Wanted, CH.11 - 15 (Retribution, Crash, Survive, Life, & Girls)
Wanted
Chapters 11 - 15 (Retribution, Crash, Survive, Life, & Girls)
Retribution
The match flared to life as he struck it against the wall. He leaned in, and put it to his cigarette.
He dropped the match onto the ground, making the people on the other end of the room flinch. The flame licked at the edge of the trail of gunpowder that led straight to where they were sitting strapped together with about ten pounds of explosives.
Sure, it was a bit overkill. But right then, he didn't really give a shit.
Finally the powder sparked, and the people on the other end of its death line started to scream and wail. He grinned at their distress, taking a drag from his cigarette. He placed his foot over the spark, and slowly stomped it out.
"Now that I've really got your attention." He said, his voice barely suppressing the fury within him. "I want you to tell me where she is."
The man he'd assumed was the ring-leader spoke up. "Sir, we don't know who you speak of."
"That's BULLSHIT!" He shouted in response, pointing his cigarette at the oversized lump of a man. "I know for a fact that she was in here just last week."
"Sir..." the man spoke up again. Oh, he was brave. "Your information must be mistaken because we have never seen this Vala you ask us about."
He laughed out to the ceiling. "See, you just FUCKED yourself right there!" He swiftly moved to squat down in front of the man. He pulled from the cigarette again, making sure to dangle it close to one of the sticks of dynamite as he pulled it away from his mouth. "I never told you her name."
The man paled. "N-no...I...You did."
He smiled at the man's screw up. "N-no..." He mocked. "I...I d-d-didn't." He stood back up, sweeping his arm over the explosives as he did, raining hot ashes all over. "God, they really can't seem to find themselves INTELLIGENT trustees, can they?" He shouted with glee. He walked back to the other side of the room, and turned back to the now sweaty man.
"See, unlike them..." He pulled a drag from the cigarette. "My contacts are smart, and VERY reliable." He exhaled blue smoke to the ceiling. "My most trusted source...you might know him...a little taller than me, wicked sense of humor, drinks a little too much and plays a little too loud, my teacher and mentor...best friend actually...goes by the name of Jack."
The pudgy little toad's eyes widened. "Mr. O'Neill? But he's not..."
His blue eyes brightened. God, he loved doing this. "Not what? A criminal? A rogue?" He laughed to the ceiling once more. "Damn, he's played you good! He told me this would be so much fun, and I honestly thought he was joking. Because how could anything be fun without the love of my life at my side? But no, he was right." He stepped closer to the group of people again. "He's the one who told me she was here, by the way. And he would NEVER lie to me about this." He put his hand to his chin, and considered what he just said. "In fact, he would never lie to me about ANYTHING."
He knelt down, and fingered the trail of gun powder. He brought the almost finished cigarette close to the black substance, looking up at the man. "Tell me where they took her."
"Sir...p-please..." the man stuttered, struggling in his restraints. "I'll tell you...Just...let the women go."
He'd had enough with this talk. It was clear the man was just running him in circles so those who had Vala could get farther away. He would lose the trail if he didn't get the info like five minutes ago.
"FUCK the women!" He shouted as he stood. His temper was gone. "THEY helped YOU drug her and beat her, and have her ra..." He stopped on the word, unable to say it. He took a calming deep breath, allowing the slow burn of fury to give him focus. "Now you're going to tell me." He drew his gun, and pointed it at the most overdressed woman tied in the group. "Or I'll shoot your slut before your very eyes...and then if you still don't tell me, I'll kill all your other whores, and leave you here to ROT in their stench."
One of the women cursed at him in another language, and he smiled. "Why thank you, princess." She looked at him wide-eyed. He winked at her, then turned back to the man. "Tick, tock, tick, tock." He cocked the gun, and went to squeeze the trigger, the cigarette slipping from his grasp.
"Wait!" The man shouted. He pulled up the gun, but still dropped the cigarette.
"Pressure, pressure." He shrugged.
"I overheard them say they were taking her through the forest to their hideout along the mountains, about twenty miles north." The pudgy man looked at the spark traveling his way. "Now please, put it out."
He nodded and stomped out the spark once more. He turned away from them, and moved to pick up his bag. Tossing the now dead cigarette butt to the ground, he started to exit the building.
"Wait, aren't you gonna untie us?!" The man shouted.
Daniel turned as he reached the doorway. He tilted his head as if considering the thought for a moment. Then he smiled.
"Nope." He stated simply, aiming his gun at the trail of powder. The man and women screamed as he fired, the spark of the bullet ricocheting off the floor setting off another spark along the black line.
With that, he walked out quickly. He pulled another cigarette out, and just as he lit it with a match, the building behind him exploded. His smile of retribution was bright, his stride never faltering as the ground beneath him shook.
"All for you, baby." Daniel stated to the open air as debris rained down around him.
Crash
From the shadows, Daniel could see every action in the vast room before him. Scantily clad women stumbling along in a drugged daze, barely acknowledging the pompous men chasing after them. This was a rich man's playground, and Daniel quietly spit out the nasty taste that came to his mouth at the thought. Vala was here, and from what he'd been told - she was the most sought after toy.
It made his stomach churn just considering how he'd find her. His finger itched to squeeze the trigger of his beloved gun, taking shots into every bastard that walked by his hidden position. But Daniel knew he had to wait...wait for his cue as his partner in this rescue had said.
The cue itself had never been discussed, but between them it never was. It never needed to be.
So the gun remained in his hand, dangling in wait by his side as he continued to watch the room.
Some of the "honored guests" moved out of his line of sight, and Daniel felt his temper flare as she came into view. Literally leashed to a greasy, skinny, arrogant man, Vala was too out of it to fight against his uncaring perusal of her body. Another woman, no doubt the man's main whore, was sticking a needle into Vala's already black and blue arm.
Daniel inhaled furiously as 'Mr. Slimeball' turned Vala to capture her mouth in a disgusting kiss. She came alive against him, obviously taken in by the effects of whatever they'd injected into her. She smiled lazily as she pulled away, saying something to the man that Daniel couldn't hear over the other commotion. It obviously didn't please the man, who backhanded her across the cheek hard.
Screw waiting - He couldn't watch this. Daniel moved to step out when a voice just off from his right stopped him.
"Easy, big fella." It was rough and familiar, but it was barely enough to halt Daniel in his actions. "Move now, and he'll kill her for sure."
"Jack, I can't stand here and watch them drug her, then molest her, then beat her." Daniel hissed.
"And they know that, Danny boy." Jack never looked at him. "You're the target, she's the bait."
Daniel growled quietly, coming to rest against the wall once more. "And you're my ace in the hole."
His gaze flicked to Vala for a moment, and he flinched as an unnatural giggle came past her lips. His hand around the gun shook with suppressed rage. "Now, I love you like a brother. But I love Vala more than anything in this fucked up world, and if you don't act soon, I won't be able to restrain myself much longer."
Finally Jack glanced at him quickly, a wicked smile coming to his face. "On with the show." He winked, and headed into the crowd. Daniel sighed gratefully for Jack's assistance. He knew his older friend was blowing the hard-earned network of cons he'd made to get to a 'high end status'...his cover as an 'upstanding gentleman' was going down the toilet. But Jack loved Vala because she loved Daniel like Daniel loved her, and he would do anything to get her back to him. Daniel knew that, and found himself respecting his friend even more.
He watched as Jack approached the man attached to Vala. From where he was hidden, he couldn't hear the conversation. But the moment Jack held up his hand in a gesture of good faith to his host before him, Daniel watched as one of the guards by the large doors turned on his own, a long shotgun coming up from beneath his standard issue coat.
At the sound of a 'YEEHAW!' coming from the masked man, Daniel smiled, knowing that was his cue. He pulled out from the shadows, and fired off rounds into every man he had seen holding a weapon, his path heading straight for Vala's 'keeper'. Jack pulled out his own weapons, and began to help the shot gun man take out the remaining guards.
As he approached the pair, Daniel watched as Vala was pulled close to her captor, a pistol placed to her head. He focused his rage, and pointed his gun straight at the man's head.
"The great Daniel Jackson." The man laughed in an accented voice. "They say you're the quickest shot around." He licked along Vala's neck, but Daniel wouldn't give him the pleasure of seeing him lose it. "Would you be willing to test it with your precious little whore's life on the line?"
