Last batch of WIPS! I have some context before each little excerpt but other than that, because I started writing this when I was like 13 or 14 I wrote it REALLY out of order.
Goodbye, FFN. It's been great.
[Starting off real cringey with this first one lmao. This is supposed to be a few chapters after what's already posted here, I think? Because they're like, still at the hotel and stuff. The investigation progresses and they eventually discover Edward Gray is involved and it's supposed to be all dramatic, oooough. Anyway this was definitely one of the earlier snippets so it's. Cliche lmao]
"Good morning, Siddeley. What's the matter?" Finn asked.
"It's important—where's Stacy?"
"Still asleep, I think," Finn answered, then with worry in his voice, asked, "Why?"
Siddeley shook his head. "Gotta tell Stacy, I think it would affect her the most."
"Alright, but... She's asleep. You haven't been sharing a hotel room with her, you didn't find out the hard way that she's not a morning person."
"I highly doubt she'll be mad at me for waking her up after she hears this," Siddeley told him, then turned and started running down the hall. "Stacy!" He called, then skidded to a stop and might as well have slammed the door open. "Oi, Stacy!"
Stacy groaned and covered her face with her arms.
"Sid, what do you want? Dude it's like..."—Stacy glanced at the clock—"Nine..."
"Stacy, it's important," Siddeley stressed.
Stacy groaned and sat up shaking her messy hair out of her face.
"I'd give that bed head an A-plus," Siddeley commented.
"Oh, shut up..." She groaned.
"Anyway... Holley and I found out something really important," Siddeley said as Stacy rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Siddeley glanced behind him expecting to see that Finn had silently walked up behind him to listen, and he had.
"What, something about the Lemons?" She asked, swinging her legs off the bed.
"No... About... About Edward Gray..."
Stacy dropped her glasses after she picked them up to put them on. Thank God for the carpet.
"W-what?" Stacy asked in almost a whisper. "What did you say?"
"Edward Gray," Siddeley repeated.
Stacy looked down at the pale scar on her arm. She shuddered.
"What about him?" Stacy asked after taking a deep breath.
"He's in Paris." Siddeley winced, awaiting Stacy's reaction.
Stacy slowly picked up her glasses and put them back on. "Okay. Are we going after him?"
"You're taking this surprisingly well..." Finn spoke up, sounding skeptical.
"Why wouldn't I be?" She asked, again without any emotion.
Siddeley shrugged and walked away. After a minute of studying Stacy's face, Finn left as well, leaving her to get ready for the day.
The next day, the four spies were doing surveillance around the city. Stacy was casually walking down a street crowded with people, deciding she should practice her French and ask around where random places were.
Suddenly, a hand was placed over her mouth and she was dragged into a dark alley. She pushed the arm away and turned, with fists clenched into a fighting stance, to face her attacker. As soon as she turned, she let her stance fall and froze.
Standing before her was none other than Edward Gray.
"Hello, Stacy. How wonderful it is to see you alive after all these years. I thought you had bled to death," he said with a smile.
Stacy didn't say anything. She just stared into the cold, black eyes of her attacker.
"Nothing to say? I see not much has changed." He smirked.
"What are you doing here?" Stacy asked, forcing her voice not to tremble.
"I wanted to see you, of course!" He grinned. Stacy stared at him as he walked closer. He stopped next to her and leaned towards her.
"And I will never stop until I see you dead," He whispered into her ear. Stacy didn't have much time to shudder before she was pinned to the ground on her stomach with her arms bent and held behind her back.
"I could just kill you now. It'd be so easy, so simple..." Stacy felt a cold blade gently stroke the back of her neck. "But I won't," he told her, then whispered in her ear again, "I want to make it as painful as possible." Stacy felt the handle of his knife collide with the back of her head, and the world faded to black.
Suddenly Gray was gone, replaced by a gentle hand checking her neck for a pulse.
Stacy heard a sigh of relief. "I was afraid he'd killed you."
Stacy groaned at the headache she had after she opened her eyes. It was dark, but she was still able to make out Finn as he helped her sit up.
"Are you all right?" He asked.
Stacy slowly nodded. "I'm fine."
"You're crying," Finn observed.
"No, I'm not," Stacy replied, turning her face away and wiping her face on her sleeve.
More tears poured down Stacy's face as she recalled what happened before she blacked out. She buried her face in her hands as she silently sobbed.
"I-I thought-I thought he was gonna k-kill me..." she managed to choke out. Finn wrapped his arms around her in a comforting hug.
"It's all right. You're safe now. He's not going to hurt you," Finn soothed. Stacy's body violently shook with silent sobs as she tried to calm down.
When she finally managed to quiet down, she turned away from Finn.
"Look at me," Finn softly commanded.
Stacy shook her head.
"Stacy, please, look at me."
Stacy slowly turned toward him.
"There, was that so hard?" Finn smiled.
"I can't believe I did that…" Stacy looked down in shame.
"Did what?" Finn asked.
"Let someone see me cry," Stacy whispered and sniffed. "I… I told myself I'd never do that…"
"I think nothing of it. You were scared, I understand. Now come on," he said, helping her stand. "Let's get back to the hotel."
But I think everything of it, Stacy gloomily thought.
"Hey," Finn put his hand on your shoulder. "You're not alone anymore. You know that, don't you?"
Stacy took a deep breath and walked with Finn over to where he had hastily parked his car.
[Here's some fluffy hotel shenanigans that still make me laugh]
"Siddeley, did you take my—?"
Oh.
Oh, shit.
Stacy had most of her back to the door, but the shirt she had been wearing all day was on her bed... not on her body.
Red spread across her face like a drop of blood in a pool of water.
Frozen in place, neither of us said anything for what seemed like at least a solid minute.
"...S-Siddeley isn't here..." she said in a quiet voice, holding the T-shirt she slept in close to her bare chest, refusing to make eye contact with me.
"R-right. Terribly sorry."
I was in such a hurry that I practically slammed the door on my way out.
"Holley, I can't find the lipstick you lent me anyw—"
Oh you've gotta be fucking kidding me.
A bit surprised, Finn looked up from the shirt he was holding.
