Misunderstandings

Disclaimer: Spooks is owned by Kudos and the BBC. I don't own them and you all know that.

A/N: This is set a few days after 4.9.

Wednesday 20 April 2006

Harry pushed open the door to the roof, hoping for five minutes of quiet and fresh air to clear his mind from the stress of the past few days. As the door swung open he heard a voice and realized that Ruth was already on the roof, talking with someone. He waited to hear who was with her, but not hearing anyone else he understood that she was on her mobile. Not wanting to interrupt or eavesdrop he started to let the door close, until something she said caught his attention.

"I can't wait to see you, Charlie. I miss you dreadfully," Ruth said happily. After a brief pause she ended the call. "I'll see you on Friday. Love you, too."

Harry let the door shut quietly and hurried down the stairs, not wanting to explain to Ruth why he was lingering or to see the excitement in her eyes.

Friday 22 April 2006

Ruth checked her watch once again and continued to hope that all stayed quiet and calm in the next few minutes. It was unusual for her to leave the office before six in the evening, but tonight she needed to be at Victoria Station by six to pick up a friend. Charlotte Price, known to her friends as Charlie, had been Ruth's roommate at Oxford. While the two stayed in regular contact, it had been several years since they'd seen each other and Ruth was very much looking forward to her visit. Her thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Zaf at her desk.

"Daydreaming about me again?" Zaf asked, a smirk decorating his face.

Ruth smiled. "Of course, Zaf. What else do I have to do all day?"

Zaf laughed in return. "Adam, Jo, and I are meeting at the George tonight after work. You in?"

Ruth shook her head. "Sorry, not tonight. I have company coming for the weekend. I need to be at Victoria Station by six to pick Charlie up."

Zaf's eyes widened. "Evershed, you are a dark horse," he started before Adam interrupted, calling him back to the Forgery Suite.

Ruth was confused for a moment until she realized that Zaf assumed that Charlie was a man. She debated going after him to correct his assumption, but he probably wouldn't believe her anyway. Looking the time once again, Ruth double checked her inbox for any last minute items before shutting everything down and gathering her things. Slipping on her jacket, she walked over to Harry's office and stopped just inside the door, waiting for him to wrap up a phone call with the DG. A moment later the handset was replaced and he turned towards her.

"Sneaking out early?" he asked with a smile.

"I cleared this with you earlier this week," she reminded Harry.

The smile disappeared as he remembered the conversation he overheard on the roof. "Yes, you did. Have a good weekend, Ruth," he said before turning back to a stack of papers on his desk.

Surprised at his reaction, she opened her mouth to say something, but then thought better of it. Perhaps the conversation with the DG hadn't gone well. Harry was just returning from suspension and he probably had enough to deal with without her quizzing him about his moods.

Ruth waved goodbye to Jo, Adam, and Zaf as she left the Grid.

"Is Ruth not joining us?" asked Jo.

"Nope, she's picking up a man at Victoria Station tonight," said Zaf.

"What? Where'd you hear that?" asked Adam, not quite believing him.

"Told me herself. Some bloke named Charlie who's visiting her for the weekend." Zaf and Adam exchanged a look, both surprised that Ruth would be seeing another man.

Jo, still fairly new and not aware of the shared history between Harry and Ruth, caught the glance "What was that look for? What don't I know?"

Adam shook his head. "Nothing, Jo. I think it's time we left for the day. This week's been long enough." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Harry leave his office. "Right, Harry? This week has been long enough."

Harry approached the group. "That it has. Headed to the George are we?"

The three nodded. "Are you joining us? We can give you a proper welcome back," Adam noted.

"Well, when you put it that way, why not. Let me finish sending those reports and I'll meet you there."

It was another twenty minutes before Harry left the Grid and made the short walk to the nearby pub that was a favorite of those from Section D.

