When Izzy came to, it was to almost complete darkness. Her head ached, her mouth was dry, and there was a sharp pain in her neck where she had been injected with something. She groaned softly, raising her head to look around. She was still in the library, it seemed, not a sound from the rest of the house. But there were no lights on, and what little light there was came from the moon outside, shining through the cracks left in poorly closed curtains. Her right arm was bent awkwardly above her head, but when she tried to move it, something metallic bit into her wrist, attesting to some weight attached to her. She pulled harder, biting her lips against the pain in her wrist as she tried to free herself.
Her struggle to free herself was answered by a familiar albeit sleepy groan right beside her, as Jax started to come out of his own drug-induced sleep, slumped against a chair, one arm hanging over the chair, the same metal weight attached to his wrist, connecting them both.
Pinned somewhat in her own position, Izzy blinked, trying to clear the fug from her head as she braced her feet against the end of the couch and pulled harder on her captive hand, trying to twist about to see just what she was attached to. "Ryan?" she whispered in the darkness. "Ryan!" One hearty tug later, and the leather on the couch proved to be no contest for gravity. She landed on the floor with a loud thump, her right arm still in the air, and her cheek on someone's shoe.
It was the pain in his wrist that eventually woke him, his muddled mind unable to make sense of what was going on and his speech so slurred he sounded like he was drunk. He pried his eyes open to darkness, but for some vague and blurry moonlight streaming in through a window, and someone calling his name. "The hell ..." he murmured, tugging at the feel of metal around his wrist and realizing he wasn't so much attached to a what as to a whom.
"Ouch!" Finally managing to get her left hand underneath herself, Izzy scrambled up onto her knees. In the gloom, she realized that she was kneeling at Jax's feet, and worse ....they were handcuffed together. She shook her right hand experimentally, watching as his left wiggled with the movement. "Typical."
Typical of what, he might have wondered if he wasn't feeling so groggy. He was at least cognizant enough to realize it was Izzy's wrist he was attached to. "Did you get the number of that train?" he asked, groggily, referring to the figurative train that had just hit him.
Groaning once again, Izzy rubbed at the sore place on her neck as she tried to sort out just what, exactly, had happened. They'd been escorted into the library, and Sisman had said something about a friend, and ...."God, what did they do to me?" she asked, wincing as her fingers brushed the sore spot on her neck. "Ryan' Are you okay?"
"Drugged you," he replied, shifting in the chair, not to get comfortable, but to get his bearings. It was coming back to him slowly, though he felt a little like he was just coming out of a week-long drinking binge. "You okay?" he echoed her question at nearly the same time.
"My neck hurts," she admitted, but apart from that, she seemed fine. Nothing was missing, her clothing was all where it should be ....A faint sigh of relief escaped her lips as she realized that not only was the sapphire ring still on her finger, but the bloodstone ring had been left in place, too. "Not entirely sure if I trust myself to stand up just yet, though."
"Then don't," he said, trying to stop his own head from spinning. He realized after a moment that they were still in the library, but thankfully, they were alone. No bugs in here; no cameras either, or so he hoped. Even if there were, it was dark. They'd been left alone until ....until what? Until Alistair came to collect them. He had no doubt there'd be a few thugs outside the door, but that was the least of their problems. Right now, the main problem was the fact that they were attached at the wrist. "We gotta get outta here," he said, stating the obvious.
"Not without that bloody scarab," she muttered, settling back on her heels. It would have been comfortable, if her arm hadn't been hanging in mid-air awkwardly. "Oh, this is going to get annoying ..."
He moved his arm so that she could move hers, too. Thankfully, Alonzo and his men hadn't seen fit to handcuff them to anything but each other. That was Alonzo's second mistake. The first was messing with them to begin with. "I don't give a fuck about the bloody scarab," he told her between clenched teeth as he peered at the cuffs in the moonlight. "Please tell me you have a hairpin or ..." He trailed off, his gaze traveling to the desk that stood in the middle of the room - the one Alonzo had been sitting behind. If he could find a paperclip, he might be able to pick the lock.
