Anonymousow: Yay for intenseness! Glad you're liking it!
FocusFire: Well...I did have a friend have me do a body-count of all the people I killed in this entire fanfic. From beginning to end, there's a total of 131 dead. I think I may have beat one of my own personal records. Ha. I shouldn't be thrilled I made someone cry, but...it's kind of an ego boost that my writing could do that. -hands tissues-
Wesley: I sat through the full minutes of silence as full minutes of not reading for the full effect. Baha. But then...I imagined someone squeaking "no" in a helium voice...and it ruined it. Lol. I don't think holding your breath is a good thing when you're oxygen deprived to begin with! -scolds- I think blinking may almost as important as breathing! Haha. You're "What now, dufus?" comment made me laugh. I felt like yelling that at her as I typed...but then I realized if you got technical, I'd be calling myself a dufus since I was the one writing.
Roronoa: Being sadistic is great. Makes it fun to both torture the characters and the readers. -innocentlook- Your sister cut your hair while you were sleeping?! That's...sad. Even more sad you took tests as I devoured pumpkin-roll all week. -sends virtual Thanksgiving food-
Miralinda: Being hungover caaan't be fun. -happy I don't drink- And, yes, Cameron is pregnant.
Ina: Aw. But tragedy is so much fun! -looksinnocent-
Ilessthreethanyou: Nah. Sanity is very much ALWAYS overrated. Addictions to my fanfics are good though. -wink-
Wonderous: Baha. You should have read my notes. Some of them are there for a reason. xD Don't feel lazy though. Cause I never read notes either. -epicfail- Sorry 13 is out of character. I'm kind of a sucky writer bc I tend to do what I want...whether it's in character or not. Plus...I haven't been watching House for very long. I've only seen a few random past episodes and then this season. -shiftyeyes- Glad you're enjoying the fic tho!
Colleen: I'm glad you're enjoying it. Sunshine and rainbows are too bright and shiny. Dark and twisty is more like it!
Nameless: Wow. Sorry your trip was sooo long! How did you manage to be on the road that many more hours than you were supposed to??? I'll trade you issues though. I got to my dorm and it was like 90 degrees bc the heater broke and won't stop putting out heat. We opened all the windows and have the fan on...but we probably only lowered it a degree or two. I feel like I'm going to have a heatstroke or something. And...where would all the fun be without bad things happening in this chapter? -wink- As cliche as car accidents are...they do fix everything! I'm still undecided about my new story. It may get posted...may not. I don't know if it's worth posting or should be scrapped. I'm sure my beta will tell me though!
Amazon Life: Being mean is fun. -sadistic smile- And yup...this is the last chapter. I'm sad to see it end...but there's not much else to do with it.
Bigblusky: Fortunately, even though I'm sadistic, I don't leave my characters in /too/ much emotional distress at the end of my fics...uh...most of the time. -grin-
Kirei28: Ha! There you are! Ok...so...your "Let her live" comment had me in shock for a few seconds. I had to keep reading over it. You'll see why in this chapter. It's just rather ironic that you used that choice of words. Anyway...Let 13 suffer? That's so mean. Baha. Yay for long comments!
WrongObsession (Chpt 13): See...see...Yup. It's all your fault Alex died. All cause you didn't review. -wink- It's okay...I don't ask for forgiveness when I set out to write things that are depressing. Nope. Then I'd feel like I owed them something happy. -sadness-
WrongObsession (Chpt 14): Leaving people hanging is fun! Cause then I get all these reviews begging me and telling me I'm mean. Makes life amusing. Haha. And I must keep you all on your toes. Though...I guess I coulda been even more mean and made you think I'd never do anything tragic...then suddenly do it and leave you all in shock. Hm. -will keep that in mind- And gosh...I even made you a virtual friendship bracelet! -refuses to give it to you now-
Anonymous Hysteria: Awww. Don't you just love the suspense tho?!
