A/N: Well, here I am, starting yet another fanfic, and another Lost one at that. Okay, so, this first chapter may seem a little slow at first, but give it a chance, kay? You just might like it…
Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't own it…don't sue, cause trust me, all you'll get is a pile of student debt and a really low bank account.
Chapter 1: 'I Ain't Supposed to Talk to Strangers'
There was only one word that could possibly describe the scene on an unknown beach somewhere in the Pacific: chaos. This much was clear even to eight-year-old Cassidy as she slowly stood to her feet and took stock of what was happening around her. People were everywhere, some screaming, others crying, and some just wandering around in shock. Various debris from the airplane littered the beach, and loud noises from the dying engines overshadowed the cries of the people.
Cassidy stood rooted in place for a long moment, glancing around at the scene around her. After a minute of standing, a dull throbbing pain brought the child's attention to her own body. She checked herself over…two legs, two arms, one head…the girl sighed in relief when she realized that at least she was intact. Her left arm was hurting, but she flexed her fingers slowly and decided that it probably wasn't broken. And Cassidy felt that she should know—she'd broken her right arm in the first grade, so she knew all about broken bones. Still, she clutched her upper arm and began to search for her father.
The little girl moved away from the epicenter of the damage, away from the noisy engines. She was somewhat amazed by how big the plane parts were up close, but pushed her curiosity aside as she glanced around at the adults around her. Cassidy stood on her tiptoes and peered all-around to try and catch a glimpse of her father's blond head or hear his distinctive voice. After several minutes of searching, the child began to get scared. She had seen a few bodies littering the beach, and could see some arms and legs sticking out from under pieces of debris. Cassidy felt her lower lip begin to tremble as the horrible thought crossed her mind that her father might be injured, and unable to get to her, or worse…with a shake of her head, the girl straightened her shoulders and took a deep breath. Again her gaze wandered to the people around her. No, she was determined not to cry in front of a bunch of strangers. Nobody was going to catch Cassandra Ford whimpering like a baby.
Now the only problem was where to look next. Cassidy looked off to her left, then to her right, trying to determine which half of the beach she should investigate first. However, before she could decide, a strange-looking man knelt down next to her. "Are you alright?" he asked kindly. Cassidy eyeballed him suspiciously, his foreign accent setting her off a bit. She wasn't entirely sure that her father would trust this man.
"I ain't supposed to talk to strangers," she answered, after a moment's pause. The man looked at her strangely, then nodded.
"Alright. I just wanted to make sure that you weren't injured. Have you found your parents?"
Cassidy only glared at the man harder, determined not to show any weakness to this strange man. "What part of 'I ain't supposed to talk to strangers' don't you get?" she asked, cocking one hand on her hip. "Besides, my daddy's just over there. So I don't need your help." With that, the child turned and confidently walked down the beach, away from the man. This path was taking her back towards the damage, but Cassidy just angled around it and kept a sharp eye out for her father, hoping that her lie would turn out to be the truth.
Just as the eight-year-old was beginning to give up, a familiar voice caught her ear. "Cassidy!" She stopped and looked around, trying to figure out where her father's voice was coming from. "Cassidy!" After a moment, the girl caught sight of her father near the water's edge, hands on his hips, looking around with a mixture of annoyance and worry. "Damn it, where is that girl?"
Filled with excitement, Cassidy ran towards her father. "Dad!" she yelled. He turned just as she reached him and threw her arms around his waist.
"There you are," he said, hugging her tight. After a moment they parted and Sawyer looked his daughter over, making sure she wasn't hurt. "You alright?"
Cassidy nodded. "Yep. You?" Sawyer nodded and smiled.
"Peachy."
Night seemed to fall quickly, and multiple bonfires popped up all along the beach. Sawyer leaned up against a piece of debris, his daughter lying propped up against his chest asleep. He lifted a lit cigarette to his lips, inhaling deeply. Turning his head away from Cassidy, he blew out the smoke and sighed. A moment later, a loud sound came from the jungle, sounding like some strange mixture of machine and animal. Sawyer jumped, turning his head to look into the jungle, subconsciously tightening the arm that was around his daughter. When another crash followed the first, the Southerner flicked his cigarette into the sand and slowly maneuvered Cassidy onto the sand, rising to his feet and stepping toward the darkness.
More of the survivors had gathered, standing close together staring into the brush. Sawyer stood off to the side of the group, scrutinizing the jungle with the same terrified curiosity. Feeling a set of small arms wrap around his waist, he looked down to see Cassidy standing beside him. As trees fell in the wake of the mysterious being, he pushed her back ever so slightly, though her grip tightened. After several tense moments, the thing in the jungle seemed to move away. The survivors exchanged nervous glances, hesitant to show relief. Finally, Sawyer turned and placed his hands on his daughter's shoulders, gently pushing her back towards their makeshift camp. This was definitely going to be a long night.
