#happy birthday childe.. sorry my present is a comic about what a disappointment you are to your father..

[fenkko]

one who had dreams of being a hero

This comic is based on Story 3, which speaks of his hobby of ice fishing originating from the days he'd go out with his father on the ice, 'accompanied by his father's unending tales of adventure,' and dream of being the protagonist.

Nowadays, he keeps up the hobby, though only as a method of training... and it seems he fishes alone.

I thought a lot about fairytales and stories told to children -- how they are used to impart lessons and shape a child's growing sense of morality.

I think these stories were Childe's father telling him what kind of man he hoped his son would become.

In Story 5, 'his father had no choice but to hand his beloved son over for conscription into the Fatui' in an attempt to discipline his temper, but was disappointed when Childe continued ascending the ranks, further and further from the gentle boy he was..

His father named him after the hero Ajax. Is he still disappointed in the path Childe has taken? Does he still see his son in the man he sees before him? Does Childe feel in himself the chasm between who he dreamed of becoming and who he is now?

It's interesting, that fairytales should often have a very strict good/evil morality. Childe professes he has no use for such things, and will gladly become a mindless weapon so long as he can continue honing himself for battle. And yet, has he truly given up on being human?

For a Harbinger, Childe is oddly principled, preferring straightforward battles without deceit. He retains a sort of moral code, reluctant to involve those who are defenseless in his plans.

And of course, he deeply cherishes his family. What sort of weapon has a family? Why does he cling so desperately to this identity as a defender of childhood dreams, of being his sister Tonia's knight?

Perhaps his own dream of being a hero died long ago, but a part of him still recognizes the tragedy of it and maybe... in some way, is still trying.

This is somewhat of a companion piece to my Scara comic "one who has given up on being saved". Childe, unable to live up to his childhood ideals of heroism, and Scara, whose pleas for help went unanswered.

A failed hero, and someone who never had one.

ARGHH yknow it drives me nuts. I haven't known peace since I started thinking about it.

[babyflossy]

is this real?

pairing; taeyong x female!reader (my future works are gonna be gender neutral unless explicitly stated otherwise)

word count; 1.7k

summary/requested; taeyong wants a calm birthday but you have important news to tell him. I deleted the request for this and I'm pretty sure they wanted smut but I just want this out of my drafts so I'm really sorry! also this was supposed to be a birthday request rip,,, also another instalment of flossy can’t think of titles

genre/warnings; cringey (I'm so sorry), pregnancy (?), fluff

the day had been simple. taeyong had requested you to keep his celebrations to a minimum this year; a true day for him to relax and not have to worry about anything. it had started just as he had wanted, you had made breakfast in bed for him, waking him up with feathery kisses to his cheeks. regardless of his wishes for you to not get him anything, you couldn’t resist getting a few token gifts you knew he would like.

at first, your plan had been to surprise him in the morning, soon after he had woken up. the little wrapped box had never been far from your reach the whole day, even as you found yourself getting ready for the dinner his members had insisted on. every chance you had to give it to him you lost; shaky hands and sweaty palms not allowing you to simply hand over the box wrapped so neatly, a little silver ribbon tied around it.

as you brushed on your blush, convince yourself you would give it to him before you left the house, at least. that didn’t happen, of course, as when you went to get it the only thing you could think of was taeyong’s disappointed face when he opened it. what if he didn’t want it? what if he wasn’t ready.

sure, you had both agreed you wanted kids, but was now the right time? a few months ago he had suggested you to stop taking the pill and just see what happened, but when his company suggested a solo album you had gone back on it. what he didn’t know, and what he was soon to find out, was that in those few weeks of being off the pill you had gotten pregnant.

it had been hell, as expected, keeping it from him. you wanted nothing more than to tell him the moment you found out, but deciding it was only a few weeks until his birthday you managed to hold off telling him. as the weeks dragged on your anxiety only grew until you weren’t even sure if you were ready, let alone him.

a hand rubbing along the bare expanse of your shoulders shakes you from your thoughts and you meet taeyong’s eyes in the mirror, offering him a smile. a frown settles on his face as he toys with the thin strap of the silk dress you’re wearing. the material is tight on your body and it glitters under the artificial light in your bedroom. you think about how you won’t be able to wear dresses like this for a while and sigh.

“you okay?” he mumbles, hands letting your straps go to pull your hair behind your back, leaning down to trail kisses along your shoulder. the action is so caring, so soft and familiar you can feel the familiar tingle of emotion in your eyes.

the brush drops onto the table with a clatter and you stand, turning around to face him. there’s concern still brimming his eyes and you looking away for a moment to calm yourself.

“of course i am, baby,” the suit he’s wearing fits him perfectly and you let your eyes linger down his body before you meet his gaze again, hands rubbing the smooth fabric between your fingers. “you look amazing, as always.”

“not even half as amazing as you, princess,” his hands grip your waist and you feel a sickening twist of your stomach as you look up at him. this was so perfect, you and him, did you really want to change that dynamic? you had heard stories of couples falling out of love after having children and you weren’t sure you wanted to risk it anymore.

“i love you,” with your words, you let your face drop into his chest, closing your eyes as you listen to his heartbeat. you hear him sigh above you and you can tell he sees right through your mask but you’re grateful when he doesn’t push it further. a reply is whispered into your hair before a ringtone breaks you out of your embrace.

“it’s johnny, we should go.”

there’s a chandelier hanging over your head and the crystals glimmer onto the tablecloth in front of you. the soft glittering is calming and a stark contrast to how you feel inside. the look taeyong had shot you when you denied the expensive champagne from the waiter did nothing to soothe your nerves and as you sip your lemon water you question if this is really a good idea.

around you the conversations move too quickly for you to keep up with and you’re close to grateful when johnny turns to you. this is the first time you’ve seen him since you had spilled your biggest secret a few weeks ago, needing to tell someone about the positive pregnancy test. when you were plannnig the day, johnny had made you promsie to tell taeyong before the dinner, but as soon as you had met eyes in the enterance he knew you hadn’t.

it was your first oppurtunity to talk to him and you both keep smiles on your faces so the others around you won’t suspect anything. “why haven’t you told him?”

“i got scared,” you take a sip of water in between your words, “every time i tried to give it to him i– i just couldn’t.”

“you’re a fucking idiot. you know he’ll notice eventually, right? that’s how pregnancy works, dumbass.” johnny teases, the polite grin covering his face is almost comical in comparison to his words. you laugh mockingly and nudge his arm too hard for it to be accidental.

“make fun of me one more time, and i’ll kick you in the shins.”

soon enough, johnny is pulled into a different conversation and you focus on eating your food and calming your heart rate. you vowed silently to yourself that no matter what happens, you’ll tell him before tomorrow morning.

in your daze, the dinner passes quickly and before you know it everyone around you is standing, pulling their coats and suit jackets over their shoulders. taeyong pulls your chair out for you and links his hand in yours as he bids farewell to group. as you’re leaving, you catch johnny’s eyes one last time and scowl at the way he raises his eyebrows expectantly, a sarcastic smirk painting his features.

the car ride home is silent, suffocating. taeyong sits in the passenger seat and watches you frown at the road in front of you, deciding to question you when you're not behind the wheel. the walk into your apartment is silent as well, the same confused expression consuming you as you make your way straight to your bedroom to rid your feet of the heels trapping them.

when you sigh for the umpteenth time in front of your dressing table mirror taeyong realises he's had enough. "what's wrong with you?" the words are firm but hold no malice. in the reflection you watch him run a hand through his hair, his eyes focused straight on you. it’s now or never, you think and reluctantly reach for the draw next to you, retrieving the little box with shaking hands.

when you place it in his lap, the face that looks up at you is nothing but confused. "you got me another present? i told you to keep this–"

"just open it," a nod in the direction of the box accompanies your words and your heartbeat leaps to your throat as you watch him untie the ribbon. fleetingly, you think about ripping it back out of his hands and hiding it again but by now, you want nothing more than to get this over with.

time seems to freeze as he picks up the little white stick out of the clouds of tissue paper. his fingers turn it around a few times before bringing it closer to his eyes. you're not sure why, the two pink lines are visible even from where you're standing. for a heart-stopping moment you think he's going to throw it away, but in an instant he's standing. his arms wrap around you tighter than you think they ever have and relief floods you like a dam breaking.

"is this real?" the whisper is soft and child-like in innocence, taeyong's wide eyes staring at you tenderly. the lump in your throat doesn't allow any words out and you can only nod in reply. the next embrace is longer, and sweeter. he hooks his hand under your head and cradle you to his chest, dropping his face to kiss the top of your head. being held like this does nothing to curb your emotions and the tears start falling before you can stop them. "we're gonna be parents?"

you nod and his lips are on yours in an instant, hands falling back to your waist to pull you into him. the kiss is tender and warm and it shows every emotion you’ve been trying to hide from him for so long. “you’re happy, right?” he asks when you haven’t said anything.

“i'm happy– don’t get me wrong, but i'm so scared, taeyong." the words make him frown down at you, the tears in his eyes making him appear so vulnerable. "what if we're bad parents–"

"hey, hey, hey," he whispers against your forehead, fingers rubbing soothing circles into your waist, "we can't think like that, i'm sure we'll be fine." there's nothing you can do except nod into his chest, exhausted after finally letting out your secret. "how long have you known?"

"a few weeks," you can't help but let out a teary laugh at the shock on his face when you pull away. "i wanted to tell you straight away, believe me i did, but i thought it would be a good surprise."

"that's impressive, i have to admit. i can't wait to tell everyone!"

"about that," you pause, knowing he probably won't like the fact johnny found out about your pregnancy before he did. "johnny already knows."

"you told johnny?" there's disbelief in his voice but you can tell he's not angry. "before me?"

"i'm sorry!" you laugh out, the pout on his face being anything except for funny to you now. "i needed to tell someone!"

"their first word better be daddy to make up for this."

[cornholio4]

Left Behind

Note: Based on a prompt left on the Tumblr of Miraculous-Of-Salt but not Daminette. Sorry but personal opinion and you are free to like the ship if you do but I don't left Marinette X Damien. My fave crossover ship of Marinette is with the Peter Parker Spider-Man. It's mostly due to not liking Damian from the comics and media I have seen with him as a murderous brat. I don't see Marinette actually tolerating him. That's just my view and I have liked Daminette fics I have read (though for the salt) and they are fine.

Ms Caline Bustier had gotten her class back from the long flight home; she had the class on a weeklong field trip to check out Gotham Academy, all the way in Gotham City in the US! It was also funded by none other than Wayne Enterprises as well.

It had taken a lot of work to do and set up along with the permission slips and not everyone was allowed to go, especially not Adrien Agreste due to his strict overprotective father. She never thought she was allowed to directly criticise parenting but Gabriel Agreste was too strict a parent to Adrien, it had only been recently that he even allowed him to go to school like a normal child.

Most of the School Board needed to be convinced and she along with Principal Damocles was sternly warned that anything that goes wrong will be on their heads.

It was mostly due to the infamous status that Gotham had; corrupt politicians and police officers that were replaced by dangerous Villains and insane criminals. She swore she had everything under control.

She was happy to report that everything went off without a hitch; nothing happened. The only disappointment was that Marinette seemed to be distant from her classmates and especially when Lila was nearby. She seemed to go out of her way to talk to the Gotham Academy students instead of joining any conversations that Lila was involved in.

She frowned at this and decided when they got back she needed to have a small little talk with Marinette; she noticed she was becoming more distant from her classmates and it couldn’t be good for her. She had been hoping she could reconnect with her friends which was why she insisted to her parents that she go.

It didn’t work so she would have to do more.

She made sure to check all the names on the list before leaving but there was one that was crossed out weirdly with a pen but she guessed it was a name that cancelled at the last minute.

She made sure everyone was sent home that Friday afternoon when they got back. However on Monday morning she got an urgent email from Principal Damocles that she was to report to his office immediately after arriving. She was stunned but rationalised that he must just want a report on what happened.

However she was met with a unhappy Principal Damocles; several people she did not recognise, Marinette’s parents who looked uncharacteristically furious and several representatives of the School Board. The representative’s fury was only overridden by the Dupain-Cheng couple’.

She could not even begin to ask what wrong before Sabine Cheng went on a tirade about how she left her daughter alone in one of the most dangerous cities on the planet when she assured them she would be totally safe.

