"Zarbon, wake up!" Tonya called excitedly knocking loudly on her door.  Her lover, like most nights, had shared her bed, but he had yet to rise and greet the day.

 He groaned, rolled onto his stomach, and buried his head under the pillow as she threw open the door and bounded into the room.  She jumped onto the bed, barely missing him, and bounced a couple of times.

 "Wake up!" she said loudly, but he didn't move.  She put her hands on his back, pushed him into the bed a little, and then let him up.  Repeating this move, she bounced his body, all the while chirping, "Up up up."

 As annoying as this was, Zarbon knew at least half of the reason she was making so much noise.  One time, shortly after he had moved in, she had tried to wake him up by surprise.  His mercenary training had kicked in and Tonya found herself flung against the wall.  She had been dazed, but unhurt.  She had held no grudge against him, but had never tried to sneak up on him again while he slept.

 But why the bloody hell she was bugging him at this time of day was beyond his reasoning.  He pushed the pillow away and she stopped bouncing.

 "What?" he growled twisting to glare at her, noticing her heavy coat and pink cheeks.

 Tonya's broad grin didn't falter and her eyes were bright with excitement and mischief. "Get up!" she repeated again in a perky tone.

 "Why?" he asked, getting the distinct impression that she was enjoying his annoyance.

 "It snowed!  Come and play," she said tugging lightly on his arm.  "It's time to play."

 "It's time to sleep," he replied shortly, fluffing his pillow before settling down and closing his eyes.

 "But it's nine thirty!" she protested.  Zarbon didn't reply, but snuggled deeper into the blankets.  Tonya's face fell and she sighed heavily.  She had been sure she could coax him into playing with her.  "No one wants to play with me," she whined softly. "They're all too busy."

 Zarbon wasn't about to fall for her "woe is me" act, but she actually seemed serious this time. "Later," he said.

 "Later?" Tonya cocked head. "How much later?"

 "Give me an hour, Okay?"

 "Alright," she grumbled and trudged from the room.

 Two hours later, Zarbon awoke to silence.  He blinked at the clock in surprise and immediately wondered where the girl had disappeared too.  Dressing quickly and warmly, he began to hunt for his wayward love.  He found her in the kitchen slicing tomatoes while bacon sizzled in a pan on the stove.

Zarbon walked up behind her, wrapped his arms around her, and rested his chin on her shoulder.  She leaned back against him and he inhaled deeply, savoring the aroma of bacon mingling with her scent.

 "Mmmm...Something smells delicious," he said and kissed her neck.  She giggled as his tongue suddenly flicked against her neck.  "Mmm," he grinned and nuzzled her ear.  "Tastes good too."

 Tonya laughed, picked up a tomato slice, and offered it to him.  He took it and munched on it happily while she wrinkled her nose and made a face.

 "Glad to see you're in a better mood," she said starting to slice another tomato.  "Good thing I gave you that extra hour." She smirked.

 "Hn." He said lightly, "This coming from Miss 'Wake me before 10 and I'll remove all your internal organs'?  I'm in shock!" He kissed her neck again and squeezed her gently.

"If you're going to stay in here," she said. "Give me a hand."

 "I'll slice the tomatoes," he said reaching for another slice.

 "You mean you'll eat the tomatoes," Tonya said catching his wrist, and turning to face him.  "You can watch the bacon." She gently pushed him towards the stove.

 He compiled and poked at the bacon with the plastic cooking fork.  "You don't even like tomatoes," he said pretending to pout and give her a reproachful look.

 She smirked and ignored his look. "True, but other people in this house do.  They wouldn't like it if you ate them all.  You can't have a BLT without tomatoes," she said.

 "You do."

 "I'm weird," she shrugged without missing a stroke.

 "What's Poopsie going to eat?" Zarbon asked pulling the cooked bacon from the pan and adding more uncooked.  "She won't eat the bacon."

 Tonya paused, the knife held mid stroke through the tomato.  She slowly looked at Zarbon and blinked, her brow furrowing.  "Oh Shit!  You're right!"

- - - - - - - - -
 After lunch and clean up, Tonya drug Zarbon down to the cave to show off her new toys.  Techno was adjusting something on what looked like a jet ski.  Tonya frowned slightly and Zarbon eyed the machines warily.

 "Did you figure it out yet?" Tonya asked releasing Zarbon from her grasp.  She peeked over Techno's shoulder carefully, trying not to block his light.

 "Yes and no," Techno replied.  "It's installed and running on that one," he gestured with the screwdriver, "but it refuses to run on this one."  Tonya frowned thoughtfully and leaned forward to study the open panel.

 "What are you trying to install?" Zarbon asked standing on the other side of the machine.

 "GPS Tracking system," they responded together.

 Zarbon nodded and leaned over to look into the panel.  "Is that supposed to be connected like that?" he asked innocently.

 Techno's eye widened and he poked at the bundle of wires with the screwdriver.  He had been working with the details, not the whole picture and had missed the jumbled mess.

 "No," he glared at the glob.  "What idiot did that?"

 Tonya smacked the back of his head lightly.  "You told me to, baka," she growled.

 "When the hell did that happen?" he spat glaring at her and rubbing his injury.

 Tonya rolled her eyes and took and deep breath. "You told me to start them up while we were at the junk yard.  This one wouldn't start so I had to jerry rig it and hot wire it.  I told you that and you said we'd fix it later cause you were haggling with the junk guy."

 Techno looked at her for a minute before turning back to the bundle.  "So how do I fix this?"

 "Move and hand me the wire cutters," Tonya answered.  Four snips and the tangle was on the floor.  She picked them apart and reconnected the gizmo hidden in the middle.  Turning the key, the motor began to purr and she grinned at Techno before shutting it off again.

 Techno tried to install the program again and it was immediately accepted.  He shut the panel, stood up, and dusted his hands.  "Now for the field testing," he said looking at Tonya.

 "Finally!" she exclaimed.

 "Field testing?" Zarbon asked, one eyebrow arching elegantly in confusion.

