A/N: Here is Chapter Seven. Also, it's been a while since I've refreshed my
memory with the Animorphs, I was re-reading some of the books I have last
night. I hope I don't have any of the characters majorly out of character,
little details aren't that big of deal to me. Lol, like making Cassie a
psycho killer or something is a major OOC. Anyway, on with the story.
Chapter Summary: A bit more action should I say? Morphing for sure. Shocking I know, I've neglected that.
**
Cassie hated waking up to annoying sounds in the mornings.
Like the alarm clock for example and most definitely the phone.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
She moaned and turned to the side where her nightstand was and picked up the retriever.
"Hello?" she said, barely awake.
"Cassie?" said the urgent voice of her husband across the other line.
She knew Mike well enough to know something bad had happened. She shivered, remembering the days when she would get a call from one of the Animorphs about bad situations. She hated surprises.
"What is it?" she asked, her heart pounding so loudly she could hear it in her ears.
She had sirens in the background.
Oh god...
"One of the local tigers out of its cage, we don't know what happened but it's laying in the middle of the street, it looks pretty bad. I called to let you know that I would home late and also to ask you if you want to assist," her husband said.
Cassie let out a soft sigh of relief that her husband was all right.
But suddenly she clenched in fear. The word 'tiger' immediately made her think of Jake.
"Cassie?" asked her husband, still on the other line.
She thought of her daughter, knowing she shouldn't leave her but suddenly remembered she how her mother came over to take care of her over the weekend.
"I'm coming, I'll be there in a sec," she said breathlessly, and hanged up and jumped out of bed.
She frantically looked for her keys.
She tugged at her hair; she didn't have time for this.
Morphing.
She could morph. Would be much faster.
Something she hadn't done in a long time, something she didn't want to ever do again. Could she still do it? Of course she could, but it had been so long.
What if it is Jake? Her mind told her. Wouldn't you do anything for him?
Yes. In a heartbeat.
She opened one of her drawers, searching her morphing suit that she hadn't used in years.
Hopefully she could still fit in it, with the pregnancy weight and all.
She wasted no time changing into it. She opened the window and shivered as the cold air hit her.
She closed her eyes and imagined hawk.
She immediately felt the changes within her body, her body structure began smaller, her long bones reducing, and she was sprouting feathers along her arms and legs as she shrank...
She opened her eyes, remembering what great eyesight birds had.
She fluttered onto the windowsill and took off in the night air.
**
It took her less than five minutes tops to find the road. Two police cars were lined up at either side of the fallen tiger, keeping the curious people at bay.
Jake? She reached out to the tiger.
No answer.
Maybe it wasn't Jake, but she had to know for sure.
She landed on the ground, five feet away from the commotion and quickly morphed.
Shit, she could not walk in dressed like this.
Okay, time for plan B.
She morphed back into a hawk and circled around until she saw her husband's truck, luckily his window was open.
Once she was in the back seat, she morphed back to herself and reached under the seats, searching for the clothes that she used as backup.
Once she was properly dressed she went back to see what was going on.
The policeman stopped her from entering. "You're not permitted. Ma'am."
Mike walked forward interrupted. "Wait, she is a veterinarian, my wife."
The policeman nodded and allowed her entry.
She walked over to the tiger, to see it was bleeding severely.
"ICU unit?" she questioned, stroking its mane.
Yes, this was Jake. No doubt was her mind now. She had watched him morph a Tiger plenty to recognize the details.
"Yes, an ambulance is coming," answered Mike.
She wiped the tears from her eyes. What had caused Jake to morph? She was positive Jake wasn't as fond as morphing anymore than she was.
"Jake, if you can hear me, make a sound or something, move your paw, anything," she begged.
She watched him, looking for signs but none came. As she ripped a part of her shirt, she heard him growl softly.
She petted him. "Good."
With the ripped cloth, she applied it to his wound, applying pressure.
"Mike, how long as he been like this? When did you find him?" she quickly asked him, remembering the two hour rule.
