#also the latest chapter made me put my phone down because i was literally sobbing lol

[beth-is-rainpaint]

Chapters: 20/22 Fandom: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Bobbi Morse & Skye | Daisy Johnson, Melinda May & Bobbi Morse, Bobbi Morse & Jemma Simmons, Leo Fitz & Bobbi Morse, Phil Coulson & Bobbi Morse, Isabelle Hartley & Bobbi Morse, Victoria Hand & Bobbi Morse, Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie & Bobbi Morse Characters: Bobbi Morse, Skye | Daisy Johnson, Melinda May, Jemma Simmons, Leo Fitz, Phil Coulson, Victoria Hand, Isabelle Hartley, Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie, Lance Hunter Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Season/Series 01, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon-Typical Stupidity, Morally Ambiguous Character, Non-Graphic Torture, Minor Character Death, Bobbi Morse Needs a Hug Summary:

“He wanted a man who doesn’t know how to work with other people, a woman who’s been retired since 2008, a couple of kids who don’t know which end of the gun shoots, and himself. I call that a time bomb, not a team.”

Or: Maria Hill vetoes Coulson's choice of specialist, and Bobbi Morse ends up on the BUS instead.

[hamsterboos]

Met Him Last Night

I literally speed wrote this in an hour so I'm sorry if this is a mess lmaooo but hopefully this will be continued, we'll see :D If anyone wants to be tagged in upcoming updates to this, please let me know! Just be warned, this first chapter does have (not very specific) details of a panic attack!

Title is from Demi Lovato's Met Him Last Night

Word Count: 2181 Read on AO3 Rowaelin Month Masterlist

Day 17 of Rowaelin Month Prompt: Bodyguard AU

~~~~~

Aelin was just about ready to murder someone, and that someone would most definitely be her cousin.

“Aelin, I’m serious, you need protection.”

She growled as she slammed her palms down on the dining table, loudly, as she stood up. “And I’m serious when I say that I need sleep. This stupid bodyguard business can wait two days for me to hibernate.”

Aedion also stood up, mirroring her stance as he leaned in closer to her. “Your life is in literal danger, Aelin. I hope you understand what that means.”

“It was one instance!” she insisted, pushing herself away from the table and moving to the kitchen to put her empty dinner plate into the sink. She was so exhausted from all the travel she’d done in the last few days that all she wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep — dishes be damned.

“One instance of the guy mailing you pictures of you from the hotel and on the sidewalk,” he responded, moving beside her. He was following her on purpose to make sure she couldn’t escape him, and Aelin was pissed off that he knew her so well to do that. “He’s been sending you those weird as hell letters for years.”

“It’s not exactly a trade secret which hotels I stay in when I’m going on book tours, Aedion. You know that.”

“If you stopped posting Instagram pictures with the hotel in the background, then it would be more of a secret considering that you are a public figure now. Besides, it’s only going to get worse now that Crescent City season 1 press shoots start soon. Your face will be more famous than just in the book world, Aelin. People will see articles of the author behind the next biggest fantasy show on television. Things are already bad, and we shouldn’t let it get past that.”

“Okay, fine, but why can’t we talk about this later? My body clock thinks it’s the middle of the freaking night, and I haven’t slept in fifteen hours. Please get out of my face so I can sleep.”

“Aelin, if you don’t take this seriously, I’m going to do it for you.”

“Oh dear cousin, owner of a security company, please do. I don’t have the mental capacity to deal with it, especially now that I’m going to be much busier.”

“You’re so annoying,” he grumbled as he stalked towards the door.

“Love you too!” she called after him, finally, finally, heading towards her bedroom. Fleetfoot trotted after her happily, and Aelin snorted as her dog’s wet snout kept bumping into her bare calves. The dog was way too excited to see her after two long months away from home with Aelin travelling all over the world for the release of her latest book. It wasn’t like she could deny the fact that she had missed her dear, sweet dog so much as well, so when Aelin flopped down onto her soft bed for the first time in months, she let Fleetfoot join her.

Fleetfoot circled the same spot three times before curling up against Aelin, her tail slowly thumping against the mattress as Aelin got comfortable as well. The feeling of warmth from her dog and the happiness from being in her own bed after so long had Aelin falling asleep faster than she normally did, and she was just about entirely asleep when she barely heard the click of her front door opening.

Figuring it was Aedion, she just tried to drown out the sound, not having the willpower nor the strength to move. He could let himself out after taking whatever he had probably forgotten at her place, and Aelin would be happily dozing for the next several hours.

Until a crash broke the haze Aelin was in, and her eyes shot open. Heart pounding in her chest, she looked at Fleetfoot who was staring at the closed door with alarm as well.

Aelin was confused. Aedion was careful to not drop ceramic or glass objects within the house, knowing how much her mother would always be on the two of them growing up to be careful with such things, and it didn’t help that she was still half asleep. Nothing made sense to her.

Slowly getting out of bed, she winced as she stood up entirely, her feet aching after days of standing in heels. Aelin walked over to the bedroom door and creaked it open, and she scanned the immediate vicinity for Aedion, trying to see if he was anywhere near the living room or corridor. When she didn’t see him, she creeped out of her room, trying to be quiet but the sluggishness had already taken over body as she stumbled into the wall a few times. Fleetfoot was at her tail, but Aelin forced her to stay before turning the corner into the living room. If there was glass on the ground, she didn’t want it getting in her dog’s paws.

Once Aelin turned the corner, she immediately stopped, finding the scene in front of her unwelcome and incredibly jarring.

There was a man standing in her room, one that didn’t have the same blond hair she did, and the broken object was a picture frame, the shards of glass littered about on the ground as he gripped a photo of her and Fleetfoot.

Aelin swallowed slowly, the saliva getting stuck in her throat as her mouth went dry, as she realized that a man had broken into her home.

As quietly as she could, she placed a hand over her mouth, trying not to breathe too loudly as she quickly made her way back into her bedroom, herding Fleetfoot with her, and she locked the door to the bedroom. Wildly glancing around, she took the chair from her vanity and jammed it under the door knob so the door wouldn’t open.

“What do I do,” she whispered, scared of her mind as she sat down on her bed. She was shaking, that much was sure as Fleetfoot tried to lick her hands and face in an attempt to calm her down. How was Aelin supposed to calm down when there was someone in her house?

Realizing that Aedion must’ve not gotten far, she lunged for her phone on the bed and dialed Aedion’s number.

“Weren’t you supposed to be asleep?” was his greeting, but all she could get out at first was a shuddering gasp.

“Aedion,” she whispered.

“Aelin? Are you okay?” he asked, his voice immediately alert.

“There’s someone in my apartment.”

“What?!”

“Hurry, please,” she cried, trying to muffle her voice to make it seem that she wasn’t at home. She didn’t know if the man had known that she was in the apartment, but she didn’t want him to find out.

“Aelin, listen to me, you’ll be fine. I’m almost there. Are you still in your room?”

“I, uh, I’m in my bedroom with Fleetfoot. I went out when there was a crash, and then ran back to my room,” she managed to get out. “I locked the door and jammed a chair underneath.”

“Go into the bathroom and lock that door too,” he urged, and she got up to move to the bathroom. “If he manages to get your room door unlocked, then at least you have some more time. I’m almost there, but you need to call 911, too.”

“Aedion, I can’t—” Aelin gasped out, leaning against the bathroom counter after locking the door behind her and her dog. Her breaths were coming in faster, and there wasn’t anything she could do to control the way her eyesight was beginning to blur. “I can’t let him know I’m in here.”

“He won’t find out,” he urged.

“But Aedion,” she cried, “the plates in the sink. He’ll see them, and he’ll know I was home. He’ll know I’m here.” The pounding in her chest had gotten louder than what Aedion was saying, and all she could do was sob into her hands. She wasn’t safe anymore outside, but now she wasn’t safe in her own room.

“Aelin! Aelin, it’s okay, I’m here.”

The next thing Aelin heard were shouts and yells before it got all quiet. She clambered up to her feet, throwing the door to the bathroom open before trying to get the chair back out, but it wouldn’t budge. It was stuck, and her limbs weren’t cooperating. There wasn’t anything she could do, and she tugged at the chair with a cry.

“Come on,” she cried, tugging at it more before it finally came free, clattering to the ground. Unlocking the door, she took a few unsteady steps before Aedion came into view, the man lying on the ground unconscious. Aelin lost all control of her body, and she fell into Aedion’s arm as he ran for her, and that was the last thing she saw before blackness encompassed her.

