The Virtual Season - Episode Seven

Roughing It

By

Blue Raven

Teaser

Mel looked up from the papers spread in front of her on the bed at the sound of gentle tapping on her bedroom door.

"Uh, yeah? Who is it?" she called as she began to pull them back together.

"It's me, Mel," a hesitant voice said.

She smiled and spread the papers out again. "Come in, Cole," she called.

"Are you ill, Mel?" Cole asked without preamble as he entered. "Maggie said that you didn't want to be disturbed."

She shook her head, propping herself up on one elbow and beckoning for him to enter. "No, I'm fine. Just... going over some more of these old papers. Needed some time to think."

Cole nodded and entered the rest of the way into the room, closing the door behind him, his eyes shining at the beautiful creature before him.

"What's up, Cole?" she asked curiously.

He held up the artifact he had recently recovered with Wahote. "I've learned how to activate it."

"Great!" Smiling, she sprang into a sitting position. "What is it?"

"A map, Mel."

"To what?" she asked, curious. She moved some papers to make room for Cole on the edge of the bed. "Sit, show me."

Cole shook his head. "I don't know yet, Mel." He shrugged, dropping absently to the space she'd cleared and activating the holographic map. "Do you recognize this area?" he asked.

Mel stared for a few minutes. "Um..." She shook her head thoughtfully. "Looks... vaguely familiar. Let me grab an atlas..."

***

Five minutes later, with Mel leafing through the atlas and Cole absently perusing Allan's old documents, they had their answers.

"Key to a second Vault," Mel whispered, staring at the map and shaking her head. "On the Appalachian Trail."

"Then you are familiar with this area?"

"Not personally." Mel shrugged. "It's a popular spot, thought, for camping and things."

"Camping?" Cole repeated, tilting his head at her.

Mel stared, then nodded. "That's right. You've never been camping!" She shook her head, rising. "Oh, it's great, Cole," she told him, grinning. "My dad and I used to go camping two, three times a year, every summer when school was out. It was so much fun... In fact, I think we still have his old camping gear stored away somewhere." She rubbed her mouth thoughtfully. "Yeah, I'll bet it's all still in the basement."

Cole watched her curiously, smiling at her infectious enthusiasm. "What is camping like, Mel?"

"Oh, it's great!" she assured him. "Getting away from the bustle of the city for a few days, getting back to nature... You'll love it," she promised. "This is going to be so wild! We're going to have so much fun..."

"We? Are you coming, too, Mel?" he asked.

"Well, you can't go alone! You've never been camping before. You don't know the first thing about building a fire or pitching a tent or anything... You need someone who knows what they're doing," she explained.

Cole smiled faintly, not entirely adverse to the idea of spending several days alone with Mel.

"I can get Maggie and Gail to watch the bar for a few days," Mel was going on, excited at the whole idea.

Cole watched Mel prattle on, amused and intrigued by her obvious enthusiasm for the idea. He felt himself growing excited by the prospect simply by observing Mel's obvious pleasure. And, of course, having Mel to himself for several days, without a fugitive for miles, had a number of advantages in and of itself...

End Teaser

Act 1

"This is going to be great!" Mel enthused as they searched the basement.

"Yes, Mel." Cole smiled. She had repeated that phrase no fewer than 20 times in the past hour. They had gone down to the basement together immediately after the bar had closed for the night.

"Sleeping-bags!" Mel announced, launching a tightly-wrapped bundle at Cole.

He caught it instinctively, surprised by the weight of it. "It's not very heavy," he observed, eyeing the small bundle. "Why?"

"Well, it's stuffed with down... feathers," she explained. "Lots and lots of down. The ground can be hard, makes it difficult to sleep, so that helps. And your body-temperature drops when you're lying down so it helps with that... damn."

"What's wrong?" Cole asked curiously.

Mel held up a second sleeping-bag, long since rendered useless by the combined ravages of time and moths. "We're going to need to buy another sleeping-bag," she sighed, shaking her head and dropping the moth-eaten one in disgust. She was also going to need to sweep up the feathers that the thing was getting everywhere.

"Why, Mel?" Cole asked.

"Why?" She repeated, frowning. "What do you mean?"

"Is one not sufficient?" he asked.

Mel frowned. "Two people, two bags. That's usually how it works."

He frowned for a moment. "But I don't sleep," he pointed out. "What do I need with a sleeping-bag?"

Mel grinned. "Good point," she said, grinning at him. "Problem solved," she added, cramming the damaged one into a trashcan. "Just hope the tent's in
better shape than that thing was..."

"Tent?" Cole repeated, tilting his head at her.

She nodded. "Yeah, you sleep in it."

"I thought you slept in a sleeping-bag?"

Mel grinned and nodded. "You do... Inside a tent." Noticing Cole's lost expression, she smiled and clarified, "That way if it rains or something, your bag doesn't get wet."

"Oh." He smiled and nodded. "Okay, Mel."

***

"Roughing it?" Cole repeated, helping Mel into her pack.

She nodded. "It's a slang term for camping," she explained, resettling the pack on her shoulders. It was a little heavy, but she was sure she would get used to it with time. "Yeah, that's fine, Cole. Yours isn't too heavy, is it?"

He shook his head. "It's fine, Mel."

"Okay, then, let's get them out to the car."

Cole smiled and nodded, following her to the car and sticking his own bag in the back seat before helping Mel out of hers and placing that inside, too. "This is everything we will need?" he asked.

Mel nodded and glanced at the checklist she had made. "Tent, bags, clothes, lighter, first-aid kit..." She continued reading off of the list, nodding with each item. "Yup, it's all here. We can go just as soon as Maggie gets here."

Cole smiled and nodded.

"And the war-room's locked?" she double-checked.

He nodded again, his smile widening. "Yes, Mel."

