Given that he was, is and always will be my fave… I spot every tiny about him in every story
You even let him run in a sour Amber woman
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Lonely This Christmas
Written: 2006
Synopsis: One-shot Trudy/Lex pairing. The Mallrats return to the city to find their home looted. While the rest of the tribe look on the bright side, Trudy finds comfort in the most unlikely of places. Written for the Eyeboards Christmas Treats challenge 2006.
**
Original challenge:
Character(s): Trudy, Lex, Salene and Brady (and anyone else you want to write)
Pairing: Trudy/Lex
Tribal/Non-Tribal: Tribal
Three Lines:
- “Does it look like I care?”
- “That’s what you get when you mix love with hatred.”
- “Who put you in charge?”
Three Objects: mirror, a red bow, a puzzle (jigsaw) piece
**
Trudy’s heart skipped with joy as the boat stopped and Darryl and the trader hopped out to tie the vessel securely to its mooring. As she stepped onto the wooden jetty she breathed out a huge sigh of relief. ‘Home!’ she said. ‘We’re finally home!’ They had been away from the city for months, trying to survive on a small island up the coast, but as soon as they felt it was safe everyone had been in favour of returning to the city. The journey back had been long, and the less said about Gel the better. Had Ebony not been suffering from severe seasickness, Trudy was sure that the younger girl would have been thrown overboard.
But none of that mattered now. They were home. Trudy followed the rest of her tribe back to the mall, carrying a sleeping Brady in her arms. When they got there, however, the place was in a state of chaos. Looters had ransacked the place while they had been away, and it appeared that everything that hadn’t been nailed down had been taken. The Mallrats all rushed off to inspect their rooms.
‘What have they done to our home?’ Salene cried, when everyone was assembled once more by the fountain.
‘Where’s all our stuff?’ the kids wailed. Lottie held out her hand to reveal a single jigsaw piece, apparently all that remained of her toys. The initial joy Trudy had felt at being back in the city had turned to a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach.
The tribe stood around in a depressed silence until Jack gave a small cough and produced a key from his pocket. ‘There might be something left,’ he said quietly, and made his way to the basement stores. Most of the tribe remained where they were, but Trudy, Salene and Lex followed him, intrigued. He led them to the furthest part of the room, where a shelving unit had been pulled over to reveal a door. Jack let out a sigh of relief when he saw that the heavy padlock was still intact and proceeded to unlock it with his key, open the door and step inside. The others followed him and found him standing by an open cupboard, holding a tin of beans. ‘There’s not much,’ he said. ‘But there should be enough to last until we can get back on our feet.’
‘That’s brilliant Jack!’ Salene enthused, walking further into the dark room. ‘What else is in here?’
Jack shrugged. ‘Just some stuff that was stored in the mall before the Virus,’ he said. ‘I never had a chance to sort through it all.’
‘Hey, look at this!’ Salene said. ‘A box of Christmas decorations and a tree! We haven’t celebrated Christmas in ages. Why don’t we do it now?’
‘What have we got to celebrate?’ Trudy asked, still reeling from the sight of the trashed mall.
Salene laughed. ‘Being back at home of course!’ she said. ‘Come on guys, help me carry this stuff upstairs.’
‘Who put you in charge?’ Lex moaned.
‘Come on guys,’ Salene repeated. ‘It’ll be fun! Just the thing to cheer everybody up!’ She tossed a Santa hat in Lex’s direction but he made no effort to catch it, letting it fall to the floor and giving Salene an ‘I wouldn’t be seen dead in that’ look. Her persistence paid off, however, as Trudy, Jack and Lex all found themselves carrying dusty boxes up to the mall.
Salene’s idea went down well with the rest of the tribe. Amber and Jay were delighted, the kids excited and even Ebony and Slade were won over when they found a stash of mistletoe in one of the boxes. Before long everything had been planned out. That night there was to be a Christmas Eve party, with presents the following morning. Each Mallrat had been allocated another tribe member to find a present for somewhere in the mall. Although she wasn’t in the mood for celebrating Christmas, Trudy thought it unfair to force her unhappiness on everyone else, and so she spent the afternoon present hunting, eventually finding three different sized balls to give to Darryl as a juggling set, and helping Brady to choose a dress for the party. In the end they settled on one that was made of a shimmery silver material that made her look like an angel. She finished it off by tying a big red bow in her daughter’s hair.
‘Thanks Mommy!’ Brady smiled. ‘Come on, party!’
‘Oh, no sweetheart,’ Trudy said. ‘Mommy isn’t coming to the party.’
Brady’s lip quivered and her eyes began to glisten with unshed tears. ‘Mommy not coming?’ she sobbed.
‘Well, okay,’ Trudy said grudgingly. ‘But only for a little while.’ Instantly placated, Brady skipped off to join the party. With a sigh Trudy quickly checked her appearance in the mirror and followed. Negotiating the dance floor, where the rest of the tribe were dancing to a medley of Christmas songs that Jack must have dug up from somewhere, as well as the usual cheesy pop songs that they got out at every party, she sat down where she could keep an eye on Brady but still be miserable in peace. Or so she thought.
‘Well haven’t you got a face like a wet weekend?’ Lex said, emerging from the shadows next to her, clutching a bottle.
‘Does it look like I care?’ she replied acidly. 'Of all the people that could have spotted her, why did it have to be Lex?
‘Lighten up Trude,’ he said, taking a swig of his bottle. ‘It’s Christmas, apparently.’
‘Some Christmas,’ she mumbled.
‘What happened to you anyway?’ he continued, and to her horror he sat down beside her. 'You were sickeningly happy this morning.
‘That was this morning,’ she said. ‘Before we came home to this.’ She gestured with her hand, past the Christmas tree with everyone’s presents underneath it and the fairy lights hung from anything and everything, to the walls covered in fresh graffiti and the rubbish swept to the wall to clear space for the dance floor.
‘So we live in a pigsty,’ Lex said. ‘Big deal.’
‘It’s not just that,’ she sighed. ‘It’s like whenever we manage to crawl out of one nightmare, we end up falling head first into another one. It never ends. It’s just…’ she trailed off.
‘It’s all too much,’ Lex finished.
‘Exactly,’ she said, a little surprised. ‘And it’s alright for Jay and Amber. Even Ebony.’
‘But it’s harder when you’re on your own.’
‘Yes,’ she said softly, looking at him. He sat with his head bowed, his long hair obscuring his face. With his tough guy exterior it was easy to forget that Lex had lost people too, and more than most. At least she knew for sure that Bray was dead and Jay was alive – even if he did seem to be permanently attached to Amber’s face these days. Lex didn’t know if he should be mourning Tai San or out looking for her.
‘She would have loved all this,’ he said, taking in the happy faces. ‘I miss her Trudy.’ He turned to look at her and she was surprised by how vulnerable he looked. Instinctively, she reached out and wiped a tear from his eye. He did the same; she hadn’t even realised she was crying. Then they kissed. How it happened and who instigated it she couldn’t say, but it happened.
‘No,’ she said, suddenly pushing Lex away. ‘This is wrong. I mean, we hate each other! How can this be happening?’
‘Well I guess that’s what happens when you mix love with hatred,’ he said.
‘No Lex,’ she replied, shocked. ‘Don’t say you love me. We’re both lonely, that’s all, and you’ve had a little too much to drink. It was a terrible mistake.’
But Lex wasn’t listening. ‘Love and hate,’ he mused. ‘Tai San used to say there was a fine line between them.’
‘It’s a very thick line,’ she argued. ‘Surrounded by a very large hedge. And a fence.’