The shirt that he was not wearing at the moment.
I opened my mouth to apologize, but no sound came out. My eyes danced around the scars scattered around his muscular figure.
"Holley ran out."
"C-cool. I... Sorry."
I closed the door with a soft click.
Cool?! SORRY?! That's all you managed to say?!
[Jumping really far ahead here, this is supposed to be like, close to the climax I guess? This was the first thing I ever wrote for this story, derived from a weird writing piece I came up with when I was 13 and literally just playing would you rather over facebook messenger with my friend.]
[2012 was a simpler time.]
[Anyway, Finn and Stacy either infiltrated the Lemon base? Or were captured by the Lemons? Who knows. But in like true 13-year-old-concieved-cliche, the Lemons are basically like, "well Gray wants this bitch dead. So you can do it or we can do it and we won't be nice about it, lol". I dunno, it sounded dramatic 10 years ago.]
[Edited to be slightly more legible.]
"You can't do that!" Finn exclaimed.
"Yes we can. Now, go, or we'll do it. Slowly and painfully." Zündapp answered, with his regular lack of enthusiasm.
Finn stared at his enemy for a moment.
"Go on, McMissile. If you don't hurry, we'll just have to go ahead."
Finn turned around and slowly walked out.
"Finn!" Stacy exclaimed, running over to him and hugging him. "How did you escape? Are you alright?" she asked, letting him go. She looked up at his face and her smile slowly fell. "What... What's wrong?"
Finn took a deep breath. "You are."
Stacy took a step back with a hurt expression. "I-I am...?"
"No, no, not... Not like that. There's nothing wrong with you."
"Then wha… What's the matter?"
Finn looked away from her. "They... Zündapp, he... Wants you dead."
"Well, yeah, but that's…" She paused. "Wh-what did they tell you?"
Finn looked her in the eye, looking on the verge of tears. "To kill you or they would, slowly and painfully."
Stacy's eyebrows furrowed. "B-but... Y-you won't let that happen... Right? You'll think of something?"
Finn sighed. "I don't see any other way. Not now."
To Finn's surprise, instead of running, Stacy tightly hugged him, burying her face into his chest.
Quickly overcoming his shock, he stood there with her, stroking her hair.
"You're serious… Aren't you?" she asked, her question muffled by his suit.
"I suppose I am..."
"Finn?" She asked.
"Yes, Stacy?"
"...never mind. Just... I'm glad I went on this mission with you."
Finn pried Stacy off him and turned away from her. He sighed. "I can't do it..." he sighed. "You're... I can't."
While his back was turned he heard Stacy cry out in surprise, followed by a strong word of choice directed at her abductor. Finn spun around.
"No!" Finn exclaimed as Stacy was grabbed and held hostage with an arm tightly around her neck and a gun pointed to her head. Stacy's hands immediately went to Grem's arm which was choking her a bit. "Dude–" she sputtered out, sounding more annoyed than frightened.
"I told the Professor this wouldn't work!" Grem exclaimed angrily.
"Sta-!" Finn started to exclaim, about to run for her, but was interrupted by a gunshot at his feet. He looked up to see Grem cock his gun again.
"Neither of you are leaving this place alive," he seethed.
"This is going to be fun." Acer grinned, aiming his own gun at Finn.
"Grem, Acer, wait," Finn interrupted. "This... I know you've killed a lot of people, but this set up–it just isn't like you. What's gotten into the Professor?" Finn asked. "There's someone else, isn't there?"
"Maybe there is, maybe there isn't," Grem replied.
"Wait a minute," Stacy said. "Tall guy? With a scar over his right eye?" She asked.
"How'd you know that?" Acer glanced over.
"Wild guess. The guy who killed my parents years ago finally came back for me. Took him long enough. I mean, there was the incident in Paris, but still."
"That was you? He kept telling that story over and over again and—"
"Ace! Shut up!"
"You can kill me, but let her go," Finn told them.
"Suit yourself." Grem shrugged, and aimed his gun.
Stacy squirmed out of Grem's grasp with a squeak. "Don't!" she cried, and redirected the shot just in time.
Grem grabbed her again and once again butted the gun against her head. "One more smart move..." he threatened.
Stacy stayed still. Finn could've sworn she almost rolled her eyes.
"Give it up, you two are powerless!" Acer taunted.
"And it's gonna stay that way, for once. Ya hear that, Ace? We finally found McMissile's weakness! The woman he loves!"
Stacy's expression took a break from annoyed fear while she blinked a few times, not fully understanding what Grem had just said. She then looked at the man holding her hostage with her eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "What?"
"What? Oh come on, it's obvious." He told her.
"Okay," she replied, completely unconvinced. "Sure. I guess."
Finn didn't have many options, so he took the only one he could come up with at the moment. He pulled out his own gun.
"Let her go or I'll shoot."
Grem snorted. "Bit late for a standoff. Besides, she'd be dead before you could pull the trigger. You wouldn't risk it."
"Wouldn't I?"
"Finn, no," Stacy tried objecting, but was cut short when Grem's grip around her neck tightened. Her face switched from concerned to annoyed once again in a flash.
"Okay, okay, time out," she announced, finally having enough. "If we're gonna die anyway, what is the point of you choking me like this? You don't smell that great, you know."
Grem scowled, before reluctantly shoving her forward. "Guess you're right."
Stacy stumbled across the length between the two men, ultimately catching herself by Finn, who had held out an arm for her anyway.
"Let's try this again," Grem announced. "Who wants to die first?"
"Like I said, you can kill me, but let her go."
"You're annoying when you repeat yourself, McMissile. But I won't argue." Grem shrugged again, and aimed his gun.
"No!" Stacy screamed and shoved Finn out of the way just as another loud bang echoed through the room.
Finn watched in horror as Stacy looked at him with a blank expression—slowly turning to shock—and started to sway.
"Stacy!" Finn exclaimed, running to catch her. He gently laid her down on the floor when he did. She still looked slightly irritated about the fact she was receiving help.
"Your turn." Acer grinned.
In response, Finn took back up his own gun and shot Acer in the hand.
