I had been sprawled out on the couch reading a book as I heard the door knob turn. My uncle's footsteps approached the living room slowly and menacingly making a slight sense of worry slip into my conscious.

"Penelope Anne." He greeted me with a fake calmness. My hands started to sweat and my heart started to pound. I slowly looked over to my uncle who was staring down at me with a vain practically popping out of his forehead.

"Hello, Brian Samuel." I smiled innocently. He crossed his arms.

"So, how has school been?" He smiled. I internally winced. He knew.

"Today was fine, me and Minnie got paired-" I started to recount today's earlier events at school, the only day of school I'd went to out of the two days he was away.

"-how about yesterday?" He interrupted abruptly. I paused for a moment dead in my tracks. I cleared my throat and continued.

"Well, we," I spoke sitting up uncomfortably.

"I know you didn't go Poppy, give it up." He sighed disappointedly. I gasped over exaggeratedly.

"Do you have so little confidence in me that-" I started to fake an offended tone. His face stayed unfazed, waiting for me to just give up the act.

"Fine! I skipped school." I mumbled defeatedly ready to receive a twenty minute lecture.

"I can't even leave you alone for two days Penelope, two days! When I go off to Hamburg how am I to even trust I'll come back to a house that's in one piece??" He pressed angrily.

"It was only one day of school Bri, I swear I won't do it again." I pleaded.

"Oh, that's the best part! Not only did you skip school, but when your principal called the line I'd left for him to reach me at before I left, he told me some boy was in the house impersonating me!" He looked at me baffled. Of course my uncle had left a number for the principal to reach him at, why wouldn't he!? He's always one step ahead of me.

"It's not what you think!" I blurted so he wouldn't make assumptions. "It was John." I explained. His eyebrows shot up.

"John?" He choked. "My client John?" He looked like he was about to have a heart attack.

"No! Well yes, but he only stayed the night because he had gotten into a fight you see," I tried to explain, seeming to only puzzle him more.

"George was here too," I started to elaborate making him look extremely taken aback.

"No, it's not like that!! Please sit down, let me explain properly." I patted the couch desperately. He scanned over me for a moment before sitting down beside me. It took awhile, but I told him everything about when he was away, leaving out certain parts about who George ended up sleeping with that night and that we were more than friends of course.

"-you know you're grounded for life, right?" He exhaled once I was finished sinking into the couch.

"Yes." I sighed doing the same, I already knew he'd have me working at the shops everyday for the next few months. A few minutes passed of pure silence, the both of us deep in thought.

He turned his head suddenly to look at me and chuckled softly.

"You remind me exactly of Elizabeth when she was your age." He smiled dolefully staring into my eyes. He was talking about my mother, his very own sister that he'd grown up with until she was 28, when he was only 20 years old and I, only 10 years old. She had died of an overdose when I was only young, leaving me to live with my grandparents and uncle Brian for the next year until my uncle left home at age 21, leading him to move out here and run one of the Epstein record shops NEMS, bringing me along with him.

"I do?" I inquired shakily after a pause with a smile just now realizing I had been crying at his connection. He nodded. He never really talked about my mother, it was a sensitive subject for the both of us.

"Yes," He smiled wiping a tear from my eye. "Full of life and free spirited. Your mother always found her way around the rules as well." He chuckled again with a certain sadness hanging over his words. He took my hand and squeezed it gently.

"I just want to keep you safe Poppy. You know that, right?" His voice became softer. I nodded and smiled tasting the salty tears that had fallen from my eyes. He sighed and the room fell quiet for a moment.

"We better start packing for Hamburg." He rubbed a hand over his face. There was only 8 days left until his departure. I sighed.

"Did you say, we?" The realization hit me like a brick wall, making me immediately perk up.

"Well, There's no way for me to keep you safe unless we're together now is there?" He smiled knowingly. I grinned trying to keep my excitement from exploding out of me.

"Thank you Bri!" I gushed with a smile pulling him into a monstrous hug. He laughed as I jumped up from the couch.

"I'm going to pack, and, tell everyone I know!" I bursted out running to the stairs.

Once I'd gotten to my room I shakily tried to dial George's number with pure adrenaline pumping through me. I messed up a couple times, cursing my hands for their unsteadiness.

"Hello?" George's Mother picked up the phone.

"Hello, Mrs. Harrison." I smiled trying to catch my breath.

"Poppy dear!! How are you sweetheart?" Her smile was evident on her voice.

"I'm fantastic, how are you Mrs. Harrison?" I spoke probably overly joyfully, I felt in a very excitable mood so I couldn't help that I sounded so jolly.

"Oh dear, it's Louise, I'm great, you know you should come 'round-" Louise spoke before being cut off by someone in the background.

"-Mum, is that Poppy?" I could make out George's voice faintly inquiring.

"-Erm, yes?" She confirmed meekly. A groan of embarrassment from George filled the line making me laugh.

"-oh fine, here you go, but you should invite her over for diner before you go running off to Hamburg." She said, presumably handing over the phone to George.

"Hello?" He spoke shyly like his mother was still present in the room.

"George! You'll never guess what my uncle said! I-" I sputtered out quickly.

"Woah, take a breath, I got about half of that." He spoke amusedly.

"I'm coming to Hamburg!" I squealed.

"What?" His tone was speechless and elated.

"Yeah!" I beamed in a daze.

