine not having her around to depend on.

“Oh, wow, that, wow, that sucks,” she said, finally, at a loss for words.

“Yeah, well, it’s better than where I was,” Michael said, uncomfortable with the compassion showing on Maria’s face. “So, look, if we’re done here, I really need to get back to work.”

“No, no, I don’t believe you just said that,” said Maria, shaking her head. “I mean, I’m standing here, right in front of you, feeling bad for you, and you, I don’t know, you dissed me, that’s what you did, you dissed me.”

Michael turned away and started go move closer to the grill, a move that only served to further incense Maria.

“Don’t you dare walk away when I’m talking to you, Michael Guerin,” Maria said, stepping back in front of him.

“Right, and you’re gonna stop me, how?” Michael asked.

“Argh, you are so infuriating,” said Maria. She pushed ineffectually at his chest, and Michael reached down to grab her arms, stopping her from hitting him.

He stared down into her eyes, losing himself for a moment in their dazzling blue depths. He lowered his head to hers and kissed her, violently at first, but then with a growing passion neither one could understand.

Around them, the CrashDown began to shake uncontrollably, and Michael pulled her closer to him in an attempt to protect her from danger.

“What was that?” Maria asked, when the kiss ended. She looked around the kitchen but could see no evidence of the earthquake she had just felt.

“I don’t know,” said a shaken Michael. He looked around the kitchen, trying to reconcile what he thought had just happened with what he saw. He muttered something, then spun around, trying to focus in on the flash of movement he caught out of the corner of his eye.

“What?” asked Maria. “What did you just say, and did you feel that?”

“Another piece to add to the puzzle,” Michael said cryptically.

[majiklmoon]

Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. If I was lucky enough to own them, you just know the show would still be on the air, and you be watching that instead of reading this.

Rating: TEEN to MATURE for inappropriate language and some violence.


Winds of Change

Chapter Thirteen – Distortion

Nicholas leaned against the wall, behind the dumpster, winded from his exertions. This was not something he had counted on. He knew he needed to keep that imbecile Zan away from that slut, but he hadn’t counted on Rath forming any attachments on this god-forsaken planet.

“Rath, of all people,” he said between breaths. “He couldn’t bond with a goldfish back on Antar, and he falls in love here? I wasn’t counting on that.”

His breathing had slowed enough to allow him to push himself off the wall, and start walking down the street.

“How am I going to do this?” he asked himself. “Do I need to keep all of them apart, or are just Zan and Liz the key?”


** * ** * ** *


“Did you just see that?” Michael asked Maria.

“See what?” asked Maria, still dazed by Michael’s kiss.

“There was somebody in here just now,” Michael responded, still looking around. He shook his head slightly

“Hey Michael, how’s that burger, oh, sorry,” said Liz, poking her head through the pick up window. “I, uh, didn’t mean to disturb you.”

“Liz, no wait,” Maria called. “This isn’t what it looks like. Will you let go of me,” she hissed under her breath at Michael who still had his hand on her shoulder.

“Uh, yeah, right,” said Liz. “No problem. I was just checking on my burger.

“Did you feel that earthquake?” Maria asked, smoothing down her hair, and trying to catch her breath. She’d been kissed before, but never with such intensity. She didn’t think Michael Guerin was capable of showing any type of emotion, least of all, passion.

“What earthquake?” asked Liz, picking up the plate Michael passed through the window. “There wasn’t any earthquake.”

“You cannot tell me you didn’t just feel that?” Maria asked. She glared at Michael one last time and exited the kitchen to go stand beside Liz. “It felt like the entire building was shaking.”

“Maybe it was just Michael making the Earth move for you,” joked Liz.

“Do not even go there, Liz,” Maria said, darkly. “That was an aberration, that’s all.

“I don’t think so,” said Liz, looking towards the kitchen.

Maria turned and followed Liz’s glance and saw Michael standing there watching her intently, only instead of the usual hate she saw in his face, this time, she saw confusion and passion.

“No, no, no,” said Maria, shaking her head vehemently. “I so do not think so. Mr. Stone Face over there does not have the hots for me. Is that clear?”

Maria stalked away to seat some new customers, while Liz filled a drink order and laughed silently to herself. The concept of Maria together with Michael was not as weird as she would have thought; in fact she found the idea to be oddly reassuring.

Liz hefted the tray of drinks and crossed the floor to deliver them to the waiting customers. As she walked, she got an eerie feeling that someone was watching her. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she slowly turned around, trying to locate the cause of her unease. Unable to do so, she quickly dispensed the beverages and returned to the kitchen. For some reason, the urge to confide her suspicions to Michael was very strong.

“What?” Michael asked, staring at her.

“I, uh, I, oh never mind,” Liz said. She started to turn away, but Michael reached out a restraining hand and stopped her.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Nothing, really,” Liz said. “I just feel like someone’s watching me. It’s weird, I know but I just can’t shake it. Never mind,” she said abruptly. “Forget I said anything. I don’t know what I’m talking about.”

She jerked away from Michael and went back out to the café. She worked steadily for the next several hours, forcing down her feelings of unease all the while. When the dinner rush ended, she grabbed a soda and retreated to the employee lounge to try and make some sense of the insanity that had become her world.

Things seem to be spiraling out of control. She wrote in her journal. I don’t know what’s real anymore. Max Evans fills both my waking thoughts and my dreams, but I don’t know why. And then there is continual feeling of unease. I’m starting to wonder if I’m suffering from some type of paranoid delusion. Nobody is watching me. Why would they? I’m Liz Parker; plain ordinary Liz Parker. And yet, there is something. I’m not sure what. Some fleeting, tantalizing memory, dancing on the fringes of my mind, I can almost reach out and grab it, but when I try, and dances out of reach yet again, taunting me. It’s driving me crazy.

I am not a paranoid person. I don’t feel like the world is out to get me, or everyone is against me, but I can’t shake the feeling that someone IS watching me. I can’t talk to Maria about it, she has her own issues to cope with. Michael Guerin is working at the café now, and she is less than pleased about it.

Maybe the best thing I can do is put the whole thing out of my mind and just stay away from Max Evans. I can’t help but feel that all of this comes back to him somehow. I don’t know how, but I’m almost certain of it.

Liz looked at the clock, sighed and slipped her pen into her journal. She stuffed the journal back into her backpack and slid it into her locker. She walked out into the kitchen and grabbed a rack of clean glasses from the dishwasher as her mind continued to race. Usually when she wrote in her journal, she felt freed from the problems that plagued her, but not today. Confused thoughts still whirled around in her mind like some out of control carnival ride.

