As promised ;)
It took Sabrina a week to recover but even then she was a little weak on her legs. She would need looking after, so I requested that I be allowed to take care of her here at headquarters. I was granted this guardianship but all responsibility rested with me. Certain areas were barred from Sabrina's eyes but she was just happy to rest, eat and get to know my team. She was never much of an adventurer.
It turned out that Sabrina had never been genetically mutated. She was an entirely different experiment altogether. The first successful clone that had been made from her had then been mutated into part cat, the original cat Sabrina. She had been the one to save my life. When I get home, I'm changing the name on her grave to Grace as a thank you, and to give her a new identity, one she could call her own.
Jinx was up on her feet after just a few hours rest and training with Snake Eyes. I wasn't sure if I liked her yet though she was very nice to me, friendly even. It was a little too big of a jump. I had explained to her that the clone Jinx had hated my guts and tried to kill me, so she understood why it was going to take some time for me to adjust to this new personality.
Sabrina gave me the final kick to mend things that were never actually broken between me and Jinx. Told me to suck in my pride and make friends. Turns out, Jinx has never been to New York, so it had been her clone that had spat on me. All was forgiven.
Apart from one tiny little detail. She still liked Snake Eyes. Too much. After sitting up for an entire night, puzzling over how I felt about Snake Eyes, I decided that I liked him too much as well. In fact, I was pretty sure I had fallen in love with him. It was strange waters and definitely untested, but I couldn't mistake the deep way I felt about him as a simple crush.
But he spent most of his time with Jinx, training with her, keeping her company and she still fawned over him like a love struck puppy. I had walked into the rec room once and found then snuggled up on the sofa. That's when I realised they were together.
That's when I knew that I might as well give up. Inwardly I wanted to cry, outwardly, I became cold of feeling to make sure no one noticed the hurt inside. I covered it up by being purposefully happy, wrestling with Block, Duke and Rip, learning how to play chess from Sabrina and Scarlet and going to shooting practice with Jaye, making sure I used every second of my time to distract myself from Snake.
One other thing, who the hell invented chess? I seriously sucked at this game. No matter how many times I tried, I always ended up losing. Even Sabrina beats me! Though she did say she had been playing since she was a little girl, so I'll argue she has more experience than me.
"You'll get it eventually, just remember Bishop can only go diagonally." Sabrina said as Scarlet fell about laughing at another epic fail. Hey, it's not my fault I forgot the King was the piece I was supposed to protect. I did the decent thing! Moving him to protect his Queen, that's chivalry right there. I deserved to win just for that. "And that the King is meant to survive."
"Stupid man." I picked him up and glared at him. "Seriously, where would you be without us women and your queen? Dead." I carefully placed him back then rubbed my temples. "You know what, I think I'll leave this game to you two." I sighed with a smile. "I suck."
"Yes. Yes you do." Scarlet replied unhelpfully. "But you suck with style." I laughed quietly, eyes closing against my hand as I blushed.
"Alright! Alright I get it, I'm a douche." Standing up I stretched, clicking my back. "But I always hammer you in an arm wrestle."
"Which is why I never challenge you." Scarlet answered smartly, restarting the game to play with Sabrina.
"Is that another of your gifts? Super strength?" Bless her, she called them gifts, not genetic mutations or enhancements. Moments like this remind me how much I missed her.
"Want to see?" I knelt down then offered her my pinkie, resting my elbow on the table. She gripped it tightly then tried to move my arm down. I didn't budge. Grunting, Sabrina gripped with both hands, tugging and pulling before finally giving up.
"That's actually quite cool!"
"That's nothing! Watch this!" I leaped up gleefully, glad that I could show off for someone. I leaped over the sofa, bent down then picked it up, with Heavy and Breaker still sitting on it.
"Hey! Whoa there!" Heavy yelped, grabbing on as Breaker cried out in alarm.
"Put us down! Put us down!" Sabrina gasped, staring in awe as I set the sofa down then joined them again. Scarlet rolled her eyes as I grinned cheerfully.
"She's only showing off because you're here." Scarlet explained to Sabrina. "So don't be too impressed otherwise it will go to her head."
