Chapter Title: Unlikely Family

Series Title: Unlikely Brother

POV: Dashen

Ages in this chapter: Tanner (11) and Dashen (17)

Chapter Summary: When Colton is taken down by illness, the boys are left to worry in the hospital alongside Colton's head of security.


"You think he'll be okay?"

That was Tanner. My brother-not-really-my-brother.

"He better be, or he and I are gonna have words."

That was me, Dashen. Hating this moment.

This was us. In the hospital waiting room. Wondering and worrying about our uncle-not-really-our-uncle. Virgil Colton. Master criminal among other things. The giant blonde guy with the really big house on the outskirts of Kaolin. Our landlord. My boss. Our friend.

Our...family? I think he was at this point. Almost three years into this thing, he hadn't once killed us, tossed us out (at least not permanently), or turned us into the local authorities for just being idiots. If that wasn't family...well...Okay so maybe it wasn't what family would be for the normal people in the galaxy; but for Tanner and me, it's what we had. It was all we had.

And we didn't want to lose it.

A shadow approached us as we waited. A man, impossibly taller and larger than Colton, dark in every way. We knew him instantly. Sydenious Greyer. Colton's extremely intimidating head of security and also his oldest friend. Oh, and not my biggest fan. Evidently, he'd been pretty damned blunt with Colton years back when I was lost and suicidal and all things bad after losing my baby brother, Kossi. Sydenious had told Colton to leave me be. Let the streets eat me up, and I'd just vanish. Never to be missed.

He wasn't wrong. I'd felt the same way most of my days after Kossi passed, and honestly, I'd never held a grudge against the big man for telling Colton the flat-out truth. Can't argue with the truth. In addition, I wasn't really sure that Sydenious completely trusted me either. It was better than when I'd first come to live and work with Colton; Tanner by my side at that point in my life. But I still got the feeling that just didn't like me.

Whatever it was, it was. Nothing I could do about it.

I wasn't surprised to see him here, but I was surprised to see him here with us. He was the one who'd brought Colton in. Some type of medical emergency, we weren't yet sure of the details. It was serious though, whatever it was.

Sydenious stood a few feet from us, purposely forcing us to look up; way up in order to see his darker-than-black eyes. His greeting to us was in his usual sombre baritone voice.

"Tannerlin. Lesedi."

Oh, and he always mentioned Tanner's name first and only ever used my last name. A jab at me, I suppose. Petty, but I was okay with it, it's something I'd do.

The other thing I'd do was let Tanner take the lead in any conversation with him, as he did now. The kid got along with anyone and everyone. He just had that way about him.

Looking ridiculously tiny near the large man, Tanner nevertheless spoke with purpose. "Hi Sydenious. Did you talk to the healers? Is Colton okay?"

"There is no news yet. Healer Quin was not too pleased to allow me access to the room." The man tended to keep his tone with Tanner soft enough. For me, well...

"You got kicked out." I said, with a tad too much cheer in my voice. Whoops. Tanner kicked my foot.

The tone this time, toward me, was much harder than with my brother. We all sat on the couch now. "I suppose you are correct, Lesedi. After all, she has delegated me to the waiting room alongside you. I suppose I am forced to await the news together."

Oh happy day. Not only did I get to worry, but now I got to worry and wait with the man who would've left me for dead in the streets. Probably still would today. What a day this was turning out to be.

I'd manage though. As long as Tanner kept his butt in the seat next to me, which he'd just tried to escape before I snatched the sleeve of his arm. "Freeze. You are so not leaving me here with Mr. Sunshine." I lowered my voice. "You know he hates me. Sit. Stay."

"He doesn't hate you, Dash," my brother whispered back. "He just doesn't like you."

Great. Perfect. Thanks.

"You do know that I can hear you both, yes?" Sydenious said, leaning his long frame toward us.

"Oh, um. Right. Sorry." Good Dash, good. Have I ever mentioned I have a magical way with words?

"And the boy is correct, I do not hate you, Lesedi."

"Are you sure? Because I've heard stories."

"You hear what you want and how you want. I simply protect my old friend. At the time, you were not good for him. You were not good for anyone."

Truth. Again. Couldn't argue with that one.

"I'm not so bad now, right?"

The dark man took far too long to answer that one. But when he did, I was pleasantly surprised. "Not so bad, no. You do have one or two redeeming qualities."

Victory! Kinda. Leave it to Tanner though to come to my defense, even though there was no need. "He's taken care of me, Sydenious. That's something."

I bumped his shoulder. "Thanks, Mouse. At least you still love me."

"Always."

"This guy though," I pointed to the big man next to me. "Don't think I'll get past that giant human wall, right, Sy?"

Oh, I got the glare for that one. No one called him by that nickname except Colton. A horrified smile later and I scooted closer to Tanner who was already pushed to the very end of the small sofa.

"And you wonder why, Lesedi, that I told Colton to let you go, those years ago."

Ouch.

"However," the big man went on, "Despite your smart ass mouth and annoying tendency to get into trouble repeatedly, Colton likes you. So, I tolerate."

