Okay, this time, I'm not going to put a chapter summary…I might just stop. It seems so repetitive.
Sorry for the long time between updates. As I've said before, multiple times, I'm starting to run out of connecting ideas. However, I had time over spring break at Bryce and Zion Canyons to think about it, and since this week is state testing, I got it done. This chapter's a bit longer than the others (so much for not having an idea!) but a lot of it's dialogue, so…
Without further ado, Napa Valley, Severus, and Jane (well, kinda) don't belong to me.
It was nothing short of what one could consider the ideal day in Napa Valley. The air was crisp and fresh, stirred lightly by a soft whisper that was hardly a breeze. The birds called happily, their cheerfulness welcoming yet another sunny day.
It was in the middle of all this that Severus relaxed, taking in the outdoors. He reclined in the tiny pagoda at the edge of his garden, gazing at the book in front of him. The small text was perched on the inside of his thigh, where it faced upward from the angle of his leg propped against his other knee. Flipping the page, his eyes continued sweeping its contents when a dull, muted roar of a car engine disturbed the natural peace.
It wasn't that he never heard cars pass by (he lived next to the road, after all), but the fact that the car didn't seem to have passed by like every other car did. It was enough to rouse his curiosity from its lazy state. Pushing himself up, he walked over to the front gate just as the engine shut off. He watched Jane climb out of her car before pushing the gates open. Something tinted tan and white bounded out just before the door closed.
"Need any help?" He gestured towards the bag she carried as she shrugged her purse over her shoulder, nearly tripping over the cat winding about her feet.
"I've got it," she replied, deftly locking the car before coming in. The gate shut behind her and Ginger with a metallic clink as Severus fell into step beside her.
"Out of all the days to come in a car, today is hardly one of them. It's warm and sunny again."
"Oh, I know." She gave him a wry smile. "I had to drop off a friend somewhere and I was driving back when I decided to make a stop."
He highly doubted she'd just 'decided' to come by, but only nodded, opening the front door to let them in. Ginger stalked in, greeting Severus with a brush of her tail before following her owner down the hall. With a grateful sigh, Jane dropped the bag onto the kitchen counter, patting her pet before reaching into the paper sack.
"I brought some leftover cake that I baked yesterday. Do you want any?" She pulled out a plastic container, surveying its contents before placing it down on the counter as well.
"Cake? Have you ever known me to decline cake?"
She paused. "Well…no."
He smirked at her answer, then turned to reach for two of his nicer plates. "What was the cake for? Special occasion?"
"No. After seeing the tempting box of cake mix in my pantry, I couldn't resist the urge to bake something nice, complete with fresh fruit and cream. I shared half of it with a few neighbors yesterday."
Setting down a few forks as well as a knife, he pried open the container, taking an appreciative whiff of the dessert. He served out two portions, sliding Jane's across the table before picking up his fork to shovel an unhealthy chunk into his mouth.
"Mmm…" he muttered around the mouthful of sweet bread and frosting. "Beautiful. The fruit's bruised, though."
"What do you expect? I told you it was leftover." She took a bite of her own slice.
"Nice to know I'm appreciated."
It didn't take very long for any remaining cake to disappear. Severus watched from behind his empty plate as Jane used her finger to nudge the last crumbs on her fork.
"Done?"
He startled her, causing her to spill the crumbs back on the plate. She looked disgruntled.
"No." She tipped the last bit in her mouth and swallowed. "Now I am."
He couldn't help the warm, fuzzy feeling that went through him. Quickly hiding a smile, he turned to place the dishes in the sink. He had just turned on the faucet when he heard Jane's voice from another room.
"Severus?"
"Yes?" he called back. He heard her hesitate.
"Oh…it's nothing."
Turning back to rinsing the plates, he barely heard the sharp thud of the keyboard cover falling open. A moment later, a single clear note rang through the house. Dropping the last fork on the drying rack, he turned off the faucet and headed off to the room where he knew she'd be.
Rounding the corner, he leaned against the doorframe, watching Jane run her fingers over the white and black keys. One hand leaned against the open keyboard cover as she leaned past the bench to rest her weight against the piano. She stood like that for a long time, trailing her fingertips as if reacquainting herself with an old friend. It was this way that her form caught the light, a graceful silhouette. Her long hair, kept down, fell in waves, caressed by the light filtering through the thin curtains. The gold outlined her solemn posture, and when she finally moved, her form caused his breath to catch in his throat.
Shifting, she moved around the bench so that one leg was over the bench. Settling down slowly, she kept her gaze glued to the keyboard, but made no move to remove the hands that were nestled in her lap.
"Do you play?" Severus' voice carried over the silence.
She didn't move, as if she had known all along that he was standing there, silently watching her.
"No. Yes…not really."
He continued to survey her, then pushed himself from his position on the doorframe. He walked over until he was directly behind her, only an intimate space between them.
"Not really?" he asked quietly.
"I play clarinet," she replied equally as softly. "But while learning, its inevitable to learn a bit about piano."
