Home Again
Summary: In S3 E1, a Pristichampsus almost pulled Connor though the anomaly. This is my version of something that could happen if he did get pulled through. He's been gone for 3 years, but when he comes back it's only been 5 days. He's changed. But how? And how much?
Disclaimers: Don't own. If I did, I would have done this on the TV show. Only writing this for fun
*Warnings: Gore. Bad language. Hints of pre-slash or bro-mance Connor/Becker.
**A/N: The OC (Tarya)'s name is said Tar-e-a. The name 'Namir' is said Na-m-ear. Based off an episode, quite a bit changed, but same sort of storyline. Also some cute comforting moments, again. I've put line-breaks to separate the paragraphs in the song, but there is no time gap between each verse. You lucky people, you get this instead of me doing homework.
Prediction
Connor awoke from a comfortable, dreamless sleep. He was holding something warm. Then the past night's events came back to him. The nightmare, being held by Becker, drifting off with Becker beside him. Every time he started to have another nightmare, something would happen to make the dream turn good again.
Becker awoke from a comfortable, dreamless sleep. He was holding something warm. Then the past night's events came back to him. The nightmare, holding Connor as he muttered 'sorry', drifting off with Connor beside him. Every time his friend began to whimper or thrash, Becker would hold him tight and whisper that it was 'alright' and that 'nothing was going to hurt either of them'.
"You know," Connor began, "we're making quite a habit out of this."
Becker chuckled, "I know."
Then Becker's alarm went off, the soldier sighed, "time to get up."
Connor sighed and held Becker tighter, "noooo," he moaned like a child.
The captain looked down at his friend. Connor's head was laying on his chest, arms wrapped around his stomach, "come on, Conn, you know that Lester doesn't like it when you're late."
"And he likes it when your late?" the Yorkshire man asked.
"I've never been late," Becker said seriously, "and I don't intend to start now."
Connor sighed, "okay, I'll get up."
The amber-eyed man released his friend and rolled out of bed. Becker left his warm bed as well, he walked over to the dresser and pulled out today's clothes. What a surprise! Black T-shirt, black military trousers, and army vest. Connor left his friend's room and walked towards his own. He knocked on the door.
A muffled, "come in," came from inside.
Connor opened the door, "hey, Tarya, mind if I grab some clothes?"
"Course not," the princess replied. She was already dressed in one of her all black skin-tight suits, machetes strapped to her back and knives strapped to her hips.
"Thanks," he walked over to his dresser and pulled out today's outfit. Red skinny jeans, lilac-blue top with writing and a long sleeved orange top beneath it. He opened a smaller drawer. Black fingerless gloves, and blue checked scarf. He left his room and entered the bathroom, getting dressed in there. He left the bathroom, dumped his PJs in his room and went to start breakfast.
Becker left his room after, what seemed like, hours of styling his hair. The first thing which he noticed was it spelt of bacon and...fried chicken? That couldn't be right. The captain made his way to the open plan kitchen and saw that Connor was making one of his famous sandwiches. Bacon, chicken, chips and cheese. But he didn't have the time for chips, so it was just bacon, chicken and cheese.
Tarya was sitting at the table already and smiled at her brother as he entered the kitchen properly.
"Smells good," Becker commented as he sat next to his sister.
"I'm glad," Connor replied as he dished up the last of the chicken. He served the plates on the table, then placed the bread there as well. He sat down opposite Becker.
The trio began to construct their sandwiches. Bread, sprinkle cheese, bacon, sprinkle cheese, chicken, dash of cheese, bread. They eat in silence, too absorbed in the assorted taste to strike up conversation. Once they finished their food, they put the dishes in the sink for later and left for the ARC.
When they arrived at the ARC, Becker went to do security checks, Tarya went to train, and Connor went to find the newest myth Cutter and Sarah were exploring. Connor found the sheets and was reading them, while leant against a wall in the hallway.
Sarah and Cutter entered the hallway behind him.
"I've been trying to, erm, trace the origins of the Qilin," Sarah began.
"Also known as the Chinese unicorn," Connor said, handing the sheets to Cutter.
"Exactly, now the earliest reference I could find was in a 5th Century book, so I made a rough calculation, an' put it into the Matrix," Sarah told the professor, very quickly.
