Kealey stared at the bacon as Jacen finished cooking it and piled it on a plate, boy it looked good, and smelled good. Kealey’s mouth watered, she was so hungry . Jacen said that they could easily make the day entertaining and Kealey chuckled, hoping that Jacen didn’t have anything too adventurous in mind. No matter how comfortable Kealey was finding herself in the woods, she was still a complete novice as far as these things were concerned.

Jacen turned to look at her and something about the way he was looking at her made Kealey blush, even as she was licking her lips at the thought of blackberries straight off the bush. Kealey had always liked berries and such, and Jacen said they were even better off the bush? Kealey’s stomach growled loudly and she nearly squirmed with eagerness as Jacen spooned food onto the plates and made his way over to sit by her.

Taking the coffee and the plate, Kealey sat the cup next to her leg and tucked into the eggs and the bacon. Jacen had been right about the fire, the eggs and bacon tasted different from any she’d ever tasted and she “mmm’d” appreciatively, tilting her head back and sighing slightly. ”I didn’t realize how hungry I was.” she said, after washing down a bite with the hot coffee. Camping was very quickly skyrocketing to the top of Kealey’s favorite things to do.

As they ate, Jacen pointed out that she’d made a good choice and Kealey beamed, ”Really” she said, the nodded at Jacen’s reasoning, it did make sense. ”I think I might be a natural at this whole outside thing.” she said bumping Jacen’s leg with her knee. ”If I’m not careful I’m going to end up living in a cabin out in the woods and wearing nothing but flannel and hiking boots.” Kealey thought about that for a moment, then shuddered, ”Well…maybe not that…but I sure like it out here. Then again, good company goes a long way.”

Jacen suggested that she wash up the dishes and Kealey nodded, eager to feel like she was useful and immediately launched into action. It didn’t take long to find the soap Jacen mentioned and make her way down to the lake. Kealey felt kind of bad washing the plates and the pan off in the lake water, but a moment later she realized that there were already fish and plants and dirt and other things in the water. Surely their little bit of food and soap wouldn’t hurt anything.

She was scrubbing the plates with soap when the mild tickling in the back of her mind came back, only stronger. Now, not only was she urgent and worried, but she was starving. Kealey knew she’d just eaten and that her stomach was full, but it was intense, and she frowned as she gave the plates a final rinse and headed back to the campsite where Jacen was still working to string up the food. It was too much to expect that they’d have the entire place to themselves the whole weekend, Kealey supposed. It still remained to be seen if they’d run into their neighbors.

”Almost ready?” she said, replacing the plates in their proper place and pulling the rubber band from her hair. Back up the hair went into a higher and more secure ponytail as Kealey tossed around the idea of mentioning the other people to Jacen. It seemed silly, but Kealey felt the need to share, "I think there's some people around here who aren't as good at cooking as you are. When I was washing up the dishes I thought I felt them...they were really hungry I think they were far away though..I could hardly feel them."

OOC – I know I didn’t do a whole lot with this, because I didn’t know if you wanted them to run into the bad guys on the way or after they got to the clearing/blackberries/whatever, or on the way back or what.

Jacen laughed as Kealey made a face about living in flannel and hiking boots and then out of nowhere leaned over to plant a kiss on the blond's full lips. "You look beautiful, even in flannel and hiking boots, never fear." He said with a chuckle as he climbed to his feet and moved to accomplish his own tasks. In a short time the cooler was tightly sealed and once again hung from a tree while several bucket fulls of sand had ensured that the fire we well put out. When they returned it would be a simple matter to shake the wood free of any offending dirt and then relight it to once again providing a heating and cooking source.

"I think we're just about ready." Jacen nodded as he grabbed a couple of towels from out of one of the packs along with the two canteens of clean drinking water. Turning he handed one of the canteens and one of the towels to Kealey while slipping the shoulder strap of the other canteen over his shoulder and stuffing the towel under his arm. "You carry those, I'll get mine and... this." He added as he grabbed up one of the stainless steel buckets he had packed, "If there are extra berries we can bring some back for dinner."

***

The hiking path up toward the pool was winding but relatively flat. Curving around large sections of thick trees and undergrowth, it wasn't so clear that it seemed to get a lot of use but yet the path could still be seen. Obviously it was used on occasion though not regularly.

"I'm not surprised you felt some people up here." Jacen said conversationally as he led the way along the path, "I was hoping our time here would be completely private but with it being the weekend other people do come out to enjoy the great outdoors. Thankfully all of the camp sites are pretty far away from each other so we probably won't even know anyone else is around unless you're sensing them."

The sun was shining down warmly and while it wasn't enough to make the day extremely hot, a fine sheen of sweat was most definitely beginning to develop on Jacen's face and neck. The back of his shirt was getting slightly damp but a gentle breeze that came through the trees kept him from feeling uncomfortable.

"There should be some berry bushes right up ahead." He finally said after they had been hiking for maybe thirty minutes, "They're about ten or twenty yards off of the path in a little clearing where the sun can ripen them really well."

Jacen's eyes scanned the area as soon as they came in view but it was Kealey's squeal of excitement that alerted him to the fact that she had obviously spotted them. "You get the prize for finding the fruit!" Jacen said with a mischievous grin and a quick wink bat at her as they turned off the path to head for the bushes, "You get to jump in the water first once we get to the pool!"

