Roswell Fanatics

Title:"ACROSS TIME AND SPACE"
Rating: MATURE
Category - AU - The whole gang. Not sure if Tess will make an appearance, though.
Disclaimer: I own none of the Roswell characters
SUMMARY: Max, Isabel, and Michael have been searching for their past for many years. Max's idea of hiding in plain sight -- to be a psychologist, specializing in the area of supposed alien abductions, when the opportunities arose; Isabel had taken fashion design. Michael, again, hiding in plain sight, went into law enforcement.
Author's Note: I think I posted this story quite some time ago, but I had writer's block for such a long time, until just recently. So I'm going to post the first chapter again, just to see if it would be of interest to some of you out there for me to continue it and add the part I was just working on.

So here goes with the first part. Enjoy. And as usual, let me know what you think.


Part 1

(Another boring Friday night in the lives of our favorite Aliens)

"So, Max, how were your appointments today? Anything out of the ordinary?" Isabel asked as she, Michael, and Max sat in the dinner club they had such a fondness for, "Alien Encounters," waiting for their dinner.

"No. Actually, everything's been quite 'normal,' if you'll excuse the expression, for a really long time. I haven't gotten any tips from anyone in the area about any so-called 'alien encounters' -- I know. I couldn't resist, since we're here tonight.

"Anyway, you'd think in an area like Roswell, people would be coming out of the woodwork, looking to make such a claim."

"Are you guys really surprised? You know how people are treated once they make such claims," Michael interjected. "I ought to know. I see all kinds of lunatics come and go at the sheriff's office. Even Sheriff Valenti himself was telling us guys his own father had at one time made such a claim. The sad part about it was that his father ended up in a mental ward."

"Do you think Valenti really took it seriously when his father made the claim?" Max asked, out of curiosity.

"Nah. In fact, the word around the office is that he hasn't even visited his dad at the mental ward for a really long time. Apparently, his dad used to be the sheriff. But once he made his claim and couldn't seem to get past it, his superiors basically terminated him, citing mental problems as their reason for letting him go," Michael supplied.

"That is so sad." Isabel, being the only female among the three of them, was the only one who verbalized any sympathy for Valenti's situation. But all three of them knew how sad it was, especially since they themselves had been keeping their secret for so many years.

Max, having taken the lead of the three of them during all that time, added, "It is sad. And as much as I'd like to provide some form of comfort for him, Isabel, you know we have to continue maintaining a low profile."

"I know, Max. You’ve been pounding that into our heads for years. Do you honestly think I'd expect you to say anything differently now, at this late date?"

As Max and Isabel were speaking, Michael was distracted by the entertainment that was beginning. As Max and Isabel were continuing, they realized they hadn't heard any comments from Michael, taking sides one way or the other, which struck both Max and Isabel as odd, since he almost always had his ‘two cents’ to put in. Both turned a curious eye toward Michael, seeing what could possibly be distracting him. When they saw who the entertainment was, they then understood Michael's distraction.

Max and Isabel continued talking, this time changing to a different topic. "You'd think, after all these years, Michael would have gotten it through his head that one is off limits," Isabel stated in an irritated fashion.

"It really surprises me, Isabel, how you can show so much concern for someone like Valenti, who we don't even know, and yet be so irritated about Michael having a weakness for someone."

"It's an entirely different situation, Max, and you know it."

"How is it different, Isabel?"

"Well……it just is. Okay?"

"No, it's not. I really want to understand what the difference is," Max said, now turning on his psychological behavior.

"Come on, Isabel. I'd really like to know."

"Honestly?"

"Of course, honestly."

"I guess the truth is, as much as I hate to admit it, I understand how Michael feels. It's just hard to admit, you know?"

"How could you possibly know how he feels? I've never known you to have a weakness for any human companionship," Max responded, totally amazed at Isabel's admission.

"I guess you don't know me as well as you think you do, huh?"

"I guess not. Would you care to enlighten me?" Max asked with a great deal of curiosity.

"Promise you won't laugh or tease, or even counsel me on it?"

"I promise, Isabel," Max said with sincerity.

"Well, have you ever noticed who Maria always seems to hang out with?"

"No. Actually, I never paid a lot of attention to Maria and her pals. What are you getting at?"

"Well, do you recognize anyone in the band she sings with?"

At Isabel's question, Max had to take a minute to really notice who the band members were on the stage. Finally, he saw a familiar face. "Wait a minute," he began, “the one playing the guitar, he looks familiar."

"He should. We went to school with him."

Again, Max had to think hard. Finally, the young man's face rang a bell. "No way. You're kidding; right?"

"Max, you promised."

"I'm not making fun, Is. I'm just totally stunned. The whole time we were all in school together, I never got the slightest indication from you that you were interested in Alex Whitman."

"I guess I didn't earn my 'Ice Princess' reputation for nothing, then, huh?"

"Wow, Isabel. Honestly, I never had any idea. My guess is Alex never did either."

"Well, let's face it, Max. Ever since I can remember, the three of us have always had this pact about not getting involved with anyone, no matter what."

"Yeah, you're right." After contemplating the secretive lives the three of them had led for so long, Max couldn't help but comment, "This Czechoslovakians business sure has messed up our love lives, hasn't it?"

As Max was finishing his statement, the entertainment had concluded the song they'd been doing. So Michael finally came enough out of his stupor to hear the last seven words Max had stated. "What's messed up our love lives? Besides, who said anything about love, anyway?" Michael said, having only partially heard what Max and Isabel had been discussing for the last several minutes.

"Never mind, Michael."

"No, wait a minute. Are you implying I have something for that little blonde out there?"

"Can you seriously deny that with a straight face?" Isabel asked, as Max silently nodded his head in agreement with her comment.

After realizing he'd been caught watching Maria for the last several minutes, Michael decided he might as well ‘face the music.' "Oh, all right. It's true. But you both know I've never acted on it, have I?" he said in defense of himself.

"No, Michael, you never have. That's exactly what we were talking about, how this whole business has messed up our love lives all these years," Isabel responded.

"What about you, Max? I can't remember you ever having any leanings toward anyone at school. I honestly can't believe you've never thought about having any human connections," Isabel stated bluntly.

"Yeah, Max, I've always wondered that myself," Michael added.

As both Isabel and Michael waited for a response, Max sat for a moment in deep reflection. "Well, since we're all being honest here, I'll let you in on a secret I've had for a really long time."

As Max began his thoughts, he immediately got Isabel and Michael's attention. Neither of them had ever heard Max talk about such a thing before. So they were both dying to hear what he had to say.

"Remember when we were all adopted?"

Isabel and Michael only nodded, not wanting to interrupt Max's train of thought.

"Remember that first time Mom and Dad took us all camping shortly after that?"

Again, a double nod.

"Well, I'd gone off by myself and somehow got lost. During that time, I came across a little girl about our ages. The thing was, she'd fallen from a tree or a hill or something -- I don't know how -- and was unconscious. I didn't know she was just unconscious until I checked to see for sure…."

"Oh, Max, don't tell me you did something to her," Isabel asked in a worried tone.

When Max didn't answer her, she knew he had. "But what about all the times you yourself have said we couldn't use our powers, no matter what?" she again asked.

"Well, to be honest, it was after the incident that it made me realize how dangerous it would have been if anyone had caught me. As it was, when I was checking her, she awoke. I think she was in too much pain to realize she should be afraid. I just tried being really calm and asked her if she was okay. She couldn't seem to speak, but she shook her head no. So I knew she understood me. I then continued checking her over, and I could tell she had some internal injuries. I continued quietly talking to her, telling her she needed to focus on my eyes so I could help her….."

Again, he trailed off, and did not talk for several seconds.

"But what did that whole experience have to do with our question, Max?" Isabel asked in confusion.

Realizing Isabel was talking to him, he caught most of her question. "Well, when I was healing her, I got all sorts of flashes of her and the life she'd lived up to that point. She was from a really good family and had had a happy childhood up until then…" Again, Max trailed off.

"Come on, Max," Michael said in disbelief. "We were only about 8 then. How could that little bit of information or the whole experience have been enough for you to think of her as someone you'd want to have for human companionship? Besides, none of us were old enough to even be thinking about the opposite sex in a serious way then. "

"I know, Michael. That's what has puzzled me all these years as well. What I could see in her thoughts just really touched me. Even with all I saw, though, it was as though there was something blocking me from fully seeing all her thoughts or experiences. I've never been able to rationally understand, let alone explain, how it could have been possible for someone, a human child no less, to block their thoughts.

"Anyway, I never saw her again. But she left such a lasting impression on me. Even when we were in school and we were all so blatantly pursued by the opposite sex at various times, I never could forget about her. I think I always secretly had hoped I would eventually meet her in school, but, of course, that never happened," Max finished in a sad tone.

As Max was finishing his story, their waitress came back with their dinner. Once everyone was served, they sat in companionable silence, all wishing they could have that special someone in their lives, but all certain it would never happen as long as they remained on Earth.

TBC-?

Hi, G7silvers:

Thanks for your encouragement. I hope you enjoy this next part.

Part 2

Maria and Alex and their band had just finished their set for the evening. "So, Alex, who were you drooling over while we were on stage?" Maria asked, in her usual teasing manner.

"I could ask you the same question," Alex retorted.

"You know, Alex, we are so pathetic. Neither of us ever had the guts to try to make our dreams come true. But you know what I've noticed?"

"What's that?"

"I've noticed I've never seen those three ever make any moves either."

