Topic: Moon and Flame

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:40 EST
If sunset was beautiful on Half Moon Bay, moonlight and firelight combined was just as stunning. It wasn't every day that there was something to celebrate, and though the bonfire had been Jack's idea for just the three of them, people kept wandering by to see them as word started to spread that he and Jack were leaving. Lena didn't mind being on the sidelines for these little encounters, knowing that a fair number of wild stories would circulate once they were gone about the witchy woman who had appeared out of nowhere and spirited not one, but two of Half Moon's men away with her. She knelt on the sand with Tommy's scrapbook in her lap, adding to it the pictures she had developed over the course of the day - of this beach, of him, of her, of Jack, good memories to be stored and enjoyed whenever the book was opened.

It had been a good day - the best day Tommy and Jack had enjoyed in a very long time, since either could remember really, and it was all because of Lena. She had come to save one of them and had rescued them both, healing two broken hearts and restoring hope to their lives without hardly trying. It had been such a simple thing in the end, such a simple solution, once Tommy had decided to live again.

People wandered by here and there, pausing mostly to talk with Tommy, wishing him good luck and hoping to see him sometime again. Jack had started telling people they were going to Australia, mostly because the only people who ever went to Australia were surfers, and he didn't know where this Rhy'Din was exactly as it hadn't been fully explained to him yet, not that it mattered. He'd follow Tommy without question wherever he went; that was what friends did. Love and loyalty were everything to Jack. Tommy had been lost for a while, but now he was back, and Jack was overjoyed. They roasted hotdogs and drank beer and swapped stories, until Jack remembered the bottle of champagne and hurried off to fetch it, coming back with not only the bottle but an old beat up guitar slung over his back and very puzzled look on his face. Looking up as Jack wandered back, Lena's smile turned a little bemused as she noted the expression on his face, glancing toward Tommy briefly before hailing Jack to come and sit by her. "What's got you all knotted up?" she asked him. She'd fallen easily into the rhythm of a friend with Jack, probably because of her insight into just how much Tommy meant to him, hoping that she could become as good a friend to him as he was to Tommy someday. "Did your guitar start singing to you already?"

Jack wandered over toward Helena, whom he'd taken to calling Midget, just like Tommy. He unslung the guitar and set it down to rest against a pile of driftwood they'd gathered to help feed the fire. "Did my what?" he asked, arching a brow at Lena as he huddled down beside her. "No," he replied, perfectly serious and still looking more than a little befuddled. "I just got a phone call....from Laguna Beach," he added, glancing over at Tommy who had picked up the guitar and was plucking at the strings. He'd never learned to play, but that didn't stop him from trying to learn.

The mention of Laguna Beach seemed to get Tommy's attention. "Did you tell him patience is a virgin?" Tommy quipped with a smirk.

"Not around you two, it isn't," Lena quipped back impishly, sticking her tongue out at Tommy briefly before she turned her attention back onto Jack. She had a feeling she knew what that phone-call had been about, hoping Jack was at least open-minded enough to accept it. "What did they want?"

Tommy had nothing to say to that, only grinning back at Lena. They'd made love nearly half a dozen times since her arrival and didn't seem anywhere near ready to slow down. Jack turned that perplexed glance to the flames dancing in the fire, obviously confused. "They said they wanted to let us know that the board arrived safely and that it's everything you promised it would be." He looked over at Tommy, obviously puzzled. "There must be some kind of mistake."

Tommy arched a brow and looked to Lena, suspecting what might have taken place, as hard to believe as it was.

Listening, Lena's smile tightened with quiet amusement, slightly resigned to explaining what was going on here. She met Tommy's gaze with a faint smirk, rolling her eyes, and let out a low sigh. "Yeah, that one's gonna be tough to explain," she admitted, glancing up to make sure they were alone by the fire. "Jack ....I was born in 1990, and Rhy'Din isn't on Earth. It's complicated, but basically ....the guy in Laguna does have the board. Because in a couple of days, we're gonna hand it over to a courier in Rhy'Din, who'll take it back in time and deliver it early." She shrugged. "Maybe you should open that bottle."

Jack was expecting some crazy story or other, but not that crazy. His mouth dropped open as he gaped at Lena, and then he laughed, pointing an accusing finger her way. "That's funny. You almost had me there. 1990. That's like..." He paused momentarily to count in his head. "That's not for another fifteen years! I'll be an old man by then!"

Tommy looked between them, glancing from one to the other before his gaze settled on his friend. "I know it sounds crazy, but she's telling the truth." The phone call was only further proof of that now. "Show him the pictures you took, Midge. The ones from Rhy'Din."

Knowing it was a big pill to swallow, Lena did as Tommy told her, opening the scrapbook to the right page and passing it over to Jack. There they were; photographs of Tommy surfing an unfamiliar beach, the same beach bathed in the light cast by two moons, pictures of Tommy himself on that beach with her. "I took those pictures ....well, for me, it was over a week ago, but if we go by the timeline" They don't get taken until tomorrow night. It's as real as I am, Jack." She glanced at Tommy in gentle concern. "Should I get my bag?"

Jack swapped the bottle of champagne for the photo album, narrowing his eyes to get a closer look at the photographs in question by fire and moonlight. The first thing he noticed once he confirmed it was indeed Tommy in those pictures - because he'd know Tommy anywhere - was the fact that he'd never seen that beach before and that there were either two moons in the sky or there was something wrong with the photo. "Is this a double exposure?" he asked, assuming it was accidental or maybe a trick shot.

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:41 EST
Tommy waited for Jack's reaction before looking over at Lena and shaking his head. "Not yet."

She nodded at Tommy's words, meeting Jack's gaze with the honest sincerity that had convinced Tommy in the first place. "No, it isn't a double exposure," she told him. "I grew up on a world where there are two moons in the sky. Are you familiar with the concept of the multiverse?" She hoped like hell he was - if he was anywhere near as well read as Tommy in science-fiction, this explanation wouldn't confuse the hell out of him.

Jack looked to Tommy again, who wore that same sober expression on his face as did Lena. "Is this some kind of joke" I just told everyone we're going to Australia!" Like that mattered. No one was likely to try and find them anyway.

"It's not a joke, Jack," Tommy told his friend, reaching over to give his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Though this Tommy had not been to Rhy'Din yet, he trusted and believed Lena with all his heart. "There are two moons there," Tommy confirmed, adding, "And four tides."

"And no glut of corporations contaminating the sport you both love," she added gently. "I know there are a few people who surf, but there aren't meets or competitions. I've never even heard of a shop that caters to the sport in the city, and I've lived there all my life. It really is a fresh start, Jack."

"Four tides! That's nuts!" Jack exclaimed, eyes wide with wonder, looking from one to the other before glancing back at the proof before him in the photo album. In the end, it didn't really matter where they were going. Jack would follow Tommy through a wall of fire, if Tommy asked him to. Seeing was believing, and he'd find out for himself once they got there. Australia or Rhy'Din, Jack didn't care. Either was a chance at a fresh start for them both, and that was all that mattered. "So," he started, looking from one to the other. "When do we leave?"

Lena laughed, delighted with the way Jack accepted what she had just told him so easily. She rose onto one knee, reaching over to hug him as she chuckled. "You're one of a kind, Jack," she complimented him, kissing his cheek before letting him go. "Someone said something about alcohol, I think?" She thumped back down onto the sand, lifting her eyes to Tommy with intimate sweetness. "When do we leave, Moonbeam?"

Jack chuckled, glad for the darkness that hid the blush that crept into his cheeks at that spontaneous hug and kiss. "So long as you mean that in a good way," Jack said, flashing her a grin as he swapped the photo album back for the bottle of champagne, pulling a corkscrew from his back pocket, where it had left a tiny hole in the denim. It was just like Jack not to notice or care; his blue jeans had definitely seen better days.

Tommy shrugged, strumming his fingers over the guitar strings in a mismatched jumble of notes. "No time like the present. How about tomorrow?"

"Definitely a good way," she promised through her chuckle, laying one hand against Tommy's thigh gently. It wasn't a gesture of possession or even a way of marking her territory - she just wanted a little contact, to keep all three of them connected even if the conversation wandered one way or another. "It's not up to me when we go," she pointed out. "You're the ones who have the whole packing thing to deal with."

