Title: Just the Beginning
E-mail: Joey@Ram32.freeserve.co.uk; Mystique_Kat@yahoo.co.uk
Rating: High PG-15, Mild R.
Spoilers: The Beast Within, various others through the four seasons.
Disclaimer: Poltergeist: The Legacy, and its characters are owned by Trilogy, 
MGM, Showtime and probably others that have nothing to do with me. This is 
written purely for entertainment, and no money is being made off of this, no 
infringement is intended. But if you don't want people writing fanfiction, 
cancelling the series was the wrong thing to do. 
Contents: Post episode for The Beast Within. Contains Mild Alex/Nick 
romance, general friendship and angst.
Summary: First in our own demented virtual season: The aftermath of the 
explosion leaves a lot to be repaired. 
NOTES: The first story in our alternate virtual season and the first ever P:TL 
fic either of us has written. So bear in mind, some of the characterisations 
may be a little… off. And we haven't actually *seen* the season final yet, we're 
going off spoilers and things like that. So forgive us for any mistakes. To join 
our insanity or let us know how we're doing or where you think we should go, 
you can e-mail us above or join our little list. Details are available at 
http://www.geocities.com/mystique_kat
 
*~* *~*
Extract from the journal of Alexandra Moreau:

It's a human folly, a common flaw in all mankind that tragically exists and 
plagues us all. Even those amongst us who truly believe, at the time, that the 
words we speak are true and eternal. Confusing lust with love leads to joy on 
very few occasions. For most of us, it is a mistake that leads to much 
heartache. My mistake could cause my 'family' so much pain, pain from which 
we may never fully recover. 
But I know now, in my heart, that although I said one thing with words, 
feelings never lie. And no matter what I said to Derek on that fateful night, no 
matter what I wrote in this very journal, my feelings for Nick are strong and 
true. They are not brought on by childish dreams and fantasies of what might 
have been created in a moment of despair. They are here constantly, within 
me, growing with every beat of my heart. I just hope that my conflicted actions 
have not severed the bonds between us all, and that I can be someday forgiven 
for what I have done.
I once wrote within these pages that Derek was my one and only true love. I 
was wrong, perhaps lying to myself, seeking comfort, and trying to deny that 
he had gone to his death believing a lie. I can now say, with a certainty like no 
other I have felt, that my heart belongs to Nick and it is only he that can make 
me complete and breathe life into my now broken soul.

*~*
Angel Island, a month after the explosion and the above journal entry.

The re-building of the San Francisco house was almost complete. The Luna 
Foundation was suffering the loss of Derek Rayne, the San Francisco house's 
precept. He was going to be greatly missed, especially within the 'family' that 
had existed and blossomed under his watchful and caring eye.

Alexandra Moreau stood alone, her reddish-brown curls getting violently 
whipped around her face by the relentless winds. Her brown eyes started 
sightlessly at the building before her and she somehow managed to forget that 
she wasn't entirely alone, that the house was swarming with people trying to 
get the house finished by the deadline of Friday. ~Friday the 13th~, she 
thought with a humourless smile. ~Ironic.~ Ironic that the day linked with 
superstition would be the day the house was officially re-opened for business. 
Ironic that everyone was putting in so much effort to get everything back to 
normal. How could it ever be normal? Derek was gone.

No body had been found but then the house had been engulfed with flames, so 
intense that everything in their path had been devoured and destroyed. Her 
sigh was carried on the wind as she dug her hands down deeper into the 
pockets of her black leather jacket.

" Alex? Honey, you okay?" Dr. Rachel Corrigan spoke up, having been 
watching the young woman from a distance for quite some time. " You said 
you'd be back in an hour."

Startled, Alex jumped, frowning slightly as she looked at her watch. Time had 
slipped away from her; she had been lost in her thoughts for well over two 
hours. " Oh, Rachel. I'm sorry, I don't know where I was."

Rachel gave her friend a sympathetic but knowing smile as she wrapped an 
arm around Alex's waist. " It's okay, you're entitled to spend sometime alone 
but I thought you might want to talk? You're troubled by something.. We're 
worried about you, Alex. You've been so distant.."

A pained look crossed Alex's face. " I can't.. I don't know what it is, Rachel," 
Alex sighed heavily. She shook her head, her curls bobbing around her face as 
she did so. " I can't help but think Derek's still alive, that he's going to just 
reappear at any moment and tell us to get back to work. Something doesn't sit 
right about his death but at the same time, I know he couldn't have survived 
the explosion."

" Alex.." Rachel bit her lip and nodded slightly, either at her own thoughts or 
at Alex's statement. She stopped walking and turned to her friend with a 
serious but concerned look on her face. " I know something happened between 
you and Derek.. If you want to talk about it, I'm here for you. I can't promise 
talking will make it go away but I can promise to listen and keep it between 
the two of us."

Her brown eyes clouded over with tears as Alex stared into Rachel's 
understanding blue eyes. " Oh, God," Alex choked out, almost throwing herself 
at her friend, sinking into the embrace as sobs wracked her tall but slender 
frame. " I'm so ashamed. I.. I didn't mean to.. I didn't.. He.. Oh, God, what 
did I do?"

Bewildered, Rachel rocked the younger woman in her arms, not knowing 
exactly what Alex was talking about but knowing all she needed to – whatever 
Alex had kept hidden in the weeks that had followed Derek's death, it was 
ever-so-slowly eating her up inside. " Let it out, Sweetie. Just let it all out." It 
took all of half an hour for Alex to compose herself enough to tell her story. 
She revealed to Rachel her last exchange with Derek, telling her how they had 
spoken of their feelings and how they had kissed. Rachel was a little surprised 
but had known all along the relationship Derek and Alex shared was unique. 
Then Alex went on to tell Rachel of the guilt that had caused her such turmoil 
over the recent weeks, both women unaware the conversation was being 
listened to by an unwelcome and uninvited guest.

" Ok, I an see why you wouldn't be feeling a little guilty but you haven't done 
anything wrong, Alex," Rachel finally spoke after taking a few minutes for the 
information to be digested. " You were worried and scared and there was 
probably a lot of adrenaline in both of your systems. I can assure you, Derek 
wouldn't have any bad feelings towards you if.. if he was still here. He cared 
about you, Sweetheart, but he would understand.. The things you said were 
said in the heat of the moment.. You didn't have time to think about them 
properly, you were probably confused.."

" Confusion doesn't excuse blatant lying," Alex retorted, her contempt aimed 
only at herself. ! I led him to believe I had feelings for him, I led myself to 
believe it until I re-lived the whole thing in my dreams and.. and.." She 
faltered and buried her face in her hands.

Rachel looked at her expectantly. " And what?"

