First Snowfall by Miss A

DISCLAIMER: The story of Christy is owned by the
Marshall-LeSourd family. We are in no way seeking profit
or credit for her story. This fiction is written for our
own amusement only. This story uses themes from the book,
CBS series, and PAX series.

Author's note: I originally wrote this for the 2004 Fanfic
contest, but sadly was unable to finish it on time. I hope
y'all enjoy it anyway.

Summary: Begins two weeks after the book left off. Christy
is watching the first snowfall of the season.

Snow was falling. I could see it outside my window, wished
I could be in it, but I knew Dr. MacNeill and Miss Alice
would say no. And with good reason! It was only a few
short weeks since typhoid had ravaged my body, taking me to
that light from whence few returned. Dr. MacNeill's love
and prayers were the only reason I had survived. When I
had finally opened my eyes, I saw him stretched out on
my bed, weeping. To hear him admit he loved me, saying
the words David would not - or could not - say, made me
realize the love I held inside was not for David, but for
him - Dr. MacNeill. I smiled at the thought of seeing him
tonight, and turned back to the task at hand. Tonight was
the first time was being allowed to eat with everyone else,
and I wanted look nice. Pulling a dress out of my closet,
I checked the mirror to see how it fit. What I saw shocked
me. My eyes, always large, seemed even larger, and were
sunk back in my face. Dark circles surrounded them. My
cheeks were hollow and pale, and my bones stuck out. I
turned from the mirror, tears coming to my eyes. Yes, I
was thankful I was alive, but was this the price I must
pay? I had never been vain, but this? This was just...Miss
Alice poked her head in, interrupting my thoughts.

"Would you like some help getting ready?" Then she noticed
my tears. "Christy, what's wrong?" I knew she would be
honest with me.

"Miss Alice," I began, gesturing at the mirror. "Do you
really think-"

"Child, I want thee to look at me," she cut in, her
odd habit of reverting to her Quaker speech making me
smile. "Thy life was returned to thee. I know it is hard
for thee right now, but the fever passed, and this too
shall pass. Now, the dress we can't fix, but I believe
we can do something about your hair. Would you like me
to fix it for you?"  I simply nodded, but when she came
close enough, I pulled her into a quick hug.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

<"Christy, you can't believe how worried we were about
you! Thank God you're on the mend now!" I smiled weakly,
but pulled my hand out of his.

"Christy?"

"David, we need to talk." He looked concerned, and pulled
his chair closer to the bed. "I can't marry you." He paled,
then flushed.

"Is this about what happened in my bunkhouse?"

I smiled, and shook my head. "No, David, though I did
realize it that night. This is about doing what's right for
me, about following my heart." He looked confused; I rushed
on. "David, I never said I would marry you. Yet after you
asked me, you considered us engaged. You said if I answered
right away, you were pretty sure I would say no, but the
truth is, the more time I've had to think, the more I've
realized that being with you isn't what I need in life."

"I just want you to be happy, Christy," he said
sincerely. I reached out and gave his hand a quick
squeeze. "I know, David. I am.">

A sound in the hall brought me out of my reverie. There
was no mistaking the frame that filled the doorway. "Might
I come in?"

I smiled. "Of course, Doctor." As he entered the room,
I caught a whiff of the different scents that made up
Dr. MacNeill: lye soap, rubbing alcohol, and tobacco. I
decided he must have gotten a new pipe, remembering the
one that was broken.

"Ready?" I nodded. Grabbing a shawl from the wall, he
wrapped it around my shoulders. "Now remember, your
digestive tract still may not be ready for normal
food. Take small amounts, and only what I tell you."

I simply nodded, remembering Lundy Taylor's horribly
painful death. As we passed the mirror, I kept my face
turned from it; I did not want to see my reflection
again. Dr. MacNeill noticed this and stopped. "Christy,
look in the mirror. Tell me what you see."

I glanced over. "A sickly girl." He put his face down next
to mine.

"Do you know what I see? I see a miracle. Christy, there is
no medical explanation for your recovery. By all standards,
you should have died. It was the hand of God that brought
you back, and because of that, no matter how bad you look
in your mind, you look perfect to me."

His words brought tears to my eyes. "Neil, He brought me
back for you. I could hear you calling me, though I didn't
know it was you at the time. I didn't want to come back,
but you persisted, and finally your love broke through
to me. I finally realized you loved me, still needed me,
and that I still needed you." I dropped my voice. "That
I loved you."

