Disclaimer: I might be willing to trade Jeb….
He floated out of the darkness slowly. At first he simply allowed himself to drift, content with the fact that he was warm. Then his memory began to return in brief flashes and he forced his eyes open. The last thing he remembered was Deeg chained to the floor, bleeding badly, and doing her best to keep her body in front of Jeb. Panic flashed through him as his heart rate skyrocketed. They might both be dead.
A small oil lamp illuminated the unfamiliar room and he saw Deeg sitting listlessly in an old wooden chair next to him and relaxed slightly. Her hand was wrapped loosely around his fingers and she looked as if she hadn't slept in days as she gazed blankly out a window. He didn't know what time it was but it was pitch black outside. "Sweetheart?"
Her head twisted around so fast he thought she might spin it off her neck. "Wyatt?" Her voice was hoarse as she practically fell out of the chair so she could get closer to him. He tried to sit up as she hit her shins on the side of the bed and his chest twinged painfully. She put a hand on his shoulder and held him still. "Go slow. You'll rip your skin open." Her voice didn't sound right.
Questions started spouting from him so fast she didn't have time to answer him between them. "Deeg? What happened? Where's Jeb? Is he hurt? Are you hurt? Where are we?"
She squeezed his hand and pulled it to her lips. "Jeb's fine, Wyatt. He's sleeping. I need go get him."
He grunted tiredly and began to sit up more slowly this time. Without a word she wrapped her arm around his back and helped prop him up against the headboard. He looked toward the door then back at her, she was awfully pale. "Don't wake him up."
Deeg looked into his eyes and he saw such fear in them that he tried to tug her closer to him. She resisted and put his hand on her cheek as her lip quivered briefly. "Wyatt, you've been unconscious for five days. We didn't know if you were going to wake up. I need to go get Jeb."
"Five days?" There was no way.
She gave him a watery smile and kissed his knuckles quickly. "I'll be right back. Don't get out of bed, ok?" He nodded and she stood and moved out of the room quickly. He touched his chest and felt pain radiating sluggishly out from where he'd been shot with his own bullet. He really hadn't been expecting that. That made him an idiot. Noting the place he'd been hit he realized he shouldn't be alive. He should have bled out in five minutes tops. He really wanted to know what had happened.
As his arm dropped back to his side the door burst back open and his son tumbled through it with his shirt half buttoned followed closely by a worried looking Deeg. She caught Jeb's arm as he started to tumble to the side and he saw pain flare in her eyes as he regained his balance. His son touched her hand briefly in thanks before he was beside the bed. "Dad?
"Hey, Jeb." His son gave him a relieved smile and squeezed him in a one armed hug.
"You're awfully hypocritical about not getting shot. You scared the hell out of us."
"Sorry." Jeb snorted and Deeg sank back into the chair silently. Her eyes had closed off and she clasped her hands together as she leaned forward with her elbows on her knees. "What happened?"
"After you got shot Deeg kinda…" His girl dropped her eyes away from them and he saw her retreat internally. Real worry began to build in him as his son continued. "Well, she killed the mage. Raw got to you fast enough to stop the bleeding from getting out of control but he couldn't heal you enough to keep you kicking for long. She brought us to his village. There's more than one healer here." He glanced quickly out the window. So they were on the coast, in the Furball's village, ok. "They patched you up as best they could but couldn't tell if you'd make it. Raw said if you woke up you'd be all right."
"And I've been out for five days?" He wanted to make sure. His head was reeling a bit much for his taste. He hated that his thought process wasn't keeping up with the situation. Was this how Deeg felt when she was drained?
"Yeah. There's been a healer in here every few hours trying to fix you."
"That's mighty friendly of them." He eyed his son critically. He had a heck of bruise around his left eye. He vaguely recalled their last few minutes outside the palace doors. "Why didn't they patch you up? Or do you like the shiner?"
His son shook his head. "The viewers have been using all their energy on you. We'll be ok."
"We?" His eyes darted to Deeg.
She had turned back to him as he and his son talked. "I'm fine."
