Disclaimer: I do not own anything affiliated with "Storm Hawks". Characters, places, and other aspects of the story (except for original characters, animals, locations, and some other aspects) that are referenced to do not belong to me.

A/N: With the Swooping Sparrows having their doubts about this new Cyclonian turncoat, who knows what the future holds for Tesia. Despite all their worries, they still have a target to capture…

Early morning, Terra Ostendo, Finch's quarters…

Morning light spilled into the room as the sun rose above the terra.

"Finch, get up! Briefing's in ten!" Warbler informed as he knocked on his friend's door.

The marksman stirred slightly before falling back asleep.

"Finch, come on!" Warbler pressed as he knocked on his friend's door again.

Knowing that his friend couldn't miss the meeting, Warbler reached for the doorknob.

When Warbler opened the door, his expression was one of surprise and confusion.

Tesia was curled up on Finch's sleeping bag with the marksman still asleep in it.

Finch started to open his eyes to see the blurry image of the blizzarian, and Tesia started coming to as well.

The two immediately noticed their awkwardly intimate positions and sat up right, moving away from one another.

"I'll see you two at the briefing then." Warbler said as he walked off, still slightly shocked from what he had just witnessed.

"Your legs are surprisingly comfortable." Tesia noted with a wink as she walked out of his quarters.

Finch let out a long sigh. The marksman made for the doorway to freshen up and attend the briefing.

At the situation room…

Finch's POV…

The reconnaissance scout of the team entered the main war room where Crow, Warbler, Sparrow, and Phoenix were already gathered around a table with a map on it.

"Good morning Finch!" Sparrow greeted.

"Morning." Finch replied tiredly.

"Woah, you look like you stayed up all night!" Phoenix remarked as he noticed the dark bags under his wingman's eyes.

"It's a long story." Finch remarked with a tired yawn.

"Right. Well, we need you running at a hundred percent right now because we have a lead on the Decider." Crow announced.

"Alright, what's the task?" Finch inquired.

"The Decider is said to be at a Cyclonian encampment somewhere near the outskirts of the city." Crow stated as he indicated the suspected location on the map.

"The information isn't concrete, so before we get rebels over there to storm the place, we need you to scout it out." Crow finished.

"Sounds good." Finch stated as he looked at the area around the target location on the map.

"I can set up over here on the hill. It should give me a good vantage point of the encampment, and a great sniping position if anything goes awry." Finch stated confidently.

"Sounds good to me." Warbler stated as he looked to the others for their approval.

"Looks pretty solid." Sparrow commented.

"I agree. The elevation should definitely give you an advantage." Crow concurred.

"Good plan. You're heading out in about an hour and a half." Phoenix concluded as he gave his friend a supportive look.

"Oh, can I come too?" a female voice said from behind them.

The Swooping Sparrows looked toward the source of the voice and saw Tesia standing near them with her crystal longbow slung over her shoulder.

"Tesia maybe you should sit this one out." Crow stated directly.

"Why should I?" Tesia argued as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Well, first off-

"I've been part of the Decider's security detail long enough to know the compounds he will be visiting." Tesia began as she interrupted Finch.

"We've scouted those areas before his arrival to ensure his safety. Also, I still got my Cyclonian credentials, and they'll think I'm still one of them." Tesia added.

Crow gave Phoenix a concerned look to which Phoenix looked to Finch.

"It's your call Finch. You want her in on this or not?" Phoenix questioned.

Finch looked over at Tesia who now had her hands on her hips giving him a stern look.

Finch massaged his temples and let out a deep sigh.

"Don't make me regret this." Finch said flatly as he walked off to prepare for the mission.

A short awkward silence fell in between the remaining Swooping Sparrows and the Cyclonian turncoat.

"So, it's a yes then?" Tesia questioned as she looked to the remaining crew.

Phoenix gave her a slight nod.

"I promise to behave." Tesia said rolling her eyes before following the other marksman.

"She's quite the interesting girl, isn't she?" Sparrow whispered to Phoenix.

"Yeah, I have a feeling Finch found that out by now." Phoenix whispered back.

Late morning, on a hill near the Cyclonian encampment…

Finch, piloting his own skimmer, and Tesia, now riding a Switchblade Elite, pulled up to the hill that Finch had designated on the map earlier.

After hiding their skimmers in some vegetation, the two climbed the hill and took up positions overlooking the encampment.

Finch set out earlier than the designated time to make sure he didn't miss the timeframe when the Decider would be at the encampment.

Finch pulled out a pair of crystal binoculars and scanned the area for the Decider.

The marksman heard his companion busily rummaging through their rucksacks behind him.

"What are you looking for." Finch stated flatly.

"In the rush of things, I missed breakfast." Tesia admitted as she continued to rummage through the bags.

"Here." Finch said simply as he tossed an energy bar to her.

"Thanks." Tesia replied as she caught it and crawled up to where Finch was.

"He's not here yet. Remember, we're looking for a-

"Hooded man with a scar on his chin. I know, I've seen him before." Tesia stated as she gnawed into her energy bar.

"You have a knack for interrupting people, don't you?" Finch inquired.

"I mean, I didn't usually get to talk much back at the academy." Tesia admitted.

"So now you're blabbering your mouth off?" Finch said evidently irritated by her behaviour.

"Do not say that I blabber!" Tesia shot back aggressively.

"Keep your voice down!" Finch urged the other marksman.

A short silence settled in between the two.

"You know I should've just stayed last night. I should never have gone with you!" Tesia pouted.

Finch stopped staring through his crystal binoculars to look at the girl.

"Are we really doing this right here." Finch commented annoyed.

"You don't care, they never cared, no one ever cares!" Tesia stated as she began to choke on slight sobs.

"Tesia." Finch stated as he now turned his body to face her.

She tried to wipe the tears seeping out from her eyes as she turned away from the marksman.

"Don't look at me." Tesia stated between sobs.

"This was a mistake." Tesia stated as she began walking toward her Switchblade Elite.

Finch looked at the retreating marksman with worry and concern.

"Tesia, where are you going!" Finch whispered frantically.

"Don't worry, I won't tell them about you guys." Tesia stated as she went to mount her skimmer.

Finch sprang up and dashed toward the marksman catching her by the hand.

"Tesia, don't do what I think you're going to do. You're going to regret it. Not because I'm going to punish you or because any of the resistance is going to punish you, but because the Cyclonians will not take traitors lightly." Finch stated as he stared into her tear-filled eyes.

"I don't have a place here or anywhere anyway. I might as well go get executed and just end it all." Tesia said as she stared back at Finch.

Finch let out a small sigh as he kept his hand on her hand. He could feel her shuddering.

"Tesia, tell me what happened. Maybe we can come to a better understanding for why you act the way that you act." Finch stated as sincerely as his voice would allow him.

"That'd be nice." Tesia replied simply as her small sobs began to die down.