Author's note ~ Hope you enjoy.

He was well and truly fagged, and wanted nothing more than to see if he could scrounge up a bit of a nibble from the cook hut and then pass out until morning. It had been a long couple of days.

The darkest part of the night had passed and the sky was starting to turn from true inky black to deep indigo blue when Jeff suddenly jerked awake. He'd been sitting against the wall of the med hut, opposite to his patient, keeping an eye through out the night. He must have dozed off for a moment. He looked around in the faint flickering light of the candles he had lit at dusk, wondering what had woken him.

"Jeff." Adrian whispered again.

Jeff stood quickly, going to the man. His face was visibly flushed, his eyes were glassy and sweat was soaking through his thin garments. He was radiating heat that Jeff could feel with his hand a foot away from his body. He had a high, aggressive fever, and this was exactly what Jeff had been afraid of. He helped the man into a sitting position, and quickly fetched the supplies he had been asked to gather and laid them beside Adrian.

Adrian swayed a little where he sat, shaking his head to try and clear his foggy brain. Fighting down a wave of nausea, he pawed through the tangle of vegetation and tried to focus his eyes, looking for anything that would help his body fight the important battle to come. Thank God, he thought, separating a few strands of Feverfew, Bee balm and Milk Thistle from the grass, dandelions and other weeds in the heap of plant matter. Setting these aside, he picked up the tin can Jeff had found, and the jar of alcohol.

"I need a knife."

One was quickly handed to him. Despite the tremors that were beginning to run through him, Adrian managed to puncture a number of small holes around the top third of the can. He poured most of the alcohol into the bottom of the can, splashing a bit in his haste. Breathing slowly, trying to control his growing dizziness, he leaned forward and placed the can carefully on the dirt floor.

"Got a match?"

"Errrr," Jeff said helpfully, glancing around. He grabbed a candle and offered it instead, puzzled at the strange request. Adrian tipped the candle, touching the flame to the home made booze. It lit instantly, letting out a whoosh of sound that made Jeff jump a little, and filling the can with dancing blue flames. Adrian handed the boy the small metal pot. "Fill that with water for me, please." Jeff obliged, quickly bringing it back to the man. Adrian set the pot on the can, centering it carefully so that it didn't overbalance and fall. Tiny bubbles appeared almost instantly at the bottom. As Jeff watched, entranced, Adrian tore up the plants he had set aside and dropped them into the heating water. Then dizzy, sick and shaking, he laid down on his his side on the bunk.

"That needs to boil full on for two or three minutes; after that, pour the medicine into a couple of jars. Turn the empty pot upside down and use it to smother the flames. I'll need half a jar of that, once it's cooled a little, and if you happen have that jar of painkiller handy, I could really use it about now." Adrian's words were lightly slurred, and very quiet, hardly louder than a whisper.

Jeff retrieved the clover and poppy tea from the small table where he'd stashed it, handing it over readily. As the man drained the liquid from the jar, questions were all but bubbling out of his brain. He desperately wanted to ask how a few weeds could possibly ease the rage of a high fever, how they could sooth pain, how they could disinfect wounds. When the man closed his eyes and took slow, shuddering breaths, obviously trying to keep his grip on consciousness until the new brew was ready, Jeff bit his tongue, waiting in silence. There would be time for questions later.

Following the instructions exactly, Jeff transferred the herbal liquid to two fresh jars, filling both slightly more than half full. He placed the pot over the still burning can, and set the jar of hot liquid on the ground by the head of the bed. He returned to his original position, against the wall, waiting and watching. Sitting in the near darkness, Jeff kept his mouth shut for fully ten minutes before he couldn't hold it in any longer.

"I think it's probably cooled enough now. Adrian...can you really teach me to use plants and stuff to make medicine? Does this stuff really work?"

Adrian's glazed green eyes opened and looked directly into Jeff's, and he picked up the still warm jar, gulping down the medicine in one long swallow. Dropping the jar to the floor, he rolled onto his back and closed his eyes, chest rising and falling steadily. Jeff heaved a great sigh, closing his tired eyes and resigning himself to another couple of hours of silent vigil. Adrian's voice suddenly mumbled into the quiet; slurred and exhausted, but sill clear enough to understand.

"Yes...and yes."

Jeff spent the rest of the dark hours with a wide, unseen grin on his face.

As the first hint of sunlight started to lighten the sky, Jeff's wide grin had been replaced with a worried scowl. Adrian's body was drenched in sweat, and the man was muttering incoherently in his sleep, moving so restlessly that Jeff had resorted to sitting on the side of the bunk, keeping one arm on either side of the man, lest he roll off the bed and injure himself further. As the sun began to filter into the med hut in long watery yellow rays of light, the fever seemed to be soaring towards catastrophic levels. All of a sudden and without warning the fever broke, leaving the man silent, wet with sweat, but finally resting peacefully. Jeff felt the break, relief flooding through him as he began to feel the body temperature of his patient cool down towards more normal levels.

Feeling confident enough now to move away from the man, Jeff took a few minutes and tried to tidy up some of the mess that had started to take over the med hut in the last day. As he was gathering together all of the miscellaneous unused foliage, intending to leave it in an unoccupied corner of the hut for now, he noticed the handful of left over poppies and clover; extra from when Adrian had made his painkiller beverage. Glancing at the small tin can stove, still covered with the empty pot, he began contemplating what needed to be done next.

Should probably clean that leg wound again, the other cuts too, when he wakes up. Still have some of the disinfecting stuff left. He'll still be in a lot of pain, and the painkillers all gone...I wonder? Should I try?

Moving quietly, so as to not disturb his patient, Jeff finished cleaning up the hut and putting everything to rights. Then, sitting on the floor with nothing but flowers, a tin can stove and a pot of water, attempted to replicate the poppy and clover drink the man had made the night before.

