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_Author's Note: I'm going to be doing some ranting in a moment, so if you want to skip this, feel free. As always, favorite, rate, comment and shout and I do hope you enjoy this installment. Now for my mini-rant. It's been a really tough week for me. I won't go into the boring details but I will say that I've been hurting. I figured though that maybe I could use the hurt and put it to good use. Hence, I cranked out this chapter in about two-three hours. (I hope it doesn't show) Maybe if I do something that (I think) gives other people a little joy, it will help me heal a little bit. At any rate, once again I do hope you enjoy this chapter. And I hope wherever you are reading this, it makes you a little happier. _

Dr. Tennant walked up to the door of Dulion's apartment. He was a bit surprised to find it ajar. Ever since he had moved into the Zoo, Dulion had locked his door at night. Dr. Tennant suspected at first it was Dulion's way of keeping everyone else out, but now had just become habit. Dr. Tennant pushed the door open gently.

"Dulion?" he called out. "Are you alright?"

The Doctor took a deep breath. No need to panic just yet. After all, it was likely he was still asleep. Dr. Tennant walked through the apartment door and made his way into the kitchen. There, slumped in a chair with his head on a table was Dulion. Also on the table were various papers. Dr. Tennant quickly made his way to Dulion's body before he realized there was no need to panic. Dulion's chest rose rhythmically with all the peace of a sleeping man.

"Poor bastard must have been burning the midnight oil." Dr. Tennant said to himself.

It was hardly surprising. After all, Agent Maxwell and DeCosta hadn't left the Zoo until about two in the morning. They wanted to make sure Dulion told them everything that had happened with Avery. Dr. Tennant gazed at the papers on the kitchen table. Numerous reports had been typed up and printed out for Dulion to review. Some were signed with Dulion's spiraling signature; others remained unsigned in a pile. Also on the table was mail, some opened some not. Dr. Tennant noticed various bills and loans that were common to doctors and lawyers alike. Dr. Tennant turned his attention to the figure sleeping at the table.

Dulion's skin was pale, frightfully so. His skin bore an uncanny resemblance to his normal fur color. Dr. Tennant changed his angle to try and get a glimpse at Dulion's face. When he did, he was able to notice dark circles under the young man's eyes. Dulion's face was also clearly in need of a good shave. However, the Doctor also noticed that Dulion's face was red and blotchy. Dr. Tennant was puzzled for a moment before he saw a few wet drops that had dried on the papers Dulion had yet to sign.

Dr. Tennant went to the stove and filled and turned on a kettle which sat on Dulion's stove. Yes, coffee was Dulion's preferred drink of choice, but the added caffeine would not be helping him. Dr. Tennant quickly made his way back to his own room and returned with his medical bag. He took out a stethoscope and fitted it on his head. Then, with a few gentle pushes, he woke Dulion.

"Good morning." Dulion said groggily. "How'd you get in?"

"Your door was open." Dr. Tennant said. "I found you asleep at the table."

"Oh, I must have dozed off going over these reports I need to send."

"If you would be so kind as to unbutton your shirt? "

"Giving me a checkup?"

"Yes. If you do not mind me saying, you do not look very well."

"You don't need to worry. I'm fine."

"I'm the doctor here. And I don't think you're fine at all. Shirt, unbuttoned. Now."

With a sigh, Dulion unbuttoned his shirt. The Doctor used his hands to warm the stethoscope up before putting it to Dulion's chest.

"Deep breaths please."

Dulion did as he was told. The Doctor listened closely for anything that sounded like it would need further attention, but he found nothing. He reached into his bag and pulled out a blood pressure gauge. The Doctor quickly took Dulion's blood pressure which was better than he expected and put the gauge back into his bag.

"See?" Dulion said. "Like I said, I'm fine.

"Physically, perhaps." Dr. Tennant answered. "Although I would get some more rest if I were you. For the sake of being polite I will ask. Are you okay?"

"Like I said, Doc, I'm fine."