"Me? Egotistic? Honestly Scarlet, I thought you knew me better." I fluttered my lashes then winked at Sabrina who giggled. "I'm going to see if they want some help in the kitchen." I said to them. "See you later."
"Wait, you want to work? Are you feeling okay?" Scarlet asked me with slight concern and confusion, peering at me through narrowed eyes.
"Sure." I paused. "Actually, I just want to make cookies. I'll bake some and bring them back!" Waving a hand I headed for the kitchen. I was allowed to make cookies, on the condition I made enough to share with Wallaby. It was a deal. I made milk chocolate chip, white chocolate chip and double chocolate. If you hadn't guessed, I loved chocolate cookies. I also made a chocolate cake in a small pie dish for Sabrina as a surprise, smothering it in fudgy sauce as I went.
"You know, you're going to use all of my supplies if you keep on coming back." Wallaby teased me as I left the cookies to cool a little.
"It helps me relax." I answered simply with a shrug. "Can I help with lunch?"
"Sure, if you really want to. I've only got lazy old sacks of wine in here today." Wallaby glared at two girls, who were nattering away in the corner. "Get those potatoes peeled before I clip your nails!" They hurried to continue. It made me laugh sometimes. The younger girls who were introduced still cared so much about their looks and hair, whereas us older women just didn't give a damn.
As I prepared meat for cooking, Wallaby came to my side, eating one of my cookies. "So what's on your mind?" He asked me, pulling out some trays to put the chicken wings into.
"Nothing." I answered simply with a seemingly carefree shrug.
"Sheila, I've lived twice as long as you have. I know when something's up." He gave me a little look which meant he wasn't going to let off until I had explained everything.
"Well…there's this…guy."
"Ahah! I knew it!" He gloated victoriously then returned to chopping vegetables, nodding his head for me to continue.
"And I kinda like him a lot. Well actually, I'm pretty sure I've fallen for him." Just thinking about him set off butterflies in my gut. "But he's with another woman. At least, I'm pretty sure they're together, they haven't actually told anyone." Shoving the tray of chicken into the oven I washed my hands again before helping him dice carrots with alarming speed.
"Seems like you need to come clean with him."
"But he's happy."
"But you're not." Point taken, but I would never forgive myself if I interrupted a perfectly good relationship. Besides, it would only complicate things to the extreme. Snake's the kind of guy who feels responsible for those unable to defend themselves and is fiercely protective over women, especially us. If I told him that I was in pain, he'd only feel guilty.
"It wouldn't work anyway. There's more important things to be thinking about that relationships." I reasoned lightly then inclined my head behind me. "Like your lamb in the oven."
"Crikey!" His Australian accent piercing the roof with its shrillness as he ran for his lamb. I giggled, continuing with cutting my vegetables before throwing them into a steam cooker. My love status left Wallaby's mind as it got closer to serving time so I was saved from having to explain further, or worse, reveal who it was.
I helped serve, cleaning up after me before skipping the meal and taking the small cake and cookies back to the rec room. I left them on the side, going over to a running machine to jog a few miles. "I assume you're not hungry." Storm Shadow's voice said from behind me.
"If you're trying to sneak up on me, Storm, try and remember that I have excellent senses. Try again when I'm asleep." I called back to him, not breaking stride. He chuckled quietly then moved around to the kitchen to grab a drink. He paused, looking at the stack of cookies before selecting one. Now I stopped.
He bit into it carefully, chewing slowly before finishing it off. "Aw, you like my cooking!" I smiled at him, arching an eyebrow as he turned around slightly too quickly, as if annoyed he'd been caught.
"It was adequate." He told me but I saw him glance back to the pile.
"There's enough for you to have another one." Storm opened his mouth to refuse but stopped, glancing back before snatching another one, a larger one, off the pile. I couldn't help but laugh.
"Never thought a ninja would one day be eating my cookies." I said as I started running again.
"Perhaps you are better than I first anticipated." He shrugged simply, savouring the double chocolate cookie with slow chews.
"And I think you secretly have a sweet tooth." I retorted, still grinning as I ran. "Shall I get you some ice cream to go with that?"
"No." He did think about it though. I was right! Storm Shadow, the notorious, apparently cold blooded, iron hearted ninja had a sweet tooth. Blessed be the day. "Why aren't you eating?" He changed the subject, flicking through a book before tossing it over his head.
