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Part 6 Rahne and Douglock

As Kitty sat quietly stroking Lockheed with one hand while holding Pete's limp hand in her other, she heard a soft knock at the door and Rahne stuck her head into the room. "D'ye want some company, Kitty, or would ye prefer to be alone?" Douglock was barely visible standing behind her, a glittering golden statue in the dim light of the hallway.

Right now, Kitty would have welcomed anything to distract her from her thoughts of having to deal with Peter and his problems, although she winced internally at the idea that her other option seemed to be listening to Rahne regurgitating one of her pastor's sermons on the many evils of fornication. "Come in, of course, you two. What are you doing still up?"

"A just chased Lady Moira into bed, finally, she was still up working on her medical records, wi' Dougie's help..." Rahne sounded justifiably proud of keeping an eye on her foster mother's welfare, even as she scowled at Douglock for encouraging Moira's labors.

"But Dr. MacTaggart specifically requested my assistance with the database, since friend Shadowcat was otherwise occupied." Douglock was obviously continuing their earlier argument, until Rahne hushed him.

"Come in and sit down, then, if you're not too tired. I'd like some company right now, really, I would." Rahne had stopped hesitantly halfway between the door and Pete's bed, perhaps hearing a bit of doubt beneath Kitty's deliberately cheerful voice, but Kitty waved her over to the chair that Meggan had used earlier. "It's nice to see you again, Rahne. You know, we haven't really had a chance to talk since you came to Muir."

Rahne came around the bed and sat down, Douglock taking up a stand leaning against the wall near her. "Aye, ye'd already left wi' Mr. Wisdom when A came, an' A dinna see ye around much after ye got back..."

Kitty blushed at that innocent remark, automatically rubbing her fingers against the roughened skin of Wisdom's hand as she remembered how the two of them had spent most of their time since getting back to Muir. Rahne and Douglock couldn't see the light that had appeared in her eyes at the recollection, as Kitty turned to stare down at Pete's white face. "But we all got to go out to the pub together tonight, and we'll have a lot more chances to get together now." Even as she spoke, Kitty wondered silently how she'd ever tear herself away from Pete's side again, after this.

"I recall when you wished me to proposition you during our previous expedition to that drinking establishment, but you did not accept my offer to simulate human male response, from a list of available safe practices complete with illustrations." Douglock ignored Rahne's shocked "Kitty?!" and went on calmly, "You will explain to me the difference between Mr. Wisdom's approach and my own, that led to evident success in the one case and rejection in the other?"

"I told you, Doug, that wasn't what I meant, you just misunderstood," Kitty sputtered amid startled giggles, both at Douglock's question and at the look on Rahne's face. "And you can ask Pete about his approach when he wakes up if you want, although I doubt he'll tell you anything useful." It cheered her up to look forward to that unlikely conversation, because it reassured her that Pete would recover.

"Is it a requirement of such expeditions to drinking establishments to engage in physical altercations afterwards?" Douglock asked curiously, interrupting Kitty's musings again.

"Hush, Dougie, an' dinna interrupt sae much. O' course 'tisn't a requirement. 'Twas a horrible misunderstanding, is all," Rahne answered him first, while Kitty chuckled quietly and then said, "No, Rahne, he's still remembering that other time I took him to a pub. I was the one got into a fight then, just after we left. And, no, it's not a requirement, Douglock, but I guess it is something that often happens, after drinking. But this was different. Rahne's right, it was just a giant, horrible misunderstanding that could have been a real tragedy." Clutching Pete's limp hand, she stared at the unconscious man's chest move slightly with each breath, reassuring herself yet again he had survived, and was going to be fine, Moira had promised her that.

Kitty looked over at Rahne, where she sat on the other side of the bed, her feet up on the chair seat and her arms wrapped around her legs in a characteristic pose. "I haven't even thanked you yet, Rahne, for helping Moira with Pete earlier, for helping her save him for me..." She reached out to stroke Pete's face with her fingertips yet again, gently, as the Scots girl watched curiously, but with no obvious signs of the rigid disapproval Kitty had half expected.

It wasn't obvious from Rahne's complexion, covered by thin silky fur in her halfling form, but Kitty thought she could see Rahne blush with pleasure at the acknowledgement, and her sudden smile was quite evident. "'Twas nothing really, Kitty, Lady Moira did all the work. But A was more worried aboot Peter a' first, A dinna ken quite how bad yuir Mr. Wisdom was hurt, an' A'm sorry for that."

