I watched as the Hork-Bajir controllers dragged Cassie away. I was in a cage, my arms outstretched for her, stretching, stretching, never reaching. Her arms were reaching for me as they dragged her across the pool.
"Cassie!" I yelled as she was pulled onto the infestation pier. She yelled back, fear, horror and pain evident in her voice.
"Jake!" She screamed, I fell to my knees as they pushed her head into the murky water.
"Cassie!" I called once more. The pool was totally silent, the usual screaming hosts were watching us, the freedom fighters being taken down, and their hope began to die. When Cassie rose, she turned and looked at me and Visser twenty-four smiled triumphantly. "Cassie, no," I sobbed as my arms finally fell.
"Jake, wake up," someone was saying, someone was shaking me. I awoke and jerked up, my arms going in front of me, fearing some danger. But there was none, only my mom and dad standing in my bedroom trying to wake me up. I ran a shaky had through my sweat dampened hair.
"It was only a dream," I muttered under my breath. "Only a dream."
"Must have been some dream," My dad said. "You probably woke up the whole neighborhood with that screaming, we thought you were dying."
"What happened? What was it about?" My mom asked worriedly.
"Nothing, it wasn't anything," I replied. My mom didn't look convinced, neither did my dad.
"You were screaming 'Cassie', over and over," my dad said.
"Oh I was?" I said.
"Yeah, you were." He said. My mom said down on the bed.
"Jake you can tell us what's going on." She said. I wish, I wish I could Mom, you have no idea how much I wish I could tell you everything. I thought, but I didn't say that.
"There's nothing to tell, it was only a nightmare." I said. She sighed and stood up.
"Ok, well we'll let you get back to sleep now, I love you." She said as she and my dad walked out.
"Love you too, Mom." I said. She closed the door behind her and my dad. I lay back down. I could hear them talking outside.
"Greg, something is wrong with him." My mom said.
"Nikki, you heard him, it was just a nightmare." My dad replied.
"You don't scream like that from 'just a nightmare'," my mom snapped back and they began to walk back to their room. When I heard them settle back into bed I opened up my window, being careful not to let it make a sound.
I morphed to my new old morph and flew swiftly and silently to Cassie's. I landed on the ledge outside her room.
Something in your eyes,
There's something in your voice,
Makes me want to lose myself,
Make me want to lose myself,
In your arms.
That makes my heart beat fast,
Hope this feeling lasts,
For the rest of my life.
She was asleep on the bed, a tranquil expression on her face, one hand curled slightly by her head. My gaze roamed her face and body. She's okay, she's fine, she okay. I repeated to myself. This had become a fairly normal routine, I would have nightmares about something happening to her, and they would seem so real and so painful that I had to fly to her to make sure she was okay. I remembered the pain I had felt in my dreams and didn't think I could live through losing her for real. I took one last long, loving look, then lifted off and flew back home. I landed on my bed and demorphed, and tried to go back to sleep, knowing she was safe.
(Cassie) 1 hour later
I was in my wolf morph, tearing at the throat of a controller. The battle raged around me. Rachel in her bear morph was taking down taxxons quickly and efficiently. Marco was bowling over hork-bajir, and Ax's lighting fast tail was holding hork-bajir at bay. Tobias overhead was attacking eyes and scalps, but I couldn't see Jake. My head whipped around, searching for him. I called out
{Jake!} No answer, then I saw him, a pile of bloodied orange and black fur, lying on his side on the other end of the pool. {NO!} I screamed and began to run to him, dodging hork-bajir and taxxons as I went. I reached him and nosed him harshly. {Jake? Jake!} I called, no answer. My mind was a whirl. Jake was dead, gone, oh God no.
I woke up slowly, then quickly looked around when I realized what had happened, a dream it was a dream. I sighed deeply. A dream, a nightmare, that was it. I looked at my door and listened quietly to my house. No one was up, and I had to make sure. I opened my window and morphed to the creature that owned the night, the owl. I flew out of my window, towards Jake's. I noticed his window was open. Strange, I thought. I landed on the sill and looked around inside. No one was there; Jake was asleep on the bed. I hopped in, careful not to disturb him and landed on the floor, then I demorphed.
If you knew how lonely,
And if you knew how I wanted,
My life has been,
And how long,
I've been so alone.
Someone to come along,
And change my life the way you've done.
I walked over to him and stared at him, his face illuminated in the moonlight. I smiled gently and caressed his cheek softly; he smiled a little in his sleep. I loved his smile. I leaned down and lightly brushed my lips across his in a loving kiss, then I morphed back to owl and flew home.
(Jake)
I heard a flutter of wings and opened my eyes, a memory drifted through my mind, of soft lips, Cassie's. Nice dreaming Jake, what would Cassie be doing here in the middle of the night? I shook my mind free and gazed out my window looking at the yard but seeing a lovely face with gentle eyes and soft smile. ^Why don't you just tell her Jake?^ A voice in the back of my mind said. Tell her what? I challenged. ^That you love her.^ It said. I don't love her. I replied. ^Yes you do, don't hold yourself back, yes losing her would hurt but loving her would be more wonderful than you could imagine…^ it said.