She smiled and nodded. "Sorry, just... you know."

"You get nervous very easily, but everything will be okay. You're an expert."

"Well, my dad was the expert, but he taught me everything I know, so we should be fine." She smiled and nodded as they walked back into the bar. "This is going to be great!"

Cole smiled. She kept saying that. "Yes, Mel."

She sat down at the bar, glancing over the checklist again. "I'm sorry, Cole. I know I keep saying how amazing this is going to be, but... I just used to have such a wonderful time with my father when we'd go camping. I just... it's something I look forward to sharing with you."

Cole smiled at that and nodded. "I look forward to sharing it with you, too."

She grinned and bowed her head. "Yeah, well... Did you remember to pack all your equipment?"

He smiled and nodded yet again. It was not the first time she had asked the question either. "Yes, Mel."

"I'm sorry. I promise to stop asking now. Now we just wait for Maggie to arrive."

***

Mel opened her eyes a crack, momentarily disoriented. It was dark, her neck hurt, and there were voices singing nearby. Oh, the radio was on. Of course, she was in the car with Cole. Who was singing along with the radio! She closed her eyes again quickly, not wanting to disturb him. She had heard about his singing from Maggie, but wasn't sure that counted… he was under the influence of chocolate at the time. Hearing about it was certainly not the same thing as listening. He had a lovely voice, even if he was only half-mumbling the words. It took her a minute to realize that he was not singing in English.

It was interesting, in her mind, that you could live with a person for more than a year and still not know everything about them. Who would have guessed that Cole enjoyed singing in Cirronian during long car-rides? Smiling, she listened, entranced by the gentle voice and beautiful sounds.

Abruptly, he stopped singing and turned down the radio. "I'm sorry, Mel. I didn't mean to wake you."

"Oh, you didn't," she yawned. "You don't have to stop," she added, rubbing her eyes and moving back into the front seat.

"It's okay, Mel." He glanced over at her as she moved from the back seat to the front. "Now that you are awake, we can talk."

Disappointed, Mel shrugged and nodded, stifling another yawn.

Cole frowned faintly. "Or maybe you should get more sleep?"

She shook her head. "It just takes me a few minutes to wake up, especially without coffee."

"We can stop for some if you'd like."

"That's okay." She shook her head. "We should keep driving."

"Yes, Mel."

"Do you want me to take over for awhile? I know that it can be tiring sometimes to drive for a long time."

"I'm fine, Mel. We'll be there in a few more hours," he added.

"That's good." Mel nodded. "I can't believe you've been driving non-stop since we left. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Mel," he assured her. "It's not as tiring as some things."

"Okay."

They drove in silence for several more miles.

"What is camping like, Mel?" Cole asked.

"Oh, it's lots of fun, Cole. Sleeping under the stars, communing with nature, telling ghost stories..."

Cole frowned. "You told... stories about ghosts, deceased people?"

"Mmm-hmm." She nodded. Before he could ask, she added, "And no, I don't know why. It was fun, though, to see how bad you could scare yourself."

"Why would you wish to scare yourself?" he asked quizzically.

"I don't have a clue, Cole. It's just a part of the camping experience, I guess."

Cole considered for a few moments. "Will we be required to attempt to scare each other in this manner?"

Mel laughed and shook her head. "No, Cole."

Cole nodded. "Okay, Mel."

Mel grinned and shrugged. "After all, I guess our normal lives are pretty much scary enough as it is."

Cole glanced at Mel, frowning thoughtfully. "Does life with me scare you, Mel?"

Mel blinked and in her drowsy state it took her a moment to realize that he was not talking about their future together, but his presence in her life and the things that brought with it. "Nah. Having you around is... like having my own personal guardian angel."

"What is a guardian angel, Mel?"

Smiling, she began to explain. Neither of them noticed the car that had been following them since they had left Chicago.

End Act 1

Act 2

"Thanks, Cole," Mel said as he helped her into her pack again.

"You're welcome, Mel." He nodded and shrugged on his own pack.

"You have the G.P.S.?" Mel asked.

"Yes, Mel."

"And the cell-phone?"

Cole smiled tolerantly, dutifully displaying it. Her insistence that he bring it had amused him considering that, in the next breath, she had assured him that there was no way it would work.

"Collector?"

"Mel, I don't think any of the fugitives would be out here," he reassured her.

"Is that a no?" she gasped, staring.

Cole smiled and shook his head. "I have my Collector, Mel, and you have yours, but there are not going to be any fugitives out here. They hadn't found the map. Why are you worried?"

"Not a clue. I would just rather be over-prepared than under-prepared." She shrugged and pulled out a printed copy of the holographic map. Cole had the map itself in his pack, but they had both considered it wise to have a paper copy as well. Just in case. "Let's go."

"How popular is this area, Mel?" Cole asked, looking around the parking lot. There were more cars than he had thought there would be. "If there are so many people..."

"Relax," Mel said, amused for once to not be on the receiving end of that particular piece of advice. "The trail is thousands of miles long. Yeah, there are a lot of cars, but after a day of walking the odds of seeing anyone at all are like a million to one. Besides, we aren't staying on the trail, remember?"

Cole nodded. "No, we aren't, Mel."

She smiled and started towards the tree-line. "This is going to be great!" she repeated, resettling her pack.

Cole smiled and shook his head, unable to recall the last time he had seen her this enthusiastic about anything. They walked in comfortable silence, broken only by Cole occasionally asking Mel to provide the name of some flower or bird, until lunch. Mel dropped her pack and sank to the ground, exhausted, but happy.

"Having fun yet?" she yawned, rifling through her pack for lunch.

Cole smiled and nodded. "It is very beautiful here. And you're right. I've only seen one person the entire time."

"You saw someone?" Mel asked, surprised. She tossed him a protein-bar. She could not recall having seen a soul.

