Here you guys go! xD Chapter 4 for you all =)
Disclaimer: I don't own FS, unfortunately. I wish I did, because then I would be able to meet all the stars.
Pace. Look out window. Sigh. Pace. Repeat.
Cecilia let out a soft whine in her sleep and I instantly stopped, kneeling beside her and putting my hand to her forehead. I grimaced at the heat of it and gently ran my fingers through her hair. She let out a whimper before settling down again, and I sighed heavily, hanging my head. I stayed like that a few moments before I opened my eyes and grabbed a soaking washcloth from a bowl of cool water on the floor beside the cot. I wrung the excess water out and set the washcloth on Cecilia's forehead, then stood again and returned to pacing.
I looked out the window searchingly, but all I could see was pitch black from the night. I resisted the urge loudly groan my frustration and settle for another sigh, then pacing some more. Suddenly I saw something out the window and quickly looked out it to find the group returning, doubled in size. My eyes widened and I looked at Cecilia, confirmed she was still asleep, and then rushed out of the room.
I ran into the infirmary to find everyone but Anne was asleep. "Anne, they're back, and it looks like they brought the whole group." I told her quickly and she immediately jumped to alertness.
"Up! Everyone up!" She shouted, jerking everyone out of their sleep, and then turned back to me. "You should leave, Alyssa. No offense, but you'd just be in the way." Anne said and I nodded in understanding.
"Alright… but first, do you have any children's Tylenol? Cecilia is running a fever." I told her and she shook her head.
"I don't, unfortunately. Supplies are at an all time high, but we still barely have anything." Anne said apologetically. Suddenly, the door burst open and Tom and the rest of the group flooded in with children in their arms, sans Hal who stayed in the doorway. "Come back after this is over, Alyssa, and I'll see what I can do." Anne shouted as she rushed around, the room suddenly chaotic. I backed out of the room and closed the door behind me, turning around to see Hal sitting in the hall, his back against the lockers.
I sighed heavily, Cecilia's sickness making me anxious. "I'm glad to see you made it out alive." I greeted Hal, who nodded but said nothing. I sat down beside him and only then noticed his hand. "Jesus! What the hell did you do?" I asked in alarm, grabbing his arm by the elbow and jerking it up so I could examine it closely.
"Ouch! What's with you and man handling people?" Hal protested and I rolled my eyes. "It's not my blood. I stabbed a Skitter and killed it." He explained and I looked at him, exasperation written all over my features.
"Didn't you ever see Aliens?" I asked him and he raised an eyebrow, shaking his head.
"Sci-fi was never my thing. I liked to live in reality." He said and I glared at him.
"Welcome to reality, where aliens are invading the world." I said and he grinned sheepishly. "Good lord… Never seen Aliens… Blasphemy." I grumbled as I reached behind me into the cracked locker just to my side, opening it enough to reach in and pull out a bottle of water.
"What's the significance of Aliens anyways?" Hal asked curiously and I sighed at him.
"In Aliens, there are these aliens-"
"Really? Aliens in Aliens? Who would have guessed!" Hal gasped dramatically and I gave him a dirty look.
"Shut up." I chided. "Anyways, there are these aliens who bleed acid, so if one of the characters in those movies pulled what you just did, only with their aliens… They wouldn't have an arm left." I explained and he rolled his eyes.
"Well, I obviously still have my arm, seeing as you've got it in a death grip, so what's the problem?" He asked and I sighed at him.
"Don't act all tough. I can tell it hurts."
"It doesn't hurt." He corrected me, then crying out when I jabbed his hand with my finger.
"Hah! See?" I asked proudly and he glared at me.
"Damn it, woman! Stop abusing me!" He protested and I laughed softly, lifting the water bottle to my mouth and using my teeth to open it, since my other hand was still holding his arm in place. I spat the cap out of my mouth and stood, holding his arm away from me and at his side. I carefully tilted the bottle so only a little water poured out at a time, rinsing the blood away and onto the floor, as well as wasting as little water as possible.
After a few moments, I turned his arm over and got the little bit of blood left, then set the bottle on the floor. "There. Is that better?" I asked seriously and he nodded.
