the changed verse
Light

 

The world had been different for a while when it happened the first time.

McGee – Tim, really, because they had history and besides, he looked nothing like a tough McGee and everything like a young Timothy right now – was in the hospital. Unconscious, shot, just out of surgery a few hours ago.

Abby was at his bedside, on the verge of tears but fighting them valiantly. Tears wouldn’t help.

The hospital was still chaotic. Tim’s room should’ve been a single one, but with the sudden influx of patients because of the Change, there was another patient crammed in there. The other patient was growing fur all over his legs and he was on his side because his spine was lengthening out, making his butt look huge. If it had been a sitcom, Abby would’ve laughed, but as it was, she’d seen enough to know that it was nothing to laugh about. The man was turning into a half-breed – half-horse, or half-dog, or half-something-else-with-four-legs. It was the Change that had killed the most people.

Abby’s gaze returned to Tim, his skin a pale grey. He’d lost a lot of blood out on the scene. She didn’t have the details of what had happened – staying with Tim had been more important than listening to Tony reporting what had happened to Gibbs – but she knew the what the world was like since the Change.

Order hadn’t been established yet. New rules had to be decided and accepted. What did you do with people who could see the future? All lotteries and gambling had been stopped, for now. What happened to banks and other buildings that had to be secure, when people could walk through walls?

What could anyone do, when a telekinetic bad guy could stop the bullets mid-air and shoot them right back at Tim?

Her hands shook when she grabbed Tim’s. She laced her fingers with his, holding on tight.

“You don’t die, you hear me? If Gibbs could order Tony to live, then I can order you, damn it.” She choked a little.

She let her other hand run across his face, fingers ghosting across his cheek.

Then it happened.

Warmth spread where she touched him.

A soft glow, impossible yet right there, seeping from her hand.

He groaned beneath her hand, eyelids fluttering.

She pulled away abruptly, eyes wide, mouth hanging open.

He stilled, exhaling softly. The glow was gone, as was the warmth. She frowned, looking at her hands.

She’d heard of people developing healing powers. They were traveling across the country now, helping people. There had been an interview with one in the newspaper – he’d described a glow coming from his fingers, a warmth between him and the person he was healing.

Was she developing healing powers?

Quickly, she replaced her hand on Tim’s cheek, the other one cradling his hand in hers – and then she wished, as hard as she’d ever wished for anything, that she could heal him.

It took a moment and then—

Heat and bright light came from her hands. Again, Tim started groaning beneath her touch and she willed whatever powers she had to heal him completely.

Closing her eyes, she could feel it. It was like golden threads coming from her fingers, passing through his body and forming a tight net across all of his injuries – from the bullet wound, to the scrapes and scratches he’d gotten when Tony dragged him to safety. Each injury was slowly sewn shut with golden thread and she could feel it in her bones as the pain in his body receded.

She opened her eyes, finding his blue eyes looking up at her.

“Abby?” His voice was a little rough.

She shone, smile going from ear to ear. “It worked!”

“What worked? Where am I?” Tim asked.

“I healed you,” she said, almost jumping up and down with happiness. “Me. I healed you. I can heal people! I have a power!”

He looked up at her, love and adoration in his eyes. “You’ve always had powers.”

She hugged him tight at that. “Aww, McGee!”

He hugged her back, his arms feeling strong and good around her, especially after watching him fight for his life just a few minutes ago.

“Miss Scuito.”

Abby looked up, finding a nurse standing at the bottom of the bed. “Yes? Hi?”

“If you could, there are more patients that would much appreciate your help,” the nurse said.

“You know what I did?”

“You’ve been healing him for a while,” the nurse said. “You are a strong healer. A bright light.”

Abby realized, when she glanced at the clock, that she had been healing McGee for well over forty minutes. It hadn’t felt like nearly that much.
 
“Oh.” She smiled. “Cool. Of course I’ll help.” She turned to McGee. “You’ll be okay?”

“I feel fine,” he said. “You go do your thing.”

She grinned. “I’ll do my thing. My healing thing!”

She bounced towards the door, following the nurse. Just as she was about to leave, Tim spoke again.

“Abby?”

“Yeah?”

He smiled. “Thanks.”

She grinned wider.

Read? Review!