Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Everything was a rush from the moment they stepped onto the rescue planes. Van clutched desperately at Taissa’s side and curled her face into her chest when the paramedics attempted to look at her scars. Shauna stared off numb and not entirely there while Jackie wrapped her arm around her waist to keep her steady. Lottie carried their kid and handed him over to Jackie once they sat down before taking her seat next to Natalie. The resume team desperately tried to pry information out of the team, but they only gave the bare minimum some refusing to even tell them their names.

Upon arriving at the hospital, the group was split apart; some went easy, and some were a little reluctant. After some convincing, they let themselves be led to separate rooms like Van and Tai. Others put up a bit more of a fight, namely Jackie and Shauna.

The pair clung to each other, and the baby boy was sandwiched in between them like their life depended on it. For a while, it had. No amount of coaching from the doctors was going to split them. The security guards began trying to pull them apart. One particular guard grabbed Shauna by her shoulders who quickly responded by sinking her teeth straight into the flesh of his arm. Warm, copper-tasting blood flows into her mouth and coats her teeth with crimson red. The guard stumbles back, clutching his arm and crying out in pain.

Shauna lunges at him while Jackie attempts to quiet the cries coming from the fragile little body cradled in her arms. Something small and stinging gets pressed into Shauna's arm as a flurry of officials attempts to pull Shauna off of the now cowering man beneath her. Her head begins to spin, and a wave of lightheadedness washes over her until she hits the ground, and the world goes dark.

Van batted off hands and death stared at anyone who came near her as doctors made vain attempts to look at the inside of her cheek to assess the damage done by the wolf attack. She wanted Tai. No, she needed Tai. Her chest constricted and her head rushed at the feeling of all the air being sucked out of her. She could hear the beeping of the heart rate monitor she was hooked up to at some point rapidly increasing and a sea of doctors and nurses flowed into the room. One of her arms flew up to clutch at her chest as a wave of pain and nausea took over. After many failed attempts to get Van to breathe, they instead placed a sedative into the IV drip hanging out of her arm and laid her down on the bed.

The first thing Shauna noticed when she woke up was the sterile smell and harsh lighting of the hospital room she had been placed in. Her head pounded, and her heart ached to be near to her two loves. She attempted to sit up but found that her hands and feet had been bound to the bed by leather straps. Shauna struggled and screamed until a nurse appeared in the doorway. She stopped and stared at her as she came over to adjust some machine connected to Shauna.

“Will you please let me out of these restraints?” Shauna pleaded, shooting the nurse a scowl so deadly that if looks could kill, she would be well past six feet under by now.

“Are you going to keep your teeth and fists to yourself if I do?” the nurse, whose name tag read Michelle, joked. Shauna wanted to punch and kick her till she was squirming and begging for mercy beneath her, but she knew that would not get her anywhere, so instead, she just nodded stiffly. The feeling of her hands being freed was a pleasant one, and she had no idea how long she had been out for, but judging by the marks on her arms, she would say quite a while.

She wants to run and kick and beg and scream until she reaches Jackie but she realizes that wouldn't go over all too well so instead she settles on asking “How long was I out for?” nurse Michelle gives her a pitying look that makes Shauna want to smack it right off her face. “A few hours,” she replies.

“When can I see Jackie and my baby?” the nurse once again gives her a tight bittersweet smile and gives a squeeze to Shauna's arm, which she quickly moves away from shooting the nurse a death stare in the process.

“I'll let the doctor know you're awake,” she replies before fleeing the room, not too dissimilar to a rabbit fleeing a predator. A blonde-haired woman dressed in a white coat and carrying a clipboard came in through the door and smiled at Shauna.

“I’m Doctor Robbins. I’ll be your doctor for the duration of your stay.” She introduces herself, and Shauna repeats the same sentiment she gave to her colleague earlier by scowling and asking, “When can I see Jackie and my baby?”

Dr Robbins sighed with that same sympathetic smile that just made Shauna feel patronized. “We are going to have to keep you all quarantined from each other for a while.” Panic rose in Shauna’s chest, and her heart jumped to her throat. It was one thing to keep them away from each other when they were being examined, but quarantined? For a few days? No, that wasn't going to happen on shaunas watch.

Shauna lept out of the bed and lunged at the unsuspecting doctor, sending the pair tumbling unceremoniously to the ground with a thud. Shauna raised her fists, her body completely on autopilot as her mind kicked into her fight-or-flight instinct. A group of guards and other hospital staff rushed into the room and pulled Shauna back before she could do any further damage.

She struggled and kicked the man holding her back in the shins, who in turn loosened his hold on her. She wriggled out of his grasp and flew across the room until her back hit the wall opposite the door. The weight of everything happening to her so fast finally hit her, and overwhelming emotions rippled through her. Her breathing was ragged and heavy, and her legs gave out from under her as she slid down the wall to sit with her knees pulled up to her chest.

Dr. Robbins approached her with her hands out in surrender and with a level of caution one would use to approach a wild animal. Maybe that's what she was now, at one with the wilderness and all. She lifted her head from its perch on top of her knees and finally registered the tears flowing down her cheek as her breathing evens out.

Dr Robbins slowly coaches Shauna back into the bed after telling the guard to stand down. Shauna hated feeling belittled, but she was too exhausted to care at this point. She wanted Jackie. Jackie would make everything alright again and make her feel safe.

Shauna zones out so completely in her head that she barely registers Dr. Robbins taking some of her vitals and running some tests on her until she hears it, deafeningly loud and piercing.

A primal-like scream echoed through the ward.

Chapter Text

Van jolted awake at the sound of a terrified scream flowing through the walls of the hospital. She recognized that voice: Lottie. She jumped up out of bed and untangled herself from the machines and wires monitoring her.

Throwing the door open, she was greeted by a guard who stopped her and told her to go back inside her room. Van argued and attempted to push past him, but she didn't have much strength, so her attempts were in vain, and she eventually relented and retreated to her room again.