***

Few people in the United States truly appreciate what a bush ripened berry tastes like. Firm outside, juicy inside, and warmed in the sun, the wild blackberries had just the right amount of sweetness and sourness. This was a particularly good year for the berries and it was times like this that Jacen wishes he knew how to make wine from wild berries. Flavors like this should be preserved for years and yet instead it would be lost and never tried by most of the city dwellers.

"Good eh..." Jacen mumbled through a mouth full of berries as he continued picking with his specialized system. A handful in the pail, two handfuls in the mouth. Yummy.

Hiking, Kealey decided, after a little while, was another of the camping things that she could get used to. The towel and canteen weren’t all that heavy and the clothes and shoes Jacen had helped her pick out were quality enough that her feet weren’t hurting and she wasn’t entirely uncomfortable. Kealey had read somewhere that sleeves were the best for trips like this, but it was slightly warm outside and she found herself slipping out of some of the long sleeved shirt she’d pulled on over her black cami. Around her waist it went and on she walked, slightly cooler than was ideal but infinitely more comfortable than she’d been a few minutes before.

As they walked, Jacen broached the subject of the people Kealey had felt. His words made her feel better, but as she thought about it, she the blond still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was slightly off with the people she’d felt. Kealey kept her mouth shut, though. There was no point in ruining the hike because she was worrying over nothing. Besides, Jacen had pointed out that the campsites were far enough apart that chances were they’d never run into their neighbors. Kealey smiled at that and shrugged her shoulders as they walked, ”You’re probably right…and I did manage to get some time completely to myself this morning…so I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

The more they walked, the more Kealey started to wear out. While she wouldn’t be considered out of shape, Kealey had never been the particularly athletic type and they had been walking for a long time. If they were going to do a lot of this, Kealey was going to have to start working out a little. Jacen pointed out a place up ahead where he knew of berry bushes, though and Kealey’s attention left her increased heart rate and tired legs, and focused ahead.

Jacen said they were in a little clearing off the path and the moment Kealey saw something that resembled bushes with berries on them she let out an excited little squeal and took off. Jacen congratulated her and described the prize she’d won and she laughed and rolled her eyes slightly. ”Oh! I get to be the first one in, huh?” she said, ”No doubt while you stand on the shore and gawk.” she added with a smile. ”I’ve got your number Jacen King…you’re just lucky I don’t mind.”

***

There were lots of berries on the bushes, and after a while, Kealey thought there were probably more in her stomach. For the second time in a single day, Kealey felt so full that she really didn’t want to do anything other than lay somewhere and sleep for a year. But…there was the prospect of the swimming trip still to consider and once they’d filled the bucket to an appropriate level with berries, off they went.

It was still another ten to fifteen minutes of walking to get to the pool, but the little rest and the sweet berries had been enough to re-energize Kealey for the rest of the hike. There was also the prospect of the ‘prize’ she’d won to think on and consider while they walked. She’d just put the finishing touches on her idea. Then they were there.

Kealey had to stop for a moment just to take in the scenery they’d suddenly stumbled upon. It looked like something off of a post card or out of a coffee table book. The pool was clear and after the warmth of the day the clear water looked more inviting than it had any right to be. There was green everywhere and a small waterfall cascaded down into the pool, filling the clearing with bubbling noise that more than added to the all around ambience.

They hadn’t seen another soul since they’d arrived and the only thing Kealey had felt was from what seemed like quite a long distance. Her plan was going to work just fine.

”I guess this means it’s time for me to collect on my prize for finding the blackberries. Stay here.” she said, before skittering lightly off behind one of the rocks surrounding the pool. There were no pretenses about the type of swimming that was going to go on and while Kealey’s rational side suggested that someone could stumble upon them, the irrational side was way too giddy to pay attention to it.

Getting rid of clothes took even less time than putting them on did, and Kealey carefully wrapped her towel around herself before coming out from behind the rock, leaving her clothes where they lied.

The towel was big, but not that big and it hit Kealey at just about mid thigh as she made her way past Jacen and towards the edge of the pool. In she walked for a few steps, the cool water felt every bit as good as it looked, then she backtracked to the dry land.

Casting a look over her should at Jacen, Kealey grinned and released the towel to puddle on the shore, then reached up to release her hair from the pony tail before walking back into the water, still looking over her shoulder even as she flushed from head to toe. ”Coming in?” she called, ”The water’s great.”

"Guilty as charged." Jacen replied with a laugh and hands raised in surrender as Kealey pointed out just how obvious his comments really were, "Let's just say that I appreciate fine things of beauty, and they don't come any finer than yourself."

***

Finally stuffed on berries and having filled the bucket up to within an inch of the top, Jacen and Kealey were ready to continue the hike on to the pool. Even though Jacen was well satisfied both from food and from the previous nights activities, he couldn't help the surge of anticipation as they drew closer to their destination with every step. Kealey was one of those women that most men only dreamed about ever meeting much less dating and yet here Jacen found himself living out those same fantasies. Late nights in the bedrooms, cool nights under the stars, and warm day at secluded pools few people even knew existed.