Daniel flicked his blue eyes to Vala. She was staring at him, and though her eyes were hazy and unfocused, he could tell she was fighting the effects of the drugs. Her nostrils flared silently, and Daniel knew she was pissed.
And for half a microsecond, he felt pity for the man holding her captive.
The room went suddenly silent as his friends ceased firing. Jack came to stand by his side, gun raised in a similar position. The other came to stand behind Vala's captor, the shot gun barrel coming to rest right against his head.
"You might wanna drop the pistol and let the pretty lady go." His country drawl was muffled behind the mask.
The man turned his head to get a glimpse of the masked man. "And you must be-"
While the man's attention was averted momentarily, Vala slowly removed the needle she'd concealed up her sleeve. Before he had a chance to realize what happened, Vala yanked hard of the chain attaching him to her and turned to jab the needle in his neck. He gasped in utter shock, falling to the floor in a fit of convulsions.
"I am nobody's whore!" She gasped as she stumbled backwards. It had taken all her will power to fight back, and she quickly succumb to the drugs in her system once more. Her back quickly collided with something firm and warm, and she felt herself being lowered to the ground. She looked up in to welcoming blue eyes. Vala moved her hand to rest against his cheek, missing her target by a long shot. "My hero." She whispered as he took her hand in his.
"Not this time, baby." Daniel smiled, tears coming to his eyes. "You did it all by yourself."
Vala smiled, not really comprehending his words.
Daniel let out a shuddered breath as her eyes closed slowly. He looked up as two shadows came across them both.
"We need to get out of here..." Jack said, in complete 'down to business' mode. "Reinforcements will be here shortly."
Daniel nodded and moved to take Vala in his arms as he stood.
"You need a hand?"
Daniel looked up as the masked man removed said mask. "I need to do this." He smiled at the other man's nod of understanding. "But I'm damn glad you could join the party, Cam." He said with complete appreciation.
Cameron smiled. "Like I could miss out on this?" He laughed as they moved to leave. He checked his shot gun quickly, and pointed it out the doorway, checking the hall. "You guys always crash the best shindigs." He looked back at Daniel, who had his gun raised in his free hands as they entered the hall. He looked at Vala, her arms and legs wrapped around Daniel, his arm holding her tightly in place. "Plus that pretty lady is worth it."
Jack squeezed Daniel's shoulder from behind as he took up the rear. "Way worth it."
Daniel nodded, and placed a kiss on Vala's cheek.
He couldn't agree more.
Survive
She stirred slowly, the sounds of familiar arguing and laughter waking her from sleep. It was loud and rowdy, but somehow it felt right. Not like the sounds she had been hearing for what seemed like an eternity. No, the sounds she heard now fit.
Especially the sound of a voice booming just above her head. It shouted and laughed, and it reverberated through her body as she lay against its owner. The happiness in it soothed her, and she fought to open her tired eyes to glance up at who it belonged to.
Because no matter how hard she tried, her mind couldn't process any memories of who it was.
She was met with a beautiful blue-eyed gaze. And, without thought, his name came past her lips
"Daniel."
His smile was radiant and split his lips wide. "The one and only."
She smiled a moment, then the smile fell away. Like flood gates opening, the memories of the past few days came rushing back to her. She remembered anger, yelling, hatred, agony...
"LET ME GO!" She screamed.
"I can't do that!" He screamed right back.
"If you loved me...you would let me go." She pleaded.
"Why?! So you can go and run off to the first rundown, dirty drug den you can find and lose what's left of yourself in that shit? No, Vala. I can't let you go because I love you." His voice was shaky.
"I just need one...only one more. That's it." She promised
"No, it's not! You say one more, and then one leads to two, and two leads to five, and before you know it you'll be back in the hands of people who will use you to get me!" He argued.
"So this about you, huh? You don't LOVE me. It's all about you. I'm here, dying before your eyes, and all you can care about is yourself!" She hollered.
"It's not about me!" She flinched as he moved to come closer. He saw the action and stopped. "If you get caught again, and if I get caught, then they'll do to me what they've done to you...and everyone we've ever cared about will be fucked. Jack, Cameron, Sam, Teal'c...everyone."
She laughed, pulling against the restraints holding her to the bed. "Don't use them against me. I know you're lying!"
He clapped his hands together tightly. "Why would I do that? I love you. And I hate what this is doing to you - to us. I don't want to see you suffer, baby."
She thrashed out towards him. "Don't call me that! I'm not your baby! How could anyone want to be attached to anything as disgusting and horrible as you. You, who drinks too much and cares too much. The honest criminal. What a bunch of shit!"
She stopped as pains shot through her body. "I hate you." She whispered around a sob.
He looked at her, barely holding on to his emotions. "And I still love you, despite that."
The words spiked her temper once more, and she pulled hard against the binds around her wrists. "I wish you were dead!"
He nodded and grabbed his gun from the table nearby. She watched him, fear seizing her for a moment. He quickly undid the ties around her arms and legs, and placed the gun on the bed before her.
"If that's what you really want." He sighed, and she noticed a tear fall from his watery blue eye. He backed off a bit, and let his arms fall down at his sides. "I beg you to do it yourself before you leave. Put me out of my misery. Because I refuse to be around to watch you destroy everything that's so beautiful and wonderful in this world - I won't watch you kill yourself slowly."
She looked at the gun, and found she was having trouble speaking. "I...I..."
He rushed towards her, taking the gun and shoving it in her hand. "You want me dead? DO IT!" He wrapped his hand around hers, and made her push the barrel to his head. The tears now flowing freely down his cheeks hurt her more than the pain inside. "Kill me now, Vala! I would rather die here, now, then to have YOU die in my arms down the road. I can't live with the knowledge that if I let you go get that fix, I'll lose your soul now and then have to lose your life later. I just can't do that. If I'm not strong enough to help you right now, then there's no point in me fighting anymore. So if you really want to go, then pull this trigger."
She flinched as his hand squeezed tighter around hers.
"You said you wished I was dead!" He screamed. "Well, I am dead without you! Pull the trigger and rid me of the hell of facing this world without you by my side!"
Tears flowed from her eyes.
"PULL IT!" He cried out in anguish.
"Vala?" Daniel called to her, and it brought her from the memory. He ran his hand through her hair. "You okay?"
"I hurt you." She whispered, trying to sit up. Daniel placed his hand on her shoulder to halt her.
"No." His eyes were kind. "They tried to hurt US." He leaned down and kissed her forehead...and the rest of the memory came to Vala...
"I BEG YOU, PULL IT!" He sobbed out again. He broke down before her and she knew it was wrong. She was hurting him more than he was her. He wasn't really hurting her at all. He was saving her. As his fingers fell from around hers, she dropped the gun and wrapped her arms around his neck. She sobbed into him, guilt and shame overtaking her. His arms wrapped around her tightly, protectively.
"I don't want you to die at my hand." She cried out desperately. "And I don't want to die in your arms. But this hurts so much. I want that stuff so bad, and I hate it."
"I know, I know." He soothed as he brushed his hand over her sweat-soaked hair. "But you can fight it." His voice grew strong at the words.
She clung to him, and whispered with fear into his ear. "Don't leave me, Daniel."
"Wouldn't dream of it...We're gonna fight this together."
Daniel's voice once again brought her back. He was looking at her with pride and love.
"But we showed them, like always. We made it through. We survived like we always do." He brought her hand to his lips, and kissed is gently.
"Like we always will."
Life
Act Well. Be Polite. Play Nice. Never Indulge. Be Honest. Work Hard. Live Prosperous.
She had been sixteen, and that was all she had ever known. They had raised her and her sisters that way. Every child in their province had been raised that way. She had been kept young, as had many others she had grown with. They had the privilege of wealth to keep them sheltered to the horrors beyond their towns.
Never drink. Never smoke. Never steal. Never cheat. Never lie.
She followed those rules. Many of them didn't...they broke a few. But for the most part, everyone she had known was pure and innocent. Her father never did those things, her mother never did those things, none of her sisters faltered either. And she was proud to be among a group of people that were good and had pure hearts. She wanted to be like them.