Kitty was surprised at Rahne's response. "Well, of course you'd be more worried about Peter, Rahne. It's only natural, you've known him for a long time."

Rahne sighed, as she leaned closer and dropped her voice. "Aye, an' 'tis sae sad tae see him locked away like a monster, when he's hurting sae bad an' needs help sae much. A saw him just before Illyana's funeral, an' A hugged him an' told him how sorry A was aboot Illyana, e'en if she an' A hadna been sae close, an' he was cold, Kitty, sae cold an' sae distant... Iceman said he were like tha' wi' everyone, 'twas like he was dead too..."

Kitty let go of Pete for a brief moment, to reach out impulsively to take and squeeze Rahne's hand. "It wasn't anything to do with you, Rahne. He wouldn't accept my comfort then, either. And maybe you weren't always close to Illyana, but it was you who saved her from the demons at the end, who insisted on rescuing the little Illyana from Limbo, and I owe you for that, and so does Peter, he knows that, even if he hasn't told you so."

Lockheed rose from his comfortable curl on Kitty's legs and flew over to perch on Rahne's head, flapping his wings to hold up part of his weight while crooning a questioning note. Kitty laughed at the sight while Rahne smiled, "Aye, A mind the time Illyana wore ye as her hat, Lockheed, an' many a compliment she got fro' them townie girls for her fashion sense too, tha' night..."

As Lockheed returned to the soft haven of Kitty's lap, and Kitty reclaimed Pete's hand, Rahne's smile faded quickly. "She was sae little an' sae innocent, ye ken, the wee Illyana, an' we'd seen S'ym catch and hurt her before, A couldna just leave her in Limbo tae the demonspawn... but 'twas a foolish move, A saved her just sae she could die again later."

Kitty shook her head vehemently at that view. "No. You saved her, and gave her another chance, a chance to not be the DarkChylde, a chance to be Peter's little sister again. The fact that she got sick and died later doesn't change the fact that that was a very brave thing that you did. I know Limbo and its demons must have been hard for you to face, maybe even harder for you than for any of the rest of us." Kitty smiled at Rahne, remembering how Rahne had always needed reassurance when she'd known her years ago. "That's twice Peter owes you, Rahne, for saving little Illyana for him, for all of us, and also for pulling him out of Cloak's darkness long ago."

Douglock had been standing silent near the wall, mindful of the earlier admonition not to interrupt, listening to the conversation and having more and more trouble following it. "Is it permitted at least to request elucidation on this 'darkness'?"

The two girls looked at each other, and tacitly agreed that Douglock had been very good about staying quiet and did deserve an answer, although neither felt up to a long explanation. Kitty let Rahne take the lead while she sat listening, rubbing her fingers on Pete's hand absently. "A'll tell ye more aboot it on the 'morrow, Dougie, 'tis a long story. Roberto, Sunspot, an' A, we got injected with tha' same evil drug what first gave Cloak an' Dagger their powers, an' sae we ended up wi' havin' their powers. 'Twas horrible, Cloak's darkness would eat people, an' it took Peter while he was tryin' tae help Roberto, an' A had tae go inta the dark tae get him oot again, Dagger's light let me do tha', just like she would hae done..." Rahne glanced over at Kitty shyly, hoping her next comment would be accepted as offered. "Ye must know, Kitty, Peter's always loved you. A saw his heart wi'in Cloak's darkness. He was having visions of giving ye up for that alien healer, an' losing both o' ye, an' knowing what a terrible mistake he'd made."

Kitty sighed at that reminder of long ago, feeling that she didn't have enough strength or energy left to pursue the ever-recurring topic of her relationship with Peter now, again, and especially not tonight, after what Peter had done to Pete. She decided to stay on the topic of Rahne's relationship with Peter, instead. "I remember Peter telling me once how beautiful you looked, just like an angel he said, when you pulled him out of that darkness. He wouldn't tell me what happened to him in there, just how brave you were, to come to get him out just when he was finally losing his battle with the darkness. He said he wanted to paint you like you were then, as an angel of light, but he was afraid you'd be offended, that it would go against your faith."

"Aye, mayhap it would hae, back then. Reverend Craig would hae called it a popish heathen image, but now..." Rahne sighed wistfully, remembering seeing herself in a mirror back then, still not really believing that Dagger's light had only revealed her own full potential, "Now, A wish A did hae such a picture, as a 'membrance of the one time A was beautiful..."

