When Ian returned, he found Sara on the couch, sitting watching the fire,
thinking. She looked up as he walked over and sat down beside her,
cautiously slipping an arm around her shoulders. She rewarded him with a
smile, letting him know that it was right.
"I'm sorry I almost went off on him, I know it was a stupid thing to do,
but I was so angry, so hurt for you."
"It was a long time ago, I had almost forgotten myself. I just did not want you to think.differently of me. I have spent so long being the outsider, with only my Father to accept me. Now that I have found you, I could not bear the thought of that changing, of being alone like that again."
"Nothing is going to make that happen, no matter what I am more convinced than ever that this is right." Ian let out a breath he was not even aware he had been holding. "Unless you change yours?" she asked a little cautiously. This was all so new and it frightened her a little.
"No never. I have waited a lifetime to find you. Nothing could make me give you up now, not unless you decide that you no longer want me." The sincerity in his voice was chilling, the fact that she had so much power over him.
"Ian, stop. Don't put this all on me. A relationship is composed of TWO people. You have a choice, you can decide to say no as well. I am not going to run your life for you, not now, not ever. I thought I had made that clear. I will not do it. You can't trade one master for another, even for love." Her voice was sharper than she intended but she did not want to have this conversation with him now. Or ever if she was honest with herself. But they needed to, she just wished it had happened later.
"I'm sorry, Sara. I do not mean it that way. I know I have to make my own way. I want to do that, to be a true partner to you," he looked at her, a shy, pleading glance. "But I may need to lean on you a little. While I find my way?"
It was hard for Sara to picture, the big, deadly assassin needing to lean on her. But with that big eyed innocent look on his face she couldn't resist.
"All right, but just a little," she said with a smile. He leaned over and gave her a kiss, pulling her close to him.
"And now," Ian said, looking at his pocket watch. "I believe your friend Gabriel will be arriving at any moment for his first assessment of the task at hand." Sara started to respond when a knock at the door caused them both to turn. Wilson opened the door to admit the young antiquities dealer. Sara gave Ian a look of surprise.
"How."
"I will show you, Sara, some day," he told her with a smile, a promising look in his eye.
Gabriel Bowman entered the large room cautiously. It was not that he was intimidated by the mansion or even that he was particularly afraid of Nottingham. He was, but the conversation with the man the other night had eased his fears somewhat and they had a mutual interest in old things. What was bothering him was the task itself. The collection was legendary and he was being brought in to take care, to catalogue and research. It was a formidable task; Irons had systematically bought all of the available artifacts and manuscripts with a bearing on the Witchblade. It was very important; Sara needed the information in order to understand the strange turn her life had taken. He walked into the room, taking in the sight of the two of them curled up on the couch in a very cozy position. It made him feel a little more comfortable, just a little. He was a touch jealous at the sight, but quashed the feelings. He had known from the beginning that she was not of his world.
Ian stood up and offered his hand to the young man. Gabriel took it cautiously, shaking it and then turning to give Sara a quick and careful hug, his eyes on Ian the whole time. It seemed that the two of them had settled their differences in a big way but he refrained from saying anything. It still stung just a little, to know that she was now well beyond his reach.
"Gabriel, glad you came, you are a lifesaver," Sara said, trying to make him more comfortable.
"Yeah well, anything for a friend and all that," he said a touch embarrassed.
"This is a touch more than that, Mr. Bowman, as you well know," Ian said with a smile. "It is an opportunity for all concerned. Would you like to take a look at what you have volunteered for?"
"You bet," Gabriel said, excitement overriding everything else. Ian laughed a little; the boy's enthusiasm was contagious. He felt like a child showing off his toy collection. In many ways he was, he thought, showing off the only friends he had had for a very long time. And now he had someone to share them with, someone besides his father who understood his passion, or at least his old one, he thought with a bit of a smile.
"Come then, we will begin with the Gallery and I will show you where you can set up. Sara?"
"You guys go ahead, I think I will just sit here and wait." This would give the two of them a chance to talk and settle things between them without her around to distract them or cause tension, for them to find their common ground.
"If you are certain," Ian asked questioningly, as she waved them both on.
"Go, have fun." She didn't want a reoccurrence of last night's visions and the gallery was just ripe with them. Ian did not exactly have friends of his own yet and everything would be much easier if her friends accepted him. Actually he and Gabriel had at least one interest in common, and she was pretty sure that once he and Danny had a chance to talk martial arts, she was going to have trouble getting a word in edgewise. The thought of the two of them sparring together was enough to get her heart racing. Talk about poetry in motion, like a deadly pas de deux between two premier dancers.
