That's Why My Hand Was Shaking by Teenage Anomaly
Summary: (sequel to All Roads Lead Here) Katty was just beginning to adjust to life on the island when she's hit upside the head by the news a man she thought was dead is alive and kicking. With that knowledge eating at her, she has to continue to pretend that everything is normal, as she's hit with blow after blow. New friendships, new relationships are being formed, but it feels like everything is falling down around her and as all she can do is watch from the sidelines. And, with 'Henry Gale' thrown into the mix along with the Taillies and the weight of the world on the shoulders of a teenage girl, how long can she last before reaching her breaking point? Sayid/OC/Sawyer, Sayid/Shannon, Sawyer/Kate/Jack, Charlie/Claire/Locke (yes, you read right:)) Libby/Hurley. OC, Sayid, Sawyer, Locke, Jack, Kate, Ana Lucia, Hurley, Benry, and Richard centric.
Rating: T for violence, language, and sexual content. WARNING: This story will feature much more sexual content (not the deed itself, I could write that without giggling the entire time) than the previous installment. Nothing graphic, but there's going to be much more references, innuedo, etc. This story is going to be much darker than the previous one as well- don't worry, it won't be depressing and there will still be heaps of humor, but the themes are going to be much more mature and much darker. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.
Disclaimer: I don't own LOST, any of the characters, or the songs/quotes featured at the beginnings of each chapter. I own Katty, Elliot, any characters and the plot that are not connected to the show. Additional disclaimers will be given as needed, but for the most part THIS IS THE DISCLAIMER FOR ALL FOLLOWING CHAPTERS. If you should go, you should know I love you
Electric blue eyes, where did you come from
Electric blue eyes, who sent you
Electric blue eyes, always be near me
Electric blue eyes, I need you
If you should go, you should know Im here
Always be near me, guardian angel
Always be near me, there's no fear
Chapter One: A Forgotten Age
There are some doors that should never be opened- Anonymous
November 24, 1992. Hattiesburg, Mississippi, USA. Roughly ten in the morning.
To say that Elliot Alpert was unhappy would be an extreme understatement. He'd been pulled from his home early in the morning two days ago and sent to a little town in Mississippi, to a hospital, where a completely unremarkable baby girl had just been born to two completely unremarkable new parents.
Elliot had passed Ted and Karen Sherman on his way to the nursery. Both of them were beaming with pride and joy and disbelief, their young faces grinning widely. Ted had an arm around his wife's shoulders, and neither of them had any eyes for Elliot, which was just as well to the immortal.
He stood in front of the plane of glass, staring down at the squalling baby girl. Her tiny little hands were balled into fists that she waved and jerked through the air, unsure what to do with them. Her eyes were screwed shut and her toothless mouth was open wide in a loud, tinny infant cry.
Elliot saw no reason to be here. There was nothing special about this little girl, nothing at all.
But he'd always had a soft spot for children, and he couldn't help a small smile that formed on his face.
Almost as though she sensed his sudden contentment, the infant stopped her screaming. She blinked, once, then twice, her big, wide and surprisingly intelligent eyes fixing him in her gaze. Her eyes were so deeply, so violently blue, they appeared to be pieces of twilight trapped in a little, golden face.
She peered up at him, the frown falling off of her fat little face, her mouth open slightly as she gazed up at him. There was such an animal intelligence in her gaze that Elliot's brow furrowed. She blinked again and tilted her head to the side, just a little.
Without thinking, he slowly raised his hand and placed it on the cool plane of glass that separated himself and the infant.
She just blinked up at him again.
"Hello, Kathryn," he murmured.
-
November 5th, 2009. Present Day.
It was like déjà vu, almost. The girl simply stood there, wide eyed and drop jawed, staring up at him in utter disbelief.
"Hello, Kathryn," he said, and his voice seemed to have some effect on her. She still said nothing, and the shock on her face told him it might be a while before she said anything.
"Look, I realize this might be a lot to take in-"
"You're… alive."
Her voice was just like he remembered, sharp and a little bit raspy, with just the slightest twang of a Southern accent.
