"We better kill Alex soon. I don't think Sam's gonna last long as a mole," Eventually Michael advised, ending the call with Sam. While he narrowed down the banks they should investigate, Sonya finished securing the beach house, Birkhoff analyzed the electronic bugs, Alex finished her phone conversations, and Nikita solidified a plan to kill her. As Birkhoff had teased, Alex complained about having to be blown up for her death to be successfully faked. Nikita rationalized it was the most efficient way to have the bastards not look for her body or ask any questions. Besides, they were going to kill her that way before, and it would've worked had she not grown a hero complex. That comment earned Nikita a pillow to the face, and caused Michael to explain to the nerds what they were talking about.
"Anyway. Michael's right. No one can last as long as I did. So we gotta speed things up," Alex brought everyone back on topic. Or at least she tried to. The team erupted into eye rolls and arguments over her claim. Her stint as a mole inside Division was anything but smooth sailing; she was constantly suspected of being up to something. There was apprehension that the same could happen with Sam and the bastards. But they pushed that all aside, putting faith in the fake death and dead drops.
"I knew you were the mole after you captured Nikita," Michael nearly bragged, almost as if to prove he wasn't as fooled as everybody else. Glancing at her husband in disbelief, Nikita stifled her laughter. That man could be so ridiculous at times. Birkhoff was the one to call him out over it, mentioning something about obsessing over echoes. Although his point didn't make sense to the women in the room, Michael sighed, "Okay, fine. But I had my suspicions then."
"Why are you trying to save face like nine years later?" Full of judgmental looks, Alex poked at Michael. His green eyes rolled, especially when Nikita whispered a tease into his ear; he just couldn't win. He was fine with that, however. Making fun of him was something light they could all focus on. If it came to that, he'd take one for the team.
"Just admit you're a dumbass like the rest of us," Birkhoff took it a tad too far, at least for Michael. Whereas he glared, the rest broke out into laughter. Nikita attempted to soothe him, a gentle palm on his cheek. It worked for a second, until she playfully pinched him. He called for Barkhoff to help him in the 'attack', but all he did was jump on her lap and tried to give her a kiss. She fell against the couch cushions under her dog's weight, giggling. Her team's efforts at rescue were simply trying to get Barkhoff to play with them instead. He wouldn't move from his owners.
"Come on, dumbass. Let's look at some banks," Through peels of laughter, Nikita pulled at Michael's hand to help her up. They managed to get their dog off her lap, but they had to distract him with a bone so he would leave them alone. As much as the couple would've loved to stay and play with Barkfhoff, they had some work to do; the whole team did. Fortunately, Birkhoff, Sonya, and Alex could stay at the beach house to complete their assignments. They gladly agreed to care for their newly appointed team mascot as they did so. Comforted that their dog would always be looked after, Nikita and Michael left to investigate the banking leads.
Barkhoff soon settled next to Birkhoff, gnawing on his bone. The nerd sighed, and leaned over to scratch the dog behind his ears. He wasn't as enthusiastic about the pet as the others- certainly not as much as Sonya. It wasn't because he didn't like him; he had always enjoyed having animals around. He just couldn't stand his name. Nikita had given him a fair amount of awful nicknames over the years. But naming her dog some sort of awful play on his last name, topped it, "They don't have to keep asking us. We'll watch their damn dog."
"They're just being overprotective of their baby," Sonya cooed, reaching over to love on Barkhoff. Birkhoff muttered something about it still being a stupid name, but he smiled watching his fiancée. Alex snorted a laugh. She did her best to cover it, yet it slipped out anyway. Although the nerds cast her a confused glance, she waved them off. It wasn't about them, it was about Sonya's choice of words. She could tease Nikita about it all she wanted, but she wouldn't bring the engaged couple in on it. Her friend didn't need both her and Birkhoff on her ass.
So Alex distracted the two with a shake of her head and a purposeful slip of her tongue. There was work to focus on; they had to track down the bugs and acquire the resources needed to fake a death. And, of course, there were more taunts to hurl at one another, "Hey. It's an honor to have a dog named after you. Now Barkhoff… I mean, Birkhoff. Get to work."
While Sonya laughed, Birkhoff glared. The look had no effect on Alex; she had experienced worse. The three were able to work as they continued to taunt and chose some music to listen to. Over the next couple of hours, they managed to get a lot of things done. Sonya and Birkhoff surmised that the bugs had been modified, and the particular specs could have only been done by a handful of people. Alex gathered what they needed on their side for the bomb, adding it to a list of things that had to be put in the dead drop.