"About forty-five minutes I suppose," he answered, glancing at his wristwatch.
I hour and 15 minutes.
**
Forty-five minutes later
**
Cassie refused to leave the clinic, despite her husband's protests that they were no longer needed and the tiger would recover soon enough.
No, she had to wait and make sure that Jake gained conscious, so he could quickly morph before it was too late.
She wasn't going to leave Jake.
"Mike, just go," she said, getting annoyed with his ranting.
"We can't leave both cars in the middle of the road, I need you to at least drive one car back," he said.
"Mike...I didn't come in the car," she muttered.
"What?" he asked, confused.
She watched his facial expression as he realized what she had done instead.
"You morphed didn't you?" he questioned, alarmed. "I thought you hated doing that."
"I do," she said. "But I couldn't find the keys and I knew this was urgent. Mike, just go home and I'll tell you tomorrow, when we're fresh."
He opened his mouth but judging by the look on her face, Cassie wasn't in the mood.
"All right, we'll discuss it later," he said. "I love you, you know that right?"
She smiled. "I know."
She pecked his cheek lightly and sat back down on the chair.
She watched her husband leave and turned back to see the doctor come out of the room Jake was in.
She walked up. "Is the tiger all right?"
"Yes, just fine, it just got out of its coma, thank god," said Anna, a fellow veterinarian friend of hers.
"Can I please go in?" she asked.
Anna gave her a quizzical look but nodded. "Just be sure to lock the door when you're done, we're driving the tiger back to it's habitat in the morning."
Cassie nodded and walked into the room.
The tiger was lying on the operating table, appeared to be asleep.
"Jake," she murmured, reaching out a hand and shaking the tiger gently. "Get up, you're fine, you have to morph back, you don't have much time."
At first she didn't think he had heard her, but slowly before her eyes she watch the tiger change back.
Jake rolled over on his back, rubbing his eyes and twisted his head and looked at her with his clear blue eyes, emotion of relief shinning through.
"Cassie?" he said weakly.
She sighed in relief and hugged him, inhaling his familiar scent.
"You gave me quite a scare," she said, her vision turning blurry to the fact her tears wouldn't stop.
He hugged her back, sitting up and gasped in pain.
"Are you all right?" she questioned, worry etched on her features.
He winced, rubbing his back. "Yeah, just aches."
"We have to get you home," she said, releasing herself from his embrace much to his dislike and picking up the phone.
"I'll call a taxi, you don't mind me coming over with you, do you?" she asked softly, "Unless you honestly think you're in shape to morph into an animal."
He shook his head. "No, I think I'm going to lay off the morphing for now. And I don't mind you coming over."
She smiled softly and dialed the number.
She hanged up a moment later. "They said they will be here in ten minutes."
He nodded and she helped him up on his feet, letting him put most of his weight on her as they stepped out of the room, she quickly made sure it was locked and helped him get to the front door.
They sat down together on the bench, saying nothing.
"Thanks for saving me tonight," he said softly, reaching for her hand.
She looked up at him. "No problem. Jake, you know I will always be there, right?"
He nodded. "I know, it's nice to have you back, for awhile I thought I lost you for good."
She shook her head. "Never, even when we went our separate ways, I was always willing to back you up if you needed it, if you told me."
The last part she said with regret.
Jake, being who he was and the leader, would never easily admit he needed help, and if he did, he went to Rachel.
Always beautiful, brave Rachel.
She let go of Jake's hand.
"Jake—"she whispered, wanting to ask him a question.
But before she could say anything, she felt his lips capture her own.
Even after all these years, his kiss still felt the same and never failed to cause desire flare up in her.
She eventually gave in and kissed him back, reaching up to caress his cheek throughout the kiss. He still kissed the same, gentle and respectful, never making it feel uncomfortable for her like Mike sometimes made her feel when he kissed her in public.
"Well, well what do we have here?" asked a voice from behind them.
