Chapter 129
While Kate and Sara packed up what meager supplies they could find, Sawyer went out of the hatch to try and find one of the birds to carry a message; he hadn't been using them much because there really hadn't been a need but now they were traveling, at Kate's insistence, and he was worried about their safety. Her safety.
It was pouring rain and lighting flashed in the distance as thunder cracked and popped above him; the wind was lashing the rain sideways and he squinted his eyes against it, hoping one of Kotori's friends would put in an appearance.
Kate was desperate to go, to move, and he was a little scared by this new urge to run; he wondered what in the world her dream had been about, since she refused to tell him other than Wayne had been in it, and the horse. But she was adamant that they go, that they get to the chapel, and he agreed, reluctantly, because he couldn't refuse her anything.
Cobalt lightning forked again, cracking so closely he could feel the hair on his arms stand up and he ducked, shielding his eyes from the glare; something was silhouetted in the flash, something big, and it came to him, through the lashing rain. He stood still, sensing it in the dark, and when the next bright flicker of blue lightning lit up the path the great, red-eyed beast was before him, snorting and he fell backwards, letting out a yell and scrabbling away from it until he realized it was the horse; it snorted and snuffled at his face as he sat in the mud, really, really pissed off. "Get off me, Silver," he said, shoving the horse's soft muzzle away in disgust, and he climbed to his feet, brushing in vain at the mud that was clinging to him like...well, like mud. He eyed the horse with dislike and said, "I hope you're happy."
The horse bobbed his head, whinnying and Sawyer rolled his eyes. "Funny, huh? Great. Another frickin' comedian." He felt a pang at the reminder of Vincent, and he softened, smiling as he scratched the horse's velvety nose. "Kate's gonna be glad to see you."
Snorting, the horse bobbed his head again and pawed the ground, tossing his sodden mane; suddenly he raised his head and whinnied, loud and long, and Sawyer watched in amazement as a half-dozen animals appeared from nowhere; two foxes, walking stealthily, side by side, they came to Sawyer and sat before him, just staring as the rain whipped into their fur and into his eyes, after a second they nodded, he thought, and they were replaced by a chimp, who chattered as he came up, offering Sawyer his hand and hooting in a friendly manner. He took the chimp's hand and shook it, uncertainly, grinning to himself like an idiot because this was just too unreal, too weird for his mind to work its way around yet. The chimp scooted off, and an owl soared by, circling Sawyer in lazy circles and who-whoo-ing as he blinked his wide, glowing eyes, he was so close Sawyer could see the wind rippling against his feathers and the tiny raindrops glistening on them, too, and he found himself waving at the bird as it flew by, and then the boar, his boar, came trundling out of the trees, coming up to him and standing, head bowed and gentle, and Sawyer reached out, touching him gently, in wonder. The boar. Himself. Another boar trotted out and joined them, and he smiled, patting that one as as well, and he laughed at himself, at the picture he must be painting, standing in the dark, in the driving rain, on top of a mountain with animals encircling him, staring up at him. "All I need is an Ark," he said, chuckling to himself, as the horse came back to him, snorting and nudging him impatiently. "Okay, okay, we're coming. Let me go get the ladies."
He stopped at the entrance to the hatch, looking back just to make sure he wasn't seeing things before he went down and told Kate that they had an escort waiting; they were all still there, standing in the downpour and watching him with eager impatience. Shaking his head and laughing to himself again, he headed down to the entrance.
Kate had found a tiny first aid kit, and she had snagged some bathroom supplies, some soap and a couple of the towels, but other than that, her search had been as fruitless as Sara's. She'd finally given up, frustrated at more than just her inability to find anything really useful; the dream was nagging at her, the words echoing in her head. Run, Kate. What was eating at her was whose voice was it? Wayne? Herself? She wasn't sure, but she hoped it wasn't hers, she didn't want to want to run, like she did now; the warning had thrown her defenses back up, put her back on the alert, excited her, and that was frightening. That old feeling, that surge of adrenaline was flowing through her, making her want to go, her feet were itching at the inactivity, at the waiting, and she was tempted to just go, to just leave it all behind, become the old Kate, free of the burdens of love and duty and devotion, to be free. But that wasn't really freedom, was it?