~~~

When Aelin awoke several hours later, it was to the commotion coming from downstairs. At first, she blinked a few times, trying to readjust to where she was because it wasn’t the drab hotel room view she’d gotten accustomed to, and once her brain was awake enough to process that she was in Aedion and Lysandra’s spare bedroom, she got out of bed and padded over to the bathroom to brush her teeth and her hair. If she was going to show her face after a major panic attack that caused her to faint for a few minutes, she should at least look decent.

Fleetfoot was, thankfully, also with her in the room, and Aelin sat on the ground for a few minutes just to hug her dog before getting up and going to the living room.

As soon as she made her entrance, everyone went silent, the only sound was Fleetfoot’s paws as she went straight for Lysandra to nose at her for treats.

“Okay,” Aelin swallowed. “I get it. I need a bodyguard, but at least that guy was arrested,” she continued, hopefully. Aedion beckoned her to sit next to him, and it was then that she realized that besides her cousin and his wife, Elide was also there and a man that she’d never met before. He was striking, to say the least. Silver hair with a sharp jawline and beautifully green eyes. His short-sleeved shirt also showed off swirls of tattoo creeping up his bicep, and Aelin had to say that she was intrigued by who this man was.

“Look,” her cousin started, directing her attention back to him. His face showed concern, and she was suddenly worried that this entire ordeal might not be over. “That man wasn’t the same one who stalked you. He was just a burglar trying to score after noticing that no one had been going in or out of the apartment for a while. It just helped that the security guard downstairs is of no use, so he broke in.”

Aelin was having a hard time processing all this information being thrown at her. “So you’re telling me that it was just...unlucky?”

“I have been telling you to move,” he unhelpfully added, and she let him know exactly that.

“Anyway, we’ve come up with a solution,” Elide butt in. “Aelin, meet Rowan Whitethorn. He works in Aedion’s company. He was working for a different client for a few years, but they switched companies, so he’s now free to protect you.”

“Hey,” she greeted without any of her previous enthusiasm.

“Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Galanthynius,” Rowan responded, and she noticed the slight accent to his words.

“Doranelle?” she asked, and he nodded.

“I will be protecting you from now on, uh, in a close manner.”

Aelin slightly jerked in her spot at his shy demeanor over his words, and the way he said it caught her attention.

“What do you mean?” No one answered her at first, peaking her anxiety again. “Aedion?” she asked, looking to him for an explanation.