Until two young men came blazing into their province, and stopped in her town. One was slightly older, and had said they were looking for work. He was eloquent and had a definite trusting air around him. But the other...the other was wild. Even as he had stood quiet while his older companion made a place for them in her town, she had seen the fire in his eyes.
And it had intrigued her. Curiosity had always been frowned upon as she'd grown, but she had never been able to tame it. And that's what had led her one night to the barn where the two had been staying.
Vala tried to remain quiet as she watched the two of them. They were so different from any of the other boys she had ever known. They talked dirty, got loud and rowdy, drank and smoked, and always were doing more wrong then they let on.
She leaned down, trying to hear the conversation they were having. Next thing she knew, she found herself on the floor, looking up into those fiery blue eyes once more.
"Were you spying on us, baby?" He said around the cigarette in his mouth. Vala felt she should be angry with the name he called her, but the smile of his lips was just as mesmerizing as his eyes. And the guilt she had come to have anytime she did anything wrong overwhelmed her.
"I'm sorry." Vala scrambled to sit up, but swayed slightly. She felt herself steadied against a strong chest, a warm hand coming to rest against her forehead, holding her to him.
"Easy, beautiful." She felt her breathing hitch at his choice of names this time. "You took quite a spill from the hayloft." He moved to help her stand. Vala wanted to run away, but the look in his eyes was so powerful.
"I'm Daniel." He smiled.
Vala swallowed, knowing this was wrong. He was already the talk of the town...a bad boy, a rebel. And yet, she couldn't bring herself to leave.
"Vala." She replied, a small smile gracing her face. It brought a twinge of pain just above her eye, and she placed her fingers to the tender spot. Daniel winced in sympathy.
"That's gonna be a nasty little bruise." He pulled the cigarette from his mouth, and held it out to her. She blinked, unsure what to do.
"I...I don't smoke." Vala finally said, crossing her arms over her chest, feeling insecure.
Daniel raised his eyebrows suggestively. "After a fall like that, anyone could use a drag."
Vala blinked again, this time in confusion. "What?"
"A drag." Daniel smiled, putting the cigarette to his lips and pulling from it in demonstration.
Vala lifted her head in understanding, and he moved to hand her the cigarette once again. She shook her head. "I'm not allowed to smoke."
This brought a laugh from Daniel. He stepped closer to her, and Vala wanted to flinch. She was surprised when she didn't.
"Vala, there have been a lot of things I've been told I wasn't allowed to do." Daniel blew smoke away from her face, then brought his lips close to hers. "You know what my answer to those people was?"
"What's that?" She breathed, both scared and excited by his closeness.
Daniel smiled mischievously, holding the cigarette close to her mouth. "Fuck 'em."
She knew she shouldn't smile at his comment, but Vala did anyway. This was wrong...so wrong, but she took the cigarette. She hesitated as she moved to bring it to her lips.
"Just suck..." Daniel's lips twitched at the word. "Hold it in until you get that buzzing feeling in your head..." Vala did as he instructed. "And blow it out."
She did that, but couldn't help the cough that followed. "That's...disgusting." She wheezed, and then laughed.
"Isn't it?" Daniel smiled, taking the cigarette back and pulling from it with his lips.
"Daniel..." Jack waltz back into the open space. "What are you doing to this poor girl?" Vala noticed how he weaved slightly as he sauntered over to them, an open bottle in his hand, and quite a few more gathered in his arms.
"I'm breaking her free..." Daniel snatched one of the bottles from Jack's arms greedily as the slightly taller man bumped into him. He quickly rid it of its top, and took a deep drink from the bottle, draining the contents to about half. Daniel wiped his mouth as he brought the bottle down. "Of her restraints."
Jack leaned in close to Daniel, and the younger man had to place a hand on his friend's chest to keep Jack from plowing into him. "She's gonna cause us trouble." He tried to whisper, but Vala heard it.
Daniel looked at her, and there was something in his eyes Vala couldn't understand. "Ya know, I think she's worth it."
Vala blushed, but reached for the cigarette in his hand. She took a pull from it and fought hard not to cough as she exhaled the smoke. She had no idea why she felt the need to do it.
Daniel smiled and gave a knowing glance to Jack. Jack, in turn, gave a small nod, and stumbled off towards the roaring fire in the middle of the barn. Daniel took the cigarette back from Vala, and took one final pull from it.
"Vala..." Daniel looked down at the cigarette as he ground it into the floor. His blue eyes came back up to meet hers. "You wanna join us?" He held out the bottle he was still holding to her.
Vala looked down at the bottle. "I want to..." She stuttered. "But I can't."
Daniel stepped closer to her once again. His free hand ran a smooth, warm trail down her back. And Vala liked it a lot more than she should. He leaned in and whispered in her ear.
"I don't care about what you can't do." Daniel placed a kiss to her cheek, and she felt the fire within him shoot through her body. "I care about what you wanna do."
Vala couldn't stop herself from taking the bottle. She took a tentative sip, and the burn that went down her throat matched the inferno in those blue eyes. And no matter how terribly wrong it felt, Vala found herself taking a deeper drink from the liquid fire.
Things had begun to change after that.
She stopped seeing her papa as the pure hero, and her mama was no longer the angel of innocence she had thought she was. Her sisters became nothing more than incessant annoyances in her slowly unraveling world. When she was at home, she began to feel like an imposter. When she was with Jack and Daniel, she began to feel perfection.
So she started spending more time with them. And quickly everything that had been important before became so...unbelievably stupid. She began to skip her daily lessons to go and get wrapped up in wonder with Daniel. Curfews were forgotten and inhibitions lost as Vala fell deeper into his world of too much booze and way more fun.
Soon home was more foreign to her then the barn. She found she slept later into the day, and stayed up later into the night. The dresses she had always loved lost their appeal, and quickly she found them too constricting. And unease crept into her body when she was left without a gun close at hand, especially after Daniel and Jack began to teach her how to shoot.
And her mama's words fast became poison compare to the whispered words of a young man she had quickly begun to realise she was falling hard for.
Act Well became Act like you damn well pleased.
Be Polite became Be pissed at anything that didn't go your way.
Play Nice became Play dirty, or you'll surely get fucked.
Never Indulge became Never waste an opportunity to get lit and have fun.
Be Honest became Be honestly dishonest to get the things you REALLY wanted.
Work Hard became Work it hard to get one step ahead of the competition.
Live Prosperous became Live like there was no tomorrow.
Never drink turned into drink too much, too often, and love it.
Never smoke turned into smoke as many as you could whenever you wanted to.
Never steal turned into Take what you can, give nothing back.
Never cheat turned into Cheat anyone you know will try and cheat you first.
Never Lie turned into Lie as often as needed to get you out of, or possibly into, any situation.
She had tried to hide how messed up she was every morning after leaving the barn. A part of her had still clung to the belief of protect your family's honor. She had tried to keep her walk even, and the insatiable need to scream, laugh, and dance like she could with 'her boys' buried deep within. But soon she began to grow sick of it.
"You know what, Daniel?" Vala breathed against him, enjoying the slur to her voice and the blurred edges of her vision. She smiled as Daniel leaned in to kiss her, truly loving this new sensation of his tongue invading her mouth.
"What babe?" He asked as he pulled away, falling back against the hay covered floor. Vala held up her finger, and drank from the bottle in her other hand. When she pulled it away, she tried to give him a serious look.
"Mama is really starting to piss me off." She frowned. "I mean, she knows I've changed, but she has no proof. And she's trying to work something out of me, and I don't like it..."
Daniel interrupted her for a moment. "You haven't changed. You've grown, but definitely haven't changed."
Vala leaned in and kissed him like he had been kissing her. "Anyways..." She moved to stand, and stepped back a bit as the world tilted as she came to her feet. "I'm sick of pretending to be that nothing I was when they all know I'm something now."
Daniel came to stand as well. He looked into her glazed grey eyes, and rubbed his thumb along her cheek. "You were never nothing to me." He stepped closer and his hands gripped the fabric of her dress. He pulled, and made a tear down the middle of the flowing material.
"Daniel?" Vala questioned, no fear in her voice.
