Chapter Summary: Two for one chapter with Shayne and Aurox and their relationships with Whiskey.

Notes: I debated giving them each their own, separate chapter. Then I realized it was easier to have a longer chapter by combining them.

Fun fact, the person who made videos of all the voicelines for most of the important characters? Yeah, they decided it made more sense to give these two separate videos… when they have voicelines of them interacting.

Chapter 8: Shayne Aura Mander and Aurox

Shayne had actually met Whiskey once before all of this.

She'd been young (aka thirteen) and stupid enough to think stealing food from a guy like him was a good idea. He'd caught her, of course; she wasn't any good at being sneaky back then.

He'd looked annoyed when he grabbed her wrist, and kinda terrifying, glaring at her behind his broken helmet, the sight of his visible yellow eye narrowed and his sharp teeth bared in a scowl sent a chill all the way down her spine.

But then, when he actually looked at her, it'd slid off his face from each feature one by one, like a rock rolling and bouncing down a hill, leaving a blank expression behind. Then he'd just… stared at her, for a moment, before finally letting go of her wrist and just offering the food to her.

Well, after being caught, thirteen-year-old Shayne wasn't gonna be pitied on top of it, and told him where he could shove his pity and just what it could do there.

He'd surprised her by laughing and telling her to put that mouth to use in a trade. Before she could assume anything, he asked if she was any good at stories.

And he'd actually listened to it, too. He didn't look away, or look bored. He'd been genuinely interested in the story she made up as she went, commenting on certain parts, even telling her at one point that "no, see, you don't actually bleed that much from there. Trust me, I've stabbed someone there before."

It'd been… well, nice. Having an adult listen to her and take her seriously had meant a lot. And when he left her with the food, he'd told her to have more stories to tell him if they met again. And to be careful, because not all strangers were gonna be like him (which she already knew, but kinda appreciated the intent).

The best part was that he remembered her three years later. He hadn't changed much beyond a few scars, but Shayne knew she'd gotten taller and filled out more, not to mention her awesome new hairstyle.

"You still like interesting stories?" she'd asked when she saw him.

He'd turned at the sound of her voice, "Thought the girl named Shayne Reyna described sounded familiar. Nice to know you're still alive."

Him being there had totally helped reassure her and Aurox (mostly Aurox, she had been pretty confident in the whole venture the entire time no matter what he would say) that joining up with the Rogues was gonna be okay. Sure, yeah, they tended to alternate between treating her like an adult and a kid, which was annoying, but Toby had told her once that was something families did when you were in your teens.

It was a weird feeling, actually having a family. Whiskey had once pointed out to her that plenty of the Battleborn were orphans. He'd actually started listing names, before realizing that technically the whole "stars going dark" thing meant even more of them were orphans of a kind. She'd interrupted to point out just how depressing this was and asked for a point.

"Look, the point is, each faction is a place someone can belong, and now we're all working together and getting to know each other. We're all family now, even if some members aren't as bearable as others. Bring a bunch of orphans together, and sometimes they become family."

Then he had pulled her into a hug, "whether you like it or not."

Honestly, between the hugs, the listening, the hanging out, the fighting together, teasing her, and keeping her stocked in her favorite juice (chef connections so rocked), Shayne had to say that Whiskey turned out to make for a decent brother figure that she doesn't mind having.

Aurox had never had much reason to have an opinion on organic beings, at least beyond either annoyance or amusement at their reactions, and occasionally tasty. Not until one, a mere adolescent girl, managed to bind him to her. Now he was around them all the time, whether he wanted to be or not, and when that happens, one starts having opinions on them as individuals. One of those opinions was that he may have possibly found being forcibly bound to an organic being bearable if it had been someone such as, say, Whiskey. Even if he was of the erroneous opinion that the energy being was growing fond of the teen.

And that was part of the reason why, when Shayne was asleep, he would talk to him, keeping their voices low to not wake her. Aurox isn't sure if on Whiskey's part the courtesy is for Shayne, or to give him a break from her. She tended to sleep well if she was in a place she considered safe (which was not in any way a sign that he was concerned for her wellbeing that he noticed that sort of thing), so she hadn't woken up yet.

And it was… pleasant, talking to someone who could better understand his love of carnage, even if Whiskey didn't take part in it to the degree that he did. And to have someone he could share his grievances with, even if he had an annoying tendency to also try to see things from the girl's point of view.

Actually, he did that even when Shayne was awake. He and Reyna were the only two Rogues who actually tried to mediate between them. Part of him wished they would stop, because if she became fed up with him, then maybe she would give back his phaser. …or she would break it. (Hm, on second thought, perhaps he would put up with the two mediating for a little while longer.) It was sometimes helpful to have someone unravel the enigma that was an organic teen girl, though.

"I don't even know what I did this time!" He'd said, after doing something to upset Shayne that caused her to threaten to damage his phaser less like a reminder that she could and more like an actual threat.

Whiskey'd sighed, wondering if he actually had lucked out in having to take Aurox over Shayne with Reyna this time. "Okay, let me just say, right now, that this is something I don't want to talk about again. And that I only know because I was really bored and there was this pamphlet about it."

"I already know about that. I've been dealing with her for a while. Why is she so sensitive about it?"

The relief on his face could have been seen through walls. "Oh, that. Yeah, stuff like that just isn't something you talk about in public, and not often with people of the opposite gender when you do. It's a combination of not being very pleasant to go through, hormones, and some people using it as a reason not to take them seriously."

It hadn't made him think her angered response had been appropriate just for him bringing it up, but it had made him willing to listen to her apology and drove home to never do it again.

The other reason he actually bothered talking to him was out of respect for his skills in a fight.

Granted, most of the Battleborn had managed to win some respect for him based on their ability to survive in the battles against the horrors that were the Varelsi. Even his kind felt respect had to be given to those who survived in fights against deadlier beings. But with Whiskey Foxtrot, there was a difference, one that perhaps only his fellow clone, Oscar Mike understood. He fought as though it was part of the way his existence was validated. Perhaps others did that, especially these days, but it was obviously looking at them that they'd been doing so for much longer.

Whiskey Foxtrot, and later Oscar Mike, had figured out something very important on top of that, though. Sometimes, it wasn't about what you were fighting for, it was about making sure you kept your opponent from hitting you back. Tearing your opponent into pieces before they could do the same to you.

And that your toughest opponent was often the last one standing. He even helped him explain the logic of it to Shayne (because if he was going to be tied to her, she wasn't going to die from stupidity under his watch).

He would never go so far as to say they were "buddies" or anything like that. But Whiskey Foxtrot was among the beings he could be on friendly terms with, which was more than most could say.

Notes:

Aurox doesn't really get why organic females need to be so damn emotional for a week straight every month. Well, he does, he just thinks it's stupid.

No matter what he says, though, he is shown to grudgingly care about Shayne.

As for Shayne, she's kinda torn between treating him like a partner and a pet, which is really not okay, and Reyna is trying to get her to stop doing that.

Shayne thinks she's much smarter at sixteen than she was at thirteen. Others would debate that.

I like to think all the clones have a soft spot for kids, since they were never kids and they kinda envy their childhood.

And for those who think they know what conclusion Shayne was going to jump to... I'm not saying she's had to do that before, but she definitely knows about that sort of thing. She's at least heard about it.

I think that, other than being fed once a week, Shayne and the other orphans were basically left alone, so they did a lot of scavenging.

Whiskey is probably the kind of guy who watches films with graphic violence, and talks about how inaccurate the blood is.

The smallest, but by no means less dangerous, member of the Battleborn is up next.

Comments are appreciated.