(A/N) sorry for the EXTREMELY LONG wait… yeah between high school and theater, (I'm currently playing the role of Boudicca in our performance of Movement House btw) I haven't had much time to breath much less write… anyhow…. This Chapter takes place on the same day as the last one…. I know there was a climactic chapter about Madison a few chapters back and just so everyone's clear I am working back up to that. And really folks no opinions on whether she lives or dies. Anyhow just some basic Jack/Ellen fluff in this chapter and at least 2 things foreshadowing events in the next few chapters.
Jack Swift POV (Same day as the previous chapter)
He could hear the birds chirping and arguing amongst themselves, as dawns' first light was starting to break. His early morning jog that he took always was a good way to start the day, and a good way to clear his head. The path along the sidewalk that he took wound it's way past the Old Catholic church and through the park into the backwoods where he and Ellen were fond of sparring, among other things. Hastings always said that a good long run was the best way to get your blood running in the morning. Jack disagreed; Ellen was the best way to get his blood running, and the best way to take his breath away.
He had fallen in love with a girl his sophomore year, and had almost gotten himself killed in the process. As it turned out the red rose had wanted them both alive for a "breeding program", as Ellen had put it. The thought caused Jack to blush profusely. Hopefully she wouldn't mention that to her long lost brother.
Eric, that was a thought. He just shows up here out of the blue. Jack wasn't sure if he could be trusted. He wasn't picking up any bad vibes from him, which was good, but he didn't trust his judgment nearly as much as he used to. If you had asked anyone his freshmen year, they'd tell you that he was a good judge of character. Ask the same people now and they'd probably tell you the exact same thing, but that was only because most civilians hadn't been there any of the times that all hell had been let loose, free to reach havoc on his life.
As much as his people skills had been proven wrong over the past two years, the one thing he still trusted was his gut. His gut had told him from the get go, that his life could never be normal again. After the game, he and Ellen had enjoyed a short-lived lie that they called peace. They both knew that it wasn't over just because the dragon said it was so. Then when they were forced to sign that treaty, everyone knew and he and Ellen's suspicion had, much to their dismay, been unfortunately proven correct.
Then the siege on Trinity had occurred. The worst day of his life had happened within that fight. He thought he had lost her, the person who was his whole reason for fighting, the reason that now he would keep fighting. Ellen in her life had never known peace, that much Jack knew, and he was willing to fight for the chance that she might find it some day, because she deserved to know what that felt like. What it felt like to wake up after noon, without being drenched in sweat from the nightmares. What it felt like to go on a date without being armed to the hilt. What it felt like to have a family. Of course the latter he wanted to have with her. He had been harboring the idea for quite some time.
Ellen was the one. He knew that without a doubt in his mind or soul. They were the last of their kind. That wasn't the reason he wanted to spend his life with her, but for arguments' sake it wouldn't hurt to keep it among the countless valid reasons. But with her brother's reappearance, it didn't seem appropriate to think about popping the question any time soon. A battle was coming, and that needed his full attention, but giving anything his full attention besides Ellen had proven to be almost entirely impossible these last few weeks.
The anticipation of a fight felt natural to him, but there was a new fear-taking root in his mind. The last time he had gone into battle he had almost lost her. What if this time around he really did? He could ask Ellen to sit it out, but what was the likelihood that she'd say yes? None. If he died in battle, Ellen would make it through. She was stronger than he ever had been or ever would be. Jack supposed that was because of all her hard knocks growing up as a modern day gladiator. But if Ellen died, Jack knew he wouldn't be able to endure that kind of pain, that kind of loneliness that could only come from the loss of a lover and friend, not to mention being the last of your kind.
