~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do I dare disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time for decisions and revisions
which in a minute will reverse.
--T. S. Eliot
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Four: The Shattering
*beep*…*beep*…*beep*…
Groaning, Serena slammed her hand down on the clock to shut it up. Groggily, she pushed herself out of bed and into the bathroom. When she emerged, Luna was waiting at the door to the hall for her. The cat announced her pleasure at Serena's awakening by rubbing against her legs, almost tripping her as she tried to open the door. The girl scooped up the cat and carried her downstairs, grumbling softly about "…more trouble than she's worth, really."
It was 5:00am, and Serena had to drag herself out of bed to smuggle the stupid cat outside so she could use the bathroom.
Yawning, she passed through the living room on her way to the sliding glass doors out back. Luna's favorite "potty spot" (as Sammy called it) was in the woods behind the house, and she refused to go if carried out any other doors.
"Really, Luna, you're so picky," she muttered, as if she were annoyed, but belied the emotion with an affectionate rub of the cat's head.
"Is that you, Serena, dear?"
Serena froze at the sudden, unexpected sound of Mrs. Tsukino's voice, every nerve in her body taunt with horror.
"Did you hear that bird calling, too? I couldn't get back to sleep so I figured I might as well…" Irene continued, coming out of the kitchen with a dishtowel draped over her hands. Her voice trailed off and her face hardened upon sight of Serena, holding the forbidden cat.
Oh, shit. Here it comes, Serena thought in dismay.
The woman's voice was dangerously soft. "What, exactly, do you think you are doing?"
"Uh…" Serena searched desperately for some kind of excuse, but was cut short before she could think of anything to save herself.
"Didn't I tell you that I DO NOT WANT THAT THING IN MY HOUSE? Didn't I?" Her voice began to rise in pitch and volume. "I will not stand for this! I will not have an unholy little monster tearing around my house at all hours and destroying my valuables! This is my house, and I took you into it! This is the thanks you give me? Bringing in that…that…*animal*, directly defying…" Irene stopped suddenly in the middle of her tirade and went very pale as her eyes focused over Serena's shoulder. "Oh my God…Sammy?" she whispered, bringing a hand to her mouth. Serena frowned and turned quickly.
Sammy was leaning against the living room doorway, holding a hand to his mouth. Blood trickled down the front of his Dragon Ball Z pajamas as he coughed weakly.
"Mommy," he gasped, "I'm bleeding…and it hurts…"
~----------~
"It's called disseminated intravascular coagulation, or DIC, perhaps better known by the name of consumption coagulopathy. It could have been caused by any number of factors. Any small cuts that your son has received are unable to clot, causing severe bleeding as a result of platelets circulating throughout the body instead of being localized to an area of injury. Our best hope is replacement therapy…"
The doctor's voice started to become fuzzy in Serena's ears as he continued with medical definitions and calm explanations for Mrs. Tsukino's frightened questions. Mr. Tsukino had rushed home from work when the hospital called him, and now sat looking pale and holding his wife's hand. Both seemed to have forgotten Serena's presence alongside them in the waiting room.
Serena stared down at her hands, twisted into the thick fabric of the grey sweatshirt she had thrown on over her pajamas. There were splatters of Sammy's blood on it from where he had sat on her lap in the car while Irene rushed him to the emergency room. She blinked away tears and struggled to comprehend the events of the past hour. It had all been so sudden; one minute, she was in trouble with her foster mother over a cat, the next, she was cradling a frightened and bloody Sammy as his mother sped through traffic lights to the hospital.
Now she was sitting in an uncomfortable chair, surrounded by all kinds of horrible chemical smells and human misery, listening to a doctor calmly explain that it was too early to tell whether or not Sammy would pull through.
"But how could this have happened?" Irene's pleading voice cut into the doctor's serene drone. "Why did this happen to my baby? I thought people didn't get consumption anymore!"
Serena tuned out the assurances of the rarity of the disease and the list of possible causes. It seemed to her that all they were doing was wasting time, precious time that could be spent with Sammy. What did it matter *how* it had happened? It had. What mattered now was what to do about it.
"Excuse me," she cut in abruptly, aware that she was interrupting but suddenly needing to know, "Can I…is it possible for us to see Sammy?"
The doctor gave her a sharp look at being cut off, which immediately softened at the look of anguish on the young woman's face. "I'm sorry," he said, as gently as possible, "It will be impossible for him to have visitors for quite some time now. You will be notified when his condition has stabilized enough to allow you to see him."
The doctor was retained for several more minutes by Mrs. Tsukino's questions. When he finally insisted that he could give her no more information and got up to leave, he couldn't help casting a sympathetic look back over his shoulder at the pretty young blonde in the blood- splattered sweatshirt, who was pacing back and forth across the small space.
~----------~
Three short naps in the waiting room chair, five miles of pacing, and one uneaten hospital cafeteria meal later, Serena was finally at Sammy's bedside. She was alone, as his mother had become hysterical at the sight of her son's frail body wrapped in bloody bandages and hooked up to various tubes feeding to bleeping machines. Mr. Tsukino had led his wife back out to the waiting room, leaving their foster daughter alone with their son.
