Wish Me Ill

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee sat down on the benches, flicking through his iPod. Stereotypically, he went straight for the Beatles. He'd been hanging out with Jude earlier- Lee's own personal version of goodbye- and it put him in the right mood. Lee was quite pleased with himself, actually. He'd managed to 'say goodbye' to all his friends- Ellie, Brian, Mike, Jack, Olivia, Jude- he'd seen 'em all and more. He'd even high-fived Matt on the way outside. And in the Dining Hall, he'd sat with Kira. She was silent- he liked to think she suspected something- but really, she'd no idea.
Lee was going to kill Major Hoodham.
And it was going down in history.
Years later, Lee thought, with a dull rush of pride, kids his own age would speak of him in reverence. Libba had told him he'd become a legend- whether it ended it martyr or escape, Lee knew that at least he would complete the task at hand. If he was going down...
Major was going down with him.
But there was just one more person he had to see- just one more person he had to be with before... before he had to leave forever. She was on her way now. They'd agreed to meet here this lunch. In some ways, Lee hoped that this period would last forever.
But already the seconds were slipping away from him...
Hurry, Maddie. Please hurry...

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

As Madeleine walked across the grounds of the school, she realised just how bloody cold it was. Even wearing a scarf and gloves, the wind was still chilling her the whole way through.
Lee would be there, though.
She wouldn't mind the cold then.
Even as she saw him from across the grounds of the school, her mouth automatically turned up into a smile, and her mood suddenly lifted, the stress of that morning forgotten. It was at once both sick and sickening that this was what happened to her when she caught a glimpse of him, but such was life.
Such was love.
"Hey," she smiled as she reached him, sitting down on the cold bench beside him and kissing him.

[Kira & Lee Norris]

He returned her kiss hungrily, knowing full well it would be a long time before he felt it again.
"Hi," he said softly, leaning back as she settled herself beside him. "I've had my lunch- are you okay for food?"
He hoped so. It'd be nice for them to just be able to sit around and laugh and talk. Or kiss. Whatever. He wasn't overly picky. So long as his last memory of them both was good. That counted for her too. He couldn't stand the thought of just leaving her on bad terms.
What would that do to her?
It's all for the greater good.
Stupid greater good.

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

"I'm good," Madeleine replied, wriggling her toes inside her boots in an attempt to stop them freezing up.
She moved a little closer to him, hoping that he'd make some move to put his arm around her - not only because she loved having him touching her, but because it was cold.
Actually, scrap that. It was freezing.
"So how is your day - aside from the cold?" she asked, adding on the gentle hint.

[Kira & Lee Norris]

"Alright," he said offhandedly, still flicking through his iPod. "Hmm. I broke it again. Here, you can have it." He thrust it at her. "Happy birthday."
Gee, it was cold. He hadn't noticed before- and he was just wearing a light hoodie. He fingered the material agitatedly. Maybe he should change into something more practical for... later. But would that look suspicious? Nah. He guessed not. But what counted as more practical? Hey! Maybe he could get to the Spy supplies- Kira would let him in no trouble. He could do with a bullet-proof vest.
There was no telling what ol' Hoodham may be hiding.
Leaning back, Lee put his arm around Madeleine automatially- like a reflex. "And how was your day?"

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

"Slightly stressful," she replied, curling into him, grateful for his warmth, and fiddling with the iPod.
His arm tightened around her, almost automatically, and she felt the old familiar thrill run through her again, his touch sparking on her skin and sending warmth shooting through her.
And suddenly, it wasn't so cold anymore.
Madeleine tapped a button on the iPod, and the screen suddenly jumped to life.
"It's not broken," she said, before squinting at the screen. "The Beatles? How come I give you music and try to educate you for months, and with one CD Will can convert you?" she asked teasingly.

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee rolled his eyes at her, and lifted the iPod back. "Look," he said, running up and down the various playlists. "Everything here, bar the Beatles, is directly from your iPod. So calm down!"
Had he seen Will yet? Drat. Well, it was hard. He was pretty sure he'd waved to her this morning though. How come he knew so many stupid people anyway? It was bugging him.
"Anyway," he said, "it is running out of charge, see? Can you keep it for me for now?"

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

"Why... oh, fine," Madeleine said, taking it and sliding it into the pocket of her coat. "I'll charge it for you later."
The miracles of music players... Madeleine loved hers to pieces. Some of the gifted people she knew scoffed at them, but she regarded them as a miracle, and their inventor some form of deity.
Earphones were great too, but she didn't know how Lee managed to break his all the time. After all, hers had lasted her for a good few months.
It was a good thing Lee was a Conjurer, or he'd be completely broke just from buying earphones!

[Kira & Lee Norris]

"Thanks, Maddie," Lee sighed, kissing her cheek. "And I promise you, if you look through it, you'll see what I mean. It's a Madeleine iPod."
More than you know...
He craned his neck, looking up at the sky. Grey clouds were swirling ominously overhead, so he estimated that they had maybe... twenty minutes before they were forced inside. The wing was growing bitterer by the second- Lee predicted there was a thunderstorm coming.

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Madeleine laughed. "Kay."
She moved her finger around the circular bar, scanning through the different artists. Lee was right, it was almost all her music.
She found Teenage Kicks by The Undertones, and suddenly started to laugh. "Sorry, it's just, every time I hear that song, I think of Jack and Olivia. It's a Jack and Olivia song..."

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee frowned, saying the lyrics aloud to himself. "I need excitement, oh I need it fast... and it's the best I've ever had. I wanna' hold her, wanna' hold her tight, get teenage kicks right through the night... Wow."
That was pretty awesome.
"Of course, it doesn't take much to get Jack excited," he reminded Madeleine with a grin.

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Madeleine chuckled. "I know, but Olivia seems to do it nicely."
Nicely was probably an understatement - Olivia seemed to do that to a lot of guys.
"She has that effect on most guys," she said, looking sideways at Lee slyly. "She could probably even do it to you. I mean, I'm sure you'd like to kiss Olivia," she teased.

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee narrowed his eyes. "You think so? Well... gee... I assume she did look pretty good in that catsuit." Then the irises brightened. "And wouldn't you like to kiss Jack? I mean, he's had a lot of girlfriends. He must be doing something right..."

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

She put on a mock-thoughful face, laughing. "Hmm... well, Olivia does seem to enjoy herself..."

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee shoved her. "Me and Olivia. You'll see. We'd be brilliant together. Much less prudish than you."