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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 25, 2011 21:55:57 GMT -8
He heard the hesitance - he knew what it meant. It was very gently that he pressed on, not looking up from his task in an effort not to single her out. He didn't want to frighten her...but if his suspicions were correct, she needed to know.
"...Something that shouldn't be possible. Something that couldn't possibly be real, but that you've seen with your own eyes." A beat. Perhaps it would be better to lessen the blow a bit. "I've seen them myself. If you have, you are not alone."
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Post by Ashlin Thomas on Jun 25, 2011 22:10:50 GMT -8
"I thought it was just a bad dream." she chocked out closing her eyes tightly. "They looked like monsters from a nightmare. They didn't have any eyes, and that man--" Ashlin shuddered violently, remembering how close that thing had gotten to her. She remembered the way the smoke had been forced down her throat, choking her. "he was just tearing them limb from limb." She was trembling, she realized distantly, tears leaking out of her tightly closed eyes..
Oh God it had been real, it had all been real. The fact that she wasn't crazy, that Mr.Stewart had seen them too was a distant comfort in the face of the truth. Everything that she had seen had really happened; everything that man had done to her had been real. Her knees felt like jello and Ashlin slid down to the floor, back against the bed. "He really. . ." Her hand hovered in the air, reaching to touch her lips but not quite making it.
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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 25, 2011 22:36:31 GMT -8
It was just as he expected - she had seen the Shadows. He nodded as he finished up with the new bandage, listening to what she had to say-
But it was worse than he thought. 'That man.' Oh, no...had the Smoking Man already found her, too? He would have stooped, if he still could...but instead, he bent over in the wheelchair, getting as close to her level as he could manage.
"I'm sorry, Ashlin, but...no, it was not a dream. You have the Sight now. Calm yourself...it's all right. You are among friends. As I said, I can see them, too." There was a gentleness in his voice, and if she looked closely enough, she might be able to see the understanding in the eyes behind the mask. This was a difficult subject to broach, but...it needed to be done.
"...You said you saw a man among the Shadows?"
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Post by Ashlin Thomas on Jun 25, 2011 23:02:12 GMT -8
Opening her eyes Ashlin stared up at him, her eyes wide with confusion and fear. How could things like that really exist?
At least she knew she wasn't crazy.
"I saw the man first." she said a strange hollowness to her tone as she wiped at her tears. "I couldn't see his face, it was so dark out but he-" The words caught in her throat, and she felt her face heating up in shame. It had been so much easier to talk about this with Emily when it had just been a bad dream. Now though she couldn't seem to get the words out. She felt ashamed of herself for not fighting harder, for not running when she first had the chance, for not doing something. She felt like it was her fault. "He pinned me to the--" She took a shaky breath. No she couldn't do this, she couldn't tell him. "And then the-the things came, and he started killing them and yelling at me. He kept. . . asking me if I was lost." She certainly sounded lost now.
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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 25, 2011 23:27:09 GMT -8
Mister Stewart completely froze in horror at what she was saying. She didn't have to tell him...he could fill in the blanks.
Oh my God. No. NO. Michael...what have I DONE to you?
It was a very long moment before he gathered himself enough to speak, trying to remain calm. He needed to be steady, or risk tipping his hand completely. "...That's enough. You don't have to tell me any more." Straightening up in his chair, he continued, keeping his tone of voice very gentle.
"...Needless to say, he is a very dangerous person. I suspect...that he had something to do with what has happened to Michael." A half-truth. Perhaps, however, righteous anger would be preferable to fear...maybe it would help her to pick herself up. She didn't seem the type to harbor an unhealthy grudge....
At least, he hoped.
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Post by Ashlin Thomas on Jun 25, 2011 23:44:45 GMT -8
Now that caught Ashlin's attention. "What?" she asked in shock, her head snapping to look at Mr.Stewart. He had been the one to hurt Michael. Remembering the way he had torn those creatures limb from limb certainly didn't make it seem out of the question, it made sense actually. Everything but the gun wound at least. Now that she thought about it hadn't he used a sword? He used when he'd. . . when he'd saved her.
That part still confused her.
"There, there was one thing I don't understand though." she confessed, still looking up at him. Mr.Stewart seemed to known at least something about this man, so maybe he'd be able to explain something to her. "The man. . .he saved me." She was clearly confused, and certainly afraid of the Smoking Man, but she couldn't deny what he'd done. "From one of the creatures, and then I wouldn't have gotten away at all if he hadn't told me to run when he did. . . Why would he do that?"
Nothing made sense to Ashlin. She was afraid for Michael, angry for what had been done to him, and angry for what had been done to her. She was ashamed and afraid and so very confused, and she didn't now how she was suppose to deal with all of this, because the world seemed to be turning upside down around her.
Things had been so much simpler when it was just a bad dream.
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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 26, 2011 0:35:10 GMT -8
For a long, long moment, Mister Stewart froze, saying nothing. He had...saved her? Why would he have done that? Unless...some of Michael's influence echoed back upon him. It would make sense, if when this Smoking Man was injured, so was Michael....perhaps, to an extent, it went both ways.
But...maybe it was because Michael's thoughts...feelings for Ashlin interfered?
"...Perhaps he hates the Shadows. Above all else." He couldn't tell her the whole of what he thought. If she knew of the connection to Michael...would she still view the boy in the same light? It just wasn't his story to tell...he had to work it out for himself, and then decide.
Mister Stewart just had to try and help keep her safe for now.
