Jacine rolled over on the bed and nibbled at Craig's ear. "So, being as you are so infinitely older and wiser, what have your past lives been like?" she purred in a contented voice.

Craig-23 waited until her teeth were no longer attached to his lobes, then turned his head to look at her face. "Past lives?" he inquired in a mildly curious tone.

"You know," Jacine batted her eyelids at him, "Past lovers, Lover."

"You really want to know?" 23 was genuinely curious, no other woman had ever asked him that before.

"Sure. After all, they are a part of you that was, and every part of you that was makes up a bit of you that is. And you obviously have had a certain amount of experience."

23 shook his head, his brown hair falling in front of his eyes. Jacine reached out a hand and brushed it back. With some amusement in his voice, 23 replied to her statement, "The first part is way too deep for me right now. The second part..." he stretched and spoke in a mild accented drawl, "I wasn't aware it showed."

"Uh huh." Jacine reached out to tickle him, but drew her hand back with a giggle. "I want to hear this."

"Let me think a moment." 23 rolled over to look at the ceiling. A grin spread over his face and he turned back to Jacine, "How's this: 'The women I have known have been many, but none have ever touched my heart the way you do'."

Laughing, Jacine applauded. "Very nice, 23. Have you been doing research for the soap?"

An unexpected blush crept up his skin. "Well, maybe just a bit." He looked at her blue-green eyes and suddenly turned serious, "Trite as the statement may be, it is true. I love you, Jacine."

Jacine felt the now familiar duo feelings of exultation and panic those words roused in her. But gradually, the exultation was taking precedence. She gave the statement the seriousness it deserved and whispered back, "And I, you, Craig-23."

That, of course, lead to some prolonged kissing. When the conversation eventually resumed, a light-hearted mood had returned.

"So, do you want names and dates and acts preferred? Or a synopsis? Or how about general descriptions in lieu of names?" 23 arched an eyebrow at her, but the gesture was wasted as Jacine had her head pillowed on his chest.

She didn't move position as she replied, "Oh, how about something you remember that strikes your fancy at the moment."

"Oh?" 23 got a wicked gleam in his eye that was also unnoticed. He started to delicately re-arrange their positions while speaking, "Well, there was a girl named Sheryl. She showed me this and told me that it was guaranteed to be enjoyed by all women."

"Ohhh."

When Jacine got her breath back she looked at 23 out of the corner of her eyes and purred, "All women?"

23 grinned contentedly at her, "You didn't think so?"

"I'm not quite sure. It might take a second--" The rest of what she was going to say was cut off in a gasp as 23 obliged her.

When they both got their breath back, it was 23 who spoke, "I'll take that as a definite 'yes'."

"Mmmm." Jacine flicked her hair out of her face and glanced up at him, "So, if that was for women, I guess this must be the male equivalent."

Conversation about previous lovers was forgotten, though conversation about other things took place in the next few hours.

"Excuse me for a moment," Jacine grabbed her cane, but didn't bother to snag a robe as she got up and walked across the room. Craig-23's eyes followed her, at once both adoring the areas his eyes wandered over, and slightly worried as he noticed that her limp was considerably worse. But then again... 23 shrugged to himself. After the last several hours, his coordination wouldn't be too wonderful when he got up in turn.

Jacine shivered as Craig slipped back under the covers. She reached out to him to help regain some warmth. That reminded her of another gesture long ago, and reminded her of the conversation they had unsuccessfully started a while ago. "So, about those past lovers..."

23 groaned and looked at her, his brown eyes mildly rebuking. "Now?"

Jacine laughed and held him closer. "Well, let's narrow it down. How about children? You surely have had some."

23's eyes closed and Jacine felt the body she held stiffen slightly. He opened his eyes again and looked very seriously into hers, "I hope you haven't been counting on any."

Puzzled, Jacine cocked her head in that way 23 found so endearing. She freed one hand to trace his implant, "But you're not sterile."

A wan smile was at first her only reply, but after a minute, 23 spoke, "It's inherited genetics that never should have been. I've fathered seven children. None lived past the age of three."

Jacine gasped and her eyes went round. Craig smiled a bit more warmly at her. Sometimes he forgot how truly young she was.

"I'm 23 in the batch of 42 Craigs of the Pentagon test. But what I tend not to mention was that we were only numbered at the age of five. Initially there were an exact 100 embryos. 58 didn't survive to the age of five. And though it shouldn't have been, that statistic seems to been an inherited trait. None of us Craigs have had many children. 39 was the most prolific -- by the time he died, he had 10 surviving children. Between the rest of us, I have maybe 22 nephews and nieces."

In spite of herself, Jacine giggled. 23 cocked an inquisitive eyebrow at her. She replied, "At least it's not 23 nieces and nephews."

Craig-23 laughed as well, "It might be. I tend to forget the relevance numbers have for us."

"There must have been a few times when somebody's been calling out numbers and you've turned around, 'what?'" They both laughed and Craig admitted she was correct.

