CHAPTER THIRTY

Three times along the bars was all Hotch managed in two hours time. By then he was done, he was shaking like a leaf, sweaty like he'd run a marathon and weak as a kitten. It killed him to admit that he was grateful when Hugh helped him over to the wheel chair one of the aids had brought him down in. Sinking into its cold confines, the agent managed to not cry out when Hugh lifted his leg up to put it in the step. The last thing the man needed was to catch his feet on something on the way back to his room.

Satisfied he had Agent Hotchner settled in the chair, Hugh moved to kneel in front of him. He'd seen the pain, frustration and finally complete exhaustion and wanted to make sure the man was all right. Looking up at the agent's piercing, dark brown eyes, Hugh knew. The man was going to get through this. His strength of will was beyond anything the physical therapist had ever met before.

"How are you doing, Agent Hotchner?" Hugh asked. The session had been hard on the man. Clearly the agent was in very good physical condition. He wasn't used to his body not being able to do what he wanted it to. This was often a painful, devastating realization for patients in his condition.

"Tired," Hotch admitted. All ready his eyes were trying to close as his body tried to recoup some of its energy through sleep. "How long until this gets easier?"

Chuckling softly, Hugh dipped his head. Typical A type personality, always wanting to be in control, always wanting to know what was coming. Looking back at the man, he couldn't help the grin. "That depends on you, Agent Hotchner."

"Please, call me 'Hotch'. Everyone else does," Aaron interrupted.

"All right, Hotch, how long this takes depends on you and your body. If you're persistent despite the pain and discomfort, you'll be back to normal faster. That being said, if something I do or that you are doing causes any sharp pains or profound discomfort I need you to tell me. I expect you to have minor aches from using muscles that haven't been used for a few weeks. I don't expect you to pull any muscles or otherwise do yourself further damage," Hugh said. Seeing that the man understood, the therapist stood up and headed to the back of the chair. "Let's get you back to your room."

OOOOO

The afternoon in the hotel room was pretty quiet. Both Hotch and Reid were exhausted from their therapy sessions and promptly fell asleep. The only movement was from the nurses as they checked on their patients.

Around supper time Morgan stepped into the room. Both agents were still sleeping. Quietly, Morgan set down the food he'd brought with him and then helped Jack to climb onto his father's bed. Hotch was lying with his back against the wall. Somehow that didn't really surprise Morgan. Of course the Unit Chief would keep his back in a defensive position. Lifting the blanket gently, Morgan got Jack to slide in and covered them both.

Even in sleep, Hotch moved toward the scent of his son, wrapping a protective arm around him. Keeping an eye on Morgan as the agent moved to the chair, Jack smiled contentedly. His dad was here. He was safe. He was still big and strong and would protect him. All was right with the world.

Pulling a pocket novel out of his back pocket, Morgan prepared to wait. The food could be heated again. There wasn`t an active case at the moment so he had the time.

OOOOO

Time passed. In what seemed like a year and an hour at the same time Hotch was ready to leave the hospital. In reality it was five days while they made sure his injuries were healing properly and that his physical therapy was going well. While he was very eager to get home to his son and back to work, Aaron hated to leave Reid.

Sitting on his bed beside his packed duffle bag, Hotch turned toward his young agent. For his part, Reid was sitting up in the chair. He had learned to hate the bed in the time he`d been in the hospital. It wasn`t that it was uncomfortable or in any way restrictive, it was just that it reminded him all too well that he was still considered too sick to leave.

"The doctor said he'll let you out once the swelling has completely reduced," Hotch tried to reassure his youngest agent. He knew Reid hated to be left behind and that he hated the urinary catheter even worse. The fact that he was sitting up was more due to his stubbornness than to the fact that it didn't hurt. Hotch knew that it did cause discomfort for Reid to sit in the hard backed chair. It was too severe an angle with his continued swelling.

"I know," Reid responded. He was trying to not act like a child. He could easily see himself sticking his lower lip out, pouting like a spoiled child. That would be unbecoming of a Federal agent. Not to mention one with doctorates but damn it would feel good at the moment. He hated being left behind. He hated being separated from Hotch. He hated the damned urinary catheter. Still, he tried to hide all of these negative thoughts so that he could be happy for his friend and boss. At least Hotch was being allowed to go home to his son. That was a sign of progress.

