Disclaimer: You should know by now. Don't own anything except the characters, and not even all those are mine. Again, Nemisis and Nitro belong to Issie.
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That night, the walls of the Temple rocked with the music and dancing. Her temporary depression banished by an hour of alcohol and chat (and a good deal of crying), Sequana sat at the bar, her hands cupped round a glass. What exactly the glass contained, she wasn't sure, but it was strong enough to satisfy her tastes. The crowd around her, all of Zion by the looks of it, pulsated to the rhythm of the music. It was chiefly couples dancing together, their bodies pressed together, but here and there small groups of friends stood laughing and dancing together. Sequana's eyes searched the throng, looking for Magni and Whisper. There they were - dancing together.
Sequana's eyes widened. She hadn't known that they could dance - not like that. Whisper's back was pressed against Magni's stomach, her hands raised above her head to meet his. Their legs interlocked, Whisper stretched up, the silky material of her dress rubbing against Magni's bare chest. She turned round, continuing to rise and fall with the music, until their positions had changed over, and she stood behind Magni, her arms around his waist.
Seeing their elated expression, Sequana felt a tinge of jealousy - which heightened when she turned to see Nemisis and Nitro in much the same condition. Sighing, she raised the glass to her mouth, then dropped it, nearly choking on her drink, at the sight before her eyes. Bouncing into view, apparently filled with barely suppressed energy, was a familiar face.
"Kis!" She gasped and stood up, forgetting about the spilt drink on the bar. The bartender, a Zion-born man, glared at her as he began to wipe the alcohol with a sodden rag, muttering to himself. Oblivious, Sequana hurried towards her sister, enveloping her in a tight hug. "What are you doing here?"
Captain Kismet of The Anubis, virtual sister to Sequana, laughed happily, pushing Sequana away gently. "Well, that's a nice welcome! It's not 'Hi Kis! How are you?' then, I see?"
"I'm sorry," Sequana laughed and led Kismet to the bar, signalling to the bartender to get them a drink. "It's just... There's been no word from the Anubis for months and months. Everyone's been so worried. You do realise that the whole crew - and the ship - is 'missing believed dead' don't you?"
Kismet nodded, staring into her drink. "I do... But I can tell you; we were probably a lot more worried than you were. We were the ones on that screwed up lump of metal." Sequana frowned.
"What are you talking about - 'screwed up'? What happened?"
"What do you think happened?" Kismet frowned at her drink. "Squiddie attack. About twenty of the little buggers, all at once. Our best gunner was in the med bay, and the others are all either whimpering coppertops or middling-to-good. You wouldn't believe the state the Anubis was in, it was more like a flattened, holey sheet of metal than a hovercraft. Our mechanic was working around the clock to fix it, with the rest of us trying to help - and getting in his way." Kismet smiled slightly, taking a swig of the drink. She choked suddenly, spitting her mouthful back into the cup and glaring at Sequana. "God, Ana! I know you like it strong but... yeuk. This is vile."
Sequana shrugged, signalling for another drink. "I like it. It's good for drowning woes in. But carry on."
"There's not really anything more. Apocalypse finally managed to fix the ship up enough to return here, but it was a close thing. I swear he deserves a medal for getting it up and running again. And here we are." She frowned suddenly. "But what woes have you got to drown?"
"Nothing really, not any more. Nemisis gave me an hour of her time to get drunk and forget about Magni and Whis." Sequana aimed an accusatory glance in the couple's direction. "I'm fine now though. I'm glad to have you back. If I'm lucky I might have a coppertop mission for you."
Briefly, Sequana outlined Tsunami's details and story, explaining that she had been watching him for some time before finally deciding to send his details to Commander Lock. "If Councillor Hamann has his way, I think he'll ask my advice about what ship he should be freed onto. Lock won't like that, but the Councillor always asks. He thinks that we should know best, seeing as we've been watching the poor things for so long. And..." she leaned closer to Kismet. "If I get a say in the matter, I'm definitely going to be giving him your name. Captain Kis, of the screwed up lump of metal."
