Lost Fic: Trick or Treat (Sawyer/Kate)

[ozmissage]

Title: Trick or Treat
Pairing: Sawyer/Kate (yes you read that right)
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1,412
Warnings: Fluff. Also I’m playing fast and loose with season two canon.
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: Kate wants to spend Halloween with the one person who might love it as much as she does.
A/N: This was written formollivanders who requested season two, first Halloween, and Sawyer. I hope I did your ship justice, sweetie. :)

It was nearly sundown when Kate set out for the hatch with a pack slung over one shoulder. The setting sun cast an orange glow over the jungle and the effect made her smile. It seemed appropriate given the day.

The camp was in an uncommonly good mood and she had been reluctant to leave it behind. Ever since he had realized that it was Halloween, Hurley had set to work planning an impromptu party that was apparently going to include roasted boar and ghost stories. It was sure to be a fun night and Kate wouldn’t have minded joining in, but she couldn’t shake the image of Sawyer cooped up in the hatch with only John for company.

Jack had insisted he stay there for a few more days to cut his risk of a repeat infection. Kate suspected he liked the peace and quiet as well, but she held her tongue. She knew Sawyer was starting to go a little stir crazy and she had to admit she was feeling a little guilty. It had only been a few days since she left Sawyer sprawled alone on the cold floor of the hatch.

She couldn’t help it though. She still wasn’t sure if it was sleep depravation or this place, but she had heard Wayne’s voice. The memory made her shiver; she had hoped she would never hear that monster again and yet there he was, still haunting her when he should be dead and buried.

She shook her head suddenly. She wasn’t going to think about Wayne tonight. It was Halloween, her favorite holiday. All of the other big holidays---Christmas, Thanksgiving---were about family and home; they were for people with roots. Halloween was about freedom and anonymity. For one night it was like the whole world donned a mask and for one brief moment Kate could be just like everybody else.

She had always loved this day, even when she was a kid. She remembered Halloweens with Tom. She would wear some ten-dollar witch’s costume her mother picked up from the supermarket and Tom would come in some hand sewn creation his mother worked on for days.

They would knock on doors until their bags were full of candy and then Kate would tug him towards the outskirts of town. Tom would plead with her not to go too far, but every year she made them walk until their feet ached just to catch a glimpse of the highway. Halloween was the one day when running away felt completely plausible; they could stick out their little kid thumbs and catch a ride to Des Moines. She had it all planned out, they would join a travelling circus and Tom would be a clown, while she would work with the magicians---even then she had a way with slight of hand tricks.

It always ended the same though, Tom would beg her to go back and she would give in. Then they would make the long walk home and Kate would finagle an invitation to stay at his place where the two of them would fall asleep on the living room floor to the sound of old Twilight Zone repeats.

Kate smiled as she reached the hatch door. The sun was long gone now and she was eager to get inside. Her smile changed to a grin when she shut the door behind herself and heard Sawyer’s familiar southern drawl coming from the kitchen.

“Son of a bitch! Are you counting cards, Cool Hand?”

Kate could hear John laughing in response.

“Just lucky, I guess.”

“Lucky? By my watch we’ve been playing for thirty minutes and I’ve won a grand total of one hand. At this rate we’re going to have to open another box of Dharma O’s.”

Kate tried valiantly to stifle her giggle, but the sight in front of her was too much to take with a straight face. Sawyer was sprawled across one bench at the kitchen table with a sad little pile of cereal in front of him and a petulant scowl on his face. John sat across from him serenely shuffling cards with what appeared to be almost an entire box worth of cereal stacked neatly by his elbow.

The men looked up, startled to find Kate standing in the middle of the hatch laughing at them.

“What are you two up to?” Kate asked.

Sawyer’s scowl dissolved into a satisfied smirk. Sometimes Kate felt like she could read his thoughts and right now she was pretty sure he knew she was here to see him and he was planning on milking it for all it was worth.

“I’m getting my ass kicked in poker. The question is what are you doing out and about at this hour, Freckles?”

Kate ignored him and turned her attention to John.

“Hurley’s having a little party at the beach, John and I know you’ve been stuck here all day. I thought you might like a break from babysitting---“

“Hey!” Sawyer interrupted.

“The button,” Kate finished.

Kate could see Sawyer trying to catch her glance out of the corner of her eye, but she determinedly kept her focus on John. She could see that he was reluctant to go, but despite his new found button pushing obsession John was an outdoorsman at heart.

“I think I’ll take you up on that offer, Kate. I won’t stay long.”

Kate nodded, feeling pleased with herself. “Stay as long as you like. We can handle things here for the night.”

