The Power of Love Chapter 17
Hey everybody, sorry it took a while (and sorry it's not too long) but here's Power of Love Chapter 17...Hope you like :)
Happy Thanksgiving ^^
Title: The Power of Love
Chapter: Chapter 17 - Snow
Genre: AU/fluffy/maybe a tiny tiny bit sad?
Pairing: Ennis/Jack
Rating: PG for this chapter
Warnings: None for this part
Summary: (for this part) : The day the snow arrives
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters - they are the creation of Annie Proulx. The story of Brokeback Mountain is hers too - I’m just giving my version of it for no profit, just for fun and curiosity! J I don’t mean any disrespect at all ^^
Author’s Note: I’m adding parts, taking away parts, expanding parts, exaggerating parts and just plain making up some parts in this. I love the original Brokeback Mountain story so I’m not doing this to make it any better - I just wanted to do a multi chapter Jack/Ennis story and have some fun with them (again!)!
Feedback: That’d be fantastic! Always appreciated :)
It felt very different when Ennis woke up. The air seemed significantly colder in the tent and even though his jacket and gloves were still on, he could sense even more bitter breezes than usual pawing up against his skin, making all the hairs stand on end. He hadn’t been aware of any more storms in the night - certainly not as vicious as the one recently - but as he glanced casually through the thin tent flaps, he caught a glimpse of crisp whiteness over the trees surrounding the camp and an oddly grey sky through their leaves. It looked very much like snow but...it couldn’t have been snowing, he thought. He would have noticed something in the night, especially as the tent was very flimsy.
Curious now, he slowly removed Jack’s arms from his waist, resulting in a soft sleepy moan, and then gently got up onto his knees, pulling the tent flaps back. A gasp immediately escaped his lips.
Outside, the world was white for as far as he could see. A thick layer of snow covered the mountain side and the meadows, just as he had previously expected, and as soon as he stuck his face outside the tent, a freezing cold breeze immediately struck him. It was time to get up but in this weather, he was going to have trouble. Still, those sheep would be whining, as would Aguirre, if he didn’t do it so he pulled the blanket tight around him, having to ignore Jack’s groan of disapproval in his sleep, and stumbled out into the crunching snow.
It was only then, out in the whiteness of it all, that he understood and noticed how much had fallen in the night. It stretched out way beyond the campsite, over the fields and meadows, and even the trees in the far distance had a light covering of the stuff, almost looking like they were shivering in the cold air. Ennis didn’t blame them. He moaned and whimpered as he clutched the blanket around him, blowing puffs of smoky breath into the sky and stuffing his hands underneath his arms. He wondered how on earth he was going to get food ready in this temperature.
However, when he forced himself over to the icy log near the burnt out fire, there was a noise from the tent behind and another gasp filled the air. ‘’ Oh Ennis, it’s snowin’!’’ came Jack’s delighted, almost childish, squeal and Ennis glanced round, seeing the cowboy also shivering underneath his thick jacket but with a wide eyed wondrous look on his face.
‘’ Really, Jack?’’ he teased. ‘’ Ah hadn’t noticed!’’
Jack rolled his eyes and stumbled forwards towards him, almost tripping in the snow. It wasn’t all that thick, he noticed, yet it was still enough to affect his balance, especially this early in the morning. ‘’ You seriously gonna try an’ make breakfast in a situation like this, Ennis?’’ he grinned, wrapping his arms around Ennis’s back. Ennis nodded and reached for the beans, saying he had to else they’d go hungry for the day. ‘’ Why don’t you jus’ come back ta bed? Keep me warm?’’
Ennis sighed. ‘’ Wasn’t that yer ploy last time, Jack?’’ he grinned. ‘’ C’mon now - let me do warm these damn beans up an’ if yer lucky, we might be able ta have them in bed...’’
That made Jack smile.