 "They're snow mobiles!" Tonya said grinning broadly.  "We thought we might need them if the weather gets bad again, like in January."

 "They look like jet skis with sled runners," Zarbon pointed out.  "Are they safe?"

 Techno and Tonya shrugged.  "That's why you're testing them," Techno said.

 "Nani?!?" Zarbon asked as his eyes widened fractionally.

 Tonya tossed him a helmet and picked up her own.

 "You're joking, right?"

 "Come on," she said smirking, "We're burning daylight." She mounted the problematic machine, started it up, and then put on her helmet.

 Zarbon hesitated, glanced at Techno, and then copied her movements.  She looked at him and raised her visor.

 "Ready?" she called over the rumble of the motor.

 Zarbon nodded and she shut the visor.  Flashing Techno a thumbs up sign, she gunned the motor and took off with Zarbon close behind.

- - - - - - 

 An hour later, the couple was several miles from the mansion enjoying the snow and sunshine.  They discovered a couple of things that needed adjusted or added, like shocks.  The mics in their helmets allowed them to relay this back to Techno and to keep in touch with each other.

 Tonya pulled to a stop in an open field where the snow wasn't as deep, pulled off her helmet, and breathed in the icy air deeply.

 Zarbon pulled up along side and raised his visor. "Something wrong?" he asked worriedly.

 "No," she smiled.  "Just wanted to stretch my legs."

 "Hmm...Alright," Zarbon agreed and shut the visor.  Guessing her true intentions from the mischievous twinkle in her eye, he quickly took off his helmet.  Dodging to the side and off the jet ski, he avoided the first snowball, but the second one caught him in the chest.

 Grinning wickedly, Zarbon scooped up some snow and returned fire.  They ran laughing and dodging around the field as the weak sun began its descent to bed.  Tonya managed to stuff a small snowball down Zarbon's collar and slipped away laughing as he tried to remove it.  His eyes narrowed and he growled, then charged the girl.  She yelped and tried to run away, but he caught her around the waist, spun her around, and pushed her to the ground.  Straddling her waist, Zarbon pinned her down.  Both were panting from exertion and the searing cold.

 "Now that I've caught you," he said leaning down, his face scant inches from hers. "What should I do with you?"

 She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer for a deep kiss.  They parted for air and Tonya noticed that it was getting quite dark.

 "Maybe we should continue back home," she suggested. "It's getting dark."

 Zarbon sat up to look over the snow at the horizon and paled.  He stood hurriedly, pulling Tonya with him, and pointed wordlessly.  They stared at the deadly black clouds that rolled across the sky, blotting out the pale sun, and casting snow thickly upon the ground.  Both knew as they sprinted for the snowmobiles that the storm would catch them before they got home, even if they flew, and that they had a better chance on the ground.

 The snow caught them as they hit the forest, and the temperature was dropping dramatically.  Visibility quickly dropped to nothing and the swirled snow confused their sense of direction.  The storm was also blocking the communication frequencies and the GPS system.  Suddenly the ground dropped away as they flew over a ridge they had skirted earlier.  Landing roughly, both were thrown from their seats.

- -- - - - - -
 Zarbon shook his head and slowly sat up, wincing as several muscles protested.  Pulling off his helmet, he realized he was against the base of the ridge and that it was blocking the wind fairly well.  His snow mobile was close; he could hear the engine over the howling wind and formed a bright ki ball to mark his spot.

 The machine was only a few feet away so he righted it, shut it off, and drug it back to the ridge for a second windbreak.  Pricking his ears, he listened for the second engine but couldn't pin point it's location.

 "Tonya!" he shouted, his voice echoing against the thick snow.  "Where are you?" He waited straining his eyes and ears for any sign of his beloved.  "Tonya?!?" he shouted again, panic rising in his chest.

 "Zarbon?"

 It was faint; was he just imagining it?

  "Zarbon?"

 No there it was again.

 "Where are you?" she cried disparately.  Tonya had managed to land on her feet, but now her right ankle ached and she was afraid.

 "Can you see the light?" he asked pouring more energy into the small globe.
 No, she thought.  I can't see... "Yes!" she shouted happily and began to limp that direction.  She stumbled into her jet ski and decided to drag it along.  After what seemed like an eternity, she could see him clearly through the biting flakes.   

 Dragging the jet ski the last few feet, she nearly tackled him when she hugged him.  He reabsorbed the ki ball as soon as she touched him and he hugged her so tightly it must have hurt, but she made no protest.  She was trembling from fear and cold and clung to him like a drowning girl.

 "Don't suppose you have a blanket hidden somewhere, do you love?" he asked, half joking, half serious.

 She looked up at him slowly unsure how to answer, but couldn't think of a witty response. "No," she whimpered, dropping her gaze.  "Just a tarp."

 Zarbon's eyes widen and he pushed her away slightly, raising her face.  "Where?"  She blinked then pointed at her jet ski, uncertain why he cared.  Then it dawned on her and she brightened.  Pulled it from its place, she handed it wordlessly to him, smiling hopefully.

 He handed it back and pulled her snow mobile closer to the ridge, forming a V shaped windbreak with them in the middle.  Then he took the tarp and spread it on the ground.  Sitting down, he opened his outer coat and gestured for her to sit down as well.  Tonya knelt beside him and he pulled her over to straddle his waist.  Pulling her close as he laid back, he wrapped his coat around her and kicked up his ki.  She snuggled closer and rubbed her nose against his neck.  He returned the gesture by rubbing his cheek against her hair.

 They lay there quietly for the better part of an hour as the snow began to build up around them and on them.  Zarbon was starting to feel sleepy and a little light headed from the cold and the amount of energy he was expending.  He felt her shift and the sudden catch in her breath as she buried her face deeper into his neck.

 "Koi?" Zarbon asked. "What's wrong?"

 She looked up and he could see the tears she was holding back.  "I don't want to die," she whimpered softly, looking down at him.  "I'm so scared."

