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"Xavier, I'm home."

I was in the living room, getting a little work done on my computer. I'd already called my boss to let him know I'd be back in tomorrow. Jaimie walked into the room and came over to where I was. She ran a finger across the side of my face.

"What cha working on?"

"A new planning interface which will help the design crew chose which elements to place where on the runs for the most versatile layout, before they drag it all onto the hill. But now that you're home," I saved my work and snapped my laptop shut, "I'm going to call it a day."

Standing, I gave Jaimie a big hug and a quick kiss on the forehead.

"You got any plans tonight?" I asked over my shoulder as I left the room, Jaimie following.

"No, why?"

"Because I thought we could go to the Quandary."

"Really!"

"I do have my side of a promise to keep."

The Quandary was the local dance joint for anyone who didn't want to listen to rap. It also had a restaurant, where we had eaten before. Unfortunately, due to my prior condition, I was unable to partner Jaimie in any dancing. Though I wasn't too fond of the idea myself, I had made a promise, and it would make Jaimie happy.

The evening was much more fun than I had expected. The band tonight was very good and my body it seemed wasn't finished with its surprises for today. Even though, for the duration of my remembered life, I had been crippled, my feet and body moved with confidence and skill, my mind fluidly falling instep. It didn't matter what the song was, I led with dexterity previously unknown to me, and Jaimie, who seemed to have had dance lessons before now, followed grinning the whole time. Waltz, foxtrot, two step, tango, swing, my feet took on a mind of their own.

Finally, the band announced that they were going to take a break and we found a table to rest for a bit. I held the chair for Jaimie before falling into my own, panting and a little sweaty. I wiped my silver hair out of my face and turned to her to see her absolutely beaming.

"Wow, you're an excellent dancer," she said, "It's been a long time since I've had a talented partner."

"Thank you," I replied before draining the glass of water which had just been deposited in front of me by a waiter.

I excused myself on the pretence of finding the bathroom. Instead I found the band leader, a brightly colored finch. I waited for him to finish ordering his drink before walking up.

"Hey, what's up? Nice moves out there by the way," he commented in his tenor voice.

"I was wondering if you took requests."

"Sure do. What'll it be?"

I handed him the details on a napkin folded around a fifty. He read it over quickly.

"Can do champ, but I don't need the money for the request."

"Na, you guys have been great."

"Thanks."

I picked my way back to our table where Jaimie had ordered drinks and a small appetizer.

"I hope you don't mind that I ordered for you."

"Not at all," I replied, taking a swallow from the glass of dark beer.

We sat, talking and eating for twenty minutes or so. Both of us were enjoying the night very much. Jaimie wanted to know where I'd learned to dance, but I had to reply truthfully that I didn't know. Just with the helicopter this morning, once I got into the situation, my body reacted almost moving without thought. I heard light applause and looked to see the band walking back onto the raised platform they had been playing from.

The finch walked up to the mike, "Wow, what a night. Hopefully we can help to keep it a good one."

More clapping.

"Some of you may have noticed, and for those of you who haven't you'll get a chance to, but we have a particularly talented couple in our midst tonight and the gentleman has made a small request." He pulled out a folded napkin and read from it, "for all of your unceasing support, and for sharing my new life with me, Jaimie, this one goes out to you."

I stood and offered her my paw. She looked surprised and a little flattered, but took my paw and allowed me to lead her to the middle of the dance floor. The lights dimmed and a single spotlight overhead illuminated us as the band struck up an upbeat salsa. It wasn't your traditional highlight dance, but it was very fast and required a lot of footwork, which is why I had picked it. Both of us moved through it skillfully, enjoying every second. When the song ended, I pulled Jaimie up from the position we had finished in. She kissed me as the other patrons cheered, before returning to the dance floor. I was out of breath from the demanding performance and lead Jaimie back to our table.

"Oh Xavier, that dedication was sweet. And what a dance!" she said, now beginning to laugh a little.

