ficinabottle

Title: Tracker, Ch. 2
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Skate, Jana, others
Disclaimer: I don't own LOST
Summary: Set during S2, Kate, Sawyer and several other characters go off into the jungle after Michael, learning secrets of the Island along the way.
Spoilers: Season 2

A/N: Tracker is an extremely lengthy, multi-chapter fanfic that I wrote during Season Two. I plan on posting a couple of chapters a day if I can, so please check back! By the way, blame

kirvash if you get hooked on it. Thanks for reading!

Tracker
Chapter 2

Sawyer sprawled lazily in the airplane seat, shirtless, basking in the sun. The ocean breeze cooled him as he half-dozed in the afternoon heat. He was in the grips of a lethargy he had never experienced before, and he knew part of it was his injury and infection, but part of it was Kate's absence. He was starting to get worried, which was crazy, but he had expected to see her by now. He was tired, another by-product of his infected shoulder, but he was almost afraid to sleep. His dreams lately were just snatches and snippets of memories intertwined with boots and gunshots; dusty bed bottoms and blood. He shuddered and forced his mind to another subject- trying to remember the last eight days. He was pretty clear on the raft, though after he pulled the bullet out things started to get hazier and hazier. His memory was so-so up until the start of Rambina's little Jungle Death March, and thankfully he couldn't remember much at all after that. He curled his lips in a sneer as he thought about Ana-Lucia. He knew she was here, and as soon as he was strong enough, he was gonna pay her a nice little visit, thank her for stomping her diseased jungle boots into his open gunshot wound. Hell, at least get his damn gun back.

He did remember a few things, but they were so random and dream-like that he wasn't sure if they were even real. Michael, holding his head up and looking worried; a shower?; Jack talking to him about a bullet; Kate's voice whispering in his ear; the jungle floor passing beneath him as a pair of feet carried him; Kate by his side; blinding pain and cold concrete; Kate holding his hand; Kate, Kate, Kate. He was amazed at how omnipresent she had become in the space of a few days- so much so that he couldn't think of a reason to move without her. So much so that he expected her to be there, and, hell, he wanted her to be there. And it was damn disappointing that she wasn't.

His stomach suddenly gave a lurch and a low, rumbling growl.

"I guess you're getting your appetite back." Kate stepped into his light, casting a cool, dark shadow over him.

"Some appetites I never lost, Sweetcheeks," he drawled lazily, his dimples deepening as he grinned up at her, his disappointment fading away. Kate rolled her eyes.

"Hm. Well, I don't have anything to give you for that particular appetite," At this Sawyer cocked his eyebrow at her with an I-beg-to-differ-look, but Kate ignored him and continued, "but I brought you some fruit for the other." She pulled two mangoes out of her bag and handed them to Sawyer. His fingers brushed hers and he held them for a moment, feeling how soft they were, but knowing how strong they could be. Kate suddenly jerked them away, and looking slightly panicked pointed at his bloodstained bandage. "Sawyer, why is your shoulder bleeding? What happened? Let me look-" She reached for him.

Annoyed, Sawyer held up his hand to hold her off. "Don't worry, Freckles, the doc's already checked me out. I'm right as rain." He tried to stand, but his legs were shaky, and he swayed a little as he rose. Kate automatically reached out to steady him, and she let her hands linger a little longer than was absolutely necessary before dropping them and turning away. He took a few steps, stretching his legs. She handed him the knife from her belt, and began rummaging through her backpack while Sawyer cut off a slice of mango and devoured it.

Kate brought a pair of scissors and a comb out of her backpack. Sawyer, still working on his mango, stopped and looked warily at Kate holding the scissors.

"What are you plannin' on doin' with those, Freckles?"

Kate smiled at him. He had mango juice running down his chin, and he unconciously wiped it away, still looking at her. "I'm giving you a haircut."

Sawyer's reaction was the same as the last time she mentioned a haircut. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah, really," she laughed, pointing to the seat. "So sit back down."

"Well, now, I ain't sure if I like the idea of you bein' so close to my head with somethin' so sharp."

"Oh, please. Are you afraid I might cut you?"

His look said that was exactly what he was afraid of.

Kate rolled her eyes and pointed to the seat. "Sit, Captain Caveman. If you're a good boy I'll give you a lollipop."

Sawyer sighed and gave in. He sat gingerly back down. Kate draped a towel she'd pilfered from the hatch over his shoulders, and stood behind him, scissors and comb poised. She took a deep breath and muttered, " Ok, here we go."

Alarmed, Sawyer swiveled his head around to look at her- and almost laughed. She had such an intense look of concentration that her nose was wrinkled and the tip of her tongue was poking out. "What?" she snapped. "Turn back around."

"Just makin' sure you still wanna do this."

Kate grabbed his head between her hands and faced him forward. "Just be still."

Sawyer smiled to himself. It was strangely relaxing, sitting in the sun, listening to the waves and the wind. Kate was combing and snipping here and there, and over the waves and wind he could hear her breathing behind him. His head nodded and he fell into a kind of half-sleep.

Kate smiled as his head drooped. His head was a mess- some of the mats and tangles were so bad she had to cut them out. She grimaced as she cut out a particularly large chunk, grateful that Sawyer was not awake to see it. Maybe she should have washed his hair first, it might have made it a little easier to comb. She combed and cut in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the closeness of him. She was so near she could see the fine downy hairs on the back of his neck, and as she bent closer to take a snip she could see her breath ruffle them.