***
Judging by the awed look on Jack’s face as they ate the breakfast in the tent a while later, he loved the snow. Ennis could see his eyes constantly darting outside the shelter to see the little flakes fall onto the ground and even the grey sky couldn’t quell his wonder. It seemed like he had become a child all over again and Ennis subconsciously found himself stroking over his soft cheek, in admiration of his sudden innocence. And it was only then that he began to fully understand how different they were. Jack was playful and outgoing and sweet, much more confident to voice his thoughts and feelings and in physically appearance was dark but with the most beautiful blue eyes. Ennis sometimes thought they best described Jack - bright and, yes, handsome yet also a little delicate too, though why he imagined that he didn’t know. Jack had always seemed to be the one looking after him, not in the working hours as such but more afterwards in the tent at nights.
Ennis, on the other hand, was almost the complete opposite. He was quiet and shy and restrained, despising to voice his thoughts and feelings. His eyes were brown and didn’t betray any types of emotions most of the time but he could almost feel them sparkle with one simple smile from Jack, no matter how odd that sounded to him (and almost too much of a cliché).
And that’s just what Jack did to him now, turning his pretty head and beaming at him, slumping against his body. ‘’ You’re still so cold...’’ he remarked gently and wrapped his arms around his waist, cuddling him close. Ennis smiled a little and patted his hair. There felt like there was something hanging over them all of a sudden and even though he had no idea what it was or why he was feeling it, he didn’t like it one bit. For some reason, he just wanted to hold onto Jack all day, scared of something he couldn’t understand.
But then, as a strange sensation came over the tent (and he wasn’t sure if his companion felt it too) Jack glanced up at him again and there was a mischievous grin on his face, causing his blue eyes to light up cheekily. Ennis couldn’t help but smile back. ‘’ Jack...?’’ he began yet Jack cut him off, leaping up and dashing out of the tent with the can of beans in hand. Ennis shook his head at his companion’s once again spontaneous antics and followed him out.
‘’ Jack, what are you...Oof!!’’ And Ennis was suddenly hit by a flying snowball, smacking him in the stomach. Jack giggled and threw another. This time Ennis ducked and gathered his own pile of snow up, aiming it at the other cowboy.
‘’ Ennis!’’ Jack laughed as the coldness hit him. ‘’ Ennis, c’mon, ah wasn’t ready!’’
‘’ Well, neither was I!’’ Ennis smiled and began quickly collecting more snow. Jack saw what was coming and dashed behind the log, trying to get some type of shelter.
They played like this for a little while, chasing each other and throwing snowballs until, even through their gloves, their hands were sore. At this point, Jack grabbed Ennis by the jacket and threw him to the ground, making him gasp in shock at both the movement and the wet coldness on his back. ‘’ Jack!’’ he panted but Jack wouldn’t let him go, instead choosing to straddle him and then roll over his shivering body, pulling them into a high spirited wrestle. Ennis couldn’t help but laugh at his enthusiasm and found himself joining in, pushing and pulling and scooping snow up into his companion’s hair. Jack writhed and squirmed and never wanted this to end. It may have been freezing yet he loved the snow - always had - and now he was with Ennis, he adored it even more.
***
The snow didn’t stick for too long after that though. By the time the late morning had rolled around, almost all of it had melted away again and the leaves on the trees were shimmering clean in the blue sky. The air was still cold but as Ennis rode alongside the sheep, he didn’t really care all that much. Him and Jack had had a fun morning earlier on, wrestling in the snow and throwing snowballs at each other and then returning back to the tent to get warm again. He had ended up riding up to the fields slightly later that usual due to this but Aguirre hadn’t been keeping watch, as he had been after the storm, and neither had the other ranch hands. Instead, he was able to slyly slip in and pretend everything was normal, even the snow was still coming down pretty hard at this point.
It had been hard weaving in and out over the meadows in weather like that but Ennis had had experience in his younger years with his brother in Worland. They had been through tough winters before and this was nothing compared to them, though once or twice he had to grab on to the reins to stop the horse from slipping too much. He half expected to turn around and see Jack on the other side of the meadow, that cheeky grin on his pretty lips, his eyes glinting mischievously. He was never there though and despite Ennis knowing that every time he turned, it still made him feel oddly discomforted.
