AN: Here we go, everyone. The last chapter. The beginning of the end. Almost brings a tear to your eye, don't it? (sniffle sniffle) Many hugs and kissus for all you reviewers, who make me so very happy each and every time you leave a comment.

Disclaimer: For the last time, Jak and Daxter aren't mine. Must I keep saying it? Breaks my heart every time I do…

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.

"Jak? Hey, Jak, wake up!"

When the racer awoke, blinking blearily at the ceiling, it was to someone insistently prodding him in the shoulder. With an annoyed sound Jak tried to roll over and escape the unknown assailant, but found himself partially pinned by a warm weight draped over him from knees to chest.

Insistent fingers threaded through his hair, combing out the tangles a night of fitful tossing and turning had caused. "Cummon, pal, up an' at 'em. I got a surprise fer ya."

"Mmm… surprise?" Jak was already vaguely surprised that Dax was here. At once he remembered what had happened the night before, and the unsettled feeling came crawling back. Letting his eyes fall closed once more the green-blonde reached up to wrap his arms around the redhead above him. The privilege could be revoked at any time, so why pass up a golden opportunity? "What is it?"

Luckily, Daxter didn't seem inclined to break his friend's heart just yet. "Ya gotta get up an' come see."

"Can it wait a minute? M'tried…" He wasn't that tired, really. It just felt so nice to lie there, nestled in the soft blankets and cradling Dax on top of him. He could cheerfully remain in bed all day under those conditions.

"Nope. I want ya ta see it now," Dax whined playfully, pulling out of Jak's arms to sit up haphazardly on the racer's hard abs. "I put a lot'a effort into this one, so ya'd better get up, get dressed, an' get downstairs fer breakfast. Today's gonna be awesome, I'll just tell ya right now!"

Jak chuckled weakly. He couldn't really see how the day when he would offer to let Daxter walk out of their strange relationship could be anything like "awesome." But the thought was driven from his head when Dax leaned forward and wrapped sly fingers in his hair again, teasingly pulling his face closer.

"Heroes…" kiss "who get out'a bed…" kiss "an' do what their buddies tell 'em…" kiss "when they tell 'em…" kiss "are happy heroes." Kiss, kiss, kiss.

Without his permission, the racer's upper body rose from the bed to follow the lips that never stayed on his long enough for those light, quick pecks to be returned. Despite his internal resolve not to get his hopes up, Jak couldn't help but take heart from his friend's playful antics. Maybe Dax wasn't so unhappy with him as he had thought.

He wouldn't be kissing me if he really wanted to end it, right? he thought hopefully, finally managing to plant a more substantial smooch on the squirming redhead in his lap. The green-blonde chuckled as Daxter tried to worm away. "Alright, I'm coming. What's for breakfast?"

"Whatever we can find, babe, whatever we can find. Now let's go!"

This time the former hero followed more willingly. It would be alright. He could have a little fun and savor a last day "together" before he opened up the floor for their little heart to heart. The very least he could do was make sure he enjoyed himself.

O.O.O.O.O

There was a ruckus unfolding in the main room when the two descended the stairs a few minutes later. Daxter's stomach was telling him loudly and insistently that the kitchen was the place to be at the moment, but he spared what was happening a glance and a listen anyway.

"No way!" Keira exclaimed loudly into her 'com. "No. Way."

/"Yes!"/ squealed the voice on the other end, unmistakably that of their team manager in a bona fide tizzy. /"I was so tired last night that I waited until this morning to open it, and when I did it was from him! Oooh, I'm faint!"/

"Way to go, girl!" Ashelin cheered, leaning over Keira's shoulder for access to the communicator. "Are you going to accept flat out or play hard to get first?"

/"Oh, my, I just don't know! I've never had a steady boyfriend before—it's so exciting!"/

Torn and Sig were nowhere to be seen. The redhead concluded that they had sensed a storm of girlish gushing brewing and prudently high-tailed it out of there. He could only hope they weren't loitering in the garage…

"I don't think I'm brave enough to ask." Jak seemed faintly amused as they slipped into the kitchen unnoticed. "You think this is about the—?"

Dax nodded. "The letter. I left it there on the table last night, so I'm guessin' Rayn picked it up when they all got back. Hey, speakin' of them coming back…" With great expectations, he pulled open the refrigerator. He wasn't disappointed; several carryout boxes stared back. "Ah, sweet leftovers. Let's dig in, pal!"

Breakfast was a rushed affair. Once the food was out of the micro-oven Daxter didn't waste a minute having at it, immediately resulting in a burned tongue. He was so jittery with excitement that he nearly spilled his glass of juice, and then almost choked on a forkful of rice as he tried to shovel it down too fast.