"It's possible," he said, smiling a little. "I can't die."
"You're alive," she said again, her eyes widening even more, pointing a shaking finger at him. The orange light from behind her illuminated her silhouette, and her blue eyes shone like a fire in the night.
"Listen, Katty, we don't have time for this."
"Don't have time?" she said, and her voice was high and nearly hysterical. She threw her hand to her side, shaking her head, her mouth open, her eyes still wide and disbelieving. "You were dead!"
"Please," he said, raising his hands and stepping forward, "please keep your voice down."
"How is this possible?"
"I can't die," he said insistently, raising his eyes brows, but she shook her head.
"I was covered in your blood," she said, her voice shaking. "I saw the light leave your eyes, so don't tell me you can't die!" she hissed, her eyes flashing.
"Look, I'll explain everything later, but right now you have to-"
"Katty!" Jack's worried voice called from the clearing surrounding the hatch. "Katty, where are you?"
"I- I'm okay, Jack!" she called, her voice steadier. "I just wanted to get some air!"
"We're going back to the caves."
"I'll be there in a minute."
She turned an infuriated, disbelieving and hurt gaze back to Elliot. With a sigh, he lifted up his green t-shirt, revealing three circular shaped scars on his chest. She stared at them before her eyes flicked back up to his face, her brow furrowing.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't know how to tell you, once you got here-"
"I killed for you," she said through gritted teeth.
"Katty!"
"Coming!"
She looked to Elliot. "I have to go."
"Katty, please-" he stepped forward and grabbed her arm, but she jerked out of his grasp.
"Don't," she said warningly, her eyes wide and angry, before turning on her heel and walking away. Elliot stood in the jungle, staring after her.
The last time he'd seen her, those eyes had been wide with fright, not anger. She'd been paler, her hair had been darker, and she hadn't had that scar on her right cheek. She'd become scrawnier since Venice, and she carried herself differently.
Elliot had watched her grow up, and now he realized that she had grown up a long time ago, without his either his knowledge or consent.
March 3, 1995
It was a cloudy day, windy and cool. Elliot sat on a bench and watched the little girl play inside the play ground from behind the newspaper he was paying absolutely no attention to.
She was an enchanting little girl, two years old, tiny and cheerful as she tottered around the mulch-covered playground. Her mother followed her around, exhausted, holding her newborn boy to her chest as she chased the vivacious young girl. Elliot grinned as he watched the kid.
She turned to him, a grin lifting her round cheeks, her eyes flashing as her high laughter carried across the park.
Present Day
I followed behind the group, my mind whirling furiously.
Elliot was alive. The man who'd turned me into what I was, the man who I'd seen die, the man I'd killed for- he was alive. He had been, he'd been on this island the entire time, and he hadn't told me.
Richard hadn't told me, either. He could have, anytime we'd seen each other, it would have been so easy for him to tell me his brother was alive- but he hadn't. He'd let me go on wishing and regretting.
"You okay, dude?" asked Hurley. I glanced up into his torch-illuminated face.
"I'm fine," I said, my voice still hard. He blinked at me.
"You sure? You look like you've seen a ghost, or something."
I laughed, the sound ironic and humorless. In a way, I had seen a ghost.
"So, did you see the door?"
"What door?"
"The hatch door. The one that said 'quarantine'."
"Yeah, I saw it."
"What do you think?" he asked, staring at me. I shrugged, not really in the mood to converse or share theories.
"I don't know. Maybe the people inside it thought they needed to be quarantined from what was out here."
"You mean, like… us?"
I looked at him. "Yeah, Hurley. Like us."
Hurley walked with me in silence for a few more minutes, but as he slowly realized I wanted to be left alone, he sped up to walk with Jack, and after a few minutes, I heard them talking quietly.
Elliot was alive.
Richard had- well, not lied to me exactly, but he hadn't told me the truth. It felt like he'd betrayed me, and that made me angrier than I'd expected.
I gritted my teeth as I thought of Venice, of Elliot, of blood covering my body.