It seemed as if, soon, something would happen. He didn’t know what that something was - and he wasn’t sure if he did want to know - but there was a type of sensation, almost in the air, that there was an event just around the corner, good or bad he wasn’t sure. He wondered if Jack felt it too but he’d never ask him. Probably would think he’d lost it after being up on this mountain for so long. Or what seemed like so long. As he thought about it, he realised it was only a few weeks. Years felt like they had passed by since he arrived there. He knew why that was. And he appreciated that. Suddenly, he wanted to experience every moment yet when he glanced back out over the sheep, he got a sense of coming back down to earth and realising what was going on. The abrupt dreamy sensation left him just as quick as it had arrived and he knew he was just a sheep herder. That was what he had had come up to Brokeback for. Though he had found something much more.
***
It felt like a new day as the snow melted away, the sun creeping out from behind the grey clouds. Jack had stayed back at the camp when Ennis had rode up to the sheep and was busy chopping up more firewood when he had glanced up and saw hints of blue creeping through the bleakness of the heavens. As much as he adored the snow, he was still quite happy to see it slowly drift away because after a while cutting wood in those conditions, his hands were really quite sore both from the cold and the heavy axe.
Gradually the snow turned to ice and then the sun waltzed out and thawed all that too, guiding it down into the rivers running through the hills. When Ennis had returned back for some food in the afternoon, he had almost slipped on some stray remnants but Jack had grasped him, giggling softly. They shared a quick meal yet once finished, Ennis went off again, leaving Jack with a strange sensation in his stomach.
He had been feeling this for quite a few days now but more recently, it had been getting stronger. He didn’t know what it was yet unknown to him, he was having the same thoughts as Ennis about something happening quite soon. Similar to the other cowboy, he didn’t know what it was and wasn’t sure he wanted to. He often got himself into sticky situations from taking things too far.
However, a visit from Aguirre later that afternoon soon gave him some hints.
TBC
Happy Thanksgiving ^^
Title: The Power of Love
Chapter: Chapter 17 - Snow
Genre: AU/fluffy/maybe a tiny tiny bit sad?
Pairing: Ennis/Jack
Rating: PG for this chapter
Warnings: None for this part
Summary: (for this part) : The day the snow arrives
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters - they are the creation of Annie Proulx. The story of Brokeback Mountain is hers too - I’m just giving my version of it for no profit, just for fun and curiosity! J I don’t mean any disrespect at all ^^
Author’s Note: I’m adding parts, taking away parts, expanding parts, exaggerating parts and just plain making up some parts in this. I love the original Brokeback Mountain story so I’m not doing this to make it any better - I just wanted to do a multi chapter Jack/Ennis story and have some fun with them (again!)!
Feedback: That’d be fantastic! Always appreciated :)
It felt very different when Ennis woke up. The air seemed significantly colder in the tent and even though his jacket and gloves were still on, he could sense even more bitter breezes than usual pawing up against his skin, making all the hairs stand on end. He hadn’t been aware of any more storms in the night - certainly not as vicious as the one recently - but as he glanced casually through the thin tent flaps, he caught a glimpse of crisp whiteness over the trees surrounding the camp and an oddly grey sky through their leaves. It looked very much like snow but...it couldn’t have been snowing, he thought. He would have noticed something in the night, especially as the tent was very flimsy.
Curious now, he slowly removed Jack’s arms from his waist, resulting in a soft sleepy moan, and then gently got up onto his knees, pulling the tent flaps back. A gasp immediately escaped his lips.
Outside, the world was white for as far as he could see. A thick layer of snow covered the mountain side and the meadows, just as he had previously expected, and as soon as he stuck his face outside the tent, a freezing cold breeze immediately struck him. It was time to get up but in this weather, he was going to have trouble. Still, those sheep would be whining, as would Aguirre, if he didn’t do it so he pulled the blanket tight around him, having to ignore Jack’s groan of disapproval in his sleep, and stumbled out into the crunching snow.
