Catalyst: A Story about Change

Chapter 6: Mrs. Anna Billsbury

August 21, 8 months after

"Come on back." Sam got up slowly from the couch in the maternity center waiting room at Idaho State Hospital, and followed the nurse into another room built to accommodate expectant mothers.

"Upsidaisy." Sam remained silent as the middle aged woman, Nurse Kelly, helped her up onto a special chair designed to make ultrasound scans easy. "You're almost there, Mrs. Billsbury! Just one more month to go."

It took a moment for Sam to respond. Right…I'm Mrs. Billsbury. "Right. Can't wait for that," Sam answered absentmindedly. She didn't exactly dislike Nurse Kelly, who would probably be assisting with the birth in a few weeks, but she was just too cheerful all the time. It wasn't natural; that smile wasn't natural. If the woman had simply been calm and composed instead of going for a blatantly false sense of cheer, Sam would be more comfortable around her. As it was, Nurse Kelly made you feel like there was probably something to be worried about, since she always wore her "don't panic" smile.

The nurse continued speaking. "Looks like we'll do the normal check up, and also an ultrasound. I'm rather excited to have a look at the baby, Mrs. Billsbury, aren't you?" As she spoke, she was already prepping for the ultrasound.

"Yes, definitely." And she was looking forward to it. But she was also nervous. She needed to speak to Dr. Evans today, and it wasn't going to be an easy conversation. "Dr. Evans is going to be here, right? I kind of need to speak to him about a few things." Like the possibility of floating away during the birth.

She nurse glanced up from what she was doing. She looked a little surprised. "He should be here in a few minutes, no worries. But I may be able to answer some of your questions in the mean time?" Nurse Kelly smiled and winked at her as she finished throwing a blanket over Sam's legs, whose dress had been pulled up for the ultrasound. "I am a woman, after all. I still remember what it was like during my first pregnancy. You don't know what's normal and what's not, if you're worrying over silly things or if it's something really important. You can ask me anything, sweetheart, no matter how silly you think it is."

Riiiight. Sam really didn't know how to turn the nurse down politely, but somehow she was pretty sure any advice the woman could give wouldn't help with her particular problem. She didn't have to worry long, though, since Nurse Kelly only paused for a moment before going into a story about one of her own pregnancies. (She had three children; two boys and a girl.) Before long, Sam was hearing, in full detail, about things, thankfully, she hadn't experienced herself.

"…and I thought, well, is it really supposed to be that bright green color? It didn't seem natural, and obviously I wasn't taking any chances…Oh, hello Dr. Evans!" Sam quickly woke up from her Nurse Kelly induced stupor. The doctor was here! Finally! She could only put up with so many disgusting stories about bodily functions in one day.

"Hello, Mrs. Billsbury, how are you feeling today?" Dr. Evans looked like a decent guy to Sam. He was average looking, a little shorter than usual, in his late forties, maybe, and with light brown hair and eyes. Brown eyes were fairly unusual, actually, and probably his most striking feature. He was calm and quiet spoken, and also quick to get to the point.

She answered his question. "Everything's fine. I stopped working last week, so I spend most of my time at the apartment. I'm fixing all my own meals, so I'm definitely getting enough protein at this point." (The doctor had expressed concern early on about her vegetarian diet.) "And I keep the cell on me at all times now." Best to get all the essentials out, since she already knew some of what he was going to ask.

"You're still getting around okay? Still feel both feet?" As he talked, he was using a stethoscope to quickly check her breathing and heart beat. Nurse Kelly was ready with the ultrasonic scanner, lubricating jelly already applied to Sam's expansive stomach.

"Yeah, everything's great. I'm even doing a little exercise," Sam hurried to go into more detail as the doctor gave her a concerned look. "Not much at this point, of course, just what you said was okay. Mostly stretching, actually." They didn't want her straining herself, or falling down, and going into premature labor, which she understood. But the stretching and light workouts were what kept her from developing a nerve pinch (due to the extra weight), and many of the other problems associated with heavily pregnant women. And she had a very light build; she needed this more than some would.

