Post by dragonfire13 on Nov 12, 2005 16:50:51 GMT -5
No Easy Way Out
Huntsgirl crouched on one of the buildings of New York. It was late, a few days before Christmas, and it had begun snowing lightly a few hours before. A fine dusting of the white stuff had already settled on the young huntress’s shoulders, and she shook it off impatiently. Before, she would have been thrilled by the sight of snow, awed by it. Now it was just a bother to her on a cold night in December, where she was all alone with nothing but her thoughts. And her thoughts were anything but comforting. They had, as of late, been straying to one dragon—and especially to one boy—ever since the Grand Equinox Hunt.
The mere thought of Jake filled Huntsgirl with warmth from head to foot, and yet at the same time her hands itched for her trusty Hunts-Staff to slay him. Although it had been about two weeks ago, she had been unable to forget what had happened on the Hunt. She remembered it all clearly—pining the dragon to the tree, running at him, prepared to slay him, when he had yelled her name. And transformed into a boy that had been on Huntsgirl’s mind more often then thoughts of joining the Huntsclan.
What she remembered even more clearly was her reaction. Shock, then horror as she realized that he was the dragon she was meant to slay. She had stood there, torn between her loyalty to the Huntsclan and her feelings for Jake, when she had finally came to a decision.
She had cut the net, and let Jake go.
She had never told Huntsman this. He would skin her alive if he knew, so she had told him that the dragon had broken free and flown away, despite her “efforts”. Her uncle had believed her, his only regret being that she would have to remain an apprentice until they could catch the pesky red lizard again. But the fact that she was still an apprentice was the least of Huntsgirl’s worries.
She could not harm Jake. This much, at least, was clear to her. She had realized this shortly after she let Jake go. Like her, he had been born into the duty of the American Dragon. Unlike her, however, he had the choice of leaving. She did not. If she tried to leave the Huntsclan, her uncle would kill her. This she had learned from her mother. Her mother, who had tried to have a life outside the Huntsclan, who had been killed by her brother while her young daughter watched, helpless, trapped in a closet her mother had locked her in when her uncle came up the driveway.
But Mommy didn’t have a dragon on her side, Huntsgirl thought as more snowflakes rested on her shoulders and head. Jake would protect me from Huntsmaster. He wouldn’t let me die.
But could Jake actually hold his own against Huntsman? Huntsgirl hated to admit it, but the only member of the Huntsclan Jake had fought was her, and her skill level was nothing compared to her uncle’s. And besides, Huntsgirl had never had the heart to actually slay a creature. Fight them, of course, but only if the other Huntsclan members killed them. Even then she left the room, not able to hear the creature’s dying cries but easily able to imagine them.
“You look like you’ve been caught in a snowstorm.”
Huntsgirl let out a yell and jumped forward, losing her balance. She yelped as her feet plunged into thin air, and her hands scrabbled desperately on the snow-slicked stone. Then warm arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her easily back onto the building, and held her firmly. “Will you stop squirming? I’m not gonna hurt you!”
In that instant Huntsgirl recognized the voice and relaxed, her breathing harsh. “That’s better,” Jake growled, setting her gently back on her feet. She glared at him. “Don’t you ever do that again! I could’ve died!” she snapped. The large dragon shrugged. “I would’ve caught you.”
“You always this confident?”
Jake smirked. “Around you, yes.”
Huntsgirl gaped at him before turning to look back over the city. “You’re nuts, Long,” she murmured, shivering slightly from the cold.
“Oh, so we’re on last name basis now?” She shot him a dirty look and he laughed. An awkward silence followed his laughter.
“So… where’s Hunts-punk?”
“My uncle?” Huntsgirl shrugged. “Back home reading Silent Night.”
“He reads that?”
“Little cousins.”
“Oh.” She watched him out of the corner of her eye. “Haley always reads Silent Night to my family,” Jake said. He laughed softly. “Even if I don’t wanna listen. It keeps the Christmas spirit alive.”
At least you have a family to spend Christmas with. Huntsgirl raised her head to meet Jake’s gaze. “What are you doing out tonight? I don’t see your Dragon Master anywhere.”
“Gramps? Oh, he’s home.” With a touch of pride he added, “He lets me patrol on my own now.”
