Late Thursday, but still Thursday, so I'm still on time.

For those who didn't see, I posted an announcement that I made a tumblr page for my fanfiction. It's not just for this story, but this will be the main focus of it right now since it's the story I'm primarily working on. It's mostly head cannons or ideas and such, and I have a post where I'll keep real-world Easter Eggs updated(the current ones are up). Link is on my profile.

Not much else to say, but FIRST FLUFF!

The flames had died down considerably, leaving the group in the light of the soft orange glow. Most of the tacos had been consumed, wrappers being tossed into the low flames. The wind of the night had picked up a bit, but it was mostly evened out by the hot embers, should you sit close enough. For the most part, they sat in companionable silence.

Salem had another cigarette in her mouth, taking slow drags off it. Exhaling, she tossed the stumpy end into the fire, a tiny flare flaming up as it was quickly consumed. Her silvery eyes stayed on the glowing embers, and, out of nowhere, she began humming.

"Lay my head

Under the water

Lay my head

Under the sea

Excuse me sir

Am I your daughter?

Won't you take me back

Take me back and see?"

Her voice was low and sultry, carrying a soothing melody over the area.

Next to Rex, Kateri joined in on the next verse. The archer's voice wasn't as smooth as Salem's, but their voices balanced each other out in a soft harmony.

"There's not a time

For bein' younger

All my friends

Are enemies

And if I cried

Unto my mother

No she wasn't there

She wasn't there for me"

Their voices then split and Kateri then began singing the second harmony, letting Salem's voice overtake hers.

Rex stayed quiet, chocolate eyes flicking back and forth from each girl.

He recalled earlier when Ema had told him that Salem was an artist as well, but he didn't know she could sing. There were so many facets to the girl beneath her hard exterior, and he was slowly learning that she was full of surprises. Her voice itself was even a surprise, but not for how well she sang, but the way she did. It had a very clear, pure ring about it, and it projected well. He would've expected a much more coarse sound to match her rough personality.

Kateri's, while still being nice to listen to, wasn't as rounded and clean, and she did not have the power behind it that the arsonist did.

The archer hummed along to Salem's lyrics, in what Rex assumed would be the actual music. Salem's eyes had slipped closed and she swayed a bit, and Rex had never seen her look so...calm. Like the music was some kind of meditation for her. He was beginning to realize she was something of a jack of all trades.

"No I've never been,

I've never been...free"

Her eyes cracked open a bit, still staring at the fire. No one spoke, not wanting to break the peace in the air. Her voice had brought an eerie sort of calm to them, and there was a distinct feeling that the song she picked wasn't just a random song, having held a sadness to it that ran deeper than they saw.

"I'm tired." the auburn girl said after a moment, her eyes never having left the fire. She didn't say anything else, simply standing and leaving the group, disappearing after a few seconds. Ema followed her wordlessly after a moment, also sensing the underlying emotion to her spontaneous singing.

"She said she doesn't remember anything from before the testing facility." Kateri spoke after a moment, breaking the quiet. "That all the chemicals and psychological torture had basically wiped her memories, which is why she goes by Salem. Honestly, I could believe it, from that kind of trauma, but she's got a thick skin. There's a lot of things about her that she could have retained subconsciously like the drawing, the singing, the coffee. But sometimes, something...almost seems to set off some kind of flashback or memory lapse or something. I think she remembers more than she's willing to let on, because she doesn't want to remember it."

"What do you mean?" Rex asked. Abe was also listening attentively, as he wasn't as close with the pyro. The girl wasn't too fond of sharing personal things.

"Like, I've seen a couple things from her sketchbook, I was being nosey which ended up a big mistake, and there wasn't exactly anything too clear about them, but they all gave off this… hurt sort of vibe. Like she was venting about something painful from her past. It didn't seem like it had anything to do with the testing, because I found one of those, too. It just seemed angry. But the others were sad and hurt." she explained. "I don't know anything for sure, she doesn't exactly tell people about this stuff, except maybe Ema, but I think she carries around a lot of old trauma and has a bad way of dealing with it."

