Ryana gritted her teeth and let out a solitary click. In the phoenix language, that had no more meaning than if she had said the letter "b", but it was surely the most angry b the man had ever heard. Unfortunately, her usual scare tactics would not work on him, not now. There was no way that kid could break out of a hold like that, even if he wasn't clearly an untrained innocent. In a cold, even tone, she demanded, "What, exactly, do you mean? You apparently already know my greatest secrets." Despite the circumstances, she didn't hold back on the sarcasm.

"Well, I would like to know where Kirane is, but I have a feeling I already know." He shrugged nonchalantly; meanwhile, Ryana spent a brief moment wondering, frantically, how he could possibly know about her. However, they both moved on: "But I was talking about some small, green artifacts you know something about...."

Phoenix Archer stared at him for a full ten seconds, not so much in horror, or even fury, but in dumbfounded shock. Eventually, though, she blurted out the last thing any of them expected to hear: "Those stupid crystals?! Seriously, them again?!" If she didn't have her fists clenched around her blades, her hands would've been running through her hair in inexpressible frustration.

The man didn't quite know what to say at first, but eventually, he seemed to remember that backup would be here any time now. He pushed the knife just slightly closer to the boy's neck. "Well, then I imagine you won't mind me taking them off your hands. Now, drop your weapons and let's talk." Ryana hesitated, but looked in the terrified young man's eyes, and let her daggers fall to the ground. "And wrap up your wings, too; I've seen you use 'em."

She folded her arms and, instead, retracted them completely. "Better?"

He didn't really answer; instead, he gestured with his head away from the Emporium's ruins. They slowly stepped away, and he continued, "Now, where are they?"

"I know, I know, you need all of them," she barely restrained a "blah, blah, blah". "Well, lucky for you, I can tell you where they are. I sent them back to my homeland, with the woman who stole them. I have it on good authority that they've already gotten rid of the crystals." Well... that wasn't entirely true. For one thing, her phoenix companions had just promised to keep them safely out of Hasaré, or anyone else's, hands--they had no idea the Organization was even interested. Also, Ryana failed to mention that there were two of them still in town....

"And just where is your homeland?"

Ryana shrugged. "We get there and back via portal; I have no idea where it is on a map." More accurately, she'd gotten to Ditto Town the old fashioned way in the first place, and she could probably point it out--if she wanted to remember, anyways.

The man looked irritated with this news, but not entirely. She had a feeling he saw through her bluff, at least partly. But he had one last opportunity, before he had to press his advantage: "Well, then why don't you take me to this portal?"

Phoenix Archer raised an eyebrow. "And when will you let him go?"

"After I'm sure you're not yanking my chain." His look clearly read, "I'm waiting; let's go."

Ryana started to turn, to lead him to the portal--but as she did, she glanced over her shoulder and pointed out, "Just one more drop of Dittopian blood, one scratch on him when this is over, and you'll wish you'd been in the Emporium when the bomb went off."

"Strong words from a do-gooder. Move."

As she swung down from Rochir’s back, she felt a pair of hands encircle her waist. Katherine turned to great her husband with a smile. “Greetings my love. I’ve missed you.”

“Not as much as I have missed you,” Gwanuig wrapped her in a hug.

A discrete cough caused Katherine’s cheeks to tinge pink, but it was not until Guin-nor snorted. “Come on you two! Father’s waiting!”

Gwanuig stuck his tongue out at his older brother. “Like you two are any less affectionate with each other.”

Guin-nor smirked as he greeted his own bride with a kiss. Katherine and Gwanuig looked at each other and stifled a giggle. After a few more moments, the elves and women took the horses to the stables. Rochir normally did not reside in a stable, but he had been given an open stall with no door so he could come and go as he pleased. Katherine felt Gwanuig’s arms wrap around her as she groomed and she leaned backwards into his strength.

“That bad?”

He chuckled softly. “I’m not certain actually. Father is being very difficult to read at the moment. He just asked me to send for you after I told him about our marriage and was very quiet afterwards.”

“Love, your father may have just been realizing that both of his boys have grown up.” Katherine turned to face her husband and laughed at his expression. “Just because you are elves, doesn’t mean you aren’t your father’s little boys. No matter my age, my foster family always saw me as that little girl who first walked in their door. We’ll take it as it comes. Whatever happens, we’re together.”

Gwanuig smiled and whispered into her ear, “What did I do to get such a wise wife?”

Katherine smiled back and turned to finish grooming her horse without answering. It was the kind of thing that needed no answer anyways. Her happiness filled her heart and she began to sing softly.

Outside the stable, just on the other side of Rochir’s stall stood the King of the elves. He kept a stoic expression, but if his wife had still been with him, she would have seen the fatherly pride and amusement in his eyes. He ducked under a nearby tree as the two young married couples exited the stables and watched them as they went to their rooms to clean the dust of travel off.

There was an odd hiccup in the atmosphere and Katherine flinched slightly. She was not sure what had just happened or why she had picked up on it and no one else around seemed to have noticed. Her abilities may have been gone, but for some reason she just knew that something weird was going on back in Ditto Town. Her thoughts along this line were interrupted when Salabis swept in to make sure she was ready for her audience with her father-in-law.

“The King will see you now.”

Gwanuig acknowledged the elf that was serving as his father’s herald and turned to his wife. She was a vision of loveliness. Rochil had chosen her attire with Nestril’s help. Her dress was elvish made and her hair was done up. If it had not been for her rounded ears and eye coloring, he was certain that she would be mistaken for an elvish princess.