 He hugged her tightly and kissed her deeply.  "I love you and I'm not going to let you, love," he whispered fiercely.  "We are going to survive this."  He sounded confident, but he didn't feel it.

 She nodded and reburied her face against his neck.  "I love you too."

 After a few moments, he was beginning to doze off, even though he fought to stay awake.

 "I wish I had a thick fur coat," she said nuzzling his neck. "My tail's the only part of me that's properly warm."

 Her comment registered in his brain and he knew he could fix this, but couldn't quite remember how.  The information seemed to be floating just out of reach as he was descending deep into sleep.  Making a desperate effort, he lunged for it and the answer came to him.  He sat up suddenly almost pushing her over backwards, then pushed her away, and began to pull of his coat.

 "Zarbon?!?" she asked her eyes wide, a note of panic creeping into her voice.  "What are you doing?!?"

 He tossed the coat to her and gave a slight smirk. "I've got a thick fur coat," he responded, leaning forward to brush her cheek with his.  Sitting back on his haunches, he shivered, closed his eyes, and let the change flow over him.

 Tonya stared transfixed by the transformation.  She had seen the result of this process several times, but had never seen the actual change.  It was smooth as though some Master Artist was slowly trading this form for a cat's, blending the edges perfectly as they worked.  Within a few seconds, a large green panther was sitting in front of her.

 He opened his beautiful amber eyes, stood up, and grinned at her awed expression.  "Koi," his voice was deeper and his accent was more pronounced when in this form. "Put on the coat."

 She blinked, looked down at the coat in her lap dumbly, and then hurriedly put it on.  Zarbon pushed her back gently with a paw, then covered her body with his own.  The snow stuck to his fur, but didn't melt and soon they were well on the way to being buried.  Tonya was no longer shivering and was getting sleepy since she was now warm again.  They dozed off together; their worries about survival overpowered by their need for rest.
* * * * * * *

 Alec, Sebastian, Poopsie, Sally, Dee and Jessica were outside enjoying the snow as well.  A massive free for all snowball fight raged on the lawn.  Alliances formed and broke faster than any bystander could have kept track of, and all were having a good time.

 Suddenly the front door opened and Techno ran out onto the porch.  "Everyone inside now!" he shouted.
 
 The combatants froze and looked at him in surprise, before scrambling to comply.  Just as the door shut, the house was engulfed in darkness as the storm hit.  They stood their silently as the wind screamed and howled around the house, furious at losing its victims.
 
 "Whoa," Jessica said quietly. "Thanks Techno."
 
 "You could have paged us!" Dee growled.  "It would have been faster!"

Techno glared at her.  "I tried," he said flatly.  "The storm is putting out a huge amount of interference.  None of the radios are working."
 
His jaw clenched and he looked towards the doors again.  Shaking his head, he looked at the floor, and stuffed his hands in his pockets.  Sally and Poopsie suddenly realized why it was so quiet and exchanged glances.

 "Where are Tonya and Zarbon?" Poopsie asked worriedly.

"According to the GPS tracking system on the snow mobiles they were testing," Techno said without looking up.  "They were about 3 miles east of here when the storm appeared."
 
"Oh no," Jessica gasped and leaned deeper into Sebastian's embrace.

"They'll be okay," Sally said confidently.  "You managed to warn them right?"

"No," Techno said meeting her shocked gaze.  "I lost communication the minute it appeared on radar."

"This is way too familiar," Jessica said, burying her face against Sebastian's chest. "But it couldn't be."

"Umm, guys?" Bowie said coming out of the TV room.  "I think you want to see this."

They hurried into the room and Bowie turned up the volume.  Rob McDudle was on the screen reporting about the sudden storm.

"...keep warm.  The police and other emergency departments have temporarily shut down due to the massive quantities of snow and lack of visibility."  Someone ran in and handed him a piece of paper.  Rob read it and paled.  He looked at the camera and cleared his throat.  "Ladies and Gentlemen," he said, his voice shaking slightly.  "We now know the cause of this sudden blizzard.  This station has just received a broadcast redirected from the government and has been asked to play it.  Okay."
 
The screen flickered and went black as they linked up the video.  It began to play and they saw a rather high tech lab room.  Suddenly a man stepped in front of the camera, cleared his throat, and smiled.  Jessica gave a strangled cry of terror and Sebastian held her tighter.

"Hello America," the man said.  "My name is Sir Henry Raleigh.  Apparently you didn't think I was serious at Geneva, so I have decided to show you just how serious I am."  He smirked evilly.  "I currently have one city in Kansas locked in a deadly blizzard.  If my demands are not met in 24 hours I will turn the entire middle of the United States in to a solid sheet of ice.  If 48 hours pass, the west coast will join them in their icy slumber.  72 hours from now, if my demands have not been met, I will bury the entire United States under so much snow and ice that the Artic will look like the Bahamas!" He laughed manically.  "My demands are simple.  Just turn over all Presidential and Congressional power to me.  I will be your king and all will bow before me!"

The screen went black.  Bowie muted the newscaster as he came back on and turned to look at his family.

"It's impossible," Poopsie said.  "We saw him die.  The police cleaned the house out and destroyed all the machines."

Jessica was sobbing against Sebastian who looked like he was in shock.

 "What are we going to do?" Sally asked looking at Techno.  Thank god Daniel's in England, away from this mess, she thought.

 "Nothing," Techno said.
 
 "What?!?!" the group chorused.
 
 "Is your brain broken?" Dee shouted.  "We're going to die if the government doesn't hand over power."

 "And we'll die faster if we waste our energy rushing out into a blizzard!" Techno growled back. "For now all we can do is wait."

- - - - -- - -
 Tonya awoke slowly, yawned, and sneezed as something furry tickled her nose.  She felt a bit stiff, as though she'd lain in one position too long, and something heavy was laying on her chest and legs.  It shifted and Tonya realized it was alive.  As she woke up more, she began to remember where she was and whom she was with at the moment.
 
 "Zarbon?" she asked softly.  "Are you awake?"  He didn't answer, so she tugged on his mane.  "Love, wake up!"

