A/N: Hey guys, I have no defense for the ridiculously long wait for updates. Life has just been hectic. I completely understand if people have given up, it's nothing less than I deserve I guess. To those still reading, thank you and I love you. Any new readers? Hi, howdy. Thanks for coming. I hope you're enjoying this.
Disclaimer: I don't own Glee, if i did, Faberry wouldn't be restricted to fanfiction sites!
A scuffing sound broke me from oblivion and I narrowed my sleep leaden eyes as the harsh light of morning blinded me momentarily. The boot to my ribs banished the last tendrils of slumber and I cried out at the pain that exploded in my abdomen.
"Son of a bitch," I cursed as I rolled across the roof. I pushed to my feet and moved behind the solid brick stack, trying to catch my breath. Seconds later the man followed me, a perverse smirk twisting his lips. His brown hair was tied up in a neat pony-tail and his green eyes shone with malice.
"Now what is a young girl like you doing all alone up here?" He asked. The condescending tone only served to anger me.
"Why would I sleep in a gutter? I'd be more likely to find you there," I snapped back and watched in satisfaction as the smile was replaced by a scowl.
"You little- I'll show you where you belong," he growled whilst advancing with his arms out to the sides, cutting down my escape options. When he was a foot away from me he lunged forward; his hands grasping at air as I spun away. Using the momentum of the turn I lashed a backhand across his cheek and danced away with a cruel smile. He snarled in pain and caressed the increasing red patch on his face as he looked at me with a new sense of caution. "Lucky hit."
I laughed at him and rolled my eyes, ramping up the bravado to cover my fear. I dodged around the tall chimney and headed towards the ladder that would take me down to the street. A grunt drew my attention and I turned in time to see a broken piece of slate sailing towards my head. I ducked with a spilt second to spare and heard the tile fracture against the opposite building. The oaf glanced across at the ladder and then at me. I smirked and resumed my path as he fumbled to catch me. Holding on to the looped railings, I flipped myself over the ledge and braced to crash into the metal rungs. After the initial impact I scrambled to get my feet on the bars and began the climb down. A glance up told me he was following me.
I grimaced as he grunted from the exertion and pushed heat into my hands, warming up the cold iron. He looked down and was surprised to see me stationary until the skin in contact with the metal started burning. He cried out in pain and let go of the rail his was holding in favour of blowing on the tender skin. I quickly jumped down the last few metres and rolled with the impact as he thudded to the concrete on his back. I crawled over to him, ignoring my aching bones from the jarring landing and knelt next him. Blood was pooling beneath his head where it cracked against the alley floor and his eyes were glazing over rapidly.
"Why were you here?" I asked.
"Patrol," he answered weakly.
"Why? You never patrol these areas," I probed.
"Orders," he breathed with a grimace. He tried to lift his arm to his head to inspect the damage but it only made half the distance before dropping to his side once more. "If you're going to kill me girl, do it quickly."
I swallowed the lump in my throat and removed his gun from the holster. I let off the safety and held my breath before placing it against his forehead. "I'm sorry," I whispered as I squeezed the trigger. His body twitched once then relaxed completely as his eyes turned glassy and unseeing. Using his dark grey shirt I wiped the gun down, removing any traces of me from it and returned it to its holster. I stood and flicked my gaze around the narrow passage, settling on a pile of trash about halfway down the alley. With a resigned sigh, I looped my arms underneath his and dragged the body of the guard towards the mound of rubbish. It took a few minutes but eventually I had him covered by the garbage and out of sight.
I took off at a run, winding through the passages silently, leading anyone that might follow on a long and twisting journey until I reached the grate back into the sanctuary. I dropped into the hole and replaced the grid before making my way back into the building. The first person to see me was Noah, his eyes growing wide and fearful when he took in my appearance.
"Holy crap Quinn. Are you hurt?" He gaze was fixed on my torso so I glanced down, grimacing as I realised I was covered in the guards blood.
"Not my blood," I told him tensely wiping at my stained grey t-shirt. His eyebrow rose in a striking imitation of my own and his eyes told me that I would be explaining what happened to him. I waved him off and headed to the bathroom, needing to wash the events of the morning from my skin. As I peeled my clothes off the metallic scent of blood permeated the air and rolled my stomach. I hissed as the water needled into my shoulders, indicating wounds I wasn't aware of. Finally I felt clean enough to leave the safety of the shower and wrapped a towel around my chest carefully. I stood in front of the mirror and took in my reflection. I had a purple stain over my left shoulder and upper arm, growing darker by the minute as the bruising developed, my cheek was a little swollen and red and I had a cut above my right eyebrow. I turned to look at my back. The skin over my shoulder blades was cut and grazed by gravel and stones but it all seemed superficial.
