Authoress here. Only because Jack Bauer doesn't find me worth detaining. Hah ha!

What can I say? I'm a 24 fan.

And I can also say that I have VERY GOOD reason for not being here and typing up this chapter for so damn long. I name chemistry as the perpetrator. And Writer's Block.

Goodness gracious, I can barely type, let alone sit still! I just consumed espresso and I got all jumpy, still am! And I'm rambling. And I'm using 'and' to start sentences, and that's just hurtful to our beautiful English language. GEEZE! This is why you don't use drugs, kids. If caffeine (two shots! Two measly shots!) gets you this worked up, imagine what drugs will make you do! I'd explode. Bam. No more Authoress.

SHUTTING UP! Chapter time!

No Mountain High Enough
Chapter Eight: Forced Metamorphosis

The rain didn't let up in the hour that passed after the rockslide. If anything, it pounded down with more determination than before. The going was slow, and cautious; Sano had the lead. Each footfall he tested the ground, and each step was a risk. The mountains had gone from a benign wilderness into a threatening creature.

"S-Sano," Mizuki couldn't stop the incessant chattering of her teeth, "do you see the path getting off of t-this cliff s-s-soon?"

She saw him shake his head once, not turning to face her. "Not that I can tell. I can't see more than a few feet ahead."

His voice sounded small and insignificant over the roaring of the rain, and it echoed feebly in the overwhelming blackness of the abyss next to them. Mizuki felt a thrill of fear clutch at her heart.

Kagurazaka said nothing behind her, but she could feel his presence nonetheless. She shouldered her pack, readjusting the ripped poncho to cover more of it. She herself was drenched, straight through to her vest. Silently blessing the dark navy color of her sweatshirt, Mizuki kept walking slowly behind Sano.

"Ashiya, you should take my poncho." Sano stopped, and turned halfway. He apparently heard her adjustment. "I'll be fine," he added, seeing her open her mouth to protest.

"No, Sano." Mizuki responded, more firmly than she felt. "I'm already wet. A little more rain won't do me any harm. At least let's keep you dry."

"Listen, lovebirds, can we keep this little party moving?" Kagurazaka broke his silence, sounding angry. The rain, coupled with the rockslide, had made the high jumper extremely irate.

"Shut up, Kagurazaka." Sano returned, quietly. It was hard to hear him over the rain.

"Listen, Sano, had your bonehead teammate watched his step, he wouldn't have fallen, and we wouldn't be in this friggen' mess." Kagurazaka growled. "Don't tell me to shut up."

"Had Sekime seen the ravine, then everyone would be in this mess," Mizuki scowled up at him, jumping to Sano's defense. "Then twelve people would be stuck on this ledge in the rain, instead of just us three."

"If that had happened, then both teams would probably be past this, and it would have still been sunny out." Kagurazaka retorted.

"Both of you, quiet." Sano's voice was quiet, but commanding. "It's no one's fault, and this isn't helping. Just concentrate on keeping your balance."

Properly chastised, Mizuki and Kagurazaka fell silent. Sano started foreword again, testing the next patch of ground gingerly before putting his full weight onto his foot.

The progress was slow. The next twenty minutes blurred together in Mizuki's mind as the rain, the cold, and the view of Sano's dark head bowed in concentration became one whirl of misery. Why did I ever convince Sano to make a team with Nakatsu and me? Mizuki chewed her lip, eyebrows knit together in gloom. This is totally all my fault.

"Sano," Kagurazaka spoke up, quietly. "Why did you and Mizuki go on ahead? Why not that Nakatsu guy?"

Mizuki got the feeling that Kagurazaka was feeling the same way she did, and was making conversation merely to break the tension. Sano must have thought the same, for he answered civilly.

"Nakatsu's the only one to have taken first aid in the group. We left him because Sekime might have needed him. Ashiya's the fastest, too."

"Oh." Kagurazaka fell silent, searching for a topic. Then he spoke again. "He said that the ropes were severed. I looked, and I could see where he would get that idea. Any clue on who might have done something so fuckin' mean like that?"

"I have a theory." Sano said shortly. "But I'm going to concentrate on the path."

"Oh." Kagurazaka continued to walk, silently. Mizuki almost wished he'd ignore Sano's warning and start talking again. An odd sensation of claustrophobia pressed against her; the bleak surroundings seemed to squeeze in. She suddenly wanted to throw her arms around Sano, so he could fight against the feeling for her.

"Shit-!" Sano stopped short, backing up a pace. Mizuki peered around him, squinting to see the cause of his stop.

The ground in front of his feet had been affected by the rain, and when Sano had tested it, it crumbled away. "Back up." Sano commanded. "Quickly!"

Mizuki obeyed with more speed than Kagurazaka, and they collided. Moving back with her momentum, Kagurazaka stumbled. The ground at Sano's feet began to form into a muddy slide, tumbling away from the path in a fluid, awful motion.

"Sano!" Mizuki screamed

Sano floundered, and then awkwardly flung himself forewords. Landing on the path beyond the rapidly growing gap, he caught hold of a stunted sapling growing haphazardly from the cliff wall and pulled himself out of danger. Kagurazaka grabbed Mizuki under her arms and bodily heaved her backwards, landing on his back. He scrambled backwards further, one hand on Mizuki's backpack strap. The ground beneath them held, and the pair slumped down, gasping for air.