"Is there anything I can bring you when I come to visit?" Hotch asked. He wanted to ask if Reid was okay but he knew the question would just be answered in an offhand manner. Both of them were really tired of that damned question.

"I'm good," Reid said, looking up at Hotch for the first time. He felt better in control of his emotions and was willing to face him. "You know you don't have to come visit me. Stay at home with Jack. He needs a little normalcy in his life right now."

"So do you," Hotch stated, a small smile playing on his lips.

"I will. Once they let me out of here," Reid stated with a lop-sided grin on his face.

Heaving a sigh from the tips of his toes, Hotch placed his hand on his bag. He could hear the orderly coming down the hall with a wheel chair. They were running out of time. They were about to take him down to be discharged. It was in the middle of the day otherwise his team would be there to help him home. Hotch had strictly forbid them to leave work to be here for him. The biggest reason for that was that he didn't want any pomp and ceremony around his leaving while Reid was still trapped in the damned place.

"I will come to visit you," Hotch stated. "Jack wants to make sure you're all right."

"Seriously, Hotch, stay home with your son. With any luck they will be letting me out of here in a few days. Take the time off you have to heal. We'll be back on the job soon enough," Reid insisted. Despite the brace and the catheter he was feeling stronger, more like himself. As much as he hated to admit that separating from Hotch was causing him anxiety, he knew he could handle it.

"If you're not released in three days I'll bring Jack. No arguing," Hotch said as the orderly pushed the wheel chair in. Turning his attention to the man in the white clothes, Hotch had to ask. "Is that really necessary?"

"Depends," the man answered, a weary smile on his face. "Do you really want to leave?"

"Okay, okay," Hotch said, giving in. Prolonging the process wasn't going to make it any better. Standing up, he headed to the chair and sank into it, his duffle on his lap. As he was pushed past Reid, he couldn't keep from resting a reassuring hand on his knee. "I'll see you soon."

"Of course you will. Say hi to Jack for him," Reid said as he watched the older agent leave the room. For a split second the room seemed so much bigger and lonelier than Reid could ever remember being. Squashing the emotion, Reid moved over to his had shown him the exercises he needed to do to strengthen his hips and keep his legs in shape. If he was going to get out of here, he had to keep doing them. Settling on the bed, Reid began to follow her instructions to the letter. He had no trouble remembering them after all.

OOOOO

That night Reid lay in his bed trying to keep from whimpering. His pelvis was burning like the unsub had just damaged it. Now the cautions Daisy had given him earlier in the afternoon made a little more sense. In his anxiety to get out of the hospital, he'd pushed it too hard. His body was letting him know he'd overdone it. Damn.

Shifting slightly in his bed to relieve some of the pain, Reid found it only created new, sharper pain. Sucking breath between clenched teeth, Reid finished the movement. The pain was something he could handle. The one upside was that the catheter no longer bothered him. A wry chuckle broke through as tears collected in the corners of Reid's eyes.

In the low light of the room Reid eyed the call button. He really should push the damn thing and let them know he was this uncomfortable. Staring at it some more though, Reid changed his mind. While they could give him some extra strength Tylenol and Ibuprofen he didn't think either drug would touch the pain he was in. He didn't want them to threaten to give him anything stronger. By now the doctor and nurses knew better, that he would refuse it but at the moment he wasn't sure if they offered it that he would. Gasping as a particularly sharp stab of pain shot through him, Reid curled up on his side as best as the brace and catheter would let him.

Visions of their in time the cave floated through Reid's mind as it wandered, trying to get away from the pain. If anything, the memories only made it worse. Maybe he could ask for something to help him sleep. It was an entertaining thought for about five seconds. No. That wasn't an option either. Gritting his teeth a little harder, Reid prepared to spend a particularly miserable night.

While he lay there, Reid ran through all possible options. He could simply have strained underused muscles that were now causing his discomfort. There was also the possibility that he had somehow managed while doing his low impact exercises to damage the surgery done to the hip bones. Not a likely option. The exercises had been too low impact. There was nothing he had done that should have caused structural damage to his pelvis.

Other options played through his mind but Reid chose to ignore them. They were becoming increasingly unlikely and he didn't want to think about the possible ramifications if they were in fact what had happened. He had to admit to himself though that some of them would require that he let the medical personnel know. That brought him to considering when he would have to tell them.

