From: Philippa Chapman (Glastonbury, Somerset, UK.) Date: Sat, 05 Apr 1997 07:00 +0000 Subject: Girl Talk, Part 1/5 GIRL TALK Author's notes: This all started from one basic irresistible idea: 1) How Al would cope with being a woman, as a leaper. And then the story took on a life of it's own....!! NEW MEXICO, 2000 A.D. Al paced up and down restlessly in his office. "Dammit, Ziggy! You say that Sam hasn't leaped, that he's probably dead, but history has just changed again! Could it be the evil leapers up to their old tricks again?" "NEGATIVE, ADMIRAL CALAVICCI. MY FATHER IS PROBABLY OUT THERE, BUT I CANNOT TRACE HIM." Al sighed deeply and ran his hands through his hair. "It's just been one darned thing after another in the last year or so. I'm tired and cranky, Ziggy. I think I'm finally getting old." "NO, ADMIRAL. WE ALL GRIEVED WHEN I HAD TO DECLARE MY FATHER DEAD. I MOURNED WHEN DOCTOR ELEESE GAVE UP HOPE AND WENT AWAY. I TRIED TO UNDERSTAND WHEN GRIEF AND OVERWORK SHATTERED YOUR FRAGILE MARRIAGE. IF THERE WAS NEW HOPE, WE WOULD FIND HEALING......JUST A MOMENT. I HAVE SOMETHING. I THINK YOU OUGHT TO COME TO THE CONTROL ROOM." Al almost raced out of his office and stood in the empty, darkened room. Little bursts of light scurried across Ziggy's mainframe and colour began to flood her control panel for the first time in over a year. "I'll summon somebody." "NEGATIVE, ADMIRAL. MY FATHER NEEDS HELP RIGHT AWAY." Ziggy lowered the glowing ball that looked like a disco ornament and projected a scene on the wall. Sam was lying in a cardbord box on a sidewalk. Snow was falling and his lips and hands were blue with cold. He looked like he hadn't eaten or shaved in at least a month. "Oh, dear God! What can we do?" Al picked up his handlink. "THAT WON'T BE ENOUGH. YOU NEED TO TOUCH HIM, THEN HE'LL LEAP OUT OF THERE." Al froze as he took in the implications. "I've gotta Leap after him, haven't I?" "YES, ADMIRAL. WEAR THE NEW RETRIEVAL DEVICE WITH THE FERMI SUIT. IT SHOULD BRING YOU AND MY FATHER BACK HOME." Al nodded stiffly then went and changed in double-quick time. "Ziggy, if this doesn't work....tell the girls I love them and Beth...tell her I'm sorry I wasn't able....that I couldn't...." Al swore softly,"Look, she knows exactly how the grief and over-work has affected me." "I UNDERSTAND, BUT IT WASN'T ONLY THAT. YOU TOLD ME YOURSELF THAT THE MARRIAGE WAS VIRTUALLY OVER IN ANY CASE." Al sighed. "Yes, you're right. Let's get Sam home, Ziggy." Al clipped the new retrieval device around his waist and stepped into the accelerating chamber. "I hope this doesn't hurt too much." "IT WON'T. MY FATHER EXPERIENCED PLEASURE. REMEMBER YOU'LL BE IN THE PAST AS YOURSELF, ALBEIT BRIEFLY. BE CAREFUL." "I will." Al closed his eyes,"I haven't felt pleasure in a long time..." A surge of adrenalin raced through Al's body and the blue-white of the leap took him away. "Wow!" Al whispered, as reality settled back around him,"If it's that nice for someone who's been impotent for the last year, it must be incredible for anyone else." A slow smile spread over his face,"Sam Beckett, you must have a secret kinky streak buried in that absurdly moral fibre of yours. No wonder you used to smile sometimes when you felt the leap on its way." Al looked around and saw Sam a little way away. He hurried over and touched Sam's hand. "Oh, Sam! Hang on, I'm here at last." Sam's eyes fluttered open. "Al?" His voice was faint and hoarse. "We're going home, kid." Al crouched down and wrapped his arms around Sam,"Okay, Ziggy. Anytime now would be just fine." A second Leap engulfed both men and took them away. Al found himself sitting on a strange couch with Sam still in his arms. He looked down in concern, but Sam's colour was completely healthy and the stubble had gone. Sam opened his eyes properly. "Al, you saved me!" They hugged delightedly, then Sam pulled away, puzzled, "Al, why are you wearing perfume and earrings....or should I not ask?" Al blinked, then looked down at himself. He was wearing a clearly feminine navy jacket, blouse and skirt, complete with hose and high heels. His eyebrows raised incredulously. "Even I wouldn't have gone this far to please a woman....well, not unless she was wearing nothing but one of my jackets, a fedora and a smile. I think we just entered the Twilight Zone. Anyway, you're wearing women's clothes, too....though that's a pretty regular occurrence." Sam looked down at his similar green suit and sighed. "Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" A woman's voice came through the door. "Melissa, Alexandra....now that you've had time to settle in, what are your impressions of the company?" Sam and Al turned together. The young woman who entered the room was about thirty and built, as Al might have put it, from the ground up. She wore a sober pin-striped jacket and pants, with a