Things were awful uncomfortable after that. Obelix was helped to sit back on his bench, and Asterix was made to get back into bed; or, at least, as close to being 'in bed' as Getafix could get him. The little Gaul refused to climb under the covers at all, instead insisting on sitting on the bedside, as close to Obelix as he could. The worry in Asterix's eyes was unmistakable, and he gently laid a hand on his friend's arm.

Asterix wasn't sure what had caused his best friend's violent actions, but now that it had faded, Obelix looked almost as bed as he felt. His skin had taken on a ghostly pallor, and his eyes were dulled; stunned. Apparently Obelix was just as disturbed about his behavior as the rest of them were.

While Getafix got Obelix and Asterix settled back into their places and tried to explain what a Roman was doing in the village, the rest of the Gauls assisted the badly shaken Anxious. The Roman had collapsed to the floor the minute Obelix released him; panting heavily. He wasn't hurt, thankfully, just terribly frightened. That was the reaction Anxious had feared he would receive when he first entered the village. That was the reaction he had expected. But, when the other Gauls had accepted him, he had relaxed, thinking he was safe. Oh, how mistaken he had been! He hadn't expected to be smashed against the woodwork! It had nearly scared him half to death!

Fullautomatix helped the others sit the Roman up. The first thing they did was check the fellow for any injury. Anxious's armor was dented in the back, where the metal had met the wall; his clothing was wrinkled, and his hair was tousled and frizzed, giving him a bedraggled look. But he was surprisingly unharmed. On the other hand, maybe it wasn't all that surprising. Obelix had been angry. Angrier than Fullautomatix had ever seen him. But Obelix would never ever kill someone. Never. The Gaul was to good; kindly for that. As upset as he had been, the blacksmith knew deep down that Obelix wouldn't have killed Anxious. Pummel him? Yes. Scare him? Sure. But take the Roman's life? Impossible. Even as angry as Obelix had been, that could never be a possibility. Something deep down inside of Obelix would never let him go that far, even if Asterix hadn't stopped him.

Obelix's anger...well, just got the better of him sometimes. Like at the gate, when he had roughly pulled Fullautomatix out of his way, pulling the muscle in his arm. The blacksmith knew Obelix hadn't meant to hurt him, and he had forgiven the larger Gaul, because he knew that. Fullautomatix even recalled a time when Obelix had actually hurt Asterix. The two Gaulish companions had been having a fight, which wasn't all that unusual. But then Asterix had called Obelix fat...Big mistake. One that Asterix should have known better than to make. Obelix had been so upset by that point that he didn't have control over his intense anger. He had hit Asterix. Hard. The poor little Gaul wasn't quite right for the following twenty-four hours or so. It had literally knocked him silly. And Obelix had been devastated. Luckily, Asterix had returned to his normal state, but the fact still remained. Obelix had hit Asterix; his best friend.*

Obelix's anger just got the better of him sometimes.

Anxious stood unsteadily to his feet with the help of the other Gauls. He was still pretty shaken, but at the moment he was pushing the incident to the back of his mind. Something more important had caught his eye. "That's...That's Asterix!" he cried, pointing to the Gaul sitting on the bed beside his attacker. "He's-he's alive!"

"Yes," Getafix nodded sagely, his eyes still focused on Obelix. He didn't know what had happened, but he didn't want it to happen again. "No thanks to your Commander. Asterix was very fortunate."

"But he was shot in the back!"

"In through the back and out through the shoulder, actually," Asterix piped up. He looked over at Anxious, giving him a weak smile. His hand never left Obelix's arm, especially when the little Gaul felt a shiver run through his friend beside him.

"Indeed." Getafix's eyes took on a far away look as the memories of that night came back, but he pushed it away. "But all is well. Asterix is fine. In fact, so far there have been no casualties. A few close calls, to be sure, but everyone is alright."

"Everyone?" The Roman became perplexed. "But, the first night...when my Commander launched that...that terrible weapon...it hit that little cottage up in the tree..." His eyes showed immense guilt and pain. "No one could survive that..."

"That was indeed a terrible event," Getafix said, "But we did not lose anyone that night either." He indicated Cacofonix, who was still sitting on the side of his own cot, watching. "It was a close call, and we almost lost him, but, as you can see, he's healing up just fine."

Anxious's face was washed with relief. All this time he had been blaming himself for, what he was sure was, two horrible deaths. And now, suddenly, out of the clear, blue sky, he found out that his hands were clean of such a crime. He was not the monster he had begun to make himself to be in his own eyes. He was innocent. He was free of blame. It was almost to good to be true, but here was the proof!