Douglock stirred at that. "You appear to fulfill all the objective criteria I have been able to identify for being considered attractive. What deficiencies do you perceive, that I am unaware of and should look for in future observation and evaluation?"

That made both girls smile. "You don't ask a girl about her flaws, Doug, real or imaginary, that's really tacky," Kitty chuckled, then went on more seriously, "But he's right, Rahne, you are beautiful, you know."

Now Kitty was positive Rahne was blushing, whether it showed though the silky thin fur or not. "Nay, A'm not... A always wished A could be, A dreamed A'd turn oot tae be a fairytale princess, but A was always the ugly duckling, compared to Shan an' Dani an' Amara an' Illyana." Rahne smiled in recollection as she continued, "Once, tha' same party Illyana wore Lockheed as a hat, the other girls gussied me all up with makeup an' such, an' Sam came in an' dinna even recognize me..."

"So what happened? What did he say when he realized it was you?" Kitty asked curiously, as Douglock leaned forward to hear the answer.

"A dinna ken what he would hae said," Rahne laughed. "A was sae mad, A punched him in the belly just as hard as A could, an' he couldna say anything, he couldna breathe e'en, an' A slammed the door in his face..."

Kitty was laughing too now, in true enjoyment, as she hadn't laughed since discovering Rasputin standing over Wisdom's broken body earlier that night. Rahne's visit was turning out to be so much more than the simple distraction Kitty had first thought it. She felt better than she had since they'd first returned from the pub, finally realizing how having to defend her new relationship with Wisdom to the others had kept upsetting her, but still surprised that Rahne hadn't yet questioned it, or her.

Quieting down again after a few moments of shared mirth, Kitty said sincerely, "I'm glad you came to be with Moira, Rahne. She really needs her family now, especially with Banshee so busy. I guess he's too tied up with that witch Emma Frost to come here as often as Moira really needs." She couldn't keep her voice from sharpening considerably on her last comment. The White Queen was not one of Kitty's favorite people.

Sobering up immediately at that oblique mention of her guardian's illness, Rahne answered quietly, "Aye, A came as soon as A heard th'news. A couldna believe it, first wee Illyana, then ma puir Jamie, an' now Lady Moira may be next... an' e'en Guido, ma big strong Guido who laughed at everything an' cheered me through all ma woes, an' a heart attack brought him down where no villain could."

A voice came from the side, startling the two girls since Douglock had been so unusually quiet. "You do not miss your friends in X-Factor, or regret leaving them? I note you never call them, or talk about them. I would prefer to learn more about them from you, rather than merely from perusing the formal records."

Rahne turned her head to glance at him, as she replied, "Wi' Jamie an' Guido both gone, there was no reason for me ta stay, an' bein' around Alex, and Lorna, was more awkward wi' the bond gone than when 'twas still there."

Kitty beat Douglock to the question this time. "What bond, Rahne?"

Rahne looked at her in surprise. "Lady Moira dinna tell ye all? Nay, A guess she wouldna hae, she'd be as ma doctor, an' no' ma mother... The Genoshans bonded me tae Havok when they made me a mutate, an' he were a magistrate there. We thought the Genegineer had fixed me sae that the mutate effects only remained in ma human form, but Lady Moira and Dr. Ryan found the bond t' Alex was affecting me in all ma forms." Rahne wanted to tell Kitty more about it, but Douglock's clinically inquisitive air was too much for her.

Kitty saw Rahne's sudden hesitation. Appreciating the other girl's open friendship and nonjudgemental attitude, Kitty wanted to show her own gratitude by doing something in return, and said impulsively, "You know, Douglock, it's been a long time since that cup of tea Meggan brought me. I'd really like another one, but I don't really want to leave Pete, whether he knows I'm here with him or not." She smiled down tenderly at the injured man, knowing it was illogical and impossible but promising herself she wouldn't leave him again, ever, feeling that, if she hadn't left him alone outside earlier, tonight's debacle would not have occurred. "Would you mind doing me a favor, please, and going to the kitchen and making me some more tea?"

Douglock looked at her shrewdly. "And you and friend Wolfsbane wish to talk without my presence, yes? And this is just a polite subterfuge?"