Jack and Tommy exchanged glances, both knowing neither of them had all that much to pack. Everything they really needed they had right here. Jack shrugged, speaking first. "Are we taking the bus?" he asked, his question directed to Tommy. It wasn't really a bus - it was a VW hippie van brightly painted in all kinds of psychedelic colors and designs. Tommy looked to Lena for confirmation, but figured that had already been decided. The "bus" was the only thing Tommy had left of Robby, and he was hoping not to have to part with it.

"We'd better be taking the bus," Lena protested before Tommy could say anything, laughing at her own audacity. "Promises have been made, I demand that they be carried through." Thankfully for Jack, she didn't go into any more detail. "Besides, if we wanna live out on the beach, we'll need somewhere to sleep for a while. There isn't anything there that even remotely resembles a shelter or house yet."

Tommy chuckled, and though Jack didn't catch the implied innuendo or catch the joke shared between them, he didn't let it bother him. "And where am I supposed to go when the van is rocking?" Jack asked, looking between the two of them again, wondering where he fit into this living in a van on the beach equation.

Lena giggled softly, blushing a little at the blunt approach Jack had to asking his questions. "It won't take long to get something set up," she promised him. "And you're welcome to live in my family's house with us while we're waiting. You'll have to put up with my sister, of course, but I think you'd get on." It couldn't be more obvious that she was intending to build a house on the beach, or perhaps the land adjoining the beach, land that the Grangers already owned. And knowing Lena, there would be more than enough room for all three of them, if Jack chose to live in the same building.

The mention of a sister got Jack's attention, asking just as bluntly, "You have a sister" Is she cute?"

Tommy chuckled at Jack's tact or lack thereof and went back to plucking at the guitar strings, allowing Lena to answer his friend's questions. Tommy got Lena's drift, but he wasn't too worried about living arrangements, confident things would work themselves out, one way or another.

"Well, I think she's beautiful, but I suppose that's just my bias," she grinned at Jack. It was tempting to string out this teasing, but that might have been a bit cruel. "She's sixteen, though, so you might want to wait a couple of years before you seduce her. And use protection." She patted Jack's knee mischievously as she chuckled. "Although ....I have plenty of cousins who aren't prosecutable matches."

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:42 EST
Jack looked disappointed for a moment, until he heard she had a few cousins who might be available. Though he figured his chances were probably slim, there was always a chance, and that gave him hope. He smiled in the moonlight, turning his attention to unscrewing that cork, which popped with a loud bang almost knocking Jack off the log he had claimed as his perch. "Here's to us!" he declared, once he righted himself, holding the bottle up triumphantly. "One for all and all for one!" He tipped the bottle back and took a long swallow before passing it on to Lena.

Lena reckoned he had more than a chance with one or two of her cousins, but she'd hold her breath on that one until they'd met him. She laughed as he startled himself with the pop of the cork, taking the bottle from him to take a healthy swig herself. "United we stand, divided we fall?" she offered by way of a toast, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand as she passed the bottle on to Tommy, leaning comfortably against him as she did so. "Blondes or brunettes, Jack?" she asked with an impish grin. "I don't have any redheads, unfortunately."

"Something like that," Jack replied with a grin as she indulged in champagne and passed the bottle to Tommy, who paused long enough in his guitar plucking to take a swig.

"The Three Musketeers," Tommy explained. "All for one and one for all."

"There were really four Musketeers though," Jack interjected.

"D'Artagnan wasn't a Musketeer right away," Tommy countered, as they bantered back and forth. It seemed to be a topic of debate that had been discussed before between the two men. "Brunettes," Tommy answered for Jack. "Redheads are flighty and blondes are ditzy."

"You're blond," Jack pointed out helpfully with a smirk as he found the bottle back in his hands again. "I'm a guy. It doesn't count," Tommy replied.

Lena's eyes flickered between the two men as they bantered back and forth, enjoying the camaraderie between them as the bottle was passed on once again. The champagne was stronger than what she was used to, and the bubbles certainly made it take effect quicker. "It's the beard," she commented on the end of Tommy's insistence that being a guy meant he wasn't a ditzy blonde. "All the ditziness grows out of his chin so he doesn't have to deal with it." She giggled at her own joke, brushing her hair back out of her face.

"Easy for you to say. You're a brunette!" Jack said before taking his second swig from the bottle, a long one this time. It would take more than two swigs of champagne and a few bottles of beer to make him drunk, but he was definitely feeling loose. "Anyway, that's not a beard," Jack continued, reaching over to give Tommy's cheek an affectionate pat. "That's peach fuzz. This is a beard!" He rubbed at his own woolly face before passing the bottle on to Helena.

Tommy swatted Jack's hand away, scowling at the other man, though there was no anger in it. "I've been working on this beard for three years!" he retorted, which only made Jack howl with laughter, doubling over and almost falling off the log again.

"Neither of you have a real beard," Lena insisted through her own grin, feeling all kinds of warm fuzzies inside at the playful bantering that was going back and forth. The last time she'd felt this much a part of something had been years ago, before Jon had been attacked. Taking another long drink from the bottle, she hiccuped as she lowered it to Tommy's lap. "For a real beard, you need to meet a dwarf."

"You're just jealous because you can't grow one," Jack told Lena, sticking his tongue out at her, just because. He had only met her earlier that day and was already growing fond of her and comfortable with her presence. "A dwarf?" Jack echoed. "You mean as in Snow White and the Seven?"

Tommy drank and passed the bottle to Jack for a third round. He was lighter than Jack and was starting to catch a buzz from the combination of champagne and beer. "And elves and dragons and vampires," Tommy added, for good measure.

"And Lord of the Rings and all that jazz, yup," she grinned a little unsteadily, her smile somewhat unfocused. Of the three of them, she was the lightest weight, and already happily drunk on beer and champagne. "Don't forget the cyborgs," she added to Tommy, giggling as she kissed his cheek. "Well done for remembering, though."

"Right, cyborgs....Whatever those are," Jack added, in agreement, as Tommy grinned smugly at the kiss. Jack took a last swig of champagne before passing it on and reached for his guitar, which Tommy had finally abandoned. He slung the strap over his shoulder and plucked a few strings, before his fingers picked out a tune, strumming the introduction to The Eagles' "Take It Easy".

"Part man, part machine," Lena grinned, her expression lighting up as she recognized the tune being played. "I know that song! I actually know that one!" Her enthusiasm was a little over the top, but then, stuck in a time she didn't know, on a world she wasn't too familiar with, it was a delight to recognize anything. She beamed happily, patting Tommy's thigh with excitement.

"Sounds like a personal problem," Tommy remarked with a smirk, as he snatched the bottle from Lena for a long swallow. Encouraged by Lena's enthusiasm for his playing, Jack continued, strumming the guitar and singing the lyrics to the song he knew by heart. While Tommy fancied himself a surfer, Jack wanted to be a rock star. "Well, I'm a runnin' down the road tryin' to loosen my load, got a world of trouble on my mind; Lookin' for a lover who won't blow my cover, she's so hard to find..." Tommy broke in to join him in singing the chorus, the pair of them naturally harmonizing. "Take it easy, take it easy; Don't let the sound of your own wheels make you crazy; Come on, baby, don't say maybe; I gotta know if your sweet love is gonna save me."

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:43 EST
As the chorus came around, Lena crooned along, not the most talented when it came to singing but enthusiastic nonetheless. She was, however, pretty glad that their combined voices overwhelmed hers, enchanted by the mingled sound of these two men in full voice. And if she hadn't been a little bit tipsy, she wouldn't have gotten up and started dancing happily in the flickering firelight, bottle in hand. If either man wanted another drink, they might have to wrestle for it.

With Lena's voice added to the mix, they almost sounded like a band, albeit a slightly off-key one, the sound of happy music drifting over the beach, the only other sound the crash of waves against the beach and the pop and crackle of logs in the fire. Tommy got to his feet to join Lena, but not because he wanted to wrestle the bottle from her. He kicked off his sandals, toes sinking happily into the sand as he caught her around the waist and smothered her singing with kisses. Jack's strumming quieted a little as he watched them, shifting to a quieter tune, another he knew by heart, more talented than he gave himself credit for. "She's faced the hardest times you could imagine; And many times, her eyes fought back the tears; And when her youthful world was about to fall in; Each time her slender shoulders bore the weight of all her fears; And a sorrow no one hears; Still rings in midnight silence in her ears."

