Chapter 38: On the Edge

A/N: A rather slow filler chapter. More great things to come (when I'm not ready to pass out of exhaustion) and in the meantime, enjoy! :-D

Warning: Contains a rather macabre dream and realization.

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It was very late the next morning when Nancy's fever finally broke. Bill was sitting next to her in a chair, having neither slept nor left her side the entire night. Even Bulls-Eye was curled up at the foot of her bed, whining every so often in concern. Bill looked absolutely haggard where he sat, half asleep in the chair with blood shot eyes and hair so desperately ruffled it stuck straight up in some places. His head was in his hands and his heart was in his throat when Nancy finally spoke up.

"Bill," she murmured weakly. Instantly his head shot up, blood shot eyes trained on the woman he loved. His hand flew out to grab hers and he scooted his chair closer to the bed, which didn't seem possible considering his knees were already crammed against it.

"Nance," he said, relief saturating his voice "Nance are you alrigh'?" She nodded and coughed violently before looking up at him.

"'Course I'm alrigh', why wouldn't I be?" Realization dawned on Bill's face as he looked down at her, she'd been so hopelessly out of it she hadn't the faintest idea what had been going on.

"You've been sick Nance, a real bad fever an' all. Lord, you 'ad me worried 'alf to death," he grumbled exasperated.

"I'm alright," she whispered hoarsely "honest. But Bill, I 'ad the strangest thing 'appen." Bill quirked an eyebrow but waited in silence for her to continue, relief now washing over him. She was alright, the medicine Fagin had given her had worked. His girl was going to be alright. "Bill...I saw Ace." Instantly Bill's relief plummeted into the very depths of sorrow when he realized the full meaning of what she was saying. Nancy, lying pale as death in the bed, had been very close to being gone. "He told me to tell Fagin hi and send 'is love to the gang. It was the strangest dream Bill. See, I saw 'im bein' 'anged, and I begged Fagin to save 'im but Fagin just stood there watching it all. He didn't so much as move! An' then I was walkin' down a road an' Ace an' I bumped into each other. He asked me what I was doin' there an' I told 'im the truth, that I 'ad no clue! He looked real alarmed like, told me to turn around that I wasn't supposed to be there, an' then...well I woke up just now."

The color had drained from Bill's face so even now he was paler then the bleached white sheets on which Nancy laid. She had been so desperately close to dead, and he hadn't even known. His heart seemed to stop in his chest and he was at a true loss of words after she had finished speaking.

"Bill?" she said giving his hand a squeeze. The alarm she had tried in vein to keep out of her voice shocked Bill. He must've looked twice as awful as he felt currently.

"I'm 'ere Nance," he said, his breath coming in ragged bursts.

"Bill what's wrong?" she asked sweetly. She extended a hand up to touch his face and Bill jerked back in shock. She was cold as ice and weaker then ever. "Bill?" she asked. The concern in her voice was mounting to an all time high when she heard a sharp knock on the door. Moments later Fagin entered and was shocked to see the pale figure in the bed awake.

"Nancy?" he asked as he sat down on the bed and pressed his gnarled hand to her forehead.

"'Ello then Fagin," she said with a small smile. Fagin smiled back, pretending the events that had gone on the last time he visited hadn't occurred.

"How are you feeling my dear?" Fagin asked as he pulled his hand away.

"Better. But Fagin, you wouldn't believe it! I 'ad this dream you see..." Nancy trailed off and quickly re-capped the dream of which she had just told Bill. Fagin too, paled as she finished with a weak smile. "He told me to tell you 'ello Fagin," she said gently. Her voice was like snow on a winter morning, soft and barely allowing the sound to escape her lips. That didn't take the impact off the words in the slightest.

"She almost died Fagin," Bill whispered as Nancy slept peacefully. Fagin nodded, not sure how on earth to react at this point.

"But she didn't my dear," he said looking at the spunky young girl in her bed "thank God she didn't."