"Aren't you being just a little bit presumptuous, DeLuca?"

"Get real. I'm not talking about us. I mean I never saw any of them hanging out with anyone else at school but each other."

"Hey," Alex said after a moment, "you know, you're right. I don't think I ever did either. And I know, with all the locker room gossip there was, it certainly wasn't because of lack of interest on the part of all the jocks."

"Or on the part of all the cheerleaders," Maria added.

"Oh. By the way, Alex, did I tell you I heard from Liz?" Maria asked, changing the subject.

"No, you didn't. How's she been?"

"You know, same as always."

"You may have told me this before, Maria. If you did, I guess I forgot. But why did Liz and her family leave Roswell all those years ago?"

"You know, I really never knew myself. All I do remember is that she started having nightmares. I know her parents did everything they could to get her help. Whatever it was, mom told me they had decided the only solution was to leave the area, hoping a change of scenery would be of help.

"Anyway, the point is, Liz is coming out to visit."

"Really? That's great. I don't even remember what she looks like, it's been so many years.

"Wait a minute. Didn't you say her family moved her away to help her recover?"

"Yeah."

"Then why's she returning?"

"I don't really know, Alex. I tried hedging the subject myself. All she would say was she'd explain everything when she got here.

“She said she'd be out in a few weeks, as soon as the school semester is over. She's a biology teacher at a high school where she lives."

"Well, hopefully, we'll be able to spend some time with her when she comes out."

"Let's hope so. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm heading home."

"Yeah, I'm ready too. "I'll walk you to your car."

"Thanks, Alex. You're a great friend. One of these days, the right woman's going to realize what a treasure you are."

"Okay, DeLuca, don't go all mushy on me now.

"Let's go, shall we," he said, as they walked out of the club, arm-in-arm.

(Meanwhile)

Though Max, Michael, and Isabel were siblings, Michael had a few years previously decided he needed to have his own space. So he'd moved out on his own. Max and Isabel had decided they liked having someone to come home to, even if it was just to each other. So when Max and Isabel returned home, they sat and talked a little longer before retiring for the evening.

"By the way, I just want to remind you, I'll be going out of town in a couple of weeks for a weeklong seminar."

"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that. You have to do that every year. Why is that?"

"I need to earn continuing education credits to keep my doctor's license current."

"Oh, that's right. "I'm glad you reminded me. Maybe I can convince Michael to keep me company while you're gone."

"That's a good idea, Is. I'll mention it to him as well."

"Okay. Well, I guess we should get to bed. "Good night, Max."

"Good night, Is."

TBC

Hi, Everyone:

It's been a few days since I updated. Plus part 3 was a little short. So I thought I'd add Part 4 as well. I kind of think they flow together closely anyway. Hope you like them. Please let me know what you think. I ALWAYS appreciate the feedback. And thanks for doing so.

Here goes:

(Remember, disclaimer is on first page of story)

Part 3

The time had finally arrived for Liz to return to her roots. She still wasn't sure why, but something was drawing her back to the place where her endless nightmares had first begun. The only thing that was giving her comfort in making the journey was, knowing she wouldn't be alone. She knew she could depend on Maria for moral support, no matter what.

With these thoughts in mind, she called Maria's number, to let her know she'd be leaving on the plane the next morning and would be in Roswell that afternoon. Maria's phone rang at least five times before her message machine picked up. It occurred to Liz perhaps Maria was just out running errands. So she left her a message to call her when she returned that night.

Liz had been in and out of her apartment all day, running last-minute errands, in preparation for her flight the next morning. Since she didn't get home until late that evening, she fully expected Maria would have returned her call by then. But when she checked her answering machine, there were none left for her.

She then realized, although she had told Maria she'd be out in a few weeks, she hadn't been any more specific than that. So it occurred to her Maria might not even be in town to get her message. Unfortunately, she already had her plane ticket. So she wouldn't be able to put it off until she heard from Maria. 'Oh, well,' she thought to herself.

Once Liz made that decision, she again left Maria a message, this time explaining what she was planning to do, in case she didn't hear from Maria before she left. Once she made that call, she went to bed, trying to get her rest before her journey began the next morning. Unfortunately, she still felt unsettled about the whole trip and ended up not getting much sleep at all before having to leave early the next morning for the airport. Her only hope for rest now was that, perhaps, she'd be able to get even a little sleep on the plane during her flight.

**********

Max had just finished his weeklong seminar the previous night and was finally getting a flight home this morning. Since the flight hadn't been due in from Massachusetts until about 10:00 a.m., he'd been able to have a somewhat leisurely breakfast before taking a taxi to the Chicago O'Hare Airport.

As he was checking in, he learned the airline had overbooked First Class, if that were possible. He only decided to still board the plane after the airline agreed they would give him, not only a free ride home, but also a voucher for a roundtrip ticket anywhere in the continental United States. He hadn't flown in Coach in a very long time and was not looking forward to the cramped quarters. But he was more eager to get home than to wait on standby for the next available flight.

When Max finally got his boarding pass and they finally began boarding the passengers, he patiently waited in line until he finally got to his seat about midway to the back of the plane. Of course, the only seat available in his row was the middle seat. The aisle seat was occupied by a man who was working on his laptop and only grudgingly moved slightly to allow Max to get to his seat. The window seat was occupied by a young dark-haired woman. He determined by the fact that she was asleep that she must have come in on the plane from Massachusetts. 'Well,' he thought to himself, 'maybe it won't be a total loss having to sacrifice First Class, if I get to even talk to her, that is.'

The plane was already running behind schedule. So once Max and the remaining passengers got seated, the flight crew immediately prepared for takeoff, and then, of course, waited another several minutes in a long line of other planes waiting their turn for takeoff. But finally the plane took off and began raising its landing gear, in preparation for the rest of the flight to Roswell.

Part 4

As Liz had hoped, she was able to fall asleep on the plane. What she had hoped not to happen was to have another in a continuing line of nightmares. She could just imagine awakening from one, only to find several pairs of eyes of all the passengers staring at her, wondering what drug she'd been on, causing such a scene.

Unfortunately, she was not able to escape the inevitable. She once again was reliving the continuing nightmare she'd been having since she was a child. She could feel the stifled scream in her throat, and subconsciously knew, even subconsciously, it would only be a matter of seconds before it was released. But then something totally unexpected happened that was not part of her normal nightmare. Just as she could feel herself ready to let loose the scream, she felt a calming hand on her arm and a soft, gentle voice whispering into her ear "Shh. It's okay. You're safe. You're just dreaming." Almost immediately, she felt her body relax.
***

As soon as Max could tell the young woman was beginning to calm down and relax, he gently began removing his hand from her arm. But before he could succeed, the young woman, although she appeared to still be asleep, grabbed hold of his hand and would not let go.

'O.kay,' he thought to himself. 'I guess worse situations could happen than having a young woman I've never met grab me, not wanting me to let her go. Too bad I haven't been able to find someone I don't want to let go of,' he thought to himself wistfully, deciding he'd rather appease her. Unable to do a whole lot himself, since the young woman had not let go of his hand in a while, besides the fact that she'd been resting her head on his shoulder, he decided he might as well try taking a nap himself.
*****

Liz had been sleeping practically ever since leaving Massachusetts. She hadn't even awakened when they'd stopped in Chicago. She had surprised herself that she hadn't awakened from a bad dream, which was what she had fully expected to do. But for some reason, this time, when her subconscious was preparing her for the inevitable, somewhere in the back of her mind she heard a kind, gentle, soothing voice that had calmed down the fears that had been building in her dream. She felt a gentle touch on her arm that lasted only very briefly, and then threatened to disappear. She'd been so soothed by it that she couldn't allow that to happen. So she immediately grabbed onto the hand before it had a chance to leave. The rest of her flight to Roswell was spent in a blissful, peaceful sleep that she couldn't remember having in years.

While she was dreaming, she noticed this dream was far different from the ones that had been plaguing her ever since her childhood. Before having been soothed so kindly, she'd been dreaming the same terrorizing sequence of dreams as always. She remembered having been with her family, who had always been wonderful, loving people to her. They'd taken a camping trip that was to last a week. It was during that trip that something had happened to her that changed the lives of her entire family. She'd awakened on the 2nd night of their camping trip, having to go to the outhouse. She didn't want to wake her family. So she had timidly made the trip on her own.

The only problem was, she never made it. Before she even got 10 feet from the tent she shared with her family, she'd been kidnapped. It wasn't until years later, as she continued to repeatedly have the nightmares, that she was gradually able to put parts of the puzzle back together as to what had happened that night.