"You're too big for this place, Vala." Daniel pulled out his dagger, and began to cut pieces of fabric away from her dress. "Jack and I have discussed it, and we both think you belong with us. Not just because you're brilliant, and great with a gun, and fun also..." Daniel smiled, and continued to modify her dress. Vala enjoyed the feel of his hands roaming over her body. He stopped after a moment, eyeing his work. "But also because I don't think I can leave here without you."
He turned her, and Vala gasped at her reflection in the mirror. She leaned back against Daniel, and the image reflected back at her of the two of them was so right. Daniel leaned in, and placed a kiss to her now exposed shoulder.
"You are perfection to me." He whispered to her.
That night she had given herself to Daniel. And no longer was the obligation to family a thought in her mind. They hadn't gotten much sleep that night, and the next morning both had gone stumbling into town together, still lit from their evening escapades. Wearing her new outfit, one of Daniel's guns hanging from her hip, Vala had walked straight - okay, not so straight - to her house, Daniel's hand in hers. And she had confronted the family who had kept her tied down for far too long.
They burst through the door together, and Vala was met with the unbelievable stares of her family at the breakfast table.
"Mornin' everyone." She giggled, and then hiccupped a little. Daniel's arms around her waist tightened, and he placed an amused kiss to her neck. "How's that breakfast of yours?"
She held onto a laugh at the look her mother and father shot her.
"It's fine, dear." Her mother looked at her with a false smile. "Would you like to sit and join us?"
Vala did laugh at that. "Nah..." She drawled out and took a few unsteady steps toward the table. Daniel remained standing in the doorway. "See, I've already had my breakfast, and that said, if I sat down right now, I don't think I could get back up."
"Maybe that's a good thing." Her daddy said, fixing her with a hard glare. "Maybe it'll keep you here, away from him..." he pointed at Daniel. "And stop you from disgracing this family."
Vala snorted at the statement. "You wanna see disgracing?" She stood, walked back to Daniel, and captured his mouth in a fiery kiss. She jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. She looked at Daniel, and smiled.
"I'm done."
Daniel nodded and moved to carry her out into the street.
"Vala!" Her mother screamed after them "You're wasting your life away! Don't give yourself to him! He'll only bring you bad things!"
Vala made Daniel stop and jumped out of him arms. She stalked back over to her mother.
"Save myself?" She laughed. "I've already been saved. Saved from you, from this town, from the rules. I'm leaving, mama. And I have no intention of EVER coming back, so you can keep those threats of not having a home to return to quiet." Vala moved close to her mother, then turned and pointed at Daniel.
"See that man?" She asked, and didn't wait for an answer. "He has brought something to me that I never realised I was missing - freedom. Freedom to do what I want, say what I want, act like I wanna act-" She paused as a small burp escaped her lips. It smelled like what they'd been drinking not even an hour earlier. "Drink what I want. And every time I do that, I'll lose more of the YOU inside me. I'll gain more of myself..." Vala leaned in close to whisper in her mother's ear. "And soon I'll be the same woman I gave to Daniel last night...the woman he sees and you don't. Your little girl is dead."
And as Vala had walked away, a part of her had been sad. Childhood had been leaving her in those steps. Part of her still loved her mama, papa, and family. The same part that had wanted to remain the young girl looking in on the strange boys in the barn.
But, now, as she lays against Daniel in their bed of the moment, Vala is glad she never looked back that day. Because the feel of his warm skin has become the home she never knew she was missing. The kiss he softly places in her hair is the love she would never have gotten from anyone else. Daniel is her destroyer and creator...
He stole her innocence, but gave Vala her life.
Girls
Vala sat at the one table in the room, her feet propped up on the corner, a cigarette gripped between her fingers dangling down at her side. Her other hand was pulled out in front of her as Sam began to touch the edge of an ink-soaked brush onto her skin.
"Is this permanent?" Vala questioned curiously, taking a drag from the cigarette. The smoke she exhaled rose to join the thick cloud hovering around the room. She watched with fascination as Sam began to weave patterns with the dark brown ink.
Sam inched her chair closer and shook her head. "It'll last a couple of weeks...maybe a month." She continued to paint patterns of lines and dots along Vala's fingers and up her hand.
"A month?" Vala paused a moment as the guys on the other end of the room got a little louder than normal. She smiled as Daniel got right up in Jack's face playfully, both of them arguing over whether whoever's shot was legal or not in their messed up version of pool. "You would think..." She turned her grey eyes back to watch Sam work. "Something so intricate and time-consuming to do would last longer."
Sam looked up at her, and flashed a mischievous grin. "Just be glad I'm not making you pay." She blew across Vala's hand to help dry the ink. "I get paid..." She reached over and plucked the cigarette from Vala's lips. Taking a drag, she sat back. "A pretty penny for this type of work."
Vala laughed. "From good upstanding ladies like yourself." She tilted her head, then smiled. "Or like you've convinced everyone that you are."
"Hey!" Sam kicked a foot out at Vala's chair. "I make an honest living providing a service for people."
"Oh right. Smuggling in outlawed goods from foreign places and then selling it to the rich and brainless." Vala reached forward, grabbing the drink they were sharing. "That's a real honest living." She titled the cup towards Sam, then took a sip from it.
"At least I don't shoot people." Sam said in a teasing tone, once more resuming her work on Vala. "My deals don't end in gun fights and wanted posters. Everything is done under wraps."
Vala shifted in her chair, pulling the last drag from the cigarette Sam had handed back to her. "That's because you give those high-enders a product...which I in turn go out and take from them, and trade for things that can be useful for the lesser fortunate out there. It's easier to give then to take..."At Sam's look, Vala just shrugged. "Or maybe it's just quieter." She smiled impishly. "Plus I know how to handle a weapon."
"Look here, missy..." Sam came back up, and pointed her brush at Vala. "I'll have you know I am very good with swords and daggers."
Vala nodded. "Taught by those oh-so-trustworthy foreign teachers of yours."
Sam laughed, and swept her arm out towards the guys, still playing dirty despite being best friends. "And you were trained by much better?" She looked Vala up and down. "Can definitely tell you're a graduate of their teachings. What lady puts their stolen boots up on the table?"
Vala stuck out her tongue. "Never said anything about being a lady. In fact, I believe we already implied I wasn't." She gave her best friend a look of indignation. "And they're not stolen - Daniel bought them for me."
Sam just gave Vala a look.
"Well, he gave them to me..."
Sam laughed. "Then they're definitely stolen. But now there's a good explanation as to why you NEVER take them off." She eyed Vala, wearing those boots, Daniel's shirt, and a pair of panties. Any other articles of clothing were, not surprisingly, absent. "Even when you are half-naked."
Vala just shrugged innocently. "I like the way they look...and Daniel likes the way they look." Vala pointed her finger at Sam and pouted playfully. "And he doesn't steal EVERYTHING..."
Sam looked up, and smiled at the person who had come to stand behind Vala silently "He stole your heart."
Vala breathed in deeply as strong, familiar arms wrapped around her. "That's very true." She sighed as Daniel placed a tender kiss on her cheek. "He stole all of me."
Daniel smiled, then looked at Sam as he rested his chin on Vala's shoulder. "And that is the only everything worth stealing."
Vala patted his cheek with her free hand, the other still being painted by Sam. "You're such a sap."
Daniel laughed and squeezed her gently. "The guns hanging from my belt would attest to that."
He kissed her cheek again. "I just wanted to see what trouble you ladies were getting in to." He stood back up, and pointed at Sam's handy work. "I like that...very sexy."
Vala leaned her head back to look at him. "It's to attract handsome men."
"Guess it works." Daniel smiled impishly, and leaned down to kiss her again. "Now Iet this handsome man go win some more money off his best friend for a pretty girl."
Vala smiled as he turned to head back to the pool table. "You gonna buy said pretty girl a drink with that money?"
Daniel shrugged and turned to give her a wink. "I only buy drinks for girls I wanna get in bed."
Vala licked her lips at the look that twinkled in his bright blue eyes. "Well, I only go to bed with a guy to steal his money while he's sleeping."
"Just his money?" Daniel questioned with a raise of his eyebrow. "Cause it sure looks like you ran off with the last chump's shirt also..." Daniel shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back against the pool table. "Poor man...running around without his shirt. What would his girlfriend think?"
Vala flicked her gaze down a bit.
