Chapter Text
The soft dripping of water was the first sound that reached his ears as he returned to the world of the wake, his eyes flickering open to find the endless green leaves above gleaming in early morning light. It was a sight he was growing all the more used to, having spent the past few days in what seemed like a jungle that would never end, but it was still so very different from the years he had spent sleeping in rotting houses that had once belonged to people like him.
Turning onto his side, his eyes fell onto Skip, the other man still fast asleep despite that the world was waking up, and the jungle was getting noisier with every second. It was as if all the animals hiding in the trees and bushes had suddenly decided that the world needed to hear them, and they were now all calling out in unison.
After another moment of listening to the snores coming from his friend, and the sounds of the forest, Malarkey pushed himself up, fingers digging into the dirt that he was sure was coating his back after another rough night sleeping on it. It was what he was growing used to by now, and it was all like the dust he had used to sleep in that had clung to every fibre of his shirt.
A hand forcefully gave Skip a shove as Malarkey pushed himself to his feet, arms stretching over his head in a try to ease the tense muscles in his back While he was used to sleeping on the ground after all the years on the streets, the jungle with hidden roots and branches was something he was not as accustomed to.
Fingers closed around slightly damp parchment as Malarkey picked up their precious map where they had discarded it the night before when they had settled down to sleep. It was rare for it ever to be far away from either of them, and during the previous nights, it had usually been on either of their persons', but their exhaustion the night before had clearly led to some recklessness.
Unrolling the map, he let his eyes travel over the black lines crossing the yellow surface, their starting point and goal obvious in an otherwise rather confusing mess. While it was obvious what landmarks they were supposed to follow, Malarkey was well aware that they would never have even started on their journey, had it not been for Skip memorising the map, and finding the starting point.
“Come on, Skip, we need to go.” Using his foot, Malarkey lightly prodded his friend in the side and watched as Skip rolled over on his back, eyes shifting first to the leaves above, and then to Malarkey's face.
“Jesus, Mal, no need to kick me. I'm awake, okay?” Rubbing his side, Skip sent his friend a slight grin, ignoring as the other rolled his eyes and returned to scanning the map. During the years the two had known each other, Skip had never encountered a Malarkey that was cheerful in the morning, and he doubted there would be a change any time soon.
It only took a moment for the blond to rise to his feet, golden eyes surveying the surrounding area briefly before he joined the redhead in the studying of the map.
“Where's the dog?” Malarkey's question would have sounded natural to anyone else, but Skip could note the slightly dry undertone, a thing that caused a smile to curl onto his lips. It was obvious Malarkey didn't like the dog they had brought with them from Cortes' ship, and Skip was almost surprised there hadn't yet been an occurrence where the redhead had tried to kill it.
Turning his eyes away from the map, Skip allowed his eyes to scan their surroundings a second time, this time keeping an eye out for the dark, fluffy shape of their four-legged companion. The dog had a tendency to wander off, but it was rare it was ever out of their sights for long, and so for it not being there right then and there was odd.
“Hey, Mick, where are you buddy?” His words were followed by a low whistle as he surveyed the area again, a hand shadowing his eyes from the tendrils of sunshine seeping in through the leaves above. “Come on, it's not a good time to play games!” Slight worry creeped through the pit of his stomach as there was no telltale bark from the dog, letting Skip know where he was hiding.
The rustle of Malarkey rolling up the map again caused the blond to turn, his paler eyes meeting the other man's darker hues for a moment, the worry evident in the golden depths. While he hadn't wanted to admit it, Skip had become attached to the dog during the days they had spent together, and the thought of it gone was one he didn't want to even think.
“Mick, you stupid son of a bitch, where are you?” Cupping his hands around his mouth to get the sound to carry, Malarkey allowed his eyes to slip from Skip's, focusing instead on scanning the surroundings. It was true that he wasn't fond of the dog, but the worry in his friend's eyes was enough for him to know that finding the animal was important.
They were stood there for a moment, staring into the jungle that suddenly seemed a lot less friendly, before there was a low rustle in the bushes to their left, a sound that was soon followed by the appearance of the black dog.
There was a noticeable breath of relief from Skip at the sight of the animal, and while Malarkey knew he would never admit it, there was slight relief in him too. If so only because it meant the dog was alive, and there was no chance of them finding it torn apart by an unknown creature. There were enough unknown things for them to stumble upon in the new country they were in for them to have to worry about murderous creatures with a taste for blood...
“Hey, what's this, buddy?” Skip's voice called his attention back, and it took Malarkey a moment to spot the object resting in his friend's palm until he noticed the bright shine of gold. A shine his eyes had missed ever since they had lost everything they owned – except for the map – to the thugs onboard Cortes' ship. “What did you find?” The object was studied as Skip ran his free hand over the dog's soft fur, well aware of Malarkey's sudden attention.
The blond didn't even protest as the piece of gold was snatched from his palm to be held up to the light, and a smile played in his lips as he watched Malarkey hungrily study it. While both of them had always had a love for gold, the redhead had always been the one with a desperate desire for it, and it was obvious the found piece had once more sparked something in his friend.
“It's gold, Skip. You know what this means, don't ya?” A wide smile was on Malarkey's lips by now as he clutched the piece of gold in his hand, eyes flickering down to meet Skip's. “It means we must be close. El Dorado must be somewhere around here!” Gesturing around the small clearing, almost as if the city of gold would peek out from behind a tree, Malarkey nodded to himself. “We're so goddamn close.”
“You know that this also means, though, right?” Shooting his friend a smile, Skip pushed himself to his feet, a hand reaching out to grip the redhead's shoulder firmly.
“What?” A slightly confused look slipped across Malarkey's face, momentarily stunned by being on eye-level with Skip once more, and the gold briefly almost forgotten.
“You owe Mick an apology. He has clearly shown that he's not as useless as you've tried to make him out to be.” Skip's words were followed by a low groan from Malarkey, slight annoyance finding it's way into his eyes.
“I'm not apologising to a dog, Skip. No way.”
“Sure as hell you are. You owe him.”
“He's a dog, Skip. A stupid dog.”
“But he brought you gold.”
There was another low groan, filled with what almost sounded like regret.
“I know. But I'm still not apologising to a dog. That's humiliating.”
“I don't care, you're doing it, or he's getting your share in the gold we find.”
“You wouldn't dare, Skip.”
“Oh, I would dare. Just you watch me!”
And with that, the blond was off, followed by a happily unsuspecting dog and a fuming redhead, clutching a small piece of gold as if it was his only lifeline.