MYSTERIOUS GRAFFITI

THE EPILOGUE

April, 2028

Bella

During the thirty-two and a half years I've been living on this planet, I've been able to travel to many different countries to feed my passion for art. But if I was told I could only ever visit one country again before I die, my destination of choice, without hesitation, would always be Italy.

I've relished every second I've been able to wander around her magnificent galleries and I've fallen in love with her cities, like Florence, Rome, Venice and Milan. In fact I've visited every major city and many of the smaller towns in this wonderful country, some many times. But my favorite place, not just in Italy but in the whole wide world, is where I'm sitting right now, which is on a rickety wooden chair next to an equally rickety table, on a flagstone sidewalk outside a tiny bistro, from where I can see the creamy-white and terracotta facade of the stunningly beautiful Basilica of St Francis of Assisi, standing out proudly against a brilliantly bright Mediterranean-blue sky.

I'd first fallen in love with this small town in the Italian region of Umbria in May of 2018, which incredibly is almost ten years ago now. It wasn't the art, or the world-famous Basilica, or even its ancient buildings and quiet, narrow streets that coerced me into falling in love with this place. Assisi had something I hadn't found anywhere else on the planet before or since, which was a serene ambiance, a gentle atmosphere and a soft and soothing warmth. Most people nowadays would call this Assisi's 'vibe', but to me this is totally the wrong type of word to use when describing anything to do with the character of this ancient town. Assisi had grace, beauty, calmness and joy permeating from the very stones the city was built from, and no modern word could ever encapsulate what this city had to offer. It had everything I needed then, and ten years later still has everything I need right now.

Assisi is where Edward was born six hundred and forty-four years ago. He brought me here for the first time a year after the earthquake, as he thought, quite rightly, the serenity and tranquillity Assisi had to offer its visitors would do me good. Before I agreed to travel, I explained to Edward that I hadn't got a religious bone in my body, but he persuaded me that Assisi wasn't solely about the Catholic religion; it had something else at its heart which was palpable if you were inclined to let it in.

Early on the first morning after we arrived, Edward, (or Eduardo as he's known here), guided me through the silent streets which were as familiar to him then as they were when he was a boy. We set off just as the sun was rising and before the daily tourist invasion commenced, so I could take in the beauty of this place as it was meant to be seen, and absorb its tranquillity as it should be felt. I didn't realize I'd been suffering from stress until I walked along the ancient pathways in the soft morning light; soaking up the beauty and history which was all around me. I actually felt the weight of my father's diagnosis and recovery, and the tragedy of the earthquake and what followed, gradually slipping away from my shoulders as Edward and I wandered back in time. If Assisi was full of holy or otherwise spirits, they were at peace, as I was after just a few days of being in receipt of its healing powers.

During our stay we went out into the glorious rolling countryside and Edward showed me the farm where he was born and told me stories about his family. The Masinellis still owned the farm which had been handed down from father to son since the 1300's, and when Edward introduced himself at the farmhouse door he was greeted with a cautious but genuine welcome. I caught on immediately that the family knew who and what he was, and when they realized I was human, which was when I asked to use the bathroom, their faces were a picture of incredulity.

I was amazed when I learned from Edward that small pockets of the Italian population were aware of the existence of vampires and they tolerated their presence, even with the knowledge that some of them still fed on humans. Edward explained to me after we left the farm that only nomad vampires were considered to be dangerous in Italy and they kept well away from vampires with permanent homes. Also the 'settled' vampires very rarely attacked near to where they lived so as not to draw attention to themselves, so if you had vampires living nearby this was considered to be lucky.

When we were ushered into the farmhouse's rustic living room to meet the family, in a dim corner next to other family portraits was one of Edward's father, Carlo Masinelli, with Edward's mother, which Edward had painted in the year 1402. I could easily spot the family resemblance, especially in Carlo's eyes. Edward had already told me his father was originally from the Italian speaking part of what is now Switzerland, which is why Edward is tall for someone born at that time.

In about 1370, Carlo left his home in the north to make his fortune in Rome. On the journey he met Edward's mother who was struggling to manage the farm on her own after losing all her relatives to a virulent disease, which was probably something like the Plague. Carlo abandoned his journey and took over the farm and they made their living growing olives and grapes and kept sheep and goats. But Carlo was skilled in other ways. He was an artist, and Eduardo and his brothers also became artists and sculptors as well as farmers.

