AN: Hi everyone! So here is part 3. Thank you so, so much for everyone for sticking with this story…Seriously the response has been amazing so a massive Thank you! : ) Thank you to everyone who has faved and followed…every time those email notifications pops up it seriously makes my day. And to all of my amazing reviewers…
To LarielRomeniel: I am so glad you're enjoying it! Thank you so much for reviewing. Well there is a resolution...of sorts in this chapter! : )
To Agentofshield27: Thank you so much! I'm trying to get the emotion right in this story and hopefully that means I'm doing an okay job! : ) I love your prompt! : ) I will definitely see what I can do with it. Thank you so much for reviewing…it means a lot!
To Guest 1: Thank you so much for reviewing…I know it was a bit of a cliff-hanger in the last chapter…I hope you like it!
To Guest 2: Wow! Thank you so much! I am so glad the humour and emotion I'm writing is coming across okay! : ) I so love Captain Canary too! Thank you so much for reviewing! : )
Here's the next part everyone!
CHAPTER FOUR
In Sickness and in Health
Part 3
"Gideon, status" Leonard ordered as the jump ship pulled away from its landing spot. Mick was flying, Nate and Amaya seated in the back, all with thoughtful and concerned expressions on their faces. They had downloaded all of the information they could from the downed wreckage of the mystery time ship they had been sent to investigate and destroyed the remnants of the fuselage. They were yet to interpret their findings but right now there were more pressing matters to be concerned about.
"I'm afraid the situation isn't much different to when you last asked me two minutes and twenty-three seconds ago Mr Snart" the AI responded, if it was possible she herself sounding dejected.
"Humour me" Leonard bit out trying hard to conceal the pain and anxiety in his voice.
"Mr Palmer has just arrived on the Waverider and as we speak is ferrying Miss Lance to the med-bay".
"Sit down Snart" Mick called from his position in the pilot's seat "Worrying like that isn't going make us get there any faster".
"Yeah, that'll be your job so put your foot down" Leonard spat regretting with all of his heart that they had decided to park the Waverider way outside the city limits in order to keep it secluded, instead bringing the smaller jumpship with them to the narrower city streets.
Mick chose to ignore him, chalking his attitude down to worry as he too was anxious to learn of Sara's condition and sneakily increased the speed of the jumpship, causing both Amaya and Nate's heads to push further back into their seats with the pressure.
Mick had never seen his partner so agitated. Len stood the whole way back to the Waverider, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the back of back of Micks chair. His mind kept going back to the moment on the ship, the moment that seemed a lifetime ago now but in reality, was only hours. When he had told her that he loved her and she, miraculously had reciprocated. He had felt the happiness, the completeness, the fulfilment seep into parts of him that had not be awakened in years. He closed his eyes and tried to picture her lips on his, the feeling of the softness, the warmth.
He peeled his eyes open as his mind played back the scene of finding her, of her blood on the cobbles, her blood that still stained his hands.
"Gideon?"" he asked again as Nate looked to Amaya in despair, the nature of Leonard's and Sara's relationship now clear to anyone who did not know before. To the crew's surprise Gideon answered, no attitude or sarcasm in her voice just pure and genuine information.
"Captain Lance is currently being prepped for surgery to repair the laceration to her liver and aorta, her inferior vena cava was also nicked and is in need of repair. She has lost a detrimental amount of blood and has bruises over her face and neck. She also has broken her wrist in three places".
Leonard rubbed his hands over his face at the continuing onslaught of information he was receiving.
"What are her chances?" he all but whispered to the AI, fear encapsulating him now.
"Captain Lance has a 43% chance of survival".
Len hit the console in front of him in pure rage.
"Dammit" he yelled.
"Whoa, whoa Boss relax" Mick exclaimed his attention moving from the windshield to his best friend "Blondie is strong, she'd pull through with a 2% chance".
"Yeah I hope your right Mick" Leonard sighed.
"Me too" Mick mumbled out of Leonard's earshot.
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Leonard had hardly waited for them to dock before he opened the jumpship hatch, his running footsteps on the Waverider floor making metallic echoes through the corridors of the ship as he sprinted to the med-bay. Jax went to greet the rest of the team at the hatch, watching as Len sped past him, Mick appeared next.
"And he said he had no idea what I was talking about" Jax spoke, more thinking out loud than directing his speech at anyone.
"What's that Flame boy?" Mick asked gruffly watching Leonard run out of sight.
"Those two" Jax said indicating to where Len had run with a nod of his head.
"Oh yeah" Mick replied "Him and Blondie have been together for a while now, happened just after the Oculus, or just before, I wasn't really paying attention. Speaking of which, how's our girl doing?"
The smile faded from Jax's face.
"She looked bad when Ray brought her in but Gideon's working on her so I'm sure she'll be fine"
Mick nodded.
"Uh, I might just…you know...just to be sure" Mick indicated, moving to follow Snart.
