Wowza! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews, guys! I really hope this lives up to expectations... Pressure's on :P
Helen may be a little OoC here but I'm working under the pretence that she's still a little ticked off after Resistance...
Enjoy and keep up the lovely reviews!
xx
He was lost. And cold. And his head hurt. He wanted nothing more than to curl up into a ball and sleep. Actually, why shouldn't he? What was stopping him? Why was it so imperative that he keep moving? He couldn't remember. Mustn't be that important anyway his exhausted mind argued feebly. And with that, he stopped walking, fell to the ground, and closed his eyes. Maybe, when he woke up, he'd be less lost.
Raising her hand, Helen knocked on the door tentatively. The nurses said he was awake but not entirely lucid yet and, to be honest, she was more than a little worried, in fact she was absolutely terrified that he'd be ill or damaged or dying or something worse. She wasn't exactly sure what could be worse but, if she'd leant anything in her time with Nikola, it was that there was always a worse alternative. Plus, considering last time she saw him not a month ago he was heading up that awful SCIU operation and anything that could take him from being Mister High and Mighty at Area 51 to bed ridden barely an hour from her Sanctuary signified a rather dastardly plot indeed.
Bracing herself, Helen slowly pushed open the door. The room was thankfully devoid of neurotic nurses and Helen breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped into the room.
"Hi," a thin voice croaked from the bed, drawing Helen's attention.
"Hi," she said softy after a beat. Oh yes, this was most certainly Nikola even if he did look decidedly haggard. "How are you feeling?"
"A little sore," he admitted with a faint smile. "I was wondering if it wouldn't be too much trouble to ask for some water," he added sheepishly.
"Of course," Helen said, a little startled. The few times she'd managed to actually get Nikola to admit to being ill enough to require treatment, he'd moaned and whined the whole time. In fact, he'd flat out demanded that she bring him the right coloured jello once. Not that he ate the jello though.
"Here you are," she said kindly, holding the cup out to him, wiggling the straw between his chapped lips.
"Thank you Doctor," he said after swallowing, giving her a weak smile.
"Very funny Nikola," she quipped, rolling her eyes. "Though I'm genuinely surprised you didn't infer that I was to play your naughty nurse."
He spluttered at that.
"What?" he choked out, eyes wide.
"What what?" Helen asked uncertainly.
"What on earth prompted you to say that?" he asked, voice gaining strength.
"Say what Nikola? What's wrong?" She was starting to get worried now. What kind of game was he playing at?
"I don't mean to seem ungrateful but I think I'd like the doctor I had before to come back in here now," Nikola said slowly, edging back from her a little.
"What on earth has gotten into you Nikola?" she asked incredulously.
"Or maybe you could just grab a nurse for me or something," he continued. "It's not that I don't think your competent or something, it's just that... well... I mean..."
He shuffled uncomfortably.
"Nikola," she said warningly, hands on hips. "I don't care what mess you've managed to get yourself into now but if you don't stop whatever childish game you've got going on..."
His eyes widened at the threat and he began to fumble with the sheets as if trying to get up.
"You know what?" he asked with a nervous twitter, "I think I'll just go find that nurse myself... Get some exercise and such." As he spoke, his legs swung over the edge of the bed and Helen felt a tiny sliver of relief. For a man who'd been unconscious not a few hours ago, his recovery time was suggesting that he was indeed still a vampire.
"Nikola, get back into bed," she said, rolling her eyes in frustration. She reached forward to grab his shoulders but he jerked away from her with a tiny squeak of fear. She stopped.
"This has gone far enough Nikola. Out with it."
"Out with what?" he asked, trying to sidle around her.
"Whatever harebrained scheme you've cooked up this time," she all but spat angrily.
He flinched at her hard words.
"Look Doctor, I'm sorry but really, like I told the other woman, I don't have a clue what you're on about. I honestly can't remember."
"Nikola Tesla, you tell me what you're up to right now or so help me god..." she swore, pulling out her gun. It may not be enough to kill him but, after shooting him on many occasions, he'd often complained to her that the sting was more than a trifle annoying. There was, as always, something he wasn't telling her and now that she was the one with the ability to... well, not lock him up but cause him significant pain, she intended to find out exactly what he had planned.
Alarmed he flew away from her, crouching by the bed.
"Please don't kill me!" he whimpered. "I don't know anything! I'm sorry!"
Will walked quickly from the nurses' station, Abby trailing behind him as they walked towards the room Magnus had been taken to when they first arrived. She'd gone to check on Tesla's condition, telling Will to talk to anyone who had treated the vampire in case they could shed some more light on the situation.
When he'd first picked up the message, Will had been confused but, after relaying the call to Magnus, he'd begun to get worried. After all, anything that could knock a vampire for six was most definitely something to be afraid of. Will may not like the guy but he knew that something this powerful, while probably his own doing, was something of which to be apprehensive.
