#also harding being a companion too big yippee

[ghost-bard]

Never getting into anything new again it’s dragon age ONLY from now on

[vegetacide]

Whump●tober - Ransom

Veg-notables:  Second last Whumptober post ::wailssssss:::

TY to @gumnut-logic cause she continues to feed my muse and deal with me :)

Obligatory whumptober stuff: @whumptober2019 @la-vie-en-whump

Blanket warning:  bit of swearing… actually a bit of swearing has been in all of my posts but I keep forgetting to warm ppl… oops.  I work in the construction industry so a bit of swearing is my S.O.P

Characters:  Almost the whole gang and an honorable mention

Whumptober - TaG’verse

Previous post can be found HERE

27 Ransom

Enjoy…

oOo

"Thank fuck" Virgil whispered to himself as he stepped onto the gangway and carefully took the stairs from Tracy Two down to the hanger floor.  

"Home sweet home huh, Virg?" Gordon grinned tossing arm around his shoulder and unobtrusively leading him toward the lift up to the villa.

"You have no idea."

"Oh I have a few ideas." He chuckled companionably as they made their way across the vast space. "Though you may want to re-admit yourself once you remember that hospital food is so much better than Grandma's cooking… less gut rotting too."

"And here I was just getting used to having a stomach lining again.."

There was a bark of laughter and Gordon and thumping him once on the back. "Holy shit. Scott you hear that? Virg told a joke."

"Will wonders never cease." Came the reply from some behind them as Scott exited the family plan with John hot on his heels.

Kayo appeared as if out of nowhere the other side of Virgil.  Silent as ever and Gordon sucked in a breath.

“Damn, Kayo. A little warning would be nice. Friggen quiet as a cat maybe we should put some bells on you.”

She just rolled her eyes and slipped a guiding hand into the crook of Virgil’s arm.  “I got this, go give Alan a hand with the bags.”

“Sure thing, Spookio.”  He turned back,  “Oh, and we could but the bells on a bright pink little choker.  You would look great in pink..”

“Not likely” She muttered and shooed Gordon away. “Such a brat.”

“He’s just blowing off steam in the only other way he knows how besides the pool.”  Virgil shrugged.  He really couldn’t blame him for the need with TI security and the GDF on high alert due to what happened to Scott.  

Virgil also suspected that his younger brother was feeling a bit responsible for whatever small part he seemed to have played in things, though he wouldn’t confirm or deny anything. Virgil didn’t bother voicing this as he suspected he was purposefully being left in the dark for one reason or another.

Another thing for Virgil to ponder.  It’s not like he had anything else to do besides physio and the painful neuro-therapy he was being subjected to daily. It was also really starting to make him wonder if the Doctor that had been assigned to him was a secret sadist. Pushing him the way she was with a smile on her face despite his grunts of obvious discomfort.

Kayo seemed to like her though so there was that one positive working for her. That and the fact that there had been some improvement the last few days in his recovery. If it had been otherwise Virgil would have protested the torture rather loudly.

Turning his head to brushed a kiss over the crown of her head in appreciation for everything and continued the long walk across the hanger.      

Kayo shifted at his side and he got the impression that she was looking at him “How you doing, Big Guy?”

“Happy to be home..looking forward to being anywhere but that blasted hospital.”

She bumped shoulders with him playfully, “Me too”  and lifted his hand to brush her lips over his knuckles.

There was still a lot to contend with still but things seemed to be finally heading in the right direction and Virgil took solace in that.  

Canting his head he listened to the echoes of sound off the high stone ceiling, the hum of the machinery that sat idle and waiting for action,  the shuffle of Scott and John as they brought up the rear.  And the distinctive cadence and timbre of the Terrible Two as they starting pitching insults at one another.  

God, he’d missed home. The sounds, the smells, the familiar settings and hopefully one day soon, the sights.

Reaching up, he pushed the nearly total blackout sunshades back up his nose as a twinge of pain flared through his skull.  The overhead lighting was bright and it was like bolts of agonizing electricity to his overly sensitive, visual hindered ocular senses, a wonderful side effect of his condition and the neuro-therapy that was rewiring his brain and optic nerves.   Yippee skippee.

“Headache again?”  Kayo’s voice was soft as they rounded the corner to the elevator bay.  Pitched for his ears and his ears only, she knew he wouldn’t want to alert the others to his discomfort.  

