The Elementals

He said his name was Shylock.

At those words, Coal and I freeze, faces dropping. Oblivious, Kenny continues. “He’s kind of scary looking. Got burns all over his hands and half his face.” Kenny drags his fingers down his cheek, stretching the skin to look gruesome.

Through my peripheral vision I see Coal turn to me, silently asking for help. I try to calm my own expression before facing him.

His entire posture is rigid, jaw tight and fists clenched. I assume I’ll find anger in his eyes but instead they’re glazed over with fear and awful memories. Caroline is looking at him curiously, and then suddenly she winces, holding her head. I’m guessing mind reading isn’t so fun anymore.

“- but he wants you to come.” Kenny finishes, peering at us. “Are you okay?” he asks Coal, who has not spoken.

Coal doesn’t move for a second and then he shakes his head quickly, clearing it. He still doesn’t look any better though, and Jensen jumps in.

“Kenny,” he says. “We’re going to play Star Wars, like we used to, okay?”

Kenny’s eyes light up and he nods eagerly.

“Good,” Jensen smiles tightly. “Now you’re Luke Skywalker -”

Kenny crosses his arms. “But I wanna be Darth Vadar!”

Jensen grimaces. “Fine, fine. You’re Darth Vadar. Now that man up there is, um...Obi Wan Kenobi and you have to go kill him. But,” Jensen elaborates as Kenny turns to leave. “You have to tell him we’re not here so your men can take Coal -”

“You mean Han Solo?” Kenny asks.

Jensen nods. “Yes, Han Solo, and Tide -”

“Princess Leia.”

“Right. And R2D2,” Jensen points to Caroline, who looks insulted, “To the Death Star as prisoners.”

“So what do you do?” Kenny inquires. “You’re Luke Skywalker.”

Jensen looks briefly pleased with such a high role but he quickly returns to seriousness. “I’m a...um...a prisoner too. For now. But I’ll escape and come back for you!” he threatens Kenny and ruffles his hair, shoving him off to the house lightly. Once he’s out of sight Jensen ushers us along. “You need to get to the airport.”

“But we don’t have a flight.” I say. “Not until two more days.”

“I can take care of that.” Caroline steps forward, tapping her forehead. “Mind control. I’ve been working on it.”

“Good, now get to the airport.” Jensen says. He notices my blank look and starts pushing me up the beach. “Come on!” He grabs Coal and drags him along after he does nothing in the way of moving.

We race through the foliage and then emerge onto the narrow gravel road leading to the orphanage. Staying along the tree line, Jensen leads us all down the path and then onto an actual paved road.

“Go!” Jensen ushers me on. He has the same horror look in his eyes that Coal does. This must have happened when Coal first got taken. “Take a right, then two lefts, and another right, and then - Caroline, you have the rest?”

She nods, and Jensen looks at Coal. “I’ll - um...I’ll tell Makuahine your flight was early.” He coughs. “I’ll tell Kenny a-and Sarah...and everyone.” There’s no longer the mirthful tone in his voice. It’s heavy with sadness. “I’m...I’m gonna miss you man.”

Coal is snapped out of whatever reverie he was in. “Jensen -” he starts haltingly, but is cut off as the awfully familiar voice of Shylock bellows out orders from inside the orphanage. Immediately, his face shuts down again.

“Move you idiot!” Jensen shoves Coal forward, trying to hide the catch in his voice. “Don’t let him die.” His brown eyes bore into me, pleading.

It’s such a different side to him that I’m speechless for a moment. Then I nod and hug Jensen quickly, before he can react. He tenses like any guy would, but he returns it fleetingly before he turns and races back to the house.

I start running down the road to the city. The orphanage is right outside of Honolulu. Soon I let Caroline lead and she takes us into the heart of the city.

I run into her as she stops short suddenly, in the middle of an alley.

“What is it?” I ask, trying to keep the urgency in my tone at a minimum. “Are you lost?”

She shakes her head. “No.” Then she turns to the right, pointing at a brick wall. “But we’re being surrounded. Through there are some government men, five of them, and over to the left are three more.”

“How far away?” I question, just as shouting and pounding footsteps start to echo off the walls. There’s only one way out, down the alley behind us.