"The circles under your eyes tell me that you haven't been sleeping very well. The presence of hair on your face tells me you've not cared much about your personal appearance recently. And most alarming the redness of your face and the dried spots on these reports tell me that the only reason you were able to sleep was the fact that you cried until you passed out. Not even a lawyer can lie to a doctor, James."

"So what do you want from me?"

The kettle that was placed on the stove whistled loudly. Dr. Tennant got up and turned off the gas of the stove. He turned back to Dulion.

"I want you to enjoy a cup of tea with me. And to tell me what's wrong."

Dr. Tennant searched for two teacups and teabags and quickly prepared a cup of tea for both himself and Dulion. Dulion cleared away some of the papers on the table and took the cup.

"Don't worry about me." Dulion said as he blew some steam away from his cup. "There's nothing you can do about it anyway."

"Perhaps not, but if you think I'm going to let you get away with crying yourself to sleep without a proper explanation, you're sadly mistaken. Believe it or not, I am your friend, James. And I do not want to see you...well...like this. So, I'm all ears. What seems to be the problem?"

Dulion let out a sad chuckle.

"Everything." He said as he took a sip of tea.

"And what would everything entail?" Dr. Tennant asked.

Dulion held up his hand to stop Dr. Tennant from talking. The gesture he made told the Doctor that he was looking for the correct words to say.

"I have a maniac who's out to kill me." Dulion started. "He already attacked my girlfriend and kidnapped a little girl In order to get to me and I have no idea what he's planning on doing. I'm apparently being considered something of a hero by both the lycanthrope community and the FBI each of who want me in a more powerful role that I'm not sure I can handle or even want to handle. Meanwhile, I still have no idea what I'm doing with my life other than working and not enjoying a single second of it. "

Dulion took a quick sip of tea before he continued.

"I'm dating a girl who I basically just met after breaking up with a girl who I was in love with for years. And I love Emi, but it's kind of jarring to my system. Because I used to talk to Danielle about anything and random shit every day for all of those years and now I'm not sure if she even cares about me as a person anymore and I really miss having that person to talk to, even if it's not in a romantic way. To top it off, I have loans I'm going to pay until my grandchildren are born because I was an idiot. So I guess to sum it all up, I'm feeling really lonely, really hopeless, and really afraid and I just don't know what to do anymore."

Dr. Tennant looked as Dulion's eyes began to fill with tears. He reached into his pocket and handed the young man a handkerchief.

"I'm sorry." Dulion said as tears began to come faster. "It's times like these that I wish I could run home and talk to my mom or dad. At least maybe I could just have someone who's there, you know?"

"Dear boy," Dr. Tennant whispered as he put a comforting hand on Dulion's shoulder, "you do have those people. You have me, you have Cameron and Josef and Jayson and Jess. And of course, you have Emi and even if you can't talk to her about some things, you have people who want to be there for you."

"We are a family," the Doctor continued, "and you are a part of it even if you haven't been here very long. It breaks my heart to see you hurt like this. And I may not be able to know exactly what you are feeling, but I do understand. Times have been rough, yes. They will likely get rougher. But all we can do is keep going even when we want to stop. And please, never forget that this is your home. It may not be ideal, but there will always be someone here for you."

Dr. Tennant grabbed Dulion in a comforting hug and let Dulion cry on his shoulder for a few moments. He hated to thing how long this had been building up inside. When Dulion had calmed down, Dr. Tennant released him from the hug and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Now, go clean yourself up. For God's sake shave. And meet me outside in thirty minutes."

"Why?" Dulion asked. "What's going on?"

"For once, there's some good news. Dr. Wiese called me this morning. Emi is awake and we can see her."

***

Ibuki stared at the celling of the hospital. The tiles were an ugly, beige color that she hated. More than anything, however, she hated being poked and prodded by every nurse and doctor. She was doing just fine, thank you very much. No need to fluff a pillow or get her water. What she really was craving was a milkshake, but she doubted the hospital would let her have one.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps entering the room. She turned her head towards the wall away from the door.

"Hello nurse." she said annoyed. "I am fine. No I do not need anything. No I am not hungry."

