All I can say is the Danny hating troll is not gonna like this one... Oh and please give me some leeway with the medical stuff and the probability of this ever happening in real life.

Danny stopped in the doorway, catching his breath. He held his left arm tightly against himself. The sharp twinge of pain from his GSW caught him off guard, and he wished he hadn't been in such a damn hurry. By the time he'd remembered his sling, he'd come too far to go back.

His whole body went from warm to cold, and he felt a little light headed. Fighting against the urge to crumble to the floor, he leaned on the metal door jam. Luckily, the sensation passed quickly, and he stayed on his feet.

Tears streaked his cheeks as he studied his partner. It struck him how disturbingly normal this was. Him watching Steve sleep in a hospital bed. He closed his eyes and sighed.

"Hey, Danno."

He lifted his head to see Steve looking at him. The goofy grin Danny received made the whole adventure worth it.

"Hey." Danny got choked up and couldn't say more.

He made his way to Steve's bedside, using everything he could along the way for support. Sweat rolled from his armpits to his belly.

"You okay?" Steve watched him with heavy lidded eyes. "Should you be up?"

Even feverish and drugged to the gills, Steve was annoying. This melted Danny's heart.

"I'm good, shut it."

"Nice to see you too, buddy."

They sat in relative silence. Steve mostly with his eyes closed, half dozing and Danny lingering at his side. Content to just be there while his best friend rested.

"Stop it, Danny."

The sound of Steve's voice startled him.

"I'm fine, man." Steve gave Danny a lazy smile. Thick with sleep and illness.

Exhausted, Danny simply couldn't argue, so he nodded instead.

"You." Steve wrinkled his nose and pointed at his best friend with a giggle. "Think too much."

Danny fought to keep a straight face. "You are fucked up, Steven."

"Just realizing that now, Danno?"

Danny could hold back no longer. A chuckle became a laugh and then a growl of pain.

Steve sobered and Super SEAL made an extremely brief appearance. "You look like shit. How are you doing really?"

"Fine, like you, you putz."

Their eyes met and Steve didn't break, but his brow was lined with sweat, and Danny could tell his friend was growing more and more uncomfortable.

"Steve, come on, push the button. Take your meds. That's what it's there for."

"Only if you do."

"I promise, I will." Danny wished he had something for his pain. He waved at his best friend. "Go on, babe, do it."

With a nod and a measured exhale, Steve gave in, closing his eyes as he waited for the inevitable crash.

"Control freak." Danny muttered.

Steve reached for him. "Sorry."

At those words, Danny was both pissed and worried. The look on Steve's face was so earnest, and it was obvious it took a lot to say them. "Sorry for what?"

Danny gulped back a sudden surge of tears and studied Steve's long fingers now intertwined with his own.

"Getting you shot." Steve's voice a whisper, soft as a breeze. Danny wasn't sure his partner had really said anything because when he looked up from their hands, Steve's eyes were closed again.

Danny waited a few seconds before responding. "Okay, you sleep. I'll be here."

He settled back against the chair, hoping he could ease the ache by straightening. The support was terrible, and his shoulder throbbed so badly that the nausea returned. Slowing his breathing, he managed not to puke, but he was so dizzy and seeing double. One Steve was trouble enough. Two Steves was frightening. Danny chuckled at his joke and pressed one hand to his face, his cheeks damp with sweat and maybe a few tears.

Overcome was the best word to describe him right then.

He'd skipped his last dose of pain meds because he wanted to be steadier on his feet. Now he wasn't sure he could make the trip back to his bed without the narcotic crutch.

He almost wanted Lou to catch him out of bed. Or a nurse. He'd take the scolding if it meant a quick wheelchair ride.

Yet, he couldn't take his eyes off his partner, so beyond thankful they'd all made it out of that blowhole. Besides their joyride in the drug plane, Danny had never been so scared. He couldn't shake the terrible nightmare where he was trapped in that watery grave with the bodies of his best friend and daughter forever. Seeing Steve now kept that terror away.

Danny checked the clock on the wall. He figured he had another five minutes until he needed to go back to his own room. Renee had brought dinner, but it was rabbit food, and once she left, Lou was on the prowl for a snack and some decent coffee. Danny wished he'd just go home. They were safe. No one was coming for them tonight.