Her hands muffled her reply. " Instead of Derek, it was Nick. And because I 
told Nick I loved him, and meant it, he survived the fire."

The women fell silent. The only sounds to be heard were those of nature. The 
wind in the trees, the rustling of leaves and the calling of the birds to one 
another. Alex's arms dropped from her face and hung loosely at her sides. She 
looked dejected, lost. ~Oh, way to go, Alex,~ she chided herself. ~Now 
Rachel blames you, too.~

" I.." Rachel stopped, losing her train of thought. Her brow furrowed as she 
stared at her friend in concern, feeling the waves of self-hate and disgust 
radiate from Alex. " Oh, Alex. The dream didn't mean that you're responsible 
for Derek's death, that's irrational.  If anything, it was a way for your 
subconscious to make you realise how deeply you care for Nick and how 
worried you are something will happen to him."

" But what if it's more than that? What if I could have, in some way, 
prevented Derek's death?" Alex asked, beginning to pace, all common sense 
and the ability for rational thought failing her. Guilt and self-doubt had taken 
hold and were not planning on letting her go anytime soon. " I could have told 
him to stay, could have stayed with him.."

" Derek did what he had to do," Rachel retorted, fearing for her friend. ~Oh, 
God. We've lost Derek, please don't let us lose Alex as well.~ " You couldn't 
have stopped it anymore than the rest of us. Don't beat yourself up, Alex. 
Please, it's not your fault."

Something caught Alex's attention. It wasn't a movement, or a sound, or a 
smell; it was a feeling. Just the sense that there was someone or something 
else out there, watching, waiting. Calling her. She narrowed her eyes, her 
reply distracted when it came. " Hmm. Maybe, Rachel. Maybe." She snapped 
out of the trance she was in and turned to her friend with a weak smile. " 
Thanks, for listening. I guess I just needed to get it off my chest. Share it with 
someone before I could let the thought go."

" Good," Rachel smiled and nodded, although part of her remained 
unconvinced. " Well, I'm glad I could help." She linked her arm through Alex's 
as they started walking back towards the house. Even though it wouldn't be 
officially 'open for business' until Friday, the three remaining Legacy members 
of the San Francisco house had returned a few days ago. " So, have you had 
anymore dreams you'd like to talk to me about?"

" You mean any about Nick that I want to share?" Despite her sour mood, 
Alex smiled knowingly at the mischievous sparkle in her friend's eyes. " No, 
Rachel. There's only been one dream, *that* dream."

" But you like him, right?" Rachel teased gently. " I mean, really *really* like 
him?"

Alex paused for only a second before a faint, dreamy smile played on her lips. 
" Yes, I do. I really do," she added quietly, almost to herself.

The sound of girlish giggling followed them back to the house. Before following 
Rachel over the threshold and into the building, Alex turned back to the 
forest, sensing an intense gaze burning into her back. Her eyes narrowed as 
she scanned the horizon.

Nothing. Nothing at all.
Not even the wind through the trees or the call of one wild animal to another. 
Nothing. It was silent, eerily silent. Too silent.

Dismissing the thoughts with a shake of her head, Alex turned slowly and went 
into the house, shutting the heavy wooden door behind her. Shutting it outside 
until another day. Another time. Soon.

*~*

" Tell me again why we can't open for business until Friday even though 
everything's in its place?" Nicholas Boyle, the ex-Seal and current precept of 
the San Francisco house asked suddenly, the pitch of his tone near that of a 
whine. 

Rolling her eyes, Rachel looked up from her book, where she was sitting on 
the couch, to where the young man was sprawled out in one of the new 
armchairs. He had a glass in his hand with ice cubes that rattled against the 
side as he brought the probably alcoholic clear liquid to his lips. " Shouldn't 
you be taking advantage of having some time off? I'm taking Kat to Florida for 
a few days. Maybe you could help me persuade Alex and the two of you could 
join us? We could all use some time to re-group."

" You need to spend some time alone with Kat. Alex and I talked about it and 
agreed we should let you guys be alone since Legacy business takes you away 
from her too often," Nick responded with a small smile. " We'll be fine rattling 
inside here. It's only for four days, right?"

" Right," Rachel agreed with a nod.  She titled her head to one side, a serious 
expression on her face. " Nick? How are you coping? With.. with everything?"

He swallowed another mouthful, feeling the alcohol burn its way down his 
throat. " I'm good.. I'm doing good. It's been over a month, I'm dealing with 
it." He paused, running his index finger around the rim of his glass. " How 
'bout you? And Kat?"

" We're okay," Rachel smiled weakly. " It's been hard, Derek was like a father 
to Kat but we're okay now. Kat just wants to remember him as the great man 
he was." Her expression darkened silently. " Alex is still having difficulty 
coming to terms with it."

" I know." Nick sobered up instantly, the numbness of the alcohol he'd 
consumed wearing off quickly as though someone had thrown a bucket of ice-
cold water over his head. " She won't talk about it."

" Not even when you went to New Orleans?" Rachel pressed. She had often 
wondered if anything had happened or been said between her two colleagues 
when they had spent a week in New Orleans after Derek's death, staying in 
the house Alex had inherited from her Grandma Rose earlier on in the year.

Nick shook his head. " She kept to herself. She wasn't very talkative, wasn't 
sleeping or eating well. Whenever I tried to talk to her, she'd go out for a 
walk." He looked up from the glass optimistically. " I thought she'd been doing 
better since we came back here. Has she said anything to you?"

" Not much," Rachel murmured, feeling uncomfortable at the small lie. " Just 
keep an eye on her while I'm gone. And call if there is any problem, no matter 
how small, okay?"

" Yes, Mom," Nick answered teasingly. " We promise to be on our best 
behaviour until you come back." He glanced at the clock on the mantel, 
donated by one of the other Legacy households. " Speaking of Alex, is she still 
in the library sorting out those books?" 

" She was last time I saw her," Rachel nodded, noting his concern and hiding 
her smile.  She closed her book and stood up, stretching slightly. " I have to 
leave early in the morning so I should give Kat a call and get some sleep. 
Sweet dreams, Nick."

" You, too, Rachel!" Nick called after her. He waited a few minutes before 
getting up and heading towards the library. He looked down at the ring on his 
finger. He knew Alex had often over-worked herself whilst Derek had been in 
charge but things were different now. Derek wasn't there and he was in 
charge at the moment.  ~Alex doesn't need a boss right now,~ he told himself 
firmly. ~She needs a friend.~

*~*
The newly re-modelled library was identical to the last one. Nick paused in the 
doorway, looking around at the walls lined with books and the big oak desk in 
the centre of the room. He felt a slight shiver work it's way down this spine as 
he realised just how much like the old library this new one was. 

