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Chapter 21: I Am The Fire

December 14th, 2013 - 0500 (5:00 am)

Tom was awoken that night not by a nightmare, which was something that hadn't happened very frequently recently, but by Ashley shaking him frantically.

"Daddy," she whispered, and Tom let himself be thankful again that he had remembered to put on boxers and t-shirt the night before. He groaned and turned toward his daughter.

"Yeah, baby?" he whispered back, just as quietly. He was hoping not to wake Rachel. She had slept through the entire night, and looked very peaceful where she slept beside him.

"Sammy's sick," Ashley said, and Tom noticed then that she was crying. "Daddy, Sammy's sick again! The cure didn't work. He's gonna die, isn't he?"

Tom rubbed a hand tiredly over his face, and took a deep breath in.

"Ashley, calm down, baby," he said, throwing his legs over the side of the bed and standing quickly. "The cure works. Sammy's not going to die, Ash. He probably just has a cold or something."

"He threw up, Daddy. It's all over him and his bed and he won't stop coughing."

Tom nodded, and then took Ashley's hand before walking into the main room of his cabin. Sam was, indeed, sitting up on the top bunk. He had tears running down his flushed cheeks, and there was vomit on his shirt and blanket. He turned toward Tom and held out his arms, sobbing.

"Daddy," he cried, and Tom picked him up, headless of the mess. "Daddy, my throat hurts and my tummy hurts and I got sick."

"Hey, bud," Tom said, setting the little boy on his hip. He reached out and put his hand against Sam's forehead, drawing in a quick breath with how warm he was. Did he have a thermometer? Should he give Sam any medicine? Darien had always been the one to take care of the kids when they were sick. Not that he wouldn't have, but he had been away a lot, and had missed most of the major childhood illnesses. "It's OK, buddy. We can wash your blankets. Let's get you cleaned up, OK?"

Sam nodded, but before they could move toward the bathroom he froze, a look of panic taking over his face mere moments before he threw up again. This time it went all over him, Tom, and the floor.

Tom groaned.

"Ash," he said softly turning toward his daughter, who was still crying. "Can you please go wake Rachel up? She's a doctor. She can help us take care of Sammy."

Ashley nodded quickly and ran out of the room while Tom moved to the bathroom with Sam in his arms. They both needed a shower now. It made sense to just do it together, since Sam would need help, anyway.

Less than five minutes later Rachel was walking into the bathroom. She looked sleepy, but smiled a small, sad smile when she saw her boys sitting on the closed toilet lid. Tom was trying to take Sam's t-shirt off while the boy cried and was generally not helpful.

"Hey, love," she whispered, and crouched down in front of Sam. "Are you not feeling well?"

Sam made a move to fall against Rachel and hug her, but Tom held him back.

"Buddy, you can't hug Rachel until you're clean. Help me get your clothes off and we can shower."

Tom shot a look at Rachel, hoping to communicate that he was out of his depth. She seemed to understand, and moved quickly for the medical kit that she had used to clean his stitches just days before. She dug through it and found a thermometer as well as a thermometer cover, and quickly turned it on before approaching Sam.

"Can I take your temperature, love?" she asked Sam, and the little boy nodded miserably. She placed the thermometer under his tongue, and waited a tense few seconds for it to beep. "102.5. Poor baby," she lamented, and then turned to Tom. "A tepid shower. Get him clean and cooled down. I'll run to the med bay and get some medicine for him. I'll also get you both some clean clothes."

Tom nodded, and then sat a naked Sam on the floor briefly to strip off his own clothing. When he was finished, he pulled Sam into the shower and turned the water on. Rachel gathered their clothes and placed them in a bag to be washed later, and walked out of the bathroom to kneel down beside Ashley, who was sitting on the couch crying.

"Ashley," she said, and when the little girl looked up, Rachel reached to wipe her tears away. "Sam is sick, but I promise he is not sick with the Red Flu. We cured him of that. I bet it's a stomach bug, or maybe the flu. Do you want to come with me to get him some medicine?"

Ashley nodded, and then took Rachel's hand when she held it out. "He's gonna be OK? He won't die?" she asked timidly.

Rachel squeezed her hand. "No, sweetheart. He's going to be fine. He'll probably be a little sick and tired for a few days, but he'll bounce back pretty quickly."

