"One, two, three, wee!" I say for the hundredth time, lifting myself out of a squat to hoist Adora up over my head.

The little redhead giggles madly when I bend down to place her on the ground again. She looks at me expectantly, and I repeat the phrase again, then the motion. I have been doing this for the past twenty minutes. I ignore the burn in my arms and legs from it, deciding this can be my workout for the day. Although, if I'm honest, I'll probably go workout later too. It's not like I have anything else to do.

It's been a week since Paula, Zoe and I went on that med run, and in the week that followed I've done nothing but work in the kitchens and go on supply or decoy runs. I think after learning that the people helping with the meds exchange refused to stay neutral after being offered the cure spooked everyone, so they've been extra cautious when sending me out. They don't want to send me somewhere that may have switched sides and trap me for Sigrid.

I did end up finding out who all helped decide I needed a break. I was going to try to argue with them until I learned that Janine was one of those people who made up "they", as Paula put it. It would be a waste of energy to try to argue with her. Not only that, but Tom was asked to give his opinion on the matter, and so was Peter. They are considered some of my closer friends, so I suppose Janine thought they'd know more about me than what I'd willingly tell.

I've been avoiding Tom since that day in the gym-weaseling out of training sessions, not joining them at night when I can't sleep. I can't deal with his questions right now, because he will ask questions.

I lift Adora up again, a soft smile on my face as she laughs. I'm glad she's in a good mood. Summer has been telling me she's been more bratty than usual, but I think she just has different moods. There are times when she wants to be held and there are times when she'll scream when you touch her. I'm the same way, although instead of screaming I just wiggle out of Sam's grasp and sit at the corner of the bed. It's moods, and thankfully Adora is in a mood where she wants to play and be held.

Although I do wish she'd grow tired of getting picked up over and over again. This is starting to get old, and my legs and arms are already beginning to tire. Still, I'll do it for as long as she wants me to.

One of the good things about having less running days is I can spend more time with my kids. I miss them, although things are a bit tense with Milo since he knows more about my problems than Phineas or Adora. I'd rather it stay that way. Adora is too young to really understand my situation, but Phineas should know as little as possible since he already has enough issues with trust. If he knew there was another personailty living in my head... I don't know how well he'd take it.

Adora giggles as I lift her up and set her down once more. Thankfully she doesn't give me that expectant look, and she doesn't try to jump to indicate she wants to go again. Now she seems satisfied to play with the ties that make a bow at the front of my blouse. I let her play with them, shaking them around with her eyes following the strings. As long as she doesn't try to put then in her mouth, then I'm fine with her touching them. Better her playing with ties than a light socket.

I never realized how much trouble babies manage to get into until I adopted one.

Although I don't have to worry about any light sockets out here in the park. It's quiet here, and while I know it would be easier for Adora to find entertainment at the playground, I want to wait until she's a bit older. She knows how to walk, but she still wobbles from time to time, and with her being only a year and a half old she could easily fall or be pushed down by some of the older children.

I let out a soft sigh, watching as Adora lets go of my ties and waddles over to the little blanket I set down for her to play on, along with a few of her toys. She finds interest in one of the light up pianos that has music and numbers. I let her tap on the keys, listening to the child-like voice that comes from the piano, singing songs about the 'ABC's and all that.

The smile that I have on my face falls when I hear the soft sounds of dried grass crunching under light feet.

"What do you want, Peter?"

I don't even have to look back to know it's him. Anyone would else would have made themselves known instead of sneaking behind me. He's been cautious ever since I snapped at him, as he should be. We haven't really talked much since then.

"Just thought I'd come and say hello. No need to be rude," He replies, but his tone doesn't have that usual playful bite. It sounds forced, strained. "Can I sit?"

"If I say no, will that stop you?"

He laughs. "Not really."

"Then I guess it doesn't matter, but if you ask me if I'm okay, I'm punching you in the stomach."

"Ouch. Wasn't planning to, but now I'm really not planning to." He takes a seat beside me. "I'm guessing you're not exactly enjoying your break?"

