"Wha... Let me see!" Maria cried, pushing Michael out of the way. She took the eye-piece in her hand and put her eye up to it. She saw that her blood had turned a strange pale purple color with black fiber-looking pieces and the slide was indeed deteriorated.

Kyle grabbed the slide from Liz's hand with his own sample and used the other microscope to take a look. He stood up, not saying anything, and walked over to sit down on a stool, staring intently at the ground.

"What two different tests did you run?" Max asked, looking at the microscope that Kyle had left behind.

Liz's looked at Max, her eyes tearing a little and her voice came out shaky. "They were the same tests but with fresh liquids. I figured that maybe I had used too much of the chemicals at first so I decided to try it again, but I got the same results."

"How can this be, Liz?" Maria asked, not taking her eye off the microscope. "What does this mean?" She yelled.

*Calm down, Maria,* Michael sent, wrapping his arms around her. *She doesn't know.*

Maria pushed him away. "No! I don't want to be held or patronized!" She turned on Liz, her face twisted in anger. "You knew!" she accused her friend. Liz's eyes grew wide and she cowered behind Max as Maria continued to yell. "You knew that my cells would be different. Tell me how you knew!"

"MARIA! CALM DOWN!" Michael yelled, grabbing the girl before she could get into Liz's face.

Liz had began to cry and looked like at any second, she was going to flee. "It was just a suspicion, Maria. I was only trying to help," she whimpered.

"Sure you were!" Maria spat.

"What's wrong with you?" Michael insisted, shaking Maria's by the shoulders. "She's your friend! She's trying to help you! Chill the fuck out!"

He looked her straight in the eye and saw that she wasn't hearing him. Her eye were unfocused, her pupils dilated, and all he could sense from her in the link was sheer anger. He could tell she was going to blow so he did the only thing he could think of.

He tried to replace her anger with a passion by giving her a kiss. She attempted to resist but he held her strong until the anger had dissipated and turned to raw passion. She wrapped her arms around his neck and began to kiss him back. He opened his eyes to try to apologize for his behavior but he saw the others were looking elsewhere.

Eventually, he pulled back and saw that she was herself again. "Are you okay now?" Michael asked her.

Maria nodded took a deep breath. She heard a sob come from behind her and turned to see that Liz was crying. *Did I do that? Is she crying because of me?* she sent Michael

He nodded.

*I need to apologize. What did I do to her?*

*You accused her of hiding information from you.*

She nodded, sniffed and then turned and walked over to Liz and put her arms around her. "I'm sorry babe. I was just upset." She whispered, into the smaller girl's ear. "Please, forgive me."

Liz returned the embrace and nodded, her nose rubbing against Maria's shoulder. "It's okay. I understand." In a more lighthearted voice, she added, "Just don't let it happen again."

"I Promise," she smiled.

Turning to Michael, she said, "Where do we go from here? We need to find out why me and...where did Kyle go?" she asked looking around the room.

Everyone looked over to where Kyle had been sitting and noticed that he was gone. "He must have left when...during all the confusion," Liz said.

"Should I go find him?" Michael asked, but Maria shook her head.

"No, give him some time. It's a lot to deal with and he probably needs some time to compose herself."

"Whatever you say," Michael shrugged. He looked up at the clock and swore under his breath. "Great, Sheriff Valenti will be at the trailer in an hour to pick me up and I still have to pack."

"We'll go with you," Isabel said, touching him affectionately on the arm. "To help out."

"Good, and I can tell you about the rest of my vision," Maria said. "Let's help Liz clean up real quick and then get out of here."

*****

"Okay, first we need to start with a masque," Isabel said as the three girls ate ice-cream in the kitchen of the Evans' home. They had set guide lines that they wouldn't discuss any of the events that happened that day - that would be the guy's job as they kept watch.

"What kind of masque?" Liz asked.

Isabel raised her hand to Liz's face and ran one finger over her forehead. "Well, your skin is normal to oily so I'd say, yogurt and oatmeal for you. And for Maria," she touched Maria's forehead and continued, "avocado and watermelon."

"What do you use?" Maria asked, licking Tabasco flavored, vanilla ice-cream off the back of her spoon.

Isabel shrugged. "Depends. Most of the time, I boil some milk and cook a vanilla bean in it and then add some whipping cream and put that on my face. It does wonder for your skin and the smell is relaxing too."

