Another update but this may be the last for a few days... I have busy week ahead doing fun things to raise money for Cancer Research.
You guys wanted angst... Tah-Dah
As always please review
Enjoy
:)
Belle woke and gave a sigh when she found the other side of the bed empty. Rumple had come home late and went straight to bed without so much as uttering a single word to her. She had tried to get him to talk when she had climbed in next to him but he had said that he was tired and that they would talk in the morning.
Now he was gone again.
She pulled herself from the bed and headed straight downstairs hoping that he would be there but he wasn't. Deciding that there was no point staying here waiting for him to come home she thought that she would go to him instead so she got herself dressed and headed to the shop but he wasn't there either.
She frowned, where could he be?
Maybe he just needed time, she reasoned with herself.
He had seemed so down after all that had happened that she wanted to help him but she couldn't do that if he hid from her. In the end she supposed that when he was ready he would come to her so she just closed up the shop and headed to the hospital instead. She wanted to see Emma and check on Junior, she went to Granny's first to pick up some coffee knowing that Emma would probably need it then headed over.
She pushed threw the door a short time later to find Emma still sleeping in the bed hugging Junior to her front and Dr Whale checking the machines by the side of the bed.
"Morning" he whispered as he looked up and smiled
"Morning" she whispered back but then she was looking at her watch, was she really early?
"He had a rough night" Whale said obviously knowing what she was thinking "Kid keeps having nightmares, I'm not sure how much sleep she actually managed to get"
Belle gave a sigh "I'm not surprised really, I didn't sleep too well either"
Whale just gave a nod in agreement but he quickly looked back to the bed when Junior suddenly gave a little noise and opened his eyes to look wildly about him.
"Hey Kid" Whale whispered "Your Momma is right there, she didn't leave you OK?"
Junior gave a little nod and snuggled into Emma's front before his eyes jumped to Belle.
"Hey Junior" she said quietly stepping up to the bed but he just closed his eyes and buried his face in Emma's hair. Belle didn't want to push him so she let him be, he'd talk to her when he wanted to.
"OK, I'm done here" Whale whispered slotting the chart back into the holder at the end of the bed "Tell Miss Swan that I will be back later, I'm heading home to get some sleep"
"I will" Belle said with a smile "Thank you Victor"
He just nodded again and headed out the door leaving Belle to sit down with a sigh. She put the coffee cup on the side and sat back not really knowing what to do with herself. Junior seemed to have gone back to sleep and Emma hadn't even stirred. After a few minutes she pulled herself to her feet and wandered over to the large window to look out across the lake. The children's ward was on the opposite side of the hospital from where Hook had spent so many weeks that it was nice to get a different view. She suddenly smiled when she thought about Henry's snowman that he had built before Christmas and his happy face when he had looked up at the window to see Killian watching him.
She sighed at the thought of Killian, wondering how he was but she never had a chance to think it over for too long as Emma suddenly pulled in a deep breath and stirred on the bed. Belle turned to see her opening an eye and stretching on the bed.
"Morning!" Emma said with a frown and Belle could tell that she was wondering why she was there
"Hey" I brought you coffee although it may be a bit cold by now
"Thanks, I'm sure someone can zap it in a microwave for me at some point" Emma replied but then she was looking down at Junior in concern
"He was a awake about fifteen minutes ago" Belle said walking across the room
"Did he say anything?" Emma asked looking up quickly but she looked crestfallen when Belle shook her head "I haven't managed to get a word out of him since this all happened"
"He just needs time Emma, it's a lot for anyone to take in"
"I hope so" she sighed running her fingers across Junior's forehead "Can I ask a favor?"
"Sure" Belle replied standing up a bit straighter
"Can you call Archie for me? Can you fill him in on everything that's gone on, I mean you know more about what happened in that clearing than I do and can you ask him if there's any way he can see Junior today. If anyone can get him to open up it's Archie... or Henry." She suddenly looked at the clock "Talking of Henry he should be here soon with my Mom, Regina is gonna watch Neal for a while. Looks like Henry's getting a couple of extra days off school... I think he needs it to get his head around what's happened"
"If I know Henry at all he'll use his time to try and find a way to get Killian and David home... if ever there was a boy that clung on to hope above everything else it's him"
"Yeah well I may just join him" Emma said with a smile "Are there any books at the library that you think that we could maybe use?"