She was in the middle of asking what they meant before her brain frozen when she realised something: she did not remember seeing Marinette on the line to come back at the airport or on the plane.

Marinette had phoned them home saying no one had told her when they were leaving so she was waiting at the meeting place at the hotel having been unable to find any of them. She had been found by Bruce Wayne who had to contact her parents arrange for her to be flown back in a private plane.

Ms Bustier was relieved that Marinette had gotten back safely then but one of the representatives passed her a tablet and saw it was the Gotham Gazette website. Ms Bustier was asking why she was being shown it and was about to get back on the topic of Marinette but she was harshly told to read it.

She saw it was about something that happened on the Friday Night after their flight left, the hotel they were staying at was attacked by criminals after a VIP guest who was in a luxury suite. The photo showed several criminals being handcuffed by GCPD police officers, she could make out the dark vigilante of Gotham ‘the Batman’ (a pretty bleak figure if you asked her) and next to her were the superheroine Starfire and the Bludhaven vigilante Nightwing. The two were comforting a teenage girl.

A teenage girl who looked a lot like Marinette....

Oh no..........

The backlash had been enormous and school was cancelled indefinitely for the students; the School Board and Marinette’s parents were furious that not only was Marinette left behind in a different country but it was in one of the most dangerous cities ever with her life at risk by an attack by criminals.

It was a miracle it was not someone like the Joker, the Batman Who Laughs, Killer Croc, the Scarecrow, King Tut or even the Bookworm who was involved. The criminals were being personally led by someone called the Ventriloquist and what had happened was that they were not willing to harm a teenage girl so they let her get to saftey just before the Superheroes had come.

Of course that was the official story; the one Batman had told the GCPD who related it to the Gotham reporters. The criminals were not contradicting the story due to their embarrassment of what had actually happened:

Batman, Nightwing and Starfire had arrived to see the criminals all tied up to a pole with a Yoyo, there was Ladybug there. Tied up was Arnold Wesker a middle aged grey haired balding man with glasses and was tie up along with Scarface his mobster ventriloquist dummy who he still had his hand in.

Ladybug was actually tickling his cheek asking who was a cute mob boss and Scarface was shouting to his men that anyone who lets this go out will be a dead man walking.

The story became everywhere in Paris; Nadja Chamack made sure to get it out through the news media. She was angry that the daughter of her friends had her life endanger by being left behind in a different country.

Marinette was interviewed about it in the investigation and was asked about the record of her having been bullied by the mayor’s daughter for years at the school. She related what had happened and asked about what Ms Bustier had done about it. She had to say that she didn’t do a whole lot and had taken her aside to encourage just be a good example for Chloe after she had ruined a birthday present she had made for the teacher.

That did not look good at all.          

It turned out that when the classmates were asked they said that Lila Rossi promised she would tell Marinette when they were going and didn’t. There were apparently some beef between them and looking into their file they found claims of disabilities, diseases and absences that didn’t have notes.

Her mother was called in for a talk.......

Ms Bustier was on indefinitely suspension but knew she could not count on keeping a teaching profession and didn’t know if Principal Damocles would survive the ordeal. Ms Bustier came to the bakery and gave a well deserved apology Marinette and their parents even knowing it would not do much. Marinette looked apologetic but her parents just said they didn’t have anything to say to her.

She felt that even the look Marinette had given her was more than she deserved.

Marinette had gotten home and despite what happened did enjoy her time in Gotham. She had a few souvenirs including a communication device with a T on it, it seemed like Ladybug was now an honorary Titan.

Her classmates had come to the bakery and given her apologies for what happened along with her parents. She accepted them but was upset about what happened.

She was more than happy with the other classmates (the ones who didn’t go) who wanted to make sure she was okay along with other students. Juleka and Rose had come to make sure she was alright along with Luka.

When she next saw Alya she was enveloped her into a hug that seemed to last forever and tearfully told her that she was glad she was okay. She hugged back. Alya was vehemently refused permission to go by her parents; they knew what she was like in wanting to get Superhero footage in the Ladyblog and the lengths she went.

They did not trust her to do the same in a city like Gotham.

On social media and TV interviews Bruce Wayne talked about making sure the visiting Marinette had gotten home safely and criticised the French school officials who allowed it to happen. Former GCPD commissioner and current Gotham City Mayor James Gordon shared the sentiment.

There were tweets and interviews from Bruce Wayne’s foster son Dick Grayson and his fiancé Kory Anders (a beautiful young woman who most people swore that she did not come from this world) who talked of making sure the poor girl was consoled until they were able to send her home.

Marinette was asked what it was like meeting Bruce Wayne by her friends but she was being humble about it and didn’t like saying anything. It was not like her classmate Lila.

Said girl was angry about the attention her hated rival was getting and the enormous trouble she was in. If she came back to school she knew she would have to face tougher and sharper personnel.

Why did she decide to make sure Marinette was left behind again?

[adarlingwrites]

Absolution

Summary:

noun: formal release from guilt, obligation, or punishment

The Capital Wasteland lauded the Lone Wanderer as a hero, a Messiah, a savior who's willing to give her life for the Good Fight. Beyond the legends, the propaganda, and the mythification that surrounded her legacy, there is only one person who knew her bare soul. She gave him his absolution, and now he will fight for hers.

XI

December 27, 2277.

My mistress’ peers surrounded her and they’re either hugging her or asking her how her life has been since she went out in the wastes. Something stirs in my chest. I feel… happy seeing people care about the mistress. I’m certain that there are people who care for her in the Wasteland; Gob, Nova, Simms, Moira, Three Dog, the kids in Big Town, everyone else she has helped… and me. But there are people who wanted to hurt her too. Here in this vault, she is safe. I won’t be surprised if she decides to stay here after she’s done with her father’s project.

Seeing these teenagers joke around and catch up with each other makes me wonder if I could have experienced that too.

I follow Percy as the other teens her age led her to a jail cell, where they set their former teacher free. He seems proud of them. Percy introduced me to him, Mr. Brotch, and after the initial surprise due to my appearance, he shook my hand. We gathered back in the clinic, where the old lady who gave me a sweetroll held a prayer for James.

Just when I thought the mistress could finally catch a break, Amata drops a bomb on her.

“Percy, on behalf of the vault, I thank you for everything that you’ve done,” she starts, an apologetic tone in her voice.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Percy half sighs, half laughs. “Let me guess, I can’t stay?”

“Yes. I’m so sorry. But there are a lot of people who still blame you for everything that happened.”

There’s a clamor of protest from her peers. “Wait, but Percy saved all of us!” Gomez’ kid interjected. “Yeah, we can’t just kick her out,” a girl spoke up. From her resemblance with Wally, I suppose this one is Susie. “Percy! You can’t just accept that,” another girl interrupts.

“It’s fine, Christine. I can’t say I’m surprised. I always did stir up trouble in the vault, didn’t I?”

Amata laughs, bittersweet. “You shake things up, and often for the better. But the situation is too delicate for you to stay…”

“I know, Amata. Hell, I met Wally earlier. He’s too taken in by your father’s and his father’s lies. No offense.”

“None taken, Percy.”

“Can I go around the vault, one last time?” Percy asks, her voice cracking. I stand close to her, reluctantly placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Of course.”

And so, I followed the mistress around once more as she explored her home for the last time. I’ve learned her history from the places we went through. The place where she would stash her comic books. The place where her class would sneak off to so they can drink in secret. The place where Stevie hurt her. The place where she would hide and cry. The place where she would practice shooting. I learned so much about the mistress that night.

Our last stop was her and James’ living quarters.

Everyone stopped at the doorway, save for the dog, who still followed her inside. She looks over her shoulder, gesturing for me to follow, and I did. Looking around felt like a violation of her privacy, but then the realization dawned on me. Percy’s sharing this part of herself with me.

My mistress drags her fingers through the surface of a coffee table, dust collecting at her fingertips. “This is where dad used to read his books,” she almost whispers. She moves on to her sleeping quarters, a small room with a bed, a dresser, and a few items lying about. Percy picks up a teddy bear, old and worn with use, a soft expression on her face.

“Mr. Bubbles.”

Percy gives it to Dogmeat, which he happily carries in his mouth. She jumps on the bed, landing face first. “I can’t remember the last time I slept on a soft bed.”

After spending a few minutes on the bed, she finally stood up, shaking the dust off her armor. “Time to grow up, I guess.”

We went back to the clinic and my mistress collected her father’s things, one of which was a picture frame with something written inside. I still have difficulty reading the words, despite my mistress teaching me, but I can read the numbers just fine. 21:6.

A pair of girls her age went to me with apprehension. Christine and Susie.

“Hey, Charon was it?” Susie asks me.

I give her no reply.

“Take care of our friend, won’t you?”

I nod. “It’s what I’m here for.”

The group of teenagers, the old lady, and the teacher accompanied us on the way out. Gomez gives my mistress a nod, taking his place next to his son. The vault door opens, and my mistress takes a step.

“See you on the outside?” Percy tells them.

“One day,” Amata replies. “Goodbye, Percy.”

Percy doesn’t look back. The corners of her eyes are wet.

As soon as we’re out of the trap door, she lets out a sob she’s been holding in for fuck knows how long. And I held her again. I placed a hand behind her head, pressed her to my chest, and she cried.

Dammit.

She doesn’t deserve this. I want to make her feel better. Percy deserves better.

“Percy, remember what I told you earlier?” I speak up, my voice rumbling through my chest.

“Yeah?” she sniffles. A snowflake lands on her hair. It’s getting colder and colder as each day passes.

“I mean it. Contract aside… I’ll stay by your side as long as you will have me.”

“Thank you big guy,” she mumbles, wrapping her arms around my waist.

When we broke from the embrace, the mistress looked me in the eyes. “You’re the best thing that happened to me in months, Charon.”

I swallow thickly, preparing myself for what I’m about to say to her.

“...you’re the best thing that happened to my life,” I tell her.

Percy looks at me with wide eyes, filled with… what is this feeling? Whatever it is, I liked it.

“Charon, I…” the mistress stammers, taking my hand in hers. 

We were interrupted by a damn cough.

“Uh… am I interrupting something?” It’s fucking DeLoria. God dammit all.

“Wait, Butch?! What are you doing out here?” Percy asks him, stepping away from me. Dogmeat looks up to me and whines. Even the dog is disappointed.

“I told ya I’m getting out of that hole, didn’t I? Now-”

“You can’t tag along,” my mistress interrupts.

Sometimes, I wish my mistress would be more selfish, because now, this loudmouth greaser is settling on the couch while my mistress is rubbing her face. He’s bunched up in blankets, looking uncomfortable.

“One day, Butch. I help you for one day, and you’re out on your own,” she tells him, sternly, a hand on her hip.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll get outta your hair as soon as I can pick myself up. Thanks, Perce,” DeLoria tells her, propping his head up with an arm. “You sure you don’t want me next to you?”

My mistress groans. “No. Now go to sleep. Rivet City’s a long way from here.”

Dogmeat, still holding Percy’s old teddy bear in his mouth, followed us as we went upstairs. I pull Percy aside.

“Percy, are you sure about this?” I ask her. I don’t trust the greaser.

“Yeah. Helping him get to Rivet City won’t hurt. I’m heading there to trade for ammo before we look for Vault 87, anyway,” she tells me.

“But what if he’s just taking advantage of your kindness?”

“What if it works out? Ease up, big guy, Butch is harmless. Compared to what’s after me in the Wasteland, anyway.”

“I just don’t want any harm to come to you, Percy.”

“I know, big guy. But Butch is what’s left of the life I had in the vault. He’s like family now. I can’t just abandon him,” she tells me, placing a small hand on my arm.

A small twinge of guilt blooms in my chest. Right. It’s not even an hour since she was exiled from her home. Of course she’d still be attached to her previous life and the people in it.

“I understand. Good night, Percy.”

“Good night, Charon.”

As I lay on my mattress, my mind wanders to my youth. Seeing where my mistress, no, my friend grew up in made me wonder what it was like when I wasn’t groomed to be the killer that I am yet.

I try to remember what I can.

March 18, 2065.

A little boy was flying to see my aunt on her birthday. I was that boy.