 He grumbled in protest, but managed to drag his eyes open to look at her. "What?" he asked wanting to just go back to sleep.

 "We need to get up and move."

 "Why?" he asked as his eyelids drooped.
 
 "Cause we're buried under God knows how many feet of snow and the others are probably worried about us!" she snapped.

 He blinked at her with a bemused expression, then started to stand up.  Snow fell into Tonya's face and he paused frowning.  Dropping back down, he closed his eyes, focused his ki into a round shield, and pushed the snow away.

 Tonya looked at him worriedly as his head sank back onto her chest.  He was breathing harder than he should have been and he was trembling.  Zarbon's head had hurt when she'd woken him, but now it throbbed with pain and he was dizzy.  He could feel her fingers gently massage his forehead and temples, and it helped a little.

 "Are you okay?" she whispered softly, thinking her regular volume might cause him more pain.

 "Yeah," he answered after a moment. "Just a little dizzy."  Zarbon opened his eyes and attempted to stand, but the dizziness forced him back down.  "Give me a moment and we can go."

 The dizziness and pain were just his body's way of saying that he needed to rest before he did anything else.  He had used a lot of energy trying to keep them warm last night and he hadn't gotten much sleep over the last few days.  If he allowed himself to do so, he could have slept for the next 24 hours.  Zarbon knew this, but was determined to go until he dropped or they were home.

 Rising to his feet, he began to push the snow back with his fore paws, forming a tunnel aimed roughly towards the house.  Tonya got up, folded the tarp, and put it away.  Pulling a rope from another compartment, she tied the two jet skis together, turned on first's headlight for light, and began to follow Zarbon, dragging them with her.  Another wave of dizziness and a sharp hungry pain made Zarbon pause.  He ate some snow, hoping it would take the edge off, but it just made it worse.

 "Hungry?" He turned to look at his lover, unsure if she had spoken.  "Are you hungry?" she asked again.
 
 "A little," he admitted.
 
 Tonya unzipped her coat, pulled out a granola bar, and offered it to him.  Eyeing it with longing, he tore his gaze from it to look at her.

 "What about you?" he asked.

 "Not hungry," she answered.  He frowned and she pulled out two more.  "I've got a whole pocket full.  I'm not going to starve if you eat one."
 
 It was gone in two bites and she convinced him to eat a 2nd one.  Digging in another pocket, she pulled out a thick, waterproof work glove.  She checked a third pocket for its mate, and as she pulled it out, something dropped to the ground.

 "What is that?" Zarbon asked as she picked it up.

 She opened the plastic case and blinked.  "A compass," she said showing him.  "I didn't know I had one."

 "Which way is west?"

 "That way."

 "And north?" She pointed again.  "Then let's get started," Zarbon said wearily.
- - - -- -  -

 Half an hour later, Zarbon was barely able to keep his eyes open let alone did the tunnel.  He sat blinking owlishly as he watched Tonya plowed through the snow.  They had covered ¼ to ½ a mile since they had started.  She came back every now and then to drag the jet skis forward and was doing so now.  She looked at him worriedly again, knowing the storm and the hard work were taking their toll on her lover.

 "Zarbon?" she asked coming over to crouch in front of him.  "Why don't you lay on one of the jet skis for awhile?  Catch some Z's.  I can dig for by myself a while."  She lifted his chin to look into his eyes.  "You're exhausted, koi.  You did your part last night, let me handle this."

 He squeezed his eyes shut and sighed, shame and guilt for his weakness filling him.  "Alright," he said opening his eyes.  "I love you."

 Tonya smiled and hugged him, rubbing her cheek against his.  "I love you, too."

 His coat was draped over one, so he stretched out on top of it.  Closing his eyes, he fell asleep instantly.  Tonya watched him for a minute before dragging the jet skis forward.
 - - - - - - -

 Two hours later, Tonya was beginning to feel a bit too warm.  She had already shed her outer coat and covered Zarbon with it, but she was considering taking off the flannel jacket as well.  Wiping the sweat from her brow, she decided it had to go.

 She draped it over the sleeping form of her beloved, then scooped some snow to drink.  Careful, girl, she cautioned, Too much and you'll drop your body temp to far.  Wiping her face again, she drug the vehicles forward then resumed digging.

* * * * *
 
 "It's still snowing," Sally reported coming back down to the den from the second floor.

 "Well at least this much snow will act like an insulator against the wind and help keep us warm," Alec said.

 "Yeah, right up until we starve too death," Dee grumbled.

 "I wonder what Tonya and Zarbon are doing right now?" Poopsie wondered aloud.

 "Probably keeping each other warm like the Eskimos do," Sebastian replied.  "What?" he asked us the others rolled their eyes.

- - - - -  -

- - - - -  -

 Tonya winced as her hand connected with something much harder than snow.  "Damn trees," she grumbled as she began to unbury the offending object.  She blinked at the section of limestone wall that stared back at her.  The smile threatened to split her face as she bounced up and down.  Turned to her left she behind to tunnel along the wall, her exhaustion forgotten as her goal drew closer.

- - - - - -

 The iron gates were frozen shut.  Tonya studied them frowning, trying to decide how to tackle this problem.  Shrugging, she burrowed over to the control panel and punched in the code.  Turning quickly, she slammed her shoulder into one side of the gate, and forced it open.  The snow was forced through the gate and part of the ceiling of the tunnel collapsed, burying the girl.  She popped out of the pile like a shot, shaking the snow from her hair.  Recovering quickly, she began to push the snow out of the way and started to tunnel down the drive.

** * * * *

 Techno's eye widened in surprise and he frowned at the laptop screen.  He looked up and did a quick head count, then studied the screen doubtfully.  "Someone just opened the gate," he informed the group.

 "What?" Alec said raising his head from Poopsie's shoulder.

 "Something's just pressing against it," Sebastian said.

 "I doubt 'something' could push the correct code into the panel, then push open the gate," Techno said.