Lost in thought, she was startled when she heard the knock at the door. "Come in?" she said a little cautiously. She had no idea what to say and did not want to be pushy, giving orders in Ian's house when she didn't even know the rules. Wilson entered with a coffee tray, accompanied by the sound of claws. Walking next to him were Caillian and little Maria, trotting as fast as her paws could carry her.
"Mr. Nottingham asked that I bring you some coffee, Miss. I am afraid that the dogs got away from me. I will remove them if you like."
"No thank you," she said, lifting the puppy into her lap. "I could use the company."
"Very well," he said with a smile. "If you need anything, or have any questions." His tone was kind and she turned in time to catch the look on his face. He was trying to make a decision, how far should he go? What could he do to make her more at ease here? "Miss?" he asked.
"Yeah?"
"This is hard to say, and perhaps not my place, but speaking for the staff, we are very happy to have you here. It has been hard for him, and your presence makes it easier. I.I have said too much," he looked embarrassed and started towards the door.
"Wilson," Sara said, stopping him with her voice. He turned to look at her. "I think I understand. Thank you." He nodded briefly, his face once more the carefully schooled mask.
"If you need anything, Miss, just press number ten on the intercom and it will be seen to." He turned and left the room before his feelings got the best of him. She was, in fact, the right one for Ian, he knew that now, all would be well.
Sara sat on the couch staring at the fire, her hand negligently petting the sleeping puppy. She was not sure how it had happened but she had become accepted by the staff, the closest thing to family that Ian had left in the world, except perhaps his remaining Black Dragon buddies and there seemed to be some sort of rift there. She wondered at that briefly, but it was a thought for another time and place. Wilson's words on the other hand were current, new and very surprising. It made her feel good to be accepted, even though the whole thing was still a little strange. She would have to ask Ian at some point what she was supposed to do, how to act around them. As it was she was still trying to get her bearings. She wondered when Ian would return. She didn't want to disturb him and Gabriel, not only was the work important but she wanted them to work things out between them. Sara needed to think, to get a hold of herself before Danny came and started asking hard questions and getting hard answers. It was difficult, to bring him into this, to worry about the effect on their friendship, their partnership. She wished she could explain everything to him, but he had a family and she would not do anything to put his job at risk.
Ian entered the room, breaking her out of her thoughts. He moved over to her with a smile, settling next to her, with the puppy wiggling over to him for a little attention.
"I see that you have had company while I was away," he said as he slipped his arm around her shoulders, pleased when she leaned into him. "Gabriel will do very well I think."
"Yeah, but now that he is on it, you may have a little trouble getting rid of him."
"He has already settled in, and I made arrangements for the staff to attend to his needs, so he will at least get fed," he told her, laughing. It had been a real pleasure to talk to him about the Witchblade, about what they needed to know, and about the artifacts in general. It was nice to connect with someone other than Sara at a personal level, to find someone who could even become a friend. It was nice to find that he suddenly wanted to have a friend, for so long he had thought that he did not need them. His father had believed that they would only distract him from him from his destiny. It was something that he was still getting used to, that his father's beliefs were not necessarily his own. Sara was once again staring into the fire, the concern plain on her face. He reached out and stroked her cheek, drawing her attention back to him.
"One down." she said with a sigh as he looked down at her.
"Yes, one down, and now the hard part. Are you sure you want to be here. I don't want you to be anymore involved than absolutely necessary."
"Ian, I am involved. He is my partner, we have to make this work, and my presence will go a long way to helping with credibility," she said to him, smiling. "Besides, someone needs to keep an eye on the two of you." She grinned at him, taking the sting out of her words.
"Sara, you know I will be on my best behavior," he said to her, a smile on his face. He leaned down and began to kiss her, when they both heard the doors open, Wilson entered the den with a tray containing lunch and more coffee. They both looked up at the same time but Wilson gave no sign that he had noticed them. The puppy leaped off their laps and ran across to him, sniffing his shoes before running back to Ian. Wilson set the tray down on the large table, and turned to him.
"Lunch, Sir, shall I remove the dogs?" he asked.
"No, that is all right. I think that this one has gotten rather attached to Sara, you can leave them for now," he said as the puppy ran over and attempted to scale his leg. He picked her up and sat her in Sara's lap as Caillian came over and put her head onto his leg.
"Very well, Sir, if there is nothing else?" he inquired.
"No, the next guest is not expected for another hour or so," he said, checking his pocket watch. "We will probably want fresh coffee by then."
