randomplaces | Love Me When I'm Gone. Chapter Seven.

McTaggart died the next evening. I was sitting on Rae's counter, holding Ro and methodically feeding carrots into the juicer while Rae sat on the floor in front of the oven and watched popovers pop, chin leaning on one fist.

I could hear the guys in the living room, talking quietly so they didn't wake Brock up. There was the ring of a phone and Wolvie answered, then turned and looked through the window at me and told us the news.

"Don't hold up supper fer me," he added. "I'll get somethin' there."

It turned out that McTaggart had 'starved'. Cut off from the emotions of others, he'd withered and died. Part of me wanted to say it served him right for what he'd done the kids who were still convinced he was the be all and end all. But the rest of me couldn't help but wonder how his gift was supposed to have turned out, what he could've done if he'd belonged to God. It was a sobering question.

There are no divine accidents. But there are choices. I made some in the six weeks after McTaggart was put into stasis till Uncle Chuck could look at him. Choices like not shutting people out so much, talking more with the kids in our hall, being friends with Conchita, and most important, having Rae hunt up Noah and get him to call me once in awhile.

Oh, and not running off on the rare times when the other members of my family on the Outside could call us.

Finally, the day came when the people that McTaggart had messed up were all mentally their own again. We had a party at Brock and Rae's to celebrate.

"Brock, ya better've washed yer feet before ya got up there," growled Wolvie over the blare of the stereo as he turned to scowl through the window under the cupboards.

"Indeed, Uncle Logan, as you have so oft reminded me," called Brock from where he crouched on the counter, intently putting strange things into the frozen yogurt machine.

Wolvie shook his head and growled, then turned around and nearly got a heaping spoonful of strawberry frozen yogurt stuffed up his nose. "Woah! Easy, Ro, let Grandpa get his mouth open."

She frowned up at him thoughtfully from her seat on his knees, then dropped the spoon in his lap and bent her head to chew on the rim of the cup.

Rae laughed from where she danced alone in the corner. "Feed her, Uncle Logan."

Wolvie looked up ruefully from wiping his pants, then took Ro back from Conchita and sat down again.

I chuckled and ate another spoonful of my Sugar Rock-embedded 'Kimmie-Lee special', then rolled my eyes at Legolas, who was still working on his first cupful of gingerbread flavour. "If you don't like that then ask Brock fer somethin' else."

He looked back at me from where he sat in the basket chair with his knees up by his ears. "I like this fine, Kimber. I'm just enjoying it instead of gobbling like a starving Dwarf."

"Hey!" said Gimli, looking up with a frown.

"I saw how you ate after Pelannor." Legolas grinned at his friend and caught the spoon Ro threw.

"Just like you," snorted Gimli, going back to chasing blueberries through his cup and watching Ro, who was now grimacing at the cold of her last mouthful.

"No. I only used one hand." Legolas tried to look superior, but the sparkle in his eyes ruined it.

Ro sputtered, her face creasing up to cry, and Wolvie held her close, asking if she'd had enough frozen stuff.

I looked around him at Conchita. "Lean this way."

"What?" She leaned forward.

"No no, just sideways. I wanna squash Wolvie."

"I'd hurt him." She frowned.

"No, you won't. He's got an unbreakable metal skeleton!"

She glanced at him thoughtfully, then smiled, green lights dancing in her eyes. "Ok."

We sat up straight, then leaned inward, me bracing my feet against the arm of the couch. Wolvie groaned as though we were hurting him, a big grin on his face. We laughed, and I reached under his arm to tickle Ro till she did too.

"Okay, you two, knock it off," he said happily. "Ro wants ta go ta sleep."

"Is your cup empty, Kimmie-Lee?" called Brock, peering through the window.

"Yeah." I passed up the empty and took the replacement, sitting back with a sigh of contentment as I realized that this one had ground-up peppermints in it along with the cereal and chocolate syrup.

"You're actually going to eat that?" Conchita looked at me wide-eyed.

"Yup!" I took a huge bite off the top and chewed happily.

She shuddered. "Eww, that's gross."

"She says after eatin' half my first cupful." I snorted. "Hey, Legolas, what do you think of sugar?"

"I think you're stinkin' hilarious when you eat too much," he said without looking up from his cup.

I shook my head, looking at his legs where they stuck out past the bottoms of the jeans he was wearing. "You're wearing Wolvie's pants again."

