uncharted_fics | FicMix: One Foot behind the Other

Medium: Video Games
Fandom: Uncharted Series (Drake's Fortune/Among Thieves)
Subject: Nathan Drake x Elena Fisher
Title: One Foot behind the Other
Warnings: Spoilers for both Drake's Fortune and Among Thieves (if you've never played/watched them).
Notes: Some Files may be .WMA Formatted.

9. Square One - Coldplay (4:47) | Among Thieves | Nathan

Under the surface trying to break through
Deciphering the codes in you
I need a compass, draw me a map
I'm on the top, I can't get back

"C'mon!"

Nate watched Elena rush across the tattered bridge toward the monastery, slightly taken aback by her sudden burst of speed. Was it weird that he found himself wishing that Sully was with him instead of Elena, right now? He was more accustomed to leading, not following and it was all the more fun when Sully lagged behind him, complaining about his lost youth and hookers, among other things. Elena's twisted enthusiasm towards this entire situation, made him wonder if was really 29-years-old. She was making him feel at least forty years of age. Holstering his gun, he proceeded across the bridge, leaping over the broken parts in the ancient structure, muttering to himself as he went along. This entire trip seemed like one huge slap in the face, the kind of slap you didn't see coming. From being double-crossed -- and shot -- by his ex-friend, Harry Flynn, reuniting with Elena and having his daring rescue rejected by Chloe on the train, Nate began to wonder if this stupid "Path to Shambhala" was worth all the misery. Oh, he knew for a fact, why he was still perusing the path --- it was Schafer's dying wish, he wasn't one to deny a man of his dying wish.

Lazarevic would eventually find it, with or without Flynn's help (he didn't strike him as a stupid man in the least) --- but, his original intention, double-crossing his former partner and his loony client, seemed pretty damn stupid now. Typically, Nathan could brush these types of things off with a shrug of his shoulders. El Dorado changed all of that, however. If any the myths behind Shambhala were true, he didn't want someone like Zoran getting his hands on something like immortality ... or instant zombism for that matter. He wasn't completely heartless, but he knew for a fact that Elena had more to do with his inability to do the right thing more often than he would've. A year and half of living with Elena, Nate found himself doing a lot of things he never would've given a second thought. Like committing wholeheartedly to a relationship. Had he still been involved with Chloe prior to meeting Elena, he probably would've walked away from the entire El Dorado situation a lot easier, regardless of Elena's protests. Hell, he probably would've dragged Elena off the island with him (after he beat the shit of Sully). Chloe just had that kind of effect on him; It was easy to get lost in double-crossing, ditching and "every-man-for-himself" esque behavior.

It was creepy, how much Elena actually made him pause and think, long and hard, about the repercussions of his actions. Her insistence to go through with the John Price story and his sudden overprotective streak, hadn't exactly been the total reason for their split. Not really. It certainly made him think twice, who and where stole from when he was angry though. Elena had nearly attacked him with her suitcases when she found out he'd burglarized Brahms house for a family heirloom a client wanted. He never realized he'd stepped foot inside Brahms' house until Elena ID'ed the ivory statue of Venus, sitting on the floor next to his maps. Instead physical abuse, she just settled for, "Heartless son of a bitch," and slammed the door behind her, tearing the door knob from the frame in the process. Sully laughed at him for months afterward and Nate found himself repeating Elena's exact words back at his friend. He would've spent another month or two moping if Chloe hadn't shown up when she did and swept him off his feet (figuratively speaking, here), throwing him back into his old lifestyle. He barely spent a year with her, before dumping her as well. To her credit, she took it a lot better than Elena and never appeared again until Flynn approached him.

"Nate, hurry up!" Elena's voice sounded off in the distance. Nate stumbled across the narrow support beam, using his arms to balance himself out as he rushed across it. Elena was waiting on the other side, waving him over eagerly. He watched her with tired eyes, knowing part of her reason for following him this far, apart from her do-gooder nature, was because of Jeff. Shot dead right in front of her by Lazarevic, without so much as a beat of a remorse. Just by looking at her, Nate would've never figured her as the type to be motivated by revenge, but if the shoe fit...