A noise from the hall, made him jump, and with his next halted breath, he cursed his body. Any uncalculated movement caused ripples of pain. Thankfully, his curiosity overrode everything. What was that sound? Cocking his head to the side, he listened. Maybe his nurse had found him after all. Or Lou had come back. But there was no other noise, and no one came to escort him to his room, so after a few beats, he tried in vain to get comfortable.

The sudden urge to check on Grace shot through Danny. Only problem was his cell phone was across the hall. May as well have been an ocean away.

He'd gone through so much - they'd all gone through so much in the last few days. Who could blame him for being a little punchy?

Danny needed to calm down, take stock of the situation.

Maybe he was imagining things. He was on some powerful medication. Paranoia could be a side effect.

That wasn't it. That couldn't be it. He trusted his gut.

He gave Steve's hand a double squeeze before letting go and pushed himself up on wobbly legs. It was time to go. He had a checklist in his mind. Call Rachel. Text the team. Lou should be back any minute.

First he had to get back to his room.

Danny turned and ran smack into a bloody monster in a hospital gown. The thing gurgled at him, and he seriously thought he'd lost his mind. Then cold fingers wrapped around his wrist. He scrambled backwards losing his balance. The small of his back hit the railing on Steve's bed and he grit his teeth in pain.

Looking over his shoulder quickly, he saw his friend had barely stirred, so he yelled as loud as he could.

"Steve! Hit the button. Steve! Wake up!"

Danny scanned the bed, trying hard not to let panic take over. The call button was on the other side.

"Damn it! Wake up!"

The thing clawed at him, dragging him to the floor, as it stumbled into him.

As he went down, everything slowed. Danny got a good look at his attacker.

Dr. Gray.

Her head was wrapped in gauze and bandages that now hung low to the side, revealing a mess. His eyes couldn't focus. He was staring into a terrible abstract painting and he could smell it. Part of her face was missing, flesh and bone disintegrated by Kono's sure shot. He thought he was going to puke or pass out.

"Steve!" Danny pulled himself up using the bed for support. He felt his sutures tearing, ripping apart. The agony stole his breath.

She grabbed his arm, clinging to him as he managed to stand again. Her fingernails dug into his flesh. "Steve, push the button. Steve..."

He fought to free himself, but she wouldn't let go. He was caught in her death grip.

"Help!" He screamed with every ounce of energy he could summon. Goddammit why was Steve suddenly such a sound sleeper. "We need help in here!"

So badly out of breath, he couldn't yell anymore. His throat closed and his chest tightened, squeezing off his air.

She reached around him and flailed an arm Steve's direction, spitting and burbling something. It was Steve she wanted. Danny was sure of it, and that knowledge sent an almost disorienting surge of adrenaline through his battered body.

He seized her by the shoulders and walked her out of the room. Pushing and sliding as they went. He had to get her out of there. Away from Steve.

Just out in the hall, Danny tripped over her feet and they hit the floor hard. He'd swear he heard her skull crack against the tile. Before he could recover, her fingers poked at this throat, and he shoved them away, sitting up straight. He kept dodging her thrashes, and when his vision cleared, he realized she'd been holding something.

A scalpel.

As his mind registered the threat, she stabbed him in the shoulder. It didn't go in deep, her strength was fading fast. Warmth spread out across his chest as the new wound bled. She pulled the scalpel out and was aiming again. He batted the weapon away and managed to gain some control. She writhed under him and he slipped in her blood, unable to gain his footing as he tried to get away from her.

And then reality caught up with his nightmare, and all of his senses began to come back online. An alarm blared a few doors down the hall. Danny registered the sound and dared to think a positive thought. Maybe help was on the way.

Half dazed, he stared into Dr Gray's one undamaged eye, mesmerized. Part of him still wasn't sure if this was real.

A fist connected with his temple and he wilted into her, cheek to cheek. He used the wrong arm to wipe the ick off his face, and a shower of sparks filled his gaze as white hot agony set his body ablaze. Revulsion made him sputter and cough. He could taste that damn strawberry stuff Lou had made him drink. Fighting the urge to puke he had one thought. Put the bitch out of her misery.

Kill her. Not kill her. There wasn't a coherent thought.

Somehow she'd become some sort of demonic energizer bunny. Right out of a horror flick. Danny avoided another flailing arm and nearly blacked out as he pushed up to roll off of her.

Was he dreaming? Fuck, did it matter?

Yep, I just did that. Next chapter up sooner than this last one. Weather may prevent me from posting til Sunday... Thanks, as always, for reading.