"Not at all. I don't like not being useful."

He rolls his eyes. "Please. You know being dramatic is my thing. I'm sure everyone who's eaten this last week would agree working in the kitchens is useful."

"Not as useful as stopping Sigrid."

"Well, you won't be able to stop anything if Moonchild takes control of your body. As annoying and emotional as you may be, I think everyone would agree that we like you far more than the fragmented personality of the crazed hippie that tried to make everyone in the world uncontrollably happy."

I chuckle at that, which makes him relax slightly.

"Does this mean you're not mad at me anymore?"

I sigh. "No, I'm not mad. I know you did it to make sure I wouldn't do something dangerous since you thought Moonchild had control of me." I lean back against the tree behind me. "In all honesty, I haven't been angry at you for awhile."

It's true. While I was upset at him in the moment, I wasn't afterwards. I felt angier at myself than I did at him. My actions weren't the best in response to his and I know why he did it. But since he and Tom are buddies it's hard to talk to him alone. I'm too afraid to talk with Tom around. He could say something, give it away that I'm immortal. Of course, there's little chance anyone would believe him with no proof, but why take the chance?

Peter scoffs. "Sure."

I blink, frowning at his sarcasm. "What? I'm being honest."

"Don't think I haven't noticed how you've been avoiding me. Plus I know you haven't been sleeping. You walk around the town at night, sneaking in the shadows like an amueture thief instead of coming 'round for a drink."

"I didn't know you guys had been meeting up."

"Bullshit. You avoid the area entirely to make sure we don't see you. We still do-well, I still do. Tom probably does too, but he doesn't say anything about it."

I don't say anything.

"Look, I don't care if you were mad at me, as long as we're good now."

"We are," I reply, and he seems content with that. "But for the record, you're not the reason I didn't want to meet up during the night after nightmares."

I expect him to nod. I expect him to say okay and then start talking about whatever happens to be on his mind, maybe even start playing with Adora since she has now found his shoelaces as a great toy. But he doesn't. He stays quiet for a long moment, his brows furrowing together in thought.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"What?" I ask, and he looks at me, his brows still knit together.

"You said it wasn't because of me you weren't meeting up with us when you couldn't sleep. If it wasn't because of what I did, then what was it?"

"Uh, nothing. Nothing," I say, a bit too quickly, a bit too shakily. Peter notices. "I was just-I mean, I just wanted to be alone."

"No, you don't. You hate being alone after nightmares, but you don't want to wake Sam up because he barely gets enough sleep as it is. That's why you come to our meeting place, because you know we'd already be awake," He says. "You told me that a few months ago when I asked why you keep coming."

I internally curse, wishing he didn't have such a good memory.

"I..."

"What the hell could have happened that made you so... avoidant?" He tilts his head to the side. "Is it Tom? Did something happened between you and him?"

"No," I lie, but he knows. I answered too quickly, too stiffly.

"It is." He sounds almost surprised, which makes sense since Tom tends to be all around peaceful when not on missions. "What happened?"

"Nothing," I insist, but he isn't convinced.

"Is that why you haven't been training with him either? I know it isn't because you're embarrassed that he keeps kicking your arse, because if that was it, you would have stopped ages ago."

I frown. "Thanks."

"I'm just saying. I thought you were afraid I'd show up. I thought you hated me for a moment."

I stand up, picking Adora up as I do so. "Sorry to burst your bubble, Peter, but not everything I do revolves around you." I sigh, wishing my words hadn't come out as harsh as they did. "Look, I have to go. Adora needs to be put down for a nap and I need to meet up with Veronica to see if she's managed to cobble together an earpiece for me."

I start to walk away, but Peter's already scrambling to his feet. "Wait, wait!"

He places his hand on my shoulder, and I flinch. I don't jerk away though, as much as I want to.

"Callista, I'm just saying that I'm sure whatever happened-you can probably talk it out. I know Tom can sometimes be... scary when he starts talking nonsense, but he probably didn't mean any harm."

