There was a call the next morning. James picked it up and after a moment dropped the phone. Caboose, who was helping make breakfast, caught it and answered, hand on his son. James was stiff and cold; shock. Caboose found himself shaking slightly after listening to the woman on the other end. He nodded and hung up the phone, doing his best on to crush it. He spoke softly to James and moved to get a jacket, trying to keep his cool. James had no intention of doing that; he picked up the phone and threw it across the room. Watching it shatter did not ease the pain he felt. Caboose tried to grab him but James just pulled away, confused and hurt. It took Franz, with impeccable timing, arriving back at that moment, to calm James down enough for them to load up into the car.
The drive was silent and longer than it really was. Parking, however, and making their way up to the front desk of the hospital was all a blur.
Caboose had looked up Vince's room number because James couldn't bear to ask the nice woman on the other side of the desk. It was hard to believe the boy he had met just the other day was here. Franz, James knew, was forcing his heart rate and breathing normal. If the AI had not been doing so James was sure he would be in the middle of a panic attack. But, as Caboose led him to the room Vince was in, maybe he would have that attack anyways.
"He's in here. Do you want me to come in with you?" Caboose asked quietly.
"Just wait here?" James asked, terrified of what he would find on the other side of the door. His dad nodded and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
It was a testament of how far they had come in the last few days.
Taking a Franz induced deep breath; James entered Vince's room.
"Hey," said Vince in a painfully hoarse voice.
James pulled a chair next to Vince's bed and smiled. "Hey. How you doin'?"
Vince twitched a shoulder, the closest thing he could get to a shrug and sighed. The monitor next to him beeped. "Well enough I guess. Better than last time. I was in a coma for two days last time."
"Wow." James was still sobbing on the inside; how could Vince live like that on a day-to-day basic? Bullies at school and at home. All James had to deal with was a distanced dad and an identity crisis; cheesecake in comparison.
"So I'm counting myself lucky this time around." Vince has a bloody bandage over half of his face which was really the only color in the room.
"Ever have any permanent damage done?"
The tips of his fingers were the only things James could see of Vince's hands. "Here and there. It's not all that bad. Nothing major or life altering."
"Right. So lucky this time?"
"Yeah and I might get to start next year late. Bonus." Vince smiled a little; it looked like it hurt him to do so. "No Aaron for a while."
"Yeah, that's nice," James agreed. "But on the other hand, next year it's you and me so really there will be like no more Aaron ever." Even though what he was saying was great, James just couldn't believe that he could protect Vince. Really protect him; Aaron was just one danger among many. James knew he could not save Vince from his worst enemy: his stepfather, the one who had sent Vince here.
Vince laughed then coughed violently; once the fit was over, he smiled and said, "That would be awesome."
There was a knock and a smiling nurse walked in. "I'm sorry but Vince needs to rest."
James stood up and sighed. "It's good to see you."
"Hey we need to have a rematch. DOAX – you owe me," Vince said, smiling softly.
James nodded and left walking passed the nurse and paused in front of Caboose long enough for him to follow.
"How is he?"
"Bad. Better than last time," James muttered as Caboose started the car.
"What happened last time?"
"He was in a coma for two days. God, it's his step dad. He – damn it," James said, feeling the Franz induced control start to break down. "His step dad is going to kill him."
"James, you can not know that, " Franz spoke up as James' breath hitched.
"I just want to have everything go back to normal," James whispered, tears falling.
"That might be a while coming. I got in touch with one of Dr. Halsey's AI's and she told me that the UNSC has sent men out to collect both of you."
"What? What do they want with me?"
"Intel as for as I can tell."
"Intel on what? Church? Why not Tucker or Allison?" Caboose asked, voice odd.
"They have sent men after them as well."
"So we all will be locked up together. Awesome," James laughed, vaguely panicked.
"There is only a slim chance they would cell all of us together."
"Franz," Caboose hissed.
"Yes?"
"Shut up."
"Right. Sorry. "
"We are just going to get home, make something to eat, and do something relaxing. Like play some of your video games," Caboose said, turning down their street. "Oh no."
"Who is that?" James asked, a closed hand wiping stray tears from his eyes.
"Franz?" Caboose asked, "Can you tell who that is?"
"Ah… Just give me a moment." A pause. "The blue car is … Dr. Halsey? And the black SUV is … as suspected, UNSC collectors."
Caboose stopped the car half a block from their house, eyeing the black SUV parked in front of their house.
"What do we do?" James asked, the fear of the unknown over riding the sorrow of the known.
The radio turned on.
Everyone stared at it.
"Franz. This is Autumn."
"Autumn? What-?"
"I don't have a lot of time. The UNSC is going to be holding a hearing on the fate of General Church's AL."
"General?"
"They need all of Blue team there as you spent the most amount of time with him, " Autumn said. "If the AI is ruled to be the property of the UNSC there will be a second hearing to decide what happens with James."
"What do we do right now?" Caboose asked.
"Go with them. It will be easier on all of you. " There was a pause. "Do not worry. Dr. Halsey will keep Church safe. Or rather General Church knew what he was doing." And the radio clicked off.
Caboose turned on the car and started driving.
"What are you doing?" James hissed, grabbing his seat.
"She is right. Turning ourselves in is easiest on all of us. James, you are going to be fine," Caboose said sternly, pulling the car closer to their house. Once they pulled in, the blue car started up and left. As he got out of the car, the black SUV opened up and a few ridiculously stereotypical Gmen stepped out.
"Mr. Caboose?" the first one asked.
"Yes?" Caboose said, looking down at the slightly smaller man, drawing on his SPARTAN history and looked as imposing and imitating as possible. James, still in the car, smiled a little as the Gman looked nervous.
"I need you to come with us, sir." The Gman swallowed hard before continuing. "If you and your son can just come with us."
Caboose gave him an unsettling stare before looking at James, who was still in the car.
"It's time to go, James," Franz said pushing all of James' panic responses down. "Dr. Halsey will not let anything happen to you." Slowly he opened the door and climbed out. Without a word, he stood next to Caboose, perhaps a little too close to be brave.
"This way," the Gman said stepping aside, indicating they should get into the black SUV. Inside the government car two more Gmen were sitting a back seat that faced the seat Caboose and James were sitting on.
The ride was silent and very uncomfortable. Caboose silently thanked Franz as the AI kept James' frantic mind off of what was going on or where they were going. Caboose did not feel welcome to comfort his slightly hysterical son; after all there was a chance James would be deemed property of the UNSC after a hearing that could decide that the last chance of James or Caboose had of ever seeing Church again was security risk.
Caboose was ignoring the fact the man his had loved was really a computer program bur he could not ignore the fact that he wanted to see him again. Having Church die in childbirth was one thing; to have a goddamn government delete him was a whole other thing.
What happened after the car ride felt unreal. Caboose's only concern was keeping James with him; in fact he never let his hand move from his son's arm. These people had taken so much away from him, destroyed so much that he could not, would not, let them take James. So when they led them into what looked like a hotel suit, Caboose did not relax. He did let James collapse onto one of the beds shoved into the back room once the Gmen left and locked the door.
"Hey, Dad?"
"Hm?"
"What will happen if they say I belong to the military?"
"No idea." Caboose had not given that possibility much thought and he was not interested in giving it much thought.
"James? What's under your bed?" Franz suddenly asked.
Groaning James rolled off the bed and crouched to look under his bed. "What the?" He reached under and pulled out a white SPARTAN helmet. "Why is this under-?"
Only recognition dawned in Caboose's eyes and he leaped over the bed, grabbing both James and the helmet. "Don't touch it!" But it was already too late.