This epilogue was written in response to the many questions I received about Inside and Out regarding some elements of the story that I had intentionally left vague *grin*. So, I've answered those "mysterious" questions here. If you DON'T want the concrete answers and prefer to come to your own conclusions, read no further.

Blair swung the backpack over his shoulder and headed for the loft door. "I know. You've said that, like, a million times already, but I'm still going."

"It's not going to accomplish anything, and I don't see how you can even stand the thought of going back there."

Blair gave a small shrug, releasing a tired sigh. "This time I'll be a visitor, not an inmate. Bailey's no longer there, so it's not like I'll be running into him."

"Son of a bitch deserved to lose more than his job," Jim muttered.

Blair took a deep breath, deciding there was no necessary response to the Sentinel's remark. Instead, he reached for the knob and opened the front door. "See ya, Jim," he said, walking into the hallway.

"Wait a minute," Jim said before Sandburg closed the door.

Blair stopped and looked over his shoulder at Jim. "What is it now?"

Ellison offered a small smile. "Since I can't change your mind, can I at least come with you?"

Blair's expression softened, his eyes reflecting both relief and gratitude. Slowly, he nodded, one edge of his mouth lifting upward in a tiny smile. "Sure, Jim."

Ellison's smile broadened. "Okay, let me run upstairs and grab some overnight things."

Blair raised his eyebrows. "I wasn't planning on staying the night," he said.

"It's a long drive, Chief. Since tomorrow's Saturday, why don't we just stay over in Seattle and spend the day in the city?"

Blair broke into a silly grin and took off toward his room. "That sounds great," he said, disappearing through the french doors. "I'll pack some stuff," he added, his voice filtering easily to Jim's sensitive ears as the Sentinel climbed the steps to his room.

Jim grabbed his duffel bag from the closet and quickly stuffed in underwear, a shirt, socks, and a pair of jeans. He grabbed the bag and headed down to the bathroom.

"Jim, what about work," Blair asked as the detective approached the french doors.

Jim poked his head inside, seeing Blair rummage through the top drawer of his bureau. "I've got sick leave accrued. There's nothing pressing that I know of down at the station." He shrugged. "I'll just call in."

"A touch of the flu?" Blair waggled his eyebrows, smiling.

Jim coughed, suppressing the smile that threatened his lips. "Exactly."

Blair chuckled. "You know, you could just tell him the truth."

"Yeah, but then he'd probably give you the same lecture you got from me, and I don't think either one of us wants to listen to that," Jim responded.

Blair nodded. "Good thinking," he said, grabbing a blue shirt from the drawer and stuffing it into the bag.

"I'd kinda like to talk to him alone, Jim," Blair said.

Jim nodded. "Okay, but I'm still going in with you."

Blair nodded. "Alright, but no listening in."

Jim scowled. "Do you really think I'd do that?"

Blair raised an eyebrow. Gee, I seem to remember you reading my thesis when I specifically told you not to. He kept his thoughts to himself, however, not wanting to spoil the mood by bringing up that sensitive subject.

The two men exited the car and headed through the front doors. Blair gazed around at the high security fence surrounding the lot, his eyes drifting toward the barbed wire on top, then rising to gaze at the guard tower just beyond the main building. His chest tightened as the memories of his incarceration flooded his mind. He'd been beaten, locked in isolation, and threatened with death during his time inside... not to mention almost being...

He swallowed, shaking his head to clear the unpleasant thoughts from his brain. He inhaled a deep breath, hoping to calm his racing heart. It didn't work.

A soft pressure on his shoulder jarred his attention from the tower, and he looked over at his partner.

"You okay, Chief," Jim asked, blue eyes narrowed with concern.

Blair offered a curt nod. "Yeah," he said, not trusting his voice with any greater response.

Jim didn't look convinced, but he held the door open for Blair and guided him inside.

