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Last time on Andromda
It grants wishes…not that kind of wishes, it makes them seem like coincidence but they never turn out how you want them too. They always turn out bad." The old shop owner warned Harper.
~"But we can't just wave a magic wand and make his god awful childhood go away. Can't wish away the dozen times he almost died in that place from some disease that had been wiped out everywhere else?" Beka took a breath as she finished her explanation~
~Dylan bent over and picked up Harper. "Man you're hot. Must be from all that running around kido"~
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Beka couldn't help to notice Harper's eating habits had slowed dramatically at lunch. Maybe the kid wasn't used to so much food. Three meals a day was a new concept to his young body. Although Beka was a little confused on if his body remembered 5 years of no food, or the 17 years of no food and the 6 years of three meals a day most of the time
"Full kid?" Beka asked. A sheepish grin spread across Harper's face.
"I'm storry I can't ea it all," Harper said really upset. "I'll eat it lader, I don't mean to waist fud."
"It's alright." Beka picked Harper off her lap, now that her services as a human booster chair where no longer needed. "We have plenty of food kiddo." Harper turned and looked at Beka, his eyes' getting really big. It was like she had just told him that today was Christmas or he could have two deserts. "Come on Shay let's go back to your room and read a story." Beka turned to leave with Harper following her at a slow pace. Beka then turned around and picked up the small child. "You tired kid"
Harper shook his head but his eyes and body said yes as he put his head on Beka's shoulder and she started to carry him back to his room.
Dylan was right when he said Harper was hot before. The kid was practically burning up in Beka's arms. She just hoped that Harper wasn't getting sick on top of everything else. Who was she kidding, Harper had just been plant side and with his immune system that meant he would be coming down with a cold of some kind two days later.
It was a short walk to the VIP quarters from the mess but by the time they got there Harper was already asleep. Beka laid him on the bed and sat beside him. She ran her hands through his hair. Harper had a deep frown on his face and was quietly whimpering, showing all the signs that he was having a nightmare. How long was he on the Maru before he stopped having those dreams every night? She couldn't remember. She knew they still came to him some nights, the dreams he never spoke of. He would just show up on command deck a little later or earlier, the circles under his eyes a little deeper, and she would know. Even Dylan, oblivious to so many things, knew the signs these days.
"It's ok Harper. I'm not going to leave you. We're going to find away out of this mess too. We always do." Beka kept playing with the sleeping Harper's hair and she felt him relax a little. Beka looked up at the ceiling and whispered "Rommie"
Holo-Rommie popped on and responded in a hush tone "Yes Beka."
"Is he?" Beka asked knowing Rommie would have been monitoring Harper's vitals all day and would know if he was running a fever now.
"Yes Beka, Harper is running a small fever. But most young children will run fevers occasionally, it doesn't mean his sick. More his immune system is getting rid of foreign bacteria and toxics (sorry I had thrown that in, some stuff from my classes)"
"Rommie this is Harper we are talking about," whatever techno babble Rommie offered her the fact remain Harper had a horrible immune system.
"I know Beka. I will keep monitoring his vitals for any changes."
"Thanks Rommie." With that the A.I. popped out of view leaving Beka with the sleeping Harper. "Looks like it's just you and me kid. I'm going to grab some work, I'll be right back." Beka got up off the bed and again called out to the ceiling. "Rommie" But her question was answered by the doors to the room whooshing open and Rommie standing in the doorway holding a flexi.
"I'll take care of him Beka."
"Thanks Rommie," with that Beka left. Why she hated leaving Harper she didn't know; as much as she hated kids she couldn't help feeling drawn to little Harper. He was such a little reminder of how much Harper had changed from the small, thin, timid teen she had taken off earth so many years ago. "Come back to me Harper," she whispered to no one.
~~~
Rommie sat, in the same cushion chair that Beka had fallen asleep in last night, working on solutions for Harper's situation. Part of her was still wondering about the necklace that he had been given in the market place. She hadn't seen it when Beka had emptied Harper's pockets yesterday and it wasn't in his room either. Rommie didn't believe in wishes but the strange event of her wishing for a new childhood for Harper and then him turning into a child left her puzzled. Wishes weren't true her brain told her but her emotions said that it was too much of a coincidence, like the old women talked about.
Harper stirred in his sleep drawing her out of her thoughts. She walked over to the bed and sat down beside the sleeping Harper like Beka had done earlier. She ran her hand through the sleeping boy's hair surprise at how hot he was. His temperature had risen another degree further. Even though little children ran fevers his temperature was now 103.2. Rommie picked up the sleeping Harper and started walking towards medical, telling her other self to page Beka and Trance.
