Author's Note: Well, I guess its official- I am addicted to Fan Fiction. When I finished "Last Light" I wasn't sure I wanted to tackle another story but here I am a week later with Chapter 1 of the sequel. Also, as you may have noticed, I changed my pen name. Since I now have been there before (i.e. fan fic) I didn't think that name was appropriate any longer—hope it didn't confuse anyone. I hope you enjoy this first installment.

Chapter 1

Charlie was awakened by something irritating her nose and eyes; since she'd become pregnant more than three months ago she had become ultra-sensitive to everything. She could barely keep anything down- something she hoped to overcome now that she was finally past her first trimester. Sometimes just the sight of something would send her over the edge.

"Damn it, Bass," she mumbled into her pillow, "Are you burning breakfast again?" He'd been careful not to cook things that would make her sick. She lazily stretched her hand out to his side of the bed, suddenly missing his warmth and the feel of his body next to hers.

Slowly she opened her eyes thinking she'd better go see what was going on. She sat up and wiped her eyes, which were beginning to burn. When she saw smoke slowly making a trail into their bedroom window she jumped out of bed, blood pulsing through her veins as her heart began to lurch. She ran to the window, staring out.

"Bass?" she called, "Bass!?"

There was no answer.

Frantic, she ran down the stairs and out the front door, looking for him, "Bass!" She was screaming now, her throat already becoming raspy and hoarse from smoke inhalation. The smoke was engulfing the place but she had yet to see a fire- yet to see Bass. She started to make her way to the little barn he'd built after they moved in here to get their horse and try to find him. Flame was still inside, a frenzy of neighing and kicking, trying to get out of her stall. Charlie let her out and jumped on her back in one single leap; while Flame wanted to run towards escape, Charlie forced her in the opposite direction.

"We have to go find him, girl- he needs us," Charlie whispered in her calming, soothing tone. It always seemed to work and Bass would joke that she was the 'horse whisperer'; a favorite book of his, which he'd recently found a copy of and given to Charlie to read.

It worked this time as well and Flame took Charlie's lead and headed into the smoke filled woods. She hadn't even dressed, was just wearing what she'd been sleeping in- a shirt of Bass'. She realized she should've grabbed something to cover her nose and mouth and pulled up the shirt. Her eyes were burning and she tried to shield them with an arm- her throat felt raw as she called his name. She couldn't see him and she was beginning to panic; she didn't know how much longer she could stay out here without taking in too much smoke. She began to feel faint and knew this couldn't be good for the baby…damn it, Bass, she thought, where are you? The horse was getting frantic again and wanted to turn the other way, toward the creek behind their house.

"Just one more minute, girl, I promise," Charlie tried.

She was coughing non-stop now, couldn't even say his name through all the coughing. A wave of nausea overtook her and she leaned down only to become dizzy also; she slid off the horse with a whimper and fell to the ground. She lay there retching and coughing, fully expecting Flame to run off and leave her. When the horse nuzzled her face with her own, Charlie's eyes burned with tears.

"Aww, girl," she whispered hoarsely. She slowly sat back up, knowing she had to get out of this now or she wouldn't make it. She stood up, sinking her head into the horse's mane, trying desperately to breathe. She began to pull herself up, struggling to lift herself when suddenly someone picked her up from behind.

She felt Bass' arms around her as he climbed onto the horse right behind her; he wrapped his bandanna across her entire face, even her eyes, grabbed the reins and the three of them took off for the creek.

As Charlie sank into Bass' arms relief washed over her; they were together and they were getting out of here. That was the last thought she had as everything went dark.

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Bass had woken early that morning sensing something was off; they'd had heat lightning strikes all night long and he wanted to make sure everything was okay. He looked out the bedroom window and seeing nothing decided he might be overly worried about nothing. He had a habit of doing just that, especially now that Charlie was pregnant. Gazing at her sleeping form now his heart leaped—she is so beautiful; it always seemed to take him by surprise, how beautiful she was…the fact that they were going to have a baby together. Everyone in town said it would be the most beautiful baby ever when they heard.

As sick as Charlie was she was being a trooper through all of it. Part of him thought she was doing this for his sake…because of Shelly; she knew he worried constantly about her. She was confident that her sickness would end with her first trimester and he hoped this would be true- he hated seeing her suffer.

He kissed her on the forehead and walked downstairs and outside to check the surrounding area. Everything on their property seemed fine- he opened up the barn door to give Flame some air. "How's my second best girl," he said, giving her some straw. He opened the chicken coop to allow them to roam around as they always did. He was about to gather up the eggs when he heard someone yelling.

He ran out of the barn and looked in the direction from whence it came; this time he knew he smelled it: smoke! He started running into the forest; he had gone about a mile when he saw them- a young couple and their two kids trying to put out a fire on their property. He and Charlie knew them and considered them friends now- Rob and Emma Colson and their kids, Becca and Sam.

