A/N: This one's for Nat – who would kill me if I didn't post this. ;) Oh and as for a nickname - Katie christened Kate and Colin "Katlin" once upon a time. Sounds good to me – so let's make it official. LOL!

Bethany – Thanks for the review! Sorry the review thing here is not playing nice with you. Meanies. :(

Ali – Thank you too! Sorry to hear about your computer. Hope you get it fixed soon! Though you might not be able to review – but I know you'll be around in spirit. :)

And for Katie – before I forget – I wish you all the best to you as the time of your "hiatus" fast approaches. :) I truly hope your day is all you ever dreamed of.

And now – without further adieu...Chapter 12 aka "What's wrong with Kate?"

Until 13! xox-G

Chapter Twelve

It was early afternoon on Monday before Colin could get Kate back to the hospital. Their little date at the diner must have taken more out of her than either of them realized. She had been drifting in and out to sleep all day long on Sunday. Incredibly concerned, Colin called Dr. Oliver and in spite of his worry, she told him to just let her rest.

Now she sat in the exam room clutching his hand. Where as two days before she had made every effort to make herself look better than she felt today her hair was pulled back off her face, which was free of any trace of makeup. She was still beautiful but as Colin's eyes roamed over her he knew there was no denying that there was something plaguing her.

"Colin." She began as she reached for his hand, pulling him to face her she spoke softly. "I want you to know that I love you..."

"What are you doing?" He said as he stared into her eyes. His voice began to shake "Don't you dare do that. Don't start talking to me like you're saying goodbye. We are going to fix this, Katrina. Do you hear me? Whatever it is – we are going to fix it."

"Kate? Colin?" Chris called out as he came into the room. He took a deep breath and tried to pull himself together.

"Hi Chris." Kate replied with a weak smile, holding Colin's hand tighter. He moved to stand behind her put his arm around her shoulder.

Chris looked Kate up and down and tried to break the tension in the room. "Kate, where'd you get that outfit?"

Kate grinned wider in spite of the fear pulsing through her veins. "Standard GH issue." She replied.

"Your grandmother would be appalled." Chris smiled back at her. "Didn't she teach you anything?"

Kate knew he was trying not to worry her but she'd had enough. She looked at him and pleaded with her eyes. "Chris. I know what you're trying to do – but please. Just tell me." She squeezed Colin's hand again and asked. "What's wrong with me?"

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"Do they have you working there late again?" Lynnie asked with a sigh.

Ethan bit back a smile and was thankful that his back was to her. If she knew what he was really up to she'd die. "Yes." He said, trying not to give her any clues that he was hiding anything. He honestly was just waiting for her to have some sort of vision and figure it out. He'd been very lucky so far. "But I promise, I shouldn't be too late, honey."

He turned to look at her. She looked so tired. Sighing he stared down at her. "Lynn – take it easy today OK? I know you barely slept."

"I'm OK." She tried to convince him, averting her eyes from his.

Ethan place his hands on her shoulders and made her look at him. "Gwendolyn. I mean it. Don't go trying to figure out where there's a mummy buried today." He always loved to tease her about research she did for her books.

Lynnie couldn't help but smile. "Ethan. You know I can't just turn it off. If I'm on a roll I can't help it."

"Just promise me you'll relax – and promise me if something upsets you you'll call. Don't worry about bothering me. OK?" He said as he kissed her softly. "Call me if you need me."

"I will." She smiled up at him. "I love you."

"Love you too." Ethan pressed a kiss to her forehead and grabbed his keys and cell phone. "See you later."

Lynnie gave him a little wave as she watched him run out the door.

As it closed behind him with a soft click, Lynnie moved to straighten the small apartment they shared. How amazing was her life? She thought with a smile, in spite of the worries she was carrying. It shouldn't be possible, but I have Ethan. How lucky am I?

A vision flashed as she stood there alone, a chill running up her spine. She blinked back tears and moved to finish her chores.

"Oh Katie." Lynnie sighed as she plumped up the pillows on the couch. "What in the world is going on with you – and how will we fix it this time?"

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Cameron poured himself a cup of coffee and looked over at his wife. He knew his hair was graying and his face bore a few more wrinkles each passing year but with Abby time stood still. She looks just the same as she did the day he married her.

He grabbed a half of her English muffin off the counter and bit down. "Are you going to the shop today?" He asked with his mouth half full.

"Give me that back." Abby laughed as she tried to wrestle her breakfast away from him. She succeeded in getting the last bite, giggling as she chewed and swallowed. "Yes. In a bit. I needed to sleep a little this morning."

He knew she'd been up pretty much all night. "Are you OK?" Cam asked running his hand along the side of her face.

"I'm OK." She nodded her voice laced with frustration. "I hate this. I hate knowing something and not being able to do anything about it."

"You don't want to worry them for nothing." Cam agreed as he took her in his arms.

