Frank's Finest

by Princess LaLaBlue

Despite the efforts of the cells of Frank, the health of the human has yet to improve four months after Thrax's attack, so newly elected Mayor Colonic comes up with a team. A team of Frank's Finest. What does that have to do with Jones, a cynical medical examiner named Rachel, and thought dead big daddy Thrax? Guess you'll have to read to find out… (Thrax X OC, Jones X Leah)

7. Chapter 7 Christmas in Frank

Chapter 7; Christmas in Frank:

Warning; Rated M for swearing, violence, eventual lemony things, and lots of icky germs. You have been warned…

Disclaimer: I do not own 'Osmosis Jones' or any of its characters, I am only using them to fulfill my own disillusioned dreams and fan-girl wishes. : P

Just wanted to say that this chapter was not only influenced by the wonderful holiday that is Christmas, but also by the Disney movie Hunchback of Norte Dame, which I had just recently re-watched after many years. It inspired me to write a church scene, and I think you all will like it (I will not have heavy religious tones in my story, but I think we all can appreciate the gothic architecture and atmosphere of a church or Mosque).

Also, I know that even though this only makes seven chapters and more than fifty thousand words, but I warned you guys in the beginning that I had great plans for this story (so thanks for the reviews, now, if only some of you were to fav…pretty please with a cherry on top?). I have the basic outline already written out, and it's about possibly thirty chapters worth. I just thought I'd warn ya guys, you've all been great, so here's a little gift...uh-ahem;

Jingle bells, Colonic smells, Andrew laid an egg! Fine mobile lost a wheel, and Thrax melted away! Merry Christmas!

(Last thing I swear, sorry that I kept telling you all that this chapter wouldn't take long to post. I suffered from a horrible case of writer's procrastination…that and Word lost this chapter and I had to retype it all over again...why me?)

~o0o~

Christmas is a time to be thankful for what we have, to cherish who we love, and to remember what we miss…

It was time. Through a crack of the thick curtains of her private floor, Ray could feel the sunlight shine through, gently warming her face. Without opening her eyes, she reached for the slumbering rabies virus who always slept at the foot of her bed, scratching behind his pointed ears to gently awaken him. Today was the day, and he wouldn't want to miss out. Finally risking opening her eyes, Rachel slipped out of bed, and made her way over to her private bathroom, her hurried pace prompted by the cold concrete floor.

It took a while, but soon a bathed, blow dried, slightly wavy hair parted heavily to the left, glassless, and robed Ray emerged from the bathroom, feeling more refreshed then she had in a long while as she hummed along to a Christmas carol.

"Dashing through the snow, on a one horse open sleigh…" Making her way over to her rarely used vanity desk, she sat herself down in front of the mirror, and got to work on her face. A light blush, deep red lipstick, black eye liner, dusky eye shadow, topped off with pristine black nails. Opening a jewelry box that unlocked with a slight creek, Ray pulled out a pair of simple silver hooped earrings, putting them on after removing the many black studs that already pierced her ears. Digging once more into the jewelry box, Rachel pulled out an antique circular silver locket, a single rose surrounded by thorns engraved on its cover. The cool touch of the necklet chilled her for a moment as she put it on, her eyes never leaving the simple necklace. It had been her mother's, and while normally she wouldn't be caught dead doing something so foolishly sentimental, this was the one day she would do it, and feel safe doing it.

Rising up from the vanity desk and over to her white wardrobe, Ray removed the silk robe she was wearing, feeling safe as Zane positioned himself by the stairs, all ready to go. After slipping on the under garment essentials, Ray stepped into a long sleeved, emerald green, V-neck wrap dress that ended at her lower thighs, the only dress she owned. Finishing her look off with a pair of black heels, a black scarf, and her usual black leather jacket, Rachel stuffed her wallet and phone into her pockets. Grabbing a bow topped present, and a single deep blue rose she bought last night off her coffee table, she went over to the stairs where Zane had been patiently waiting for her, ready to start the day just as she was.

She wasn't going to let anything ruin this day, the one day she allowed herself to feel cheerful, to feel jubilant, and more importantly, show it.

And then she went down stairs…

"Oh, come on Drix! We can't leave him here by himself, and I promised Leah that I would come with her to meet her parents for lunch today!" Complained a loud Jones as Ray stepped off of the stairs and onto the first floor. Unseen by the three other residents of the renovated hospital, Rachel and Zane walked closer, listening in.

"Yes, well, I have made an appointment for today as well, one that I cannot break" Drix replied, his face firm in his resolution to win out this argument. He too had a social life, albeit a recently awakened one, and he would not be saddled with the chore of watching a sadistic killer again.

"But we can't leave Thrax here by himself! Sure, a couple of hours at a time, but for a whole day! After the stupid stunt he pulled five days ago at the ware house, the prick does not deserve the hospital all to him-"

"Jones, I am standing right next to you" Said Thrax in a tone that made the simple observation sound almost like a threat. The old, familiar tension the two enemies had felt for each other had come back stronger than ever thanks to their little conversations back at the ware house, but mercifully, both men seemed to be in control of themselves for the moment, however much they wished not to be. Jones was about to reply to Thrax, when the sound of heels clicking sharply against concrete floor rose to their attention in the brief silence.

All three men turned around to see a woman clad in green and black, her long, silver hair in tussled locks, lips painted an alluring red. Ray didn't know how, but somehow she managed to keep a straight face as she saw three pairs of wide eyes blinking at her in disbelief, each wondering who the strange female before them was.

