Set after 2x20 "Shadowwalker". Just the team acting like a family.

Alex found the kitchen already bustling with activity when she went downstairs. She shouldn't have been surprised; Michael had woken everybody up, demanding their coffee and breakfast orders for the café down the road that they had always wanted to try. However, Alex was surprised that Michael hadn't left yet. She had showered and dressed, but he was still in the kitchen with Nikita. Alex couldn't hear what they were saying at first- the blender was whirring loudly. But once the appliance stopped, she overheard Michael say gently to his girlfriend, "Are you sure I can't get you anything? I can go somewhere else. I can make an extra stop…"

"No. It's fine. You guys want to try the place. I'm not going to stop you. I'm perfectly okay with my veggie shake," Nikita chuckled lightly. She poured her freshly blended veggie shake into a cup and began to drink. Her diet shouldn't deter the others from trying new restaurants. She could adjust on her own. She had long been okay with that. Besides, she was still getting a coffee, so it was all good.

"Text me if you're not fine, okay?" Michael insisted. He always felt bad when Nikita had to resort to eating sides or just waiting to eat at home whenever they went out to eat. She shouldn't have to be left out because of her diet. It wasn't fair.

"I'm fine. Now go before Alex and Birkhoff get hangry," Shaking her head, Nikita pushed her boyfriend away. He shouldn't be so worried about her. What he should really be concerned with was how irritated Birkhoff and Alex would get if they weren't fed soon. Michael rolled his eyes and kissed Nikita goodbye. She shoved at him again, making him laugh.

As Michael left, Alex made her way into the kitchen. Nikita didn't acknowledge her; she just put her smoothie ingredients away and drank her breakfast. Alex stood there for a second just watching her. When she realized that Nikita wasn't going to say anything, she sighed and asked, "What was that about?"

"The café you guys want to get breakfast from doesn't have vegetarian options. Well, they do. But I don't want to eat a pastry or a plain croissant," Nikita explained with a shrug. Alex quickly understood why Michael had tried to go to another restaurant. She didn't want Nikita to be left out either. But before she could say anything, the rogue cut her off, "It's fine, though. Really. I have my shake."

"With protein powder. That's new," Eyeing the container of protein powder that Nikita put away, Alex commented. She remembered being forced to drink veggie shakes when she was detoxing in the loft. They were mostly full of disgusting vegetables with some fruit as sweetener. The supplement was a new ingredient that kind of surprised her a little bit.

"Yeah, well, Michael says I need to supplement my diet more. Apparently he cares about me, or something," Chugging her smoothie, Nikita smirked. With her diet, she had found some creative ways to get the right amount of protein and other nutrients into her system. It was Michael's idea, however, to add protein powder to her shakes. After she began doing that, she realized that she was building more muscle and staying more energized. He had been on to something with his idea; maybe she should listen to him more.

"Since you guys started dating, I have noticed that you filled out a lot more," Alex commented. She couldn't help but notice that after the two began dating, Nikita didn't look so stick-thin. Michael probably helped her eat regularly. However, once the words left her mouth, Alex realized how they sounded. Nikita raised an eyebrow and stared at her in offense. Instantly, Alex tried to backpedal, "Not in a bad way. Definitely not in a bad way. You just look really healthy now- and less like a skeleton."

Scoffing, Nikita took an irritated swig of her shake. A part of her knew that Alex was right- she was a whole lot healthier since she had someone in her life that ensured she was eating properly. But she didn't appreciate the dig. She rolled her eyes once more and attempted to think of a way to change subjects. Noticing the hair stuff Alex had brought into the kitchen, she figured that she could just ask a question, "Do you want something?"

Alex gladly accepted the topic change. She held up the brush and hair-ties in her hands and asked for what she had originally gone downstairs for, "Can you braid my hair?"

"No," Nikita replied flatly, leaving the kitchen.

"Please. You Dutch braid so well," Alex pleaded as she followed. When she had brushed her hair after she had washed it, she considered what she wanted to do with it that day. She didn't want to blow-dry it, or straighten it, or curl it, and she definitely didn't want to just throw it into a bun. However, when she thought about braiding her hair- specifically how Nikita braided her hair- she got excited. She could do so many things with her hair, and it'd all look so good.