‘Hedges die,’ he said, brushing her cheek gently. She didn’t stop him. ‘Fences can come down. Didn’t it feel better for a while?’
She tried to stop herself thinking about the kiss but couldn’t help herself; she remembered it all too well, and he was right. For a brief moment she hadn’t been lonely or afraid. She had felt safe. With Lex! She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
‘It would never work.’
‘It doesn’t hurt to try,’ he said, and kissed her again. This time she didn’t pull back.
‘It’s past midnight!’ Jack yelled from the stairs. ‘Merry Christmas everyone!’ The sound of cheering filled the mall, but Trudy barely noticed it.
‘Merry Christmas Trudy,’ Lex whispered in her ear.
‘Merry Christmas Lex,’ she replied.
2 Likes
Deaaaar me 
- lost of words a moment * * takes a deep breath *
What a cute little Christmas “fairytale”
Jack the hero! Laughed imagining Slade and Ebony snpgging wildly under the mistletoe And the idea “Oh well the Mall is in ruins… But hey let’s celebrate Christmas”
Oh and Trudy still can magically find a good dress for Brady… Hihi… And alcohol is still there too…
That’s true tribal spirited (there always were things that made you think “Wait… How do they get all this?!”)
Though I’ D wish someone “better” to Trudy… Well the dating chances aren’t fat in the Mall… And at last… Maybe Lex learns one thing or the other about gentleness and care…!
(Though I now picture the entrance opening and the lost Mall Rats walking in with wide eyes… Imagine Tai-San 
)
1 Like
Not got round to 2005, but had to read 2006’s Lonely This Christmas.
I want more. You already know I love your writing @MallRatMatt and if I got this as my SS I would be smiling from the rooftops. Epic. Somehow I think they would work you know, HAHAHA.
1 Like
Haha, not a pairing I’ve been tempted to write again - not sure it would work for longer than the next morning! But I do like this story still. I love how Secret Santa makes you think outside the box.
Thanks folks!
2 Likes
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
Written: 2007
Synopsis: One-shot Trudy/Jack pairing. As the Mallrats prepare to celebrate Christmas, Trudy finds Jack’s festive spirit infectious. Written for the Tribe Talk Secret Santa Fic Exchange 2007.
**
Original challenge:
Characters: Jack, Trudy, Brady (and anyone else you want)
Pairing: Jack/Trudy
Props: Santa hat, christmas tree, book
Words/ Sentences: “I love you”, “I don’t believe in Santa”
Set: Tribeworld
**
It was early in the afternoon but already all the lights were on in the mall. The city was in the grip of a winter the likes of which hadn’t been seen since before the Virus; the days were dark and miserable and it had even started snowing a couple of days ago. The little ones of course thought this was fantastic and started building snowmen on the roof but the older members of the tribe, although at first delighted by the snow, soon began to fear they would be trapped in the mall and that the traders would be unable to bring food into the city. The general mood was one of depression.
In her room Trudy shivered with the cold and pulled the blanket she had around her for warmth tighter. She was listening to Brady reading from a book, one of a set that Jack had managed to find somewhere in the mall. She was amazed at how quickly her daughter had grown up; sometimes it seemed like only yesterday that she and Bray had arrived here, other times it felt like she had been here forever.
‘Mommy?’ Brady asked, screwing up her face in confusion. ‘What’s Christmas?’ She pronounced the new word she had read with difficulty and Trudy smiled. How long had it been since last Christmas?
‘Christmas means different things to different people,’ she explained. ‘But usually it involves people coming together with friends and family for a big celebration, and giving them gifts to show that you love them.’
‘I love you Mommy!’ Brady said.
‘Aww, I love you too sweetie,’ Trudy replied.
‘Why don’t we ever have Christmas?’
‘I don’t know, Brady, I guess we just never seem to have the time. Maybe we should.’ Brady laughed and started jumping around on the bed in excitement. ‘Why don’t we go ask Amber?’
Amber had been sceptical at first of course, but it hadn’t taken much to win her over to the idea. All the older members of the tribe were excited about having Christmas again – even Lex was enthusiastic, although he tried to pretend he didn’t care – and the younger ones were curious but looking forward to a party. The mood in the mall lightened overnight – it was just what the tribe needed.
The person most caught up in the festive mood was Jack. He had thrown himself into the preparations wholeheartedly, rummaging through the mall to find anything that could be used as decorations. He even managed to find some old Christmas CDs and a Santa hat, which he now wore all the time even though it was too big for him. His Christmas spirit was infectious and Trudy started to find reasons to be in the same room as him, taking Brady with her so they could both enjoy watching him in his childlike merriment, but more and more often she found herself going to see him alone.
It was on one of these occasions that it happened.
She had planned it so she was in the café on Christmas Eve when Jack came in to decorate the Christmas tree – where he had got it from she didn’t know but he had come back with it having been out most of the previous day. The rest of the tribe were busy finding presents for each other so it was just the two of them, not that there was anything wrong with that. After all, they were just friends. She smiled as he hummed carols to himself, tying pieces of string to various shiny metal things scavenged from his workshop and hanging them from the branches, and draping some of Gel’s feather boas around to act as tinsel. It was the strangest Christmas tree she had ever seen but it was wonderful. She laughed in delight.
‘You could help you know,’ he joked, twisting around on the small stepladder to look at her. He kept having to push his Santa hat up above his eyes so that he could see her.
‘But you’re doing such a good job by yourself!’ she replied, smiling at him. He quickly blushed and turned back to the tree; she also felt her cheeks colouring and looked at the floor. When she looked back up Jack was balancing on top of the ladder trying to perch a broken doll on the top of the tree for an angel. As he stretched to his full extent his hat once again fell over his eyes and he lost his balance. ‘Jack!’ she cried, putting aside her mug of coffee and rushing over to his aid.
‘I’m ok,’ he said confidently before the stepladder fell from underneath him with a clatter and he was left dangling from the top of the tree.
‘Hold still!’ she cried, trying to grab hold of his flailing legs but to no avail. As the tree fell under his weight he managed to jump off into Trudy’s arms and the pair stumbled and fell on the floor. The crash of the tree and its metal ornaments next to them brought the rest of the Mallrats rushing in to investigate.
‘Jack,’ Trudy said breathlessly as he lay on top of her.
‘What is it?’ he asked, looking into her eyes.
‘You’re squashing me.’
Startled, Jack quickly got up and held out his hand for her to do the same, while the rest of the tribe fussed around them and inspected the damage. The image of his face so close to hers remained ingrained in her mind. That and the suspicious look Ellie had shot her afterwards, and the resulting feeling of guilt, made her realise what had happened; she had fallen for Jack, and she was pretty sure he had feelings for her too.
Later that afternoon he came to her room.
‘Trudy,’ he said as he entered. ‘I came to…’ he trailed off.
‘Yes Jack?’ she said softly, her heartbeat quickening.
‘I came to…to see Brady,’ he finished in a rush. ‘I wanted to see what she was asking Santa for,’ he said.
‘I don’t believe in Santa,’ Brady stated confidently. She had gone round asking everybody about Christmas and now considered herself an expert on the subject.
‘You don’t believe in Santa?’ Jack asked, feigning shock. ‘Well I do, and I’m writing a list of what everybody wants so he knows what to bring tonight. You don’t want to get something you don’t want do you?’
No longer so sure of herself Brady answered, ‘A doll please,’ then quickly added, ‘But I still don’t believe in Santa!’ Trudy laughed.
‘Alright then,’ Jack said. ‘I’ll go and finish my letter to Santa. Bye Brady. Bye Trudy.’ He gave her a last lingering look before he left.
‘Bye Jack,’ she said sadly.
