Someone was shaking her. She flails her arm weakly, coughing afterwards. She was sick dammit and needed sleep, didn't they know that. The person sighs, annoyed, and continues to shake her. "Lemme alone…" She whines, throat raw and scratchy.

"You need to take the medicine." Comes the reply in a British accent, sounding off. She gives a halfhearted groan and rolls over, pulling the covers over her head. The medicine was gross. "It's grape flavored." He tries to bribe her with, hoping she wouldn't be difficult.

She pulls the covers off her head, cheeks red from the fever and glares at him and his medical mask covered face. "It's not grape flavored. I don't think the people who made that have ever tasted a grape. It tastes like death." She sits up quickly with a hacking cough eventually flopping back down on the bed. Her eyes roll back to Shaun who holds the little measuring cup to her filled with the sticky liquid. "Fine, give me the death tasting crap."

"Good." She swipes it from his hand and downs it quickly, gagging afterwards. He takes the cup back, nods, and exits the room. Shaun and Alex were the only ones to have missed catching the flu. It was humorous at first because Desmond had been whinny and so had Altair and Ezio, Malik had been giving little hints about not feeling well either, and Leo, oh Leo, was possibly the worst of them all. Shaun was saving him for last when it came to giving them medicine. He really didn't need the headache prior to giving everyone else their medicine.

How the 6 idiots got sick was rather funny, or would be once they all got over it. Megan had decided that they were going to go on a trip to Seattle and since it wasn't more than a few hours away she had gotten a suite/apartment and the first thing she decides to do: push all those who were at the edge of the ocean in it. With it still being rather cold, it wasn't very smart of an idea. May wasn't to bad weather wise, but it was still to cold to go and play in the ocean.

Megan wanted Alex in the bed, she was cold and the comforter wasn't keeping her warm enough. She kind of regretted getting everyone sick but after Ezio had been singing the entire trip up to Seattle, well payback was awesome. She just forgot how wimpy men were when they got sick. Oh, Alty and Mal were doing a damn good job of not showing; but Ezio and Leo, they were another story all together. They didn't care about pretending they weren't sick, they enjoyed having someone wait on them hand and foot. Megan sits back up, looking around for her space heater. The man had disappeared last night and hadn't returned. She wasn't really worried about him but she didn't want anything to happen. Then she heads to the bathroom.

Coming back out she grabs the remote she had flung by the bathroom earlier when she couldn't find anything to watch, which annoyed her, and looks up to find that her bed was full. She stops, sniffling, and begins to crack up before flinging herself into the fray of bodies, right in the middle of Ezio and Alty. No one was touching but the fact that her California king was full made her happy. She turns the TV on and puts it on 'I Shouldn't Be Alive' on animal planet and cuddles down into the bed. Eventually all of them fall asleep from the medicine Shaun had forced down their throats.

They remained that way, in her room and bed, for the 3 days they were sick and once they had gotten better they were up and out of the room regardless of if they still were coughing or sneezing at odd moments. Alex had returned an hour after she had fallen asleep and had stared for 5 minutes at the change of sleeping arrangements. He understood that they were sick and it'd be better they were quarantined to one room but he hadn't expected it to be his and Megan's. So he was forced to sleep in the living room and even falling asleep had been hard. He was already used to Megan curling up against him and it was strange that she wasn't.

But now that they were all better, Megan had decided to drag them all over the place. Like the zoo, aquarium, downtown, even the Space Needle; though she stayed inside while the rest went out to look around on the observation deck. She wasn't a fan of heights; so, yeah, fuck that. Instead she hung around inside the restaurant eating Tiramisu and coffee, and whatever breakfast thing she wanted. The $45 flat was a little hard to swallow at first but when she began to eat, she really couldn't complain about it. Alex hung around outside for a little while but once Des and Ezzy (oh hell she has him calling them that too) decide to see how long it took to run around the deck and then turned it into a race, he wanted to escape the sheer stupidity the two were able to produce. He sat with her inside the restaurant, having an intelligent conversation. He was surprised just how much she knew about things, but figured that she would have to do research on anything to make sure she was accurate when she put the theoretical pen to paper.

When the retards finally decided that they couldn't breathe the thin air anymore, well that and Malik ended up getting a nose bleed, Megan made sure to go shopping at some rather interesting boutiques, hiding from the rest when she wanted to get something particular before going back to the hotel. It was the last night there and Megan had plans to leave with happy memories. So she locked her bedroom door as soon as they returned, not even letting Alex in when he claimed he wanted to take a nap. It took 3 hours but she was done.

She was wearing a small one shoulder slinky red dress with black trim that ended not even mid thigh; it hugged her curves and not only showed her tiny waist but her other rather memorable assets, black square bracelets, and black and red strappy high heels. She had her hair down but the ringlets were now full blown curls, large and luscious, and she had makeup on; making her blue green eyes dark and smoky and the green showing more than the blue. She was feeling… sexy and she wanted to have fun.

