Disclaimer: Primeval does not belong to me. This is fan fiction, not for profit.

Any references to people, places, businesses etc is entirely fictitious.

A/N Story picks up right after Transitions Too (AU).

4.1 AU Military Medley and Monday

"We're home," said Connor "and homeless…"

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Lester held up his hand at Danny's headlong rush of words.

"Say that again?" asked Lester.

Danny rolled his shoulders and leaned back in the conference room chair. He stretched out his long legs and crossed his ankles.

"The fire started in the kitchen," Danny said "it looked like a stove fire, but… the explosion..."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Jess stopped pouring the coffee. She set the pot back down on the burner. Then Jess ran one hand down the front of her bright red dress, smoothing out the skirt and trying to regain her composure. She took a deep breath before she lifted her gaze and stared at her blonde co-worker.

"Where have you been staying," Jess asked in concern "since your flat burned down?"

Abby shook her head and took another sip of her tea. Then she started to explain.

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Danny pulled the ARC's big SUV up in front of the tiny yellow mini just moments after the explosion. The lanky redhead climbed out of the vehicle and sauntered over to join Abby, Connor and Stephen. He bent his knees and stooped by the passenger side door. Connor greeted him.

"Danny, how did you know to come?" asked Connor. "We only just got out."

"Didn't Stephen tell you?" replied Danny. "He called me…"

On the sidewalk on the other side of the mini, Stephen was still bent over coughing. Danny's voice trailed off. He looked questioningly at the younger man. Inside the car, Abby turned away from Danny and stuck her head out the driver's side window to look at Stephen.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

"Yeah," replied the muscular young man.

His eyes were watering and his face was streaked with soot and ash, but Stephen grinned at Danny.

"Took you long enough to get here," said Stephen.

"He got here pretty quickly," objected Abby. She turned back to face Danny. "Even with hardly any traffic to worry about this early on a Saturday, you must have been speeding."

Danny gazed past Connor, locking his eyes directly on Abby.

"That's not important," said Danny in a quiet tone "the important thing is no one was injured."

Danny paused a moment taking in the appearance of his friends. Connor sat wrapped in what had once been a red comforter. It was now covered with soot and ash, giving the cloth a grayish color. Beyond him, Abby was sitting in the driver's seat wearing a robe that had once been pink, but was now also streaked with gray. They both smelled like smoke.

"And right now," continued Danny "we want to get you out of the danger zone here… safely settled… with a bath… clean clothes… and a good hot breakfast."

"Everything I owned was in that flat," protested Abby "we only have the clothes we're wearing…"

"Speak for yourself," interrupted Connor. "The only clothes I've got are the spares I keep in the locker at the ARC."

"Connor, you're a genius!" exclaimed Danny.

"What?" asked Connor "What did I say?"

"Abby drive to the ARC," continued Danny "I'll call Becker… he'll meet you there. I'm sure there will be room for all of you and your pets to stay there this weekend."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Lester listened to Danny describe Saturday's events. When Danny relayed what the fire chief had said, Lester's eyebrow went up.

"Someone tampered with the gas lines," said Danny.

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Jess looked at Abby in surprise.

"You, Connor, and Stephen," asked Jess "stayed at the ARC this weekend?"

Abby shook her head.

"No, just our pets stayed," explained Abby "Connor was finally able to get some clothes, but there wasn't any spare room."

Jess looked at Abby in confusion. The security staffing area had four separate rooms with bunk beds for those times when work required overnight stays. The break room that Abby and Jess were in held a lumpy sofa. And in the medical area there were examination tables and a separate quarantine room.

"Danny didn't know," said Abby "this was the weekend the Sandhurst recruits were being hosted here…"

Abby shrugged in response to Jess's questioning gaze.

"It's some sort of work experience program," Abby explained "two dozen junior recruits... learning about the ARC. Becker and Ryan set it up."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Becker arrived at the ARC shortly after Abby and Connor. He saw the bright yellow mini parked in the loading area, but there was no sign of his friends. A sound in the corridor alerted him to the arrival of Abby. She was followed by three young recruits.

"Danny called… said there had been a fire," the tall soldier asked "are you alright?"

"Yeah," said Abby.

She stopped walking and put her hands on her hips. Abby might have been dressed in a short pink robe covered with gray soot, but Becker thought she stood like a commanding officer on a battlefield. She directed the young men, barely out of their teens, to the mini. One picked up Sid, another picked up Nancy, the third… very gingerly picked up the box holding Lady Medusa.

"You two put Sid and Nancy in the same pen where I put Rex," instructed Abby "but the python needs a separate holding tank."

"I don't suppose," asked the white faced young recruit "that I could take the iguanas instead?"

Abby rolled her eyes.

"Becker," asked Abby "would you take Lady Medusa?"

