Chapter 5: Prescott Park
"What have you done to me?!" Li screamed. It echoed through out the mansion, making Serafina look up from her knitting, and causing Jack and Will to knock over several chess pieces.
Li stared at her reflection. She did look good, but since when did a punk rocker wear a sapphire blue V-neck dress made out of slinky satin and ending at 3 inches above the knee? Since never!
She should have known that something was up when Morgan took over their body for a while. She had been out last night and she never came out twice in twenty four hours unless she was up to something.
"But you look good in it," Elizabeth protested as Li examined the makeup that Morgan had applied.
Smokey-grey eye shadow, black-blue eye liner, jet black mascara. Not too bad for someone that acted like she lived in the Medieval Era. Her hair was up in a messy bun, a few strands framing her face. She looked down at her feet and found 2 inch high heel sandals that were the same color as the dress.
"I can't believe that you two did this to me!" Li moaned as she sunk to the bed. "Do you really expect me to wear this to Prescott Park? I do have a reputation to uphold you know!"
"Well, there's nothing that you can do about it now. We have to leave in 15 minutes if we are going to make it on time," Elizabeth pointed out.
"And you aren't picking out a dress because?" Li asked, looking at the clock and finding that Elizabeth was correct. It took 5 minutes to get to Prescott Park if they were going to walk, which they had decided was easier then trying to find a parking spot.
"Because I already have it picked out. Morgan helped me with my makeup and all I need to do is change." Elizabeth disappeared into Li's bathroom and came out a few minutes later. She was dressed in a cream colored sundress that had a rose pattern on it and ended at her knees. She slipped on a pair of rose red flip flops and twirled for Li.
"Definitely you," Li said as she stood to brush her teeth. When she was finished, she jogged down the stairs to the living room, where Elizabeth was waiting with the men.
Li entered the room and felt her heart jump into her throat. Jack was wearing a sapphire blue tee-shirt under a black dress shirt, together with a pair of dark blue jeans. She blushed as she realized that Morgan and Elizabeth had tried to make them look like a couple. Will was dressed similarly to Jack, in a cream dress shirt with a red tee and a pair of normal jeans.
"Shall we go?" she managed to choke out as she led the way to the front door. She found that her normal black leather pocketbook had been replaced with a purse the same color as her dress. Shaking her head she walked out and waited for everyone to leave, before locking the door.
Elizabeth and Will held hands as they walked down the street. As Li rolled her eyes at the couple, Elizabeth gave Jack a meaningful glare. Jack glared right back, then jogged to catch up with Li, who had gone ahead.
"Are you mad at Elizabeth and Will, darling?" he asked quietly in her ear, slipping his hand around hers.
Li glanced down in shock at their intertwined hands, then looked back up and adjusted his hand so she could hold his as well. "Why would you think that I'm mad at them? They're like a brother and sister to me," Li responded, just as quietly. "Albeit an annoying older sister and brother," she added as an afterthought.
"So, them acting all lovey-dovey doesn't make you jealous?" Jack said as they walked past a pretzel stand.
"Nope. Because I know that they are doing it just to make us feel guilty for not being a couple so that we will get together, thereby pulling off their scheme to get you a lady." Li stopped to sniff a flower, waiting for the couple under question catch up.
"I told them that you were smart enough to pick up their plan!" Jack exclaimed proudly.
"You figured us out?" Elizabeth moaned, standing next to Li.
Li looked from her, to Jack, to Will then back at her before saying, "I was just kidding. . ."
"Right." Elizabeth nodded. "Let's keep going, shall we?"
The rest of the way to Prescott Park was uneventful and Li was glad to see that May and Heero had saved them space.
"What do we need all this room for?" Jack asked, eyeing the rather large bit of grass that May and Heero had staked out.
"You are going to learn how to dance," Li announced. "And I don't want any collective groans from anyone."
"Ladies and Gentlemen! If you would direct your attention to the stage, please," the announcer called into the mike, making Elizabeth, Will and Jack jump 3 feet in the air. "Tonight's band is the locally known Fallen Dream!"
The band came running out onto the stage, waving and yelling to the crowd. They quickly took their places and began to play a fast tune.