The rack in her hands began to rattle dangerously as images from a carnival filled her mind. She could hear the sound of calliope music floating on the air, mingling with the cheerful screams of children on the various rides.

“Hey, Liz, are you all right?” a voice behind her said.

Liz turned and looked at the speaker and the rack of glasses fell from her hands. The glasses shattered, sprinkling shards of broken glass all around her.

“Alex,” she whispered, bringing her hand to her mouth. “You’re dead.”

[majiklmoon]

Disclaimer: Roswell, and its characters do not belong to me. Melinda Metz, Jason Katims and 20th Century Fox have that particular pleasure. If I was lucky enough to own them, you just know the show would still be on the air, and you be watching that instead of reading this.

Rating: TEEN to MATURE for inappropriate language and some violence.


Winds of Change

Chapter Fourteen[/b\] – Flash Forward

That’s nice, Liz, thank you very much. And how am I supposed to respond to that anyhow? You’re ugly?” said a clearly confused Alex.

“I, uh, Alex, I’m sorry,” said a flustered Liz. She knelt down on the ground and began to pick up the pieces of broken glass that covered the floor. “I don’t know why I said that.”

“Look, Liz, there’s something really strange going on,” said Alex. He placed his books on the counter next to him and knelt down and began to help Liz pick up the broken glass. “You and Maria have been acting really weird lately. You’ve been avoiding me like crazy, and when I do catch up with you, you start talking about Czechoslovakians. Liz, Czechoslovakia hasn’t been a country for like fifty years. And now, you’re telling me that I’m dead. I demand to know what’s going on Liz. I want some answers.”

“Alex, Alex, Alex,” said Maria, joining the conversation. “You want answers, I’ll give you answers.

She knelt down next to Alex and placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned into him and whispered conspiratorially. “You want to know what we’re talking about, fine, I’ll tell you.”

“Maria!” Liz whispered, her face a mask of fear.

“When we’re talking about Czechoslovakians, we’re talking about cramps,” Maria continued. “And we didn’t want to gross you out, but if you want to know about all our female problems, we’ll gladly share them with you.”

“Thank you no,” said Alex, standing up. “That is way more information than I need to know. I’ll just be going. Liz, I brought over the CD my band just made, but I’ll just leave it here for you.” He dropped the CD on the counter and began to back away as if he were afraid the ‘cramps’ were contagious.

“I’ll just see you later,” he added as he crossed the restaurant floor.

Liz and Maria laughed as they watched their friend beat a hasty retreat from the café.

“How did you think of that?” Liz asked, trying to contain her laughter.

“I have no idea,” said Maria, “but it was perfect.” They quickly made short work of picking up the rest of the broken glasses and Liz prepared to carry the tray back to the kitchen.

“What happened, anyhow?” Maria asked, nodding in the direction of the tray.

“I don’t know,” said Liz. “I saw Alex, and I had this overwhelming feeling of dread, like something terrible had happened, and that he shouldn’t be here. It’s stupid, I know, but it felt so real.”

“Yeah,” said Maria, almost to herself. “I think I know what you mean.” She thought back to the other day when she saw Alex in school, she was consumed with an overwhelming need to hold him, and never let him go. It was like she was never going to see him again.

“Maria, what’s happening to me?” asked Liz. “I think I’m losing my mind.”

“Well if you are, then I’m right there with you, Chica. Because for the last few days, my world has been spinning of its proverbial axis. And I’m betting it has something to do with that pointy haired freak in there,” Maria said, darkly, looking towards the kitchen where Michael worked over the grill.

“Listen, Maria, I’m not feeling very well, can you cover for me?” Liz asked. “I’m just going to go upstairs and lay down for a while.”

She turned and left, not waiting for Maria’s answer and climbed the steps to her family’s apartment. Liz wasted little time with her mother, explaining her early departure from work with the tried and true excuse of cramps, and slipped away to her room.

In her room, Liz looked at the journal she’d left on her bed that morning, then eyed the bathroom door, weighing the merits of a shower versus trying to analyze everything that had been happening recently. The need for relaxing won out, and Liz quickly removed her hideous waitress uniform and turned the shower jet. Steam quickly filled her small bathroom, and she stepped under the hot stream and allowed the water to cascade over her body.

Liz absent-mindedly reached for a bottle of apple scented shampoo and began to wash her hair. As her fingers worked her heavy tresses into a lather, she tried to focus on the events of the past several days, but the combined heat of the shower, and the beguiling scent of her shampoo caused her thoughts to wander aimlessly.

She rinsed the shampoo from her hair, and along with the soap, she could feel her worries slipping away. She smiled slightly as she squeezed a dollop of conditioner in her hand and began to smooth it into her hair. The scent of apples grew stronger and began to permeate the room. It brought to mind the image of a fall day, and Liz saw herself riding under the warm fall sun, next to Max Evans.

Liz relaxed and enjoyed the happy images that filled her mind. There were no pressures, no worries, just herself, and Max, riding along enjoying the day. Her body began to tense as she felt the jeep leave the road, and she saw the Earth and sky spin around her.

The image shifted, and Max was still in the Jeep, unconscious, with his head resting on the steering wheel. The image shifted again, and Max was now in a hospital bed, while Liz, Michael, Maria and Isabel looked down at him. The image shifted again and this time she saw Max being strapped down to a gurney, fighting and screaming as he tried to break free from the restraints. She could feel his fear as if it were his own. They shocked his body, they cut into it while he screamed and screamed.

Liz screamed, and the noise jerked her back into reality. She hurriedly rinsed the remaining conditioner from her hair and stepped out of the shower. Dressing quickly, she slipped out of her room and downstairs. Once outside, she stood helplessly on the street, unsure of what to do. She slipped back into her family’s apartment and then went down into the kitchen of the CrashDown. She walked up to Michael without hesitation and tapped him on the shoulder.

“You have to help me,” she said, bluntly. “Max is in danger.”

[majiklmoon]

Winds of Change

Chapter Fifteen – Visions of Yesterday

Michael cleaned the grill while he listened to Liz. He poured more water on the grill; steam billowed upward, obscuring his features and served to mask the fears he knew showed there.

What she said to him made no sense, but in the inner recesses of his mined, what she said struck a chord of truth. He knew without a shadow of a doubt that Liz was telling the truth. The only question was, what to do about it.

“Thanks,” he said, brusquely. “But just stay out of it. I’ll take care of everything.”

“But Michael, Max is in danger,” Liz said. “We have to do something.”