“Since it’s also not safe for you to be at home alone, we’re going to have Rowan pretend to be your boyfriend.”

~~~

Aelin stepped out of the car, hand placed in Rowan’s as he led her into the paparazzi filled lot that led to the building where the final press shoots and poster shoots would be taking place for her show. It was still absolutely insane that someone she had written was actually going to be a TV show for the whole world to see, but another absolutely insane thing was the fact that she was pressed up against Rowan’s hard body, trying to pretend to be absolutely in love with him.

“Who is this man?” she heard one of the journalists ask, and she wanted to say that she didn’t exactly know either considering she had just met him last night, but this was the perfect opportunity for the world to know that she had a boyfriend.

Technically.

Smiling, she pulled Rowan to a stop as she turned to the vague direction from where she heard the voice. “This is my boyfriend.”

[dottores]

Hi Cat 👋! Woooah this latest chapter thoooooooo so much happened, I’m actually a little lost for words.🤧

The flashback was amazing, like I know you said your fave was the first one but like I genuinely think each flashback per chapter gets better than the last. Tho that could be because we get more context each time and also more interactions with the brothers which I’m fucking dying for. Speaking of you don’t know how many times I had to stop, put my phone down, and take a breather for this chapter lol, because of all the interactions we got.

The beginning flashback was such a good insight into how the brothers are so concerned for us, they only wanna protect us, tho they doing it in a dumb way. But has me wondering if they want to protect us because they care so much (which I highly assume is that) however I bet they’re just telling themselves they need to protect us because they owe us for helping them out so much. All these flashbacks showing the early stages of our relationship with the brothers just makes me so excited to finally get to see when their feelings for us come across as genuine and they understand their own feelings for us, like when it finally smacks them in the face lol.

Damn so much is going on and becoming overwhelming I feel so stressed irl for us. We’re stuck working with ppl we don’t want to, we have to distance ourselves from our fave boys, we have a whole ass ghost after us; I don’t even know how we going to get ourselves out of all this shit. When we got caught by Ran and Rindou I just wanted to cry to them and ask for help and to take us away. So glad that they instantly recognized that we were lying, and hope they stick with it too. Asdfjkl I can’t even with all the wordless conversations we had with the brothers I fucking love it, this is peak connection between characters and we love to see it. The chase scene had me hyperventilating it was so good, kinda gave me omegaverse predator and prey vibes and I eat that shit up.

I don’t know if it’s a good or bad thing that Hanma knows about us and the brothers, good because he doesn’t seem to want to tell on us yet, bad because he could use it as blackmail. Which if he has plans to blackmail us makes me think he’s also just here with this group with his own ulterior motives like Senju seems to have, wonder what game he’s playing cuz we all know he just wants to be chaotic for funsies. Also, YEESSSSS pls keep the jealousy over us being near Hanma and South going I love this shit so much hehehe😈 . Also, hella curious why Hanma wants to hang all over us all the time, can’t tell if he’s doing it as a way to intimidate us or make us uncomfortable to put himself in an “elevated” position over us psychologically. Or maybe he just thinks we’re hella cute and this is his odd way of flirting, both work tho I like both lol.

The explosion omg, Senju was in the basement so I wonder if she was a part of setting it off or not, I really hope she’s ok I want her as an ally😟 . Also where is our baby Ran? While I don’t believe he’s dead he could be seriously injured and I don’t want that for our boy, please I beg🥺 . I’m assuming Hanma is the one who threw himself on us since he was just beside us but still unspecified, maybe South? Hopefully, he made it back in time to help us or at least I hope so.

HHHHNNNNNNNGGGGG you’re so good at writing and dialog and expressing emotions I can’t say it enough! I love LDA so much you have no idea I’m just going to be over here crying over it till the next chapter to find out if everyone is ok. 😰😭

SOBS I HOPE YOU KNOW YOUR REVIEWS LITERALLY MAKE MY DAY 40000000x BETTER

i love writing all of the flashbacks 😭 i really like the last one tbh but i am having so much fun with the one for chapter seven omg i’m so excited for y’all to read it cuz i think it might be up there with the first one in terms of my favorite — and you KNOW ran is only telling himself that they owe us sobs but 👀👀 he’s gonna realize soon that it might be more than that hehe ;) no spoilers tho

SOBS YES man we’re so stressed n it only gets worse from here 😭😭😭 i was so so so so tempted to make us open up to them in that scene pls I WAS GENUINELY UPSET CUZ I KNEW THEY DESERVED ANSWERS but alas it had to be this way for the story to progress SOBS and DUDE rindou was so violently jealous over south it’s not even funny like he could barely restrain myself LMAO

my favorite scene for this chapter was definitely the little cat and mouse game/chase that went on between the three of them LMAO i was cackling as i wrote it it was so much fun to write

hanma hanma hanma i’m not gonna get into too much depth with him butttttttt he definitely has a big role and he has his own agenda hehe

hehe no hints about the explosion cuz spoilers BUT yes it was hanma that threw himself on us

SOBS SOBS SOBS ILYSM IM GIVING U SO MANY HUGS N KISSES

[medicallyinevitable]

Medically Inevitable

Chapter 15:- Hopeful Happenings

Characters:- Arielle Valentine, Ethan Ramsey, Ines Delarosa, Kyra Santana

Pairing:- Ethan Ramsey x Arielle Valentine

Warnings:- Slight mentions of cancer

Word Count:- 1700+ words :)

General PoV:-

As the sun shines bright in the late morning, Arielle parks her car and heads straight towards Edenbrook’s locker room, a to-go cup in hand from Starbucks instead of Derry Roasters not wanting any chance to bump into Dr. Ramsey, despite knowing that he’s her boss. Making her way to the nurses’ station, she picks up her charts and textbooks and heads toward the cafeteria.

Arielle’s PoV:-

You keep at your textbooks, scouring the pages for anything that could explain Nigel's symptoms, and the tidal wave of self-doubt doesn’t help either. You let out a sigh, "Maybe Dr. Ramsey's right. Maybe I really don't belong here..."

"Mind if I join you?" A cheery voice snaps you back to reality.

You turn around to find Kyra. Dread fills in you as you see her. "Kyra, what are you doing here? Is your cancer back? Is something wrong?", you start asking.

"Woah! Dial down the doom and gloom there, Dr. Sob Emoji. I'm in remission." Kyra beams.

"What?! Oh my god congratulations! I’m so happy for you!" You envelope her in a warm hug which almost melts all your tension away.

"Just had another check-up. Will be coming a lot for those," she catches you up with her remission plan as you two sit. "No offense but I definitely look in better shape than you!"

"Ugh I know. I'm exhausted.” And just like that, all the tension fills your mind as you give her the details. " My shift ended like five hours ago, but instead of going home I am sitting here and reading till my eyes bleed."

"You should probably get that looked at." Kyra's face morphs into something serious but genuine as she continues.

"Look, I don't want to be that cancer survivor… but it did make me realize that life is too short." You give her a sad smile knowing how painful it must have been for her.

"We only get so many chances you know? But maybe you need that lesson more than I do," she continues after pausing for a moment.

"Is it that obvious?" You raise your brows.

"Let's chalk it up to my incredible intuition." Kyra smiles," Anyways there's an amazing ice cream shop nearby. They make an triple chocolate gelato that's literally to die for," she jokes, " You can take my word for that." "Why don't we visit that place? It'll give you a distraction and a much needed break."

You look at her and then your textbooks, not understanding what to do. All you can see is blurry lines. the words and concepts swim around in your very exhausted brain. You close the textbook with a slam after your answer is crystal clear.

"How can I say no to chocolate gelato!", you say dramatically.

"That's more like it!", Kyra beams. The two of you collect your belongings and make your way out as you tell Kyra everything about the dilemma with your latest patient.

"This place is pretty cute.", you say as you look around.

"Try nauseatingly adorable. I want to make it tiny and keep it in my bookshelf," Kyra replies. You laugh.

"You collect tiny shops?" You ask as the two of you made your way to the counter.

"I collect many sickeningly adorable things," she laughs before turning her attention to the boy behind the counter. "I’ll have the large Death by Chocolate please. And my absurdly attractive friend here will have…”, she nods for you to continue.

