Title: The Road We Travel

Characters: Cast of Roswell

Pairings: Max/Liz – Eventually with some UC later on (I will add the pairings as the story continues – don't want to give away everything right now)

Rating: Teen to Mature

Disclaimer: I do not own anyone/anything from the forum Roswell. Jason Katims & Melinda Metz owns Roswell and its characters. There is no copyright infringement intended. I do not make any profit/money or take any credit.

Summary: Liz is having nightmares. Then her biggest fear comes to life. Liz sets out, determined to change their fates. Then she learns, Destiny isn't set in stone.

Timeline: Season 2, Post Viva Las Vegas

Warning: Moderate sexual themes, moderate violence, flashback, friendships, secret relationships, character death

Author's Notes: Just tie me up somewhere and get me obsessed with something else. (I cannot wait for the new fire emblem game to come out). Of course, I can't just write happy cheerful stories. Sometimes darkness needs to play too.

Chapter 1: I Told You Once

Hands grabbed at her, pulling her down. She screamed as the ice cold water enveloped her before she gasped, desperately breathing air.

Pain sliced over her chest, her head arching as tears streamed down her face.

White walls, white floors, white ceilings, white everywhere no matter where she looked, spinning around in the circle.

Her hands slapped against the walls, screaming and begging whoever was on the other side of the mirror to let her out.

Flames.

Liz Parker jolted awake, breathing desperately as she stared up at the ceiling above her, her hands clutching at her duvet.

Safe, she was safe within her own bedroom.

She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before she gingerly pushed herself up into a sitting position and ran a hand through her sweat-soaked hair then buried her face into her hands.

The white room.

She was dreaming about the white room again. She swore softly under her breath before shaking herself out of her stupor.

She had thought the nightmares had stopped; she hadn't had one of them since she came back to Roswell.

A soft knock at her door alerted her to her mother's presence on the other side.

"Honey, are you up?" Liz looked at the door and sighed.

"Yeah, I'm up," she called back, willing her voice to be steady.

"Okay honey, breakfast is nearly ready."

Nausea made her stomach churn at the thought of breakfast before she slid out of her bed and made her way into the bathroom.

She looked at her reflection and winced.

She looked like hell. Great.

~_TRWT_~

After managing to convince her parents that she was fine, just stressed with the upcoming exams, she managed to drag herself to her lockers, resting her head against the cool metal for a brief moment, closing her eyes and trying to get her bearing.

"Tess has left Roswell," the voice whispered and her eyes snapped opened and she looked around, terrified only to discover she was alone.

No one was around, the hallway void of students. She frowned, pushing away from the locker and walking down the hallway.

She looked in different directions, wondering where everyone had gone. She didn't hear the bell and looking into the classroom through the windows, she could see they were also empty.

Dread started up in her stomach and she stopped when she heard footsteps behind her.

Turning around, she saw nothing but her fear spiked up. A shadow moved across the frosted glass window of the guidance office next to her and she slowly turned to face it.

She slowly reached out a hand and twisted the handle. It gave way and the door slowly opened. She stepped into the room, frowning when she saw nothing out of the ordinary.

Paperwork littered the top of the desk and a cup of coffee, still steaming. The sunlight shone through the blinds. Everything seemed normal, except there was nothing to explain for the shadow.

She did see a shadow…didn't she?

Liz turned around only to see the closed door and she swallowed back her fear, stepping closer to the door but this time, she could sense danger behind it.

Breathing heavily, she touched the handle, gasping when a dark feeling surged through her and she shivered.

The sun faded, giving away to darkness and the temperature dropped violently that Liz could see her breath in front of her.

Her fear heightened before she closed her eyes, gritting her teeth and she swung the door open only to see sterilise white walls, her heart thudding and all of a sudden, there was a presence at her back.

She could feel someone breathing against her ear and she fought herself not to look.

"Run!"

"Liz?" a hand on her shoulder made Liz gasps and she spun around to meet the concerned eyes of Isabel Evans.

"Isabel?" she frowned before she looked around to see she was still at her locker. She swallowed nervously before meeting the dark eyes of the taller woman.

"Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah," Liz slowly nodded. "Sorry, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night," she admitted with a small smile. Isabel did not seem convinced and Liz inwardly wondered once more, what was about the Evans that seem to slip through her guards?

"Are you sure?" Isabel narrowed her eyes. Liz nodded. Isabel merely stared at her for a long moment before she conceded.

