by Aeryn
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Archive: Ask first.

Warnings: None at this time.

Feedback: All is welcome. As a writer, I love Constructive Comments.

Disclaimers: Paramount/Viacom owns the rights. I just give them room to play.

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Harry's dark eyes flicked over the work before him, carefully studying it. He had been sitting here for hours now, and it was all starting to blur together. The diagrams which had made so much sense only a few hours ago now seemed only a jumbled mess.

He sighed and tossed the stylus onto the table before him. It clattered onto the Drafting Desk surface. This project was going to take longer than he had. He groaned.

Why was it that those in authority - a.k.a. Instructors - always gave Students far less time than needed to complete Class Projects? Perhaps they were all just a hair sadistic. That must be it. They were just waiting for a student such as Harry to screw up so they could laugh and say, "So you thought you were so smart, huh? Ha!"

Then again, it was most likely just his penchant for being a perfectionist. Every line and arch of the diagram needed to be perfect, lined up exactly and arranged precisely. Every section needed to be coded and cross-referenced for ease of location by others. Or so Harry was sure.

But it was at times such as this one that he felt the futility of the Exercise. All he wanted at this moment was to slink off to the bathroom and take a long shower followed by a short nap. But he did not have the time to waste in such a frivolous manner. He was almost out of time.

Harry felt his eyes drifting closed and attempted to fight the effects of being up for thirty six hours solid after only four hours of sleep the night before that. But that was as futile as the project on his Drafting Desk. Sleep overtook him, and the Dreams began again.


He was sitting out behind the school, leaned against the back wall, when Harry exited the building. Harry felt his heart leap at the sight of the other boy. He felt his stomach tie itself into complex knots, and words failed him. The intelligent young man that designed computers for fun was gone, replaced by an uncertain young man with no concept of what to say to this incredible young man he was staring at.

The Other smiled a playful smile. "Hey, Harry!" He seemed as excited and terrified as Harry himself was.

"Hey. You know you shouldn't be here. If they catch us. . ."

"What, Harry? What will they do?" The Other seemed slightly defiant. And yet, there was a hint of teasing in those soft tones.

Harry felt himself tense. He knew what his Instructor would do. But then. . . something inside him snapped. Why did he care what that old coot thought? No matter the effort Harry made, the man seemed consistently displeased with the work he handed in. So, why should he not have a few moments of what HARRY wanted? He had spent so much time lately trying to please an Instructor whom, it became increasingly clear, there was no pleasing.

He grinned down at the Other. "You know, you're right. They can't do anything they haven't done before. Come on. I want to show you something." And he was off through the schoolyard toward the field behind it. He knew this place. . . somewhere no one else knew of. . . yet.

"Where to?" The Other asked quietly, following behind him.

"Somewhere they can't find us." Harry enthused. He knew what he wanted this time. And this time, he was not afraid, for the first time in his life, of what ANYONE would say. He did not care at that moment.

After a short run, they reached a small creek set in a small stand of trees behind the field. Here, no one could tell them what they could and could not do. Here, the decision rested solely with Harry and the Other.

He smiled and tossed his PADDs down, lowering himself to sit beside a large oak tree. Patting the ground beside himself, he grinned up at the Other. "Come on. Sit"

The Other smiled and sat beside him, leaning back against the tree, then over to rest that magnificent head on Harry's shoulder. "This is great! How did you find this place?"

Harry chuckled wryly. "I found it a few years ago. . . when I was looking for a quiet place to design." He shook his head. He did not wish to discuss designs or schooling. Not here. Not now.

The Other seemed to understand. He lifted his head from Harry's shoulder and slid his arm around Harry's shoulders. "It's ok. We won't talk about that now."


A cold breeze brushed past Harry, alerting him to the entrance of another of the family. Lifting his head off of the Desk, he glanced toward the door to see his mother smiling at him softly.

"Are you all right, Harry?" she queried. She was always concerned when he had one of these spells. One of these Several-Days-Without- Sleep Working Sessions.

He nodded, sliding off the chair and crossing the room to stand before her. "Mmhmm. Just a little tired. But I think I almost have it this time." Even he heard the exhaustion in his tones.

"Then maybe you should go to bed and finish it in the morning. I will wake you early." she counseled. He agreed.

Giving his mother a hug and a kiss on the cheek, he scurried off toward the bathroom and a warm shower. His parents, eccentric as mother was, had installed a water shower like the old ones on Earth before the advent of the Sonic Shower. And Harry found that, on nights like this one, he preferred the warm water to the sterile sonics.

Shower completed, he crossed the hallway to his room. The Dream still rang in his thoughts. He could not shake the image of that magnificent blonde man. Not that he wanted to. Who was he? Why was Harry seeing him in his Dreams lately? Where had this image come from? He could not remember ever meeting anyone who matched the description. He was sure he would have remembered a young man like that had he met him before!

Slipping out of the towel he had wrapped about himself, he dragged on some nightclothes and slid beneath the covers, pulling them up about his chin. Would the Dream return, he wondered? Would the handsome young blonde come back to meet him now that he was not to be disturbed by the Outside World?

Harry's eyes drifted closed, and the Mysts of Dream surrounded him.


He was sitting out behind the school, leaning against the back wall, when Harry exited the building. Harry felt his heart leap at the sight of the other boy. He felt his stomach tie itself into complex knots, and words failed him. The intelligent young man that designed computers for fun was gone, replaced by an uncertain young man with no concept of what to say to this incredible young man he was staring at.

The Other smiled.

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End