Sam’s Journey, Part Four: Changes (1/2)

(Author Note: I had to split this episode into 2 parts due to Tapas' length limits for short story episodes! This is part 1 of 2)

CW: Hospital, therapy

~ Seven Weeks since Day 0 ~

7am. A nurse entered the room, same time as always. 

"Heya Harv." Sam stretched and rubbed her baggy, bloodshot eyes. If she wasn’t so tired, she’d be surprised that it was already 7am. The last time she looked at the clock, she was watching Zorro at around 4am.

"Howdy to you too, stripes. Still awake I see." Harvey gave her a crooked-toothed smile and started getting to work. There was something about Harvey that Sam liked. She wasn't sure if it was that his accent reminded her of her father or if it was just his indifference to her appearance, but he was the only staffer she felt comfortable talking with. "Ah look at that. You're healing pretty well for just a week! Most people couldn't even survive what you been through, let alone heal that fast. Guess bein' a variant pays off, huh?" He changed the bandages and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Good as new! And you haven't been nauseous in..." He checked her chart. "Three days now. That still true?"

“Yup,” She placed a hand on her stomach and gave a small, relieved smile. "All good here."

"Your voice sounds stronger too. Does your throat still hurt?" Harvey offered her some pills. Sam looked at them, skeptically, and frowned, shaking her head. "We've been through this,” Harv insisted, “it's just painkillers. I promise nobody here is gonna hurt ya, girl."

"Sorry." She said curtly.

Harvey sighed. “Well, I know from experience we can't make you take em." He rubbed a hand-shaped bruise on his forearm. "But they're there in case you change your mind."

Sam frowned as she looked at his wound. "S-sorry..." she liked Harvey now, but their first encounter was less than amiable.

"Water under the bridge, Stripes. You ain't the first patient to leave a mark on me.” He shrugged casually, “Even non-variants can throw a nasty punch if they're in a bad mood." He headed toward the door. "Later, stripes."

"See ya Harv." Sam gave an upward tick of her chin but didn't lock eyes with him again. The room was quiet and the tigress’s thoughts drifted toward her family.

She recalled her conversation with Hilltop a few days ago “I’m sorry,” he had said, “but you won’t be able to see them anytime soon. All I can tell you is that they’re safe and protected.”  Sam wasn’t shocked by this, of course. People had been chasing her for nearly two months now, it wasn’t safe for her family to be near her. Regardless, they were never far from her thoughts, and she often planned ways of escaping to find them once her strength fully returned.

Which led to other anxious thoughts like, where even was she? Harvey and Hilltop never gave her a straight answer when she asked. But with nothing to do other than doodle, watch TV, and lay in bed, the tigress spent a great deal of time trying to focus on her enhanced hearing abilities. If she concentrated hard enough, she could hone in on conversations outside of her room. Eventually someone must have caught on though, because at one point the conversations nearby became much more muffled and whispered. From what she gathered, they were in some kind of underground military compound. Several times she had heard passers by mention “up top” and “bunker”, and they almost always used formal titles like “Sir” and “Colonel”. Questions swarmed in her mind; Was she even in Tennessee anymore? Was she with the actual military, or was it some kind of secret evil army like from a movie? Were they being nice to her just to gain her trust? What if they wanted to use her as a secret weapon? She scratched her arms, itchy with anxiety.

Not long after Harvey had left, Hilltop entered. He quietly approached Sam, handing her a comic book, a cream-filled pastry treat, and placed an iced coffee drink on her bedside table. After enthusiastically but quietly flipping through the pages of the comic, she set it on the bed side table along with the other comics Hilltop had been bringing her throughout the week. Though secretly grateful for the entertainment, Sam never let him know. From what she could tell, he was the ‘big boss’ of this whole operation, and the last thing she wanted was to let her guard down around him.