"Okay, just try and not fall asleep in the hallway again," she gently teased. Liz gave a half-hearted laugh before she returned to her locker, aware of Isabel's eyes on her back.

Once Liz had gotten her books for her class, she shut her locker and turned around to meet Isabel's bright smile.

"I'll walk you to your class."

"Oh!" Liz shook her head. "You don't have to," she tried to brush off but Isabel was stubborn, another Evans trait she noticed with thinly veiled amusement.

"I want to," Isabel told her, linking arms together.

She must look that bad if Isabel Evans wanted to walk her to her class. She could only hope that it didn't mean everyone else did.

Isabel chatted to Liz as they made their way down the hallway, giving her a bright smile with concerned eyes when they reached Liz's first class. Liz thanked her for walking her to her class and entered the classroom, looking over her shoulder to meet Isabel's dark eyes and shivered briefly.

Why did they seem so sad?

Her class dragged on, her dread mounted up in her stomach and it only got worse with each minute that ticked by.

She could feel the concerned gaze of her teacher but pushed it to the back of her mind and tried to concentrate on her lessons.

Liz almost jumped out of skin when the bell rang; hastily gathering her books and bag, leaving the classroom only to run into Isabel again.

"Isabel?" she quirked her head, "I thought your class was on the other side."

"It was," Isabel told her with a smile, "But I got concerned and I thought I would walk with you to your next class."

"Isabel…"

"Please," Isabel interrupted. Liz's jaw snapped shut as she stared up at her. "I know we're not exactly the best of friends. But…I am worried about you."

"You don't have to be," Liz felt herself melt around Isabel.

"Please?" those brown eyes pleaded with her and Liz found it difficult to deny Isabel. She could barely deny Max when he used those eyes on her.

"Okay," she whispered.

Isabel merely gave her a bright-relieved smile before she intertwined their arms together and headed to Liz's next class, promising she would come back and get her.

Liz only watched as Isabel left her in the hallway, watching the way Isabel's shoulders seemed tense, the way her eyes would flick back and forth as if she was looking for an enemy and she wondered…was there a new threat?

"Miss Parker?" Liz jumped and spun around to look at her teacher standing in the doorway. "Will you be joining us today?"

"Sorry," she gave him a smile, embarrassed before she entered the classroom, her thoughts wandering back toward Isabel and she felt a shiver run down her spine then frowned, looking toward the door.

Was that a shadow?

The day flew by and before she knew it, it was lunch period. Isabel was nowhere near her classroom and Liz felt guilty for feeling relieved. She didn't want Isabel to worry about her so much.

Liz slowly made her way out into the quad, walking over to the table where she could hear Michael and Maria argue and she had to smile.

Liz took a seat on the other side of the table, watching with thinly veiled amusement at Michael trying not to care about what Maria was saying to him and Maria getting more and more worked up the more he seemed to care less.

Her movements drew the attention of the tall male and he frowned.

"Jeez Parker, you look horrendous," Michael remarked as he eyed her with a critical look. He grunted when Maria drove her elbow into his side, giving him a glare and Liz smiled wryly at him.

At least she could count on him to speak the truth.

"Nightmares," she slowly admitted, stifling a yawn as she did. Her eyelids felt heavy. "They are not leaving me alone."

"I know the feeling," Michael gave her a sympathetic nod. Liz gave him a warm smile before she crossed her arms onto the table and lowered her head, unable to keep it up anymore.

"Do you want to talk about it babe?" Maria's hand gently squeezed her elbow. Liz shook her head.

"I just want to rest my eyes for a moment."

The background slowly faded when her eyelids closed. She could hear Maria and Michael arguing. She sensed Isabel's presence at the table – a faint smile crossed her lips – she liked Isabel's presence, it reminded her of caramel.

Then there were lips brushing against her forehead, a hand running through her hair and she sensed Alex.

Then Max's presence caught her attention, a hand slowly brushing against the small of her back then a cool hand against her forehead.

For the first time, Liz felt safe and she slipped away into her dreams.

White. Nothing but white. All around her.

She looked down, her hands coated with blood, she stifled her screams, her head snapping up, and she caught her reflection in the mirror.

Blood soaked the white scrubs she was wearing. Blood splattered across the white walls.

Tess's reflection appeared behind her, strapped down to a table, screaming and crying.

Liz gasped, her hands going to the mirror…no…window.

The silver glint of the scalpel rose into the air before it came down toward Tess and Liz screamed.

"You are going to die," the voice whispered.