The Captain stepped forward and took the boxful of snake from the young recruit. The sandy haired young man gave a sigh of relief and picked up the iguana tank instead.

"Set the iguana tank on my desk," Abby called as the young man hurried after his companions.

Becker looked from the python he was now holding to Abby. He raised one eyebrow questioningly.

"We need to get the pets situated," Abby explained "they're frightened."

It was typical that Abby would put the creatures before herself, thought Becker as he walked up to Abby.

"Where's Connor?"

Abby blinked. She looked at the tall soldier. He was dressed in civilian clothing, blue jeans and a black button down shirt.

"Connor wanted to help," replied Abby "but he was tripping all over the place… I sent him to the locker room to get showered and changed."

"Good idea," chuckled Becker.

He bent his knees to bring him down face to face with Abby.

"If you don't have a change of clothes of your own," the soldier directed "take my cell phone out of my shirt pocket, call Sarah… I know she keeps extra gym clothes in her locker… you should get showered and changed too."

Abby sighed and reached for his cell phone.

"I'll take Lady Medusa to the menagerie," said Becker as he started walking away. "I'll meet you and Connor in the break room when you're ready to go."

"Go?" asked Abby "I thought we were staying here."

"Can't," replied Becker "we've got company."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Lester looked at his watch briefly and then turned his gaze back to Danny.

"Would you stop by Cutter's office... let him know," said Lester "he should know what's happened before this morning's meeting."

"Good idea gov," said Danny.

The tall man pushed back his chair and rose to stand. He then headed out of the conference room in search of Cutter. Lester watched the team leader leave before he picked up the phone and pushed some buttons. A female voice answered, brining a smile to Lester's face once more. But it was gone quickly as he began to brief the woman on the news.

"Vivian," said Lester "there's been a fire and an explosion… at Abby and Connor's flat."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Jess looked at the petite blonde.

"So where did you stay?

Abby smiled at the young woman's obvious concern.

"We're all spread out," replied Abby "Stephen stayed with Danny and Percy… Connor and I are at Becker's flat."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

By the time Becker reached the break room Connor was already there. The young scientist was dressed in snug red jeans and a purple t-shirt. His clothes looked crumpled, as if they had been crammed in his locker for several months. And thought Becker… they probably had been.

Connor's dark brown hair was wet and slicked back from his face. The dark stubble on his face made him appear paler than usual. Connor was sitting at a round table near the counter absent mindedly stirring a cup of coffee. His crutches were leaning against the wall behind him. Connor's eyes flew open as Becker entered the room.

"Hey, Becker," greeted Connor "sorry to get you out so early on a Saturday. I imagine you weren't planning on being back at work until Monday."

"Not a problem," replied Becker. "I'm usually up early anyway."

Becker reached towards the coffee pot. He looked at the cold dregs in disgust. He walked to the sink and started rinsing out the carafe.

"Sorry," said Connor "I got the last cup."

"You're going to drink that stuff?" asked Becker. "I think it's from last night."

"Not really drinking it, yeah," said Connor as he continued to stir the coffee.

Stephen and Danny entered the break room just then. Stephen was still covered in a fine layer of soot and ash, but it looked as if he had tried to wash his face since Connor had last seen him.

"Good," said Danny "glad to see you made it here alright."

"We've been working at the ARC for three years," replied Connor "we're not likely to get lost coming here now."

Connor was staring at Stephen.

"You're younger than he was," said Connor in a puzzled tone "I didn't realize that yesterday."

"Yeah," replied Stephen "I figure I'm about twenty-seven now."

"What?" exclaimed Connor. "You're younger than me."

Stephen tried hard to keep a straight face as he gazed at Connor.

"And," continued Connor "you might even be younger than Abby too."

"Is that a problem Connor?" asked Stephen.

"No… I mean… it's just weird," replied Connor. "I'm used to you… being older… more mature… Professor Cutter's lab assistant and all… all responsible and serious."

Stephen chuckled.

"Well," said the younger man "now you have to be the mature one."

"Where's the fun in that?" asked Connor.

Connor looked past Stephen to see Abby enter the break room. She was dressed in a pair of gray stretch pants and a long sleeved burgundy Henley top imprinted with little gray curlicues. She was rubbing a towel over her blonde hair.

"Ooh, look at you," said Connor "thought you were going to be in sweat pants."

"This is what Sarah calls gym clothes," responded Abby. The form fitting clothing was a bit more stylish than the loose fitting pants and baggy t-shirts that Abby usually wore to the gym. Abby sat down in a chair next to Connor.

Becker set the empty coffee pot on the dish drain to dry. He turned around to face the rest of the team. Stephen pulled out a chair and set down at the table with Connor and Abby. Danny was rocking back on his heels, looking quite pleased.

