Well just for KarterMine... and for all the other super lovely reviewers, I've uploaded a new chapter for the holiday. I hope today finds you happy, warm and safe. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays or Happy Friday, whichever you prefer. I spent Christmas Eve fishing in the ocean.

I'd like to thank everyone who gives me feedback about stories, everyone who discusses the show and writing, my betas especially TinySprite and LadyJaye1, the old Twitter gang and all of my new HH fandom friends.

Newkirk didn't wander during his short nap. He also promptly refused to allow Carter to tie him to anything that night. LeBeau decided to sleep on the false bunk to prevent any chance of a sleepwalking Newkirk from entering the tunnels and Kinch put their boobytrapped chair back under the door to the barracks. Although Carter seemed determined to fret over it, Newkirk's threats of bodily harm unless he quieted down finally got the younger man to go to sleep.

Hogan seemed confident that the precautions would prove enough to contain any wandering Englishmen, and Newkirk seemed confident that he wouldn't wander for a second night.

Kinch seemed confused when he was awakened by a very cold draft of winter breeze through the open window.

A few minutes later, when Kinch was leaning out of the window just sleepily realizing the implications of that open window, the rest of the barracks woke to the alarms and barking dogs once again.

Carter jerked the chair from under the doorknob, dropping all the pans noisily onto the floor awakening anyone who slept through the initial alarms and was just barely stopped from running outside by Kinch. "No! Newkirk must be outside! We have to go help him!"

Kinch dragged him back inside. "And getting shot rushing out the door won't help him at all!" He pushed the door mostly closed but stood watching out of the crack. Carter tried to see around him. "Go tell Colonel Hogan..."

"I'm here." Hogan came out of his quarters running a hand through his hair. "How'd he make it past the chair?"

"He used the window, sir." Kinch was shifting around trying to see the compound. "I don't see him."

Hogan came to peer out through the crack in the door as well. "How far could he go while asleep? Where's Langenscheidt anyway?" He twisted to check near the barrack's door. "Let me out..." He slipped out, going to the nervous guard. "Hey, what's going on?"

Langenscheidt goggled at him. "Colonel Hogan, you must go back inside!" He fruitlessly tried to shoo the prisoner towards the door. "Please, I don't know what is happening but all prisoners have to be inside if the alarms go off!"

"One of my men could be in danger, so I'm not going back inside until I find out what's going on." replied Hogan firmly. "Why don't you escort me to the disturbance? That way you're guarding me." He smiled. "Or I could just go by myself and you can stay here and explain to the Sergeant of the Guard why one of the prisoners from your barracks is wandering about by themselves."

"Please, Colonel Hogan I don't want to be in trouble, please go back inside." Langenscheidt's attention was taken by two guards dragging a struggling figure across the compound. "Is that the Englander?"

"Dammit..." Hogan barely looked at his guard before heading for the trio. "Hey! Hands off, Fritz! Let him go!" His angry strides and furious expression covered the worry for his man. "There's no need for all this fuss!" He intercepted the group and as expected found Newkirk to be the cause of the ruckus, dressed again in nothing but a nightshirt, shaking with cold and looking as confused as the night before. "Unhand that man immediately!" He brushed the guards away angrily, putting himself between them and Newkirk. Hogan's demeanor made most people automatically feel he was in command, even when they were supposed to be his captors. "Can't you see he is in distress!?"

Newkirk tried to stammer at him. "I... I don't..." His eyes focused. "'ow'd I get out 'ere?" His arms wrapped around himself as he shook violently with cold.

"You must have been sleepwalking again. Let's get you back inside and warmed up." Hogan's attempt to ignore the guards was too far.

"Nein. We take Englander to Kommandant Klink!" the burly guard took Newkirk by his arm, albeit much more gently than before. "Prisoners cannot be out of barracks at night!" He tugged him along. "Come! You come now!"

Hogan made a last attempt, one eye on Klink's quarters watching for any sign the kommandant had been awakened yet. "Look, Private Hintzen, waking up Colonel Klink will just make him angry, right? And who will he be angry at? The guard waking him up, right?" Hintzen started to look worried, while his partner took a little step away as if to distance himself entirely. "Look, you found Newkirk wandering around asleep and you returned him to his barracks, right? You did your duty, so there's no real reason to alert Klink, just put it on the report for the night." Now Hintzen started tugging at his lip thinking about it. "I'm sure that you thought of just waiting and telling the Sergeant of the Guard when you go off duty, but then you wouldn't want to put all that paperwork off on him, just because he's in charge." Hogan's sly smile widened a bit as he moved backwards half a step, nudging Newkirk back with his shoulder as he did. "Langenscheidt and I can just take him back to the barracks and us officers can just work it all out in the morning when the kommandant won't be all grumpy... just to do you and Private Kappel here a big favor. I don't mind doing this for you, since you're such a good guy, watching out for poor Newkirk..." Hogan's shoulder pushed Newkirk another step backwards towards the barracks. "Of course, if you'd prefer to do all the paperwork tonight, and listen to the kommandant screaming at you for an hour, that's fine too."

