A/N:

Hello my lovely and dear readers! How are you today? After a long time, I'm finally back with a new chapter. I hope someone is still reading this and enjoying this. As you must have noticed, a lot has been going on on this site. I'm not going to dwell on this but only going to say this: this place, like everywhere in the world, should be a place where we can find peace and people with whom we can enjoy our hobbies. Every one has their opinion and shouldn't be ashamed of that, no no no. Friendship and acceptance are keywords. Now, of course #ISWG, and with everyone who dare to share their opinion. :) spread love people, it's so important nowadays.

Without further ado, please enjoy this chapter; I put all my heart in it!

Code Name: UNTITLED

Chapter 6

"Come on! Faster! One, two! One, two! Dan, lift your knees higher! Yeah, that's it!"

"I'm going to lift 'em till you can't see 'em anymore," Dan grumbled between two heavy exhales.

"Come on, Dan. Higher," Amy teased him, passing by her brother and ignoring the pleading look he gave her.

He groaned loudly and she laughed, walking away.

"This is pointless," Sinead complained, wincing as a stich in her left side suddenly made itself apparent. "We're already all trained! We're just losing time."

She stopped and glared at Madison. "Why can't we go already?"

Madison stopped as well and rolled her eyes. "It's just the procedure, Sinead. Don't you think I'd love to go and kick their ass too? I'm just like you. But we have to train ourselves to keep up, not forget anything. Stay in tip-top shape."

The red-haired rolled her eyes and sighed loudly, trying to catch her breath. "Fiske is really getting on my nerves."

"Me too," Reagan agreed, running past them.

The young Ekat watched her family run in the field near the mansion, and she wondered what Jonah and the others were doing right now. Were they talking to each other? Kind of hard to imagine, seeing they didn't get along very well. Were they crying? She cringed. No. They surely weren't. She didn't want to imagine them doing such a thing, that would only stress her more, and the situation was already stressful as it was. No need to pile even more worries on. Just then, an even worse thought came to her mind.

The question wasn't what were they doing, but what were we doing to them? That was way too much for her. Her breath suddenly caught in her throat, and she had to gasp for air. Her stitch didn't help her, and she had to sit down to calm herself.

Dan ran next to her; she thought he was going to continue on his track, but he suddenly screeched to a halt, throwing up a could of dust as his rubber soles went over the clearly chalked line. He threw his arms in the air and made a face.

"Why am I even running, in the first place? I'm staying here, for Gideon's sake!"

He sat down next to her and faked fainting. Madison looked back at him and slowed down.

"Okay, guys! That's enough for today! Great job, all of you!"

Sighs of relief could be heard through the field, and little by little, all the Cahills came back. Jake was red in the face, making him look like a tomato, and his hair was wet and stuck to his forehead. If Sinead wasn't feeling sick to her stomach right now, she would have probably giggled and made a witty comment about it.

Almost everyone looked like him and exhausted, looks of pain written on their face. Only the Holt girls seemed fine and ready to run an extra triathlon.

"Cool!" Dan exclaimed in relief. "Now we can go home."

"You didn't even run that much," Amy told him, her hands on her hips. Her short hair was tied in a little ponytail, flying softly with the wind.

He faked being outraged, gasping in shock. "What? I ran like, ten million miles!"

His sister rolled her eyes and sat down next to him. There was silence for a moment, each too absorbed in their thoughts to talk. Reagan was throwing little rocks the furthest possible, Phoenix was tapping his knee with his pointer, and Jake was glancing at Amy, who was purposely avoiding his gaze. Getting utterly tired of the not-so-subtle looks, Sinead quickly got up.

"Alright. Let's go and finish packing our things already," she ordered while clapping her hands to get their attention.

She stomped over the mansion, purposefully making a lot of noise to get the attention of the rest. Behind her, she heard the dragging footsteps of everyone moving to follow.

oOo

Amy ran around her room, thinking desperately to not forget a thing for tomorrow's trip. She had decided to bring only a single backpack, filled with the minimal necessities, seeing they wouldn't stay that long. A bottle of water, a flashlight, gloves, her passport, a gun in case of emergency, and her phone. Her eyes flicked around the room as she tried to think of anything else she might need for that trip to London, but couldn't.

