Somehow, life in Seattle seemed harder after the visit to Philadelphia – for Laura as well as Luke.

“It was so good for the kids to see my sisters and my folks,” Laura would say. “It's kinda sad not having any family around here at all. And…I miss the guys I used to work with in Philly.”

In truth, Luke agreed. He missed his old life and old friends. Seattle had been fine as a hide-out, he guessed, but it wasn't offering him much in the way of long-term satisfaction. He knew Laura was struggling to fit in here as well, especially with the kids being a bit older; Julia had started kindergarten already and Jase would be soon.

So it wasn't a surprise when Laura raised the topic again, this time more explicitly. She wanted to move back to Philadelphia, and thought he might be happier there too – but she was willing to postpone it if he needed more time, or to choose somewhere else altogether if he thought he might never be ready.

Luke thought briefly about Austin, Texas or Athens, Georgia – places with thriving music scenes. But that hadn't worked out so well last time, had it? The best part of Seattle was Robbie, and that was only because Luke had talked him into staying. Laura was right – Philly was home. Was he never going to face his past?

Of course he knew what he was afraid of. Seeing Emmett that one night had convinced him – if he'd ever doubted it – that after six years, his feelings had not diminished and never would. Was that a reason to stay away from his home town forever? Sure, it had been necessary to physically distance himself at one point, but was it still? That night with Emmett's band had been painful but also exhilarating, rejuvenating – and wouldn't it only get easier over time? Some part of Emmett was lost to him either way – whether they saw each other every day or never again – but wasn't a world with Emmett in it better than one without?

He remembered how happy Emmett had been to see him at the club – there'd been no ambiguity in his face; no mix of joy with sadness, only joy. He hadn't even seemed angry, though Luke had never made an attempt at reconciliation the way he had with Gordie, Leo and Pete. Luke used to tell himself their old life broke because Emmett's love wasn't strong enough; now he wondered if they could rebuild because it came without conditions.

In the end he decided to man up, and he and Laura and the kids moved back to Philadelphia in the spring of 1992. Contrary to press reports, Luke had actually leased out the Pennsylvania property, not sold it, and with some negotiation they were able to break the lease and take it over again.

Luke found it a bit embarrassing to return home after his abrupt departure – he felt a little like a kid who quits a game in a huff only to slink back in again a few minutes later. When people asked, he told them, half-sheepishly, it had been a six-year experiment that ultimately failed. Most people didn't ask though. Everyone – all his old friends, family, colleagues, local fans and even former bandmates – seemed happy to have him back. The first few months were a whirlwind of welcome parties, get-togethers, catch-ups and jam sessions with musician friends. In the midst of it all, a package was delivered to the house, with a very nice bottle of scotch and a note: Welcome home. And thanks for bringing my son back with you. Love Em.

Luke had been especially abashed when he told Robbie they were leaving Seattle, and had promised to continue working with him whether he chose to remain or return with them. Robbie took the news good-naturedly and after a bit of consideration decided to follow Luke and Laura back to Philly, where he moved in with his father while he got settled.

Emmett's note made Luke smile, but he didn't make contact directly. He figured their paths would cross soon enough, and they did – they had so many friends and associates in common it was inevitable, and of course there was Robbie. Before long they were running into each other regularly, and Luke could almost keep his composure when they did. But they never saw each other alone, and by unspoken mutual agreement they always kept greetings to a quick handshake.

A few months after they settled in, Laura suggested having Robbie over for brunch so Jason and Julia could re-connect with him. When Luke agreed, she added that it would be nice to invite Emmett and Mary-Ann as well, since Robbie was still living with them – if that was okay with Luke. He couldn't think of any reason to object, other than the way his stomach still fluttered at the thought of seeing Emmett, but he suspected Laura was already aware of that. In the end he suggested including Walt as well, since they hadn't seen him in years, and Lincoln University was only an hour out of town.

That brunch was the first time Emmett met Luke's kids. As they stepped outside on the big back deck, Emmett holding Jason in his arms and letting Julia lead him down to see her new bike, Luke wanted to seize the moment to try and explain, to justify himself: I did it for this, Em…only for this. But he knew that wasn't the full story.

A few weeks later Luke played with the Mountain Tops again – a much more informal, unnegotiated appearance this time, set up with a casual invitation from Emmett that Luke readily accepted. Robbie joined them as well and the small stage was packed with players, while Emmett stood at the front and directed the large, somewhat chaotic, ensemble with his usual panache.