"Ow! You son of a bitch!" he yelled, kneeling down and clutching his hand.
Finn said nothing, just turned and shot Grem in the shoulder. "Ow! Shit! Son of a..." he started to say before sinking to the floor in pain.
Finn put his gun away and turned back to Stacy. He knelt beside her and held one hand under her head and the other under her back. Her eyes were winced shut and she was clutching her stomach.
"Stacy?" Finn asked, nearly panicked. Stacy pried her eyes open.
"Hey," she coughed.
Finn gently took Stacy's hands off her gun wound.
"Stacy, I'm so sorry..." He whispered.
"It's not like you shoved me in front of you. It's my fault." Stacy tried cracking a grin.
"But if I never..." he sighed. "This wouldn't have happened."
"So?" She forced another smile, but it quickly turned into a wince.
"We have to get you out of here," Finn told her.
Stacy quietly gasped due to the pain she was in. Finn took one of her blood-soaked hands in his.
"Hey, Finn..."
"Shh, don't speak," Finn ordered, gently placing his hand on Stacy's cheek. Stacy just coughed again.
"Finn, am I going to die...?" She whispered.
"Quiet," Finn gently reminded her. "No. Not while I'm here."
He picked Stacy up and stood. Looking back at Grem and Acer, his walk out nearly broke into a run.
Idiots... Finn thought. They should know by now they need more than Grem and Acer to take me down...
While looking back, Finn ran into Siddeley... Literally.
"Siddeley!" Fine exclaimed.
"Finn! What..." Siddeley started to ask, but trailed off when he looked at Stacy. "Oh, no..."
"Hi," Stacy weakly greeted.
"We have to get out of here. Where's Holley?"
"Right behind you!" called a voice from down a hallway nearby, and Holley came into view.
"Holley, calculate the fastest way out of—" Finn began to order.
"That way." She pointed down the next hallway.
"Brilliant. Let's..." Finn stopped talking when Lemon drivers surrounded them, including Grem and Acer who were clutching their gun wounds with death glares.
"Oh, damn it..." Finn muttered.
"Uh... Look, a distraction!" Siddeley exclaimed, pointing behind the guards. While Acer and a Hugo driver looked, the three of them made a run for it.
"You idiot!" They heard Grem yell.
"'Look a distraction'?! Really?!" Holley yelled as they ran.
Siddeley wasn't listening, he was messing with the remote to the jet as they ran. "Come on, come on, I know you're low on batteries, but please..." he groaned. "Yes!" He cheered when they saw the ramp lowering.
They all rushed inside. Siddeley bolted for the cockpit, and Finn laid Stacy down on the medical bed after hitting the button that brings it out with his foot. Holley closed the ramp. "Sid, hurry!" she called.
Siddeley didn't answer as he punched various codes and buttons. The jet rose into the sky and took off.
Holley looked out the back window. "Since when do the Lemons have fighter planes?!" she exclaimed. "Sid!"
"I'm on it. Strap in!" he instructed. Holley rushed to a seat next to the one Finn was strapping himself into next to the medical bed where he strapped Stacy down.
"Stacy, can you hear me?" he asked her.
Her eyes remained closed, but she held up a weak thumbs up. Finn smiled and let out a sigh of relief.
"Help me, Holley," he demanded and Holley leaned over. Finn lifted up Stacy's blouse, revealing her bloody abdomen.
Finn looked over at Holley to see she had already gotten some thick gauze and tape. She placed the gauze over the bullet wound and taped it on.
"I doubt that's going to do much..." Holley worriedly offered.
"Neither do I." Finn frowned, stroking Stacy's hair.
"Finn... Did something happen in there?" Holley asked.
No shit, Stacy's been shot, Finn thought to himself.
No way in hell would he say such a thing aloud, however.
"Hang on!" Siddeley called back to them as he maneuvered the jet to dodge the gunfire the Lemons shot at them, doing barrel rolls and such.
"Oh, God..." Holley gasped under her breath as the plane turned upside down then right-side-up again.
"Siddeley!" Finn yelled.
"I can't shake them!" Siddeley called back.
Holley unstrapped herself and ran to cockpit, hoping to help out.
Holley strapped herself into the copilot seat, flipping various switches as she went.
Finn shot a glance out the window when he heard gunfire, and his nerves calmed just a bit to see Lemon planes one by one going down in plumes of smoke.
"All right!" Siddeley cheered. "You did it, Hol!"
"There they go," Holley observed. "Oh, shoot!" she exclaimed. A moment later, the jet shook with an explosion.
"They got us, didn't they?" Finn asked.
Siddeley ran out of the cockpit, Holley not far behind as he lowered the ramp. "Okay, the good news is, we're gonna live!" he yelled over the wind. "The bad news is, we're gonna have to jump!"
"Jump?! Are you crazy?!" Holley yelled.
"Well, I've got parachutes, you know! And these nifty backpacks full of—"
"He's gaining, hand them out!" Holley demanded. Siddeley tossed her one.
"Finn!" Siddeley called.
"Don't worry about us," Finn called, catching his own parachute and backpack.
"Come on, Holley!" Siddeley urged.
"Sid, I can't!"
"Neither can I! Shove me?" He requested. Holley held up her hand, hesitated, and then shoved him, only to realize a moment too late he had grabbed onto her arm.
A scream erupted from Holley's lips as Siddeley tried to make the most of the fall.
"Geronimo…!"
Finn jumped with Stacy not a moment too soon before the plane plummeted down somewhere amid the thick trees.
[Pretty straightforward, this is after the plane crash.]
[This is also the same plane crash that Holley refers to in one of the Stalker/Sigma Sid stories, I think?]
[still one of the first things I wrote for this fic. I literally remember coming up with this during a girl scout camping trip in 7th grade, so… 2012? Early 2013? Yikes. Once again edited to be more readable lol]
Everything was dark. All Stacy could see was blackness. Oh, God, am I dead?! Stacy thought.
No, she could hear humming. No, not humming, talking, Stacy realized. Though frustratingly, she couldn't make it out.
It took a moment, but eventually she could hear the garbled sounds of her name.
"Stacy?" she heard again, clearer this time.
