"mandaao"- Thank you for your kind review and I'm so glad you are enjoying the story! I hope you enjoy this chapter too! :)

"Ezqueza"- Thank you for your kind review! I too am so happy to see people enjoying the "Leviathan" book series and fandom! I hope to see more stories from you soon, also! :)


Something was wrong. Deryn knew something was terribly wrong, but she couldn't make her mind focus enough to try and determine what that something was.

She drifted through weird dreams about different times in her life, seemingly so real, she wasn't sure they were dreams.

She dreamt of the first time she had been forced to wear a corset with her dress, her mother and the aunties exclaiming loudly how adorable she looked in the awful flowery-print dress; all the while inside, she felt trapped and barking uncomfortable.

The dream switched to the first time her Da had taken her up in his hot-air balloon, her first taste of freedom and breaking free of the expectations on her.

Suddenly she was dreaming of the horrifying day that always haunted her dreams, when her Da had lit the burner to inflate the balloon and the kerosene tank exploded; the balloon quickly lifting from the ground and her Da throwing her from the basket, giving his own life to save hers.

The dream switched again, to the day she joined the British Air Service and looked down to see her brother's beaming face as he watched her soar through the air and prove that she, Deryn Sharp, A.K.A. Dylan Sharp, did have a squick of "air sense."

No matter where her dreams led her though, they always ended up at the same place, with the same person. She kept seeing Alek's face as he declared his love for her, choosing her over his claim to the throne of Austria-Hungary.

Deryn was abruptly pulled from her dreams when she felt a cool sensation on her forehead, a hand perhaps. She struggled to make her mind focus and slowly opened her eyes.

Blackness.

Her eyes were open, weren't they?

She blinked her eyes hard and opened them again. Still, the same blackness.

Then she remembered. That was what she hadn't been able to figure out—why couldn't she see?

She felt extremely weak and disoriented, but much calmer from the last time she had been awake. She vaguely recalled being in a panic—even briefly forgetting that her father was dead, yet calling out for him—then a bunch of people held her down and stuck her with a needle. She didn't fancy that happening again.

She was also suddenly aware of the massive amount of pain in her body. She was, quite literally, hurting from her head to her toes. Each breath she took felt like someone had used her ribs as a punching bag and her head felt like it was in a vice. However, her left knee was the most painful, as though a huge hive of bees were inside the leg and stinging her.

"Alek?" She croaked, barely above a whisper. Her throat was very dry and it made talking difficult. She licked her parched lips and tried to swallow, but it was difficult.

"Deryn, it's alright. I'm here." She heard Alek say. "Here, I have a glass of water for you." She felt a strong hand slip under her neck, supporting her head as it lifted from the pillow.

Deryn felt the blessedly cool water touch her lips and trickle down her throat, making her shiver as it hit her stomach. Unfortunately, it felt like just as much water dribbled down the sides of her face and neck, which felt strange and slightly unnerving when she couldn't see what was going on.

"Sorry. It would seem that I am not very good at this." She heard Alek say as he lowered her head back onto the pillow, then felt a towel gently rub against her skin.

"Aye. Barking awful." Deryn breathed.

"Barking awful." Repeated a familiar voice and then made a chuckling sound.

She realized there was a small warm bundle next to her hip. She tried to move her right arm, attempting to reach out to pet the beastie, but it seemed to be strapped to her chest. Pain shot through her arm and chest and she winced, deciding it was better to stay still. Bovril made a soft, sad sound and she felt it gently rub against her, as though trying to comfort her.

"The doctor prescribed medication for your pain. I put some in the water you drank." Alek said, "You should feel some relief in a few minutes."

"Barking Spiders." Deryn mumbled. "What happened to me?"

She heard the scrape of chair legs and assumed that Alek had pulled a chair close to sit down. She felt him gently take her left hand.

"Do you...do you remember anything? I mean, do you remember what happened?" He asked hesitantly.

Deryn tried to think, but that simple action made her head hurt more. "No. My head hurts too blistering much to think."

"It happened two days ago. After work, we raced to that old tree in Regent's park." Alek began.

