Chapter Seven: Memories

The wind was cool and heavy with the scent of flowers, making her sigh with delight as she stood on the back patio, a wineglass half-filled with red wine balanced in her hand. Behind her, she could hear Ami's laughter, followed shortly by Alec's, and then the soft tinkling of the piano as Ami played one of her pieces.

She shut her eyes, recognizing the tune. It was one of Ami's more romantic pieces, and had the sort of melody that was made for slow dancing.

"And what are you doing alone out here?"

She smiled, but did not turn, recognizing the baritone that drifted to her ears - a lovely counterpoint to the music - and the lips that gently brushed against the nape of her neck. "I was just enjoying a lovely sunset with some wine. Is there anything wrong with that?"

Strong arms went up around her waist, pulling her close against an equally strong and familiar torso. "Nothing wrong with that, love. I was just wondering if you would like some company."

She giggled. "Let me guess: Alec and Ami are at it again?"

She felt his chest shift against her back as he chuckled. "Oh yes, and in full force at that." There was a brief pause, and then: "You know love, it never ceases to amaze me how you can let your brother have his way with your best friend. Should you not be a little more protective?"

She smirked, placed the wineglass on the stone railing in front of her, and turned around in the circle of his arms to gaze up into glimmering blue eyes. "Well, I don't see why I should start getting 'protective,' as you put it. For one, Ami can take care of herself. And secondly, why should I get on Alec's case when he isn't getting on yours?"

"Hmmm, no, I suppose not." His voice took on a thoughtful tone. "It never really ceases to amaze me that your brother is letting you and I have this relationship."

"And why should you be surprised? Alec knows that I can take care of myself, and that I can make my own decisions. That's the reason why I love him, you know: because he knows that I can do my own choosing. And besides, he knows I love you, and that you make me happy. He doesn't ask for much more than that."

He sighed, and his arms tightened around her waist, holding her more snugly against him. "He also knows that there could be trouble. I'm not exactly someone who is...suitable for you."

"That's the world talking, not him." She smiled softly, and placed a hand against his cheek. "I don't care about the world. They can say whatever they want. I just want to love you, that's all. They aren't living my life for me, and I won't let them."

The piano fell silent then, and the fading notes hung, suspended, in the air, like delicate invisible crystals before they shattered silently against the stone beneath their feet. He, too, had gone rather quiet, but she did not mind, content to listen to his heartbeat beneath the cotton of his shirt as she pressed her head to his chest.

"I'm not going to be around as long as you will, darling," he said softly, and the way he said the word "darling" made her shiver agreeably. "You and I have to face facts: I am twenty-four years your senior, and that does not leave us a lot of time together."

She sighed. "I know that," she said softly. "And I know that the world does not really like the idea of us together." She lifted her gaze up to meet his, and smiled. "But like I said, I don't care. The world can say what it wants; I'm just going to plug my ears and not listen to it. And as for limited time, well..." She grinned. "We've got to take every opportunity to be together, right?"

He chuckled, and his lips lifted in a wolfish grin. "And just what are you suggesting, Miss di Salmileri?"

She smiled, and lightly ran a finger against his earlobe, liking the way his gaze darkened quickly at the touch. "I don't know. What do you think?"

He bent his head closer to her mouth, preparing to kiss her again. "Is that a challenge?"

"What does it sound like?"

Just then, she heard rapid footsteps tramping over in their direction, and then she heard another voice: "Uh, sweetie, I think you might want to wait until we've had supper?"

She turned, and saw Ami standing in the doorway that led from the patio to the interior of the house, leaning against the doorframe as if she had been watching the whole exchange.

She glared. "Go away, Ami. I thought Alec had you cornered already or something."

"Alec has the decency to wait until after supper," Ami replied, a rather evil grin on her face as she continued to look at the two of them. "Now come on. The sooner you finish eating, the sooner you two can get back to whatever it was you were planning tonight."

She laughed, and shook her head. "Fine, fine, we'll be going inside now."

Ami nodded, and walked back into the house, disappearing around a corner as she walked to the dining room.

She sighed, and glanced back at him. "Well, looks like we're going to have to make an appearance at supper tonight."

He smiled, though she knew he was slightly disappointed that their little "moment" was spoiled. "Must we, really? After all, the stables aren't that far from here, and I hear that a fresh supply of hay has been brought in…"

She laughed, and hit him on the forearm. "Oh stop it, will you? While my darling older brother really doesn't mind what we've been doing, he is going to have your head if we do not show up for supper. He wants to make sure that his sweet, charming sister is well-fed and healthy."

He uttered an exaggerated sigh at that, but let her go nonetheless. "All right, all right, if that is how you're going to put it." His smile was wolfish again as he tugged her towards the door that led back into the house. "Come along then, love. The sooner we finish with supper, the sooner I can tie you to my bed."