She could feel her eyes opening, but everything was dark, fuzzy. The more her vision came into focus, however, the more the pain in her abdomen did, as well. She winced as Finn's face finally focused into view.
"Finn?" she grunted.
"Oh, thank God," he breathed. "I was scared it was too late."
"Too late?" she echoed, before remembering the events of the day.
She tried sitting up, which was a terrible mistake, but she powered through.
"Where are we?" She replaced her question with another.
"Forest, somewhere," Finn explained, looking around. "Luckily those backpacks Siddeley gave us had medical supplies, but not too much..."
Stacy looked down to see her torso was wrapped in bandages.
"Did you...?" she started to ask.
Finn held up a bullet.
"Seriously?" Stacy asked in disbelief.
"Well, field agents are required to take some-"
"Y-you know what, I don't even wanna know. I'm just glad I was unconscious."
"We should try to find Holley and Siddeley." Finn suggested, ignoring Stacy's comment. "Can you walk?"
"Yeah, I can walk," she replied, though sounded more annoyed than nonchalant. However when she tried to stand, any confidence melted away.
Finn reached out to help her, but she shooed his hand away. "No, no," she protested. "I'm fine." She continued trying to get up by using the tree she had been leaning against.
She was not fine. When she slipped, she would've collided with the hard ground if Finn hadn't caught her.
"Thanks..." she mumbled, looking away from the agent.
Despite her protesting, Finn picked her up again. "We won't get far with you walking in this condition," he decided.
"Fine," she grumbled, secretly relieved.
"I figure if we head towards the jet, we'll meet Holley and Siddeley. That's most likely where they're heading, as well."
"You know that how?" Stacy looked questionably up at Finn.
"Siddeley left his snacks on board."
"Of course he did..." she sighed.
After a few minutes of silent walking, Stacy decided to speak up. "Um, so you said those backpacks had some medical supplies in them?"
"Yes, they did." Finn nodded.
"Did you, uh... Did you see anything that would help me walk, by any chance...? So I don't have to be carried like I'm disabled...?"
Finn laughed. "You are disabled, you've been injured. Unfortunately, it's something all agents have to face at some point." He paused. "Although, I think I did see some painkillers or at least something..."
"Can we take a look?" Stacy asked.
Finn set her down first, then the backpack. Rummaging through it, he smiled. "Found it." He held up a small bottle.
He handed it to Stacy, then walked a few feet away to observe the distance they had traveled.
"We should be going in the right direction," he announced. "The smoke from the jet can be seen for miles."
"We'll have to hurry, then."
Finn looked behind him to see Stacy standing behind him with the backpack. She looked like she was struggling, but she was standing.
"Precisely." He looked her up and down. "Maybe I should carry that?" he suggested.
"Sure." she answered, handing it to him.
For the rest of the way they walked down the muddy path in silence. That was good news for both of them, considering a million things were on each of their minds.
Finn couldn't stop thinking about why Stacy would take a bullet for him. He also couldn't get what Grem said to stop repeating over and over in his head.
"Ya hear that Ace? We finally found McMissile's weakness! The woman he loves!"
The same thing was going through Stacy's head. Why did I take that bullet for him? And what Grem said... Ridiculous. Utterly. There's no way.
The two walked for hours until Finn finally announced, "It's getting dark."
Stacy looked up at the sky to see that he was right. The sun was setting through the tree branches. As pretty as it was, Stacy began to get a bit uneasy.
"This looks like as good a place as any to rest," he announced as he set the bag down. "You wait here, I'm going to go see if I can get some things to get a fire going," he suggested as he started to walk off.
Stacy practically fell over with exhaustion, happy to be giving her feet a rest. Truthfully, she regretted turning down Finn's offer of carrying her, but she was too stubborn to admit it.
After Finn returned, he had managed to get a small fire burning just in time for the sun to completely disappear over the horizon.
Despite the pain it caused her bullet wound, Stacy pulled her knees up to her chest and held them, glancing around uneasily.
"Are you cold?" Finn asked from behind her. She didn't answer, but he placed his jacket around her, anyway.
"Thanks..." she mumbled.
Finn dropped some more wood into the fire, then took his seat across from her. "What's the matter?"
"I'm, uh..." Stacy started to say. Afraid of the dark, she figured she was going to regret saying, so she didn't. She glanced around again, then returned her gaze to the dancing flames.
"Does it still hurt?" Finn guessed.
Stacy shook her head, though her gunshot wound burned with pain.
Stacy realized he probably saw through her lie.
They were silent again, and Stacy distracted herself by using the stick Finn had claimed as the fire poker to move the logs around a bit. She was probably doing it wrong, but it was entertaining, and Finn wasn't protesting, so she continued.
Deciding that was enough for now, she set the poker down and took a deep breath, glancing up at the starry sky.
God, what a long day.
Maybe the longest of her life.
Finn followed her gaze, then back down to her. "Stacy, you're crying," he noticed, surprised.
Stacy tore her gaze away from the sky to wipe under her eye with a few fingers. "I..." she began in disbelief.
"Dear God." She sounded annoyed. "What the fuck is with all the crying lately?" She stared at the tears on her fingertips.
Finn smiled humorously. "I wonder."
"I swear to god I haven't cried this much since middle school," she promised, wiping tears from the other side of her face.
Finn laughed. "I believe you."
"Oh, god..." she groaned, rubbing her eyes. "I think this has been the longest day of my life."
Finn looked back into the fire with a smile.
"...I'm sorry," he finally said.
"Huh?" Stacy looked back over at him, not sure if she heard him right.
"I said I'm sorry. I'm the one who dragged you into all this." Finn still had a faint smile on his face as he stared into the flames.
"No, you..." Stacy opened her mouth to say something more, but closed it after a moment of hesitation.
Silence fell between the two as Stacy thought of what to say. He was wrong. Well, no, he was right. He did drag her into this. But she had let him do it.. She wanted to be dragged in. She...
"You didn't..." she began again, but trailed off. She took a breath. "You didn't drag me into anything. I wanted to come."
Finn tore his eyes from the flames up to Stacy's face.
