Disclaimer: Not mine, no copyright is intended

A/N: A scene that got stuck in my head and I had to deal with it. In over 80 stories I've written for Primeval, I've never written Professor Cutter, so I don't know why he's suddenly appeared demanding to be written. Perhaps he feels the same way about Connor as I do. So this is Cutter, giving series 5 Connor a bit of a wake up call. Hope you enjoy!

"Connor Temple, why the hell are you still here?"

"What? Eh?" Connor awoke with a start, and for a moment he didn't know where he was. His neck hurt, and as he lifted his head he realised exactly where he was; he'd fallen asleep at his desk.

"I said, why the hell are you still here? It's almost 3am and this is the second night in a row that you haven't been home to Abby."

The voice was somehow familiar, but he couldn't place it. A quick glance around the lab didn't offer any clues as to who the voice belonged to either. He sat up, blinked a few times and rubbed his eyes, then yawned.

"Coffee. Get some coffee to wake yourself up and then you can drive home." The voice was definitely familiar.

"Who are you?" Connor called out. "Show yourself! This lab is for authorised personnel only, so unless you're a Prospero employee..."

"Easy, Connor. It's only me. Have you forgotten me already?" There was movement across the other side of the lab, and a figure appeared from behind a large filing cabinet.

"Professor Cutter?" Connor's mouth dropped open in disbelief. This was a dream; it had to be. Any minute now he'd wake up and he'd be in his own bed snuggled next to Abby.

"You seem surprised? Didn't I teach you anything?"

"Forgive me, but the last time I saw you, you were lying dead on the concrete outside the burning ARC after Helen shot you." Connor stood up and moved over to where the Professor was standing. "You're just a figment of my over-active mind; things have been a bit crazy these last few days. Look, you're not real! I can put my hand right through your..." Connor's hand hit a very solid chest, and for a moment he froze.

"You look like you've seen a ghost, Connor," Cutter laughed.

"I have." Connor felt his stomach lurch; this was too much. Professor Cutter was dead; he'd held him as he died. This was just his mind playing tricks on him because he hadn't slept properly and had too many thoughts going on. He shook his head and moved towards the door. It would be clearer when he'd woken up properly and got some coffee inside him.

As he waited for the kettle to boil, Connor leaned against the counter and tried to make sense of what had just happened. Cutter had been on his mind a lot recently; today in particular. Burton had said they'd been too distracted by the creatures to realise the potential of the anomalies, and Connor was pleased that someone was finally giving him the opportunity to properly research them. Cutter would be pleased with that, wouldn't he? Yes, Cutter thought the creatures were important and the concept of rips in time had fascinated him – but he had always encouraged Connor to find out how the anomalies worked and questioned him; pushed him to experiment and find out. Maybe Cutter did see the potential, he just didn't have the knowledge to take the research in the right direction. Philip Burton did.

When he went back to the lab, he'd expected to find it empty and that he had simply just had some kind of vision. However, the Professor was sat at Connor's desk clicking away on the laptop keyboard. He looked up when Connor entered the room. "I expect you're wondering what's going on?"

"The thought had crossed my mind."

"Sit down, Connor. Let me explain." Connor pulled up the stool April had used, and sat opposite Cutter. It was slightly surreal and Connor was still convinced he was dreaming. "Do you remember what I said about Claudia Brown?"

Connor nodded. Of course he remembered, it was something that had made Cutter even more determined to solve the riddle of the anomalies. "What has she got to do with this?"

"Something that either I or Captain Ryan did whilst we were in the Permian era changed the way things were, and Claudia Brown never existed. I think you were the only one who really understood."

Connor blushed. "Abby says that I watch too many Sci-Fi movies."

Cutter smiled. "Well, I'm glad that you do. It was nice to have someone around who didn't think I was a complete idiot! Anyway... didn't it ever occur to you that the same could happen again?"

"I never really gave it that much thought to be honest. We've always been so careful not to interfere when we go through anomalies and so far everything seems OK. No-one's disappeared or … oh!" Suddenly, Connor realised where this conversation was going.

