Chapter Text
Hello stranger, can you tell us where you’ve been?
More importantly, how ever did you come to be here?
Though a stranger you can rest here for awhile.
But save your energy, your journey here is far from over.
- Puscifer, “Green Valley”
---
Everyone else had gathered at the bow of the Skylark to watch as the small speck in the distance came into focus. Even the hardest of souls had gone with the group, wanting to be on deck as the speck became the island that’s become home in their eyes and hearts.
Rachel could imagine how hard it must be for Luz. Physically dwarfed by Chevy and Alex, her persona seemed to loom so much larger than the both of them. The jaded mask she wore kept her safe and the armor of a warrior protected the soft, squishy bits but Rachel wondered if both would crack, just a little -- just enough -- at the sight of heaven.
Because that’s what it was to them now. No longer an island made up of very real things but a magical place, a fairytale land if she dared to make such a comparison even to herself. It was heaven in the forests and rivers and ocean that surrounded it, holding the fragile promise of homes and food. A place where they could rebuild themselves and nurse and heal their collective brokenness. Hell, maybe they could even heal the brokenness of an entire planet torn apart and eaten alive by the very creatures that once flourished there.
Quinn hadn’t said anything about not joining the others and part of Rachel wanted to feel bad about that. The selfish part of her won out however, because having a quiet moment with Quinn beat everything else. Instead of leading her to the bow she’d held her hand and walked in the opposite direction, continuing to the stern in silence. Even when Rachel had stopped, staring back the way they’d traveled over miles and miles of ocean, Quinn had lowered herself to the deck, kicking out her legs and holding her arms out. It was a silent invitation Rachel knew she’d be forever powerless to refuse.
Besides, she thought as she nestled back into Quinn’s embrace, their quiet moments were probably at an end.
“Things are going to change. Again,” she said with a wistful smile. Leaning her head back against Quinn’s shoulder she turned her face up and studied the strong lines of Quinn’s face.
“Remember when people used to say ‘Be the change you want to see in the world’?” Quinn smiled back, lopsidedly. “The world changes without any help from us. We’ll adapt.”
Rachel shook her head. “I think you could say that this is an occasion where humans were responsible for global change - and it wasn’t a good one.”
“Didn’t really work out well for us. But hey, let’s think positive. We’re alive and we may have just struck a blow for the survival of the species. The living remnants of the species, that is.” Quinn shrugged.
“Thinking positive. What a concept.” Rachel hummed, closed her eyes and took a deep breath of salt-flavored air. “It feels weird, leaving. I won’t miss the storms, but I feel like I just figured out how to live here. It’s comfortable, almost cozy in its own way.”
“Says the woman who dislocated her shoulder fighting off a hurricane.”
Rachel pinched the back of Quinn’s hand. “Stop that. You make it sound so much bigger than it was. Tell me again how big that fish was that you caught the other day?”
“I swear,” Quinn said with a small laugh. “It could have been JAWS’ mother.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
“Don’t try and tell me that you don’t lo - like it.”
They sat in silence again, for a while. And for a while Rachel was content to drift. She listened to the sounds around them: Quinn’s breathing and the ever present wind, the splash of the ocean, and the churning sound of the propellers. The urge to sing pressed in her throat and filled her chest, but she swallowed it down with some effort; she wasn’t quite there yet. Maybe someday soon she could sing again for the pure joy of it.
“What do you think will happen? To us -- all of us?” She asked, tilting her head when Quinn leaned in to rest against her shoulder. It caused an entirely different flutter in Rachel’s gut. The newfound closeness between them was exciting, but she didn’t dare do anything to spook Quinn away from it. There was a new Quinn slowly emerging, ever since Andrew’s departure from the ship. She broke Rachel’s heart, left it aching and in pieces but somehow held everything together at the same time. Every time Quinn smiled at her or touched her without hesitating, Rachel felt it in her bones. When she woke up and Quinn was the one who had taken over Big Spoon responsibilities her heart shattered. But it didn’t destroy her, it made her feel whole. Like maybe breaking had been the necessary next step and she should welcome it.
So she did.
But she definitely didn’t say anything to Quinn about it. Didn’t even tease her.
It was still enough.
For now.
Unconditional, Rachel thought and smiled as the old Katy Perry lyrics ran through her head.
“I think… I think this is the beginning. The real beginning of the rest of our forever.” Quinn squinted at nothing and shrugged. Her hands tightened around Rachel’s waist as she continued on. “It’s going to be hard and some days are going to suck, but we’ll know that this is better. It’s so much better than where we were and where we could be. We’re stronger now and we know what we can do. We’re dangerous in the best way. I think that as long as we remember our lessons out here we won’t get too cocky. We’ll stay humble and we’ll stay alive.”