Ashley sniffed and nodded. "Can we get him some chicken noodle soup, too? To help his stomach feel better?"

Rachel doubted that Sam would want to eat, but nodded. "Yeah, love, we can do that. I think he'd like that a lot. Come on, let's help your brother feel better."

December 14th, 2013 - 0700 (7:00 am)

It was two hours later when they finally had Sam and his bed clean, had Doc Rios swab the boy for both the flu and strep throat, and had given him medicine. He fell asleep easily once he was more comfortable, and Tom transferred Sam from his arms into his bed with a sigh of relief.

He stepped back, brushing a hand through his hair. His graying hair, which was getting more and more gray with each passing day.

"I have to be back on the bridge by 0800. We're leaving Norfolk today," he said, and turned toward Rachel with a question in his eyes.

She smiled and nodded. "Bertrise and Quincy can take over production for the day. We have pretty well streamlined the process by now. I can stay with Sam."

"Can I stay, too?" Ashley asked from her spot on the couch, but Tom shook his head.

"No, sweetheart. I need you go to to school with Mrs. Tophet and Grandpa. I know you're worried about your brother, but I promised you that he would be fine. You need to go to school and then tonight you can see that he's OK and know that I told you the truth."

Ashley looked glum, but nodded.

"Go on, love," Rachel urged her. "Go get cleaned up and dressed for the day. I promise that I will take very good care of your brother."

Ashley stood up and reluctantly shuffled her way to the bathroom to brush her teeth and hair. When she closed the door behind her, Tom sighed and turned to Rachel.

"Thank you," he said, and reached out to take her into his arms. "Sorry for waking you up early and making you deal with vomit. I shouldn't have bothered you, but I knew that you would know what to do. I didn't... I was gone a lot when the kids were little, when they were sick."

Rachel smiled and rested her head on his chest, breathing in his shower-fresh scent. "It's no problem. He should seep for several more hours. And after his next dose of medicine, he will probably fall asleep again. I'm in for a very exciting day of watching Sam sleep."

"Regardless, thank you," Tom repeated. He pulled back from Rachel and brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. "I know you love the kids, and they love you very much, too. But I also know that you didn't necessarily expect this when we decided to be together."

"Tom," Rachel said, quickly pecking him on the lips before pulling back from him. "I know I am not their mother and never will be, but simply by virtue of loving you, I have taken on a mothering role for Sam and Ashley, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I am very fond of them both. You have two amazing children, and I am lucky to get to be a part of their lives. I don't mind doing this for you, or for Sam. So please, don't worry about it today. Just go and be the Captain we know and love today. Lead the crew, save the world. All that jazz."

Tom chuckled, and then nodded, beginning to walk back toward the bedroom to get dressed in his Navy blues for the day. He paused before he stepped into the bedroom, though, and turned back to Rachel.

"Also, I forgot I'm meeting Kara after my shift on the bridge. I will probably be late."

Rachel waved him away. "That's fine, your father and I will take the kids to dinner. Will you be back before bedtime? Ashley wants to read more of Harry Potter tonight."

Tom nodded, and then said, "Yes I will be. But you know she likes it better when you read it. Apparently your British accent is 'more realistic'."

"Daddy," Ashley interrupted, coming out of the bathroom in time to hear her father's comment. "Rachel does do it better. You make all the voices sound the same, but she makes them all different."

"Betrayed by my own daughter," Tom lamented as he closed the bedroom door behind him.

Rachel shared a look with Ashley and they both grinned, giggling.

"Tom," Rachel called through the bedroom door after they had stopped laughing. "I am going to walk Ashley to class. I'll be back before you leave."

"Okay," he called back. "Love you, Ash! I will see you tonight."

Ashley told her father that she loved him, too, and waved before taking Rachel's hand and leading her into the p-way toward her 'school'. Mrs. Tophet and Jed had taken over one of the smaller conference rooms and turned it into a makeshift classroom. They had used cardboard to divide the large table into five separate work areas, and had managed to come up with a workable curriculum for each of the children. There weren't many books, which was something that Rachel wanted to rectify during their planned stop in Jacksonville.

"Rachel," Ashley said as they walked.

"Yes, love?"

"Will you promise to come get me if Sam gets sicker or something happens? I know Daddy said that he'll be OK, and he's with you and you're super smart and everything, but... I'm still a little scared."

