Dreams

Author: Joy

Email: Julianna@ziplip.com

A/N: Patience people. I am not dropping the story. I just decided on more back story, okay.

It was dark and hot. Sara's skin felt tacky with sweat. Wearing the multi layered skirt demanded of the day only made the feeling worse. Her eyes scanned her surroundings. She had gained enough control to be able to gather general information rather than just being a passive puppet trapped in an animated body.

Ian was to her left bleeding but still fighting. For herself she was dying. She wondered if she saw herself die in the vision how that would effect her present body. In the far right of her field of vision there was someone moving. Ian was too distracted by the opponent that wished to end his beloved's life that much faster and Sara couldn't seem to make her mouth move.

Cold. Cold and wet was the simple sensation at the back of her neck. She could barely open her eyes. "Take herI beg you," Ian yelled to whoever was attending to her. "If she is to pass I do not wish it to be bleeding outside our home where I should have protected her."

Sara felt her body lifted and moved. Her body was no longer uncomfortably hot but was also only minorly dressed. Cool wet clothes were on her forehead and under her neck. Her eyes fluttered open to try to focus on her caretaker brown eyes deep endless. Not Ian's eyes and yet familiar. His hand wiped a soaked cloth dipped in alcohol over her face and neck. A ring He wore a ring with a Celtic symbol on either side of a polished black stone. Sort of a triangle.

"What What doesmean?" she barely pushed through her lips holding his hand.

"The ring?" She nodded slightly. "It is the symbol of the Trinity."

"The church?"

"No we believe in the Holy Trinity not the holy church," with those words everything became fuzzy.

"Is she still with us?" Ian's voice said as the darkness encompassed her.

Sara sat bolt up from her sofa. "Take it easy Chief," Gabriel soothed moving next to her as quickly as he could. "Damnyou're really hot Temperature not well you are but nevermind. You have a fever. Let's get you laid down."

In her own bed she felt Gabriel moving her, reluctant to do much of anything. "Sara? Sara?" She opened her eyes slightly. "You are burning up. I need to bring your fever down. I can either put you in the tub fully clothed and soak you in cold water"

"Or?" she whispered.

"Or I can get you mainly undressed and give you a sponge bath. In either case you will be taking a ton of aspirin."

"Could you get me to the bathroom and let me bath?"

Gabriel shook his head; "You're barely staying awake. You have no idea how long its taking you to understand what I'm saying and then respond."

She sighed deeply; "You've seen me in my night gearIt's almost as much skin shown."

"Little less groaning," he teased.

"Eventually you'd see me in a bathing suit," Sara muttered. "Go ahead with the sponge bath idea. I'll start on the clothes while you get the meds."

Before Sara could even get her arm out of the first hole Gabriel had returned. "Here," he held the medicine to her lips then gave her the water to swallow it with. Tugging at her t-shirt he groaned, "This really isn't the way I wanted to undress you for the first time."

"Have that planned out do you?" she quipped weakly.

"Only in my dreams." They worked to remove her slacks slowly so she wouldn't fall off the bed.

Gabriel was trying hard to behave but there lay his incredibly gorgeous girlfriend in simple white bra and pantieshe was completely non-verbal. Coldwet and cold his brain tugged at him. "Wash cloth," he muttered returning with a large bowl of ice water and a body sponge he found in Sara's bathroom. It was funny but the only really girly things the detective owned were hidden under her sinkBath salts and oils, candles, and bubble bath.

Sara felt her face and head being cooled and gazed at her caretaker. Deepbrown eyes. Her view shifted to the hand offering comfort. The ring. He was wearing the ring. "Gabriel?"

"Yeah?"

"Have you had this long?" she asked ceasing his hand fingering the silver ring.

"No actually. It belonged to my grandfather. My mom gave it to me last time I saw herWhy?"

Sara nodded, "I'll tell you when I wake up. If this lasts more than a half an hour you need to either call Vicky or get me to a hospital."

"Already called Vicky. She's on her way over," he stated simply.

"Then I need to get dressed."

"UhDoctors orders. Fewer the better Have I mentioned I really didn't want my first time undressing you to be like this?" Gabriel snipped.

"If my mind is working right, this isn't the first time you've seen me in my skivvies or the first time it was because I needed medical attention," Sara grumbled.

"Huh?" The doorbell rang. "After she leaves I want an explanation."

"Fluids, Aspirin, soak her in a cold bath, that doesn't work" Vicky said looking at her sweaty friend.

"HospitalI got it," Gabriel replied. Sara was sleeping soundly while he looked on worried.

"So you're the back rub guy?" Vicky questioned. Gabriel actually blushed that Sara's friends would think of him that way. "I could have said 'the younger boyfriend,'" she informed him.

"I think Gabriel does just fine," he replied.

"But it doesn't make you blush."

"Depends on who's saying it, at what octave and why," he volleyed.

Vicky smirked, "Oh I like you. I'll have to tell Pez that one when she wakes up." Gabe bit his lip. "Hey don't worry. She's a fighter. She'll be causing problems again soon enough.

"Until she's awake and able to answer me within a few seconds of the questions I asked I'm going to be worried."

"Please tell me you have a single brother out there just like you?" Vicky whimpered.