I woke up this morning with a buzz rollin' 'round in my brain
I haven't been drinkin' but it feels pretty good just the same
It must be contagious - looks like it's goin' around
It's cool once you catch it - you can't keep you feet on the ground
Li laughed as she watched May and Heero start to dance. Elizabeth and Will watched them for a moment or two, then began to mimic the moves.
"What are they doing?" Jack asked Li softly.
It took Li a moment to answer, Jack's warm breath on her neck was very distracting to her. "They're dancing," she managed to choke out. After clearing her throat a couple of times she asked, "Would you like me to teach you how?"
Jack looked at her for a minute, glanced at the couples around them, and smiled. "Sure."
Li smiled back and started to teach him some of the basic dance moves that were popular at clubs.
C'mon, c'mon - let's get something started
C'mon, c'mon - let's start something now
We're gonna rock this country
We're gonna rock this country
Every brown eyed boy - every blue-eyed girl
Gotta really go psycho - give it a whirl
We're gonna rock this country
Right out of this world
Li laughed as Jack tried to copy her. She showed him again and he made another attempt.
Elizabeth smiled, pointing them out to Will.
"It's about time that he got a girlfriend," Will whispered in her ear, making her giggle.
"Like you didn't take long enough yourself," Elizabeth replied.
"I didn't want to make you jealous," Will said, innocence plastered onto his face.
They both started to laugh softly.
May and Heero watched Li and Jack. They looked so used to each other that it was hard to believe that they hadn't been together all their lives.
From Utah to Texas, Minnesota, Mississippi too
Or Nevada, no matter where you live - this buzz is for you
C'mon, c'mon - let's get something started
C'mon, c'mon - let's start something now
We're gonna rock this country
We're gonna rock this country
Every brown eyed boy - every blue-eyed girl
Gotta really go psycho - give it a whirl
We're gonna rock this country
Right out of this world
Li was having the best time in her life. Teaching a hot guy to dance was* a very fun thing to do. And Jack was trying his hardest to learn. She watched Elizabeth and Will over Jack's left shoulder. They had learned quickly by watching the other dancers in that area.
May and Heero were spinning around in a circle, hands linked. When they got pulled apart by the force, May fell to the ground and stayed there, her eyes closed and face green. She opened her eyes and sat up.
"Stop the world! I wanna get off!" she wailed. Heero helped her stand and go sit in one of the chairs they had brought.
We're pluggin' in the power
Crankin' up the sound
It's comin' your direction
It's headin' to your town
We're kicking up dust
Blowin' off steam
Let's get nuts now
Everybody scream
Jack had finally gotten some of the moves down, leaving Li and him to dance freely. He noticed May and Heero watching them, and a quick glance to his right told him that Elizabeth and Will were watching them too. EVERYONE wanted him and Li to become a couple. He looked down at her face and saw the biggest smile that he had ever seen on her face.
We're gonna rock this country
We're gonna rock this country
Every brown eyed boy - every blue-eyed girl
Gotta really go psycho - give it a whirl
We're gonna rock this country
Right out of this world
Smiling up at Jack, Li decided that she was going to take a break. The soft expression in his eyes had made it hard to breathe.
But before she could excuse herself, the band started to play one of her favorites from when she was in college.
How do I get through one night without you
If I had to live without you
"Do you want me to teach you how to slow dance?" Li asked Jack, blushing slightly. She hadn't slow danced with a guy since prom night, almost 5 ½ years ago.
"Okay," Jack agreed.
"Come here," she said, leading the way over to Will and Elizabeth. "I'm going to teach you how to slow dance," she announced. She made Will and Elizabeth stand face to face and put Will's hands on Elizabeth's waist and Elizabeth's hands on his shoulders. "Now, sway back and forth and slowly rotate in a circle. That's how we slow dance in my time."
Will and Elizabeth obeyed and found that they didn't mind as much.
Li led Jack back over to their spot and put her hands around his neck. He wrapped his arms around her waist and they started to dance, although they were a bit closer than Will and Elizabeth.
"Why are they the couple that's the farthest apart?" Jack whispered in her ear.
