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randomweavingFic: Changeling
Characters: John Dorian/Perry Cox
Rating: NC-17 (eventually)
Chapter Rating: PG-13 (language)
Description: This is a wildly AU story with fantastical elements based on![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
thuri's Nano writing project. It begins late in season three, before Carla and Turk's wedding, and from there follows the characters as they face the Change, a strange, magical phenomenon that is turning ordinary humans into half-human creatures from fantasy.
Chapter listings: Contents Post
Perry didn't recognize the child's face, and at first, alarmed, he thought she was choking. But then, as she laughed at him, he realized she was fine--she was simply blue.
"Who are you?" he asked.
She giggled at him, and vanished, scampering into the trees that surrounded them. Worried she could get lost or hurt, Perry started after her, following the sound of her giggling, but she remained elusive, always just out of sight. He thought he would feel frustrated, but instead he found himself wanting to laugh; it felt strangely like playing peek-a-boo with Jack.
"Come on!" she giggled whenever he slowed, and he obeyed each time, following her through the trees.
"Wait," he called eventually, laughing. "Wait for me, would you?"
She appeared, then, directly in front of him, and her laughing face grew serious, almost sad. "I can't," she said softly. "Not for much longer. You have to find me."
"How?" he asked. "How can I find you."
She studied him for a moment. Then, quite abruptly, a pair of delicate, gossamer wings appeared from her back, through the thin, wispy fabric of her layered gown; as he watched, they began to flutter rapidly, and the child rose into the air so she was at eye level with him, a soft glow of light surrounding her and filling the air.
"Follow the song," she said, her voice suddenly sounding older, somehow--wiser.
"The song?" Perry asked, awed as the light grew around them so the trees were barely visible. "What song?"
She laughed as though he had said something very funny, and vanished once more, but the glow remained; as Perry stood, he suddenly realized he could hear music, the soft sound of many voices rising as though from the earth itself, harmonizing, filling him with a joy he couldn't ever recall having felt, saving perhaps the first time he'd kissed JD, or the first time he'd held his Jack, knowing he was the boy's father.
And then, abruptly as it appeared, it faded, taking the light with it. After a few moments, he was standing alone in the darkened forest, the sounds of the night surrounding him, and the soft echo of the child's laughter, and her voice:
"Find us. Follow the song."
* * *
Perry woke, then, heart beating rapidly, the memory of the dream vivid; he strained to hear through the darkness, thinking trying to catch a snatch of the song, or the child's laughter.
But the only sound that met his ears was the gentle rhythm of JD's breathing, and the soft sounds of the house settling around them.
He glanced automatically toward the window, but it was still dark; a quick look at the clock told him it was only 4:45 in the morning.
He rolled to one side, bumping into one of JD's wings as he did so, and glanced at the younger man. JD was still asleep on his stomach, back rising and falling gently, lips parted a little. Perry swallowed, reaching out to gently stroke some of the hair away from JD's forehead; JD sighed, smiling a little, and snuggled himself more firmly into the pillows, mumbling something that might have been Perry's name. Perry smiled in turn, though it was tense, and bent to press a quick kiss to JD's temple.
Then, sliding carefully out of bed and adjusting the covers over his lover, he pulled on his clothing and headed downstairs, pausing only long enough to don his boots and a heavy coat before slipping out into the frigid morning air.
* * *
JD awoke to the faint sounds of the television in the den. He blinked, stretching, rolling toward Perry's side of the bed and reaching for his lover.
Only to have his arm meet with empty sheets, already cool.
He opened his eyes, frowning, and realized he was alone in bed. Propping himself up on one elbow, he peered at the alarm clock on the bedside table, wondering if perhaps he'd overslept again. But the clock read 8:42am. Not exactly the crack of dawn, sure, but certainly not too late for Perry to still be asleep beside him.
Besides, most mornings when Perry awoke before he did, the older man would stay in bed and hold him until he woke up, claiming JD was a good natural blanket, and a better source of heat than any fireplace or furnace. JD had always snorted at him and accused him of simply secretly liking to cuddle, and despite the fact that the claim would inevitably earn him a scowl, he'd always assumed it was true.
He shook himself, kicking off the remainder of the covers, which slid to the floor in a heap. He was being dramatic, that was all. So sure, things hadn't been going as smoothly as they were before, but it wasn't like there weren't good reasons for it.
He just wished Perry would tell them what the reasons were.
He pushed himself out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom, relieving himself and splashing water over his face before returning to pull on a pair of boxers and one of Perry's wing-modified hoodies.
As he shrugged into the oversized shirt, flapping a little to get it settled, he wondered if the fact that Perry hadn't Changed was truly the source of the older man's odd behavior, as he'd claimed. His Change was certainly progressing slower than the rest of theirs had--maybe due to his age, or maybe as a side effect of the rejection--and they were leaving him behind fairly often, in conversation and in their trips to the field.
Could that really be all it was? Jealousy?
