Rhys noticed how she had reached out for him but hadn't touched him. He slipped the gun back into his jacket finally, realizing it was probably not needed.

David nodded, falling silent again. He was kind of out of things to say for the moment. At least the gun was away now. He relaxed slightly, unconsciously.

"Rhydin?" he repeated. It sounded vaguely familiar. He looked her over. "I thought you were in Boston."

She, too, relaxed when he holstered the gun and gave him another smile. "I was. I came home, though. What...what are you doing here?"

"Hell if I know." He looked around again, furrowing his brows at the place and the people. "I need a drink."

One side of David's mouth curved into a brief grin at that. He knew exactly how Rhys felt.

"Yeah, me, too." She chuckled softly and then glanced towards David, a brow raised. "The good stuff?" she asked him.

"Definitely," he answered immediately. If any situation called for the good stuff, this was it.

She headed towards the bar again, only a supreme act of will keeping her upright. She sat back on the stool and pressed her hands tightly against her thighs, blotting the nervous sweat from them. "Keaton, love?" she called out to the tender, impressed that her voice wasn't shaking.

Rhys looked over at David again, wondering who the hell he was and more importantly what he was to Riley. "Hey, Ri... did you do something to your hair?"

"What?" Rhys's question caught her off guard and her hand rose to pat at her hair. "No. Why does everyone keep asking me that?" She turned back to Keaton. "Under the bar, next to the till, is a bottle of 20-year-old port-aged Glenmorangie scotch. That and three highball glasses and I won't tell anyone where you keep your tails."

"I don't know. You look different." But maybe that was just due to his memory lapse. He settled himself on a stool, mostly because he wasn't sure if he'd be able to remain standing without passing out much longer. He was doing his best to take things in stride, but some things you just didn't take in stride.

That was a look he'd seen on her face before, too. He didn't say anything else, just leaned back against the bar again, pressing his shoulder against hers. He could feel the tremors going through her, and reached up to squeeze her shoulder gently. "Take a breath, la mei," he whispered.

Rhys looked over at David, who seemed to be Riley's shadow. His initial reaction was to make a smart remark, but he wasn't feeling comfortable enough to do that just yet. "So, are you going to introduce us or should I just guess?"

She grabbed the bottle and the glasses and then nodded to a booth across from them. "Maybe...uh...maybe we should go over there?"

"We as in the three of us?" He was looking between David and Riley again.

"Yeah, maybe that's a good idea." David headed over to the indicated booth, going through everything she'd told him about Rhys again. How he hadn't remembered her at all last time she'd seen him. He seemed to recognize her now, though.

"Yes, as in the three of us. David, this is Rhys Bristol. Rhys, this is David Lo." She took a deep breath, seeking her Center and headed towards a booth. The bottle and the glasses rattled together softly.

"Awesome," Rhys muttered under his breath, meaning exactly the opposite.

This didn't seem like the best time to be shaking hands, so he just nodded in response to the introductions. "Rhys," he said. "I've...heard a lot about you." The cliche disease was catching, clearly.

"Yeah, maybe you can fill me in because I don't remember sh*t." He followed Riley to the booth, really needing that drink now. He slid himself onto the banquette opposite David, forcing Riley to choose sides.

She settled into the booth next to David and across from Rhys. Sides had been chosen. She set the bottle on the table and poured out three rather hefty drinks, the neck of the bottle rattling against the glasses with a pronounced clink. New nightmare come to life.

David slid over a bit to let her in and rested his hands on the table. When she poured the drink, he took a hefty slug from it and forced himself to relax, leaning back against the wall of the booth.

She mirrored David, nearly draining the glass before refilling it. She was silent for a long time, just staring at Rhys, her eyes moving over his face as if trying to convince herself that she was not imagining things or dreaming.

"So, tell me...? Rhys said. ?Am I dreaming? Is this some trick? Because if it is, I'd like to wake up now."

