Dark as the Night

16

Author's note: And this chapter is for the Jessa fans...

Kellan Lutz is my image for James, only with long, wavy/messy, dark red hair and green eyes.  I quickly and clumsily changed his hair and eye color in the pic.  XD  This pose is pretty classically James McKenna, though.  He likes to cross his arms to display how big they are lol.

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Three hours later, Odessa stood just inside the entrance of the training center. She looked around at the large indoor track in front of her, separated by a glass wall. To her right was a set of stairs that led both up and down, and next to it, an elevator. On the left was a corridor and a sign pointing down it labeled, "Dojo." She looked back at the stairs and read the sign pointing upward and listing "gymnasiums, weight & cardio room." Below it another sign pointed down and claimed "weapons training and storage."

She took a slow, deep breath through her nose and inhaled the scent of cleaner, floor wax, rubber, and the faint underlying bite of salty sweat that always filled such buildings. A tiny pang of anxiety shot down her spine but it was gone as quickly as it had come.  Finally, she stepped up to the front desk and asked the person sitting there for James McKenna. He pointed her down the hall and told her he was in the Dojo.

Odessa came to a room with a tatami mat floor and a small space just inside with a neat row of shoes and a step up into the main room. As no one was wearing shoes in the Dojo, she took the hint and removed her own before entering. James was in the middle of the room, dressed in a uniform of black, loose fabric that wrapped around his chest and was tied with a black cloth belt.  His thick red hair was pulled up in a messy bun, and a five o'clock shadow dusted his jaw.

He was instructing a group of children in martial arts. She couldn't help but smile at the scene before her. Some of the kids' faces were twisted up in concentration; others' were wide open in awe of their burly teacher. Little kids were so cute when they were working hard at something. Every single one followed James's words with rapt attention.

She watched for a couple minutes, admiring how he spoke gently but firmly to the children and patiently guided their movements when necessary.  Eventually, a little boy raised his hand and called out, "Sensei, there's a lady at the door." James turned around and arched an eyebrow when he saw Odessa. She smiled and held out a basket.

"I brought goodies for the kids," she said, stepping into the room.

James crossed his arms over his chest, sauntered over to her, and looked inside the basket. There were several jars of brightly-colored candies. "You brought them candy? As assistant healer, aren't you supposed to be discouraging that sort of thing?"

Odessa covered the basket and pulled it away with a scowl. "They're ginseng-vitamin drops – energy candy. They replace vitamins lost during workouts. Leila thought it would be good for you to have them on hand, especially for the children. But if you don't want them..." she trailed off teasingly and began to turn away from James, whose skeptical expression belied the curiosity that sparkled in his eyes.

He reached in and took a jar full of golden candies. "Energy drops, huh?" He said as he opened it and pulled one out. He inspected it and popped it in his mouth. After a pause while he sucked on the candy, he reluctantly nodded. "This is pretty good." He reached for another one.

Odessa grinned smugly. "Of course! That one is honey-flavored. I also have strawberry, mint, chamomile, and orange."

She looked down at the group of kids that were now gathered around them and knelt down to open all the jars. "Do you guys want to try them?" Her query was met with an exuberant chorus of 'yeah' and 'yes please.' She giggled and began passing out the candies as James glared meaningfully at the kids pushing forward excitedly. At his look, they all settled down and stood quietly, though some continued to fidget with anticipation.

James smiled as he watched her playfully handing the candies out to the kids, tossing them into a couple little boys' mouths, and twinkling at a little girl who claimed they looked like gems. Her cheerfulness was so much like theirs; she seemed to work so well with them. He was reminded of the little boy from the previous week as well. Warmth filled his chest looking at all the happy faces in front of him. Children were the one weakness had no problem admitting to.

Odessa stood up after each child had a treat, and reached toward James. He glanced at her outstretched hand and blinked. "What?"

She sighed in exasperation. "Could I have the jar back, please?"

James's green eyes sparkled with mischief as he grinned at her. "Why? The kids got theirs; this one is mine." He grabbed two more candies from it and stuck them in his mouth. Then he closed the jar and began to hold it out to her.

As she went to take it, he lifted the jar over his head. Odessa scowled impatiently and jumped up for it. He raised it higher. "You have to try harder than that," he chided. The kids backed away, laughing and giving her room to jump again. On the third try, she grabbed James's shoulder and dug her left thumb in the soft spot where his right arm pit met his pectoral muscle.

Suddenly James's arm jerked lower and she grabbed the jar just as he began to drop it. He winced and rubbed the pressure point she'd targeted. "Jerk," Odessa said with a playful pout. James narrowed his eyes at her in mock menace and muttered something about cheating. She ignored him and ducked down to put all the jars back in her basket. "I'll put these in your first aid station. Where is it?"

"I'll take them." Odessa startled at the voice behind her and spun to see a girl about her age standing in the doorway.

James nodded. "Thanks, Mina." He turned around and ushered his class back to the middle of the room to finish their lesson. Odessa stared as the girl, Mina, strolled over to her. She was pretty and exotic-looking with shiny black hair and big brown eyes ringed with long, dark eyelashes. She wore the same uniform as James.

"Thank you for bringing these," Mina said as she took the basket from Odessa's hands. "They'll be really good for the kids. Leila is always coming up with great ideas like this." She made the last statement with an air of such finality that Odessa found it difficult to assert that the energy candies had in fact been her idea.

She turned to say goodbye to James, but was interrupted by Mina's clear, firm voice again. "He's an excellent teacher, and all his students love him, not just the children."

Odessa turned back around to face the other girl with interest. "What classes does he teach?"

Mina began counting on her fingers. "Martial arts levels 1 and 3, Knife Throwing, which is really just a recreational class rather than functional, and all levels of archery. He's also one of two people who give the nighttime hunting tests."

"Wow..." Odessa's eyes widened. "I had no idea. All that on top of going to school as well? No wonder he's so busy all the time!"

Mina smirked. "Yeah, James is incredibly skilled and hard-working. He's been doing martial arts since he was seven, and through sheer grit he worked his way up the ranks quickly in everything else. Not all of those classes are available all the time, but still, he has a lot of responsibilities," her voice took on an edge of harsh disappointment as she continued, "so it's too bad he has to babysit you all the time when he could be spending it doing things he loves and helping where he's really needed."

Ouch. Odessa took a step backward, taken aback from the unexpected hostility. "I-I'm sorry," she stammered. "I didn't realize he was babysitting me." She spoke slowly and uncertainly as she reeled from the sudden turn her visit to the training center had taken.

She composed herself, bowed, and filled her voice with false bravado as she said, "I'll make sure to get out of his – and your – way now. Goodbye." She stepped around Mina and walked quickly out of the room, down the hall, and out of the training center.

James glanced over as she was leaving, and arched a questioning brow at Mina. "Huh? What happened? Odessa didn't even say goodbye."

Mina shrugged carelessly. "She said she didn't want to be in your way and left in a rush." Then she smiled serenely at James before walking to the supply cabinet and finding a place for the basket in her hands.