Bass surmised the situation quickly—the fire had started with a nearby tree, apparently struck by lightning; it was spreading along the brush and fortunately, no other trees had caught…yet. Rob and Emma were beating it down with rugs while the kids were running back and forth from the well and dumping buckets on top of it. Rob saw him approaching and said, "thank God."

"Well I'm not God but I'll do what I can," Bass retorted running towards the well. He took a look around and saw the big wash bucket up on the porch- he grabbed it and filled it to the brim with water. He then carried it as quickly as he could, throwing it all over the tree to keep the flames from spreading upwards to the branches- all they needed was a tree to tree blaze. Once that settled down he focused on the brush fire that seemed to be getting out of control. He took a look around and saw the gulley he had just passed through to get here.

"It's spreading too fast!" he yelled. "Let's try and direct it to the gulley where we can get control of it better." Rob and Emma both nodded. Rob took the eastern end while Bass worked the western end; between Emma and the kids they worked the center so it wouldn't change direction and head towards their house. It seemed to be working but there was so much brush that the level of smoke was consuming them. Bass tied his bandanna around his nose and mouth. Becca ran to their house to get some for the rest of them.

As she ran back Emma called, "Get them wet first!" Bass did the same when he refilled the basin.

Most of the fire was now contained in the gulley- there was still plenty of brush on fire but the bottom of the gulley was brown dirt where they were sure they could put it out.

As the Colson's continued to put it out Bass looked around; the smoke consumed the forest and the breeze was carrying it straight to his property.

"I've gotta go get Charlie out of here!" he yelled.

"Go!" Rob said, "We've got it now. And Bass…thanks!" Bass nodded as he ran back in the direction to their house…to Charlie.

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When Charlie came to she was sitting in the water of the creek, Bass sitting directly behind her washing her face with the wet bandanna. He made sure to concentrate on her eyes and nose as they were filled with black soot.

"Thank God you're back," Bass said. "Shhh…it's okay. Let me wash you," as Charlie seemed startled. Flame stood nearby drinking thirstily.

"My throat," Charlie rasped trying to get some water.

"Okay, okay, hold on," Bass soothed as he cupped his hands in the water and brought them up to Charlie's lips.

"More," she said, hoarsely. He got her more. "Bass, your hands," she said worriedly. They were bright red and blistered in spots.

"Just some minor burns- I'll be okay…I've got to get you out of here," he said. "Are you okay if I run back to the house for a minute?" She nodded. "Flame, stay with our girl," he nodded towards the horse already knowing the mare would not leave Charlie's side. He may have been the one to bring her home but her heart belonged to Charlie, having taken to her instantly; he knew exactly how the horse felt.

Charlie lay down in the cool water- as far as she was concerned nothing had ever felt so good….well, except for Bass. She slowly ran her fingers through her hair to get it wet and ran them up and down her arms; she looked at her hands and they were the color of night. She watched as the water around her turned dark and her skin became cleaner.

She heard Bass call her and sat back up to look at him. The relief on his face was palpable. "I thought you'd fainted again," he breathed.

"Sorry," she managed before coughing again.

"It's okay," he said handing her a full canteen of fresh water. She drank ravenously and then began to cough some more. He rubbed her back. The shirt of his she was wearing was black. "I brought you a change of clothes- we need to get you to town and see Gene, make sure everything's okay. We can't stay here now."

She began to lift his shirt over her head; funny how it felt so heavy.

"Let me help you," Bass said, "come on, you need to come out of the water." He lifted her and placed her in the deep grass. He lifted the shirt over her head, exposing her nakedness except for her panties; they were black as well and he slowly pulled them down over her legs.

She wanted nothing more than to lay down in the grass and sleep but knew she couldn't- smoke still hung over them like a thunderous cloud. Bass gave her clean underwear and she put it on; he then helped her with a clean t-shirt and some jeans- she was just now starting to show and had just switched to a size up to be more comfortable. She often joked and asked him if when she became the size of Kansas would he still love her- she already knew the answer. He didn't bother with her boots although he had them in his pack along with clean clothes for himself. He lifted her onto the horse and climbed on behind her encouraging her to lean against him. She needed no encouragement though and gladly relaxed against his chest.

Bass had Flame walk down through the creek figuring if they came across any other unexpected fires they were safest going this route. Flame was much calmer now sensing they were out of danger and the two people who loved and took care of her were safe. Bass didn't rush her on purpose, not wanting to jostle Charlie around like she had been on their way out of the forest.

He was worried- she had inhaled a lot of smoke and couldn't seem to stop coughing no matter how much water she drank- and sometimes she coughed up soot. He was beyond angry with himself for leaving her that morning without so much as a note; he just never thought the smoke would get that far or be all-consuming like it was. He hoped the Colson's were heading for town as well; they most likely had burns and smoke inhalation too.