When she looked up from the comic to grab the coffee drink, she realized there was a second person in the room with them. The stranger was dressed in a pair of black shoes, black slacks, a white v-neck shirt that was covered by a grey cardigan, and to top it all off a frameless pair of glasses. Their hair was cut short and curly, dyed teal, while their skin was two-toned, being lighter around their eyes, mouth, and some areas of their hands. They carried a small, black messenger back with them that had some papers poking out of the top.

“Good morning, Sam. This is a friend of mine.” Hilltop gestured to the stranger. “I thought...Well I thought you could use someone to talk about what you’ve gone though.”

“Hi Sam. My name is Mx. Piper Beckly. They/them. It’s nice to meet you!” Beckly came forward and reached out their hand toward Sam’s for a handshake. Sam hesitated briefly but then reached out and firmly grasped Beckly’s hand, squeezing it a bit harder than she probably should have. “You have quite the strong grip there.” They winced and, once Sam let go, shook their hand out. “Do you have super strength or do you always shake like that?”

“Yes.” Sam replied and straightened her posture, puffing up a bit. “What do you want?” Her voice was deeper and held a bit of a growl.

“Well for starters, I’d love not to have my hand crushed again if you don’t mind. It smarts...” Beckly raised their eyebrows and looked Sam in the eyes. Their gaze wasn’t threatening, but rather clear and non-emotional.

Sam’s ears twitched backwards a little. Prisha’s warnings about controlling her powers rang in her mind for a brief moment. The tigress looked down and slumped in the bed slightly.

“Sorry… It won’t happen again.” There was a sincerity in Sam’s tone.

Hilltop smiled a little under his bushy mustache and cleared his throat. “Alright. I’ll let you two talk a bit. Beckly, take all the time you need.” He nodded at them and then exited the room.

After Hilltop left, Beckly took a few steps back but smiled warmly at Sam. “In the interest of full disclosure, I’m not just a random person. I’m a therapist.” Beckly explained, staying where they were about 7 feet or so away from Sam. “But not just that, I’m a variant too.”

Sam’s ears perked a little. Sam knew that variants could come in any shape and size, but somehow this person didn’t seem like one. As she wondered what their powers were, a small twinge of fear rippled through her; What if they were like Pound with the intention to hurt her? The fur on the back of her neck stood on end and her bristled tail twitched agitatedly.

Beckly held up their hands. “I promise I’m not here to hurt you. I’m just here to talk.” They stayed where they were. “My powers are...different from yours. Not quite as overt. If someone is within a certain range of myself, I can put them at ease. Calm them and make them feel relaxed.” They explained, lowering their hands. “When I learned I had these abilities, I knew I wanted to help people with this power but I never wanted to use it without a person’s consent. So I studied, became a therapist, and have been helping people-- other variants mostly-- ever since. Sometimes people like me to help them relax with my powers. Sometimes they don’t. It’s always the patient’s choice. Either way, I’d like to talk with you about your experiences. Are you comfortable with me coming a little closer, so my powers can have an effect on you? Or would you prefer I stay where I am?”

Sam took a moment to think about it, but eventually nodded at Beckly.

“Is that a yes?” Beckly looked at Sam for a more verbal confirmation. “You don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.”

“Yeah...I’m okay with that.” Sam cracked a small smile. It wasn’t her first time meeting a therapist; Her mother had gone to one for most of Sam’s life, and Sam had been to one a couple times when she was a child.

“Great!” Beckly returned the smile and moved a chair over to Sam’s bedside. They removed the messenger bag off of their shoulder and placed it on the ground beside them. Once they settled in the chair, they looked up at Sam and gently smiled at the young girl.

Sam felt a wave of relief and serenity wash over her. Even though she wasn’t out of danger and her problems still existed, in that moment she wasn’t scared anymore. It was difficult for Sam to fully pin down how she felt. It wasn’t indifference, but it wasn’t the long-standing anxiety she’d felt for the past two months either. It was serene, it felt comfortable and nice.

“Wow…” Sam felt her body relax as she leaned back against the headboard of her bed.

“Yeah.” Beckly smiled. “Is this still okay? We can stop anytime you like.”

Sam nodded and smiled relaxedly. “Yeah.”