"I'm not going anywhere." Jacen said with a grin and a wave as Kealey moved lightly off behind one of the rocks surrounding the pool. Setting his own towel, canteen, and the bucket of berries down in a slightly sheltered spot, Jacen kicked off his boots and socks and left them sitting next to the other items. Taking in a deep breath Jacen lifted his face to enjoy the feeling of the sunshine hitting his skin until he heard movement. Dropping his head and opening his eyes he grinned as he watched Kealey slowly walked out, revealing that she was now garbed in a towel. The blond hair fell down over her bare shoulders and her legs seemed to go up forever before disappearing underneath the towel to just hint at the pleasure that were hidden underneath the thick cloth.

For some reason, both of them remained silent for a moment as Kealey walked past Jacen and into the water until it was almost up to the edge of the towel. Backing up onto dry land again Kealey looked over her shoulder at Jacen and smiled before the towel dropped, puddling at her feet.

The lump in Jacen's throat was instantaneous as his eyes followed the graceful arch of her neck, down the curve of her bare back, to the beauty that few, if any other men had ever had the chance to enjoy. She was breath taking and more sensual than could really be believed as she moved back into the water, inviting Jacen to join her.

The scrambled to remove clothing was immediately and more than once in the seconds that ticked by Jacen cursed the fact that men's clothing were often so hard to remove. Finally, leaving a pile of clothing that included his inside out shirt and his pants halfway so, Jacen jogged into the water, stroking through the clear liquid to join where Kealey was no treading water. Her damp hair floated in ring across the top of the water and Jacen did his best to keep from gaping and staring at all the beauty in front of him.

With a quick peal of laughter, Kealey splashed a sheet of water at him, filling his mouth and yanking him back into at least some semblance of control.

"I'm gonna get you for that beautiful!" Jacen said with a laugh as he swam toward Kealey.

For the next fifteen or twenty minutes the couple was involved in playful splashing and water wrestling. Both got mouthfuls of the clear water but yet neither of them seemed to care. Their playfulness covered the whole pool and even took them under the water fall where Jacen took great pride in helping Kealey to clear out some of the small knots and tangles that had begun to develop in her hair.

"How about some hide and seek?" Jacen asked playfully as they swam out of the waterfall, "I'll count here in the water and you slip out an hide. It has to be somewhere in the clearing so that gives you all of the rocks and behind the water fall. Sound good?"

Kealey added a checkmark on the mental list of things she liked about camping. Skinny dipping. The look on Jacen’s face was something she’d probably never forget, that and the scramble that followed as he tried to get out of his clothes and into the water. The sunlight in the clearing was bright and Kealey looked her fill at Jacen as he made his way into the water. After all, he wasn’t the only one allowed to stare, Kealey just wasn’t as surprised for some reason.

Towards her Jacen came, still looking gobsmacked and Kealey couldn’t help herself. The small wall of water she’d created with her hand landed a direct hit in Jacen’s face and he seemed to snap back to reality before coming after her in the water. As she frantically back paddled, something Jacen had told her on the same day he’d rescued her favorite shoes came back to her. He’d been a swimmer.

Kealey held her own, even if she did have a feeling Jacen was holding back as they played in the water. They dunked each other, splashed and just played. Kealey was happier than she could ever remember being. There was something about playing like this, as adults that brought back simple joys that were almost impossible to find in everyday life. There was also the fact that all the playing was done sans clothes, that added a completely different dimension that Kealey was thoroughly enjoying.

The water flowing down the waterfall was slightly cooler than the water in the pool and as they sat under it and Kealey practically purred as Jacen helped her work through the snarls and tangles the day before had resulted in. Kealey’s hair was nearly sacred to her and having someone’s hands in it was beyond okay.

Definitely too soon for Kealey’s tastes, they moved from under the waterfall and Jacen suggested a game of hide and seek? Kealey gave him a slightly incredulous look as he laid out the rules. As if she was going to run around the woods as bare as the day she was born. In fact, Kealey had no intention of leaving the pool. ”Alright then.” she said, a slow smile curving her features as she turned in the water to face Jacen and pushing her hair out of her face. ”If you manage to find me by a hundred count, you can claim a prize.” she added, confident that she’d seen a hiding place a while back good enough she could hide until she’d won.

Jacen agreed, then started counting and Kealey swam off towards the side of the pool, just to the right of the waterfall. Out of the water Kealey went, squeezing through a space between the wall and the rock that would be much too small for Jacen to squeeze through. Kealey found herself in a little stone room of sorts created by the rocks that had all come together. The floor was dry and she knelt down, peeking out through a small space where two of the rocks had come together. From here she could see her clothes, Jacen’s clothes and the bucket, and Jacen himself still counting in the middle of the pool. It was perfect. If he found her…would have earned whatever forfeit he claimed.

Jacen finished his count and opened his eyes, turning in a circle to scan the area before moving away from where Kealey was hiding and she nearly giggled out loud as she started to count. Further Jacen moved, just outside of 8 ft to be exact and the grin froze on Kealey’s face before falling off completely.

Emotions flooded into Kealey so hard and fast that she stumbled backwards a little and found herself on her rear end in her little cave. She was stunned for a moment as the same anxiety from earlier filtered into her as well as the hunger, desperation, and things Kealey didn’t want to think about. Dangerous, these emotions were dangerous, and they were close.