Van laid in the bed for a good 10 minutes, worried sick about Lottie, until a series of knocks brought her out of her thoughts. They were the same set of knocks she used to use on Tai’s window when she would sneak into her room back home. Van sent the same knocks back and slid down next to the wall and leaned her head back against it. When the nurses came to check on them again they found both girls asleep on either side of the wall, the first time Taissa had slept since arriving there.

Lottie was tired. She hadn't spoken since the rescue. Her mind, however, would not shut up. The voices in her head were telling her to run and that it was hungry. She just wanted everything to be quiet. Silent. Calm. The doctors keep coming in and asking her questions and trying to coach her into speaking. The machines tracking her heart rate, the hands of the doctor running tests on her, the sounds of their footsteps, the voices in her head, the memories of the wilderness. It was all just so loud. She wanted it to stop but she couldn't find the words, or maybe she didn't have them, to tell them to stop. She wasn't sure which, but she did the only thing she knew how to do.

She screamed.

Immediately, all the noises around her stopped. The hospital staff all stared at her wide-eyed and shocked as more arrived, attracted by the sound. Lottie simply curled into the fetal position and turned to face the wall, falling into a haunted sleep.

After sedating and carrying away Shauna, a kind-looking doctor whose name tag read Dr. Torres approached Jackie and the small bundle of joy cradled in her arms whose cries had finally quietened after a lot of begging on Jackie’s part. After leading Jackie into a private room she requested for Jackie to let go of the baby so both of them could be checked out. Being the more rational of the couple, Jackie relented and reluctantly passed him over to Dr. Torres.

“What's his name?” questioned Dr. Torres.

“Jude,” Jackie replied as she wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly feeling very self-conscious now that she didn't have anyone to hold.

“Like the Beatles song,” mused the doctor. Jackie gave a slight smile to that as technically he was named after that song.

After Jude had been born, they hadn't given him a name for a few months, solely referring to him as wild guy. One day when Jackie and Shauna were playing with Jude in the attic, Shauna, out of the blue, said
“I've thought of a name for him.” Jackie leaned back and laid her head on her girlfriend's shoulder from her place between Shauna's legs and hummed in response.

“Do you remember when we were kids and my mom used to drive us to and from school, and we would always ask her to put on the same song, and we would sing our hearts out together in the back seat?”

“Yeah, that song Hey Jude by the Beatles, right?” Jackie responded, curious as to why Shauna was bringing this memory up.

“Right, well, I was thinking maybe we could call him Jude, short for Judiah,” Shauna replied sheepishly, hoping Jackie would like it.

A wide smile spread across Jackie's face as she placed a kiss on Shauna's cheek, muttering “it's perfect” against her skin.

“I was also thinking that his middle name could be Lee, like Laura Lee, as a way of honoring her.”

“I love that, and I'm sure she would be honored to have him named after her.”

Jackie looked at the newly named Jude and muttered “Judiah Lee Shipman” to nobody in particular. “Well actually that's the other thing, I was kinda hoping his last name could be Shipman-Taylor,” Shauna confessed, bracing herself for Jackie’s reaction.

“Really!” Jackie exclaimed, tackling Shauna to the ground and kissing her passionately.

Jackie was broken out of her memory as Jude's wails started up again as he was carried out of the room by a nearby nurse. Jackie's eyes welled up with tears as he was taken away from her, and she was truly alone again.

Dr. Torres walked her over to the bed and sat down next to her. “How did you get all these scars?” she asked, referring to the scars littering the side of Jackie's neck and face. “Frostbite and hypothermia,” responded Jackie solemnly. “They had to amputate my finger and ear,” Jackie added, gesturing to her right ear and holding up her hand sans her right ring finger.

Dr. Torres gave her a sympathetic look and got to work running blood tests and taking her vitals as well as bandaging her long-since-healed hand and placing a gauze over the hole in her head where her ear used to be, muffling her already faded hearing even more.

“When can I see Shauna and Jude again?” questioned Jackie anxiously.

“I'm sorry, but you won't be able to see them for a few days as we are keeping you all quarantined from each other for a while.”

Jackie wanted to kick and scream and beg and punch, but she knew that would do no good, and after all, that was more Shauna’s style, and she was sure that that is exactly how Shauna will react when she finds out.
But I mean, who is she kidding? She doesn't have the energy nor the strength to react that way even if she wanted to, so, alas, she settles for curling up and crying herself to sleep.

Chapter Text

Hayden Taylor's parents fucking suck. Growing up, his only saving grace was his older sister, Jackie. She was 4 years older than him and the kindest person Hayden had ever met. Jackie had a best friend, Shauna, who also became like a second sister to him (although he was 90% sure she would eventually become his sister-in-law).

Marilyn and Richard Taylor, however, were the most horrible people ever to walk the planet. Growing up, Hayden would see the way their mother would starve Jackie and force her to weigh herself constantly under the false pretense of helping her and something about getting a good husband in the future. It made him so angry, but he was too scared to ever speak out against the monsters that birthed him.

Jackie would reassure him and tell him it was fine, and he would sneak food to her room for her on days she wasn't allowed dinner. She would help him with his homework and ruffle his hair and he would cover for he when she would sneak out to parties.

Jackie was the only good thing about his childhood. They would watch movies and play video games together, often with Shauna, too. She was his best friend, and when at 14 years old, he got the news that her plane had crashed, it was like his whole life had come crashing down with it.

The last 19 months had been torture for Hayden; his parents had become even more distant, if that was even possible. After 6 months, his parents decided to hold a funeral and bury an empty casket in a grave with his sister's name on it. No amount of begging could change their mind, no matter how much he asked them to hold out hope.

That was the last time he cried: at her funeral. Since then, he has just avoided his parents and thrown himself into sports to avoid it all, mainly soccer, where he is now captain of the school boys' team.

The world kept spinning, and just when Hayden felt like he was drowning in everything and couldn't find a way out, they got the call that Jackie had been found alive as well as 9 other people and that they were being treated in a hospital in Canada.

