Nurse Chapel could not be more nervous about her shift. Len had slept without incident according to Nurse Radley's report, but now it was time for shifts to change and for her to see just what they were dealing with today.
So far, their CMO was still a child. He'd made no progress in the night, but Chapel scanned the biobed readouts anyway. There were spikes of wakefulness on the chart, but Len hadn't gotten out of bed. People dodged her in the corridors. They knew not to mess with Chapel when she was focused on something.
Sickbay was quiet. That was always a little worrisome, but Chapel had confidence in her coworkers. She made her way into the side room and found Nurse Radley handing off a breakfast tray to their littlest crewmember.
Len was taking this syrup-soaked slice of waffle slowly, painstakingly, up towards his mouth. He chewed an extensive amount before swallowing. This was a child who had learned his lesson, and might be overcompensating just a bit.
"Good morning. How's everyone doing?" Chapel set her PADD on the table and approached the bedside.
Radley smiled, looking not too tired after a night of watching over his CMO. There was something about his eyes which made Chapel think about checking with him before he went off-duty. It was the look of a man who'd very much like to have a conversation in private.
Len finished his bite of waffle and waved at her. "Good morning! Nurse Dennis brought me breakfast!"
'Nurse Dennis' chuckled and offered Len the glass of orange juice. "He didn't want to get out of bed until you got here. He said he didn't want you to worry."
Chapel bit her lip to try and keep a neutral expression. Gosh darn it, the little CMO was too cute to deal with. "Len, do you mind if I borrow Nurse Dennis a minute? I want to go over this chart with him before he goes and gets his own breakfast."
Len nodded and dove right back into his food. Chapel gave Radley a look and they adjourned to the CMO's office.
"What's with the look, Radley? Did something happen that you didn't include in the report?" Chapel didn't bother with the desk and chairs, but got straight to the point when the door had closed.
Dennis Radley looked concerned. He shot a quick glance at the door before sighing. "He woke up a bunch, you have it there on the readout." He gestured to the PADD. "I didn't think it ought to go in the log, but he had nightmares." Radley paused to collect his thoughts. Nurse Chapel got the feeling that this wasn't going to be a story she wanted to hear.
"He told me about them. Len said one of them was his granddad in the hospital, except he was really sick and looked like a skeleton. He said it was scary because it only got worse and there wasn't anything he could do to help. Doctor McCoy told me a story once about his grandfather, so I was able to help calm him down and reassure him that everything was fine. But he didn't want to go back to sleep." Dennis chuckled, but it wasn't a happy sound. "Almost started crying. I had to read to him until he dropped off again."
Chapel's heart sank. That was another complication they didn't need, Len under any more stress than he was already. Something about this whole ordeal didn't sit well with her, like the fact that the poor boy was already accustomed to hospital life. Of course, Doctor McCoy was fit as a fiddle and psychologically fine, but they weren't equipped to deal with an emotionally burdened toddler. Chapel was sure they didn't have a child psychologist onboard. The closest staff member they had was, well, four years old at the moment.
"I guess we need a better arrangement." She sighed. "Sickbay is the best place for him on paper, but it's not a particularly comforting environment for a child. He's probably stressed in ways we're not aware to measure. Before you go, could you make a note in your report? No details, just a recommendation for a different location. That'll make my paperwork easier."
Nurse Radley nodded. "Will do. I'll get that amended before breakfast. Afterwards, though, I'm getting a good 8 hours myself!"
Chapel let him go. Radley was a nice young man, but just as unequipped as the rest of them. Being good with kids was one thing, but being a child psychologist…
"How are those waffles, Len? Is that enough food for you?" Chapel smiled warmly. She was sure Len would be happy not spending the night in a hospital environment.
Len nodded. He was all smiles and syrup. The biobed would soon be covered in crumbs. Oh well. "And the orange juice is really good!" He spilled less of that, to Chapel's amazement.
