A/N: This chapter takes place on the same camping trip as the last one, but the day after. I need to make an extra disclaimer for this one-shot, though. I have never been wilderness camping, served in any military-like capacity, nor have I had any survival training. This is simply my imagination taking over. No offense is intended, at all. If I have any details wrong or missing that would actually maim or kill one of the characters, please PM me the details so I'll know for future stories =)

Prompt from DANISH GIRL: Danny has more survival training than Jamie. On a camping trip, he shares this advice in a good way rather than a criticizing way.

5) TRUTH: WHAT WAS IRAQ REALLY LIKE?

At the crack of dawn, Danny wasn't packing up and pealing out. He was making coffee over the campfire, in readiness for the two of them packing up and tramping out. The plan was to have breakfast, hike to the top of the cliff, abseil down, have lunch, hike back to the car, then head home in time for dinner.

Jamie had an ulterior motive for this trip. He had become increasingly concerned about his brother's behaviour over recent times. The debacle at work*, his meltdown at the cemetery**, these were not good signs. He was quietly hoping that the calm serenity of their surroundings would encourage his sibling to open up about whatever was bothering him. That "talk" came about in an entirely unexpected way.

They had successfully traversed the rugged terrain to the top of the cliff. Unfortunately, when they got there, they found the cliff face badly eroded and completely unsuitable for abseiling. So they spent a companionable hour enjoying the scenery, chatting about nothing in particular (definitely not whatever is really worrying you, Jamie thought), and devouring scroggin, crudites, and other easy-to-carry foods.

Finally, they decided it was time to meander back home. All was going well until, about an hour from the car, Danny fell.

CRACK! A sapling broke as Danny landed, twisting his ankle.

CRACK! Another broke as Danny's heavy load shifted on impact with the ground.

CRACK! A third broke as Jamie tried in vain to prevent his brother falling.

And all Danny's hell broke loose.

"Take cover!" Danny yelled, pulling Jamie behind him, and pushing them both into the nearby trees. "Shield the injured! Locate enemy fire!"

Jamie stood there, stunned.

"You, Private!" Danny barked, "We need water on this dirt so we can blacken our faces. Pee on it if you have too. I don't have any ammo. We need to set some booby-traps." He started looking wildly around him for the appropriate materials. "I think they're gone. Who's injured? How bad? Do we still have viable transport? Where's my radio?" By now the soldier was mumbling.

He's having a flashback, Jamie panicked. What do I do? Then all of a sudden, his police training kicked in. Treat him like you'd treat any victim of a serious crime. He took a deep breath.

"Danny. It's Jamie." He moved slowly to where the incoherent man could see him. "You're safe now. Everything is okay." He talked soothingly until he saw Danny's eyes clear, not daring to make any sudden movements until Danny's movements stilled. "You with me?"

"Yeah," Danny said confusedly. "What happened?"

Jamie hesitated, then decided to be honest. "You fell, then had a flashback to Iraq."

Danny couldn't meet his brother's eyes at this news. "I guess you know what it was really like, then, huh?"

"Guess I do," Jamie agreed. "Now, let's have a look at this foot."

"No!" Danny's voice was sharp. "If you take the boot off, you might not get it back on again."

"Okay," Jamie concurred. "So what do I do?"

Danny thought for a minute. "We need 6 strong branches that length," he indicated the measurement from his foot to his armpit, "or longer."

"Don't move." Jamie ordered his brother. He grabbed the knife from the pack and went in search of what was needed. Upon his return, he found the other male flat on his back. "Danny!" he screamed.

"Ow!" the older man winced, "I'm injured, not deaf. Show me what you've got." Jamie loomed over him, displaying his findings. "Good. They'll do," he tiredly praised Jamie. "Put the longest one under my arm and cut it off at the foot. Now, make sure all of them are exactly that length," he directed as he slowly sat up again. He reached over to the smaller bag and grabbed the ball of twine. "Give me three of those." He put them together in a triangle. "Lash them together, like this." He demonstrated the correct procedure, every so often leaning forward to guide Jamie's hands in the right direction. It took a while, but eventually the two stick pyramids were constructed to Danny's satisfaction. "Now we need 4 T-shirts." Jamie scrambled find the required items. Danny took two. "Roll one of them diagonally, like this. Wind it through the top of the lashings and over the top of the sticks." He went slowly so Jamie could follow his lead, or so he convinced himself. "Finally, we cover the whole thing in the other shirt and tie it on." Sure enough, two makeshift 'crutches' had emerged. Danny grinned. "Good job," he commended Jamie.

Jamie moved to help Danny up, at the same time Danny reached out for the heavier equipment bag.

"Uhuh," Jamie disagreed. "Too heavy. I'll take them both."

Danny hesitated, then realised the wisdom of his brother's words. He couldn't afford another fall.

It was long, arduous trek out to the car. In fact, it was nearly dark before they reached their destination. It was even darker still when they were finally loaded up and driving out.

"Damn!"

"What?" Jamie was instantly concerned.

"There's no cell coverage. I told Dad to raise the alarm if he hadn't heard from us by 7 and it's a quarter to."

"I'll just have to hoof it then, won't I? Can't have Dad worrying unnecessarily." Jamie sped up, not so much that he jarred his brother's aching body, but enough that they were within cell range in 8 minutes.

"Hi, Dad . . . Yeah, we had a bit of a problem," Danny gave a shortened version of the afternoon's events. "Okay, thanks Dad . . . Not sure . . . Yeah, He'll ring you when we get there."

"He's going to ring Linda, then you get to ring him from the hospital." Danny smirked.

"Oh, joy," Jamie grumbled good-naturedly.

At the hospital, Danny was admitted overnight for observation after his ankle was treated for a fracture. While they are waiting for their family members to arrive Jamie revisited the elephant in the room – Danny's flashback.

"That wasn't the Iraq I wanted to hear about, you know." Jamie reflected. "I wanted to hear about the weather, the scenery, the people. I wanted to to remind you that it wasn't all bad, there are good memories, too."

"In that case, let me tell you about Amira. It was a scorching hot day . . ." Danny brightened immeasurably.

Jamie revelled in his brother's wide smile, content that Danny was remembering not just the war they'd fought, but the peace they'd brought.

*See Prologue to Chapter 1

**See Chapter 2