The sun was nearing its zenith when the leader of the group let himself into the med hut. As Newt was back in the maze with the other runners today, Alby had taken on the task of checking on the greenie himself. Carrying a small metal bowl of Frypan's breakfast mush, Alby walked over to where Jeff was slumped against the wall, asleep. Alby booted Jeff's leg gently, causing the wiry boy to bolt upright, instantly awake. Looking around wildly, it took Jeff a minute to register the visitor.

"How's our new shank doing, Jeff?"

"Be-e-tter," Jeff yawned, stretching as he got to his feet. "He had one hell of a fever last night, but it broke around dawn; he's been sleeping comfortably since."

"Any guess as to when he'll be awake? There's a few things I'd like to clean up with the greenie."

"The greenie IS awake. He would still be sleeping comfortably," a husky voice grumbled, "if certain someones weren't talking loud enough to wake the dead.

Both boys turned as the man winced his way up into a seated position, rolling his neck and rotating his shoulders one by one, working out the kinks of the long restless night. Before Alby could start interrogating, Jeff stepped forward and offered the man a fresh jar of lightly golden liquid. Adrian studied it briefly, noting the herbal contents and turning a questioning eye to the med-jack.

"I finished up the painkiller late last night...where did this come from?"

"I-I noticed that we still had some of the plants you used for the first batch," Jeff said, a little sheepishly, "and I figured you'd still be hurting this morning. I tried to make it like you did yesterday, but I'm not sure if I -"

The man threw his head back and a deep rumbling laugh rolled out, the gratifying sound bursting with approval. As Jeff tentatively smiled in return, Adrian tipped back the jar and drank deeply before flashing a cheeky grin at the boy.

"I'll make a real medic out of you yet, Jeff."

Alby grinned begrudgingly at the budding friendship between the two very different individuals in front of him, his suspicions about the man softening ever so slightly. Adrian's genuine approval of Jeff's earnest attempts to help went a long way towards changing the boy's first impression of the greenie. He offered Adrian the warm, lumpy gruel he had brought over from the cook hut. Adrian accepted it without a word, and made short work of inhaling the food; his first real sustenance in days. Alby watched him with a measuring stare, trying to sort out just what questions to ask of the newcomer. Adrian handed the clean bowl back, giving Alby a level stare.

"Thank you for that. I'm sure that there's a whole mess of questions you're planning on asking me, information you want, etcetera. Before we get into that, however, I believe that there is a bush outside that could really benefit from a thorough watering, and I'm more than ready to oblige. Could you give me a hand outside?"

Alby snorted; at least the shank had a sense of humor. He gripped the man's hand, easily pulling him into an upright position, and supporting his weak side when he stumbled. Together, they limped their way over to the door. Stopping for a moment, Adrian looked over his shoulder at the exhausted med-jack.

"You look like shit, man. Why don't you go and crash for a while? Your fearless leader here will keep me company, and keep me out of trouble. Grab a nap, you've earned it." Jeff nodded; he didn't need to be told twice. As he moved to finish putting away the tools he's used that morning to make the painkilling beverage, Adrian called out once more.

"Oh, and Jeff? Thanks man. Really. Thank you."

With that sentiment, the pair moved out the door and out of sight. Every step was painful, but Adrian gritted his teeth and bore it. He could already tell that the pain was less than it had been the night before, and his temperature was, thankfully, back to acceptable levels. Once they had made their way just out of sight of the med hut, Adrian decided they had gone far enough. He gripped the trunk of a young tree firmly and let go of the boy supporting him.

"This patch of salal looks fairly thirsty, thanks."

Alby stepped back quickly, clearing his throat. "You okay on your own, or do you need me to..." He trailed off, obviously hoping for any answer but "or".

"I'm good. Just be a minute. Maybe you could take a look for a sturdy branch or two for a walking stick for me, while I take care of watering this shrub?"

"Absolutely," Alby replied, relieved. He promptly turned his back and stepped away; close enough to hear if the greenie went down, far enough away to be discrete.

Adrian wasted no time, supporting himself on his strong left leg, he exposed himself and with considerable relief of his own, emptied his achingly full bladder. While he was taking care of business, he glanced around at his surroundings, making mental notes.

Temperate region, based on the vegetation. Should be a plethora of foliage that can be used for any number of things. Wish I knew what kind of altitude we're at; could be beneficial in guessing at weather patterns. From the flimsy nature of the buildings I've seen, they probably don't get much in the way of storms here, so that shouldn't be an issue. The air tastes a little damp, and it sounds like there is a creek or stream in the near vicinity, so fresh water must be fairly readily available. I'm pretty sure that that's comfrey over there, that's handy.

Finally emptied, Adrian put himself back to rights, sighing happily, wishing every problem was as easily solved as a full bladder. He managed a couple of little hopping steps away from the tree, steadying himself on a low hanging branch until he was within reach of a low growing plant with large dusty green leaves. He bent and ripped up a few leaves before straightening, ever so slightly winded. Alby didn't keep him waiting, stepping out of the underbrush with two thick slightly curved branches in hand.

"These do?"

"Yeah, I can make those work. Thanks."

Alby offered his shoulder once again, and in no time the two were back inside the med hut, Adrian on his bunk and Alby standing by, waiting to get some much needed answers. As the man shredded the leaves into a clean empty jar, he motioned towards one of the other bunks. "Might as well get comfortable. I'm not going anywhere at the moment, and, if I'm any kind of judge, you'll be wanting to give me the full Spanish Inquisition. Fire away."

Author's note ~ Everything's going to change.

Thanks for reading. See you next chapter. ^.~

~Ruby