That was what Perry claimed, but JD sighed, wishing he could feel sure of that. Even for Perry, who was hardly renowned for being particularly emotionally stable, it would be a little extreme. Perry was barely speaking to him, and apart from last night, which JD knew had been more for a distraction than anything else, they'd not had sex in nearly a week. Not to mention the fact that Perry didn't seem to be eating enough, and he seemed to be getting fatigued more easily than he had. Those two symptoms could be related--JD remembered getting plenty tired, himself, when he'd been trying to survive in that dingy hotel on barely enough food to keep a normal human going--but JD wasn't sure why Perry was starving himself in the first place. It couldn't be their food supply; Perry knew they had more on the way.
Then what was it?
He shook his head again, walking out of the master bedroom and heading down the stairs, determined to ask Perry about it and make him answer, this time. But when he walked into the den, it wasn't Perry he found, but the 'taurs, curled up with Jack bouncing nearby in his playpen, watching CNN.
Of all the news stations, CNN was the only one that still had semi-regular broadcasts. None of them were certain how long it would last, as several of the anchors and correspondents were clearly beginning to Change, but they were determined to keep up with what was happening in the world as best they could for as long as they could.
JD paused in the kitchen long enough to fix himself a bowl of Lucky Charms before wandering into the den, settling down next to Elliot. Turk and Carla were sprawled nearby, Carla leaning against Turk's chest as he played absently with her hair. He nodded to them when they smiled in greeting, but when he started to ask about Perry, they shushed him, pointing to the TV.
He lifted his eyebrows, but obeyed, turning his attention to the screen. And soon was rather enthralled himself. The newscaster was reporting on Rejection, and there were two eco-biologists (one with scales visible on his forearms, the other with oddly shifting lumps on his back beneath his jacket) speculating on the causes and treatments.
"They've been talking about your treatment," Elliot whispered to him, as the camera zoomed in on a half-mermaid teen under sedation, peg feed in her stomach. "They think it might be altering the Change rate."
"We already knew that," JD whispered back, frowning as the camera turned to a nearby nurse who was being interviewed. "Perry's Change slowed way down, remember?"
"These guys are saying it might even have stopped it, though," Turk mumbled, frowning at the screen. "Completely."
"What?" JD scoffed, shaking his head. "How--but Perry would've told me, if his Change had stopped..."
He trailed off, troubled, suddenly not quite sure he believed himself. He returned his attention to the news, listening to the various theories, taking mental notes and adding them to the observations he'd made on his own when he'd been treating Perry.
When the program ended, Turk flipped off the television, and they sat in silence for a moment, absorbing the new information. Finally, Elliot said, "Do you think...do you think it's true, then? The treatment is stopping some people's changes?"
"Sounds like it's stopping all of them, from what they were saying," Carla said, nodding at the TV set; the program had ended with the scaly-armed biologist commenting that as of yet, there'd been no documented cases of a Rejection patient completing his or her Change.
JD frowned again. "But...why wouldn't it have stopped Perry's, then?"
"It did."
Simultaneously, the four of them turned their heads sharply to see Perry leaning against the doorframe to the den, arms folded across his chest. His face grew slightly flushed as they stared at him agape, but he met their gazes solidly, eyes drifting from face to face before finally settling on JD's and remaining there.
JD stared at him, unable to make himself speak, trying to sort the strange swell of emotions Perry's words had caused in him. Confusion. Worry. Guilt, that it might've been his treatment that halted the Change.
Hurt, that Perry hadn't told him.
"Are...are you sure?" Elliot finally said, when it became clear that no one else was going to speak. "How do you know?"
"My wings haven't grown any since I woke up," Perry said, looking down at last, arms remaining folded across his chest. "I haven't been especially hungry, either, since about the first day or so. No more than usual, I mean."
JD shivered, resisting the urge to wrap his own wings around his body and biting his bottom lip. "I'm...I'm sorry," he murmured. "If my treatment did this to you..." No wonder Perry was upset. Stuck halfway through his Change, and now it looked like it was his fault... "I didn't mean..."
Surprisingly, it was Elliot who cut him off. "Don't be an idiot, JD, it's not your fault," she said, frowning. "And it doesn't make sense that it'd be your treatment that's doing it...it's just a sedative and tube feeding. You came up with it, but it's hardly revolutionary, and there's nothing dangerous about it. I'd guess it's rejection itself that stops the Change, not your treatment. The treatment just lets people live through it, instead."
JD nodded, slowly, the egg of guilt he'd been about to swallow dissolving. But he couldn't help thinking of people stuck, half between one thing and another...
Still. It had to be better than dying. Right?
Perry watched JD, wanting to go to him, to comfort him, but knowing he couldn't. Not if what he suspected was true--not if he was going to have to do what he feared he might. "Whatever caused it, I'd say there's no arguing at this point that it's true," he said softly.
"Maybe...maybe there's a way to start it up again?" JD suggested, not sounding terribly hopeful even to himself. But he couldn't help thinking that maybe Perry did blame him, and if he could find a way to fix it...
"Hey, yeah!" Elliot said. "If you can subconsciously turn it off, maybe you can somehow turn it back on again."
"I'm all ears," Perry said dryly. "If you have any ideas, fire away."
Elliot looked a little crestfallen, and glanced at JD for assistance.
"I don't know," JD admitted, chewing on his lip. "But there has to be a way, if we can just find it..."
Turk snorted. "People are already looking," he protested. "People who're way better at research than all of us, even if we did have the right equipment to do it here. Dr. Cox, dude, it sucks for now, but they'll figure it out. Least you're still mobile."