"You ready?" a voice asked at her door.

She turned her head sharply, surprised by the unexpected voice. It was Cara; she had showered and her hair was still wet, water dripping slowly onto her shoulders and darkening her shirt. She had a small smile on her lips and Amy tried to return the gesture the best she could.

"Yes, I think," she nodded seriously. Then, with a sheepish smile, she admitted, "Though I'm not quite ready mentally."

Cara chuckled and crossed her arms over her chest, leaning on the door frame. "Don't worry, Amy. Everything will be fine," she tried to comfort the green eyed girl

Amy frowned, looking at her backpack on the bed. "I don't agree. I don't see how everything could go well when I– we know what happened there."

Cara shifted uncomfortably at the reply. "What I mean is, don't stress yourself too much. If you cloud your head with worries, you might miss something important."

Amy looked up in surprise, realizing how helpful the information was. She gave another smile, this time more genuine, "Thanks, Cara. I hope you find something there too."

The blonde laughed. "Me and you both. It's a big responsibility we have here, isn't it?"

"Tell me about it. I still ask myself why we have to do that all the time. We're just… kids, in a way. We shouldn't-"

"I know what you mean," Cara interrupted. "It's just... so stressful! We should be worrying about stuff like school and romance, not saving the world."

Cara paused. She swallowed thickly, and Amy could see the sheen of tears in her eyes, "But you know, we're slowly going into adulthood. I guess our teenage years are kind of… gone."

Amy looked at her, startled by her words, a lump growing in her throat. It was true. They weren't the kids they once were. They had grown up somewhere along the way, forced into adulthood with big responsibilities thrust on small shoulders. At this horrible yet so beautiful realization, she suddenly felt the urge to cry her heart out. Instead, she looked down, zipping up her bag. She was about to sit at her desk when Cara urgently whispered,

"Jerk at nine o'clock!"

"What?" Amy turned around to look at the girl, but she was gone. Instead stood a tall man, staring at her.

"Hey," he smiled easily. "Dinner is ready, you coming?"

"As far as I know, I'm big enough to know when I should go, there's no need to tell me such a useless thing."

Jake's face dropped and his smile was replaced by a frown. "I was just trying to be nice, you know."

"What an incredible waste of your time," she countered. She realized that's what Cara had been trying to warn her about and felt her heart warming up to the girl.

Jake groaned and turned on his heels, heading for the stairs. Amy slammed the door behind him and sat on her desk, head in hands. She inhaled and exhaled deeply, trying to hold back her tears. Why was everything so complicated? Why was everyone making everything so difficult? She didn't ask for all of this, she never asked for all this crap going on in her life! All she ever wanted was to have a peaceful life with people she loved. Being surrounded by loving family and friends, and success in her studies. But it seemed life didn't even want that for her.

"I can't believe you did that!"

"Look at it from my view, Amy! Try to understand!"

The line made her even more enraged, and she felt herself trembling in pure rage.

"What is there to understand, Jake?" she spat, her voice going lower as she refused to let him hear how much this was getting to her.

"I did it for us!"

"For us?!" she exclaimed, aghast. "As far as I know, there was never the idea of you in that kind of future. You don't have the right to decide for me, Jake."

She shook her head to try and get rid of the unwanted flashback. She didn't want to think about it. What was done was done. The past was in the past. And she thought she made the right decision.

Slowly, with a quivering hand, she opened her left drawer. She emptied it of all its content and put the items on her desk. Then, hesitating just a second, she removed a little part of the wooden board at the back of the drawer and took out a picture. She had hidden it just in case her brother would sneak in her room and find it, and also because she wanted it to be a secret. A secret only shared with a special person.

She looked at the photograph in her hands and smiled. It showed too teenagers who were smiling brightly at the camera, the sun setting behind them. They looked young, too young for what was happening to them. The boy had a playful glint in his eyes, while the girl's shined like they never did before. Amy couldn't remember of a time she had laughed so much.

There were both alone in the mansion, the others long gone to see a horror movie at the local theatre. Ian was sitting on the couch and was looking at his phone, while Amy was watching a documentary on the TV. It was about Indians people and their life, and she remembered how she had looked at Ian at this moment.