"Damn, Dax, slow down." Jak looked up from his own plate to pound his smaller friend on the back lightly. "You don't have to inhale it. Whatever it is you want to show me, it's not going anywhere."

"Eat faster," was the redhead's comment around a fit of coughing. "The day's wastin' as we speak!"

Finally, finally, they were done.

Sweeping the used takeout boxes into the garbage, Daxter was behind Jak and insistently pushing him toward the garage almost before the green-blonde had time to put their dirty forks and glasses by the sink. Jak smirked teasingly, leaning back and bracing his feet so that he couldn't be shoved along. "You know, I could always find a list of chores that need done around here before we go goofing off…"

"Don't even think about it," Dax growled, giving the racer's backmost belt loop a warning tug. "I guarantee it, when you see what I got planned you'll wonder why ya wasted a second!"

"If you say so…"

"I do say so. Now get the lead out!"

On their way back through the front room, the redhead called out to the girls still busily discussing the big news. "Keira, Ashe, we're goin' out! Don't wait up!"

"Have fun, guys." So absorbed was the pretty mechanic in their three-way conversation on all things date-related that she didn't question the information, appearing not to notice the boys heading for the garage instead of the front door. "Oh, absolutely Rayn, wait at least a day before calling him. You can't look too desperate."

Dax snorted fondly as he herded Jak toward their goal. Women. So cute, and yet so un-understandable…

Once in the garage, it took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the dim light that filtered through the tiny, dingy windows near the ceiling of the large room. The air, tinged with the ever-present scents of eco, motor oil, and gasoline, was still chill from the cold Kras City night.

"So my surprise is out here?" Jak seemed doubtful, glancing about as if to see what might be hidden from him among the grease and cobwebs.

"Sort'a…" Unobtrusively, Dax slipped away from his friend's side.

The racer didn't appear to like the vague answer. "What do you mean? Is it or isn't it?"

"It is… kind'a…" Casually, the redhead began to saunter toward the back corner of the room, in the direction of their parked vehicles. Sounding alarmed, Jak followed him like a puppy.

"Wait a minute. Daxter, did you do something to the Javelin? Because even though I appreciate that you'd want to surprise me with an upgrade you know we're all supposed to agree on modifications before you do them—"

"Relax, Jak. I didn't touch yer car, okay?" With an amused sigh, the redhead reached the back and stopped beside the large tarp that had been hastily tacked to the wall. Those huge, tent-like things really could come in handy for more than covering the other vehicles when they were touching up the paint on a single car. "This is yer surprise."

Jak stared at the tarp on the wall uncomprehendingly, head cocked faintly to one side. "…you did some redecorating?"

Daxter wanted to smack his head against something. "No, ya idiot! Just take a look, okay?" With a quick jerk, he pulled the heavy fabric down and exposed what was behind it to Jak's curious gaze.

A startled expression flashed across the racer's features. "Dax… since when is there a warp gate in our garage?"

"Since I made one here." Industriously Dax began to fold up the tarp.

"Wait, wait, wait… how did you make a gate?" Jak was staring intently at its swirling surface as if afraid something was going to pop out and bite him. It was almost funny.

"Well, I kind'a maybe sort'a tapped into the fancy Precursor stuff," the redhead admitted with a cheeky grin as he threw the heavy bundle to the side. "It wasn't as hard as I thought it was gonna be, actually. 'Course, I might'a practiced doin' it a couple times before, too…"

Excitement was trying to worm its way into Jak's voice as he curiously inspected his friend's handiwork. "Does it work? Can we use it? Where does it go?"

Oh, yes, he had the racer's full attention and curiosity now. Perfect. "Well, that's part two of yer surprise. You'll hav'ta go through an' see where we end up. Fun, huh? Unless of course…" he aimed a cocky smirk at the green-blonde, "yer scared?"

Jak rolled his eyes. "I really don't think so. Something tells me the biggest little coward I know wouldn't create a warp gate to anywhere dangerous." Before Daxter could sputter an indignant retort, he had moved in front of the gate and shot back a cocky grin of his own. "So, are we going? Do I need to bring anything?"

"Just yer sense of gratitude," Dax grumbled, and grabbed his friend's sleeve. A simple precaution. "Shut up, hold on, an' let's go."

Taking a deep breath, they stepped into the portal.

O.O.O.O.O

Jak's first clue that something was amiss was that they didn't stop. He had counted to three slowly as usual, waiting for the common warp gate vertigo to subside and the two of them to hop out at their mystery destination. However, this time their surroundings continued to spin. If anything, the vortex around them even seemed to be getting stronger…

Fighting off a growing sense of alarm, he very much wanted to ask Daxter what was happening. He wouldn't put it past his friend to have accidentally messed something up, playing around with powers he didn't fully know how to use yet. But the redhead didn't look at all concerned.

