6:29:15 pm...forty-five seconds left 'til sunset...

"Paul!!!" John exclaimed at the top of his lungs, not knowing if the force of his voice came from triumph, happiness or frustration. Maybe a combination of the trio. But it no longer matter, he found him, he found him, he found him...just one small problem...

Now what??

"Paul!! Are you all right??" John said as he knelt on his knees besides his mate. "God, his golden slumbers are probably platinum by now! Oh, Paul... you're so bloody pale, are you...no no no! Paul, you can't be dead...no, you can't...you're not allowed to die!! You're me buddy, pal, partner in music, even partner in crime...ahh! Don't think about him being dead, John, don't think about it!!" To get his mind off of these thoughts, John shook his head and started to think of the random Beatle songs that were on one of the three albums they had just released that popped up in his head.

6:29:30...half a minute equals thirty seconds...

The two songs simultaneously played in his mind...

Damn, it just has to be him singing lead!! On both of them too! Of all the songs we've released, it just has to be those two!! John said angrily. "Love songs, just what I need now Paul, thanks a lot," he added sardonically.

"Just what I need...wait a second 'ere! Just a little simple analysis of the lyrics...why particularly these two songs anyway? Why? It just had to be two of Paul's ballads, like...he's singing to me...maybe it's a sign that Paul's still

alive... John, you're out of your mind!...but he can't be dead! It's in the bloody songs! When he was lost, he was wishing I wasn't so far away so I could save him...and pertaining to the second song, no matter what it took, I promised I'd save him, no matter how dark the sky got, no matter how long it took, and he couldn't die cos now I'm near him, here with him....Well, the connection may be psycho, but it brought my hopes up...please please..."

"Paul!! Wake up! Paul!!! C'mon man, it's me! Get up!! Can't you hear me! C'mon...get up...please..." John pleaded. No response came out of Paul.

John shook his mate as hard as he could. Paul still didn't respond. "C'mon Paul, wake up!" John continued. "Place your hands on your hips like you do when I talk to you, start humming a tune that you just created in your head, do something resembling that you're still alive!!"

6:29:45...fifteen seconds available for rescuing...fourteen...

Think John, think...vital signs, man, vital signs! That's the only way to prove that he's still alive...

John held his mate carefully with his left arm underneath Paul's neck to support it. John took his own gloved right hand and placed it on Paul's heart. He couldn't feel anything through the leather covering his hand. "Ack, bloody gloves...!!"

...thirteen...twelve...

He quickly took off his right glove and placed his right hand on Paul's heart. John panicked. He couldn't feel anything...no beat, no sign of life...nothing. There was no way Paul could be alive if his heart wasn't beating...

...eleven...ten...

John's hand was starting to become numb from being exposed to the cold. He didn't care. He kept his hand at Paul's heart, trying to feel a single heartbeat, just one, he only wanted one, was that too much to ask? He was also trying to feel if Paul's breathing was still in tact...was his hand going to move up and down

as Paul breathed?

He didn't feel any motion or see any sign that Paul's heart or lungs were functioning properly.

...nine...eight...

To conceal his fear, John let out a sigh of frustration. His hand became completely numb. If someone were to break one of his fingers, he wouldn't have felt it. John still refused to believe that Paul was dead, but he could no longer trust his sense of touch to reveal him the answers he needed. He wrung his

hand to get the blood flowing through it again. This hardly helped, but at least it did.

But this time, instead of feeling Paul's heart, John had to find another way to see if Paul's heart was still pumping.

...seven...six...

Still kneeling beside Paul, and quickly thinking, John placed his mate's head in his lap and pulled off the only scarf that Paul wore...John wondered what happened to the second one, the one that he let Paul borrow. Never mind that!! he scolded himself as he searched for a beat at Paul's neck.

Once again, all was silent.

"No!! Paul!!! No! This can't be!! Please don't be dead!!!" John screamed painfully. "Please...you can't be dead...please...Paul! Paul!!"

Like a tumultuous outburst, his tears came bursting forth...an image paralleling his first vision...

...four...

The large, cataclysmic raindrops from his eyes cascaded down and splashed one by one on his lap...

...and in his lap, the reason for his sadness...the reason for his grieving...

...a lifeless Paul McCartney.

...three...

John wiped his eyes with his icy hand and looked down at his helpless mate. He noticed the Norwegian snow had collected itself in Paul's once soft and carefully cared for moptop. John knew that Paul cared about his hair with a passion.

