I already had this chapter ready and decided why not. Here's another!
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She woke up to the sound of shouting.
Her head poked up through the small hole in the blanket she had left to breathe, lazily rubbing her eyes and yawning quietly. Pushing herself to sit up, she instinctively combed her hair out with her fingers and flipped it to the right, some rebel strands curling around her face and tickling her cheeks. She surveyed the room for a moment as she stood, noting that she had fallen asleep on the couch in the living room. the couch was a pristine white with a teal blanket draped over the top, a glass coffee table in front of it. A flat screen TV was set up on the wall, and behind the couch was a pool table. Lastly, there was a sturdy white table pressed into a corner with a lot of drawing supplies and coloring books. Standing, she stretched her back gingerly before wandering to the source of the noise.
"I don't know what the technical military term is, but we're pretty fucked up down here! We need men!"
Tali let out a surprised chuckle. Never in her entire life did she think Tucker would ever say that.
"Uh, no-no no, uh– not like that!" He scrambled to fix his wording, "We need more men to help us!"
Stepping out gingerly into Blood Gulch's unrelenting sun, she saw Caboose and Tucker already in their armor. Caboose spotted her and waved excitedly, while Tucker was facing away from her.
"…Yeah. That got blown up too… Yeah, we know!" Tucker kept talking over the radio.
"…I like the 'in an hour' one," Caboose put in his thoughts, and at her questioning look, he whispered, "Freelancer."
…fuuuu–
"Yeah, me too. Roger that Command. We prefer the quicker solution," Tucker relayed back to 'Command', "…Whoever he is make sure he can fix a tank!"
"What's a Freelancer?" Caboose questioned.
"Freelancers are independent. They're not Red or Blue. They just fight for whoever has the most money," Tucker explained. He was correct for freelancers classified as mercenaries, but not for the freelancers Command was talking about.
"Like a mercenary!"
"Right," Tucker agreed before adding, "Or like your mom when the rent's due."
"…Oh, that was funny!" Caboose exclaimed after a moment.
"Yeah? You didn't think it was too obvious?"
"No, no, it was good."
"Did Command say who this freelancer was?" Tali questioned as she walked up to them, catching their attention.
"Yeah, it was Freelancer– oh, uh…" Tucker turned to see what exactly Tali was wearing, and she rolled her emerald eyes.
"Freelancer…?"
"I think they said Tex?" Caboose answered for him, since Tucker was far too distracted with the woman in front of him.
The galaxy hates me, Tali groaned internally. The exact freelancer that she didn't want around Church!
She didn't voice this aloud though, and instead waved a hand in front of Tucker's visor and taunted, "What's wrong, Tuck? Cat got your tongue?"
Tucker looked down at the unarmored woman, and she could hear the smirk in his voice, "Nah, it's workin' just fine. I can show you if–"
"Nope!" Tali interrupted, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable with the way this conversation was going, "I'm good!"
"Suit yourself," He shrugged nonchalantly, but angled his helmet so he still could take a look at her.
Tali was suddenly acutely aware of what exactly she was wearing. After the whole fiasco with Church and the Reds, she had stripped herself of her armor and went to sleep. That, of course, left her in only the skin tight under armor that is needed to be worn underneath the power armor. The body suit was mostly black, but a strip of lime green wound around the waist as well as her ankles, wrists, and neck, and was rather revealing, especially when out in the blazing sun of Blood Gulch and in the middle of a supposed war zone. Great job Tali, you're thinking is on par today.
"What's the matter?" Tucker asked cheekily, watching as a blush creeped up her neck.
She was suddenly distracted then when a slight niggling in the back of her mind became more prominent, gradually increasing in, well, annoyance. Blinking, she glanced around, not noticing as Tucker and Caboose stared at her oddly, and bit her lip.
"You said that the Freelancer was named Tex?" She repeated.
"Yeah… that a problem, or…?" Tucker left the question up in the air.
"No, that's fine…" Tali mumbled, looking at something past Tucker, "Just fine…"
She brushed past the whatever the hell color he is soldier and strode purposely to the small rock formation a small ways away from the front of the base. She knew she saw the shimmer, she wasn't hallucinating…
"Uh, Miss Tali? Where are you going?" Caboose called.
