waiting is the worst -liam-

Mar sat in the waiting room of the Dian hospital, bouncing her leg anxiously. Skye was still being seen to by the doctors, and couldn't have any visitors yet. According to the doctors, she was still pretty out of it and wouldn't be able to talk yet, but Mar didn't care. All she wanted was to be by her sister's side.

Their poor parents were horrified by the whole thing; Skye's ordeal and current state, alone with the fact that Mar had risked her life to go save her. They had left very briefly to go pick up something for them all to eat, though Mar wasn't sure she'd have much of an appetite when they got back. She didn't care about food, or the fact that she was still wearing the same clothes from the rescue, or any of that right now. All that mattered was Skye.

She had been so...messed up when Mar had found her. Like she didn't even know who Mar was. What if she was always like that from now on? The doctors had said it looked to be the result of some sort of drug. What on earth had she been put through?

Whatever Skye is like from now on, Mar had decided with conviction, I'll be there for her. Always.

At least Skye was alive. So many of those kids hadn't made it. Mar had watched as parents came in to the hospital to ask about their children, and left in hysterics. How could the Deilig clio do something so horrible? Rip apart so many families? Mar also thought about what would have happened if her and the others hadn't gone in. While Liam had sent his forces, who knows what the guards would have done to those kids if Mar and the others hadn't taken them out first...

She sighed and leaned back in her chair. Her thoughts were going a million miles a minute. Skye, the dead kids, her parents, Skye, the mission, Skye, Liam, Skye, Skye, Skye...

Liam had not had the chance to see Mar while Skye was still being treated in Cuir. He'd been horrified to find out via his general that Marisol had already been in Deilig when his forces arrived. But she was okay, and that was all that mattered. That, and the fact that Skye had made it. Liam had been informed on the many children who did not made it out of the compound alive. And Marisol had seen it all.

He walked through the hallway to where Skylar was being kept. He saw Marisol sitting in the hallway, her legs bouncing up and down, head in her hands. His heart clenched at the sight of her. He'd known she was okay, had heard firt hand accounts of her being flown back to Dian. But seeing her with his own eyes was such a relief.

"Mar," he said, walking toward her. He held out his arms and scooped her into a firm hug, holding her body against his. She was okay. "I'm so happy you both are here."

Mar was so wrapped up in her own thoughts she hadn't even seen Liam come in. She looked up in surprise when she heard her name, and the next thing she knew she was in Liam's arms. She squeezed him as tight as she possibly could and buried her face in his chest. "Liam!" she choked out, as the tears that had been miraculously absent up until now started to flow. "You saved us, you saved all of us!"

Still holding him tightly, she looked up at him, her eyelashes shining with tears. "I'm so sorry I yelled at you, I didn't mean it, I was just so worried about Skylar," she babbled. Still crying ugly tears, she smiled. "But she's okay. I mean not okay-okay. She's alive. You saved us!"

"Shh," Liam whispered, holding Mar close. He hated seeing her cry, though he knew these tears were not the worst that could be shed. These tears showed her relief, and he was happy that she was able to cry to him. He squeezed her tighter.

"I hear you did more saving that I did," he told her honestly. "I could never have been that brave. You saved your sister, Mar." He kissed the top of her head. "They're going to be okay because of you guys."

Mar smiled up at Liam again. But then it faded slowly. "Not all of them," she said quietly, lowering her eyes. She didn't blame herself for the kids they couldn't save, she knew they had gotten there as fast as they possibly could. She just felt so horrible for them, and their families. They had been her classmates. She hadn't heard any names yet, and she had been too single-minded during the rescue to think about it, but she probably knew most of them. Skye had probably seen many of them murdered right before her eyes.

"Why did the Deilig overloridian do this?" she asked Liam. She wondered if Liam had ever met the guy. He must have before, right? At overloridian meetings or something. "Why would anyone do something so evil?"

Liam wished he could take the experience back from Mar, wished he could rewind and somehow save all of the children. Rewind past the attack on the school.

"I'm sorry," he told her. Sorry classmates, acquaintances, friends, wouldn't be returning to their families or to school ever again.

He just shook his head when she asked him about Kole. "He's..." he didn't have words appropriate for what Kole truly was. "This war won't end until he's dead." Liam didn't need to tell Marisol the things Liam had heard from other overloridians.