You roll your eyes at her before placing your order. You take a look at their menu before deciding to have the same one as Kyra as it's the most chocolatey one.

“I'll have the same.", you smile at the server.

The server scoops your gelato into two big cups and slides them across the counter while Kyra rummages through her bag for her wallet.

"I'll pay.“, you say getting your card out.

"No way!", she stops you by swiftly taking your card from you. You whine but to your dismay she doesn’t budge.

"This was my idea. Besides I didn't get out much during recovery. I've got months of dining-out budget to blow."

The next minute she's handing the cash to the server and then guiding you to a booth. As you two take your seats, Kyra hands you your card.

She takes a spoon full of her Death by Chocolate and sighs blissfully.

“Mmmmmm…”

You smile at her antics. "That good?" You ask before taking a bite.

"Orgasmic. I never used to eat junk food before my diagnosis."

She takes another bite and you take your first. You can't help but let out a moan as the chocolatey silkiness melts on your tongue. Kyra smirks and gives you a smug look.

She then continues, "I was super into exercising and calorie counting. I never did anything I wasn't supposed to." She smiles sadly. "And I still got lung cancer. At my twenties!"

"You must have been so strong!", you reply.

"Everyone keeps saying that but-", she pauses, "I don't know. I just went to the doctor to see why I was breathing weird."

She sighs. "Then suddenly I was going for all these tests, and then I had cancer."

She laughs humorlessly. "Life went from jogging and juice every morning to chemo and puking."

You can almost feel the pain as she speaks about her experiences even when you’re aware you’ll never truly understand.

"But I didn't do anything," she says, " Those things had to happen , and I had good insurance, so I did them. And it's not like I had any alternative."

"I think you should give yourself more credit.”, you reach for her hand and squeeze it in a comforting manner.

"You faced death with a smile on your face. I'll always remember you cracking jokes on the way to surgery-", you stop for a second before adding,"You are the strongest person I know Kyra."

Kyra blushes, a little embarrassed. "Well you can laugh or you can cry and I chose to laugh.”, she shrugs with a smile on her face.

"And like I said, I don't want to be that cancer survivor but it does put certain things into perspective."

"That kind of clarity must be nice.", you reply.

"Well yeah, you have to get some kind of consolation price for nearly dying, right?" She then shakes her head.

”But enough about that. If we keep talking about this you'll always see me as a girl who beat cancer."

"I'll never, Kyra." you say truthfully. "That's not how I see you."

"Oh yeah? And how do you exactly see me?" She asks playfully.

"I think you are inspiring."

A blush creeps on her face as she’s caught off guard, but quickly retaliates with a sassy reply. “If you keep giving me compliments then I’ll never let you hear the end of it.”

“We’ll see about that.” You both dissolve into fits of laughter as Kyra fills you up on the hospital gossip...

“What wait?! Seriously?! I can’t believe it!”

“Me either, but you know how gossip is!”, she replies with a shrug.

Just then your phone chimes. You pull it out to see it’s a reminder for your shift.

“Crap, I have 10 minutes till my shift.”

“Oof, you better hurry!”, she replies.

“We should do this again, this was really nice.”, you say as you gather your things.

“We should! Besides there would have to be 12 different things wrong with someone to turn down Gelato!”, she jokes.

“..12 different things wrong….. oh my god, Kyra, you’re a genius!”

You scramble to your feet and quickly throw away your cup.

“I like to think I am but what did I do?”, she asks.

“I’ll explain later!”, you yell.

“Ookay…” You rush back to the hospital, typing out a message on your pager as Kyra sits there in utter confusion.

“Well I guess I could get another scoop of gelato…”

————————————————————

An hour later, you take a deep breath before entering Nigel's room to find Ethan and Ines already inside.

“Well what are you waiting for?”, Dr. Ramsey says. Pushing back all of your invading memories of him, you continue with your explanation.

"I spent the last two days trying to figure out the one thing causing all of Mr.Platt's symptoms.”, you say as you stand beside Nigel's bedside.

"And?", he asks. For a split second, you can see a slight look of hope in his eyes, but it passes as quickly as it came, leaving you to believe it was a mere delusion of yours.

"That's when I realized nothing was causing all of them-" But before you can continue, you’re interrupted by Nigel.

"Are you calling-", he burps, “me a liar?", he asks, rude as always.

You control the urge to roll your eyes. He could've at least let you finish your sentence.

Ignoring him, you continue what you were saying," Mr.Platt has been experiencing tingling and hair loss but also cold sensitivity and some hearing problems." You pause for a second before continuing,"All of which point to hypothyroidism caused by Hashimoto's disease easily treated with levothyroxine."

"Go on." Ethan orders in his usual cold bossy tone.

"I couldn't fit in the constant burping and the chest pain… because it was completely separate." You explain. "I ordered a barium swallow X-ray and detected a hiatal hernia in the esophageal hole through the diaphragm."

"The treatment?", he asks, motioning you to continue.

"I have already booked a laparoscopic surgery to repair it.”, you answer with a touch of pride.

"Good work Dr.Valentine." Ines smiles at you.” You return it with a nod and a tentative smile.

"So ... I'll be cured?" Nigel asks.

"Yes-“, you calm yourself down before you rip him apart and then continue.

"You'll be good as new." you say instead with a forced smile.

"Good... because I don't want to spend a -" he burps, " second more in your hopeless company."

Your blood boils at this point as you bite your lip to control yourself. “The audacity! Ugh, he's a patient, Arielle. You have to be nice to him.”

"Mr. Platt, might suggest viewing this as a new lease on life. Perhaps a life where you don't make everyone around you miserable.”, Ethan's stern voice retorts, shocking you and Ines.

“No way...he did not!”

"Dr. Ramsey!" Ines exclaims with a shocked expression on her face, which you’re quite sure your face resembles.

"I'll report you! I want to talk to your manager," he says more angrily than before.

"Go ahead," Ethan says with a sarcastic smile." Maybe she can't talk to you like this but I sure as hell can."

You look at Nigel who looks like he's about to say something but just then Bryce struts in. He winks at you playfully as he passes you.

"Someone called for a laparoscopic surgery?"

"Oh great, first Barbie and now the damn Ken doll!” You don’t even attempt to hide the disgust on your face as you roll your eyes.

By the time you’ve finished your consultation with Bryce, Ines and Ethan have already left the room. Pleased with yourself, you take a left in the hallway without noticing Ethan standing leaning against the wall.

"Rookie..." His velvety baritone voice calls out, pulling you out of a haze.

Wincing, you stop dead in your tracks as the memories of the previous day replay in your mind. Still embarrassed with your encounter, you turn around but never meet his eyes. You’re sure you look like a kid, standing before him with your feet crossed, one hand fiddling with your hair as you bite your lip.

"So, you figured it out in the end. And you kept things professional.”, he nods, barely visible.

"I guess I just needed a… push.”, you reply in a timid voice laced with embarrassment.

"Maybe you aren’t so hopeless then.", he says.

Unlike yesterday, his voice isn’t filled with disappointment and malice.

So mustering up some courage, you look up to meet his eyes. Relief washes over you as you don’t detect a hint of disappointment in his eyes. He isn’t smiling but something in you tells you he isn’t angry. You don’t realise you’ve been staring into his oh-so blue eyes until his pager beeps, shaking you out of your reverie.

“..Uh- I’ll see you around, Dr. Ramsey.” You can almost swear that you see longing etched into his chiseled features as you lose yourself in his eyes once more.

“Likewise, Valentine.” With that, he turns around and stalks away.

You sigh and lean against the wall, the events since you started your residency swirl around like a hurricane filled with memories.

“What the hell am I supposed to do now?”

******************************************

And this concludes Season 1 of Medically Inevitable!

Authors’ Note:- Hey everyone, hope y’all enjoyed this chapter! As you’ve probably seen before, this is the last chapter of Season 1! Season 2 will be out soon, as soon as we work out the kinks and pump out a few chapters with different moodboards and title themes! Season 2 will be much more eventful, more drama, angst and shocking cliffhangers mixed in with the string of festivities that Thanksgiving and Christmas bring! Stay tuned and check our blogs and Instagram’s (same handle) for more updates! And lastly thank y’all so much for all the support, we are extremely grateful.

Love,

@drariellevalentine & @mysticaurathings