Being caught and kissed didn't stop Lena from trying to sing along with Jack's playing, though she didn't notice the tune had changed until she gave up and succumbed, giggling, to Tommy's affections. The new lyrics reached her ears, lifting her eyes to Jack as she hugged into Tommy's arms, wondering why he had plucked this particular song out of the air. "What's that song?" she asked softly, listening with one ear to Tommy's heartbeat and the other to Jack's music.

"Wildflower," Tommy replied, wrapping his arms around her waist to sway slowly with her to the gentle sound of Jack's strumming and singing. "It was popular a few years ago. Like it?" he asked as he held her close, despite the bottle of champagne she still coveted in one hand.

Jack didn't miss a beat, sensing romance in the air, at least for the moment, happy to do his part to add what he could. "Let her cry, for she's a lady ; Let her dream, for she's a child; Let the rain fall down upon her; She's a free and gentle flower growing wild."

"I've never heard it before," Lena murmured, sighing contentedly as Tommy swayed with her, offering a smile to Jack even as he kept the gentle moment going. The lyrics struck a chord with her, though she was unlikely to admit it aloud, modesty and a low opinion of herself a little too ingrained to claim a song as being unexpectedly about herself. "It's pretty."

Tommy joined in on the lyrics, but quietly this time, for Lena's ears only, echoing the words sung by Jack, until Jack turned quiet and let Tommy sing while he only strummed along. As Tommy sang the words from memory, it occurred to him how well they fit Lena, in some sad, bittersweet way and he felt himself falling harder. "And if by chance I should hold her; Let me hold her for a time; But if allowed just one possession; I would pick her from the garden to be mine."

Touched by the song, as much by the fact that it seemed as though Jack and Tommy were playing and singing it for her, Lena tipped her head back, trailing her fingers down Tommy's cheek as she smiled tenderly up at him. "You know ....if I didn't know better," she mused a little teasingly, "I'd think you two were trying to seduce me with music."

"One of us, anyway," Tommy agreed with a smile, though he knew he didn't have to make much effort in that regard. He let Jack finish the song, his lips too busy suddenly kissing the girl of his dreams. Maybe it was the moonlight or the music or the champagne that had gone to his head, but to Tommy, there was something magical in the air, something special, but Tommy knew in his heart, it wasn't the moonlight or the music or even the champagne, it was the fact that he was with the two people he had come to love most in all of creation that made the moment special and one to be cherished, the first of many, he hoped.

As for Lena, she felt cherished in that moment, blessed to have gained not just someone to loved who loved her in return, but a good friend as well, someone she hoped to get to know better as time went on. Three parts of a whole, no one person left standing on the sidelines. And though, yes, there was one couple in the trio, Jack was as important as anyone to that burgeoning relationship. Drawing back from Tommy's kiss with a mischievous smirk, she nipped his lips, pressing the bottle into his hand. "I think you should play something while I dance with Jack," she informed Tommy impishly. "I'm in a dancey kind of mood."

Tommy lost himself in that magical moment, for the first time in a long time, feeling genuinely happy, as though nothing could ever go wrong again. He knew that wasn't true, but he wasn't usually one to worry about tomorrow, taking life one day at a time. "Me?" he laughed. "I don't really play, but if you insist, I'll let him have one dance." Tommy pulled her in close for another kiss, before plucking the bottle from her hands and tugging her back with him toward the fireside and their guitar-playing friend. "I've been rejected," Tommy said, laying a hand against his heart, as if he was wounded, and retaking his seat near the fire. "She wants to dance with you."

"Me?" Jack practically echoed, darting a slightly nervous glance at Lena.

"Well, I've got to have all the facts if I'm going to set you up with one of my cousins, don't I?" she beamed cheerfully, crooking a finger toward Jack to beckon him closer. "I promise, no hanky panky. If I get handsy, Tommy can spank me." She winked, giggling. Evidently Helena was a happy, playful drunk, harmless in her own way. "I won't bite you. Will I, Moonbeam?"

Tommy chuckled as he took the guitar from Jack. "Go on, Jackie," he insisted, setting the champagne bottle on the sand so he could pluck away at the guitar strings. "You might never get this chance again."

Jack looked uncertainly over at Lena and her finger crooking. "I, uh, I don't really dance. I mean, I'll probably just step on your toes."

Tommy laughed and gave his friend a shove. "Go make the lady happy," he said with a grin.

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:45 EST
Giggling once again, Lena didn't really give Jack much of a choice, reaching out to grab his hand and pull to get him up off the sand. Of course, alcohol didn't help her in that regard - she lost her grip and tipped backward, landing on her back with a loud laugh, bare legs flailing as she waved her hands to be helped up herself. "Now see what you did?" she accused mildly, her grin wide enough to reassure the nervous man that it wasn't his fault at all.

"I didn't do anything!" Jack exclaimed, blushing furiously behind that goofy beard, tossing a look over at Tommy who seemed to be focusing more on the guitar than on the antics of his two friends. Jack reached for Lena's hand to pull her onto her feet, worrying she was going to get him in trouble with Tommy, though that was extremely unlikely.

Yanked up onto her feet, she grinned, throwing her arms around Jack's neck and planting a big wet kiss on his cheek, just to see how dark he could blush when he was nervous. One hand plucked the glasses off his face as she drew back, the other brushing his hair back out of his eyes. "I don't know why you hide behind all that scruff, you know," she commented with a smile. "You're a knock out. Isn't he?" she added, looking down at Tommy. "Sexy bunny."

Jack blinked at Lena's antics, unable to stop himself from blushing at her remark. "No, I'm not," he insisted, not believing her, thinking she was just teasing him or saying that to be nice out of drunken kindness. She'd forget all about what she'd said come morning anyway. He looked uncomfortable suddenly, feeling all kinds of awkward. She was Tommy's girl, not his, and he knew she was just trying to be nice.

Tommy seemed distracted as he tried to sort out what song to play, giving up finally and moving to his feet. "I'll be right back. I gotta take a leak." Though he had an entire beach to take a leak on, Tommy was suddenly trudging toward the shop, a man on a mission, and of course, Jack thought it was his fault.

"Crap, see" Now he's mad at me," Jack said worriedly.

"Yes, you are," Lena insisted with a smile, lowering back down onto her heels to watch as Tommy trudged over the sand to the shop. She might not know him too well yet, but she knew enough to know that he wasn't mad. Smiling, she tweaked Jack's beard fondly. "He isn't mad at you," she promised him cheerfully. "If he was mad about me flirting, he wouldn't have left us all alone on a deserted beach together, would he?" Unable to resist, she goosed him just to be mischievous, and skipped back out of the way in case of retaliation.

It was clear from the look on Jack's face that he wasn't quite sure what to make of her flirting and that he wasn't used to being flirted with. Instead of smiling, he scowled at the goosing, wondering why she was teasing him this way. He knew he was nothing special, no great catch. Why did she keep telling him otherwise, just to torment him' "Stop it, Helena. It's not funny," he said, sullenly turning away from her to wander back toward the fire.

Her eyes narrowed at his sullen response, a small frown making itself known on her brow as she moved to follow him, thumping down onto the sand once again. "What's wrong?" she asked him, just as blunt with him as he was with her. She patted the sand beside her, wondering why he'd gone from friendly to frowning so quickly.

He ignored the sand patting to focus his attention on the fire, adding another log or two to feed the flames, not that it was necessary really, but it gave him something to do. He shrugged his shoulders at her question, back hunched as he crouched down over the fire, grabbing a stick to poke around at the ashes. "Nothing, I'm just not like Tommy. Girls..." He paused to correct himself. "Women don't notice me. They never have." Even if Tommy hadn't noticed the attention women tried to give him, it seemed Jack and Lena had.

"You don't have to be like Tommy," she pointed out, leaning her arms on her knees as she watched him, understanding what he was saying. "But I know what you mean. I've spent a lifetime being the girl guys don't look twice at. Trust me, once you've seen some of my cousins, you'll get why I feel that way. But you shouldn't be comparing yourself to someone else. You're a great guy - you're funny, and gentle, and if you stop hiding behind your own hair, you might notice the women who notice you."

