Cayde cleaned his hands off on a grease rag, viewing his handywork on a new (enough) Sparrow for Wren when Zavala called his name. For a moment he considered ignoring him. Pretending he hadn't heard anything over the sound of the other mechanics that flooded the barn with no other place to work than in the cramped space with too many people and not enough tools.

When Zavala called again, Cayde knew he wouldn't be able to shrug the Commander off. He tossed the rag into a toolbox and walked toward him, out of the barn and into the bright sunlight of the Farm compound.

"I'm a little busy," Cayde said.

"We need to discuss something."

"Oh, you must wanna talk about that stew Hawthorne made last night. Never had a stew with hot dogs in it before but, I've had worse. I think. Not really. It was terrible."

"This is serious."

Cayde knew it would be. He crossed his arms over his chest and planted his heels.

"Shoot," he said.

"We need to discuss your… relationship with Wren. And don't bother denying it," Zavala said, raising a hand when Cayde opened his mouth to protest. "I know that's the favor you wear around your arm."

"There's nothing saying I can't—"

"No, there's not. But you know as well as I do that these kinds of relationships between Guardians and their Vanguards get tricky and dangerous. I let it slide for a long time because I thought maybe you'd be responsible and realize that it would devolve into a problem. If you cannot remain objective about Wren, then I will be forced to remove her from your command and take her on myself."

"She just got in good with the dens. Don't do that."

"The dens are the least of my concern. Most of them vanished. Very few have come together to fight for the people of this City."

"That's not fair," Cayde snapped. "My Hunters are out there scouting day in and day out, away from the safety of this Farm just to make sure it stays safe. They sleep out there in the wilds and scavenge their own supplies and food. You don't get to come in here and—"

"And you don't get to tell me I'm wrong about Wren when you know better. I had to remove you from the mission because you couldn't stay objective."

"Well I'm sorry if I can't stay "objective" about someone I care about when you just wanna run her into the ground. She's exhausted. I know it. And having all this on her? You pushing her to do this all alone? That may as well be the weight of the whole damn system on one person."

"What else would you have me do? Send out Guardian teams that we can lose? Permanently?"

Cayde looked away, down to the ground.

Zavala knew him too well. His shoulders dropped slightly but he stood a little straighter.

"You did it, didn't you?"

Cayde glanced at him.

"You send out a team for something. Where did you send them? What are they doing?"

"Helping Wren."

"Are they with her?"

"No."

"Cayde," Zavala's stern tone made Cayde tense.

"Fine. I got Kiran to send me the key codes for Thumos' ship. They're stealing it for Wren so she can rest before going off to board the Almighty."

"That was not what was supposed to happen. Wren is the only one who can do this with no risk."

"She's exhausted!" Cayde snapped. "She's been pushed since she got her Light back and it's not fair. She deserves to rest."

"None of us have rested and none of this is fair. This is what I was referring to. You are not being objective. You're willing to put others lives on the line so your Hunter can sleep for a few hours."

"It's not like that."

"Isn't it?"

Cayde clenched his jaw.

"Wren's ship is expected back within the hour," Zavala said. "When is the fireteam due back with the ship?"

"No more than four hours."

"What's done is done. But Cayde? If any one of them dies? I'm holding you accountable."

Zavala turned on his heel and left Cayde fuming. He knew this would happen, but now what? If he didn't play by Zavala's rules, he'd lose the ability to access Wren on her missions. He couldn't let that happen. What else could he do?

He looked to the skies, watching for her ship. Cloudless. Clear. No sign of anything. He let his eyes unfocus and thought of what Koro said to him before. About Wren retiring. He wanted it. More than anything. To keep Wren at his side where he could keep an eye on her. Keep her safe. Hell, if she never went off world again he'd…

He'd…

Cayde sighed and turned away. That wasn't what he wanted at all. That was fear talking and he knew it. He didn't want to lose anyone else but keeping her here? On Earth? What he'd said before was just as true now. She'd resent him. Hate him for keeping her caged. Wren. The little bird that flies through the thicket. She did what was in her nature to do. How could he punish her for that?

Zavala was the one he had to figure out how to deal with. Play along for the sake of keeping Wren close? Or fight against him for her and end up making things worse?

"Fuck these politics," Cayde grumbled as the sound of an incoming ship caught his attention.

It was her.

He was waiting on her when she landed. Holliday took over the ship the minute it was pushed into the barn and Cayde met Wren on her way out into the main compound.

