Title: Paradise for Two
Genre: Romance / Drama
Rating: K+
Pairing: Tobias x Rachel
Spoilers: Takes place post-series.
Summary: To fly is to be perfectly ourselves.
Word Count: 1,071
Warnings: I skipped a lot of books before reading the final book, so a lot of things aren't mentioned that probably happened.
Disclaimer: Both Animorphs and the summary, belong the K.A. Applegate
A/N: I think this was my first ship before I knew what shipping was.
"Ram the Blade Ship."
It's a one-liner to remember, that's for damn sure. And it's also a miracle that no one died. It was a near thing, though. The crash sent their ships careening to Earth in a hail of metal parts and fire. Jake, that lunkhead, only survived his near impaling by morphing once they hit the dirt. Cassie turned cockroach midair and barely even noticed the crash. Smart. The rest of them, avoided sharp objects and thanked alien technology for their seatbelts.
The battle that raged once everything came to a halt was bloody, but, again, everyone survived. Visser 3 were led away to be contained in whatever the government and Ax came up with. No doubt some sort of Avengers-esque glass cage, strong enough and sealed enough to keep him put until reinforcements and the space police or whatever could come retrieve them. Or maybe they just kept him drugged in a stupor. Rachel didn't know. She didn't really care, honestly, as long as it was over.
And, I mean, the fighting was over, sure. So that was nice. To not have to walk up in the morning, take a chemistry test, and then plan and execute a battle that might get you or your friends killed or imprisoned in their own mind. No more covering up how exhausted she was in front of her family. No more pretending.
But that was only half the battle.
Now there was the aftermath, the cleanup, the closure. There was talking to people who were looking for missing sons or daughters, mothers or fathers, husbands or wives, wondering if they could have been Controllers, wondering if they could still be alive. But how could you know? Earth was one planet. Marco's mom had been alive off-world. How could you ever tell them there wasn't a change that, somewhere out in space, was their loved one? There were people who wondered if their dogs or cats were Andalites or children. Talk shows who wanted to see them use their gifts, to interview them. These kids who had been fighting to save the world for years under everyone's nose.
Cassie worked with whoever would listen, trying to get Hork Bajiir home, trying to convince the government that some of them wanted to stay and that they were good and needed a place to live. She worked with zoos and veterinarians to help understand their animals and patients more. Marco worked with families who had been disrupted by Controllers. He worked to destroy the Yeerk pools, to make sure that the ones on Earth would soon be no more. Cassie helped find the good ones even among their kind. Some went home to their world. Some had grown fond of humans, some humans grew fond of them. Whatever. As long as everyone was happy and no one was dying. Jake… Jake did what he always hated. He became a leader, the spokesperson for their cause. Turn on the TV or the radio and one in ten would be an interview with him. He wanted more awareness. More visibility. More people in the fight in case it ever came back. Ax was usually right beside him, as the Andalite Ambassador to Earth.
But Rachel… for all her Boudicca, Xena, warrior ways… she was done with that. She wanted peace. She wanted quiet. She wanted Tobias.
And she wanted him all to herself.
No media. No paparazzi. No surprise cameras or reporters.
They left a note, for the others, sure that one of them would be able to talk them out of it. It took her weeks to find the perfect hawk.
Hey guys, I know you're going to be sad when you read this and probably a little disappointed in me, too. But, as much as Marco loves to call me Xena, I think I'm over all the fighting. And I know that I'm not going to be some environmentalist or a therapist or an ambassador. The fight's done. I'm done. All I want – all Tobias and I want – is to be a normal couple. But I don't think being normal is in the cards for any of us anymore.
So he found a hawk, told me she's a good one, I didn't ask for too much detail on that, it's his future, too, so I trust his judgement. I know by now you're probably beginning to realize what we did and it's too late to stop us or try and convince us otherwise. I'm sending this letter on the last mail pickup on Saturday, so if you're reading it, it's already Monday. I'm already a hawk. Forever.
I won't say goodbye, because you know how much I hate them. I will say that we both love you all more than we could ever say with words. And Cassie, if you see a new pair of red-tails behind your dad's barn next season, put the TV on Project Runway so I can see it, too.
Mailing that letter was one of the hardest things she ever had to do.
You think they'll be okay? The gentle voice in her head was tender and she turned to tuck her head under his wicked beak before she answered.
Yeah, it'll take some time, but they'll be okay. They have each other, after all.
Tobias preened her neck feathers. And I've got you.
And you've got me, she agreed, before taking of in a whirl of feathers and talons. The shot of adrenaline that rushed through her at the first surge of thermals under her never failed to thrill her. Flying beside Tobias, it was the most perfect place she could think about being. She knew that if they didn't go see their human friends soon, that, eventually they might become more hawk than human. That they would lose their speech, forget it, and become entirely avian.
But she was still with Tobias. Soaring through the sky. And that was all that mattered.