Kismet smiled faintly. "I don't think you'll get anywhere if you say that. I wasn't planning on letting Lock know about the Anubis - you know what he's like. I'd probably be demoted or something. I was hoping that I could just fob him off with some story about needing fuel, while Apocalypse and a few of the Zion mechanics work on the ship."
"You'd better tell him to hurry up, then," Sequana said darkly. "I have a feeling he's on the warpath about something. That kid I sent with Tsunami's stuff earlier looked petrified when I said who it was for. I don't fancy your chances if he finds out you're lying to him."
"I'm not lying!" Kismet protested. "I'm just... being economical with the truth." She nodded, grinning. "So, where's the famous couple?"
"They're over there," Sequana tilted her head in the direction of Whisper and Magni and then looked up. "Oh, no... they're not. I'm sure we can guess where they've gone - if we really want to."
Whisper rested her head against Magni's shoulder. "I'm tired," she murmured, her eyes closed. Magni nodded and ran a finger down her back gently. "I can imagine," he said softly, kissing the end of her nose. "You're a pretty wild dancer. Pretty good too." He smiled and pulled away from her slightly, sitting on the edge of her bed. "You want me to leave so you can have a decent couple of hour's sleep? The party will be long finished by now."
"Wait." She reached out to catch his hand, her eyes wide. "What if I get nightmares?" she asked mischievously, sliding closer to him. "You wouldn't want to leave me all alone, scared... would you?"
As he sighed, giving in, she moved to sit on his lap. Cuddling against his body, she closed her eyes happily. As a sudden thought struck her, a minute or two later, she looked up, pouting. "You never answered me."
Magni smiled, squeezing her hand gently. "Of course I don't want you to have nightmares." He kissed her nose again. "You have a cute nose, you know that?"
"You've told me." She closed her eyes again, her arms encircling him. As she lapsed into sleep, falling back on the bed, she was dimly away of two strong arms holding her close, keeping her safe.
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A/N (Which I forgot on the last chapter, my apologies!): I liked doing this chapter and the last one - it makes a nice change to air some of my other, new characters. Look out for Sequana and Kismet fics after this one! So, what do you think - reviews? Big thanks and hugs go out to all my reviewers so far, apart from the obvious one ^_~!
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That night, the walls of the Temple rocked with the music and dancing. Her temporary depression banished by an hour of alcohol and chat (and a good deal of crying), Sequana sat at the bar, her hands cupped round a glass. What exactly the glass contained, she wasn't sure, but it was strong enough to satisfy her tastes. The crowd around her, all of Zion by the looks of it, pulsated to the rhythm of the music. It was chiefly couples dancing together, their bodies pressed together, but here and there small groups of friends stood laughing and dancing together. Sequana's eyes searched the throng, looking for Magni and Whisper. There they were - dancing together.
Sequana's eyes widened. She hadn't known that they could dance - not like that. Whisper's back was pressed against Magni's stomach, her hands raised above her head to meet his. Their legs interlocked, Whisper stretched up, the silky material of her dress rubbing against Magni's bare chest. She turned round, continuing to rise and fall with the music, until their positions had changed over, and she stood behind Magni, her arms around his waist.
Seeing their elated expression, Sequana felt a tinge of jealousy - which heightened when she turned to see Nemisis and Nitro in much the same condition. Sighing, she raised the glass to her mouth, then dropped it, nearly choking on her drink, at the sight before her eyes. Bouncing into view, apparently filled with barely suppressed energy, was a familiar face.
"Kis!" She gasped and stood up, forgetting about the spilt drink on the bar. The bartender, a Zion-born man, glared at her as he began to wipe the alcohol with a sodden rag, muttering to himself. Oblivious, Sequana hurried towards her sister, enveloping her in a tight hug. "What are you doing here?"
Captain Kismet of The Anubis, virtual sister to Sequana, laughed happily, pushing Sequana away gently. "Well, that's a nice welcome! It's not 'Hi Kis! How are you?' then, I see?"
"I'm sorry," Sequana laughed and led Kismet to the bar, signalling to the bartender to get them a drink. "It's just... There's been no word from the Anubis for months and months. Everyone's been so worried. You do realise that the whole crew - and the ship - is 'missing believed dead' don't you?"
