Better Together M7 ATF AU

"Where are ya goin' Kid? Here, let me help." Buck Wilmington got up from his desk in the bullpen and hurried over to his roommate and partner's desk as the smaller brunet struggled to his feet.

"Just back off, Buck! I can make it to the bathroom on my own even with a sprained ankle! Geeze, you're like a mother hen!" The shorter form pushed at Wilmington's broad chest to get him out of the way. "It was kinda nice the first couple of days, but enough is enough!"

"Well, at least take your crutches."

"I don't need crutches to get ten feet to the restroom, Buck! Just get the hell out of my way!"

"Nathan… a little help here?" called the taller figure as he stood his ground for the time being.

"Buck, he's right. It's not broken, so he doesn't really need the crutches no further than that." offered the healer, sending JD a sympathetic glance. He was usually the one telling the rest of the team not to overexert themselves when they were hurt, but Buck really was being exceedingly cautious and his constant hovering was obviously getting on Dunne's nerves.

When the ladies' man reluctantly moved after he got no help from the medic, the younger agent limped past him with a growl and mumbled comment about being "sick and tired of someone's overprotectiveness".

The explosives expert stomped back to his own desk and dropped down into his chair with a sigh of frustration.

"Fine, lose your balance and crack your head open too! Then someone else can come help your ungrateful ass up!" Not that the rest didn't know Buck would be the first one to be there if that actually happened, but the tall form was as annoyed as his 'little brother' at the moment.

On the other side of the room, Ezra Standish turned and speared the team's sniper with an equally irritated look.

"Mr. Tanner, if you flip one more paperclip at the back of my head, you will be pullin' your trigger with a different finger because that one will be broken! I was under the impression you were supposed to be writin' a report, not harassin' me!"

"But this is more fun, Ez." The sandy-haired figure aimed another paperclip, this time hitting the undercover agent in the chest, directly over his heart. Standish gave a growl of displeasure and flung himself from his chair, sending the piece rolling into the wall with a 'thump'.

"Let's see how much 'fun' it is when I'm done…" Expensive Italian loafers carried the svelte form toward the grinning sharpshooter. Seeing that his friend was truly irate, Vin jumped from his own seat and took off across the room, running into Chris as the blond stepped out of his office to see what the raised voices were about.

"Damn it, Tanner! Watch where you're goin'!" growled the leader as the slender figure careened off of him and caused the taller form to bump his sore shoulder into the doorframe.

Josiah pushed back his own chair and strode over to block Vin's escape, since the sharpshooter had been flicking paperclips in his coffee when he wasn't annoying Ezra. Tanner hated paperwork and would do almost anything to avoid it, the harassment of his teammates being an added bonus when he was bored.

Buck jumped up as JD headed back toward his desk, Nathan making a beeline to stop the lanky brunet before he pissed off his partner even more by trying to 'help'.

"Buck, just sit down and let JD be!" The medic then turned his attentions to the rest of the men. "Vin, you sit down too and leave Ez and Josiah and everybody else alone! Now I'm gonna have to check Chris' shoulder and make sure it's not bruised worse. Ezra, Josiah… let Vin get back to his desk. I'm not splintin' any broken fingers or wrappin' any twisted knees when y'all get all tangled up."

Once Tanner and the rest were back in their seats, the forensics tech stood eying them with his hands on his hips.

"I think it'd be best if we all spend this weekend doin' our own thing. We've had some long hours together on this last case and the bust didn't go quite as smooth as we'd hoped, so I'm recommendin' some alone time for each of us before somebody ends up gettin' hurt even more."

Wilmington flounced in his chair and gave an annoyed twitch with his mustache.

"Fine with me! I've got a hot date with Charlene anyway." Cobalt eyes turned to spear Dunne. "I'll stay at her place tomorrow night, so you can have all the time without my 'overprotectiveness' you want."

JD flipped his bangs out of his eyes and gave his roommate a rather unimpressive version of the Larabee glare.

"Good! I can go to the bathroom and kitchen without you hoverin' over me like a mama bird. It'll be great!"

Standish speared Tanner with a similar look.

"Excellent idea, Mr. Jackson! I, for one, am ready for two days without any projectiles aimed at my person or other manifestations of someone's idea of amusement. Some peace and quiet will be greatly appreciated!"