That night Trudy was lying in her bed, unable to sleep for thoughts of Jack, when she heard a shuffling noise from outside her room. ‘Who’s there?’ she asked softly so as not to wake Brady. The noise stopped and she lay her head back down on her pillow, then a short while later somebody came in. It was Santa, or rather someone dressed as Santa. He looked at her for a few moments, then put a present by Brady’s bed and made as if to leave.
‘Wait!’ she said, diving out of bed to intercept Santa, although even before he turned round and she saw his eyes she knew it had to be Jack.
‘Trudy,’ he said. ‘I’m sorry if I startled you. It’s just that…I had to see you again. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you all day. I thought if I could tell you while you were sleeping it would be easier, but I couldn’t.’
‘I feel the same way Jack,’ she said. ‘I don’t know how it happened but I do.’
‘But…what about Ellie? I can’t…’
‘I’m not asking you to leave Ellie,’ she said. ‘Just kiss me. Please, just once.’
Jack’s mouth flashed in a brief, nervous smile and he gave the barest of nods before pulling down his beard. When their lips touched, both of them knew that it would not be for the last time.
From her bed Brady smiled as her mommy and Santa kissed. He must be real after all, she thought. How else could he have known that what she really wanted for Christmas was a daddy?
4 Likes
Oh it’s so nice to read something with breakfast
And awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! (and many “aaaw’s” more!)
Though of course I feel now very sory for “my” Ellie() it’s touching how they fall for each other. And imaginable for sure. Given that they all have grown up… Why shouldn’t Jack see that he has outgrown his normal relation… And Trudy is alone for so long (let’s not count Jay here) and Jack has somehow given her hope back with his festive mood…
And I can clearly imagine Jack like that… So enthusiastic about Christmas.
Uhuuu… And Brady… So cute… But now I imagine also the drama when she maybe innocently tells she saw mommy kissing Santa… 
1 Like
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa
This was just so magical and had me smiling throughout. Thank you @MallRatMatt I really hope you are my SS this year. 
1 Like
She totally would!
You’d Better Watch Out
Written: 2008
Synopsis: A quiet year for the Tribe community so this fic is based on TheTribe.co.uk’s ‘Sector 4’ fan series. As the Strays prepare to celebrate Christmas with Breeze, it’s not Santa Claus but the Chosen who are coming to town. Can they reach the farm safely?
(I recommend watching both series of Sector 4 to get the most out of this one!)
**
‘I still say this is a bad idea,’ Alexandra sniffed.
‘Give it a rest, will you?’ sighed Zander, slamming the grille shut and then checking to make sure it was secure.
‘I’m just saying,’ Alexandra said in a put-upon tone. ‘That flimsy bit of metal didn’t stop us from getting in; it won’t stop anyone else who wants to get in either. We could come back and find the place trashed, and for what? It’s not even Christmas!’
‘It might be,’ Grace argued. ‘It’s not like anyone has calendars anymore, and it’s the right time of year for it. Anyway, it was really nice of Breeze to invite us over, and it’ll be good to see Blaine and Syan again. Don’t let’s spoil it now.’
‘You don’t have to come if you don’t want to,’ Drake added, folding his arms.
‘I never said I wasn’t coming,’ replied Alexandra, holding her hands up defensively. ‘Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.’
‘Duly noted,’ Zander said sarcastically. ‘Now let’s go, we don’t want to be late.’ He took Grace’s hand and set off, with Drake following behind pushing a barrow full of presents they were taking to the farm, a few batteries and bottles of water. Alexandra looked back at the Youth Centre, shook her head, and followed.
Their first port of call was the Trading Post, where they were greeted by Jaz and Esme. Grace shivered as she saw the empty stall at the end of the row. Evidently the Traders still hadn’t found anybody to take over the running of Tobias’ stall. Turning back, she saw Zander and Jaz hugging and unconsciously twisted the engagement ring on her finger, the way she always did when the two of them were in close proximity.
‘Have you set a date yet?’ Esme asked her. ‘For the wedding?’
Grace forced her hands back down to her sides. ‘Not yet,’ she replied. ‘Things have been a bit hectic lately.’
‘Of course,’ Esme nodded. ‘You’ve made a wonderful recovery. You’d never guess, looking at you, that, you know…’
‘That I had the Virus? It’s ok, you can say it.’
‘Yes, well,’ Esme continued. ‘It’ll be nice to have something to celebrate, won’t it? And don’t forget, if you need caterers…’
‘You’ll be my first choice,’ Grace said, smiling weakly.
‘Excellent!’ Esme smiled, turning back to her stall. ‘Jaz! What are you doing?’
‘Don’t worry, I’ve paid for them!’ Jaz replied, slipping some tins of food into Drake’s wheelbarrow. Esme nodded, and Grace went to join the rest of the Strays.
‘It’s quiet at the Trading Post today,’ Zander noted.
‘It’s been quiet all week,’ Jaz replied. ‘People are scared of something. Esme reckons there must be some new tribe throwing their weight around.’
‘The perfect time for us to leave our home and take a walk in the woods,’ Alexandra said, but Zander ignored her.
‘It’s early days yet,’ he told Jaz. ‘It could just be a rumour.’
‘Better to be careful though,’ said Drake. ‘Everyone keep together; no wandering off.’
Zander nodded. ‘We’d better get going again,’ he said. ‘Get there while it’s still light.’
With a little less enthusiasm than before, the group rejoined the road that led out of the City. ‘Have a nice time!’ Esme shouted, waving them off.
‘She’s not coming with us?’ Zander asked.
‘I did ask,’ Jaz replied. ‘But she said somebody had to stay and look after the stalls.’
The Strays carried on walking, reaching the edge of the woods by midday. Jaz and Zander led the way, followed by Grace, Drake and Alexandra.
‘You’ve finally accepted it then?’ Alexandra said to Grace after a while.
‘What are you talking about?’ Grace replied.
‘Why, those two of course.’ Alexandra motioned in front of them with her head. ‘Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed? If he were my fiancé, God forbid, there’s no way I’d let them carry on like that.’
‘They’re only walking, Alexandra,’ Grace sighed, twirling her engagement ring.
‘If you say so,’ the other girl smiled. ‘But…’
‘Alexandra,’ Grace interrupted. ‘Just shut up.’
‘Charming!’ Alexandra replied. ‘I was only trying to…ow!’ Grace looked around to see Alexandra rubbing the back of her leg where Drake had run into it with the wheelbarrow.
‘Sorry,’ he said to her with a flat-eyed stare. ‘I wasn’t looking where I was going.’
As Drake and Alexandra argued, Grace walked into the woods for some peace and quiet, though staying close to the edge so she could still see the others. It was warmer in the wood, with the cover of the trees, and she found herself relaxing muscles she hadn’t realised she had tensed. Birds chirped above her head and she saw squirrels darting behind the trees as she passed. Just then a twig snapped behind her, deeper in the woods. The birds fell silent and she froze, tensing up again. Slowly she turned around, searching for the source of the noise. She saw nothing, at first, then a flicker of movement drew her eyes to a dark shape – a shape that resolved into a crouching figure in a dark robe. Then the figure stood up and she screamed. Within moments the rest of her group were there, but the man in the cloak had vanished.
‘What is it, what’s wrong?’ Drake asked.
‘Are you alright?’ echoed Jaz.
‘What were you doing on your own?’ spluttered a worried Zander.
‘I saw someone,’ she explained. ‘Behind that bush, watching me.’
‘Just stick with me, ok?’ Zander said, putting his arm around her. ‘In fact everyone, stay together. It’s not far now.’