When Carlo realized his youngest son, Eduardo, had an exceptional skill, he encouraged him to travel to Rome to perfect his craft as he hoped one day he would bring riches to the family. Edward had already told me of the day when the whole family, apart from one brother who stayed at home to look after the farm, were attacked by vampires from Volterra which was roughly 150 miles away, and the journey to take him to Rome had been the one the family was embarking on. Edward didn't make it to that great city until many years later and by then the Renaissance was in full swing.

When Edward left Volterra after his captor had tired of him, he traveled to Florence where, after a short time as a student, he established himself as a teacher in Ghirlandaio's workshop. Edward then had the opportunity to work with some of the finest artists ever to walk on the face of the earth, but because of his situation, he couldn't join the ranks of the most famous painters as it was forbidden for vampires to draw attention to themselves. He didn't need much money to survive he'd explained, but he acknowledged, without being boastful, that his name could have been up there with the greats if he'd taken the risk to defy Aro and become well known. However he wasn't bitter about this, as in his opinion fame was and still is a condition to be avoided at all costs.

He worked on the Sistine Chapel with Michelangelo, Ghirlandaio and others, and when we visited the Vatican a few years ago, he pointed out the parts he had painted. But Florence was where we always strayed back to, as the majority of Edward's most vivid memories were from when he lived and worked in this glorious city. We went together to the Galleria dell'Accademia to see the statue of David, and even though I knew from my studies about how and when it was created, I loved hearing from Edward the story of Michelangelo's successful attempt to keep a fourteen-foot marble sculpture secret from the world until it was complete, and then the reaction of the members of the Vestry Board who had commissioned the work when they were finally allowed to see it. He also loved relating the response of his and Michelangelo's peers in the art world, who declared to Michelangelo that the sculpture was too perfect to be placed high up in a cathedral; stating it should be displayed in a public piazza so it could be seen by everyone at eye-level. This information was already recorded in history books, but to hear it from the person who was the model for the original wax figure Michelangelo worked from was mind-blowing, as Edward's memory of this time was so vivid.

Over the past eleven years Edward has happily fed my craving for knowledge about his life in Europe, but I know we've only scratched the surface of the stories he could tell about the artists he'd worked with and everything he'd experienced. He did tell me though that other than me, Michelangelo was the only human outside his family who knew for definite he was a vampire, even though many other people, like Ghirlandaio and Da Vinci, suspected it. Edward told me he offered several times to change Michelangelo, but he declined for religious reasons. Michelangelo genuinely believed he'd been shown a vision of heaven in his dreams before he started work in the Vatican, and from this vision he'd produced the sublime images he painted on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Even when Michelangelo was dying, Edward said Michelangelo wasn't prepared to risk his chance of eternity with God in exchange for a different type of eternity on Earth. It's stories like this that keep us talking all night long sometimes, but knowledge is like a drug to me; I always want more.

It's now ten years since my first visit to Assisi and we've returned for a number of reasons; one of which is that I'm hoping Assisi's healing properties will help me recover from my latest trauma, but more of that later. Looking back to the events of 2017 and 2018, I still can't believe how smoothly I morphed from being someone with zero responsibilities to the person I was obliged by circumstances to become practically overnight. It was a crazy time, a tragic time and also a good time, but I know I wouldn't have been able to cope with the majority of what happened after the quake without the help of Edward, my dad and Edward's family.

After the disaster, my first priority was to ensure Charlie was okay in Portland, which thankfully he was, and then to begin the search for Carly and Luke's mother who was their only blood relative. Neither of the children knew their different fathers and the majority of numbers stored on Carly's phone were just girlfriends from school. Calling their mother's number proved fruitless, and after a few days we gave up trying and handed her details over to the police and the organisation which had been set up to trace missing persons and the families of the injured or homeless. The authorities were swamped due to the chaos, so I offered to be Carly and Luke's temporary guardian so they wouldn't be put in foster care while the search continued. As I was the daughter of a Chief of Police and had been employed by the city authorities, so had already gone through basic security and background checks, my proposal was accepted gratefully and without question even though I wasn't even twenty-two at the time.