"I don't think he meant harm, particularly, but what he said, he said while he was completely in his right mind." I huff. "Look, Peter, if it makes you feel better, I'll definetely start meeting up with you two again when I can't sleep, because I still consider both of you my friends, but what was said between me and Tom is, and I put this in the nicest way possible, not any of your business."

"I-I know that," He says defensively, frowning when I won't look him in the eye, "but I think that maybe it should be."

My heart stops in my chest. It's obvious he doesn't know, but has Tom been dropping hints? Did Tom tell him something to clue him in on the fact that I'm like him?

"What do you mean by that?" I ask, my voice much weaker, much more frail. Peter's eyes widen a fraction.

"Nothing... but you said this didn't have anything to do with me."

"It doesn't, not really."

"You're acting like it does. What do you mean by both really'?"

I shake my head. "Look, I just-I know I'll tell you eventually. I've seen it, but that's not right now, not for a while, I don't think."

This really seems to shock him. "Wait, wait, you've seen it? This has something to do with a vision? Aren't those usually having to do with important things?"

"Most of the time, yes," I reply.

"Then why not just tell me now?"

"I've tried to change fate. It usually doesn't work out too well," I reply flatly, ignoring the almost pleading look he has in his eyes. Not only does my vision demand I stay quiet, I know Sam would tear me a new one if I revealed myself to be immortal, even to Peter.

I adjust Adora in my arms, giving Peter one last glance. "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you. Just know that we're fine. I forgive you for what happened. That's all you need to be concerned about."

Then I turn on me heel and head off.

Peter doesn't follow.

•

I eat in silence.

Meeting with Veronica was a bust, mostly because she went on about science and mechanics and how Moonchild is in my brain and other things I had a hard time understanding. She hasn't created an earpiece yet, but she told me to rest assured that she was working on it as quickly as possibly now that the cure is no longer the greatest priority.

I didn't miss the bitterness in her voice as she said that, but I knew better than to talk about it. She's doesn't like being treated like a child. She doesn't like being coddled, and to her, trying to comfort her about the cure is exactly that.

I suppose I can't say much, considering how I feel when people try to comfort me about Moonchild. I suppose that's one of the very few things Veronica and I have in common.

Sam chatters to Maxine and Paula. He laughs as he watches the two try to feed Sarah, only for her to turn her head at the last second and get bits of mashed vegetables on her face. It's nice, but I can't find the energy to participate. Instead I just listen and watch, silently eating my vegetable soup before it has a chance to get cold.

I also ignore the feeling of Peter's gaze burning holes into the back of my head.

I should have known better than to believe he'd give up. Now he thinks something's wrong, more wrong than normal in my case.

I know he hasn't said anything to Tom, because if he had I'm sure Tom would have told him his suspicions. With how I acted I'm sure Peter would believe him. I used to be good at this-lying. Deceitfulness was never something I had to worry about before I came to Abel Township.

It's like Nicole said-this place has made me soft.

I flinch at the loud snap Maxine does in front of my face. With how it sounded in my ears it may as well have been a gunshot. I turn to glare at the tall woman, and she just looks at me with amusement.

"Seemed like you were zoning out on us, Callista."

"I do that sometimes," I reply, rubbing my eyes and taking another bite of soup. Salty broth hits my tongue, and I wish I had been in the kitchens during dinner to stop whoever decided this much salt was needed. I'm sure Janine will be giving them an earful later.

"What were you thinking about?" Sam asks curiously.

"Thinking?" I repeat. "Most of the time when I zone out, I don't think. Right now I have about five brain cells working and none of them can create a coherent thought."

"Is this your way of telling me you need to go to bed?"

"It's my way of saying I can't exactly concentrate. Also, it's a bit early to be going to bed, don't you think?" I smile when he shrugs. "Look, I know you've got gray hair and your eyesight sucks, but you can't be turning into an old man already. We still have to go through that 'young, married couple' phase."

He rolls his eyes. "We have to get married first."