Up Kealey scrambled, pressing her face back against the crack in the rocks in time to see four men in orange jumpsuits enter the clearing. Jacen was right in the middle of the pool at this point, and in plain sight and as the men caught sight of him, amusement and malice joined the other feelings. For once, Kealey’s own fear choked down the emotions of the others and she tried to think of something she could do to help. They hadn’t found her clothes yet, Kealey realized as the four men stuck together and she crouched in the cave, she stayed put for the moment. Maybe they didn’t mean any harm…despite what their emotions suggested.

"A prize? I guess then to be fair, you get a prize of your choosing if you can hide from me for the full hundred count." Jacen replied with a grin. Already his mind was racing with ideas of what sort of prize and reward he would choose if he won. While a few of them were PG and PG-13 rated, quite a few delved into what would most deffinately be the R category. "Is Kealey flexible enough to do that?" Jacen wondered with interest adult interest, momentarily taking in her breath taking beauty once more before turning and closing his eyes to begin his count.

"1... 2... 3..." He began as he continued to tread water. He had decided a counter of twenty for her to hide would be more than enough since he only got to a count of 100 to find her. The sound of her splashing at the edge of the pool was entertaining and he couldn't help but let his mind wander to how she must look clambering out of the pool. Water droplets trailing down her skin, over every cruve and crevice while the sunlight caused her whole body to glimmer and shimmer in a most inviting way.

"Ah hell." Jacen muttered as he realized he had lost count. Doing his best to concentrating, he finally made it all the way to twenty on his third attempt and then opened his eyes and began to slowly rotate in the water. Everything was quiet all around him and he could easily imagine Kealey trying to stifle a giggle as she watched the nude man search for her equally naked form. There was no way that Jacen was going to be able to maintain any semblance of control for much longer and already he was trying to come to a decision. "Do we lay out the towels here or do we hike back to the campsite and our tent?"

"Well look what we have here!" A voice suddenly rang out, causing Jacen to spin around in the water to face the four men that had appeared out of nowhere. It would have been a comical situation, being found skinny dipping by four other individuals, if those four weren't clad in orange jumpsuits that clearly showed they were a part of the New York penitentiary system.

"Looks like we found a pretty boy Kyle." Blake said with a cold smile as he pulled a gun out of his pocket and pointed it at Jacen, "You got food nearby, pretty boy?"

"There's a bucket of berries over by my clothes." Jacen said slowly, treading water as he nodded over toward the pail and its wonderful contents, "Uh... anything else is back at camp."

"These aren't bad." Joe called from where he was already sampling the sweet goodness, "But real food sounds a lot better than these damn berries!"

"If you don't want them Joe, I'll be glad to take your share!" Vinnie said with a grin as he snatched away the bucket and began to stuff the food into his mouth.

"Outa the water buddy. And get some pants on. You're going to take us to your camp. Clear?"

"Crystal." Jacen responded in a mutter as he swam over to the edge and climbed out. Normally he wasn't one to flaunting his body in front of anyone other than an attractive female, but these particular men were not exactly giving him an opportunity to be shy. QUickly pulling on his pants and boots, Jacen picked up his shirt to pull on as they walked. Left next to the pool was his towel and boxers.

"How far?"

"Thirty or forty-five minutes hike." Jacen responded shortly, doing his best to keep from glancing back at the pool as he and the four men made their way along the path. They hadn't seen Kealey, or her clothes for that matter, which meant that she was safe for now. If she played it smart and ran for help maybe they'd both get out of this alive.

"Just don't be a hero Kealey... go get help." Jacen though, momentarily wishing he was a telepath, "Go get help!"

Hunger, that was the overwhelming emotion from the four men. Kealey wanted to pretend that the prison jumpsuits were some sort of Halloween costume gone bad, but it was the middle of summer. She concentrated and the second most prevalent emotion was malice, this was bad bad bad bad. Jacen swam towards the men and abruptly Kealey was cut off from feeling their emotions, she cursed…actually cursed, watching as Jacen climbed out of the water and got dressed. He hadn’t looked her direction a single time and Kealey somehow knew that meant she was supposed to stay put.

It was a hard thing to do, part of the blond wanted to squeeze out of the little hidey hole and rush the men full on. The fact of the matter was that completely naked, unarmed, and outnumbered 2 to 1, Kealey didn’t stand a chance. Tears formed in her eyes and a familiar panicked sensation started to creep into her chest. Kealey squashed it, absolutely squashed it. She could compartmentalize other peoples’ emotions sometimes, why couldn’t she do it now? Concentrating, she pushed the panic to a dark, back corner of her mind and locked it off completely. It worked, what was left was a healthy white hot anger coursing through Kealey like wild fire. The men were talking and Jacen was dressed, she listened.

They wanted more food, apparently the berries that she and Jacen had picked weren’t enough, and Kealey got a little bit angrier. That was their food, and this was their swim, she and Jacen had been having the best time and these entitled bastards hand decided it was within their duties to ruin it all. Again, Kealey had the almost overwhelming urge to rush the group, she held her ground though and watched helplessly as they walked with Jacen out of the clearing.