At one point, a horn player near the back of the stage seemed to trip over a loose cable, stumble forward and almost lose his balance. But Emmett, mid-harp solo, took a quick step back, caught him with one arm, steadied him and gave him a quick reassuring squeeze before returning to the front of the stage, all without missing a note. Luke's whole body remembered what the bass player must be feeling – that sense of being caught, held, safeguarded; the invincibility and security of being inside Emmett's protection. Only now, somehow, Luke had moved himself outside that circle of safety.

As he watched from his position at the edge of the stage, trying to support the rhythm section with his guitar, it occurred to Luke that this was what it must have always been like for Emmett in the B-Sides – being off to one side, watching someone else control the band and run the show. Now Emmett commanded his own band with instinctive skill, which probably shouldn't have been a surprise considering what Luke knew of his natural dominance. But Emmett had never had this kind of opportunity in the B-Sides; it had never occurred to Luke that he might want it.

Sometimes it seemed like Luke's perspective kept shifting subtly as he looked back. He remembered how he felt after his conversation with Gordie, and wondered again how he could have considered himself a leader when he lacked such basic understanding of the people on his team.

***

Late that summer, Luke was invited to play a benefit concert for AIDS research. He accepted, debated internally for a couple of days, then shared his idea with Laura, and finally called Gordie to ask if he'd be willing to join a re-formed B-Sides for the event. When Gordie agreed, Luke contacted Leo and Pete and finally Emmett. All of them were on board.

Luke was full of trepidation as they prepared for the concert. A few days at a rented rehearsal space was pretty much all they needed for the old numbers – so much of it was muscle memory that it came back almost immediately. But Luke saw this as his chance for a bit of a comeback and he didn't want to rely exclusively on previous material. He'd written some new, more topical songs during his Seattle exile – after his self-education program he felt more comfortable addressing current issues in his music – and he wanted to include a couple of them in the show. The new songs had been written for just himself and a guitar, though; now he needed to work with each of the band members individually to develop their parts.

When it came time to book a session with Emmett, Luke asked Laura to join them at the rehearsal studio, but to his surprise she declined.

“I've got plans with Pedro,” she said. Pedro was the pianist who accompanied her on her solo projects; one of the reasons she'd wanted to move back to Philly was so that she could work with him again.

“You…can't change them?”

“Why would I? We've had it planned for a week.”

“You know I don't see Emmett alone.”

“Why not?” Laura looked puzzled, then gave him a slightly irritated smile. “Well, don't put that on me. When have I ever suggested you shouldn't see him alone? That's your choice, not mine.”

Luke still found himself hesitating, though he couldn't exactly identify why at first. It wasn't like he was unable to control himself around Emmett – although, truthfully, that was sometimes difficult onstage when it just felt unnatural for the two of them not to be physically connected. But he couldn't avoid being alone with Emmett forever, especially if they were going to work together; and in his heart he knew there was a conversation he couldn't avoid forever either. In the end he arranged to meet Emmett at the studio, alone, with a bit of extra time built in.

When Emmett met him with the usual quick handshake, Luke took a breath.

“Hey, Emmett, can we talk a minute before we start?”

“Sure.” Emmett looked curious but not concerned as he let Luke lead him over to a small sitting area at the back of the room.

Stolen story; please report.

“I just thought – I just wanna say something,” Luke said slowly, taking an armchair across from Emmett. “I mean, I – if, if we're gonna be friends again, we really need to talk about what I did.”

Emmett lifted a hand as though to forestall him. “It's okay, man – ”

“No, it's not okay, it wasn't okay. It was…cruel. After all those years together – everything you mean to me – I owed you a lot better.” Luke wasn't surprised to blink tears away from his eyes. “I'm really sorry, Em.”

“Those were hard times, Luke. You did what you had to.”

“I mean, I – I tried to protect myself by hurting you worse. I don't know how you can be so forgiving.”

“It wasn’t exactly your fault. I'm sorry I wasn't the man you needed me to be. It's hard to explain why I couldn't – take the step you wanted me to.”

Emmett's expression was earnest and open. Somehow, he'd come out of the mess Luke made without an ounce of bitterness or regret, as though whatever he'd gone through at the end had been worth it. Luke didn't really understand, but he recognized forgiveness even where it might not be deserved. When they got to their feet, he took a tentative step forward and reached up to wrap his arms as far as they could go around Emmett. After a moment, Emmett returned the embrace.

Had he forgotten how good that felt? Luke had to stop himself from resting his cheek against Emmett's chest. He let go and stepped back quickly.

“Ready to play?” he asked, and the awkwardness dissipated as they got to work.

After that Luke didn't avoid being alone with Emmett – or if he did, it wasn't for the same reason.

