Hey, sorry this story's taken a while. I keep getting distracted, by uni
work, by other story ideas, by alcohol and by fluorescent ducks. One of
these is a lie. Can you spot it? Anyway, I'll try to update more regularly
from now on.
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Trapper looked down at Haw .. at the patient. The patient. It seemed easier when he told himself that it wasn't Hawkeye, it wasn't his friend he was cutting into. Wasn't his friend lying, bleeding on the table. Just another soldier, brought into OR. Right. That was all. Just had to do his very best for the guy.
"Its pretty bad." Henry said. There was an edge in his voice.
Trapper simply grunted in reply. Then said "Retract that."
"What? Oh right."
They continued in silence.
Margaret watched the two doctors work and tried to anticipate whatever they might ask for. To her experienced eye, the operation seemed to be going quite well. But it was very slow, and it was really too early to tell. And both men had been exhausted before the .. incident and were surely now in a state of shock.
Even now she couldn't believe what had happened. Frank - that stupid, careless idiotic excuse for a doctor - had shot Hawkeye. She didn't really like Pierce anymore than Frank did, but she couldn't bear to see him lying hurt like that. And she couldn't believe that Frank was the one responsible. She knew it was an accident, but still, it was .. unforgivable.
She handed Colonel Blake a clamp an instant before he asked for it and forgot everything she was thinking about except the operation.
Henry Blake stood operating on his chief surgeon and wondered for the thousand and tenth time if other commanding officers had as many problems as he had. Like Trapper he was doing his best to keep his mind off of exactly who he was operating on while still working as efficiently as he ever had in his entire career. He pondered - briefly - the likelihood of there being any forms that dealt with the ranking surgeon of a MASH unit shooting the chief surgeon. This was the army, he supposed it was always possible. Radar would know. He could ask him after .. after. Instantly Henry returned to the present, refocusing exclusively on the operation.
Radar had stopped hovering outside the OR, because it had seemed so hot and stuffy in there that he had been afraid he might faint. He'd gone outside and found Corporal Klinger (dressed in what looked suspiciously like a ballerina's tutu) who was officially on guard duty. In truth, Klinger, like most of the rest of the camp, was simply standing around despondently, waiting for news. Neither man had said a word, they simply nodded to acknowledge each other and had stood, next to the sign post keeping the vigil.
About two hours into the operation the sound of a jeep approaching camp could be heard. Klinger and Radar exchanged glances, then, as it pulled into sight and came to a stop, walked over. Doctor Sidney Freedman and Father Mulcahy got out. They didn't immediately pick up on the tension in the camp.
"Good afternoon there" Father Mulcahy beamed, nodding to both corporals. "I actually missed this place while I was on leave. Doctor Freedman was kind enough to give me a lift back."
"Hiya Radar. Klinger, you're wearing a pink tutu with a lime green sweater. That is crazy. But still not good enough."
There was no reply to either greeting. The newcomers grew worried.
"What's wrong?" Sidney asked.
"Oh, its terrible!" Radar suddenly blurted out. Tears ran unchecked down his cheeks.
Seriously alarmed, Father Mulcahy said "Calm yourself my son. What's happened?"
Seeing that Radar was unable to answer Klinger said simply. "Hawkeye's been shot."
"WHAT? How?"
"Is it serious?"
"It was in the mess tent. Major Burns .. " Klinger gulped. "And we don't know yet. Trapper, I mean Captain Macintyre and Colonel Blake are operating."
"It looked real bad." Radar said softly. "There was a lot of blood."
Father Mulcahy ran towards the OR. Radar followed him.
"You said Major Burns .. you mean FRANK shot Hawkeye? Why? Where is he?" Sidney asked.
"He shot Hawk." Klinger confirmed. "It was an accident, I guess." A slightly strange look passed over his face. "I don't know where he is. I haven't seen him since it happened. No one gave any orders about him. He could be anywhere."
Back in the operating room, Henry and Margaret looked up when Father Mulcahy ran in, followed by Radar. Trapper did not. Seeing the Father scrub up and enter had given Radar the courage to do the same. He could stay out of the way.
"How is he?" the Father asked.
There was a pause, then realising Trapper wasn't about to answer, Henry said.
"He's going to be ok. The bullet tore an artery but it didn't do as much damage as we thought at first."
"Thank heavens."
"Yeah."
Silence reigned once again, until it came time to close him up. Then, relaxing slightly and noticing something as he looked at his patient Henry said;
"You know, Pierce is really skinny. We should get the nurses to feed him up a bit while he's recuperating."
He was taken aback at the strange intensity of the look that Trapper gave him, but after a second the other doctor seemed to relax too.
"Yeah. He'd love that." He smiled down at the unconscious man.
"He's going to be alright Trapper."
"I know." A pause. "I think that's probably the most scared I've ever been in my life."
"Its over." Henry said gently. "Come on, I'll buy you a drink in my office."
Trapper shook his head. "No, I've got something to do first."