"Don't follow me, just do what you do!" She waved a dismissive hand over her shoulder, jogging around the rock formation, and scanning the area.
No, she had to be here, she felt Omega around.
"Tex?" Tali hissed quietly, distantly hearing Tucker yell something.
"…Tau?" A distorted voice asked after a moment.
Whirling around, she saw last of the camouflage effect dissipate from black armor, the figure lifting their hands to grasp at their helmet. A hiss signaled the depressurization in the helmet releasing the clamps, and the helmet was lifted from the mystery person's body, revealing deep brown eyes and golden blonde hair in a messy bun.
"Oh my god!" Tau threw her arms around the blonde, receiving a light pat on the back in return, "I thought I'd never see you again!"
"I could say the same for you," Tex replied kindly, "So this is where the Director sent you."
"Sadly that is the case," Tali grumbled, "I suppose you have already been informed of Church and his status?"
"Still thinks I'm his girlfriend, still is an A.I., and now is very 'dead'," Tex summarized with a smile, at which Tali chuckled.
"Eloquently put."
"You know me, Tali."
"Right. So, I can sense Omega. How's he doing?"
"Not good," Tex suddenly became much more urgent, "Tau, I can't control him anymore. I need to get him out of my head before I do something I'll regret."
"Well, how can I help?" Tali asked, "If you want I can try to scramble his systems for a while–"
"Please do, I need some time to think clearly," Tex nodded eagerly, and after a moment, visibly relaxed, "Thanks Tau."
"Anything for you," Tali brushed off her thanks, "By the way, it's Tali around these guys… ah, shit!" Tali suddenly cursed, having tuned into Tucker's radio again, "Church already knows you're here and is warning the other two Blues…what?" She asked after a moment, just noticing that Tex was staring at her oddly.
"Why are you just in your undersuit?"
Pursing her lips, her eyes darted around before she answered, "I think these guys are spreading their empty headedness to me."
"…Empty headedness?"
"Just help me get back inside without being seen."
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…
Bang bang! Bang, bang!
"That's basically it sir. They have five guys there and a jeep," Tucker summed up, watching Tex nervously.
"And your flag," Tex added through her voice filter, making her voice sound deeper.
She reloaded with laziness, throwing a grenade in the direction of the pillar she was shooting, and the target she was shooting around resisted a chuckle.
"Uh, hey Tex? I don't know what it's been like at your other bases, but we try not to use other soldiers as target practice here," Tucker hinted.
"Oh, he's fine Tucker," Tali shrugged from her spot on the pillar, glancing around at the bullet holes, "Actually Tex, I think your aim is getting dull. Afraid you're gonna hit me?" Bang bang bang!
"Temper, temper!" She chuckled, observing the three holes forming a triangle around her unguarded head.
"You two… know each other?" Tucker asked, a hint of… something in his voice.
"Yeah. Tex and I go way back," Tali shrugged again, ignoring how bullets pinged around her, "This is how Tex shows love," BOOM! "See? Love you too!"
Tali stepped away from the wall and toward Tex and Tucker when the black colored soldier holstered her pistol and took out her assault rifle, looking at Tucker as he talked.
"So, uh… I see you have the black special forces armor. Were you in the special forces?" Tex didn't answer, merely loading her assault rifle with a magazine while Tali pulled on her helmet, "Yeah, I used to have black armor too. It was black because I got this stuff all over it from–"
Tex walked away from Tucker with determination, silently asking Tali to follow. She did without question, grabbing her magnum and placing her knife in its sheath.
"Oh okay, you gotta go? I'll see you later!" Tucker called to Tex, and she couldn't help but feel a little bad.
Tex jumped off the base while Tali slid down the side, and before Tex could continue on to Red base, Tali mentioned, "Hey, Tucker and Caboose… they're okay. You don't have to hide yourself around them."
Tex looked at her for a moment before flicking off her voice filter for a moment, "I say it's better safe than sorry. Besides, I've kept this thing on for who knows how long, and I'm more used to it than my own voice."
"Where are you going?" Tucker suddenly showed up on the base, Caboose standing beside him.
Before Tali could respond, Tex spoke up, voice filter back on, "Red base. Kill everybody. Get the flag back."