The one scenario in which Reid decided he would call for help was if the fluid passing through his catheter turned red. That would mean internal haemorrhaging, bleeding of some kind. That was something he wouldn't be able to just grin and bear. That would require skills that were outside of his personal skill set. Satisfied that he'd made a sound, logical decision, Reid allowed his eyes to close. Maybe, just maybe he'd actually get some sleep if he kept them closed.

That wasn't to be.

Sometime after two am Reid heard the door to his room quietly swing open. Keeping his eyes closed, the young profiler recognized the soft tread of Peter. The nurse was on the midnight shift today. Reid felt the man checking his tubes and the readouts on the computer screen that held his heard beat, blood pressure, etc. Finished, he moved to the foot of the bed and wrote information on Reid's chart.

"Having trouble sleeping?" Peter asked as he moved beside Reid's bed. Despite the agent's best efforts he was always able to tell when his patients were faking it. He could also see by the slight rise in the man's blood pressure that he was suffering some form of discomfort.

For a split second Reid considered continuing to pretend that he was sleeping. Realizing how silly that would be, Reid opened his eyes and oh so gently rolled over onto his back. His body had started to complain about that position anyway. "Yeah," Reid admitted.

"There are non-narcotic sleep aids that I can give you," Peter stated. He'd finished with the chart and returned it to the foot of Reid's bed.

"I know," Reid responded. The pain was subsiding slightly. At least there were fewer episodes of sharp pains. Reid was grateful for that. His body and mind were becoming numb to the low intensity burning.

"You've been through a lot agent. You don't have to do this alone. Let me get something. It'll just make you drowsy," Peter said. "You have another busy day tomorrow with physical therapy."

The thought of Daisy's ebullient nature was what broke Reid. The woman was cheerful to the point of being painful to be around. If he was tired AND sore, there was no way he could survive another two hours of her company. Sighing, he looked at the man. "Okay. The mildest one you have."

"Sure thing, doc. Just give me a minute." With that Peter exited the room.

Before Reid had the chance to change his mind Peter was back with a paper cup with a single pill in its confines. He also had a cool bottle of water which he cracked open upon handing Reid the cup. After a split second of indecision, Reid popped the pill into his mouth and accepted the bottle. Several mouthfuls later, he handed it back.

"I'll leave this here in case you need it. I'll check in on you in a few hours. Have a good sleep, Dr. Reid," Peter said as he slipped back out of the room. He'd placed the water bottle on the nightstand before leaving.

Reid wasn't sure if he felt like he'd given up or if he'd made the right decision. While he was contemplated the various sides of the argument sleep stole over him.

OOOOO

"Good morning!" Daisy called as she stuck her head into Reid's room. It was early, about 8:30am, but Reid was all ready washed and changed into new top and pants. They'd tried to make him wear the stupid gowns but after the third day he'd bulked. The sponge baths were bad enough. At least today Peter had done it and not one of the female nurses.

"Hi Daisy," Reid said. He'd slept about four hours. While not a full night's sleep it had certainly helped Reid have a better outlook on the day than he would have otherwise had. The sleep had also helped the pain in his pelvis. Now he could tell that it was in fact sore muscles and nothing more serious. Seeing Daisy, however, he was immediately concerned that he might not be able to do what she was going to ask him to.

"How are you feeling today?" Daisy asked as she shouldered the door open and pushed a wheel chair in before her.

"Just dandy," Reid responded. He didn't mean for it to come out quite as sarcastically as it did but the woman didn't seem to notice.

"Are you ready for a new level of physical therapy?" Daisy asked. Her bright smile never dimmed as she turned to face the young agent.

"Ahh," Reid started as he considered the discomfort he was all ready in.

"Good! I have fun things planned for you today," Daisy said. Moving over to Reid she gently helped the young man sit up and climb out of his bed.

"Are we going somewhere?" Reid asked as she directed him carefully to the wheel chair. This was the first time he'd been taken out of the room since getting here. He had to admit that he was looking forward to seeing some new faces.

"Yup. Just hold on. You'll see when we get there," Daisy stated as she pushed the chair out of the room.

"Aahh," Reid said, as he rapidly tried to come up with excuses to not go wherever this woman wanted to take him. While he knew she didn't have any intent to hurt him, he wasn't sure he was up for what she had planned.

Moving down the corridor, Daisy waved at some of her coworkers, exchanging pleasantries and small talk. Reid felt like he wasn't really there while he randomly profiled the people they passed. It was a bad habit he wasn't sure he'd ever bother to lose.

