Chapter 52
The sun was rising as they crested the pass and after the deluge the day before the humidity was unbearable. It was like trying to breathe through wet cloth; even Jack and Sawyer puffed a little as they topped the mountain and looked down on the island below them.

They had been going all night; the climb up the pass was slippery and wet and they were all filthy and muddy and ready to stop walking. But they didn't dare stop so they headed down the path without pausing.

Kate was so tired she could barely keep her feet moving, she'd been up for almost two days straight; the feeling of calm and serenity had faded to be replaced by fear and worry and her yo-yoing emotions had worn her out. She stumbled against Sawyer and he caught her, stopping and looking into her eyes. "You okay, Freckles?" He wasn't tired in the least, the encounter had energized him; he had won the first battle and it gave him confidence and clarity. He felt good and he knew that he owed it all to Kate; without her he could never have kept his control.

She nodded, but her eyes were slightly glazed and he felt a little badly that he hadn't noticed how exhausted she was. "I'm just tired."

He kissed her forehead and held her close for a moment, then he turned his back to her and said, "You wanna ride?"

She smiled blearily. "Is that all you ever think about, Sawyer?"

He rolled his eyes at her. "Just get on, Freckles." She still looked a little dubious and he sighed and whispered to her, caressing her arms as he did, bringing goosebumps to her skin, "Let me carry you, baby. You've been carryin' me all this time."

She grinned and nodded, love flooding her. "Okay." Yawning, she climbed up onto his back, wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck; he shifted his hands so they were supporting her behind; he felt her grin against his neck. "I knew there was something in it for you." She yawned again, her breath tickling his ear; his hands tightened on her. "I'm not too heavy, am I?"

He smiled as her voice faded against him; he shook his head. "No, you're perfect." Her body pressed to his gave him energy and power; he could carry her to the ends of the earth if she asked him to. "Just get some rest Freckles. I'll take care of you."

"I know." He felt her relax and he smiled.

Ana was watching them jealously; Jack was barely speaking to her, although she didn't think it was really about her because he wasn't speaking to any of them. He glared at Eko and Sawyer alternately, barely sparing her or Kate a glance and Ana was at least thankful for that- he was ignoring Kate too.

She was intrigued by what had happened; what had Sawyer seen? What was that all about anyway? The carpenter? Was he supposed to be Jesus or something, come to save them all? She snickered at the idea of Sawyer as divine. But why did They want him? She sighed; each question only brought up three more and she was getting dizzy from all of them swirling in her head.

Vincent trotted up to Ana and woofed at her shoes, and Sawyer said, automatically, "Your shoe is untied." He gritted his teeth as soon as he said it, Eko turned to look at him sharply and he mouthed "Sorry," at him as he kicked himself. He hadn't been paying attention, feeling Kate's steady breathing against his back had distracted him and he'd said it without thinking.

Ana glanced down at her feet; her left shoe was untied, the lace dragging in the mud. She looked back up at Sawyer, whose back was still to her. "How did you know that?"

"Lucky guess." He cringed at the lame excuse.

Ana didn't buy it. She looked between him and the dog and the said, "Do you understand him?" She pointed to a grinning Vincent and Sawyer tried to look like he thought she was crazy.

Jack snorted. "Understand him? Ana, that's a dog."

Ana ignored him, staring at Sawyer. "You do. How...?"

Eko sighed, giving Sawyer a dirty look. He smiled back apologetically, shrugging gently so he wouldn't disturb Kate. Eko turned to Ana. "Yes. James can understand Vincent."

Jack looked at them both like they were crazy. "You're nuts! Come on, Sawyer can talk to a dog?"

Sawyer flared; Jack got under his skin so easily, though it was more of a habit now than anything. He growled quietly, "Why should that surprise you, Jackass? I've been talkin' to you for months."

Eko glared at him, and Sawyer looked away; he tried to concentrate on Kate's breath on his neck instead and as he did he felt his calmness return and he relaxed a little. "There are many things on this Island that seem insane, Jack, impossible. But that doesn't mean they aren't real."

Jack shook his head. "You and Locke are two of a kind. Why can't you just come out with a straight answer? How can Sawyer understand a dog?"

Eko smiled sadly at Jack. "Patience, Jack." he hesitated. "Trying to understand is like straining through muddy water. Be still and allow it to settle and what you wish to see will be clear." He smiled and touched Jack's arm. "You will understand in time. Be satisfied with that."

