I wrote a new scene tonight. For a while, I was chugging along, and then I hit a roadblock. I need a way to finish off Lark's incredible dialogue, and then I think I'll be okay. This was a total surprise. It was originally a happy moment, a moment of celebration of Alec's life. Then I redid the setting. It was going to be in an area close to a large gathering of people to overhear the conversation. When it ended up with the three in the back of the car all alone in the parking garage, I had to write more of Cato's reaction than I anticipated. I was going to have him mouth off, push her away and generally be his normal, snarky self. Then I got caught up in the flow of the story. It became a grieving, emotionally charged exchange when Cato reminded me that he's been found out in a moment of extreme vulnerability. And that, I already knew, he can't stand. He's got an independent streak a mile wide, and hates asking for help. His anger and grief mix together in this strange, yet amazing piece of writing. Please help with my problem! Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Note for clarity: we find out earlier in the story that Alec committed suicide. Tabby and Tanner are twins, his younger siblings by two years.

Trace is another member of the team, who will be featured later in the story. He's a very skilled singer and guitar player.

Also: just in case anyone thinks this is going in that direction, they cannot kiss. Lark has a crush on someone else, and Cato already has a girlfriend. I thought about using her instead of Lark in this scene, but she already knew Cato could play, and his character has so far been the kind of person who would never let someone he cares about so deeply see his emotional pain. This is further emphasized when he waits until Tabby and Tanner have left before falling apart completely.

Cato wasn't sure what to think. He'd been pretty close to Alec. They'd had big dreams once. Dreams of bigger and better things. Their music was going to be their ticket out. No longer. Cato opened the hatch and sat down just inside. He reached back and found the familiar rough fabric. Cato pulled it to him and opened the zipper, and there it was. The guitar Alec had given him at age 9. From Alec, his fingers had learned to dance across the strings. They'd sat in the basement so many rainy days, voices melding into one, playing for life, for love, for sheer joy. Reluctantly, he laid the guitar on the seat and picked up the other case. What lay inside almost released the tears that had been threatening ever since he'd first heard the news. Alec's own precious instrument. Cato lifted it out and held it as if about to play, head bowed. "Alec… why'd you have to throw it all away?" "I wish I knew." The voice made him whirl around. Tanner stood there, watching him. Without another word, he sat down and nestled in close to Cato's side, and began to cry silently. Cato wrapped an arm around him. "Shhhhh. I know. Believe me, I know." And then Tabby was there, too, warm against his other side. He held them both close, never wanting to let go. "He's not with us anymore, but he's still here. As long as we remember, he'll always be here." And he put his hands on the strings of the guitar and began to play one of Alec's favorite songs.(Vienna)As the notes rang out low and strong, Cato finally broke down and wept.

(This is not a youtube, it will play at school.)

Lark was coming to get a CD from the car she'd driven last when she heard the music. She followed the sound all the way back to the big van Patience had taken earlier. The hatch was open, letting the sound echo through the garage. Lark waited out of sight and listened. The song was incredibly sad, the chorus so emotional it was heartbreaking. The singer had an amazing voice, rich and expressive, and she could hear his skill with the guitar without even seeing it. As the last word faded, she walked around the car to the hatch. She looked inside and froze, stunned. The singer must have heard her, because he snapped his head around. Cato looked just as surprised as she was. For a moment, Lark was speechless. Then she found her voice. " I… I thought you were Trace. Why didn't you tell anyone you could play like that? That was amazing!" Once she started, she couldn't stop the flow of words pouring from her mouth. "Seriously. Where did that come from? You never said a word." Lark saw movement behind Cato, and for the first time she noticed Tabby and Tanner snuggled up against him. He sighed and put a hand on Tanner's shoulder. "All right, kiddo. Why don't you go find Raven? See if she can put a smile back on your face before it freezes like that." Tanner sat up, stretched, and made an effort to smile. "You've got the idea. Go on. See how much chaos you can stir up. Tabby, how about finding Jasper and telling him where we are? If I know him, he'll be getting worried by now." When the two younger kids had gone, Cato turned away from Lark. "Alec was everything I ever wanted to be. First time I heard him play, I knew that was going to be my life." He laughed bitterly. "We were so naïve. This war was always going to take us. Call it fate, whatever you want, but we never had a chance." He was almost in tears again. Lark didn't know what to say. She'd grown so used to the sarcastic, smart-mouthed, ever-optimistic Cato that the person before her was someone she didn't know at all. This was his flip side, the doubts and fears that lived deep inside him, coming out in a stream of harsh, acidic cynicism. Part of her wanted to run for Jasper, but that didn't seem right. The other half of her wanted to fold him into her arms, but that wasn't right, either. In the end, she just sat on the back bumper and listened as he continued to rant. "What are we even doing, if this is how it ends? It doesn't mean anything. Alec made that guitar sing like no one else who ever lived. And now he's gone, and what's left for us? More blood, more hate?" Lark suddenly knew what she had to do. She put her hands on his shoulders and pulled Cato around to face her. "We have hope. We fight for life. We fight for love and laughter and sorrow and sunsets and everything else that makes it possible to carry on.  


Here is where I stopped. Assistance in finishing off the scene is welcome!