10. Canvas - Imogen Heap (5:04) | Among Thieves | Nathan and Elena

The more you look
The less you see
So close your eyes
And start to breathe
Oh, you said yourself,
"This wasn't easy"
Mm, you said yourself,
"This wasn't easy"

Chloe lead the way across the dagger shaped bridge, pistols at the ready in case one of those giant blue yeti-men decided to follow them. Nate struggled to keep his balance as he hurried across the uneven ground, he carried Elena bridal-style, her arms were wrapped gingerly around his neck, her head resting against his shoulder. Whether or not it was intentional, Elena's moaning became more an more frequent and Nate found himself slowing up more times he would've liked, afraid he was hurting her with all the movement.

"Nate, hurry up!" Chloe shouted. Nate looked up from Elena's bruised left check, Chloe was already on the other side of the bridge, nearing the entrance. Cursing under his breath, Nate picked up the pace, whispering quiet apologies to Elena as he started to run. He had to be careful about how fast he moved, Elena's weight alone would bring him crashing to his knees, that would do neither of them any good. Especially if they fell off the bridge. Elena's fingers gripped the collar of his shirt, her nails scratched his skin as she shifted in his arms. "Hang on, Lena, we're almost there," He whispered. Chloe watched silently, urging him on with the constant wave of her hand. She was more than ready to put all of this madness behind her, forget all of it, she only wished Nate would move his fine ass a little faster. Finally, Nate reached Chloe and the two proceeded through the entry room, never sparing the glowing sphere illuminating the room a second glance. Elena cried into his shirt, Nate felt his heart would shatter if she did that again.

The two hunters proceeded up the stairs, observing the shadow of the evening sunlight on the ground outside the doorway, Nate nearly bowled Chloe over when they reached the final stairs. Chloe moved far ahead of him to avoid being run over, she pointed to the stone table in the middle of the ground. Nate hurried over to said location, ignoring the chill creeping over his skin as he did so. Slowly, he lowered his arms from their raised position, Elena made no protests as she was laid onto cool surface. Nate bit the inside of his mouth, Elena was like dead weight in his hands as he steadied her body. He scanned her face, it was completely still; half way between serene and pained. "Elena?" His voice barely rose above a whisper, his throat throbbed from all the screaming he did earlier. Elena's head rolled to the right, shakily, he raised a hand to check her pulse. Chloe watched him with anxious eyes, the two shared a brief look before averting their gaze back down to Elena. Nate's fingers were pressed lightly against the space of her neck between her jaw line, he waited for the beat of a pulse to hit his fingers, but nothing came. If it were at all possible, Nathan's chest felt like it was caving in on itself. "Elena, wake up," He requested, his voice a little louder.

There was no response from Elena.

"Elena?" He tried again, dragging his hand away from her neck, down her chest. Any other time, he could imagine her slapping his hand away from her breasts and calling him a pervert, which made her lack of movement all the more frightening. He pressed his hand down and waited for her heart to jump up and hit his palm, the longer he waited, the more the image of him standing over her grave danced through his mind.

"Nate..." Chloe's voice was hallow in his ears, he felt her hand place itself overtop his and he flinched. "She's---"

Tears burned the rims of his eyes, knowing exactly what she was trying to tell him. "Don't---" He nearly snapped. It wasn't, it couldn't happen. This was Elena Fisher, when it came to death, she was stubborn as he was. The worse that brought her down was the flu and even then, Elena acted like she wasn't sick, parading around like any normal healthy person. Chloe snaked her fingers around his, trying to pull his hand away from her chest. Nate held his hand down, refusing to be moved.

He wasn't giving up on Elena.

11. Safe from Harm - Massive Attack (5:20) | Post-U2 | Nathan (to Elena)

Lucky dippers
Crazy chancers
Seems to be moving fast
What happened to the nicities
Of my childhood days
Well I can't do nothing 'bout that, no
But if you hurt what's mine
I'll sure as hell retaliate

Nate inhaled and exhaled slowly, ignoring the itching in his nose, a direct result of breathing in the thick incense that he lit just a couple of hours ago. It wasn't his favorite, but Elena seemed to like it a lot. And presently, whatever Elena needed or wanted mattered more than any complaints Nate had against anything. Outside, the chaotic sound of city life made him itch for wilderness and the fresh air, unclogged by crowded buildings and smog. Scratching the back of his neck, Nate cast a casual glance over his shoulder.