The trio entered Cutter's office. A swirly metal model of all known/suspected Anomalies stood in the middle.
"I love this thing," Connor told them as he stepped inside it and fiddled with a bit of blu-tac.
"Connor," the professor began.
"Huh?" Connor replied.
"If you touch that, you could be changing the entire destiny of the universe," Cutter replied.
Connor looked at the Blu-tac, back at the professor and said, "I'm not gonna touch it, I'm just gonna," and began backing out of the model.
"Whoa," Jenny exclaimed as she entered the professor's office, "please tell me this all means something?"
"This," Connor began, "is a 3D model representing all known Anomalies throughout history."
"All cultures have their own mythical beasts, like, um, the Lock Ness monster," Sarah continued.
"And my guess is that where there's a myth we'll find an Anomaly, now all we have to do, is date these myths accurately," Cutter explained.
"Like a road map, of time," Connor used his favourite analogy.
"Then, we can start to predict where and when, new Anomalies might start to open," Cutter continued.
"Call me stupid, but, erm, couldn't we have done all this on a computer?" Jenny asked.
"This way, it's more tangible," Cutter replied.
"It makes him feel more like God, you know with the creation thing," Connor said.
Jenny nodded and mouthed "okay."
"Yeah, Connor you might be right," Cutter paused and stood up from where he had crouched in the model, "but unless I'm very much mistaken, I think we may have made our first prediction."
The others all stepped a bit closer, taking a look at the new point on the model, "super cool," Connor said, "when do we go?"
"Not yet. I want to check my calculations," Cutter told everyone.
"Right," Jenny began, "well, you do that, and I'm gonna get a coffee," she turned and left for the break room.
"Have fun," Connor told Sarah and Cutter, "I've got some more calculations of my own to do. The locking device isn't going to build itself," he turned and left as well.
Connor walked to the hub and started up his laptop. He began type some more information on the Anomalies and make a few educated guesses as to why the electric current locked the Anomaly. He decided that it was because the electricity reversed the polarity of the Anomaly. And that maybe, just maybe, if he worked on it enough, he could reverse the forces so the Anomaly will collapse in on itself and close.
A while later, Becker came in. He had left his vest somewhere and was now very bored. He walked up to Connor, "hey, Conn."
"Hey, Becks," Connor replied, "what's up?"
"Nothing much, just bored," the captain explained.
"What? You? Bored of security checks so soon?" Connor asked, "no, that can't be right. Your Mr. Action Man, you don't get bored of security checks."
"Ha ha, very funny, "Becker replied. The pair both smiled and laughed at their shared joke.
"Can't help you get un bored though, I am close to a major breakthrough. Why don't you ask Tarya to train with you or something?" Connor replied.
Becker shrugged.
"Oh, I see, you just don't want your arse handed to on a plate by your sister," Connor deduced.
"Of course not. I just don't want to hurt her," the captain replied.
"Ok then, so you won't mind if we spar then?" Connor asked.
"Well, I don't want to hurt you either," Becker said.
"Ok...chicken," Connor teased.
"What?" Becker asked as he quirked an eyebrow.
"Chiiickennn," Connor replied.
"Excuse me?" the captain asked again.
"Bwwaaaack, bwack, bwack, bwack," Connor did his best chicken impression as he typed.
"Fine. Have it your way. Tomorrow, 1pm. Don't be late," Becker replied.
Connor looked up at Becker. The pair held a serious gaze with each other, before both bursting into laughter. Becker walked around to talk with Jenny who was overseeing someone work on the ADD. Connor went back to typing.
A few minutes later, Cutter and Sarah both walked in.
"Alright, listen up," Cutter announced. Everyone turned to look at him. He continued, "we've analysed the most recent Anomalies and put them into the model, the prediction is specific and local, but there's a problem. It could happen tomorrow, it could happen many years from now," he began to address Jenny, "I want you ta go and check it out, and take Sid and Nancy with ya," he indicated to Connor and Abby. The pair looked at each and themselves, then back to the professor.
"Um, I'll go too," Sarah tried.
"No, I need you here," Cutter's response was instant.
"I should handle this," Becker said.
"No, no, Cutter's right, we'll go," Jenny replied.
Cutter nodded once, "anything happens you call me," with that he turned and left, "Sarah."