Sawyer stomped into the hatch, soaking wet and covered in mud and any desire to leave him behind was forgotten, as if it never existed, how could she ever even have thought it; he was cursing and mumbling as he came to her and she covered her mouth with her hand so he wouldn't see her laughing, which of course didn't work, and he said, sarcastically, "Laugh it up, Kate. You won't be so beautiful in a few minutes."
She dropped her hand, throwing him an offended look; their tension from earlier had gone, just like that, just a snap as always, and she said, "Really. Well, unless it's raining mud, I'd say you took a little trip. What was it this time? The boar again?"
He almost ruined the surprise by blurting it out; instead he bit his tongue, taking Herculean effort and he said, "No, I slipped in the mud, if you must know. Don't be surprised if you have a little...trip yourself, smarty."
"Is that a threat?"
He nodded, mischeiviously. "It could be, Freckles." Winking at her slyly, he said, "I guess you're gonna find out. We have an escort waiting outside, so lets go."
"An escort?" She glanced at Sara, who smiled and shrugged. "What kind of escort?"
He just grinned. "You'll see. Grab your stuff, take a deep breath...anybody got an umbrella? Just kidding, though I did have two in my stash." He bent, kissing Kate quickly as he took her hand, leading them up the stairs and out into the rain.
The wind was blowing the rain so hard it was stinging, and Kate shielded her face as they came out of the hatch, when she lowered her arm she gasped as the horse came to her, snuffling her cheek and ear and she flung her arms around him, hugging his neck while he bobbed his head gently, whickering in her ear and she pulled back and kissed his nose gently, her eyes shining with joy. Sawyer was sure it wasn't only raindrops on her face as she hugged the horse again, pulling his head down so she could whisper in his ear, and the horse whinnied and nudged her, pushing her toward his back.
She looked a little dubious, like maybe this was a devious plan between Sawyer and the horse to get her into the mud, but he nudged her again, and she wound her hands in his wet mane and pulled herself up and over his back, leaning over to pat his neck and whisper to him again.
Sawyer was agape, staring at her with his mouth wide open as she sat astride the horse, looking so beautiful, so natural and at ease that he couldn't tear his eyes away from her; she was like a painting, an enchanting woman on horseback in the rain, starlight and her light making her glow, shine, as she urged the horse forward with her knees, and Sawyer swallowed hard as he saw the muscles in her thighs contract, steering the horse as Sara and Sawyer fell into step beside them; she didn't see the other animals fan out around them, the foxes in the stealthy lead, the owl circling endlessly overhead, fighting the buffeting wind and still-pouring rain, the chimp, jumping from tree to tree as they edged down the pass, and the boars, trailing behind, ready to charge anyone who seemed dangerous.
Kate stopped the horse and smiled apologetically at Sawyer before offering her hand to Sara, who took it, smiling as Kate pulled her up on the horse's back. Settling behind her, wrapping her arms around Kate's waist as she tried to balance on the horse's, broad, slippery back, Sara grinned and said, "Such a gentleman, Sawyer." She squeezed Kate's waist, gently. "Kate's done a good job on you."
He rolled his eyes and kept walking beside them, the rain making the ground sloppy and his shoes squelched unpleasantly with every step as they filled with mud and water; his hand rested on Kate's thigh as they walked, and the gentle motion of the horse made it move up and down with each step and he inched it up a little higher each time until Kate put her hand on his stopping him just shy of embarrassment.
The ground leveled out and the sky began to lighten as the storm blew itself out finally, just in time for the sun to rise and start everything steaming. The dark, quiet jungle burst to life with the first rays of the sun, and Kate looked down at Sawyer, walking beside her, his hand still firmly on her thigh, and she whispered to him, "I love you, James."