Without a sound, someone had grabbed her from behind, putting their hand over her mouth, and carried her off. It was bad enough that at such a young, tender age, she was being taken in such an evil, sinister way. But what followed, she found out over the years, was not the typical way children were kidnapped. She'd learned that some had been taken from their homes, molested, and then many never made it home because they were killed. She had always wished that she too had died that night. Because, when she'd tried to tell the authorities, when she was finally found, what had happened to her, everyone thought it had been such a traumatic experience that she had chosen to make up stories, to block out what had really happened. When she'd been examined, they could find no 'earthly' indication that she had been molested, but it was obvious from the fear she displayed that something traumatic had happened. They just couldn't believe the stories she was trying to tell them.

~~~~~Dream Sequence~~~~~

"Now, Liz, can you describe who took you?" Sheriff Valenti asked gently.

Liz said nothing, but only timidly nodded her head.

Sheriff Valenti tried coaxing her for several minutes to describe the person or persons who had kidnapped her. When that proved unsuccessful, he finally got an idea he'd learned when he'd tried getting his son Kyle to describe things during the earlyears of his childhood. "Liz, do you think you could draw a picture of the person for me?"

Again, Liz said nothing, but only nodded.

It only took a few minutes for her to draw her picture. When she handed it back to Sheriff Valenti, he had shivers go up and down his spine. He himself was speechless at what she had drawn. During the whole line of questioning, of course, other local authorities had been present, but had chosen to stay outside, only observing the interchange between the sheriff and the little girl.

When they saw the look on his face as he looked at her picture, they knocked on the one-way mirror, indicating for him to bring to them what the little girl had drawn. But when they got a look at the picture, to say the least, they were feeling extremely frustrated.

"Is this a joke?" FBI agent Jones said.

"I assure you, Agent Jones, that little girl is extremely distraught," Sheriff Valenti said in the little girl's defense.

"Well, she's got a funny way of showing it. When have you ever known of a child, who’s supposedly been kidnapped, to draw a picture of a spaceship to describe her kidnapper?" he chided. He continued, "Our work is done here. We need to go take care of some real cases."

"But Agent" --

"As I said, we're finished here," Agent Jones said as he closed the door of Sheriff Valenti's office behind him. Once he'd left there, he approached Liz's parents, saying, "We really don't know what could have happened to your daughter for her to be so emotionally distraught. Please don't take this the wrong way, but you might want to think about taking her to see some specialists on emotional child behavior.

"Well, we must be going." As an afterthought, he said to the Parkers, "I'm glad we were able to help you find your daughter," and then he was gone.
~~~~~End of Dream Sequence~~~~~

~~~~~Dream Sequence 2~~~~~

Liz could feel the fear building in her. Because of the way she was being held by her kidnapper, she could not look directly at him. She had thought that, by trying to pay close attention to what was ahead of her, she'd be able to figure out where she was going, though for a child, the only thing she could really comprehend was all the trees around her. Even as she was thinking that, she realized the kidnapper wasn't continuing to walk in the woods. Suddenly, she saw a flash of light. The next instant, she was no longer in the woods, but in what looked like a building. Her childlike mind could not understand what was happening. The only thing she could compare it to was things she'd seen in Roswell's museum of spaceships and aliens. But she'd only ever been taught that there really was no such thing as aliens.

Once she saw they were in the building, her kidnapper let go of her. He did something to her, though, because she was not able to move from that spot. Next, she saw a table being brought to the kidnapper. He immediately took her body and laid her on the table; then strapped her down so that she was completely unable to move.

As he was doing so, Liz heard the voice of what sounded like a woman. "Is this really necessary, Nicholas? We've never taken children for experiments before."

"You're right. But we've never until now needed to know the physiology of children. Khivar has some ideas on how to infiltrate more of our people into Earth's culture by masking their existence with the use of children's bodies."

"Khivar?" Serena said with concern. "Since when is Khivar dictating who should be experimented on?" she continued, with a hint of disdain in her voice.

"Oh, haven't you heard?" Nicholas smugly responded. "Khivar strategically placed his men in the palace. When the time was right, he had Zan shackled and taken to the palace dungeon."

"That can't be possible," Serena gasped.

"Oh, but it is, my dear. I suggest you accept it, or you'll end up in the dungeon with Zan.

"Now, don't disturb me any further. I need to get to work and report back to Khivar promptly." With that, he authoritatively directed her to leave the room while he worked.

Liz did not know what happened to the woman after she left the room. But at that point, her focus was on the man hovering above her, ready to poke and prod her with needles and other instruments she was not familiar with. Liz was still too young to fully understand the magnitude of what was happening to her. But her childlike mind was still able to comprehend that it was not something that was supposed to happen to a child. She'd had vaccinations when she was even younger, and even that was not something she liked. But to have this stranger touching her, without her being able to push him away, was indeed a very traumatic experience for this little one to endure. All she could do was lie there silently, tears streaming down the sides of her face, as this…..whatever he was, seemed to enjoy what he was doing to her.
~~~~~End of Dream Sequence 2~~~~~

What Liz could not have known as she was enduring the harrowing experience she'd just relived in her dream was that the woman Serena, who had been ordered out of the room, had been completely shocked at the things she'd been told by Nicholas. Learning that Zan had been taken to the dungeon could only mean one thing, that Khivar had taken over the palace, and that he obviously had evil plans for Earth, something she knew Zan would never have authorized.

She had known King Zan her whole life, and she'd come to admire his kind, generous nature, not only to Antarians, but to any life forms that had crossed his path. She knew Zan had been monitoring activities on Earth for decades, in the hope that one day, when Earth's inhabitants had become more civilized, he would be able to send representatives to Earth in the name of peace.

Now that Khivar was obviously in charge, she knew Khivar would not be magnanimous to anyone who crossed his path. She knew he was bloodthirsty enough to destroy any who would try to stop him.

Even though she knew of Khivar's evil nature, she also remembered the deathly fear she'd seen in the eyes of the child now at Nicholas' mercy. She could not free herself of the sight. She realized there was only one thing that would free her of it. She needed to gather as many of Zan's loyal subjects as she could find. She also realized time was of the essence, because she feared the tiny child exposed to Nicholas' clutches had no means whatsoever of being able to endure what Serena knew he would enjoy doing to her. With that thought firmly fixed in her mind, she immediately set to work on the important, and urgent, task at hand.

TBC

Hi, Everyone:

Here's the next part. Max and Liz are finally going to meet. As always, if you have any questions, let me know.

Enjoy.

Here goes:

Part 5

Liz was in the middle of the traumatic dream sequence in which something or someone was hovering over her, about to start his experiments, when she felt something nudging her. Then it stopped. After a few seconds, she felt the nudge again.

Suddenly, she realized she'd been in the middle of another of her nightmares, but for some reason she'd been able to get through it further than she'd ever gotten before. As she awoke from her hazy slumber, she realized someone was sitting beside her, and that was where the nudging was coming from.
***

The flight to Roswell had landed several minutes earlier. By now, everyone on the plane had left except the flight attendants and then, of course, Max and the young woman who'd been sleeping with her head on his shoulder for his entire trip. He didn't want to be rude to her and just abruptly move, possibly letting her head harshly hit part of the seat.

So he'd been trying to patiently wait for her to stir. When she didn't give any indication of awakening, he finally started nudging her, hoping that would do the trick.

Several seconds and a couple of nudges later, the young woman began stirring. The whole time she'd been sleeping, Max had never really gotten a good look at her because she'd kept her head so snugly to his shoulder. When she finally was coming around, he got a good look at her for the first time. What he saw struck him with such awe that he himself went into some kind of a momentary daze. Within seconds, though, he was able to shake himself from it. Almost instantaneously, his eyes met the most beautiful, doe-like brown eyes of the young woman as she suddenly opened her eyes.
***
After Liz had been nudged the second time, she finally became coherent enough to remember where she was. She finally realized she'd been having her common nightmares, but, more importantly, she remembered she'd been on a flight, heading to Roswell, to visit her friend, Maria.

What she couldn't seem to remember was who would be nudging her. The last thing she'd remembered was boarding the flight in Massachusetts, and that there was an empty seat next to her. When she was finally coherent enough to open her eyes, she was stunned by what she saw – the most beautiful pair of amber eyes staring back at her.
***
Neither person spoke for several seconds, both entranced by the visions before them.

Suddenly, they both heard someone clearing their throat. "I'm sorry, folks, but we really do need to get the plane cleaned up for the next group of passengers who will be boarding in less than a half hour," said the flight attendant, realizing she'd interrupted what appeared to be an intimate moment between the two people before her.

Trying not to appear as though she'd been staring at them, she continued, "Sir, if you could help your wife get her belongings together, we'd really appreciate it. I'll need to come back shortly to begin replacing pillows and blankets and so forth," and then she walked off.

As she spoke the word ‘wife,’ the two young people both became flushed from the embarrassment of her obvious mistake. Once she'd walked away, Max spoke. "I am so sorry. She must have gotten that idea because you had your head on my shoulder during the entire flight. But I didn't have the heart to shift you. You seemed to be having a bit of a nightmare or something, and I didn't think you'd want the embarrassment of possibly waking in a scream and having everyone….getting strange ideas in their heads." He'd paused, not sure exactly how to phrase his thoughts.

"Oh, no, I'm so sorry. I had no idea I had put you in such a predicament. Now I'm even more embarrassed, finding out I took advantage of you in such a way," Liz said as she bowed her head from the enormous embarrassment she felt over the whole situation, especially because she knew this young man had no idea how astute his thought had been about the scene that could have taken place if she had awakened from one of her many nightmares. The worst part of the whole thing was that she found herself attracted to this young man.

Not wanting to impose any further on the young man than she obviously already had been for several hours, she lifted her head briefly and said, "Thank you for the use of your shoulder. You have no idea how much it was appreciated. But, please, don't let me keep you. You've already been too kind." Liz couldn't get away from the man fast enough, as far as she was concerned. She could feel her whole body burning up from the huge embarrassment she was feeling.

"Are you sure? I'd be happy to help you off the plane with your bags and things."

"No, really. You've done quite enough already. I can't impose on you any further."

"But…"

"No, really. I mean that. I don't want to hold you up any longer."

"Well, if you're sure."

"Believe me, I'm sure."

