A/n: hello! It's been a hot second since I've written for leverage, but I had this story in my docs for years now at a standstill. I wrote 24k of a story that kinda started in the middle, with notes of this huge con to go with it, but my muse just did not want to write the con part. So, this is kind of a we-pick-up-in-the-middle kinda story. So please take the plot with a grain of salt, as this story is more of a "don't worry so much how they got here" kind of a story haha. (At the end of this story I will leave an author's note with what I had intended it to be in case you were interested in that, haha.) I just really badly wanted to write some cute Eliot, Parker and Hardison friendship stuff, so... if you want to just come here to hang out with some friendship vibes... here you go! haha. :D
I had also intended for this to include the whole team around s4, but Nate and Sophie never decided to join the story for some reason lol... maybe they will later? Idk. So, if you will, please don't look too closely at how they got into this situation, haha.
Sorry for the long note haha, despite the iffy plot, I just really loved writing this and thought it might entertain someone else too. :) Maybe someday I will come back and write this all properly. But for now… hope you like it!
Also last note: parker and hardison are not yet pardison! :) but there may be hints later on of some early-on flirtin'.
~cosette141
Eliot was running.
It's been hours. He'd been trained to follow the path of the sun and the stars, so with a smashed phone and nothing but wilderness surrounding him, he's only had the sky to track the time.
Muscles burned and air scraped his throat, constricting his lungs. Everything felt numb. Blood rushed in his ears and every injury whited out into nothing. He wasn't sure if his cantering heart was due to his pace or the adrenaline. Or, the fear that was continually pulsing through his veins.
Unable to continue, he finally stumbled, his legs giving out beneath him. The sun was nearly set by now, only faded rays painting the air between branches.
He landed in a mess of twigs and underbrush. Breathing hard, he pushed himself up from the dirt. His legs were shaking. He took the cue to rest, and he pulled himself up, leaning his back against a nearby tree. The bark bit into his skin and he welcomed the fresh pain. A hand pressed to his ribs-cracked, for sure, but they could easily be broken-and he briefly shut his eyes.
He didn't leave them closed for long. His breath finally back under his control, he swallowed and blinked a few times. The silence was heavy. He pressed shaking fingers to his ear, where his earbud still-miraculously-resided. He took a long breath, steeling himself. "Guys?" he asked hoarsely.
Wind shifted the leaves on the trees. Silence continued around him. Feeling a twitch in his jaw, Eliot cleared his throat. "Hardison?"
Nothing. A leaf was lifted from the ground by the wind, trailing along the dirt.
Eliot pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled. "Parker?"
When silence was again all that met him, Eliot resisted the urge to rip the device from his ear and smash it. He was shaking, though this time he knew it had little to do with the fact that he was physically spent.
I failed them.
Eliot shut his eyes, rubbing his face with a hand. His job. His only job was to protect them. To make sure nothing happened to them. And now? Now, they were god knew where. The last he heard from them when the job went to hell were pounding footsteps, labored breathing, gunfire, and a scream from a voice that sounded so much like Parker's… but Eliot shoved it away, convincing himself that the scream could have been anything-anything- else. But it didn't stop him from hearing it all over again. And replaying it all in his head, as if his mind figured that was a good filler for the deathly silence that surrounded him, pressing down on all sides.
They could be anywhere.
Captured.
Hurt.
Dead.
A wild growl escaped him and his fist lashed out, striking the trunk of a tree beside him, hard enough to shatter the bark. Pain ricocheted up his arm but he didn't care.
For the first time in a long time, Eliot Spencer had no idea what to do.
He tore a hand through his hair and grasped a handful of it, pulling until it hurt. He breathed out and opened his eyes.
He didn't hear anyone's comms go out. That meant they weren't removed, turned off or destroyed. That also meant that there was a good chance that he was just simply out of range of the others. That is, supplied a dark voice in the back of his mind, if they aren't already dead.
He growled again. No. He would not do this. He would not think that they… that they weren't out there somewhere. If they were out there, he would find them. He would stop at nothing to find them and bring them home.
That was his job, dammit.
It was supposed to be an easy job.
