A/N: I can't thank guest reviews personally, so I'll thank you here, Tecwyn, Anaid and Ryn, for your reviews for the last part. I really appreciate your support. Thank you!

Falling: To Fall To Somebody

Megan stood in front of Larry's locked office and sighed. After the call she just had with her father, she could really use some of Larry's special brand of comfort.

Amita rounded the corner. As she spotted Megan, she came over and greeted her. "Are you waiting for Larry?" She carried her books and some papers in front of her. After freeing one of her hands, she pointed behind her. "I think he and Charlie are both still busy in the meeting."

Megan smiled in greeting. Then she screwed up her face and place her flat hand against her forehead. "Of course - I forgot. It's the inevitable meeting to prepare the new year, right?"

"Yes. It's going take a lot of time and is probably going to run late. I mean, both Professor Reynolds and Dr. Smith are going to be present. At least half the time is needed to keep them apart." Amita rolled her eyes. "But I can open the door if you want to leave a message."

The agent grimaced but shook her head. "No. It wasn't important." It really wasn't important, just bad timing. Resigned, Megan eased around and trotted to the door.

After a moment's hesitation, hurried footsteps followed her, echoing loudly in the empty hallway. Without waiting, Megan stepped out in the dark clear night. Despite the lights the darkness felt compressive and enclosing. Classes were long out and the campus opened up empty in front of her. Looking up to the stars, she tried to calm the emotions running through her.

The door opened behind her. Megan felt the air shifting and waited until Amita had walked by and stopped on the first step. "Can I help you? I may not be Larry, but you looked like you could use a friend..." she trailed off, leaving it to Megan if she wanted to take her up on the offer.

Megan closed her eyes and smiled a little. "No, thank you. I was just searching for some distraction and Larry is the master of distraction."

"As often as he is distracted? Yes, he has a talent for it," Amita agreed but she remained waiting on the stairs. "Did something happen? I'm not trying to be nosy but if it concerns Don then Charlie -"

"No, not the FBI. It has nothing to with my job," Megan interrupted, shaking her head. "Just family." She started down the stairs in direction of the parking lot.

Amita snorted. "Oh, family trouble." She followed. "The usual or something special."

"The usual," Megan answered. "My father's birthday is coming up and none of my sisters have time to come. So naturally, it falls to me to tell him that piece of information."

"Uh." Amita made a face to show her pity. "I can imagine. The last time I had to tell my parents I couldn't come it ended in a small catastrophe, and I didn't have to tell them that nobody would come."

Together they walked to the parking lot. "Why did this duty fall to you? Do you have a good way with your father?"

"Opposite," Megan said, "just the opposite." Out of the corner of her eyes, she glanced to Amita.

"So it's a case of, he can't think any worse of you as he already is?" They reached the parking lot. "I know this. After I told them I would try to get a second PhD instead of making a career in the free market, I was in the hot seat."

Pulling out her key, Megan hesitated for a moment. "In my case it's more that I was my father's last chance to have a son," she explained while she played with her keys.

Amita stopped in her tracks. A lot of different emotions flickered across her young face. She pressed her lips together and nodded.

Megan paused. It was obvious that Amita could relate to this special family situation quite well. "I guess you didn't start a PhD in applied mathematics because it's the maternal family tradition?"

Laughing with a hint of pain, Amita shook her head. "I like mathematics, just as you like to be an FBI agent. It's just -" Amita broke off, looked down and sighed. Then she started to move forward again without finishing her sentence.

"We can't undo our family's work and how it molded us," Megan finished. Grimacing, she followed her.

Amita reached her car and stopped. She looked back to Megan. "But why did this duty fall to you? Shouldn't your sisters know better?"

Megan shrugged. "I guess they figured that he can't be more disappointed in me than he already is. And it's not like they're wrong. Besides, I can take on him, something they try to avoid at all costs, so it always has been my contribution to the family."

"I see. I don't have a sister. It has always been only me."

Megan smacked her tongue and rolled her eyes. "I love my sisters but I need to stop doing this for them, if I want to repair my relationship to my father ..." she trailed off. Then she raised her hand and waved goodbye. "Good night."

"Good night," Amita answered. She opened her door and paused. "Megan? Wait! Are you still looking for distraction?"

Megan stopped but kept her face forward. An empty home would await her. She could watch some TV and eat some leftovers if she didn't buy something else on her way home. There would be the answering machine with her mother's scolding. Ever since Megan and her father had talked, her mother fought against everything that could jeopardize their successful reconciliation. All in all, it didn't sound inviting. She looked over her shoulder to Amita. "Why?"

