Author's Notes 3/30/02:
Hey! Thanks for all the reviews guys :) I'm having a pretty easy time with this fic because I know exactly what I want to happen next (trust me, thats a first!) In this Chapter, I really made effort to establish the close relationship between Ed and Ein. Enjoy and Review, please!
~Windresss
Bending the Spoon.
Chapter 2: Out of Tune
Ein watched the enemy lift the girl, little more than pup, up in the air. Alarm bells had been ringing in the corgi's mind since he caught a whiff of Hakeem's foul presence. Now he was violating his -property.-
The small dog saw Red.
Lunging forward on his stubby legs, Ein clamped powerful jaws down on the offender's ankle and stubbornly held on.
Hakeem yowled his pain, and promptly dropped Edward to hop around on one leg, then other shaking frantically in futile effort to dislodge the tan colored dog attached to him.
Edward landed in a heap on the pavement, staring dumbly at the strange dance Hakeem practiced, seemingly oblivious to the gravety of the situation. She was quickly made aware, however, when the tall stranger managed to yank Ein from his uplifted ankle and toss him against the store's brick wall.
Ein gave a sharp yelp and fell limply to the ground.
*****
"EIN!!" Her shriek lacked its inherently playful nature, strained by the incredulity that someone could hurt the small dog.
Scrambling in a tangle of her own limbs, Edward lurched upward and made to run to the animal's side, only to be tripped and drug backward beneath the protective frame of Spike's body.
Ed thrashed, struggling against his ungiving grip on her, her eyes riveted on the unmoving form of Ein, "SPIKE! LET ED GO! ED MUST GO TO EIN! DOGGY NEEDS HELP!!"
She was hysterical, wilder than Spike had ever seen her. For such a small frame, she possessed amazing power, nearly dislodging him as he kept her from running into the fray. He knew she wouldn't stand aside and let him handle it, but this way, Spike was positive Ein didn't stand a chance. 'Why do my choices always stink?'
*****
Hakeem had had enough of this. He'd envision the torture he would wring from that chicken-legged moron now trying to keep a hold on the distraught girl, but nothing seemed to be going his way.
'Fine. I'll do it the fast way.' Still favoring one ankle, he rose and reached into his coat pocket, jerking a gun out smoothly,
'Kill'em all and be done with this shit.'
*****
"Edward, please-" Spike was cut off as he flinched, teeth snapping down on the muscle of his upper arm, "Dammit, girl, for once in your life, THINK!"
He seemed to still beneath him, and he gave a sigh of relief, continuing "If you run headlong into that guy, he'll tear you to shreds, you understand? Leave this to me." Spike glanced to her expression to see if she actually -did- understand.
But Ed wasn't listening. Her eyes were riveted upon the small Welsh Corgi which was not struggling to rise before the advancing Hakeem. 'At least she stopped fighting...' Spike thought ruefully. Which is, of course, when it came back to bite him in the ass.
Edward's anxious expression suddenly contorted in terror, and Spike was distracted by the flash of polished metal in the dingy sunlight of the street. 'A gun.'
Abruptly, bare feet braced against his midsection, knees jerking straight with all the force in their skinny length. Spike exhaled a rush of air, his body losing its place in holding Ed, flying back off her form.
He caught sight of amber eyes, star bursting gold around wide pupils, their fathomless depths glistening with fear and...Determination.
'oh -no-...' Spike's rump hit the pavement hard, his elbows catching his upper body as he struggled to regain the air taken from him, watching Ed roll back to her feet and bolt towards Hakeem, who was slowly raising the gun.
*****
How could anyone be so cruel?
What kind of monster could kill an animal like Ein? The dog had no enemies. He was too friendly, energetic, loyal...oh god, what if she didn't get to him in time??
"EIN!! EIN, GET OUT OF THE WAY!! BAD PERSON IS COMING!" Edward's lungs burned, her bare feet slapping the cemented street as she ran as hard as she could. In her mind's eye, she saw the fate of her best friend, were she too late. She saw the splash of blood on the brick building, heard the yelp of pain.... and her heart felt slowing of his own as the light and life of the small dog faded form his eyes..
'Ein, do not leave me now. I need you too badly..' Tears escaped the corners of her eyes, lingering in the air behind her as she ran, diamond shards in the tainted port's atmosphere. Her arms were reaching out, she was almost there...
*****
From the corner of his eyes, Hakeem saw the girl leaping to snatch up the dog, and gave pause, a slow smirk turning his dark lips.
'Two for one deal...'
*****
For Spike, the port's time continuum seemed to slow, making each second an agonizing eternity. He lurched to his feet, knowing it was futile to try to catch Ed. But if he could just reach Hakeem in time....
*****
Pain wracked the small corgi every time he attempted to rise. One leg wouldn't cooperate, but Ein couldn't stop trying now. The enemy was approaching. He could smell the death emanating from the tall man's skin..
And then the dog looked up into tearfully smiling eyes, and all in this world was right. Her frail arms closed around him, cushioning in his fur, and pulling him close. It hurt, but the pain seemed so inconsequential in comparison to the smother of her love.
He didn't protest, just buried his nose into the familiar scent of her white tee shirt.
Everything was fine, now.
And then the gunshot went off, and a child-like wail filled the air.
***On to Chapter 3, where more deep thought amongst the charactes will occur! Oh, and in answer to some of the Reviwer's questions: No, this is -not- a Spike/Ed fic. Thats just EW, cause they are basically siblings. And also, the only reason anyone was able to sneak up on Spike is cause he was being frazzled by Ed in the way only she can!***
Hey! Thanks for all the reviews guys :) I'm having a pretty easy time with this fic because I know exactly what I want to happen next (trust me, thats a first!) In this Chapter, I really made effort to establish the close relationship between Ed and Ein. Enjoy and Review, please!