"I thought the purpose of me braiding your hair the other day was to teach you how to Dutch braid," Turning around, Nikita questioned Alex. The young woman had had her braid her hair before they went on a run on the beach a few weeks ago. She had claimed that she wanted Nikita to do it so she could learn how to do it on her own. Obviously, that had just been a lie so she could get away with being lazy. But the rogue wouldn't let Alex get away with it that time. She was a grown woman; she could do her own hair.

"And you did teach me. But I can only do a single Dutch braid on myself. And it's not that tight. You do the tightest, bestest double Dutch braids that make my hair look really pretty and curly the next day. So, please. Can you braid my hair?" Alex was not above flattery and begging to get what she wanted. Yes, she could braid her own hair. But if she wore Nikita's braids all day and slept in them all night, then she'd wake up with the best hair day ever. Her best friend couldn't deny her that.

"Do you want to look pretty for Sean when you see him tomorrow?" Nikita snarked. Sean had been in DC the past few weeks, mourning his mother, spending time with his sisters, and helping with the things one has to do when a family member died. However, he was planning to swing by the safehouse soon to catch up on the rogues' business and see how he could be of assistance. Alex had been excited to see him again. No wonder she wanted a good hair day.

Alex opened then closed her mouth. There was nothing she could say to Nikita in response. If she argued, she'd be teased. If she agreed, she'd be taunted. The best she could do was strike a deal with Nikita to get her to do what she wanted. Spotting the messy blender, knife, and cutting board in the kitchen, Alex soon knew how she could get Nikita to shut up and just do her hair, "I'll do your dishes for you."

Although Nikita wanted to keep teasing Alex for wanting to look pretty for Sean, she couldn't pass up the opportunity to get out of cleaning. So with a sigh and a roll of her eyes, she relented, "Alright. Sit down."

"You caved way too easily. I would've asked for more."

Hearing the strange voice coming from the front door, Nikita and Alex whirled around on high alert. Fortunately, it was just Ryan coming for a visit. Nikita instantly beamed, "Fletch!"

"Hey, Ryan," Alex greeted brightly. Ryan waved at both women.

"Hey. Michael just left to get us coffee and breakfast at that café you drive past on the way in. If you text him, I'm sure he'll get you something," Ushering Alex towards the couch, Nikita informed Ryan. It wasn't too late; the analyst could still join the others for coffee and breakfast. They didn't have to only be about business.

"Thanks. But I saw him when I was coming in. He already got my order," Ryan informed Nikita. He had pulled into the driveway just as Michael was pulling out. They stopped to talk to each other for a bit, and Michael had made sure to get his breakfast order. Just because Ryan was in another safehouse, the team of rogues always ensured he was in the loop. Mostly information wise, but sometimes that included grocery runs and food orders.

Once Alex sat on the couch, Nikita began to brush and separate her hair. The young woman smiled blissfully, making Ryan laugh as he sat in the chair across from her. She was too content to care. Though, she did wonder what Ryan was doing at the beach house. He must've found something or had some kind of an update that made traveling all the way there worth it, "So what's up? I'm sure you didn't voluntarily come to this madhouse."

"Were you guys involved in the armored truck explosion that destroyed millions of dollars?" Ryan asked. He had seen the report of an explosion that had caused the loss of millions on the news. Since the police had no idea where the millions originated from, he figured the rogues were involved somehow. They either stopped some criminal, or fucked up really bad.

"Hell yeah we were," Alex puffed her chest out in pride. When Nikita muttered 'because you're awesome' behind her, though, her pride turned into a harsh glare. Nikita just laughed.

Ryan continued to glance at the two in confusion. Starting to tightly braid Alex's hair, Nikita decided to help him out and clarified, "It was Percy's money."

"Well, that's gonna make things a lot more interesting," Impressed, Ryan reclined in his chair. The rogues had landed a serious blow against Percy. The bastard was no doubt going to start scrambling to regain control. And in his panicked scramble, he was going to make mistakes. That certainly boded well for the team. They could gain some serious ground in their war.