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Author rambles: Reviews!! Must . have .. reviews. I'll try and update this soon. Once I work out where Frank is. Yep, I don't know either. Damn the man. I do have a plan for this, but there seems to be a slight hole in it.
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Trapper looked down at Haw .. at the patient. The patient. It seemed easier when he told himself that it wasn't Hawkeye, it wasn't his friend he was cutting into. Wasn't his friend lying, bleeding on the table. Just another soldier, brought into OR. Right. That was all. Just had to do his very best for the guy.
"Its pretty bad." Henry said. There was an edge in his voice.
Trapper simply grunted in reply. Then said "Retract that."
"What? Oh right."
They continued in silence.
Margaret watched the two doctors work and tried to anticipate whatever they might ask for. To her experienced eye, the operation seemed to be going quite well. But it was very slow, and it was really too early to tell. And both men had been exhausted before the .. incident and were surely now in a state of shock.
Even now she couldn't believe what had happened. Frank - that stupid, careless idiotic excuse for a doctor - had shot Hawkeye. She didn't really like Pierce anymore than Frank did, but she couldn't bear to see him lying hurt like that. And she couldn't believe that Frank was the one responsible. She knew it was an accident, but still, it was .. unforgivable.
She handed Colonel Blake a clamp an instant before he asked for it and forgot everything she was thinking about except the operation.
Henry Blake stood operating on his chief surgeon and wondered for the thousand and tenth time if other commanding officers had as many problems as he had. Like Trapper he was doing his best to keep his mind off of exactly who he was operating on while still working as efficiently as he ever had in his entire career. He pondered - briefly - the likelihood of there being any forms that dealt with the ranking surgeon of a MASH unit shooting the chief surgeon. This was the army, he supposed it was always possible. Radar would know. He could ask him after .. after. Instantly Henry returned to the present, refocusing exclusively on the operation.
Radar had stopped hovering outside the OR, because it had seemed so hot and stuffy in there that he had been afraid he might faint. He'd gone outside and found Corporal Klinger (dressed in what looked suspiciously like a ballerina's tutu) who was officially on guard duty. In truth, Klinger, like most of the rest of the camp, was simply standing around despondently, waiting for news. Neither man had said a word, they simply nodded to acknowledge each other and had stood, next to the sign post keeping the vigil.
About two hours into the operation the sound of a jeep approaching camp could be heard. Klinger and Radar exchanged glances, then, as it pulled into sight and came to a stop, walked over. Doctor Sidney Freedman and Father Mulcahy got out. They didn't immediately pick up on the tension in the camp.
"Good afternoon there" Father Mulcahy beamed, nodding to both corporals. "I actually missed this place while I was on leave. Doctor Freedman was kind enough to give me a lift back."
"Hiya Radar. Klinger, you're wearing a pink tutu with a lime green sweater. That is crazy. But still not good enough."
There was no reply to either greeting. The newcomers grew worried.
"What's wrong?" Sidney asked.
"Oh, its terrible!" Radar suddenly blurted out. Tears ran unchecked down his cheeks.
Seriously alarmed, Father Mulcahy said "Calm yourself my son. What's happened?"
Seeing that Radar was unable to answer Klinger said simply. "Hawkeye's been shot."
"WHAT? How?"
"Is it serious?"
"It was in the mess tent. Major Burns .. " Klinger gulped. "And we don't know yet. Trapper, I mean Captain Macintyre and Colonel Blake are operating."
"It looked real bad." Radar said softly. "There was a lot of blood."
Father Mulcahy ran towards the OR. Radar followed him.
"You said Major Burns .. you mean FRANK shot Hawkeye? Why? Where is he?" Sidney asked.
"He shot Hawk." Klinger confirmed. "It was an accident, I guess." A slightly strange look passed over his face. "I don't know where he is. I haven't seen him since it happened. No one gave any orders about him. He could be anywhere."
Back in the operating room, Henry and Margaret looked up when Father Mulcahy ran in, followed by Radar. Trapper did not. Seeing the Father scrub up and enter had given Radar the courage to do the same. He could stay out of the way.
"How is he?" the Father asked.
There was a pause, then realising Trapper wasn't about to answer, Henry said.
"He's going to be ok. The bullet tore an artery but it didn't do as much damage as we thought at first."
"Thank heavens."
"Yeah."
Silence reigned once again, until it came time to close him up. Then, relaxing slightly and noticing something as he looked at his patient Henry said;
"You know, Pierce is really skinny. We should get the nurses to feed him up a bit while he's recuperating."
He was taken aback at the strange intensity of the look that Trapper gave him, but after a second the other doctor seemed to relax too.
"Yeah. He'd love that." He smiled down at the unconscious man.
"He's going to be alright Trapper."
"I know." A pause. "I think that's probably the most scared I've ever been in my life."
"Its over." Henry said gently. "Come on, I'll buy you a drink in my office."
Trapper shook his head. "No, I've got something to do first."
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Author rambles: Reviews!! Must . have .. reviews. I'll try and update this soon. Once I work out where Frank is. Yep, I don't know either. Damn the man. I do have a plan for this, but there seems to be a slight hole in it.