“We don’t have to do anything. You’re not a part of this,” Michael said. He removed his apron and grabbed his coat out of his locker. He barely spared Liz a glance as he walked towards the door. He reached out and opened the door, but before he left, he turned to Liz.

“Stay out of it,” he said as the door slammed behind him.

Liz watched from the window as he climbed on his motorcycle and drove off into the night. A spirit of defiance filled Liz’s soul. She wasn’t about to let Michael tell her what to do. Max was in danger, and despite everything that had happened between them, she knew she had to help him. Just like she always did, a voice whispered in the back of her mind. No matter what happened to Max Evans, she was right there at his side like some sort of trustworthy little pet.

Liz shook her head, trying to rid herself of the emotional rage that filled her mind. Why was she so angry? It didn’t make any sense at all. She barely knew Max Evans, why would she start thinking about all the things that happened to them. Short of his saving Maria, and a car ride to the quarry, nothing had happened between them.

Except for Tess, the same small voice whispered in the back of her mind. A feeling of intense hatred welled up in Liz, and was shocked at it. She didn’t know anybody named Tess. Her reactions made no sense. Torn, Liz looked at the door to outside, and the stairs back up to her apartment. She wanted to go upstairs and open the new journal she had started. This one wasn’t really scientific. In it, she was recording all the strange memories that filled her head, and the déjà vu experiences she had been having. But she also knew Max needed her.

Compromising, Liz grabbed a blank order pad and scribbled everything that had just occurred down, and ripped off the top sheet and stuffed it into her jeans pocket. She reached into Maria’s locker and pulled out a jacket and slipped out into the cool desert night. She looked longingly at her parent’s car, but decided against it and began to walk down the empty sidewalk.

The chirping of the crickets made a lonely accompaniment to Liz’s thoughts as she reached the edge of the residential district where the Evans family lived. She paused for a moment, trying to decide if she really did have a reason to be there. Maybe she was losing her mind. The possibility scared her, and she stood, frozen in thought trying to judge her own sanity when the headlights of a passing car caught her in their glare. Instinctively, she put a hand up to shield her eyes and she took an involuntary step backwards as the car pulled over to the curb.

“Liz Parker, is that you?” a female voice called through the night. “It’s Isabel Evans.”

“Isabel, hi,” Liz said as a feeling of relief washed over her. She wasn’t particularly close to Isabel, actually, she wasn’t in the same league as her, but at least she was fairly certain that Isabel wasn’t about to turn into a mad rapist or anything.

“What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?” Isabel questioned, climbing out of the Jeep she shared with her brother.

“I, oh, uh, I was just out for a walk,” she said.

“Well it’s late, you shouldn’t be out walking alone this late at night,” said Isabel. “Climb in, I’ll give you a ride home.”

Liz looked regretfully in the direction of the Evans house before she climbed into the Jeep. She wanted to talk to Max, but couldn’t see herself explaining that to Isabel.

“Thanks,” she said to Isabel, not meaning it, but at the same time, grateful that someone had taken the choice out of her hands.

Isabel pulled away from the curb, and the two rode in silence for several minutes, each alone with her thoughts. Finally Isabel broke what was rapidly becoming an awkward silence.

“Max told you,” she said, making it a statement and not a question.

“Yeah, but Isabel, you have to know I wouldn’t ever tell anyone,” Liz said in a rush. “I swear.”

“I know, Liz,” said Isabel, her voice uncharacteristically soft. “I don’t know why I believe that you won’t, but I do.”

They drove on in silence for a few minutes before Isabel spoke again. “Can I ask you something?” she said to Liz. “Were you going to see my brother?”

“Why do you want to know?” Liz.

“I just want to tell you there isn’t any possibility of a relationship between you and him. We agreed a long time ago not to let anybody into our lives. You’re a nice person Liz, and I don’t want to see you get hurt. Just give up on Max. There isn’t any room in his life for you.”

Even though Isabel’s voice was gentle, it cut into Liz like a thousand different knives. She felt her eyes fill with tears, and she reached into her pocket and pulled out a tissue.

“Pull over,” she said, her voice thick with tears. “Pull over now.”

Isabel pulled the Jeep over to the side of the road, and Liz jumped out and began to run, heedless of Isabel’s voice calling out after her. Isabel watched the other girl run off into the night. When she could no longer see Liz, she reached over to shut the door that Liz had left open. As she did, she spied a folded piece of paper on the seat where Liz had sat.

Isabel hesitated for only a minute before she unfolded it and began to read. The graphic images Liz had recorded on the order slip filled her with fear and horror, and she found herself recalling a military installation. The memory caused her to shiver slightly and she pulled her jacket tightly around her. Images flashed through her mind. She saw Max being tortured, and screaming out in agony, and she felt helpless. She wanted to reach out to him, but didn’t know how.

Suddenly, she was overcome by an intense feeling of comfort and security, and she saw herself dancing with a tall dark haired man. She didn’t see his face, but she was certain that she knew him. Just as quickly the image shifted and she saw herself laying a rose on a coffin, tears streaming down her face.

“Alex,” she whispered to the empty Jeep. She felt a dampness on her face and found that the tears were not just in her memory, they were real.

[majiklmoon]

Winds of Change

Chapter Sixteen – Stargazing

Alex Whitman sat at an empty table in the warm Roswell sunshine and unpacked his lunch. He hated eating alone, but given the way Maria and Liz had been acting lately, alone was definitely the safer alternative. The less he heard about cramps masquerading as Czechoslovakians, the better for his piece of mind.

He opened his soda and scanned the crowded eating area looking for someone to talk to when he spied Isabel Evans holding her tray and scanning the crowd. His heart began to pound rapidly, and he felt his face begin to burn as Isabel began to walk in his direction. Not that this reaction was anything new to him. He fell in love with Isabel in third grade, the first time he saw her get off the school bus, and the feeling had never subsided. Not that she knew who he was. Isabel Evans didn’t deign to speak to lesser mortals such as him. He was so far out of her league that it wasn’t even funny.

“Hi, do you mind if I sit here,” a voice said, breaking through his thoughts.

Alex looked up and saw Isabel standing next to him, ready to put her tray down on the table. Alex swallowed the mouthful of soda he had just drunk, and immediately began to choke.

“Su-sure,” he sputtered, his voice cracking. “S-sit down.”

“I’m Isabel Evans,” Isabel said in a cheery voice.

“I-I know,” said Alex, struggling to regain his composure. “Everybody knows who you are.”

“I don’t think so,” said Isabel, smiling at Alex’s comment. “You’re Alex Whitman, right?”

“You know who I am?” Alex asked, his voice breaking again.