Max didn't understand why he felt the way he did, but he didn’t want to leave the young woman like this. In a weird sort of way, he'd kind of hoped they could get acquainted while he waited for Isabel or Michael to come pick him up. But the young woman seemed very adamant about wanting him to get going.

During this whole exchange, they'd been making their way to the exit of the plane and down the stairs. "Well, it was nice meeting you……" but before Max could really even introduce himself, the young woman had taken off, seeming to try to put as much distance between herself and him as she could. He realized he hadn't even gotten her name.
*****

Once Liz got as far away from the handsome young man as she could, she began looking for a phone, especially when she realized she had forgotten her own cell phone at home.

She dialed Maria's number, hoping to get a hold of her. She was so relieved when someone finally picked up, but the relief didn't last very long. "Hello?"

"Maria?"

"Who's this?"

Liz could tell this was not the voice of her friend. "Hi, this is Liz Parker. I'm looking for Maria."

"Oh, hi, Liz. This is Maria's mom. She got your message, but only because she picked up her messages the other day. She wanted me to tell you how sorry she is that she won't be back in town for at least another week. She and Alex are out of town on a gig."

Feeling extremely disappointed, all Liz could say was "Oh."

"Look, honey, I wish I could come pick you up, but Maria just forwarded her phone messages over to me. Don't ask me how. I'm not good at electronics. I just know that's what she did. I'm not even in Roswell, but over in Las Cruces."

Realizing Maria's mom was answering a question Liz was hoping she could answer, Liz now knew there was nothing else to talk about. "Well, thanks anyway, Mrs. DeLuca. I'll figure out something." Not wanting to break down in tears, she knew she better get off the phone quickly. So she said, "Bye."
***
Liz sat in the lobby of the airport for several minutes, trying to pull herself together. This unlikely scenario was the furthest thing from her mind when she'd started out earlier this day.

In spite of how depressed she was feeling, Liz also realized she was being attacked by hunger pangs. Having been asleep the entire time on the plane, she remembered she hadn't eaten all day. Knowing she now had absolutely nowhere to go, and now was not in any kind of hurry, she got up to look for a coffee shop that she hoped would be somewhere in the airport.

After walking for several minutes, she finally found some kind of a restaurant. It appeared they even served alcohol. 'Oh, well,' she thought, 'I might as well get a glass of wine and something to eat, and then figure out what to do from here.'

She was glad she'd gotten into the restaurant as soon as she did. She realized it must be getting around dinnertime, since it had filled up fast. It looked like the table she got was the last available one for the next several minutes, until some of the other customers left.

While Liz was waiting patiently to get a menu, she casually looked through a magazine she'd picked up at a newsstand before searching out the restaurant. As she continued looking through it, someone stood next to her table and said, "This place is really crowded right now. Would you mind if I join you. It doesn't look like there will be anywhere else to sit for quite some time."

Before looking up, Liz couldn't help but think how brazen the young man was to be so forward in asking such a question. Her first thought was that maybe he was trying to 'pick her up.' Once she got her thoughts together on how she was going to let this guy have it, she raised her head to speak. But as she did so, she once again looked into the most beautiful amber eyes she'd ever seen. Suddenly, she realized it was the young man whose shoulder she had commandeered the entire time he had been sitting next to her during the flight.

She again felt her face flush from the embarrassment she'd felt over the entire scenario. She was thankful the restaurant was dimly lit. Hopefully, he wouldn't be able to see the embarrassment she felt. "Please, be my guest. It's the least I can do after wearing out your shoulder today," she said, as she motioned him to join her.

"Thank you so much. I've been all over this airport, trying to find a place to eat. I couldn't find anything. Now, with it being dinnertime, I guess it got a lot harder.

"By the way, I never did have a chance to introduce myself. I'm Max, Max Evans," he said as he held his hand out to the young woman.

Liz debated whether or not to shake his hand, and then decided it was only the polite thing to do. "Hi. I'm Liz Parker," she said shyly.

"I guess you're waiting for your ride too, huh?" Max said innocently.

Liz paused for several seconds, afraid she'd break down in tears if she started talking. Once she felt she could control her voice, she said, "Actually, my ride didn't show up."

"You're kidding." When Liz did not respond, he realized she was not, and he knew he needed to speak his next words carefully. "At the risk of sounding forward, I'd be happy to offer you a ride. I know my friends would not be upset to have another person in the car." To himself, he said, 'Please say yes. Please say yes.'

"That's very kind of you, Max, but I've already imposed on you too much today," she said with her head down.

Sensing she was planning to be very firm in her refusal of his invitation, he cautiously lifted his hand and took her hand in his. "Liz, look at me." When she didn't respond, he again said, "Please, Liz, look at me."

Slowly, her big, beautiful, doe eyes looked at Max. As she did so, Max was once again struck with awe at her beauty. Trying not to stare, though, he continued, "Believe me, it would be no imposition. Besides, I insist you let us give you a ride.

"I can only hope, if my sister were here in the same situation as you, that you would find it in your heart to offer assistance to her."

Liz could tell by the way he spoke of a sister how precious the young woman must be to him. It touched her deeply to hear him speak of someone so dearly. It also made her ache to have someone feel that kind of affection for her, something she'd never experienced in her whole life.

Now that she thought of it, she realized the only thing that could possibly be considered to be close was when she was a child and another young child had seemingly healed her from the pain she'd been in when…….

Suddenly, Liz realized Max was waiting for her to respond. "You're right, Max. I would want to help her." After pausing, she said, "The way you speak of her so affectionately, she must be very precious to you."

After thinking briefly, Max said, "Yeah, I guess she is." Not wanting to go further into a conversation along those lines, he added, "So, does that mean you'll let us help you out?"

"Well….." Liz paused.

"Well, what? Is there something else?"

"Have you ever had one of those what I like to call 'Murphy's Law' days?" she asked.

"Oh, yeah, I've had my share of them.

"So, let me guess. Not only do you not have a ride, but you don't have anyplace to stay either."

Without directly responding to his guess, Liz said, "You're good.

"Seriously, though, that's the problem. I called my friend yesterday, trying to let her know when I'd get here. I couldn't get a hold of her. So I tried calling her again this morning before I left. When I still couldn't contact her, I really didn't have any choice but to come anyway, since I'd already paid for the ticket. So when I got here, I tried calling her again, only to find out she won't be in town for another week or so. It's really my fault. I should have called her earlier to let her know when I was coming. But I guess I wasn't thinking that far ahead." As she finished speaking, she lowered her head, ready to let the floodgates loose this time.

"Oh, Liz, I'm so sorry."

"Please, I didn't tell you for you to pity me."

"Well, actually," Max said after pausing, "I don't feel pity for you. I'm really feeling blessed for myself."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, when you took off, once we got off the plane, I was kicking myself that I hadn't been able to introduce myself. So I'm now feeling blessed because I have an opportunity to do just that, get acquainted with you. So, if anything, you'll be doing me a favor."

Touched by his innocent admission, she could only smile before saying, "Well, when you put it that way, how can I refuse?"

"Good. Then it's settled. You’ll stay with us tonight.”

"Now, shall we check out the menu?"

Hi, Anya:

Thanks so much for your encouraging comment. Hope you enjoy this next part.

Here goes!!!!

As always, please see first page for disclaimer about Roswell.

And PLEASE, to everyone reading, let me know what you think.



Part 6

They sat there for the next hour, slowly becoming acquainted, as they first waited to order, then to be served, and then, finally, to eat.

Liz had forgotten she'd wanted a glass of wine with her meal and had never received the glass she’d ordered. So, even though she'd finished eating, she still wanted it, and called their waiter over to re-order it.

"Would you like a glass as well, Max?"

"No, thanks. I don't drink."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Will it offend you if I have a glass?"

"No, not at all. I just have a really low tolerance. So it's best for me not to have any."

"Okay, as long as you're not offended if I have one."

"No problem. Go right ahead."

As they were talking, Max's cell phone rang. "Hello? Oh, hi, Is. Where are you guys? Okay. We'll meet you there shortly. I'll explain later."

Once Max hung up, he said, "That was my sister. Apparently, there was a car accident that had the freeway blocked for hours. Anyway, they finally got through the roadblock. They'll be here in about 15 minutes."

"I gather they wondered who the 'we' was. I really don't want to put anyone out, Max."

"Nonsense. Everything will be fine," he said. Although to himself he thought, 'They're going to be so upset with me. But I couldn't leave her stranded here by herself,' he rationalized to himself.

"Well, I guess I won't have that drink, after all, since we need to be going anyway."

"Sorry about that."

"Why should you be? You're doing me a huge favor."

When the waiter came back with the check, Liz attempted to get it, but Max was too quick for her.

"Please, allow me," he said.

"You've already done so much, though."

"Please, Liz, I insist."

Trying to be gracious, Liz said, "Thank you, Max."

"The pleasure is all mine."
*****
When Isabel got off the phone, Michael asked, "What was that all about?"

"He said, 'We will be waiting.' When I asked who the 'we' was, he said he'd explain later.

"You don't suppose he picked up some girl on the plane, do you?"

"I doubt that. That's not Max's style. The idea of having anyone with him is strange, though. He's always been the one to remind us to not get involved with anyone."

For the next several minutes, Isabel and Michael remained silent, each wondering what to expect when they picked up Max.
*****

Max and Liz had only been outside the airport, waiting a few minutes, when Isabel and Michael pulled up.

