A/N WARNING Sad Ending! :( I was gonna say spoilers alert but I REALLY can't see it ending like this, it's just an idea I had last week that refused to leave me…. It's sorta inspired by the nursery rhyme ring around o roses.
Ring a round o roses
A pocket full of poseys
Atishoo atishoo
We all fall down. (Atrocious spelling, i know lol)
Anyway I have no idea why it's inspired by that - it just is... I shall begin...
(X)
We All Fall Down
Bulldozers and machinery sat idle on Leopards Den. Danny stood psyching himself up for the fight ahead. Relived that Alice had taken Caroline to hospital. He would be able to concentrate so much more without worrying about whether she was gonna be hurt. Nomsa and Buhtle had Charlotte, Cashile and Cedric Jnr at the bar. He had spoke to Thabo on the quiet earlier. His main concern was keeping Liv safe and away from harm. Since he knew she would want to be here fighting with them side by side he found the only way he could to protect her. Nomsa had been adamant that she wanted to be here with them but the stress wouldn't be good for her. She had been convinced to help Buhtle by Dupe. Dupe had assured her that losing wasn't an option. She told him to take care of himself and everyone adding an old man at the end. Then she went off. He shook his head forcing himself to focus.
Danny looked around again. He did this constantly, assessing the situation. This was the final stand and although he knew that their chances of winning this were slim to none he knew he had to try…this was his home and he refused to give it up without a fight. He had tried to fight fair and that hadn't helped. The justice system had let them down so now he was gonna get down and fight dirty!
Peeters approached him. "I don't know what you are trying to achieve doing this Danny."
Peeters smug tone and demeanour irritated Danny. "This is our home. We refuse to let you demolish it!" he said stubbornly.
"So Du Plessis had relinquished his position as leader to you. It doesn't matter, I am in the right. I have the court order. In no time the police will be here and you will be arrested. Then I will order my bulldozers over there to crush your house. In the very place your kids played!" he smirked.
Danny looked at him coldly. "I don't think so!"
"You lost Trevanion. Deal with it!" Peeters hissed. He turned to his foreman. "Start the machinery!"
"But Mr Peeters." the foreman replied looking concerned. "Theres people…safety issues!"
"The police are en route, do it!" Peeters fumed.
The foreman looked torn, then nodded. He turned and called to his workers. The machinery was fired up. The engines rumbled and the vibrations carried over to the people.
Danny looked at the engines, knowing Peeters was bluffing, he looked at his family. "Liv, Thabo, Dupe and Fatani stood behind him. As he looked they all nodded. Thabo moved closer to Liv.
"Everybody stand firm!" he reminded. Stood at the front unwavering. His expression one of pure determination.
The machines moved slowly towards them.
(X)
Alice paced in Caroline's hospital room worriedly. She shouldn't be here, she should be at her husbands side. Helping him save their home.
"Alice Danny doesn't want you anywhere near that place." Caroline reminded. "Understandably. Your heavily pregnant."
Alice was saved from reply when Caroline's doctor walked in shaking his head. "You are lucky you came in when you did Mrs Du Plessis. Your wounds were badly infected."
Caroline rolled her eyes.
"Look I need to go to the bathroom!" Alice murmured. Backing from the room.
"Alice!" Caroline warned.
Alice exhaled. "My child is pressing against my bladder Caroline. Kids as tall as his father already!"
Caroline smiled fondly. "It's something Sarah didn't give him, don't do anything stupid Alice." knowing she wouldn't be back.
"I'm needed Caroline. I'll be fine. I'd never jeopardise the baby."
Caroline nodded as the doctor fussed with her bandages. "Be careful Alice. Please!"
Alice walked from the room with purpose.
(X)
Danny stood holding his ground. The machinery was edging towards the pens.
"We won't move Peeters!" Danny yelled over the noise.
"It won't matter soon enough. Police remember!" he said jovially.