crisp white blouse underneath. Al's mouth fell open as he recognised her face, her voluptuously curved breasts and the unique natural shade of red-gold hair that framed her face. His libido woke up suddenly and fully with an intense jolt of desire and sheer lust. "TINA!" He groaned inwardly with frustration as he realised the impossibility of his situation, "Ohhh, BOY!!" Tina came over, her face full of concern and laid a slim hand on Al's arm. Al made an incoherent noise in his throat as she bent closer. "Are you okay, Alexandra? You look distracted." Sam covered his mouth with his hand and coughed violently to cover his laughter. "No, *Alexandra's* just fine," he managed eventually,"It's....woman trouble." Al turned and fixed Sam with a glare that could have re-started the great fire of Chicago. Tina put her hand on Al's shoulder. "Do you need anything?" Al blinked several times and swallowed hard. "YES! NO! No....I'll manage, thank-you." "Okay." Tina moved over and sat behind the desk,"Now I want you to feel at home with the company, so if you have any problems, just bring them to me. This may be the Nineties, but there are still some men who treat women solely as sex objects. I've had to fight my way past men who seemed to be unable to take their eyes off my cleavage." "It's the sexiest damned cleavage I've ever seen," Al muttered under his breath. Sam kicked him on the shin. Tina continued, oblivious to the undercurrents she was creating. "You get any problems at all with sexual harassment and you bring them to me." Al's mouth acted independently of his brain. "If any man so much as tries to touch me, he'll be picking his teeth off the floor!" Tina laughed delightedly. "Attagirl! That's the attitude, but don't actually resort to physical violence, please." Al grinned and pushed his luck a little further. "But what if we find someone we actually want to.....*be* with?" "Make sure the guy cares about you, then try to be discreet. The chairman of the board gets really old fashioned when it comes to employees using the company facilities in an unorthodox manner. The last couple who decided to...um...have fun in the photocopying room had the prints of their escapade blown up to billboard size all over the office...then they were fired. And watch out at the Christmas party, please. If Denton Walsh plays Santa again, don't under any circumstances sit on his knee. The last two women who did had twins nine months later!" Al suddenly realised that Tina was teasing and he began to laugh, along with Sam. "Well, if either of us has twins, it'll make headline news, believe me!" Sam nudged him again. "Stop it, Al. She hasn't met *us* yet." Tina looked up. "Oh...do you prefer being called Al?" Al smiled widely. "Yes, Tina. I like you very much," Al received another painful dig from Sam, but continued,"You can call me Al." Finally Sam and Al were dismissed. Sam rose, smoothing down his skirt and carefully adjusting his weight inside the green stiletto shoes on his feet. He wobbled for a moment, but he'd had practice at this before. Al didn't do so well. He stood up far too fast and came close to severely twisting his ankle, but Sam's hand was firm on his hand. Sam bent closer and whispered into Al's ear. "Balance on the balls of you feet. I've got you." Several expressions passed across Al's face. Panic, frustration and disbelief were three of them. He managed to pull himself erect and tried to walk out of the office as though he'd done it a hundred times before. Tina's face was incredulous, her mouth dropped open. Her new colleague Alexandra was suddenly walking like a man. She shook her head and got back to her paperwork with a small frown making an indent in-between her red-gold eyebrows. Sam looked about him and saw a fairly convenient ladies' room. He guided Al firmly towards it and barred the door once they were inside. Al kicked off the blue court shoes he was wearing and slumped against the wall for a moment before looking up at Sam. "You Leaped in to save my life, didn't you?" Al nodded. Sam held Al's shoulders, "I need an update, Al....but first....Oh, God, it's so good to see you!" He hugged Al again, his green eyes filling with sudden tears. "Good to see you too, Sam. I used to enjoy getting inside women's clothes, if you catch my drift.....I never thought I'd have to *wear* the things!" Sam chuckled softly, then his expression became serious. "It's been over a year since I last saw you. How did your marriage go?" Al shrugged. "Great, at first. I know what you did for me, Sam. Ziggy basically showed me. Beth and I had thirty-nine years together....then we lost you. Ziggy showed me the old past....then everything went pear-shaped. I worked around the clock with her trying to find you, but the lock had gone. I got tired and irritable and my already fragile marriage hit the skids," Al