"Nein!" Hintzen waved a hand towards the barracks suddenly. "Der Kommandant will not want to be disturbed." He turned to wave at the guard tower nearest them and shouted in German for them to stand down. "You go back to barracks now!" He bent slightly to speak slowly to Newkirk. "You Englander! Stay in barracks! No coming outside!"

"Ja, ja." Newkirk nodded vigorously. "Nein coming outside!" He huddled behind Hogan. "Dan-kay." He stumbled his way back to the barracks, flanked on either side by Hogan and Langenscheidt. "I s-s-swear guv'ner, I didn't..."

"Let's just get you inside." Hogan was now concerned. One trip outside he could chalk up to some sort of oddity or a unconfessed prank by Newkirk. Twice in two nights with the incident of him being found under a bunk as well? Now it was a problem. The last thing he needed was one of the key members of the team being shot for an absurdity like sleepwalking.

When they entered, Newkirk was surrounded by his friends and fussed over. LeBeau had found a candle to give them just enough light to not stumble over things, although Carter managed despite it. Kinch wrapped the cold Englishman up in his blanket and pushed him next to the stove.

Kinch stayed by him, rubbing his arms briskly. "You have to stop doing this, Peter."

Carter agreed. "Yeah, one of the guards will shoot you!" He retrieved his own blanket to add to Newkirk's covering. "Or you'll freeze to death! Golly that would be terrible, if you managed to wander around and even the guards didn't catch you but you died in the snow out there!"

Newkirk rolled his eyes rather expressively. "I t-think I'd b-be just as dead either way, 'onestly." He looked as if he were wondering if he'd fit inside the stove.

LeBeau handed him a cup of hot water. "You don't need coffee, but drink this to warm up." Newkirk took it and sipped. "Colonel, we have to figure out how to keep him inside."

Carter spoke up quickly. "We can still tie him to the bunk!"

"Carter!" Newkirk sounded highly annoyed. "Stop it with the tying up nonsense." His shoulders hunched a bit more as he shuddered all over trying to shake off the chill. "I don't mean to be such a bother, guys..."

"Not your fault." Hogan reached out and put the back of his hand onto Newkirk's cheek. "Warm up and get back to bed. You're freezing cold. Try to dream about not walking, okay?" He stepped away and motioned to Kinch and Olson. "You two secure the door and the windows and whoever is sleeping on the tunnel bunk doesn't get up until we're all getting up." He took a breath. "I don't want any repeats of this." He did smile a bit wryly. "If you keep wandering, I am going to let Carter tie you up."

"Sir! No!" Newkirk protested.

"Sorry, better to annoy you than to have to scrape you off the ground after you're machine-gunned down by an over eager German. Not all the guards are as easy going as Schultz." said Hogan apologetically. "Everyone get back to bed." He started back to his quarters.

Kinch stopped him. "Sir, how should we lock the windows? The latches are on the inside. He could just unlatch them and open them." He shrugged at the embarrassed Brit. "You opened the window once already."

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to." said Newkirk. He drained the last of his water and tried not to look sulky over all the fuss. After all, he was the cause of it.

Hogan opened his mouth and then closed it. "Well... umm... latch them shut."

"They were latched shut, sir." Kinch had already long since reclosed the window and now stood looking at it to figure out how to lock it against a notorious lockpick and thief. He grinned over at Newkirk. "Peter, why you gotta be so talented at sneaking?"

"Sorry." said Newkirk again, although he sounded less upset with his friend teasing him. The fright of waking up to screaming German guards out in the cold was finally passing.

A loud rattle made everyone look at LeBeau who was hauling a long string of metal cans over to Kinch. "We don't have to lock the window so Pierre doesn't get out. We just have to make it so if he does, we hear him and stop him." He rattled the cans. "We'll boobytrap the windows!"

"Brilliant, Louis." Even Newkirk smiled at the idea. "Maybe it'll wake me up."

"Good job, LeBeau." praised Hogan. "That should keep him from wandering. Get it done and then everyone back in bed." His door closed firmly behind him as Kinch and LeBeau fastened cans to the windows in the room.

Kinch nodded decisively looking around the room. "Okay, now I think we have you corralled! Go to bed." He watched LeBeau curling up on the false bunk and Carter taking back his blanket to roll up into. Newkirk clambered up to his bunk with a visible effort and tucked himself under his blanket and greatcoat both. Only when everyone was back safely in their bunks did Kinch blow out the candle.

Their radioman laid himself down but couldn't sleep for a long time. He gazed into the dark room, listening for any telltale noises of a wanderer. The danger that his teammate had been in both nights scared him a bit. It was one thing to face dangers knowingly, to go out on a mission knowing you risked your life by doing so. But to walk into possible death because you were asleep, to wake only with bullets, Kinch shuddered under his blankets and it had nothing to do with the cold.

End Chapter