“Alex, we’ve been in school together since the third grade. Of course I know you,” Isabel answered.

“Yeah, but you normally don’t talk to me,” said Alex. “Did you lose a bet or something?” He swiveled around in his seat looking to see if he could spy some of Isabel’s giggling friends, or someone with a camera to record the moment. “Can I have a copy of the picture someone is surely taking as proof so I can forever remember this moment?”

Isabel threw her head back and laughed, and her long hair cascaded down her back like a golden waterfall, shinning in the sun. Alex felt his breath catch as he observed her heartbreaking beauty.

“Alex you are too funny,” said Isabel. “Can’t I just hang out with you?”

“In my dreams yes, in reality, no,” said Alex. “Not without causing irreparable damage to your social standing. So why don’t you just tell me what you want, or whatever, and that way you can get back to your little friends.”

“Alex, I don’t want anything from you,” said Isabel, and something in her tone half convinced him that she was telling the truth.

”Isabel, come on someone like you doesn’t come sit with someone like me for no reason. It just doesn’t happen.”

“Fine, you want to know the truth, I’ll tell you the truth,” said Isabel. “Last night, I had a dream about you.

“Right,” said a still skeptical Alex. Him dreaming about Isabel that made sense; Isabel dreaming about him, now that was the stuff of fantasies.

“No, seriously, I did,” said Isabel. I was wearing a red dress, and you were in the most handsome tux, Alex, and we were dancing. It was magical. At first, I didn’t see your face, but finally it came into focus. Alex, we were so happy and it was so beautiful.”

“Okay,” said Alex. “We danced, again, I’m not seeing why this would make you want to come an sit with me. It was just a dream, right?”

“But then it changed,” said Isabel, her voice catching slightly. “I, I was at a funeral, and I put a flower on a coffin. Oh, God, Alex, it was you’re coffin. You died. It was terrible.”

“What?” asked Alex, the color draining from his face. “What did you just say?”

“You died Alex. In my dream, you were dead,” said Isabel, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “It was horrible.”

“Yeah, horrible,” muttered Alex, his thoughts racing. “Seems to be a lot of that going around lately.”

“A lot of what?” asked Isabel, confused by Alex’s apparent change in conversation.

“Me dying,” he said. “Liz said the same thing to me the other night at the CrashDown. She took one look at me, dropped a tray of glasses and told me I was dead. I’m starting to not feel the love from everybody, let me tell you.”

“Liz Parker?” asked Isabel.

“Yes, Liz Parker. Do I hang out with any other Liz’s?”

“We need to talk to her, Alex. “Something isn’t right, and I think it involves Liz,” said Isabel. “Do you know where she is?”

“Usually, she’s right where you’re sitting,” said Alex in a dry voice. “But her and Maria have been avoiding me lately - something about Czechoslovakians or something.”

“Czechoslovakians?” asked Isabel. “Who’s Czechoslovakian?”

“Apparently cramps are,” said Alex, standing up. “Come on, if they’re not out here, then chances are they’re holed up inside one of the empty science rooms.

“They?” asked Isabel. “Do we have to talk to Maria, too?”

“Where Liz goes, so goes Maria,” said Alex. “Why?”

“I- I don’t know,” said Isabel. “I just have this weird feeling, like she’s going to try and get me to wait tables or something.”

Alex laughed out loud at the visual of Isabel in a CrashDown uniform with little alien deely boppers on her head.

“Don’t worry, Isabel, I don’t think that’s ever going to happen,” he said. He waited until she stood up, and the two began walking toward the school together.

“Do you know what you want to do for college?” Isabel asked, trying to make conversation. She didn’t feel uncomfortable with Alex. It was exactly the opposite. Talking with him, she felt like she was coming home, or something. She felt safe and protected, and that wasn’t a feeling she was used to feeling.

“Yeah, I’m thinking MIT,” said Alex. “And Liz wants to go to Harvard, so we’ll still be able to hang out and stuff.”

“You and Liz are pretty close, aren’t you.”

“She’s my best friend,” said Alex, simply. “Well one of them anyway.”

“So, MIT?” asked Isabel. “You’re not looking at anywhere local, are you, like Las Cruses or something?”

“Thank you, no,” said Alex, suppressing a shudder. “I don’t ever want to see Las Cruses again.”

“You’ve been there?” Isabel asked, amazed at the alarmed feelings she had.

“No, I haven’t,” said a puzzled Alex. “I know I haven’t, but I feel like I have.”

“We need to fine Liz,” said Isabel, slipping her hand in his. “We need to find her right away.”

[majiklmoon]

Winds of Change

Chapter 17 Dreamscape


It was an odd group that met at Michael Guerin’s apartment that evening. On one side of the room sat Max, Michael and Isabel, while on the other side of the room, Liz, Kyle, Maria and Alex perched uncomfortably on Michael’s faded, threadbare couch.

“What’s he doing here?” grumbled Max, looking pointedly at Kyle who glared right back at him.

“He’s a part of this, too,” said Liz.

“I thought we agreed to keep this between us,” said Michael. “You know we can’t tell anybody about it.”

“She didn’t tell anybody,” said Maria, stepping to Liz’s defense.

“She obviously told the Laughing Buddha over there,” said Michael, his face growing red as his temper flared. “Or else he wouldn’t be here.”

“Stop it all of you!” shouted Isabel. “Something’s going on here, I don’t know what it is, but I think Liz is the key. So if she thinks that Kyle needs to be here, then I think he should stay. Besides,” she said in a quieter voice, “I have a feeling we can trust him.”

“Look, we don’t even know what’s going on,” said Alex, trying to be the voice of reason. “Can we please start at the beginning and bring everybody up to speed, and go from there?”

Max looked at Michael and Isabel, he knew they had to reveal their secret to two more people, but he was unwilling to do it unless he had the approval of both of them. Isabel was biting her lower lip thoughtfully while Michael glared angrily at everyone. Finally Isabel nodded slightly. Max looked to Michael who gave one angry jerk of his head before he threw himself down on the floor and reached for a piece of pizza from the box that rested on the decrepit coffee table in the middle of the floor.

Max made short work of explaining who they were, and what had happened in the past several weeks. When he was finished, he sat back expectantly and waited for the barrage of questions he was sure would come. He was shocked when both Alex and Kyle seemed to accept what he had told them.

“Why aren’t you freaked by all of this?” Max asked, looking at both men, a curious expression on his face.

“Well, I can’t answer for Kyle,” said Alex, “But I kind of feel like your telling me something I already knew. Like it was a story my mom used to read to me as a kid, and I just heard it again.”