"You ain't a baby no more."
However, there was some comfort in the fact that I had now officially survived a season of LOST. I still thought of life as seasons- it was weird. I was in season two. How in the hell would I survive this? I wondered, briefly, whether I'd be taken with Sawyer and Kate and Jack. Instinct told me yes, yes I would. But then logic kicked in and said that there was nothing remotely interesting about me; why would they take me?
I hoped they would.
For the first time in several hours, a grin spread over my face as I stared at Hurley's and Jack's backs.
I was going to meet Benry freaking Linus this season.
We reached the caves and were immediately surrounded by people questioning us, wanting to know what was going on.
"Is everyone okay?" asked a shaken looking Claire, holding Aaron very tightly. I nodded, reaching out to rub the baby's fuzzy little head.
"Yeah," I said. "We're all alright."
"Katty." I turned around to see Locke standing behind me, his lined, craggy face determined in the orange light.
"Are you coming?" he asked, and I nodded.
"Of course."
He smiled, just for a moment, before the determined, focused look came back to his face. "Come help me with the cable."
We wormed our way through the crowd, ignoring Jack as he began to speak, to comfort everyone, like he was Moses. I was proud of Jack, and fond of him, but right now, I was in full Team Locke mode.
"Here," said Locke, handing me a loop of cable. I wrapped it over my shoulders and around my waist, which was the only way I could transport it without it dragging on the ground, me being as short as I was. I held my flashlight in between my teeth and re-arranged my gun.
"John, what are you doing?" asked Jack suddenly, and I straightened up, turning to look at him. His grey eyes, lined and exhausted in the firelight, fixed on us, angry, surprised and, when they settled on me, a little betrayed.
"We're getting some cable," said John, calmly. Jack glanced at me.
"What for?" he asked, knowing perfectly well what for.
"It's for the hatch," said John, not apologetic at all. "We're going in."
"Do you really think that's the smartest thing to do right now, John?" asked Jack sarcastically, and John shook his head, shrugging. I watched the two of them, saying nothing. All of the eyes in the camp were on the three of us.
"I doubt it," said Locke exasperatedly. "In fact, you're right. The safest thing is to stay here, wait for morning- wait for these Others, to see if they ever show up- wait for the brave folks on the raft to bring help." He hesitated, his eyes boring into Jack as everyone watched him. "But me, I'm tired of waiting. C'mon," he said to me and, with one last glance at a helpless Jack, I followed him into the dark jungle.
It wasn't a long walk from the caves to the hatch, maybe twenty minutes, but I'd been walking all day and it was almost midnight and dammit, I was exhausted. I stumbled a little, trying to keep up with John. He glanced back at me.
"You alright?" he asked. I sighed, wiping sweat off my forehead with the hand that wasn't holding a torch.
"Yeah," I said. "Just tired."
"You don't have to come, you know-"
"I kinda do, John," I said quietly, and after a moment, he smiled.
Truth be told, finding out about Elliot had exhausted me more than the hiking. I'd been on the island forty-six (almost forty-seven) days now, and my stamina was much better than it used to be.
But there was absolutely nothing that could have prepared me for seeing Elliot again. My heart was still pounding and my limbs were shaky.
We reached the caves in fairly good time and he began setting up the cables to lower me down. Once it was all ready to go, he helped me step into the make-shift harness. I adjusted it around my hips before looking up at him.
"Kate's coming," I said. "Wait for her. I'll be alright."
He nodded. "Sure thing."
I too a deep breath, moving over to the edge of the hole in the hatch.
"You ready?" he asked, his eyes wide. I nodded.
"Okay," he said. I felt down in the hold with my leg, searching for the first rung of the broken ladder. After finding it, and lowering myself in, I nodded at John.
I stepped off the last rung of the ladder and the harness tightened around my hips as John began lowering my down the hole. After a few seconds of vertigo from the sensation of being suspended over a bottomless pit, I was careful to make no noise, even breathing quietly, to avoid alerting Desmond.