Danny's eyes narrowed, he stood straighter and his fists were clenched tightly.
The digger lifted and flattened the windmill, moving towards his surgery.
"STOP!" Liv screamed.
Danny wasn't just gonna stand here as they flattened his animal hospital. He ran at the digger, climbed on the steps pulled the man inside out of the cab and shut off the engine.
Sirens screamed, the police had arrived. They climbed out.
"Arrest them! They are trespassing on private property and are in breech of a court order." Peeters pointed out his family, including him.
Danny had an idea. He restarted the engine on the digger and snapped off the key turned it in the direction of the police cars. See if they were so eager to arrest them when their cars are flat! He then jumped from the cab seeing Dupe, Fatani , Thabo and Liv being restrained. A few police saw what was happening and went to move their cars. Right a few police were gone. If he could get Dupe free they might be able to fight them off! He turned in Dupe's direction.
While all this had been going on no one had noticed that Jana had escaped from her pen. Spooked by all the noise and confusion she was edgy. Peeters yelped when he saw her, she lunged at him. An officer raised his gun.
"Jana!" Danny yelled and ran at her.
"NO!" Liv screamed. Somehow pulled free from the officer restraining her and pushed the officers arm who had the gun aimed at Jana up.
A gunshot ran out.
(X)
Danny stopped mid run and was jerked a step backwards. He was frowning, like he was confused. He pressed a hand to the middle of his chest, pulled it away and was looking at crimson red blood.
"DANNY!" Liv screamed. Her face distraught.
Danny fell backwards onto the mud. His body twitching.
"TREVANION!" Dupe yelled and looked at Liv mouth open.
Everyone was still for a second. Then they were all in motion. Dupe was released by his officer and he ran to Danny's side. Dupe immediately knew he was in a bad way. Blood flowed steadily from the would in his chest. He was steadily being coated in sweat and he panted unevenly, trying vainly to get oxygen into his body.
"Dupe." he breathed.
"Tell me what to do Trevanion!" he asked.
"Pressure." he whispered.
Dupe took off his shirt and pushed down on Danny's wound.
Danny blacked out from the pain for a second.
"Danny it isn't helping!" Dupe panicked.
He turned to Peeters who looked ashen. On the phone to an ambulance. He disconnected. "My helicopter isn't at Mara. It's away. We have to wait for an ambulance."
"He isn't gonna last that long!" Dupe yelled.
"I didn't want it to come to this Du Plessis! I would never..." Peeters told him.
"First my wife and now Danny!" he fumed. Concentrated back on Danny.
Liv meanwhile was holding her head. Mouth open. Unable to comprehend how things had gone wrong so quickly. She looked at Danny on the ground struggling to breath. He had been shot, and it was all her fault. She had been so determined to save Jana. It was her fault her mother died and now Danny was going to die because of her too! She ran to him. "Danny I'm so sorry. I just….." Liv started sobbing.
"Thabo." Danny croaked.
Thabo nodded. Shaken by the scene around him. He took Liv's arm and led her away.
Danny was breathing audibly. "Dupe…..Alice…." Danny coughed and blood spluttered from his mouth down his cheek. "Love…her."
"No Trevanion!" Dupe demanded. "Don't tell me this!"
"Baby…..you…help…care." Danny grimaced. His breathing heavier and more erratic.
"Peeters! Where's the ambulance!" Dupe screamed. "He's dying!"
"Good…friend…..Dupe…..best….." Danny said weakly.
(X)
A car pulled up at leopards Den. Alice climbed out surveyed the chaos around her. People stood around, it was then she realised she couldn't see Danny. She looked again, saw him on the floor, well his legs Dupe was blocking his upper body. She ran across expecting to see him knocked out, the scene that she did see sent terror through her. She looked own at Danny, bleeding badly through a shirt that Dupe was holding down vainly. It was dark red with blood. Danny was struggling to breath.