Leonard's heart hammered in his chest as he ran to the med-bay and not from the exertion. In one mind, he was half expecting her to be sitting up in the bed ready to berate him for leaving his post and following her before kissing the worry from his face but in his other more realistic mind however he knew that the sight that would greet him would not be good and not one that he would not readily forget. Just more fuel to add to the fire of his nightmares. He stilled outside the closed doors taking a deep breath and stepping forward. The scene that greeted him was not one of frenzy like he had seen in many a medical programme that his sister Lisa had used to watch, nor thankfully was it one of placidity that one would usually see at a funeral or a wake. Sara lay unconscious on the med-table, a monitor clasped around her good wrist as well as two stuck to either temple on her head that emitted her heart rate and brain activity on the monitor beside the bed. A blood bag and a couple of IV drips injected into her arms and a ventilator intubated into her trachea to help her to breath. Gideon emitted a blue light on her abdomen, the surgery Leonard decided watching as various lasers etched at Sara's wound. The sight of her laying so vulnerable pulled at his heart but also gave him hope that she was getting the help she required to pull through. Snart took a slow pace over to her and took her hand in his, making sure not to jostle the monitor on her hand or to snag any of the tubes entering her body. He sat on the cool metal chair and just observed her. She looked so frail, so young, so much like the girl she had used to be, that he had seen in pictures and not the deadly and fierce assassin she was now.
"How's she doing?" a voice asked from the door. He would know that gravelly, throaty tone of voice anywhere. His best friend since he had been fourteen. Leonard went to stand when he saw him but Mick held up a hand and so he remained seated, he didn't answer his friend so instead Gideon complied.
"I've repaired the damage to Captain Lance's liver and the inferior vena cava and I am currently working on the aorta. Her chances of survival have increased to 72%".
Mick let out a loud laugh as he clapped Len on the back.
"See, told yeah she's strong".
"Oh, yeah then why is she on a ventilator?" Len snapped back worried.
"Gideon?" Mick asked.
"Captain Lance was having trouble breathing on arrival and upon further examination I found her alveoli in her lungs to be moderately damaged".
"Damaged?" Len asked, his brow furrowed "Damaged how?"
"That is unknown Mr Snart but I have performed a tissue biopsy, the results of which should be ready in an hour".
"Ouch" Mick exclaimed "That'll hurt in the morning".
"I have supplied her with the necessary painkillers Mr Rory, it is unlikely that she will feel much discomfort at all tomorrow".
"It's just a…" Mick began before glancing at the worried face of his friend "You know what, never mind".
They stayed in poignant silence for fifteen minutes, sitting and just being with Sara before an interruption broke them
"Sorry to interrupt" Amaya spoke softly from the door "But Martin is asking to see everyone in the library. He says he's decrypted the information from the time-ship".
Mick nodded going to follow but Leonard stalled, wanting to say in the position he was in.
"Mr Snart, I shall inform you of any change in Captain Lance's condition" Gideon assured as if almost sensing his apprehension. He nodded and reluctantly gave Sara her hand back, placing it gently onto the bed bedside her, rubbing small, comforting semicircles on the top of it as he left her.
"Gideon, any change. Understand?" he instructed the AI as he met Mick and Amaya at the door.
"Yes, Mr Snart I understand"
Martin was already swiping at the touchscreen monitor as Mick, Leonard and Amaya entered the library. Nate was studying the readings on his seismograph whilst Ray and Jax were conversing quietly in the corner.
"Professor, what is it that you found?" Mick asked cutting to the chase as he sat immediately in his favourite lounge chair as they entered the room. Martin turned to the newly entered group and smiled a small smile in greeting.
"Ah, there you are"
Jax and Ray ceased talking as Nate joined Martin in front of the monitor. Leonard opted to stay by the door in case he needed to make a quick exit.
"How's Sara doing?" Jax asked the two former Rogues.
Leonard gave Jax a tilt of a smile as appreciation for his concern.
"She's still unconscious but Gideon said she's got a good chance" Mick answered for his friend.
"I still find it shocking that she felt able to take on the Reverse Flash" Martin spoke as if still in awe of the situation "I mean I know Miss Lance is a highly-trained assassin but Eobard Thawne is a metahuman, even The Flash required assistance, however did she think she could defeat him?".
"She didn't know it was Thawne when she confronted him" Leonard defended. The team turned to look at him.
"Whatever do you mean Mr Snart?" Martin asked.
"She didn't get a good look at him, she thought it was some local that had found future tech, that it had fallen from the time-ship, she went to go get it back".
Jax shrugged.
"Makes more sense than her going off like some one-woman army to defeat the Legion of doom".
"The Legion of doom?" Leonard asked, his brow furrowed "That's what we're calling them?".
"I like it" Ray smiled with an excited shrug of the shoulders "Makes them sound menacing".
"They are menacing" Mick barked back "Or had you forgotten about all of the times they've kicked our asses, today included".