Hayden had never seen his parents move so fast as to get on that plane, and now here they were, sitting in a waiting room not allowed to see their loved ones. He had his parents sit to the left of him, and Deb Shipman, who had always been more of a mother to him and Jackie than their own, sat on his left.

Nobody was telling them anything and he could see that Deb (who was one of the few to not bury their child and hold out hope along with the Turners, Quigleys, and Vicky Palmer, although he was pretty sure that was just because she couldn't be bothered) was ready to start throwing punches at the hospital staff.

Finally, a stern-looking doctor walked over to the group of worried family members. On either side, he had a soldier from the US Army. He stopped in front of them and let out a loud sigh.

“As you all know, your children were rescued from the Canadian wilderness after being stranded for 19 months,” he began.

“All of them are being treated as we speak and will be kept here for a few days, so I urge you all to get hotels and stay in the area.” Many of them nodded in response, the worried looks on their faces never leaving.

“As for the girls themselves, there are a few serious injuries and scars as well as all of them being severely malnourished and traumatized. We are doing everything we can to help them, and you will be able to see them shortly. There is also the matter of the 9th survivor.” The faces of the listeners shift from worry to intense fear of what could be wrong with the 9th survivor.

“There was a male infant found with the other survivor who looks to be between 8 and 10 months old.” A series of gasps rippled across the waiting room.

“Who's the mother?” demanded Mrs. Taylor, jumping to her feet where Hayden and his dad both instinctively placed a hand on her arms to hold her back from charging over to the doctor.

“We are not 100% sure, but the baby came in being held in between Shauna Shipman and Jacquline Taylor, and they are the only ones asking after him, so it is safe to assume that the baby is one of theirs.”

Deb's hand flew up to her mouth, and a look of distraught and slight fear painted Marilyn’s face.

“When can we see our children?” asked Audrey Turner.

“Not for another few hours at least, but we will let you know when you can.” That was all he said before walking away with the soldiers in tow.

The parents sat around exasperated as Marilyn Taylor started insisting that the baby must be Shauna’s because her perfect little angel wouldn't get pregnant. Deb just scoffs and ignores her as arguments break out between the parents and mostly between everyone and the teachers.

The only family that is yet to speak are the Mathews, who just look to be sitting in quiet contemplation. A part of Hayden hopes they feel guilty as it was their private plane, but another part of him knows they never meant for this to happen.

Hayden looks over to the only other sibling in the room, Tara Turner, who looks equally as uncomfortable. They had only spoken once as she is quite a bit older than him and even Taissa, but he knows that she cares for her sister the way he cares about his.

The notable absence of the Palmers worries him as while he has never really spoken to Tara, he does speak to Jason Palmer, Van's younger brother, often as they are the same age and in the same year at school.
He wouldn't describe them as friends as Hayden was popular and king of the school (much like his sister) and Jason was seen as kind of a loser, but they were friendly.

Because of this, he knows that Vicky Palmer is also a horrible mother who measures up equally to his own. She was an alcoholic and had never really cared about Van or Jason. If the rumors were true, then Jason no longer lives with his mother, and Hayden dreads to think about where he could live instead.

The double doors to the entrance of the waiting room swung open again, and silence fell among the parents. They turned toward the door, expecting to see a doctor, but were instead greeted by a scruffy-looking redheaded boy whom he had come to know as Jason. Jason looked rough and as though he could have been living in the wilderness with them as he and his clothes were covered in dirt and he was unhealthily thin and pale.

He was also noticeably alone, as his mother was nowhere in sight. Jason calmly nodded to the group and silently took a seat in one of the empty chairs. He had a Wiskayok High School Yellowjackets gym bag (which probably once belonged to Van) that was falling apart and overfilled.

Hayden gave him a slight smile, to which Jason returned and then turned to stare at his scuffed and hole-filled Converse.

Little did Hayden know that he was right to worry about Jason as after months of grieving for his sister and hearing his mom spew bullshit and insults directed at him and Van while drinking herself into an early grave, Jason had had enough and packed a bag and left in favor of couch surfing and living on the street.

Vicky had refused to get a grave for Van, stating that it was too expensive and she could spend that money on better things, which Jason knew to mean alcohol. Since leaving his home, Jason had gotten a job and saved all his money, only rarely buying food to stop himself from starving to death to buy a grave for his sister.

When he found out his sister was alive and had been rescued, he got a total of 3 buses and made his way up to the Canadian hospital. His sister had practically raised him as his absent and neglectful mother chose her favorite child over them: alcohol, therefore, it was no shock to him when he didn't find his mother in the waiting room with all the other parents, I mean hell even Malcolm Mathews, Vera Scatorccio and Marilyn Taylor, who are notoriously bad parents, showed up but of course, his mother wouldn't even do something as little as show up.

He could only hope that Van was unharmed and safe. He stared at his feet, damning the universe for giving him this life until a loud crash and bang came from behind the doors to the ward.

Chapter Text

Screaming, crying, and begging the hospital staff to let her see Jackie or Jude was getting Shauna nowhere. Frustration was starting to turn into blinding rage, and she kept trying to remember and do the breathing techniques Jackie had taught her to control her anger issues, but nothing was working.

They had been there for 2 days now, and she heard a nurse talking about all their families arriving, and as much as she loved her mom, there was only one family she was interested in getting back to. So she devised a plan and set it into motion once the nurse had just finished her rounds checking on them all.

She unhooked herself from the machines and ran out of the room with a sharpened plastic knife she had stolen during a meager meal. The doctors had said some bullshit about slowly introducing food back to them as if they hadn't been starving for months and although she knew it made sense as they didn't want to upset their stomachs, it still infuriated Shauna regardless.

Shauna barged through the door and attacked the guards on the other side, sending one of them flying into a lone hospital trolley with a loud crash. The other guard grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her into the air, pulling her back, and snatched the makeshift weapon out of her hands.