JD winced, knowing his best friend meant well, but knowing Perry wasn't likely to take it that way. He glanced back up, waiting for Perry's reaction, but apart from a slight stiffening of his shoulders, there wasn't one.
Carla elbowed Turk sharply in the ribs. "I think what he meant to say," she said, glowering at the now-gasping surgeon, "is we're more than happy to help you look for a way to get it going again." Then, looking back up at Perry, she offered him a smile. "I mean, what else are we going to do out here? Might as well give it a shot, right?"
Elliot nodded, perking up a little. "There's got to be something," she said. "I don't know--maybe hypnosis?"
"Oh, good one, Elliot," Turk wheezed. "You know any hypnotherapists?"
"Okay, what about chiropractors?" Elliot pressed. "They can supposedly fix anything."
"Give me a break! Chiropractors?" Turk shook his head, looking disdainful. "Come on, you're a real doctor."
"Hey! I go to a chiropractor!" Elliot protested.
"If you kids don't stop arguing I'm turning this discussion around," Carla warned, waggling a finger at them.
JD bit his lip, trying not to giggle. "Guys, I appreciate it," he said. "But maybe we should try one thing at a time."
"Don't bother."
JD looked back at Perry, the urge to giggle disappearing abruptly. "You don't want to...?" he started, looking confused.
"That doesn't make any sense," Elliot said, frowning, her tail swishing softly. "Why would you want to be stuck?"
"I don't," Perry said simply. "But we don't have any real way of figuring this thing out while we're stuck in the middle of the mountains in some freak blizzard, do we? Forget it. Like Gandhi said: At least I'm mobile."
The tone of Perry's voice did not allow for argument, and JD slipped his wings over his shoulders, making a half-cocoon of them as the others shrugged and turned their attention to other things, apparently accepting the older doctor's answer. Carla and Elliot rose after a few minutes and headed to the kitchen to clean up, Perry following them, moving around them carefully as he assembled his own breakfast. JD sighed, not even pretending to listen to their conversation. He shot the occasional glance at Perry, but the older doctor didn't look over at him, doing his best to navigate the kitchen as Carla and Elliot began washing their breakfast dishes. So much for reconnecting with him.
At least now I know why he's been so distant...
He was just thinking of heading upstairs to shower when the sudden chirp of a cell phone startled him from his thoughts. Everyone paused, staring at the coffee table, where Elliot's phone sat blinking. JD, closest, glanced at her, then leaned forward and picked it up. Then barely bit back a gasp, when he saw what the ID was blinking.
Sean.
"Holy sh...!" JD scrambled to flip open the phone, thumbing 'talk' and bringing the cell to his ear quickly. "Sean?!"
From the kitchen, Elliot gave a high-pitched gasp, and Perry and Carla had to throw themselves out of her way as she thundered around them in her hurry to get to the couch.
"JD? Is that you?" Sean's voice was confused, and the connection was a little bit unsteady, but it was definitely him. JD's eyes widened, and despite the circumstances he felt a broad grin split his face, sheer relief and happiness for Elliot making him feel almost giddy.
"Yeah," he replied, laughing a little, giving Elliot a thumbs up. "Here's Elliot."
She had been practically dancing in place, hooves thumping against the carpet, eyes wide; she snatched the phone as soon as JD offered it. "Sean?" she said breathlessly, voice high-pitched and tight with tears. There was a moment's silence, then she released a sound that was half laugh, half sob. "Hi," she said. "God, Sean...where are you?" She paused, listening, then gasped softly. "You're at my apartment?"
JD blinked, casting a glance at Turk, who looked surprised. The last they'd heard from Sean, he was in New Zealand, and almost all commercial flights had been grounded in the wake of the Changeling phenomenon.
He turned his attention back to Elliot, who had tears running down her cheeks as she smiled widely. "I'm fine, I promise, I'm in the mountains...We got out of the city because of the...Are you okay?" A pause, and Elliot's eyebrows lifted. "You do? Yeah...hang on, I'll get directions for you."
JD jumped up and grabbed paper to write them down on, frowning for a moment and turning to Perry when he couldn't remember a street name. Perry moved forward and wordlessly took the pad from him, finishing the directions as Elliot kept talking. She was practically glowing with happiness, tail swishing and hooves shifting as she spoke.
"Yeah," she breathed. Then she laughed. "Yeah. We're safe here. What? Oh..." she moved the receiver, looking at JD and blinking a little. "Do we need anything?"
JD chuckled, knowing groceries were probably the last thing on her mind. "Maybe a few things--eggs, milk, cheese. Fresh veggies and fruit, if he can find any. We're good on everything but perishables. Oh, and gas for the generator, if he can get it. We could lose power any time."
Elliot nodded, relaying that information to Sean. Then blushing a little. "Oh! No, it's not just me and JD--Turk, Carla and Dr. Cox and his son Jack are here too. It's Dr. Cox's cabin." Another pause, then a giggle. "Yeah. He let us come out here--JD was already here. He and Dr. Cox are sort of a thing now."
JD blushed, glancing at Perry, who caught his eye and smiled slightly. JD smiled back, biting his lip shyly, and for a moment, he forgot everything that was strained between them. He turned his attention back to Elliot, relaxing a little, feeling a new swell of genuine happiness for her.