"I don't." Abby said with a sigh. "Becky's party is Saturday and I don't want to ruin it. Maybe her doctor will find what's wrong and fix it before then."

"Maybe." Cam nodded and pulled her closer. "How's Lynnie?"

"She's about the same. I'm so glad she has Ethan."

"Me too." Her husband said quietly. He leaned in and kissed her quickly. "I have to go. Go easy today, Abs. Don't work too hard."

"I won't." She nodded and took a sip of her tea.

"Liar." Cam laughed at her.

"I'll try. How's that?" She clarified.

"That's better." He replied as he grabbed her by the waist again and pulled her close, kissing her once more. "I love you." He whispered as he pulled away. "I'll see you tonight."

"Bye. Love you." Abby called after him, worry still filling her mind. When it came to the people she loved, she always wanted everything to be perfect but there was always something standing in their way it seemed. "I don't understand." Abby said to herself wondering what she could do to help. "Why can't it just be easy for once?"

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Chris took a deep breath and began. "It's a little different this time around. Just before you were born, your dad and your cousin Lucy were fighting – well – as awkward as this sounds" He looked over at Colin. "They were fighting your father..."

"Chris." Colin interrupted, completely impatient. "We know our family history. Please. Just tell us what's wrong."

"I am. History is part of the story." Chris replied. "There once was this spring underneath your father's studio. If you had fangs and took a little swim you'd dry off and be back to normal – well - normal by Port Charles standards anyway." He could see his attempts at humor were falling on deaf ears. "Listen, the point is – while vampires benefited from this little dip in the pool, for a slayer – it was deadly."

"So what are you saying?" Kate asked then, her hand clutching Colin's so tightly he was beginning to lose feeling in his fingers. As far as Colin was concerned it didn't even matter. The only thing that mattered was getting Katrina well.

Chris sighed as he looked over at them. He hated to be the one to have to tell them. "I'm saying that Morleys and Kovichs don't mix. That vampires and slayers have different components to their blood. You come from a long line of slayers Katie and Colin the fact remains that you were turned once. However briefly, it still had some effect – not to mention that your ancestors wrote the book on bloodsucking."

"Please. Enough with the history lesson." Colin snapped. "What are you trying to say?"

As he said the words, Chris spoke softly and carefully. "What I'm trying to say is that you make a cute couple but combined? It seems that years of fighting has made your blood a kind of poison to each other. On an average day, you'd have no idea there was anything wrong. You see, the problem is, it didn't have a chance to manifest itself until..."

"I got pregnant." Kate's voice was choked by tears. "Oh my God, Colin."

"Shh. Shh." Colin tried to calm her, pulling her close and holding her tight. He fought back tears of his own. "We'll fix it, Katrina. Shh. It's OK. We'll fix it."

He looked over the top of her head and stared Chris in the eyes. "Won't we?"

Chris nodded. "I promise you. I'll do everything I can to make it happen."

He moved to take Kate's hands. "Katie. What we'll need to do to keep your strength up is give you a transfusion. In the beginning that worked well for Lucy."

Kate was beside herself. She couldn't speak; she simply clung to Colin and nodded.

Colin asked the questions that he knew Kate needed the answers to. "And in the end – what saved her?"

Remembering that fateful night, Chris shivered a bit. "Karen Wexler died unexpectedly. Her blood saved her."

"After she died!? You mean angelic blood?" Colin was confused. "So we wait for someone to die? That's the solution?" His voice rose in anger.

Chris nodded, knowing that Colin's tone of voice was the fear and concern talking. "That's the best one we have for now. Colin. I'm going off experience. What I see in Kate's tests is very, very similar to the levels we saw in Lucy. Understand me. It's not exactly the same. Because of that maybe the solution won't be either."

He took Kate's hand and squeezed it. "Kate. Look at me. We're going to do everything we can to make sure you and the baby both get through this. I promise I'll do everything I can to figure this out."

"Please. Don't tell Elizabeth." She whispered. "I don't want anyone to know what's wrong."

"Kate – legally - I can't tell anyone about what's going on with you – including my wife. I'm going to help you. Let me set you up for that transfusion and we'll start to make you feel better." He let go of her hand and moved towards the door. "You'll be able to go home this afternoon, Kate. I promise you. We'll get you feeling better soon, OK?"

Kate didn't reply. He didn't expect either one of them too. Chris knew they would need some time to process the news he had broken to them. Silently, he slipped out into the hallway.

As Chris left she broke down completely. "I don't understand. We love each other. Is that so terrible? I mean - is it? How could something so amazing be so wrong?"

"Katrina..." He wanted to console her but hadn't the faintest idea how.

"This can't be happening." She sobbed as she clung to him. "Please, Colin. Tell me it's not happening."

As he held her close, Colin wished with all his heart that he could do just that.