To never see her, never be able to feel the rush he only felt after a bout with her, to never again be able to feel her against him. Never again being able to run his fingers through her hair. Never again being able to take her in his arms and kiss her until he couldn't last another second without air. To never be able to feel her fingers latch onto his belt loops, with the intention of prolonging an innocent good night kiss on the front porch. Never again to be able to see what she believed she could hide from the world, the tears that he could see glistening behind the walls of her eyes that she refused to let fall. All this he had thought as he carried her off of that last battlefield. Despair had clung to his very bones until a few days later, when he was able to convince himself that she truly was still alive and not just a fragment of his shattered hope.
If worst came to worst, he supposed that he could always slip her a dose of weirs bane and codeine to knock her out and leave her at home while the fighting was going on. Jack indulged in the idea for a moment, before hastily pushing it away, if he did that, if he survived the battle, she would probably kill him and would certainly never forgive him, but at least, Jack decided, she'd be alive.
Jack reached his and Ellen's favorite training ground just as the sky had forgotten it's sunrise and shed its' early morning crimson and traded it in for a pale blue.
"Jackson Swift," a voice said softly and Jack almost jumped out of his skin. He did a three sixty and saw no one.
"Where were you while we bled Jackson?" The voice was that of a child, but it seemed so old, the tone was that of an old woman scolding a disobedient grandchild. Jack scanned all the area around him and still saw nothing.
A hand came down on his shoulder, and he turned quickly to face whoever it was.
"Ellen?" Jack managed to choke out with relief. She cocked an eyebrow before replying.
"Who else would it be numb nut? I figured I'd find you out here. Your mom said you'd left early this morning." Ellen said, and seeing his flushed complexion added, "Hey are you alright? You looked like you just saw a ghost." Ellen paused before adding, "You know, one that wasn't in our army."
Jack cracked a smile at her comment. Three years ago he didn't believe in ghosts; this past year he had led an army of them. He shook off his nervousness. No sense in worrying Ellen over something that could very well turn out to be nothing.
"I'm good just jumpy as usual," replied Jack quickly. "You ready?" Jack asked, already knowing the answer.
"Yeah, and lucky for you I'm out of practice." Ellen said as she unsheathed the Way Maker from its' scabbard. She grinned as he, fallowing her lead, brought out the Shadow Slyer and swung it in a figure eight arch in front of him, as a mock challenge, that he knew Ellen was all too ready too meet.
For the next hour and a half, they dodged, ducked, and parried each other, their muscles working like fine oiled machines. For them, the ring of steel was the best kind of music and the intricate dance was as familiar to them as their own heartbeats. When Ellen began to tire, Jack started to slow down considerably. It was her first time back out in the field after all. However, he quickly remembered why it was never wise to let your guard down around Ellen. Because as soon as he lowered his guard, he wound up on the ground, with both of his arms pinned by her knees and a knife to his throat just for good measure he supposed.
"I yield, you win." Jack said as he began to chuckle slightly. Ellen smirked.
"Serves you right for trying to go easy on me."
Jack rolled his eyes, as Ellen slid her knees off his arms and started to get up. Jack had a different plan though. Without giving Ellen so much as a second to react, grabbed her sides and flipped her over, so that this time he was on top, propping himself up by his elbows.
"Well hello there." Ellen said mischievously, with that rare twinkle in her eye, the one that was only used when she was with Jack.
He used one of his hands to brush a stand of loose hair off of her face, then bringing it down so that he could caress her cheek with his thumb. Her eyes met his and their gazed locked. He could see his own pain and passion reflected there, along with the glistening pride Ellen often had after winning a match.
Ellen's hands found their way to the back of his neck and her fingers began tracing invisible circles where his neck met his shoulder blade and Jack felt his breath catch in his throat. He loved being this close to her, seeing the sweat of her brow roll down her face, this was when Jack found her the most beautiful. Granted, neither of them usually smelled great after sparring, but most of the time they both were too tired to care and both to caught up in each other's gaze for it to register. Like now for instance.
There was never anytime to catch your breath around Ellen, he was either fighting to keep her at arms length in a bout or forgetting to breathe because he was holding onto her. Jack thought as he pulled his thumb across her bottom lip. She was so soft, that fact never ceased to amaze him. Her body was hardened by training and abuse from her childhood, but her skin remained like silk in comparison to his calloused hands. He always half expected her to pull away, but she never did.