Max then made the introductions, helped Liz into the back seat of the car, put his and her luggage in the trunk, and then got in the back seat with Liz.

For several seconds, there was silence among the four of them. Finally, Liz couldn't take it any longer. "Look, I'm obviously imposing on your family. If you could just help me find a motel for the night, I'll get out of your hair."

"Nonsense, Liz. We already had this conversation."

"Maybe so. But your family obviously feels put out. I'm not in the habit of causing friction among family members."

Isabel had been quiet the entire time. Though she had initially been very upset with Max for pulling this stunt, as she listened to Liz, she seemed to get a sense of fear and loneliness from her, qualities that she and the others were only too familiar with.

Not knowing what was possessing her, she said, "I'm sorry, Liz. Michael and I were rude and unfair to you. I guess we're just so used to it being only the three of us; it totally surprised us that Max would have someone with him.

"Please accept my apology. If Max offered you a place to stay tonight, he must have felt he could trust you. Besides, it's not as though we don't have room. Michael has his own place now anyway."

Max sat in silence, stunned by Isabel's comments. He'd never known her to openly apologize to anyone before, but he was grateful that she was displaying such kindness to the young woman he'd just met. He didn't know why, but he just felt the need to protect her, and he silently thanked Isabel for giving him the chance to.

During this whole scene, Michael remained silent. Of the three, he'd always been the most suspicious of newcomers. He was going to suspend any comments he might have until he'd had more time to observe. For now, he was definitely going to keep an eye on this young woman who seemed to have bewitched his normally cautious friend and brother.

The rest of the ride was made in silence. Isabel dropped Michael off first, before driving the rest of them to Isabel's and Max's home.
*****
Liz no sooner walked into the house than she felt peace and protection within its walls.

Max, not wanting to tempt himself with being alone with Liz, asked Isabel to get her settled in. He said good night to the young women and headed up the stairs to his room.

"Wait, Max?"

"Yeah?" he said, surprised by the emotion he felt when she said his name.

Liz walked up the few steps to meet him. "I just want to thank you again for all your kindness." As she finished speaking, she quickly and unexpectedly gave Max a peck on his cheek, and then ran back down the stairs before she was tempted to do anything more.

Max stood there on the steps for several seconds after she left, holding his cheek where her lips had touched him. 'Oh, boy. I am really going to need to be cautious,' he said to himself absently, as he continued up the stairs, still holding his cheek.

TBC

Hi, Roswellluver:

Glad you're looking forward to the next part. Since I may not be able to update for another few days, I thought I better do it now. Hope you like this next part. Let me know what you think.

Here goes....

As always, please see first page of story for disclaimer.

Part 7

Part 7

Isabel showed Liz where everything was that she might need, even showing her where things were in the kitchen, just in case she got hungry during the night.

As Isabel was leaving for her room, Liz stopped her. "Isabel, I just want to thank you again for your generosity. I know it's really awkward, and I know you really didn't want me here. What changed your mind?"

Isabel thought about the question briefly before responding, "Max and I are especially close. Our whole lives we've lived cautiously, especially when letting others in. Max has always been the most cautious of the three of us. I love my brother very much, Liz. I trust him and Michael with my life, which means I also trust his judgment.

"He's never so freely invited someone to stay with us until now. And I'm more certain about this than anything, that he would never do anything that he felt would endanger me or Michael.

"So, you see, Liz, I'm trusting in you because I trust Max."

Isabel's words were not lost on her. Even as Isabel had been explaining her deep regard for her brother, Liz was becoming all choked up with emotion at Isabel's honesty.

Taking a moment to control her emotions, she finally spoke. "I'll do everything in my power, Isabel, to never lose the trust of all of you."

"I know nothing about you, Liz, but somehow I really believe you mean that." Isabel paused one more time, then said, "Good night, Liz."

"Good night, Isabel."
*****
Though Max had been in bed for a few hours, he hadn't slept at all, partly because he was feeling the need for a snack. But in all honesty, he knew the real reason was because he couldn’t stop thinking of Liz. Though he could still feel her lips on his cheek, it seemed there was something else about Liz that was calling out to him.

Finally, since he couldn't sleep anyway, he decided to just peek in and check on her. Even as he began heading down the stairs, though, he felt a sense of foreboding. With each step he took, the feeling became stronger. Suddenly, he couldn't help himself. He ran the rest of the way down the stairs as quickly as he could to get to Liz.

What he saw when he opened her door filled him with a sense of fear he'd never known before. Even with all the close calls he, Isabel, and Michael had had over the years, with people almost finding out about them, he could never remember such intense fear.

Suddenly, he knew not how, he realized it wasn't his fear, but that it was fear Liz was experiencing. He realized she must be having another nightmare. So he quickly went to the bed to pull her into his arms, to comfort her. Again, he found himself saying, "Shh. It's okay. You're safe. You're just dreaming."

This time Liz did not immediately relax. Although her eyes were open, Max got the distinct impression she was still asleep. Her beautiful doe-brown eyes became 'as large as saucers’ (if you'll excuse the expression). She looked right at him and said, "It's you, isn't it?" Even as she talked to him, she kissed his eyes and his cheeks and his nose and, finally, his lips. "I always prayed I'd see you again," she said, as she continued kissing him.

Somehow, as much as he wanted to revel in the feel of her lips on his, he sensed she was still asleep. Her kisses were not of passion but of relief and hope. He knew he could not take advantage of this gentle, frightened soul.

He allowed Liz to continue kissing him, desperately trying to control his building desires, until she finally relaxed and wrapped her arms tightly around him and closed her eyes, once again apparently in a deep slumber.

Max had been so involved in trying to calm Liz that he didn't realize Isabel had witnessed most of what had taken place. She could tell by the way he wasn't making an effort to return Liz's kisses that Liz must really be sleeping.

In all the years she'd known Max, Isabel had never seen him display such tenderness, not even with her, his own sister. As she continued to observe Max once Liz had calmed down, she was struck with the thought that these two somehow seemed to be connecting with each other, though she couldn't imagine how.

Not wanting to disturb Max, and having him thinking he'd have to explain what had just happened, she decided to quietly go back to bed. But she knew there was a lot they needed to learn about Liz and her dreams. Maybe, once Liz trusted them more, she would allow Isabel to use her gift of visiting her in her dreams. But she could see that would take some time.

TBC

Hi, Guys:

I'm so happy to hear people are enjoyng the story. I had a little more time tonight than I had planned. So I'm posting the next part. Hope you like it. And, as always, PLEASE let me know what you think.

Please see first page of story for disclaimer.

Okay. Here goes with the next part.....


Part 8

Though Liz had finally calmed down and seemed to be resting peacefully, Max didn't want to leave her alone, partly for fear she may again have another nightmare, but also because holding her in his arms seemed to give him a measure of peace he couldn't remember ever experiencing before.

Since he hadn't been sleeping most of the night, and he'd been trying to calm Liz down for a little while, by now his body was more than ready to relax enough so that he too could finally get to sleep, and he slept soundly the rest of the night.
*****
The next morning was Saturday. So Isabel wasn't working. Because of the traffic jam the night before, though, she hadn't had time to do any grocery shopping before she and Michael picked up Max. When she checked the fridge, she realized she'd need to stock up, now that Max was back in town.

When Isabel was ready to go, she quietly checked in on Max and Liz and found that they were both still sleeping. So she decided to just leave Max a note on the table, letting him know she'd return shortly.

Although Isabel had been as quiet as a mouse when she left, just the slight little squeak of the door closing made Liz jolt awake. For a few seconds after she awoke, she couldn't remember where she was. But she immediately realized she was in someone's arms. Again, she was filled with fear and panic, petrified as to who this stranger was that was holding her. She lay back down, motionless for a moment, trying to decide how to get out of this situation. As she did so, though, she realized the stranger was beginning to move. She realized they were sitting up.

Max awoke as Isabel was trying to quietly leave. 'I've got to get that squeak fixed soon,' he thought to himself. Now fully awake, he sat up, trying to get an idea as to how Liz was doing. As he did so, he realized she seemed to be trying to pretend she was sleeping. Then it dawned on him, 'Maybe she doesn't remember where she is or what's going on.' So he decided to gently greet her.

"Good morning, Liz. I hope you slept well."

Surprised this obviously male stranger would know her name, she opened her eyes. She stared at him briefly, thinking he definitely looked familiar. Then the memories of the previous night hit her full-force. Max had kindly allowed her to spend the night since her friend Maria wasn't home.

"Hi, Max. I hope I don't sound rude or ungrateful for your hospitality. But what are you doing in my room? And, more specifically, lying on the bed?" she asked.

"Well, actually, I had gone to bed, as you may recall, before you even did. But I couldn't sleep. Besides, I was a little worried about you," he said as casually as he could, as he stood up to get off the bed. He then continued as he turned around. "When I popped my head in to check on you, you were in what looked to be a terrifying dream. I tried to calm you down. Then, when I tried to leave, you wouldn't let go of me," he said sheepishly. "And I didn't want to wake you. So I didn't really have much choice but to sleep here last night." Of course, Max neglected to tell her it was probably the most peaceful night of rest he'd had in a long time.

"Oh," Liz said shyly. "I guess I should thank you, then," she said, as she sat there with her beautiful brunette hair cascading down her shoulders, as she held the blankets tightly at her chin.