"Ray? Is, is that you? You, you're in a dress…and, and you look…" Jones tried to speak, but his tongue kept tripping him as his eyes grew wider and wider in bewilderment. Rachel, feeling the usual yuletide mischief bubble up within her, decided to help him out.

"I believe the words you are searching for Jones are something along the line of fabulous, beautiful, gorgeous, dazzling-"

"Like an actual woman for once" Jones interrupted. Unlike the coffee cup incident, Ozzy stood no chance as a fat leather wallet smacked him in the face, the doctor's aim having been improved much since last time. As Zane went to go fetch her wallet for her, Ray came to stand where Jones once had been before he hit the floor, greeted by a surprising silence. Not a stuttering comment from Drix, or even a bout of cruel laughter from Thrax at Jones's predicament. Was seeing her in a dress and heels really so shocking? Apparently...

"Miss Rachel, you look…very nice today" Drix finally complimented once Jones himself had recovered and Zane was back at Ray's side. He paused for a second, but then seemed to make up his mind about something, and spoke "Do you think you could help us settle a dispute?"

"Yeah!" Piped up Jones "See, I told Drix here that I had a date with Leah today, so he was gonna have to watch Mr. Psychopath, but then he comes over and tells me that he was an 'engagement' today, and can't!" Ray listened to what Jones had to say, at least, that's what she was pretending to do while secretly staring daggers at a red virus whose eyes refused to leave her legs "So now we're both stuck until we find a baby sitter for Thrax, and it ain't gonna be me!"

"Well, it will not be me either!" Drix said pointedly as he crossed his arms huffily. Rachel rolled her obsidian blue eyes; these two are Frank's Finest cops, repeat, finest. About to tell them to man up and accept the responsibility that came with being a protector of Frank, Ray caught sight of their faces. Under the childish anger, was desperation. Desperation to have freedom of their duties for just a day, a moment, to enjoy the company of those they loved or just themselves. Thinking back, Ray recalled that while she had her exasperating moments with Thrax, Jones and Drix had it much worse than she. They lived on the same floor with the damned virus, and had to watch him almost every minute of the day since he was found out to be alive more than a month and a half ago. Looking back up once more at their pathetically pouting faces, she sighed, damning the season of giving and being jolly.

"I'll take him" She said out loud. Jones and Drix stopped in their bickering to look at her, their expression pure astonishment for a moment. Thrax too, finally looked up at the good doctor's face, though his expression was not quite as readable.

"I got some errands to run, but it will just be me and Zane, so I can have Red here tag along" Ray added, feeling her uncharacteristic joy start to slowly die away.

"B-but, no Ray, you can't! I mean, that, well, what if…" Jones tried to argue. While it was true that he wanted a break from the virus, he didn't exactly want to push off the responsibility of watching a mass murderer onto Rachel. As he tried to continue in what they all considered normal now, Jones hadn't let his guard fall once in watching the virus, and even redoubled his efforts in trying to find Thrax's chain, and it was beginning to take a heavy toll on him. Even though it was apparent that he distrusted and despised Thrax more than ever for the stunt he pulled and got away with back at the weapon smuggler's ware house, Jones decided he was going to keep the deal he made with the virus, hoping that Thrax had pulled his last stupid stunt for fear of his viral life. He needed the psychopath out of his city as soon as possible, and if that meant prolonging justice that needed to be served upon the virus, then so be it, so long as he leaves, whether dead or alive. But, even though all this was beyond exhausting, he wasn't about to allow someone as defenseless...as…Ray…

"I am not going anywhere heavily populated, so he won't be seen. And I will have Zane with me, so if Red gives me any trouble, Zane will just eat him" Ray argued back more successfully. Jones and Drix fell into a contemplative silence as they considered her generous, and tempting, proposition. Thrax on the other hand merely stood back and watched them warily, having finally gotten over the delightful surprise that was Rachel's dress.

"Well, if it's not too much trouble…"

"It won't be" Ray finished for Drix. Though her tone was assertive, the two cops still didn't look convinced. But after another moment of contemplative silence, the two cops finally, almost reluctantly, nodded in agreement.

"Alright. But if he gives you any trouble, let Zane loose on his viral ass"

o0o

Thrax sat inside the car waiting for Ray while she finished talking to Jones and Drix beside the Fine mobile she was borrowing, wondering over the bizarre situation before him. His right hand twitched as it unconsciously searched for the chain it missed, his usual costume to twist it while he thought, but he forced himself to concentrate without it. For one, this situation meant sometime alone with the good doctor, and the thought of that alone was enough to make him smirk in enjoyment. But two, and more importantly, it was a chance to fix his current crisis. If he could prove that he was a 'good boy', out and about with Rachel, than maybe Jones and the cold pill might just get off his back some. Though he still did not regret what he did, he however did not like the repercussions of his, admittedly, unprofessional action, which included more glaring, less alone time, and more importantly, less assurance on his deal with the cop. Though Jones had yet to really tell him what had been going on inside that tiny thing he called a mind, Thrax could tell that Jones was now very uncertain about his offer, however committed to it. He needed to assure the immunity cell of his 'trustworthiness', and once more fall under the immunity cell's suspicion radar…

"Alright Red, looks like it gonna be me, you, and my rabid, overly protective pet today" Ray announced as she opened the car door, promptly sitting herself down at the driver's seat. Thrax looked up from the dashboard he had been concentrating on while he thought to look at the woman now beside him, his smirk coming back once more. Before he could comment though, Zane hopped up into the back seat, slammed the door behind him with his tail, and rested his head on the console in between the two seats. Glaring red eyes clashed against piercing yellow ones, and the two viruses expressed their feelings about each other perfectly without words.

