Wishful Thinking by Allison McDonnell

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Life on G889 was getting curiouser and curiouser.

In the three weeks since Devon had resumed leadership of Eden Advance, thankfully things seemed to have settled down. However, not everything had returned to normal. In fact, almost every crew-member had taken notice that, since Devon's healing, both she and Danziger had begun acting more than a little odd. On the surface, the two of them seemed to be perfectly fine, but when one examined them more closely, there were most definitely several changes to their personalities, as well as to their overall behavior of late.

Their once moody and antagonistic-prone disposition had calmed. Devon smiled more often and, though the same couldn't be said of Danziger, he was most assuredly less surly. Additionally, True was absolutely thrilled when her father had finally caved in to her daily requests to not to push himself so hard. He'd begun to go to bed earlier and had stopped scheduling himself to work the bulk of the overnight guard shifts. Devon was also sleeping more which no doubt contributed to a quicker return to full health and an improved attitude.

But there was no debate among the group regarding the most glaring clue that something was indeed amiss: Devon and Danziger had stopped fighting.

The leaders would speak often enough, but they rarely spent any time alone together and almost all of their conversations were held in view and earshot of at least one other Edenite. Bess had even mentioned that, at times, the pair had almost seemed awkward in one another's presence.

And it didn't end there. Devon and John didn't appear to seek out each other's company any more and they hadn't embarked on a single scout together since her recovery. However, it was noted by many that, when the duo did converse, they now almost always referred to each other by their first names.

The situation was incredibly perplexing to Alonzo. He knew how deeply Devon and John cared for one another and he'd wrongfully assumed that when Devon had retaken her place in the group, a relationship with the mechanic would evolve organically. But it seemed that the opposite was taking place. The couple's budding courtship wasn't just stuck in a holding pattern; it was regressing in several different ways and he had no idea as to why.

What Alonzo was certain of was that he continued to harbor plenty of guilt due to Devon and Danziger's Dreamplane excursions - particularly the final one in which he'd needlessly exposed John to further emotional distress- and persuading the Terrians to heal Devon hadn't diminished all of it. The pilot was determined to make further amends by helping the couple realize how perfect they were for each other. Furthermore, he'd hoped to accomplish the task without exposing his deception unless it was absolutely necessary.

After volleying several ideas back and forth for a few days, Alonzo finally decided that the direct approach would be the best for everyone involved. He simply needed to sit one of them down and explain in a rational, straightforward manner what was blatantly obvious to everyone else in Eden Advance. The pilot quickly concluded that, between the two leaders, Devon would be better suited to hear his words of wisdom, mostly because he was less afraid of her reacting with physical violence, though only slightly less so.

Although the evening was drawing to a close, Alonzo didn't want to waste anymore time and had hoped to illuminate Devon on his already proven hypothesis as soon as possible. He performed a quick visual sweep of the campsite looking for the leader, but turned up nothing. After speaking with Mazatl who was on sentry duty, he learned that Devon- and Danziger for that matter- had already turned in for the night.

Undaunted, Alonzo returned to his own quarters, determined to approach Devon at the first available opportunity. He was eternally gratified that he was going to be able to offset his prior lapse of good judgment by playing a small, but integral role in seeing Devon and Danziger's desired romance finally come to fruition.

There was little doubt in Alonzo's mind that positive changes were on the horizon for everyone.

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It wasn't long after falling asleep before Alonzo's consciousness picked up the strange, yet familiar sensation of being pulled onto the Dreamplane. A series of overlapping trills beckoned to him as he opened his eyes to the alternate reality, finding himself with his back against the wall of a small alcove located in the heart of one of the many nondescript caves.

A pair of Terrians had obviously been awaiting his arrival and they got right down to business.

"We require an explanation as to why two members of your collective continue to venture to our realm during their dormant hours."

Still half-asleep, Alonzo pitched his head back. "I'm not sure what you mean," he shrugged.

"They return each hibernation cycle. But your brethren do not call to us, nor do they seek counsel or knowledge regarding our Mother."

The pilot had no idea who or what they were referring to. He scratched his head in bewilderment for a few additional seconds before comprehension finally dawned on him. And he practically smacked himself in the forehead when he realized his gaffe.

"I'm sorry. This is all just a big misunderstanding," he declared. "I'd brought the two leaders of our tribe here on a few occasions with the purpose of teaching them a lesson about themselves. It had nothing to do with you or your Mother. And if we caused any problems at all, I apologize and I promise that it won't happen again."

As Alonzo finished speaking, for the first time, he considered the possibility that not only had he gone too far with Devon and Danziger by tricking them on the Dreamplane, he'd crossed a line by taking advantage of the Terrians by using their home turf for his own purposes without their permission. This was most definitely a new cause for concern and he sincerely hoped that his actions hadn't resulted in damaging Eden Advance's already fragile relationship with the creatures.

This was also the point when Alonzo realized that both Terrians were carrying lightning staffs. He certainly hoped that they didn't plan on using them.