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[brightsun-and-darkmidnight]

Bonds

TITLE: Bonds

CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Chapter 5 / ?

AUTHOR: brightsun-and-darkmidnight

ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine Loki assuming your nephew is your son. He’s not totally wrong, though, since you’ve been the boy’s legal guardian for a couple of years now. Plus, you do play a convincing “mother” role. (more to the imagine in link)

RATING:  M (Swearing, maybe some violence and MAYBE some smut)

NOTES/WARNINGS: Abandonment, adoption.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I am sorry I haven’t posted anything fic related in a long time. I have been busy and life happens. But here is an update. 😊

My Ao3: brightsun_and_darkmidnight

LENGTH: 2,700ish

*FINALLY..Read the warnings. Once you agree you can handle it...

 ~ ~ ENJOY  ~ ~

 Raelynn yawned loudly as the movie rolled into the credits.

 “Past your bed time?” Tony jabbed.

 She nodded, “Yeah. WAY past my bed time. In bed by nine.” She tapped into her phone for the time. “It’s freaking midnight. Oh god… I’m so going to need coffee.”

“Can’t stay up anymore?” Loki teased with a smile.

 Raelynn grinned, “I feel like you now. Ancient and needing beauty sleep.”

 “Hey!” 

 She giggled at his slightly offended but also highly amused face. It was nice to joke around with him again.

 Clint spoke through a groan as he stood, “As long as we all have energy for Travis tomorrow that’s all that matters. I’m going to bed now.” 

 Natasha smiled, “Travis does have a lot of energy. Perhaps all of us should rest?”

 Raelynn nodded, with yet another yawn. “Yeah we should get going. It was nice hanging out again. And, uhh. I guess I will see you all tomorrow?”

 Tony went walking for the door to his lab. “Yep. Just let us know when you are on the way. I will be up preparing my latest lesson!”

 Raelynn looked to the others who rolled their eyes. They all shared a look of amusement after though.

 “Alright, I will see you all tomorrow. Let’s go Natasha.” Raelynn waved awkwardly and went to get her jacket and purse from the place Loki put them. She smiled to herself as she remembered how he helped her. She looked to Loki, who was debating with Thor about the nine realms and what they would talk about. She followed Natasha to the elevator.

 Natasha smirked. “Did you like sitting next to Loki?”

 Raelynn sighed heavily with a slight groan. “I guess I did.”

 “Are you still unsure about getting Loki involved?”

 “Well, yeah.” Raelynn was becoming annoyed with the frequent question.

 Natasha shrugged, “Well. One day and step at a time.”

 Raelynn watched Natasha with accusation. “Who’s idea was it so Loki and I would be placed together for the movie?”

 “A bit of everyone’s. We all know of both sides. Before and after the adoption.”

 Raelynn looked down and bit a dry flake off of her lip. “I know I was bad.”

 Natasha leaned against the elevator wall. “Loki was… Well, Loki. Hid it well, but he was lost. He never knew what to do with his free time.”

 Raelynn pushed herself against the opposite wall, staring at the door. Willing the elevator to hurry up, wishing to escape the conversation. “We spent every second with the other. I think leaving called for an adjustment. For both of us.”

 “It was an adjustment for everyone.”

 Raelynn chose not to say anything. Instead, playing the past in her mind.

Travis feared the situation, the screaming, the declarations of hate for her taking him from his family. Learning his likes and dislikes. Teaching herself how to be a care giver to a child. Finding doctors and schools. Trying to teach him not to hate his ability of talking to animals.

She remembered the constant headache from stress and anxieties. She had to give up her life, the life she might have had, and her dreams, to care for Travis. Her life was instantly altered to revolve around a little boy who was scared, alone, and unfamiliar. She remembers the few times of wanting to give up but with the connection of abandonment from family, she couldn’t and refused to give up on Travis. He was much younger than her when she was cast out.

 Raelynn forced the thoughts away and pushed past the people in the lobby. Natasha keeping the pace with her to the car. She slammed the car door shut and stared out the window. Natasha was quiet for a little while.

 “Thinking of the beginning again?”

 Raelynn nodded, quickly wiping a tear away. “Yeah.”

 Natasha sighed, “Look. You have done so well. Look at how things are now, how happy Travis is. He is well taken care of-all of his needs met, and most of his wants. He is spoiled but he knows how to appreciate everything. I cannot say that for many children.” Natasha was silent for a moment. “I know I said everyone went through an adjustment but I know you had it the hardest. It’s not fair what happened to you.”

 Raelynn’s tears flowed without wanting them to. A strangled sob left her throat with the last of Natasha’s words. It was a relief someone knew her struggles but hearing it spoken made her heart ache with how unfair the blood bonds were. How unfair her life truly was.

 Natasha rubbed her shoulder as comfort. “You’ve done more than I think I could handle.”

 Raelynn looked to Natasha in shock. Natasha was who she admired most. She was capable of anything. Natasha adapted to everything extraordinarily quick.

 “I bet you would handle it better.”

 Natasha gave Raelynn a small smile filled with doubt. She looked to the road again, putting both hands on the steering wheel. “I can stay up for a dangerous situation, no problem. But loosing sleep for a child, at Travis’ age, that completely turned my life in a different way?” Natasha sighed roughly. “I’m not sure how I would handle that.”

 Raelynn soaked up Natasha’s confession. It was strange hearing someone like her admitting to not being able to do something. “I will not lie and say it was easy.”

 “I know you wouldn’t.”

 Natasha pulled into the driveway and both of them went into the house. Raelynn made tea for each of them and they made themselves comfortable on the couch. She tapped into the watches and Travis was asleep according to the stats.

 “Thank you, Natasha. …I feel a little better.”

 “Glad to hear that. Let’s try to get some sleep, Okay? It will probably be a very interesting day tomorrow.”

 Raelynn made herself more comfortable by pulling the blanket over her shoulders. “Probably.”

 Raelynn woke to Natasha making coffee. Tapping into the watch, it was a little past 7am and Travis was starting to wake up. Raelynn stretched and threw the blanket off of her, an attempt to instantly wake herself up with the chilled air.

 “I am going to shower.” Raelynn waved to Natasha tiredly as she walked down the hallway.

 “Coffee should be done soon.”

 “I’ll be quick.”

 Quickly scrubbing herself and refreshing with a clean scent she went to her bedroom with just a towel around her body. She sighed heavily looking at the outfit laid out on the bed. She yelled, “Really Natasha?” before shutting the door loudly. The outfit was a pair of light blue jeans, a black button up blouse that was obviously Natasha’s, black socks and the pair of boots she wore yesterday. She looked at herself in the mirror and felt the weird about the blouse, it didn’t look right. She went to Natasha and gestured to herself, “I can not pull of this top.”

 Natasha smiled and a little chuckle. “Because it is supposed to be tucked in and leave the first few buttons undone.”

 Raelynn rolled her eyes. “Whatever.” Raelynn was happy to undo the first button and felt less constricted. She took the coffee that Natasha pushed her way across the counter and went to fix her hair into curls and light makeup. Her phone was ringing in the living room and she went to get it.

 As soon as she answered Travis spoke, “I’m ready for you to pick me up!”

 Raelynn smiled at Natasha who had a little smirk. “Did you eat breakfast?”

 “Yep. Pancakes.”

 “Alright, Brush your hair and teeth.”

 “Done.”

 Raelynn laughed a little. “Okay Kiddo. We will leave in a few minutes.”

 “Okay! See you soon!”

 “Bye-“

 Natasha tilted her head a little with raised eyebrows, smirk on her lips. “I guess we better hurry.”

 Raelynn went back to the bathroom to apply chap stick and look over herself. She felt a little more confident with her hair seeming to fall just right and her makeup was actually decent too. Going to her room to tuck the shirt in, it did look better tucked into the pants. She went to get her jacket as she shut off the lights on the way out.

 “You look good.” Natasha nodded to herself and turned for the door, ready to leave.

 Once close to the house, Raelynn updated Tony on an approximate time they would arrive.

 Once picking up Travis, who practically ran out the door once they were there, they were on their way to the tower. He was excitedly talking through his first slumber party and night away. John’s mother did not lie when they had a lot planned. Travis was excited to be inside the tower and was in awe of how huge it was. He excitedly pressed the buttons for the elevators when prompted by Natasha.

 Travis ran to Clint and gave him a big hug. “HI!”

 Clint smiled with a groan, “you are getting strong kid. You miss me?”

