An Emergency Change of Command, 11
by pari106
pari106@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/pari106/damain.html
Disclaimer: See part 1; Code: M/Z, Logan/Syl; Zane, Krit, All; Rating: PG-13
An Emergency Change of Command, 11
by pari106
"Stupid," Max muttered to herself.
"What?" Zack called over his shoulder, looking back a few paces where Max was lagging behind him on
their walk back to the cabin.
"Nothing," she snapped.
'Stupid, stupid, stupid…'
Zack just turned around without another word.
'Do…no…laugh. Do NOT laugh…'
Oh, hell, it was so hard not to laugh.
She just looked so cute…and so angry. Like a cat who'd just been given a reluctant bath. Which was a
pretty accurate analogy, actually. Zack felt his lips quirk.
He'd linger back there with her, try to cheer her up. But can you imagine anything more depressing than
having *Zack* try to cheer you up? Zack had no illusions about his own competency in the cheer
department. Or the lack thereof. Besides, he wasn't sure exactly how Max would react.
And Zack supposed he shouldn't find the situation amusing. After all this time of waiting to kiss Max, he
finally gets his chance and what happens? They fall in a lake. They had this wild, instantaneous passion
burning so strongly, it shook Zack even with the cold of the water still on his skin, and the cold Washington
air breezing by them. And they fell in a lake. Weren't cats supposed to be more graceful than that?
This time Zack did chuckle.
"What did you say?" he heard a voice asking from behind.
Zack coughed. "Nothing," he told her.
'Smooth recovery, soldier.'
'…stupid…'
Max huddled into her very wet, and suddenly very cold, jacket, mentally kicking herself. Hard.
She stared at Zack's back as they walked back to the cabin, knowing she was probably being childish by
not walking by his side, and knowing he probably noticed this, but feeling too awkward to do any
differently.
God, how could she have been so stupid?
What – she didn't see the lake sitting right there beside them? It was a big fucking lake. How the hell
could she have missed it?
Max sighed.
There could have been an army of Manticore's best doing synchronized swimming in that lake and she
would have missed it. Why bother skating around the truth? She was hopeless.
Max shivered and sighed again.
But, really, she supposed falling into the lake was only her biggest mistake of the evening. Kissing Zack
hadn't been too bright, either.
Hadn't she told herself it was impossible thinking about him that way? Hadn't she come to terms with the
fact that her chance had passed? Well, no, she hadn't. But she had at least realized that her chance had
passed, even if she was still far from coming to terms with that fact. She'd told herself that she wouldn't
try to burden Zack with her feelings now that it was too late for him to accept them. She'd told herself she
would behave around him the way she always had. He'd already been through too much because of her. It
would just be mean to tell him she loved him now, after he'd just given up on the love he'd once had for
her.
Or maybe he'd never really loved her that way. Maybe he'd just thought that he had. Or maybe Max had
misinterpreted his feelings. Maybe he really did just see her as his little sister. Either way, he probably
wasn't too thrilled about her literally throwing herself at him, and then throwing them into a lake.
He probably thought she was crazy. Or silly. He was probably annoyed or angry or disgusted…
But it didn't look like he was any of that.
Max stared at Zack's back, trying not to hope, but her heart began to pace again, regardless.
He didn't look annoyed or angry. He certainly hadn't looked disgusted when…
Max nearly stumbled over her own feet, thinking about the kiss.
He hadn't looked disgusted when they'd kissed. In fact, he…he'd kissed her back, hadn't he? Wildly.
Passionately. He'd kissed her back.
But before Max could ponder this fact any further, Zack stopped, and Max stopped, too, hearing exactly
what Zack had. The sound of …a fistfight?
At first, Max couldn't understand what could be going on. Earlier, she had other things on her mind. She
was so relieved that Zack was okay, she hadn't thought too much about how that could be. About why
Zane had let them spend the last day or so in agony, thinking Zack was hurt, or worse.
Now that she did, Max decided she should probably be pretty pissed off. Perhaps she would be. Later.
Right now there was another matter with which they had to contend.
Because if she'd just learned that Zack was okay, then Zane was probably telling the others the same thing.
And after their initial relief, they probably weren't too happy with the confession.
Obviously they weren't, as was proven by the sounds of punches being thrown and curses being cursed that
Max and Zack heard, with their ultra-sensitive ears, coming from the other side of the cabin.
Max and Zack looked at one another as one particularly colorful adjective reached them, and they both said
the same thing.
"Krit."
Then they ran to Zane's rescue.
**** ****
"You son of a …"
"Damn it, Krit! If you'd just…"
"Listen to this, brother."
Krit's fist flew again, and Zane ducked, just in time, missing the shot by not even an inch. Krit's blow
connected with the door of Zane's truck, by which he'd been standing, and he winced, thinking of the
bodywork it would need now.
"Jesus, Krit!"
His little brother was smaller, more wiry. But he was also faster, and probably the most confrontational of
the X5 brothers, even more so than Zack. And he packed one hell of a punch.
He also had a very slow building temper. But a very hot burning one, at that.
