Prettyinpinkgal: I hate writing Natasha with a passion, although I no longer hate her character, but I LOVE JAMES! Why the deuce is that? In other news, two chapters in the same night! I'm feeling a little proud of myself at the moment. XD

Disclaimer: I don't own "Tuck Everlasting".

FOSTER EVERLASTING

CHAPTER TEN: BONDS

"What are you going to do?" James finally asked after Winnie calmed down.

They were leaning rather disrespectfully against a gravestone, the only place in the world where the wheel did not turn. "I don't know," she whispered. "I should get out of here, but...Is it strange for me to be scared?"

"Not at all. You've lived in Treegap your whole life, and after you left home, you lived in the Tucks' home for thirty years, waiting. You've never seen anything."

"Jesse said he'd take me to see the world," Winnie laughed dryly. "Of course, that can still happen. I'll just tag along with him and Natasha while they go off for their honeymoon. I'm very rude. I never even asked where they were going. The Mediterranean? Perhaps China?"

"You can still go on your own," James said passionately. "You're strong, Winnie. You put all those other girls to shame. I've never met so much devotion in anyone before. If I could, I'd kill Jesse Tuck."

Winnie laughed, although she was rather touched by this display of emotion. "Thank you, James. Oh, but I've been so rude! James, what happened to you? How did you become like this?"

James shrugged. "Curiosity. You weren't the only one sick of bending constantly to their parents' will."

Winnie's eyes widened. "But you're a man!"

"Excellent observation. I was also the only son. That meant I was to inherit my father's business, and if I didn't do everything in my power to make it succeed, and make the family proud..." He drew an imaginary line across his neck. "That's an exaggeration, of course. But I heard about your disappearance, and about some of the rumors about how since you turned seventeen you must have stopped growing, because your features always stayed the same."

"No one suspected truly, did they?"

"Oh, no. It was just one of those fantastical rumors old wives concoct when they're bored and have no one to scold. But I knew, because of my uncle's stories. I went poking around and found a spring, and out of curiosity I drank it. I didn't expect anything to really happen, but when I realized it did, a hightailed it out of there just like you.

"I made my fortune elsewhere, enjoying freedom immensely and writing home when I could-but they almost never replied. My father had disowned me, furious at my 'selfishness'. Mother cried herself silly, but was more understanding. She snuck me letters when she could. She admitted that Father always burned my letters after reading them...'but only after he read it', she said.

"They died, and eventually I realized that, while being immortal allowed me to try all sorts of different pursuits, I was always alone. That's the worst thing about this, you know. You're always alone, never able to share anything with anyone. It makes you wish Armageddon was here, if only to terminate this pointless existance."

"I'd be sad if it did happen, now that I've finally made another friend besides the Tucks," Winnie sighed. "When did you come back to Treegap?"

"A few months ago, but I came back before that about a few years after I drank the water. Even then, I was growing disillusioned with neverending life. And I thought you deserved a proper end, so I made a gravestone and placed it in the same spot as the spring. Did you notice?"

"Did I notice!" Winnie cried, sitting up straight. "So it wasn't my family? It was you?"

"Yes. I didn't think you'd see it; I realized you were probably still at the Tucks' house, or else far away from Treegap. I doubted you'd venture so close to town to see the spring."

"You're right. I only noticed it two decades ago."

"Did you mind very much?"

"No. Actually, I was a little glad, somehow."

"No one went into Foster Forest, as I'm sure you know. I didn't think anyone but you would see it, or maybe the Tucks, but I wanted to do something."

Winnie paused. "Why? We met only once. Why go to such lengths?"

James paused too. "I don't really know. Maybe it was because you were the only real acquaintance I had in this 'afterlife'. I was impressed with you when we met, too. Or maybe I just wanted to do something to keep people from entering the same fate. I just felt like I had to. To show one of us existed."

Winnie tossed this over in her mind, as if weighing a bag of coins, and then nodded. At that moment, her stomach rumbled. "Ah! Oh, that scared me," she laughed. "I wonder if Mae and Natasha have lunch ready yet?"

"You want to eat what Natasha made?" James asked with a quirk of his brow.

"She's not going to poison me," she retorted, rolling her eyes in a very unladylike manner. "She's actually rather nice. I almost want to be friends with her. Although that sort of makes it worse... Ah, well, no use worrying about it now!" she declared with false cheeriness. "I need to stop whining about it. Jesse knows my feelings, nothing's going to change, so I should work on moving on. But..." and here she looked beseechingly at her new friend "...first I need a little moral support. Just don't try to kill Jesse."

"I will restrain myself. In fact, you will be stunned by how civil I can be around my uncle's murderess and my friend's cruel lover."

Winnie flushed under the name "lover" but said nothing, knowing full well that James meant what he said.

As they walked out, they bumped into a reverend.

"Oh, I beg your pardon," Winnie cried, dipping into a curtsy before she realized it was rather out of fashion now.

"Don't worry my dear." His old gaze shifted over to the graves. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, but despite the words it looks so peaceful, doesn't it?"

Winnie and James turned to gaze upon the silent graveyard, littered with flowers. "Yes, it does," James murmured.

"Ah, well, don't listen to this rambling old man. Have a lovely life, sir and madame." The reverend smiled.

Winnie smiled. She was always called "miss" due to her appearance. It was nice to feel like an adult.

They then took their leave, off to bear a rather uncomfortable luncheon.