"I want you to stay here in Dian until it's over, please. With Skylar." She was brave, and strong, this Mar of his. But he couldn't have her in danger again. He didn't think he could bear it. Luckily, he was almost positive she would stay with Skylar no matter what was happening elsewhere. "I've heard some of the children are starting to wake up."

Liam wrote:"This war won't end until he's dead."

"Good," Mar said savagely. She hoped he died. She hoped he died and suffered a hundred times more than each and every one of the Redfern kids. "He deserves to die."

Liam wrote:"I want you to stay here in Dian until it's over, please. With Skylar."

Mar's expression softened. "I will," she said. Even if she hadn't already been planning on staying with Skye until she recovered, however long that may be, she knew she should be with her parents, too. Even though Dian was actively at war with Deilig right now, many of the clio here seemed to trust that they would win. "But only if you promise to kick Deilig's ass."

Liam wrote:"I've heard some of the children are starting to wake up."

"Some of them," Mar agreed. She frowned. Not Skye, yet. "The doctors said they were drugged."

"We will definitely kick Deilig's ass," Liam said, smiling despite the situation. Marisol brought out a side in him he couldn't remember having.

He got more solemn, again, when she responded about the children. He nodded. He wasn't sure if he should relay the information to Mar about why the children were abducted or not. They'd pieced together the information from guards they'd taken prisoner, and from what Paisley had told him from their own rescue mission.

Apparently, the Deilig soldiers had been given orders from their commanders that they were to torture the children, and somehow they had been able to force them to settle as Deilig. The ones that hadn't were murdered instantly.

Not enough children were lucid enough to completely confirm this, but as far as Liam knew, it was true. When Skylar woke up, she'd be settled as Deilig.

"Has she woken up at all?" Liam asked softly. "How are your parents?"

"Only a little," Mar answered. "Like, she was kind of awake, but not really all there, you know? The doctors said it would take a little while for the drugs to get out of her system." Another tear ran down her face and she wiped it away with her sleeve. "I know they did more than just the drugs. I know they hurt her."

"Our parents, I mean, they're obviously upset," Mar said. "I think if they weren't so worried about Skye they'd be furious with me for going with Paisley and them." She'd never regret it though. Never.

"Skylar is strong, just like you," Liam told her. "She'll make it through this." He wrapped Mar in another hug.

He wished he could tell her she was wrong, that nothing had happened in the forest besides the sedation, but he knew it wasn't true and he wasn't going to lie. Nothing he could say would make any of this any better. Skye was the only one that could do that, and it was going to be a long while before anyone in the Eligius family was truly okay again.

"I'm sure your parents are just happy you're both here," Liam told her. "Just like I am."

Mar hugged Liam back, resting her head up against his chest and closing her teary eyes. "Thank you, Liam," she told him. "For everything." For being here, for comforting her, for saving their lives the other day. What had she done to deserve this wonderful man?

She knew she might not see much of him over the next couple months. He would be busy with the war, with protecting Cuir. She'd be pouring every ounce of time and energy she had into Skylar, to be there and do whatever she needed her to. But she was so glad he was here right now. Even if he couldn't undo what had happened, just having him here was so comforting, if only for a moment..

"I love you," she told him.

"I love you too," Liam said.

"Marisol, honey?"

A middle aged couple came walking down the hall, carrying snacks and coffees. Liam pulled away from Marisol a bit, out of respect, but still stood close to her. They had to be Mar and Skye's parents, and as they got closer, Liam could pick out similarities the girls shared with each of them.

He smiled as they approached. He would let Marisol do the introductions.

Marisol sighed into Liam, her eyes still closed. She opened them and turned around when she heard her mom's voice and Liam let go of her.

"Has there been any more news?" her dad asked gently. He and her mom looked like they had aged ten years in the last several days.

Mar shook her head. "Not yet," she said, wishing there was something more she could tell them. All any of them wanted right now was to go in and see Skye. "Oh! Mom, Dad. This is Liam." She had told her parents about Liam in the past, but there had never been a good time for them to meet him. Not that this was a good time.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, Liam," her mom said, putting on a brave smile to be polite. "I'm Lucy."