We chose to take it easy for the rest of the night. Eventually though, it was time for the last dance and then time to leave. We walked along the nearly deserted sidewalks, Jaimie's arm raped through mine, talking and laughing on our way home. The night was clear and the sky was filled with stars.

Everything was rather romantic, except for the figure, almost casually following us a block and a half back. I watched him in the reflection of a car windshield. He was wearing khaki slacks and a black driving coat, and could have been just some innocent pedestrian. There was something about the way he walked, and the way he kept those long ears of his trained on us though. It was also a bit dark for black tinted sunglasses in my opinion.

"Jaimie," I said in the same tone of voice I had been using in order not to startle her, or alert our guest, "are you by any chance carrying your pistol?"

I knew she usually carried it for self defense, but was occasionally know not to when she would be particularly active, or well dressed. Unfortunately, tonight fell under both categories, so I doubted she had it with her since she didn't like to carry it in her purse.

"No, why?"

"Nothing, I could have used it."

I quickly checked our surroundings and spotted an ally on the far side of the next building. Perfect. I continued walking, using the same gate and same speed until we were in front of the opening. Clenching my arm, I pinned Jaimie to my side and quickly pulled her into the dark space, slipping into the shadows myself in a position to protect her. I knew that the man following us was the same hare who I had spotted watching me on several previous occasions. I didn't know who he was, or what he wanted, but he was about to learn that, in the future, he should probably disguise himself a little better.

"What's this all about?" Jaimie whispered angrily from behind the snow bank I had pushed her to for cover.

I placed my finger over my mouth as my ears picked up the sound of quickened footsteps on ice. Whoever he was, he really didn't know how to keep a low profile. He turned the corner, intent on finding his lost quarry, and didn't notice me in the shadows until my fist impacted on the side of his face.

He quickly recovered though and took a defensive position. I swung again. This time he dodged, aiming a blow at me. I intercepted the attack with my left paw with a twisting motion, and threw him to the ground using the extraordinary upper body strength I had developed from pushing myself around in a wheel chair. What my attack lacked in subtlety, he made up for in his fighting knowledge. He used his momentum to roll to the side, further into the ally where he stood and drew a handgun, pointing it at Jaimie.

"Stop!" He shouted, "I don't want to hurt anyone."

"Wrong move buddy," I growled menacingly.

I leaped forward with lightning speed and brought by fist down on the arm holding the gun, feeling the bones in his wrist break beneath my fearsome attack. The weapon fell to the ground, but I wasn't finished. His threat on Jaimie had awoken a rage in me which I had not know existed. Rather than letting it consume me and fight blindly, I used it for strength, calmly and efficiently battling our assailant.

I landed an open palm strike on his nose with the heel of my paw, causing it to break as well. Following through, my left fist fell on his jaw. I finished with a powerful kick to the chest which sent him sprawling then feet away. I walked calmly to where he had landed, picking up his gun on my way.

"Stop! J I A!" he shouted holding a badge out in front of him, cowering beneath my rage.

I snatched it from his fingers before he could react, examining it with one eye, while I kept the other trained on him, watching for any sudden movements. Jardainian Intelligence Agency. So he worked for the government. I tossed the badge back at him.

"What interest does the government have in me?" I asked savagely.

"I don't know."

"You'll have to better than that."

I cocked the pistol and aimed it into his bloody face.

"Please, I don't know. They don't tell me why, they only tell me who."

"Well, that may be the case, and if you hadn't threatened Jaimie, I may have let you live."

I was about to pull the trigger when I felt a paw on my arm. I turned to see Jaimie next to me. The look in her eyes caused me to calm down immediately.

"Don't," she whispered, "you don't want to do this. You'll go to jail. That's not how you want to live your new life."

I lowered the gun and dropped it to the ground.

"Let's go home Xavier."

The agent on the ground spoke, "Xavier? Your name is Xavier?"

