Early February

Bad News

Aelita hummed merrily as she saved the progress she'd made on her latest mix. Other than a couple of mismatched knobs that she found, Jeremy did a perfect repair job on the mixing board, and she couldn't have been happier with it. Once Aelita had enough songs she even planned on self-publishing an album! She grinned widely at the prospect. She was too realistic to expect to be an immediate smash hit or anything like that, but she figured it's be wonderful if she could get a small cash flow from the hobby!

The file had just finished saving when her phone rang. Looking at the screen, she was excited when she was it was her grandmother.

"Hi, Grandma!" She greeted cheerfully. Her face fell immediately when she heard sniffling on the other end.

"Hello, Aelita."

"What's wrong?"

"It's your grandfather..." A pit formed in Aelita's stomach as she heard sobbing. "He had a stroke.

"Oh no," she gasped. "Is he going to be alright?"

"The doctors say that it doesn't look good," Beatrix replied with another sob. "I just thought you should know. I'll let you know if anything changes."

"Ok," Aelita said weakly, tears forming in her eyes.

"Anyway, that's all. I'm going back to check on Neville."

"Ok..." there was a moment of silence on the line, and then Beatrix hung up. Aelita started going to the bedroom as tears started to form in her eyes. She threw herself on the bed and sobbed until she'd cried herself to sleep.

Some time later she was woken up by someone nudging her shoulder. She opened her eyes to see Jeremy standing over her.

"Hey, sleepyhead," he said quietly. Without answering, Aelita lunged forward and clung to her husband.

"Whoa!" Exclaimed Jeremy. "Are you ok?" He asked concern evident in his voice. Aelita shook her head with her face buried in her husband's shirt, taking whatever comfort she could from his warmth. Knowing better than to pry before it was time, just held his wife without saying anything. He hoped that whatever was causing her upset wasn't too bad, but with the way she was crying he knew it was a forlorn hope.

Several minutes later Aelita pulled away and Jeremy wiped the tears from her eyes.

"What's wrong?" He asked gently.

"Grandpa's in the hospital. The doctors think he isn't going to make it..." Aelita said with a sniff and a pit formed in Jeremy's stomach.

"Oh no..." he gasped and pulled his wife close again. "What happened?"

"He had a stroke." Jeremy shut his eyes tightly, trying to stifle his own tears. Both him and Aelita knew that this was coming soon, but Jeremy still felt awful for Aelita. She'd been separated from almost her entire family for most of her life, and having had only a couple short years after reuniting was just cruel. In addition to that, Jeremy grown quite fond of the old man too, and the thought of never seeing him again made his heart ache even more. "I think you need to be with your grandparents," Jeremy said.

"We can't afford it right now," Aelita replied sadly.

"We probably could if it's just you." It was Aelita's turn to gasp. Her and Jeremy had been inseparable practically since they'd met, so him pitching the idea of her traveling halfway around the world alone was as surprising as it was daunting. "We might even get lucky and get discount tickets for it being last minute," he added. "I'd imagine that your grandparents would appreciate you being there too." Aelita sighed.

"Yeah, you're right," she admitted.

"We can get you a one-way ticket for now, and then just get you another one when you need it. That way you don't have to worry about when you have to leave."

"Ok. Thanks, Jeremy."

The two of them booked a flight, and a couple hours later Aelita was packed and boarding a red-eye for England. There hadn't been time to make any other travel arrangements, but Jeremy promised that he'd take care of everything for when she arrived.

Aelita tried sleeping on the plane, but the flight was marked with pockets of turbulence, so every time she almost dozed off she would be woken up by the plane shuddering. Eventually she just gave up and just sat quietly, worrying about her grandfather and wishing she was nestled in Jeremy's comforting arms.

After about seven long hours the plane finally landed, and a grumpy, exhausted Aelita stumbled into the terminal. She followed the signs to the baggage claim and sat down to wait for the luggage to start unloading.

