The warm room was quiet except for the small humming coming from the ceiling fan. The moving shadows ran over her face and her eyes slowly opened. Seeing the dark ceiling, she looked around the room and sat up. A stabbing pain left her breathless and she wrapped her arm around her abdomen. She located a clock across the room and found it past eight pm.

Remembering what happened in the ravine, she pushed the bedding off her legs and brought her legs over the side of the bed. Her boots were waiting dry and warm. Carefully she slipped them on and laced them. Supporting her body, she stood up and felt every inch of her retaliate with pain. She sat back down and tried to catch her breath before trying to stand again.

The door was a few feet away and she leaned her hand against the wall. Using the solid structure as a sort of crutch, she managed to get to her feet and hold herself up. Sliding her hand along the wall and supporting her aching ribs with her other arm, she made her way to the closed exit. Pulling the door open, she was met with a brightly lit hallway and her eyes turned away at the difference. They adjusted to the new light and she ran her hand along a solid oak banister that ran down to a set of stairs.

She stopped at the top of the stairs and counted the twenty steps down to the first floor. Her ribs ached as she took the first step but she tightened her hand on the banister. When her boots finally hit the first floor, she felt her legs threaten to give and moved over to the wall. Hushed voices came from a few rooms to the right and she could smell the remnants from a dinner. The smell of food played with her empty stomach and she turned away from the nearby kitchen.

Silently she made her way through the rooms, passing through the large dining room to the main hall, and into the doorway of the living room. Spotting the young boy playing with the fire, she leaned against the doorway and watched him stand up. He put the poker away and turned around. His eyes grew wide and he cleared off a covered couch of the papers he now tossed onto the floor.

"You shouldn't be up. Come sit."

She didn't try to move and he stared up at her. His blonde hair was starkly different from his brown eyes and his young strong jawline. The skin tone was lighter than it promised but she could tell he was starting to perform labor. Staring into his eyes she could almost believe she was looking at one of her brothers but that thought didn't last as the pain resonated through her again.

Tommy held up his hand to help and said "You really should sit down."

She looked back into the hallway and saw the closed door more than ten feet away. Her body hurt to the point of possibly breaking but she had to know what happened.

"What happened?"

He looked up at her and opened his mouth but no words came out. He could tell from her posture that she was in more pain than they anticipated but he didn't know how to tell her what had happened. He had only seen part of the incident and he didn't want to weigh her down with more bad news.

"Tommy?"

He looked up at his mother's voice and poked his head out into the hall. His mother was staring at their visitor and a slow smile captured her face.

"I see you're awake. You must be famished."

Joe watched her set her gloves on a table by the door and turn back to her.

"I'm Calli Blackburn."

"Joe Andrews."

The woman laughed and said "I know who you are. It seems we were bound to meet again."

She watched Teddy step into the hall and say "I tried to have her sit down but she refused."

Calli ruffled his hair and said "Let's try some food first."

She looked back at the injured woman and watched her turn back to the door.

"He's in the barn."

Brown eyes snapped back to her and Calli took a deep breath.

"Cal is watching over him."

Joe pushed off the doorway and tightened her arm around her ribs. Tommy looked up at his mom and followed her outside. Calli closed her eyes long enough to let out a sigh and went after them. She found Joe nearly to the barn doors despite her injuries and quietly approached. Tommy walked with the woman down the aisle to the open stall and watched her stop at the entry way.

Her eyes moved over the bandaged body and she watched him slowly open his eyes. His ears went up but he didn't try and lift his head. She sat down next to him and ran her fingers through his warm fur. Slowly he moved his head onto her knee and she rubbed one ear.

"That's the most I've seen out of him since I patched him up."

She looked up and met Cal's gaze. Looking back at all the bandages on Bear, she took a deep breath and returned her gaze to the work hand.

"How bad is he?"

The man knelt in front of them and said "He's quite a fighter. Pulled through when most animals wouldn't have."

She continued to run her fingers through the fur, keeping them both calm despite reality.

"I imagine with some of your help he can make a near perfect recovery."

"Near perfect?"

Cal stood up and said "He suffered a lot of injuries from the accident. I don't know what it may do emotionally to him."

Joe looked back down at Bear and found him resting. Taking a deep breath, she put his head back on the soft straw and tried to stand. Cal watched her catch her ribs and held out a hand.

"Just don't tell Reese about this."

"Deal."

He smirked and helped her up onto her feet. They left the stall and Tommy stood waiting with Calli.

"You may want to have the doctor look her over Calli."

The woman nodded and said "I'm calling him tomorrow morning."

Joe felt the boy staring at her still and turned her gaze on him. He smiled and walked down the aisle. He waved her over and she slowly made her way to him. Looking into the stall, she met Daemon's brown gaze and ran her hand over his nose.

"He's been rather quiet."

She rubbed his ear and said "Never was one for much chatting."

Tommy laughed and asked "Are you going to stick around for a while?"

She looked down at him and said "I think we will have to see what the doctor says and what your mother thinks is best."

He smirked and asked "Wanna eat now?"

"I think a little food would do me some good."

He caught her free hand and looked back at his mother. Calli smiled and nodded. He looked up at Joe and guided her back outside. They crossed the drive slowly and he helped her up the steps. Opening the door, he let her walk in first and shut the cold out.