"Stacy," Finn quietly addressed. "Why did you take that bullet for me?" He nearly whispered.
Stacy felt her stomach drop. She was hoping he wouldn't ask that.
"You've only known me a short time," Finn continued in the same quiet volume. "So why...?" Instead of finishing his question, he turned his head and sighed.
The fire crackled and the leaves rustled as night continued to fall.
"I don't know," Stacy finally admitted. At first she was scared Finn didn't hear her, but when she looked up, Finn's turquoise eyes-turned green by the firelight-were trained on hers.
Stacy spoke slowly, voice just barely steady. "After so long of being ignored and pushed aside, you... Offered me the chance of a lifetime. These past few weeks, I've felt more at home than I ever did anywhere at CHROME. I didn't... I couldn't... Let you get hurt because of me. Not after all you've done for me."
Stacy's small speech lingered in the air for what felt like an eternity.
"Hm." Finn quietly hummed in acknowledgement as he broke their gaze. Stacy was expecting him to continue and tell her that he understood—or didn't understand, more likely. But he said nothing else.
With a sigh, Stacy allowed herself to fall onto her back, where she once again gave the stars her attention. As soon as she hit the ground her gunshot wound regretted it, but it was a small price to pay for the view of the sky, she told herself.
"Well," Finn finally spoke up. "You should get some rest. Suppose I'll take the first watch."
"Greatly appreciated." Stacy weakly gave him a thumbs up from where she lay, earning a quiet chuckle from Finn.
"Sleep well. Or... As well as you can." Finn smiled.
"Heh. Thanks," she breathed, pulling his jacket tighter around her.
Finn smiled once more, then returned his focus to the fire.
"...for everything. I mean it." Stacy murmured, then shortly fell asleep.
Finn stared at her for a while before turning his gaze back to the fire.
[At some point they all meet back up at the jet. I think they're somewhere out West for some reason. Utah, I think? So of course they're like, gee, I wonder if we have any allies nearby where we can lay low for a while? Oh wait. Radiator Springs probs has a doctor]
[This is also more recently written than the previous few so]
Stacy's POV
I opened my eyes to a popcorn ceiling above me.
I blinked twice before I realized this wasn't a room I recognized.
It was old and dusty, yet still homey—beige peeling wallpaper, a desert painting on the wall across from the old green couch I lay on, a vase of sunflowers on the coffee table…
Where am I?
"Oh, hey, you're awake!"
I gasped into a sitting position, feeling my gunshot wound burn in protest, frantically feeling around for a weapon of some kind. All I felt was the crocheted blanket covering me.
"Woah, woah, hey! Calm down, I ain't gonna hurt'cha." The man that had appeared out of nowhere took a seat across from me on the coffee table. "Sorry for scarin' ya. How're ya feelin'?"
I looked him up and down—he didn't look like a threat, with his old leather jacket, worn out jeans. A few freckles spotted his face between laugh lines and a goofy smile.
"Sorry about the state a' the place, I don't usually come here—it's a little ways outside a' town, y'know. Lots easier to just crash at my little shack in the junkyard in case anyone needs m'truck."
"Town?" I asked. "Wh… Where am I? Where's Finn? And Holley? And—"
"Hey, don't even worry about it, Holley n' Sid are in the kitchen. I think Finn ran out to talk to the Sheriff, or—Ah, shoot, I done forgot to introduce myself, didn't I?" The man laughed apologetically, ruffling up his already messy brown hair.
"My name's Mater. It's nice ta meet ya."
Mater? Finn and Holley mentioned him, didn't they? Who did they say he was, again?
"Hey, Hol!" Mater called down the hall. "She's awake!"
Moments later, Holley and Sid poked their heads out from around the hallway.
"Stacy!" Relief flooded Holley's face. "Thank goodness. Looks like the antibiotics worked, after all," she said, setting her hand down to rest on Mater's shoulder.
Was this… Holley's boyfriend?!
He didn't look even a little bit how I expected, but… I guess he was kinda cute? In like a stray puppy dog kinda way?
This man is letting you sleep on his couch and you just compared him to a stray dog. Good job.
"Here, drink this." Siddeley handed me a glass of water, which I slowly reached out to take.
"What happened? Where are we?" I asked, noticing the condensation clinging to the outside of the glass.
"Radiator Springs," Holley replied. "We're friends with some of the townspeople. They didn't object when we asked if we could lay low here for a few days."
Radiator Springs… It sounded familiar, but I didn't care enough to place it at the moment.
"What's the last thing you remember?" Sid asked, taking a seat on the other end of the couch.
"The forest." I willed myself to take a sip of water. "We were closing in on the plane, and…" I scrunched my brows, trying to remember. "And…"
"Your gunshot was infected," Holley explained. "Finn says you passed out from a fever about an hour before we found each other. With Radiator Springs only a state away, it seemed like the best place to get you treated and for us to revisit our plan."
"H-how long have I been out?"
"About two days," Siddeley said with a shrug. "All things considered, I'm kinda surprised you weren't knocked out for longer."
"Gee, thanks." I shot a shaky smile at him.
"N-not that I'm not happy you're not!" He waved his hands frantically in front of him, making me smile. "We just weren't expecting it! After the surgery and everything—"
My smile fell. "Surgery?" I echoed.
"They initially decided to perform surgery to check for any internal bleeding. Luckily, you didn't suffer any severe damage to any surrounding tissues, or anything, but you ended up needing a blood transfusion and a lot of antibiotics. You had a tube down your throat for the entire first day."
"You were just released this morning. Mater offered to let you stay here." Holley smiled. "Anyway, how are you feeling? Your fever may have broken, but we should still get the town doctor to give you another once-over."
I stared down at the water in my hands.
"Still hurts pretty bad. I don't suppose you got shot on your first mission in the field, did you?" I asked Holley.
She smiled and shook her head. "Luckily, no… I did come away with some nasty bruises, though. And, of course—" she smiled down at Mater. "My valuable scar."
"A… Valuable scar?" I blinked. Mater laughed, pulling Holley closer to him.
"We think you're going to be out of commission for a while." Siddeley frowned.