 Travis groaned as he was squeezed back. He pulled away and spoke sarcastically, “What do you think the hug was?”

 Clint chuckled, “well I missed you too.”

 Tony was there in the common room, band shirt and comfortable pants on. “Nice to meet you kid. -Wanna go to the roof?”

 Travis looked to Raelynn and she shrugged with a smile. Then immediately nodded his head in excitement. Raelynn followed them and was immediately unsure of targets set up. Their was a safety area with a notepad and computer and an Ironman suit. Raelynn went to the computer and touched it. The information she received was a program set up for math but the targets were for subtraction, to literally be eliminated if the problem was solved correctly. More targets added for addition. The program written to make sure there were constant targets. Tony was apparently bored with the simplicity and added much more advanced math, Algebra, Trigonometry and whatnot.

 Raelynn gave Tony a look of amusement. “How much sleep you get?”

 “All of this? Only took a few hours, Jarvis did most of the work.” Tony waved for Travis to approach the table and made him sit in the main chair. “Let’s learn some stuff.”

 Travis looked upset for a moment but saw the Ironman suit. He pointed to it, “does it involve that?”

 Tony smiled a little, “Maaaybe.”

 Raelynn observed Travis while Tony helped him through a problem, then let Travis put the answer in the computer. The Ironman suit shot three of the targets and made Travis jump in excitement.

 “LET’S DO MORE!”

 Raelynn laughed with Clint and Natasha.

 Bruce came to the roof and chuckled nervously, “Tony is actually teaching Travis?”

 Raelynn smiled at Bruce. “Yes. Travis is extremely excited about this.”

 Bruce nodded. “Well I suppose as long as he is excited and learning that is what matters.”

 Thor and Loki and Steve came up as well.

 Steve crossed his arms, “are we sure blowing things up is appropriate for learning?”

 Raelynn shrugged. “So long as Travis is safe, I don’t mind too much. I can barely get him to sit down and attempt math and here he is, actually trying to do it.”

 With another answer correct more targets were added. Then Travis was scribbling down things and showed Tony who shrugged and told Travis to try. Then most of the targets were destroyed with different poses of the Ironman suit. Travis cheered excitedly and high-fived Tony.

 Raelynn smiled at Loki, catching him staring. “Good morning. How are you?”

 Loki gestured to Travis and Tony. “Amused.”

 Raelynn nodded and tried to hide her huge smile as they cheered again. “Same.”

 Thor went to Travis with his booming voice, “Let me try! I wish to teach the boy things as well.”

 Raelynn looked to Thor oddly but spoke to the others, “Is this some sort of contest?”

 Clint shrugged, “Thor is just excited. Asgard apparently does not have many children.”

 Raelynn spoke softly, “Oh.”

 Loki spoke up, “children are highly prized on Asgard. They are celebrated since infertility is common and many rituals take place for successful pregnancy.”

 Raelynn observed the way Loki was watching Travis. He seemed to be excited Travis was there but concern as well. She wondered what was actually going on in Loki’s mind.

 --

 Loki was worried that something might go wrong with Tony’s lesson. He agreed with Steve about it being a concern.

 Travis was obviously important to Raelynn, so Travis was important to Loki as well.

 Children were far more common on Midgard than Asgard but that did not make them less cherished.

 Thor’s evolving relationship with Jane was taking the route of long term goals. Thor has stated his thoughts of marriage with Jane once in the past month but also mentioned the lack of Odin’s approval. The lack of Odin’s approval was obviously there but Frigga was more than happy to listen about Jane on their visits.

 Or rather, check ins for Loki.

Loki knew he was in the same situation as Thor.

 In love with a Midgardian and Odin did not approve.

 Loki looked at Raelynn, he noticed the shirt was Natasha’s. It was a nice look for Raelynn but he knew it was the spy's intention for Loki to notice Raelynn put effort into her appearance. The group has always wanted them together and it seemed no different now.

 However, Travis was in Raelynn’s picture now which meant there was another as well..

 Perhaps, since the team did not bring her up for the longest time was because she was involved with someone. The thought alone broke his heart but the ache was worse since she did not tell him.

 However, the team was putting active efforts into involving Raelynn and finding ways for them to be together.

 Perhaps, Travis’ father was no longer involved?

 Maybe Loki had a chance?

 Raelynn glanced at him and Loki realized he was staring at her.

 He smiled at her and she gave a small one in return.

 “Are there other subjects Travis has issues with?”

 He watched her eyes narrow slightly confirming what just blurted out of his mouth was in fact, an insult.

 Loki rushed with an explanation. “I was just wondering what other subjects were needing further expansion. -Or maybe something new. ..Perhaps?”

 She seemed to calm significantly as Loki struggled with words. Smiling, “He loves new knowledge on animals. Anything about animals he is fascinated with. His ability has a major impact on his vast knowledge.”

 Loki smiled at the mention of his ability, happy Travis inherited something from Raelynn. “A great ability.”

 Raelynn’s smile remained but something danced in her eyes for a moment. “Yes.” She smiled hearing Travis cheer, turning to see the suit aiming at the targets and effectively destroying them. She turned back to Loki as she pointed towards Travis, “He likes this!” She laughed with joy. “I’m happy he is actually excited about math for once.”

 Loki couldn’t help the smile as Travis cheered and excitedly took his spot to do the work for another problem. “Tony certainly had this in mind for a child. The poses of the suit are….”

 “Dramatic?”

 Loki laughed, “there is a word to describe them.”

 Raelynn’s eyes shifted slightly as she tapped into electronics.

 ---

 Raelynn’s alarm went off for the lunch reminder. It was important Travis was fed regularly, other wise he became angry. Irritation to rival Hulk.

 She turned completely to shout at them. “Travis, are you hungry?”

 “No. I wanna do more problems!”

 Raelynn smiled, honestly happy he was into the lesson. “The next subtraction problem you are done,” he groaned dramatically but Raelynn finished, “until you eat.”

[wholockgal]

Flashback Fic: Fade Into You

Summary:

Everyone deals with tragedy in their own way. Some worse than others, especially when their loved ones are literally a (parallel) universe or two away. The angstiest thing I have ever written.

Chapter 1 / 4. Can be found on AO3 in its entirety.

Part 2 of the Swaddled ‘Verse, also on AO3.

Note: Last night, @asthewheelwills gave me all of the RoseLock nostalgia feels which led to me reading back through things that I wrote 1,000 years ago. The result of this? My posting this story here because it is the one thing that I’ve written that I am truly proud of (translation: it doesn’t make me cringe at all).

For those not already indoctrinated, RoseLock is a crossover pairing of Rose Tyler and (the BBC’s) Sherlock Holmes. Want some background? Check out this introduction post.

Chapter 1: Pain & Suffering

Sherlock rested his head against the taxi window as the car approached Baker Street, completely exhausted after yet another game of cat and mouse. This latest case had stretched on for far longer than he would like and no end was currently in sight.

As he stepped out of the car in front of the flat, he was vaguely aware of the sound of police sirens that were quickly disappearing around the corner. Fleetingly, he wondered if it was something he should pursue, but after the night he had all he really wanted was to kiss his wife and take some time to disappear into the wonderful oblivion that was listening to his daughter's slow, steady breathing as she slept.

Unfortunately, neither of these options was in the cards.

Opening the front door, Sherlock was met with the unmistakable sound of Jacqueline crying. Only she wasn't upstairs in her room, but instead appeared to be with Mrs. Hudson. Rushing to the landlady's rooms he all but snatched the sobbing toddler from the older woman's arms.

"What happened? Is she hurt?" he demanded, giving her a hurried once-over. Having satisfied himself that the child was fine, he kissed her head and held her close, hoping to calm her down a bit.

"Thank god you're home, Sherlock," Mrs. Hudson sighed, her hand over her heart and a look of deep sorrow on her face. "It's Rose..."

"Where is she?"

"You just missed them. Greg put her in the car to head to St. Bart's-"

The sirens. He knew that he should have followed them, and yet he came inside instead. "It's too soon," he breathed, his thoughts suddenly struggling to catch up with what was happening. Handing a marginally calmer Jacqueline back to Mrs. Hudson, he turned to run for the door. "I have to go."

"Of course," Mrs. Hudson agreed. "Just let me know what happens, and give Rose my-" she heard the door slam behind Sherlock. "Love." Sighing, she shifted the baby in her arms and headed for the stairs. "How about we get you back to bed, sweetheart? All will be well in the morning."