"Hey, Ian."

"Hmm?" he looked up at her, scratching his chin.

"Why isn't your name an Indian one?"

He frowned, and looked up at the sudden statement. She blushed, almost immediately regretting her question. Wow, Amy. That's great. Now he surely thinks you're a fool or something.

"Um… I'm not sure what to answer to that, Love. You realize I'm British, right?"

"Yeah, I mean– No, never mind."

She turned her head to look at the TV, fidgeting with her fingers. She bit her lips, trying to subdue her curiosity.

"No. What do you mean?" he inquired, propping himself up. He put his phone on the coffee table and stared at her with really curious eyes.

She looked at him. "I mean, you're Indian, right? At least half, or something?"

He nodded in agreement, intimating her to continue. "Yeah, my dad is Indian."

"So why… Why isn't your name an Indian one? Like... Tahir or something?"

At this, Ian started laughing. He laughed till there were tears in his eyes as he clutched his stomach and Amy felt herself reddening even more.

"Yes. I know," she said. "That was stupid of me."

"N-No! I- S-Sorry, Amy. I just couldn't help myself," he wiped a tear off the corner of his eye and inhaled to calm himself down. "To answer your question, I think my mother didn't want to name us with Indian names. I think she didn't like the sound of them. But my father surely liked Tahir or Rabia or something like that."

Amy nodded, absent-mindedly staring at the couch. "I think it's cute," she finally said, smiling a bit.

Ian chuckled. "Well, feel free to name your kids like that." he told her, returning to his phone.

"Don't you?"

His head shot up, his mouth slightly open. He seemed at loss for words, and the only sound filling the room was the TV's.

"I… didn't think of it, actually. I guess they're fine," he said slowly.

The way he looked at her made her avert her gaze. She felt something move in her stomach, and she had to hold it to ease the odd feeling. Why was she reacting like that? It was just a look. But it had been so long since someone stared at her like that, as if she was holding the truth of an existential question. Yes, too long. And it felt odd and good at the same time.

"Did your father ever speak Indian sometimes?" she asked to make the awkwardness go away.

He looked taken aback and he blinked a few times, sitting further in the couch. An easy smile graced his lips and Amy wondered what she said wrong. "Indian isn't a language, Amy."

She slapped her hand to her forehead and mumbled through her fingers as Ian chuckled, "I meant Hindi... or Urdu," she corrected.

"It was a long time ago, Amy. I don't remember exactly."

"Oh."

They were silent for a moment, but Ian then slowly said, "But, yes, I think. I think he did, just to annoy Isabel."

She looked at him, the ghost of a smile on her lips. She arched her eyebrows at the Lucian. "Really?"

Ian nodded again, his eyebrows scrunched in concentration as he dipped into past memories. His face slacked, and he shrugged. "But that was a long time ago, when everything was fine. When I thought everything was fine."

He stared at nothing in particular, lost in his thoughts. She took this opportunity to observe him more closely. He really was handsome. More than what she could remember. He had grown up a lot since they were sixteen and a little beard was forming on his chin, making her want to touch it. She shook her head to get rid of those thoughts and asked him,

"So… Does that mean you can take an Indian accent?"

He looked up at her, his eyes wide and his lips smiling. "What?"

"I mean, I know you have your normal British accent... But can you speak with their accent?"

She saw him blush and look away, and leaned further in, curious.

"No, Amy. I mean I can, but I won't."

"Ooooh, why?" she laughed. She left her couch to go on his, bouncing lightly as she sat down. "Come on, Ian!"

"Absolutely not."

She yanked his arm playfully. "Please! Just a sentence!"

"No!"

"Why? It's just between us. I swear I won't say it to anyone."

"Amy," he warned her.

"Ian."

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You're impossible, I swear."

She shrugged, a mischievous smirk on her lips. "People tell me that a lot."

He tiredly glared at her but couldn't help the little chuckle escaping his mouth. He breathed deeply and began talking with an Indian accent. After only a single sentence, Amy was already laughing really hard. At his demand, she giggled, "I'm not laughing the accent, I'm laughing at you!"

