Disclaimer. I don't own Monsters, Inc or any of the characters in the movie. Though I'd like too. For I'd write a better ending for poor Randall.

I want to thank Alu In Chains for being my beta. Muchas gracias!

Also, I want to let all know that I have fan art up on DeviantART under the name BlackNaginata.

Chapter 7

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Danielle stumbled out of her room the next morning. She quickly fed Bread and Butter and started her coffee. Taking a look at the answering machine she was surprised to see no calls. Huh, they must be really busy. All the better for me then. She thought. She turned back to the kitchen and gathered up the first aid supplies and carried them down the hall to the bedroom. After she had put the pink cast on Randall's leg and he was able to get more comfortable; she had had a feeling that the dowel rods had been uncomfortable, he was able to settle down and sleep better; though when she had checked on him sometime during the night, his fever had spiked higher and she had begun to worry. She had stayed up all night with him, keeping cool washcloths on his head. It wasn't until three in the morning that it had come down enough that she could go to bed herself. Balancing the items in her hands, she opened the door and walked in. She could see Randall curled up on his left side, his flexible body almost in a knot.

Danielle smiled as she shook her head and began to set the items up on the dresser. When she was done she turned back to Randall. She watched his chest was rise and fall steadily. She reached out and touched his head, the burning heat no longer radiating from him.

Thank god, the fever's broken.

She kneeled down and began to the hard task of waking him, as he had proven hard to wake on more then one occasion. "Randall? Come on Randall wake up. There are some things I need to check and I need you wake up."

Randall just groaned and curled up tighter mumbling. Danielle let out a small laugh. He looked adorable when he curled up tighter. He was like big kid not wanting to get up and go to school. "Come on Randall. I need to clean that gash and you need to eat. Don't make me tickle you."

No response.

"All right. I warned you." With that she reached under the covers and brushed her fingers over his ribs. She had remembered that he had been ticklish the last time she had touched his sides.

The light brush of fingers over his ribcage had him jolting up and looking around wide-eyed. His green eyes soon found the source. Danielle was kneeled by the bed, her hand covering her mouth and snickering. The wide eyes narrowed in annoyance as he relaxed.

"What were you thinking human? Can't I sleep?" He grumbled.

Danielle stood up. "I'm glad to see that your lovely personality is still fine. I need to check that gash, give you another dose of penicillin and you need to eat. You'll never get better if you don't eat."

Randall sighed irritably; he was getting tired of the human playing nursemaid. In fact now that he was able to think more clearly, how did she know what to do? He watched as she picked up a white towel.

Danielle was well aware of him watching her. It made her slightly nervous but she did her best to ignore it. She turned and placed the towel around his neck and tried to go about her work. He was still watching her, the green eyes clearer then they had been in the last few days. Unwrapping the bandages, she took a look at the half opened gash. The red was still there but as she looked in it there was finally no pus and it looked like it was well on its way to begin to heal, though it still had some ways to go. "You are so lucky Randall."

The words caught him off guard. He had to blink a few times. "What? Lucky?" He began to chuckle bitterly, "I'm not lucky. If I were lucky I wouldn't be here. Be in this mess."

"I don't know how or why you ended up in the LaGide family trailer but what I meant was that Mrs. LaGide just barely missed your eye. If she had hit it you'd be blind, possibly even killed from the eye rupturing. She missed, thank god, but the side of the shovel apparently dug into your skull, leaving the gash. You don't have much muscle on your head so the gash is down to the bone. Plus…she did…crack your skull. The force she must have used was devastating. She could have very well cracked open your skull and hit your brain. And the skin on and around your head is still heavily bruised and cracked."

Randall hadn't been too sure of the damage, he had seen the stitched mess of his head in the bathroom but he had been so tired that his vision was blurry. But now hearing this from her, he felt a cold chill go all the way down his spine. All twelve feet of it. He shuddered violently and before he could help it he let out a choked gasp.

Danielle had turned away to pick up a new roll of glaze, keeping a hand on his shoulder. She felt him shudder violently and then heard the choked gasp. She turned in concern and saw him hugging himself with both sets of arms with his eyes closed tightly. She dropped the roll back onto the dresser and turned to him completely. He began to rock, slightly shuddering.

