Zac
Virtually the first thing Zac did when he got back fron New York (or at least the first thing he did when he was even romotely conscious) was make his way to Taylor and Mouse's house. Well really just Mouse's house at the moment, considering Taylor was living at home again.
He knocked on the door.
Mouse & Clarissa
Mouse got up and went to the door, but Clarissa got there first.
"For you, kid," Clarissa said, then moved away to read her magazine again.
Mouse smiled at Zac, then frowned as she took in his emotions.
"Zac...what's wrong? Come in, please."
Zac
Zac stepped in slowly.
"Faith... Faith..." he stammered. "She... I..."
Damn those tears.
Mouse & Clarissa
Mouse glanced at Clarissa, who raised an eyebrow slightly. She led Zac through to her bedroom, wanting to talk to him in private. She made him sit down with her on the bed, thankful that she'd cleaned up the other day.
"Faith? Something happened to Faith?"
Zac's grief, betrayal and confusion beat against her shields.
Zac
"She... she... she slept with Logan..." Zac gulped. "I was... the bathroom... and they... oh man..."
He held his head in his hands.
Mouse
Mouse hesitantly reached out and hugged him carefully.
"Oh, Zac..."
Zac
"I feel like... the image... engraved into my mind," Zac couldn't stop the tears now. "If... if she didn't want to marry me, she should have said so. I... I would have... understood."
He put his arms around Mouse and wept into her shoulder.
Mouse
Mouse stroked his hair softly, trying to soothe him with her power gently.
"I'm listening, Zac. Whatever you need to say."
Zac
"Th-thank you... Mousey," Zac said. "You-you've always been a good friend."
He sniffed.
"I... I mean... I know I never was a... a very good boyfriend. But I... I was.. was really trying Mousey! I was and now... now..."
Mouse
Mouse touched his face gently.
"I know."
She bit her lip slightly.
"I'm probably not one of the best people to talk to about relationships. Taylor can't even stand to be in the same room with me!"
She ducked her head for a moment, running her fingers through her hair and struggling to keep her emotions away from him.
Zac
"Taylor is an idiot," Zac muttered. "You're a beautiful woman and a wonderful person and Taylor must be blind not to see that. Maybe I was stupid and pushed... pushed Faith away... but Taylor isn't even trying to be close to you."
Mouse
"I was stupid to think he would really want me," Mouse whispered.
"Stupid little streetrat."
Zac
"You're not stupid. Taylor's the stupid one." Zac replied.
He traced a finger down her jaw.
"I might be stupid and Taylor is stupid, but not you. Never you."
Mouse
"I wish I could believe you..."
Mouse shook her head.
"You're not stupid, Zac. You just...make some bad desicions. Everyone makes mistakes."
Zac
"I... I suppose," Zac said softly. "But still... it doesn't always feel that way. But I still stand by saying you're not stupid. If anything you're like... like, ummm, what's ner name from Greek Myth. Cassandra. She was blessed with being able to see the future, but cursed by whenever she foretold it, no one would believe her."
Somehow, through his tears, he managed a smile.
Mouse
"I get that feeling a lot," Mouse said.
"Talking to Taylor at the moment is like banging my head against a brickwall."
Zac
"Well he is blonde," Zac replied. "He doesn't even have atrifical intelligence like me."
How he was managing to joke right now he had no idea.
Mouse
Mouse sighed slightly and leant her head against his shoulder.
"Started out me trying to help you...now you're trying to help me. Thanks, Zac."
Zac
Zac smiled and kissed her head.
"S'ok," he replied softly. "We're both hurting now, cause our partners both... left us..."
He swallowed, trying to fight back the tears which were threatening to erupt again.
Mouse
Mouse hugged him, letting her empathy flow over him like gentle waves. She just wanted him to feel better.
"Remember the night I turned up? God, I was so scared of everyone..."
Zac
Zac rubbed her back gently.
"Yeah..." he murmured. "I work up in the middle of the night for some reason. And there you were. Hiding under the table."
Mouse
Mouse almost laughed.
"Faf went nuts. Like he does. Thought I was going to get hauled off to jail, and Faf get shot."
Zac
Zac grinned and nuzzled her neck more out of habit than anything else.
"I remember heating up those steaks for Fafnir. Bet that was the last thing you expected, huh? Us taking you in like that."