At the elevators, Daisy pushed the down button and moved back to wait for the doors to open. "You're going to like this," she said, a mischievous grin replacing the too bright smile.

"Why?" Reid asked.

"You'll see," Daisy responded.

Reid couldn't be bothered to keep up a steady stream of small talk. It wasn't something that came naturally to him and he doubted the woman wanted to hear the numerous facts that were running through his head about the average number of infections caught in hospitals and other fascinating things. The door opened and Daisy pushed him inside. After pushing a button she waited for the doors to open again.

For the first time since Reid had met the woman she seemed quite content to stay quiet. It was unnerving.

Within minutes she pushed Reid into the radiological department. The tech there helped Reid onto the cold x-ray table and began instructing him on how to lie while he snapped four different shots.

"When can you look at those, Hank?" Daisy asked once the man was done and Reid back in his chair.

"Just give me a few minutes Daisy. I'll be able to tell you what you need to know even before the doctor checks the films out," Hank, the tech, said.

"What do you need to know?" Reid asked as the man left the room, four x-ray plates under his arm.

"That would ruin the surprise," Daisy responded, the grin back on her face.

"I hate surprises," Reid muttered as he sank a little more into the chair. Despite the jostling he'd just experienced the pain in his pelvis was no better or worse. Maybe things were looking up for the rest of the day.

"Okay, fine. They're trying to decide if you've healed enough to get the catheter out and to start trying to walk. All the exercises in the world aren't going to improve your muscle tone until you start walking around," Daisy said. She knew intuitively how much the young man hated the catheter. She could see it in how he moved while trying to do his exercises. The way he twisted, trying to prevent any movement to the piece of plastic was causing him to not do the exercises properly. She was amazed he hadn't managed to injure himself so far.

"Really?" Reid asked, hope flaming to the surface.

"Yes. Hank is going to check the x-rays. If he says it looks good we'll go get your catheter out. Your doctor has agreed that it's time. Your swelling has decreased enough that they aren't worried about your urethra closing. The only question is if you put the pressure of walking on your pelvis," Daisy stated.

Reid thought for a split second about kissing the woman. That was the best news he'd heard in too long. If he felt any qualms about whether the technician should be making this judgement Reid squashed them. He wanted to get the catheter out. Reid wanted to start walking again. At this point he was willing to take pretty much anyone's advice if they told him what he wanted to hear.

It was the longest ten minutes of Reid's life. Daisy stood behind him, her hands on the handles of his wheel chair quietly humming while Reid watched people come and go from the waiting room of the radiology department. Every minute or so his eyes would invariably turn to the clock. What was taking so long?

"Daisy?" Hank said as he stepped into the waiting room. Nodding to the woman, he indicated that the two of them should follow him to the less crowded corridor outside the waiting room. "The films look good. I had a quick consult with Dr. Brackett and he said that there should be no reason for Dr. Reid here to start a more intensive physical therapy program, one that includes walking."

"Perfect!" Daisy exclaimed as she looked down at her patient. "Do you feel up to getting that catheter out now?"

"Definitely," Reid responded.

OOOOO

Feeling a sense of new found freedom, Reid revelled in the sensation of not having the catheter snaking into his bladder. The doctor had insisted that there should have only been very mild discomfort with the device but Reid had ignored him. Now he felt like a million bucks as Daisy pushed him to a new location.

"Where are we going now?" Reid asked as he scanned the people they passed in the hallway. There sure were a lot of sick people in this hospital, he mused.

"To the pool. We want to start you out slowly putting weight on your pelvis. The water will help with that," Daisy stated as she pushed him through yet another set of double doors. On the other side of them Reid could feel a distinct increase in humidity and warmth as well as the scent of chlorine.

"I don't have any swimming trunks," Reid stated as they moved along. He hated swimming. It meant wearing too small shorts and no shirt. While his body was perfectly proportionate to his frame, Reid was still very self conscious about the fact that he was considered skinny. He knew there were remarks made among his colleagues about his body size as well as having been terrorized about his size during public school and even college. The only place he was comfortable wearing less than slacks and a button down shirt was in his own apartment. The thought of being virtually naked in front of this woman nearly overwhelmed him.