 "Do you think it could be Tonya or Zarbon?" Jessica asked.

 "Hopefully, we're not prepared to deal with an attack or a large influx of people," Poopsie replied.
- - - - --  - - -

 Half an hour late, Tonya was clearing off the porch.  It wasn't as deep there and she packed it off to the side.  Finally the doors were clear and she tried the handle.  Surprised to find the door locked, she knocked loudly, waited a few minutes then knocked again.  Plunging off the porch, she forced her way over to the den and peeking in the window.  Sure enough there sat the entire crew, safe and warm.  Tapping on the window, she drew their attention and laughed at their looks as they whipped around startled by the noise.
** * * * *

 "Did you hear that?" Poopsie said.

 "It was nothing," Dee answered.

 They sat quietly waiting, and the noise repeated itself.

 "Is that something knocking at the door?" Jessica asked.

 No moved to check, but they all exchanged nervous glances, hoping it would just leave.  The noise stopped and didn't repeat.  Suddenly there was a tap at the window and they all whipped around to see the cause.

 They could see Tonya laughing at them, then motion to the front door.  Sally pantomimed herself being pressed against the glass and Tonya stuck out her tongue with a smirk.  Techno and Alec stood, followed by the others, and went to open the door.  Tonya stood there panting and smiled lopsidely at them.

 "Thought you'd get rid of me that easy?" she said brokenly starting to shiver from cold and exhaustion.

 "Get in here before you collapse," Poopsie commanded trying to pull her inside. "Where's Zarbon?"

 Tonya balked and point to the mobiles. "There.  He's asleep."

 "We'll bring him in," Techno said.  "Get in the den and warm up."

 She hesitated, then allowed Poopsie to lead her to the den.  They had her sit in front of the fire and Sally draped a heavy blanket over her shoulders.  Jessica presented her with a mug of steaming hot cocoa and she cradled it in her hands enjoying its warmth.  Closing her eyes, she sipped the cocoa, savoring the heat as it diffused throughout her body.

 Opening her eyes, she turned to watch Alec and Techno bringing in Zarbon, who was still unconscious.  She smiled and covered her mouth to stifle a giggle, glad that Zarbon was still asleep, as he would have found their method very undignified.  He was on his back and Alec had hooked his arms under Zarbon's to support his top half, with Zarbon's head resting against Alec's chest.  Techno had the back half and had wrapped one arm around Zarbon's knees while the other supported his rump.  They set him down next to Tonya and covered him with a blanket.
 Setting her cocoa down, Tonya found his pulse and checked his heart rate.  Opening his mouth, she gently pressed a finger against his gums to check for shock.  Satisfied he was alright, just exhausted she looked up at her friends.
 "He's fine.  Just worn out," she said as her own eyelids started to droop.  Yawning, she finished her cocoa before wrapping the blanket tighter around herself and spooning up against Zarbon, snuggling into his warmth.
- - - - - - -

 Zarbon woke slowly, vaguely aware that he was no longer on the jet ski.  Raising his head, he blinked at the fire sleepily, hypnotized by the flickering flames.  He felt the form next to him shift and heard a yawn.

 "Finally decide to wake up?"
 
 Zarbon looked at Bowie startled that it wasn't Tonya curled against his side.  He looked around the room frantically, but saw no sign of the girl.  Close to panic, he looked at Bowie again, but his voice refused to work.

 "Tonya's in the kitchen," Bowie replied helpfully.  "I think she's making soup.  She said something about waking you up when it was ready."

 Zarbon blinked and struggled to his feet, all muscles protesting the movement.  He swayed slightly, his balance severely off, and Bowie stood to brace him.  They moved closer to the couch and Zarbon put his front paws up on the arm, standing up on his hind legs.  He shifted back to his human form and gripped the couch to keep his balance.

 Bowie had seen him change before, but blinked in surprise.  "Umm...Zarbon?" he started.  "I think you forgot something," he said gesturing with paw.

 Glancing behind him, Zarbon smiled.  "No, I meant to do that," he said and experimentally swished the emerald shaded appendage.  He stood up straight and his tail flicked as he gained his balance.

 Bowie now noticed, not only did Zarbon have a tail, his ears had retained the shaped and placement of a cat's.  He rolled his eyes as he imagined Tonya's reaction, but followed Zarbon as he headed for the kitchen.  Sure that Zarbon was steady on his feet, Bowie wandered off to inform the others that Zarbon was awake.

 Tonya was standing at the stove humming to herself, her tail swishing in time with her song as she stirred the pot.  Zarbon quickly stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pressing himself against her and nuzzling her neck.  She tensed for a second, then relaxed, and leaned back into his embrace.

 "If this is a dream," he said softly into her ear.  "Please don't wake me up."

 "Mmm, if this is a dream...we're both having it," Tonya replied turning her head to kiss his cheek.  "Glad you're awake, I was getting worried."

 "Gomen," he said.  "How long have I been asleep?"
 Tonya glanced at her watch.  "About 12 hours."

 He rested his chin on her head and rubbed his eyes with one hand.  A smile grew as he felt her tail wind itself around his calf.  Without hesitation, he wrapped his tail around her waist, pulling her closer.  Tonya looked down curiously and Zarbon chuckled.  The chuckle died as he felt her lightly stroking the fur and he froze.  He had never allowed anyone to touch his tail in this form, as it was a gesture of affection shared only between lovers, expressing the amount of trust and love a couple shared.  It wasn't done lightly as one could be crippled with pain if the other partner was so inclined to inflict it.  She gently ruffled the fur, smirking as he began to purr and nuzzle her neck passionately.

 He whimpered from a sudden flash of pain, unsure its cause, but he didn't pull away.  Another whimper escaped his throat as the pain returned and he blinked in confusion as he realized Tonya was just barely squeezing his tail.  She moved the soup and shut off the burner before leading him away from the stove. 

 Turning to face him, she kissed him lightly and he could feel her tail twine with his.  "Gomen, koi," she said.  "I just wanted to know how sensitive it is.  I didn't want to hurt you unintentionally."  She searched his eyes for a moment and cocked her head.  "You haven't done this very often have you?"

