Chapter 28: Discontent

Enviously, Dragon watched Danni from across the deck of the boat as she talked with Josh. He didn't think anything was going on between them, but the fact that she would rather spend all her time with Josh rather than with him made him bitter.

He had tried and failed relentlessly to win Danni over. He liked the air of confidence she carried about herself not to mention she was kind, and levelheaded. He mumbled something under his breath looking away from the two as he tried to concentrate on his fishing line again. But he kept getting lost in his own thoughts and memories.

Dragon was a ladies man. He was suave, charming, and good looking. This was always enough to get him whatever he wanted except twice.

Danni was the second, but there had been a first. Another woman to be exact and Danni reminded him of her. She had been another dark haired beauty, but with golden eyes, her body curvy, and her skin soft and a natural sun kissed tone of chestnut. They met one day in the Techno Island market. He thought she was trying to steal from a booth.

It turned out she was the one who was the victim of theft. Her knapsack had been stolen and she was trying to get it back. When reasoning with the merchant didn't work out she resorted to fighting. She seemed very desperate Dragon observed as he broke up the fight.

"What is your name?" he asked

Without missing a beat she answered, "Aloma."

He was skeptical, arching his brow at her, "Well Aloma, if you want it back you'll have to work for it," he mused brushing a hand against her smooth cheek.

"Listen here flame head I'll do honest work, no problem, but if you touch me again I'll be forced to dismember you," she smirked flashing her eyes down his body and back up to his face finishing her sentence with, "all of you."

He winced internally taking the knapsack from another Techno, and motioned her to follow him, "How good are you with following orders?" He could see her hesitate so he added, "My maid quit this morning. I need a stand in for a few days until I talk her into returning, and you need your knapsack back correct?"

"Why did she quit?"

"I broke her heart."

"Well you won't have that problem with me, five days isn't long enough to fall in love with someone therefore your heart won't get broken."

"My heart?" he mused, "It's yours I'm worried about," he said and opened the truck door for her.

She laughed climbing into the truck with ease before he could offer to hoist her up, "It seems neither one of us has anything to be worried about."

But she had been wrong. He fell hard. When five days were up he couldn't let her go.

"I do believe my five days of solitude are up," she approached him at the end of the fifth day. He was lounged across his bed watching her. She had just set the table in his room for two.

He grinned, "I know."

"Well where is my knapsack?"

"I'll give it to you after dinner."

"Fine, but right after dinner before you and your date get all touchy feely."

"Oh I doubt we'll be getting that far unless of course you've changed your mind about dismembering me."

Frustrated she began picking up the second place setting.

He got up from his bed quickly grabbing her arm gently to stop her action, "Please have dinner with me."

"I don't want to be your date,"

"It's not a date, more like a business dinner. I want to offer you a position here as a Techno."

"I hate technology."

"I meant as a trainer for my troops. I've seen the way you fight; they could use your training."

"Mhm tempting, what's in it for me?"

"Dinner with me."

She laughed," No seriously."

"Ouch, that hurts," he smirked.

"I'm sorry, but dinner with you isn't exactly a prize."

"What's wrong with me?" he asked.

"For starters your orange and red hair, not to mention you're arrogant, smug, and quite selfish."

"And you just dug the knife deeper," he put his hands over his heart, "c'mon I can't be that bad. Look what if I do something unselfish, like offer you your own room."

"I don't know," she fingered her long, dark braid, blended with purple.

"A room with a beach view."

Her face smoothed out, "As long as I don't have to wear that awful uniform or paint a ghastly red T on my face, I'll train your stupid troops."

"Deal. and dinner?"

"No need, meeting over, unless there's something else you'd like to discuss" she smirked.

"Well it couldn't hurt to get to know my new hire. What's your real name?"

"Éowyn."

"Éowyn, I like that. It's suiting."

"So is Dragon, for a flame head, that is."

"So what do you say, how about dinner?" he tried again.

She sighed, "Dinner and my knapsack, and nothing more."

"Nothing more," he promised.

His fishing line began to dance and tug at his grip until he was brought back to the present. He pulled it up, revealing a tuna of some kind. He frowned, tempted to set it free. Patsy liked serving sushi. Out here, out at sea it was all they had. His stomach growling reminded him their food store on the boat was wearing thin.

"Hey everybody looks like we're having sushi again," he shouted holding up his find. They all grumbled.

"Don't worry we'll reach an island sometime over the next few days. We trade there, they have good food," Kyra lightened the mood, "What's up with you?" she asked him while he gutted the fish, "You aren't yourself today."

"I don't see why we had to bring him along," he whispered, shooting a look towards Danni and Josh.

"Tai may bring his memory back."

"What makes you so sure it was her homing beacon? And what if he's not with her?"

"They were both on the same island. I know it was her who helped Bray out. Besides Tai-San is the only Techno out there with a reason to use the homing beacon."

"It was on for two seconds. Maybe she was drowning."