She walked out, all the men sitting on the couch or chair in front of the big screen and their backs to her. She clears her throat and poses as they turn around, mouths falling open and eyes bugging out; hell, Shaun's glasses fell off his face!

"W-where," Ezio's voice hits a high note and he swallows the pool of saliva wanting to escape, "where are you going looking like that may I ask?"

She gives then what she could only hope was a saucy smile and, judging by the way all of them were turning redder than tomatoes, it was and was working. "Out." Was her singular response. She walks over to the front door, grabs her purse and fishes out her ID before putting it and her credit card in her 'treasure trove'. She turns back to the men, who were all acting like a pack of wild animals that hadn't seen a female in their entire lives, and waves as she puts on her new jacket and going out the door. "Have fun and don't wait up for me." She tells them then closes it.

She was going to have fun, why couldn't they?

"Where is Megan and who the hell was that?!" Desmond says, his voice cracking like a pubescent teens at the end.

"You have asked the million dollar question my friend." Shaun answers. None of them were expecting… That! Megan was sweet and innocent and tough and… and…

But this Megan, holy shit! She was the 20 on the bombshell scale men fantasized about getting with! AND SHE LIVED WITH THEM!

"I don't know what that was about but, I do not want her to be out there where other men are… imagining about her." Altair says, clearing his throat. He and Malik still didn't understand much about this modern world but he did know the minds of men and he doubted they had changed at all since his time.

"I agree; it would be best for us to retrieve her and have her remain with us."

"Please, she's fine! Probably wanted some time away from us guys. Ya know, a little me time?" Desmond says, leaning back into his chair and acting as if he had recovered. Granted, he hadn't and was thinking of everything but the woman who rather loudly screamed at them with the word 'SMEX'. Yes, he was putting the 'm' in the word because it on its own just wasn't enough.

"I don't know…" Ezio couldn't believe he was agreeing with the old man but, that girl was his second little sister. Desmond waves the older two Assassins off, flipping through the channels to find something to watch.

'Oh hell, I don't think I've been this drunk since… Shit, I can't even remember!' Megan thinks, giggling as she stumbles into the elevator. She was so sad that the clubs were closed and wanted to keep dancing and drinking. She still had her wits about her, granted they were rather… gone. As the doors close on her she pushes the correct button and drops her shoes on the floor, leaning into the corner to keep upright. She couldn't stop laughing at herself, the copious amount of alcohol in her system was making her feel euphoria and she didn't want it to end anytime soon.

In fact, she felt downright reckless.

The doors open to her floor and, she staggers as she retrieves her shoes, heads to her room. She puts the keycard in, waits till the light turns green, pulls the card out, and opens the door. The lights were off and the room was dark, what did she expect at 4 in the morning? She drops her shoes by the door and wobbles to her room, biting back the pained cry as she hits her hip on a table but then giggles quietly as she continues on. She opens her door and spots the large lump lying in bed. Inhibition was waving wildly for her attention but Drunken Ideas had effectively quieted him down by a low blow to the stomach. She stalks to the opposite side, the side that wasn't her's, and finds Alex asleep on his side. He was probably in his normal sleeping attire, which meant nothing but his boxers. She could more than handle that, in fact, she wanted it.

Her hand ghosts over his face, fingers running through his short curly hair, as she leans down. Her lips meet his. It takes a moment before he responds and her eyes flutter close when she feels his hands go to the back of her head and snake around her waist, pulling her down on top of him. He was damn forceful, and the absolute scent of man was overpowering.

He pulls away; ignoring her rather weak attempts at returning those sensual lips to hers, and looks down at her. He was panting for breathe, low and shallow, and his eyes were cloudy from both sleep and lust. She rather liked this look on him. She gives him a 'come hither' look, one that took all his strength to not follow, and he sits up.

'What the hell is with her and her sex pot attitude right now?' He questions himself as she pouts, crossing her arms under her…. He decides looking at her face was better. And safer. "Can I ask what prompted this?"

"No." She sits up too, looking at his face. He was damn gorgeous. "But continuing would be fun."

His eyes widen. "You're really drunk, aren't you?"

She gives a soft snort. "Of course."

He swallows the lump in his throat. "Why don't you go and take a shower?"

She rolls her eyes and scoots to get out of the bed, grabbing clothes from the dresser then heading to the bathroom, wobbling as she goes. She pauses at the door, looking back him with a downright sexy look. "You wanna come and… join me?"

He shakes his head in the negative, nearly giving himself whiplash. She shrugs and shuts the door behind her. He flops back onto the bed. He had a problem now and didn't quite know what to do with it. The problems name: Megan and the rather vivid fantasies he was now having.