Mouse
"Mmm, yeah," Mouse said.
"Awful lot of bad in the world. You see a lot more on the streets then you do any good. Sure, there's some people, but so often, just a front..."
Zac
"Sad that it is that way. It shouldn't be."
Zac wanted to stay right here, like this. Maybe then the pain would go away.
Mouse
Mouse felt him becoming calmer as her power took the edge of his emotions.
"Feel better?" she asked softly, reaching up to wpie the tear tracks off his face gently.
Zac
Zac gave a small smile.
"It's hard not to with an empath looking after you," he said softly, looking into her eyes.
Mouse
Mouse shrugged slightly and looked down.
"Good to know I can do something right. For once. Besides thieving."
Zac
"You can do a lot more right than just that," Zac said firmly. "You just need a little more faith in yourself."
Then he realised what he had said and chewed his lip. Damnit, Faith...
Mouse
"Merci, Zac," Mouse said softly.
She lay down on the bed, putting her hands behind her head.
"The advice works both ways, you know."
Zac
"I'll keep that in mind."
Zac paused a moment, then laid down next to her, and leaned on his elbow.
Mouse
Mouse looked up at him.
"It's not you, you know. Faith has her own problems."
Zac
"It feels like it is," Zac replied. "Everytime we've broken up it felt like it was because of me, directly or indirectly."
He sighed.
Mouse
Mouse took his hand and squeezed it gently.
"It'll work out."
Zac
"I hope so," Zac replied quietly.
He looked at their hands, and then back at Mouse.
Mouse
Zac
"Oh hey," Zac said. "I know Tay is an idiot, but he can't stay away
from you forever."
He threaded his fingers in her hair.
Mouse
"Watch him," Mouse said bitterly.
"Maybe we just rushed into everything too fast."
Zac
"Maybe... maybe that's true for both of us."
Zac sighed and lowered his head.
Mouse
Mouse closed her eyes, keeping a hold of Zac's hand.
"I don't understand twoleggers. At all. So much easier with the
Folk. And that's something else I don't think Taylor
understands...my bond with Fafnir. He hates it when Fafnir hunts,
but he's a wolf. Don't know what he'd think if he knew I've done it
as well...when you're hungry, anything's good enough, doesn't matter
how you get it."
Zac
"Yeah... I guess it's just... everything everyone eats used to be alive
at one point or another. It has to be that way in order for there to be
a continual supply of food. I guess some people don't like to think of
things that way - eating and knowing that one day they'll be food too."
Zac stroked her cheek absently.
Mouse
Mouse turned her head slightly into his hand, just wanting to be
touched. Empaths thrived on good emotions and touching.
"He doesn't like things dying. I mean, I don't either really, but
Faf's got to eat. You know how much a wolf eats? It's a lot. Gets
expensive."
She sighed softly.
"And there's nothing like hunting."
Zac
Zac smiled.
"I see your point," he said.
He habitually moved a little closer to Mouse.
Mouse
Mouse opened her eyes again, looking at him.
"Glad someone does. Who doesn't run around on four feet
habitually."
Zac
Zac grinned.
"I try," he said.
And without really thinking about what he was doing, he leaned over and
kissed her lips softly.
Mouse
Mouse blinked in shock for a moment. Then hesitantly kissed him
back.
This was wrong. So very wrong. But god she hurt...
Zac
Zac was having a Pringle moment - once he started he couldn't stop. He
enveloped her in his arms and wouldn't stop kissing. A nagging voice in
the back of his mind was telling him that this was a bad idea, but he
refused to listen.
Mouse
Mouse kissed him back, shields already weak and feeling his need
for comfort overwhelm her. She threaded her fingers through his hair.
Zac
Zac rested his hand on Mouse's waist, rubbing slightly. It felt so
good to have a woman in his arms, to hold, to kiss, to caress. Made him
feel like there was someone who loved him.
Mouse
Mouse let him undress her, kissing him back.
"Zac..."
Zac
"Mmm?" Zac asked.
He carressed and kissed her tenderly.
Mouse
"Nothing..."
Mouse kissed him back, wrapping her arms around him.
Zac
And thus Zac and Mouse proceeded to do something they would both
undoubtably regret later. And I don't mean tryng for the world record
of most baked beans eaten in an hour either.