Zane rolled, missing a kick that would have cracked a rib or two.
"A little help would be nice!" he called to Syl, who was sitting on his front steps. Laughing. She was
laughing. How nice.
And she was petting Fluffy, who apparently took little offense to watching a complete stranger beat the
holy living hell out of his master.
"Kill, Fluffy! Kill!" Zane commanded.
The dog just tilted its head at him..
Traitors, all of them.
"You made your infirmary bed, brother. Now you can suffer in it," his sister quipped.
Finally, Zane leapt back to his feet. Okay, he didn't like to fight, but enough was enough. He held up his
hands.
"Look, Krit…"
Another dodge, and he'd just barely missed another punch from his brother.
"Krit…"
But this time, the voice speaking wasn't Zane's. Syl looked up from her seat on the steps, and Krit swung
around and saw…
"Zack!"
Krit's fist fell to his side. It was Zack! And his eyes lit, just a moment, with relief and brotherly affection.
Then they sparked hot again. Hey, this was Zack. And he'd let Krit worry his ass off for the last day and a
half.
"Krit…" Zack started to say something, but never finished. Because then Krit's fist hit his jaw.
Zack was so surprised, the blow knocked him to the ground.
Everything stilled. Everyone was quiet.
And then Zane let out a low, breathy whistle that was too horrified to contain any laughter. Krit was a
brave man, indeed. Punching out the Alpha male?
"Oooh. That was not a good idea."
Zack was surprised. Hell, Krit was surprised. And then that little muscle in Zack's jaw flinched, just a
little. That little flinch that told you something not good was on its way.
And Krit took off as if the demon hounds of Hell were nipping at his heels. Zack took off after him.
So Zane just brushed the dust off his jeans, watching them go with a smile on his face. Then he felt Max
walk up beside him.
"Hey, Maxie!"
The pain in his swollen lip and the new dents to his truck were forgotten, as Zane realized he hadn't yet had
the chance to greet his baby sister.
"Zane!"
Max, likewise, put other things aside, for just a moment, to enjoy the privilege of seeing her brother again,
after so long. She grinned, pulling him into a hug.
"God, it's been too long," Zane said, before pulling back. "I thought you'd be mad at me. You know,
because of the phone call thing?"
Max leaned in close. "I am," she said. She never stopped smiling.
Then she decked him.
And from his new perceptive lying on the ground, Zane watched Max and Syl walk into the cabin, hugging
and exchanging hellos. Patting his goddamned dog on the head, as it tagged happily behind them, wagging
up a storm.
Zane sighed.
Ah, the joy of familial love.
by pari106
pari106@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/pari106/damain.html
Disclaimer: See part 1; Code: M/Z, Logan/Syl; Zane, Krit, All; Rating: PG-13
An Emergency Change of Command, 11
by pari106
"Stupid," Max muttered to herself.
"What?" Zack called over his shoulder, looking back a few paces where Max was lagging behind him on
their walk back to the cabin.
"Nothing," she snapped.
'Stupid, stupid, stupid…'
Zack just turned around without another word.
'Do…no…laugh. Do NOT laugh…'
Oh, hell, it was so hard not to laugh.
She just looked so cute…and so angry. Like a cat who'd just been given a reluctant bath. Which was a
pretty accurate analogy, actually. Zack felt his lips quirk.
He'd linger back there with her, try to cheer her up. But can you imagine anything more depressing than
having *Zack* try to cheer you up? Zack had no illusions about his own competency in the cheer
department. Or the lack thereof. Besides, he wasn't sure exactly how Max would react.
And Zack supposed he shouldn't find the situation amusing. After all this time of waiting to kiss Max, he
finally gets his chance and what happens? They fall in a lake. They had this wild, instantaneous passion
burning so strongly, it shook Zack even with the cold of the water still on his skin, and the cold Washington
air breezing by them. And they fell in a lake. Weren't cats supposed to be more graceful than that?
This time Zack did chuckle.
"What did you say?" he heard a voice asking from behind.
Zack coughed. "Nothing," he told her.
'Smooth recovery, soldier.'
'…stupid…'
Max huddled into her very wet, and suddenly very cold, jacket, mentally kicking herself. Hard.
She stared at Zack's back as they walked back to the cabin, knowing she was probably being childish by
not walking by his side, and knowing he probably noticed this, but feeling too awkward to do any
differently.
God, how could she have been so stupid?
What – she didn't see the lake sitting right there beside them? It was a big fucking lake. How the hell
could she have missed it?
Max sighed.
There could have been an army of Manticore's best doing synchronized swimming in that lake and she
would have missed it. Why bother skating around the truth? She was hopeless.
Max shivered and sighed again.
But, really, she supposed falling into the lake was only her biggest mistake of the evening. Kissing Zack
hadn't been too bright, either.
Hadn't she told herself it was impossible thinking about him that way? Hadn't she come to terms with the
fact that her chance had passed? Well, no, she hadn't. But she had at least realized that her chance had
passed, even if she was still far from coming to terms with that fact. She'd told herself that she wouldn't
try to burden Zack with her feelings now that it was too late for him to accept them. She'd told herself she
would behave around him the way she always had. He'd already been through too much because of her. It
would just be mean to tell him she loved him now, after he'd just given up on the love he'd once had for
her.