He growled at her, he'd heard the way she'd been screaming; he'd seen the blood. His anger over letting her get hurt so badly along with her disregard for the condition she was in set his temper off. He was shouting at her before he could think things through properly. "He was torturing you! You are not fine!"
"And you were dying! I think it was worth the slight sacrifice on my part!" She stood up abruptly and left the room. The door slammed shut behind her and Jeb flinched.
"Did you have to yell at her?" His son was frowning at him as he shoved him back down on the bed. He'd unconsciously tried to go after her. "The last few days haven't been all that great for her."
He growled in annoyance. "What the hell happened Jeb? I want details!"
His son sighed unhappily. "The way she killed the mage wasn't pretty. He ended up covering most of the wall and ceiling along with four of his men that ran at us when their magic hit. It didn't help matters much that he told her parents she'd been soul brushed while we were fighting to get to the main hall." He let out a long sigh of his own. That couldn't have gone down well.
"Yeah." Jeb seemed to be of the same mind. She must have told him what that meant while he was out. "The queen looked at her like she was the most repulsive thing she's ever seen right before Deeg called the travel storm down on us. Then the viewers were trying so hard to heal you that she didn't dare say anything about how bad she was hurt. I've been doing my best to keep her cuts clean, at least when she lets me, but she's going to have to let Raw look at her soon. She's barely been able to move since we got here and the one time she managed to fall asleep I had to wake her up because she started screaming." He paused momentarily. "You know she apologized for waking me up? She was in a cold sweat and apologized."
He cursed and Jeb patted his arm. "You couldn't have known."
"And that makes it better?"
Lip twitching his son answered. "Not really. But you waking up does."
Reaching up he gripped his son's arm. "Are you hurt? Other than your eye?"
"I have a few more bruises but nothing bad."
He nodded briefly then stared Jeb straight in the eye. "You did good. I'm proud of you."
His son shrugged but saw pride in his eyes. "All I did was pick a lock."
Huffing in amusement he eyed his boy. "While being shot at by bullets and magic. You didn't do so bad in the fight before that either. You can sure keep your head under pressure."
"Thanks, Dad." Jeb stood up and jerked his thumb toward the door. "I'll go get Deeg, then I'm going back to sleep. It's been a long couple of days." He shot him an eerily familiar stern glance. "Be nice this time."
He rolled his eyes. "Yes, Jeb."
Several extremely long minutes later Jeb gently guided a distraught looking princess back into the small room and shut the door behind her. Deeg stood there looking at the floor silently. He noticed she was favoring her left leg pretty heavily. Catching sight of her face he realized she was on the verge of tears. Guilt swamped him. His girl had been through hell and he had yelled at her. No doubt she'd been with him nearly every minute since they'd gotten here. She'd been so relieved he woke up and he'd been nothing but nasty.
He held his arm toward her and beckoned her to him. "I'm sorry, Sweetheart. Come here." She shook her head stubbornly with her arms crossed over her chest and he shoved the blanket that was covering him away as he began to toss his leg over the side of the bed. Panic flashed over her face and she was suddenly next to him and holding him down. Pleased that had worked he grabbed her hips and tugged her carefully onto the bed next to him.
Despite how gentle he had been she hit the bed and let out a sharp cry of pain. He frowned in alarm and froze as she twisted out of his grip. Tears filled her eyes and she turned her face away from him as her shoulders hunched up. He kicked himself at his own stupidity. "How bad are you hurt?"
"Not as bad as you."
He saw a small bloodspot on her back and then the lines of bandages under her shirt. "I'm not so sure about that." Turning her around so her back was facing him he caught the bottom of her shirt and began to pull it up. Reaching around she tried to get him to let go and caught her arms only to have her hiss again. Letting his hands relax he pushed one of her sleeves up and saw thick red burn all the way around her wrist.
His eyes flashed to hers in horror and she mumbled. "The manacles burned me when I used my magic."
"Take your shirt off, Sweetheart. I need to see your back."
She squirmed away. "I'll have Raw fix me tomorrow after he wakes up, I promise."
