Author's note: Another chapter finished! Thanks to those who reviewed! Your reviews keep me going. Don't worry, Tania will make sure Van feels guilty enough for hurting Fiona!
Dragonflame by Shelly
CHAPTER FOUR
The next morning they were all assembled at the hangar, Irvine and Thomas standing around with sleepy expressions on their faces while Van and Fiona looked as if neither of them got any sleep at all. Tania approached Fiona, who was busy checking the Saber Tiger, as she noticed she appeared to have something on her mind.
"Good morning, Fiona," she greeted her, receiving the same greeting from the woman but nothing else. "Fiona, what's wrong?" she finally asked.
"Nothing's wrong, Tania," she answered, her voice weary. "I just didn't sleep very well last night."
"If you're sure," Tania added. "If you need to talk, I'll be over here at the Lightning Saix."
Fiona managed a smile in response to Tania's concern. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."
Tania nodded and walked towards the Lightning Saix, passing the Blade Liger along the way and seeing Van in much the same state as Fiona was. "I see that you didn't manage to get much sleep either," she commented as she saw him.
"Is that what she said?" he asked.
She sighed. "All right, Van. What did you do?"
"Who said that I did anything?" he replied.
"No one did. It's just always the man's fault when there's something wrong with us women," she replied with a smile.
He looked up, his expression stormy, but relaxed when he saw she was joking. "Last night after we left, we talked together for a few minutes. She was worried that Raven might try and force me into another fight with him. I was touched by her concern, and...I almost kissed her."
One of Tania's eyebrows raised in question. "Almost? How do you almost kiss someone?"
"Irvine interrupted before it could happen. And I told her I was sorry for almost letting it happen," he replied guiltily.
"What?" she exclaimed. "Van, never apologize for something as serious as a kiss. No wonder she didn't get any sleep."
"Hey, I didn't know how she felt at the time! For all I know she might not think of me in the same way!"
She pinned him with a teasing glare. "That didn't stop you from kissing me, now did it?"
Van blushed as he realized she was right. "No, it didn't."
She smiled as she remembered back on that day. "You flattered me, Van, that you thought so much of me to do that. A kiss is that important. Now, before the day is out, I want you to apologize to her for making her lose sleep over your bad decision. Okay?"
He nodded as he returned her smile, watching as she walked off and turning his gaze to see Fiona turning her head away from him. He walked over to her, thinking that now was as good a time as any to tell her how he felt before they lost the chance. "Hi, Fiona," he said.
She looked up at him and smiled. "Hi, Van. What brings you here?"
He sighed as he summoned up his courage. "I wanted to apologize for...apologizing...last night. I'm sorry if I hurt you."
Fiona tried her hardest not to smile as she knew that Tania had to have spoken to him. "It's all right, Van. You don't need to apologize."
"I do," he replied. "You see, I wanted to kiss you, but I wasn't sure how you felt about me, about our relationship together. We've been friends for so long, and I didn't want to risk destroying that friendship if you didn't feel the same way."
She gazed deep into his eyes, her heart fluttering inside her chest at his admission of his feelings for her, the same feelings she had felt for him for so long. "Van," she whispered, throwing herself into his arms and holding him tightly, sighing when she felt his arms wrap around her as it felt so good to be held by him.
She was soft in his arms, a sensation he hadn't thought he could never live without until it was felt. Then she pulled away slightly, just enough to maintain the contact yet be able to look into his dark eyes, and he touched his hand to her cheek as a smile appeared on both their faces. He lowered his head to hers, but pulled back when they heard approaching footsteps. Grabbing her hand, he pulled her back behind the Saber Tiger so that they were hidden from curious eyes, a surprised sound emerging when she took his head in her hands and pulled him down to join their lips together in a soft kiss. A storm of emotions caught him off guard as he wanted to remember this moment forever, the feel of her mouth sliding across his and the way her body felt pressed against his as her arms entwined themselves around his neck.
"Fiona," he murmured when they separated to catch their breath, pulling away entirely when he heard her name echoed by a different voice. They both looked to see Thomas standing there, a bewildered expression on his face before he turned and walked off. Then they looked into each other's eyes, both feeling guilty and neither of them knowing why.