The outside air was still cool but inside the pub was already too warm for Harry's liking. Between that and his distraction over Ruth's weekend visitor, he decided to make it an early night and only stay for a short visit. He spotted the group seated at the back of the pub. Adam raised a glass to show him that a whisky was already waiting for him, so Harry skipped the stop at the bar.

"Glad you could make it, Harry. Jo was just telling us some of the things she's done to track down a story in her short career as a journalist. No wonder she fits in so well with us on the Grid," Adam said as Jo lightly blushed.

Harry smiled at Jo. "We're glad to have you on our team, Jo. Maybe you can teach these guys a trick or two."

Jo's faced lit up at the thought of showing up Adam and Zaf, while the guys looked a bit put out at Harry's suggestion. The combination of it all made him laugh.

Zaf asked Harry what he did on his forced holiday and talk turned to dog racing and quiz shows.

"I must remember to thank Ruth for the food parcels she sent, though I'm not sure whether to be insulted that she seems to think I would be subsisting on tuna and crisps otherwise," Harry noted. "I've no idea how she did it, but she made my favorite dishes."

"Ruth cooked for you? Wonder what I could do to get myself suspended…" Zaf started before the look on Harry's face made him burst out laughing with Adam and Jo joining in.

Harry finished his whisky and raised himself out of his seat. "Keep it up, Mr. Younis, and you just may find out," he noted with a slight smile. "I'm making it an early night. I'll see you all on Monday morning."

"Ruth, I'm so glad I could come to London to celebrate your birthday, even if I am a week early. It's been far too long since we've been able to enjoy a nice night out together."

"It has, but I'm thrilled to have you here for the weekend, Charlie. Is there anything in particular you're hoping to do?"

The two women were slowly walking back from a quiet restaurant about a half-mile from Ruth's home and were nearly there. The night was cooler than expected so Charlie linked her arm through Ruth's arm as they strolled home.

"You know you're one of the only people who still call me Charlie. My boss at my first job out of school was called Charlie, so I went by Charlotte to avoid confusion in the office and it stuck. Even Simon calls me Charlotte now. I have to say, it's nice to be Charlie again for the weekend." She nudged Ruth's shoulder with her own. "Did you want me to call you Ruthie this weekend?"

Ruth stopped walking and turned to face Charlie. "Absolutely not! Don't you remember how much I hated that name?"

Charlie kept a straight face for all of two seconds before breaking out in a laugh. "I remember all right. We only called you that when we needed to get your attention because your nose was usually buried in a book."

She wrapped Ruth up in a tight hug. "I've missed you, Ruth. It's been too long since we've been together."

Ruth responded by putting her arms around Charlie's waist and hugging her back. "I agree. It has been far too long." Releasing her hold, she again linked her arm with Charlie's. "I don't know about you, but I'm getting chilled. I could go for a hot cup of tea."

"Another excellent idea from Ruth Evershed. Let's go!" said Charlie as she started walking quickly and dragging Ruth along until she caught up.

Sunday 24 April 2006

The weekend passed in a blur and in the blink of an eye it was the last night of Charlie's visit. She would be leaving in the morning to go back to Edinburgh and Ruth wished the visit could be longer. She felt a tap at her shoulder and looked up to see Charlie holding out a mug of tea.

"I know you like to use those dainty teacups but I found two of these at the back of cupboard and decided to use them. I hope you don't mind," she said as Ruth took the mug from her hand.

"It's fine. Thanks for the tea, it smells wonderful," Ruth said, wrapping her hands around the mug. "This weekend has gone far too quickly. It feels like you just arrived."

"I know, but I'm glad I was able to come down. Now it's your turn to visit me. When was the last time you were in Edinburgh anyway? It wasn't during that long weekend when we were in Oxford was it?"

"Um, it was. I did see you in Glasgow that week I was there for a work conference and you came over to visit but otherwise we've always met for weekends in some out of the way place. I would like to come up to Edinburgh, though. Maybe for a few days this summer; escape the heat for a few days in July."

