RECOMPOSE
by Ladywolvesbayne
Alright! I was afraid FF wouldn't be back online to update and I'd be very upset if that had happened, but it got fixed. Yay! Now, this episode is a bit of a mood-breaker regarding the general deep-shit-like tone of the story so far, but I wanted to have some fun and make Cortana forget a little about her worries, so this is it. This is nice. Warm fluffy stuff for you. Enjoy and try not to kill me that much -hugs-
28. AT EASE
proofread and corrections by: SL4Y3R -hugs-
SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2558
LOCATION: UNSC INFINITY DOCKED IN RIO DE JANEIRO
ENGINEERING DECK - MAIN LABS
10:35 AM standard time
Cortana stared at the stream of numbers before her eyes, speechless.
The expression she was looking for was 'I can't believe it', but her mouth moved on its own to vocalize the first thing that came to her mind after realizing that the job was finally finished:
"It's a portal."
If her understanding of those codes was correct (and it was), the formulas were slip-space related but with a fundamental variation: if correctly configured and properly powered, the Infinity's Forerunner engines wouldn't just push the ship forward across the deeper layers of slip-space, they would open a portal of similar nature to that of the Excession on Earth: a safe entry point specifically designed to take the vessel to another specific place of the galaxy, no mistakes whatsoever. Nothing would be left at random, except maybe for what they would find at the other side.
"I'll be damned, it's a portal." she repeated, struggling with the feelings of victory and worry. "That's why it needs so much energy, because we won't be traveling, we will literally rip the space open and pop-out at the other side. It will be instantaneous."
Now, the crew only had that issue about the proper shielding of the generator. The amount of radiation the thing leaked was utterly dangerous. That was the reason why the standard personnel list had been cut in half; the less people aboard, the more space they could put between them and the generator.
"The equations are coherent. Nice work." stated Sigrid, her silvery figure floating over the holo-pad. "It's a direct slip-space portal, a perfect two-step route. You should give it a name, I don't think this has been discovered by Humanity yet."
"Let's not get so high up the horse yet, people are still trying to find out how the Excession really works."
"Should I run the simulations, then?"
"Absolutely."
"Alright." then, she propped both of her hands on her hips, eyes up. "Initializing sequence. Estimated time until completion: one hour, seventeen minutes. You should go for a walk in the mean time, you've spent the last forty minutes sitting."
Cortana frowned a little. "You keep saying what I should and shouldn't do."
"I find that scientists forget about their own wellbeing so often, that they need to be reminded of everyday necessities such as nutrition, sleep or even personal hygiene on a regular basis. It's close to eleven-hundred and all that you had was just a piece of fruit at oh-eight-hundred. Then again, because I told you so. Four cups of coffee in an empty stomach isn't healthy."
The AI gave her a self-righteous smile. Cortana frowned more.
"Why do you care so much about what I do?"
"Common interests."
"I should've known it wasn't just out of the kindness of your heart."
"My aggressive personality is an asset not to be taken lightly. I'd like your help with another experiment, but we'll have to save it for later. Two contacts inbound, about thirty seconds." Sigrid announced. Then she chuckled and her hologram leaned towards Cortana; in a whispering voice, the AI added: "He's in a very good mood, endorphin and dopamine levels sky high. I'll leave you to it."
The holo-pad shut down and the woman suddenly found herself alone in the lab. Cortana had a vague idea about who Sigrid might be referring to, and for some reason she hurried to pick up the four discarded cups that once contained coffee (one of them still had a little) and throw them away. Then she heard heavy footsteps on the hallway, the loud pounding sound almost covered the quick screeching of strong nails against the gratings.
She smiled when John entered the aisle, with Charley by his side.
"Hey." she greeted him, smiling. The huge dog lowered her ears and approached without invitation, standing on the way between them. "Oh, look who's back. I'm glad to see she's doing fine." Cortana presented a hand for the animal to sniff, but Charley lifted up her muzzle and inspected her face instead. "Yeah, I see your breath is the only thing they couldn't fix."