**
A/N: Evil I know to leave there but this chapter was way too long, I didn't mean to get that out of hand. Next chapter: Explanation as to why Jake was in tiger morph and who interrupted them and what that annoying person wants. Ok, I'm not good at the emergency type medical stuff, so sorry if I wasn't accurate enough.
Chapter Summary: A bit more action should I say? Morphing for sure. Shocking I know, I've neglected that.
**
Cassie hated waking up to annoying sounds in the mornings.
Like the alarm clock for example and most definitely the phone.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
She moaned and turned to the side where her nightstand was and picked up the retriever.
"Hello?" she said, barely awake.
"Cassie?" said the urgent voice of her husband across the other line.
She knew Mike well enough to know something bad had happened. She shivered, remembering the days when she would get a call from one of the Animorphs about bad situations. She hated surprises.
"What is it?" she asked, her heart pounding so loudly she could hear it in her ears.
She had sirens in the background.
Oh god...
"One of the local tigers out of its cage, we don't know what happened but it's laying in the middle of the street, it looks pretty bad. I called to let you know that I would home late and also to ask you if you want to assist," her husband said.
Cassie let out a soft sigh of relief that her husband was all right.
But suddenly she clenched in fear. The word 'tiger' immediately made her think of Jake.
"Cassie?" asked her husband, still on the other line.
She thought of her daughter, knowing she shouldn't leave her but suddenly remembered she how her mother came over to take care of her over the weekend.
"I'm coming, I'll be there in a sec," she said breathlessly, and hanged up and jumped out of bed.
She frantically looked for her keys.
She tugged at her hair; she didn't have time for this.
Morphing.
She could morph. Would be much faster.
Something she hadn't done in a long time, something she didn't want to ever do again. Could she still do it? Of course she could, but it had been so long.
What if it is Jake? Her mind told her. Wouldn't you do anything for him?
Yes. In a heartbeat.
She opened one of her drawers, searching her morphing suit that she hadn't used in years.
Hopefully she could still fit in it, with the pregnancy weight and all.
She wasted no time changing into it. She opened the window and shivered as the cold air hit her.
She closed her eyes and imagined hawk.
She immediately felt the changes within her body, her body structure began smaller, her long bones reducing, and she was sprouting feathers along her arms and legs as she shrank...
She opened her eyes, remembering what great eyesight birds had.
She fluttered onto the windowsill and took off in the night air.
**
It took her less than five minutes tops to find the road. Two police cars were lined up at either side of the fallen tiger, keeping the curious people at bay.
Jake? She reached out to the tiger.
No answer.
Maybe it wasn't Jake, but she had to know for sure.
She landed on the ground, five feet away from the commotion and quickly morphed.
Shit, she could not walk in dressed like this.
Okay, time for plan B.
She morphed back into a hawk and circled around until she saw her husband's truck, luckily his window was open.
Once she was in the back seat, she morphed back to herself and reached under the seats, searching for the clothes that she used as backup.
Once she was properly dressed she went back to see what was going on.
The policeman stopped her from entering. "You're not permitted. Ma'am."
Mike walked forward interrupted. "Wait, she is a veterinarian, my wife."
The policeman nodded and allowed her entry.
She walked over to the tiger, to see it was bleeding severely.
"ICU unit?" she questioned, stroking its mane.
Yes, this was Jake. No doubt was her mind now. She had watched him morph a Tiger plenty to recognize the details.
"Yes, an ambulance is coming," answered Mike.
She wiped the tears from her eyes. What had caused Jake to morph? She was positive Jake wasn't as fond as morphing anymore than she was.
"Jake, if you can hear me, make a sound or something, move your paw, anything," she begged.
She watched him, looking for signs but none came. As she ripped a part of her shirt, she heard him growl softly.
She petted him. "Good."
With the ripped cloth, she applied it to his wound, applying pressure.
"Mike, how long as he been like this? When did you find him?" she quickly asked him, remembering the two hour rule.
"About forty-five minutes I suppose," he answered, glancing at his wristwatch.
I hour and 15 minutes.
**
Forty-five minutes later
**
Cassie refused to leave the clinic, despite her husband's protests that they were no longer needed and the tiger would recover soon enough.