"Help," Sarah whispered to Connor, "I've been taken hostage by an obsessive scientist."
"Welcome to our world," Connor smiled at her.
The trio get ready to leave.
"Connor," Becker said as he came up to his friend, "be careful, yeah?"
"When am I not?" Connor asked.
"I'm serious. I know you can take care of yourself, but...you never know what will happen," the captain said.
Connor nodded, "I know, Namir. I know."
The trio grabbed their coats and left. Becker looked after them as they left. He really didn't want to lose Connor again.
They took two cars, Connor in one and Jenny and Abby in the other. The car ride over to the abandoned house was quite for Connor, and only the radio disturbed the peace. The car ride for the two girls was a mix of chatter and radio.
When they arrived, they jumped out of the cars and walked down to the house.
"This is the place," Connor said as he looked on the detector, "this is where Cutter predicts the Anomaly will open."
"We better check it out," Jenny said.
"Then what?" Connor asked, "we just sit, twiddling our thumbs until an Anomaly appears?"
"Yeah, somethin' like that," Jenny replied.
"Hold me back, I don't think I can take the excitement," Connor replied sarcastically. He followed the others across the bridge and down to the house.
Connor bounced up the stairs to the house. He flicked the wind chime and watched it spin. He tried the door. Locked. He walked around the house looking for another entrance. 'Screw it,' he thought. He walked back round to the front.
"Seems quiet enough," Abby commented.
" 'Scuse me," Connor said as he moved the girls back from the door. He backed up a bit as well, then ran forward, stuck up a leg and kicked the lock on the door, breaking it, "ta-da," he said as he walked in.
"Nobody in," he commented.
"How do you know?" Jenny asked, "they could just be upstairs."
"Well, one, nobody came running at the sound of their door breaking, and two, I can't hear anyone. Can you?" he replied.
"Suppose not," she said and walked inside the house, "what happened here?" she asked as she looked around.
"This place most be worth millions. Why's it just been left?" Abby asked in annoyance.
"The smell, maybe?" Connor asked. It really did stink in there, "it stinks in here," it really, really did.
"A bit like the sewers, or something damp," Jenny commented.
"It's more like they've been keeping animals," Abby replied.
"What kind of animals? Skunks?" Connor asked. Honest to God, it was one of the worst things he had ever smelt, "hey," he said and threw the detector to Abby.
She caught it and frowned at him.
"Thanks," he replied, walking towards the kitchen. The girls went upstairs.
Connor explored the downstairs. Pretty boring, average stuff. He walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. An empty glass, milk bottle. 'Strange' he thought.
He put the bottle back in the fridge. His phone rang, "hello?" he answered it.
"Hey, it's Becker," the voice on the other end said.
"Oh, hey Becks, what up?" Connor asked.
"Just wanted to see how you were doing," Becker replied.
"Yeah, it's going great. Nothing unusual so far, just a really nice, and really smelly, abandoned house," the amber-eyed man replied.
"That's good-"
Connor heard Abby scream his name, "I'll call ya back," he told Becker. He hung up, put his phone away and ran towards Abby's shout.
"Abby?" he asked as he moved into the room and looked around. He looked towards the fireplace, hearing something inside, "Abby?" he asked a bit louder. He heard something in the fireplace again. Sounded like something moving in there. He moved slowly towards it. Then he heard something behind him and turned around just as-
Smack! Something hit him. Someone hit him and they both fell to the ground. Connor hit his head slightly on the floor and for a moment he saw stars. Then Abby's face was swimming in front of him.
"-nnor? Connor, can you hear me?" she asked, worried he was seriously hurt.
"Yeah, yeah I hear you," he stood up, "was that you?"
She looked guilty, "yeah. I'm so sorry, I just wanted to make you jump, I didn't want to actually hurt you."
"That was childish," he muttered.
"We're you scared?" Abby asked.
"Li'le bit," he replied, "thought you were in trouble, didn' I?"
"Yeah," she smiled at her friend, "you came to rescue me. I am sorry about your head."
"No, it's alright," he replied.
She began to walk away, "do ya know why I like this place?" she asked, "it's fun."
And she left the room. Connor paused a moment, then followed. He paused at the door and looked back into the room, he could have sworn he heard something. Oh well. He shrugged and left the room. The trio continued to wonder around the house.