"That's makes me feel so much better," he drawled, slipping back into his normal accent as Amy widened her eyes.

"Not like that! It's just really weird hearing something that's not a post British accent coming from you," she looked at him in a pleading gesture, and he smiled, forgiving her.

He talked with it for about a minute, smiling at Amy's loud laughter and occasionally cracking up with her.

After a while, she calmed down and sighed, rubbing her eyes, still grinning. She leaned on the couch with him, resting her head on the black leather.

"You must have practiced a lot," she finally said after a minute of comfortable silence.

"It's classified top secret, sorry, Miss Cahill."

Suddenly, her smile dropped. "I hate that name," she she said slowly, an odd tone of disgust lacing her voice.

Ian arched an eyebrow at her, surprised by this sudden declaration. "Why's that?"

"Just the sound of it makes me want to throw up."

"Amy…"

"Everywhere I go, people know my name. They know who I am and they think they know what's going on in my life. They think I'm crazy."

"Try living with 'Kabra' next to your first name. That's kind of hard too."

"This family is so fucked up sometimes, I can't believe it is real."

Ian didn't answer to that. He paused, as if measuring his words, and then declared, "Let's change our names."

She chuckled, glancing at him. "Don't be ridiculous, Ian."

"I am not, thank you very much. I'm being serious here. If we change our identity, life will be so much easier."

Amy frowned. It wasn't a bad idea, after all. But surely their family would know where to find them. "And what do you suggest?" she asked, truly curious now.

"You could call yourself..." he balked, blanking out. "I don't know, um, Cheryl Lancaster and I would be Martin Jones!"

Amy laughed once again, really amused by the look on his face. By now, he was holding her hands and looked like a child on Christmas Day.

"How does that sound, Love?"

She smiled fondly at him. "It's perfect."

Once again, that odd feeling in her stomach reappeared. It felt warm and nice and it was spreading all over her body; in her legs, her arms, her heart and her mind. She liked that version of Ian so much. He was so nicer than before, while the hunt for example. He used to be such a jerk to everyone, always being arrogant and bossy. Now he would laugh and joke with his cousins Jonah and Hamilton, he would hang out with the Holt twins and Dan, playing basketball or soccer with them. It was nice to see the Lucian opening to the rest of the world, being himself and happy. She just wished it didn't take so many betrayals from his family, so many losses.

Yes, she liked that Ian Kabra much better.

"But it's our names that make us who we are today," she suddenly told him. "It's our identity. It's a proof we've been here on this planet, that we lived."

The dark-haired looked at her, a startled look on his features.

"Cheryl, don't go philosophic on me, please."

Amy remembered how they had laughed together, while the sun was setting outside, bathing the living room in its orange and pink halo. It had seemed like a perfect day indeed, and for a crazy moment, both of them had dared to believe nothing could happen, that everything was fine.

Amy wiped off a tear that was slowly trailing down her cheek. She put a hand over her mouth to cover a whimper, closing her eyes. Her mind wandered and she wished Ian was next to her right now, holding her hand in that comforting way he always did. She wanted to feel his warmth spreading through her, feel his presence, anything. But all she had right now was a photo taken what it felt like ages ago, and she had to deal with it. It was her only anchor.

Cheryl and Martin, 14th of September.

A whisper echoed through the room, chocked back and strained.

"Come back to me, Ian."

oOo

At dinner that night, everyone was silent. The sound of metal cutlery hitting porcelain plates echoed through the large dining room, the mood somber and suffocating. Never had the Cahill Mansion been so silent.

It was still a strange thing to think that three members of their family was missing, and even more weird to think that there was a possibility that they wouldn't come back. What did the future have in store for them? More betrayals? More blood? And, most importantly, more losses? No one knew. Maybe that's why nobody wanted to talk, stewing in their own thoughts.

Once they all finished eating, by some sort of unanimous agreement, every one of them decided to go to bed. Amy herself was about to climb the stairs to get some rest when someone caught her wrist. One foot on the first stair, she turned her head to look at Jake.

"Amy, please," he said. "I have something to tell you."

She arched an eyebrow at him, indifferent to what he had to say.

Her face remained emotionless while he spoke to her.

"Be… Be careful tomorrow."

