The wicked Admiral has come to her just deserts and both Gold and Belle have been rescued through the combined efforts of Gold's crew and Nolan's cohorts.

Gold has enmeshed himself in the Admiral's words that Belle was working for her and wanted him captured. Initially Gold had wanted revenge but now, awash in self-pity and grief, he has decided that it would be best all around to just walk away from the little princess.

FALLING

Chapter Thirteen

Fallen

Emma was trying, trying hard to find out what was wrong with Gold. He was adamantly refusing to see Belle. Emma finally, finally got from him that he had decided that it was for Belle's own good.

"You decided that?" she asked him.

"I ruined her life," he managed to get out, not looking at her. "My selfish act of kissing her ruined. her. life. I just thought she was beautiful and rich and spoiled and it was a big joke but then I couldn't stop thinking about her and I had to see her again and she was so responsive and so sweet. Damn, I turned you down, and you're an excellent piece, because I was thinking about her. And when I saw her with Jones, so beaten down and pitiable, I wanted to punch him out but instead, I bought her, like a slave girl, and took her back to my house and I treated her. . . dishonorably."

The man looked anguished. He stopped a moment to pull himself together," I took her virginity, Emma, I took her over and over and had her do things a man might hesitate to ask an experienced prostitute to do. I ruined. her. life. The woman hates me. She has to hate me."

"She told you that?" Emma asked.

He didn't say anything.

"Oh, so she has never said she hated you. You just kinda . . . goooot . . . . that she hated you?" Emma looked disgusted.

"Emma, she helped Reul Ghorm, the Admiral, track me down. She was ready to endure terrible pain to get her vengeance against me. How could she love me, Emma? How can any woman love me?"

Emma abruptly punched Gold in the nose.

He grasped his nose, pressing his nostrils together as blood came pouring out. The nanobytes were not there to stop it. "What the hell did you do that for?" he asked her speaking between his hands and fingers as he tried to staunch the bleeding.

"I almost forgot, I owed you that for leaving some of your nanobytes in me. And it's also for Belle. You are a brilliant man, Gold, but you're being incredibly stupid and gullible. Belle didn't betray you! Let me try to keep this simple so that you will understand. The Admiral lied to you, you jerk. Belle is in love with you, crazy, stupid in love with you, maybe, but in love with you nonetheless. Understand this: if you walk away from her, it's you walking away from her, not her leaving you. If you walk away, you'll be left with nothing but an empty heart."

"And a chipped cup," he added morosely.

"A what?"

"I chipped a cup the second time I was with her. I took it as kind of a memento. I'd have that."

Emma rolled her eyes and sighed, "OK, a chipped cup and an empty heart. If that's all you want, then fine. But you could have it all if you'd just be brave enough.

"I've never been brave, Emma. I've always been a coward," he told her.

"Well stop that. Get your tight little ass out there and tell her how you feel about her. If she dumps you because you're a loser and a user then so be it, but give her the chance to dump you. For once in your life do the brave thing, be the brave one."

"You think the Admiral was lying to me?" he asked plaintively.

Emma fell back on the bed. "Oh dear god! You're a bloody idiot! Don't, don't you dare throw away a chance at love. It's rare enough that love comes into anyone's life. Don't push it away." Emma sat up and took a few deep breaths. "You decide. I'm washng my hands of you. I have my own messed-up life to straighten out."

She left him.

Gold considered what she had said. Emma was right. Belle deserved the chance to tell him what a monster he was. She deserved the chance to tell him to go to hell. He took a deep breath and went on out into Mary's living area.

Belle had watched Emma storm out of Mary's bedroom without speaking to anyone. Emma went directly outside and Belle could see her pacing on the balcony. Jefferson had gone into the kitchen to get more tea from Mary who was also still in the kitchen.

So Belle was sitting alone in Mary's living area. She sensed him before she saw him, like she had so many other times. A quiet powerful presence. She turned, her eyes stopping on his feet, still bare from his incarceration. Then she saw a man's legs with muscled calves, and then the bottom of the grey shift hospital robe he had been put into. Her eyes rose to his. He had never looked better to her.

She got up and ran over to him, "Darling. I thought something terrible had happened to you."

"It did," he confessed. "Oh Belle," he took her in his arms and held her. She hugged him back, just happy to be close to him.

"I was afraid they had hurt you," she told him.