Jack glared crazily at Eko's hand on him. "You are all insane." He jerked away and stomped off into the trees.

Ana looked at Eko for a moment, smiling sadly, then she followed Jack into the jungle. Eko turned to Sawyer, angrily and it scared him to see Ed all riled up. "I'm sorry, Ed. It was just a reflex. A slip." He spoke quietly, Kate was still and content; he didn't want her to wake.

Eko tried to calm himself; anger solved nothing. "James, a slip like that can cost us the battle that could cost us the war. Jack has not chosen his side yet; your abilities are your weapons and they should be kept from the enemy as long as possible so that we keep the element of surprise." He sighed, "We are at war; there may not be tanks or airplanes or bombs but make no mistake, this is battle. There can be only one victor and to them go the spoils." He looked pointedly at Kate and Sawyer quailed a little at the thought of her being touched by any one of Them. "To love and win is the best thing; to love and lose the next best-William Thackeray." Looking Sawyer in the eye he said, "James, you do not want the next best thing. We must win. This is no longer a game."

-----

Locke was flipping through the piled up books on the metal shelves; he wasn't really paying attention though, his mind was swimming with what he had seen. What the hell did it do? What was tesseration? None of the files had anything useful, they were just records of alarm readings that ended in the late seventies; he had stooped going through them after a while.

He wondered how far the others were; if they were coming at all. He wasn't too concerned.

A paper fell out of one of the books; it was folded several times and John opened it with excitement; he was rewarded when he opened it up into another map. This one was different, though, it had five areas marked in white and three in red; his eyes opened wide as he read the tags next to the colored spots.

The white ones first. "Swan, Shark, Arrow...Eagle?" He couldn't make out the last one, it was torn, like someone had taken an eraser to it. Dotted lines criss-crossed the island, leading from hatch to hatch; he guessed they were tunnels or just paths through the jungle; he looked at the Shark Station and noted that the hatch itself was underwater, a half-mile away from shore. The Eagle? hatch was in the eastern ridge of mountains, and the one he couldn't read was in the western ridge.

He moved to the red areas; he nodded at the first, the Zoology Center. The next area was directly north of the entrance to the Shark hatch; it was only shaded in, there was no title to it. The last red area was in between the parentheses of the mountains; it was large but it didn't have a title attatched either. He sighed. Answers without answers. The Island didn't give its secrets away willingly.

-----

It was late afternoon when they reached the hatch; Kate was on her own feet again, having spent the day stretched cozily across Sawyer's back, feeling his muscles ripple beneath his skin, his sweat pooling against her; she pretended to sleep, knowing it would make him feel good, but the feel of him kept her awake.

Eventually it had gotten to be too much, for both of them; the prolonged, jostling contact was driving them both mad and when she couldn't take another second Kate said, breathlessly, "Let me down, Tex."

"You sure, Freckles?" He said slyly. "Felt like you were enjoyin' the ride." He released her legs and she slid down him, standing shakily for a second.

She leaned against him and said, "I was. A little too much." The electric spark between them intensified as Sawyer kissed her, slowly. Vincent bounded into their legs, making Sawyer's already weak knees buckle; he swiped angrily at the dog, ready to give him a shocking lesson, but Vincent dodged out of his grasp, barking.

Sawyer straightened and pulled Kate to him, taking her hand. "The hatch is ahead." he glanced at Eko, who questioned him with his gaze. "He said it's open already."

"Locke went in already?" Kate asked. "What about the vaccine?"

They all exchanged glances; they had forgotten about the vaccine and the sickness.

Jack shook his head. "Danielle was lying. For all we know it could be the sickness instead. I'm not injecting that stuff."

Kate shook her head too. "I don't like needles. I'm not doing it."

Sawyer shrugged. He wasn't because he didn't need to and neither did Kate; he would take care of her if anything happened. "I ain't stickin' a dirty old needle in my arm anyway. Who knows where that's been."

Ana looked up, almost smiling. "I'm ditto on the dirty needle thing."

Eko smiled at them all. "See, James, I told you it was a fools' errand. But 'He is a fool who cannot conceal his wisdom.'" They all moved to the edge of the hatch and peered down into the deep dark hole. "And so the journey was not a complete waste, was it?"

Sawyer smiled into the abyss. No, it wasn't. The journey was what made the end worthwhile.