#also the aerials “thighs” are actually just really big pants

[bagea]

aerial

[river-bottom-nightmare]

The Nightwing Suit

There are some absolutely incredible artists out here on tumblr, and seeing their fanart makes me cry tears of joy. Dick Grayson, one of my personal favs, is always a wonderful contender for fanart. His innate grace and agility and flexibility translate beautifully on the artistic spectrum. Bottom line: I love all the Nightwing fanart. However, there is something I want to address with his suit. I’ve been an aerialist ever since I was 7 years old, and I’ve taken gymnastics since I was 3. Now, I specialize in Lyra, while Dick obviously specializes in Trapeze, but when it comes to costume, we’ve got many very important similarities.

DON’TS

When it comes to aerial, we want as much mobility and flexibility as possible. So here are some things that absolutely will not be on his suit.

1. Shoulder Pads. I will scream it from the rooftops if I have to. The Nightwing suit WILL NOT have shoulder pads!! Red Hood? Definitely. Red Robin? Those shoulder pads are important for bo staff strength and support. Robin? Damian probably doesn’t need them, but they won’t hurt. Nightwing? No way. To me, one of the most important parts of my body when practicing and performing are my shoulders. They pull me into hangs and holds, let me rotate myself around, and basically support the rest of my body. This is partially due to user preference: I prefer arm-based stunts and hangs rather than leg based. But it honestly doesn’t matter that much. Nightwing will absolutely need 100% use of his shoulders. Him being able to freely rotate them can be the difference between life and death with his style of fighting. Shoulder pads will just hamper that flexibility. I will admit that shoulder pads look badass, but in this one hero’s scenario? Shouldr pads are a no-go.

2. Sleek Arm Braces. Nightwing, while being well recognized as a solo hero, does often work with a team. And on a team, he isn’t the type to huff angrily and say he can do this by himself. Emotionally? Yes, of course. Physically, and in a fight? He takes all the help he can get, with absolutely no would to his pride. When performing his flips and tricks and such, the other partner will grab hold of him by usually his hands or his arms. I’m just going to straight up say: catching someone by their hands is a Bad Idea. You will not believe the speed we travel when we go through the air, and catching by the hands will lead to dislocations and pain. For a few stunts it’s okay, mainly for the visual aspect of a performance. But when it’s life and death combat? Hands are a last ditch effort if you can’t catch someone by the arms. Because that’s what really counts. The forearms. When Dick is fighting with someone, and that other person has the strength to catch him/throw him from a drop or a flip, they will catch him by the forearms. If Dick’s wearing sleek ‘n sexy arm braces, he’s going to slip right out of their grip. I prefer to keep my forearms bare, but in regards to protective armor, the fabric around the arms better have a grip.

3. Extra Fabric. This one is a given. However, I want to get into the specifics. When you’re in the air, momentum is your most powerful ally, and if there’s anything opposing or hindering that momentum, that spells trouble. Extra fabric can sometimes be good, such as around the legs. Not too much, obviously, but wearing loose or baggy pants while fighting with Nightwing’s fighting style works (as long as you can, you know, actually fight in them and not trip over the extra cloth). Around the middle? Nuh-uh, nope. Anything looping around your waist, hips, or rib cage is a liability if it’s not skin tight. The belt that Robin often wears is okay, as long as it’s wrapped pretty tight around him and doesn’t move. For the kind of stunts that Dick pulls off on a daily basis? I don’t think anything but a skintight bodysuit will help. For arms, extra fabric is ~okay~ but not preferable. And anything strapped to his back, as long as it’s securely in place, will actually help his momentum (so his escrima sticks or any other weapon/item you want to put in there is fine). Nothing around the neck, at ALL. That one issue in Batman where Dick wears a scarf is hot as hell, and sort of makes sense because they’re in the desert. But on missions, at the speed Nightwing fights and flies through the air, anything around his neck will choke him. This entire section definitely wasn’t an excuse to say you should just keep Dick in a skintight outfit, nope, not at all.

4. Spandex. While we’re on the subject of skintight outfits, I just want to point something out that isn’t necessarily important or anything. It’s just a general preference for me. I prefer costumes with a little weight on them. The adrenaline rush is intense for some of my more advanced stunts, and those are things that I bet Dick would consider basic. I prefer something with a little substance/weight/texture to it. Nothing too serious, and nothing too restricting, just something to keep me grounded and focused. We all know how much Dick likes being in the air, but I’m willing to bet he also needs a little extra touch to keep his head in the game. So if you’re designing a serious Nightwing suit, not for crack or fun headcanons or anything, I would steer clear from the spandex, gauze, and showy-light-gossamer fabrics. They do provide extra mobility and flexibility, but that’s because they’re one drop away from naked.

5. Joints. Okay this may seem a little contradictory based on the last point, but around the joints, especially hips and shoulders, the protective padding needs to ease up. It’s one of the hardest areas on the body to injure, after all, even for a professional. And second, I know I’m sounding like I’m repeating the obvious, but flexibility is of utmost importance. If the fabric doesn’t bend with Nightwing, then there’s no point. It can’t chafe, it can’t grind against itself, it can’t break. The material around major joints needs to be malleable.

Dos

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s talk about what you can absolutely add to Nightwing’s costume to give it either a little pizzazz, or just your own personal touch.

1. Boots. Yes yes yes, boots are an absolute must! And it’s not just me thinking thigh-high boots are cool. Coming out of a big drop and other major stunts requires rolling on your back and then onto your feet. But Nightwing doesn’t fight with the one-hit-and-done style. (That’s more Jason’s thing. He plants himself like a tree and puts power behind a punch, kinda like Bruce, which is why boots-especially boot soles- are important for them.) Nightwing gets in a punch and flips away, then bounces back and gets in a kick and flips away, then bounces back and gets in another kick and flips away. You see where I’m going with this. Dick is constantly on the move, constantly on the verge of flipping back. The main way he does this is with his feet: landing lightly on the balls of his feet to absorb momentum before using that to hit back. Boots with fricion-specific soles are important, he cannot slide or skid. Also, ones that go higher up aren’t bad either: extra support is always welcome. As long as they don’t cover his knees and allow for ankle flexibility, they’re good to go. They may even help stop ankle dislocation. Anything you want to add to the boots? Go ahead. As long as it’s not gauzy ribbon or something too extra, or something that can easily get caught in something else, it’s good to go. In my performances, I like to cover my shins with something, it can range from simple high socks or performance boots to go with my costume. I particularly like Damian’s long lace up boots, especially in Super Sons. It’s a cute outfit, and it won’t hinder his fighting at all. As long as Dick double knots, he can wear those, and any other variants of boots.

2. Gloves. I’m not actually sure if Dick has ever been called “Fingerstripes” in canon, but I’ve seen it in fanon plenty of times. Regardless, it’s one of my favorite nicknames for him, and it does have a basis. The stripes on his gloves are an awesome artistic choice, and useful too. Assuming they have a different texture than the rest of his gloves, those fingerstripes could help with grip. Grip is one of the most important tools an aerialist can have. I have had grown men look at me with shock when they shake my hand because of my firm grip (and the calluses, ugh). I firmly believe that Dick Grayson has one of the strongest grips in the DC non-meta world, and I bet you he surpasses even a good amount of metas. Having a good, no-slip grip is essential, even if you’re just swinging from the surface for a second, or if the surface is another partner’s hand. Gloves, once again as long as they’re not too restricting, would be awesome with helping with that.

3. Wrist Braces. I said before that Dick can’t have arm braces because of the whole partner-grip thing. But with the amount of force and pressure Dick exerts on his hands on a daily basis, dislocations and sprains should be as common as a bruise. Hell, I’m sitting here typing this and my left wrist is sprained. Fanfic writers, here’s a helpful tip: you can write Dick with a sprained or dislocated or just a plain sore wrist anytime at all, and having him rub his hands with a grimace, rubbing lotion onto them, or doing wrist exercises in his free time is a go-to for if you need anything filler. Or, you know, it could even be part of the plot. Wrist braces help with this, they keep the joints in place and add a little extra stability to his movements. As long as they’re not interfering with wrist mobility, wrist braces are a very very good idea. When you think how long, think about the length of Peter Parker’s handmade web shooters. Long enough to be there, but not immediately noticeable. Also, make sure the material is something cloth, wrap, or gauze based. Anything too hard could scrape against the skin, cause cuts and bruises, and even cut off circulation. Unless it’s armor, it’s not comfortable or easy to do aerial maneuvers with.

4. Back Harness. To be honest, I have no idea what the official name for this piece of equipment even is. But the thing that holds Nightwing’s escrima sticks to his back. The thing that holds Deadpool’s katanas (in the movies, not the comics). The back-strap-harness thingy. That’s a go-for-it when it comes to costumes. Not only does it look badass and hot when it’s on your costume and you draw your weapons from it seamlessly like a boss, it’s practical and doesn’t interfere with your fighting at all. As I said, a majority of Nightwing’s moves rely on momentum. The back harness thingy won’t harm that at all. As long as it’s strapped to your back, unmoving and steady, it stays out of the way and may actually help you with your momentum. Drawing weapons from it is easy and seamless, and one of the quickest moves you can perfect, aside from drawing your weapon from thigh/calf holsters. But as I said before, Dick would probably stick to the back because, once again, momentum.

Okay this got much longer than I thought it would. But regardless, I hope this helps if you’re ever drawing or writing about the Nightwing suit and need specifics. Or hell, if you’re a cosplayer and need some information on how to make an accurate costume, here you go. Now I need to take a breather and chill, because while I considered myself a pretty recreational comic reader and not much of an analyzer, I had no idea how much I picked up about Dick’s individual fighting style and how that fits in with my own aerial experiences.

[dragonotaku-justineverything]

(Pokémon AU) How did Jaune meet his adorable little Eevee, Caramel? And what was his first interactions with Aerial and her own Eevee Mocha like?

Well... I got a bit carried away again. I just love this AU and I'm really getting into Pokemon again recently, so sorry for the long post ahead.

But I hope you all enjoy it nonetheless!

It was a beautiful day outside Beacon Academy. The sun was shining brightly and hardly any clouds were visible. Multiple flocks of Wingull, Starly, Pidgey and other bird-like Pokémon soared freely in the sky around Beacon. A few letting out some faint cries sporadically. The Wooloos were happily grazing and rolling around in their paddock. Many students and visiting trainers alike were outside, just enjoying the nice weather with their Pokémon. This nice weather gave both Ruby Rose and Jaune Arc the idea to enjoy the day with a nice picnic outside with their friends.

On several blankets spread out in a grassy portion of the academy's lavish courtyard near a tree, the group of eight friends were all eating and chatting away. All of their Pokémon were out of their pokeballs and gathered around them.

Some were just lazing about, such as Ren's Greninja sitting cross legged while dozing off with his head tilted down or Weiss's snow white Vulpix snoozing in Weiss's lap while she sat in the shade of the tree. Others were chowing down, like Nora's Shinx or Blake's Litleo, eating berries/Poké food in their own little food bowls. Or in the case of Pyrrha's Aron, he was eating some screws, nuts, bolts, and other small pieces of scrap metal. Yang was busy brushing her Growlithe's fur, and watched her Combuskin running around with Ruby's Zorua.

Jaune was happily munching on a sandwich. He put the sandwich down and moved his hand to lightly scratch Hera's head, who was laying down next to his left thigh. Normally she'd be laying in his lap, but that space was currently taken. A small glass container was resting in a space between his legs. Inside it was a Pokémon egg he'd "won" two months ago wrapped in a blanket, so Hera had settled for laying right next to him instead. She was adapting pretty well to the new circumstances with said egg. Though Jaune was still wondering how she'd react when it finally hatched

His nails lightly scratched just around the base of the tuft of white fur on her head, just where she really liked it. "Shoo-, mmm *swallow*, sorry. So Pyrrha, you're Metang actually evolved on live TV?"

Pyrrha lowered her fork with the next bit of her chicken and strawberry salad to respond with a smile. "Yes indeed. It happened during the final match of my second tournament at Sanctum. It was quite an astonishing sight."

Jaune smiled and leaned back a bit. "I bet! Man, watching a Pokémon evolve in person must be amazing."

Yang looked up from her Growlithe over at him. "You've never seen a Pokémon evolve?"

Jaune chuckled a bit. "W-well I mean I've seen it on video and stuff, just not in person."

Nora shamelessly jumped in and added her two cents. "Neither have I! It must be soooo cool!"

Pyrrha giggled happily and looked over to her Metang, who was actually on the ground for a change instead of floating, with Cubone resting on its head. "Well, watching my Beldum evolve into Metang was definitely a sight I'll never forget."

They group continued to converse, laugh, and just enjoy themselves. Their Pokémon did as well, all of them getting along pretty well. They were all so engrossed in their merriment, none of them noticed another member slowly walking towards their misshapen circle.