"Sano! Are you okay?" Mizuki sat up, and peered through the rain to see Sano's form past the gap.

"I'm fine. You?" Sano called back. He sounded a little shaken, and Mizuki couldn't blame him. She heard a tremor in her own voice.

"We're okay!" Mizuki assessed the situation, worry growing on her face. "Well, we're okay… kind of."

"What's wrong?" Sano called, concern apparent in his voice.

"The gap," Mizuki called back, grimly. "It's pretty wide."

"Yeah," Kagurazaka measured the distance with his eyes. "But we can jump it."

Mizuki surveyed the gap with alarm. "Jump it? I wouldn't trust the ground on the other side to hold my weight, let alone yours."

"We don't have much of a choice, otherwise." Kagurazaka argued. "Sano! How's the footing on the other side?"

Mizuki could barely see Sano testing the ground across the gap. "It's okay, especially if I can help pull you foreword. It should hold."

"You could jump it." Mizuki said, slightly panicked. "I don't think I could!" It looked to be seven or eight feet, and Mizuki guessed it would be wise to land further away from the edge, to avoid further damage.

"Ashiya, we don't got many more options." Kagurazaka looked at her.

"I can't jump very well at all," Mizuki said wildly. "I'll just stay here, thanks. You go ahead, I'll stay here. Just go, I'm staying here."

She was well aware she was babbling, but she couldn't stop herself. The gap seemed to yawn before her, and she feared the entire ledge would crumble away beneath her if she tried to move, let alone jump. The claustrophobia was worse now; she could hardly draw breath. She began to gasp.

"Sano, he's panicking." Kagurazaka touched her shoulder, trying timidly to calm her.

"Don't touch me!" Mizuki's voice was shrill. "It'll all cave in!"

"Nothing's gonna happen, we're okay." Kagurazaka shook her a little. She jerked away.

"Mizuki!"

She froze. Sano called her by her first name.

"Mizuki, look at me."

She obeyed woodenly. Sano's dark gaze anchored her.

"I won't let you get hurt."

She wouldn't have believed anyone else but him. Slowly, Mizuki nodded.

"You can jump this." Sano's eyes bored into her. "This is nothing."

The gap seemed to shrink with the power of his voice. It didn't seem as daunting, all of a sudden.

Sano took off his poncho, and then spread his arms wide. Even through the rain and the gloom, Mizuki could see them, safe and strong.

"I will catch you."

Yes. Those words triggered her into motion. She unlocked her muscles, and stood, weaving slightly on unsteady knees.

"Take off your pack." Kagurazaka said suddenly. "You'll have an easier time."

His voice jostled Mizuki out of her dream-like state. She slipped the backpack off, and looked at Sano again.

He held his arms out encouragingly.

She took a deep breath, and backed up a few steps. Then, she ran and launched herself into the air.

The heart-stopping sensation of rain pelting her midair was terrifying. She knew almost at once she did have enough momentum to make the gap. The sudden widening of Sano's eyes told her the same thing. She was helpless to do anything, except flail uselessly.

Mizuki squeezed her eyes shut.

With a jerk, she stopped falling. Her eyes shot open. Sano had caught the neck of her shirt, but the sudden stop in her descent created a new problem. Her arms flew up, and she slipped out of the baggy sweatshirt she wore.

Another jerk.

Sano's free hand caught the shoulder of her vest. He dropped the empty sweatshirt to grasp it with both hands. It quickly blended with the blackness, fluttering out of view. The strain of her body on her vest ought to have alerted her to danger, but Mizuki couldn't think of anything but the blackness under her dangling feet.

"Mizuki, grab on!"

Mizuki barely heard Sano's shout. Eyes riveted on the abyss below, she couldn't move. Her zipper strained, coming undone at the top, and slowly peeling open under the awful strain.

"Mizuki!"

His voice seemed very far away, but it reached her all the same. Her feet kicked back, and met with the cliff-face behind her. Using her legs, she managed to find the barest of footholds.

Sano heaved up, her zipper slid down, and Mizuki used every last ounce of energy to force her body up. Sano let go with one hand to grab her around one shoulder, and their combined efforts proved successful.

Gasping, Mizuki collapsed into Sano's embrace. He squeezed her, rocking slightly.

"Mizuki, I- You're safe." Sano breathed. He half-dragged her away, leaving room for Kagurazaka. The high jumper cleared the distance easily, even with the added weight of Mizuki's pack.

"He okay?"

"Yes." Sano murmured the answer, muffled by Mizuki's hair. He looked down at her. "Can you stand?"

"Y-Yeah." The answer was weak and breathy, but Mizuki pulled away.

Sano stared.

Kagurazaka gaped.

Mizuki looked down, and then snapped her arms up with a gasp.

The zipper had slipped down far enough to show the gentle- yet unmistakable- swell of her breasts.

End Chapter

Authoress. Here. Right. Now.

So, because I blabbered on and on at the beginning of the chapter, I thought it only prudent to let the chapter go long and deep into the crux of my plot.

YOU LIKEY?

Gee, I haven't stayed up all hours of the night to finish a chapter in a long time. Hoory for Spring Break!

Review? Yes? Happy? Maybe? Yay!

Okay, sleep is desperately needed….