The tears that she had been fighting since their first arrival now flowed unchecked down her cheeks as she laid her hand lightly on his tiny fingers, slightly blue from something the doctor had called thrombosis formation. He showed no sign of feeling her touch.
Serena's tears began to flow more quickly. How could this have happened? Just a few days ago, she had been so happy, content at last with a family. And now… Sammy was just a little boy. He didn't deserve this. Nobody deserved this. Especially not her sweet little foster brother who just yesterday had been running happily through the backyard and whispering conspiratorially with her about their secret cat.
It wasn't fair. What had he ever done to deserve such punishment? What had she ever done to deserve losing him?
Instinctively, she reached inside her shirt for her locket. She clenched it in her fist as she fought desperately against sobs. Oh please, she prayed, harder than she had ever prayed for anything before. Please, just don't let him die. Don't let him suffer any more. Heat welled in her chest and she clenched even harder on the locket. Just let him be okay. Let Sammy be okay!
The heat rose further in her chest, becoming an almost unbearable ache. Desperation gripped her as she realized what was about to happen, but her fervent wish for Sammy overwhelmed the feeling of fear. Sudden light exploded through the room, blinding her with silver and white. Roaring filled her ears. Sammy!, her mind screamed, just before it was silenced by a forceful impact with the white hospital wall.
When she finally managed to get her vision to clear, she found herself slumped in the corner of the small white room. The room looked as though it had been blasted apart, with bits of machinery and puddles of chemicals scattered about the floor. Sammy was sitting up in bed, bandages gone and completely unharmed. He looked at Serena with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"Sere…Serena?" he whispered. As if on cue, the door burst open, and white and green-clad bodies rushed in. The room immediately became a whirlwind of argument and frenzied questions. Sammy was overtaken by five different doctors wanting to test him at once.
Serena felt cold panic overtake her. They would be angry… they always were, when these things happened. She wouldn't be able to explain, and the expensive equipment was ruined… She forced herself to her feet and got herself out of the room as quickly as possible.
At the first "Hey!" behind her, she broke into a run, and didn't stop running until she was long gone from the little white room and the chemical smells floating in hallways.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AN: I cite www.yahoo.com/health for all my info on disseminated intravascular coagulation, which is a real, very very rare disease with about a 1 in 10,000 occurrence rate. I realize that makes it nearly impossible for Sammy to have gotten it, but it is POSSIBLE….ah, just go with it. It won't hurt, I promise….well, not much, anyway. ^_~
Do I dare disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time for decisions and revisions
which in a minute will reverse.
--T. S. Eliot
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Four: The Shattering
*beep*…*beep*…*beep*…
Groaning, Serena slammed her hand down on the clock to shut it up. Groggily, she pushed herself out of bed and into the bathroom. When she emerged, Luna was waiting at the door to the hall for her. The cat announced her pleasure at Serena's awakening by rubbing against her legs, almost tripping her as she tried to open the door. The girl scooped up the cat and carried her downstairs, grumbling softly about "…more trouble than she's worth, really."
It was 5:00am, and Serena had to drag herself out of bed to smuggle the stupid cat outside so she could use the bathroom.
Yawning, she passed through the living room on her way to the sliding glass doors out back. Luna's favorite "potty spot" (as Sammy called it) was in the woods behind the house, and she refused to go if carried out any other doors.
"Really, Luna, you're so picky," she muttered, as if she were annoyed, but belied the emotion with an affectionate rub of the cat's head.
"Is that you, Serena, dear?"
Serena froze at the sudden, unexpected sound of Mrs. Tsukino's voice, every nerve in her body taunt with horror.
"Did you hear that bird calling, too? I couldn't get back to sleep so I figured I might as well…" Irene continued, coming out of the kitchen with a dishtowel draped over her hands. Her voice trailed off and her face hardened upon sight of Serena, holding the forbidden cat.
Oh, shit. Here it comes, Serena thought in dismay.
The woman's voice was dangerously soft. "What, exactly, do you think you are doing?"
"Uh…" Serena searched desperately for some kind of excuse, but was cut short before she could think of anything to save herself.
"Didn't I tell you that I DO NOT WANT THAT THING IN MY HOUSE? Didn't I?" Her voice began to rise in pitch and volume. "I will not stand for this! I will not have an unholy little monster tearing around my house at all hours and destroying my valuables! This is my house, and I took you into it! This is the thanks you give me? Bringing in that…that…*animal*, directly defying…" Irene stopped suddenly in the middle of her tirade and went very pale as her eyes focused over Serena's shoulder. "Oh my God…Sammy?" she whispered, bringing a hand to her mouth. Serena frowned and turned quickly.
Sammy was leaning against the living room doorway, holding a hand to his mouth. Blood trickled down the front of his Dragon Ball Z pajamas as he coughed weakly.