Katherine guessed her husband’s thoughts and made herself smile. She was incredibly nervous. It was not every day that one met their father-in-law knowing that she was likely to get a poor reception. “We’d best not keep him waiting beloved.”

“Courage dear heart. We will do this together.”

Rochil drew her strength from her husband and side by side they stepped through the doors into the King’s audience chamber. Neither of them understood why the King had insisted on a formal audience.

They stopped at the bottom of the dais and bowed. “Greetings Father.” Gwanuig greeted his father formally.

Rochil swallowed and managed, “Greetings Your Majesty,” without sounding like she was about to pass out.

The King did not day anything. He merely looked at them. Katherine kept her head bowed out of respect while Gwanuig met his father’s gaze with a touch of defiance. After several minutes, the King spoke. “Welcome Gwanuig and Rochil. I presume you have news to share?”

Husband and wife had discussed this meeting for many hours. Rochil stepped forward. “We were informed that you learned of our departure from this dimension and you are aware of the love we share. Your majesty, we have come to ask your blessing on our union as Gwanuig’s father and our King.”

Katherine’s humble approach took the King off his guard. He had been prepared to maintain his hard line when they walked into his audience chamber, but this human had obviously taken the time to school herself deeper in their traditions than before. He reached down and offered her his hand. “You speak the truth in that I was aware of what has transpired. You also know that I do not approve of your dittoist stand point.”

Katherine nodded. “But we also spoke on this topic some time ago,” she said surprising her husband.

The King smiled. “Yes, child. I have but one more question for you. Why did you choose to wed my son when you will grow old and he will not?”

This was a question that Rochil had long been prepared to answer. “Your majesty, I was not like normal humans for the majority of my lifetime. The abilities I developed not only allowed me to jump from place to place, but I did not age. Now that has been taken from me and your son and I have talked about this development. No matter what happens, even if my abilities are never restored, we would rather live what time we have together than apart.” Her love shown in her eyes.

He looked from his son to his son’s bride and gave his assent. “My objection before was that the time was not right. Your bride is correct my son. We did speak on the topic of her ditto point of view and came to an agreement that we could both live with.” Then he said the words that both were waiting to here. “I give my blessing and offer your bride a place among us. Welcome home my son and daughter.”

What am I going to do now?

Shannon Lewis looked down at the little green-skinned girl in her lap. She was asleep now, content – but only after devouring all the trail mix, granola bars, and the apple Shannon had packed for her hike. Now Shannon’s own stomach rumbled in disappointment. At least she had plenty of water.

The pair was sitting atop what Erik had, in happier times, called his star-watching hill; from here Ditto Town was little more than a smudge on the horizon. But now that the adrenaline from what Shannon had seen had worn off, she was fighting back tears. This girl’s mother had died, heroically, trying to save her daughter. Perhaps her father had suffered a similar fate. How many others had perished in that explosion?

Shannon’s desire to care for the orphan in her lap was undiminished – but her confidence in her ability to do so had waned. Jade had eaten all the food in Shannon’s pack – but there was no telling yet if it was good for her or not. I have no idea what she’s supposed to eat. She seems fine, but what if she gets sick?

And she had no idea what special care the child might need – something her own kind would take for granted but that a human wouldn’t know about. Have I gone too far? I just don’t know what I’m doing here.

For the first time, Shannon noticed the little pendant around Jade’s neck; until now it had been hidden under her clothing. “What’s this?” she whispered as she handled the amethyst crystal. “A gift from your parents? See, there’s so much about you I just don’t know.”

She glanced up at the sun. “My friends must be worried. And once I get home they’re not going to let me live this down.”

Shannon had left the town of Jackson – had it just been a few hours ago? So much had changed; it seemed like a lifetime ago – for a hike near the Teton Mountains she loved. Her friends had tried to discourage her from going alone, but she knew Jackson Hole like the back of her hand, and assured them she’d be back by dusk.

But that was before she’d caught a glimpse of something shimmering in a small grove of trees; upon investigating it she felt a strange sense of nothing – or as if she was endlessly falling – until she emerged here, in this strange world with green-skinned babies and exploding buildings.

“I’ve got to get home,” she whispered, and Jade stirred in her lap, as if on cue.

“I wonder what the people at home are going to think of you.” She smiled and touched the girl’s nose as she made her way back to the portal which led to her – and, as it happened, to Erik and Abby’s – home world.

This is surprisingly comfortable for a hotel bed, Shannon mused to herself, but there was no way she was going to get much sleep this night. She decided to step outside and think for a while, tiptoeing so she wouldn’t wake her friends in the rooms on either side of hers.

The night was clear with just a hint of chilly mountain air; the full moon lit up the surroundings so brightly she had no trouble making her way to a small park across the street from her hotel. She found a park bench and sat on it, staring silently up at the sky.

She’d made her way back to Jackson just fine, and her friends had teased her, just as she’d expected, for being later than expected. But the joking had lasted only a short time before the others realized something was really bothering their friend. But she could not say what it was.

She sighed. Tomorrow they’d be up bright and early for the drive back to Boise; their vacation was almost over and it was time to get back to work. Yet this trip was one she’d never forget. Even now she wasn’t sure whether that was good news or not.