I swung my legs over the side of the couch. "What? What about the mission?"
"Woah, woah—" Siddeley put his arms on my shoulders to keep me from standing. "You've done more than enough. Finn says you saved his life back in Utah, that's more we could ever ask of you."
"All I did was shove him out of the way," I murmured. "The rest of the time, I just slowed him down."
There was a knock on what I assumed was the front door.
"Be right back," Mater mumbled as he rushed down the hall.
"Have you… Revised the plan, yet?" I asked.
"A bit," Holley admitted. "We have some agents from the CIA tracking our targets' movements. Once things are sorted here, we're planning on rendezvousing with them and figuring out where Gray is hiding once and for all."
"And you're… Leaving me here?"
Holley was about to speak, but someone else beat her to it.
"You're not exactly in any condition to travel."
My head snapped over to the hallway, where Finn now stood next to Mater.
I knew he was right, but…
This couldn't be it.
The mission couldn't be over for me.
"I… I suppose since they've seen me, I'm useless to you now."
I knew deep down that any logical hope I had of staying by their sides any longer was taken from me as soon as that bullet made contact but still—Still, I wanted to stay—
"But—" I clenched my fist around the blanket in my lap.
How was I supposed to articulate this? Agents really aren't supposed to have close friends, I knew, but that's how I wanted to think of them. Laughing with Siddeley, crafting disguises with Holley, going over files with Finn…
It couldn't be any more obvious that this wasn't where I belonged, but the thought of going back to the way things were made me want to scream. My sleepless nights, the motions of my workday—I can't remember the last time I felt this way about being with someone else. I can't leave—you can't leave me—I can't leave you alone to—
"I suppose… What we brought you along for initially isn't in the picture, anymore," Finn agreed.
Which means I'm not in the picture, anymore.
"…I'm gonna call the doc," Mater quietly announced and shuffled back down the hall.
Uncomfortable silence followed.
"That doesn't mean that she can't still be useful," Siddeley suggested thoughtfully.
"What?" Holley snapped her head over to him. "Are you mad?"
"Don't they think that Stacy is dead? That may not give us the upper hand, but it's something."
I widened my eyes at Siddeley. He was totally right.
"Don't be absurd." Finn frowned. "Besides, you're not coming along, either."
"Wait, what?" Siddeley rose to his feet.
"Siddeley, your plane is stranded in the wilderness a state over. The Lemons have probably already zeroed in on it."
"Not to mention, do they really think all four of us survived the crash? We have the element of surprise, regardless," Holley pointed out.
Sid frowned. He looked like he wanted to argue, but knew that, once again, Finn made a good point.
Siddeley and I exchanged a glance.
"The doc'll be over here in a bit," Mater announced as he reappeared into the room.
"…is there a bathroom over here?" I asked.
"Uh, yeah, right down the hall," Mater replied. "'s between the kitchen and the stairs."
"Thanks," I murmured as I slowly made my way down the hall, leaning on the wall for support.
I glanced into the dining room. The long table had papers and two laptops scattered around it. Looks like they've been hard at work.
I closed the door to the bathroom, rested my forehead against the door, and let out a deep sigh. I could hear muffled conversation continuing in my absence, but I couldn't bring myself to care enough to make it out.
I turned around to steady myself against the sink and scowled into the mirror. I don't know what I expected a gunshot wound and a plane crash to do to my hair, but I sure as hell wasn't expecting the monstrosity atop my head. I hoped Mater wouldn't object to me using his shower at some point.
I was never going camping ever again.
When I was all finished, there was another strange man talking to Finn in the foyer.
His eyes glanced over to me under his smart-looking glasses.
"Stacy, this is the town doctor," Finn announced.
He introduced himself, but I wasn't paying too much attention. He had me sit down in the kitchen while he looked me over and went over some routine questions. He handed Finn some pain meds for me and instructed me when to and how to use them.
He briefly went over the surgery and other tests they had run while I was still unconscious. How to clean my stitches, change the bandages, as well as instructing me to go on a few walks each day to help with my recovery.
He gave me some crutches to walk on, wished me a speedy recovery, reminded me how lucky I was, and was gone.
Finn, Holley, and Siddeley had closed themselves off in the study upstairs near the end of my shower, it seemed. It felt a bit awkward to be alone with Mater, but he seemed pretty determined to make me feel welcome.
"You've gotta be hungry, right?" He asked me as I read the label on my meds over a third time.
"A bit," I confessed. I was starving.
"How 'bout we take a trip into town? Flo's café has the best food on Route 66."
"Route 66?" I repeated. "Where are we, again?"
He smiled bigger than I had seen so far. "Boy is you in for a treat!"
We left a note for the other agents, I climbed into the passenger seat of his rusty tow truck, and we were off.
"Radiator Springs, Arizona, home of the famous Lightning McQueen, and, yours truly, of course."
"Lightning McQueen? He's…" I wracked my brain. "He's a racecar driver, right?"
"That's right! He's my best friend."
I wasn't super sure if he was joking or not, so I didn't say anything. But if he could charm Holley, I had a feeling he could charm just about anyone.
Even with the wind blowing in through the open windows, I could barely believe how hot it was.
It wasn't long before the grove of trees broke, revealing the main street of a desert town. The streets were bustling—it seemed everyone was enjoying the array of shops and attractions the town had to offer. Mater pulled up to a red light and I glanced out my window to see what I assumed to be the fire station. A large man stood out front, happily absorbed in watering flowers in front of an old, metal statue.
He glanced up, and seeing Mater's truck, broke into a shy smile before waving.
"Hey, Red!" Mater cheerfully called. "Flower's lookin' great today, bud!"
Red nodded his thanks before going back to his gardening.
Before I knew it, he had parked in front of a 50's style diner. The big neon sign read "Flo's V-8 Café."
"Mornin,' Mater," a police officer in beige greeted as he exited the establishment.
"Hey, Sheriff!" He grinned. "After you, Miss Stacy," he insisted, holding the door to the place open.
I nodded thanks and made my way inside, taking in the retro décor.