He closed his eyes and turned away releasing her. "Belle, they did hurt me. I. . . I. . . I can't feel my friends, my children, the. . . uh. . the nanobytes anymore. They seemed to have accomplished their objective and killed them all."

Belle reached for him. "Is that so terrible? Are you so very different now?" she asked him.

"I can't do the things I did before, Belle. I'm ordinary, now. Someone a princess would never notice . . . or care about."

"Not a very clever princess then," Belle responded standing on tiptoes to try to kiss him on the mouth but he evaded her.

"Be serious Princess. Your father is likely to order me executed for defiling you. He's certainly not going to give us his approval for mar. . . for anything."

"What was that? I couldn't be sure, but was that a proposal?" Belle asked him, a teasing smile playing at the corner of her mouth.

He was stricken for a moment. Belle couldn't be considering such a thing . . . not with him.

"Of course not. Belle, I don't have any aspirations that a woman like yourself would ever consider someone like me. . . for anything," He backed away from her. "I'll be getting my things together and leaving before the good Captain Nolan gets back with the arrest order. Maybe, I'll have a chance to get away. You won't have to see me again. I'll be out of your life."

Something buzzed around his head and he swatted at it.

"I don't want you to go," Belle told him, reaching out for his hand.

"But why would you want me to stay?" he asked. He swatted at something again. Persistent little bugger.

Belle took a deep breath. "Because I love you. I think I fell in love with you that first time we met, when our eyes locked together."

He shook his head, "I can't believe that. You were an innocent, young girl and I ruthlessly took advantage of you. You only think that. . ."

"I know how I feel," she interrupted him.

Whatever was buzzing around him landed on his hand. He lifted his hand. It was one of the tiny nanobytes he had sent out so long ago, so very long ago, to find Belle, to find where she slept and then to come back to him. There were several that had not returned to him. This was one of them.

He tipped the tiny machine into his palm and the construct began to come apart into its microcomponents. They buried themselves into his hand.

Belle watched in fascination as the nanobytes returned to him. This time when she tried to kiss him, he allowed it. She knew the myriad of nanobytes he had sent into her were responding to his distress and many that he had put into her were now returning to him.

"Captain, I didn't want to intrude, but I somehow felt that you needed to see me," it was Jefferson. He had come into the room. He held up his hand, showing them the back of his hand and they could see blood coming from his nails. And as if one of them had called to her, Emma had also come back into the room.

"I felt like I was being summoned back. It's the nanobytes, isn't it?" Jefferson asked, looking at his hands.

Gold held out his hand and wiped the blood from Jefferson. The blood seemed to seep into Gold. He looked in some wonder at both Jefferson and Belle.

Emma gave Belle a guilty look. "Belle, if you don't mind? I'm feeling a compulsion here," and she gave Gold a quick kiss on the mouth, returned nanobytes to him in the same manner that Belle had yielded them.

Three more of the little creatures buzzed around him and landed on his hand, disassembled and burrowed into him.

"They're coming back. I can feel them. So many of them are coming home to me." He told them in wonderment. He sat down, dizzy with the influx of nanobytes. It took him a moment before he was able to sit up.

"I still have got to get out of here," he announced. "Even if the Admiral is gone, the Ministry has a price on my head."

"Let's go then," said Jefferson and Belle together.

"I can't take you," Gold turned to Belle. "You belong at the castle with royal. . . stuff."

"I decide my fate. I'm going with you."

"Are you sure?" he asked her. "I didn't just sweep you off your feet?"

"Yes you did, but I am still sure."

"Then let's go, Captain," Jefferson told him, "before they come and arrest us."

The three were on their way out. Mary was there.

"Is everything all right?" Mary asked.

"I think this time the princess saved the prince," replied Jefferson, nodding at Belle and Gold.

"Not a prince," Gold was shaking his head. "I'm just an ordinary man who has fallen in love with an extra-ordinary woman and is lucky enough that she fell in love with him," he gazed at Belle for a moment, then collected himself, "Princess Mary, we've got to go. I don't want to put Nolan in a more difficult situation than he's already in. I apologize for what I'm about to do, but I want you to be blameless in this matter."

Gold then motioned to Jefferson, who nodded and then took a curtain sash and, in a swift movement, secured Mary's hands behind her and, sitting her in a dining room chair, used the ends to tie her into a chair.

