Bianca was horrified. Although it had been said quietly, it was obvious Maggie had intended her to hear it, and she had. She was embarrassed that she had been caught "Mags, I'm sorry just you were there, and your hair was right there, and I……am rambling like a fool" she said as she hung her head in shame.

"Bianca, its ok" she said as she finished strapping Miranda in. "I….can't say it was completely unintentional." She added

Bianca began to get that deeply serious look she got anytime she felt like Maggie was going to reveal something to her "Wh…what do you mean?" she asked

"Look, I know it's only been a few hours, but I've done a lot of thinking since we left Pine Valley." She said as she walked towards the couch "And I don't know, maybe it's the altitude or the lighting or the fact we have gone 5 minutes without a kidnapping, a drugging or a murder, but I think I am seeing things more clearly now."

"Li..Like what?" stuttered Bianca

Maggie sat down next to her friend and faced her "What I am trying to say Bianca is that
I don't think I am as confused as I thought I was."

Bianca turned to face Maggie now "But you are still confused then?"

Maggie grunted in aggravation and grabbed both of Bianca's hands and held them "You know under this dye job I'm a blonde, which means I will always be confused by something." Which got a chuckle out of Bianca "But what I know I am not confused about is that I love you."

"B..but...I thought you wanted more time to think things out and figure out who you are." Said Bianca

Maggie moved closer to Bianca and lowered her head so that her forehead rested on Bianca's left shoulder "And just like everything else I have ever done in relation to you Bianca, that was done to push you away. You have been there for me no matter what. No matter what lame excuse I came up with to try to hide my feelings. What I am saying is I'm done with that. I'm here, you're here, Miranda's here…we have no other distractions, no more excuses, no more crises to go and run behind to hide ourselves."

The lights of the cabin began to flicker on as a sign to the passengers that their journey was almost over. This took Maggie by surprise and made her jump, lifting her head off of Bianca's shoulder. She reached up and wiped away the silent tears she had begun crying as she looked down at her feet.

"Guess that means there's no more hiding huh?" she said in a half laughing, half crying voice.

Bianca leaned towards her friend and placed her left hand on the other girls shoulder to turn her towards her. She put the fingers of her other hand under Maggie's chin to lift her face up so they could look into each other's eyes.

"You don't have to deal with this yet." she said staring deeply into what felt like Maggie's soul "I said we could take our time and I meant it. I will not pressure you, I will not rush you, this isn't a decision that has to be made tonight. I'm not going anywhere, and you know that."

Maggie cocked her head to one side and squinted as she fought back what felt like a raging river of tears "I'm just so tired Bianca…..I'm just so damned tired of running, and hiding and being confused." She began to shake her head back and forth to punctuate the point "And it has to stop. It has to stop here and it has to stop now."

Bianca feared what that meant. Was Maggie regretting the decision to come? Had she gotten this far with her friend only to have her turn back?

Maggie saw the look in her friend's eyes and could tell she was thinking the worst. "I said it earlier and I meant it Bianca….I love you. Do I have to scream it from the rooftops to make it true? Tell me what it is I have to do to prove it to you, and I will do it!"

Now Bianca's eyes were tearing up "But you also said you didn't know what kind of love it was. You didn't know if it was love or some incredible form of friendship….if you were straight or if you were gay…."

Maggie piped up "I'm Montgomeried Bianca! I could care less what anyone else calls me, all I know is I love you, Bianca Montgomery, and if that person happens to be in the body of another woman than so be it!"

With a speed that shocked Bianca, Maggie leaned forward and grabbed B's head with both hands and kissed her. At first Bianca left her eyes open, but soon she succumbed to the moment, and the feeling, and closed them while at the same time returning the kiss.

In Maggie's sudden movement Bianca had retracted her arms to an almost defensive position, now they were slowly rising to clasp her friends face in her hands. This kiss, this simple act of pressing two body parts together, it felt like one of those inviting swims in Willow Lake, and all she wanted to do was dive into it.

It was as if electrical current was passing through them, and she felt more connected to Maggie than ever. This spur-of-the-moment action, joined them in a way they had never known before. It was worlds apart from their previous kisses, it was filled with fire and passion….and it was completely mutual.

No matter how it felt though, Bianca also knew this wasn't right. She slid her hands from Maggie's cheeks to her shoulders and lightly pushed to break their embrace. She could tell Maggie was reluctant to break the contact, but she finally did.

Both girls stared at each other, looking for any indication of what the other was thinking. Bianca looked with concern and Maggie with confusion.

"What? What is it B? What's wrong?" asked Maggie.

Bianca took a moment to collect her thoughts. "Maggie….this isn't right."

"Isn't right?" Maggie said raising her voice "Isn't this what we have been wanting ever since I told you I loved you that first time a year ago?"

"We are working towards whatever feels natural Mags…and this doesn't feel natural… yet." Bianca said in her ever calm voice.

"I don't get this. I've told you multiple times tonight I love you, I tell you I feel I am ready and I kiss you….what isn't natural?"

"What it feels like is that you are still confused, but just at the other end of the spectrum." Said Bianca "And that can be just as dangerous as trying to run off and denying the kiss meant anything."

"Look at it this way B...I didn't run now did I? I didn't go find a guy to secure my sexuality with did I? I mean, there are two pilots in the cockpit" she said gesturing to the front of the plane "I could have gone and joined the mile high club, but no...I stayed here, with you, this time didn't I?" asked Maggie.

Bianca marveled at how Maggie could make a joke out of anything. "Think about what you just said. You didn't run to a man to make you feel secure in your sexuality." Bianca paused to let it sink in "Aren't you doing essentially the same thing and you are running to me to tell you who you are?"