"Well then I suppose I'll have to drink this milkshake myself then." Said Dr. Tennant's voice.

Ibuki turned back to the door to see Dr. Tennant smiling with a cup in his hand. She beamed at him.

"Gimme." She said to him.

"You didn't get it from me." Dr. Tennant said.

"Of course not." Ibuki said before greedily sucking down the sweet, sweet chocolate of the milkshake.

"You'll get brain freeze, Emi."

"So what? I need something sweet. This hospital crap doesn't cut it. Thanks by the way. So, you came to see me all by yourself?"

"No I brought another friend but he is taking the elevator while I took the stairs. The elevator here is notoriously slow and I wanted to make sure I got that to you before it melted."

"So who else is here?"

As if on cue, Ibuki's ears heard a slow walk and thump coming from the hall. Ibuki felt her eyes grow wide before she saw him come into the room. Sure enough, Dulion soon appeared clutching his cane. When Ibuki and he made eye contact, he seemed to gallop towards her. Ibuki didn't try to suppress her delight when he came up to her. Dulion bent down and kissed her gently on the lips.

"I love you." Dulion said to her.

"Oh what's this?" Ibuki mocked. "No 'Hi, how are you? Are you feeling okay?'"

"Oh shut up." Dulion said before kissing her again.

"I love you, too." Ibuki said.

"Now, how are you feeling?"

"Sore. Still some pain, but better now that you're both here. And that I got my milkshake."

"What is it with you and milkshakes? I didn't know you were into them."

"When she first came to the Zoo," Dr. Tennant said, "she was in tears. I took her to get a milkshake to try and help make her smile."

"To this day, whenever I'm sad, I just go grab one." Ibuki said. "It's like my security blanket."

"Oh I see." Dulion said.

"What happened to your face?" Ibuki asked.

"What do you mean?" Dulion asked.

"You have cuts on it."

"Shaving. I kinda rushed it to get here."

"Hmm...you with a beard...you know it could work if..."

"No it can't." Dr. Tennant said. "Trust me, I've seen it. As a gay man, I can tell you that facial hair only works on certainty people. James is much more handsome clean shaven."

"Besides, if you want me hairy, I could just transform for you." Dulion added.

"Is that a proposition?" Ibuki said with a sly grin causing Dulion's cheeks to turn red.

"Well...I...um..." Dulion stammered.

Ibuki tried to force herself not to laugh.

"You do realize you don't need to be shy, right?" she said. "We have been sleeping together for a while now. So no reason to be embarrassed."

"It's the Catholic in me." Dulion said fixing his tie. "You know, sex is dirty and evil and you get the idea."

"It's only dirty when it's done right."

"Okay, that's enough of that." Dr. Tennant said. "Before you cause the poor boy's heart to stop."

"She has that effect on people." Dulion said.

"So do you, lover boy." Ibuki said. "So what have I missed since being stuck here?"

Dulion sighed and grabbed took the chair next to her.

"A lot." Dulion said.

***

Dulion did his best to explain to Ibuki everything that had happened after she was shot including Cassie's kidnapping and Dulion's own meeting with Avery. He did however leave out the fact that he had spent the past two nights crying himself to sleep. Probably not the best time to bring that up.

"So, what," Ibuki said," we just wait for Avery to strike again?"

"Basically." Dulion said. "Agent Maxwell and DeCosta are already on high alert. Maxwell told me the FBI is very interested in what Avery's going to do. They're afraid that he's going to try and spark a state or country wide revolt."

"Do you think he'd actually do that?"

"I don't know. I don't know what this guy is after. I think he may be doing this just because it's fun."

"Psychopath."

"Actually, he seems more like a sociopath to me." Dr. Tennant said.

"The difference being...?"

"Control. A psychopath is a control freak while a sociopath is more spontaneous. Look at everything he's done. It's basically random."

"But it does follow some plan." Dulion said. "I mean he kidnaps Cassie to get me to come running, Shoots Emi to get our attention, and it wouldn't surprise me if he put the needle of Wolfsbane in my mailbox. Yet when I met him he seemed...off."