Gabriel had to smile, "Sorrymarried. But I do have a male cousin very similar to me though I believe he's taken a vow of chastity Not literally of course but personally I think it was a way for him to avoid saying he is gay to his parents. Never mind if I think of someone I'll let you know."

Hot sticky and dying. The trinity ring. Deep endless brown eyes. A soft voice. 'Is she still with us?' 'Yes but for a short time.' 'Hear meI love you. I will always come for you. Wait for me my love and I will return to you.' 'You mustn't say such things. Those words will get you both killed.' 'We're dead already.' Sara gasped. The life was leaving her. 'Be well dear one,' her caretaker whispered and kissed her head. 'I have loved you from a far and am now here only to watch you die. What a cruel lot in life? Watch over me that I might be worthy of you some day.' Ian did not utter those words. Who would have loved her from afar? Opening her eyes one last time she beheld an angel.

There was murmuring near her head. "Water," Sara called.

"Hang on," a voice somewhere to her left addressed an un-sensed presence. "Hey there beauty," Gabriel's voice said sweetly. "Sit up for me." She drank deeply from the cup before her.

Since she last woke Sara had her head submerged in waterat least she hoped that was why her hair was completely wet. "Tell me that isn't all sweat in my hair."

"NoSuggestion of Ian's to soak your head in cold water. It workedthe fever leveled off after that. It's not really gone down but its not climbing anymore."

"Good Now tell me about your ring."

Gabriel stared a moment. "Okayyou answered immediately so you're doing sort of better though you really aren't making any sense."

Sara grabbed his hand, "This ringYou've never worn it in front of me before? Right?"

He furrowed his brow, "NoI guess not. I haven't seen you since Saturday so What's that got to do with anything?"

"I was sick when you arrive, right?"

"Sara what are you getting at?"

"AspirinDid Vicky come by?"

Gabriel's eyes got big, "Yes Sarayou talked to her for a few minutes. You are scaring me."

"Tell me about your ring."

"Why?" he pled.

She sighed deeply, "Okay I was having a vision during all this of one of my many untimely deaths. Ian was trying to protect me fighting whoever had caused my mortal wound. I was burning hot from the injuries. Someone else was there. Someone who took me to safety. Someone who said they loved me from afar, who wore a trinity ring like this one, who had endless brown eyes and your voiceyour face."

"Excuse me."

"Now you know why I was checking about the ring I've been trying to figure out for the longest time why you have a sense of things in my life better than most. The only person to rival is of course Ian, he does it better but he has been with me more times. All this proves is you and I have crossed paths in the past."

"Back up for me Chief. You saw me in the past?" She nodded. "This wasn't a fever ridden dream?"

Sara thought, "We can call Ian and ask him to try to find a matching death scene. I somehow think it will be traumatize him but I doubt he'll deny me."

"That's okay. If you believe it to be true I don't doubt it is. I just wanted to be sure. If you honestly believe that then I know it's realYour questionThe ring is an oddity. It's sort of an old relicthat's why my mother gave it to me. No one else would understand it or appreciate it," Gabriel commented.

"What is it? What does it mean?" she questioned.

"During the seventeen hundreds Sara do you rememberWere you wielding the Witchblade?"

She concentrated, "I don't remember. I honestly don't remember wearing it. Then again I wasn't wearing it when I was burned alive at the stakebut I was thinking about the fact it had abandoned me. I wasn't wondering thatI seemed to feel that the act was senseless"

"Senseless? Like what had you done to deserve it?"

"No more like who was I? I knew Ian was my husband but he hadn't been for longThe man who had attacked me was saying something about destiny that I didn't understand. I thought he was crazy." She concentrated. "I was very youngGabriel, I think I was a wielder that never got to wield the blade. Someone ended my life before I had the chance."

"But Ian" Gabriel asked confusedly.

She sort of laughed, "He saved me from somethingbeing my protectorI was a teenager. I fell completely in love with him. Knight in shining armor syndrome. He knew who I was to becomeso did you. I know I didn't know you at all well. I only have one moment where I looked upon your face before I diedbut I did recognize it."

"So who was I?" Gabriel inquired.

"I thought you looked like an angelit was my last thought That's funny," she said with a quirky smile, "You were my last thought Gabriel."

"Okaynot something I want to think about."

"Take my temperature would ya?"

He rolled his eyes but stuck the thermometer under her tongue.

Two hours later, Gabriel sat behind Sara with her head pillowed on his chest. Sara had changed into her normal evening garb. Her temperature had fallen and the remnants of the vision she relayed to her boy.

"I'm tired," she mumbled.

"I'm not surprised."

"Stay with me," she whispered almost asleep. "Be here when I wake up."

Gabriel shook his head; "I'll stay until you fall asleep. It will make you feel weird in the morning if I stay."

Sara nodded absently and cuddled down closer. Within a half an hour she was completely out. Gabriel extracted himself from her arms and came around the bed. "Sleep tight, love."

As he reached the bedroom door her heard her murmur, "Night Angel."

He chuckled, "AngelI can live with that."

TBC

A/N: Sorry folks. Am taking an unexpected trip. It's a really weird turn of events. We'll see how I do on updates.