disclaimer: i don't own dark angel, its as simply and sad as that.

a/n: this is the sequel to my one-shot Seven Words Spoken, its the last of the one-shots and will be followed by a quick four parter that will conclude the series. please read and let me know what you think.

That Was Home

He liked to think it was behind him, liked to pretend that he hadn't melted down in front of Cindy on a regular basis. That was Seattle. Seattle represented all of the things that had gone wrong in his world and he was happy to keep well away. Seattle was where he'd met Rachel and hadn't that worked out well. Several months in psy-ops just for proving that you can't quite erase those pesky human emotions. No matter how hard you try. Seattle was Max. Seattle was the feisty brunette who saved his ass one too many times. Seattle was falling in love with his breeding partner (and what a great idea that had been). Seattle was nothing but heartbreak.

Portland, Portland was different. Portland was Cindy, Portland was all about being cared about, and being looked after. Portland was all about knowing that despite the years spent training to be the perfect soldier, despite the conception in a test tube; you were a person worthy of being loved. Portland was an X6 who didn't know the meaning of playing it safe. Seattle was freedom but Portland was home.

Cindy liked to argue that it wasn't the city that created the home, it was the fact that he wasn't surrounded by people who constantly looked down on him. Home was living with two women who liked to remind him that he was worth it all. Kady didn't bother to argue, she pinned him to the floor when he least expected it and threatened to withhold greasy snack foods if he didn't snap out of his funk. When Max did shit like that it hurt, you know, emotionally. And, well, there might have been a slight bruise. When Kady did it there was a cheeky smile and a bag of pork rinds dangling triumphantly from her fingers.

Alec could openly admit they were right. Portland was home, not because he got to do a job he liked without Normal looking at him in that slightly creep way. Not because there was no Max or Rachel and not because there was no stuck up, self involved princess beating him down. Portland was home because he was Cindy's baby boo. Portland was home because he was Kady's, well because he was Kady's. He had this recurring dream where he woke up to find she'd tattooed her name on his back while he was asleep just to make sure that any chick he did sleep with knew that if they hurt him there was a tiny and scary red head prepared to take them down.

That was home.

Having a home was what gave him the courage to go back. Home was what gave him the words to reply when Logan called asking for help. Asking that he return to the city that had seen his heart, not just broken, but shattered into a million tiny pieces.

'Anything you need, man.'

Because Cindy was right, home wasn't a city, home was the two women who asked when they were leaving and how long they'd be gone. Home wasn't a poorly disguised prison called Manticore. Home wasn't a pack of runaway kids. Home was the family he'd created. Home was Alec and Cindy and Kady.