"...There is still much to learn. Much to figure out. But the fact of the matter is...you can See - and Michael cannot. You may well have to be his eyes for this...to help keep him safe. The Shadows prefer the dark...the rain. He is careful to remain inside during the rain...but late at night...he does not always exercise the same judgment."
Turning his chair, he faced Michael, watching him sleep for a moment. His breathing was starting to rattle a little...sweat beginning to bead on his forehead. Suffering. He didn't like it.
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Post by Ashlin Thomas on Jun 26, 2011 1:03:56 GMT -8
She supposed that made more sense than anything else she could come up with. It didn't sit quite right in her gut, but Ashlin did agree that there was a great deal they didn't know, and until they figured it out this was probably the best explanation she was going to have. Ashlin remained silent as Mr.Stewart explained that while Michael was in danger from them he couldn't actually see the creatures-the Shadows. He never got any peace did he? She wondered sadly as she watched his restless sleep, not even in his dreams.
Without a word Ash went back to the bathroom, returning a moment later with a small hand towel. She lay the damp cloth on Michael's forehead absent mindedly moving his hair away as she did. Hopefully the cool water could help a bit. "I'll look out for him." she at last said softly. "I don't know how useful I could be in a fight," she admitted. She remembered how she'd been frozen in terror when that thing had come toward her. She didn't want to be like that again, she didn't want to be completely helpless again. "but I can be his eyes if that's what he needs."
At least now she understood why everything closed when it rained.
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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 26, 2011 1:45:55 GMT -8
When Ashlin walked away, Mister Stewart took the moment to reach out and try to shift Michael into a more comfortable position...rolling his pantleg back down, adjusting his pillow underneath his head. He moved away a bit when Ashlin returned...watching her carefully as she tended to his son. It was easy to spot in her mannerisms...how much she cared about him.
Maybe there was hope for him yet.
"...That would mean a great deal to me. And I'm certain it would mean a great deal to him, too."
Oblivious to the conversation going on, Michael groaned as the cool washcloth was placed on his forehead, body giving a little shudder and a brief grimace crossing his lips. He definitely had a fever...the chill from the cold water had disappeared by now, leaving him burning up where he lay.
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Post by Ashlin Thomas on Jun 26, 2011 9:06:34 GMT -8
Giving him a wobbly smile Ashlin could only hope he was right. "He's burning up." she said worriedly. Ashlin didn't understand how his condition could change so quickly. He'd been a little warm when she'd been helping him with the solve, but this was far worse than that. Ashlin reached out to run the damp over his cheeks and upper neck hoping to keep him a little cooler, unsure of what else to do.
Looking over to Mr.Stewart with wide doe eyes Ashlin hoped he knew what they should do. She felt lost, ironically enough. Ashlin had really started to think this place was going to be different, and it was. Just maybe not the good different she'd thought it would be. She wondered if this was the price she was meant to pay for friends.
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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 26, 2011 13:21:25 GMT -8
"All we can do is wait...hope the fever breaks."
He wasn't sure what to do, either. This wasn't the first fever Michael had run in the last few days...but it was the worst. Hopefully it would pass, like the others....but there was also the chance there would be another after that. And another. What if they got worse every time?
"...I'm going to go and get some ice. Will you be all right here with him for a few minutes?"
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Post by Ashlin Thomas on Jun 26, 2011 15:22:07 GMT -8
"I'll be alright." she said, giving him what could almost pass for a reassuring smile. It just didn't quite reach her eyes.
Ashlin was feeling discombobulated and all mixed up inside. In such a short amount of time she'd gotten so many shocks. . . Of course it was unavoidable, but it didn't make it easier for her to deal with. Ashlin pet Michael's hair lightly, remembering how it had seemed to help him a bit last time. For now she decided, she would focus on Michael and his fever and deal with the rest afterward. It was just simpler that way.
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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 26, 2011 15:41:48 GMT -8
Nodding once more, he pulled away, wheeling off to go and fetch the ice. As soon as he was outside the room, he looked to his console, keying in the commands to keep a feed of Michael's room upon it. Just in case.
But he didn't use the lock. Not yet.
Michael remained in his restless sleep as Ashlin sat over him, leaning into her touch a little when she pet his head. Sure enough, that was a soothing motion to him, and he responded in turn, seeming to calm, if only by a tiny bit. His lips parted in labored gasps, eyes wrenched shut, fingers curling in the bedsheets.
With all the sense of duty and decorum stripped away...really, he was just a kid in pain.
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Post by Ashlin Thomas on Jun 26, 2011 15:53:42 GMT -8
Smiling sadly she continued to stroke his hair. Ashlin wondered what it was he saw in his feverish dreams; it had to be absolutely awful, she thought with moist eyes. She could almost laugh, she couldn't remember the last time she cried this much in a single day. "It'll be okay Michael." she said softly, wishing she could make it so. "We'll take care of you." She could promise that much at least couldn't she?
He looked so much younger like this, so vulnerable. It was easy to forget how young Michael was when he was always so mature, and calm, always dressed in his spotless white suits. She wished there was more she could do to make him feel better than just petting his hair.
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Post by Mister Stewart on Jun 27, 2011 0:36:11 GMT -8
As little as it might seem, it did help - it gave Michael an anchor, something to link him back to the waking world while his nightmares ran rampant through his mind's eye. He saw what he always did...flames. A house burning down around him. He heard the screams, felt his skin searing...but now it didn't end with this.
Now there was cigarette smoke. Violet blood dribbling down a rusted blade. A harsh, cold laugh. Ashes caking in his hair. Unbearable anger.
Tears squeezed through his clenched eyelids, dribbling down the sides of his pale face.
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