“We’ve all been having feelings like that lately,” said Liz, who had begun to relax a bit now that the truth was out. “Or at least I have.”

“I still don’t know why he’s here,” grumbled Michael with another pointed glare at Kyle.

“Well, I didn’t know why I was here at first,” snapped Kyle, giving Michael his own angry glance. “I told Liz about this crazy dream that I had, and she just about freaked out and said she had to go find Evans and talk to him right away.”

“What dream?” asked Isabel. “Max never told us about your dream, Kyle.”

“That’s because I never got the chance to tell Max,” Liz said. “Tell them Kyle. They need to hear this.”

“Well, I dreamt I was in that cheesy UFO Museum, and I got shot. I guess it was getting robbed or something,” said Kyle. “Anyhow, I was dying, and my dad was there begging Max to help me. Next thing I know, I was sitting in a lotus position contemplating my existence in this world.”

“A lotus position?” laughed Maria. “What like Buddha and meditation and all that stuff?”

“I guess,” said Kyle. “Anyhow, I woke up, but I was totally freaked by it. But the dream stuck with me. Usually, I don’t remember my dreams, but I remembered that one. I can still feel the bullet ripping through my,”

“Through your stomach,” said Max. “The bullet hit you in the stomach like the one that hit Maria.”

“Or the one that hit Liz if you go by Michael’s drawing,” said Maria.

“You know, maybe I am starting to get a little freaked,” said Alex. “This is like an episode of the Twilight Zone or something.”

“I’m not finished,” said Kyle. “I finally fell back to sleep, and I had another strange dream.”

“You didn’t tell me about that, Kyle,” Liz said.

“Did you give me a chance,” said Kyle. “After I told you about my first dream, you went on your quest for Max Evans, and you dragged me around half the school looking for him. It wasn’t conducive to intimate conversation.”

“Sorry,” said Liz, blushing slightly. She had been a bit of a termagant this afternoon dragging Kyle all through the school.

“Anyhow, all of us were someplace pretty fancy, I mean, we were all dressed up, and we were paired off in couples,” said Kyle.

“How’s that work, there isn’t an even number?” asked Maria.

Kyle ignored Maria and continued his story. “Liz and Max were together, and Alex and Isabel were together. You looked great by the way,” he said to Isabel.

“Of course I did,” said Isabel. “So go on, there doesn’t seem to be anything to ominous about this dream.”

“I’m getting there,” said Kyle. “Maria and Mr. Personality over there were an item.”

“What!” Michael and Maria shouted together.

“And I was with this cute little blond chic,” said Kyle, ignoring the outburst. “She was really hot, and I do mean hot. Anyhow, my dream kind of flashed to a different time, you know and we were all at a funeral, well, almost all of us were,” he said, softly.

Isabel reached down and grabbed Alex’s hand and squeezed it tightly and tears began to fall silently down her face.

“How did you know?” Kyle asked in amazement, watching the sadness play across Isabel’s face. “Alex was the only one who wasn’t there,” he added for the benefit of the others, but he could see it wasn’t necessary.

“Is that it?” Max asked, his voice thick with emotion.

“No, I wish it was,” said Kyle. “After that, I was standing in my room and Liz was sitting on my bed drumming on something. I was looking in my mirror, and I saw Alex and that cute blond chic I was telling you about, or their reflections, anyhow. They were fighting, and she scrunched her face up and Alex fell to the floor. I woke up screaming and didn’t sleep for the rest of the night,” finished Kyle.

“Tess,” said Liz, her voice bleak. “Her name is Tess.”

[majiklmoon]

Winds of Change

Chapter Eighteen – Nightmare

I feel as though there’s a hollow space where my heart used to be. Liz wrote in her journal. All it took was the mention of a name. Four letters arranged in a random pattern to form a word that is capable of destroying my very existence, but I don’t know why. That’s what is frustrating to me – the not knowing. My life was always so predictable, mundane even until this thing with Max started. Now it seems as though everything is in a state of flux. What’s happening to me – to us? Its almost as if we are all just puppets acting out some macabre play for an insane puppeteer. Something other than fate is bringing us all together. It has to be. Fate is random, but there seems to be some sort of pattern to all of this, if only I could figure it out.

“Liz, can you come here honey?” a voice called from inside the Parker apartment.

“Coming, Mom,” Liz answered. She slipped her pen into her journal to mark her place, closed the book and left it lying on her chair. She climbed in through her bedroom window and went to see what her mother wanted.

Nicholas waited patiently until he was certain Liz was gone before he climbed up the fire escape. He looked around surreptitiously, making sure he was unobserved before he climbed over the low wall that enclosed Liz’s rooftop patio.

Without a qualm, he opened her journal and began leaf through it. He scanned it rapidly, his face falling as he read the pages. His heart began to pound a staccato rhythm in his chest, and his breath came in short gasps as he realized how close they were to ruining everything. A noise alerted him to the fact that Liz was returning, and he quickly ducked behind a large planter. His hiding place provided him with a view to both the patio as well as the bedroom.

A soft breeze whispered across the patio, and the leaves from the plant brushed against his face. Angrily Nicholas shoved them away, waiting for an opportunity to escape off of the patio. He watched in fascination as Liz slowly ran a brush through her hair. His breath caught in his throat, and desire played across his face as Liz began to unbutton her blouse. It slid down off her shoulders and fluttered to the ground. Nicholas began to breath faster, his breath came in short gasps, and he felt himself grow warm with desire as Liz raised her arms above her head and stretched languidly.

Nicholas moved slightly from behind the brick planter to allow himself a better view of Liz. She was beautiful, he admitted to himself. It was a shame she had to die, Nicholas thought to himself. Maybe he’d use her for himself before he killed her. He caught his breath as she undid the snap on her jeans, and began to ease them down over her hips. Nicholas moved unconsciously towards the window as passion clouded his judgment.


He reached out to climb through the window when something tackled him from the side, sending him crashing into the brick wall. Liz heard the noise, and saw a blinding flash of light and screamed. She pulled her jeans back up over her hips and grabbed her shirt off the floor and pulled it on.

“Lizzie, is everything okay?” her father yelled from somewhere in the apartment.

“Oh, uh, yeah, fine dad,” she called back. “Just a couple of cats fighting or something. It scared me.”

She moved cautiously to the window and peered out into the darkness. Her breath caught in her throat when she realized that there was a body lying several feet from her window. She choked back the sobs that threatened to spill out and climbed carefully out of the window and knelt beside the body.

She reached out with shaking hands and carefully rolled the body over so that she could see who it was. Tears fell from her eyes when the face of Michael Guerin came into view, covered with horrible disfiguring burns. Liz jumped backwards and began to retch violently at the disfigured face in front of her.