When the search was abandoned about two months later and their mother was declared 'presumed dead,' Carly and Luke begged to stay with Edward and me rather than go to live with strangers as foster children. Neither Edward nor I could say no, so after my application was accepted to become their legal guardian with Charlie as a back-up, (we kept Edward out of the loop), Edward and I had two children to look after which was a bit of a shock. I thought about taking them to Forks, but Edward explained that a vampire living within spitting distance of the Quileute's wasn't such a good idea.

Forks had been very badly damaged by the quake, which was mainly due to poor construction practices and trees falling on properties, including my old High School which had been totally demolished. Many houses and business in the lower-lying parts had also been swamped by the flood then pummelled to bits by debris pushed uphill by the water. Our house had just about survived but still needed extensive repairs before Charlie was able to live in it again. People I knew had been killed in the quake or had just disappeared, but compared to some places on the coast, like the vast majority of Port Angeles and the whole of Sekiu, where both had quite literally dropped into the ocean and vanished from the map, Forks had got away lightly.

Mike and Jess survived unscathed along with Mike's parents and quite a few of their friends and neighbors. He'd convinced them to attend an impromptu barbeque and baseball game on the football field and they were all gathered together just as the earthquake struck. Some of them were hurt when the bleachers collapsed, but their injuries were minimal compared with others who were caught in their houses. Mike and Jess got married a year later then immediately went backpacking around the world, only coming back very reluctantly when Jess found out she was pregnant. They now have three kids, a large mortgage and are blissfully happy living in Oregon.

Sue and her family survived intact too. Their sturdily built home was only slightly damaged by the quake and totally untouched by the water, so when Charlie was officially discharged from the hospital in Portland, he moved in with them until his house was habitable which took the pressure off me. I'd lost touch with Billy for quite a few days after the quake and was worried for him and all the other folks on the reservation which was lower-lying than the town. When he finally contacted me, he told me the Quileute's had noticed the animals in the forest getting "real twitchy" as he put it on the morning of the quake, so the whole community had moved to high ground and rode out the disaster in a safe place. I smiled when I heard this, as countries such as the USA, spend millions of dollars on developing early-warning systems, when all they had to do was take note of what animals were reacting to instead. Nature is awesome.

The lower-lying areas of Seattle and the mega-expensive real estate on the islands in Puget Sound were completely demolished, with only the newly-built 'earthquake-proof' buildings left standing, and to this day no-one knows how many people lost their lives. The receding water took many bodies out to sea, including tourists and temporary visitors, however the authorities reckoned at the time that the final death toll would be in the single-figure thousands in the whole area affected by the quake and the flood, including Canada and Oregon, which was a fraction of what could have happened without the warning. Vancouver was badly damaged by the quake but fared much better for water damage than Seattle as Vancouver Island took the brunt of the wave. By the time it crashed into the city, most of its power had been lost and the damage was much less severe. The wave went in the opposite direction as well, and a day later hit Japan, parts of Russia and China and as far down as North and South Korea, but at least they knew it was coming and it had lost a lot of its power by then. It was still devastating, but the loss of life compared to North America was minimal.

Amazingly the Space Needle and the hospital survived and initially, so did the Municipal Tower, but the Tower was badly damaged a few weeks later when the Columbia Center next to it collapsed when the hill underneath it gave way. After being checked over by surveyors, the Tower was deemed to be structurally unsound and eventually had to be demolished and rebuilt.

After the quake, the Mayor had been 'trapped' in the Tower for a while, even though he could've been rescued by helicopter from the roof. He milked the situation for all it was worth, and when he emerged in the full glare of live TV cameras and flashbulbs, clambering over the top of the rubble and covered in no-doubt self-inflicted dust, he was lauded as a hero as he'd behaved like a captain refusing to leave a sinking ship. One good thing though was that the city continued to pay my salary for a whole year, which was the length of my initial contract, so that unexpected bonus helped enormously with dad's medical bills. Jasper continued to get paid as well until he voluntarily resigned, and I think it was the city's quiet way of saying thank you to both of us for what we'd done.

The seismologists from the University were also declared 'national heroes', which was a bit unfortunate really as they then had to explain how they managed to predict with such accuracy when the earthquake was going to happen. Also, and even more embarrassingly, other scientific centers of excellence dotted around the Pacific Rim, were anxious to learn more about their 'state-of-the-art' equipment which the Mayor had been gushing about in his statements to the press and politicians, which of course didn't exist. Awkward! Fortunately for Edward though, his murals were never mentioned in the national media, however I did hear a rumor much later, via Jim, that Alice's predictions were common knowledge among the higher echelons of government, but the information was deemed to be Top Secret, probably along the same lines of the secrecy surrounding Roswell and Area 51 which wasn't surprising.