While the benefit concert probably wasn't the best show Luke and the B-Sides had ever given, it created excitement and buzz and generated more interest in Luke's career than he'd seen for a while. But the impact on Luke himself was explosive. Over the last six years he'd let himself forget the thrill of playing live, with a real band and an audience that was fully in sync with him. No, not just a real band but this band, these band mates – this fellowship of power and passion that seemed to operate on a single heartbeat. One night was enough to remember all the years of hard work, joy and camaraderie they'd shared. Had he really thought he could do this alone?

After that night, it seemed to Luke that the writing was on the wall.

***

Emmett first heard Luke wanted to re-form the band when Gordie called him, which was apparently immediately after he'd hung up with Luke. Emmett's instinct was to get off the phone immediately so he could take the call Luke would surely make to him next, but it seemed like Gordie wanted to say something first.

“I know it's exciting,” Gordon said, “We made a lot of money last time and had a good time. But…”

“You mean he's talking about touring even before a new album?”

“Yeah, some kind of big reunion tour to see how it goes. But listen, Emmett. I know we all want to do this – and we will. I'm just saying, don't agree to everything right away. He's gonna get his team negotiating with each of us separately. I'm thinking maybe if we all get together first, we can agree on a few things collectively.”

“You mean money? He's always shared tour revenue equally.”

“Plus straight scale for sessions, and I'm sure you've noticed he's worth a lot more than us.”

“I'll let Kaye worry about the money. Anyway, he's worth more ’cause he writes the songs, Gord.”

“I know, and I'm not arguing about that. It's not really about the money, it's more about some ideas I have. Let's just get everyone together before we all sign new contracts.”

In the end Emmett agreed to meet with Gordon, Leo and Pete the next day. He got the call from Luke about half an hour after he hung up with Gord.

“Am I the last one to hear?” he asked playfully.

Luke’s voice was sober when he answered. “Yeah, actually you are – cause you're the one that matters most. The others were easy. I knew they'd be on board.”

“You weren’t sure I would be?”

“I wouldn't blame you if you weren't. We been through a lot together, and it hasn’t all been good. Plus you got your own band now.”

“I'm happy to work with you again, Luke. Only…it does feel different. My band’s just for fun, but I have a business of my own and I don’t want to give that up for whatever might happen with the band. It’s just one tour for now, right?”

“I want to work with you guys in the studio too.”

“Sure, but you don’t know what’s going to happen after that. There’s no commitment that the band will keep going.”

“Em, I don’t blame you for not trusting me…”

“I trust you completely. It’s not that. But you can’t guarantee you’ll work with us forever; I understand that now. I just don’t want to give up everything I’ve built for something that might not last.”

There was a silence on the phone line while Emmett leaned back in his chair, mentally working through options to keep Forge running while he was away for many months.

Luke interrupted his thoughts after a moment, in a voice that was quietly resigned. “So you won’t do the tour? I get it, but – ”

“Of course I’ll do the tour, where did you get that idea? I just need some time to figure out a plan for Forge. I can’t drop everything on a dime like I used to, but I’ll always try to find a way.”

“So you’re in?” There was no hiding Luke’s excitement now.

“As long as we’re not starting right away. Maybe I can get Walt to help out. When were you thinking of leaving?”

“I thought maybe January, but if that don’t work for you, we can put it off for a couple of months. We still got to line up the dates.”

“January might be okay. What will you do with your kids? You know I'll have to bring Mary-Ann with me for part of it. Angela will have her some of the time.”

“We'll bring ours. It'll be great, they can all keep each other company, we can hire teachers and set up a little school on the road…”

Emmett laughed. “Sounds very rock and roll. Okay, let me see what I can do about Forge.”

“Can I have Jerry call Kaye?”

“Sure.”

***

The ex- and soon to be re-formed B-Sides, minus Laura, got together the next day and came to some agreements amongst themselves. Shortly after that – before contract negotiations were final – they asked Luke for a meeting, and he suggested lunch at a local steakhouse – “to celebrate”, he said. Emmett winced a little when he heard that.

“I'm glad you guys suggested this,” Luke said, when everyone was settled around the table with drinks. They were in a small private room at the back of the restaurant, with dim lighting and plenty of wood accents, in a booth large enough to accommodate all five of them. “Laura sends her love. She couldn't make it today, she's rehearsing for a show next week. Which is one of the things I wanted to talk to you all about…”

Leo and Gordon exchanged looks, but Luke didn't seem to notice.