She smiled. "Good. I'm going to have a talk with the Captain in a little while. If you behave and he says it's alright, you might be able to go play in the rec room later today."
Len's head shot up at the word 'play' and he nodded more fervently than before. "I'll be good. I'll be so good that Captain Jim will give you a promotion! The nurses with the best patients always get promotions at the hospital."
The kid couldn't get sweeter if he tried. Chapel grinned at him again and gestured to the tray. "Finish up, and we can go get you a bath and something clean to wear."
Len picked up the plate and licked off the syrup. Chapel was certain Mrs. McCoy wouldn't approve, but she kept her mouth shut. This sticky mess was going to get a bath pretty soon anyway. Well, a shower. The tank wasn't filled all the way up and that might not be a wise move at this juncture. Better safe than sorry with their walking disaster waiting to happen.
"Have you ever used a sonic shower before, or does your mom make you use the old-fashioned ones?" Chapel helped Len down off the bed. It wouldn't do to have him leaping off again and hurting himself. The biobeds were a little tall for toddlers.
Len frowned. "Is that the one that doesn't do water? They have those at Dad's hospital, but they're not fun. You don't even get soap to play with!" He looked more comfortable after being set on the floor. Chapel held out her hand and Len took it. Wherever she was leading, he'd follow.
"It may not be fun, but it'll get you clean. You don't want to run all over the ship with sticky hands now do you?" She ignored the quiet "Maybe" and led him to the shower area. While he got clean, she'd put in a call to requisitions. The boy needed a pair of shoes and maybe a bell.
He was singing in the shower when she got back. It was a cute little nonsense song- something about a girl named Matilda and a ghost or so Chapel supposed- but Len stopped singing quickly at her knock.
"I have your new clothes, Leonard. If you dim the shower door, I can drop them inside on the counter."
She heard the tiny "OK" echoing off the bathroom walls. Chapel counted to ten, and then scurried in to deposit the clothes. The shower door was totally opaque, but this still felt… odd. Would she have felt as awkward if Leonard was back to normal? Chapel thought no, but she also hoped she wouldn't have to do this bit ever again.
The wait outside wasn't very long. Len got dressed quickly, even if he did put his shoes on the wrong feet. Chapel helped him fix that.
"Alright, Len. Today we've got to run a few tests before the Captain comes by. We're going to need to do another blood sample, OK?"
Len nodded solemnly. It seemed like he understood how important the tests were, even if he didn't like them. Chapel just wished she had something better than a lollipop to give him.
/*\\
Jim Kirk tried to keep a steady pace going down to Sickbay. There was no news on Bones, which probably meant no good news, but there was something else: Scotty came back with a report stating that there was no outside anomaly influencing the transporter after all. No minerals on the planet's surface, no stellar or cosmic waves or, to quote Scotty, "any of that gobbledygook". That meant a whole transporter overhaul was due. When it rained, it poured…
Suddenly, a piercing shriek punched past the solid Sickbay doors. In the back of his mind, Jim thought he was getting far too old for this. He broke into a run.
Oh he really, really wished Bones would stop scaring him like that. The little guy was in the capable hands of Lieutenant (JG) Anfin, who thought to amuse him by tossing him up into the air. Anfin caught Len with one arm and transferred him up to her shoulders.
"Are you tall enough to touch the ceiling?" Len stuck his hands over his head and found he was still short by a lot. It wouldn't be safe tossing him in the air otherwise.
"Almost." Anfin humored him. "If I got a running start, maybe."
Len giggle and surveyed the room from this new height. His eyes widened when he saw Jim.
"Captain Jim! Look how tall I am!"
Anfin was a little more bashful at the sight of her CO, considering she had the fourth in command sitting on her shoulders without a care in the world.
"Well, Leonard, I daresay you're the tallest person on the whole ship, including Lieutenant Arex. I'd say you've got him beat by a whole three inches, wouldn't you say, Anfin?"