"Sounds like a gas baby, but do we really need to bring the dog along?" Thrax asked as he continued to return Zane's glare while Ray buckled up.

"Yes. Cause one, this is usually the day we spend together, so really, you're ruining his day by being here. And two, if you try anything, and I mean anything, he will eat you" Zane let out a low growl in agreement to what his master said, his long spiked tail twitching on the back seat. Thrax looked away from the mutant mutt to smirk up at Rachel, who was already regretting her generosity, and nearly purred.

"Aw baby, I'll be a nice. Unless of course, you want me to be naughty…" Rachel cursed herself when she felt her face jerk in infuriation at virus, but took comfort when Zane let loose a warning growl at him. Thrax on the other hand, was back to returning the glare of the animal who hated him for some unknown reason as Ray started busing herself by starting the car, and driving the deep blue mustang out of the garage.

For the longest time the three strange beings rode silently in the car down an empty street, listening to the station Ray tactfully changed from the standard Christmas music.

Love me, love me

Feed the Flame

If you want me back again

Thrax glanced back at the woman next to him after a while, taking in her appearance once more. In her regular jeans and graphic tee, she was a rather simplistic beauty. But put in a low neck dress with waved hair, she could almost rival all the women he had come to know, viral or otherwise. As his eyes drifted down to her exposed legs, he wondered if it really was just her, or his interest for her that developed out of bored desperation that made her look so fine. Speaking of his interest, his curiosity…

"So," His voice was louder than he intended it to in order to speak over the music.

Right to the sky

"You and Andrew…"

Higher and higher

"Used to be together?"

Baby, can you play with fire?

If it wasn't for his fast reflexes, Thrax just might have crashed through the wind shield as Ray stomped on the brakes, harshly skidding the mustang to a stop. Once halted, Ray whipped her head around to face the dazed virus next to her, her long hair flying in all directions.

"Who the hell told you that?!" She practically screamed at him while turning the music off. Thrax was taken aback a second by her expression, it was beyond any he had seen of hers. The seething anger she had for Andrew, the annoyed glare she gave him, nothing rivaled this fuming, enraged expression on her now. And it might have been his imagination, but her obsidian blue eyes seemed to turn fiery in color, reflecting her rage further. Zane too looked surprised by this outburst as he scooted himself back off of the console his had nearly been flung on top off into the back seat, his eyes downcast.

"No one told. I heard and saw you two in the street after the weapons case" Thrax replied, startled but not the least bit intimidated or angered by the woman sitting next to him, now too experienced in emotional control around her to allow that. Her expression did not flinch, and she merely continued to return the curious glare he was giving her. Finally though, she turned to face the road, and commanded the car to drive down the street that thankfully no one else was on. The car was now completely silent as Ray tried to control herself, having a tough time recalling when she had last been this angry. Andrew and Jones could talk all they wanted about her temper, but neither of them knew exactly how deep it could go. The virus though, he now knew, and he knew about her and Andrew. Thrax's eyes never left the woman as she tried to ignore him, driving towards wherever she needed to be. Knowing that she was still seething, he risked it.

"So, were you two together?"

"What's to a virus like you?" She instantly bit back, not daring to face him in case she lost herself. Out of the corner of her eye though, she could see Thrax shrug.

"In all honesty, I don't really know baby. Boredom, lack of entertainment, curiosity-"

"Curiosity?" She asked, her anger immediately giving way to her own inquisitiveness, which she instantly damned. Again, out of the corner of her eye, she could see the deep red virus chuckle as his usual smirk graced his face.

"Yes. You're one strange cell, and strange things fascinate me…" Rachel rolled her eyes, but did not reply. Once more, she turned her full concentration onto the road ahead of her, using all her will power to try and ignore the virus still staring at her. Zane in the back seemed to take the silence as a sign that the tension from before had settled, and scooted his head back onto the console, his concerned red eyes trained on his master. Thrax kept silent, waiting for the doctor to react, knowing that it would be any minute what with her fingers impatiently drumming against the wheel, her patience being eaten away by irritation. He was right.

"The answer to your question is obvious, I mean, you saw…so why do I need to tell you what you already know?"

"That is true," He replied "But I want to hear it from you" His answer was not what Rachel was expecting, and for a moment she found herself at a loss. Feeling betrayed by her eyes as they glanced at the virus next to her for a moment, Ray forced them to concentrate on the road and the road alone once more. Thrax could tell that he wasn't getting anywhere closer to an actual answer from her by the steeled expression on her face. After a moment though, he came up with an idea, one that her own curiosity would not be able to refuse.

"Tell you what baby, how about you and I play a little game?" Ray scoffed, the harsh sound causing Zane to look up at her.

"And what makes you think I will play any sort of game with you?" Daring a glance in his direction as she turned down another empty street, Ray returned the smirk the virus was wearing.

"Because you won't be able to resist this game" He rumbled out, trying to cross his long legs in the short space the vehicle gave him "It will be a game of questions and answers. I ask you a question, you answer it truthfully-"

"That hardly sounds like a fun game" Interrupted Ray "What's in it for me?"