Her hands pushed his head down, but he wasn't in a hurry, so he rested his forehead against hers' for a moment and closed his eyes, just content for the moment to listen to her breath. He moved his hand down and stroked her jaw line, before kissing her deeply. He ran his hands through her hair and pulled out her ponytail. She retaliated by grabbing a fistful of his shirt in order to pull him down closer. He turned off her and onto his side, never breaking the kiss, and wrapped his arms around her tightly and protectively.
"Hey when you're done can I have a go?"
At that Ellen and Jack rolled apart and Jack practically growled when he recognized the face as his stepbrother.
"Sorry man I really didn't know you were in the middle of gettin' some back here, dad sent me to find you." Sam said almost sheepishly, realizing then, how very up set he had just made Jack. And just how much bigger Jack was than him. Jack looked over at Ellen, and found that she was fuming. This place was kind of sacred to the both of them, a place they could just be warriors, where they didn't have to worry or pretend to be anything else than simply what they were. And now an uninvited outsider had disturbed it.
Ellen hoped up quickly after shooting Jack a look that he understood as I'm out for blood don't try and stop me. Jack nodded, technically he had warned this guy to leave her alone, but apparently he needed something a little more firm than a talking to. If Ellen wanted to beat the living day lights out of him, the last thing Jack was going to do was get in her way.
"Did you follow us here?" Ellen asked in a very cute, innocent voice. Sam apparently, being the idiot that he was interpreted it as flirting. Jack however, knowing better, interpreted it as I'm fixing the cut this boy down to size. So, Jack knowing Ellen as well as he did, didn't move from his spot on the ground, but instead propped his elbows up and leaned back to enjoy the show. He watched as Ellen placed a hand on the center of Sam's chest and pushed him backwards against the tree.
"You must be very smart to have found our little hide out." Ellen practically cooed.
"Well, uh it wasn't all that hard," he replied in a bit of a stutter.
"Whatever can I do to convince you to keep it a secret?" Ellen asked as she batted her eyelashes seductively.
"Um, well, I mean I could, probably think of something."
Ellen replied by laughing innocently and saying " I bet you could."
Then she leaned in toward him, like she was fixing to kiss him, and head butted him hard on the forehead.
Ellen turned and started back toward Jack as Sam gripped his head pathetically and moaned, "Why… you little…"
But Ellen turned around and cut him off. "What was that?"
Sam had regained his posture somewhat and repeated himself; "I said that you're a bi-" He never got to finished Ellen sent a roundhouse kick into his groin. Upon impact Sam screamed bloody murder, and hit the ground, and Jack winced despite himself. He was thankful that to this day he had yet to be on the receiving end of that move.
"That's what I thought you said." Said Ellen, after that she half way strutted back to Jack, who was in the process of getting up.
"Beautiful and deceptively deadly." Jack said as she approached him.
"And that's why you love me." Ellen replied, in a very matter of fact sounding tone.
"Well can you blame me?" Jack asked cocking an eyebrow while waiting for a response.
At that Ellen laughed out loud. It was such a beautiful sound; Jack swore he had to be grinning from ear to ear. "No, I guess I can't." Ellen said through her laughter, as she laced her fingers through his.
"Dad is going to hear about this Jack." Sam whimpered loudly.
"Oh I bet he will Sam. And I don't care, but I suggest icing that before you do anything else when you got home." Jack said as he smirked. After giving that final comment Jack and Ellen left the clearing and Sam wallowing in pain. At the time they were blissfully unaware that Sam had not been the only one to find their secret meeting place, because unknown to them, a lone figure stood, hidden behind a vale of bushes, where he would remain, biding his time.
(A/N) I have the next chapter written already (That should, however not keep you from reviewing this one) Because I WILL NOT post the next chapter until I get at least 5 more reviews….