Harper stirred in her arms starting to wake up from the movement. "Rommie?" Harper asked rubbing his eyes.
"Yes Seamus, its Rommie" she said trying to comfort the small boy as she shifted him to her hip.
He put his head on her shoulder and asked, "Where are we going?"
"Medical," Rommie said continuing her brisk pace to medical.
"I don wan to go to meditcal" Harper said sitting up in Ramie's arms.
"Seamus you are running a fever, we want to make sure you are ok." Rommie said in a firm voice tightening her grip on the small child.
"Am I goin to die?" Rommie stopped when he asked the question.
"No, you are sick but we are going to make you better." Harper settled back down into Rommie's arms as she continued walking. They got to medical right as Tyr was exiting. Harper again sat up in Rommie's arms. Hs eyes got wide and his arms wrapped tightly around Rommie. "Seamus it Tyr remember. He is a good Neitzchien. He is not going to hurt you."
"Remember boy I was the one who brought you to medical yesterday." Tyr face and voice were soft as he took a step toward Rommie and Harper with his hand out, but Rommie felt Harper's hands dig into her fake flesh and her side starting to get wet. She turned her head to look Harper but his eyes refused to leave Tyr.
"I'm not going to hurt you. I would never hurt you little man." Tyr tried again. Harper kept the same terrified look on his face. Tyr turned to leave giving Harper one last look. For a stern faced Neitzchien Rommie thought he looked really sad. Rommie turned and walked into medical with Harper. His eyes never left Tyr until the doors closed.
When Rommie set Harper down on the bed in medical he was shaking and still hadn't said anything. "It's ok Seamus. You are ok. No one here is going to hurt you." Harper pulled his knees up to his legs and started rocking back and forth.
"Shay I'm going to give you something to help you sleep but it won't hurt." Trance said as she loaded a hypo spray with a mild sedative. Harper shook his head violently and started moving back on the bed away from Trance. Rommie picked up Harper who started struggle and kicking Rommie several times. She said a quiet thank you for the ability to not feel pain and held Harper tight rocking him back and forth.
"You are ok, you are ok Seamus, no Neitzchien are going to hurt you here" She ran her hand up and down Harper's back in small circles. She continued comforting the small boy until he settled down. Trance walked up and injected the hypo in Harper's arm. Immediately Harper pasted out in Rommie's arms. She laid him down on the bed still rubbing his back.
"Rommie," Trance said breaking through Rommie's thoughts, "why don't you go change. He'll be asleep for a while."
"Alright Trance. I'll bring back a change of clothes for Harper."
"Bring Edward bear too."
"Who is Edward Bear?"
"His teddy," Trance said moving to Harper's besides moving some of his hair off his face. Rommie left the room with one last look at Harper passed out in the biobed and Trance wandering around medical conducting varies scans.
~~~
Beka was sitting on the bed holding Edward Bear in Harper's quarters when Rommie walked in after changing. "How is he Rommie?" Beka asked not looking up.
"He is going to be ok Beka," Rommie said trying to comfort her friend.
"I know it's just a fever but he is so young and this is Harper. A small fever quickly turns into the plague and he is in bed for weeks."
"Well he has chicken pox but it is a mild illness."
"Chicken poxs, what's that?"
"It's an old earth illness. In about two days he'll get itchy bumps all over but they stop itching in five days and in two weeks have completely fallen off. They made a vaccine for it thousands of years ago so cases today are very rare. Everyone on the ship is going to have to given a vaccine for it though."
"I thought you said it was a rare and mild disease."
"It's very contagious but cases of it are very rare and it is more sever in adults. I came here to get a change of clothes for Harper." Beka raised up an eyebrow. "He wet himself when he saw Tyr."
"I thought we were trying to avoid having those two meet."
"It was my fault Beka but Harper will be ok."
"I know it's just…"
"I know. Trance also though Harper would like to have Edward Bear. She wants him to stay in medical for a few days." Beka looked down at the bear and then handed it to Rommie she then went over to the bag that held the clothes she had found on the Maru.
"Here's some pjs. Beside I think there is only one other pair of guy pants left that won't be huge on him. All I have left for him to wear some of my old tight tees."
"Well at least we know those won't be too big on them," Rommie commented, a smile form on Beka's face.
"I won't talk about your wardrobe miss." Beka said as she threw the outfit as Rommie. "Page me when he wakes up"
"I will" and Rommie turned to leave.
"Wait, I'll come with you," the two of them left the room heading off to visit their friend.
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*This is going to have one more chapter and then it will be finished. Raven thanks for the suggestion. I was debating putting in that scene from the beginning.