And all he could think of was, 'atleast I'm still a man…'

The trip home was... awkward. Megan could remember exactly what she did and, while she had no qualms about it, she didn't know how he felt. This morning was the first she had woken up not cuddled up against him and as soon as he knew she was awake, he was out of the room. The hangover was still kicking her in the head and the alcohol still in her system made her want to throw up. Preferably all over Ezzy and his smug smile. She could've sworn he just knew what had happened and that snide smile was to let her know he knew. Thank god they were just a few minutes away from the house.

Her brain stops, goes over the thought, and still comes up with an intelligent 'huh?'. When did she stop thinking of the place as her house and start thinking of it as the house. She gives herself a giddy smile inside; maybe having the guys around was a good thing. They were helping her get over her tragedy, and while she would never really forget, she would be able to be happy once more.

When they pull up to the house, they stare at it in surprise.

The front door was open wide, clothing strewn across the ground along with papers and books. Her eyes widen and she clambers to the middle seats. Leo holds onto her wrist, keeping her from moving, while the rest go inside. After several tense minutes Mal comes out with a sour but confused look on his face. Megan gets out of the expedition and walks up to the door, grabbing her clothing off the ground and hiding her unmentionables. While this confused her, she didn't want the guys to see any of them.

Heading in, she finds the rest of the house looking pretty much like the outside. There was clothing and books and food and even logs. Walking around the corner into the living room she finds that some of her shelves were destroyed. She wanted to cry. This was her home, these were her things. Her brothers had helped her to put them up!

Inhibition was keeping quiet while Sadness and Rage were yelling for her to react, which she does. The tears were leaking from her eyes. A sob tears out of her throat as she drops her clothes and races upstairs, seeing the carnage that was left behind as she goes into her room. She runs into her closet and tosses what clothes that hadn't left their hangers on the ground. She finds the only thing that she really cared about, a small black box with a removable lid. She clutches it to her chest, the sobs wracking her body.

The men watch her from just inside the door way as she cries. This wasn't their expertise. But those sobs were, for lack of better wording, heart wrenching. She was curled over the box and that was where they left her.

She was in her bed by herself. She locked the door after she found she couldn't cry anymore. The handle had turned a few times but other than that all was quiet. She hadn't even changed out of her clothes she had arrived in. All she could do was look at the box.

Shakily she takes the lid off and sets it to her left side. She pulls out the photos, carefully going through them slowly to bring forth the memories. Though they were happy ones, she couldn't help feeling like she wasn't doing her family right. Like she wasn't living the way they would have wanted her to. Halfway through them she stops and puts them back, closing the lid and putting it under her bed. She would feel like her home was safer if she didn't leave again for a while. This was insane. The second time someone had been in her home without her knowing. She was calling a home security place first thing in the morning.

With this and the embarrassment/horror/unknown feelings she had, she just wanted to forget this whole thing.

Four days later she was feeling a little better. Her emotions were in check and while she wasn't allowing Alex to share her room anymore, she was missing him and his comforting presence. Her door was open letting her hear everything that was going on. From the sounds of it Alty, Des, Mal, and Ezzy were fighting again. She rolls her eyes as they start yelling at one another in their native tongues; other than Des, she could only catch the few words they had taught her. She gets up, the large shirt hanging off her frame and nearly covering the shorts she wore. She goes down the stairs and then stops when she sees the humorous sight before her. Mal was on Alty's back with both Des and Ezzy on either leg like a group of children.

So be it.

She claps her hands loudly, drawing their attention to her. "Now children, tell me what the problem is." They scramble off of Alty and far enough away from one another. She raises an eyebrow as she realizes just those four were in the house. Where the other three were, she didn't know. They glare at one another. "Well?" She prompts.

"These buffoons were attempting to sneak out and leave me here." Malik answers after a few moments when he realizes that none of the others were going to answer.

"So?"

He frowns. "I will not be left here."

"With a girl?" The other brow rises when he nods in the affirmative. "How, pray tell, is that a 'bad thing'?" She questions as she cocks her hips to the right and rests her hands on them.

The other three realize just what she was getting at and were making a hasty retreat. They just weren't going to inform the one that was causing her ire. And what a fight it turned out to be, hitting 2 hours easily before Malik finally gave up and stalked away. Megan finds the three stooges were sitting on the other side of the bar with a bag of popcorn in front of each of them, watching the humorous spectacle.

Hours later, Megan was lying in bed. Alone. Completely alone.

Megan did not approve.