A small frown marred his brow as he saw the object of his detour sitting on 
the floor near one of the lower bookshelves, her expression forlorn as she 
flicked half-heartedly through the pages of a book. Pasting the best stern 
expression he had on his face, he made his way to stand beside her. He waked 
quietly, careful not to disturb her until he placed a hand on her shoulder, 
kneeling to be at her eye-length. He couldn't stop the slight grin from turning 
up his lips as she jumped at the contact, a startled expression on her face. " 
Hey." The stood up together and he saw she looked a little meek at being 
caught working when she had promised not to. " Burning the midnight oil? I 
thought everything was done?"

" I was just checking everything was in the right place.. So when we need 
something, we can find it easily," Alex answered, blushing slightly. He nodded 
although the look he gave her clearly stated he didn't believe her, that she had 
been caught trying to avoid going to bed. She put a hand on her hip in a 
defensive posture. " Well, what are you doing still up at this time?"

" There are certain responsibilities the precept has to…" He started with a 
chuckle, only to be cut off in the middle of his excuse.

She rolled her eyes. " You are loving this new position, aren't you?" She shook 
her head and feigned a long-suffering sigh. " You can't wait to put your new-
found control into practice over us mere mortals, can you?"

" You got me." He held his hands up in mock-surrender. He continued with a 
sly grin. " But since I am the boss… I'm ordering you to go and get some sleep. 
So *go*."

" Nick, I appreciate the concern but…" She sighed heavily and looked down at 
the book in her hands and then back up at him. 

" No buts, Alex." He refused to be swayed by the pleading look in her eyes, no 
matter how tempting it was to let her win. He took the book from her hands 
and set it down on the table as he led her by the hand over to it. " You need to 
get to sleep." Seeing her roll her eyes, Nick decided to try a different tact and 
reverse the tables so he was the one wearing the pleading puppy-dog 
expression she knew well. " Please? We're worried about you."

Alex shot him an annoyed look, folding her arms across her chest defensively, 
fighting the pout she could feel coming on. It wouldn't do to act all sullen as a 
child, she knew it would only encourage him further. " That seems to be the 
running theme of the day. I'm a big girl, Nick. I can look after myself."

" I know that, Alex. But you've been through a lot this year, we all have." He 
kept his voice soothing and gentle, still working on the pleading tone to go 
with his expression. " Please, just humour me? Just get some sleep and leave 
some work for everyone else to do."

She tilted her head to one side. " You're not going to take no for an answer, 
are you?"

" Not a chance," he answered, flashing her a charming grin. " I'll stand outside 
your room all night if I have to."

She sighed again, knowing the threat rang true. He would, she remembered he 
had done it before. Once, a long time ago." Fine. You win." She narrowed her 
eyes warily. " You're enjoying this way too much."

" Guilty as charged," he acknowledged with a grin as he lead her from the 
room, using a gentle hand at the small of her back.

Alex smiled slyly, a mischievous sparkle shining in the depth of her eyes. " You 
know, no one likes it when they have a gloater for a boss."

" Then it's a good job I'm off-the-clock and just being a gloating friend, isn't it?" 
His teasing response floated back into the room as they left, ascending the 
stairs to their rooms.

In the darkness of the library, the book Nick had pried from Alex's hands rose 
in the air, seemingly on it's own. It opened, as though someone was reading it 
and a breeze turned the pages rapidly. As it was laid back on the tabletop by 
the unseen force, a pair of greenish-yellow eyes glowed and peered through 
the window. They flashed twice as they took in the empty room and then 
faded, disappearing into nothingness.

*~*

The morning brought the first of many surprises to the Legacy member's 
attention. Instead of the clear blue skies they had been expecting, they each 
awoke to find the skies grey, growing darker with every passing hour. The 
wind blew fiercely through the trees as a crack of thunder and flash of lighting 
tore open the heavens above, sending a torrent of rain their way.

" I don't understand it," Rachel was saying as she walked down the stairs with 
Alex, Nick following the two ladies close behind. " There was no storm 
warning yesterday when I went to bed. How did it get here so fast?"

" Hopefully our new gadgets will be able to tell us that," Nick responded 
optimistically. " It was a good idea to get the satellite link-up installed in the 
new control room." He gave Alex a quick glance, remembering that it had 
been her idea to update their new control room with new technology whilst at 
the same time, keeping the same general layout as the old one so they could 
find their way around it. " Good thinking, Alex."

" Thank you," Alex murmured quietly, distractedly, her mind very obviously 
somewhere else.

Nick reached out to put a hand on her arm, his brow furrowed with concern. " 
You ok?"

" Fine. Perfect. Just peachy," Alex muttered sarcastically, ducking her head so 
they wouldn't see the dark smudges under her eyes. She hadn't slept very well 
at all, her mind haunted by vibrant and disjointed images that made no sense 
but which filled her with terror. She quickened her pace to avoid any further 
questioning and walked through the holographic wall into the control room.

Her friends stood and watched her go before exchanging confused glances. " 
What's up with her?" Nick finally spoke after a moment's silence, his concern 
mingling with exasperation. Alex's reluctance to talk to him, to open up, was 
starting to get to him, as was the worry that there was something very wrong 
with her.

" I'll try talking to her again later," Rachel responded with a confused look. 
She gave Nick a suspicious sidelong look, knowing he had been the last person 
to speak to Alex last night before they'd all retired for the night. " You didn't 
say anything to upset her last night, did you?"

" Me?" Nick looked genuinely surprised. " How could I upset her?" Rachel 
didn't answer, not in words. She shook her head, her blond hair falling about 
her shoulders as she pondered his obliviousness as she took the path their 
friend had taken a few minutes earlier. Nick watched, slightly perplexed. " 
Women!" He threw his hands up in the air, hoping that when they were 
assigned a new member to the house it was a man, even if whoever it was did 
insist on taking over as precept. He had thought he could handle the job, and 
being out-weighed by the women, but it was just giving him a huge headache.

As he started towards the control room, he heard the stairs creak behind him. 
In the old house, he wouldn't have thought twice about it but with this one 
being new... There were no old floorboards and he didn't want to ignore it 
only to find it was a water pipe or something under strain. Nick stifled a 
shudder at the thought of Rachel and Alex stuck in the house during a storm 
with no hot water and turned in the direction he believed the noise originated. 
Darkness was the only thing he saw as something solid was brought down on 
the back of his neck, hard. 

*~*

Alex sat at one of the computer consoles and was already accessing the 
appropriate programs when Rachel came into the room. Rachel walked over to 
her friend and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, offering her silent 
support in whatever inner demons Alex was trying to fight. Alex looked up for 
a second, giving her a small and grateful smile as she tucked a stray curl 
behind her ear and turned her attention back to the screen in front of her. She 
didn't even look up when Nick stepped through the wall, causing it to ripple 
slightly, a dazed expression on his face.