"That it's a shame she didn't get his pants too."
Reviews and comments are LVOE!
Chapters 11 - 15 (Retribution, Crash, Survive, Life, & Girls)
Retribution
The match flared to life as he struck it against the wall. He leaned in, and put it to his cigarette.
He dropped the match onto the ground, making the people on the other end of the room flinch. The flame licked at the edge of the trail of gunpowder that led straight to where they were sitting strapped together with about ten pounds of explosives.
Sure, it was a bit overkill. But right then, he didn't really give a shit.
Finally the powder sparked, and the people on the other end of its death line started to scream and wail. He grinned at their distress, taking a drag from his cigarette. He placed his foot over the spark, and slowly stomped it out.
"Now that I've really got your attention." He said, his voice barely suppressing the fury within him. "I want you to tell me where she is."
The man he'd assumed was the ring-leader spoke up. "Sir, we don't know who you speak of."
"That's BULLSHIT!" He shouted in response, pointing his cigarette at the oversized lump of a man. "I know for a fact that she was in here just last week."
"Sir..." the man spoke up again. Oh, he was brave. "Your information must be mistaken because we have never seen this Vala you ask us about."
He laughed out to the ceiling. "See, you just FUCKED yourself right there!" He swiftly moved to squat down in front of the man. He pulled from the cigarette again, making sure to dangle it close to one of the sticks of dynamite as he pulled it away from his mouth. "I never told you her name."
The man paled. "N-no...I...You did."
He smiled at the man's screw up. "N-no..." He mocked. "I...I d-d-didn't." He stood back up, sweeping his arm over the explosives as he did, raining hot ashes all over. "God, they really can't seem to find themselves INTELLIGENT trustees, can they?" He shouted with glee. He walked back to the other side of the room, and turned back to the now sweaty man.
"See, unlike them..." He pulled a drag from the cigarette. "My contacts are smart, and VERY reliable." He exhaled blue smoke to the ceiling. "My most trusted source...you might know him...a little taller than me, wicked sense of humor, drinks a little too much and plays a little too loud, my teacher and mentor...best friend actually...goes by the name of Jack."
The pudgy little toad's eyes widened. "Mr. O'Neill? But he's not..."
His blue eyes brightened. God, he loved doing this. "Not what? A criminal? A rogue?" He laughed to the ceiling once more. "Damn, he's played you good! He told me this would be so much fun, and I honestly thought he was joking. Because how could anything be fun without the love of my life at my side? But no, he was right." He stepped closer to the group of people again. "He's the one who told me she was here, by the way. And he would NEVER lie to me about this." He put his hand to his chin, and considered what he just said. "In fact, he would never lie to me about ANYTHING."
He knelt down, and fingered the trail of gun powder. He brought the almost finished cigarette close to the black substance, looking up at the man. "Tell me where they took her."
"Sir...p-please..." the man stuttered, struggling in his restraints. "I'll tell you...Just...let the women go."
He'd had enough with this talk. It was clear the man was just running him in circles so those who had Vala could get farther away. He would lose the trail if he didn't get the info like five minutes ago.
"FUCK the women!" He shouted as he stood. His temper was gone. "THEY helped YOU drug her and beat her, and have her ra..." He stopped on the word, unable to say it. He took a calming deep breath, allowing the slow burn of fury to give him focus. "Now you're going to tell me." He drew his gun, and pointed it at the most overdressed woman tied in the group. "Or I'll shoot your slut before your very eyes...and then if you still don't tell me, I'll kill all your other whores, and leave you here to ROT in their stench."
One of the women cursed at him in another language, and he smiled. "Why thank you, princess." She looked at him wide-eyed. He winked at her, then turned back to the man. "Tick, tock, tick, tock." He cocked the gun, and went to squeeze the trigger, the cigarette slipping from his grasp.
"Wait!" The man shouted. He pulled up the gun, but still dropped the cigarette.
"Pressure, pressure." He shrugged.
"I overheard them say they were taking her through the forest to their hideout along the mountains, about twenty miles north." The pudgy man looked at the spark traveling his way. "Now please, put it out."
He nodded and stomped out the spark once more. He turned away from them, and moved to pick up his bag. Tossing the now dead cigarette butt to the ground, he started to exit the building.
"Wait, aren't you gonna untie us?!" The man shouted.
Daniel turned as he reached the doorway. He tilted his head as if considering the thought for a moment. Then he smiled.
"Nope." He stated simply, aiming his gun at the trail of powder. The man and women screamed as he fired, the spark of the bullet ricocheting off the floor setting off another spark along the black line.
With that, he walked out quickly. He pulled another cigarette out, and just as he lit it with a match, the building behind him exploded. His smile of retribution was bright, his stride never faltering as the ground beneath him shook.
"All for you, baby." Daniel stated to the open air as debris rained down around him.
Crash
From the shadows, Daniel could see every action in the vast room before him. Scantily clad women stumbling along in a drugged daze, barely acknowledging the pompous men chasing after them. This was a rich man's playground, and Daniel quietly spit out the nasty taste that came to his mouth at the thought. Vala was here, and from what he'd been told - she was the most sought after toy.
It made his stomach churn just considering how he'd find her. His finger itched to squeeze the trigger of his beloved gun, taking shots into every bastard that walked by his hidden position. But Daniel knew he had to wait...wait for his cue as his partner in this rescue had said.
The cue itself had never been discussed, but between them it never was. It never needed to be.
So the gun remained in his hand, dangling in wait by his side as he continued to watch the room.
Some of the "honored guests" moved out of his line of sight, and Daniel felt his temper flare as she came into view. Literally leashed to a greasy, skinny, arrogant man, Vala was too out of it to fight against his uncaring perusal of her body. Another woman, no doubt the man's main whore, was sticking a needle into Vala's already black and blue arm.
Daniel inhaled furiously as 'Mr. Slimeball' turned Vala to capture her mouth in a disgusting kiss. She came alive against him, obviously taken in by the effects of whatever they'd injected into her. She smiled lazily as she pulled away, saying something to the man that Daniel couldn't hear over the other commotion. It obviously didn't please the man, who backhanded her across the cheek hard.
Screw waiting - He couldn't watch this. Daniel moved to step out when a voice just off from his right stopped him.
"Easy, big fella." It was rough and familiar, but it was barely enough to halt Daniel in his actions. "Move now, and he'll kill her for sure."
"Jack, I can't stand here and watch them drug her, then molest her, then beat her." Daniel hissed.
"And they know that, Danny boy." Jack never looked at him. "You're the target, she's the bait."
Daniel growled quietly, coming to rest against the wall once more. "And you're my ace in the hole."
His gaze flicked to Vala for a moment, and he flinched as an unnatural giggle came past her lips. His hand around the gun shook with suppressed rage. "Now, I love you like a brother. But I love Vala more than anything in this fucked up world, and if you don't act soon, I won't be able to restrain myself much longer."
Finally Jack glanced at him quickly, a wicked smile coming to his face. "On with the show." He winked, and headed into the crowd. Daniel sighed gratefully for Jack's assistance. He knew his older friend was blowing the hard-earned network of cons he'd made to get to a 'high end status'...his cover as an 'upstanding gentleman' was going down the toilet. But Jack loved Vala because she loved Daniel like Daniel loved her, and he would do anything to get her back to him. Daniel knew that, and found himself respecting his friend even more.
He watched as Jack approached the man attached to Vala. From where he was hidden, he couldn't hear the conversation. But the moment Jack held up his hand in a gesture of good faith to his host before him, Daniel watched as one of the guards by the large doors turned on his own, a long shotgun coming up from beneath his standard issue coat.
At the sound of a 'YEEHAW!' coming from the masked man, Daniel smiled, knowing that was his cue. He pulled out from the shadows, and fired off rounds into every man he had seen holding a weapon, his path heading straight for Vala's 'keeper'. Jack pulled out his own weapons, and began to help the shot gun man take out the remaining guards.
As he approached the pair, Daniel watched as Vala was pulled close to her captor, a pistol placed to her head. He focused his rage, and pointed his gun straight at the man's head.
"The great Daniel Jackson." The man laughed in an accented voice. "They say you're the quickest shot around." He licked along Vala's neck, but Daniel wouldn't give him the pleasure of seeing him lose it. "Would you be willing to test it with your precious little whore's life on the line?"