"I'm getting to that baby" Thrax chided, his tone coated in amusement. After combing his long dreads back with a clawed hand, he answered, his yellow eyes staring at the once again obsidian blue ones that refused to meet his. "Once you answer my question, you get to ask one, and I will give you an honest reply"

Thrax was right, she couldn't resist, he could see it in her face. As soon as he finished speaking he saw the change in her expression, switching from irked curiosity to unbearable intuitiveness. Ray bit her lip in thought of what her answer would be to this most tempting offer, missing the leer that grew on the virus's face as he watched her do so. What did she have to lose? There was nothing she was ashamed of, however secretive she was, and there was nothing she would tell him that he could use against her. And to be able to get a reply to any question, honest or not, from El Muerte Rojo was enticing...

"Fine" She finally replied, causing Thrax to wipe away his leer before she could see it.

"Well then, ladies first" He urged her with a gesture of his clawed hand, something akin to a charming smile on his face. Knowing what he was referring to, Ray braced herself to do something she rarely did even with those she called friends; tell the truth.

"To answer your question, yes. Andrew and I used to be together. We met in at an orphanage I was transferred to when I went into my second year of high school. We lived in the same building, attended the same school, and just ended up falling deep into stupid puppy love" Ray knew that she didn't need to tell him any of these details, just the minimum truth, but as soon as she started, she found she couldn't stop. That's why she avoided telling the truth, once you start, you won't be able to stop until it's all out, it was troublesome like that. Thrax didn't seem to mind one bit though, grinning and smirking as he merely listened, finding it all so bizarrely interesting.

"So, I answered your question Red. Now it's my turn" Ray finally managed to say once she regained control. After a moment of silence, she looked at Thrax once stopped at a red light. Instantly she regretted it, knowing from the smirk on his face that was exactly what he wanted.

"Ask away" He told her in a low purr, once more giving her a flourishing gesture with a clawed hand. Rolling her eyes in exasperation, Ray ordered the car forward with the now turned green light, wondering what she should ask. After a moment, she found her question.

"What's it like?" Taking pleasure in having the virus look at her confusedly for a second, Ray continued "Outside a body. What's it like the human world?" Once again, the sapphire cell managed to surprise the virus next to her as he wondered what prompted her to ask him about that. She could have asked him anything, how many he killed, how he was created, what exactly his powers could do, but instead she asks him about the outside world? Though amazed, Thrax answered her entertaining question.

"It's big baby, bigger than you could ever imagine" He told her as he placed his arms behind his head, closing his eyes to enhance the images of the world outside that flooded his mind now.

"Everything is stronger than you, and could sweep you away with a single bat of an eyelash. And though there ain't as many of them as there are cells in here, the humans swarm every inch of it all, and a million more viruses and bugs chasin' after them. It a fight every step of the way baby…" Ray tried to imagine what he was saying, but she was at a loss. She had never seen the outside, hadn't even visited the eye or the occipital lobe, but she doubt that what she see there would be able to give her the details Thrax was now freely giving her.

"So, my turn" Thrax said, interrupting the visions of gigantic sneaker clad feet that were running through Ray's head. "What broke you and the brain cell up?" Rachel could feel her face become flushed with anger once more, but this time managed to keep a lid on it. She did agree to play this game. However, that did not explain why he had chosen to ask her this particular, personal, question. But, again, she did agree to tell the truth, not pick and choose which questions she answered as she should have but now chided herself for not.

"He broke my heart" She simply replied, knowing that her tone would convey her unwillingness to say much else.

"Aw, poor baby. Men can be such brutes can't they?" Falsely comforted Thrax with an amused sneer, one that she returned.

"Yeah well, as the saying goes; women are like angels, but when someone clips our wings, we continue to fly on broomsticks. We're flexible like that" For but a second, something strange happened. They both laughed. Not cruelly, not jokingly, genuinely. As soon as she recognized the sound of the deep chuckle beside her though, Ray stopped, and heard Thrax do the same shortly after. Shaking the discomforting feeling that went through her as a reaction to the spilt second, yet unsettling event, Rachel asked her next question.

"My turn again. How did you learn to gild? Was it genetic, or was it something you learned?"

"Well now, that is a tough question, since I am not truly an airborne pathogen" Said Thrax once he too had recovered from the disturbingly genuine moment "Airborne germs are born with the ability to fly, with wings or what not, but not me. But there are many ways to copy that, this jacket for instance" The virus tugged at the lapel of his black coat, a rare, proud smirk forming on his face over his invention "Those high flyers just hate it when viruses like me can-"

Thrax didn't finish his sentence, for he sensed the car slowing down. Seeing Ray park the mustang along a vacant sidewalk, he looked out the window to his right, and he saw where Rachel had taken them all too.

A cemetery.

Why wasn't he surprised?

"I'll be back in a couple minutes Red, so it looks like you're gonna have to wait a few moments for your turn" Ray announced. Turning so she faced him fully, obsidian blue eyes meet golden-yellow in a stern stare "Stay" She told him firmly as if commanding a disobedient pet. Not waiting for whatever comeback he was surely cooking up, she got out of the car, grabbed the blue rose that had been placed in a cup holder, and opened the back door for Zane to follow.

Not having anything else to entertain himself with beside the radio, Thrax watched Ray and her viral pet as she went through the black iron gate of the massive sized cemetery. Just days to Christmas, and she visits a grave yard? His yellow eyes continued to trail Ray as she made her way down a stone path, the bar fence allowing and flat terrain allowing him a perfect view of the cell who was unaware of his observation. Seeing her stop at a pair of grave markers not far from the cobble path, Thrax watched as Ray placed the single rose down upon one of the aged markers, and start to talk.