"Of course," Wilson responded, a touch reproachfully. Ian looked down at the rebuke, but smiled as well. He nodded his acceptance at the implied apology and left the room closing the doors behind him, a secret smile on his face.
"It was a long time ago, I had almost forgotten myself. I just did not want you to think.differently of me. I have spent so long being the outsider, with only my Father to accept me. Now that I have found you, I could not bear the thought of that changing, of being alone like that again."
"Nothing is going to make that happen, no matter what I am more convinced than ever that this is right." Ian let out a breath he was not even aware he had been holding. "Unless you change yours?" she asked a little cautiously. This was all so new and it frightened her a little.
"No never. I have waited a lifetime to find you. Nothing could make me give you up now, not unless you decide that you no longer want me." The sincerity in his voice was chilling, the fact that she had so much power over him.
"Ian, stop. Don't put this all on me. A relationship is composed of TWO people. You have a choice, you can decide to say no as well. I am not going to run your life for you, not now, not ever. I thought I had made that clear. I will not do it. You can't trade one master for another, even for love." Her voice was sharper than she intended but she did not want to have this conversation with him now. Or ever if she was honest with herself. But they needed to, she just wished it had happened later.
"I'm sorry, Sara. I do not mean it that way. I know I have to make my own way. I want to do that, to be a true partner to you," he looked at her, a shy, pleading glance. "But I may need to lean on you a little. While I find my way?"
It was hard for Sara to picture, the big, deadly assassin needing to lean on her. But with that big eyed innocent look on his face she couldn't resist.
"All right, but just a little," she said with a smile. He leaned over and gave her a kiss, pulling her close to him.
"And now," Ian said, looking at his pocket watch. "I believe your friend Gabriel will be arriving at any moment for his first assessment of the task at hand." Sara started to respond when a knock at the door caused them both to turn. Wilson opened the door to admit the young antiquities dealer. Sara gave Ian a look of surprise.
"How."
"I will show you, Sara, some day," he told her with a smile, a promising look in his eye.
Gabriel Bowman entered the large room cautiously. It was not that he was intimidated by the mansion or even that he was particularly afraid of Nottingham. He was, but the conversation with the man the other night had eased his fears somewhat and they had a mutual interest in old things. What was bothering him was the task itself. The collection was legendary and he was being brought in to take care, to catalogue and research. It was a formidable task; Irons had systematically bought all of the available artifacts and manuscripts with a bearing on the Witchblade. It was very important; Sara needed the information in order to understand the strange turn her life had taken. He walked into the room, taking in the sight of the two of them curled up on the couch in a very cozy position. It made him feel a little more comfortable, just a little. He was a touch jealous at the sight, but quashed the feelings. He had known from the beginning that she was not of his world.
Ian stood up and offered his hand to the young man. Gabriel took it cautiously, shaking it and then turning to give Sara a quick and careful hug, his eyes on Ian the whole time. It seemed that the two of them had settled their differences in a big way but he refrained from saying anything. It still stung just a little, to know that she was now well beyond his reach.
"Gabriel, glad you came, you are a lifesaver," Sara said, trying to make him more comfortable.
"Yeah well, anything for a friend and all that," he said a touch embarrassed.
"This is a touch more than that, Mr. Bowman, as you well know," Ian said with a smile. "It is an opportunity for all concerned. Would you like to take a look at what you have volunteered for?"
"You bet," Gabriel said, excitement overriding everything else. Ian laughed a little; the boy's enthusiasm was contagious. He felt like a child showing off his toy collection. In many ways he was, he thought, showing off the only friends he had had for a very long time. And now he had someone to share them with, someone besides his father who understood his passion, or at least his old one, he thought with a bit of a smile.
"Come then, we will begin with the Gallery and I will show you where you can set up. Sara?"
"You guys go ahead, I think I will just sit here and wait." This would give the two of them a chance to talk and settle things between them without her around to distract them or cause tension, for them to find their common ground.
"If you are certain," Ian asked questioningly, as she waved them both on.
"Go, have fun." She didn't want a reoccurrence of last night's visions and the gallery was just ripe with them. Ian did not exactly have friends of his own yet and everything would be much easier if her friends accepted him. Actually he and Gabriel had at least one interest in common, and she was pretty sure that once he and Danny had a chance to talk martial arts, she was going to have trouble getting a word in edgewise. The thought of the two of them sparring together was enough to get her heart racing. Talk about poetry in motion, like a deadly pas de deux between two premier dancers.
