The Mysterious Stranger
Spoilers: All Seasons
Disclaimer: I own nothing really, I mean unless I can claim the new timeline minus the characters.
Nathan sat on the couch in his house reading what had to be the millionth letter from the box. Of course after the fifth letter, he'd been directed to a journal buried at the bottom of the box. Whoever Audrey Parker had been in another lifetime, part of him wished she was beside him because in just ten days he'd began falling in love with her…but she was a ghost.
…I wondered as we started getting closer to the inevitable day, when did we fall in love? Why did we ignore what could have been a time of happiness? I just pushed you away and you in turn pushed me away. I wonder what could have been in those few months, of what we could have had. I guess the time for wondering is over because we can't undo those days.
As the days grew near I realized that the only way was to enter The Barn, my curse and Haven's saving at the same time. I knew that it'd be 27 years before we saw each other again, at least you'd see me in your old age and I wouldn't know you or the love we'd shared even unvoiced. I knew you'd object because that was the ultimate challenge, our love was so strong I couldn't let you go and you couldn't let me go.
That day I made that fateful decision haunts me, part of me wonders if I should have begged Howard to take you with us. Would you have still shot him? Would you have destroyed The Barn from within or been satisfied with me and our son. Anyways, back to the story…I'm talking too much. You and Duke found me and we realized that The Hunter would be coming soon enough so we headed up to where it would be and Arla was there. Everything seemed to happen so fast, we took James in and we knew we shared him but he didn't believe us. Arla came in and in an instant the barn didn't work, her true features showed. In her anger she tried to stab me but James jumped in front of me, getting stabbed in the process.
Nathan turned another page and looked at the continued writing, he smiled as he continued reading. The words were haunting but he could almost picture the scenes in his head.
In the end I stayed with The Barn and you couldn't accept that, you killed Howard and destroyed The Barn. I was in inside and you sent Duke after me, unable to do so yourself because Jordan shot you. The Troubles didn't end and The Hunter rained down, destroying part of Haven. That was the day you thought you'd killed me and our son. That day haunted you till the day you died and often you wished you hadn't done anything.
"Nathan!" Garland knocked on the front door and walked in to find his son on the couch reading. "I was wondering where you were, Rafferty said you left early." Garland sat down and patted his son's knee before pointing to the journal. "Learn anything yet?"
He closed the journal and put it down on the table, "yeah that whoever she was…I wish she was real."
"That's what I wanted to find you for, Dave dug up some stuff after looking for that name you asked about." Garland handed over a photograph, "it's from the Haven Registry, when the town was founded. The name Audrey Parker was entered June 12, 1688 as a cousin of Elizabeth Patton. Elizabeth married into the Johansson Family in 1689 and died in 1692 during childbirth, son Nathan Johansson II lived and eventually his family begot your family…The Hansons. Elizabeth Patton was your ancestor, strange really given she left this for you already knowing you'd be part of The Wuornos Family before you're even born."
Nathan looked at the Registry and saw the perfect English writing among the New England writing. He read the entire line and saw her listed as a cousin of Elizabeth Patton, from Boston and a date of birth but never a date of death. "When did she die?"
"It should be there."
"No, there is no date of death." Nathan handed it back and shook his head. "Probably forgot to list it, was probably war or some kind of sickness. Perhaps she moved back to Boston and that's why. Doesn't matter really."
Garland nodded, "right, well wanna go fishing with me?"
"As long as you don't invite Simon Crocker and Duke, I swear the guy is running something illegal."
"No, just you and me."
He left and Nathan stood up, starring at the registry and noticed something on the edge of the line listed as Audrey Parker. Picking up the photo he saw the '27 years' written in the corner. With that he chuckled. "Well played Parker."
Out on his father's boat Nathan sat with the journal once again as they waited for the fish to bite. The Chief was reading a book so neither were talking but instead involved in their own thing.
I came out of that Barn with The Guard pointing guns at us and you wanting me to shoot you. So all I could do was pretend to be who I remembered I'd been inside…Lexie DeWitt. You hated her with a passion because she wasn't me. Part of me wanted to scream 'Nathan it's me' but I knew I couldn't because you wanted me to kill you.
When you realized who I was I knew I had doomed us all, why did I slip Nathan? Why did you have to be so you? I miss you so much but again to you I'm a ghost. Anyways, getting side tracked again. As we investigated the local Trouble, a guy turning people into stone because he felt angry his present for his potential love was taken, you still shoved the gun at me. I wanted to slap you so hard you'd feel it for years but instead I kept refusing you.
After that everything went south, Wade stabbed the guy and eventually we found he stabbed Jordan. That doesn't matter at the moment because after that you and I fought about whose right it was to shoot you and I finally admitted I loved you. That it became my choice but in the end…it never really was. That will always haunt me for as long as I live, be it centuries or years.
"Whoa got something." Nathan put the journal down to see his line tugging, he put down the journal and began reeling in the fish. "What'd you get son?"
Nathan pulled in the reel, "it's heavy." He looked over the side and stopped, it was a body. "Not the type of fish I was expecting."
Garland shook his head, "well let's pull him on and call Beatty so she can get the guys to meet us at the harbor. But a buoy out so that we can come back out."
Nathan pulled the body up and over the side, as he looked at the guy he couldn't help think that his life was about to change. It was something about starring down at the body that made him think nothing would be the same after that case. It was just a strange sense of déjà vu, like he'd seen the guy before.
A/N: I know it seems like I skipped chapters but it's meant to be that way. The story Audrey really wanted to tell was what she did after his death and how she went back. So while she wrote EVERYTHING about her time in Haven, we'll see the journal entries will increase as it gets closer to what happened. Also, there was a hint in this chapter about the next chapter...