Tanner turned his own glare on the rest.

"Alright by me. Hell, I don't wanna spent time with folks that can't take a joke anyway! Need ta give my bike a good detailin' anyhow."

Josiah nodded as he leaned back in his chair.

"Suits me. I can give the 'burb an oil change. Like Ezra, I think a little peace and quiet will be good for the soul this weekend." Bright eyes gave the sniper a still slightly annoyed look. "And I can drink my coffee without having to fish office supplies out of it!"

Vin shook his head and mumbled "Not my fault y'all got no sense of humor lately."

Chris dipped his own head in agreement with the decision, one hand rubbing his shoulder absently.

"Considering everyone's mood today, I think some alone time is a good idea. I've got a section of fence to fix by the barn." He gave Jackson a glance as the medic walked up to look at his injury. "I'll take it easy, Nathan. It's my left shoulder that's hurt, and I'll be hammering with my right arm." The green gaze took in the other six men, five of whom sat with frustrated or sulky expressions on their faces.

"In fact, why don't y'all just close out what you're workin' on and we'll leave now. I'll tell Travis we'll turn in our reports Monday. Finish what you're doin' and head on out."

Buck looked a little depressed.

"So no Saloon?"

Larabee shook his head. "Not this time. I think Nathan's right and we need to put a little space between us for a couple of days. See you boys Monday."

Muted responses greeted the statement, then the men saved their work and grabbed their jackets and headed for the elevator.

777777777777777777777777777777

Chris had just started on the fence about two the next afternoon when the sound of a motorcycle coming up the drive got his attention. He wasn't really surprised. Even when the rest of the team didn't show up, Vin often came over on the weekends just to hang out or help with the ranch chores, he and Larabee often going riding or fishing in the creek when the weather was nice.

Climbing off the Harley, Tanner removed his leather jacket and joined Chris by the fence.

"Hey, Cowboy. How's the shoulder?"

The blond flexed his arm and nodded when it didn't twinge too badly.

"It's alright. Just a little bruised still."

"Good." The sniper gave him a slightly apologetic look. "Really didn't mean ta make it worse yesterday."

Chris nodded. "I know. It's no big deal." He'd been aware of that all along and had forgiven Tanner almost immediately and then pretty much forgotten it.

Giving a dip of his own head, Vin pulled on a pair of tan leather work gloves and then grabbed the barbed wire Larabee was using to fix the fence. Chris' ebony-garbed hand picked up a staple and held it while he proceeded to hammer it into place with the other. The two friends worked in companionable silence, both so used to the other's thought processes that they instinctively knew what was needed without words being necessary.

Finishing about an hour later, they pulled off their gloves and headed for the house to get something cold to drink. They were just stepping up on the deck at the side when Ezra's Jag purred in and parked. Both turned to look at the casually attired gambler when he exited the vehicle.

"Ezra" "Ez" greeted the chestnut-haired form as he moved to join them.

"We're just gettin' a beer. Want one of those boutique ones you like?" asked Chris easily. Vin gave the undercover agent a curious but non-judgmental glance.

"Thought ya wanted some peace and quiet." commented the raspy voice as Standish nodded in answer to Larabee's question.

"Yes, well, my neighbors are havin' a birthday party for their twin teenagers. I am gettin' too old to listen to music at that decibel and why must teenage females giggle all the time? I felt like I was in the middle of a girl's slumber party every time I stepped out on the balcony. I figured it would be much more peaceful here than at my own abode, so I left them to annoy the rest of the neighbors." Emerald eyes shot Chris a quick look. "I trust that is alright, Mr. Larabee?"

"Sure, Ez. No problem." The blond prowled into the kitchen and returned with three beers, tossing one to Tanner and the specialized one to Standish. The trio settled down in deck chairs to drink, Ezra causing both of the other men to almost spit a time or two with his amusing and exaggeratedly aggrieved account of the birthday party shenanigans that supposedly drove him away. Each knew that wasn't the only reason, but they just grinned and continued listening to the story.

They were on second rounds when Josiah's Suburban pulled into the yard. The older vehicle was sounding a little better and wasn't blowing black smoke, so apparently the profiler had gotten the oil changed and such. All three waved genially as Sanchez climbed out and ambled toward them.

"Hey, J'siah." called Vin, while Ezra touched his forehead in a two-fingered salute and Chris got up to get another beer.