Oh, gods, this is just like that damn time machine that ruined my life!

As the simple blue that permeated that space around them began to shift into a multitude of swirling colors, the green-blonde clenched his eyes shut. He couldn't believe he had actually stepped into an unknown, apparently homemade warp portal. Entirely willingly, no less, and without demanding to know where they were going. Now there was nothing for it but to see what happened and pray they could still get back to where (and when) they had come from.

Jak, you idiot, when are you gonna learn to quit following Daxter into crazy situations?! If this is the start of our next "big adventure" I'm going to kill him when we get wherever this leads…

That thought foremost in his mind, the racer almost didn't notice they were arriving until it was too late. He nearly tripped out of the gate, body still limp from letting the forces inside the portal pummel him to their nonexistent hearts' content. Daxter, still hanging onto his sleeve, had better luck. The redhead stumbled forward a few feet, but quickly righted himself and tried to help steady Jak.

"See now, that wasn't so bad, huh pal?"

"Oh, I beg to differ." Trying to adjust to not being in swirling, tumultuous limbo, the green-blonde brushed himself off. He tried to look stern as he stared down at his shorter friend. "Where are we?" In all fairness, he ought to give Daxter a decent sized piece of his mind for leading them into something so risky.

He was caught off guard, though, when Dax's hands shot up and clapped firmly over his eyes before he could get a look around. "Guess."

"I don't know where I am, but you're going to be in a world of hurt if you don't knock off these crazy games." Grumbling, Jak nevertheless decided to comply. Obviously this was pretty important to the redhead, and they had after all arrived intact. Keeping his eyes closed behind Daxter's hands, he sighed deeply and tried to decipher the mystery of their location.

Before Dax had restricted his vision he had fleetingly seen a wide expanse of green. Grass, probably. That meant they most likely weren't anywhere near Haven City, and certainly nowhere close to Spargus. Maybe the forest outside Haven…?

Perking his ears, he could hear birds… and a strange sort of rushing, rumbling roar. What on earth was that? It sounded much too deep and low to be any kind of machinery they were familiar with. It almost sounded like… With a start, Jak strained to hear it better. Inhaling sharply, he caught a deep breath of warm air that he suddenly realized was almost painfully fresh and sweet.

"Turn around!" Daxter's voice was bubbling with barely contained excitement and mischief as he tugged Jak in a half circle, still making sure his eyes were covered.

Even when he was properly positioned to the redhead's satisfaction and those teasing hands finally left his face, the racer didn't dare look. He could feel warm sun on his face, a cool breeze in his hair. He was shaking slightly. Either he'd see what he thought he'd see and have some sort of embarrassing emotional reaction, or he wouldn't see what he thought he'd see and have some sort of embarrassing emotional reaction.

"Well, go on, take a peek. You know ya wanna…"

It was Daxter's light, coaxing nudge that finally made him do it. Slowly, the green-blonde opened his eyes.

O.O.O.O.O

Daxter watched raptly as emotion after emotion raced across his normally calm friend's face. Shock. Wonder. Confusion. Disbelief. This was it, the big moment he'd been waiting for, and so far it was entirely worth any and all effort he'd put forth. It was all he could do not to start laughing crazily and completely ruin the mood when Jak slowly sank down to sit numbly in the long grass, staring out unblinkingly over the panoramic view of Sandover Village and Sentinel Beach.

"Remember ta breathe, big guy. Oxygen is generally an important part'a life."

Jak didn't answer. He continued to gaze silently over the bluff, down on the waterfall just below them, the jungle beyond that, down to the small thatch-roofed huts and the golden sand of the beach that melted into deep blue water.

"Like what ya see?" Stretching languorously, the redhead meandered over to drop to his knees behind his friend, elbows propped on Jak's broad shoulders and chin resting on the top of his head. "Not a bad view, if I do say so myself."

"Daxter… what…?"

"Don't worry, yer not dreamin'." Something inside him made reassuring Jak top priority over teasing and joking, and he tightened the arms around his bigger buddy's neck affectionately. "Want me ta explain all this?"

"Please."

Dax took a deep breath and began. "Well… right after I figured out that I could go back an' forth from Orange Lighting mode, I started thinkin' about what else I could do. An' at some point I remembered the Precursor portals we used ta play around. An' I figured we… ya know, I thought it might be good ta get back here."

That wasn't the half of it. They had needed to get back to this place, needed it more with each consecutive day Jak passed in a surly bad mood and every evening Daxter wanted to reach for a drink to make some depressing new reality not seem so bad. He'd meant to get them back to this time and place or waste every ounce of his newfound power trying.

"At first I just started playin' around makin' little portals, just seeing if I could do it. It was hard at first, 'cause I didn't want to screw up and us land back here at the same time we were here before, ya know? I don't think ol' Green could handle two of me an' you at the same time!"