They were going to the camp, and while Kealey waited to make sure they were really gone she puzzled over what exactly it was she could do. Going for help seemed like the obvious and smart decision to make, but they were in the middle of nowhere and Kealey had absolutely no idea where the campsite was in relation to where they were now. Even if she managed to find someone to help, it would take a long time to find the campsite again…too long. That left only one option. Kealey frowned, she was going to have to handle things herself. That meant working around Jacen’s powers because Kealey didn’t think she could light a candle to these guys in a physical contest.

Convinced they were out of earshot and eyeshot, Kealey squirmed out of her hiding spot and sprinted to her clothes, tripping over this article and that as she pulled them on. The ponytail holder was still around her wrist and Kealey pulled her dripping hair back into a ponytail before slipping into her shoes and heading down the path. After a moment’s thought, Kealey ran back and grabbed her metal canteen. It was the only thing resembling a weapon she had at her disposal. Then it was back to the path and back to indecision.
They were ahead of her on the path and Kealey had heard of these things before. As long as Jacen was useful, he was relatively safe. It stood to reason then, that once they made it back to the camp and the men with the guns had everything they needed he’d be in trouble. If they had half a brain between the four of them, they’d also figure out that Jacen wasn’t alone. Kealey stayed back, but followed, brain working furiously to try and figure out what she could do. All her plans involved separating individuals from the group.

It almost seemed like too soon that they were back in the clearing where Kealey had spent the morning musing about the way her life had turned out. Now, as they headed towards the campsite, leaving one man behind to guard the path, she was thinking about how she was going to take him down.

As soon as the other men, and Jacen, were out of sight, a rush of emotion signaling to Kealey that Jacen was far away Kealey narrowed her eyes and focused on what she felt from the man who was now alone. He was still hungry, he was still feeling a lot of malice, he was angry, all useless. Kealey looked harder and there it was. Anxiety, narrowing her eyes Kealey pulled on it hard, urging it to overshadow all the other emotions, and fast. It worked. One moment the man was standing watch, eyes scanning the very trees that Kealey was standing behind, the next he was spinning jerking circles and clutching at his chest as his heart started to race. Sweat beaded on the man’s forehead and he stumbled as he turned, a whimper escaping from his lips. Anyone who’s had a panic attack would have sympathized and as Kealey moved from behind the tree she’d been hugging the man stopped, eyes wide and focused on the blond as she casually made her way across the clearing. He nearly choked on fear, and Kealey made it worse, tears fell down his cheeks, it was almost enough.

Down the man fell, to his knees and Kealey resisted the urge to small talk, instead raising the metal canteen and slamming it into the man’s head with as much force as she could muster, the emotions dropped off to a dull and throbbing pain and Kealey pushed them to the side, searching the guys jumpsuit. Please be one of the guns…please be one of the guns… Not that Kealey knew what to do with a gun…or would have even tried to use it…but it would be one less that the other three had. The black metal of the gun shone in the waistband of the jumpsuit and Kealey grabbed it between thumb and forefinger and scrambled back to her tree, digging a hole and burying it before making her way closer to the camp. She couldn’t feel anyone else, so that meant they were all with Jacen. Hopefully one would come her direction, then it would be two-on-two.

The hike had not been overly difficult to make going from the camp up to the lake but Jacen was finding it much harder to go from the lake back to the camp. Maybe it was the gun barrel that kept getting jabbed in his kidneys or maybe it was the face that with every step he was getting farther away from Kealey. On the one hand that was a good thing but on the other hand it was awful. Obviously Kealey wasn't just some wall flower that fainted at the first sign of blood or violence but she also wasn't trained to fight or to survive in the forest.

"Keep moving!" The man growled, jabbing him yet again and making Jacen stumble forward.

"Damn it, I'm moving as quick as I can!" Jacen cursed as he righted himself and resumed his brisk pace, "Any faster and you'll think I'm running away or something!"

***

The four men had decided to leave Joe outside the camp as a patrol. Obviously Blake was the man in charge and even though he and JOe were both armed with the same weaponry, Joe seemed to give in to whatever it was that Blake wanted.

"Cook pretty boy." Blake ordered as he took a seat on a log while keeping his gun trained on Jacen, "So tell me about yourself... you one of those nudie types or something?"

Jacen's face flushed as Vinnie and Kyle laughed as Blake's obvious joke. If Jacen had his Glock or even his hunting knife then these rejects wouldn't be laughing but for the moment all he could do was wait for an opportunity. Lowering the chest, Jacen pulled out the left over bacon and eggs that had been meant for Jacen and Kealey to enjoy the following morning and began to fix them up. As he worked, the three men snacked on the graham cracker and chocolate he had brought for s'mores.

"Kealey never even got a chance to try those."

***

"Vinnie... go relieve Joe. Give him your club and take his gun." Blake ordered after the three men had snarfed down all of the bacon and eggs that Jacen had fixed, "There are still hot dogs and beans. I'm sure pretty boy will be glad to fix him a meal."

Grumbling, the man rose to his feet and stalked away from the camp while the other man laughed at Blake's comment. "To bad there isn't a pretty woman go along with this pretty boy." Kyle laughed, "I sure could use a piece of that out here."

