A/N: The next bit of 'Free at Last', written for Brianna-chan. It's got ten parts so far, so expect there to be much more to come, I'm still writing it (admittedly I've hit a block for it but...by the time I get that far, it should be gone?). I'll be posting some Nody drabbles inbetween updates for this. Because I cater to lovers of both pairings. ; D

Title: Free at Last pt 2
Warnings: French-speaking Duncan, quiet, introspective Noah (WTF)

-

Remission. Remission.

The magic words almost brought tears to his eyes. No more cancer. No more anemia. No more fever, no more chills. He almost sobbed in happiness at the thought when the Doctor had told him (and indeed he had finally broken down when his half-sister Courtney had brought him real clothes to wear).

Dressed now in a comfortable pair of (admittedly too-loose, he had lost a lot of weight) khaki's and soft, worn sweatshirt, the hood pulled low over his bald head, Noah curled in a chair in the lobby as his parents filled out the appropriate paperwork to release him. Courtney sat on one side of him, his friend Cody on the other, both uncharacteristically curled close to him. Able to be close to them like this again, he allowed it; they both knew he wasn't the cuddling type.

As happy as he was to be leaving...a part of him ached as well.

He had grown close to the nurses and doctors in the intensive care ward over the past months (closer to years), the busty Nurse Leshawna especially, her strong, no-nonsense attitude helping him at the worst of times when he was weak and tired and snapping at people left and right, wanting nothing more than to die.

Or Harold, an X-ray technician he had befriended one night over coffee (though at first Noah had hated him; Harold was geeky and too-self confident, a know-it-all, moronic genius oxymoron all rolled into one).

Or Doctor Hugo...

Noah fought down a blush at the thought of the tattooed doctor. He had been surprised to see the relatively young man treating him at first, asking bitingly if he could have a competent doctor rather than some punk who beat up the practitioner on duty and stole his coat. The man had merely laughed, saying 'fous le camps' as he ruffled Noah's then thick, slightly wavy brown locks.

The blush had grown from embarrassment to affection quickly as the Doctor stayed by his side throughout the illness, threatening him when he tried to give up, helped him prank the nurses in an effort to cheer him up when he had relapsed, told him stories of his own not-long-off teenage years in juvie for streaking and stealing.

Noah sighed.

He would miss the Doctor the most. Especially after last night.

-

The tubes in his throat. His mouth. His wrists. All gone.

"M-my cancer? It's...that--" Noah did his best not to pass out from shock. Remission? It had been so long since he had clung to that last shred of hope that he would survive the cancer...

"Eloquent as ever, mon lapin," Dr. Hugo laughed. Noah felt his face burn, though he couldn't bring the anger to his voice. A hand reached out, gently touching his cheek. "I'm going to miss you here, oui. Your fire brought a bit of...joie de vie... ah life, or well, exuberance something this place rarely sees."

"I'll...ah..miss this place too." Noah swallowed. "It's going to feel weird being back home. I was so different then...I don't know what I'll do."

"You'll live, cheri," the Doctor smiled. "You'll live the way you are now, changed, oui, but still you, stripped bare of all those walls you had when you came here, closed in on yourself and unwilling to speak anything but insults and dry remarks. Without fear, you've brushed death's door many times, what is there else to worry about?"

Noah smiled sheepishly.

"Thank you," he said. "Dr. Hugo. Thank you." He smiled a little wider. "Je vous remercie. For everything. For my life."

"Call me Duncan," The doctor smiled in good humor. "And," He bent forward to brush his lips on either of Noah's cheeks. "Derien."

-

A tap on his arm broke him from his reverie. Before him stood his parents and Cody with his hand on Noah's arm, poised to poke it again. "We're all set," His mother looked near to crying with happiness.

"Your other sisters are waiting at home for you with the rest of the family to welcome you home." It wasn't home. It hadn't been in a long time.

"We remodeled your room for you." He felt sick to his stomach. He wanted to tell them it wasn't his room, that he wanted to stay here. Noah was disgusted with himself, he knew feeling that way was selfish.

Courtney looked up from his shoulder, brows knit together in concern. "You feeling alright, big brother? Ready to go outside for the first time in sixteen-months?"

He didn't want to leave.

He didn't...but...

"...live, cheri."

He smiled. Stood. Took her hand and Cody's. "Let's go."