She laughed as Rhys spoke her thoughts. "No, I'm pretty sure this isn't a dream." She didn't touch on tricks though, considering their shared history. Under the table, she reached for David's hand. He squeezed her hand a little desperately, though his face never changed.

Rhys closed a hand around the glass, tipped it back, and down the scotch went down his throat. He immediately reached for the bottle and refilled their glasses.

"So, uh..." she started, intelligently. Give her a second and she'd be drooling.

"Okay, so if it's not a dream then... why am I here and maybe more importantly... how did I get here? Oh, wait... let me guess. Demons." He tossed back the second glass like it was water and poured a third. He'd take his time with the third. Maybe.

She went perfectly still, not breathing, not blinking. A chill stair-stepped up her spine, lifting the hairs on the back of her neck and along her forearms. When she was finally capable of drawing breath, she asked in a harsh voice, ?What do you remember??

David shrugged a bit. "I got here when I kicked a high-tech cell-phone off...a guy's...belt. Maybe this demon had something for traveling places on her, and you winged it."

He shook his head, not that he didn't believe David or that it wasn't a possibly explanation. He just didn't think demons needed any high-tech devices that helped them travel. They just seemed able to be where they wanted to be when they wanted to be there. But... so far, no one had followed him. He drew back the curtain and looked over at the portal. "There's something else... Two things..."

"Lovely," she muttered and drained her glass before pouring more scotch into it.

"She took Dylan's cross." That was the first thing.

Riley nodded. "I know."

He looked back at Riley, wrinkling his forehead. "What do you mean?"

"I...I dreamt about it last week."

David glanced quickly at her when she said she knew, remembering the nightmare she'd told him about. "Sh*t," he muttered quietly.

"You dreamed about what? About me?" Rhys asked, confused.

She glanced at David, her eyes going wide. "You told me not to ignore it. Oh, hell..."

"Sucks being right sometimes," he answered.

Rhys was looking between them again, curiously. "What's going on?"

She sipped more scotch and cleared her throat. "Namaah came to me in this dream. She had your cross, said that you were kicking over rocks and she popped out from underneath one. She...she threatened me. She said she'd have you soon, and then she'd kill everyone I know and love and then...then me. She said you were trying to remember what happened last summer."

Rhys was getting really confused now. Confused and angry again. "Last week? But I just saw her..."

"Yeah, last week." She gave Rhys a wry smile. "The nexus is...cantankerous. What day is it?"

"I..." He broke off. "What month is it? Hell, what year is it?"

"You tell me."

?May,? Rhys answered.

"May," she repeated and glanced sidelong at David. He met her look, shook his head.

"May 2010." The day seemed irrelevant, at least, for now.

She tugged open the curtain that enclosed the booth and pointed to the windows. Snow was steadily falling outside, piling up on snow that had clearly been there for at least two or three weeks. "It's December the sixteenth."

He turned his head to look out the windows, getting a sinking feeling in his pit of his stomach. "December," he repeated. Where had he been for the last seven months?

She sat back in the booth, letting the curtain fall closed once more, arms crossing over her chest, and exhaled sharply. "So. You've been digging around, trying to remember your past, and... and Hell seems disturbed by this. Like they're...afraid or something."

"Afraid of what you might remember, or do in remembering," David added.

"I don't think it was demons that brought me here, Ri. I don't think this is where they wanted me to go." He heard them both, and was trying to puzzle it all out with them.

"If it's not Hell, then the only alternative is..." Blood drained from her face. "Sh*t," she swore viciously.

"Yeah," he echoed her expletive in his heart if not his words. "They're screwing with our lives again."

She laughed, but it was a bitter, mirthless sound. She gave David a soft smile, her tone only half-joking. "It's not too late to call it off, David." He just stared at her.

"I should go back. You know how to send me back?" He broke off, looking between them and sensing something going on between them that he was definitely not a part of.

"I was joking," she said softly then turned and looked at Rhys. "No, you can't go back. I mean, you were sent here for a reason. So...maybe we should figure that out before we do anything too rash."