Looking out an airliner window, clouds were breezing by while Mama sewed and Papa was finishing the last of his lunch. I was holding a handmade doll Mama made with me, that I was going to give to my aunt. The sky was still bright and blue, not the ruined, green-tinged one I know today. “Are we there yet?” I asked Mama, impatient. My voice was small. A child’s.

“Patience little one,” Mama tells me. “We’ll be there soon. Excited to see Auntie Katya?”

I nod at her. I can’t even remember my mother’s face and my memory is struggling to fill the gaps. All I know is she had blue eyes, like mine.

“You know, Artyom, we were visiting her when your mama had you,” said Papa. His hair is red like mine. “Your Aunt Katya was there when your mother gave birth. She chose your name, too.”

So that was my name before… before...

“I can’t believe we’re finally back in California after all those years, Ilya. Sometimes I wonder why we stay in Alaska,” Mama said.

“What does California look like, Mama?”

“Hush now, I’ll let you see for yourself when we get there. Get some sleep,” Mama tells me. I remember pouting at her.

“Lullaby, please,” I ask her.

“Oh, fine, fine. Come here, love.”

I settled in my mother’s lap. She’s warm, soft, and smells of baked goods. Like a sweetroll.

“Spi mladyenec, moi prekrasniy, bayushki bayu...”

That lullaby always made me feel better. Sadly, I cannot remember the rest of it.

I’m taken back to the present, more than 200 years later, when the dog whines outside my door. I crack it open, and see Dogmeat outside, the teddy bear still in his mouth. I let him in. I lie back down on the mattress and Dogmeat lies next to me, sniffing his new toy before drifting asleep.

Through the thin walls of Percy’s home, I can hear her soft cries and sobs.

It went on for hours.

I can’t take it anymore.

Three months ago, I would’ve scoffed at the idea. I would’ve told myself that I’m a mercenary, not a babysitter. But I want to make my friend Percy feel better.

“Do you think we should get her?” I ask the dog, who was awakened by her sobbing when it started almost two hours ago. Dogmeat licks my face and sits patiently in front of the door, waiting for me to open it.

We quietly step outside my room. I look over the balcony, and Butch was already fast asleep. Good. I knock at my mistress’ door, and after a few seconds of silence, she opens it, her eyes red and raw.

“Hm?”

“I can hear you crying through the walls,” I tell her, holding my breath.

“Oh. I’m sorry-”

“Percy, you have nothing to apologize for. Do you need company?”

“I- yes. I can’t sleep. Stay with me, please?”

Please. I will never grow tired of hearing her say that word.

I step into her bedroom. Her only bedroom now, as far as I’m concerned. There are sheets of paper neatly stacked on the desk, and a repainted tin can holds her pencils. Her bed sheets smell faintly of Abraxo detergent and a human scent, unmistakably Percy’s. I sit on the bed and she immediately huddles into my chest, face pressed against it. I gather the blankets and wrap it around Percy, stroking her hair. I felt like a depraved old man, cuddling down with a nineteen-year old in her bedroom and touching her hair, but my feelings do not matter at the moment. Percy needs all the comfort she can in this shithole world.

Her sobs slowed into soft breaths.

“Better?”

Percy nods. “Thank you.”

“Anything for a friend, Percy.”

She looks up to me. “Friend?...”

“Is that not what you call me? Don’t overthink it.”

Percy nodded and rested her head against my chest. Dogmeat comes over to give Mr. Bubbles back, and she takes the bear, while the dog lies over our legs. We’re a cozy little pile.

I try to remember my mother’s lullaby, but my brain is failing me. I still remember the melody, however.

I start to hum.

Even in her sleep, she’s crying for her father.

Only when Percy settled comfortably did I allow myself to close my eyes.

??? ??, 2070

There’s a plate of pancakes on the counter, but I can’t have some yet. I look at my fingers, thin and bony, thumbing the page of a book while I sit in the kitchen. Mama is getting frustrated at me. I’m doing my best to understand what is on the page.

Then, we heard knocking at the door.

Papa is in the living room, so he answers it. I go back to learning how to read, but Mama isn’t looking at the book anymore.

“Artyom, keep reading. I’ll just make sure your Papa’s okay.”

She stands up and leaves me in the kitchen. I didn’t stay put. I hid behind the door frame to spy on them, and I saw two men shoving a piece of paper in my father’s face.

“You have the right to remain silent, Mr. Volkov. Anything you say-” one of them tried to say, but Papa interrupts him.

“This must be a mistake. We are not Reds nor we are harboring Reds-” said my Papa. He was interrupted by the men, who attempted to put him in handcuffs, but Papa is big and strong. He didn’t let them touch him.

“Mr. Volkov, please cooperate. We must investigate all reports that go through our 1800-REPORT-RED Hotline. You’ll be tried in court, and should you be proven a Red supporter or ally, social services will take your child into custody in an attempt to rehabilitate him from any indoctrination you might have-”

Papa pushes one of them.

“Do not touch my son. I am not going. That warrant isn’t even authorized! I am not coming with you over an accusation made by some paranoid idiot who called your damn hotline. Annika, call Katya. She’ll know what to-”

I hear a loud noise and flinch, then Papa falls to the floor.

Mama screams as she falls to her knees to make sure he’s okay. He’s not breathing.

They killed my Papa.

Author’s Notes:

I was listening to Daddy Issues by The Neighbourhood as inspiration for this chapter. It'll probably be the inspiration for the next ones too.

I headcanon Charon to be of Russian descent and I'm not the first one to do so, IIRC. His grandfather was a Russian diplomat in Los Angeles, and his father and aunt moved to the USA along with him as children. I wrote this as a shoutout/homage to one of the possible pre-made player characters in the first Fallout, Natalia Dubrovhsky. Stay tuned to find out how he ended up on the East Coast!

If we were to follow traditional Russian naming convention (first name + patronymic + surname), his full name would've been Artyom Ilyich Volkov.

The lullaby Charon's mother sings to him as a boy is called Cossack Lullaby, written by Mikhail Lermontov in 1838.

Also, Auntie Katya will show up in future stories! -wink-

[lucindarobinsonvevo]

She’s Got It

A secret santa fic for: @queenbeazley​! Title: She’s Got It (Also on A03! let me know if you have an a03 account and I can gift it to you : -)) Prompt: Lucien & Jean, meeting via karaoke night AU (bar or location of your choosing) Word Count: 4,000 (almost on the dot) Warnings: N/A A/N: Sorry I wasn’t more present in your ask box, RL has been hectic recently. Hopefully though, you enjoy the fic! I don’t write fluff or Lucien/Jean often (ever?), but I did my best :-)  Merry Christmas, and I hope the new year is kind to you!

Well, your daughter only turns eighteen once, was how he mollified himself stepping out of the car. Li comically threw herself onto the ground, but stopped short of kissing the ground. “Oh dear God, I’m alive!” She exclaimed. Her brother scoffed as he slid out of the drivers seat. Charlie looked offended by her comment. “I wasn’t that bad.” He muttered, even though Lucien had to wretch the wheel out of his hand no less than three times.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched a boy in a fairly poor George Michael costume approach them. Charlie’s boyfriend, Danny. Compared to Charlie, who was wearing the same denim jacket he wore every day with the addition of one ‘I killed Laura Palmer’ badge (taken from the shed, from a box of things Mei Lin left behind and Charlie had decided were his). “Good evening Doctor Blake!” Danny said, wrapping an arm around Charlie’s shoulders. The 1980s music pumping out of the pub is a song he recognizes but doesn’t know. “Good evening, Danny.” He smiled. “My driving isn’t that bad, is it?” Charlie asked as they went inside. Danny pulled an expression Lucien recognized from his own marriage that was a ‘you are, but I don’t want to hurt your feelings.’ Expression.

“It is.” Lucien said, stepping inside. “Yeah. I’m adding another song for almost killing us.” Li declared. “You wouldn’t.” “It’s my birthday so you have to do as I say.” Li said. Charlie looked to Lucien for help but he put his hands up. “Sorry son. She’s the birthday girl.” Lucien said, as the four of them wandered over to a large booth towards the back of the building. Charlie slid into one side of the booth, pulling Danny with him. He slid in across from him, Li slid in next to him.

It was on his first glance around the room that he noticed her. She was standing up on the stage, holding the microphone maybe a little tight in her hand. Her green drop waisted dress looked like it came directly from the decade in question, paired with a blazer that gave her shoulders rival to his own. He can imagine going to a nightclub in town and finding her at the bar, sipping an exotic cocktail from a glass with a tiny umbrella in it. And that wasn’t even getting him started on her voice.

“The goddess of beauty and love, and Venus was her name-“

She’s got it, yeah baby she’s got it, Lucien thought, the lyrics to the Bananarama song echoing around his head. He hadn’t even noticed her equally 80’s backup singers, equally coated in neon, tulle and poor choices. He tore his eyes away from the singing to look at Charlie, who was waving his hand in front of his face. “Doc? Doc? Earth to doc!” In a comical fashion. “Hm?” “Do you want something to drink?” “Hm?” “We’re in a pub, Daddy.” Li said, “A place where people go to drink.” Charlie is holding his debit card, while Danny poured over a menu. “Uh, I’ll just…Have a lemonade.” He said, and then produced his own card. “Put that away, use mine.” Charlie shrugged, and tucked his card into his pocket. “Drinks on me.” “Oh, you don’t have to do that.” Danny said, blushing. “My daughter will only turn eighteen once.” Lucien grinned, “So drinks are on me.” Danny conceded, and trailed after Charlie as he went to get drinks.

Green dress has gotten off stage, but he quickly spotted her sitting in a booth down near the stage with her friends. There’s quite a large group of them, and they’re all about her age. “Are you going to sing a song?” She asked, looking at the man giving a rather disappointing rendition of Everybody Wants to Rule the World. “Maybe.” He commented, as Li started combing through the enormous book of songs that the machine played. She’d come prepared with a note pad and paper to write down the ones that she wanted to sing, or force her brother into singing.

“Have you heard from your mother?” He asked, softly. “She texted me this morning.” Li said, looking up from the notepad. “How is she?” “She’s fine. She likes Singapore a lot.” Li smiled, “Looking forward to when I come over for the holidays.” He nodded, and sat back in his chair. He was happy with the way custody was split, (or, had been split now she was eighteen) but that didn’t make saying goodbye to his daughter for months at a time any easier. Over time, his relationship with Mei Lin has gotten better, but it still wasn’t great. They tried their best to keep things civil for Li’s sake.

“I’ve got drinks!” Charlie said excitedly, coming around the table. He was holding a small pitcher of beer and a couple of glasses, and Danny was holding a can of Diet Coke, and a can of lemonade, as well as bowl of chips in his other hand. “Wooo!” Li said, enthusiastically as Danny poured drinks. Charlie slid back into the booth and popped the top on his Diet Coke, and slid a can of Kirks across the table to him. “They didn’t have any Sprite.” Charlie apologized, as Lucien took a long sip. “It’s fine.” He smiled, as Danny and Li tapped their drinks together. His eyes drifted away through the crowd, and he spotted green dress laughing with her friends in front of the machine, clearly going up for another song.

“Looks like we might be fighting for control of the machine.” Danny said, draping an arm around Charlie’s shoulders. Charlie looked for a moment like he might shrug it off, and then thought better of it, squishing up closer to Danny’s side so he could see the book. He observed the interaction and smiled to himself. He liked Danny a lot, he thought it was good for Charlie to be with someone who was affectionate.

Not for the first time, he felt a tiny niggle of jealousy deep in his gut. He and Mei Lin had married young, he wanted to upset his father, and he thought she was going to be the love of his life. Li was born, and things got miserable. He’d been determined that his daughter wasn’t going to grow up in an unhappy home, and he and Mei Lin tried and tried to work it out, but it still ended in divorce. Of course, then Charlie fell into his life, and he’d become a full-time father again, not just the half of the year when Li was with him.

He’d been busy, with work and child rearing (and drinking).  He hadn’t done much by way of dating when Charlie was young, and he hadn’t since he moved out, either. His eyes drifted out over the collection of people, and then came back to rest on Charlie and Danny. Maybe it was time to get back into the game.

Green dress was back up on stage, her metallic blue eye shadow sparking in the light. She was alone this time, and her slightly drunk friends are cheering loudly by the stage.

´”You with the sad eyes, don't be discouraged-“

“True colours.” Charlie said, scribbling that down on Li’s notepad. “Have you heard her new album? The country one?” Danny asked, to which Li shook her head. Lucien drowned their chatter out to pay attention to the veritable siren on the stage.

