Headquarters
"I'm Jessie!!" the little girl cries, and the giant lizard watches her, plastic tiara and all, warily. Syl shrugs at Mole, who looks at her questioningly.
"We're watching her for Tru, a newcomer." she says, and Krit backs her up. Mole looks at her scrutinizingly, as she starts doing nearly-perfect ballerina spins. Max and Alec, who are sitting at a table nearby, planning a raid, share a look.
She stops doing pirouettes around Mole and looks at him, giggling. "You're green." she says, sitting Indian-style on the floor and resting her hand on her chin, her eyes closing a little.
"Is that bad, girlie?" he asks, and she shakes her head tiredly, smiling at him. The hard look on his face drops, and he pulls up a chair, eager to listen to her.
"Nope-nope. I like green. It's purty." she says, trying not to let sleep claim her. Mole looks down, grinning proudly.
"I like it, too. But not as much as guns." he muses, and she shakes sleep off, smiling.
"Or fire." she adds, and he nods. "I really like fire." she says, and Mole pats her head a little roughly.
"That's a girl." he says, and Syl and Krit, who are now sitting at Max and Alec's table, just roll their eyes at Mole's newfound affection for the little girl.
"Ooh, or cookies!" Jessie says, toying with the end of her pigtails.
"And explosives." Mole says gruffly, and Jessie nods, smiling that little evil smile of hers.
"And explosive-cookies!" she says, yawning. She stands up, trying to make the sleepiness leave her. She starts dancing again, twirling around like there's no tomorrow.
"Where'd you learn to dance like that?" Max, being the curious person that she is, decides to ask her. Syl, Alec, and Krit all watch intently. Jessie just smiles.
"From my-Tru, silly." she says, stopping and falling down to the ground in a heap, giggling. "She hasn't taught me how to get un-dizzy yet."
"Tru dances?" Max asks, surprised. Jessie nods, laying herself out on the ground and counting the pretty tiles in the ceiling.
"She's a pretty ballerina." Jessie says, finally falling asleep, her battle lost.
Old Building, TC
Tru looks up at Biggs, her violet eyes filled with embarrassment, but something else. Something that Biggs can't decipher. He's mesmerized by them. "Ugh, your shirt's all wet and ick." she says, her way of apologizing. He shrugs, that fact going by him.
"The rain would have done it anyway." he says, and she smiles a little, giving him a little hug.
"Thank you." she says, squeezing him and then releasing him, looking into his eyes. "You're the only one I've ever told about my incredibly messed up life." she tells him, trust showing in her slights smile. "I feel safe when I'm with you."
"I'm glad you told me, Tru. It's gotta be hell having this stuff eating at you." he tells her, pushing a piece of auburn hair out of her eyes. "You're the only one I let my guard down for." he says, and she puts her arms around his neck, needing something to keep her balance besides his arms around her, but also wanting to be close.
"I'm scared of getting close to people." Tru says quietly, her phobia of losing someone so very real. Her violet eyes gaze into his brown ones, and she sees the same feeling reflected in his eyes. "They all go away then." she says, trying not to think about her daddy.
"Tru, if you want me to stay around, then I'll never leave." he says, and she looks up at him, tears coming unbidden. Biggs, not knowing that this would mean this much to her, takes a breath.
"Promise?" she asks, and he nods, unable to mean the words more.
"Promise, Tru." he whispers, and both realize how close they are. He leans in a little, and she tilts her head up. Their lips meet in a soft kiss, the kind that promises many more to come. Not harsh, but gentle and without pressure. They break apart at the sound of lightening, when a shock issues from Tru's lips to Biggs's.
"Sorry...electricity." she says, putting her hand to her lips and blushing.
"It's fine." he says, looking out the window. The dark night sky is lit up only with the occasional flash of lightening. "We should probably go to HQ before the weather gets any worse." he says, and she nods, standing up slowly, not wanting to be out of his arms.
"Here," he says, pulling his leather coat over the both of them to keep them dry. She smiles at him and grabs his hand as they head out the door, making a mad dash to Headquarters in water two inches deep.
HQ
"Max, Alec, the water level's getting pretty high. It's two inches out on the streets." Dix tells them, and Max groans. "They're talking about closing roads if it gets much worse." he says, and she sighs.
"Great. Normal will kill me." she says, leaning her head in her hands. The squish of wet shoes sounds nearby, but she dismisses it.
"I could probably put in a good word." Tru says, still holding Biggs's hand. Max looks up, relief painted across her features.
"Thanks." she says, flashing her a smile, but Tru's attention turns to Jessie, who's sleeping on a bench nearby, using someone's sweatshirt as a pillow.
Tru walks over, and, as if sensing her, Jessie wakes up, as little children tend to do when a person they love is nearby. Biggs walks with her, not able yet to give up her hand.
"Hey, baby," Tru says, a maternal look on her face. She strokes Jessie's cheek, as mothers do to their kids, and Jessie leans into her touch sleepily. "We're spending the night here, because the weather's bad out. Ok?"
"Tru, tell me a story." Jessie says, and all of the 09er's in the room are reminded immediately of their childhood days, when Ben would tell them stories explaining the whole world.