Rachel squeezed the little girl's hand, and then nodded. "Of course I will, Ashley. But I won't have to, because the medicine I gave him will help him feel better, and it'll also help him sleep most of the day. When you're done with school, your grandfather will walk you back here and you can curl up with me and Sam and maybe we can read some more Harry Potter before your dad gets back."

They had reached the door of the classroom, and Rachel walked in with Ashley to explain why Sam wouldn't be there that day.

"Hey, Jed," she greeted as Ashley walked over to sit by Hannah. "Sam is feeling a little under the weather today. He won't be here. I'm going to watch over him and let him rest. He also won't be here tomorrow. He has a fever of 102 today and even though society may have broken down, I do remember the '24 hours fever free' rule that most schools have."

Jed nodded, a worried look furrowing his brows.

"Don't worry, it's just the flu or some other bug. He'll be fine soon," Rachel assured him, setting a gentle hand on his arm. "I'll take good care of him. In fact, I need to get back to him before Tom has to leave for the bridge."

Jed smiled and nodded again, and Rachel was about to leave them to it when he reached out and put a hand on her arm. She looked at him curiously, and he motioned to the door. She walked through it and paused, knowing that he wanted to talk to her.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, and he shook his head.

"No, nothing's wrong. I just wanted to say thank you."

Rachel smiled, cocking her head to the side in confusion. "What for?"

"For everything you've done, and are doing, for Tom and the kids. I know that these last months have not been easy on you, either, but you're always there for Tom and Sam and Ash. You make my son smile, even through everything that's happened, and you showed him that the world hasn't ended just because Darien is gone. He can still love and move forward through the heartbreak. I don't think he would be processing and handling this as well if it weren't for you."

"Well, you're welcome," she said. "But you don't have to thank me. I do what I do because I love them."

Jed smiled and leaned forward to kiss her on the cheek. "You are a remarkable woman, Rachel Scott."

Rachel blushed deeply, but smiled and accepted the compliment.

"Thank you. And have a good day," she said, and then with a final wave, left them to the busy day of school ahead of them.

December 14th, 2013 - 1700 (5:00 pm)

After a long day on the bridge, the only thing that Captain Chandler wanted to do was to check in on Sam and Rachel and Ashley, but he instead found himself walking into the stateroom to find Kara and one of the last people he had expected to see for this meeting standing nervously by the chairs. He motioned for them to sit as he entered, staring hard at Lieutenant Green as he took his seat.

He knew that he was going a little bit against what Rachel has asked of him, but he waited in silence for one of them to break it. He wouldn't be unnecessarily mean or angry, especially considering that he had already made a decision, but he would happily make them uncomfortable for a little while.

"I'm sorry, sir," Kara finally said, and Tom turned his gaze to her. He respected that she was the first one to break the silence, showing more bravery than Danny.

"We'll get to that," he said, and then turned his gaze on Danny, who looked a little sick. "Explain, Lieutenant Green."

Danny grimaced, but rallied. "Captain. I apologize. What Kara and I did, hiding a relationship that we knew was strictly against regulations, was wrong. We acknowledge that and will accept any consequences you see fit."

Tom nodded, having expected that. Then he asked, "Do you know why we left Norfolk before we had this conversation?"

Both Kara and Danny shook their heads.

"Because I have no intention of asking either one of you to leave the Nathan James."

"Really?" Danny asked in surprise, and then blushed. "Sorry. I mean, you're not going to reassign one of us, sir?"

Tom shook his head. "You are both exemplary sailors. You have gone above and beyond these past months as we have fought to find the cure to the Red Flu. Two months ago, I would have been angry. Hell, I was still a little angry. Am still a little angry." He paused and took a deep breath in. "A little more than I thought, as it turns out. But I'm trying not to be. If this were in any other situation, I hope you realize, I would have had no other choice than to reassign you and report this."

"We understand, Captain," Kara said.

"But we are in a very unique situation where the government and the military both have completely broken down. There is no one to report you to, no organization left that would frown upon this relationship. Over six billion people have died, and the world is in shambles. That being said," he continued, finally letting a tiny smile tug up the corner of his lips. "Congratulations. I'm happy for both of you."

Kara and Danny were staring at him in shock, unable to comprehend what he was saying.