Jack turned his gaze to Lena, looking a little hurt and confused, not quite getting what she was trying to tell him. "Why should I have to change" I am who I am. People shouldn't judge a book by its cover." It was the 70's and Jack, like so many others of his generation, was an idealist and a dreamer. They had set out hoping to change the world, but instead the world had changed them. There was a time when Jack didn't have long hair or a beard, a time when he was as clean cut as a preppy, but circumstances had changed that when he decided, like all the Jacks and Tommys and Robbys before and since, to rebel against what the world expected and demanded of them.

He didn't really believe her when she said she understood how he felt. She was beautiful, funny, smart - all the things a guy looked for in a girl. A guy would be stupid not to notice someone like her.

"I'm not telling you that you have to change," she told him gently, trying to get her argument out coherently despite the alcohol intake. "Jack, why do you make such an effort not to be seen" Believe me, I know how easy it is to try and conform to some idea that you'll fit in better if you look like everyone else. I did it, for a long time. I still do, to a certain extent. I've been hiding behind my job, my dad, my brother, all my life. And the first time I stopped hiding and actually showed someone who I am ....I fell in love. Is this really who you are, Jack?"

Jack turned his body to face her, soulful blue eyes no longer hiding behind the glasses he didn't really need but wore anyway. "I've always lived in the shadows, Lena," he told her honestly. "First behind my brothers, then Robby, then Tommy. I don't even know who I am anymore. All I know is Tommy is more family to me than my own flesh and blood. Where he goes, I go. If I live my whole life in his shadow, at least, it's a good shadow to live in." He wasn't sure if he was making any sense and he backed up to settle himself on the log and search for the bottle of champagne Tommy had left there somewhere.

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:48 EST
"I do know what you mean," she promised him, looping her arm over his leg as he sat down on the log, leaning comfortably as she looked up at him from her own seat on the sand. "When we get to Rhy'Din, you'll meet my big brother. He's a famous actor, on Earth as well as in Rhy'Din, in our time. And don't get me wrong, I love him dearly. But I kinda resent the fact that I'm always going to be Jonathan Granger's little sister. You don't have to live in Tommy's shadow, Jack. He loves you, the friend who has stood by him, who takes care of him, who is willing to give up everything to follow him to a place he's never heard of before." She reached up, gently brushing his hair out of his face. "You know they say that the eyes are the window to the soul" You have beautiful eyes, Jack. I think you're doing the world a disservice by not letting anyone see them."

There were tears swimming in those soulful blue eyes for a moment that he wished she hadn't seen but that he had trouble hiding, now that he was no longer wearing those glasses. He felt an ache in his heart, one he'd always tried hard to ignore. "If you didn't belong to Tommy, I could have fallen in love with you," he said quietly, embarrassed to admit it, though he had only just met her. She didn't have to worry, though. He was loyal to a fault and would sooner die than betray his best friend.

Her smile softened as she looked up at him. "Would you settle for being my friend?" she asked warmly. "I don't have any, you know. Just my family, and Tommy, and you." She squeezed his knee gently, and suddenly a thought occurred to her, making her smile brighten infectiously once again. "Oh! You know what? I have a photo of my cousin Jasmin - you'd like her, she's a musician. Wanna see it?"

He was about to add that she had more than he had, since all he really had was Tommy. That had been his choice, of course, and he'd had good reason for it, but that was a story for another time, as Lena shifted the conversation again, either to change the subject or lighten the mood. Jack's smile was a little strained as it found its way back to his face, but at least he was smiling again. "Are you trying to set me up?" he asked suspiciously before drawing a pull off the bottle of fancy French wine.

"Only if you'd like me to," she assured him. Drunk as she was, Lena didn't really have a cruel bone in her body. She liked Jack; she didn't want him to be unhappy or lonely or to feel left out in any way. "But, you know, you might like to meet her anyway. You're good with the guitar." She leaned away, producing her bag from behind the log, rummaging inside it for her phone. If she'd been sober, she wouldn't have taken the smartphone out so openly, but then, Lena was far from sober at this point. She scrolled through her pictures, concentrating fiercely to find the one she was looking for. "This was at a party at the beginning of summer," she explained, turning the phone to show him. "Beach party, you know" Cold as hell, but everyone insisted on wearing their suits, because it was supposed to be summer!" She giggled as she handed him the phone.

He furrowed his brows a bit curiously at the contraption she pulled out of her bag. It looked like something straight out of Star Trek or maybe Mission Impossible. Some kind of electronic device for storing photographs, he thought. How did the photos get in there, though" But before he could ask she was showing him a photograph of a drop-dead gorgeous brunette in a bikini who reminded him of a goddess. Venus, that's who she was. Like the song. A goddess on the mountain top was burning like a silver flame. He felt his heart thump hard in his chest, and he understood what she was trying to tell him. Helena was pretty, but this girl was Hollywood gorgeous. It was like comparing a wildflower to an orchid, both were beautiful but in entirely different ways. "Are you kidding" She's gorgeous!"

Lena felt a certain amount of smug satisfaction as she watched the expression on his face change. She knew that, next to Jasmin, she was a wallflower, but she didn't mind that so much anymore. She had Tommy, after all. Jaz didn't have anyone; neither did Jack. Maybe setting them up subtly would work. "Isn't she?" she smiled, inordinately proud of the lookers in her family, despite her own tendency to feel plain alongside them. "She's single, believe it or not."

"What are you thinking, Midge" Me and her?" Jack laughed at the very thought of that. It was absurd. "Girl like that' She's not gonna see anything in me." He shook his head at the very idea as he handed the electronic photo-storing-carrying device back to her. "She's way out of my league." Whatever that league was.

"Why not?" she asked him bluntly, taking back the phone to drop it into her bag. It made a very loud clunk a few seconds after it dropped out of view, making her wince as she closed the bag and set it aside. "You think my cousin is so shallow that she doesn't look past the surface?" How was that for a challenging question, offered up from that sweetly out of focus face as Lena smiled up at him. "She suffers from the Jerk Syndrome. Trust me, she's not as scary as she might seem."

"The Jerk Syndrome?" he echoed, slowly draining the bottle of champagne practically on his own and starting to feel it. He had been about to accept her challenge before she continued, and he held that thought, needing to understand what she meant before moving on.

"Well, you've seen the picture," she shrugged. "Most guys are too intimidated to even talk to her. The only guys she's been out with are jerks who think they're god's gift, and because they're the only ones who've ever asked her, she thinks they're the only ones she attracts. Jerks who wouldn't know a real emotion if it walked up and kicked them in the balls. Unlike you."

"She wouldn't look twice at someone like me," Jack insisted, having met plenty of women who were the female version of "The Jerk Syndrome", the kind of girls who were drop dead gorgeous and knew it. They knew they could have anyone and anything they wanted with just a smile. He thought he'd never be good enough for girls like that, with or without a beard, but why would he want to be?

"Again ....do you always assume a pretty girl is shallow just because she's pretty?" Lena asked him pointedly. "Ever occur to you that maybe she doesn't know how pretty she is, maybe she thinks there's something wrong with her because people don't look under the surface?" Her brows rose as she looked at him. "Everyone has insecurities like this, Jack. Assuming that someone will think you're not worthy without even putting yourself out there, you're just building higher walls and getting lonelier. It's a good way not to get hurt, but you don't get loved either." She heaved herself up onto the log beside him, looping her arm over his shoulders as she kissed his cheek. "You are a great catch, and any woman would be lucky to have you. And the women who don't look twice? They're not worth your time anyway."

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:49 EST
"You ever see a pretty girl with an ugly guy?" he countered, believing himself to be the problem, not her cousin. "It just doesn't happen. Only in fairytales, Midge. I'm not a frog waiting to be turned into a prince." Or maybe he was, and he just didn't know it yet. It wasn't good looks that made a man a prince, after all, except in the movies.

They could have had this debate all night without a winner, both too stubborn to budge, but as it happened, Tommy chose that moment to return, plunking down on a log across from them and smiling playfully. "Not trying to steal my girl while I was gone, were you?" he asked, with a teasing gleam in his eyes, knowing better than that.

"No, you're a prince waiting for the right princess to come along," she agreed with his fairytale analogy to a point, kissing his cheek once again. She was good at being a little sister when she paid attention, something Jack was benefiting from right then and there. "No frogs here." As Tommy returned, teasing Jack warmly, Lena beamed, dragging him into the conversation with them. "There, y'see" Tommy thinks you're gorgeous, too. So there."

