A/N: Written for the Travelers Fandom Week 2019 on Tumblr. This is Day 1, First Person.
She's not sure why she was chosen for this particular host.
Don't get her wrong, there's nothing wrong with the kid. She's had quite a bit of experience with her sisters, and he's actually a pretty good kid.
It's not even the fact that her host didn't even have anything else going on in her life. On the contrary, it makes slipping into her life even easier than it would have been if she had to fool family and co-workers.
It was that damn man that her host chose to procreate with.
Traveler 3465 had done all the prep work prior to landing back in the 21st, but she was completely unprepared for the feeling of helplessness that came over her whenever she felt whenever that asshole managed to thwart one of her plans.
The fact that she couldn't just bash his face in didn't help either. Mac was adamant that she follow all protocols, specifically number 5. Which meant unfortunately, he had to stay alive.
But that didn't mean she had to fall in line like her host did.
So she developed her own rules. She got a job like the social worker said, she even agreed to let Jeff move back in, just to keep a good environment for Jeffrey Jr. Even though her skin crawled every time he was near. She didn't trust his seeming 'rehabilitation' at all, she knew it was just an act.
Sure enough, when he came back home drunk that night and tried to force himself on her, she knew. She knew deep in her bones that he would never change, he would keep drinking and throwing his weight around expecting her to yield.
Hitting someone has never been so satisfying.
Although she is grateful for Philip in stopping her before she went too far, she'll never be sorry for sticking up for herself, or for showing her hand. Even though it clues him in on the fact that his docile, cowering girlfriend is no longer around, she is glad he now looks at her with confusion and a little fear.
Good. Let him feel a little bit of what her host must have been feeling all this time.
When he denies her her son to hold after they've been kidnapped, (and he is hers now, dammitt) she wants to bash his face in all over again. How dare he think he's the superior parent? She's the one with Jeffrey day in and day out! She knows his favorite foods, and what he likes to watch in order to sleep. The fact that she physically never gave birth to him doesn't matter anymore, he is her son.
When Jeff finally screws up enough that it can't be ignored, she wants to cheer. Though he doesn't come back to her arms, at least he's away from the toxicity that is his biological father. The family he is placed with is a good one, she's checked herself. Even gone as far as to quiz Philip to see if there's anything he knows that will affect how they raise him. She ignores the soft look he gives her as he assures her that he knows nothing bad about the family. She thanks him with a smile and makes a note to schedule her visits so as to not draw suspicion to herself.
She (and the whole team) get the biggest shock of their lives when Jeff is overwritten. It was unexpected by everyone, even Philip. To be fair, this new host seems like a good person, but he's wearing the face of the man that she loathes.
And he will not leave her alone.
She gets it, he's in a new century, without a team of his own, and he was tasked with working with her to get spun up on the times. But it seems like every time she turns around, he's there, showing his amazement at all that this century has to offer.
When she finally manages to hand him off, she briefly wonders if they'll ever work together again. Then Protocol Omega is called and all she can think of is getting back to see her son.
If this world is truly fucked beyond repair, she knows where she'd rather be when it ends.