"That's good to hear." He wrapped his arm around her waist and slid her back to him. "Shirt off." Taking hold of her hem he started to lift it again. "Arms up." Reluctantly she put her hands over her head and he carefully pealed the fabric up and over her. He took one look at her back and froze. Bandages wrapped around her from right below her shoulder blades to the small of her back. He could see that Jeb hadn't been lying when he mentioned her reluctance to let him look after her. Her bandages hadn't been changed in at least a day, though his son had done a good job with them. There was blood seeping through them in places.
He tried to keep his voice calm as he spoke. "I need to change your bandages or we need to get Raw right now."
Her shoulders slumped and magic sparked sluggishly next to his hip. He guessed she was unwilling to wake Furball up. He would place odds on the fact that he was as drained as she had ever been. Moving slowly he spread his legs and urged her to sit between them. Once she was settled with her left leg out at an angle, he was going to look at that in a second, he started to unwrap her. What was under the bandages made his blood boil.
Her back was slashed up nearly as bad as her hands had been after she fought with the demon. Blood started welling out of a few of the slashes when he removed the bandages and the scabs that had started to form over them weren't nearly as abundant as they should have been after almost a week. He had a feeling the magic may have had something to do with that. "Oh, sweet thing." His voice dropped. "You've been like this the whole time?" He ran his hand over her uninjured side as she stared mutely back at the door.
Picking up some ointment and a cloth he began to dab at the cuts starting at the top. He saw her grip the sheets in her hand, though no sound escaped her. Working quickly he dropped the cloth and snatched up the bandages. She let the death grip she had on the blankets go and raised her arms so he could wind them around her. Once he was done she let out a shaky breath and stiffly pulled her shirt back over her head. He kissed her neck and rubbed her ribs with his hand. "Let's see your leg."
"I sprained my ankle. It's wrapped." Her voice was strained. He had no doubt that she was in a significant amount of pain. She wasn't lying though.
"Ok." Pulling her backward until she was snug between his hips he wrapped his arm around her waist. She kept her back rigid and bent forward. He kissed her neck again. "You're not goin' to hurt me. Lean back, Darlin'."
Moving even more slowly than he had she let her injured back rest on his recently shot chest. They really made quite the pair. Deeg tucked her head under his chin as she wrapped her arms over his. "You scared me, Wyatt."
"I know." He ran his hand through her hair as he laid his head over hers. "I'm sorry."
Rubbing her hands over his arms she turned her head a kissed him tenderly. "It's not your fault. Thank you. You saved me. Again."
"From what Jeb said you did more than your share of savin'."
"I didn't do anything." Her voice broke with exhaustion as she hid her face back under his jaw. He was sure between the fear, a magic drain, and lack of sleep she'd reached her breaking point. "I thought you were going to die and I couldn't help you at all. You were bleeding everywhere and Jeb was terrified and all I could do was hold him back so he wouldn't get in the way. He must hate me."
"That's ridiculous. Jeb doesn't hate you. He thinks you're brave and wonderful." She was unnaturally silent. Rubbing his forehead against her hair he murmured seriously. "Five days is too long to go without sleep, Deeg."
"I've gone longer than five days without it."
That was completely illogical. "Because you couldn't sleep. Because you were hurt."
"You were hurt." Ah. She had been afraid he was going to fade away if she left him alone. As if he would have let himself leave her.
Brushing her hair away from her face he kissed her temple. "I promise not to go anywhere." He caught her hands to still them. "Please sleep for me?" She nodded into his shoulder and twisted so she could curl up against him on her side as they sat there. He made sure he wasn't touching her anywhere he could hurt her and closed his eyes. He was tired even if he had been asleep for days.
The next thing he was aware of was the sound of something creaking. His eyes snapped open and flew across the length of the room to land on the viewer. Raw rumbled in relief when he saw he was awake and then turned his attention to the woman wrapped protectively in his arms. She was sleeping deeply against his chest and the Furball sat in the old chair Deeg had taken residence in the day before.
"Tin Man awake at last." His voice was no more than a low whisper. "Wasn't sure for a time. Afraid to tell DG and Jeb. Knew anyway. Kept son calm for many days."
He ran a hand over her hair and she sighed in her sleep. "She needs to be healed."
