Title:Mutual
Author: Brendan/brencon
Pairings/Characters:Logan/Veronica, ensemble
Word Count: 1,923
Rating:PG-13, so far.
Summary:What if Logan and Veronica got together before everything went to hell?
Spoilers: Set pre-series, but is now including season one plot.
Warnings: Swearing.
Disclaimer: Veronica Mars belongs to Rob Thomas and the nice people at the CW
Author's Note: Italics represent Veronica's thoughts and/or voiceovers. Obviously, I've fudged up the timeline, but not by much.Thanks everyone for the TWENTY reviews for chapter 14.

Veronica was silent. She hadn't spoken a word since she gave her statement to her father's deputy, and even then she'd only given simple yes or no answers. Right now, she was sitting at the Sherriff Office's reception area, staring into space as time moved forwards… as life continued. The receptionist, Inga, had offered to make her a cup of herbal tea to calm her nerves, but Veronica gave a soft shrug as a decline.

Logan had been called in as Veronica was released and had been in there for the past hour. It was now 7:30pm… Keith had promised his daughter the moment he got any news of Lilly's condition, but her cell had remained silent.

She sighed audibly, rubbing her hands through her hair to awake herself from this daze, but a minute later and her eyes returned to that spot above the door to the interrogation room, where Logan was.

Her body ached from the sheer pain of the day – the fight with Lilly, her mother's departure, Aaron's vain and violent way of life, and now her isolation. She had insisted, once her interview was finished, that she be brought to the hospital, but her pleas landed on deaf ears as she was guided to her current location.

She sighed once more. It was such a long day but so much was still to come. She was shaken from her reverie by the slamming of a door down the corridor from where she sitting and the clip-clap of high heels on the tiled floor.

Soon enough, the designer dress-suit of Logan's mother appeared before her. Even at this disastrous moment in not only her life but her son's, Lynn Echolls was dressed in a vintage designer outfit and Dolce and Gabana sunglasses.

She removed the glasses from her face, carefully placed them in her handbag and searched the room for her son, finding his girlfriend instead.

"Veronica!" she gasped, trotting over to the younger woman. She took in the blonde's appearance and shuddered. She had known about her husband's affairs through the years, but had never thought that he'd sleep with his own son's girlfriend, let alone a minor.

To think of all the times he'd roared at her for creating far too much negative attention to the family, to him, and he was sleeping with girls younger than his own daughter – the hypocritical bastard. And now, she feared that maybe he'd already moved onto his next conquest – the Sheriff's daughter! She only knew fragments of the events of the day, but what she did know rotted her stomach.

Lynn's rage and nausea were pushed back to the pit of her stomach as she took the Mars girl in her arms.

"Veronica, honey? Where's Logan?" She gently asked, feeling the girl soften in her posture.

Veronica quietly said the interrogation room, before clearing her throat to speak once more.

"He's giving his statement of what happened with… what happened this afternoon, he should be finished soon."

"How are you doing, sweetie?"

"I just keep waiting for my phone to ring, so I can know what's happening with Lilly, but so far nothing. What if…," She started, before her voice started breaking, "what if she doesn't get any better? What if she dies, and I never get the chance to apologise? What if Lilly dies, and the last things we said to each other were petty and stupid things? What do I do if…."

Veronica, for the first time since Lilly was carted away on a stretcher, broke down. Her tears ran like a river down her face, wetting Lynn's shoulder. She sniffled, sobbed, and let loose all her fears in that moment, knowing that she would need to be strong when, and she emphasised in her head, when Lilly was on the road to recovery.

As if she could read minds, Lynn came out with the comment that "No news is good news and that you have to hope for the best, because that's all you can do at this very moment – hope."

The two hugged for a moment longer before separating. Lynn retrieved a packet of tissues from her bag and held it out to Veronica, who gladly accepted it.

"Thanks," Veronica said politely, feeling embarrassment for her slight break down in the sheriff's office.

Lynn, eyes twinkling that she helped out, took Veronica's free hand in her own and squeezed it reassuringly.

"Don't mention it."

------

Lilly Kane was currently in intensive care. Her brother sat at her bedside, her hand firmly in his. The only sounds that could be heard within the room where Lilly's breathing, aided by an apparatus, and Duncan's soft sobs of anguish. Outside, a barrage of police officers and Kane Family security, namely Clarence Wiedman, were stopping the paparazzi from gaining any vantage point of the Kane heiress in her hour of need.

In a room down the corridor, Sheriff Mars and the victims parents, Celeste and Jake Kane, were standing with Doctor Craig Dean, head of neurosurgery. All four were currently looking at Lilly's head scans, and it was obvious to anyone without medical training, that the damage caused by the ashtray was severe and would take many surgeries and many months to recover.

"Currently, Lilly is unconscious and is bleeding into her brain cavity. We need to get her into surgery within the next few minutes otherwise she will be severely in capacitated for the rest of her life."

