Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Storm Hawks. I am merely an artist of prose writing down a nagging idea that, in truth, didn't turn out quite as expected.

Notes: This story took on a completely different idea after I finished it - an idea I'm still trying to grasp. Camaraderie? Friendship? Teamwork? Alas, I'll let you, the reader, decide. This story is rated T for themes (ever so slightly implied) not everyone might want to read about. Oh yes, and as far as I'm aware, the cave-burrowing ratsnake of Terra Cyclonia is my creative addition.

Gratitude

Stork laughed weakly. It was his nervous, fearful laugh that said he was in a situation he was not comfortable with. The Cyclonians meant business after countless times of their plans being scrapped by the Storm Hawks, and Stork was about to receive the brunt of holed up frustration and anger. It figured, too. All his gadgets were either missing, broken, out of power, or keeping a guard he met earlier busy. His belts had been used for other devices and he was feeling naked without them. Tapping the pads of his fingers together, Stork smiled nervously. He was done for.

In the dim lighting of the storage area, the guards' goggles harbored a menacing glare. Stork winced as they approached, backing him against the damp stone wall. The mission was not supposed to involve him like this. The others said they would keep the guards off his back long enough for him to sneak in while the Condor was on autopilot. His legs were shaking.

His attempts to convince the guards that he was highly contagious and on the verge of death thanks to a new parasitic tapeworm that migrated to his brain failed to give him any leeway. One of the four men grabbed his arm and yanked him forward. He stumbled to the floor and braced his weight on his hands and knees, shaking. Four pairs of legs circled him.

"This isn't going to end well." Stork's eye twitched.

"Dark Ace said we could have any Storm Hawk we wanted if it wasn't Aerrow." The voice and what it implied made every muscle in Stork's body tense. If he was interpreting correctly, he needed to move. Looking straight ahead, to the area beyond the two guards in front of him, he saw a narrow tunnel which he guessed – judging by the width and location - belonged to a cave-burrowing ratsnake. Was it poisonous? Not to him. Was it temperamental? That depended on the situation. If it happened to be female and pregnant, he was fine. If it had young, he was dead. If it were male and a loner, he was fine. If it was a male protecting its mate or young or perhaps both, he was deader than dead. They were not poisonous to his specious, but ratsnakes were more than capable of squeezing every last air molecule from his lungs and then crushing his ribs.

Stork started, looking over his shoulder at the body that was kneeling behind him. A hand touched his hip and grabbed the bottom of his shirt. That was it. He would take his chances with the ratsnakes. He bolted forward, his shirt ripping in the guard's hand; his panting was fused with terrified whimpering. A leg caught him in the lower belly and he crumbled instantly. He hissed and then yelled when a hand grabbed his ankle. The ground was rough against his skin and he squirmed and wriggled until both his knees were bent and only his shoulders were touching solid matter.

Stork calmed enough to open his eyes and look up at his captor, who was responsible for why he was mostly in the air. The guards were smirking, most likely at his pathetic escape efforts.

"Hold him down." The other three began to move in.

Stork extended his free foot directly into his captor's crotch. The man collapsed with a high-pitched yelp and Stork was already scrambling away before the guard hit the floor. He barreled into a four-legged sprint and leapt for the tunnel. His body easily adjusted and squirmed inside the gap. The tunnel moved upward for several meters until it leveled and he grabbed the sturdy rock at the top of the hill. Gasping wildly, he stopped in the darkness to breathe and formulate a plan. All ratsnake tunnels had multiple entrances. He would just have to find a way out before a ratsnake found him.

A clicking hiss informed him he was too late. The glow of green-yellow eyes the size of his fists focused on his skinny hide and Stork took note of the dozens of little green-yellow eyes clambering about below the big pair.

Stork panted in exasperation, "Figures." The eyes suddenly darted forward, directly for him. Something grabbed Stork's ankle and he was jerked downward abruptly, the large jaws of the ratsnake missing him by millimeters. The breeze of the attack was still fresh on his skin and another jerk drew him further down the tunnel as another snap sounded near his head. With each jerk and snap he loosed a startled yelp until he was yanked completely out of the tunnel and thrown to the floor. His head swiveled to the guards and tunnel. He was hoping the ratsnake would emerge and distract them, but there was no sign of the grumpy creature.