"No need," Max responded as he left the room. He tried leaving as nonchalantly as he could, though he felt anything but. He knew, if she hadn't awakened when she did, he would have happily continued lying there, holding her. There was something about this young woman that was having a profound effect on him. He just didn't know yet how profound an effect it would prove to be.
*****
Once Max left the room, Liz quickly got her things together to take a shower. She decided, after waking in such a compromising position as she had this morning, in the arms of such a handsome young man, no less, she better not stick around much longer. Though the young man had been more hospitable than she could have ever hoped for, she didn't want to take advantage of his kindness or his sister's, especially after the heart-to-heart she'd had with Isabel the previous night.

Besides, she still hadn't seen her friend. She also needed to make some phone calls and find a room where she could stay, knowing Maria would be gone a few more days.
*****
When Liz had finished showering and getting dressed, she quietly came out of the room, wondering where Max and his sister were. She could smell coffee brewing. So her first stop was the kitchen, where she expected to find Isabel. Instead, she saw Max sitting at the kitchen table, reading the paper.

Max heard footsteps and lowered the paper, to see Liz facing him. "I -- I was wondering, where's your sister?"

"Oh, she left me a note. She went to the store. She didn't have time to get any groceries before coming to the airport last night. So she went to pick up a few things. She'll be back in a little while."

"Oh, that's too bad. I was hoping to thank her for her hospitality before I left."

Max felt his heart sink as she spoke those words. "Are your friends back in town?" he asked.

"Well, no. I found out they won't be back until the middle of next week. But if you don't mind, I was hoping to use your phone and find a motel I could stay at until they return."

"Well, you're welcome to try, but…."

"But, what?" Liz asked fearfully.

"Well, it just so happens the Roswell Alien Festival is this week."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, this time every year, Roswell has a festival of sorts to remember the ‘so-called’ Alien crash that supposedly happened here back in 1947.

"Anyway, every year at this time, practically all the motels and rooms are booked solid."

"So what you're saying is I probably won't be able to find a room?"

"Well, like I said, you're welcome to try….."

Liz was devastated by this news. She'd already had a horrendous ordeal even getting out to this god-forsaken place. And now, this? She took a seat at the kitchen table and just stared into space, with tears flowing down her face.

Max could see the news for Liz seemed devastating, but he couldn't understand why. He set his paper down and silently stretched out his hand for one of hers resting on the table. "I realize you're probably disappointed about your friends, but you're more than welcome to stay here until they're back," he said as he held her hand tenderly.

Liz began shaking her head and pulled her hand from his. "No, I couldn't possibly do that. You and Isabel have been too kind to me already. It's too much of an imposition."

As Liz was speaking, Isabel entered the kitchen. "What's too much of an imposition?" she asked as she set groceries down on the table.

Max could tell Liz was in no frame of mind to speak at that moment. So he pulled Isabel into another room and filled her in on what Liz had just learned.

"Isabel, I know you and Michael both disapproved of me last night bringing her here. But there's just something about her. I don't know what it is, but I feel this connection with her. Besides," he added, trying to rationalize his thoughts, "where else can she go right now? You know how booked all the motels are for the next few days."

Isabel had stood there, silently listening to her brother's pleas. Little did he know that she had decided the night before that the young woman could stay for as long as she needed. Somehow, Isabel had also been able to sense something about this young woman. So when Max paused, waiting for Isabel to respond, he was stunned by what he heard.

"It's okay with me if she stays for as long as she needs to, Max."

"What????" he said in disbelief.

"I don’t know what it is, Max, but I feel it too. Last night when I saw her….." she wanted to tell Max how she'd found them nestled together comfortably in each other's arms, but she didn't want to embarrass him.

She continued, "Let's just say, when I saw her last night, she looked so peaceful. I get the feeling this young woman hasn't had enough of that in her life."

Changing the subject drastically, Isabel said, "Well, I'm going to go fix breakfast."

"But, Isabel…."

Isabel could see a look of fear in Max’s face. "Oh, would you like me to go talk with her?"

"Yeah, would you. I think the offer may sound more acceptable coming from you. She might get the wrong idea if I try to convince her. I already offered once, but she turned me down flat."

"You're probably right. It would sound better coming from me. Okay. You go make breakfast, and I'll take Liz and have a heart-to-heart with her."

"Thanks, Is. You're the best."

"I know. Now, don't you forget it."

(Back in the kitchen)

"Liz, would you come with me. I need to talk with you privately."

"About what?"

"Well, as I said, it's private. So I don't want my big ape of a brother eavesdropping. Let's go find someplace quiet to talk," she said, as she grabbed Liz's hand and pulled her out to another part of the house.
*****
"Listen, Liz, my brother explained about your friends not returning for a few more days. So we'd both really like to offer for you to stay here until they return."

"But I already told Max. It's too much of an imposition. You've both already been too kind to me," Liz said as she kept her head down, her hands folded.

Isabel observed her body language briefly and then said, "There's more to it than that, though, isn't there?"

"What?" Liz said as she jerked her head up, stunned by Isabel's words.

"Max told me you were having a nightmare last night, and that you apparently had one on the plane as well yesterday," Isabel said matter-of-factly.

"You're obviously struggling with something that's tearing you up emotionally. Don't you think it would help you if you could struggle with it privately, rather than for all the world to see, if you possibly had another nightmare at a motel, and someone called the police, fearing you were a lunatic or something?" Isabel did not beat around the bush. But Liz knew her points were well made. She didn't know how Isabel could be so 'on point,' but she realized the young woman was absolutely correct in her assessment of Liz's situation.

Isabel waited while she watched Liz assimilate what had just been said to her. Isabel did not rush her, but continued waiting patiently for several seconds, until she could tell Liz had finally come to a decision.

"I don't know how you seem to understand what I'm going through, Isabel -- and don't ask me to talk about it -- but you're right about one thing. It would be nice to privately try to work things out rather than being accused of being a lunatic or something."

"Let's just say, Liz, living in Roswell, we’ve met all kinds of crackpots." Trying to make light of her own secret, she flippantly added, "Would you believe there are actually people out there who think they've been abducted by aliens?"

Instead of getting a lighthearted response from Liz, though, she watched Liz as her face seemed to cloud over with…..she wasn't sure what it was she saw, but it was enough to spook even Isabel. She even felt a shiver go through her body from observing Liz's expression. 'O.K.,' she thought to herself. 'Not at all the reaction I was expecting.'

Liz remained in what appeared to be a trance-like state for several minutes, until Isabel finally began shaking her. "Liz, are you all right?" she said as she continued shaking her.

Finally, Liz came around and said, "Oh, I must have spaced out there for a minute." She didn't realize she had been 'out' for several minutes, and Isabel was not going to bring it to her attention. Instead, she knew she'd need to tell Max about this. It was just too weird of an incident for him not to know about.

For now, though, she decided it was time they went to see how breakfast was coming along.

TBC

Hi, Guys:

Finally, here's the next part. Hope you enjoy it. PLEASE, feel free to leave me your feedback. I always enjoy reading it.

Here goes.

Part 9

Breakfast was a quiet affair among the three. Isabel wasn't able to talk with Max until later about the trance-like state Liz had been in for several minutes; so he didn't yet understand her silence, if, indeed, it could be understood.

Once everyone had finished eating, Isabel got up to begin washing the dishes. Before she could start them, though, Liz got between her and the sink. "What are you doing, Liz? You're our guest."

"No, I really need to do this. Please let me help out in some way. I feel bad enough as it is imposing on you this way."

When Isabel began to protest further, she saw Max silently motion to her to let Liz follow through, and then he motioned for her to follow him to another part of the house.

"Well, when you put it that way," Isabel said after pausing for several seconds, "how can I refuse such an offer. Max and I are going to be tidying up the rest of the house. Call out for us if you need anything," she said as she left the kitchen.

Liz was grateful to have the kitchen to herself as she quietly and distractedly washed the dishes and cleaned up the table. As she did so, she was remembering back to awakening in Max's arms. She didn't know why, but she'd felt safe in that position. His touch felt somehow familiar to her. The thought struck her as being absurd. After all, she'd never met him before. She was certain she would have remembered such kindness and gentleness and comfort, especially since it was so different from what she'd experienced in her dreams over the years.

Thinking about her dreams immediately made her forget about Max. She was once again reliving things from her dreams. Something she was beginning to realize, though, was that she'd been able to get further in her dreams in a calmer subconscious mind than she'd ever been able to before. Part of what had kept her from complete recovery was that she had not been able to be calm enough to finish her dreams. She had never been able to get any further than the memory of having been kidnapped and taken to a spaceship. But she realized in the last day or so she'd remembered more details about what had happened to her while she was on the spaceship.

Liz had 'spaced out' again, dwelling on the things she'd remembered, when someone touched her on the shoulder. When she felt the unexpected touch, she jumped, out of fear.

"It's okay, Liz. I was just curious what happened to you. I didn’t mean to startle you," Max said, as he stepped back from her, hoping to give her space enough to calm her nerves.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to jump. I…I guess I must have been daydreaming," she said lamely.

"It's okay, Liz, really." He ached to walk up to her and pull her into his arms to give her comfort, but he was afraid he would frighten her even more. So, instead, he just stood there, waiting to see if she'd say anything further.

When she didn't, he spoke again. "Liz, I just want you to know, if you ever need to talk, I'm a good listener."

When she began to deny the need, he continued, "Let me finish. Please don't misunderstand. I don't want you to talk about anything you don't want to. I just want you to know you can if you need to."

Liz waited to see if he would say anything else. When he didn't, she responded, "Thanks, Max. It's really very kind of you to offer. But please don't take it personally that I don't think I'll take you up on your offer."