Dr. Evans gave her a smile, and moved to give the nurse better access to her tummy. Sam turned her head to watch the screen, and they all grew silent as the nurse positioned the scanner to best display her unborn child. He came into the picture fairly quickly, and Sam could feel her heart melting. There was really nothing to compare, seeing a glimpse of him like this, and all her worries slipped away for a few moments. A flip was switched, and suddenly she could hear her child's heartbeat.

A decidedly sappy smile was plastered across her face as Dr. Evans started pointing out things to her. His arms and legs looked good, his heartbeat was steady, he appeared to have all of his fingers and toes…everything was going well. The truth was she hadn't been in for an ultrasound in over three months, opting for the minimum in hospital bills. And now, he was so, so…he looked like a baby. He was a little too small right now, but basically this was the child she'd be holding in her arms in less than a month. It was amazing, and the only thing that was missing was someone close to share the moment with.

"Would it be possible to get a picture of the ultrasound, you know, to embarrass my kid with years from now?" She let out a half hearted chuckle.

"Of course, and if you want, we can even record a few minutes of the heartbeat." For once, Nurse Kelly's voice was tranquil and quiet. There was something strangely lulling about hearing that heartbeat.

"That would be really great."

"And I'm sure your husband will be overjoyed to have these things, when he gets back." The nurse smiled at her happily.

"Yeah, he will, probably." Sam stared intently at the ultrasound picture, feigning fascination (which wasn't hard at all) to avoid the nurse's gaze. They thought she was married, and that her husband was oversees. They also thought she was a natural blond. She sighed to herself, and tried to contain the pang of loneliness.

"It must be hard, not having him around, but at least it's only a few more months before he's due back, right Mrs. Billsbury?" The nurse had misconstrued her look, but she had to play along.

"Yeah, he should be back on the 25th of October. Then he'll be helping me with a different kind of job." She smiled in a hopefully convincing way. The truth was the next few months were sure to be grueling since she'd be all alone with an infant on her hands.

The doctor, all business, picked up asking questions again. Was she ever dizzy? How much was she sleeping, did she feel fatigued, how was her digestion? And so on. Thankfully things were really going remarkably well. She could be a textbook example of the ideal pregnancy, if it wasn't for one tiny insignificant detail.

"Dr. Evans, I need to talk to you alone for a few minutes." Nurse Kelly had just left the room, and he had just entered. Sam knew this was the perfect opportunity for their little talk. Plus she was already cleaned up from the ultrasound and ready to leave. She sat up a little as the doctor closed the door behind him.

"Of course. You can tell me anything." He sat down nearby, waiting. Now that she had his attention, though, she wasn't sure how to begin. Of course, she had thought about what to say ahead of time, and it was definitely not going to be 'the truth, all the truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God.' That would be disastrous. So she tried to stumble into her pre-planned story.

"I…my family is very, very unusual. This is going to sound weird, but…we have supernatural powers." The last words came out slowly and sounded absolutely ridiculous to her. That was a horribly bad start! "What I mean is, you know in the comic books how some superheroes can fly, or turn invisible, stuff like that?"

Dr. Evans nodded slowly. He looked strangely closed off, as if he was trying his best to distance himself emotionally from what she was saying. At least he didn't look like he thought she was crazy…yet. She plunged onward.

"My dad's like that, you see. He can turn invisible, and he can pass through things. And…and I have a brother who can fly. Heh, p-pretty crazy, huh?" She didn't wait for him to respond. "I don't have any powers I know of, so maybe it only runs in the males? My grandfather on my Dad's side could fly too, apparently." She had looked down, not wanting to see the Doctor's face. "Look, I know this sounds absolutely crazy, but you've got to believe me. The only reason I'm telling you is in case Nathaniel does something crazy during the pregnancy. He might, because less than a month ago I found myself levitating above my bed, so it is possible."

"Nathaniel?"

Sam looked up to see the doctor smiling pleasantly. "Er. M-my baby. That's what I'm going to call him."

He leaned back and folded his hands comfortably. "My little brother's name is Nathaniel. It's a good name." He paused, and Sam waited for him to address the real issue. Had he gone into denial? Did he think she was crazy? "Is there anything else I should know about?" She looked at him, confused, and he clarified. "Any other powers?"