"Someone sent me here for a reason. It's not a coincidence that you're here. They sent me here because you're here." It was pretty obvious once he thought about it a little. "The question is... why?"

She nodded. "Yeah, that's my thinking, too. But I have no idea why. I mean... The Trinity is broken. John is..." She cleared her throat again and looked down. "John's gone."

"If they're working against the demons,? David said, ?they think having you both in the same place will make it easier to stop them." He gave her hand another squeeze, letting her know that he knew she was joking, and wasn't bothered by it.

"To kill two birds with one stone or..." He trailed off, another thought coming to mind. "We're stronger together than apart."

David nodded. "It's simple tactics. A lone person is easier to take out than a group."

She clenched her jaw, the look on her face probably quite familiar to both men - the look of sheer, bloody-minded stubbornness. "I am not dancing to their tune again. I have no intentions of going back to Earth. I'm not... I'm not a part of this bullsh*t anymore."

"Get up, Rhys. You're gonna freeze your butt off, laying down there."

"Five more minutes, Mom," he muttered as he staggered to his feet.

She handed him off to David, a quick, "Keep an eye on him," and she headed inside once more, looking around for Fiora. Oh, look. John Benandanti. Apparently it was old home week at the Red Dragon Inn. If Eamon walked in, she was going home and hiding under her bed. Spotting Fiora, she made a beeline for her. After speaking with the Gardens' manager, she discovered that Rhys would have his choice of three lofts. Fiora said she'd leave the keys to unit 3A with Cheung. Riley thanked her and headed back to the porch. Once back outside, she took in the scene, caramel gaze jumping from Rhae to the unnamed Granger, to Rhys, to David. Then she closed her eyes and wished fervently to be somewhere else right now.

David turned and looked at Riley when she came back out. "I think he's okay."

She nodded. "So, I need to go to the Gardens and pick up the key for the loft at some point."

"We should do it soon. I think he needs some rest," David said softly.

She nodded and glanced down at Rhys. "Rhys? Can you walk a little?"

"I can walk." The man had his pride, after all.

"Good, 'cos I'm not carrying your butt anywhere." She hooked her hand under his arm and dragged him to his feet again. "Let's go then."

Rhys got up off the bench, with her help, swaying a little. "Where are we going?"

"Your home away from home," she said and carefully guided him down the steps. David stepped around to the other side of Rhys, but didn't touch him again, just kept ready in case. She could handle him just fine.

Rhys tried not to lean into her too much, but he didn't have much choice. ?Congratulations," he muttered.

She frowned as they made their way towards WestEnd. "Congratulations on what?"

"Your engagement."

"Oh. Thank you," she said softly. Awkward.

David was in full cop mode as they went down the street, checking every shadow and motion. There was no telling if someone or something was coming after Rhys soon. Her own Super-Kitty senses were on overload - her nose was working overtime, scenting everything and everyone, ears strained above the blanket of silence the falling snow created.? Soon, they came to the WestEnd and the Zen Gardens building loomed welcoming in the distance. The building was four stories and very obviously Asian in design.? On either side of the front door sat two enormous bronze Foo Dog statues, which were in turn surrounded by small groves of bamboo.? Just above the roof line, more trees were visible, their naked branches still somehow beautiful in the snow.

Once they'd retrieved the key from Mr Cheung, the building's grumpy super, Riley realised that the heat and water had long been turned off in the loft that Rhys would be staying in. With David's permission, Rhys could stay with them at Twin Oaks until his new loft was habitable. They all trooped back over the bridge, through the dale, to Riley and David's house they went.

When they got home, David unlocked the door and pushed it open, standing back to let them both go in before him. She ducked inside, nostrils flaring as a matter of course, testing the air both in and around Twin Oaks, so named for the two huge oak trees that stood sentinel on either side of the house.? She nodded through the archway opposite the front door.? "Kitchen's there," she explained and then pointed to a closed door off to the right.? "Our bedroom's there.? Yours is at the top of the stairs, first door on the left." David waited a few moments, checking the street again, then came inside and locked the door, double-checked it.?