I reached the bottom and stumbled against the floor, the water splashing quietly as I climbed clumsily out of the harness and tugged it a few times. Once it began disappearing back up, I moved into the hatch.
The first thing I noticed was the smell. It wasn't unpleasant, but it smelled old and somewhat metallic. I walked quietly down the halls of the hatch, passing the graffitied wall and the wall that lifted my cross up in the air. Ignoring the tingling in my stomach, I kept moving, finally entering the kitchen before-
"Don't take another step."
The accented voice sounded from several feet behind me and I froze.
"I'm not here to hurt you-" I said loudly, and I heard him take a step towards me.
"Shut up and turn around. Put yer hands in the air."
I did so, turned slowly, and the crazed-looking Scotsman came into view. His eyes widened when he saw me and he lowered the gun a fraction, genuine surprise in his eyes.
"You- you're a girl," he said, his voice shocked. I raised my eyebrows.
"And you're a master of observation."
He too another step towards me and I fought the urge to step backwards. I knew it wasn't me, or my captivating beauty (or lack thereof) that was intoxicating to him, but the sheer fact that I was female and bore a passing resemblance to Penny (I had blonde hair and blue eyes, anyway), and that he hadn't seen a girl for three years. Hell, he'd probably be coming onto Rose if she was the first one he saw.
He reached up, hands trembling, to feel my face. I didn't move, just looked at him as his hands moved over my face, his eyes flicking from my mouth to my nose and finally to my eyes.
"You're- you're real, then," he said quietly.
"I hope so."
"Who are you?" he asked, finally stepping away from me. My breathing eased.
"My name's Katty Sherman-"
We both heard voices, and suddenly his gun was raised again, the sleeves of his jumpsuit stressed back to reveal sexy hands and forearms.
I wasn't interested in Desmond, but a girl would have to be blind to not find him ridiculously good looking. Too bad I preferred my men immortal, Arabic, or blonde.
"Stay right here, Katty Sherman. Who's your friend?" he jerked his head in the direction I'd come from.
"That'd be Kate," I said, and a look of disbelief crossed his face.
"Another girl?"
"Most of the guys on the island seem to think so, yeah."
"Wait, there are- there are more of you?"
"Look, Des, I'd love to explain all of this, but you need to go deal with Kate, now."
Instantly, his gun was trained on me. Shit.
"How the bloody hell do you know my name?"
"Deal with Kate!" I said exasperatedly. "I'll explain everything, I swear."
"Do not move," he said warningly, before disappearing around the corner. I waiting, listening intently and examining the hatch. There was a flash of bright light, a scream, and then black. I heard John shouting Kate's name and simply waited, glancing at the bunk beds in the next room. They looked extremely inviting and it had been over a month since I'd slept in an actual bed…
Desmond strode back into view, carrying an unconscious Kate. He dumped her unceremoniously on the floor, the rifle clicking as he pulled it into place. He glared at me.
"Who is she?" he growled.
"Kate," I said. "I already told you."
"I know what you told me. And who's the other man, the man that was up there, lowering you two down here?" His eyes were half crazed, his hair messy and going everywhere.
"That's John Locke," I said, hoping that my voice was calming. It didn't, however, seem to have that effect on Desmond.
"John Locke, aye? An' who the hell is that?"
"He's not gonna hurt you-"
Sounds came at us from the hallway leading to the shaft, and Desmond turned the gun on me. My heart skipped a beat.
"Get on the ground," he hissed. "Now!"
I nodded quickly and lowered myself to the cold metal floor of the hatch, my heart pounding and my worn muscles trembling. Kate was beginning to stir, her face twisting into a grimace.
"Kate?" I whispered, shaking her shoulder gingerly.
"Don't talk!" came Desmond's voice from farther away. Kate moaned and I heard John's steady footsteps.
"Kate, Katty," John breathed, putting a hand on each of our backs' as he crouched down next to us. Kate moaned, turning her head. I looked up at John.
"We're okay," I said.
"John," moaned Kate. I stared at her and so did John, his eyes widening.
