Author's Note: I love people who review. Especially people who tell me what I need to do better. Thank you reviewers. I heart you all muchly.
Disclaimer: Haven't you been paying attention? I DON'T OWN NO JEKYLL AND HYDE, YO! Foshizzle! Kieran, yo, he be my homie g. MINE, dawg, don't be stealin' him.--The Seahorse Ghetto.
The Darkness
Cold. Black. Endless. It was like Hell, I was sure I'd died. The cold was everywhere, permeating my body, biting into me and leaving me senseless as I choked up warmth. With it was the darkness, so thick I could feel it pressing into me, suffocating me. It seemed several days had passed before I could finally open my eyes.
But, open them I did, even though the effort felt as if it were takin' me head off. 'Twas so dark and blurry I could hardly see, but it didn't look like no place I'd ever woken up to. "Am I dead?" I wondered.
A dark shape loomed in my vision. I gasped, ready to will me sluggish body into a fight for life and death. Unfortunately, the gasping part made me start coughin' again, and I couldn'ta moved for anything.
"Calm down, Kieran," the shape said. "It's Dr. Jekyll. How are you feeling?"
Ah. Dr. Jekyll. I knew that. So I wasn't dead. That was good. But I still felt like it. I was about to tell Dr. Jekyll that, but then I remembered what had gotten me into this mess in the first place--Poole overhearing me. So I decided on a different answer, one that would suit Poole if he was lurking about. "I'm feelin' well sir, an' if ya don't mind, I'll be on me way n' get me duties finished." I struggled to sit up.
I heard a chuckle from above me, and two hands kept me down. "Don't worry, young Kieran, the virtuous Poole is not allowed to enter this place," Dr. Jekyll said, in an amused tone. Answering my unasked question, he continued, "you're in the theatre area of my laboratory. You've been very ill, and I've needed to keep an eye on you while continuing with my projects."
I bit me lip--doctors were costly to visit, and I felt sure Dr. Jekyll was no exception. I could only hope me wages could make up for some of the difference--I'd work the rest off. "I thank ya sir, I surely do appreciate your kindness...but how much shall I owe you?"
"Owe me? Why, nothing," was the reply that nearly made me faint. Again.
"But sir, surely I owe ya somethin' for your time an' help--"
"Nonsense. As a member of my staff, I feel you are entitled to some...shall we say, health-care benefits. I am certain that when you are able to return to work, you will repay me by continuing as you had done before you fell ill."
I coulda cried at his kindness. "Thank ya sir, I will."
"Good. Now, you must rest, and I must return to my work. Get some sleep, Kieran."
I winced--I could feel the blackness coming on again, and I knew I couldn't fight it off any longer. As me eyes closed, I glanced over at the increasingly blurry shape of Dr. Jekyll. Something was wrong with him, it seemed. I couldn't tell what...but I felt sure it couldn't be good for 'im. With this last, ominous thought, the blackness took over, and I was lost again.
Disclaimer: Haven't you been paying attention? I DON'T OWN NO JEKYLL AND HYDE, YO! Foshizzle! Kieran, yo, he be my homie g. MINE, dawg, don't be stealin' him.--The Seahorse Ghetto.
The Darkness
Cold. Black. Endless. It was like Hell, I was sure I'd died. The cold was everywhere, permeating my body, biting into me and leaving me senseless as I choked up warmth. With it was the darkness, so thick I could feel it pressing into me, suffocating me. It seemed several days had passed before I could finally open my eyes.
But, open them I did, even though the effort felt as if it were takin' me head off. 'Twas so dark and blurry I could hardly see, but it didn't look like no place I'd ever woken up to. "Am I dead?" I wondered.
A dark shape loomed in my vision. I gasped, ready to will me sluggish body into a fight for life and death. Unfortunately, the gasping part made me start coughin' again, and I couldn'ta moved for anything.
"Calm down, Kieran," the shape said. "It's Dr. Jekyll. How are you feeling?"
Ah. Dr. Jekyll. I knew that. So I wasn't dead. That was good. But I still felt like it. I was about to tell Dr. Jekyll that, but then I remembered what had gotten me into this mess in the first place--Poole overhearing me. So I decided on a different answer, one that would suit Poole if he was lurking about. "I'm feelin' well sir, an' if ya don't mind, I'll be on me way n' get me duties finished." I struggled to sit up.
I heard a chuckle from above me, and two hands kept me down. "Don't worry, young Kieran, the virtuous Poole is not allowed to enter this place," Dr. Jekyll said, in an amused tone. Answering my unasked question, he continued, "you're in the theatre area of my laboratory. You've been very ill, and I've needed to keep an eye on you while continuing with my projects."
I bit me lip--doctors were costly to visit, and I felt sure Dr. Jekyll was no exception. I could only hope me wages could make up for some of the difference--I'd work the rest off. "I thank ya sir, I surely do appreciate your kindness...but how much shall I owe you?"
"Owe me? Why, nothing," was the reply that nearly made me faint. Again.
"But sir, surely I owe ya somethin' for your time an' help--"
"Nonsense. As a member of my staff, I feel you are entitled to some...shall we say, health-care benefits. I am certain that when you are able to return to work, you will repay me by continuing as you had done before you fell ill."
I coulda cried at his kindness. "Thank ya sir, I will."
"Good. Now, you must rest, and I must return to my work. Get some sleep, Kieran."
I winced--I could feel the blackness coming on again, and I knew I couldn't fight it off any longer. As me eyes closed, I glanced over at the increasingly blurry shape of Dr. Jekyll. Something was wrong with him, it seemed. I couldn't tell what...but I felt sure it couldn't be good for 'im. With this last, ominous thought, the blackness took over, and I was lost again.
