DISCLAIMER: in first part.
A Laying On Of Hands: Part Three
by Cascade
"Hey Hank, Ah think she's wakin' up!"
An unintelligible moan escaped Dana's lips.
"What was that?" Sam asked, concerned.
"I said," Dana put a hand to her head to shield her eyes from the lights of the lab. "Quiet! I've got a headache. And could someone please turn the lights down?"
Her requests were quickly taken care of. Hank leaned over into her field of vision.
"Dana, do you know where you are?" Henry asked her.
"I'm guessing the medlab."
"How do you feel?"
"Like I've got the worst hangover on the entire planet. I think. Understand this is all conjecture because I've never actually had a drink before."
"Interesting." Henry was deep in thought for a moment. "Well, we need to get you hydrated then. Do you think you could keep a glass of water down?"
Dana looked doubtful. "I don't know, Hank..."
"The alternative would be hydration by intravenous solution."
"Water's fine!" Dana said hurriedly. "There is never any need for needles!"
Hank chuckled and motioned to Sam. "Mr. Guthrie, if you would be so kind as to bring Dana a glass of water?"
"Right away, Doc." Sam hustled off to the sink.
Henry reached for a medicine bottle on the counter behind him. He shook two pills from it.
"These will help with the pain." he said, putting them in her opened hand. He took the glass Sam had come back with. "Thank you, Samuel." He turned back to Dana. "You're going to need to drink a lot of water to replenish your body's supply."
She swallowed the pills with a sip of water, and was just about to start on the rest of the glass when a loud noise sent her into another spasm of pain.
It was many loud noises actually. It was a group of X-Men, lead by Scott, who had decided to visit the patient now that she was conscious.
"Sam called up and told us she was awake, so..." Scott started.
"Shhh!" Dana moaned.
"What wrong wit' petite?" Remy asked.
"She's severely dehydrated." Henry explained quietly. "Her body went into a sort of stasis. Her breathing and heart rate slowed. Her body shut down in order to rebuild her stores of energy. She's used up all her body's water and food which is why she's in such pain now. In order to prevent these headaches in the future she's going to have to make sure she drinks a lot more water than she is now. And she's going to have to eat at least three well balanced meals a day. She has to make sure that her body is sufficiently fueled so her stasis period will be more productive, and less painful. Curiously, she seems to have lost no muscle mass during her period of rest. Her body seems to have made allowances for the frequency in which she will be unconscious. However, the most incredible thing about her powers is that she seems to be able to negate Rogue's ability to absorb."
An hour or two later Dana staggered to the kitchen. She may not have lost any muscle mass, but she was stiff and sore. Hank hadn't even let her go to her room first. She was sent straight to the kitchen with some dietary guidelines. She opened the fridge, leaning heavily on the door.
"Need some help, petite?"
Dana looked up at Gambit and shook her head. "I just needed to stretch my legs, and get away form Hank."
"Gambit understand. Beast be a bit much on a sick person's nerves." He smiled. "Gambit tell Beast he wa'n't sick and run away dozens a' times."
He took her by the arm and lead her to a chair. "Now, welcome t' Cafe Remy. Can I take y' order?"
A lone figure snuck through the darkened halls of the mansion. It was a masculine shape, of medium height and build. A glance up at the clock showed it to be nearly midnight. He approached a phone, carefully chosen for it's distance from the bedrooms of the house. The receiver was picked up and a long-distance number dialed.
The figure whispered into the receiver.
"Hello?... Yeah, it's me.... Wednesday morning is a go."
Dana woke up on her own Wednesday morning. Amazingly she'd woken up before the alarm had gone off. *First time for everything.* she thought, rolling over and flipping the switch on the clock to 'off.' She turned on the local news while she got dressed for breakfast.
There was a knock on the door.
"Dana, it's me, Sam. Can I talk to you?"
"Hold on a minute..." She finished tucking her blouse into her jeans and ran a hand through her hair.
She opened the door.
"Good morning, Sa...." She stopped and looked at him closely. He was always cute, but now he looked downright handsome! His blond hair was brushed neatly. He wore a shirt that seemed especially picked to bring out the blue in his eyes. *Sam would never think to pick out a shirt to bring out his eyes.... would he?* Dana thought to herself.
"Sam! You look...Good!"
Sam smiled at her. "Dana, would ya' give me the honor of takin' ya' out for breakfast?"
Dana swallowed, heat rising to her face. "O.K." She said quietly.
She couldn't think of anything else to say. "Let me just get a few things..."