Last time on Andromda
It grants wishes…not that kind of wishes, it makes them seem like coincidence but they never turn out how you want them too. They always turn out bad." The old shop owner warned Harper.
~"But we can't just wave a magic wand and make his god awful childhood go away. Can't wish away the dozen times he almost died in that place from some disease that had been wiped out everywhere else?" Beka took a breath as she finished her explanation~
~Dylan bent over and picked up Harper. "Man you're hot. Must be from all that running around kido"~
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Beka couldn't help to notice Harper's eating habits had slowed dramatically at lunch. Maybe the kid wasn't used to so much food. Three meals a day was a new concept to his young body. Although Beka was a little confused on if his body remembered 5 years of no food, or the 17 years of no food and the 6 years of three meals a day most of the time
"Full kid?" Beka asked. A sheepish grin spread across Harper's face.
"I'm storry I can't ea it all," Harper said really upset. "I'll eat it lader, I don't mean to waist fud."
"It's alright." Beka picked Harper off her lap, now that her services as a human booster chair where no longer needed. "We have plenty of food kiddo." Harper turned and looked at Beka, his eyes' getting really big. It was like she had just told him that today was Christmas or he could have two deserts. "Come on Shay let's go back to your room and read a story." Beka turned to leave with Harper following her at a slow pace. Beka then turned around and picked up the small child. "You tired kid"
Harper shook his head but his eyes and body said yes as he put his head on Beka's shoulder and she started to carry him back to his room.
Dylan was right when he said Harper was hot before. The kid was practically burning up in Beka's arms. She just hoped that Harper wasn't getting sick on top of everything else. Who was she kidding, Harper had just been plant side and with his immune system that meant he would be coming down with a cold of some kind two days later.
It was a short walk to the VIP quarters from the mess but by the time they got there Harper was already asleep. Beka laid him on the bed and sat beside him. She ran her hands through his hair. Harper had a deep frown on his face and was quietly whimpering, showing all the signs that he was having a nightmare. How long was he on the Maru before he stopped having those dreams every night? She couldn't remember. She knew they still came to him some nights, the dreams he never spoke of. He would just show up on command deck a little later or earlier, the circles under his eyes a little deeper, and she would know. Even Dylan, oblivious to so many things, knew the signs these days.
"It's ok Harper. I'm not going to leave you. We're going to find away out of this mess too. We always do." Beka kept playing with the sleeping Harper's hair and she felt him relax a little. Beka looked up at the ceiling and whispered "Rommie"
Holo-Rommie popped on and responded in a hush tone "Yes Beka."
"Is he?" Beka asked knowing Rommie would have been monitoring Harper's vitals all day and would know if he was running a fever now.
"Yes Beka, Harper is running a small fever. But most young children will run fevers occasionally, it doesn't mean his sick. More his immune system is getting rid of foreign bacteria and toxics (sorry I had thrown that in, some stuff from my classes)"
"Rommie this is Harper we are talking about," whatever techno babble Rommie offered her the fact remain Harper had a horrible immune system.
"I know Beka. I will keep monitoring his vitals for any changes."
"Thanks Rommie." With that the A.I. popped out of view leaving Beka with the sleeping Harper. "Looks like it's just you and me kid. I'm going to grab some work, I'll be right back." Beka got up off the bed and again called out to the ceiling. "Rommie" But her question was answered by the doors to the room whooshing open and Rommie standing in the doorway holding a flexi.
"I'll take care of him Beka."
"Thanks Rommie," with that Beka left. Why she hated leaving Harper she didn't know; as much as she hated kids she couldn't help feeling drawn to little Harper. He was such a little reminder of how much Harper had changed from the small, thin, timid teen she had taken off earth so many years ago. "Come back to me Harper," she whispered to no one.
~~~
Rommie sat, in the same cushion chair that Beka had fallen asleep in last night, working on solutions for Harper's situation. Part of her was still wondering about the necklace that he had been given in the market place. She hadn't seen it when Beka had emptied Harper's pockets yesterday and it wasn't in his room either. Rommie didn't believe in wishes but the strange event of her wishing for a new childhood for Harper and then him turning into a child left her puzzled. Wishes weren't true her brain told her but her emotions said that it was too much of a coincidence, like the old women talked about.
Harper stirred in his sleep drawing her out of her thoughts. She walked over to the bed and sat down beside the sleeping Harper like Beka had done earlier. She ran her hand through the sleeping boy's hair surprise at how hot he was. His temperature had risen another degree further. Even though little children ran fevers his temperature was now 103.2. Rommie picked up the sleeping Harper and started walking towards medical, telling her other self to page Beka and Trance.