“Not just surviving?” Rachel turned further so she could see all of Quinn’s face. She touched the tip of Quinn’s nose, grinning when Quinn scrunched her face adorably in response.
“At first,” Quinn said and clicked her teeth together in a mock bite at Rachel’s finger. “At first survival will be the game. But it will change and the next thing we know we’ll be living for the first time in years.”
“I’m excited,” Rachel confessed in a whisper. Afraid to say it too loud and have it snatched away. It was terrifying. Excitement, hope… anything light and good could be taken in an instant. She didn’t trust the sea breeze not to reach out and steal it away.
But Quinn’s eyes were as warm as her smile. “Me, too. I think we’re going to make it.”
“We will.” Rachel raised her chin in a fair imitation of her younger self, even tossing her hair over her shoulder in a self-assured manner. “I won’t let you quit.”
“I promise you that I won’t give up if you won’t,” Quinn dared back, a familiar challenge in her expression.
Maybe they were both ridiculous.
Rachel didn’t care.
She held up her pinky. “Promise.”
Quinn wrapped her pinky around Rachel’s, smirk deepening as she squeezed. “Promise.”
Only when Quinn let go did Rachel allow herself to laugh. She fell forward, drawn towards Quinn, and let her head rest in her new favorite place. Tucked just under Quinn’s chin, she laughed and felt Quinn’s laughter vibrating in her chest.
They were going to make it.
All of them.
They had to.
A promise was a promise.
---
After the ship had been stopped and the anchor dropped, Rachel had put together a search party to make sure the island would be safe for them to inhabit. There could be settlers already, of the living kind. Or the dead. Nobody wanted any surprises.
Quinn retreated back to the room they’d converted over into weapons storage, leaving Rachel on the deck to talk some more. She had a crowd to calm, her first responsibility being to all of those eager and nervous faces. Quinn preferred being responsible for shooting things.
She pulled on a pair of fingerless leather gloves and picked up her new shotgun. It hadn’t been sawed off yet so the barrel seemed unnaturally long, but it would do the trick. And she did love her shotguns. Perfect aim was nice, but there was something to be said about point-in-the-general-direction and shoot. Next to her Luz was thumbing fresh rounds into her pistol magazine. They hadn’t spoken in awhile, not since the screaming match over her actions in the kitchen.
Luz had called her reckless. Stupid. A few other things in Spanish that didn’t translate fully. She got the gist though; after spending years around Santana she knew her Spanish curse-words.
“I had to do it, Luz,” she said over the sound of bullets sliding into place. “I know you get it.”
“It would have been better, maybe, if instead of rushing headlong into these heroics that you both do…” Luz sighed. “Can’t you just tell the girl you like her? Before one of you does something more stupid than the last. You’re not an idiot, Q, but you’re good at pretending to be one. Must be all that acting skill.”
“She started it. Being a badass and taking on zombies. Running into storms to save children. Going after CJ in the kitchen.” She shook her head. “It’s not the right – we need to – I don’t know what I’m doing, alright? I don’t know what this is.”
Luz snorted, slammed the magazine into place, and chambered the first round. “You should probably figure it out.”
“Thanks, buddy, I’ll get right on it.” Quinn smirked and raised an eyebrow. “How did I ever survive without you around to help?”
“I’m still trying to figure that one out.”
Her smirk grew into a grin. She racked the shotgun and balanced it in one hand with the muzzle pointing to the ceiling. “Serious conversations later. Right now, let’s go check out our new island.”
“Like you’re not used to things like private islands,” Luz said. “Take a vacation or two on one before? Or was that all a lie in the tabloids?”
“When most of the world has seen you naked – well, mostly naked – sometimes you go to an island and make peace with it.”
“Cheeky bitch.” Luz rolled her eyes. “Come on then, let’s go get your lady and check out this rock.”
---
The small boat they used to cross over to the island made the rough ocean feel like a roller coaster. Rain pelted them, smacking against Quinn’s head much harder than the average raindrop should.
It also brought back unpleasant memories of their recent adventure on a much larger boat during a much larger storm.
She looked to her right and saw Rachel gripping the rope on the edge of the boat, knuckles white and jaw clenched. Luz smirked at her when she cast a quick glance to her left, as though she already knew what Quinn had planned.
Raising an eyebrow in challenge, she slid her hand over and tangled her fingers with Rachel’s cold, wet ones.
Luz’s smirk turned into a grin. Quinn shrugged and looked over at Rachel. “Hey,” she shouted over the whine of the engine and constant clap of the boat against the waves, “you okay?”
Rachel winced. “I hate boats. And the ocean. And storms.”
“Me, too.” She squeezed Rachel’s fingers. If we catch hypothermia, you’re more than welcome to be my warm up buddy again, she thought. “We’ll be on land soon.”