Nikita and Alex continued to smile proudly. The overall process in destroying Percy's money had been hell- and Birkhoff sadly got hurt in the process- but the payoff was amazing. Nikita couldn't wait to see what other things they could do to ruin Percy's plans. After spending so much time doing his analyst thing in his own place, Ryan had to have had some ideas. He could direct the rogues on their warpath, "Why? What do you got?"

"I'm still trying to figure out what Percy wants to do with the nuclear material he got from Brandt. How did he even get it from him anyway? The CIA never broke him. I'm sure Percy breaking him out of the black site wasn't enough to get him to talk. Also, why kill Senator Pierce? Is there something I'm missing?" Speaking his thoughts aloud, Ryan wondered. The team had very briefly told him about Brandt and the nuclear material he had given Percy. The analyst continued to have so many questions about how that all went down. None of it made much sense. There had to be some information he was missing.

While Ryan asked his questions, Nikita fell silent. She became intently focused on braiding Alex's hair. She soon had the first one done, and hid behind her veggie shake before she started the other. Ryan noticed her strained silence almost instantly. He moved to say something, yet Alex cut him off, "A Division agent captured Brandt and handed him off to the CIA. Brandt wanted revenge, and Percy told him he could get the agent out of hiding if he went after Senator Pierce. I don't think Percy wanted her dead. But Brandt was crazy."

Ryan easily caught onto what Alex wasn't saying. Nikita was the agent that had originally captured Brandt. Her silence expressed that his horrible, crazed ploy to draw her out had actually worked, and he had gotten his painful revenge. She was no doubt still reeling from it, so Ryan didn't want to push her too much. However, he still needed some answers, "And I assume he got his revenge."

Although they weren't facing each other, Alex and Nikita made the same expression; they both acknowledged that his assumption was right, but they weren't going to say a single word about what had happened. That was fair. Ryan probably wouldn't want to talk about all those tragic events either. Unfortunately, his curiosity wasn't satiated easily. He caught sight of a terrible wound on Nikita's bicep and blurted, "Is that how you got that?"

Putting down her empty cup, Nikita glanced at what Ryan was looking at. The bullet wound in her bicep had mostly healed- a few stitches and a bandage had been all she needed. But a nasty mark on her arm remained. It'd go away soon. Not to be cliché, but it was only a flesh wound, "No. That's from trying to get the banker that Percy used to funnel his money."

Nodding, Ryan let the subject drop. Silence stretched on in the room for a long moment. Nikita continued braiding Alex's hair, focusing to make sure it matched the other. After a while, Ryan figured he had to say something to break the tense silence. It had to be a joke. If he poked fun of something, then laughter could bring them out of their depressing funk. He simply needed a topic to joke about. He tried not to put too much thought into it. That might ruin his joke. Just blurting could work the best, "So you've had your ass kicked a lot lately?"

"Hey!" Although she was offended, Nikita couldn't help but laugh. Alex and Ryan laughing with her helped her keep smiling. She couldn't not grin when the others were happy.

"That's surprising for such a kick ass warrior," Ryan continued, making Alex laugh harder. Nikita wanted to be annoyed; she rolled her eyes and everything. Yet she couldn't really be upset. Ryan's trick to make her feel better had worked, after all.

"Not really. Nikki gets her ass handed to her all the time," Tilting her head back to smirk at Nikita, Alex teased. Although Ryan kept laughing, the rogue glared.

As she finished the braid, Nikita pulled sharply on Alex's hair. The young woman whined in discomfort, but her best friend ignored her. She simply tied off the braid and replied coolly, "Oh, I do? What about you, Princess?"

Once Nikita let go of her hair, Alex massaged her sore head. Alright, she had to admit that she also got her ass handed to her out in the field. None of the rogues were perfect. They met their match, then they learned and adapted. At least through all that time, Alex had stayed fair. Nikita, on the other hand, would always be a dirty fighter, "Well, at least I don't fight dirty."