"Much… It's still got minor pins and needles, though." He said and I scrunched my nose up in disgust.
"Well, don't ask me to kiss it and make it better." I said and he laughed.
"Never." He said teasingly and I snickered, moving to sit down at his side again, this time on his other side. Hal sighed softly and I could see the worry written all over his face. After a moment of thought, I hesitantly leaned over so our shoulders were touching, and when he didn't instantly resist, I rested my head on his shoulder. He surprised me by wrapping his perfect-condition arm around my shoulder and leaning his head against mine. Somehow, I knew that the silently reassuring actions helped him more than simply saying 'he'll be fine' would have.
As we sat there in silence, I realized that his actions reassured me, too.
It was over an hour later when I pulled away. "I have to go check on Cecilia." I explained at his questioning expression. "I'll be back soon, alright?"
"Take your time." Hal said and I smiled at him softly before turning and heading back to the room we were staying in. When I entered, the first thing I noticed was that Cecilia was coughing quietly in her sleep. Alarmed, I moved to her bedside quickly, pulling the washrag off her forehead.
"Cecilia?" I murmured with a gentle shake of her shoulders, the eight year old blearily opening her dark green eyes. "Hey… Are you okay, sweetie?" I whispered and she looked at me oddly.
"My chest hurts…" She mumbled tiredly.
"It's okay, honey… I'll take care of you, Ci." I assured her quietly and her eyes drifted shut, her breathing steadying. I pressed the back of my hand to her forehead and sighed softly, pulling the washrag back out of the basin and putting it back on her forehead. "I'll keep you safe." I whispered softly, sitting beside her on the edge of the bed. I stayed there for at least another hour, just watching the rise and fall of her chest.
That was where Tom found me. He walked into the room and immediately noticed me, frowning slightly. "Hal was wondering where you went." He said and I snapped my eyes to him, shaken from my thoughts.
"Oh!" I exclaimed quietly. "How's Ben?"
"He's okay." Tom smiled, relief evident on his face. "We got the harness off of all the kids, and all of them are okay… we lost one of them, though." He said and I nodded, frowning sadly for a few seconds before I straightened up again.
"Um… I hate to ask you this, but…" I looked at Cecilia worriedly. "Cecilia is sick…" I murmured.
"What's wrong?" Tom asked, moving over to the bed and looking at the eight year old.
"She's running a fever, coughing, and her chest is hurting her." I told him, running my hand over Cecilia's damp hair.
"It sounds like it's just a cold, but I'm not a doctor… I'll ask Anne to come by when I bring Matt back there, and let Hal know that you're busy." Tom assured me and I smiled weakly at him.
"Thanks…" I said gratefully and Tom eyed me.
"When was the last time you slept?" He asked and I shook my head.
"Not since yesterday…" I admitted and he sighed.
"You need to get some sleep or else you'll get sick, too." Tom said but I stubbornly shook my head.
"I'll sleep eventually, but not until I know how sick she is." I said and he sighed.
"Alright… I'll send Anne in." He repeated and I repeated my response to that. "Come on, Matt." I heard him say, but I was too intent on Cecilia to pay him any attention after that. Only a few minutes had passed before I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I looked up to see Anne looking at me expectantly.
"I'm sorry, what?" I asked, guessing she'd said or asked something I hadn't heard.
"I asked what her symptoms are." Anne repeated gently and I swallowed thickly.
"Right… Sorry. She's coughing and running a fever, and she said her chest hurt…" I explained as Anne pulled the wet rag off of Cecilia's forehead. I watched as she put her stethoscope in her ears, putting it to Cecilia's chest with one hand, the other checking her temperature. After a few minutes, she straightened up and frowned, draping her stethoscope around her shoulders.
"It's not too serious, but whatever she has is probably contagious. We ought to put her in the infirmary. It's not serious now, but it'll be serious if it spreads to others." Anne explained and I nodded.
"Whatever you want to do." I said and she smiled softly at me.
"Don't worry. At the moment, there's nothing to worry over, and I'll let you know the moment there is." Anne assured me and I nodded.