That was until she made her move.

Jaune felt a small tug at his hoodie but ignored it, thinking it was just Hera rolling around in her sleep. It was a pointed finger and a question from Ren that actually made him look. "Uuuh Jaune... do you know who... that is?"

"Huh?" Jaune looked down to where his friend was pointing, which was by his stomach. There, in his hoodie's pocket near his stomach, was a small little brown Pokémon with a small, furry body and a big fluffy brown tail.

And half of its body was buried inside his hoodie pocket, rummaging around in it.

"WAH!??" Jaune nearly jumped up in surprise, but he managed to stay pretty still for the most part, trying not to jostle the egg between his legs. However, he still shot back an inch or two when he threw his hands up above him and fell back, his head lightly landing on the blanket.

Hera, startled by her Papa's sudden jolt, sprang up to her feet and spun to look at him. She lowered her stance, ready to defend him if she needed to! That's when she saw the little brown Pokémon as well, now standing on top of her Papa's stomach while he was laying back, but its top half was still stuffed in her Papa's pocket! What was it doing? Was it trying to attack him?! She wouldn't let it!

"Growl! ROW! GRO-!" She had just started barking at it when someone else's yelling stopped her.

"Eevee! Stop that! That's very rude!"

The brown Pokémon stopped moving finally, and stood still for a moment on Jaune's stomach, then slowly started walking backwards. It took a little tugging, but it finally pulled itself out of Jaune's pocket. As it got free, everyone around got a good look at its top half.

The first thing they all noticed was a large collar of fluffy, cream colored fur. Then two long, thin ears on top of its head. Finally its small, soft, squarish face with two big dark eyes and a happy smile. As well as a small plastic candy wrapper hanging from said smile.

Weiss, Ruby, Yang, and Nora all let out a coo of "Awwwwww" at the same time.

"Eevee no!" The group again heard the voice call out again, and almost all at once, they looked away from the 'Eevee' and towards where it was coming from.

There they saw a young girl, running up to their group with her arms waving above her. She was quite slender, had dark hair pulled back in a ponytail. She had a light blue jacket on, open in the front to show she had on a black halter top underneath it. A pair of tight black and blue pants with heeled fur boots matching in color. A simple black choker around her neck finished her outfit nicely.

Then the group noticed that a Pokémon that was just like the one on top of Jaune right now was also running alongside the girl. One this one had a small band of flowers around the base of one of its ears. It was hopping/skipping along right by her feet as they both ran towards them, its whole body arcing into the air as it followed her.

Within just a few seconds, she was right next to them, her arms still frantically waving. "Eevee you can't just jump on people you don't know like that! That's very rude! And give that candy back! You can't go stealing from peo-" The girl abruptly stopped her admonishment of the Pokémon as she finally looked at who Eevee was still standing on top of. "...JAUNE!?"

Jaune, still laying on his back, turned his head to look at the new girl that screamed his name, and quickly shot back up to a sitting position when he saw her. "Aerial!?"

The two looked at each other for a moment, then both smiled widely and started to laugh. Aerial started talking first. "Hey! What are the odds of running into you like this!"

"Me? What are you doing here haha?!"

Aerial leaned over a bit, smiling down at him. "Aunt Juniper said you'd gone off to Beacon, but I wasn't expecting to see you so soon!"

Jaune, still sitting, smiled brightly back up at her. "Yeah hahaha, it's always been my dream to go to a professional Pokémon academy after all haha. Hera's here too!" As Jaune finished, he pointed towards the Fire-Type.

Aerial shifted her gaze to her and her eyes brightened even more. She got down on her knees and hunched forward, getting close to Hera's height. "Heeeera~ hi! It's been such a long time! How are you?"

Hera's earlier confidence seemed to wane a bit as she started to look a little nervous. Papa seemed to know this woman and was happy to see her, so she shouldn't be worried, but she still pulled back a bit from Aerial. She seemed a little familiar to her as well, but she wasn't sure...

Jaune chuckled. "She might not remember you, Aerial. It was a couple years ago now."

Aerial pouted childishly and straightened her back, "Awwww that's a shame. I definitely remember her!"

"I don't doubt that. You loved her as a kid."

"Uuuummm... hello?"

Jaune and Aerial turned their heads in unison to look at who spoke.

Yang was holding a hand up, like she was waiting to get noticed or called upon. "Uuuh yeah, we're still here. Mind uuuuh, filling us in on what's happening Jaune?"

Jaune sweatdropped a little, slightly embarrassed that he'd completely forgotten about the others present for a minute there. "He he, sorry guys." With one hand, he gestured to Aerial. "Everyone, this is my cousin, Aerial Yeager. She's from Atlas actually, so that's why I was so surprised to see her."

Aerial waved at the group, still with a smile on her lips. "Hi everyone! I trust Jaune's been good to all of you."

A lot of them nodded at that, and many of their Pokémon had stopped in their activities and gathered around as well, looking at the new arrival.

Aerial's eyes scanned over all of them and began to sparkle. "Awwww you all have such amazing Pokémon!"

"Speeeeaking of which... Aerial, are these Pokémon yours?"

Aerial turned away from the group and back to Jaune. He was pointing down right beside him. There, the Eevee from earlier that jumped on Jaune was licking away at the now unwrapped candy that it got from his pocket, looking completely carefree. Meanwhile, it looked like the Eevee with flowers that ran up with Aerial around its ears was admonishing it.

"Y-yeah, they are. H-hey Eevee what did I say! That isn't yours!" Eevee stopped licking and looked up at her with a head tilt, then just went back to licking the candy happily. "Hooooh." Aerial sighed and bowed her head, feeling defeated at being ignored.

"Hey it's no big deal Aerial, I have plenty of these caramel candies. I was just caught off guard when Eevee just appeared out of nowhere."

"Yeah sorry about her. She's kind of a handful sometimes. She likes doing what she likes when she likes. Oh, everyone," Aerial gestured in front of her towards the two small Eevees. "This is Mocha and Eevee, their sisters."

Blake was the first to catch what she said. "Mocha?"

"Ah yeah, that's what I call my Eevee, the one with the flowers. The other Eevee... Well, no matter what name I try, she doesn't respond to it. Coca, Ginger, Toffee, Hazel... she doesn't seem to like anything I pick out for her."

The group all turned to the Eevee still licking away at the candy, not noticing or caring about all the eyes on her. Mocha seemed a little annoyed at her sister's actions still, but had stopped reprimanding her as she didn't seem to care too much.

Jaune looked down at the Eevee right next to him, then slowly reached a hand over and gently rubbed his index finger on its head. "You sure do like that candy huh? Did you smell it and that's why you came over to me?"

Eevee didn't seem to mind the light petting. In fact she seemed to like it as she enjoyed her treat. She stopped her licking for just a moment and looked up at the person petting her. "Vee vee vi!"

Jaune chuckled at its happy cries.

"Grooow!"

A very familiar voice on his other side made Jaune turn his head to see a begging Hera standing next to him. "Oh sorry Hera, you probably want some pets too." Jaune reached his free hand over and gently began petting Hera's white floof on top of her head. That immediately put a smile on the Growlithe's face and she happily nuzzled Jaune's hand back.

Aerial shook her head in slight disbelief. "Same old Jaune. Always a whizz with Pokémon."

Now that the excitement had fully died down, the group went back to lounging about like they were, now with an extra member as Aerial sat down and joined them at Jaune's invitation.

They all talked and got to know each other more. Aerial explained how she was indeed from Atlas, but had come with a few friends on a trip to Vale and Beacon to explore what kinds of Pokémon were here. Aerial told them about her friends, her school, and of course also her Pokémon. They were all surprised by how many she already had. A Braviary, a Ludicolo, and a Munchlax. Plus her two Eevee's as her companions, that made five Pokémon in total! There were teachers at Beacon that didn't have that many!

After about another two to three hours of talking, laughing, bonding, and snacking (Jaune offered some of his food to Aerial which she gratefully accepted), the sun was beginning to set and Aerial said she had to go. She stood up; brushed some crumbs off of her pants; said her goodbyes to everyone, giving Jaune her scroll number and promising that they'd talk again soon; and called for Mocha and Eevee to come along. Only that's not what they did.

Mocha stood up with her no problem and was ready to go, but Eevee didn't. She just kept laying down next to Jaune where she'd been for the past hour getting pets and even , licking a second caramel candy that Jaune had given her. She didn't move at all at Aerial's call.

"Eevee? Come on, it's time for us to go."

Again, Eevee didn't move.

"Eevee." This time Aerial's voice was a little more stern. "We need to go. Now come on." Aerial walked over to the Eevee and bent over to pick her up. Before she even touched her, Eevee had snatched up her treat and jumped into Jaune's lap, getting a surprised "Ooph!" from him. She set her treat down and turned to look at Aerial. Then for the first time all day, it let out a cry. "Eev! Ve ve Eevee!"

Aerial pulled back. She was surprised to hear Eevee talk back directly to her. Sure she didn't listen sometimes, but never out right talked back at her. "Eevee! What's gotten into you?"

Eevee didn't respond this time, just curled up in Jaune's lap and hunkered down.

Everyone watched this unfold, but only Ren spoke up. "I think Eevee is trying to say that she'd like to stay with Jaune."

Aerial looked over at the stoic boy, wide eyed. "W-wha? Wait really?" Aerial looked back at the tiny curled up Pokémon in Jaune's lap, happily laying down with her eyes closed, her treat finished in a hurried bite. "B-but... Eevee really? Y-you wanna stay with Jaune?"

Eevee looked up to Aerial, smiled easily, and nodded. "Ve ve!" It definitely seemed to be happy.

Aerial kept looking down at Eevee, and Eevee kept looking up at her. After a few seconds, Aerial's expression shifted from being slightly sad, to understanding. "Okay. Well then, let's see what Jaune thinks." Aerial looked down to cousin, his confused face making her almost giggle. "Jaune, it looks like Eevee has taken a liking to you. Would you like to keep her around with you? I know you'd take amazing care of her, so I'd be comfortable with you taking her with you if you want."

Jaune's mind nearly exploded from hearing that! His cousin was asking him if he'd like to have another Pokémon!? For real?! Jaune felt his lips twitch upwards before he even said anything. He looked down at the Eevee in his lap. She seemed very happy there, and she'd wanted to stay with him first. Jaune looked back up to Aerial and nodded once. "I'd love to. And I promise that I'll give her the best care that I possibly can!"

Aerial knew he'd say that. He loved Pokémon, so being offered one by a family member was probably like a dream for him. "Well alright then. I have to say... I-I'm sad to see you go, Eevee." Eevee looked up at Aerial when she said her name. "But... if this is what you want, then I can accept it. I know Jaune will take great care of you, and I can call to see you anytime I want. So... you take care of yourself and Jaune alright? Your sister and I will see you again, sometime real soon, I promise."

Eevee smiled and leaped out of Jaune's lap, landing close to Aerial's feet. The little Pokémon nuzzled her head against Aerial's leg and let out faint coos. Aerial quickly dropped down and scooped Eevee into a tight hug. She held it for at least 10 seconds before she let her go, setting her softly back down on the grass. When she did, Mocha bounced over to her sister and they started talking by themselves, most likely saying their own goodbyes while Aerial stood back up. "Okay, I guess this is goodbye for now Eevee. Jaune, I'll definitely be expecting some video calls from you now. Oh, and maybe you'll be able to think of a good name for her too."

Jaune, now no longer having a Pokemon in his lap, stood up. He was careful not to bump the container with the egg in front of him as he did so. He stood up straight, showing off just how much taller he was than his cousin. "You got it Aerial. I hope we meet again sometime soon as well. This was fun." He took a step forward and embraced her in a hug, which she returned.

When they separated, Aerial stepped back. "Okay, well... we really have to head out now. My friends are all probably waiting for me back in Vale and I need to catch a Bullhead before they stop for the night. It was nice meeting you all! I hope to meet you all again someday!" Aerial started to leave, and Mocha, having finished her goodbye to her sister with a loving nuzzle, followed her.

Eevee watched as they left. Eevee suddenly bounced forward a few feet in their direction and let out a loud "Eeeeveeeee! Eeeeeveee!", saying goodbye for now to her family.

Aerial stopped and turned her head back to look at her after her cry. She smiled back at her and waved before continuing. As the pair got farther and farther away, Eevee returned back to the group, stopping in front of Jaune.

Jaune smiled and knelt down to be closer to her. "Eevee, I'm touched that you wanted to stay with me. I promise that we'll have some amazing adventures together! Oh, there's someone that I want you to officially meet now! This is Hera." As Jaune said her name, the red Growlithe walked up next to her Papa and stood next to him proudly. "She's my best friend and has been with me since I was a kid. I hope you two can be friends."