"Canada Kyle... Canada. All the women would we ever dream of, just waiting."

Kealey moved closer to the camp and could see the other three men now, the other three men and Jacen. The panic was still locked in its little cage in the back of her mind, but it reared as she watched Jacen wander around the campsite and gather food for the three armed men. Anger flared as she watched the men dig into the graham crackers and chocolate that was supposed to be for their s’mores. Kealey’s hand tightened on her canteen and she cast a look back at the man who she’d already knocked unconscious, he was stirring. Kealey scowled and made her way back to him, looking for a way to secure him so he wouldn’t get away. His prison issue shoes didn’t have any laces and Kealey scowled at them before bending and unlacing her boots.

A few minutes later, the man was secured and Kealey was barefoot, the shoes nothing more than something to trip on without their laces. Kealey moved to stand but was stopped by a hand twisting into her hair and pulling her violently backwards. Kealey wasn’t able to stop the slightly strangled scream that escaped her mouth at the action and as her back and head slammed into the ground. ”So the pretty boy did have company. You’re a pretty little piece…aren’t you?”

Stars swum in her vision and the latch on the mental cage she’d built for her panic sprung open with what Kealey thought had to be an audible snap. All she could see was orange covered legs, and the hand in her hair was now dragging her across the clearing. As soon as she figured out which way was up, Kealey started clawing at the hand, eliciting a grunt and a jerk on her hair. She yelled and clawed harder going for man’s legs with her feet and succeeding in knocking him to the ground, he held onto her hair though and after a brief struggle, struck her across the face.

Strange enough, it was exactly what Kealey needed. The stinging streak across her face caused her anger to flare up, and even as her head swam, the panic receded to be replaced with white-hot anger. She could think again, and feel the emotions of the man. He felt powerful, and Kealey could almost feel his eyes taking inventory of her, his hand still fisted in her hair, he wanted to hurt her. The intentions were terrifying, but even as she stared up at him, the emotions spilled over and she felt them too, felt them and used them.

Turning the emotions around on the man, Kealey did something she’d never done before. Into him she pushed the terror and physical helplessness, feeling him stiffen then shudder at the feelings. She reacted, bringing a knee up between his legs as hard as she could before pushing him over to his side where he coughed and curled. Kealey scrambled to her feet and kicked him in the ribs, he was crying, but she didn’t stop. She wanted to hurt the man, it felt good to hurt him, to completely unman him like this…she wanted to humiliate this swine.

Stop… It wasn’t a voice that spoke…more of a feeling, an internal warning, and Kealey stopped mid-kick, stumbling a step back, then landing a solid kick to the guy’s head to still him. Her feet hurt, her arms ached, her right cheek still burned, and she felt guilty. She pushed it away though, found that same little cage she’d locked the panic in and pushed everything into it besides single-minded determination. Two down, Kealey checked the man’s limp body and found nothing but a club. That she kept. Two down…that left two more, if only one of them would move out of Jacen’s field. Kealey was ready.

Beans sat in a pot by the fire and several hot dogs were scewered on forks roasting over the flames. Jacen followed orders for the food that apparently "Joe" would soon be eating. Although, it seemed like Vinnie had been gone for quite a while. Maybe one or the other had just needed a bathroom break or something like that.

"Don't let that food burn or Joe will show you the meaning of pain." Blake observed with a cruel laugh, "He doesn't like charred food."

Shooting a glare in the man's direction, Jacen remained silent as he looked back at the food. The forks that he was cooking the hot dogs on would work as some sort of weapon though he rather doubted whether they were actuall sharp enough to pierce human skin.

The strangled female scream was so completely out of place that both of the criminals suddenly stood up to their feet. Jacen almost lept up as well, but managed to hold back as a sinking feeling suddenly descended on him. Kealey was out there and that meant... oh no.

Kyle was turning to walk in the direction of the scream when Jacen suddenly surged to his feet. All rational thought was gone when he realized that Kealey might be in danger. Grabbing hold of the man's club, Jacen held it in an iron grip as he swung his tightly closed fist into Kyle's face. One, two, three blows slammed home with all the force Jacen could muster and without a sound the man crumbled to the ground. He was just turning to spin around when a metal object slammed into the back of his neck.

***

He was on the ground... somehow he was on the ground but Jacen couldn't remember exactly how he'd gotten there. As he opened his eyes he saw two sets of legs, rather blurry looking, and dove for the nearest ones. Unfortunately they weren't real and with a growl from above the metal gun barrel descending, once again slamming into his exposed neck.

"Stay down!" Was the last thing he heard before darkness completely took over.

She could see everything that was going on in the clearing now, and again Kealey found herself wanting to rush into the fray. Jacen was on the ground now and she internally cursed her stupidity in being loud enough that she’d been overheard. The worst part was, that she had no way to know if Jacen was alright, he hadn’t moved since she’d managed to get back to the vantage point where she could see.

One of the remaining two men were down, but the one who was left had a gun. Kealey’s thoughts momentarily flitted to the gun she’d buried by the tree, but she shook that idea off. She had no clue what she was doing with a fire arm. Her head was starting to hurt, a slow pounding that threatened to scramble her thoughts and Kealey took a couple of deep breaths.