The smile slipped from Ray's face but reappeared when Leonard interjected.
"So, what did the Legion want with the downed ship?"
"Really?" Mick whispered to Leonard "We're sticking with that?"
Leonard just held up a calming hand in an effort to placate his friend while he listened to the team's response.
"That we don't know" Nate replied disheartened "Maybe it had something to do with the object you said Sara saw Thawne with but we do however know what type of ship it was".
He moved closer to the monitor, a grin forming on his face. He turned to his team in an effort to elicit some sort of excitement but failing miserably.
"I wait with bated breath" Mick growled sarcastically causing a notable smile to appear on Amaya's face.
"Fine" Nate spat surrendering any idea of anticipation. He touched the monitor and pulled up the downloaded plans of the crashed time ship.
"Behold the Nightingale, an emergency medical time ship launched in the year 2154".
"What was it doing in Victorian England?" Amaya asked.
"From what we can tell from the sensor data, crashing. It seemed to fall out of the Temporal zone at random, could've landed anywhere but we can pinpoint the last place it was and that seems to be 2213".
"So, let me get this straight" Jax began trying to make everything clear in his head "A futuristic ambulance from 2154 travelled to 2213 and while they were coming back from there something happened and they end up falling out of the time stream and crashing in 1885"
"Exactly" Nate beams, glad that at least one person on the team was following the conversation.
"And they all died?" Jax asked "Man that's harsh".
"Actually" Martin interrupted "My findings from reading the ships logs have suggested that 3 of the 5 bodies we found on the ship were already dead or dying when the crash occurred, the medical records of one Doctor Una Taylor suggested that they had been infected with some sort of illness, perhaps the reason they were being shipped away from 2213 in the first place".
"Illness?" Mick asked with an air of panic in his usual gruff, indifferent voice "We ain't going to catch anything, are we?"
Martin shook his head.
"From what I read it's not contagious person to person, you can only get infected by coming into contact with some sort of direct sample of the disease and even then it would need to bypass the body's natural defences in a much faster way than normal viruses such as via injection or aerosol".
"So, what are we talking?" Ray asked, his arms folded and his face in deep thought "Like some sort of futuristic designer bioweapon?"
"I am no biologist or virologist" Martin began "But from what I can tell the structure of the virus is in such a way that it certainly seems that way Mr Palmer".
"The Legion of doom certainly sounds a lot more menacing now" Mick started, interrupting the thick air of worry with his statement.
"So, are we thinking that the item that Sara tried to prevent Thawne from taking were samples of this disease?" Amaya asked "We found no trace of any physical forms of it on the ship, only research".
"There will be no sure way of knowing until Miss Lance awakens" Martin began "But I surely hope so".
"You hope so?" Mick asked severely "Professor if that's the case than Thawne has this bioweapon, how is that a good thing?".
"Because we destroyed the Nightingale" Martin explained "And if the virus was on board then we have just released it into the air of 19th century London".
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The first thing Sara was aware of when she awoke was the shooting pain in her abdomen and dull aching in her chest. She hadn't opened her eyes yet but with her league training and the metallic taste of the metal in the air she already knew she was on the Waverider. In the med-bay by the sounds of the heart monitor periodically beeping beside her. Her throat was dry and scratchy and she couldn't surpress the cough that had been threatening to come ever since she had woken up. Finally, she peeled her eyes open to an empty med-bay.
"Welcome back Miss Lance" the voice of Gideon greeted.
"Thanks Gideon" Sara replied "How long was I out?"
"Approximately four hours Miss Lance. You had several severe injuries which I have repaired, I have also alerted Mr Snart to your consciousness".
Sara attempted to sit further up in the bed, wincing slightly as the effort tugged on her wound.
"I can't believe I let Thawne get the upper hand, I can't believe I let him win" she gritted out as the pain emanated from the damaged area once again.
"From my understanding, I do not believe you willing let him stab you" Gideon spoke stating the facts.
Sara rolled her eyes but nodded.
"That is very true Gideon" she added before falling into a loud coughing fit. When it ceased, she lay back on the bed, her hand on her chest.
"Why does my chest feel like I've been smoking ten packs a day?"
"That I am afraid is uncertain Captain" Gideon began "You were having difficulty breathing when you first returned to the ship so you were intubated and a biopsy of your lung tissue was taken, the results of which were inconclusive".
"Inconclusive?" Sara began, her voice hoarse "I though this ship had state of the art medical technology from 2166?".
Gideon's response was interrupted Leonard's entrance into the room.
"I'm okay" Sara spoke immediately when she saw him, before he had even expressed any term of worry with his words. The last thing she wanted to do was to cause him and any pain or distress. She knew that he had been through enough of that to last a lifetime.
He moved to her side in three steps, falling to her level until his forehead was touching hers.
"Never, ever do that to me again. Understand?" He wasn't angry but his tone was severe.