And then she began to walk away.
Tali distantly heard Caboose yell something to them, but she didn't bother to listen, and asked, "You aren't really going to kill them are you?"
"No," Tex admitted, not looking at her, "I thought I'd just add it for dramatic flair."
Tali let out a chuckle, shaking her head at the blonde, "Man, I missed you."
"Ditto, Tali. Ditto."
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…
"So, Sarge thought my strategy had merit, but was poorly executed, probably because somebody didn't believe in it."
April muffled a giggle as she leant on the concrete pillar with Grif and Simmons on either side of her, having a stare off of sorts. The laughter she had caused both their helmeted heads to turn toward her, and she said, "Dude, he told you to start running and him and Lopez started taking pot shots at you."
"Hey, you weren't even there Missy, so don't give me sass!" Grif pointed a finger at the oddly colored soldier, frustration in his tone.
"Grif, he told me he thought you were a retarded monkey and he was going to suspend your weapon privileges," Simmons interjected factually, crossing his arms as he did so.
Once April heard that, she made a swipe for the pistol on Grif's thigh, only to have her wrist seized by the orange colored soldier, "I don't think so, April."
"Hey, since I captured the flag, d'ya think Command will give me my own set of armor now?" Donut asked hopefully, the Blue's flag in his hands.
"What do you mean captured?" Simmons objected, "You thought you were buying it at the store you idiot!"
"In his defense, his strategy worked despite what he thought he was doing," April stated factually, elbowing the maroon colored soldier with her free arm, "Besides, there were no casualties and our leader wasn't even present when the flag was retrieved. I'd call that a win."
"Yeah exactly! So do you think there's a shot?" Donut repeated.
"Maybe they'll give you Grif's armor, since he destroyed the Warthog."
"Psh, yeah right," Grif dismissed with a wave of his hand.
"You wouldn't want Grif's armor, Donut," April denied, holding back a snicker, "After all, he is the color of urine."
"April! I am ORANGE, not yellow! You're the one that's wearing blue!"
April cocked her head at Grif and was about to reply, but she felt a twinge at the back of her neck. Knowing what that meant, she wrenched her head around so she was looking off the edge of the base, eyes narrowed and calculating. She heard Simmons and Grif question what she was doing, but she shushed them and raised a finger to signal for them to be silent. Although this couldn't be seen by her allies, an orangish glow began to form from behind her blue tinted visor, right where her eyes would be located. Her vision didn't change much, only an orange hue around the edges of her vision. A closer look and she spotted the forms of two armor clad soldiers, highlighted by that same orange hue.
Uh oh…
April sighed as she heard Grif and Simmons question themselves over the near silent noises that both Tex and Tali were making below, and the brunette woman knelt down and transmitted a silent message to Tali.
:Can you try not to kill them? Believe it or not, I actually like these guys:
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"Don't kill me! I'm too good looking to die!"
"Man… he is really kicking their asses… Tali too."
"Why don't I ever get the fucking sniper rifle?" Tucker asked himself.
"You know, I'm really glad Tex is on our side," Caboose lowered the sniper rifle and looked at Tucker.
"Yeah, he's fucking great," Tucker mumbled, still slightly angered at how easygoing and relaxed Tali was with Tex. 'Oh, that's just how he shows his love, blah blah blah.'
"I'm glad I was sent here. It was so cool to meet Tali in person!" Caboose exclaimed excitedly.
Tucker furrowed his brows, "In person? You mean you met her before?"
"Yeah. When I was still training she would call me at times to check on my progress. And if she learned I was doing well, she would send me cookies!"
Tucker was puzzled at this. For Caboose to say that made the fact clear that Tali was no rookie. But when he checked her dossier, she didn't even have a rank listed for her, and very little information was revealed about her, most being covered by black ink. What little he did know was that she was a part of some project called Synthesis, and about ten other candidates were in the project with her. What the project entailed, he had no clue, but it added to the enigma of Tali. Her file even blotted out her last and middle name.
"Hey Caboose, did Tali ever mention anything about what she was working on? Or what you would be doing here?" Tucker asked, wondering just why someone as protected like Tali was sent to a place like this.