 "No," he blushed slightly.  "This is my first time.  How did you guess?"

 "Easy," she smirked.  "Your tail is almost as sensitive as mine when I was little," she answered teasingly, tracing his collarbone through his shirt, but completely serious.  Her eyes flicked upward and she did a double take, her mouth dropping slightly.  Eyes wide with curiosity and wonder, she slowly reached up and brushed his ears with her fingertips, sending a shiver down his spine.  Then, very gently she tugged on them, grinning like an idiot.

 Zarbon smirked and chuckled as he caught her wrists and carefully disengaged her from his ears.  "Okay Kikyou," he said still smirking. "Get over it."

 Tonya grinned sheepishly and looked up at him through her bangs.  "Sorry," she said but didn't look sincere.  "And it was Kogome, not Kikyou." She tapped his nose lightly accenting each syllable as she said, "Ko...go...me!"

 Zarbon laughed, but didn't release her left wrist.  Instead, he brought it to his lips and kissed the inside of her wrist.  As he laved the skin above her pulse with his tongue, her eyes widened and her other hand flew to his shoulder as her knees buckled at the unexpected move.  The arm around her waist tightened, pulling her closer, and keeping her from falling.  Moving her back carefully, he pressed her against the cabinets with his body, preventing her collapse and freeing his hands.  One came to rest between her shoulder blades and began to rub her back, gently mapping the muscles beneath his fingers, and she wrapped her arms around his neck.  The fingers on his other hand laced gently through the hair at the nape of her neck.

 Gold burned into emerald, each displaying all the love and desire each possessed.  His lips whispered over her face, barely touching her skin.  She giggled softly and Zarbon leaned back to smile at her expression as she waited for him to continue.  Opening her eyes, she smiled at him, reminding how lucky he was to be there, holding her at that moment.  His breath caught and he kissed her fiercely, pressing her tighter against him as his fear warred with his passion.  She returned the kiss with just as much passion, melting against his body while her tail stroked his.

 Both were flushed and panting when they parted, their fear melting from the reassuring embrace.  Tonya relaxed against him, laying her cheek against his shoulder and he laid his cheek against her hair.  Shifting, she looked up at him and smiled softly, watching as his own smile lit his eyes from within.  Zarbon kissed her gently, nipping at her bottom lip before suckling on it.  Releasing her lip, he kissed her again, tapping her teeth with his tongue, asking her to open her mouth to him.  He felt her lips curl into a smile against his, then grant him access.  Their tongues danced and sparred as their passions were rekindled.

 Breaking for air, Zarbon began to press a line of nibbling kisses along her jaw back to her ear.  A low moan escaped her throat as he traced the shell of her ear with his tongue then began to nibble her earlobe.  He sought to make her do it again, alternately nibbling and suckling the tender flesh, and she granted him a second, slightly louder moan.  Releasing her earlobe, he smirked at the whimper of disappoint and felt her shiver as he blew softly on the wet skin.

 "Tell me, my reincarnated shrine maiden," he whispered huskily in her ear.  "What shall be the punishment for my crimes?"

"C...crimes?" she asked softly, confused to what he was referring to.

Zarbon pulled back to look at her and smiled, loving the way she looked right now.  She was so beautiful; her skin flushed with desire, her lips slightly parted as she lightly panted, and her eyes closed waiting for his next move.  To him, nothing could have even remotely compared to her beauty at that moment.  Then her eyes fluttered open; dark with desire and hazy with passion.  She smiled at him slowly, feeling his breath speed up as she did.  Zarbon took a deep breath and struggled to think straight while his blood roared in his ears.

Swallowing hard, he managed to get his mind back on track.  "Well, first.  I called you the wrong name," he said tracing her cheek with a fingertip.  "Then, I started to..." he paused trying to think of an appropriate word, distracted by her fingers playing with the hair at the nape of his neck.

He shrugged and leaned forward to resume his attention to her ear.  She gasped as he rediscovered the spot just below it that made her knees like jelly.  He paused and blew across the skin, making her shiver again, arching her neck.  Zarbon waited and smirked at her disappointed whimper when he didn't continue his ministrations.  Her whimper turned pleading and she pushed his face closer, trying to entice him to continue.

Zarbon's tongue flicked across the spot once.  "Well?" he inquired.
Her brow furrowed slightly.  "Well?" she echoed, confused again.

His tongue flicked across the spot again.  "My punishment?" he whispered softly.

"I...um...I," Tonya said brokenly, trying to formed a coherent sentence, but was slowly drowning in the renewed assault on her senses.

A few moments later, Zarbon was about to repeat his query when she finally began to speak.

"Bind you...to...something," she said brokenly as he began to trail wet kisses down her throat.  "All of you."  Her head tilted to the side to expose more of her throat to his warm mouth.

Zarbon gently tugged her head back farther to allow him better access, curious what she meant by "All of you."  Nipping the sensitive skin, he felt her fingers tighten against his scalp, but she was silent.  Her pulse tickled his lips as he brushed over the thin skin and he teased her by suckling it gently.  Her breathing was shallow and soft mewling cries drifted from her lips.  The sounds were doing nothing for his control, but were as intoxicating as any wine.  Carefully, he drug his canines up her throat, then back down, leaving burning trails of pleasure in their wake.  Bathing the injuries with his skillful tongue, he noted with satisfaction that the cries were increasing in volume.

 As much as he wanted to hear more of her cries, he also wanted to hear his punishment, and needed to take a step back to regain control.  She whimpered in protest as he abandoned her throat, and drug her eyes open to fix him with a reproachful glare.  His breath caught and his mouth went dry as she pouted at him, her eyes dark with desire.  A wicked gleam lit her eyes as he faltered, and she pushed him back against the center island, taking advantage of his hesitation.

