A/N: Here's Season 2 with the end of The Telling
modified. I'm planning a new Season three, so be on the look-out
for new chapters. Enjoy.
Familial Ties
Blink.
You're suddenly thrown head first into the effects of the dysfunctionality of your family. You, your father, and your mother all breathing the same air head out on a mission of which you really have no idea what will come as a result. Can your "family" work together without killing each other? Will it even be possible to complete the simplest of tasks together, let alone trekking into unfriendly territory to locate nuclear weapons? You had no idea what to expect other than this trip having its fair share of crazy turns and bumps along the way. A major one was seeing your mother at the side of Cuvee. You couldn't quite describe the feeling you had when it appeared that she had been deceiving you all along. It was something along the lines of the usual emotions in cases like this: betrayal, anger, confusion; but all to a higher degree.
But in the end, you found that it was all a ruse. She was actually playing Cuvee, not you. You were more than relieved that you had been wrong, even if it added another dimension to your relationship with her; first it was loving, then hating, then cautiously trusting, then betraying, and now back to liking. It was quite a rollercoaster ride of feeling.
Despite how hazardous this road that you traveled was, you were successful. You had all made it through, alive and safe. And when you least expected it, Vaughn was there to aid you. He was transported down to you like an angel from heaven, but in the shape of a military helicopter. When you saw him, you could only smile at the thought that he had come for you once again.
Tired and relieved, you sank into your seat next to Vaughn. You couldn't help but turn to him with a small grin, which he returned with a knowing smile, aware of what you were thinking – that you couldn't be happier that he was here with you now. Soon, you laid your head on his shoulder, not caring what your parents would think, and drifted to sleep.
You wouldn't say that your mother had now gained your full trust back – that was only something you permitted to a very select few of people – but it was close. There were now even more questions than before. It appeared that she really had turned to the side of good, but why? What made her want to return to your life so suddenly? Could her actions now really make you forgive her for abandoning you before? She knew that you were in a quandary and said so. And she finally provided you with some answers. She really cared about you. What she did to you in Taipei was the only way she could help you.
The next day arrives with even more answers; an explanation for her seemingly reprehensible actions. Her duty to her country had come before her family, and she now knew that that had been wrong. The love for you that you could see in her eyes was too powerful. You could only smile through your tears before turning away from her pleading gaze – a plead for forgiveness. She called your name beseechingly, the name she herself had given you, the name for an identity that you had tried to shape for yourself; but you found that you needed your mother still. You turned back and wrapped her in a tight hug, something you had missed for over twenty years, your tears and hers fell on each other's shoulders. After everything she had put you through, you still loved her. It was mother and daughter, reunited again, with a whole shit load of past enmity that was now buried under a new breed of understanding, trust, and love.
Blink.
You find yourself with Vaughn in the warehouse you both love and hate so much; love because it's the place where you can talk freely with the person most dear to you, hate because it still resembles the fact that you can't be out in the open with this man. Despite the setting being its usual self, an unusual conversation takes place between its walls. A fight. You felt betrayed by the last person on earth whom you would suspect. He argued that he was only acting in your best interest, but you still felt wronged, insulted that he was treating you like a child. You didn't need him to make things easier for you. It was your life; you could handle it yourself, complex issues and all.
Blink.
You reconcile with him without the actual words. You've always seemed to be on the same wavelength with him, able to express and understand feelings without verbal explanations. This time was no different. However, he did surprise you with what would be a normal question had you not been co-workers for the CIA.
He simply asked you to dinner. And all you could do was look at him through touched but disbelieving eyes and stutter. Your rational side tried to take over, but it was pointless. You were too emotionally involved with him to decline an offer like this. So, he kept persisting, and you happily relented. It was going to be the night of your dreams.
Or so you thought.
It was a night full of intimate conversation over delicious food and wine. Everything was going smoothly until a key was presented to you; a key that would open a door to a whole new dimension in your relationship with Vaughn. You were both ready to take that step, but you had to think about this carefully. You were both open to breaking protocol; you had done it many times before, but this was even a step further than that. But you didn't care. This was your time, and you weren't going to let anything stand in your way. So, you went for it. You said yes.