Janson's eyes immediately locked onto Blair, but the anthropologist couldn't decipher the larger man's emotions amidst the stony exterior. Janson took a seat, his back rigid.

"What do you want?"

Blair stiffened automatically, unconsciously falling into the fearless role he'd tried to assume during his time inside the prison. "I..." His throat caught as his brain went blank. Damnit. He'd rehearsed this, going over it a dozen times in his mind, so why the hell couldn't he remember it now?

Janson tilted his head. "You come to stare, or do you actually have somethin' to say runt?"

Blair met the older man's hard glare, anger flaring in his chest and giving him the push he needed. "Are you as much of a coward as you appear?" That wasn't what he'd planned to say, but his mouth seemed to take on a volition of its own.

Janson's eyes flared. "I ain't afraid of nothin', and I sure as hell don't gotta explain anything to you," he retorted, rising out of his seat.

"Oh? You wanna tell me why you just left me alone with Brandon? I mean, I know you were trying to save your own neck, man, I'm not stupid, but what I really want to know is if it mattered to you at all." Blair raised his chin, peering at Janson with an accusing glare. "Did you and I actually have a friendship, or were you just a paid babysitter?"

Janson's lowered himself back into the seat, his eyes softening. "Listen, kid, I never made no claims about nothing. You know how it is in here. I helped you when I could, but there was no way I could take on Brandon and his guys. I wasn't goin' to die for nothing."

"And I don't suppose you thought of going to the guards?"

Janson released a harsh chuckle. "Oh yeah. Real bright, genius. They just love tattle-tails in here. Didn't ya learn a damn thing?"

Blair rose to his feet. "I guess not," he said. "Have a nice life on the inside."

Janson shot to his feet. "Now you listen to me, you puny ingrate. I put myself on the line for--:"

"A fee," Blair finished. "Don't even try to say it was for me. I believed that once, but not anymore."

Janson looked away briefly, then returned his gaze to Blair. "Listen, one more thing I gotta tell ya."

Blair cocked his head, looking for all the world like he could care less.

Janson leaned forward, lowering his head a fraction. "That night... the fight," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "Brandon started it to get you outta the infirmary. He paid off a guard, Johnson, to look the other way for a bit."

Blair raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I thought tattle-tailing wasn't cool," he remarked, his voice equally low.

Janson pulled back, looking like he'd just been slapped. "Nobody gives a damn 'bout guards," he said.

Blair nodded. "Fine. I'll let my partner know." He turned to leave.

"Wait, kid," Janson said.

Slowly, Blair turned back around, gazing at Janson expectantly.

Janson glanced briefly down at the floor. "It mattered," he said, his voice soft. "If I could have done something..." his voice trailed off, and he glanced hesitantly back up at Blair.

Blair's anger melted when faced with the silent plea of forgiveness in Janson's eyes. He suddenly felt bad for being so hard on Janson. Truthfully, there had been little Janson could have done that night. If he'd tried to save Blair, and Jim hadn't come with the cavalry, they'd both be dead.

"Hey, man, it's okay," Blair said. "I don't blame you for leaving, I justed wanted to know where you and I stood."

Janson raised his head, meeting Blair's gaze. "You're a decent enough, kid... for a white boy," he said, a glint of warmth in his eyes. "You never deserved to be in here."

Blair nodded. "Thanks, man."

"How'd it go," Jim asked, though the glint in Blair's eyes told him all he needed to know.

"Better than I expected," Blair replied, a slow smile forming on his lips. "I'll tell you all about it in the car."

Jim nodded. "Lunch?"

"Sure," Blair said, leading the way out of the prison. As he walked through the doors, he succumbed to a small shiver and threw a final glance back at the guard tower. "I can't TELL you how happy I am to be leaving... even though this was only a visit."

