A/N: I am so happy that people still like this story and look forward to every chapter. I am dedicating this chapter to all of my reviewers because the story kicks into high gear in the next 3 chapters.
XOXOXOXOX
"Has there been any change?" Her mother asks to the room as we walk through the doors back into the waiting room.
"No, Gemma and Jax are still in there with him." Bobby says before smiling down at Tommy and I.
"Oh, okay. Then I guess I will just bring Tommy to them." Her mother says before dropping my hand and pointing over to the empty seat next to Opie and Aunt Mary. "You go wait over there while I bring Tommy back to Aunt Gemma." Her mother says softly before tightening her hand around Tommy's little one.
"I want to go see Uncle John too." She says, eyes pleading before puckering her bottom lip. That effectively earns a low chuckle from Bobby and Uncle Piney.
"Fine." Her mother caves before walking back out of the doors and toward Uncle John's room.
"That girl is gonna be trouble." Bobby says to her uncle just as the doors swing shut.
"Knock, knock." Her mother says announcing herself, peeking her head into the room with Tommy and her pushing through the door. Finding Aunt Gemma sitting in the chair holding Uncle John's marred and bandaged hand stops my mother short. Aunt Gemma looks up from her husband's bruised face to stare into my mother's eyes. Something passes between them for a spilt second as I hear my mother's breaths hitch before the moment passes and Tommy runs happily to his mother's side.
"Mommy!" he shouts with glee as Aunt Gemma kisses him on the top of his errant locks.
"Hey baby. Did you have a good morning with Uncle Hugh?" She asks him sweetly, picking him up to set her on his lap.
"We had cancakes." He says excitedly before the beeping of the machine swifts all of our attention to the man on the bed. "Is daddy gonna be okay?" he whispers to Aunt Gemma.
"You bet tommy. Dad will be up and fighting dragons in no time." Jax answers for his mother, before coming over to ruffle his little brothers' hair.
"Red ones?" he asks, looking at his brother as if he hung the moon.
"Not just red ones, but ones with pus blisters and fire that's so hot it can melt an ice cream cone in a second." I pipe up, coming to stand beside Jax.
"And you know what?" I continue on.
"What?" The littlest Teller asks in wonder. Eyes blown wide with curiosity.
"He'll win. After all whose gonna protect the castle if Uncle John is gone? He's the King isn't he?" She asks rhetorically.
"Yeah and I'm a Prince!" he says excitedly before blowing his daddy a kiss and telling him to rest because the dragons are mean.
The small boy's innocence causes a sad feeling to wash over her as she realizes what happens if the dragons do take over the castle. It won't happen, Uncle John won't let it. She thinks as she stares at the brave, fierce man in the bed.
"Time to go Tara. We need to let Uncle John rest." Her mother's voice shakes slightly as she tells her they need to leave.
Sparing one more glance at Uncle John she turns to go walking towards the door before catching sight of the sad look in Jaxs' eyes. He knows what will happen if the dragons win she thinks before continuing towards her mother who takes her hand and leaves quickly without a word.
Her mother doesn't speak to her as they walk back the long sterile hallway.
XOXOXOXOXO
The next few days she sits alone during lunch and tries not to catch the attention of Jacob Hale. The following Monday during recess she sits under a tree with her Ariel backpack and her taped up copy of Charlotte's Web, all alone since Jax and Opie didn't come to school again today. She opens up to her bookmarked page and settles in to read about Wilbur and the fair when a looming shadow blocks her light. Glancing up she meets the nervous looking smile of a little dark haired girl clutching a copy of The Little Princess.
"Hi! I'm Donna. Can I sit with you?" she asks shyly. "I didn't want to sit over there." She says pointing to the bench near Jacob Hale.
"Yeah. I'm Tara." She introduces before moving her backpack so Donna could sit next to her.
Donna plops down next to her before opening up her book and beginning to read, and for the first time all day she doesn't feel so bad that Jax and Opie aren't with her.
XOXOXOXO
When her mom picked her up on the sidewalk outside the school she was all smiles. "I have a surprise for you." Her mother sing-songed as she took her backpack and put it in the back before opening the front door for her.
"What?" She wondered, truly curious as why her mother could be so happy.
"Your Uncle John is awake." She beams before hurrying around to get back in the car. They head straight over to the hospital meeting up with a bunch of celebrating bikers and some very annoyed nurses.
After about an hour and three chapters later Uncle Piney asks if she wants to say hi to Uncle John since he can visit people now. She shuts her book before nodding enthusiastically before jumping off the chair and hurrying toward the door.
"Come on Uncle Piney!" She calls to him as he stops to talk to Happy. Hand on hip she taps her foot impatiently before calling him a second time. "Come on! Let's go." She shouts to him over the ruckus of Tig and Kozy.
"Better get a move on their old man. A Fitz never likes to be kept waiting." Happy chuckles before clapping his brother on the back before going to join the conversation about hogs.