"Easy, easy," he said as she began to try to sit up.
"Oh, John," she murmured.
There was the familiar click of a rifle cocking and John turned around to see a very angry, defensive, and confused Desmond staring down at him.
"Are you him?" he asked. "Are you him?"
John looked at me and I said nothing, still half-lying on the cold hatch floor, just widened my eyes as my brow furrowed.
"Yes," said Locke finally, looking from me to Desmond. "Yes I am."
For the first time since I'd seen him, a smile that wasn't insane spread over Desmond's face, tentative and relieved. "I can't believe it," he said. "You're finally here."
"Well, here I am," said Locke, smiling. For the first time, something in Desmond's face hardened and he gestured to Kate and I with his gun.
"Who are they?" he asked, his voice hard. John looked at the two of us and then back to Desmond, still smiling, and said, "They're with me."
And with that, the almost happy expression melted right off Desmond's face.
"What did one snowman say to the other snowman?" he snarled. John's brow furrowed, confused.
"I don't know what you're talking about-"
"Get rid of the knife," growled Desmond, his eyes flashing. "You're not him."
Locke dropped the knife on the floor with a quiet clatter and then raised his hands in the air, his face open and honest.
"We didn't come here to hurt you-"
"Yeah, then why did you come?" snapped Desmond. I said nothing.
"We were in a plane crash," said Kate quietly, and Desmond's eyes flicked to her.
"Were you now?" he said sarcastically, cocking his head slightly. "And when was that?"
"Forty-four, uh, forty-six days ago," said Locke, looking at me. I nodded, and Desmond turned to me.
"Forty-six days?" snarled Desmond. "Move."
He gestured with the rifle for us to stand and we did so, the other two gracefully, but I had to grab John's arm to pull myself to my unsteady feet. I was exhausted and sore and I had seen a man I thought was dead maybe three hours ago. My mind and body were spent. Desmond seemed to notice, too, as his eyes flicked over my face in the gloomy, bluish light, and I could see the wheels turning in his mind.
"How long have you been down here?" asked John, grasping my arm to steady me as the room swam in front of me. I blinked several times.
"Shut it," snapped the angry Scotsman. He grabbed a length of rope and tossed it at us, and Kate's hand wrapped around it. She stared at Desmond, wide-eyed.
"Tie him up," said Desmond, jerking the gun at Locke. He and I exchanged a glance, his eyes asking me a question. I nodded.
"Do it!" shouted Desmond. Kate gave John an apologetic look and moved to him, but John turned to Desmond, raising his hands.
"Wait. Wait, wait- you're tying up the wrong person."
"How's that, brother?"
"It's pointless to tie me up, I'm not dangerous," he said, raising his eyebrows, his voice mild but with an undertone of urgency as he pointed at Kate. She gave him a disbelieving, angry stare. "But her, she's a fugitive."
"And what about her?" asked Desmond, jerking the gun in my direction. John looked down at me, his eyes thoughtful.
"She's just- she's just a teenager," he said, waving a wand carelessly. "She's no threat to anyone."
"She's not, aye?"
"No," said John, not meeting my eyes as he lied through his teeth. We all knew that, in more than one way, I was the most dangerous person in the hatch.
What an oddly invigorating thought that was.
"She's no threat to anyone," finished Locke.
"So, what does that make you then, brother?"
Locke hesitated, glancing at Kate and I. "I'm a regional collections manager for a cardboard manufacturer - boxes primarily."
"All right then, box man, teeny bopper-tie her up."
Locke reached for Kate and I looked at her apologetically.
"Sorry, Kate-"
"Don't you dare touch me," snarled Kate, jerking away from Locke and glaring at me.
"Hey! You be a good girl, right?"
With a final angry glare at Locke, she allowed us to turned her around and Locke began tying her wrists, more gently than he would to someone else.
"What do you think you're doing?" hissed Kate, glancing at us over her shoulder. I blinked. Everything was beginning to loose focus.
"I'm doing what's best for all of us," said John quietly.