"Charley, stand down."
At the Chief's order, the dog stood aside and sat on her hind legs, attentive.
"They even got you a new ear, girl." Cortana said, as she examined the prosthetic. It was made of thin gray metallic plates articulated together to imitate the movement of a normal ear, pretty neat. She also found numerous skin patches on the dog's muzzle and neck. Cortana never really knew what happened to Charley during the operation to re-take the Infinity, but the way she and Dr. Quinn had found her, lying on the gratings and bleeding, spoke volumes. "She did great, she deserved her ear back."
John nodded. "She needed the ear more than a medal. Long time no see."
She turned to look at him and smiled playfully. "What? Did you miss me?"
He didn't answer with actual words, but the somewhat sparkling look in his clear blue eyes gave away the good mood that Sigrid had predicted, and made Cortana's heart skip a beat. Not every day you got to see the Master Chief himself so worked up about something not related with an assignment.
"What's up with you?" she changed the subject, hiding her hands in her pockets.
"I have eight hours to spend."
"Is the shift going that slow, really? I thought you had an operation to plan."
"No, I mean I requested an eight-hour break."
Straight to the point yet cryptic, just the way she liked it. Who was that man and what did he do to John? Cortana looked at him with narrowed eyes, trying to understand where all of this sudden excitement came from. Or maybe she was exhausted enough to completely misread him.
Charley just looked from one to the other as they spoke, ears flat.
"This is going to sound unbelievable, but I don't follow you."
"Break. You and me. Let's get out of here."
Cortana's eyes opened wide.
"Chief... are you asking me out?" she dared to say, hesitantly.
"Maybe."
"How can you be asking me out when we're in deep shit like this?"
He paused, frowning a little.
"I can't remember when was the last time that I had some real time off."
Cortana felt a knot on her stomach. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean..."
She froze when the Chief presented her a simple white card with a short piece of text printed on it. It said 'Something you'd like to do but you haven't tried. Truth or dare?'. She recognized it. John was content and it was amazing, he seemed so invested in his idea that she could almost feel his enthusiasm. The blood rushed to her cheeks as the rest of the memories popped up in her mind, mostly about that card and about that day, but precisely about what he saidback then.
And especially, the dream she had after those events...
"You want to go fishing?" she stuttered, confused.
"It's something we can do without leaving the base's grounds. So?"
It would seem ridiculous, but she was already considering what to wear. She had nothing like a swimsuit or clothes fitting for such an activity, she wasn't exactly on the payroll so she didn't have any money or belongings beyond what Commander Palmer authorized her to take. And somehow, in her mind, wearing rubber boots and an apron when the man you loved asked you out to do something together wasn't coherent to begin with. More blood rushed to her cheeks.
But, what was she thinking?
She couldn't just leave her station, the recent discovery still needed a lot of work, those equations were stable but Sigrid was running the simulations and she had to take a look at the results. She wasn't exactly idle. Still, Cortana had to admit that it was a one-in-a-million chance. If she declined his offer, she was certain she would regret it later. The knot in her stomach tightened as she thought of all the stress they've been under the last months.
He deserved rest, and he wanted to share his time with her.
'The Infinity isn't going anywhere.' Cortana said to herself. 'And there's a lot of smart, capable experts on their fields doing their jobs; you don't have to do all the work yourself, right?'
It's true that she felt better when things were under her control, but...
He was asking her out! Couldn't she focus on that for a moment?
The Chief looked confused. "I could really use an answer, Cortana."
She blinked fast, startled. "Yes! I mean, sure, that sounds great. I'm in." she broke a shy smile. Her deep knowledge of human psychology wasn't enough for her to figure out what to do next, regular psychology didn't exactly work with John. Cortana chose to go with the mood: "I'd love to spend eight hours with you... but you'll have to buy me dinner first, sailor. I'm starving."