When her insides felt as empty as her heart, Liz pushed herself up off the ground, and checked to see if Michael was still breathing before she staggered through the window into her room. She grabbed her cell phone and quickly punched in a number.

“Max,” she said. “It’s Michael, he’s been hurt. He’s at my house, please hurry.”

Liz stuffed her cell into her pocket with shaking hands and grabbed the blankets and pillows off of her bed and climbed back through the window. Once outside, she stood with trepidation as she realized whoever had hurt Michael could still be out there. Tamping her fear down, she moved over to Michael’s body, and carefully lifted his head up and slipped the pillow underneath him. Then she covered him with the blanket in the hopes of staving off the shock she was sure would set in.

“Maxwell,” Michael whispered, struggling to sit up.

“Michael, it’s Liz. Please don’t try and get up, Max is on his way.”

“Danger,” Michael moaned.

“Michael, try not to talk,” said Liz, brushing his hair off of the burnt skin on his forehead. “Don’t worry, Max will be here soon.”

She started to say more, but was interrupted by the ringing of the cell phone in her pocket. She reached for the phone, dropping it on the blanket that covered Michael in her haste to answer it.

“Hello?” she said, softly, trying not to disturb the injured man beside her.

“Liz, girlfriend, get ready. Alex and I will be by to pick you up in ten minutes. I don’t know where we’re going or what we’re doing, but who cares,” came Maria’s voice through the phone.

“Mu-Maria,” Liz whimpered, quietly.

“Liz, what’s the matter?” Maria asked, a sense of urgency in her voice.

“It’s Michael,” Liz said.

“What did he do now?” demanded Maria. “If he’s bothering you, I’m going to kill him.”

“He’s hurt, bad,” Liz said. “I think someone tried to kill him.”

“Liz, where are you?” asked Maria, panic rising in her voice.

“M-my house,” said Liz. “M-Max is on his way. Oh, God, Maria, I think he’s dying. Maria? Maria, are you there?”

Liz waited a minute before closing the phone and slipping it back into her pocket. She sat on the ground next to Michael, and held his hand in hers. The gesture may not have done anything for Michael, but it served to sooth her frayed nerves slightly.

After what seemed like hours, but was, in reality only several minutes, Max appeared on the fire escape. He climbed over the low wall, and raced across the rooftop, with Isabel on his heels. At the same time, the door to Liz’s bedroom opened and shut and voices could be heard in the room. Max and Isabel stood protectively over Michael and Liz, each of them holding an arm outstretched before them. Maria and Alex appeared in the window, and Max and Isabel lowered their hands and turned their attention back to Michael.

“What happened?” asked Max.

“I don’t know,” said Liz. “I was in my room, getting changed when I heard a bang, and there was a brilliant flash of light. I came out here and I found Michael. He was lying face down on the ground. I turned him over, and then I called you. After that, I came outside and covered him up.”

Max pulled the blanket off of Michael, and both Isabel and Maria gasped when they saw the burns that covered his body. Whatever had done this to him was so intense that his charred clothing seemed to merge with the burnt flesh that was underneath it.

Max started at Michael’s head, holding his hands as close to his friend’s body as he could without touching it. A soft light emanated from Max’s hand, and the charred flesh on Michael’s face began to heal, slowly smoothing out and returning to a normal flesh tone. Max moved his hands slowly down Michael’s body, healing each burned surface one by one, until finally he Michael was completely healed.

“Why isn’t he waking up?” Maria asked.

“Don’t worry,” said Alex, his voice filled with awe at what he had just witnessed. “He’ll be okay.”

He reached out and took Maria by the hand and pulled her over to where the others stood. Max stood up and held out his hand to Liz, and they, along with Isabel, formed a circle around Michael. After several minutes, Michael’s eyes fluttered open and he looked around at the others standing over him.

“Thanks,” he said, his voice raspy. “Thank you,” he said again, looking directly at Liz.

“We need to get him home,” Isabel said.

“I’m going with you,” said Maria.

“You don’t need to,” began Isabel.

“Yes, I do,” interrupted Maria.

“We’ll all go,” said Max, stemming the argument that was about to occur. “Michael, can you climb down the fire escape?”

“Yeah,” said Michael, his voice shaky. “I think so.”

“I’ll go first,” offered Alex. “As long as you promise not to land on me.”

Maria climbed back through Liz’s window, while Max and Liz watched Alex, followed by Michael and Isabel.

“Are you coming?” Max asked, looking down into Liz’s eyes.

“Yeah. I’ll ride with Maria.”

“We’ll meet you at Michael’s apartment,” said Max. He swung one leg over the ledge and turned back to Liz. “How did you know my cell phone number?” he asked. “I just got it the other day.”

“I – I don’t know,” Liz said, helplessly. “I don’t know.”

[majiklmoon]

Winds of Change

Chapter Nineteen – Disclosure

Liz charged down the stairs into the CrashDown café and skidded to a halt and looked anxiously around for Maria. She scanned the crowded café, and while she saw a lot of familiar faces, she didn’t see the gamine features of her best friend anywhere.

“Lost?” a voice said beside her. Liz turned and saw Kyle standing beside her, an expectant look upon his face.

“Have you seen Maria?” she asked, still looking around, frantically.

“Yeah, she took off out of here on two wheels just as I was pulling in. Why what’s wrong?” he replied.

“Come on, we have to hurry,” Liz said. She grabbed his hand and began to pull him towards the front door of the café, shooting a smile and a wave at her father.

“You two kids don’t be too late, okay?” her dad called from his post at the register.

“We won’t dad,” Liz said. “We’re meeting Maria, Alex, and a few other kids. See you later. Don’t wait up,” she added over her shoulder as the door closed behind her, it’s silver bell tinkling in their wake.

“Do you mind telling me what’s going on here?” Kyle demanded, stopping on the sidewalk.

“Come on,” Liz said, frantically, tugging on the sleeve of his jacket. “I’ll explain on the way. We don’t have much time.”

Kyle looked down to Liz’s face and saw the anguish in his eyes. It was a feeling he was all too familiar with of late. Instinct told him to get the hell out of there, as quickly as possible, but his heart told him he was right where he belonged. Much as it pained him to admit it that is.

“Okay,” he said in resignation. “Let’s go, only tell me, where are we going? Though I suppose as long as it’s not Mars, I’m good.”

Liz gave a small giggle, despite the seriousness of the situation and followed Kyle to his car. Once inside, she gave him a brief overview of what had happened, and asked him to take her to Michael’s new apartment.