He stared at me a moment, not comprehending what I
said. I watched it dawn on him slowly, and he wrapped
his arms around me, holding me tightly. "I love you," he
whispered. The tears that had threatened to spill over now
flowed. He held me a few moments, then tightened his hold
just a bit, whispering into my hair.

"Christy, if we don't start downstairs soon, everyone's
going to wonder what's going on." He dipped his
handkerchief in the wash basin, wrung it out, and handed
it to me. I wiped my eyes, then checked the mirror to see
if my hair was still smooth. Then, offering his arm, Neil
led me downstairs.

To my surprise, not only were Miss Alice, David, Miss Ida,
Wanda, Bessie Coburn and the McDade children waiting for
us, my parents and George were there! I dropped Neil's
arm and ran into my father's. My family surrounded me,
hugging and kissing me repeatedly until Miss Ida finally
called our attention to the table. Neil made sure I had
only what I could handle on my plate.

"So how many of the Cutter Gap folks were lost this year,
Dr. MacNeill?"

Neil's eyes were pained for a moment. "All in all,
seven. Fairlight Spencer, Lundy Taylor, Kyle and Letty
Coburn, Mary and Wilmer O'Teale, and Liz Ann Robertson's
baby boy. Most of the fatalities were in Raven Gap and
Pebble Mountain." The table fell silent for a moment.

"Dr. MacNeill, how soon would we be able to take Christy
home?" Mother finally asked.

"Not until the New Year, at the very least. You can't be
too careful with a typhoid patient. Too much activity too
soon can cause a relapse." He looked at me pointedly.

"All right Doctor, I get the point. No school for a
while!" I laughed. His eyes were warm as he laughed with
me. My family joined in also.

"Christy, that's the first time I've ever heard you
disappointed about missing school!" George chuckled.

"Must be the teacher in her," Father added. Mother didn't
say anything, but her eyes sparkled.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mother and I had a long talk that night - mostly about
my letters.

"And what happened between you and Reverend Grantland?" she
asked.

"David and I are just friends. After I got sick, I had a
lot of time to think, and I realized marrying David wasn't
my lot in life." She seemed relieved.

"I'm glad. Now I know there isn't anything to tie you
here." I knew my confusion showed. "Christy, do you
really think I would let you stay here after what's just
happened? I heard about Tom McHone's murder, and the
whiskey, and other things I will not mention. How can
I leave and let my only daughter stay in a place where
things like that go on?" I was shocked. Mother had never
been one for angry speeches. To hide my confusion, I
mumbled something about being tired and asked her to get
Dr. MacNeill. I was so exhausted, Neil had to carry me to
my room.

"You're a silent one, especially for a female." Despite
my fatigue, I managed a weak grin at the memory of the
afternoon I spent at his cabin.

"Neil, I'm confused about something."

"What do you mean?" he asked as he sat me on the bed.

"Mother told me she won't be letting me come back to the
Cove after I'm completely well. How can she say that when
it's obvious I love what I'm doing here, and that we're
making progress?"

He sat next to me on the bed, thinking, before he
spoke. "Christy, I don't pretend to know your mother,
but it seems to me she's trying to protect you. In her
eyes, her little girl ran off to some God-forsaken place
where people shoot each other for fun. and in some ways
she's right. However, she hasn't been here before, so she
can't see the progress we've made." He stopped and looked
at me to see if I was understanding him. "She almost lost
her daughter, and she's reacting in the only way she can;
she's trying to protect you."

"But Neil, how can that help?"

"Remember when you found those hot marbles on the
schoolhouse floor? Little Burl knew they would hurt you,
and though he couldn't explain, he tried to protect you
the only way he could. By hanging onto your leg, he kept
you away from the thing that would injure you. That's all
your mother is trying to do - to protect you, by keeping
you away from the Cove."

Trying to digest this information, I glanced out the
window, and again saw the freshly laid snow. I looked
back at Neil, longing in my eyes. But no matter how hard
I pleaded, he stood firm. I would not be going out in the
snow. Pouting, I refused to look at him as he kissed my
hand and left.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next few weeks passed all to quickly. David and
Neil took George and my father around the Cove, meeting
the people, and my mother helped Miss Ida around the
mission. Out of respect for the mourning, our Christmas
and New Year's celebrations were very small. Finally, the
day before I was to leave arrived. Dawn was just creeping
over the mountain when I woke to the feeling someone was
in my room.

