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Why, Indeed? (1/2)
Kay Kelly (wilusa@earthlink.net)Mon, 17 Nov 2003 15:30:20 -0500
Title: Why, Indeed? Author: Kay Kelly Rating: PG Summary: Puzzling questions may or may not be answered. DISCLAIMER: Highlander and its canon characters are the property of Davis/Panzer Productions: no copyright infringement is intended. Note: This short story is a sequel to "Awakening." It's part of my main fanfic universe, and includes relationships established in "Absolutely Not." There's also a reference to a situation described in "Somewhere Else," but no explanation is needed beyond what's given here. **************************************** Methos glanced at his watch and chuckled. Joe Dawson turned to him with a smile and asked, "What's so funny?" "The time. It's high noon. Can you believe how far we've come, how all our lives have changed, since midnight?" Joe shook his head in wonderment. "There are moments when I *can't* believe it. Seems like a different world." The two men were leaning on the rail of Duncan MacLeod's barge, watching MacLeod and Richie Ryan set off, side by side, on an exercise run. A run, not a race--Methos knew beyond a doubt that those two would stay side by side for miles. Reunited after believing each other dead for three and a half years, they couldn't be pried apart on this blissful day. Straightening now, Methos looked thoughtfully at Joe. "You know, you've been in a world of your own for the last couple hours--on the phone, mostly. What gives?" Joe shifted evasively. "Watcher stuff. Hey, I've been waiting to get you alone, to ask what you mean to do about--" "We have lots of time," Methos cut in. "What kind of 'Watcher stuff'?" He sensed he was onto something. Joe looked uncomfortable. "Well, it's not only about the Watchers. I'm trying to sort some things out in my head. Nothing's wrong, just...strange. I'm not sure I should talk about it yet." Methos tensed. "Something to do with the Ahriman mess?" "Uh, yeah." He grabbed Joe's arm. "Then you damn well are going to talk about it!" Joe was apparently convinced by whatever he read in the Immortal's face. He sighed. "Okay. Can we go inside, out of the cold?" Methos relaxed and smirked. "Best idea you've had since the coffee." In the main cabin, over more coffee, Joe began, "For one thing, I had to tell the Watchers Richie's alive. Hard to explain, after I'd claimed Mac had a nervous breakdown and killed him! I said that was a case of mistaken identity--Mac was so screwed up he thought he'd killed Richie, and I never saw the head. And Richie found out about it and seized what he saw as an opportunity to get the Watchers off his back, for good." Methos pondered that. "Sounds reasonable. No one who knows Richie would believe his abandoning MacLeod, but the organization should buy it. "That's not all that's been going on with you, though." Watching the other man closely, he said, "You weren't thinking about any of this until you got a call from someone. From what I heard of your end it sounded like a routine 'Happy New Year' call, but it shook you up." Joe gave a bemused nod. "It was a routine 'Happy New Year' call. From a fellow Watcher. Only problem is... she was one of the Watchers killed by Ahriman!" "Wh-what?" Methos was glad he was sitting down. He needed a minute to absorb what he'd heard. Joe understood, and kept his mouth shut. At last Methos said, "So...those phone calls you were making later, the ones where you were off in a corner whispering..." He couldn't finish the thought. Joe did. "I was checking on other victims. The other murdered Watchers, Jason Landry, Sophie Baines, Father Beaufort's brother Jackie--all of them are still alive. Even the ones who were prompted to kill themselves." "A true happy ending." Methos was shaking his head, but in astonishment rather than disbelief. He knew Joe too well to question the facts. "Must have happened at the turn of the millennium. That made Ahriman's defeat official, and the world was set right. I suppose everyone's memories were changed except for ours, because we were so closely involved. "But why didn't you tell MacLeod right away? He'll be overjoyed. This is the icing on the cake--" He'd never be sure whether the thought struck him before or after he saw the anxiety in Joe's eyes. "Richie?" That idea brought Methos out of his chair. "You're thinking Richie may have been dead too, and he was restored to life like the others, with a set of false memories?" "I don't know. He was here on the barge, challenging Mac, before the turn of the millennium, but..." This time it was Methos who finished the thought. "But it was before the turn of the millennium in Paris." He continued slowly, "We assumed this time zone was all-important because after MacLeod's battle with Ahriman began here, it had to end here. Ahriman didn't follow him to Malaysia. But that may only have been significant for the battle. The dead may have been restored to life when the year changed to 2001 on the International Date Line." They stared at each other for a long moment. "It's only a possibility," Joe said at last. "He may not have been like the others. We'll never know." "We have to tell MacLeod. And Richie." Joe nodded. "You're right. This is no time to keep secrets. But it'll give them the creeps, so I think we should wait till at least tomorrow. Agreed?" Methos said hoarsely, "Agreed." Then he decided he'd had enough coffee, and went in search of a beer.