“What was he doing out on your patio, anyhow?” demanded Kyle.

“I don’t know,” admitted Liz. “But I’m glad he was. I mean if there are more of them out there, and some of them aren’t friendly, I guess I’m glad that he was out there.”

“Great, it wasn’t enough to be dreaming that Alex dies, now we’re in actual danger,” said Kyle. “Excuse me if I’m not excited at the prospect of little green aliens trying to kill me. You know, I didn’t sign on for any of this. I was only stopping by the CrashDown to see if you could help me find something at the library.”

“Kyle Valenti at the library?” asked Liz. “I’m having a hard time seeing that.”

“Maybe I’m trying to turn over a new leaf,” Kyle said, his voice filled with mock defensiveness.

“More like trying to impress a girl,” teased Liz.

“Yeah, about that,” said Kyle, flushing a little. “I know we dated some last year and during the summer but I don’t know, it just doesn’t seem,”

“Quite right,” Liz finished for him. “I was thinking the same thing. Something is kind of off about it.”

“Exactly,” said Kyle. “Liz, you’re a great person, and I’d do just about anything for you, but I just don’t think we’re destined to be together.”

“Wh-what did you say?” Liz said.

A concerned Kyle looked over at Liz, her features illuminated by the streetlights under which they passed.

“Please don’t tell me you’re having another one of those freaky déjà vu things,” Kyle begged.

“No, not really, Liz hedged. “Something about the phrase destined to be together just rubbed me the wrong way. I just didn’t like it very much.”

The two drove along silently for several minutes, Kyle concentrating on the road as a way of avoiding the real issues at hand, and Liz staring out into the night, her mind a million miles away.

“Did you mean it?” she asked him suddenly.

“Did I mean what?” asked Kyle, still watching the road ahead.

“About doing just about anything for me,” said Liz. “Did you mean it?”

“Yeah, I guess,” said Kyle. “I mean, I’m not going to rob a bank for you or anything, but otherwise, yeah, sure.”

“Would you sleep with me?”

“What?” Kyle shouted. His foot jammed on the brake and the car skidded to a halt. Kyle’s hand reached out instinctively to stop Liz from hitting the windshield, and he twisted around in the drivers seat to stare at her.

“What did you just say? Cause I’m telling you Liz, as far as propositions go, that one kind of sucked.”

“I – never mind,” said Liz, shaking her head. “I don’t know what I was saying. Just forget about it.”

“Like hell I’ll forget about it,” said Kyle. He pulled the car over to the side of the road and switched off the ignition. “What’s going on, Liz. We just got done having a discussion about how we don’t belong together, and now you’re asking me to sleep with you? Something isn’t making any sense at all.”

“That’s just it, Kyle,” Liz said crying softly. “Nothing has made sense for a long time now. Ever since the day I was shot in the CrashDown.”

“Liz,” Kyle said gently, beginning to fear for Liz’s sanity. “You weren’t shot in the CrashDown, remember? Maria was.”

“I know,” Liz almost wailed. “I was there, remember?”

“Then why are you saying you were shot, if you know it was Maria?” Kyle asked. He tried to keep his voice calm and even, hoping to placate Liz long enough for someone to come along and get him some help.

“Kyle, I’m not losing my mind,” said Liz. “Stop looking like you expect me to go psycho on you.”

“You already did that when you asked me to sleep with you?” said Kyle, laughing to hide his nervousness.

“Look this is your fault,” said Liz. “You told me you didn’t want to know about anymore of those déjà vu things, remember?”

“So you decided to shock the shit out of me instead? Nice plan, Liz.”

Liz sat with her face in her hands, and her shoulders shaking violently. Kyle, always uncomfortable with sobbing females reached over and patted her clumsily on her shoulder.

“I’m sorry, Liz. I didn’t mean to upset you. Don’t worry, we’ll figure this out, I know we will.”

Liz took her hands away from her face and looked at Kyle, her face wreathed in smiles.

“You’re not crying?” he asked.

“N-no,” she choked out between giggles. “I’m not.”

“You’re laughing – at me, aren’t you?”

“Yes. I’m sorry, Kyle, but yes, I’m laughing at you,” said Liz. “But I’m laughing at me, too, so don’t feel bad. I just replayed that whole conversation in my mind. Oh Kyle, the way you reacted was priceless.”

“Great, well if you’re done laughing at my last great act of nobility in this lifetime or the next, can you please move on to the part about us sleeping together. Because now that I’m thinking about it, I’d be stupid not to take you up on it,” said Kyle, relaxing a little now that he was fairly certain Liz wasn’t losing her mind.

“It was just this whole thing that flashed through my mind when you said that bit about us not being destined to be together. I saw Max, and I, and this blond girl. Then I saw Max again, in a sombrero. Then Max was next to me in my room, but it wasn’t Max, he was older, colder and harder. Then there was an Elvis wedding chapel and then I saw you and I in bed.”

“Wedding chapel,” said Kyle. “Vegas. Harvey Wallbanger, Tom Collins, Rob Roy.”

“Brandy Alexander, Margarita Salt, Pina Colada and Shirley Temple,” continued Liz. “Kyle, are we playing a drinking game?”

“You knew those names, Liz,” Kyle said excitedly. “You didn’t even think about it; you knew those names. Why? Why do we know this stuff?”

“I don’t know,” Liz admitted. “I really don’t. Come on, let’s get to Michael’s and make sure he’s okay. Maybe the others can help us make some sense of this.”

“I doubt it, but okay,” said Kyle.

He eased the car back out onto the road in the direction of Michael’s apartment, and hopefully, some answers.

[majiklmoon]

Winds of Change

Chapter Twenty Venom

Max was closest to the door when the knock came, so he jumped up and opened it to find Liz and Kyle standing on the other side. A feeling of rage welled up inside of him, and he gripped the doorframe trying to contain it.

“Oh, God, Max, stop it,” Liz cried. She pointed to his hand on the doorframe and he moved, it, revealing a scorched imprint of his hand.

“What’s wrong with you?” she asked. “And is Michael okay.”

“Like you care,” Max said, bitterly. “It took you long enough to get here. What did the two of you do, stop and park or something?”

Liz recoiled as if she had been slapped, and tears flooded her eyes. The venom in his voice, and the anger in his voice was a double-edged sword, and she stepped back into the shelter of Kyle’s arms as if she had been stabbed.

“What the hell is your problem, Max?” demanded Kyle. “She got here as soon as she could. She came flying down into the CrashDown, white as a ghost, but low and behold, none of you, or your kind had waited around for her. The one who saved your friend’s life. Remember that?”

