A/N: I read and took on board all the messages and reviews on A Clean Slate so I thought I should post an explanatory note.
If you have seen S3 E10 you know Sawyer and Kate kind of left things on bad terms before she went off in the jungle to get Jack back from the Others. You also know she now has Locke and Sayid for company! (Woo hoo, I think the next few episodes should drag the show right out of the mire it's stuck itself in.)
I for one, was not too impressed with the writing of our fearless badass couple. It seems the writers felt it necessary to sacrifice the banter and light-heartedness these two (actors and characters) do so well and made it all about the pain. So unlike my other fics, as a direct reaction to the writing on the show, I aim to bring back the banter and the light-heartedness.
In A Clean Slate, we had Kate lying on the ground somewhere bleeding to death and trying to remember things she had forgotten. Not to give too much away… a number of years had passed since she had killed Wayne and also since they crashed on the Island. She called herself Katherine Dorf. Which is FORD but the other way round, there is method to my madness I promise! Anyhoodle, James walked up to her and got ready to shoot her in the head… which is rather not like him. And she told him she remembered.
Now this fic is going to fill in the blanks before it progresses the story from that Kate-in- the-mud scene.
If after a few chapters y'all aren't feeling it, I will have to do something about it! I love to write, but I want y'all to enjoy the story I'm writing too, so all constructive criticism has a place at my table!!
Enjoy, and I hope I don't disappoint.
Chapter 1
James had lain on the huge lip of rock and stared up at the brilliant blue sky. Squinting at the glare of the sun he rolled his head to the right and looked at the slightly rippling surface. The waterfall was rushing down the side of the rock face with its usual unhurried force; and although he'd just come from attacking his body with Dharma soap and a natural sea sponge courtesy of Jin, he felt the need to immerse himself in the cool water again. The sun was roasting him.
Sitting up, he got ready to rise just in time to see Kate approaching. She was walking with that purposeful stride that she adopted when she was determined to get her way but anticipated him to be difficult.
He closed his eyes to mask his relief; the last seven days that she had been gone had been his own private hell. When he had realized she was gone, he'd spent the days and nights, restless and racked with guilt. Knowing that if anything bad was to happen to her he would never forgive himself.
Rising to face her, he braced himself for the undoubtedly justified vitriol that would spill from her lips. Jin had told him that everyone had come back from Jack rescue mission; but James hadn't understood the rest of what Jin was trying to say and the Korean man had given up heading hurriedly back for the beach.
Kate raised an eyebrow at his state of undress as she stopped a few feet away from him. Frowning at his slightly guarded stance she crossed her arms across her chest and opened her mouth to speak.
"Jack's back." She announced. 'Is that the best you could come up with?' Kate asked herself incredulously.
James cocked an eyebrow at this, his trademark smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.
"Golly, straight to the main course with you…I missed you too, Kate."
Kate narrowed her green eyes at him, without realizing she began to tap her right foot with impatience.
"He saved our lives Sawyer. He sacrificed himself so th-"
"Thanks for the memo Freckles but I was there remember? Got my face beat in and chest zapped a couple times too, remember that?"
James ground his teeth in frustration. Seven sleepless nights and this was the reward? She came here to talk about Jack, or was it to nag at him for not coming with her? Shaking his head in resignation he took a step towards her. Kate bristled in response, standing so rigid she was quivering like a skittish horse ready to take flight.
"Is he okay?" James asked, careful to lower his voice; just like he was talking to a edgy colt.
Kate looked away from James for a second and then brought her eyes to meet his. Suddenly unable to speak, frustrated tears welled up in her eyes as she just nodded mutely. James brought a hand up to touch her arm but she flinched.
"I guess that answers ma second question. You're okay too an' definitely hopin' I won't bring up what happened in the cages in front of St. Jack." He remarked sarcastically, unable to keep the ire from his voice. He nodded silently as he dropped his hand and took a step back, away from her. She glared at him mutely.
"Good to see y'all got back safe an' sound Sheera, now if you'll excuse m-"
Whatever else James had been about to say was cut off by the force of Kate's hands as she shoved him; unprepared for her sudden movement, James reflexively brought his hands up around her waist, taking her with him as he fell backwards into the water.
Tepid brown water enveloped them both as they were sucked down to the bottom of the pool before the laws of physics sent their bodies back up to the surface. Kate gasped for air as she tried to recover from the shock of finding herself in the water. Wiping the sandy clumps out of her eyes she stared at James who was standing right next to her in the knee-deep water. His shoulders shook as he tried to contain his laughter. Kate glared at him, moving as fast as she could in the brown swirling water towards the rocks, she shook off the dirty water that covered her bare arms. She'd just changed into these clean clothes!
James reached out and grabbed her hand, "Come on now, don't be like that, it's only a bit of dirt… take a dip with me an' we'll get you all cleaned up." He cajoled as he still continued to laugh.
Kate begrudgingly turned to face him, despite herself a small smile escape; she shrugged a little as a way of apology for her behavior. James shook his head at her stubbornness and pulled her further in the water.
"You're the cutest thing that I ever did see. I really love your peaches, wanna shake your tree." James sang to Kate who was now laughing despite herself. He was walking backwards and he was leering at her breasts as he sang the word "peaches". How could she stay mad when he was turning on the charm like that?
"You wanna do the sound effects or should I?" James asked with a tilt of his head in her direction. They were now neck high in the water and Kate was giggling like a teenager. James splashed her face with some water. Gasping like a landed fish for a second; Kate retaliated by pinching his nipple which was just under the water. James yelped in surprise.