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They made it to Gene's house and tied Flame to the fence. Bass held his arms out for Charlie and as soon as her feet hit the ground he scooped her right back up again.

"I can walk, Bass," she insisted.

"Just…let me do this…please," he said. She knew he was worried and so she relaxed against him and let him take charge. Gene saw them coming and opened the front door, Rachel not far behind him.

"What happened?" Gene asked worriedly. Rachel simply scowled at Monroe.

"Heat lightning hit Colson's place—I went to help and Charlie rode Flame into the woods trying to find me," he said, self-loathing evident in his tone. "She took in a lot of smoke—has been coughing up a lung…I just want to make sure she and the baby are all right. She fainted from the inhalation…" He could feel Rachel's glare upon him as he passed her and carried Charlie upstairs to the examining room. He didn't feel it was anything that he didn't deserve.

Gene performed an examination on Charlie and said he could hear some slight wheezing in her chest; he told her he had something he could give her and that she needed to keep on coughing to get it all out.

Her throat was so raw she only nodded.

He then listened to the baby's heartbeat and gave Charlie the stethoscope to do the same. A smile spread across her face—loud and strong. She handed the stethoscope to Bass and as he listened, a single tear slid down his cheek. He smiled at Charlie and she reached out, pulling him into her arms and they held each other tight. The baby was okay…their baby.

Rachel had stood silently in the doorway all this time, taking in the scene when Gene spoke to her. "Rachel, go boil some water—I want Charlie to take a warm bath and then get some rest." Then he looked at Bass, "You could definitely use one yourself…but first, let me take a look at those hands."

First-degree burns and minor smoke inhalation were what Gene deduced after examining Bass. "I have a salve for those after you get cleaned up," he said.

"Charlie, your bath is ready. Let me help you," Rachel said smiling at her daughter.

"I'd rather you didn't," Charlie replied looking at her blankly. "I can make it there myself," as she climbed down from the table.

"I'll go with you," Bass said taking her arm, ignoring the hate-filled looks Rachel was giving him.

"Go downstairs now…she's okay," Gene whispered to Rachel. She turned her glare to her father for a moment before turning to go downstairs.

Charlie sank into the bath water lazily and leaned her head against the back of the tub. Bass took this chance to take a look at himself in the mirror that stood against the wall.

"Dear God," he said, "Why didn't you tell me I look like Frankenstein's monster?" His face was covered in soot buried deep into the creases in his forehead and around his eyes. The only part of him that was clean at the moment were his hands which he sank into the bowl of water that was on the counter, scooping it up to his face to try and scrub the black soot off.

Charlie smiled at this- she had gotten plenty of soot off herself while in the creek but there was still plenty more. She soaped up the sponge and began washing her skin until it was shiny pink once again.

"Let me do your hair," Bass said behind her. He had gotten as clean as he could with the wash basin but still needed a bath. He had removed his shirt and he kneeled beside her with a pitcher of water. He poured it gently over her head and over her bloodshot eyes. "Even all dirty and with bloodshot eyes you're still the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

She wiped the wet hair from her face and smiled at him and said, "And even looking like Frankenstein's monster you're still the most beautiful to me."

He laughed, "Hey, I got a lot of it off!"

"I see," she smiled, tapping his nose gently with her finger.

After he was done washing her hair he helped her stand up so she wouldn't slip and he lifted her out of the now blackened water. They stood there looking at each other, his hands on her hips.

"I really want to kiss you right now," he breathed, "but I'm afraid I'll get you all dirty."

She leaned over to him, her breasts brushing against his chest and softly kissed his lips; he moaned.

There was a knock on the door and it was Gene; Bass cracked the door open while Charlie wrapped herself in a towel.

"It's a nightgown for Charlie- it belonged to her grandmother. We'll set her up in the guest room through that door," he said pointing to the opposite door in the bathroom. Charlie put on the long cotton nighty and smiled at Bass.

"I'll be in there…waiting for you," she said in her raspy voice.

"Sexy," he laughed, but the look in his eyes told her he was serious.

After his bath Bass put on a change of pants from his pack; he walked into the guest room where Charlie was sipping tea that Gene had given her to soothe her throat. As he sat down on the bed next to her Gene came back in to put a salve on his hands and then wrapped them carefully.

"You two both need a rest- I'll make sure you aren't disturbed," Gene said as he shut the door behind him.

A warm breeze came through the windows making the curtains sway to and fro; Bass and Charlie nestled together on the soft bed and they began to relax.

"Charlotte," Bass whispered next to her ear, "I'm so sorry I got you into this mess. I wasn't thinking and I am so angry with myself for how this has hurt you."

"Bass, we're okay now…the baby's okay. Rest easy, babe…please."

He kissed her on the softness of her cheek and snuggled against her. They fell asleep there…their hands clasped together and resting where they always did these days- upon her womb where their child lay.

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A/N: As always, reviews are most welcome and very much appreciated! Tell me what you think.