At first not sure what to do, Danielle bit her lip as she watched him. She wanted to comfort him but wasn't sure how to. She knew he hated her touching him and even though she took him in her home and cared for him, she didn't know what or who he was or where he came from or what he had done or been. He wasn't an animal but he wasn't human either. As she stood and watched him rock back and forth, she felt overwhelmed with the task she had taken upon herself. She realized he needed more then physical care. There was something else eating away at him. As he continued to rock Danielle made her decision. She sat on the bed next to him and only hesitated for a slight second then wrapped her arms around him.

She felt him flinch only slightly but surprisingly allowed her to hold him. She just made soothing noises in the back of her throat as she allowed him to continue to rock, her rocking along with him, until she held him tighter and tensed her body to help hold him still though he continued to shake in her arms. Her own head was buried in his neck not saying a word, only continuing to hold him until she felt him relax. She lifted her head and looked down at him. His head was resting on her shoulder, his large green eyes closed.

He'll probably sleep for a while. He must be exhausted. I just hope he's ok when he wakes up. These thoughts passed through her head as she wiggled around and helped lay him back down. She didn't bother waking him to rewrap his head. The house was clean and there was no way to get dirt in the wound, besides the air would do it some good. As she slid off the bed the same time laying his head down, he grabbed a hold of her hand and squeezed.

Danielle winced but didn't say a word. For someone that had been basically on the brink of death he still had strength. Strength that came from arms that looked too thin and weak to pick up anything heavier then a cat.

But looks are sure deceiving. Especially with you, she thought as she brushed the limp fronds back. He loosened his grip and turned mumbling in his sleep.

Danielle stood up fully and cracked her back, groaning, then turned and made her way back to the kitchen. Once in the kitchen, she dug around in the cabinets until she found the can of beef broth. Now that his fever had broken, later she was going to wake him back up and make him eat. Since she had had him for the last four days he didn't eat anything and she didn't even know when the last time he ate before she had found him.

When the can was out, ready to be opened when he woke, Danielle went back to the living room and sat down next to Bread. Clicking the TV on she decided to watch some of the mind numbing programs.

XXX

Yawning, Danielle turned the TV over to a music program to allow for some noise while she stretched. She stopped when she heard a door creak open. She didn't have long to wait, for around the corner she saw Randall's purple bruised head bob into sight. He carried his head low and out in a graceful half arch. He was limping with the pink cast on his leg. She looked at his face to see if there was any pain, but she didn't see any, thankfully. Only slight annoyance and awkwardness as if he wasn't used to be so cumbersome with his movements.

"Afternoon Randall."

His head swung towered her and he staggered some. He looked away quickly and Danielle realized that he was apparently embarrassed about earlier. She decided that it'd be best not to mention a word about it. She slid Butter off her lap. He had decided that her lap had made a good bed earlier and had pined her down. He let out a meowing protest, but curled upon the spot that Danielle moved him to. She stood up and walked up to Randall. "Come on. Let's get you seated in the kitchen and I'll heat up the broth."

Danielle began to walk to the kitchen keeping an eye on him from the corner of her eyes. He followed moving slowly. It seemed finally after days of being sick and woozy from a possible concession he was more aware, though he was still moving weakly. She had a feeling that this was due to the fact he hadn't had anything to eat in days.

They made it to the kitchen and Danielle took one look at the chairs and then back at Randall and let out a curse.

This caused Randall to pause by the doorframe and blink at her in surprise. "What?"

"There isn't any way you can sit in these chairs." Danielle began to rack her brain for a solution. Remembering the soft rolling stool she had in her study she told Randall to wait a second and hurried to the room.

Randall held onto the doorframe easily while he waited. He was still embarrassed about his emotional breakdown. He hoped that he didn't have any more. He hadn't broke down like that since he was a child though there had been many times in the last few years that he sure felt like doing so. He had never felt so helpless. It was a feeling he loathed.

His acute hearing picked up the sound of wheels rolling across hardwood then carpet. He turned his head and saw the human rolling a light tan round backless chair. She rolled it past him and into the kitchen and up to the table. She then tapped a leaver a few times and it lowered down.

She stepped back and nodded once. "There. This is yours now. Let's get you seated and I'll heat up the broth."

Randall limped over to the stool and sat down easily, scooting his lower half up on the lowered seat. He folded his two good back legs and the two front ones dangled, the toes touching the linoleum. Danielle waited a few seconds, watching him. He finally settled and actually looked comfortable so she let him be.