"I always pick the weird ones, don't I?" The red virus asked himself as he looked away from the woman that chatted unheard to the markers, her rabid pet cutting away at the weeds that had grown onto the stones with black claws. Folding his arms behind his head as he closed his eyes to enjoy moment of absolute silence, casually pondering what his next inquiry of the good doctor should be. After a mere second of thought, the obvious question to ask emerged in his mind.

"I'm back" Announced Rachel as she opened the back door for Zane to hop in, her familiar and lively cynical voice interrupting the half dream state Thrax had slipped into during her long absence. Instantly aware and fully alert thanks to years of criminal activity, the virus watched as the sapphire woman sit back down in the driver's seat, unwrapping the black scarf she had twisted a little too tightly around her neck.

"Where to next baby?" Thrax asked, his yellow eyes flashing impatiently. Ray chuckled as she brought the engine to life, and willed the car back out into the street.

"I hope that wasn't your question Red, cause you're gonna be disappointed with the answer; that's for me to know and you to find out" Thrax drummed his clawed fingers on the console in between him and Ray, rolling his eyes in slight exasperation. The wait in the car had put out a bit of his once fully entertained mood, he didn't even know how long exactly she had been out there talking to herself, but to him it was long enough. He even had time to test his strength against the antibodies, finding progress in the thirty seconds of resistance against it he had gained before he closed his eyes to rest up before Rachel came back.

"Cute baby, very cute" Thrax growled back. Though recognizing the feral tone, Ray couldn't detect any malice or anger in it, just irritation and impatience. Seems the deadly virus had learned a thing or two about controlling tempers...

"Ask away" She told him in the same manner as he had before, complete with flourishing wave of hand and mockingly sweet voice.

"Your folks, what were they like?" Thrax asked, having been able to deduce easily who she was visiting back at the cemetery.

Once again, Ray was taken aback by Thrax's question. Didn't he want to know about Jones or Drix, whether they had weaknesses, or at the very least, allergies? As soon as the billion other questions that Thrax could be asking her drifted through her mind, Ray found her answer to them all; she wouldn't tell him. True, she 'promised' to tell the truth, but would Thrax really take her word for it? No, he was too smart for that she admitted. So, from his stand point, the back story questions where the 'safest' to ask, since she didn't mind truthfully answering them so much. Though again, as to why he asked about her history…

"Mom was a cop" She finally answered, knowing that there was nothing she was about to tell Thrax could ever be used against her "I have been told she was a lot like me; bitchy, snarky, and brilliant" Ray spoke in a tone that seemed almost endearingly respectful to Thrax as he continued to drum his fingers, their once quick pace slowing down as he listened to her continue on.

"She didn't have any partners because no one wanted to work with her, and vice versa. And then one day, she met my father at work. He was a brutishly clever kind of guy, and it was love at first fight" She told him with a hallow laugh "After five years of fighting, they got married, had me, and were shot dead in front of little me six years later to this day. Besides that, there really isn't much to tell…" The note that Ray ended on was not her signature cynical one, but more melancholy, which she instantly bit her own tongue for allowing that to slip out. She loved and hated the Christmas season, loved the universal, infectious joy it spread, and hated the lonely memories it stirred.

Thrax didn't say anything. He never knew what to say during these kinds of things. Not that it was uncomfortable for him, hell, he was sometimes the cause of such things as these, it was just that he wasn't used to seeing this side of it. In honesty though, it was oppressing the good mood he was just starting to slip back into. Thankfully though, the silence didn't last for long as Ray remembered it was now her turn.

"What about your folks?" She said, bringing the virus's momentarily wondering attention back onto her "What was your family like? I hear that it can be pretty cutthroat in a viral family"

"Wouldn't know baby" Thrax told her with a nonchalant shrug "Never really had one. Born and bred in a lab"

"What?" Ray asked astonished. How could that be, surely something as powerful as a virus that could, almost, kill a human in under forty-eight hours, could only occur naturally.

"Had me several thousand brothers and sisters created at the same time though, and they were a pain to fight off, what with our place being a tiny glass vial and all" Continued Thrax, enjoying the perplexed expression on the cell "We were developed in some top secret government lab in desert somewhere in New Mexico, created for the sole purpose of being used in biological warfare. They called us El Muerte Rojo, or the Red Death cause of the painfully high fever we caused. We were tested on all sorts of animals, and then eventually, we were mature enough for human trials" At this piece of news, Ray became very confused. She expected Thrax's tone to now start to sound proud, dangerous, or even mocking, but no, it was bitter.

"It took us a whole month, even though we all worked together. The humans weren't too happy about that. They wanted something faster, something more efficient, more deadly. So naturally, they terminated the project" Thrax fell silent for a moment, and Ray felt a the familiar worriedly twist in her gut as she glanced at him. He was bitter, bitter and very, very angry, his fingers had once more quickened their drumming pace, sounding like seconds ticking away on a bomb. His brothers and sisters had been destroyed, because they could not destroy fast enough, they could not kill fast enough for the humans. Everything he knew for most of his life had been wiped away because they failed to meet some cruel scientists standards. Though Ray knew that the feeling that was starting to wind its way into her gut was dangerously close to sympathy, she was intrigued by this new understanding of why Thrax did what he did, and why he did it with a smile.

"But you escaped…" She said quietly, knowing she was stating the obvious but hoping it would distract him none the less, figuring she should do that much for him at least. It worked, for it seemed to calm the heated feelings her question riled up in the virus as he let a toothy, sick smile spread.