Saywer growled groggily,"Ain't you done yet, Freckles? Exactly how long did my hair get?"

"Well, when I called you Captain Caveman I wasn't off by much." She stepped around to face him. "I just need to do the front and then you're done."

He frowned up at her. "You ain't cuttin' it too short, are you? I don't want to look like Jack."

Something like panic crossed her face when he mentioned Jack's name- Sawyer saw it. Or thought he did, it was gone in the next instant. "Don't worry," she said, "I don't want you to look like Jack."

She was leaning close, standing between his legs, combing his hair down into his eyes. He tightened his knees so they barely touched her legs. She had that intense look again, nose wrinkled and poking tongue. He could count her delicious freckles if he wanted to. She snipped a few times, then glanced down at Sawyer, smiling. "All do-" she stopped as her eyes locked with his. It felt like time stopped, she couldn't breathe, but she couldn't look away. Without thinking, she leaned in and kissed him. His lips parted and she felt his tongue flicker across hers. She pulled back, suddenly able to draw a shaky breath.

"Uhhh...hey...dudes."

Both of them whipped their heads around at the same time. Michael and Hurley were standing a few feet away. Michael was looking away, kind of embarassed, and Hurley just stared at them, open mouthed.

Kate blushed a deep crimson and turned away. Sawyer recovered quickly, and noticing Kate's discomfort said, "Well, howdy boys. You here for a haircut too?"

She glared at him. Her face was flushed and she looked slightly guilty, like a teenager whose parents had just caught her making out on the front porch. He had never seen anything so beautiful in his life.

Michael stepped forward. "I just wanted to see how you were doing, man. Heard you were up and about." He looked askance at Kate. "Guess you're feeling better, huh?"

Hurley was still gawping at them. Kate groaned to herself. The whole camp would know about this by nightfall.

"Pretty damn good, thanks to you Mike." Sawyer said. He stood up carefully. "I guess I owe you one."

"Nah", Michael replied, "You saved my ass on the raft. That makes us even." He held out his hand to Sawyer.

Sawyer regarded it sadly. He looked up at Michael and swallowed hard. "I'm sorry about Walt." he finally said. Kate saw the guilt and anger in his eyes, and her heart melted.

Michael looked away, tears springing up into his eyes. "Yeah," he whispered, "Me too. But you did what you could, man, and I won't ever forget it."

Sawyer regarded him for a moment, then shook his hand.

Hurley finally piped up, though he was still staring at Kate. "Uhhh, yeah, Kate? Have you seen Jack? 'Cause we need him for something."

Kate froze and glanced at Sawyer. He was watching her intently, something cold and hard in his eyes. She looked away, she hoped not too guiltily and shook her head. "No, not today. Sorry." She flashed a nervous smile.

"Well, okay then," said Hurley. "I guess we'll try the caves. See you dudes." He and Michael headed towards the path to the caves.

Sawyer suddenly felt very weak. His legs wobbled and Kate caught him up under the arm, holding him steady. "I think it's time for you to lie down," she said, and led him to his cot. She sat him down gently and helped him ease down onto the cusions. He tried to keep his eyes open, to look at her, but they refused to stay open any longer.

Within seconds he was snoring softly. Kate watched him for a few minutes, her eyes following the rise and fall of his chest. Her fingers found his and she held his hand while he slept.

* * * * * * * * * *

It was dark when Sawyer woke. Kate was sitting in the sand at the foot of his bed, staring out at the dark ocean. She could still feel his lips on hers. Kissing him had been stupid- an impulse just like kissing Jack. But this had been different, hadn't it? When his tongue had touched hers it had burned- the shock of it had made her pull away. Good thing too, she thought wryly. Who knows what kind of a show Michael and Hurley might have gotten. Michael had barely acknowledged her, though, and that bothered her a little. She supposed he still believed that she poisoned him- if Jack was going to keep Sun's secret, he couldn't tell Michael the truth. Well, she reconsidered, the truth was she had poisoned him, hadn't she? Even if it was indirectly. Maybe he was right not to trust her, she thought ruefully, and she trickled some sand through her fingers.

"Kate?" Sawyer murmured.

"Yeah, I'm here," she answered softly. But she didn't move.

Sawyer was quiet for a minute, and Kate thought maybe he had gone back to sleep. Then he said, "Can I have that lollipop now?"

Kate laughed and stood up, brushing sand off her jeans. "Well, she said, "I lied about the lollipop. But I have something better." She reached into the pocket of her backpack and took something out. She hesitated before she handed it to him, and he had the distinct feeling she didn't really want to give it up.

Sawyer looked at it, squinting in the dark. "Apollo Bar?" he said, looking up at Kate. "What the hell is that?"

She just smiled.

* * * * * * * * * *

It was barely dawn when shouts from the beach woke them. Kate jumped up from the blanket she'd taken from Sawyer's stash while he was sleeping. It sounded like Jack. She helped Sawyer up and then ran out to the beach. Jack was standing among a circle of castaways, looking very worried.

"Has anyone seen Michael?" he shouted. No one had. Sawyer caught up to Kate, and looked at her. "I saw him this afternoon", Sawyer said. "He was with Hurley. They were lookin' for you."

"He's gone, and so are four guns from the hatch. Locke thought it might be a good idea to inventory them twice a day." Sun came running up, looking scared and confused. "Jin is gone too," she said. Jack looked sick. "They've gone after Walt," he said. "We've got to go after them."