There's more swearing in this chapter, so those with delicate ears might feel like skipping this one. :D Thanks for continuing to read and review. :)
=============================================
"What else should I be? All apologies." Nirvana "All Apologies"
---------------------------------------------
Shana took a quick shower, braiding her hair while it was still wet. She changed into a pair of chinos and a t-shirt. She thought she brought a green one but was too lazy to find out for sure. Her hand absently smoothed her hair, always paranoid about it standing up or looking odd. She scritched Chevy behind his ears, "You be good here boy. Ok?" She didn't want Chevy around, especially if it didn't go well. She grabbed her cane and stepped out. She felt more comfortable here because she was in such an enclosed and secure location.
Finding Snake Eyes' room took longer than she wanted to admit, because it took her a while to reorient herself from her new location. She was used to going to his room from her old room that she shared with Jaye, not from the visiting officer's quarters. After a bit of wandering, she figured out where she was going and spent the few remaining moments before arriving on steeling herself for what was bound to be a painful and awkward.
She knocked at the door and felt the whoosh of air as it opened. He touched her elbow and slid it down to her wrist, the motion clearly inviting her in. She stepped into his room, closing the door behind her, the waiting for him to figure out what he was going to do. She wanted to drag this out so he could realize how stupid this was. She finally felt him take her hand and put it palm to palm with his own while he waved 'hello'.
Annoyance sprang to the surface immediately, "I can't do touch signing. You'll have to do better than that. Turn the damn computer on." He always wanted her to learn how to read sign by having her hands over his but it was just too complicated for her. She heard his computer whir to life and the slow clicking of keys.
"I've missed you Shana," a monotone computer voice read. She shuddered; the voice was like nails on a chalkboard to her. It was terrible to try and hold a conversation with a computer generated voice.
"What do you want Snakes?" She sighed heavily. This was a bad idea. She heard more typing and she taunted him, "You'd think with being a ninja and all that dexterity you could type more than a couple words a minute." She smirked at him.
"I wanted to know how you were. It's been years." As the voice spoke, she felt his left hand slide onto her waist and his right to gently caress her cheek.
She took a startled step back, incredulity in her tone, "You have got to be kidding me." She removed his hands. She heard him return to typing.
"Shana, it's not that big of a deal, we used to be close."
"Used to. Operative phrase. The past couple years I've not seen hide nor hair of you."
"I was giving you space." The digital monotone droned on as he tried to keep up with his typing and the conversation at hand.
"Sure you were. You were giving yourself space. Do you really think you can waltz right back into my life and I'll welcome you with open arms and bed?" Her tone was disgusted, knowing she had done as much before, but she had grown a lot since then. "You might have been able to get away with that shit before, but not anymore."
The computer tried to interrupt her, "You certainly seemed to with Duke."
She gaped at him, "You bastard. You did not just insinuate that."
She paced angrily listening to him type; it was frustrating to pace in his room though since she wasn't familiar with it so couldn't go very far. Finally, the speakers came to life again, the words being read sounding oddly comical when recited instead of spoken. "I know he went to visit you. I know he stayed with you. Did you start screwing him the first night?"
Jaw clenched, she stopped and listened to the room, listened for his breathing. She took a moment to center herself and then quickly struck, punching him squarely. "You controlling, stalking, asshole psychopath. I do not have to listen to your petty jealousy." She took her cane and tapped gently to the door. She put her hand on the handle, when she felt Snakes' hand over hers. She tried jerking away but he held her fast and she could feel him obviously sign an apology. She finally ripped her hand out of his. "You are sorry. You are a very sorry individual."
He moved to the computer quickly and she waited for his message before walking out. "I know it was uncalled for. When it comes to you though I tend to go a little crazy."
She moved her head towards his presence, hoping her eyes were meeting his. "You don't have a right to get crazy when it comes to me. We're over, never to be resurrected. We can't get through a conversation without antagonizing each other, what would possess you to think there was any hope for anything else anymore?"
This time her hands were placed more gently on top of Snakes' hands, him signing to her, eschewing technology, "Because I still love you."