"The wedding's only a month and six days away. Keep me alive for that long and you'll get your wish."

Paula snickers. "You say that as if you think you're going to get married and he'll let you die the next day."

I grimace. "That would be my luck, wouldn't it?"

"Honestly-" Maxine starts, but Sam cuts her off.

"No, no. Don't you dare jinx us."

She rolls her eyes. "Don't you and Callista both believe in God?"

"I'd still rather not test it. God might just be listening for ideas."

I snort. "That's not how it works, babe."

He crosses his arms. "I know, but still."

My chest feels lighter when Paula and Maxine both snicker and Sam fights against a growing smile and loses.

Paula tries to give Sarah a spoonful of sweet corn only for her to smack it away, bits of yellow flying everywhere. Sarah laughs, as if she knows she just caused a mess that she won't have to clean up. I almost want to believe she does know. Children are smarter than most people give them credit for.

It's why the A.M.T.B. thrived as much as it did...

Does.

I can still feel it-eyes staring at the back of my head. Isn't he getting bored? I stand, grabbing my empty bowl. "I'm going to walk around for a bit."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Sam asks, and I shake my head.

"No, stay. I think it's going to take all three of you to get Sarah to eat her dinner anyway."

He smiles softly at my joke, and with a final wave, I leave. Once outside the mess hall, I run my hands through my hair, the sudden shift from unidentifiable, constant chatter to complete silence making my head throb.

I head for the tracks. I'm not exactly dressed for it, but I need to do something to clear my head and I don't want to repeat what happened with the punching bag. It's like every thought I have is clouded by a thick fog, and I rub my temples as I try to concentrate on any thought that comes to mind.

But it all fades, nothing staying. I forget about it the second it's gone.

This is what happens when I get a week off. My brain fogs, my thoughts becoming inchoerent and jumbled. Sure, I have gone on supply runs, but only two in the past week. Kitchen duty keeps me busy for an hour or two, but that's it. And it's less fun when Janine's in there. She's like Franscesca was before she went crazy, execpt I actually listen to Janine because she scares me.

So once I reach the track, I start jogging. My footsteps create a steady beat, constant. It's mine, which is something Sam tries to remind me of whenever I get too worked up about Moonchild. I'm not doing the same repeated steps. It's my rythmn, my pattern.

I like that. It gives me a feeling of peace.

But that peace is shattered like glass when I hear a second pair of footsteps and feel a presence behind me. I almost slow down and stop, but then I decide against it. I simply keep my leasurely pace, and I give Peter a sideways glance when he catches up with me.

"Hi," I say flatly. It's not something I would say is a greeting. He smiles, as if he thinks I don't know what he's doing.

"Hey. What are you doing out here, running in your normal clothes?"

I glance at him, eyeing his T-shirt and sweats. "I could ask you the same thing."

"Oh, you already know I came to see what you were up to. It's not smart to go run right after eating. You could get sick."

"I don't get sick," I reply, and he rolls his eyes. "Plus it's not like I ate enough food to make me sick anyway."

Even though we aren't starving like we were when Ian had reign over the township, no one ever gets full. We eat just enough food that we're not feeling hunger pangs, but that's about it. By the time the next meal comes around, you will be hungry again-very hungry. Everyone works, burning off calories, but we've learned to work like we do and eat what we can get. It's why there are very few overweight people in Abel. Those that are usually have some kind of medical issue pertaining to it.

I think that last time I got to eat until I was truly full was when we found this large factory filled chocolate treats a little while after I first came to Abel. We found it at the same time as some New Canton runners and a Red Settlement runner. Even though we hated each other at the time, Abel was able to convince New Canton to have a race to see who actually got to keep the treats.

We could have shared, but that wasn't really an option since that might've given off the illusion that New Canton cared about a settlement that wasn't their own. It made little sense at the time since we could have split it three ways and have more than enough treats for everyone in Abel and Red Settlement. New Canton would have been the only one short, but that's because they had 6,000 residents, which was more than Abel and Red Settlement combined.