looked up at Sam with tears threatening in his eyes,"We thought you were dead, Sam." Sam nodded slowly. "Effectively, I was. I got sucked into limbo for a while. That's why Ziggy couldn't find me. I was existing somewhere else. When I came back into the world I had nothing but the clothes I stood up in. I've been existing on soup kitchens and hand-outs in cardboard city....I think it was Chicago. I'm not sure, I got pneumonia and my mind became more full of holes than usual. I was pretty close to the end when you rescued me; but I feel fine now. Who's looking after the project at home? What do we do about getting another hologram?" Someone banged on the door, so Sam's questions were temporarily cut short. Al made a face as he forced the stilettos back on his feet. "Time to get back to work, I guess. I wonder what we do?" Sam looked at his reflection in the mirror, "Hey, nice going, Sam. Melissa's a stunner. Look at those incredible blue and violet eyes, the honey brown hair and that lush pair of..." "AL! Stop it! Anyway, how about Alexandra?" Sam decided to give Al a taste of his own medicine, laying on the seductive voice for effect,"The mane of thick blonde hair and those huge.....hazel eyes." Al laughed. "Okay, okay. She is quite a doll, though. If I hadn't already been completely smitten by Tina, I could go for a woman who looked like Alexandra...hey, maybe even both of them!" Sam shook his head as he opened the door. "One of these days I'm going to put Bromide in your tea, I swear it." Al shrugged eloquently. "I can't help it....I love women...plus I haven't come across the woman yet who could...er..completely keep up with my appetites, not even Beth; though she got pretty damn close. If HE put my dream woman my way, then I would be faithful." Sam gave Al a disbelieving look, but Al's eyes were serious and rather wistful, "I mean it, Sam. I want to fall hopelessly in love again, with the woman of my dreams....I always have and I still do." Sam smiled softly. "Then I hope you find her, Al." "You too, Sam. I hope you have a beautiful and passionate woman to come home to one day." Sam ducked his head. STALLION'S GATE NEW MEXICO The two women in the Waiting Room hugged each other. "Are you scared, Alex?" The blonde woman trembled slightly. "A bit. Do you think we've suddenly entered an episode of The Outer Limits, Mel?" Another woman opened the door of the sterile white room. The brunette and the blonde took one look at her. "TINA! Ms O'Farrell! What's going on?" Tina stood, poised on the rim of the door, her mouth silently opening and closing. Certain events of ten years ago suddenly made perfect sense. "Admiral Albert Calavicci, when you get home I am going to *kill* you!" she muttered, before managing a smile for her two friends, "Alexandra, Melissa. It's good to see you....look, I'm sorry about all this, but let me try and explain....." (What did Al do? Wait and see....) MEANWHILE, BACK IN THE PAST Sam and Al walked back down the corridor, trying to figure out where they were going and exactly what they were meant to be doing. Al wobbled on his heels a good deal more than Sam. "This is where I could use you to help me, Al." Al shrugged and stumbled slightly. "Sorry. The retrieval should have worked, Sam. I think we've got to muddle through on this one." "Okay. No Gushi?" Al's eyes misted over slightly. "Sorry, Sam. No Gushi - that's one of the things that went ca-ca." Sam spoke softly, already figuring out the worst. "He's dead, isn't he?" Al nodded slowly and sighed. "In my reality he was married to Tina.....and was involved in a fatal car accident on the way back from his mistress. I was already up to my ears in work, so 'Bina had to mop her up. Apparently he was dying from cancer and couldn't handle it. Doesn't really excuse him, but I think it helped ease the pain a little. I truly never really *noticed* Tina until now. And, boy am I noticing!" Sam smiled in spite of himself. "Yeah, I could tell. If you know your other past, then you'll know that you and she were lovers." Al groaned. "Shit! That's one thing my Swiss-cheesed brain obviously forgot. How I could forget making love to a woman as hot as that is beyond me....but I've got nothing. Zip, zilch, zero." Suddenly his eyes were twinkling,"Well, I'll just have to go back to the beginning and make some new beautiful memories." Sam coughed pointedly. "There's a slight problem with doing anything about Tina at the moment." Al looked down at his skirt and panti-hose and sighed deeply and regretfully. "I know, Sam. But just wait till I get home!" Sam stopped by an open office door. There were two name-plaques on the door. A. Sorridente and M. Maclean. Sam put two and two together. "I think this is our office." Al looked at the door. "'Smiling', eh? Probably had ancestors in the Commedia Dell'arte. And Melissa obviously