" So what do we have?" Nick spoke up when Rachel looked at him expectantly.

For a moment, the only sound was that of Alex typing on the keyboard and 
clicking the mouse, bringing up some images on the screen. " I'm not sure…" 
She spoke up eventually. " This can't be right…"

" What can't be right?" Nick moved to stand closer to the two women, 
hovering just to their side. 

" This." Alex motioned to the screen. " It just seems to appear from thing air. 
One minute it was all clear, the next we have a major storm on our hands." 
She looked up, confusion set in her features. " According to this, the storm 
isn't affecting anywhere else. Just the island."

" So… We're isolated?" Rachel asked, trying and failing to keep the alarm 
from her voice and off her face. " No way of getting off or on the island?" Alex 
nodded her head in confirmation.

" Why do I get the feeling this means the evil guys won't wait till Friday to get 
back to business? Don't they know the meaning of the word vacation?" Nick 
murmured with a sigh, raising his eyes heaven-wards as if to question the 
powers that be.

Rachel allowed herself a small smile. " Apparently not." Her smile faded as she 
thought of her daughter and how disappointed Kat was going to be. " I guess 
this means I should phone Kat and tell her we're not going to Florida."

" Sorry, Rachel." Alex looked up with an apologetic look, knowing all-too-well 
how much her friend had been looking forward to some quality time with her 
daughter. ~If it's not one thing, it's another,~ Alex thought with a sigh. ~Poor 
Kat, she was looking forward to having her Mom to herself without any 
distractions.~

" Nothing for you to be sorry for, Alex," Rachel murmured with a heavy sigh of 
her own. She had been planning on talking to Kat some more about Derek's 
death, and hoping that Alex and Nick would do the same in her absence. "You 
had nothing to do with it. I'll be back in a few minutes." She left the room, 
putting on a brave face and hoping she could allay some of her daughter's 
worries Kat found out her mother and the two other people she loved dearly 
were on an island in the middle of a storm with no hope of assistance should 
they need it.

Alex was so intent on staring at the screen she missed the momentary flash of 
green in Nick's eyes. The young man grinned wickedly to himself as he 
approached, taking up the space Rachel's had vacated with a chair as he sat 
close to Alex. Very close. " You have any idea what's causing this?"

" Not at the moment. Have you?" Alex replied immediately, becoming more 
and more engrossed in her work.

" Nope." He stared at her intently, wiping the grin from his face so his 
expression was blank, noncommittal. 

Alex finally became aware of his gaze on her, feeling her face grow warm 
under the intensity. She turned to face him, looking quizzical, wondering if 
there was something she had missed. " What?"

" Nothing," he responded evenly, keeping his gaze locked on hers, not giving 
anything away in his tone or expression. 

" Nick! What are you staring at?" She snapped with frustration.

" You," he answered with the smallest of humourless smiles. He paused as she 
looked at him sceptically. " Just wondering if you slept well last night."

She shifted uncomfortably in her chair, her nerve ends tingling, screaming at 
her that something wasn't quite right. " Why?"

" Because I'm not blind, Al. I care about you. I can see the worry in Rachel's 
eyes and the exhaustion in your face." His tone was calm and soothing, his 
eyes burning into her, the expression he wore hypnotic as he seemingly tried 
to put her in a trance. " Why can't you talk to me about it? We're friends, 
aren't we?"

" Of course we are, Nick…" She answered warily, feeling herself being drawn 
closer. She froze when he reached his hand out towards her, unprepared for 
the gentle touch of his icy hand against her cheek. Images and visions 
bombarded her mind. She saw Nick, injured and tied up. There was someone 
leaning over him, as the image sharpened, she saw it was Nick, again, but 
instinctively knew it wasn't him, before his eyes flashed evilly and gave the 
game away. The dread in her stomach uncoiled and seemed to grow, 
suffocating her as she flinched, brought back to the present with a thud. She 
knew this Nick wasn't *her* Nick and pulled away completely, jumping to her 
feet. 

" What is it, Alex?" 'Nick' asked casually, drawing the words out with feigned 
innocence. " You okay, honey? You look like you've seen a ghost."

" No ghost," Alex hissed, backing away. " Just a demon."

" A demon?" Nick, or the being disguised as being Nick, chuckled dryly. " You 
flatter me, Al. And crack me up *so* much."

" If you're not a demon, what are you and what have you done to Nick?" Alex 
continued backing away, edging ever-so-slightly towards the holographic wall.

The demon's only reaction was to throw his head back and laugh wickedly, 
sending shivers that had nothing to do with the temperature running down her 
spine. When he stopped, he got to his feet and took a step towards her, a 
menacing expression on his – Nick's – distorted face. " Don't worry, your 
precious Nick is fine." He grinned sardonically, his eyes glowing. " Which is 
more than we can say for Derek now, isn't it, Al? You remember him, don't 
you? The man you sent to his death believing a lie. A lie that killed him."

" No!" Alex shouted, backing into the hallway. Tears stung her eyes as she 
realised there was the possibility this *thing* had been responsible for some of 
the nightmares and self-doubt she'd been experiencing. Maybe the seed of guilt 
had already been there and this *creature* had nurtured it until it plagued her 
every hour, night and day. " That's not true." She paused for a moment, 
wondering where to run to, wondering if Rachel or even Nick would hear her. 
" Rachel! Nick! Where are you guys?"

The demon cackled, continuing to advance towards her. " They can't hear you, 
Al. It's just you and me now."

On hearing the words she dreaded, Alex turned her back to him and prepared 
to run. It was her first mistake, taking her eyes off her opponent. In the blink 
of an eye, the demon was standing in front of her, blocking her escape. She 
had time to gasp once before he struck her with some unseen object and she 
crumpled to the floor, darkness her only companion.

*~*

" Alex? Come on, Honey, wake up." The familiar voice was soft but urgent. 
Alex groaned as a wave of consciousness washed over her. She opened her 
eyes groggily, closing them quickly when all she saw were bright lights and fast 
moving blurred objects. " Alex? Open your eyes, it's okay now." 

Cautiously, she half-opened one eye, waiting until her vision was a little clearer 
before opening it fully and attempting to open the other. When she saw Nick 
peering over her, she let her eyelids slide shut with another groan. " Not 
again," she murmured, her throbbing head putting her in no mood for another 
confrontation. 

" It's really me, Alex, I promise," Nick insisted, leaning over her as he tried to 
see the cut on her forehead. A thin trail of blood still flowed constantly 
although at first, it hadn't looked that deep. " I need you to trust me and open 
your eyes. Please?"