“But I see your true colors, shining through. I see your true colors, and that's why I love you-“

“Don’t be afraid, to let them show…” He murmured under his breath. Oblivious to his heart eyes, the three young people at the end of the table pulled him back into conversation. “Alright, Daddy-o.” Li started, “We’ve picked out some songs.” He tore his eyes away from her for the second time to look at them. “Charlie is going to be singing Wake Me Up Before you Go Go-“ “Against my wil-“ “-Shut up Charlie, Danny will be singing Ice Ice Baby-“ “Which is actually from the 90-“ “Shut up, Charlie, I will be singing Cornflake Girl-“ “That is from the 90s, just like-“ “Shut up, Charlie,  and you will be singing Mona.” “Which is also from the 90s.” “Which version of Mona?” He asked, ignoring Charlie. “Well, since you keep saying you look like him, the Craig Mac version.” “I think you mean Craig Mac and the Check 1 -2s.” “Whatever. It’s in the book.” Lucien looked at Charlie, who was arms folded and nearly pouting. “I’m lost, who’s Craig Mac?” “Craig McLachlan, people always say Doc looks like him.” Charlie said, filling his boyfriend in on the situation. “Who?” “Remember when I took you to see Rocky Horror?” “Yeah.” “The main dude.” Danny tilted his head and examined the man. “I can kinda see it.” Danny said, “Maybe if you were wearing lipstick.” “I told you I look like him.” Lucien insisted, as Charlie rolled his eyes. “People mistake me for him all the time.” “Sure they do.” Li said, rolling her eyes, too. Charlie is a terrible influence on her. “Well, if they ever make a movie of my life, I know who they’ll cast.” “Yes, Doc, they’ll make a movie of your life. Working at the clinic, driving Li to soccer practice and dragging your son to an 80s night and everyone decides to sing 90s songs.” “You don’t know that. Maybe I’ll save the life of a famous person, or be in a really bad boating accident.” “Yeah you don’t have to actually be good at anything, you just have to have lots of bad stuff happen to you.” Danny agreed. “We’re not living in Scream, Danny.” Charlie scoffed, “And if Doc’s life was made into a movie, what kind of dinky d-lister are they going to get to play me? Some dude who people only remember from one appearance in a shitty kids film, probably.” “Speak for yourself, I’m at least a B-lister.” Danny said, “Hopefully, some hot, young Home and Away alum.” “With my luck,” Li said, “I won’t be played by anyone because it’ll happen when I was seeing Mum.” The three of them tittered, and Lucien, having had enough of his spawns bickering, rolled his eyes. “I am going to que us up at the machine.” He declared, getting to his feet. “Alright, then.” Charlie said, handing him the slip of paper. Li slid out of the booth, and after a moment, got right back into bickering with Charlie. Lucien rolled his eyes, and wandered down to the front of the pub. The karaoke machine sat at the bottom of a little stage, and it seemed to be a free for all when you were putting in your songs.

He cued up each of the songs Li had written down, and then looked over at the machine. He typed in each song so they were cued up, and paused to watch the women on stage, belting out ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ as if their lives depended on it. Green dress was standing in the crowd, mouthing the word. He could walk up, and talk to her, if he really wanted. There was nothing wrong with that. But he’s a coward, and she’s here with her friends, so instead he goes back to the table.

“Who’s up first?” Li asked, taking another sip of beer. “Me.” Lucien scoffed, “Who else?” “Your freshly legal daughter?” “Don’t be ridiculous. Eldest first.” “Well, by that logic, I should be first.” Charlie counted, “Since I am in fact a one hundred and five-year-old alien.” “Can you prove that?” Lucien asked. “Can you disprove it?” “You look good for your age.” Danny said, “I would have thought you were only eighty-five.” “It’s not my fault I was blessed with beautiful skin.” He’s barely been sitting for five minutes when his song flashes on the machine. “We’ll be here.” Li says, all but shoving him out of the booth.

He hurried to the stage, and took the microphone in both hands. The lights were so bright he could hardly see the crowd, but he did notice Green Dress watching him, interested. Lucien has never thought of himself as a shy person, but damn she was making it hard. Look at you, old fool. You don’t even know her and you’re acting like she’s your high school crush.

The music kicked in, and words danced along the screen suddenly. He hadn’t realized it, but he’d started to sing.  He was already at the chorus when his mind kicked in. He’d been swept up in the memory of playing this on Charlie’s school guitar with him.  

“Tell you Mona what I want to do!”

He sang, the crowd cheering him on. Suddenly, he’s struck with a devious idea. He moved to the front of the stage, keeping his voice steady as he reached out, drawing on his inner Craig McLachlan, he offered green dress a hand. To his surprise, she took it, and let him lead her to the stage.

In the bright lights, she looks all but angelic. Her hair is ridiculously back combed and it looks like a halo in the light. He can’t tell if her eyes are sparkling or if it’s the makeup, but either way it’s beautiful. She moved left, then right, her hands suspended in the air as she moved in time with the bouncy music. Her lipstick is pink, and has tiny sparkles suspended in it. She smells like a mix of perfume and cocktails. He wants to keep starring at her as she lets him take a hand, hers fits seamlessly into his, and turn her around.

The light catches on the metallic fabric of her dress, and she can’t help but give him the most beautiful smile he’s ever seen as the song finally comes to a close. The romantic lighting fades away, and they’re back to standing on a demountable stage in a slightly dodgy bar in a worse for wear part of town. Only three of the lights work, and behind him the neon lights are only half working. They stand for a moment, looking at each other, before laughing. They get the same clap as everyone else, polite but mostly disinterested.

The next song clicks onto the screen, and both of them scurried off to the tables in the front row. Deciding that the kids could wait, he sat across from her, and they both looked at one another, before laughing again. “I must say, you’re a very talented singer, Mister?” “Lucien. Lucien Blake. And you?” “Jean.” “Nice to meet you, Jean. “And you.” “So what brings a lovely lady like you, to a place like this?” Okay not his smoothest move but it would do. “A girls night. No better decade than the eighties.” She grinned. Her teeth are white and square. “You?” “My kids birthday.” She looked at the stage where Danny was belting out Ice Ice Baby with enough enthusiasm for ten people.

“That’s one of yours?” “He’s actually my future son in law.” Pause. “Should I be worried about my kid dating someone who looks like me?” Apparently, his dad humor amused her because she chuckles. “Ahh, we all mess up our kids, comes with the territory.” There’s something sad under the laughter. He decides to take her mind off it. “Well, children aside, can I buy you a drink?” “Mighty forward of you, am I to assume there’s no Mrs Blake?” “There is not.” Not anymore, not that she needed to know that. She contemplated, before she nodded. She checked her oversized watch. “I’ll have a ginger ale.” Lucien grinned and made his way to the counter. He noticed Charlie is hiding his face, and Danny is now sitting on the opposite side of the table, and Li is all but skipping towards the stage. He grabbed a ginger ale, and a diet Coke for himself.

He returned to his seat, and delivered the lady her ginger ale. “Is this one one of yours?” He doesn’t comment on her usage of one twice. “My only and eldest daughter.” Li was singing off key, but what she lacked in nuance, she made up for with enthusiasm.

“I always wanted a daughter.” Jean said, “But God only saw fit to bless me with sons.” “How many sons?” “Two, Jack and Christoper Jr.” “A family name?” “After my late husband.” “I’m so sorry.” “This isn’t very good first meeting talk.” Jean observed. “As old people, we are strictly limited to discussing our children, marriages and the weather.” “And IKEA sales.” “IKEA is having a sale?” “Yeah it just finished, flat pack was half price.” He clicked his arms in front of him. “Damn. Just missed it.” Jean laughed, and took a sip of her drink, her lipstick left a mark around the rim. Interestingly, she doesn’t use a straw. They lapse into a comfortable silence until Li finishes singing, and Lucien has to do his fatherly duty and ensure he’s clapping the loudest. Li flung herself off the stage, and ran over excitedly. “Did you like it?” “Of course I did.” He said, irrespective of if he actually did. “It was great.” Jean said, as Li eyed her. Apparently, she passed the test, because Li grinned. “I’m going to force Charlie onto the stage.” Lucien caught her arm. “I know ribbing Charlie about his driving and bad attitude is all fun and games, but if he really doesn’t want to do it, don’t force him.” He warned her.  “He’s allowed to bow out if he’s not comfortable.” Li nodded, and hurried back to the table.

“She seems like a nice young lady.” Lucien gave a wiry smile. “You haven’t gotten to know her yet.” “Will I?” “I haven’t decided yet.” He replied, “Would you like to?” “I haven’t decided yet.”

Lucien looked up as Charlie took the stage, his hands shaking hard as he tried to keep a tight hold on the microphone. Danny is already cheering, much to the annoyance of the other patrons, but they could all serve to lighten up a little. What Li had lacked in talent she made up for with gusto. Danny…Well Lucien doesn’t know; he’s pretty sure Ice Ice Baby isn’t even a real song, but he’d at least had enthusiasm. Charlie has neither skill, nor excitement, and his singing amounted to him mumbling into the microphone. But he gave it a shot and Lucien supposed that was the most important part

“One of yours?” “Yep.” He replied, as Charlie slunk off stage before he could even begin to clap; Danny cheering as loudly as he dared. He slunk off stage and into the bathroom. Lucien watched as Danny followed after him and supposed he got it covered. Jean touched his arm lightly. “He’s quite brave.” “He always is.” He replied, “Can I buy you another drink?” He inquired, smiling. Charlie would be fine.  Jean checked her watch again. “No, but you can sing a little duet with me, if you’d like.” Jean said, swallowing the last of her drink.  Lucien observed her for a moment, before nodding. “Of course. What do you fancy singing?” “I’ll surprise you.”

Lucien watched her walk away, and he noticed he’s smiling to himself. She keys in a song to be performed after the woman on stage finishes her (very enthusiastic) version of ’I Ran (so far away)’. While he waited, he wandered up to Jean, coming to a stop next to her. She smiled at him, and she looks like the sun has just risen for the first time.

When the woman gets off the stage, he joins her, there is only one microphone, so they have to stand very close. He can smell her breath: ginger ale and alcohol. Maybe a little bit of toothpaste. The song title flashes up on the screen, accompanied by an unfortunately fake sounding guitar: ‘More Than Words – Extreme’ Huh. He kind of remembers that song, but not too well. Not well enough he could sing it by heart, but It’ll do. Jean takes the opening verse, starting a fraction of a second before he can open his mouth.

“Saying "I love you" Is not the words I want to hear from you-“

Lucien is struck by the thought that her voice would sound beautiful up against a plain piano, maybe a metronome. It’s a beautiful voice, attached to a beautiful woman. He is ridiculously infatuated with her, despite having known her for less than an hour. Matthew was going to think this was a hilarious story when he shares it next time they meet for lunch.

That’s if he survives the teasing from his kids.

“What would you do? If my heart was torn in two?”

Lucien’s heart is already in two, but of course, he doesn’t say that out loud. It’s just a song, after all, it’s meant to be relatable. No one wants to listen to music they cannot relate to. It’s why teen pop sells so well, and also probably why Charlie used to have a wall full of Justin Bieber posters. Because people relate to having a crush, or being in love, or having whatever an Ennie Meanie Miney Mo lover is. And he, in his old age of fifty, can relate to having a heart torn in two. That’s just how it was.

Jean picks up for the Chorus, all but belting the lyrics in true karaoke style.

“Make things new, just by saying "I love you-"”

I love you. Lucien has said a lot of I love yous in his life.

To his mother. To his wife. To his daughter. To his son. To his close friends. To his dogs. He’s said a lot of I Love Yous and he is suddenly and shockingly struck by the fact that he would like, some day, to say I love you to Jean with no last name he met in a dodgy bar in a worn out neighborhood, like a fool. He is a fool. A hopeless romantic, sure, but still a fool. You don’t fall in love with someone you just met. Love takes time, and work, and effort, and he wants to do all that. But first, he just wants to get through this song.

“Touch me, hold me close, don't ever let me go. More than words is all I ever needed you to show-“

Could he have saved his other relationship? Potentially. Touch me. Hold me close. He wanted to hold someone close. He wanted to be held. He wanted romance, and love. Someone once told him, potentially Matthew, that he was built to love, that he had too much of it, and he was destined to be a bleeding heart. That has never felt more true than it did right now.