"Aye, our favorite. The top gives us a perfect view of the London sky." She interjected, smiling slightly. She didn't add that when she was up there, she felt like she was flying again.

"Yes." He said and she felt his thumb gently rub the back of her hand. "We were climbing to the top to watch the sunset." As he talked, the memories came back, flooding Deryn's mind. "You were ahead of me and...and a branch broke."

Her breathing and heart-rate increased, as did the pain in her ribs. She remembered hearing the snap of wood and Alek shout her name, the terrifying feeling of grasping at thin-air, the searing pain of smacking into branches and then, nothing.

"So that's why I hurt all over, and why I can't see." Deryn said, more to herself than to him.

"Yes." Alek said softly.

A moment later he added, "You fell right in front of me, but I couldn't reach you. Deryn, I am so, so sorry." His voice sounded shaky, as though he might cry.

Deryn sighed. She should have known that Alek would take the blame onto himself. She shifted her head toward him, feeling a bit irritated that she couldn't see him, or look into the green eyes she loved so much.

Deryn gripped his hand tighter, ignoring the pain in her body.

"Now you listen to me, you daft prince." She said, summoning Mr. Rigby's stern and commanding tone of voice. "This is not your fault. It's my own barking fault for not paying enough attention to what I was grabbing." She struggled to keep her voice strong, since her energy level was suddenly fading; however, there was more she needed to say.

"I want you to promise me something, Alek."

"Anything, Deryn!"

"Promise me that you will stop thinking and saying that this is your fault."

There was a long pause, then she felt his lips press to the back of her hand, sending a shiver up her spine. She felt herself start to drift between reality and a strange dream world. "I promise, liebe."

Suddenly, Deryn was exhausted and her hand went limp within his. She heard him stand quickly.

"Deryn? Are you alright?" He asked, worry in his voice.

"Aye." Deryn mumbled. "Just...barking tired."

Just before surrendering to sleep, she thought she felt Alek's soft, warm lips touch hers in a gentle kiss.


Alek stayed bent over Deryn for a moment, watching her face and body relax as she slipped into a peaceful sleep. Bovril looked at Deryn and seemed to sigh with contentment. After a moment, it curled into a ball and joined her in sleep.

Alek sat down in the chair and let out a deep sigh of relief. His thumb unconsciously stroked the back of her hand. It was such a consolation to him that Deryn had woken in a more normal state of mind, instead of the panicked one from hours before.

He, Dr. Barlow and Bovril had all been very worried about her, since they had never seen Deryn in such hysterics, so terrified. Even Count Volger had been worried, although he tried to deny it.

After that, Alek and Bovril had refused to leave her side for more than a few minutes at a time.

Dr. Williams had come in after the incident to check on Deryn. He had assured them that she was fine, that waking up in a frenzied state after a trauma was not unheard of, especially when blindness was thrown into the mix.

It was also comforting to know that Deryn did not blame him for the accident, as he had blamed himself.

Both she and Count Volger were right. There really hadn't been anything that he could have done to stop or change what happened, apart from not climbing the tree at all. But Deryn was a free spirit and loved to be in the air. Many times, the top of a tall tree was as close to the sky as she could get.

He would never want to change her. He loved her for who she was.

"Good morning, Mr. Hohenburg." Dr. Barlow said from the doorway. Alek turned in his chair, thinking that he must have been wrapped up in his thoughts, because he had not even heard her come in.

"Good morning, madam." He responded as he stood and faced the Lady Boffin.

As always, she was impeccably dressed, whereas Alek must have looked awful, what with not really having slept or eaten very much in the past two days. He assumed that his clothes were rumpled and his hair a mess; completing his disheveled appearance would likely be his puffy, red eyes.

"How is our patient this morning?" She asked, her eyes fixed on Deryn as she moved toward the bed.

"She was awake a few minutes ago and I gave her some water with the medication Dr. Williams prescribed." Alek said.

"Very good. The next time she is awake it would be wise to try and feed her something. Perhaps some broth to begin with." Dr. Barlow commented, her eyes fixed on Deryn's contused face.