"You're going to have to narrow that down, sweetie." Tru laughs softly, sitting down next to the bench and taking Jessie's hand with her empty one. Biggs sits down, leaning against the wall. "Which one?"
"Tell me my favorite." she mumbles, partially asleep already. Tru stiffens slightly, something noticed by all the transgenics, and then starts.
"Once upon a time, there was a princess, who lived in a beautiful castle." she starts, and Jessie immediately interrupts her.
"Was she pretty?" she asks, craving information. Tru smiles, but it's mirthless, a memory she abandoned.
"It depends on who's telling the story." she says, and Biggs squeezes her hand. She looks at him, reassurance in her gaze, as if to say, 'Don't worry, I pretend it's just a story, too'.
"I think she's beautiful, Tru." Jessie tells her, and Tru smiles. "Tell me more."
"She lived in a beautiful castle, but her mother, the Evil Queen was, well, evil." Tru says, not realizing that nearly everyone within hearing distance is listening in. "She hurt the princess, tried to break her."
"But the princess wouldn't let her, would she?" Jessie asks, childish glee in her voice at the 'good guy' winning, as they all inevitably do in storybooks.
"I'm getting to that." she says, smiling. "But the princess didn't give up. She wouldn't let the Queen win, no matter how hard she tried. Because remember what I told you?" she asks, and Jessie nods, happy to help in telling the story.
"Good should always win." she says, and Tru nods.
"That's right, darling. Because evil needs to get its butt kicked." she says, smiling a sad sort of smile. "So the princess didn't give up. She fought with everything in her being, trying to make the Queen lose the fight. But The Queen stayed strong."
"Tell about the dancing, Tru?" Jessie asks excitedly, and Tru complies.
"Dancing was the one thing the princess could do without being blamed for something, or punished for something she didn't do. So she danced often, so that she could escape the Queen's wrath." she says, staring off into her memories, trying to draw something from them for the story.
"How did she get away, Tru?" Jessie asks, and Tru laughs at her impatience.
"Do you want to tell the story, missy?" she asks, and Jessie shakes her head.
"No, you tell stories really good." she says, looking at Tru with sleepy, curious eyes. "I just want the princess to be ok." she tells her, "Princesses shouldn't get hurt. They're too nice and pretty. Evil people are just evil." Jessie says stubbornly, and Tru nods.
"You're right. But it's not only princesses who shouldn't get hurt- it's everyone who hasn't done something wrong." she says, and images of people who shouldn't have been hurt flash through the minds of the transgenics. Rachel. Tinga. Brin. Zack. Everyone who didn't make the escape, the ones who did and died trying to fit in. "That's why good should always prevail. It has to, for the world to be right. So the princess came up with a plan. She had to get away, but the only way that she could was right under the Queen's nose." Jessie smiles excitedly, shooting Biggs a happy look.
"This is my favorite part." she says, clapping her hands excitedly. He smirks at her childish glee at the story. "Tell me how she got away."
"Well, the only time she was allowed outside was when she danced. But even then, there was a giant wall surrounding the palace, to keep her inside. So one day, she put her plan into action. She danced her little heart out that day, happier than ever at the prospect of getting out. With one last look at her palace, she leapt over the fence and away from the evil Queen, into the world." Tru says, and Jessie's eyes light up- well, as much as someone's can when they're half asleep.
"Is the princess happy now?" she asks, and Biggs looks at Tru intently, wanting to hear her answer. She smiles as Biggs, and nods to Jessie.
"Yeah, she is...she's finally found a perfect kingdom." she says, and Jessie smiles, letting sleep take her over- almost. By now HQ is nearly empty, only filled with a few people who don't have apartments in TC to camp out in- Max and Alec and a few X's across the room, but they slowly filter out, leaving just the three.
"And they all lived happily ever after?" she asks, and Tru smiles.
"Of course, silly goose. This is a fairytale, after all." she says, and Jessie nods. Tru takes a stuffed animal out of the backpack she brought and hands it to Jessie. The little girl grabs for it, curling up in a ball and falling asleep.
Tru stands up, stretching, tired herself. She sends him a smile. "I swear, no matter how many times I tell that story, she'll never get sick of it" she says, rolling her eyes.
"Well, it's a good story." he says, then, feeling too girly for admitting that, "I mean, if you like princesses and all that."
"I won't laugh if you like princesses, Biggs..." Tru says, then chuckles, "Well, okay, I will laugh, but I'll try to hide it."
"Hey, now normally I don't like princesses, but the one in that story sounded pretty damn hot." he says, and Tru blushes.
"You think?" she asks, and he nods, walking a little closer.
"Most definitely." he says, and she takes a step closer, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"You think she'll find her Prince Charming?" she asks softly, biting her lip with uncertainty.
"Of course. It is a fairytale, after all." he says, closing the distance between them.
A/N: what'd ya think? Hoped you liked it!!! thank you to all of my beautiful reviewers, who make me all warm and fuzzle-y inside. Send a review my day and make me one very happy little girl.
New chappie of Along Came Trannies is up, just so ya know. Review me!!!!
Hugs and kisses all around!!!
Moll