"Danny!" she yelped going down on her knees beside him. She moved the makeshift bandage Dupe held down and saw it was a gunshot wound. She covered her mouth with her hand.
"Alisssss." he said slurred. "Shouldn't…..be… here." his eyes rolled.
"Look Danny, just hold on! We'll get you to hospital and it'll all be fine ok!" she told him, voice shaking. Tears falling swiftly.
Danny blinked tiredly a few times. He raised his hand. Touched her face once, then lowered it to rest on the place where their child grew.
"Thank…you…Alissssss."
Alice bit her lip, more tears welling. Couldn't believe what her husband was telling her.
"For…..loving…me…..our…baby…everything." he looked in her eyes. "Can't…..believe…how…..lucky…..I…..am."
"No Danny! No please!" More tears fell. "Don't I love you. I need you. I'll ALWAYS need you, remember!"
Danny's breathing sped up faster then before. More blood trickled from his mouth. "Love…you…..sorr….." his eyes fluttered closed before he could finish. The final word he spoke before the breath left his body was the reverent calling of his wife's name. "Alice." his hand slid from her stomach to the floor.
Alice started breathing fast. "No. No. No. No! Danny!" she screamed. "No I won't let you! NO!" The only word that she could think was no, millions of times over and over. "What about our baby?" she screamed at him.
Dupe who hadn't moved looked at danny, his face one of disbelief. "Trevanion? Trevanion! NO!" he yelled.
Alice was doing CPR trying to get him back.
"He's not breathing he's…c'mon Danny! TRY!" Dupe yelled.
Fatani came over. "Alice." Fatani's voice wobbled. His eyes glistened. He's gone." he whispered. Put his hand on her shoulder.
"No! he isn't!" she screamed in denial. "Please Danny, I need you, we all do!" She carried on working." C'mon Danny!" she pleaded. "Just breathe! PLEASE BREATHE!"
Liv looked over from the shelter of Thabo's arms. "Danny?" she whispered.
She looked up at Thabo. His eyes were wide. "No." he whispered.
Liv began hyperventilating. "Dad?" she shouted. Pulled free from a still shocked Thabo and ran to Danny. "No Dad, c'mon please!" she pleaded by his side.
"Danny don't give up!" Alice said, completely unaware that Liv was going into meltdown beside her.
Dupe got up and walked to Peeters, face contorted with hatred. His fists were clenched tightly. His fists started flying.
Liv's head was rested on Danny's. Her tears falling on him. They rolled down his cheeks after hers.
Fatani, Thabo and the police were trying to restrain an out of control Dupe, he just kept hitting and hitting.
Alice stopped suddenly. Sat back on the dusty ground. "He's…..he's…..I can't….." her mind whirled so quickly she didn't finish a sentence before the next one started.
Liv lifted her head. Her face was tear stained, eyes red rimmed.
Dupe was finally restrained.
Alice who was sat there suddenly burst into tears. She picked up his hand, put it to her face and sobbed. Cried harder then she had ever cried in her life.
At Alice's display suddenly everyone was crying. Liv was sobbing, wrapped up in Thabo. His face wet with tears. Dupe sat on the ground in cuffs, tears rolling down his face. Fatani had his face covered. None of the machinery was moving anymore. Demolishing the house wasn't as important as it had been. Peeters and his men walked off. The police left in their car leaving a broken family alone.
Suddenly Alice felt a sharp clenching pain. She dropped Danny's hand instinctively. It landed on her bump then fell to the floor. She clutched her abdomen. Another sharp pain sharper and more intense then the last followed. Alice panted. "Early….." she breathed. Panted again.
As another pain engulfed her Alice screamed. "NO!"
A/N there we have it, like i say i cnt see it ending like this, i dnt think they could carry on wah without danny, he's like the central character in a way. it was jst this idea i had that wouldn't leave me alone. hope u enjoyed anyway, even with the dark, sad ending x