Deflating from his slight hope of escape being crushed, Stork merely looked at the guards with hurt, pleading eyes that asked them to be nice. Unfortunately, Stork soon found himself pinned.

"You don't want me. I could infect all of you with fleas and contagious rashes." Stork found his wrists pinned by bony hands and the same guy as before kneeling by his feet. He shifted his back against the floor in his discomfort.

Stork's entire body began shaking. It had been a long time since he'd been pushed this far. The fear was paralyzing. One of the guard's hands touched Stork's knee and he clenched his jaw and screwed his eyes shut.

"Hate to break up your little party, but you guys are crossing the line."

Stork's eyes popped open. He tilted his head up and found the body that matched the voice.

Aerrow gave them a sly smile, "You see, you just can't go around harassing the helmsman of the Storm Hawks and expect to get away with it." The guards were not amused. They brandished their staffs. Stork was forgotten in favor of dealing with Aerrow and he quickly took advantage of the lull. He rolled over and crawled to an area of spare parts while the battle ensued behind him. One of the guards flew over his head and crashed into a heap of skimmer pieces. Stork ducked for a few moments, glad he wasn't in a similar situation as the guard, and reached forward. He grabbed a rusty and bent wrench. Aerrow was putting his blades away when Stork stood up.

"Stork, come on. We're all done." Stork thought it funny that his leader felt it necessary to convince him to leave. He was in mid sprint when the guards were regrouping. Stork threw the wrench into the ratsnake tunnel as he flew by. The metal tool made a loud thunk, which was promptly followed by an angry hiss.

"What is that?" Aerrow's brow furrowed. The dark grey snake-like creature had large, perked ears and a furry mane along its spine. Its hide was cased in glossy scales impervious to attacks. Red eyes locked on the Cyclonian guards and the ratsnake hissed as it slinked out of the tunnel, its bulge-lacking belly indicating it hadn't had a meal in a while. The guards screamed and turned tail to run. The ratsnake cut them off and circled their group, lifting its head as a means of intimidation. It rose higher than the guards, dwarfing them.

Stork squeaked in fear and grabbed Aerrow's wrist before falling into a full speed sprint. Aerrow caught on and fueled his own body forward until he was leading Stork to his skimmer. He hopped on, Stork climbing on clumsily until he was seated behind him. The skimmer roared to life and took off. They were soon airborne with clear skies for miles. Aerrow heaved a sigh and gave a small chuckle.

"Sure gave them a run for their money."

Stork was less humored, clinging to Aerrow tightly. His body was still shaking from his encounter and he wondered if Aerrow even knew what the guards had planned on doing to him. He changed his opinion when a hand closed over his and Aerrow's voice held that tone Stork recognized as genuine concern.

"That was a close one back there. How you holding up, Stork?" Stork's fingers clung tighter to Aerrow's midsection as his form of a response. The leader nodded.

"Sorry I didn't get there sooner. The others are back with the Condor. I had them take it low for cloud cover. They're also headed away from Cyclonian territory so we're playing catch-up for now. But don't worry; we'll be there soon enough."

Stork pressed his face to Aerrow's shoulder, glad the teen couldn't see his still shaken face. He didn't care about the details of their predicament at that point.

"I'm just glad you got there."

Aerrow was surprised by the lack of a snappy comeback. Normally Stork would spout a dismal one-liner, or even a speech laden with depressing information. Instead, Stork's voice was shaken but held relief, and Aerrow understood why.

The flight back to the Condor was lengthy but Stork didn't mind. It was enough time for his body and mind to calm. He was even asleep until the skimmer touched down inside the Condor. The bumpy landing woke him and he lifted his head from the back of Aerrow's shoulder. He looked around and recognized his haven.

"Welcome back, sleepy." Finn greeted him, hands on his hips and trademark smile in place.

Piper bore a look of happy relief, "Glad to see you back. We were worried."