She froze for a moment. Etiquette for this situation had never been taught to her. *Do I close the door in front of him, or keep it open?* "If you'll just excuse me for one minute..."
She closed the door and leaned on it for a moment, steadying herself.
"Where's all that high-class tutoring now, Hawkes?" she muttered to herself, putting on her watch and earrings and reaching for the hair brush.
"I knew it, I get in this situation and my brain melts. Absolutely useless..."
"What was that?" Sam asked through the door.
"Nothing!" She checked herself in the mirror, took a deep breath and exhaled. "Everything is Zen..." She took another breath. "Wax on, wax off..." She whispered it like a mantra, trying to calm her speeding heart.
If it worked for 'Daniel-san'....
She opened the door.
Sam was there, still handsome.
"Ready?" he asked extending his arm.
She nodded, and prayed her brain would solidify.
Dana watched Sam as he drove home from the small cafe he'd taken her to. It had been wonderful. They'd had a small breakfast: Coffee and pastries. *The coffee was excellent, the pastries were to die for, and the company wasn't bad either,* she thought as she watched the wind from the open window tousle his hair.
She sighed contentedly.
"Ya' all right?" he asked, glancing over at her, his blue eyes sparkling with humor.
"I'm wonderful." She lowered her eyes in embarrassment.
He stifled a laugh as he turned into the drive.
They watched through the blinds as Sam opened Dana's door for her and offered his arm. She took it, and he lead her to the front door.
"Get ready!" The leader whispered as they all returned to their assigned positions to wait in the darkness to ambush the couple as they entered.
Sam opened the door for Dana. "Who said chivalry is dead?" She smiled at him. She was about to ask him why the room was so dark when he flipped on the lights and the hiders leapt from their places.
"SURPRISE!"
Dana jumped back in shock. She bumped into Sam, who wrapped his arms around her to keep them both upright. She laughed when she realized she was in no danger. She turned in his arms. She was close enough to him that her perfume and her nearness made him a little giddy. "How did you...?" She stopped when she heard the voice from behind her.
"Happy birthday, D!"
She turned to see a tall young man behind her. He had a shock of brown hair, that looked as if it could possibly be contained in a business-like style. He had no need of such a style at the current time, however.
"Marc!" Dana squealed in delight and ran to him.
He laughed and picked her up easily. "Look at you! You're hardly recognizable!" Then quietly in her ear, he added. "You're even more beautiful than mom."
They looked at each other fondly, the comment bringing back many memories, some happy, some sad. They embraced.
Sam leaned against the door, watching the long separated siblings reunite. He smiled broadly.
There was food and music. Everyone wanted to meet the oft mentioned Marcus. Dana hardly ever left Marc's side. They'd been apart too long.
Sam cleared his throat. "Ah believe it's tahm for presents!" He moved towards Dana, his arms filled with all sizes of brightly wrapped boxes.
Dana sat in the nearest chair. Marcus grabbed a small box off the top of the pile Sam had created. He handed the box to Dana.
"What do you get the woman who has everything, and has the money to buy everything else?" He announced his question to the group, smiling.
"Either something huge and expensive, or something small and personal. I was thinking about a car, but then I remembered that D can't drive..."
"But ya remembered that Ah can drive her," Sam interrupted. "Ya figured Sam'll drive her around until she learns an' he'll only borrow it a couple a' times, an' ya wrapped the keys to this incredibly beautiful car in the box. Very nice. As soon as Dana unwraps them, Ah'll go give it a test drive. Tell ya' how she handles."
Both men laughed, knowing that there were no keys in the box.
"So..." Marcus continued. "I got her something else."
"Ya figured to get her the car fa' Christmas. I get it," Sam stage-whispered to Marc.
Dana opened the box. Inside was a picture in a conservative picture frame. It was of her family many years ago. She must have been around 9, making Doug about 4 and Marc about 15. Her parents stood behind their children. They looked so in love. She could never remember them that way.
She didn't remember the picture being taken. She looked at her mother. She was so beautiful. She remembered her mother being pretty, but she could never seem to think of her that way. She only could seem to remember her at the end. Pale in the darkened hospital room. Her hair thinning from the chemo. In the picture the sun shone on her hair making it look almost red.
Dana started to cry.
"Marc, I love it," she said. "Where did you find it?"