So...I'm quite sad this is the last chapter 'cause this fic was my baby all month. I wrote it and posted it all in the month of Nov. What will I do during Dec now?! Oh yeah...school. Ew. I do have a new fic in the making. I have like...5 chapters so far. I'm still considering whether or not to scrap it. I'm afraid that since I don't have a storyline as straight as this one to follow that my characters will get too out of character and it'll just be a mess. That tends to happen with me. But anyway...There's a good chance I'll be posting it. It's titled Grazed Knees. If anyone wants to keep in touch or something until then (maybe force me to post it. haha), my AIM is on my profile.
Anyway...HUGE thanks to Vanamo and my friend Hannah for editing this whole thing for me. They're both amazing. -hearts-
Thanks for reading, guys. If you review, I'll still send you back the usual comments. I'm sorry that I can't do that to people who review anonymously...tho don't let that stop you from reviewing! I hope the last chapter meets your expectations. Enjoy!
The light was almost blinding when Cameron opened her eyes. Dull pain spread throughout her entire body. She felt nauseous and like her chest was being crushed under pressure. Squinting at her surroundings, she slowly began to register she was in the hospital. Tears stung her eyes and she took a few shaky breaths through her mouth as memories of the accident hit her like a ton of bricks. The rest of her senses were taking awhile to fade back in. It took a full minute or two before she realized someone was holding her hand and caressing her cheek. She slowly turned her head to the other side and faced Thirteen. "Hey," she mumbled in a raspy voice.
"Hey, yourself," Thirteen whispered. She forced a smile, a few tears rolling down her cheeks. Her eyes were red and puffy as if she'd been crying for awhile. She stopped stroking Cameron's cheek and rubbed at her own face. "You have a concussion and a few broken ribs, but the baby is fine. How're you feeling?"
"Like I have a concussion and a few broken ribs." Cameron managed a small smile. "Are you hurt?"
"I'm okay," Thirteen answered. "Just a few stitches." She had stitched herself up, not numbing the pain. She shuddered as she breathed, shook up by the whole situation.
Cameron glanced down at their hands. She furrowed her brows at the new cuts on Thirteen's wrists. They couldn't have come from the accident. "Oh, Remy," she whispered. "How long was I out?"
"A few hours," Thirteen answered. "I should go. You need to rest."
Cameron tightened her grip on Thirteen's hand. "Stay," she replied. "Tell me the story."
Thirteen looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "You need to rest," she repeated. She rested her head on her hand for a moment. "I need to go."
"Tell me the end," Cameron insisted. "I want to hear it."
"It's just a story," Thirteen replied. "It's stupid. It doesn't even matter."
"After the stuff you said to me, you owe me." Cameron narrowed her eyes.
"It's just something I saw in a movie," Thirteen replied, refusing to look at her. "I'll rent the DVD and bring it to you. It won't have a happy ending if I tell it."
"I still want you to tell it," Cameron replied. The tears in her eyes began falling down the sides of her face. "Please."
"Ask House to tell you a story," Thirteen replied.
Cameron looked disgusted. "I don't want House to tell me a story." She glared at her. "You owe me."
Thirteen drew in a deep breath. "Remy doesn't really love Allison," she said. "She was just pretending."
"You're lying."
Chase was looking through a telescope from on top of one of the blue buildings. "I see Governor House." He handed the telescope over to Foreman to look through.
Remy stood beside them and took a swig of rum from a bottle. "Good."
"This mission is a trap," Foreman said. He handed the telescope back. "It's suicide for all of us."
"We're going," Remy said simply.
"What is suicide?" Alex asked, looking up at him.
The group of bandits gathered together and walked toward the middle of the city in the direction of Governor House's castle.
Wallace poked his head out of Chase's bag. He climbed out and dropped to the ground then took off running.
"Wallace!" Chase pulled his bag further up onto his shoulder and ran after him. "Wallace, stop!" He looked from Wallace then to what he was chasing. A butterfly.
Wallace didn't look back. He jumped and grabbed onto the window of a building then began to climb his way to the top.
"Wallace! Now isn't the time!" Chase continued after the monkey. The other bandits followed several feet behind. "What are you doing?!" He hurried into the building and toward the stairs that led to the roof.