Meanwhile, the Terrian duo was clearly not satisfied by Alonzo's answer and, judging by the increasingly annoyed tone of the trills, they seemed to be losing their patience.

"We are aware of your prior visits here. Our query refers to the current status of your tribe members. We wish to gain an understanding as to why they choose to remain among our collective, yet seek no audience with us."

Now Alonzo was really confused. As he processed their words, the realization of what they were saying brought on surprise and more than a hint of panic.

"Are you saying that Devon and Danziger have been willing themselves to the Dreamplane on their own?"

"Yes."

Alonzo's head almost spun off his shoulders as he tried to piece it all together.

"'Each hibernation cycle,'" he said haltingly. "You mean when they're asleep, right?"

His eyebrows suddenly shot up to his hairline. "Wait a minute, they've been coming here every single night?" he asked incredulously.

The Terrians nodded. "In the beginning, there were lapses of time between visits. Once your tribe leader's health was restored, their travels here have increased to almost every one of their sleep phases."

The revelation was almost too much for Alonzo to drink in and he wondered how things had somehow gotten so out of control.

And then it hit him.

The sleepjumper was so nervous that he could barely form the syllables to ask the question.

"Are Devon and Danziger on the Dreamplane right now?"

Surmising that seeing was believing, and before Alonzo had time to contemplate the ramifications of what was about to happen, the Terrians crossed their staffs, temporarily bathing the pilot in blinding light. When the glare thankfully receded and allowed him to regain his bearings, he abruptly found himself flanked by both Terrians. Moreover, the pilot seemed to have been transported to a different location. He squinted in the dimness and realized that he had been firmly planted just inside the doorway of Devon's tent as it had appeared on the Dreamscape.

And it was quite the sight to behold.

Unfortunately, there was no way for Alonzo to avoid getting an eyeful of Devon and John in a very compromising position as the unclothed and quite animated couple were in the midst of making love on Devon's cot.

A completely mortified Alonzo tried to keep his eyes from falling out of his head, as well as refrain from loudly gasping in horror and alerting them to his presence. Instead, he whispered tersely over his shoulder to his Terrian companions.

"Get us the shank out of here!"

It was extremely fortunate for Alonzo that Devon and John's concentration was firmly committed to continuing their current activities. As such, neither leader ever noticed that outsiders had temporarily invaded their very personal space.

While Alonzo and the Terrians returned to their original venue in the cave, the pilot's eyes remained firmly closed to avoid any possible bright flashes of light and, more importantly, to fully concentrate on trying to erase the unsettling images from his brain of his two friends engaged in passionate sex.

Even after Alonzo was certain that he was back in the alcove and it was safe to open his eyes, he still felt as though his world was spinning out of control. And matters weren't helped much when he was again barraged by a series of reverberating questions from the still-perplexed Terrians regarding what exactly they'd been unwilling witnesses to during the past weeks.

Alonzo wanted to be truthful, but he wasn't at all prepared to provide the beings with an in-depth tutorial on the birds and the bees as it applied to humanity.

Dear. Shanking. God. How in the hell did he get himself into this mess?

"Uh, what you saw was a, um, form of expression between humans," he sputtered out, grasping for words. "It's a way that two people can communicate to let each other know that they, uh... care for one another deeply."

The Terrians' interest was piqued as they absorbed his explanation.

"This is what you spoke of when you petitioned us to heal your tribe leader. It is an example of the individualized attachment that one human can feel for another."

"Yes," Alonzo agreed, relieved that the creatures seemed to be treating this debacle as more of a learning experience, instead of being resentful over the intrusion.

"But we fail to understand why they have chosen to engage in these rituals among our collective."

Alonzo dragged his fingers through his dark hair, clearly overwhelmed and exhausted. "It's a mistake and I'm going to handle it," he vowed. "Just give me a day or two to work out the details."

Uneasiness continued to permeate his features as he stressed, "In the meantime, don't... do anything. It's really important that you don't let Devon and John know that you're here." He corrected himself. "That they're here."

The sleepjumper wondered how the situation could possibly get worse. And then it came to him.

"And it's very, very important that you leave Uly out of this," he emphasized, understandably concerned about accidentally scarring the child for life. "All right?"

The Terrians mulled over Alonzo's recommendations for several tension-filled moments before nodding their agreement. Although the creatures still appeared slightly confused about the motivations of the parties involved in this unusual scenario, they seemed to take it in stride, chalking it up as just another one of the seemingly countless idiosyncrasies of human nature.

As for Alonzo, he was beside himself with worry as he awoke in his cot. Now he completely understood why Devon and John had been acting so strangely around one another. It also made perfect sense that the reason they'd never taken any steps forward as a couple in reality had something to do with the fact that they were already actively achieving their desires in what they'd thought were their nightly dreams.

It was obvious to Alonzo that he now had a huge task to accomplish and no idea how to go about it without angering and humiliating his two friends, not to mention jeopardizing his own physical well-being once they'd found out what he'd done to them. And he had to achieve results quickly before the Terrians' patience ran out or the situation grew even worse than it already was.

There was little doubt in Alonzo's mind that it was going to be a very long night.

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