"You're serious." The green-blonde still sounded dazed.

"Heck yeah. One night I was tossing old tools an' stuff through, just ta make sure they wouldn't disintegrate inside the gate or anything, and I saw us playin' on the beach. We were… little. Maybe six? Seven? I dunno. Remember that time we were buildin' sand castles and that bolt came out'a nowhere an' hit ya in the head? An' we couldn't figure out where it came from? Yeah… uh, sorry about that. My bad."

Jak took a moment to digest the information. He looked like he was slowly beginning to adjust. "I'm not even going to comment on how dangerous messing with the space-time continuum probably is, so I'll just ask… now that we're… here… when are we here?"

"Oh, don't worry about that. I crept through last night an' did some research. It's about four years since we left, according to our artist buddy down by the beach. Oh, hey, speakin' of that guy… ya wanna go see him with me real quick? He didn't believe me when I told him you can talk now, an' I kind'a made him a bet that—"

Daxter was bowled over backwards as Jak shot to his feet. Without a word the green-blonde was off, racing headlong for the series of narrow ledges that would lead down toward the small village. In a moment Dax had regained both his feet and his composure, and was running after his friend as quickly as he could.

"Jak, hold up! No head starts! Aww, come on, I've got shorter legs than you! Jaaak, wait fer meee!!"

O.O.O.O.O

Jak felt like he was flying. No sooner did his feet touch dirt or grass than he was off again, leaping and bounding down the steep cliff face with ease.

Maybe he should have stopped and waited for Daxter, but he could still clearly hear the smaller redhead's whining, complaining yells. That meant he wasn't too far behind, so Jak didn't have to feel guilty about leaving his friend completely in the dust. He was far too keyed up to wait.

This certainly didn't feel like a dream. The wind whistled through his hair, the ground was solid under his boots, and the muted roar of the waterfall and crashing of the waves on the beach became louder the closer he came to them. He had to admit, if it was all fake then it was the realest hallucination he'd ever had.

By the time he reached the bottom and landed in the warm sand, the racer was convinced. It was true. They were really back. He wanted to laugh and whoop and positively roll in the sand and sea—after he saw everyone in town. Oh, yes, he wanted to see everyone and everything!

"Come on, Dax, hurry!"

Daxter was panting when he finally dropped down next to Jak. It had been a long time since he'd had to run any great distance on his own two feet, and even going downhill seemed to wind him a little. "Geeze, will ya slow down?! What I wanted ta show ya ain't goin' nowhere, remember?"

Jak was shifting impatiently, almost running in place. How could Dax honestly expect him to stay calm at a time like this? Laughing, the green-blonde shot forward and grabbed his smaller friend under the arms. Easily lifting him off his feet, he picked the redhead up and spun him in a circle. Predictably Dax let out a squall of indignation, his shoes nowhere near touching the sand.

"Put me down, ya big lug! I get swung around when I'm furry an' not a minute before—got that, sweetheart?"

"Oh, shut up, Dax. This is incredible! It's amazing! You're amazing!"

The praise seemed to placate the redhead immediately. When Jak set him back down he began to preen, smiling like a cat in the cream. "Why, yes, Jak, I am fantastic, thanks fer notice—whoa!"

Jak didn't let him finish, grabbing a thin wrist and hauling the startled redhead along behind him as he ran. "Now let's go."

"Jak, fer pete'sake, watch out fer the crabs!"

Neither Daxter's whining nor the huge lurker crabs slowed them down much. In minutes they were atop the slowly turning wooden wheel that was the quickest way from the beach to the little cluster of tiny hut-like dwellings, and in a minute more they were racing through the heart of Sandover Village. Jak was grinning so hard it hurt. Nothing had changed! It was exactly the way he remembered!

At last the racer skidded to a stop outside the sculptor's hut, allowing Daxter to double over behind him with his hands on his knees and pant. Were the inhabitants of the town as unchanged as the rest of the scenery? Would they even remember him? Jak hesitated at the door of the small hut, standing wide open as it had been so often during their childhood. He peeked inside, ears flicking a bit nervously.

Daxter, however, caught his breath and strode past Jak, barging right in. "Hey, Rembrandt, ya home? Oh, come on in, Jak."

No sooner had the former hero inched past the threshold than a flash of pink plummeted from the rafters. Banking off the top of Daxter's head, it landed squarely on Jak's shoulder with a happy trill.

"I believe she's saying, 'welcome back, dudes!' Or, something very much like that."

"Yeah, yeah." Daxter huffed, shoving his goggles back into place from where they had been knocked askew. "Ya might wanna keep yer cute little pet on a leash there, Michelangelo. I think I just almost lost an eye."

