Disclaimer: the Marshall-LeSourd Family, L.L.C, owns Catherine Marshall's beautiful story of Christy. We are in no way seeking profit or credit for her story. We are continuing the story of Christy for our own amusement only. The writers of the alt.tv.christy Round Robin and the Christy Mailing List invented any additions in story line and characters. The content of each story is the responsibility of the individual writer. The fanfic here is being posted as a service to the Christy mailing list, Pax Christy Forum and alt.tv.christy News Group. I used some sections from 'Choices of the Heart Part II' to enhance the story and to show where everything would fit together. Any similarities between this and other Fan Fiction is purely coincidental!

~*~Choice of My Heart~*~

Omitted Scenes
The Revelation ~ After the Storm

By Anne B.

When I awoke the next morning there was a lightness about me. I could see blue sky out the window and knew the storm had passed. Then I saw Neil and suddenly memories of the night before came flooding into my head. I felt sorry for him as I viewed him sleeping in such an uncomfortable position with his head leaning to the side! He lifted his head slowly and smiled sweetly at me.

"Good Morning!" Neil said as he rose from his chair. He set the blanket that was covering him on to the floor. "You gave me quite the scare. I apologize. This ordeal was all my fault." He placed his hand on my forehead checking for fever.

"Neil?" I said weakly as I reached for his hand on my head.

He shook his head and said, "We best get back to the mission. Alice will be worried sick." He paused. "I'll leave you to change into your things." Then he rose from the side of the bed, walking over to the door, he opened the it and paused for only a second and looked back at me as he went out onto the porch.

I struggled to get into my clothes. It was more work than I could ever remember before, at least for this particular task! I got all of my outer clothing on, but I couldn't stand on my ankle to put on my coat.

"Neil!?" I called.

"Did you call me Christy?" Neil said through the door.

"Yes, I need your help."

"Are you decent?"

"Yes. I just need help with my coat and boots."

Neil came in the door. He held me up and helped me with my coat so that I didn't have to stand on my ankle. He set me back down on the bed and helped put my boots on. I was still a little light-headed after that fever. I was confused and tired. That fever had taken more out of me than I realized.

"Can you walk?" Neil asked me.

"I don't think so." I answered.

"Then allow me to carry you back to the mission."

"That's too far for you to carry me!" I cried.

"If it gets to be too much for me I'll let you know!" Neil stated. *His heart thrilled at the thought of carrying Christy in his arms all the way back to the mission!*

Neil swung me up into his arms. It certainly did feel comforting to be here. He had worked diligently all night long to care for me. And that prayer that he said during the night was amazing! I was elated to hear his words and to actually see him on his knees in prayer. Especially after he had blamed God for the Typhoid epidemic last spring.

I wrapped my arms around his strong neck and laid my head on his broad shoulder. I listened to Neil's heartbeat. It was racing even before we started toward the mission. I hoped I wasn't too heavy for him to carry that far. But my ankle was too painful at the moment for me to walk on it, especially all the way back to the mission. We walked for a while and Neil set me down near a stream and he stopped to get a drink of water. He stooped down to the water. Using his hands he drank long and deep from the water. Then he splashed some onto his face. He stopped for a moment and stared out at the water.

"Tell me what you're thinking." I asked.

"I love the water. I'd rather spend the day fishing than doing just about anything else." Neil answered. *How could he tell her the truth? How carrying her in his arms was a dream come true. How could he tell her that having her so near was the most wonderful feeling he'd ever experienced? How could he tell her that he had stopped here only so that they would have more time alone together? He wanted to ask her to marry him, that's what he had come back to Cutter Gap to do, but after the way she reacted last night . . .? He had his great, great, great grandmother's ring in his pocket, the ring that had belonged to Neil MacNeill of Barra's Granny Jean back in the mid 1700's. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the cloth bag and peered inside, just to make sure that his treasured heirloom was still safe and sound. He just couldn't stand to be turned down again! No, he just couldn't be rejected another time! *

"What was that you were looking at?" I asked.