Daniel flicked his blue eyes to Vala. She was staring at him, and though her eyes were hazy and unfocused, he could tell she was fighting the effects of the drugs. Her nostrils flared silently, and Daniel knew she was pissed.
And for half a microsecond, he felt pity for the man holding her captive.
The room went suddenly silent as his friends ceased firing. Jack came to stand by his side, gun raised in a similar position. The other came to stand behind Vala's captor, the shot gun barrel coming to rest right against his head.
"You might wanna drop the pistol and let the pretty lady go." His country drawl was muffled behind the mask.
The man turned his head to get a glimpse of the masked man. "And you must be-"
While the man's attention was averted momentarily, Vala slowly removed the needle she'd concealed up her sleeve. Before he had a chance to realize what happened, Vala yanked hard of the chain attaching him to her and turned to jab the needle in his neck. He gasped in utter shock, falling to the floor in a fit of convulsions.
"I am nobody's whore!" She gasped as she stumbled backwards. It had taken all her will power to fight back, and she quickly succumb to the drugs in her system once more. Her back quickly collided with something firm and warm, and she felt herself being lowered to the ground. She looked up in to welcoming blue eyes. Vala moved her hand to rest against his cheek, missing her target by a long shot. "My hero." She whispered as he took her hand in his.
"Not this time, baby." Daniel smiled, tears coming to his eyes. "You did it all by yourself."
Vala smiled, not really comprehending his words.
Daniel let out a shuddered breath as her eyes closed slowly. He looked up as two shadows came across them both.
"We need to get out of here..." Jack said, in complete 'down to business' mode. "Reinforcements will be here shortly."
Daniel nodded and moved to take Vala in his arms as he stood.
"You need a hand?"
Daniel looked up as the masked man removed said mask. "I need to do this." He smiled at the other man's nod of understanding. "But I'm damn glad you could join the party, Cam." He said with complete appreciation.
Cameron smiled. "Like I could miss out on this?" He laughed as they moved to leave. He checked his shot gun quickly, and pointed it out the doorway, checking the hall. "You guys always crash the best shindigs." He looked back at Daniel, who had his gun raised in his free hands as they entered the hall. He looked at Vala, her arms and legs wrapped around Daniel, his arm holding her tightly in place. "Plus that pretty lady is worth it."
Jack squeezed Daniel's shoulder from behind as he took up the rear. "Way worth it."
Daniel nodded, and placed a kiss on Vala's cheek.
He couldn't agree more.
Survive
She stirred slowly, the sounds of familiar arguing and laughter waking her from sleep. It was loud and rowdy, but somehow it felt right. Not like the sounds she had been hearing for what seemed like an eternity. No, the sounds she heard now fit.
Especially the sound of a voice booming just above her head. It shouted and laughed, and it reverberated through her body as she lay against its owner. The happiness in it soothed her, and she fought to open her tired eyes to glance up at who it belonged to.
Because no matter how hard she tried, her mind couldn't process any memories of who it was.
She was met with a beautiful blue-eyed gaze. And, without thought, his name came past her lips
"Daniel."
His smile was radiant and split his lips wide. "The one and only."
She smiled a moment, then the smile fell away. Like flood gates opening, the memories of the past few days came rushing back to her. She remembered anger, yelling, hatred, agony...
"LET ME GO!" She screamed.
"I can't do that!" He screamed right back.
"If you loved me...you would let me go." She pleaded.
"Why?! So you can go and run off to the first rundown, dirty drug den you can find and lose what's left of yourself in that shit? No, Vala. I can't let you go because I love you." His voice was shaky.
"I just need one...only one more. That's it." She promised
"No, it's not! You say one more, and then one leads to two, and two leads to five, and before you know it you'll be back in the hands of people who will use you to get me!" He argued.
"So this about you, huh? You don't LOVE me. It's all about you. I'm here, dying before your eyes, and all you can care about is yourself!" She hollered.
"It's not about me!" She flinched as he moved to come closer. He saw the action and stopped. "If you get caught again, and if I get caught, then they'll do to me what they've done to you...and everyone we've ever cared about will be fucked. Jack, Cameron, Sam, Teal'c...everyone."
She laughed, pulling against the restraints holding her to the bed. "Don't use them against me. I know you're lying!"
He clapped his hands together tightly. "Why would I do that? I love you. And I hate what this is doing to you - to us. I don't want to see you suffer, baby."
She thrashed out towards him. "Don't call me that! I'm not your baby! How could anyone want to be attached to anything as disgusting and horrible as you. You, who drinks too much and cares too much. The honest criminal. What a bunch of shit!"
She stopped as pains shot through her body. "I hate you." She whispered around a sob.
He looked at her, barely holding on to his emotions. "And I still love you, despite that."
The words spiked her temper once more, and she pulled hard against the binds around her wrists. "I wish you were dead!"
He nodded and grabbed his gun from the table nearby. She watched him, fear seizing her for a moment. He quickly undid the ties around her arms and legs, and placed the gun on the bed before her.
"If that's what you really want." He sighed, and she noticed a tear fall from his watery blue eye. He backed off a bit, and let his arms fall down at his sides. "I beg you to do it yourself before you leave. Put me out of my misery. Because I refuse to be around to watch you destroy everything that's so beautiful and wonderful in this world - I won't watch you kill yourself slowly."
She looked at the gun, and found she was having trouble speaking. "I...I..."
He rushed towards her, taking the gun and shoving it in her hand. "You want me dead? DO IT!" He wrapped his hand around hers, and made her push the barrel to his head. The tears now flowing freely down his cheeks hurt her more than the pain inside. "Kill me now, Vala! I would rather die here, now, then to have YOU die in my arms down the road. I can't live with the knowledge that if I let you go get that fix, I'll lose your soul now and then have to lose your life later. I just can't do that. If I'm not strong enough to help you right now, then there's no point in me fighting anymore. So if you really want to go, then pull this trigger."
She flinched as his hand squeezed tighter around hers.
"You said you wished I was dead!" He screamed. "Well, I am dead without you! Pull the trigger and rid me of the hell of facing this world without you by my side!"
Tears flowed from her eyes.
"PULL IT!" He cried out in anguish.
"Vala?" Daniel called to her, and it brought her from the memory. He ran his hand through her hair. "You okay?"
"I hurt you." She whispered, trying to sit up. Daniel placed his hand on her shoulder to halt her.
"No." His eyes were kind. "They tried to hurt US." He leaned down and kissed her forehead...and the rest of the memory came to Vala...
"I BEG YOU, PULL IT!" He sobbed out again. He broke down before her and she knew it was wrong. She was hurting him more than he was her. He wasn't really hurting her at all. He was saving her. As his fingers fell from around hers, she dropped the gun and wrapped her arms around his neck. She sobbed into him, guilt and shame overtaking her. His arms wrapped around her tightly, protectively.
"I don't want you to die at my hand." She cried out desperately. "And I don't want to die in your arms. But this hurts so much. I want that stuff so bad, and I hate it."
"I know, I know." He soothed as he brushed his hand over her sweat-soaked hair. "But you can fight it." His voice grew strong at the words.
She clung to him, and whispered with fear into his ear. "Don't leave me, Daniel."
"Wouldn't dream of it...We're gonna fight this together."
Daniel's voice once again brought her back. He was looking at her with pride and love.
"But we showed them, like always. We made it through. We survived like we always do." He brought her hand to his lips, and kissed is gently.
"Like we always will."
Life
Act Well. Be Polite. Play Nice. Never Indulge. Be Honest. Work Hard. Live Prosperous.
She had been sixteen, and that was all she had ever known. They had raised her and her sisters that way. Every child in their province had been raised that way. She had been kept young, as had many others she had grown with. They had the privilege of wealth to keep them sheltered to the horrors beyond their towns.
Never drink. Never smoke. Never steal. Never cheat. Never lie.
She followed those rules. Many of them didn't...they broke a few. But for the most part, everyone she had known was pure and innocent. Her father never did those things, her mother never did those things, none of her sisters faltered either. And she was proud to be among a group of people that were good and had pure hearts. She wanted to be like them.