"Mmmhmm," she was saying. "The roads aren't great, but if you drive slowly...okay. Here's how you get here..." She started reading off the directions from the pad of paper JD'd handed her.
Carla moved forward, coming to stand next to JD, hooking her arm into his. "Wow," she murmured. "He's all right. She's been so worried..."
JD nodded, smile growing. "Yeah," he replied. "It's hard, not being able to find the people you care about when the world's gone crazy."
"No shit," Turk murmured, beaming at their friend.
Elliot chatted on, oblivious to being the center of attention, for a few more minutes before hanging up the phone. She stared at it for a few minutes, a huge grin fixed on her face, then looked up, finally realizing she was under scrutiny. She beamed at them, and fresh tears welled from her eyes. "He's okay!" she squeaked, prancing in place. "He's coming here, he'll be here this afternoon!"
JD grinned, moving forward and throwing his arms around her, hugging her tightly. Elliot hugged him back, half-laughing, half-crying.
Turk's eyes lit up, and he bounded forward. "That's great!" he cried, and JD got out of the way so Turk could hug her, too. Carla followed, and the four of them congratulated Elliot while Perry stood against the bar, arms folded across his chest, watching with a small smile on his face.
But he wasn't on the outskirts long, as Elliot pulled away from the others and moved forward, hugging him enthusiastically.
Perry was clearly startled, but Elliot was unabashed; she held him tightly, still crying a little, and he finally brought his arms up around her shoulders. "Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you for letting him come here."
Perry chuckled a little, pulling away. "'Letting him?' Barbie, you gave me no choice!" But his smile softened, and he reached out to squeeze her shoulder for a moment before dropping his arm to his side again. "Come on, kid, I could hardly tell him no," he said. "Though it sounds like he doesn't need to hide yet, huh?"
"I don't know," Elliot admitted, frowning a little. "He said he was okay, but different...so I guess maybe he's Changed. But he can still drive..." She blushed. "I was so happy to hear from him I forgot to ask for sure. I forgot to tell him about me..." She looked down at her hooves, frown deepening. "I hope..."
JD slipped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. "He'll love you no matter what. Don't worry about it."
Perry looked at JD quickly when the younger man said that; JD looked back intently, hoping Perry could read the message in his eyes, and would know he wasn't just talking about Sean.
Perry looked away.
"You think so?" Elliot asked, looking nervous still but hopeful; she shifted a little, one hand coming up to her mouth, nibbling her nails.
"I know so," JD said fervently. "Do you care what his Change might be?" He paused, and Elliot shook her head immediately. "No," JD agreed. "You're just happy he's alive, that you'll get to be with him again. The rest is all extra." He hugged her again, before letting her go. "Come on," he said softly. "Let's finish cleaning up, then you guys can go running for a bit."
Turk frowned at him, moving toward the kitchen, where Carla had already resumed washing their dishes. "You're not coming?"
"No," JD replied, grinning a little. "I think we've proven you're my biotch, so I'm sticking around here today. Besides, it'll give me time to go through our supplies. That food delivery should be coming in today, and it'll help to have what we've got organized."
"Maybe you should go," Perry said softly. "I mean," he added quickly when JD stared at him, "it might be best if you're all out of pocket when the delivery shows up. Take a picnic up there or something." He winced slightly at the look JD was giving him--the young man looked stricken--but Perry needed some time alone to think. Everything he said was true--it would be best if there wasn't a menagerie of half-humans hanging around when their delivery arrived, and going through their supplies would be easier without them tripping over one another.
But that wasn't the real reason, and Perry knew it. The truth of the matter was that if JD was underfoot, Perry'd have no chance to look into his developing theories about his Change--why it had stopped, and how he might start it again, as well as what might happen to him, if he didn't.
He didn't want JD to be here, if his research confirmed what he feared to be true.
JD tried to ignore the way his friends were looking from Perry to him and back again, pity and worry in their eyes. "I don't think the delivery guy'll be coming upstairs, and I wasn't planning on parading around in front of him..." he started, then sighed and shook his head. "But whatever. Let me know when you're ready to leave, guys." He headed upstairs, not looking back.
Perry swallowed, looking away from the accusing stares of the others. "I'm actually not terribly hungry," he muttered, setting his untouched bowl of cereal back on the counter. "Think I'll go check on our wood supply."
Without looking back, he grabbed his coat and walked out the sliding door, crossing the snow-covered lawn (now trampled from repeated outings by the 'taurs) to the tool shed.
Once there, however, he simply folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the building, lost in thought.
Upstairs in the master bedroom, JD tugged on warmer clothes, and opened the French windows wide, glad again the Sullivans liked their luxury. Even with his wings, he could climb through. And he did, pausing on the roof after closing them again, looking down to see Perry staring up at him. For a long moment he stood there gazing back, wind whipping snow around him, before he shook his head and jumped off the roof, wings snapping open and taking him high into the air.
Perry watched him go, keeping his eyes on him until he vanished from sight, before lowering his head into his hands. He did not cry, though he had to swallow several times against the tightening of his throat.
"God," he murmured. "How did I manage to fuck things up so quickly?"
The only answer was the faint rustle of the wind through the tree branches.