She shook her head sadly, "No, you don't Snake Eyes. If you spent a little more time looking objectively at things that have happened in the last four years, you'd know. You don't even know who I am anymore. I'm sorry." She took her hands off of his and went back to the door and walked out; he didn't try and stop her again.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Shana sat in her quarters later, hands still shaking and right hand a bit sore from punching Snake Eyes. It was definitely worth it though, he had some nerve. She wondered if he just found out through the grapevine that Duke had stayed or whether he had been watching her apartment. The latter pissed her off, not just because of the stalking, but the fact he would do surveillance on her but wouldn't make an attempt to visit.
More disturbing were the insinuations and her reaction to them. She hadn't done anything with Conrad to begin with, but she wanted to. God how she wanted to sometimes. Now though, she was more hesitant, afraid her feelings were too obvious and if Conrad wasn't interested, she would lose her new friendship. After all, it was friendship she was supposed to be concentrating on. She also had to consider that Snakes and Conrad work together and if he's going to be an asshole about it, it's probably not going to be worth it for the trouble it would cause the team.
She smoothed her hair again, laughing at herself quietly. She was way ahead of herself. She was already planning for how Snakes would react to her seeing Conrad like it was an eventuality. A good sign though that she did need to start dating so she could calm down about all of this sort of stuff and not be ready to marry the first semi-decent man she meets. Finding someone though was sometimes easier said than done.
Her thoughts drifted back to Snake Eyes. He needed someone in his life; he needed something in his life. He had more issues than Mad Magazine and he enjoyed being the dark brooding one. She knew though that sometimes he thought about a different life, one where he wasn't always fighting and killing and just living like a normal person. But he would never take the steps to become that person; that was too much work and pain to go through for a non-immediate pay out. She'd have to try and smooth things over with him later. Maybe use someone as a translator so she didn't have to hear that damn computer voice. She really wouldn't mind trying to stay friends with him, if he could take those steps away from her.
A knock sounded at the door and then Conrad's familiar deep voice, "Shana? You there?"
"Yeah. Come on in, it's unlocked." She didn't bother getting up from where she sat with Chevy curled up on her. Stupid dog thought he was a lapdog.
He walked in, shutting the door behind him. She heard him sit down in a nearby chair. "You alright?"
She smirked, "Gossip train moves quickly." She paused, and then said, "Did you tell anyone here you stayed the night at my place?" She didn't think he would, but she had to know.
He sounded bewildered as he answered, "No, why?"
She shrugged, "Just curious. Yeah. I'm fine. Have you seen him?"
"He's in the gym, beating the hell out of anyone who will stand still long enough to spar with him. I will assume it didn't go well."
Shana chuckled, "Went fine for me. I even punched him."
"What?!"
"He was being an asshole. Trust me, he deserved it. I doubt I did any permanent damage."
Conrad didn't ask what exactly happened to spur her to hit him, but he guessed that it tied into her asking if he had told people about staying with her. "Well, as long as you are ok..." He trailed off, feeling awkward in the middle.
"Better than I have been in a while. I let him walk over me for too long. Funny how it takes being blind to really see sometimes." She gave a rueful smile and she heard him stand and then felt his lips press against her forehead, lingering there for what seemed like an eternity. She knew it was a fatherly gesture, but the girl with a crush inside of her was still excited about it.
"I'm glad you are ok." His voice was soft and husky and she wished she could see the expression on it. She went for the second best thing, bringing her hand up to touch his face lightly and read it that way. "What are you doing?" His tone hadn't changed at all and it sent sparks of electricity through her.
"I wanted to see your expression. Sorry." She began to draw her hand away, but he took his hand, placing it over hers.
"It's alright. I was just curious." She let her hand trail down his face to his neck and chest before withdrawing completely. He tried to think of something else to say to her but couldn't, now wasn't the right time. He straightened back up fully and spoke in his more normal voice, "You ready to go to dinner?"
The moment over, she sighed just a little and nodded. "Sounds great. Roadblock's cooking, right?" She stood, taking Chevy's harness and then Duke's arm.
