As I start to talk about Todd's therapy a little more here, I just want to throw out there right up front, that I am NOT in any way an expert on DID. I don't pretend to know what actual DID therapy would consist of or what the therapists would really be like. I'm just kinda flying by the seat of my pants here, and writing for fun. For these reasons, and because of the direction I want this story to go in, I've decided NOT to get too involved in Todd's ACTUAL therapy...it would be stupid for me to anyway, 'cause I'm way outta my league there. But of course, it still has to be mentioned, and should still be as realistic as I can make it. So if you're reading along, and know that I have the doc doing or saying something TOTALLY WRONG, please let me know. If you have suggestions, I welcome them.

Lastly, I just want to acknowledge the internet sites where I was able to find out some very helpful, general information on DID to use in this story:

http://www.firstpersonplural.com

This is the website of Dr. Cameron West, a Ph.D who suffers from DID himself. Some really interesting, general information available there.

http://www.issd.org

This is the website of the International Society for the Study of Dissociation. Definitely a much more formal and technical site (most of it was waaay over my head), but there was a LOT of useful information available to read.

Okay, okay, enough of that. Back to the story already.

By the time Tea's rental car pulls off the highway and onto the dirt road leading to the Atherton Foundation, it's late afternoon. She's tired from the flight and the driving, but she's glad to be doing it anyway. If anything, the long drive from the airport is giving her time to clear her mind, and focus on the task at hand.

But just what that is, she has no idea. She looks around at the deep woods the dirt road is leading her through. What a weird place to be seeing a therapist, she thinks.

Then she listens around her...noticing that the only audible sounds are of the engine. She slows down and finally stops the car. She throws it into park and gets out, walking around to the front and pulling her coat closed. She looks in both directions...nothing but trees. Leaning on the hood, she listens again.

Nothing but the sound of air moving through the leaves and branches...an occasional bird. The instant calming effect makes her close her eyes. She takes a few deep breaths, just listening...and even though it's getting colder with the sun setting, she feels her tense, tired body relax. She opens her eyes.

Hmm. Maybe it's not so weird, she thinks, getting back in the car and continuing on.

Joely sits in her office typing up some notes, the soft sounds of solo piano coming out of the stereo on the far wall. Suddenly her concentration is broken by the sound of...a car approaching. She looks out her big bay window and after a second, Tea's rental clears the woods. Joely gets up and heads out to meet her.

She appears at the front door to the main house just as Tea gets out, looking all around. Spotting Joely, Tea smiles cautiously. The two women approach each other, finally stopping at the halfway point, face to face.

Tea nervously pushes some hair behind her ear. Joely takes a second to look over this woman she's heard so much about. Exactly how Todd had described, and just like her picture...except with much shorter hair. She senses just how anxious she is, and extends a hand.

"Ms. Delgado...I'm Dr. Atherton."

Tea smiles, shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you finally."

"Same here. Won't you come in?"

They walk back into the main house. Once inside, Tea's mouth opens at the sight of the huge foyer and Martha-Stewart-looking living room.

"Wow...NICE office."

Joely laughs. "Actually, I live here. This was my house long before I opened the foundation."

They turn down the corridor to her office.

"So...this whole PLACE is yours?"

Joely nods as they walk past her secretary. She stops.

"I could REALLY use some tea. Like to join me?"

Tea grins. "Yeah, that'd be great."

Joely signals her secretary, who's already picking up the phone to call the housekeeper. The two women walk into the inner office, and Joely points toward the couch. Tea sits down, taking her coat off. Joely sits down on the other end.

Silence. Tea looks around anxiously, still taking the whole place in. Joely folds her hands in her lap.

"I guess I don't have to tell you, Ms. Delgado...this is a big day for Todd."

"Oh...please, just call me Tea. I know it...it's a big day for me too," Tea sighs. She looks down, then back up at Joely.

"So...he really DOES have DID...he's not lying."

Joely nods slowly. "I've been working with DID patients for years now. He is definitely NOT lying."

Tea looks away for a second, shaking her head. Sympathetic, Joely moves a little closer to Tea, speaking more softly.

"Tea..."

Tea looks back at her.

"He's pretty much told me what happened with you both," she says, smiling. "What a mess."

Despite herself, Tea grins, shaking her head. "That's putting it mildly."