Belle tipped her head in thought "Probably, I can think of a few on realm travel. I'll head to the library when I leave and drop off anything I find at the pool house"
"Make that the Jolly" Emma whispered "Whale said that we would be out of here in no time and I don't want to take Junior back there after what happened. I want him home where he belongs. Devin is gone now so there's no danger and I think that the familiar surroundings will help... plus he'll feel closer to Hook"
Belle gave a nod "No problem, I can do that. I'll head off now. I'll pop in and see Archie instead of calling that way he'll get a better idea of what he'll be dealing with. I'll message you when I know when he can come in. Then I'll head over to the library."
Emma suddenly gave a frown "Where's Gold?"
Belle gave another sigh and looked to the window "I wish I knew Emma. He's barely spoken a word to me either. I tried to talk to him but he wasn't ready." she suddenly looked back at Emma "I don't know how long he was under Devin's control but I can tell by his reaction that he is sorry."
Emma didn't say anything she just nodded and went back to stroking Junior's forehead so Belle grabbed her purse and headed to the door.
"I'll message you later"
Emma muttered "Thanks Belle" but she never looked up and Belle got the impression that Emma was holding her tongue, obviously not believing that Rumple was sorry bur Belle knew him better than everyone and she could read him like a book.
He was sorry... she just didn't know what he was sorry for.
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The door swung closed and Emma gave a heavy sigh. Belle still believed in Gold! How could she be so blind? And yet he'd helped them get to the hospital the day before when he could have easily stayed hidden behind his blade's influence... she didn't know anything anymore.
She looked down at Junior again and gave another sigh at his little face, he had bruises around his eyes and a large one to the left of his mouth along with a split lip.
How could anybody beat a child?
She was still staring when his eyes peeked open and he looked up at her, she smiled widely and whispered "Hey Kid"
He just blinked a few times then rolled back a bit bringing his hand up to wipe at his forehead, a habit that he had from when he had long hair. He gave a little confused look then seemed to remember that he'd had it cut and let his hand wander over his short hair instead. She watched as he felt his way across his head while staring out the large windows but after a few seconds his hand found it's way back to his chest and he gave a little sob and that damned lip was wobbling again.
Emma just pulled him back into her arms and hugged him tightly "It's OK... I know... you miss him... I miss him too but you know he will fight hard to come back to you, right? He's not like your Father. Killian... your new Papa will do EVERYTHING he can to get back here. He knows that we all need him and you know what? With Grandpa's help they'll probably be back in no time at all. You can't give up hope kid... that's our family motto. You have to have hope if you want to one of us"
Junior gave a sniff as he pulled himself back and Emma's heart nearly burst when he looked up at her and whispered.
"I want to go home Momma"
"I know baby but you need to stay for a little while longer, maybe we'll get to go tomorrow if you're a brave boy. Are you going to be brave? Are you gonna make your Papa proud and not let this stop you being happy?"
His little eyebrows shot up and he said "We are allowed to be happy... Papa told me that it was alright even when bad things happen. He wanted to be happy even when the bad boy did really horrible things to him"
"That's right, he did, so you mustn't let go of that OK? If I could speak to Papa now I know that he would want you to be happy, I just know it" He gave a little nod of his head but then he was back to thinking, she could see it written all over his face "What you thinking kid?"
He gave a little frown and met her eyes "The bad boy... I... I had to... he is dead... isn't he?" Emma gave a nod but didn't say anything, she could see he wasn't finished yet and sure enough he pulled in a breath "I had to do it Momma... he was going to kill Papa"
He looked so lost that her heart skipped a beat "It's OK... You didn't have a choice kid. You saved your Papa... it's alright"
But the tears were back "I saved him but I still lost him... he is gone from in here and I miss him"
She just pulled him back in and hugged him tightly "I know kid. I know, but remember what I said. Tears are OK, you are allowed to miss him and be sad but you are also allowed to be happy and Henry will be here soon. Do you want to see Henry?"
"Aye" his little muffled voice met her ears and she gave a smile.
By the time Henry and Mary-Margaret came in a while later Emma was just about ready to pee herself. She hadn't dared bring up the subject of leaving Junior's side in fear that he would go back into melt down mode but as soon as Henry burst through the door Junior was distracted enough for her to be able to sneak off with the hope that she'd be back before he even noticed that she was gone.
