Chain Me

She's Fine

     I couldn't bring myself to be intimate with Lost in that way last night. She was too fragile. Her words to the crows echoed in my head all through dinner and by the time bedtime rolled around, I knew she needed a slow night. Sex wasn't the answer, and I was certain of it when I took Lost to my bed and we crawled under the covers together. She wrapped her arms around me and intertwined her legs with mine. My face was pressed into her chest. She trailed her hand up and down my back and whispered sweet things into my hair, her voice breaking. And then, when I'm sure she thought I was in a deep sleep, she sniffled and I know she cried, just a little. She told me she wished she knew what was breaking through our chests.
     Wiping sleep from my eyes, I wonder for the umpteenth time what she meant by what was breaking through our chests. Without context it sounds terrifying, and my drowsy mind took it that way. My dream last night was equal parts horrific and beautiful. Tentacles and worms and seaweed burst through my chest and caused me to scream in agony. But soon they would be replaced with flowers and light and reaching hands and my screams would cease to shocked gasps. I don't understand any of it.
     "Your phone is buzzing," Lost's voice bounces off the bathroom tiles, making me jump.
     I spin to her, hand to my chest, and say, "Alright. I'll get it." I only wanted to brush my teeth, not get scared out of my skin before the light outside has had the chance to turn yellow.
     The bathroom door closes and I'm left alone again. I rake a hand through my tangled hair and sigh, then go look for my phone. I find it on my bedside table and sit on the edge of my bed to answer. But it's not a phone call; it's a text message. In neat digital letters is a message from Leon warning me to keep my end of our deal. Apparently he knows that Lost was discharged from medical yesterday and he's irked that I haven't contacted him yet.
     I shoot back a quick text that the deal is still on and he should send me that Were file if the case is active. Then I yawn and throw my phone on the bed. I still need to brush my teeth.
     The doorbell rings as I reach the bathroom but I ignore it and start brushing my teeth. Lost will answer the door. My reflection is tired and the bubbles in its mouth tip over its lips. Hakeem's excited voice hits my ears as I spit into the sink and I figure Emma told him that Lost was back. He had been asking about her every day but all I could do was shake my head at him, too distressed to give him a real answer. Emma, though, made up a story for me. Word is Lost screwed up dinner and caused a mini explosion and hurt herself and had to be hospitalized. But I don't think Lost knows that...
     I rinse out my mouth quickly and run to the living room with water still dribbling down to my chin. If Lost doesn't know the story then she might tell Hakeem something different and he'll start asking questions. Weird things have been happening around him a lot and there's no way he hasn't figured out that there's something not quite right with my little group. We don't need to give him another reason to be suspicious.
     But as I reach the living room my fears seep away. Lost is dramatically retelling how she messed up dinner and had to deal with the wicked nurse's digs at her expense while in the hospital.
     "...and that's why you should always keep an eye on the oven," she finishes, giving Hakeem a gentle nudge.
     Hakeem laughs, holding to his middle. "You're so weird!"
     Lost laughs, too, and turns her head to throw a wink my way. "Yes, but this is a good cautionary tale. Modern machinery is no joke."
     Hakeem's laughs die down and he exhales heavily. "Man, I've missed you. I mean, it's been quiet without you around," he amends quickly.
     Lost wrangles him in and jostles his shoulders playfully. "Don't be afraid to show your feelings. Emotionally stunted men are usually violent, and they make terrible lovers."
     Sticking out his tongue, Hakeem pushes away from Lost. "Gross."
     "I'm serious. You ever notice how men who never show feelings even to the people closest to them always have trouble reacting? They get mad real easy? Men who aren't afraid to cry or show love always think and understand the world around them. They're easier to be with, you know?"
     Hakeem's face scrunches and he's silent for a minute, thinking. Then he says, "I did miss you. Emma said I couldn't visit you and it sucked."
     I'm surprised that Hakeem absorbed Lost's little lesson so well as so easily, but Lost doesn't seem surprised at all. She gives him a hug and pats his head. "That's better. Sorry, but I was hurt something fierce. I don't think you would have liked seeing me that way. I'm here now, though. Doesn't that not suck?"
     I smile as Hakeem hugs Lost back and they move on from the emotional stuff to play video games. It's the first time they've played together and I'm happy to see them finally getting to enjoy it.
     The fax machine hums to life as Hakeem shows Lost the virtual world on screen and I apologize as I scuttle to get the pages being sent. I have to wait a few minutes as they all come through, and it's awkward squatting there, my butt in Lost and Hakeem's faces.