"That's okay. We aren't going to use any," Daisy said as she pushed Reid's wheel chair through a final set of doors. Inside Reid found a changing area. Daisy laughed when she saw the panic rise in the young man's face. "Oh, no, no, no. We aren't doing this naked, don't worry. We use wet suits. We can't take your brace off and so have to make sure it doesn't get wet."

"How am I going to get into a wet suit?" Reid asked. He was greatly relieved to hear that he wasn't going to be naked or even wearing swimming trunks but he knew that he wasn't mobile enough yet to squirm into such a tight garment. The last thing he wanted was to have Daisy help him.

"Very carefully!" Daisy responded, another mischievous grin erupting on her face. She loved to tease the young man. He turned so red! And it was so damned easy! "No, one of the male therapists will help you."

As if by response a young man appeared from a door at the other end of the change room. He held a wet suit in one hand. It was one of the ones with short sleeves and mid thigh length legs on it. "Thanks Hugh. I'll be out in the pool when you're ready."

"Sure thing Daisy. We'll just be a few minutes," Hugh responded. The man was huge. Reid was immediately intimidated by him in the same way the Morgan intimidated him. Either man could break him in half if they set their minds to it.

"Hello, Dr. Reid. I'm Hugh. Don't worry, this will be painless," Hugh stated as he took over control of the wheel chair and pushed Reid toward an examination bed. It definitely looked more comfortable than one of the wooden benches for Reid to get changed on. Gently, Hugh picked Reid up like he was child and carefully deposited him on the bed. "I'm a professional. I've done this before."

As uncomfortable an experience as it was for Reid, it was finished fairly quickly. Hugh was right, he was a professional. "There you go. Let's get you out to the pool."

Even dressed in the sweat suit Reid felt a little uncomfortable. It was better than swim trunks though. Sitting in the wheel chair Reid allowed himself to be pushed over to the side of the pool. Daisy was all ready in the water, dressed similarly in a wet suit. Grinning when she saw Reid, she moved over to the ramp at the end of pool. "Thanks Hugh. I can take it from here," she said.

"Any time, Daisy," Hugh said as he angled the chair down the ramp.

It was a strange sensation. Reid wasn't sure if it was good or bad but as his body slowly began to rise above the surface of the seat, he felt a sense of relief. It had been a very long time since his body had been anything but horizontal or sitting in a chair. It was wonderful to even pretend to be standing on his own feet.

"Better?" Daisy asked. The wheel chair was at the bottom of the ramp and Daisy was gently pulling Reid toward the middle of the pool. The difference the water made in her patients' recoveries was always an incredible thing to watch.

"Much," Reid responded as he revelled in the feel of being upright.

"Told you were going to enjoy this," Daisy purred. "Let's get on with it."

OOOOO

The sessions in the pool did wonders for Reid. Having the catheter out and the swelling gone was even better. Within days of the two events Reid was moving around on his own with the help of a walker. It was somewhat demoralizing for the agent but it was better than not walking at all.

The other members of his team stopped by regularly, but Reid was still feeling a little isolated. He was used to seeing them every day for eight hours or more. He tried to not be jealous when he heard that Hotch was returning to work. The senior agent wasn't being allowed in the field until his recovery was complete but at least he could work from his desk and from Garcia's computer room when the team was on the road.

In comparison Reid was feeling rather useless. Morgan and Rossi brought over files to ask his opinion but otherwise he wasn't directly involved in any of the cases. It was frustrating.

On his third trip around the ward for the day, Reid came upon his doctor talking with Daisy and Peter. The three medical professionals were in deep conversation by the nurses' station.

"Ah, Dr. Reid. We were just discussing you," the doctor stated. He watched the young man make his way toward them. The walker was almost unneeded all ready, the man barely put any weight on it.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Reid asked. The brace was becoming uncomfortable for him. It made going to the bathroom alone a lot more awkward than it needed to be.

"Yes. We think it's time for us to take the brace off. After the x-rays yesterday we feel you have healed well enough that it is no longer necessary. This should help with your mobility as well," the doctor said, a smile on his face.

"When can I go home?" Reid asked. It was the first thought through his mind. He missed his apartment and his books. He missed going to work. Generally he missed life away from the damned hospital.

"We will take the brace off today and see how you progress. Barring any unforeseen complications you should be able to go home tomorrow or the next day."

"That would be wonderful," Reid responded. His first thought was to call Morgan on his cell to tell him the good news. It was what he'd begun doing as soon as Hotch left the hospital. He knew the other agent would tell all the others too.