“That’s the opposite direction of the airport.” Caroline says, reading my mind.

“I’m staying.” Coal declares suddenly with an air of stubbornness. “I’ll distract Shylock and then you take Caroline to the plane and go.”

He has the no-matter-what-you-say-I’m-not-budging look about him and I frown.

“You are so selfish, you know that?” I ask.

“What?”

“You think you’re saving us? No, you’re actually shredding my heart to pieces right now. All because you don’t want me to get hurt? Yeah, okay, well did it ever occur to you that I feel the same way? Why the heck do you think I’ve taken a bullet for you? Doing this hurts me more than getting shot you idiot! You are coming with me and there’s nothing you can do about it, so move!"

“Told you.” Caroline mutters to Coal, while he stands there in shock.

“Caroline, how about you go over there?” I suggest.

She raises an eyebrow. “I’m psychic. I’m going to read your minds anyway so just kiss and get it over with.”

I glare at her, willing the blunt words to disappear but she just stares back with an almost bored expression.

“No time.” I jump as more voices come from the alley next to us. “Caroline, start going that way,” I point farther down. “And we’ll figure out a diversion. If we’re not at the plane in five minutes, or if someone comes after you, control some minds or something and get on without us. Go!” I command and she sees my look and sprints off.

I turn to Coal, who’s still speechless and standing there with a sort of dazed expression on his face.

“Come on.” I grab his hand and yank him out of our hiding spot. “Let’s go be bait.”

He doesn’t answer, just lets me drag him along. I pause at a corner where I can see shadows moving. “Ready?”

He nods vacantly, still not speaking. This worries me beyond belief, but my chaotic life is preventing me from thinking about it.

“One, two...” I count, preparing to leap out and start running. “Three!” I start sprinting as fast as I can, catching the attention of the agents on our tail. I keep moving then suddenly realize I have no idea where I’m going. I slow a bit, but Coal - still wordless - takes the lead and I follow him gratefully.

Why won’t he say anything? A sick feeling in the pit of my stomach asks if it’s because he doesn’t feel the same way. But what about the kiss? What about the jokes that weren’t really jokes, the story? That has to mean something, right?

We hit a corner and Coal helps me as I stumble around the sharp turn. I mean to say thank you but my mouth is dry. The men are catching up; another group just joined the chase from some other alley. I can hear the pounding of their footsteps right behind me.

“They’re gaining!” I say to Coal.

He still doesn’t answer verbally, just makes some more sharp turns and doubles back after being cut off by more men. We end up in a long, dead-end alley. I can hear the shouting as the men start coming up it. The wall is too high to climb by oneself; you’d need help from below.

“We need to get higher.” I say, hopping from foot to foot in nervousness.

Coal nods, and climbs onto a shed with me close behind.

Suddenly Coal grabs my hand, forcing me to turn and face him. He pulls harder, making me stumble into his chest. My limbs feel weak this close to him. My breath hitches and the sound of pursuing footsteps fades out as Coal leans closer till his face is only an inch away. I get lost in his ash grey eyes, so intense and full of emotion that I can’t pull away.

“Tide,” he breathes out, chest rising and falling rapidly from running. I hold my breath, scared of his words. He pauses for an agonizingly long time.

“I love you.”

Then he picks me up under my arms and pushes me over the wall.

~

I tumble over the bricks and collide with the ground on my side. The pavement is rough against my skin. The breath is knocked out of me, leaving me gasping like a fish out of water. There is one thought running through my mind.

He loves me?

Once I can breathe right I stand, chest heaving. Upon hearing scuffling and the overall noises of a fight breaking out, I snap back to reality. A flash of light shows over the wall, which I cannot see or climb over.

“Coal!” I wail as shots ring out.

“Run!” is his response.

“But you’ll die!” I scrabble at the brick, trying to climb up. There are no sheds or anything on this side to use as a lift.

“Tide,” he says clearly, controlled. “I can hold them off for now. I’d like my last moments to be heroic, so please -” He’s cut off for a moment and I hear a thump. “Make this worthwhile and run!”

That’s his nice way of saying “get the heck away idiot”.