Jefferson apologized. "I do seem to always be giving you a difficult time. But you will tell everyone how we overcame you after you thought we were all too ill to do anything, and then we took Belle and left." Once finished, he stood and motioned to Emma, "Let's go."

Emma stood a moment. Then she pulled off the other curtain sash. "You better secure me too, Jefferson. I think I may stay with them awhile to see if my life might have another path."

"Cassidy?" Jefferson asked her.

"Maybe. Maybe not. I'm going to take a chance." She looked at Gold. "I know now, that if I want to find you, I will be able to."

He grinned at her. "Sorry about leaving the nanobytes inside of you but I don't give up treasures easily. And you falling in my lap, as it were, that was too good to pass up." He let his hand graze the side of her face. "And you just have a few. You should be fine."

Emma looked at him and shook her head, "I just have a few? Liar."

Jefferson laughed at her and gently, as he had with Mary, restrained her. He tugged on the restraints that tied her into the chair.

"Are these secure?" he asked her. Emma nodded.

Kneeling behind her, Jefferson slowly brought his hands around to the front of the chair and to her waist. He deliberately allowed his hands to caress upwards, touching, cupping the bottom of her breasts. Emma shifted but had no where to go. His hands came up to her breasts and his fingers wrapped around each firm mound, gently, ever so gently squeezing.

"You realize that at some point, I'll get free," Emma reminded him darkly. "Our paths could just possibly cross again and I would likely remember this."

Jefferson leaned in to her neck and traced his tongue up to her ear, teasing the earlobe. He was rewarded when Emma gave an involuntary shiver.

He chuckled. "I thought so. Emma. You would have so responded to me." He kissed her just behind her ear and slowly released her. "Totally worth it." He stood and joined Belle and Gold.

As the trio went out the door, Belle called back to them, "Thank you Mary, Thank you Emma. I'll let you know where we are and what's going on for us when we get settled."

00-ooo-oo-ooo-00

"What was decided?" Mary and Emma had both been rescued when Nolan and Cassidy returned later that afternoon.

"That the Vice Admiral was insane and exceeded her authority. Reports are just starting to come in, but apparently virtually none of the people she had identified as being pawns of Gold, members of royal families, members of governments and so forth, reacted to Gold's treatment, so we don't think they were his minions. I suspect they had been contaminated by her and she knew we wouldn't be able to tell between anyone Gold had contaminated and anyone she had. The Treatment did distinguish and since virtually none of them went down, I'm pretty sure they were her people. However the Ministry doesn't want it publicized that one of their top officials was not operating at full capacity, so we have had to come up with a cover story."

"Do tell," Mary asked him to continue.

"The Admiral was instrumental in the capture of the arch criminal Captain Gold and certain members of his crew. She was successful in neutralizing him and his powers so he no longer represents a threat to civilization but there was an audacious escape attempt and several people, including the Admiral and Dr. Steiner were killed during the escape."

"And what happened to Gold and his people?" asked Emma.

"They got away, after coming back to kidnap Princess Belle. An amazing man. Rumach Skinner, also known as Captain Gold." Nolan shook his head.

Emma smiled, "I suspect that we will not be hearing about him anymore. Captain Gold has played out his hand. The Dark Wind will likely go to his crew and, with a little assistance, become a legitimate freighter. We will, no doubt, be hearing about some new eminent scientist or mathematician or writer even, his lovely wife and their eccentric friend at some point in the future."

"That would be best," agreed Nolan. "I see you've stayed behind, Emma. I'm glad. I'm looking for a new civilian assistant and you would fit the bill perfectly."

"I could be interested," Emma acknowledged cautiously.

Cassidy hesitantly approached Emma, "I glad that you did not go with them, too," he observed.

"No I thought I might hang around here a while. If it doesn't work out, I can always find them again and Gold or whatever name he's going by at that time, will help me out. He's a very good friend."

"I'm really glad you decided to stay. I was hoping that we might, maybe, see each other, on occasion. See if there's any forgiveness, any spark, anything?" Cassidy sounded hopeful.

"Maybe, on occasion," Emma told him.

ooooo-000-ooooo-000-ooooo

Emma was looking for a place to stay. Cassidy had urged her to consider sharing his quarters, but she had demurred. Much too early to move in with the man. She wasn't sure she wanted to renew their relationship even though he was clearly interested.