She moved to the stove and turned the stove on. She rolled her eyes when the fire didn't click on as well. She turned the gas back off and reached into the cabinet's door and pulled out a box of matches. "How are you feeling?" she asked as she re-lit the pilot light and turned the stove on.

He looked over at her, uneasiness and confusion mixing in his gaze. "Better. Stiff and sore, but better," he said.

"That's good." She opened the can and poured the thin brown liquid into the saucepan. She turned to Randall. He was still watching her closely. Danielle slowly walked over to him. She watched as he tensed but didn't move. "I'm going to check this gash and it's time for another dose of the penicillin. I'll do this while I'm heating up the broth."

Randall was quiet for a minute then nodded. He was silent while she looked over the gash on his head. He waited until she was done before he asked. "How is it now?"

"Better. Much better. It's still red, but there is no pus and the inner looks like it's begun to heal. It'll probably be at least two to three weeks before it's fully closed despite the fact that it's only half an inch deep. She caught you on the thicker part of your head, closer to your fronds. The smaller cuts are already healing wonderfully. How along ago was your tetanus shot?"

Randall half closed his eyes in thought then opened them again. "Three months ago."

"That's good. Now lets get you that injection and by then the broth will be done." She stepped back and moved to the refrigerator and pulled out the small brown bottle.

Randall watched as she set everything up still wondering how did she know how to do all of this? She looked too young to be a human's doctor. Deciding to wait until after the shot, he shifted to become more comfortable in the seat. He had always had trouble with chairs. Either his body wasn't made for them or chairs weren't made for him. He was thankful for the stool that she had. As he waited for her to set the injection up, Randall took this time to look around again. The kitchen was open and airy. It was bright and cheerful with the light colors of yellow and white. To him it all looked surreal, as if he was in a strange dream. But the aches and pains that throbbed through his body were very much real. He knew he couldn't stay here. He needed to find a working door and get back. Now that he wasn't on the brink of death, he could think clearly and assess his situation. He didn't know anything about this human though she cared for him. And why did she care for him? He knew from experience that humans were afraid of the unknown. Why didn't she bat an eye at him? He had seen the shocked looks when he would change color, but she had just shaken it off and continued to help him. Why?

Why?

Why were there too many questions?

"Randall?"

Randall blinked. He looked around and saw that the human was kneeling by his side, the needle in her hand. "What?"

"You ok?"

"Yeah. Sure. I'm fine. Why?"

"Well…I hadn't even touched you and you were sitting there growling." she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Oh. I'm fine."

"Ok. Well, here we go." the human inserted the needle through the skin, going between any scales, injecting the mediation. He barely felt it, only a slight pinch and then a quick burn and it was over. Thank god for some favors, he thought as he watched her dispose of the used needle in a plastic box. He was rather glad that it didn't hurt. He felt that he had had enough pain to last him for several years. He waited on the stool while she washed her hands and pulled out a bowl from a white wood cabinet. "How do you know what to do? With the penicillin and the bandages? What are you here?" He finally voiced what he had been wondering.

"I go to school. I'm studying to be become a vet, one that mostly associates with exotic animals like reptiles, large cats, and birds. Lucky huh?"

"Hmm." He was satisfied with the answer though he snorted quietly to himself. Lucky indeed, he thought. He didn't say anymore, becoming distracted by the smell of whatever was in the pot and for the first time in days he felt his appetite stir.

She brought a bowl to the table and set a large spoon down. Randall turned back to the table and picked up the spoon. He stirred it in the thin brown liquid curiously. "What was this again?" he asked. He knew that he could handle the water here, but he still wasn't too sure of the food. He looked up at the human.

She had moved so that she was seated across from him.

"It's beef broth. Chicken would've been best but you need the extra iron. At least it's still broth," she said as she sipped from a mug. At first he perked up at the familiar sight of a coffee mug, but the odor coming from it wasn't coffee. It smelled sweeter and lighter. He sighed and turned back to the broth. Beef. Whatever that was. But the way his belly was beginning to complain to him he felt he really was going to die if he didn't eat something.

Randall stirred the thin brown liquid in his bowl again then scooped some up and began to sip the soup. The taste was surprisingly good. Thin but rich with flavor. He swallowed the spoonful and waited. When his belly did nothing more but beg for some more he began to ate with feverish hunger. When he'd scooped the last of the broth up, he set the bowl down with a sigh.