And then all hell broke loose.
You fled and you fought, and together you made it out alive. But at what cost? The mission objective had to change now, and you felt so foolish for thinking that you could risk everything and still come out ahead. You had gambled at the high stakes table and lost big. But there was still one more hand left to play.
You flung your last card out onto the table with the fortifying knowledge that it was your ace of spades. Always be prepared.
Blink.
Finally after over two years of waiting, your moment has come. You have the chance to destroy the Alliance and set yourself free from the dark world of a double life in which you were imprisoned.
It's over so quickly that you can't quite believe it. But as you look around at the remains of the battleground, you realize that you have done it. SD-6 is gone. For now, you let the fact that Sloane has escaped remain water under the bridge. You were happy enough at the moment that the entity that was keeping you from what you truly wanted was destroyed. And, you didn't hesitate to rejoice in your newfound freedom.
The only thing that was now keeping you from Vaughn was the distance between the two of you in the room. When your eyes met, it was as if someone had flipped a switch, and you were drawn together faster than you could blink. You closed your eyes as your lips melded together with his, not needing to see him, only to feel him for the first time. There was no crescendo to this kiss; it started and ended (which you hoped it never would) with the same fiery passion, the same loving harshness. This kiss right here is where you have wanted to be for too long, lips locked, bodies pressed together, and you wanted to savor it for as long as possible. But, time had no meaning now, so you weren't even sure how long you stayed as you were, and you didn't care.
Blink.
It's the normal domestic scene that you've craved for. You move busily around the kitchen, and you can't help but smile. He's watching you.
You give him a taste of the sauce that you're making, and then you try to check on the food in the oven, but he stops you, unable to wait any longer to kiss you. And kiss you he does, until you are good and thoroughly intoxicated by him. You remind him about dinner, but you're more than happy to agree with him to "reheat." You're suddenly hungry for something else, and you can tell that he is too. It's the way his eyes shine, the way he takes your hand and leads you to the bedroom, the way he worships your body as you make love that tell you that everything you had had to go through to get here was worth the wait.
You wake next to him in the morning with one thought on your mind – you want it to be like this forever. You study him in his light morning doze, and the smile on his face makes you want to think that he is dreaming of you. He wakes, and with the position he is in now – lying next to you after a night of loving passion – he wonders why you still don't call him by his given name. Your answer is simple, and it avoids the question. But your reason is even simpler than your response. He is Vaughn to you. End of story.
But soon your pillow talk takes you to a different, bigger issue. You've grown tired of your now former life, and you want to make a complete break from it. You're going to quit the CIA.
At least, you intended to.
But there was still such a mess to clean up, so many people to save, so much evil to battle in the world.
You really were meant to do this. It wasn't something that you could escape. So, you decided to tough it out, looking at it from the perspective that it wasn't something that you were forced to do, but rather that you made the choice to keep doing it. And besides, it wouldn't be completely like it was before. You had Vaughn now without any restraint between the two of you. He would be there for you in the field like he was before, but now he would also be there for the time after, when you had some relaxing down time to recuperate.
Blink.
What you had hoped would never happen again does. Your mother had been deceiving you all along, and she abandoned you once again. All those months of building some semblance of a relationship with her again was all for naught. You were as naive when it came to her as you said you wouldn't be, and she pounced on the opportunity. She betrayed you.
And with the event of your mother placing herself on the opposite side as you once again, another shocking turn of events comes into play. Emily is alive. The best mother figure in your adult life didn't die from cancer, and her husband didn't euthanize her. She had deceived you in the same fashion your real mother had. But she atoned for her deception in less time. She loved her husband, but she knew that he had to pay for his crimes. She wanted to help you make that happen, but her love for him was what flawed the plan. She helped him escape, and that was what cost her her life.
You cried for her, feeling no remorse at the moment for having shot your real mother. You had just gotten Emily back, and now she was gone again. Struck down by an off-target shot from your own side. Too many people had been taken by the hazards of your job. God, how you wanted out of this life. But even then, you couldn't leave. Sloane still had to pay.