Liz bolted awake with a strangled gasp, her hands scrabbling for purchase and she dimly noticed Max jerking in surprise next to her as her eyes scanned the quad for any danger.

"Liz?" a hand on her back made her jump and she turned wild eyes to meet the concerned gaze of Max. Great, another Evans to be concerned for her, "Are you okay?"

Liz swallowed as she tried to her bearing, looking around as she pushed down the fear, breathing heavily before she nodded jerkily.

"Yeah," her voice was hoarse, her throat sore and she winced, her hand going to her throat. "Sorry, was I screaming?"

Max shook his head, bewildered.

"Here," Max handed her his bottle of water. She took it with a grateful smile and took a gulp, nearly choking when her thirstiness hit her and she tried to down the whole bottle.

"Hey," Max quickly pulled the bottle down, shifting so he was straddling the bench and worry creased his forehead, "You'll make yourself sick." "Sorry," she whispered, grabbing a tissue to mop up the mess she made before she groaned. "I didn't realise how thirsty I actually was."

"Are you okay?" he stared at her and she slowly nodded before she sighed.

"Nightmares," she admitted, running a hand through her hair. "I just can't seem to get rid of them."

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked.

"No," she shook her head, "I actually don't remember them." She gave him a small smile. "It's one of those where you know you are dreaming…but it fades when you wake up."

Max slowly nodded, eyeing her and she sighed. "You can tell me I look horrible Max."

"I was actually going to say you look tired," he gave her a wry smile, arching an eyebrow. "Michael?"

"At least he's truthful," Liz shrugged. Max laughed and Liz noticed the others were no longer there and frowned.

"They headed back to their class. Maria told me you were having trouble sleeping and since we had a free period after lunch, I told them I would sit with you."

"Oh," she shook her head, "You didn't have to."

"It's fine Liz," he assured her. "Besides, you looked like you needed the sleep."

"I don't feel like I slept," she admitted with a heavy sigh, shaking her head.

Max leaned in. "Do you want Isabel to help you?" his eyes made it clear what he was trying to say.

At first, she was tempted, yes, she wanted Isabel to go into her mind, let her find out what was going on with her dreams, help her to find new ones.

Nevertheless, deep down inside, she knew…it was too dangerous for Isabel. Too dangerous for Max. Too dangerous for Michael.

Liz slowly shook her head, giving him a small smile.

"Thank you, but no," she chewed her bottom lip, "It'll go away. They always do." She looked away, murmuring the last one.

They did the last time; it has to go away in the future.

The bell rang and she jumped, startled. Max's grip tightened on her arms to help her regain her balance before she gave a nervous giggle.

"Hopefully before I end up giving myself a heart attack," she tried to tease. Max gave her a half-hearted smile but she could see it didn't reach his eyes and she wondered once more.

Did she really look that bad?

"Thanks for looking after me while I slept," she grabbed her bag and stood up. "I'd better get to my last class."

"Are you working tonight?" Max gathered his books, shoving them into his bag and Liz shook her head.

"No, I was meant to but Dad said I could have the night off," she explained. "So I'm planning on using that time to get some sleep in."

"Sounds like a plan," Max told her as he gently gripped her arm. "Come on, I'll walk you to your class."

"Something is up with you Evans," she told him, gently leaning into him as she regained her balance before they started walking.

"What do you mean?" Max asked.

"Isabel has been walking me to my classes today," she smiled as she shook her head. "You Evans are just sweet." She wrinkled her nose. "But if Isabel is concerned, then clearly there is something there."

"Or Isabel just wants to make sure you're ok," Max countered.

"Mm, she's a softie when she wants to be," Liz agreed tiredly.

"Are you sure you are alright to be here?" Max looked down at her and she looked back up at him before giving him a small smile.

"I'll be fine Max, plus I can't miss school," she reminded as they reached her class. Max just gave her a look before he sighed and nodded.

"Alright, try and not fall asleep," he gently teased her. Liz just shook her head with a smile.

"Just like Isabel," her tone was fond before she headed into the classroom and just like before, she looked over her shoulder to see the sadness in Max's eyes.

What was going on?

Liz was in a daze for most of her last class, frowning as she wondered what was going on. It seemed like her nightmares were getting worse and that sensation deep within her was only getting worse.

She shifted in her seat as she thought back to the previous year. She had felt like this a few times, and they usually led to bad things.

Was it happening again this year only her nightmares were adding to the mix?

The bell rang, breaking Liz out of her thoughts and making her jump out of her skin before she sighed, running a hand through her hair.