~~~~0~~~~0~~~~0~~~~

It took only a split second after Rose had doubled over in pain for Greg Lestrade to jump into action. One moment she was making tea in the kitchen as he waited in the sitting room for Sherlock to return, and the next he heard the sound of a mug shattering on the floor and a sharp yelp of pain. Without thinking, Lestrade gathered Rose up in his arms and hurried down the stairs, painfully aware of the sounds of a crying baby emanating from the opposite direction.

Rose was no stranger to pain, but she had never experienced anything like this. When she went into labour with Jackie the contractions had been painful, but manageable. This, though, was something completely different. She knew instinctively that something was wrong... She was only at 23 weeks, far too soon for labour to set in.

Vaguely aware of Greg barking at Mrs. Hudson to check on Jackie, Rose moaned as another searing pain jolted through her abdomen. "Sherlock," she hissed.

"Hospital first, Rose," Greg replied, carefully laying her across the back seat of his car, before hopping into the driver's seat. "Now to find your useless husband, yeah?" Turning back to smile at Rose, the sight that met his eyes made him turn on the siren and take off without hesitation: she was curled up into herself across the seat, her hands clutching her stomach and beads of sweat across her brow as she bit her lip and nodded slightly in response.

There were several unsuccessful attempts to reach Sherlock on his mobile - for some inconvenient reason it kept going directly to voicemail - before Greg decided to call John instead. "Come on," he growled as the phone rang a third time before someone finally answered.

"Greg?" John asked.

"Sherlock. Bart's. Now," Greg barked, swerving slightly to avoid an oncoming car. Glancing again in the rear-view to check on Rose, who only looked paler, he took a deep breath. "It's Rose."

"Oh, God," John breathed. "We'll meet you there."

Feeling somewhat reassured that John would come through on finding Sherlock, Greg tossed his phone onto the passenger seat. "Almost there, Rose."