     The doorbell rings for the second time this morning and I say I'll get it as I take all the papers and square them together in a little pile. I move out from under the TV without getting in the way of the screen as best I can then answer the door. Cas, Emma, and Mariam all stand out in the hall with smiles on their faces. Looks like the apartment is hosting an impromptu party.
     "Oh, no way!" Cas exclaims as she slips past me to the living room. "I heard this game was good." She plops down on the couch and greets Hakeem and Lost in turn before I can even say hello.
     Emma rolls her eyes and gives me a quick hug. "We came to see how everything is going."
     "It's great," I tell her, ushering her and Mariam inside. "Come in, come in."
     "Hey, Lost," Mariam says, waving. "Glad to see you up and about again."
     Lost grins from her seat on the floor. "It's nice to be up and about again. Hello, Emma."
     "Hello, Lost." Emma sits down next to Cas and greets Hakeem.
     Mariam turns and follows me into the kitchen. "How are you?"
     "Better," I reply honestly, putting the faxed papers face down on the island. "Much, much better."
     "Good, good."
     Mariam's body language is a bit off, and I move deeper into the kitchen as I say softly, "Why are you really here?"
     Just as I thought she would, Mariam moves deeper into the kitchen, too. "That deal with that Leon guy..."
     "It's handled," I tell her right away.
     "But now that Lost is up, you have to actually go through with it. Aren't you worried? With what happened... It's vastly more dangerous to be dealing with- with magic than with what we do."
     That's exactly what I've been worried about but I kept it far from my mind in false hope that I'd never have to deal with it. "I know," I sigh. "But what else should I do. Let him take her away?"
     "Technically, she is his jurisdiction."
     "Mariam. Seriously. How do you think she'd cope being ripped from me? Again."
     Eyebrows high, Mariam concedes. "True. I guess it's better she goes through this with you than without you."
     "You don't need to tell me how dangerous this is, okay? I already know. In fact, I just got our first file."
     "Really? Can I see?"
     Leon never told me I couldn't share. So I fetch the faxed papers then move back to Mariam and let her see them. She adjusts her glasses then leans on the counter top and scans the pages slowly. With every minute her eyes get wider and wider.
     "This is unbelievable," she murmurs. "If I hadn't seen what happened with Lost, well, I'd assume this was fiction. Werewolves!" she hisses at me. "Unbelievable."
     "Right?" I take the papers back and flip through them myself. "Honestly, if I weren't so numb to all this I'd be freaking out."
     "Don't let Cas find out the details of what you're going to be doing. I have enough trouble with her. I am not letting her work for these people, too. She'd volunteer, I'm sure."
     "You haven't told her?"
     Mariam scoffs. "No way. She knows the outline- that you're working for someone new, someone bigger than the Facility- but she's not finding out the rest. I plan to keep it that way."
     It would be nice for Lost to have trusted backup on her new job, but I understand Mariam's reservations about it all. It's more dangerous dealing with magical creatures and I'm not going to force Mariam to deal with what I have to. Cas has enough trouble with the General.
     The doorbell chimes and everyone, aside from Hakeem, looks up. All of us have confused looks on our faces. With everyone we know already here, who in the world is at the door?
     Lost hands her controller over to Cas then moves to the front door. She opens it and immediately something crashes into her legs. But the small body doesn't bother Lost in the slightest.
     "Gerry!" she coos, leaning down to pick the little boy up. She cradles him with one arm then rocks forward to embrace someone in the hall.
     "I'm so happy you're okay," Tiffany's voice floats into the apartment. She continues to hug Lost, making Gerry squirm after a few minutes.
     "Come in," Lost says cheerily when she's free.
     Tiffany steps inside and looks around at everyone. Embarrassment flushes her cheeks. "Sorry to drop by unexpectedly. I wanted to come and see how you were faring."
     I walk over to her with my arms extended. "No, it's not a problem. It's great to see you," I tell her as she hugs me. I maneuver her over to where Mariam is and they say their hellos. "I'm glad you're here, actually. Remember that thing I told you about?"
     Tiffany looks over at her son, then back at me when she's satisfied that everything is okay. Which it is. Lost is making funny faces at him and Emma is getting in on the game. Gerry is perfectly safe.
     "That thing...?" Tiffany's brow furrows, then I hand her the faxed papers and her face lights up. "Oh, right. You're new job. What about it?"
     "Well, with you being, you know, a witch and all, I was hoping you could give me some tips on keeping Lost safe..."