Wallace hovered on the wall of the roof, the butterfly just a few inches in front of him. He reached for the butterfly when one of the guards shot at him.
Chase made it to the roof just as Wallace fell backward. "What did you do?" he whispered, rushing to the monkey. He knelt down beside his friend, tears stinging his eyes. He scooted over as Alex knelt down beside them.
Wallace squeaked and slowly opened his hand. The butterfly hovered on his finger and flapped its wings.
"Americana Exotica," Chase and Alex both said. Chase watched it fly away. "It's beautiful."
Wallace sucked in his last breath then slowly let it out. Chase and Alex began to cry.
"Does he really die?" Cameron asked, wiping away a few tears.
Chase cradled Wallace in his arms for several moments then placed him back on the ground. He got to his feet and cried out in agony.
The hundreds of guards that began to appear once they heard Chase scared the other bandits. They began to slowly back into the building. Allison stood where she was, yelling for Chase and Alex to follow. Foreman grabbed her and pulled her away.
Chase opened his arms and faced the guards. "Go ahead!" he yelled. "Shoot me!" Alex stood confidently beside him. The guards shot.
Chase's body fell from the building and into a lake below. Alex collapsed beside Wallace. Chase's jacket covered the boy and the monkey and his bag landed beside them. His things scattered and his pictures of Wallace, bugs, and other living creatures blew away in the wind.
"They die too," Thirteen choked. She noticed Cameron about to speak but cut her off. "They die too. It had to happen. All things die."
The bandits ran for another building and the guards followed. One of them shot Foreman in the foot. He collapsed and nodded for the other bandits to go without him. He sat on the ground for a moment then pushed himself to his feet and began to limp forward. "Get back!" he shouted as the guards began to surround him. He led them into another building and pointed his gun. The guards surrounded him in a circle and pulled out their swords. Foreman smirked. He had them right where he wanted them. He unbuttoned his jacket then held it open, revealing dynamite. He lit one of the sticks. "Ka-boom."
The guards gasped and turned their backs, all of them throwing their hands over their heads. The building exploded.
Just outside, the bandits fell to the ground from the force of the blast.
Governor House was keeping tabs on them from his castle. "If you want to get something done, you have to do it yourself," he muttered under his breath. He turned to the nearest two guards. "Get them and bring them to me," he commanded.
The bandits climbed to their feet and took off running, leaving Cuddy on the ground. They hid behind a wall and all struggled to catch their breath.
"I don't like this story," Allison whispered. It made Wilson glare at Remy. They watched Cuddy get up and try to struggle toward them. "Why did Foreman kill himself instead of coming with us?" Allison cried.
"He couldn't do that." Thirteen wiped at her eyes. "He gave up. It's not very satisfying, is it?"
Cameron choked back a sob and shook her head.
"He didn't think so either," Thirteen mumbled.
The guards approached Cuddy and began to kick her, step on her, and hit her. They repeatedly knocked her over as she tried to get up.
"Leave her alone!" Allison cried. "Why are you hurting her?!" She became frantic. "We need to help her!"
The guards laughed and continued to beat the mystic.
Allison couldn't take it any longer. She rushed forward to help. Wilson ran after her and grabbed her around the waist to pull her back. Guards saw the two and shot at them. Arrows went into Wilson's back as he leaned forward to protect Allison. He stumbled forward, pushing Allison to the other bandits. They were running away.
As some of the guards began to hit Cuddy with their swords, the other guards continued to shoot at Wilson. He passed Allison off to Kutner once he caught up with them.
"I'm sorry!" Allison cried, staring at Wilson as more arrows stuck through him. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"
Remy grabbed her and put a gag in her mouth. She tied it loosely behind her head. "Stop it."
Wilson fell backward onto the arrows sticking out of him. Allison was watching in horror and Kutner turned her around so she couldn't look.
"Googly! Googly!" Cuddy was pushed against a tree as the guards hit her with the backs of their swords. "Googly! Googly! Googly!" A sword was stabbed through her stomach.
Kutner glared at Remy. He grabbed Allison by the hand and dragged her away from the scene. Remy stood staring at Wilson.