"She told me some things. But she trusts me with secrets, and I will not betray her. She was one of my only friends at the camp," Caboose droned sadly, before perking up again, "I do know that she has three sisters and one brother, and a lot of not-quite siblings. I… don't know what that means."
"...What about a project called Synthesis?"
He didn't miss how Caboose tensed a little at his question, and he waited patiently for an answer. What he received wasn't what he wanted, "She didn't tell me much... but there were a lot of people that didn't want her to escape from it."
Tucker huffed in annoyance at Caboose's secrecy and loyalty to Tali, since it was obvious in the halting tone that Caboose knew far more than he was letting loose. He'd figure her out soon enough though, since all they ever did in this canyon is talk.
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…
"Did you have to be so rough?" April sighed dramatically, administering bio foam to the new recruit, Donut.
"Hey, I didn't shoot them!" Tex defended herself.
"You threw a plasma grenade on Donut's head!" April exclaimed, standing up, "But he'll pull through. Used up half my reserve of biofoam though."
"Well, the maroon and the orange one are– wait a second, did you just say his name is Donut?"
"Yeah… Franklin Delano Donut," Tali clicked her tongue, scanning Grif and Simmons over for any bruises.
Tex let out a breathy chuckle, sweeping the area with her eyes, "Can't believe the maroon one fainted."
"It was pretty funny," Tali agreed, "I half expected Grif to catch him before he fell."
"I don't need that image in my head, Tali," April whined, rolling her eyes at the older woman. Tali merely lifted her helmet up for a moment to stick her tongue out at the other girl.
That elicited a full laugh from Tex, distorted from her voice filter. She quickly composed herself however, and waved her hand in the air, "Stay here and look after the kids. I'll get the flag."
"Pfft, you just want all the credit."
"Damn right I do!" Tex exclaimed, jumping down into the base.
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Well, things could be going better.
Not long after Tex returned the flag, she was captured by Sarge and Lopez, and Tali had to quickly cloak when Simmons woke up and ran to check on Donut. She had taken over administering periodical doses to the injured soldier once April ran off to find Sarge, but she was positive he would make it.
What she wasn't sure of, however, was if Tucker and Caboose would assist them, and if Simmons and Grif would find her when they were walking around so close to her.
"Hold on, hold on. What happened? First Donut's head exploded, then you fainted, and a black thing showed up–"
"Woah, woah, wait! I did not faint, something knocked me out." Whatever you say, Simmons.
"Yeah yeah, keep lying to yourself Simmons. Whatever helps you sleep at night," Grif waved off his objection.
Simmons groaned, crouching back beside Donut, "What I don't get is this anomaly in his armor. Something is administering him treatment, but there's no biofoam in his reserves."
Ahh… fuck.
"I dunno man, I just woke up! And I saw some green thing run over to him right before the black thing showed up. Maybe that had something to do with it?" Grif wondered.
"Those 'things' you saw were soldiers. And wouldn't blowing up an enemy and then healing them be a bit counterproductive?" Simmons rolled his eyes.
"Uh, we're talking about the Blues here, who just killed one of their own yesterday. Who's to say they wouldn't do something like this?"
"Whatever. Just go get Sarge and tell him what happened to Donut."
"Yeah, okay… and I'm fine, by the way," Grif added as he went down the ramp.
"Whatever, nobody likes you," Simmons called to him, and Tali suppressed a groan. Idiots.
Simmons followed after Grif soon after, and she decided then to leave Donut. Her reserve of biofoam was nearing empty, and he was stabilized for the moment. She walked in to see Sarge and Lopez had left and Simmons holding an assault rifle to Tex, while Grif taunted her.
"So, you're a girl, huh?" Tex stared blankly at the orange clad soldier.
"Just ignore him," Simmons suggested, "That's what I do."
"Not so tough now that we unloaded your weapon, are you?" Grif looked a little smug.
"Grif, you do know that she didn't use her weapon to knock you out, right?" April reminded him as she leant against the wall.
"What did I say about sass, April?"
Tali uncloaked behind him, making a punching motion behind him. Tex nodded fractionally so only Tali noticed, and she cloaked again.
"Hey punk. I don't need a weapon to kill you."
"Yeah right. What're you gonna do? Punch me?" Grif set himself up perfectly.