"Just because I was angry at you, didn't mean you had to get into a fight." The soft voice spoke from behind me and I shifted so I could see them in the mirror. Sadness swam in Paige's deep brown eyes and she held her bottom lip firmly between her teeth; worrying at it. A small smile turned the corners of my mouth up but I betrayed no other emotions as I stared at her reflection.
"It seemed like a good idea at the time," I replied tiredly. She pursed her lips and glanced at the ground before her gaze found my shoulders.
"Is it sore?" I bit back a snide remark and shook my head; unwilling to start another argument.
"Is Sally feeling better?" I asked in spite of myself.
"What?" She questioned before catching herself. "Oh yeah, she is thank you." A blush rose to her cheeks and she cast her gaze to her left, seemingly finding the tiles very interesting. I lifted an eyebrow but didn't comment on her slip. I turned to look at her properly but she refused to meet my eyes. With a sigh I retrieved my clothes and dropped the towel to change. I watched in amusement as the red tinge spread to her neck and chest until she cleared her throat and looked towards the door.
"It's a good idea," she mumbled in my general direction.
"What is?" I probed, pulling a black vest top on and adjusting it to sit comfortably over my wounds.
"The combat lessons." I snapped my gaze up and was met with apologetic chocolate orbs. "I shouldn't have shouted at you. I'm sorry. I just- They made me feel weak and helpless. I couldn't fight them. I tried once but they beat me down. I don't remember a lot, but I remember that. Since I've been here I've not felt weak. Thanks to you. You made me feel strong, like I was in control. But in those few words, you reminded me I'm not." I just stared at her while she spoke, not wanting to interrupt her explanation.
"But you are. You survived. That's a strength not everyone has." I moved closer to her and lifted my hand to cup her cheek, but quickly thought better of it. She saw my hesitation and gripped my wrist, bringing my palm up to connect with the soft skin above her jaw. "I just want you to be able to protect yourself. I couldn't forgive myself if anything happened to you."
She smiled softly and pulled me into her embrace. I slid my fingers into her hair and held her close, just feeling her as we reconnected.
"I missed you last night," she whispered against my neck, her breath tickling the fine hairs causing me to shiver.
"I missed you too," I admitted carefully. I pulled back slightly, resting my forehead against hers, and looked into her beautiful coffee coloured eyes. Her gaze flicked over my face and settled on my collarbone. Her fingers ghosted over the rapidly forming bruise.
"Oh Quinn," she murmured. "What happened to you?" I explained that I fell asleep on the roof and my rude awakening at the hands – or boot – of a guard. I sugar coated the fact that I had shot him but didn't leave it out altogether. As I finished my story Paige leant down a brushed her lips across the discolouration. My words dried out and my breath hitched in my throat at her gentle kisses. I tightened my grip on her hair slightly, holding her in place and encouraging her not to stop. She ran a hand up my side, her fingers coming to rest on my shoulder. From there she traced a swirling pattern up the back of my neck to the hairline before dragging her nails gently downwards. I couldn't stop the moan that erupted from my throat at the sensations she was creating on my skin.
I lost my patience and gave into the ache forming in my chest and tugged her hair gently, pulling her lips from my skin. I crashed our mouths together and sought her tongue out with my own. Her arms wrapped around my neck, holding me close to her and I gripped her hip with my other hand. Our tongues swirled and danced as Paige arched into me and drove me back against the cold tiled wall. One hand fisted my top while the other settled at the nape of my neck. In my need to be closer to her I slipped a leg between hers, earning a breathy groan when my thigh pressed against her centre. The sound jolted me back to reality and I slowed the kiss, ending it with a series of sweet pecks.
"Wow," she breathed between pants. I hummed my agreement and tried to slow my heart rate to something that could be considered reasonable. "We should do that more," she mumbled with her eyes fixed on my swollen lips. I chuckled at her slightly dazed expression and ran my thumb over her cheek affectionately.