She struggled and thrashed within his grasp and flew her leg back until it collided with his, sending them both tumbling to the ground with yet another loud thud. The commotion around the girl attracted more guards and hospital staff to the area. Dr. Robbins came over and held her arms up in surrender as if approaching a rabid animal.

“Shauna, you have to calm down. You are going to injure someone or yourself further,” she said calmly.

“I want to see Jackie and our son,” Shauna exclaimed loudly. A flash of surprise shot across the doctor's face as she noticed Shauna’s choice of words but it was quickly replaced by the calm professional persona of before.

Dr. Robbins was trying to avoid having to put the girl on psychiatric hold as she didn’t want to be the one to have to tell the girl's mother she could see her for another 72 hours because she was seen as dangerous.

She led the girl back into her room after telling her as much and Shauna seemed to be slightly subdued but still had a level of anger about her which coupled with the impulsive and erratic behavior, worried Dr. Robbins as it is something often seen in people who have some form of mood or personality disorders but alas she wasn't a psychiatrist and these girls had been through hell and back but she made a mental note to organize a psych evaluation regardless.

Dr. Robbins had been talking to Dr. Torres earlier and thought that it would be best if they allowed Jackie and Shauna to see each other as Jackie had been refusing to eat and Shauna hadn't slept, and all they did was scream and cry and ask for each other and the baby.

Dr. Torres walked into Jackie’s room to see her struggling with the nurse trying to make her eat some food. Dr. Torres dismissed the nurse from the task and walked up to Jackie, who shoved the bowl of food away from her.

With a resigned sigh, the doctor moved the tray from her bed and placed it down to the side.

“I’ve been talking to your friend, Shauna’s doctor, and we both believe that it's beneficial for both of your well-being for the two of you to be allowed to see each other.” Jackie perked up at that news, already starting to try and get out of bed.

“Hold on, hotshot, not so fast. There is also the matter of the incident your friend was involved in earlier.”

“What incident?” Jackie inquired, her voice etched with worry.

“Shauna attacked a few guards in an attempt to break out and get to you.”

“Well, all the more reason to let us see each other. She wouldn't do that if I was with her,” Jackie countered, her tone dripping with snark.

Dr. Torres didn't respond to that, but she began to unhook the machines that were monitoring Jackie's vitals, and Jackie took that as her sign to begin to leave the room, to which Dr. Torres was hot on her heels. After letting the guards know she was allowed to leave, the doctor showed Jackie to Shauna's room, who was balled up in the fetal position on the bed up against the wall.

Jackie flew the door open and walked into the room. Shauna's head whipped up at the noise, and she lept up and threw herself into Jackie, embracing her tightly. The hug lasted a few minutes before the couple broke apart, but their hands remained joined between them.

Shauna looked at Jackie, even in her hospital-issued sweats and messy long hair falling chaotically over her shoulders. Shauna thought she looked beautiful and had to restrain herself from kissing her only because of the doctor who was still standing in the doorway. Shauna didn't care what anyone thought about her, but she didn't think Jackie would appreciate her doing that.

Shauna looked at the doctor, who she presumed was Jackie’s doctor, and nodded in gratitude, receiving a smile in return before the doctor stepped out of the room. Shauna led Jackie over to the bed, where she laid down, pulling her girlfriend on top of her. Aside from the obvious anxiety of still being separated from her son, this might be the most calm and relaxed Shauna had been since the rescue. Clearly, Jackie felt the same as she burrowed her head into the crook of Shauna’s neck and let out a loud audible sigh.

Shauna placed a chaste kiss on the top of Jackie's head and mumbled “missed you” to her. Jackie lifted her head in response and kissed Shauana's cheek. “Missed you too, shipman.” Shauna pulled her tighter, and Jackie felt like she had gone to heaven right then and there.

“Have they let you see Jude yet?” Jackie asked cautiously, reluctantly lifting her head to wait for shaunas response.

“No, not yet, you?” Jackie shook her head, an adorable pout on her lips that Shauna couldn't help but kiss away. All thoughts in Jackie's head melted away as Shauna pressed her lips to hers. The kiss was slow and loving and both girls were savoring every moment until they had to break away for air. “They will let us see him soon, I'll make sure of it,” Shauna reassured, although she was unsure if Shauna was saying it to her or herself.

Jackie laid her head down again and felt a wave of exhaustion falling over her. Shauna seemed to notice as she placed another kiss on Jackie's forehead and whispered, “Go to slee,p beautiful,” into Jackie's good ear. Shauna hadn't slept in days, not since they were rescued, but she found herself dozing off as well, safe in the knowledge that at least one of her loves was back in her arms.

Chapter Text

After a couple of nights of refusing to leave their spots against either side of the wall, the nurses caved and moved Van's and Tai’s beds to be up against that wall so at least they could be comfortable despite their stubbornness. Taissa was still terrified about sleepwalking, but knowing Van was there and hearing their knock every time one needed reassurance was enough to alleviate her worry.

Van had overheard that their families had arrived, but she seriously doubted that her mom was here. Unless Vicky Palmer had a complete personality change in the time she had been gone, she suspected that her mom probably couldn't be bothered to come or was too drunk to anyway.

She worried about Jason, though. He was only 14 when she left and he had begged her not to leave him alone with their mom. She had reassured him that it would only be for a week, but how wrong she had been. He was just a few months shy of 16 now, and she could only imagine how hard it had all been on him.

She also didn't want to scare him as she knew her scars were bad, and she had seen the way the nurse looked at them in passing. She just wanted to hug her baby brother and feel safe in her girlfriend’s arms again, but the staff were still adamant that they were not allowed to see each other yet.

Her doctor, Dr. Shepherd, said that they would be able to see their families today, though, which would be great news if she thought her family would show up. He had also reassured her that she would be able to see Tai soon, but he wouldn't say exactly when, so the pessimistic side of her chose not to believe him at all.

Dr shepherd opened the door and walked over to Van calmly. She noticed that he had left the door open as another person entered the room after him.

Jason.