"Not hungry. I've been picking in the kitchen for most of the morning." I explained simply. "What about you?"
"I do not require three meals a day like the rest of you."
"Oh that's funny, I technically don't need to eat as much as I do either, because for some stupid reason, my body can survive without nourishment for more than three days." I rolled my eyes. "A stupid enhancement, I like food."
"Then why aren't you eating now?"
"Because…I just told you." I frowned at him, keeping up the pace.
"Because you didn't eat yesterday either." He'd noticed? Damn, I had to get better at lying. Trying to take his mind off of my eating habits, I questioned him.
"Have you been stalking me?"
"If I had been, you would have known, due to your apparent skill of detection." He had a point. If someone was following me, I would know. Hell, I can hear Ripcord burping when he's in the games room. Which is on a different floor! It really helps that I can tune in out of my senses, like I can turn a dial and their sensitivity comes down. Deciding not to answer I continued to run. "Snake Eyes worries about you. He tells me you haven't been sleeping." Now I stopped running, looking down at my feet as I hunched into myself slightly, finding my shell. Without saying a word I picked up my towel and went to the kitchen to grab a bottle of chilled water. "And since you're not eating, it stands to reason that something is wrong."
"Nothing is wrong." I replied through grit teeth, unscrewing the cap then threw the water to the back of my throat.
"Robyn." I looked around to Storm Shadow, who had got up and was now approaching me. When he stood directly before me, he placed a hand on my shoulder. "We can understand what you have gone through. It's hard, feeling like you killed your own friends." Looking away again I tried to move away but Storm blocked me. "You need to talk to someone."
"I'm fine. I can handle it. I've been through enough to know how deal with my own problems." Which was no word of a lie. I'd seen Sabrina die twice and managed to get through it. This was just another wall I needed to smash through.
"Listen to me, Robyn." I sighed but nodded, signalling I was paying attention. "You're not the only one who has nightmares. Snake Eyes met a clone of you at that fort." My head snapped up in surprise, staring in shock at Storm Shadow. "At first he believed it was you, so he didn't attack. I'm not entirely sure what happened, but it has affected him in a way I've never seen anything affect him before." Storm stood up, a protective gleam in his eye. "I want you to talk to him."
"He doesn't need me. He's got you and Jinx…" I trailed off, swallowing before narrowing my eyes. "Did he kill her?" Storm paused before nodding.
"He did." Good. I don't want another version of me running around.
"If he wants to talk, he knows I'm around." I made to walk away but Storm gripped my arm sharply and quickly. My vision blackened and I felt the sensation of pulling Storm around before me, wrapping an arm around his neck then placed my hands either side of his head and on a shoulder, preparing to snap his neck. Then my vision returned.
"Damn it Storm! You know not to do that!" I practically screamed at him, shoving him away. "I could have killed you too!"
"Calm down, it was just instinctive. I'm sorry I startled you." Storm Shadow said calmly, trying to soothe me but I backed away as he tried to approach.
"Stay away from me!" I yelled, scrambling to race around him. "I hate this! I hate being a freak!"
"You're not a freak, you're just still not used to controlling your accelerated reflexes." Storm answered, trying to catch me but I jumped out of reach then headed for the door. He managed to catch my arm but I yanked it back.
"Don't! Just don't touch me, please." Turning I walked towards the door, pulling it open. "I don't want to hurt you by accident." Leaving him behind I escaped to the only place I felt at peace. The beach. I took off my shoes and socks, rolled up my trousers then walked in the surf, letting the water wash against my feet as I looked out to the open water, the waves non-existent, leaving only a glimmering blanket of sapphire and emerald clearness, showing the white sandy bottom underneath the fine threads of silk.
Inhaling deeply I heard the sound of distant clicks. I looked out to the further ocean and smiled, seeing a pod of dolphins leap out of the water, playing in the warm sun before swimming away together. Heart lifted by the little display, I continued my walk around the island.
By the time the sun had begun to set and the water was cast into a pallet of different hues, I had walked around the entire beach four or five times. It was getting late and I needed to get back inside.