A small smile crossed Wilson's face and he nodded. "It's okay." His eyes slowly shut.
Remy ran after Allison and Kutner.
The bandits approached a tall building. Remy threw a rope to the top and the hook on the end caught on the wall. They began to climb: first Remy then Allison then Kutner. They were halfway up the rope when the guards caught up to them and four of them began to follow. Remy got to the top and reached her hand over to pull Allison onto the roof of the building with her.
Allison looked up. The roof had walls but no ceiling. She stared at the sky and tried to catch her breath then ran to another window to watch. "Kutner!" she sobbed through the gag as one of the guards grabbed his leg. She brought her hands to her face and peered through her fingers. "Kutner…"
Kutner looked at her and nodded his head. He pulled a knife from his pants and held it up. He cut the rope.
"No!" Allison screamed.
Remy turned away for a moment, trying to keep herself under control. She turned back just as Kutner and the four guards hit the ground. An anguished moan escaped her lips and she covered her eyes with her hands. They couldn't stay there. She straightened up and grabbed Allison by the hand, dragging her from the building.
"No! No! No!" Allison followed her outside then broke away from her grasp. "No!" she sobbed, her entire body trembling.
Cameron's face was a sickly white color and she stared at Thirteen with wide eyes. "Why are you killing everybody?"
Thirteen sobbed and looked away.
"Why are you making everybody die, Remy?!" Cameron demanded.
"It's my story," Thirteen defended herself, shaking her head.
"Mine too," Cameron whispered, choking over the words.
"Bring me Remy and Allison," Governor House repeated to the guards. "And bring them to me alive."
Remy approached Governor House from the side. She walked confidently and Allison followed. "We're right here." She pointed two guns at him. "And we're alive." Her hand trembled and she dropped one of the guns.
"Don't pay attention to it," Allison told her. She glanced up at Governor House took off running.
"This story isn't even about House, is it?" Cameron asked. "It never was. It's about your Huntington's. You could have just named Governor House as Governor Hunter instead." She glanced at Thirteen's trembling hand. "Don't pay attention to it right now, Remy."
"Quiet," Thirteen spat.
"You've only taken medicine once." Cameron reached out to touch her.
"Shut up!" Thirteen pushed her away then smacked her hand down on the bed.
Remy ran after Governor House and Allison followed several feet behind. Remy entered Governor House's garden, but he was nowhere to be seen. She ran past his hiding place. He jumped out in front of her and hit her in the face!
Cameron sucked in a breath and flinched as Thirteen's hand stopped about an inch from her face. The sudden breath sent sharp pains through her chest. She cried out and leaned forward in attempt to ease the hurt. Her head spun from the sudden movement and she gripped the blankets as she cried out again.
Remy was bleeding from the nose. She hovered on the edge of the pool in Governor House's garden. Governor House pulled out a sword and…
"Wait! Wait," Cameron pleaded, shaking uncontrollably. "I don't feel good. Wait. Please." She was gasping for air, cringing with every struggled breath. The pain was too much and she began gagging, managing to push herself further into a sitting position and over the basin on the table.
Thirteen didn't wait for her.
Governor House punched Remy and she fell backward into the pool. She sunk and Governor House placed his sword on the edge of the pool. Remy didn't even try to swim. Governor House looked down at her and pulled off his jacket.
Cameron moaned as she sunk down against the back of the bed and slowly wiped at her mouth and nose. "You're being a jerk, Remy."
"I'm not being a jerk," Thirteen defended herself. "She started to sink and she was dying." And it was true. Thirteen had started to sink and she was dying. Not only was she dying because of her disease, she was dying because of the choices she was making.
Governor House jumped in the pool and held Remy under the water.
"Let her live," Cameron pleaded.
Allison stood at the edge of the pool. "Get up!" she yelled through the gag in her mouth. It muffled her words. "Remy, get up and fight!" She cringed as Governor House pulled Remy to the surface before hitting her and shoving her back under. "I'm scared for you."