"What can we do?" Lilly's father asked.

"Sign this permission form and we can begin right away."

Dr. Dean held out the form and a pen, both of which Mr. Kane quickly grabbed, He filled out the form and thrust it back into the man's hands.

"Please, save my daughter."

The doctor immediately sprang into action, racing from his office and grabbing nurses and orderly, ordered them to lead Ms. Kane to the OR1. Wiedman along with the officers forced the photographers further back as Lilly was escorted out of her room and down the corridor.

Duncan wobbled as he left his sister's suite, eyes red and puffy. His parents before him walked towards him. His father took into a warm hug while telling him where his sister was going.

Whilst father and son bonded, Celeste Kane led Keith into the now empty private suite. Its grand space was covered in darkness, only a dimmed lamp lighting the room in an eerie orange glow.

Leaning against the closed door, Celeste took in the sight of the monitor that had just been keeping track of her only daughter's blood pressure and heartbeat. She blinked numerous times before looking at the man responsible for catching the culprit. She took a step forward before speaking.

Celeste Kane had other matters to cover before thanking the sheriff for his courageous actions.

"I hear your wife left you this afternoon."

Keith stopped pacing for moment, crossing his arms. He faced the wife of his rival and eyed her appearance. Hair wild and unruly, make up slight ran, clothes mussed. It was not the question he'd expected to be asked, but he answered anyway.

"How did you…. Oh. It was you? Taking the pictures? Scaring Lianne? Why?"

"Oh Keith, don't play the moron with me. We both know what our partners have been doing. We both know their 'love affair' has never stopped. So, I have a request. One small, simple request."

"Which is?"

"You keep Veronica from asking my husband for any monetary assistance in the near future. You keep pretending she's your daughter and we'll all live happily ever after."

Keith was silent for what seemed an age. He crossed many bridges in his head with her question but only one question kept springing to mind.

"Why now? Jake has had sixteen years. Why do you think he'd question paternity now?"

Again, Mrs. Kane's eyes landed on her daughter's monitor.

"If Lilly doesn't survive, he may be powered by guilt and mourning to raise Veronica's awareness to her true parentage."

Keith strode past Celeste and grasped the door handle.

"I'm afraid your fears are not qualified." He used his free hand to grab an envelope from his jacket pocket and held it out for her to take. Her nimble fingers snatched it from his and she moved to the bright light to read what was written.

"What is this?"

"A DNA test. You see, you're little game of leaving messages on Veronica's answering machine didn't just come to my wife's attention. They came to mine. So, a few weeks ago, I took some of Veronica's hair and some of my own and sent them to be tested. These results came this morning, but I only got a chance to look at them this afternoon. She's mine, Celeste. So you can start breathing again. Your money is safe."

Keith opened the door and slammed it shut after him.

Covered in darkness, Celeste scrunched the results firmly in her hand and for the first time since she learned the news of her daughters attack, she cried and sobbed.

------

Another fifteen minutes passed when finally the door both women were watching intensely opened and Logan stepped out, seemingly exhausted. He had the look of someone who had cried, shouted, whispered and wept for almost an hour and a half after being in a gruesome fight.

The deputy offered to get Logan an ice pack from the first aid kit, which he greatly accepted. Logan limped towards his mother and girlfriend, his left shoulder aching and at least two ribs bruised.

His mother was first to hug him, he winced but said nothing, just glad to see her here, with him, instead of his father. She gently kissed his cheek, grateful that he was not injured any more than he was.

Lynn stepped back and her place was quickly replaced by Veronica. Veronica's eyes sparked with love at the sight of her protector. She chastely kissed his lips, not caring that his mother was behind her, and pulled his hand to her mouth and kissed his palm too.

"Any news?" Logan asked. The shaking head of his girlfriend and the quiet "No" from his mother did not bode well in his mind.

"How are you doing?" Lynn asked, taking her jacket it and holding it out so Logan could sit on the chair and gently rest his shoulder against the chair.

"A few cuts and bruises, but I'm otherwise okay." Logan took a breath and winced in pain, but didn't let it stop him.

"How long was I in there?"

Veronica checked her phone and saw that it was now almost 8pm.

"Almost an hour and a half."

"It fells like ten times longer. He asked me so many questions that I think he fried my brain," Logan joked, before coughing. He covered his mouth with his hand and whimpered in pain.

"What did he ask you?" Veronica asked, stroking his face softly.

"Everything. How we knew where Aaron was going, why we thought he might try something illegal… I told him about all my little 'accidents'," Logan said, looking to his mother before coughing once more.

Veronica was about to rub his back for him when her cell phone began to vibrate in her hand. The incoming call told her it was her father.

She was on the verge of answering when Logan suddenly collapsed to the floor and began to spasm and shake uncontrollably, drooling saliva and blood all over the tiled floor of the reception area.