He couldn’t hide it from her. She knew him too well, was too finely tuned to the subtle nuances of his facial expression to be able to disguise with anything but the truth so he nodded slightly and her hand rubbed up his back.  “Let’s get you up to bed. You can take a couple of the tablets the Doc proscribed and zone out for a bit.”

She wasn’t going to get a protest from him and when he said nothing he could feel her attention zero in on him. Singularly focused. The worry palpable in the tightness of her grip on his arm.

“Bad one?”

He gave a shrug. “I’ve had worse but..this one has potential.”  

He heard the ding of the elevator, caught the blurry glare of twin metal panels opening, the flash of the interior lighting that had him grunting..

She led him in and he settled back against the wall as they waited for John and Scott to catch up.  

The huff of discomforted had his head turning, ever the worrier himself when a brother was down and out  “You doing okay there Scott?”  

His brother was a mass of bruises or so he had been told though contrary to his physical state he attitude was surprising light as of late,  floating up above Five for some reason  It had been an up-lifting change from the sense of distress that had been hanging over them and the contrast seemed to make things a bit more bearable.

It wasn’t until the mood had shifted to the more positive that Virgil realized just how much it had been weighing on him, pulling him down and making it hard for him to breathe.  With that thought in mind,  he pulled in a greedy lung full and savoured the salt tang.

“I’m doing.”  Came the laboured reply but there was an air of the jovial to it “Bloody ribs. Remind me next time I get the brilliant idea to take on a group of thugs to use something other than my torso for a punching bag.  A concussion is more then another to deal with, the rest of this is just bullshit.”

Virgil smiled and couldn’t resist. “Well with how hard your head is it’s really no surprise they went for your soft underbelly.”

“Ouch, is that a jab at my fitness level dear brother?”

“No, just an observation.”

“If you had used what was in your head your torso wouldn’t have been a ‘punching bag’ in the first place.” Came the very logical assessment from John. The first thing he had said since they’d set out for home from the mainland.

“Ya but what would be the fun of that?”  

Fighting words if ever Virgil had heard them and he cleared his throat to dispel the growing tension.  

It had been a topic of argument destined to be stuck on repeat since Gordon and John had located Scott in a dead end alley surrounded by three very unconscious masked goons. An argument they’d all had a part in, one that had finally had Grandma seeing red and losing her ever loving marbles all over the lot of them.

Reprimanded within an inch of their lives, they’d all gone off to lick their wounds but the issue remained.  One of their own,  their commander and chief had taken off to parts unknown. His subcutaneous tracker rendered useless by a very sophisticated jammer so they had no way of finding out where he had ventured off to.  

His assailant had been well prepared,  well trained but the one thing they hadn’t taken into consideration was how wily Scott could be when enticed.  They hadn’t counted on him being able to defend himself with as much gusto as he had even with alcohol and drugs in his system.  

Or that he’d beefed up his training since his stint in the military. He was a veteran that had seen active combat on multiple fronts, both in the air and out.  Kept up his training physically and mentally and had the added benefit of a trained MI6 agent and Covert Ops specialist re-upping his skill set.  So of course the guy could defend himself against three very determined individuals who had wanted to take him alive for whatever reason.

The GDF had been livid, the local law enforcement baffled and Grandma had gone on the warpath.  So here they all were, back on the island where security could be assured.  

Might have been A.M.A but when Sally Tracy put her foot down,  there was nothing that could move it...even stubborn brothers that should know better.

Sighing as Scott and John started snipping at each other like teenagers Virgil braced for another onslaught of ‘what ifs’ and ‘should haves’ warfare.  

Luckily for them,  the elevator doors opened up.  Unfortunately it was on the lounge level and Grandma was standing front and center, her foot tapping in annoyance.

She’d returned to the island earlier with Allan and Brains to sort the medbay out and resupply the kitchen.  It had been a while since they had all been home together and the food pantry had needed to restock badly.  With two iR operatives down for the count eating while off island was going to be limited to supply runs as operations were temporarily suspended.

The GDF was just going to have to put on their big person pants and handle things on their own for a bit.

There had been one concession to their early release from Auckland Memorial  and that the addition of a new member their island home for the interim of Virgil’s convalescences. One Doctor Emaline Harris was expected on their island paradise in the next few days to continue his treatments so prepping in advance for her arrival was of the utmost importance.