Abel won, of course. We had candy for weeks after that. I remember the sugar highs some people got. I was smart enough not to eat multiple peices of chocolate and make myself sick, but I did eat some after dinner at night, just to make me feel full instead of just... no longer hungry.

Unfortunately, we haven't had anything like that since.

"I hope you're not here to ask about what we were talking about earlier," I say, although I know that's exactly why he's here. "If you are, then you're going to get the same answer as before: it's not any of your business."

"You really are no fun," He sighs. "First with the drinking rule, and now this. I feel like I'm going to have to throw you into the goat pens as revenge."

I scoff. "Try it and see what happens."

He laughs, mostly because he has tried, and he got his ass kicked because of it. "You know best friends are supposed to tell each other everything."

"That sounds like something a fourteen-year-old girl would say."

"Sounds like fourteen-year-old girls know where it's at when it comes to friendships. Really, Cal, I honestly feel hurt that you won't tell me what's going on." He gives me the most pathetic look I've ever seen. I give him a pointed look in reply.

"You're the most dramatic person I've ever met."

"And the prettiest," He adds, and I open my mouth to reply before my head starts to throb. I slow down, one hand rising to rub my temples and the other holding onto the nearby wooden fence around the track. Peter stops, a look of concern flashing over his face. "Woah, are you okay?"

"Yeah, just a headache." I close my eyes, finding it harder to concentrate.

"Is it-"

"No, it's not Moonchild. Please don't tackle me." I say it all in one breath, opening one eye to look at him. The last thing I want right now is to eat dirt.

"You said you needed to see Veronica today. How did that go?"

I shrug nonchalantly. "Nothing new. She ran some tests, played some sounds, fiddled with some tech to try and create an earpiece. We can't really tell if any of it worked since those frequencies aren't the exact same as the ones from the machine on that ship, but it's probably what's causing the late headache."

"Do you think it'll work? That she'll come up with something to get rid of Moonchild?"

I take a moment to answer. "I don't know. Veronica's smart, but so was Moonchild. She wanted to make sure I'd never get rid of her." A bitter laugh leaves my lips. "When we first went to that Manor House, I honestly wasn't even sure I wanted to go through with it."

He tilts his head to the side. "Go through with what?"

"Trying to get rid of her."

His lips part in surprise, the shock of my words rendering his speechless for a good half minute. "What? Why?"

"Because I thought I needed her. I thought-" I sigh. "She's smarter than I am, Peter, even the version of her that's in my head. She figured out how to keep Paula from turning when Maxine was giving birth, and she helped me get out of a lot of other situations where I probably would have died without her. I was afraid of what might happen if I didn't have her there to help me when things got too stressful."

"What changed?" He asks softly, and I look up at him, my face hardening.

"I found out what she did to make herself like this, how the real Moonchild used me to keep a version of herself alive. I don't-" I pause as my head continues to throb. "I don't think she did it just to tag along on my adventures. Everything she did had a purpose, and I want to get her out before I find out her purpose for putting this part of herself inside me.

"I won't let her use me, not again."

I let out a strained breath, the pain in my head mounting. I keep my eyes open just long enough to stumble over to Peter and grab his arm.

"Do you think you could help me get to the coms shack? It hurts to keep my eyes open."

"Uh, yeah. Sure, of course," He says, wrapping an arm around my waist. "Come on, Five-o."

I close my eyes at he starts to lead me off the track, opening my eyes a crack when I stumble. The soft sounds of our footsteps in the dirt road are the only sounds that reach my ears. To me they sound like a hammer pounding against metal .

This pain-this side effect of Veronica's test, it will all be worth it if it means being free-truly free-from Moonchild. I tell myself that as the pain continues, even when we reach the coms shack, even when he leads me inside and I stumble on the bed, burying my face into the pillow to encase my world in darkness.

It wil all be worth it if it means lifting one burden off my and everyone else's shoulders.

A/N: Here you go, guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please be sure to vote and comment! Thank you and have a blessed day!