The Mayor ended up becoming the Governor a few years later but I never met him again. I did however meet up with Jim, who re-located to Denver and settled there. We only stay in touch once a year at Christmas now, but he still hasn't wheedled out of me how I was so certain the quake was going to happen when it did and he never will. I stay in touch with Kirsty as well who finally made it to Scotland last year on her honeymoon but hated it because it was too cold and wet. She's now living in Florida so has to put up with tourists, hurricanes and alligators, but she says she prefers them to earthquakes and tsunamis.

Edward managed to contact every one of the kids from the club by text and all of them had survived. When he finally got hold of the last family, which was about two weeks after the quake, I could see he was as close to tears as any vampire could ever be. He'd risked his life for these children, so knowing they'd all managed to escape and were safe was more justification he'd done the right thing. After this it was just a waiting game to see whether Aro had picked up anything suspicious which needed investigating, but as nothing was mentioned in the national press or on TV about the strange murals, we had every reason to hope Aro would remain none the wiser.

We found out as well why Jake and a couple of the other lads on the Reservation had started shifting into werewolves, but it wasn't Aro's spies who had caused it. As Edward had originally suspected it was nomads. A small group of vampires from northern Russia had crossed the Arctic and Canada and were roaming through British Columbia and the Olympic Peninsula. Their intention was to track down Carlisle's family who they'd heard were in the area somewhere, and ask them to join their planned takeover of Volterra. They were sick of Aro and his arbitrary rules so were gathering together an army to overthrow the self-anointed King of Volterra.

After the earthquake and the flood, which the group survived, they gave up their search and wandered north to return home but decided to visit the Denali's estate in Alaska on the way. There they unexpectedly came across Carlisle and the rest of the family, who told them in no uncertain terms they wanted absolutely nothing to do with their plans, after which they were sent on their way.

The Russians didn't give up though, and in December of last year their army managed to infiltrate Volterra, following which there was an all-out war. Aro and most of his supporters were killed, but the Russians were killed too leaving a void in the vampire hierarchy. In February of this year, a new family of rulers was invited to take over and almost immediately after accepting their roles, they relaxed some of the restrictions; the most important one being I don't have to be dying to be changed into a vampire. This has made my decision to change so much easier to take as even though Alice and Jasper had already taken the risk, I didn't want Edward to step over the line again and defy his rulers. He'd already got away with warning the city of the disaster and also had taken a chance returning to Italy with me on several occasions hoping Aro wouldn't find out, but changing me into a vampire would be pushing his luck.

Jasper had stayed human for quite a while as his initial enthusiasm to be changed immediately had waned when he thought about the implications. There was no rush for him to do it and Alice wasn't pressuring him either. He had been accepted into the family with open arms but preferred not to live in the communal house when it was rebuilt as he thought it was weird that everyone lived together. Eventually Alice bought some land and had a house built in a dark spot overlooking the Sound so she could keep gazing at the stars at night, and also for privacy. When Jasper finally took the plunge and changed just over a year ago, he stayed out of sight until he felt he would be totally okay amongst humans. I kept in touch with him via Skype, which was good for me as he told me day by day exactly what I'd be facing when I decided to jump into the vampire world.

Going back to what happened after the quake, we stayed in the lodge on the side of Mount Rainier for just over a week waiting for the 'all clear' to travel, then the four of us spent some time in Portland in a rented house so I could be near to Charlie while he convalesced. While we were there, Edward and I took the decision to settle in the Seattle area with the kids as soon as it was safe to return, which wouldn't be for a while though because of the pollution. Not long after the quake I met Edward's family when they sailed back from Alaska to view the damage to their property. Their house had virtually disappeared, but the foundations had remained intact and the insurance companies quickly gave Carlisle the go-ahead to get it re-built. It took over two years, but eventually a beautiful house emerged from the wreckage and this time it included an extension for Edward, me and the kids who loved living next to the sea, even though it had taken their mother away from them. Carly quietly said to me one day that the sea was her mother's grave, and it helped her being able to look at it every day of her life, which was a very mature way of dealing with a tragic situation.