Sara was captivated. By his expression on his face, the intensity and slight tearing of his eyes, the worry in his voice, she just nodded.
"What happened with Thawne?" she asked after a breath, breaking them both out of the tense atmosphere.
Leonard shook his head moving back a touch.
"I didn't see, the son-of-a-bitch was gone before I even got to you" he spoke, his voice clearly portraying what he planned to do to a certain reverse speedster if he ever got the chance.
"So, he got the case" Sara realised dejectedly, tilting her head back onto the pillow.
"The case?" Len asked "That was the tech from the ship you went after?"
Sara nodded, her hand unconsciously rubbing soothing circles on her chest.
Leonard looked to his feet before turning to look back up at Sara.
"Do you think, maybe that there may have been medical vials in there?" he asked her, seriousness now pouring out of his expression.
Sara thought back.
"I'm not sure" she told him, looking vague as she searched her memories "I know it was opened but I just can't remember…It just all goes fuzzy". She scowled, sulking. Disbelieving that her own mind was betraying her like this.
"Wow" Leonard exclaimed worried, reaching over and cupping her face "He must have hit you hard".
"That part I can remember" Sara smiled trying to lighten the mood of the conversation "But I didn't add to my selection of scars so that's a plus".
Leonard tried to smile back at her but it failed halfway.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Its's just" he began and then stopped "I'm sorry I wasn't there. When you needed me most, I wasn't there".
Sara reached out and clasped his hand.
"It's not your fault, hell I didn't even know it was Thawne until I got there. It was just very bad luck and in the end, you came to my rescue". She smiled the smile that made Leonard's heart flutter and moved her hand from his to his stubbly cheek "My knight in shining armour".
Leonard scoffed.
"And don't even try to deny it Len, it's what you are".
"It was Gideon that saved your life, not me" Leonard defended.
"Well you can think of her as your noble sidekick" Sara laughed.
"I will disregard that last comment Captain Lance" Gideon sounded causing both Leonard and Sara to laugh. Sara's chuckle, however was cut short as another coughing fit hit her.
"You alright?" Leonard asked her as he got up to rub her back.
Sara nodded as she held up her hand to ensure that she was okay.
"I'm fine" she spoke after a moment, her throat now sore and breathing wheezy.
"Mr Snart" Gideon began "If I might instruct you to place the oxygen mask on Miss Lance, it may assist her in getting to correct amount of dissolved oxygen back into her bloodstream". Leonard complied but Sara tried to fight him.
"I don't need it, honestly" she argued.
Leonard ignored her and fasten the oxygen mask over her mouth and nose.
"Did the results of her lung biopsy come back yet?" Leonard asked the AI ignoring the daggers Sara was now sending him with her eyes.
"Yes, Mr Snart but as I told Captain Lance, they were inconclusive".
Leonard sighed.
"So, we don't know why she's coughing or wheezing?".
"I am not wheezing…" Sara interrupted attempting to pull the mask off of herself but was foiled immediately by Leonard securing it back into place.
"I'm afraid not Mr Snart" Gideon concluded.
"My lungs are probably just bruised from being kicked in the chest" Sara theorised, her voice coming out distorted from the inside of her mask.
"Gideon?" Leonard called wanting to check with the ship's doctor to see if this could be the reason.
"At this point I cannot rule that diagnosis out".
Sara gave him a 'Told you so' look from her position on the bed and Len tilted an amused eyebrow at her childishness.
"However, Captain" Gideon continued "If your symptoms worsen then I must urge you to inform me immediately".
"Of course" Sara replied, her attention suddenly moving back to Leonards earlier question.
"Len why did you ask me if I had seen any vials in the case? Vials of what?".
Leonard sat back down on the chair.
"Stein was able to download the information from the downed ship, it appears as though it was some sort of medical ship, carrying a suspected bioweapon from 2213 back to 2154 where the ship was from".
Sara sat back in her bed in shock, trying to absorb all of the information she had been given.
"And you think that his bioweapon was in the briefcase, the briefcase that Thawne, Merlyn and Darhk now have". Leonard could see her internally berating herself for the loss of something so important.
"They're calling them the Legion of doom".
Sara looked up at him confused.
"Thawne, Merlyn and Darhk. The team has begun calling them the Legion of doom".
Sara couldn't help it, she burst out laughing. A coughing session hit her once again but she deemed it worth it. With the oxygen mask firmly over her mouth she shrugged her shoulders.
"Better than 'The Legends' I suppose" she smirked.
"Hey!" Leonard defended with a smirk "I have every intention of living up to that name".
The smile, a remnant from Sara's laughter dropped as she came to the realisation that the Legion were now in possession of such a deadly weapon.
"What do you think they'll do with it?" Sara asked him.
Leonard shook his head, knowing immediately what she was talking about.
"Nothing because we'll get it back. We'll save the day, again, because that is what we do".
"I hope you're right" Sara finished softly.