"Earrings?" she suggested, shrugging. "I don't have any pins on me. And thank you, by the way." With his help, she made it onto her feet, only now realizing that her boots had been taken off her. That was odd, unless ....She snorted with laughter suddenly. "I think they must have had to redose us - I'm a fighter when I come 'round usually."
He looked at her sharply, even in the dark. She wasn't really laughing, was she" Did she think this was some kind of joke" "Be quiet, would you? Or do you want them to dose us again?" he whispered with a worried glance at the door, green eyes gleaming in the moonlight.
She rolled her eyes at him. "Look, they obviously think we're still sleeping, or there would be a guard in here with us," she whispered back to him, curling her fingers through his to give him a tug up onto his feet. "We need to get that scarab. All we have to do is get a hand on it, and we'll be home and dry."
"Right, and just how do you intend to do that?" he asked, swaying a little for a moment before his head righted itself. "Come here. I have an idea," he whispered, tugging her by the hand to lead the way toward the desk. There had to be something in there he could use to pick the lock on the cuffs - and maybe even pick the lock on the desk.
"Family secret," she whispered to him, almost silent on her socks as they crept across the room to the desk. "The black ring isn't just for show. And before you say it, no, I am not going to use it to run off and leave you here, so don't even think about it."
Okay, he was game. Home wasn't anywhere on Earth, but on Rhy'Din. He knew that because Rhy'Din was his home, too, and while he knew all about magic and portals, he wasn't quite sure how a black ring was going to them steal the scarab and get them there. "Okay, I'm game. What's the ring do?" he asked, before glancing over at the door. "Block the door, will you? I'm gonna turn on the light," he whispered, still convinced Alonzo left a guard on duty outside the door.
"How do I do that, exactly?" she asked, raising her right hand. Still attached as they were, his left hand rose with it. "It's a portal ring. I press it in the right place, and we're on Maple Grove before anyone realizes it."
He already had the light on and was starting to quietly rifle through the desk in search of a paperclip or anything he could use to pick the lock on the cuffs, when he jerked his head up to look at her. Of course, being handcuffed to someone did impeded his search a little, but one free hand was all he needed really. "So press it!" he said, with a hiss of breath. Why were they fooling around if she already had an escape route?
Her struggle to free herself was answered by a familiar albeit sleepy groan right beside her, as Jax started to come out of his own drug-induced sleep, slumped against a chair, one arm hanging over the chair, the same metal weight attached to his wrist, connecting them both.
Pinned somewhat in her own position, Izzy blinked, trying to clear the fug from her head as she braced her feet against the end of the couch and pulled harder on her captive hand, trying to twist about to see just what she was attached to. "Ryan?" she whispered in the darkness. "Ryan!" One hearty tug later, and the leather on the couch proved to be no contest for gravity. She landed on the floor with a loud thump, her right arm still in the air, and her cheek on someone's shoe.
It was the pain in his wrist that eventually woke him, his muddled mind unable to make sense of what was going on and his speech so slurred he sounded like he was drunk. He pried his eyes open to darkness, but for some vague and blurry moonlight streaming in through a window, and someone calling his name. "The hell ..." he murmured, tugging at the feel of metal around his wrist and realizing he wasn't so much attached to a what as to a whom.
"Ouch!" Finally managing to get her left hand underneath herself, Izzy scrambled up onto her knees. In the gloom, she realized that she was kneeling at Jax's feet, and worse ....they were handcuffed together. She shook her right hand experimentally, watching as his left wiggled with the movement. "Typical."
Typical of what, he might have wondered if he wasn't feeling so groggy. He was at least cognizant enough to realize it was Izzy's wrist he was attached to. "Did you get the number of that train?" he asked, groggily, referring to the figurative train that had just hit him.
Groaning once again, Izzy rubbed at the sore place on her neck as she tried to sort out just what, exactly, had happened. They'd been escorted into the library, and Sisman had said something about a friend, and ...."God, what did they do to me?" she asked, wincing as her fingers brushed the sore spot on her neck. "Ryan' Are you okay?"