"Is someone there?" I called, sitting up. A form moved
in the doorway, and I faintly recognized it in the early
light. "Neil?"

"Hush. put these on. I'll be back in ten minutes," he
whispered, handing me a bundle. I took it, and he left
as quietly as he had come. Opening the bundle, I found
it was a woman's clothes. There were several layers of
flannel petticoats, a pair of old-fashioned bloomers, a
heavy woolen brown and black skirt, a flannel chemise, a
warm shirtwaist, and a thick black sweater. Unrolling
the petticoats, I also found two pairs of thick
stockings. Wondering what was going on, I began dressing
as quickly as I could.

True to his word, Neil tapped on my door ten minutes
later. I called for him to enter, and he observed as I
tried to put my shoes on.

"Try these instead," he suggested, handing me a pair of
heavy boots. I nodded my thanks and put them on. Standing,
I looked him straight in the eye.

"Neil, what is going on?" He motioned for me to hold out
my hand, and began putting my gloves on for me. "I do
believe you were asking to go outside, Christy."

"But you said no!" He helped me with my coat, then pulled
my hat down over my eyes. "Ah, but that was weeks ago!" Too
surprised for words, I didn't protest as he carried me
down the stairs and out to the porch.

"And the clothes?" I wanted to know.

"My lab," was the short reply. They must have been
Margaret's. I quickly realized. Taking a deep breath of the
crisp air, I glanced over at Neil. His back was to me as
he put on his gloves. I was struck with an idea. Working
quietly, I quickly fashioned a snowball from the snow
on the porch railing and hit Neil square in the back of
the head!

"What the - " he sputtered as he spun around. "Why, you
little minx!" With that, he stomped over and picked me up
again. Laughing, I tried to resist, but it was no use;
I was Neil's prisoner. "It seems even the teacher has
some things to learn,' he growled. "All right, papa will
explain. Rule one, never question Doc. Rule two, respect
your elders."

"And - rule - three?" I gasped between giggles.

"Never, I repeat, NEVER hit Doc with a snowball!" I found
myself unceremoniously dumped in a snow bank in the center
of the yard. Thus began a snow fight that lasted a good
part of the morning. I tried my hardest, but I finally
had to plead for mercy.

"All right. All right! You win!" I laughed. He come over
and plopped beside me on the porch. We sat there for some
time, just drinking in the fresh air. Then he leaned down
and brushed his lips across my forehead. "I love you," he
whispered in my ear. "I love you, too, Neil."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What were you and Doctor MacNeill talking about so
seriously this morning?" Mother and I were in my room,
getting ready for bed. She brushed my hair as I searched
for an answer.

"Oh, we were just talking," I finally said. "He left for
Pebble Mountain this afternoon, you know, and he wanted
to say goodbye before he left." She looked unconvinced,
so I changed the subject. "Mother, what if I told you I
did have a reason to stay?"

She paused a second. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, because I do." She put the brush down and sat next
to me on the bed. "Whatever can you mean, child?"

I watched her face as I spoke. "I actually have two. One
of them is the children. Momma, if you could only see the
progress they've made in the last year! Yes, they've made
progress in school, but proper hygiene is becoming more
and more important to them - even the parents are starting
to care. And Bird's-Eye Taylor was the most feared man in
the Cove three months ago. Look at him now - following
Opal around like a devoted puppy! I wish I could tell
you everything that's happened this year, but the truth
is Mother, I didn't tell you the bad because I didn't
want to worry you needlessly. Miss Alice is teaching me
to shoot come spring, and any Allen, McHone, Spencer, or
Beck would put their life on the line for me, as would
David and Doctor MacNeill. And as head of the Taylor clan,
Bird's-Eye is in a position to end the feuding for good."

"I'm not sure if I should be worried or relieved
about that." She sighed and leaned back against the
pillows. "What's your other reason?"

I took a deep breath, them began to tell her the history
between Neil and I. By the time I got through the typhoid,
she had tears in her eyes. So did I.

"Mother, if something like that happened to you, and Father
could bring you back just with his love, would you want
to leave him?"