Eventually, after finding nothing of use, Jenny said they should leave. They stepped out the front door, "well that was eventful."
"It's a nice place, isn't it," some man on the front porch said, "care to explain what you're doing here?" he showed his ID to them. A copper. Great.
"Just visiting," Jenny replied.
Connor looked closely at the man, what he could see anyway. He had heard that voice before, seen that back. But, it couldn't be.
"Well the way I see it," he turned around to face the trio, "you're either burglars, or trespassers."
It was. It was that man. The man from the other side of the Anomaly. Not good, very not good.
"Do we look like burglars to you?" Jenny asked, stepping down towards the police man.
Abby laughed at that. Connor just looked at the copper with a blank face. He showed no emotion, he couldn't show emotion. Not with this. The only bit of emotion on his face was a slight icy glare.
"Well, I'm pretty sure I've seen laughing girl on a wanted poster, yeah," the copper commented.
"He talking about me?" Abby asked Connor.
"Yep," he replied.
"Oi. Officer...?" Jenny asked.
"Detective Constable Quinn. And you are?" he replied.
Jenny looked around a bit, like she was just glancing, "we're property developers."
"You're lying," Quinn replied, "I should arrest you all. But to be quite frank, I can't be bothered. You people aren't worth the paperwork, now go."
The trio began to leave. Abby turned and asked, "what do you mean 'you people'?" she asked.
"Murder tourists," he replied through gritted teeth, "you make me sick. Now get out, and if I see you around here again, your feet won't touch the ground, do you understand?"
"Come on," Jenny told her colleagues. They turned and left.
"Something strange is going on in there. Abby, stay here, if anything out of the ordinary happens, call us," Jenny said and turned to leave.
"Where are you going?" Abby asked.
"To get some answers," Jenny shouted over her shoulder, "Connor, you're coming with me."
Connor followed the PR woman back to the car.
Abby heard a stick brake and turned her head to look, just in time, she saw a flash on red. Like a coat.
Connor got in the car with Jenny. On the ride to wherever they were going, Connor thought about his past, but also his future. He already knew he was going to go to the future, but he would have to do everything the same. He couldn't change anything, lest he effect the delicate web of time. He already knew what was going to happen to Becker, so he couldn't stop the captain when the time came, that would only upset the balance of time.
Connor followed mutely behind Jenny as they walked towards a house salesman.
He tuned out of the conversation, only really tuning in when Jenny said, "er, yeah, yeah, we're looking aren't we honey," and put an arm around his waist, smiling up at him.
He put an arm around her shoulder, playing a long.
"Wandered why it hadn't sold yet?" Jenny told the retailer.
"Markets been a bit soft," the salesman said.
"That's not the only reason though," Connor deduced, "something happened there, didn't it?"
The retailer went on to explain about the three missing boys. That only one came out, and some people say that the house is still haunted, that you can still hear their screams. The pair thanked the man for his time and left.
"Now wha'?" Connor asked.
"We need to track down this Ryan Mason. I'll make a call," Jenny replied. The pair jumped into the car. Connor thought some more about what to do when the time to visit the future came. He knew it would be soon. He just didn't know how soon.
They drove to a theme park. Apparently, Ryan worked there. The pair jumped out and found the man, he was working on a merry-go-round. They followed him around, Jenny doing most of the talking. But Connor managed to convince him that they were there to help. And Ryan told them what happened. They found out what really happened, and promised that they wouldn't tell anyone at his job about what he saw. Jenny and Connor left to go back to the house.
When they arrived, Abby was laying on the stairs, unconscious.
"Abby?" Connor asked as he ran forward to her, "Abby? Abby? Hi," he had the sensation that this is how the blonde must have felt when Connor himself hit his head.
"Must have fallen," the blonde explained.
"Let's get you up," Connor said and began to help her, "come on."
"Slowly, slowly," Jenny said.
"Just sit down for a bit," Abby whispered.
"Abby, what happened?" Jenny asked.
Abby explained what happened, saying that she couldn't remember past being in the bedroom. Connor suggested taking Abby to the doctor. Jenny told the amber-eyed man to stay at the house, while she took Abby to see a doctor. Connor was to wait outside only.