"We'll take it slow, yeah?" She nodded and rested her head on my uninjured shoulder. I ran my fingers through her hair gently before sighing. "I should go. Noah is probably worried and I need his help with something. I'll talk to Derek as well." She huffed against my skin and I smiled in response before placing a kiss to her forehead as I carefully moved away from her. I lead her back into the atrium and found Derek and Steve talking quietly. It was more a series of facial expressions, head movements and grunts but it was their version of talking. They turned to me as I approached.
"What's up, boss?" Steve asked with an amused glint in his eye. I rolled my eyes.
"Paige is happy to go ahead with the training. We'll start this afternoon. Okay?" Derek nodded his agreement.
"We'll start after you've taken on Charlie," he agreed. I cursed inwardly. I had forgotten about that. It would be a tough fight in my condition.
"Sure, that's fine. We'll see you later." They turned back to their conversation, effectively dismissing us. I turned to Paige, squeezing her hand gently. "I have to go find Noah. I'll be back in a bit." She nodded and tipped forward onto her toes to plant a sweet kiss on my cheek.
"Be careful."
"I always am," I smirked at her. She raised an eyebrow and glanced at my shoulders before returning her gaze back to my face. "Usually," I added with a grin. She shook her head and pushed me away with a smile of her own. I turned and made my way into the tech room, hoping to find Noah with Amber. My search was successful and my friend was pouring over the schematics for one of the bases. "Hey Noah." He raised he head slightly before glancing over my clothes.
"You okay?" He asked softly. I nodded.
"I am. But I need a hand with something if you've got a minute." He rolled up the plan and set it aside before following me out of the room and along the path I took the previous night. "It's not going to be pretty; you can say no if you want." He just slid a side look at me and carried on walking. Once we had emerged onto the street I began explaining my morning to him, leaving nothing out. He shot me a sharp glare at some points and at others his eyes held overwhelming sympathy.
"You did what you had to do. He probably wouldn't have survived the fall and the head wound. But it's worrying if they are starting to patrol this area." I nodded my agreement.
"I know. I still don't like that I had to do it. Why couldn't he just leave me be and move on? Why was he checking the rooftops anyway? Too much is changing for my liking. We need to warn the teams about it." We came to the pile of rubbish in the alley that was covering the guard's body. Everything looked as I left it.
"Where are you thinking?" Noah asked softly. I looked pointedly to the sewer grate halfway down the passageway. "Oh, then where?"
"To the sea." He nodded but didn't look thrilled at the prospect of a trip in the sewers. "It's mid-morning. We should be fine. It's not that far, we'll be careful." I tried to soothe his fears, and my own.
"Okay," he agreed and began pulling some of the bags off of the corpse. Once he was clear I grabbed his wrists, not wanting to have to throw another set of clothes out, as Noah took his legs. We carried him to the cover, laying him down briefly while Noah lifted the solid metal lid. Once it was up we slid him carefully into the hole, grimacing slightly at the crunching thud of him landing. I lowered myself through the hole and landed next to the body as Noah used all of his skills to pull the cover back into place before dropping to the floor.
We took up the same positions, me with his arms and Noah with his legs, and started heading south through the rank drains. After about half an hour the air began to feel cooler and smell considerably better. As we approached the open mouth of the sewer, we slowed and eventually stopped. I snuck quietly to the entrance and glanced around, checking for sentries and cameras. Finding none, I crept back to Noah and we resumed carrying the body out of the large pipe and the fifteen or so metres to the water. We flung his body into the surf and watched as the rolling waves swept him further from the shoreline. Noah tugged on my wrist to gain my attention and motioned back to the culvert. I nodded and we raced back; keeping our eyes up on the walls, making sure we weren't spotted. As we jogged through the sewer a clacking noise slowed me.
"You hear that?" I whispered to Noah. He cocked his head slightly and his eyes widened.
"Shit! We need to go!" I nodded quickly, knowing we were being followed by one of the creatures that had made the sewer its home. We picked up the pace until we reached an area we were familiar with. "Up on Cherry Tree?" Noah asked raggedly from in front of me. I grunted a response, not slowing until I reached the now stationary Noah. I jumped as I met him and he gripped my ankles, propelling me upwards. I grabbed the bars either side of the manhole and waited for him to leap up behind me. Once he had a hold of the rungs I slid the cover up slightly, looking around for signs of life and finding none. I heaved the lid up and pulled myself from the hole, holding a hand out for Noah to join me.
