John insisted on telling Will and the rest of the crew which abruptly halted any plans I'd had of going out the next day.

"Could this have anything to do with her abilities?" Robert asked as we discussed the situation the next morning in the medbay.

"It's the most likely culprit." John agreed "Either way, I want to get it removed quickly before it spreads to more problematic sections of the brain".

We departed from the station and set a course to the contested zone. After the night of drinking, everyone was tired. I offered to stand watch on the bridge. Gabe invited himself to join me on the bridge. It would make the watch easier on me with someone to talk to.

I showed him to the bridge while the rest of the crew settled in their quarters. I sat in the captain's chair and took command of Shadow Stalker. Gabe grilled me, "How did some greenhorns get roped into running a spec ops mission?"

My head was ringing as overlapping shouts of confusion and disbelief filled the bridge.

I looked at Will for the first time. He was saying something. His mouth was moving. He looked angry... at me. I glanced over to the others, all in various states of disarray.

I closed my eyes and shook my head. I had to get the ringing to stop so I could think.

This one started as an idea for a longer story, but the team was so good they solved the case before it went too far. It wrapped up just in time for Christmas.
Marianne

Chapter 1

Some concerned friends help Devon find out something important about himself.

Silver Bell Wish 1
by Peregrine
My attempt at a Christmas story. The plan is to have it done by Christmas.

Chapter 4

Saturday morning, Henny was beside herself with excitement. I had to get her to slow down, or else she wouldn’t last the morning, let alone the day. We had breakfast in our nighties and gowns and then worked on showers and dressing. I was ready by the time the doorbell went, to find Maria and Penny on the step. From my own experience, I knew Penny couldn’t resist a shopping day.

Courage
An BigCloset TopShelf Exclusive Story

I took a deep breath as I peered toward the plain, copper protestant cross that stood on the altar. The air inside St. George's Episcopal Church was cold, just like the weather outside. A rare snow storm had moved in from Tennessee bringing with it not only snow, but a bitter wind that cut one to the bare bone. The Rector of St. George, Fr. George Stonewall had yet to turn on the heat. And thus the only warmth was from the tip of the altar candles.

Chapter 3

Going back into the house, I helped with the dinner, and we sat to enjoy the meal. Mum had found a bottle of white wine which had been in the fridge, and we had a glass, each. It wasn’t bad. I had baked a cake, during the week, so we each had a slice, covered in custard out of a carton.

I moaned as he pulled me closer. I still don't know what came over me. I wrapped my arms around his neck as his settled around my waist. I didn't want to stop.

If Robert or any of the others were in the bridge, they would have been getting a steamy show but I didn't care. For those few mind-blowing minutes, it was like something inside me had snapped.

'How do I get back?' I wondered. I looked left and right, dense forest on either side. I'd been so focused on following the source of the noise that I'd entirely forgotten to mark my path or even remember where I was going.

I'd decided on a direction as best as I could remember and waded through the trees. When the forest seemed to be getting denser I walked a different direction.

Changing one's image is never easy. If you were ready to go public with a new image, who would be the first person you showed it to?

Fate brings Christopher back to Lady Mariam whom he has long admired...
Reality means she gets to live a fantasy...
Christopher becomes Kristina...
A servant girl to Lady Mariam who she long adored...
Being a Lady's helper pleased something deep inside...

Chapter 36

On arriving home mum didn't waste any time in telling me to have a quick bath ready for my date that evening. Rather than argue, I did as I was told, as I actually felt like I needed a nice hot relaxing bath to soothe away the stresses of the day.

As I lay in the bath, I checked my legs to see whether there was any hair growth and was relieved to find only found a few rogue hairs. I used mum’s lady shaver to remove the offending hairs and lay back in the bath and enjoyed the hot bubbles.

"No! No!" I screamed while backing away "Absolutely not"

"You don't even know it's going to be you" John said. He seemed giddy about it.

"But I do. It's going to be me"

"Yeah you're probably right" He laughed.

"I'm not doing it" I made it clear "I don't agree to it"

Will who seemed to be pondering the whole time finally spoke "Is that even possible?" he asked.

Fate brings Christopher back to Lady Mariam whom he had long admired...
Reality meant to live a fantasy...

Mars station was an orbital facility that served numerous functions for both planets.

While it acted like a space port, it's main purpose was scientific research. Mars station was tasked with studying the planet's atmosphere and surface to aid in our terraformation pursuits.

Also, like so many other missions before us, we were using it as a launch pad to the farther reaches of the solar system.

Talk With An Angel By Teek 1,660 words long   Summary: God offers a toddler with autism a choice between two possible futures. Now the parents and the child's guardian angel must cope with the decision.

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