Water's Not Fine

by Helen W.

Immediately after S2P2, heading away from the temple…

God, I can't believe this whole - this whole - this whole WHOLE… was a Nancy Reagan commercial. I just said no, so I get to keep my mind. Alex was weak, double-dipped into the pool of knowledge, and so she loses hers. Neat and tidy.

I can't believe Sandburg's spouting this crap. Sandburg of all people, who four days ago said I should come on in, the water's fine.

I came on in, and the water's not fine. Frankly, the water sucks.

So much power! So much knowledge!

If I just got this jeep turned around…

I could get past one of them, but not Blair, Simon, and Megan working together.

But then, they haven't been able to stop me up to now...

Her screams, her screams… God…

"Jim, you okay?"

"Peachy, Sandburg." Go back to talking Megan's ear off.

"Well, excuse me for asking."

Wish he'd stayed in Cascade. Wish all three of them had stayed. They didn't do a bit of good here. Well, Simon, maybe. And Megan did a competent job of distracting Arguillo's guards when I was checking out his compound. But Blair's been useless. His field, and he's been useless.

He should have kept me out of the water. He should have kept me out.

How much of my vision was real? Simon…

I have to know about Simon. And Megan. Who's pulling the trigger? Do they die? Can I stop it? Do I cause it? Or is it just some hallucination?

If Sandburg was good for anything, I could ask him what it meant. But I know what he'll say. 'Doorway to the beyond, man! Groovy, man! Come on in, the water's fine! But not too far, man! Don't want to fry that Neanderthal brain of yours!'

Water's fine, water's fine, you died in a fountain but the water's fine.

Oh Alex, why couldn't I save you?

We're taking the turnoff for the airport? And Alex's ride's not following us. What the…

"Where are we going, Captain?" We can't just leave.

"You and Sandburg are going home. Connor and I will take care of cleanup here."

"What about Alex?"

"She's going straight to the local hospital, and the consulate is having her air-lifted to Mexico City tonight."

"I can't leave her here."

"She's not your responsibility, Lieutenant."

"Yes she is!"

"Easy Jim, let Simon handle this, okay?"

Stay out of this, Blair. "Who else will know what's best for her?" Who else gives a damn what happens to her?

"Right now, buddy, I wouldn't trust you to come in out of the rain."

Okay, those are cabs up on the right. After this turn I can jump clear of this miserable excuse for a vehicle and grab a cab and get to Alex…

What the hell! "Sandburg, let go of my wrist."

"You jump, you're taking me with you."

"You don't think you can keep up with me, do you?"

"I can sure try. Simon, handcuff us together."

"I'm tempted."

"Seriously, Simon, do it. Jim's going to bolt."

"No, he's not. Right, Lieutenant? You're not going to run out on Sandburg again, are you?"

But Sandburg's fine. He's been the freakin' Energizer Bunny since he got here. "Chief, you're fine, right?"

"By local standards, yes."

CLICK!

Connor! I did *not* see that coming. Huh, maybe there IS something wrong with me.

"You won't take action, Captain, I will. There you go, boys, I'll unfasten you once you're on your plane."

"We'll never get through security like this." A feeble try, but it's all I've got.

"Yes, you will. Just try not to be too much of a head case, will you, Jimbo? That'd probably bother them more."

I hate this. "I hate this." I hate this I hate this.

"Hey Jim, you want Megan or Simon to go get us a couple of Cokes? In-the-bottle-no-ice?"

Huh?

"I'll get you a couple, Sandy, but give me some of your currency; you don't need it anymore."

"Tightwad."

"Charm bracelet."

Stop talking, stop talking, got to get out of here got to…

"Relax, Jim, the consulate says the airport security force is completely clean. Well, clean enough. There's never been a successful drug hit here. Not since last October. We're as fine as we'd be in Cascade. Which, I know, isn't saying much."

Home. I can't even picture it in my head. I moved everything, didn't I? Why the hell did I do that?

Carting stuff upstairs is going to be so much harder than getting everything downstairs was. Will Sandburg give me a hand? Will he even - oh, God, will he even come home?

"I'm sorry, Blair, I never meant…" Why is this so complicated? Why did Alex have to hate him? He just wanted to help her. I can still hear her scream. Did Blair scream?

"Don't worry about it, Jim."

I've got to… "Get these off of me, I've got to…" take a walk. Get to Alex. Get away.

"You're fine right here, boys. In a half-hour they're boarding, straight flight to LAX."

"No, I…"

"Sit down, buddy! It's okay, I promise you."

"Sandburg, what's wrong with him? He still under her - I don't know, spell? There's no way she could be controlling him intentionally, is there? She was out solid."

"I don't know how it works, Simon. I'm so out of my depth here."

"That's why we keep you around, Sandburg! To know about this stuff!"

"I thought it was because he was your third best detective, Captain. Behind myself and Jimbo. Though perhaps we should cut Jim out of the running, seeing as he's not normal."

She knows. How did that happen? Did Sandburg spill?

Then it's over. No harm in going back into the water if everybody knows.

"Jim, settle down, man!"

"But… there's no use in going home, is there?"

"Well, I'd say there was cold beer waiting in the fridge, but I bet you cleared that all out. But still, if we make our connections, I can teach on Wednesday. And, you know, man, you've got that job thing going."

He doesn't get it. "I tried, it, Blair. I tried it your way. And, I've got to tell you, chief, the water's not fine."

"What the hell?" He's crowding me now, crouching in front of me, the cuffs pulling our hands down. They aren't meant to twist like this! Well, actually, they are - there, let's just rest them on my knees…

"Jim, talk to me. I know you're having a hard time, but I need to know you're not actively hallucinating. Oh, damn, Simon, what do we do if he *is* hallucinating? God knows what the local clinic would want to give him!"

"Calm down, Sandburg. Jim, look at me."

Okay, Simon, looking at you.

"What water, Jim? What water are you talking about? Do you see water?"

"It's metaphorical, Captain." Damn, I have to spell it out; I'm going to sound like an idiot. "When Blair - revived - some stuff happened… To both of us. I really don't want to try to describe it. Blair said…" And now I can't get the wording right in my head, so I shrug. "Anyway, he was wrong. There's nothing fine about this."

"Um, Jim…" And I shift my eyes again to Blair. "Are you trying to find… meaning to all of this? Are you trying to make it make sense?"

"I think you're right, Sandburg." Simon sounds pleased with himself. "I'll give you meaning. The last few weeks has reconfirmed my belief that Jim is one of the most high-maintenance people I'm ever likely to meet, and a bit of a self-centered ass. But, you can't beat the results. And, Jim, you're a pretty good friend too, and a lot of people have your back, you understand?"

I don't know what to do with this.

"That's one take." Now Megan's joining in. I want out of here… "The meaning I get is that if someone runs rings around me, there's probably a damn good reason."

"Detective, I expect you to keep your theories to yourself."

"Yes, Captain, I will. It's just nice to have an explanation. It's doing wonders for my self-esteem."

Blair, still crouched in front of me, touches my face with his free hand. "Jim, Simon's pretty much right. Like I said a couple of years ago, this is about friendship, okay?"

"That's a relief," I somehow manage. "I thought it was about Nancy Reagan."

I lean forward until my forehead touches his; he adjusts so that he can support the added weight. He twists his handcuffed wrist, and now he's grasping my forearm; I return the grasp. I don't dare close my eyes, but I match his rate of respiration; he chuckles a little, showing he's noticed.

I don't try to run again.

THE END

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