"I have a date with my alliance," she said. At Megan's confused face, she added, "the people I play video games with?" As recognition set in, Amita continued, "you could come and play a little."

"Thanks for the offer," Megan shook her head, "but I don't think playing video games is my kind of fun."

"Did you ever try it?" Amita pushed forward. "You don't need much more than a good eye-hand coordination. You shoot a gun in real life - you have everything you need."

"Exactly." Megan argued. "I shoot a gun in real life and don't see the need to play it."

Amita laughed. "But in a video game you shoot monsters and zombie. It's relaxing." She jingled her keys before she added her best point. "And it's distracting. No time to think about anything else."

Megan pressed her lips together. The prospect of an empty apartment and depressing voice mails left her feeling empty. On the other hand she could try out something new. "If you can't think about anything else," she said smiling, "how did you ever get through grad school?"

Laughter was her answer. "Playing video games helps you to train your focus and is relaxing in its own special way. Besides, how does ever anybody gets through grad school?"

"Point taken." Megan agreed. "So, where is your gaming headquarter?"

"Just follow me. It's an internet cafe that belongs to one of our allegiance. We have the whole second floor."

"So," Megan shrugged out of her jacket and sat down in front of one of the computers. "How does this work now?"

"First, we need to create a character for you to play," Amita explained and leaned in to grab the mouse. Five fast clicks later she has added a new profile and provided a selection menu to Megan. "You need a cool name."

"A cool name?" Megan frowned. "I thought I only needed a good eye-hand coordination."

"An impressive nickname helps you to build yourself a name and it is a statement to your opponents." Amita took a step back to give Megan enough space.

Megan placed her fingers on the keyboard. 'Megan Reeves' should be a qualified threat but it didn't seem appropriate for an FBI agent to use her real name in an online video game. She let her hands sink.

"I know that choosing a good name is difficult. So, what about 'megarare'?" Amita proposed

Megan only needed a short glare over her shoulder to make Amita back off with raised hands. "Was just a suggestion." She grinned. "But seeing as your look is already really powerful, why not 'meganlooks'? Add a number and you're good to go."

She shook her head in wonder about what she was doing and typed in her new nickname: meganlooks007. She hit return and bit on her lip as her new name flashed across the screen. "And now?"

"Now, you just have to choose an avatar and some abilities and we're ready." Amita explained while she switched through the menus again. "You know what's great about video games? You can be who ever you want to be. Do you want your avatar be a guy or a woman?" she asked and opened the male avatars.

Again, Megan glared at Amita. This time she added an explanation. "Just because my father wanted me to be a boy, doesn't mean that I'm not perfectly comfortable being a woman. Show me the ladies."

Amita grinned and crouched down to be in a better position to switch back. Choosing a name ended up as the most time-consuming task. The other choices Megan could easily pick. She already knew what and how she could use the different abilities and weapons. Big power was overrated if you could choose silent movement and invisibility to get near your target unseen to use normal power.

Like Amita had presaged, Megan learned easily the controls and together they went on a rampage.

"Woo!" Amita stared at the screen with narrowed eyes as Megan's avatar beheaded a surprise enemy. "You're the only one who really knows what it means to stick to my back."

"If the only thing I have to do," Megan answered and licked her dry lips, "is to follow you and have your back, then this game is easy. It looked far more difficult as you were playing it."

"It's a question of -" Amita started to say as suddenly a shadow flashed across her screen. "Watch out!" she called out and heard the fast hitting of a key in the room as Megan reacted to the warning. She turned her avatar around and found a newly visible creature on the ground, Megan's sword sticking out of his chest. "Awesome." She hit pause and looked up from her screen across her desk to Megan. "Freaking awesome!"

Megan breathed as hard as her but she grinned from one ear to the other. "I did it!"

"You did it!" Amita cheered.

Looking at her watch, Megan's bright smile dimmed. "Oh, it's way past midnight. I have to go home to get some sleep seeing as tomorrow my eye-hand coordination is needed in the real world again." She grabbed her jacket and Amita started to log them off.

"Thank you!" Megan reached out to Amita. "I guess you were right. Fighting some zombies was exactly what I needed."

"Some people call it fighting your demons." Amita powered off the screens and also grabbed her stuff. "If you ever want to have another go, you just need to say the word."

"Sure." At the door, Megan halted and cleared her throat. "This," she pointed to the dark screens, "stays between us, right?"

Grinning, Amita agreed. "Alliance's word of honor. My lips are sealed." She made a zipping motion across her mouth.

Together they went out into the dark night. But this time, the night didn't appear as dark as before. And the voice mails waiting for her would get the same treatment as the zombie in the game - shield up and fight through.

END

Thank you for reading!