Tex jerked her body forward without actually moving her feet, and Tali swung her cloaked arm out, knuckles hitting Grif right in the place a man really shouldn't be hit.
"What the fuck!" Grif yelled as he fell to the ground, hands flying to his crotch, "You fucking bitch!"
"Grif, stop acting. She didn't even touch you," Simmons brushed off Grif's moans as April bit back chuckles, keeping his rifle trained on Tex.
:Enjoy that, did you April?:
:Okay, I have to admit that was a little funny. Grif was asking for it:
"How the fuck did she do that? Are you a decoy? Do you have mind powers?" Grif continued, voice raising a few octaves.
"For the love of God, Grif, shut up!"
"Ah!" Grif panicked when Tali bumped her knuckles against his visor, "I'm being haunted!"
"Grif, there's nothing even near you."
"That's kinda what 'haunted' means, Simmons. One minute you're talking to a crazed psychopath, a crazed chick psychopath, and then bam! Your ass is getting thrown around like a ragdoll by a phantom-bat-demon."
"…What."
"You may be looking at me like I'm crazy now Simmons, but soon enough, we'll bolth be running for our lives." Grif retorted, crossing his arms.
"Since when did you ever run, fatass? And– wait a minute, bolth?" Simmons stopped, looking at Grif quizzically.
"Yeah. What's the problem?" Grif asked with a shrug.
Simmons looked perplexed, "There's no 'L' in both."
"I literally said it the exact way you did. Bolth."
"No, both."
"Yes, Simmons. Bolth."
"No, you're not hearing me," Simmons waved a hand and shook his head, "It's pronounced both."
"That what I'm saying! Bolth!"
"No, there's no 'L'! It's both!"
"You sound like such an ass the way you say it!"
"Dear god, do they ever stop arguing?" Tex whispered to Tali, who was sitting cloaked beside her.
"That would be a big fat no," Tali replied, "When Church and Tucker would watch them from the cliff, they would yell at each other for hours."
"Grif! Quit your yammering and get your kester up here!" Sarge yelled from the tip of the base, "Need some help. Got some more of those special ops fellas coming towards the base."
"As in more than one? Uh, maybe we should bolth go there sir."
"Both."
"Seriously man. Like an ass."
"Well well. Another brilliant idea from the think tank. Why dontcha both come up, leave the prisoner on her own. We could put her on the honors system! Let her guard herself," Sarge quipped sarcastically, sounding extremely unimpressed.
"Well what about April? She never goes out on the front lines!"
"She's a lady, dirtbag. Show some respect and do the heavy liftin' like a man should!"
"Sexist," April mumbled.
"How did these guys manage to take your flag?" Tex asked in bewilderment, and Tali chuckled.
"Have you met Caboose?" Was all she said as an answer, watching as Grif sighed heavily and marched upstairs.
Simmons turned to resume watching Tex, and Tali suddenly got an idea.
"Hey, I'm gonna try something," Tau whispered to Tex, who only tapped her finger on the ground once in confusion.
Tali slowly stepped up so she was directly in front of Simmons, resisting a grin. At the count of three, she decloaked, and said simply, "Boo."
"HOLY SHIT!" Simmons let out a rather womanly scream, assault rifle flying in the air and him falling straight on his ass. Tali sat there for a moment before turning around.
"Hey, he fainted again!" Tali exclaimed, laughing slightly.
"Oh, lovely. Now I'm going to have to deal with a cranky smartass in a few minutes," April grumbled.
"Okay, that was kinda funny," Tex let out a chuckle before cloaking, "I'm heading back. What about you?"
"I'm gonna make sure the others don't do anything stupid," Tau waved her off, cloaking again to march up the ramp.
"Alright. Be careful!"
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…
As it turns out, they nearly did do something stupid.
Church, unknowing of Tex's freedom, possessed Sarge and tried his very best to convince the soldiers on top of the Red base that he was legitimately a Red. That conversation consisted of Lopez swinging his pistol in Grif's direction, Grif insulting Lopez, and a poorly executed southern accent that ended with spit on the Red Sergeant's visor.
Apparently, being out of a body turned Church into a mindless moron… or that might have been just the atmosphere of this place.