Jak could only stare as the eccentric artist emerged from behind a huge block of marble, laughing lazily. He hadn't changed either. Not a bit. Nor had the small pink creature they had once collected home from Misty Island, currently wrapped around Jak's neck and sniffing at him curiously. Both were still strange and both were still covered in a light dusting of powdered rock.

"My Muse is just saying hello. But look at you, my carrot-topped friend! It appears you have lost your pelt after all. And quiet dude, I hardly recognized you! How utterly awesome is this?" As he reached out to pat them both on the back, the muse bounced down from Jak's shoulder to recline casually on her master's. "Both my little dudes are not so little anymore. Ah, how time flies! I must immortalize this meeting in a sculpture!"

"Hold it, there, Picasso. Forgetting our bet, old man?" The redhead tapped a foot impatiently as a chisel and hammer paused in midair, their wielder looking slightly confused. "Before ya go playin' with yer rocks… Go ahead an' say somethin' now, Jak! Prove me right, okay?"

As the muse trilled curiously and all eyes landed on him, Jak suddenly found that he had absolutely nothing intelligent to share. All he could do was grin somewhat hesitantly. "Uh… what should I say?"

There was utter silence as the sculptor blinked. Then he laughed uproariously. "Dudes! That is truly amazing! High five."

Bemused, Jak met the proffered hand, as did Daxter a moment later—albeit with much more eye rolling. The green-blonde had long grown accustomed to using his voice, but… He had forgotten there were people other than Dax, Keira and Samos who knew he had once been mute, and just might care that he could now speak—even be happy for him. It was a remarkably nice feeling.

"You have indeed won our bet, little redheaded dude. When we get together and you bestow upon me the grand tale of your adventures, I shall provide the refreshments."

"Booze," Daxter corrected. "Lots an' lots of booze."

"Refreshments," the artist agreed. "Just please, stay the heck out of my art supplies."

"Hey, I was tired! I needed fruit fer energy!"

Jak was confused. "Huh…?"

"Last night I awoke from a sound slumber to find little furry orange dude in my kitchen, up to the whiskers in some fruit I was using to craft a new color of paint. I was happy to see him and we chatted for quite a while but, I must say… I was not initially thrilled, man."

"Dax," Jak admonished with a smile, nudging the glaring redhead lightly in the ribs. "You shouldn't eat other people's projects. Especially after breaking into their houses."

"Alright, that's it!" Daxter finally exploded. Red in the face, he threw his arms up in feigned exasperation. "That's the last time I waste my time an' energy doin' anything fer you, ya big ingrate! Can't a guy get a bite around here anymore, or did that crackpot mayor make eating illegal? Yeesh!"

It was too cute. Before Jak could stop himself, remember that they had an audience, he reached out and was pulling the redhead to him in a hug. He managed to alter it at the last moment, though, and instead caught Dax in an improvised headlock. A very gentle and affectionate headlock.

Later. Later. You can cuddle him later. Not now, not in public. It wouldn't be good to reveal so soon that more had changed with them than their heights. A lot more…

Even so, he waited until both the artist and his muse had turned back to the hunk of rock and planted a quick, covert nuzzle behind his friend's ear. Daxter wasn't oblivious to it, either, if the startled head-to-toe shiver it elicited was anything to go by. Jak grinned as Dax cleared his throat.

"W-well, we'd better be goin'… lots ta see today, yep!"

"Have a blast, dudes! And remember… come back soon! Running off for years on end without even a goodbye is a most uncool thing to do." The muse chattered an almost accusing agreement.

Daxter snorted, breaking out of the racer's hold. "Yeah, yeah, we hear ya. Don't forget about those drinks, alright? Later!"

With a small wave, Jak happily followed his partner in crime out the door. If Dax had other plans for them that day, he would go along willingly. Whatever he had cooked up would surely be worthwhile. "So, where are we going?"

"Wherever ya wanna go, I guess." The redhead looked around dubiously. "Ya know there's SO much ta do around here… Hey, wait, I know! Let's go swi—"

"Oh, my heavens! Boys, it really is you! Oh, I'm so glad!"

Jak wasn't quite sure how the Bird Lady had managed to sneak up on them, the feather on top of her bird-hat bobbing crazily, but she had. Daxter dove for safety behind him with a quick "yipe!" as she advanced with open arms. Hugs were very obviously immanent.

"My goodness, Jak, you've grown so tall! It's so good to see you two again! When our young artist told me you'd come back this morning I could hardly believe it."

"Figures he'd gab," Dax muttered petulantly, dodging further around his green-blonde bodyguard when it seemed likely his cheeks were to be pinched. "Can't keep nothin' quiet around here. Hey, lady, back off! Don't touch me! Jaaak!"