And maybe it was their confidence that took their eyes—his eyes—of the ball.
Or maybe it was the fact that Nate and Sophie decided to go on that damn cruise that Sophie nagged Nate about for months— "Romance, Nate, that's why" —and the team had been as cocky as kids throwing a party while the parents were away.
Their 'client' had reached out to Hardison; an easy job that only required them to break into an office building, steal some files, and leak them.
However, none of them were prepared for the con to be a setup.
Some sort of cops, some underworld version of Interpol, only interested in how much an agency would pay to incarcerate the three of them, had taken them.
The moment they showed up to do the job, they were ambushed. Since Hardison and Parker were also on opposite sides of the building, Eliot hadn't been able to get to them in time. These invaders weren't cops, they didn't abide by the rules of law and order, and Eliot had to listen to them take both Hardison and Parker, unable to do a damn thing. Only after Eliot had taken down seven of them, the eighth got a sharp stab in his arm—a distinctive stab. Sedative.
Though it took two more pricks to actually knock him out.
Eliot had woken up in a moving van, to the surprise of the thug in the back with him. Seemed they thought the sedatives would last longer, and it wasn't long before the thug and the driver were unconscious and Eliot was out of the van, running into the unfortunately very vast woodland off the beaten dirt road that was very, distinctively, not American.
The only saving grace was the fact that he still had his comms in his ear, which hopefully meant Hardison and Parker did, too.
Hardison had made them far smaller and much harder to see (which led to a disgruntled hacker who had to make several extras because the team kept losing them).
But that led Eliot to here, hours later, desperately trying to avoid admitting he was lost, with absolutely no idea how he was supposed to fix this.
If he even could at all.
With a heavy, shuddering breath, Eliot picked himself up and started running again.
There have only been a few times in his life when he was at a complete loss of what to do. And now… now was one of those times. But every time it happened, he never stopped. He never quit. He never gave up.
And he damned well wouldn't start now.
It wasn't until light broke through the dense underbrush that Eliot finally allowed himself the smallest surge of relief. Finally. The end of this forest meant civilization. People.
Phones.
If anything, he could try calling the others' phones. The hope in him disintegrated almost painfully and he briefly stopped; there was hardly a chance they'd answer. Not if they were captured like he had been. His phone was the first thing they destroyed. And even if he did manage to get his hands on a computer, he wasn't Hardison. He had no idea how to put a "trace" or whatever on those things. For the first time since he'd met the hacker, he wished he'd actually listened to the geek's nerd rants.
Eliot pushed himself further, hope waning. He glared at the trees around him, violently swatting a branch away from him. Hope was useless. 'Hope' had never helped him escape the clutches of a madman trying to kill him. 'Hope' had never given him the strength to stand when he was beyond finished in a fight. No, 'hope' would have no place inside Eliot Spencer. People relied on hope when they had nothing left. People who were weak, and had nothing better to do than rely on wishful thinking, for someone else to fix what was broken. But he was a practical man, built on instinct, will and the purest desire to survive. And that's what he'd cling to now. Fresh adrenaline backed up his inner monologue, dulling the pain in his ribs and the ache of hunger. His face set into new determination and he drove on.
The light gained intensity with every footstep. He pushed himself onward, driving the exhaustion behind him. Finally, after what felt like ages, Eliot waded through the last of the trees and emerged from the godforsaken forest. And found himself…
...In the middle of nowhere.
His heart sank.
No buildings.
No roads.
No cars.
Nothing for miles.
Eliot stood very still. He closed his eyes. That 'hope' he swore he didn't have finally left him completely. He was in the middle of nowhere . No way to contact anyone. No way to even know if they were alive . He hasn't had food or water in over a day. He was hurt, exhausted, lost, and so very, very alone.
He dropped to his knees. The longer he was stuck here, the longer his team, his team, was suffering. He bowed his head, his shoulders giving one unstable shake. "I'm sorry," he whispered, a hot tear burning a trail down his cheek.
Deafening silence responded for a long moment, until a loud crackle sounded in his ear, making him jump a mile in his own skin.
"Who said that?"
