Vaughn jumped off the cot and rushed over to Gaia's cot, where she was straight backed and panting.

"Gaia? Was that you?" He asked alarmed, hoping to god that no one could hear them.

It took her a minute to catch her breath, and she replied numbly, "Yea, I just had a nightmare. Sorry I woke you up."

"What was it about?" Vaughn asked, grabbing her hand and squeezing it.

Gaia swung her legs over the edge of the cot so she was facing Vaughn. Sighing, she replayed it out loud.

"I was walking with my dad, and he pulled a gun on me. I looked at him, and then he was Loki. He shot at me, but it went over my shoulder and hit Mary and Sam and Ella. I don't know why I screamed, but I did. And then I woke up." She was stone faced now, no sign of emotion. "Again, I'm sorry I screamed."

Vaughn shook his head. "Don't be sorry, and don't worry. Loki is dead. He can't kill anyone else."

Reassured, Gaia looked at his eyes and was surprised to see emotions flashing across them. The one that surprised her most was love. It was a foreign concept to her; love. The only people that had ever expressed it to her were dead. Shaking her head slightly, Gaia noted the sunbeams trying to make their way through the tiny window.

"What time is it?"

Glancing at his watch, Vaughn replied, "It's nearly 9. Think you can sleep anymore, or do you want me to kick your ass at poker?"

"You think you can take me? I will make you broke so fast you'll be asking you mother for money," Gaia replied, laughing.

An hour later found Vaughn and Gaia immersed in a grueling game of seven-card stud. Large piles of pennies were at Gaia's elbow, since they earlier found that Vaughn only had seven dollars in his wallet, and Gaia had two. The safe house's previous attendant had a large collection of pennies, so that's what they were using.

"You know what, Uncle Mike?" Gaia asked innocently.

"What?"

"You really suck at this." Vaughn chuckled while nodding his head.

"I can usually kick ass. Pokers better, cause I'm trained to read people. I can call anyone's bluff."

"Ever played Sydney?" Gaia taunted.

"No, and I don't plan to." Vaughn replied, losing again. "How about a different game?"

"Blackjack?"

"Sure-" Vaughn was interrupted by someone opening the door to the dimly lit cabin. It was Sydney with bags of groceries.

"Hey, thought I'd bring you guys some food. Safe houses never stock up with the good stuff," she greeted, setting the bags on the floor. "What do we have here? Gambling?"

Gaia smiled sweetly. "Yea, and Uncle Mike is about to give me the keys to his car. He shouldn't be allowed to play, he'd go broke in an hour."

Sydney laughed, patting Vaughn's shoulder sympathetically, "She kicking your ass?"

"Yes, If we had money, I'd have lost it all to a seventeen year-old."

"Ok, Gaia. Let's see how you do against me at poker."

***

They played for an hour until Sydney's pager started beeping in sync with Vaughn's. Glancing at it, Sydney got up and dialed a number on her cell phone.

She listened for a few minutes before closing it slowly. A look of hope crossed her features, and a smile tugged at her lips.

"The Alliance took Sloane into custody. Apparently they didn't want Loki to die. Dad's replacing Sloane as the head of SD-6."

Vaughn rose quickly and embraced her. Looking her in the eye, he smiled. "This is what we've been waiting for."

Gaia saw the way they were looking at each other, and commented, "You two should stop acting like idiots."

The pair looked shocked and a little confused. Vaughn caught on and sent Gaia death glares.

"No, I mean it. Stop acting like two teenagers. And stop giving me those looks, Uncle Mike. You both know what I'm talking about."

Sydney quickly pulled herself from Vaughn's hug, crossing her arms and staring at the worn card table. "I'd better go. I'll see you later." With that she strode from the room, leaving Gaia and Vaughn gaping after her.

"Sorry, Uncle Mike. I remember what you said earlier, but don't you feel it?"

"Feel what?" he asked, confused.

Gaia rolled her eyes. "There's unresolved sexual tension. You just need to get it out in the open."

Vaughn felt his face turn red. This was not something he wanted to discuss with Gaia. "There's a reason it's unresolved. And it's going to be like that for a while. I've just gotten used to it being there."

Gaia shook her head at him. Adults and their inability to fix problems. She certainly wouldn't give a rat's ass about the protocol separating her from someone else. They sat in silence for several minutes before Gaia dealt out a hand of poker.

"I'll go easy on you this time."

***

A Week Later

Sydney strode into the cool warehouse, taking refuge from the sudden heat wave that had struck L.A. Wiping the sweat off her forehead; she sank into a metal chair across from Vaughn. "I wish my mission was in Siberia, or at least a very cold country. Why does it have to be in Africa?"

Vaughn gave her a small smile before handing her a thin file. "Just put the document in and leave it under the bible in the hotel room. An agent will pick it up and have a replacement before you leave."

Sydney took the file lazily, glancing up at him. "Hey, are you alright? You seem sad."

"I'm fine."

Sydney smiled knowingly at his depressed form. "You miss Gaia. How's she doing, by the way?"

"She's fine. I talked to her yesterday, as well as Tom. They're going to try living together, now that Loki's dead."

"Good."

"You know, she's a lot like you. Her mother died when she was young, and her father pushed her away because of it," he commented, slowly bringing his gaze to Sydney's.

They held the gaze for a few seconds, both feeling the air heat up.

"I'd better go, my plane leaves in a couple hours and I need to pack," Sydney blurted, breaking eye contact. She rose quickly, but stopped when Vaughn put his hand on her arm.

"Syd, we can't do this anymore."

She didn't pull away, but looked at him pretending to be confused. "Do what?"

"I think you know what."

With that, he pulled her closer to him, hoping she would get the message. She did, and before he could do anything she kissed him. Gently at first, but then he responded, taking it deeper. They broke away breathless, breathing onto each other's faces. She smiled slyly and whispered in his ear, "Good. I was getting tired of it." She pulled away completely and walked from the warehouse with a giant grin plastered to her face, leaving Vaughn dazed.

Shaking his head bewildered, he muttered, "Thank you Gaia. It's finally out in the open."

***

A/N: Yay! I finally finished it! I was going to make it a dead WIP, but an idea struck me so I managed to finish it. I probably shouldn't have, considering that I got NO reviews for French Revelations, but I'm not mean hearted. Alias tomorrow! I'm seriously having a withdrawal. And the schedule for March? There are only two freaking episodes planned. That's just cruel. Review, please. It makes me happy. :-)

*Duck