There's No Price On Me

Chapter 3: Funeral

Pairing(s): Leonard Church/Allison Church, Leonard Church/Aiden Price, Leonard Church/Allison Church/Aiden Price, etc.

Description: Aiden Price has just signed up to move in with Leonard and Allison Church in Austin, Texas. Leonard is a scientist, Aiden is between jobs, and Allison is a soldier. The war gets bad, so Allison goes and Aiden and Leonard wait for her. When she doesn't come back, Aiden signs up for a lot more than just being a roommate. He never expected to have kids, but nothings wrong with surprises. Usually.

A/N: Watch me break everyone whose reading this fic's heart right fucking now. Please R&R!

It was about a month later, after David had started talking, that Aiden Price started to figure out more about what his contract really meant. He awoke one night in a haze, his senses not catching up to him at first. David hadn't woken him up- the boy was sound asleep for once in his life- and Caroline was asleep in her bedroom, so Aiden was pretty confused about the lack of a little girl trying to shake him awake or a baby crying. The darker man sat up, looking around his bedroom with bleary eyes, wondering in the back of his mind what exactly had woken him up so abruptly. Suddenly, a soft moan echoed from down the hallway. Getting up slowly, Aiden slipped on some slippers before easing out of his room, tiptoeing towards the master bedroom of the house.

The door was partially open, and moonlight filtered from the other side of the door. Aiden was dead quiet as he approached, trying not to disturb his roommates. He'd just go use the restroom and then go back to bed. However, curiosity got the best of Aiden once he heard a mattress from inside the master bedroom shift, accompanied by another soft, low moan. If he hadn't been better educated, Aiden would've thought the sound to be ghost-like, but he knew better than that. No, he knew that moan all too well- it was Leo, and it sounded like he and Allison were more than likely fucking in there. Aiden blushed at the thought, not wanting to walk in on them, and made to high-tail it out of there, when suddenly-

*SQUEAK*

Aiden jumped about two feet in the air, falling to the ground as he yelped in surprise. While backing away from the master bedroom's door, he'd stepped on a rubber duck that'd been left by one of the children the day before. Aiden desperately tried to jump up and run to his own room, but he was slightly disoriented thanks to the adrenaline rush he now had. Before he could fully compose himself, Aiden felt a hand grab his own, hoisting him to sit up on the floor. Aiden's eyes widened in horror as he recognized Allison standing above him, one hand on her hip, the other still holding Aiden's. She was only in a black bra and black panties, something that made Aiden both uncomfortable and slightly aroused.

Behind her, leaning on the door-frame, was Leonard, eyes half-lidded and slightly glazed over. He gave Aiden an angry pout, but otherwise made no comment on the man's sudden appearance. Leonard was completely naked, save for bed sheets that were wrapped messily around his middle. Aiden swallowed, wondering just what his roommates would do now. This looked so bad, Aiden figured, as it appeared at first glance that he'd been spying or eavesdropping on the young couple. As Aiden mentally scrambled for a half decent excuse, Allison tilted her head curiously, crouching down to be at Aiden's level on the floor.

"What're you doing up?" Allison asked. Somehow, it sounded almost... understanding, like she wasn't about to accuse him of eavesdropping or spying on her and her husband.

"I-I-I-" It was hard to make Aiden stutter, yet Allison was almost always the exception. "I heard a noise and I was worried that it was one of the children."

"Let's fucking HOPE it's not one of the children." Leonard said from the doorway, looking ready to fall asleep or pass out.

"Shut up." Allison ordered, shooting Leonard a short glare, before looking back down at Aiden, as if considering something... "Hey, Aiden, how about you join us?" She requested, voice having an almost dangerous undertone. "I mean, only if you want to... it's your choice. And Leonard's-" She glanced at Leonard, giving him a mischievous smirk. "-What do you think, Leo? Think a night with Aiden would be fun?"

Leonard squinted at Aiden, as if considering his own options, before putting on an equally mischievous smirk, beginning to nod enthusiastically with Allison. "Only if he wants to, Tex. What do ya say, Aid? Sound like fun?"

Aiden swallowed, feeling very, very worried. If he flat-out said yes, unforeseen consequences could easily follow, but then again... how many times had he fantasized this? How many times had he imagined just one more night with Leonard? Hell, how many times had he imagined a night with BOTH of them!? It was a hard descion though, one Aiden knew would effect him for the rest of his life. But they both looked so certain, so pleased with the idea of having Aiden join in... Aiden wanted to look away, but couldn't, too lost in Allison's eyes to look away, as if she were Medusa, slowly but surely turning him to stone with her stare. But he wasn't becoming a statue- he was falling in love with her. With THEM.

