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Disclaimer: I don't own them, I'm just borrowing them.

There is a sort of prequel: Who Controls the Pastkeygen worldofwarcraft



What The Future Holds
part 1
By Wandering Spirit





Miss Parker's office
The Centre
Blue Cove, DE
April 15, 2002

Parker couldn't get her mind off him. Ever since the last time they had seen each other on the plane, right before it blew up she hadn't stopped thinking about him. Even though her head told her that she could never be with him, her heart said differently. As the plane crash-landed, aside from getting out alive, she also prayed that when Jarod made his escape that he'd take her with him. If he really loved me as much as he said he did, he would have taken me with him, Parker thought.

Jarod couldn't get his mind off her. He couldn't stop thinking about her. Everywhere he went, everything he saw reminded him of the woman he loved. He wanted so badly to make his last daring escape with her, but he knew he couldn't have. The last thing he wanted was to put her life in danger. If she loves me as much as I know she does, she'll understand, Jarod thought. He sighed and wiped a tear from his eye as he gazed around at his surroundings. Please let her understand.

"Parker? Miss Parker?" Sydney asked as he tried to rouse the sleeping Miss Parker. She had fallen asleep at her desk for the second time in the past three days. Ever since her last encounter with Jarod, she seemed to be somewhat dazed, tired. She didn't even try to snap at Broots anymore. Her heart wasn't in it. Scaring the living daylights out of her colleague had lost its fun. There was no point to it anymore...there was no point to anything anymore. Nothing mattered. Nothing except...

"Miss Parker!" Sydney raised his voice.

Hmm? Jarod?" Miss Parker inquired as she picked her head up from her desk and looked at her surroundings.

"No, Miss Parker. Just me," Sydney replied.

"Oh. Syd. Hey. What? Did you get a new lead on Jarod?" Miss Parker asked, drowsily as she smoothed back her hair.

"No. Not yet. Parker, I'm worried about you," Sydney said, sincerely. "You haven't been focused lately. Dare I say you've...lost your edge?"

Miss Parker sighed. Freud was right.

***

Raines's office
The Centre
Blue Cove, DE
same day, same time


"We caught Jarod. We had him," Lyle complained as he paced back and forth in Raines' office.

"It's like no matter what we do, he'll always elude us. I hate to say it, but I don't think we'll ever bring him back to the Centre," Raines agreed. "Of course, I never underestimated Jarod. Every plan needs a backup."

"What are you saying?" Lyle asked.

"Jarod is our most valuable pretender, not because of what he can do himself, but because of what he can give us," Raines explained.

"And what would that be?"

"The ultimate pretender. His and Miss Parker's DNA together would give us the ultimate pretender with gifts even more extraordinary than Ethan's," Raines declared.

"And how would we do that?" Lyle asked.

"You wouldn't believe what we have conveniently stored in the bodily fluids storage area, son," Raines replied as a sickening smile graced his lips. "We don't even need Jarod anywhere near the Centre. In fact, it would be best if he wasn't concerned in this at all."

"So we use a surrogate mother to create the perfect pretender," Lyle nodded as he smiled the same disgustingly malicious smile.

"Yes. But not just any surrogate mother."

***

Miss Parker's office
The Centre
Blue Cove, DE
same day


Miss Parker paced back and forth in her office, staring at her phone. She knew she couldn't call Jarod. The line wasn't secure. But she wanted to talk to him so badly. She took a swig of Pepto-Bismol as she continued pacing. With all her worrying, her ulcer had started to act up again.

"Miss Parker, I'm sure he's fine," Broots reassured his friend.

"He hasn't called or sent us anything, played any games with us in nearly three weeks," Miss Parker sighed. "I'm beginning to think something's wrong."

"The Centre is more determined than ever now to catch him, Parker," Sydney replied. "You know Jarod wouldn't just attempt to lead anyone directly to him. Not now. He's too smart for that."

"But you'd think he'd lead ME to him, Syd. I'm different!" Parker snapped.

"Parker? I don't understand," Sydney replied as he shook his head.

"Syd, I...I..." Parker couldn't focus. Everything was spinning. She hadn't eaten anything in a week and she hadn't gotten a decent night's sleep since the last time she saw Jarod.

"Parker?" Sydney asked with concern as he put his hand on his colleague's shoulder.

"Fine," Parker lied as she leaned forward and clutched her desk for support. "I'm fine."

"When was the last time you've eaten?" Broots asked as he too now stood at his friend's side.

"I don't remember," Parker replied. "Broots, I'm not a little girl anymore. I can take care of myself," Miss Parker insisted, although she didn't even sound too sure of herself.
"Parker don't do this to yourself," Sydney chided. "It's not healthy. Jarod's fine.
I worry about him too, but this has got to stop. You're obsessing over nothing, and you're the one paying the price for it."

"I'm not obsessing over nothing! Jarod is not nothing!" Miss Parker snapped. "He means everything to me and if anything happened to him that I could've prevented, I swear Sydney, I'll lose it."

There was silence. Miss Parker's hand flew to her mouthed as she gasped. She couldn't take it back, nor did she want to, but now that she had admitted it, she knew there was going to be trouble. It didn't matter if Broots and Syd didn't tell anyone what she had just said. They were in the Centre. And as long as they were inside those walls, nothing could be kept a secret for long. She might as well finish her thought. She might as well say it.

"I love him, Syd," she sobbed as she hung her head.

Sydney tried his best to repress the smile that was tugging at the corners of his mouth. He hated to see her like this, but she had finally admitted to what Syd had known all along. Parker and Jarod were meant for each other. He didn't know why she didn't see it before.

"Miss Parker, that's nothing to be ashamed about," Sydney reassured his friend.

"I know," Miss Parker replied. "But I just sealed my fate. Now that I've admitted to it, it won't be long before everyone knows. Do you know what they'll do to me if they find out what I just admitted to? I might as well have just waltzed right up to Raines and Lyle and said it to their faces!"

"Miss Parker, everything will be fine. We'll help you if there's trouble. We promise," Broots said.

"Thank you, Broots. But I'd rather you not get involved. The last thing I want is for either of you to get hurt because of me. In fact, I probably shouldn't be here at all. I should probably just walk right out of the Centre, hop in my car, drive away, and never come back. I'm probably in more danger now than Jarod is. At least he's out there and no one knows where he is."

"So why don't you, Parker?" Syd wondered. "There's no incentive for you to stay."

Parker didn't answer. She groaned as she clutched her stomach and collapsed to her knees.

"Parker!" Sydney exclaimed in surprise as he knelt down by his friend's side. "Broots, get a doctor."

Broots nodded as he ran out of the room as fast as his legs could carry him.

***

Moore High School
Suburban Philadelphia, PA
April 15, 2002


"Good morning, class," Jarod greeted the group of eighth graders before him. "My name is Jarod Dalton, Mr. Dalton to you, and I'll be your substitute until your real teacher returns.

A curious eighth grader raised her hand. Jarod glanced down at the seating chart and called on his pupil.

"Yes, Natalie," Jarod responded.

"Yeah, uh, are you an actual chemistry teacher, or are you gonna wing it until Mrs. Mitchell returns?" Natalie wondered.

Several students chuckled in reply.

"No, actually, I know a lot about science. Some substitutes are smarter than you give them credit for," Jarod replied with a half smile.









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