comes from Bonnie Scotland." Sam sighed. "Not everyone with a 'Mac' in front of their name is Scottish, Al." Al's eyes twinkled. "I know, but it reminds me of this trip I made to Edinburgh once and this gorgeous Scottish lassie who....entertained me in the back of her shop after closing time on this huge pile of tartans." Sam sighed. "Is there any nationality you haven't had?" Al deliberately paused and thought. "Actually, as far as memory serves, I don't think I've ever got friendly with an Irish colleen...which given my Catholic background is a bit of a surprise. Of course, in a sense, I have, because there's Tina, but I don't remember and they're not *my* memories in any case." Sam went over to the desk and started up the brand new computer which was there. "Okaaaay. Let's see what we've got here. Ooooh, secret pass-worded stuff. No problem." Sam hacked away, happily humming to himself. Al knew enough to get his computer started up, but hit the same wall after only a few moves. He narrowed his eyes and tried to get a lay-out of the building they were in and a corporate name. The room became silent except for Sam's quiet humming and the sound of fingers on keyboards. Al was less computer-literate and gave up after a while and went to look out of the window. "Hey! I know where we are, Sam!" "Hmmmmm?" Sam was still intent on the screen in front of him. Al shook his head in amusement and began to mutter to himself. "Typical Sam Beckett. Give him something he really enjoys doing and he gets stuck in with single-minded devotion above and beyond the call of duty. Pity he never seemed to feel that way about making love....at least not as far as I know. He could make the right woman incredibly happy if he tried," ,"We're in silicon valley, Sam. Sun, sand and sex." The three-letter word caught Sam's attention and his brain back-tracked along part of what Al had said. His head came up from the screen and he turned towards Al. "Silicon valley? That makes sense.....Tina seems to be about thirty or so. She'll have got her doctorate in computer technology.....there was this high- flying computer chip company she worked for back around 1990." Al grinned as memories in his own mind slotted into place. "Yes, that's right. Greenbaum Technologies. They helped supply some of Ziggy's components later because of Tina's contacts in the firm. Maybe I should just phone PQL and get the younger me to come and examine Tina's software in person." Sam's green and hazel eyes widened in shock. "Don't you dare! You have no idea what it'll do to the timelines! In any case, the younger you is still presumably happily married to Beth....I think." Al laughed heartily. "Don't worry, Sam. I can wait. If Tina's half as good a lover as she looks, she'll be worth waiting for. Found anything useful yet?" Sam dutifully turned back to the computer screen. "Some. I'm going to need some more hacking time to uncover everything. I've only been at it.... Oh, boy! Doesn't time fly by when you're absorbed in something? It's over three hours since I started! Anyway, Greenbaum seem to have the usual outlets; computer manufacturers and some defence work. They're working on the 'smart' chip that's going to be somewhat overtaken by Ziggy when she goes on line in just over four years. They have a healthy order book and the research department is therefore well funded. Our hostesses seem to have secure jobs and the pay-roll is suitably generous. I can't see anything at the moment that would seem to require our being here." Al wobbled over. "Maybe we're here to make sure that Tina and I get hot and heavy together." Sam shook his head. "I'm regarding that as a product of your priapic desires in her direction. I'll consider it when, and only when, we have exhausted all other avenues." "Aw, Sam, you're no fun! Haven't you ever got like that over a beautiful woman? In fact, I seem to recall that you did, once or twice." Sam gave Al a direct look. "I would only 'get like that', to use your words, if I was utterly and completely in love with her first. The two go together for me, as well you know. As far as my Swiss-cheesed brain will tell me, I'm still drawing a big fat zero in that direction. I recall feeling love and some pretty overwhelming passion, but never the two together." Sam's face inadvertently took on what Al called his 'puppy dog' look. Al decided on complete honesty too. "Me either, Sam. Plenty of both, but not at the same time. Especially not recently. All the....upheavals we had back at the project over the last year took it's toll on me. Until I Leaped after you, I'd been, well..." Al trailed off and patted his jacket for the cigar that wasn't there to cover his sudden admission. Sam understood. He picked his next words carefully. "Then it's not at all surprising that you got completely floored by Tina." Al grinned, his