He reached around her and slid a knife down the front of her jeans. My incoherent mind was forming conclusions that absolutely weren't there. Let's just put it this way: if I'd been sitting at home, on my couch, watching this scene, I'd have a new ship. I HAD seen this on a TV before, but there was something oddly sexual about the entire exchange now that I was smack in the middle of it.
"Alright, bring her here," said Desmond and Locke turned Kate around, his hands on her arms, keeping her angled away from Desmond as he maneuvered her to the storage closet.
"Oh, hey, John, wait, hey. Wait!"
Ignoring her shouts, John pushed her into the storage room and shut the door before turning back to Desmond and I, his face impassive.
Locke and Desmond began discussing the crash and I, on the brink of unconsciousness, collapsed into the couch, fighting to keep my eyelids open. It was almost four in the morning.
I drifted for maybe five minutes before being jolted abruptly into awareness by that damned beeping. I sat up straight with a gasp, eyes wide, staring around the hatch. Desmond and Locke looked at me oddly.
"Are you alright?" asked John.
"Dandy," I said.
"Stay right there," said Desmond threateningly as he rose to his feet. I sank back into the chair.
"Dude, I'm not going anywhere," I said, raising my eyebrows. He smirked at me.
"Good. Alright, box man, get up…"
The moved into the computer room and I watched them blearily for a few minutes, listening to them. I had no energy and the temptation to crawl into those beds was almost over-whelming.
I only remember flashes, after that.
Desmond and Locke talking about Jack.
Jack.
He came over to me, his eyes widening, and grasped my face, turning my head, slapping me lightly.
"Katty," he said, his voice panicked. "Katty, are you okay?"
" 'M just sleepin', Jack," I muttered and he gave a relieved chuckle.
"Where's Kate and Locke?"
I flapped a hand wearily at the computer room and Jack rose to his feet and made his way over there.
"I wouldn't do that, Jack."
I opened my eyes. Locke was standing outside the computer room, with Desmond behind him, the rifle pointed at his head. I saw Jack's face contort and, mustering all my nonexistent energy, rose to my feet.
"Where's Kate? What the hell did you-"
I swaggered over to Desmond and stood next to Locke. Desmond glared at me, saying, "Move and I kill him. Put the gun down."
"Where's Kate?" shouted Jack, not putting the gun down.
"Jack, you really should put the gun down," I slurred, although I myself had a gun stuck down the front of my jeans.
"Jack, it's okay."
"I said drop it," growled Desmond. Jack's eyes tightened and his finger twitched on the trigger.
"Where's Kate?" shouted Jack, moving forward.
"Jack-"
"She's fine. Just put down the-"
"I'm not putting down anything," grinned Jack, his face white and a little insane.
I watched Desmond's face contort as he jerked the gun up at fired at shot at the vent. It clanged loudly and I winced.
"Do you want him to die?" shouted Desmond. "Put it down."
"Is this what you were talking about, Locke?" asked Jack sarcastically, the same angry smile on his face. "Is this your destiny? 'All roads lead here'?"
"Every road did lead here, Jack," I said, surprising myself. "You don't… you've got no idea…"
"Jack, calm down," said John, his voice calm and supremely unworried, as though there wasn't a half crazed Scottish guy holding a gun to his head.
Desmond moved so that he was looking at Jack over Locke's shoulder. "Lower your gun or I'll blow his damned head off, brother."
Jack's face twisted in surprise and disbelief and I looked between the two of them.
"You."
At that moment there was a sudden flurry of action. Kate sneaked up behind Desmond and whacked him in the back of the head with a gun, which caused several things to happen. I screamed out of pure shock and twisted around, trying to figure out what the hell was going on as Desmond's gun went off, sending Jack and John ducking.
"- the hell?" I shouted once it was all over, still hunched over with my arms over my head.
There were electrical cracklings coming from inside the computer room and the smell of burnt metal stung at my nose as acrid smoke rose from the now slightly crumpled computer.
Jack leapt over to Desmond and crouched down on top of him, holding him down. "Do not move."
