The List 51-55

Sport, Deep in Thought, Keeping a Secret, Tower, Waiting

#51 Sport

            "Hey Tik," Brett stopped by one of the trees, "what's with the red markers?"

            Tikki looked over at the tree.

            "Uh oh..." Tikki smirked. "Don't move."

            Brett reluctantly obeyed as he watched Tikki take out one of her hand guns. She quickly replaced her bullet cartridge with another with red markings and whispered something. Smiling, she motioned Brett to follow her. The two moved slowly through the trees.

            "What's going on?" Brett whispered.

            "It's a game." Tikki whispered back.

            "A game?"

            "More of a training exercise." She stepped over a log. "To teach the young kids how to use their weapons."

            Tikki stopped just as the tree opened up to create a small clearing. She crouched down and Brett did the same. Tikki merely watched the empty clearing as if waiting for something. That's when Brett heard it too.

            A young boy, no more than fourteen years old, ran out from the trees and across the clearing. A gun cracked and the boy fell. Before Tikki could stop him, Brett made a mad dash for the boy. Tikki hurried out into the clearing, her arms raised.

            "Cease fire!" she yelled. "Cease fire! Holster your weapons!"

            Tikki kept still until several other young teenagers walked out into the clearing, their weapons away. It was then that she looked down at Brett, who was kneeling next to the boy who had been shot.

            "Brett?"

            "I'm not getting a pulse." Brett said.

            Tikki cleared her throat. "Brett."

            Ignoring Tikki, Brett proceeded to try to resuscitate the boy. Jumping out of shock, Tikki quickly pulled him off. He yanked away from her and turned to the boy, whose skin was already turning pale white and cold to the touch. Brett looked up and saw that no one was doing anything.

            "What are you doing?" he yelled. "He's dying."

            "Oh, he'll be all right." Tikki said.

            "What!?"

            With a smile on her lips, Tikki motioned Brett to look at where the boy had been shot. Annoyed and curious, he removed not a bullet but a strange looking dart from the wound. He glanced up at Tikki, positively confused. He went to say something, but she stopped him.

            "Wait for it."

            A moment later, the boy sprung up, gasping for air. The others laughed as the boy's color and warmth returned to his skin. another boy helped him to his feet, patting his back. Brett stood up, his mouth handing open, and turned to Tikki.   

            "I told you," she said, taking the dart from him, "it's a game."

 

 

#52 Deep in Thought

            Tristan sat at her desk, staring at the piles of papers. Every few minutes she would shuffle them about and curse under her breath. Running her fingers through her hair, she proceeded to read a particular piece of paper she had read times already. Earlier, she had warned her crew that she was not to be disturbed. Clearly, Richard had not been told about this.

            Richard did not bother to knock on the cabin door. He walked into the captain's cabin and slowly closed the door. He noticed Tristan sitting at her desk. She had only lit three candles so the room was unusually dark. He took a few steps toward her.

            "Tristan?"

            He continued to walk closed to where she sat.

            "Tris-"

            But before he could finish her name, Tristan pointed one of her hand guns at him. She did not look up from the papers though. Truth be told, she was really only half conscious to the fact that Richard was there. He stopped immediately.

            "Okay, I can see that you're busy."

            Tristan kept her eyes on the piece of paper. Mumbling something, she tossed the paper over her shoulder and began shuffling through the piles again. Several pieces of paper fell off the desk before she found one to her liking and began reading it.

            Richard stood very still. Tristan already shot him once, he did not wish to experience that again. He could not simply stand there until she was through with whatever it was she was doing though.

            "Tristan, I need to talk to you-"

            But again he was cut off, this time by the sound of Tristan cocking her gun. She still did not look up at him.

            "Or, we can wait until later to talk."

            "He has it." she muttered.

            "Pardon?"

            Tristan slammed the piece of paper down on her desk and grinned Lowering her gun, she stood up.

            "Markus has the map." she announced loudly.

            With her grin widening, Tristan holstered her gun and pulled on her coat. For the first time since Richard entered the room, she looked at him. She strode over to him and kissed him. Caught off guard by her, Richard did not have time to kiss back before she backed away.

            "Thank you." she said, overwhelmed with her recent discovery.

            And with that, she left her room. Richard stood there trying to figure out what had just happened.

            "You're welcome?"

 

 

#53 Keeping a Secret

            A knock came at the dorm room door. Lacey was the one to open the door. Josh looked as though he had just sprinted all the way across campus. Opening the door wider, Lacey stepped to the side.

            "She's in the bathroom." she said.

            Trying to catch his breath, Josh nodded and made his way over to the bathroom door. He tried to turn the knob, but it was locked. Softly, he tapped on the door.

            "Kait?" he said. "Kait, it's Josh."

            Josh could hear her move.

            "Kait, Lacey told me what's going on. Please, open the door."

            A minute went by and nothing.

            "Kait?"

            The doorknob jiggled and the door opened. Kait walked out of the bedroom staring down at the thing in her hand. Josh felt as though someone was chocking him as he waited for her to say something.