Or maybe he'd never really loved her that way. Maybe he'd just thought that he had. Or maybe Max had
misinterpreted his feelings. Maybe he really did just see her as his little sister. Either way, he probably
wasn't too thrilled about her literally throwing herself at him, and then throwing them into a lake.
He probably thought she was crazy. Or silly. He was probably annoyed or angry or disgusted…
But it didn't look like he was any of that.
Max stared at Zack's back, trying not to hope, but her heart began to pace again, regardless.
He didn't look annoyed or angry. He certainly hadn't looked disgusted when…
Max nearly stumbled over her own feet, thinking about the kiss.
He hadn't looked disgusted when they'd kissed. In fact, he…he'd kissed her back, hadn't he? Wildly.
Passionately. He'd kissed her back.
But before Max could ponder this fact any further, Zack stopped, and Max stopped, too, hearing exactly
what Zack had. The sound of …a fistfight?
At first, Max couldn't understand what could be going on. Earlier, she had other things on her mind. She
was so relieved that Zack was okay, she hadn't thought too much about how that could be. About why
Zane had let them spend the last day or so in agony, thinking Zack was hurt, or worse.
Now that she did, Max decided she should probably be pretty pissed off. Perhaps she would be. Later.
Right now there was another matter with which they had to contend.
Because if she'd just learned that Zack was okay, then Zane was probably telling the others the same thing.
And after their initial relief, they probably weren't too happy with the confession.
Obviously they weren't, as was proven by the sounds of punches being thrown and curses being cursed that
Max and Zack heard, with their ultra-sensitive ears, coming from the other side of the cabin.
Max and Zack looked at one another as one particularly colorful adjective reached them, and they both said
the same thing.
"Krit."
Then they ran to Zane's rescue.
**** ****
"You son of a …"
"Damn it, Krit! If you'd just…"
"Listen to this, brother."
Krit's fist flew again, and Zane ducked, just in time, missing the shot by not even an inch. Krit's blow
connected with the door of Zane's truck, by which he'd been standing, and he winced, thinking of the
bodywork it would need now.
"Jesus, Krit!"
His little brother was smaller, more wiry. But he was also faster, and probably the most confrontational of
the X5 brothers, even more so than Zack. And he packed one hell of a punch.
He also had a very slow building temper. But a very hot burning one, at that.
Zane rolled, missing a kick that would have cracked a rib or two.
"A little help would be nice!" he called to Syl, who was sitting on his front steps. Laughing. She was
laughing. How nice.
And she was petting Fluffy, who apparently took little offense to watching a complete stranger beat the
holy living hell out of his master.
"Kill, Fluffy! Kill!" Zane commanded.
The dog just tilted its head at him..
Traitors, all of them.
"You made your infirmary bed, brother. Now you can suffer in it," his sister quipped.
Finally, Zane leapt back to his feet. Okay, he didn't like to fight, but enough was enough. He held up his
hands.
"Look, Krit…"
Another dodge, and he'd just barely missed another punch from his brother.
"Krit…"
But this time, the voice speaking wasn't Zane's. Syl looked up from her seat on the steps, and Krit swung
around and saw…
"Zack!"
Krit's fist fell to his side. It was Zack! And his eyes lit, just a moment, with relief and brotherly affection.
Then they sparked hot again. Hey, this was Zack. And he'd let Krit worry his ass off for the last day and a
half.
"Krit…" Zack started to say something, but never finished. Because then Krit's fist hit his jaw.
Zack was so surprised, the blow knocked him to the ground.
Everything stilled. Everyone was quiet.
And then Zane let out a low, breathy whistle that was too horrified to contain any laughter. Krit was a
brave man, indeed. Punching out the Alpha male?
"Oooh. That was not a good idea."
Zack was surprised. Hell, Krit was surprised. And then that little muscle in Zack's jaw flinched, just a
little. That little flinch that told you something not good was on its way.
And Krit took off as if the demon hounds of Hell were nipping at his heels. Zack took off after him.
So Zane just brushed the dust off his jeans, watching them go with a smile on his face. Then he felt Max
walk up beside him.
"Hey, Maxie!"
The pain in his swollen lip and the new dents to his truck were forgotten, as Zane realized he hadn't yet had
the chance to greet his baby sister.
"Zane!"
Max, likewise, put other things aside, for just a moment, to enjoy the privilege of seeing her brother again,
after so long. She grinned, pulling him into a hug.
"God, it's been too long," Zane said, before pulling back. "I thought you'd be mad at me. You know,
because of the phone call thing?"
Max leaned in close. "I am," she said. She never stopped smiling.
Then she decked him.
And from his new perceptive lying on the ground, Zane watched Max and Syl walk into the cabin, hugging
and exchanging hellos. Patting his goddamned dog on the head, as it tagged happily behind them, wagging
up a storm.
Zane sighed.
Ah, the joy of familial love.