Maggie let the tears flow as she held her face in her hands and sobbed. Bianca reached out to rub Maggie's upper shoulder, but upon contact the shorter girl moved her shoulder away and just mumbled a soft "Don't".

Bianca wanted to help her friend, but didn't know what she could say or do, that would calm her down. She stood up and walked back to the bathroom and retrieved a box of tissues to bring back to Maggie. She again sat on the couch, but made sure to keep a respectable distance. She set the tissues on the couch to where she was sure Maggie would see them as soon as she felt like opening her eyes.

It was a few moments before the sobbing quieted down and Bianca heard a soft "Thanks" as Maggie spotted the tissues and grabbed a few to clean up with.

"Maggie, can I talk to you now?" asked Bianca

"It's your plane." Came the stuffed up reply

"Don't be like that Maggie, I'm just concerned." She again reached out to caress Maggie's shoulder, there was a momentary flinch, but not as severe as last time, and she finally allowed Bianca to caress her shoulder. "You've gone through so much lately, and this trip has to be a little overwhelming. There is no reason to rush this decision and add that pressure to everything else."

Maggie continued to sniffle and to stare downward. After another moment of Bianca caressing her shoulder Maggie asked very timidly "Did….did I just mess up our friendship…again?"

Bianca chuckled softly and moved closer so she could wrap her arm around Maggie more "Maggie, I can not honestly think of a single thing you could do, that would ever drive me away for good."

Maggie turned so her feet were once again on the floor and she leaned into Bianca and laid her head on her left shoulder. Bianca openly welcomed her and wrapped her arm around her and leaned her head to the left so it rested atop Maggie's.

"I just thought….I thought it felt right." Said Maggie "I was watching you carry Miranda and it made me think how safe I feel with you, and how much the both of you are like family to me. And for an instant, I felt like I saw what Frankie must have seen in you, and everything just felt like it fit you know?" Even though Maggie could not see Bianca's face, she could feel the muscles in her face change into a smile since they were resting against the top of her head.

"I'm glad you feel safe with us Maggie, I always want you to feel safe with us. As for what Frankie saw in me….I don't think we will ever know what exactly she saw. What I do know is that you have to do what you think is right for Maggie Stone and no one else." Said Bianca

"So I didn't just scare you away?" asked Maggie

"Ssssshhhhhhhhhhh" Bianca admonished "Don't you worry about that."

The intercom crackled to life "Miss Montgomery we are on final approach to the airport. If you could please secure Miranda and you and your friend could get seated, we will be landing shortly."

Both girls broke their embrace and turned in their seats to look out the window. Sprawled out in front of them were lights stretching as far as the eye could see. Thousands upon thousands of lights twinkling on and off. They began to notice the sun was rising and a new day was dawning. A day full of possibilities…a day full of new adventures…a day of new beginnings for two women who have been through just about anything a person could dream up.

The girls looked at each other and smiled. Maggie grabbed Bianca around the neck and pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry B." She whispered in her ear.

"For what? Being human? You never have to apologize to me for following what you think is in your heart." Was her reply, as she returned the hug.

The girls broke their embrace and turned around to sit properly on the couch. They were beginning to feel the change in pressure signaling the plane was descending. The girls fastened themselves in to the seatbelts and again looked and smiled at each other.

"Your eyes are all red." Said Bianca with a note of concern

"It's this plane…I must be allergic to anything associated with the name Cambias." Maggie said with a wink

Bianca went slack jawed and smiled "You better not be!"

"Well, let's test it out." Maggie said as she grabbed Bianca's left hand with her right. She interlaced their fingers and squeezed her friends hand. "Nope…nothing…but I better leave it like this for awhile…see if it has to do with the amount of time I'm exposed or something." Maggie said with a smile.

Bianca simply smiled back. She knew things would be alright if Maggie was already cracking wise with her again.

The girls heard the landing gear extending them selves from the belly of the plane, and felt the nose section tilt upwards so that the rear wheels would touch down first. The engines increased their mechanical scream as they could see the tops of buildings out the other side of the planes windows.

With a jolt, the wheels touched down and the engines increased their whine even further as they threw in the reverse thrust. Maggie squeezed Bianca's hand even harder. Bianca closed her eyes and said silently "Thank you for letting her come…thank you thank you thank you"

The plane slowed and began its taxi along the tarmac to where a Cambias Industries car awaited to take them to customs. The plane slowed to a stop and the girls took that as the sign they could unfasten their safety belts and prepare to leave.

Bianca was the first up and immediately walked over to retrieve some sweat pants from her carry-on bags for her and Maggie. She slipped on her pair and tossed the other pair over to Maggie who was pulling her back into a single pony tail. Maggie looked down at the pants and back up to her friend with a bemused look "Is there anything you don't have in those bags?" she asked.

"The experienced traveler comes prepared." Bianca said with a smile. She then slipped on her coat taking care not to damage the corsage she was still wearing.

She walked over to pick-up Miranda's carrier and discovered the little girl had fallen back asleep. She undid the safety straps as quietly as possible and picked up the carrier by its handle. She turned and looked back at Maggie who had now slipped on the sweat pants and her coat.

"Are you ready?" asked Bianca

"With you by my side, I think I am ready for anything." Was Maggie's reply

Bianca smiled and said a simple "Me too."

The girls heard the cabin door opening. The co-pilot entered the back cabin and informed them not to worry about the bags, they would be sent over to the apartment. The girls walked to the door and stood side by side looking out at the Paris morning. They looked at each other and smiled

Maggie glanced down at Bianca's left wrist and smirked "I still think you had better take that thing off." she said pointing to the corsage that was peeking out from her coat sleeve.

"No way! It means even more to me now than it did a few hours ago."

Maggie stooped down next to the sleeping Miranda and said "I have obviously flown to France with an insane woman."

And with that, they stepped off the plane and into a whole new world.