"Or strap people to rocking horses," Finally joining the others in the livingroom, Birkhoff added. While he had slowly woke himself up and got ready for the day in his room, he had heard constant commotion in the safehouse. He wasn't surprised that it all came from Nikita and Alex. Though, he was shocked to see that Ryan was feeding into the chaos. He probably got bored at his own safehouse and decided to use the beach house as free entertainment.

"You deserved that," Nikita shrugged. She didn't think Birkhoff would ever let the rocking horse thing go. But she didn't care. She honestly didn't think she'd ever not make fun of him for it; Michael was definitely on the same page as her there.

While the nerd glared at her for still being so rude, Nikita handed Alex her brush and the empty cup; she could return her stuff to her room, then start on the dishes in the kitchen. With her attention on Alex's eye roll, Nikita didn't notice what Birkhoff was up to until it was too late. A small hard piece of candy hit her face then the floor. She looked at it, then at the nerd, bewildered, "Did you just throw an M&M at me?"

"You deserved that," Birkhoff smirked, eating the other pieces of candy he had in his hand. He had only intended to eat a few pieces to hold him over until Michael returned. However, using them as ammunition worked too.

"It's eight in the morning. What are you doing with M&Ms?" Nikita could understand why Birkhoff threw candy at her. Yet, she couldn't wrap her head around why he would eat some before breakfast. Didn't it make him sick. Or were his eating habits that fucked up.

"They're Skittles actually," After eating the free piece of candy that had landed on the floor (in her defense, she was starving) Alex corrected.

When Nikita turned to Alex, shocked and disgusted that she had eaten food off the floor, Ryan burst into laughter. He had watched the whole interaction in amusement, but something about that expression- and Alex's innocent shrug in response- made him lose it. After a beat, he was able to pinpoint what it was, and he was able to explain it to the others when they looked at him, "Sorry. You guys just remind me of me and my brother."

"You have a brother?" Alex asked, curiously. She just then realized that she didn't know much about Ryan. Yeah, she had had to make that fake conspiracy thing about him when she was a recruit, but all she really knew was that he had been a CIA analyst, he had discovered Division on his own, and he always wanted to uncover the truth. She should probably spend the time getting to know him better. The whole team (Sean included) should probably just sit down and talk to each other like normal friends.

"Had. He died in Afghanistan," Ryan explained quietly.

"Oh. I'm sorry," Alex wasn't sure what else to say. Ryan just shrugged, though. It had happened a while ago. Although he still mourned his brother, he wasn't weighed down by grief. He could laugh at the fond memories and the reflection he saw of him in the rogues.

Just like what Ryan had done for her earlier, Nikita attempted a joke to lighten the mood. She didn't poke fun of the analyst, though. She went for a far easier target, "Well, I told you before Fletch, you're welcome to join this family. Just keep in mind that some people, like Birkhoff, are insufferable."

Birkhoff launched another Skittle at Nikita. She then launched herself at him, "That's it!"

"Get him, Nik!" Delaying doing the dishes, Alex cheered. Birkhoff threw his remaining Skittles at Nikita to try and slow her down, yet she soon caught up to him. She threw a light punch just for payback. However, he was able to deflect it. Both were surprised by his actions. Chuckling, Nikita managed to recover quickly and held up her fists to goad him into a sparring match. Birkhoff accepted her challenge gladly.

For a minute there, Birkhoff was able to hold his own against Nikita; Michael had been teaching him well. Unfortunately, she was still much faster than him. It didn't take her long to have him in a submission hold. He frantically tapped the ground to make her let him go and shouted, "I yield! I yield!"

"I'm sure you deserved that," Walking in on the chaos, Michael immediately quipped. Nikita scrambled off of Birkhoff and jumped to her boyfriend. She gave him a chaste kiss, then took the drinks from his hand and brought them to the table. Birkhoff would've been annoyed by what had happened, yet he was too distracted by food. He hopped to his feet, took the food bag from Michael, and dug through the contents for his breakfast. Alex was soon right by his side, digging for hers. Ryan and Michael at least waited for the chaos to die down before they grabbed their food. But the chaos would never really die down. That was just who they were.