Anxious jumped slightly when Getafix lay a hand on the Roman's shoulder. "We are both glad and touched that you were worried about Asterix and Cacofonix's health, but as you know, time is growing short. If we are going to get out of this situation with all our lives, we are going to have to act fast, and soon. You said you have a plan?"

Right. Plan. Plan...

It wasn't the best idea, that Anxious knew. But he wasn't used to this kind of thing. He was a soldier. Soldier didn't come up with strategies, they followed orders. Someone said march, they marched; someone said camp, they camped. But maybe the Gauls could add to his ideas; make it work. Here goes...

"Right...Sorry. Um, well, there's a few things that would really help this situation. One being that you Gauls could use your magic potion."

Fullautomatix frowned. "But we're all out."

"I still have a little," Asterix spoke up. "And, of course, Obelix doesn't need the potion for his strength."

"But we can't go out there," the old Gaul with the T-shaped cane added, "Panacea would be killed before we reached her."

"I know that," Anxious sighed. He took off his helmet. It was the first time any of the Gauls had seen him without it. He had dark hair, just like any other Roman they had ever seen. His eyes, however, seemed kinder without the threatening armor shadowing his brow. "I know, that's why we have to get Panacea out of there."

"How?"

"Part of my job these past several days, has been guarding Panacea in the clearing in the forest." He shot Obelix an uneasy glance, afraid that this sentence might provoke another attack. But the big Gaul seemed a good deal calmer now, and was watching him closely like his companions, thought with a untrusting glare. "Quite often it has just been her and I. It wouldn't be easy, seeing as the woods are patrolled, but one could sneak her farther into the forest, and find a place to hide. She wouldn't be safe in the village, but she wouldn't be in the Commander's reach either. Then there wouldn't be anything stopping you from going out there and...ah," he looked to Obelix, gulping as he ran a hand over where the large Gaul had gripped him. "...take care of the problem."

Getafix nodded in approval. It was a risky plan, but it was the only chance they had now. The day was waning fast. Tomorrow would be a disaster if they didn't do something quick. "You will take Panacea into the forest?"

Anxious's expression became one of guilt. "Um, well, you see, there's something else important that we need to do..."

"What's that?"

"We need to send someone to go fetch Caesar himself."

The Gauls' faces showed their thoughts on that idea before they even voiced their opinions.

"What?!"

"Are you insane?!"

"That's the last thing we need!"

"But we can't accomplish this plan without him," the Roman tried to explain. "Look, Commander Spacious has been attacking you against Caesar's orders. There's nothing holding him back. Even if you go out there and defeat him, and send him and his army packing, Caesar will never know what he did. Spacious will find a way to keep his soldiers quiet, and no matter what I say, no one would ever believe me. Spacious would be a free man. He would wait...and he would come back."

There was a long silence. The Gauls glanced at each other uneasily, but realized that Anxious was right. If Julius Caesar didn't know what the evil Commander had done, Spacious would come back and try again...and who knows whether they'd be as lucky next time as they'd been this time.

"So what do we do," Fullautomatix asked softly.

"Someone has to go get Caesar, tell him what's happening; get him to come. I doubt he would listen to any of you, so I'd have to be the one to go." Anxious gave a bitter chuckle. "If he'll even listen to me. Then he can come and see what Spacious has done, and the Commander will be imprisoned for his crimes. He'll never be able to bother you again."

"That's all fine and well," Vitalstitistix stated, still feeling a bit overwhelmed, "But if you're off getting Julius, who's going to get Panacea out of the Commander's clutches?" The other Gauls nodded seriously, turning questioning looks back to the Roman.

Anxious had felt he was doing fairly well up until now. He was never one for being terribly clever...or brave. His name was Anxious after all! He was actually pretty surprised at himself, and what he had accomplished so far. He had gone against his crazy Commander's orders, snuck into enemy territory, was coming up with a plan to save them all, and was going to be running off to fetch Caesar! That was pretty impressive for him. But when Vitalstitistix asked that one question, it seemed to snap him back to reality. This wasn't a game. This was going to be risky; dangerous.

"One of you Gauls will have to take my place."

Another long, uncomfortable silence followed.

Anxious knew he was pushing it. These people had been through so much already. Sending another one of their own outside the safety of the village was not an enticing prospect; especially considering what had happened to Asterix the last time. Spacious wasn't fooling around. If he found them, he'd kill them. Could Anxious really expect the Gauls to agree to such a perilous plan? What would they do if they didn't agree? Anxious didn't have any other ideas that could work.