Hera padded forward and stopped right in front of Eevee. She looked down at the smaller Pokemon with a big smile. She leant forward and gave Eevee a big lick on her head, which Eevee started to laugh at. The two then began to talk to each other in their out cries, and Jaune could already tell they'd get along fine.

"Well... that was sure something huh?" Jaune looked behind him and saw Nora holding her Shinx in her arms, and all his other friends smiling at him.

"Haha yeah, I guess so. Aerial's always been super trusting of family, but this shocked even me."

Yang walked forward and lightly punched his arm in a friendly way. "So... got any names for your new friend Vomit Boy?"

Jaune, while he was rubbing his now sore arm, looked down at Eevee again. As he did, he noticed a wrapper from the caramel candies he'd given to the Eevee earlier. "Huh..." Jaune knelt down and picked up the wrapper, then looked at it in his hand. "Maybe I do. Hey Eevee?"

The Pokemon stopped speaking with Hera and looked over to the kneeling Jaune. She quickly skipped over to sit right in front of him. "I was thinking, since Aerial couldn't think of a name you liked, yet you liked these candies so much, how about I just call you Caramel?"

Eevee looked up to him curiously with her big doughy eyes. Slowly those eyes began to shine with joy and she jumped up at him. Thankfully Jaune was used to this sort of thing thanks to Hera, so he caught her easily since she was a lot lighter.

"Whoa haha! Okay then, I guess that's a winner huh? Well, welcome to the team Caramel!"

AND! FINALLY! DONE!

Aerial Yeager is an OC created by my good friend @jace-the-writer-guy, who is also Jaune's cousin on her mom's side. I owe him a big thanks for helping me write this because I constantly was asking for specific info on his OC and him giving me ideas for stuff.

I'd been planning this out bit by bit for so long, so I sincerely hope that you all enjoyed this origins ask for Caramel, Jaune's Eevee!

[ninaahelvar]

The Blood On Our Hands (2/16)

Summary: Owen is a soldier, the captain of Alpha Team. Claire is one of the leading surgeons at her hospital. When Fate pulls them together, it pulls them apart just as easily. But they never seem to drift very far.

AO3

A/N: A massive shout out to @doesitsaysassonmyuniform​ for being a beta for this fic, and this chapter. She’s been super busy and made time for me. Also, thank god for NaNoWriMo otherwise this fic would have been on hiatus for a LOT longer. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. Hopefully more coming soon!!

Owen had stopped in her line of view; looking back at Claire like he needed to memorise the sight of her. In her chest, there was part of her that lurched, begging for him to stay longer, to look at her like that for hours. Instead, he turned to the helicopter and jumped inside, flying off into the distance Claire watched every second of it, even as the sky cleared and all she could see was the night’s horizon. Claire didn’t know how long she stood there, just enough time to be interrupted by Xander, a doctor who had been working with Claire for years.

“Do you often stand on rooftops looking longingly at the distance?” he asked, cigarette between his teeth as he talked. Claire rolled her eyes before taking the cigarette out.

“You still have a thing for my sister?” she asked and Xander licked at his lips, clearing his throat and avoiding her gaze, looking towards the night sky.

“We’re very predictable,” he said and Claire laughed. Looking off at the distance, she pondered something, questioned it with the small inkling of curiosity.

“Do Marines often get flown to their missions in helicopters?” she asked. Xander laughed loudly.

“Did you get hit in the head or something?” he asked, but Claire didn’t look at him, she just let her eyes stay on the horizon. “Yeah, I guess,” he finally answered and Claire sighed.

I wonder why he had to leave so suddenly?

I wonder if he’ll come back?

I wonder if I’m worth his time?

Claire had so many questions. She wanted them all answered.

And she smiled.

*~*~*

Owen sat with the rest of his team, huddled around each other with notes and details on their assignment. It was a joint operation between the Alpha and Delta teams, and that was always a concern to Owen. Although they had worked together in the past, Delta were one of the lower ranked teams, and constantly had to prove themselves. Alpha was an elite unit. So the underdogs didn’t quite care for them at all.

The General, Craig Young, had gone through the basics of the mission. This was a covert op, they needed to work during the night, and they needed to be quick. These two teams were the fastest their units could provide. Owen, being the amazing and absolute best captain there is, knew his team was better. And he may have only slightly oversold himself.

“There are suffering UN officers being held hostage,” The General started, “and since this is a rescue mission -” he paused to look each of them in the eye, “I expect you all to put aside your differences to get these two home safe.”  The screen flashed, and the faces of the two UN workers stared out. “I want no fatalities.” He finished.

All of Alpha team skimming through their notes and finding the profiles. They needed to make sure they knew names when it came time for rescue. General Young cleared his throat and the screen changed to a aerial photo of a building. “This is the building where the hostages are being held. One team will enter from the northeast, whilst the other will enter from the southeast. In total, you have ninety seconds to complete the entire mission. Do you all understand me?” he asked, and both teams sounded off quickly.

“Yes, sir!”

Ninety seconds was quick. It’s only a minute and a half, but it was late at night, it was secluded, if they got caught - they had no cover. Owen looked at his team, and they seemed ready.

Except for Lowery. He wasn’t the youngest of their group, but he was new. He wasn’t used to covert ops - he was used to comms and technology stuff - guns and saving people were new for him. When Alpha team walked out, Owen clapped Lowery on the shoulder. Ninety seconds was no time at all, and Owen only hoped that Lowery could cut it.

*

They knocked the door down guns up as they enter. They clear the rooms to either side, they enter the main floor, dark and uninterrupted - completely barren of anyone. As Alec and Owen stood at the threshold, something felt off - like they were missing something. Owen caught it just as Lowery pushed past, making his way into the corridor.

“No!” Alec yelled, and Lowery’s ankle clipped smoke grenades that were set up. Owen and Alec both sighed as the grenades blew and the set they were practicing in collapsed. Owen dropped his gun to the side and undid the comms in his ear. Lowery, who panicked when the smoke started, was on the floor curled in a ball. Kicking at his boots, Owen huffed.

“Mission failed. We’re all dead,” he rolled his eyes.

From across the room, Delta team had gathered, groaning in displeasure and kicking at the makeshift set of their practise mission. “Great job as always, Alpha!” Their captain, Blackbull, sarcastically drawled. “We do need to be alive to finish the fucking mission!”

Lowery was shaken, standing with the aid of Owen who reassured his subordinate. Everyone fucks up a covert - that’s why they did practice runs with the unfamiliar. It was just cruel to tease and mock the team. The captain continued on, heedless to the growing anger in the room - he really should watch his fucking mouth sooner rather than later. “One slip up and we get discharged, but these fuckers can get us all killed and get promotions in the process!” he called out and Owen sucked in a breath. He was going to regret this.

Actually...Alec might.

“Alpha team can beat the shit out of you any day of the week. And complete all your missions at the same time,” Owen taunted.

“Big Boss, shut up, will you?” Alec loudly whispered, and Owen scoffed, stripping the guns and bulky vest from his body as the Delta captain did the same.

“When have I ever shut up?” Owen smirked.

“Fuck you too, I guess,” Alec huffed, putting his hands on his hips. And then he watched Owen work. Well, he assumed Alec watched. He probably rolled his eyes and covered his face, knowing he had to follow Owen. If he knew anything about Alec, he loved and hated following his friend like this.

And without word or warning, the two captains charged at each other. As their captain - codename Blackbull - charged, he braced himself and threw a punch. Owen saw it coming, pushing himself down and tackling him at the waist. They flew to the ground, Owen on top of Blackbull and throwing as many punches as he could land. Hit after hit, his fist ached from the constant pressure of each punch. Eventually getting numb, Owen went carelessly with how he attacked.

Owen had missed it - the subtle way he brought back his fist was enough of an opening for some less trained - and Owen rolled backwards. When he was ready, he was kicked in the ribs sharply, and he buckled, curling slightly as he was kicked once more. Then, Blackbull brought his knee up and Owen saw the next move. Rolling over, Blackbull’s foot came down, and Owen was on his knees.

Deep breath, and the fight raged on, Blackbull ramming at Owen like his namesake, but it was useless when Owen saw the leg aiming for his chest. Catching it, Owen kicked at his knee, and Blackbull went down. At waist height, Owen let go of his leg and kicked the captain square in the chest. Blackbull grunted as he staggered backwards, trying to get to his feet. Owen guarded his face with his fist.

“Why aren’t you doing anything?” Lowery asked behind Owen, dodging a punch from Blackbull and jabbing at his ribs.

“Captains have to work this shit out, not us,” Alec said and as Owen smirked, a knee was brought up into his stomach and an elbow straight down into his shoulder.

Gathering himself back to his feet, blocking the kick that came for his face and jabbed a fist into Blackbull’s knee. The room it left gave Owen a moment to breathe before the punches began like a boxing match; trading them until the bell was going to ring. As Owen began to grow tired of it, he caught Blackbull’s arm and twisted it, only for the two captains to react the same and kick the other in the chest.

Owen found himself on his back, gasping for a breath that wouldn’t come, his chest so tight that it felt like it was slowly collapsing. Rolling onto his side, he saw Blackbull doing the same, trying to catch his breath. They looked at each other, the soft echoes of their team cheering them on, loud pumping of blood in ears - this was adrenaline in a fight, pumping hard and fast, no other thoughts or feeling, just moving. Then, it was like life was brought to both of them, because they were on their feet, panting and waiting for the other to pounce.

Tearing across the distance between them, Owen charged hard, aiming his fist low at Blackbull’s knee and climbing onto the other as he was left defenseless. With leverage as his advantage, Owen could sit on Blackbull’s shoulders, taking his left arm up and leaning his own body weight back to pull them both down to the ground. Locking his legs tightly together, Owen kept pulling his arm, Blackbull fighting against the hold as much as possible. When he bit directly into Owen’s thigh, he had to unhook his legs to kick down into Blackbull’s stomach.

With this, Blackbull managed to snake his way of out Owen’s hold and back himself up, punching into Owen’s stomach and allowing him to regain some advantage over Owen and his arm to be released all in one. Licking at his lip, Owen tasted blood, a whack in the face early probably did it - but Blackbull had an increasingly red eye with a split right on his brow.

Colliding once more, it became a wrestle, exhausted and frustrated as they tried to knee and kick the other in such a close range without either of them allowing distance. Owen threw his elbow into the mix and from the corner of his eye saw Yellow Tiger walking in, his men already grabbing at the captains, and making the mean right elbow falter from its destination. “Delta team captain, Blackbull!” Yellow Tiger - General Young - commanded. Blackbull pushed off his restrainers, and gave attention.

“Yes sir!” he called back.

“Alpha team captain, Big Boss!”

Owen fixed himself up, and stood steadfast. “Yes sir!”

“Enough of this shit! Back to work now! We have less than twelve hours before the mission!” he ordered, and eyed the two men down. Owen glanced over to Blackbull and the two parted ways as the training exercise was placed back together for another opportunity. Alec made a face that could only mean ‘This is what you get’, and Owen rolled his eyes. Yeah...this was what he got.

*~*~*

Claire stood in front of the bathroom mirror, Karen standing nearby as Claire adjusted the cuffs around her wrist. Looking at her reflection, Claire blew her bangs out of her eyes and leaned against the bathroom counter and looked to her sister.

“I wasn’t nervous when I first applied, but now I can barely remember any of the questions they asked me,” Claire complained, her hand resting on her forehead as Karen smiled, her phone going off. Meeting at Claire’s side, she showed her the text she had received from Gray. It was a picture of him and an essay results. He managed to get an A plus and Claire smiled to her sister.

“Don’t worry, you’ll get it this time,” Karen said, smiling at her phone as she got the camera up and photographed herself and Claire putting an enthusiastic thumbs up, “they won’t fail you three times,” she finished, sending the photo off.

“Right?” Claire replied, brushing the hair from her face. The haircut was becoming something far more needed than she realised. “The Chief said my scores were the highest of any candidate who applied, that’s gotta mean something,” she said, shrugging, a little unsure. Karen rubbed at Claire’s shoulder as another doctor walked in. She moved to the sink at the end, just a sink down from Karen. Danielle Saunders, another attending surgeon that Claire had her residency with. They...didn’t get along. Danielle wasn’t completely hopeless, but she got by on her pretty looks and her family influence over the hospital.

“Oh, Danielle, got a big date!” Karen commented, Danielle looking a little unprofessional for work in a pair of shorts and a blouse under her white coat.

“No, an interview,” she said, and Karen snapped her head back to Claire.

“Before me,” she mouthed her reply, and Karen grimaced. Danielle washed her hands, turning to Claire and presenting the fakest smile possible. She always did like appearing like the nicest person. But they both knew better.

“How did you go? Did they ask you too many hard questions?” she said, flicking her long dark brown hair over her shoulder.

“You weren’t in there very long, maybe they knew you couldn’t answer as many,” Claire remarked, folding her arms over her chest. Danielle scoffed.