He was intrigued, but kept his voice low in fear of breaking the quiet. "How long?"
"I…don't know. I never thought I'd played any instrument, but…" she trailed off, then turned, meeting his eye. "Would it sound strange if I were to tell you that I already knew how to play? As in picking it up and knowing it?"
"Not under your circumstances, no." Inwardly, he winced at how the words came out, but never took his eyes from her.
"Do you play?"
He blinked.
"No." He quickly dismissed the idea. "This piano was just something passed down in the family, that's all."
She turned back toward the keys, running her fingers along them again before settling her fingers on a choice few. Slowly pressing one down, she let the sound resonate in the room. Then, she reached for another key, tapping it as well. She winced.
"You need this tuned."
He listened to the ringing echoes, then reached over her shoulder and hit a key of his own. The notes vibrated against each other in waves. Wordlessly, he slid beside her on the bench.
"It'll just get out of tune again."
She didn't disagree. "That'd be a pity."
He thought for a moment. "Of course, if you'd play it every once in a while, it could be well worth the effort." He gave her a sidelong glance from the side of his eye, catching her startled look at the comment.
"But I told you, I can't—"
He reached out his own fingers to cover her hand, silencing her.
"What about your clarinet?"
"You want me to bring it next time?" She leaned back a bit to give him a skeptical look, but didn't pull her hand away.
"Of course."
It was silent for a moment, the two of them staring at their hands clasped over the instrument. He spotted a glint of sunlight on her wrist.
"You're wearing the bracelet I gave you." The statement was tinged with surprise.
She smiled, turning her wrist a bit so that the stones and metals sparkled. "It's hard to put away."
He watched the light play off the intricate piece of jewelry in silent agreement. Indeed, it did look beautiful on her wrist. He opened his mouth to say something when a blur beside him caught his eye.
He turned to see a golden tail before it disappeared underneath the bench. In the next moment, a pair of light green eyes stared up at him.
"I've just found a rather obtrusive cat that I believe belongs to you." He reached down to pick up Ginger, but she slid out of his grasp.
"Ginger," Jane cooed, "Come here, little kitty."
At the sound of her name, the feline jumped on the edge of the bench. The cat stopped halfway across on Severus' lap, kneading his skin with her claws before bumping Jane with her head.
"You want some attention, don't you?" Jane didn't stop scratching her pet's neck as she addressed Severus. "Where do you suppose she's been all this time?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Jumping on my furniture, perhaps?"
Jane laughed, a pleasant tinkling sound that mingled with Ginger's velvety purring. "No she wouldn't, would you, kitty?"
The only response was for the cat to close her eyes under Jane's ministrations. Severus stood up.
"Perhaps I should go check."
"I'm sure—"
Jane was about to protest when Ginger shot off her lap. Severus heard her gasp of surprise before feeling the cat's small body brush by his ankle and disappear.
"Sure about what? That nothing happened at your kitty's destructive paws?" he asked dryly.
"No, actually, I'm sure we're in for a kitty chase."
With vigour, Jane jumped off the bench, dashing into the hallway. Severus groaned at the thought of having to run after a cat, in a house, no less. He peeked out, only to have to whip his head back in before being bowled over by the passing blurs. An idea coming to mind, an evil grin spread across his face before he inched out to the kitchen.
He rummaged through the cupboards a bit, keeping an ear out for any sounds of destruction upstairs, where the chase was being carried out. Finding a tempting morsel, he placed it right outside the open glass sliding door, in plain view. Leaning against the counter, he waited, staring down the hallway in anticipation.
Certainly enough, the next time Ginger passed the kitchen, she stopped, sniffing the air. She turned to stare suspiciously at Severus before heading towards the morsel, sniffing the air. She nudged it gently, then delicately picked up the crumb and swallowed it. Jane nearly passed by, skidding to a halt.
"Ginger!" she called, slightly out of breath.
At her name, the cat dashed away again. Jane paused to get her bearings and noticed Severus standing aside.
"You could have caught her!" she cried out in exasperation.
He smirked. "What's the rush? It'd be more fun outside, no?"
With a growl of frustration, she ran past, grabbing his arm and pulling him out with her.
"Urgh, that naughty cat…" she muttered under her breath. "I—"
"Perhaps," Severus interrupted, all the while trying to extract his arm from her grip, "She's up in that tree?"
Jane looked up, following Severus' gaze just in time to see a tan and white bottom disappear. In the next moment, Jane was gone, and the chase was resumed again.
Severus watched on the patio as the two figures ran about, frolicking in the garden. It lasted for about two minutes before Jane trudged back, winded.
"She's in a tree…I can't reach her."
He couldn't have cared less about the animal. "Then just leave her there. It's not like she can't get down herself, after all."
Jane stared at him for a moment, then reached out to swat his arm. "You're it!"
He blinked at the sudden change in mood. She dodged his hand as he reached out to grab her, dashing away to the trees at his right. He smirked. Two could play at this game.