The place was adorable, with big blue, leather booths, black and white photos everywhere, a jukebox playing off to the side, waitresses in cute uniforms running around…
"Mornin', Mater!" A friendly voice caught my attention. The voice appeared to belong to the dark-skinned woman behind the counter in the center of the back wall. She wore a bright teal dress adorned with an apron. Her black curls were held in a rather fifties-style updo. Wow, she was pretty. "Take a seat and we'll be with ya in a minute, hon!"
Mater grinned and waved at her before turning back to me. "You care where you sit?" He asked. I shook my head.
"Maybe a booth?" I suggested, holding up a crutch for emphasis.
"Well great, that's where I done wanted t' sit, too. C'mon!"
Not a moment after we sat down, a pretty blonde woman with her hair tied back in a bun appeared before our table.
"Morning, Mater." She smiled.
"Hey, Becca! How ya doin'?"
"Good! Is this her?" She fixed her gaze on me.
"Her?" I echoed.
"You're Finn and Holley's new partner, right?" she asked. "It's nice to finally meet you. I'm Becca." She thrust out her hand for me to shake, which I reluctantly took.
"Stacy," I replied.
"Man, it's crazy to see you up and walking already. Sid must be so jealous! I remember him telling me the first time he got shot in the field, he was out of commission for like, a week or two." She grinned as she spoke, fishing her notebook and a Lightning McQueen-themed pen out of her apron pocket.
"Are you and Sid, uh… Together?" I asked. If Holley was dating Mater, it wasn't too far-fetched to assume that Siddeley could be with someone from Radiator Springs, too, right?
Becca's face turned as red as the pen in her hand. "T-together?" She stammered. "M-me and Siddeley? N-no… We're just friends." She chuckled nervously, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
Oh my god. Does this girl have a crush on Sid? That's so cute.
"Anyway, Beccs, how's Flo treatin' ya?"
"Oh, she's great," she replied, her face slowly turning back to its normal color. "Originally I just needed some extra cash, because, y'know, Lightning's stingy as hell, but I actually really like working here." She laughed to herself.
"Oh, right—" Mater looked back over to me. "Becca here is McQueen's big sister."
"Oh, for real?" I blinked up at her. "And you're working in a diner?" I found myself grinning a bit.
She laughed. "I promise I'm just kidding about him being stingy. He offered to help out, but I turned him down. Besides, I really like living here in town."
"Heh, down and town—that's funny right there," Mater laughed to himself.
"Anyway…" She smiled, flipping her notebook open. "What's for breakfast for you two?"
We ordered and were left in silence once more.
"So… Holley says you're also a mechanic?"
"Kinda. Mostly jus' towin' an' salvage, though."
"Do you get a lot of cars breaking down around here?"
"Well dad gum, sure! Old cars, cars that ain't used to drivin' on dirt too good, Lemons breakin' down…"
"Lemons?"
"Yeah, cars that don't ever work right."
"Oh, right… I totally forgot Lemons were cars, for a second."
Mater blinked at me before bursting out into laughter. "I guess that's who y'all are spyin' on, huh?"
I nodded as another waitress set down a glass of water in front of each of us. "Becca'll be back with your food soon," she reassured.
"What about you?" he asked. "What was your job before Finn done recruited you to spy on the Lemons?"
"Mostly diagnostics," I said, taking a sip of water.
"Di-oh-what-now?"
"Computer stuff."
"Oh."
"And lots of paperwork."
"Huh."
"…so I guess we both lead very different lives, huh."
He laughed again. "I guess, but being different don't mean we can't be friends. Look at me an' Finn! Or me an' McQueen!"
Friends? Mater and Finn? Finn Mc-Friends-Are-Dangerous-In-Our-Line-of-Work-Missile? Was that really true?
I guess I still couldn't quite wrap my brain around Mater and Holley's relationship, much less really fathom Finn's friendship with… well, anyone outside of the agency.
Does… Is Finn in a relationship with anyone...?
At that thought, the water I was sucking up through my straw shot down the wrong pipe and I launched into a coughing fit.
"W-woah! You okay?"
My stitches burned. I hope being an idiot wouldn't cause them to open up.
I managed to nod. "F-fine," I stammered. I cleared my throat. "Just… Being dumb. Wasn't paying attention."
"Hahoy, that happens to me all the dang time." He grinned. "Don't'chu worry about it."
I think I was starting to get it. Mater was an easy guy to let your guard down, around.
"Have you been gettin' along with Finn and the others?" he asked.
I nodded. "I think so. Siddeley is really easy to talk to, and Holley is super nice."
"What about Finn?" He titled his head to the side, not unlike a puppy.
I furrowed my brows at the glass of water in front of me. What about Finn?
The more I tried to get to know him, the more I ended up… Confused.
"I don't know…" I glanced out the window at all the cars driving by and tourists strolling around. "It's not that I don't like him—he's not unpleasant to be around. But…"
I sighed. "I dunno. The more time we spend together, the less I seem to understand him."
Mater took a loud slurp of his own water. "Whaddya mean?"
I sighed. "It's hard to explain... I barely know what I mean." I propped my head up on my arm as I gazed out at the sunny street. "Like I said—it's confusing."
"Have you… I dunno, talked to him at all about it?"
"What, like, now?" I looked back over at him. "In the middle of a mission? No way." I frowned. "A mission that I'm not even a part of anymore, remember?"
"I guess you're right. Still, there's always after, right?"
"I… Doubt it. It's only a matter of time before they send me back to my desk, after all."
"You really think so?" Mater blinked at me with his big eyes.
I shrugged. We were quiet until Becca returned with our food.
"Ah, Stacy, there you are!"
I glanced over to see Siddeley making his way over to us.
"Mind if I sit?" he asked. Mater happily scooted aside for him to join him in the booth.
"Hey, Sid! Want something to eat?" Mater asked.
"You can just have mine if you want, Sid. I'm… Not as hungry as I thought I was." I slid the plate in his direction.
"No way! You've had nothing but like, IV fluid for the past two days. You've gotta eat—Finn's orders," he insisted, shoving the plate back.
I blinked. Those were Finn's orders?