No, she had to wait and make sure that Jake gained conscious, so he could quickly morph before it was too late.
She wasn't going to leave Jake.
"Mike, just go," she said, getting annoyed with his ranting.
"We can't leave both cars in the middle of the road, I need you to at least drive one car back," he said.
"Mike...I didn't come in the car," she muttered.
"What?" he asked, confused.
She watched his facial expression as he realized what she had done instead.
"You morphed didn't you?" he questioned, alarmed. "I thought you hated doing that."
"I do," she said. "But I couldn't find the keys and I knew this was urgent. Mike, just go home and I'll tell you tomorrow, when we're fresh."
He opened his mouth but judging by the look on her face, Cassie wasn't in the mood.
"All right, we'll discuss it later," he said. "I love you, you know that right?"
She smiled. "I know."
She pecked his cheek lightly and sat back down on the chair.
She watched her husband leave and turned back to see the doctor come out of the room Jake was in.
She walked up. "Is the tiger all right?"
"Yes, just fine, it just got out of its coma, thank god," said Anna, a fellow veterinarian friend of hers.
"Can I please go in?" she asked.
Anna gave her a quizzical look but nodded. "Just be sure to lock the door when you're done, we're driving the tiger back to it's habitat in the morning."
Cassie nodded and walked into the room.
The tiger was lying on the operating table, appeared to be asleep.
"Jake," she murmured, reaching out a hand and shaking the tiger gently. "Get up, you're fine, you have to morph back, you don't have much time."
At first she didn't think he had heard her, but slowly before her eyes she watch the tiger change back.
Jake rolled over on his back, rubbing his eyes and twisted his head and looked at her with his clear blue eyes, emotion of relief shinning through.
"Cassie?" he said weakly.
She sighed in relief and hugged him, inhaling his familiar scent.
"You gave me quite a scare," she said, her vision turning blurry to the fact her tears wouldn't stop.
He hugged her back, sitting up and gasped in pain.
"Are you all right?" she questioned, worry etched on her features.
He winced, rubbing his back. "Yeah, just aches."
"We have to get you home," she said, releasing herself from his embrace much to his dislike and picking up the phone.
"I'll call a taxi, you don't mind me coming over with you, do you?" she asked softly, "Unless you honestly think you're in shape to morph into an animal."
He shook his head. "No, I think I'm going to lay off the morphing for now. And I don't mind you coming over."
She smiled softly and dialed the number.
She hanged up a moment later. "They said they will be here in ten minutes."
He nodded and she helped him up on his feet, letting him put most of his weight on her as they stepped out of the room, she quickly made sure it was locked and helped him get to the front door.
They sat down together on the bench, saying nothing.
"Thanks for saving me tonight," he said softly, reaching for her hand.
She looked up at him. "No problem. Jake, you know I will always be there, right?"
He nodded. "I know, it's nice to have you back, for awhile I thought I lost you for good."
She shook her head. "Never, even when we went our separate ways, I was always willing to back you up if you needed it, if you told me."
The last part she said with regret.
Jake, being who he was and the leader, would never easily admit he needed help, and if he did, he went to Rachel.
Always beautiful, brave Rachel.
She let go of Jake's hand.
"Jake—"she whispered, wanting to ask him a question.
But before she could say anything, she felt his lips capture her own.
Even after all these years, his kiss still felt the same and never failed to cause desire flare up in her.
She eventually gave in and kissed him back, reaching up to caress his cheek throughout the kiss. He still kissed the same, gentle and respectful, never making it feel uncomfortable for her like Mike sometimes made her feel when he kissed her in public.
"Well, well what do we have here?" asked a voice from behind them.
**
A/N: Evil I know to leave there but this chapter was way too long, I didn't mean to get that out of hand. Next chapter: Explanation as to why Jake was in tiger morph and who interrupted them and what that annoying person wants. Ok, I'm not good at the emergency type medical stuff, so sorry if I wasn't accurate enough.