Alek nodded, thinking this was a good idea. Deryn needed to keep up her strength in order to heal.

"I will have the nurse keep some hot broth on hand so she can have some at any time." The woman stated, more to herself than anyone else.

"Yes, that is a good idea since she wasn't able to stay awake for very long. She seemed much calmer, though, even managing to chastise me for blaming myself for what happened." This statement caused the Lady Boffin to give him a gentle smile.

"However," Alek glanced at Deryn's sleeping form before continuing, "It seems that she still cannot see."

The woman nodded slowly. "I spoke with Dr. Williams earlier and he assured me that blindness after a head injury is actually quite common. It really depends on what part of her head that she hit, and how hard, which determines the possible permanency of the condition. That, combined with plenty of time and rest."

Shocked, Alek stared at Dr. Barlow, his mind racing. "Are you...are you saying that this could be," He swallowed hard, "Permanent?"

Dr. Barlow looked at Alek despairingly and shook her head. "I do not know, Alek."

There was a long pause, then she turned back to Deryn. "Only time will tell."

Alek stared at Deryn for a moment, but then set his jaw, turning to look at the Lady Boffin.

"Deryn will fight this. She will see again." He said with conviction.

Dr. Barlow gave him a gentle smile. "I believe she will too, Alek." She placed a hand on his shoulder and then walked to the door.

Before she exited the room, however, she seemed to remember something and turned back to him.

"I felt it necessary to contact someone from her family. It so happens that the Minotaur, the airbeast that her brother is serving on, is docking to resupply. Her brother, Jaspert Sharp, will be here in a few hours." And with that she walked out the door.

Alek's eyes grew as this new information sunk in. He had never met anyone from Deryn's family. They had been planning a trip to her home in Glasgow in the next few months, but now it would have to be put on hold, indefinitely.

For a while now, Deryn had been regaling him with stories of her home, family and friends, various Scottish customs, what it was like growing up in Glasgow, and so on. In some ways, he felt like he knew many of her family members already.

On the other hand, meeting one of them now, especially under these circumstances, might prove to be awkward at the very least.

Alek sat back down in the chair, slowly letting out the breath he hadn't known he was holding. There was no use in worrying about meeting Deryn's brother. Whatever was going to happen would happen and fretting over it would not do anyone any good.

All he could do was wait and see what fate would bring their way.


A little while later, Volger and Alek were in Deryn's room, talking—or rather arguing—quietly so as not to disturb her sleep. Count Volger was once again trying to convince the ex-Archduke to go back to his flat to get some rest, but Alek was adamantly resisting, wanting to be close to Deryn in case she needed anything.

The Count was visibly frustrated with him, but they had come to a compromise. A cot would be brought in for Alek's use, at least until Deryn did not need constant monitoring.

Suddenly there was a ruckus down the hallway. An unfamiliar, male voice was boldly requesting to be taken to Deryn Sharp. Alek and Volger looked at each other and then toward the door, hearing Dr. Barlow in the mixture of voices.

Alek was thankful that he and the Count would be blocking the man's view of Deryn when he walked into the room. He assumed it would be enough of a shock for the man to see his sister lying injured in bed, without it being the first thing he saw.

A moment later Dr. Barlow escorted a uniformed British airman into the room. He was quite tall, with similar facial features to Deryn's, but sported darker blond hair and hazel colored eyes. Alek knew, even before they were introduced, that this man was indeed Jaspert Sharp.

As he walked into the room the man's face turned hard and unreadable, every inch a soldier.

"Excuse me ma'am, but why is there a bloody Clanker in my sister's room?" Jaspert's Scottish lilt held an icy tone, his eyes immediately noticing Count Volger's Austrian Cavalry uniform (Alek frequently thought it was very audacious for the man to be walking around a Darwinist hospital in such a getup).

Alek held back a reply, knowing that it would be best to let the Lady Boffin make introductions.

"Jaspert Sharp, may I introduce Mr. Aleksandar von Hohenburg and Wildcount Ernst Volger. Mr. Hohenburg, Count Volger, this is Jaspert Sharp, Miss Sharp's elder brother."