They continued on their way, but closer together and moving more quickly than before. A short while later Alexandra walked up to Grace’s side and, with a look that took in Zander’s arm around her shoulder, gave her a wink and whispered ‘Nice work!’ Grace just shook her head. Before long the party was completely surrounded by trees, and it was beginning to get dark. Every sound made them turn their heads and quicken their step. Finally the clearing where the farm lay came into view and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Then a rustling in the bushes made Grace turn around, but this time it was Alexandra who screamed as robed figure after robed figure emerged from the trees and started to walk towards them.
‘Run!’ Zander shouted, grabbing Grace’s hand, and everyone ran for the farm. It soon came into view, with its welcoming lights, and the smoke from the chimney bringing the delicious smells of farm cooking. Drake was last to the gate, struggling with the wheelbarrow that he hadn’t abandoned, but a look behind showed that he was in no immediate danger. The blue-hooded figures, eight in total, stood watching from the edge of the wood, then one by one they returned to the darkness.
‘Who are they?’ Drake asked, panting.
‘I don’t know,’ Jaz replied. ‘But it looks like Esme’s rumours are true. No wonder people are afraid to come and trade with those creeps about.’ She shivered, and looked to Zander, but all his attention was on Grace. Instead, Jaz knocked on the heavy oak door, eager to be safe inside the farmhouse.
‘Breeze!’ she cried as her friend opened the door, wearing an apron and covered in flour. ‘It’s so good to see you!’
‘Jaz! You made it!’ Breeze beamed. ‘But you all look like you’ve seen a ghost! What’s the matter?’ As the Farm Girl led them inside to the warmth of the main house, the Strays told their tale, with Breeze looking more and more worried by the second. ‘Dawn thought she saw something in the woods yesterday,’ she said. ‘But I had no idea…If I’d known how dangerous it was out there I’d never have asked you to make the journey. If you want to stay a few days until it’s safe…’
‘Thanks Breeze,’ Zander said. ‘But we’ll just stay the one night like we planned, then we really should get back and check on the Youth Centre.’ Alexandra gave a self-satisfied smile but Breeze just nodded.
‘Of course,’ she said. ‘I’ll ask Dawn to take you to the City in the cart tomorrow. There’s a route that cuts off the woods altogether.’ The Strays and Jaz murmured their thanks. ‘Well,’ Breeze continued. ‘Now that’s all sorted, there are a couple of people here who are going to be so pleased to see you!’ She opened the door to the kitchen and two black dogs appeared, barking happily at her feet. The noise caught the attention of the other occupants of the room, Blaine and Syan, who instantly stopped their preparations for dinner and came to greet their friends. There were hugs for all, even Alexandra. Syan was soon drawn to Grace’s engagement ring, then loudly asked Blaine when he was going to get one for Breeze. His cheeks turning a bright crimson, he was spared from answering by a knock at the door that made the Strays tense up and give each other worried glances.
‘It’s ok,’ Breeze cried, slipping through the crowd to answer the door. ‘I invited a couple more people, that’s all.’ Sure enough, a familiar voice soon came from outside.
‘Breeze, Happy Christmas!’ Vanessa greeted. ‘How is Ellie?’
‘A complete recovery!’ Breeze replied. ‘She’s in the City with Alice at the moment. Come in, come in! How is…your friend?’
‘Oh, much better,’ Vanessa replied. ‘Still not talking, but calmer.’ The muffled tone left her voice as she entered the kitchen, followed by the blue-haired kid she had taken under her wing the last time the Strays had seen her. Grace and Syan were particularly pleased to see her, since it was thanks to her that they had found out about the antidote to the Virus. She spent some time talking to the pair of them, enquiring as to their recovery, while her companion latched onto Blaine, who he seemed to have taken a liking to, and started poking him. It was quite a chaotic scene with so many people in the kitchen, but before long Breeze had control of the situation, sitting everybody around the table where they were joined by Dawn and the remaining Farm Girls for a dinner of goose, potatoes and vegetables, followed by Christmas pudding and mince pies.
‘That was the best meal I’ve had since before the Virus,’ Grace said, holding her stomach, and everyone agreed. Blaine and Syan, either side of Breeze, smiled at each other, proud of their involvement in the cooking.
Afterwards they exchanged gifts, with the Strays and Jaz each receiving a basket of fresh vegetables, bread, milk and cider from the Farm Girls, and a First Aid kit and medicines from Vanessa. Breeze used one of the batteries she had been given to set up some music, and soon everybody was talking and dancing and having a good time, even Alexandra. Vanessa’s companion amused himself by chasing the dogs around the table, Drake spent time talking to one of the Farm Girls, and Blaine finally managed to get a few moments alone with Breeze.
‘Merry Christmas,’ he said to her, holding up a slightly withered piece of mistletoe.
‘Blaine!’ she giggled. ‘Where did you get that?’ She kissed him lightly on the lips. ‘Merry Christmas to you, too.’
The party continued long into the night, until finally Breeze showed her exhausted guests to their beds. In the morning, fog shrouded the woods, and the fear of what might lie in wait there returned to the Strays’ minds. As promised, though, Dawn readied the cart and took them back to the City by a different route, waved off by Breeze, Blaine, Syan and Vanessa, who was staying at the farm an extra day.
When they were well clear of the woods, and the more substantial buildings that signalled the outskirts of the City came into view, Dawn stopped the cart and let them off, wishing them well. As they said their goodbyes to her, and then a short while later to Jaz, back to the Trading Post, the Strays started to think about their home and what might have happened to it while they had been away. Zander tried to keep their spirits up by reminding them of the night before, but even he looked worried. When they got back to the Youth Centre, though, they found the grille still shut tight and the building secure, with no sign that anybody had tried to get in or even been in the area. Settling back into their normal routine, they soon forgot about their run-in with the hooded strangers, and the Farm Girls never saw them in the woods after that day. In fact it was to be many months before anybody on the farm or in Sector 4 met them again.
And by then the whole City would know of the Chosen.
3 Likes
Okay… That’s a good write… But of course it’s confusing for I sat there like “Huh?! Who are they?!”
So Sector 4 is a fan made series? Those Strays live as a Tribe there and their paths sometimes cross with those of the Mall Rats?!
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Thanks! Yeah, this is quite a niche story!
Yup, Sector 4 was the first fan series from what became Tribe Sector 4 Productions. I joined the later ones but wasn’t in Sector 4. They’re mostly set in the same timeline as the Mallrats so they do get referenced, and later on some of the Tribe cast got involved with some voice acting, which was really cool!
The productions can all be found here.
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That is just the special thing on that series… It inspires people and opens them for creativity!
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I Saw Three Ships
Written: 2009
Synopsis: Alice experiences her perfect Christmas, but everything is not as it seems.
**
Alice hummed happily to herself as she placed the tray of mince pies in the oven, and adjusted the scarf that held her hair back from her face, leaving traces of flour amongst the auburn curls. She checked on her sauce and the potatoes, then removed her apron and hung it on the peg on the back of the door; a few minutes to relax with a glass of wine, then she would return to her Christmas dinner preparations. She didn’t notice the person sneaking up behind her until a pair of large hands cupped themselves over her eyes and a man’s voice jovially barked ‘Guess who!’
Wriggling free from her captor she turned to face him, her smile turning to a confused frown when she saw that it was Ned. This can’t be right , she thought to herself.
‘What’s wrong?’ he asked, then gave a cheeky grin. ‘Were you expecting somebody else?’
