Tornado Warning

## Content Information

**Note:** This scene follows immediately after Kingdoms of Isolation and Sunday, Bloody Sunday. They were split for length.

It was dark, and the hospital had shifted over into the quieter hum of the night shift. Most of the visitors had long since left, save the few crashing in uncomfortable chairs in loved ones’ rooms. Thanks to Gertrude Crossman’s long history of financial support of the hospital, it hadn’t required much prodding for Xander’s ‘fiancée’ to be allowed to stay in the room with him. Shortly after Gertrude’s departure, one of the staff managed to dig out a spare set of scrubs and showed her to one of the staff changing areas to get a much-needed shower. The shower, she had been told pointedly, was *not* optional if she wanted to stay.

But, despite his brief return to wakefulness earlier in the evening, for the most part Xander had remained blessedly asleep, thanks to the assistance of IV-fed painkillers. She had sat bedside vigil for hours, until the air in the room started to feel stuffy, and she itched to take a walk. Carefully laying a light kiss on the back of his uninjured hand, she had slipped out of the room - informed the nurses that she was taking a brief walk, and taken the stairs down to the ground floor.

She slipped through the quiet cafeteria, nodding briefly at one of the on-call doctors she had recognized, tucked away in a corner stealing a few quiet moments to eat their lunch. At the far end, glass double doors opened out onto a stone patio. Tucking a rock between the door and the frame to make sure she did not get locked out accidentally, Tamzen crossed the patio to the waist height stone wall that surrounded it. She sighed and stretched out on top of the wall, looking up at the crystal-clear night sky above her.

Arsling had ran, after the day she had not even having sex with TJ cheered her up or let her shake off the stress, eventually they saw the same hospital they were in not too long ago, she felt guilty due to her perceived failure to keep track of where Xander was, maybe he wouldn't have gotten hurt.

She strode up, seeing Tamzen she almost started to cry, her hair undone and her suit not as fine as it usually was "Hey Tamzen"

Tamzen tilted her head back where she lay until she could see the source of the voice. “*Linny…*” she replied, her eyes dull from exhaustion, and her voice stripped clean of all emotion. “I…” She relaxed her head until she was looking back up at the stars. “Linny… I’m so sorry… you needed me. You *all* needed me… and I failed you. And then I ran away… and I know you and Xander were there for hours… I just couldn’t face any of you.” She sighed. “I don’t know if you can ever forgive me…”

Arsling runs over, jumping up and laying next to Tamzen, hugging her as best as possible "do you think I'd hate you for something as little as failing me" Arsling says into Tamzen's ear before landing foot first onto the patio "you've pulled through for me so many times Tamzen, one fuckup won't destroy everything…" Arsling says as warmly as she could, her hands shaking thinking about today, about the stony expression of fear as the hunters statue fell shattering, thoughts about how she didn't have to do that, how she could've just ran.

Tamzen smiled thinly, still clearly exhausted. “He’s in bad shape…” she said softly. “The doctor said he was lucky to be alive, and he’s still sleeping most of the time right now. I was able to talk to him for a few minutes, but…” She closed her eyes, and stifled a sob. “It’s *bad*, Linny. I can barely touch him without hurting him - all I can do is hold his hand.”

Arsling ran a hand through her hair having a guilty look on her face "I guess that part’s my fault, I'm sorry I should've been looking after him or keeping track of where he was or just not being a fuck up" Arsling sighs "when can I see him?" Arsling holds Tamzen’s hand gently

Tamzen sighed. “Late tomorrow? At the earliest? I don’t know Linny. *I* wasn’t even going to be allowed in at first, until his grandmother intervened. The doctor wants him to rest…” She squeezed Linny’s hand. “And it’s not your fault, either. If I hadn’t shut myself off, he wouldn’t have stayed outside the booth for so long…”

"Oh right, his *grandmother*" Arsling gritted her teeth, after the incident a week ago it wasn't hard for Arsling to make the connections that Xander had been abused, Xander saying that Gertrude pushed him around pissed her off "sorry that Wonderland decided to do some 'investigative journalism,'" Arsling made a mock throwing up noise "they could be reporting on anything and they choose people's personal lives."

Tamzen made a small grunt of disgust, then shrugged. “Well, what’s done is done. I should have realized that there might be someone hanging around the hospital with an ear out for leads on stories. And I’ll have *ample* opportunity to learn from that mistake, now that the story’s out.”

"Well I pissed them off enough to block me so I'll have to add that to my list of accolades, alongside jester to Botato and friend of Tamzen Shaw" Arsling smirked gently before looking both curious and somber "you eh never stopped while you were in the booth, how'd you manage to go that long?"

“Honestly… I don’t know. Sometimes I just get like that…” Tamzen was dead tired… too tired to even yawn, it seemed. “It’ll catch up to me soon enough, and I’ll pay for it.” She closed her eyes, just wanting to rest them for a moment. “But right now, I’m actually *too tired* to sleep… and there’s too much going on.”

