A/N: This story is basically like the first episode of season 5. Takes place in Portland and has the common idea of rebuilding. All the research I did is all true and you'd be surprised at how interesting it is. Please review!

Archival warning: Sadness

So pale and so gone

Tara and Maggie had come to help move boxes into Nates new apartment. The place was packed with all of their stuff, tables and counters covered in boxes.

"Ugh how many more boxes?" Tara complained

"We're almost done" Eliot grumbled as he set down another box

"Yeah we'll you guys have fun. Sophie and I are gonna go for a walk" Nate said quickly, his arm around her waist

Sophie giggled and played with the buttons on his shirt. They ran out of the apartment before Eliot could yell at them and tell them to come back. Maggie was smiling slightly and Tara rolled her eyes.

"At least those two are happy" Maggie said

"Ugh I don't know how she can stand him!" Tara drawled out

"Yeah, I don't know how I stand him" Maggie shrugged

"I think they're fine together" Parker frowned slightly

"They used be really messed up" Eliot reminded them

"Friends with bennies" Hardison added

"Yeah she told me about that"

"Nate wouldn't sink that low" Maggie added in a disbelieved tone

"Well he did...for a long time" Hardison said

"And they hid it from us" Parker pouted.

"How'd that go?" Maggie laughed slightly

"Oh well Nate ended up getting beat up" Eliot chuckled

"Oh, poor thing" Tara said sarcastically

They all laughed.

"Yeah...no" Parker then said seriously

"Mmm I love Portland" Sophie murmured as she walked through a beautiful neighborhood; hand in hand with Nate.

"Yeah it was a good choice" Nate gave an agreeing shrug

"Oh pish posh you know you love it"

Nate brought their hands up and he kissed the back of her hand. "Only because we're living together"

"Somehow I still think there's more to these big plans of yours"

"Maybe there is. Maybe there isn't" Nate smirked, purposely nudging her off onto the grass to annoy her

"You bastard" She cursed, stumbling slightly with the change in elevation and terrain.

Nate laughed and helped her back onto the sidewalk. They continued walking down the street in a peaceful silence.

"You smell that?" Sophie asked curiously as she sniffed at the air. "Smells like something's burning"

Nate looked around to see if there was any smoke around. "There's no smoke and I don't smell anything. Maybe you're just imagining things"

Sophie refused to believe that statement but didn't put up a fight. The smell started to become slightly stronger and she heard sirens faintly in the distance.

"Now I'm smelling the burning"

Sophie saw the smoke spiraling up from a house down the street. "Nate! That persons house is on fire!" She ripped her hand away from his and started running. Nate ran after her and she skidded to a halt in front of the burning house. A lady who was disgruntled and covered in black ash was bent over coughing in the driveway.

"My-my daughter," The women coughed again," she-she's in the house"

"Where?" Sophie demanded

The women held up one finger since she was still coughing out smoke. Sophie sprinted to the door covering her mouth with her shirt as she took one large breath of clean air before diving in.

(Insert dramatic pause here)

Nate tried to grab her arm to stop her but she was gone in a flash. He yelled at her and almost went in after her but two strong men held him back. Behind him were fire trucks and ambulances, people spilling out of the vehicles. The base of the house seemed to be groaning under the pressure of the falling house. A scream erupted from inside. Nate didn't care if it was the girl or Sophie but he started sobbing and screaming.

Being in a house on fire was 100 times worse then she would've thought. The fire was licking up the walls, burning the ceiling black. She could see the family's possessions being destroyed in the unrelenting fire. Her lungs were raw and scratchy, either from the lack of water or the smoke. A bed suddnely came crashing ot of the ceiling, hitting her in the head with a chunk of floorboard. She tried to scream but nothing came out and she clutched her head which was spinning in pain. The little girls screaming became louder and louder as she made her way into what seemed to be the kitchen. Sophie saw the girl crying on the ground, too paralyzed with fear to do anything. Sophie heaved the girl up into her arms with the last bit of strength she had left. Just as she turned the corner she was met face to face with a fireman who took the little girl from her arms. He rushed back out the door and Sophie followed. Her brain felt half alive, like it was barely processing how to move and think. A chunk of flaming ceiling came crashing down on her arm and her knees buckled causing her to almost fall to the ground. Before she could move the burning armoire next to her started to fall and she tried to dodge out of the way but the armoire caught her leg before she could move. A sudden ripping pain went through her leg followed by a burning numbness. Her vision blurred, colorful dots exploding all over her eye-sight. The black wave started to crash over her just as she staggered out. Sophie crashed to the ground unconscious just as the house behind her collapsed into a burning heap.