As soon as he smiled at her she forgot whatever had been bothering her and smiled back. ‘Of course not,’ she said warmly, kissing him on the cheek. ‘Why don’t we go through and see the others?’ A small voice at the back of her head told her that something was wrong, but she quickly suppressed it, like swatting an irritating fly. Taking Ned’s hand she opened the door to the farmhouse’s main living area and walked through. She beamed in delight at the scene that greeted her. The long oak table in the middle of the room was decked with wreaths of holly and pine cones from outside, and the light of candle flames flickered from the large iron candle holders hanging from the ceiling. The whole place had a warm, welcoming glow. At one end of the room Tally and Andy sat dozing by the fire, their paper hats sitting skewed on top of their heads as they rested against each other. Next to them Ellie stood halfway up a stepladder, pausing in the act of placing a star on top of the Christmas tree to smile at her sister. A moment later her attention was elsewhere again as she playfully slapped Jack’s hand as he reached for one of the candy canes hanging from a branch below her. Only KC seemed out of place, staring at Alice with sad eyes from a stool in the corner of the room, his face smeared with dirt and sand, and his clothes torn. She sighed regretfully as the voice at the back of her head returned. This time she knew why.
‘What’s the matter?’ Ned asked, putting his arm around her. ‘I thought you’d like it. I thought you’d be pleased.’ Ellie, Jack, Tally and Andy were now all looking at her with disappointment on their faces. KC was nowhere to be seen.
She turned to face Ned. ‘It’s perfect, love,’ she said, a wave of sadness washing over her. Gently raising a hand to his face, she stopped herself short of touching him. ‘It’s too perfect.’ A flash of anger passing through her, she strode to the centre of the room, turning on the spot and shooting accusing looks at the walls, ignoring the people in the room who now only stood looking dumbly ahead of them. ‘Congratulations!’ she spat as she turned, the whole world suddenly flickering queasily. ‘You nearly had me that time! What next? The Virus never happened?’ The world flickered ever more violently and she heard voices around her; voices she recognised as the enemy. She cried out in pain and anger as the world was suddenly ripped away from her and she was left in darkness.
With a gasp she sucked in air as if she had surfaced from underwater just short of drowning. It seemed to take forever but gradually her rasping subsided and her mind remembered the reality she was in. With a sigh of resignation she lowered her head, her hair falling sweatily in front of her face.
‘Again!’ a female voice somewhere above and in front of her demanded and a bright light came on, illuminating the previously dark room and revealing a man standing in front of her, dressed in the black uniform of the Technos and holding the Reality Space headset he had removed from her. Though she was tied and bound in her chair, he looked worried. She made a show of lunging towards him, snarling, and he leapt back as if she would break through her bonds. I’m safe as long as they’re afraid of me , she told herself.
‘Again!’ the voice repeated, impatiently. Alice tossed her head to move her hair away from her face and glare at the half dozen or so Technos on the dais above her. They all ignored her.
‘I…I don’t think that’s a good idea,’ the Techno in front of her stammered. ‘She’s practically feral already!’ She snarled again and the Techno yelped.
The female Techno on the dais sighed in vexation. ‘Very well then, take her away,’ she snapped. ‘Bring the next one in.’ Immediately two guards dressed in samurai-like armour appeared at her side and undid the straps that held her to the chair, though not the chains that bound her hands and feet. Native islanders, they had been gathered up by the Technos when they set up their prison camp here. Her attempts at switching their allegiance had remained unsuccessful, however; they had completely thrown their lot in with the Technos.
Letting herself be led away by the guards, she forced herself to concentrate on each step, of the feel of her boots on her feet, and the weight of her chains; the friction of the cuffs around her wrists and legs. It was the only way she could distinguish between real life and Reality Space. As she emerged from the concrete building that housed the Techno garrison, the muggy heat of the island hit her and she averted her eyes from the glare of the sun. Light glinted off the armour of the Islanders she passed as she was taken down the rocky path that led to the beach cells, and she began to feel dizzy. By the position of the sun in the sky she judged that she had missed the prisoners’ midday meal, and it would be hours before they would be brought food and water again. They had never kept her that long before, but she tried not to think about what that might mean. Before long she reached the huge cage that housed the prisoners. The guards at the gate stirred as the gate was unlocked, ready to repel any resistance from inside, though that had long since been driven out of everyone’s minds. One of the guards who had escorted her back from the cliffs gave her a rough shove and she tumbled inside the cage, falling to her knees as the cage door clanged shut. She felt as though she would never stand up again.
She felt a shadow falling over her but didn’t raise her head. Then a hand placed itself gently on her arm and she heard a familiar deep voice.
‘Here,’ KC said, pushing a water skin at her. ‘I saved some for you, but don’t let them see.’ He meant the other prisoners as well as the guards, she knew. He spoke in a determined whisper, sympathetic but not about to let her wallow in her own self-pity. It was the way they spoke to each other each time one of them returned from that concrete building, and it spurred her to stand shakily and let KC lead her to a more secluded part of the beach. There, resting against the cage wall, she wet her parched lips with the water before pouring what was left down her throat. KC took out a squashed piece of bread from his pocket and gave that to her, too. ‘It’s all I could hide,’ he said apologetically, but she ate it ravenously, making noises she hoped passed for thanks as she did so. Their eyes met as she passed back the empty water skin and she looked away quickly. It always pained her to see KC’s eyes. Captivity had hardened them all, it was true, but she remembered KC’s cheeky smile and the mischievous glint in his eyes he had had before the Technos arrived, that had so much been a part of him. He was physically older too, of course, and as tall as she was now. Even in his dishevelled state he had grown into a handsome young man, except for those eyes.
At the flicker of movement they both tensed like coiled springs. A group of prisoners shuffled past them and sat down in the sand. One of them had blood on his face. At the sight of their tribal markings, two clock hands, one on the forehead and the other on the cheek, KC relaxed. It wasn’t just the Technos and the Islander guards you had to look out for here; there had been many fights among the prisoners too, but the Timekeepers wouldn’t dare start any trouble, certainly not now. Alice did not relax, however, but stared at them through narrowed eyes. They noticed, and became visibly nervous.
‘It’s not their fault, Alice.’ KC said softly, putting a hand on her arm.
Almost a fortnight ago the Timekeepers suddenly became excited. As a tribe they held to the old calendar where others had forgotten it, and they had announced that it was the start of Advent, that soon it would be Christmas. They had meant it as a way of keeping their spirits up; after all, everyone had to hold onto something. Indeed for that first few days the mood in the camp was lighter, but the Technos noticed. It didn’t take long for them to ferret out the reason, and since then their Reality Space experiments became even more twisted, torturing the prisoners with visions of celebrations they could never have, then turning them into the stuff of nightmares. It was even more unfortunate for the Timekeepers that the Technos chose this time to introduce their upgraded headsets.
‘It’s worse than you can imagine, KC’ she said. Her fellow Mallrat hadn’t yet been subjected to the new experiments, but this was the second time she had been taken. At first nothing had seemed any different, apart from the new headset, a lightweight visor over the eyes rather than a helmet. But then some of the prisoners started talking about seeing impossible things in Reality Space, dead parents and long lost friends, and it soon became clear that the Technos weren’t just using virtual copies of people they had scanned into their systems anymore. These new headsets could pull someone out of your very memories. Anyone who was ever close to you, anyone you had ever lost, could appear to torture you in Reality Space. The first time it had been her mother, so disappointed with her, weeping and blaming her for Ellie’s death. Only the belief that her sister was alive and well out there, somewhere, had kept her sane during that one. And this time, Ned. The life they could have lived, together, at the farm.
‘It’s not real,’ KC said in the guilty way of someone who knows it is easy to say. ‘We just have to keep telling ourselves.’
‘Every time it gets harder to tell,’ she sighed.
