Surprise! You get not one, but TWO chapters at once! My apology for taking so long. Anyway, this one has more of Riley and Jake! I love writing these. They could be a whole other story.


The first few days back in South Park after the Blood Ball were a bit awkward. Kenny had wanted to and tried several times to further discuss with Brooke what had been said in the castle garden. But every time he brought it up in any way, she would smile sadly and change the subject. It was getting to be frustrating, because he had so much he wanted to say but she just wouldn't listen. If he tried to keep pestering her about it, she would end up telling him that he "should go back" before she walked away from him.

He was leering across the lunch table at Kyle sitting very close beside Lucy. He was glad that the two of them were together now and open about their relationship, but he was also incredibly envious. In fact, he didn't even realize how he had been looking at them until it was pointed out.

Cartman had returned to school, still with casts and braces on his limbs, and had to be pushed around in a wheelchair. Friendly little Butters was more than happy to push the wheelchair for him. Riley was not.

"Yo, Kenny," Cartman said. "What's that face about? Have you finally realized how evil Jews are?"

"What?" he looked at him. "Wha- No, asshole. What are you talking about?"

Clyde was the one who replied. "You were staring at Kyle like you wanna kill him or something."

"No I wasn't."

"Uh, yeah, you were."

Kyle shot Kenny a look. "What the hell, man?"

"I didn't mean to!" he said defensively. "I didn't even know!"

"He's being honest, you know." Lucy defended him. "Though, you're obviously bothered about something. What is it?"

"I don't want to talk about it." He placed his elbow on the table and plopped his head into his hand.

Brooke had actually not joined them for lunch that day. Instead, for some reason, she had decided to sit at a table with Tweek on the other side of the cafeteria. Craig and Token were also there, but she appeared to only be speaking with Tweek about something. After school, she had disappeared somewhere.

Kenny split from the group to walk home by himself. He could feel something like anxiety bubbling up within him as he neared the red house where Brooke lived. He stopped on the sidewalk and turned to face the door. He glanced up at the window to her room; it was hard to tell in the daylight, but it looked like the light was on. After a long time standing there, he decided to walk over and knock on the door.

It wasn't long before someone opened it. Trent had apparently been watching TV in the living room, so he was the one who answered the door. The moment Kenny saw him, he felt the instinct to flee, but held his ground instead and tried not to look too surprised.

Trent crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "What?" There was an obvious hint of hostility in his tone, but he seemed a lot less angry than Kenny remembered.

"I-" He cleared his throat, hating himself for his voice cracking. "Uhm, is Brooke here?"

"Yes." He stated flatly then looked away at something. "I think she's got visitors already. She was talking to someone in her room. Sounded like more than one." He pushed himself from the doorframe and went back inside, leaving the door open for Kenny. "I thought you were already here," he said as he sat on the couch.

"Huh?"

He glanced briefly at Kenny. "I passed by her room earlier to go to the bathroom. Pretty sure I heard her say your name, so I just assumed you were here and she was talking to you." He shrugged. "Guess she was just talking about you."

Kenny blinked at him then turned his head to gaze worriedly up the stairs for a minute before ascending them and stopping at her door. He could hear voices on the other side, hers and two others, but he couldn't make out what anyone was saying until one raised its voice.

"Quit standin' around and get in here!"

He tensed but opened the door and stepped inside. Four pairs of eyes had turned to gaze at him, Brooke's dark red eyes and the glowing orbs that were the three banshees' eyes. Brooke was sitting on the side of her bed with Joey curled behind her, his head resting by her hip, and Charles and Lamar were laying comfortably on the carpet floor like dogs.

"What, are you trying to eavesdrop or something?" Charles asked, folding his hands over each other.

"N-No! I just came to hang out. I didn't realize you guys were here."

"You hang out a lot with the Princess," Lamar remarked. "Almost as much as me and Charles!"