“Or they didn’t think you were qualified enough,” Danielle quipped, raising her brow and Claire chewed on the inside of her lip. “I have to go, surgery!” she beamed, shaking the water off her hands and hitting Karen and Claire.

“Ugh, why do I always get riled up around her?” Claire groaned, fixing her skirt.

“Because she got here on her daddy’s reputation,” Karen whispered back.

“I’m sure her daddy had so much to do with it,” Claire said, moving her arms together to make her cleavage a little more pronounced than before and Karen laughed. “Why did she even apply for the position? She failed the test four times,” Claire huffed, pushing the thought from her mind as Karen leaped the distance between them and blew a raspberry into Claire’s cheek. Claire shoved her sister from her side, but laughed throughout Karen’s attempt to cheer her up.

*

Waiting in surgery, Claire and the other nurses scrubbed in, they felt the time ticking by. Claire was about to ask where Wu could be, when Danielle walked in. The clicking of her heels made Claire’s brow knit, confused and trying to understand what was happening.

“Let’s go,” Danielle said.

Claire scoffed, “You can’t find your operating room, can you? Doctor Wu is -”

“Chief surgeon changed doctors. I’m in charge, you’re my assistant,” Danielle said, the silence in the room so thick, any of their knives could cut through it. She suddenly looked at Zia. “What are you doing?” she asked and Zia sighed, looking back at the machines.

“Respiratory rate, sixteen. EKG is normal,” she said, and Danielle stepped forward.

“Let’s start. Scalpel,” she asked, gesturing to Karen, who reluctantly complied. It wasn’t as if she could walk out - she was there to help the patient.

The surgery began without any more delays, patience was sewn into the air and their attention was strictly on their own jobs. Claire maintained her position as assistant, allowing Danielle to take the lead, even though her procedures were not what Claire would have done - it was still fine.

“You helped with Doctor Wu’s paper, right?” Danielle asked. Claire cleared her throat, concentrating on the patient.

“You bought him a watch,” she replied.

“Right angled scissors. Really trying to suck up, aren’t you?”

“You bought him a watch,” Claire scoffed, looking briefly to Danielle. “I’m the one that showed him my skills, not trying to win him over,” she said, about to question a particular thing Danielle was doing when blood sprayed from the body and hit Claire and Danielle. “What did you do? What did you touch?” Claire asked quickly, but Danielle was stunned by the action - completely unprepared.

“It’s a tension pneumothorax. We need to decompress it. Fourteen gauge needle,” Claire confirmed, hand out ready for the instrument.

“I’m the surgeon here, I’ll do it,” Danielle snapped, and Claire scowled.

“Then do it quickly!”

“Fourteen gauge needle,” Danielle said, preparing the needle before putting it into the man’s chest, removing the pin at end, the monitors going bezerk. Claire stared at the monitors before snapping her attention back to Danielle.

“What are you doing?” she spat, as Danielle’s shaking hand reached to the nurses.

“Twenty-eight French,” Danielle’s voice quivered, and Claire knew she couldn’t do it.

“Doctor Saunders, I think I can take it now,” Claire said, and there wasn’t a debate. The instruments were handed over to Claire, the blood that was pouring was stopped after a few moments of unsure steps. Then, suction came in, sutures were performed, but the heart was giving up.  Claire looked over to Karen, who nodded, getting the paddles.

“Ten joules, charge,” Claire asked, and the voltage was ramped up.

“Clear,” Karen said, and the surgeons stepped back, hands away from the body and Claire positioning the paddles. Then, it jolted the patient. The heart beat still staggering to get to a steady rate.

“Thirty joule. Charge,” Claire asked.

“Charged.”

“Clear.”

The sisters worked in sync, clearing the patient as they worked to fix the issues that kept arising. Claire didn’t know how much time swept by, but it was enough that Claire had sweat running down her back, and she felt the tension in her feet as she was letting the adrenaline run out of her body.

“Blood pressure and pulse are normal,” Zia confirmed, and Claire took a much needed breath.

“The worst is over,” she confirmed, looking up at Danielle, “you can finish up.” Claire finished finalising the suture and handed off to another surgeon. Zia and Karen were both overdue on their hours, and were allowed out along with Claire.

“I will,” Danielle spoke quickly, asking another nurse for instruments to continue. Claire didn’t pay attention as she left the surgery and went out into the hall.

Taking off the surgery scrubs, tossing them into the bin and groaning as she felt the sweat and most probably blood on her skin.

“If you’re not good enough, practice more. If you’re not smart enough, study more!” Claire muttered to herself and kicked the bin. “Ah!” she groaned as Zia walked out behind her, tossing her garments into the trash along with Claire’s. “Why does she have to be so stubborn?”

“You held your cool in there. You should be proud of yourself,” Zia smiled, patting Claire’s shoulder.

Hands on her hips, Claire sighed. “Watch her take credit for that even when she botched the fucking thing.”

“You can calm down,” Zia chuckled, running a hand through her hair.

“I’m just so mad. Why is she like this always?” Claire said, fists bound as though she was ready to punch something. Instead, she looked to Zia and let the anger dissipate. “You did great too. You helped so much in there,” she reassured, and Zia shook her head, rolling her eyes.

“Thanks,” she muttered, but as her brow furrowed, eyes gazing over her shoulder - Claire knew there was something else going on. Looking where Zia was, they saw Franklin wandering around, a little more nervous than usual, hands bound and muttering to himself.

“Franklin…” Claire called, and he jumped, walking over to the two carefully, “what are you doing?”

“I’m….freaking out,” he said, leaning in to whisper.

“When aren’t you freaking out?” Zia laughed. Claire concealed her own laugh. Then, they both watched as Franklin dove his hands into the medical scrubs bin, hands fumbling around.

“I don’t remember if I put my ring in my pocket or..” he began. Claire and Zia looked at each other.

“Or what Franklin?” Claire asked.

The grimace on Franklin’s face made her stomach turn. “Dropped it in a patient.”

“Franklin!” she swore under her breath.

“Just -”

“You better not have fucked up,” Zia warned him. Then, he cheered.

“I got it! I got it,” he said, presenting the ring for both Zia and Claire. The pair sighed.

“Lucky little shit, come here,” Zia said, gesturing from him to get to her, but Franklin backed up.

“I have another surgery, leave me alone!” he said, rushing off down the hall.

“You don’t have any other surgeries to do today, dumbass!” Zia said, running as fast as she could feasibly do within a hospital hallway. “Wait up!” she called out again. Someone came up behind Claire, poking her in both of her sides and standing beside her a moment later. Karen.

“Ah, the kids, young and so full of hope,” she smirked, and the two sisters began walking beside each other, feet crossing over one another with each step.

“Franklin thought he dropped his ring in a patient,” Claire said, Karen’s arm over her shoulder and Claire’s hugging around her back.

“For a supposedly genius doctor, he’s kind of an idiot,” Karen commented and Claire scoffed.

“Tell me about it,” she said, Karen looked at her phone and sighed. “How’s Zach?”

“First semester at college and I think he’s failing,” she said.

“No calls huh?”

“He stopped after the third week.”

“Well, you remember when I stopped calling,” Claire reminded and Karen laughed.

“Nearly scared the shit out of mom,” she said. Then, Karen stopped at the forking of the corridors, so many directions to go and so many different things to do. “You saved a person today Claire,” she confirmed, hand on her sister’s cheek.

“Yeah, I like it when that happens,” Claire shrugged, but she had a sense of pride rocketting through her. She was the one that saved that patient. Claire saved a life.

“Drinks tonight?”

“Meet in Vivian’s office, I’m going on rounds soon,” Claire confirmed, her sister pulling away.

“Okay, I gotta go see the residents,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“Have fun with the newbies,” Claire mocked, scrunching up her nose and sticking her tongue out. Karen replied with the same.

*~*~*

Owen took a deep breath, looking over to Alec for a brief moment before the mission started. It might be the last he saw of his best friend.

One.

Two.

Three.

Two fingers raised. Signaled the group forward. Alpha team stormed the threshold. The exterior had three individuals, but it was dark, they never saw the team storm up behind them. Each taken down without lethal force. Only if necessary. With Owen leading the pack, he walked almost sideways, gun pointed forward as the others scoped out the surroundings. Dark and unfamiliar, the soldiers continued on cautiously.

Blue light. Owen looked up, pointing his flashlight upwards, he caught the glimpse of the flashing little dot. Alec and Barry moved forward as they all stood guard. Bomb or otherwise, Barry disarmed the thing, making their entrance as quiet as possible.

Taking aim towards the building, Alpha team stormed the building. With Barry and Lowery crouching at the door, Cian and Alec aiming upwards and Owen focusing straight into the building. Signalling to Alec, the captain and master sergeant switched positions, keeping the team quiet as they continued.

Before they knew it, Delta team echoed yells of distress over the comms, a trap they had fallen into it. They warned alpha team, but gunfire had started before they could go for cover further ahead.  When bullets hit concrete or brick, the sound is unlike what one would expect - instead of a bang, it hits like a pop. Almost like a cork hitting a wall as hard as it could, sound basically lost as soon as the cement swallowed it. Over and over again it berated the cover they were all huddled against.

Wordlessly, Alec accessed the surroundings and motioned to Owen - he was pulling off a stunt and needed one other with him. Cian was needed for cover. Owen nodded, nudging Cian forward and gesturing up to the concrete pillars and scaffolding above them. The two soldiers prepared and they all waited for gunfire to soften before Alec leaned around their cover and fired one shot. The momentum of the bullet nudged a resting metal barrel, sending it across the path where the men needed to go.

As the barrel rolled, both soldiers crouched and hid behind the moving cover. It was still hit with bullets, but it allowed them enough room to get to their position. Owen and the other returned fire, watching as Cian free-climbed up the pillar until he managed to get to the top. With his vantage point. Taking out the most visible or inept of those firing, Owen looked to Cian who signalled down the number he could see - at least four. He could handle four to get to the next room. One room between the hostages and him.

From his belt line, he took a smoke grenade and tossed it over to the terrorists. It took little time for the smoke to disperse, and enough for Owen to use it as cover. Gesturing for Barry and Lowery, they opened fire towards the men, injuring one as Owen walked calmly towards the fray.

He felt in his element, sunken into himself as protocol took over, very deliberate steps as he fired his automatic. When he knew he needed to save ammunition, he let the M16A4 rifle fall to the strap across his body and switch to the pistol, taking out targets as quickly as possible. It was training, so strict that Owen could feel himself but he felt so detached - he wasn’t like he normally was, this was Owen in action, and it was strange to experience it within such a short timeframe.

When he made his way through as many men as possible, killing at least two, he barrelled his way into the hostage room. With his hands full of physically fighting one man, his squad filed in behind him. Room breached, alpha team took their aim and started to fire off rounds into the room, and Owen took one aim into the abdomen of the man. As the gunshot went off and the man fell, Owen took out one more in the shoulder, watching as they were preparing to harm the UN workers.

It was strange, the feeling of the loss of adrenaline in such a short amount of time. Looking at his watch, Owen saw the time they had just clicked over ninty-seconds - unseen for the most part, but no casualties. Just as Owen felt at ease, a door that Alpha team had not entered from burst off its hinges. It was a visceral reaction from alpha, pointing their guns and ready for action once more. Delta team stood on the receiving end, lowering their guns and trying to enter the room.

Shooting at their feet, they aimed their guns at him. He gestured from his eyes to their feet, where a tripwire sat, most likely attached to explosives. They all sighed, stepping over the wire and nodding to Owen. Lowery and Barry assisted the UN workers, attending to their needs as Delta team filed in, disarming and making sure the perimeter was secure as Alpha team took point.

Their entire endeavour was silent - efficient to a fault, no words exchanged in order to save the ones they came for. They would have died to complete their mission.

To save a life, you must take it.

He knew that better than most.

Taking his hand to his communication system, Owen contacted home base.

“This is alpha team leader, Big Boss,” he confirmed, looking at the two teams, “the mission is complete, hostages are safe.”

He couldn’t smile yet. But he wanted to.

Owen couldn’t wait to get back to the States. He had a date waiting.

*~*~*

Claire laughed, legs up on the swirling chair, her sister sipping at wine as Vivian typed on her computer. The sisters were interrupting Vivian’s work - finalising a patient's records before sending them off for a clinical study. Karen was gossiping about two nurses that Claire didn’t realise were in a relationship. In a hospital, gossip was all they really had these days. “They never leave the damn hospital, how did she get pregnant?” Claire said as Karen’s ankles were hoisted up on Claire’s shoulder, the older sister slumped in her chair. Moving her legs down to her lap, Karen laughed and scooted closer to Claire.

“This is a big hospital,” Vivian said, barely paying attention.

“Do you think it was the storeroom or on-call room?” Karen asked and Claire groaned.

