Growing Into It

By Purple Lacey

Part 6
 

The disadvantage of having a personal crisis in a building full of Sentinels was obvious.  A crowd of concerned Sentinels and Guides had been drawn to the scene of the unfolding drama when Sentinel ears picked up both Buck’s soft cajoling and Vin’s ragged sobs, and empathic Guides homed in on the ragged emotions the pair were unconsciously broadcasting. 

It was only a few minutes before Chris Larabee himself had put in an appearance, dispersing the crowd with a few terse words.  The still irate Marta was ordered brusquely out of her own apartment by Chris, which she reluctantly did after throwing a killing look toward the other Guide’s back, where he still reclined on her living room carpet, before flouncing out of the room.  Chris listened as several of the Guides hanging around outside led her way, attempting to soothe her upset and calm her down.   Buck never noticed, still focused on the air vent where his little Sentinel was hiding.  

When Larabee demanded an explanation, Buck reluctantly left the duct to sit in a slump against the wall as he poured out the whole farcical story to his friend and Guild Master.

Larabee’s clear attempt to contain his amused smirk when Buck explained what had happened did nothing to alleviate any of the Elite Guide’s embarrassment at the current state of affairs. Buck knew that if the situation with Vin missing had not been so pressing his long time friend would have been rolling on the floor laughing at his predicament.  Buck knew he should be affronted at this friend’s reaction, but somehow the Guide just could not spare the energy to care much, so taken up in his worry and concern for his Sentinel.   

“I always knew that overactive libido of yours was gonna get you into real trouble one of these days,” Chris chastised with an affectionately resigned shake of his head.  “You really stuck your foot in it deep this time, Buck.”

Buck figured he deserved that after his gross mishandling of the whole situation. He ran a weary, dejected hand through his dark hair.
 
“I know it.  I just wasn’t thinking is all.  I never meant any of this to happen.  You have to know that.  If I could go back and do it all over again differently, you know I would in a heartbeat, but I can’t so now I just want to get him out here so I can work on fixing it.  The problem is he’s...he’s blocked me out,” the big man’s voice broke emotionally, feeling the emptiness of the rift that had opened between himself and his Sentinel because of his own carelessness.

Larabee squatted beside his friend and put a steadying hand on his shoulder. 

“It will be okay, Buck,” Chris tried to reassure him.  “He’s hurt right now, but you’re his bonded Guide, his touchstone. He needs you.  Not to mention that boy already loves you.  He won’t be able to stay away from you long. Trust me, having your Guide mad at you is hard for any Sentinel to take, but after the first whiplash of emotion passes, the first instinct is always to make it better anyway you can.” 

Chris grimaced at his memories of the few times his first Guide, Sarah, had lashed out at him in anger in their early days as a bonded Sentinel and Guide pair. That was usually when he had done something she had disapproved of, or, more often than not, when he had not listened to her when she had told him as his Guide not to do something and he put himself at risk when he had done it anyway.  Her fury had always cut him off at the knees.  The couple of times he and Ezra had locked heads since they had bonded were not memories he wanted to dwell on either.  The bottom line was he knew from personal experience that a Sentinel that found himself in his Guide’s doghouse would do whatever it took to get back into that Guide’s good graces because it just ached too much to remain in conflict.

Chris squeezed his long time friend’s shoulder and gave him an affectionate little shake as he said, “Believe me, Buck, you’ll get your chance to fix it all.  He just needs a chance to calm down, and start thinking again.  Once that happens, I’m sure he’ll let you make it up to him.”  

The Elite Guide looked at Larabee with a combination of hope and pain.  Whatever he might have replied went unsaid.  Instead the Guide paled as he looked over his friend’s shoulder.  Buck watched his mother glide into the room and give him The Look. Suddenly he felt just like he had as a kindergartener after he had painted his neighbor’s prized Persian cat black for Halloween. 

“Bucklin,” she drawled slowly, and he cringed inwardly at the familiar tone.  Oh, man, and he had thought he was in trouble before.

 Part 5     Part 6    Part 7



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