"I," this didn't make sense. Why wasn't he reacting? Was he just playing along with her? "Yes. Sometimes when these powers are used, I know my brother would…his skin would change color, and his temperature would drop."

"Was it a blue color?" Sam's eyes widened in amazement. How…?

"Actually…yes, it was. How did you…?" She waited for an explanation.

Dr. Evans let out a slow breath of air. "Well, years ago, when I had only been here for a few months, there was this…occurrence. A young woman was brought here for emergency treatment. She'd fallen, and was going into premature labor. Looking back, I don't think she planned to give birth at a hospital, but this accident forced her hand. Things were touch and go for a while. It looked like we might have to perform surgery to get it out. But then, and this is where things go into the absolutely surreal, Mrs. Billsbury." The doctor gave a little chuckle. "Then, she just started…floating. In the air, about two feet above the table. And she did, in fact, turn blue. A few minutes passed by where we just watched; there were a few nurses helping out. And then she floated back down, and became…normal again. After that the birth went fine. Over in a few minutes time."

Sam was dumbfounded; she just didn't now what to think. There were…others out there? Had the woman been a ghost, or a halfa? The sheer unlikeliness of this happening amazed her. There couldn't be that many people like that running around, after all, and the fact that it happened with the same doctor...?

Still, it made things so incredibly easy for her, and it's hard to really ask questions when things are going your way. So she let it drop; it was and would remain a really big coincidence, nothing more.

She smiled over at him, eyebrows raised. "Amazing. I hadn't realized there were other people out there like that, but I guess it makes sense." She rubbed the back of her neck and smiled uneasily. "At least you don't think I'm crazy. Heh, how likely is it that I'd find the one doctor who completely believes me?"

"So…I guess I'll be watching out for that blue skin as well, just in case?" He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah…I guess you will." Sam smiled again, a little more tentatively. She was still completely and utterly surprised by all of this. And she'd thought he would be in for the surprise, not the other way around! "So…have you kept up with this lady, by chance. Er, she might be a relative or something."

"No. I think she was an illegal alien, actually. Or else she didn't want to be found. No social, no insurance. No last name, even. She was in and out in less than a day, and hardly spoke when she was here. I don't think she felt comfortable in a hospital."

"Ah. To bad. Did…what did she look like?"

"She could've been anywhere from mid twenties to mid thirties, petite, dark brown hair. Hispanic, or maybe Italian. She had fairly universal features. That's about all I remember. I'm sorry I can't tell you more." He smiled again. "Is there anything else?"

Sam paused for a moment before answering. This conversation had gone so far away from where she had expected it to go, she had to backtrack for a moment.

"Yes. Please…don't tell anyone about this. I know you may really want to discuss it. I mean, scientifically it has to be pretty amazing." She looked down at her hands, and tried her best to look like she was pleading for mercy. Her voice came out sounding tense and embarrassed. "But my husband doesn't know, none of my friends know...it's stayed in the family, and if my son doesn't have any powers, there's no reason…for anyone else to find out." She looked back up, puppy dog eyes in full swing. "So, I'm calling on the privacy necessary for every good doctor-patient relationship." Calling on someone's higher nature was never a bad idea too.

They looked at each other for a few moments, and then he seemed to make up his mind. "Alright. I understand. It's your decision, of course." Sam bit down on the urge to smile in triumph, and pushed her hand a bit further.

"And if it's possible, I'd really prefer that none of the nurses were told either. Only if it's absolutely necessary, of course."

Dr. Evans gave her a half smile, and stood up slowly. "As you wish, Mrs. Billsbury. Your secret is safe with me." He helped her down from her chair. "And…if there are more children in the future, please look me up."

She smiled back, incredibly relieved this conversation was over, and played along. She was a married woman after all. "I wouldn't dream of going anywhere else."

They made their way out of the room, and headed back toward the sitting room and the way out. He stopped halfway, at the men's bathroom. "This where I must leave you, Mrs. Billsbury. Keep the cell phone charged! I'll see you in a few weeks time." He gave her a wide smile and pushed his way into the bathroom. Sam continued up to the front, in a very good mood.