“Not the on-call, I sleep in there.”

Karen reached towards the desk to pick up the pasta and hovered it over Claire’s mouth. “Say ah!”

“Have you heard from him?” Vivian asked and Claire sighed, swallowing the food.

“Nope,” she replied, “anyway, I don’t think he’s the kind of guy that calls often,” Claire said, cuddling her jacket a little closer to herself.

“Who is he? Soldier, gunshots, and a chopper?” Vivian asked. Claire got out her phone, flipping to her patient file, scanning over the picture on her screen.

“Is he a spy?” Karen interrupted, smacking at Claire’s arm.

“Is he?” she sighed, unable to stop the smile that was emerging from ear to ear.

“What are you looking at?” Vivian asked, trying to lean over the desk.

“His picture,” Claire smiled, a small blush on her cheeks. “It’s the only one I have of him.”

“You’re crazy,” Karen scoffed before laughing at Claire, squeezing her cheeks and teasing her. Claire poked at her sister’s side and the pair laughed over wine and most gossip from around the hospital.

Sleeping briefly in the on-call room, Claire felt energised by the time midday came around. She knew she was seeing Owen that afternoon - a text told her as much - but she still didn’t want to leave. The only thing that brought her out of her sleep was was the two nurses that came in and started to make out in front of her. After that point Claire knew she needed to get a bed installed in Vivian’s office so she could soundly sleep.

Coat over her shoulder, wrapped in her sweats and watching as her sister made gestures to her about her oncoming date, Claire started out of the hospital, travelling down the hallway. When Franklin started to run, brow so furrowed - a constant worry for Claire that he may pull a muscle in his face one day - she saw him stop. He turned to her, almost ready to ask her something

“I’m off today. Don’t try it,” she said, hand already cupping his mouth. Moving her hand, his brow somehow furrowed further.

“But -”

“Don’t text or call me from now on. I’m not going to answer,” she warned him.

“What’s going on?”

“I’ve got a date,” she said, beaming.

“You’re not meeting him like that are you?” Franklin exclaimed.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Claire laughed, turning on her heels and waving over her shoulder.

“Claire, come on!”

Laughing to herself, Claire made it out of the front doors, stretching her arms up and groaning as she felt herself wake from her tired body. Bending from one side to the other, she felt her limbs wake and her back feel more in order - the stiffness that once invaded her bones was no longer present and she revelled in the freedom of her body once more. As she was beginning to walk down to the bus stop, she stopped when she saw Owen standing against a car, bright smile on his face. Out of fear - or a weird form of self-preservation - Claire threw her arms over her face, only allowing her eyes to poke through the gap.

“How have you been?” he asked, walking over to her with his hands in his pockets.

“Why are you here already? We still have like two hours, right?” she said, looking up at her watch, still covering her face.

“I came really early, sorry about that, but I really wanted to see you,” he apologised, a beautiful goofy smile picking up his lips. Claire bit her bottom lip, unsure of how to reply.

“Well, it’s still -”

“Is there a reason you’re hiding your face from me?” he asked, trying his hardest to see under her concealing arms.

“I’m...a little insecure at the moment. I’m not wearing any make-up. I need to wash my hair and get changed,” she explained, clearing her throat. As Owen leaned forward, his eyes squinting at her, his smile turned to a smirk.

“You look pretty enough to me,” he said and Claire lowered her arms.

“Really?” she asked, putting her hand on her hip. “Do you think I’m presentable enough right now?”

Then, Owen straightened, gesturing towards his car. “Come, I’ll drive you home.”

Claire rolled her eyes. “Guess I’m not pretty enough,” she said, moving past him and going towards his car.

In the car ride, there was no awkwardness between them - Claire and Owen talked and joked about their days and small little quips on their family life. She didn’t know why she felt so comfortable with Owen. With anyone else, she had her guard up, completely strict and to the business - completely upfront with anyone. And sure, she was clear with Owen about what she wanted from this, but she never felt so nervous to hear a response before. He had a charisma that she fell for, a big and goofy smile that made her feel warm. Above it all, the way he looked at her - like she really was made of stardust, a comet he couldn’t quite touch but marvelled in the glow of it. He put butterflies in her stomach and a mere look from him had her walking on air.

At her apartment, they went upstairs and Claire flicked on the lights, gesturing Owen inside. He walked in cautiously and Claire pursed her lips, closing the door behind them.

“Come in, it’s not messy. I’m not here long enough to make a mess,” she said, trying to step away from him but wasn’t sure what to say. “I’m going to wash my hair really quickly, but uh...”

“Yes?”

“I haven’t eaten today. Can we order something and eat here?” she asked, watching as Owen scratched the back of his neck.

“Kinda wanted to take you somewhere nice. But yeah, we can do that. You want something delivered?” he asked and Claire nodded, moving off to her bedroom and bathroom.

“There’s a Korean Barbeque menu on the fridge, thanks!” she called out.

“What do you want?” Owen called back. Poking her head from her bathroom, Claire smiled to Owen.

“Anything you have, but get a lot!” Owen chuckled and waved her off, and she happily went to her shower.

Claire showered quickly, save for her hair. Putting in the conditioner, she tried to hurry herself, knowing full well her date was waiting for her to get changed and get ready for a night ahead. When she was ready, Claire went under the spray until it suddenly died out. The water no longer came from the faucet, and Claire’s hair was still unwashed.

“What the hell?” Claire exclaimed, flicking at the tap. No water came out no matter how much she fiddled with it. “Oh, come on!” she cursed, taking the towel nearby and wrapping it around her head loosely. She knew she looked ridiculous, but what else was she going to do.

Redressing in her sweats, she went into the kitchen, where Owen sat at the kitchen island. He looked at her curiously as he was reading from a magazine that had been nearby. “Have you ordered yet?” she asked, pursing her lips, trying to get him out of the kitchen. He didn’t answer, only slowly smiling as he stared at her. “What are you looking at?” she asked cautiously.

“Did you finish washing your hair?” She nodded in reply. Owen picked up a letter that was once on her fridge, and it dawned on her. “The water was cut off at 4pm,” he said, a subtle smirk on his lips. Well fuck. Fucking fuck. Fucking fuckity fuck. Well, screw it. Claire dashed to her fridge, found the three 1.5 litre mineral waters and dashed back to her bathroom. “Hey, it might be cold, want me to heat it up?” Owen called, a laugh echoing in his voice. Claire felt her entire face go red.

“I’m okay! Thank you!” she called back, locking the bathroom door behind her and cursing herself more. She rinsed the product from her hair with the water and changed into her dress for the date. It was just an easy wrap dress that went unworn these days. So, perfect time to pull it from the shadows of her closet.

Claire dried her hair and met back with Owen in the living room, sitting on the floor next to the coffee table and eating the take out they had ordered. Surprisingly, Owen had quite the selection to pick from - probably unsure of what Claire would eat so he got an assortment. When Claire had a mouth full of food, Owen decided to catch her at her worst.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Don’t.”

“You don’t even know what I’m going to ask.”

“You’re itching to make fun of me, I can tell.”

“Where on my handsome face can you tell?” Claire laughed.

“What do you want to ask?” she said, turning behind her to light a candle, knowing the way the light would act behind her.

“Did you miss me?” he asked. Claire pursed her lips, knowing her cheeks would flush.

“Funnily enough, I did,” she said, turning back to Owen, “what about you?”

“I missed you a lot,” he said, raising his brow, as though to question her - did you really think I wouldn’t?

Claire leaned back to her spot in front of the coffee table and rested her elbow on it, chin falling to her hand. “Thanks for not bringing up the hair thing,” she said, a soft sigh leaving her nose, “let’s go get some of those bubble tea things before the movie,” she said, changing the subject quickly. Owen nodded.

“Sure,” he smiled. Claire went back to her food. “Though, I could really go for some mineral water,” he said.

“Hey!” Claire almost choked on her mouth full of rice, swatting his thigh lightly, and Owen chuckled to himself as he started to finish up his meal.

*

Claire and Owen found their seats in the movie theatre, a mostly empty session and they sat down with their bubble tea. Owen nodded along to what she was saying, sitting comfortably in his seat, “So, the other redhead that looked like she was going to bite my head off, that was your sister?” he asked and Claire nodded, sitting beside him and scooting closer to his seat to talk to him.

“Yeah. Karen. She brings you up a lot, actually,” Claire admitted. Owen raised a fist, shaking it softly with a bright grin on his face.

“Winning over the sister already,” he teased, looking back to Claire. She scoffed.

“I don’t know about that. Get on with her kids? She’d marry you in a heartbeat,” she remarked, then Owen looked over to her, brow raised and mischievous smile on his lips.

“Two sisters? I could go for two sisters. I always liked redheads,” he joked told by his suggestive wriggle of his eyebrows and inability to keep his face completely straight.

“Shut up,” Claire laughed, moving back into her chair as Owen smiled at her, watching her until he suddenly turned to his side. From his pocket, he pulled out his phone, staring at the screen for a moment. Then, he answered.

“Yes, sir,” he said, his shoulders straightening as he spoke. Claire sat up in her chair.  “Captain Owen Grady,” he confirmed, “yes, sir,” he said just before looking over to Claire, chewing on the inside of his lip, “yes, sir, understood.”

Owen hung up the phone, and Claire leaned into him. “What’s going on?”

“I think I have to go now,” he said, turning to her, disappointment etched into his features.

“What? We just got here,” Claire sighed.

“I know, I’m sorry,” he apologised. Claire scoffed to herself, resting a hand near her forehead.

“Am I being stood up again?”

“I’m sorry. We can watch the movie when I get back, but...I have to go,” he said and Claire reclined back into her chair.

“I’m staying, you can go,” she stated. Owen shook his head, trying to lean into her, but Claire pulled back into her chair more.

“We can watch it together.”

“I’m fine, Owen. You can go,” she said. It seemed like Owen wanted to argue, to try and save this situation, but he must have known better.

“I’ll call you later,” he said before getting up and rushing out of the cinema. Claire sat in her chair, chewing on her bottom lip, trying not to feel sorry for herself. She knew better than to get her hopes up - she should have known better, understood the difference more. Known this was what it was going to be like for them. Instead, she built up a fantasy that she didn’t want to be fake.

As she was contemplating whether or not to leave, her phone started to buzz in her purse. “Really,” Claire swore under her breath. Answering it, she was about to scold Franklin when he shouted.

“Claire! It’s me, you need to come to the hospital,” he pestered.

“I said not to c-”

“It’s the professor position,” he said, and Claire jumped out of her seat, listening to Franklin as she caught an Uber to the hospital. She didn’t believe it, how could she? She was so sure she’d get this job. Running past a worried Karen, Franklin, and Xander, Claire made her way up the Henry’s office.

Not caring that she was bursting into his office, Claire stormed in and watched as Henry looked at her with utter bewilderment. He soon turned sour, but Claire wasn’t having it. She had the right. “You said I was a shoe in! I had that position! I am practically leading the surgical team! I’m the best trauma doctor this hospital has and you knew I wanted this position,” she yelled, feeling her hands bind as she was getting emotional. Not now. Keep it in.

“You can apply again,” he suggested and Claire scoffed, stepping into his desk. Henry backed up into his chair slightly.

“The first time I applied I was too young, the second time you gave the position to the men that helped with your old thesis paper, and what now? What am I now that I’m not good enough?” she asked, knowing the answer. Money, right?

“Claire, you can apply again and get the position next year.”

“Henry this is bullshit and you know it! I worked my ass off for this hospital and this position!” she yelled again, and Henry sighed. Before he could reply, a knock came to his office door. The two looked to the door, finding Danielle beaming on the other side.

“Doctor Wu! Are you ready?” she asked, closing the door behind him.

“I’ll be right with you,” he said, looking back to Claire, “apply next year, Claire.” Henry smiled to Danielle and grabbed his coat, walking away from his office.

“Better luck next year,” Danielle said and Claire rolled her eyes, walking towards the door, “ah! I need you to cover my position tomorrow,” she said and Claire narrowed her gaze.

“I’m not doing shit for you,” she spat out. Danielle pulled out a booklet of information. Talk-shows and Medicine: What To Say On The Air. Danielle always liked the attention that the talk-show for the hospital got her. Claire never cared for it.

“You know, I’m going out tonight. I can’t say I won’t get drunk. I need someone on the air. And you’re...decent enough. Read up and prepare what you need to say,” Danielle said, handing the booklet over to Claire. In her hands, the book felt sturdy….

“You bitch,” Claire said under her breath.

“What?”

Claire threw the book back at Danielle. “You stuck up, spoiled little bitch. You are only here because of your family money, you have no skill and one day you’re going to get someone killed because of your stupidity,” Claire snapped. Danielle lurched forward, snatching up Claire’s hair and pulling it as hard as she could.