Brooke watched Kenny closely, noticing him shift his feet awkwardly. "Come here," she said and held a hand out to gesture at him to come closer. He looked unsure but moved between Charles and Lamar to get to the bed, stopping a few inches in front of her. She was amused by the flare in his soul when she pushed her hand into his hood to comb her fingers through his hair. The banshees' tails flicked with silent amusement as well.

Kenny stared up at her, suddenly forgetting about the other people in the room. She wouldn't listen or speak to him about what he really wanted to talk about, but what would she say or do if he started being more intimate? Would she get mad at him? Was it worth risking? He couldn't help it; it was so hard to hide it now. He leaned forward and hugged her waist, hiding his face against her midriff. He was fully expecting her to say something about it or scold him, so he was pleasantly surprised when he felt her place a hand on his neck and stroke his back with the other. He breathed and closed his eyes, relaxing and placing his weight against her and listening to the banshees pick their conversation back up. Kenny was grateful that none of them bothered to question or even remark on his action.

"So, as I was saying," Charles said. "The kid comes up to us and asks us where the bathroom is, right? Says he drank a lot of punch. What punch? Okay, turns out he didn't know that the main beverage was Blood Sugar that night."

"He looked like he was gonna hurl after finding out," Lamar nodded.

"Ignorance is bliss," Joey smiled, his tail tip flicking with amusement.

"Yeah," Charles said. "At least no one complained about it being too sweet. Magic can do a lot of stuff, but apparently it can't separate sugar from blood."

"At least we got the bag out."

"Ha-ha, yeah!" Charles looked frightened all of a sudden. "I couldn't leave evidence behind! Lucy or Spike would've had my tail if they found out! And I like my tail…"

As funny as the conversation was, Kenny soon found himself dozing off in the girl's lap. Her presence and warmth combined with the slow, firm strokes along his back made him feel completely relaxed and content. For a moment he thought she was using her strange power over souls to make him feel that way, but it was a noticeably different feeling of relaxation. He enjoyed it so much more this way.

All throughout school on Friday, Riley kept receiving phone calls from a number he only now recognized because it had called him multiple times that day. The first time, it left a voicemail, but Riley was not able to check it until recess. He glanced around for teachers then went over to his old spot in the shadow of the building; it was quieter there.

"Hello," the voicemail said. It was a man's voice that Riley did not recognize. "This is Doctor Vincent from Hell's Pass Hospital…"

Riley made a face at the name of the hospital.

"I'm calling to speak to you about Jacob Blanchard, who was admitted this morning at eight-fifteen. It's rather urgent. If you would, give us a call back at –"

Riley hurriedly dialed the number. It rang twice before a woman answered. "Yeah," Riley said, trying to keep his voice from shaking. "Um, I'm calling back about Jake – Jacob Blanchard."

"Oh, yes. Please hold while I transfer you to Doctor Vincent."

Riley shot a quick glance over his shoulder as he waited, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Hello," the man's voice answered. "Is this Riley?"

"Yes! Er, y-yes."

"Hello, this is Doctor Vincent. Jacob was admitted this morning in a pretty bad state. He claims he has no family members to contact and gave us this number instead. Are you related?"

"N-No… He's an orphan. We're just friends."

"I see. Well, we ran quite a few tests… It seems Jacob has a pretty rapidly developing case of lung cancer. It's already spread to several other parts of the body."

Riley stiffened.

"Are you sure there's no one else we can contact about him? No adults?"

"No. But I'll – I'll be there soon."

After hanging-up with the doctor, Riley hurried over to where Lucy was sitting and writing something. She looked a bit concerned at his expression. "Is something the matter?"

"Yes," he said. "Um, my – my friend, Jake is in the hospital. I need to go there, right now."

"Oh dear," she closed her notebook and stood up. "Hm, I suppose we could contact our, er, 'not-parents' as Brooke calls them, and have them take you there. I'm sure they would if you explained. I'd like to go as well. Come on, let's go to the office."

Riley was shaking a little as they entered the building to head for the new principal's office. Luckily, although he could be a bit intense, PC Principal was rather reasonable. He was doing paperwork at his desk when they entered.