"Now, don't-" said Locke cautiously. Kate gave him an incredulous look and Jack just glared at him, still pinning Desmond down.
"Don't what?" spat Jack angrily.
"He's unarmed."
"He just had a gun pointed at your head!" shouted Jack, gesturing at the fallen Scot.
"He wasn't gonna do anythin'," I said exasperatedly.
"How do you know that?" shouted Jack. I just looked at him pointedly. From underneath Jack Desmond's eyes widened, his face draining of color. I looked up into the computer room. Smoke was pouring off of the computer.
"Well, that sucks," I said.
"Oh, what did you do?" moaned Desmond quietly, staring at the computer with a broken, hopeless look. "What did you do? We're all going to die. We're all going to die."
Jack looked at me. "What the hell does he mean?"
"He means," I said, enunciating very clearly, "that if he doesn't fix that computer and enter the code, then every single person on this island will die."
There was a very loud silence as the computer crackled and hissed and every eye turned to me, Jack's disbelieving, Kate's scared, Locke's hard and thoughtful, and Desmond's shocked.
"How the hell do you know that?"
"Move it, Jack, I said, shouldering the doctor out of the way. I grasped Desmond's hand and pulled him to his feet.
"Same way I know yer name, Des, and who you were 'fore you came to the island."
He just stared at me and then asked, "Who are you?"
"I'll get back to you with that."
We turned to walk into the hatch room, but Jack's gun was raised and I wasn't sure who it was pointed at.
"What," he said, breathing heavily, "what the hell is going on?"
"I have to fix it," said Desmond, turning back to him
"Katty, what the hell is he talking about?"
"Dude, I just explained this."
"Listen, if you do not let me go, we are going to die-" said Desmond clearly, raising his hands in a placating motion.
"Stop moving or I swear to god-!"
"Look at the wall!" shouted Desmond, pointing a quivering finger at the clock on the wall. "You see that? That's a timer and it's counting down. I've got to enter the code. I've got to push the button!"
There was a moment of silence and then Jack said, the threat plain in his voice, "Or what?"
Desmond said nothing, but exchanged a look with me.
"Jack, you should let him go," said Locke, his voice cautious.
"Don't tell me what to do!" shouted Jack before turning back to Desmond. "Or what? What's going to happen?"
Desmond's brow furrowed and he stared at Jack, his eyes very thoughtful. "Do I know you?"
Jack grimaced.
"You got him?" he asked Kate. She nodded, pointing the gun at him.
"Go," Jack said, and Desmond ran into the computer room, me following him. He stood in front of the computer, his face bone white, his eyes wide and terrified.
"Bastard," he murmured, his voice horrified. "Hey, you, girl-"
"Katty."
"Katty." He looked up at me, his eyebrows pulling up in the middle.
"Do you know anything about technology?"
"Not a damn thing."
All traces of hope left his face. He ran out of the computer room and began rummaging through the bookshelves, throwing books everywhere, his face panicked. I followed him, dizzy, barely forming coherent thoughts, I was so tired.
"I don't think you need that, Kate," said Locke. Kate just looked at him. "Whatever you're looking for, maybe I can help," he told Desmond. Des turned and fixed him in an angry, hopeless glare.
"Can you fix a computer?" John shrugged. "Then you can't help me, can you?" growled Desmond.
"Sayid can fix a computer," said Kate suddenly, looking at me. I nodded as the room spun.
"Get him. Go and get Sayid."
"Can you get back up that rope?" asked Jack. Kate and I both looked to the frantic Desmond.
"I won't have to; there's got to be a front door in this place."
"Down the corridor to the left. Be persistent, the wheel sticks." Kate nodded.
"I'll go with you," I said suddenly, and she looked at me.
"Katty, I'm not sure that's such a good idea-"
"I don't really feel like staying here, so-"
"Gotcha!" exclaimed Desmond and Kate looked from me to him and back again. There was an apologetic look on her face.
"Look, Katty, you'll just slow me down, okay?"
"Oh," I said, too tired to be really offended. "Okay."