Rhys's hands were shoved in his pockets and he withdrew them as he stepped into the house, blowing on them to warm them. "Nice place." Beat the hell out of his crappy little garage apartment back in Brooklyn.

"Thanks.? We just finished remodeling it a little while ago."?

"You a cop or something?" Rhys just got that feeling about David, and there had been a time before he'd lost his memory when he'd had some stirrings of psychic abilities.

David turned and nodded at Rhys.? "I was a cop, yeah.? Ten years." Then he headed towards the kitchen. "Either of you hungry?"

She shook her head at David's question, "Not hungry, but I'll make some tea or something.? Sound good?"

"Speak for yourself. I'm starving," Rhys said.

She smiled; same old Rhys, even if he couldn't remember.? She headed into the kitchen, grabbing the tea kettle to fill it with water and set it on the stove to heat.? Then she opened the fridge, grabbing out bread, butter, mozzarella cheese, balsamic vinegar and fresh basil leaves - the makings of Grilled Cheese O'Rourke.

"How'd you end up here?" he asked David, as he started wandering around, looking at this thing and that.

"A guy who looked just like me came to kill me one day."

Rhys arched a brow. He could only relate in terms of things he knew about. "Doppelganger?"

David shook his head.? "He was...well, he was me.? Only not from the same universe.? Dimension.? I don't know."

The alarm went off all too soon.? Riley's eyes popped open in the early-morning gloom of their bedroom and she stared at the ceiling.? She reached out her right arm, felt David's warm, bare shoulder and smiled softly.? Turning on her side, she studied him silently for a moment...and then heard the toilet flushing upstairs.? She groaned and hid her face against David.? "Oh, no," she said.? "It wasn't a dream."

The shrill sound of the alarm interrupted a rather pleasant dream he was having.? Opening his eyes and finding the main subject of that dream lying against him was pretty nice, though.? At least until the circumstances of the previous night returned to him.? "Christ," he muttered.? "It really happened, didn't it?"

She sighed deeply and cuddled closer to him, draping her arm across his stomach and gently kissing his shoulder.? "I can't stay home this morning," she said reluctantly.? "And I have to go this afternoon, too.? Will you be okay?"

He ducked his head and inhaled the scent of her hair, sighed softly.? He didn't want her to leave, and it wasn't entirely because of their unexpected guest, either.? "Yeah, of course.? Will you?"? As awkward and uncomfortable as it was for him, he couldn't even imagine how much worse it must be for her.

She shook her head and propped herself up on her elbow so she could look down at him.? "I don't...? It's really weird, you know?"? Her eyes narrowed slightly in thought.? "It's like...? He's Rhys Bristol and there's all of this emotional baggage attached to that name - both good and bad.? But at the same time...? He's a stranger."

"Yeah, I know.? I was trying to imagine what it would be like to have Charlotte show up suddenly, and not really know who I was."? He shook his head.? "But...I don't think I really loved her to begin with, so it's not the same."? It wasn't the first time he'd thought that last bit, but it was definitely the first time he'd ever said it.

"You didn't?? But...you were going to marry her."? Despite her relative certainty of his feelings towards her, she was still more than a little alarmed at that revelation.

He shrugged one shoulder slightly.? "Maybe.? Or maybe I would've realized we wouldn't have been happy.? That our relationship was more like convenience than love."? Talk about an unexpected conversation, especially now.? It felt good to be saying it, though.

Her brows rose and she reluctantly glanced at the clock.? If she didn't wash her hair, she wouldn't have to blow-dry it and she'd have another ten minutes to talk.? "Because all the guys on the force had wives or girlfriends?" she guessed.? She'd been involved with a cop, after all; she sort of knew the culture.

"Yeah, that was part of it.? We're always a little suspicious of the loners."

She chuckled softly at that.? Then she sobered as bits of the conversation from last night filtered in.? "David..." she started, but hesitated before she finished the thought.

