Tony woke to the sound of Charity screaming and thrashing next to him. He looked at her and saw that her eyes were still closed. Nightmares. He thought.

"No! No! Don't!" Charity cried out. "Please!"

Or flashbacks maybe.

Charity screamed and cried. Her body shook, her arms thrashed and her legs kicked. Tony happened to look down at her right thigh and noticed that the dressing around her wound was covered in blood.

"Please! Please don't make me do this!" She pleaded.

Tony was taken aback by her pleas for a moment, but he knew he had to wake her. Tony gently grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "Charity, wake up. You're safe." He told her, keeping his tone calm.

Charity's eyes snapped open. At first she appeared not to see him or the room around him. "Please, Colonel, don't make me do it." She whimpered, tears filling her eyes.

"Charity, it's me, Tony. You're back in America." Tony said, his tone soothing. "You're safe."

Charity blinked a few times. The fog seemed to lift and she was now back in the present. "Tony?" She asked.

"Yeah, it's me." He told her.

Charity felt the tightness forming in her chest from the lingering dream. "Will you ramble on... about movies...or something please?" She asked, her breathing heavy.

"When I was a kid, my favorite thing was at Christmas, watching It's a Wonderful Life." Tony said. "My mom, she put it in when I was really young. Then it became a tradition to watch it every year."

"I...I learned to play...the piano..." Charity got out. "Every year I'd sit...and play... Christmas carols... and Mom and Dad and Kelly would sit with me...and we'd sing."

"It's funny the things that stick with you from your childhood." Tony said.

Charity nodded her agreement. Her breathing was slowing and the tightness in her chest was loosening. "Yeah." She agreed.

"It's funny the movies that can stick with you and mark a significant time in your life." Tony said, seeming to become nostalgic.

Charity gave him a soft smile. "Yeah."

"You have any movies that really stuck with you?" Tony inquired.

Charity nodded. "Forest Gump."

"Life is like a box of Chocolates." Tony quoted.

"You never know what you're gonna get." Charity finished with a small smile. "I loved that movie because he went through all of these world changing events...these different horrible things that would scar normal people, but he looked at everything with the innocence of a child. And even after going to war and having a child of his own, he still maintained that innocence."

"Yeah, that is kind of nice." Tony replied.

"Yeah." Charity agreed. "Thanks."

"Your leg." Tony said, pointing to her wounded right thigh.

Charity looked down and saw the blood-soaked bandages. She untangled herself from the blanket and Tony and grabbed the first aid supplies. She removed the bloody gauze from her leg and examined it more closely. "I should have done this sooner." She said as she cleaned the wound.

"Do you want some help?" Tony asked.

"I can do it." Charity replied, not looking up.

Tony had no idea why, but he reached his good hand over to her and stopped her hands. "It's okay to not be strong all the time." Tony told her. "It's okay to let someone else help you once in a while."

Charity looked up at him. Her cobalt eyes misted over slightly and looked deep into his. She seemed to be questioning how he could see right through her. It was like he knew her...the real her. The little girl that was hiding inside, screaming and crying out for help, tired of being so strong. Without a word she moved her hands back.

Tony cleaned her wound and worked to restitch it. It took him a little while with the one hand, but he still got it done. Then he put the ointment on it and covered it in fresh gauze.

"Thank you, Tony." Charity said, once he'd finished.

Tony gave her one of his hundred-watt smiles. "Any time." Just then his stomach gave out a rather loud growl.

Charity smiled. "I'll go get some food from the kitchen."

"There's food here?" Tony asked.

Charity nodded. "I'll be right back." She stood up and headed to the kitchen. She rummaged through the cabinets and grabbed a few things that would be quick to eat and carried them back into the living room. She handed some of the food to Tony as she sat down.

Tony took the food and the pair ate in silence for a while. "It looks like the rain is slowing down." Tony observed looking out the front room.

"Yes it is."

"Hopefully it will stop soon and we'll be able to try and head to town."

"We're not going to be able to head anywhere for a few days." Charity replied. "Even if the rain slows stops today or tomorrow. We need more rest before we'll be able to travel. Plus it could reopen our wounds and cause more harm than good."

"So, unless someone finds us and can safely transport us, you're saying we're stuck here for a few days?" Tony asked.

Charity nodded. "Hey it could always be worse." She replied.

"And how is that?" Tony asked.

"You could be stuck here with someone much less attractive." She answered with a playful grin.

The smile reached Charity's eyes, but there was still a sadness that lingered there. It seemed to always hover over her, hiding just beneath the surface unnoticed by most. Tony could see it. He could see that she'd lived with it for a long time. He had no idea why, but he wanted to do something to help it go away. He wanted to make her smile and laugh.