"Eli," her dad introduced himself, shaking Liam's hand. "Marisol told us what you did for her and Skye. Sending in the special forces. You have no idea how grateful we are."

Liam wanted to divert the praise to Mar, but decided reminding Lucy and Eli that their daughter had risked her life only days ago was probably not the best thing to say.

"Of course," he said, instead. "I only wish there was more I could do for Skye." Liam wondered if any of the children here had woken up yet, if the doctors here were aware of the forced settling. Did Mar's parents know?

Just then, a doctor walked out of the Skye's hospital room. Liam grabbed Marisol's hand and squeezed as the doctor walked over to them.

"Mr. and Mrs. Eligius?" the doctor asked.

"Yes?" Eli and Lucy both said at the same time.

The doctor smiled at them, her eyes bright. "I wanted to let you know that Skylar is awake. She's still a bit hazy, but she's talking."

Lucy looked like she might faint into Eli's arms. "Can we see her?"

"Of course. But I want to remind you to be gentle. Speak softly, and don't question her about her time in Deilig. From what I can tell she doesn't remember too much of anything, and I believe that is better, for the time being.

"It's only family allowed, of course," she said, turning to look at Liam. The moment she recognized Liam was apparent, as her eyes grew wide. "Oh, Mr. Overloridian, I--,"

"It's no problem," Liam said, holding up a hand. "I should go." He turned to Mar and kissed the top of her head. "Tell Skye I'm thinking about her. I'll send word to you as soon as I can. Please, stay in Dian.

"It was nice meeting you, Lucy, Eli."

Lucy and Eli managed a nod in Liam's direction as he left before turning to the doctor for more information.

"There is one more thing I'd like to discuss before I let you in."

Lucy grabbed Eli's hand.

"Skylar has very obviously been through a traumatic even, whether she remembers it right now or not. It's extremely important to be delicate with her. We are not sure what happened, exactly. But I can confirm that Skylar settled while in Deilig."

The doctor went on to describe what they were slowly finding out as the school children awoke, one by one--that something had happened in Deilig to force them all to settle...as Deilig.

Mar's heart was hammering away from the moment the doctor appeared. Despite how glad she'd been to have Liam there for a while, she barely even registered that he'd left. Skye is awake. She was awake, and talking. Oh gods, she's okay. She's going to be okay. After seeing Skye's state in Deilig, Marisol hadn't been able to shake the fear that she would be like that forever. But now she was awake, and talking.

And...settled? As Deilig. They had forced her to settle as Deilig. How was that even possible?

There was no time to wonder how such a thing had happened. Mar, her mom and dad all entered Skylar's hospital room, careful not to make too much noise or move too quickly.

"Skye," Mar said in a choked up sort of way. She wanted nothing more than to run and hug her sister, but she didn't want to scare or hurt her, so she held back.

The doctor who had just been in had told Skye that her mom and dad and sister were all waiting outside, but when they walked in, her eyes filled with tears anyway. She wasn't sure why she was crying.

"Mom, Dad," she said, "Mar." Her head was still hazy, like she was experiencing everything from a distance, but she was so happy to see them. "I don't really know what's going on," she said, trying to laugh. "What's going on?"

Mar wanted to laugh and cry and cheer when Skye spoke to them. Though she still looked a little out of it, she actually sounded like herself again. She slowly made her way over and took Skye's hand, their parents close behind. "Is there anything you remember?" she asked gently. She remembered the doctors saying it was better that she didn't, for the time being. It probably was best not to tell her right away, and let things come back on their own, at least until the doctors told them otherwise. "There was...something happened. At school. You were hurt, but you're okay now. You're here with us."

She glanced over at Pensive. His settled form was some kind of bird. She wondered if even he knew he couldn't change forms anymore.

Skye shook her head, wiping her eyes with the hand Mar wasn't holding. "She told me something happened at school, but when I..." The room started spinning and Skye laid her head back down on her elevated bed. "Sorry, I'm just--I'm so..." She put a hand against her forehead. "I'm really dizzy."

Skye barely listened as her parents babbled on about how happy they were she was awake. If she tried to follow too closely she felt her stomach turn.

Pen hadn't spoken a word since they'd woke up, and Skye almost wished she could sit without talking too. He tucked his head under his wing and pretended like he couldn't hear anyone.