eyes thanking Sam silently with his eyes. Al looked at his watch. "Hey, it's lunchtime! I don't see any sandwich boxes, so I'm guessing they have a canteen here. Ooooh, I hope they do a good pasta. I fancy some Gnocchi or maybe even Lasagne with piles of tomato filling and Parmesan cheese sauce on top." Sam stood up. "Okay, Al. I'm getting hungry, too. Don't forget your purse!" Sam used his nose and his eyes to steer him towards food. Suddenly the prospect of pasta or something filling seemed very attractive. The canteen was small and well air-conditioned. Even with the tinted anti-glare glass Sam could tell that it was baking hot outside. The only heat inside came from the door into the kitchen as it occasionally swung open and shut. "Hey, it's a bit like the canteen at home.....isn't it?" Al nodded. "Yes, but ours is smaller and more intimate somehow, despite the guards." Sam picked out some grapefruit juice, then a waldorf salad with a poppy seed roll on the side. His stomach began to make appreciative rumbles. As he moved down the line, he added a small dish of pasta and a zabaglione for dessert. Al grinned over his shoulder. "Hey, nice choice. I seem to remember you're a coffee flavour junkie." Al helped himself to his anticipated lasagne with a side salad and the same dessert. They both picked up a can of coke before retiring to eat. There was companionable silence broken only by the sound of discreet chewing for some time. They were about half-way through when Tina arrived. "Can I join you?" Al looked up and smiled winningly. "Sure!" When she moved to get her food, Sam gave Al one of his admonishing glances. "Down, boy. She doesn't know it's you - and we ought to talk." "We're not going to find out much about our job description without further hacking on your part. It seems we're fairly new here, so a few careful questions might help." "Okay, Al. Just try to keep a lid on your libido." "With the Shoes From Hell on my feet? No problem!" Both men began to chuckle heartily. Tina returned several minutes later with a slice of hot pizza, some fries, a milk-shake and another zabaglione. Al took one glance at her choice, then looked adoringly up at her as she sat down. Tina failed to notice this as she settled herself, nor the mouthed, "I'm in love!" that Al put in deliberately to wind Sam up. Sam glared at Al briefly, then smiled at Tina. "So....Tina. How are we doing with the latest processor?" That was safe enough for a start. Tina smiled politely. "Not over lunch, Melissa. I'm *starving*. Come up to my office afterwards and we'll look over the order book. I'll call Edwards for a report from the manufacturing plant." Tina attacked her food with relish. Al watched, spell- bound as she devoured everything on her plate eagerly. He managed to finish his own food almost on auto-pilot, then his attention was riveted by the frankly sensual delight Tina displayed as she ate her zabaglione. He cleared his throat. "So....you seem to like zabaglione, just like me." Tina closed her eyes and licked her spoon. Al whimpered softly. "I *love* it. I love the texture, the flavor....everything. It's almost better than chocolate." Sam kicked Al under the table and gave him an admonishing glance. Al pulled himself together quickly, but his eyes were still glowing when she made her excuses and left. When she was out of sight, he ran his hands through his hair. "I know, I know. But Tina's just revealed that she's a highly sensual woman. I promise I'll be good, but it's getting h....ahem...more and more difficult as time goes by." Sam gave Al a very frank look. "You go back to 'our' office and cool down. I'll go to Tina's office *alone*." Al sighed and nodded. Sam duly went to Tina's office a little while later. Tina was busy working at her own computer, her slim fingers flying over the keys. "Melissa, if you come over here, I've got the spread-sheets up and running." Sam pulled a chair near to Tina, "You can see that we're doing very well - at the moment. The customer is pleased with the progress we've made in schematics and we're not too far behind completing on schedule. If you could just chase up the tests on the components and run more simulations, then we'll be on our way." Sam nodded slowly, his eyes taking in all the details on the screen. "Have we fully considered the potential military applications of this processor?" Tina nodded, seeming to be pleased at Sam's quick grasp of the potential. "Yes. The Chairman and the board discussed this in closed session some time ago. Even I don't know exactly what was said, but the company made a firm decision that we were only going to consider defence." Sam stood up to leave,"Tell me, Melissa. Is Al still sleeping on your couch?" Sam hazarded a guess. "Yes, she hasn't found a place of her own yet." Tina nodded. "Well, I know she's new and I am her