Title: M.I.A
Author: Lexie Jayne
Rating: PG
Characters: Jondy/Zane; Max/Alec; Syl/Krit; Logan, Zack.
Summary: Jondy vanishes, risking the lives of her loved ones, Max is faced with a new future and Terminal City faces it's biggest challenge yet the return of old enemies and allies. WIP. JZ, SK, MA
Feedback: Would be lovely if you feel inclined.
Notes: Well, this will be my first update of M.I.A since the rewrite. All chapters have been rewritten, since I originally started this when I was thirteen or fourteen, and my writing skills have developed - hopefully for the better - and I felt I could do more justice to the characters if I rewrote it.
There's no excuses for my shocking gaps between updates. I have ideas, just nothing I think anyone would enjoy... aka, writer's block. Fun, eh? And The Barcode Awards, and a new website... yeah, a lot of things :D Hopefully more updates will be happening more frequently now, but you never know.
Thanks to everyone who reads and reviews :) I'd love some reader's opinions about where I should take this story.
Warnings: Language
Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to James Cameron. I make no profit from this fan based venture.
Zane sat in the apartment later than night, sipping on some lukewarm coffee, watching his daughter roll around the floor with her toys. She would look over at Zane every few minutes, blinking her bright blue eyes and watch him carefully. No doubt she was nervous that Jondy had been gone for such a long time.
"It's okay, Angel," Zane said, putting his mug on the table and sitting next to her on the floor, picking up one of Tanner's books. Jondy had spent every spare dollar on books, toys and clothes for Tanner. He could see it in his mind, the night before she vanished. Going into Tanner's room, tucking her baby in and reading to her; Tanner watching her mother until she drifted off to sleep.
Tanner watched her father open the book. She was bathed and in her pyjamas; Gem had offered to bath her, having a baby bath and nappies. And Zane had been grateful for the extra half an hour break; he'd managed to shower, choke down some food and find something for Tanner to eat before picking her up at Gem's apartment. Gem's daughter, CeCe, was six or seven months old now and watched Tanner carefully from her highchair, silently.
"Bring her back anytime," Gem had said sweetly. "CeCe could do with some company, and Joshua likes helping me look after the babies."
Zane grinned, swinging Tanner, who smelt like talcum powder and sweet-smelling baby shampoo, onto his hip. "Tan hasn't spent any time with other kids before, so it would probably do her some good." Tanner watched her father as he spoke carefully.
And now, Tanner was watching him carefully as he opened it, waiting for her to crawl over and listen. And only a few seconds past before Tanner was close enough for him to scoop up and carry to the bed. Max was going to track down a crib for Tanner the next day. Tonight, she'd sleep in the bed with Zane. Which wouldn't exactly make for a restful night, but Zane hadn't gotten much sleep for the last two weeks, another night wouldn't kill him.
Tanner squirmed around in his arms for a second, squealing unhappily. Zane let her wiggle around for a bit. She always fussed when she was put to sleep, and he could remember Jondy doing it the whole time they were at Manticore. Jondy hated to sleep; she always had something else that needed doing.
Zane padded downstairs, yawning. He'd crashed unusually early for him; ten that night. But it was now three, and he had to get up for work in less than four hours and Jondy still hadn't come to bed.
The light was on in the kitchen, and he paused a second, watching her carefully. Her hair was pinned off her face and she was dressed in a pair of sweats of one of Zane's old t shirts, which stretched across her pregnant stomach. Dark circles had appeared under her eyes and Zane held the opinion that she was too thin. She'd lost weight around the face and the baby was awfully small considering she was nine months pregnant. She was scribbling something down, flipping through files.
"You are so not doing the refuge's filing at three in the morning," Zane said, stepping into the kitchen. Jondy jumped and twisted around to look at him, blinking slowly.
"Three?" she looked confused before looking up at the clock before slumping in her chair. "I've been promising Syl I'd pay all the bills and organize some stuff for two weeks now. If I don't get it done by… well, today, she'll kill me."
"No she won't," Zane said, kneeling down to Jondy's level, stroking her hair. A miserable look slipped across her face.
"No she won't," Jondy sniffed. "She'll tell me it's okay, and she'll take over, and that I should relax and enjoy being pregnant while it lasts. She can handle it with Tawny and Micah. But Micah's working nights, and Tawny doesn't want to help out and Krit can't quit his job because the refuge needs the money since I quit work…"
"Because they really want you at the bar like this," Zane joked, resting his hand on her stomach.
"It's not the point! Syl's taken up extra hours so we can pay the bills and I don't want to dump all the responsibility on her cause I was too stupid to take all those safe sex campaigns seriously," Jondy sniffled again.