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"Anything?" Leonard asked as Stein and Ray returned to the Waverider. Nate had had an idea to test the air around the crash site for any sign of airborne pathogens which Martin and Ray promptly volunteered to do and now just under two hours later they were returning to the ship. Martin gave the former crook an encouraging smile.
"Preliminary tests have shown no pathogens in the air thank goodness".
Ray nodded in agreement before continuing.
"We're going to have Gideon go over the data but if they're the same as ours than we still have the other problem to deal with. The Legion having a futuristic bioweapon in their custody".
"They're probably long gone from this timeframe by now" a voice spoke from behind them "Depending on their target of course".
Sara stood there, bold as brass with her hands fixed on her hips and a concerned expression on her face.
It was Leonard who spoke first.
"Sara, what the hell are you doing?" he spoke in a harsh whisper, moving closer to her "You need to be in the med-bay".
She scoffed.
"Please" she spoke rolling her eyes "Gideon patched me up I'm feeling much better".
She tried to stifle an incoming cough but failed miserably.
"Except for this stupid cough" she stated when it had subsided slightly.
"If you start to feel tired or in any way unwell then you're going back to the med-bay" Leonard argued, his eyes burning with concern.
"Look" Sara started, the tone of which made Len understand that she was becoming defensive "It's cute that your so worried about me and you know I love you for it but I'm fine. I know how work with an injury just trust me".
Ray looked to Martin and subtly mouthed.
"Love?"
Stein just shook his head, either to express his ignorance of the matter or to force Ray to stop watching he didn't know but he desisted either way. Trying hard to not look at Leonard and Sara whilst at the same time listening intently.
"Perhaps we should get going on having Gideon examine these samples Dr Palmer" Martin spoke, clearly uncomfortable with the situation.
"Or" Ray began, obviously wanting to stay "We could stay for moral support".
Stein gave him an incredulous look whilst Sara and Leonard turned to him as if only now realising that they were both still there.
Ray looked like he had been caught in the headlights.
"Yeah or we could just go do that…like right now" Ray stumbled forward dragging Martin with him.
Leonard sighed as he watched them go.
"Just try and take it easy, alright?".
Sara gave him a small smile.
"You know me better than that"
He reflected her smile but didn't look any less worried.
"But" she added "For you, I'll try".
This time he gave her a grateful smile as he leaned in to peck her lips.
"That's all I ask".
"Any sign of the Legion?" she asked after a beat, smirking slightly at the bad guy's new name and standing back onto her heals.
Leonard shook his head.
"Nate and Gideon are monitoring the seismograph and timeline to check for any anomalies, nothing yet but hopefully we can get to them before they can release the virus".
Sara nodded her head sighing regretfully.
"This is all my fault, if I hadn't passed out then I might have at least seen which direction they went".
"And that would make a difference how?" Snart asked almost rhetorically "Thawne could be anywhere in any moment bringing Evil 1 and Evil 2 with him".
Sara smirked.
"Does that make him Evil 3?".
"Without a doubt" he smirked back, now happy that Sara was now feeling well enough to make small quips.
"What are we going to do?" She asked him her manner changing in an instant to worried.
He pulled her into a comforting hug.
"We're going to get the bioweapon back and kick their collective asses" he spoke his tone serious but with just enough of the Leonard Snart snark to put her at ease.
She nodded with a small smile.
"Just an ordinary day at the office huh?"
He kissed the top of her head.
"Well we wouldn't want to get bored, now would we?".
"Around here there's no chance of that" she smiled "Although before we detected that anomaly I was worried that Mick might set his quarters on fire".
"Nah" Snart spoke "He has Amaya to keep his mind occupied".
"You noticed that too?" Sara asked pulling back from Leonard's warm embrace.
Leonard gave a cocky smirk.
"Please, it's not like they're subtle. He's a gruff caveman that's never been in love a day in his life and she's a 1940's badass that wears her heart on her sleeve, they're so mismatched but their…"
"…Perfect?" Sara finished, following his line of thought "I agree. After this is all over, do you think she'll have to go back to..." Another cough forced her to stop midsentence.
It was light at first, like she just had a tickle in her throat but then got heavier.
"That's it" Leonard spoke directing her by the shoulders and slightly pushing her, trying to guide her down the hall. "You're going back to the med-bay".
Sara took in a deep breath.
"No...*cough*…"
"…Len I'm fine plea…*cough*…"
"You are not fine" Leonard spat, angry that she didn't seem to want to take care of herself as much as she should be.
"Gideon needs to take a look at you again, figure out what the hell is wrong with you".
Sara wanted to respond but couldn't as she seemed trapped in a never-ending circle of taking in a deep breath before coughing it all out again.
They had made it to just outside the med-bay when Sara could finally get a word in.
"No…*Breath*…Len, Gideon already said that she didn't know why I was coughing, I would much rather…*cough* …go back to our quarters…please".