"Ah, Lucy and Riley," he looked up at them and folded his hands together. He had a tendency to learn and remember every student's name. "How can I help you?"

Riley was suddenly too nervous to talk anymore, so Lucy was the one who answered.

"Hello, sir. We have a bit of a…family emergency. May we contact our parents, please?"

"Certainly."

.

After the parents had agreed to come get them, PC Principal allowed them to remain in his office after noticing how shaken Riley was. Lucy briefly left to go inform Brooke of the situation and tell her that the two of them would be leaving before returning to wait with Riley. It was only about ten minutes or so before the parents arrived to pick them up.

The hospital was located on the opposite side of town, leaving Riley time to come up with a bunch of questions on the way. Lucy noticed him staring unfocusedly out the window and clutching his pants, so she reached over to hold his hand in an attempt to comfort him. It helped a little, as it brought him back and he turned to look at her with green eyes full of worry.

The parents accompanied them inside the hospital all the way to the room where the doctor met them before they opened the door. "Ah," he said. "You must be Riley. And these must be your parents?"

"Adopted…uh, y-yeah. This is…my sister."

"Well," Doctor Vincent said. "Before you go in, I have to tell you. He's not doing so good. He's very weak and frail, and he can't really stand or walk anymore. He has frequent fits of coughing, during which a bit of blood may come up, and is in a lot of pain. We're not sure exactly how much longer he's got. Could be a few months, weeks, or even hours. There isn't really anything we can do at this point, and it doesn't help that he seems to have given up."

Lucy eyed the doctor incredulously. "What exactly is wrong with him?"

"Lung cancer. A very rapidly developing case."

"Cancer…" she mused. "Yes, the disease that humans seem to think there is no cure."

"There really isn't, especially not at this stage. Normally, we could try to eradicate the cancer cells with treatment such as chemotherapy."

"Which is?"

"Blasting it with powerful rays of radiation."

She looked beside herself.

"But, as I said, it's far too advanced at this point for any of that to work."

"Ridiculous," Lucy muttered.

"We'll wait out here for you," their mother told them. "Take your time."

Lucy joined Riley and entered the room.

Jake was sitting in a wheelchair on the other side of the room and facing the window. He didn't have his signature leather coat on and there was a thick blanket placed on his lap. He slowly looked over at them as they entered, smiling a little before turning back to the window.

"Hey, Riles." He looked very sickly and tired, much different from the last time Riley had seen him, which was not long ago. Jake's curly brown hair was unkempt and dirty, he was very thin, and he had dark circles under his eyes, giving him an almost hollow look.

"Jake." Riley went over to him, stopping just a few feet away. Even considering the way that he lived, he had never seen Jake look so unkempt and tired. "What happened?"

He shrugged, but he was so weak that it was barely noticeable. "Got sick. Cigarettes, maybe? Been coughin' for a while, really bad. Got worse. Started coughin' up blood and feelin' really dizzy and tired. Haven't been eatin' much, either."

"Why?"

"Can't." he sounded out of breath.

"Well, why didn't you say something?!" Riley snapped. "If you'd have come here earlier –"

"Nah. Wouldn't've mattered."

"Wha- H-How did you get here, anyway?"

"I don't know. I was going to meet up with a client, but I just couldn't walk anymore. I fell, then next thing I know, I'm in this joint and they're askin' me questions and who I live with. I just gave 'em your number so they'd leave me alone. They won't let me leave. Tried to put something in my nose, somethin' about oxygen, but I kept pulling it off 'cause it was annoying."

"You should let them put it," Riley told him.

"What's the point?"

"What?"

"I'm sure they told you, yeah? I'm dying anyways, so why bother? I don't know why they don't just let me go."

"They won't let you go because they're trying to help you!"

"They can't though." He continued to gaze absently out the window. "It's a waste of time."

Riley was beginning to feel angry and frustrated. "You're not a waste of time!"

"Obviously, I AM," Jake leered over at him. "My parents sure thought I was! The kids that took me in sure thought so, because they left, too. I don't know why I ever bothered tryin' to survive in the first place. Even the world thinks I'm a waste of time, 'cause it's been tryin' to kill me for years." He starting coughing painfully.