Eliot's head whipped up, recognizing that voice in an instant. Eyes burning, Eliot nearly laughed out loud. "Parker?!" He stumbled to his feet, nearly tripping over himself in a staggered circle, desperately scanning the area for the thief.
He heard a brief rustle from her, and he realized that she must be looking around for him too. "Wait… Eliot?"
"Yes!" said Eliot breathlessly, his heart beating in his throat. She's alive. She's okay. Thank god. His eyes darted around him, but she was nowhere in sight. "Parker, darlin, where are you? Are you all right?"
"I'm okay," she said, and Eliot couldn't help thinking how damned good it was to hear her voice. "I don't really know where I am. Lots of trees."
'Lots of trees' could mean anywhere in this damned place. "Yeah, same here." he said. "Are you hurt? What happened to you after…" He let the rest of the sentence hang in the silence.
"Someone must have knocked me out," she said. "I don't remember. I just woke up in a room. Escaped right after. Their security was terrible. But I'm okay. I've been walking in this forest for, like, ever."
She's safe. Eliot let out a breath. "Do you know what happened to the others?" he asked carefully.
"No." said Parker. Leaves crunched through the comms. She must have started walking again. "I don't know. After the job—apart—and Hardison—" Her comms started sparking up static with every few words. Eliot's heart twisted.
"Parker, stop !" he nearly yelled.
"Wh—y?" came her crackled voice.
"Stop walking," he said again, staying incredibly still himself. "Go back a few steps from wherever you were just a few seconds ago."
A few footsteps sounded on her side.
"Parker?" he asked tentatively.
"Yeah?" Her voice was crystal clear again.
Eliot let out a tense breath. "Okay—Parker. Do. Not. Move."
Parker snorted. "You're starting to sound all bossy. Like Nate."
Eliot fought the urge to roll his eyes. "Listen. We must have just walked into range of each other. If you keep going the way you were going, we're going to lose the connection."
"Oh."
They were both quiet for a moment then. It was Parker who broke the terse silence. "So… what do we do?"
Eliot hesitated, thinking. His eyes scanned the clearing, and the trees in the far distance on all four sides. Parker could be anywhere. Although…
His head snapped up.
That was it.
"Okay, Parker," said Eliot. "Right now, we're both standing at the very end of the range of these things. I need you to stay put, right where you are, and I'm gonna start walking. Once you hear my voice crack, tell me to stop, all right?" He took off his jacket and dropped it at his feet to mark his starting point. "The direction I walk in that doesn't crack is leading me closer to you. All I gotta do then is follow it to find you."
"Ooh, yep! Okay. Gotcha." Eliot could almost see her nodding at the air. "Alrighty, not gonna move."
"All right, darlin," said Eliot softly. "You ready?"
"Ready."
"You tell me as soon as you hear it cut out."
"Yep."
Eliot let out another breath. The slight rush of fear at the thought of breaking contact with her was startling. He toed his jacket to ensure it would stay put. He would not lose Parker. "Okay," he said finally, stepping slowly backward as he spoke. "Can you hear me?"
"Stop!"
He moved back to his jacket. "Still there?"
She let out an audible breath. He was surprised to hear the panic in her tone; seemed he wasn't the only one afraid of losing their connection.
"Yep, you're clear again, Sparky."
Despite himself, Eliot shook his head and a slight smile tugged at his lips. Even though he wasn't fond of the nickname she'd chosen for him, it was surprisingly nice to hear it again.
Eliot tried moving in a few more directions-all having the comms cut out-until he stepped northwest, and Parker said nothing. Hesitantly, he took a few more steps. "Can you hear me, Parker?"
"Loud and clear."
Eliot grinned. He backtracked only to retrieve his jacket, but then kept forward, heading northwest. After a solid fifty feet or so, he asked, "Still there?"
"Right here. Not movin'."
Eliot laughed quietly, continuing across the clearing. "That's a good girl."
