He had been running every morning and evening for a few days now, pushing himself to his limits, while Andraeon worked with Shiki. He wasn’t allowed into their training sessions; Shiki had made vague noises about him distracting Andraeon. It made him feel slightly anxious, though inwardly he laughed at himself for fretting like a mother hen. So he ran instead, beginning to build up his muscle again.
The sun rose steadily and eventually he was forced to stop and rest before he made himself sick. His tank top was soaked in sweat and clung to his back, and he could feel more sweat rolling down the sides of his face and neck. He swiped it off with the back of his hand and stretched out his legs to keep them from locking up while he rested. Then he started walking again, taking deep breaths of the becoming-humid air.
He heard the waterfall before he saw it, rushing water pounding into the pool below. The area around it was noticeably cooler, even before he rounded the corner and felt the first faint spray on his sweaty skin. It felt so good he paused and closed his eyes before continuing on down to the edge of the water. There he sat on the damp ground and stripped off his shirt, tossing it aside and leaning his elbows on his knees to watch the water foam by.
He didn’t hear her, or even sense her behind him, until she covered his eyes with her hands and purred a hello in his ear. His heart leaped into his throat and then dropped into his heels, and he jerked away, trying to turn around at the same time. The awkward movement tipped him over and he just barely caught himself with an elbow—taking a chunk of skin off, though he didn’t notice until later—before sprawling out completely helpless. Dull pain gnawed at his shoulder but he ignored it to glare at Elle, who was laughing helplessly.
“That was great,” she managed finally. “Even better than I’d hoped for. Your reaction times are rusty.”
“What do you want?”
“I have a present for you. Two, actually, but you only get one right now. And I’m getting sick of returning these, so don’t lose them this time.” Grinning, she held out his gunbelt, with the two pistols in their respective holsters.
He hesitated, then got up and took them, inspecting both belt and guns minutely before he fastened it around his waist. The weight of the guns felt comforting on his hips and he began to slowly relax. “Thank you.”
She waved a hand at him, looking him up and down. “Working out, I see. Good. I’d have told you to start if you hadn’t.”
“Why?”
“Oh, various things. You know. It took forever to find you again.”
“You managed it.”
“Don’t get snarky with me.” She pointed a finger—tipped with a long red fingernail—at him. “I gave you your phallic objects back. Show a little gratitude.”
He surprised himself—and her, by the brief look of startlement that flashed across her face—by laughing. “Point taken.”
“You’re oddly happy. Did you get laid?” She grinned. “It was Drae, wasn’t it?”
“Go away, Elle.” He leaned down to pick up his shirt and started back up the path towards the cabins.
“I’m only leaving because I have other things to do,” she called after him. “Hey, give Drae a kiss for me.”
“You wish,” Jones muttered, but when he glanced over his shoulder to see if she’d heard, she was already gone. He glanced around to make sure she hadn’t just decided to jump out at him from somewhere else, then continued walking.
He made it to the cabins without incident and went inside his to shower and change into some fresh clothes. Once he had, he sat down on the bed and went over his guns again, somewhat amused to see they were both fully loaded. He checked each bullet and found nothing unusual about them; neither was there anything unusual about the guns themselves, the holsters, or the belt. Figuring if Elle had done something to them he wouldn’t be able to tell anyway, he buckled the belt back around his waist and went out to see if Andraeon was finished with Shiki yet.
They were both sitting at the kitchen table in Shiki’s cabin, drinking tea, when he knocked and ducked inside. Andraeon looked tired but smiled to see him, and got up to come give him a hug, only to stop when he spotted the twin guns Jones was wearing.
“Elle dropped them off,” Jones said in response to his questioning look. “As far as I can tell, she hasn’t booby-trapped them.”
“Can I see?” Shiki got up from the table and held a hand out.
“I guess,” Jones said, though he was reluctant to hand the guns over. “Where’s Shasta?”