It was only then, out in the whiteness of it all, that he understood and noticed how much had fallen in the night. It stretched out way beyond the campsite, over the fields and meadows, and even the trees in the far distance had a light covering of the stuff, almost looking like they were shivering in the cold air. Ennis didn’t blame them. He moaned and whimpered as he clutched the blanket around him, blowing puffs of smoky breath into the sky and stuffing his hands underneath his arms. He wondered how on earth he was going to get food ready in this temperature.
However, when he forced himself over to the icy log near the burnt out fire, there was a noise from the tent behind and another gasp filled the air. ‘’ Oh Ennis, it’s snowin’!’’ came Jack’s delighted, almost childish, squeal and Ennis glanced round, seeing the cowboy also shivering underneath his thick jacket but with a wide eyed wondrous look on his face.
‘’ Really, Jack?’’ he teased. ‘’ Ah hadn’t noticed!’’
Jack rolled his eyes and stumbled forwards towards him, almost tripping in the snow. It wasn’t all that thick, he noticed, yet it was still enough to affect his balance, especially this early in the morning. ‘’ You seriously gonna try an’ make breakfast in a situation like this, Ennis?’’ he grinned, wrapping his arms around Ennis’s back. Ennis nodded and reached for the beans, saying he had to else they’d go hungry for the day. ‘’ Why don’t you jus’ come back ta bed? Keep me warm?’’
Ennis sighed. ‘’ Wasn’t that yer ploy last time, Jack?’’ he grinned. ‘’ C’mon now - let me do warm these damn beans up an’ if yer lucky, we might be able ta have them in bed...’’
That made Jack smile.
***
Judging by the awed look on Jack’s face as they ate the breakfast in the tent a while later, he loved the snow. Ennis could see his eyes constantly darting outside the shelter to see the little flakes fall onto the ground and even the grey sky couldn’t quell his wonder. It seemed like he had become a child all over again and Ennis subconsciously found himself stroking over his soft cheek, in admiration of his sudden innocence. And it was only then that he began to fully understand how different they were. Jack was playful and outgoing and sweet, much more confident to voice his thoughts and feelings and in physically appearance was dark but with the most beautiful blue eyes. Ennis sometimes thought they best described Jack - bright and, yes, handsome yet also a little delicate too, though why he imagined that he didn’t know. Jack had always seemed to be the one looking after him, not in the working hours as such but more afterwards in the tent at nights.
Ennis, on the other hand, was almost the complete opposite. He was quiet and shy and restrained, despising to voice his thoughts and feelings. His eyes were brown and didn’t betray any types of emotions most of the time but he could almost feel them sparkle with one simple smile from Jack, no matter how odd that sounded to him (and almost too much of a cliché).
And that’s just what Jack did to him now, turning his pretty head and beaming at him, slumping against his body. ‘’ You’re still so cold...’’ he remarked gently and wrapped his arms around his waist, cuddling him close. Ennis smiled a little and patted his hair. There felt like there was something hanging over them all of a sudden and even though he had no idea what it was or why he was feeling it, he didn’t like it one bit. For some reason, he just wanted to hold onto Jack all day, scared of something he couldn’t understand.
But then, as a strange sensation came over the tent (and he wasn’t sure if his companion felt it too) Jack glanced up at him again and there was a mischievous grin on his face, causing his blue eyes to light up cheekily. Ennis couldn’t help but smile back. ‘’ Jack...?’’ he began yet Jack cut him off, leaping up and dashing out of the tent with the can of beans in hand. Ennis shook his head at his companion’s once again spontaneous antics and followed him out.
‘’ Jack, what are you...Oof!!’’ And Ennis was suddenly hit by a flying snowball, smacking him in the stomach. Jack giggled and threw another. This time Ennis ducked and gathered his own pile of snow up, aiming it at the other cowboy.