"Because I didn't think that Mr. and Mrs. Prim 'n' Proper could handle being that close together in public. It was a hard enough fight to get Elizabeth to wear pants without her exclaiming about Daddy," Li whispered back with a giggle.
"I see. And you thought that I could handle because?"
"You're a pirate. You probable go to Port Tortuga just to feel wanted," Li teased, reminding Jack of all the times that he *had* gone, only to get slapped by the women.
"How do you know about Tortuga?" Jack asked bewildered.
"Do you really think that as a witch, I would not use my powers to the fullest extent? I went there once. Had some drunk old man try to hand me a bottle of rum. He got it all over my dress." Li chuckled at the memory.
I'd be lost without you
I want to know
How do I breathe without you
If you ever go
How do I ever, ever survive
How do I, how do I
Oh how do I live
"YOU went to TORTUGA?" Jack repeated in amazement. "A sophisticated lady like yourself?"
"Jack, there is nothing refined about me. Unless you count the fact that I have this thing with my house being clean." Li shook her head.
"So, you are telling me that you went to Tortuga, had some rouge dump rum on you and you still stayed there?" Jack raised an eyebrow.
"I only stayed because I wanted to see the sights. Have you ever been to some of the glass blowers there? It's very interesting." Li looked up at him innocently, making him laugh.
"Love, you could never pass off as innocent. Your eyes have to much mischief in them, and the corners of your mouth quirk up when you do that," Jack observed.
"I can only try," Li sighed.
How do I, how do I
Oh how do I live
How do I live without you
Without you baby
The song ended and they broke apart, although Jack took her hand as they walked back over to May and Heero for a drink.
"Toss me a Coke," Li asked May, who tossed her one. Li opened it and held it away from her so that it didn't explode all over her.
"Do you have any rum?" Jack asked Heero, who was drinking a beer (mixed with gunpowder).
"No alcohol for you, my pirate," Li cut in, pushing him down onto one of the lawn chairs that she had pulled out of her pocketbook (she had spelled it to be like hammerspace). "You can have some of my Coke, but I refuse to escort a drunken pirate home." She sat on his knee and handed him the can. "Now, take a small sip at first. It has bubbles in it."
Li laughed at his face when he took the first sip.
The band started to play another song after having a drink and the group got up to dance again.
* * *
"That was fun," Li yawned as they walked through that front door at 11 o'clock that night. The band had been fun and they had danced almost the whole time.
Li got to the bottom of the stairs, looked up at them, looked at the inviting couches in the parlor, and back up at the stairs. "I forgot about the stairs," she groaned. She sat on the bottom one and started to pull off her heels. "There is no way in hell that I am going to make it up these gifts from the devil."
Elizabeth and Will just looked at each other and shrugged, making their way up the stairs around Li. Li looked up after them and at their joined hands. "YOU TWO HAD BETTER BE IN SEPARATE BEDS WHEN I GET UP THERE!" Li yelled after them as they started up the second flight of stairs.
"Do you want help?" Jack asked as Li attempted to pull herself up. (A/N: remember, she is more tired then them because Morgan decided to show up in the middle of the night to wreak havoc on her sleep!)
"Please?" Li asked, barely staying upright with the banister.
Jack only chuckled at her and swept her up, bridal-style, and started up the stairs. "Comfy?" he asked as she snuggled into his warmth.
"Very," she mumbled, already half asleep.
Jack shook his head as she lost consciousness and finished carrying her up to her room.
He kicked open her door gently and laid her on the bed. He watched her sleep for a few minutes, before kissing her forehead and slipping off to his own room.
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OK. I know that it wasn't the most informative chapter, but the story needed fluff! The two songs that I used were - Rock This Country (Shania Twain) and How Do I Live (Trisha Yearwood). I apologize to those that thought that this chapter was a bit song ficcy. It was. I admit it. Well review and tell me what you think.
Have you ever noticed that some author[ess']s put READ & review at the end of a chapter? No offense to anyone that does (God only knows how many times that I have). But isn't that rather pointless? I mean, to be reading the end of the fic and the author[ess']s note, you would have had to read the fic already, right? ANY WAYS!
Ciao! (and read my new Harry Potter fics = Doing Somersaults and Is This One Here To Stay?!)