Once again the day’s events replayed in her mind…

She’d reconfigured the contents of her backpack so it could double as a baby carrier; it was apparent from Jade’s reaction that she was familiar with such an arrangement. “I bet your mom or dad carried you in a pack just like this, huh?” Shannon wasn’t sure how much her young charge understood, but Jade clearly responded to the sound of her voice.

“One last short walk to the portal home,” Shannon said, laying the pack on the ground so she could position Jade into it. Cooing and giggling, the girl almost immediately managed to wiggle her way down to the bottom of the pack. Just like my old cat, Shannon thought. She loves curling up in tight spaces. Before long, the child became silent and still; Shannon realized the rhythm of her walking had put Jade to sleep.

There! That shimmering patch ahead. That’s the gateway home.

Shannon wasn’t quite sure how Jade might react to the strange sensory deprivation that accompanied a trip through the portal, entirely unaware that the gargoyle hatchling had been through it a number of times already. Just as well she’s asleep.

An instant later the pair was back in Wyoming; the Tetons seemed to glow under a sky painted with the oranges and purples of sunset. The beauty took Shannon’s breath away.

My friends must be panicking. She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and flipped it open. No service. Not too surprising out here.

She could admire these mountains for hours, but she’d have to rush to get back before midnight. At least the moon was full tonight and would give some light.

Shannon had not gone far, however, when she heard the sound of rustling wings above. Something big, an eagle perhaps. She was totally unprepared for what happened next.

A pair of large winged creatures landed in front of her. She had to fight down the urge to scream or run away; how could she escape from these things anyway?

“Hello,” the larger one said.

“Hi,” Shannon managed to squeak out. Now that she had a moment to inspect them, she realized they were like much larger versions of Jade, just colored differently. The one that had spoken was brick-red in color while the other was orange.

“I’m Alexander, and this Alaric.”

“I’m Shannon.”

“Nice to meet you. Are you lost, or need any assistance this evening?”

Before Shannon could answer, Jade, awakened perhaps by the sudden lack of motion or the sounds of conversation, stretched and tried to climb out of the backpack.

The appearance of the little girl’s head over Shannon’s shoulder prompted an immediate – and to the human, unexpected – response in the creatures. Their eyes glowed eerily white, their wings flared open, and their tails lashed back and forth.

“Why do you have a gargoyle hatchling hidden in that bag?” Alexander’s voice was a low, menacing growl. “How dare you kidnap one of us?”

The pair of creatures, huge and menacing, advanced on the much smaller human woman…

Shannon, terrified, took a couple steps back. These big monsters were nothing like her cuddly little Jade. Sure they are, she realized. They think you kidnapped one of their kids. How else would they react?

Her voice came out in a little squeak. “No! No, wait! I didn’t kidnap her. I…just found her, rescued her today, from a terrible explosion.”

“Likely story,” Alexander snorted.

Shannon held out her arms. “See, I got hit by some of the glass.”

The gargoyles, aided by the bright moonlight, could see the lacerations. “Please, slowly take the pack off and take out the hatchling.”

“What? Don’t you want me to hand it all over?”

“It’s your pack.” Alaric almost seemed to grin. “All we want is to see who’s in it.”

Shannon’s mind raced as she complied. Now that she thought about it, she had heard something, years before, about weird creatures in New York. She’d immediately dismissed it as some crazy urban legend. Gently, she pulled Jade out of her backpack.

“That’s Molly Silvermoon!” Alexander’s roar echoed off into the night.

Jade – Molly – shrieked and clutched tightly to Shannon, trying to hide in her arms. This convinced the gargoyle pair of Shannon’s sincerity better than any words could have. To their surprise, the human – while keeping a nervous eye on them – tried to soothe her fear.

Alexander immediately relaxed, touched by the scene. “You’re one remarkable woman.”

Shannon saw only sincerity in his expression.

“You care for her even while your own life is in danger.”

Guess I never really thought of it that way. It all happened so fast.

“Just maternal instinct, I guess.”

“It does you a great deal of credit. Molly seems to like you, and I apologize for jumping to conclusions. We’re very interested in hearing your story.”

Tearfully, Shannon once again relived the nightmare of the past day.

“Erik and Abby are – gone?” Alaric’s voice was almost inaudible.

Having names to attach to the victims made the tragedy seem even worse to Shannon.

Alexander turned to his companion. “We will send someone to confirm this tale.”

“I’ll go. I must know if this has truly happened to my sister and her mate.”

That makes this orange one Jade’s uncle…

Alexander watched Alaric disappear through the portal, then with a deep sigh he sat down on the ground. “And now we wait. It shouldn’t be long.”

Shannon, still holding her charge, was far too nervous to follow his lead. He sensed this, and smiled at her. “You need not fear me now. I believe we owe you a great debt. You’ve saved Molly’s life, and you’ll ever have our thanks.”

“It was…my honor to help. I couldn’t leave such a tiny child alone.”

There were a few moments of uneasy small talk while they waited. Shannon wished this Alaric would return soon, but knew he’d need some time to absorb what had happened.

She’d just worked up enough courage to sit across from the large reddish gargoyle when an anguished roar echoed into the night. They looked to see Alaric returning, shoulders hunched, feet dragging. No words were needed.

“Can I hold her?” Sorrow filled Alaric’s voice, and Shannon quickly handed the infant over to him. Her heart ached as she watched the gargoyle gently stroke the hatchling’s long red hair. With a kiss to the top of her head he looked back at them. “Thank you for saving Molly’s life. We will take her home and raise her among her own kind.”