Leonard paused clearly debated the though in his head. He knew how much he hated to be locked up in the med-bay but he also knew that what was wrong with Sara could be potentially dangerous to her.
Sara stifled a cough before giving her boyfriend the puppy-dog-eyes, a gesture she knew he found hard to say no to.
He sighed before rolling his eyes and Sara knew he was relenting. She smiled up at him and Leonard couldn't help but cup her cheek lovingly and draw her to his chest. She embraced him as he held her head.
"You go straight to bed though, no arguments" he said onto the top of her head.
"Okay" she whispered into his chest, choosing just to bask in the love and concern he was portraying to her.
"Really?" he asked pulling back slightly to view her face.
She smiled up at him, her eyes half-hooded as now she was comforted she felt the tiredness seep into her.
"Really" she replied, her voice hoarse from all the coughing.
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When Sara emerged from their bathroom in her sleepwear Leonard already had the bed turned down and a glass of water on the small shelf by their bed.
"What would I do without you?" she asked sleepily, echoing the same sentence she had said to him that morning and reaching up on her tip-toes to kiss him on the lips.
"How are you feeling?" Leonard asked concerned as she turned to sit on the bed.
"I told you I'm fine, just a little tired maybe".
Leonard nodded pulling back the covers a little more so that she could put her legs under.
"Are you sure you don't want to join me?" Sara asked still in a slight sitting position. There was a slight intonation of flirtation to her voice but mostly she just wanted to just hold him, to have him hold her. It was a little alarming how much she relied on him now, how much she trusted him when she was vulnerable but there was also an exuberance to feeling this close and trustfulness with someone.
Len smiled warmly at her.
"I don't think it would be very responsible of me as Acting Captain to be sleeping on the job now would it?".
Sara chuckled slightly, the effort of the exclamation hurting her raw throat.
"Acting Captain huh? Don't I need to be the one to appoint that? Or is this mutiny?".
Leonard laughed lightly.
"Oh, don't worry, your still my boss. In more ways than one".
"Good to know" she replied laying her head down on the pillow.
"Get some rest" he told her bending forward and kissing her forehead "I'll come back later, I promise".
Sara nodded her eyes already closed and Leonard just gazed at her a moment longer. He couldn't believe how close he had come to losing her today and just thanked his lucky stars that she was here, right now, safe.
"Gideon, dim the lights to 10% please".
The lights dimmed and Leonard turned to walk out.
"Len?" Sara's raspy voice called out.
"Yeah?" he asked, concerned that she might need something.
"I love you".
He shut his eyes, the words powering over him like a warm wave.
"I love you too" he whispered back, the smile evident in his voice.
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Len walked back down the hallway in an attempt to catch-up with Martin and Ray to find out what Gideon had determined about the results they had gathered from the scene of the crash. He could not, however wipe the smile from his face.
"Jeese boss you look like the cat that got the cream, or you know, the canary" Both Mick's voice and smirk broke through his thoughts "Considering the day you've had I'd say that's something".
"Just trying to look on the bright side of the situation Mick" Leonard drawled "Sara's going to be okay and we are going to find those Legion assholes and do a lot worse to them than they've ever done to us".
Mick nodded approvingly.
"Plotting revenge always puts me in a good mood, thought you'd be with Birdy though".
"Sara's sleeping, I thought I might be put to better use helping to track down this bioweapon". Leonard replied as they both turned the corner towards the med-bay.
"Tin-man says there's nothing on the seismograph as far as time aberrations but he's looking into any reference of killer diseases throughout history, see if anything has changed or, you know, has been added".
Leonard nodded happy that the team was pulling together.
"Of course," Mick continued "That limits us to finding differences in the past, Nate won't recognise any differences in future epidemics".
"One problem at a time my friend" Leonard chimed as they entered the med-bay where Stein and Ray were imputing their data.
"Anything?" Snart asked them as the two geniuses of the team stared relentlessly at the monitor in the corner of the room.
"Gideon is scanning the samples right now" Ray responded turning to see the two former rouges.
"How is Miss Lance fairing?" Stein asked taking a sip of tea from the half-empty mug he brought with him from the galley.
"Better, thanks" Leonard replied "She's sleeping".
Ray clenched his jaw as if he wanted to say something but was stopping himself. He looked pained as he clapped his hands together in an effort to stop himself from fidgeting.
"What's wrong with you, haircut? You need the toilet?" Mick asked eyeing Palmer up and down.
"No I just really want to ask" he turned to Leonard "Are you and Sara together now? I mean she did say love, I mean I heard her say love, to you and I mean you're looking after her and know that she's sleeping and seemed to be in charge now, which she probably decided and you were really worried about her earlier and…I'm babbling aren't I?"
"What is everyone's obsession with my love-life lately" Leonard spoke mostly to himself.
Mick let out a ruff laugh.
"Maybe because you and blondie are the only ones that actually have a love-life on this boat".
Ray gave Heatwave a knowing look.