"As for the children," 23 turned his head back to watch the ceiling again. He had decorated it with a landscape of the bottom of a reef-coral system in the same angle -- from below looking up. Most visitors found it disconcerting at first. Jacine hadn't said anything about it yet -- 23 wasn't sure if that was because she just forgot to say anything or if she'd never noticed it. "The first pair were boys. They lived about a year, but we'd known right-off that there was something wrong. Next were the girls, triplets. Hashi and I had such hopes for them, but they died before their third birthday. Hashi couldn't stand the pain and left. I hear she's happily raising a merry flock of about 6 children from different fathers. The last two boys died stillborn."

Jacine propped herself up on an elbow and watched his face as he recited this list. Her heart ached for him. She reached out and brushed his hair back from his forehead. Softly she asked, "Have you spoken to Tamlynn about this?"

23's graze jerked towards her. His voice, however, was deadpan as he answered, "Before we met again 5 years ago, I hadn't seen her for 40 years. She wasn't a scientist then, and this situation wasn't known in general with my brothers." All the time he'd been speaking, he was trying hard not to show it, but a glimmer of Hope was trying hard to escape. It showed itself in his next sentence, "Do you think she can help?"

Jacine leaned down and kissed his forehead. "If anybody could, she can. Nobody knows genetics like she does. And she's familiar with the Pentagon experiments already from being curious about you when you two were children. We should at least ask her."

"Could you do it?" 23's gaze flicked away from her and then back again, "I don't feel quite... ready to hope yet."

"Of course." Jacine briskly changed the subject, "What time did you want to get up this morning and what do you want for breakfast?"

"I feel like actually cooking something this morning. Where are your pots and pans?"

Craig looked at Jacine in surprise, "Pots and pans? And I think it's afternoon, not morning."

Jacine waved a hand, "Morning is when you get up. And pots and pans are what you cook in. Though any sufficiently hot surface that can be cleaned will do. Let's see what I can improvise."

Watching her with a dubious look, 23 muttered, "I hate it when she improvises."

"Eggs. Scrambled or over-easy?" Jacine poked around the sink area trying various bits of equipment out.

Curious in spite of himself, 23 asked, "Where are you going to get real eggs from?"

Jacine laughed, "Trick of the trades. Usually restaurants, though if they won't or can't give me any, I rustle them from the actual Poultry Units. I have some friends over there." She wandered off to the comset and started making arrangements.

When did I agree? wondered 23. But he shrugged off the question as he watched her work.

Eventually, they had the eggs and some fresh milk and cheese from the Bovine Units. Jacine had needed to call Michael to get what they called a 'mess kit' and the Gang was consequently invited over for the impromptu breakfast in the middle of the afternoon. The mess kit arrived before the trio did and Jacine was arranging a flat pan over a transceiver unit that she'd coaxed into radiating a steady emission of heat. When she'd finished, she turned to 23, "So you've never cooked anything like this before?"

23 shook his head, "But I'm not adverse to leaning."

Jacine regarded him curiously. "So what do they teach you to do in that Survival Training the RCF is so proud of?"

Laughing, 23 replied, "To hunker down and survive on our Ration Bars until help arrives."

Shaking her head, Jacine was the very picture of sincere pity. She opened her mouth to comment, but the door chimes rang and she turned instead, "I think that's Company." She persuaded the door to open with an elegant 'swish' and gestured them inside, "Welcome one and all to Breakfast!"

That night after the Gang had left, Jacine and 23 decided by mutual consent that they were too tired and sore to repeat the previous night's activities. Instead, they curled up by the artificial fire-place Jacine had insisted in installing in 23's quarters.

"Humm." Jacine sniffed the air carefully, "I don't think I've gotten the wood-smoke quite right."

"Please," 23 replied in a droll tone, "don't try to get it too perfect. I don't want to be trying to get smoke-smell out of my clothes and carpet for the next two weeks."

Jacine laughed and tilted her head back and around to look at Craig, who promptly took advantage of the position to kiss her.

When they drew apart again, Jacine continued about the fireplace, "I still have to find my way into the main air-circulation controls. The main air needs to be cooler if we're really to enjoy the warmth of a fire -- even an artificial one."

23 shook his head. One-track mind when she has hold of a problem. Still in all, he was the same way at times. He grinned, remembering an earlier event, "Just be careful not to trip the main security programs when you try that -- I don't particularly enjoy having MPs descend upon me in the middle of the night."

Jacine smothered a laugh, "I said I was sorry! Am I ever going to live that one down?"

"Nope." 23 ruffled her hair affectionately. He leaned back against the couch, Jacine leaning back on him. They watched the fire in silence for awhile, just enjoying the togetherness. 23 broke the silence by again commenting on the fire, "I really like the effect the sparks give. How did you manage that?"

"Umm. Chemical reaction. I spoke over the VR-Net with a chemist I know and we worked it out. I do feel a bit guilty over it. The chemicals aren't rare, but considering the problem we have with resources, they're virtually non-renewable."

"I'm sure we could approximate the same effect with something electronic. With the amount of Energy the O-Storms kick up, the only problem we have with electricity is keeping the converters working."