“He went out,” Shiki said absently. “He’ll wander back in when he feels like it.” He rubbed his thumb and forefinger over each gun then handed them back. “They’re clean.”
“Thanks.” Jones slipped them back into the holsters and took the spare seat at the table. “How’d it go?”
“Good.” Andraeon dropped back into his seat and hitched it over so he could lean against Jones. “I’m getting the hang of things, I think. Watch.” He reached out a hand and the front door opened and shut with a loud bang. Jones saw Shiki wince slightly, but Andraeon looked so pleased with himself that they just exchanged a look and said nothing but compliments.
“Elle’s expecting trouble, I think,” Jones said after Andraeon had settled back against his side. “She told me to start working out when she gave me back my guns.”
“Which you’re already doing.” Shiki set a mug of sweet coffee down in front of him and pulled his own seat up to the table again. “She could just be yanking your chain.”
“I know. But I’m doing it anyway so I guess I’ll just keep an eye out when we leave.”
“You’re not leaving for a little while yet, I hope.”
Jones shrugged. “Can’t stay here forever. I still have to find Emily, and I promised to see Lea again.”
“I might be able to help you with finding Emily. Finding lost people is a specialty of mine.” Shiki finished his tea and pushed himself up. “I’ll start looking now, while you two rest. I’ll come find you again before dark.” He gave them a little salute and vanished between one blink and the next, as though he’d never been there at all.
“Creepy,” Jones said under his breath, drinking the rest of his coffee in three big gulps. He could already feel the heat of the day beginning to beat against the cabin walls. Pushing his chair back, he got up and offered a hand to Andraeon, helping Drae to his feet. They left Shiki’s cabin together and walked back over to their own, glad to get out of the blazing sun and into the dim shadows inside. Jones had an idea it was going to be a scorcher even for this place, and he had no intention of even stirring much until evening.
In the bedroom he stripped down and automatically put the gunbelt within easy reach of his hand as he lay on the bed. Andraeon paused just long enough to turn on the ceiling fan before joining him, sprawling out at his side with easy, long-limbed grace. They lay in a comfortable silence for a while and Jones was beginning to drift off when Andraeon roused him by sliding a hand across his stomach.
“Hey, Jones?”
“What?”
“Tell me more about you. What were you like as a child? What was it like being a soldier, or a mercenary?”
“I don’t really remember much about my childhood, other than having to compete with all the animals for food.”
“Literally?”
Jones laughed a bit. “Only sometimes. My parents were just more interested in keeping pets than keeping a child. Tons of cats, a whole pack of dogs, plus bunnies and rats and guinea pigs. I’m surprised they even managed to name me.”
“What’d they name you? I know it starts with a G, I saw it on your dogtags.”
Jones’s hand went automatically to his throat, though he hadn’t worn the tags for years. “Everyone knows me just as Jones.”
“Well, I want to know you as something else.” Andraeon propped himself up on his elbow, smiling a bit. “Please?”
Jones studied him for a moment, then beckoned for him to lean closer. When he did, Jones kissed his mouth, feeling Andraeon shiver a little at the unexpected contact. He had hoped it would distract Andraeon but when they finally broke apart, Andraeon just grinned and said, “Nice try, but I still want to know. Is it embarrassing? Is it Griswold?”
Jones snorted. “No. It’s boring.”
“So tell me.” Andraeon tickled his ribs, making Jones jump like he’d just been goosed. He caught sight of Andraeon’s grin turning wicked, and wasn’t quite fast enough to avoid being sat on and tickled until he was squirming helplessly.
“All right, stop,” he said, out of breath. “I’ll tell you.”
Andraeon smiled, tucking his hair back behind his ears before he placed a hand on either side of Jones’s head and leaned down to hear. His weight was solid on Jones’s hips, and they were so close the air between them warmed. Jones slid a hand across the back of Andraeon’s neck and put his mouth beside his ear, whispering a single word.
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