He didn't know how long it took him to cross the clearing completely. Maybe an hour? Two? Every few minutes, he or Parker would say something to fill the silence, to make sure the connection was still there. Eliot was surprised how much it brought him, knowing she was there. Living and surviving on his own his entire life, he'd never needed anyone. Not his brothers from the service or anyone he'd met along the way. He'd learned early on not to feel much for anyone he met. Not to like anyone. Definitely not to love anyone. His life had been full of friendships that lasted only days, sometimes hours, until that friend was murdered. Losing that many people that he learned to care for was enough to tear a man apart. So, he learned to keep a distance. Surrounded by death, he'd had no choice.
But these years he'd been with the team, things had changed. Somewhere along the lines, it became more than a job. They were more than just partners. More than just a team. He'd started to care, without even noticing. And caring was dangerous. It was too late now. Each and every one of those damned criminals have forced their way into his heart, deep into his veins. There was no getting them out now. He already knew, with an incredible, damning certainty, that losing any one of them was something he wouldn't be able to take.
He grimaced at a sharp twinge from his ribs, but set his jaw. Losing them was out of the question. Nothing was going to happen to his team. His… family.
He would make sure of that.
"I'm huuuungry."
Parker's voice tore Eliot from his thoughts. At her words, his own stomach panged uncomfortably. "I know," he said softly. "We'll find food soon, sweetheart. Just lemme find you first."
Eliot reached the first of the trees, and with a slight growl of irritation at the notion of more trees , he started through them. He was beginning to adopt Hardison's distaste for the outdoors. He'd had to survive in woodlands many times before, some for weeks at a time, but had never had anyone but himself to worry about. Personal survival was much easier.
He hugged his jacket closer to him; the sun was beginning to set and it was getting colder. Suppressing a shiver, he asked Parker, "You got a jacket or something?"
"No," she said. "I don't remember what happened to it."
Eliot felt a slight pang in his chest. "You cold?"
"Yeah, but it's not too bad."
Eliot's brows kneaded as his boots crunched leaves. "I'll find you soon. Then we'll get out of this damned place."
"I can see why Hardison hates outside," she said suddenly, and Eliot almost smiled, hearing her reflect his very own thoughts.
"Yeah," he huffed, a twig snapping under his weight. "Good thing he ain't trapped out here instead of us. Princess wouldn't last an hour."
The joke was supposed to be light, but it fell heavily.
"Do you think he's okay?" asked Parker, her voice so quiet that Eliot almost missed it.
He walked a few steps and allowed the silence to wane. "We'll find him, Parker."
"But —"
"Let me focus on finding you first, huh?" he said gently. He stopped briefly, trying to wrack his brain for the radius of the comms. How far did they reach? What had Hardison said? "Do you know the radius of the comms?" he asked Parker.
"Six miles," said Parker without hesitation.
Two thoughts hit him instantly. The first being, how did she come up with that so quickly? and the second being, I have to walk six miles?
"Hardison talks about his geeky toys a lot," Parker explained even before Eliot could ask.
"Well," said Eliot, turning back, trying to calculate how far he'd already walked. "I'm probably halfway to you by now." The sun's rays sank a bit lower in the sky and Eliot added, "Good, too, because night's coming."
"I'll be here."
Eliot continued walking, trying to keep a vague measure of distance in the back of his mind. After what felt like another hour, he heard rustling from Parker. His eyebrows quirked in puzzlement. "What are you doing?"
The crunching didn't stop. "Pacing."
"Why?"
"Can't sit still." she said simply. Then, almost as an afterthought, she added, "And I'm cold."
Eliot's heart sank a bit lower. His own jacket was pulled tight around him. For him, though, the cold was helping to numb him, taking the edge off the pain every step caused. "I'll be there soon," was all he found himself saying, and he briefly wondered if he kept telling her that for her sake or for his.
Eliot kept on, exhaustion beginning to settle in. He was physically spent-he knew it-but he wasn't going to stop until he found Parker. He couldn't. He shoved more branches out of his way, looking up at the red-streaked sky. He prayed that the light would remain until he found Parker. Trying to locate her in the dark-and cold-would be eons harder. Much longer, though, and he'd collapse where he stood.
"Eliot?" said Parker softly.
Alert, he stopped. "Yeah?"
"I'm…" She paused. "I'm glad the comms are working again."
Eliot let out a tense breath, and a little grin slipped on his face. "Me, too."