"Mommy," he gasped, "I'm bleeding…and it hurts…"
~----------~
"It's called disseminated intravascular coagulation, or DIC, perhaps better known by the name of consumption coagulopathy. It could have been caused by any number of factors. Any small cuts that your son has received are unable to clot, causing severe bleeding as a result of platelets circulating throughout the body instead of being localized to an area of injury. Our best hope is replacement therapy…"
The doctor's voice started to become fuzzy in Serena's ears as he continued with medical definitions and calm explanations for Mrs. Tsukino's frightened questions. Mr. Tsukino had rushed home from work when the hospital called him, and now sat looking pale and holding his wife's hand. Both seemed to have forgotten Serena's presence alongside them in the waiting room.
Serena stared down at her hands, twisted into the thick fabric of the grey sweatshirt she had thrown on over her pajamas. There were splatters of Sammy's blood on it from where he had sat on her lap in the car while Irene rushed him to the emergency room. She blinked away tears and struggled to comprehend the events of the past hour. It had all been so sudden; one minute, she was in trouble with her foster mother over a cat, the next, she was cradling a frightened and bloody Sammy as his mother sped through traffic lights to the hospital.
Now she was sitting in an uncomfortable chair, surrounded by all kinds of horrible chemical smells and human misery, listening to a doctor calmly explain that it was too early to tell whether or not Sammy would pull through.
"But how could this have happened?" Irene's pleading voice cut into the doctor's serene drone. "Why did this happen to my baby? I thought people didn't get consumption anymore!"
Serena tuned out the assurances of the rarity of the disease and the list of possible causes. It seemed to her that all they were doing was wasting time, precious time that could be spent with Sammy. What did it matter *how* it had happened? It had. What mattered now was what to do about it.
"Excuse me," she cut in abruptly, aware that she was interrupting but suddenly needing to know, "Can I…is it possible for us to see Sammy?"
The doctor gave her a sharp look at being cut off, which immediately softened at the look of anguish on the young woman's face. "I'm sorry," he said, as gently as possible, "It will be impossible for him to have visitors for quite some time now. You will be notified when his condition has stabilized enough to allow you to see him."
The doctor was retained for several more minutes by Mrs. Tsukino's questions. When he finally insisted that he could give her no more information and got up to leave, he couldn't help casting a sympathetic look back over his shoulder at the pretty young blonde in the blood- splattered sweatshirt, who was pacing back and forth across the small space.
~----------~
Three short naps in the waiting room chair, five miles of pacing, and one uneaten hospital cafeteria meal later, Serena was finally at Sammy's bedside. She was alone, as his mother had become hysterical at the sight of her son's frail body wrapped in bloody bandages and hooked up to various tubes feeding to bleeping machines. Mr. Tsukino had led his wife back out to the waiting room, leaving their foster daughter alone with their son.
The tears that she had been fighting since their first arrival now flowed unchecked down her cheeks as she laid her hand lightly on his tiny fingers, slightly blue from something the doctor had called thrombosis formation. He showed no sign of feeling her touch.
Serena's tears began to flow more quickly. How could this have happened? Just a few days ago, she had been so happy, content at last with a family. And now… Sammy was just a little boy. He didn't deserve this. Nobody deserved this. Especially not her sweet little foster brother who just yesterday had been running happily through the backyard and whispering conspiratorially with her about their secret cat.
It wasn't fair. What had he ever done to deserve such punishment? What had she ever done to deserve losing him?
Instinctively, she reached inside her shirt for her locket. She clenched it in her fist as she fought desperately against sobs. Oh please, she prayed, harder than she had ever prayed for anything before. Please, just don't let him die. Don't let him suffer any more. Heat welled in her chest and she clenched even harder on the locket. Just let him be okay. Let Sammy be okay!
The heat rose further in her chest, becoming an almost unbearable ache. Desperation gripped her as she realized what was about to happen, but her fervent wish for Sammy overwhelmed the feeling of fear. Sudden light exploded through the room, blinding her with silver and white. Roaring filled her ears. Sammy!, her mind screamed, just before it was silenced by a forceful impact with the white hospital wall.
When she finally managed to get her vision to clear, she found herself slumped in the corner of the small white room. The room looked as though it had been blasted apart, with bits of machinery and puddles of chemicals scattered about the floor. Sammy was sitting up in bed, bandages gone and completely unharmed. He looked at Serena with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"Sere…Serena?" he whispered. As if on cue, the door burst open, and white and green-clad bodies rushed in. The room immediately became a whirlwind of argument and frenzied questions. Sammy was overtaken by five different doctors wanting to test him at once.
Serena felt cold panic overtake her. They would be angry… they always were, when these things happened. She wouldn't be able to explain, and the expensive equipment was ruined… She forced herself to her feet and got herself out of the room as quickly as possible.
At the first "Hey!" behind her, she broke into a run, and didn't stop running until she was long gone from the little white room and the chemical smells floating in hallways.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AN: I cite www.yahoo.com/health for all my info on disseminated intravascular coagulation, which is a real, very very rare disease with about a 1 in 10,000 occurrence rate. I realize that makes it nearly impossible for Sammy to have gotten it, but it is POSSIBLE….ah, just go with it. It won't hurt, I promise….well, not much, anyway. ^_~