‘That’s why we’ve got to be there for each other,’ KC pointed out. ‘All of us. We have to stick together or the Technos have won.’ With that he stood and walked over to the group of Timekeepers. At first they exchanged nervous glances among themselves and cowered from the advancing Mallrat, but KC just knelt among them, talking softly. Alice couldn’t hear what he was saying, but a nod here and a pat on the back there and soon the Timekeepers were beaming and looking up at him in awe. One of them looked over to Alice and smiled, and she forced herself to nod back. The pain of what she had seen was still too fresh to do more, but KC was right. It wasn’t the Timekeepers’ fault.
The smiles soon stopped at the clang of the compound gate. The escort of Islanders and Technos returned, and Alice felt relieved when they headed for the opposite end of the camp. Soon after they came back, with the Guardian marching alongside them as if they were his personal guard. The supporters he had somehow gathered since his arrival cheered as he was led away. It was a mark of the Technos’ contempt that they tolerated his having followers at all. With another clang of steel they were gone, and everything was back to normal. KC came to sit beside her once more.
‘No prizes for guessing what he’ll be seeing,’ he muttered.
‘Almighty Zoot in a manger no doubt,’ she replied, her mouth twisting in distaste. ‘At least all this Reality Space testing doesn’t seem to affect him. I almost envy the guy.’
A sudden commotion made her look up, to where a crowd was gathering at the other end of the camp, where the Guardian had just passed through.
‘Another riot?’
‘I don’t think so,’ KC frowned, taking a step. ‘Something else.’
‘Look!’ One of the Timekeepers cried, rushing towards the mesh followed by her comrades. Alice joined them, peering out of the gaps in the direction they and the rest of the prisoners further up the beach were looking. Out to sea.
‘KC!’ she gasped, disbelievingly.
‘I see them,’ he replied in the same tone. He was also at the mesh, pressing himself as close as he could.
Ships. The first signs of human life they had seen from off the island for months. These weren’t the familiar Techno transport vessels either, but two large fishing boats heading for the cove, and one smaller boat chugging along a short distance behind them. The whole compound was gathered along the beach watching the shore now, including the Islanders and the few Technos who were outside. The Guardian’s escort, halfway up the cliff now, had also seen the approaching vessels and were making their way back down, apart from a lone Techno who was racing up to the headquarters building.
‘They weren’t expecting this,’ she whispered. The Timekeepers murmured excitedly among themselves, but KC just kept watching the boats.
‘They might not be friendly to the Technos, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be friendly to us,’ he said flatly.
It seemed to take an age for the first ship to reach the shore. When the first figures disembarked the mood in the camp darkened. It was more Technos, bringing a large amount of prisoners. From the way they were dressed Alice thought they were from the City. The guards on the beach relaxed and went to meet them, then suddenly everything started happening at once. The Technos from the boat began to fire their weapons at those on the beach, and the ‘prisoners’ let out a war cry and rushed forward too, their bonds actually bats and clubs and flails. Soon the beach was awash with the noise of battle, clubs and chains against Islander spears, and zapper against zapper. Alice and KC stared at each other in disbelief, and some of the other prisoners started cheering and throwing stones over the cage walls at the guards, who were torn between staying where they were and joining the fight. After the initial advance of the invasion force, the Technos and Islanders had regrouped, and reinforcements were rushing down from the cliffs, but already the second boat had landed, bringing with it another wave of City forces and a small number of Technos. Alice didn’t understand it, but right now she didn’t care. Soon she and KC were cheering just as loudly as the Timekeepers and everyone else in the compound.
‘Power and Chaos!’ the Guardian cried from the middle of the beach, raising his arms above his head. He brought them down again so that the chain that linked his wrists wrapped itself around the neck of the one guard that remained with him. The Islander made a choking sound and tugged vainly at the chain with his hands, before the Guardian let him fall to the sand. He then grabbed the loop of keys from the guard’s belt and freed himself, dropping to his knees and muttering to the sky, talking to Zoot. Bringing the keys over to the cage, he tried each one in the lock in turn, laughing to himself as he did so. Finally he found the correct key and the gate swung open under the force of everyone pushing their way out.
‘Come, my children!’ he shouted triumphantly. ‘Join the Chaos! Zoot has delivered us!’
KC took a step towards the gate and Alice put a restraining hand on his shoulder. He looked back at her, confused.
‘Tell me this isn’t Reality Space!’ she pleaded.
‘It’s real, Alice!’ He gave a cheeky grin and suddenly he was the old KC again, and she knew it was all really happening. She grinned back and they stumbled forwards in their chains to the now open gate. Another of the prisoners, one of the Timekeepers, had wrested the keys from the Guardian, now giggling madly by the cage, and was removing the chains from everyone who wasn’t impatient enough to leave still bound. Most of those were being taken down by the guards, though some, like the Guardian had, were using their bonds as weapons. Flexing her wrists as her chains snapped open, she laughed and clapped the Timekeeper on the back so hard that he almost toppled over.
‘Come on KC,’ she told her friend, who was rubbing his liberated ankles. ‘We can’t let the others have all the fun.’
The pair of them strode out onto the battlefield, Alice’s fists itching for a fight and KC’s eyes scanning for any incoming zapper fire. It was KC who saw them first.
‘Alice, look!’ he yelled over the noise. ‘The boat!’
Alice looked, and laughed in delight. The final boat, the smallest of the three, had finally landed, and some of its passengers looked very familiar. Two Technos stood on deck still, their weapons ready to fire at anyone who approached. Behind them stood Amber and Trudy with their children. The rest of the Mallrats, and others Alice did not know, were already joining the battle. Ebony fought side by side with a man in a red leather jacket, bringing down Technos and Islanders alike. Close by, Lex and another young man were fending off a group of the Islander guards, struggling against the enemy’s weapons but soon bolstered by the arrival of May and Salene to even the odds. Others had come off the boat too, but Alice only had eyes for one. Ellie stood on her own, fighting against two Islanders, but giving as good as she got and soon despatching both of them and moving on in search of her next quarry. As the next one fell she looked up and saw her sister. Utter shock and then delight crossed her face and she started towards her. Alice did the same, leaving KC behind for the moment and swiftly dealing with anyone who got in her way. Two Islanders stepped into her path and she cracked their heads together, pushing them in opposite directions to clear her way. A Techno aimed a zapper at her but she kneed him in the groin and stepped over him as he lay doubled over in pain. Then the female Techno who had ordered her to be tortured again that afternoon was facing her. Surprise crossed both their faces, but only for an instant.
The female Techno gave a satisfied smirk. ‘Oh, this will be a pleas…’ she began, then fell to the floor unconscious as Alice punched her in the face.
‘Blah, blah, blah,’ Alice muttered to herself, without breaking her stride. ‘Write me a letter if you have so much to say.’
‘Alice!’
‘Ellie!’
The two sisters reached each other and embraced.
‘I was afraid I’d never see you again!’ Ellie said, her words muffled by her sister’s body pressed tightly to her.
‘DUCK!’ came a shout, and somebody careered into them, knocking them both to the floor just as the pulse from a Techno weapon flew past Alice’s ear. She turned her head in time to see KC hitting the owner of the weapon with a baseball bat before she landed on something uncomfortable.
‘Can’t…breathe,’ the thing wheezed.
‘Jack!’
They all three stood up and brushed the sand from their clothes, and Ellie hugged Jack. It was clear that the battle on the beach was nearing its end now, with the City invaders the clear winners, though not without casualties. The Mallrats were heading towards each other again; May was supporting an injured Lex, while Ebony looked as though she was nursing a broken arm. Elsewhere Salene had found KC and looked like she would never let go of him, and Amber was making her way onto the beach. One of the Technos had his arm around her.