* * *
Next Chapter
* * *
Characters: John Dorian/Perry Cox
Rating: NC-17 (eventually)
Chapter Rating: PG-13 (language)
Description: This is a wildly AU story with fantastical elements based on
thuri's Nano writing project. It begins late in season three, before Carla and Turk's wedding, and from there follows the characters as they face the Change, a strange, magical phenomenon that is turning ordinary humans into half-human creatures from fantasy.Chapter listings: Contents Post
Perry didn't recognize the child's face, and at first, alarmed, he thought she was choking. But then, as she laughed at him, he realized she was fine--she was simply blue.
"Who are you?" he asked.
She giggled at him, and vanished, scampering into the trees that surrounded them. Worried she could get lost or hurt, Perry started after her, following the sound of her giggling, but she remained elusive, always just out of sight. He thought he would feel frustrated, but instead he found himself wanting to laugh; it felt strangely like playing peek-a-boo with Jack.
"Come on!" she giggled whenever he slowed, and he obeyed each time, following her through the trees.
"Wait," he called eventually, laughing. "Wait for me, would you?"
She appeared, then, directly in front of him, and her laughing face grew serious, almost sad. "I can't," she said softly. "Not for much longer. You have to find me."
"How?" he asked. "How can I find you."
She studied him for a moment. Then, quite abruptly, a pair of delicate, gossamer wings appeared from her back, through the thin, wispy fabric of her layered gown; as he watched, they began to flutter rapidly, and the child rose into the air so she was at eye level with him, a soft glow of light surrounding her and filling the air.
"Follow the song," she said, her voice suddenly sounding older, somehow--wiser.
"The song?" Perry asked, awed as the light grew around them so the trees were barely visible. "What song?"
She laughed as though he had said something very funny, and vanished once more, but the glow remained; as Perry stood, he suddenly realized he could hear music, the soft sound of many voices rising as though from the earth itself, harmonizing, filling him with a joy he couldn't ever recall having felt, saving perhaps the first time he'd kissed JD, or the first time he'd held his Jack, knowing he was the boy's father.
And then, abruptly as it appeared, it faded, taking the light with it. After a few moments, he was standing alone in the darkened forest, the sounds of the night surrounding him, and the soft echo of the child's laughter, and her voice:
"Find us. Follow the song."
* * *
Perry woke, then, heart beating rapidly, the memory of the dream vivid; he strained to hear through the darkness, thinking trying to catch a snatch of the song, or the child's laughter.
But the only sound that met his ears was the gentle rhythm of JD's breathing, and the soft sounds of the house settling around them.
He glanced automatically toward the window, but it was still dark; a quick look at the clock told him it was only 4:45 in the morning.
He rolled to one side, bumping into one of JD's wings as he did so, and glanced at the younger man. JD was still asleep on his stomach, back rising and falling gently, lips parted a little. Perry swallowed, reaching out to gently stroke some of the hair away from JD's forehead; JD sighed, smiling a little, and snuggled himself more firmly into the pillows, mumbling something that might have been Perry's name. Perry smiled in turn, though it was tense, and bent to press a quick kiss to JD's temple.
Then, sliding carefully out of bed and adjusting the covers over his lover, he pulled on his clothing and headed downstairs, pausing only long enough to don his boots and a heavy coat before slipping out into the frigid morning air.
* * *
JD awoke to the faint sounds of the television in the den. He blinked, stretching, rolling toward Perry's side of the bed and reaching for his lover.
Only to have his arm meet with empty sheets, already cool.
He opened his eyes, frowning, and realized he was alone in bed. Propping himself up on one elbow, he peered at the alarm clock on the bedside table, wondering if perhaps he'd overslept again. But the clock read 8:42am. Not exactly the crack of dawn, sure, but certainly not too late for Perry to still be asleep beside him.
Besides, most mornings when Perry awoke before he did, the older man would stay in bed and hold him until he woke up, claiming JD was a good natural blanket, and a better source of heat than any fireplace or furnace. JD had always snorted at him and accused him of simply secretly liking to cuddle, and despite the fact that the claim would inevitably earn him a scowl, he'd always assumed it was true.
He shook himself, kicking off the remainder of the covers, which slid to the floor in a heap. He was being dramatic, that was all. So sure, things hadn't been going as smoothly as they were before, but it wasn't like there weren't good reasons for it.
He just wished Perry would tell them what the reasons were.
He pushed himself out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom, relieving himself and splashing water over his face before returning to pull on a pair of boxers and one of Perry's wing-modified hoodies.
As he shrugged into the oversized shirt, flapping a little to get it settled, he wondered if the fact that Perry hadn't Changed was truly the source of the older man's odd behavior, as he'd claimed. His Change was certainly progressing slower than the rest of theirs had--maybe due to his age, or maybe as a side effect of the rejection--and they were leaving him behind fairly often, in conversation and in their trips to the field.
Could that really be all it was? Jealousy?