"What's wrong George?" Louise spoke faintly in the background.

"Nothing Mum." George sighed embarrassed.

"Invite her for supper." She encouraged. A moment of silence passed on the other end of the line.

"Poppy, would you like to come 'round for supper sometime?" He asked annoyed. I snickered.

"I'd love to." I smiled.

"Anyways," George huffed. "What made your uncle change his mind?" He inquired thoughtfully, a grin evident on his voice.

After another twenty minutes on the phone with George explaining everything that happened I called Minnie, John, Ringo and Paul. I was hesitant to call Paul at first, I felt so distant from him lately I wasn't sure how he'd react. Yet, I called him anyway because I'm sure he would appreciate the call even if he wouldn't admit it, he had told me he had wanted me to come along to Hamburg just like the others before.

"Hello?" Paul picked up the phone curiously. For a second I contemplated on hanging up, but I forced myself to speak.

"Hello, Paul, it's Poppy." I inhaled sharply holding my breath. There was a pause at the other end of the line.

"Hello Poppy love." Paul suddenly spoke chipper and upbeat like his usual self. My muscles relaxed and I breathed out once again at the sound of his warm greeting.

"-Erm, I just wanted to call and tell you my uncle's letting me go to Hamburg!" I smiled hoping for a good reaction.

"That's, great Poppy!!" Paul spoke amazed. I sighed relieved at the reaction, this was the Paul I hoped to have back.

"I'm glad you think so! I'm going to need a tour guide in Hamburg." I joked airily.

"Oh, gladly Ms. Epstein!" Paul laughed making me smile wider.

"Alright then Mr.McCartney, I'll see you soon." I spoke smiling from ear to ear.

"I'll see you soon too Eppy." A smile was evident from his side of the phone as well.

As soon as Paul and I's conversation ended I hung up the phone and started to pack some belongings right away; some money I'd saved up from working at the shop, some dresses, some necessities and practically anything I could think of before forcing myself to stop, I still had plenty of time before we left, who knew what tomorrow may bring.

             ______________________

"Poppy love." George's voice filled my ears. I groaned turning and burying my head in my pillows the way I often did when my uncle tries to wake me up for school.

"Good day sunshine." Paul sang making my eyebrows crease above my eyes, surely this was a dream of some sort, they were both in my room?

"Get up honey pie." John called flatly before a pillow hit my back making me jerk suddenly, falling off the bed in shock and landing on the ground with a large thud.

I got up quickly and stared at the three boys that had entered my room. George was sat on the side of my bed wincing, Paul whistling and slyly pointing at John, and John trying not to giggle like a schoolgirl. I noticed how John and George's bruises and cuts looked like they were starting to heal, although they were still visible and obvious.

"Get out Lennon." I sneered.

"Well good morning to you too." He smiled cockily.

"I'm sorry Poppy, I couldn't just let Paul and George up and make John stay downstairs." My uncle said peering in the room for a moment. I laughed at John's suddenly sullen expression.

"We come baring presents." Paul spoke with a grin holding out a lovely pink gift bag. I blushed and got back on my bed moving next to George on the edge of my bed and taking the present meekly from Paul's grasp. I smiled up at him for a moment with excitement.

"It's from all of us." John blurted.

"Yeah, all of us," George huffed. "Except Ringo paid for your share." George scoffed making me laugh.

"I made the card!" John whined. I dug into the bag and pulled out the card first, seeing an original John Lennon drawing of Himself, Cynthia, Paul, George, Ringo, Maureen, Pete, Minnie, Rory and I all on the cover. I smiled admiringly at it, I felt as if this made him consider me as a part of their group?

I opened the card and read the words that were written in Johns handwriting.

"Big and black the clouds may be, time will pass away
If you put your trust in me, I'll make bright your day
Look into these eyes now, tell me what you see
Don't you realize now, what you see is me"

I looked up at him and smiled.

"And what's this?" I raised an eyebrow playfully.

"It's a song we're working on, it's called "Tell Me What You See." I came up with that bit, for you." He smiled admitting the last part hesitantly in a small voice.

"You're a softie Lennon." I smiled to spite him.

"Shut up and open the gift." John mumbled.

Paul and George snickered as I took out the wrapping paper to reveal a shiny new camera staring up at me. I gasped with a smile looking up to the three of them. I had mentioned at lunch about how I'd always though photography sounded really gear after Ringo had told me about his interest in it.

"Aw you guys!! Thank you so much." I smiled up at the three of them in awe, before clearing my throat from slight irritation, I think I was catching what George had previously, I mean it would only make sense considering how close we'd been when he was ill.

Paul and John immediately looked over at George.

"She kissed me when I was sick, take me away!" George retorted sarcastically holding out his wrists jokingly as if he was about to get cuffed by his glaring friends. He cleared his throat awkwardly and looked over at me after seeing John and Paul stayed glaring.

"Why don't you take it out?" He smiled.

I nodded and pulled the camera out carefully, noticing papers at the bottom of the bag. I looked at it perplexed my and pulled them out. It looked like some sort of paperwork, which made my heart skip a beat.

"EMI invited us back for an audition after your uncle brought them a recording of us playing." Paul exclaimed excitedly. My eyes practically bulged out of my head.

"That's great!" I jumped up. George stood up as well laughing. I brought the three of them into a hug. I was partially freaked out on the inside however, was this going to become big.