After what seemed like a few moments, Aelita felt her shoulder being nudged. She realized that fatigue must have caught up with her and nodded off. A familiar voice called out.

"Oi, Aelita. Wake up." Aelita groaned as she peeled her eyes open before looking around.

"Lily...?" She murmured in surprise when she saw William's fiancé. "What are you doing here?" She asked.

"Giving you a lift," she answered. "You look like 'ell."

"Thanks..." Aelita muttered sarcastically she looked around again, seeing that the baggage claim area was almost empty. Her luggage was already next to her too, presumably grabbed by Lily. "How long was I asleep?"

"Dunno. I got here a few minutes ago and you were already zonked." Aelita pulled out her phone and when she turned off airplane mode several messages came through. Most of them were from Jeremy, but there was also one each from Lily and William.

Glancing at Jeremy's messages it looked like he'd booked a hotel just a few minutes walk from the hospital, and that he managed to get hold of William to give her a ride. She was a little confused until William's message said that something came up at work, and that Lily was willing to give her a ride. The one from Lily said that she'd arrived at the airport.

Aelita typed out a message to let Jeremy know she'd landed and thank him for taking care of everything. Afterwards she put her phone away.

"Thanks for coming, I really appreciate it."

"Eh, no worries. A friend of Willy's is a friend of mine. I just hope your grandad is alright." At the mention of her grandfather, Aelita's heart sank again

"Me too..." she murmured.

The two girls made their way to Lily's car, and after loading up Aelita's luggage they were on their way.

"I know this might not be the best time, but I never got to thank you for coming along to tell me about Willy's past," Lily said. "I don't think I would have been able to believe everything without you showing me that computer world."

"Lyoko? Yeah. You're welcome. I'm just glad he's doing better, and that you seem happy together," Aelita replied with a yawn.

"We are. Anyway, you look knackered. Go ahead and put your seat back for a little kip."

"I think I'll do that. Thanks." Within minutes fatigue had overtaken the young woman again and she was out cold for the rest of the trip.

Some time later Aelita was once more woken up by Lily.

"We're here," she said softly and Aelita groaned. She was grateful for any sleep she had gotten, but it wasn't anywhere near enough. "I've got some things to take care of, but I can hang on to your suitcase and bring it back later when you can check into your room.

"Thank you. I really appreciate it." Aelita got out of the car and stretched before walking into the hospital.

After getting directions from a weary looking woman at front desk, she made her way to her grandfather's room. Her grandmother was already there, and when she noticed Aelita she got up and the two hugged tightly.

"I'm so glad you made it. Jeremy told us you were coming," Beatrix said when they let go.

"I'm glad I was able to come too." Aelita turned to the bed at the middle of the room. A pit formed in her stomach when she saw her grandfather's frail body full of tubes.

"Hi, grandpa," she said quietly, gently taking his hand in hers. It was as delicate as a dry leaf. Neville's gaze turned toward his granddaughter and one of the corners of his mouth turned up in the barest hint of a smile. Despite his condition, a glimmer of the warmth remained in his old, tired green eyes. A few seconds later he let them close. Aelita's blood froze for a moment, fearing the worst, but when she noticed that the heart monitor remained steady she realized that he'd just fallen asleep. She carefully put his hand over his stomach and sat down in a nearby chair.

"You look like you could use some sleep too," offered Beatrix.

"No, I slept on the way here," Aelita said, just before letting out a yawn.

"I'll wake you if anything happens," offered Beatrix. Aelita let out a sigh, which turned into another yawn. "I promise."

"Ok," Aelita said reluctantly. She got out her phone to hold onto in case Lily called, and dozed off yet again almost immediately after tilting her head back.

A/N: I guess not much more to say here about the chapter. I do seem to be back in the saddle though, and I think I'm going to try to keep to a release schedule of roughly one chapter a month. That should help me keep from burning out.