Connor stood on the bridge to the house, looking out across the lake. He was, again, deep in thought. Some movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. He turned his head to see a little girl in a red coat.
"Hi," he called to her. She didn't answer, just stared, "okay," he muttered to himself. He started to search for his phone, he needed to call Becker again. But he didn't have it on him. 'Crap,' he thought, 'must have lost in the house when Abby tackled me'. He groaned and hit his head, on his hands, on the railing. He began to walk away when the little girl shouted to him.
"No!" she screamed, "you can't go inside!"
"I've lost me phone, so...I won't tell anybody if you don't," he said. He smiled, then walked back towards the house. Connor walked into the house and found his phone. He rang Becker.
"Hey, Conn," the captain said.
"Yo, Becks," Connor greeted, "I told ya I'd call back."
"Yeah, so why-" he began, but was cut off.
Connor's phone hit the floor as he was shoved into a wall. Out of natural reaction, he fort back. Handcuff on one wrist. He got himself out of the arm lock, pulled his wrist free and kicked his attacker squarely in the chest. The man grunted in pain.
"Connor?!" he heard Becker shouting his name from the phone.
The copper- Quinn- rubbed his chest and ran forward, trying to punch Connor. The amber-eyed man ducked the fist. The policeman yelled and swore under his breath from pain. Connor kicked out and knocked Quinn off his feet. The copper grunted again as his back hit the floor.
"Connor?!" Becker continued to yell.
The policeman stood, "thanks. Now I can arrest you for resisting arrest, assaulting a police officer, and breaking and entering."
Quinn pulled out a taser and shocked Connor. The young man fell over, delirious. The copper pulled Connor to his feet and dragged him to his car.
Becker's phone rang while he was discussing the security breach with Cutter and Sarah. The captain looked at the screen and answered, stepping outside the lab for a minute.
"Hey, Conn," the captain said.
"Yo, Becks," Connor greeted, "I told ya I'd call back."
"Yeah, so why-" he began, but was cut off by a loud clatter. The phone had been dropped. Then he heard a struggle. There was the sound of someone being hit and a pained grunt, "Connor!?" Becker asked.
There were more sounds of a fight, more pained grunts, and no response from Connor. Becker hung up and ran out of the ARC, collecting his gear as fast as he could. He sprinted to the car and dived in. The captain broke the speed limit several times on the way over to the house. He knew he should have gone with Connor. He knew something bad was going to happen. When Becker reached the house, he ran out of the car and towards the house with his favourite shotgun in hand. He burst through the door.
"Connor?!" he shouted. No reply. He looked around and saw Connor's phone laying on the floor, "damn it!" he yelled. Becker picked up the phone, shoved it in his pocket and left the building. He went back to the car and rang Jenny.
"Hello?" the PR woman answered.
"Jenny! It's Becker," the captain almost screamed at her.
"Whoa, calm down Becker, what happened?" she asked.
"It's Connor," Becker began, "he's gone. He's not at the house. He rang me, and half way through there was the sound of a fight, I got to the house as soon as I could and there was no trace of him apart from his phone."
"Oh God. Has the Anomaly reopened?" Jenny asked.
"No, there's nothing on the ADD. And the fight sounded like it was between two humans," Becker replied.
"Stay there, I'm on my way," the PR woman hung up.
Becker sat in the car and waited for Jenny and Abby to arrive.
Connor awoke with a burning sensation in his chest, his whole body ached and his head pounded. He groaned.
"Morin' sunshine," a man's voice said. Quinn's voice said.
Connor sat up and discovered that he was on the back seat of a police vehicle.
He sat the rest of the journey in silence. Even when Quinn tried to converse with him, Connor really didn't want to talk now and he knew it was best to keep his mouth shut.
They arrived at the station and Connor was thrown in cell B5.
"You were warned," Quinn said as he walked away.
Connor sighed and sat back on the bench, back against the wall, legs on the bench in front of him. He began to sing slowly and quietly to himself.
"In the darkness of night,
He sits alone in fright,
There's no one to help,
He burns alone,
In the City of Light.
He rose to his feet,
He grabbed his bloody knife,
He left the town,
In search of some meat,
And didn't come back all night.
He wandered the woods,
And to his delight,
He saw the dancing light,
Through the shadows of fear,
He saw a deer.