"Ro drooled on mine again." He shrugged.

"I thought you bought another pair."

"I did. She got those too."

I glanced at the sleeping baby leaning against Wolvie's chest and grinned. "Well you need to buy some more then, you can't wear Wolvie's forever."

"No," he agreed. "They'll fall apart."

I groaned and banged my head gently on the arm of the couch, then glared at him. "Y' keep makin' cracks like that 'n ya won't live forever."

He grinned at me, but didn't say anything.

"Hey, Kimmie, come dance!" called Rae again.

I glanced at her and snorted. "I don't dance."

She smiled through the kitchen door at Brock and did a little shimmy. An appreciative whistle made Ro jump and sigh, mouth working in her sleep.

The Newsboys 'Breakfast Club' came over the speakers and I bobbed my head in time to the beat, scraping the bottom of my cup with my spoon and holding it up for another refill.

"Artificial rum extract?" asked Brock.

"Hit me." I blinked through the start of a sugar buzz.

"Grouch," laughed Rae. "Conchita, you come dance."

Conchita turned to look at her and pulled the arm she'd had hanging over the arm of the couch back to safety. "Um, no thanks."

"Uncle Logan?" Rae cocked her head, eyes sparkling.

"No thanks, darlin'," he said, that far away look on his face. "I only danced fer one woman."

"Here you are, oh fairest of maidens." Brock gave me the reloaded cup.

"Fairest?" Legolas blinked. "What's that mean?"

"Most attractive-looking." Rae put her arms up and shimmied some more.

"Most attractive-looking?" Legolas looked at me blankly. "Brock, our gwathel isn't beautiful…"

I bounded to my feet and dove toward him, fists clenched in mock fury, only to bounce off of someone and have my mind fill with fireworks as I hit the floor.

"…That way," finished Legolas, blinking. Then his face broke into a wide, glad smile. "Wisp! [Beyond all hope you have returned to us!]"

I heard her chuckle through the reestablished link and sat up blinking, an incredibly stupid grin on my face. "Suffering succotash!"

-Er, how much sugar have you had, Rook?-

"Not all of it, yet," called Brock absently.

-Mmm hmm, you saved some for yourself, right?-

He came and peered through the window, ape face a mask of innocence. "Jurely you shest. ...Oops."

"No more fer you, bub." Wolvie sniffed the air. "So yer back?"

-What? You thought you could get rid of me that easily?- She laughed. -I still have work to do.-

"Oh crud." I realized what she meant and burst into sugar fueled tears of disappointment.

I felt her put a hand on my shoulder as Rae turned the music off.

-No,- she said gently. -You don't get to keep them. They're needed back in their own time and place.-

I bowed my head and suddenly found myself looking down at Legolas sprawled in the sun with a fat blond baby sleeping on his chest. From the corner of my eye I saw a beautiful golden-haired woman standing in the doorway of a huge stone house, watching them with a tender expression on her face.

I blinked and it was all gone. Oh wow… I felt a grin escape as I looked up at him. -He doesn't even know her yet, does he, Jesus?-

"What?" Legolas stopped in the middle of reaching to help me up and gave me an uneasy look.

"You get to go home!" I scrambled to my feet and yanked his new dufflebag out from under the couch and tossed it to him, then went after Gimli's.

"Kimber, what're ya doin'?"

I looked up at Wolvie, still grinning. "Helpin' them get ready."

He gave me a funny look and glanced at Rae. "What did Brock put in her ice cream?"

Rae looked at me thoughtfully, head to one side, then smiled and turned to Brock, who'd come out of the kitchen to slip his arm around her waist.

"You're glad to see us go?" asked Gimli, frowning bewilderedly as I gave him his bag of stuff.

I stopped and looked at him, feeling my chin quiver before I firmed it. "No. I wish you didn' have ta, but…" I grinned as I suddenly saw him waving his arms in dismay as a small black girl used his battle-axe to chop wood. "There's a lot of good stuff waitin' fer ya at home."

"What did you see, Kimber?" Legolas leaned toward me slightly.

I shook my head and gave him his sword. "That's for me ta know and you ta find out."

His forehead creased as he tried to work that out. Then he smiled again. "Okay. You've said it's good, so I can wait."

"I can't," growled Gimli.