Eliot continued until his inner measurement of the distance reached what he supposed was six miles. He stopped, squinting through the dim light. Trees, bushes and dirt greeted him. No blond hair poking through the branches.
"Parker?" he called, careful not to raise his voice too loud.
"Yeah?" she answered into his ear.
He gave his surroundings another scan. No pacing blond thief. He didn't hear her voice from anywhere except his comms. There would be almost no way for him to find her at this point that didn't involve blind, dumb luck. They were close enough to each other that walking in any direction would keep the comms running crystal clear. Picking any direction might lead him even further away from her and he couldn't afford to lose any more time. It would be dark very soon. He shut his eyes, breathing out an even breath. "How far are you from where you were held?"
He listened to her silence. "Um," she said, drawing out the word. "Maybe… a couple miles? I zigzagged a lot. No one followed me out, though."
Eliot rubbed the back of his neck. "Doesn't mean they ain't now." He stood still for another few moments, weighing odds in his head. In the end, there was only one thing he could do to find her, now and quickly. "All right, Parker. I'm gonna need you to do something for me, but it's a risk. I don't want any of those bastards hearing you, but without any help, I'm not gonna be able to find you." He took another breath. "I'm gonna need you to yell something on a count of th—"
"SOMETHING!"
Eliot recoiled from the shout, the volume nearly bursting his eardrum. But his head quickly snapped up, a grin twitching his lips. He'd heard the shout.
In both ears.
Her voice-though he knew she shouted at the top of her lungs, thanks to which his ear was still ringing-was faint, somewhere in the distance off to his left. He was moving even before he thought to. "I hear you, darlin," said Eliot breathlessly, tearing through the trees. "I'm coming." He scanned the dim area, no sight of her yet. Twigs snapped back into his face but he didn't care. "Say something else, Parker-"
"SOMETHING ELSE!"
Her voice was closer, clearer. Eliot smiled. He kept running, twigs scraping his skin and his feet pounding on the forest floor.
Not even seconds into the run, Parker's voice spoke again. "Hey… Eliot?"
Her voice was hushed. It sent ice down his spine and he slowed the slightest bit to hear. His heart slammed in his chest. "What?"
"You aren't running with four feet, are you?" she whispered.
His face screwed up in utter confusion. "Parker, what are you-"
"There are two pairs of feet running toward me," she said, and Eliot could read the slight panic in her voice. "Two people are coming. They're running. I… do you still want me to stand here?"
Eliot's heart caught in his throat. "No!" he nearly shouted, already breaking back into a full-on sprint. "Parker, run!"
He heard a rustle from her comms, and the sound of it echoed in the real world, somewhere, maybe fifty feet ahead of him. "I hear you, Parker! I'm coming!"
Harsh breathing sounded through the comms. " Okay, I'm going to-" Parker's voice cut off abruptly with a cry of pain that Eliot heard through the comms, the air, and deep inside his heart.
"PARKER!" he yelled, his voice a wild, animalistic growl.
Another thud sounded again and her voice broke, tearing his heart into painful shards. Blood boiling and rage fueling him, Eliot pushed himself even faster, until he finally caught movement straight ahead of him.
Two men dressed in full black, nearly blending in with the quickly falling dusk, were standing over something on the ground. Blond hair trailed through the leaves.
Parker.
One man was standing, holding a gun out, aimed at Parker. The other was kneeled over her. She was kicking out at the two men, but the second man had a harsh grip on her, pinning her down. Something flashed in his hands.
Knife.
"Nice catch," Eliot heard the knife-guy say, mostly through the comms. "We should have fun with this one first."
Black fury consumed him.
"E-Eliot," Parker choked out, and it was all it took to set him off as he launched himself through the trees, straight for the men.
The men hardly turned their heads toward him before he attacked. The gunman being the more prominent threat, Eliot chose him first. Using the man's temporary loss of focus, Eliot grabbed the wrist that held his gun and twisted sharply until the bones snapped. The man screamed.
Before the-now gunless-gunman could recover, Eliot drove his knee into the man's special place and kicked out hard, driving him backward into the trunk of a tree.