     Tiffany chuckles and smiles in understanding. "She doesn't have much to worry about. She can handle offensive magic very well, if she's ever face to face with it. But," she adds, watching my expression change to worry. "I can give her something to help. Come down to my grandm- my shop when you can."
     I give Tiffany's shoulder a friendly squeeze. She's had a tough time taking over the shop downtown, but she's doing well under the circumstances. "I'll swing by later," I tell her.
     She nods then turns to the living room. I give her some encouragement to go sit with everyone else and she does, maneuvering around everyone to sit beside Lost. Mariam saddles up next to me and watches all our friends playing games. Hakeem hoots as something explodes on screen and Cas groans in dismay.
     "This isn't so bad, huh?" Mariam says, nudging me.
     "Hm?"
     She fixes her glasses and smirks. "Bet you didn't think this was how things would end up when you agreed to be Lost's caretaker."
     Not at all. I never imagined the danger, the romance. God, I sound like those cheesy harlequin novels. "It's definitely different than I imagined."
     Mariam snickers. "What did you imagine?"
     "Not... this." I didn't think I'd have an apartment full of close friends or someone who likes me as much as I like them or, hell, even a witch friend and the world she's a part of. For so long I thought my life would go on and end in the Facility. Now I have a group of trustworthy people at my side and someone that shares me bed eagerly. Things are... great.
     "Well, 'this' is good for you, I hope. I'm going to go. I'm sure you probably have to get on with your new job. Good luck."
     I smile and thank Mariam. She then tries to wrangle Cas, who does not want to leave without beating Hakeem at least once. They play two more games, which is perfectly fine with me since they're stay was so short. Cas loses both of the games, though, and embarrassingly. Spitting child safe curses, she finally leaves with Emma and Mariam, vowing to buy the game and get better to crush Hakeem in the future.
     "Should I get going too?" Tiffany asks when I sit down on the couch. Lost moves next to me without taking her eyes off the screen, her fingers sliding across her controller.
     "No, you don't have to," I tell Tiffany.
     "You can tell me about the wolf packs around here," Lost says. I nudge her and jerk my head at Hakeem. We shouldn't talk shop around him.
     Hakeem doesn't say anything, though. His eyes stay glued to the TV.
     Tiffany cradles Gerry and jiggles her leg to make him bounce softly. "There's nothing menacing about any of them. They're very sweet."
     Lost grunts. "I figured." Then she glances at me. "What came in through the fax machine?"
     I cross my legs and wiggle my fingers at Gerry. "We're going to have to leave at some point. Not yet, though. I have to set up a meeting first." Which I should probably do right away.
     Gerry crawls out of Tiffany's lap and into Lost's. His presence doesn't ruin her game at all. "Do you need my wares before then?" Tiffany asks. "Because I have something in mind that I can go get right now."
     "I don't want you to waste gas going back to the shop then coming here again."
     Tiffany's already standing, though. "It's not a problem. I've actually been waiting for someone to buy it but no one's needed it. You know, with things being so peaceful here. Mostly," she adds wryly. "Lost, can you watch Gerry? I'll be back as quick as I can."
     Lost smiles even as Gerry tugs on her hair. "Of course."
     I want to tell Tiffany that, really, she doesn't have to, but she already has her keys in hand and is heading to the front door. Whatever item she wants to give us must be exciting for her to act like this. So much for coming by the shop later.
     Lost hollers and her controller buzzes, and by the way Hakeem groans I think she just won. Hakeem takes it in stride, though. He declares that Lost is ready for an online challenge and helps her get there. He friend requests himself then runs off so he can get on his own system to play. His quick chirp of "Bye, Kahlan," is sweet.
     "Meeting?" Lost inquires, juggling Gerry so she can put on her headset without him touching it.
     "I saw a number on one of the papers. Hold on." I go to my room to get my phone, then fetch the faxed papers I left in the kitchen. I find the number I'm looking for and plop back down next to Lost. "We're supposed to call to see when the pack is ready to meet with us."
     "That's respectful. I didn't expect that."
     "Leon and his people work with, um, your people. He doesn't intervene unless he's asked to."
     Lost hums and starts to jiggle her legs to keep Gerry occupied. "I suppose I missed his group's creation. It's not surprising. I'm glad my people have good humans to help. We need each other, sometimes."
     I agree and tap the number into my phone. I'm not sure who will answer or what I'm going to say, but I assume I'll be fine if I use Leon's name.
     "Do you want me to talk to them?" Lost asks as the dial tone hits my ear.
     "No, I'll handle it. Play your game."