I dusted my feet from the sand, sitting on a rock before sliding both shoes and socks back on. Returning to the gate I nodded to the guards who let me swipe my card and enter, leaving the glistening sea behind me.
Lifting a hand I ran it through my fingers. It now touched my shoulders. Just. Storm had cut it pretty short. One of the newer girls offered to style it for me but I couldn't be bothered to make it look fashionable. I could still throw it up into a short ponytail.
Not quite ready to return to the others, I wandered the corridors until I ran into Jinx. She smiled at me. "Hi, we've been wondering where you got to."
"I walked on the beach for a while." I replied simply. "Have you seen Snake?" Surprising myself with the question, I concealed my shock from my features. "I need to talk to him."
"Oh, I think he's in his room. He usually sleeps from late afternoon to evening instead of at night." I didn't want to know how she knew that. "Listen, I want to thank you."
"What for?"
"Well, without you, Storm wouldn't have been able to get into that lab." She said to me, smiling gently. "So thanks."
"Don't thank me. Thank Commander." I shrugged simply. "He's the one who gave me genetically impressive senses." Chuckling slightly she nodded her head.
"Well, I'll see you around. How about we do some training tomorrow? I'd like to have a session or two with you." Jinx offered with a friendly smile. "You know, get to know each other a little more?"
"Sure. That would be great. I needed a change of partner, Snake and Storm know all of my tricks." I said humorously then slid past her, heading to the male barracks. I swiped my card to let me through the door then searched for Snake Eyes. A few guys whistled at me but I ignored them, pretending to look serious as if there was something important to do.
I found Snake's room after asking one of the nicer guys, one I had wrestled in the ring with before. He told me the way then smirked. "Why? You need a little 'chat'?" I shrugged.
"It's nothing serious, I just have a few questions about something that happened on the mission." He continued to give me a slightly worrying look.
"Uh huh, sure. Well, make sure you leave him in one piece." I caught onto his meaning.
"What? No! Dude you have it so wrong!" I blanched then punched him in the chest. "Go wash your mouth out with some soap!"
"Sure, sure." He waved a hand but continued to wear that knowing look. Jeez, maybe I should wait until tomorrow. My feet disagreed. They forced me to follow Frenchie's directions until I stood outside his room. Drawing in a slow breath I knocked on the door. "Snake?" No answer. Guess he was either out or asleep. Too bad, guess I'll just have to leave. Then I heard something bang from inside. "Snake?" I knocked again. "Are you okay? Snake Eyes!" Growling and muttering under my breath I opened the door and walked in. When my eyes adjusted to the dark I saw him lying on his bed, twisting and turning as if he were having a nightmare.
His lamp lay on the floor, obviously he had knocked it over. I shut the door behind me then hurried over to Snake's side, pinning down his shoulders then shook him awake. "Hey! Wake up!" Snake shook his head then looked up at me. "Aren't you uncomfortable sleeping in your suit?" I asked him out of genuine curiosity.
Before I could blink Snake had his arms around me, tightly holding me to him as I heard him sigh softly with relief. "Oh. Okay. Guess not." I said stupidly, blinking in surprise as Snake then drew back. "Are you okay?" He shrugged. That's not a good sign, normally he's fine. What should I do now? "Well, I…um…need to talk to you. Yes." I babbled uselessly, tucking my hair behind my ear with my little finger. "Er…what did I need to talk about again?" I asked him and he shrugged, sitting up and placing his feet on the ground, rubbing his neck as he waited for me.
"Oh! Right. Storm said I needed to talk to you about…what happened." His head jerked up to me and I jumped slightly at the sudden movement. Why did I feel so nervous? It was only Snake Eyes, for crying out loud. Though the butterflies seriously didn't help. "I mean about the fort. No, I mean…uh…oh crap." Snake chuckled silently at me then reached out, taking my hand then pulled me to sit next to him on the bed. He sighed at me to calm down and take a breath. I did so, letting it out then felt a little calmer.
"About the clone." Now he understood. His shoulders rose and then fell in a deep sigh before he reached forwards, picked up his lamp then switched it on, filling the room with light. He began to sign. What did I want to know?
"Well, I don't really know. I just want to make sure you're okay." I answered. "I know how it feels, to think you've killed one of your teammates but…hey, wait a second. You killed me!" I stared at him. "How did you know I wasn't me? I mean, how did you know the clone was me? No, wait, uh…you know what I mean." He chuckled again then signed.