She thought that she might have found a place. It was above a little restaurant near the shipyards. She could walk to work at her new job with Captain Nolan. She could get food and prepare her own meals. She had gone out and bought herself two new outfits. She considered. Although she could still pack every possession she had into one bag, she was doing all right.

She had met Cassidy for an early supper one evening and, at Emma's invitation they had been joined by a Mr. and Mrs. Spinner. Emma's guests were dressed conservatively in tweeds and soft wools. Mr. Spinner was sporting a beard and now had dark brown hair, lacking the few grey streaks that Emma remembered from before. He wore glasses and the entire effect was to make him appear quite professorial. Mrs. Skinner had long blond hair which looked lovely with her bright blue eyes.

'Mr. Spinner' shared, "I'm looking at a few university jobs. Mathematics. I think the lifestyle will suit my wife."

"It won't be too quiet for you?" Emma had asked.

"Too quiet is good for a while," Spinner responded. "We are thinking along the lines of having a family."

Emma took a sip of wine. "How are your other. . . 'children'?"

"Growing daily. I've gotten infusions from several of my 'old acquaintances' and the ones I have are happily multiplying. I'm estimating it will take me more than a year to get back to where I was before. . . " He sighed. "I had several trillion of my children killed off. You don't recover from that overnight."

"But you will recover?" she persisted.

"I have every reason to believe. Every day in every way. . . I seem to be doing better, getting stronger, getting more in touch."

Mrs. Spinner reached over and gently touched her husband on his hand. He turned and smiled at her and he put his other hand on top of hers.

Cassidy proposed a toast, "Let's drink to getting more in touch." He raised his glass as did Mr. and Mrs. Spinner. Emma started to commit to the toast, but stopped. She seemed distracted.

"Is something wrong?" Cassidy asked his volatile girlfriend.

"I thought I saw someone," Emma responded. She kept looking, standing up to see better. "It's got to be him." She vaulted away from the table.

"What? Who?" Cassidy asked.

"Jones," Emma said tersely, calling back over her shoulder.

Mrs. Spinner also stood. "I'm in this too." And she and Emma took off together. Cassidy started to go after them, but Mr. Spinner put his hand on the Cassidy's arm.

"No, no, let the girls have their fun."

"But what if it turns out to be Jones?" Cassidy asked.

Mr. Spinner considered. "Well, it won't be pretty will it? The cringing, the screaming, what's likely to be a pretty serious beating. Poor guy. Eventually we'll need to notify the authorities so they can rescue the unlucky bastard."

As soon as he realized he was being pursued, Jones hopped on a quadro-cycle and took off. Emma and Belle did the same and were after him in a wild chase, across the air ship docks and on. Eventually their ride took them out of the town. They went a ways out of town, up and down hills. Belle was driving the vehicle and, as it caught up with Jones, Emma had pulled out her Gauss gun.

"Get me up closer to him, Belle," she shouted. She was able to level her gun at his tires and got a shot off. The first effort went wild. She tried again. Still did not connect. The third attempt hit.

Jones barely managed to keep his hands on the steering column of the vehicle as it began to spin out of control. He pitched off and landed with an umph on the ground. The quadro-cycle turned over and there was a brief, but intense controlled explosion. Emma and Belle were on him in a heartbeat. Emma had the gun ramped up to fire.

"Ladies, ladies, this was all a misunderstanding," he smiled at them from his back, looking up. "I never truly meant either of you any harm."

Belle nodded her head, "Of course not. Why would we have ever thought that you meant us harm? I mean you sold me into slavery and you sent Emma into the power of your worst enemy to be raped, after your attempts to have her had been foiled. How could we think that you meant us anything but the best of times?" Belle was standing closely, but not too closely, not trusting the pirate captain any further than she could see him.

"Oh but ladies, ladies, don't you see how everything worked out so well for you," he was doing his best to talk his way out of their wrath, always keeping an eye on Emma and the gun she had leveled on him. "Miss Belle, you've been united with the love of your life and you are looking exceptionally fine with the lovely blond hair. May I say how well it suits you. And Emma, Emma, now back with the Ministry, doing the work of the good, like you always wanted. And keeping company with a man who clearly adores you. If it hadn't been for me, perhaps none of this would've worked out."

Emma hesitated, "Maybe he's right," she said speculatively.