He rose an eyebrow, enough substitute for a cheerful smile.
SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2558
LOCATION: RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
PRAIA DO LEMES
2:43 PM standard time
At first she wasn't amused at all; they walked a little bit more than a mile to reach the coast. The air was hot and she was sweating, her third most hated thing about being human (pain being the first, second her period). She bet Charley wasn't amused either, the dog's tongue was hanging out of her mandibles at least ten inches, her breath was labored but her steps, steady and strong.
Then again, if John wasn't worried about his dog, Cortana wasn't either.
The moment she kicked off her running shoes and touched the warm sand with her bare feet, Cortana felt much better. The heat, the salty air, the roaring thunder of the waves. So overwhelming. Her senses were on overload, it was so exciting that she could barely keep herself from laughing out of control. Of all the things a digital entity such as her would have loved to experience if she had the chance, she had to admit that she'd never considered something of the likes.
Thrilled, Cortana chose a spot by the massive boulders of Praia do Lemes (Leme Beach) that posed an impressive sight of the concave coastline and the clashing waves, the buildings, the overall green scenery and the looming shadow of the spaceport, right at the back. The Infinity and the Wanderer surrounded by gigantic cranes against the clear sky, fading into atmospheric perspective, made it look all the more magical. The seaport full of regular military boats was also a great sight; the Marines were running exercises on the water, almost a mile away from them. It was just amazing, no clouds whatsoever, only the blue sky and blue water; thin golden sand and some wind, enough to ruffle her hair. The spot was private enough to prevent curious looks and it had a clear entrance to the ocean with a generous strip of sandy beach and palm trees.
Not that out of his armor somebody would recognize the Master Chief, but still...
She couldn't help to feel her heart throb whenever her eyes fell upon him.
"Chief, if this is your idea of taking a girl out, then you need advice. A lot."
"I thought you liked the beach."
"Oh, the beach is just fine. The sea looks gorgeous from here, but it's the stench of rotting fish that I can't cope with." she commented, groaning. "Besides, how do you even know how to throw a line? This is so primitive."
"Boot camp. We had to eat."
She rolled her eyes. "Right."
Teasing him was such a fun game. She hid a smile in the act of fixing her cap.
Cortana laid back, resting her weight on her elbows against the hot boulder; she was using her white t-shirt as an improvised blanket. Her beach-wear was pretty much black training shorts and a black sports bra (regular training uniform), she couldn't get anything else but it was comfortable enough. Not that John was dressed accordingly with the situation either, he was in training clothes as well, matching her black cap, t-shirt and shorts outfit. It was better that way, most of the people they came across with thought they were just an ordinary couple going out for a run.
Sure, the giant dog and the tall, brooding man were no ordinary sight, but still, she felt so happy, so... human.
And the sun, oh, it was magnificent. She threw her head back, admitting the warm caress of sunlight on her skin, and closed her eyes for a moment just hearing the crash of the waves. Real sunlight, not forged Forerunner spheres hanging from artificial skies, she could totally tell the difference this way. Although it was extremely pleasant, it felt so strange, out of place. Like if she was dreaming.
'If this is a dream, then I don't want to wake up. Ever.' she thought.
After a while, Cortana opened her eyes and looked towards John. He was sitting at the edge of the boulder, watching with sharp eyes the fishing line and the surroundings, Charley was chasing crabs down at the beach.
Cortana could almost feel on her fingertips the tension that kept his back stiff.
"You can get the SPARTAN out of the armor, but you'll never get the armor out of the SPARTAN." she said, amused.
He turned his head to look at her. "What?"
"You need any help getting that stick out of wherever you have it shoved up?"
John frowned, not pleased. Cortana laughed, throwing her head back again.
"I don't see what's so funny."
"I'm sorry, I was just trying to get you to relax a bit. I understand." she propped herself up and crawled to sit beside him, leaning on his shoulder. "This is difficult for you and I appreciate that you decided to ask me to tag along, I know you're not exactly a big fan of being outdoors without your armor. Don't worry, I got your back."