She breathed a small sigh of relief before agreeing. "Oh yes, Captain. The tallest person on the whole ship."
"Why don't you come down, spend some time with us regular-sized folk, Leonard?" Jim was relieved to see him nodding. Considering the hard time he gave Spock in the officer's mess, Len McCoy could be a real handful if he set his mind to it.
Anfin set him on the ground. Len offered her his thanks and a big hug on the leg for playing with him before she stood aside for the Captain's lecture. The Lieutenant was sure she was in for it.
"So, what brings you to Sickbay, Lieutenant? Mister Scott not have enough to do down in Engineering?"
"No sir. I mean yes sir, he does. That's why I was sent here." She replied quickly, "Mister Scott wants to run some more sophisticated tests with the transporter, and he was wondering if… if you could spare some hands to help." Anfin gave him a significant look.
"Ah." Jim saw what she was getting at. Anfin was clever, even if she did have a tendency to show off. So long as there was no news from Chapel, Jim didn't see any harm in a little friendly deception.
"Anfin, you know we've got no one to spare! What was Mister Scott thinking, that we just had someone sitting around, bored, with nothing to do?"
He saw the realization hit Leonard out of the corner of his eye.
"Me! I don't have a thing to do, Captain Jim sir!" He waved his hand in the air. "Nurse Chapel's just gonna make me sit around all day with nothing but that big old sehlat bear to play with."
"I don't know…" Jim tried not to let his amusement show. Anfin had a much better poker face.
"Please? I already promised Nurse Chapel I'd be good!" Len tugged on his pant leg for emphasis. Jim understood what Chapel meant. He was almost too hard to say 'no' to. Good thing there wouldn't be any crushing blows delivered today.
Jim pretended to be deep in thought. "I suppose. If Nurse Chapel agrees, Lieutenant Anfin can escort you down to Engineering."
Len looked like he was about to start bouncing off the walls. "I'm gonna go ask her right now!" He tore off through the doorway, towards the CMO's office. No doubt Chapel was holed up in there.
"He's quite a handful, isn't he?" Jim commented.
Anfin nodded. "Yes sir. I think he was glad to make a new friend, even if he usually doesn't like seeing me in Sickbay." The Liutenant wasn't nearly accident prone, but she had a bad habit of overextending herself in times of crisis. That, and the rec room stunts…
"I'm sure he'll forgive you pretty quickly." Jim grinned as the pounding of little feet could be heard headed their way. Len leapt at Lieutenant Anfin and was saved from crashing by her quick reflexes.
"She said yes!" Len yelled, swinging his arms and legs as he was hoisted into the air. "Carry me like a football, Annie!"
Yolanda Anfin obliged him anyway. Len was slung under one arm like a football, grinning and holding on for dear life.
"We'll be in Engineering if you need anything, sir." Lieutenant Anfin smiled and headed out of Sickbay. Len hollered "Bye, Captain Jim!" before they cleared the doors.
Nurse Chapel chose that moment to appear from the other room. She looked tired, probably hadn't rested well. Had anyone in Medical? Jim was sure they were all worried sick on their CMO's behalf. This little bundle of joy was adorable, but they wanted their Doctor McCoy back.
"How is he?" Jim asked, all the playfulness gone from his voice.
"Stressed in ways we don't really understand, sir." Chapel sighed. "Nurse Radley said he has nightmares."
Jim frowned. McCoy wasn't much of a nightmare man, save the handful of times he'd mentioned to Jim, and those usually after a night of heavy drinking.
"Could it just be the environment? Maybe he's anxious here."
Chapel pursed her lips. "I thought about it. I don't think there's anything to rule out at this juncture, but there's always the possibility that he knows something's off, subconsciously, and… I don't know- Maybe it's trying to tell him."
Jim crossed his arms and stared at the floor. No, none of this sounded good, but there wasn't a lot they could do about it right now. He just hoped Scotty could find the answers. Between him and Spock, they were the best hope Bones had.