“Watch what you say, bitch!” Danielle screamed, and Claire reached up, pulling at Danielle’s hair. Before Claire could launch at Danielle further, Karen, Xander, and Franklin came rushing in. Franklin unbound their hands from each other’s hair as Xander held back Danielle, and Karen held back Claire.

“Claire!” Karen shouted, tugging her away, even when she fought against her sister’s hold.

“If I see you again, boasting about any of this, I’ll drag you by the hair out of this hospital and put you straight back in on a gurney,” Claire yelled. Danielle pushed the men from her and walked out of the room, staggering to get her bearings back to her.

“Claire come on,” Karen said, but Claire pushed past her sister, took the booklet and went out of the room. Finding her way to Vivian’s office, she unlocked the door and collapsed against the door of the room.

Claire huddled against in the office - no lights could touch her save for the streetlamps outside the window. Hidden away, Claire cried, allowing the shame of her low to hit her, and that her time was wasted on something that was so hopeless to wish for. She could have everything she wanted if this whole fucking system wasn’t rigged against her. She just wanted something of her own for once - she worked so fucking hard.

Her day - a horrible mess of a broken date and now a failed job. Everything felt against her. She couldn’t win, dragged into things she never wanted. Day ruined. And now, she had time for tears to rain. She felt the fall, let her cries be messy and unrestrained - just allowing a sad day to end sadly. Claire couldn’t put a spin on this. And as much as she wanted her sister...she couldn’t face her now.

Claire just wanted to cry.

*~*~*

At the barracks, Owen and Alec both signaled to their respective stuffed animals, now donned in army uniforms from the gift shop - the ones for little infants. Alpha team dumped their kits on their cots and dusting the sand from their uniforms.

“Good job everyone,” Owen said, standing with his hands on his hips.

“Thank you sir,” the squad replied.

Alec cleared his throat, “Make sure you check your weapons thoroughly before roll call today.”

“Yes sir.”

As Owen was about to strip out of his jacket, the door to their barracks opened. From the corner of his eye, Owen immediately saw who it was. General Young. “Attention!” Owen ordered and his entire unit stood to attention. Alec stared forward, and Owen knew what the master sargent was doing - showing himself to be the best military man in front of the General.

“At ease,” Young ordered and Owen repeated the command.

“At ease.”

Young cleared his throat, shifting his gaze from Owen to Alec, before landing back on the captain. “Thank you for filling in for Bravo team. Was anyone hurt?” Owen turned on his heels faced the General and gave his formal reply.

“No sir.”

“I know you’ve all been working hard in and out of the country, so as your commanding officer, I’ve decided to send Alpha team on an eight month vacation,” Young said, and all of Alpha team exchanged looks. Save for Alec. Owen lost his formal speech, shocked by the command, and unsure how to approach it.

“To where, sir?” Owen asked slowly.

“Syria with the Descendants Unit,” Young explained, before looking at Alec, then looking vaguely at the rest of the team, “for the two weeks until training, visit your girlfriends and families,” he said, clearing his throat. “Get out of here as soon as possible. Dismissed.”

“Yes sir!” The unit replied. The General left the room quickly, and the youngest soldier jumped up, hammering his excitement on Barry’s shoulder.

“We’re going on vacation?” Cian asked. Barry scoffed, shaking his hand through Cian’s hand.

“We’re being dispatched, that’s our vacation,” he explained and Owen looked to Alec, the motivation for the move very clear to both of them, “we’ll support the regular troops in the area, so we won’t be doing any special missions,” Barry laughed, Cian and Lowery both clapped hands, cheering a little before everyone started to strip out of the uniforms and heading to the showers. Owen and Alec remained, sitting on their cots and knowing there was some sort of heartbreak to go along with this order.

*

Owen got to the hospital later that afternoon, needing to talk to Claire. He felt bad for how their dates kept ending up, and she deserved some form of explanation for his disappearances. Walking into the main area, glancing around to the nurses and doctors, but the only person he noticed was the red headed nurse. He went to her quickly, tapping at her elbow. She turned and smiled to him kindly. “Karen right?” he asked and she nodded, shifting weight onto her hip. “Hi, I’m just looking for Doctor Dearing? I’m trying her phone but she’s not answering.”

“She isn’t here. She’s there,” she said, pointing towards the TV in the waiting room, “she got moved to a television position,” Karen said, shaking her head before moving on. Owen thanked her and moved towards the TV screen.

Claire sat with her hair in a pristine fashion, dress form fitting, and looking drop dead gorgeous with the brightest smile on her face. She talked about a particular medical procedure that would help someone. The program obviously trying to educate those that watched, and reassure them that everything would be fine. Eventually the host asked Claire if it was her first time on TV as she looked calm and comfortable.

“Do I look calm? I feel like I’m shaking like a leaf,” she laughed, pushing a stray hair from her face. Owen smiled at the woman, and knew he wouldn’t be finding her at the hospital. Instead, he went to her apartment and waited for her there.

When she got there, she didn’t seem surprised to see him, but almost disappointed. They remained wordless when they went to a nearby coffee shop, sitting inside, drinking until their cups where empty. It felt hollow - how conversations can’t build and no matter how much someone could try to climb out of that hole, they’d remain in the depths.

Owen cleared his throat. “I’m sorry I had to leave like that.”

Claire sighed, running a hand through her hair. “I don’t want an apology, I want an explanation. Where did you go this time? Did a chopper come and get you?”

Owen cracked a smile and shook his head. “I didn’t go far this time. Because of regulations, I can’t tell you anything else,” his smile faded. It wasn’t like he wanted to lie, or even keep something from her, but he wasn’t allowed to cross that line.

“You’re not a spy, are you?” she asked suddenly and Owen hid his laugh.

“No.”

Claire nodded along, almost as though she was gathering up the courage to say it all. “I’ve had a very long day and thought about you here and there. Where the hell did this guy I’m attracted to go? What does he do? Now I’m with you, but you can’t tell me what I want to know, because of regulations,” she said, frustration building along her brow and the the tightness of her lips.

“I’m sorry,” he apologised.

“You’re special forces right? Some sort of elite unit or something?” she asked. Owen shrugged.

“Something like that, yes.”

“You have a gunshot wound, so you’ve been shot. That means that you can shoot other people. That means you can kill people or you could be killed by someone. Sometimes I spend over twelve hours in the OR trying to save someone. That’s what I do. I save lives. But you protect people by killing others. That’s what you do. When you take lives, I save them. You fire one bullet and it ends someone’s life,” she explained, the line defined and Owen knew this was the breaking point. The tether that bound them in meeting, frayed by long silences and drawn out hours apart. He couldn’t save this moment, but it didn’t make this any less sad.

“I’m a soldier. Soldiers like me follow orders. Even though what I believe is important, I know some might not feel the same way. I need to carry out my duty with everything I have. I’ve lost three fellow soldiers and I do what we do because it’s something someone should do. I protect the people in my family, and yours and everyone they care about. We do this to protect the freedom and keep peace,” he acknowledged, sucking in a breath, trying to seem like he was okay. That this would be okay.

“I’m a doctor. I believe in the dignity of life and there’s no value or ideology that is above that for me,” she replied. Where there was once a line, a wall went up.

“Right,” he cleared his throat, avoiding her gaze before looking back to her.

“I’m sorry, but this isn’t what I expected.”

“I understand.” He nodded, sighing as Claire gave back the same look. Disappointment. Something could have been there. It just...slipped by them.

“I have to go.”

“It was nice meeting you. Take care,” he replied, watching as she felt the coffee shop and past the window.

She looked good walking away.

He really wished she didn’t.

It wasn’t okay.

*

Back at the barracks, a place that could never be considered home for an active soldier in his position, he showered. The communal shower was empty and with just Owen under the spray from his shower, his mirror in front of him soon fogged up. Wiping it away, he stared at his reflection, wondering if the man he was, was the man he wanted to be. Losing a love, or something that could have been, made a man rethink. But Owen was a soldier to his core. It was so hardwired into him, he wasn’t sure how he’d function outside of the military environment.

Without realising it, Owen was no longer alone, as Alec walked in. Being in the army as long as they had - comfort with seeing another man’s naked body was a must. They had seen each other many times, and it wasn’t that unusual anymore. Alec took the spot next to Owen, switching the shower on and standing under the spray.

“You’re back early,” Owen commented.

“Look who’s talking,” Alec scoffed.

“Aren’t you going to see Zara?”

“Did you see that doctor?”

The two men kept eye contact until Owen ducked his head and let it roll back, tired. “I don’t wanna talk about it,” he muttered.

“You and I both know that relationships aren’t good in military. Something always happens. Doctors and soldiers are complete opposites. I know better than most,” Alec said, sadness filling every word.

“Pass the razor,” Owen asked, and Alec chuckled.

“You like avoiding subjects.”

“I like shaving,” Owen said reaching for his shaving cream, only to stop short and look back at his friend, “can I use this on my ass?”

“If you put that anywhere near your ass, I’ll kill you with it,” Alec warned with wide eyes.

“Oh yeah,” Owen said, slowly smiling as he lowered the razor down to his backside.

“Murder. Expect murder,” Alec yelled as the pair began to laugh.

Oddly, it was what Owen needed.

*

The Syrian sun beat down, the soldiers running their morning drill with Owen guiding them. It took most of the morning and the men usually ran without shirts, letting themselves get into shape and feel energised for their day. Owen, ever the man for good times, had an amazing chant to sing with the men. Alec, at the back of the pack had yet to join in.

“I’m a barbie girl! In a barbie world!” Owen yelled.

“Life in plastic! It’s fantastic!” The entire camp sang back, regardless if they were running or just nearby and setting up communication efforts for the day.

“You can brush my hair!”

“Undress me everywhere!”

“Imagination!”

“Life is your creation!”

“Come on Barbie, let's go party!” Owen yelled with a deep voice.

“Ah ah ah, yeah!” The group called back with a higher pitch than before and it made Owen falter when he sang his next part

“Come on Barbie, let's go party!”

“Ooh woo! Ooh woo!”

“Come on Barbie, let's go party!”

“Ah ah ah, yeah!”

“Come on Barbie, let's go party!”

“Ooh woo! Ooh woo!”

Owen called out a massive holler, the group calling back, just as Owen repeated the song along with the men.

Eight months, Alpha teams tour almost over, and most likely extended regardless if they wanted to go home. Their camp was built around an old chapel, US built probably by the style of it, and the rest of the camp was built around it over the years. They weren’t directly under attack, nor were they seeking it out. The Descendants unit was there for protection and conservation of the area as a coming construction crew from the states was arriving, and making sure the area was safe for all residents.

Among the days, long and filled with playful moments with soldiers, the units all had duties that must be carried out. With UN workers in the area, as well as some other US helpers coming in a few months, the soldiers were sent out to scout areas and find landmines and bombs that may hurt US citizens and residents of the area.

Sitting in the jeep, eyes shut and breathing in the air, Owen heard the rest of the unit humming and talking amongst themselves as they used their metal detectors across the ground. Owen watched on - well….watched was a loose word. Alec watched. Owen reclined. It wasn’t long before Owen heard footsteps coming closer to him.

“Are you seriously sleeping right now?” Alec asked. Owen stretched out, eyes remaining closed as he baked in the sun.

“I was thinking about how our single unit could achieve world peace. Just imagine it, Alec. You, me, and -” Owen lost the wind as Alec punched him in the stomach, making his eyes finally open and to get his feet off the dashboard. Alec offered his drink to Owen.

“Do you want some ice coffee?”

Owen picked up his bottle, “I prefer mineral water,” he smirked. The two shared a smile before their comms crackled into sound.

“This is Piccolo. Undetonated explosive was found, marking it down now,” Barry said, and Owen looked to Alec, shrugging as they both jumped and headed to the spot. By the time Alec and Owen had made it to the zone, the rest of Alpha team were waiting around, watching as Barry was already in his bomb gear, inspecting the active explosive.

“It looks like a Russian explosive from a while back,” Barry explained over comms, and Owen crossed his arms.

“Is it still live?” Owen asked.

“The blast radius is pretty high. We should be careful,” Alec said quickly after.

“What should we do? If we report it to command, he’ll tell us not to touch it until we get authorisation from higher up. Probably even the Russians,” Barry said, and Owen sighed, rubbing at his forehead.

“Sergeant O’Halligan, what is my motto?” Owen asked and Alec scoffed, ducking his head as Barry laughed over the comms. Cian smiled.

“Easy going, carefree, and no headaches.”

“Sergeant Cruthers, what causes headaches?” Owen asked, and Lowery stood to attention, listing Owen’s pet peeve.

“First, letters asking for cooperation. Second, letters asking for cooperation. Third, letters asking for cooperation,” he said, finishing it with a sneaking smile, though he tried to hide it.

“Let’s take care of this,” Owen ordered, turning to the men around him. “I, the commanding officer, will take full responsibility,” he nodded and Barry continued to disarm the explosive.