He frowned even more. "That's not..."
"It is." she shushed him softly, sneaking a hand around his arm. Such proximity in such a public place made him stiffen even more, but the Chief seemed to relax when she rubbed his back with the other hand. "I can't check your vitals but I know when you're anxious. It's okay. We're safe here."
John wanted to argue with her statement, but chose to let it go.
The feel of her hands was extremely soothing, or maybe it was just the sound of her voice so close to his ear. Whatever it was, it worked just fine and after a moment the Chief decided that she was right and tried his best to disconnect his battle-ready instinct from everything else. He started by focusing on the fishing line again.
However, the activity wasn't exactly fascinating. More like not at all.
Maybe because it was a hobby that required to be still and quiet for a long time; it seemed like the perfect activity for someone like John, but Cortana sure wasn't enjoying it. She was there to support him, alright, and that's what she planned to do. She leaned back against the boulder again, folding her arms behind her head to watch quietly at John's attentive face. He was oblivious of her gaze; the shade the cap threw over his brow and blue eyes, darkening his look, made him seem all the more mysterious...
Handsome was the word she was looking for. Cortana blushed violently.
After an hour and no prize, turned out that he wasn't enjoying the fishing either:
"This isn't as interesting as Chief Mendez made it sound." he said.
"I'm sorry." she shrugged. "You seemed so excited about it."
"I have a better idea."
He recovered the line out of the water and called Charley, whistling between his fingers. The dog was half a mile away but the single instant she heard her master's call, she completely discarded the angry crabs and darted back to the boulders, the speed of her gallop turned her into a brown and black blur, her paws digging enormous holes on the wet sand. Charley leaped and climbed up the rocks incredibly fast, her ears rigid and all of her attention set on her master's hands.
She waggled her tail when John allowed her to come closer and barked happily when he patted her head; the gesture was affectionate enough to make Cortana smile as she put her t-shirt back on. He discreetly fed the dog with a cookie out of his pocket, another gesture that made clear to Cortana how much the Chief actually cared for his furry companion.
"What are you planning now?" she asked, curious.
"Let's eat something, first."
Cortana grinned wide, half mocking him. "So, you actually bought me dinner. So flattering, I don't know what to say."
"That would be a first."
"Smartass." she frowned, delighted with the smirk that took over his lips.
"I got us something in case the fishing didn't work."
"You know? I didn't want to spoil your fun since you are the expert here, but I bet the fishes didn't bite because you forgot about the bait."
"You think?"
"I'm pretty sure that's how fishing with a line works, Chief."
SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2558
LOCATION: RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
PRAIA DO LEMES
4:15 PM standard time
They ate together under the shadow of a large and crooked palm tree, sitting on the rocks. Cortana made small talk about her discovery and how hopeful she felt about the breakthroughs, both ignored the shadow of ONI looming over the crew's head for the sake of the good mood and avoided to mention Subject Seven and the mission to come for the same reasons. It was an implicit agreement. As he ate, John found utterly entertaining to watch her as she explained the theory about the slip-space portal, maybe Cortana didn't realize that she had a passion for making gestures with her hands all the time.
He'd prefer to listen to her all day if given the choice. Her voice was...
Besides, whenever she caught him staring, her cheeks usually turned a soft shade of red, but she kept on talking nonetheless. Her manners somewhat reminded him to Dr. Halsey, yet their personalities were in sheer contrast: where the Doctor always pondered the cold assessment of situations, Cortana didn't mind a little emotion. A little too much, as of late, she was certainly enjoying her life as a human being.
At some point, Cortana grabbed a polystyrene plate and swung it in front of Charley's eyes, with a joyful smile.
"Come on, girl! Do you want to fetch the disc?"