"Lead the way."
=============================================
"What else should I be? All apologies." Nirvana "All Apologies"
---------------------------------------------
Shana took a quick shower, braiding her hair while it was still wet. She changed into a pair of chinos and a t-shirt. She thought she brought a green one but was too lazy to find out for sure. Her hand absently smoothed her hair, always paranoid about it standing up or looking odd. She scritched Chevy behind his ears, "You be good here boy. Ok?" She didn't want Chevy around, especially if it didn't go well. She grabbed her cane and stepped out. She felt more comfortable here because she was in such an enclosed and secure location.
Finding Snake Eyes' room took longer than she wanted to admit, because it took her a while to reorient herself from her new location. She was used to going to his room from her old room that she shared with Jaye, not from the visiting officer's quarters. After a bit of wandering, she figured out where she was going and spent the few remaining moments before arriving on steeling herself for what was bound to be a painful and awkward.
She knocked at the door and felt the whoosh of air as it opened. He touched her elbow and slid it down to her wrist, the motion clearly inviting her in. She stepped into his room, closing the door behind her, the waiting for him to figure out what he was going to do. She wanted to drag this out so he could realize how stupid this was. She finally felt him take her hand and put it palm to palm with his own while he waved 'hello'.
Annoyance sprang to the surface immediately, "I can't do touch signing. You'll have to do better than that. Turn the damn computer on." He always wanted her to learn how to read sign by having her hands over his but it was just too complicated for her. She heard his computer whir to life and the slow clicking of keys.
"I've missed you Shana," a monotone computer voice read. She shuddered; the voice was like nails on a chalkboard to her. It was terrible to try and hold a conversation with a computer generated voice.
"What do you want Snakes?" She sighed heavily. This was a bad idea. She heard more typing and she taunted him, "You'd think with being a ninja and all that dexterity you could type more than a couple words a minute." She smirked at him.
"I wanted to know how you were. It's been years." As the voice spoke, she felt his left hand slide onto her waist and his right to gently caress her cheek.
She took a startled step back, incredulity in her tone, "You have got to be kidding me." She removed his hands. She heard him return to typing.
"Shana, it's not that big of a deal, we used to be close."
"Used to. Operative phrase. The past couple years I've not seen hide nor hair of you."
"I was giving you space." The digital monotone droned on as he tried to keep up with his typing and the conversation at hand.
"Sure you were. You were giving yourself space. Do you really think you can waltz right back into my life and I'll welcome you with open arms and bed?" Her tone was disgusted, knowing she had done as much before, but she had grown a lot since then. "You might have been able to get away with that shit before, but not anymore."
The computer tried to interrupt her, "You certainly seemed to with Duke."
She gaped at him, "You bastard. You did not just insinuate that."
She paced angrily listening to him type; it was frustrating to pace in his room though since she wasn't familiar with it so couldn't go very far. Finally, the speakers came to life again, the words being read sounding oddly comical when recited instead of spoken. "I know he went to visit you. I know he stayed with you. Did you start screwing him the first night?"
Jaw clenched, she stopped and listened to the room, listened for his breathing. She took a moment to center herself and then quickly struck, punching him squarely. "You controlling, stalking, asshole psychopath. I do not have to listen to your petty jealousy." She took her cane and tapped gently to the door. She put her hand on the handle, when she felt Snakes' hand over hers. She tried jerking away but he held her fast and she could feel him obviously sign an apology. She finally ripped her hand out of his. "You are sorry. You are a very sorry individual."
He moved to the computer quickly and she waited for his message before walking out. "I know it was uncalled for. When it comes to you though I tend to go a little crazy."
She moved her head towards his presence, hoping her eyes were meeting his. "You don't have a right to get crazy when it comes to me. We're over, never to be resurrected. We can't get through a conversation without antagonizing each other, what would possess you to think there was any hope for anything else anymore?"
This time her hands were placed more gently on top of Snakes' hands, him signing to her, eschewing technology, "Because I still love you."