"What happened?" she finally asked, trying to sit back up, choosing to ignore for the moment her mom's babbling cry. It must be bad, whatever it was. She'd never felt like this before in her life.

"Shh, shh, try to relax," Mar told her as Skye tried to sit up. Though lucid, she was obviously still very confused. What on earth had those drugs done to her? She smoothed back Skye's hair. Their parents were crying behind her, and she was worried they would freak Skye out.

Skye wrote:
"What happened?"

Marisol bit her lip. What should she say? She didn't want to go against the doctors orders and overwhelm her, but she also didn't want to lie to her. "We don't know all the details, Skye," she said honestly. "You might start to remember in time." Though the doctors say it's better if you don't. "The doctors said...they said it was traumatic, what happened, and for now you should just rest and you'll start to feel better."

She looked back at her parents, who looked about as helpless as she felt. She wasn't even sure if Skye was actually understanding anything she was saying.

"I think I'd feel better if I could, if I could just...ugh," she sighed in frustration and fell back. "I don't understand!"

Her body felt like lead, and trying to piece together memories was like wading through slush. "Something happened at school?" she finally asked.

Marisol winced at Skye's frustrated outburst. She looked back at their parents again. "Mom, Dad?" she asked quietly. "I'm really sorry, but could I talk to Skye alone? Just for a little tiny bit?"

Her parents looked like they wanted to refuse, but after a few seconds they looked at each other and seemed to decide together to honor Mar's request. They each gave Skye a quick kiss on the forehead and whispered to her that they'd be back soon, they'd be right outside the door, and that they loved her before stepping out.

Now it was just Mar and her sister. Her confused, hurting sister. Mar still didn't want to tell her everything, but she thought that maybe she could help Skye through it on her own. And if the memories got too upsetting, she'd be right there to comfort her.

"Yeah, something happened at school," she told her. "Something bad. Me and you and Carter were there. We're all okay now though."

Skye let her parents kiss her. She was relieved they were leaving, if only so she could have a little quiet. She furrowed her brow, pushing past the beating headache that was starting. "I remember being afraid," she said. "I don't know why. Can't you just tell me?"

What was Mar being so freaking cryptic? Was this some sort of secret she was supposed to figure out for herself?

Mar, Carter, and her. Something bad at school. All Skye felt was a sickening feeling in her stomach, something like dread. But she couldn't figure out why. It was so frustrating.

Mar bit her lip again. "The doctor said it might be too overwhelming," she said, placing the blame on the doctors for not being able to just tell Skye everything. She wished she could, to put her mind at ease, but she was pretty sure it would actually have the opposite effect. Even just mentioning "something bad at school" had made Skylar look a little afraid!

"Some clio broke into the school," she said hesitantly, still trying to be as vague as possible while still satisfying Skylar's questioning. "They hurt some of the students. They hurt you, Skye. But you're safe now, and all the bad clio are gone."

She knew she was talking to Skye like she was a child, but Skye just seemed very childlike to her right now. Lost, confused and vulnerable.

Skylar tried pushing deeper. She remembered now, though not clearly, fearing for Mar and Carter. That was the twisting feeling in her stomach--she'd been so afraid of not seeing them again.

"I wish I could..." she tried to explain. "I wish I could tell you what this feels like," she said. "I'm so, it's so..." She shook her head. It was pointless and exhausting to try to explain.

"I'm glad you're here," she settled on. She closed her eyes. "I'm glad we're okay."

Mar watched Skye's brow furrow in concentration. Was something coming back to her? Mar wasn't sure if that would be a good thing or a bad thing. She watched her eventually seem to give up and fall back into frustration.

"It's okay!" she assured Skye, taking her hand and squeezing it. "I know I can't even begin to know what you must feel like right now, but I'm here anyways. And you'll start feeling better soon, I promise." Could she really promise that though? She had no idea if Skye would ever remember everything, and even if she did, she didn't know if that would make Skye feel better or worse.

"I'm glad too," she said, smiling. The tears started coming again. "I love you, Skye. You're the best sister in the whole world." Mar couldn't even count how many times she had told Skye exactly the opposite, either jokingly or in the heat of an argument.