NT, having heard some cries from downstairs, the latest one being Donna's, came staggering into the room, "Did something else happen?"

"No, NT," Sarah went over to her, "we're all just a bit uptight."

"NT," Pippi said, "Did you pick up on Nathan's agony?"

"Yes - at least - I thought...but wasn't it supposed to be humane?"

"Yes, but it wasn't." Ameh replied.

"Then my magic wasn't off...?" NT looked even more ghostly than she did a second ago.

"No, you were right, you were getting signals."

"I tried to shut my magic warning stuff completely off, but..."

"Maybe you also got warned because we were there and you sort of picked up on us too." Ameh speculated."

"M-maybe," NT said weakly. It was then that she realized who Ariel was holding, Miranda. That girl had once loved Nathan as much as NT loved Ariel. NT had realized that Miranda must've only come back with Ameh and Donna, because she hadn't been there yet when NT started getting sick. "Oh, no, she didn't...Miranda didn't see...Nathan die, tell me she didn't." NT choked out. Already the tears had started streaming down her face again.

Donna noticed Sarah looking around at the others, a pained, helpless look on her pale face.

"NT," Pippi said, "why don't you go back to bed and try and rest. Donna and Miranda will still be here when you're feeling better."

Sarah left the room with NT, then returned a few minutes later and asked if Pippi or Ameh could send her to get Capri, since Sarah was always protected from the harmful effects of the daylight whenever around Capri, just as she was protected here in the house.

"No, I think I better go, since she's probably still with Tracy, and you know how Tracy is about vampires." Pippi replied.

Sarah nodded. "All right, if you're sure. I'll...stay with NT, all right?"

"Thanks, Sarah, you're a dear." Ariel replied softly.

"Capri may need some looking after when/if I can get her back here. After it was all over and she saw us there she really lost it." Pippi said. She explained to Sarah, Ariel, and Kendra how hard this had really hit Capri, and how worrying it was to see Capri crying as helplessly as a baby, and how Pippi and Donna ended up holding her until she finally subsided.

Ariel's eyes went very wide as did Sarah's. Sarah shook her head. "I...I've seen Capri crying before," she said to Ariel, "that night she and I got into it about...well, Andrew, some other things, but this sounds like it was a lot harder on her than even that."

"Oh I remember that," Ariel said, "NT and I were worried about you two. I remember you did a lot of crying and Capri did a lot of yelling and then it got quiet."

"Well she was anything but quiet when Donna and I found her, I was fully expecting her magic to cause problems especially when the screaming stopped and the shaking started. The only other time I saw her shed tears was when Shirlee was shown that awful video of what we had thought had been Shawn, beating Ariel." Pippi replied.

Sarah nodded. "I know. I was sick myself when that was shown in the courtroom, I can just imagine what it was like for all of you seeing that a second time." Sarah sighed. "Well, let me know when Capri gets back. I'll be in NT's room." she replied.

Meanwhile, in the living room, Donna looked from Kendra to Ariel and Ameh. "I just w-wanted to *know* he was gone--I d-didn't think it'd be...*this*....I did w-want him to hurt like he'd hurt me but...but...oh god..." she cried harder and a few more objects began moving, though only slightly.

Ameh approached Donna, "I know, it was a terrible shock for me too." She resettled the objects again. "But look at it this way. We didn't enjoy that at all. Nathan would've if he'd been the one watching."

Donna sniffled. "You're right, there." she sniffled again. "He...he didn't always use me in his s-sick games, you know. Sometimes he'd make me w-watch what he did to other people." She took a deep breath. "But even then...as bad as that was...it wasn't like this."

Ameh bit back a curse and shuddered. "That's like Christine making me watch either what she did to other people or those horrible porn movies and then she threatened to put me through what I just saw. Watching what happened to Nathan just now was too much like...that nightmare."

Ariel shook her head and shuddered. "No wonder Capri got so upset."

"But it's finally over now, and you know if you have terrible nightmares for a while, you won't have to go through them alone any more. We're not going to be all over this and better by tomorrow, but at least now we can all work to put it behind us as much as we can now that they are really gone." Pippi reassured. "Now I better go find Capri and Tracy. And with that, Pippi used her transporter and disappeared.

* * * * *

Kendra sat on the sofa with Donna, while Ariel held Miranda. Ameh sat on a chair in the corner, cradling herself.

That's when the door opened and Rebekah walked in, with Susan right behind her. "I--" Rebekah started to say, then paused as she saw the looks on everyone's faces and that both Miranda and Donna were crying.

Susan saw that too and looked at her mother, questioningly.

"Umm...Susan, why don't you go in the kitchen and get yourself a, a glass of milk. I'll be right in in a few minutes." Rebekah said quickly. She had a bad feeling about this and wanted to get Susan away from it.

"Mother--"

"Susan, please. Don't argue." Rebekah said in a firmer tone.

Susan sighed. "Okay..." And scooping up her bookbag, she walked into the kitchen.

As soon as Rebekah was sure Susan was out of earshot, Rebekah turned to Ariel and went over to Miranda. "What *happened*...?" she pleaded, taking a seat on the side of Miranda opposite Ariel.

"Some of the kids saw Nathan die, and it didn't go as quickly and gently as anybody thought," Ariel whispered back.

Miranda looked up from where she sat and her eyes went wide as she saw Tracy. "What the... why's *she* here?" She stared at Tracy. This was the last place she'd expected Capri to bring her.

Tracy, for once, didn't have a smart retort, she just bit her lip and looked over at Capri. Better to let her handle this, she thought.