“Of course, that’s for the best.” Though Shannon knew she’d miss the little girl, part of her was relieved that Molly would be raised by those who knew her best.

Shannon leaned over and looked into Jade’s eyes. “Be good, okay? I’ll miss you.” She kissed her soft cheek and reluctantly stepped back.

The gargoyles were deeply touched by this affection, especially since the woman had known Molly but a few hours. They exchanged glances and nods, and Alexander indicated the lights of Jackson. “We would be honored to escort you partway back to town,” he said.

“Would you like to carry Molly a while longer?” Alaric’s eyes twinkled at this opportunity to offer Shannon a little happiness.

“I’d love to,” she whispered, gently taking the hatchling into her arms. “Thanks.”

The short walk toward town was taken mostly in silence; while Shannon was dying to ask lots of questions she sensed this was neither the time nor the place.

All too soon Alexander called a stop. “We can go no farther.”

“I understand. Thanks for letting me have this extra time with her.” Shannon reluctantly handed Jade back to her uncle. “Will I ever see her again?”

“Perhaps that could be arranged. You will always be welcome among us, a friend to the clans; she will grow up learning of the courageous woman who saved her. But we ask two things in return: that you never reveal the location of this gate or our existence to others. There are those who would use this information against us.”

“You have my word.” An idea came to her, and she fished around in her purse until she drew out a small card. “Here, take this. It’s my business card.”

Alexander took it. “We will be in touch.” Then he unexpectedly put a hand on her shoulder. “We know this isn’t easy. You’ve done a wonderful thing today. Please take comfort in the assurance that all the clans will know what you have done, and your name will be honored among us.”

To her surprise, the gargoyles hugged Shannon and thanked her again. Then with a flurry of wings they disappeared into the night.

“Bye, Jade – Molly,” Shannon whispered. Then, wiping away tears, she turned back toward town.

The excited, disturbed twittering of the bird flock was more than Toby could ignore. He got up from his nap, and stood in the front door. Most of his friends were perched on the bush; a couple had taken rest on the perches he had put by the front door for them.
"So what is all the noise about?" Toby asked pleasantly. The looks he got back told him that the answer was probably not going to be a happy one.
"We were flying over the Emporium a few minutes ago" said Skra. "We saw Miss Abby come stumbling out the door. She looked like something was horribly wrong. She looked up at us, but I don't think that she recognized who we were."
"I hope everything's ok over there." Toby worried. Maybe we had better go..."
The initial blast wave hit him, knocking him back into the doorframe, and causing several of the birds to lose their grip. The red and orange flames followed close behind, only to be met with a green cloud, as the young Leuthilalda bush rose to the defence of its friends. They could see the fire being absorbed by the cloud, and as the energy pulsed into its branches, the red, green and blue berries glowed brighter and brighter. Then some of them suddenly blazed out white, and after a minute or so, went dark. The branches they had been on were also blackened and dead, as the bush absorbed much more energy than one so young could ever be expected to handle. Along with the light came a wild melody of chords, as the normal humming turned into a virtual orchestra. Finally, the bush settled back, the flames all absorbed, its friends safe. Thankfully, there was a good portion of its branches and berries which had not been killed. Its humming settled back to normal.
At least almost to normal. Koolarin, the young dove, was the only bird who had not flown off in fright when the bush suddenly sprang into action. Now she lay limp on the intersection of two or three branches. Toby reached in, concerned, and gently lifted her out. She seemed in shock, half dazed and shivering.
"There is a heat and an anger in the bush" she said. I wasn't getting burned, but it felt like I was in an oven.
Toby nodded. "I could also feel the heat. I think that there's still a lot of energy from that blast in there" he said. "But I think also that there is an anger at whoever did this. An anger I could easily match." He shook his head in sorrow. "I am afraid of what we are going to find at the Emporium when we go there." He signaled to Bob, Skra, and Koo, and the four of them started off in the direction from which the blast had so recently come.

Editor's note: In the previous and the next few segments, text color is significant. 'Nuff said.
Toby awoke to find Rose softly crying. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"It's hard enough to have lost our friends, without having this dream" she answered.
"Tell it to me."
"Well, I was standing a little ways away from the door of the center, and the birds came twittering down just like they did today, and you came out. But instead of being anxious about Abby, they were laughing and chattering about the Dittos/Originals skirmish that had just gone on in the town earlier. After laughing and joking with them a little, I came to the door..."
"Wait, you walked up to us?"
"No, in my dream, I could see myself as if I were out of my own body. I came out from behind you, just like I did today, but it was just a normal, relaxed time. Then you went out to look at the tomato bushes in the back, and the dream ended. It is just so hard knowing that something horrible happened instead."
"I'm so sorry, Rose." Toby put his arm around her, and in a couple of minutes, they drifted back to sleep.
___________
Toby awoke to find Rose softly crying. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"I've just had this horrible dream" she answered.
"Tell it to me."
"Well, I was standing a little ways away from the door of the center, and the birds came twittering down just like they did today, and you came out. But instead of laughing and chattering about the Dittos/Originals skirmish, they were saying that they were anxious about Abby or something. You started to talk, but then suddenly there was a massive explosion from the direction of the Emporium. You were hit by the blast, but the fireball that followed was absorbed by the bush, just like that time the one in the town square absorbed a bullet. But this was a lot worse, and I think it injured the young thing somewhat. And also the young dove was left in shock. I came to the door..."
"Wait, you walked up to us?"
"No, in my dream, I could see myself as if I was out of my body. I came out from behind you, just like I did today, but you handed me the dove to take back into the center to treat and watch. Then you, a couple of the birds, and Bob started off to the Emporium to see what had happened. It was a horrible dream!"
"I wonder if it was a warning of some type?"
"No, this dream seemed so different from the ones I usually have. I don't know what it means." Rose shivered.
"I'm so sorry, Rose." Toby put his arm around her, and in a couple of minutes, they drifted back to sleep.