"I know what this is about Dragon. Look just give Danni some time okay?"

He sighed deeply, "I'm sorry sis. I just...sometimes I envy your love for Bray. I had that love once remember? Now I'll never get it back."

She patted his back, "Ah. Here I thought this was about Danni. Éowyn is out there somewhere, don't give up yet brother."

"It's been a year. Do I have any other choice?"

"Maybe not, but better to try and try again than spend your life alone."

"You sound like mom."

"It's how she got dad."

"Fine, I won't give up."

"That's my boy, now, do you think you could clean that a little faster, I don't care if Patsy serves me the eyeballs I'm so hungry."

He laughed, "I'll get it right to her."

~0~

Éowyn stood silently as her talisman was being tied. She would have gladly tied it herself but Kai had insisted. She sensed he had something on his mind. They hadn't spoken since the burial of their previous leader.

Charis declared on her death bed that her younger sister, Éowyn was to uphold the tradition of the Kraits, ones that had been upheld for far too many generations. And Éowyn didn't want the throne. She never had. She hated the power and stupidity that came with it. That is why she left the island in the first place.

"Why did you come home?" her sister's husband asked as he finished the tie.

She hesitated, fingering the dangling purple beads of the white talisman. The crafted necklace had been in their family for generations passed down to each oldest daughter. It symbolized chaste, strength and leadership. Now that Charis was dead and gave birth to a son, it was rightfully Éowyn's as the next sister until she had a daughter of her own.

"Charis needed me."

Kai shook his head, "You didn't know she was ill. It was a miracle Owl and Kimo found you when they did."

"Look why are we even having this conversation?" she replied, her defenses going up.

Kai knew her too well. He always had. They had grown up on the island members of the same village, and they had been in love once. Or at least she had been in love until he chose the island over adventures with her.

"Because we need a tribe leader with her head on straight."

Éowyn crossed her arms, "I'm not taking the role as leader. I don't want it and you know as well as I do they don't want me to have it."

"They? You grew up here too."

"I never belonged here. Besides we aren't an indigenous tribe anymore Kai. The tradition died even before the virus claimed the lives of the adults."

"No, tradition didn't die Éowyn, you ran away from it."

She glared at him. She hated tradition. She strove to be an individual, yet everyone here wanted to be the same. From the time she was still running around in a diaper she rebelled against anything that made her feel too much of a uniform.

The island had given up most of their ancient traditions long before she was born, but her mother tried to keep them alive. She had picked out each of her daughters a boy in the village to marry when they were just babies despite the fact that this was no longer practiced. Each girl would meet her fiancé after they had hosted their first suitors' party. But Éowyn had been such an unruly child that her fiancé's parents withdrew the engagement when she was only six and he was seven. It was the second time in her lineage tradition had been broken, the first being when her mother married her father, an English man.

Charis had been like their mother which is why when the virus hit she quickly asserted the role as leader of a tribe that didn't exist. It didn't take long for people of the island to follow Charis though once neighboring tribes began attacking the island.

However Éowyn wouldn't follow her sister. Being the youngest daughter she was more like her father; Strong, independent, and craving adventure. The adults dying were her ticket to freedom. So she left the island only to return five months ago after some Kraits tracked her down to tell her Charis was having a difficult pregnancy and likely neither mother nor child would survive.

"I've known you all your life, Éowyn, you like to be in control," he recalled his first kiss.

It was right before she left the island. He had stopped her in the marina trying to talk her out of leaving and her trying to talk him into leaving. When the arguing had escalated too far she gave up her fight and shut him up with her lips upon his. He thought she was consenting to stay, but her room was empty the next morning. She had been saying goodbye.

Éowyn knew what he was thinking about and a light blush rose to her face, "I only like to be in control when it comes to my life."

"You would've always been in control had you stayed. I would've let you shine."

"You married my sister," she said bitterly.

"Only because you left me."

"Left you? I begged you to come with me, besides I was thirteen," she turned her back to him.

"Actually," he approached her wrapping his arms around her, "you were six, and I was seven," he kissed her neck then.

She pulled away, turning to face him once more "What? You were....him? The engagement?"

"My parents told me before they died. It's funny how we never knew and yet our lives still keep intertwining," he pulled her in for a kiss, but before he could seal it she pushed him away.

An instant memory of orange and red hair flashed across the inside of her eyelids when she blinked and she opened her eyes immediately," I can't...we can't do this."

"Why can't you for once in your life quit running away?"

"My big sister who was your wife just died!"

"I only married Charis because she was pregnant!" he was shouting now.

"Yes with your child!"

"No, with Blaze's child!"

She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it, her golden eyes looking at him with mixed confusion.

Kai's voice came out soft then, "Why do you think she named him 'of the fire'?"

She smirked. How clever of Charis. Kai's name meant fire, but Blaze was the fire. It was the perfect name for her nephew either way. "But he isn't married."