"Yes I did baby. And every day since then I have traveled around the states, living proof that those government squints were wrong, dead wrong about project El Muerte Rojo"

After a little while longer of playing the game of questions and truth, the strange trio had reached the next their destination. Parking in an empty gravel parking lot next to an ancient, gothic styled stone church that towered over an abandoned neighborhood, Ray unbuckled herself and grabbed hold of the bow topped present before turning towards Thrax.

"Now Red, since you have been 'nice' so far, I'm gonna give you the option of coming with me this time. Whadya say?" Thrax met the obsidian blue eyes that looked into his unafraid, marveling at how bizarrely normal this day had been so far. Laughing, holding something akin to an actual conversation, and now she was giving him the option to join her on her whatever errand she needed to finish here. Well, now how could he refuse?

"I say yes, though I hardly figured you for the church going type baby. I bet you must have the most interesting confessions…" Ray didn't answer him, and just left the car, Zane following behind her. Climbing out of his side of the car to soon join beside the rabid pet that appeared to recognize where they were, Thrax watched the red eyed beast pounce about happily as they climbed up the front stone steps of the neglected cathedral, a cruel winter wind nipping at their exposed cheeks. Soon they reached the imposing mahogany doors, two bronzed lion door knocker looking back at them with cold metal eyes. Taking the ring in one of the lion's mouths, Ray rapped it against the arched double doors, producing a pounding noise Thrax could hear echo inside the building.

"Planning on seeing someone here baby?" He asked cautiously, not entirely fond of the idea of his supposed death being found false by some random citizen.

"You don't need to worry Red" Ray comforted with a falsely sweet voice "This man is very good at keeping people's dirty little secrets"

As if on cue, one of the doors opened, revealing candle light rows of dusty pews for but a second before a figure stepped into view. It was a stocky red blood cell only about a foot taller than Ray with white mutton chops and thick brows, a fat nose, chunky jowls, and black eyes shining warmly in the cloudy daylight. If it wasn't for the telltale white neck collar and black clothing, Thrax might have been suppressed into believing that there was such a man as Saint Nick.

"Father Stiers, how are you?" Rachel asked uncharacteristically affectionately, a rare toothy grin on her face. The confused expression that had graced the man's face when he answered the rarely knocked door was wiped away by a similar smile.

"Why, if it isn't little Rachel! How are you my dear? Oh, come, come inside, you must be freezing out there. Come, come!" He beckoned them all in with a stout arm and a thickly accented voice, resembling some ancient European language to the virus as he too stepped inside. As soon as everyone, including Zane, had shifted their way inside, the black clad Father shut the thick door behind them, leaving them all in the dim candle light. Ray instantly felt the tender feeling of nostalgia she held for this place, and began to wander down the worn stone aisle in between the two rows of pews, shedding her black scarf and leather jacket along the way.

"Little Rachel, little Rachel! Well, I should say not so little anymore, my how you have grown! You look just like your mother, thank goodness too, cause if you inherited your fathers looks I fear you may have not turned out so pretty…well, it is just so good to see you my dear!" Exclaimed the portly man in one breath, causing Thrax to wonder if he and the only other red blood cell he knew were somehow related. Ray spun around half down the aisle on her heels to face the old man, her beaming smile calming itself down to a polite grin.

"You say that every year I come to visit Father. Enough small talk though, has he already dropped it off?" Her tone became slightly serious as she glanced at Thrax for a brief second, and then Zane, seeing that the rabid darling was standing guard over the other virus.

"Yes little Rachel, he has, and he wishes to…" The old man stopped as he glanced at the much taller man at his right, finally noticing him. For a second Thrax was concerned the fat priest was going to start screaming in panic over his appearance, but then a mischievous grin spread on the old man's jolly face.

"Why little Rachel, it seems you have brought company, excluding Zane, for once. This most certainly is a first. Is he your…gentleman?" As he watched Ray's sapphire face tint to a lovely shade of red in anger and irritation, to which the candle light added much appreciated ambience upon it, Thrax decided the dog collared man was alright in his book.

"No" Rachel growled sternly, trying to hold back her temper from lashing out at the Father who made a simple mistake, albeit a very humiliating one as Thrax started to chuckle deeply.

"Well, no matter" Said the aged Father, still smiling despite Ray's accusing glare and Thrax's eerie chuckle "All are welcome in this house, however bizarre or…" Black eyes darted for a split second at the now quieted and imposing form of the red virus "…deadly" Before Thrax even had time to ponder about just how much information this man of the cloth was privy too, he went over to join beside Rachel in the dim light that was pouring through a stain glass window.

"So, do you wish me to place it in the usual spot, and trade it for what he left you?" Asked the black clad man, his eyes darting down the gift Ray still had in her hands.

"If you don't mind, thank you" She mumbled as she passed the gift off into the hands of the Father, who promptly left after scratching behind the ears of Zane, who purred in delight at the familiar red blood cell. Now alone with only two viruses as company, Ray let her eyes wander around, taking in the familiar sight of the church. Thrax was right, she wasn't really the church going type, but when she was younger, her parents visited this place all the time, even when the neighborhood fell into destitution with the declined health of Frank. Father Stiers was an old family friend, and even had the honor, as he put it, of marring Eve and Draven, her mother and father. There were very, very few people her parents associated with when she knew them, and the old man was one of them. Glancing at the now empty spot where once stood a stone angel she had broken years ago on accident when she and Zane had run away from the orphanage or the hundredth time, Ray turned her gaze onto Thrax, his approaching footsteps interrupting her memoirs.