"That’s okay. I just wanted to at least offer."

Wanting to change the subject, Liz tried to put on a 'happy face' and said, "Well, I've finished doing the dishes. What else can I do to help out?"

"You've done plenty already. Besides, we didn't invite you to stay so you could be our maid."

"Even so, I'd like to do anything I can to repay your kindness."

Max thought for a minute, not sure if he should share his thoughts.

Somehow Liz could tell he had something on his mind. "What?"

Not realizing Liz was watching him, Max said, "Huh?"

"I can tell you have something on your mind. What is it?"

"Oh. Well….never mind."

"You can't do that. Please, tell me what you have on your mind. If I don't want to do it, I'll let you know."

"Okay. Well, Isabel has a business meeting with her boss tonight, but she really didn't want to have dinner alone with him. From what she tells me, he's got 'Russian' hands and 'Roman' fingers, if you know what I mean."

"And?"

"Well, Isabel asked me if I would join her, but I'd feel a little funny just going by myself. Somehow I honestly don't think it would be as discreet if I were there by myself. But if I have a 'date,' or at least if her boss thinks I have a 'date,' I’m sure he won't feel as self-conscious. That way, I can watch him more subtly."

"So what are you saying exactly?"

"Well, would you like to be my co-conspirator in keeping an eye on her boss?"

"So are you asking me out on a 'date'?" Liz asked, not sure it was really a good idea.

"Not at all. After all, I'd really be on duty, guarding Isabel's virtue and all."

"I don't know if I'm up for that, Max."

Max quickly responded, "Hey, no problem. It was just a thought. I'll figure something out. I just didn't want you to be left alone here while we went out for dinner." He hoped it sounded like a valid enough reason, though even to him it sounded rather lame.

"Well, can I think about it for the day and let you know later this afternoon?"

"Sure. That's fine. And, remember, please don't feel obligated in any way.
"Look, I have to run some errands. Maybe you can let me know when I get back," Max said as he began walking out of the kitchen.

Though Liz didn't really think it a good idea to accept his offer, she had to admit she hadn't been out with a group of people in quite some time. In spite of what she'd just told Max, she couldn't help but think it might just be what she needed right now. So even though Max had only left moments earlier, Liz had already decided what her answer would be when he returned.
*****
Max couldn't help but feel disappointed when he left Liz in the kitchen. Though he had tried to tell himself his reason was so that she wouldn't be alone, he knew, when he decided to be honest with himself, that he was inexplicably drawn to her. The truth of the matter was, he had a selfish motive for inviting her, the fact that she was the first human female he could remember ever being drawn to since meeting the little girl who had held his heart for so many years.

He also remembered the pact he, Isabel, and Michael had made about humans. But what the heck. He'd already crossed that line when he'd foisted Liz on his 'family.' He had decided he might as well at least be friendly with her while he was at it.

As he was thinking along these lines, it occurred to him, if by some miracle she did decide to join him for dinner, perhaps she wouldn't have what she would consider suitable for the occasion. So going on the extremely outside chance that she might just join him, he decided he would take the liberty of buying her a dress for the occasion. If, when he returned, she told him she would not be joining him, he simply would not give her the dress, and she would be none the wiser.

Though he'd planned on doing more practical errands, such as drycleaning and other things to be done for the house, he spent the better part of the day searching for the 'perfect' dress for Liz. He'd about given up on the idea entirely when he stopped at the last boutique in the mall he knew his sister frequented. And he knew from the kinds of dresses his sister got there that they often had what he would get for someone, if he were looking. So he made one last-ditch effort to succeed in his self-appointed mission.

He was on the last rack of dresses in the boutique when one of the sales clerks approached him. "You seem to be looking for something very specific, sir. Perhaps I can be of assistance."

Feeling extremely frustrated, he began explaining what he had in mind.

"You know, we just got a new shipment in this afternoon. I think I may have just what you're looking for. Wait right here." Then she walked to the stock room and was gone for several minutes.

After a good 15 minutes, Max was just thinking to himself that he'd just wasted his entire day and accomplished absolutely nothing, when the young woman returned. "What do you think of this?" she said as she held up the cocktail dress they'd just gotten in."

Max stared at the dress in wonder. Finally, after several seconds, he responded, "It's perfect. It's exactly what I had in mind." Without even looking at the price, he said to her "I'll take it. Do you have it in a size 6?"

When the clerk nodded, he added, "Could you wrap it as well, please."

"I'll be happy to."

Max left the boutique feeling extremely pleased with himself. Of course, the only hurdle now was to find out what Liz had decided. Either way, he still felt good that he'd made the effort. In a very unfamiliar way, it brought a great measure of satisfaction to him, buying something for a woman other than his sister or mother.

'Well,' he thought to himself, 'now all I have to do is wait and talk with Liz,' as he started on his way home.

TBC

Hi, Guys:

Finally, here's the next part. Hope you enjoy it. PLEASE, feel free to leave me your feedback. I always enjoy reading it.

Here goes.

Part 9

Breakfast was a quiet affair among the three. Isabel wasn't able to talk with Max until later about the trance-like state Liz had been in for several minutes; so he didn't yet understand her silence, if, indeed, it could be understood.

Once everyone had finished eating, Isabel got up to begin washing the dishes. Before she could start them, though, Liz got between her and the sink. "What are you doing, Liz? You're our guest."

"No, I really need to do this. Please let me help out in some way. I feel bad enough as it is imposing on you this way."

When Isabel began to protest further, she saw Max silently motion to her to let Liz follow through, and then he motioned for her to follow him to another part of the house.

"Well, when you put it that way," Isabel said after pausing for several seconds, "how can I refuse such an offer. Max and I are going to be tidying up the rest of the house. Call out for us if you need anything," she said as she left the kitchen.

Liz was grateful to have the kitchen to herself as she quietly and distractedly washed the dishes and cleaned up the table. As she did so, she was remembering back to awakening in Max's arms. She didn't know why, but she'd felt safe in that position. His touch felt somehow familiar to her. The thought struck her as being absurd. After all, she'd never met him before. She was certain she would have remembered such kindness and gentleness and comfort, especially since it was so different from what she'd experienced in her dreams over the years.

Thinking about her dreams immediately made her forget about Max. She was once again reliving things from her dreams. Something she was beginning to realize, though, was that she'd been able to get further in her dreams in a calmer subconscious mind than she'd ever been able to before. Part of what had kept her from complete recovery was that she had not been able to be calm enough to finish her dreams. She had never been able to get any further than the memory of having been kidnapped and taken to a spaceship. But she realized in the last day or so she'd remembered more details about what had happened to her while she was on the spaceship.

Liz had 'spaced out' again, dwelling on the things she'd remembered, when someone touched her on the shoulder. When she felt the unexpected touch, she jumped, out of fear.

"It's okay, Liz. I was just curious what happened to you. I didn’t mean to startle you," Max said, as he stepped back from her, hoping to give her space enough to calm her nerves.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to jump. I…I guess I must have been daydreaming," she said lamely.

"It's okay, Liz, really." He ached to walk up to her and pull her into his arms to give her comfort, but he was afraid he would frighten her even more. So, instead, he just stood there, waiting to see if she'd say anything further.

When she didn't, he spoke again. "Liz, I just want you to know, if you ever need to talk, I'm a good listener."

When she began to deny the need, he continued, "Let me finish. Please don't misunderstand. I don't want you to talk about anything you don't want to. I just want you to know you can if you need to."

Liz waited to see if he would say anything else. When he didn't, she responded, "Thanks, Max. It's really very kind of you to offer. But please don't take it personally that I don't think I'll take you up on your offer."

"That’s okay. I just wanted to at least offer."

Wanting to change the subject, Liz tried to put on a 'happy face' and said, "Well, I've finished doing the dishes. What else can I do to help out?"

"You've done plenty already. Besides, we didn't invite you to stay so you could be our maid."

"Even so, I'd like to do anything I can to repay your kindness."

Max thought for a minute, not sure if he should share his thoughts.

Somehow Liz could tell he had something on his mind. "What?"

Not realizing Liz was watching him, Max said, "Huh?"

"I can tell you have something on your mind. What is it?"

"Oh. Well….never mind."

"You can't do that. Please, tell me what you have on your mind. If I don't want to do it, I'll let you know."

"Okay. Well, Isabel has a business meeting with her boss tonight, but she really didn't want to have dinner alone with him. From what she tells me, he's got 'Russian' hands and 'Roman' fingers, if you know what I mean."

"And?"

"Well, Isabel asked me if I would join her, but I'd feel a little funny just going by myself. Somehow I honestly don't think it would be as discreet if I were there by myself. But if I have a 'date,' or at least if her boss thinks I have a 'date,' I’m sure he won't feel as self-conscious. That way, I can watch him more subtly."

"So what are you saying exactly?"

"Well, would you like to be my co-conspirator in keeping an eye on her boss?"

"So are you asking me out on a 'date'?" Liz asked, not sure it was really a good idea.

"Not at all. After all, I'd really be on duty, guarding Isabel's virtue and all."

"I don't know if I'm up for that, Max."

Max quickly responded, "Hey, no problem. It was just a thought. I'll figure something out. I just didn't want you to be left alone here while we went out for dinner." He hoped it sounded like a valid enough reason, though even to him it sounded rather lame.

"Well, can I think about it for the day and let you know later this afternoon?"