We told the kids fairly quickly that Edward and his family were vampires. Luke was very inquisitive and had been asking too many questions, like why doesn't Edward eat McDonalds, or why his hands were always cold, so we had to be straight with them before they started boasting to their friends in their new school that their foster dad was really weird. Carly freaked out initially which was understandable, but Luke was very impressed and wanted to know every gory detail. We both stressed the importance of keeping this a secret so they could remain living with us, which they vowed to do and obviously have continued doing, since nothing untoward has happened to us during the eleven years we've been responsible for them.

Charlie recovered from the transplant but he never really returned to full health. He found out from Billy he was the recipient of Jake's liver a few months after the operation. Billy told him one day he'd allowed Jake organs to be used for transplant purely because he knew of Charlie's unsuccessful search for a donor. But the night when he'd had to take the decision to switch off life-support after he'd been told there was no hope Jake would recover, he had no idea that Jake would be a perfect match for Charlie. It was only when Charlie was back in Forks that he began to suspect what might have happened, which was after Charlie dropped into a conversation that his donor must have been a native American to have his rare blood type. Before saying anything to Charlie, Billy found out what Jake's blood type was, then asked Charlie what his was, and then he realised what had most likely happened. It was an emotional time for both of them, but especially for Billy, knowing that part of his son was still 'living' and had been responsible for keeping his best friend alive.

Charlie officially retired from the police about two years after his operation and spent most of his days fishing or spending time with Billy or Sue's family. Last year he got really ill again and was eventually diagnosed with cancer, this time in his lymph nodes. He went through the usual treatments but all of us knew it was just a matter of time. He died peacefully in February and I miss him dreadfully, which is one of the reasons I'm soaking up the tranquillity of Assisi so I can try to come to terms with his loss.

Of course Charlie's death means I'm now free to become like Edward, which is another reason I came to Assisi a week ago so I could think carefully about taking the momentous decision without the distractions of everyday life around me. There's nothing stopping me on the mothering front now as both the kids are independent and can definitely cope without me for a while. Carly has just turned twenty-four and is a graphic design artist working in a tech company in San Francisco. Luke is in his final year of doing a Fine Art degree at my old college in New York and hasn't yet decided what to do as a career, but he loves being in the big city and I doubt whether he'll ever come back to Seattle to live permanently. So my role as a hands-on mother is now over and there's nothing stopping me crossing the line so I can be with Edward for eternity.

As I sit on my rickety chair drinking a glass of chilled white wine after eating a plate of freshly sliced tomatoes and goats cheese which had exquisitely flavoured olive oil and a tiny amount of salt drizzled over it, (in other words making the most of food and drink while I still can), I'm watching Edward, sorry, Eduardo, wandering towards me across the sun-drenched piazza and I still can't believe how lucky I am. He is devoted to me as I am to him, and the thought that we'll spend eternity together just blows my mind. I know I look older than him now; in fact I spotted a gray hair a few months ago which totally shocked me, but he doesn't care. He's always telling me how beautiful I am even though I'm physically ten years older than him now. Of course he's actually six-hundred and thirteen years older than me in years, but we'll ignore that crazy fact.

Behind him are his family following him in pairs. Emmett and Rosalie are first, who I've come to know well and love very much. Emmett is great fun. He's like an adorable, bouncy puppy who will never, ever mature. Rosalie is a princess in every way but has been an enormous help to me with the children when they were both teenagers and especially when Edward and I wanted to go away on our own, as having teenagers in the house isn't ideal if privacy is desired.

Following Emmett and Rosalie are Alice and Jasper, who are mine and Edward's greatest friends. I've never been jealous of the connection Alice has with Edward as the love they have for each other is nothing like the type of love I have for Edward. She loves me for making Edward so happy and I love her for putting her own life on the line to help Edward save the children and thousands of other people as well. Jasper hasn't changed at all since becoming a vampire and thankfully he's been able to come out of hiding now, so that's a relief for all of us.

Bringing up the rear are Carlisle and Esme, who I know are thrilled to be back in the country of their birth for the first time in over a hundred years. When Carlisle sailed Lugano into Italian waters a week ago and caught his first sight of the spectacular coastline with its beautiful villages built into the rocks and the lush rolling countryside stretching as far as the eye could see, I watched the tough outer shell of this five hundred year old vampire crack into a hundred pieces as his face crumpled with emotion. He's still quite scary on the surface, but over the past eleven years I've got to know him well and can genuinely say he's the most honest and fair man I have ever met. If he was human, I would put him charge of the United Nations in a heartbeat, because he would definitely make the world a much kinder, fairer and safer place under his watch.