Kitty had to laugh again. "Yes and no, Doug. Yes, Rahne and I want to talk together and it'll be easier without you, but no, it's not just a polite subterfuge, I really would like some tea, and I bet Rahne would too..." As the young Scots girl nodded eagerly, Kitty continued, smiling at him in congratulations, "And I'm impressed with your readings of us, Douglock. You're getting better, that was a very good interpretation."

Douglock didn't respond to the compliment, but he also didn't try arguing further. As he turned to leave the room, neither girl noticed a vanishingly thin golden techno-organic tendril unwinding from his body as he went out, allowing him to monitor the conversation in the room. He'd quickly learned that all of the more interesting conversations tended to occur in his absence, and he had a strong imperative to learn in his main programming, with no corresponding inhibitions against eavesdropping.

After the door had closed behind him and his footsteps had faded down the hall, Rahne asked hesitantly, "D'ye want me tae go, too, Kitty? If ye're tired, or if ye just want tae be alone wi' yuir man?"

Kitty shook her head. This certainly wasn't a conversation she'd ever expected to have with Rahne, and she was surprised at how much she was enjoying talking to the other girl, how it was helping her relax and wind down after the chaotic night just past. She settled herself more comfortably in her chair, pulling Pete's hand over to lie on her leg, ignoring Lockheed's disgusted snort as she rearranged the little dragon slightly in her lap. "No, Rahne, actually, I'd like you to stay. I'd like to talk to you some more. We never really did talk, back when we were both Professor Xavier's students, and that was probably my fault. I was always more comfortable with the X-men, I always felt like, when I'd try talking to someone my own age, something would go wrong."

Rahne smiled back shyly. "Nay, 'twas no' all yuir fault. We dinna like ye 'cause the professor an' Magneto let ye stay wi' the X-men, wi' the grownups, while they treated us like silly wee bairns all the time. An' A'd like tae talk, A canna talk tae Lady Moira, she's sae busy, an' A couldna talk tae Lorna or Valerie, ye ken...

Kitty looked back at Rahne seriously. "Did I guess right, Rahne? There was something else about the bond, wasn't there? You looked really upset. Was it Douglock being here that made you stop talking? Or would you rather not talk about it at all?" The events of the past few hours had shattered a number of comfortable, unconscious barriers and illusions, Kitty realized, and not just for herself. Rahne might be able to say something now which she normally wouldn't have been able to verbalize.

Looking down at the floor, which she scuffed at with a bare, clawed foot, Rahne hesitated for a moment and then took a deep breath before answering, "Ooch, Kitty, 'tis so hard... A canna talk tae Lady Moira wi' ma problems, she has her own burden to bear. But it was sae horrible, the bond made me lust for Alex sae bad. A was shameless, A even went to his bed once..."

As Rahne's voice trailed away, Kitty saw she'd been right, Rahne did have something she wanted to talk about, and it wasn't anything to do with Kitty and Pete being together, it was about herself. Kicking herself mentally for being so self-centered, Kitty tried to help her get started. "I don't know how to ask you this, Rahne. I know you wouldn't, normally, because of your morals and your beliefs, but did the bond make you... umm... do something you regret?"

Rahne must have been blushing again, at the entire subject. "Aye, it made me act like a shameless hussy, but nay, nothing really happened. Alex was wi' Lorna, y' ken, he does love her, an' Lorna was sae nice tae me, she reached out tae me, tae help me... But it made me feel sae dirty, those feelings, Kitty, an' knowing they weren't e'en mine, they were put intae me by them horrible Genoshans. An' e'en worse, it wasn't just Alex. Once, A propositioned Jamie, too, an' the puir lad was sae afeared he just got up an' ran away..."

As Rahne continued looking down at the floor, Kitty went on, gently, "Have you ever cared for someone special, Rahne? You, yourself, I mean, before the Genoshans messed with your mind and your feelings? I remember you and your wolf prince, in Asgard. Were you sorry to leave him?"

Rahne smiled at the reminder of those incredible visits to the Norse gods' realm. "The first time, it hurt sae bad, A felt A was leavin' my heart an' soul behind... But A dinna ken if that were love, see, Kitty, he could only be wolf, or halfling, no' a man, an' wi' him A was only wolf or halfling, no' a girl, and 'twas in Asgard, a heathen place, A felt sae different there, as if different rules applied. But the second time 'twas easier, Ric' was so sweet to me when A had tae leave ma wolf prince that second time, tha' helped a lot..."

