Chapter Title: Cold

Series Title: Unlikely Brothers

POV: Tanner

Ages in this chapter: Tanner (16) Dashen (22)

Chapter Summary: While on Tatooine visiting Ben Kenobi, Tanner falls victim to a poison dart.


Cold. It was so cold. My eyes forced open. Hands held me down. Held me against my struggle to move away from the cold.

Was I in water? In a tub? I thought so. I think so. Why? My lips couldn't form words. I felt them move but no sound came.

A voice then. Familiar? Maybe. Couldn't be sure. The voice said a name. A name I knew. Was that name me?

"You need to stay still, Tanner. Just a few minutes. It'll be over soon, I promise, little brother."

Little brother? That was me, right? I had a brother. Sort of. Not really a brother, but he was a brother. My brother. Was that his voice? I see black hair. Green eyes. I know those things. But I need to get away from the cold.

This time arms didn't keep me down. Another power did. Not my brother.

I see brown, a beard? Accented voice. He didn't touch me. Didn't need to. My effort to move failed again. Still in the cold. No escape from it. I relented and did what the voices told me to do. Stayed still. Stop fighting.

Then the familiar voice again. "That's it, Mouse. Almost done, all right? Then we'll get you warm and feeling better."

A hand set on my forehead. I felt it's power. Not physical power though.

"His temperature has come down, Dashen. We're all right to lift him out."

Lift me out? Out of what? Oh. The water. The tub. The cold. I shivered violently. My body bare. My hair soaked. A towel dried me. A blanket covered me. Familiar arms wrapped me.

"I've set up a padded spot on the floor closest to the heating unit."

They moved me. Lifting me. I was carried to a warm place. Wrapped in a warm blanket. Secure in warm arms. Is this what it felt like to have a father? Or a mother? I didn't have either though, did I? I had a brother. Have a brother. I think. Why is it so hard to remember? Then the other one, the powerful one with the accented voice. Who is he? I know him. I do. But who is he?

I'm lowered down to the floor. Still tucked into a blanket. Still tucked into arms. Something set on my head. A towel? Ruffling through my wet hair. Then it was gone.

"He'll warm up, Dashen. I'll get the bed ready for once he does. We're past the danger point now. The poison is short lived as long as it's curtailed with cold before it progresses. Then it only needs to run it's course. I've seen it in action. He's all right."

I was against a body. My brother? Leaning on his chest. The blanket around me was pulled to my head. A hand set against it. My head pulled to a shoulder.

"It's okay, Mouse. Get you warmed up and feeling better soon. Promise, little brother."

Brother again. And a promise. I could trust it. I didn't know how or why. But I could trust it. That much I knew... without a doubt.

My shivering was less. Starting to feel warmer. Finally. No movement though. I didn't want to go from where I was. Still not sure where that was, but it was comfort. It was my brother. It's what he kept telling me. Making sure I knew. The other voice telling him to keep talking to me.

"You're getting through to him, Dashen. He may not completely understand just yet, but once it breaks through, you'll know. Until then, stay with him."

"Why do you know so much about this poison, Ben?"

"I was dosed with it once long ago. Another place. Another time. I was an apprentice then, grateful that Master Qui-Gon had experience with it and knew how to counter it's effects. I've been where Tannerlin is."

Tannerlin. That was me. Ben. That was the other guy. Dashen. That was my brother. I could see them now. Hear them. Still fuzzy. Unclear. But I knew who I was. Who they were. Those things were coming back now.

I grunted something. No idea what it was. Was it a word? Must've been because Dashen responded to it.

"I'm right here, Mouse. My butt is kinda numb from sitting on the floor for so long, but I'm here and I'm not going anywhere."

Mouse. That was me too. I think I must have said my brother's name. Dashen. He was there. Still there. Always there.

The other one, Ben. He sat in front of me. His hand set on my forehead then reached under the blanket to feel my chest, arms and neck."

"He's good, Dashen. Temperature is more normal. Let's get him off the floor and on the bed."

We moved to stand. My legs didn't straighten and lock, but arms held me up. Then softness under me. A bed. Upright, but leaning heavy on something. Someone. My brother? Dashen? Yes, that was his name. I wanted to lay down. I wanted to sleep. But more than that, I wanted to remember with a clear mind.

"Ben, you have a hair comb around here somewhere?"

Dashen. That was Dashen. I knew that now. Why he was asking for a hair comb? No idea, but Ben waved a hand. A small black object floated to the bed, into Dashen's hand.

"Can't just hand it to me, can you Ben? Always have to go playing with your magic. Damn Jedi."

I tried to laugh. That was definitely Dashen. My laugh came out more a grunt as I felt fingers in my hair, followed by something else. The comb? Moving through my damp hair. I flinched once.

"Sorry, Mouse. A few tangles going on up here after Ben took the towel to your head. Can't have you waking up tomorrow looking like an Endorian chicken now, can we?"

That was supposed to be funny, right? Probably so. Sounded like a Dashen joke. I'd already established that I couldn't laugh. I leaned instead. So tired. But not cold anymore. For that I was grateful.

The comb stopped moving. Dashen set it aside before he settled me horizontally.

"Tanner, you need to rest now. You've got Ben's bed all to yourself. Extra blankets and all."

To myself. But... I didn't want Dashen to leave. Not yet. Not now that I was finally clear on who he was. My throat grunted again and I shuffled my right hand out of the thick blanket. Moved it in the direction of my shoulder. My brother sat there on the bed. The side of his hip next to my head.

"I'm not leaving, don't worry." Dashen said to me. His hand on mine now. Relief. "The deal is, you rest your eyes and I'll sit right here." His hand moved to sit on my shoulder; a comfortable squeeze.

Relaxing now. I wanted to sleep. I hoped I could. Another hand came to me. Ben. Kneeling bedside. Face, the same height as mine. Almost. He felt my face. Neck. Chest.

"The intense heat is gone. The cold is as well. Dashen, I want you both to stay here in my home for another two days. Give him time to recoup his strength. It won't take long, but it's safer with the increased number of patrols I've seen in recent weeks."

"As long as you don't mind the intrusion, Ben, that's works for me. That creature that shot him with the poison dart..."

"A tusken raider. I can get you around them to go home safely. They will attack if you venture in or too close to their territory. You didn't know. It won't be a problem when you leave."

"Hell of a place you live in, Kenobi. I can tell you that."

"Indeed. After a while though, you figure out how to make things work without getting killed. Or poisoned."

Still talking. So much talking. I reached upward again. Dashen's hand. Another grunt.

"Sorry, kid. Too loud, huh? I'll shut up now. Ben, can you help him sleep at all or..."

Ben's hand turned over. Backside on the side of my temple. I felt that power again. Warm. Welcoming. I felt the Force. Pushing me softly to an unconscious world. No fight from me. So tired.

Dashen's hand on mine. "Right here, Mouse."

Ben's gentle sleep suggestion. "Rest, Tannerlin."

That was it. I faded into blackness.

I saw Dashen's face when I first woke up. Sixteen hours later. He smiled. I remembered him. It was clear now. Ben was there too. I remembered him too. My voice worked. My legs worked. I used the bathroom. Ate a small meal. Talked some. Relaxed more. My brother was here. My friend was here. The poison was clearing my system.

I wasn't cold anymore.


END