"What is it?"

"I'm...? I'm terrified of what Rhys being here means to us."

"You don't think he's going to try to get you back, do you?"

She shook her head.? "He doesn't remember what we had.? All he knows is what people have told him...and what he saw here last night.? He's not...? He's reckless and unthinking and impulsive, but he's not stupid."? She sat up then, shivering as the cold air hit her sleep-warmed body and goose-pimples broke out across her skin.? "Besides, even if he looked like Brad Pitt and was as funny as Robin Williams and as smart as Bill Gates, there's no way he could take me away form you."

He grinned at that, and leaned forward to kiss the side of her thigh, the only thing he could easily reach without getting up.? "Good, because I'm not willing to let you go."? Then he sobered.? "What scares you, then?"

She slipped out of bed and went to their dresser and began pulling clothes out and piling them on her side of the bed.? "The implications of him being here.? Heaven - or Hell, or both, I guess - clearly aren't done with me yet, despite John being gone and the Trinity being broken.? Also, when angels and demons are, usually the Fae aren't too far behind and frankly, that scares me more than anything else."

Now he sat up, too.? "You're going to have to fill me in on all the details of what's happened in the past, and soon," he said.? "For now, though, if you think something is going to be coming after us, we should start making preparations."

She paused, a pile of clothes in her arms, and turned to face him, her lower lip caught between her teeth as she mused.? "Well, I'm not sure we really can prepare.? I mean...? This-" she reached to touch a small gold and glass phial that hung at her neck, "and this-" she trailed a finger across the Sig Sauer P250 lying on top of the dresser. The gun had become her constant companion. "These are about the only things that will protect against the Fae.? I don't know what will protect against angels or demons since they're not my bag."

"Hell, I don't either, but someone has to.? I mean, it's Rhy'Din.? You can find anything here."? He smiled grimly.? "I'm not sure I believe in destiny.? If Heaven and Hell have plans for you, nothing says we have to roll over and take it.? You said Rhys was demon hunter.? If he knew how to handle them, others must, too."

She nodded and set her clothes down on the bed.? "Mesteno said something about demons the last time I spoke to him.? If he doesn't hate me now, maybe I'll ask him.? I'm gonna hop in the shower.? Will there be coffee upon my exit?"?

"Yeah, I'll go make some."? He got out of bed and threw on a pair of pants.? "I'll go down to the station and ask around there, too.? Like I said, someone's got to know something."?

She nodded and then paused just outside the bathroom door and glanced back at him over her shoulder.? "I love that you said 'we'," she said softly, a tiny smile playing about her lips.

He stopped, smiling back at her.? "We're in this together, babe, however it turns out."? And that was what love was all about, wasn't it??

"I love you, David," she said a smile and slipped inside the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.? The sound of the shower commenced a few moments later.

"I love you, too," he said to the closed door, knowing her super-kitty ears would catch it anyway.? Then he turned and went into the kitchen to brew a pot of coffee so it would be ready when she finished. As the coffee was bubbling its way down into the pot, he thought about what she'd told him about demons, and what he'd gathered from Rhys' story.? Guns could slow them down, but not kill the demon inside the body.? There had to be some kind of weapon that would hurt them, though.? They just had to find out what it was...hell, maybe they knew what it was.?

He thought about Rhys for a moment, then.? You had to feel bad to the guy, really.? Sure, it was awkward as sh*t, him showing up and all, but it clearly wasn't his fault.? Without memory of what had happened, he was a victim, too.? It helped to think of Rhys that way, and not dwell on his past with Riley.? The past was the past, and he trusted her completely.? Besides, what kind of jerk would he be if he wasn't ready to help someone she cared about, no matter what had happened?

The coffee was ready now, so he grabbed a pair of mugs.? After a second's hesitation, he grabbed a third, too.? He didn't know if Rhys would be awake anytime soon, but he'd leave a mug near the pot.? He filled two mugs, adding a liberal dose of milk and sugar to hers.