Eventually they departed from the base after many farewells from Colonel Kruegar, Tragar firmly situated in the Blade Liger beside Van, who couldn't help but remember the look on Thomas' face when he saw him kissing Fiona. Even though Fiona never returned Thomas' feelings, he still felt guilty as he was a good friend to both of them as well as a valued teammate.
They covered many miles before stopping when the evening sun tinted the sky a golden hue before changing to the deeper blues and purples that came with the approach of night. They kept their zoids close together and shared a bite to eat, although Thomas stayed near his Dibison, refusing any kind of food offered to him as well as any offers for him to talk about what was bothering him. Finally Tania had had enough of his attitude and told Karl she was going to find out for herself once and for all why he was being the way he was.
She walked across the desert floor towards him, seeing him sitting against alone on his sleeping bag next to his small burner. When she sat down beside him without asking, he gave her a glare that clearly told her he wished to be left alone, but she had faced worse things than him and was not to be deterred from her purpose. "Thomas, I grow tired of this," she began. "And I'm not leaving until you tell me what is going on."
"I don't want to talk about it, okay?" he responded hotly. "Just leave me alone."
"Thomas, please," she pleaded. "Everyone's worried about you, wondering why you won't join us when your company would be more than welcome."
"Everyone, huh?" he sneered. "I imagine that Van and Fiona are doing just fine without me."
She appraised him curiously as she turned over his words in her mind. "Thomas, did you see something today that upset you?" she asked.
"Oh yeah, you could say that," he replied.
After hearing his words, she knew what it was he had seen and knew that there were no words she could say that would make everything better. "I see. I wish that there was something I could say to ease your pain, but I can't. I know that you care about Fiona very much, but she has never returned your feelings. So why are you so upset that she has chosen to be with Van?"
He sighed and looked up at the stars. "I guess I'm not really mad at them," he said, his voice calmer. "I just never thought that it would happen this way. I never prepared myself for the pain of seeing them together, even though I knew that it might happen one day, and I'm finding that I don't like feeling this way and the only way to deal with it is to bury it behind a mask of anger."
"But that is the very last thing you should do as you will only end up driving a wedge between those who are your friends. Deal with your emotions by sharing them with another who knows what it is like to lose someone you love," she advised.
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "And I suppose you're the one offering your support," he said.
"I am, if you will accept it," she replied. "There will be others, Thomas. You just have to keep your eyes open."
"But all I ever wanted was Fiona," he whispered. "Ever since I first met her."
He finally turned his face so that she could see it, and she was touched to see his cheeks lined with tears, a sight which had tears of her own welling in her eyes. "Thomas," she breathed, offering him comfort in the form of an embrace, which he accepted as he allowed his pent up emotions to flow from him. And after a while he was surprised to see that he did feel better once he released her and stood up to stretch his aching muscles.
She stood beside him, stretching as well. "Feel better?" she asked.
"Lots," he replied with a smile. "Thank you." Then they walked back to the camp together, Van and Fiona surprised to see him joining them as Karl merely smiled his encouragement. Tania sat down next to Karl and wrapped her arms around him to hold him tight, thankful that she was so lucky to have found someone she loved who loved her just as much in return.
The next morning they packed camp and started on another long day of traveling, the tension eased between them as Thomas had spoken with Van and Fiona earlier and expressed his happiness for them both. After a few hours of steady travel, Tania began to feel restless and wished to range out ahead to get some exercise. Karl argued against it, but Irvine offered to accompany her so she wouldn't be alone, and the Lightning Saix leaped forward with a cry to race across the desert with Irvine trailing behind. But no sooner had she gotten out of the main group's sight than she was surrounded by a sudden bombardment of missiles, and the Saix' speed was the only thing that kept her out of harm's way.
"Irvine, have you gotten a reading on who it is yet?" she asked, looking around and seeing nothing.
"No, I can't see them," he replied, crying out as he was hit with cannon fire. "Dammit! Who's firing on us?"
"I'm not sure," she answered. "But why are they attacking us and not the others?"
"That's easy," another voice answered, one she barely recognized as it sounded older than she remembered. "We only want to kill you. The others are of no concern to us."
Her heart seemed to stop as did her breathing as she knew now without a doubt of who the voice belonged to. "Raven?"