Jim threw his partner a reassuring glance, offering a small smile. A guard passed them on the way, and Blair recognized the man immediately from the time he'd been escorted to solitary confinement. The guard glanced at Blair, then did a double-take, and Sandburg immediately averted his gaze, not because the guard had in any way stepped outside the bounds of his authority while Blair was inside, but rather, because he'd made some disparaging remarks that made it all too clear that he'd known how "desirable" Blair was to the other inmates.

Sandburg's face flushed at the thought, and he caught Jim's inquisitive glance out of the corner of his eye.

"Sandburg?" Jim placed a hand on Blair's shoulder as they walked to the car.

"Sandburg, of course," a voice said from behind.

Blair stopped in his tracks, keeping his back to the guard. Jim, however, turned slowly around, his back straight.

"Well, what have we here? Find yourself a new boyfriend on the outside," the guard snickered. "I never thought I'd see your pretty face around here again. Visiting old friends?"

Jim took a step toward the guy. "I'm Detective Ellison, his partner," Jim said, then glanced at the officer's nametag, "Officer Johnson."
 
Johnson met Jim's steel gaze. "Yeah, I know who you are. Ain't often we get a cop's partner in here."

Johnson... Blair forced himself to turn around, knowing he had to diffuse the situation before it escalated. He placed a gentle hand on Jim's arm and whispered, "Come on, Jim, I need to tell you something in the car." His voice was so low, he knew only Sentinel ears would be able to make out the words.

Jim pulled his gaze away from the officer and looked at Blair. After a brief hesitation, he nodded. "Okay, Chief." He threw a warning glare at the man, then turned on his heels and followed Blair back to the truck.

Johnson could be heard chuckling as the two men walked away. Blair allowed a small smile to touch his lips. Let's just see how much you have to laugh about once your story's out.

Jim opened Blair's door and waited until Sandburg hopped inside and buckled himself in before speaking. "What was that all about, Chief? Did that guy... uh... hassle you while you were inside?"

Blair shook his head. "No, not really."

Jim's eyes narrowed. "Not really?"

Blair shrugged. "He said a few things, that's all." He leaned forward a bit. "But, more importantly, Janson told me that Johnson took a bribe to ignore the prison fight that broke out that night. Brandon instigated the whole thing so he'd be able to get to me."

Jim clenched his jaw. "If that's true, Johnson'll find himself up on charges."

Blair nodded, deciding a change in subject was in order. "So where do you wanna go for lunch? I don't think they have WonderBurger here, man."

Jim raised his eyebrows, giving Sandburg a look that said he recognized the abrupt change in subject. He forced a superficial smile on his face and said, "Oh, I'm sure we can find something suitably greasy and life-threatening."

Blair rolled his eyes as Jim closed the passenger door. "Keep eating like that, Jim, and you won't be able to catch the bad guys anymore," he said, knowing the Sentinel could hear him.

Jim just passed the front of the truck when he threw his partner a deadly glare. 'Smartass,' he mouthed silently.

Blair chuckled, feeling a sudden warmth surge in his chest. Jim opened the driver side door, slid into the seat, and, with a glance at Blair, closed the door and started the engine. Sandburg kept his eyes on Jim as the Sentinel steered the truck toward the gate. The warmth in his chest brought a smile to his lips.

Jim looked over at Blair. "What?"

Blair shrugged. "Just taking in the moment."

Jim looked confused. "What moment?"

"I was just remembering what it was like in there," he said, his smile fading. "Remember I told you about the meditation exercise I did in solitary? The fishing thing?"
Jim nodded.

"Well, I was just thinking... I mean, when I was inside, the only thing I wanted in the world was to go home." He lowered his head bashfully, shifting his gaze to look at the retreating prison in the side mirror. "At the time I didn't think I was getting out of there." He paused, swallowing. "I'm just glad to be here, with you... that's all. Thanks for coming with me."

A brief silence filled the air, then Blair felt Jim's hand on his cheek. Neither man said a word, and, after a second, Jim pulled his hand away and drove the truck through the gate, leaving the prison behind.