~oOo~

"Daddy's coming." Blair, now shivering against the cold, lifted his head from Lucas's shoulder. The teenager had his eyes closed and appeared to be unresponsive, but Blair knew that Lucas was still with him. The tight, one-armed grip that never once lessened in pressure around his waist, and the white-knuckled grip Lucas had on a section of the rock left no room for doubt about that.

Blair's eyes were on his father the moment he rounded the corner, and he waved his arm frantically through the air. "Daddy!" he screamed, shouting as loud as he could. "Daddy, come quicker!"

Wasting no time, Jim took to the water. Blair's heartbeat was strong and fast, but Lucas didn't appear to be faring so well. The boy's heartbeat was sluggish and Jim's immediate concern was that his blood pressure would drop to a point where he'd no longer be able to stay conscious. Still feeling no pain, he stroked across the river, hoping that the damaged muscle in his arm could last the distance.

He wasn't expecting the maturity that greeted him when he arrived in the middle of the river and attempted to take Blair from Lucas's arm. His son gave him a quick, tight, one-handed hug, but refused to let go until he was convinced that his father had a firm hold upon Lucas.

"You have to hold onto him, Daddy, 'else he'll get drownded," Blair pleaded.

"I will baby, I promise," Jim assured.

So badly needing to hold both his boys once again, Jim pried his body between Lucas and the rock and stabilised the kid by wrapping his arm around his chest. With Lucas now completely detached and relying on Jim for his total support, Jim encouraged Blair to let go. "Chief, come on," he said, drawing Blair out of Lucas's arm and into his own.

The three-year-old was back with a vengeance, and he latched onto his father's chest, unable to suppress the horror of his ordeal any longer. Tears and sobs and a babble of words that Jim couldn't make out followed, and all Jim could do was to hold on tight and not let go.

~oOo~

Lucas knew he had to open his eyes, but for the life of him he couldn't seem to manage it. Blair had called out and, while he thought he heard the word 'daddy', he was having trouble keeping his thoughts together. Then all of a sudden it hit him. His arms were empty. Blair was no longer there.

~oOo~

The first indication that Lucas was back with him was a hitch in the kid's breathing. The next was when the boy's head shot off his shoulder and he pushed himself out and away from his chest. "Lucas," Jim said, firmly. He locked his hand around the teenager's wrist and spun him around.

"Blair!" Lucas's eyes were wild and frantic and Jim wasn't even sure he recognised his presence. "He's gone!"

Reaching out, Jim cupped the back of Lucas's neck and dragged him back in toward his body. "No, he's not. He's right here."

Lucas's eyes seem to drift over Blair for an inordinately long time before any sign of recognition sparked. "You saved him?"

"No." Jim pulled Lucas in until he could go no further. He wrapped his arm around the boy and held him tight against his body. "You did."

Lucas melted into the embrace, his head falling against Jim's shoulder. "I did?" The confusion was back and he was finding it difficult once again to remember everything that had happened.

A small hand reached over and touched Lucas's cheek. "Ah-ha."

Awkwardly reaching up, Lucas covered Blair's hand with his own. "I did!"

"You did," Jim confirmed, letting his lips drift across the top of the boy's head. "Thank god, you did."

Taking a breath and a moment to centre himself, Jim contemplated the enormity of the task ahead. They were still out in the middle of the river and Lucas was a mess. Aside from the superficial injuries littering his face and upper torso, the kid's lack of cognitive ability had Jim wondering how many additional hits to the head Lucas had sustained since he'd been gone. An unaided swim by Lucas would be inviting disaster, but trying to get them both back across the current and safely to shore would also be a mammoth task.

"Take Blair," Lucas breathed.

"What?" Jim asked.

"You can't get back with both of us." Lucas lifted his heavy head from Jim's shoulder. "I'll wait here, while you take Blair."

"No." Blair's fear was gone and his stubborn streak was back. "We not leaving you, Lucas."

"Sport, it'll only be for a little while," Lucas wheezed.

"No," Blair said again, sitting more upright in his father's arm. "Daddy, tell him no."

Jim studied the determination on his son's face and knew Blair was right. They couldn't leave Lucas out here. He suspected the kid's blood pressure was already dangerously low and, combined with the difficult time he was having catching his breath, an internal injury was looking more and more likely. "He's right, kiddo," Jim confirmed. "We're not leaving you."

"Jim, you can't ... you can't put me first."

"I'm not," Jim replied. "I'm putting both of you first."

"The rock!" Blair's attention suddenly settled on the pup and rock he'd been perched on the whole time. "Put me on the rock with Rahma. I not move, Daddy, I promise, I not. Rahma and me will be as still as statues and not fall into the water this time."

"Jim, no." Lucas was now struggling against Jim's arm. He could make it by himself, he knew he could. There was no way Blair was staying out here while he went to shore. He'd been through too much to lose him now.

"Come, little one."

Blair's head whipped around. "Incacha!" he squealed. Without hesitation, he reached out to the warrior. Incacha would save them. Blair was certain of that.

Instinctively, Jim drew Blair back in. His trust in the spirit guide and the spirit world in general had bottomed out to a big fat zero, and he wasn't about to put the life of his son back into their hands.

"Daddy, let me go." Blair squirmed. "Incacha will take me and Rahma and you can take Lucas."

Incacha remained patient. "Have you lost your trust, sentinel?"

"Have you given me any reason to keep it?" Jim retaliated.

"I have given you the life of your boys."

Ellison was dumbfounded. "You honestly have no idea what you've done, do you?"

"Jim," Lucas pushed himself back further, "he did what he needed to do. You have to trust him."

"Trust him to do what, Lucas?" Jim snapped, immediately regretting his harsh tone.

"To fight for my life," Lucas mumbled. Finally reaching the last shred of any resilience, his eyes started to drift shut.

"Shit," Jim swore. Without hesitation he released Blair into the arms of the Chopec warrior and lifted a hand to slap Lucas hard on the cheek. "Don't you dare!" he ordered. Treading water furiously to keep them both afloat, he gave the boy another hard slap.

Lucas rallied slightly, but there wouldn't be much time. Jim pushed himself away from the rock and positioned Lucas so he lay on his back.

"Do it myself," Lucas protested, attempting to drop his feet back down.

"Stop," Jim ordered. Lacing his arm tightly around Lucas's chest, he started kicking for shore, glancing back to make sure Incacha was following.

"Jump, Rahma!" Blair called from the safety of Incacha's arms.

The pup didn't hesitate and Incacha swept him up and followed the sentinel to shore. As soon as his feet hit the pebbled shallows, Incacha released the wolf and watched as he splashed his way to the beach. "I think, little one," the warrior began, "that you might not be as brave as a jaguar after all."

Blair was crestfallen. He'd tried so hard to do everything right, to do all he could to save his brother. It was true he'd been scared, and he knew he'd cried when maybe he shouldn't have, but still, he really did think he'd been very brave.

Incacha knelt down and took Blair by the hand. "I think that you are too brave to have the heart of a jaguar."

"I are?" Blair answered, trying hard to hold back his tears and understand what Incacha was saying.

The warrior smiled over at the little wolf as he shook out his coat with such ferocity that he fell back into the water. He laughed. "You, little one, have the heart of a wolf – the bravest and the smartest of all the animal spirits."

Blair's smile couldn't have been brighter or wider. He was as brave as Rahma. There was nothing better than being as brave as the bravest of all little monsters.

~oOo~