That was what Perry claimed, but JD sighed, wishing he could feel sure of that. Even for Perry, who was hardly renowned for being particularly emotionally stable, it would be a little extreme. Perry was barely speaking to him, and apart from last night, which JD knew had been more for a distraction than anything else, they'd not had sex in nearly a week. Not to mention the fact that Perry didn't seem to be eating enough, and he seemed to be getting fatigued more easily than he had. Those two symptoms could be related--JD remembered getting plenty tired, himself, when he'd been trying to survive in that dingy hotel on barely enough food to keep a normal human going--but JD wasn't sure why Perry was starving himself in the first place. It couldn't be their food supply; Perry knew they had more on the way.
Then what was it?
He shook his head again, walking out of the master bedroom and heading down the stairs, determined to ask Perry about it and make him answer, this time. But when he walked into the den, it wasn't Perry he found, but the 'taurs, curled up with Jack bouncing nearby in his playpen, watching CNN.
Of all the news stations, CNN was the only one that still had semi-regular broadcasts. None of them were certain how long it would last, as several of the anchors and correspondents were clearly beginning to Change, but they were determined to keep up with what was happening in the world as best they could for as long as they could.
JD paused in the kitchen long enough to fix himself a bowl of Lucky Charms before wandering into the den, settling down next to Elliot. Turk and Carla were sprawled nearby, Carla leaning against Turk's chest as he played absently with her hair. He nodded to them when they smiled in greeting, but when he started to ask about Perry, they shushed him, pointing to the TV.
He lifted his eyebrows, but obeyed, turning his attention to the screen. And soon was rather enthralled himself. The newscaster was reporting on Rejection, and there were two eco-biologists (one with scales visible on his forearms, the other with oddly shifting lumps on his back beneath his jacket) speculating on the causes and treatments.
"They've been talking about your treatment," Elliot whispered to him, as the camera zoomed in on a half-mermaid teen under sedation, peg feed in her stomach. "They think it might be altering the Change rate."
"We already knew that," JD whispered back, frowning as the camera turned to a nearby nurse who was being interviewed. "Perry's Change slowed way down, remember?"
"These guys are saying it might even have stopped it, though," Turk mumbled, frowning at the screen. "Completely."
"What?" JD scoffed, shaking his head. "How--but Perry would've told me, if his Change had stopped..."
He trailed off, troubled, suddenly not quite sure he believed himself. He returned his attention to the news, listening to the various theories, taking mental notes and adding them to the observations he'd made on his own when he'd been treating Perry.
When the program ended, Turk flipped off the television, and they sat in silence for a moment, absorbing the new information. Finally, Elliot said, "Do you think...do you think it's true, then? The treatment is stopping some people's changes?"
"Sounds like it's stopping all of them, from what they were saying," Carla said, nodding at the TV set; the program had ended with the scaly-armed biologist commenting that as of yet, there'd been no documented cases of a Rejection patient completing his or her Change.
JD frowned again. "But...why wouldn't it have stopped Perry's, then?"
"It did."
Simultaneously, the four of them turned their heads sharply to see Perry leaning against the doorframe to the den, arms folded across his chest. His face grew slightly flushed as they stared at him agape, but he met their gazes solidly, eyes drifting from face to face before finally settling on JD's and remaining there.
JD stared at him, unable to make himself speak, trying to sort the strange swell of emotions Perry's words had caused in him. Confusion. Worry. Guilt, that it might've been his treatment that halted the Change.
Hurt, that Perry hadn't told him.
"Are...are you sure?" Elliot finally said, when it became clear that no one else was going to speak. "How do you know?"
"My wings haven't grown any since I woke up," Perry said, looking down at last, arms remaining folded across his chest. "I haven't been especially hungry, either, since about the first day or so. No more than usual, I mean."
JD shivered, resisting the urge to wrap his own wings around his body and biting his bottom lip. "I'm...I'm sorry," he murmured. "If my treatment did this to you..." No wonder Perry was upset. Stuck halfway through his Change, and now it looked like it was his fault... "I didn't mean..."
Surprisingly, it was Elliot who cut him off. "Don't be an idiot, JD, it's not your fault," she said, frowning. "And it doesn't make sense that it'd be your treatment that's doing it...it's just a sedative and tube feeding. You came up with it, but it's hardly revolutionary, and there's nothing dangerous about it. I'd guess it's rejection itself that stops the Change, not your treatment. The treatment just lets people live through it, instead."
JD nodded, slowly, the egg of guilt he'd been about to swallow dissolving. But he couldn't help thinking of people stuck, half between one thing and another...
Still. It had to be better than dying. Right?
Perry watched JD, wanting to go to him, to comfort him, but knowing he couldn't. Not if what he suspected was true--not if he was going to have to do what he feared he might. "Whatever caused it, I'd say there's no arguing at this point that it's true," he said softly.
"Maybe...maybe there's a way to start it up again?" JD suggested, not sounding terribly hopeful even to himself. But he couldn't help thinking that maybe Perry did blame him, and if he could find a way to fix it...
"Hey, yeah!" Elliot said. "If you can subconsciously turn it off, maybe you can somehow turn it back on again."
"I'm all ears," Perry said dryly. "If you have any ideas, fire away."
Elliot looked a little crestfallen, and glanced at JD for assistance.
"I don't know," JD admitted, chewing on his lip. "But there has to be a way, if we can just find it..."
Turk snorted. "People are already looking," he protested. "People who're way better at research than all of us, even if we did have the right equipment to do it here. Dr. Cox, dude, it sucks for now, but they'll figure it out. Least you're still mobile."