     Shrugging, Lost adjusts her headset then picks her legs up to cross them, placing Gerry in the middle. He slaps her thighs as he stares at me, his bright eyes seeing something and making me uncomfortable. Then the dial tone ends and a cheerful voice greets me with the name of that dive bar I pass when I used to go to the Facility- The Black Hound. Of course.
     "Hi, my name is Kahlan. I work for Leon."
     The cheerful voice says nothing and all I hear is some kind of party going on in the background. The bar must be packed right now. Then the noise ebbs away, as if the person on the other end of the line moved into another room. "Finally," he says, his cheer still noticeable. "We've been asking for help for days now. Are you going to help us?"
     "Uh, yeah. When can we meet up?"
     "Tonight, if you're up for it. Here at the bar. You know where it is? I'll give you the address."
     I already know where the bar is but I let him give me the address anyway. When he's done I tell him I'll come after closing, and he says he'll close early. Then we give our goodbyes and I hang up.
     "He sounded nice," Lost comments.
     "He did. Be prepared tonight, okay?"
     She nods then continues on with her game. She barks into the headset every few moments and people bark back. Gerry is getting sleepy, his little, chubby body leaning into Lost. His eyes flutter and fight to stay open. I smirk at him and watch him lose that fight within minutes.
     Lost plays her game for a little while longer before cutting off connection with Hakeem and the rest of the team. She takes off the headset and rolls her head to me, wrapping an arm around Gerry. His breathing is soft.
     "Tiffany's back," she whispers. "What did she go get?"
     "Something to help you with all this magic stuff. I don't want you going in unprepared."
     "I can handle it."
     I sigh. "I know you're fine, but I just don't want to see you hurt again. Precautions aren't a bad thing, you know."
     She smiles softly and leans in to give me a gentle kiss. I stroke her face, enjoying the way she purrs under my touch. Whatever happens, I'm always going to go with the precautions. I'm not giving moments like these up.
     Knocking on the front door makes me get up as Lost holds Gerry close. Tiffany comes in as soon at the door opens and she holds out a jewelry box excitedly.
     "This is it," she breathes. "I've always wanted to see if it actually works."
     I stare down at the box, intrigued. "You don't even know if it works?"
     "Like I said, no one's ever needed it. It's supposed to lessen the effect of magic on the wearer. Any kind of magic. Even the hidden kind."
     "Hidden?"
     "Yeah. I'm hoping Lost will tell me if it works or not."
     "Why haven't you tested it?"
     "This isn't something you can just test. It knows if it's needed. The situation has to be real."
     "It's sentient?"
     Tiffany teeters her hand and groans. "Well... Lost, want to try this on?"
     Lost gathers Gerry into her arms and stands to approach Tiffany. She peers at the box in Tiffany's hands, and her eyes widen. "Is that what I think it is?"
     Tiffany nods sporadically and trades the box for her son. "We found it decades ago. Saved it."
     "No..." Lost opens the box and I move to her side to see what it's inside. She pulls out an intricate necklace, letting it hang off her fingers so that the amulet it holds dangles in the air. "I saw it once, twice. It definitely works."
     "Really?" Tiffany squeaks, making Gerry fuss slightly. "How? What does it defend against exactly?"
     "Can I put it on?"
     "Yes!"
     Lost gently places the necklace over her head and lets the amulet bounce against her chest. I expect something to happen, but nothing does.
     "It slows... everything," Lost says, moving the chain to sit comfortably under her collar. "All kinds of magic. Even the small magic in shifters and such. Even the magic in me."
     Tiffany moves from side to side to get Gerry to sleep again. "Really? How?"
     "Whoever made it was a master of their craft. Why have you kept it locked away? This is an expert piece of jewelry."
     "We never needed it. The story floated around the family but it was mostly forgotten."
     Lost looks at Tiffany seriously. "Can I truly use this? I can't possibly..."
     Tiffany waves her hand. "Please, wear it. You protected me and my son. Let me protect you."
     "Thank you."
     "It's my pleasure. Now I should get going so you can do your business." Tiffany smiles wide. "Gosh, I'm so excited that someone's using it! I don't even know why."
     I give Tiffany a quick hug, practically feeling her body buzzing, and watch her do the same Lost, who gives Gerry a peck on the head, too. Tiffany leaves with a wave of her arm, then Lost and I are left alone.
     "What should be do until tonight?" I ask. The sudden quiet is awkward. The apartment feels so much bigger without everyone in it.
     Lost shrugs and looks around. "I'm hungry."
     I chuckle dryly and roll my eyes. "When aren't you?"