“Jesus, well your bedroom is waiting for you when you get back, just hope it's as cozy as you left it” Arsling sighs solemnly “...so fiancee huh? Why’d the wicked bitch of the US say that?”

Tamzen sighed. “Because I said it first. They weren’t going to allow me in to see him - only close family for the first day. But I didn’t want him to be alone anymore.” She slid her feet up along the wall until they were resting flat, pushing her knees upwards. “Just my luck that she heard me say it - it’s what she’s wanted after all… when Wonderland broke the story, she used it to force my hand and move up the schedule.”

Arsling lets out a low growl of irritation “if those Wonderland assholes bother you again I swear to fuck I’ll kick their shit in” Arslings threat wasn’t empty but theirs a subtly sound of hesitance in her voice.

“Thanks, but Wonderland isn’t the problem - the people who read it are.” She was silent for a moment, then shrugged. “What’s done is done - Xander knows, and we’ll deal with it as best we can. The only other option was to break off the relationship and let her take him back to Missouri - and I wasn’t going to let that happen to him.”

“Oh yeah, fuck that and fuck her” Arsling sighs leaning against the wall and then chuckles slightly “can’t image you in a wedding dress.”

“You’re telling me - I’m hoping for a long ‘engagement’ but I’m not holding my breath. The woman is on a mission. The damned thing will be white, and probably excessively frilly, and almost certainly *couture*.” She made a face. “Why did I have to fall for the rich boy with the crazy overbearing family?” she muttered.

“Hmmm you’re a snake charmer?” Arsling joked to try and lighten both her and Tamzens mood.

“Rather say that a snake charmed *me*…” she said, smiling up at her friend.

“Oh really now brave and fearless and not shy Tamzen was woo’d and not the other way around? Colour me surprised” Arsling says teasingly “ so what I’m hearing is you let the snake do all the ‘dancing’ the other day?” Arsling grins threatening to burst with laughter.

“I’m so tired… I don’t have any idea what you just said…” Tamzen said, before she dissolved into helpless laughter.

Arsling laughed happily with Tamzen, between everything that's happened the past week it's good to actually get to have a full hearty laugh

Eventually, though, the laughter died down, leaving the two friends gasping for air. Tamzen rubbed tears out of her eyes, and propped herself up in a reclining position. She looked over at Linny, expression suddenly serious.

“Linny…?” she said, quietly. “About Xander… he…”

Arsling gulped, taking in air as her laughter died down before shaking it off and composing herself. “Yeah Tamzen?” grabbing her hand as she felt a sensation of dread

“It wasn’t an accident. Someone attacked him.”

Arsling’s eyes widened a wave of guilt hitting her with the distinct possibility of it being her fault scratching the back of her mind like a blade, what if that hunter she let go wanted revenge? “Who” was her simple response.

Tamzen shook her head. “He didn’t recognize the one who showed their face. Umm…” she took a deep breath. “It was bad. His engine exploded… when he got out of the car, a group attacked him - that’s where most of the injuries came from.” She looked away, for a moment. “He couldn’t remember anything that happened after the explosion…” she explained.

Arsling scratched the back of her head “nice power usage there...what did the person who showed themselves look like? I might recognise them” *“and I’ll...hurt them, kidnap them? C-could I kill them? Do I have that in me anymore?”* Arsling thinks to themselves a mortified and contemplative look on her face

“I couldn’t get a good look - he was seeing double there for a while, and I’m stuck with whatever his senses could pick up.” Tamzen suppressed a yawn, and tried to remember what else she had seen, what else had been important. “And...they put a business card in his jacket pocket, before… before they broke his leg. It had… a drawing on it. Three stars… and an arrow.”

“Oh jeeze, you ready for bed yet? I can carry you if you want...Gertrude’s in there isn’t she?” Arsling says with a sigh, wanting her friend to have a good night's rest, keeping mental note of the three stars and an arrow, she’d have to do her own work for that, she may not have the brains of Tamzen but she was damn sure she could find something like that

“Actually, no. She left to spin up the PR machine and start planning the engagement party.” Tamzen turned and placed her feet back on the ground. “I’m staying with him tonight - it’s the least I can do after the past few days.” She stood up, and looked back at Arsling. “See - no need to carry me this time,” she said with a small, sad smile.

“Awwww but you look so cute when you’re being carried” Arsling grins teasingly “right I suppose I’ll head home, security will probably throw me out for being too awesome”

Tamzen steps close to Linny and hugs her tightly. “Just...be careful out there, okay?” she whispered into the other girl’s shoulder.

“I will be, do you have a bag? Might shift just to be sure” Arsling says whispering back in the cuddle.

Tamzen shook her head, and stepped away. “No I don’t, sorry. I didn’t exactly stop to grab anything on my way over here this afternoon.”

“Damn, well, I guess I'll carry these in my mouth, lets hope I don't poke any holes” Arsling smiles “Seeya tomorrow Tammy.”

“G’night, Linny.”