~Windresss
Bending the Spoon.
Chapter 2: Out of Tune
Ein watched the enemy lift the girl, little more than pup, up in the air. Alarm bells had been ringing in the corgi's mind since he caught a whiff of Hakeem's foul presence. Now he was violating his -property.-
The small dog saw Red.
Lunging forward on his stubby legs, Ein clamped powerful jaws down on the offender's ankle and stubbornly held on.
Hakeem yowled his pain, and promptly dropped Edward to hop around on one leg, then other shaking frantically in futile effort to dislodge the tan colored dog attached to him.
Edward landed in a heap on the pavement, staring dumbly at the strange dance Hakeem practiced, seemingly oblivious to the gravety of the situation. She was quickly made aware, however, when the tall stranger managed to yank Ein from his uplifted ankle and toss him against the store's brick wall.
Ein gave a sharp yelp and fell limply to the ground.
*****
"EIN!!" Her shriek lacked its inherently playful nature, strained by the incredulity that someone could hurt the small dog.
Scrambling in a tangle of her own limbs, Edward lurched upward and made to run to the animal's side, only to be tripped and drug backward beneath the protective frame of Spike's body.
Ed thrashed, struggling against his ungiving grip on her, her eyes riveted on the unmoving form of Ein, "SPIKE! LET ED GO! ED MUST GO TO EIN! DOGGY NEEDS HELP!!"
She was hysterical, wilder than Spike had ever seen her. For such a small frame, she possessed amazing power, nearly dislodging him as he kept her from running into the fray. He knew she wouldn't stand aside and let him handle it, but this way, Spike was positive Ein didn't stand a chance. 'Why do my choices always stink?'
*****
Hakeem had had enough of this. He'd envision the torture he would wring from that chicken-legged moron now trying to keep a hold on the distraught girl, but nothing seemed to be going his way.
'Fine. I'll do it the fast way.' Still favoring one ankle, he rose and reached into his coat pocket, jerking a gun out smoothly,
'Kill'em all and be done with this shit.'
*****
"Edward, please-" Spike was cut off as he flinched, teeth snapping down on the muscle of his upper arm, "Dammit, girl, for once in your life, THINK!"
He seemed to still beneath him, and he gave a sigh of relief, continuing "If you run headlong into that guy, he'll tear you to shreds, you understand? Leave this to me." Spike glanced to her expression to see if she actually -did- understand.
But Ed wasn't listening. Her eyes were riveted upon the small Welsh Corgi which was not struggling to rise before the advancing Hakeem. 'At least she stopped fighting...' Spike thought ruefully. Which is, of course, when it came back to bite him in the ass.
Edward's anxious expression suddenly contorted in terror, and Spike was distracted by the flash of polished metal in the dingy sunlight of the street. 'A gun.'
Abruptly, bare feet braced against his midsection, knees jerking straight with all the force in their skinny length. Spike exhaled a rush of air, his body losing its place in holding Ed, flying back off her form.
He caught sight of amber eyes, star bursting gold around wide pupils, their fathomless depths glistening with fear and...Determination.
'oh -no-...' Spike's rump hit the pavement hard, his elbows catching his upper body as he struggled to regain the air taken from him, watching Ed roll back to her feet and bolt towards Hakeem, who was slowly raising the gun.
*****
How could anyone be so cruel?
What kind of monster could kill an animal like Ein? The dog had no enemies. He was too friendly, energetic, loyal...oh god, what if she didn't get to him in time??
"EIN!! EIN, GET OUT OF THE WAY!! BAD PERSON IS COMING!" Edward's lungs burned, her bare feet slapping the cemented street as she ran as hard as she could. In her mind's eye, she saw the fate of her best friend, were she too late. She saw the splash of blood on the brick building, heard the yelp of pain.... and her heart felt slowing of his own as the light and life of the small dog faded form his eyes..
'Ein, do not leave me now. I need you too badly..' Tears escaped the corners of her eyes, lingering in the air behind her as she ran, diamond shards in the tainted port's atmosphere. Her arms were reaching out, she was almost there...
*****
From the corner of his eyes, Hakeem saw the girl leaping to snatch up the dog, and gave pause, a slow smirk turning his dark lips.
'Two for one deal...'
*****
For Spike, the port's time continuum seemed to slow, making each second an agonizing eternity. He lurched to his feet, knowing it was futile to try to catch Ed. But if he could just reach Hakeem in time....
*****
Pain wracked the small corgi every time he attempted to rise. One leg wouldn't cooperate, but Ein couldn't stop trying now. The enemy was approaching. He could smell the death emanating from the tall man's skin..
And then the dog looked up into tearfully smiling eyes, and all in this world was right. Her frail arms closed around him, cushioning in his fur, and pulling him close. It hurt, but the pain seemed so inconsequential in comparison to the smother of her love.
He didn't protest, just buried his nose into the familiar scent of her white tee shirt.
Everything was fine, now.
And then the gunshot went off, and a child-like wail filled the air.
***On to Chapter 3, where more deep thought amongst the charactes will occur! Oh, and in answer to some of the Reviwer's questions: No, this is -not- a Spike/Ed fic. Thats just EW, cause they are basically siblings. And also, the only reason anyone was able to sneak up on Spike is cause he was being frazzled by Ed in the way only she can!***