"And I bet it tastes great," Liz nodded in an exaggerated way. She and Maria giggled.

"Tonight, I think I'll just use the avocado - watermelon mix though. We'll put cucumber slices on our eyes and relax for a half hour. I'll boil some beer while we make our facials and well do a rinse on our hair."

"Beer?" both Liz and Maria asked, making faces.

"Yes, beer. It's really good for your hair, makes it shiny. We'll wash it out of course and I have a whole array of shampoos and conditioners to follow it up by." She put a manicured hand to her chin and looked towards the ceiling. "Then, we'll put our hair in curlers and order a pizza, and maybe watch a movie."

"What movie?" Maria asked.

"Well, I picked up a few after we left Michael's." She walked over to the plastic bag on the table and fished out three white plastic video boxes. "I got, "Love Story," Isabel said and then put it down on the table.

"Oh I love that movie," Liz said, clutching her heart. "It is so sad, but soooo good."

"Mmm-hmm," Maria added, nodding in agreement after putting another spoonful of Ice-cream into her mouth.

"Next, I got, 'Shag,' an equally good movie, but fun instead of sad."

"Another fine choice," Liz said.

"And the last is 'Steel Magnolias.'"

"My all-time favorite!" Maria said, doing a little hop in the air. Then she started to giggle and the two girls looked at her in bewilderment.

"What's so funny?" Isabel finally asked.

Through teary-eyed laughter, she gasped, "I made Michael watch it when we were in the hotel."

"Michael? Poor guy, it must have been in absolute hell!" Isabel said, joining the petite blond in her laughter.

"It was," they heard Michael's voice say and all turned to see him and Max enter the kitchen. "That had to be one of the worst chick-flicks I've ever had to watch and Isabel has made me watch some real bad ones." He walked up to Maria and hugged her from behind, nibbling a little on her neck. She giggled.

"Looks like you're in a better mood," he remarked and she nodded. Silently she told him of the rule. *No references are to be made about what's going on. Girls rule.*

*Oh, okay,* he said and then opened his mouth to take in the huge spoonful of ice-cream that Maria put up to his mouth.

"Wow, I think you went a little overboard on the Tabasco," he told her after swallowing the mouthful.

"Not possible," she argued, tapping him lightly on the nose with the cold spoon.

He rubbed the bit of moisture off his nose and said, "At least there's no bacon or tapioca pudding in there."

"Bacon and tapioca?" Isabel asked, grimacing.

"Yeah, I had to make her a BLT yesterday with tapioca pudding and shredded coconut and extra mustard. It was pretty gross."

"Sounds pretty gross," Liz agreed.

"No, it was good," Maria said stubbornly. She picked up another soft-blob of red-tinted ice-cream and took some into her mouth, then spontaneously, dabbed some on Michael's nose.

"Hey!" he cried, raising his hand to wipe it off.

"No, wait!" she said, leaning in and licking a bit off. "You're pretty yummy," she giggled and licked her lips.. "If I eat you, will you still love me?"

Michael's face fell and he recoiled from her. "What?" she asked, not understanding what she did wrong.

"You said, 'If I eat you, will you still love me?' That's what you said in my dream yesterday."

"Beep-Beep Richie!" Isabel said, shooting a look at Michael.

Michael quickly recovered and apologized but he and Maria appeared to be having a silent conversation. *As long as I don't have to hear it,* Isabel thought.

"Beep-Beep Richie?" Liz asked in a questioning voice.

"It's from IT, by Stepen King?"

"Never saw it," Liz shrugged.

Isabel smiled. "We should watch it, I own it. But, Beep-Beep Richie is a buzz-word or rather phrase they use to tell one of the kids he wasn't being funny. I'm just using it to tell Michael that no references to you- know-what are allowed tonight."

"Oh," Liz said and then turned to put her bowl in the sink. She froze when she came face to face with Max and then quietly said, "Excuse me," and walked around him.

*Now, those two need to just do it and get it over with,* Isabel thought, rolling her eyes. "Okay girls," she said aloud. "It's facial time."

Maria kissed Michael on the lips and then turned back towards Isabel. "What do we need to do?" she asked.

*****

With their masks on their faces and cucumber slices over their eyes, the girls laid on Isabel's floor and partook in girl talk.

