OH yes! Booya! Chappie 4 here, hot off the press! Helen bashing galore, well not really, and the appearance of Sexy Lexy! Sorry about delay, I've been swamped with Homework, which, sadly, my muses can't help with.
CGM: Yahraoa, wayahak tleman. (Means: Why don't you thank Bashful C for hating Helen and ask her to join our "Let's All Hate Helen" club, LAHH for short.)
Me: You just did.
CGM: . . . (Means: . . . )
Chapter 4: She's awake but the Doctor's gone.
"She's awake," Chloe said faintly, almost as if she was trying to avoid fainting from shock.
Pete wavered, "I'm gonna go get a doctor," and rushed out of the room. Chloe stayed frozen, staring.
Clark stood up abruptly, he almost seemed afraid. "I should help Pete find Doctor Bryce . . . "He turned to go.
"No," Came a raspy voice behind him. Clark turned around. It was Dawn, looking terrified, trying to reach out for his hand.
"No," She said again. "Please don't leave me. They—"she coughed. "They'll come for me." Dawn coughed a bone-racking cough, and her whole frame shuddered.
Clark sat down in the chair he had drawn up to the bed, and took her tiny hand in his.
"I'm right here. I'm not gonna leave," Clark said a bit nervously, although he didn't know why. "Who's . . . do you remember who's coming for you?"
Dawn started coughing again. "I . . . I can't . . "
Dr. Bryce, Pete, and a few other doctors came rushing into the room, knocking Chloe out of her trance.
Helen took a sharp breath. "Oh my god."
Both Dawn and Clark looked up at her shocked expression.
She shook her head, trying to stop being shocked. "I—she—well . . . " Helen's voice faltered. Everyone was looking at her. She shook her head again. "Sorry. It's just . . . She should have some extra testing, just to make sure she's totally okay. Clark, can you guys . . . "Helen gestured to the door. Chloe and Pete started inching towards it.
"She wants me to stay," Clark said solidly, squeezing Dawn's hand reassuringly.
"Please?" Dawn choked out. "Please . . . "her voice faltered as she began another bone-racking cough.
Helen put her stethoscope to her ears. "It's just for a little while, just to run some tests."
Clark frowned, debating to himself, and then turned to Dawn. "It's just for a little while, they're gonna run some tests, okay?" She nodded. "And, um, I'll be right outside, okay?" She nodded again. Clark slowly got up and left the room, leaving Helen muttering, "Not for months! She wasn't supposed to be up for months!"
"Well that was interesting," Chloe said, sipping her latte.
Pete snorted. "If by interesting you mean freak of the week?"
Chloe rolled her eyes. "Just because someone survives a freak accident, doesn't mean that they're the freak." She pushed a hair behind her ear with her pinky. "Although . . . "Chloe went silent, staring straight ahead, obviously thinking.
Pete grinned at his friend. "Can you believe Clark volunteered to camp out there?"
Chloe was jerked from her thoughts. "Oh . . . yeah, looks like Lana has competition."
Both of them laughed, but Pete didn't notice the hurt look that crossed Chloe's face.
Clark was sifting through the muddled confusion of sleep, just barely awake. Muffled voices sounded above him, but he couldn't distinguish one from another.
"She's fine, amnesia for sure, slight concussion, bruises . . . "
"But how did she wake up?"
"That I don't know."
"But I'm sure you think the Kent family is famous for unexplained consequences, right?"
Clark opened his eyes sleepily to find Lex and Helen talking quietly. Clark yawned, and both the Doctor and the young Luther turned around.
Lex had a smile playing at the corners of his lips. "Well, look who's up. Someone told me you spent the night."
It wasn't a question. All Clark could do was smile sheepishly.
Helen smiled. "I didn't have the heart to wake you up. But, on the bright side—"She pointed to the room. "Someone else is awake."
Clark practically launched himself out of the chair. Lex tried to suppress a chuckle.
"She's fine, right?"
Helen smiled. "Of course. You can go in and talk to her, if you'd like."
Clark grinned. "Thanks." He bounded to the door.
Lex chuckled at his friend. 'Well, if I'm not mistaken, it seems like Ms. Lang has competition!' he thought dryly.
