Written for the incredibly epic, always encouraging scaryrobots. He wanted a picture based on a piece of fanart and my muse had to make it happen. Happy birthday! :D :D
And yes, this is a post-Halo 3 AU. You've been warned.
It wasn't often that Cortana saw John without his helmet.
Occasionally, he removed it to get a seldom-needed breath of fresh air, like when they had escaped Installation 04. Most of the time, however, it meant the situation was dire.
Like today.
Things since their return back to Earth via the Portal hadn't been peaceful. The Covenant, despite the deaths of their prophets, were still a formidable enemy and the Insurrectionists, emboldened by the weakened state of the UNSC, were gaining strength.
Most of the time, John's luck was enough to keep the two of them safe. But, even he couldn't avoid the bullets of his enemy forever.
Their latest mission required them to work alongside the newly trained Spartan-IVs. He and Lieutenant Palmer had been tasked with infiltrating a new Covenant base and rooting out the growing force there.
The mission had been going well. The charges had been set on the Covenant stronghold and they had been on their way to rendezvous with the rest of the company. Before they had been able to reach the waypoint, a band of Elite had popped up on the ridge and began to attack.
It hadn't been long before Banshees dotted the sky and the hum of Ghosts filled the air.
John, Palmer, and the other Spartans and ODSTs had worked together to gain the upper hand. The battle had been intense, but they had finally started to gain some ground.
Palmer had the detonator and had been trying to make her way to where the transport was. John had provided covering fire for her and the others to cross through the valley to where the Pelican had been waiting. They had almost made it when a pair of Hunters charged down the slope and took aim at Palmer with their rail guns.
Cortana had rarely seen John move as fast as he had when each of the Hunters fired a shot at Palmer. He had plucked a grenade from the side of his armor, chucked it in the direction of the hulking duo, as he moved to Palmer's location. He had time to shove her out of the way, but the blast from the powerful weapons hit him directly, knocking his shields out and rendering him unconscious.
Cortana had cried out his name as Palmer yelled at the rest of the soldiers to finish what the Chief had started. Less than a minute later, the Hunters had fallen to their death.
Despite Cortana's constant pleas, John hadn't stirred. It had taken four Spartans to carry the Chief to the Pelican.
As soon as they landed back on the Infinity, the doctors had whisked John away from Cortana. She hadn't been ignorant of what had been happening behind the operating room doors; she had hacked into the medlabs' systems as soon as they had arrived on board.
It had taken nearly two hours, but finally, John had been wheeled out of the operating room into a room of his own.
When the chief surgeon walked into his office, Cortana had been there, arms crossed. "May I see him yet or do I have to sneak in there?"
She had to hand it to him, the doctor hadn't looked the slightest bit fazed by her appearance. "Under the circumstances, I'd say that he's better off recovering alone. However, since I know that you'll find a way in there anyway, I'd just ask that you'd give him time to rest. "
"Done."
Cortana had transferred to his room without another word.
John was in the bed, without his armor, laying completely still. His pale skin barely stood out from his white hospital gown. A bandage covered his right temple. He remained asleep, despite the blue hue that Cortana's avatar cast over the room.
With a quick burst of commands, Cortana implemented her hard light program that allowed her to move from the holotank to where she really wanted to be: next to John. It was rare when she found herself needing to use the protocol that she had discovered while sifting through the Forerunner data that ONI had collected, but times like this, times when she needed to feel John, made her grateful she had the ability to feel.
She hopped to his bed and made her way to the center of his chest. She placed her ear against his chest, over his heart, and listened to it beat, letting the sound sooth her. It was strong and steady, like usual.
She knew her action wasn't something an AI would do.
It was something a human would do.
Her hands slid up to his shoulder as she let her head rest on him. She stayed that way, checking him both by accessing the data from his biomontior and feeling the rise and fall of his chest, until she saw his right hand twitch.
"Cortana?" His voice was slurred, courtesy of the powerful drug cocktail that was being pumped into his system.
She slowly moved to her knees, not taking her eyes away from John's face. His eyes were dilated, his breathing was slightly labored. And, to her surprise, there was an uncharacteristic soft smile on his face.
An eyebrow arched. "Do you have some other AI companion that you would find in this position when you woke up?"
He shook his head. The movement was sloppy. "No, there's only you," he rumbled.
Her avatar turned pink for a fraction of a second. John was rarely under the influence of powerful painkillers, but when he had been in the past, he was more open, more human, than he normally was.
He stared at her for a couple of seconds. She watched as he tried to focus on her. "What happened?"
"You nearly died trying to save Lieutenant Palmer's life." She smirked. "She said she owes you a beer or two. I think she might have a bit of a crush on you."
His reply was swift. "Already taken."
This time Cortana's avatar turned pink for a full two seconds. "You sure know how to flatter a girl."
Several seconds passed before he spoke again. He lifted his left hand and gently touched her arm. "You activated your hard light protocol."
She was not going to be flustered by the unexpected physical contact, she told herself. "Well, since I couldn't be in that head of yours, I'd thought I go for the next best thing."
His eyes crinkled slightly. "Which was laying on my chest?"
Her eyes narrowed. How long had he been watching her?
Cortana felt his low laugh as much as she heard it. She needed to get back on an even-playing field. "I could have gone for the whole 'kiss and make it better' idea, but I thought it was a little clichéd."
A blush colored John's cheeks.
Gotcha, Spartan.
Then, before she could think herself out of it, she stood up, walked several steps and planted a soft kiss on his lips. He smiled under the gentle caress.
She lifted her head and looked at his eyes. They were still glassy, but there was an unmistakable spark in them that hadn't been there before.
She cupped his cheeks with her tiny hands. "Get some sleep. I'll be here when you're more lucid."
"Promise?" Already, his eyes were slipping shut.
She leaned forward and pressed her lips against his forehead. "I promise, John."