"Well, duh." Ibuki said. "He's crazy."

"Yeah, but...I can't explain it. It's like he's following a plan...but just barely."

"I hate to ask this," Dr. Tennant said, "but do you think he'll try to attack Cassie or Emi again?"

Dulion shook his head.

"No. I think the next thing is going to be big; much bigger than just a kidnapping or a shooting. Something massive."

"Well, as far as I'm concerned then, that's for the capable members of law enforcement to handle." Dr. Tennant said.

"But they're going to need you right?" Ibuki said to Dulion. "After all, you've been at the center of this since the start."

"I hope not." Dulion answered. "I just want this all to go away."

"Oh come on." Ibuki said. "You should be leading the charge into battle. The dashing knight on the white charger ready to save the day."

Dulion sighed. He really would have rather avoided this conversation. But, as per usual, he had to open his mouth.

"Emi," he said, taking Ibuki's hand, "I'm sorry. But I'm not James Bond. I'm just James Dulion. I'm no good at saving the day from some sociopathic terrorist and I really don't want to be. If they need me to do something small, I'll do it but that's all I can do. I'm not a knight with a lance; I'm a guy with a cane. I'm sorry I can't be more."

Dulion didn't know where Ibuki got the idea of him being some kind of superhero or daring adventurer from, but it was wrong. His heart sank as he realized that perhaps the only thing about him that attracted Ibuki was her perception that he was some kind of wannabe hero. Dulion fought back the urge to cry again. He could already hear Ibuki saying she wanted nothing to do with him as well.

"You idiot." Ibuki said.

Dulion looked at her with sad eyes.

"Come here. Close." She said.

Dulion did as he was told. He was fully expecting a slap across his face for some perceived slight. Sure enough, he felt Ibuki's hand on the back of his head. But rather than slapping him, the hand grabbed him closer to her and locked him into another kiss.

"James, I don't want you to be some super FBI agent." She said. "I want you to be the loveable, big-hearted dork I met and fell for. And as long as you're that guy, you'll be my knight in shining armor, even if I have to save you more than you save me. Get it through that thick skull of yours. I love you because you make me happy and I wouldn't want you to change on my account."

Dulion bent down and kissed Ibuki on the cheek. She wrapped her arms around him, the uncomfortable angle was trying on his knee, but Dulion didn't care.

"The two of you are lucky I don't have a problem with displays of affection." Dr. Tennant said with a small, but noticeable smile.

"Sorry," Dulion said, "I guess we're getting a little carried away."

"It's fine. I would do the same."

More footsteps came from the hall. Dulion's eyes naturally went towards the direction of the noise. Dr. Weiss came into the room, holding a clipboard with a big girlish grin on her face.

"Oh it's nice to see you all." She said. "How are you feeling Ms. Ibuki?"

"Fine." Ibuki answered. "Better now that these two are here."

"I can tell. Oh and will you two be at the march next week?"

"March?" Dr. Tenants asked. "What march?"

"Oh didn't you hear? There's going to be a march next week for lycanthrope pride. I figured that you two would be attending."

"This is the first I've heard about it. Must have been just thrown together. It's a great idea. It could be used to get some awareness that lycanthropes are just everyday people too. That is if it's done right."

"It's a set-up." Dulion said, more to himself then anyone in the room.

"What are you talking about, James?" Dr. Tennant asked. "What do you mean a set-up?"

"You don't think...?" Ibuki said.

"I do." Dulion said. "This is Johnson's big move. I don't know what he's going to but I guarantee that this march wasn't thrown together for laughs. We have a week to figure it out."

"You'd better call Maxwell and DeCosta." Dr. Tennant said.

Dulion nodded. He really wanted to hang is head, but he felt a hand on his shoulder from Dr. Tennant.

"We will get through this." The Doctor whispered in his ear. "Together."

Dulion felt his hand get squeezed tightly. Ibuki looked up at him with a comforting look. No, Dulion was no knight on a white charger but he wasn't going to let Avery succeed. This time, Avery Johnson was going down.