The leader of the group, who had been sticking close to Jacen, was now moving further away. He was also calling out the names of who Kealey assumed must be the men unconscious in the clearing. When he got no response, he wasn’t happy. Kealey still couldn’t feel him, Just a little closer…just a little closer… she chanted internally.

”Alright girlie…I know you’re out there…you better show yourself or this isn’t going to go well for your pretty boy.” the man said, and Kealey froze slightly in fear. If he’d figured out the other guys weren’t coming back…he was moving around the outskirts of the campsite now, knocking things over and digging through bags in a slightly more frantic way. He moved a few steps in one direction and Kealey could feel him! But then he moved back again and his emotions disappeared.

Kealey did the only thing she could think to do. Tucking the club into the back of her shorts, out of her hiding spot she came, making her way quickly down the path, into plain sight. It was nearly disgusting how the man’s eyes lit up and Kealey didn’t need her powers to tell how proud he was of himself for being so clever. She stopped, far enough away that if he wanted to do anything, he’d need to come closer.

The gun leveled on her, and Kealey swallowed as her nerves tried to escape their solid little cage. It held this time and the man took that couple more, vital steps.

He was proud of himself, he was proud of himself and full of glee and power. What was it with these guys and power? It wasn’t like she was a physical force to be reckoned with. He was also tired, though, and the nerves were there in absence of the adrenaline the last man she’d fought had possessed. Kealey instantly grabbed the nerves and threw everything she had at them. The man froze and his gun hand started shaking and Kealey’s eyes widened, she hadn’t thought about this possibility.

”I should have just killed him to start…it’s not too late though…” he said, and pulled the trigger.

The gunshot was loud, and Kealey threw herself to the ground, even as she felt the bullet whiz past her right ear, thank god for shaky gun hands.... There she stayed for a moment, keeping her firm hold on the man’s emotions and praying that he wouldn’t decide he needed to finish the job. He didn’t, he was too nervous and he made his way back towards Jacen. It was all Kealey needed. As soon as his back turned and his feelings disappeared the small blond pulled the club from the back of her pants and sprang to her feet, rushing forward and slamming it into the back of his head with every ounce of strength she possessed. The man dropped. Just like that.

Kealey hit him again for good measure and once again took the firearm before dropping all pretenses and running to Jacen. He still wasn’t moving. Kealey could see a knot on the back of his head, but his was breathing. It was a relief, but it didn’t change the fact that there were four unconscious men in the surrounding area who had just been trying to hurt them. Without her powers, the cage was weakening by the moment. Kealey grabbed Jacen by the shirt and heaved him off of his stomach and into her lap, she’d never realized how heavy he was before, but he was completely limp.

”Jacen....wake up…” she said, gently shaking him. She repeated the action for a few moments, to no avail, and started to worry. Why wasn’t he waking up? She was starting to panic again, and the cage sprung for the second time, a wash of her own emotion nearly staggering Kealey even though she was sitting down. She needed help…

”Dammit Jacen! Open your bloody eyes!”

Why the hell was his apartment shaking? Who had ever heard of an earth quake in New York City? Earth quakes hapened over on the west coast. That was one of the reasons Jacen didn't live there. New York suffered from floods, fires, and other natural phenomena but now earth quakes. What the hell was going on?

A woman's voice... what was she yelling for? Was she trapped because of the earth quake? Why could he move? Was he trapped? She was screaming so why couldn't he go help her? His mind was moving in slow motion and it felt like someone had attached fifteen or twenty pound weight to his eye lids. What was going on? Why were their birds chirping in his apartment? He had never heard birds like that in New York City.

"Kealey..." Jacen moaned, his eyes slowly blinking open as everything suddenly came crashing back in on him. Camping, night time exercise, hiking, skinny dipping, and escaped convicts suddenly replayed through his mind. For a brief moment he was reliving each situatino but then he found himself just laying with his head in Kealey's lap and a throbbing pain in the back of his neck. "Uuuh... are you... hurt?" He grunted, on hand moving up to touch the back of his head while his eyes tried to focus on Kealey's face. As always it was framed by the few strands of blond hair that had escaped her pony tail holder but Jacen couldn't recall ever seeing her look like this. Was that worry or concern he saw all over her face?

"Get out of here." Jacen muttered, his eyes never leaving Kealey's face, "Before they come back. You can't get hurt... I couldn't take you getting hurt."

It was heroic and stupid all at the same time. Jacen lay there, unsure exactly what sort of damage had really been done to his head and neck but all he could think of was getting Kealey to safety. And speaking of safety... where the hell were all of those convicts? He could only remember taking out one. What had happened to the other three?

He still wasn’t waking up. Kealey cast a look towards the lake, and wondered if she could get Jacen to the canoe they’d brought here. She frowned, even if she could do that, she wasn’t sure she remembered how to get back where they’d come from…or if she could even manage it. His eyes still weren’t open, and Kealey tried valiantly to fight down the panic that was still trying to surface. The blond was mess, so many feelings in such a short time. The residual effects were still there, conflicting with everything she was feeling now.