Esme really is the most perfect person you could ever wish for as a 'mother-in-law', and has been a wonderful support to me during Charlie's illness and after he passed away. I haven't seen my own mother in years. She's happy in Florida with her randy husband and I get the occasional text message from her, but I doubt whether I'll ever see her again.

I stand up as my new family approaches and hug each one of them in turn. I can see people are staring at them because as a group they are so beautiful, or maybe they can sense they are different but cannot figure out why.

When Carlisle and Esme approach me for their hug, instead I drop a demure courtesy. "Your Majesties," I proclaim and they both start to laugh; even Carlisle.

"None of that rubbish," Esme giggles. "Carlisle and I are nothing like Aro. We may be the new rulers of Volterra, but we're not like that pompous relic who wafted around the castle like a prehistoric ghost. This is a new era for our kind and one I hope you're ready to join now?"

"Yes, Esme. I've finally made my mind up. That gray hair was what did it for me. I don't think I can cope with the trauma of finding another one."

Everyone roars with laughter at that and then Edward sweeps me up in his arms.

"So it's not just about me?"

"No!" I giggle and kiss him on the nose.

"There's no rush, Bella," he whispers in my ear as he spins me around.

"I know, Edward, but I've chosen my life; I want to start living it," I whisper back as he brings me back down to earth.

"With me?"

"With all of you, but especially with you, my darling. Sei la mia via adesso."

Edward smiles at me as I say the words he often whispers to me, which are the same words he said after we'd first made love.

"You are my life now," he repeats but in English this time, which doesn't sound nearly as romantic as when he says it in Italian, but to be honest, right now I don't really care!

I'm supposing you're wondering whether I ever wrote that book; you know the one I told Jay I was going to write that was supposed to stop the art world in its tracks; the one where I'd discovered what was in the hearts and minds of all those incredible artists from the past.

Well, I did write the book, but it will never be published. How could it be when the source of the vast majority of my 'research' was the memory of a six hundred year-old vampire who could tell me almost everything I needed to know without having to carry out any investigative work. All I had to do was listen, transfixed, to Edward's amazing stories that stretched from 1384 to the present day. I wish I could share them with the world, but alas, some things have to remain hidden forever.

Of course, vampires are supposed to stay in the shadows, so, like Eduardo Antonio Masinelli, whose name should have been as famous as the other great artists of the time, Isabella Marie Swan will never be a famous name in the art or literary world, but I'm totally content with that.

Art history has always been my passion and a huge part of my life and will continue to be so for eternity, because I'm fortunate to be in possession of a living piece of art history of my very own. Every night I snuggle up to Michelangelo's 'David', who as well as being the most classically beautiful man I have ever laid eyes on, he is also the only living recipient of knowledge passed on to him by the world's second-greatest lover, (after Edward of course), Giacomo Girolamo Casanova.

Aren't I just the luckiest girl in the world?

The End

I think she is, don't you?

I hope you've enjoyed finding out what happened to Edward and Bella and their families and friends after the disaster, and I hope I've tied up every loose end? I've hit the 'complete' button (sniff), but can always sneak in another sentence or two if it's required.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story. I've loved all the comments, the guesses, the questions; even the (constructive) criticisms. I'm grateful to each and every one of you. I'm always sad when a story comes to an end as it's been such a joy communicating with you all. For future readers, do let me know if you enjoyed the story.

To end, I would like to dedicate this story to JudyBlue95, (Judy Edson Sokolowski), who read each one of my six stories and reviewed every chapter religiously and sometimes hysterically funnily. We would chat about all sorts of things on the PM side of the site as well and I heard about her life, her politics, her love for Rob and, more recently, for Timothee Chalamet (why?). She lived in California so we never met, but we kept in touch between stories through Facebook. Her last review was on 8th September but she died suddenly a week later. I'm already missing her sense of humor, her philosophical comments on life in general and, most of all, her dry wit. Thankfully I'll be able to recall our 'chats' by revisiting our long drawn-out conversations that are preserved in the memory bank of this awesome site.

Until the next time (don't know when, but hopefully sometime next year). Keep well, keep supporting Fanfiction, and stay in touch.

Joan (aka Michaelmas54) xxx