"How are you feeling?" he asked quietly as she made her way toward a tent designated for command.

"I'm ready to leave. I don't know why you didn't just send me straight to that ship. I already had the keycodes and—"

Cayde caught her wrist before she could enter the tent. "Kid, I gotta talk to you."

"Uh… sure? What's wrong?"

"You're not going to steal the ship."

"Why? Do we have a new plan?"

"Yeah. We do. It involves you getting something to eat, then getting some rest before it's time to take the Almighty."

"I don't understand. What about the ship?"

"We have a team out now retrieving it."

"You what?" Wren's blood ran cold. This is exactly what she didn't want to happen.

"You need to rest."

"Rest? You put a team out there, in danger, so I can rest?"

"Shh, c'mon. Let's go talk."

Wren clenched her fists. She was damn tired, they both knew that, but this could get someone killed. She was angry. Exhausted. Hungry. But those weren't excuses. They weren't reasons to put someone else in danger.

He didn't wait for her, leaving her no choice but to follow him around the corner, into the shadows of the main house. He was tense. She could tell in the way his eyes darted around and how he carried his shoulders. What was he so nervous about? Her?

"What's going on?" she asked.

Cayde shook his head and held out a hand to her which she hesitated to take.

"Look, I know you wanna do it all yourself. I know you feel like you have to. I get it."

"Do you though? You sent a team out instead of me. I could have handled it."

"I know you could but I just… If you're exhausted, then you'll make mistakes and mistakes could mean you won't…"

Wren gripped his hand. "I'm going to be fine."

"Damn right you are. Because you're going to eat and rest and when that team gets back, you'll be beyond ready to leave. I'll get your gun and clean it for you. Make sure you're suited up and ready for anything you might encounter out there."

"I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine."

"She's not fine," Kiran said, appearing over her shoulder. "She's been struggling to get through it all and collapsing after to sleep in the ship. She's been living off rations and crackers."

Wren cut her eyes at Kiran and gritted her teeth. Little traitor.

Sundance clinked shells with Kiran with as close as she floated to him.

"That's what I thought," Cayde said, stepping closer. "You're out there pushin' to protect us. Let me take care of you every once in a while, okay?"

"I don't like this."

"Did you have a place set up for you before you left the Farm before?"

"No. Didn't stick around long enough."

"Right. You can stay in my tent. I won't be around, but you'll have plenty of time to sleep and it's pretty quiet back there. I'll take you there first and bring you some food."

"Where's Sisre? And Rorick and Franz? Is Koro still here too?"

Cayde hesitated. "Yeah they uh… they're the team that volunteered to commandeer the ship. They're due back in a few hours so you'll need to get some sleep ASAP."

Wren let her hand slip from his. "Wait… you sent my fireteam to face the Cabal without me?"

"It's fine. They heard me talking to some Hunters about the mission and they asked to go instead. Took a couple more Titans with them for backup but I thought—"

"How could you do that? It was bad enough knowing someone else was out there but my fireteam? What if something happens to them?"

Cayde grabbed her upper arms and made her look him in the eye. "I wouldn't have sent them if I didn't think they were capable. They may not have their Light, but they're the best team we have. They wanted to do this, kid. They wanted to help you. So you don't feel like you're doing this alone."

"I need to go—"

"You need to rest. I'm still your Vanguard, Sugarbird, don't make me pull rank on you. They're doin' this so you can get the rest you need. So go do that, would ya?"

"C'mon Wren," Sundance said. "We don't like it any more than you do, but we're just trying to help."

"Fine." She relented. Cayde tucked her hair behind her ear and led her toward the back of the main compound where several tents, much larger than the others, were set up in a row.

Cayde's was on the end, set apart some from the others. It was clean. Clear of all the knickknacks she would have expected from a space meant for him, but then again, what would he fill it with? There was nothing left. Not now, anyway. Until they returned to the City, there was no way of knowing if their homes made it through the attack. With as high up as the Vanguard's rooms were, it was likely they were destroyed but who knew? Maybe the several floors of offices, vaults, and detainment areas between them and the Courtyard were enough.

She watched him as he made up the cot for her, adding a couple more blankets. He grabbed some clothes out of a box on the floor. There were a few of those boxes lined up against the back wall of the tent but she couldn't tell what was piled up in them.

"Here. Change into these. They'll be too big, but you know that. They're not great, but it's better than armor. I'll need you to hand over your armor and gun. I'll get em' repaired as best I can. They'll be waiting for you in the barn when you're ready."