How cute. “So the one night you don’t have your Dragon Master around and you decide to find me.”
“You’re not too hard to miss.”
Huntsgirl looked away. “I… I’ve got a lot on my mind lately.” A solemn silence followed her words. “God, this reminds me of Bambi. You know, the scene where it’s snowing, and he can’t find his mother? And then his dad shows up?”
“ ‘You’re mother can’t be with you anymore’”, Jake quoted, and blinked at Huntsgirl’s stare. “What? I’ve seen Bambi.” She looked back out across the city, shaking herself again. Snow tumbled off her shoulders in sheets. “What about it?”
“Well… I was thinking about it last night, and… it reminded me of you.”
“Me?” Jake sounded offended. “Hey, I’m not that depressing.”
“No… I mean, what it represents. It’s showing that Bambi’s mother is gone. She’s not coming back.” She raised her blue eyes to meet Jake’s black ones. “That’s how I feel about you right now.”
“I’m not dead.”
“Not like that!”
Jake watched Huntsgirl silently, waiting for her to explain. Finally she took a deep breath. “I’ve lost you, Jake. Just like Bambi lost his mother.” Her voice shook but held.
“You have not lost me!”
“Have I?” Her eyes blazed, unnaturally bright in the steady snowfall. “Face it, Jake. The only way I can be with you is if I leave the Huntsclan.” She bowed her head and her voice trailed off to a whisper. “And I can’t.”
“But why…?”
“Because of the magical creatures! Do you think they’ll trust me instantly? I have no loyalty to them… I never will. None of them trust me.”
Her words clutched at Jake’s belly like the claws of an enemy trying to tear it to shreds. “Oh, Rose,” he whispered. “What about me? I want you there. I’d trust you with my life, and I’d never betray you.”
Huntsgirl’s blue eyes were brimming with sorrow. “I know,” she murmured. “There’s never been anyone like you in my life before. I’d give my life for you; you know that.”
“Then come with me!”
“I can’t. That’s the only thing I can’t do for you. I belong with my uncle, and he belongs in the Huntsclan. Oh, Jake, Jake…” Her voice trailed off into an anguished wail. “I’m being torn in two!”
Jake pressed close to her, murmuring words of comfort and feeling the powerful trembling that racked Huntsgirl’s body. They had been through so much together. Huntsgirl had been the first girl—no, the only girl—Jake had ever loved, the first enemy he had ever fought. They had become friends and then something more. They had flirted in the familiar rush of school and fought in the murky darkness of New York. Together they had discovered the truth about each other and followed their hearts, and had risked the anger of their mentors, the Huntsclan, and the Dragon Council to do it.
And now it was coming to an end.
But worst of all, Jake could not find the words to argue with his friend. It was true that the magical creatures, and even the Dragon Council themselves, mistrusted the blue-eyed warrior for answering the call of the blood that sang through her veins, and they showed no signs of changing their minds. Jake could see no future for his friend in his world.
At last Huntsgirl moved away. “It’s time,” she murmured softly to Jake. “I have to go now… my uncle will be suspicious.” Her eyes met his, and held. “I’ll see you.”
“It won’t be the same,” he whispered sorrowfully.
Huntsgirl held his gaze for a long moment. “No, it won’t be the same.” Then she turned and began running, running into the night, melting into the darkness like a shadow, melting out of Jake’s life.
Never again, her heart was crying. No more stupid jokes, no more silly tricks to get my attention, no more walking to class together. It’s over. She felt sadness and loneliness greater then anything she had ever felt before, a bitter feeling of grief and acceptance that swelled in her belly and clogged her throat, stopping the tears that blurred her vision. She looked back once, and his eyes met hers. For a long moment, they just gazed at each other, both longing, and both knowing that what they wanted could never be…
And suddenly she was back, back in front of him, and his arms were around her, they were both crying, she into his shoulder and he into her neck, and they felt the warm trails carving into their flesh as they both stood there together holding each other in the snow, crying. And to anyone watching they might have looked like a pair of idiots, but to them it felt right.
She could not have him, and he could not have her, but they could just… be…
The End
Thought I was gone? ;D
Took me forever to get the courage to post this... if you've read it, you know why.... I AM a Jake/Rose shipper, but a part of me kept wondering, "What if?"... so.... yeah....
