So what now? (Katydid50 x 5Bulletproof-Marshmellows)

[Katydid50]

Daniel wondered if anything he was saying was getting through to the girl before him. He doubted it. Her narrowed eyes suggested she wanted nothing more than for him to disappear. She seemed to ease slightly when he mentioned his mother, as though she was curious to find out how he would finish that sentence, but he never did. His mother was none of Grace's business. She belonged in the past and the past was where she would stay.

At the mention of her younger siblings, Grace's hand visibly tightened around the knife. When she told him that Deserai didn't know any better, it was his own turn to scoff. Young children had preferences, even he knew that. If Deserai truly was a city person, even at such a young age, she would have made her unhappiness known by now.

Daniel ground his teeth together, feeling his blood pressure rising in response to Grace's own anger. This was going to be a battle and he knew it but he wasn't about to back down. He couldn't. If this ended well -which he didn't know for sure that it would- they would make a lot of progress but he knew Grace wasn't going to make it easy on him. That knowledge only made him angrier.

At Grace's chuckle -sarcastic though it was- Daniel started forward, eyes locked on her face. If she wanted to argue with him, fine. If she wanted to fight him, he was ready. But he was not going to be laughed at! "Yes, a chance!" he snapped as she turned to face him. At her question, he said, "Because-."

Daniel never finished that sentence. If he had stopped half a step earlier, things would have been so different. As it was, his words were cut off by a short gurgling sound, followed by a sharp exhale. A shudder ran through his body and he looked down to see Grace's knife embedded in his stomach. The pain came slowly, starting as a soft warmth, then quickly growing until it blazed like an inferno, spreading out from his gut. The pain stole the strength from his legs and they gave out. He fell to his knees and started forward but he instinctively knew the knife would kill him if he fell on it. He managed to catch himself on his elbow and turn enough that he landed on his back. The cool linoleum beneath contrasted sharply with the fire burning in his stomach. As he lay there, all he could think was, 'This is not going to be good.'  

[5Bulletproof-Marshmellows]

Hearing him scoff, her shoulders stiffened. Deserai had always wanted a father. She would have done anything to get one. It was one of the most important things on her mind. Perhaps she knew that Daniel wouldn't hurt her, but that didn't mean he would never disappear out of their lives. Considering the fact that none of them had met any of Daniel's family, she assumed he knew what that was like. Or maybe he left them himself. Who knew.

The moment she turned around she froze, realizing how close he had actually gotten. She could feel the blade of the rather large knife embed itself into Daniel's abdomen. s**t, s**t, s**t. Her clenched fingers let go of the knife in a jagged motion and the color left her face. He fell to his knees and for those few seconds all she could do was stare. She took a few steps back as he moved forward, lying down onto his back. The knife was still in his stomach, blood was rushing out.

Get your s**t together. Grabbing a clean towel Grace moved to his side and put the towel near the wound. Did she take out the knife now? Or would it cause more trouble if she left it in? "Ambulance," she choked out. She couldn't believe what was happening. Sure she hated Daniel but not to the point that she would stab him in his own kitchen. "Can you walk?" she managed to say. The towel was already almost completely red.

Smoke was starting to gather by the ceiling. The bacon was black by now. Putting a hand to her forehead, she moved to get up, trying to de-attach herself from the situation so that she could think clearly. Her hands were covered in blood but she barely even noticed it. Turning off the stove, she moved the pan away and then pulled the phone off the wall. She began to dial the digits that she loathed with a passion, panic was creeping back into her system. What the hell was she going to tell them? Hanging up before she could finish completing the sequence she then moved to dial Micheal's phone number. No way was she going to inform her mother. Her hands were shaking and her eyes began to water from all the frustration that was inside of her as well as a more than a few conflicting emotions. All of this was happening too fast. Only a few seconds.  

[Katydid50]

Daniel struggled to keep breathing, pain flaring as every breath shifted the steel embedded in him. He could feel the material of his shirt growing wet in a growing circle around the wound and imagined that his light blue shirt wasn't light blue anymore. Something pressed on him around the wound and he groaned. His eyes had closed when he'd hit the floor but he forced them open. Grace, her face drained of all color. At least he knew she hadn't done it on purpose.

She spoke but he couldn't make out what she said. He blinked, then closed his eyes tightly as the floor beneath him began to tilt. He knew that the floor wasn't actually moving but it felt like he imagined those carnival rides did. The ones with the seats that spun around as they went up and down over the platform.

