"Angie! Angie, Angie!"
Lena's frantic calls could be heard through her office door. Angela sprang up from her chair, hand already halfway to the case containing her staff, when the Londoner burst into the room.
"What's wrong?" she asked, noting the lack of desperation in Lena's anxiety. She was panting a little, only the faintest flush sat on her cheeks. Angela dropped her hand from the case; she had a feeling she would not need the staff.
"We need medical attention!" Lena jabbed her fingers towards the door, which Fareeha just jogged through. The Egyptian wore a look of urgency as well, though distinctly calmer than the younger woman's. Angela's gaze fell to her cupped hands, where a small bird lay chirping pitifully.
"Help it, doc!"
The doctor's brows furrowed in both amusement and exasperation. She moved close to examine the bird. It had brown feathers along its back and wings, though its belly and breast were white. The orange beak and legs gave a nice contrast to its duller plumage. Angela leaned in to identify the source of the women's distress: the bird's wings were held at odd angles – they seemed to be broken. The bird itself was lying on its front, chirping dazedly for help. But as much as she wanted to, Angela could do nothing to relieve its pain.
"I cannot, Lena. I'm a doctor, not a vet."
"But your staff?"
"My staff was designed to work with human physiology, not avian. You have to bring it to a vet in town."
"I remember seeing one," Fareeha said, and Lena started pulling on her arm.
"Then let's go!"
The pair ran out of the room. Fareeha did an odd half-jog to keep her hands steady, so she would not jostle the bird. Angela rushed to the door, calling after them.
"Wait! Don't you have duties to–,"
Too late. The med bay doors slid shut. Angela sighed, opting to pretend she did not know what was happening. Hopefully they would return before Jack realised they had run off base.
Bastion sat at the dining table with them for the first time since its recruitment. Angela found it little intimidating, sitting adjacent to their robotic friend who had settled at the foot of the table. Though she knew its acquired nature was much gentler than most of their human and cyborg agents, Bastion's sheer size coupled with the whiff of motor oil still put her on edge. The discomfort, however, was offset by the entertainment it brought to the table. Quite literally.
Ganymede – Bastion's loyal feathered friend – was hopping around the table where their little rescued bird sat. Its bright plumage outshone the newcomer's easily, but it was easily matched by how adorable the smaller bird was. It came with size, Angela supposed.
Bringing another forkful of salad into her mouth, Angela watched the other agents coo over the rescued bird as eagerly as they had with Ganymede upon its arrival. Part of her felt pity for the poor thing – it was sitting in one spot with bandaged wings, and yet had to tolerate an endless parade of fingers smoothing over its head. Just let it heal in peace, for god's sake. And it seemed Ganymede soon had the same idea. After a little chirp from its friend, Ganymede started pecking at anyone who dared to reach for it again.
"Ow! Hey, what is wrong with you, Gany?" Lucio asked, retracting his aching finger.
"Think it wants us to leave the little thing alone," Jesse replied, cradling a similarly well-pecked index finger.
"It's injured," Angela said. It took all she had to keep from rolling her eyes. "How would you feel if people kept touching you when you're hurt?"
"Lucky?" Jesse winked.
"You sound lonely, Jesse," Fareeha said, taking a bite out of her sandwich.
"Not everyone has a doctor to touch them day and night, you know."
To Fareeha and Angela's credit, they did not blush. Instead, they sent a crouton and a small bit of chicken flying at Jesse's face in unison.
"Hey!"
"We should give the new one a name," Lena suggested, leaning forward on her elbows to peer closer at the bird pair.
Bastion promptly emitted a few bweep-bwoops, which Lucio translated, "Bastion wants to call it Io."
"I still don't believe you understand him," Jesse muttered. He tossed a piece of used tissue next to his plate, done with wiping his face. Lucio merely shrugged with an enigmatic smile.
"But it's good!" Lena said. "Io and Ganymede: the moons of Jupiter. Anyone who objects, raise your right leg to the air."
No limbs rose in objection, and Lena clapped her hands together. "Alright! You are now Io, you little cutie." She extended a finger towards Io. Ganymede puffed up threateningly, forcing Lena to rethink her action.
"Er–right. So, where will Io stay? I volunteer my room!" she added quickly, as if it would make the custody battle easier.
"And I volunteer mine," Fareeha contested, getting a look of utter betrayal from Lena. "Oh come on, I was the one who drove us to the vet!"
"And I was the one who found Io!"
"I paid for the treatment."
"I held it all the way back."
Bastion bwooped and wheewed again. Lucio said, "Now that's a good idea. Why not do it in shifts? Each one of us gets to have Io for…one, two nights? Then the next person takes over."
Angela continued working her way through her salad, as the unanimous agreement quickly fell apart when they started arguing over who would get Io first. She did not bother, though. When Io was in Fareeha's care, it would be under hers as well.
Fareeha was already sprawled across her usual spot in the doctor's bed, fast asleep, by the time Angela returned from her walk that night. The blanket was draped across her hip – Fareeha had a tendency to kick the covers in her sleep – where bare skin was revealed by the tank top that had ridden up her stomach. Angela walked over to the bed, grasping onto the edge of the covers before she noticed the small lump on top of Fareeha's chest. Of course. Fareeha had won the argument that afternoon.
A smile grew on her lips when she moved closer, watching Io sleep peacefully on warm Egyptian skin. The sight of the bird, slowly buoyed up and down in time with Fareeha's breathing, was endearing. But logic also told her it was a downright careless way to handle the bird. So Angela reached out carefully, to cup her hands underneath the bird without waking it.
She failed. Her palms barely met each other when Io stirred, shaking its tiny butt and head, chirping drowsily. At the melodic sound, Fareeha woke as well. With a small grunt, she opened her bleary eyes in time to watch Angela lift the bird from her chest.
"No…" she drawled, raising her hand to catch Angela's. Fareeha whined when Angela moved out of her reach. "Don't kidnap my baby."
"I'm not 'kidnapping', Bärchen," Angela said. "I'm saving Io from being squashed when you turn over in bed."
"Then I won't turn over," Fareeha grumbled. But she remained on her back anyway, watching Angela bring Io to the cardboard box they had fashioned into a temporary bird lodging.
Io tweeted softly as if in gratitude when Angela placed it on top of its bed – a wide spread of cotton bundled with a handkerchief. She ran a finger over its head, feeling herself grow more attached to the little thing. Must be squad's influence.
Angela watched Io close its eyes and nestle into the bed, then went to climb back into her own. She paused to check for bird droppings before laying her head where Io had been earlier. Fareeha's chest shook as she chuckled lazily, hand coming to rest on Angela's head.
"You were jealous of Io."
Deciding to play along, Angela muttered, "No one gets to sleep on my chest."
"Don't you mean my chest?"
"Your chest is my chest." Angela's head was bobbed a little more.
"Oh?" Fareeha moved her hand slowly downwards, trailing down her shoulder and bicep. "Then I guess…this is my chest then?"
Her eyes snapped open when the hand landed on her breast. "Faree–!" A cheeky squeeze made her gasp.
Angela laughed breathlessly, smacking Fareeha's hand off. She raised her eyes to find a lopsided grin on Fareeha's face, and pulled herself up so she could kiss it away.
"So…am I kissing your lips or mine?" Fareeha whispered.
"Shut up." Angela brought their lips together again. This time, she wore a smile that moulded perfectly with Fareeha's.