She shook her head. "No, I don't think I would, Love." She
helped me into bed, then sat on the edge and talked, just
as she had when I was young. "Christy, I can't give you
any guarantees, but I'll talk to your father."

"That's all I ask," I replied. We hugged, and I was left
to my thoughts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My parents and George left early the next afternoon.

"I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye to your Neil, Christy. I
wish I could see the look on his face when he realizes you
stayed behind!" Laughing, I hugged her and promised to
write her all about it. Father helped her up the steps,
then turned to me. With a a hug and a promise I would be
careful, he followed her. George hung back, waiting to
board last.

"Christy, I'm glad you're all right." His eyes showed
the relief my parents had tried to mask. "So am I,
George." Quickly, almost self-consciously, he held his arms
out to me. I was surprised, but gladly received the hug. At
fifteen, a public show of affection from George was rare.

"Keep an eye on Doctor MacNeill; He's a good man," he told
me, very seriously.

"I will," I promised. He nodded, then was also gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All the way back to the mission, I anticipated Neil's
reaction.

<"Christy, I have to leave for Pebble Mountain this
afternoon. There's still a few families I need to see out
there, and I want to check in on the El Pano folks - see
how they're fairing." He stood and reached down to help
me up. "I won't be able to see you off at the station
tomorrow, I'm afraid."

I let him help me up. As we went inside, my head started
to pound, and my skin tingled painfully. I tried not to
wince, but Neil's sharp eyes didn't miss a thing. "What's
wrong? Does your head ache?"

"A little. I think I'd better lie down a bit."

He nodded. "Good idea.  I'll get you some aspirin, then let
you get changed. Just leave your wet things outside your
door; I'll make sure they're taken care of." He opened a
smal packet and mixed the contents into a glass of water,
then watched as I drank the bitter water, smiling when I
grimaced at the taste. "I miss you already."

"I miss you already, too." A tear slipped down my
cheek. Neil reached down and wiped it away with his thumb.

"None of that, now; you're a strong lass. We'll get through
this, just like we did the typhoid. I'll come see you
in Ashville."

I smiled through my tears. "I'd like that, Neil." He took
my hand and brought it to his lips, then was gone.

I quickly changed, then flung myself on the bed and cried
myself to sleep. I woke a few hours later to find a light
blanket over me. Touching it lightly, I tried to remember
when I had pulled it over myself. Then I smelled it - the
essence that could only belong to one person. Neil. Another
tear slid down my face, and I quickly wiped it away, then
began to make myslef presentable. I found a note on my
dresser, written in Neil's familiar scrawl.

'I came to get you for lunch, but you're so relaxed I don't
want to wake you. I don't want to say goodbye, Christy,
but I must. Please, don't cry. I love you, Neil'

I blinked away tears as I read the note. I decided then
and there I would tell Mother everything.>

I was painfully jolted back to reality as we hit the
Mud Hole. "Miss Alice," I complained, rubbing my behind,
"Someone really needs to do something about that hole!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A week passed before I saw Neil again. I tried to be
patient, knowing it took time to travel in the mountains,
but I was so eager to see him! Miss Alice finally sent me
to the Spencer's to spend some time with Zady. In order
to keep the teenager from feelig beholden, I traded help
with chores for the stories and songs Fairlight had taught
her daughter. I also spent time working on my lesson plans
for the new year, which is what I was doing the day Neil
finally arrived. I heard him ride up, and ran downstairs,
my papers flying everywhere.

"Alice," he called from the yard. I moved as fast as I
could toward the door. "Alice, what's going on? Everyone I
spoke with in town asked how Christy was doing. I tried to
explain she'd left, but they swore they saw her with - "
He broke off abruptly, catching sight of me. "Christy!" he
breathed. I ran striaght into his open arms. Neil held
me for the longest time before saying anything. "But,
your mother?"

"I told her about the dream. When she said she'd talk to
Father about it, I knew she'd change her mind!" I laughed
as his _expression changed from shcok to pure joy. He
pressed a kiss to my forehead, then hugged me again.

"Christy, will you marry me?"

I thought back to David's proposal, and how I
felt then. Comparing the two, I found there was no
comparison! Neil was the only man I had ever loved, ever
would love. I leaned back so I could see his face. "Yes."

Snow was falling. I could see it in the air, watched it
cover our clothes and hair. It was wintertime in Cutter
Gap. But for Neil and I, it was spring - the beginning of
a new life. ~