She was still staring towards the lake when Jacen spoke, and Kealey’s eyes snapped down to his in time to see them open. ”Oh thank God.” she breathed, blinking away relieved tears as he started to move. She caught his hand before he could touch the back of his head, holding it gently, but keeping it away from the bump, ”Don’t touch…it’s a big bump, you’ll make it worse.” he asked if she was okay and Kealey blinked, stunned for a second. Was she?

Kealey took a quick inventory, her feet and legs hurt, and her cheek still throbbed gently where the convict in the clearing had hit her. Internally…she was a mess, but she was still standing, her lips compressed into a thin line as she looked down at Jacen, ”I’m fine.” she said, simply, ”What about you? Can you see how many fingers I’m holding up?” Two fingers appeared in what should have been Jacen’s field of vision…it was a start.

Jacen spoke though, telling her to get out of there...without him? Kealey just blinked down blue eyes starin into brown, apparently he’d been hit even harder than Kealey originally thought. His concern for her made Kealey smile slightly, but she shook her head, ”Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not leaving you here.” she said, voice firm enough that hopefully it eliminated all argument. ”Besides, they’re not coming back…well two of them anyway. I tied them up before I left the clearing…and I think one’s hurt bad enough he won’t be going anywhere for a while. The other two are still unconscious…I don’t know what to do with them though.” Now that Jacen was awake, it was easier to push off her emotions again, there was still work to be done. All that needed to happen before Kealey thought about what she’d done. ”Are you hurt anywhere else? Think you can sit up?” she said, still looking down at Jacen, eyes intent

"Don't touch... right." Jacen muttered, his hand going limp as soon as Kealey grabbed it. Even though his head was throbbing like hell, Jacen had to admit it felt pretty good to be laying with his head in Kealey's lap. Why hadn't he tried this before? What would it feel like if she were running her hands through his hair? She'd sure seemed to enjoy that sort of thing back at the pool but would he like it too?

"Two... three... no two." Jacen's eyes blinked rapidly, trying to clear away any fuzziness before he finally settled on just one very firm answer. "Two. Your holding two fingers."

It had been a long time since Jacen had experienced a concussion but he was willing to bet that was exactly what he had at the moment. The throbbing head ache and slightly blurred vision was classic signs. Since his vision was clearing that meant it probably wasn't to bad but it was still more than likely a concussion. "You're stubborn." Jacen said bluntly, a slight smile touching his face as he looked up at Kealey. Even though he wasn't thinking completely clearly he had to admit he was impressed. Somehow she had managed to take out three of the convicts without any help from him. "I like that."

Who knew that something as easy as sitting up could turn into a major ordeal? And why was it that even after you'd already experienced a concussion, you could still be surprised by just how much it hurt and how much it affected your body?

"Other than a damaged sense of pride and a head ache I'm fine." Jacen gritted as he slowly sat up, trying to ignore the fact that things were swimming at the edge of his vision. Now that he was sitting it was time to try standing but Jacen wasn't sure he was ready for that just yet.

"Kealey, there's a knife in my pack in the tent." Jacen said quietly, his eyes closing as he fought off a sudden wave of nausea. This was deffinately not what he had been planning for the weekend. They hadn't even had a chance to enjoy s'mores together or go swimming in the moonlight. He hadn't gotten a chance to prove yet again just how beautiful he really though Kealey was. Damn those convicts! "Would you get it for me, along with the line I use for hanging stuff from the trees? It should be right next to the tent."

Kealey was relieved that Jacen stopped reaching for his head when she grabbed his hand, she didn’t let go of it immediately either and watched him closely as he tried to sort out just how many fingers she was holding up. It wasn’t an immediate answer, though, and Kealey’s brows furrowed slightly with worry as Jacen settled on an answer. He was right, but he’d wavered a little bit, she nodded her head though. ”Yes, two.”

Jacen was still spacing a bit, Kealey noticed as he just stayed where he was for a moment, looking up at her. In another situation, this would have been really nice. Even in the current situation her fingers itched to run through Jacen’s hair or over his chest. Unfortunately there were still unconscious bad guys spread out all over the place and they needed taken care of. Kealey wished she could shut her eyes and wish them away. It wasn’t going to happen though, and Jacen spoke, calling her stubborn and Kealey nearly laughed, then he said he liked it and she did chuckle, shaking her head.

”Irish…” she said by way of explanation, ”It’s good that you like it, I think it’s in my DNA…”

Jacen was ready to sit up, and he did so, very slowly. Kealey sat ready to help if he asked for it, but letting him do it on his own as long as he wanted to. According to Jacen, the only thing wounded beside his head was his pride and she shook her head, a frown replacing the smile from a few moments before.

”I had an advantage you didn’t…besides the fact that they didn’t know I was there.“ she said softly, ”And they gave me plenty of ammo.” She thought about the man who’d grabbed her and shuddered, those were emotions she could go her whole life without feeling again.

Jacen was giving instructions and Kealey nodded her head, waiting on him to finish before rising to her feet to gather the items. As she walked away, her bare foot hit something metal and she looked down to see the gun. Leaning down and picking it up, she handed it to Jacen, ”I took this off the last guy. The other one is buried out in that clearing I found this morning.”

It didn’t take long to get the things Jacen had asked for, and Kealey returned to his side and handed him the knife and the rope. ”What else can I do?”