Disclaimer: This is AU. I do not own any of the characters from Grey's Anatomy. I just manipulate them to my will. Also, any line or phrase or setting that seems remotely familiar from any other show, movie or book, also not mine. I borrow… But any original characters are mine. Hands off.

AN: Alright, here is your chapter for today. Enjoy.


Chapter 53

Callie's POV:

mmmm go away….go away…. Something is tugged at the end of my consciousness. I moan in frustration, and try to push myself further into the darkness. ….it's too early…just 5 more minutes… I can feel a strong hand grip around my waist, holding her pillow in place. Arizona and I are wrapped around each other like we are hanging on for dear life. Two pillows on the floor and a couple throw blankets in front of the fireplace make for a pretty romantic night, even after the yelling and the arguing. It was slow and passionate; we were making the sweetest love I could ever have imagined. Arizona, who lately has been rough and angry, was the more gentle and caring she has ever been. Almost like she was trying to prove to me that she can change, that she is changing, that she is getting better…for me.

I hear it again, what must have been what dragged me from my dreams. A pounding…what the fuck? Arizona mumbles something into my breast but it doesn't make it to my ears. I just give a throaty chuckle and pull the blanket tighter around us.

Then Mark comes busting through the door. "Robbins!" He's in the living room in all of five seconds. He sees us…in our position and back tracks. "Woah…what did I miss?"

"Shove it Sloan. …Get out of here before I rip you testicles off with my bare hands." Arizona grumbles. If I didn't know she was serious, I would have laughed. Mark seems to get the picture and leaves us for the kitchen.

"You gave him a key?" I ask, knowing that I locked the front door for sure last night.

"No… I didn't give him a key…." She sits up and wipes the sleep from her eyes, then turns to me and continues "I just showed him where we keep the spare…" This gets a hard glare from me. …great, just what we need. The Yoda of mood killers now has a key to our love nest. …Awesome. She smiles at my look, it doesn't really affect her anymore, at least, not when it's not warranted.

She gives me a quick peck on the lips she says "Morning fiancé'."

"Morning fiancé'." I return. Arizona grabs the clothes she can find and we dress ourselves then join Mark in the kitchen. Thankfully the man had enough sense to start the coffee, and I am soon greeted with a fresh cup which makes this day a hundred times better already.

"What are you doing here?" I ask as I physically push Mark out of my chair at the breakfast bar.

He laughs at me then takes the seat beside me and says "Arizona asked me to come." I look at her and she looks confused.

"No…I said we needed to talk…not to show up at our home at the ass crack of dawn." She says, pouring her own cup and coming around to push Mark out of her usual chair.

"Geez…" Mark says a little hurt. "This how you treat all your house guests…or just your favorite ones?" He ends up sitting on the kitchen counter across from us.

"You're not a guest…" I say. "Guests don't have keys. ….Guests wait at the front door until someone lets them in." This gets a giggle out of the blonde. She's resting her coffee cup up on her knees are up and her feet are pulled under her just like in Colorado. …this must feel like home to her now.

He gives me an eye roll and refills his own cup. "So Blondie… what did you drag me all the way out here for?" He asks. Arizona gives him a once over, she has an odd ability to read people better than she should. It definitely helps when she is trying to pick up girls…for other people of course…but when its during a discussion, it gives her an unfair advantage.

"I'm thinking you already know why…" She says, taking a sip of her coffee. Mark gives a shrug. "Why would you come all the way out here when all I asked was that we talk… we could talk on a phone." She says, a smile playing across her face. "Besides…you got that look. You know, a kid that is about to open a present."

"Fine… I thought it might be about you…going back on the road. … There, happy?" He says defensively.

I look to Arizona and cut in. "When…when did you talk to him?" …had she'd already call Mark before I told her my secret? Was she going to ride again before I said it was ok. …She wouldn't do that again, would she? …No, stop Torres.

She can read the argument I am having with myself and puts a reassuring hand on my thigh. "Calliope… I texted him last night, right before I came down stairs." Then gives me a kiss to tell me to not worry about it.

"So… its true then?" Mark asks, incredulously.