They both gave polite bows to the fierce-looking man before them. Jaspert nodded curtly to them, but his eyes spoke loudly that he did not trust either one of them.

Alek chose to remain silent and ignore this. The war between the Darwinist and Clanker powers was technically still ongoing, so he could appreciate Jaspert's wariness.

Dr. Barlow started talking again and Jaspert glared at them once more before turning his attention to what she was saying. "Aleksandar was the one who ran for help after Miss Sharp's accident."

Jaspert never took his eyes from Alek as he moved closer to Deryn's bed. The stare-down made Alek feel nervous, but years of fencing lessons and princely training helped him to stay visibly calm and collected.

Standing next to the bed, only a couple of feet from Alek, Jaspert's eyes lowered to look at his sister for the first time. His eyes widened and his jaw went slack, his face suddenly void of color.

Jaspert took in the darkening bruises covering much of her exposed skin, the sling holding her splinted right arm to her chest, and the wraps and bandages on various parts of her body. His eyes finally landed on the large splint and barnacle compress engulfing the majority of her left leg.

Alek knew what a shock it had been for himself, seeing Deryn for the first time after her accident and surgery. He could imagine it would be a greater shock for Jaspert, since he had no warning or knowledge of Deryn's accident or condition.

"What the bloody hell happened to her?" Jaspert breathed.

Before anyone could utter a word, Jaspert suddenly grabbed the lapels of Alek's jacket and thrust him hard against the wall, pinning him to it! The room felt unsteady for a moment and Alek realized that the back of his head had banged against the wall, rather forcefully.

However, Jaspert didn't seem to notice or care.

"What the bloody hell did you do to my sister, Clanker!?" Jaspert shouted in Alek's face, looking ready to beat him to a pulp. "I know you bloody-well had something to do with this! Tell me what you did!" His eyes were wild, a furious expression on his face.

Alek stammered unintelligibly for a moment, but before he could get any coherent words out, he heard a familiar sound—the singing of metal.

Jaspert suddenly tensed, his head held uncomfortably high.

Count Volger's face was deadly calm as he held his saber to Jaspert's throat.

"Let the boy go." He demanded slowly, his deep voice edged with steel. "Now."

"That is enough gentlemen!" Dr. Barlow said forcefully, her voice echoing in the small room. "Count Volger, kindly sheath your sword! Mr. Sharp, please unhand Mr. Hohenburg!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Alek could see Bovril's fur stand on end and he gave a low growl.

Count Volger gave Jaspert a long, withering look. Finally he returned the sword to its scabbard, but never took his eyes from the man still holding Alek firmly against the wall.

Alek had forgotten that the Count never went anywhere without his sword at his side. He was thankful that the man had it today, if for no other reason than it kept Jaspert from pummeling him.

"Mr. Sharp, I understand that this has all been quite a shock for you, but please do calm yourself. We will certainly explain everything." Dr. Barlow said firmly and then added, "However, you should know that if Mr. Hohenburg had not acted so quickly in getting help, Miss Sharp may have been in worse shape than she is."

Jaspert stared at the Lady Boffin for a moment, still keeping Alek pinned to the wall. He turned to glare darkly at Alek, whose face was likely betraying his shock of being so roughly manhandled, his feet barely touching the floor.

"I can assure you, what happened to her was a complete accident and was in no way Aleksandar's or anyone else's fault." The woman said calmly.

Jaspert slowly released his grip on Alek and stepped back.

Alek rubbed the painful spot on the back of his head, then straitened his jacket, Jasper's icy stare lingering on him the entire time.

Jaspert finally turned to Dr. Barlow, evidently ready to hear her explanation, but the man still looked ready to thrash Alek if he made one wrong move.

Bovril jumped to the floor and scaled Alek to perch on his shoulder—the loris' adorable face scowled at Jaspert.

"Miss Sharp and Mr. Hohenburg were climbing a tree after work the other day, something that it seems they do quite frequently." Dr. Barlow began. "Unfortunately, a tree branch broke causing her to fall from fairly high up. Mr. Hohenburg tried to catch her, but sadly was too far away to be successful."