Until two young men came blazing into their province, and stopped in her town. One was slightly older, and had said they were looking for work. He was eloquent and had a definite trusting air around him. But the other...the other was wild. Even as he had stood quiet while his older companion made a place for them in her town, she had seen the fire in his eyes.
And it had intrigued her. Curiosity had always been frowned upon as she'd grown, but she had never been able to tame it. And that's what had led her one night to the barn where the two had been staying.
Vala tried to remain quiet as she watched the two of them. They were so different from any of the other boys she had ever known. They talked dirty, got loud and rowdy, drank and smoked, and always were doing more wrong then they let on.
She leaned down, trying to hear the conversation they were having. Next thing she knew, she found herself on the floor, looking up into those fiery blue eyes once more.
"Were you spying on us, baby?" He said around the cigarette in his mouth. Vala felt she should be angry with the name he called her, but the smile of his lips was just as mesmerizing as his eyes. And the guilt she had come to have anytime she did anything wrong overwhelmed her.
"I'm sorry." Vala scrambled to sit up, but swayed slightly. She felt herself steadied against a strong chest, a warm hand coming to rest against her forehead, holding her to him.
"Easy, beautiful." She felt her breathing hitch at his choice of names this time. "You took quite a spill from the hayloft." He moved to help her stand. Vala wanted to run away, but the look in his eyes was so powerful.
"I'm Daniel." He smiled.
Vala swallowed, knowing this was wrong. He was already the talk of the town...a bad boy, a rebel. And yet, she couldn't bring herself to leave.
"Vala." She replied, a small smile gracing her face. It brought a twinge of pain just above her eye, and she placed her fingers to the tender spot. Daniel winced in sympathy.
"That's gonna be a nasty little bruise." He pulled the cigarette from his mouth, and held it out to her. She blinked, unsure what to do.
"I...I don't smoke." Vala finally said, crossing her arms over her chest, feeling insecure.
Daniel raised his eyebrows suggestively. "After a fall like that, anyone could use a drag."
Vala blinked again, this time in confusion. "What?"
"A drag." Daniel smiled, putting the cigarette to his lips and pulling from it in demonstration.
Vala lifted her head in understanding, and he moved to hand her the cigarette once again. She shook her head. "I'm not allowed to smoke."
This brought a laugh from Daniel. He stepped closer to her, and Vala wanted to flinch. She was surprised when she didn't.
"Vala, there have been a lot of things I've been told I wasn't allowed to do." Daniel blew smoke away from her face, then brought his lips close to hers. "You know what my answer to those people was?"
"What's that?" She breathed, both scared and excited by his closeness.
Daniel smiled mischievously, holding the cigarette close to her mouth. "Fuck 'em."
She knew she shouldn't smile at his comment, but Vala did anyway. This was wrong...so wrong, but she took the cigarette. She hesitated as she moved to bring it to her lips.
"Just suck..." Daniel's lips twitched at the word. "Hold it in until you get that buzzing feeling in your head..." Vala did as he instructed. "And blow it out."
She did that, but couldn't help the cough that followed. "That's...disgusting." She wheezed, and then laughed.
"Isn't it?" Daniel smiled, taking the cigarette back and pulling from it with his lips.
"Daniel..." Jack waltz back into the open space. "What are you doing to this poor girl?" Vala noticed how he weaved slightly as he sauntered over to them, an open bottle in his hand, and quite a few more gathered in his arms.
"I'm breaking her free..." Daniel snatched one of the bottles from Jack's arms greedily as the slightly taller man bumped into him. He quickly rid it of its top, and took a deep drink from the bottle, draining the contents to about half. Daniel wiped his mouth as he brought the bottle down. "Of her restraints."
Jack leaned in close to Daniel, and the younger man had to place a hand on his friend's chest to keep Jack from plowing into him. "She's gonna cause us trouble." He tried to whisper, but Vala heard it.
Daniel looked at her, and there was something in his eyes Vala couldn't understand. "Ya know, I think she's worth it."
Vala blushed, but reached for the cigarette in his hand. She took a pull from it and fought hard not to cough as she exhaled the smoke. She had no idea why she felt the need to do it.
Daniel smiled and gave a knowing glance to Jack. Jack, in turn, gave a small nod, and stumbled off towards the roaring fire in the middle of the barn. Daniel took the cigarette back from Vala, and took one final pull from it.
"Vala..." Daniel looked down at the cigarette as he ground it into the floor. His blue eyes came back up to meet hers. "You wanna join us?" He held out the bottle he was still holding to her.
Vala looked down at the bottle. "I want to..." She stuttered. "But I can't."
Daniel stepped closer to her once again. His free hand ran a smooth, warm trail down her back. And Vala liked it a lot more than she should. He leaned in and whispered in her ear.
"I don't care about what you can't do." Daniel placed a kiss to her cheek, and she felt the fire within him shoot through her body. "I care about what you wanna do."
Vala couldn't stop herself from taking the bottle. She took a tentative sip, and the burn that went down her throat matched the inferno in those blue eyes. And no matter how terribly wrong it felt, Vala found herself taking a deeper drink from the liquid fire.
Things had begun to change after that.
She stopped seeing her papa as the pure hero, and her mama was no longer the angel of innocence she had thought she was. Her sisters became nothing more than incessant annoyances in her slowly unraveling world. When she was at home, she began to feel like an imposter. When she was with Jack and Daniel, she began to feel perfection.
So she started spending more time with them. And quickly everything that had been important before became so...unbelievably stupid. She began to skip her daily lessons to go and get wrapped up in wonder with Daniel. Curfews were forgotten and inhibitions lost as Vala fell deeper into his world of too much booze and way more fun.
Soon home was more foreign to her then the barn. She found she slept later into the day, and stayed up later into the night. The dresses she had always loved lost their appeal, and quickly she found them too constricting. And unease crept into her body when she was left without a gun close at hand, especially after Daniel and Jack began to teach her how to shoot.
And her mama's words fast became poison compare to the whispered words of a young man she had quickly begun to realise she was falling hard for.
Act Well became Act like you damn well pleased.
Be Polite became Be pissed at anything that didn't go your way.
Play Nice became Play dirty, or you'll surely get fucked.
Never Indulge became Never waste an opportunity to get lit and have fun.
Be Honest became Be honestly dishonest to get the things you REALLY wanted.
Work Hard became Work it hard to get one step ahead of the competition.
Live Prosperous became Live like there was no tomorrow.
Never drink turned into drink too much, too often, and love it.
Never smoke turned into smoke as many as you could whenever you wanted to.
Never steal turned into Take what you can, give nothing back.
Never cheat turned into Cheat anyone you know will try and cheat you first.
Never Lie turned into Lie as often as needed to get you out of, or possibly into, any situation.
She had tried to hide how messed up she was every morning after leaving the barn. A part of her had still clung to the belief of protect your family's honor. She had tried to keep her walk even, and the insatiable need to scream, laugh, and dance like she could with 'her boys' buried deep within. But soon she began to grow sick of it.
"You know what, Daniel?" Vala breathed against him, enjoying the slur to her voice and the blurred edges of her vision. She smiled as Daniel leaned in to kiss her, truly loving this new sensation of his tongue invading her mouth.
"What babe?" He asked as he pulled away, falling back against the hay covered floor. Vala held up her finger, and drank from the bottle in her other hand. When she pulled it away, she tried to give him a serious look.
"Mama is really starting to piss me off." She frowned. "I mean, she knows I've changed, but she has no proof. And she's trying to work something out of me, and I don't like it..."
Daniel interrupted her for a moment. "You haven't changed. You've grown, but definitely haven't changed."
Vala leaned in and kissed him like he had been kissing her. "Anyways..." She moved to stand, and stepped back a bit as the world tilted as she came to her feet. "I'm sick of pretending to be that nothing I was when they all know I'm something now."
Daniel came to stand as well. He looked into her glazed grey eyes, and rubbed his thumb along her cheek. "You were never nothing to me." He stepped closer and his hands gripped the fabric of her dress. He pulled, and made a tear down the middle of the flowing material.
"Daniel?" Vala questioned, no fear in her voice.