"Don't be so sure Mick, I've seen you and Amaya together as well".
"Urgh" Mick exclaimed "Can we get back to the mission and off this Pride and prejudice/Romeo and Juliet/ Downton Abbey crap".
Ray looked at him amused.
"What is it this time?" Mick reluctantly asked rolling his eyes.
"I'm just surprised you knew what those are".
"Foxy was jabbering about finding them on the Waverider systems a few nights ago, that's all".
"Uh huh" Ray responded sceptically eliciting a chuckle from Leonard, of which Ray soon shared in.
"Screw you guys I'm gonna go get a beer" Mick huffed moving swiftly out the door "Call me if you lot manage to get your head out of your asses long enough to find something to do with the bioweapon".
"I think you managed to touch a nerve with him Palmer" Leonard spoke slowly crossing his arms and leaning against a medical table.
Ray widened his eyes and raised his eyebrows.
"Tell me about it" he paused before continuing "Should I be worried?"
It was then when Gideon's voice sounded.
"I have analysed Dr Palmer and Professor Stein's results and I am happy to say that I concur with their findings however I did detect a small anomaly in the air chemistry that seemed to correct itself within minutes".
"What kind of anomaly Gideon?" Martin asked, his brow crease in curiosity.
"A miniscule amount of an unknown chemical was present in the air for the initial moments of the sampling before it dissolved away leading me to believe that it may have been present in slightly larger quantities before the team was able to begin the sampling at all".
"How is the chemical unknown to you Gideon?" Ray asked "Don't you have the master of all databases to go through?".
"Whilst my data bank is considerable we did in fact lose the greatest arsenal of information when the oculus was destroyed. I'm afraid I cannot access any information from the future that was not imputed into my systems directly at some point in time".
"And according to the information we obtained from our friends from the downed time-ship, the time period the bioweapon comes from does supersede Gideon's creation by decades" Martin added.
"You think that the chemical in the air was a part of the bioweapon?" Leonard asked "I thought that it was supposed to be devastating, why would it dissipate? Not that I'm complaining".
Both Ray and Martin looked like they were in deep thought before both glancing at each other in realisation.
"Do you think that maybe…?" Ray asked Stein.
"…Some of the bioweapon was leaked or released? That's what I was thinking" Martin finished.
"Whoa, wait" Leonard began "You really do think that they've already released the virus?"
"It may have been unintentional if their means of transporting the weapon was damaged" Stein theorised "I mean why would any of the three of them want to infect 1880's London with this when they would have much more valuable targets. Star or Central city for example".
"But, like Leonard asked" Ray began "If it is the bioweapon then why did it dissipate, not that I'm complaining" He spoke echoing most of the concerns that Snart had raised.
Stein was silent for a long moment, many beats and breaths passing before he even had the inclination to speak.
"Perhaps not all of it was released" he paused, visibly thinking hard "Or, perhaps it was delivered directly into someone's system therefore eliminating the main aspect of the virus from the air almost immediately".
Ray looked to the professor through the furrowing of his eyebrows.
"But you said it wouldn't be contagious, that it would need to be injected or…"
"…inhaled" Leonard finished his eyes going wide and his heart hammering in his chest.
"Gideon!" he all but yelled, standing up from his leaning position.
"Yes, Mr Snart?" The AI asked in her proper, mannerly voice.
"I want…I need you to compare the sample of air that you just tested against Sara's lung biopsy right now!".
"Mr Snart, what is it?" Martin asked.
Leonard started to pace the room.
"Leonard, are you alright. Should I get Mick?" Ray asked him. Leonard just shook his head. He stopped and turned to his two teammates when he felt like he had gathered his thoughts and steadied his breath enough to speak.
"Sara said that when she was fighting Thawne that the briefcase was opened, she doesn't remember what was in it because she lost consciousness almost straight away but…" he paused, trying to dampen down the emotion that was raising in his voice again "Dammit I thought it was because Thawne knocked her out".
Ray looked to Martin, a mixture of confusion and concern written on his face. He turned back to Snart when he continued.
"…But since she's woken up she has not stopped coughing".
Ray's eyes grew larger with the notion Leonard was running with.
"You think she inhaled the virus?"
Leonard shook his head.
"I don't know, Gideon said that her tests were inconclusive but I have to check".
"I'm afraid I am detecting similar substances in both samples" Gideon announced almost with a hint of sadness in her voice.
"Mr Snart that doesn't deem it conclusive" Stein tried to reassure as he saw Leonard's body tense "Until we get a sample of the bioweapon than we cannot be certain that she is infected".
Leonard didn't wait to hear what Ray had to say. He turned on his heel and marched straight out of the med-bay. He kept his composure until he made it past the galley and then broke into a run, unable to quieten down the voice in his head that was telling him that this was all of his fault. That he didn't deserve happiness, that he didn't deserve Sara and that's why this was happening now. Fate was constantly screwing him over and it was doing it again. He was just pissed that this time fate had dragged Sara into it.