"Drugged you," he replied, shifting in the chair, not to get comfortable, but to get his bearings. It was coming back to him slowly, though he felt a little like he was just coming out of a week-long drinking binge. "You okay?" he echoed her question at nearly the same time.
"My neck hurts," she admitted, but apart from that, she seemed fine. Nothing was missing, her clothing was all where it should be ....A faint sigh of relief escaped her lips as she realized that not only was the sapphire ring still on her finger, but the bloodstone ring had been left in place, too. "Not entirely sure if I trust myself to stand up just yet, though."
"Then don't," he said, trying to stop his own head from spinning. He realized after a moment that they were still in the library, but thankfully, they were alone. No bugs in here; no cameras either, or so he hoped. Even if there were, it was dark. They'd been left alone until ....until what? Until Alistair came to collect them. He had no doubt there'd be a few thugs outside the door, but that was the least of their problems. Right now, the main problem was the fact that they were attached at the wrist. "We gotta get outta here," he said, stating the obvious.
"Not without that bloody scarab," she muttered, settling back on her heels. It would have been comfortable, if her arm hadn't been hanging in mid-air awkwardly. "Oh, this is going to get annoying ..."
He moved his arm so that she could move hers, too. Thankfully, Alonzo and his men hadn't seen fit to handcuff them to anything but each other. That was Alonzo's second mistake. The first was messing with them to begin with. "I don't give a fuck about the bloody scarab," he told her between clenched teeth as he peered at the cuffs in the moonlight. "Please tell me you have a hairpin or ..." He trailed off, his gaze traveling to the desk that stood in the middle of the room - the one Alonzo had been sitting behind. If he could find a paperclip, he might be able to pick the lock.
"Earrings?" she suggested, shrugging. "I don't have any pins on me. And thank you, by the way." With his help, she made it onto her feet, only now realizing that her boots had been taken off her. That was odd, unless ....She snorted with laughter suddenly. "I think they must have had to redose us - I'm a fighter when I come 'round usually."
He looked at her sharply, even in the dark. She wasn't really laughing, was she" Did she think this was some kind of joke" "Be quiet, would you? Or do you want them to dose us again?" he whispered with a worried glance at the door, green eyes gleaming in the moonlight.
She rolled her eyes at him. "Look, they obviously think we're still sleeping, or there would be a guard in here with us," she whispered back to him, curling her fingers through his to give him a tug up onto his feet. "We need to get that scarab. All we have to do is get a hand on it, and we'll be home and dry."
"Right, and just how do you intend to do that?" he asked, swaying a little for a moment before his head righted itself. "Come here. I have an idea," he whispered, tugging her by the hand to lead the way toward the desk. There had to be something in there he could use to pick the lock on the cuffs - and maybe even pick the lock on the desk.
"Family secret," she whispered to him, almost silent on her socks as they crept across the room to the desk. "The black ring isn't just for show. And before you say it, no, I am not going to use it to run off and leave you here, so don't even think about it."
Okay, he was game. Home wasn't anywhere on Earth, but on Rhy'Din. He knew that because Rhy'Din was his home, too, and while he knew all about magic and portals, he wasn't quite sure how a black ring was going to them steal the scarab and get them there. "Okay, I'm game. What's the ring do?" he asked, before glancing over at the door. "Block the door, will you? I'm gonna turn on the light," he whispered, still convinced Alonzo left a guard on duty outside the door.
"How do I do that, exactly?" she asked, raising her right hand. Still attached as they were, his left hand rose with it. "It's a portal ring. I press it in the right place, and we're on Maple Grove before anyone realizes it."
He already had the light on and was starting to quietly rifle through the desk in search of a paperclip or anything he could use to pick the lock on the cuffs, when he jerked his head up to look at her. Of course, being handcuffed to someone did impeded his search a little, but one free hand was all he needed really. "So press it!" he said, with a hiss of breath. Why were they fooling around if she already had an escape route?