Getting Church out of Sarge's body was difficult, and it consisted of her trying to whisper without the other Reds hearing and poking him in the neck (she could tell he was beginning to get pissed as his voice rose in volume and morphed into just shouting instead of Sarge's southern twang), and eventually he stormed down the ramp and hopped out of Sarge.
"What the– who spit on my visor?" Sarge asked dumbly, stumbling around.
"Alright, who in the fuck keeps poking me!?"
Wordlessly, Tali appeared in front of him.
"Jesus Christ!" Church jumped up a good five feet.
"Eh, at least you didn't faint," Tali commented mildly.
Church stared at her blankly, "I'm a fucking ghost. How could I faint?!"
"Oh… right," So he thinks he's some apparition and not an A.I.? How the hell is he not able to distinguish the difference?
"Alright, how the hell did you get here anyway? We thought you were captured."
"I wasn't, Tex was. Don't worry, she's already heading back to base."
Church looked at her for a long moment again, and she could imagine his narrowed eyes, "How did you know Tex was a chick?"
Tali ignored the question and merely turned around, heading for base, "Come on. Let's get back to base."
"Uh, I can't."
Tali turned, raising a brow, "And why not?"
"Dude, I'm a fucking ghost! You know how hard this shit is just to stay visible and talk to you? Really. Fuckin'. Hard," Church punctuated his sentences with a slash of his hand.
Tali sighed, slumping, "Fine then. Just uh, show up when you can."
"You know, I still don't know why you aren't phased by this! Or how you knew Tex was a chick!"
"Gotta go Church! I'll tell Tex you said hello!"
As her form got smaller and smaller as she walked, Church groaned in frustration as she seemed so very familiar to him. It's like she was a memory he just couldn't reach, and the way she just adapted to the regular insanity around here so quickly and seemed to know so much about everyone was, to put it bluntly, unnerving. Something was up with her.
"Where the fuck did Command even find that chick?"
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…
Tali nearly hit her head when she heard Tucker and Caboose yelling at each other… again.
"Your friends are idiots," Tex stated from her perch on a rock, one hand propped under her head.
"Yeah. I know," Tali sighed, walking over to a soot-free Tucker and a dirty Caboose.
"What? I can't hear you over your constant team killing!"
Tali glanced in between the two, hands on her hips, "God, would you two just stop?"
"He's an idiot!" Tucker and Caboose looked at each other.
"Fuck you!"
"I don't like you!"
They're like little kids. Tali groaned mentally, before speaking, "Michael, I'll help you with your armor later. Just… relax. Let's just get some rest and get this all figured out in the morning."
"Okay!" Caboose chirped, prancing inside.
"I swear, if Church doesn't use his freaky ghost powers to kill him, I'll do it myself," Tucker mumbled hatefully before turning to the green soldier, "So Tex is a chick? I didn't expect that."
"Yup. She uses a voice modulator to make her sound like a guy. Unfortunately, the Reds managed to break that, so no more demonic man voice from Miss Tex," Tali thought for a moment, "Well, I guess that is good news instead of bad."
"True that. Y'know for a minute I thought you two were...uh…" Tucker made a vague hand motion before finishing lamely, "y'know."
Tali cocked her head, recalling the unidentifiable tone in his voice from before as a slight smile appeared on her face, "Tucker, were you jealous of Tex for a minute there?"
"Pssh, please. As if I have any reason to be jealous. I know all the ladies can't resist me," Tucker boasted before sauntering into base, and Tali had no doubt he sent a wink her way. Cocky asshole.
"Tex, come on! Church won't show up for a while," Tau mentioned as she followed Tucker and Caboose inside.
…
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…
Tali was very grateful that North taught her how to cook, since as it turns out, Tucker never cooked once in his life, Tex's version of cooking included beating open the oven door with her pistol, and Caboose, well…
Let's just say the microwave will not be operational for a long time. Seriously, how quickly Caboose managed to set it on fire and make it explode simultaneously is something she will never understand.
So, while Tucker, Tex, and Caboose changed into their casual clothes (Tex decided it was safer to share a room with Caboose rather than Tucker, so she supposed she would be sleeping on the couch again), she was waiting for the spaghetti to cook all the way through, sauce already set to the side.