This is post "The Hunted", if I didn't make it painfully obvious
Huntsgirl crouched on one of the buildings of New York. It was late, a few days before Christmas, and it had begun snowing lightly a few hours before. A fine dusting of the white stuff had already settled on the young huntress’s shoulders, and she shook it off impatiently. Before, she would have been thrilled by the sight of snow, awed by it. Now it was just a bother to her on a cold night in December, where she was all alone with nothing but her thoughts. And her thoughts were anything but comforting. They had, as of late, been straying to one dragon—and especially to one boy—ever since the Grand Equinox Hunt.
The mere thought of Jake filled Huntsgirl with warmth from head to foot, and yet at the same time her hands itched for her trusty Hunts-Staff to slay him. Although it had been about two weeks ago, she had been unable to forget what had happened on the Hunt. She remembered it all clearly—pining the dragon to the tree, running at him, prepared to slay him, when he had yelled her name. And transformed into a boy that had been on Huntsgirl’s mind more often then thoughts of joining the Huntsclan.
What she remembered even more clearly was her reaction. Shock, then horror as she realized that he was the dragon she was meant to slay. She had stood there, torn between her loyalty to the Huntsclan and her feelings for Jake, when she had finally came to a decision.
She had cut the net, and let Jake go.
She had never told Huntsman this. He would skin her alive if he knew, so she had told him that the dragon had broken free and flown away, despite her “efforts”. Her uncle had believed her, his only regret being that she would have to remain an apprentice until they could catch the pesky red lizard again. But the fact that she was still an apprentice was the least of Huntsgirl’s worries.
She could not harm Jake. This much, at least, was clear to her. She had realized this shortly after she let Jake go. Like her, he had been born into the duty of the American Dragon. Unlike her, however, he had the choice of leaving. She did not. If she tried to leave the Huntsclan, her uncle would kill her. This she had learned from her mother. Her mother, who had tried to have a life outside the Huntsclan, who had been killed by her brother while her young daughter watched, helpless, trapped in a closet her mother had locked her in when her uncle came up the driveway.
But Mommy didn’t have a dragon on her side, Huntsgirl thought as more snowflakes rested on her shoulders and head. Jake would protect me from Huntsmaster. He wouldn’t let me die.
But could Jake actually hold his own against Huntsman? Huntsgirl hated to admit it, but the only member of the Huntsclan Jake had fought was her, and her skill level was nothing compared to her uncle’s. And besides, Huntsgirl had never had the heart to actually slay a creature. Fight them, of course, but only if the other Huntsclan members killed them. Even then she left the room, not able to hear the creature’s dying cries but easily able to imagine them.
“You look like you’ve been caught in a snowstorm.”
Huntsgirl let out a yell and jumped forward, losing her balance. She yelped as her feet plunged into thin air, and her hands scrabbled desperately on the snow-slicked stone. Then warm arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her easily back onto the building, and held her firmly. “Will you stop squirming? I’m not gonna hurt you!”
In that instant Huntsgirl recognized the voice and relaxed, her breathing harsh. “That’s better,” Jake growled, setting her gently back on her feet. She glared at him. “Don’t you ever do that again! I could’ve died!” she snapped. The large dragon shrugged. “I would’ve caught you.”
“You always this confident?”
Jake smirked. “Around you, yes.”
Huntsgirl gaped at him before turning to look back over the city. “You’re nuts, Long,” she murmured, shivering slightly from the cold.
“Oh, so we’re on last name basis now?” She shot him a dirty look and he laughed. An awkward silence followed his laughter.
“So… where’s Hunts-punk?”
“My uncle?” Huntsgirl shrugged. “Back home reading Silent Night.”
“He reads that?”
“Little cousins.”
“Oh.” She watched him out of the corner of her eye. “Haley always reads Silent Night to my family,” Jake said. He laughed softly. “Even if I don’t wanna listen. It keeps the Christmas spirit alive.”
At least you have a family to spend Christmas with. Huntsgirl raised her head to meet Jake’s gaze. “What are you doing out tonight? I don’t see your Dragon Master anywhere.”
“Gramps? Oh, he’s home.” With a touch of pride he added, “He lets me patrol on my own now.”
How cute. “So the one night you don’t have your Dragon Master around and you decide to find me.”
