It turned out Natalie's pill was a heavy dose of Melatonin. Five hundred milligrams to help keep her in a state of REM sleep rather than a state of dreaming sleep because when she dreams, they typically turn into night terrors. It was February first and a little less than a month ago Natalie had had her whole big dream episode. Since then she had learned to take her pills much like a child learns not to touch a stove. When you don't do as you're told, you get hurt. She didn't want to get hurt again so she started to take her pills again and no sleep problems occurred after that. As far as the wakeful problems were going, she learned that she was actually okay for the most part.

"I don't know Dr. Crane. Doesn't needing my brother like a safety blanket childish?" Natalie asked Dr. Crane one chilly afternoon.

"I understand you're want to grow up and embracing your independence, especially at this age, but everyone young and old, has someone that they turn to for comfort." said Dr. Crane.

"But let's be honest, as my Ian and I grow up there's a good chance we will grow apart." Natalie confessed, "What am I supposed to do then?" She was genuinely concerned.

"You really are wiser then you know you are Natalie." the doctor proclaimed with a smile, "That's where the entirety of growing up comes to it's the pinnacle. It's where you start to use the skill you've learned of handling things on your own and being independent. It's when you know you can take care of yourself."

The last time Dan had cut his own hair was when he was two and starting to use safety scissors. He had just snipped of a single lock at the time, but this go around, he straight up buzzed his head. That's right, his shaggy unkempt boyish hair was no more and all he had now was a flat field of nothing. Truth be told he looked a great deal older and far more sophisticated. He had even begun taking on those characteristics. Yes he still enjoyed wasting time on various video games, but he had become quite the student. He was no Amy but with a GPA of eighty, he was an honor student. He started to really see the value of knowledge and that going to school didn't have to always be a chore. The only thing that stayed the same was that he still kept relatively to himself. At lunch he might chill in the drama room with a few friends, but he mostly went to the library and did homework. At home he would sometimes help Nellie in the kitchen.

"Hey kiddo, you seem a little different lately." Nellie brought up one night as she was stirring her collard greens.

"What kind of different?" Dan asked as he mashed the potatoes for tonight's southern dinner.

"Like, trying to act as a freshman in collages not high school, different." said Nellie.

"I guess I have been studying a little more." stated Dan indifferently.

"Well yeah, that's good." Said Nellie, "But you don't laugh like you used to. I mean when was the last time you laughed at a good old fashioned, fart joke?"

"I don't know." Answered Dan, "Is this really that important? I've just taken a bit of an interest in learning is all?"

"Dan, don't beat around the bush." Nellie stopped stirring. "You chopped off your hair, you study as a hobby and you've been quieter than ever. What's with the sudden personality three-sixty?"

Dan sighed. "Nellie, Amy told me I needed to grow up." There was no turning back now. "So that's what I did. But the scariest part is, that I think I like it" Dan held his head in his hands. It was overwhelming for him to talk about this sudden change and the effect it had on his true self. Even with Nellie.

"Dan growing up is okay you know." Nellie said sympathetically. "It comes at the most unexpected of times and can really throw your world off balance." Nellie put a comforting arm around his waist. He was far too tall for her to reach his shoulders.

Dan was surprisingly calm to this intense discussion. "I know Nellie. It just kind of caught me off guard and the fact that I'm not too appalled by it sort of freaked me out." He admitted. "I like feeling like I can make decisions and figure things out without any consultation. The independence is a nice change."

Nellie smiled up at him with pride. "You're becoming a find young man Dan Cahill." She told him. "Just make sure you don't grow up too fast. Alright buddy?"

Dan put on that new smirk he liked to sport. "Yeah Nellie, I think that ship sailed with the whole saving the world thing, remember?"

Nellie rolled her eyes, turning the whole conversation into something far less tense. "Yeah, yeah, yeah I know." stated a light hearted Nellie. "Just bring out the old Dan once in a while okay? I mean if it wasn't for people acting like fools once in a while, we would of never had Saturday Night Live."