She jumped up and out of bed and threw her arms around her baby brother as tears began to fall from both of the siblings' eyes. Jason looked scruffy and didn't smell great, but Van could imagine she didn't look her best right now, either.

“Is mom here? What happened to you?” Van rushed out, stumbling over the words with a slight sob leaving her throat.

Jason shook his head to answer her first question, to which Van was sad but not surprised.

“What do you mean? What happened to me? What happened to you?” Jason shot back in that angsty, aggressive voice all teenage boys possess.

“I'm fine. I'm just glad to be home.”

“Bullshit what happened to your face?” his tone carried more worry this time as he eyed the scars cautiously.

“I was attacked by wolves, but I'm fine. It was like a year ago now,” Van said, not wanting to sugarcoat it but trying to make him not worry too much.

“Uhm, wow, okay. Are you sure you're really okay?” Jason said, the shock evident in his words. His jaw hung open as he gaped at Van, wide-eyed.

“Yes, I’m sure, but what happened to you? How did you get here on your own?” she replied, grabbing his shoulders and walking him over to the bed as Dr. Shepherd slipped out of the room.

“I couldn't deal with mom any longer, so I left, and I've been staying at friends' houses and on the street.” A tear slipped from Van’s eyes at the confession, and she pulled him into another crushing hug, and that’s how they stayed for the next couple of hours, just holding each other and whispering words of comfort as they both cried.

When Shauna woke, the first thing she noticed was the crushing weight pressed against her chest and a hot breath landing on her neck. Jackie shifted in Shauna’s arms, mumbling something unintelligible. Shauna's heart swelled at the sight of Jackie curled up under the covers, basically laying on top of Shauna.

Shauna looked up as the door opened, taking her attention away from Jackie for the first time since she had gotten her back. Dr. Torres and Dr. Robbins both walk into the room, only to be shortly followed by 4 figures entering the room behind them.

Shauna locked eyes with her mother as she sped across the room to hug her daughter as Shauna attempted to sit up without jostling Jackie too much. Her mother's embrace was warm and comforting (not quite as comforting as a hug from Jackie, but nothing could compare to that).

Shauna pulled out of Deb's grasp and looked towards the Taylors. Mr. Taylor looked concerned and like he was 10 seconds away from grabbing Jackie and never letting go. To his right, Mrs. Taylor looked as stone-faced as ever, and finally, her eyes fell on Hayden, who had tears welling up in his eyes.

Hayden had always been somewhat of a brother to her, and she always felt protective over him just as she did his sister, and if it wasn't for his aforementioned sister, she would run up and hug him.

Shauna’s hand fell to the sleeping girl's back and slowly shook her out of her slumber. Jackie's head shot up almost comically fast as she looked at Shauna in misplaced concern. Her head twisted to see her family standing there as both doctors retreated from the room to give the families privacy to reunite.

Jackie stumbled out of bed and fell into her brother's arms rather ungracefully. Shauna let out a slight giggle at the sight of it before steadily pulling herself out of bed to hug Hayden herself while Jackie hugged her father.

Finally, Jackie turned to Marilyn, who placed her hand on her daughter's shoulders as she inspected her face. Everyone in the room knew what was about to happen.

“Oh my god, what on earth happened to your face? How did you get all these scars?” Marilyn rushed out, overwhelming her daughter, who simply responded, “Snow.” The girl was met with nothing but confused glances, but she couldn't think of the words to describe what had happened. All of this was happening so fast, and she was starting to panic.

Shauna noticed and pulled Jackie into her side, laying her girlfriend's head on her in an attempt to comfort her. “Frostbite and hypothermia.” Shauna supplied to ease their confused looks before elaborating, “She slept outside, and that night was the first fall of snow, and we only just got her inside in time to save her, but we had to amputate her finger and ear due to the frostbite.” shauna desperately tried to keep her voice from cracking at the painful memory of how scared she had been.

“WHAT!” Marilyn's shrill voice broke through the silence as she moved Jackie's hair to inspect her ear. Jackie tensed, bracing herself for the scrutiny. They were going to be in for a long day.

Chapter Text

Marilyn started rambling about plastic surgeons and how Jackie could never wear a wedding ring properly on account of her missing left ring finger.

All Jackie's life she had been told that the most important thing was for her to find a husband and have kids and be the perfect housewife. She supposes that is why she is so repressed, having hidden her lesbianism in order to conform to society and her parents' expectations.

At least her father had the decency to not act ashamed of her for all of her new physical imperfections, but her mother was not as courteous. Richard managed to calm his wife down (luckily, as Shauna was 3 seconds away from punching her lights out), and the room fell silent.

“They said one of you had a baby,” Deb reminded the group cautiously. Marilyn, having seemingly forgotten that detail after reuniting with her daughter, seethed as she stared at the two expectantly.

“We did,” they both replied in unison as Marilyn let out an exasperated sigh.

“Well, which one of you is the mother?” questioned Richard, his seemingly caring nature replaced by something eerily similar to his wife's, which bordered on stone cold and irate.

“I am,” Shauna replied, her tone almost challenging.

“We both are,” Jackie stated, stepping in front of Shauna as if she wanted to protect her. The statement shocked everyone in the room, including Shauna, who had half expected Jackie to go back to hiding who she was once they got back.

“What do you mean, Jacqueline?” questioned her mother criticizingly.

“Shauna is his biological mother but im his mother too and me and shauna are together and i dont give a shit what you think about me,” Jackie said defiantly, grabbing Shauna’s hand and kissing her on the cheek to emphasise her point.

“Jacqueline, please consider this carefully. You're not stuck out there anymore. You don’t have to be influenced by the likes of people like her,’ Richard said calmly while giving Shauna a look of disgust. Marilyn looked at Shauna with disdain, much like her father did, and Jackie's blood boiled, but before she could do anything, Hayden charged forward and socked their father right in the jaw, sending him flying backward and onto the floor.

Hayden squared up and prepared to punch his father again when Shauna grabbed his arm and yanked him back just in time to avoid the slap heading his way from Marilyn. However, the slap landed directly on the side of Shauna’s face instead.