The dog raised her head, looked at Cortana and followed the improvised Frisbee with attentive ears, but then she lost interest and her head collapsed back to rest atop her paws, not impressed.
"Hey, what's the matter? I thought dogs liked to play with flying things." Cortana stared at the animal, confused, and then dropped her shoulders, disappointed. "Oh my God, she's just like you. No fun at all."
"She's a soldier, she doesn't do tricks." John explained, serious.
"You're a soldier too and I've taught you a trick or two, you old dog."
He frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Is that Dr. Quinn?" she changed the subject immediately and narrowed her eyes to get a better view of the figure walking by the shoreline, not far away. It was a female and she was wearing a wide straw hat with a pink lace, by her side ran a little cheerful figure, a child. Cortana rose to her knees, excited. "Yes! I'm pretty sure that's Dr. Quinn, and she's with Twelve. Come on, Chief, let's meet them."
John didn't even bother in opposing, it wasn't like they had anything else to do anyway. They picked up the rests of the meal, Cortana leaded the way trying her best to follow Charley's fast trotting.
The Chief kept an eye on the two women as they greeted each other but didn't get too close; sudden noises maybe four hundred yards away from the coast called out his attention. Something was happening with the Marines, four green speedboats were running wide circles around a fifth boat, turned upside down. A man in ODST armor was clinging to the boat's side, there was yelling and commotion.
It didn't look good.
He realized that Charley was looking that way too, whining and pacing.
Between the boats, John saw black gloves emerging from the water, at least three men were struggling to break the surface, but the armor was too heavy for them to float. One of them made it to grab the boat and climb, saving himself, the other two failed.
The hands sunk, disappearing from sight.
"Oh my God!" the Chief heard Dr. Quinn say. "They're going to drown!"
Adrenaline kicked in and John darted towards the ocean, Charley followed him, tail between her legs, fangs bare. The SPARTAN didn't even think it over neither got rid of his shoes or shirt, just threw away the cap and ran straight ahead, moving deeper and deeper into the roaring ocean (proving that he was stronger than the waves). When he was about to lose his foot, the Chief grabbed Charley's collar and allowed the dog to drag him towards the drowning soldiers. They both knew exactly what to do.
Cortana and Dr. Quinn, the latter holding the little Subject Twelve between her arms, ran closer to the water and witnessed the events.
The speedboats halted to prevent further damage. Three ODSTs were taking off their armors to attempt a rescue. Someone noticed the man and the dog heading their way and started waving his hands in denial, angrily. It didn't take long for Charley to reach the place, suddenly both her and the Chief disappeared under the waves.
Cortana held the air inside her lungs until her chest started to ache, scared.
More than six minutes passed by; eventually she had to breathe, but every breath was more painful than the previous. Anxiety closed her throat. Finally, Cortana let out a loud, relieved sigh: John popped up closer to the shore, right when she was about to panic. Again, Charley hauled him until the Chief could step on his feet as he dragged two motionless ODSTs out of the water, and then carried them over his broad shoulders as if the armored men were weightless.
The women approached and the Doctor quickly kneeled between the soldiers, as soon as the SPARTAN put them on the sand lying on their backs.
"Pulse?" Dr. Quinn asked.
"I don't know." John shook his head, grimly.
Charley sniffed the helmet of one of the men, his uniform labeled 'H. Tachibana' and used her tongue to lick his neck until she found a strap, the emergency release. The dog pulled the strap and the helmet popped off. John took off the other man's helmet too, the ODST coughed immediately. The first soldier wasn't responding, so the Doctor engaged first aid maneuvers. She didn't even have to work on him for long, Tachibana coughed too and kicked off Charley when the dog tried to lick his face.
Cortana, however, stayed a few feet away from the tumult holding the little girl by the hand. Her eyes were focused on John, more precisely on his serious face. He was all business at the moment, controlled and capable, such finesse always made her feel very proud. Her SPARTAN was the best, no doubt.
The roaring of powerful engines surrounded them as the four amphibian vehicles came out of the water, stepping into the sand.