"What I really want to know," Liz said, giggling, "is if it hurt?"

"No," Maria answered. "Well a little. Okay, a lot. At first it hurt like hell and I even cried, but the pain dulled and it started to feel really good."

"How did it happen?" Isabel asked. "I mean, who initiated it?"

Maria giggled. "I did. Don't laugh but I set up this whole little seduction ploy where I went to take a shower, purposely forgetting my bathroom stuff, and then made him get it for me. Then I threw the shower curtain back and waited for him. He was so shocked that bottles went flying everywhere."

"I can just imagine the look on his face," Isabel said. "So, how long did he resist before he attacked you?"

"He yelled at me and told me I was a slut," Maria admitted.

"He didn't!" Liz said, shocked.

"Yep. But then he apologized and said the most amazing things," she sighed dreamily. "He told me he loved me."

"How sweet," Liz said. "Now, what I've been dying to know is about the whole ice-cream sundae thing. How did that happen?"

Maria laughed so hard she had to clutch at her stomach. "Isabel doesn't want me to talk about it, I'm sure," she said when she could speak clearly.

"I don't mind," Isabel admitted. "I mean at first, I was a little freaked out about it but can you really blame me?"

"No, not really," Maria answered. "Look I just decided that dessert would be more fun that way. He didn't seem to mind."

"I'm sure he didn't," Isabel muttered.

"He did it to me too, so I can't really complain. And then he...did some other stuff so I REALLY can't complain."

"What other stuff?" Liz asked greedily. "Did he...?"

"Yes."

"Oh my God! What did that feel like?"

"This may be a little too much information for me," Isabel interrupted but Maria continued.

"You have no idea how good that felt, Liz. It was absolute heaven." She stuck her tongue out to lick her lips and took in a gob of avocado and watermelon. "Izzy, I think I'm melting," she said, brining her hand up to wipe her lips clean.

"Yeah, me too," Isabel said. "I think it will be okay to wash our faces now. Then we can do the beer rinse, curl our hair, and then order a pizza. I'm getting really hungry."

"Yeah, I'm starving," Maria said, removing the cucumber slices from her eyes. She sat up and followed the girls to the bathroom where, one-by-one, they cleaned the goop off their faces.

*****

"What do we want on our pizza?" Isabel asked as she looked up the number in the phone directory. The girls had all changed into their pajamas and had sponge rollers in their hair and were congregating around the kitchen table.

"Pepperoni?" Liz suggested.

"And anchovies," Maria added. "With pineapple and red peppers."

Isabel and Liz grimaced. "Yuck!" the said together.

Maria pouted and then sighed and plopped down on one of the chairs at the table. "I don't care," she grumbled.

Isabel and Liz exchanged looks and Isabel said, "We'll get two pizzas, then. I don't mind. One with pepperoni and mushroom and oh, black olives. The other will have anchovies and pineapple and red peppers. Is that good?"

Maria said, "Forget it. I don't want to be an inconvenience."

"Don't be silly, Maria. I really don't mind." Isabel said and then dialed the number and placed the order.

"How's it going in here girls?" They heard Max as he, Michael and Alex entered the room.

"Alex!" Isabel cried in delight. "When did you get here?"

Michael grinned. "A little too late, it looks like. You really might want to lose the curlers and put some make-up on. You girls are lookin scary."

"Screw you too, buddy," Maria answered, but she was smiling.

"I finally got ahold of Kyle," Max announced.

"Really?" Maria said. "I didn't know you were trying to reach him."

"I thought we should check up on him and make sure he was okay. He's coming over a little later to help us keep watch."

"Is he okay?" Liz asked.

Max nodded. "Yeah. Just a little shaken. Which is totally understandable considering...."

"Beep-Beep Richie!" both Liz and Isabel said after looking at each other with a secretive smile, giggling.

"Oooh, IT! I love that movie," Alex said. "I sure was scared of clowns for a long time after seeing it though."

"Who wasn't?" Isabel said. "We were thinking of watching it instead of the movies that I picked up," she informed him and then smile shyly at Alex. "Did you want to join us?"

"If I wouldn't be intruding on girl's night."

"Don't be silly, Alex," she said. "Besides, I'm going to need a shoulder to bury my head in during the scary parts."

Alex flexed his scrawny muscles and in a deep voice said, "Don't worry little lady. I'll protect you."

