Warnings: Later may contain lime, lemon, hard language, torture, femslash, whatnot.

Thanks for everybody who reviewed. This is yours!

Don't own Alex... However he's so much OOC, you wouldn't even recognise him.

Chapter 3 – Seven days till the goodwill

It was only dawn when she woke up. It was not like the ones she had been used to, you're sleeping then the next moment you're awake, it was slow. The room had a comfortable temperature, much more bearable than the one they were used to during the past months. The quilt was twisted around her waist and her legs. His hand was pleasantly warm against her naked back. Careful not to take any movement, she opened her eyes.

His heartbeat was strong and even and comforting under her head. For a long time, she just enjoyed the morning – it was the most beautiful for weeks. She didn't have to fear, didn't have to be alone. She knew she was safe. Nobody was going to attack them, not possibly. And if someone might have wanted to kill them this moment, he would have had a hard task.

She instinctively knew that the man was having a gun under the pillow in the right, inches away from his fingers and another one in the drawer of the bedside table. If she turned around, she could have it in less than a moment. They were safe.

And anyways… they weren't in Israel anymore. Nobody was going to attack.

She didn't move knowing it would wake him up instantly. He was a bad sleeper, in the last time at least. She examined the bruises on his chest and thought about the bullet wound her long hair was covering. It might have been not the prettiest sight to wake up to every morning, but strangely it comforted her. It was comforting to know he had survived so many murdering attempts fighting the same enemy she did. However, she knew he didn't agree this and considered it… ugly or wrong or disturbing.

She remembered how hard it was to reach the point of being able to stand face to face nakedly. Her heart ached thinking about the fact it was going to end very soon. Cautiously she left him and went to the bathroom to take a shower. She didn't feel at all uncomfortable being naked in his bedroom but on her way she grabbed a large T-shirt from the ground – it was obviously his, but it didn't matter. She liked feeling his scent on herself.

She let the hot water wash through her and enjoyed the luxury of just standing there for almost half an hour. Stepping out she saw Alex was already there. He handed her the towel and watched as she slowly dried herself. His gaze was hotly burning her skin and she felt she flushed.

Rosalie smiled at him and walked to her bag in the corner of the bedroom entirely aware of his eyes following her every step. Okay, maybe she was a bit overdoing it, her hip dancing with every step much more than ordinary, but who cared? She was in a good mood after spent the night in a man's bed and said man was watching her so intensively at the moment that it made her blood boil in her veins.

She found what she was searching for at last, a body lotion she had bought yesterday. She walked back to the bathroom and started to cream her legs. She let out a pleased sigh as her dry skin absorbed the lotion - another luxury she had not been able to afford lately. The man couldn't stand the sight any longer and gently took it out of her hand.

His palm was rough in sharp contrary of the gentle way he massaged her body. She closed her eyes to concentrate only on his experienced fingers which already knew where her skin was the most sensitive. After he reached the middle of her thighs, he continued with her arms, slipping on her shoulder, then taking her slim waist between his hands and moving upwards, scrubbing and massaging.

She didn't know when he kissed her first, she didn't know when it turned into making love, but she didn't really care.

***

"We should go to the Bank." She said putting on her grass green blouse. For a moment she struggled with the little white buttons then reached into her bag for a long skirt of a deeper shade of the same colour. It was made of a creased cloth so the transport in the bag hadn't touched its form and elegance. It had white lace-work at the bottom, similar to the white laced tights she was wearing. She took black high-heel shoes, black ornamental earrings so long almost touching her shoulder and a black bag.

When she glanced at Alex at his silence, his eyes were wide with shock. "What?" She started to comb her hair and arrange it into a loose bun.

"You look… at least twenty-three." Finally he continued dressing staring at his simple faded jeans and deciding against it.

She sighed. "Thanks Alex, this was the kindest compliment I've ever heard." She turned around with a little makeup-case and went into the bathroom.

"I mean… you're gorgeous of course, but… you always are and that's not what I meant. You seem rather a mature woman than a teenage girl."

"You too." He heard her quietly chuckling. "About the mature part at least – you're definitely male. I guess this job is just growing people older. D'you come with me?"

"So… you stick to your decision?" The girl just raised one eyebrow. "Yeah, I'll accompany you. Not that I would have other option." He chose black jeans from the wardrobe and a white shirt, but he kept his trainers from the original plan. Rosalie might be able to run on high heels, he didn't want to ruin his black leather shoes. He still remembered the torturing experience when he had had to go with Jack and search one matching his suit.

Ian had had a black suitcase – surprisingly enough it surfaced when he had been packing. He didn't know what security system it had exactly, but suspected it was strong enough to keep safe the few documents he swept into it from the desk. Rosalie smiled at him and handed her ones as well. For a moment he wondered how much this suitcase had seen, but then again, it was not like he would have a choice. They still didn't have anything at all in the fridge, so the girl suggested they could stop at a cafeteria. It was still quite early in the morning and they had nowhere to hurry.

They automatically acted as a couple, not to say a married couple. The waitress didn't try to flirt with him this time and no man stopped at their table to talk to the woman. It was just peaceful and it – waking up with the woman in his bed, then a slow love-making in the bathroom, having breakfast at a cafeteria acting – being – a couple before going to the Bank for a talk with their bosses –, felt frighteningly normal for him.

***

The table on the door was discreet with casual metal letters on the wood. It looked exactly as the previous one, but this time, it named Charles Grant as the owner of the office room. Alex didn't bother to knock, he glanced at Rose and when she briefly nodded, opened the door. They both wore the mask they used in the presence of people knowing their job: emotionless, cold and a bit bored.