"Is that why she started singing?" Rex asked.

Kateri nodded. "I'm guessing it was just another outlet for her. I've heard her sing one other time, but not like that. Like I said, she doesn't really like to put her emotions out there, because I think it makes her feel vulnerable."

"Well that's deep." Abe commented. "I try not to pry too much into what happened to them, but I wouldn't be surprised if she'd got PTSD or something and has just been hiding it." He tossed a few sticks into the dying fire pit, an awkward silence settling. "I'm gonna head back, see if I can get any sleep before Rex shows up."

With that, he also stood and left.

It was now just Rex and Kateri, their faces lit in a deep orange light.

"What else can Salem do?" Rex asked out of the blue.

"Uh, sorry?" Kateri asked, throw.

"Well, so far she has basic engineering skills, from building a mini flamethrower, has good combat skills, can draw, can sing… she keeps surprising me." he clarified.

"Oh. Um, I don't really know. All those are things I knew about before. I'm pretty sure the singing and drawing are from who she was before the mutation, and the fighting was something she was forced to pick up along the way. Ema's taught her some basic tech stuff, she's taught me some things too. From what I can tell, if she wants to learn something, she picks it up pretty fast." she answered.

"I just wondered. It seems like everytime I turn around, there's something else she can do." he commented.

"I know what you mean, and I think it's a defense mechanism. She makes a point to emphasize her skills and better qualities to hide the fact that she's actually struggling with the less desirable parts of her, like the trauma from being experimented on. I also think that's why she asts to sarcastic and cocky" the Navajo told him. "And I really don't blame her, I have a tendency to do the same thing."

Rex gave her a questioning look, and she realized just what she'd said.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair, the long raven locks full of knots and tangles from prior roughhousing. "Every part of me wants to not say anything, honestly, but I promised myself I would be honest with you if it didn't put anyone in danger."

"Really?" he asked, surprised.

"I told you, I want you to be able to trust my word." she told him, looking over at him. "How are we supposed to work together if we can't trust one another to have each other's backs? I mean, all of us don't trust each other enough to share everything that's going on, but we trust each other enough to know they'll cover our ass."

Rex didn't reply to this. Honestly, though he hadn't put much thought to it, he had begun to trust this girl despite his better judgement. He believed her when she said she was just someone who wanted to put her family back together, the scars on her back proving she was willing to do anything to get it.

"But yeah, when I was first starting out, I was mostly put on a lot of basic missions, usually to just steal information or something. I wasn't much of a hacker, still really aren't, I just had to let the flashdrive to its job while I guarded it." She leaned forward, draping her arms over her bent knees. "But then, one day it wasn't that simple. Nothing really special about that day, either, but my orders were for something… bigger. An assassination."

Ice ran through Rex's veins at her words, the girl's voice taking on that same detached tone it had when she had been killing the EVOs in the hunting store.

"I was only fifteen, so obviously it scared me shitless. I'd never killed anyone before, and who was I to play God and decide who lives or dies? Turned out I didn't anyways, my superiors did." Her hands twitched as she fidgeted. "I never knew why, I still don't. I was just given a face, a location and a deadline." she shivered involuntarily. "I can still hear the splatter of blood on concrete, still see the pieces of flesh that should never have seen the light of day spray all over the place."

He saw silent tears begin to fall from her eyes, but she discretely wiped them away before they got far.

"I had nightmares for weeks after that, but out in the field, it was like my emotions had an off switch. It's like they just became animals. It wasn't often I was assigned things like that, but it's not like it takes more than one for it to leave its mark."

"I-I'm sorry. I really can't imagine what it's like to carry something like that around." he said once she had finished.

"I promise it's not fun. That's why I need this to go through." She looked up at him, and he'd never seen her look so vulnerable before. "I'm not sure how much more of this I can take."