Tommy wasn't sure what kind of conversation he'd wandered into, but he laughed all the same. "Oh, yeah....He's gorgeous, all right. So gorgeous I can't keep my hands off him," Tommy teased, leaning over to ruffle his friend's hair, which was already enough of a windblown mess.

Jack knocked his hand away, eying a warning, but his mood had shifted again with Tommy's return. "Don't be an *ss. You're not my type."

Tommy laughed as he reached for the portable radio he'd brought with him, flicking it on and turning the dial to find a channel that was still playing music the time of night.

Giggling once more as the mood lightened, Lena hugged Jack fondly. He'd inadvertently planted the seed of a minorly devious plan in her mind, and for all that he thought she'd never remember all this in the morning, something had definitely taken root. She lunged away suddenly, opening up her bag again to retrieve her camera, and carefully backed up a couple of paces on the sand to get them both in shot. "I have to get this bromance on film."

Jack rolled his eyes at his two friends, who seemed determined to see him happy, but who was he to complain" It was clear they cared about him and it felt good to be part of something like that, even if he was the third wheel. Tommy moved over beside his best buddy and threw an arm around his shoulders, while Jack held up the bottle triumphantly, both of them flashing cheesy grins at the camera.

It took three goes to get a picture - the first time the lens cap was still on; the second time the flash didn't go off. After a moment of muttering to herself, Lena finally got the picture she wanted, beaming happily as she lowered the camera once again. "Perfect!"

Jack blinked, blinded temporarily by the light, and Tommy took advantage of the opportunity to pull his friend close enough to plant a loud smooch against his cheek, even bearded as it was.

Oh, she couldn't miss getting that one on film either. Raising the camera quickly, Lena snapped off another couple of shots to immortalize Tommy smooching his best friend's cheek, probably blinding Jack even further in the process, giggling at the sight of the silly embrace.

It was a brief moment in time captured on film that Jack feared would never happen again, even as he shoved Tommy away from him with a look of disgust on his face. "You're an *ss!" he declared, as Tommy went *ss over teakettle off the log and onto the sand roaring with laughter.

"And you're drunk! Both of you!" Jack continued, smiling now that his mission had been accomplished.

Cackling at the rather wild reaction to being kissed, Lena curtsied to Jack a little unsteadily, Tommy's infectious guffawing keeping her smile more a grin than anything. "Darn tootin' I am," she agreed with Jack's assessment of her intoxication level. "Wasn't that the plan?"

"It was," Jack agreed. "One last night of drunken revelry before we move on to bigger and better things."

"Speak for yourself," Tommy piped in as he climbed back up onto the log, reaching into a pocket of his jeans to pull out what looked like a cigarette but wasn't. "I've been saving the last of my stash for a special occasion, and if this isn't it, I don't know what is," he said as he held his treasure up for inspection.

Lena thumped down onto the sand between the two of them, looping one arm over each leg on either side of her as she tipped her head back to look at Tommy's treasure. A soft smirk touched her lips. "I haven't smoked that since college," she admitted, surprisingly embarrassed by this admission. She was in the 70's, saying she hadn't taken a toke for more than three years.

Tommy grinned at her admission. He wasn't a stoner - far from it - but it was the 70's and he saw nothing wrong with sharing a joint with a couple of friends every now and then. "Then I'd say you're way overdue, Midge," he teased. He pulled a lighter out of his pocket and fit the joint between his lips to light the end of it.

"Dude, you've been holding out on me!" Jack complained, forgetting about what remained of the champagne.

"Says the man who's been hoarding a bottle of bubbly for the last two years," Tommy countered, talking about the joint his held between his lips. It took a couple of tries, but he finally got the thing lit and took a long, slow, practiced drag, breathing it in and holding onto it as long as he could before slowing exhaling. He passed the thing first to Jack, who took it between his fingers and did likewise.

"I'm overdue for a lot of things," she agreed with a surprisingly mellow smile. "I'm working on the list though. Get a sex life - check." She snickered softly, watching the joint passed over her head toward Jack as the familiarly sweet smell of the smoke made itself known. "I haven't looked at the rest of the list yet."

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:50 EST
"I'm still working on that one," Jack admitted grudgingly before passing the joint to Lena. It was then he remembered the bottle and finished off what was left. He was probably going to regret it in the morning, but he'd worry about that then. "You know what?" he continued, now that the bottle was drained. "There's something I've been wanting to do for a long time, and now is the perfect time to do it." He swayed a little as he pushed off the log, the night's revelry finally going to his head. He lifted a hand to shield his eyes, though it wasn't really needed, looking in the direction of the town behind them. "I know you love this place, Tommy, but this is what I think of it..." And before either of them could stop him, Jack was dropping his jeans and his drawers, turning toward the sea, and shooting the moon in the general direction of town and its populace. "This is for all the bankers and lawyers and money grubbers....Kiss my *ss!"

They were all going to be a little worse for wear in the morning, but right now that didn't matter. As Lena inhaled her first lungful, she was treated to the sight of Jack's lily-white backside waving around in the direction of the town behind them, losing her breath in a loud laugh as she passed the joint up to Tommy once again. "Look! Two moons!" she laughed merrily. "Just like home!"

Tommy chuckled as he took another toke. "He better watch where he waves that thing or he's gonna draw the wrong kind of attention." He didn't really give Jack anything but a cursory glance. If you've seen one *ss, you've seen them all. He was completely unoffended by Jack's remark either. He knew the man was angry at the way the town had treated them both, but it was just the way things worked. Big fish ate the little fish and Jack and Tommy were definitely little fish. Tommy threw an arm around Lena to draw her close, breathing what he had just inhaled slowly into her mouth as he kissed her.

"No, no!" Jack exclaimed, clumsily tugging his pants back up around his hips. "That's cheating!" he said, waggling a hand at the two of them before snatching the joint out of Tommy's fingers.

Drawn close, Lena inhaled as Tommy kissed her, feeling the mellow sense of detachment beginning to make itself known as she held her breath, grinning at Jack's protest as he reclaimed the joint. Exhaling, she leaned into Tommy's embrace, turning that sweetly unfocused smile onto their friend innocently. "What's cheating?"

"That right..." Jack had to pause a moment to grab his jeans before they fell off his ass again. "That right there," he said, watching her exhale the second-hand smoke Tommy had shared with her. "You can't do it that way. It's not fair."

"Shut up and smoke before it burns away," Tommy scolded his friend.

While Tommy was slowly getting mellow, the evening's revelry seemed to be making Jack more animated. He did as he was told, however, and took a long drag off the joint before swinging his arm over Tommy's head, even as Tommy made a lunge for the thing, to hand it to Lena. "No cheating," Jack warned as he handed it to her.

"Why can't I do it that way?" Lena asked innocently as she was handed the joint, mischievous eyes twinkling as she glanced to Tommy. "I'm not used to this, you know." She grinned, though, inhaling a slow drag from the joint and holding her breath. Two tokes, and she was already swaying a bit, the pot on top of the alcohol making her more than a little fuzzy around the edges.

"Because he's jealous, that's why," Tommy interjected with a smirk and leaned over to kiss her again and share the drug-imbued breath she'd just taken.

Jack rolled his eyes at the two of them. "You know what? I'm going for a swim," he announced and turning his back to them both, started to strip down to his skivvies.

Denied the opportunity to be certain that Jack wasn't jealous, Lena found herself thoroughly distracted by the kiss Tommy planted on her, happily offering up the blowback as her arms curled around his neck. She'd hadn't let go this much in years, briefly wondering just how far her brother's jaw would drop if he could see her now. She had no idea where the joint was now, vaguely aware that Jack was stripping to his birthday suit as she kissed Tommy, breaking just long enough to let him breathe out.

Jack was going to stop at his underwear, but hell, this was a celebration and he was feeling completely uninhibited for once in his life. If Lena were to look at him, she'd notice the obvious differences between the two men, both tanned from the sun, but bearing completely different body types. Where Tommy's build was more boyish, slim and angular, Jack was broader in the arms and the chest, angling down to a trim waist. "Last one in is a rotten egg!" Jack challenged before sprinting toward the ocean with a triumphant shout. He knew it was going to be cold, but what the hell. You only live once.