Jak simply chuckled. He didn't have anything to say. He was just enjoying himself, immensely. This was… home. Nothing short of paradise. How could he hope to repay Daxter for this?

"It's such a shame your uncle is away again, Jak. I know he would have loved to see you if he had only known! He really misses your shenanigans so much, you know." She sighed fondly before perking up again. "Well, come along, boys. I made cookies just in case you came by."

"Cookies? What are we, seven?"

"Come, now, Daxter. Your Flut Flut has been waiting for you," she wheedled. "Won't he be surprised to see you? He wasn't even hatched the last time you looked like your old self, you know. I'm so glad you two finally managed to fix that little problem." Taking Jak by the arm she led them off, Daxter grumbling all the way.

"'Little problem', she says… Fine. But this is just 'cause Jak wants to, see? Cookies an' a bird that tried ta eat me last time I saw it can't beat swimmin'—which is what we're gonna do the second we're through here!"

The Flut Flut, as it turned out, adored Daxter whether he had fur or not. The enormous bird followed him around the yard in front of the birdwatcher's house, even when the cookies he held were long gone. The calls of "mama! mama!" flew thick and fast, much to the redhead's annoyance.

"Look, bird-brain, we've had this talk. I ain't yer mom! How many times do I need ta say it?!" Still, he seemed to take pity. "Ya want a cookie? Guess which hand the cookie's in!"

Jak watched, holding a cookie of his own, as the creature closely inspected Daxter's closed fists. When it had made its decision, it knocked at one of them with its beak.

"Nope, sorry!" the redhead grinned, revealing an empty palm to the bemused bird. "Try again."

Don't tease him, Dax… Jak opened his mouth to verbalize the warning, then gave up. It was more enjoyable to just watch what was sure to unfold when the Flut Flut found out the other hand was empty, too.

Daxter was laughing as he waved both hands in the bird's face. "Aww, too bad! Just jokin' with ya, I don't have any more. Maybe next time, there, feather-head."

"Mama!" came the indignant squeal, followed immediately by a loud crack that Jak could only hope was a rock hard beak against a lense of his friend's goggles, rather than directly against his skull.

"Oww! Ja-aak, it pecked me! Hey, dammit—get away! Jak, help, it's chasin' me! Throw it something, quick!"

Forcing the grin off his face, the green-blonde completely ignored what was going on in the yard and turned instead to their minute hostess. With a nod and a smile, he handed her back the empty glasses of milk and the cookie platter. She's a little old lady, after all. I don't want to give her a heart attack by just suddenly beginning to speak. Maybe we can ease her into that slowly…

"Oh, you're very welcome, Jak." Smiling sweetly, she patted his hand. "Just promise you'll come back and see me soon. Er… but not too soon. You might want to give the Flut Flut some time to forget about this, you understand."

O.O.O.O.O

The day passed much too quickly for Daxter's liking. Well, it did once his poor abused head ceased to ache.

At Jak's insistence they had tracked down and spoken to each and every resident of Sandover Village. In reality, this involved Daxter talking while Jak smiled like an idiot. The only inhabitant they hadn't seen so far was one absent old snob of an uncle, and though Jak regretted missing him Dax was glad he wasn't there. His perfect day with Jak would no doubt have been darkened by the old coot's careless insults.

Now, though, they were free. Of course they had retreated to the beach with all due haste, kicking off boots and unnecessary articles of clothing as they went, this time with Dax in the lead. Minus the few minutes it took to slather on some sun oil that they'd had the good sense to pilfer from the old explorer's currently empty hut, they had been swimming for hours.

One hundred percent natural redhead, keep out of direct sunlight when not covered in fur. Jak might get a nice tan out of the day, but Daxter would be lucky if he didn't burn at least a little in spite of the oil. Ah, well. If I burn, I burn. It's worth it.

Dax stretched leisurely. He had gotten a bit tired and taken a break, stretched out on the warm sand, but Jak was still going strong. Shielding his eyes from the glare of the slowly sinking sun, he studied the racer cavorting in the surf.

Jak hadn't looked so happy in a long, long time. The only instances where he looked like that normally were ones where the two of them were palling around or getting otherwise "close," but this was different. This was sustained contentment. The green-blonde hadn't stopped smiling all day.

Daxter grinned as his friend threw himself headlong into a large wave with a war cry that would have done his dark eco form proud, all but daring it to knock him down and make his day. It was unspeakably endearing.

Purrr… The redhead smirked, rolling over to rest on his stomach, chin propped on his hands. Wet Jak in nothing but soaked boxers was a fine, fine sight and more than deserving of a catcall or two or ten. He managed to restrain himself, though. I will not lust after Jak under these circumstances. I will not lust after Jak under these circumstances. That can come later. Today isn't about that. Today is about happy Jakkie-boy, period.