Slowly, Alex did as she was asked. She tried to sit up, moving her hair from 
her face with one hand as she did. " The only reason I believe you is because 
your eyes aren't glowing and you haven't called me 'Al' yet."

" 'Al'?" He arched an eyebrow, helping her sit up as he supported her back. " 
He called you 'Al'?"

" Yeah." She looked around the dark – and small – room, realising for the first 
time how cramped it was. " Where are we? Where's Rachel?"

" I think we're in the pantry. It's cold, small, dark and has a strange smell," he 
answered. " Sounds like the pantry to me." He paused and joined her in 
glancing round. " I don't know where Rachel is. With a bit of luck, she's safe, 
talking to Kat so whatever this thing is can't get her without raising the alarm."

The door opened, bathing them in an unkind light. A figure appeared in the 
doorway and was roughly pushed in their direction. The blond hair glinted in 
the light just as the door was closed and they knew it was Rachel just moments 
before she landed on them.

" Then again, maybe not," Alex muttered, wincing slightly as she moved her 
head too quickly when she and Nick eased Rachel onto her back so her head 
could rest comfortably in Alex's lap. " There's no blood," she murmured, 
looking up at Nick as her friend tentatively got to his feet. " I don't know if 
that's a good thing or… Nick?" She frowned slightly as he started rummaging 
around, searching the shelves for something. " What are you looking for?"

" I don't know…" Nick admitted, preoccupied. " Something we could use as a 
weapon… Something to put on your head to stop the bleeding."

" Oh, yeah." Alex smiled a little dazedly. " I forgot about that." Shaking her 
head, she snapped out of it as pain swept through her. " Ooh, okay. That was 
a bad idea," she muttered, turning her attention back to their unconscious 
friend and colleague. " Hey, Rachel. Wake up for me. Come on, you've got to 
wake up."

It was a few minutes before Rachel began to stir. Her eyelids fluttered open as 
she came round with a small, disorientated cry. She half-groaned, half-
grumbled as she struggled to sit up, looking a little dazed and suspicious. " 
What's going on?" Her suspicion turned to concern as she took in her friend's 
appearance. " Alex? What happened? Are you okay?"

" Not particularly," Alex murmured, her stomach churning as she brought her 
hand to her forehead and saw it was damp when she pulled it away, her 
fingers coated in a dark, sticky liquid. " And in answer to your first question, 
there's a demon on the loose who seems to now be in control of the house. 
Damn! I can't believe we let this happen!"

" Let what happen?" Nick asked as he sat down beside them. His exploration 
had turned up nothing, so he started tearing a strip of material from his t-shirt. 
" We couldn't have seen this happening, Alex. Quit beating yourself up about 
everything and hold still."

Alex didn't answer. Her eyes closed as he pressed the cloth to her head, 
applying little pressure but enough to make lights flare from behind her closed 
eyes. Alex groaned in pain, no matter how had she tried not to, and went back 
against him when he urged her to. One eye opened in time to see Rachel sit up 
and start to take over the ministrations. " What happened to you anyway, 
Rachel? Who was the demon when he attacked you?"

" Well, I thought it *was* Nick until he started to say some… un-Nick-like 
things," Rachel murmured, her attention drawn to tending to her friend's 
injury. " Did you see what you were hit with? This is pretty deep, Alex."

" I didn't see anything," Alex answered softly. " One minute he was behind me, 
the next he was in front of me with whatever he hit me with."

Rachel fussed over her for a few more minutes until she was satisfied that the 
bleeding had slowed a little. Only then did she pull back and give Alex some 
space so she could pull away from Nick and sit up on her own. " So what do 
we do now?" Rachel spoke up as Alex tried to get into a relatively comfortable 
position.

" There's not much we can do," Nick responded evenly. " We can wait till 'he' 
decides to let us out or we can try to escape. But then what will we do if either 
of those things happens? He either comes for us and kills us or whatever he's 
planning. Or we go to him and risk walking into a trap. Problem is, even if we 
do get out of here without him knowing, what do we do? We can't get off the 
island until the storm calms down."

" So basically, we're like sitting ducks in the water?" Alex stated bluntly. " 
Unless…" Her brow creased in concentration as her fog-addled brain 
attempted to look past the dull-throbbing in her head and put everything in 
perspective. 

" Unless what?" Rachel prompted when Alex grew distant. " Alex?"

Blinking, Alex looked a little startled at being brought out from the solitude of 
her thoughts. " Oh, right, sorry," she apologised sheepishly. " I was going to 
say that the storm might not exist. It might be a delusion caused by whatever 
that thing is keeping us here…"

" But we heard the thunder and saw the lightening and the rain…" Rachel 
started to protest.

Nick, who was following Alex's train of thought, cut her off. " But we haven't 
tried to go out in it or see if it's just localised to the house or whether it covers 
the whole island and the route from the island to the main land."

" Exactly!" Alex agreed enthusiastically, her face becoming more animate as 
her eyes lit up with something that looked like hope.

A laugh from the direction of the door alerted them to the fact they weren't 
alone. All three were startled to find the door open and the demon – still 
imitating Nick –standing there, his eyes glowing ominously. " Very clever, Al. 
I'm impressed." His grin faded and his eyes narrowed as Nick – the real Nick – 
tensed and put a protective hand on Alex's arm. " Okay, the holiday's over. 
Everybody up and out."

" Why should we listen to you?" Nick spat out, his eyes narrowing.

The demon grinned enigmatically. " Because I have all the power and if you 
don't…" His eyes narrowed as he concentrated hard. A blast of energy flew at 
Nick, its power lifting him slightly and throwing him hard against the shelved 
wall whilst seemingly leaving Rachel and Alex unaffected.

" Nick!" Both women cried out, wincing in sympathy at the speed and strength 
Nick hit the shelves, their eyes growing wide as items fell off the shelves and 
down onto him. Alex turned to the demon with a glare as Rachel hurried to 
check on their friend. Alex's gasp drew Rachel's attention away from Nick and 
she did a double take on finding herself looking at Alex… and herself.

With a groan, Nick stirred and opened his eyes. He blinked slowly and lifted 
his head up, looking from Rachel, to Alex and the other Rachel and back 
again. " What the…? Am I seeing double?"

" Oh, Nick." The demon 'Rachel' fluttered her eyelashes and tossed her hair 
over her shoulder, a sickly sweet smile arranging her lips. " I do hope I didn't 
hurt you." 'She' grinned at Alex and tilted her head to one side. " I didn't mean 
to…"

On shaky legs, Alex got to her feet and glared venomously at the 'Rachel' in 
front of her. " What do you want with us? If you wanted us dead, you could 
have killed us when we were alone instead of throwing us together in here."

