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Pep was a very patient woman. It was one of her very best traits.

However, she found her patience growing thin after nearly two years of moping from her beloved. She could understand the need to heal, the reasons for his pain. But he'd made no improvement since the death of his sister.

Two years. She'd spent two years watching the man she loved waste away. He'd gone from being a fit protector to a long haired, unwashed drunk that just sat on their couch.

She could not take it anymore.

"So, is this what the rest of our life is going to be like, Bob?" She asked him. It was early enough in the morning that he would still have a hangover from the night before, but also early enough that he wouldn't have started to drink again.

Bob winced, her voice just adding to the headache that was already brewing. "Get off my back." The words were quiet, slightly slurred. Nothing like they should've been. He patted around in his pockets for his pack of cigarettes, lighting up and sighing with releif.

Pep shook her head. She didn't cry. She'd spent the past two years crying, ever since that little girl they'd both cared so much for had died.

Pepito was done crying.

"I'm sorry." She told him, though her voice was firm. Bob looked up at her, eyes slightly narrowed. "I've had enough, Bob. I'm leaving."

He snorted, turning away. "Yeah, yeah." He said, voice low. "Just leave me too."

He was surprised when his girlfriend's hands were suddenly pressing him against a wall. Her one eye was feirce. "Yes, Bob, feel sorry for yourself. Again. You've gotten so good at playing the part of the victim. Guess what? She's dead, not you!"

Bob snarled, throwing her off. "I know she's dead!" He cried, and for a moment, just a moment, there was the real Bob. The one who had killed in rage and to protect, the man that Pep loved. But he was gone all too soon. He turned back from her, going for the scotch. "I remember she's dead every minute."

Pep bit her lip and shook her head, grabbing her coat. "You know what? I was wrong." She said, shrugging it on. "She's not dead yet. You refuse to let her die. And until you do, until you move on, I can't be here with you."

She lifted his head up, kissing his cheek. "I will always love you, Bob. But you're not you now." She told him, and turned.

It was a testament to how much he was not himself. He let her go.

Kurai ran as fast as he could, breathing hard, his eyes wide and terrified. While it was commonly thought that the boy was daft, he was far from stupid. He knew exactly what had happened to his family.

Brendel had been the Sorceress's greatest ally. Once she had been destroyed the man had went insane. And he was apparently taking out his rage on those close to his enemy, Bob.

Oh, God. The poor boy was terrified. His mother and siblings were good as dead.

He kept running until he literally slammed into Bob's door. The poor boy wound up in the rosebushes. Bob opened the door a moment later, looking out at the squirming feet.

"Your Ma send you after me?" He asked, words only slightly slurred. Kurai righted himself and looked up at him. Oh, Bob, that boy damn near worshiped the ground you walked on. An adult male that was kind and didn't hit him? It was almost as amazing as having a kind mother.

"Brendel." He said softly. Bob leaned against the door, tilting his head.

"What?"

"Brendel. High level light spell. Blew open the door. Mother grabbed me, pushed me out the window. He has them." Kurai's voice was tiny, his expression meek, but his eyes were strong. He grabbed Bob's hand and tugged on him.

"Wha-"

"C'mon, please!" Kurai whimpered, eyes begging. "He'll kill them. Please."

Bob looked down at the boy, then looked away. "Kid, I can't-"

"You must!" And Bob probably hadn't been more surprised in his life than when Kurai shoved him. "They will die, and it'll be more things that you'll hate yourself for! You couldn't help that Jeane died, you couldn't! But you can save Mother, and the sisters!"

Bob looked at the ground.

"Please..."

"You'll be giving me backup, kid." He said, voice rough. Kurai perked up and nodded. He grabbed Bob's arm and started to drag them back towards his home.

"First off, help me get this mess taken care of." Bob said, grabbing a pair of scissors and handing them to Kurai. The boy looked at them for a moment, then up at Bob. The fairy sat, motioning to his hair. "In a fight, someone'll grab and yank me right into their area. Chop it close."

Kurai did, and while he did, Bob wrapped his hands. Once his mess of hair was gone he stood and splashed water on his face, changing into something tighter, something he'd be capable of fighting in.

"Now, they'll be expecting us to come in through the front." Bob explained. "I ain't got no magic of my own, but I know you've got some. Gimmie your hands."

The young demon did so, momentarily just looking at the difference between them. His hands were soft, unblemished, pale and small. Bob's hands were large and rough, tanned and hard. The fairy squeezed his hands lightly.

"Just get the magic flowing, Kurai, and I'll take us where we need to go." Bob said gently. Kurai concentrated, got his magic started, and-

What... What was this place?