They share a little laugh, then Joely sighs.

"I know you must be incredibly confused, and frustrated by all of this. But I want you to understand something. It says a LOT about you that you're here... you're incredibly brave...I can see it, even though you're nervous. I can't tell you how important that is. If you're willing to give it, YOUR courage will give TODD the courage he needs to...to...to just live. Believe me, I know. I've been where you are now."

Tea's eyes widen and her mouth opens slightly, not knowing what to say, but is comforted by her words.

Joely smiles, and runs a hand through her gray hair, deciding not to say more about it for the time being, and change the subject.

"Well. Where to begin...okay...I guess I'd like to know firstly, if you're still legally married."

"Uh...yes...we are. I never signed the annulment papers he sent."

Just then, the housekeeper walks in with the tea tray and noiselessly puts it down, nodding at them both. Joely smiles and nods back, reaching for the china pot to pour for them both. She hands Tea a delicate little cupful.

"Why not?"

Tea chews on her lip as she takes the cup from her. "Thanks. Uh...I...I wasn't ready to. Todd and I...we...have a lot of things we need to straighten out. I wasn't about to do anything until I saw him again."

Joely nods. "I want you to know that I have no intention of intruding upon your relationship. You're right, you and Todd have a lot to work through on your own. But...you need to understand that he may not be ready to deal with everything you need him to. It will take time, patience...and therapy. Even when he leaves here, he will still need to see someone, whether it's me or someone else. The kind of severe abuse that Todd has suffered has effects that will NEVER go away. But eventually, he should be able to live as himself...without needing the defenses the DID provides him now."

Tea fusses with the cup in her lap. "So...he really WAS abused?"

Joely takes a small sip. "Oh, yes...I believe so. I don't know that Todd REMEMBERS everything that happened to him, but...I don't think he's making things up, either. He has no reason to."

Still focused on the cup, Tea sighs. She looks up and sees Joely staring at her.

"I'm sorry, doctor...I don't mean to seem cold, or...I don't know..."

"...doubtful?" Joely finishes the sentence, giving her another gentle smile. Tea shrugs weakly.

"Tea...if you WEREN'T hesitant, THEN I'd worry. But I certainly don't blame you. DID is NOT something that has unique physical symptoms that you can just check off and know for sure. It was commonly believed for many years that multiple personalities were just deliberate ploys for attention, and or ruses the patient used to get out of having to deal with life. In fact, it wasn't until recently that the medical community started to take it seriously, when its connection to childhood abuse and trauma was established. We still don't know a lot about it...we're learning all the time."

Tea's raises her eyebrows, taking it all in.

Joely pauses to take another sip, then puts her cup back on the tray.

"If I may ask...what do you hope to get out of all this?"

Tea shrinks back for a second. "Get? Uh...well...I don't know that I was hoping to GET anything. I...I just knew I had to be here...it was that simple. But I guess...if I want anything...it's...I don't know...closure? Something definitive...just knowing where we stand. When he left, we didn't have any of that...we just dropped everything and took off in separate directions...just to get away from each other...and I...just...feel like I can't possibly move forward until we have it out...and come to a mutual understanding...or something..."

She stops, realizing she's rambling. She smiles weakly.

"I don't know what the hell I'm trying to say. Did any of that make sense?"

Joely smiles back, knowing exactly what she's feeling. "Yes...yes it did. I don't mean to pry...I just need to know what your intentions are."

Tea nods. "No...that's fine."

Joely sighs and gets up. "Well...I think Todd's probably bouncing off the walls by now. If you'll just wait here a moment."

Tea takes a deep breath, watching as Joely leaves, then looks all around. Too antsy to sit, she gets up, wrapping her arms around herself and strolling around the office. She walks over to the window and leans up against the wall, staring outside for a second. Before she knows it, her eyes have closed.

Outside, Joely stands in front of the guest house, shifting back and forth on her feet as she waits for Todd to come out. She bends her head to look in again as he comes out, slowly. He takes a few steps forward and stops, squinting into the setting sun. He looks back at Joely, nervous and hesitant. She smiles back at him gently, backing up a couple of steps toward the house.

"Come on, Todd...she's waiting for you."