"Now he gets it!" Cutter laughed. "When you and Abby came back through that anomaly, time had changed. You think I died when Helen shot me, right? Well, as you can see I'm alive and well and I've been watching you since you came back."

"Wait! If you didn't die, then how come no-one's ever mentioned it?" Connor wanted to believe that Cutter was still alive but he had doubts, and he didn't want to get his hopes up in case he fell flat on his face.

"I was badly injured, hospitalised for months. In that time, Lester took on Danny Quinn as a temporary leader to make sure Christine Johnson didn't get her way and take over. Over time, I realised I'd had enough. Quinn seemed to be doing a great job, Becker was sorting out the security side of things, and you and Abby were … well, you were being you and Abby."

Connor pulled a face. "So where have you been? I can't believe you'd just stand back and ..."

"When Jenny Lewis left, I moved away – went back home and spent some time travelling around the Scottish Highlands. Everyone knew that I wanted to wash my hands of the whole thing, and they respected that. It was to be like I never existed; I may as well have been dead. But I couldn't stay away for long, and I came back. I've been keeping an eye on everything from my own little private vantage point. That new guy, Matt... he's good isn't he?"

"I'm wary of him, but yeah, he's a good leader I suppose."

"Matt's not the one you should be wary of, except perhaps when it comes to Abby." Connor looked at him questioningly. "Actually, Abby's the reason I'm here now."

"What's wrong? Is she..." Connor was suddenly concerned.

"How long did it take for you to finally get together? Three years?"

Connor smiled. "Took us a while, but we got there. Making up for lost time and all that!"

"So why are you risking your relationship for this?" Cutter waved his arm over the desk, indicating all of Connor's papers and CDs that were strewn across it.

"The research is important. I'm carrying on your work, just as you wanted me to, Professor!"

"More important than Abby?"

Connor swallowed hard and blinked his eyes. They felt damp.

"Connor! Why are you even having to think about it?" Cutter shouted, grabbing Connor by the shoulders. "Right now you have a very pretty young lady at home who is alone in your bed. How long do you think she's going to put up with you not coming home?"

Connor hung his head. Abby had made a comment this morning about not seeing him and she was probably going to be pretty annoyed with him tomorrow.

"You remind me of myself. I would hate to see you make the same mistakes that I did." Cutter's voice had softened again, and Connor looked him straight in the eye. "Before Helen disappeared, this is exactly the situation we were in. I worked late into the night, sometimes sleeping in my office at the University. We'd have rows about it and we slowly drifted apart. Seems she found comfort in the arms of Stephen Hart whilst I was busy trying to be the clever Scientist... and then she left for a more exciting life."

"But Abby's not like Helen. She wouldn't..."

"I didn't think Helen would sleep with someone behind my back either. Abby's a great girl, loyal, caring... and she loves you even if she finds it hard to express it sometimes. But if you're not there when she needs you, and someone else is..."

"Matt?" Connor said, his voice shaking and his fists clenching.

"I'm not saying that, Connor. They're close, but its nothing more than friendship. But unless you start paying her a bit of attention, then maybe she'll decide she deserves better and leave."

Connor felt a tear fall down his cheek, and he wiped it away angrily. Cutter placed a hand on his shoulder, then Connor turned to face him and threw his arms around him. Cutter returned the gesture, holding Connor for a few moments as he allowed the younger man to let out his tears. "I should go home, shouldn't I?" Connor whispered eventually, pulling away from the hug.

"Yes, you should. If you go now, you can be in bed before it starts to get light. I'm sure Abby would love to wake up in your arms in the morning."

Connor stood up, grabbed his jacket from the peg by the door and opened it. Yes, that sounded wonderful; waking up with Abby, stroking her hair and feeling her warmth against him. He only felt truly alive when he was with her; how could be so foolish and put his work before her? As he was about to leave, he turned to thank Cutter for making him see sense.

The lab was empty and in darkness.

For a moment it felt like he had lost Cutter all over again, but then he realised that he'd never actually left him; Professor Cutter would always be there for Connor in one way or another. With a spring in his step, Connor got into his car to go home to Abby.