"All right come on little Tara. Let's go wake up the lazy bum." He says jovially as he opens the door for the little spitfire. Who skips down the hall and nearly runs into a nurse.
"Sorry." She calls half-heartedly continuing to skip down the linoleum corridor. Pushing open Uncle Johns' door with a bit too much gusto she hits the trash can causing it to teeter.
"Uncle John!" She cries in excitement to see her uncle awake and smiling at Jax and Tommy.
"Tara!" He mimics her excitement as she rushes over and plants a kiss on his cheek.
"I missed you. Do you feel better?" She gushes, eyes flicking all over his face. Taking in the purple spots.
"I missed you too darlin' and yes I feel better now that I have a kiss from you. Your daddy better watch out, your kisses are magical. All the boys will be wanting one." He said before wincing slightly at the shift of his body.
"I think your Uncle John is right, those kisses can heal any injury from a dragon." Uncle Piney said coming to stand next to the two boys on the opposite side of the bed.
"Dragon?" Her uncle John asked curiously.
"Yep, a dragon daddy. What did it look like?" Tommy asked from his seat on the opposite chair.
"It was snow white with blazing blue eyes and a tongue like a snake." He described to his little boy.
"WOOOOW." Tommy said enraptured. "Isn't Daddy the bravest, Jax?" He turns to look at his brother who is leaning on the wall next to Uncle Piney.
"Yeah the bravest." Jax says before walking out the door.
Everyone is silent as they watch as the door shut with a click behind him before they lose sight of his golden tresses.
She looks back at uncle john giving him a smile before kissing his cheek once again before following after Jax. She finds him three doors down from the waiting room sitting on the floor back pressed against the wall. "Are you okay?" She asks him standing above him.
"He could have died. You didn't see him when- when" he starts, and stops as he gulps back a sob. "When I found him in the driveway passed out. I called for my mom, but it felt like such a long time till she came outside." He said, turning to look at her as she came to sit beside him in the partly vacant section of the hallway.
"He's okay Jax. Your daddy is fine and he'll be better before you know it." She tried to reassure him patting his shoulder. For a few minutes they sat in silence until Piney stumbled across them with Tommy in hand.
"Hey you two, wanna go see if we can find something to eat? Your Uncle Piney is as hungry as a hippo." He says rubbing his belly for effect. They both nod before Jax jumps off the ground and pulls her up to her feet before they all head back to ask if anyone else wants to get some grub.
XOXOXXOXOXOXO
"How was school lass?" Chibs asks her as she slides into the booth next to Tommy before Jax sits next to her effectively making her a Teller sandwich.
"School was good. I made a new a friend, her name is Donna and she likes to read too." She said excited to tell everyone that she made a friend outside of her family circle.
"Oh yeah? What is this Miss Donna like?" Uncle Piney asks before a waitress comes over and asks what we all want to drink.
Firing off our drink orders she sets down menus and coloring pages for Tommy, Jax ad I before hurrying over to fill the order.
"She has dark hair like I do, and her favorite food is Strawberry Jell-O and her favorite color is purple." She gushes just as her coke is set down in front of her.
"Well she seems like quite a friend, and I am glad that you're not lonely without Jax or Opie at school." Uncle Piney says before placing his order.
Tommy is so engrossed in coloring his fire engine picture in every color of the rainbow to talk to her and Uncle Piney and Chibs are talking about something or other and she really doesn't feel like coloring ever since Jax said that coloring is for babies and gave Tommy his picture to color also. So she sits in-between the princes of Samcro and sips at her coke.
Talking a big bite out of his burger Jax asks her a question but it comes out like a bunch of mush with a few crunches as his teeth tear into the lettuce. She turns to look at him and waiting for him to swallow for him to ask again.
"Is the new girl in your class?" he asks before taking a slurp of his own coke.
"Yeah, she is new. Like really new she just moved here with her grandma." She tells him before launching into how she met her and how she can't wait for him and Opie to meet her because she's sure that they'll like her.
"Has Jacob been bothering you?" He asks completely skipping over everything about her new friend and focusing on the fact about how she met her, by staying off his radar as much as possible. She takes a bite of her chicken strips before shaking her head no.
"No, but I don't think I want to sit near him or his friends." She lies to him before going back to eating her chicken and asking Tommy about his picture.
"Well now that dad's back in action Op and I will be back at school probably tomorrow if my mom has her way." He says grimacing at the idea of going back to school and getting caught up on all the homework and sitting through math yet again.
She can't help but be excited that Jax and Opie will be back tomorrow, she's missed them at school. Especially since Jacob Hale has noticed that "Rapunzel and the Giant" haven't been to school in a week and a half. She will have to remember to mention school to Tommy so that he'll mention it to Aunt Gemma and then Jax will have to go back to school, and she knows that wherever Jax goes Opie will follow.
A/N: So what did you think? Are you excited I added Donna to the story? Please leave me a review, they really do make me write faster.