“Boys, please don’t tell me there is a need for a repeat of earlier because I am not in the mood and I am liable to ground you all like the children you seem to be impersonating.”  The all seeing eye of Grandma knew all.  

Virgil resisted the urge to chuckle and bit down on his lower lip to hold it in. Last thing he wanted to do was have Grandma focusing in on him. He would rather slink off to his rooms with Kayo under his arm and hide until the Dread Doctor arrived with her torture device of pain.

Luck as usual, was not on his side. “Virgil, honey. How you holding up?”  

Crap.

“Fine, Grandma.”

“You look tired.”  And this is where the great Smother Hen characteristic originated…

“Been a long day.”  

“I am sure it has dear.  I heard from that lovely Doc Harris that this morning’s therapy was quite the grueling ordeal.”

Kayo gave his hand a squeeze in supported as their Grandmother stepped into the elevator to ride it up to the living quarters.  

“I’ve made some soup.  I’ll bring you up some once you and Scott have settled.”

The thanks was said in stereo as Scott and himself replied in unison. The excitement behind their words was ‘epic; and Kayo tittered at his side.  

A hand brushed his cheek and he caught the lavender fresh scent of his Grandmother’s lotion.  “You’re hurting.”  She stated.  

If it wasn’t for the fact that his eyes felt like there were about to fall out of his head, Virgil would have rolled them.  Scott was over and on him before his Grandmother had even finished pronouncing the “T.”

8-8-8

Even injured as he was, Scott could be a right pain in the ass.  

It took some doing but Virgil finally made it to his room,  he’d only had to submit to a quick med scan from a portable scanner for it to happen and Scott standing over him as he dutifully popped back a couple of the hospital’s prescribed pain pills to do it.

Feeling loogy as the drug started to kick in, he leaned back against the door as Kayo order the automated blackout blinds down and the in suite lighting to low before taking his hand and tugging him towards the bed.

He shucked his sun shades and tossed them in the general direction of the night stand not really caring if they reached their intended destination or not.

It had been a long, long day of medical appointments,  treatments,  travel and family bickering and his bed was calling his exhausted and still recovering body home.  

“Whoa.  Not yet, Big Guy.”  Kayo said as she placed a hand on his shoulder effectively stopping his desired belly flop into his mound of pillows and the oh so soft duvet that was beckoning him.  

“Sleep..” He mumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I know but first the bathroom and then some fresh, comfortable clothing.  After that you can crawl in and hibernate for the next few days. No poking, no podding,  just sleep” She commanded and turned him towards the loo.  

“You promise?”  He felt like a child as she turned him to the bathroom and pushed him through the door.

She tugged at the hem of his shirt, pulled it up and over his head before sneaking in to sweep a kiss over his lips.  “I promise, even if I have to guard the door to do it.”  

“God, I love you.”  

Her movements stilled, her hands stopping on the draw string of his jogging pants.  

It took him a moment to realize what he’d just let slip.   He’d never said those words to her before.  True they had been dancing around it for months but with their busy lives and the limited time they actually got to themselves they just hadn’t gotten around to saying it.  

“What did you say?”  Her voice was quiet in the stillness of the bathroom and he could make out the fast pace of her  breath as she stood in front of him.  The quick hitching it as it fanned over the taut muscles of his chest.

He opened his mouth a few times,  closed it while he gather his wits enough to respond.

The words had tipped so easily off his tongue and it shocked him that he hadn’t made the time or found a way to say them earlier.  

Taking both of her soft, capable hands in his,  he brushed his thumb over the knuckles and he strained to make out the beautiful, fine boned features of her face.

Seeing no defined edges, just a blurred outline, he dropped his head and let go of her hands. “Nothing, never mind...”  He turned towards the direction of the shower, fumbled as he tried to find the handle for the glass enclosure, stubbed his toe the edge of the vanity.  Cursing a blue streak he parked his ass on the toilet and the next thing he knew she was in his arms.

Hands on his face she forced him to look at her.  Impaired vision or not, didn't seem to matter to her at the moment.

“Don’t you dare.”  She spat, anger and frustration bearing down on him. “Don’t you dare brush that off like its nothing".

Her grip eased off.   "Say it to me again." She demanded.  

