Hero
To be honest, Owen was hesitant about coming to Nikita. He knew he needed her and her contact, but he didn't feel… ready. He wasn't ready to show her how he was different. How it wasn't really Owen who killed Daniel, but Percy's zombie. Percy's tool. Percy's monster.
But some things were more important than his redemption. Redemption would take time. He vowed to at least try and make it up to Nikita. For now, he would focus on Percy. Hopefully, Nikita would help him.
He wouldn't blame her if she didn't.
She had an inkling of who it was as she dried her wet hair after leaving the pool. She figured it was that someone who made her heart beat quicker in more ways than one.
To name a few:
1) He killed Daniel.
2) He tried to kill her. On multiple occasions, even after she saved his sorry ass.
3) He was attractive. (But she will never admit that out loud. Even if he knows it anyway.)
Even though she was 99.9% sure it was Owen and that he probably wouldn't try to kill her (though who knew with him?) she made sure to get in a few good punches. And kicks. And she let her nails dig into his cheek a bit. For good measure.
He pulled down his hood, his bright blue eyes earnest. "Whoa, whoa!"
Internal conflict raged.
To kill or not to kill?
"Owen!" She sighed, half out of exasperation towards him, half towards herself (who couldn't stop seeing the similarities they shared).
He liked when she said his name.
A wave of guilt crashed over him. Emily, he said to himself, feeling his heart pang. This is for Emily.
Don't get him wrong, Emily was his love. She always would be. He would destroy Percy for her.
It's just that Nikita taught him that maybe, maybe, he should destroy Percy for himself too. That he wasn't just a monster. She didn't say his name like he was a monster.
And she was beautiful. He had to admit that as well.
"Wait here," she ordered. "I've got credentials, blah, blah, blah, blah…"
His eyebrows raised in incredulity. She actually thought she was going to get away with going in alone? He knew that was how she worked, but he could help. She'd seen him fight; she knew what he was capable of!
Why the hell- Oh.
She just didn't trust him. 'Course.
"What?" She finally asked after noticing his expression. He even detected a hint of self-consciousness.
Well, it was nice to know that she was human for Christ's sake.
"You lost me at 'Wait here'," he said, perfectly serious.
She was so used to going at it alone that maybe he would never be able to get in. Never show her that he was what she needed. Someone to be there for her. She shouldn't have to be alone.
Nikita was too good to be alone.
So when she went in there (alone, the stubborn little…) he waited about 30 seconds before hopping out of the car and going in after her.
Obviously, she needed him.
"Rawr! Rar, mah, shma," the semi-bald guy said accusingly at her as she hovered over the computer (or something to that extent).
Owen easily hit him with the butt of his gun and almost took pleasure out of it. "Someone call for backup?" he asked cheerfully.
She rolled her eyes, but she was amused, he could tell.
That was a step forward, right?
"I'm new to this whole 'hero' thing," he said, trying to let her know… something. He wasn't sure what.
"I'm not a hero," she said.
He frowned and thought that over.
She had killed many people for Division. She was a killing machine: merciless, concise, deadly.
But she woke up. She realized what she had done and now look at her. Crouched behind a bush with the dude who killed her fiancé, just to save some other guy's life. She could have stayed in hiding and stayed safe, but here she was.
The self-loathing in her voice didn't sit right with Owen.
(The way that tool Michael said her name didn't sit right with Owen, either. He couldn't help but wonder what was going on between them. It was obvious he was reluctant to shoot at Nikita. To be honest, Michael was on Owen's hit list a few slots under Percy.)
"We are not partners," Owen said to the CIA agent.
Nikita felt a wave of irrational hurt. It was never fun, being alone, and it was never fun to hear someone use that tone of disgust at the thought of working with you.
She was prepared tossing back a stinging comment (one that involved some pretty explicit terms- or maybe just a 'fuck you') when she glanced at him from the corner of her and saw something surprising.
Vulnerability.
And longing?
"Yes, we are," she corrected him. Might as well get the record straight: They were in this together.
"You were wrong before. About not being a hero."
And he walked away, leaving her to feel… this. This stupid, irrational torrent of emotions that threatened to unravel her, to destroy her.
Division had turned her into a violent machine.
Michael had made her out to be a back-stabbing mess with a broken heart.
Daniel had left her alone.
And now this. This stranger comes a long and makes her out to be something to be so different than anything she could ever imagine. He believes her to be something so out there, so freaking twisted that it leaves her breathless.
Owen thinks she's a hero.
Another great episode!
Not sure how I feel about this one-shot, but someone needs to get the Owen/Nikita shipping started!
If anyone else writes a fic, lemme know! I would love to read it.