 He shivered as her tongue glided up his throat to his ear, his head falling back, fully exposing the vulnerable area.  She nuzzled his cheek, then kissed his ear.  "Bind you so you couldn't move except to breath or blink," she whispered silkily in his ear.  "Then I would kiss every inch of your skin."  A soft moan left his lips as he thought about that.  Her tongue flicked across his earlobe and he groaned low in his throat.  "Then I would..."

 "AHEM!!"

 Tonya's head snapped up and looked at Techno standing in the doorway.  He looked quite surprised and annoyed that they were making out in the kitchen, and frowned darkly at the couple.

 "Unless you're making snickerdoodles, we need you in the den," he said.  Turning on his heel, he left and Tonya blinked at his back

 Zarbon sighed heavily with regret and opened his eyes.  "I wonder what he wants," he said looking at the empty doorway.

 Tonya shrugged. "Dunno," she answered.  "Shall we take our soup?"

 He looked at her for a minute then at the stove.  "Oh...Okay."
- - - - - -

 "Pardon me?!?!" Tonya said, unsure of what she'd heard.  She glanced at Jessica, who was sniffling, her face buried against Sebastian's chest.  "That's not funny!" she growled glaring at Techno.

"No.  It isnt," he answered as he turned and pushed play.  "The government received this just after the storm hit."  He paused the video at the end.  We have less than four hours to come up with a plan to find and stop him."  His glared cut off the smart remarks that always followed.

 He sat down and looked at the others, who looked at each other.  Tonya looked back at the TV, chewing her lip.  An eyebrow arched in question, then her brow furrowed in concentration as she studied the screen.  Ignoring the ideas and comments now beginning to be suggested, she moved to stand in front of the big screen TV, her face just inches from the screen.

 "You know you'll ruin your eyes standing that close," Sebastian commented.

 Tonya poked the rewind bottom, then play.  She repeated the motion, rewinding the tape only a few second each time.  Her head cocked to the side as she studied the screen.

 "It's raining," she said quietly.  "And it's green."

 "What?" Sally asked.

 Tonya turned slightly, moving so they could see the screen.  "Look here," she said tapping the screen.  "It's raining and it's green outside."

 "So he's doing this by a remote from another location?" Dee asked.

 "Maybe," Poopsie said.  "It could have been prerecorded."

 "So he planned to fail at Geneva?" Jessica asked.

 "It's probably a back up," Sally said.

 "But how could he do this?" Sebastian asked.  "He died there.  All the machine's were destroyed or confiscated."

 "Are you sure of that?" Zarbon asked quietly.  "We never found where he hid after you rescued Jessica.  He probably had a secret room."

 "So someone found it," Dee said.  "But that doesn't help us much.  We still don't know who is doing this."

 "I might," Tonya said, staring at the fire.

 "Who?" Jessica asked as Techno suddenly looked thoughtful.

 "Anna Arachne," Tonya said, her voice neutral.  "She brought the Crook Ranch recently."

 "Isn't she the..." Jessica trailed off.

 Tonya nodded.

 "I thought she was in the Looney bin," Dee said.

 "Her doctor declared her "cured", so she was released,"  Tonya answered bitterly.

 "Lovely," Sally said in that way that only she can.

 "But I thought she wanted to use giant spiders to rule the world," Jessica said.  "Cold kills spiders."

 "Yes, but it would be easier to buried the world in snow and ice, than to take on the world's armies," Alec pointed out.

 "And if millions die, she has less opposition," Poopsie said.  "So what do we do?"

 "How many people can you teleport?" Zarbon asked.

 "Six of us.  Why?" she asked.

 "We could teleport a team into the ranch house and shut her down."

 "But what if she's not there?" Dee asked.

 "She is," Tonya answered.  "I check on her frequently and have Spook monitoring her travels."

 "So you've been stalking her," Sebastian said raising an eyebrow.

 Tonya just glared at him for a minute, choking back her response.  She looked at Techno and said, "Do you know how to deactivate the weather machines?"

 "I do," Jessica said.  "There's a button.  You just push it."

 "That sounds easy enough," Dee said.  "Want to bet it's not?"

- - - - - - - -

 An hour later, the attack team was gathered in the den once again.  Dee stood fuming in the corner, while Sebastian was still trying to convince Techno that he needed to go.  Jessica was giving Tygeress detailed instructions of what to do to Sir Raleigh if he was still alive.  Abra and Azure were formalizing the attack plan, while Shashani and Alec sat on the couch, holding each other.

 "Let's do this," Abra said.  "We've got three hours left."

 The four travelers join hands, forming a circle, and closed their eyes.  When they opened them again they stood in the living room of the Ranch house.  The room was apparently empty, dark, and quite chilly.  While Abra and Shani couldn't see in the darkness, Azure and Tygeress were trying to figure out what on the walls and draped from the ceiling. 

 "What is that?" Tygeress asked mostly to herself, reaching out to touch the substance. "Cloth?"

 Azure summoned small globe of light to illmunate their surroundings.  Tygeress froze and Shani and Abra gasped in surprise.  The room was draped, not in cloth, but in spiderweds!  Tygeress jumped up into Azure's waiting arms.  Abra rolled her eyes and Shani snickered.

 "What were you expecting?" Abra asked.  "You said you thought it was the Web Mistress."

 "I see lots of webs," Shani said.  "But I don't see any spiders.  You're safe, fraidy-cat."

 Azure chuckled as Tygeress glared at the elvish maid.  "But nice, love," he said.  "She's right.  There aren't any spiders in sight."  He sat her upon her feet, but she kept a tight grip on his arm.

 They began to explore the house, room by room, but there was no evidence of anyone living there.  Webbing filled each room, but they couldn't find any spiders either.

 "Well, now what?" Tygeress asked, looking at her watch.  "We've only got two hours."

 "Well...we could..." Abra started. 

 "There's a spider!" Shani said, pointing, cutting Abra off.

 "Where?!?" Tygeress asked, jumping in fright.

 "It went into that crack," she replied pointing to the floor.

 "Good ridance," Tygeress muttered.

 "Let's make another sweep of the house," Azure suggested.  "Maybe we missed something."