“Forget it Kyle, let’s just get out of here,” said Liz. “We can go check out that thing at the library.”

“What thing at the library?” asked Max, jealously.

“Don’t worry your pretty little head about it, Senor Presidente,” snapped Kyle.

The term only served to enrage Max further, and he turned to close the door when Isabel pushed him aside.

“Maybe you’d better come in,” she said. “The doorway isn’t the place to be having this discussion.”

“Is Michael okay?” Liz asked, her concern evident in her voice.

“He’s resting,” said Isabel. “Maria’s in with him, though for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. Those two can’t stand each other.”

“What happened tonight, Liz?” Alex asked from his perch on Michael’s decrepit sofa.

Liz’s gaze wandered around the apartment as she formulated her thoughts. Her eyes stopped at the large television that overpowered the dusty corner of the room, then moved to the coffee table littered with the remains of several meals.

“It wasn’t much more than I told you already,” said Liz. “I was sitting outside, writing, when my mother called me. When I got inside, she told me I had a phone call, but when I picked up the phone nobody was there. I asked her who it was, and she said she thought it was Alex.”

“I didn’t call you, Liz,” Alex said. “Maria and I were practicing with my band, and we planned on calling you later.”

“Yeah, well, anyhow, I went back to my room and started getting changed. I was going to jump into the shower, when I heard a loud bang outside, and saw a flash of light. I ran outside and found Michael. Come on, I told you all of this already. Nothing’s changed since then,” Liz said in frustration.

“Are you sure you don’t remember anything else?” asked Max. His voice was still very harsh. Every time he looked over at Liz standing next to Kyle, he felt something churning in his gut. He had to force back the burning desire he had to kill Kyle right then and there.

“You know what, Max. I don’t have to take this from you,” said Liz. “I’m not some docile little lamb destined to follow you around. You have a different destiny, one that doesn’t involve me. Now go chase after him if you have to, but leave me alone.”

“Liz, what did you say?” asked Kyle as everyone else looked at Liz in shock. Nobody ever expected such a violent outburst to come from her.

“I said he had a different destiny, and it didn’t involve me, and he could go chase after it if he wanted to, but to leave me alone,” said Liz.

“No, no you didn’t,” said Isabel. “You told him to go chase after him. You said him, not it. Who is he, Liz? Do you remember?”

“It must have just been a slip of the tongue, Isabel, that’s all,” said Liz.

“I’m not buying it Liz,” said Max, this time, his tone gentle. “It wasn’t a slip of the tongue, and it wasn’t a coincidence, any more than any of the other things that have happened lately have been a coincidence. We just have to figure out what it all means.”

“You might as well tell him the rest of it,” said Kyle in resignation. He flung himself onto the couch next to Alex and began to cough when a cloud of dust rose up around him.

“I’m not really sure,” said Liz. “There’s something about the library, but I don’t know what. Kyle stopped by the CrashDown tonight to see if I wanted to get something from the library, and that seemed so familiar to me, but I don’t know why.”

“Plenty of guys ask girls to go to the library,” said Max, the jealous tone creeping back into his voice.

“Not me,” said Kyle from the couch. “The library’s the last place I’d want to go.”

“And then when we were driving here, something really weird happened,” said Liz.

“What was it?” asked Isabel from behind the counter in the small kitchenette. While she talked, she scrubbed futilely at the filthy grout. Finally, in resignation, she passed her hand over the counter and used her powers to eradicate the grime that had built up over the years. She changed the color of the tile to a blue while she looked at Liz speculatively. A memory echoed in her mind, dancing just out of reach. She turned the tile back to white while she waited for Liz to answer.

“Well, Kyle and I were discussing how we thought we make better friends than anything else,” said Liz.

“Well, that’s no startling revelation,” said Maria joining them. She stood in the doorway to Michael’s bed her arm around Michael’s waist, lending support to his shaky body. “I told you that a long time ago. No offense, Liz, but I was telling you that a long time ago.”

“Michael, should you be out of bed?” asked Max.

“Yeah, I’m good,” Michael said with a slight groan. “So does somebody want to tell me who the hell happened tonight?”

“Well, we were kind of hoping you could,” said Max. “Do you remember anything at all?”

“Well, I stopped by the CrashDown to pick up some food. I was climbing on my bike when I saw someone going up the fire escape. It looked like the same guy I saw in the kitchen the day of the earthquake,” Michael explained.

“What earthquake?” asked Max.

“Never mind, that’s not important,” said Maria.

“Well, I followed him up the fire escape, and watched. At first, he was just reading some book, and I figured maybe I was wrong and Liz was just gonna be studying with someone. Anyhow, then this guy starts staring in her window, moving closer and closer. It took me a minute to realize what he was doing, and when I did, I jumped him. That’s the last thing I remember until I opened my eyes and saw Liz putting a pillow under my head.”

Michael closed his eyes, and tried to erase the memory of the searing pain on his skin. Nothing, including the many beatings Hank had given him had even come close to equaling the agonizing pain he had felt tonight. He had thought he was going to die, and had in fact, prayed for a quick release from the agony he endured. But through the pain, he had heard a soft voice calling to him, telling him to hold on. He opened his eyes, to see Liz leaning over him. He had saved her, and she had repaid the favor in turn.

They all began talking at once, each trying to be heard over the other, and nobody paying attention to each other, and the noise level grew louder and louder.

“We all need to stop,” said Isabel, suddenly. “There’s too much going on. We’re not planning and thinking – there’s no organization to anything that we’re doing. If we keep going on like this, we’re not going to accomplish anything.”

“I agree with Isabel,” said Liz. “I’ve been trying to keep track of everything that’s been happening to me, in my journal. Maybe if we make up a master plan or something, we can find a pattern to all of this.”

“Liz, where is this journal of yours?” asked Michael, his voice still shaky.

Liz paused to think for a moment before answering, trying to remember where she’d left it.

“Oh,” she said suddenly. “I was writing out on my patio when my mother called me. I left it there when I went inside.”

“And that’s what our mysterious stranger was reading, before he decided to become a peeping Tom,” said Max.

“We need that journal,” said Michael.

“I’ll go back and get it,” said Alex. “The Parkers won’t think twice about letting me into Liz’s room.”

“I’m going with you,” Isabel said with amazing speed. “You shouldn’t be out there alone.”

Alex looked as if he was ready to argue, but one look at Isabel’s determined face quickly changed his minds. She’d get no arguments from him. They made their way to Alex’s car and drove off into the night, unaware of the car that followed them at a discreet distance.