At that, for a reason Rex would never understand, he reached out and wrapped his arms around her small body. Her muscles were tense for a long moment, but eventually, she relaxed and leaned against his side. Her fingered tightened against the hem of his T-shirt, and she allowed herself a moment to simply sit there in Rex's embrace, to let her guard down for once.

Neither of them spoke, simply watching the red embers slowly burn out.

After a while, her fingers went lax against his side, and Rex glanced down to see the girl had actually fallen asleep against him. That soft look had returned to her face, and for a moment, she could simply be any other teenage girl, sitting by a fire with a friend.

That thought startled him. Did he really consider her a friend? They met by her trying to electrocute him, and ended up with him getting dragged along on an impossible mission where the odds of failure were much higher than anyone cared to acknowledge.

But he'd also seen the side of her that showed that she wanted nothing more than to right the wrongs she'd done, and had so far paid a hefty price to do so.

Yes, he ultimately concluded, he did consider her a friend. She had become someone that he believed, if he needed to, he could rely on.

Something possessed him to reach up and lightly stroke her long hair. They weren't particularly soft, or smooth, like cheesy movies liked to describe girl's hair. The strands were thick and an in-between of soft and course from her Native blood, hanging nearly straight when it hadn't been caught in a braid to crimp it. His fingertips lingered on her cheek far longer than he knew they should have, but right then he felt a distinct affection for her that he probably shouldn't. The last time that he became attached to a girl he more or less randomly met, it hadn't ended particularly well.

But part of his mind couldn't help but compare her to Circe. The EVO girl had hidden many things from Rex, her prominent trust issues driving a wedge between them, where Kateri actually went out of her way to be honest with him, because that trust was important to her for there to be any success with them working together. He knew she was right, too, because how could you work with someone you didn't trust.

You couldn't, and Circe had proved that to him. He didn't want to cut ties with her, though, because he still harbored feeling for her, but her behaviour had basically pushed away anything more than a friendship. It would be up to her if she wanted that to change, and so far, she didn't seem to.

Rex had always worn his heart on his sleeve, it was part of what made him the person he was. He liked to put on a tough guy charade, but at the end of the day, he was a caring, good person who would let people in too easily because it was his nature to want to help them.

He could feel the same thing beginning to happen, and he hoped that he wouldn't come to regret it.

(*)

One Day Left

Kateri woke up curled on her side in the bed in the motel. For a brief moment she was startled by her surroundings. The last thing she remembered was sitting outside with Rex, telling him about some of her more scarring memories. She remembered him wrapping his arms around her, and she'd been so surprised by this action that she had locked up at first, but eventually, she felt calmed by it and leaned into it.

Her cheeks warmed as she realized she must have fallen asleep and he had carried her back to the room.

The sky was already light out, everyone having slept in from how late they were out the night before. She sat up, glancing over to see Salem and Ema leaned against the wall, Ema's head resting against Salem's shoulder as both girls slept. Kateri assumed Ema had tried to console Salem after she left, and they'd fallen asleep.

Carefully sliding out of the bed, she gathered a change of clothes from her backpack, those being simple black cargo pants, a camouflage tank top and a random hoodie, mostly looted from the hunting store, before slipping into the tiny bathroom.

She quickly peeled off her clothes, the fabric smelling strongly of wood smoke from the bonfire. Twisting the knob in the shower, she gave in a moment to heat up before stepping beneath the stream.

For a long moment, she let the warm water dribble onto her face, running down her body with a soothing touch. She ran her fingers through the knotted length of long hair, making sure it was wet before squeezing shampoo into it.

The generic scent of cheap soap quickly saturated the steaming room, but it did its job. She quickly scrubbed down the rest of her body, the white lather swirling down the drain.

She shut off the water a few minutes later, grabbing a towel from beneath the sink to dry off her body. She twisted it around her hair as she got dressed, letting it soak up as much water as she could.

Twenty minutes after entering, she slipped out of the bathroom, shoving her dirty clothes into the bottom of her backpack, before she sat down and began untangling her hair. Of all the things they grabbed, a hairbrush was not one of them, and she was left with the tiny plastic comb she found in one of the drawers in the bathroom to tackle her thick black mane.