Mouth already full of food, Mater nodded vigorously. "You should'a done heard him while you was out! He was more worried than a long-tailed cat in a room full a' rockin' chairs."
"What?" I started to ask. "Why w—"
"Which one of the twins served you? I'll flag her down," Sid interrupted me.
"It was actually Becca," Mater replied, cutting off another generous chunk of his waffle.
As if on cue, Becca reappeared with some extra syrup for Mater. "Oh, Siddeley!" she greeted. "Hey!"
Siddeley's cheeks tinted pink. Was it the heat outside? Or…?
"H-hey, Becca! Uh…"
She giggled. "Do you want to eat anything?"
"S-sure! Um… I'll just have… What Stacy's having?"
She smiled. "Sure thing. You want some water or anything?"
"Water's great."
"I'll be back." With another smile, she was off.
Oh my god. They totally like each other.
I wonder if Holley knows. She would totally do something about that, I'm sure.
Wish I could stick around to see it happen.
Mater and Siddeley managed to hold a conversation while the latter's breakfast was being prepared.
[This is, I dunno, a few days later? They're still in Arizona.]
[Finn shows up to see Stacy, who asks, "what are you doing here? I thought you and Holley needed to leave in the morning." To which he replies, "we do, I just wanted to show you something first," before ushering her into a car he rented and driving off.]
We drove through town, past the town, through a forest. The orange light from the sunset filtered through the trunks.
Being alone with Finn still made my stomach flutter uneasily. Maybe it was for the best that he and Holley would be finishing the mission without me.
And I could go back to how life was before this all happened.
"...you're not driving me into the middle of the desert to kill me, are you?"
"If I wanted to kill you, don't you think I would've left you back in Utah?"
I shut my mouth. He had a point.
"Where are you taking me?" I asked instead as we drove under a breathtaking waterfall. Droplets floated through the air and softly pelted the windshield.
"I wasn't sure why Mater and McQueen loved this town so much until Mater insisted he take us up here," he explained. "You'll see what I mean."
He finally rolled up to a rustic-looking restaurant—"Wheel Well," the sign said. The lights were off inside, and the tables around the front were empty.
I guess they're closed.
"A restaurant?" I asked. "Is... This what you wanted to show me?" I asked.
Finn chuckled. "Not quite." He exited the car and before I knew it, was holding the door open for me. He offered his hand, and I took it.
His hands were rough, but he had a comforting grip—the kind that felt like it would never let go.
But of course it did.
"Over here. Watch your step," he warned, leading me to the edge of the cliff we stood on.
Once I shielded the sun from my eyes, I understood what he meant.
I opened my mouth to say something, but all that came out was a breathy laugh. I looked back at him, as if waiting for confirmation that this was actually real.
The orange sands stretched for miles—cliffs and trees stretched out as far as the eye could see. You could see the town from here—traffic driving through looking more like marching ants than cars.
You can't find views like this in London.
"It's amazing."
I heard Finn hum in agreement.
"There's the town," he pointed out, raising his arm to direct my gaze. "And over there is the interstate that had bypassed the town the past few decades. Apparently McQueen helped put it back on the map a few years ago, turning it back into the bustling spot it is today."
"Wow."
Silence passed between us for a moment as we looked over the cliff.
"...why did you take me up here?"
He said nothing, so I turned back to look at him.
"...I wanted to thank you."
"Thank me?"
"I..." he frowned at the horizon. "Wish there was a way to repay you for all you've done for us."
He looked me in the eye. "What you've done for me."
The sunset had tinted his eyes a deep green—similar to the color that the campfire had a few nights ago.
I laughed. "I barely did anything."
I'm not sure what I expected him to say, but I expected him to say SOMETHING. He just... kept staring at me, as if I was some kind of puzzle he was stuck on.
"...I know you said you didn't know when I asked before, but… Why did you jump in front of that bullet for me?" he quietly asked.
I turned my attention back to the cliff, and took a few steps to the very edge.
I looked down and took a deep breath before I spoke.
"Have you ever heard of the call of the void?"
"The what?" he asked, not following.
"It's originally a French phrase. It's the sudden urge to jump when staring down from a high place, or... Crash your car into oncoming traffic, stuff like that. It's apparently supposed to be really normal, but I have to wonder what part of your brain keeps you from acting on intrusive thoughts like that... and what it would take for it to snap.
"Who knows... Maybe I finally just...
"Snapped."
I didn't realize my foot had inched halfway off of the ledge until I felt Finn's hand on my shoulder.
I could feel his sharp gaze on my back, his firm hand anchoring me once again.
I turned my head to see his piercing green eyes with an expression I couldn't identify.
Neither of us said anything for a moment.
I took a step away from the edge.
"The truth is, I'm the one who should be thanking you." I shoved my hands in the pockets of my jeans.
"How so?" He quietly asked.
"...I was killing myself every day working at that desk. You... You gave me a chance to change that. You...
"...never mind. Just... Thank you. For everything."
We drove back in silence.
When I woke up the next morning, Finn and Holley were gone.
Originally I had some vague plan to write Sid and Stacy conspiring to follow after Finn and Holley, eventually helping them save the day or whatever, but any steam I had in me for this story is null and void. I imagine there would also be a scene where Stacy finds out that she's staying a field agent, and staying with Finn, Holley, and Sid for the foreseeable future, and a few years down the line Finn and Stacy get married.
Actually no fuck it I do actually have a timeline for this shit because I got really confused with all these fics being out of order, lmao. So this story takes place in 2013, the first Stalker Siddeley fic is in 2015, Finn and Stacy officially get together in 2016 and get married in 2017. Similarly Sid and Becca get together 2016 (I do have a fic for that it's called Ready for Takeoff) and Sid moves to the US and marries Becca in 2018. Holley similarly moves to the US in 2016 when she marries Mater.
Anyway. That's… A decade of my life I just wrapped up, lmaoo.
For anyone who encouraged me over the past ten years, whether you're still here or not, thank you so, so much. Even if this site goes down I still did so much growing on here, as weird as that is to think about. I owe a lot to this rundown place, haha.
Remember: cringe culture is dead. Do what makes you happy. I support you, lol.
Sincerely,
Stacy