Kitty thought she noticed something in Rahne's voice at the end there. "But what about here, on earth, as a girl, not a wolf? Any of the New Mutants..." then, with a mischievous grin, "...or the Hellions?"

That made Rahne laugh again. "A liked Sam, A even prayed once, in a Catholic kirk e'en, mind ye, for forgiveness that A hated Amara because Sam looked at her an' no' at me, 'twas before him an' Lila, ye ken... an' A liked Doug, really, an' he seemed tae like me, a little, an' then he died tryin' to save me..." Rahne noticed Kitty's face blanch suddenly, although she couldn't see her fingers dig into Pete's hand until it would have been painful, if he'd been awake and aware. "Ooch, A'm sorry, Kitty, A forgot you an' he..."

Forcing herself to relax her clenched hand as she glanced at Wisdom to be sure he hadn't felt her sudden deathgrip, Kitty interrupted Rahne's hurried apology in a firm voice, "Doug and I were friends, Rahne, just very good friends, and he was a wonderful person, and I'm happy you two liked each other..." Rahne smiled back in pleased relief. She'd been afraid Kitty would blame her for Doug's death, as she had once before, just like Rahne still blamed herself.

Trying to recover the light mood of a moment ago, Kitty asked with a grin, "What about Bobby? He always acted like he thought he was God's gift to women..."

The young Scots girl grinned back in a shared scorn of daCosta's inflated self-opinion. "Tha' cock o' th' walk! When A first came, A mind he kissed ma hand, an' A felt sae special, A thought he liked me an' A liked him, but he was just fooling, he'd ruffle my hair when A was a girl just like he'd ruffle ma fur while A was wolfen..." Kitty was impressed to see how Rahne could laugh at her younger self now. "But A liked Sam better, an' Amara liked Sam better, an' Lila liked Sam better, an' now Tabitha likes Sam better..."

Kitty joined in her quiet laughter, worried for a brief moment about their mirth disturbing Wisdom, but then remembering what Meggan had said earlier about Pete reacting to bad feelings in the room, and hoping he'd react equally if unconsciously to their positive feelings now. "Oh, poor Bobby... nobody ever did fall for him, did they?"

"Just that Gossamyr hussy, an' they were welcome t'each other, too." Kitty heard something brittle in Rahne's laugh now, and decided not to pursue the topic, leaving it to Rahne to resume the conversation after a moment of silence, changing the subject slightly. "D'ye e'er think o' that poor boy what ye were wi' at that party, Kitty? He seemed tae like ye, and we were sae mean, making fun o' him an' ye, an' then he killed himself tha' night. 'Twas so awful A try to forget, him fallin' into the sin o' despair, but sometimes A canna forget him, like A canna forget Illyana, and Doug, and Warlock..."

Kitty clutched Pete's hand more tightly, suddenly, at that unexpected question, as her breath caught in her throat. "Larry Bodine? I don't try to forget him, Rahne, he deserves better than that from me, from us... I try to remember him, and how sorry I was I didn't help him like he needed, so I don't make the same mistake again." She reached out to stroke Pete's face again, reassuring herself he was still here, and warm, and breathing.

Rahne was tired of talking about herself. "Sae, Kitty, ye liked Peter, an' Doug, an' puir Larry long ago... anyone else, aside fro' yon Sassenach ye've taken up wi'?"

Kitty chuckled at that disingenuous query. "Just Alistaire... You don't know Alistaire Stuart, Rahne, he was with us here in Excalibur a lot in the beginning. I liked him, a whole lot, and he liked Rachel, a whole lot."

"What was he like, Kitty? Like Peter? or Doug? or like Mr. Wisdom?" That touching, wistful note of friendly curiosity was back in Rahne's soft voice.

Kitty had to think about Rahne's question for a minute, surprised at how long it had been since she'd thought of Alistaire, remembering how thoughts of winning him used to fill her every waking moment once. "No, Alistaire was different. He was older, like Pete, he looks a bit like Pete, actually, but smart, smart like Doug, in the lab with electronics." She went on, smiling wryly at her younger self's infatuation, "He only wanted me as a lab assistant, like some robot gofer, while he drooled and panted over Rachel."

Rahne remembered Rachel, but she'd known her as the cold and distant Rachel who first came to the X-men as a time-displayed refugee, not the flamboyant sexy Rachel of Excalibur. "So, wha' happened?"

