Into the Wild and Unknown

A Trory by Leela

Pairing: R/T as if I'd write anything else! Rating: PG13 Disclaimer: I own nothing of Gilmore Girls, I have no money, plz don't sue me! Author's note: Ok, so I'm back with a new story. For those of you that have been reading my other fic, A kiss, a blush, a smirk, a love, don't worry, I will complete it...eventually! I just need to take some time away from it, and I had this little idea for a new fic, so I thought I'd give it a bit of a go. Hope you enjoy it.

Chapter Two

Rory sat staring out of the window. The scenery flashed by, but she was unable to focus her mind on what she was seeing. Beside her, Tristan sat bobbing his head in time with the beats that issued out from his headphones.

Rory studied his features, his messy blonde hair, chiseled jaw and lips, and his eyes, pools of blue that seemed to hide so much. Rory could understand why all the girls swooned at his feet, kissing the ground he walked. She wasn't blind, she knew he was gorgeous. But what Rory couldn't fathom was what it was he kept hidden.

She had long ago discovered that, as annoying as it was, his cocky, self- knowing and egotistic attitude was a smoke screen, a character he hid behind. She had glimpsed something of the real Tristan the night they had kissed at Madeline's party. The sadness and confusion she had seen in his eyes was unmistakable, but she couldn't help but wonder if its roots were buried in an entirely different matter than the simplicity of his breakup with summer, even if he did seem to like her a lot. After all, Tristan seemed to go through a new girl every week, so why had Summer dumping him caused such a depressed reaction? Perhaps her actions had bruised his ego, or maybe it had been the public humiliation.

Rory dismissed these ideas, she had the feeling that it was more than that. On occasions in class when she glanced at him, she often caught him in a brooding mood, as if his whole being had been transported to some other dark and lonely place. Of course, then he would catch her staring at him, and his cocky self would be back in an instant with that smirk he wore as a mask, and he'd bug her all day about staring at him in class.

But still, Rory found herself wanting to know the real Tristan, to peel the layers away and discover who he really was, to unravel the enigma within.

Tristan could feel her staring at him. He could see that intrigued yet confused look that she always had on her face when she watched him. He could sense that she was getting alarmingly close to discovering the façade he put on was fake. Then again, being so smart, she had probably figured it out all ready. Yet in spite of that, he still did it, his insecurities and inner demons always caused him to hide behind his cocky, god-like attitude whenever they spoke, or bantered.

He was haunted by the kiss they had shared at Madeline's party. He revisited that moment every night in his sleep. Every night she ran away from him, and Tristan knew she always would.

He wished he could break down the wall he had built up around himself and show her who he really was. He longed to drop the act, but he only wanted to show her, and it was too hard to do so without the whole of Chilton discovering him as well, and that was something he could not bare. So he continued to play his part, play the character he was born into, while each act killed him inside just a little bit more. He would be who they wanted him to be, who they thought he was, and Rory would be no exception.

"Just can't keep your eyes off me, can you Mary?" Tristan asked not looking at her. He turned around, leaning closer to her and whispered huskily in her ear, "Like what you see?"

Rory fought to control the blush that begun to seep into her cheeks. She leaned back from Tristan, banishing the tingles she felt at his warm breath on her neck.

"If you consider yourself to be a cocky, egotistical God, then no Tristan, I don't like what I see." Rory replied coldly.

"So you think me worthy of worship?"

"What?"

"You just called me a God, so you must think me worthy of worship. It's ok, I give you permission, I'll even make you my high priestess if you wish? That way, you'll never have to leave my side and you can stare at me anytime you want." Tristan answered seriously.

"Thanks for the amazing offer Tristan", Rory said sarcastically, "But the only thing I worship is a coffee machine." Rory continued, all signs of sarcasm gone.

Tristan chuckled. They had only been on the road for little over an hour, but in that time, Rory had managed to consume four flasks of coffee, and Tristan was utterly surprised that she wasn't bouncing off the walls of the bus from that amount of caffeine.