*

“Who did it? Who authorised you to do this?” Simon yelled. Owen and Alec stood at attention, listening to their lieutenant colonel become even more stressed out as he yelled. “I know you two are far from home, but you can’t ignore the orders of a superior officer. I told you to get rid of blind shells, and let other teams work with the active bombs,” he said suddenly banging on his desk before eyeing the two of them. “Who was it? Who is taking responsibility for this?”

Owen stepped forward, nodding to Masrani. “As far as I remember, my deputy didn’t stop me,” he said, turning to Alec who looked at Owen with betrayal in his eyes, hiding a smirk anyway, “why didn’t you stop me? You know how much I love writing letters asking for cooperation!” Owen was about to continue when Masrani sighed heavily.

“Oh please stop,” he groaned, “I’m about to have a stroke. Both of you, pack your kits!” he yelled, ordering them back to camp and rubbing at his temples.

Back at the camp, the two ran lap after lap of the camp with their kits strapped to their backs, keeping up a decent pace as they made their way around. When the other troops started to make fun of them each lap around, Alec was becoming increasingly more irritated. It only became clear to Owen when his singing became unappreciated.

“She’s a killer queen!”

“Oh god, Owen please stop singing!” Alec groaned, stopping to pant out his exhaustion. Owen jogged in place next to him.

“I’m trying to make it through Queen’s entire discography,” he beamed. Then, a rage built in Alec’s features and Owen could see his best friend getting ready for a sprint.

“Come here, you giant pain in my ass!”

“Gunpowder, gelatin, dynamite with a laser beam!” Owen scream sang as he ran away from Alec who chased behind, very close to him for most of their final lap. Owen did, however, manage to sing most of Queen’s discography.

A few days later, when his limbs didn’t ache as much from pushing himself in those last few laps, he walked the camp, observing the troops. Along his journey, he noticed a private digging a ditch, but it made Owen a little confused.

“What are you doing?” he asked, and the private perked, immediately coming to attention. He wasn’t tall, but he was on his way of getting fit like many other soldiers, hair shaved down like many new soldiers and almost perfectly pristine like new recruits usually tried to be.

“Sir! Private Rickard Dunn. I’m digging a drainage ditch.”

“That’s not what I’m asking,” Owen said, taking his uniform jacket off, the heat making his t-shirt stick to him. Shaking the material from his skin, he took the shovel in hand, instructing how to hold the shovel, “if you dig like that, you’re going to hurt yourself. If you shovel like this, it’s better at getting into the soil,” he explained, pushing the shovel into the soil and snapping it up, only for the handle to break in half at the force.

“I was being careful not to hurt myself. Oh shit, sir. You’re bleeding,” the private said, pointing out the cut across Owen’s hand.

Looking at the cut on his hand, Owen thought of her. “I actually got hurt while shovelling,” Owen laughed to himself.

“Stay still, you need to get treated,” the private said, and before Owen even realised it, the private was writing something on Owen’s forearm.

“Hey. Attention,” Owen ordered and the private complied, “at ease. Attention,” he ordered again, and he followed suit. Owen scoffed, finally realising Who the private really was. Alec clapped Owen on the shoulder, nodding to the private.

“What’s going on?” he asked and Owen shook his hand off.

“Did you bring him here like he was some sort of puppy?” he asked, crossing his arms.

“He’s adorable,” Alec shrugged and Rick grinned. “What do you need?” he asked the private and replied in a formal tone.

“Wine and sour cream.”

Owen furrowed his brow at Alec who explained. “We’re making beef stroganoff for Barry’s birthday. Apparently, Rick is an amazing cook,” he gestured and the private tried to seem less proud of the achievement. He looked happier….Owen felt better that he was here.

“I’m in charge of supplying the wine!” Owen called, racing off as he grabbed his jacket.

“Not alone, you’re not!” Alec said, chasing after his friend. The pair hopped into the jeep and made their way to Damascus.

*

The friends had found the American bar about a week after arriving, knowing some of the main staff after a while. There was a bartender that arrived about a month before, and she was the nicest - and scariest - bartender the place had. So, the two men got along with her immediately. “I’m getting the sour cream for you, just wait here,” she said, placing a wine bottle in front of Owen. Her skin was a dark tan, fitting in with most locals, but as far as they knew, she was completely American.

“The wine, though. That’s new or?” Owen asked.

“Older than you and I combined,” she raised her brow, leaning over the other side of the bar.

“Nice,” Owen nodded.

“And here’s the cheap one for the food,” she winked, handing it to Alec.

“What did you say your name was again?” Owen smiled and Alec jabbed him in the ribs.

“I’m not single, captain. Stop trying to hit on me,” she shook her head, and Owen scoffed, throwing his hands in the air.

“I want to thank you! Not date you!” Owen called out and he laughed.

“Logan,” she reminded and walked over to the bar’s storeroom. Alec leaned over to Owen, whispering in his ear, watching Logan move around the storeroom.

“You think we should tell Cian that his girlfriend is in Syria yet?” he asked and Owen shook his head.

“Nah, we’ll send him here once and we’ll tail him,” Owen suggested,  “You think she’ll slap him?”

“I think he’ll cry,” Alec pointed out and Owen gasped.

“Oh, I like that better!”

“Right?” Alec exclaimed, both smiling at each other and concealing it by the time that Logan came back. She handed over the sour cream - a resource that not many Syrian places had - especially selling to American soldiers.

The two soldiers drank ice water, escaping the heat, they watched as a young American woman walked in - blonde hair and light skin, she looked like the typical American woman, but completely out of her element in the middle of Syria.

“Logan, did you get what I asked for?” she said, leaning over the bar.

“Sure did,” she replied, handing over a glock, “be careful with it,” she warned. For a tourist to carry a firearm...was dangerous, and the two soldiers exchanged cautious looks.

“It’s quite heavy, how do you use it?” the woman asked, pointing the gun quickly at Owen and Alec. Acting on instinct, Owen snatched the gun back, releasing it from her grasp and flipping it into his own. When it was his, he turned the gun on her.

“You...are not good with guns. If you aren’t good with them, you shouldn’t have them,” he explained.

“Give it back!” she said, launching forward, trying to take the gun, but Owen snapped the barrel back, loading the gun.

“I don’t know. Why did you buy something you can’t use?” he said, disassembling the firearm in front of her. She gasped, hands bound and angry.

“I didn’t buy it to kill someone. I bought it to protect myself, that’s all,” she said, snatching all the components up and walking away, “asshole,” she whispered as she left and Alec chuckled underneath his breath.

“Who was that?” Owen said to Logan.

“There are two things we don’t sell here,” she said, pouring the men more water. “Women and information.”

*~*~*

The hospital routine became second nature to her, much like her old job. She’d do the morning show, answer questions and talk briefly to the hosts before going on her rounds. They had changed since becoming the star of the hospital. She was becoming more recognised by colleagues, and was talked to on the street by others in the hospital. Her patients, however, were exclusive to her alone.

Those with the deepest pockets and the largest want of discretion came to her.

Paternity tests.

Elites with sex drive problems.

Mistresses that were hiding out in hospital suites until the wives leave home again.

If someone had enough money - they could get away with murder and Claire would be the one to rewrite the history of it.

That was Claire’s job for the most part - pretending and faking medical records, and it drove her nuts. But she couldn’t complain - and she knew that because the first time she did, her job was threatened.

The type of people she was now treating was different than before. Her interactions….a little less than savoury, but they proved to be quite a laugh between her and the attending nurses she had afterwards.

In the midst of her chaos, she always came by to give her past colleagues lunch when they didn’t want to get the hospital food yet again. She sat with Karen and Vivian when she could, eating along with the nurses and other doctors she missed when she did her rounds. The promotion of sorts was good….but she still felt something missing.

The last eight months felt like they had flown by, Claire could barely believe it had been that long. On the nights she visited the hospital, she’d slip away, finding her way to the roof and walking along the tarmac, remembering the last moments of him.

The way she watched him go, the hidden jokes they shared on their first date.

Claire lit the candle behind her. “Did you miss me?” he asked. Claire pursed her lips, knowing her cheeks would flush.

“Funnily enough, I did,” she said, turning back to Owen, “what about you?”

“I missed you a lot,” he replied, tilting his head, “what’s with the candle?”

“It’s our first date, I wanted to set the mood,” she explained.

“Put it in the middle,” Owen said, leaning forward to try and get it.

“No!” Claire squeaked, pushing his arm away and leaning her elbow on the couch. “I want the light behind me. I look prettier with the light there,” she said and saw Owen chew on his bottom lip, “don’t move, I calculate the angle between me, you and the candle,” she said, concealing her smile as much as possible. Claire stayed in place, making sure she stayed in front of the candle to make her point. Owen shook his head, picking at his food. When he turned away from her, she saw the gash up on his forehead. It didn’t seem deep but it had a bruise surrounding the area.

“By the way, you’re injured again. Was it shoveling again?” Claire said, pointing it out. Owen dropped his fork and leaned an elbow onto the coffee table.

“What do you think the odds are that I hurt myself while shoveling?”

“Pretty low,” she remarked and he let his tongue suck against his teeth.

“You’d be wrong,” he said and winked at her. “You don’t have enough time to wash your hair?” he asked, and Claire shrugged.

“I practically live in the OR,” she huffed. She perked suddenly, licking at her lips. “Do you know how sexy I am in the OR? You can only see this much, but I think I’m still hot,” she remarked, winking at Owen. He gave a defeated sigh.

“Jeez, where is that person. I want to be go out with her,” he said, a devilish smile on his face.

“Stop,” Claire smacked his thigh, trying not to smile at his joke.

The memory felt fresh and yet distant, something she wanted to hold onto, but it was tainted by the aftermath. In the mess of what they briefly were, he was kind, funny - a light in the darkness of her love life. And she loved the joy she had with him.

“I haven’t had the chance to be sexy lately,” Claire sighed as she walked from the roof and went to meet Karen.

*

“Syria? What’s in Syria?” Zia asked, smacking her tongue against her teeth, trying to get something loose from her meal.

Karen put down her food and relaxed back into her chair in the cafeteria. “The Hammond group that owns the hospital is building an environmentally friendly power plant. They’re sending doctors and nurses to help out in the area.”

“They say it’s volunteer work, but if you have no money, no strings to pull, you might end up there,” Xander said after, sighing as he combed hair from his face, “then there’s me. No money, no strings, and no luck.”

“That’s crazy. You’re warm hearted and good looking,” Karen scoffed, as the rest of the table gasped and teased.

“You think so,” Xander said, and Karen nodded, seemingly unphased by it all. She’d been out of the dating game too long.

“I’ll join the medical service team,” Franklin interrupted the failed flirting.

“Franklin...you barely like doing rounds, why on earth would you go?” Zia replied, reclined in her chair.

“I need experience,” he groaned.

“Plus less work,” Xander sounded back.

“I never said that,” Franklin said weakly. The table laughed as someone walked over to them. Before they realised it, the owner of the hospital, Eli Mills, stood next to Claire. Everyone jolted up out of their seats, surprised he even knew where the cafeteria was.

“Doctor Dearing,” he greeted.

“Mister Mills,” Claire replied, clearing her throat and cleaning the edges of her mouth. In a sharp suit, glasses the newest in fashion - he looked far more elite than any of the doctors around them.

“Don’t make plans for this evening, have dinner with me,” he said, before walking away. He walked with a confidence in his strides, hands in his pockets and not even looking back. He had won what he wanted.

“Did...the owner of the hospital just ask me out?” Claire asked, sitting back down. Karen nodded back.

“You’re way out of his league,” Zia said with a mouth full of food.

“Zia,” Karen tried.

“What? He doesn’t seem all that interesting, and you’ve never spoken to him before. It’s a little weird,” she said, but Claire didn’t think much of it

*

She really should have thought about it.

Standing in a hotel room, not even out of her clothes from that day at work, she felt exhausted. And now this? It was an amazing hotel room, for sure...but not what she anticipated. “What are you doing? Sit down?” Eli said, taking off his suit jacket and placing it over the back of a chair.

“Are we having dinner here?” she asked.

“We’re not only having dinner,” he said with a smirk. It made her feel dirty.

“Is this...your idea of nice dinner? Your hotel apartment?” she asked and he shrugged.

“We can have dinner in, and whatever happens...happens,” he replied, stepping closer to her.

Claire scoffed. “Is this how you hook up with women?”

“I’m very direct and impatient. We can order dinner. Until the food gets here, why don’t you have a shower?” he said and Claire stuck her tongue in her cheek. Nope. Don’t do it. You’re not going to do this Claire. You’re better than this! “Or do you want me to go first?” he said, unbuttoning his waist coat. Claire bound her hand in her bag and walked over to Eli. “That’s more like it,” he replied, just as Claire stopped in front of him. She hurled her bag up above her head and Eli braced. Staying in that position, Eli lowered his hands, unsure of what was happening. “What? I thought you were going to hit me,” he explained.