Finally, Jak seemed to notice that he was alone. Shaking himself off, he left the water and meandered over to where Daxter was laying next to the scattered piles of their clothes and shoes. "Hey, Daxter. Don't tell me you're tired already?"

The redhead snorted, fighting back a yawn as the racer dropped down beside him. "Excuse me? Some of us didn't get hardly any sleep last night, if ya remember."

"Oh." Jak had the decency to look the slightest bit embarrassed. Apologetically he reached out to brush a bit of clinging sand from his friend's shoulder. The freckled skin was turning pink. "Do you want more sun block, Dax? You're getting kind of red."

"Nah, it's no big deal. The sun's goin' down, anyway." He glanced up at the sky, then sighed contentedly and let his eyes drift shut, basking in the warm golden glow. "Too bad. There's nothin' like a day at the beach, huh, Jak?"

"Yeah…"

The racer's wistful tone made Dax crack his eyes open again. He struggled up into a sitting position, staring at his friend curiously. Jak sounded much too melancholy for his liking as he stared out past the huge stone sentinels that decorated the beach and across the sparkling water, towards the rapidly setting sun.

To tell the truth, Dax didn't want the day to be over yet either. Sure they could always come back again, but this first day had been special. For the first time in years he'd seen Jak in their old familiar surroundings, but he had seen him with new eyes. So different, and yet so much the same. In a funny way it was almost like their first date. But, that thought in mind… the day was completely done. With a sly grin, the redhead crept over and threw an arm around his friend's shoulders.

"I guess we need to think about heading back soon." The reluctance in the green-blonde's statement was tangible. "I bet you're hungry, too. Cookies aren't a very filling lunch, huh?"

Daxter smiled at his friend's attempts at small talk. "I'm only sort'a hungry, so I'll live. And maybe we can think about gettin' back in a little bit. But don't sweat it, babe. We can always come back here now, ya know."

Jak turned to look at him. "Always? What about when the races are over and we leave Kras for good? We can't take the garage with us."

"I'll just close that gate an' make a new one." Dax shrugged, blatantly cozying up to the racer. "Next time we can bring Keira, too. I bet she'd like that. Heck, we can even bring the rest of 'em along if ya want. It may not be the most exciting vacation out there, but I bet no one's ever seen anyplace like this before. We'd have one hell'uva beach party! But not Jinx. Jinx can't come. He'd pollute the place."

Jak was obviously incredulous. "You mean…?"

"I mean we're back ta stay, pal. So don't worry about it. Whatever else happens, Sandover is once again saddled with the Demolition Duo. And I hope they enjoyed their little breather, 'cause we got a lot'a lost time ta make up for. Now, what kind'a trouble can we get into first?"

For just a second, the look in Jak's eyes made Dax extremely happy. That look seemed to say that Jak had read his mind, and their first order of mischief should be to get busted for indecent exposure and public display of affection right there on the beach. But then…

The green-blonde smiled ruefully. "Okay, Dax. I get it."

"Uh… get what, pal?"

"Everything's back to how it was, now… how it's supposed to be. Thanks for doing this for me, Dax. You know me so well it's scary. But…"

All this serious talk from Jak was making the redhead nervous. Today wasn't supposed to be serious; it was supposed to be fun! Still, he had to ask. "But?"

"Everything's back to normal except 'us.' So… If you want things to go back to how they used to be between us, if you want us to be just friends, Daxter, I… I understand. I can deal with that. This past month has been—fantastic. More than fantastic. More than I ever should have asked for. So I'll make that be enough. It's up to you."

All Dax could do was sit, and stare.

O.O.O.O.O

Jak felt half sick. Well, this was it. He'd said what he felt he had to say, and all he could do now was wait for Daxter's answer. Hopefully he would be kind if he planned to let the former hero down, and do it easily. Or, rather, as easily as he could. Dax wasn't known for being very good in delicate situations like this. Cautiously, Jak chanced a glance at his friend.

Daxter pounced. The startled racer was almost knocked backward into the sand as the warm, slightly damp redhead landed in his lap with a pitiful wail. "Jaaak, no! No no no nooo, pal, don't change yer mind now! It's goin' so good—don't say we gotta mess it all up!"

Jak's heart began to beat again as he stared down at the slight former ottsel hanging around his neck, babbling for all he was worth.

"Damn it, Jak, I get this awesome day all planned out an' ya gotta go an' end it like this! I did this as a really great gettin' together gift for ya, and then ya take it like I wanna break up." Dax paused to take a deep, hopefully calming, breath. "Yer a moron, Jak. Ya know that, right?"

Jak managed a wobbly grin. "Well, no one ever accused me of being a genius. That's Vin's department."