Charles Grant was only forty-three years old – too few to be the leader of a department but surprisingly much in his line of work. Mr. Grant had been a spy decades ago. He had had many successful actions behind his back and maybe yet more unsuccessful ones. However, he had not reach this position with completing missions: he had little talent and sense to do those and he would have died should he have continued. No, Charles Grant was known for his brave and violent tactics and through many dirty political attempts finally managed to get this position.

It was gossiped though, that this time he wouldn't follow his previous routine, forcing his staff work like a slave or madman in a stahanovistic system, firing everybody he considered insufficient and reaching many times better rate so in about twelve-fourteen months – then accepting another challenge and getting his step higher.

"Mr. Grant." Rose was way more polite she would have needed. Alex just nodded, automatically putting on his role like a second skin. They sat down into the chairs without hesitation. It was the same play they had done many times: Rosalie enthusiastic and smiling while Alex harshly telling what they wanted.

The man glanced up from his papers at the spies, but no surprise appeared on his face. He knew they were coming. He signed where he stopped and closed the files he had been reading pushing them onto the side of his desk.

"Mr. Rider, Ms.…" He stopped hesitatingly.

"Just Rose." She flashed a bright smile at him.

"Ms. Rose." He didn't smile back at her but she visibly wasn't bothered by that at all. "Good to see you." He said searching in one of the drawers of his desk. His tone wasn't reflecting anything of goodness. He was obviously just as blunt as Blunt was. "As you were informed of it, Mr. Blunt… left us, and I was the signed one to take his position."

"If I had been they, I would have fired him long ago. However they don't seem to learn from their mistakes just getting blinder and blinder by the time." Alex said this as if stating a fact, with the exact tone he had used a moment ago, as if complaining about the many insects around his head the thousandth time knowing nobody was listening to him.

Grant slowly leant back against his rolling chair and examined his hands for a moment before meeting Alex's gaze with his cold light blue eyes. His glance was emotionless but very uncomfortable, though the boy didn't flinch a bit. "Some people higher up felt uncomfortable just a year before the elections with the knowledge that their man was using a fourteen-year-old to do the dirty job. I personally think it was a great idea – not using children to go on missions but fully using your unusual talents and, well, with your heritage you could be our strongest weapon." He glanced back from him and made triangles of his fingers. The boy quietly groaned.

"Of course I didn't mention this to them, I just promised to finish this case and dot." He stared deeply into his eyes. "This means…" he started slowly, "that I can't force you to work for us anymore." Now he was watching the door. "Not that I would think that you could go back into your previous lifestyle again. Spying is not like that. Also, we would have to make sure you aren't crossing their plans.

We wouldn't kill you, nobody would go that far, but you would have to be erased from life, sent away, breaking every connections. And it wouldn't be us who would knock out an assassin should it be about that. You know a fair share about how this works. You'd be a dead weight. Think about this until I talk to Ms.… Rose."

"Thank you very much, Charlie, but I'm perfectly aware of my decision."

"Are you?" He asked bluntly. His voice remained even but Alex could see the surprise in his eyes. Obviously he had thought he could make him uncertain with his little speech. Oh, how little did he know him!

Rose glared at him and Grant was amused to see the virtual lightning burning Alex. The two were obviously not in the best relationship despite all the dangerous situations they had survived together. Her accent was audible for his ears and he felt content that he was able to spit it out from the girl's voice. He didn't know Rose was going to switch back to her usual pronunciation of perfect English the time she had got out the hundred yards area of the Bank.

"Alex and me… we would highly appreciate if you arranged some paperwork for us." She smiled at him and the man wondered the reason behind it.

"What kind of paperwork?" he asked cautiously.

"We did and saw and survived many things. Things no child at our age should do and see. We fought battles no child should ever fight. And this changed us, changed our lives, our personality, our relationships, our family, our friends. We can never go back to normal and just be children. We have grown up. And we aren't children anymore. We shouldn't be treated as children anymore." Her face was hard and suddenly all the warmth disappeared from it.

"We want you to give us official majority." Alex's voice was a bit hoarse as he glared at him.

"We… know that we have no way back. We don't want to stuck at one place either."

"We want you to clear our status and the chance to be able to decide whether we go for the particular mission or not. And, first of all, some time when we can try if this works and take a step back if it isn't. Part-time agents for some probation." Grant wasn't able to hide his surprise for moments, but then he recovered and nodded thoughtfully. His brain was already working on the next steps.

"This was all we have wanted. Bye, Charlie." Alex lifted from his seat heading towards the door.

"Actually… There would be a job for you should you decide for it." His voice was thoughtful, he was deep in thought. They patiently waited until he continued glancing instinctively at each other.

"Yes?" Rose asked slowly.

"It's not a real job or mission… we just have a bet actually… well, some gossips are going round at SAS. I'm not really fond of them, you know." His smile was not something a spy should have afforded but he visibly decided to use honesty as his main weapon – doing the opposite his predecessor had. "I would truly like stopping the gossips and winning the bet…"

"And we would have your goodwill, I guess?" Alex lifted his brow. "What's the… exercise?"

"Showing them they are not that tough they think themselves to be. Knocking out the most SAS soldiers you can, maybe. False alarm, for example. Whatever you want to." He thought for a moment. "You get seven days and £400 to give them the biggest strike you can."

To be continued...