Moira and Nathan, post-Skippy
May. 23rd, 2004 08:05 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
x-cable.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
xp_logsNathan wakes up in the medlab, again. He is not happy about this. He is less happy realizing that something's wrong with Moira. Unfortunately, he is also not in the shape to do much about it.
The smell was the first thing he registered. It was a familiar smell, a smell he hated, and even before he opened his eyes Nathan was cringing inwardly at it, knowing he was back. Back in the fucking medlab. Again. He managed to raise an impossibly heavy hand to the thing covering his face, and someone took it away. Not, not someone...
He opened his eyes, blinking up at the red-haired blur leaning over him. His throat hurt... from a tube? he thought disjointedly, a faint flicker of a memory-fragment coming back to him. Moira stroked the hair back from his forehead, and he concentrated hard on the link, forcing a thought through the haze.
#This... is just getting stupid.#
"Aye, it 'tis," Moira agreed, voice rough with emotion. "Nay th' only one, fights around th' school it seemed." And in the MedLab. Her face went tight and she forced herself to concentrate on Nathan and not on the stuff from the notJamie still covering her. "Went upstairs after gettin' Bartlet out," she said, skipping over everything else. "Scared th' life out o' me when I saw ye collapsed up there. Thankfully, we knew it 'twas poison goin' in."
#Hurt... anyone else hurt?# There was something very wrong with Moira. Not physically, but he could feel it, could sense her struggling to hold it together. Nathan blinked, willing his eyes to focus.
"From th' looks o' it, brusin' seems ta be th' worst o' it. But we 'avenae found everyone jus' yet. Angie an' Doug 'ave some bruisin', we passed them draggin' ye back in 'ere as they were cleanin' themselves off." She reached back, mentally skirting around her own run in with notJamie again, to grab some ice for Nathan's bruises.
Images were flashing down the link, awful images, and Nathan winced, trying to sit up. But as he tried to lift his head off the pillow, nausea nearly overwhelmed him. He sagged back against the bed, shaking. #He came... after you...# Should have been there, idiot, he castigated himself bitterly, but concentrated on Moira as she came back to the bed, on raising that too-heavy hand and taking hers. #Moira... had to, you had to...#
"Aye, I 'ad ta," she said quietly, holding onto his hand. Once again, her voice was rough but it was also oddly neutral. Moira was still forcing herself to view that from a long distance away, as she had done in the past when she had lost patients. "'Tis all right, Nathan, really..." It wasn't, at all, but there was no time for that, not now.
#Moira, stop...# It was almost a plea, but he couldn't manage to vocalize what he meant by it, what he could see her doing. #Stop... don't do that...# He was terrified, suddenly, that she would repress this, that it would all come out later, blow up on her...
She shuddered suddenly, as she felt some of his fear on the link. But she clenched her jaw and looked down at him, eyes dry. "I will. Jus' nay now, Nathan. I *can't*. I broke one o' bloody damned vows tonight, I'll nay ignore th' rest. I'm needed, an' I'm needed t' be put together." It was taking every ounce of stubborn strength and pride in her to keep from breaking down, but she was managing to do it.
Nathan squeezed her hand, trying desperately to push his worry, his love, his absolute faith in her across the link. #Understand...# he sent faintly. #But... I'll be here.#
Moira whimpered and struggled to catch her breath as the thoughts and emotions washed down the link towards her. She bent and kissed his forehead gently. "I know. Never doubted tha' for a second, ever." That emotional wall she was trying to hide behind kept threatening to crash down around her ears, she thought a bit wildly, trying to center herself.
He couldn't do it. He couldn't, not when she was so desperate to stay in control, to do what she had to do. #All right...# he sent back weakly, squeezing her hand once more before letting go. #I love you...#
"Thank ye. I love ye, t'. I--think I'm goin' ta do a sweep wit' 'enry ta try an' see if'n we can locate more students an' make sure they're okay." She really wasn't thrilled about any more potential run-in's with "Skippy" but she could slowly feel that wall start to harden a little more, felt the pieces snap back into place. As long as she had something to do, someone to help, she'd be fine.
#Okay... think I'm going to... pass out again...#
"Aye, rest, love," Moira murmured as she reached over to slide the oxygen mask back over his nose and mouth. "I'll be back later."