"You're too big for this place, Vala." Daniel pulled out his dagger, and began to cut pieces of fabric away from her dress. "Jack and I have discussed it, and we both think you belong with us. Not just because you're brilliant, and great with a gun, and fun also..." Daniel smiled, and continued to modify her dress. Vala enjoyed the feel of his hands roaming over her body. He stopped after a moment, eyeing his work. "But also because I don't think I can leave here without you."
He turned her, and Vala gasped at her reflection in the mirror. She leaned back against Daniel, and the image reflected back at her of the two of them was so right. Daniel leaned in, and placed a kiss to her now exposed shoulder.
"You are perfection to me." He whispered to her.
That night she had given herself to Daniel. And no longer was the obligation to family a thought in her mind. They hadn't gotten much sleep that night, and the next morning both had gone stumbling into town together, still lit from their evening escapades. Wearing her new outfit, one of Daniel's guns hanging from her hip, Vala had walked straight - okay, not so straight - to her house, Daniel's hand in hers. And she had confronted the family who had kept her tied down for far too long.
They burst through the door together, and Vala was met with the unbelievable stares of her family at the breakfast table.
"Mornin' everyone." She giggled, and then hiccupped a little. Daniel's arms around her waist tightened, and he placed an amused kiss to her neck. "How's that breakfast of yours?"
She held onto a laugh at the look her mother and father shot her.
"It's fine, dear." Her mother looked at her with a false smile. "Would you like to sit and join us?"
Vala did laugh at that. "Nah..." She drawled out and took a few unsteady steps toward the table. Daniel remained standing in the doorway. "See, I've already had my breakfast, and that said, if I sat down right now, I don't think I could get back up."
"Maybe that's a good thing." Her daddy said, fixing her with a hard glare. "Maybe it'll keep you here, away from him..." he pointed at Daniel. "And stop you from disgracing this family."
Vala snorted at the statement. "You wanna see disgracing?" She stood, walked back to Daniel, and captured his mouth in a fiery kiss. She jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. She looked at Daniel, and smiled.
"I'm done."
Daniel nodded and moved to carry her out into the street.
"Vala!" Her mother screamed after them "You're wasting your life away! Don't give yourself to him! He'll only bring you bad things!"
Vala made Daniel stop and jumped out of him arms. She stalked back over to her mother.
"Save myself?" She laughed. "I've already been saved. Saved from you, from this town, from the rules. I'm leaving, mama. And I have no intention of EVER coming back, so you can keep those threats of not having a home to return to quiet." Vala moved close to her mother, then turned and pointed at Daniel.
"See that man?" She asked, and didn't wait for an answer. "He has brought something to me that I never realised I was missing - freedom. Freedom to do what I want, say what I want, act like I wanna act-" She paused as a small burp escaped her lips. It smelled like what they'd been drinking not even an hour earlier. "Drink what I want. And every time I do that, I'll lose more of the YOU inside me. I'll gain more of myself..." Vala leaned in close to whisper in her mother's ear. "And soon I'll be the same woman I gave to Daniel last night...the woman he sees and you don't. Your little girl is dead."
And as Vala had walked away, a part of her had been sad. Childhood had been leaving her in those steps. Part of her still loved her mama, papa, and family. The same part that had wanted to remain the young girl looking in on the strange boys in the barn.
But, now, as she lays against Daniel in their bed of the moment, Vala is glad she never looked back that day. Because the feel of his warm skin has become the home she never knew she was missing. The kiss he softly places in her hair is the love she would never have gotten from anyone else. Daniel is her destroyer and creator...
He stole her innocence, but gave Vala her life.
Girls
Vala sat at the one table in the room, her feet propped up on the corner, a cigarette gripped between her fingers dangling down at her side. Her other hand was pulled out in front of her as Sam began to touch the edge of an ink-soaked brush onto her skin.
"Is this permanent?" Vala questioned curiously, taking a drag from the cigarette. The smoke she exhaled rose to join the thick cloud hovering around the room. She watched with fascination as Sam began to weave patterns with the dark brown ink.
Sam inched her chair closer and shook her head. "It'll last a couple of weeks...maybe a month." She continued to paint patterns of lines and dots along Vala's fingers and up her hand.
"A month?" Vala paused a moment as the guys on the other end of the room got a little louder than normal. She smiled as Daniel got right up in Jack's face playfully, both of them arguing over whether whoever's shot was legal or not in their messed up version of pool. "You would think..." She turned her grey eyes back to watch Sam work. "Something so intricate and time-consuming to do would last longer."
Sam looked up at her, and flashed a mischievous grin. "Just be glad I'm not making you pay." She blew across Vala's hand to help dry the ink. "I get paid..." She reached over and plucked the cigarette from Vala's lips. Taking a drag, she sat back. "A pretty penny for this type of work."
Vala laughed. "From good upstanding ladies like yourself." She tilted her head, then smiled. "Or like you've convinced everyone that you are."
"Hey!" Sam kicked a foot out at Vala's chair. "I make an honest living providing a service for people."
"Oh right. Smuggling in outlawed goods from foreign places and then selling it to the rich and brainless." Vala reached forward, grabbing the drink they were sharing. "That's a real honest living." She titled the cup towards Sam, then took a sip from it.
"At least I don't shoot people." Sam said in a teasing tone, once more resuming her work on Vala. "My deals don't end in gun fights and wanted posters. Everything is done under wraps."
Vala shifted in her chair, pulling the last drag from the cigarette Sam had handed back to her. "That's because you give those high-enders a product...which I in turn go out and take from them, and trade for things that can be useful for the lesser fortunate out there. It's easier to give then to take..."At Sam's look, Vala just shrugged. "Or maybe it's just quieter." She smiled impishly. "Plus I know how to handle a weapon."
"Look here, missy..." Sam came back up, and pointed her brush at Vala. "I'll have you know I am very good with swords and daggers."
Vala nodded. "Taught by those oh-so-trustworthy foreign teachers of yours."
Sam laughed, and swept her arm out towards the guys, still playing dirty despite being best friends. "And you were trained by much better?" She looked Vala up and down. "Can definitely tell you're a graduate of their teachings. What lady puts their stolen boots up on the table?"
Vala stuck out her tongue. "Never said anything about being a lady. In fact, I believe we already implied I wasn't." She gave her best friend a look of indignation. "And they're not stolen - Daniel bought them for me."
Sam just gave Vala a look.
"Well, he gave them to me..."
Sam laughed. "Then they're definitely stolen. But now there's a good explanation as to why you NEVER take them off." She eyed Vala, wearing those boots, Daniel's shirt, and a pair of panties. Any other articles of clothing were, not surprisingly, absent. "Even when you are half-naked."
Vala just shrugged innocently. "I like the way they look...and Daniel likes the way they look." Vala pointed her finger at Sam and pouted playfully. "And he doesn't steal EVERYTHING..."
Sam looked up, and smiled at the person who had come to stand behind Vala silently "He stole your heart."
Vala breathed in deeply as strong, familiar arms wrapped around her. "That's very true." She sighed as Daniel placed a tender kiss on her cheek. "He stole all of me."
Daniel smiled, then looked at Sam as he rested his chin on Vala's shoulder. "And that is the only everything worth stealing."
Vala patted his cheek with her free hand, the other still being painted by Sam. "You're such a sap."
Daniel laughed and squeezed her gently. "The guns hanging from my belt would attest to that."
He kissed her cheek again. "I just wanted to see what trouble you ladies were getting in to." He stood back up, and pointed at Sam's handy work. "I like that...very sexy."
Vala leaned her head back to look at him. "It's to attract handsome men."
"Guess it works." Daniel smiled impishly, and leaned down to kiss her again. "Now Iet this handsome man go win some more money off his best friend for a pretty girl."
Vala smiled as he turned to head back to the pool table. "You gonna buy said pretty girl a drink with that money?"
Daniel shrugged and turned to give her a wink. "I only buy drinks for girls I wanna get in bed."
Vala licked her lips at the look that twinkled in his bright blue eyes. "Well, I only go to bed with a guy to steal his money while he's sleeping."
"Just his money?" Daniel questioned with a raise of his eyebrow. "Cause it sure looks like you ran off with the last chump's shirt also..." Daniel shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back against the pool table. "Poor man...running around without his shirt. What would his girlfriend think?"
Vala flicked her gaze down a bit.
"That it's a shame she didn't get his pants too."
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