Longing

Part 1

Walking through the long corridor Myka Berring couldn't help the nerves that were washing over her. Another roller coaster of a week ended with mostly success but she found she was still restless. She tried to blame it on Steve's death but knew as devastated as she was over the loss there was more going on.

Myka had liked the young man. It was after she had tried to walk away from the job that Steve was brought in to fill the gap she had left. He had been a skilled agent and a welcome addition to the team of dysfunctional misfit toys. Upon her return he had remained and she quickly gelled with him. Now, sadly, he was gone. Killed in a battle with a selfishly ruthless man who had a vendetta against the Warehouse.

As thrown by Steve's death as Myka had been, deep down there was more to her feeling of uneasiness than his demise. Anyone that knew her well had to know why she was so scattered but none of them had brought it up to her. When she got the phone call that sent her to a long corridor in a deep underground bunker her feeling of uneasiness escalated for the very reason the others hadn't said a word.

It had been kind of Jane Lattimer to allow her access. It had been even kinder of Pete to ask his mom about it. Myka didn't want to embarrass her partner by thanking him even though she heard him make the request. They had been working together for over three years and although words were never exchanged on the subject she knew for all Pete's bumbling he hadn't missed the depth of Myka's strong emotions on the subject at hand, not that she would have been able to easily explain them.

Myka was book smart which made her a great agent but her biggest weakness, her emotions, made it difficult to keep certain things in check. What began as empathy had clouded her instincts so poorly she made a nearly disastrous mistake. The fall out had rattled her faith in herself and it had been a long road back. Even though she finally felt confident again things were being made even more difficult by her evolving feelings. There was no denying them even if she hadn't said the words even to herself. As profound a struggle as she was having things had actually never been clearer and therefore more complicated.

Reaching the door she had been instructed to go to, Myka placed her hand on the cold metal nob and took a deep breath before turning it. She was going into the room the old Myka and knew she might be leaving it a new Myka.

As the door open, eyes met hers. HG Wells, the legendary writer, inventor, and Warehouse agent was sitting very stiffly in a chair that was pushed up to a small wooden table. Despite histories take on the prolific English author, the fact was the mind behind "The War of the Worlds" and "The Time Machine" was really a woman named Helena G. Wells.

She looked tired although Myka imagined having one's mind reconnected with ones body might have that effect. She also looked incredible. The reaction Myka realized she was having to being in the other woman's presence was enough to reinforce what she already knew.

It was a relief to know Helena was really in the room even if perhaps only for a short time. She had helped saved the day but that might not have been enough to square things with the powers that be. Trying to destroy the world tended to make people upset and there was a strong chance the Regents would reinstate her punishment for crimes against humanity.

Papers Helena had been holding were placed back on the table as she smiled the smile that Myka couldn't deny moved her in ways she never thought possible.

"What brings you here?" Helena ask as she turned in her chair just enough to reveal that one of her arms was cuffed to the seat.

"I wanted to see you."

"A happy surprise but one I can't imagine was easy to accomplish."

"Pete managed to pull a few strings."

"Pete, huh. Remind me to thank him."

"He'll only get a big head over it."

Helena gave the tiniest of laughs. "I believe in giving credit where credit is due."

"So do I." Myka agreed while trying to hold eye contact and keep her emotions in check. "Nice bracelet."

Helena raised her arm as far as the chain on her right wrist would let her. "This old thing?"

"I'm sure it won't be for long."

"No, I suppose I have an orb to get back to."

"Artie is pleading your case."

Helena laughed again. "Have I found myself in a parallel universe?"

"I sure hope not." Myka replied more seriously than she had intended.

"Why is that?" Helena asked with the coy, cocky tone that always made Myka flustered.

Not having the words Myka made her way to an empty chair, moved it to the table, and sat down. "What's with all the paperwork?"

Helena nodded and turned her attention to the pages strewn about the table. "My statement about what transpired from the point at which I was returned to my body."

"Nothing about before? About the sacrifice you were willing to make before you were made whole."

"Nothing I did can possibly erase my earlier betrayal Myka."

"You were lost in your grief."

"My grief nearly destroyed everything."

"But it didn't."

"Only because of you."

The words caught Myka in an unexpected but somehow obvious way. "You give me too much credit."

"You don't give yourself enough."

Myka unconsciously pulled her hair back but said nothing.

"I'm sorry." Helena said sincere as she sat back some in her chair. "What I did, especially to you..."

"Don't." Myka took a very deep breath. "Don't ever apologize."

"After what I did I'm not sure I can ever stop apologizing."

"You made a big mistake and today you saved my life. The scale is balanced in my book."

"My ability to crack the chess lock falls firmly on your shoulders."

"We make a great team." Helena's eyes didn't waiver from Myka's and despite a tiny bit of fear pushing at the back of her brain Myka managed to remain steady. "So Artie has to convince the Regents that you deserve a second chance because I can't lose you again."

"The team might be better off with me locked away."

"This isn't about the team, Helena. After what you were willing to do in the woods. Any fear I might have had of you falling victim to your past again melted away. You now know you matter to people here. " Myka felt her brain, for maybe the first time in her life, disconnect and her emotions took over. "Any fear I had of being honest with myself followed suit. I sat in that chair, my life in your hands..."

As the words trailed off they were locked together in a gaze that spoke volumes.

"It was a lucky guess." Myka humbly offered as either an escape or a deflection from her own thoughts.

"It was inspired."

"You could have died at my hand."

"You weren't going to let that happen."

"It was foolish of you to think so."

"Who better to figure out that by breaking the rules you could find the solution."

"You love rules."

It was time to raise the stakes. "Not always. For instance, it's time to end this dance we've been doing."

The door to the room opened and Jane Latimer made her way inside. Myka was crushed under the weight of the interruption and Helena seemed dumbfounded.

They weren't the only two thrown by events as Pete's mother looked sorry to have interrupted. "We need to speak with Ms. Wells."

All that time and Myka still hadn't said the words. It had been foolish and cowardly. Standing up from the chair she reached across and took Helena's free hand from where it was resting on the table. "We will finish this conversation."

"Good-bye Myka," Helen said with a soft smile that had a strong dose of melancholy.

A gentle squeeze and then Myka, like any good agent, did as she was told. While leaving the room she made sure to cast one last look in Helena's direction. The stoic side of the brunette had emerged and she seemingly didn't care Myka was going. Having gotten to know the woman pretty well Myka was confident that wasn't the case at all.

Author's Notes: Much like my PPL story it seemed I had to get this shorter story out of my head. It wouldn't shake loose and was complicating my work on my Glee fic. There will be one (maybe two) more updates to complete this tiny tale. Hope for those of you who can't get enough of the Warehouse super pairing of Berring and Wells that this proves worthy of the characters that inspired it. MORE TO COME…