The Gauls stood staring at the floor, each thinking their own thoughts, weighing the benifits, and possible costs, this plan might make for them. If it worked, Panacea would be safe, and they would be free to get out there and scare those Romans away, with a good pummeling of course. But if they failed...Oh, Toutatis, if it failed! Someone might die...But if they stood by and did nothing, someone would die. They would all die. Slowly, each and every Gaul present sent Vitalstitistix a confident nod. They'd do it. They had to do it.

"Alright, Roman," the chieftain declared, "We're with you. How do we go about it."

Anxious felt oddly relieved. "Someone will have to wear my armor and sneak back into my camp. My guard shift begins tonight, after sunset. They'll have to guard Panacea until the rest of the clearing is...ah, clear, of anyone else. The woods are patrolled at night, so they'll have to be careful. They should be someone who knows the forest well enough to navigate it in the dark, as well as find a safe place to hide. All they have to do after that is make sure they stay hidden until it's safe to come out of hiding. By then, hopefully, Spacious and his army should be taken care of."

"Good," Getafix grunted from his place in the corner. He seemed pretty pleased with the plan, which Anxious took as quite an honor. Druids were wise men, and to have one agree with your ideas was encouraging, to say the least. "Now all we have left to decide is who will be going out in your armor. And no, Asterix, it will not be you!" The druid shot his friend a glare, having noticed the smaller Gaul's hand already preparing to rise for volunteering. "You were injured only two days ago, and I will not permit you to go out and cause yourself to have a relapse. You can barely walk as it is, and your fever is still higher than I would like it to be." He saw the frown that crossed Asterix's face, and a small smile crept into the druid's features. "Besides...your too small." Asterix blinked a few times, then smiled back, giving a nod. Obelix looked relieved.

"That is something that will be important in our decision," Getafix added, stroking his long, white beard thoughtfully. "Whoever we pick will have to resemble Anxious, at least in size and stature." The Gauls looked at each other, frowning; realizing just how difficult that might turn out to be.

Anxious was incredibly thin. Almost alarmingly so. Even with the armor he wore, his scrawny arms and legs stuck out, like twigs. And while many of the Gauls in the village weren't as rotund as Unhygenix, or even Vitalstitistix, none of them seemed to be all that slim. Certainly not as slim as that! Obelix was't even an option. Geriatrix was too old and bent. Fullautomatix was too tall and too wide-chested. Vitalstitistix and Unhygenix were too big. And even Soporifix wasn't the right size. In fact, no one could think of anyone in the village who matched Anxious's physique. They were all either too tall, too short, too young, too old, or too fat to even be able to get the armor on. No one could think of a single Gaul who...well, almost no one...

Picanmix had been watching the discussion from behind the safety of his bench. He was still weary of Obelix, having been terribly frightened by his friend's reaction to the Roman. But the big Gaul seemed fine now, or, at least, mostly so, and Picanmix had focused his attention back on the other adults. He, personally, thought Anxious's plan was very daring and heroic. He, as most children will, didn't understand just how serious this mission would be; how dangerous. Because of this, his thinking was a little calmer than his fellow Gauls, and he noticed something the other Gauls had overlooked.

"What about Cacofonix?"

The adults looked to the little boy. In truth, many had forgotten he was even there. Picanmix had been so quiet and still, he might as well not have been. His small, high-pitched voice, however, had quickly reminded them of his presence.

"What?" Vitalstitistix hadn't quite heard, as hadn't the others.

"What about Cacofonix?" the child repeated, pointing to the bard with a small hand. "He's almost exactly the same size as the Roman."

The others turned to look, blinking in surprise. How could they have forgotten Cacofonix? The bard was very nearly the same height as Anxious, and, due to his injuries and lack of proper nourishment, was even thinner than usual. In truth, he was almost as frighteningly scrawny as the Roman soldier. Of course, beyond those similarities they were completely different. Anxious's hair and eyes were very dark, and his skin was quite tan; while Cacofonix was light-skinned, had blond hair and light blue eyes. Besides shape and size, they looked nothing alike.

Cacofonix had been listening to the discussion much the same way as Picanmix had been. He too thought the Roman's plan was very daring, and he longed to help. His mind had wondered to possible ways he could lend a hand. He was too occupied with his thoughts to notice he was being watched at first, but when he did he nearly jumped out of his skin. The Gauls were all looking at him. He suddenly wondered if he had been asked a question and was expected to answer...but then remembered he couldn't answer. He wished he hadn't lost track of the conversation. The last thing he had heard was them saying something about sending a Gaul out to take Anxious's place to save Panacea. What were they all looking at him for?