“I am,” Claire replied, bringing that bag down over his head….and kneeing him in the stomach. Claire walked out of the hotel room and went home.

She really should have listened to Zia.

The lesbians always know.

*

“You could have called me!” Karen yelled at her. Claire groaned, banging her head against Vivian’s desk softly.

“It was….gross and disgusting. I just wanted to get home and shower,” Claire said, combing back her hair as Vivian reached over the desk.

“You know he could have -”

“I beat him with my bag. There’s no way he would have tried it,” Claire replied, sitting back into her chair before sinking down.

“Yeah, you’ve got that imaginary soldier to keep you company at night,” Karen whispered and Claire kicked at her sister’s shin.

“I’ll rip out your tongue,” Claire snapped.

“Didn’t disagree,” Vivian said in a soft voice.

“I don’t think of him anymore.”

“Doubt it,” Karen said.

“We have to get to that meeting,” Claire groaned, standing up.

“Oh shit, Eli is definitely going to be there.”

“Kill me, I’d prefer it,” she said as Karen stood and pushed on her back. Claire clawed at the door frame of Vivian’s office as the two women pushed on Claire to move.

In the meeting, Claire leaned on Vivian’s side, trying to hide herself behind the doctor in front of her. The meeting was on a range of topics to deal with the hospital - what doctors are using the most of, what they should be doing in order to handle drugged up patients or gunshot patients in the area. And towards the end, the only topic left was the Syrian medical team. All the doctors in the meeting didn’t really want to go. Many of them had foreign aid experience in the past, and they knew what war torn countries looked like - the patients even more so. Claire just wanted to be ignored the entire time.

Eli cleared his throat as he moved on. “The next item on the agenda is the medical service team in Syria. I was thinking of taking volunteers, but I think we should send our best doctors. I’ve decided to assign Doctor Dearing as the leader of the medical service team,” he suggested and Claire poked her head up, watching as the room turned their attention onto her. In the first time in a very long time, Claire felt entirely small in the view of others. Eli grinned, challenging her with a raise of his brow. “It’s not a five star hotel or anything, but we’re constructing a new building. Please accept, Doctor Dearing.”  

She didn’t get a chance to answer in her dumbstruck moment, and it gave Eli the chance to clap over her, the rest of the doctors joining in.

Well fuck.

*~*~*

The med unit shipping container was being flown in, air dropped by a chopper. The stationed unit at the Descendants camp helped guide it, as Owen watched from a distance. Alec walked over, paper in hand. Then, he stopped short, looking at Owen and sighed.

“Did you see the list of the medical service team?” he asked.

“Yep.”

“The leader, it’s that doctor, right?” Alec handed over the sheet.

“Yep.”

“Does she know you’re here?” he asked and Owen shrugged.

“Doubt it,” he replied, leading against the stone pillar of a destroyed home. Alec suddenly smiled, punching at Owen’s arm.

“Guess you weren’t supposed to just pass by,” he smirked, and Owen chuckled, watching the med container finally hit the ground.

“I suppose you’re right,” he said softly, the two friends smiling to one another.

*~*~*

The medical staff all stood on the airport tarmac, a dozen or so doctors all hanging around. Of the selected, Xander was right - he had the worst luck, as did most of the people Claire worked with. Karen, Franklin and Zia were all brought along, and some other doctors and nurses that Claire had worked with over time.

“My god, it’s hot!” Xander complained, leaning on Karen, who shoved him off quickly. Claire felt it - she was wearing shorts and a tank top, a stupid blazer over the top to look nice and a thin scarf over her head to shield her face from the sun.

“When are we getting out of here?” Karen groaned, fanning herself with the flannel Xander was wearing. It seemed like the entire staff dressed nicely, but forgot the fucking heat was also a factor.

“The UN said they were sending a chopper and some people to help us. Let’s just stay here,” Claire reassured. Franklin’s phone soon started to ring, and he groaned as he pulled it out of his pocket.

“Hello?” he snapped, a very un-Franklin response, but Claire tossed it up to the heat. “Mister Mills!” he said, voice rising in pitch. He began stuttering, and moved in soft shuffles. “Ah, yes, I can -” he started before walking carefully to Claire. “Claire, he wants you,” Franklin murmured and she rolled her eyes. Taking the phone, she pressed it to her ear.

“This is Claire,” she said.

“Isn’t it hot over there? If you have a change of heart, let me know. I have so many reasons to bring you back to the states,” Eli said, voice filled with a seduction like quality. To Claire, it felt more like a greased up version - a snake slipping through grass to find her.  

“No thanks,” she said, “I knew you were an asshole when you lured me into a hotel room, but I didn’t think you’d be this low and despicable,” she replied, feeling the eyes around her suddenly lock onto her. Then, the whispers started. “Let me tell you something. When I get back, and with all my new high paying patients, I’ll open my own clinic, and leave your stupid hospital. Expect my resignation when I get back,” she snapped, hanging up the phone.

Turning back to the group, she saw the hung jaws of her staff - the shocked faces and the look on everyone’s faces. Karen shrugged and Xander trying his hardest not to whisper, but he was already going to Karen and saying something in her ear. Handing Franklin back his phone, Claire scanned the faces, sighing.

“You all know why I’m here now, let’s not discuss it ever again,” she regarded, and Karen gave Claire a thumbs up. Rolling her eyes, Claire looked over into the distance, noticing a massive military chopper. Military? As the chopper came closer, their rolling luggage started to dash off, and a few went to retrieve it. Claire’s scarf flew from her head and started towards where the chopper was slowly landing.

Claire watched at the helicopter landed, the back entrance open...and US soldiers walk towards the doctors. There were five soldiers, all built for combat and their uniform sleeves rolled all the way up. Claire reached for her scarf on the ground, only for it to swiftly cast off with the wind again, back towards the group of doctors. As she brought her attention back to the soldiers that were closer now than before, she let her eyes squint, watching one of the men walk forward. He was tall, with shaggy dirty blond hair, black sunglasses covering his eyes, and a swagger in his walk that felt like she had seen it all before.

“It can’t be,” Claire whispered, the figure walking getting increasingly more familiar, “oh you’ve got to be kidding me,” she swore.

Why, of all things, did he still have to look so fucking gorgeous. The uniform was bold and clung to his body in all the right places. As Owen moved, he kept his shoulders straight, eyes directly on duty, and unmistakably, not looking at Claire at all. Not an ounce of recognition was filling his face. When she watched him, he walked right past her, going to the pack of doctors that watched the soldiers file in.

She was shaken. And he was beautifully solid.

[yogaadvise]

Yoga Supplies

Sweat yourself out in hot yoga, get breathless in Ashtanga, or be about the type in Iyengar. Your choice of props, apparel, as well as the fundamentals modifications a little with the yoga design. Examine the needs of a class as well as pick the most valuable gear in order to help you reach your goals. Yoga equipment includes clothing that allow your body to take a breath as well as removal, water containers to remain hydrated, and also being much safer and more spectacular with straightforward helps to boost your type.

The Basics

You're concerning to start a way of life adjustment, or at least a hopeful, healthy experiment. Being a yoga exercise newbie could appear a little bit overwhelming, but resist the lure to get ready as shield versus uncertainty. You do not require a lot to introduce your yoga job.

Clothing

You do need something to put on. Yoga clothing ought to be very easy to relocate, wick sweat preferably, and enable your instructor to observe-- and appropriate-- your type. Think elastic tights or relaxed yoga exercise pants, form-fitting or cotton tops, sporting activities bras for women, as well as athletic advocates for guys, if that makes you extra comfy. Do not get hung up on the style. It's not the factor.

Gear

You'll likewise want some equipment in order to help make your yoga exercise courses safer, simpler, as well as more comfy.

Consider an excellent sticky floor covering. It defines your workplace in a course, offers a little bit of padding, as well as offers you a far better grasp to stop sliding.

Invest in a strap or a bag to carry your rolled floor covering to class. Yoga exercise bags have a sleeve for your rolled mat and also huge wipe-down areas for damp gear. There are ordinary material sleeves to hold a mat, with a shoulder band for convenient, hands-free transportation.

Bring a sporting activities canteen with a flip-up straw for convenience of gain access to and no spills to aid you continue to be hydrated.

Pack a towel. You could get super-duper sophisticated, high-performance towels, or simply filch one from the bed linen storage room-- sweat is sweat. Towels could assist you clean sweat from your mats or on your own throughout class.

Get Sweaty - Hot Yoga

Hot, damp, and extreme, yoga exercise at 105 levels Fahrenheit is a challenge nonetheless you define it. Make it much easier on yourself by revealing up for your warm yoga course ready. A few of this is conventional gear, but on steroids. Hot yoga is requiring in every possible way. Head-to-toe, you'll require gear created for the hot atmosphere.

Clothing

Because you will sweat in hot yoga exercise, you'll need garments created to wick or absorb moisture, including:

An absorptive headband to soak up sweat from your forehead so it does not encounter your eyes

A breathable stretchy top with mesh or cut-outs to subject skin surface to air

Stretch textile shorts (10% lycra is great) with a wide midsection or hip band to prevent sliding (miss the leggings unless you're a martyr)

Gear

Hot yoga exercise might likewise need additional gear for security as well as comfort, including:

A seriously nonskid sticky mat as well as a no-slide yoga towel that hooks around your mat to remain in location

A few added towels for wiping your feverish eyebrow between positions

A really big canteen - a minimum of 24 ounces, but 64 ounces is much better. Stainless-steel is allowed all courses, yet some forbid anything glass. Go wide-mouth or sip-top for fast gulps

Prop Yourself Up - Iyengar

Iyengar yoga exercise commemorates the prop to facilitate the type. Yours might not be the bendiest revolved triangular on the block, yet you can make use of a yoga prop to wring the most from that posture.

If your arms are also brief, get a yoga exercise strap. It linkeds over your instep for seatsed forward bends and also around your rolled up floor covering for the commute. Folded to reduce it, a strap gives your arms and also shoulders a good stretch when comprehended behind your back in cowface present.

If your back is too rigid or your hamstrings are tight, obtain a yoga block or more. They can be found in hard foam, cork, and also satin-smooth hardwood or bamboo. Use obstructs for lots of positionings and adjustments as well as for standing poses when your fingertips won't make it to the floor.

A folded covering brings you a bit closer to nirvana. Tuck one under your butt in half-lotus to increase your hips greater than your knees. Utilize one under your shoulders to secure your neck in rake posture. Draw an open blanket over you to stay cozy throughout remains present.

Clever Curiosities

Jazz a stagnant method or attempt a brand-new technique with a resourceful device making the uncomfortable or the difficult easier.

Aerial hammocks as well as slings will certainly have you airborne as an angel to lift your practice to brand-new elevations. Take a couple of aerial yoga classes to learn form and security protocols as well as after that install your very own cirque du yoga silk hammock or canvas sling for shoulder stands and also watercraft poses in trip.

Sandbags come in 2 kinds for leisure and also resistance. A little pillow sandbag over the eyes blocks light in remains position and also alleviates away those crows feet tension puts there. A bigger, larger sandbag on each internal thigh in butterfly posture weighs your thighs down to boost the open stretch easily. A sandbag positioned on your spine in child's posture helps to release limited back muscles and also just feels divine.

Toe socks are tea cozies for your feet. The customized socks with specific toe sleeves keep you warm, let your toes stretch and hold for equilibrium in presents, as well as supply a nonskid sole for better call with your perspiring mat or the floor.

Every bodhisattva goes for best equilibrium. Service yours with a large blow up yoga round to add a level of instability to poses and engage a lot more muscles as you breath and also concentrate on your type. Pop your feet in addition to the sphere for a harder plank. Pour yourself over the sphere like molten liquid for a supported camel variation. You can adjust an entire series to the shaky ball.

Acupressure yoga mats turn savasana right into a massage therapy. Acupressure mats are made from plastic, cotton, and also foam, with thousands of small pressure-point 'nails' that explore tense muscles really lightly to create deep relaxation, release stuck power, relieve pains and pains, and set off a good flood of endorphins. Happiness.

Do It Daily

Don' t allowed the visibility or absence of specific equipment define your practice. The old yogis practiced meditation and bent themselves into pretzel forms with nothing greater than a patch of hard-packed planet under a bodhi tree. Just what you really require for a successful yoga habit is objective. Select your floor covering with care, put on clothes that let you breathe, discover the props that make challenging presents and also long, challenging classes possible for you. But primarily turn up. Just do it. Bear in mind that all those great materials you get hold of on your escape the door to yoga exercise course are just variations, like your yoga exercise design. Sometimes less actually is extra. Maintain it basic to remain sane.