"I…"  

"No hesitation, just say it". It was implored, the lilt of her voice filled with emotion he couldn't see in her eyes.  "I don't care if you can't see me.  I don't care if you can never see me again.. no matter what happens after today.. I love you, you big idiot.  Now say it before I break your jaw and you have to eat through a straw."

He couldn't help the chuckle at her threat, knowing she was fully capable of following through with it if she so wished.

"Well now, threats of bodily harm aren't going to get you far.".

"You wanna bet." She grinned, looping her arms around his neck and settling in closer to him, her body pressed in tight where she knelt between his knees.

Her tone grew serious again. "No matter what," she repeated again, dropping a tender kiss on his lips.  "I want you to know that.  Nothing could change the way I feel, nothing  So don't hide from me. There's no need to be the altruistic hero here, it's not what either of us want."

He leaned in chasing her lips, finding them without sight and sighing when he struck gold.  The kiss was slow and gentle. A lazy sensual meeting that left them both panting.  "No, it's definitely not what we want."

"Good." She booped him in the nose and pushed up to her feet.  "Now that we have that settled, shower and bed for you because there is no way I will be able to pick your muscle-bound ass off the floor if you decide to flake out right here."

Deciding the likelihood of that was fairly high, he grunted up to his feet and finished divesting himself of clothing.  

8-8-8

Showered, changed, snuggled into bed and blissfully numbed out for the time being Virgil sleepily smiled as Kayo crawled in after him.

"Kay?".

"Mmhmm"

"I love you."

Sight or no sight, she would stay by his side and if that was a sacrifice she could contend with, a price she was more than willing to pay, who was he to argue?

Pulling her in close, he whispered the words she wanted to hear in her ear again and drifted off to sleep.

oOo

Epilogue - A week later

Rolling over in bed, Kayo stretched out pleasantly achy muscles and blinked up at the sun lit ceiling.  The dabbled early morning light shifting across it as the ocean breeze blowing in from the window made the thin gossamer under curtains dance.

A curious look settled over her features as she pondered what was different.  It took her a second to compute with her sleep addled mind but when it registered she pulled herself from the tangle of sheets, slipped into one of Virgil’s t-shirts and wandered over to the open doors.  

There was sunlight in their room.   A room that for the last few weeks since they had returned, had been shielded against the intrusion for fear of causing a spike of pain to drill through Virgil’s head..  Black-out curtains fully open with the acception of the light, whipsy sheers that sat underneath.

Stepping up the the open glass sliding partitions, she leaned a shoulder against the frame and gave her head a shake of amazement at what she was greeted by.

Virgil was leaning perched at the railing, a cup of coffee at his resting elbows and face turned towards the awe inspiring site of the rising morning sun. Its light playing of the waves far below and flickering through the overhang of nearby palms to flicker playfully across his skin.  

Skin that glowed healthily, and warmly with colour and vibrancy. All  of the six foot tall, buck ass nude, a hundred and eighty odd pound of it.

Saddling over to him, she picked pinched his mug of the railing and took a sip, her eyes raking over every inch of him.

He turned,  brows arched as she stole his morning fuel and she returned the look though her gaze had a hard time staying put on his face with everything all out and the wind and such.

“Hey,  are we turning the island into a nudist colony or is this just for my benefit?”  She wiggled her brows suggestively and he smiled, skimming a finger across her cheek.  

“God, your beautiful.”  He whispered, her loose hair brushing over his knuckles as it was caught up in the gentle, salty breeze.

Her smile blossomed across at the unexpected compliment and she was about to reciprocate when her mouth dropped open in shock.

His expression alight with excitement she stepped up to him and  pushed up on her toes and stared into his warm brown eyes. The answering happiness she say in their depth had her gasping in elation and she jumped up into his arms crushing his lips to hers. The actions saying so much more than words ever could

His arms pulling her in close, the last few remaining tendrils of tension brought on by weeks of worry finally leaving with the morning fog.  

Kissing the tip of her nose, he turned back to watch the spectacular display of light and colour as the sun reached ever higher into the sky.   Pushing back the darkness and revealing a world that wasn’t so scary after all, especially with her and his brothers at his side.  

It seemed that he’d paid the ransom on his sight in full and the world had once more been returned to him in all its splendor.  

oOo

The Master List of prompts can be found HERE