The redhead's ears were flicking in exasperation, but an amused smile was trying to hover around his mouth. "Okay, look. There's somethin' I was gonna say to ya. It's kind'a sappy, but I guess I'll say it anyway."

"Okay…"

Getting up on his knees, but still mostly in Jak's lap, Daxter grabbed his friend's head and forcibly turned it so he was looking out over the water, to where the burning sunset painted the horizon between sea and sky. "Look out there. Ya see that sun, right?"

"Yeah, I see it. It's beautiful."

"Yup. Enchanting. But when ya look at that sun goin' down I want ya ta think about somethin'. That's the sun setting on all the lousy crap that's tripped us up so far, ya dig? All the bad stuff that's happened, it's over. Gone. Done with. Hasta la vista, baby." He tweaked Jak's ears, presumably to make sure the green-blonde was listening and understood. "And tomorrow when the sun comes up again, it'll be… ya know. A new day. An' it'll be… better, know what I'm sayin'?"

Jak stared.

"Uh, I mean, it'll be better now that we're…" It was obvious Dax was uncomfortable. He had begun to fidget nervously. "Now that we're, uh, ya know…"

Jak was grinning now.

Flustered and frustrated, knowing Jak was amused to no end, Daxter finally just gave up. "Sorry. Um, that sounded a lot better in my head last night, I swear! Dammit, I knew I should'a wrote all this crap down. I was gonna ink it on my hand but I figured we'd swim so it would'a washed off anyways—"

"Dax. Shh."

After a moment of shock, Daxter relaxed and slowly sank back onto Jak's lap with a laugh. "I guess that's my cue ta put a sock in it, big guy? Okay. Gotcha, roger, and can do—even though I can't imagine ya wouldn't wanna hear me talkin' to ya!"

As the redhead hummed happily and returned his embrace, Jak relaxed too. Why shouldn't he? Not only had he unexpectedly gained something dear that he'd thought lost forever, but he had kept something even dearer that he'd been sure he was about to lose. Now he simply sat in the warm sand, listening to the waves and the sea birds and the wind through the palms, and holding a very smug, very sleepy, very contented Dax to him.

Daxter. With that hair and that grin and those eyes and that attitude. His best friend, his love, his laughter, his light. The racer smiled.

Is it any wonder why I love you, Daxter? And Jak leaned down for a kiss.

O.O.O.O.O

The End.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.

(2nd)AN: I guess this is where I get down on my knees and beg forgiveness, huh? I'm so sorry it took this long to update. Some things in life you just can't control, sadly.

But anyway, there you have it. The conclusion to the "plot" part of the story. Now the only thing left is the very last chapter, the final step—aka, where the risqué business goes on. So it won't be posted on this site. I'm sorry about that, too. But not all of you want to hear it, and anyway rules are rules. Chapter 12, the "phantom" chapter, will be posted exclusively on adultfanfiction dot net when it is finished, for those who care to read. If I wind up posting it anywhere else I'll say so in my author profile.

And now… omg this about makes me cry… the last round of outtakes!

O.O.O.O.O

Daxter: Jak, help, the Flut Flut's after me!

Jak: ((ignore))

Daxter: Jak, it's pecking me! It hurts! Help me!

Jak: ((ignore)) (nibbles cookie unconcernedly)

Daxter: Oh, hey, look—it knocked me down, mauled me, and ripped off my pants!

Jak: !! (looks)

Daxter: You ass.

O.O.O.O.O

Jak & Dax: (stagger back into garage)

Sig: Whoa, cherry… you look like a cherry! Is that sunburn?

Daxter: (wince) Ow, ow, ow…

Torn: …let's poke him.

Daxter: NO!!

O.O.O.O.O

Light Jak Shoulder Angel: ((happy sigh)) So everything turned out alright in the end.

Dark Jak Shoulder Devil: Yeah, I guess…

Light: What's the matter? You don't look so hot.

Dark: I always look hot. Warm and fluffy just makes me sick.

Light: Shut up. (beats him with angelic harp) You're ruining the moment.

Dark: (rubs bruised head) Okay, I think this proves I'm not the evil, violent one, here!

Light: (whistles innocently)

O.O.O.O.O

Daxter: So, Jak…

Jak: Yeah?

Dax: Aren't romances supposed ta end with a wedding, or a baby, or somethin'?

Jak: I don't think so. I mean, come on. Us getting married would just be silly, and we're both guys, so we can't have kids. Right…?

Dax: (musing) Well… not necessarily… I am a Precursor, so anything's possible…

Jak: ((sweat)) Daxter, I don't think I like that look in your eyes.

Dax: (smiles sweetly) So Jak… you wanna be the dad, or the mom?

Jak: ….you stay far away from me. (runs)

Dax: Jak, wait, I think you'd be a great mom! Ja-aak!!