Another man in ODST armor with an officer's insignia approached, running.
"Are they alive?" he asked, half worried, half annoyed.
"This one breathes." said John, as he helped the soaked Pavrat to sit down.
"Tachibana here is fine too. Sergeant, these suits aren't exactly sealed." the Doctor said, trying not to sound like an angry mother.
"We weren't supposed to wear pressurized suits for this exercise, ma'am, that was the point." spat the Sergeant, dryly.
A Lieutenant kneeled beside the woman. "Thank you, ma'am! Are you a medic?"
"Lieutenant Commander Marilyn Quinn, UNSC Infinity's Chief Medical Officer. Yes, you can say I'm a medic." she commented, relieved that both soldiers were okay. "Water drills without properly sealed suits, really? If it wasn't for the Master Chief here present, your men maybe would have drowned. Who approved this exercise?"
"We had it covered." growled the Sergeant, proudly, shooting glances at John.
"Not even floaters? It's regulation gear." the SPARTAN added, calmly.
"As I said, that was the point: they weren't supposed to fall."
"They could have died."
The Sergeant cocked his head, displeased. "Alright, Pavrat, Tachibana; if you can breathe, then get the fuck up and start walking! You're going back to base on foot, and right now!" he turned towards his men, upset, but he didn't forget to properly salute the Doctor despite his bad temper. The youth of his dark features surprised Dr. Quinn when he took off his helmet. "Thank you for your help, ma'am."
"You're welcome, Sergeant, but it isn't me you should thank."
"Yes... right, thank you for your assistance, Master Chief." he turned around, his weary gaze fell upon the massive man before him. "Quite the thing you did back there, really."
"Sir." John saluted immediately, as the Doctor did.
When the ODSTs parted, taking their boats and their tempers, Cortana picked up the Chief's discarded cap and handed it back to him. The little girl, however, ran in circles around the SPARTAN, screaming his name to Dr. Quinn's amusement; suddenly the kid crouched down and grabbed a seashell that she later presented to John, with a beautiful grin on her sweet face. He respectfully received the gift and gave her his cap, instead, which made the little Cortana laugh and hug his calf, delighted.
"I'm with the Sergeant here, that was quite the feat." Cortana murmured, as they walked together by the shoreline, a little behind. The warm sea water splashed over their bare feet, John's sight was fixed on Charley and the kid, who were several meters ahead of them followed closely by the Doctor. "You and Charley have the whole teamwork thing figured out, I see. I'm impressed."
"She's a good girl."
"Careful, I'm going to get jealous of a dog." she smirked, playfully.
"You don't have to." he whispered.
Quietly, John snaked an arm behind her and grabbed Cortana's waist. The gesture made her jump on her feet but she didn't back away; it was unexpected, yes, but also the most thrilling sensation she'd felt that day so far. And she'd tried really hard not to stare at how the wet shirt contoured the well-defined shapes of his torso a moment ago, so that was really something.
Cortana turned her head to look at him, bewildered.
And she was about to say something else, when Dr. Quinn's voice startled her:
"So, who's in for a couple of drinks? On me, of course; the hero deserves it."
SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2558
LOCATION: RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
PRAIA DO LEMES
5:02 PM standard time
Around 5 PM the sun started to set behind the spaceport, the long shadows of the buildings and the trees stirred over the beach and the wind receded. The beach became quiet, almost lonely. After a couple of non-alcoholic drinks, Dr. Quinn had gone back to the base with Twelve (the kid was getting sleepy), so Cortana found utterly pleasing to have John's attention all for herself once more, since Charley was chasing crabs again with enthusiasm.
They were sitting on the sand, quietly, just watching the waves.
It was so peaceful there, she'd loved to live on a place like that. Forever.
Such a shame it wouldn't last.
'Don't think about that.' Cortana nagged herself, fiercely. 'Enjoy the moment, he did this for both of you, just... forget about everything else for a couple of hours, this is more than you'll ever get.'