The pressure on his stomach eased and he would have sighed in relief if it wouldn't have caused him further pain. He could hear footsteps, getting further away. Then nothing. For a few moments, he wondered if he'd died already. But, no. He could still feel the pain. Then again, Hell wasn't supposed to be a pleasant place. It would also explain why he could smell smoke. I'm sorry, Elenore.

The sound of someone yelling his name made Daniel's eyes snap open. No, he wasn't dead. He was still on the floor of his kitchen, still bleeding profusely, judging by how light-headed he felt. He couldn't bring himself to turn his head and could only stare up at the ceiling directly above him until Nicholas' colorless face appeared in his line of vision.

"Nick." The word breathed past Daniel's lips. He took a shaky breath. "Nick, I need you to pull this knife out of me. You hear me?"

Nicholas visibly swallowed and tears pooled in his eyes. He looked towards the knife before quickly looking away from the gruesome sight. "I-I can't," he said tearfully. "I can't."

Daniel struggled to think, made difficult by pain and blood-loss. "Where's Grace?"

"By the phone."

"Get her."

"Grace!" Nicholas took off, running from the room and swerving around the corners until he almost hit her side. "Grace, Daniel needs you! You need to pull out the knife!"


A few miles away, in Micheal's house, the older man ran through the building, broom in hand. "Get out of 'ere, you mangy beast!" he cried as he chased the raccoon through his home. The creature chattered and squeak as it dodged a blow from the broom. The animal jumped up onto the back of the couch, turning to face Micheal with a hiss before jumping again when the straw broom landed on its previous spot with a thump.

The raccoon jumped onto the stand beside the couch, standing on the phone and watching Micheal's slow, predatory approach. It jumped at the last minute, just as the broom slammed into the phone, tossing it from its spot and ripping out the cords. It landed with a crash but Micheal paid it no mind as he continued his pursuit, completely oblivious to the occurrences at the Marks home.  

[5Bulletproof-Marshmellows]

Grace heard Nicholas yell out Daniel's name, she bit her lip nervously as she then heard dread words. "The party that you are trying to reach is currently not in service. Please try again lat-" Grace slammed the phone back into it's place as she saw Deserai out of the corner of her eye. She didn't know what to tell her. She didn't want to lie and say it was going to be okay, she didn't know if it would be.. ever.

"What's going on?" her voice was soft and confused.

Stepping back when Nicholas ran into her, she looked down at him. He had pulled her out of a trance. So he was actually talking now. "Nicholas, I need you to take Deserai to Aunt Rose's just up the road and stay there. Tell her to call an ambulance." She refrained herself from putting a hand on his shoulder. Aunt Rose didn't need to see the blood. With that she quickly moved out of the room.

Sliding down onto the linoleum floor next to Daniel, she placed one hand on his stomach near the wound and another onto the handle. "You better not kick me in the face," she muttered under her breath as she swallowed. Without giving him too much time to think, she pulled it out swiftly, her other hand quickly moved the towel over the wound and she pressed down, hoping it would stop the fountain of blood. The knife fell onto the ground behind her.

Deserai turned her attention to Nicholas. "What's going on?" she asked. Why was no one answering her questions? Why was Grace freaking out? Why had the rabbits not moved?

"The ambulance should be here soon," she told him. They lived so far away from the city. The towel was completely soaked. Grabbing another one that was nearby, she pressed it on top. The bleeding had to stop soon. Putting both hands down onto the wound she applied pressure.

He had to live.  

[Katydid50]

Nicholas swallowed thickly and nodded at Grace's command, for once not arguing with her. Tears blurred his vision, making it difficult to see. Panic made it difficult to think but he forced himself to. Get Deserai. Get to Aunt Rose. Call ambulance. Get Deserai. Get to Aunt Rose. Call ambulance. "Okay," he rasped before turning to their younger sister.

Grace ducked out of the room just before Deserai asked what was going on. He swallowed again. "Um, D-Daniel's hurt." How much to tell her? How much could she understand? "Uh, h-he's going to be alright but we need to go to Aunt Rose's." He reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her along towards the front door. Steadfastly not looking into the kitchen, he said, "Come on, Deserai. Get your coat on. We have to go."


In the kitchen, Daniel had closed his eyes again, his entire focus on breathing. The sound of footsteps made him open his eyes but it was getting difficult to focus his vision. He caught the sight of auburn hair and knew that Grace had returned. He wondered dryly if she planned to finish the job.