I ignored it, no emotion could be as strong as that I had felt at the thought of something happening to her, not even love. I woke up the next morning strangely refreshed. I got out of bed and went straight to the shower. I cleaned up and dressed.
My mom and dad were both gone, as well as Tom. It was ten o'clock, no wonder I was really awake, I had slept enough. I was thinking about what to do when the doorbell rang. I went quickly to the door and opened it. Cassie was standing there. She smiled widely when she saw me.
"Hi," she said.
"Hi," I replied. What was wrong was the first thing that came to my mind, but from the look on her face everything was fine. She came to see me, I thought with a smile.
"I was wondering if you wanted to go do something." she stated.
"Sure, what?" I asked. She shrugged her shoulders.
"I don't know. Let's just walk until we find something." She said.
"Ok, cool. Just let me grab my shoes." I said. I put on my tennis shoes quickly and walked out to her, shutting the door firmly behind me. "What was should we go?" I asked.
"Hmm, how about that way?" she said pointing left down my street.
"Okay, lead the way." I said. We walked in comfortable silence down the street, at the end was a park. One of those ones little kids like. With the big swing sets and slides and stuff. She smiled and looked at me.
"How about that?" she asked pointing at the swings.
"Swings?" I asked. She nodded and grabbed my hand pulling me to them. "Come one, I haven't done this in so long." She said. I had my doubts but with the way she was looking at me I would have done almost anything. She sat on one of the swings.
"Want a push?" I asked, coming up behind her. She nodded. I grabbed the chains of the swing and backed up then let it go, each time she swung back a pushed on her back and she went higher. I could hear her laughing. Finally she drug her feet on the rocky bottom to stop she leaned her head back and looked at me. Her smile was so bright and beautiful I had to catch myself from telling her that I loved her. What? No, I didn't love her, I told myself. But if the emotion flooding through my veins wasn't love I had no idea what was. I touched her cheek gently and leaned down to kiss her lips.
It feels like home to me,
It feels like home,
to me.
It feels like I'm all the way back,
Where I come from.
It feels like home to me,
It feels like home,
to me.
It feels like I'm all the way back,
Where I belong.
"Hey!" A voice called. "Aren't you two a little old to be here?" A woman was standing near us, with three little kids, frowning disapprovingly. Cassie sighed and stood up, I grabbed her hand and we walked away. I knew exactly where to go, and there I would tell her.
"Come on," I said tugging on her hand. We walked for about 20 minutes until we reached it, the perfect spot on the beach. No one was there, and it was quiet. We walked up to the water, I turned to Cassie to tell her, but she was leaning over and taking her shoes off. "What are you doing?" I asked.
"Wading, come on, it's fun." She said. I kicked my shoes and socks off and followed her into the water. We both had shorts on so only our legs got wet. She leaned over and splashed water onto my shirt.
"Hey!" I said, and cupped a handful of water, splashing her back. She laughed and started to run clumsily through the water. I ran after her, when I reached her I put my arms around her waist, she twisted and I lost my balance, both of us falling back into the water. She laughed and sat up; it only came to about the middle of my abdomen as I sat up with her. I leaned forward and touched her hair, smoothing some wayward strands from her face. She smiled and put her hand over mine.
A window breaks,
Down the long dark street,
And a siren wails,
In the night.
But I'm all right,
Cause I have you here with me.
And I can almost see,
Through the dark
there is light.
"Cassie?" I said hoarsely.
"Yes?" she responded softly. I lowered my hand hers still clasped within it. "Through all that's happened, I don't think I have, have ever told you how much you mean to me." I said quietly.
"You mean a lot to me too," she said.
"But that's not it, through all the battles, all the horror, I've come to realize just how much you mean to me. I, I don't think there is anyone in the world I care about as much as I do you. Just thinking about you makes me feel better, seeing you makes me feel like I have something good in life. I, I love you, so much." I tumbled. She didn't say anything for a moment, then she smiled.
"I love you too, I can't even tell you how much." She whispered. I smiled and leaned forward to kiss her, the soft waves splashing around us. She put her arms around my neck and kissed me back, I was wrong there was an emotion stronger than grief. This love I felt for Cassie, it was stronger, stronger than anything.
If you knew how much,
It feels like home to me,
Lyrics from 'Feels like Home' sung by Chantal Kreviazuk
This moment means to me.
And how long I've waited,
For your touch.
And if you knew,
How happy, You are making me.
I never thought I'd love anyone so much.
It feels like home,
to me.
It feels like I'm all the way back,
Where I come from.
It feels like home to me,
It feels like home,
to me.
It feels like I'm all the way back,
Where I belong.
It feels like I'm all the way back,
Where I belong…