“La di da, da di da, di dai dai da-”

Beautiful.

“More than words-“

Wonderful.

Her perfume smells chemically floral. Her voice sounds like honey

The music fades out. Kiss her, you fool! Kiss her! Thankfully, Lucien is not a slave to his base urges, and he does not invade the woman’s space more than he needs to. They depart the stage, and she gathers her bag. Lucien casts an eye to his table. The kids are sitting and talking among themselves. Charlie seems to have recovered, and Danny is trotting to the stage. Lucien recognizes the opening to ‘I Love You, Always, Forever” if he’s ever heard it. Didn’t seem like Danny had much musical talent, either. Oh well, C’est La Vie.

Jean is speaking with her friends, he looks over at his one time companion. She’s holding a napkin in one hand, it has the logo of the bar in one corner and a stain that could be anything from grease to beer in the other. She passes it to him, and there is a note scrawled there in purple gel pen.

‘Lucien –

Hope you had as much fun as I did. Call me xx

Jean B.-

P.S: You owe me a kiss for next time.’

Then her phone number, and a kiss imprint, complete with tiny pink sparkles. He looked up, Jean was nowhere to be seen. Neither were her friends. After a moment, he moved back to the table, and sat back down next to Li.  He put an arm around her shoulders and looked at her list of potential songs. Your eldest daughter only turns eighteen once.

[sandstonesunspear]

The Budling, part 3

Or alternatively known as: The third part of that obligatory accidental baby acquisition fic.

Sorry that this has taken so long. School, work, and writer’s block got to me.

@nerdsbianhokie​ consider this a birthday present, friend.

-

1 Year later…

-

“Kessel?” Reinhart piped up.

“Yeah?”

“Where’s Astra?”

Kessel waved his hand towards the makeshift crib. It had been a gift from Bob, though he’d refused to reveal where or how he’d acquired the resources to make it.

“They’re over there, kid.”

“Uh…” Reinhart glanced towards the crib. “No, no they’re not.”

Kessel looked up from his rifle and followed the Korugarian’s gaze. To his horror, the crib was noticeably missing its Saurian budling inhabitant.

“Oh shit.”

-

Astra toddled down the metal halls of the DEO. They stopped every so often to examine a particularly interesting wall panel or the occasional fake plant that Lyra had insisted be placed around the ship.

The corridors were relatively empty. A few crew members walked past Astra, but they took no notice of the tiny Saurian. Since it was the height of the duty day, they were engrossed in their datapads or rushing to get to another section of the ship. Astra didn’t mind. They understood that the DEO-family was busy. Besides, it meant that they could make their way through the ship unseen and hopefully find Alex-par or bud-par.

A furious shout caught Astra’s attention.

“What do you mean you lost my kid?!” Alex-par!

Astra couldn’t hear the response, but whatever it was, it only seemed to make Alex angrier.

“You had one job, Kessel!” The sharp clomp of boots as Alex paced was audible even in the corridor where Astra was making their way through. “No, I don’t want to hear it. Find Astra, now. Before Sameen finds out you lost them.”

Kessel and Reinhart stumbled out of the bridge. Astra watched from behind a potted fake plant as Kessel-uncle took Reinhart-person by the shoulders.

“Alright, I’m guessing we’ve got about 15 minutes before the Cap tells Sameen that we lost their kid,” he started. “So, you take the left side of the ship, I’ll take the right, got it?”

Reinhart nodded their agreement furiously. Kessel took off in the other direction while Reinhart stood there for several moments. Their eyes examined the corridor before stopping at the plant that Astra was hiding behind. They walked over.

“Hm…” They mused, crouching down. “I wonder what could be behind this really tacky plant…”

Astra fought back giggles and said nothing. Reinhart-auncle was fooled by Lyra-aunt’s choice of foliage!

“Let’s see here…” Reinhart reached out and gently patted at the air. Astra broke out laughing when their hand rubbed up against their head-nubs. “Aha! Got you!”

Astra squealed as Reinhart picked them up. They squirmed as Reinhart scratched at their backplates.

“Looks like I caught a tiny Astra!” Reinhart chuckled. They ceased their scratching after a few moments, knowing that Astra didn’t like being tickled for more than several seconds. “Let’s get you to the Cap, yeah?”

‘See Alex-par!’ Astra chimed, nuzzling into Reinhart.

Reinhart couldn’t stop the grin from rising. Astra had the entire ship wrapped around her forelimbs and didn’t even know it.

-

Alex was scowling at the map in front of her. She was waiting for either Kessel or Reinhart to inform if they had found Astra or not. They have 10 minutes left. Maybe she’d given the both of them too short a time frame. Teach them to lose a kid. Or not. She pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Captain?” Reinhart’s uncertain voice piped up from behind her.

“My kid better be in your arms, Reinhart.” Her tone brooked no argument.

‘Alex-par!’ Astra’s chirped greeting echoed through everyone’s minds. The tiny Saurian was, after all, still too young to fully control who heard their telepathic communication. Almost as one, everyone on the bridge, save for Bob, turned to look at an incredibly nervous Korugarian. Alex’s shoulders slumped in relief.

She moved to take them from Kessel. “Hey, there doodlebug,” she muttered. Astra nuzzled into her.

‘Ok, Alex-par,’ They said, trying to alleviate Alex’s worry.

“You have to stop doing this, okay?” she gently scolded. “You’re going to scare me into an early grave.”

-

This wasn’t the first time that Astra had managed to escape whoever was on caretaking duty, but it was the first time that a significant amount of time had passed before they were located. The DEO wasn’t an incredibly large ship by any means. Her crew encountered much larger ships on a regular basis. But what she lacked in size, she more than made up for in places to hide. Alex’s biggest fear, aside from not making it home, was that Astra wouldn’t be found until it was too late should they end up lost aboard the DEO. Sameen often pointed out to Alex that the kepesh-par bond she shared with Astra meant that, barring an extreme complication, she would be able to locate them.

-

Astra made a remorseful sounding noise. They hated it when Alex-par was worried. It made them feel anxious and more than a little said.

‘No scare, Alex-par.’

“I know kiddo,” Alex sighed. “Just...maybe cut down on the escape attempts for a bit?” Especially since this sector’s been pretty rough the past few days. The DEO had repelled four attacks over the last five days. They had been launched by small raiding parties, but something told Alex that they were just the opening salvo in a much bigger plot.

Reinhart coughed. “Um, Captain, does that mean Kessel and me are off the hook?” they asked.

Alex looked up from the tiny Saurian in her arms and fixed Reinhart with a glare. She took a small amount of satisfaction at the yelp it drew from them.

“Fuck, no.” She shifted Astra so that they could snuggle into her neck. Before she could say anything else, Kessel came stumbling back in, chest heaving.

“Cap, I searched the whole gods damned ship and I couldn’t still couldn’t find--” Kessel abruptly fell silent at the sight of a now-snoozing Astra in Alex’s arms. Her glare caught him full blast, drawing a very un-Boloxvian-like squeak from him. “Oh.”

Alex took a breath, mindful of all the people present on the bridge around her and the lightly snoring Saurian she was holding. She closed her eyes. One-one thousand, two-one thousand…Would she be justified if she bit their combined heads off? Yes, yes she would. But she doubted the message would stick if she did that.

Alex opened her eyes. She fixed a quivering adolescent Korugarian and a fully grown Boloxvian with a look that would have melted durasteel. As it stood, both individuals flinched at the cold fire present in their Captain’s eyes.

“Let me make something very clear to the both of you,” she started. “When I or Sameen as one of you, any of you, to look after Astra, we do so under the assumption that they will be looked after until either one of us can come retrieve them. We’re not just passing them off to you to avoid responsibility; we’re doing so because the areas where we work on the ship are not conductive to the safety of a budling.”

Alex’s voice was like ice. It was the tone voice that she had used during her regrettable date with Maxwell Lord. It was a sound that promised complete destruction at a future date, delivered with a happy smile and a serving of your own innards on a silver platter.

Kessel looked like he wanted to interrupt, but a sharp jab at his ribs from Reinhart silenced him as Alex continued.

“As Captain of the DEO, I have an entire ship full of people to worry about. And as the chief engineer, Sameen is busy making sure that we all don’t die in a giant fiery ball of doom. When Sameen and I are on duty, either here on the bridge or our areas of specialty, the last thing either of us needs to be fretting about is Astra’s well being.” She paused and glanced around. “I assume everyone here understands this, right?”

Heads bobbed as various crew members vocalised their confirmation. Alex looked back to Kessel and Reinhart, both of whom looked extremely contrite.

“Neither one of you will be watching Astra in the near future.” The ‘I’m disappointed in the both of you,’ went unsaid, but it was heard loud and clear nonetheless. Reinhart and Kessel hung their heads at her declaration. It would have made for a comical sight, were the situation not so serious. “Until further notice, you both will be working down in engineering with Sameen. It will be up to them to decide if, and when, you get to watch Astra again.”

Both heads dropped further at the announcement, but neither Kessel or Reinhart protested. They’d fucked up and they knew it. Kessel could hear practically hear his broodmother tearing him a new one for misplacing a child. Reinhart, for their part, was upset with themself. After all, they were supposed to have been keeping an eye on Astra and failed.

Silence reigned on the bridge. More than a few crew members were looking at Kessel and Reinhart with sympathy. It was true that Astra liked to and escape whoever was in charge of watching them. They did that with everyone. But none of them had actually ever lost the tiny budling. Losing the Captain’s adopted subunit wasn’t something that one easily came back from.

Alex let out a breath. She waved a free hand at the Korugarian and Boloxvian. “You’re both dismissed.” She looked down at Astra, who was still dozing. She shook her head. “What are we going to do with you?”

-

“Kessel and Reinhart informed me that you have assigned them to my command until further notice,” Sameen remarked as soon as they walked into Alex’s quarters. Astra was snoring away on Alex’s bed, surrounded by a mountain of pillows.

Alex looked up from her datapad. “I assume they told you why.”

“The guilt from them made it clear.”

“You think I’m overreacting.” It wasn’t a question. Some part of her knew that she had been more than a little harsh with them. But at that specific moment, the fear in her gut at the thought of something happening to Astra had driven her. It was response ingrained in her; the result of her years as Kara’s older sister.

“I do not.” A pause. “I believe that, had I been on the bridge when Kessel delivered the news that he misplaced Astra, I would have reacted the same as you did.” Or worse. Saurians were incredibly protective of their budlings, after all.

Alex sighed and put down the datapad. She looked out the window, watching stars slowly pass by.

“I am the Captain of this ship,” she said. “I am responsible for the safety and well-being of every person on this ship. We are light years away from Earth and out here, I have to remain objective. I can’t put one person’s live above another’s, regardless of what relationship we may share.” She took a breath. “At least, I’m supposed to be objective. When it comes to Astra...if anything were to happen to them, I would…” Do anything.

Maybe it was a parent thing. Or maybe was because over the course of her life, her core programming had gone from, ‘Be the best,’ to ‘Protect Kara, no matter what,’ to ‘Protect the people I love, no matter what.’ Alex’s time in the DEO had honed her into a weapon of protective destruction. Years of covert work and countless lies had blurred the lines she was willing to cross to keep the people she loved safe. Detain a man without a warrant because he’s threatening her sister? Easy. Become a fugitive to protect a man who had been a better father to her than her actual father was? Done. Try to strangle a snarky alien with a barstool after giving him a concussion because the woman she (unknowingly, at the time) loved was in danger? Piece of cake. Go rogue and take on racist, extremist organization without backup? Just another Tuesday.

“I believe the book that Lyra gave you, the one regarding how parenthood may affect an individual, had a chapter on how to properly react when one’s subunit is under threat, Captain,” Sameen said, trying to lighten the mood.

It worked. A smile appeared on Alex’s face. “I think I skipped that chapter, to be honest, Sameen,” she chuckled.

Before Sameen could say anything else, the ship lurched violently. Datapads went flying. Alex stumbled back and slammed into the window while Sameen was sent into the desk.

“Are you alright, Captain?”

Alex grunted and righted herself. “‘M fine.” She glanced over at the bed. “Astra?”