At her touch, he tensed. He vaguely remembered telling Nicholas to get Grace and figured she had come to do what her brother couldn't. At her comment, he grunted. He wouldn't kick her. He didn't have the strength. In a corner of his mind, he knew this was going to hurt. He hoped Deserai and Nicholas weren't within hearing distance. If Grace was smart, she would have sent them away, or at least outside. Good thing she was smart.

The pain erupted, even worse than the original blow. His strength sapped, he didn't have the will to restrain the guttural scream that ripped from his throat. He didn't feel the pressure she put on his stomach or the blood that bubbled up from the wound until the pain started to recede. His breath came in wheezy gasps that rattled his chest.

Grace's voice came to him from a distance, as though she was speaking from deep underground. It took him a few seconds to figure out what she was saying. Ambulance? "I'm not waiting for a f**king ambulance," he told her. He licked his lips and forced his eyes to focus on the young woman's face. "Can you drive a stick shift?"  

[5Bulletproof-Marshmellows]

She frowned at Nicholas. "Why is he hurt?" she was completely confused now. What had happened to him? Wasn't he just fine a minute ago? Not getting much of a chance to say anything else since she was already being pulled along to the door, she tried to piece it all together, eyebrows furrowing. "Can't we stay here?" she didn't know what could be so bad that they would have to leave.

Sighing, she grabbed her light blue coat and pulled it on before slipping some rain boots onto her feet. She wouldn't mind seeing Aunt Rose but she wished the other two would come along. Noticing that Nicholas was keeping his eyes focused on the exit, she took the chance to look around. The dining table kept blocked most of the scene but she did she a large figure lying on the ground further back in the kitchen. Her eyes widened. "Is he going through the same thing mom is?" panic was apparent in her voice. "I don't want him to go to the hospital!" she yelled before making a run for it to Daniel.

Grace hoped that Nicholas and Deserai would be gone by the time she reached Daniel. She didn't know what she would tell Deserai when she started asking her questions. That she had stabbed the only father figure the little girl had ever known? Swallowing, she then lowered her head, her brown eyes turning a bit cold. She heard Deserai's shout. "Get out of here!" her voice was firm and held a bit of tough love.

Daniel screamed. It sent chills down her spine. She could only imagine what he was feeling. The fact that he was still conscious was a miracle. She still remembered Wolf's arrowhead that had gotten lodged in her forearm.

Her heart was pounding in her chest. Hearing his voice though, she revealed that he was still there. His words were another matter. "What do you mean you're not waiting? You don't have another choice?" The question explained it though. "No," she said flatly. Did he really want them to crash into a ditch, blow up. and die? "Look I know it's going to take while but there's no way you can make it to the car and I can't drive that truck." Using logic, that would work right?  

[Katydid50]

Nicholas ignored Deserai's questions, focused more on getting his own jacket and shoes on. His younger sister's voice was little more than noise to him as he tried desperately to forget what he had seen in the kitchen and tried desperately to remember what it was he had to do. Get Deserai. Get to Aunt Rose's. Call ambulance.

Deserai's panic-filled tone finally broke through Nicholas' daze and he turned in time to see the girl bolt for the kitchen. Horrified, he ran after her. "Dez! No!" He grabbed her arm just as Grace yelled at them to get out. He jerked her back more roughly than was necessary but didn't stop as he dragged her away. He headed towards the door, once again repeating in his mind what he had to do. He got Deserai. Now, they had to get to Aunt Rose's. "Dez, we gotta go, now!"

Not waiting for Deserai to comply, he dragged her to the front door and out.


Daniel grimaced as people yelled around him. Why couldn't they just shut up and let him die in peace? While he had no actual intentions of dying, the shouting was not appreciated. A final shout, the sound of rapidly retreating footsteps, then near-blissful quiet.

He knew what was coming next but didn't have the strength to resist the scream that erupted from him. Pain reminiscent of his younger years burned through his core, spreading throughout his body until he felt like he was on fire. Only the pressure on his stomach assured him that he hadn't truly died.

Grace's voice reached him, something about an ambulance. If he'd had the strength, he would have scoffed. He wasn't waiting for an ambulance, and he told her so. He ignored her questions, instead asking her if she could drive a stick shift. At her response, he groaned again. She spoke again and he forced himself to focus on what she was saying. He weakly shook his head. "Well, you're going to learn." He took a shaky breath. "Grace, if I wait, I'm going to bleed out," he told her. He would know. He'd been stabbed like this before and it had almost killed him. Thank God his rent had been overdue.

He licked his lips. If Grace was going to be driving, she couldn't hold the towels to his side. "Untie my belt and wrap it around my stomach as tight as you can," he told her. "Then, get my keys off the table in the living room."