**********************
Ahhh! Raven's on the attack! Next chapter: A surprise visitor shows up! Can you guess who it is?
Dragonflame by Shelly
CHAPTER FOUR
The next morning they were all assembled at the hangar, Irvine and Thomas standing around with sleepy expressions on their faces while Van and Fiona looked as if neither of them got any sleep at all. Tania approached Fiona, who was busy checking the Saber Tiger, as she noticed she appeared to have something on her mind.
"Good morning, Fiona," she greeted her, receiving the same greeting from the woman but nothing else. "Fiona, what's wrong?" she finally asked.
"Nothing's wrong, Tania," she answered, her voice weary. "I just didn't sleep very well last night."
"If you're sure," Tania added. "If you need to talk, I'll be over here at the Lightning Saix."
Fiona managed a smile in response to Tania's concern. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."
Tania nodded and walked towards the Lightning Saix, passing the Blade Liger along the way and seeing Van in much the same state as Fiona was. "I see that you didn't manage to get much sleep either," she commented as she saw him.
"Is that what she said?" he asked.
She sighed. "All right, Van. What did you do?"
"Who said that I did anything?" he replied.
"No one did. It's just always the man's fault when there's something wrong with us women," she replied with a smile.
He looked up, his expression stormy, but relaxed when he saw she was joking. "Last night after we left, we talked together for a few minutes. She was worried that Raven might try and force me into another fight with him. I was touched by her concern, and...I almost kissed her."
One of Tania's eyebrows raised in question. "Almost? How do you almost kiss someone?"
"Irvine interrupted before it could happen. And I told her I was sorry for almost letting it happen," he replied guiltily.
"What?" she exclaimed. "Van, never apologize for something as serious as a kiss. No wonder she didn't get any sleep."
"Hey, I didn't know how she felt at the time! For all I know she might not think of me in the same way!"
She pinned him with a teasing glare. "That didn't stop you from kissing me, now did it?"
Van blushed as he realized she was right. "No, it didn't."
She smiled as she remembered back on that day. "You flattered me, Van, that you thought so much of me to do that. A kiss is that important. Now, before the day is out, I want you to apologize to her for making her lose sleep over your bad decision. Okay?"
He nodded as he returned her smile, watching as she walked off and turning his gaze to see Fiona turning her head away from him. He walked over to her, thinking that now was as good a time as any to tell her how he felt before they lost the chance. "Hi, Fiona," he said.
She looked up at him and smiled. "Hi, Van. What brings you here?"
He sighed as he summoned up his courage. "I wanted to apologize for...apologizing...last night. I'm sorry if I hurt you."
Fiona tried her hardest not to smile as she knew that Tania had to have spoken to him. "It's all right, Van. You don't need to apologize."
"I do," he replied. "You see, I wanted to kiss you, but I wasn't sure how you felt about me, about our relationship together. We've been friends for so long, and I didn't want to risk destroying that friendship if you didn't feel the same way."
She gazed deep into his eyes, her heart fluttering inside her chest at his admission of his feelings for her, the same feelings she had felt for him for so long. "Van," she whispered, throwing herself into his arms and holding him tightly, sighing when she felt his arms wrap around her as it felt so good to be held by him.
She was soft in his arms, a sensation he hadn't thought he could never live without until it was felt. Then she pulled away slightly, just enough to maintain the contact yet be able to look into his dark eyes, and he touched his hand to her cheek as a smile appeared on both their faces. He lowered his head to hers, but pulled back when they heard approaching footsteps. Grabbing her hand, he pulled her back behind the Saber Tiger so that they were hidden from curious eyes, a surprised sound emerging when she took his head in her hands and pulled him down to join their lips together in a soft kiss. A storm of emotions caught him off guard as he wanted to remember this moment forever, the feel of her mouth sliding across his and the way her body felt pressed against his as her arms entwined themselves around his neck.
"Fiona," he murmured when they separated to catch their breath, pulling away entirely when he heard her name echoed by a different voice. They both looked to see Thomas standing there, a bewildered expression on his face before he turned and walked off. Then they looked into each other's eyes, both feeling guilty and neither of them knowing why.