"You won't beat me at this!" he called as he sped after her.
"How so?" she called back over her shoulder.
"For many reasons. One," he cut her path around a tree, "I've got longer legs. Two," he pulled her hair, "you're tired. I'm not. Still think you can win?"
She turned to chase him down as he pivoted away, sharply turning to step into one of the smaller paths. Sometimes, he'd stop just to tease her, but every time she reached out, she'd only catch thin air as he hid behind a tree or leapt over a rock.
Well, most every time.
"Gotcha! You're it!"
She stuck out her tongue at him as she ran off again, triumphant. With a sigh, he set off again.
They indulged in the game well beyond noon, taking turns chasing and being chased. As the sun rose to its highest, Severus peeled off his light coat, glad for the light breeze.
"Don't you think—" he managed to gasp out. Jane crashed into him, knocking out whatever air was left inside his lungs as they both hit the ground. He pushed himself up on one elbow, trying to catch his breath.
"What was that for?"
She looked at him from her bed in the grass, her hair a bushy mass around her head. She lazily twirled a lock around her finger.
"You're it now, of course."
He tugged the lock of hair away from her finger. "You're it."
"You're it."
They slapped each other lightly back and forth until Jane suddenly launched herself at him with tickles. He twitched, but showed no other signs of being bothered.
"I'm not ticklish," he managed to say with a straight face.
"No fair." She collapsed on his chest, arms beneath her chin as she blew at the strands of hair in front of her face. He watched her for a bit, the bouncing curl mesmerizing him. Without preamble, she suddenly announced, "I think that's the most fun I've ever had in my whole life."
"You think? Then you'd better think again."
Rolling her over, he began tickling her in turn. She giggled helplessly, trying to wriggle away.
"Severus…stop! Pl…please stop!"
"No way. This is way too much fun." He attacked her relentlessly with a barrage of tickles until she started coughing for air.
"Are you okay?"
She tried to glare at him, but broke into another fit of giggles, which resulted in more coughs. When she finally could, she answered.
"Yes…just don't tickle me again."
He complied, falling down beside her so that both of them were gazing at the sky. Jane raised her arm to point at something above them.
"Look."
He watched the clouds being buffeted along the blue expanse of sky, the fluffy white shapes becoming objects in his imagination. His eye caught the one she pointed to.
"A heart."
"Isn't it so pretty?"
"I suppose, if you don't connect it to the mass right there. Then it looks like the tail of a dead fish."
"Thanks for ruining the image."
"It's my pleasure."
It was silent for a moment. "I suppose the fish does belong there, though."
Severus angled his head so that he could see her. "What do you mean?"
"Well, if you think about it, the sky is the ocean. The fish is swimming, see? As the wind blows, it floats away. Like anything else that dies, it eventually floats away until it's not there anymore."
Severus considered her words, thinking back to his own memories. Was it true? Certainly, he had moved on.
"I never thought of it that way," he finally said.
She shrugged, still watching the sky. "Just a thought."
He opened his mouth to reassure her that it was more than just a sudden thought when a sudden, forceful thought of his own occurred to him.
Why had she said that? Had she lost someone? Maybe she wasn't talking about death. Was she referring to her memories? He continued staring hard at her until she uttered a single word.
"What?"
"Nothing. It's just…"
"Is there something on my face?" She turned her head to look at him, her breath brushing lightly against his chin, not in an unpleasant way.
"Why did you say that? Just now?" he asked softly.
A confused look crossed her features.
"About everything…passing away. Floating away until it isn't there anymore."
"I…I don't know."
He watched her carefully.
"What?" she asked, innocently bewildered.
"Just—" he broke off. He sighed, dismissing the thought. "Nevermind.
"No," she insisted. "Tell me."
He refused.
"But you always make me tell you what's bugging me."
"So?"
"I want to return the favor," she replied simply.
He turned his face back up so that her breath caressed his neck, so he didn't have to see the pleading look on her face.
"Please?"
"No."
"Why not?" she continued pressing him for answers.
He thought for a moment. Why not? Why wouldn't he tell her? The truth? He was scared of hurting her, scared of making the wrong assumption, of the wrong conclusions. He was scared of learning too much.
He was scared of finding the answer.
He settled from an answer not too far from the truth. "I don't want to know the answer anymore, okay?"
"It scares you, doesn't it?" She didn't paused to want for an answer. "Funny, I never thought you to be scared of anything."
He turned to meet her eyes again. He could feel her eyes boring into his own.
"Everyone is scared of something."
"I know. Like my memories. It's just that, well, when someone seems like they're not scared of anything, it's easier to think that they can protect you from anything."
He wanted to tell her that he couldn't protect her. How could he? Wasn't he just putting her in danger, hiding her memories? His eyes gentled at the evident faith in her eyes. He pulled her close.
"You believed I could protect you?"
"Yes. And I still do." Her voice was muffled.
"Why?"
She pulled away so that she could look at him. Her eyes were serious.
"I trust you."