Letting out a sigh of uneasiness, Aiden stood, nodding at Allison. "I suppose one night couldn't be too dangerous." He supposed, following them into the master bedroom.

It was going to be a long night.

"I'm going to war."

Leonard snapped awake at the sudden sound of Allison's voice, quiet in the middle of the night. Aiden was passed out in-between them- he was always so tired after sex- and nuzzled closer to Allison upon hearing her voice, but he didn't wake up. Leonard stared at Allison, eyes wide as he watched her. She was angelic that morning- the sunlight was just beginning to come through the window shutters, and they made her look like a goddess as they shimmered on her sweat-drenched skin. She had Aiden's head on her lap, her fingers brushing over his shaved head carefully, like she was afraid to wake him up. She soon met Leonard's gaze, tears in her eyes. Leonard didn't need to hear her say it to know she was serious.

"When?" He asked, voice low. He was trying not to cry, because part of him already knew what this meant. This meant that she might never come back.

"Three days." Allison explained, lower lip wobbling a bit as she too tried to keep herself from breaking down. "They need me out there, Leo. It's what my friends have been dying for."

"What about the kids? What about us?" Leonard waved a hand at Aiden, trying as hard as possible to keep her. "What will we do when you're gone, Tex?"

Allison sighed deeply, defeated yet accepting of this loss. There was always the promise of a future victory after all. "Keep moving forward. That's what the heroes say, right? You keep moving forward. I'll be back, Leo."

Leonard chuckled, shaking his head. "You're an awful liar, Tex." He said, leaning over Aiden to press a kiss against her cheek. "No one ever comes back, once they're off-world... you might never come back, Allison."

Allison nodded her head in acceptance. "I know, Leo... I know. But I have to do this. I have to go fight the war that my brothers in arms have died for."

Leonard looked away, eyes on Aiden, who was still snoring softly. "I'll find you, if you don't end up dead out there. I'll find you and bring you home."

Allison laughed outright, thankfully not waking Aiden up. "Don't make a girl a promise if ya know ya can't keep it, Leo. I'll be back." And the conversation ended there, before Aiden could wake up and ask why his lovers were crying. He'd know soon enough.

"Leonard, put the camera away!" Allison ordered, trying not to laugh and cry at the same time. It was incredibly difficult, considering what was about to happen.

It was around mid June that day, the sun shining bright over Austin, Texas as Allison prepared to leave. Caroline had been all over her the last few days, even though Allison kept urging the girl to not say goodbye to her, that she'd be home real soon. She even promised to bring home a souvenir for the poor girl. David hadn't really noticed, too busy trying to walk and explore to realize that his mother would soon be leaving. Allison did her best to ignore the video camera in Leonard's hands as she pulled her space marine uniform on, standing outside on the porch. Aiden was only a few feet away, arms crossed as he watched Allison dress herself for a war. She picked up her Assault Rifle with ease, reloading it in the sunshine. It fitted her well, too well even. No one wanted her to look ready to die.

"Seriously, Leo." Allison walked right up to the camera, a goofy grin on her face as she tried to shove the camera away, but Leonard kept it on her, unaffected by her shoving. "Quit goofing around! The kids might wake up and hear you!"

"Mama?" Everyone paused, and Allison turned around to stare into the open front door of the house. Standing in the doorway was David, rubbing his eyes as he stood there in his footy pajamas, with his stuffed cat Patches under his left arm.

"Have a nightmare, kiddo?" When David nodded, Allison walked over and scooped the blond toddler up, rubbing his back as he fisted her chest plate like it was the most natural thing in the world. "Wanna tell Mama what happened?"

David only shook his head, eyes half-lidded as he stared at her face, looking confused. "Mama's gonna be going somewhere for a bit." Allison said, running her fingers through the small boy's hair. "Think you can man the fort with your sister until I'm back?"

David nodded his head, but didn't seem to really understand. "Here-" Allison handed David over to Aiden, who took the boy with ease from her. "-Take care of 'em until I'm back, alright?" She then looked back to Leonard, sighing under her breath. "What're you even doing, Leo?"

"Something to remember you by... just in-case." Leonard explained, and as Allison moved to walk away, he grabbed her wrist, holding it tightly. "You don't have to do this, Allison. You could always ask for more leave."