"Because she tucked her hair wrong?" I frowned in confusion. Snake signed some more. He said that she had used her all her fingers to tuck her hair behind her ear whereas I always used only my little finger. Blinking I realised this was true. It was a habit I started only after being experimented on, which would mean that the new habit didn't compute with the cloned me. "Oh. I really do that?" He nodded his head. "Well, thanks for noticing, I guess." He sighed some more and I smiled. "Yes I realise it was also kinda obvious when she started attacking you. She didn't hurt you did she?" He shook his head. "Good. By the way, thanks for saving me, I didn't know whether the cloned you was actually going to kill me or not."
Snake asked me why he had hesitated. I wasn't too sure myself. I mean, I knew why I hesitated but the clone had been altered to be like a Viper, it shouldn't have any feelings. Should it?
"I don't know. Maybe he was confused as to why I hesitated." Snake looked at me with surprise then signed some more. "Yes I know, I didn't hesitate with the others. It just felt…wrong, I guess, shooting you. I just couldn't do it." I looked at Snake, swallowing the nerves. "You mean too much to me." Snake looked at me for a long time before slowly reaching an arm around me and drawing me closer, letting me rest my head on his shoulder. After a while I sighed.
"So is that why you have nightmares? Because you feel guilty about killing me? If it will make you feel better, I don't mind stabbing you or something to make it square." He laughed then signed around me, making me have to tip my head back to be able to see both hands. "Because I died? Snake…" I turned to face him, shifting on the bed. "You brought me back. I'm fine. You don't need to worry." He nodded his head and looked away. I could tell he was hiding something, there was a hesitation in him, a pause which he was now trying to bury away without me noticing.
"Snake. There's something else." I stated sternly, touching his face to make him face me. "You won't feel any better if you keep it hidden. You can tell me anything Snake, I promise." Still he hesitated, reluctant to let it go. "Please? I can't bear the thought of you in pain." Slowly he nodded his head he began to sign.
"She spoke to you." I nodded, trying to keep up with all the signs and their meanings. I was still learning. "She said that she knew my…parrot? No, head? No, mind?" He nodded. "And my memories. My…feelings? Feelings." I frowned slightly in concentration so Snake slowed down for me. "She said that I thought you were a waste of space and hated you being so overprotective. She said that? Damn, she was a bitch! You sure you didn't kill her? Because I'm more than happy to finish the job." Snake Eyes assured me that she was gone. Too bad, I'd have given her a serious butt kicking.
Turning back to Snake he continued. "She said that I didn't care about you. That I didn't…" I paused, unsure if the word I though he had said was right. He signed it again. "Love? She said that I didn't love you?" He paused before finishing. Now I just stared at him. Utter shock swallowed me before I quietly fitted the pieces together in a lowered tone.
"She told you I didn't love you the way you loved me." Probably ashamed, or embarrassed, Snake turned his head away from me, unable to meet my eye. "Snake?" He stood up and went towards the door. Oh no you don't, you are not walking away from this. We're not finished!
From my belt I grabbed a shuriken and flicked it at him, glaring slightly as it hit his door just above the handle, missing his hand by less than an inch. Getting up I walked over to him, sighing softly as he still refused to look at me. "Snake Eyes. Look at me." I commanded in a gentle tone, reaching out to touch his arm. Slowly he turned, looking at his feet before lifting his head to meet my eyes.
His entire character seemed sad. His shoulders were slumped and he struggled to keep looking at me, his body half turned to leave. I lifted a hand to his face, gently rubbing it against his helmet. A hand rose up and covered mine, gripping it securely as he turned his face towards my palm.
Before I could change my mind I placed my other hand on his neck then rose up onto my toes, closing my eyes as I placed my lips against his helmet where his mouth should have been. I felt him stiffen but I didn't pull away.
It felt strange. His helmet was cool against my warm lips and even stranger because, well, I'd never kissed a helmet before. Normally a male pair of lips were involved. Though funnily enough, I didn't care. My lips moved against his hidden face as if he was returning my kiss, like I desperately wanted him to.