“ENOUGH!” shouted Deb in order to stop the fighting. Deb walked over to her daughter and pulled her into her side before turning to Marilyn furiously.

“You do not get to come in here, hit and insult my daughter and treat your kids like shit after they have been through hell and back. You can love your kids and be good parents, or you can get the hell out because I love them both more than I think you're even capable of.” Marilyn simply gaped at them, shocked, while Richard looked furious.

“Fine, you wanna live this life, Jackie, then do that. We are leaving. Let us know when you're willing to see things the right way. Let's go, Hayden.”

“No, no way, I'm staying,” Hayden challenged, head held high defiantly.

“Fine, have it your way. Let's go, Richard,” Marilyn said and walked out without so much as sparing a glance at her children. Richard followed suit, sparing a longing glance at Hayden and Jackie and a hateful one at Shauna.

The next couple of hours went by solemnly; Shauna and Jackie went back to lying down, with the nurses checking on them occasionally. Hayden went to get the group food and sat on the extra chair they brought in. Deb has been sitting in the chair to the left of the bed while gripping her daughter's hand so tight as if she's afraid she will disappear if she lets go.

Every time the nurses come in, Deb tries to convince them to let the girls see Jude as they have been crying and begging for them to see him but alas, it’s to no avail until Deb gets up and goes to find the doctors responsible for the girls and uses her background in medicine as a nurse to appeal to staff and convince them to move Jude to the same hospital room as Jackie and Shauna.

Getting their baby back was like being able to breathe again for Jackie and Shauna, and the second he was carried into the room, the two of them lept up and shared a three-way hug that they refused to let go of until Deb spoke up, “What's his name?”

“Judiah Lee Shipman-Taylor,” replied Shauna, who had now moved to hold Jackie from behind as Jude clung to the latter. “Jude for short.”
Deb remembers the girls singing along to the Beatles song constantly, and her heart warms at the memory, but it also aches for those innocent kids she had put on that plane instead of the broken and traumatized ones in front of her.

She can’t even begin to imagine what the group went through out there, her daughter, her baby girl, having to be pregnant and give birth in a place like that with no medical assistance. She doesn't even want to think about what they had to do in order to survive.

Instead, she walks over to the trio, and Jackie hands Jude to her, who she picks up and hugs softly to her chest. He's small for a ten-month-old, but that is to be expected. He has curly brown hair and Shauna’s brown doe eyes that she has always found so hard to say no to.

She knows she should ask about the paternity of her grandchild, but in this moment, she can't bring herself to care. Hayden walks back in to the room and leaves a kiss on his nephews temple before they place him down to sleep.

The group sits down to eat the food hayden had brought. Shauna squeezes jackies hand to encourage her to eat while they sit tangled up together on the bed. She is half successful as Jackie does eat about half her meal, but at least it's something.

Jackie has always been skinny, a product of her parent's abuse, but looking at her now, her bones jutting out and cheeks gaunt and hollow, shaunas heart breaks. She knows she's skinny too, but she still has some fat from the pregnancy. She's not nearly as thin as her girlfriend.

Shauna knows Jackie has always struggled with her body image, and that is only going to get worse now that they don't have to worry about the day-to-day task of survival. Shauna just has to be there for her and remind her that she is beautiful and loved in the same way Jackie did for Shauna when she was struggling after the birth.

Misty said that she thought Shauna might have post-partum depression, and while she is doing slightly better now, she does believe that to be true. She loves Jude, and while it was hard to be around him for the first few months, she now doesn't want to let him go.

She didn't think Jackie noticed back then, too focused on the baby, but Jackie had noticed and she worried about her. She was the one who followed Shauna to the lake and stopped her from killing herself. She was the one who held Shauna as she cried for weeks on end. Shauna has to be strong for Jackie now, be there for her the same way Jackie was for her.

Chapter Text

Dr. Yang entered Taissa’s room with her family in tow. The doctor stepped aside, allowing the girl to reunite with her parents and sister. Once Dr. Yang had left the room, the group sat and talked and caught up on what was happening in the real world. Her parents hugged her a lot, and they all shed more tears than ever before, but this time, they were happy tears instead of the sad ones that had been shed over the last 19 months.

When the doctor returned to the room, it came with the best news possible to Tai; she could see Van. Taissa lept up and all but ran out of the room and into the one next door. She fell straight into the red heads arms and clutched her tight as her family followed behind into the room.

Tears flowed down both girls' faces as, much to the surprise of Van, Tai grabbed both sides of her face and kissed her deeply. Mr and mrs Turner were shocked, but when Charles Turner gave Van a nod and a smile over Tai's shoulder, she knew that they were going to support their daughter.

Taissa had always been terrified of coming out to her parents, and the couple had hidden their relationship of over a year before the plane crashed, but after coming back from 19 months in hell, she couldn't bring herself to care anymore.

Van smiled proudly at Tai once their embrace had ended. Tai ruffled Jason's hair, adding a “Hey, kid” as she passed to take a seat on the bed with Van following suit. The group stayed in that room, just talking about nothing in particular until it got late and came time for the turners to head back to their hotel room for the night with the promise to be back bright and early tomorrow morning. They offered for Jason to come with and pay for him to get a room at the same hotel so that the two girls could have some alone time together, which he gladly took them up on.

Taissa fell asleep in Van's arms that night, for once not scared to fall asleep and finally at peace.

____________________

The second Shauna was told that they were allowed to see the other survivors again, she left a napping Jackie and Jude in their room and headed straight to Javi’s room.

Javier Martinez had become something of a brother to Shauna out there. They shared a love of books and reading as well as having very similar personalities (only Javi was slightly more sane).

Javi lept up into shaunas arms as soon as she appeared in the doorway to his room. Javi had been drawing what looked like a picture of the forest with decidedly better art supplies than those they had in the wilderness, presumably bought by his mother.