"Clear it with your boss this week and then let me know the dates."

Ruth nodded. "I'll do that."

Charlie had been watching Ruth and at the mention of her boss her face softened and a hint of a smile appeared. "And speaking of your boss, what are you going to do?"

"What do you mean?" Ruth asked, hoping that her voice remained nonchalant.

"You know exactly what I mean. I saw the look in your eyes when you told me about meeting him this week on the sly when he was suspended. Is he more than your boss?" Charlie tried to keep the conversation light, remembering how Ruth could shut down when she really didn't want to discuss something.

"No, he's not more than my boss. He's never going to be more than that," Ruth replied.

"Is he married?" Charlie asked.

Ruth shook her head. "No, he's divorced. As far as I know he's not seeing anyone either."

"So he's available; that's good. Why do you say he won't ever be more than your boss? Is it just the whole boss-employee dynamic? I can see why that might get a bit weird but if you've found a really great guy I'd find a way around it. Or does your office have a strict policy about that sort of thing?" Charlie looked at Ruth and was afraid she'd pushed too far. She gave Ruth a bit of time and hoped that she was gathering her thoughts. It paid off, as a couple of minutes later Ruth was ready to speak.

"I feel... like such a silly girl. How unprofessional is it to develop a crush on your boss?" Ruth leaned forward and set her mug on the coffee table. "Plus it's so cliched, isn't it? Younger woman falls for her older boss. If by some miracle we were to go on a date, can you imagine what the office gossip would be? I'd suddenly be the woman shagging Henry Roberts to get a promotion and you know how much that would repulse me! I couldn't bear it." Ruth sank back into her sofa dejectedly.

"I know it would repulse you and I also know it's something you would never do," Charlie said, moving to sit on the sofa as well. "But I can tell that you really like this guy, or you wouldn't be getting worked up about it." She watched as Ruth's eyes quickly lifted to meet hers, confirmation enough for Charlie.

"So if Henry wasn't your boss and he asked you on a date would you go? Say he was the boss in a different department but not your supervisor. Would you go, leaving the gossip out of it for now."

Ruth lifted her head to look across the room and a moment later she nodded, a small smile gracing her face. "Yes, I would be willing to go on a date with him."

"Now we're getting somewhere," Charlie murmured.

Monday 25 April 2006

Ruth arrived at Thames House to find it was already busy. She'd come straight from Victoria Station where she saw Charlie off on an early morning train back up to Edinburgh. Despite the busy weekend and the fact that she and Charlie stayed up late last night talking, Ruth felt recharged and had a new perspective on her life.

Charlie had tried to convince her to ask Harry out on a date, the thought of which horrified Ruth. Charlie was not to be deterred however and suggested other ways for social interaction outside the office, which lingered in Ruth's mind. Judging by the number of people milling around, however, she would have to set aside her thoughts about seeing Harry outside the office for the time being as work beckoned.

Adam breezed past her desk, dropping a bound document in front of her. "Briefing with Special Branch officers in 20 minutes. Review this first," he said as moved to Harry's office. She looked up to see the man in question on the phone as Adam entered, shutting the door behind him.

Ruth skimmed through the report but didn't notice Zaf arrive at her desk. "Time for the briefing, Ruth. On the way there you can tell me how your weekend with Charlie was," Zaf added with a sly grin.

Ruth had assumed she wouldn't get by without a comment from Zaf so she was prepared. "My weekend was lovely, Zaf," she said as she faked a yawn. "I'm still quite tired from all the activity. You know how it is," she said leaving a surprised Zaf a step behind her.

An hour later Harry and Ruth left the Briefing Room. He was giving her additional details for the tasks she'd been assigned and she was busy scribbling notes on the back of a file, thus she didn't notice when Harry stopped short of her desk. Looking at him in confusion, she followed his gaze to her desk upon which sat a large bouquet of red roses.

"What on earth?" she muttered to herself as she reached for the card. Opening it, she quickly read the card and smiled at the message.