"Stork!" Junko hugged him tightly, lifting him off the skimmer in his massive stranglehold. Stork eeped in pain and his limbs creaked under the pressure, beginning to think the grip of the ratsnake would have been more merciful.

"Careful Junko, you wouldn't want to break him." Aerrow parked his skimmer and joined the others. Radarr skidded into the room and leapt onto Aerrow's shoulders.

"Good to see you, too, buddy." Radarr rubbed his face against Aerrow's.

"I'll, uh… be in my quarters." Stork turned and left solemnly. The remaining Storm Hawks watched him disappear.

"What's wrong with him?" Finn looked to Aerrow.

"He's had a really rough day."

"Pff, like what? Did he contract another imaginary rash or something?"

Piper stifled a laugh; though she felt bad for Stork and didn't approve of teasing him behind his back or otherwise, Finn's acting was over the top. Junko stared, unsure of what to make of the situation.

Piper couldn't help herself, "Or maybe he wet his pants from screaming too much."

Junko's ears drooped, "Oh, come on guys. I don't think Stork would like this very much."

Aerrow's face was stern, "Junko's right. Now is not the time to put down a teammate. Also, I want you to know Stork was pretty shaken."

"Aerrow, Stork's always shaken. A kitten could put him on edge." Finn shifted his weight and shook his head at the leader.

"Finn, I'm not kidding. If I had been any later than I was I know Stork would have been more than just shaken. He would have been really hurt. He's not like the rest of us. We're used to the rush of battle and defending ourselves with our own hands. Stork relies on other means. Just… don't make fun of him for it." Radarr jumped to the floor, ears falling, and watched Aerrow leave silently.

Piper bit her lip, feeling that had been the wrong time to let a sliver of childish behavior slip. Finn rolled his eyes with a 'whatever' and left the room. Junko headed to the helm to watch the ship until Stork returned.

Stork sat at the edge of his bed, eyes focused on his unfinished projects. Today had been a close one. His ears perked at the sound of a knock at his door. He rose and checked the peephole, seeing a familiar brush of red hair. Wondering what the teen could possibly want, Stork undid the many locks and opened the door a fraction.

"Mind if I come in?"

Stork glanced over his shoulder at his well-organized room he thought was continuously messy. He looked back to Aerrow and bowed his head while backing up and opening the door. Aerrow entered and closed the door. Stork was somewhat bothered by the fact he didn't lock the door as well, but he figured if Aerrow had locked it the move would have also made him nervous. It was a lose-lose situation.

"You left rather suddenly back there."

Stork gave Aerrow an annoyed stare.

"I know – I can't blame you."

"I guess I should look on the bright side."

Here it came.

"At least there were only four of them and I suppose I could have been suffering from Altitude Miss-Bearings, which would have made me too dizzy to struggle. And the snakes weren't poisonous, but I'm not sure if that's better than being crushed alive or not. Poison, or crushing demise?" His eye twitched.

"Look Stork, I just wanted you to know I'm sorry. Today could have been really bad." Stork visibly shrunk in on himself. His eyes cast to the floor and his fingers tapped together.

Aerrow continued, "And so you're aware – we are a team. We protect one another. You've had my back before so I'll have yours. I promise I won't let anything happen to you without a fight."

Stork's eyes studied Aerrow's face, his eyebrows bowed in hesitation, and for the first time in a long time he expressed his appreciation, "Thanks."

"No problem. It's all in the job description of being a Storm Hawk."

"I think I'm developing a rash." Stork scratched at his neck.

Aerrow smiled.

"Why are you smiling?" It made Stork paranoid. Maybe Aerrow was ill.

"It's nice to see you're still the Stork we all know and love."

The ship lurched and Stork moved lower to the floor, staring at the ceiling as though it would provide an explanation. Junko's voice came over the speaker.

"Uh, guys, we have a bit of a problem. Ah-ah-AHCHOO!"

Stork and Aerrow looked at one another for a moment and soon came to a conclusion.

"Sky Sharks."

"Or, perhaps, worse." Stork's eye twitched and Aerrow laughed weakly.

"Optimistic as always."

4.4.10