Getafix must have noticed the bard's confusion and spoke up quickly, throwing in the last bit of the discussion so that Cacofonix could figure out what had just been said. "No, that won't do. It's true that they are a perfect match, but Cacofonix cannot go out there. While he is recovering well, he is still not as cured as I would like. I doubt his body could handle the mission. He, like Asterix, would most likely suffer a relapse."

Oh, so someone had suggested he go out disguised as Anxious, Cacofonix realized. His first thought was that that he'd finally be able to do something. He'd been laid up for days, listening helplessly while disaster after disaster struck the village. The bard had felt so useless. And he was useless! For goodness sake! What could a bard do? Nothing! A blacksmith could make weapons, and warriors could fight; but what could he do? Sing them to death? And then something finally comes up that he could do; he was sure of it...and Getafix forbid him to do it. All Cacofonix wanted to do was help...and he couldn't even voice his opinion. He couldn't even argue that he thought he could do it.

"I'm sure there is someone in our village other than Cacofonix who could get the job done," the druid continued, blissfully unaware of the look Cacofonix was sending his way. "We just have to find them." He turned to the Gauls in the confines of his cottage. "Go out and see who would work. There must be someone. We need to hurry, it's nearly noon."

Vitalstitistix, Unhygenix, Fullautomatix, Geriatrix, Picanmix, and Soporifix left quickly, knowing that time was of the essence. Once they were gone Getafix turned to Anxious, just as the Roman sneezed.

The air wasn't as cold as it had been, but it was still unseasonably cool for the summertime. Anxious, because of the patrols in the forest, had been forced to take the long way around to get to the village, which, unfortunately, had involved a great deal of water. The trip had taken him all night, and the combination of moisture and chilly air was proving to have an unpleasant effect.

The Roman sneezed again.

"Anxious, come with me," Getafix instructed as he started making his way toward the back room of his hut. "You will do little good to our plan if you are ill. I will give you some dry clothes for your journey."

Anxious carefully removed his armor, putting it near the hearth to dry. Without the metal plates, the Roman seemed even thinner. He started following the druid, but Getafix paused as he passed the remaining Gauls left in the room.

"Obelix, I want you to come too." Then Getafix fixed Asterix with a stern glance. "And I want you to get some rest. You too, Cacofonix. You both need as much rest as you can get." With that, Getafix headed out with a nervous Anxious and a very reluctant Obelix trailing behind.

Now alone, Asterix gave Cacofonix a kind smile as he made his way in under the sheets. Normally the little Gaul would reject sleep, especially with so much going on. But the whole thing with Obelix, as well as their long discussion, had officially worn him out. He realized just how unwell he really was. If he couldn't even handle a little bit of excitement, there was no way he could go on a mission. He'd probably pass out. He still hadn't completely recovered from all the blood he had lost.

Cacofonix remained sitting on the edge of his cot; thinking. Asterix must have been exhausted, because he was asleep only a few moments after his head hit the pillow. And Cacofonix was left alone with his thoughts.

He knew the others were out looking for someone to go out dressed as Anxious. They needed the perfect match. But...By Toutatis! He was a perfect match! Stupid weak body! The villagers and Getafix had saved his life! And here he was unable to repay them! It burned him up inside. All he wanted to do was get Panacea away from that lunatic of a man...For everything to go back to normal...But he couldn't make it. He was too ill; too weak...

Or was he?

...

It was taking a good deal longer to find Anxious a fresh tunic than Getafix had first anticipated. Not that the Roman was picky, Toutatis no! But Getafix knew that, in order to get into Caesar's palace at all, Anxious would have to at least look halfway presentable. If he looked like a beggar, he'd never gain entrance at all. Luckily, Getafix had collected a large number of different costumes over the years. Not that he used them. They were robes, tunics, and trinkets that often found their way to the village whenever Obelix and Asterix returned from some adventure or another. They were useful, whenever a disguise was needed, and were kept for that very purpose.

"Ah, here we are," he druid proclaimed, holding up a dark green tunic with a golden sash. It was the clothes of a merchant; a rich merchant. Anxious would have much better luck getting to Caesar now. "Go ahead and try this on. It might be a little big."

"That's alright," Anxious smiled. He took the clothes and headed for the next room. "As long as it's warm and dry." He gave Obelix a swift, shaky grin; more of a grimace,really; before quickly leaving to change.