" But that would be no fun." The demon pouted as it 'morphed' into Alex, 
playing with a loose curl. " What's the point in simply killing you when I can 
get you to kill each other?"

" Not gonna happen," Nick muttered through gritted teeth as everything swam 
before his eyes. Rachel helped him to his feet and he found himself leaning 
heavily against her.

'Alex' chuckled and reached out to grab the other Alex, pulling her to stand at 
her side. " Can you tell the difference, Nick? The only way to banish the evil 
'twin' if you like, is to use the dagger of Mikita. Make the wrong decision and 
sweet little Alex dies before your very eyes at your hand…" She smiled 
brightly. " Now wouldn't that be tragic?"

" Let. Alex. Go." Nick seethed through gritted teeth as the demon tightened 
her hold on Alex's arm, making the young woman grimace slightly with the 
pain.

" Which one?" The demon smirked, a look of pure evil on her face. She shook 
her head, sending the curls bouncing around her face as she roughly shoved 
Alex through the open door into the kitchen. " If you'll excuse me, Al and I 
need to talk about a few things. See ya!"

The door slammed shut just as Nick lunged towards it. He slammed his hand 
against the wooden surface in frustration, letting loose with a string of 
expletives that would make the most weathered of soldiers blush.

Rachel moved over and put a gentle hand on his shoulder. " If that thing wants 
us to kill each other, Alex will be fine."

Nick nodded but remained silent. He rested his head against the cold, hard 
door and closed his eyes, praying she was right and that his first 'obstacle' as 
precept wouldn't end up as being the last for him and his friends.

*~*

The moment the door was locked behind them, the demon changed back into 
the form of Nick. He grinned slyly at Alex as he pushed her through the door 
and across the floor to the living room.

" Just the two of us, Al," 'Nick' grinned suggestively. " Hmm, I wonder what 
we should do…"

" Telling me why you're doing this would be a good thing to start with," Alex 
murmured as she was pushed down into a chair. She winced as he conjured 
some thick ropes and bound her hands together behind her back, the rope 
biting into her wrists.

Nick feigned a heavy sigh and rolled his eyes as he casually sauntered over to 
the couch, making himself comfortable before speaking. " I suppose I owe you 
that common courtesy." He looked as though it was a hardship to tell her, that 
it was something she should appreciate. " Twenty five years ago, I was 
summoned by a Legacy member. His name was Ronald something, I don't 
know. The name alludes me at the moment," he dismissed the lack of memory 
with the casual wave of his hand, sounding bored at having to recant the tale 
as if she should know it already. " The plan was for me to give him power and 
wealth, etcetera etcetera and I would get control of the Legacy from within. 
You know, humans are so predictable. So greedy that the smallest things will 
tempt them. Anyway, I digress." He shot her a quick smile. " His plan… Our 
plan was thwarted by his pesky colleagues and I was banished but before I 
was, I said a chant that would reanimate me on the exact twenty-five year 
anniversary of that day, which was, in case you're wondering, a few days ago."

" So you're here for revenge?" Alex asked with a raised eyebrow. " Is that it?"

Nick laughed. " In a way, I suppose it is." His eyes narrowed and he looked at 
her, his eyes glowing slightly. " I want control of the Legacy, Al. And someone 
from the San Francisco house will help me get it."

" Or what?" Alex wasn't sure she wanted the answer.

" Or you all die, one by one, in front of the others." The demon looked pretty 
pleased with himself. " I think it's pretty ingenuous. You are each other's 
weakness. I could try and tempt you with wealth but I don't think it would 
work."

Alex shook her head. " Neither will this. We won't help you."

" I don't know, Al," he grinned as though he knew something she did. " I think 
you'll be surprised at the lengths you and your colleagues will go to save one 
another." His smile widened. " If it's at all consoling, I've found that this is the 
only Legacy house where you're all more than just colleagues. You have a 
unique situation here, darling. Not all Legacy members are as close as you."

Biting her lip, Alex refused to respond. She closed her eyes and swallowed the 
lump in her throat. She knew she, Rachel and Nick were close. They had 
become closer after the death of Derek. And as much as it touched her heart 
to know they would always be there for her, she couldn't help but hope they 
wouldn't risk everything to save her. And she prayed for the strength not to 
risk the Legacy in order to save them.

*~*

The next hour seemed like a decade to Nick. He had given up shouting when 
his throat had become raw and now he was slumped against the far wall, his 
eyes half-closed but continuously locked on the door in front of him for any 
sign of movement.

" She'll be fine, Nick," Rachel reassured him for what felt like the one-
thousandth time. She looked up from her place on the floor to his side. " Alex 
can look after herself, she'll be okay." She sighed at the unresponsiveness of 
the young man at her side. " Nick? Can you at least talk to me about it?"

" About what?" Nick grumbled, finally speaking though his voice sounded 
strained.

Rachel sighed again and fought the urge to roll her eyes. " About how you felt 
when Derek died, about how you're feeling now… How you feel about Alex…"

His head shot up, his eyes narrowed with suspicion or alarm, she couldn't tell 
which. " What? What are you talking about? Alex is a friend, and a colleague. 
Nothing more."

Biting back an amused smile, she couldn't resist rolling her eyes. ~Funny how 
that's the only question he picked up on.~ " You can tell me the truth, you 
know. It's clear you care about her."

" Yeah, like I care about you and Kat and like I cared for Derek," Nick 
shrugged, unwilling to commit himself to whatever Rachel was implying. " It's 
nothing different."

" I think it is, Nick," she murmured. " It's nothing to feel guilty about. I just 
thought you might want to talk about it…"

" When I want to talk, I'll talk. Until then can we please get our minds back on 
the matter at hand?" He snapped, feeling more irritated than he rationally 
should have done. Rachel nodded, not trusting herself to speak without putting 
her foot in her mouth and blurting out something Alex wouldn't appreciate 
Nick knowing just yet. " Now what are we going to do?"

" What can we do?" She asked after a pregnant pause. " We're pretty much 
stuck in here until that *thing* decides to let us out. And we're not going to be 
much help to Alex if we use all of our energy yelling and trying to get through 
the door."

With a heavy sigh and an even heavier heart, Nick knew she was right. He 
rested his head in his hands and closed his eyes, trying to think of anything but 
why it bothered him so much that Alex had been taken and that Rachel 
apparently knew him better than he knew himself. His musings were cut short 
by the door opening again. He looked up and found the doorway empty, the 
light from the kitchen beckoning them like freedom.

Rachel shrugged when he looked at her as if to say 'shall we?' and they got to 
their feet cautiously. They made it about three steps out of the pantry and 
then were thrown across the room. The last thing Nick remembered seeing 
was Rachel hit the floor and then all he knew were blinding stars and 
blackness. 