"We should all watch it together," Maria agreed. "I'm not a big fan of scary movies anyways."

Michael and Max shrugged and Michael said, "Sure. We don't have anything better to do."

*****

"Oh no, I can't watch him hurt that little boy," Maria cried, digging her nails into Michael's arm and looking away.

"Don't worry. This was originally made for television so they don't show anything," Isabel assured the girl.

They were all sitting in the Evans' living room with the lights turned off; Isabel and Alex sprawled out on the floor, Michael and Maria lying on the couch and Max and Liz sitting next to each other on the love seat, their postures a little stiff.

"Besides baby," Michael said, squeezing Maria tightly, "It's just a movie."

She pouted and said, "But sometimes movies scare me."

"Aww, poor baby."

Maria slapped him lightly and he chuckled and pulled her in for a kiss. She lost interest in the movie quickly and deepened the kiss as his arms wrapped around her waist and he pulled her on top of him. She moaned quietly into his mouth and allowed herself to get completely lost in the feel of his warm body and soft mouth.

Max noticed the couple making out on his couch and sighed, wishing it were he and Liz on that couch. He watched as Liz looked over and saw her frown and then look back at the screen, but not before stealing a glance at him under her lashes. He wanted to hold her so much but he was scared that he had blown it with her for good. He shook his head sadly and his own eyes returned to the screen.

He wasn't really watching the movie, so it took him completely by surprise when Liz jumped a foot of the couch, a cry escaping her lips, and buried her head in his chest. "Is it over?" she asked when the scary music stopped.

"Yes," he answered.

She pulled back slowly and looked into his eyes. "I'm sorry about that," she said.

"It's okay. I didn't mind," Max replied, growing dizzy from the smell of her strawberry scented hair.

She smiled thinly and then yawned and returned to her side of the loveseat and curled up so that she was resting her head on the armrest and her bare feet were lightly touching his jean-clad leg.

"Liz?"

She looked towards him. "Yeah?"

"Did you want to stretch out? You can't be comfortable."

She shook her head. "No, it's okay. I don't want to make you have to move. Unless...forget it. I'm fine."

"What?"

"I was going to say you could lay down next to me, but then I figured that you wouldn't want to do that," she responded avoiding his eyes.

"No, that would be okay," he said and then moved so that he was lying behind her. He used one hand to prop his head up but he didn't know what to do with the other. Very slowly as if asking her permission, he placed it over her waist. She appeared to have stopped breathing but she didn't stop him. Eventually, she snuggled back into him a little more, getting more comfortable.

He smiled, content, and went back to watching the movie. It was a start.

*****

"What?" Maria cried when she heard the door bell ring, her voice choked with sleep. She looked around the room and saw that they had all fallen asleep.

She nudged Michael with her arm, trying to wake him up, but he didn't even stir. She looked around, helplessly for a moment, her heart beating fast, and then stood up and tip-toed to the door.

She looked out the peep-hole and then sighed in relief when she saw it was Kyle. She unlocked the door and pulled it open for him. "Hey," she whispered.

"Hey Maria," he said, smiling lightly. "How's it going?"

"Okay. We all fell asleep. Come in."

He stepped into the house and she closed the door and locked it. Then she nodded over to the kitchen and they both walked over that way. She poured them both a glass of ice-water and they sat at the table.

"So, where did you go this afternoon? I was worried," she asked softly.

He rubbed his eyes and yawned. "I couldn't deal so I left and went home and took a nap."

"Are you feeling any better?"

He nodded and grinned broadly. "A lot."

"What changed?"

"Oh, this and that."

"Like what," she asked, rubbing away the gooseflesh that had broken out on her arms as he continued to grin at her. He was acting kind of creepy.

"Well, for starters, I ran into my mother," he said, openly smiling.

She stood up and walked to the counter, trying to put a little distance between them. "Oh?" she said aloud while silently calling to Michael.

"You betcha," he said standing as well and walking a little closer to her.

"And how is she?" she asked moving again, this time over to the sink. He followed her.

"Oh she's just dandy. Been living in Roswell this entire time and I never knew it! Isn't that just a hoot and a half?"

"I guess, Kyle. Um, is everything alright?" *MICHAEL! PLEASE WAKE UP!*

"Maria, you really shouldn't bother with him. He can't hear you," he sighed, sadly, but he smiled even wider and in sing-song voice, he said, "He's out like a light-bulb!" He began to giggle deliriously and said, "My mommy dearest and I made sure of that."