JD winced, knowing his best friend meant well, but knowing Perry wasn't likely to take it that way. He glanced back up, waiting for Perry's reaction, but apart from a slight stiffening of his shoulders, there wasn't one.
Carla elbowed Turk sharply in the ribs. "I think what he meant to say," she said, glowering at the now-gasping surgeon, "is we're more than happy to help you look for a way to get it going again." Then, looking back up at Perry, she offered him a smile. "I mean, what else are we going to do out here? Might as well give it a shot, right?"
Elliot nodded, perking up a little. "There's got to be something," she said. "I don't know--maybe hypnosis?"
"Oh, good one, Elliot," Turk wheezed. "You know any hypnotherapists?"
"Okay, what about chiropractors?" Elliot pressed. "They can supposedly fix anything."
"Give me a break! Chiropractors?" Turk shook his head, looking disdainful. "Come on, you're a real doctor."
"Hey! I go to a chiropractor!" Elliot protested.
"If you kids don't stop arguing I'm turning this discussion around," Carla warned, waggling a finger at them.
JD bit his lip, trying not to giggle. "Guys, I appreciate it," he said. "But maybe we should try one thing at a time."
"Don't bother."
JD looked back at Perry, the urge to giggle disappearing abruptly. "You don't want to...?" he started, looking confused.
"That doesn't make any sense," Elliot said, frowning, her tail swishing softly. "Why would you want to be stuck?"
"I don't," Perry said simply. "But we don't have any real way of figuring this thing out while we're stuck in the middle of the mountains in some freak blizzard, do we? Forget it. Like Gandhi said: At least I'm mobile."
The tone of Perry's voice did not allow for argument, and JD slipped his wings over his shoulders, making a half-cocoon of them as the others shrugged and turned their attention to other things, apparently accepting the older doctor's answer. Carla and Elliot rose after a few minutes and headed to the kitchen to clean up, Perry following them, moving around them carefully as he assembled his own breakfast. JD sighed, not even pretending to listen to their conversation. He shot the occasional glance at Perry, but the older doctor didn't look over at him, doing his best to navigate the kitchen as Carla and Elliot began washing their breakfast dishes. So much for reconnecting with him.
At least now I know why he's been so distant...
He was just thinking of heading upstairs to shower when the sudden chirp of a cell phone startled him from his thoughts. Everyone paused, staring at the coffee table, where Elliot's phone sat blinking. JD, closest, glanced at her, then leaned forward and picked it up. Then barely bit back a gasp, when he saw what the ID was blinking.
Sean.
"Holy sh...!" JD scrambled to flip open the phone, thumbing 'talk' and bringing the cell to his ear quickly. "Sean?!"
From the kitchen, Elliot gave a high-pitched gasp, and Perry and Carla had to throw themselves out of her way as she thundered around them in her hurry to get to the couch.
"JD? Is that you?" Sean's voice was confused, and the connection was a little bit unsteady, but it was definitely him. JD's eyes widened, and despite the circumstances he felt a broad grin split his face, sheer relief and happiness for Elliot making him feel almost giddy.
"Yeah," he replied, laughing a little, giving Elliot a thumbs up. "Here's Elliot."
She had been practically dancing in place, hooves thumping against the carpet, eyes wide; she snatched the phone as soon as JD offered it. "Sean?" she said breathlessly, voice high-pitched and tight with tears. There was a moment's silence, then she released a sound that was half laugh, half sob. "Hi," she said. "God, Sean...where are you?" She paused, listening, then gasped softly. "You're at my apartment?"
JD blinked, casting a glance at Turk, who looked surprised. The last they'd heard from Sean, he was in New Zealand, and almost all commercial flights had been grounded in the wake of the Changeling phenomenon.
He turned his attention back to Elliot, who had tears running down her cheeks as she smiled widely. "I'm fine, I promise, I'm in the mountains...We got out of the city because of the...Are you okay?" A pause, and Elliot's eyebrows lifted. "You do? Yeah...hang on, I'll get directions for you."
JD jumped up and grabbed paper to write them down on, frowning for a moment and turning to Perry when he couldn't remember a street name. Perry moved forward and wordlessly took the pad from him, finishing the directions as Elliot kept talking. She was practically glowing with happiness, tail swishing and hooves shifting as she spoke.
"Yeah," she breathed. Then she laughed. "Yeah. We're safe here. What? Oh..." she moved the receiver, looking at JD and blinking a little. "Do we need anything?"
JD chuckled, knowing groceries were probably the last thing on her mind. "Maybe a few things--eggs, milk, cheese. Fresh veggies and fruit, if he can find any. We're good on everything but perishables. Oh, and gas for the generator, if he can get it. We could lose power any time."
Elliot nodded, relaying that information to Sean. Then blushing a little. "Oh! No, it's not just me and JD--Turk, Carla and Dr. Cox and his son Jack are here too. It's Dr. Cox's cabin." Another pause, then a giggle. "Yeah. He let us come out here--JD was already here. He and Dr. Cox are sort of a thing now."
JD blushed, glancing at Perry, who caught his eye and smiled slightly. JD smiled back, biting his lip shyly, and for a moment, he forgot everything that was strained between them. He turned his attention back to Elliot, relaxing a little, feeling a new swell of genuine happiness for her.