The Furball nodded. "Would have healed today even if Tin Man had not woken. Infection started to set in when suns set yesterday."
He hissed quietly at him. "And you didn't fix her then?"
Raw shrugged. "DG would have stopped. Knew she would live for many days with fever. Had no guarantee Cain would live through next hour. Raw waiting until too tired to fight anymore." He slumped backward into the headboard and she began to murmur agitatedly as she cuddled into him. "Is not how pack sister wanted to bring Tin Man here."
He raised an eyebrow before glancing down at her and rocking her gently. "What are you talkin' about?"
"Wanted to talk to Cain alone. Wanted to explain. To give choice. Too late now. Pack has felt connection. Must decide or leave."
He narrowed his eyes. "A choice in what? What do I need to decide?"
The viewer sighed. "DG has chosen Tin Man as mate. Tribe has felt this. Lylo will offer to make Cain part of pack."
"So I have to agree?" The viewer nodded. He was confused. He knew practically nothing about viewer tradition, no one did. "And if I don't?"
"DG has chosen. Mate most important. Proved by bringing, by refusing healing gift, by taking care of son. Pack sees, pack knows, pack accepts. If mate refuses to be part of tribe then both must leave. Mixed loyalty dangerous. This tribe cannot have."
He glanced down at her. "She won't be allowed back?"
"Can visit. Cannot stay. Not allowed to share secrets or be active member. Will have to leave."
"So you'll force her off the same as her parents."
He saw regret in the viewers eyes. "This is our way. No shame in this choice. No bad feelings. Not like queen and consort."
He wasn't that keen on making her do that. To give up the one steady thing she'd had in the last few years. He wasn't going to let her go either. He'd picked her as much as she'd picked him. "What do I have to do?"
The viewer made an odd purring noise. "Must be read by Lylo. Must make oath to keep pack safe if danger comes. Must agree to help if needed."
His girl shifted fretfully and he stroked her hair, whispering soothingly into her ear until she settled back into a more peaceful sleep. Deeg had made these promise. She had sworn to help them, to be a part of what they were. She had agreed, and in return they had taken her in without question. They had healed him, using all the power they had, without restraint. They had kept his son safe because she had asked. They had been the only thing like family she'd had for years. "When do I have to do this?"
Standing the Furball put a hand on his girls shoulder. "When both healed."
He met dark eyes steadily. "Patch her up then." The viewer's lip twitched as he rocked Deeg awake. She lurched backward and he held her so she wouldn't fall on her back. "You're safe, Sweetheart." She blinked rapidly and he knew she hadn't gotten near enough sleep but she needed to be seen to. "Time to let Furball heal ya."
Nodding blearily she held out her hands to Raw. The fact that she didn't fight or sit away from him told him how much pain she must be in. He reached up and massaged her neck as the viewer placed his fingertips over her first wrist. As he watched her burns fade away to slightly red skin he was amazed at the depth of loyalty she had to him as well as his son.
She had been taking care of Jeb as much as him over the last few days. He knew it wouldn't be long before she let herself feel what had happened. She had nothing to focus on now. All the things she had been repressing while the threat of the mage was looming over them would come calling.
Soon the sting of loss would hit her. She would need to grieve for her uncle. His girl would need to come to terms with the fact that she couldn't go home again. She'd have to accept the fact that seeing her sister again would be difficult, if not downright impossible. She'd need to sort out being held down and tortured. Not to mention the violent death she had inflicted on her enemy.
But, he reasoned, there were good thing too. He would join her pack. He'd take her back to the city, once he was sure it was safe, and show her that she had a new home. They could finally talk about what she had whispered into his shoulder so many nights ago when she thought he'd been sleeping. He'd be able to introduce her to his friends. He was pretty certain they would like her.
For now he would let her rest and forget. They both needed that. Space from everything and time with each other. He would worry about the rest…later. When they were ready. Raw met his eyes as Deeg scooted around so he could see to her back and nodded. Later then. He could wait. Kissing her forehead he leaned back and did just that. Sometimes that's all you could do.
Author Note: I know the big fight is over but this story still has a couple chapters left. Honest! That's what Fred told me! (Points to plot bunny lounging on shoulder).