Kitty shrugged. "Oh, just the usual... Rachel disappeared, and then Brigadier Stuart, Alistaire's sister, was killed, and Rachel came back, and Alistaire left, and Rachel disappeared again..." She smiled suddenly, and her whole face seemed to light up, especially her big expressive eyes. "And then Pete came, and I didn't like him, I really didn't like him, and i didn't trust him either, and then we went away together and I guess I just got to know him." Kitty reached out again to caress Pete's face, lightly, hoping he could feel her touch somewhere deep inside. "You know, he's really not as horrible as he seems, he's quite nice and sweet if you ever get inside his protective shell..."

Rahne smiled back. "A know that, silly... he's just like Ric' was, all dark an' moody an' secretive... Bobby, he could ne'er understand what A saw in Ric', but he had a good heart, he just hid it down sae deep..."

Kitty breathed a sigh of relief, that Rahne seemed to be accepting her with Pete so easily, given Rahne's twisted upbringing by Reverend Craig. "And you liked him? This Rick? That was Rictor, right?"

Rahne didn't notice Kitty's relief, she was too busy remembering the past. "Aye, A liked him... A think A loved him. A loved Doug, but he ne'er made me feel like Ric' did. An' A think he loved me, he even came after me to Genosha, the big silly, tae try tae save me when A dinna need saving, except from the bond where he couldna help me. But A was sae shy, we only kissed the once, right before the Genoshans caught an' changed me. So don't ye wait, Kitty, if ye love yuir Mr. Wisdom, ye grab him with both hands and ne'er let go... By the time Ric' an' A saw each other again, kissed again, the Genoshans had warped me an' all ma feelings for him had been lost."

Her glorious eyes glowing, Kitty said quietly, "Oh, trust me, Rahne, I'm never, ever, going to let him go," bringing Pete's hand up to lay it against her face and pressing a kiss into his palm before looking over at the other girl in surprise and awe at how much she'd changed and grown. "So you don't think my being with Pete is wrong, or evil, or a sin?"

Rahne lost the fire she'd had just a moment ago, and was again the shy uncertain girl Kitty had thought she knew. "A dinna ken anymore... Reverend Craig would say 'twas, but Reverend Craig would say A was wrong, an' evil, an' a sin, too."

"It doesn't matter what he thinks. What do you think?" Kitty was wondering just how far the changes in Rahne went.

Rahne hugged herself tightly, as she answered slowly, "A dinna feel evil, but sometimes, late at night, A wonder deep inside if he's right an' A am... The only time A know for sure A'm not is when A'm in my furform. Reverend Craig told everyone that 'twas the devil's form, God's punishment for ma sins, an' for ma mother's too, but A feel sae right an' natural an' wonderful when A'm a wolf. A'm sae happy then. Everything seems sae simple and crystal-clear, the world is sae beautiful, sae full of lights an' sounds an' colors an' smells hidden from humans. Sometimes A want to stay wolfen fore'er..."

Kitty suddenly wished that she could get her hands, just for a few moments, that's all she'd need, on the intolerant, bigoted, narrow-minded preacher who'd raised Rahne to despise herself before Moira had rescued her. "You know, Rahne, if Reverend Craig lied about you being evil, he probably lied about your mother being evil too."

Rahne was looking angry now, and determined, as Kitty hadn't ever seen her before. "Aye, A hae thought o' tha'. He said she was naught but a dockside whore, but he may have lied, aye, for his own ends, to look down on her. But A'll find the truth. Lady Moira said there must be records, an' people there who still remember her, that the Reverend canna control everyone an' everything. An' will ye help me, Kitty, if A need?"

Just as Kitty was promising her aid, the door opened and Douglock came back in with two mugs of tea on a tray, and the conversation quickly shifted to general topics, gradually dying away as Rahne began yawning more and more, until Kitty chased her off, ordering Douglock to make sure she went straight to her own room to her own well-deserved rest.

Epilogue

After Rahne and Douglock had left, Kitty carefully got into the bed to curl up next to Pete and, embracing him gingerly, quietly cried herself to sleep. Moira came in much later to check on his status, and found her there. She didn't try to wake Kitty. After removing some of the tubing Wisdom no longer needed, Moira carefully lifted his arm to lay it across Kitty's body, holding her loosely, and left them together, just spreading a warm blanket over them both.