Already setting three glasses on the table, she had three plates just to the right and began to pour an equal amount of spaghetti into every bowl, dishing a healthy amount of sauce onto each one. She had already eaten the paste that the Director insisted the people of Project Synthesis take, so she didn't have to worry about concealing it from Tucker or Caboose.
With the steaming bowls in hand, she placed them each on the counter in the center of the kitchen. Footsteps signaled someone entering swiftly and sitting on one of the cushioned stools, and Tali didn't have to ask who it was.
"Red wine I'm guessing?"
"You know me too well," Tex replied, smiling slightly.
Tali retrieved her drink and set it in front of her, mentally noting she looked a lot less worn around the eyes. The bags under her eyes were gone, her hair was freshly washed and still slightly damp, and she wore a black tee with matching black jeans and boots.
"You look much better," Tali commented, turning back around to fix herself a glass of water.
"Ugh, I don't feel it," Tex groaned, placing her head in her hands, "I'm beat."
"Hey, just relax," Tali cooed, "Omega's blocked from doing anything at the moment, the Reds are quiet, you have a place to crash, and lastly, you have North's famous dish of spaghetti served to you by his apprentice!" Tali finished, tossing her a fork.
Tex chuckled, "You know, despite my teasing, I'm suddenly very glad that North taught you how to cook everything under the sun."
"You should be," Tali retorted, "If we kept Michael in the kitchen for a couple more minutes, I'm pretty sure that we would have a nuclear explosion on our hands."
"Like when you tried to play ping pong with Wash?" Tex crossed her arms and smirked.
"Hey, you said you wouldn't bring that up again!" Tali cried, stomping her foot.
"You were trying to use a fuel rod. How could I not bring that up?"
"Um… excuse me? Miss Tali…" Caboose whispered loudly.
"Yes, Michael?" Tali asked kindly.
"…I'm scared… of the scary lady."
Tali sighed, "Tex, you're not going to hurt him, right?"
"Now when you say hurt…" Tex trailed off, seeing the glare on her friend's face. She mentally debated playing nice to the kid. Yeah, she wasn't going to stay for much longer, but hey, he seemed harmless.
Ah, screw it.
"No… Michael, I'm not going to hurt you. Come on, sit down," Tex pulled out the stool beside her and patted it, struggling to give him a warm smile.
Tali smiled at Caboose, who waved animatedly in return. He was the picture of innocence, with his blonde hair and eyes the same blue as his armor. He wore a simple blue tee and matching pants, while his feet were bare.
"What would you like to drink, sweetie?" Tali questioned.
"Uhm… the bubbly drink," Caboose replied.
"The bubbly… you mean a soda?"
"Yes!"
"With spaghetti?"
"Yes!"
Tex glanced at Tali, confusion on her face as she shrugged and said, "Okay… I guess you can have a soda…"
Tali hesitantly prepared the requested drink and placed it in front of Caboose, holding her finger up before he could take a gulp.
"Michael, I want you to drink this slowly. Don't gulp, sip, okay?" Tali stated slowly, waiting for Caboose to nod.
He did, in his usual giddy way, "Okay, Miss Tali!"
As Caboose dug into his meal, Tex leaned over and asked, "Why does everyone here call you Tali?"
"Eh, back when Michael was still in boot camp, I tried to tell him that it was Tau, but I think he misheard. I just went with it though, and now everyone calls me it," Tali shrugged, "I kinda like it. It sounds human, you know?"
Tex nodded her head, "Yeah, it has a nice ring to it. Suits you."
"Thanks," Tali smiled genuinely, feeling the everyday stress from this job seep out of her. Having Tex around made her miss the old days, when it was just her and her squad fighting for what they believed to be right. She could have easily fooled herself that Libby and York were in the next room cracking jokes as the twins bickered about senseless things, all the while April surveyed the scene silently as she played with a lock of her hair, waiting for Washington to show up...
"Nice outfit," A voice she knew all too well spoke from the corridor connected to the kitchen and knocked her out of her reverie. She should have known not to stay in her under armor. Resisting an eye roll, she turned to glare at the smug soldier, only to stop and stare.