"Thank you… No, I'll do that." I said quickly when I saw Anne moving to pick Cecilia up. She nodded in understanding and stepped back so that I could stand. I lifted the sleeping girl into my arms, her head resting against my chest. I followed Anne out of the room and into the infirmary, where I saw Ben and several others lying face down on beds. Hal was sitting on the edge of Ben's bed, wiping his back clean with a wash rag.
He, Matt, and Tom looked up when we walked into the room, but I just followed Anne to the designated bed and laid Cecilia in it. Anne grabbed two extra pillows and put the two under Cecilia's back, propping her up, and her original pillow under Cecilia's head. "Keep a wet washcloth on her forehead, alright?" Anne instructed, passing me the basin and wash cloth I'd had in the other room.
"Alright…" I agreed, wringing the cloth and placing it on Cecilia's forehead again.
"Her breathing is slightly wheezy, but that's alright. Keeping her propped up will help her breath easier… How long has she been sick?" Anne asked and I frowned.
"I'm not sure… She's been more tired this last week, but that's it." I said and Anne nodded thoughtfully.
"Is it possible she's been running a fever for more than just tonight?"
"I suppose so, yes. I haven't been spending as much time around her, and you know how kids are. They either complain about everything, or don't think twice about anything." I sighed while Anne laughed softly.
"Alright…" Anne reached down and felt Cecilia's throat with a small frown. "I have an idea as to what she has, and it's nothing bad, but I won't know for sure for some time. From my experience as a pediatrician, though, it sounds like Cecilia has a case of pneumonia. If you're accurate about the tiredness, and if her fever also developed over the week like I'm hoping, then it's likely just walking pneumonia."
"Now, you should get some rest." Anne said and I snorted in amusement.
"So I've been told." I said, my lip twitching with the urge to smile. I glanced behind me at Hal, still wide awake and looking like he planned on staying that way, and I shook my head. "I can sleep when I'm dead." I said with a light grin. "Hey, Hal?" I called, but not too loudly, and he looked up at me questioningly. "Any idea where there's a pharmacy nearby?" I asked and he immediately looked confused.
"Pharmacy? What do you need from a pharmacy?"
"Just some preventative measures." I explained vaguely.
"All the nearby pharmacies have either been picked clean or have Skitters and Mechs at them." Tom informed me and I sighed.
"Damn." I cursed before I paused, an idea suddenly hitting me. "Wait… what if…" I said slowly, planning as I spoke. "we went to a pharmacy from a small town?" I asked carefully. "A small town far enough away from the cities that there are no mother ships, and small enough in population that there probably aren't any Skitters or Mechs nearby?" I asked but Tom shook his head.
"Then the pharmacies and grocery stores would have also been picked clean, because no one in the towns would have died." Tom pointed out and I nodded.
"Right… I should have thought of that… Okay, so a small town near enough to the cities that they were wiped out. If there's no activity around, the Skitters and Mechs would have just left, right? No point in hanging around where there aren't any children to snatch, right?" I asked, my excitement growing.
"She has a point." All of us looked at the doorway, surprised by Weaver's sudden appearance. "I came up with a similar idea while all the Masses were still together."
"Why haven't I heard of this?" Tom asked, looking surprised.
"Because it was a failure." Weaver explained with his customary frown and unhappy voice. "There were still Skitters behind…"
"So we go further out, town by town until we find where the Skitters and Mechs end, we record how far we had to go, and find other towns in that same distance." I said and Weaver eyed me carefully.
"You might be on to something…" Weaver mused, falling silent for several minutes before nodding. "Once the opportunity presents itself, I want you two," He motioned to Hal and me, "to go out and find where the nearest town is without Skitters and Mechs, but still with supplies."
"Yes sir." Hal and I both said politely and Weaver nodded before turning and leaving abruptly. I grinned widely, feeling entirely proud of myself for that one, but my grin and happiness faded when Cecilia let out a soft moan of discomfort in her sleep. I turned around and instantly sat on the side of the bed, my back to everyone and facing Cecilia. I grabbed the wash rag from her forehead and resoaked it, then put it back in place and continued my vigil by her side.
And there you have it =) Review, please. They make me feel warm and fuzzy inside... and inspired xD