Part 1-By Rachel
In the dark of night, the door to Cabin X stood open. Inside, members of the cabin slept deeply, but a few scattered beds were empty. Out by the flagpole, a small group of campers gathered and waited expectantly, looking upward. Rachel looked around, and had just enough time to catch Laura's eye and ask, "you feel it too?" before the lights appeared in the sky. Laura nodded, but Rachel didn't see as her eyes were drawn upward along with the eyes of every member of the small group of Collective X-philes who stood out in the center of camp. Something big was about to happen. Every one of them could feel it....
Part 2-By Rachel
Rachel groaned weakly and opened her eyes. Another pair of eyes met hers, cerulean eyes, on a face framed by gorgeous orange hair. For a moment, Rachel's mind wondered if she was in heaven. It took only a moment, however, for her body to inform her mind that it was hurting too much for her to be in heaven, and upon realizing that, she groaned, and looked up at her favorite medic with pleading eyes. Much as she had wished to spend some more time around Tom, this was hardly what she'd had in mind.
"Don't worry," Tom told her gently. "We'll have you out of here in no time."
"Where am I?" she managed to mumble as her mind continued the somewhat lengthy process of waking up.
"In Sick Bay," Tom answered gently. "We found you out in the woods behind Cabin X."
"how-" she paused as she realized he'd just answered that question and tried again. "Oh," she managed. Then, as her mind continued to approach a state of wakefulness, "How'd I get there?" she amended, having only to change one word.
Tom could only shrug. He looked so cute when he did that.... Rachel chased away that thought. this was hardly the time for it, she scolded her mind, which was still only three quarters awake. It surprised her by actually listening. "you mean you don't know?" he asked gently.
Rachel shook her head. "the last thing I remember," she began, "is...." Suddenly it occurred to her that she couldn't remember what the last thing she remembered way, and she wasn't in any mood to take the time to figure it out, so she let the matter drop and changed the subject. "How am I?" she asked. That, at least, he should be able to answer.
"Well, when they brought you in, you were unconscious, and you had some burns, but he Doc fixed you up. If you want more detail than that, you'll have to ask him."
Rachel shook her head. The last thing she wanted was to hear the doctor explain in minute detail what had happened to her. But what else was there to ask? There had to be something.... Then the final wisps of fog cleared from her mind, and she sat bolt upright in the bed before Tom could stop her. "I was burned?!" she repeated, beginning to panic, "And in the woods?! The last thing I remember is getting ready for bed-" She paused. "Burned?" she repeated.
"Yes," Tom answered. "Burned." Fortunately, he didn't make her lie back down, because she hated lookig up to people, and at 5'1", she often had to do just that even when standing. "How?" As she waited for an answer, she looked around the room.
"We don't know," Tom anwered. "All we know is that something, some fire, presumably, activated the sprinkler at the top of the flagpole, but not before it did its damage." He gestured toward Rachel, and then to the beds further down the wall. Rachel recognized Laura (47) on one of them, sleeping peacefully. Then she remembered all of the stuff on TV about....
"No!" she exclaimed with a moan. "Not another one."
"Another what?" Tom asked, not understanding.
"Who else was there?" she demanded, growing more and more frantic. "Are they okay?" She prayed he wouldn't tell her that.... she couldn't even think about it.
"Shhh, calm down!" Tom put a gentle hand on her shoulder, sending a tingle of excitement down her spine. "Everyone's fine. Laura should wake up soon, and the others were already released. The sprinkler went on before any serious damage was done. You were all very lucky." he paused as Rachel breathed a sigh of relief. "But what were you all doing out there in the first place?"
Rachel grimaced as she swung her feet over the side of the bed. "How can I say why we were there if I don't remember being there in the first place?" she demanded without managing to choke too badly on her unshed tears of frustration. Tom mumbled an apology."You don't remember anything?"
Rachel shook her head. "Maybe you could ask one of the others?"
"We already have. They don't remember either."
"Oh." Rachel sighed. "well, I guess that's it then." Except that she had a feeling it wasn't. Though sickbay was always at a very pleasant temperature, Rachel shivered at the thought of all of the stuff she just didn't know.
Part 3- by Laura
We next see Laura (47) waiting with Rachel in a Doctor's Office. Both look somewhat nervous. "i'll go first," Laura (47) says with very little emotion. "You sure?" asks Rachel. "Yes. I need....I need to know the truth...I need...I need to know what happened to.... What was done to me." Rachel nods in agreement and offers a comforting smile. The Doctor comes in, and both girls begin unconsciously touching the backs of their necks.
After exchanging pleasentries, The Doctor asks Laura (47) if she has ever undergone hypnosis before. "Once, at a ParTy, but i don't really think it worked, though the pothers say..." Rachel leans over and says "Purple Prancing Pakydryms are Elephants". Laura (47) begins speaking in a heavy German accent while Rachel giggles. She gives the release word and Laura (47) continues on, completely un-aware of the post-hypnotic suggestion.
The hypnosis begins. Laura brings her mind back two weeks...to a night....and a flagpole....."NNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Part 4- by Rachel
At Laura's scream, Rachel recoiled, pressing herself back against the couch on which she was sitting, quite startled. Upon hearing the couch's loud complaint, she forced herself to relax, and reminded herself that she needed to remain calm, or this wasn't going to work. Laura had wanted her to stay in the room, but she'd insisted upon leaving, so that they could at least see if their stories matched up, because Rachel was very uncertain about the validity of hypnosis, and that, at least, would help make her feel a bit better, if only a little, a very little. Or, she thought with a shudder, a bit worse, depending upon what she saw.