Lost in thought, she was startled when she heard the knock at the door. "Come in?" she said a little cautiously. She had no idea what to say and did not want to be pushy, giving orders in Ian's house when she didn't even know the rules. Wilson entered with a coffee tray, accompanied by the sound of claws. Walking next to him were Caillian and little Maria, trotting as fast as her paws could carry her.
"Mr. Nottingham asked that I bring you some coffee, Miss. I am afraid that the dogs got away from me. I will remove them if you like."
"No thank you," she said, lifting the puppy into her lap. "I could use the company."
"Very well," he said with a smile. "If you need anything, or have any questions." His tone was kind and she turned in time to catch the look on his face. He was trying to make a decision, how far should he go? What could he do to make her more at ease here? "Miss?" he asked.
"Yeah?"
"This is hard to say, and perhaps not my place, but speaking for the staff, we are very happy to have you here. It has been hard for him, and your presence makes it easier. I.I have said too much," he looked embarrassed and started towards the door.
"Wilson," Sara said, stopping him with her voice. He turned to look at her. "I think I understand. Thank you." He nodded briefly, his face once more the carefully schooled mask.
"If you need anything, Miss, just press number ten on the intercom and it will be seen to." He turned and left the room before his feelings got the best of him. She was, in fact, the right one for Ian, he knew that now, all would be well.
Sara sat on the couch staring at the fire, her hand negligently petting the sleeping puppy. She was not sure how it had happened but she had become accepted by the staff, the closest thing to family that Ian had left in the world, except perhaps his remaining Black Dragon buddies and there seemed to be some sort of rift there. She wondered at that briefly, but it was a thought for another time and place. Wilson's words on the other hand were current, new and very surprising. It made her feel good to be accepted, even though the whole thing was still a little strange. She would have to ask Ian at some point what she was supposed to do, how to act around them. As it was she was still trying to get her bearings. She wondered when Ian would return. She didn't want to disturb him and Gabriel, not only was the work important but she wanted them to work things out between them. Sara needed to think, to get a hold of herself before Danny came and started asking hard questions and getting hard answers. It was difficult, to bring him into this, to worry about the effect on their friendship, their partnership. She wished she could explain everything to him, but he had a family and she would not do anything to put his job at risk.
Ian entered the room, breaking her out of her thoughts. He moved over to her with a smile, settling next to her, with the puppy wiggling over to him for a little attention.
"I see that you have had company while I was away," he said as he slipped his arm around her shoulders, pleased when she leaned into him. "Gabriel will do very well I think."
"Yeah, but now that he is on it, you may have a little trouble getting rid of him."
"He has already settled in, and I made arrangements for the staff to attend to his needs, so he will at least get fed," he told her, laughing. It had been a real pleasure to talk to him about the Witchblade, about what they needed to know, and about the artifacts in general. It was nice to connect with someone other than Sara at a personal level, to find someone who could even become a friend. It was nice to find that he suddenly wanted to have a friend, for so long he had thought that he did not need them. His father had believed that they would only distract him from him from his destiny. It was something that he was still getting used to, that his father's beliefs were not necessarily his own. Sara was once again staring into the fire, the concern plain on her face. He reached out and stroked her cheek, drawing her attention back to him.
"One down." she said with a sigh as he looked down at her.
"Yes, one down, and now the hard part. Are you sure you want to be here. I don't want you to be anymore involved than absolutely necessary."
"Ian, I am involved. He is my partner, we have to make this work, and my presence will go a long way to helping with credibility," she said to him, smiling. "Besides, someone needs to keep an eye on the two of you." She grinned at him, taking the sting out of her words.
"Sara, you know I will be on my best behavior," he said to her, a smile on his face. He leaned down and began to kiss her, when they both heard the doors open, Wilson entered the den with a tray containing lunch and more coffee. They both looked up at the same time but Wilson gave no sign that he had noticed them. The puppy leaped off their laps and ran across to him, sniffing his shoes before running back to Ian. Wilson set the tray down on the large table, and turned to him.
"Lunch, Sir, shall I remove the dogs?" he asked.
"No, that is all right. I think that this one has gotten rather attached to Sara, you can leave them for now," he said as the puppy ran over and attempted to scale his leg. He picked her up and sat her in Sara's lap as Caillian came over and put her head onto his leg.
"Very well, Sir, if there is nothing else?" he inquired.
"No, the next guest is not expected for another hour or so," he said, checking his pocket watch. "We will probably want fresh coffee by then."
"Of course," Wilson responded, a touch reproachfully. Ian looked down at the rebuke, but smiled as well. He nodded his acceptance at the implied apology and left the room closing the doors behind him, a secret smile on his face.