Emma walked back into the room to find Henry lying back on the bed with Junior snuggled into his side. Her Mom had their Harry Potter book in her hands and gave a slight shrug and a grin before starting to read. Junior was asleep again in less than twenty minutes and when Emma looked at Henry she realized that he was sleeping too.
"He hardly slept a wink Emma, he just wouldn't settle. I seriously thought I was going to have to bring him here at one point but he finally nodded off at around four" Mary-Margaret whispered
"Junior didn't have a good night either" Emma said with a sigh "He didn't seem to have an issue falling asleep but he kept waking up. He's having nightmares again but Belle was gonna talk to Archie for me, hopefully he can come in today although I did get the kid to talk to me a bit."
"You did?" Mary-Margaret asked with interest
"Yeah" Emma sighed "He's missing Hook but I think I managed to get through to him that his Papa won't give up. That him and Dad will fight tooth and nail to get back here. He also talked about killing Devin. He did it because Devin was going to kill Hook... God Mom, no one should have to deal with that never mind a five year old."
"Oh Honey, he'll get through this and we'll all be there for him every step of the way" her Mom said reaching over and taking her hand, Emma just squeezed her hand back and looked to the bed but her Mom wasn't done "Go and lie down Emma, get some sleep. I'll watch over them."
Emma couldn't argue, she felt so tired that a nap sounded like heaven so she stood up and stretched out her back.
"My cell is on the side, it's on silent but it will vibrate. Can you keep an eye on it for when Belle calls?"
"Sure" her Mom replied with a smile but Emma could see the tiredness on her face too.
"I'll have a couple of hours then it's your turn and I'm not taking no for an answer, you look beat" Emma said as she climbed up onto the other bed.
Her Mom just smiled in a very none committal way but Emma knew that she'd get her way, her Mom needed someone to look out for her as much as she did and Emma was going to make sure that it was her. With a sigh she settled down on the pillow and closed her eyes.
She thought she heard her Mom talking a few minutes later but by then she was well on her way to sleep so she ignored it and in minutes she was gone knowing that she needed to be alert later for Junior, he needed her to be there when he woke up.
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David peeked open an eye and squinted into the darkness trying to judge if it was morning or not. He noted a brightish light coming from the passage way so figured that it was time to get up. He threw back his blankets and was instantly shivering.
"Gah... it's freezing" he whispered through chattering teeth quickly taking up one of his blankets and throwing it around his shoulders.
He rubbed his arms roughly heading straight over to the hearth and getting to work to relight the fire. He had it roaring in minutes and he sat on his stool for a few more just letting the heat seep into himself before he decided that he should check on Hook.
The small area was heating quickly but he kept the blanket around his shoulder as he headed across only stopping briefly to grab his now dry pajama pants and pulling them on.
"Hook" he hissed not wanting to startle the Pirate.
Being honest David expected Hook to have woken through the night but he hadn't and he was glad, the Pirate needed his sleep. As he looked at the Pirate who just kept on sleeping David had second thoughts about waking him, he looked pale, maybe he should just leave him for a while. Looking back around the cave he decided to see if he could fashion himself some kind of coat from some of the furs that he'd pulled from under the bed so he quickly adjusted Hook's blankets pulling them up over his shoulders and headed back across the room.
He rummaged about and in no time he had found some string, a sharp knife and then to top it all off he hit the jackpot when he found a set of needles with thick thread that were obviously designed to go through leather.
He threw all the stuff on the table deciding that before he got stuck in he should really pee and empty the pot that he had used as a bedpan for Hook the night before so he grabbed the sharp knife and slashed a hole right in the centre of his blanket and pulled it over his head.
"That's better" he mumbled to himself as he realized that it worked quite well, he'd need to make one for Hook later.
He grabbed the pot and headed towards the outside world but as he got further up the passageway he knew something was not right. It almost seemed too bright, as if there were...
"Snow" he gasped and his jaw fell open "What the hell?"
The snow was still falling and everywhere he looked the thick white fluffy stuff clung to everything. He just stood frozen to the spot for a few minutes before realizing that him standing staring wasn't going to change anything so he got on with what he had headed out there to do then headed back inside with the empty pot hanging loosely in his hand.
What was he going to do now?
He needed to check the traps... they NEEDED food.
He didn't have a choice he needed to go out so he just got on with what he had planned to do and started making himself a fur coat. He realized quickly that he needed pants too and something to cover his feet.