“Maybe you’ll have better luck with Kate,” John said to Sawyer as he eased himself to his feet.

“I can take Freckles,” Sawyer said.

Kate snorted. “Don’t be so sure, Cowboy.”

John patted Kate on the shoulder as he passed. “He’s got an ace up his right sleeve,” he whispered.

“Have a nice night, John,” Kate said.

He gave her a quick wink before heading for the door. Kate slid into the seat across from Sawyer who was busy dealing cards.

“We gonna do anything more interesting than play poker tonight, Freckles?”

Kate shrugged. “Depends. How do you feel about Parcheesi?”

Sawyer chuckled. “You’re funny. You going to tell me what you’re really doing here?”

“Thought you might like some company,” Kate said innocently.

“Had company,” Sawyer replied.

Kate sighed. He clearly wasn’t going to let this go.

“It’s Halloween, Sawyer.”

“You wanna swap, ghost stories?”

Kate leaned back and crossed her arms. “Trick or treat?”

“I’m fresh out of candy Freckles, but I bet we could work something out.”

Kate rolled her eyes. “It was a question, Sawyer. What do you want a trick or a treat?”

Sawyer looked thoughtful for a moment before replying, “How bout a treat?”

Kate slid out of her seat and kneeled down beside him. Sawyer leaned towards her and Kate smiled at the look of anticipation on his face. They were barely inches apart and Kate could feel Sawyer’s breath against her lips, all she had to do was scoot forward and their lips would meet. Instead she reached into her bag by her feet and produced a slightly melted Apollo bar.

Sawyer groaned and took the candy bar with a grimace. “I thought I said treat, Freckles.”

Kate laughed at the look of disappointment on his face. She wanted to tell him that the real reason she was here wasn’t really guilt or a sudden burst of altruism, it was because she wanted to spend her favorite holiday with the only other person on this island who might be able to appreciate it as much as she did.

Instead she stood up and leaned across the table and pressed her lips gently against his. Sawyer was too surprised to react at first, but after a moment she felt his tongue pressing urgently against hers. She could feel the stubble of his five o’clock shadow tickling her chin and she had to fight not to giggle. He tasted just like she remembered, warm and just a tiny bit bitter like drinking a glass of whiskey too fast.

After a minute or two she had to pull back to catch her breath. Sawyer brought a hand up to cup the side of her face and to prevent her from moving too far. She settled for leaning her forehead against his. Sawyer was staring at her, his expression much softer than normal.

“What was that for?”

She just smiled and whispered, “Happy Halloween, Sawyer.”

 

Comments

[mollivanders.livejournal.com]

<3 I feel like Sawyer tonight - sick and wanting more than chocolate ;)

No, seriously, you made my night with this. Thank you so much! *goes back to reread Skate love* <3

[ozmissage.livejournal.com]

Aww, see now I'm worried I somehow infected you across the internet...;) I hope you start feeling better soon, being sick is certainly no fun, especially when you have so much to do.

I'm glad you liked it! It was kind of fun to put myself in a season two state of mind again.

[valhalla37.livejournal.com]

Awwwwww! I have to admit, I was curious about what Sawyer/Kate fluff would look like -- though you're so great I think you could handle a fic about anything -- but this was even sweeter and more lovely than I anticipated!

I love that Halloween is Kate's favourite holiday -- because of course it would be -- and the banter between her, John and Sawyer had me grinning. It's a sweet moment at the end, too -- that she realizes Sawyer's the only one who would really understand. (And while I'm on that, fantastic Sawyer characterization, too -- I could totally hear him in my mind while I was reading this.)

Great job! :D

[ozmissage.livejournal.com]

*blushes*

Thank you so much! Heh. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to pull off a S/K fic, but I figured I was better off just going for the fluff, than even attempting anything angsty.

I love writing Sawyer (aside from coming up with nicknames which always gives me a headache) mostly because I feel like it's easier for me to write his speech patterns. When I'm writing British characters and what not I have to rely on what I've seen and heard on television and such, but I grew up around a bunch smartass southerners. ;)

I actually think that's why Sawyer's never been my favorite character (although I do love him dearly.) I've been around too many smooth talking southern fellows in real life. Sadly, none of them looked like him though.

[missy-useless.livejournal.com]

Awwww, what a lovely fic. I adore the dialogue (and especially your Sawyer voice! wow, I could hear him in my mind), the Kate characterization - her plan on running away with Tom and joining a circus - the poker scene with John, everything. Thanks for writing and sharing, I really enjoyed reading this. Great work! ♥

[ozmissage.livejournal.com]

Thank you! K/S is so not a pairing I actively ship, but it was fun getting back into a season two state of mind again. :)