She let out a loud sigh. Loud enough to alert the Chief's attention.
"What's wrong?" he asked, immediately.
Cortana had many things on her mind, but there was one...
'This is more than you'll ever get. Now or never.' she thought again, nervous.
With a shy smile, she started: "Do you remember how did I look the last time you saw me before entering the cryo-pod at the Dawn, and how did I look when I woke you up four years later?" she asked, calmly.
John nodded, his sight now lost far away along the horizon.
"I do. You improved your holographic display, but that wasn't the first time."
She took in a sharp breath, surprised. He said 'improved', not 'changed'.
"Never wondered why I did such things?"
He slightly shrugged. "To kill time?"
"You know? Considering that my 'looks' had nothing to do with my processing power, efficiency or capabilities, anyone could think that I did it out of vanity, plain and simple. And at first, that was the only reason. The first time I changed my holographic display, I did it to see if anyone would notice."
He barely arched an eyebrow.
"So, you rewrote your image expecting a compliment?"
"You can't blame a girl for liking compliments." she smiled, mischievously. "I had four years, seven months and ten days to spend, every now and then I tried different displays to keep myself busy. I played with my hair, with the shape of my body, with the features of my face, with the shades of my hue. It bought me some time, it was easier to fight rampancy when I was focused on something."
John didn't say anything. He truly didn't know what to say.
"And I kept trying new shapes and colors, day after day, wondering which one you'd like the most." her eyes found his. "That kept me going. I wanted... I always knew that you didn't care or respect me for my looks, after all I was just a voice in your ear; but you know me. I have my pride. I wanted to look nice for you. I wanted you to look at me, not just think of me as..."
"A machine." the Chief whispered, almost to himself. His quiet gaze swept over her nervous features, her cheeks a little red because of the prolonged exposure to direct sunlight. Her eyes, brighter than ever. "You look exactly like the last time we talked, aboard the Mantle's Approach. The strangest thing I'd seen that day."
Cortana didn't know what to make out of that, but she didn't feel offended. She could sense he was fighting with himself to say something else, but it wasn't his strong suit and she understood his uneasiness. Her response was to carefully lay a hand over his chest, delighted with the feel of dry cotton fabric and the warmth of his skin beneath. It was real. She could feel the pulse of his heart on her fingertips. When John placed his own, large hand over hers to keep it in place, Cortana swallowed hard.
His intense stare kept her pinned in place too, almost afraid to move.
"Why like this, John? Why now?"
Again, he didn't gave an answer with words, but she realized she could see it in his eyes. He was maybe considering for the first time in his whole life the possibility of not making it back from a mission, and it scared him. He had a reason to return and he was contemplating the idea of success at the cost of his or her life.
She'd never felt so much in tune with him, not even when she was in his head.
Cortana didn't realize what was happening until John carefully touched her cheek with the tips of his fingers.
"Why are you crying?"
"Because I don't want this moment to end?" she snorted, with a guilty grin.
"Cortana…" he murmured, but it sounded much like 'that's not going to happen'.
Her flesh was shuddering. She couldn't keep the thoughts away now that they were awake and haunting her. Why? Why did they had to be cursed like this? Cortana's hand trembled between his fingers, she felt now cold and cheerless, terribly hurt. She knew what were the odds, they both had practical minds and were incapable of ignoring the hard facts. A few days from then, they would be heading straight into damnation.
Then why did she prefer to fool herself (both of them) with such a fantasy?
Just... why? He deserved better, he deserved peace.
She broke the contact by standing up, suddenly.
"I have sand somewhere I'd better not talk about." she mumbled, her cheeks felt on fire, emotions boiling beneath her skin with the violence of a storm. "I should take a shower before I get an itch or something, let's head back."
SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2558
LOCATION: UNSC BASE IN RIO DE JANEIRO
NCOs LIVING QUARTERS
5:43 PM standard time
Thinking about what happened earlier at the beach, John walked silently beside Cortana all the way back to base; they left Charley at the K-9 block and then together reached his quarters.
None of them said a word after she got up, claiming the need for a shower.
Being the Master Chief paid some benefits, being the only SPARTAN-II with his rank in base even more so. The entire block was empty, he was the only inhabitant for the time being. Not that he cared, anyway; the Chief was used to bunk up anywhere and to go on out of MREs if that was the only meal available, so such luxuries were impractical to him, to be honest.
However, Cortana appreciated it for both of them.
She requested to shower first and he agreed. When she got out, five minutes later and with a towel wrapped around her soaked body, he took his turn. Fresh water rained over his shoulders and he closed his eyes, sighing, relaxing.
Then the Chief heard Cortana's voice, quite close:
"Thanks for taking me out today." she said, softly. "I had a really good time, John, I hope you had your share of fun too."
His blue gaze shot ahead, she was standing on the open doorway, still wrapped.
The mention of his given name felt like magic.
"Sure." he managed to say, shrugging. "It was interesting."
Maybe John was expecting her to leave, maybe he wasn't, but he grabbed a bar of soap and looked at her again, waiting. She bit her lower lip in a soft, innocent gesture that sent a bolt of heat through his stomach.
"You have to report back at ten, right?" Cortana inquired, still calm.
"Yes. Why?"
"Then we have time."
She stepped into the bathroom, coming closer to the shower. John straightened.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm taking a shower." she said, and let the towel fall from her hands.
The SPARTAN just stood there, quietly, looking at her in the eye.
He didn't move, holding the soap bar in his fist. A moment later, his gaze decided to take a trip down her splendid pale figure, acknowledging every single detail of her soft, feminine form. Truth be told, her thighs captured his attention more than her bare breasts. He'd seen females naked before, but none like her; maybe more like he'd never been so aware of the presence of a nude female so close to him before. One he wanted to touch and feel and...
He looked at the stream of dotted plasma scars over her left side and breast.
Something stirred lazily inside of him. Something pleasant.
Cortana held her breath, all along. When John's eyes locked with hers again, his pupils dilated in arousal, she let out a careful sigh, afraid to break the illusion. Her heart pounded faster inside her chest, out of control.
"You already had a shower." he stated, calmly.
"Yeah. Just... not with you."
Then again, John didn't move.
Not until he gathered enough resolve to extend his hand towards her, saying with that simple gesture everything he could never state with actual words. In part, because he didn't know which ones where the right words. With her senses clouded by the blood violently rushing inside her veins, Cortana closed her eyes as soon as the water spilled over her frame again.
She accepted his strong embrace and stood on the tips of her toes, to reach out for a kiss.
TO BE CONTINUED
Yes, you want to murder me. Of course you do. You pervs.
I'll have you know that someone I trust gave me green lights to go full commando with what comes next so, next week you'll have a reward of epic proportions, no puns intended. I suppose you understand that after this, the story moves towards the final act and from then on it will be the ending, something I'm really looking forward for you to see. I will do my best to make it as epic as possible.
-it hurts a little to think that the story has to end someday xD-
Nico; here's more! and next week we have more! -evil laughter-
RandomGUy; hehe FF doesn't allow you to paste links, so I couldn't get the song. Sorry :/ Let's say that Hood is the one who will make sure that our heroes can get the job done, but ONI could still meddle somehow. Anyway, here's the weird reason why John wanted some time off :P yeah, not really his style, I know, but I bet he was at least curious -coughs- Anyway, thanks for being here, as always!
Kay/Kat; well, I think you will be quite pleased with what comes next, especially after I revised it and added some more spicy content to the mix. I can't promise much more fluff afterwards but I'll try. Thanks so much for staying with us! -hugs-
Stay tuned for next Sunday's update, don't miss it! And don't forget to say hi, it will be much appreciated :)