She shook her head sadly, "No, you don't Snake Eyes. If you spent a little more time looking objectively at things that have happened in the last four years, you'd know. You don't even know who I am anymore. I'm sorry." She took her hands off of his and went back to the door and walked out; he didn't try and stop her again.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Shana sat in her quarters later, hands still shaking and right hand a bit sore from punching Snake Eyes. It was definitely worth it though, he had some nerve. She wondered if he just found out through the grapevine that Duke had stayed or whether he had been watching her apartment. The latter pissed her off, not just because of the stalking, but the fact he would do surveillance on her but wouldn't make an attempt to visit.
More disturbing were the insinuations and her reaction to them. She hadn't done anything with Conrad to begin with, but she wanted to. God how she wanted to sometimes. Now though, she was more hesitant, afraid her feelings were too obvious and if Conrad wasn't interested, she would lose her new friendship. After all, it was friendship she was supposed to be concentrating on. She also had to consider that Snakes and Conrad work together and if he's going to be an asshole about it, it's probably not going to be worth it for the trouble it would cause the team.
She smoothed her hair again, laughing at herself quietly. She was way ahead of herself. She was already planning for how Snakes would react to her seeing Conrad like it was an eventuality. A good sign though that she did need to start dating so she could calm down about all of this sort of stuff and not be ready to marry the first semi-decent man she meets. Finding someone though was sometimes easier said than done.
Her thoughts drifted back to Snake Eyes. He needed someone in his life; he needed something in his life. He had more issues than Mad Magazine and he enjoyed being the dark brooding one. She knew though that sometimes he thought about a different life, one where he wasn't always fighting and killing and just living like a normal person. But he would never take the steps to become that person; that was too much work and pain to go through for a non-immediate pay out. She'd have to try and smooth things over with him later. Maybe use someone as a translator so she didn't have to hear that damn computer voice. She really wouldn't mind trying to stay friends with him, if he could take those steps away from her.
A knock sounded at the door and then Conrad's familiar deep voice, "Shana? You there?"
"Yeah. Come on in, it's unlocked." She didn't bother getting up from where she sat with Chevy curled up on her. Stupid dog thought he was a lapdog.
He walked in, shutting the door behind him. She heard him sit down in a nearby chair. "You alright?"
She smirked, "Gossip train moves quickly." She paused, and then said, "Did you tell anyone here you stayed the night at my place?" She didn't think he would, but she had to know.
He sounded bewildered as he answered, "No, why?"
She shrugged, "Just curious. Yeah. I'm fine. Have you seen him?"
"He's in the gym, beating the hell out of anyone who will stand still long enough to spar with him. I will assume it didn't go well."
Shana chuckled, "Went fine for me. I even punched him."
"What?!"
"He was being an asshole. Trust me, he deserved it. I doubt I did any permanent damage."
Conrad didn't ask what exactly happened to spur her to hit him, but he guessed that it tied into her asking if he had told people about staying with her. "Well, as long as you are ok..." He trailed off, feeling awkward in the middle.
"Better than I have been in a while. I let him walk over me for too long. Funny how it takes being blind to really see sometimes." She gave a rueful smile and she heard him stand and then felt his lips press against her forehead, lingering there for what seemed like an eternity. She knew it was a fatherly gesture, but the girl with a crush inside of her was still excited about it.
"I'm glad you are ok." His voice was soft and husky and she wished she could see the expression on it. She went for the second best thing, bringing her hand up to touch his face lightly and read it that way. "What are you doing?" His tone hadn't changed at all and it sent sparks of electricity through her.
"I wanted to see your expression. Sorry." She began to draw her hand away, but he took his hand, placing it over hers.
"It's alright. I was just curious." She let her hand trail down his face to his neck and chest before withdrawing completely. He tried to think of something else to say to her but couldn't, now wasn't the right time. He straightened back up fully and spoke in his more normal voice, "You ready to go to dinner?"
The moment over, she sighed just a little and nodded. "Sounds great. Roadblock's cooking, right?" She stood, taking Chevy's harness and then Duke's arm.
"Lead the way."