"Pray, fair lady, forgive me for the assumption that I could replace the God of all Gods." Tristan said as he attempted to bow to her, "I know your faith in the elixir runs so deeply through your veins...literally!"

Rory laughed, and there it was, a small glimpse of the real Tristan, hidden in his genuine, and stunningly beautiful smile he gave her in return.

"Why do you do it Tristan?" Rory asked seriously, the smile fading from her face.

"Do what?" Tristan asked absentmindly as he changed the CD in his discman and turned to her.

"Hide behind this wall you have built around yourself?"

Rory saw a glimpse of fear flicker through Tristan's face before it was gone and he replied flatly, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I know your secret Tristan. I know you hide behind this character you put on, that you live through. I just want to know why? It confuses me, Tristan, 'cause I know you are so much more than that. I wish I could know who you really are."

"Well I'm sorry you find me so confusing Rory", Tristan replied, his defensive barrier going up, "Perhaps you should just mind your own business and give your over-active imagination a rest. I'm not hiding behind anything. I am what I am, and if you don't like it, then you'll just have to deal", Tristan said coldly as he put his head phones in and lost himself in the heavy beats of Metallica.

Rory turned sadly to stare blankly out of the window again. She realized she may have pushed him too far, that she should've kept her mouth shut. But her desire to know the real Tristan hadn't let her. Still, his coldness and defensiveness had proved her suspicions that there definitely was another side to the blue eyed enigma.

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An hour later, the bus pulled into the gates of the Apostle's Nine Reserve, and Rory got her first glimpse of the hell she would be forced to endure for the next few days. The bus pulled into a small parking lot, and Rory was stunned to see how eager most of the students were to begin their wilderness adventure.

Tristan got up, grabbed his bag, and joined the cue of students filing off the bus without so much as a backward glance at Rory. Sighing, she gathered her belongings and made her way off the bus and to the cleared area in front of what looked like a dining hall where the rest of her classmates had assembled. Once the last few stragglers had joined them, their teacher called for silence as she begun to address the students.

"Welcome to Apostle's Nine Reserve" she said briskly, 'I would like to introduce you to Joe Murray, who is the Senior Camp Leader and a National Parks Officer."

Joe smiled warmly at the students in front of him. He had a rugged yet handsome appearance, was young, around twenty five, and had blonde dreadlocks and green eyes. Rory could see a number of girls practically drooling at the sight of him, Madeline and Louise being two of them.

"Now," the teacher continued, "You will be placed into your cabin groups, who will also be your assigned team. Each girl and boy team will be given a colour. The two teams with the same colour will be working together on the tasks set out over the next few days. Once placed in your team, you can not change. I would also like to take the opportunity to tell you that the purpose of this trip is to build character and moral standing, to learn how to survive in a foreign environment, and most importantly, learning how to work and achieve goals as a team."

As the teacher went on about the 'values and skills' they would be acquiring, Rory found her mind wandering again to Tristan. He was standing a little away from his group of friends, staring absently into the trees, lost in his own world again. Rory shook her head, mentally berating herself for thinking about him. Why should she care anyway? It's not like she could make him change. She focused her attention again at the teacher.

"Now, breakfast will be served at 8-9 in the Mess Hall behind me, as will lunch at 12-1 and dinner at 6-7. Lights out is at 10:30pm, after which there is to be no leaving your cabins, except for emergencies. You are also forbidden to go into the cabin or shower blocks of the opposite sex, and if you go into the woods, do not leave the track and do not go alone. After lunch today, you may spend the rest of the day as you wish. Now, line up to receive your team colour and cabin number."

Rory joined the cue of chatting students. She hoped that she would be assigned to a team with people that were at least nice and mildly interesting. Knowing her luck however, she would probably be teamed up with Paris, who was still being remarkably hostile and stubborn after Rory's little matchmaking foray.

As she got to the front of the line, the teacher handed Rory a purple bandana and the news that her team mates were Madeline, Louise, and Paris. She had been foolish to hope that for just once she'd be assigned to a different group.

Rory made her way back to the bus to gather her bags before making her way to the cabin, noticing as she passed that Tristan also had a purple bandana.

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