Shauna thinks about Isobel Martinez and how, although she got one of her children back, her eldest son and husband had still died. She can't imagine the level of grief she must be going through. She had seen how Travis’s death had broken Javi, and while his father was not a good one, she still saw the pain in his eyes when they found Coach Martinez's body in the tree.

He had been there for her while she was struggling, always reading books to her and playing with Jude. He was so kind and caring that sometimes she forgot he was only a 13-year-old kid. She held him as he shook and cried after Travis died and thanked whatever god was out there that Javi didn't have to see his brother's death because that was something that still haunted Shauna.

Natalie appeared after a while of the pair just sitting there in silence while Javi drew and Shauna journaled. Natalie had also been like a sister to Javi, and if Shauna was the one to teach him the more academic and creative things, then Natalie was there to teach him the more practical things.

Nat walked over and hugged Javi before the three of them sat down and actually engaged in a conversation about what they were going to do once they got back to wiskayok. Nat had been making the rounds and had heard rumours that they may be able to be discharged tomorrow.

Everyone knew what had happened to nats dad and that her mom was a bit of an alcoholic, that one thing that van and nat bonded over; dead dads and shitty alcoholic mothers.

Javi’s doctor, Dr. Bailey, came in and asked if the girls were planning to spend the night in Javi’s room. Natalie agreed to stay in order to keep Javi company and for Shauna to return to Jackie.

The now-awake Jackie held a fussing and crying Jude in her arms on the bed. Deb and Hayden had gone back to the hotel and would be back in the morning.

“I think he's hungry,” Jackie informed Shauna with a sympathetic smile. Shauna sighed and removed her grey sweatshirt. Jackie tried not to stare but failed miserably, to which Shauna threw the sweatshirt at Jackie's head, who just blushed at being caught.

Jackie passed Jude over to Shauna as she unclasped her bra and began to breastfeed the baby while Jackie added support to the baby to save shaunas weak arms from having to support his full weight and placed a chaste kiss to Shauna’s forehead.

Once Jude was finished nursing, they fell into the familiar dance they had done many times before as Jackie wiped Shauna and Jude while Shauna burped him and then jackie placed him down to sleep while shauna got dressed again.

The pair lay down to sleep with Jackie curled up into shaunas side and Shauna flat on her back with her arms around Jackie.

“Love you, Shipman,” Jackie mumbled sleepily.

“I love you too, Jax,” Shauna replied, kissing Jackie's forehead.

Chapter Text

After receiving a heads-up from Dr. Robbins, Dr. Montgomery made her way up from psychiatrics and onto the floor where the Flight 2525 survivors were being treated.

Dr. Montgomery made her way to the room of Shauna Shipman, the patient she had been asked to assess. Upon entering the room, she was greeted with 2 girls still sleeping (she couldn't really blame them as it was only 8 am), a middle-aged woman, presumably one of the girls' mother, and a teenage boy.

The woman stood up to greet the doctor, shaking her hand and introducing herself as Deb Shipman. The young boy stayed silent with his eyes fixed on the sleeping girls and his head resting in his hands.

“I'm Dr. Addison Montgomery. I work in the psychiatric department. I presume you are the mother of Shauna Shipman.”

“Yes, I am. Is something wrong?”

“Your daughter has been referred to me for a psychiatric evaluation due to some concerning behaviour she exhibited earlier.”

Deb stood in shock as the doctor's words sank in. What could Shauna have done to make them do this? What if something was seriously wrong with her? I mean, she knew her daughter wouldn't be okay, but this just made it all seem that much more real.

“Who is the other girl she's with?” Dr. Montgomery asked, gesturing to the bed.

“Jackie Taylor, they are very close, so good luck trying to separate them.”

“I see. Would it be okay for you to wake your daughter?”

Deb walked over and lightly shook Shauna awake, who immediately shot up in bed, Jackie falling off to the side from where she had been pressed into Shauna’s side.

“Hello, Shauna, my name is Doctor Montgomery. I’m here to conduct a mandatory psychiatric evaluation on you.”

Shauna looked around wide-eyed and pleadingly at her mother and then at the now awake Jackie, who laid a hand on her shoulder.

“The others can stay in the room, or I can ask them to leave, and we can do this privately.”

“Jackie, I want Jackie to stay.” Deb squeezed her daughter's hand and ushered Hayden out of the room, taking Jude with them as well, before closing the door behind them.

“So I understand the two of you are very close. How long have you known each other?”

“Since we were 4,” Jackie replied with a forced smile. She grabbed Shauna’s hand, who, in return, squeezed Jackie's hand in a vice grip.

“Okay, Shauna, I'm going to ask you a series of questions that I urge you to answer honestly, okay?” Once she received a nod in return, Dr. Montgomery proceeded.

“Generally, do you feel more anxious since the plane crash and have trouble sleeping or startle easily?”

“Yes”

“Do you find it difficult to stop thinking about what happened to you during the last 19 months?”

“Yes”

“Do you ever get nightmares about the crash or the following 19 months?”

“Sometimes,” Shauna replied noncommittally, as were most of her answers, and Jackie's worried eyes and the questioning ones of the doctor bore into her.

Dr. Montgomery was making notes in a file even when Shauna wasn't speaking, and was writing way more than what Shauna had replied. Shauna felt as though she was on trial or some kind of lab rat, and she hated it.

“Do you have panic attacks or anxiety attacks? By that I mean an attack of anxiety that comes fairly suddenly and is rather uncomfortable and involves feeling a certain number of physical sensations such as heart palpitation, shortness of breath, or dizziness.”