Abby hummed to herself as she prepared a platter of treats and the water heated for tea. She loved entertaining guests; her happy child and the lovely weather outside only made things better.

Even now she could hear her hatchling laughing – probably trying to catch the fairy dragons again – as well as the soft tones of Erica and Alex’s conversation.

All seemed well – but for some reason she felt compelled to check things out for herself.

An unexpected urgency in her step, she barged into the great room. Alex and Erica looked up at her in surprise. Max happily reached for a fairy dragon hovering just out of reach.

Still feeling strangely uneasy, Abby rushed to the foyer. For reasons she couldn’t explain, she felt overwhelming relief upon seeing Erik’s statue there, undamaged, standing silent guard. She just had to run a talon along his stone face, as if to reassure herself things were all right. Lastly, she checked the front door. Securely locked, just as she’d expected.

Still, she opened it to look outside. But there was nothing out of the ordinary – a few clouds and birds overhead; in the distance a doe and her fawn peered out of the forest. She enjoyed the sight a moment – but then came a vision of shattered gargoyle stone littering the floor, then a fireball and the Emporium, if not the entire town, in ruins, twisted and destroyed.

She fought down rising terror as she closed and secured the door. Erik’s statue was still intact; she knew her hatchling was all right. Yet somehow, it was as if she’d stared into the face of an unthinkable horror – a glimpse into some kind of terrible alternate reality that might have been hers had things been just a tiny bit different.

She couldn’t stop shivering – it was one thing to die in battle or in protecting one’s clan and family, but here was only an overwhelming sense of pointless death for her family. How could this be? She didn’t know, but for now she’d cherish every moment with them.

Abby returned to the great room and gathered her son into her arms, fighting back tears as she held him close. Only when her baby squawked did she realize she was squeezing too tightly. She shook her head again, unable to ignore the notion that somehow she'd seen a glimpse of a much darker, tragic life. She was so relieved to be back in this real, normal life, if it wouldn’t be awkward, she thought, she'd even hug Erica and Alex.

She turned to her guests, who were watching with expressions of surprise and concern. “Sorry about that,” Abby said, blushing. “It was just the weirdest sense of déjà vu, and I had to check it out.”

This was no dream – I’m sure of it. More like a parallel reality, like this one but horribly different. She glanced back at her mate. He’s the expert on this stuff, not me. When he wakes up tonight, I’m going to grill him about alternate universes and realities.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Erica asked.

“Thanks for asking. It was rather upsetting, but I think I’m okay now. Let me get those treats for you.”

Abby stood, still holding Max. During that vision of the other reality, she’d somehow sensed they’d had a daughter instead of a son. What would that be like, having a baby girl? She grinned down at him. But then I wouldn’t have you. She lovingly kissed the top of his head and put him down on the floor.

The sunlight poured into the bedroom. Toby rolled over, and Rose awoke with a start.
"That was one of the strangest dreams I've ever had."
Toby cocked his eye. "Last night seems to have been the night for them."
"Well, after I told you my nightmare, I drifted back to sleep. Suddenly I was in the infirmary at the rescue center. The first and most obvious thing I noticed was the other Rose across the room from me. The second thing was Koolarin the young dove lying in one of the smaller beds. And the third thing was Koolarin sitting on my shoulder, looking very confused."
"Wait. There were two of you and two of Koolarin?"
"Yes. I somehow knew instinctively that the dove on the bed had been the one injured in the explosion, and the one sitting on my shoulder had been the one who had been in our reality. She was merely confused by the whole thing."
"I guess it would have been even stranger if you had actually talked to the other Rose."
"Oh but we did..."
_____________________
"Hello, uh, Rose. I saw you earlier in my dream. I just don't know what is happening. Dreams have not been like this up to now."
"I know they haven't. So this is like a dream to you too?"
"Oh. Wait. You are dreaming... but how can a dream dream?"
"But I'm not a dream. I am me. I am real."
"No, I am the one who is real."
"Hmm. I'm not sure how we can resolve this. We're at sort of a standoff."
"Yes, we are."
Suddenly Koolarin flew off Rose's shoulder and perched on the bed where the other dove lay. "Is... is she... dead?"
"Oh no, dear, she is just tired out from the ordeal she just went through."
"But she is me. I don't understand this."
"Neither do I. I don't understand any of it."
Rose shook her head and talked to her other self. "Well, no offence to you, but I hope and pray that my world and events in it are the real ones."
"So do I dear, so do I."
------------------
Toby looked over at Rose. "Yeah, that was one of the strangest dreams you ever had." Well, it's over now."
But it wasn't.