"You're really not going to... ?"

"I'm not. I am going to give you a choice, however. Kara, having a baby on a Navy ship is going to have challenges of his own. One or both of you can get off at Jacksonville if you'd like. Kara, I know you were able to find your mother. You don't have to stay on the Nathan James if you don't want to."

Kara shared a look with Danny, and then turned back to the Captain before smiling and shaking her head. "No, I don't want to leave. I believe that the mission we're on is going to help save the world, and I want to be a part of it. I want to work as long as I can as TAO, and if there comes a point where that's not possible because of the pregnancy, I would be happy to do anything that I can to help out. I can work in the mess, or help out with schooling and watching the children. But I want to be a part of this mission."

"All right. I'm glad you're staying," Tom said sincerely, and stood to his feet. "You're both integral to this ship and it wouldn't be the same without you. Now, if that's all, then I am going to go and have dinner with my family."

Kara and Danny both nodded, standing to their feet as Tom walked from the stateroom.

He pretended not to see when Danny took Kara into his arms and hugged her tightly, picking her up and swinging her around in happiness.

December 14th, 2013 - 2100 (9:00 pm)

"Christmas was coming. One morning in mid-December, Hogwarts woke to find itself covered in several feet of snow. The lake froze solid and the Weasley twins were punished for bewitching several snowballs so that they followed Quirrell around."

Rachel was reading from the first book of the Harry Potter series, borrowed from an ensign who was an avid reader, her audience of three enraptured by her voice. Sam was laying with his forehead pressed against Rachel's chest; she could feel the heat from his fever through her thin, cotton t-shirt. She would have to remember to give him more medicine before sleep. Ashley was laying next to Sam, holding one of his hands tightly. Tom watched them from his vantage point sitting against the headboard. Rachel was leaning against him, and he had never felt more comfortable.

"The few owls that managed to battle their way through the stormy sky to deliver mail had to be nursed back to health by Hagrid before they could fly off again. No one could wait for the holidays to start."

"Daddy?" Ashley interrupted, turning her head so she could see her father's face.

"Yeah?" he answered, warm and sleepy as he ran his fingers through Rachel's hair. Rachel hummed as she leaned back into his touch. She would need to finish the chapter soon. If he kept that up, she would fall asleep before getting the kids into bed.

"Is Christmas coming up?"

Tom smiled. "You know what, I think it is."

"Can we decorate?"

"We can try," Tom said, and then smiled. "I can ask Grandpa if you guys can draw and make some decorations during school. When Sam is feeling better, I know he's really good at making those paper snowflakes."

"OK," Ashley said happily, and then snuggled back into Rachel as they continued the book.

They barely managed three more pages before Ashley was nodding off. Rachel smiled softly at the girl, and then turned back to look at Tom. His eyes were closed, but she knew he was still awake because his fingers hadn't stopped gently running through her hair.

"I'm going to put the kids down," she whispered, and then kissed him on the cheek before standing up. She carefully lifted Sam, who was fast asleep, and carried him into the bathroom where she woke him up quickly to have him take another dose of medicine. She helped him change into his pajamas, which consisted of one of his father's large t-shirts and his underwear. Kids clothes were definitely on the list of things to look for over their next few stops.

By the time she carried Sam back and began tucking him into bed, Tom was already there with Ashley. She was sitting on the bottom bunk, and Tom was kneeling on the floor beside her.

"I love you, sweetheart," he said, and kissed her on the cheek. She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, squeezing him tightly.

"I love you, too, Daddy," she said, and then laid back down so that Tom could tuck her in.

When both children were tucked in, cozy, and fast asleep, Rachel turned to see Tom staring at her with wet eyes.

"Tom?" she asked, walking over to him. She put a hand on his arm, and he immediately pulled her into a hug. "What's wrong?"

He shook his head, sniffling as he pressed his cheek to the top of her head. "Nothing's wrong. I just love you so much. Watching you with Sam and Ash, it just helps me remember everything that's still good in the world. There's a lot of bad in the world right now, but you are good. You and the kids."

Rachel smiled, and wrapped her arms around Tom's waist to hold him more tightly.

"Let's go to bed," she said, and Tom kissed her on the head before nodding, taking her hand and leading her into their room. He turned out the light, closing the door behind them.