"Sonofabitch! That hurt!"
Kate grinned at him evilly, slicking her hair away from her face she took a step closer; she was now standing between his legs. She raised her arms and cackled evilly when James tensed in preparation for some new assault; she let them hover above his shoulders before she interlinked her hands behind his head.
"Good… it was meant to. Stop questioning my feelings for you, it hurts." Kate said seriously, softening the impact of her words with butterfly kisses on his face. James wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her up against him. He turned his face into her wet hair, nuzzling the skin behind her ear as she ran her hand up into his hair. Tugging insistently until he drew back to look into her eyes, Kate studied his face intensely.
"You're bruises are gone, thank God I don't see any permanent damage." She observed eventually, as she stroked each of his eyebrows with her thumbs.
James didn't say anything, choosing to look into her eyes as he searched for all the words he couldn't say. Kate caught the look on his face and smiled at him.
"Lovey-dovey, lovey-dovey, lovey-dovey all the time...Ooo-eee baby, I'll sure show you a good time !" Kate sang with off-key exuberance. James shook his head at her as he bent his head down so he could kiss her gently.
"Peaches you got many talents but singin' ain't one of them… don't do that again, I think I heard Vincent at the beach howlin' in pain." He whispered against her lips. Kate smiled against his mouth laughing with him. Then she wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him again, putting everything neither one of them seemed able to say into it.
James didn't waste any time cupping her buttocks and wading out of the water to lay her on the rock he'd been using as a chaise lounge earlier. Kate gasped with anticipation as she studied his naked bronzed form. He looked better than she had remembered. 'Typical, I've been out in the jungle getting shot at and he's been tanning.' She observed wryly.
James was unbuttoning her jeans and as he slid the thick and waterlogged material down her hips he placed each of his knees on either side of her legs. Reaching behind him he dropped the sodden pants on the ground with an experienced flourish.
Kate raised her eyebrows at this, sitting up so she could pull her beloved purple tank-top over her head; she dumped it on the floor with equal skill and finesse. James cocked an eyebrow at this, opening his mouth to comment; he was cut off by Kate's decisive action. She gripped his mouth shut with her right hand and then using it as leverage, dragged him down to lie on top of her. In the blink of an eye she expertly flipped them over, landing them on the pebbly and slightly muddy earth.
Pulling herself up she straddled him and bringing a finger to her lips, leaned down to kiss him, sucking on his tongue erotically as she caressed him. Leading him into her, she clenched her muscles with a satisfied moan and then sat back on her heels without moving. Everything was moving so fast, James' head was spinning.
Kate rotated her head counter-clockwise, popping the bones in her neck as she did so. Then she brought her eyes down to meet his and started to rock her hips at a steady and controlled pace. James dug his hands into her hips, trying to exert some pressure on her to increase the tempo but Kate wasn't going to allow that. She leaned forward and pressed her lips against his and took the opportunity to dig her hands into his already drying hair. Tugging on the roots as her hands cradled his scalp she forced him to look into her eyes. Kate increased her movements as a reward, holding onto him tight, they looked into each others eyes until their mutual climax a few minutes later.
The rest of the afternoon was spent swimming and play-fighting in the water, and they would stop every now and again to kiss or touch tenderly. When they stepped out of the water all wrinkly and pruny, it was to Kate's great relief that the sun had been hot enough to dry the jeans and purple tank-top she'd laid out on the rocks. She'd taken just about enough teasing from James about how she was going to explain to everyone, including her "precious Jack" why she was walking around the jungle with no pants.
James studied her naked body as they stood by the rocks, looking for injuries, he was relieved to see she had didn't seem to have suffered any serious harm. Although there were a few nasty looking bruises, they already appeared to be healing. They got dressed and walked back to the beach hand in hand, talking softly in the gathering dusk. As they approached the beach, Kate had tugged on James' arm stopping him in his tracks.
"No more naked sunbathing by the waterfall without me okay?" Kate warned in a tone that brooked no argument. James who'd prepared himself to hear her say she didn't want anyone to know about whatever it was that was going on between them, nodded in relieved agreement.
"An' no more disappearin' into the jungle to save spinal surgeons, teenage boys, or… Vincent or kittens without at least tellin' me okay?" James retaliated.
Kate had smiled at this and kissing him softly; she had replied simply, "Okay."
Putting an arm around her they had walked on to the beach and joined the merry celebrations underway in commemoration of everyone's safe return.
Over the next few weeks speculation was rife about what was going on between Sawyer and Kate; they slept in separate tents and never kissed in public. Yet whenever they were together in public and weren't bickering about something; people would stare at them openly curious. It had become an inside joke between them because it always happened when they were flirting or occasionally when they would be seen walking arm in arm or hugging. And James would sing, "People keep talkin' about me baby, say I'm doing you wrong." Kate would pretend to be mad when he'd bring his hands up and block his ears if she tried to sing the line she'd sang at the waterfall. Then they would sit outside his tent laughing and talking, as had become customary.
When the weather had made it virtually impossible to live on the beach any longer, some people had moved back to the caves. James and Kate had decided to go with a handful of people in order to try and find if there was anywhere else for people to move to. The mission had been innocent enough but as always with the Island, nothing stayed that way for long. The had all been captured by the Others and even after their rescue from the Island a year and a half later; their lives would never be the same again.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dudes, you gotta press that button and REVIEW. It is manna from the heavens for me. And it most definately makes for faster updates.