...two...

So to please his lost friend, like fulfilling a small, last request from Paul, John wrung his right hand to allow more blood to flow through it, barely warming it and bringing a tiny bit of sense back...

...one...

He delicately ran his hand through Paul's hair and removed all the snow and frost as best he could. His hand immediately became numb once again.

...zero...6:30:00...The sun sank below the horizon...time was up.

"Paul!!" His voice and mind sounded, echoing the heartbreaking tone of the name. John, seeing the world through clouded, teary eyes, slowly replaced Paul's scarf on its rightful owner's pale neck. He glanced and saw PM, the stitched initials in the scarf, and he became even more heartbroken as the two letters looked up at him helplessly.

"And I Love Her" came back full blast in his mind...with "Things We Said Today" quietly playing in the background to help it along. The thought of Paul not singing those songs ever again was a feeling John couldn't describe...he just felt it...and the feeling he felt inside of him hurt...

But something else was going inside of someone else...

Life is revived...slowly and gradually...

After John ran his hand through Paul's hair, John's hand immediately became numb. The tiny amount of warmth from his hand, escaped and passed through to Paul. A touch, a human touch...all that was necessary to keep Paul from dying...it seemed impossible, but that was all that was required to rid his body of permanent cold, permanent sleep...

The touch warmed a minute amount of blood. This blood ran from his head and slowly continued on its mission of bringing back life to his entire body, reaching its final destination at his nearly stone cold heart.

It warmed his palpitating organ...the faint thumping became stronger. One vital sign down, on to the next. Once the blood began to flow normally, it caused his brain to begin working properly...thought and imagination kicked into action...his brain told his body to take in deeper breaths and continue on breathing at the same rate. The rest of Paul then commenced to working normally. Then came the part John had been waiting, and waiting, and waiting to happen...

...the snow ceased to fall any longer...

...Paul exhaled and then...

...opened his angelic, twinkling eyes.

Being slightly dazed and unaware of what actually happened to him...he wondered why John was crying and why his own head was in John's lap in the first place. Paul looked up slowly.

"...John?"

His name reached his ear. He hadn't heard that voice in a long time. John stopped crying immediately and his heart skipped a beat in surprise...he looked down in his lap to see if he heard correctly...

...there was Paul...alive and awake, looking up back at him.

"Where am I?...What happened, John?" His voice came out weakly.

"Paul!!!! Oh, thank God you're alive! Paul!! You're all right, you're awake...you're alive...Oh, I--I don't know what I'd do without you--!!" John could barely speak. The joy that welled up inside of him came up to his throat. He hugged his just revived friend, not wanting to let him go...he almost lost him before, and he didn't want that happening again.

"John...wh-what happened? I'm alive, of course John...you're k-kinda choking me to death too..."

"Oh sorry Paul!! I'm just so grateful you're alive!! Are you all right? Are you ok?"

"Yeah...I'm ok...but it's so bloody cold!!" Paul said, smiling.

John smiled back. Paul was alive, and his usual self he might add.

"Sure Paul, here, take my scarf...God, you're all right!!" John said as he took off his own scarf and placed it on top of Paul's scarf happily.

"You haven't told me what happened...all I remember is I got lost and fell asleep..."

"Yeah, you got lost all right...I just found you a minute ago...it was the longest minute of my entire life!! You were so pale..."

"John..."

"...and you weren't awake..."

"John..." Paul said a little louder.

"...and you didn't have a heartbeat!! And then--"

"John!" Paul said as loud as he could in his weak state.

"What?"

"John...you saved my life..."

"Paul, if I didn't...then...I couldn't go on, man, I just couldn't...we need you, I need you...our psychic balance was so messed up without you here..."

"Thanks John, you saved me..." Paul said smiling gratefully.

John just blushed. "You're welcome Paul...you saved me too by waking up...I almost went out of my mind worrying about you and trying to find you..."

Paul giggled a bit. "John...I can't thank you enough for what you've done...but where are George and Ringo?"

"Oh, them..." John said. He smiled. "They should be around..."

"John!!!" Ringo shouted, sprinting onto the scene.

"It's John!!" George yelled, following closely behind. "We found you!! Finally! We were so worried about you...!!"

George paused and looked at Ringo. Ringo looked back with the same expression as George.

"Paul!!!" they chimed in together. "You're alive!!!"

