Control Alt Delete (A BH6 crossover)

Chapter Thirty Four: A temporary solution

Hiro lay limply in Honey Lemon's arms, completely spent from the most recent night terror. His chest rose and fell with an effort, as if his body wasn't entirely sure how to proceed. But at least the tears had ceased, even if his body still shuddered from the wracking sobs that had filled him only minutes before.

She pushed a damp strand of hair from his face as she slid him back into the mattress. It was incredible that such a young boy could have such intense dreams. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him, and a little scared. She rather thought she understood how Tadashi felt about him.

"Hello. What are you doing here?"

Honey Lemon turned at the sound of Cass Hamada's voice. "Oh, hello, Ms. Hamada," she greeted as she stood from the bed. "Tadashi asked me to keep an eye on Hiro for him while he went back to the school for something. I hope you don't mind."

Cass moved into the room, looking around. "You must be Honey Lemon," she said as she held out a hand. "I remember seeing you help my nephew with his project, but I don't think we were ever properly introduced."

The chemist nodded. "He's sleeping right now, but I think he just had a night terror," she confessed. "I've never seen one before and it was a little scary."

That brought a look of concern to Cass's face. "Tadashi said he'd been having them but I haven't seen one yet. Was it bad?"

Honey Lemon nodded. "Nothing I did seemed to wake him and he just wouldn't stop crying. He kept calling for Tadashi though, so maybe he could have done something different."

But Cass shook her head. "I don't know. Even Tadashi seems to have had trouble. I just wish I knew what was going on."

"That makes two of us," Honey Lemon sighed.

............................

Tadashi exited the TARDIS on rather shaky legs, stumbling as he did. His face was more pale than usual as he found the nearest seat and sank into it. It happened to be the swivel chair next to the holographic computer. "Now I know where he got the superhero idea," he said in half a daze.

The Doctor moved back into the lab space, hands stuffed in his pockets, thoughtful expression on his face. "He became a superhero to honor your memory," he said as his blonde companion joined him. "He wanted to be like you, adopting the mantra that 'someone has to help'."

"He looked so different," Tadashi said in awe. "I almost didn't recognize him. And it wasn't just because of how much older he was either."

Nodding in understanding, the Doctor closed the door of his blue box. "Now that you know, what are you going to do about it?"

Tadashi rubbed absently at the back of his neck. "I don't know. I have more questions than answers. Even after what you've shown me, it still doesn't make any sense. And it still doesn't tell me how to help Hiro."

"You're right," the Doctor acknowledged as he moved over to the holographic computer. "There are things I'd like to have answers to as well. You mentioned your healthcare robot requested a visit with Hiro but has no memory of it. That bothers me. From what I know about him, he's supposed to record all interactions. Someone must have tampered with his memory. The question is why."

The look Tadashi gave him said that was an understatement. "Whatever Baymax said to Hiro during those five minutes probably didn't help. Maybe they even made things worse."

The Doctor took off his glasses and put them in a pocket. "I'm inclined to agree. Finding out what happened during those few minutes might be crucial. However, there is something you can do in the meantime. I'm pretty sure that in Hiro's current condition, as you've described it, he won't be doing much of anything. We have to change that."