“You’re not too hard to miss.”
Huntsgirl looked away. “I… I’ve got a lot on my mind lately.” A solemn silence followed her words. “God, this reminds me of Bambi. You know, the scene where it’s snowing, and he can’t find his mother? And then his dad shows up?”
“ ‘You’re mother can’t be with you anymore’”, Jake quoted, and blinked at Huntsgirl’s stare. “What? I’ve seen Bambi.” She looked back out across the city, shaking herself again. Snow tumbled off her shoulders in sheets. “What about it?”
“Well… I was thinking about it last night, and… it reminded me of you.”
“Me?” Jake sounded offended. “Hey, I’m not that depressing.”
“No… I mean, what it represents. It’s showing that Bambi’s mother is gone. She’s not coming back.” She raised her blue eyes to meet Jake’s black ones. “That’s how I feel about you right now.”
“I’m not dead.”
“Not like that!”
Jake watched Huntsgirl silently, waiting for her to explain. Finally she took a deep breath. “I’ve lost you, Jake. Just like Bambi lost his mother.” Her voice shook but held.
“You have not lost me!”
“Have I?” Her eyes blazed, unnaturally bright in the steady snowfall. “Face it, Jake. The only way I can be with you is if I leave the Huntsclan.” She bowed her head and her voice trailed off to a whisper. “And I can’t.”
“But why…?”
“Because of the magical creatures! Do you think they’ll trust me instantly? I have no loyalty to them… I never will. None of them trust me.”
Her words clutched at Jake’s belly like the claws of an enemy trying to tear it to shreds. “Oh, Rose,” he whispered. “What about me? I want you there. I’d trust you with my life, and I’d never betray you.”
Huntsgirl’s blue eyes were brimming with sorrow. “I know,” she murmured. “There’s never been anyone like you in my life before. I’d give my life for you; you know that.”
“Then come with me!”
“I can’t. That’s the only thing I can’t do for you. I belong with my uncle, and he belongs in the Huntsclan. Oh, Jake, Jake…” Her voice trailed off into an anguished wail. “I’m being torn in two!”
Jake pressed close to her, murmuring words of comfort and feeling the powerful trembling that racked Huntsgirl’s body. They had been through so much together. Huntsgirl had been the first girl—no, the only girl—Jake had ever loved, the first enemy he had ever fought. They had become friends and then something more. They had flirted in the familiar rush of school and fought in the murky darkness of New York. Together they had discovered the truth about each other and followed their hearts, and had risked the anger of their mentors, the Huntsclan, and the Dragon Council to do it.
And now it was coming to an end.
But worst of all, Jake could not find the words to argue with his friend. It was true that the magical creatures, and even the Dragon Council themselves, mistrusted the blue-eyed warrior for answering the call of the blood that sang through her veins, and they showed no signs of changing their minds. Jake could see no future for his friend in his world.
At last Huntsgirl moved away. “It’s time,” she murmured softly to Jake. “I have to go now… my uncle will be suspicious.” Her eyes met his, and held. “I’ll see you.”
“It won’t be the same,” he whispered sorrowfully.
Huntsgirl held his gaze for a long moment. “No, it won’t be the same.” Then she turned and began running, running into the night, melting into the darkness like a shadow, melting out of Jake’s life.
Never again, her heart was crying. No more stupid jokes, no more silly tricks to get my attention, no more walking to class together. It’s over. She felt sadness and loneliness greater then anything she had ever felt before, a bitter feeling of grief and acceptance that swelled in her belly and clogged her throat, stopping the tears that blurred her vision. She looked back once, and his eyes met hers. For a long moment, they just gazed at each other, both longing, and both knowing that what they wanted could never be…
And suddenly she was back, back in front of him, and his arms were around her, they were both crying, she into his shoulder and he into her neck, and they felt the warm trails carving into their flesh as they both stood there together holding each other in the snow, crying. And to anyone watching they might have looked like a pair of idiots, but to them it felt right.
She could not have him, and he could not have her, but they could just… be…
The End
Thought I was gone? ;D
Took me forever to get the courage to post this... if you've read it, you know why.... I AM a Jake/Rose shipper, but a part of me kept wondering, "What if?"... so.... yeah....
This is post "The Hunted", if I didn't make it painfully obvious