The crowing challenge made Lena look up, startled, to see Jack's naked rear end accelerating away from them toward the gentle surf. Sober, she would have blushed, giggled, and vehemently refused; tonight, however, she was more than up for such a challenge. She pecked Tommy on the nose and gave him a soft shove off the log, giggling as she stood up and whipped her dress up over her head. "I refuse to be a rotten egg!"

That crowing challenge was followed by an almost girlish shriek as Jack immersed himself in the gentle rolling waves of the cold Pacific.

Tommy couldn't help but laugh, knowing he was going to be drawn into the silliness against his will. He was feeling mellow and laid back and just wanted to chill, but he couldn't very well let his girlfriend go skinny dipping with his best friend without joining in. He groaned as he rolled to his feet and tugged his shirt up over his head. "I'm gonna be the rotten egg," he said, feeling sluggish.

"I'll make it up to you later," Lena promised with an impish smile, blowing him a kiss as she unhooked her bra. Hearing Jack shriek from the water, she giggled, guessing that the water was a lot colder than he had been expecting. "We need to get him a girl," she added, shimmying to slip the last of her clothing free, blissfully uninhibited, thanks to her level of intoxication. "He's too careless with his junk." She grinned, bouncing close to kiss Tommy once again before giving him a healthy swat on the backside and turning to run toward the water herself.

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:52 EST
Tommy laughed, though he had paused in his undressing to admire the view that was being unveiled before him. He wasn't worried about Jack admiring the view, too, but he did feel a little bad for his friend. Just a day or so earlier and they'd both been lonely bachelors. Now Tommy's heart was spoken for, and Jack was the third wheel. Tommy knew what that felt like; it was the part he'd played with Robby and Red for years, and he didn't want to lose Jack's friendship because of it. "Yeah, we do," Tommy agreed thoughtfully, but his thoughtful mood didn't last long as Jack was making too much of a ruckus in the water to remain there alone for very long.

"Come on in!" a disembodied voice called from the ocean. "The water's fine."

Lena's squeal disproved the claim that the water was "fine" moments later as she splashed into the surf, the cold sea chilling her enough that it really was just as well it was dark. Tommy might not be worried about Jack enjoying the view, but some part of her drunken brain was a bit shy of showing that to her lover's best friend. She plunged into the water, whisking a minor wave in Jack's direction. "Fine, my *ss!"

"I bet it is!" Jack called back, shrinking away from the wave she tossed his way, though he was already soaked from head to toe, his long dark hair pushed away from his forehead, revealing a little more of his face than anyone usually got a glimpse at. He threw himself at an oncoming wave, as though he was surfing without a board to carry him.

Tommy had finally discarded his clothes and was watching them both from the beach. He had the radio cranked up loud and was finishing off what was left of the joint. The cold water didn't bother him much, but without a wetsuit, it was going to feel much colder - and wetter - than even he was accustomed to. "You're insane, you know that," Tommy remarked as he flicked what was left of the joint into the ocean.

"Yeah, well, you've got what my grandma would have called an apple dumpling *ss," Lena retorted to Jack as he threw himself into the surf, her own attention mostly fixed on keeping her head above the water. The undertow wasn't that strong, but it was strong enough to keep whisking her feet out from under her whenever she set them down on the sand. Tommy's comment made her giggle. "Come and be insane for a bit, it's fun!"

Jack wasn't quite sure what to make of that, uncertain whether it was a compliment or an insult. "Is that a good thing?" he asked, as he came up for air, up to his waist in water and looked over at Tommy still standing on shore, looking like a ghost in the moonlight.

"I'm insane enough to have you two for friends," Tommy remarked, sighing heavily before charging into the water and shouting like a madman before crashing into Jack, whose eyes had gone as wide as saucers, and taking them both under the waves.

"It's a good thing," Lena assured Jack with a grin. "She probably would have taken her dentures out and bitten your *ss with them, too." She didn't get a chance to witness what his reaction to that little comment was, however, as Tommy bore down on him, roaring madly. As both men disappeared under the water, she giggled once again, delighting in the easy playfulness that had settled around them.

"What"!" Jack exclaimed just before he got tackled by Tommy, just barely managing to gulp a breath before going underwater. There was a moment of calm before both men resurfaced, one sputtering and one laughing uproariously. The sputtering one, which was Jack, took a shove at the other. "You stupid bastard! You almost drowned me!"

Tommy only laughed. "Hasn't anyone ever told you never to go swimming when you're wasted?" he replied with a teasing smirk.

"Is it still swimming if all you're doing is bouncing up and down each time a wave tries to knock you over?" Lena asked cheerfully. Despite Jack's spluttering indignation, she had a feeling he didn't mind being dunked that much, welcoming the inclusion of all three of them in the silly game. A shiver ran through her body as she grinned at the two men, more apt to be affected by the cold quickly than they were.

The two of them answered in unison - Jack with a resounding, "No," and Tommy with a, "Yes." Despite their bantering and wrestling, the pair was obviously close and deeply connected to the other. Lena hadn't been too far off when she'd called it a bromance, but to them it was more like that of kinship, though there was no blood bond between them.

Tommy was the first to notice Lena's shivering, and reached over to haul her close. "Come on, before you freeze."

Jack frowned at them both, feeling a little like the third wheel again. "I'm not wasted. I'm mellow."

"You are so not mellow, it isn't even funny," Tommy countered as he pulled Lena into his arms to warm her.

Lena's smile turned apologetic as she saw Jack's frown. "Sorry," she apologized, gratefully cuddling into Tommy's arms as he wrapped her close enough to try and stave off that chill. "I'm not a big bad surfer dude like you two." That frown, however, had just cemented the devious little plan she had in mind - drunk or not, she wasn't going to forget to do a little match-making if she could when they reached Rhy'Din.

"Come on, Jack, before you freeze your junk off," Tommy scolded, as he dragged Lena toward the shore, wrapped in his arms. The cold didn't really bother him, but the other two weren't as accustomed to it as he was. Thankfully, he'd thought to bring a few blankets out onto the beach earlier and there was a warm fire blazing.

"Why am I the insane one?" Jack called from the water. "You're the one with the trophies!"

But Tommy only chuckled, not buying into his friend's goading. "I've got marshmallows," he taunted in a sing-songy voice.

"Oh, like that's going to make a..." Jack broke off. "Marshmallows?"

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:53 EST
"Wait, am I a trophy?" Lena asked, having trouble keeping up with the back and forth as she started to drift. It was just as well Tommy had put himself in charge of getting her back onto dry land - she was beginning to disconnect a bit, as much as she was enjoying herself. "Marshmallow trophies?" It didn't take a genius to spot a woman who didn't drink often, and smoked even less.

"No, love." Tommy chuckled at Lena's confusion and with a grunt, moved to his feet to hoist her over one shoulder. "Last one on land is a rotten egg," he smirked over at Jack, who looked like he was nowhere near ready to come out of the water yet, knowing he was going to feel even colder before he got warm. Somehow, of the three of them, Tommy seemed the most sober, or maybe just the most capable of handling himself in the water. Jack was no slouch when it came to swimming and surfing, but he wasn't even close to Tommy's level of skill. Once back on land, he set Lena on her feet and wrapped a blanket around them both to get dry and warm, crushing them together beneath the woolen covering.

She squeaked when he hoisted her over his shoulder, her personal artificial horizon going completely haywire while she was upside down. Well, now was the time Jack could decide whether or not her *ss was fine, before she was dropped onto her feet once again with a quiet giggle. Cuddled close in the blanket, she shivered, curling her chilly arms around Tommy as he warmed her up. "Cozy," she murmured contentedly, taking advantage of being almost completely obscured by the blanket to nip his chest while Jack couldn't see. She liked Jack, after all; she didn't want him to feel left out. But she loved Tommy, and after celebrating for a few hours, her sense of the appropriate was suffering.

There was nothing inappropriate when it came to Jack or Tommy. They were like two free spirits bobbing along on the waves of Life, making the most of every day and while Tommy was aware of Jack's awkwardness - mostly from his own experiences - he wasn't too worried about it. He knew Jack well enough to know the other man only wanted him to be happy, and vice versa, but that wasn't going to stop him from kissing his girl and making copping a feel or two beneath that blanket. There was no sound from the water for a long while, as Jack floated there alone, looking up at the stars and wondering where this Rhy'Din was and what awaited him there.