"You will," said Rae softly.

-Ready, Freddy?- asked Wisp.

"Freddy is disgusting." Legolas scowled.

-Huh?-

"The main character in some old horror movie," I said impatiently, pulling off my necklace and giving it to Legolas. "Remember me, eh?"

He nodded as he put it on and straightened the little silver cross. "Here." He pulled off the chain he'd been wearing and gently put it over my head. "I wish I had enough presents for everyone."

"I do," said Gimli, digging through his bag and coming up with a leather pouch. "Here, Rae, green!" He tossed her something that winked in the light. "Blue for Wolverine, red for Brock, star for Ro, green for Conchita, white for Kimber…" He stopped and looked up. "Wisp? You want fire?"

I gasped and bugged my eyes at the huge opal he held up, then looked down and gasped again as I saw the size of the rectangular diamond I was holding. "Do ya know how much this is worth!?"

"Yup." He looked smug. "[The lord of the Glittering Caves is not poor. Take it for your dowry.]"

Wolvie looked up from frowning at the two big sapphires in his hand. "What're ya doin' runnin' off with my shirts, then?"

"You want it back?" Gimli started undoing buttons.

"Oh crud no!" I yelled, covering my eyes. "I'll git him a new one. Keep the stupid thing!"

-Guys, come on. Let's do this while I'm strong.-

Everyone sobered and looked at each other, then Legolas started a round of hugs.

He gripped my arm in a soldier's greeting when he came to me. "[Till we meet again, sister.]"

I looked up at the soft light shining in his face and eyes. "[Yes. Till we meet again.]"

He smiled and turned away, going to stand a little ways from the rest of us.

I grinned and grabbed Gimli in a rough hug as he hurriedly tried to redo his buttons. "[Till we meet again, brother.]"

He sniffed and blinked, then bowed low and went to stand next to Legolas.

They looked around at us, eyes bright.

And suddenly weren't there.

I blinked, then fell back onto the couch and hid my face on Wolvie's side, crying hard. -Dangit! Jesus, this stinks…-

There was a gossamer touch on my back. -This is why you don't remember, Rook.-

-Because it hurts to say goodbye,- I thought, sitting up in the curve of Wolvie's arm and turning to look at where she was.

-Yes. You asked me to make you forget.-

I looked down at my knees, remembering the crowd in front of that shining Throne. -Will I remember this?-

-Yes.- The couch in front of me dented slightly and I felt a light pressure on my toes.

"Good." I smiled through my tears. "I wanna remember from now on."

-What made you change your mind?- She projected surprise and curiosity.

"That vision ya gave me of God's throne and all the people in front of it."

She was quiet for several minutes, then shifted her weight. -Rook, I don't give visions. You got those from somewhere else.-

"You're tellin' me I did that?" I frowned. "But Rae felt you when I saw the first one, the day I got home."

-I wasn't here the day you got home,- she said quietly. -And Rae can't feel me, remember?-

"Look, I already know what my mutant gift is. I'm too old ta develop any more."

-But you're not too old for spiritual gifts.-

My scowl vanished in wonder. "That's God talkin'?"

"It is one of the ways that He communicated in the Bible," noted Brock. "And so far all you've foretold has become fact."

"So we don't need to stone you," laughed Rae.

-Except on sugar.-

"What's all this?" asked Wolvie, looking lost.

Rae glanced at him and he blinked and turned to look at me thoughtfully. "Huh."

"There is a prophet amongst us!" proclaimed Brock exuberantly.

"No there ain't, ape-face," I growled. "I'm just me."

-A daughter of the King of kings,- said Rae, standing proud.

"…Who needs more frozen yogurt," I added.

"Another Kimmie-Lee special coming up!" Brock bounded into the kitchen and hopped up onto the counter.

I leaned back against Wolvie again and hugged his arm as he put it around me, feeling Wisp on my toes and hearing Ro's little sleeping sighs. Rae's voice hummed along to the restarted music as she sat in the basket chair, and Conchita made the couch rock slightly as she moved. Far away and long ago, I knew, two guys were standing in a garden, thinking about us.

-And we're thinkin' about them.- I frowned. -I was wrong with the not remembering, Jesus. Please forgive?-

I grinned as a Bible verse about forgiveness popped into my head.

Everything was alright. And everything would be alright, no matter what happened.