She kept looking at him, not saying a word and just waiting for him to let her go. Noticing he wouldn't let go, she gave a sharp nod of acknowledgment, hoping he'd take it and leave. Seeing that, Jake continued on.

"I miss you, Ames. Terribly. I regret what I did, and these past hours made me realise I can't live without you. Please, sweetheart," he pleaded, using the nickname she used to love.

She curled her lip in disgust, harshly tugging her wrist from his hand and began heading to her room. She was halfway through when Jake exclaimed, exasperation evident in his tired voice,

"Stop giving me the silent treatment! Talk to me, I beg of you!"

She turned, pure hatred on her face. "You ruined my life," she hissed. "You ruined everything I believed in and I hate you for that. If that's what you want to hear, then fine, because that's all you're going to get from me, Jake," she snarled the name, spitting it as if it was the reason of all her worries.

And with that, she disappeared in her room, leaving a heart-broken Jake behind her. She didn't care if he was happy or not, he had made her miserable, she didn't want to have anything to do with him anymore.

You're dead to me.

oOo

Early that morning, almost everyone was fully awake and ready to get moving. Almost.

"Why do I have to get up?" Dan complained, whining. "My brain needs to rest if you want it to solve mystery."

"Daniel, I'm going to be frank with you," Sinead told him, breathing in.

Her stomach was doing pirouettes inside of her and she was sure she had terrible bags under her blue eyes. It didn't help that there were already dark circles from many sleepless nights before.

"Yes, dear cousin?" he glanced up as she leveled him with a flat glare.

"Shut up."

Dan gasped, shocked. "Sinead! You're my favourite cousin, why would you say that to me?"

"Well, you're not mine."

Dan sobbed dramatically, and Amy patted him on the shoulder. "If it makes you feel any better, you're my favourite brother."

"Phew, I was scared you didn't like me," he waited as the sentence registered and then frowned in confusion. "Wait... I'm your only brother!"

"Exactly."

"Hey!"

The small crowns around them titters in approval and the siblings smiled. Outside, the van they had rented to bring them to the airport was patiently waiting for them to get ready. None of them had eaten breakfast, seeing as they could eat in the van or in the plane. Well, at least, Sinead thought that.

"Kids, I think you should go now," Fiske told them. "You're going to miss your flight!"

"Okay!"

They all hugged each other and wished everyone good luck. Sinead, Amy, Cara, the twins, Phoenix and Nellie made their way outside, carrying their bags. Sinead, the first of the line, was about to enter the van when Dan shouted,

"Wait!"

"Oh my god, Daniel!" Sinead yelled in return, almost immediately. "What now?"

"We should have a name for this mission," he called out.

Amy frowned. "Dan, we don't have time for that."

"Yes!" he insisted. "You always need a name for important missions!"

"And what do you suggest then, kiddo?" Nellie asked him, clearly amused.

"Uhhh... I don't know... Ninjas?" he trailed off weakly as Nellie snickered.

Everyone shook their head at him, and he thought harder.

"Since we don't know who we are dealing with, what about we name it under something…mysterious. Something like, Code Name: Untitled," he offered.

Dan looked at his family, a huge grin slowly making its way on his lips. The rising sun was bathing the gardens in a soft yellow light, making the moment even more memorable.

"Code Name: Untitled," he murmured. "Hell yeah."

A/N: Sooo what did you guys think of that one? Was it good? CC is of course welcomed. And what do you think happened between Jake and Amy? This is so mysterious, don't you think? Have any theories? Feel free to drop them on the reviews ;) What do you think of Dan's name idea for this mission? Personnaly, I love portraying him as a cheery person, it brings joy to the story.

Next chapter, we get to see what happens to our three lovely boys. Will they suffer? Maybe yes, maybe not. Just brace yourself guys... Also, Ian is remembering things, pleasant or not, that is the question...

Now, I'd like to thank everyone who read and reviewed this. I'm so happy, you make the fandom alive and this is truly wonderful. Talk about this fandom to your friends, gather fans... the more the merrier! A big thank you to I'mNotAGoodWriter for betaing this; she did an awesome job and y'all should go read her stories!

Until next time guys! -Etincelle