Author's note: Written for Jemisard's challenge at the Jakfanfics livejournal community. The theme was "The Past".

Sig: Just A Few Words Said

Now they tell me. NOW they open their sorry yaps and tell me.

The worst part? I get a nasty vibe about the parrot and the old man knowing something about it all along.

I wanna grab the mossy dwarf's shoulders and give him a few good rattles. I wanna break the feather-ape's scrawny neck.

'Cause Jak ain't saying nothing. He's just staring at the stretcher, like he's dead too. Ain't cowering 'cause Jak can't cower, but he's kinda crouching. Daxter's running a paw through his sideburn, but I don't think golden boy's noticing. Eyes're all blank.

So this is how I failed.

I get the facts that not finding midget Mar was okay, in the long run. We'd be in one messy soup-bowl without our cherry being all powered up.

Someday I might even end up accepting the idea of it. Won't make me feel much better, though. Won't make all those sighs go 'way.

Damas always has- had this way of turning his eyes away, an' you could almost see the breath comin' outta his nose even though he made no sound. Same movement every time I shook my head, reporting the same thing over an' over.

"Nothing yet, your lordship."

"... I see."

And I'd go back to being Krew's bloodhound.

But I failed worse.

I could've just stopped yappin' when I told 'em that "Damas lost a little something in Haven", and Daxter would've asked. I know he would've. They know he would've. But I had to go an' change the subject.

Never wanted to talk about it, 'cause I didn't want nobody to know.

But I could've told Jak.

Wouldn't change much, I suppose. Damas still would've died. Prob'ly harder.

But they would've known.

But I didn't.

All I can do now, trying to patch something up outta this mess... so I land my paw on Jak's shoulder and look at the stretcher, the body covered with a blanket.

"I found him, your lordship."

There're no sighs left. Only the shuddering breath tearing through our golden boy.

I know he'll be okay, he's strong enough. But right now he ain't.

I'm sorry, Jak. So fucking sorry.