Kirane and Ryana walked inside the Cup & Platter. Kirane looked inside and saw all the unfamiliar faces, not all of them looking… quite human…. It was a strange experience, and for a moment she had to admit she was staring, but in an odd way, it was refreshing as well. She was accepted on her old home despite not being human, but it was nice to not be alone anymore.

Ryana, naturally, was wholly unfazed, and walked up to the counter. Cheerfully, she greeted the bartender, “Hi, Hugh. My friend Kirane, here, is new to town, so I’m showing her the ‘quintessential Ditto Town’, so to speak.” Kirane was a little embarrassed by how up-front she was about this, but then again, she also kind of appreciated it. Though, for some reason, it seemed strange coming out of Ryana’s mouth….

“Hugh” also seemed a little surprised by how outgoing Ryana was, but he shook it off quickly. He turned to Kirane and smiled, extending a hand. She stopped blushing and accepted. “Pleased to meet you, Miss… Kirane, right?”

She nodded. “Yes; pleased to meet you, as well.”

“And a newcomer to Ditto Town, eh? I’ll be sure to make a good impression,” He said with a wink. “How much have you seen so far?”

“Well… this is pretty much it.” She admitted. “Ryana plans to take me on a grand tour, I think.”

“And there’s plenty to be seen. I hope you enjoy.” Hugh glanced at the two women, and he casually asked, “So, what can I get for you two?”

The two placed their orders, and both found seats. As they walked over, Kirane watched Ryana’s smile almost mechanically break down, and her body visibly relaxed. Just from what she’d seen so far, she’d figured that the Phoenix Archer was nowhere near that naturally friendly. But, for some reason, putting on the act seemed important to her. As they sat down, Ryana commented, “So, yeah, that was Hugh. If there’s anyone around here who knows virtually everyone, it’s him. I’m pretty sure that, sometime or another, everyone comes to the Cup & Platter.”

Kirane looked around and smiled. “I can see why.” She paused, then cautiously asked, “Though… I, ah, I have a few more questions about the town.”

Ryana nodded. “Of course; I’ll do my best to answer.”

Kirane blushed a little, and added, “Well… to be honest, I’d just like to know a little more about some of the things you told me about last night.”

She shrugged. “Yeah, I kind of gave you the short version of that.”

“I guess, I’d really like to know… how did this ‘Ditto/Original War’ start, again?”

She tried to hide it, but Ryana was a little surprised by that. Given how rich Ditto Town’s history was, how much Kirane had to chose from, it probably seemed strange that she’d start there. But, then again, that was the beginning of the town’s history. Ryana shrugged and began, “Well, a lot of that’s before my time; lots of other people can tell it better. But, from what I understand… basically, the town was founded on the idea of this ‘dittoing’. I don’t know if that meant they constantly went around and said ‘ditto’ to each other or what, but…. Anyways, they’ve been doing that for basically forever.

“At some point, one person decided enough was enough. Everyone called her Darth Devaricate; I have no idea if that was her real name or not. Anyways, to her, the ‘dittoing’ was a sign that the citizens lacked individuality; that they couldn’t think for themselves. She felt it was her duty to give them an alternate philosophy—one of originality.” She shrugged one more time. “After that, the Ditto Team formed to stop her, Darth got some followers, and both sides just kept sabotaging each others’ posters and decorations and stuff. Things have been a lot quieter lately, though.” Dryly, she added, “I think both sides have better things to do now.”

Kirane nodded; despite Ryana’s rather bare-bones description, something seemed to click with her. “But the two sides never actually fought?”

“You mean with weapons and armies?” She shook her head. “Not unless you count the not-so-evil hamsters. All things considered, it… almost seems like juvenile pranks, to me.” She paused for a minute, then admitted, “Well, maybe not. I mean, I can kind of see the ‘Originalists’ point of view. I don’t think the townspeople were actually clueless enough to basically sell their souls away for ‘dittoing’, but… I can see how it would look disturbing.”

“I don’t know,” Kirane admitted, “it seems a little unfair to put it that way.”

Ryana all-but started a bit, surprised. “What do you mean?”

“Well… granted, I’ve lived with humans long enough to know that most human cultures seem to value individuality and creativity more than my people. But… there’s just something very uplifting to me, about the idea behind this ‘Ditto’ word.” She flushed a little, scrambling for words. “In the few days I’ve been here, I’ve seen that this town is full of so many different types of people—and I’m assuming not all of them are even human….”

Ryana smiled. “You got that right.”

Kirane nodded. “But you all seem to live together peacefully. More than that, you’ve made alliances, and protect each other against great dangers. From what you told me… you fight this ‘Organization’, even though they’ve never directly threatened you.”

Ryana shrugged. “What can I say? I like this town. These are good people. And no one deserves to get away with that kind of garbage.”

“Exactly. It seems like there’s a strong sense of… of unity here.” She smiled, though she was embarrassed to have blathered so much. “That’s… something I value a lot.”

Ryana sat back in her chair, briefly lost in thought. She shook it off and admitted, “Honestly, Kirane, I think you’ve given it more thought than I have. I’ve already told you about how I kind of think this is all silly, but….” She shrugged. “Maybe I’ll have to rethink things. Either way, I think this town’s going to suit you.”

“I have to say, I agree.”