Tucker himself was wearing the top of his own under armor, his a different design than hers. Instead of a strip of color around his waist like hers was, his armor color was around the lining of the under armor, and he had rolled up the sleeves to rest right before his elbows. He wore loose sweatpants and was also barefoot, plopping down into an empty seat.
He was actually quite handsome. His eyes were such an intense hazel it looked like they were gold, and black, shaggy hair was messy atop his head, but it gave him a cute appearance. Despite what his name hinted his race to be, he was actually a light skinned hispanic, and his skin was smooth and unblemished.
To shorten the raging thoughts in her head, a simple summary was, holy fuck he's hot.
Just then, she realized that Caboose was looking between the two of them confusedly, Tex was gaping at her, and Tucker, having caught on to why she was staring, had a smirk pulling at his lips.
I am so fucked, Tau thought as she cleared her throat and replied, "Just keep those eyes up, Tucker."
She turned to get him a drink when she heard him chuckle, and she realized that she would have to sit next to him, while Tex was still gaping at her and Caboose was just being himself, which was no help at all.
:Tex, stop staring!: Tau hissed through the link in her armor. Ah, perks to being a part of Synthesis.
:I don't mean to! Seriously, Tau, you're looking at Tucker?!:
:I didn't expect him to look like that! Oh, fuck! What do I do?:
:First thing you should do is stop standing in front of the fridge like a moron and sit the fuck down!:
:Dammit! Why does the pervert of all people have to–:
:Tau!:
:Alright! Jeez…:
She fumbled with the water bottle as she sat down, handing it to Tucker without looking at him, "Here."
"Thanks, Tali," Tucker drew out her name and let his gaze linger on her, and she had a sneaking suspicion that a blush was rising in her cheeks and he knew what was causing it.
:Tau, stop blushing.:
:How the fuck do I stop blushing?!:
"Miss Tali? Is something wrong? Your face is getting all red… oh no, are you turning into a Red?!" Caboose yelled.
:Ah, fuck me.:
:You know, with your reaction, you should really be saying that to Tucker and not me.:
:Shut up, Tex!:
"No sweetie, I'm okay," Tali smiled forcibly. She generally wasn't good in these sort of social situations, merely letting her anger take over. But, since she was not surrounded by more understanding individuals like the freelancers, she had to push the anger down.
:Oh, you know I'm going to have fun with this.:
:Wha– Tex what does that mean? What are you gonna do?:
:Dunno. I'll think of something.:
"You sure you're okay, Tali?" Tucker smirked down at her cheekily, "You know, I could help–"
"No, no no no, I'm okay," Tali stuttered, glaring at Tex, who was just barely holding back her laughter.
"Hey Tali, where are you sleeping? 'Cause I had to pair up with Caboose," Tex recovered from her laughter, only to purposely fuck her.
"The scary lady is my roomie!" Caboose chirped, before deflating slightly, "I hope she doesn't kill me."
"I don't think we have another room for you," Tucker mused aloud, "Church's room is… well, Church's and the other bedroom is more of a storage room now."
:Ah, yeah, thank you Tucker.: Tali grumbled over the link sarcastically.
:Hey Tau?:
:What?:
"Why can't she just share a room with you, Tucker?" Tex asked innocently.
:I thought of something.:
:You bitch! Fuck, Omega did more damage to your brain than I thought!:
:Just for that comment, I'm making sure you share a room with Tucker for life.:
:I hate you.:
"No, that's fine!" Tali waved off nonchalantly, while on the inside, she was freaking out, "I can just sleep on the couch."
"The couch? Tali, that's uncomfortable!" She could hear the evil smirk in Tex's voice even if the blonde wasn't actually smirking, "Tucker, you don't mind, do you?"
"Uh," Tucker looked a little confused at Tex's tone, not sure if it was threatening or… playful? Before answering, "No, I don't mind."
:Why does your playful side always fuck me?:
:Oh, I won't be fucking you, Tau.:
:TEX!:
:Hey, there isn't much to entertain me in this canyon, so this'll have to do.:
:Ugh, I fucking hate you!:
...
...
...
I just love Tex. This is going to be slightly AU btw, since Tex isn't the Beta A.I. in this. Just wanted to point that out!
Lonessa out :)