Jaspert gave Alek an unfriendly look, which he interpreted to mean of course you were, you bloody Clanker.

Either Dr. Barlow didn't see the look or chose to ignore it, as she continued with her explanation. "On the way down she hit several large tree limbs before ultimately hitting the ground. The worst damage was to her left leg, but the surgery went well and the doctor believes it will heal well enough."

Jaspert took a moment to let this information sink in. "As long as this Clanker didn't directly cause my sister's injuries..." He looked pointedly at Alek, "I apologize for my outburst, ma'am." However, he didn't sound sorry in the least.

Alek thought it worthwhile to try and make peace with Deryn's older sibling. "I am terribly sorry about what happened to your sister, Mr. Sharp." Alek said solemnly, his eyes locking with Jaspert's.

"I understand that you do not know me and have no reason to believe me, but I love your sister and would never dream of hurting her in any way. " He saw the man's shocked expression at his words.

Before anything else could be said, there was a soft rustling noise from the bed.

"Alek?" Deryn whispered hoarsely.

Without even glancing in Jaspert's direction, Alek swiftly moved to Deryn's bedside.

"I'm here, liebe." He said softly.

"Alek, my leg. It hurts like blazes." She said in a pained whisper.

He poured some water into a glass and added the powder Dr. Williams had prescribed.

"Here. Drink this." He slipped a hand under her neck, supporting her head as he helped her drink.

After he had laid her back onto the pillow, returning the glass to the bedside table, he took her hand and she held it tightly.

"Alek, was I dreaming or did I hear Jaspert's voice a moment ago?" Deryn mumbled, sounding like she was fighting sleep.

"You didn't dream it Der. I'm right here." Jaspert said, moving closer. Alek let go of her hand, taking a step back to give him access to his sister.

"Jaspert, you barking ninny. You didn't need to come all this way just to check on me." She said weakly.

Jaspert knelt beside the bed, his face level with hers; however, her eyes stared blankly at the wall behind him. Jaspert seemed puzzled by this and looked behind him at the spot she was "looking" at, but saw only a plain white wall. When he turned back to her, his face showed his concern.

"Deryn, why aren't you looking at me?" Jaspert asked.

Deryn took a shuddering breath and closed her eyes tightly against the tears that were gathering in them.

Dr. Barlow spoke quietly. "Unfortunately, in the fall, it seems that her vision was also affected."

Jaspert stared at the Lady Boffin incredulously for a moment, then waved a hand before Deryn's face. He looked sorrowfully at his sister when she didn't react.

Suddenly Bovril piped up, repeating part of an earlier conversation. "What the bloody hell did you do to my sister, Clanker?"

Deryn looked confused for a moment, but then seemed to understand what the perspicacious loris meant. She tilted her head in Jaspert's direction, her face showing determination and a hint of irritation.

"Jaspert, I know you're mad at Alek, but don't be." Deryn said boldly. "This wasn't his fault. It's mine. I wasn't paying attention."

Jaspert shook his head, about to argue with her, but she continued before he could speak.

"And if I find out you've been too tough on him, I'll bloody-well kick your arse." She said with a small smile.

Alek could see out the corner of his vision that Count Volger was not really enjoying this conversation. He knew that the man found it distasteful that a woman enjoyed swearing like a sailor, but Alek always found it amusing.

He was also grateful to see Deryn smiling. He had seen so few of her smiles since the accident.

Jaspert smiled back at her and pretended to chuck her on the chin. "I'd love to see you try."

He paused before adding, "Is it true, what he says, Der? Does that bloody Clanker love you?"

Deryn's smile probably would have told Jaspert all he needed to know, but she still said, "Aye. 'Tis true. And I love him."

Jaspert nodded his head slightly. "Fair enough."

He gave Alek a stern–almost glaring–look as he said, "Just want to make sure I don't need to kick his arse all the way back to Clanker-land."

"Blisters! You better not, you sod." Deryn said with a small smile.

Deryn's face suddenly turned serious. "Jaspert, one more thing. Don't tell Ma about my accident. She'll drag me back to Glasgow and this time it'll be for good."