Damn it, she was going to kill herself over the damn bell before the week was over at this rate. She slowly packed up her stuff, briefly hearing her teacher hand out homework before she left the classroom only to meet the green gaze of Maria.

"Hey," Liz smiled softly. Maria smiled back, a reaching out to cup Liz's cheek.

"You alright?" she asked. Liz nodded.

"Just tired," she assured.

Maria hummed in that way that told Liz that she didn't believe her but Liz was too tired to care.

"We have to go by Michael's place," Maria's arm came around Liz's waist, gently pulling Liz into her body.

"Why?" Liz stifled another yawn. This was getting ridiculous.

"Michael called a meeting," Maria pressed a kiss to Liz's left temple. "Are you sure you're alright babe? You look…"

"Horrendous, if Michael to go by," Liz teased her before she nodded. "I'm fine Maria, just nightmares. I promise I will go to sleep early tonight."

"Good," Maria wrinkled her nose at her best friend and Liz felt another surge of fear.

What was happening to her? Between seeing that look on her friends' face and her nightmares, she felt like she was splitting apart at the seams.

Was this her punishment for changing their future?

Liz stopped in her tracks, wrinkling her nose. Was that her thought? Why had she thought that? She never once regretted doing what Max had asked her to do all those months ago.

It was to save everyone. To save Michael and Isabel, Max's family. It was to save their world.

"Liz?" Maria gently squeezed her best friend and Liz turned to face her before she smiled.

"Sorry," Liz started moving her feet again, pushing her thoughts to the back of her mind.

She needed to focus and she needed to breathe. Mostly she needed to sleep but that could wait.

~_TRWT_~

The car ride was soothing, Liz rested her head on the passenger's seat window, enjoying the smooth vibration even though Alex had tried to get her to sit up, citing that the vibration would just make her sick.

It wasn't making her sick, it was making her drowsy, it was pushing nausea to the back of her mind, it was soothing her stomach and she wanted to hum with pleasure. Was that so wrong?

She no longer knew anymore. It seemed like everything was twisting itself back and forth. Up was down and down was up. She fought back the giggles at the childish thought.

Soon the car stopped and the passenger's door open, almost tipping Liz out but thank to Max and Alex's quick reflexes, they managed to stop her.

"Are you sure she should be here?" Max asked, looking at Maria over Liz's shoulder and smoothing back Liz's hair behind her ear. She closed her eyes at the touch; it had been so long since she felt that.

"Not exactly sure what you wanted me to do Max, besides Michael said she needed to be here. Apparently, it's important," Maria retorted.

"Hey," Max turned to look back at Liz and she smiled before she frowned.

"Get me out," she fumbled with the seatbelt and slowly pulled herself out of the car, shaking her head. "Let just get this meeting over." She sighed when the cool breeze touched her face. "I have plans for tonight and they don't involve any of you."

Alex just laughed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and they all walked up the stairs to Michael's apartment.

When they reached it, Max opened the door for them to see Michael, Isabel, and Kyle was already there and waiting for them.

The first thing she noticed was Isabel and Michael sitting on the stools next to the counter.

The second was Kyle pacing, looking tense. She frowned, tilting her head as a strange sensation ran through her, and she shivered.

"You alright Parker?" asked Alex as he gently squeezed her shoulders and she looked up to see the concerned blue eyes and sighed.

Maybe she should have another look in the mirror.

She brought her head down to see Kyle was now standing in the middle of the room. Max, Maria, and Alex – when had Alex left her side? – sitting on the couch.

"So, what's the big deal?" Michael asked.

"I thought you called the meeting?" Liz stepped forward. Why did her feet feel heavy?

"Actually, Kyle called me earlier saying he needed to talk to us all," Isabel spoke up.

Liz turned to look at Kyle and saw the hesitation on his face. Clearly, he was debating with himself and she didn't have time for this.

"Kyle," Liz sighed. Her head felt heavy and she could feel herself swaying on the spot. Damn it, she was too tired.

"I have something to tell you," Kyle's voice felt so far away and Liz frowned as she tried to concentrate on what Kyle was going to say.

Why…she shook herself…why did it feel familiar?

She vaguely heard Michael ask questions, could feel hands on her arms and she looked up to see Isabel was staring down at her with concern.

Why was Isabel so concerned about it? What happened? What changed?

Kyle's voice broke into her thoughts and sent a cold shiver down her spine.

"Tess has left Roswell."

Liz felt her whole world tilt on its side, her vision tunnelling into darkness before she fell to her knees and vomited.

TBC