Rose nodded mutely, her jaw tightly clamped shut against the pain. She could only hope that they would arrive at the hospital soon, and prayed that Sherlock would be right behind them. She experienced the vague sensation of the car coming to a full stop when a final blinding pain shot through her and everything went dark.

~~~~0~~~~0~~~~0~~~~

Sherlock tried repeatedly to reach Lestrade on his mobile, but was thwarted by voicemail every time. Armed solely with the knowledge of where they were heading, he was about to try calling Molly when a text message alert caught his attention.

Where the bloody hell are you? ~JW

He stared at the message for a split second, contemplating its meaning. More than likely, Lestrade had contacted John when he was unable to reach him directly. Which meant that John was at least aware of the situation.

On my way. Three minutes out. ~SH

Turning his attention to the driver, he realized that they were slowing for a red light. "£100 to run the light. Now drive!" he commanded. Yelling at someone felt good, it made him feel ever so slightly in control when he knew that whatever was waiting for him would be completely out of his hands. His mind reeled with every possibility, every scenario that he might face when he entered the hospital doors, and none were easing his concern.

Throwing a handful of cash at the driver, Sherlock raced across the sidewalk and into the old building. Normally, as he walked through these doors, he knew that satisfaction was close at hand. Now, however, he had a feeling that he would not be satisfied with anything he learned here today.

"Rose Tyler-Holmes," he barked at the nurse sitting behind reception. "Where is she?"

The nurse blinked up at him, but couldn't bring herself to be completely annoyed. "Sir, if you would please-"

"Where is my wife?"

"Sherlock!"

Relief. That was the only word to describe the feeling that immediately washed over him. Lestrade was here, which meant Rose was here. He would have answers. No, that wasn't right. If Lestrade was here in reception with him, then no one was with Rose. In the blink of an eye, the relief was replaced with dread. Taking in the man before him, he knew his instinct was correct. Lestrade was pale, he looked defeated as he stood there. But that was nothing compared to the blood stains on left side of his jacket.

"What happened," he demanded, nearly hissing through clenched teeth.

"They're not entirely sure," Greg replied. "But she's in surgery now."

All of Sherlock's carefully cultivated bravado suddenly disappeared. "Surgery?" His voice was barely a whisper, and he knew that he was radiating fear and uncertainty, but he couldn't be bothered to care. His Rose had been rushed to the hospital and now was undergoing some sort of procedure and he was not with her. "Where?"

Greg knew better than to start answering any additional questions in the reception area. Sherlock would want to talk to the doctors, see Rose for himself. So, instead of simply standing there, he led the man through the sterile corridors and explained what little he knew, what he had witnessed, until they reached the labour and delivery wing and a doctor could be found.

Arriving at the nurses' station, Greg was relieved to see that someone was already there waiting for them. Molly was standing there, a grave expression on her face, ready to run interference with the nursing staff if need be. After Rose was rushed off to the operating theatre, Lestrade knew that he needed to wait at the main entrance for Sherlock. However, he didn't feel comfortable leaving the wing unmanned. Knowing that Molly was in the building already, she was the only person that he could think of to call to take up his vigil as he went to find Sherlock - hoping that John was successful in his task.

"Sit down," she said gently, placing a hand on Sherlock's arm.

"Not until I see Rose," he hissed.

"You can't yet, Sherlock," she chided. "Her doctor will be out soon, but she's already been put under and they've begun the procedure-"

"What procedure!" he all but roared. Why was nobody giving him answers? "They can't operate without consent-"

"A placental abruption," Molly said quietly, effectively cutting him off. "They think she suffered from a placental abruption."

Sherlock stared at his friend in disbelief, not really seeing her at all. There was no reason why this should be happening. Collapsing onto the uncomfortable waiting room sofa, Sherlock took his head in his hands. As the minutes passed, he was vaguely aware of voices talking to - or about - him, but couldn't be bothered to respond. He needed to be with Rose, to see that she was alright. He felt the tremors in his hands begin to take hold.

Time seemed to hold no meaning for him as he waited for news of Rose and the baby. It might have been only a few minutes, an hour, or even a year for all that Sherlock noticed. All that he knew was that it felt like forever, and no one from the hospital had yet come to speak with him, to update them on Rose's condition. He looked up, somewhat surprised to find that their party had grown in number from simply Lestrade and Molly to now include John, Mary and even Mycroft. He tilted his head, peering suspiciously at his brother who nodded solemnly at the unexpected eye contact. Of course he was here - it was Rose. She brought them all together. This was their family.

Family. Jacqueline. It suddenly occurred to Sherlock that he had left her with Mrs. Hudson, who would no doubt be concerned about Rose as well. Thoughts like this never would have crossed his mind before, but now they were somewhat commonplace. He cared for these people, and knew that they cared for him. He just couldn't stand to be near them right now.

Jumping up, he started to pace the room, still ignoring those around him. He was anxious. Once upon a time, he would have willingly given this feeling over to the oblivion of heroin. For now he would settle for a cigarette. Just as he was about to make the foolish pronouncement, something caught his eye.

Sherlock's heart nearly stopped as he saw an unconscious Rose being wheeled away from him on a hospital bed. Everyone - and everything - else forgotten, he ran forward, pushing a nurse aside so that he could take her hand in his. It didn't escape his notice that her hand was icy.

"Sir!" the nurse admonished. "We need to move the patient into recovery-"

"She is not simply 'the patient,'" Sherlock growled, his eyes never leaving his wife's face.

"Of course not, Mr. Holmes. But we do need to get her into recovery before she can be moved to a private room. I promise, I will come and fetch you once she's ready."

"And the baby?"

"The doctor will be out shortly to speak with you."

Pain lanced through Sherlock's very core at her words. There was no mistaking the meaning behind them, no hope for anything other than simply surviving. He looked down at Rose, her face so peaceful as she was still under the effects of the anaesthetic, who had no idea what sort of heartbreak she was going to wake to. He released her hand and watched as the nursing staff moved her away from him and through another set of doors. All he could do was stand there, in the corridor, numb.

~~~~0~~~~0~~~~0~~~~

Rose sat in an armchair by the sole window in her hospital room, staring outside but not seeing anything. The doctors and nurses insisted that moving would be good for her, even if it meant simply walking laps around the central nurses station on the floor. She couldn't bring herself to do it though - seeing the happy faces of new parents in the ward, hearing the sounds of crying babies from the nursery - it was too much. Instead, she chose to withdraw into herself.

Sherlock entered the room as quietly as he could, not wanting to wake Rose. Seeing her sitting by the window, he sighed with short-lived relief. He knew that if she was mobile the hospital would release her. The doctor had told him as much. She needed to get away from this horrible place; she belonged at home with him and Jacqueline. He could see that she was wilting before his very eyes, her very essence faded away.

"Rose," he said, trying to pull her attention. Kneeling beside her, he took her hand in his and pressed his lips to her palm. "Tomorrow, Tulip. You can come home tomorrow."

She nodded slightly in acknowledgment, but pulled her hand from his grasp. "Tomorrow," she echoed, her voice hollow and her expression blank.

"Tomorrow."

~~~~0~~~~0~~~~0~~~~

Three weeks passed, and Rose hadn't spoken a word. Upon arriving home to Baker Street, she settled into an old recliner by the window of the sitting room and had barely moved since. She couldn't bring herself to lie in the bed that she and her husband shared, she couldn't face the stairs to check on Jackie in the nursery, she barely ate and hardly slept.

Sherlock did what he could to ensure that she was cared for: he brought her food, water, and tea; he encouraged Jacqueline to talk to her and bring her drawings; he carried her into the tub and bathed her. Yet somehow at her lack of response, her lack of improvement, he knew it wasn't enough.

One evening he finally reached his breaking point, and tried yelling at her. "You need to stop this! Snap out of it already!"

Rose simply blinked and turned her head away from him in response.

"I lost him too, dammit!" Bending down to lean against the arms of the chair, he looked her directly in the eyes. "He was my son too."

"And you can have a hundred more!" she screamed, breaking her silence for the first time. She pushed him away from her and stood, all but running to their bedroom and slamming the door behind her.

Understanding flooded Sherlock, but before he could give chase, a cry sounded from upstairs. Apparently Rose had woken Jacqueline from her nap.