"As I said Ruth, please have those tasks done as soon as possible. I assume I don't need to remind you about the rules regarding fraternization. Please submit your S24 form today," Harry said before quickly turning back to his office.

Ruth stood in shock at the quick turn of events. It was Zaf's voice that brought her back to reality.

"'Thank you for a fantastic weekend and can't wait to see you again soon. Love, Charlie,'" he read. "I have to admit, Ruth, I wasn't sure you had it in you," Zaf added.

Ruth clutched the note to her chest. "Excuse me? What are you talking about? And why are you reading my notes?"

"The note and the flowers. Obviously Charlie enjoyed his time with you this weekend. Good for you, Ruth," Zaf replied before trotting away towards Adam, who was beckoning him from across the room.

Ruth shook her head and sat down in her chair. "Great, now everyone in Thames House will think I'm having some torrid affair." Ruth moved the flowers to the far corner of her desk and out of her way. "Thanks, Charlie," she muttered before diving into her work for the day.

Other than a few admirers of the flowers, Ruth's day was largely uninterrupted. The last of the searches she was running was going smoothly and her contacts in the various agencies around London were providing her with the information she'd hoped to find. She was collating the data and writing a summary of her findings when a message from Harry popped up on her screen, asking her to join him in his office. She was almost finished with her findings and was tempted to ask him to wait five minutes but as she looked towards his office she noticed him watching her. She decided against asking him to wait and walked to his office.

"How is your report coming along?" he asked in a quiet, even voice.

"Good. I'm just wrapping up my summary and I can have it to you by half past," she replied in a tone of voice that mirrored his.

"Good, good," he said, nodding gently.

After a few moments of silence, Ruth asked, "Harry, was there anything else you needed from me?"

Harry didn't respond and seemed to be watching something on the Grid. Turning her head, she watched as Jo stopped next to the roses and leaning in close, took a deep breath, a smile gracing her face as she walked away.

"Will you be handing in an S24 for me to review?" Harry asked. His voice was still even, but Ruth knew him well enough to know that he was working to mask something.

"No, that won't be necessary," Ruth replied, watching his face for a reaction. She had called Charlie during one of her breaks to thank her for the flowers and Charlie admitted to sending roses to provoke a reaction from Ruth's boss, 'Henry Roberts.'

"You're not planning to see him again?" Harry asked.

"How do you know they're from a man?" Ruth countered.

Harry met her eyes. "I may have overheard Zaf telling Jo about your weekend with Charlie. That is who you left to meet on Friday night, correct? The person who sent you the flowers?"

It hadn't taken Ruth long to figure out that Harry assumed she spent the weekend with a man. What she couldn't figure out however was whether he was bothered by this idea. She decided to play along to see what his assumptions were.

"Yes, I left here on Friday to pick up my friend Charlie."

"Did you have a nice weekend? Do anything interesting?" he asked with practiced nonchalance.

"It was a very nice weekend. Dinner on Friday night, visited the Portrait Gallery and then took in the show at the National Theatre on Saturday, and on Sunday we enjoyed the weather as we strolled around London. As I said, very nice."

"Good," Harry paused before continuing. "Are you planning to see each other again soon?"

"We are. I'm hoping to make the trip to Edinburgh for a long weekend sometime this summer."

"I see. So it's a long-distance relationship."

"You could say that. Harry, is there something you want to ask me? Or are you normally this curious about everyone's personal life?"

Harry narrowed his eyes at her. "I'm only this curious about my officer's personal lives when they haven't submitted an S24 as is required. Care to enlighten me as to why you've failed to do so?"

Ruth was debating whether to continue to mess with his head or to simply come clean. She decided to drop one last bombshell before telling him the truth. "Well, the truth of it is, Charlie's married."

Harry took a deep breath. "Well, I'm the last person that should make judgments on the morality of your actions, though I would advise that extra-marital affairs never end well and they can leave you open for blackmail. Still, if you plan to continue to see this man..."