He worked quickly using the fur and another blanket to make the clothes, it was just as well Tink had a large supply really because in the end he used two but he was really pleased with the result. Now all he had to do was make the boots.
He looked up at the bed when he realized that he'd been working for a while and Hook hadn't stirred. He gave a frown and headed back over to the Pirate.
"Hook" he said loudly and reached forward to shake him too
The Pirate's eyes rolled under their lids for a few seconds before he peeked them open and gave a deep frown.
"David?" he croaked out letting his eyes slide closed again.
"You OK?"
Hook gave a jerky nod but didn't say anything. David didn't like the look of him so he dropped down onto the edge of the bed and clamped his hand on Hook's forehead... damn it, he had a temperature!
"Hook, come on open your eyes. I need to check your wound"
Hook gave a low groan but did as he'd asked, the Pirate looked wrecked and when his eyes met David's he could see the fever burning through him. David pulled back the blanket and gave a hiss at the sight that met him, the wound was red and angry looking and the flesh all around was swollen and taught pulling the pink stitching to it's limits. He gingerly brought his fingers up to it but then didn't really do anything as Hook hissed in a breath through his teeth but David had felt enough, the wound was hot to the touch... this was not good.
"OK Pirate" he grit out pulling the sheet back "You must need to pee by now"
He knew that he needed to make sure that Hook's kidneys were still working, he knew enough about sepsis to know that one of the signs was decreased urination and right now he had no other way of checking so peeing in a pot it was.
He gave a sigh of relief when Hook managed to pass water well, at least that was something. He'd have to keep checking but for now he could relax a little. He put the pot by the door then headed over to the "kitchen". He grabbed the kettle, filled it and quickly hung it over the fire before going back to Tink's medicine cabinet and rummaging about. Everything had little labels for which he was glad and after a few minutes he found the round tub labelled "Healing ointment" that he'd joked with Hook about the night before.
"You idiot David, why did you not put this on already?" he ground out through his teeth, annoyed at himself for forgetting it was there. Hook had seemed fine last night and David regretting being to lax in his care of his Brother, he SHOULD have used this.
He grabbed the tub and headed back across to the bed to find that Hook was sleeping again, he'd leave him until the tea was ready then do everything at once so he grabbed his "wash cloth" and rinsed it out then laid it on Hook's forehead before heading back to the kettle.
His foot tapped incessantly while he waited for the water to heat enough but eventually the tea was made and he was back at Hook's side.
"Hook" he called out shaking him awake again "I need to put this ointment on your wounds and I've got you some more tea"
Hook's eyes rolled about again but this time they stayed shut as he gave a little hum of acknowledgement. David didn't have a choice, he had to do this so he just got started pulling in a breath as he yanked the blanket back. Hook had gone quiet again but the minute David dug a blob of the thick dark paste like gloop from the tub and spread it over the wound on the Pirate's front his eyes flew open and he gasped in a breath as his back arched up from the bed.
"It's OK" David hissed out trying to calm Hook down as he started trying to writhe away.
"Hurts" Hook grit out then clamped his eyes and jaw shut baring his teeth.
"I know, I'm sorry but I need to do it" David practically whispered back.
It took a few minutes for Hook to sag back on to the bed, he was panting harshly but David wasn't done, he still needed to do the wound on his back. He let him settle for a few seconds and when Hook peeked an eye open and sighed David knew that the Pirate knew that there was more to come.
"Just get on with it David" he croaked out before closing his eyes again and trying to roll himself on to his side.
David helped him and knew he had to work quickly, Hook was lying on his right side and David knew that it had to be killing his ribs so he just lent over and got on with it.
"GAAAAAHHHHHHH" he screamed out into the room and David couldn't help feeling sorry for him as a sob escaped Hook.
"I'm done" David finally cried out "Let's get you back over, I've got some tea and this time you are drinking it all, no arguments"
"I...am... not... arguing...Mate" Hook panted once he was lying back against the pillow.
David just grabbed the cup and sat back on the edge of the bed, he lent forward and slid his hand around the back of Hook's head helping him to drink. The Pirate practically gulped the whole cup down never even opening his eyes and five minutes later he was sleeping again.
David stood by the fire just staring into the flames, he gave a heavy sigh knowing that he had done everything he could for the minute. All he could do now was hope to God that Tink's ointment worked and in the meantime while Hook slept he still had to make himself some kind of foot wear so he could check the traps... he had to get some food otherwise they were really going to be in trouble.