Zane sighed. It had been hard, but they were coping. Micah and Tawny were chipping in a bunch of their pay check and Sway had taken on the sole responsibility of Jace's finances while Jondy was on maternity leave. The government had given Jondy and Zane a small pay out because they were unmarried and starting a family. Not that Zane had been dumb enough to fill in their real names on the form. He didn't need anyone from Manticore flipping through the files and stumbling across the forms. He'd saved quite a bit without telling Jondy, prepared to either spoil his new kid rotten or bail the refuge out if the worst came to the worst.
"It's okay. You're allowed to take a break and relax, Jondy," Zane stood up and picked her up off the chair. "This time next month and you'll be back at it. And when Syl decides to get herself knocked up, you can cover for her."
"She's not so stupid she'd get pregnant now," Jondy sniffled again, her arms around Zane's neck. "Let me just finish up, I was almost done."
"It's three in the morning, Jondy. God knows you'll leave for the refuge at the crack of dawn tomorrow. You need some sleep," Zane said, pulling back the covers of the bed and laying Jondy down in it. "The baby needs you to rest."
Jondy relaxed in the bed, rolling over to face him as Zane climbed into bed and pulled her close to him. "You look after me too much. I don't… need to sleep… Zane." Her eyes fluttered as she began to drift off to sleep, one arm resting on Zane's chest and the other wrapped protectively around her stomach.
Zane smiled to himself at the memory. Jondy had half killed herself for the next week, until Micah put her under house arrest, insisting she take it easy. Three days of Micah's constant watch and refusal to let her check on the refuge or even go shopping and Jondy had gone into a long labour. Which had almost killed Zane, with the stress and the yelling and the threats.
He looked at Tanner. She'd fallen asleep next to him, her fingers grasping the blankets of the bed softly. Her chin quivered in a whimper than Zane was well versed in. Jondy had been weaning Tanner off of her pacifier in the last few weeks, and it had been going well. This was the first time Tanner had fussed over it.
Her blue eyes opened, meeting her father's and she let out a little sob, which threatened to turn into a full pitched wail slash scream and Zane sighed, rolling off of the bed and going through their things. He would've brought one. He wasn't so thoughtless he would've left it at home because Jondy was convinced Tan had been weaned off it.
Of course, his never ending faith in Jondy and her ability at mothering had won out in the end. There was no pacifier in the bag. Zane closed his eyes. 'Jondy would've thought of this. She's been telling me this for months – in times of stress, she'll want the pacifier back.' Scooping up a sobbing Tanner, her face streaked with tears, Zane made his way down to Gem's apartment.
Gem answered the door to a stressed looking Zane and a hysterical Tanner. "What's wrong?" Gem said worriedly, stroking Tanner's hair softly. "She's not sick, is she?"
Zane shook his head. "She wants a pacifier. I thought Jondy had cured her of it, and left it in Chicago."
Gem smiled knowingly and slipped into the bedroom she shared with CeCe and reappeared moments later with a pink plastic pacifier. "A spare." As Tanner opened her mouth to let out another ear-splitting wail, Gem popped it into her mouth and Tanner looked around at her, amazed. And silent.
"Thanks," Zane said gratefully. "I don't know what I would've done without…"
"It's okay," Gem said. "I don't know how many times CeCe started to scream before I remembered to carry one with me everywhere, and a spare in her bag. It's hard, getting used to someone being totally dependent on you. I bet your girlfriend finds it hard, too."
Zane smiled sadly. "Jondy's a natural. She just knows what Tanner's thinking before anything else happens. The only place she didn't take Tan was the bar where she worked. And Jondy hated leaving her. I just… don't know how she does it. I don't know if I can do it without her for much longer."
Gem looked at him with a look of understanding in her eyes. "If it was a choice between letting go of Tanner, letting someone else see her smile and watch her sleep and see her walk, and doing this every single day until you die…"
Zane looked at his daughter, who had fallen asleep on his shoulder, sucking peacefully on her pacifier. "It isn't a choice," he said softly, rubbing her back.
Gem smiled. "Exactly. I had to ask myself the same question with CeCe. It's hard. And it would be harder for Jondy because she's expected to know exactly what Tanner's thinking when – when she's hungry, when she's tired, how to calm her instantly when she's upset. You just learn how to fake it really fast."
Zane chuckled. "Don't suppose you want to tell me how to fake that knowing?"
Gem smirked. "Woman's prerogative. You better get her into bed."
Zane nodded. "Thanks Gem, you're a lifesaver."
Gem smiled. "Good night, Zane."