He hesitates again, and for a moment it looks like he might bolt...or switch. Reading his body language, Joely walks back to him slowly, carefully. He stands there, frozen in this dangerous place...his eyes are locked with hers, silently pleading with her to help him. Joely takes a deep breath...she can see the battle going on within him as he tries to prevent the one of the alters from taking over.

Joely speaks quietly, but firmly, knowing it's not just him she's speaking to now.

"Todd...remember now, if one of them is going to handle this for you, let them. But we all discussed this the other day...we decided YOU would talk to Tea. It IS you she came to see, after all, right? So...just take a second, and breathe."

Todd takes a deep breath, shutting his eyes tightly. She watches him carefully as he opens them again...then she smiles. She can tell by his eyes that he hasn't switched. The alters have backed down.

She nods. "Right. Shall we?"

She turns and starts to walk toward the house, slowly. Todd lets out a stressed breath, and runs a hand through his hair. He walks behind Joely into the main house and down the corridor to her office. The pinkish dusky light pours out of the doorway and into the hall. Todd sees this, concentrates on it... almost like it was leading him to something...something good. He almost walks right into Joely when she stops just outside the office. He snaps out of it, looking at her strangely.

"What?"

She gestures toward the door. "Go on."

In the inner office, Tea hears the voices outside. She straightens up, rubbing her eyes. She goes to turn around...then stops, as if she's afraid to now. She keeps her body turned to the window, arms folded and head down, looking only slightly behind her. She listens...Joely's voice, speaking quietly...a pause...she can barely hear the approaching footsteps on the carpet. She takes a breath in through the mouth, feeling her pulse quickening. She shuts her eyes.

Todd walks cautiously through the outer office, his heart pounding. As he gets to the doorway, his eyes widen and he stops dead in his tracks. He stares, in awe, at the sight before him...Tea, her back to him, silhouetted against the pinkish-purpleish light of the rapidly setting sun. He takes a breath, blinking slowly, and taking a step. Then he stops, like he's afraid she'll disappear if he gets too close.

Tea bites her lip. She can sense him...she knows he's right behind her. This is it...the moment she's been waiting for, and dreading at the same time. She inhales deeply, holds it a second, then lets it out slowly through her mouth, trying to center herself. Her eyes open, wide...and ready. Ever so gradually, she starts to turn...first her head, then her shoulders, her waist...

Todd holds his breath as she starts to turn toward him. He takes another step forward, getting a better look at her now. His eyes start from her feet and move up her body to her face, now starting to come around.

Tea steps back and turns the rest of herself...her eyes stay focused on the floor until the last possible second. She sees his shadow on the floor...she closes her eyes...then looks up at him, squarely and straight on. She can barely see him in the fading light. She feels her heart stop for just an instant.

Todd looks all around her face, still amazed by the way she looks now, bathed in that unearthly but beautiful light. Unconsciously, his own eyes mist up as he gets up the nerve to finally look into hers. Once he does, the two of them seem to fuse together...and the world just stops. Tea takes a step toward him. Todd takes another step toward her, bringing them within two feet of each other, and now looking down into her eyes. Her head lifts to keep their gazes locked.

Both of them are afraid to be the first one to speak...to end the powerful, peaceful silence that surrounds and seems to protect them right now. Tea sighs heavily, the first noise in what seems like forever. She lifts her shoulders up and back, and her lips curl up into the tiniest of smiles.

Todd feels his legs buckling a little, and a huge lump in his throat. He swallows hard, his lips parting.

"Y--you cut your hair."

She closes her eyes, feeling the effect of the voice she hasn't heard in months...and despite herself, her smile gets bigger...and bigger, until she can't hold on to it anymore...and laughs. Todd shrinks back for a second, then gradually relaxes, feeling the warmth of her laughter...laughing AT him, he knows...but it feels wonderful. His face softens, realizing how much he missed it.

When she opens her eyes, they shine with just-forming tears, even though she was just laughing. She sniffs, looking back up into his eyes again. Another long, powerful silence passes as they indulge themselves in just seeing each other again.

Joely watches all of this from the outer doorway, silently. She leans against the doorsill, deeply affected by what she sees. She wants to stay...hoping to absorb some of the magical energy the two of them seem to be generating...but she looks down, realizing she's intruding on a very private moment. She takes one last look at them as she backs away from the door, then finally turns and heads for the living room.