Kisses and roaming hands could have taken them quite a bit further than Lena was sure she wanted to go on a public beach, but thankfully she still had enough control over her sensibilities to gently ease back when she felt the heat and friction beginning to grow. She nuzzled affectionately to Tommy, smoothing her hands down his back as she smiled. "I love you," she murmured softly, still delighted to have the freedom to say it and know that he loved her in return. What a difference a day made. "Did Jack drown, or is he being sneaky?"

"I love you, too," Tommy replied, brushing his nose against hers. It felt good to say it and really mean it, even if it was only the first stage of love - the falling part. He'd waited a long time to find someone worthy of those words, and he felt madly, joyously, exuberantly happy to hear them from her lips in regard to himself. Tommy glanced over at the now quiet beach, catching sight every now and then of a pale lone figure floating on the waves. "No, I think he's waiting until we're done smooching," Tommy replied, feeling a wave of sympathy for his friend. "We need to get him a girlfriend," he admitted with a small frown. He really did care about Jack and wanted him to feel as happy as Tommy and Lena were right now.

"Already on it," she promised with a wink. "Even showed him a picture earlier - I think he liked it." Now that was an understatement and a half. Jack probably would have had the same reaction to a picture of her cousin fully dressed, but Lena didn't have one on her phone right now. She grinned up at Tommy, rising onto her toes to brush a last soft kiss to his lips. "I promise, no weirdos, no nasties, nothing horrible. Just a nice girl my age who's had some really appalling luck with guys."

"I trust you," Tommy replied, returning that kiss. "Just be careful, okay' He's like a brother to me." It was both a warning and an explanation. While he wanted his friend to share in his happiness, he didn't want anyone toying with Jack's heart or breaking it. That said, he smiled and pulled himself out of the blanket so he could get dressed. "Let's make some marshmallows before we tuck Junior in for the night. That'll make him happy again."

She smiled gently, though part of her was wondering what the hell was wrong with this era on Earth to make the men so untrusting when it came to women. Tommy hadn't known how to take her, and Jack just seemed to think that he was some kind of ugly duckling who'd gotten stuck before he turned into a swan. Something had conditioned them to act that way. With any luck, Rhy'Din would bring Jack out of his shell and convince Tommy that not all women were out to hurt all men. Wrapped up alone in the blanket, she moved with Tommy to grab her panties and dress, leaving her bra on the sand. "I won't let anyone hurt him if I can possibly help it," she promised him assuredly, her smile deepening once again as he changed the subject. "Marshmallows soothe all ills, huh?"

As far a Tommy was concerned, it wasn't all women who were the problem, just one, and her name had been Red. Jack, on the other hand, was just shy around women and as such, chose to hide behind a pair of sunglasses and too much hair. "They do as far as Jack is concerned," Tommy replied as he wiggled into his worn out blue jeans and tugged his shirt on over his head, long blond hair touching his shoulders in a tangled mess. He turned toward the water and stuck two fingers in his mouth, whistling loudly to get his attention, hoping he wasn't falling asleep out there. The whistle was answered by a muffled grunt, letting him know Jack was still alive and well. "Come on, Leroy! Before you shrivel up like a prune." Tommy snickered to himself, knowing that would get Jack's attention and probably his ire.

"Leroy?" She tugged her dress on over her head, dropping the wet blanket onto the sand in the process, a bemused smile on her face as she looked toward the water curiously. She assumed it was a nickname, though she hadn't heard anyone use it before that moment.

"Yeah, that's his real name. He hates it." Tommy chuckled, though his own real name wasn't much better. "Can you blame him' Why do you think everyone calls him Jack?" Going to California hadn't just been about leaving home and striking out on your own, but about discovering who you really were and who you wanted to be, without the older generation telling you who or what you were supposed to be. There was a certain kind of freedom in that, in deciding for yourself what you'd make of your own life. "He's gonna be pissed I told you that," Tommy warned as he moved over to toss another log or two on the fire. "You might want to grab him a blanket." Yes, Jack would be stark naked when he wandered out of that water, but once again, Tommy didn't seem too worried about it. It was the 70's, after all.

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:55 EST
"Oh, well, I won't tell him you told me anything, then," she smiled playfully, bending to catch up a dry blanket from where they'd been left. The spike of energy that had thrown her into the water had eased off now, leaving her quiet and mellow, content to smile at pretty much everything. Moving toward the water, she called out to the lone swimmer. "Hey, Rocketman! I've got a blankety hug here with your name on it!"

While Tommy busied himself tending the fire and finding three sticks perfect for roasting marshmallows, Jack emerged from the water, hugging himself to keep warm and shivering so hard his teeth were chattering. He hoped Lena kept her gaze above his waist as he had a feeling his junk was not much to look at in his frozen state, not that it mattered as she belonged to someone else, but he was a man with a man's ego and pride, which had already been prickled at least once tonight. If he was unhappy about Tommy calling him by name, he didn't show it, too worried about getting warm before he gave him a well-deserved beat-down. "Whose idea was this anyway?" he asked as he made a beeline for that blanket.

"Yours," Lena told him through a fond grin, her eyes tactfully closed as he approached. She made a guess when he was close enough and threw the blanket around his waist, twisting to grab another one to wrap around his shoulders before virtually pinning his arms to his sides with the promised hug, rubbing her hands vigorously up and down his back to warm him up.

"Oh, yeah, thanks for reminding me," he replied, somewhat sarcastically. "Water's freezing! I don't know how he stands it." It was a bit of an exaggeration. The water wasn't freezing exactly, but without the sun to warm the air, it felt pretty cold this time of night. He didn't seem to mind that hug though, trying not to think about the soft warm body that was hugging him. "I'm happy for you, you know. Both of you," he told her, as if it was something that needed to be said. "If you don't mind..." He paused a moment, swallowing past his own nervousness. "I never had a sister."

That nervous comment was enough to bring her smile back in full force, touched by his insistence that he was happy for them, but moved more deeply by the unspoken hope in his last words. Lena reached up to tweak his beard affectionately, brushing his wet hair back out of his eyes. "You've got one now," she told him, not needing to consider that relationship at all. She knew how to be a sister, even if she hadn't practiced that skill until very recently. "Family's not about blood, Jack." She kissed his cheek once again, hugging him close for a moment, and stepped back. "Big Bird's doing marshmallows."

Fortunately, that was a reference Jack understood, just barely. Sesame Street had only been on the air a few years, but was growing in popularity, at least with young families with preschool children. "Big Bird?" he laughed. "What's that make me" Cookie Monster?" He thought they were a little more like Bert and Ernie, but that was a discussion for another time. He smiled down at her as she reassured him and seemed to understand what he was trying to say. He hugged the blanket tightly around his shoulder, the shuddering starting to subside. If she wanted to know why he felt that way, she'd have to dig a little deeper, but he wasn't about to talk about it now.

"Oh, you're definitely Elmo," she told him sweetly, not sure whether or not he'd know what she was getting at with that reference. But it fitted - a character that had been in the background until suddenly he became a main player and very much loved. She was pretty sure that Jack just needed a little push to become that main player himself. "C'mon, big bro. Get your pants on and show me how this marshmallow thing works."

Jack's smile faded and was replaced by a look of confusion. She had him there for a minute and then completely lost him. "Who?" He'd never heard of anyone named Elmo, much less a puppet on a kids' TV show, as that was not going to happen for a few years yet. "Don't tell me you've never roasted marshmallows before," he said with a look of complete disbelief. Everyone had roasted a marshmallow at some point in their life, hadn't they' With the blanket still clutched tightly in a fist, he wandered over the beach in search of his discarded clothes.

"Hurry up, Grandpa!" shouted Tommy from the fire. "Or I'm gonna eat 'em all without you!"

"Elm - oh." Lena blushed, giggling a bit. "I guess he hasn't appeared yet. Never mind, I'll show him to you when we get to Rhy'Din." She winked at him as he wandered past, obliging his disbelief with a new smile. "All right, I won't tell you, then," she nodded obediently, patting his back as he went in search of his clothes. Tommy's shout made her laugh. "I'm not holding your hair out of the way if you eat so much you throw up!"

Tommy chuckled and just to make a point, shoved an unroasted marshmallow into his mouth, but as he tried to talk around it, whatever he'd been trying to say just came out as mumbled, muffled nonsense.

