A/N: Written for LJ's 1sentence community. Theme set Beta. References fo Pixar's film The Incredibles and The Beatles song Blackbird.

Here We Go Again

01. Walking
Lucas walks without a purpose through the aftermath of Meridiana's Armageddon; another day to spend without his best friend, Adrian, another night to pass without his lover, Cybersix.

02. Waltz
Rain is falling outside his window in silver sheets of hazy tissue paper and the high school teacher wonders what it would have been like to dance with her underneath those grey skies; the poetry of it all would have made her smile.

03. Wishes
Lucas wondered if he thought about her long enough maybe Cybersix could hear his voice and find her way out of the forest and back to him.

04. Wonder
Why he decided to take his camcorder to the streets and videotape what really went on in the city, to put a name to the faces of those we have lost and those in need of help, he'll never know.

05. Worry
His mother called and said, "Lucas, why do you help those people?"

06. Whimsy
The high school biology teacher was understandably surprised when his amateur documentary was featured on the evening news.

07. Waste/Wasteland
When the sun rose and pushed back the rolling clouds of darkness back into the forest, Lucas felt a pain in his heart – now he could see why Cybersix loved this city so much that she would die for it.

08. Whiskey and rum
Lucas sat down at the café where he used to eat breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner with his best friend and asked the manager if he could have another bottle for the table, it was lonely without Adrian.

09. War
It took a long time to come to the conclusion that Adrian was Cybersix or that Cybersix was Adrian – but in the end, the peaceful understanding that followed only solidified Lucas's resolution to never give up on her.

10. Weddings
He held a tape recorder in his hand and a smile on his face – as a news reporter, he was going to film the first blessed wedding in Meridiana since the city's destruction.

11. Birthday
"Here, kid," Lucas placed a wrapped present in Julian's hands, "She wouldn't forget your birthday, you know."

12. Blessing
When she stumbled through his window in a torn suit, clutching the remains of her beloved hat, Lucas caught her in his arms and half-thought that he was dreaming this all up.

13. Bias
Cybersix – or was it Adrian? – slept deeply on the couch and the teacher wondered whether she would get offended if he preferred to see her in her normal work clothes instead.

14. Burning
He placed a damp facecloth on her forehead and Cybersix stirred uncomfortably in her dreams, dreams swarming with glowing monsters and green liquid men.

15. Breathing
He was not staring at her chest – he was not staring at her chest – he was not – he gulped - "Lucas, what are you looking at?"

16. Breaking
It horrified her when she found out Lucas worked as a news reporter, and every night he walked the cobbled streets and recorded what her monstrous father had done.

17. Belief
'You don't have to do this,' she pleaded silently; 'you don't have to take up my mantle to atone for my mistakes.'

18. Balloon
"My god you've gotten fat," Mrs. Amano said to her son when she stormed through the door and insisted that she know what her only child was up to these days.

19. Balcony
He kept the window open; the wind tickled the newly installed curtains gently, and knew that it reminded Cybersix of home.

20. Bane
"Who was that woman?" she asked, mildly amused and he hid his face in his hands, "My mother."

21. Quiet
Cybersix didn't say much, then again she never did, but that didn't stop Lucas worrying about her.

22. Quirks
He asked by what name he could call her (Adrian or Cybersix?) and she smiled, never really giving him an answer.

23. Question
Face flushed with embarrassment, Lucas couldn't bear to look at her in the face when she woke up that morning to find his arms wrapped protectively around her.

24. Quarrel
Lucas wanted to ask her, "Are you mad at me? Because I'm not mad, I just wish that you knew how much it hurt when you went away."

25. Quitting
Cybersix retched into the toilet bowl and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand; the contents of her bland breakfast floated about but then again, sacrifices had to be made since she gave up sustenance altogether.

26. Jump
Yashimoto and his sister, Ikiko, stopped by and gave the couple a present in a box – it chirruped and hopped inside – they said it would bring them good luck.

27. Jester
He'd willingly become her nurse, her cook, her Laundromat, her bodyguard – if only she would break that impenetrable cloud she shrouded herself in and laughed again.

28. Jousting
"I can't be who you want me to be, because I don't even know myself."

29. Jewel
She wasn't a woman for money and jewels, but Lucas still wanted to give her a simple silver necklace to adorn her graceful neck.

30. Just
They walked down the street to the same old café and sat down at the same table; as Lucas wolfed down his third plateful of food, Adrian sipped his coffee and felt that everything was good again, it was just right.

31. Smirk
"Lori, don't give me that look, there's nothing between me and Adrian!"

32. Sorrow
She was laughing, her slender fingers clutched at her stomach to keep her mirth in and Lucas felt a great weight fall from his chest as he watched Cybersix slowly come back to life.

33. Stupidity
Naked fingers played with his untamed, blond hair and she drew closer to him, wondering where in the world she got the courage to kiss him like that.

34. Serenade
"God, Lucas," she winced visibly, "please don't sing that lullaby again!"

35. Sarcasm
He asked if Van Richter was dead and she scoffed at his words, men that evil and corrupt could never really die, they passed their legacy to their sons.

36. Sordid
"I can't give it up, the people need to know what's happening out there," and Cybersix turned her face away in vain, news anchor or not, there were some things that Lucas didn't need to know about.

37. Soliloquy
It was nice to live with Lucas but on some days, she felt lonely without her brother – Data 7, where are you?

38. Sojourn
Lucas was a down-to-earth guy who liked a good meal and the occasional trip to the country; but he wanted to know, was Cybersix the kind of woman to stay with him?

39. Share
It wasn't much, but the small piece of homemade lasagna left made Adrian laugh; the telltale tomato sauce on Lucas's face told the whole story.

40. Solitary
They huddled on the couch, watching the television when she asked, "Were you lonely growing up as an only child?" and he answered, "Were you?"

41. Nowhere
"Blackbird singing in the dead of night, take these broken wings and learn to fly – all your life, you were only waiting for this moment to arrive," the Lucas's secondhand radio played out the song and it drifted into the air like smoke, filling his dim apartment with memories of bygone days and Cybersix daydreamed; what a beautiful song.

42. Neutral
Cybersix smoothed out the bed sheets calmly and stated in an even tone, "I sleep on the bed, you sleep on the couch."

43. Nuance
Sometimes he couldn't tell if she was happy or sad when she looked out the window and into the forest, but today, with the sun shining full on her face, he knew that it was one of her better days.

44. Near
"When you look at me, I forget how to breathe."

45. Natural
She constantly questioned whether this sentiment she felt was really love, but then again, she was confused by a lot of other things these days.

46. Horizon
She didn't tell him how she managed to escape the laboratory or how she hid in the back of a military truck to hitch a ride back to the city; she had crawled on the ground for so long that sometimes she forgot what it was like to walk again.

47. Valiant
She cradled Julian's head in her arms and whispered in his ear, hoping to calm the orphan's fears with her voice, "Data 7 will find us, I know he will."

48. Virtuous
He wished he could give her a medal for the brave things she did; she wished she could give her the key to her heart for all the care he bestowed upon her.

49. Victory
"I win!" she cried when Lucas placed his cards face up on the table; he had lost at Crazy Eights for the seventh time in a row.

50. Defeat
If the city could rise from the ashes like a phoenix and sing again, then maybe Lucas and Cybersix could forgive the past and live again.