"Jake," Riley stepped closer.

"What do you care?!" Jake managed to choke out. "You left too! You didn't even THINK about me!" His coughing fit became more violent and he choked blood out in his hand before he managed to catch and steady his breathing.

Riley almost stumbled over his feet as he quickly stepped back from him. So, it was true. Jake felt hurt and abandoned by him, too. "No, Jake I – I didn't –"

"Shut up!"

There was a tense silence around the room. Jake slowly leaned back in the wheelchair and turned back to the window.

"I told you," he said quietly, as though it was too difficult to speak anymore. "I only gave 'em your number so they'd leave me alone. It was all I had for 'em. …I just wanna be alone."

"No, you don't." Riley said calmly. "You never did. You better not give up, damn it. We'll figure it out."

Jake did not respond or react in any way.

"…I'll be back tomorrow. Whether you want me to or not." He waited a minute, hoping for some kind of reaction, but got nothing, then went over to Lucy and the two of them left.

The car ride back was silent. The parents ended up just bringing them home instead of back to school, as there were only about two hours left of school anyway. When they got back, Riley went up to his room to lay on his bed, turning onto his stomach and wrapping his arms around the pillow. Lucy had followed him.

She reached over and stroked his back. "Riley," she said softly. "I've already been studying these things humans refer to as cancer. I…think I might be able to help Jacob."

He turned over to face her.

"I would need to have him stay here, though. With us. That way, it would be much easier to observe and test. Of course, I can't do anything if he doesn't want… If you can convince him not to give up and to come here, then… Well, it would be up to the Princess in the end, but we could easily have the not-parents adopt him. Though, I do wonder how many times their brains can be manipulated before they become like soup…"

"I thought you didn't like having the Royal Guard do unnecessary stuff like that?"

"Yes, well, that poor boy is all alone and very hurt. And I don't just mean physically. He must have serious trauma, and it's very obvious that his heart hurts, too. I…well, I want to help him, and I think that I can, too. You said that you will be going back tomorrow, right? Have Brooke go with you. I'm sure she will agree to have him come live here; you know how she is. Perhaps she can help convince him?"

"You really think you can find a cure for cancer?"

"If I can't, then I can certainly make one," she huffed then blushed a little. "Er, n-not to sound pompous or anything."

.

The next day, Brooke and Riley had the parents drive them over to the hospital so that they could visit Jake. In just a day, the boy had already gotten worse. He was laying in the bed, on his side and facing the other way, and he had his right arm stretched out in front of himself. There was an IV in his right arm and an oxygen mask on his face with a few other things attached to the boy. The heartbeat monitor made Riley feel anxious.

Both of them had gone around the bed to see his face. They thought he was asleep at first, but he opened his eyes halfway at the sounds. Riley was afraid that Jake would be mad, but he actually looked a little relieved when he realized who they were.

"…Hey." He breathed.

"Hey Jake," Riley said quietly.

Brooke looked immensely upset upon seeing Jake and leaned against the side of the bed to reach over and stroke his face. He closed his eyes and sighed, seeming to enjoy the touch. "You poor thing," she said as she rested her head on the bed. "You've given up?"

He opened his eyes a little but did not answer.

She continued to softly stroke his cheek. "Why don't you come with me instead?"

Riley wondered how this was going to play out. Brooke was the Angel of Death, daughter of the Grim Reaper. Was she offering to let him stay with them, or was she offering to take and keep his soul? No, he knew her better than that by now. She was being delicate and sweet, just like she had been when Riley had shown up to their house that night.