"Yes, Mel. Thank you, " He unwrapped it and took a small bite, sitting down next to her. "But that was several miles ago and he went in the other direction when the path forked." He made a face at the taste of the protein-bar, but knowing that it was a good source of energy, he shrugged and devoured it.

"Oh, I didn't see him." Mel smiled and pulled out a granola-bar. "Dessert," she said, handing it to him.

Cole nodded and bit into it, pleased at the far more palatable taste.

"Breakfast and dinner are not going to be like this, I promise," she said, handing him a canteen. "We'll make those at camp."

Cole nodded. "Okay, Mel." They sat in silence as they ate and drank. "Mel?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you sure your pack is not too heavy?"

"Why do you ask?"

"You kept moving it around on your shoulders."

"Oh, just trying to find a comfortable spot for it. It's been awhile. I'm just not used to it again yet." She smiled reassuringly.

"If you're sure, Mel." Cole nodded. She would know. She was the expert. He glanced down at the map as Mel finished her granola bar. "We turn off the trail a few miles from here," he told her, showing her the map.

She looked at it, nodding. "We can make camp here," she told him, pointing to an area several miles from there. "We shouldn't overdo our first day."

He nodded at the wisdom of that. "You're right. We're both in good shape, but we should not overdo or we will be less able to continue on."

She nodded. "You've got it. It's a different kind of exercise, anyway," she added, climbing to her feet.

Cole nodded and helped her back into her pack.

"Thanks. It's a pain to lift that thing by myself."

"But it's not too heavy? Are you sure?" Cole asked.

"Would you stop being a mother hen?" Mel suggested with a laugh. "Come on, Cole. Daylight's wasting." At his look, she explained. "We want to have camp set up and a fire going before it gets dark. These are the woods and this is not Chicago. There are wild animals out here."

"Really?" he asked, smiling. "I'd like to see some."

Mel grinned back. "If you're quiet enough when you walk, you won't scare them away."

Cole smiled and nodded again. "I'll try to be more quiet. What kinds of animals?"

"Um, deer, raccoons, squirrels, chipmunks, um... maybe some predators." She shrugged. "I've never camped in this area of the country before, so I'm honestly not entirely sure. Sorry."

Cole nodded. "That's okay, Mel."

They made good time to the turn-off and then continued on more slowly over the less forgiving terrain. Cole stopped abruptly at the sight of a family of deer. Mel smiled at the entranced look on his face, stopping herself and holding perfectly still so as not to scare them off. Abruptly, the animals looked up and bounded off together.

Mel frowned, wondering at what had disturbed them. Surely nothing they had done. She looked around, but everything seemed as it had been, except that the birds had fallen silent. A few moments later, though, they were singing again. Some predator had been close, she supposed.

"They were beautiful, Mel," he told her. "What are they called?"

"Deer, Cole. They were deer," she said as they continued their interrupted hike. "An adult female is a 'doe'. The male is called a 'buck', and the babies are 'fawns'."

Cole smiled and nodded. "They're beautiful, Mel. Why aren't there any in Chicago?"

"I think there might be a few." She shrugged. "But they don't like people very much so you don't see them often."

She glanced skyward. "I wonder if it's going to rain?"

"There are no clouds, though."

"I know. But the birds have stopped singing again." She frowned. "They keep doing that. It's weird."

"Maybe they're reacting to our presence?" he suggested.

Mel considered this for a moment. "I... I guess it's possible."

"You don't think so?"

Mel shrugged. "I just don't remember the forest getting this quiet..." She shook her head. "It's nothing, Cole. Come on."

Cole nodded and followed, glancing at his G.P.S. from time to time to make sure that they were on course.

***

"You want to pitch the tent or get the wood?" Mel asked when they selected a suitable clearing to camp in. It was large, relatively empty of deadfall, had very few rocks on the ground, and was conveniently close to a river. It was absolutely perfect.

Cole shrugged. "Which do you think I should do, Mel?"

"Um, why don't you get the wood since you don't know how to pitch a tent," Mel suggested.

"Okay, Mel." Cole nodded and dropped his pack. "How much wood should I get? Is there a special kind I should look for?"

"Lots of wood, Cole. And look for branches that have fallen off the tree, and make sure the wood's dry."

Cole nodded. "Dry, fallen branches," he repeated to himself, wandering off.

The birds were quiet again, she observed as she began setting up the tent. She was not sure why the silence should be so unnerving, but it was. Shaking off her unease, Mel began pitching the tent. By the time Cole returned with a massive armload of wood, it was already getting dark and Mel was beginning to recall that pitching a tent really was a two-man job.

"Can I help, Mel?" Cole asked uncertainly.

"You know, I'm thinking that it's going to be such a great night that there's really no reason to bother with a tent," she told him, nodding at that decision. She and her father had sometimes camped under the stars, and she had always enjoyed it.

He nodded slowly. "If you think so, Mel."

"It's pretty warm, there are no clouds... I think we'll be fine." She nodded confidently. It really would have been a shame to spend such a nice night in a tent. "Here, I'll show you how to make a fire," she offered, clearing out a space in the middle of the clearing and placing rocks to form a fire circle. "You start with tinder," she explained. "Small stuff that catches fire easily..."

Cole nodded and watched attentively as Mel set about turning a smile pile of twigs and pine-needles into a roaring blaze. He smiled widely, entranced by how easily she was able to perform this amazing task. Fire had benefits beyond keeping animals away and providing light, Cole realized as they ate their a meal of hot stew. The heat generated by the blaze felt wonderful, soothing tired muscles and calming his mind. After they had finished eating and cleaning their dishes, he realized that the fire had one more unforeseen benefit. Mel looked absolutely radiant in the flickering light.