"Well the two of you are safely settled, showered, and dressed," said Danny in a satisfied tone "All we need now is to get Stephen cleaned up and a good hot breakfast for all…"

"They can't stay at the ARC," interrupted Becker.

"What?" asked Danny, "Why not?"

"It's recruit weekend," answered Becker. "There's no room."

Danny looked startled at Becker's words. Connor looked worried.

"Hotels are expensive," said Connor. "My identification, money, bank card… everything… was in the flat."

"Mine too. And I really don't want to pay money for a hotel," said Abby "when we're going to have to replace everything… don't really know what insurance will cover."

"Hotels aren't very secure," said Danny.

Danny and Becker exchanged a glance.

"Stephen can squeeze into my place with Percy and me," said Danny "but we need some place for Abby and Connor."

"What about Sarah?" asked Connor "Do you think she would have room for us?"

Abby started to speak, but Stephen answered first.

"Sarah moved in with her boyfriend a while back," responded Stephen "she sublet her flat last month… she and Jamal won't have room, his parents are visiting this week."

Connor looked at Abby. His brown eyes were crinkled in confusion.

"I don't remember Sarah having a boyfriend," Connor said.

"She was dating a man from the British Museum," Abby reminded "but they broke up ages ago… I don't remember his name."

"That's got to be Jamal, he works at the museum. They got back together," explained Stephen "while you were away."

"Good," said Connor "for a minute there I was wondering if we were in the right time and place."

Danny looked at Becker. The team leader tilted his head towards the table where Abby and Connor were sitting. The two were still talking with Stephen and didn't notice the silent exchange between the former copper and the soldier. Becker walked past the table and stood next to Danny.

"We need some place safe for Abby and Connor," sadi Danny in a low tone.

Becker nodded. Then he addressed Abby and Connor.

"You two can stay with me this weekend," said Becker "I'll sleep on the couch."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Lester listened to Cutter rant and rave about the anomaly research model for far longer than he really cared to. When the Professor finally slowed down long enough to take a deep breath, Lester spoke.

"Would you rather Stephen had saved your precious model," Lester asked, his words dripping acid, "instead of Abby and Connor?"

The Professor's eyes opened wide in shock. He gulped.

"No, of course not," the Scot huffed "but the map… it was important too. I really thought we were on to something there."

"You were," said Vivian.

The tall, slender dark-haired woman entered the conference room.

"And you can rebuild it."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Oh, you must be crowded," exclaimed Jess "I've seen Becker's place… it's so tiny."

Abby's blue eyes opened wide in surprise. The younger woman blushed and started to stammer an explanation.

"None of my business really," said Abby.

"I mean… I've only seen his place… it was Friday... just the once," Jess clarified "when I drove Becker back to put away the sword."

"Becker's flat is small," agreed Abby with a faint smirk, "and only one bathroom. I had first dibs on the shower, so I came in early this morning… had a chance to check on Rex and the others before work starts."

Jess reached her hand out across the counter to place it on Abby's forearm. Stretchy dark blue fabric covered Abby's arm and caused Jess to blink.

"This outfit isn't Sarah's," said Jess. She knew the doctor of archeology rarely wore dark blue, but more importantly she recognized the outfit.

"No," agreed Abby, rollling her eyes, "this is one of Becker's security team emergency outfits... one size fits no one."

-x-x-x-x-x-x

Abby pulled the mini up to Becker's parking area. She got out of the driver's seat and went around to help Connor out of the front passenger seat. The tall soldier pushed the driver's seat forward and started to untangle his legs from where he had been scrunched in the tiny back seat.

"Do you want to bring these inside?" Becker asked.

Connor was now standing on the sidewalk, balanced on his crutches. Abby turned to look at Becker. He was pointing at the picture frames she had taken from the front table in their flat earlier.

"Yeah," she said.

Abby held out her hand. One by one, Becker handed her the pictures. The first photograph was of Connor and his friends Duncan and Tom. They were laughing and looked like they were surprised to have their picture taken.

The second photograph was a family group. The little girl with blonde hair and bright blue eyes had to be Abby. The girl was sitting next to a chubby baby dressed in light blue. Behind the two children, a man and woman sat slightly apart, holding themselves stiffly.

The third photograph was of Connor and Abby on either side of the Stephen they had known before. In the picture, the taller man had his arms across Connor and Abby's shoulders.

Becker grabbed the rucksack he had packed with clothing from the ARCs emergency stores, and then turned and walked to the front door of the building. He inserted a key in the lock. Abby looked from the door, to Connor.

"The pictures are all we have left," said Abby.

"You're wrong," said Connor "we've got what's really important… all our pets, our friends and each other."

Abby blinked back the sudden tears that filled her eyes. She smiled at Connor and nodded. Together, Abby and Connor followed Becker into the building.

-x-x-x-x-x-x