She frowns, wondering just why her bed buddy had abandoned her. It couldn't have been over the make out session they had, she was DRUNK! And from all accounts, he had enjoyed it too! She gets up, giving an indignant huff, grabs her favorite pillow (which just so happened to be the one Alex slept on), and heads out of her room and over to his. She doesn't even bother with knocking, just opens the door and closes it behind her. He sat up in bed, half asleep, icy blue eyes gazing around in confusion. She climbs over him, puts the pillow down and crawls under the covers to snuggle up with him. He stiffens at first but slowly relaxes.

"Can I ask." She whispers to him.

"Ask what?" He answers back to her in a whisper.

"Why you left me alone?" Her voice could barely be termed a whisper. In a way, he was glad his hearing was above par but wished that it wasn't. He realized that she was upset about it. He knew he had trouble going to sleep and could only imagine that she was too. He just didn't want that weakness again, didn't want another incident like the one with Karen.

"I'm sorry, I needed to think things over." Was his answer to her. He already knew he was attached, that the weakness was there. But she didn't want to destroy him, atleast not yet.

"If it was about the kiss, we can act like it never happened." She says after a moment catching him off guard. He thought she had fallen asleep. Thinking over what she said, he knew he wouldn't be able to forget it but for her he would pretend if she wanted.

Megan kinda hoped he wouldn't agree.

"How about just in front of the others, they don't need to know." She nods and hunkers down in his smaller bed. It was a full size but still smaller than her king, and she had to admit, just as comfortable.

"MEGAN!" Shaun yells waking the two when the door is flung open and light invades the dark room. Megan hides her face against Alex's arm, her back against his chest, and groans loudly. Alex on the other hand looks over to the door and has his free hand turn into claws. A surprised and strangled noise escapes Shaun as he quickly and loudly slams the door shut.

Megan was out just as quickly as she was awakened, Alex joining her in dreamland once more. This was the first good sleep either had managed to get in nearly a week. She hadn't realized just how well she slept with him in the bed.

Shaun shakily makes his way back downstairs to the rest of the Assassins who were waiting for him. On one hand he was happy when he found her (after nearly having a heart attack when he found her room empty and the memory of her kidnapping ripping its way to the front of his mind didn't help any) and on the other, he was truly terrified that Alex had been one step away from disemboweling him, had Megan not have been in the room with him. He was going to have Ezio pay for making him go to look for the girl, he could have died. And he rather liked his current status of Living.

"Did you find her?" Questions the Italian he was currently cursing in his head to the deepest pits of Tartarus.

"Yes, nearly got myself killed for no reason thank you very much." He sends the Renaissance Assassin a dirty look before joining him and the rest at the bar.

"Shit, it's already past noon. How much longer are they going to sleep?" Desmond questions before taking a bite of his sandwich. The rest give various methods of agreement before following suit and eating their lunches. It had been strange to not find the girl already awake and breakfast waiting on them. After her arm had healed, she was the first up and the first to greet them and have little conversations. The rest of the day would be weird because Ezio would keep grinning and laughing at odd moments and always when he would be looking at the stairs.

Megan didn't want to leave her warm, safe haven. That's what she really liked when she went to bed, the feeling that she was completely safe. That with him in the room alone no harm could come to her, emotional or physical. She snuggles down further and Alex responds by tightening his hold on her, not enough to harm but enough for her to know that he was just as content as she was. She didn't know what this relationship was and where it would go but where it was now made her content. They weren't dating, that much she knew, but the feelings were there blossoming into something new. And she couldn't help it, she wanted to see where it would go and what would happen when it got there. What would happen to the two of them when it got there.

They had eaten, Alex sneaking down and getting a few things. It was possibly the worst of the worst when it came to junk food but it was satisfying and the taste was exquisite. Especially when Alex fed one of the zingers to her, the taste became ten times better in her opinion. She had a feeling that they weren't going to be leaving anytime soon and she didn't care to much. The rest were fully grown and completely capable of taking care of themselves. They didn't need her to hold their hands, though she could only hope they kept Leo from destroying anything else in her home after he had decided taking apart the vacuum would be a brilliant idea and the rest just supervised.

She was happy once more.

Yay, another chapter out! I'm going to be going through the first year that they've been there rather quickly, but with enough strange things happening to keep them guessing. I'm sorry that this chapter came out a little late, I had some trouble at home. Family things and all. Well that, and my niece is here and with her being 2 she demands a lot of attention from everyone that resides at the residence here.

As always I wanna thank those who have been reading this and to Raychaell Dionzeros, Pheonix-164, and to my guest reviewer; thank you all for the reviews!

Oh, and my guest reviewer; I try to keep going because I have terrible procrastination skills coupled with ADHD, so I can get bored with things fairly quickly if I don't keep it interesting for myself. OH! and -glomps back- Thanks!

I'm gunna get started on the next chapter right away! May have it out really soon because I changed around the chapter order when I though about it, I knew that anything interesting would be happening after the Christmas oneshot I started out with.