Both immediately looked over to the bed where Astra slept. They were relieved to see that the budling still lay relatively undisturbed, though the mountain of pillows that had been surrounding them was no more.

Lyra’s voice crackled over the comms. “Bridge to Captain Danvers, are you there?”

Alex slapped the comm console on her desk. “Danvers here, report,” she barked out.

“Unknown vessel appears to have opened fire on us, Captain.”

“Could they be any of our old ‘friends?’” she questioned.

“Unknown at this time. Scanners are up and running. Requesting your return to the bridge as soon as possible, Captain.”

“I’ll be right there.” She clicked the comms off and glanced at Sameen. “Stay here with Astra, I’ll send someone to guard this location.”

“We will be fine. Go.”

Alex grabbed her gun and her jacket and rushed from her quarters.

-

Alex’s boots pounded against the steel floors, sending loud echoes throughout the DEO’s corridors. Various members of the crew plastered themselves against the corridor walls as Alex raced past them. Others hurried alongside her on their way to their respective duty stations. The first time the DEO had come under attack, there had been panic. Now, everyone moved with a well-trained efficiency.

She broke off from the group and slid on to the bridge. “Status report,” she ordered.

Lyra handed her a datapad. “Results of the scans, Captain.”

Alex gave her a nod of thanks. She frowned as she looked it over. That can’t be right. She glanced back up at Lyra.

“Are we sure about these scans?”

Lyra nodded grimly. “Bob double checked,” she said. “Scans confirm that the ship matches the information Sameen provided regarding vessels commanded by the Katoh-Fel.”

“Fuck.” Sameen had shared their memories with Alex of just exactly what kind of treatment they endured at the hands of the loyalist forces. If she had thought Cadmus to be extreme, the Katoh-Fel were even more so. They were Saurian extremists who considered themselves to be loyalists to the deposed Saurian despot, Katoh. They were intent on “purifying” their species by any means necessary. Their sudden takeover of the Saurian homeworld of Soris-Vel was followed by a trail of devastation that culminated in an indiscriminate, system-wide campaign of genocide. Sameen was one of the few who managed to escape with their life.

“Do we have any idea where the Katoh-Fel vessel is now?” Alex demanded.

“No, they have some sort of cloaking device.” Lyra paused. She bit her lip nervously. “Captain, there are indications that the ship has been trailing us for some time now.”

Of course it had been. “I take that to mean that the raids earlier in the week were them feeling us out?”

“That would be apt, Captain.”

Alex took a breath. “Do they know we have a Saurian onboard?” She needed to remain calm. She had two Saurians on board, one of whom had escaped the Katoh-Fel and the other who was just a child.

“I doubt they would have fired on us if they didn’t.” But that didn’t necessarily mean that they knew there was a Saurian budling on board.

Alex moved to the Captain’s Chair and sat down. She closed her eyes. Lyra was right. After all, the Katoh-Fel were known to hunt ships across systems if there was even a possibility that a Saurian was on board. They were determined to eliminate any Saurian they perceived to be “impure” for standing against Katoh or who managed to escape the purges. Sameen had done both.

She opened her eyes. “Can we outrun their ship?” she asked.

“Unlikely, Captain,” Bob spoke up. “Their initial volley contained disruptor rounds. Shields were able to stop most of it, but they’ve managed to knocks us offline in the process.” His fingers tapped away furiously at the console in front of him. “We’re not going anywhere soon.”

Goddammit. She tapped the communication panel in her armrest. “Bridge to engineering.”

“Engineering here, Captain,” Reinhart’s voice crackled.

“How long until you can the systems restored?”

“We’re already working on it, Captain.” Alex could hear the tension in their voice. “But we’re going to need some time to--”

Whatever Reinhart was going to say was cut off by Bob’s panicked yelp of, “Katoh-Fel back on scanners and in range, Captain!”

“On screen!” Alex demanded.

Within seconds, a Katoh-Fel Cleansing Bird was in view. Alex had seen glimpses of a Cleansing Bird in Sameen’s memories before, but they did a poor job of preparing her for the actual sight. For a moment, she was reminded of the Narada from that Star Trek reboot film. It was an asymmetrical monstrosity that dwarfed the DEO several times over.

“Well, shit.” Alex wasn’t an easy person to intimidate. Her time in space had only bolstered her immunity to fear. Many unfortunate would-be pirates had picked the DEO, thinking they could scare her crew and Captain into submission, only to be met with guns, salvaged torpedoes, and Alex’s ruthless indifference. But the sight of the Cleansing Bird sent a shiver of fear down her spine. Every inch of the ship before her, if could even been called that, looked as though it had been designed both for maximum intimidation and destruction.

“Captain, they’re hailing us,” Lyra spoke up. She couldn’t keep the fear out of her voice.

Alex exhaled. “Put them through,” she ordered, working to keep her voice steady.

The face of a heavily scarred Saurian appeared before them. Their eyes were black with hate and disdain. Alex kept her expression neutral and did her best to appear unaffected by the sight in front of her.

“I am Salok, Overseer of the Katoh-Fel. You are harbouring an issala-bas. I demand you hand it over for purification.”

“I’m Alex Danvers, Captain of the Starship DEO,” she started. “And I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Salok sneered. “Do not think me a fool, bas,” they snarled. “You will hand over the issala-bas!”

Alex scoffed. “You really don’t know how negotiation works, do you, pal?” she taunted. “Even if we did have a Saurian on board, which we don’t, there’s no way we would hand them over to you.”

Salok’s face twisted with rage. The scars marring their face only intensified the look. It was obvious that they weren’t used to their demands being refused.

“If you do not hand it over, then I will see your ship destroyed!” They thundered.

The crew exchanged unimpressed looks. Alex gave Salok a thin smile. Wrong move. It was never a good idea to threaten her crew. It was an even worse idea to threaten her ship. Do both, and you may as well have signed your own death warrant.

Alex leaned forward. “You obviously have no idea what it is we do,” she said. “So bring it.” She glanced at Bob. “Cut the channel.”

-

Alex let out a breath. “Alright, so I just entered us into a game of space chicken with a ship that’s armed to the teeth and looks to be the size of Delaware.” She glanced around. “Suggestions?”

“Kick their asses?” Jackson asked from his position at the weapons console.

Alex nodded. “Already planning on doing just that. Anything else?”

“Haul ass?” Lyra suggested.

“Kind of hard to do with everything offline, but great idea.” Movement on screen caught everyone’s attention. To their collective dismay, the Katoh-Fel Cleansing Bird appeared to be dispatching a shuttle. A shuttle that was the size of the DEO and headed for the hydroponics area of the ship.

“Jackson, please tell me weapons are online.”

Jackson typed furiously. He received a handful of sparks and a sputtering console for his trouble. He looked up.

“That would be a no, Captain.”

Fuck. Alex tapped the communication console. “Bridge to engineering, you have ten minute to get everything back online. Reroute whatever power you can to get shields, weapons, and engines back up.” She pulled out her gun and checked it over. “Kessel, report to the hydroponics corridor, you’ll be with me.”

She paused and looked around the bridge. She was met with looks of determination. She nodded before readjusting the communication channel. “Attention crew, this is Captain Danvers speaking. Get to your battle stations if you haven’t already. We have a hostile shuttle inbound.”

Alex clicked the channel off. “Lyra, you have the bridge. Bob, keep an eye on our Katoh-Fel friends and be ready to punch it as soon as the systems are back up.”

“Roger, Captain,” both of them said.

She headed to the doors of the bridge. “Good luck, Captain,” Bob said.

Alex glanced over her shoulder. “I don’t need luck, I have ammo.” A thoughtful look. “And Kessel.”

-

Alex was met by the security team and Kessel when she arrived in hydroponics. A look of murder sat on the face of a normally jovial Boloxvian.

“The boys briefed me, Captain,” he said in place of a greeting. “I assume that this Overseer and fellow ilk are about to be taught a very painful lesson?”

She gave him a look. “Do you really even have to ask?”

Kessel shrugged. “It’s always good to have confirmation.”

“Fair enough.”

“Bridge to hydroponics,” Alex’s personal comm crackled.

Alex tapped the badge that housed the mini-radio. “We read you down here.”

“30 seconds to breach, Captain. Looks like the Overseer’s on the shuttle.”

“Noted, Bridge. Prepare to lock down the ship.”

“Roger that.” A beat. “Good luck everyone.”

Helmets went on as soon as the line went dead. “Don’t forget to activate your mag-boots people.” Alex reminded. “Vacuum’s gonna last for a few seconds before the Bridge can lock us down.”

They all traded vicious grins. They took their positions along the wall. The rustling of readied weapons and hiss of helmets sealing were joined by the almost inaudible hum of mag-boots activating. Alex closed her eyes, centering herself. They had one shot to get this right. The ability of the DEO to protect her crew and turn the tide in this skirmish would be completely dependant on how well Alex, Kessel, and the security squad responded to the initial incursion.

One-one thousand. Two-one thousand. Three-one thousand. Her grip tightened on her gun. Then the world shifted.

-

If you were to ask Alex later on, she would tell you that if there was one thing the movies got wrong about space, it was the explosions. They were always made out to be these loud, dramatic fiery balls of doom. In reality, the initial explosion was much quieter and much less dramatic. Or at least, that’s what it seemed liked.

Time seemed to slow down the moment that the Katoh-Fel breached the hull. In stepped various Saurians, with Salok at their head. Various looks of fury and hatred were on their faces. Then the vacuum of space kicked in.

In space, no one could hear you scream, but Alex liked to imagine that should could hear the screams of the Katoh-Fel as they were sucked out into the blackness of the cosmos. The sudden onslaught of a differential pressure change destabilised the remaining Katoh-Fel and made them prime pickings for the various potted fake plants that dotted the corridor. Now I realise why Lyra insists on having those things. A large metal crate came flying down the hallway, drawing a heavily muffled yelp from Belen. It promptly smacked into three Katoh-Fel who, up until that point, were doing an admirable job to trying to board. They too joined their fellows in space.

“Crate shot!” Kessel crowed through his helmet comm.

Alex smirked at blatant pun. It wasn't his worst, to be honest.

A loud hum shook through the DEO. Half a moment later, the emergency seals kicked in and slammed down on the breach. One unfortunate Katoh-Fel found themselves bifurcated as three tonnes of reinforced steel came slamming down. Alex and her squad shared a wince. That had to hurt.

The Katoh-Fel struggled to regain their footing now that the air was no longer howling around them. In the time it took them to adjust and properly, Alex and the others had already disengaged their mag-boots and aimed. The remaining Katoh-Fel and Salok looked up to see various weapons trained on them.

Alex grinned savagely behind her helmet. “Welcome to the DEO,” she said.

She opened fire. Kessel let out a roar and followed suit. The others joined in shortly after. Two Katoh-Fel hit the ground, bodies riddled with plasma, metal fletchets (courtesy of Kessel), and lead. Salok and their squad stumbled back, snarling. They scrambled to pull up their personal shields as Alex and her squad unloaded on them. They managed to get off a few shots in return, but it was nothing compared to the fire they were taking.

“Motherfucker!” Belen snarled when she saw the personal shields go up. They weren't a common occurrence because the technology involved was so costly. But when they did show up, it was cause for a massive headache as it make a simple shooting job ten times harder. “Captain!”

“Yeah, I noticed!” Alex fired back. She activated an experimental plasma shield and slammed it into the deck. A large orange barrier quickly materialised. “Belen, get to Sameen and Astra! The rest of you, split off and pull back! We can flank them in the galley!”

The squad voiced their agreement. “Try not to die, Captain!” Belen called as she and the others moved back.

At the same time, Kessel decided to pop up from behind the shield and toss one of his “fun makers.” The concussive blast sent the Katoh-Fel flying back.

“Haha! Crack shot!” Kessel whooped. He followed up the explosion with several blasts from his heavily modified rifle.

Salok let out a roar as they were hit by a blast.

Kessel and Alex exchanged looks. “Think they're mad?” He asked.

An inhuman roar was their answer. Before they could react, Salok came smashing through the barrier. Salok’s personal shield fizzled out when they made contact with the orange barrier but the damage was done. The force of the collision sent Alex and Kessel flying.

Kessel smacked into the wall, leaving a large crater behind as he slid to the floor. Alex hit the ground with a groan. Thank god for body armor. She rolled back onto her feet just in time to see Salok standing over her. Before she could move away from them, they grabbed her by her neck and lifted her. She felt the beginnings of a mental intrusion and immediately walled her mind off.