Seeing him smiling at her, Mel smiled back, yawning and stretching. "Nice, isn't it?" she asked.

"Wonderful, Mel," he agreed in a low voice, smiling warmly at her.

"Grab the marshmallows," she ordered, picking up a pair of long, straight sticks. "This was always my favorite part of camping."

Cole smiled and obediently retrieved the somewhat flattened bag from his pack, carrying it over to her. He watched attentively as she showed him how to skewer one and toast it just so, until it was golden-brown, crisp on the outside and gooey on the inside. His smile grew as he popped the first one into his mouth.

"Mel, this is wonderful!"

She smiled and nodded. "Yeah," she agreed, smiling at him. She yawned again, covering her mouth. "Sorry."

"You should get some rest now, Mel," he advised gently.

"Yeah, guess so." She sighed and nodded, extracting a pair of sweat pants and a tee shirt from her pack. Not exactly her traditional night-time wear, but eminently more suited to camping. "You going to be okay up alone all night?" she asked, concerned.

"I'm up alone every night, Mel," he pointed out gently.

"Good point." She looked down at the clothes in her hands for a moment. "Would you mind not turning around for a few minutes?" she asked. "So I can change?"

He nodded and obediently fixed his attention on the fire. "Yes, Mel."

"Thanks," she said, quickly slipping out of her jeans and blouse and into the night-clothes. "Okay, Cole," she told him, grabbing her sleeping-bag and unrolling it near the fire. "Thanks."

He smiled and nodded. "You're welcome, Mel."

She smiled and slid inside the bag, yawning again. "Wake me up if you need anything, okay?"

"I will, Mel."

"And stay in the range of the fire-light. Not all the animals out here are as harmless as the deer."

He nodded and smiled down at her. "Good night, Mel."

"Night, Cole," she yawned. "Wake me if you need anything," she reminded him, her eyes drifting shut.

Cole smiled and watched her face relaxing in the fire-light. She was beautiful when she slept, more beautiful when she slept in the firelight. He spent hours memorizing every detail of that beautiful face, heedless of the fact that a pair of red eyes were watching him as intently as he watched Mel. These eyes, though not human, did not belong to any terrestrial animal, either.

End Act 2

Act 3

Mel woke in complete darkness, aware of a strange sound. The sound she quickly isolated as that of human teeth chattering together. The darkness was more confusing.

"What happened?" she yawned, trying to find Cole in the darkness. As her eyes adjusted to the moonlight, she saw a human shape moving at the far end of the clearing. "Cole, what happened?" she repeated more loudly so he could hear her.

"The fire went out," Cole explained, appearing at her side more quickly than she would have thought possible. "You said not to go away from the light, so I couldn't get more wood... I didn't know what to do."

"You should have... I said to wake me if you needed anything." She cursed herself for forgetting to show him how to bank the fire.

"I didn't want to disturb you," he explained apologetically, his teeth still chattering. "Humans need sleep."

Yawning, Mel climbed out of the bag, wondering how to proceed. The flashlight... she could see it, sitting on the floor of the back seat. How could she have left it behind? It was too dangerous to go foraging for wood in the dark, which left them with very few options.

"Will predators come now?" Cole asked, worried. He might be able to defend himself against some wild animal intent on harm, but protecting Mel as well, in the darkness. And what if terrestrial predators traveled in packs? That would make it far harder to protect Mel.

"The smell of the smoke should keep them away," Mel assured him, crouching next to him. He was hugging himself tightly, shivering. She touched his face and frowned. "Cole, you're freezing!"

"It's cold."

It was, too, Mel realized with some alarm. Without a fire, the Cirronian was not the only one getting chilled quickly. Without the heat generated by the blaze, she was in danger of hypothermia as well. So much for being prepared. Well, there was only one thing for it.

"Okay, Cole, don't worry. The smell of smoke will keep the wild animals away," she assured him again, nervous.

"Okay, Mel, but I'm so cold. Can't we build another fire?"

"We can't go looking for wood in the dark," she told him firmly. "Someone could get hurt, fall, break a bone."

He nodded and rubbed his arms. "You should get back in your sleeping-bag before you get cold."

"I'm already cold." She took his hand, and urged him toward her bag. "Come on."

He regarded her blankly.

"The best way... to conserve body heat," she told him quietly, closing her eyes. This was so unfair. It had to be Cole. It could not have been someone else. Another woman, hell, even some other man. It just had to be Cole. Her own fault, too. Well, she had made this bed... She inhaled deeply. "Strip," she ordered.

He stared at her, perplexed. "Mel, that will not help make me warm."

Mel pulled her shirt off, glad she had opted to keep her sports-bra on. "It will when we're in there together," she said grimly.

"Together?" Cole repeated, staring at her, stunned. "Without... clothes?"

"Well, you keep your underwear on or you stay out here, but, yeah." Mel nodded and slipped off her sweat-pants, shivering in the cold night air. "This is the best way to conserve body-heat, Cole. Two people, one bag..." She swallowed hard before adding, "Skin to skin contact."

Cole stared at her in the pale moonlight. It definitely the most of Mel he had ever seen at one time, and her body was as beautiful as he had known it must be, her beauty enhanced by the silvery blue-white light of the full moon.

"Come on, Cole!" she snapped, shivering.

"I'm sorry, Mel," he apologized, pulling off his several layers of clothes.

The idea of spending all night in a small sleeping-bag with Mel, their skin touching, was both appealing and daunting. As intimidating as it was, though, he could not let Mel stand there all night in her underwear getting cold. They both stood there for several minutes in their underwear doing just that, though, neither quite able to take the first step, neither entirely sure how to keep things from spinning out of control. Or... more out of control. Finally Mel gritted her teeth and nodded sharply.

"Come on, Cole. I know you have got to be freezing. Get in." She pointed firmly at the sleeping-bag.