“I have once or twice before.” Shauna was trying to answer honestly, if not for her sake then for Jackie's.
“Do you have long-term feelings of sadness?”
“Yes”
“Do you have long-term feelings of anger?”
“Yes”
“When did these feelings of anger and sadness start?”
“I'm not sure, but probably quite a few years ago.”
“Did they get worse after your pregnancy or once you gave birth?”
“y-yeah”
“Do you find that you can be feeling okay, then suddenly feel angry, or you can be feeling okay, and suddenly feel sad? Does this happen a lot during the course of a day?”
“Yeah, sometimes”
“Have you tried to kill yourself in the past?”
Shauna hesitated before answering this one. She squirmed uncomfortably at the feeling of being so exposed to a stranger. Jackie squeezed her hand encouragingly before Shauna mumbled a barely audible “yes” just loud enough for the doctor to hear.
“Do you find that you do things impulsively and then regret it afterwards?”
“Yes,” Shauna replied quickly, thinking back to her sleeping with Jeff and all of the fights she had been in over the years.
“When you get angry or do impulsive things, what's going on in your head? Describe to me what it's like.”
“Um- well it's like...like I lose control of myself and I just do, like I don't even think about it until I've already done it”
Dr. Montgomery had been writing down notes in a file this whole time, and it made Shauna wanna rip it out of her hands and chuck it at her head every time she sees her writing.
“Do you have unusual experiences, such as hearing voices that other people cannot hear? What about seeing things that other people cannot see?”
“Yeah, some of the time.”
Jackie looked up at her, shocked, seemingly unaware of this part. Shauna looked back at her with tears streaming down her face as Jackie pulled her into a bone-crushing hug.
Upon seeing the distressed state of the girl, Dr. Montgomery decided to end her evaluation there, having felt as though she had enough information.
“Thank you for answering my questions honestly, Shauna. I will contact you about any diagnosis made or any further questions.”
The doctor left the room as shaunas sobs began to quieten in Jackie’s arms as she fell asleep from the sheer emotional exhaustion. Jackie leaned back into the pillow, bringing the sleeping girl with her as she cradled her head. Jackie tried to sleep, but her mind raced with all of what Shauna had said as her heart ached to take away all this pain from her girlfriend.

_____________________

Later in the evening, all the girls were cleared to head home to New Jersey with the orders to go to a check-up at their local hospital in Wiskayok.
Mr and Mrs Turner signed out both Tai and Van before driving them both, as well as Jason, home back to wiskayok. Once back, Van decided to drop by the trailer her mom presumably still lives in, hoping to get some of her stuff.
Upon arriving at the trailer, she walked straight in as the lock had been broken many years ago, and nobody had bothered to fix it. She walked into the living room to be met with the familiar sight of her mother passed out on the couch with an empty bottle of vodka sitting on the table in front.
She walked past quietly, making sure not to wake her. She filled two duffel bags full of clothes and personal items, as well as some of Jason's belongings that he had left behind. When she walked back into the main room, she slapped Vicky out of her stupor. Her mother startled awake and immediately looked up wide-eyed as her gaze fell on her long-lost daughter.
“Hey, Mom,” Van said with gritted teeth.
“Vanessa. Fucking hell.” Vicky scrambled up off the sofa and fell flat on her face in a mess of blankets and cushions. Van simply stepped out of the way and let her mother fall to the floor.
Scrambling to her feet, Vicky reached out a hand to cup Van's scarred cheek. She ran her fingers along the largest of the scars, a horrified expression painted on her face. Van brushed her hand off her face and stepped around her to leave. Vicky grabbed her arm and spun her around.
“Mom, please just let me go,” Van pleaded.
“What happened to your face?” Vicky responded, completely ignoring Van's previous request.
“I was attacked by a wolf,” Van said bluntly. Vicky's face morphed into one of shock and then disgust. Van brushed off her mom's reaction and crossed her arms across her chest with a sigh.
“Why did you let jason live on the fucking street?”
“It was his choice to leave, and besides, he's a relatively smart boy; I'm sure he was fine.”
“He was fucking 14 years old mom. Not that you care anyway, you couldn't care less about anything to do with either of us,” Van screamed in her mother's face.
The slap echoed through the trailer. She should have seen it coming after her countless previous experiences, but the backhand to the face caught her off guard, and she stumbled backwards. Pain wrung out through her wolf-bitten cheek as she grabbed her bags and bolted out the door back to Tai's house without another word.

___________________

The car ride back to wiskayok consisted of Shauna clutching Jude tightly to her chest and Jackie clutching her girlfriend's hand in a death grip. Deb and Hayden tried to make conversation, but the girls were borderline catatonic and barely hummed in response to questions.
They had all tried to talk to Shauna after the psych evaluation, but Shauna had brushed off all attempts at a conversation with her. The voices in Shauna's head raced. She knew that they were plotting against her; her family, the doctors, the other yellowjackets. She knows she never should have said any of that stuff to the doctor, but Jackie was looking at her worried, and her hand was warm in hers, and she didn't want to lose Jackie or for Jackie to leave her.
Although she suposes that, when the diagnosis comes back saying that she is clinically fucking insane, she will lose her reguardless.
Shauna doesn't remember the car ride, most of it being a blur, but as they pulled into her neighbourhood in wiskayok and the car stopped outside a familiar-looking house, it finally sunk in that she was home.
Well, technically, they had just pulled up outside of the Taylors’ house, but still. When they pulled into the driveway, they noticed both Jackie's and Hayden's stuff sitting on the front lawn. Deb and Hayden got out of the car to start loading up their things. When Jackie tried to follow, Shauna gripped her hand even tighter. Jackie squeezed shaunas hand a few times before extracting her fingers from Shauna's clasp and jumping out of the car.
When Jackie finally came back in, Shauna felt as though she could breathe again. Jackie smiled at her, and in that moment, any anger she felt from Jackie leaving her melted away.
The group arrived back at the shipman household just after 9 pm. Shauna and Jackie take their time getting into the house. The place is exactly the same as how they had left it, even down to Shauna's dirty Converse by the door and one of her old black and white flannels draped over the back of the chair in the kitchen.
Shauna didn't know what the future held for her or the sweet baby boy in her arms, but at least for now, she was home wherever that was now. She supposes home is less the building but more Jackie, Jude and her mom. Jackie laid her head on shaunas shoulders, and a feeling of peace set deep into Shauna.