"Mmmhmm," she was saying. "The roads aren't great, but if you drive slowly...okay. Here's how you get here..." She started reading off the directions from the pad of paper JD'd handed her.
Carla moved forward, coming to stand next to JD, hooking her arm into his. "Wow," she murmured. "He's all right. She's been so worried..."
JD nodded, smile growing. "Yeah," he replied. "It's hard, not being able to find the people you care about when the world's gone crazy."
"No shit," Turk murmured, beaming at their friend.
Elliot chatted on, oblivious to being the center of attention, for a few more minutes before hanging up the phone. She stared at it for a few minutes, a huge grin fixed on her face, then looked up, finally realizing she was under scrutiny. She beamed at them, and fresh tears welled from her eyes. "He's okay!" she squeaked, prancing in place. "He's coming here, he'll be here this afternoon!"
JD grinned, moving forward and throwing his arms around her, hugging her tightly. Elliot hugged him back, half-laughing, half-crying.
Turk's eyes lit up, and he bounded forward. "That's great!" he cried, and JD got out of the way so Turk could hug her, too. Carla followed, and the four of them congratulated Elliot while Perry stood against the bar, arms folded across his chest, watching with a small smile on his face.
But he wasn't on the outskirts long, as Elliot pulled away from the others and moved forward, hugging him enthusiastically.
Perry was clearly startled, but Elliot was unabashed; she held him tightly, still crying a little, and he finally brought his arms up around her shoulders. "Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you for letting him come here."
Perry chuckled a little, pulling away. "'Letting him?' Barbie, you gave me no choice!" But his smile softened, and he reached out to squeeze her shoulder for a moment before dropping his arm to his side again. "Come on, kid, I could hardly tell him no," he said. "Though it sounds like he doesn't need to hide yet, huh?"
"I don't know," Elliot admitted, frowning a little. "He said he was okay, but different...so I guess maybe he's Changed. But he can still drive..." She blushed. "I was so happy to hear from him I forgot to ask for sure. I forgot to tell him about me..." She looked down at her hooves, frown deepening. "I hope..."
JD slipped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. "He'll love you no matter what. Don't worry about it."
Perry looked at JD quickly when the younger man said that; JD looked back intently, hoping Perry could read the message in his eyes, and would know he wasn't just talking about Sean.
Perry looked away.
"You think so?" Elliot asked, looking nervous still but hopeful; she shifted a little, one hand coming up to her mouth, nibbling her nails.
"I know so," JD said fervently. "Do you care what his Change might be?" He paused, and Elliot shook her head immediately. "No," JD agreed. "You're just happy he's alive, that you'll get to be with him again. The rest is all extra." He hugged her again, before letting her go. "Come on," he said softly. "Let's finish cleaning up, then you guys can go running for a bit."
Turk frowned at him, moving toward the kitchen, where Carla had already resumed washing their dishes. "You're not coming?"
"No," JD replied, grinning a little. "I think we've proven you're my biotch, so I'm sticking around here today. Besides, it'll give me time to go through our supplies. That food delivery should be coming in today, and it'll help to have what we've got organized."
"Maybe you should go," Perry said softly. "I mean," he added quickly when JD stared at him, "it might be best if you're all out of pocket when the delivery shows up. Take a picnic up there or something." He winced slightly at the look JD was giving him--the young man looked stricken--but Perry needed some time alone to think. Everything he said was true--it would be best if there wasn't a menagerie of half-humans hanging around when their delivery arrived, and going through their supplies would be easier without them tripping over one another.
But that wasn't the real reason, and Perry knew it. The truth of the matter was that if JD was underfoot, Perry'd have no chance to look into his developing theories about his Change--why it had stopped, and how he might start it again, as well as what might happen to him, if he didn't.
He didn't want JD to be here, if his research confirmed what he feared to be true.
JD tried to ignore the way his friends were looking from Perry to him and back again, pity and worry in their eyes. "I don't think the delivery guy'll be coming upstairs, and I wasn't planning on parading around in front of him..." he started, then sighed and shook his head. "But whatever. Let me know when you're ready to leave, guys." He headed upstairs, not looking back.
Perry swallowed, looking away from the accusing stares of the others. "I'm actually not terribly hungry," he muttered, setting his untouched bowl of cereal back on the counter. "Think I'll go check on our wood supply."
Without looking back, he grabbed his coat and walked out the sliding door, crossing the snow-covered lawn (now trampled from repeated outings by the 'taurs) to the tool shed.
Once there, however, he simply folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the building, lost in thought.
Upstairs in the master bedroom, JD tugged on warmer clothes, and opened the French windows wide, glad again the Sullivans liked their luxury. Even with his wings, he could climb through. And he did, pausing on the roof after closing them again, looking down to see Perry staring up at him. For a long moment he stood there gazing back, wind whipping snow around him, before he shook his head and jumped off the roof, wings snapping open and taking him high into the air.
Perry watched him go, keeping his eyes on him until he vanished from sight, before lowering his head into his hands. He did not cry, though he had to swallow several times against the tightening of his throat.
"God," he murmured. "How did I manage to fuck things up so quickly?"
The only answer was the faint rustle of the wind through the tree branches.
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