All tension fled from him as his arm snaked around my back and pulled me quickly closer, the other letting go of my hair to push through my hair, gently pulling back my head. I looked up into the visor then lifted both hands, pausing before taking off his helmet pieces. I looked down to his bedside table and gently put them down before facing face Snake Eyes.
Before my body had even properly turned his lips were on mine as his hands cradled my neck, a quiet squeak coming from my throat before I answered his caress. He kissed me with a burning passion that I never knew was in him. He claimed my lips and refused to let them go as he slowly let his hands drop from my neck to my waist, lifting me up to close the height difference.
This unlocked all the butterflies from the cage, letting them fly away from me as I remained locked in Snake's arms, his damn sexy mouth kissing mine until I was in a daze. Hell, I should have done this months ago. Why was I such an idiot? Then I remembered Jinx.
I moaned slightly, trying to get his attention. Snake pulled back and looked at me but did not let go. Gasping for breath it took a moment for me to recover the breath Snake had stolen from me and from the adrenaline that had fired up in my body. "What about Jinx?"
He arched an eyebrow at me in confusion. "Aren't you together?" Snake Eyes blinked in surprise then smiled broadly, instantly entrancing me as he laughed. "What? You two were as close as honey and bees!" He laughed harder. "Hey, this is not funny. I'm trying to be serious here!" But I was giggling a little too, unable to maintain a serious face. When Snake had managed to stop laughing he leaned forwards and gave my lips a slow, deliberately teasing taste of him. "You are not fair."
Snake sighed then all at once dropped me on the bed, placing one knee down beside me as he looked down at me. My heart hammered faster in my chest. Snake signed to me and I took a moment to translate. "You were never together? Really? But…come on. You have to admit that there was something going on there." He continued to explain. "You're close. Yeah I get that but…Snake I think she has feelings for you." The poor guy actually looked surprised. You mean he didn't know? "Have you been living under a rock or something?" Another brilliant smile lit his face before he waved his hands at me again.
"Oh how romantic." I drawled but smiled all the same. He hadn't noticed her because all he could ever look at was me. I loved this guy. My smile dropped from my face as I thought for a moment. Snake tilted his head to the side in question. "Snake. You need to talk to Jinx. It's not fair on her for you to pay her all the attention you have been paying her then just abandon her." He nodded his head, reaching down to push my hair out of my face then gently stroked my cheek with the back of his hand. "Why were you spending so much time with her?" I questioned curiously. "Because you almost convinced me that you didn't care."
Snake Eyes answered my question with a sly smirk as he signed. Damn, he looks even sexier when smirking. This was not fair. "Well congratulations. You certainly succeeded." I answered, chuckling. "You seriously just wanted to make me feel jealous?" He nodded his head then blushed a little. Okay, this was totally the cutest thing I had ever seen. It should be made illegal to look that gorgeous. "Well then, I guess we're both morons."
In answer Snake Eyes kissed me again. It was getting late and I knew I had to go but I was reluctant to leave Snake's arms as he held me, my head on his shoulder as we curled up together on his bed. I knew he was watching me, I could feel his eyes on my face as I ran my thumb against his arm, which was curled around me. "I have to go. I've been here longer than I should have been." I murmured to him softly, keeping my eyes closed. He only drew me closer.
"Snake, people might get ideas." I sighed, opening my eyes. He smirked at me. "Hey! I have a reputation to uphold. Sweet, innocent and deadly." Reaching forwards Snake placed a chaste kiss on the tip of my nose. I instantly cuddled closer to him, groaning. "I've decided that I hate it when you do that." He chuckled.
It took a further five minutes to persuade Snake, as well as myself, to get up and leave. At the door I yanked the shuriken out from the wood then slipped it into my belt. Before I turned around Snake's arms wound around me. His kisses trailed from my neck to my shoulder and I whimpered slightly.
"Stop that or you'll convince me to stay!" His hands mover further around my stomach, saying he wouldn't complain if I did. "You'll get us both into trouble." I reprimanded then opened the door, slipping through but before I did, I turned and gave him one last smile. "I'll see you tomorrow." I promised and he nodded his head, a lightened shine in his eyes as he couldn't stop the small smile on his features.
I don't think either of us had nightmares that night.