“That’s not really comforting,” Rachel yelled, narrowing her eyes.
The island loomed ahead of them, getting larger and larger as they approached. Majestic mountains stood up from the thick forests of the island. Its gray and white a stunning contrast to the dark greens and browns, a rich fog seeped up from the roots of the trees, soaking the island and crawling out towards the boat. Big rocks jutted out from the water almost like a barricade to keep people out, and sticking out from the shore a lone dock wobbled with no other boats or seaplanes near it.
Chevy, sitting at the back controlling the motor, wiped some water off his face and grinned. “Lookie there, folks, a welcome mat!”
Alex, right next to him, flung some water at him and then went back to hugging his rifle.
Quinn, more than used to their antics, smiled at Rachel to reassure her. “They’re professionals.”
“Oh, well now I feel better.”
The engine quieted and the frantic bouncing of the boat smoothed out as they coasted up beside the dock. Luz threw a noose over a cleat and stood up, shaking only a moment before she caught her balance and tied off the boat securely. “All ashore,” she said, and clambered up onto the dock, her pistol coming up immediately. Alex went up next, rifle swinging around to the ready.
Chevy grabbed Quinn’s shoulder before she could stand. “Soldiers first, Hollywood.”
He knelt down once his feet hit the old wood and held out a hand.
Quinn glared at him but let him help her up and then together they yanked Rachel almost right out of the boat.
“Why am I last?” She huffed and swatted at Chevy’s arm.
“Because even Quinn can pick you up,” he said.
“Hey, three stooges?” Luz snapped, glaring over her shoulder. “Can we save the idiocy for after we check out this ghost town?”
Quinn let the shotgun rest between her palms, filling them like it had been made to sit there. Truth be told she liked Chevy’s jokes before, during, and after tense moments. They helped her stay calm which in turn helped her to focus. The few times she’d seen Chevy frazzled, that was when she lost her focus. If Chevy stopped making jokes it meant they were in real trouble in a situation they couldn’t get out of.
He nudged her shoulder and she nodded up at him, watching Luz stalk forward, pistol leading the charge. Alex went after her, eyes to his sights. Chevy crouched and followed in a slow, smooth gait that was surprisingly graceful for a man his size.
Rachel, not liking being last in the slightest, shot Quinn a look and then jumped forward, her feet rolling heel to toe. The muscles in her forearms stood out keeping her trusty pistol level.
Swiping some water out of her eyes and shoving her drenched hair back in the same motion, Quinn followed in last place.
Thanks to Luz measured steps the pace they took kept them in a tight group. It eased some of the tension from Quinn’s shoulders. Safety in numbers. She felt like a part of a wolf pack on the hunt, a predator less likely to be preyed on.
She took a deep, frigid breath, tasting the salt air and water. It puffed out in a small plume of steam. Gritty sand shifted under her shoes as she stepped off of gray, worn wood. and the world stopped rocking from side to side. It took her a few steps to get used to the sensation. The others drifted from side to side, likely also dealing with the strange transition of sea to land.
The flat shore of the island, littered with rocks and the odd tree stump, gave way to underbrush, row after row of trees, and a small beaten path. She saw Luz stiffen, shoulders pulling upward, at the first step onto the trail. The group tightened into a staggered single-file, muzzles of various weapons swinging left and right to clear the tree-line hemming them in. Quinn sped up enough to be on Rachel’s heels.
Their feet crunched noisily, each sound jarring. Luz held up a fist and the whole line stopped, silencing the noise. Quinn leaned over when she heard Rachel gasp and wanted to rub her eyes to double check she was seeing clearly.
There was a little village, still standing though beaten down by weather and overrun with moss. She counted four cabins poking out from the trees. Two of them were two-story, with adorable wooden staircases leading up to the second floor. The other two looked like the kind of cabin she’d seen in paintings. All four of them sported chimneys, promising a cozy fire place she couldn’t wait to warm her hands in front of. Nearest to them was a lodge, massive and beautiful and less rundown than the cabins, but with moss growing on the roof.
Home. A real home. Her breath caught in her lungs and her mouth went numb.
“It’s real,” Rachel whispered.
“Alex,” Luz said, quietly. “Stay with me. Chevy, take Rachel and Quinn. We’ll clear right, you three clear the left. Make sure there’s no surprises, roger?”
“Got it, Mama,” Chevy said. “Quinn, you remember how to do this?”
She swallowed but squared her jaw and nodded when he looked back at her.
Chevy broke off, rifle ready. Rachel stayed right with him, like a pro, just next to his shoulder. They headed towards the nearest cabin. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Alex opening the door to the lodge, Luz darting inside.
“Q,” Chevy whispered and nodded at the door.
Her turn.
---
TBC...