*~*

All three Legacy members were tired to chairs when they regained 
consciousness. Nick sat on one end, Rachel in the middle and Alex on the 
other end. Demon Nick smiled charmingly at Rachel and Nick as they regained 
consciousness within seconds of each other. " So nice of you to join us, Al and 
I were having such a lovely time but she thought you might worry about her if I 
kept her to myself for too long." He walked over to the woman in question and 
put his hand on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

Alex glared at him from her chair, her lips drawn together in a thin white line 
as she swallowed a retort. Now she knew his plan, she refused to play his 
game, be it in her mind or the minds of her friends.

" Alex, you okay?" Rachel asked, her own voice sounding a little groggy.

" Fine," Alex nodded, keeping her eyes locked evenly with the demon, not 
wanting to show any sign of weakness or fear. " Are you two alright?"

" Yeah," Nick, the real Nick, answered even as he tried to loosen the binding 
rope around his wrists. " We've been better but we're fine."

" Well, isn't this nice?" The demon grinned and morphed into Rachel 
effortlessly. " A little boring, but nice, I guess." She walked around to stand in 
front of the three of them, hands on her hips. " I was kinda expecting some 
revelations or declarations to spice things up a little, since you're going to die, 
but never mind. We can do without."

" You're not going to kill us," Alex spoke up calmly, her voice smooth and cool. 
" That wouldn't achieve anything, would it?"

The demon laughed. " Well, no. Not really." A mischievous sparkle appeared 
in her glowing eyes. " But if you don't agree to help me, I'll kill you and find 
some other Legacy member's who will."

" But you said no other house members have the relationships we have," Alex 
retorted smartly. " If we don't agree to help you to save each other, what are 
the chances any other Legacy member will?"

" They probably won't," the demon agreed thoughtfully. Then she brightened. 
" But they'll probably be easier to bribe with wealth and power and success. 
No matter, I plan on having some fun with you three before I leave."

" Would someone mind filling me in?" Nick spoke up with an arched eyebrow, 
casting a puzzled look in Alex's direction.

" He, or she, or whatever it is, is here to try and get one of us to bring down 
the Legacy from within," Alex summarised with a blank expression. " We just 
have to be strong and refuse to give in. No matter what."

" Even if it means watching one of your friends die?" The demon asked with a 
perverted smile. " Brave words, my dear. But can you hold yourself to them?"

She didn't answer. She couldn't answer. Nick could tell from looking at her 
that she wasn't as confident as she tried to sound. But he knew she would try 
her best not to give in, as would the rest of them. " We all can," Nick replied 
with false bravado. " You won't get any of us to cross over onto your side and 
let you take the Legacy down."

" We'll see, we'll see," the demon Rachel smiled winningly and then changed 
again, back into Alex. She walked over to the woman she was imitating. " I 
wonder… Al, did you ever think you might die at your own hand?" She 
conjured a knife and held it to the young woman's neck. Nick and Rachel 
watched in fascinated horror as the point of the knife did a dance across the 
light chocolate coloured skin, leaving a trail of red in its wake. " Or that your 
friends would watch and do nothing about it?" For her credit, Alex didn't say a 
word. If anything, she just looked bored, as if none of it bothered her, which 
only served to frustrate the demon.

Glaring at Alex but still in her form, the demon walked over to Nick and held 
the knife at his throat. " What about now? Doesn't this bother you? You don't 
feel the tiniest bit of temptation creep into your soul? You're really prepared 
to watch me kill Nick right here and now and not do a thing about it?"

Alex's jaw clenched and Rachel clasped her hands tightly behind her back. 
They refused to say anything that would encourage their captor, choosing 
silence, which was supported by the flames of respect and relief in Nick's eyes.

Almost growling with frustration, the demon stalked from the room, her eyes 
glowing with anger and irritation. Nick watched her go before turning his gaze 
back to the real Alex, and the droplets of blood slowly forming over the cut. 
He asked her with his eyes if she was okay and she nodded with a small smile, 
leaving Rachel to muse by herself at their silent communication and hide a 
smile of her own at the obliviousness of her two friends.

" I hate to be the one to ask this but… What do we do now?" Rachel spoke up 
after a few moments of silence.

" Can anyone get their hands free?" Alex asked as she struggled with her own 
binds. " That would be the first step, I think." They all tried for a few minutes, 
stopping when Nick stopped and frowned at the window. " Nick? What is it?"

" I'm not sure…" He responded slowly, a frown still furrowing his brow. " I 
thought I saw someone at the window… I don't know if that's a good thing or a 
bad thing."

A tiny sliver of hope awakened in Rachel's heart. " Do you think there's 
someone else on the island? Someone who can help us? Maybe one of the 
workmen or our new house member?"

" Maybe, but I wouldn't get your hopes up," Nick answered in a low voice, 
hearing footsteps that meant the demon was approaching them again.

Despite his warning, all three of them felt their spirits rise just a little. If they 
weren't alone on the island, it at least meant that they had a chance. They just had 
to pray they got it in time.

*~*

Stealthily, he crept around the side of the house. Peering through the window, he 
saw his friends tied to chairs, their hands bound behind their backs. He knew then 
that there was a more sinister reason that just a storm that had been keeping him 
from communicating. The feeling he had got, the instinct, had been right. The 
hairs on the back of his neck had stood up on end when he hadn't been able to 
reach them by phone or satellite and when he had reached the port in San 
Francisco and saw the dark clouds swirling and circling the island, he had known 
they were in trouble.

As he approached the front door of the grand house, he pulled something from 
his pocket, no longer feeling the rain beating down upon his back. The silver of 
the dagger's blade glinted in the small ray of light that filtered through the heavy 
clouds above and he felt thankful for remembering to check the Legacy files 
before leaving the mainland, grateful that the Boston house had helped him out 
when he called to tell them his suspicions. 

Before opening the door, he closed his eyes and prayed to a God he wasn't 
100% certain he believed in anymore. He prayed for the courage to help his 
friends, for the faith to do what he had to do, and for the peace of mind that 
had been eluding him in recent months. Inhaling deeply, he opened his eyes 
and tried to soundlessly push the door open.

*~*

" I've been thinking…" The demon, still using Alex's form, purred as she slowly 
walked, weaving between them. 

" Be careful, you don't want to strain something," Nick muttered under his 
breath, glaring at her, feeling anger surge within him not only at the fact she 
was keeping them here and threatening to kill them, but that she was using 
Alex's form to do it. 

Too quickly for him to react even if he had been able to defend himself, the 
demon whipped round and slapped him across the cheek, the sound of her 
hand coming into contact with his skin reverberating about the room as Alex 
and Rachel flinched, mainly in sympathy but for Alex, it was also because if – 
when – they got out of this and remembered it, her friend would always see 
*her* as being the one who hurt them.