"No, but things changed while you were gone. He hooked up with Lani. She was kidnapped and Blaze gave up hope on finding her. He and Charis picked up where they left off, but then Lani showed up one day on a trade boat. She was all messed up, I mean really unstable and crazy. She finally found stability in remembering her love with Blaze. He didn't want to see her crumble again, so he broke things off with Charis."

Éowyn began to piece things together then. "But my sister was already pregnant."

"She was really hurt, she really loved him. Nobody knew she was pregnant but her and Blaze. But then one day I caught them talking about it out in the forest.. So we agreed to get married and claim Keahi was mine."

Éowyn needed to sit down. Her head was swimming with so much. She sat on the edge of her cot and buried her face in her hands, "I should have been here for her."

"You were in the end."

"No. I was selfish when I left. I have always been jealous of Charis. She was always so sure of herself and knew exactly what she wanted. I didn't want to be under her rule of thumb and judgment so I left. But she needed me."

"You needed each other," he reached out to stroke her face, but she wrenched away. That gesture was all too familiar.

"Could you...just... please go now, I need to be alone before the ceremony."

Kai's dark eyes were sad at her rejection, but he left her anyhow.

~0~

Everyone on Fleur Isle seemed content and at home. They had bountiful food sources, Ellie and Alice had begun farming, Jack and Ram were working on restoring the electricity and plumbing, and everyone else seemed to find projects that kept them busy.

Only a select few seemed to be unhappy. May, scorned over rejection from Trader; Rayne, bitter that Darryl wouldn't seal the deal with her; Jay confused with his feelings again; Ruby confused that Jay was confused; and Tai-San, sick with worry; and now Salene had joined the unhappy gang.

She had been having headaches which she had accounted for the heat of the island. So she started limiting her time outside. They ceased, and then the cramping began. Salene didn't know what was wrong with her until she overheard Lottie asking Gel what a sanitary napkin was for, as she held one of the older girl's packages in the air.

"I'm going to kill Ruby for teaching you how to read!" Gel's face was flushed. She chased Lottie around.

Salene would've laughed had this not stirred panic in her. She hadn't had her cycle yet.

"You look like you had the wind knocked out of you," Jaffa sat next to her.

"I'm fine. Just a little worried about Lottie," she lied stealing a glance at Bray across the way. He was breaking the two girls apart.

"She gets a kick out of messing with Gel."

"They fight like sisters. It's really cute," Salene tried to smile, "I just don't want Gel to get so worked up she hurts Lottie."

Silence befell them and Salene began to calculate the days between her last cycle and now mentally. She still had a few days of grace. She sighed beginning to calm. She had been having the symptoms, headache, cramps, bloating. It all made sense.

"Listen, there's something I need you to tell the tribe," Jaffa took her silence as an opportunity.

"Did you do something?!" she almost panicked again.

"No. I just know they won't listen to me."

"Fine tell me, what's going on?"

"Tai-San isn't completely who we thought. I think she may bring some bad mojo to the island."

"Oh that's just crazy talk, no offense, but Tai, she wouldn't do anything to jeopardize the harmony on the island. She's the one who brought the tribe together in the first place."

"While that may be, I think you should call a tribe meeting with the other Mallrats so the truth becomes known."

He stood up then going away not letting her get any other words in. She wondered what it was all about. Tai-San had been acting weird lately, but so had a lot of others, herself included.

She would talk to Tai-San privately. Get to the bottom of things. Maybe it was all just a misunderstanding.

~0~

Jay enjoyed wandering the island alone. The sounds of the desolate areas were a symphony to his ears. Amongst the dense foliage with nothing to worry about but snakes, something he could handle. What he couldn't handle were his emotions.

Five months ago he had been sure it was Ruby he wanted. He loved her more than he ever loved Amber. But his heart had a battle scar; It had healed, sure, but the pain was still there. It surfaced whenever Ebony played with her son or kissed Slade. She was happy and he was not. He wouldn't be happy until she was in his arms again. And since that clearly was never happening again, the only other solution was to leave the island.

"You're not going to cry are you because you'd definitely lose your man card for that."

"Shut up Ved, how'd you find me anyhow?" Jay turned around at hearing his little brother.

"I followed you, I'm worried."

"There's nothing to be worried about."

"Liar."

"I'm still sober aren't I?"

Ved shrugged, "That doesn't mean you aren't going to do anything else stupid. Look you tried, we both tried. She's really moved on. Now it's your turn."

"I know."

"That was too easy," Ved said uneasy, "What are you up to?"

"I'm not going to do anything stupid Ved, I promise."

There was a rustling in the trees above them. They looked up to see a parrot flying overheard. Then Jay felt something stinging his neck.

"I think something just bit me."

Ved laughed tearing his eyes away from the treetops in time to see Jay collapse. He bent over his brother panicking, but then he began to feel a stinging sensation then numbing as well. And then all he knew was darkness.