"Woman."

"Pardon?"

"Woman. Charlie is a woman."

Harry reacted visibly to that news, albeit briefly. "Oh, well, umm, I hadn't realized that..." his voice trailing off.

"Harry, are you under the impression that I'm having an affair with a married woman?" Ruth tried to keep the humour out of her voice, at least for a bit longer.

"Well, it would certainly appear to be the case, wouldn't it?" he replied, sitting up in his chair and straightening the few items there. When she didn't reply, Harry looked up to see Ruth smiling at him.

"What are you smiling about?" he asked, his voice short.

"I'm trying to imagine what you must think of me if you think I'm having an affair with a married woman. I'm sure it's rather interesting, but I'm going to put you out of your misery, Harry. I'm not having an affair with a married woman. I'm not having an affair with anyone, married or other wise," she said with a bit of a sigh.

"But Charlie, the flowers..."

"Charlie is Charlotte Price, who is my best friend. We met at Oxford and shared a flat for two years before we graduated. She and her husband Simon live in Edinburgh with their three kids. It's been a few years since we've been able to get together and she came down to visit as an early birthday present for me. The flowers are a bit of a joke. Neither of us dated anyone seriously at university but when we did go on a date with someone, the first question we asked when the other came home was if he was a red roses sort of guy, and of course none of them ever were. After we graduated she moved to Edinburgh for a job and a few weeks later she called me to say that she'd met her red roses guy. That was Simon, and they've been together ever since." She took a deep breath, realizing she'd probably shared too much information. "Anyway, no S24 form will be required and as I've not had a romantic relationship for several years I'm not open to that type of blackmail so no need to worry about that."

Harry was still seated at his desk but his gaze rested on the desktop.

Ruth, embarrassed by what she'd said, decided to change the topic. "Well, now that we've cleared up that up I need to finish my report. I'll have it for you quickly," she said as she turned to leave his office.

"Ruth?"

She stopped in the doorway and paused before turning back to face him. "Yes?" she said, pasting a false smile on her face.

"I'm glad you had a good weekend with Charlie," he said, giving her a smile.

"Thanks," she responded, her smile becoming genuine.

Harry stood from his desk and moved towards her. "I know it's a bit early, but would you let me take you to dinner tonight for your birthday? I have a feeling things are going to be hectic for the next few days so I'd like to take the opportunity now." By the time he'd finished he was standing almost close enough to touch her.

Ruth bit down on her bottom lip, surprised at the turn of events. Just last night Charlie pushed her to be open to social situations with 'Henry' outside of work, but when the opportunity presented itself, it was much more daunting than she expected. Still...

"Ruth, did you hear me?" Harry asked gently.

Deciding to take Charlie's advice, Ruth nodded her head. "Yes. I heard you and yes, and I'd love to go for dinner tonight."

The smile that had graced his face before returned in force and warmed Ruth's heart. "Wonderful. I need another hour or so to get through everything. Is that alright?" he asked.

"That's fine. I'll send my report through to you shortly and then I have a few other matters to take care of as well." She smiled in return before turning to leave.

It was several hours later when Harry finally dropped Ruth off at her home. The dinner had gone well and they found that outside of work they shared many of the same interests. Before Harry left her doorstep, he reached for her hand, squeezed it gently, then asked her if they could have dinner again soon. Ruth smiled and accepted the invitation, to which Harry squeezed her hand again. She thanked him for the wonderful evening then leaned forward and placed a kiss on his cheek.

Harry waited until she was safely inside her home before he walked back to his car and pulled away. Inside, Ruth watched him leave and then dialed a number she knew by heart. When the familiar voice answered at the other end, she said, "Charlie, I think I've found my red roses guy."

A/N: According to the Personnel Files, Ruth listed Charlotte Price, roommate at Corpus Christi College, Oxford as a reference on her application for MI-5.