The deer raised his head,
It's Hart exposed,
Fear on his face,
Frozen in place,
The deer pleaded and moaned.
The man raised his knife,
Shining in the light,
Crimson dripped from the blade,
He threw it through the glade,
Into the Hart it goes."
A while later and Quinn was back. Connor left the bench, walking towards the door.
"This is a blatant miscarriage of justice. I demand Hiatus Corpus," he knew it was a long shot, but he thought he should give it a try.
Nothing from the copper.
"I know my rights," Connor shouted through the door.
"Name them," Quinn said.
"Ya wha'?" Connor asked.
"Name them," the policeman said louder.
"The right to remain silent. Anything I say can and will be held against me in the court of law. The right to an attorney, if I cannot afford one, one will be appointed for me," Connor said automatically. He had learnt them for when he was in the military.
The policeman nodded, impressed, "you want a lawyer?"
"Also, I have the right to a phone call, and you should have read me my rights when you arrested me and therefore you now have to release me," Connor told the copper.
"I read you your rights while you were still out, I thought you were awake though," Quinn said.
"You can't just take people's rights away," Connor said.
The policeman walked up to the door and shut the window cover.
"You're not funny," Connor shouted through the door, "please," he began to knock on the door, "ya have ta let me go, I have ta speak to me friend."
The copper pulled the cover down, "you tell me what you were doing at that house with your pals," Quinn tried to bargain.
"I can't do that," Connor replied.
"Look, I know you're not a property developer, and you're obviously not MI5, so what?" the policeman asked.
"One phone call, I'll clear the whole thing up," Connor told him, "please."
Quinn unlocked the door and took Connor down to the phones. The amber-eyed man dialled the only number he could remember by heart.
Jenny pulled up beside Becker's car and jumped out.
"Took you long enough," the captain commented.
"Sorry, had to get Abby looked over by a doctor," Jenny explained.
"What happened?" Becker asked as Abby got out of the car.
"Hit my head, I'm fine though. But what about Connor?" Abby asked.
"I have no idea-" Becker's phone cut himself off. He picked it up, "hello? Captain Becker speaking."
"Becker," the man on the other end sighed in relief, "thank God you answered."
"Connor?" Becker asked.
"Yeah, yeah it's me. Listen, I'm kinda in jail," Connor said.
"What?" Becker asked.
"Yeah, there's this policeman, Quinn, who really doesn't like us and well...he kinda arrested me," Connor replied.
"Alright, I'll pass you over to Jenny," Becker passed the phone over to the PR woman and Connor explained everything to her. Becker wanted to go with Jenny to intimidate this 'Quinn' and to check that Connor was alright.
Abby stayed to keep watch at the house.
Connor lay back on the bench, it was almost dark out, and he could feel the sun going down. His body still felt sore and stiff, like rusty cogs grinding together. He closed his eyes and fell into oblivion.
The woman cowered away from him, "please, please do not," she whimpered. This one was dressed like a royal from the 1800s. Brown hair in a bun, two pieces curled and framed her face, red dress down to her ankles with gold patterns on, corset, and matching high heels.
He stepped forward, "shut up," he popped the 'p', "or it will be worse for you," he told the cub.
"P-please, I will d-do an-anything you w-want," the cub begged.
"I want you to be quiet," Connor told her.
The woman shut her mouth.
"Thank you," Connor said. He stepped towards the cub, knife drawn, and crouched next to her. He thrust the knife out and it plunged into her soft flesh, she cried out as more tears fell. The man pulled the knife out and stabbed the cub again, and again, and again, until the crying had ceased and then some. He licked the knife. Metal assaulted his tongue, bits of flesh and insides slipping down his throat with the crimson liquid. The man slit the cub's throat and licked the liquid from her jugular. His mouth filled with sweet metal. Connor lifted his head up, blood dripping from his mouth and down his chin, he licked his blade clean and stood. He left the building and called the Predators. He watched as the beasts tore the cub apart, blood still dripping from his face.
"Connor?" he heard Tarya behind him. The man turned, "what have you done?" the princess asked.
Connor awoke with a start. He sat up. He could still taste the crimson liquid dancing on his tongue. The metal washing around his mouth. The chunks of flesh sliding down his throat. The woman's blood in his mouth, on his clothes, covering his hands. He closed his eyes and just breathed.