"Amen to that." Said Dan with a mashed potato mustache displayed above his grin.

Nobody said long distance relationships were easy. Amy and Ian found that out the hard way. Ian had gone back to the U.K. to tend to the Kabra art dealing business. Or at least what was left with it. The two of them had video chatted and called at all hours of the night but it was just too much. The feelings were still there but the physical and emotional strain was too much to bear. The chatted still but not as much. To anyone outside the union looking in, they could clearly tell that they were very well suited for one another, but they were a bit too smart for their own good and that kept them from being hopeless romantics like most teenage couples.

It was seven thirty p.m. in Attleboro and twelve thirty a.m. in London but Amy was on the phone with an exhausted, young English socialite non-the-less.

"So he's finally turned into a gentleman you say?" asked Ian.

"Yup, he's now a quiet nerdy kid, much like me." Amy proudly exclaimed with a smile.

"I can practically hear you smiling over the phone dear." said Ian, his heart a fluttery mess. "But in the same heartbeat, this is Dan we're talking about. I highly doubt that he is an exact mirror image of you." Ian said doubtfully.

"Okay, maybe he's not a carbon copy of me, but he's taken on a lot of traits." Amy said.

"That's good that he's finally taking on some of your studious ways. But, um Amy, do you think you were a little hard on him that day when you went off on him?" Ian asked hesitantly.

"Okay maybe I was a little rough" Amy said, not really being gentle. "But I'm pretty sure if it wasn't for me Dan would have never made the change that he did." Amy was almost mad at Ian now. He was always the one telling her how important it was for her to speak her mind, and now he was questioning her about it.

"Amy calm down. I was just making sure you weren't too hard on the poor boy okay. We both know that he can actually be taken down by words." Ian was really hoping he hadn't created a monster.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry." said Amy, "I guess I've just been a little on edge lately. I guess I just didn't expect how quickly Dan would take to this whole 'mature' thing." Amy felt a little sorry for going off on Ian.

"Well look at what he did for Natalie" Ian brought up. "Clearly he was maturing right before our very eyes, all he's done now is showing it on the outside with a new haircut."

"Oh yeah Ian that reminds me," Amy said, "don't forget to fly in on the thirteenth. Our visit with Natalie is on the fourteenth."

"Already booked love." Ian said. "I can't wait to see my sister." Not to mention a certain adorable red head. He thought to himself.

"I'm excited to. Uncle Fiske got an e-mail the other day from calm waters and they say that Natalie may be a candidate for early release." Amy told Ian.

"That's positively splendid." Ian was so happy. "I better end this conversation on a high note darling, for tomorrow I have an auction to attend. My, the work of an art consultant." He sighed.

"Alright Ian get some sleep and good luck at your auction tomorrow. Good night." Amy said.

"Good night to you too and enjoy that fried chicken of yours" Ian ended the call

Oh dear God, I should not be this nervous for his stupid visit. What the hell Amy! Pull yourself together! But really she had a massive smile on her face.

Emily and Natalie were just sitting around the recreational room just discussing literature after dinner when Natalie remembered she had a visitor in a few weeks.

"Emily I would love for you to meet my dear brother Ian!" Natalie exclaimed.

"I would love to meet him to my dear." Emily said, "But what about old Danny boy? I would love to have a nice talk with that young suitor of yours." She said with a devilish grin.

Natalie smiled. "Oh I don't presume he'll come. Possibly and extended hello through Ian but nothing more."

"You're strange lass, you know." Emily said, "You used to walk the streets like you owned the place, but when a boy simply wants to show you he cares, you're totally blind to it." She shook her head disapprovingly. "When I was your age all my Thomas had to say was that my hair looked lovely that day and he would've had me for the night."

"Emily!" Natalie didn't think her senior friend was once so flamboyant. "Bite your tong! My, the adventures you must have had in your days…."

Emily got up to leave. But first she leaned down to Natalie and said, "Adventures beyond your wildest dreams dear." Then she winked at her and headed off to bed.