When he saw Sophie fall to the ground unconscious he started yelling and thrashing, trying to get out of their grip. A few paramedics came and picked her body up and put it on a stretcher. The put the stretcher up in on of the ambulances and started loading into the car.

"Please tell me she isn't dead?" Nate half cried and half yelled

"No she's not dead Sir but her condition could become critical" The one paramedic informed him

"Please let me go with her!" Nate begged

"Relation?"

"She's my girlfriend"

The man sighed. "Fine"

The men let go of him and he ran over to the ambulance and jumped in. The men pushed him to the front as they circled Sophie and started saying stuff he didn't understand. He felt the hot tears spilling out of his eyes like a flood made of poison. Why did she have to go into that fire?

They wouldn't let him be with her. So instead he sat in the waiting room tapping his foot nervously and biting his nails. So many mixed emotions was giving him a headache and he found it hard to even think. What seemed to be 5 hours later but could've only been 5 minutes, the doctor showed up.

"Mr. Ford?" The doctor asked. Nate nodded and he continued. "She's alive. There's 3rd degree burns of her left arm, a broken leg, and she also has some severe damage on her respiratory system. There will be therapy for her breathing along with a specialized treatment. And I hate to be the one to say this but she has experienced some TBI; traumatic brain injury. We did a CT scan and there was some bleeding but the doctors took her into emergency surgery and it's better."

"Oh thank god" Nate muttered

"We've gone through the Glasgow Coma Scale and she ranked a 7. 2 in pain stimuli, 2 in verbal response, and 3 in motor response"

"Is that good?"

"No. I'm afraid it means that it's severe. We have a few more tests to do to make sure we didn't miss anything that could be potentially lethal "

Nate almost started crying at the news. "Will the brain damage affect her the rest of her life?"

"She will lose memory of about the last 7 days. The brain damage wasn't horribly severe, we believe that she got hit in the head so hard and then along with everything else that happened her body just completely shut down from pain."

"Is she awake?"

"Sir, Glasgow COMA scale"

"She-she's in a c-coma?" Nate stuttered out and the actually started crying.

"I'm sorry Mr. Ford" The doctor patted him on the shoulder

Nate stood up suddenly and started taking fast long strides to her door. He paused a second before opening the door to her room. She lay almost lifeless on the hospital bed, a breathing mask over her face. He sat down in the vacant chair next to her bed and took her limp, unbandaged hand in his. Nate started to silently cry as he saw the burns up and down her right arm and face. Her left arm was wrapped with gauze and her right foot was in a cast and propped up. The breathing mask on her face was tinged black from the smoke that was coming from her lungs. Her air supply must have been tainted with some of the medicine the doctor had been talking about.

"God Sophie you're an idiot and a hero for going in there" He gave a watery laugh."I know you probably hate Portland now. One the bright side Detective Bannano is being transferred her in 4 months. But on the downside now my surprise is ruined. Well not 'cause you know but because you're just not gonna be able to go there." He paused. "Well I'll tell the team you're in the hospital and I'm sure they'll flip. I hope you wake up soon" He kissed the back of her hand before getting up to walk out.

Nate called Eliot first:

"What do you mean she went into a burning house?" Eliot demanded angrily

"I tried to stop her but she ran in there and these two men held me back" Nate defended

Eliot growled and then muttered a few curses under his breath. "Thanks Nate I'll be over there ASAP"

Then he called Parker:

"..." Parker was silent

"Parker are you okay?" Nate asked urgently

"I'll be over in a few" Her voice was solemn

Lastly was Hardison:

"WHAT?" Hardison yelled over the phone

"She's at Portland Clinic in the ER branch downtown"

"I swear I'm gonna beat her ass for doing that!" Hardison muttered and the line went dead.

That was the epitome of his conversation with the team, who was sad, angry, and annoyed. About 15 minted later they were all sitting in Sophie's hospital room.

"Why did she go into that burning house?" Hardison asked in a frustrated tone

"She was going to save a ladies daughter" Nate snapped at him

"I can't believe she put her life at risk to save a stranger" Parker thought out loud

"Would you have gone in there?" Hardison asked Nate

"The firefighters were just coming out of their trucks as Sophie went in there. So no, I don't think I would have"

There was a long silence.

Eliot was the first one to brake the blaring silence. "Wha-what exactly did they classify her coma as on the GCS?"

"A 7; severe" Nate whispered

"No!" Eliot yelled, standing up from his chair. The tears started to fall down his face and he couldn't help it.

"What Eliot?" Parker demanded

Eliot swallowed hard and turned his head to look at them. "Sophie may never wake up"