She gave me a small smile and grasped my hand as she slid past us.
"Guys, I think I'm gonna- I think I'm gonna go to bed," I said moments later, my words slurring as I blinked, trying to keep the room in focus. Desmond looked up at me, incredulous.
"The bloody world is going to end and you're taking a nap?"
"It's not gonna end, Desmondo," I muttered, and in a heartbeat, he was in front of me, grabbing my arms and shaking me.
"How the hell do you know my name?" he shouted. I blinked up at him.
"Same way I know that before you got in the island, you were in a solo race 'round the world hosted by Charles Widmore. I know you entered the race so that you could marry his daughter. Penny."
He was staring at me. I sighed. "I know that when you got to the island, a man named Kelvin Inman brought you here an' told you about the button. I know that he lied t' you. An' I know what he lied t' you about."
I took a deep breath, staring up into his shocked brown eyes. He would understand, in a few weeks. He would be the one person I could trust. Jack and Locke were watching us, Locke's brow furrowed, and Jack's eyes wide.
"I know wha's gonna happen t' you after you leave here, in a few minutes," I said quietly. "I know wha's gonna happen when ya get back. I know what's gonna happen when you turn the key."
His face contorted slightly and I nodded. "Yeah, Des, that key. I know what's going to happen after you turn the key. And," I was whispering down, leaning forward so that only he could hear me, "I know when you'll be reunited with Penny."
He pulled away, his eyes wide and his face shocked.
"Des, trust me, in a few weeks yer gonna understand all this a little too well. Can I go to bed now?" I asked, exhausted.
He stepped away, speechless, staring at me, and I pushed past them, stumbling into the bedroom, kicking my shoes of and placing my gun on the bedside table and crawling into bed.
I was fast asleep within seconds.
-
"Well, you've really gone and done it now," said Ben. We were in a place I didn't recognize. It looked like some kind of bar, dark and smoky, but everyone was talking in a foreign language- Hindi, it sounded like. It seemed like Ben and I were the only two westerners in the bar.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, Katie," he said my name with a mocking note in his voice, his eyes widening, "that you've started the chain."
A couple chattering in Hindi pushed past us, their voices warping. Ben's eyes, wide and blue, fixed onto me.
"The hatch," clarified Ben. "If your people didn't open the hatch none of this would have ever happened. This is the real beginning of the end."
"They're not my people, Benjamin," I said. "You know that."
"Do I?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.
"You should," I said quietly. He chuckled.
"You'll be meeting me in a few days," he said.
"I know. You won't recognize me."
"Won't I? This is my dream too, you know."
I took his hand, rough and warm, in mine, and looked up at him.
"Wake up, Benjamin."
-
On the other side of the island, wide blue eyes opened and Ben sat up, glancing around his study, the blue eyes and shark-like grin of a girl he'd never met not yet faded from his mind.
-
Day Forty-Seven
"Hello," said Jacob.
"I remember where I know you from now," I told him. We were in the same room we'd been in last time, underground, with candles burning. He wore all white and stood several feet away from me.
"You were the man in the airport."
A small smile crossed his face, but he said nothing.
"You touched me," I said. "You grabbed my shoulder."
The smile widened.
"Why did it let me live?" I asked quietly. Jacob's ancient eyes bored into mine as his smile turned into a grin and his eyes twinkled with some ancient secret.
"It let you live," he said, "because you can't die."
LOST
"Electric Blue" by the Cranberries.
A/N: SEASON TWO, BABY! So, how many people saw Elliot coming back? I sure was planning ti for a while and OMG YOUSE GUYS WE'RE MEETING BENRY THIS SEASON. I CAN'T WAIT.
Like I said in the rating, this story is going to be darker than ARLH. Still work friendly and still light reading, but darker and with more sex. In short, it'll just be a much more mature story than ARLH. But I think people are going to enjoy it.
DON'T FREAK OUT ABOUT WHAT JACOB SAID. ALL WILL BE EXPLAINED. :)
(i'msoexcitedaboutbenry)
Love,
Sarah.