For the rest of the night, Connor sat thinking about his past and the future. Surly he would be punished for all the pain he had caused.
Jenny and Becker followed the policewoman down the corridor and to cell B5. Connor's cell. The woman unlocked it. Connor slide off the bench and left the cell.
"Thank you so much," he said and enveloped Jenny in a hug. He turned to Becker.
"Are you alright?" the captain asked, noting the stiff movements.
"Yeah, I'm good. Just a hard bench, and well...Quinn kinda tased me," Connor explained.
"What?" Becker asked, "I'm gonna kill him."
"You don't need to do that. I already beat him up a bit, that's why he tased me," Connor replied.
Becker smiled and laughed at that, "fair enough. Still doesn't mean he's forgiven."
"Okay," Connor nodded.
Quinn walked around the corner, "oi! What the hell do ya think you're doin'?"
"Detective Constable Quinn," Jenny said, "I've come to retrieve my colleague. You'll be well advised to stay out of my way."
"What exactly are ya gonna do if I don't?" Quinn asked.
"Can I shoot him?" Becker asked. He was still holding his favourite gun.
"Unfortunately not," Jenny said. Her phone rang, "it's for you," she threw the phone to Quinn.
"DC Quinn," he said as he answered it, "no, sir, course not. Ye-...yes, sir, I'll do it right now."
"In my experience, the Home Secretary hates being woken up in the middle of the night," Jenny stated. Connor winced, "it would be wise if you didn't upset him again. Phone."
Quinn strode forward, getting in Jenny's face, "if you go near that house again, none of your fancy phone calls are going to help you, understand? Leave it to the professionals," he threatened.
Becker moved forward and pushed Quinn out of Jenny's personal space, keeping a foot in front of her.
"Actually," Jenny began, "it's now out of police jurisdiction," she put a piece of paper on Quinn's chest, "it's government business. So, if you or any of your people go to that house again, you'll be trespassing. Leave it to the professionals."
With that the trio left, Becker glaring a little at Quinn.
Jenny's phone rang as there got outside, "Abby?"
The two women had a conversation about the creature on the phone while Connor talked with Becker. It was day time again, Connor had spent almost a whole day in jail. The trio left the station and drove back to the house. On the way home, Abby rang again, she was going into the house.
Connor pushed the door open, gun in hand, "Abby?" he called.
"Wait," she told the trio.
The creature was upstairs. Connor went first, then Becker, Jenny, and Abby. Ryan stayed downstairs.
Connor thought he had something in the bathroom. They walked in. It was the stupid property guy.
He started screaming, "help! Help! Help! Help!"
Connor clamped a hand over his mouth, "shhhh."
Jenny told him to stay calm and shut up. He nodded.
"I'm gonna take me hand away now," Connor said. He removed his hand.
"Help!" the retailer yelled as he shoved Connor and ran away. Jenny and Abby followed after the guy, into the hallway.
Becker stayed to help Connor. He pulled him out of the bath, "you okay?"
Connor put a hand to the back of his head, "'m fine."
"You sure-?" Becker was cut off by a painful scream.
The four ARC employees ran to the top of the stairs and looked down. The retailer was dead, the creature ripping him to shreds. DC Quinn stepped into the house.
"What did you do with the others, Ryan?" Quinn asked.
"It was a creature," Ryan insisted.
The policeman pulled a gun out, "what did you do with my brother?"
"You got it all wrong," Jenny shouted.
"You stay outa this!" he yelled, pointing the gun at Jenny.
"Lower your weapon!" Becker yelled, cocking his shotgun.
Quinn pointed the gun back at Ryan.
"You're dealing with things you don't understand," Jenny said.
"I understand this creep killed my little brother," Quinn replied.
"Look just wait a second!" Connor tried.
"Shut up!" Quinn pointed the gun back at Connor, then shot once in the ceiling. Quinn eventually lowered his gun. The creature came out of nowhere and attacked Quinn.
Becker went to shoot it but it was already gone. Everyone both aimed their guns, trying to find the creature. It stopped for a minute, growling and hissing, Becker fired but the creature jumped out of the way. Then an Anomaly opened up and the creature left the room.
"I've got a clear shot," Connor said as he entered the backroom, the Anomaly in sight.