"Are you daft?" Belle was bewildered at Emma's new stance.

"No, I don't think so. Belle, he has a point."

"Now, Belle, you've got to agree that I didn't hurt you any when you were in my custody. And I did rescue you from that prison that you were being held in," he began to press his advantage with Belle.

Belle wavered, "Well. . . yeah, that's right," she agreed, reluctantly.

Jones was back on his feet, rubbing his elbow and backside which had taken the first, hard impact from the ground. "Then ladies, can all be forgiven?" he dared to sound hopeful.

"Uhmmmm," Emma considered, "I don't know. You always wanted a piece of me when I was your first mate."

"Well, things are different now," he agreed.

"Yeah, I have a gun on you."

"That you do, lass, that you do," he again agreed with her.

Emma walked around him, never lowering the gun, never taking her eyes off of him. She confessed, talking to Belle, "I prefer being the one in charge. And, in this instance, I'll admit to a little curiosity about what I might have missed."

Belle gave her half-smile. "Well, Emma, I've only ever been with one man. He's pretty good. . . I think. But I have nothing to compare him with."

Jones looked closely at the two women who were idly circling him. "Ladies," he began, "If I can be of any service?" he was smiling broadly, using every ounce of good looks and good will he could project.

Emma was still considering. "Well, I don't know. You were such an asshole when you were my captain."

"Aye, I was. I admit it. But now I'm a humble man who would be most eager to try to entertain a lady in any manner she might desire."

"Both of us?" Belle asked. "You think you could handle both of us?" She didn't sound convinced.

Jones grinned at her. "I would give it my upmost," he promised.

"Well. . ." Belle considered a bit longer. "Let's see what you've got," she told him.

"Emma?" he wasn't exactly sure what was being suggested.

"Yeah, let's see what you've got. You think you can take on both of us. I want to see some prodigious equipment. Rumors are that you are more than . . . adequate."

He bowed again. "That I am, madam, that I am." And he watched as Emma lowered the gun just a smidgeon and began, as the ladies had requested, to remove his clothing.

As he undressed himself, Belle began to remove her own jacket and began to unbutton her blouse revealing a gentle swell of bosom. She stopped a moment to admire the man who was watching her begin to undress.

Jones was lean and muscular, long legged, rippled stomach, a prime specimen of a man. His arousal was clearly evident as he dropped down to his underpants, the bulge pushing out upon the fine cotton of the shorts.

Emma smirked, "I don't think we're going to have to work to get him interested, Belle."

Jones blew her a kiss, "With one of you beautiful ladies I would be able and willing. With the two of you, I more than ready to do my best to satisfy.

Emma motioned with the gun at his genitals. "Let's see it all, please. I want to know exactly what I'll be getting."

He dropped his undershorts and stood in all his resplendent male glory, saluting the two women with his eagerness.

"What do you think Belle?" Emma asked.

Belle walked up near to the man. She appeared to be assessing him closely. In a throaty whisper she told him, "We're going to want a bit better place than this hard road bed. That hill over there appears to have some grass." She smiled at him. "Might make it a bit more comfortable for whoever is on the bottom."

Jones backed over to the grassy hill.

Emma said suddenly, "I have an idea." She pulled off the scarf that had gone around her waist, one that acted like a belt. It was only about two inches wide. She ripped it in half so that she had two pieces about eighteen inches each. "Belle, wrap it around his eyes and then tie his hands behind him."

"What?!" Jones was a bit wary of this new development.

"It will intensify the experience," Emma explained. "You will only be able to feel what's being done to you. Gold's had us both this way several times. I can heartily recommend it." Jones still seemed hesitant.

"Absolutely," agreed Belle. "I can't speak for Emma's experiences, but he's had me blindfolded and in restraints many times."

Jones shook his head, "That kinky bastard." But he glanced back at Emma who had raised the gun again. "But I'm willing to try it." He finally agreed and allowed Belle to secure his eyes and then, with somewhat less enthusiasm, allowed her to tie his hands. Belle tied them behind him.

"You'll have to give us a moment to get ready. We have to help each other get out of our corsets," Belle told him and ran her hand down his chest.

"Yes ma'am," Jones replied. "I'm willing and waiting."

Belle looked at Emma and nodded.