"Yep, I am...nice to see you guys!"

"Aw, John saved ya! Whew, great job Johnny, I knew we were going to be too late!!" Ringo said, exhilarated at both of his friends' safety.

"It's Paulie!! Paulie Paulie Paulie!!" George exclaimed as he gave Paul a hug.

"I missed you too Geo, but...let me breathe!!"

"Oh! Heh, sorry," George blushed and smiled. "You ok, Paul? Can you get up?"

"Yeah, I think so...just help me out..." Paul said as he tried to get on his feet. He had a little trouble, but John was there to support him.

"Thanks John...you've done so much..."

"Paul, we'll talk about it later...right now, we need to get you back to the cabin to get you warmed up..."

"Paul, how did you do it? You lived after all this!" Ringo asked.

"Me? I'm just the lucky kind," Paul said weakly but smiling. John was slightly taken aback that Paul said that...that line was from one of the songs that played in John's mind when he was trying to save him...but he knew that he had to explain the whole story to Paul, so he saved that bit of info for later. John

then decided to ask something.

"Paul...where's my scarf that I let you borrow?" John asked as he helped Paul walk up the hill back to the bunny slopes where the whole ordeal started from. George and Ringo helped carry Paul's skis and poles.

"Your scarf? Hm...I had it on when I fell asleep cos I didn't take it off..."

"But where it is now?"

"I don't know, maybe it was blown away by the wind..."

"Paul! That was one of my scarfs that had my initials in it! I only have one of those left now!"

"Sorry John..."

"John, stop worrying about the stupid scarf! It's a scarf for Christ's sake," George added.

"I know I know...I was just kidding with ya!!" John replied smiling. "That's all right Paul, I know you didn't mean to lose it."

"Do you think we'll ever come back 'ere to Norway?" Ringo asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, if we do, we know who to look out for more carefully!!" John said, motioning with his head to point out Paul.

"Don't worry, I'll stick close to you guys if we ever do come back!!"

"So Paul, are you going to ski ever again?" George asked, holding up Paul's poles.

"I don't know Geo...maybe...it was gear...until I got lost!!"

"Ok, after we get our skis and stuff," Ringo said. "We'll head back to the cabin and spend the rest of our holiday there, all right?"

"Sure, no problem."

"It's all right with me!"

"You better make it warm in there!!"

"I see Paul's back to normal, complaining about the cold as usual."

"Ha. Very funny, Ringo," Paul kidded. They all walked back and headed for the cabin, where they spent the rest of the holiday with no troubles and everything was back to normal. They would never forget this experience, and often joked and teased each other about it. The love they had would never die as long as they were near each other...

Gathered around the fireplace, and while Ringo was explaining about how he and George were lost...

John turned his mind's ear onto his inner thoughts for a moment, and smiled at what he heard...

~~~***~~~

"Look at your doing!! He's alive! You, you ruined everything!! Now, you shall be punished!!" Her older brother commanded while standing at the doorway of her amethyst prison. The punishment he concocted ran through his mind like an out of control electrical charge.

She could read his mind...the electric thought pierced her heart.

"No!!! Syncope!! How could you do this to me!!" The spirit wailed as her sad and angry tears streamed down her face.

"You deserved it!! That is your punishment. From now on, you do things as I tell you to, you understand me, huh??"

She said nothing to this...her mind was too strong for him, but her heart sank when she heard the punishment. Not wanting to show her weakness, she kept silent.

"I have something else for you to do now, so come out of this room! You're useless when you're in here. Get out!"

She didn't move. She looked away...the amethyst surrounding her became a purple mist...her tears clouded her eyesight.

"Do as I tell you to!! Do as I say!!" Syncope demanded of her, his eyes fiery with hate. "Fine! Then stay in there!!!" He slammed the door shut.

After his departure, she cried even louder. To dry her tears as best she could, she held in her marble white hands a piece of cloth that was blown away by the wind earlier, the cloth that was lost...

...a candy-caned striped scarf...

...with the initials JL stitched in it...

She clutched it tightly, not wanting to let go, trembling from her crying. Her brother's concise yet cruel electric thought told of her inevitable and irreversible fate.

She brought the steeped-in-tears scarf to her lips...

...Just as she had done to the innocent one in order for him to sleep forever, she kissed the scarf, lovingly and slowly...

But for her punishment...she discovered...

Soon enough, she would have to do the same to its owner.

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