Eliot heard knife-guy move behind him even before Parker's warning shout. Without hesitation, Eliot spun on his heel, his foot lashing out and caught the man in the chest, knocking the air straight from his lungs and sending him crashing backward into another tree.
Teeth bared in a growl, knife-guy pushed off the tree, knife aimed for Eliot's chest. Eliot allowed himself a slight grin as he stepped easily out of the way, only to allow a vicious cry of pain to fill the silence.
Knife-guy hadn't anticipated Eliot's move and his knife continued it's path… straight into the chest of gunless-guy behind him.
The man dropped to the ground, dead before he hit the dirt. Knife-guy stepped back, staring wide-eyed at the corpse of his former buddy. He glared at Eliot.
"What?" asked Eliot in a cold voice. "Wasn't me."
With a bitten-off curse, knifeless-guy dove toward Eliot in a tackle that Eliot was ready for, but a converse sneakered foot suddenly lashed out, hitting the man straight in the chest, knocking him to the ground.
"Take that, sicko!" Parker shouted.
Before Eliot could react, the cock of a gun filled the silence. Knifeless-guy had just found the gun on the ground, and was now on his knees, the gun aimed at Eliot. And that's why you remove the clip, Eliot chided himself.
"Oops," said Parker half-heartedly.
Eliot took half a step in front of Parker, doing his best to shield her. His eyes darted to the ground, searching for a weapon.
"Neither of you move," snarled the man.
Eliot's eyes caught on something on the ground, and he nearly grinned to himself. As quietly as he could manage, he said, "Distract him," knowing that the comms would carry his words.
"Hey," said Parker suddenly. "Do you like dirt?" Before the man could say a word, Parker kicked a mound of dirt into his face.
In one single motion, Eliot ducked to the ground, grabbed the knife from the dead man's chest and threw it expertly, striking the remaining man straight through the heart.
The man dropped instantly, but Eliot jumped over him and grabbed the gun and jammed it in the waistband of his jeans, just in case. Not a second later, he turned and grabbed Parker, pulling her into a crushing hug.
She hugged him back just as fiercely. Neither of them said a word, just held the embrace, everything that needed to be said between them conveyed through touch alone.
Eliot pulled away, but kept a firm grip on her shoulders, as if he was terrified she'd simply vanish right before his eyes. He looked her up and down. "Are you hurt?" he asked, remembering all too well her cry of pain from a few moments ago.
Moisture had gathered in her eyes and she blinked rapidly a few times. Without thinking about it, his grip on her tightened the smallest bit. "I'm okay," she said quietly. "They pushed me into a tree and I hit my head," she said, pointing toward her temple. "But it doesn't really hurt."
It was hard to see, but Eliot's eyes found the slight bruise that was just beginning to form. He frowned at it, asking, "Anywhere else?"
"Kicked me here," she said, pointing to her left side. "But nothing's cracked or broken. I know how that feels."
Eliot's jaw twitched at that, not entirely surprised that she's broken ribs before-due to all her rappelling-but still not wanting to hear it. He nodded, slightly relieved with her list of injuries, however. He'd thought she'd be much worse off. "I'll take a look later," he told her, nodding to her side. "Just to be sure."
Parker suddenly shivered under his fingers. She was still only dressed in jeans and a black t-shirt.
Eliot shrugged out of his jacket, cringing as he jostled his ribs, and draped it over Parker's small shoulders. "Put your arms in."
Before she did, she gave him a questioning look. "Are you okay? You winced."
Eliot gave her a smile. "'Course I'm okay, darlin. My ribs just weren't as lucky as yours."
She frowned.
"Don't you worry about me," he said gently. "Now, put your arms in. You'll be warmer."
She did as she was told, zipping it up to her chin. Eliot took the time to lean back over the dead knife-guy and he yanked the knife from his chest. Live by the sword, die by the sword , he thought grimly. He wiped the blood off on the grass and stood, holding the knife out, hilt first, to Parker. "Find a place to put this on you."
Parker stared at it. Her eyes then darted to the two corpses, then back again. "Those guys are… dead."