Now, seated in the waiting room, Rachel wished very badly she's chosen to stay in with Laura. That scream had been so loud.... she needed to know what was happening! But, with firm resolve that was getting mushier by the minute until it wasn't firm at all, she forced herself to stay put on the couch until, after what seemed like forever, the door to the inner room finally opened, and Laura emerged, looking completely stunned and very shaken up. She began to open her mouth to speak, but Rachel shushed her, then placed what she hoped was a reassuring hand on her shoulder for a moment, and nodded to her. "Tell me later," she said, "that is, if i don't already know it by then." It was obvious from Laura's shaken state that *something* had most certainly happened in that room.
Rachel trembled, and now it was Laura's turn to offer reassurances. Unfortunately, she was still gasping for breath, and before she could say anything, Rachel had to fish for the inhaler she'd thought to bring along. She handed it to Laura with trembling hands, and Laura took it gratefully, used it, then said, "Don't worry. You'll be fine." But she didn't sound so sure. Rachel shivered and opened the door.
The Doctor went through the same process with her as he'd gone through with Laura, beginning with a casual chat and then asking, "so, have you ever been hypnotized?" Rachel, however, shook her head. She was a control freak, and the thought that someone could make her speak in a silly German accent or something even worse made her very uncomfortable. "Don't worry," the Doctor reassured her.
He pused the reclining chair back, and Rachel trembled. At that moment, she wished she were *anywhere* but there, even if it meant watching XF reruns that would have made the noromos rejoice (someone else fill in the blank here) for twelve hours straight. "Just relax," the Doctor instructed, but his soothing tone made her even more jumpy. She could feel her heart racing as her body rebelled against every instruction he gave her until her muscles were so tense she felt like they were about to snap!
Finally, she coudn't take it anymore, and she sat up and shook her head. "I can't do this," she announced. "I just can't do this. I can't... let go... like you want me to. it just isn't possible."
Then she saw Laura standing in the doorway. "I thought you might need this," Laura announced as she tossed the much used inhaler into Rachel's lap with remarkably good aim. She seemed much calmer now, and Rachel remembered the light sedative she'd slipped in before leaving the cabin. the inhaler would certainly do the trick, she decided, but did she really want to do this? Then she saw the pleading look in Laura's eyes, and realized it was only fair. Still.... "Will you stay in here?" she asked softly. Laura nodded.
Rachel took a deep breath and clutched the inhaler tightly. After praying silently that it wouldn't get her sick with the flu that seemed so persistent in the cabin, she swallowed, then held it up to her mouth and took a good puff of the inhaler's contents.
Laura and Rachel walked back to Camp in contemplative silence. They were both very disturbed by what had happened, what they had said, during the hypnosis session. The Doctor had given them copies of the recordings of their sessions. Laura and Rachel had 'recovered' memories that were almost identical- the flagpole, the bright lights, the- it was too much to think about now, so they said nothing.
Rachel took the similarity of the memories as evidence that the Doctor had led them to say what he, or perhaps what they themselves, wanted. Laura, however, anxious for something to believe, took it as evidence that their stories, however frightening, were true. Either way, both were too shocked, worried and disturbed to say very much.
As they approached Cabin X, they saw Mysti standing on a soapbox on the shipper side of the fence preaching to the fence sitters about the wonders of MS. She was using a tape of "Momento Mori" to illustrate her points. When she noticed Laura and Rachel, she ran over them. She could see from their ashen faces that it had not been a happy experience. She hugged them both and asked how it had gone.
Laura said, in a voice just barely above a whisper, "Frightening."
Mysti hugged her again and they went into the Cabin.
That night, most of the camper went out to roast mallows over a bonfire of all copies of the episode "3", but Rachel and Laura weren't feeling up to it.
"You okay, Sweat Pea?" Lesa asked. Laura assured her that she was fine, as did Rachel.
After everyone left, Laura began talking.
"Rachel do you…" She paused and sighed. "Do you think we should ask the other possible abductees to undergo hypnosis…" and she trailed off.
"Maybe…" Rachel started, and stopped.
"Maybe if they went to a different Doctor…then it couldn't be coached, like you think…"
Laura stopped. They could talk about it tomorrow.
She tried to sleep, but everytime she closed her eyes, she could _see_ things that she just wasn't ready to see. Rachel also tossed and turned.
Laura got out of bed, wanting to go take a walk. She pulled on a sweatshirt and sneakers over her footsie pajamas. Rachel watched her leave.
The next mroning, Laura 47 was nowhere to be found. Camp was scoured- they even checked out the KoaliTion- but it soon became clear- once again, Laura was gone.
Christina bounced into the cabin. "Hey guys! I'm he. . . Hey? Where is everyone?" She walked around, looked in the Pet sanctuary and the Mulder Clone area. Puzzled, Christina walked out the door to the flagpole, and saw everyone crowded around it. Walking up to the group she asked the obvious, "Hey, what's going on? What's wrong?"
Bob (the shoelace girl), who was closest, replied, "Laura (47) disappeared again and we can't find her!"
"Disappeared? Again? What? Huh?" more confused then ever, Christina turned and listened as Rachel stood on the soapbox and addressed the Cabin.
More to come (hopefully!)Send mail to the Webmistress/co-author Laura 47.
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