Jacine grinned at 23's practical obsession with his favorite electronics. She stuck mainly with things mechanical, but at least she diversified now and again. Since 23 couldn't see her grin, she replied seriously to his comment. "Electronics have three problems. First of all, it's been done before."

She was almost cut off by 23's bark of laughter, but she'd been expecting it. "Secondly, I couldn't have done it without your help and I wanted to gift you with this on my own."

She was cut off again as 23 spoke, "I thought it was my gift to you."

"It was probably both. Thirdly, and much more importantly, all things electrical carry with them the potential for fire. For most, very minor and very slight potentials, but considering that what I wanted to produce was imitation fire sparks, I didn't think it wise to introduce the possibility of confounding the safety variables."

23 stirred and shifted position, making Jacine shift as well. 23 looked around the room slightly nervously, "Jacine, you didn't cut out the fire-sensors, did you?"

"Of course not!" Jacine spoke indignantly and almost didn't settle back against 23, who made calming motions with his hands and coaxed her back to him. Jacine was only slightly mollified and it showed in her voice, "The one thing I never do is tamper with safety regulations." There was a pause, "Well, almost never."

23 wasn't sure if he was reassured by this statement, but decided to drop the subject. A new one occurred to him and he broached it hesitantly, "Last night you brought up a subject..."

"Umm." Jacine's lips twitched in remembrance of what else happened the other night, then she shook her head, "Right. Actually, I did bring that up for a particular reason."

"You did?" 23 looked at the blonde hair cascading over his chest -- the only part of Jacine he could actually see at the moment since she had her head bowed down.

"Yes." The reply was slightly muffled but still intelligible, "I didn't want you hearing from anybody else and misunderstanding."

23 tightened his grip around her waist in an instinctive possessive reaction, then he forced himself to loosen it. Jacine, however, grabbed his arms and kept the tightened grip, almost as if she, also, needed the reassurance that he was there.

Jacine raised her head and stared into the artificial flames as she spoke, "I've only had a few sexual encounters," 23 almost blushed -- she put it so bluntly, but between Rhin and Azami, both he and Michael were rapidly becoming used to bluntness about this particular subject.

"But I have had one other Lover." The capitalization on the word was noticeable. "I loved him very much and he loved me. We had planned on getting married."

Jacine fell silent for awhile after this statement, and 23 couldn't quite stand the tension, "So what happened?"

A low sigh escaped Jacine's lips, "He died." There was another silence, and it was only with an effort that Jacine continued, "It was a long, lingering death, and Michael and I have gotten use to not talking about Wes."

23 loosened his grip and spoke softly, "It's not easy to compete with a ghost."

There was a sound almost like laughter from Jacine and she grabbed one of his hands and brought it up to her mouth. As she kissed his hand, she spoke with a much lighter tone, "Oh Craig, you don't have to compete! You have my heart already. Wes is dead. Not even his ghost remains. Just a bunch of memories, some happy, some sad, but all in the past."

Michael's voice seemed to float by 23's ear, recalling a conversation they'd had years ago, Jacine lives very much in the present. But 23 also remembered the way Jacine always turned sad if Wes was mentioned. He tentatively brought this up.

Jacine gave another sigh, "It's partially because of Michael."

"Michael?" That hadn't been an answer 23 had expected.

"Wes was Michael's friend before he was mine. And... there are other reasons not mine to divulge. Suffice it to say that I grow sad for Michael, and Michael tends to worry about me. It's a two-way circle, but it never stops because we never talk about it.

"But I wanted to bring it up because it was, and is, there."

Unseen by Jacine, 23 rolled his eyes, more philosophy, Jacine style.

Jacine continued, unperturbed by what she never sensed, "Wes taught me about the gentler things in life, music, poetry, appreciation of what nature created, not just what I can make. For all my work, this fire is not the same as a real fire. Of course, they all have associated memories with them,"

23's mouth twitched upwards in amusement, And Jacine wanders off on the Tangent Lines yet again. But she was still speaking and he yanked his attention back.

"...and this artificial fire of ours will always carry the association of us." Jacine paused, wondering to herself how many more memories she could create tonight, then she grinned as her sore muscles reminded her why they were huddled by the fireplace. She had almost forgotten about discussing Wes, content just to be there by Craig, leaning back against him, feeling him there.

23 hadn't forgotten and was wondering if the silence was a deliberate attempt to stay away from the subject. He decided not, and entwined the fingers of one hand in Jacine's hand. The other he brought up and started to run it through her hair. Jacine settled back with a contented sound, making it harder for him to continue, but he managed. He watched the strands he separated and tried to decide if he really needed to hear more about this past lover of Jacine's or if he could come to a grip with it as it was. Knowing Jacine was the key point and 23 decided he knew her well enough to trust what she'd said and be secure in her love for him. Besides, the old adage said that actions spoke louder than words.

At that moment, Jacine twisted herself around with a smile, "That feels so good, I think I should reciprocate -- would you like a backrub, Craig?"

He grinned at her and then looked at the carpet, "Did I remember to vacuum this earlier?"

Jacine laughed.