"Leonard," Allison's voice was soft, yet strict. "I have to go... don't make me punch you." She chuckled under her breath, smiling up at him again. "They need me out there, Leo. I'm going to make the universe our children will grow up in safe."

"I..." Leonard couldn't say anything, choking back tears even as they descended down his face. He let out a sob, prompting Allison to hug him. "I can't lose you, Tex... I can't lose you..."

"It'll be okay, Leo. If you don't say goodbye, I'll always be here. As sappy as it is, I'll still be around, even if I kick the bucket." Avoiding the word 'die' was the best idea, Allison figured, as she watched her base's military truck pull up, a few of her friends already on-board. "I have to go now... I'll be back." And with that, she let go of him, walking towards the truck.

Leonard started to step forward, ready to stop her from leaving him, but Aiden stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "She must make her own decisions." Aiden warned, voice soft and comforting as David fell asleep on his shoulder. "And you must allow her to fulfill her duty to her military. She is only doing what she believes is right."

"I... I know, Aid." Leonard muttered, walking back inside as he turned the camera off, shoulders lax as he walked inside, looking defeated. "I just... I don't want her to go."

Aiden said nothing after that, preferring to watch as Allison's truck drove away. That would be the last time he saw her face to face, but he'd hear her voice again in the future. Someday.

All good things come to an end, Aiden remembered a philosopher once saying, yet somehow, that didn't seem to soften the blow of losing her. Here's how it went down: David turned two, and Allison left to fight the war. She never came back. They waited for her, because she'd done this before and this wasn't all that new to the family, but she never came home to them. They waited and waited, until one day, a space marine who surely wasn't their Allison in a clean, well-tended for uniform knocked on the Church Family door, with a letter in one hand, and Allison's Basic Training hat in the other. She died with honor, the space marine promised, while keeping Leonard standing after he collapsed on him, sobbing and begging for his wife to come home. But life isn't a fairy tale, so Allison didn't come home.

And so, funeral plans started. They couldn't have a showing- the body that was recovered was too... mauled to be shown to the family or family friends- so they right away started planning the funeral. Aiden was the one who got the kid's their funeral clothes, as well as Leonard's and his own. Caroline took it... strangely, like it wasn't real. At first, at least. It wasn't a day later that she began to understand that no, Mom wasn't coming home, and yes, she was really dead and it wasn't a lie. David was too young to understand, and Aiden almost cried when he realized that in a few months time, he'd probably forget what his mother even looked like. He'd only remember a voice and features, but never have any real memories of her.

The funeral happened three days after the family was told Allison was dead. It occurred on a painfully sunny day- the world shouldn't have been happy and carefree, not while Allison was dead and gone and never coming home- and the coffin was set up outside on a stage, where family and friends alike came up and paid their respects to the dead space marine. Aiden stood in silence beside a playpen he and some random friend of Allison's he'd never met set up, with David and two other very little kids inside, playing and laughing as if there wasn't even a funeral happening. Aiden was on guard duty, but lit up a bit as Caroline approached him, admittingly beautiful in her long, pretty black dress.

"How are you, Caroline?" Aiden asked as the girl approached him, eyes on her and off of the playpen. There wasn't much point in asking, but Aiden figured that Caroline could use an excuse to talk about her feelings.

Caroline shrugged, kicking at a small stone on the grassy ground, which knocked into one of the bars on the playpen, waking David up. "I dunno." She mused, ignoring the way her baby brother stared at her with big, curious eyes. "Kinda sad. Kinda not. I dunno."

Aiden nodded in agreement, patting the grass beside him. Loyally, Caroline sat down beside him, immediately lulling her head onto his shoulder. "I miss her." She explained, tears in her eyes, but she wiped them away quickly. "I wish she was home."

"We all do, Caroline." Aiden agreed, sighing to himself as he felt David pulling on his shirt. He stood and turned around, scooping David up effortlessly. "I know it's difficult, but those feelings will dissipate over a long period of time." He continued, sitting back down, now with David sitting on his lap. "Grieving is a... hard process. But, like all things, it takes time and effort to overcome. I know you will overcome this, Caroline."

Caroline sniffled, wiping her eyes again in an effort to keep from crying. "Thanks, Uncle Aiden." She mumbled, smiling weakly before she reached over, ruffling playfully at David's hair, if only to distract herself. "You want me to get you a snack, Davy?"