Eventually they departed from the base after many farewells from Colonel Kruegar, Tragar firmly situated in the Blade Liger beside Van, who couldn't help but remember the look on Thomas' face when he saw him kissing Fiona. Even though Fiona never returned Thomas' feelings, he still felt guilty as he was a good friend to both of them as well as a valued teammate.
They covered many miles before stopping when the evening sun tinted the sky a golden hue before changing to the deeper blues and purples that came with the approach of night. They kept their zoids close together and shared a bite to eat, although Thomas stayed near his Dibison, refusing any kind of food offered to him as well as any offers for him to talk about what was bothering him. Finally Tania had had enough of his attitude and told Karl she was going to find out for herself once and for all why he was being the way he was.
She walked across the desert floor towards him, seeing him sitting against alone on his sleeping bag next to his small burner. When she sat down beside him without asking, he gave her a glare that clearly told her he wished to be left alone, but she had faced worse things than him and was not to be deterred from her purpose. "Thomas, I grow tired of this," she began. "And I'm not leaving until you tell me what is going on."
"I don't want to talk about it, okay?" he responded hotly. "Just leave me alone."
"Thomas, please," she pleaded. "Everyone's worried about you, wondering why you won't join us when your company would be more than welcome."
"Everyone, huh?" he sneered. "I imagine that Van and Fiona are doing just fine without me."
She appraised him curiously as she turned over his words in her mind. "Thomas, did you see something today that upset you?" she asked.
"Oh yeah, you could say that," he replied.
After hearing his words, she knew what it was he had seen and knew that there were no words she could say that would make everything better. "I see. I wish that there was something I could say to ease your pain, but I can't. I know that you care about Fiona very much, but she has never returned your feelings. So why are you so upset that she has chosen to be with Van?"
He sighed and looked up at the stars. "I guess I'm not really mad at them," he said, his voice calmer. "I just never thought that it would happen this way. I never prepared myself for the pain of seeing them together, even though I knew that it might happen one day, and I'm finding that I don't like feeling this way and the only way to deal with it is to bury it behind a mask of anger."
"But that is the very last thing you should do as you will only end up driving a wedge between those who are your friends. Deal with your emotions by sharing them with another who knows what it is like to lose someone you love," she advised.
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "And I suppose you're the one offering your support," he said.
"I am, if you will accept it," she replied. "There will be others, Thomas. You just have to keep your eyes open."
"But all I ever wanted was Fiona," he whispered. "Ever since I first met her."
He finally turned his face so that she could see it, and she was touched to see his cheeks lined with tears, a sight which had tears of her own welling in her eyes. "Thomas," she breathed, offering him comfort in the form of an embrace, which he accepted as he allowed his pent up emotions to flow from him. And after a while he was surprised to see that he did feel better once he released her and stood up to stretch his aching muscles.
She stood beside him, stretching as well. "Feel better?" she asked.
"Lots," he replied with a smile. "Thank you." Then they walked back to the camp together, Van and Fiona surprised to see him joining them as Karl merely smiled his encouragement. Tania sat down next to Karl and wrapped her arms around him to hold him tight, thankful that she was so lucky to have found someone she loved who loved her just as much in return.
The next morning they packed camp and started on another long day of traveling, the tension eased between them as Thomas had spoken with Van and Fiona earlier and expressed his happiness for them both. After a few hours of steady travel, Tania began to feel restless and wished to range out ahead to get some exercise. Karl argued against it, but Irvine offered to accompany her so she wouldn't be alone, and the Lightning Saix leaped forward with a cry to race across the desert with Irvine trailing behind. But no sooner had she gotten out of the main group's sight than she was surrounded by a sudden bombardment of missiles, and the Saix' speed was the only thing that kept her out of harm's way.
"Irvine, have you gotten a reading on who it is yet?" she asked, looking around and seeing nothing.
"No, I can't see them," he replied, crying out as he was hit with cannon fire. "Dammit! Who's firing on us?"
"I'm not sure," she answered. "But why are they attacking us and not the others?"
"That's easy," another voice answered, one she barely recognized as it sounded older than she remembered. "We only want to kill you. The others are of no concern to us."
Her heart seemed to stop as did her breathing as she knew now without a doubt of who the voice belonged to. "Raven?"
**********************
Ahhh! Raven's on the attack! Next chapter: A surprise visitor shows up! Can you guess who it is?