Kismet nodded, staring into her drink. "I do... But I can tell you; we were probably a lot more worried than you were. We were the ones on that screwed up lump of metal." Sequana frowned.
"What are you talking about - 'screwed up'? What happened?"
"What do you think happened?" Kismet frowned at her drink. "Squiddie attack. About twenty of the little buggers, all at once. Our best gunner was in the med bay, and the others are all either whimpering coppertops or middling-to-good. You wouldn't believe the state the Anubis was in, it was more like a flattened, holey sheet of metal than a hovercraft. Our mechanic was working around the clock to fix it, with the rest of us trying to help - and getting in his way." Kismet smiled slightly, taking a swig of the drink. She choked suddenly, spitting her mouthful back into the cup and glaring at Sequana. "God, Ana! I know you like it strong but... yeuk. This is vile."
Sequana shrugged, signalling for another drink. "I like it. It's good for drowning woes in. But carry on."
"There's not really anything more. Apocalypse finally managed to fix the ship up enough to return here, but it was a close thing. I swear he deserves a medal for getting it up and running again. And here we are." She frowned suddenly. "But what woes have you got to drown?"
"Nothing really, not any more. Nemisis gave me an hour of her time to get drunk and forget about Magni and Whis." Sequana aimed an accusatory glance in the couple's direction. "I'm fine now though. I'm glad to have you back. If I'm lucky I might have a coppertop mission for you."
Briefly, Sequana outlined Tsunami's details and story, explaining that she had been watching him for some time before finally deciding to send his details to Commander Lock. "If Councillor Hamann has his way, I think he'll ask my advice about what ship he should be freed onto. Lock won't like that, but the Councillor always asks. He thinks that we should know best, seeing as we've been watching the poor things for so long. And..." she leaned closer to Kismet. "If I get a say in the matter, I'm definitely going to be giving him your name. Captain Kis, of the screwed up lump of metal."
Kismet smiled faintly. "I don't think you'll get anywhere if you say that. I wasn't planning on letting Lock know about the Anubis - you know what he's like. I'd probably be demoted or something. I was hoping that I could just fob him off with some story about needing fuel, while Apocalypse and a few of the Zion mechanics work on the ship."
"You'd better tell him to hurry up, then," Sequana said darkly. "I have a feeling he's on the warpath about something. That kid I sent with Tsunami's stuff earlier looked petrified when I said who it was for. I don't fancy your chances if he finds out you're lying to him."
"I'm not lying!" Kismet protested. "I'm just... being economical with the truth." She nodded, grinning. "So, where's the famous couple?"
"They're over there," Sequana tilted her head in the direction of Whisper and Magni and then looked up. "Oh, no... they're not. I'm sure we can guess where they've gone - if we really want to."
Whisper rested her head against Magni's shoulder. "I'm tired," she murmured, her eyes closed. Magni nodded and ran a finger down her back gently. "I can imagine," he said softly, kissing the end of her nose. "You're a pretty wild dancer. Pretty good too." He smiled and pulled away from her slightly, sitting on the edge of her bed. "You want me to leave so you can have a decent couple of hour's sleep? The party will be long finished by now."
"Wait." She reached out to catch his hand, her eyes wide. "What if I get nightmares?" she asked mischievously, sliding closer to him. "You wouldn't want to leave me all alone, scared... would you?"
As he sighed, giving in, she moved to sit on his lap. Cuddling against his body, she closed her eyes happily. As a sudden thought struck her, a minute or two later, she looked up, pouting. "You never answered me."
Magni smiled, squeezing her hand gently. "Of course I don't want you to have nightmares." He kissed her nose again. "You have a cute nose, you know that?"
"You've told me." She closed her eyes again, her arms encircling him. As she lapsed into sleep, falling back on the bed, she was dimly away of two strong arms holding her close, keeping her safe.
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A/N (Which I forgot on the last chapter, my apologies!): I liked doing this chapter and the last one - it makes a nice change to air some of my other, new characters. Look out for Sequana and Kismet fics after this one! So, what do you think - reviews? Big thanks and hugs go out to all my reviewers so far, apart from the obvious one ^_~!