Not many things truly surprised Rachel, very few things shook her to her core with astonishment, but if she was to be truthful, the sight before her did. As the red virus stepped into the light that shone through a stain glass window behind them, bright patterns of colors reflected onto his imposing face. Yellow eyes outlined in red light, pointed cheeks in blue, smirk bathed with green, it was a most unsettling sight. The black clothes Thrax wore washed out in the light, leaving only his discolored face and wind tussled dreads, but that alone was enough to make Ray a loss for words, and breath. She wouldn't say he was a handsome sight standing before her, bathed in colored light, but he was an unearthly one. Obviously her thoughts were written across her face, for Thrax smirked wider at the short woman he was now in front of.

"Little Rachel?" He asked with a twist of amusement in his voice. It took a Ray a moment to collect her thoughts about what the hell he was talking about, and a couple more to gain enough control of an unusual eeriness that ran through her to speak as he stepped closer.

"Yes. And if you dare repeat that to any other living creature, I will have Zane chew your fuc-"

"Ah, ah, ah!" Thrax tut-tutted before she could finish her threat, his yellow eyes dashing about in feign apprehension "Careful baby, we're in a church" Ray rolled her eyes, now fully recovered from whatever happened but a second ago. Before she could come up with any sort of sardonic retort, Father Stiers returned.

"It seems smaller this year little Ray, but then again you never really were too fond of when he gave you extravagant gifts" Said the old man as he approached the three in the colored shadow, handing off a different, and smaller bow topped present to Rachel. Looking over the tiny box for but a moment, Ray gave her thanks to the Father, and gave him an affectionate goodbye.

"Farewell my dear, please come and visit me sometime soon. I shall tell you if our mutual friend visits me again, and merry Christmas little Ray..."

o0o

The rest of the day went quickly, Ray driving them all down empty roads for Thrax's sake, stopping for hot chocolate and beef jerky for Zane, and hitting every single traditional spot she needed to visit. It was strange how normal it all was as well, Thrax and Ray continued in their game of questions and truths, satisfying each other's curiosity, and sometimes even holding something close to an actual casual conversation both inside the car and in the few shops Ray dared stop at. But soon, the short winter sun started to set, and so the strange trio made their way back to the abandoned hospital they had no choice but to call home. They were just about to enter through the imposing double doors that led to the scrounge lounge, when Thrax stopped.

"Do you hear something?"

"Hear what?" Asked Ray as she gently took hold of the book she had bought just bought at an antique store as a gift to Leah from Zane's mouth, hoping she rescued it in time from his acidic saliva.

"Sounds like…Jingle Bell Rock" He said, his tone apprehensive. As she opened the door for them all, Thrax's fears were confirmed as they stepped into the scrounge lounge, finding it anything but scroungy. Everywhere there were Christmas lights, from the windows to the metal bar rafters, cheap plastic wreaths decorated the walls, and green and red candles illuminated the room filled with the sound of novelty yuletide songs.

"Hello Miss Rachel! Glad to see you made it back in time!" Cheered Drix as he poured some eggnog for Leah, whose waist had Jones's arms wrapped affectionately around.

"Dr. Rachel! It is so good to see you again!" Shouted a familiar southern accented voice. Seeing Dr. Abby step out from the kitchen to join beside Drix, it became apparent to Thrax and Ray just what exactly was the 'previous engagement' that kept him from babysitting the red skinned virus.

"In, in time for what?" Asked Ray as she cautiously stepped forward, her eyes blinking at the sight that was Abby's short, yellow sequins dress.

"For Frank's Finest Christmas party of course" Said Leah, her tone not so excitedly as Drix of Abby, but rather sympathetic, knowing from firsthand experience how much Ray loved surprise parties filled with chatty, overly friendly people. She told Jones and Drix that it was a bad idea from the start, but after the two men enjoyed most of the morning and all afternoon with the girls, they felt they owed it to Ray.

"Yeah, Merry Christmas Ray, and a happy new year doc!" Announced Jones as he let go of his girlfriend's waist to take the small bag of gifts Ray's conscious forced her to get for the bizarre company of, dare she say, friends she kept. Leah walked over as well, her dark purple heels clicking sharply against the concrete as she came to stand in front of her best friend, ignoring the Thrax, who still had yet to leave. But by the expression on his face, his departure was to be very soon. Joy, love, peace on earth and the good will towards cells that permeated the air overwhelmed Thrax who was beginning to feel like he would need to punch a thousand holes into concrete walls just to feel like a virus again. While the Christmas season wasn't really a bother to him, hell, it provided an excellent diversion from the more festive cells, but right now when it was glaring him in the face with all its yuletidiness, it was just too much. Before he could make his hasty departure though, Jones, who was now still standing in front of Ray with Leah, looked up.

"Oh! Uh…Ray? You might want to move away from that spot…" His tone of concern caused everybody except Ray to look up, and a collective gasp went through them all. Even Thrax looked up, though his reaction was quite different from the others, but still just as wide eyed.

"What? Why?" Rachel asked as her eyes slowly followed everyone else's. Head craned back, she could see what had made the others stiff with tense silence. A sprig of spiked leaves crowned with berries and topped with a red bow hung down from the ceiling; the yuletide terror itself was right on top her. Thankfully though, no one was near her save…

Ray knew she would regret it, but still her eyes darted to the only being within six feet of her, her gaze crashing into the sickly yellow that was Thrax's eyes. He was leering, by Frank he was leering at her. She couldn't take it.

