ASH: Dahlia

[Mr. Handy]

Lionel smiles back at Brianna and gives her a hug. "You're going to be just fine," he says. "Maybe you should get back into bed and rest up for now." He glances over at the door. "Oh, good, there's Dr. Susan Roethal now. She's really good with children. You'll both like her." He heads over to the door. "Don't trouble yourself with the door, Dahlia, I'll let her in. You should be getting some rest too so you can recover sooner. I'm sure Sarah will be all right, especially once I have a chance to talk to her again. Thank you for your concern, though. There's no need to freak out. Everything's fine now. It was weird earlier, but now it seems normal."

[trixie]

Dahlia sighs, resignedly and backs away from the door, waiting for Lionel to open it. She stares at Brianna out of the corner of her eye, dubiously watching her every move.

"Alright, well, I'll stay for now...." She tries to cover her embarassment earlier with feigned interest in staying.

Stupid door.

[Mr. Handy]

"That's good," says Lionel. "We need to stay together." He waves to Dr. Susan Roethal and tries to open the door. "Hello, Doctor Roethal. Here, I'll get the door for you."

[Laraqua]

The door knob rattles as he tries to open it. It probably just eeds a little more force. The glass window insert cracks a little and Dahlia can see rusty water seeping in through the cracks though Lionel is unaware of it - his mind glossing over the cracks.

Lionel's phone rings.

[Mr. Handy]

"Hold on, Susan," says Lionel, "the door seems to be stuck. You should be able to get it open yourself if you give it a little oomph. I have to take this call. Back in a bit." He returns to Dahlia's side, retrieves his mobile from her, and answers it. "Hello, Dr. Carpenter speaking."

[trixie]

Dahlia has been watching the phone ring, wondering if she should answer it but unaware that it was in her possession. She blinked at Lionel, confused, then handed it over as though having not realized amongst the commotion that it was hers.

She tries to pull on the door handle herself, to let Dr. Roethal in. She looks at her skeptically however.

[Laraqua]

The door gives a little but then stops. It seems the bottom corner is jammed into the doorway and requires some additional force. The top part comes free - temporarily - releasing some greasy water before dropping back into position.

[Mr. Handy]

"Sarah!" says Lionel, his heart filled with happiness. "Yes, Dahlia and I are fine. We're in the chemistry lab. When we got out of the lift, we first went through the double doors and into the computer room on the right. Daniel told us where to go from there on the computer, and told me where to find the laptop so he could keep telling us where to go. We left the computer room, and once we were back in the hall we went through the double doors across from the ones we came in through. Then we went through a door on the right and ended up here. I'm glad to hear you're with Daniel now. He'll keep you safe. Brianna is here too. She was hurt badly, but luckily I found her in time and saved her. She's recovering remarkably well. Dr. Susan Roethal is at the door, but the ruddy thing's stuck and she can't get in. A door that can only be opened in darkness? Right, because of the blackout regulations. Can't let the Germans spot the shelter. Is it another air raid? Strange that I didn't hear the sirens. We'd better get the girls downstairs. Which way are the stairs again?"

[trixie]

Dahlia stares fixated at her hands, then at the door, confused, then back to her hands. She shakes her head a bit, quizzically staring at the grimy door and then at Brianna. She tugs on Lionel's coat bottom. "Can we go?"

[Mr. Handy]

"You're right, we'd best get downstairs quickly," says Lionel. "Never mind the door, Susan! We have to get to the shelter! I'll bring the children, and you can meet us down there!" He goes over to Brianna and offers her his hand. "Let's go, Brianna. We're going to meet Sarah and Daniel and go with them to the shelter. We'll be all right there. Oh, and Phillip is with them, too. You remember him, right? Are you able to walk, or would you rather I carry you?"

[Mr. Handy]

"Good thinking," Lionel replies to Sarah. "I'll tell her what you said. Which way should we go to meet up with you?" He smiles at Brianna. "Brianna, I know Cael is the one who hurt you, and I know he killed Jones, but please don't be afraid of him any more. I promise he won't hurt you again, and so does Sarah. He's very sorry about what he did, and Sarah is also terribly sorry about everything that's happened. She's all eaten up inside about it, and she blames herself for everything. Cael was crazy when he did those things, and Sarah went a bit funny in the head too. She got better, though, and then she found Cael and made him better. Cael is with them, so don't be frightened when you see him, okay? And don't be afraid of Sarah, either. She understands what you've been through. She saw and felt everything that happened to you, and she's suffered a lot of the same things you have. You two have so much in common. She's the nicest person, and she only wants to help people. Are you ready to go meet her now?"

[trixie]

Brianna looks at Lionel blankly, then blinks once. She looks to Dahlia as well, staring at them without recognition of the words Lionel just spoke. She finally shrugs mutely.

[Mr. Handy]

[I was wondering when you were going to start playing older Brianna! ]



"Sarah's almost here," says Lionel. "She thinks she may even be right around the corner from that stuck door, but the man on the other end might not be so nice and we'd better hide just in case. I thought Dr. Roethal was out there. I wonder where she went. Maybe she hid too. Well, come on, this way." He takes Brianna's hand and leads her to a hiding spot behind the cabinets, motioning for Dahlia to follow.

[trixie]

Dahlia trundles along behind. Sarah! I can't wait!

She secretly wonders why Brianna was being to quiet, however, and how come she won't answer Lionel with any words? That's kind of weird....

[Mr. Handy]

"I can't wait either!" says Lionel, his voice quiet but filled with excitement. He crouches low behind the cabinets, his eyes level with Dahlia's. "For Sarah it's been less than a day since she's last seen me, but for me it's been three years and four months. I never expected to see her again, but I never gave up hoping. Would you like to talk to her?" He speaks into the phone. "Okay, we're all behind the cabinets. Dahlia can't wait to see you again, and neither can I. I think she'd like to talk to you." He offers her the phone.

[trixie]

"Wait....three years and four months? Has it been that long for me too? And does Sarah know that?" Dahlia looks at the phone, confused for a minute. She doesn't grab it back right away, as the answer to her question seems far more important to her at the moment.

[Mr. Handy]

"Has it?" says Lionel. "I don't think so. Weren't you with Sarah? You'd need to have been a lot younger when this started - or a lot older now. Sarah knows it's been years, yes, but I don't think I told her how many. When we all came back from the past, we didn't come all the way back. We've been here a few years."

[trixie]

Dahlia looks confused, but reaches out for the phone.

"Sarah?" She smiles as she says it, expecting the same cheery voice she remembered so well.

[Laraqua]

"Dahlia!" says a voice over the phone, trying to keep the anxiety out of her voice."Hang on, sweetie, we're coming to rescue you. Don't be afraid. Are you all right? And how are my father and Brianna?"

[Laraqua]

A rat-a-tat-tat of gunfire can be heard in the corridor, followed by an immediate spray of gunfire - far more bullets released.