Elena laid tangled beneath the covers, short hair fanned out across the pillow. Earlier, he woke to the sound of her restless moaning and was slapped in the face by one of her flailing arms. Knowing better than to wake her, Nate decided to light the incense that Tenzin had given him before his and Elena's departure from his village. Little triangle shaped fragments that sat on a Libra replica incense stand that Elena gave him to on his birthday. It took a little while, but she finally calmed down and fell back into a silent slumber.

Nate himself comfortable on his side of the bed and watched the sun rise over the buildings outside. Elena had yet to officially move back in with him, something told him that it would be a while before she got to that point again, but he managed to persuade her into staying over until she was feeling up to going home. He figured he was being clever, especially when Elena agreed without arguing over the subject, she didn't even crack a joke. She fell asleep almost instantly when he carried her up the stairs and put her in the bed. Nathan left the apartment and went to talk to Sully at the bar, proceeding to fill him in more on the details on the entire Shambhala ordeal. When he asked what happened to Chloe, Sully made a crack about her going to Hawaii for a vacation. "She's a big girl, Nate. I'm not her baby-sitter," Sully puffed on his cigar as he spoke. Nate waved the swirling cigar smoke away from his face and ordered himself a drink. I guess Chloe'll show up when it suits her, he mused. After two hours with Sully, Nate called it a night and headed back to the apartment. Elena was still asleep when he dragged himself up stairs, halfway out of his clothes. He stunk like a ashtray, he hoped Elena wouldn't kick him out of bed because of it.

Stretching his limbs, Nate crawled over to Elena's side. She didn't move an inch, Nate watched her expression with a small smile, wanting to do nothing except hold her close. Unfortunately, given her delicate condition, he feared he would hurt her. Carefully, he laid on his back and raised his arm over his head so that it rested on Elena's pillow. There was a small gap between his and Elena's body, her back was still facing him and she was oblivious to the fact that he was --- Nate felt his breath hitch when Elena rolled over and draped her arm across his abdomen. A sly smile graced her chapped lips, Nate felt himself blush when her eyes opened. "Hi," Was all he bring himself to say.

"Hey, Nate," She whispered.

"How long have you been awake?" He asked, grinning.

"Since you woke up," Elena answered smoothly. Nate shifted his gaze, slightly embarrassed. All this time he thought she was asleep and she wasn't? Damn, he was getting rusty. When he said nothing more, Elena moved closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder, Nate lowered his arm and wrapped it around her. "How are you?"

"Better than yesterday, better than last week," Elena relayed, closing her eyes. "Why?"

Nate shrugged, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "Just askin'," He murmured, resting his cheek against her forehead.

[THE END]

[*] Meet Virginia - Train (4:00) | Post-U2 | Nathan (and Sleeping!Elena)

She only drinks coffee at Midnight, when the moment is not
right, her timing is quite-unusual
you see her confidence is tragic, but her intuition magic
and the shape of her body - unusual
Meet Virginia-I can't wait to
Meet Virginia,
Yeah

Nate is welcomed back home to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. The only light on in their tiny living room is the one at Elena's desk, where she herself resides. Sitting on the edge of her desk is a steaming cup of coffee, a lipstick smear the only indication that she's drank (or attempted to drink) from the mug. Shrugging his backpack off his shoulders, Nate tiptoes over to her work corner with the usual stealth he uses whenever he wants to sneak past security guards or mercenaries. He knows better than to wake her from a nap, the last time he did that, he earned himself a spot on a couch for week (like he was supposed to know she was trying to beat her power nap record), so he just takes the mug from off the edge of desk and takes a moment to regard her face.

It's the first time in months since he's seen her so relaxed in her sleep, Nate often wondered if Shambhala, Lazarevic and Flynn's stupid grenade bothered her more than she let on. She talked to him about it, sure, but Elena always seemed to be holding something back and always managed to skirt around the subject if someone interrupted their conversation(s). Leaning over, Nate kisses her cheek and turns the lamp off.

It's only a second later did he wonder how he was going to get across the room without a light to guide him.

[ART + MIX @ MEDIAFIRE.COM]