"Thank you," he said, being surprisingly polite. "I think I was really hungry."

"You're welcome. You can have some more if you think you can keep it down. That was only a cup." She stood back up and picked up the bowl.

Randall thought for a minute. "I think I can handle some more."

"Ok. We'll still take it easy." She took the bowl back to the stove and poured another cupful in. She took it back to the table and just as she placed it in front of him a shrill ringing had her and Randall to both jump. He looked around wildly his breathing quickening.

Danielle glared over at the wall phone. She placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's only a phone. Relax."

Randall shook his head and pulled away. "I know what a phone is," he growled. "It just startled me."

"Maybe you do need some more food Grumpy. Eat and I'll answer it." Danielle rolled her eyes at him and picked up the white wall phone. "Hello?" She had a sinking feeling that she knew who it was.

The shrill heavy Cajun accented voice that came over the other end conformed her suspicion.

"What are ya thinking! We come back from visiting your father's parents and there is a message on the phone saying that you aren't in school! Dit mon la verite', what are you doing?"

"Mom!…Mother…." Danielle tried to get her mother to listen as she continued to rant at her. Finally she screamed, "Mère!" She saw Randall jump and turn to look at her in surprise. She sent him an apologetic smile and lowered her voice. "Mom, I've never missed school before. As I told Mr. LaEttner, I just need some time alone. I had already turned in all my theses and dissertations for the semesters and have it set up to receive the next lessons. I won't fall behind."

Her mother was quiet for a few minutes. "Is everything alright there? Maybe I should send Margot over. She and the children can stay with you for a few days. I worry that you are all alone."

"No, no. I'm not alone." she watched as Randall froze and turned back to her watching her warily, the broth forgotten. "I have Bread and Butter."

"Aye, you and the animals. I swear you are going to be a vielle fille."

"I don't want to end up like Margot. Divorced twice and with two brats at thirty. Mom you've seen those kids. They're little monsters. We've had this talk before and I'm not having it now. It's old." Danielle hopped up on the counter to wait her mom out. She should see out of the corner of her eye Randall was trying not to listen but the way he had his head cocked she could tell that he was listening to every word.

"I just don't want you to be alone. You are way out in the bayou and the only people around are the LaGide's."

"You know my views on them."

"I know, but still I worry about you."

"Mom, I'm a big girl. I have my inhalers and it's not like it's the old days when I have to be married and have life planed out before I'm twenty. I don't need a man to take care of me." Danielle's voice hardened. This was talk she had with her mother hundreds of times before.

"Ma fille…"

"How's dad?"

"He's fine. He's unloading the car."

"Ok. Tell him that I love him. I have to check dinner." Danielle hopped off of the counter and planned to hang up.

"Wait! You coming to Florida for Thanksgiving? If not we can all go to Margot's again."

"Uh…." Danielle looked frantically over at Randall and he looked back at her questionly. "Uh…I don't think I'll make to either place this year. I…uh have plans. Bye Mom." Danielle quickly hung up the phone ignoring her mother's protests.

"Liar."

The amused voice sounded behind her. "What?" She turned to see Randall smirking at her.

"You just flat out lied to your mother. Shame on you." Amusement and sarcasm was written all over his face.

Danielle scoffed. "So what? She'll call back in a few hours, then dad will, followed by Margot." She walked over and picked up the forgotten bowl of broth. "She is a stubborn Cajun through and through. She didn't want me or my sister to go to college, instead wanted us married before we were twenty. She came from the deep of the Bayou. How she met my father is still unclear, but they married when she was sixteen and he was twenty. He wanted to move to the city but she had drugged her feet. So he took out a loan, bought this house and went to college. He became a professor in Theater Arts. Life then happened and she had Margot, my sister, then a boy that died at birth then me. They moved to Florida finally a few years back. I was always closer to my father, but he at least lets me live my life. My mother does not. Several states away, and she still tries to control." Danielle shoved close the cabinet door a little too hard. She picked up a glass and filled it with water and brought it back to the table and dropped four pills down in front of him. "There you go. Swallow them then well see what I can do with you."

Randall was about to open his mouth but changed his mind. He looked down at the pills. "What are these?"

"Remember that goop that I had been feeding you? That's them. I think you're well enough to swallow the pills now…unless you want the goop?" Danielle smiled sweetly at him.

Randall shook his head feverishly and quickly swallowed the pills down.