Cole obediently climbed in and steeled himself as Mel slid into the bag next to him. He would not have thought in such a small bag that there was room to put distance between their bodies, but Mel had managed.

"Didn't you say we should be touching?" he asked, his voice halting.

Mel gave a nervous laugh and nodded. "Yeah. Roll onto your right side," she ordered.

Cole obeyed and closed his eyes as Mel did the same and backed against him. He inhaled deeply, his nose full of the lavender scent of her herbal shampoo. His body was shaking again, and it had nothing to do with the cold.

"It'll just take a few seconds," Mel assured him, feeling his body trembling against hers.

She gritted her teeth, wondering how she was supposed to spend an entire night like this with him without getting 'distracted', before it occurred to her that she was already very much 'distracted'. She closed her eyes as she felt his hands searching for some place to be that was not invading her personal space. In the sleeping-bag, it could not have been an easy task for him, and she was grateful for his consideration.

"It's okay, Cole," she assured him gently. "Just... Put your arms around me and hold me against you. It'll keep us both warm," she promised.

Mel, who had always been prone to blushing in uncomfortable situations, became aware that had apparently developed a full-body blush at the feel of his arms around her, holding her firmly against his quickly warming, rock-hard body. She struggled to school herself against a line of thought that got more insistent the more she tried to ignore it. It just had to be Cole...

"Are you okay, Mel?" Cole whispered when he felt her shake her head, closing his eyes and biting his lip. Her hair tickled, which did not help, but it was not the only problem he was dealing with. Her body was so soft and warm against his... He closed his eyes, struggling against that line of thought.

"Sorry. Just kicking myself for forgetting to bank the fire." And bring the flashlight, she said to herself...

"Bank?" he repeated in confusion.

"It's something you do to a fire to keep it from going out. Remind me tomorrow night and I'll show you."

"Yes, Mel," he whispered.

Mel closed her eyes, wincing. 'Yes, Mel'? When had that innocuous, common little phrase become a turn-on? "Are you any warmer?" she asked to distract herself from that.

"Little warmer," he answered, his voice harsh.

"Good. Then you just... stay put until morning."

"You want me to stay in here with you all night?" he asked, feeling a little panicked and a lot 'distracted'.

Mel was having a similar problem, but knew that there were worse things than a little frustrated desire. After all, the past year with Cole had been an almost constant block of that. "Look, I had no idea it got so cold up here so early in the year. We could both freeze to death, Cole."

"Oh," he whispered. He was relieved to discover that the pronouncement actually seemed to help. A little.

"I'm so sorry about this, Cole," Mel sighed. "I should have done more research or something, I guess."

"It's no one's fault, Mel," he told her gently. "We both came into this with a lot less thought than we should have."

Mel clenched her fists at the feel of his hot breath on the back of her neck. Her damned, over-sensitive, Cirronian neck that you just had to look at sideways to get a physical response out of...

"Mel, you're very tense."

She jumped at the sound of his voice and the feel of his breath. "Yeah," she agreed shakily. "Long day."

"I'm going to make you sleep now, Mel. You must rest."

Make her sleep? Mel smiled and nodded frantically. It was a perfect solution. Self-restraint was not a problem when you were unconscious, after all.

"Good idea, Cole," she said quickly. "You're right. I need sleep, but I'm too wound up to get to sleep, so if you put me to sleep--" Her rambling was abruptly cut off as Cole passed his hand in front of her face and released a gentle burst of energy.

Cole sighed deeply as he felt her body go limp. Too bad he could not put himself to sleep as well. Now he had to spend several hours restraining himself from touching the beautiful and mostly bare body of a woman whose body he had wanted to touch for months and who was now lying in his arms.

"Being human sucks," he groaned, burying his face in her hair, his entire body trembling with a combination of desire and frustration stronger than anything he had ever felt in his life.

***

Several hours worth of deep-breathing exercises later, the Cirronian felt too exhausted to open his eyes, let alone contemplate doing anything improper or distracting.

"Hey, Cole," Mel yawned as she woke up. She absently reached over her shoulder and patted his. "Thanks, I needed that." She frowned when he did not immediately reply. "Cole?"

He mumbled an acknowledgment that he was still alive, but did not bother opening his eyes.

"Are you okay?" she asked, concerned.

"Very tired, Mel." He repeated a human phrase that he had heard on occasion. "Five more minutes?"

Startled by that, Mel rolled to face him. "Cole? Is something wrong?"

He shook his head. "I just need to rest."

"Cole, you don't..." Mel was beginning to feel alarmed. "Are you sick?"

"No, Mel. I just need to rest," he groaned, rolling onto his stomach.

"Look, Cole... I'm going to get dressed. Will you be okay here by yourself for a minute?"

"I'm fine, Mel," he assured her. "I just--"

"Need to rest," she repeated, shaking her head and crawling out of the bag. "Since when?" she muttered, grabbing her clothes and stalking off towards the river.

Cole breathed a sigh of relief to be alone in the bag. His body and mind could finally relax. So much for how great it would be to have Mel to himself for a week. What had he been thinking? Alone, with Mel, without a single thing to distract him from how... distracting she could be? He groaned in annoyed frustration and climbed out of the warm sleeping-bag. And immediately understood why humans considered cold showers a good remedy for these things.

He yelped as the cold air assailed his bare skin.

"Cole?" Mel called, running into the clearing, still only half-dressed. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he told her, focusing on her face. "Sorry, Mel. Colder than I thought it would be."

"Well, get dressed before you freeze to death!" she suggested, shaking her head and walking off again.

"And then please grab some wood!" she called over her shoulder, wondering what was wrong with him this morning. He was not acting like himself and it had her worried.