David nodded enthusiastically, sucking on his thumb with one hand, the other gripping Aiden's shirt like a lifeline. "Yes, please!" He mumbled around his thumb, looking very excited.

"On it." And God, Caroline sounded like Allison in that moment, but by the time Aiden shook it away, she was gone, running off to retrieve herself and her brother something to eat.

With Carolina gone, Aiden sighed, turning to look down at David, who looked even more like his mother as he grew older. He had the same eyes, same hair, even the same freckles (Though he had way more). The boy didn't pay much attention to Aiden, too busy fumbling and whispering to the stuffed cat in his arms, one he'd had since Allison bought it for him a few days after he'd been born. It made Aiden smile; at least David had something to remember her by. The blond toddler suddenly began struggling in Aiden's grip until the darker man let go, releasing the boy. Immediately, David crawled onto the grass, standing on shaky legs as he began to approach the crowd of adults near the coffin.

Aiden watched him from afar, feeling it was best to just let the boy be. After all, the kid was curious as to what exactly was going on, and Aiden wasn't about to stop him. However, the man jumped up as he realized that David was walking towards Leonard. In a rush, Aiden tried to run up to David and catch him, but David got to Leonard first, pulling on his father's pants leg for his attention. Aiden stopped dead in his tracks, knowing it was too late to stop him. Leonard turned from where he'd been talking in hushed tones with a coworker, crouching down to look at David. He was dead quiet as he looked at him, and Aiden knew right away that all Leonard could see in that moment was Allison.

Without a single word, Leonard stood back up and walked away, leaving David to simply stare after him. Aiden then ran to David, scooping the boy up at once. "Is Papa mad at me?" The boy asked as soon as Aiden had him in his arms.

Aiden shook his head, biting his lip as he considered what to say to the toddler. "No, David. Your father is simply... sad. He's sad about your mother being gone, and he's not in the mood to play with you."

"Oh..." David trailed off, staring at his cat plushie longingly, as if it would fill the void his mother had left. "Do you think if I made him a picture, he'd be happy again?"

Aiden smiled sadly at David, nodding his head in agreement. "I think that would make him very happy, David. What do you want to draw him?" It was a good idea to ask, just in-case David got the bright idea to draw Allison for him.

David shrugged, before looking again at his stuffed cat, a big grin growing on his face as he locked eyes with the stuffie. "I'll draw him Patches!" He declared, excited by his new idea.

Eagerly, David began to squirm, wanting to get down. So, Aiden crouched down, letting David go once the blond toddler had both of his feet on the ground. As he ran off, David almost slammed right into Caroline, who handed him a juice box before he took off running again. Once he was gone, Caroline approached Aiden, holding a handful of crackers. "What's his deal?" She asked curiously, looking to Aiden for an explanation.

"He's going to draw a picture for your father." Aiden explained, smiling fondly at David as he watched the boy fish out a drawing pad and a crayon box from his backpack. "Would you like to help him?"

Caroline considered it, before shaking her head, uninterested in playing with her brother. "No thanks. Where's Dad? Have you seen him?"

Aiden sighed, looking away. "He's... busy. He's greeting all of the guests before the funeral starts. You should go play; the funeral will start soon enough."

Caroline hung her head, looking disappointed. "... M'kay." She agreed, dragging her feet towards where David was coloring happily.

Aiden watched them for awhile, quietly wondering if this nightmare would ever end. He hated seeing Caroline so sad and Leonard so depressed, not to mention... Allison was gone. She was dead. And now, Aiden and Leonard were alone, raising these two kids who hardly understood the true meaning of their mother's death. They'd understand one day, Aiden mused, but part of him didn't want them to. He didn't want them to get used to the fact that they'd never have a mother again. Aiden hardly noticed that there were tears rolling down his face until they were dripping onto his shirt. He wiped them away, but it was futile. A woman who looked to be in her late fifties noticed this, and immediately came over, offering a hug to the grieving man.

Without hesitating, Aiden allowed the woman to embrace him. He could pretend, for a few minutes, that it was Allison holding him, that it was her by his side again. Aiden had no idea who this lady was- he'd never seen her before now- but that didn't matter. He needed to cry and she was just a convenient body to cry against. It wasn't like she was anyone he knew outside of this nightmare world anyhow.

The rest of the day would be a blur upon later recollections.

A/N: It's 1:31 AM in Michigan... why am I up re-reading my own fanfiction before posting it? The fuck is wrong with me!? Please R&R!

~CabooseHeart.