“How curious that you insist on resisting a superior power,” they mused. “It is obvious that the issala-bas has defiled all of you. I will put you of your misery and cleanse the filth that has taken refuge on this vessel.”

Alex choked and spluttered. Her legs kicked furiously as she struggled in their grip. Salok let out a low, menacing chuckle.

“Your display of struggle is pathetic, bas. You can’t even even speak.” Alex snarled as best she could with a hand gripping her windpipe. They leaned in. “What was that?”

Unnoticed by Salok, Alex had managed to get her hands on the knife worn on their sash. She glared at them defiantly as her grip tightened around the knife.

“Fuck. Off,” she ground out.

Alex ripped the knife from Salok’s sash and slammed it into their arm. Salok dropped her, howling in pain and rage. Her knees hit the deck. She doubled over, coughing and gasping for air as the life support system’s of her suit kicked into overdrive. Salok continued to roar as their hand scrabbled to remove the knife from their arm. They weren’t very successful in their endeavour.

She looked past them to see Kessel slowly rousing himself. He noticed a raging Salok and caught Alex’s eyes. He weakly nodded his head, motioning for her to get going. Alex scrambled to her feet while Salok was still distracted, leaving them with Kessel. Even semi-conscious, the Boloxvian would prove to be a difficult opponent for the Overseer.

Better not die on me, asshole.

-

Belen entered Alex’s quarters and immediately slammed her gauntleted fist onto the wall panel. The doors hissed shut behind her. She pulled off her helmet and looked up to see Sameen holding a still-sleeping Astra in their arms. She let out a breath of relief.

“Oh, good, you and the kid are okay,” she said.

“We are fine, Belen.” Sameen frowned. “What is going on? Where is the Captain?”

“Long story short, Katoh-Fel, dunno if I’m saying that right, found the ship and want to blow us all to bits,” Belen replied, distracted. “Cap’s fighting some Overseer dude, Sauron, Salok, Sa-somthing--”

“Overseer?” A feeling a dread settled in Sameen’s gut. “Salok?”

“Huh?” Belen glanced at them. “Uh, yeah. Yeah, that sounds right.” She frowned. “Everything alright, Sameen?”

Sameen said nothing. Instead, they handed Astra over to Belen and moved her so that her back was against the wall.

“Uh, Sameen? Mind cluing me in here?”

“I must aid the Captain.” They moved towards the door. “You will remain here with Astra.”

“What? No!” Belen protested. “Cap sent me to keep the two of you safe! She’ll have my hide if either one of you gets hurt!”

Before she could react, Sameen was suddenly in front of her. They placed a clawed hand on her face. Moments later, Belen slumped against the wall, unconscious, with Astra still in her arms.

Sameen trilled remorsefully. It wasn’t something they enjoyed doing, but in this case, it was necessary. If Salok was indeed aboard, then there wasn’t any time to waste. But they couldn’t leave Astra unprotected. Leaving them with Belen wasn’t ideal, but it would have to do.

Sameen moved to leave. They cast a glance of their shoulder. Ancestors willing, they would return to their budling. But something told them that that wouldn’t be the case. They placed their hand on the door panel and input the security code. It would shut the door behind them and seal the quarters off to anyone except Alex or Lyra. Hopefully it would be enough.

-

Alex bolted down the DEO’s corridors. Not for the first time did she curse the size of the freighter she’d been stranded on. She angrily blew a strand of hair out of face as she rounded another corner. She had long since abandoned her helmet, having used it to brain a Katoh-Fel agent who’d been unfortunate enough to stand in her way. Crashing noises echoed behind her. Well, looks like Salok’s back. She picked up the pace. She had to get back to her quarters.

Alex turned right and slammed into someone. She looked up to see a Saurian looming over her. She pulled her fist back, ready to strike, only to stop at the last minute when she realised just exactly who was standing before her.

“Sameen?” What are they doing here? Her heart dropped. Did Belen not make it?

“Belen is fine Captain. I came to assist you,” Sameen informed her calmly.

Alex shook her head vehemently. “Sameen, these Saurians, they’re Katoh-Fel,” she explained. “The Overseer is right on my tail. You need to get going!” She checked over her gun. It was back at full charge. “I can buy you some time, so go!”

Sameen simply walked past Alex. “Sameen!” She protested.

“I will be fine, Captain,” they said curtly. “It would be best if you fell back.”

“They’re here to kill you!” Alex stressed. “You need to go!”

“No.” Salok was approaching. It was time to stop this madness. The Katoh-Fel wouldn’t take another of their family away.

“Sameen!”

Salok appeared before Alex could do anything else. The scarred Saurian’s chest heaved with exertion and anger. They had seen better days. Their armor was missing entire chunks. Blood was dripping from a vicious cut above their eye. Alex could see their tunic slowly, but steadily, turning a dark green; the result of a stab wound that found its way past their chest plate.

“These bas have proven most troublesome. I was beginning to believe that I would have to cut my way through this ship,” they rumbled. “But then the Ancestors saw fit to deliver the issala-bas to me so that it may be purified, as an act of providence!”

Alex snarled and stepped forward, gun at the ready. “Like hell, asshole!” The Overseer and the Katoh-Fel would take Sameen over her cold, dead body. And even then her corpse might still put up a fight.

Sameen raised her hand to stop Alex. “Enough.” They turned fully to address Salok. “Cease, now.”

Salok scoffed. “The issala-bas dares address me? It is not worthy enough to do so!” They thundered. “It is filth that must be purified and the things it defiled, purged!”

“Your people have perished. You are all that remains. You cannot hope for victory.”

“The fire of Katoh still burns aboard our Cleansing Bird! It shall purge this tarnished space!”

Alex and Sameen’s ears twitched. The halls of the DEO hummed. It’s about time. A slow smirk spread across her lips.

“Are you sure about that?” she spoke up, catching Salok’s attention.

“The Cleansing Bird will destroy your ship.”

“Uh huh.” Alex tapped her comm badge. “Danvers to Bridge.”

“Bridge here,” Lyra’s voice crackled through. “Standing by for your command, Captain.”

Alex glared defiantly at the Overseer. “Jackson, fire!”

The DEO lurched as she fired off modified disruptor torpedoes.

“And just what do you think that will do, bas?” Salok demanded. “Your weapons will be unable to sully the Cleansing Bird?”

“They will if they hit that spot just under the bridge.” Alex’s smirk spread. She knew, from Sameen’s memories, that that spot was semi-exposed due to a design flaw shared by all Katoh-Fel Cleansing Birds. Judging by how Salok’s eyes widened in horror, that weakness was still there.

Jackson’s voice echoed over the intercom. “Attention, crew of the DEO, prepare for an imminent proximity detonation!”

“Bob, punch it!”

The three of them stumbled forward as the DEO’s warp drive kicked back online. Salok shouted their outrage.

“You filthy vashedan-bas!” They howled.

Alex’s smirk turned into a cheeky grin that her sister would have been proud to see. “Don’t get too upset over this, Overseer, this clusterfuck’s entirely on you.”

“I will strike you down for your insolence!”

Sameen took a step towards them. They could see the madness slowly filling Salok’s eyes. Saurians were dangerous enough opponents while sane. Facing one that had been driven to madness and fueled by an unquenchable rage could easily spell disaster.

“You are welcome to try.”

-

A haze of red clouded Salok’s vision. How dare they. How dare these bas stand in their way!  How dare they resist their noble attempts to purify the issala-bas! Did they not know what they were harbouring? It was filthy. It was disgusting. It didn’t deserve to exist. It had to be purified. It had to be.

Destroy it. Destroy it. Destroy it! The only way to purify such a corrupted thing was to destroy it. Katoh’s mercy would see it reborn into a loyal member of the Katoh-Fel. It would be worthy of being a Saurian. But it had to die.

Blood pounded against their ears. The destruction of the issala-bas and the bas that harboured it were the only things their mind. The Ancestors delivered it to me. I will see it gone. Suddenly, they caught a glimpse from the mind of the bas. The bas was holding a budling.

Inhuman snarls left Salok’s mouth. The issala-bas had managed to produce a budling! It was spreading its corruption! This could not stand. It was their duty as an Overseer of the Katoh-Fel to purge all issala-bas.

Salok let out a bullish roar. They would kill the issala-bas, the bas that harboured it, and its perverted budling. Then, and only then, could this space be considered cleansed.

They charged forward, death and destruction all the remained inside of their mind.

Destroy and purify!

-

Alex took a step back at the noise that came out of Salok’s mouth. It was unlike anything she’d ever heard before. It was a sound of utter madness that promised nothing but destruction. She lifted her gun, ready to fire, but was pushed back by Sameen. She could only stare in disbelief as they intercepted the Overseer with a snarl of their own.

Sameen had caught the tail end of Salok’s thoughts, or at least, what remained of them anyhow. Fury filled them. The Katoh-Fel had taken everything from them: their family, their homeworld, their people. They would not take anymore.

They caught Salok and slammed them into the deck. The force behind their throw left a dent in the steel floor. Sameen caught their punch. They retaliated with one of their own before taking an arm to the gut. They went crashing into the wall.

Alex’s gun was trained on the two brawling Saurians. The speed of a fight rarely proved to be a problem for her. She had fought Kryptonians, Martians, and extremely athletic humans with little trouble. But the speed and intensity at which Sameen and Salok clashed at was enough to put all three groups to shame.

Sameen rolled to their feed and narrowly dodged a swipe from Salok’s knife. When Salok had pulled it out, they didn’t know. What they did know was that it left a large gash in the wall, and if it could do that, it would go through their plates with ease.

Sameen, despite being unarmed, had a slight advantage in this fight. Salok was worn down from having had to fight their way through Alex, Kessel, and other crewmen of the DEO. Sameen, on the other hand, was relatively fresh. Salok was driven by madness and rage at this point. Sameen was fueled by their own anger and an intense need to protect their found family and budling. Neither was willing to back down. The Overseer was past the point of being able to be talked down. Sameen had no intention of allowing the Saurian before them to pass. This would end when either one, or both, of them lay dead on the floors of the DEO.

Salok thundered out their fury as Sameen avoided yet another blow. This would not stand. Though their sanity was waning, they had enough remaining to know that this fight had to end soon.

Sameen could see Salok lagging. There! They made their move. They lunged. It proved to be a mistake.

Alex could only watch as Sameen lunged. She saw them stop short and stiffen suddenly. Her eyes widened with horror when wet cough broke from Sameen.

Salok’s knife buried itself deep into Sameen’s chest plates. They had misjudged the knife’s position had paid dearly for it. They coughed wetly. Despite the knife in their chest, they managed to meet Salok’s mad, hate-filled gaze head on.

The madness that had taken over began to recede once Salok realised that the issala-bas stood dying before them. A twisted smile spread slowly across their face. They lifted their head to the ceiling, taking their eyes off the issala-bas as they began to chuckle. That proved to be Salok’s undoing.

With what little strength they had left, Sameen shoved their hand through Salok’s chest plates. The laughter abruptly stopped. Salok’s fingers scrabbled at Sameen’s arm, but they weren’t to be deterred.

“Y-your kind…” Sameen rasped out. “Will never...touch my people...or my family again.”

Slowly, their hand inched deeper and deeper until their claws poked through the soft spot on Salok’s back plates.

-

Not possible. Not possible. Salok could think of little else. How could an a filthy issala-bas kill them? They were an Overseer of the Katoh-Fel. They were pure. They were true Saurian. It simply wasn’t possible.

-

And yet, it was. Salok let out a choked noise the moment Sameen’s claws shredded through their heart. Then, the madness and hate faded from their eyes. In its place was blankness. Salok’s chest did not rise. It did not fall. It simply went still.

Sameen eyes burned with defiance. The Overseer was dead. The ship was safe and her crew were safe. Astra was safe. It was done. They felt their knees weaken.

-

Alex rushed to Sameen. She managed to catch them before they hit the ground. She kicked Salok’s body aside. Why wasn’t I faster? She pushed her anger aside. This wasn’t the time for it. Sameen was her priority right now.

“I-I believe that...I may have e-errored, Captain,” they coughed out.