Cole nodded but spent several more minutes in the painfully cold air. "I don't sleep, Mel," he muttered to himself, picking up his clothes and roughly pulling them on. "What do I need with a sleeping-bag, Mel? I'm an idiot, Mel..." he grumbled, stalking off in search of wood.

When he returned, Mel was just finishing with the job of packing everything up.

"So much for how great it is to sleep under the stars," she muttered, embarrassed. "I'm really sorry, Cole."

"Don't be sorry, Mel," Cole told her gently, dropping the wood and crouching in front of her. "It's okay." He gave her a reassuring smile. "We were not as prepared as we should have been, but now we know better. Nothing like this will
happen again."

She smiled back up at him. "Yeah. We'll get more wood tonight, and bank the fire, and we're definitely spending the night in a tent."

"Maybe we should go back?" he suggested quietly. "Wait for it to be warmer, get more gear..."

Mel sighed and shook her head. "Cole, it's not going to get warmer for another six months... Your call, but I'm not sure if we can afford to put this off for six more months."

Cole sighed and shook his head. "Guess not, Mel."

"Hey, could be worse," Mel said with a shrug, not believing that for one second. "Let's get this fire built. We'll both feel a lot better with a warm breakfast and a few cups of coffee in us."

Cole smiled and nodded. "A warm fire would be nice, Mel, and I could use some coffee as well."

"And while I'm cooking, you can map out our route for the day," Mel suggested.

Cole's smile widened. Food, coffee, and cartography. A million miles from thoughts of warm sleeping bags filled with Mel's warm, soft body. He picked up his G.P.S. and double-checked their coordinates.

As the oatmeal heated, she poured a few spoons of instant coffee into another pan of water before leaning over Cole's shoulder. "So, what up for today?"

Cole jumped slightly. He had been so intent on mapping a course that was both safe, easy, and relatively direct that he had lost track of her. Hearing her voice in his ear and feeling her breath on his skin had startled him in a less than unpleasant manner.

"Sorry," Mel apologized. "You know, Cole, normally I'm the jumpy one. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Mel." He nodded and smiled apologetically. "I was just... not paying attention. You startled me."

"It's not too cold for you? First you're tired now you're jumpy... You going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine, Mel," he assured her, nodding and smiling. Her beautiful eyes were narrowed with worry. He reached out and gently touched her throat. "I'm fine, Mel," he said more firmly, smiling and to see her green eyes soften. She was so beautiful...

After spending a night in a sleeping-bag with him, having him touch her throat like that was nowhere near as relaxing as it usually was, so she quickly retreated. "Coffee!" she announced, holding up two cups.

"Thank you, Mel," he said quietly, relieved that she had pulled away before he had the opportunity to act on natural inclinations. It was so much easier to ignore those thoughts and feelings when they were not completely alone like this.

Mel scooped up two large bowls of oatmeal and handed him one. "Eat up. You need your energy."

Cole smiled as they easily slid back into their more traditional roles, Cole reassuring Mel and Mel doting on him and trying to take care of him. This past year or so with Mel was as close to domestic felicity as he had come since Nallia's death, and he reveled in it. Mates or not, they were a couple in the truest sense of the word. Cole sometimes felt a little guilty that he could enjoy Mel's partnership so much, but most of the time he simply embraced it and gave thanks for the amazing gift.

The tensions of the night before slipped away, forgotten, as they ate their breakfast and discussed the trip. Cole showed Mel the course he had mapped for them as they ate and finished their coffee, then they doused the fire, stirring up the muddy ashes to make sure it was completely extinguished.

He helped Mel into her pack before shrugging on his own, and the two started off again, chatting casually. As Mel lapsed into a monologue about the similar 'adventures' she had shared with her father as a child, Cole allowed himself to lapse into memories of good times spent with his own daughter before her death. Both lost in their own reflections, neither noticed the shadowy form that followed in their wake, occasionally quite visible in the wilderness, more often blending completely and seamlessly into some tree or boulder.

End Act 3

Act 4

"God, I'm tired!" Mel yawned cheerfully as she unceremoniously dropped her pack. She rubbed her shoulders, wincing as she realized how raw the heavy pack had left the skin there. She would probably end up having to heal them before bed, or maybe she could prevail on Cole to do so.

"Are you in pain?" Cole asked when she winced, dropping his pack and moving quickly to her side. He gently touched the shoulder she had been rubbing, frowning when she recoiled. "Mel?"

"Blisters," she explained, shaking her head. "It's nothing. Let's get camp set up."

"May I look at them?" Cole asked as he unpacked the tent.

"Um, we'll see, okay? I'll clear the site if you'll get the wood, then we can pitch the tent when you're back."

He nodded placidly. "Yes, Mel."

"Get lots of wood!" she called after him as he wandered off. "We don't want the fire going out again."

"I know, Mel," he called wryly over his shoulder.

Mel smiled faintly and cleared the ground where the fire would be before turning her attention to the tent. She unrolled it and got it ready to pitch, frowning as she counted the tent-pegs. Shaking her head and muttering to herself, she counted them again, cursing softly.

"Is something wrong, Mel?" Cole asked, returning with a massive armload of wood.

"We're missing a couple tent-pegs."

"But when we left you said they were all there," he pointed out, frowning uncertainly. "Were you mistaken?"

"No." She shook her head. "They were there in Chicago and they were there last night."

"Maybe you counted wrong?" he suggested.

She shook her head. "I counted several times at home. I must have dropped some at the last camp. Damn..." She sighed and shook her head.

Cole frowned. "Will we still be able to put the tent up? Pitch it?" he corrected himself, using the word Mel had given him for the task.

She smiled reassuringly. "Yeah, Cole. We'll just makeshift some pegs from strong sticks. It'll be fine."

"Yes, Mel."

"If you want to get the fire started, I can go find some?" she offered.