In the space of ten minutes, they'd grabbed their gear and been on the road but the entire trip across the city had been tense and uncomfortable. Magnus had barely said two words in the hour it had taken them and Will was fairly certain he knew why.
She was terrified for Tesla. It was natural in as much as human compassion and a long standing friendship would infer but, as per usual with these two, Will had sensed something more. She'd been rattled by the news, he could tell and rightly so but er fear was tinged with something almost possessive in nature, as if she was upset at someone for playing with and breaking her toys. As loathe as he was to admit it, even Will knew that there was more than just friendship between the two immortals. Sure Tesla was a pervert and a sleaze but something about the way he treated Magnus and the way she treated him in return spoke of a relationship that went deeper than an alliance to their university chums. On many occasions Will had seen the way the very mention of an escapade with Tesla could excited her. He'd also seen the unadulterated fear any imminent danger to her old friend brought forth.
She cared for him, plain and simple. No matter how many times he abused their relationship or endangered her life, Will knew that Magnus would always care for Tesla. Even if he was sort of working for the government that was hell bent on bring down the Sanctuary network.
Of course, she was still smarting slightly from the realisation that he took the job with the government but Will knew, eventually she'd forgive him eventually. Especially if he was injured, he mused.
"What are you planning?" a female voice demanded, normally clipped accent coming out rough and distorted.
O.K, so maybe she was more in a 'shoot your incorrigible arse' mood than a 'thank heavens you're alright' one, he thought as they neared the room they were looking for. Sharing a confused look with Abby, he picked up the pace and hurried towards the raised voice coming from further down the corridor.
"I don't know," a man whined. "Please, please just don't kill me!."
Fearing the worst, Will threw open the door, hand automatically flying to the gun strapped to his hip.
"Magnus, what's going on?" Will asked uncertainly, letting his hand drop from the weapon as he took in the scene before him.
Magnus stood, body tense, gun pointed at a small, rather frail looking man who was cowering behind the bed. His body was shaking and, from what little Will could see of the man's face, his eyes were shut tight as if he was waiting for her to attack.
"He refuses to tell me anything," she spat, not tearing her eyes from the shaking figure. As if he'd just noticed their arrival, Nikola's eyes shot open. His terrified gaze darted from Helen to Will and back again.
"Help me," Nikola cried before rushing to cling to Will's arm, using him as something of a human shield. "Please, she's crazy! I keep telling her I don't know who I am or who she is but she won't believe me!" Giving Will the most pitiful look he'd ever seen, Nikola tightened his grip on Will's arm, slinking behind him with a terrified little whimper.
"Oh grow up Nikki," Helen hissed mockingly. "It's just a gun, it's not like it will kill you."
"Are you crazy?" Nikola asked incredulously. "Of course it will kill me, it's a GUN!" Helen let out a frustrated sigh and took a step towards Nikola, Will and Abby. Nikola took a step back, pulling Will with him.
"O.K, woah, let's just slow down a sec," Abby said, stepping forwards, hand outstretched towards Helen in an attempt to placate the furious woman.
"Tesla, get off," Will complained, shaking his shoulder but Nikola held tight.
"She's going to kill me," he whimpered. "Please don't let her kill me."
"I can't kill you Nikola and there is no use pretending otherwise. Stop this ridiculous charade now or I'll will shoot you," Helen ordered but holstered her weapon regardless.
"Magnus, seriously, what's going on?" Will asked and she rolled her eyes.
"He seems to be pretending that he doesn't know me. Keeps saying that I'm one of his doctors. And the thing is, I know for a fact that on many occasions he's hit his head so hard that he died but now, being very, very far away from death, for the first time his memory is supposedly being affected," Helen said with a menacing look in Nikola's direction.
"I'm not lying!" Nikola cried worriedly. "Please! You have to believe me!"
"Oh yes, because you're just so trust worthy," Helen said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "Why aren't you down working at SCIU?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Skew?" Nikola asked, peering out from behind Will.
"Do you really expect me to believe you haven't any recollection as to what I'm talking about?" she said bitingly.
"I'm telling the truth, I swear!" Nikola promised, eyes wide. "Please, I'd tell you more if I knew more!"
"Tell us who you are then?" Abby said, cutting of Helen before she had the chance to speak again. Her tone was soothing and she looked to Nikola with kind eyes.
"Um, Nikola? That's what you called me before," the frightened vampire said with a shrug of his bony shoulders.
"You mean you actually don't know?" Helen asked, genuinely curious. The anger in her eyes had disappeared quite suddenly, replaced by that glimmer of fear Will had seen in the car. And when Magnus was afraid, everyone ought to be afraid.
"That's what I've been trying to tell you," he said with an exasperated sigh as he let go of Will. "And I'm sorry for whatever I did that made you point a gun at me, but I swear, I haven't got a clue as to who you all are."
Will, Abby and Helen shared confused looks before they all began to stare at Nikola again.
"Shit."
"You can say that again," Helen breathed.