Helen's pager beeped loudly. "Sorry," she said apologetically, "Patient emergency. I'm gonna have to rain check the lunch."
Lex nodded understandingly. "I totally understand."
Helen smiled. "Well, I'll see you soon." She kissed Lex on the cheek and walked off.
Lex paused a minute to watch the future Mrs. Luther walk down the corridor before going his separate way.
Clark closed the door quietly behind him. Dawn was sitting up on the bed with her eyes closed. She breathed deeply and opened her eyes.
"Hi, Clark," she whispered, looking pale and bruised.
Clark pulled up a chair to the bed. "Hey. How are you?"
Dawn closed her eyes again. "My throat and my head hurt, I'm tired, and—" she sighed. "I don't remember anything."
Clark winced. "You . . . don't remember . . . anything?"
Dawn said angrily, "Nothing!" She began coughing.
"I'm sorry," Clark said, taking her hand. Dawn didn't seem to notice. "It's just . . . Here." He reached in his pocket. Dawn looked over in interest. "Does this look familiar?"
Clark was holding out a piece of paper, neatly folded. Dawn leaned over and delicately took it from his hand.
She unfolded it and began to read, mouthing each word as if she was unsure of what it meant.
"Dearest Dawn, don't be angry with Xander. He only did what I told him to do. This isn't the place for either of you. Please know that I love you and that everything I do is for you. I promised once to show you this beautiful world, and I'm going to do everything I can to make that happen. Love Buffy."
Dawn leaned her head back against the wall, her eyes drifting between closed and open, and landing on a half-lidded vacant expression. A single tear dripped down her face.
Clark grimaced, and squeezed her hand gently. "Oh, god, Dawn, I'm sorry—"
Dawn looked up sharply. "Dawn."
"It's your name. We—I think." Clark looked genuinely upset. "I'm so sorry, I really didn't mean to . . ." He trailed off.
Dawn leaned back. "It's okay," she said softly.
"Do you . . ." Clark shifted. "Wantmetoleave?" he said the last four words in one. Somehow Dawn could interpret what he said.
Tentatively she smiled. "No . . . please just stay."
Helen's feet eerily sounded against the empty corridor. She fidgeted with the knife in her pocket. Doctor Potter had said that she needed something from the supply closet, but Doctor Bryce had been having her doubts about wandering the hospital at night.
The supply closet was next to the pathology lab. Helen gripped her knife tightly.
"Looking for something?"
Helen whirled around, and what she saw almost made her scream. A man with a distorted face, yellow eyes, canine teeth and blood on his mouth was staring at her intently. Helen backed away, shaking.
She closed her eyes. "It's not real," she whispered.
"Oh, but I am real! How dare you insult me like that!" the man said, almost comically. "Why, you've made me a bit . . . peckish. I'd love a nibble . . . "the man leaned towards Helen's neck, but she felt no breath. Then she wasted no time thinking. She pulled out the knife and stuck it in the mans heart.
The man looked shocked. He backed up. Helen's breathing was shallow and ragged. And then she lost her breath.
Because the man she had just stabbed pulled the knife out of his chest, and said, "So, after you kill me, what do you plan to do then?"
Three rooms over Dawn Summers awoke with a start.
Helen tried to scream as the man's hand covered her mouth and twisted her neck, ready to snap it.
Three rooms over Dawn Summers had gotten out of bed.
"Hey!" Doctor Potter said, running down the hall. The man looked up, and Helen looked for help. But has her face hit the light, she knew there'd be none. For Dr. Potter wore the same game face.
Three rooms over Dawn Summers was listening.
"Hey, Tony, she's for the boss." Helen squealed in surprise.
Tony looked angry. "Why do we have to do everything that bitch says?"
The doctor looked at Tony like he was stupid. "Immortality? Ring a bell?"
"Damn." Tony slammed Helen's head into the wall, knocking her unconscious.
Three rooms over Dawn Summers had her head in her hands, trying to connect to a past she no longer remembered.
(A/N: Have you ever noticed how like, insensitive Helen is? Monotone—"Patient emergency". It's like, blah. Sorry. Random.)