Harper stirred in her arms starting to wake up from the movement. "Rommie?" Harper asked rubbing his eyes.
"Yes Seamus, its Rommie" she said trying to comfort the small boy as she shifted him to her hip.
He put his head on her shoulder and asked, "Where are we going?"
"Medical," Rommie said continuing her brisk pace to medical.
"I don wan to go to meditcal" Harper said sitting up in Ramie's arms.
"Seamus you are running a fever, we want to make sure you are ok." Rommie said in a firm voice tightening her grip on the small child.
"Am I goin to die?" Rommie stopped when he asked the question.
"No, you are sick but we are going to make you better." Harper settled back down into Rommie's arms as she continued walking. They got to medical right as Tyr was exiting. Harper again sat up in Rommie's arms. Hs eyes got wide and his arms wrapped tightly around Rommie. "Seamus it Tyr remember. He is a good Neitzchien. He is not going to hurt you."
"Remember boy I was the one who brought you to medical yesterday." Tyr face and voice were soft as he took a step toward Rommie and Harper with his hand out, but Rommie felt Harper's hands dig into her fake flesh and her side starting to get wet. She turned her head to look Harper but his eyes refused to leave Tyr.
"I'm not going to hurt you. I would never hurt you little man." Tyr tried again. Harper kept the same terrified look on his face. Tyr turned to leave giving Harper one last look. For a stern faced Neitzchien Rommie thought he looked really sad. Rommie turned and walked into medical with Harper. His eyes never left Tyr until the doors closed.
When Rommie set Harper down on the bed in medical he was shaking and still hadn't said anything. "It's ok Seamus. You are ok. No one here is going to hurt you." Harper pulled his knees up to his legs and started rocking back and forth.
"Shay I'm going to give you something to help you sleep but it won't hurt." Trance said as she loaded a hypo spray with a mild sedative. Harper shook his head violently and started moving back on the bed away from Trance. Rommie picked up Harper who started struggle and kicking Rommie several times. She said a quiet thank you for the ability to not feel pain and held Harper tight rocking him back and forth.
"You are ok, you are ok Seamus, no Neitzchien are going to hurt you here" She ran her hand up and down Harper's back in small circles. She continued comforting the small boy until he settled down. Trance walked up and injected the hypo in Harper's arm. Immediately Harper pasted out in Rommie's arms. She laid him down on the bed still rubbing his back.
"Rommie," Trance said breaking through Rommie's thoughts, "why don't you go change. He'll be asleep for a while."
"Alright Trance. I'll bring back a change of clothes for Harper."
"Bring Edward bear too."
"Who is Edward Bear?"
"His teddy," Trance said moving to Harper's besides moving some of his hair off his face. Rommie left the room with one last look at Harper passed out in the biobed and Trance wandering around medical conducting varies scans.
~~~
Beka was sitting on the bed holding Edward Bear in Harper's quarters when Rommie walked in after changing. "How is he Rommie?" Beka asked not looking up.
"He is going to be ok Beka," Rommie said trying to comfort her friend.
"I know it's just a fever but he is so young and this is Harper. A small fever quickly turns into the plague and he is in bed for weeks."
"Well he has chicken pox but it is a mild illness."
"Chicken poxs, what's that?"
"It's an old earth illness. In about two days he'll get itchy bumps all over but they stop itching in five days and in two weeks have completely fallen off. They made a vaccine for it thousands of years ago so cases today are very rare. Everyone on the ship is going to have to given a vaccine for it though."
"I thought you said it was a rare and mild disease."
"It's very contagious but cases of it are very rare and it is more sever in adults. I came here to get a change of clothes for Harper." Beka raised up an eyebrow. "He wet himself when he saw Tyr."
"I thought we were trying to avoid having those two meet."
"It was my fault Beka but Harper will be ok."
"I know it's just…"
"I know. Trance also though Harper would like to have Edward Bear. She wants him to stay in medical for a few days." Beka looked down at the bear and then handed it to Rommie she then went over to the bag that held the clothes she had found on the Maru.
"Here's some pjs. Beside I think there is only one other pair of guy pants left that won't be huge on him. All I have left for him to wear some of my old tight tees."
"Well at least we know those won't be too big on them," Rommie commented, a smile form on Beka's face.
"I won't talk about your wardrobe miss." Beka said as she threw the outfit as Rommie. "Page me when he wakes up"
"I will" and Rommie turned to leave.
"Wait, I'll come with you," the two of them left the room heading off to visit their friend.
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*This is going to have one more chapter and then it will be finished. Raven thanks for the suggestion. I was debating putting in that scene from the beginning.