‘What’s wrong Alice?’ Ellie asked, and Alice realised she was crying.
‘They were right,’ she laughed, wiping her eyes. ‘It really is Christmas.’
Ellie and Jack looked at her in confusion, but she gathered them up with an arm around each and walked along the beach towards the rest of her friends, laughing all the way.
2 Likes
Absolutely! There’s a reason it’s stayed with so many of us for so long.
EDIT: Oh, and just as a fun fact - I also referenced the Strays in Light of Day, when Link was investigating Sector 4. So they’re canon in my world too! 
2 Likes
@MallRatMatt This is all putting me in the festive mood even though I’ve tried to sworn it off! Happy to see my gal Trudy get herself two Merry Christmases, though hoping they won’t be the last 
!
I also enjoyed the last one with Alice.
Awwwwwwwww… That Alice one is the best looooove it
*Write me a letter… * God that made laugh sooo hard! Just absolutely perfect!!! 
Thanks both! Glad it’s getting you in the festive mood @Timberwolf! The next one is also a Trudy one but less fluffy.
I love Alice but don’t get to write about her much.
A Winter’s Tale
Written: 2010
Synopsis: Mega is up to his usual tricks as winter comes to Tribeworld, while old feelings resurface in the mall. One-shot Trudy/Jay pairing, written for the Tribe Revival Secret Santa event 2010.
**
Original challenge:
Characters: Amber, Trudy, Jay, Brady, Bray Jr.
Pairing: Trudy/Jay
Props: (Three items that should be in the fic) Candy cane, mistletoe, and teddy bear
Words/ Sentences: (Two or three words or sentences that should be in the fic): “We’re under the mistletoe”, “Ever seen Santa Claus Conquers the Martians?”
Set: (Is it set in the Tribe world or the real world): Tribeworld
**
Trudging through the snow, Trudy sighed, once again wishing her coat had a hood like Amber’s. Walking on the other side of Jay, to her right, her friend’s face was buried deep in her cowl, with only her mouth occasionally visible when the wind tried to tug at the heavy material, lips curled into a frown. And well they might, after this morning. The meeting with Mega had not gone well, though Trudy hadn’t realised quite how bad things were until Jay explained it to her afterwards; she was not as skilled in politics as the other two. In truth she shouldn’t have been there at all, as it was a meeting for the tribe leaders. Not that the Mallrats had leaders as such, but Mega expected Amber and Jay, and had been irritated at her presence. The Techno was irritated at anything that deviated from how he thought things should be, which meant he was irritated a lot of the time. Despite that, she had been determined to attend. She was sick of finding everything out second hand like one of the kids, and on top of that it was like Jay and Amber had no time for her since they had got together. She wouldn’t go so far as to say she was jealous of the time they spent together, even though her own split with Jay was still fresh; she wouldn’t quite go that far, but if nothing else she would remind them she existed! At least, that had been the plan. Even now they weren’t walking as a group of three, rather as a one and a two, with Jay and Amber always that step further away, arm in arm. She sighed again, and brushed away the snowflakes that had settled on top of her head.
‘I can’t believe we walked straight into that!’ Amber said at last. Her face was hidden again, but her hood moved as if she were shaking her head vigorously inside it, and as she walked she kicked up the snow around her a little more forcefully than was necessary, almost sulkily.
‘You couldn’t have known,’ Jay replied soothingly, squeezing her shoulder. Trudy stifled a grimace, then let it out anyway when she realised neither of them was paying her any notice. ‘He probably had it all planned out before we arrived,’ Jay continued. ‘You know how sneaky he is.’ Trudy had to agree. She may not know politics but she knew Mega, and what he had done was very sneaky indeed. She could not remember the last time it had snowed in the city, and likely some of the younger kids had never even seen it, but after two days of it Mega had certainly seen how to use the situation to his advantage, summoning the tribe leaders to one of his “council meetings”, plying them with food and drink and suggesting a three day holiday from work parties for Christmas. It had seemed a wonderful idea to her, but of course it was too good to be true. Jay and Amber pointed out the obvious problems. What would happen if there was a power failure? What if a dispute needed settling? Like it or not, Mega’s regime was certainly efficient at keeping things in order. By that time, however, the tribe leaders were already sold on the idea, and Amber as President had the final say. How could she refuse? Of course if anything did go wrong, Amber would now bear the brunt of any bad feeling, while if things went smoothly Mega would bask in the glory. Not to mention an official holiday would further legitimise his work parties when they started up again after the three days. Yes, he had been very sneaky indeed.
Amber shook her head, but seemed to take comfort from Jay, and the rest of the walk back to the mall was a jollier affair, from exclamations at the snow, to jokes about Christmas, to delight at seeing children playing together rather than fighting as they passed by various groups on the way. One kid had even found a sledge from somewhere, while others had cottoned on and were bringing out cupboard doors and tea trays or anything they could find to make their own. For something that must have been alien to some of them, they certainly adapted well enough!
The mall itself looked something of an ice fortress as they approached it, standing tall in the snow with its white walls and icicles hanging from the sign above the entrance. In fact she was so engrossed by the sight of it that she failed to notice the ice on the ramp leading to the grille, where feet had trampled the snow to slush that had frozen overnight. Her feet flew out from underneath her as soon as they touched it and a high-pitched noise escaped from her mouth as she slipped, but halfway to the ground she stopped, caught. By Jay. Their eyes met as she looked up at him, one arm around her waist to support her and his free hand holding one of hers. He looked as surprised as she felt! Unable to convince her limbs to move, all she could do was lie there staring at him, and it appeared he could only do the same. In the end she suspected it was the colour rising in her cheeks as the seconds ticked by that finally pulled him to his senses and her to her feet.
‘Thanks,’ she said, a touch too breathily, and the world seemed to turn at full speed again, the tension broken. Or nearly so; glancing at Amber she noted that her friend quickly suppressed a frown before ostentatiously linking arms with Jay and carrying on into the mall. Jay himself half turned his head to look at her before being pulled into conversation, laughing at whatever it was Amber had said. Trudy shook her head ruefully and allowed them a few steps before following. She knew she still had feelings for Jay; she couldn’t just turn them off, even though part of her wanted to be able to. But part of her didn’t, and if he still had feelings for her too…No. She couldn’t allow herself to think along those lines. She might decide to act on those thoughts, and that would be like stumbling blindfolded through a minefield. Instead she followed meekly behind, and tried not to think about how his arm had felt around her waist.
Thoughts of Jay were instantly swept out of her mind as she entered the mall and saw Brady playing in the entrance hall. Her daughter was pushing Bray around in circles in a toy car, and thoroughly enjoying herself from the look of things. Trudy smiled. Seeing the three older Mallrats come inside, Brady pushed the car through one more circuit before coming towards them with it, making siren noises at the top of her voice. Inside poor Bray looked half delighted and half petrified, but on seeing his mother he giggled and flapped his arms out of the windows excitedly.
‘We’re Locos!’ Brady cried, and made the siren noise again, which set Bray off giggling even more. Trudy’s smile slipped momentarily.
‘That’s nice!’ she lied, wondering who had been talking to Brady about the Locos.
‘This Loco needs his rest!’ Amber announced, picking her son up out of the car. Bray clutched the folds of her coat with his tiny hands as she hoisted him up. ‘And we need to tell the others what happened at the meeting,’ she added to Jay – specifically to Jay, not to Trudy. ‘Come on.’ She headed further into the mall without looking back, and Jay flashed a quick apologetic smile to Trudy before following.
‘Why don’t we go find you something new to play with?’ Trudy said, smiling down to Brady and ignoring Amber’s snub. Something that doesn’t involve Locos, she decided, taking Brady’s hand and walking her back to their room.