There was a sharp pecking at the door of the Rescue Center. The two hobbits left the bedroom where they had been discussing Rose's dream, and proceeded to the entrance foyer. Opening the door, they met the young dove Koolarin and her mother Koora at the front door, both looking very serious.
"Good morning, Koora." Rose said, giving a meaningful glance to her husband. "How are you doing today?"
"Well, physically we are fine, but we have something we wanted to ask you about." Koora stopped and pushed her daughter forward. "My daughter had this disturbing dream, and we know how much of an expert you are on them. Tell them, honey."
"I ... I was with you in the clinic, and we looked over and saw someone who looked just like you, and a bird who looked just like me, and the bird was lying on a bed, and I asked if she was dead, and the hobbit that looked like you said no she was just injured or something."
Rose's jaw dropped. She added some more of the details of her own dream, and the little mourning dove nodded. "Yes, that was it. I just had that dream before I woke up this morning."
Kolarin looked confused. "Rose, how did you know all those details?"
Rose sighed, and spoke to her husband. "Toby, I have never had a dream that I know of where someone else shared it with me. This whole thing is very weird."
She went on to describe to the two doves the dreams she had had the night before. By the time she had finished, Koolarin looked like she was about to cry, and Koora expression now had traces of alarm. "What is happening?" she worried.
Toby finally decided. "OK, we need some answers. I think the four of us should go over to the Emporium right now, and consult with Erik and Abby, if either of them are awake. This is too unusual to just dismiss. We need to know."
"Do you think it's safe?" the mother dove asked protectively.
"I hope so." was the less-than-reassuring response she got back. Then the four of them turned, and started off across the field to the Emporium.

Abby hummed to herself as she prepared a platter of treats and the water heated for tea. She loved entertaining guests; her happy child and the lovely weather outside only made things better.

Even now she could hear her hatchling laughing – probably trying to catch the fairy dragons again – as well as the soft tones of Erica and Alex’s conversation.

All seemed well – but for some reason she felt compelled to check things out for herself.

An unexpected urgency in her step, she barged into the great room. Alex and Erica looked up at her in surprise. Molly happily reached for a fairy dragon hovering just out of reach.

Still feeling strangely uneasy, Abby rushed to the foyer. For reasons she couldn’t explain, she felt overwhelming relief upon seeing Erik’s statue there, undamaged, standing silent guard. She just had to run a talon along his stone face, as if to reassure herself things were all right. Lastly, she checked the front door. Securely locked, just as she’d expected.

Still, she opened it to look outside. But there was nothing out of the ordinary – a few clouds and birds overhead; in the distance a doe and her fawn peered out of the forest. She enjoyed the sight a moment – but then was nearly overwhelmed with a vision of shattered gargoyle stone littering the floor, then a fireball and the Emporium, if not the entire town, in ruins, twisted and destroyed.

She fought down rising terror as she closed and secured the door. Erik’s statue still was intact; she could hear Molly giggling behind her. Yet somehow, it was as if she’d stared into the face of an unthinkable horror – a glimpse into some kind of terrible alternate reality that might have been hers had things been just a tiny bit different.

She couldn’t stop shivering – it was one thing to die in battle or in protecting one’s clan and family, but here she had an overwhelming sense of pointless death for her family. How could this be? She didn’t know, but for now she’d cherish every moment with them.

Abby returned to the great room and gathered her daughter into her arms, fighting back tears as she held her close. Only when her baby squawked did she realize she was squeezing too tightly. She shook her head again, unable to shake the notion that somehow she'd seen a glimpse of a much darker, tragic life. She was so relieved to be back in this real, normal life, if it wouldn’t be awkward, she thought, she'd even hug Erica and Alex.

She turned to her guests, who were watching with expressions of surprise and concern. “Sorry about that,” Abby said, blushing. “It was just the weirdest sense of déjà vu, and I had to check it out.”

This was no dream – I’m sure of it. More like a parallel reality, like this one but horribly different. She glanced back at her mate. He’s the expert on this stuff, not me. When he wakes up tonight, I’m going to grill him about alternate universes and realities.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Erica asked.

“Thanks for asking. It was rather upsetting, but I think I’m okay now. Let me get those treats for you.”

A sudden cramp forced Abby to bend over and clutch her stomach. It quickly passed, and she stood up again. Nervously she eyed Molly then shook her head. The last time she’d felt like that…

She shook her head. Nah. That’s just crazy.

Erica started when Abby marched through the room, obviously heading to check something. A moment later she came back into the room and Erica asked her if she was okay. Her answer (that she was rather upset from a strange case of déjà vu, but was okay now) didn't really help that much.

"Are you sure you don't want us to help?" Alex asked, but Abby was already in the kitchen.

Erica couldn't remember what they'd been talking about before Abby came through. She only felt vaguely concerned for Abby, like something serious had just happened. That made Erica think of something unrelated. "Hey Alex, what's Sarah Johnson like? Is she nice?"

"Hmm? What brought Sarah up? I've hardly ever mentioned her. Wait, have I mentioned her?"

"Well, you got your fairy dragons from her father right?"

"Yah..." replied Alex still trying to figure out how they'd gotten on the topic of Sarah Johnson in the first place.

Erica shrugged. "I'd just hate to be mean to her if she was a nice person. You know, theoretically. Like if she was concerned about you and I hung up the phone on her."

"Sis, you are weird. That’s really specific. Sarah isn't the nicest person, honestly, she has a lot of responsibilities. But yah, I can't imagine a scenario where you'd hang up the phone on anyone. Oh brownies! Thank you!"