Capri had taken more than she could stand already that day, and she was feeling pretty lousy and in no mood to make any explanations. Face flushing, eyes rolling, she was unable to keep the exasperation out of her voice. "Fer cryin out loud, gimme a bloody break!" and before Pippi could stop her, she pulled away and headed into the kitchen.

"I'm sorry Miranda, but Tracy will be staying in the next house since she doesn't have any other place right now. She'll be moved in there as soon as I'm sure Capri will be all right."

Miranda shook her head, not liking this turn of events at all, but too upset to argue, she didn't answer.

Donna barely noticed the entire exchange, all she could do was hold on to Kendra and cry.

And most of the rest of that day was spent with everyone trying to get some much needed rest, and help Donna and Miranda and NT deal with what they'd seen.

* * * * *

About noon, the next day...

NT and Donna were talking and holding Mia down in the basement when they heard a knock on the door.

NT got up and opened it. "Oh, hi Capri."

"Hey NT, can I borrow Donna for a while?"

When Donna saw Capri, she went almost white.

Capri looked at Donna. "We gotta talk, now."

Donna bit her lip, nodded, but glanced to NT, who smiled back as if to say, "There's nothing to be so scared about."

Donna looked at the floor, waiting for the explosion.

"C'mon up ta the living room." Capri said, and she started up the steps, looking back over her shoulder to make Sure Donna followed.

Donna followed Capri. When she entered the room and saw Shawn was also there, she paused and went pale, glancing nervously from him to Capri.

"Better tell 'im yer sorry 'bout what ya did with 'is magic in court an' that ya won't do anythin like that again." Capri said simply. "Ya scared us all ta death in there an' unless it's fer the other person's own good, er self defense, ya must never manipulate another person's magic like that."

Donna nodded and forced herself to look up at Shawn, tears starting to show on her face. "I...I'm...sorry. Shawn, I really am." Then she couldn't hold back any more and started crying in earnest.

Capri put a hand on her shoulder, "there, there." As she did that, Shawn joined her, putting a hand on Donna's other shoulder.

"I...just wanted them...to know...they'd never use me again. I wanted them to know that before the end." Donna sobbed. "And it seemed, after that letter--there wasn't any other way to end it." She raised tear filled eyes to Capri. "Why d-didn't you let me finish them?"

"Well, ya know what NT's been tellin ya all along that 'avin magic don't make ya a bad person, an' ya realize ya didn't even get the magic from them two in the first place."

"I *know* that!" Donna cried, but Capri continued before she could say more.

"I didn't let ya finish 'em fer the same reason I couldn't let NT er Shawn. Ya got yer mothers ta think about an' they jus' don't want ya doin anythin...gory."

"They...they never r-raped or used NT. She...she just knows what he did to Ariel, that's all." Donna sobbed.

"They didn't directly use NT, but she came about because o' what they did ta Ariel, an' she's suffered 'causa that too." Capri sighed. "Anyway it ain't what ya almost did ta Tompkins that bothers me. It's what ya were gonna do t'yerself."

Donna looked up at Capri, tears really streaming now.

Shawn cut in. "What about what he did to Mother, not to mention me? That was why I wanted to finish him."

"I know, Shawn, but I couldn't go against yer mother an' let ya do 'im in. That woulda killed 'er...'ard ta understand as that is."

Shawn shook his head. "As much hell as he put her through..."

"It just goes ta show ya 'ow much she cares for ya." Capri replied. But before she could say more, Donna interrupted.

"I...I'm still not sure I sh-shouldn't. You heard him...that part wasn't a lie. About my b-being the last one with all their magic. And what have I d-done with it? Just hurt everyone around me. Including Shawn." Donna cried.

Shawn bit back a curse. "That sounds just like Mother a few weeks ago, damn it. I wouldn't take it from her and I won't take it from you either!" he cried, then broke off, not knowing what else to say, only that he couldn't let Donna go on like this. He looked desperately at Capri for some help.

But Capri had no intention of letting Donna fall into despair, and she gave Donna's shoulder a slight squeeze, talking firmly but gently so that Donna would have to listen, but without being afraid. "Now now, tha's enough feelin sorry fer yerself. Yer a Shelley, ya got magic, an' there ain't no crime in that. Ya did misuse it at the end o' the trial but ya know better now. An' yer not gonna go through life without makin mistakes. It ain't yer magic er yer name that makes ya do things, it's you. An' yer gonna do some right things an' some wrong things just like everybody else an' it ain't accomplishin anythin kickin yerself over the past. what matters is ya didn't kill yerself, yer still 'ere,"

Capri patted Donna affirmatively on the shoulder as she said this, and continued. "An' now that them two're gone ya can get a fair shake at gettin back ta some kinda normal...an not jus' you either." Capri grinned and indicated herself, then, "Eh, Shawn?"

Shawn nodded and smiled. "And Mother, too. Especially her. As much of a hell as Tompkins put me through, what he did to her was a lot worse."

Donna blinked back tears, and looked from one to the other, shaking her head. "I...want to. God help me, I do. But..." she took a deep breath, "I...I've been so afraid for so long...I'm not sure I know how not to be anymore." she sighed again. "I can't even get to sleep without seeing them in my d-dreams."

"From what Pippi says Ameh still gets the odd dream although they got less frequent once Ameh started lettin 'erself trust Pippi an' makin new friends. NT still gets terrible bad dreams 'causa everythin wha's 'appened in 'er life too but they ain't as frequent no more. All that fear ain't gonna go away overnight but tha's natural. Anyway yer not alone no more an' we gonna be there to 'elp ya so jus' give yerself an' us time an' a chance."

Donna sniffled and looked up at Capri, then at Shawn...and was too choked up to speak. She could only hug both of them.