He reached their quarters slower than he would have liked, however he would have had to have Barry Allen's speed at the rate he would have preferred to have travelled there. It was just as he had left it moments ago, the lights dimmed and Sara sleeping peacefully in their bed. He moved towards her slowly, not wanting to disturb her. She lay on her side, facing the door with her hand outstretched subconsciously towards his pillow. He could tell her breath was steady but could still hear wheezing on the exhale. He moved closer to the bed, just wanting to sit with her a moment. She looked so calm, peaceful that it was already etching away at the anger he was feeling at the world, at fate, at himself. He sighed, feeling some of the tension leave with the air he breathed out. He was about to reach for her hand when, crash!
"Crap!" he whispered as his foot collided with the equipment had had been using the day before to maintain his cold gun making a loud bang sound-out through the room. He cringed knowing it was bound to wake Sara. She was such a light sleeper as it was that the littlest sound woke her, a clatter like that would have woken her with a start. He turned to her, expecting her to be watching him carefully with those big, powerful blue eyes of hers perhaps with a scowl playing on her lips, instead what he saw almost worried him more than when he had lost contact with her in the 1800's. She was still fast asleep, motionless, like she hadn't even heard the commotion. He furrowed his brow, concerned. With Sara's league training it was almost second nature for her to wake with any small sound. In Nanda Parbat, it was the difference between death and survival, on the Waverider it was just the matter of getting some shut-eye before another mechanical issue, or crew dispute, or course correction demanded her attention, but it was Sara. It was something that they had to adjust to as a couple and they had done, almost perfectly. This was not right and he knew it. He debated in his head about the next action, about waking her up. She had, after all had had major surgery today, maybe she was just tired. His hand hovered in mid-air over Sara and in the still of the dimly-lit room and decided to listen to his gut, his instincts and lowered it to her hand.
"Sara" he called in a voice only slightly louder than a whisper. It was soft but would have woken him, so should have most definitely awoken her. She, however didn't stir. Leonard could feel that mind-numbing fear that he had felt so many times today seep back over him.
"Sara!" he called again, this time louder and more forceful. Again, she didn't move.
"Gideon lights to normal" he ordered the AI and room soon erupted in light, illuminating the scene. He moved his hand from hers to her shoulder to gently attempt to shake her awake but paused. The closer he got to her body the more heat he could feel emanating from her skin and not the usual bundling furnace she normally was. He placed a gentle hand to her faintly sweaty forehead before swearing under his breath, knowing the problem almost immediately. Her forehead burned with fever as she shivered slightly under the covers.
"Sara!" he called again caressing her cheek. He let out a breath of relief as he finally saw her eyes begin to peel open. She looked up at him confused before speaking.
"Len?" she asked her voice rough. She moved her hand to hold his grasping tightly.
"What is it, do we have a mission?" she sat up quickly but Len could see she seemed dizzy and unsure "Is it Savage?"
Leonard's heart sank as he realised she was disorientated.
"No, no Sara we defeated him. Remember?".
Sara looked to be thinking as she leant into Leonard's other hand which was still caressing her cheek. Finally, she replied shaking her head at the same time to try and dispel the fogginess in her brain.
"Yeah, yeah of course I remember" she spoke, confused to why she had even asked him that in the first place "I'm sorry it's just…I feel…strange".
"I know you do" he sighed. She moved to lay her head on his shoulder and he ran a hand through her dishevelled hair.
"What's wrong with me?" she asked, her eyes closed and her voice a whisper. He was about to answer, to try and explain to her that she may have been infected with a cureless virus from a futuristic bioweapon but it was alright because he was going to save her but by the time he had found the words she had already fallen back to sleep.
He was feeling the pressure now. More than likely the woman he loved was dying and he was the one in charge of trying to save her. He stayed that way for a few moments until Micks bellowing voice called over the coms.
"Hey, is Blondie okay to come to the bridge. Got something here that needs her attention and pronto".
Leonard glanced to Sara's sleeping form on his shoulder. He could now see in the good light that her face looked much paler than before, her eyes more sunken, the rings beneath them darker. He placed a hand to his coms.
"No, she's not" he replied to his friend, gently brushing Sara's hair from her face. He wanted to stay with her, to comfort her but he also wanted to save her and that need won our "But I'm on my way".
"Gotcha Boss" Mick's voiced sounded "There is something up here you're going to want to see"
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Hey everyone so that was part 3! Thank you so much for reading. Part 4 should be up soon. I know that there wasn't much action in this chapter but things are about to get tense for the team! : ) The next part should be the conclusion but if it gets too long then I might have to split it into 2 parts and then I'll be continuing with one shots and more short stories so if you have any ideas you want me to pen feel free to message or review. : ) Also please let me know what you think of this chapter! I totally apologise for any mistakes I might have made…especially with the medical side of things. : ) Until next time… : )