A/N: Would have been up sooner, I swear! Work has just been really busy lately. You guys are still awesome! Read, enjoy and review, sil vous plait?

Chapter 6: The Wind That Blew My Heart Away

Beth, I hear you calling...

"Oh my god..."

Frozen in terror, Ted stared at his fallen friend.

Oh god. Oh god. Ohgodohgodohgod...

When his surroundings finally rushed back, Ted found himself running out of the bathroom, legs moving out of their own volition, to the bar, behind the bar, shoving Carl out of the way and seizing the phone. His badly shaking fingers pressed 911, and fuzzy as his mind was, he was dimly able to give the operator directions to the bar.

By now, Ted had caught the attention of many of the patrons, and certainly the attention of Carl. Grabbing Ted by the arm, he stopped him in his tracks. Ted felt the jerk as his body ground to a halt, but somehow, everything that did exist had blurred beyond recognition.

"You blind, Mosby? Bartender goes behind the bar...bar patrons go on the other side."

Scrambling for breath, Ted managed to gasp out, "Barney...bathroom...oh god, there was blood...don't know if he's..."

By now, Ted's friends had also run over to yank Ted away from Carl. Lily tried to insert herself between the bartender and her friend, but before she even got close, Robin shoved Carl so hard he fell against the bar and seized Ted, her nails digging into his arm. Grabbing his chin with her hand, she forced him to meet her eyes.

"Where. Is. Barney?"

But I can't come home right now...

The look in Robin's eyes scared Ted beyond belief. She was running on pure adrenaline and fear. The barely masked fear in her eyes was nearly unrecognizable. It was Robin. Never letting her emotions control her.

Ted felt her nails dig into his arm harder and harder. He shakily pointed a finger towards the door of the bathroom, and suddenly Robin had taken off, Ted, Lily and Marshall in tow, opening the door of the men's room without hesitation. The stall door was still open, but all the group heard was Robin's horrified gasp. They ran to the stall as Robin dropped to the ground, pulling Barney's limp form near her.

"Oh my god..." Lily gasped, fumbling for Marshall's hand and gripping it tightly.

Robin pulled Barney into her, cradling his head in her arm. She patted his blood-soaked face, calling his name over and over again, begging him to wake up.

"Barney...Barney, come on, come on. Wake up!"

But her words were to no avail as Barney remained motionless, and all Robin could see was his blood, everywhere.

"Ted, where is the damn ambulance?" Robin hissed.

Ted barely stuttered a response that was drowned out by a pained groan as Barney opened his eyes a slit.

Just a few more hours, and I'll be right home to you...

Robin could see the confusion in his eyes as they flicked blearily around the room, taking in the group gathered around him, the blood and Robin stroking his cheek.

"No...nooooo..." Barney groaned.

"Barney," Robin whispered with an uncharacteristic gentleness.

"Nononono..."

Barney's legs kicked out weakly in an obvious effort to get up. Robin held tightly but Barney fought with all the feeble strength he had left. Fear seeped out of Robin at every pore as she fisted her hands into Barney's ruined suit jacket, trying to hold him down.

I think I hear them calling...

Her eyes wide with confusion and fear, Robin looked up at her friends in desperation. They stood in the dark bathroom, as scared and confused as she. Marshall was the first to react. Without a word, he dropped to the floor beside Robin, dragging Barney halfway to him. Slinging one arm around Barney, he pulled his friend to him, hugging him tightly so that he and Robin formed a kind of protective cocoon. With a sad smile, Marshall slipped his other hand into Robin's.

The change was immediate. Barney's body went limp as he slipped back into a half-awake state, lying with his head on Robin's stomach and his body curled up against her and Marshall. Ted and Lily followed suit immediately, sandwiching Barney between them. Lily and Robin stroked his hair soothingly, and Barney let out a weak moan.

Oh Beth, what can I do?

~himym~

The ambulance came only a few minutes after. They broke up the group right away as they dropped Barney on a stretcher and drove off, siren screaming, into the night. Ted and the group grabbed the first cab they could find and followed them.

At the hospital, they were shoved off in favour of a car accident, and had to wait a full ten minutes before they could actually ask the nurse about Barney. As it turned out, Robin was Barney's next of kin, but all she was told was that they would send the doctor out when he was done.

The waiting room seats were hard and unfriendly, but the group settled in four, each silent and lost in their own world.

You say you feel so empty, that a house just ain't a home.

Ted snuck off briefly to call James, who promised to be there as soon as he could find a babysitter for his son. As he strode back to his chair, he noted Robin, sitting with her head bent down, hair covering her face. Ted knelt in front of her and took her hands.

"Robin," he murmured.

She didn't even look up.

"Robin," Ted tried again. Still, no response. Ted knew Robin well enough to know that when she was this upset, trying to force her to talk would not help the situation, only make it worse. But in that moment, he had not realized just how much Barney and Robin cared about each other. Would Robin be this closed off if it were him lying in the hospital bed? How the hell did Barney and Robin become the stable couple?

But I'm always somewhere else, and you're always there alone...

The double doors of the emergency room swung open suddenly, and a shorter, balding man stepped over to the group.

"Robin Scherba – Serbat- family of Barney Stinson?"

The group stood, Ted pulling Robin to her feet.

"That's us," he confirmed. "What the hell happened to Barney? Is he okay?"

The doctor's brow furrowed in worry. "Mr. Stinson is currently stable. He haemorrhaged and lost a lot of blood, but we gave him a transfusion. He's resting now."

The group breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"What did this?" Lily asked.

The doctor bit his lip, as if he was making a decision. His shoulders slumped. The knot of worry that had been steadily building in Ted's stomach grew to even larger proportions as he identified the look on the doctor's face. It was bad.

"The...advanced state of Mr. Stinson's illness means he'll have to receive treatment that's extremely...aggressive."

"Illness?" The first words out of Robin's mouth startled everyone as they turned to look at her. Robin's posture was ramrod straight, her eyes shining with fear. Her hands were clenched into fists, nails breaking the skin of her palm.

The doctor nodded sadly. "Mr. Stinson has advanced stage leukemia. He was informed of his diagnosis several weeks ago."

Just a few more hours, and I'll be right home to you.

~himym~

Robin strode down the hall as fast as possible, the rest of the group scrambling to keep up. Aside from barking out a request for directions to Barney's room, Robin had said nothing since the doctor had told them. When she reached the drab white door, her nails dug into the wood, yanking it open so fast it nearly hit Lily in the face.

Barney sat on the bed, swinging his legs off the side. He was still pale and sick-looking, but looked slightly improved. The group entered cautiously, as Barney looked up reluctantly, his blue eyes coming to focus on Robin. Her reaction would be the hardest to face, he knew. Much as the looks on Ted, Marshall and Lily's faces were exactly what he had been trying to avoid, he had done what Robin considered unforgivable on multiple occasions. He had lied to her face dozens of times; made excuses, escaped...the list went on and on.

Beth I know you're lonely, and I hope you'll be alright

Suddenly, she moved swiftly across the room to him, and he dared to think this might actually work out okay. A thought that was soon lost, however, as he felt her hand slap against his cheek hard.

"You. Bastard."

Tears filling her eyes, still lit with rage, Robin ran out of the room without looking back.

'Cause me and the boys will be playing all night