As she felt him fall asleep, Moira straightened and took a deep breath, clinging to her center with everything she had. Old memories surfaced and she shook them off, angry at herself. Turning, she headed towards the door, her mask falling back into place once again.
The smell was the first thing he registered. It was a familiar smell, a smell he hated, and even before he opened his eyes Nathan was cringing inwardly at it, knowing he was back. Back in the fucking medlab. Again. He managed to raise an impossibly heavy hand to the thing covering his face, and someone took it away. Not, not someone...
He opened his eyes, blinking up at the red-haired blur leaning over him. His throat hurt... from a tube? he thought disjointedly, a faint flicker of a memory-fragment coming back to him. Moira stroked the hair back from his forehead, and he concentrated hard on the link, forcing a thought through the haze.
#This... is just getting stupid.#
"Aye, it 'tis," Moira agreed, voice rough with emotion. "Nay th' only one, fights around th' school it seemed." And in the MedLab. Her face went tight and she forced herself to concentrate on Nathan and not on the stuff from the notJamie still covering her. "Went upstairs after gettin' Bartlet out," she said, skipping over everything else. "Scared th' life out o' me when I saw ye collapsed up there. Thankfully, we knew it 'twas poison goin' in."
#Hurt... anyone else hurt?# There was something very wrong with Moira. Not physically, but he could feel it, could sense her struggling to hold it together. Nathan blinked, willing his eyes to focus.
"From th' looks o' it, brusin' seems ta be th' worst o' it. But we 'avenae found everyone jus' yet. Angie an' Doug 'ave some bruisin', we passed them draggin' ye back in 'ere as they were cleanin' themselves off." She reached back, mentally skirting around her own run in with notJamie again, to grab some ice for Nathan's bruises.
Images were flashing down the link, awful images, and Nathan winced, trying to sit up. But as he tried to lift his head off the pillow, nausea nearly overwhelmed him. He sagged back against the bed, shaking. #He came... after you...# Should have been there, idiot, he castigated himself bitterly, but concentrated on Moira as she came back to the bed, on raising that too-heavy hand and taking hers. #Moira... had to, you had to...#
"Aye, I 'ad ta," she said quietly, holding onto his hand. Once again, her voice was rough but it was also oddly neutral. Moira was still forcing herself to view that from a long distance away, as she had done in the past when she had lost patients. "'Tis all right, Nathan, really..." It wasn't, at all, but there was no time for that, not now.
#Moira, stop...# It was almost a plea, but he couldn't manage to vocalize what he meant by it, what he could see her doing. #Stop... don't do that...# He was terrified, suddenly, that she would repress this, that it would all come out later, blow up on her...
She shuddered suddenly, as she felt some of his fear on the link. But she clenched her jaw and looked down at him, eyes dry. "I will. Jus' nay now, Nathan. I *can't*. I broke one o' bloody damned vows tonight, I'll nay ignore th' rest. I'm needed, an' I'm needed t' be put together." It was taking every ounce of stubborn strength and pride in her to keep from breaking down, but she was managing to do it.
Nathan squeezed her hand, trying desperately to push his worry, his love, his absolute faith in her across the link. #Understand...# he sent faintly. #But... I'll be here.#
Moira whimpered and struggled to catch her breath as the thoughts and emotions washed down the link towards her. She bent and kissed his forehead gently. "I know. Never doubted tha' for a second, ever." That emotional wall she was trying to hide behind kept threatening to crash down around her ears, she thought a bit wildly, trying to center herself.
He couldn't do it. He couldn't, not when she was so desperate to stay in control, to do what she had to do. #All right...# he sent back weakly, squeezing her hand once more before letting go. #I love you...#
"Thank ye. I love ye, t'. I--think I'm goin' ta do a sweep wit' 'enry ta try an' see if'n we can locate more students an' make sure they're okay." She really wasn't thrilled about any more potential run-in's with "Skippy" but she could slowly feel that wall start to harden a little more, felt the pieces snap back into place. As long as she had something to do, someone to help, she'd be fine.
#Okay... think I'm going to... pass out again...#
"Aye, rest, love," Moira murmured as she reached over to slide the oxygen mask back over his nose and mouth. "I'll be back later."
As she felt him fall asleep, Moira straightened and took a deep breath, clinging to her center with everything she had. Old memories surfaced and she shook them off, angry at herself. Turning, she headed towards the door, her mask falling back into place once again.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}