"Yes. Why? Did 'they' not even tell you my name?"

"No, but I was told to follow a snow leopard of your description named Kirian. Kirian Harper."

He sounded genuinely confused. I looked at him almost pityingly.

"Well, since I did all of this in self defense, right?"

He nodded, fear in his eyes.

"Good. I hope you find your correct target after the police let you out."

With that, I brought my foot down on his temple, knocking him into unconsciousness. I checked his pulse before pulling a cell phone from his coat pocket. I used it to dial the police, telling them we had been assaulted and where the attacker could be found. That complete, Jaimie and I walked home, still a little shook up.

I straitened myself from where I had just tackled and incapacitated a rebel. Looking around the room I saw the hostages we had been sent to rescue. Just prior to begging to untie them, I noticed a movement in the corner of my eye. Before I could react, the attacker put a gun to my head and shouted something in a foreign language.

"Put the guns down and do as I say, or I blow his head off!" now understandable, but with a thick accent.

I motioned to my two partners, a female marten, and a male fox to lower their weapons. I took a slow breath and then grabbed the wrist holding the weapon, twisting it and slamming it into my attacker's face before bringing him to the ground and knocking him out.

Waking up from my dream, I sat up slowly in bed. Why couldn't my nights be peaceful anymore? I rolled over can checked the clock. Four thirty in the morning. I considered going back to sleep, but I was wide awake and didn't see the point. Instead, I climbed out of bed, took a swig of milk from the carton in the fridge, before finally settling down in the living room behind my laptop. The screen's backlight illuminated my face as I began my search.

One thing had been bugging me about the previous night's incidents. If I wasn't who the hare from the JIA was looking for, who was this mysterious Kirian Harper? I began my search by plugging the name into a search engine. If he was high profile, it would be easy. But, frowning, the search brought up millions of results for multiple individuals. Better try something else.

I navigated to the website for the Raleigh public library. They were the largest library in the province, and I knew they had an extensive record of news papers. As I began my search, limiting it to results in the past five years, I thought of where else I might look. The obituary's maybe. But now it seemed I was getting somewhere.

A handful of results came up. I chose to look through the four which had been in the Raleigh Harold. If Kirian was in a large city publication, I'd probably get more information. The first two articles were published just over four years ago. One was about a local high school student who had qualified for a state biathlon championship and the other was about him winning it. The latter included a picture. I examined the image closely. It was hard to make out much detail in the black and white photo. The individual was mostly covered in his gear, with a rifle slung on his back as he crossed the finish line. Even his face was covered by goggles. His long leopard's tail however was exposed and I noticed what appeared to be a black spot on its otherwise colorless length.

I clicked on the link to the third article. This one was about two student's who had been accepted to the National Military Academy. The article was also accompanied by a pair of pictures, these one's in color. The first was of a rust colored fox with white ears, who I felt like I recognized. The second was an albino snow leopard. He had silver hair and gold eyes. I tilted the computer screen until the glass reflected my face. There were uncanny similarities. Minus the four years and small scar which ran below my hairline, the boy in the picture could have been my twin brother.

I finally read the last article. It was titled "Tragic Accident Kills Five Academy Cadets." The large picture below the text showed what appeared to be aircraft wreckage. I read through the report. Helicopter accident, bodies could not be recovered, funeral. Finally my eyes fell on the list of names of the cadets who had died. Again, Kirian's was among them.

If Kirian was dead, why was the government looking for him? The answer was obvious, because Kirian wasn't dead. The pieces fell together in my mind. The crash had been staged in order to erase the existence of at least one, if not all the members of that academy squad. But now the JIA was searching for him, which meant someone knew he was alive, which meant he was in danger. I backtracked to the first pair of photos. The similarities in appearance were unmistakable. Snow Leopard, albino, same facial features, same hair color, and that one black spot on his tail. I looked down at my own tail. They were identical. Which could only mean one thing...