"You will still have physical therapy sessions until your recovery is complete but you can do that on an out-patient basis," Gloria added. She was always so grateful for her patients when they healed enough to go home. It was why she did this in the first place.

"Anything you say, so long as I get to sleep in my own bed," Spencer stated. It was a dream come true. There had been a few nights when he'd woken up longing for his bed, for his apartment, especially since Hotch had left.

"As soon as you get back into your room I'll come in to remove the brace," Peter said as he carefully turned Reid around, he'd been heading away from his room instead of towards it. He knew what this meant to the man. He'd seen all of the other agents coming and going out of the room.

"Whatever you say," Reid said as he moved as quickly as his body and the walker would allow him.

OOOOO

"Home sweet home," Morgan said as he pushed open Reid's front door to his apartment.

Truer words had never been said. Carefully manoeuvring his crutches through the threshold, Reid felt like the world was finally right. Two steps in and he was only mildly surprised to find the rest of the team anxiously awaiting for him. They yelled 'surprise!' as he cleared the doorway.

Speechless, well, actually unable to speak around the huge lump in his throat, Reid looked around at the happy faces of his team, his friends, his family. Hotch no longer showed any sign of the damage caused by their little adventure. Reid knew with time he too would lose the crutches and would be back doing what he did best.

"Thank you," Reid managed as he looked around at the familiar surroundings. Across one of his book cases was a large handmade banner that said 'Welcome Home' on it. His kitchen table had been hauled into the room and was set up with all kinds of food and drink. Clearly someone had been busy planning. Reid knew intuitively that it had to have been Garcia. She was ever the mother hen.

"Welcome home, Uncle Spencer!" Jack cried as he threw himself bodily at his friend.

"Jack! Be careful!" Hotch cried as he tried to intercept his impulsive child. He was too late and waited with bated breath for the invariable collapse. Instead, Jack stopped just short of Reid and carefully wrapped his arms around the tall man's legs.

"Are you hurt, Uncle Spencer?" Jack asked as he looked up into Reid's down turned face. He was relieved that the child hadn't collided with him as he appeared about to. Seeing that smiling, angelic face staring up at him Reid knew it was finally over. He was home. He was relatively whole and so was Hotch.

"No, Jack. I'm not hurt. I just need a little help walking for a while," Spencer answered. He wanted to kneel down, to talk to Jack at his own level but at the moment that was impossible.

"Here, Reid, sit down," Hotch said as he motioned toward the young man's couch. The trip home had worn the young agent out. Gratefully, he extracted his long legs from Jack's grasp, stopping to ruffle his hair on his way to his couch.

"I think this calls for a toast," Rossi said. Once Reid was settled, he quickly handed around glasses of sparkling wine. Jack got a glass with some 7 up in it. "To family!"

Smiling, all the members of the BAU held up their glasses. "To family!"

"Now let's eat," Emily said.

Plates were filled; chairs from the kitchen were dragged into the room and set up. Accepting a full plate of food from Garcia, Reid looked around his apartment. They were all there. They were all happy. The unsub was dead. Nothing else really mattered. Suddenly famished beyond all imagining, Reid dove into his plate. He had a lot of strength to rebuild.

"How long til he's in the field?" Emily asked J.J. as the two women watched the young profiler demolish his food.

"At this rate? He'll be back in the office by Monday," J.J. responded, grinning behind her glass of wine. It was so good to see the whole team together and relatively healthy.

"I'll bet on that," Emily stated.

"Ten bucks says this Friday he drags his boney ass into work," Garcia said. She'd been listening. Reid was too far away to hear what the women were talking about. It was just as well, he would have blushed bright red and been thoroughly scandalized. Then he would have laid a bet for Thursday. That gave him a whole two days.

"You're on," J.J. said. Laughing out loud, she turned her attention to her own plate of food. This was a party. And they had a lot to be grateful for.

THE END

Hi. I'm so grateful that all of you have stuck by me. This took a lot longer than I had planned and it still didn't quite turn out how I'd envisioned. I REALLY suck at endings. That's one of the reasons so few of my old stories are finished.

I hope you enjoyed it and that it lived up to your expectations. I don't plan on having a sequel like my other stories but who knows. The plot bunnies may reappear.

Thank you again to your support. I appreciate it more than I can say!

Susanne