"Thanks."

"Any time. I'll get em' when I come back with your food."

Cayde lingered a moment, as if unsure of something, then he left.

"I'm sorry," Kiran said.

"You shouldn't have told him that."

"And let you do this alone? Haven't you learned yet how dangerous that is?"

"Of course I have! But when people try to help me—"

"Beorn wasn't your fault. Just lay down and get some sleep. We both know you need it."

Wren stripped off the armor and put it in an empty box by the door, with the Better Devils laying on top. She stared down at the gun. At the single chain with the bird on it. He'd know now that the spade was gone, if he didn't already figure that out. She wished she could take it back. The moment she tossed it over the railing…

She lay down on his cot and pulled the blankets tight around her ears. The tent didn't do much to stop the chill but she was so tired she didn't care. It felt so strange laying down to sleep instead of sitting in the ship or propping up against a tree to make sure she didn't get too deep in sleep in areas crawling with enemies.

The scent of him comforted her. The tension in her shoulders relaxed some and she wondered if there would be a time when they could be in peace again. Just to lay there in silence together. Take the time to heal from all this. From Beorn and the attack on the City. So much loss… but not everything. There was still something left.

Them. They survived. The people outside the tent, walking around, talking. Laughing. Sisre and Rorick and Franz. Koro. They could rebuild. It could all be better. She was here. So was Cayde. She'd defeat Ghaul. Take down the Almighty and they'd be free to rebuild.

Wren closed her eyes and slipped into thoughts, dreams, of what could be.

Those dreams couldn't last.

People running past the tent woke Wren with a start. They were calling to one another. Shouting. Something was wrong. Wren threw back the covers. A crate beside the bed had a plate of food and the box with her armor and gun were gone. Cayde didn't wake her when he came back.

She ran barefoot out into the compound, following the group. Smoke billowed up from the area around the barn. Was it on fire? No… no, not the barn. It was something else. A ship.

People carried a person from the ship to the farmhouse. Wren could hear Cayde directing others to put out the fire but Rorick caught her attention and she hurried to him. He was focused on the person being carried Wren's heart dropped when she saw a shock of white hair.

"Sisre?"

Rorick saw her and paused. "Wren? You're back."

"What happened?"

"The ship we were sent had more security than we expected. I think the Cabal know we're after it. Using it as bait to lure us in. Sisre…"

"Is she going to be okay?"

"I don't know." He pushed past her and into the farmhouse.

Wren took a step to follow him and the dirt under her feet shifted. She looked down to see the soil soaked with fresh blood. She jumped back.

"Oh, look at you," Franz hissed, catching Wren's attention. "All snug in your boyfriend's clothes while Sisre's been shot. This wouldn't have happened if you'd do your damn job."

"Franz I—"

"Get the hell away from us. If I see you anywhere close to the farmhouse, I'll make you regret it."

He shouldered past her, nearly knocking her to the ground. Wren wanted to go in. To check on Sisre but she knew there was something that needed to be done first. This was it. The last straw. A vice tightened around her chest and tears threatened to choke her.

She ran.

Straight to the barn. To where her ship was waiting along with her armor and Better Devils. She stripped there, leaving Cayde's clothes in a heap. Chaos outside, no one noticed when she geared up, taking an extra scout rifle that was propped in a corner near her things. The last thing she grabbed was the fur lined cloak she'd taken from the dead Hunter in the woods.

No…

This wasn't his. It was hers. Her cloak from before. Cayde took it when he thought she was dead and now here it was. Folded at the bottom of the pile with a new addition. A piece sewn onto the bottom where a hole had been torn. The fabric was faded and the black didn't quite match. Cayde must have patched it up for her. She threw the cloak around her shoulders and fastened it.

Smoke filled the interior of the barn now and all the mechanics were out, rushing to stop the blazing ship outside. Wren threw as many supplies as possible into her ship and climbed in. The engines fire up and before she could leave the bay Cayde was at the door, trying to wave her down.

"Wait!" he yelled, wind and smoke whipping his cloak around his shoulders.

"Kiran, open comms with Sundance."

"Kid, what are you doing?" Cayde asked.

"What I should have done before. I'm getting that ship."

"You're not ready."

"Sisre's hurt. I'm not waiting."

"Sugarbird…" his arms dropped. "I need you to come back to me."

"I will. I'll be okay. Move."

Cayde paused, then stepped aside. Wren left the hanger and took off, leaving the Farm behind.