(Untitled)

[milkbonesoldier]

Wells woke briefly last night, long enough to look over at Annie and ask what she was doing there, but before she could answer he muttered something about blueberry cheesecake and dropped off again. He's asleep now. So's she.

Zuko's knife is still on the nightstand beside his bed.

It's not inconceivable that he could wake.

Comments

[i_spoiled_it]

Steph's been there for a while now. She's curled up in the chair nearest, head resting on her knees, watching him.

She's got nowhere else to be.

[milkbonesoldier]

He's more restless than he's been the past few nights; eventually he rolls towards her side of the bed. The motion sets off a coughing fit that ends with him rubbing at his eyes with one hand-

"You're not Annie," he observes, in a voice like fifty years of cigarettes taking their vengeance all at once.

[i_spoiled_it]

"Nope. You're feeling better?"

It's a strange reversal of circumstances. Last she saw him, she was the one in the bed.

[milkbonesoldier]

Another coughing fit, this one wetter. "Touch of drip in the wrong places," he manages. "And the fact that my lungs're tryin' to drown me from the inside, fuckin' awful. But I'm not in the desert any more."

He seems to think this makes sense.

[i_spoiled_it]

"You're in the infirmary," Steph agrees, with an arched brow. "Milliways. It's safe here."

She isn't really very good at the whole bedside patient bit.

"Zuko said you had a seizure." Her face darkens momentarily at his name. "Came down to sit by you for a while."

[milkbonesoldier]

"Ah," says Wells. "All right. So that bit's over then."

He fights back another cough.

"Did I? Must've been-" Big grimace. "-the bit where I blacked out. I remember that room, and the table. With the straps. And the cage. And the chains..."

He trails off; after that all his memories of the island are a blur.

[i_spoiled_it]

Steph goes tense for a moment. "He ... didn't mention that. Just said you had a seizure."

And bit him.

"Don't think about it. You're here now." And torture chambers are not on the agenda, she hopes.

[milkbonesoldier]

"Don't normally get those-"

A memory of grey mist settling downward bubbles up. He shivers.

"silver solution in the air fresheners," he mutters.

[i_spoiled_it]

"Shit, really?" Steph's horrified. "You - had to breathe it in? Oh, my god..."

She can't even imagine.

"That's ... Man. That's totally not cool."

[milkbonesoldier]

"Had my helmet off- fucking idiotic of me-"

Wheezing this time. Eventually:

"Should've known better, dammit."

His head rolls to the other side a moment, and his expression softens at the sight of the sleeping woman. Then he looks back to Steph, and spots the knife on the nightstand. "His Nibs go home, then?"

[i_spoiled_it]

She gives a slightly forced smile. "Yeah. Wanted to ... Yeah, he went home."

She fidgets a little, unsure if she should tell Wells exactly why. Would he want to know? Would Zuko want him to know?

Maybe later. When he doesn't look so awful.

"He said he'd come back, though."

[milkbonesoldier]

Wells nods, apparently satisfied. "He always does," he murmurs-

What happens to all your sons? pokes at him from a memory of nightmare. He shivers again.

"How long've I been out?" He asks instead, because it's easier.

[i_spoiled_it]

"A couple of days, so far." She looks apologetic. "I think. I'm not really sure, I was distracted by the puppies."

[milkbonesoldier]

"...puppies?"

[i_spoiled_it]

"Yeah. He ... We haven't really talked much. He just got back from the island with these funny-looking puppies, and sorta asked me to look after them while he went home." She waves her hands about to illustrate. "They're cute, in a kinda ferocious way, with really big paws..."

[milkbonesoldier]

"Oh, Christ..." Wells shakes his head. "Those came from the island. They'll be big as ponies when they're grown."