Dr. Mark Evans closed and locked the bathroom door behind him. It was a one person room. He went over to the sink, leaned heavily against it, and let out a strained sigh. A few moments passed in which he allowed himself to simply stare down at his hands, his brain zoning out. He wasn't used to this kind of stress.

He nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of someone slowly clapping their hands behind him.

"Very good, Dr. Evans. You could have had a career as an actor." The doctor turned around slowly to face the disembodied voice, pressing his hands against the counter to stop them from shaking. The 'visitor' was hovering in the air a few feet away, red eyes glowing, and fangs bared in a dark smile.

"Actually, I get stage fright." It came out as a whisper, and Mark found himself looking at his toes.

The ghost crossed his arms over his chest. "Speak up, man, I didn't catch a word of it."

"I said, I get stage f-fright." His voice cracked on the word fright. There were other kinds of fear as well, however. The fear of death, for instance, could probably make anyone a good actor.

The ghost, because that's what he was, continued speaking. "Ah, well, it just proves what you can do when properly motivated." His smile widened. He called himself Vlad Plasmius, and was the most terrifying thing Mark had ever come across. "There's nothing to worry about, my dear doctor, so long as you continue to play your part." The ghost began to absently study the nails on his right hand, and pursed his lips. "She appears to have bought the story. I had a hunch she might bring this up today. It's a good thing we prepped, isn't it, doctor?" He glanced back up, waiting for an answer.

"Yes, I suppose so." Mark was a little calmer now, having recovered from the initial surprise of Vlad's presence. "You were there the entire time?"

"Of course. As I said, I will be keeping an eye on you to make certain you keep your word. I would hate for the world to lose such a talented doctor."

Mark caught his eyes, but only held them for a moment. A person's eyes were not supposed to be red. "I wouldn't dream of going against you. You," his voice dropped a little. "You don't have to remind me of what will happen. I understand, believe me."

"Oh, I do. No one would be more saddened than me if you wife and children were left all alone, to fend for themselves." The saccharine tone was so over the top it verged on sarcastic. Mark kept his eyes glued to the floor, and tried to control his heart rate. Just go away, please, you've made your point. Leave my family out of this.

But Vlad wasn't quite ready to go yet, it seemed. "Be sure to mention the 'grant' to her next time. As I said, I'll be covering all the hospital fees from here on in. Consider this a down payment." Mark saw a wad of cash fall to the floor in front of him, and looked up, surprised. The ghost had mentioned paying before, but he hadn't really believed him.

"Come now, Dr. Evans! You hold up your end of the bargain, and I'll hold up mine. If everything goes smoothly, you can expect a tidy bonus for your efforts, as promised." When Mark didn't say anything in response, Vlad began rising up through the ceiling. "I'll be seeing you later, then, doctor, if that is all."

A moment later he was gone, and Dr. Mark once again sagged against the counter. After a moment he sank to the floor, and stared down at the money. At least that…creature seemed to be pleased right now. If he could just get through the next few weeks, things would go back to normal. And if he could just not think about that poor woman. He felt a dull, helpless anger rise up in him for a moment. Mrs. Billsbury his foot! But at least the creature cared enough to take care of his mistakes.

Mark sighed, muscles finally beginning to unclench, and noted the feeling of light headedness associated with the tail end of a massive adrenaline rush. If he could survive the next few weeks, he could go back to living in reality, instead of the freaking Twilight Zone. His eyes focused back in on the wad of cash. And maybe…maybe life would even be a little better than before.

Author's Note: Heeheehee, the doctor thinks that Vlad-man's the dad! (Bwahaha.) Sorry, total side note. :)

Thanks for reading! And a special thanks to everyone who reviewed last time! I really loved reading what you thought, truly. :)

Clearly this isn't as lengthy as the previous chapter, and is probably closer to the average length of a chapter for me. Anyway, please review! (Pretty please with sugar on top!) It's so much fun hearing what the people who actually read this think, and if something bugs you or whatever, let me know and I'll try to make it better. :)