Unable to open his eyes, Bob couldn't really tell. He shifted lightly, thinking, observing with his hands and his nose. He could smell fresh cut grass, cherry and apple blossoms, and lilacs. He felt that grass beneath him, could hear the swishing of the lilac bush, and knew that when he opened his eyes he would see their blossoms, framed by a large old red barn.

He was home.

Bob finally opened his eyes and sat up, and, yes, there was the old lilac tree, the black cherry tree, the apple orchard. The old fence was still up, and an old horse grazed there. An ancient labrador sat by her box, tail wagging at him.

"Hey."

And there was the voice that he'd wanted so badly to hear, just one more time, for the past two years. His little sister, his beloved one. She sat on the porch swing, petting a calico cat, an old blanket on her lap. And she was just like he remembered.

"Hey, honey." He said softly, standing. He walked past the old picnic table, up the steps that her father had built, and sat beside her on the swing. Jeane leaned against him, rubbing her face against his shoulder.

"You did good." She told him softly, rocking. Bob leaned his head back, at peace. "Even if you ******** up a bunch. Really, I never thought that Pep would get pissed at you enough that she'd leave!"

"Yeah... I did ******** up." He laughed, wrapping an arm around her. "God, I've missed you." Tears started to form in his eyes, his throat felt like it was closing. But he forced the words out. "In the begining, every day I'd find something and think to myself, "Jeane would love this". I'd want so bad to talk to you, to tell you something, to hear you laugh just one more time. When it got the worst, I'd go to your grave and sit, but it wasn't enough. I just couldn't-"

"I know, honey." Jeane sounded miserable. "I know. I've been watching you, and my babies." She stroked his cheek. "I wish I could've did it differently."

"I couldn't stop blaming myself."

"I know, honey."

"But I couldn't have done anything to save you, could I?"

"No, baby. You couldn't." Jeane smiled, kissing his cheek. "Nothing could've saved me, except me. And I'm what did me in. You did everything you could then."

Bob sighed. "They're fine, right? Brendel's dead?"

"Yeah, honey. You protected them." And now she sounded proud. "You did so good, honey. You were out of shape, but still did good." Ah, now she was teasing him. Bob grinned, tickling her side. She squealed with laughter, and he cried when he heard it.

"So... Am I-"

"No." Jeane smiled, looking out at the farmland that she'd always held so near to her heart, the home she'd grown up on. "You're pretty badly hurt, but with Kurai and Uuven's help, you're being healed. You'll wake up soon, too."

"..I want to stay here with you-"

"You can't, honey."

"I know. As much as I miss you, I know that Pep would miss me just as much." He smiled, tipping his head back, looking up at the rafters of the porch. "I've been so selfish, Sis. I'll change that."

'-od, please, give him back to me-'

"It won't be long now." Jeane sighed, and the old lab bayed. She kissed his cheek, crawling onto his lap. "Do one thing for me, Bob."

"Anything."

"-ulse going back to no-"

"Find my babies, Bob. They're scattered so far apart. Find my babies, and bring them home."

"I promise, Sis."

'Come back to me, love-'

It had taken bob a bit to recover from his injuries. He still wasn't healed by Gambino's great 'Prom' (Seriously, old man, could you get any more desperate?) but he insisted on taking Pep to it. She rolled her eyes and frowned, but had great fun shopping for a dress and accessories.

"You're gorgeous, you know." Bob grinned, elbows resting on the balcony. She was quite pretty. The dress she wore was white, as were her arm sleeves (ribbon luv? Gaians had the oddest names for clothing). A large lily corsage stood out against the white, but it matched the one on Bob's lapel, so all was well.

"Flatterer." She grinned, swishing her dress slightly. Bob smiled, pulling her close for a kiss to the forehead. Ah, he loved moments like these.

Pep was quite fond of them as well. Even if he was still grumpy, it was the type of grumpy that she was used to. He'd stopped blaming himself, and was happy in the fact that he'd saved his family.

"Hey, Pep?" He asked after a moment, kissing her temple.

"What?"

And her heart stopped for a moment as the man went down on one knee, pulling out a box. The ring was simple and gold, but Pep didn't need or like diamonds. "I won't make promises. Thats not who I am. But I love you, and I for sure need someone to keep my sorry a** in line. Will you marry me?"

Amongst the 'awwing' and squealing girls, Pep beamed, pulling him up and throwing her arms around him. "Yes I will, you dumb b*****d!" She said, smiling so wide that it felt like her lips would crack. "You really needed to ask?"

"Well, it was either ask, or force, and I don't think forced marriages are legal here, hon." He grinned, cockily, and Pep laughed before kissing that grin off of his face.

Her beloved was back.