"Boys. I know what we said, but I got the 'burb tuned up and needed to take her for a spin, so thought I'd head out this way." offered the big man with a slightly shame-faced grin. One hand caught the beer Larabee tossed at him and twisted off the top.

"That's fine, Josiah. Grab a seat." Chris looked at the others. "Got some steaks in the fridge, y'all wanna stay for supper?"

All three nodded happily. The blond was actually quite a good cook and liked to grill, his steaks always ending up almost fork tender and perfectly seasoned. At the agreements, the lean form went to get the charcoal and light it so that it would be ready in half an hour or so.

He was just settling back into his seat when Wilmington's Chevy hummed up and parked. The ladies' man kept the vintage truck in tip-top working order, so she purred almost as smoothly as Standish's Jag, though Buck did like a bit of rumble when he revved the engine. The other four returned the brunet's wave and Chris had another beer ready when the tall form got to the deck.

"Thought you had a hot date tonight?"

The explosives tech took the bottle Larabee handed him and dropped his lanky frame into a free lounge.

"Her mom got sick, so she had to cancel, and Lucy and Jolene were both workin'. I promised JD I'd leave him alone for a while, so figured I'd head out here and see what Chris was up to." The chiseled lips under the mustache gave a sly smile as the blue gaze flicked around to the others. "Looks like I wasn't the only one who had the idea."

The rest gave wry grins as well.

"I felt kinda bad about runnin' into Chris yesterday, so figured I'd come help him work on the fence." explained the sniper as he took a sip of his beer.

"I got the oil changed and decided I needed to run it a little, and just ended up coming this direction." offered Josiah with a casual shrug of his broad shoulders.

Ezra launched into a detailed account of the next door party, the embellishments getting even more elaborate this time, much to the amusement of the pair who had heard the original version. The gambler didn't want to admit that he'd actually been lonely and had seized on the opportunity as an excuse.

When Chris asked the ladies' man if he wanted to stay for supper and mentioned steak, Wilmington clicked his bottle with Vin in approval.

"You bet, Stud! Ya know I don't ever turn down one of your steaks!"

The blond nodded in satisfaction, getting up to see if he had enough potatoes to bake for all of them.

He was just coming back out when the sound of another vehicle coming up the long drive announced Nathan's arrival. The medic climbed out of the driver's side and then moved to hold the passenger door as JD carefully exited. Both men gave slightly embarrassed waves as they made their way to join the rest. Chris went back into the house and came out with a beer and coke.

Buck eyed his roommate, but refrained from getting up and helping the kid as the smaller figure settled into the chaise next to Wilmington.

"Thought ya wanted some 'alone' time?"

"I thought I did too, but… well, Nathan came over to check on my ankle, and when he said he was coming out to the ranch to see how Chris' shoulder was, I decided I'd come too. Casey's out of town with Nettie, and with you gone, to be honest it was kinda boring just playing video games and surfing the web." admitted the electronics tech with an almost shy grin.

When the other five turned their gazes to him, Jackson just shrugged a bit embarrassedly.

"I know stayin' apart was my idea, but Rain's visitin' her folks and I did want to check on JD and Chris, though I guess it would'a waited 'till Monday…" his rich voice trailed off as he saw the smiles the six were giving him.

"No problem, Nathan. You and JD stayin' for supper?" asked Chris as he went to check the charcoal.

Ezra was rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "Mr. Larabee is fixin' some of his delectable steaks."

JD practically started drooling. "Oooh, with some of those loaded baked potatoes?"

The blond nodded with a grin. "Got some corn on the cob in the freezer, too."

Nathan jumped up with alacrity. "I'll go put it in some hot water to thaw and then boil it while you do the rest of the stuff."

Vin licked his lips as the menu got better and better. "Gonna do some of that Texas toast with the cheese and chives?"

Larabee nodded. "If ya want some, sure."

Buck finished his beer and unfolded himself from his seat. "I'll take care of spreadin' out the charcoal while ya get everything ready, Stud."

Chris nodded and followed Nathan into the kitchen, leaving the sliding door open so he could hear the conversation outside as Ezra started again on his birthday party story for JD's elucidation. All of the men were laughing and picking on each other, any previous frustration forgotten. No matter what was going on with them, everything truly was better together.

By DMA