I can’t see what’s going on over there, but I know there are too many men for him to take. Eventually a shot is going to clip him somewhere vital.

I pace back and forth as more blasts of light appear and more gunshots sound out. I want to cry, but that won’t help, and neither will curling into a ball and panicking.

“Coal!” I shout again.

"Leave!” He replies.

“No!” I scream. “I love you too!”

There’s no response. Then suddenly a huge wave of heat blows by, even from the other side of the wall. I can see the flames over the bricks. I cringe and duck but it fades quickly.

And then there’s no more fighting, just silence. A long, nerve racking silence before Coal appears over the wall, covered in soot and cut in various places. He hops over the brick, landing on the pavement - albeit a little unsteadily - and stands.

Then he walks purposefully over to me, cups my face in his rough hands, and kisses me. Hard.

Every working part of my brain shorts out and I would probably collapse if Coal wasn’t holding me so tightly. I can’t think straight, any thoughts flying out of my mind as soon as they appear.

It is possibly the best feeling in the world.

Coal lets me go gently, much different from the kiss itself, and half his mouth lifts in satisfaction.

“I have wanted to do that for so long.” he says, eyes sparkling. He grabs my hand and pulls me down the alley.

I still can’t really function properly.

He loves me.

I love him.

He just kissed me.

This is groundbreaking, as well as the only thoughts I can string together coherently right now.

Coal pulls me through some twists and turns and suddenly we’re in front of a plane with a figure waving us in. They disappear into the cabin before I get a good look at them but I assume its Caroline being impatient. Besides, who else would be able to get us a mini-jet on such short notice?

I’m kind of trailing behind Coal in shock anyway, but at the sound of the engine I climb in quickly, almost slipping. I expect to hear a piqued snort from Caroline, but she’s not in the cabin right now.

“Water?”

I shake my head, blinking. “What?”

“Water.” Coal says, offering a bottle out to me. “Want some?”

“Oh!” I seem to just process his words and I nod a little too eagerly. “Yeah, sure, yup, water, I’ll take some.”

I catch the bottle he tosses at me and after fumbling with the cap for a minute I finally open it and sit down. I take a small sip, frowning at the floor in thought, and then suddenly realize how thirsty I am and gulp the rest of it down. My gaze returns to the ground, my mind swirling.

Coal settles next to me and I jump. He gives me a queer look. “Are you okay?”

I stare at him and blink a few times. “Yeah, I’m...” I lose my train of thought while tracing his face with my eyes. “Um...” I am suddenly finding it very hard to concentrate as he tilts his head, a knowing smile lifting the corner of his mouth. “I - uh...um...stop that!” I throw the empty water bottle at him as he grins, eyes lit in a way I’ve never seen them before. He just dodges the plastic and laughs. “Why do I even deal with you?” I ask, throwing my hands up and turning away.

“Because you looooove me Flippers,” he says in my ear and then chuckles as I gasp.

“You don’t have to be annoying about it.” I mutter sulkily, but allow myself to melt into his arms.

“It’s what I’m good at.” he replies.

I shift a little, glancing quickly back at him. “What about you, huh? You said you wanted to kiss me for a while."

“Yeah?”

“Oh.” I forgot where I was going with this. My eyelids droop a bit, fatigued. “Well you could have told me you loved me sooner.”

“I thought it was pretty obvious.”

“It was not!”

“That’s because you are challenged in the art of feelings.”

I wrinkle my nose, mimicking him silently. I yawn widely, position starting to slump against Coal.

“Are you feeling alright?” Coal asks, and I realize I haven’t said anything sarcastic in response to him.

“What...?” I yawn again halfway through, sleepy all of a sudden. I feel heavy, like I ate too much and all I really want to do is take a nap. I turn around to face him slowly.

Coal keeps looking at me, a worried expression beginning to grow on his face. “Tide?”

The tips of my fingers feel kind of fuzzy and my toes too. I curl my feet under me and lean on his shoulder. “I’m tired.” I mumble, but then something occurs to me and I try to keep my eyes open. “Coal?”

“What?” he asks, and I give up and let my eyes close, but not before realizing that somehow I’ve slid down to his chest and I’m not sure how that happened.

“Who’s flying the plane?”