" It would serve you well to remember who is in control here." The demon 
hissed, her eyes narrowing as they bore into the top of Nick's lowered head. 
She straightened, regaining her composure, and resumed her pacing between 
the chairs. " As I was saying before being rudely interrupted," she paused to 
glare pointedly at Nick. " I've been thinking and I've decided that you're right. 
I won't be able to tempt one of you to do my will, not even you, Al, which 
surprises me, given your ties to the darkside." She shook her head, the 
random curls falling about her face. " I digress. You will be of no help to me in 
getting control over the Legacy, but you will be able to assist in my getting 
revenge." She smiled wickedly. " I'm sure you would be greatly missed if you 
were to die, so soon after Mr. Rayne. Your death's will serve as revenge until 
a time when I can bring the society down once and for all."

If she was expecting someone to say something in protest, she was 
disappointed. The three friends exchanged glances and then straightened in 
their chairs, setting their shoulders, prepared to meet their fate and die 
together. Rolling her eyes at the display of loyalty and bravado, ignoring the 
faint feeling of grudging respect originating somewhere in the pit of her 
stomach, the demon Alex stopped pacing and stood in front of them, tapping 
her chin with a finger as she contemplated which one to kill first.

" I wonder…" She murmured. " If Alex kills Nick and Nick kills Rachel, that 
will leave Rachel to kill Alex." She smiled faintly at the looks of confusion on 
their faces as they tried to figure it out. " Don't worry, you won't actually be 
doing the killing. That would be no fun for me. Hmm, now who goes first." She 
looked down at herself and smiled again. " Well, since I'm Al, I guess that 
mean Nick is the first to leave our party. What a shame." The sarcasm was 
hard to miss. She strode over to the young man and laid a hand against his 
cheek, her smiling growing bigger as he tried to jerk his face away from her 
touch. " I would love to say I'll miss you but I won't. In fact, I think I will 
rather enjoy this." She backed away a little and conjured up the same knife 
from before. " Any last words? Last minute declarations?"

Nick looked at Rachel, and then looked beyond her at Alex, his gaze lingering 
on her face, seeing the fear in her dark eyes, before he turned back to the 
demon impersonating her. He stared evenly into her glowing eyes and 
remained silent, swallowing the words that were stuck in his throat. If he 
really thought this was it, that this was the end, maybe, just maybe, he might 
have let them passed his lips. Something told him it wasn't that time yet.

" Very well then," the demon looked vaguely disappointed. She raised the 
knife and held it above his chest, a small smile playing on her lips. " Goodbye, 
Nick. See you in Hell."

" I don't think so," the voice from behind startled her. She spun, the knife 
vanishing, her eyes glowing with anger at the thought of someone daring to 
confront her. Father Philip Callaghan stood before her, the dagger of Mikita in 
his hand. As soon as she faced him, he started chanting in Latin, as the others 
had no choice but to sit watching and hoping. 

A low growl emitted from the demon's throat as her image seemed to flicker. 
As she stalked across the floor towards Philip, her form changed from being 
Alex's to being her true form, a grotesque corpse. Patches of skin were 
missing and the room was smelt faintly of rotted flesh. Rachel turned her head 
away, Alex lowered her gazes and Nick kept his eyes on his friend.

When she – the demon, or the remains of the person it was before crossing 
over onto the darkside – get closer enough, Philip raised the dagger and thrust 
it into her chest, where her heart should have been. She screamed, the sound 
sending chills down all of their spines as it echoed around the room, a blinding 
white light fighting it's way out through the puncture wound made by the knife. 
Philip looked away, shielding his eyes and his friends did the same thing as the 
light intensified.

With a final, sickening screech, the light enveloped the demon and dissipated, 
taking her with it, leaving the room in silence. For a few seconds, everything 
was still. Then Philip remembered his incapacitated friends and rushed to 
their sides to untie them. He untied Nick first and moved onto Rachel as Nick 
immediately walked to Alex's side. 

After a short time, all of the Legacy members were free and standing, a little 
shakily at first. Nick and Philip shook hands, and Rachel and Alex took turns 
in hugging their returned friend. " Nice time, Philip," Alex murmured as she 
let him go, pulling away with a smile on her face.

" Almost perfect," Philip agreed, reaching a tentative hand up to sweep her 
hair back from the cut on her forehead. " You okay, Alex?"

" I'll be fine," she brushed away his concern with another smile, stepping back 
so Rachel could give him a hug. 

" How did you know we needed you?" Rachel asked as she finally felt the 
tension seep from her shoulders, relaxing into the embrace now the danger 
was over.

Philip shrugged, a little embarrassed at how he had come to be there. " I just 
had a feeling.. And when I tried calling, there was no answer."

" So you decided to come and check it out," Nick finished with a grin. " Good 
idea, feel free to do it again if you ever get the feeling you're needed."

" Actually," Philip gave his old friend a small, hopeful smile. " I was wondering 
if I could stay here for awhile, maybe help you get organised.."

Nick's grin widened as he clapped his friend on the back, feeling too relieved 
and grateful to hold a grudge against him at that moment in time. " You're 
welcome anytime. You should know that."

Rachel smiled and hugged Philip again, welcoming him to the house and it was 
only when Alex didn't that they realised she had wandered a little distance 
away from them. She was staring out of the window, a peaceful smile on her 
face. " Alex, Honey," Rachel spoke up as she moved to stand beside her 
friend. " You okay?"

" Fine," Alex smiled genuinely, turning to face them slightly. " I was just 
looking outside. Looks like the storm's passed. You might get to go to Florida 
after all." 

" I might," Rachel smiled back at her friend, an going round her waist as Alex 
swayed a little with fatigue, the sleepless nights catching up with her. " Can I 
tempt you to join us?"

" You might," Alex answered quietly as she stared out the window, seeing Nick 
and Philip join them in the reflection.

The sun shone brightly against a clear blue sky, working it's magic and drying 
the ground, erasing any sign of the storm. Birds sang and the trees swayed 
slightly in the breeze. The storm outside was over. Looking at the reflection in 
the glass, Alex stared at the three faces of the people she cared greatly for, 
and felt peace settle over her, her guilt vanishing as though the sunlight was 
absorbing it. 

The storm within her was over, too. She looked at her friends and felt another 
small smile play on her lips. They weren't over Derek's death, not by a long 
shot, but they were starting to heal. The Legacy house in San Francisco was 
back, and as strong as ever.

The End.

I'm sorry if the ending seems rushed to anyone, I'm just anxious to get it 
finished whilst I can because I won't be able to work on fanfiction for a while 
from now on. Any suggestions, etc. are still welcome.