“Yeah, no kidding.” The knife had gone in deep. She couldn’t recognise the material it was made out of, but it was obvious that it was designed to specifically for Saurian physiology. She pressed her ear against against their chest plate. Nothing. Shit. The lung had collapsed and Sameen’s chest cavity was filling with blood as a result.

“H-How bad, Captain?”

Alex bit her lip. Sameen’s chest was filling with blood. She didn’t have the equipment on hand to relieve the build up and they were two decks down from the medbay. On top that, the knife was still in Sameen. If Alex took it out, Sameen would bleed out. But if it stayed in, every jerk of their chest as they gasped for air caused it to slip around and do more damage.

“It...it could be worse.” But not by much. She tapped her comm badge. “Danvers to medbay.”

“Medbay here,” Zar’ya responded. “Where are you, Captain?”

“I’m two decks down with Sameen. They’ve sustained a severe stab wound to the upper left quadrant, and as a result are suffering from a hemo-pneumothorax.” The language of medicine was familiar to Alex. It kept her grounded and objective. “I need a medical team to our location. I don’t have the equipment to treat this and if it isn’t resolved soon they’re…” Her voice caught.

“Understood, Captain. A medical team will be down in five. Zar’ya out.”

Alex looked down to Sameen. They didn't have five minutes. They were losing a worrying amount of blood. She had to do something.

She shrugged off her jacket and tore at her shirt. She packed it around the knife and its resulting wound. She moved quickly, hoping it would be enough to staunch the worst of the bleeding and keep the knife from shifting any further. It’s not enough. I need gauze. I need a chest tube. I need to stop the bleeding. I need--

“Y-you must not worry, Captain,” Sameen rasped out. “They…they will be here soon.”

Not soon enough. Sameen was starting to lose colour, greying out the skin under their pates even more. They’re losing too much blood, too fast.

Sameen, for all the strength they were still trying to show, seemed to know their odds. They had known them the moment they stepped out of Alex’s quarters. They closed their eyes.

“No no no, keep you eyes open!” Years of treating severely wounded and dying agents in the field had taught Alex that eyes had to stay open. Keep the patient awake and responsive until backup arrives.

“I was...I was merely resting them, Captain,” Sameen protested tiredly.

“You can rest them later,” Alex fired back. “Just keep them open until you get to the medbay!”

Sameen mustered a weak smile. “I believe...we know that the s-seconds,” they coughed harshly. “The passing seconds make that...unlikely.” Zar’ya had said five minutes, but five minutes was an eternity to they dying. Despite their earlier reassurances to Alex, they knew it was time they didn’t have.

Sameen took a deep breath, despite the pain that it caused. “I must ask something of you.”

“Ask me later,” Alex said. “Right now, just focus on keeping your strength up, alright?”

This couldn’t wait. “A-Astra. You are their kepesh-par--”

“I know, Sameen, I have been for the last year, stop talking!” Alex pressed her hands down harder around the wound. The doctor in her knew it was futile, but she had to at least keep trying.

Sameen ignored her. They kept talking. “Look after them, please. You--” Their body lurched as harsh coughs wracked through them. “You are their family now.”

Now? “Sameen--”

“P-promise me, Captain, please,” they pleaded. “Look after them.”

“You need to stop talking and--” Alex wasn’t going to talk about this, not now. She was Alex fucking Danvers. The medical team was going to show up any moment now and she was going to get Sameen to the medbay, alive, no matter what the doctor in her was saying.

Sameen gripped Alex’s arm to draw her attention to them. “Promise me.”

Tears that had gathered in her eyes with her notice finally started to fall. “I promise,” she said. She angrily wiped her eyes. Where was the goddamn medical team?

Sameen gave a quiet sigh of relief. Their grip weakened. They were so tired. They didn’t want to leave. The crew of the DEO was their family. But they had no say in the matter. The Ancestors had decided some time ago that they wished for Sameen to join them.

Alex felt Sameen’s grip loosen. She moved one of her hands to grip theirs. “Stay with me, Sameen, that’s an order!” she demanded.

Sameen tried. They could hear the urgency in Alex’s voice and felt her panic. But they were just so tired. Their head lolled to the side. A soft breath left their mouth. And then, nothing. No rising chest. No pained cough. Just, nothing.

“Sameen?” Alex reached out and gently shook their body. No response. “Oh.” Why did I think I was going to get one? She bowed her head. Her body shook with silent sobs.

-

The loud pounding of boots signaled the arrival of the medical team. Zar’ya was at their head. They all stopped suddenly at the sight of their Captain on her knees, head bowed.

Zar’ya stepped forward cautiously. She took in the scene before her. The body of a dead Saurian lay in the distance. That must have been the leader. Good riddance. Her eyes landed on Alex. She was kneeling next to Sameen, tears quietly making their way down her face. For a moment, the image threw Zar’ya. Alex, after all, rarely shed tears. The only time she did was when a member of the crew…died.

Zar’ya signaled for the rest of the team to stay where they were. She quietly approached Alex. Every step she took echoed down the corridor. She stopped behind Alex. Her heart clenched. Sameen looked so peaceful. The final calm expression on their face contrasted to the knife in their chest and the destruction around them.

She reached out and placed her hand on Alex’s shoulder. “Captain?” Aside from a flinch, there was no other reaction. “Captain, we’ll take it from here. You should go check on Astra.”

Alex’s head lifted. “Astra.” She pushed herself to her feet. “Right. I...I have to go and…” She glanced back down at Sameen.

“We have Sameen, Captain,” Zar’ya reassured her. “Go.”

Alex stood still for several moments before stumbling off in the direction of her quarters.

Zar’ya looked down at Sameen once Alex was out of sight. She sighed. She signaled for her team. I hate this part of the job.

-

Alex made her way back to her quarters in a daze. She was angry. If Sameen hadn’t come for her, they would still be alive. She could have taken the Overseer by herself. She had killed a Hellgramite barehanded, after all.

She removed her comm badge as she approached the door. She pressed it into a small, barely noticeable indent just above eye height. It whined as the security system ran the override codes. Moments later, a loud beep echoed in the abandoned corridor and the door hissed open.

Alex stepped into her quarters. Her eyes did a quick sweep of the area. Datapads were still scattered about, though a few had been pushed off to the side. She froze. Astra was nowhere in sight.

Alright, stay calm, Danvers. The door had been locked with a security code that could only be implemented by either herself or Sameen, and only if Astra was Alex’s quarters. Sameen had been the one to use it, which meant that Astra was still here. They had to be alive, as hydraulic doors were untouched by the Katoh-Fel because none of them were able to make it this far.

She looked around. She caught a glimpse of Belen slumped behind her desk, holding a bundle of something in her arms. Her stomach clenched. Shit. Alex knelt down next to the Thanagarian. A quick examination made clear that she was just unconscious, not dead. She continued to check Belen over and found that the bundle was a still-sleeping Astra.

Belen stirred. “Mmph…gods what hit me?” she asked groggily. She remembered Sameen handing Astra over to her and then nothing. Wait. “Shit. Sameen!”

She bolted to her feet, nearly bowling Alex over. It was Alex’s quick reaction that kept the Thanagarian from tripping over herself and dropping Astra in the process.

“Captain!” How long had she been out for? “Sameen walked out and--”

Alex cut her off. “I know.”

Belen’s eyes finally caught up to her mouth. For the first time since she’d been roused from her sleep did she notice just how filthy the human was. Alex was sporting a split lip. Bruises, in the shape of a hand, were slowly forming on her neck. It was the green blood covering her that ultimately drew Belen’s full attention. Alex’s hands were a dripping green. Her shirt was torn, but also showed signs of green. Belen’s heart dropped.

“I,” Belen started. “Are they…?” She didn’t know how to else ask. She, like many others on the ship, had found the Saurian to be incredibly intimidating at first glance. But as she got to know them, she found that they had hearts of gold. She and Sameen had grown closer in the year since their budding and Astra’s entrance into space. The two never got further than close friends. And now, they never would. Now, Sameen was gone. Why didn’t I say something sooner?

Alex said nothing. Instead, she reached out and quietly took Astra into her arms. She pressed her nose against their fringe and closed her eyes.

“Oh.” Belen looked down. It felt like she had just been punched in the gut. “Oh.”

“They’re in the medbay,” Alex said quietly. “If, if you want to say goodbye. Before everyone else gets there.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course.” The ship’s scuttlebutt meant that it wouldn’t be long before news of Sameen’s death reached the rest of the crew. She moved to leave.

“Belen.”

Belen stopped to glance at Alex. “Captain?” She worked to keep her voice steady.

“They knew.”

Belen choked back a sob at Alex’s words. The kepesh-par bond that she shared with Sameen meant that she and they shared much. If Alex was telling her that Sameen knew, it meant that they also returned Belen’s affections.

“Thank you, Captain.” Belen hurried out of Alex’s quarters, leaving the bloodied agent alone.

-

Alex sat on the edge of her bed with Astra in her arms. She looked down at the tiny Saurian. She felt numb. Another member of her crew was dead on her watch. A part of Alex sorely craved a bottle or three of Caledonian ale. Only the snoring buddling in her arms stayed her hand. They don’t need a drunk for a parent.

Astra made a chuffling noise. They stirred. Alex stiffed as their eyes opened.

‘’Lo, Alex-par,’ they greeted sleepily.

“Hey, doodlebug,” Alex murmured. She fought to keep her voice steady.

Astra looked around. Something felt off. ‘Where bud-par?’

Ice settled low in Alex’s stomach. How was she going to explain this?

‘Alex-par?’ Astra could feel the indecision making its way through Alex. What was she holding back? ‘Where bud-par?’

“They, uh…” Her throat suddenly felt much to dry. She had delivered numerous death notices over the years without issue. More often than not, it ended with a sobbing spouse or parent and Alex sitting stiffly as J’onn reiterated just how sorry he was for their loss. Now, she couldn’t bring herself to say the words. But she had to. The longer she kept Astra in the dark, the more it would hurt later one. The kepesh-par bond meant they would find out anyway, and Alex preferred that they hear it from her.

Alex cleared her throat. She took a breath. “You remember how your bud-par told you Samar and what happened with them?”

‘Samar gone.’

“Yeah, kiddo. Samar’s gone.” According to Sameen, Samar had given their live trying to protect them from Cadmus. “And a little bit ago some bad people decided to try and attack the DEO.”

No one on the DEO had hidden the fact that the ship often came under attack from Astra. There wasn’t any point in doing so.

‘Alex-par and bud-par win?’ So far Astra knew, Alex and the others always managed to beat the aggressive forces that were foolish enough to attack.

Alex choked back a sob at how innocent Astra’s question was. “Yeah,” she confirmed. “We won, doodlebug, but…” She trailed off.

-

She and Kara are standing at the top of the stairs. The same men that came the night Kara took her out to fly now sit in the living room with their mother. The black man, Hank, she later learns, is saying something. What it is, Alex can’t tell, but it causes Kara to gasp. Alex absently shushes her. She doesn’t want to get caught.

Alex watches as her mother begins to sob. Next to her, Kara is stifling her own cries. The black man reaches out and takes her mother’s hands. She can just make out, “I’m so sorry, Dr. Danvers.” Alex frowns. Sorry for what?

The man and his fellows get up and leave. Not a single one of them glance up at the stairs where one girl stands frowning, and another quietly sheds tears. At click of the front door shutting, her mother folds in on herself. Her sobs echo throughout the house.

Hours later, Eliza informs Alex and Kara that Jeremiah is dead. That night, Alex sneaks out of the house and goes to the beach. She screams her rage out at the ocean. Eventually she falls to her knees. She pounds her fist into the sand as she curses a god that won’t answer for daring to take her father from her. She weeps. The ocean spray mixes with her tears. She weeps harder.

-

Alex exhaled harshly. “Your bud-par, Sameen, they didn’t make it, doodlebug. They’re gone.”

‘Gone?’ Astra didn’t understand. What did Alex mean by ‘gone?’

“They’re gone like Samar is, Astra.” A lump caught in her throat. “They’re dead.”

Astra finally understood just exactly what Alex was saying. They made a noise of distress. It turned into a low keen before becoming high-pitched, broken cries.

Alex wasn’t fairing much better. The walls that she tried so desperately to raise came crashing down as Astra’s sorrow flooded the bond. Tears slid down her cheeks as she wept. Her quarters were filled with sounds of grief as human and Saurian mourned the loss of a close friend and parent, respectively.