"It's nothing." Neil pushed the issue aside. "Just an antique that I was going to show you yesterday. But I've come to realize that you wouldn't be interested in it. I was just making sure that it was still safely tucked away in my pocket."

The look on his face told me that he didn't want to speak about it any further so I dropped the subject. If he didn't want to show me, then that was his business and not mine.

Neil turned to me and scooped me up into his arms once again. I clung tightly to his neck. I felt myself becoming drowsy and nodded off as Neil walked on. I had a dream that Neil was holding me, and it felt so good! I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck and snuggled my face into his neck. I wanted to remain here forever. Just then Neil lost his footing a little and I woke up. I found that not only was I dreaming that I had snuggled into Neil's neck but I had actually done so!! I was afraid to look at him. Oh, what he must have thought of me!!

*As Neil walked along he felt Christy nodding off in his arms. Another dream come true, but this dream was even better, because it was real! When she snuggled against his neck, his heart thrilled at the closeness of her! Oh! If she would only do this all the time! But she was only dreaming and after the way she cried out for Grantland in her delirium last night she could very well be dreaming about snuggling in his arms, the thought of it made Neil upset and he slipped on the wet ground. *

I once again began to doze off as Neil started down the mountain. I laid my weary head on his strong shoulder and allowed myself to drift off to a dream filled sleep. I dreamed of dancing with David at our wedding and as we were dancing I was suddenly looking at Neil's face as he looked lovingly into my eyes…

I drifted out of that dream and into another, but this time I was in my wedding gown talking to Miss Alice on the mission porch and as Miss Alice left I heard a song start up and I turned my head to see David smiling at me, I smiled back, but as I turned toward him Neil's voice said, "Mrs. MacNeill! May I have the pleasure of this dance?" I shook my head. What was going on here?…

I rested with my head on Neil's shoulder for a while as I remembered the bizarre dream that I had, had of marrying Neil. Were these all signs of what I was supposed to do? Or was it just my imagination running away with me? I was still so tired that I drifted off to sleep once more.

I heard someone call "Christy!"

It was strange to be awakened by David's voice while being held in Neil's arms.

"She had a bad night. Had a raging fever which had me worried." Neil commented to David.

"Thank God you're all right David said as he took me from Neil's arms. Neil looked forlorn. As David turned around and started down the mountain with me in his arms. I gazed over David's shoulder at Neil thinking of all he had revealed to me last night.

For the first time as I looked at David and Neil I saw two equal but different paths available.

"That was some storm we had wasn't it." Tom McHone tried to make small talk.

Neil was a confusing man, but he was so passionate to me in his declaration of love. He had cared for me so tenderly all through the night. Even when I called out for David, he had not lost patience with me. He loved me; I knew that beyond a shadow of a doubt. That prayer that I heard him saying last night had changed my whole way of thinking about this incredible man. The Lord had pulled the veil off of my eyes and I could see things about Neil that I had never noticed before. Not only the way he looked, but everything about him, his actions and emotions. I realized things about the past two days that I had not noticed before. As well as seeing things about Neil in the past that I was too blind to notice at the time. There was a new light shining in Neil's eyes and mine as well. I couldn't keep myself from gazing into his eyes. I had longings for Neil that I had never felt before.

"My colleagues in El Pano are probably wondering where I am." Neil commented as he looked at me trying to decipher what was going through my mind. He looked a bit confused, but still somewhat proud and dignified.

One was straight and familiar, the other the other winding and intricate and clearly less traveled.

David stumbled and nearly dropped me. Neil raced up to catch me before I would fall to the ground.

"I have her," David said.

"As do I." Neil declared with a knowing look on his face. Our eyes met once again but this time Neil's eyes had a look of knowing, determination, pride and maybe somewhat desirous.

As I saw what might become of this situation I slid down out of the arms of both David and Neil. I would walk the rest of the way if it was the last thing I did. A sore ankle was far better than being torn in half! Or having Neil and David tear each other apart.

And suddenly I knew how crucial it was for me to untangle the feelings inside me, not only for my sake but for David and Neil's as well. And at that moment I made my decision…

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