By the time she had managed to get it sorted out, Salem and Ema were awake and the smell of coffee had begun to permeate the air once again. Ema had ducked out to take a shower as well while Salem remained outside.

"What would happen if you didn't have any coffee?" Kateri wondered aloud as Salem hovered by the brewing pot.

"Probably take the caffeine pills I keep on hand so I don't have caffeine withdrawals." she answered. "Probably also be a psychotic bitch for a while as my system flushed out all the caffeine and adjusted to not having any."

"Well that sounds fun." Kateri observed.

"Yeah, it's not." She glanced over at the archer. "So what's up with you and Grumpy Ass?"

"What do you mean?" Kateri asked, pushing her wet hair over her shoulder, it being mostly smoothed.

Salem rolled her eyes. "Don't play that shit with me. He carried you in here about four in the morning, saying you passed out, but he was acting...different. Like, for lack of a better word, he was acting more...gentle, I guess. What happened?"

"After you left, it kinda took a darker turn and I told him about when I was first starting out." she said, not telling her that she had also said quite a bit about Salem. It was nothing she wasn't supposed to share, and Salem knew the group had their own ideas about here and left them to them. "I actually told him about my first target mission."

"Really?" Salem seemed surprised. "Didn't really think you'd be eager to share that one."

"I wasn't." she admitted. "But I don't want to hide things just for the sake of hiding them. It's really not hurting anyone that he knows, and I think it offered a lot of insight on my end."

Salem shrugged. "It's your call, not really my business." After a moment, she asked another question. "You like him, don't you?"

"Huh?" Kateri certainly had not expected that question.

"C'mon, don't tell me you don't have a soft spot for him." Salem pressed.

"I...I really don't know." she finally said. "That's not something I've ever had time for, so I wouldn't know. I kinda hope not, though, the last thing I need is that kind of distraction hanging over my head."

"Well, I'm pretty sure he's got some kind of feelings for you, whether he knows it or not. I could be wrong, we all know I'm definitely not an expert on this shit, but there's something." Salem told her, pouring a cup from the nearly finished pot of coffee.

"Whatever it is, I don't have the time or energy to think about it right now." she said.

Salem didn't push the matter further, her curiosity only extending so far. A moment later, Ema walked out of the bathroom, her clothes changed and her streaked hair also wet.

Kateri had no doubt Ema heard the entire conversation, with her enhanced hearing, but the girl did not comment on it.

"So, it's probably gonna be a while before Abe's up." she began, picking at the tangles in her hair with her fingers. "I figure we can figure out what we're gonna do clothing-wise. We picked up a lot of kevlar and protective gear, so we should be able to figure out what's best for everyone with the given tasks."

"Arrow's not gonna need much, I don't think, since she's gonna be in a meeting, but a vest never hurt anyone." Salem said. "Mine's probably gonna need to be thick, because the chances of me doing something stupid and dangerous and higher than me not, and I'll need all the help I can get. Abe probably doesn't need much, he'll just teleport or something before someone can so much as look at him."

"I could probably use a couple extra layers."Ema admitted. "I'm not really the best fighter, so that does make me the weakest link in combat, and protection becomes irrelevant if I'm feral. I'm sure Rex will be fine with just a basic vest and bodysuit, I think he can handle himself pretty well."

"He can, but he's not really quiet, and this is supposed to be a stealth mission." Salem said.

"Yes, perhaps you should teach him the ways of stealth, since you're so much better." Kateri quipped.

"Damn, shot fired. I give, you're right, but the point still stands." she said.

"He's been under Providence's wing for like seven years, Pyra, I'm sure he'll be fine." Ema said.

"He's a little on the 'smash and go' side to be stealthy, but we'll see." she said, taking a long drink from her cup.