Mega’s announcement of a Christmas holiday brought mixed reactions in the mall. While the older tribe members understood the problems Amber and Jay had pointed out, the younger ones were excited. In truth despite the problems some of the older ones were excited too, and since there was nothing to be done about it while Mega still ruled, it was decided that the Mallrats might as well celebrate Christmas too. A huge artificial tree, its branches slightly skewed from years in storage, was pulled down from the holding area, along with a number of boxes of dusty decorations, and a sound system was set up downstairs, blasting all the old festive tunes around the building. Trudy listened to them from her room, tapping her foot and occasionally singing snatches of them for Brady, who clapped along in time. She had found a teddy bear in among the decorations and had given it to her daughter for Christmas. While she was sitting on her bed, watching Brady dress it up in baby clothes and thinking how much more wholesome it was than playing Locos – she had yet to discover who had planted that idea in her little girl’s head – a knock on the doorframe announced a visitor. It was Jay, standing there looking at her with a conflicted expression on his face. After a few moments he averted his eyes and smiled at Brady instead.
‘Hey Brady, look what I’ve brought you!’ he said, waving a small box in the air. It looked like a DVD case. ‘Ever seen Santa Claus Conquers the Martians?’ Brady squealed with excitement and dropped the bear, bounding from the bed to jump up and down in front of Jay, trying to grab the case. Jay laughed and gave it to her. ‘Why don’t you go find Jack and see if he’ll put it on for you?’ Brady laughed and ran out of the room without looking back, while Trudy sighed at the abandoned teddy.
‘Should she be watching that?’ she complained, though half-heartedly.
‘It’s a classic!’ Jay shrugged. ‘And besides, I wanted to talk to you in private. About earlier.’
‘Does Amber know you’re here?’ she asked carefully, gesturing for him to sit on the other end of the bed. He made no move to do so, so she stood up instead.
‘Amber was…upset,’ he said, skirting around her question with what she expected was an understatement. ‘She says you’ve been giving us looks.’ So she had noticed after all; she would have to be more careful in future. ‘And that there was no reason for you to be at the meeting today. She thinks…she thinks you’re trying to get me back.’ He looked at her for a while, expecting her to say something. ‘Are you?’ he added, when it became clear that she wasn’t going to.
She laughed, though there was no humour in it. She had imagined this moment several times since she and Jay had split up, but she knew that this couldn’t happen. ‘No,’ she said, reluctantly. Very reluctantly. ‘I’m not, Jay.’
‘Oh,’ he said simply, with a touch of disappointment. He shifted his feet, but didn’t move from the doorway. ‘Didn’t you…feel anything before? Outside the mall? Because…because I think I did.’
She sighed and moved towards him, stopping a short distance away. She didn’t want to encourage him, but she couldn’t lie to him either. ‘Of course I did, Jay,’ she explained. ‘But we can’t do anything about it, not now.’ In reply he reached out and took hold of her hand, pulling her, gently but firmly enough to take those last two steps towards him, where he suddenly smiled and looked upwards.
‘We’re under the mistletoe,’ he said softly.
She looked up and saw it, hanging above the door. Somebody had been very thorough with their decorating, she noted. Rolling her eyes, she rose onto her toes and gave Jay a peck on the cheek to emphasise what she had told him, then opened her mouth to wish him a happy Christmas. He intercepted her, however, closing his mouth around hers to cut her off. There was a brief moment of startlement on her part, before she found herself unable to fight her feelings any longer, returning the kiss.
Abruptly she realised where they were, standing in her doorway where anybody could come across them. Breaking away to arm’s length once again, she tried to regain her composure. ‘We can’t do that,’ she said. ‘Not here.’ A spark of guilt flashed through her, but she stifled it. This might be her last chance with Jay, and that kiss was too fresh in her mind to worry much about Amber.
‘Go up to the roof,’ Jay told her. ‘I’ll join you in a little while.’ He smiled at her, a full grin that lit up his face, then he was gone, marching off down the corridor. Laughing in surprised delight, she smartened herself up in the mirror before hurrying out.
To get to the stairs that led up to the roof, she had to pass through the main hall downstairs, where everybody was busy getting into the party mood. She shared a smile and a joke with those who stopped her, but only briefly before moving on again. That is until she got to the tree. Standing tall beside the phoenix fountain, it was now fully decorated and an impressive sight, though that was not what made her stop dead in front of it. Standing there was Amber, holding Bray up to look at the decorations. His little hand closed around a candy cane hanging from one of the branches and he shook it, causing the bells further along the branch to tinkle. That was when Amber turned around and saw her. Trudy flinched, but gave what she hoped was a friendly smile and a nod before walking briskly on. Amber gave her a suspicious look before freeing the candy cane from Bray’s grasp and walking off in the opposite direction.
Trudy felt less sure of herself now than she had in her room but decided to press on, knowing that if she stopped now she would lose her bottle completely. It wasn’t until she hurried up the back stairs and opened the door onto the roof that she paused and allowed herself a small sigh of relief that turned into a shiver as she stepped out into the snow. It was getting dark now, and the snow shone a pale white in the streetlights. Moving to the edge of the roof she watched the flakes fall silently over the city and smiled. It was beautiful.
‘Trudy?’
She turned around to see Jay standing at the door, the line of her footprints already half-covered in snow between them. He walked out towards her, making fresh impressions deeper than her own, but stopped short of reaching her. She was suddenly aware of the sad look on his face. Amber had spoken to him.
‘You were right, Trudy,’ he said, reaching out gingerly to take her hands. ‘Maybe I’ve been too hasty.’
‘What do you mean?’ she said quietly, knowing exactly what he meant.
‘What we had…it was great,’ he explained. ‘But I should have listened to you earlier. Maybe we just weren’t meant to be. You…you deserve someone better, and I…’ he paused for a moment. ‘Amber and I share the same dreams for the future,’ he continued. ‘That’ll always be important to me, to both of us, and I can’t just let that go. I’m sorry. I’ve handled this badly, and you have every right to be angry with me. I’ll understand if you never want to speak to me again.’
Trudy sighed. Were those his words, or Amber’s? ‘It’s fine, Jay,’ she said. It wasn’t fine. It was anything but fine, but she couldn’t face an argument, and they had both made a bad call on this one. Besides, she could hardly go round avoiding him for the rest of her life. The mall was a big place, but not that big. She would just have to accept things – again – and carry on as she had been doing until today. And so would he. ‘Just go back downstairs,’ she added. Just because she was resigned to the situation did not mean she had to face him right here and now. He nodded in understanding and let her hands drop. Instead of watching him leave she turned to stare at the snow over the city once more. She wasn’t sure how long she stood there but when she turned around again the snow had filled in Jay’s footprints as if he had never been there.
With a rueful smile she shook her head, scattering snowflakes from her hair as she did so. She was disappointed, but not devastated. Deep down she had known that earlier with Jay, like Mega’s holiday, had been too good to be true, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy it for what it was. The same with Christmas. She decided to go back downstairs and enjoy herself with the rest of her tribe. Besides, she had seen Salene earlier, wrapping up a winter coat with a proper hood, and she was sure the tag had had her name on it.
3 Likes
God and now I hate Jay again!
This story is a good example why I dislike the s5 Jay
Neither here, neither there… I still think girls should have stuck together and kick Mr Surfer techno boy faaaar out of the Mall 
And that’s why I also would never be with such a man…he swears love to one and still flashes at the other…blew.
But great inside of Trudy! (I first thought Jay had told Brady about the Locos and hoped Trudy would beat him up that would have been some treat for me )
The writing style here is very excellent!