You were quiet when you finally reached home with Vaughn curled up next to you. It was comforting having him with you, but there was still such an ache in your heart over the latest tragedy. He understood your need for no words at the moment, and he wrapped you in his arms. But suddenly, a strange noise drew your attention away from the comfort he was providing. It conveyed a mystifying message, and one that you have heard before from only one person. Truth takes time. It was your mother, her mysteriousness at its finest. It was clear that whatever she was up to would only be revealed when she herself saw fit. Your only job was to wait for that time.
Blink.
Will is taken into custody. He is the suspected mole. You can't believe it – you won't. And so you set out to prove that he's innocent. Along the way, you run into your mother again. She stuns you, both emotionally and physically. She offers to help you, for a price that she'll announce later. When she does, you can't believe what she wants. It must be another one of her tricks. But you have no choice but to trust her on this. It's the only way to keep your friend alive.
So you go to the warehouse she tells you about. And… you find nothing. You conclude that she had fooled you again, and you were determined that it was going to be the last time. So when she called you out of the blue to offer you an explanation and more of her "help," you were reluctant to buy it. But you were desperate for any kind of possible lead that you could get. You had to go for it.
Her confirmed truthfulness at this time is another shock to you. You really have no understanding of what your mother is trying to do. Her jumping from one side to another blurs her motives. And with each second that passes, the picture of what she is aiming for becomes cloudier to you. You've spent so much time and energy in trying to work your way through the murkiness and only one piece of information has been presented to you – your mother is indecipherable.
And so, with the information that your mother provided for you, you clear your friend's name. But that still leaves the disturbing question: just who is the mole?
Blink.
Your father is in trouble. It's up to you to save him, but you've also got to worry about apprehending Sloane. You engage him and his goons in a shootout, and out of nowhere comes your mother to your aid. She urges you to get Sloane as he tries to escape, but you can't just let your mother go either. So, you let Vaughn take care of Sloane, and you charge after her.
You catch her just as she is about to jump off the roof of the building. You threaten her with your gun, but that does nothing to faze her. She calmly tells you what her study of Rambaldi has revealed – your destiny. Then suddenly, everything is in freeze-frame, and then the reel of your vision starts in slow motion. She jumped. She escaped.
You return home mostly unsuccessful (but you did rescue your father), and you can't shake the low feeling, not by yourself. But Vaughn is able to wipe the slate clean for you and takes your mind on to happier thoughts. Like a long weekend vacation with him in Santa Barbra. You smile as you kiss him, more thankful than ever that he is with you to bring some joy to your life. He promises to come by your house again after he is finished at work, and you can only think that even that amount of time is too long.
You head inside more than ready to relax, happy to see (whom you think is) your friend seated comfortably on the couch. You take out your favorite coffee ice cream, glad that your friend hates it, because after the day that you've had, you are seriously considering eating the entire thing.
But that's when you check your messages.
Will's voice whispers harshly, urgently in your ear. You don't want to believe what you're hearing, but now that you think about it, there have been clues that things have been off with Francie lately.
With one simple test, you know that the woman sitting next to you is not Francie. Your heart races as you excuse yourself. You don't want to think about the fact that Francie is either locked up somewhere or already dead, and you don't have much time to, anyway. Because her double realizes her mistake.
Francie doesn't like coffee ice cream.
Despite your newfound enemy's warning, you raise your gun, and the fight of your life begins. She manages to corner you into the bathroom, and that's when you have your worst nightmare re-realized. Will lying in the tub, covered with blood. Enraged even further, you fight your way out, taking the confrontation to nearly every room in the apartment, trashing and destroying everything in your wake. After an exhausting few minutes of vicious combat, you're finally within reach of the gun. You bait her with a fake injury, and she bites. You grab the gun and kill her.
You feel weakness overtaking you. You feel dizzy and have the urge to vomit, but you fight the feeling back. You have to get help. You have to call Vaughn.
You stand up slowly and stumble the way to your phone. You collapse onto the couch, closing your eyes and pinching the bridge of your nose as you wait desperately for him to answer. After the longest three and a half rings of your life, he picks up. It only takes a few breathless sentences for him to get the idea. The last thing you hear is him assuring you that help is on the way when you pass out.
TBC