"Jake." Riley placed his hand in his. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I left you alone. I'm sorry that I never realized how important you are to me, and that we've been friends all along. You were always there for me. Always letting me stay at your place and looking after me when I was hurt." He wiped at the tears forming in his eyes. "I'm sorry I'm such a bad friend. But it's my turn to be there for you. I will never let you feel alone, ever again. Just…don't give up. Don't leave me…"

Brooke carefully wiped away the tear that was running along Jake's face. "Jake. Lucy and I want to help you. Um, I'll have to explain a bunch of stuff to you, but if you want, you can come stay with us and Riley. Riley told me that you would refuse every time he offered, but we really want you to come. Lucy really thinks she can help you. Meanwhile, we'd all love to give you lots of attention and love." She smiled. "I like to coddle Riley all the time!"

"You're afraid of being abandoned," Riley said. "I promise, I'll never leave you behind again. And I know Brooke won't." He chuckled a bit. "She's serious about the coddling thing."

Jake weakly curled his fingers around Riley's hand. He looked worried but was blushing a little. "Okay…I…I want to go with you."

Brooke smiled brighter and sat up. "Good! Lucy and I will have things settled by tomorrow I'm sure. I'll call her now, and when I get back, I have a lot of weird stuff to explain to you." She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You don't have to worry about anything, now. We'll take good care of you." She left to go call Lucy.

Riley spent the rest of the day at Jake's side. Even though Jake looked very tired and ill, Riley could tell that he wanted to laugh sometimes as Brooke explained, in a very hearty, funny way, about herself, Lucy, and all the Nether stuff. He was so happy to see a bit of light return to Jake's eyes, and was forever grateful to the girls for everything they've ever done for him and for Jake and everything he was sure they would do later.

Later in the evening, Brooke left with the parents to get things settled at home while Riley remained at the hospital with Jake. Riley was very attentive towards him and very eager to do things for him, though at the moment Jake really just wanted to sleep. After a while, as the sunlight faded, Riley climbed into the bed beside him, careful not to disturb him, and went to sleep like that.

The next morning, Riley woke with a start as something clamped his nose and made him choke on air. He cringed and opened his eyes to see Jake turned over facing him, a smirk on his tired face.

"I hate when you do that," Riley groaned and placed his head back down.

Jake shifted oddly, trying to move closer. Riley noticed and moved to meet him, allowing him to place his forehead against his shoulder. It was a bit strange. He had never known Jake to be the cuddly type, not that he minded. Riley was more than happy to give him the affection and comfort he wanted. He deserved it, in Riley's eyes. Riley smiled and hugged him. He loved Jake. Not in the way that he loved Butters, he didn't think, but he loved him very much. In fact, he suddenly realized that he loved all of them. Brooke and Lucy meant the world to him, and he was already becoming quite attached to Trent, too, who had become a bit more docile lately.

Around ten, Brooke had returned with the parents to retrieve the boys. Jake was removed from all of the machinery, aside from a portable oxygen tank and mask, and wheeled out to the car. Just getting in and out of the wheelchair was enough to completely exhaust the boy. Brooke had insisted on sitting between the boys so that she could coddle Jake, just as Riley knew she would. Though, Jake was obviously glad to lean against her during the ride, and he didn't mind the attention.

When they got home, Brooke explained to them that, even though they have an extra bedroom, they decided to have Jake share Riley's room. That way, there would be someone with him just in case. And if Riley left to sleep at Butters', the room was just across from Brooke's. They sat Jake in a wheelchair and wheeled him inside, carefully bringing him up the stairs to the room.

There was already a second bed placed on the other side across from Riley's with a few hospital machines standing next to it. Lucy was already in the room, looking over the machines.

"Oh," she turned to them as they entered. "Hello Jake," she smiled at him. "We'll have you put back on an IV for now, but I'm hoping to have you eating and drinking on your own again soon. I'm going to draw a small sample of blood from you now, if that's all right? I'd like to get started as soon as possible with some tests. I'll leave you to rest for the rest of today though before pestering you with too much."

"Okay," he said.

After obtaining a sample of blood, Lucy assisted in settling Jake into his new bed and hooking him up to the machines before smiling sweetly at him and leaving the room.

"Let any of us know if you need anything," Brooke told him. She smiled as he let out a contented sigh and closed his eyes. "Welcome to the family, Jake."

To be continued…