"Wait," Abby replied. She explained about the creature wanting to go home. And it did.
"So Cutter called it right, the Anomaly came back," Abby said.
Connor moved towards the Anomaly, watching for the creature.
"Has it gone?" Ryan asked.
The creature lunged out, screeching, it landed on Connor. The man grabbed the creature by the neck and lifted it up. He stood there, the creature being held at arm's length and trying to claw at him. Connor dropped it and moved back towards the others. Quinn burst in.
"Get down!" he shouted. Becker and Quinn started shooting the beast to oblivion.
They all stared at Quinn like they were seeing a ghost.
"Kevlar vest, standard police issue," he explained.
"I have so got to get one of them," Connor said.
While Quinn talked to Jenny about an explanation, Becker walked over to Connor, "you okay?" he asked.
"That seems another little habit of ours. And yes I'm fine," Connor smiled.
"By habit you mean, you getting hurt and me asking if you're okay?" Becker asked.
"Yep, that'd be the one," Connor confirmed. He looked down as he felt a sting in his chest. He pulled his tops up. A shallow scratch resided there, stretching from his right peck to above his hip, very minor compared to the stuff he got in the Cretaceous, "I can't seem ta catch a break, can I?"
"Ouch, you sure you're alright?" Becker checked.
"I'm fine. I'll stitch it up myself when we get home," Connor replied.
"Okay," Becker replied, a small smile tugging on his lips.
"Another perfectly good top ruined, two in fact," Connor said, almost to himself.
Becker laughed at that. Quinn noticed how Connor said 'when we get home' as opposed to 'when I get home' and wandered at the story there. Becker gave Connor one of his waistcoats and explained that he found it laying in the break room. Connor put it on, not buttoning it due to the blood on his shirt. Becker's men finally arrived and the captain left to give them their orders about sealing the house off. Connor called Cutter and let him know about the two day's events.
Finally, Connor left the house for what he hoped was the last time. He walked out and hung up, seeing Jenny he said, "just phoned Cutter, told him he was right about his prediction."
"What did he say?" Jenny asked.
"What, his words exactly?" Connor asked.
"Umhum," Jenny confirmed.
"Something like 'of course I was right'," he put on a Scottish accent for mimicking the professor. The pair laughed and left the house grounds.
"You need a lift?" Jenny asked Connor.
"No thanks, I'm gonna wait for Becker," he replied.
When Becker finally came out, he drove Connor home, stopping at the ARC to pick up Tarya.
Becker opened the door to the flat and walked inside, the others following him. Connor took his waistcoat off, put it on the sofa and peeled his other two tops off. He went into the bathroom and grabbed the first aid kit. He sat on the toilet and opened the case. The Yorkshire man removed the antiseptic wipes and cleaned the scratch, throwing the wipes in the bin. He removed the sewing kit and began to stitch up the cut, he was an expert by now, having done it many times before. He put the needle away and pulled out a long plaster, sticking it over the stitches.
The amber-eyed man put the first aid kit away and walked out of the bathroom. He threw the ripped tops in the kitchen bin.
"All done?" Becker asked.
"All done," Connor confirmed.
"Good, good," Becker said.
"I'm heading to bed," Tarya announced, "have fun boys," she grinned at them.
"Night," Connor grinned back.
"Night, sis," Becker replied.
"So, what do ya wanna do?" Becker asked.
"I don't know," Connor shrugged.
"Tell you what, I've got the flat screen in my room, and all the Star Wars on DVD," Becker suggested.
Connor grinned, "okay. We got popcorn?"
"Yep," Becker said.
The pair got changed into their PJs, grabbed two bags of sweet and salted popcorn, two cups of diet coke, several bags of sweets and went into Becker's room. The pair sat down on the bed with their feast and began to watch the movie. The pair fell asleep at some point in the second movie, most of the food had been eaten and the rubbish thrown on the floor. Becker lay behind Connor, holding his friend to his chest. Connor's head lay over Becker's heart, the Yorkshire man drifting off to the steady beat.
I couldn't resist sending the boys off to sleep like that. Also, the same reasons for this woman being called a cub in the nightmare.
Please let me know if you have any ideas for future chaps, I need them.
Any other pairings you want to see, please let me know.
Thank you for keeping with the story,
Shunters