            Taking a deep breath, Kait looked up at Josh and smiled.    

            "Negative." she sighed in relief.

            Josh could breathe again. His eyes widened and smiled with relief.

            "Negative?"

            "Yeah." Kait nodded.

            The weight on Josh's chest disappeared.

            "Okay." he smiled. "Thank God."

            Kait nodded again, taking a deep breath. Lacey stuffed her hands in her pockets and lowered her eyes.

            "Um," Josh muttered. "Okay, then I..." he paused only for a moment. "I guess I'll see you at Rick's tonight then."

            "Maybe." Kait said quietly.

            Feeling more awkward by the second, Josh lightly kissed Kait's cheek and left. As the door closed, Lacey looked over at Kait. after a moment, Kait tossed Lacey the stick.

            "Thanks." she said.

            Lacey nodded.

            "You're not going to tell him, are you?" Lacey asked.

            Kait did not answer. Leaving Lacey in the common room, Kait went into her room and closed the door. She stood there for a few minutes completely motionless. When she finally mustered up enough courage, she pulled something out of her back pocket. Taking one last deep breath, she looked down at the pregnancy test to once again see that little pink plus sign.

 

 

#54 Tower

            Dismissing his attendants, the Duke of Northumberland strode over to the table where four of his men and the Lady Anne sat laughing.

            "You should take care when playing cards with these men, lady. They'll rob you blind and won't even regret it."

            Lady Anne looked up at the Duke and smiled.

            "We're not playing cards, your grace." she said playfully.

            "Not playing cards?" the Duke grinned.

            "They Lady Anne is reading our fortunes, my lord." one of the men laughed.

            His grace, the Duke of Northumberland, was a powerful man; a connected man to the royal family; and, most importantly, a married man. The Duchess of Northumberland was a sickly little thing whose only success as a wife was producing a son. That in no way stopped the Duke's wandering eye. And his newest eye candy was the Lady Anne of the house of Kent. She and her brother Richard had traveled to visit their cousin, her ladyship the Duchess of Northumberland. Taking on a mistress was one thing, but for the Duke to pursue his wife's kin was another.

            The Duke took a seat across from Lady Anne.

            "Read mine." he said, a sly grin curving his lips.

            Lady bowed her head and reshuffled the deck.

            "What does my future hold?" he asked.

            Lady Anne placed a card on the table, facedown. She raised her eyes to meet the Duke's and flipped the card over to reveal a man and woman, nude and embracing.

            "The Lover."

            The Duke raised an eyebrow in interest as the men at the table began to feel uncomfortable at how the Duke and Lady Anne were looking at each other.

            "What else?"

            Softening her hazel eyes, Lady Anne fanned the cards out before the Duke.

            "You pick, my lord." she said in a tone that, to the surrounding gentlemen, sounded a bit too seductive.

            With his grin growing, the Duke pulled a card and placed it down on the table. Lady Anne's smile disappeared when she looked down at the card.

            "The Tower."

            Lady Anne and her brother departed for Kent the next day. Had she known that the fortune was meant if she left the Duke, Northumberland might not have fallen into such despair over the following years.

 

 

#55 Waiting

            "Where are you going?"

            Jynx turned back to Toryn, holding a blanket.

            "I'm sleeping on the balcony." she said as if he should know the answer to his question.

            "Don't you think we should keep up appearances? After all, we're supposed to be married."

            Jynx held the blanket closer to her and looked away for a moment, trying to suppress the urge to throw something at Toryn's head.

            "Toryn, how long have you known me?"

            "Five months."

            "And in all that time, have you ever known me to want what you're suggesting?"

            She did not wait for an answer. She walked through the curtain and out onto the balcony. Wrapping the blanket around her shoulders, she sat on the ledge with one leg dangling over. She closed her eyes and took in the scents of the town.

            Toryn waited a few minutes before making his way to the curtain. He stayed on his side and Jynx caught his scent. Without knowing it, a smile crept onto her lips as she breathed in the smell of him. It took her a minute to realize what she was going and got rid of the smile.

            "It's only a matter of time before you give in, you know." he teased softly through the curtain.

            "It's not healthy to allow yourself to think such things."

            No, he was wrong. He had to be wrong. Jynx thought about it. When she returned to the packs a few years ago, she had plenty of opportunities for a mate. It was simply impossible for her to want Toryn. He was stubborn, proud, and a human to top it off.

            She could sense that he was still standing on the other side of the curtain, waiting. Let him wait; she would not yield. He may not have had her sense and ability to read people, but he could read her. She wanted him just as much as he wanted her despite it all.

            Minutes passed by slowly and still he waited for her. Though she would not allow herself to believe, she was waiting for him as well. She tried her best to ignore his scent, but it grew stronger with each moment that passed.

            Her senses twitched and she turned to see Toryn stride through the curtain and over to the ledge. Without a word, he took hold of her and threw her over his shoulder. She did not struggle as he went back through the curtain.