I was okay with that. We had an understanding at least. My thoughts turned to saying something else stupid, but my big mouth was cut off by Healer Quin appearing. Saved!

She held her hands forward to keep us sitting. Never good news when a medical person wants those waiting to stay seated, right?

"Relax, all of you," she said. Grey hair pulled back and her almost-clear eyes shining. "He's fine. Some type of strange blood infection. Probably has been working on him for sometime now, and it finally weakened him to a state when the body could no longer sustain. We've got him on medication to get him well. I'll keep him overnight to see if he gains any strength back to navigate on his own. Could be up to a few days for that though. He'll be fine, you can stop worrying. Especially you, Dashen."

Me? Had a looked like a guilty party? Sad and broken? Gods knew I was familiar with sad and broken, but really?

"Me?"

She addressed me directly right in front of the other two. "You've lost everything in the past. You have fear of losing what you have now. I know. I see. All will be well, I promise. You can all go home."

She had me pegged so I didn't bother to fight back with false words that made me appear mentally and emotionally stronger than I actually was. The news though, was a relief. I even saw it in the face of Sydenious. I didn't often see emotion with him, so this was proof that he was human. Or at least partially so.

Leave it to Tanner to speak up and say what I couldn't. "Healer Quin, may we see him before we leave?"

The aged healer agreed and waved us forward. "Follow me."

Three lefts and a right and through a final door. Colton was dozing in a medical bed that barely fit him. His ankles just falling off the edge, but it looked comfortable enough.

Sydenious waited at the door, leaning against the frame. Tanner went immediately to Colton's bedside and set a small hand on top of the much larger.

"Colton, it's me, Tannerlin. And Dash is here too. And Sydenious. We're waiting for you to get better. So, get better okay? We need you."

The big hand turned upwards and fingers curled around Tanner's. Colton's head was turned in our direction on the pillow, eyes now in a half slit. He was dead tired. Beyond exhaustion. I'd never seen him like this; he was always this strong beacon of energy and determination. Always moving. Always working. Seeing him like this...Quin was right. It did worry me. It did scare me. But he was going to be okay, she'd promised. I took her at her word, always. Tanner kept his hand still as I took another step toward the bed to stand next to my brother.

I didn't touch anything. Not Colton. Not Tanner. I did manage to look at our friend and gave him a small grin right as the emotion grabbed me and wouldn't let go. I started blabbering before I could stop it.

"You know, you scared the hell out of us, Colton. Don't do that. Not ever again. Try and leave us, I mean. We can't have that. Tanner and me. Not anymore. No more family dying on us and leaving us to face the world alone, got it? We need you, damn it. I don't know if you need us or not, but you have us, and that's just the way it's gonna be. So, rest and obey Healer Quin and don't do anything stupid. Okay?"

He didn't respond verbally. He couldn't right now, not with the type of fatigue wearing him down, but he did give a long slow blink and the corner of his mouth turned upwards in the tiniest of smiles. I'd just bared part of my idiot soul to him, he had to respond some how, right?

Quin returned and began herding us from the room. "Enough visiting. He needs rest. Out, all of you. Go now. I'll give you an update tomorrow morning."

Tanner and I turned to leave and found Sydenious watching us closely from the door. His face was flat save for the barest hint of gleam in those dark eyes. I really hadn't a clue what that gleam was for, though I hoped it meant he wasn't going to plot our demise once we walked out of the hospital. One could never be sure with him.

Walking by the big man, he set a large hand on my shoulder.

"Perhaps it's best that Colton ignored my warning and did not let the streets devour you back then."

Um, yay?

"He likes you. Gods know why, but he does. And that should be enough for me. Perhaps it will be. Dashen."

"Don't you mean, Lesedi?" Good, Dash, if you could simply learn to keep your big mouth shut. Oddly though, he didn't call me on the smart-ass comment. Hmm. Did we just turn a corner?

Tanner was pulling on my sleeve to move me out of the line of fire before the giant man decided to pummel me to death. But I stopped and took a long slow breath in and out before...

"Look, Sydenious. I am sorry. I have a difficult time not saying stupid things. I hope that one day me and you can be, well if not friends, than happy adversaries? Maybe. I don't know. If not, then that's okay too. We do have this one thing in common. We care what happens to him." I pointed over to the large blonde form on the too-small bed. "Perhaps for different reasons, but they aren't selfish ones. Tanner and I...we have very little. Colton is a part of it. We can't lose that."

I paused, glancing back again at our sick friend. "Look after him." Because I knew Sydenious would stay the night, just outside the door. Wary. Guarding. Protecting. Always. "No matter how you feel now or in the future about me...thank you for always looking out for him. He's important to us too."

I left it at that and finally followed Tanner toward the exit.

"Lesedi!" Sydenious called. Back to last names I guessed.

I paused to look back. "Yup?"

"I will keep him safe."

Smile. I smiled. He didn't return it; not shocking; but he did nod to me as we vanished from the hospital.

Arm around my brother, we began the long walk home and the longer wait for our friend...our family...to return to us.


END