"Your mother will probably be worried about us." Tim said.

"You have no idea. She still acts like I need to worry about rapists, and.. well, she just doesn't get it."

"You don't, ever?"

"Why do some guys always need to be convinced? Give me your hand."

He does, and the next thing he knows, he's flat on his back on the dirt and his chest hurts. He can't get up for thirty seconds. The academy was a really long time ago.

"Oh, my God," Buffy says, "Are you OK?"

"It only hurts...when I breathe. " The superpower thing is not a legend. Tim understands that now.

Bwah!

Oh, jings, Erika. I really do need to watch H:LotS.

I'm loving your guys. If this is what the guys are like (and I believe it wholeheartedly) then they rock.

Oh, jings, Erika. I really do need to watch H:LotS.

ohohoh-- you could come visit LA again, to watch my DVDs.

Thanks, Fay. And yeah, you do. (And that's what they're kind of like.) I'm just glad I can get beyond that whole "Write what you know" thing, sometimes.)

BWAH! great scene, Erika.

My drabble #2:

Photographs & Memories, Dawn, S7, G, "Caught" challenge

There are too many nervous people around for Dawn to ever be alone. Even when she's in her room, Potentials follow, chattering and messing up her CDs.

But right now, it's quiet in the house. She reaches for the precious book she keeps under her bed.

Her mother, arms around her girls. Her father, feeding baby Dawn. Buffy, walking her to her first day of kindergarten. Christmas cookies, birthday cakes, Thanksgiving dinners. It's not real, but it's normal.

Buffy peeks into the room, notices the leather album. Sits down on Dawn's bed.

"I miss those days, too," she says quietly.

Her guys are perfect, Fay. She's got Tim down, and just the little bit we've seen of Frank - self-righteous, brilliant, arrogant, fiercely loyal - just crackles with him.

First you make us laugh, and then you try to break us. It worked. Sniff.

Lyra, you know what really surprised me? How many of the "caught in he act" drabbles weren't on the obvious topics.

Loved that.

Manipulation is the name of the game, sj ;-). Thank you.

Also, "a pain in the ass." Sometimes. But brilliant people kind of earn that right, right? Well, that's been my dream since childhood, anyway.