(*)

It was already late afternoon again, Rex having gotten up a few hours after the girls, Abe still passed out. Apparently, the lanky boy could sleep when Rex was in the room, so long as he fell asleep first. After that, he was a bit difficult to rouse.

There had been a few moments of awkward tension when Rex came in, but it was quickly dismissed. There were more important things at stake that figuring out mixed feelings.

The plan had been gone through over and over, making sure every detail was addressed and ironed out and that everyone was perfectly clear on their parts.

Backpacks had been packed and everything that could be preplanned had been. Now, it was a waiting game.

"No way in hell I'm gonna sleep." Kateri muttered once nine o'clock had rolled around. The sky had long since gone black, and they were all just sitting around trying to find some was to pass the time. They had agreed to seven, the next morning, two hours before Kateri's so-called meeting.

Salem had long since vetoed playing cards again, fully convinced Abe was cheating(something he never really confirmed or denied…), so they were all mostly left to their own devices.

"Oh, Arrow." said Ema. "I have something for you."

She held up a small white object in her hand, and when Kateri came closer, she saw that it was a pill.

"What's this?" she asked, confused.

"It's just a hydrocodone. Not a super high dosage, but it should be enough to take care of your ankle tomorrow." the explained.

"Thanks." she replied, dropping the pill into her pocket. Her ankle was still very sore, but it was almost always kept wrapped up tightly in the brace. She wished there was more time to let it heal, but time was something they really didn't have.

Plugging in her headphones, she simply curled up against the wall and gave herself a moment to get caught up in her own thoughts.

Her mind drifted back to the previous night spent by the fire with Rex. She didn't know why he'd held her, why he chose to let her in, even in for only a short time. It hadn't been her intention for that to happen when she opened up to him, but if she was honest with herself, she was glad it did. It was almost soothing to, for just a moment, not feel as though she had to carry it all herself. She wasn't one to push her own drama onto others, but Rex had taken it on anyways, if only briefly. He had let his guard down and so had she, even taking a bit of comfort in his embrace.

But now, it left her confused, unsure of her emotions and what they meant. She was on a mission to get her family back, and the last thing she needed was to form any kind of feelings for this agent. She knew as well as anyone what attachment could do to put everyone in danger, and she did not want to have her judgement clouded when it mattered most.

The way this boy was getting into her head without even meaning to was one of the most frustrating things she'd had to deal with in a long time. Yeah, they didn't have the greatest start, but she doubted that there was a scenario where they could have and still have things work out the way they did.

Kateri, you've known him for a week and a half, get a grip!

"I'll be back in a little while." she announced, sliding off the bed and grabbing her bow and one of the quivers of normal arrows. Everyone watched as she walked out the door with her uneven gait, the room remaining silent as the door clicked.

"What's that all about?" Rex asked, looking up from house of cards he and Abe were attempting to construct. Or, Abe was, Rex just kept knocking parts of it down.

"Why don't you go find out, Grumpy Ass?" Salem gave him a pointed look.

Rex gave her a strange look, but Salem's expression only became more intense. Finally, the penny dropped, and Rex stood. More silence as he, too, left.

After a moment, Abe spoke. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

"Yep." Salem didn't look up from the lighter she was playing with. "You'd have to be an idiot to not realize there's something going on with them. They need to figure it out and handle it before this, or it could seriously put everyone as risk."

"Since when are you so knowledgeable on people's feelings?" he asked.

"I'm not, not really. But emotions get in the way of a job really easily, so they need to get their shit together before someone gets hurt because of it."

Abe simply nodded, carefully leaning two cards Rex had knocked down against each other.

Woo, cute awkwardness, but I'm not done yet. Also, awkward abrupt ending is awkward and abrupt.

Also, to let y'all know once again(I think), I am not a nice person. Please don't have read this and think they're gonna be all sunshine and unicorns and shit. Nah bruh. I'm gonna run your feels over with a big ass jet I have affectionately named The Bus(see what I did there A-A-ron?:)).

But not quiiiite yet. Gonna work it up so it hurts worse.

On that delightful note...bye,