"No, Mark. Its not true…yet. I just…." She looks at me, her blue eyes filled with hope but also fear. "I just want to know my options. …The reality of the situation."

"Your options? …One is to go back on tour… the other is not to." He says shortly.

Arizona gives an eye roll, her hand grips my leg a little firmer and I know she is trying to remain calm. After a couple deep breaths from behind closed eyes, she opens them and finds the mans. "Yes… I got that but… is going back this season logical? …I've missed 8 tournaments, that's a lot of points to make up."

"Actually Blondie, you only missed 4. The first four are qualifiers and since you…" He's getting excited, and points to Arizona "are last year's winner, you are already qualified."

"Ok, so four tournaments. That's what…. At least 20 rides I missed." Arizona quickly calculating and doing the math. "There's….16 tournaments left, minus Vegas, which means I would have at least 80 rides to outscore what everyone else had 100 to do."

Mark nods, saying that her calculations were right and pulls out a piece of paper that has been scribbled all over on. He lays it flat on the counter and points out his own figuring. "Right, but your ride percentage is higher than everyone else's, at least, when you finished last time. So…." He looks at me and then to Arizona and see's two blank faces. "Ok, ok… the average rider score is around an 83. The average riding percentage is about 71%. Which means the average accumulated score for the entire season should be around 5900 points. But…." He flips the paper and points to a column of numbers that have a bold Z on top of it. "You're riding percentage at the end of last year was 81%. Which means if you kept that percentage, you would need to score an average of 91 on every bull you down."

"91? …Are you kidding me? I got above 90, what…. 5, 6 times last year?" Arizona replies.

"Right, that's what I thought. Its hard to predict scoring, so….if you increase your riding percentage, the average score you have to get goes down." Mark finishes.

Arizona sits in silence, just processing what her ex-manager has given her. She looks are the paper, at the numbers figured. She grabs a pencil and starts her own calculations. A lot of mumbling, a lot of erasing and some finger counting eat up the next few minutes. Mark and I just wait, not wanting to interrupt an Arizona on the roll.

Finally, she puts the pencil down and leans back. Her eyes find Marks and says "It is doable…isn't it?" He nods. "Technically, I don't have to catch Karev and Burke. I just have to secure third…" More aggressive nods from Mark. I swear he is drooling, thinking that Arizona is so close to considering this. "I need to talk to Teddy." Mark's face goes from ecstatic to almost like he got punched in the gut.

"Teddy? …Why?" He yells.

"Because I need to know if my body can handle it…" She says weakly.

I try to soothe her. "Babe…you're back. Your body is healed."

"I know I'm healed Callie but…I still hurt. My hands still hurt, my side, my leg… I just need to know if my body can physically take all that stress again. I'm done visiting hospitals as a patient…" She says simply. Then she turns to Mark. "When is the next round?"

"5 days. …Des Moines, Iowa."

Arizona turns to me and looks me straight in the eye. "I need to know… are you sure? …Because if I do this…all of this again. I'm in it 100%. We probably won't see much of each other for the next 5 months." Her eyes scan mine for any hint that I may have changed my mind.

I nod, "Yes, you need to do this. …It's what you do." She smiles at the use of her own line. She lays a tender kiss on me then turns back to the man.

"Get me in. I'll talk to Teddy today. As long as she doesn't give me a flat out NO, I'm on my way to Iowa. …Call George, Izzie and Sadie. The tour officials, any sponsors that may still be interested… well, you know what to do." Arizona starts barking out orders to her newly reinstated agent. Marks face is bright with a smile.

"Yes, ma'am." He says with a small salute and he exits the kitchen and is soon out the front door.

Arizona turns to me, and I turn to face her. "Are you sure?" She asks again. I nod. "Because I don't want to get half way through this season and …."

I take her face in my hands and pull her in for a kiss. "Yes, Arizona, I'm sure. …You do what you do. Then after that, we get to start our life together."

"I like the sound of that…" Arizona purrs, her hands tracing up my thighs and slipping under my shorts.

….so do I.


AN2: Ok peeps. Today is the day of giving thanks, so I would like to thank you all for reading and reviewing my work. You guys are awesome! Now…do what you do again and give me something to look forward to when I get back to my hotel room.