‘’ Ennis!’’ Jack laughed as the coldness hit him. ‘’ Ennis, c’mon, ah wasn’t ready!’’
‘’ Well, neither was I!’’ Ennis smiled and began quickly collecting more snow. Jack saw what was coming and dashed behind the log, trying to get some type of shelter.
They played like this for a little while, chasing each other and throwing snowballs until, even through their gloves, their hands were sore. At this point, Jack grabbed Ennis by the jacket and threw him to the ground, making him gasp in shock at both the movement and the wet coldness on his back. ‘’ Jack!’’ he panted but Jack wouldn’t let him go, instead choosing to straddle him and then roll over his shivering body, pulling them into a high spirited wrestle. Ennis couldn’t help but laugh at his enthusiasm and found himself joining in, pushing and pulling and scooping snow up into his companion’s hair. Jack writhed and squirmed and never wanted this to end. It may have been freezing yet he loved the snow - always had - and now he was with Ennis, he adored it even more.
***
The snow didn’t stick for too long after that though. By the time the late morning had rolled around, almost all of it had melted away again and the leaves on the trees were shimmering clean in the blue sky. The air was still cold but as Ennis rode alongside the sheep, he didn’t really care all that much. Him and Jack had had a fun morning earlier on, wrestling in the snow and throwing snowballs at each other and then returning back to the tent to get warm again. He had ended up riding up to the fields slightly later that usual due to this but Aguirre hadn’t been keeping watch, as he had been after the storm, and neither had the other ranch hands. Instead, he was able to slyly slip in and pretend everything was normal, even the snow was still coming down pretty hard at this point.
It had been hard weaving in and out over the meadows in weather like that but Ennis had had experience in his younger years with his brother in Worland. They had been through tough winters before and this was nothing compared to them, though once or twice he had to grab on to the reins to stop the horse from slipping too much. He half expected to turn around and see Jack on the other side of the meadow, that cheeky grin on his pretty lips, his eyes glinting mischievously. He was never there though and despite Ennis knowing that every time he turned, it still made him feel oddly discomforted.
It seemed as if, soon, something would happen. He didn’t know what that something was - and he wasn’t sure if he did want to know - but there was a type of sensation, almost in the air, that there was an event just around the corner, good or bad he wasn’t sure. He wondered if Jack felt it too but he’d never ask him. Probably would think he’d lost it after being up on this mountain for so long. Or what seemed like so long. As he thought about it, he realised it was only a few weeks. Years felt like they had passed by since he arrived there. He knew why that was. And he appreciated that. Suddenly, he wanted to experience every moment yet when he glanced back out over the sheep, he got a sense of coming back down to earth and realising what was going on. The abrupt dreamy sensation left him just as quick as it had arrived and he knew he was just a sheep herder. That was what he had had come up to Brokeback for. Though he had found something much more.
***
It felt like a new day as the snow melted away, the sun creeping out from behind the grey clouds. Jack had stayed back at the camp when Ennis had rode up to the sheep and was busy chopping up more firewood when he had glanced up and saw hints of blue creeping through the bleakness of the heavens. As much as he adored the snow, he was still quite happy to see it slowly drift away because after a while cutting wood in those conditions, his hands were really quite sore both from the cold and the heavy axe.
Gradually the snow turned to ice and then the sun waltzed out and thawed all that too, guiding it down into the rivers running through the hills. When Ennis had returned back for some food in the afternoon, he had almost slipped on some stray remnants but Jack had grasped him, giggling softly. They shared a quick meal yet once finished, Ennis went off again, leaving Jack with a strange sensation in his stomach.
He had been feeling this for quite a few days now but more recently, it had been getting stronger. He didn’t know what it was yet unknown to him, he was having the same thoughts as Ennis about something happening quite soon. Similar to the other cowboy, he didn’t know what it was and wasn’t sure he wanted to. He often got himself into sticky situations from taking things too far.
However, a visit from Aguirre later that afternoon soon gave him some hints.
TBC