- - - - - -

 "That's the fifth spider we've spotted crawling into the cracks in the floor," Shani said.  "Wonder why they're doing that."

 Tygeress looked like someone had just told her grandmother had died.  She swallowed hard.  "If anyone would want to know what's going on around here, they would just have to follow the spiders," she said softly, looking at Abra mournfully.

 Abra just looked at her for a minute, then nodded.  "All right.  Do you have any suggestions?  You know the most about her tactics."

 "Well, I'm all for Azure just blasting a hole in the floor, but..." Tygeress sighed and rubbed her forehead.  "If she's planning a take over, she's prolly got a bunch of chemicals and test tubes full of stuff that's all flammable as hell."  She studied the floor.  "I should be able to cut through the floor in..."

 Just then the wall slid up and the floor slid back, exposing a narrow staircase.  Azure, Abra, and Tygeress looked at it for a second, then looked at Shani, who was standing in the fireplace.  She was pushing on an ornate roast spit post on the side of the fireplace.

 "Hehe.  It reminded me of the Last Crusade," she said grinning.

 "Shall we then?" Azure said, gesturing to the stairs. "We're running out of time."

 Tygeress smiled slightly and looked at Abra.  "Shall we?"

 Abra rolled her eyes and waved Azure to take the lead.  "Let's go."

"Hey wait for me!" Shani said and dashed after them.

 The passage closed behind her after a moment.

 "Oh  that's pleasant," Tygeress said gloomily.

 "Shh!!!" Azure hissed, from the last stair, pointing.

 They slipped down to his position and gawked at row after row of people sized test tubes.  In the tubes, giant spiders in various stages of developement could be seen.  A soft, almost motherly singing could be heard echoing through the lab.  Azure and Tygeress closed their eyes, listening hard, then pointed the same way.  Moving quickly but silently, they snuck up on the singer.

 The Web Mistress was out of costume and she almost looked like a legit scientist standing at the computer in a white lab coat.  Calculations filled the screen, catching Azure's attention.  Tygeress noticed the weather machines sitting against the wall.  Three of the four where running and she could see the blue buttons from there.  Abra had noticed them half a second later, as had Shani.

 Concentrating, Abra managed  to push the buttons quite easily and the machines shuddered to a halt.  Anna Arachne froze and slowy turned to look at the machines.

 "What the hell?" she said softly.  She hit a button on the consol then walked towards the machines.

 "I wouldn't do that if I were you," Tygeress said smirking at the startled woman.

 "Not if you'd like to keep your head," Abra said.
 
 "How...How did you get down here?!" she sputtered.  "How did you find me?"

 "Elementary, Miss Arachne," Shani said with a british accent.  "We keep track of reforming villains and mass murderers."

 Anna looked stunned.  "But the snow...the snow...you couldn't have gotten through."

 "We have our ways," Azure said.

 Anna started at the sound of his voice and stared at him in terror.  They quickly tied her up and Tygeress stood guard, while Azure sat up a satelite link.  Shani played camerawoman and Abra informed the government and the town the threat was over.

 "Well, what can we do about the snow?" Abra asked.

 "We could dig everyone out like back in January," Tygeress suggested.

 "We could turn the weather machines back on after a little reprogramming," Azure said absently, still studying the Web Mistress's calculations.

 "Can you do that?" Shani asked.

 "Mmmmhmmm. it would be easy."

 "Then do it!" Tygeress growled poking him in the side.  "You can stare at the numbers after we defrost the town."

- - - - - -

 Four hours later, the snow had melted down to an amount the city could deal with and they shut the machines off again.  Another half and hour passed before they heard sirens and footsteps upstairs.  It took five minutes for the cops to find the note and figure out how to work the passage.  The group waited until they could see the police before teleporting back to the mansion.

 Azure and Techno immediately disappeared down to the cave with the disks Azure had copied from the computer at Crook Ranch.  Tonya slipped into the kitchen to start on supper while Sally and Poopsie told the others what had happened.  An hour later, the group all straggled into the kitchen, except Zarbon.  Techno sat down looking like the cat that ate the canary.

 "What?" Tonya asked cocking an eyebrow as she placed the cheesy potatoes on the table.  Techno just grinned at her.  "You know," Tonya said as she sat the rest of the food on the table.  "That's kinda creepy."

 "If you must know," Techno smirked.  "We now have the sematics to the weather machine and for the giant spiders."

 "Lovely," Sally said as she began to pass dishes around the table.

 "And..." Techno continued.  "The storm in January was only about 75% natural.  Ms Arachne just juiced it up a bit."

 "I thought it was usual for us to get that much snow at once," Tonya commented.  "Hey where's Zarbon?  I thought he was in the cave with you?"

 "He said he was heading for bed after he gave me the disks," Techno replied before tasting the potatoes.

 A moment later, Zarbon came in wearing his bath robe and night clothes, his long emerald hair loose and damp.  He shuffled over to the fridge and pulled out the milk and the carton of eggs.  Sitting them on the counter, he got out the blender and sit it on the counter.

 "Umm, Zarbon...Supper's ready if you want some," Tonya said. "You don't have to do that."

 He paused and looked at the table, then back at the blender.  Making his decision, Zarbon put away the milk and eggs, then sat next to Tonya.  The group dug into the food, everyone finding something they'd eat, and the only sound was chewing and cutlery on ceramic.

 "I wonder if we'll have class tomorrow," Jessica said as they started to clean up.

 "I don't see why not," Dee said.  "The threat's over."

 "Hey guys!" Bowie said coming back from his trip outside.  "It's snowing!"

 Everyone froze and stared at the dog, then quickly looked out the window.  The sky was clear and there wasn't a flake in sight.

 Bowie laughed at the looks on their faces.  "Made you look!" he cried joyiously, wagging his tail.

 "I thought owning a dog was supposed to lower your blood pressure," Sebastian grumbled.

 Techno frowned at Tonya and the other girls who were now giggling.  "Well, they also say dogs take after their owners."