Cassidy stood with her hands on her hips, watching the grownups in frustration. Everyone was discussing the mysterious thing in the jungle, and everyone seemed to have a different opinion about what it was. When the strange little man in the hooded jacket suggested that it might have been monkeys, she rolled her eyes, and snickered when her father let off a quip about it being a monkey island. Even she knew that monkeys weren't big enough it act like that, unless it was a gorilla or King Kong or something.
Glancing around, the girl caught the eye of the black boy sitting near her. His own father was talking with the grownups, but the boy, like Cassidy, was standing off to the side, looking around the beach. Their gazes had just happened to intersect at the same time. After a long moment of eye contact, Cassidy huffed and cocked a hip. "What're you looking at?" she snapped. The boy just looked away and kind of shook his head. Satisfied, Cassidy returned her attention to the adults, not noticing the boy standing and slipping away down the beach, moving ever closer to the jungle.
The rain came down suddenly—and hard. One moment Cassidy was sitting on the beach with her head in her hands and the next rain was pouring down onto the beach. She sat there for a moment, looking around as people scrambled for shelter, somewhat mystified by the sudden and torrential downpour. Sawyer came up beside her in a run and grabbed her arm just as she stood.
"Come on!" he shouted, pulling her towards a large piece of debris. Shoving her underneath it, Sawyer crouched down and huddled next to his daughter as the rain continued to pour around them. Cassidy knelt in the sand with Sawyer behind her, his hands on her shoulders. The two sat in silence as they watched the cascade of rain that surrounded them.
The afternoon sun paid a toll on the eight-year-old's body, and Cassidy fell asleep quickly after the storm. Her father had found a jacket somewhere and she'd balled it up for a makeshift pillow. Just as she was embarking on a wonderful dream, loud shouts awoke her, and she laid there in confusion and annoyance until she recognized one of the voices as her father's.
The child stood quickly and made her way over to where a group of adults had gathered. Pressing in to see what was happening, she was somewhat surprised to see her father in a fight with the same strange man who had offered to help her the day before. Cassidy nimbly maneuvered through the adults, and watched in horror as Sawyer was punched in the stomach. She grinned when he grabbed a handful of sand and threw it up into the foreigner's eyes just before tackling him to the ground. However, the two continued to through punches, and Cassidy was starting to get nervous.
"Stop it!" she said, almost more to her herself than anyone else. "Stop it!" she said again, louder, and this time she rushed forward, fully intending on stopping the Arab man from hurting her father. Michael, who had been trying to stop the fight with little success, saw her rush forward and quickly interceded her. He grabbed her arms and held her tightly as the child squirmed in his grip. It wasn't until Sawyer and Sayid were separated that Michael released his grip on Cassidy.
Cassidy ran up in front of her father, scowling at Sayid and the others who appeared to be against Sawyer. "My daddy ain't ever wrong!" she shouted, glaring full force at Sayid. Sawyer draped his arms over his daughter's shoulders, smirking slightly. The child's sudden presence momentarily froze the scene, taking the adults by surprise. Sayid halted in place, his fist still raised in the air, clearly not willing to put Cassidy in any physical danger.
The girl's sudden appearance gave Kate the chance she needed to divert the topic to the transceiver. "We found the transceiver, but it's not working. Can anybody help?"
Sayid took a deep breath before answering. "Yes. I might be able to."
Sawyer scoffed, completely blown away that the others would consider trusting the Arab. "Oh, great! Perfect! Let's trust this guy!"
"Hey, we're all in this together, man. Let's treat each other with a little respect." Sawyer glared at the fat man who'd ventured to make peace.
"Shut up, Lardo," he snapped. Cassidy rolled her eyes at her father; more than ready for the entire confrontation to end. But her temper flared up again when Jack tried to intervene again.
"Hey! Give it a break," the doctor said firmly to Sawyer. Cassidy turned her glare to the new man.
"You can't talk to him like that!" she snapped. Her father tightened his grip on her shoulder and pulled her back slightly.
"Whatever you say, Doc. You're the hero," Sawyer answered, pushing Cassidy away from the crowd.
Once the two were a ways away from the group, Cassidy looked up at her father, who still had his arm around her shoulder. "Those people are jerks, aren't they Dad?"
Sawyer smirked back at his daughter. "You bet they are, kid. Real jerks."
A/N: Okay, so that's that. Hope it wasn't too choppy. There will be a lot more action now that I'm passed the beginning, so hang on tight. And don't forget to send a review on the way out. Remember: save a muse, send a review!