Her brother leaned over and took her in his arms. "When I moved out for college, I just grabbed a bunch of stuff from the house and threw it in a box. I never really went through it. When I started traveling I had it stored away. About a month ago I went through all the stuff I put away. I was looking for my birth certificate or something like that, and I found a photo album in this box in the corner. I opened it up and found all these pictures of us as a family. I've got it in the rental car outside. I'm gonna give it to you, 'cause I don't have anywhere to put it. There's this naked-baby-in-the-bathtub-picture of Doug I don't think he wants to know that we have. Could come in handy as blackmail when he tries to become president or something. Maybe it'll get us a night in the Lincoln bedroom."
Dana giggled and sniffled, wiping the tears from her cheeks.
"Thanks Marc."
"So, how's it feel to be 18?" Marc asked, leading her out to the rental car. It had been hidden by an image inducer when Dana had driven in.
"Well, if everyday is going to be like today from now on, it feels great! Especially compared to where I was at this time last year."
"So you liked your party?"
"I loved it! How on earth did you...?"
Marcus interrupted her. "It wasn't me! It was Sam Guthrie! He's pretty cunning! Every time I called you he intercepted the call and asked me something about you. 'When's her birthday?' 'What are her favorite foods?' Then he finally told me about his plan. I told him my schedule and he called me often to set it up. He must have had to call at the strangest hours to get a hold of me and not have you figure it out. The only thing I had to do was switch my time in the States to this week. Dad and the Board want to know all about the foreign markets before I go back into the world again."
He opened the car door, and grabbed the album from its spot on the back seat. He handed it to her.
"Well, here it is. Enjoy."
"Ya better hurry or ya gonna be late," Sam said, coming up behind them.
"Late for what?" Marcus asked.
"Late for dinner!" Sam replied, handing him an envelope. "Ya said she liked Italian..."
Marc opened the envelope to find a certificate for two free dinners inside at La Pasta, a trendy Italian restaurant, where reservations had to be made months in advance.
"Sam!" Dana exclaimed, hugging him.
"Well, I couldn't think of anythin' better to getchya than a little extra time with ya brother. Ya' reservation is fa' 6:00."
Dana ran back inside the house to change into something a little dressier. Marcus walked around to the trunk of the car to get to his luggage. "You're a great guy, Sam. I couldn't hope for a better friend for my sister."
"Thanks." He shrugged. "It's nothin' really, how can anyone help but like 'er?"
"I was worried about her for a bit. The first time she called she told me everything. She was a mutant, she was living with a bunch of other mutants... I wasn't surprised about her. I'd kinda known ever since mom died. But I worried about her, big brother that I am, and with the media yelling every day about how evil mutants are... no matter how open minded you are, that kind of constant pressure can work its way into your subconscious. I was worried about the kind of people she was living with.
Funny considering how miserable she was living with dad. But well, what I'm trying to say is that I needn't have worried. I can see that she's in good and loving hands."
He opened his suitcase and grabbed a jacket and tie.
Sam smiled. "Hey, Ah know how it works. Ah'm the big brother of a mutant too. Paige lives far enough away that Ah wonder what she's gettin' into. 'Cause we both know that no one can take care of sisters as well as their big brothers!"
They both laughed and nodded.
"It's true!" Marcus said.
Dana opened the door to the mansion and smiled. It was good that Sam and Marc got along. Although she really wanted to know what they were telling each other. They both loved her, but they weren't above telling each other embarrassing secrets about her. She might have to do some damage control later on because of this.
Marcus dropped Dana off at the mansion. It was late, they'd had a wonderful time reminiscing. Talking about the times before their mom had died, looking at the pictures in the book. The meal had been outstanding, and afterwards they'd walked and drove around for hours, just enjoying each other's company. It was the best gift Sam could have given her.
She waved to Marcus and waited until the car was out of sight before going inside the mansion. She slipped inside quietly, not wanting to disturb anyone. She was surprised to see Sam laying on the couch reading a book. She was even more surprised when she read the title.
"Jane Eyre?!" She almost laughed out loud. "What made you decide to read Jane Eyre?"
"Huh?" Sam shook his head and looked at her, startled. "Oh hi!" He sat upright and marked his place in the book with a piece of paper. He was turning red. "Well, I overheard you say that you liked it, and so I thought I'd see what it was about. It's pretty good for a 'chick book'."
Dana was touched that he'd put so much stock in her opinions. "I'm glad you like it."
He set the book on the end table. "Do ya wanna go for a walk?"
She smiled. "Let me just go get changed."
Dana came down the steps in jeans and a gray sweatshirt. Sam thought she looked radiant.
Sam opened the door for her and they stepped out together in the cool night air.