I was just about to replace the cover when a monstrous rodent emerged beneath us. It vaguely resembled a rat but was the size of a large dog with huge fangs and razor sharp claws. It squealed out in frustration that its quarry had disappeared then turned and scurried off the way it had come. I glanced at my companion once the lid was in place and saw relief reflected in his eyes. I shook my head and we crept into quiet side street to regroup. Noah was right with his direction and we had come up on Cherry Tree Avenue. At one time the road was lined with the pink blossomed trees, making the spring a truly magical time to walk the once residential street. Now all that remained were the burnt and broken remains of the plants. We set off towards our sanctuary, arriving less than twenty minutes later.
I made my way to the cafeteria to grab some lunch before my duel with Charlie, not wanting to be distracted by hunger as well as the niggling injuries I was carrying. When I was done I removed my boots and headed for the training room. Inside I found Paige bent forward, stretching her legs out. My mouth went dry and my stomach flipped uncomfortably. The rough cough of Derek clearing his throat broke me from my staring contest with her butt and I was motivated into also stretching out my already fairly loose muscles. I shot a glance at the stoic brothers and was surprised to see identical grins stretching their mouths up. I rolled my eyes and focused back on my task. After a few minutes Charlie stepped up to me and flashed me a flirty smile.
"Ready boss?" I raised my eyebrow at the girl before nodding softly. I circled to the left watching her fluid, graceful movements. She seemed to glide over the matting rather than walk and for a second I was envious. In that moment she darted forward and flicked a fist towards my face but I spotted it in time and ducked. She shot me a smirk before her foot lifted to connect with my jaw, sending me flying backwards before I landed with a thud on my back. I groaned at the ache twisting its way up my spine but shook it off and rolled backwards, continuing my motion to push up into a standing position. Almost before I could set myself, Charlie was upon me again; a blur of punches, kicks and flips. I blocked most of the hits, taking a few along the way, until I noticed a pattern in her movements. I waited a beat to check I was right.
She threw her left fist out before swinging it back in towards my jaw, following a split second with her left knee to my abdomen. She lashed out with this combination every three or four blows. With a gentle smile I blocked, waiting for the next opening. As her left hand angled towards me, I ducked my head back and grabbed the knee heading for my ribs, putting all my weight into the kick I aimed at her stomach. She flew backwards and rolled a couple of times before colliding with the solid barrier of the wall. I leant back slightly and stretched my back out as I walked forward, ignoring the dull pain spearing through my right ankle with each step.
She pushed up onto her knees and eyes me wearily. I understood the look; not many people bested her in a fight. The pain and my frustrations from the morning poured into my movements as I lifted her onto her feet and sent a combination of uppercuts, hooks and straight jabs at her body and face. She fired off a few shots at me but the kick to her abs had left her weakened and unable to defend properly. I let up after a minute or so, seeing she had a split lip and a bruise was forming over her cheek. "We done?" I panted. She nodded and swallowed hard. I held out my hand, which she took gratefully.
"You repeat your combinations Charlie. The hook and knee," Derek interjected as Steve came over with two towels and two bottles of water. I accepted the latter eagerly and began gulping the tepid liquid down. I looked at Derek hesitantly, wondering what criticism I was in for this time. "Quinn, that was better. Your reactions have improved though you looked tired and sluggish." I merely raised an eyebrow at his smirk, for once wanting the monosyllabic boy I had gotten used to return. I noticed Paige watching me closely so I excused myself and wandered over to her, wiping down my face with a towel.
"How'd I do?" I asked with a gentle smile. She looked me over reproachfully.
"Should you really be fighting? Given the events this morning," she scolded softly, only concern flashing through her deep and soulful chocolate orbs.
"I'm okay. Promise. Anyway, if I'm hurting later you can always kiss it better," I whispered with wink. Her mouth fell open slightly and her eyes grew a little wider. I smirked at her adorably shocked expression, noticing the flirty banter came easily and flowed nicely.
"Paige? You ready?" Steve asked softly behind me. She nodded dumbly before she snapped out of her daze.
"You're mean," she murmured as she brushed past me. I swallowed my snigger, instead choosing to shoot her a sweet smile as she set herself. I sat against the wall as Steve and Derek began showing her the basic stances and punches she would hopefully never have to use.