She laughed again, and followed him back into the house, her empty wineglass cupped in her free hand.

She felt her gut twist painfully as the memory, like the reel in an old movie camera, played out to its end. Those were good days, wonderful days, days when she felt as if nothing could ever, ever go wrong, as if the world was right and there was nothing she should be worried about.

All she ever needed was for him to be there. To hell with the fact that the world could easily perceive their relationship as perverse and wrong; to hell with the fact that, considering their true professions, it would be so easy to lose each other, that all it could take was one bullet or one knife stab in the right place at the right time. All she ever needed, ever wanted, was for him to be there when she came back from a mission, to see his smile and hear his laughter as he swung her into his arms and kissed her.

She could have dealt with him being murdered, or killed in the line of duty, as it were. It would have been easier to deal with that idea - that way she could take all her anger and frustration and grief out on the people who had killed him; she could pour all her energy into getting vengeance.

But that had not been the case. He had died in an accident - a stupid accident that could have been prevented. And now...now?

He's dead Mercy, she told herself as she opened her eyes, noticing the tempered sunlight that filtered through the canvas overhead. He was dead, and there was nothing she could do about it. And it hadn't even been someone's fault: it had been the fault of something that no one in the world could control.

And that was why she had thrown herself so wholeheartedly into this mission: doing something was better than just sitting around and thinking about what had happened to him. It was better that she kept her mind occupied, rather than let it drift on memories of him when he would never be coming back.

But how did one stop the memories from invading one's dreams?

She heard the tent flap being lifted open, and she propped herself up on her elbows to see who had come in.

Dr. Maturin smiled at her. "How are you feeling this morning?" he asked as he approached, slowly making his way towards her to sit down on the edge of the bed.

She smiled slightly, and pushed herself up into a sitting position. "Better than how I was feeling yesterday, that's for sure." She glared at her bandaged feet. "Still, I'm still a little put out that I can't walk around. You sure I can't walk around a little? I mean, I do have to have a bit of exercise, and-"

"As I told you the last time, you must keep off your feet if you want them to heal properly," Dr. Maturin said sternly. "Now then, let's have a look at them, shall we?"

Mercy did not argue as Dr. Maturin shifted slightly to take a look at her feet. She watched as he unwrapped the bandages, wincing a little as the cloth came away from where they had been stuck to the wounds. The cuts, when they were revealed, were still quite raw, but they were not bleeding.

"Hmmm, these seem to be healing quite well," the Doctor murmured as he once again slathered some of that...whatever it was...on her feet, and wrapped them in fresh bandages. After he had done so, he glanced up at her, and smiled. "I expect you to stay in bed, at the very least until the day after tomorrow. Then you may start walking around for short intervals, and for longer intervals over the succeeding days."

Mercy pouted petulantly at him. "And for all that time you expect me to just sit here with nothing to do?"

Now Dr. Maturin laughed, and shook his head. "Well, I suppose that would be asking too much of you, would it not? Would you like something to read then? I think I can persuade Jack to lend you some of his books."

"You sure the Captain wouldn't mind sharing some of them with me?" Mercy asked with a raised eyebrow.

Dr. Maturin chuckled. "Oh, I am quite sure he would not mind. Just be sure to take care of the books. They are rather hard to come by, especially since the only time when we can purchase books is when we go ashore."

Mercy grinned, and waved her hand. "Don't worry; I know what it's like to lend books out to people and have them come back in less than stellar condition - if they're returned at all."

"Excellent. If you do not mind, I shall leave you here a moment, and will be back soon with the books."

"Thank you, Doctor."

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

ArcherofDarkness - Yes, I must agree with you: rebellion and disobedience are quite a bit of fun…so long as one does not get punished for one's transgressions. As for the odds of Alec coming after Mercy…well, we shall have to see about that. He will try, certainly, but…that will have to be seen later on in the story. As for Aubrey getting mad, I believe you will see some of that infamous temper later on – after all, what fun would an M&C fan fiction piece be if Aubrey did not lose his head every now and then, right?

Miss Flossy - Hmm, yes, Pullings has his sights set on her. I wish him all the luck in the world, however, because as this chapter has proven, she has not quite gotten over Tony just yet.

And since you were curious about Tony, I hope that this chapter has explained some of that – along with the more fiery aspect that goes on behind closed doors.

While Mowett and Allen are rather…interesting potential partners for Mercy, I have to say that the odds of that are rather slim, particularly where it concerns Allen. As it stands, only Mowett and the Doctor are indeed the ones with any real chance, though Pullings will have the chance to prove himself come the next few chapters.

With regards to A Woman Scorned, I must say that you have written excellent chapters thus far, though I do wish that you would post up the next chapter soon.