"That's fine." Cole nodded and gathered his materials together the way Mel had shown him. "I think I like this 'camping', Mel," he told her. "But next time, we should find a warmer place to visit."

Mel's smile faltered for a moment before she nodded. "Definitely," she agreed, hurrying off.

Cole sighed deeply as he built the fire, wondering if he would be forced to spend another night in a too-small sleeping-bag with Mel fighting with himself as she slumbered in his arms. As he fed another piece of wood into the growing fire, he paused, pulling it back out and examining the burning brand thoughtfully. It was not a connection he had made before, the similarity between this flickering light and the flickering light of a Cirronian mating. No wonder she was so lovely to him by firelight. Not that she was ever anything else, of course, but the firelight compounded that.

Thinking of Mel in connection with a Cirronian joining was probably unwise, he reflected, aware that his body was growing warm and his thoughts and feelings were becoming unsettled. Still, holding this burning brand, staring at the pulsing, flickering flame, he was strangely powerless to think of anything else.

He had been staring at the flame in his hand, transfixed, lost in his thoughts of Mel and not really paying much attention to anything else. Until the flame burnt far enough down the stick to come into contact with his hand. Even then, it took the pain a few moments to penetrate his awareness.

"Ow!" he gasped, throwing the stick into the fire and shaking his hand frantically. It hurt! Badly.

"Cole! What happened?" Mel gasped, hurrying back into the clearing and grabbing his hand.

"I burned my hand," he told her, feeling momentarily disoriented by the fact. How could something so beautiful cause such pain?

"Fire does that, Cole," she told him gently, shaking her head and pouring half of her canteen over the singed flesh. "You poor baby," she whispered, holding it up for closer examination. His skin was charred and blackened. "Let me heal this for you," she said softly, moving her free hand to his wrist. "Okay?"

"Mel," he began, shaking his head, about to point out that he could heal the burns as easily as she could.

"Shh," she soothed tenderly, touching his cheek. "Let me do this for you, Cole," she offered, smiling reassuringly.

His obvious confusion and uncertainty when he had announced that he was hurt had triggered nurturing instincts that Mel had not even known she had. He was hurt, scared, confused... Mel just wanted to make that go away, to comfort the man she loved. She had once, not too long ago, thought of this instinct to nurture and protect as a "mothering instinct". Now she knew better. She had no desire whatsoever to "mother" Cole Hauser and she was well past denying it to herself. She brushed the back of two fingers over his cheek several times. Smiling at the rough yet ticklish feel of stubble, she cupped his face in her hands.

"Cole, let me help you," she whispered.

He swallowed hard and nodded slowly, leaning his face in to her touch. "Yes, Mel," he whispered.

"Okay, just relax," she advised gently, covering his burnt hand with both of hers.

Cole felt a pang as she removed her hands from his face, a sense of loss. It was unsettling.

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and concentrated on the instinctive exchange. The sharing was beyond words, a spiritual coming together. She was giving of herself to make Cole whole, as he had done for her so many times in the past. The transfer of energy was, strangely enough, faintly erotic to her. Or perhaps it was simply holding Cole's strong, gentle hand in both of hers, focusing her entire attention on him, watching his face and body slowly relaxing under her loving care.

Cole inhaled deeply at the first feel of her healing energy. She was becoming more disciplined at using her powers, and it showed in the healing. The first time he had felt her energy, so shortly after discovering the truth about her heritage, the uncontrolled burst had nearly knocked him to his knees. This time, the soothing, healing energy was delivered in exactly the proper amount, and was mild enough not to overwhelm his own, combining with it instead, ebbing and flowing. It was almost like a hesitant, ticklish caress.

It felt very, very nice. He schooled his thoughts, focusing on how much more skilled and disciplined she was becoming, an approving smile slowly spreading across his face.

"Yes, Mel," he breathed, nodding as the last of the pain vanished. "That was very well done, Mel." He spent a few moments transfixed by her shy expression. "Did you find what you were looking for?" he asked in a low voice, absently caressing her throat.

"Think so," Mel managed, half-closing her eyes under the tender touch. "Don't worry, we'll... get the tent up. And the fire looks absolutely great," she added, smiling her approval. "Anyone would think you've been doing it for years."

"You showed me how last night, Mel," he pointed out. "I learn what I see and hear."

"Okay." Mel nodded. "I'll show you how to get the tent up first and then make dinner. Sounds good?"

Cole smiled and nodded. "It sounds very good."

***

They managed to get the tent up without incident once Mel had walked Cole through the process. They stood admiring their handiwork for a few moments. Abruptly Mel frowned, looking up at the sharp sound of a twig snapping nearby.

"Is something wrong, Mel?" Cole asked, concerned.

The birds had stopped singing again and Mel was having flashbacks to The Blair Witch Project. If course, if you were going to get terrorized in the woods, there were worse people to be with than Cole. Besides, it had only been a movie. It would not have been so troubling except for the birds. It was like something out of Stephen King. Why did the birds keep falling silent? What did it mean?

"Everything's just fine, Cole," she lied.

Mel tossed her sleeping-bag inside the tent, not bothering to unroll it yet, and walked over to the fire to start dinner, sending Cole out for more wood. As she sat back, waiting for their meal to heat up, she rubbed her shoulders, which hurt worse now than they had before.

"Are you in pain, Mel?" Cole asked as he returned.

"Yeah, I guess that pack's just taking a little getting used to." She peeked under the collar of her shirt, wincing at the row of blood-blisters across and down her shoulder.

"Are you injured?"

"The blisters are a little worse than I thought. Nothing I can't handle."

"Let me see, Mel," he quietly requested. "Please. You've already healed me once today. If you try to heal yourself as well, you might grow weak."

Mel nodded and obediently pulled off her shirt, allowing Cole to resettle the straps of her sports-bra as he examined the injuries.