It wasn't long before Jack was dressed and had rejoined the pair near the fire. He laid the blankets out to try, tucking his hair behind his ears so it wouldn't fall into his face. He wondered if he should take Lena's advice and cut it. It would be a lot easier to take care of that way, but he'd become a little attached to the gnarled mess, which declared him a nonconformist.

Tommy handed them each a stick with a marshmallow stuck to the end. "She's a marshmallow virgin," Jack warned with a wink at Tommy.

She laughed as Jack gave away her secret with a wink, taking the stick from Tommy with a curious look. Odd, the number of times she'd camped out with her brother and their cousins when they were children, and she'd never done this before. First time for everything. "So what, I just stick this in the fire?" she asked with a smile, settling close to the warmth that radiated from the bonfire.

"No, you don't just stick it in the fire!" Tommy said, sounding appalled. "Look, there's a right way and a wrong way to roasting a marshmallow," he continued as he stuck his marshmallow straight into the flames, setting it on fire. Now, as most people know, that is the wrong way to roast a marshmallow, but it was all a matter of personal preference.

"Don't listen to him," Jack interjected. "He's a city kid. What does he know?" He seemed to prefer the slow roasting method, as he held his marshmallow just out of the way of the flames, letting the heat do the trick, rather than the fire.

Helena King

Date: 2013-09-30 09:57 EST
Offered a choice between a flaming marshmallow, or a slowly melting one, Lena went with the slow melt, not entirely sure she was brave enough to put something that that just been in the flames into her mouth. The two methods of marshmallow roasting seemed to be an interesting difference between the two men, she reflected as she held her own marshmallow in the heat from the dancing flames, concentrating fiercely on it as it started to crackle and slip on the stick. "So what do I do now?"

"Now?" Jack remarked with a grin, but it was Tommy who butted in to answer the question, as he pulled the gooey burnt marshmallowy goodness from the stick.

"You eat it!" he said, popping the entire thing into his mouth and grinning around the mouthful as he chewed and licked his sticky fingers clean. Jack was a little more careful with his marshmallow, but managed to accomplish the same thing.

It was funny watching both of them navigate gloopy sticky sweetness from the stick to their mouths without pasting it all over their respective beards, setting Lena to giggling again as she lifted her own stick from the heat and considered how she was going to do this. It was hot, too hot to put straight into her mouth, so she ended up nibbling, finishing with most of it in her mouth and one blob stuck to the little dip between her lips and her chin. "That's cool," she admitted with a childlike grin.

Jack pointed with his stick at the little blob she had stuck to her face, "You've got a little bit..." Tommy cut in again, wasting no time in licking that bit of marshmallow from his girl's chin, rewarded with a groan from Jack. "That's disgusting. I don't want to know where else that tongue's been."

Tommy waggled his brows mischievously, but his spontaneous nature took over again as he caught wind of a certain song on the radio and he leaned over to crank the volume up again.

Her hand had already been moving toward her chin as Jack gestured toward her with his stick, confounded by the sudden lick from Tommy as he obscured her vision for a moment, leaving her laughing and a little nonplussed. Jack's comment on his tongue, however, brought her laughter into something a lot more full-bodied. "You sure you can't guess, Jackie?" she asked him impishly, reaching over to poke at his bellybutton with a playful finger.

"Oh, I can guess. I've seen enough porn movies to..." He broke off as Tommy elbowed him hard in the gut. "Oof, what?s that for?" A guitar wailed loudly from the radio, the unmistakable guitar intro from a song Jack and Tommy both knew well. Jack snickered at the smirk from Tommy, almost reading his mind. The guitar slid into the lyrics as a decidedly male voice took up the song. Wild thing, you make my heart sing; You make everything groovy...

Once again, they'd lost Lena in their back-and-forth bantering, but she didn't mind, happy just to be included in the manly affection they shared. The song was familiar to her, too, a classic from this era that was trotted out on the radio often enough that she almost knew it word for word. Humming along, she glanced up at Tommy and Jack as they smirked at each other, sensing something was about to happen.

Wild thing, the song continued, Jack holding his stick toward Tommy to simulate a microphone. "Wild thing, I think I love you," Tommy recited in unison with the voice on the radio, Jack leaning close as his voice joined his friend's, in unison and close harmony, "But I wanna know for sure." Tommy turned to Lena, clearly directing the words to her, "Come on and hold me tight." He paused a moment as he moved to a knee in front of her, "I love you."

Well, she hadn't been expecting that. She stared at the pair of them as they started singing along, feeling her skin heat with a very obvious blush - even in the firelight - as the focus of their song seemed to turn to her. She couldn't help laughing as mild embarrassment welled up, glancing around just to be sure no one else was seeing this.

Jack air-guitared the brief thumping guitar solo between stanzas, both of them joining in on the chorus again, belting the words to the song as loud as their voices would allow. "Wild thing, you make my heart sing. You make everything groovy..." The two of them repeated the previous stanza along with The Troggs, just slightly out of tune, taking turns this time with the lyrics. Jack had the better voice of the two, Tommy's deeper in tone, naturally harmonizing without making much effort. "Come on, hold me tight," Tommy crooned. "You move me."

There was something sweet and special about being included in this slightly embarrassing display, love for Tommy and warm affection for Jack lighting up her eyes as she looked between the two men with a delighted smile. Lena didn't have the first clue what was going on here, but frankly, she didn't care. She was enjoying it, whatever it was.

What was going on was she was being serenaded in the only way two "overfed long-haired leaping gnomes" knew how to do. They were a product of their time, and while others might quote Shakespeare or Byron to woe their maidens, all Jack and Tommy had was the music of their time. The two of them finished the song up with a final chorus, each declaring their individual but differing love for this wildflower of a girl. "Wild thing....Come on, come on, wild thing..." As the two voices on the radio faded away, Jack picked up his guitar, ready to call it a night. He brushed a kiss against Lena's cheek before turning to sing and strum his way back up the beach.

Perhaps it was a little abrupt, Jack's declaration that the evening had ended for him, but Lena didn't question her friend, smiling as he kissed her cheek on his way past. "Good night, Jack," she called after him softly, her eyes turning slowly back to Tommy. Her smile was still just a little embarrassed, the blush still warming her cheeks as her gaze lingered on his face. "I thought you said you didn't do romance?"

Jack responded with a wave back before disappearing into the shop. It was unclear where he was going to spend the rest of the night exactly, but when morning came, they'd most likely find him camped out in the van, bags packed and ready to go.

"I don't, Tommy replied as he moved to his feet. He didn't look like he was in any hurry to leave, as content to spend the night on the beach as he was to spend it in bed.

She tipped her head back, bare toes wriggling in the sand as she looked up at Tommy, looming over her. He was tall enough when she was standing up; sitting down while he was standing, she felt ridiculously midgety. "Could have fooled me," was her answer to his reply, one hand reaching to him in a silent request to be helped up off her backside.

He offered a hand to help her to her feet, smiling a bit sheepishly now that the two of them were alone again. "Try not to hold it against me," he said, pulling her close. He knew Jack's timing was a little abrupt, but he also knew they were supposed to be leaving in the morning, which meant they still had to get packed. "You're amazing, you know that?" he asked, obviously enchanted, eyes shining with adoration, along with being just a little bit high.

Curling her arms about his neck, she let the tip of her nose nudge his, a gentle, loving gesture as they gazed into each other's eyes. "I think you're the amazing one," she told him in a tender tone, stroking her fingers through his hair. "You've taken so much on trust, it's almost unbelievable. I can't imagine not loving you."

"I keep thinking I'm gonna wake up and find out it's just a dream," he told her, arms looping about her waist. She was the amazing one, and it suddenly felt like he'd just been waiting all of his twenty-five years to meet her. "No matter what happens, Midge, let's promise each other never to lose the magic," he said as he leaned his forehead against hers.

"I promise, Moonbeam." And for a native of Rhy'Din, that was an easy promise to make. From this point on, there would always be magic in Tommy King's life; magic that was real, magic that was perceived, and the magic they made together. And with a little nudge, they'd be able to find someone to put some of that magic into Jack's life, too. Next stop, Rhy'Din, and all the wonders it promised.

((And that's it for the 1970's! Next stop, Rhy'Din - uberhugimungulosa thanks to Tommy and Jack's players!))