"Get up." Governor House pulled Remy just above the surface. "What a shame! Get up!" He shoved her under then pulled her up again. He turned to face Allison. "Look at her! Look at her!"
"Get up!" Allison yelled.
"I want you to see how pathetic she really is," Governor House said.
"I can't get up," Remy cried.
"Get up!" Allison repeated.
"I can't get up!" Remy yelled back at her.
Governor House rolled his eyes. "For God's sake, the water is only waist high."
Allison reached behind her head and untied the gag. "Get up, Remy!"
Governor House shoved her back under. "Look at her! She's a drug addict and a drunk and a coward! A useless, good for nothing…"
"Get up!" Allison was screaming in anger now. She stood rigid at edge of the pool, digging her nails into the palms of her hands.
"She can't win," Thirteen cried. "That's because the masked bandit is a coward. Yeah, she never even took an oath. She's a fake and a liar and a coward."
"You're lying," Cameron accused.
"Nu uh," Thirteen replied. She wiped at her tears. "She had her fingers crossed. She has to die."
Cameron scrunched up her face to avoid more crying. Crying led to more pain and she wasn't sure how much more she could take. "I don't believe you."
"She was dying," Thirteen insisted.
The water was turning red with the blood coming from Remy.
"Don't kill her." Cameron shook her head. "I will do anything to help you."
"Get up!" Allison yelled again.
"Don't kill her," Cameron begged.
Thirteen hid her face in her hands, shoulders shaking. "There's nothing left for her."
"Her girlfriend," Cameron replied.
Thirteen shook her head. "She wasn't her girlfriend."
"She loves her." Cameron reached over and hesitantly stroked Thirteen's hair, helplessly watching her cry.
Thirteen crossed her arms over the bed and buried her face against them. "Remy loves her too, but Allison will survive. She's strong."
"I don't want you to die, Remy," Cameron cried. "Not like - not like this. Don't kill her. Let her live." She sniffled and tried to find other words. "Let her live. Don't kill her." She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the bed, trying to breathe. She sobbed and pressed the palms of her hands to her eyes.
Thirteen lifted her head. The pain she was causing Cameron slapped her in the face with one actual look at her. She got to her feet and eased Cameron forward. Being mindful of her injuries, she slid down behind her and gently pulled Cameron back against her chest. Wrapping her arms around Cameron's stomach, she hid her face against her hair and sobbed a few times. "I won't."
"Promise?" Cameron asked. "And don't cross your fingers." She gripped Thirteen's arms, afraid if she let go that Thirteen would disappear.
"I promise," Thirteen mumbled.
"Hold up your hands," Cameron demanded.
Thirteen lifted her hands and spread her fingers apart as far as they would go.
Remy stood up from the water and punched Governor House in the face. He stumbled and fell backward against his sword.
Cameron gasped. "She doesn't need to fight anymore! She needs to go to her girlfriend."
"She's scared," Thirteen whispered. She lowered her head to Cameron's shoulder, hiding her face as she tried to pull herself together. The tears kept coming and she squeezed her eyes shut tightly to stop them, ashamed of what a mess she was.
"Hey." Cameron turned her head to look at her. "Rem, look at me." Ignoring the pain, she reached over and gently lifted Thirteen's head from her shoulder. Looking at Thirteen's tear stained face and listening to her trying to hold back sobs left Cameron at a loss for words. Cameron placed a hand on the younger doctor's cheek and kissed her softly on the lips.
After a moment of hesitation, Thirteen kissed her back. Cameron's tenderness was enough to send Thirteen's fear packing. She pulled away and leaned her head against Cameron's. Feeling Cameron snuggling closer to her, she sighed quietly and closed her eyes.
"It's okay." Remy got out of the pool and rushed toward Allison. "It's alright. It's over now." She pulled her into a hug and kissed her cheek. "Come on."
Allison let out a breath of relief and hugged Remy tightly. She pulled back and placed a hand on Remy's cheek as she smiled at her.
Remy smiled back and took Cameron's hand. They laced fingers and walked away, glancing up at the sky.
Alex watched down on Remy and Allison from his spot in Heaven and waved. So that was how the story ended.