She wasn't sure what woke her up, but the room was still dark, so she couldn't have overslept. She blinked sleepily into the dimness, rolling over onto her side and wondering if she wanted to know what time it was. Far too close to the hour when she had to get up, she suspected.

A light on her computer terminal made her frown, though, as she recognized the "incoming message" pattern. She hated the thought of dragging herself out of bed to see what it was, but if it was important, she really had no choice.

Pulling herself into a sitting position with an effort, she slid her legs over the side of the bed and got to her feet. As she stumbled over to the terminal, she vowed that if is *wasn't* important, the sender of this message was going to get a very nasty reply.

Acknowledging the message and inputting her code, she was surprised to see Andros's message sig at the top. It had been automatically routed to all Ranger terminals, even his, and she skimmed over the eight names listed at the top to the message below.

*Three days?* she wondered, trying to make her sleepy mind process the information. *Three… days?*

A muffled noise from behind her made her spin, bringing her hands up automatically to block a possible attack. But there was no one there, and she squinted, trying to see through the shadows.

"Andros?" she whispered, wondering if the form on the couch was more than her imagination.

It didn't move, and she made her careful way across the room. Sure enough, there was someone sleeping there, his blonde-streaked brown hair just barely discernible in the nearly dark room. "Andros," she murmured again, kneeling down beside him.

She watched him sleep for a few minutes, until it became too much of an effort to hold her head up. Resting her arms on the cushion, she pillowed her head on them and let her eyes slide shut, listening to Andros's breathing.

It seemed only a moment later when she felt him stir, his hand stroking her hair gently. But when she tried to lift her head, it felt heavier than it had before, and her entire body was slower than it should have been to respond.

*The lights are on,* she realized slowly. She must have fallen asleep again.

"Morning, sleepy," Andros said affectionately, fingers still tangled in her hair. "How long have you been here?"

She yawned, leaning into his hand and letting her eyes close again. "Since I woke up and saw your message on my terminal."

"That's not really the most comfortable place to sleep," he pointed out gently.

"You slept here," she murmured.

"At least I was lying down. Why don't you go back to your bed and get some real sleep?"

" 'Cause I'd rather be with you," she replied, lifting her eyelids with an effort and smiling at him.

"I'm not going anywhere," he promised softly.

"Good…"

The next thing she knew, she was blinking her eyes open again and staring up at the ceiling. She twisted a little, feeling her muscles protest as she tried to stretch. She yawned involuntarily, then sniffed the air.

She had fallen asleep *again*--but was that breakfast she smelled? She rolled over onto her side, smiling as she realized she was lying on the couch. She pushed herself up into a sitting position, blinking as she tried to look around the room.

The lights had been dimmed to half-strength, but the door to the kitchen was open and brighter light spilled out into the room. She could hear voices, and to her surprise she actually had enough energy that she felt like getting up to investigate. *No work today,* she thought with relief, climbing to her feet and wandering over to the kitchen.

"Andros!" she heard Cassie's indignant voice exclaim as she got closer. "I was using that!"

"If you'd just spread it on your toast like a normal person," Andros began, and Ashley poked her head into the small kitchen area in time to see Cassie give him a friendly shove.

"What do you know about being normal?" she demanded. "You eat jam plain!"

Andros only shrugged. "At least I don't eat it out of the jar, like some people."

Ashley leaned against the doorframe, smiling as she watched the two of them argue. Andros noticed her first, pausing midsentence to greet her. "Morning, Ash--feeling any better?"

She tried to stifle a giggle as she saw Cassie steal the jar from him, but she didn't quite manage. Andros glanced over his shoulder, saw the jar slide away, and exclaimed, "Hey!"

Cassie stuck her knife in the jam and covered a corner of her toast with it. She bit into it calmly, but her eyes widened as Andros telekinetically dragged the jar away from her. He scooped some of the jam onto his plate before she could say a word. "So?" he inquired, cocking his head in Ashley's direction.

"I am feeling better, actually," she said, a little surprised. "Thanks for letting me sleep late."

"I couldn't have woken you up," he said, grinning. Then Cassie reached over his arm and grabbed the jam, retreating to the opposite counter to sit and eat her toast.

"Want something to eat?" Andros offered, not at all fazed by the theft.

A yawn forestalled her answer, and he just laughed. "Sit down," Andros instructed. "I'll make you some toast."

"Thanks," she mumbled, reluctant to leave the friendly atmosphere. Cassie had taken the only stool in the small area, but the counter by the sink was empty and she hopped up on it without a second thought.

"You must be feeling better," Andros said, glancing over at her. "You're bouncy again."

" 'Bouncy'?" she repeated, and he smiled sheepishly.

"You know--light on your feet."

He looked away, and she swung her legs idly, pleased. She caught Cassie watching her, and she gave a happy shrug. Her friend grinned back at her.