He didn't answer but his hand tightened on her leg and she could see his smile; reaching up suddenly he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her off of the horse, who stopped and turned his head as Kate and Sara's balance shifted, and Sara grabbed his mane as Kate landed happily in Sawyer's arms and he kissed her, slow and deep as the sun peeked over the trees, casting them all in its golden halo.
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The rain was nice, it seemed to quench their desire a lttle, cooling their hot bodies enough to let them walk together, hands entwined, without the mad lust that usually accompanied their touch; instead they had a sweet, tender feeling and it was a nice change. Even Jack's pace had slowed, somewhat, and as the sun rose they had barely made it halfway across the valley.
"So, where are we going?" She finally asked, and he smiled and squeezed her hand.
"The Chapel, remember it? That's where they're going." The Island was telling him, in the whispers; he had figured out how to control them a little, and he could filter or shut them out if he wanted, but now he was listening, hearing the Island directed him to the little stone church.
Ana didn't know if that was good; she wasn't sure if she would be able to go in it, given her current situation, and she thought guiltily that Jack didn't know about her, and how would she explain it? He wouldn't understand, he couldn't see past it and she was sure he would feel betrayed and she didn't want to risk it, risk the happiness they had now, as bittersweet as it was.
She'd been casting about in her mind, trying to find a plan, something that would stop this craziness without hurting Jack but she was coming up empty, nothing seemed feasible or right; he liked the power, and if killing Kate gave him that then he was going to do it no matter what she said, and he knew that she accepted that, but it didn't mean she wasn't going to try.
Power was the key to Jack, and Kate was the key to Sawyer; they fit together somehow and she could feel something coming together, it clicked and she smiled, suddenly, squeezing Jack's hand. "So, Kate is the source of Sawyer's power?"
Jack nodded, smiling at her as he said, "Yes. That's why...well, if Kate is gone so is he." To his credit he didn't seem happy about it, his smile fading as he thought about what he had to do, and Ana's heart went out to him, because his reasons weren't entirely selfish, it wasn't all about the control, he loved her, and wanted them to be together and it was hard to be angry at that.
She took a deep breath and put her plan into play. "Too bad." he glanced at her and she shrugged. "You know, about the baby. I'll bet that kid would have some serious mojo." She glanced aside to see the effect her remark had and she smiled to herself; she could see the wheels in Jack's head start to turn as he contemplated what in hindsight should have been perfectly obvious. Of course the baby would be special, and he wondered that Locke and Hanso hadn't thought of it...or had they? Had they sent him off on a wild goose chase while they went to get Kate and the baby for themselves?
"I think you're right, Ana," he said, and he stopped, taking her in his arms and looking her in the eyes. "Are you on my side?"
"Of course I am. How could you even ask?" They were still wet from the rain, and the sun was hot, already, but black shreds of stormcloud still dotted the sky, keeping it hazy and dank, and their clothes were not even close to drying at all, she could feel his chest through his sticky, damp tee shirt as she kissed him, softly.
"Good. Because I think they are trying to get rid of us, and I need to know you have my back."
"Why would they want to get rid of us? I thought they needed you, to kill Kate."
"Not if they don't really want her dead. They knew Sawyer would kill us, or at least get us out of the way so they could get the baby themselves." Ana smiled to herself at the direction his thinking had taken, if it turned him against Locke and Hanso so much the better.
"But why want you dead, Jack? Aren't you on their side?"
He hesitated, kissing her gently and smiling as his arms tightened around her waist. "Yes, but they know you come first, and that makes me unreliable." He released her with another kiss and moved away because the lust was creeping back up on him and they had to move, now, go quickly so they could find Kate before Locke and Hanso did. "Are you ready, now? We need to find her, don't you think?"
Relief flooded through her and she felt herself lighten, brighten as the burden of Kate was lifted from her shoulders; the simple little idea had been planted and sprouted quickly, and she smiled at the easy gullibility of a man in love. "I think that's a good idea," she said, and the sun came out full-force, evaporating the last few shreds of stormcloud and leaving the sky a bright, blinding blue.