Once he was gone, Getafix turned to Obelix. The big Gaul hadn't said a word all this time. Eyes focused on the floor, he had followed and waited patiently while the druid took care of Anxious. The man Obelix had attacked.

"Obelix...I don't know what to say to you." Obelix winced, even though there was no anger in Getafix's voice.

The druid sighed, sitting down on a bench, laying his head against his hand. Getafix really didn't know what to say. Obelix's attack had been a shock. A terrible shock. Getafix was still shocked. It was unlike anything the druid had ever seen in the big Gaul before. But Getafix wasn't stupid. He was a druid after all. He knew that Obelix must have had a reason for his actions, however irrational or rational they may be. "Obelix...what happened?"

Obelix felt so ashamed. Now that his anger had passed, images of what he had done kept flashing through his mind. He wanted nothing more than to run off and hide. With any luck, everyone would forget about him and he could become a hermit in some far off land. But since that was very unlikely to happen, he'd have to face up to Getafix's questions.

It was funny, the way the Gauls looked up to the druid. For most, he was like a second father, and Obelix was no exception. Getafix took care of them, gave them advice, looked after their welfare; he was physician, strategist, and friend. To gain his approval was a wonderful thing; to be the focus of his disappointment was dreadful. No one ever wanted to disappoint Getafix, not after all he had done for them.

"Obelix, look at me."

The big Gaul refused to make eye contact.

"Obelix, what happened?"

"I-I'm sorry, Getafix...I-I was just so...so angry, I just...I didn't mean to..." The largest Gaul didn't know how to continue. The more he thought about it, he really couldn't justify what he had done.

Getafix stood up, coming up to him, looking very concerned. "Does this have something to do with...with Asterix being shot?"

Obelix scrunched his eyes closed and nodded miserably.

"Now, Obelix, I want you to listen to me very carefully. Commander Spacious is the one who shot Asterix. Anxious had nothing to do with it." Obelix still wouldn't make eye contact. "You were very angry." A question?

Again Obelix nodded. "I-I couldn't control myself. All I saw was a Roman who...who hurt my friends." His face suddenly gave way to the grief he was feeling. "Getafix...I didn't...didn't mean to hurt him! I-I was just so...so mad.. I- I..."

"Obelix-"

"I-I'm sorry, Getafix...I-I really am s-"

"Obelix, listen." Obelix fell silent and Getafix continued. "I understand your anger, Obelix. But you really need to try to control yourself. Someone could get hurt. You could get hurt." There was a pause. "Obelix, can you tell me what happened to Fullautomatix's arm?"

Oh no...

"Getafix, I-"

"You did it, didn't you?"

"...Y-Yes."

"How?"

Please, Getafix, don't make me tell. "He...he tried to stop me from going out and...and..." He couldn't finish.

Getafix nodded. He laid a gentle hand on Obelix's shoulder, looking up into the big Gaul's sorrowful face. "I know it hurts, Obelix. We're all upset; about Asterix; about everything that's happened. But we have to watch ourselves, Obelix. If we hurt without thinking; strike back just as hard, without mercy, we'd be just as bad as Spacious. We can do this without hurting them. I know it isn't easy, but it's the right thing to do. I know you understand this, but sometimes our emotions get in the way. But we have to keep them in check. Spacious is trying to drive us over the edge, Obelix. Don't let him win." He smiled gently. "Alright?"

For the first time since their conversation had begun, Obelix made eye contact. They were big, moist, sad eyes, but the druid saw a sparkle of understanding in them. Understanding and gratefulness. "Yes, Getafix."

"Good, man. Now we-"

"GETAFIX!" The voice broke in through the druid's own words as Anxious fairly flew into the room. He was dressed in the clothes he had been given, and they fit quite well, if Getafix did say so himself. But the Roman looked far from happy. In fact, he looked terrified.

"Anxious? What is it?"

"My armor! It's gone! Someone's taken the armor!"

"What?!"

The three Gaul's ran into the main room, frantically taking in the scene. Asterix was still in bed, just starting to sit up, having been awakened by the shouts. The room looked exactly as it had before, but for one detail. The Roman armor was nowhere to be seen.

Then Getafix noticed something else that was missing. Or, more accurately, someone. The druid's eyes opened wide as what had happened dawned on him. It made his stomach feel sick and his heart skip a beat. This was bad! Oh, this was really, really bad!

"Oh, Cacofonix...what are you thinking?..."

...

*The incident where Obelix hits Asterix is from the album Asterix and the Actress.

I'm getting close to the end now! Three, four, or five chapters left, I think. Not really sure. I don't seem to have much control over that. :)