Honestly, the task helped her to rationalize what was about to happen. Alex knew it was going to be temporary; she wasn't going to be 'dead' for long. Yet she was anxious over the idea. Her death had been faked twice before, and nearly a third time after that. Those times were different, however. They were a result of Division and being alone in the world. She wasn't alone anymore. She had her mother, Jill and Sandy, friends she had made at the UN, and her team-family. Even with a fake death, all of them would be affected by those raw emotions. She was hesitant to put them through that. It took her a moment to assure herself that it was the right thing to do. The bastards had to be burned so no one else would end up like them. They were going to save them that time around. Sacrifices had to be made.
There were times when Alex wished she hadn't stumbled upon the bastards in the first place. She should've left well enough alone. She should've just driven to her hotel room, and rested after her latest conference. But she was drawn to the mystery, to the potential danger. Why couldn't she simply stay away. She had a great job with the UN. She and her team were happy. Dismantling the bastards was disturbing everything they had worked towards. Then again, everything they had worked towards involved helping others. They couldn't stop saving the world. The team was doing that once more; Alex needed to remind herself of that. They were doing the right thing, and there wouldn't be heartbreak or pain. Not that time around.
Soon, Nikita and Michael returned with two banks they could consider the bastards were using. With everyone's progress, they decided to take a break- just long enough to eat and refresh before diving in for more. The team also had to bring a lot of things to the dead drop, and they needed to find the most efficient way to do so. That was a problem for after lunch, though. If the night before was any indication, time to relax was a necessity, or else the stress would consume them whole.
Michael hurried to the bedroom to change his shirt instead of joining the team immediately, however. He had spilled coffee on himself while he and Nikita were casing one of the banks. She teased him relentlessly over that. But it didn't matter anymore, they had gotten their information and were ready to run with it. Washing his hands in the ensuite bathroom, Michael spotted something partially abandoned on the sink counter. When he first saw it, his lips pulled into a relaxed smile. He was glad his wife had taken it to calm her nerves. It wasn't until he was leaving that he registered what exactly he saw. He nearly slammed into the doorway as he doubled back. His normally gruff voice pitched high in panic, "Nikita! Nikita!"
Nikita instantly dropped everything to rush to him. He wasn't one to shriek like that. Whatever it was frightened her. It concerned the others as well, but they were rooted in their spots in confusion. She almost didn't want to see what was awaiting her. Her husband didn't assure her as he met her in their bedroom, shaking with shock. Before she could wonder just what the hell was going on, he showed her the surprise he had found. It took a long while for her mind to process just exactly what her brown eyes saw. She couldn't believe she had forgotten about it. And she couldn't believe she left before ever seeing the results.
"Oh. Fuck," Nikita could barely whisper. Her thoughts and emotions were caught in her throat, and she was left staring at her husband in disbelief. They were soon shaken out of their stunned silence by their friends calling after them; they wanted to know what was occurring. Michael was the one to scrape out some kind of excuse that blamed Barkhoff, allowing Nikita to quickly close the door. That was something the two of them had to figure out first. There was no need to worry their family with things they couldn't control. Especially when they themselves couldn't even get a handle on it.
"You took a test without telling me?" His voice still shrill, Michael waved the pregnancy test around. He was in no way upset about that. After all, he had bought her another test without telling her while grocery shopping the day before. It was a sweet gesture- really it was. He knew Nikita was stressed about maybe being pregnant. He thought he could calm her by buying another test to prove her wrong. They would maybe have a baby when the time was right. Obviously, the time was not right at the moment. Besides, she caught the flu that he had had- she should've just had the flu.
"I was gonna tell you, but Sam called," Nikita's voice finally came back to her, and it shared her surprise of finding the box under the sink that morning. After throwing up bile (that did nothing to dispel her nausea or her unsteadiness), she reached for a towel. She accidentally grabbed the pregnancy test instead. Although she had been shocked at its appearance, she ripped the packaging open and used it. Alex really got to her with that HCG levels bullshit, and she had to prove her wrong. She had hoped to prove her wrong. If only she hadn't gotten distracted and forgetful over the course of the day, "And you bought a test without telling me."
"Well yeah. But I thought it would be negative and you'd relax. I mean I wanted this… I want this. But not now. We can't do this now," Michael explained. He did want a baby with Nikita. It was something he had thought of for a long while. They already had a dog, a home, and the best family they could've asked for. All they needed then was a rambunctious child that took after them a little too much. However, they were starting a new crusade. A war, that despite being the right thing to do, had way more questions than answers. It was dangerous, and uncertain, and definitely not something to bring a child into.
But when did anything ever go as planned for those two. There went the possibility of maybe, "Nikita. You're pregnant."
"What the fuck are we gonna do, Michael?"