Belle began to quickly pick up Jones's shirt, pants, undergarments and boots and she put these into the boot of the quadro-cycle. Then she and Emma remounted the vehicle, started it up and began to drive themselves out to the road, leaving behind the naked man, bound and blindfolded.

And yelling obscenities at them.

They found Cassidy and Spinner still at the restaurant sharing a third glass of wine. The men stood for the women when they reentered.

"How did it go?" Spinner asked them.

"What you would expect. We chased him down," Belle answered.

"Kick his ass?" Cassidy asked.

"Nope, just left it bare-naked," Emma explained.

"And we tied his hands behind his back and had him blindfolded," added Belle.

"Shit," Spinner remarked and slightly shuddered. "Now I don't know that there aren't wild animals around, but I do know there's damn little traffic out that direction. Just how far out of town did you go?" asked Spinner.

Emma considered, "What? I'd say about ten miles. Gravel road for the most part."

"Isn't it supposed to get a bit chilly tonight?" asked Cassidy.

"I'd heard that," Belle responded blandly. "It could be uncomfortable if one didn't have the right clothing."

The two men looked at each other and Cassidy remarked to Spinner, "Now I understand, sir."

Emma leaned forward and asked him, "Understand what?"

"While you were away, Mr. . . . uh. . . Spinner lectured me on why women, if left to their own devices, are plenty capable and often men need to back off and let them handle things. I understand now. I'm very respectful, my dears. Very respectful."

000-000-000

"It's a letter, from Christ's Church, England," Mary announced. "From a Mrs. Stillwell."

Nolan instantly recognized the name. "So how are they doing?"

"Well, let's see," Mary began to read over the letter. "She just wanted to congratulate us on our marriage. Apparently it made all the papers, even over there" Mary looked up. "That was sweet."

"What else?" Nolan asked.

"Let's see, her husband, Dr. Stillwell has a job teaching mathematics at Oxford. They seem to be settling in. Their very good friend, Mr. Hatter, has started work at a bookstore. Oh, now this is nice. He's apparently met a very nice girl, Alice W. Land. They are hopeful that this may develop into something permanent."

"The mad Jefferson, settling down? That's to be seen," Nolan was less than hopeful.

"The right woman, my dear, the right woman," Mary admonished him.

"Anything else?"

Mary smiled. "She just wanted us to know that she's expecting a little bundle of joy, come Midsummer."

Nolan did some counting backwards. "It would have been conceived after the treatments. I think that's probably a good thing. Wonder what this kid will be like. I'd guess the nanobytes will be in his or her system from the get-go."

"I agree. Do you think I should write them back. We have some happy news too."

"I think so, darling. I think so." Nolan agreed.

And their lives continued on (and what follows is idle speculation on what I might want to see happen for our heroes).

Probably a band of roving Pilates instructors eventually came across Jones and took him home with them and he spent his remaining days in servitude to a group of very bendy women.

The good Dr. Stillwell wrote scholarly papers on many subjects, mostly math and science as he and his lovely, intelligent wife produced all together four extraordinary children. Their very good friend Jefferson married his Alice and together they produced a lovely daughter.

Meanwhile Princess Mary and her Marquis eventually inherited his father's duchy and, after establishing that her step-mother was involved in criminal activity were able to depose her and take possession of Mary's homeland also. There were offspring for this couple but my crystal ball couldn't see how many.

Emma and Cassidy did resolve their differences, although he was most distressed to discover that there was a son that had passed away from his hands. Fortunately after a lengthy search, they were able to locate the child in the foster care system and regain custody.

I won't speculate on how many of these couples' children ended up together. (Personally, I've always thought that Grace and Henry would be a perfectly delightful match.)

Fin

A.N. Thanks to the many of my awesome reviewers who have been with me from the beginning of this tale and really helped out with story arcs and additional character explorations. So helpful and much appreciated. That's Attracted2Insanity, Grace5231973, Estrany, The Prince's Phoenix, DruidKitty, and Hermitess (you're absolutely right about the gold bullets, but I sidestepped the details here– actually figuring most people would be aware of that – certainly Emma would be).

A special thanks to new reviewer ZombiesloveMangoes and extra special thanks to TcEm who went berserk, read the story from the beginning and left nine reviews of different chapters!

Oh yeah, Out of the Ashes is up and running. Going to be fluffy, I think – I'm trying to stay away from too much angst right now. txm