“…Laura's not sure she can commit for the whole tour, she's got her own stuff going on and also she wants to stay home with the kids part of the time so they're not on the road for a whole year. So I'm thinking Robbie should join the band – he's great on the sax but his acoustic guitar ain’t bad either and his vocals are okay, so we'll have a bigger horn section when Laura's with us, and he can cover for her when she's not.” Luke paused and seemed to notice the shared glances this time. “What is it? You guys worried about having two Evanses in the band?” He chuckled a little, then saw that no one else was and stopped abruptly. “Em, you don't want to work with Robbie?”

Emmett raised his eyebrows. “What makes you think that? It's fine with me.”

Luke looked around the table quizzically. “What's the matter then? Why are you all giving me that look? You don't want to split revenue seven ways? Listen, I'll cover his share if that's a problem. Oh, and me and Laura, we’ll combine our share, so you’re actually better off than before.” He stopped again, seeing no reaction, and waited, frowning in confusion.

Gordon and Pete shot pointed glances at Leo, until he finally cleared his throat and spoke up. “That's, uh – that's a generous offer, Luke. I don’t think any of us have a problem with Robbie coming on-board. Um…here's the thing, though. I think what we all want to say is, uh…that we'd like to have some say in who joins the band, generally.”

“Huh?” Luke seemed genuinely baffled. “Why? It's my band.”

A few more sideways looks were exchanged. “Well,” Leo said gently, after a moment, “we'd like to think it's our band.”

“Wait a minute,” Luke said, surveying the booth more suspiciously. “Is this some kind of coup? Is that why you all suggested this? I thought we were celebrating, man!”

“We are,” Leo agreed quickly. “And – and it's not a coup. We just want to talk about a few areas where things might be a touch more…egalitarian.”

“Egali-”

“Equal.”

“I know what it means, Leo! I've read a few books. Look, I told you guys from the beginning, it’s not a democracy. It's – ”

“Yeah, you told us that back in – what was it, '72? '73? Don't you think after twenty years we might be – not a democracy exactly but maybe not a dictatorship either? Maybe like some kind of, uh…uh…”

“Anocracy,” Gordon suggested helpfully. “Also known as semi-democracy.”

“We just want a bit of input in a few key areas, Luke. Hear us out.”

Emmett watched Luke trying to absorb this. In all the years the band had been together, Luke's rule had never been questioned, so this would be a shock to him. But he seemed to be taking it surprisingly well; in fact, some slow light of understanding seemed to grow in his eyes as he gradually adjusted to the conversation.

“Well, I write the songs,” Luke said at last, defensively. “I have to be in charge of the music. And the business.”

“Most of the business relates to the songs,” Gordie pointed out mildly. “And you're right, they're your songs. But don't you think we could work on some of them together? Not co-writing necessarily, but maybe sometimes, instead of you giving us all our lines note by note, we could…you know, work out our parts together? Kind of like a collaboration?”

“We already collaborate.”

Even Emmett looked skeptical at that.

“Not really, man.” Leo took over again. “Look, even if it's only when we're arranging the live versions. We just want you to be open to hearing our ideas.”

Luke threw himself back on the bench and folded his arms. “What else you got? I'm listening.”

“Well…we'd like to be consulted on tour plans. Not all the details – just big things like how long we're out for and when we start, stuff like that.”

“You mean no two-year extensions at the last minute.”

“We're not saying no, just that we'd like to be consulted.”

“Well, there's only one tour planned right now and it starts in January.”

“Yeah, but do we know how long it'll last yet?” Pete asked.

“…No. All right, I hear you. Once I have some options I'll run them by you guys, how's that sound?”

“We'd appreciate that,” Leo said.

“So…more collaboration, a say in who joins the band, input into tour planning – that it?” Luke asked.

The others shot a few glances back and forth. Then Leo said very quietly, “Some notice before you fire us.”

Emmett couldn't stop himself from jumping in. “The exit bonus was very generous, Luke. It's just that – it's hard to get news like that so suddenly.”

Luke nodded slowly. “I won't drop another bomb on you. I promise.” He looked around the table again. “That it?”

As far as Emmett knew, it was. He was surprised when Pete spoke up.

“Hey, maybe instead of being Luke Clarkston and the B-Sides, we could be – just the B-Sides.”

“What?”

From the way everyone stared at Pete, Emmett figured no one else had expected this either.

“Gordie? Leo?” Luke turned to them in disbelief. “You on board with that?”

They both seemed amused, and perhaps a little intrigued. “Maybe the B-Sides featuring L Clarkston?” Gordie mused.

Luke made a final appeal. “Em?”

Emmett smiled. “I'm on board with everything we talked about. But I think Luke Clarkston and the B-Sides is just fine.”