Jaspert thought for a moment and then nodded, although a bit reluctantly. "Alright. If she asks about you I'll tell her you're doing fine. But you better get well so I'm not bloody lying to her."

Deryn smiled a bit and nodded, giving a relieved sigh, but looked exhausted.

"Aye. Thank you, Jaspert." She whispered.

Dr. Barlow stepped forward saying, "Perhaps we should have the rest of our conversation in the waiting room, gentlemen. Miss Sharp needs her rest."

Alek saw what the woman was evidently noticing. Deryn was fading quickly, her face already beginning to relax into sleep.

Jaspert stood and smoothed the hair from his sister's forehead. After a moment's hesitation, he moved from the bed and the four of them left the room.


A few hours later, Alek lay on the cot that the Count had arranged for him. His mind, however, was far from sleep as he thought of the previous day's events.

This was not the way that Alek thought he would be meeting a member of Deryn's family, but all things considered, he thought it had gone well enough.

Jaspert, of course, had wanted to know why his sister was under the employment of the Zoological Society of London and not aboard an airship. After all, the last time he had seen Deryn was at the proving grounds as a new recruit, soaring through a thunderstorm while strapped to an irritated Huxley Ascender.

The Lady Boffin recounted to Jaspert the tale of how Alek had allied with herself and Deryn after the Leviathan's crash in the Alps and all the adventures that followed. The man seemed slightly taken aback when he realized with whom he was speaking—the former Prince of Hohenburg, Royal heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne.

Alek inserted certain details when he thought it necessary and, luckily, Count Volger was able to produce various newspaper articles that confirmed much of what they had told Jaspert.

After a great deal of conversation, Jaspert Sharp left to return to his military duty looking a bit less wary of Alek.

After going to see Deryn one last time, Jaspert had asked Dr. Barlow to keep him informed on his sister's recovery. He had seemed hesitant to leave, but unfortunately was unable to stay as his airship would be leaving the port soon.

As they shook hands, Alek promised Jaspert that he would take good care of Deryn. The firm handshake and hard look that Jaspert gave him said, You'd better, you bloody Clanker, and Heaven help you if you don't.

Alek brought his mind out of his reverie. He decided that sleeping was pointless and that perhaps a walk and some fresh air would do him good.

He walked over to the bed and looked down on Deryn, who seemed to be sleeping soundly. Bovril looked up at him from his place beside her. He patted the loris' head and told it to stay in case Deryn woke while he was gone.

"I'll be back in a few minutes, liebe." He whispered as he bent to kiss her forehead. When she didn't stir, he walked from the room.

He headed for the front entrance and had to squint as the sunlight hit his face. It was dawn and the brilliant-orange sun was directly in line with the horizon, breaking through buildings and trees to torment his eyes until they adjusted.

Alek found himself wandering along paths, in no particular direction. Several minutes passed and without him realizing it, he was suddenly standing beneath the very tree that had caused the whole predicament Deryn was in.

Alek looked down at the ground and his eyes found the place where she had landed. There was actually a very shallow indention in the earth where she had hit the ground. His stomach twisted as he remembered the accident, but he quickly pushed the painful memories away.

He tilted his head back and looked toward the sky, briefly forgetting just how massive the tree was. It towered above all the rest and looked to be at least the size of a three story building.

Deryn loved climbing this tree because of its height, the wonderful vantage point and the feeling of flying; but, they both loved it, mostly because it was their place. It was a place where they could talk about anything, dream of the future or reminisce about the past, share secrets. It was their place to be completely who they were without fear of any judgmental or disapproving eyes.

And now all Alek saw was the immense pain it had brought upon Deryn. And there was not a thing he could do to fix it.

For a few minutes he stood at the base of the tree, fighting back the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him.

Suddenly the thought came to him: perhaps he was doing something to fix it.

He had been with her through this entire mishap. He had been there to comfort and help her, to let her know she wasn't going through this alone.

Determination filled Alek as he turned on his heel to head back. He would continue to be there for her, to help Deryn through this.

Whatever it took.


Note: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!

All credit goes to the amazing Scott Westerfeld!