"Mel, these look very painful!" he exclaimed in obvious distress.

Two rows of tiny red splotches ran around both shoulders, indicating capillaries burst under the unaccustomed weight of the pack, and neglected blisters where the pack had rubbed along the top of each shoulder had filled with red-tinged fluid. Some had burst already, leaving the skin raw and dripping with blood and another, clear fluid. The Cirronian closed his eyes, horrified.

"Mel, why didn't you tell me you were in so much pain?" he asked, frowning sadly.

Mel winced, getting her first good look at the blisters herself. "I didn't know they were so bad. I thought I just needed to get used to the pack. I'm sorry, Cole." She felt horrible about upsetting him so badly.

"Give me your canteen, Mel. I want to clean these before I heal them."

Mel nodded and sat in front of the fire, passing her canteen back to Cole. She winced as the lukewarm water ran into the injuries. She felt Cole kneel behind her with his knees against her sides, and closed her eyes when he wrapped his hands around her bare shoulders. She closed her eyes at the feel of his soothing, healing energy, smiling and leaning back.

Cole glanced down, startled, as Mel leaned back into his chest, a faint smile playing at the corners of her mouth. He had never really noticed before how truly tiny and delicate she was, her slender shoulders vanishing from sight under his hands, her tiny frame dwarfed in comparison to his chest. The contrast had never struck him so forcefully as it did at this moment, with her reclining against him, her expression one of absolute trust.

His Mel was so... fragile. And very, very lovely. Not thinking, he slid his hands lower, wrapping them around her tiny waist. She murmured and turned in his grasp, resting her cheek and hand against his chest.

"Comfortable?" he whispered, less than inclined to do anything to interfere with this simple, intimate moment between them. Moments like this made life far more tolerable to the Tracker.

"Mmm-hmm..." she murmured, not opening her eyes.

"Tired?" he asked, smiling adoringly down at her.

"Yeah. Long day."

"Well, you can climb into your sleeping-bag just as soon as we eat," he promised.

"Okay." She sighed and pulled herself out of his arms.

She shook her head and reached for her shirt. What was she thinking, lying there in his arms like that, when they both knew full well that they could not have a relationship until the last of the fugitives had been recovered? She sighed and crouched in front of him, pulling her shirt back on. A peal of thunder caused her to recoil. Her position and lack of secure footing made that unwise, and she flew backwards, directly into Cole. Since he had also been crouching, on his way to climbing to his feet, they both landed in the dirt, Cole first with Mel landing on top of him.

"Oof," he grunted as she landed on his chest.

Mel giggled helplessly and scrambled off of him. "Cole, I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

He nodded, bemused by what had just happened. "I'm fine, Mel. You?" he asked.

"Fine, sorry. The thunder startled me." She shook her head, embarrassed. "Guess you figured that out, though."

He nodded, smiling wryly. "Can we keep hiking if it rains?" he asked after they had both taken a few moments to compose themselves.

"Yeah. Probably. And it should stop by morning. We should eat and get in the tent before it starts."

"Too late," Cole remarked as the clouds burst and drenched them both within a few heartbeats.

End Act 4

Tag

"Mel?" Cole asked uncertainly as she climbed out of the sleeping-bag. He had been crouched next to it, observing the progress of the storm through the partially-closed tent-flap. The fire had gone out twenty minutes ago, refusing his best efforts to rekindle it.

"I need to hammer the tent-pegs back down before the tent--" The tent
collapsed on top of them in a hail of poles and canvas.

"Mel?" Cole asked, worried. "Are you okay?"

Mel landed on her stomach, and was in the process of trying to push herself upright, impeded by 30 pounds of canvas. "I will be," she said, freezing as a pair of red eyes blinked across the clearing and were gone.

"Mel?" Cole repeated.

There was someone there, she was sure. Sheeting rain hitting a humanoid figure that was invisible, like a special effect from that TV show, The Invisible Man.

"Yeah, Cole. But I'm wet and freezing," she told him, crawling back into the confines of the tent. It was at least dry and, more importantly, secure.

"You aren't that wet," he pointed out, confused.

"Wet and freezing, Cole." Mel shimmied back into the sleeping-bag. "Now get your butt in here!"

Cole blinked, startled. "Yes, Mel," he said meekly. "Aren't we going to put the tent back up?"

"Not tonight. It'll just blow down again with the winds this high. Now get in here before we both freeze to death!"

Cole frowned. There was something... off about Mel's tone. Shaking his head, he crawled in. And abruptly found himself nose to nose with Mel, her arms around him tightly.

"Mel," he began uneasily.

"There's a Dessarian out there," she hissed.

"Are you sure?" he whispered.

Mel nodded. "I saw it in the rain... or, its shape..."

Cole nodded. "Does it know you saw it?"

"Don't think so," she whispered, pulling at Cole's shoulders, maneuvering them both farther into the bag.

"I will not let him harm you, Mel," he assured her quietly, sensing her anxiety. He gently caressed her throat.

She smiled up at him. "Thanks, Cole. I know you'll keep me safe. You always do. So what do we do about him?"

"Tonight, nothing. You must rest. Tomorrow, we will make a plan to capture him.

Mel nodded. "So, we just... stay here all night?"

Cole nodded. "I think it would be best, Mel. Least suspicious." Her skin was like ice anyway. "You're very cold," he told her, wrapping his arms tightly around her and pulling her to his chest.

"Thanks, Cole." She sighed and slid her arms around him. "Good night, my guardian angel," she whispered, snuggling against him.

Cole sighed and held her in his arms, listening for the Dessarian. It must have been following them since the beginning, he realized. He held Mel close, earlier considerations forgotten. Last night, he had been 'distracted'.

Tonight, he was just afraid.

End Tag

End Part 1

RavenKat

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