September 1st

The PIT was attacked last night.

COBRA somehow managed to infiltrate headquarters, but we managed to push them back. They didn’t catch us by surprise this time.

This time.

I still remember the day that COBRA attacked us at Fort Wadsworth with a mixture of fear and anger. Fear that we came so close to being wiped out and anger at being caught off guard.

There is also a terrible feeling of violation…like you get when robbed or victimized in some way. The enemy had been in our territory, had been in our HOME…and had destroyed it. How could it have happened?

How had we grown so lenient?

I feel a chill just thinking about it.

Things could have been much worse. If Flint and I hadn’t spotted those EELS sneaking in the back door we might have lost more than our underground headquarters. We might very well have lost a few of our own.

As it was, we very nearly lost Flint.

God…I remember it like it was yesterday…the invasion last night must have triggered something.

If I recall, Flint was hitting on me…again…and less subtly than usually, which meant he was being extremely pushy.

Have I mentioned that Flint makes a very bad first impression?

Since the day he joined the Joes…when he came onto that training field acting like ‘gods gift to the military’, he rubbed me the wrong way. He was crass, loud, arrogant, annoying, pushy, proud, arrogant, egotistical, boorish…did I mention arrogant?

Well…you get the picture.

He was also…in the words of the immortal Alicia Silverstone…a ‘hottie’. So admittedly, I couldn’t help but feel a slight attraction to the man. The thing is, the spell was immediately broken the minute he opened his mouth.

Unfortunately, the Warrant Officer seemed to have taken a keen interest in me, and no matter how hard I tried to throw him off my scent, he was nothing if not persistent. As a woman in the military…more so a woman on the Joe team…being in the minority and surrounded by men 24/7, you get used to the constant attention. It isn’t harassment really…it irks me when women start crying foul at every look and every word. I developed a tough skin and could take it.

Anyhow…he didn’t seem to take the hint…no matter how direct…that I wasn’t interested. Funny thing is, though…and I can’t believe I am about to admit this on paper…I felt a surprisingly hard pang of jealousy when he finally met Cover Girl.

Now…I am no ugly duckling…but I am certainly not 6 foot 1 of runway model. As is usually the case, one look at our resident beauty queen was enough to set every hot-blooded male on a quest to win her heart.

Flint was no different. At least I thought so…

The thing is…later…much later…I learned from Courtney that Flint did hit on her for a bit the night I saw them together at the local pub…but after she brushed him off he began quizzing her relentlessly about…ME.

In fact, the man would be very quick to point out that he went out with her to make me jealous. Well…I kind of half believe him. I wonder though…if Courtney had decided she wanted him that night…I don’t think Dash would have said no.

Anyhow…it worked…I was jealous. I wanted to kick myself from here to Glasgow for being such a fool…but my face was tinted green.

It wasn’t that much later that I found myself trying to fend him off in a small park in Fort Wadsworth. He was using some of the cheesiest lines I had ever heard and I was desperately trying not to laugh. Flint was midway through a list of his virtues when I saw the invaders coming out of the water.

Now…although it had been a quite a few months since he had joined the team, I had yet to see him in action. The minute he noticed what had caught my eye, he snapped to attention and looked every bit the calculating soldier. There was a fire in his eye that I had never seen before…and Roadblock’s words came back to float through my head.

“You’ve never seen my man Flint in a real fight…that’s when he gets mean!”

Before I knew what was happening, Flint had ordered me to warn the others and had sprung, unarmed, at the enemy. I saw him take one out before they all jumped him and began beating him senseless.

I felt so helpless…

I left him as he had ordered me…but not without some reluctance. I managed to warn the others and together we broke out the weapons and took off to defend our headquarters.

Flint showed up later, beaten up pretty badly…but ready for a fight. I was alarmed by his appearance, by the extent of his injuries…I think as well I was feeling guilty about leaving him. Despite the well-honed military training that made me follow that order, I still felt I should have helped him despite the consequences of my not reaching the others in time. In any case, I didn’t leave his side the whole battle lest he get himself killed.

I needn’t have worried, he fought like a demon…no one could touch him.

It’s too bad our resistance came so late.

I think it was the aftermath of that terrible attack that put the two of us on a new path. For the first time, I was given a glimpse of the Dashiell Faireborn the man, who up until this point was completely hidden behind Flint the soldier.

Wow…I can still feel the rain falling against my face as we walked from our new makeshift command center back towards the barracks after learning that Snake Eyes had been dropped successfully behind enemy lines.

I was telling him how worried Scarlett must be about Snakes, and he shrugged and said she should be used to it by now…it was their job after all. I glared at him then, and said rather shortly that you never get used to it…just get better at masking the fear.

Then I said it…I asked him if he had ever been afraid.

He stopped and stared, obviously wondering what to tell me. I was waiting for the cocky smile and some haughty comment about never being afraid.

I certainly wasn’t expecting him to say yes. I think the answer threw me off guard…and because I was still in ‘retaliate against asinine Faireborn remarks’ mode, I failed to stop myself from uttering the first words that came to mind.

“Good, I was beginning to think you were REALLY stupid.”

Well, the look of disbelief that came across his face caused me to feel very uncomfortable. I kind of felt bad…one part of me was screaming he deserved it while another one was chiding me for being hurtful. The latter worsened when he smiled sadly and asked me if that is what I truly thought of him?

So, what did I do? I did what any woman would do when faced with an uncomfortable situation. I turned to walk off…

…Only to stop in amazement when I heard his quiet voice behind me…deep and sonorous…its tone melancholy…utter the following.

“…you may relish him more in the soldier than in the scholar.”

…Othello…

What the..!? Wonderful…Flint is in the room with me. How did he get in here? Maybe if I keep writing and ignore him he will go away. I still haven’t forgiven him for that incident at the BBQ last week.

This isn’t working…he is moving closer. He is directly in front of me now. I can smell him…feel him.

Oh…I just peaked up at his face…he looks so sad. So tired. Could it be that he is remembering the last attack as I am. Could he feeling the same melancholy, fear, anger…that I am?

He…is whispering something…gentle…something about needing me…oh god Alison stop with the tears already. Pull yourself together…keep writing…he will go away…he will…

His hand just brushed away my tear…I can’t concentrate…I can feel his breath on my neck…

I …

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