Eliot swallowed. Hard. He followed her gaze to the two men. Two men whose hearts had been beating before he stopped them permanently. He'd been in survival mode for so long now he forgot that, besides Nate, none of the team had seen him kill. It wasn't something he'd ever wanted them to see. The last thing he wanted was for them to be afraid of him. But in the heat of the moment, he'd made the snap decision that killing the men was their best option. Their only option. If he'd left them alive and simply knocked out, they'd come looking again. Tied up, they could have gotten free or shouted for whoever else that might be following Parker in here.
Eliot slowly looked back at the thief. "Parker…"
Before he could finish, she gave him the ghost of a smile. "We do what the others can't."
Relief flooded him. He only nodded, and she took the knife from his hand. He watched as she slipped it into a pocket of his jacket, near enough if she needed it, but secure enough that she wouldn't hurt herself accidentally.
"There's probably more where they came from," said Eliot. He blinked slowly, trying to push his exhaustion away. The adrenaline was wearing off rapidly and his body was ready to give in. One look at Parker told him she was most likely just as tired as he was. "We should rest. But we need to put some distance between them. Cover our tracks."
Parker nodded, and he and she set to work, both grabbing the two dead men and dragging them under a dense bush, out of sight. Eliot kicked dirt over the indents in the ground made by the fight and their own footsteps, thankful that the full moon granted them enough light to see.
"All right," said Eliot, resting briefly against the trunk of a tree. "Ready?"
They set off. Leaves were crushed almost silently beneath their feet. Eliot kept his eyes scanning the darkness for any kind of shelter; a cave, alcove, hollowed-out tree, anything that could bring cover and warmth. But everywhere they went looked irritatingly identical.
He and Parker were walking close enough their shoulders were touching. Any time they even moved slightly apart, the other came straight back. The fragile security they had together was palpable, acting as almost a weak, magnetic field. Eliot briefly looked at her, wishing desperately that he could simply grab her, put her in a bubble and keep her there until this whole mess was over. The fear was almost stronger now than before, when he'd only been looking for her. Now, he had her. She was safe. She was with him. But the terror that she could disappear again was all-consuming. He rubbed his eyes, unfamiliar with such strong rushes of fear, concern and paranoia. He shook his head and blamed it on the lack of sleep.
After a while, both their paces slowed considerably. Parker then stopped completely, falling to her knees. Eliot snapped around in an instant.
"Eliot," she whined quietly. "I'm tired. When are we stopping?"
Relaxing slightly once he realized she wasn't hurt or dying, Eliot looked around. Nothing but trees and dirt. He was getting really, really sick of that. But he was also exhausted. And Parker wasn't usually one to whine. He knew that. He sighed. They'd have to just rest out in the open. Not his ideal situation, but they couldn't continue on like this. They had to conserve their energy.
"We'll stop here," said Eliot, and at his words, Parker fell onto her stomach with a relieved little sigh.
"Do you have food?" she asked.
"No," he said grimly. He had no idea how long it would be until they found food or water. He glanced at the ground, noting the patches of grass. Morning might bring dew. It wouldn't be enough water, by far, but it would be something to keep them alive and moving. Food… he hadn't come across any edible plants. Not that he'd been keen on searching, so focused on finding the others. He'd seen a few small animals, but didn't have it in him to kill any. He wasn't desperate yet. He only killed when he had to, and that applied to animals just as much as it did humans. But not spiders. Spiders, he showed no mercy. For that, Hardison in particular was always thankful.
Parker lifted her head. "We're gonna need food soon, aren't we?"
Eliot slowly, carefully lowered himself to the base of a tree. He nodded, but spoke anyway, since the moonlight made it harder to see each other. "We're gonna need water more than food," he said. "Food, we can last up to three weeks without. Water… they say anywhere between two days and a week." He shrugged. "I've gone a week and a half before. Wasn't ideal, but… I'm still alive." Eliot nearly shuttered, thinking of every time he pushed things like that to their limits... and past them.
"Why didn't you have water for a week and a half?" asked Parker, eyes bright with innocence.
Eliot gave a laugh that held no humor. "Maybe a story for another time." There was no part of him that wanted to delve back into that memory. A few weeks, deep into the heart of a Croatian dungeon… He shook himself. He knew for certain that Parker would never, ever, hear that story.