"No way! No way in heaven, earth, or hell! Don't anyone even dare think about…just don't anyone dare!" She shouted, sounding somewhat panicked to the delighted and leering virus, who had just found one aspect of the winter holidays he didn't mind so much. But of course, having learned that leaving him behind was the best way to avoid a flirtatious comeback, Ray gruffly marched straight towards the eggnog, hoping that it had a high alcohol percentage. The others followed her too, knowing that Thrax would most likely slink off to some dark corner to brood or smirk soon enough, and leave them all to enjoy a rare moment of wintry joy.

o0o

Several alcohol infused hours had passed before Ray decided to leave the small, but festively lively party. She could only take so much of Jones's singing and Drix's pathetically cute attempts to impress Abby with his knowledge of all things. That, and now that the delicious leftovers Leah had brought over from the lunch her parents had made in excess when she and Jones dropped by for a visit were all consumed, the couples had settled themselves down onto couches to enjoy a movie and cuddling opportunities. Deciding that 'Edward Silica Hands' or the 'The Gene Who Stole Christmas' were not worth putting up with the whispered sweet nothings, Ray had decided to check on some tests she had going on back at her lab.

"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…Jack Frost nipping at your nose…" She sang quietly to herself for fear of someone hearing how much the season had a hold over her, or that Zane would wake up from his much needed nap at the sound of her voice. Though trying to be quiet, her smoky, alto voice carried in the empty hallway she walked down, her heels echoing off of the walls. Today had been a bizarre day, and even though she spent the majority of it entertaining a deadly virus and chasing after an easily excited Zane, she thought it all in all a rather good day as well. The empty hall stretched out in front of her, but soon enough she had reached the end of it, and was about to pass through the turned archway that led to her lab, when she bumped into something solid and muscular.

"Watch were you're going Jon-" Exclaimed Thrax before he saw that the tiny blue tinted figure that bumped into him had silver tussled locks and wide eyes surrounded by smudged eye liner.

"I think really it's your fault for sulking about in archways Red" Ray retorted back, cursing the alcohol's effect on her comebacks. Seeing that there really was no point in trying to top that pathetic excuse for running into him, Thrax turned back to the wide window that replaced the archway wall that was facing the front courtyard of the hospital. About to leave, Rachel caught sight of what Thrax was watching. Snow, thick cottony flakes dropping from the sky in a flurry, coating the ground in white.

"Wow…we never get snow…" Ray marveled as she stepped closer to the window, forgetting that the virus was even there, not that he minded too much as it presented something more entertaining to watch than frozen water. Her dress had slipped somewhat off of her right shoulder in her obvious intoxication, and her waved hair nearly covered the entire left side of her face, hiding her wonder filled and slightly flushed expression from him.

"The gift exchange at the church…that was for your 'friend on the other side of the law'?" He found himself asking, if only to break the silence and his stop wandering eyes that disobeyed his commands to look away.

"Yes" Ray muttered instantly, forgetting that they quit playing the game of questions and truths a long time ago. At the mention of the gift exchange, Rachel reached up to grab at the second necklace she now wore, her gift from her friend, the words 'You Are My Heart ~D' inscribed on the back of the twisted metal heart. Thrax spied the piece of jewelry the woman now started to turn about in her fingers just like he would have with his very much missed chain, watching the rhythmic movements of her hand for a silent second.

"But you didn't get anything for me? Aw, I'm hurt baby, I'm hurt real bad" Thrax said in a mocking whine, his yellow eyes flashing mischievously in the darkly lit archway. Ray chuckled at the pathetic tone of the virus who now placed himself on the other side of the window, having thought him incapable of that tone of voice.

"Do psychotic killers even celebrate Christmas? Besides, I didn't think you were the gift giving type"

"Nah, I'm not" He replied with a shrugged with a smirk "Guess my heart is just two sizes to small" Ray chuckled once more at the admittedly clever joke the virus made. Turning her gaze back out on to the now completely snow covered court yard of the improvised hospital; Rachel felt a strange impulse bubble up inside her.

"Well, I guess even a psychopath like you deserves a Merry Christmas Red" She announced as she pushed herself away from the chilly glass window she had been leaning upon, making her way past the virus who was smirking wider at her left handed and alcohol influenced wishing of a happy holiday upon him.

"Back at you baby" He muttered back as she left him behind when she turned down the hallway to her lab, thinking about how the hell she was going to assess tests when she could barely walk straight. Thrax turned back to the window, sending quiet curses towards the chilly snow that would surely cause him problems, and thinking over the extraordinary events of the yuletide infected day.

~o0o~

Christmas! Yeah! Happy Holidays everyone! Again, I would like to apologize about how long it took me to get this chapter out, my computer decided it was time for Word to crash, so, yeah...but anyway, I hope to soon make it up to you all with the next chapter (I don't really know when I will be able to get it out, what with Christmas and New Years literally right around the corner...hmmm, I bet some more favs for my story would help...ha, kidding!)

Anyway, the Father Stiers character is a shout out to the voice actor of the acrhdecon in Disney's Hunchback of Norte Dame, who also had a lead role in M*A*S*H (check it out, it is die hard funny!)

Well, well, well now! It seems that Thrax is just becoming more and more interested in Rachel, and now that they both learned more abut each other, it seems that their is a chance the feeling is vice versa...mwahahahaha! (I don't know why the evil laughter, its late on Christmas Eve and I am high on egg nog and santa shapped sugar cookies).

So, see you guys hopefully next time, definatly same place, but until then...

3:*)

*(:-{)}

(*0*) (me singing you all an annoying christmas song)

Keep up the merriment in here!