How did he hear that? "What's going on, Kyle. Your freaking me out," she said, trying to walk away from him but he had her blocked.

"Isn't it amazing how clear things become in times of crisis, Maria?"

"Let me go, Kyle," she said, putting her hands up to his chest and trying to push him away but he was just too strong for her.

"I ran into someone else tonight too, Maria! Do you want to know who, Maria?"

"Stop it, Kyle."

"Come one, Maria. I know you want to know! Dontcha?" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "DONTCHA?!"

"Leave me alone!" she cried.

He feigned hurt but his voice grew in intensity. "But everything is so clear now Maria. I have the answers we've been looking for, Maria. I THOUGHT YOU WANTED ANSWERS MARIA!"

"You're acting crazy," she said. "Let me go, right now! Before I...."

"Before you what, Maria? You know, I'm really hurt. In here," he touched his heart. "I thought you wanted answers and I came to share my discoveries with you but you treat me like this. Fine, be like that." An evil light gleamed in his eyes and he hissed, "Some sister you are."

"What? I'm not your sister, that's impossible!"

He howled with laughter for the span of half a second and then looked crazy again and stared her in the eye. "But you are, that's what I'm trying to tell you."

She looked behind her and caught the shine light on the knife blade that they had used earlier to cut the cucumbers. She knew she needed to distract him if she was going to get away.

"How is that possible, Kyle? My mom never slept with your dad. Up until recently, she hated him," she stated him as she hid her hand behind her body and very slowly reached in to the sink.

"Who said anything about my dad sleeping with your mom? There were no affairs, at least not on my family's part. Who knows about your whore mother but the Valenti parents loved each other. Duh," He shook his head gravely and then began to tap his head with his finger. "I really thought you were smarter than this. Not that quick, I see."

"What the hell are you talking about?" she asked, while she firmly gripped the black handle of the knife.

"See that's the thing. I'm so excited about telling you this, I can barely contain my excitement! AAAAHHHH! I just want to scream, oh wait, I just did!" He threw his head back in laughter and she took that chance to strike, gashing his stomach with the blade of the knife.

His eyes reflected fury, and he grabbed her wrist and knocked the knife out and then flipped her around so that her arm was twisted behind her back. She cried out as some bones snapped in her wrist. "Not very smart bitch! That's no way to treat your brother. Where's the love here? I'm telling you, I'm just not feeling it."

"Fuck you!" she swore.

"Tsk-tsk, you're not making it easy on big brother but I still have so much to tell you." He twisted her arm a little harder and said, "I'm not going to let you ruin my fun. I'm going to ask you once again and you better give me the correct answer or I'll break your entire fucking arm, do you understand?"

She grimaced in pain and then nodded.

In a happy, matter-of-fact voice he asked, "Would you like to know who else I ran into today?"

When she didn't answer, he twisted her arm hard again and said, "We'll do you?"

"Yes," she gasped, tears openly streaming down her face.

"I met Karl Deluca, can you believe it? Your daddy! He and my mother were...well together, I guess you could say. And he too has always been in Roswell. Practically, right under our noses! I feel so dumb."

Maria sniffed and closed her eyes. "So what? My dad and your mom had an affair?"

"No!" he growled. "I told you, there were no affairs!"

*Oh, he's officially lost it,* she thought. Aloud, she said, "Then how could that be?"

"Hmm, why don't we ask? WOULD OUR MYSTERY GUEST, COME ON DOWN!" She heard a loud click and realized that someone had unlocked the door.

"Hello, mother!" he said, smiling as Camille Valenti walked in. "I don't think she'll believe us if we tell her so why don't you show her what you showed me."

"Gladly, but Kyle, must you be so rough with the girl? I think you can let her go. She's not going anywhere."

Reluctantly, Kyle let Maria go and she brought her arm up to her chest, nursing it. The wrist was broken, so she used her power and healed it.

"Very good," Camille said. "It's nice to see that you've mastered your powers so quickly."

Maria didn't answer. Instead, she stood proud and let them know that nothing they did could shock her.

"Mother," Kyle whined. "Do it now?"

"Very well, Kyle. Watch carefully dear," she said to Maria. "You don't want to miss this."