Eliot shivered suddenly, cursing the drop in temperature. His shirt was hardly thick enough to keep him warm in the chilled air. He glanced at Parker, who was still wrapped up in his jacket, but he could see her shivering beneath it. He shifted his weight, and moved slightly to the side. "C'mere, darlin."
Parker looked up at him. She raised an eyebrow. "I'm okay h-here," she said, her teeth chattering through the words. "That's your t-tree."
Eliot shook his head. "Parker, you'll be warmer if you sit by me." At her questioning gaze, and wondering if he really had to spell it out for her, and he slowly raised his eyebrows. "Body heat?"
"Oh," she said. "Right." She picked herself up and dropped unceremoniously next to him. He checked his jacket on her, ensuring that every button was done. He slowly wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close against him. She tensed a bit at his touch, and Eliot froze. Parker was still Parker. He knew she was never one to touch others or be touched herself, probably due to some traumatic childhood that he knew nothing about. He waited with his arm just barely around her until he felt her muscles loosen slightly, and lean a bit closer into him. He felt her sigh. "You're warm."
Eliot smiled, pulling her a little closer. "You feel better?"
She nodded against him. They both stayed like that for a while. Eliot's trembles from the cold died down a bit, Parker's heat helping him as much as his was helping her. He rubbed her shoulder with his thumb, suddenly flashing back fifteen years, rocking his baby sister to sleep. He hadn't thought about his siblings in a long time. Only flashes every now and then, when Hardison and he were bickering, reminding him of himself and his younger brother. Or his constant fear for Parker's safety, the same fear he had for his sister. Two different girls, but two girls who meant the same exact thing to him. Being who he was, keeping a relationship with his family was dangerous for them. He had to leave them behind a long time ago. But, somehow, he managed to stumble into a new one.
"I hope they're okay."
Parker's voice pulled him from his thoughts, and Eliot looked down at her. Her eyes were still open, staring out at the trees. He followed her gaze, wondering-for what felt like the millionth time-if the others were even alive. He searched for something to say, something to make her feel better, to make them both feel better, but nothing came. They'd be numb until they knew.
Parker continued before he had to, though.
"I miss them," she said softly. "I miss Hardison. I miss his geeky lectures and sneaking up on him. And I miss Nate. And his bossiness. And Sophie. And her… Sophie-ness."
Eliot smiled emptily. "I know, sweetheart. I miss them, too."
"You do?" she asked, looking up at him. "But you're always grumpy when we're around."
Eliot laughed softly. "Not always."
"It's okay," she said, laying her head back on his shoulder. "That's what I missed about you."
A soft warmth suddenly filled him, deep inside his chest. He smiled, squeezing her shoulder slightly. "You missed my 'grumpiness'?" he asked her incredulously.
Parker shrugged against him. "It's comforting."
Eliot shook his head to himself, shifting his gaze back to the trees. "There's something wrong with you."
A tiny smile quirked Parker's lips and her eyes slipped shut for a moment until she slowly blinked them back open. Another flash, and Eliot was in his childhood home, watching his younger sister fall asleep.
He nudged Parker gently. "You should get some sleep. We should be awake and alert when the sun comes up."
"What 'bout you?" she mumbled sleepily.
"I'll wake you in a few hours," he said. "I'll keep watch first."
She nodded against him, and shut her eyes. When he felt her breathing slow and she leaned a bit more into him, he knew she was asleep. His own eyes were heavy but he kept them open, staring at the darkened forest and listening intently. His eyes fell back to Parker. He watched her sleep, still taken by how young she looked. Her cry of pain from hours ago suddenly echoed in his mind. Something inside him tightened and he gently pulled her closer to his chest.
"You're safe," he whispered, and he could have sworn he saw her lips tilt into a smile as she slept.
He watched the forest, his own smile fading, hoping against hope that Hardison was all right.
a/n: I have several more chapters of this already done and will be up soon :D
also the whole "finding each other based on the comms radius" was the idea that started me on this fic lol xD
thanks for reading and hope you like this fairly plot-less story hahah
~cosette141