"Sure. That's fine. And, remember, please don't feel obligated in any way.
"Look, I have to run some errands. Maybe you can let me know when I get back," Max said as he began walking out of the kitchen.

Though Liz didn't really think it a good idea to accept his offer, she had to admit she hadn't been out with a group of people in quite some time. In spite of what she'd just told Max, she couldn't help but think it might just be what she needed right now. So even though Max had only left moments earlier, Liz had already decided what her answer would be when he returned.
*****
Max couldn't help but feel disappointed when he left Liz in the kitchen. Though he had tried to tell himself his reason was so that she wouldn't be alone, he knew, when he decided to be honest with himself, that he was inexplicably drawn to her. The truth of the matter was, he had a selfish motive for inviting her, the fact that she was the first human female he could remember ever being drawn to since meeting the little girl who had held his heart for so many years.

He also remembered the pact he, Isabel, and Michael had made about humans. But what the heck. He'd already crossed that line when he'd foisted Liz on his 'family.' He had decided he might as well at least be friendly with her while he was at it.

As he was thinking along these lines, it occurred to him, if by some miracle she did decide to join him for dinner, perhaps she wouldn't have what she would consider suitable for the occasion. So going on the extremely outside chance that she might just join him, he decided he would take the liberty of buying her a dress for the occasion. If, when he returned, she told him she would not be joining him, he simply would not give her the dress, and she would be none the wiser.

Though he'd planned on doing more practical errands, such as drycleaning and other things to be done for the house, he spent the better part of the day searching for the 'perfect' dress for Liz. He'd about given up on the idea entirely when he stopped at the last boutique in the mall he knew his sister frequented. And he knew from the kinds of dresses his sister got there that they often had what he would get for someone, if he were looking. So he made one last-ditch effort to succeed in his self-appointed mission.

He was on the last rack of dresses in the boutique when one of the sales clerks approached him. "You seem to be looking for something very specific, sir. Perhaps I can be of assistance."

Feeling extremely frustrated, he began explaining what he had in mind.

"You know, we just got a new shipment in this afternoon. I think I may have just what you're looking for. Wait right here." Then she walked to the stock room and was gone for several minutes.

After a good 15 minutes, Max was just thinking to himself that he'd just wasted his entire day and accomplished absolutely nothing, when the young woman returned. "What do you think of this?" she said as she held up the cocktail dress they'd just gotten in."

Max stared at the dress in wonder. Finally, after several seconds, he responded, "It's perfect. It's exactly what I had in mind." Without even looking at the price, he said to her "I'll take it. Do you have it in a size 6?"

When the clerk nodded, he added, "Could you wrap it as well, please."

"I'll be happy to."

Max left the boutique feeling extremely pleased with himself. Of course, the only hurdle now was to find out what Liz had decided. Either way, he still felt good that he'd made the effort. In a very unfamiliar way, it brought a great measure of satisfaction to him, buying something for a woman other than his sister or mother.

'Well,' he thought to himself, 'now all I have to do is wait and talk with Liz,' as he started on his way home.

TBC

Hi, ptiboudesucr:

Thanks for your thoughts. I'll try to resubmit part 10. Hopefully, it will show up this time. Let's see what happens.

Here goes (once again)

Part 10a

After making her decision, it occurred to Liz she didn't have a thing to wear that would possibly be suitable for a business dinner. She knew it would be necessary to go out and buy something. So she left on errands herself, hoping she'd be able to find the kind of dress she had in mind.

Liz had taken the local bus and had been out all day and was extremely disappointed not to find the kind of dress she could see in her mind's eye. Now she was reconsidering whether or not it would be a good idea to accept Max's invitation. After all, she didn't want to look like a fuddy-duddy. Yes, the more she thought about it, the more she decided she could not accept the invitation and be able to wear any of the clothes she had with her. 'Oh, well,' she thought to herself, 'I guess I'll be spending a lonely evening with myself tonight after all.'

Just as Liz was going to knock on the door (she'd forgotten she didn't have a key to the place), the door began to open, and out stepped Max.

"I was just beginning to wonder…"

"I didn't know if anyone would be…"

They had both begun speaking at once.

"I'm sorry. What were you going to say?" Liz asked.

"I was just beginning to wonder what happened to you. I've been home for the last hour or so, and Isabel and I were starting to worry that maybe you got lost."

"Oh, no, I didn't get lost. I just went shopping and didn't find what I was looking for. So I just decided to walk a good part of the way back," she said glumly. "Then, of course, I remembered I didn't have a key for your house. So I was really hoping you guys would be here," she added, as she entered the house.

"What were you looking for that you couldn't find?" Max asked, out of curiosity.

"Oh, it doesn't matter. It wasn't important.
"Listen, Max, I've thought about your invitation, and I've decided" --

"Wait. Before you answer, it occurred to me and Isabel that maybe you wouldn't feel you had anything to wear. So I hope you don't mind, but we took the liberty of finding something for you," he said shyly, as he handed her the wrapped box.

Of course, Isabel didn't know anything about the gift yet, but Max was afraid Liz would not accept it if she knew he was the one who had bought it. He made a mental note to himself to mention it to Isabel before Liz caught him in a lie.

"You, what?!!" Liz said in disbelief. "I can't accept this. You guys have been too kind to me already," she continued, as she held the package in her arms.

Still fearing Liz would not accept the package, Max said, "Listen, if it will make you feel any better, you can pay us back," though he really had no intention of accepting any payment for it.

Liz stood and thought for a moment, determining what her options were. She could either proudly refuse the generosity of this wonderful brother and sister, or she could graciously accept it, at least for now, and hopefully have a wonderful evening that she would probably have to treasure for a very long time.

"Well, under those conditions," Liz began, "I'd be happy to accept it. But I will definitely pay you back as soon as I can," she added.

Just as Liz was making her last statement, Isabel entered the room. "Pay us back for what?"

Max immediately turned toward Isabel and was trying to discreetly indicate to her to just play along, and then he said, "Liz wants to pay us back for the dress you and I got for her to wear tonight," he said, with a pleading look on his face that only Isabel could see.

Now Isabel was getting an idea of what was going on and with a smirk on her face, she said, "That's fine, Liz. Whenever it's convenient. It's not urgent."

"I guess I better go try it on before I get too excited," Liz said as she hurried toward the room she'd been in the night before.

"Max, what did you" --

"Oh, I forgot to ask. What time should I be ready?" Liz had hurried back where she’d left Max and Isabel, arriving just as Isabel was getting ready to rake Max over the coals.

"Oh, I told my boss we'd be arriving around 8:00. So we really should leave here by at least 7:30," Isabel responded.

"Okay. I'll see you guys in a little while," and off Liz went once again, hurrying toward her room.

"Max, I don't have time right now, but you and I definitely have to talk later," Isabel said, as she headed off herself to get ready.

Max could only think to himself, 'Well, I'm safe for at least a little while.' Then he too headed up the stairs to get ready for the evening.
*****
Of course, it went without saying that Max would be the first one ready to go. So he went downstairs to wait for his sister and Liz.

Max was beginning to get antsy when he finally heard his sister's door open and shortly thereafter saw her coming down the stairs. Then he heard the door to the room Liz was staying in. Isabel got down the stairs just as Liz was walking toward the stairs herself.

Max looked from one woman to the other and then spoke. "You ladies both look beautiful," he said with an appreciative smile. Of course, he knew Isabel always looked great. But he was almost floored when he saw Liz all dolled up. It took his breath away to see her in the dress he'd chosen for her. It looked just perfect, just the way he'd imagined it would.

"Well," he said to the two women as he grabbed each of their arms, "shall we go."

Each took one of Max's arms, and said, "Yes, we shall," as they all three headed for the door and to the waiting limo that Isabel's boss had sent for them.
*****
Mr. Pearce, Isabel's boss was waiting for them when they arrived at the restaurant. Of course, he'd only expected Isabel and Max. So when he saw another young woman with them, he was pleasantly surprised. 'Maybe Max wasn't here after all to spy on me,' he thought to himself.

He greeted Isabel by taking her hand and kissing it, then shaking Max's hand, and then he turned to the mysterious young woman with them.

"And is this gorgeous young woman your date, Max?" he asked in a leering fashion. Even as he did so, he took Liz's unwilling hand and began to kiss it, as he had done to Isabel.

As he did so, though, Liz began having flashes. At first, she just felt dizzy, not realizing what was going on in her head. But suddenly pictures flashed before her that she'd only seen in her dreams all these years. She suddenly saw the figure of the one who'd been called 'Khivar' in her nightmares. So sudden was the flash that it scared her to the point of yanking her hand from the man's hand.

"Now, that's no way to treat your host, is it?" he said, as he went to grab her hand again.

Before he could, however, Liz regained her composure and stood back. "I'm so sorry. I suddenly feel a little faint. Please excuse me for a few minutes," she said, and then turned to look for the restroom.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Pearce. I'm sure she’s just not be feeling well. I'm going to go check on her," Isabel said, and then went after Liz.

"That one's a bit touchy, wouldn't you say, Max?" Mr. Pearce said, trying to shrug off the embarrassment.

"Actually, she was feeling fine until we arrived. Maybe she got a bug as we got here," Max said sarcastically. They both sat down at the table, waiting for the young women to return. In the mean time, they talked about inconsequential things, such as news events. There wasn't a whole lot Max had in common with this man, if anything at all. So it was going to take a lot of effort on his part to be civil to Isabel's employer.

TBC