Abby had indeed arrived with a plate of goodies and drinks, and Alex quickly forgot about the conversation. "Thank you so much Abby," Erica added, but she was still bothered by something she couldn't remember. "Hey Abby, how does teleportation work? I mean, you guys got from your world to Ditto Town through a portal. And I just realized I don't even know how Val's ability works. Do you think she can fold the whole universe? That seems impossible, right? I don't know much about this science fictiony stuff."

On cue Val landed on Erica's shoulder to find out why her name had been mentioned. Torchwood followed her lead and landed on Erica's other shoulder. Out of Mystic's three hatchlings, he was by far the most social and the only one that didn't want to be left behind when Alex and Erica went out.

Emily started to fuss a bit, and Abby lifted and began to rock her thoughtfully. Emily, like a human baby, apparently appreciated the movement and quieted down. "Well," Abby began, "I honestly can't wager a guess. It sounds like you're talking about creating a wormhole, which I'm sure is not as drastic as bending the whole universe, although it has the same result. Honestly, I'm not an expert, you should ask Eric," said Abby, beaming towards the other room where her mate resided.

"Well, I'm afraid we can't stay for the night for when he wakes up," replied Alex, who had had gargoyle sleeping habits explained to him. "I need to check on the other two hatchlings. They're at the tender age when they could burn the Cup and Platter down, and I can't imagine Boo Kay would be happy about that."

"No, I can't imagine he would be," laughed Abby. Emily cooed along, sensing the mirth in the room.

"Thanks for letting us stop over and dry off!" Erica added.

Abby smiled at the memory of how the visit had started. "Oh, the pleasure is all mine. Feel free to come over any time," she said as she showed her guests to the door.

"Thanks again for the brownies," Alex called as he walked down the steps with Ember on one shoulder and Torchwood trying his best to sit on the other shoulder, although his balance wasn't the best yet.

Erica followed him halfway down the steps then paused. "Hey, would it be all right if I came over tomorrow to talk to Eric about teleporting? For some reason... I don't know, I just think it would be interesting to hear what he as to say."

Abby didn’t even hesitate before replying, "I don't know why that wouldn't work in the afternoon. We don't have anything planned.”

"Cool, Thanks again!" Erica called over her shoulder as she ran to catch up with her brother.

Those guys are the best, thought Erica as she slowed to her brother’s pace. I don't know what Ditto Town would do if anything happened to them.

Ryana and Kirane continued chatting over their lunch, as Kirane gradually learned more about the town’s history. Of all the topics, Ryana seemed to know the most—and be the most willing to share—about what the Organization had done. Granted, she knew very little about why they first came to this Town, or what they really wanted with it—except, of course, they had some kind of obsession with the Fountain. Plus, there were some former employees—and experiments—who’d escaped, and now called Ditto Town home. Kirane couldn’t help but notice that Ryana’s “Organization” was a lot like Connell, and some other unscrupulous people from her previous home.

All the while, Ryana didn’t mind telling Kirane about the town’s history—it was important to know, and it was a story she didn’t mind telling. However, she couldn’t help but wonder why this was the priority. Didn’t Kirane say that she was mostly interested in finding out about the portals around Ditto Town, or something like that…? Maybe she just recognized that Ryana didn’t know a whole lot about them, so she was reserving those questions for someone who knew more.

Finally, the two were done with their lunch, and decided to head back out. Luckily, their lunch had been fairly short, and Shadow hadn’t had enough time to get truly bored. Ryana untied his leash from around the pole, all the while sinking to uncharacteristically patronizing speech: “Were you a good boy, Shadow? Good boy! Let’s walk home now, how does that sound?”

Kirane smiled a little at the scene; it was simultaneously funny and sweet. However, it also raised a question: “So… are we heading home then, or…?”

Ryana stood up, leash firmly in hand, and shrugged. “Well, we don’t have to. We could find some other places to visit; it’s up to you.”

“Well, I’d love to continue, but… I mean, what other places are there?”

Ryana thought about it for a moment. The Ditto Mansion seemed like a good stop, and was fairly nearby… the Inn Between was a definite no… really, she was having an easier time thinking of people than places. Well, maybe she could see if—Her line of thought abruptly stopped, with a slight twinge of… what was that? Pain? Fear? All she could make out was a flash of fire, and a name—Abby? Ryana shook it off. Ever since her encounter with Evelyn, her telepathy hadn’t worked correctly. Normally, that meant she couldn’t use it at all; occasionally, it meant she felt vague, incomprehensible ideas. This was probably just a stronger one of those.

But it did give her an idea. “Well, there’s the Emporium on the edge of town. They’ve got a Welcome Center down there and everything; probably where we should’ve started. And, a while back, they had this professor, Dr. Chandra, who had a lecture about intergalactic travel and… well, I think it’d be right up your alley. If they still have a tape or something at the Emporium.” She grinned a little bit, and added, “Plus, it’ll give you a chance to meet some of the other kinds of people we’ve got around here. Of the non-human variety.”

Kirane’s eyes widened a little at the description; it was hard to tell if she was surprised by Ryana’s last comment, or just plain thrilled. “Yes, that sounds perfect!” She paused, then added sheepishly, “If… it’s not too far out of the way, of course.”

“Well, we can go later. I don’t really trust bringing Shadow all the way across town like that.” She winked and added, “Besides, I think it adds to the experience to get there around sundown….”

Kirane nodded with a smile. “Sounds great to me.”