boss, but the offer of my spare room still stands. It will at least give her a proper bed. You were her school- friend. Is there any personal reason that she might have for refusing?" Sam boggled and stood over by the window, trying to control the reactions on his face. "I...er....um. I can't really say, Tina." "Very well. Send her up here and I'll talk to her, woman to woman." "Al, you'd better take a deep breath. Apparently Tina is offering *Alexandra* the use of her spare room until she finds a place of her own." Al's eager grin spread from ear to ear,"Yes, I thought that'd be your reaction. Just think twice, if not three times before accepting. We don't have access to Ziggy to help us." Al nodded, his face suddenly serious. "I know. I want to get both of us home, too. I promise I'll go carefully." Al forced himself back into the stilettos he had kicked off and started towards Tina's office. Suddenly, a tall, blond man stood in his path. "Hi, Alexandra. When are you going to let me take you out on a date?" Al's eyes narrowed as he sized the other man up. "That's something that's never going to happen." "Hey, this is the Nineties. You're Italian and so am I. We could make beautiful music together." The man made the mistake of touching Al's shoulder suggestively and suddenly found himself on the floor with Al's hands around his neck. "Don't try that again, pal. I'm definitely *not* your type." The other man made a crude remark about what gender Al preferred. Al decided not to answer, since he couldn't comment about Alexandra's habits and let the man stand up. As he rose himself, he saw Tina standing in the doorway of her office, her eyes boggling. Al dusted himself down and followed Tina back into her office. "Did you have a brother in the services or are you taking martial arts? That was one of the best moves I've seen! Not that Robert Stephens didn't deserve it, he's hit on every woman in the company. I won't report you and I'm pretty certain he won't. Bruised ego....and butt!" Al smiled. "My...er....older brother was in Vietnam. He taught me a few moves to protect myself." Tina nodded. "Yeah, I had a cousin out there. I was very glad of what he taught me when my figure began to blossom. I can now safely say that I can deter any man I don't want to get close. Anyway, I only wanted to re-open the offer of the spare room in my apartment. Melissa has always been generous in her praise of you as a friend, so, if you can put up with me for a bit, I reckon we could get along together. What do you think?" Al paused, caught on the horns of a dilemma. Al's conscience started to win. "Staying with Melissa isn't that bad, I can cope...." Then he trailed off. Something was forming in the air near him, like heat haze, or a mirage, or *like a hologram on the fritz*. That was it! There was someone at the project trying to get through. Then Al discerned the face and his jaw dropped open. It was Sam.....and it wasn't Sam. This man was older, greyer and had a look of sublime contentment Al hardly recognised. The familiar green and hazel eyes were warm and seemed to be open down to the man's soul. "Say 'yes'," the vision urged him,"It'll help Tina and I need to talk with *your* Sam. Trust me." Al managed to close his jaw and smiled at Tina. "On the other hand, it's a generous offer. I accept! I just hope that I don't snore too loudly!" Tina giggled. "You've got nothing on me. I sleepwalk from time to time." Al walked back through the door of the office that he now shared with Sam and sat down at his chair, swivelling it towards his friend. "Well?" Al looked at Sam apologetically. "I was in the middle of gently turning her down, when *it* happened. I guess it was a bit like a hologram.....I'm not sure. There was no door, just this heat-haze, then I saw *your* face." "Me? It wasn't me, Al. I was here all the time." "I know. You...he...was older, maybe in his fifties. He was also incredibly serene and content, as if he'd just had a fortnight's love-making with the most beautiful woman imaginable, plus 15 million dollars and a deep religious experience all rolled into one. He said, and I quote, 'Say yes. It'll help Tina and I need to talk with your Sam. Trust me.' What could I do, Sam? I couldn't exactly refuse, could I?" Sam nodded thoughtfully. "Okay, Al. We'll go with my...his message. Is it me, in the future?" Al narrowed his eyes and thought deeply. "I don't *think* so. The voice wasn't quite the same, somehow.....I know! He didn't have your slight lisp. And there was a tiny port wine birthmark near his right ear that you don't have. He *was* Sam, though....but an alternative one. Hey, I wonder what the alternative 'me' is like? Maybe he can tell me if this Al is going to make it with Tina!" Sam looked away into the distance. "I wonder why this other Sam wants to talk to me. What will he say?"