This was the moment Root guessed. The intended shove is to get her to turn on her personal God as she watches Shaw readying for yet another dangerous mission. But not even the positivity of knowing this was just another Samaritan trick could take away the beauty of the sureness of Shaw's movements as each spare clip was stashed away.
Yet knowing this was an obvious trap didn't make it any easier for Root to sit back and let it pass.
She owed it to the Big Lug to finally take out Samaritan once and for all.
She had to admit Samaritan was good at knowing just the right amount of danger to dish out that Root's black-painted fingernails bite just a little harder into the sofa cushion under her to keep from springing up to demand assistance.
Almost as maddening as her time cadged in the library before her friend had finally sought to trust her.
Root does glance up when she sees Shaw's shadow fall over her.
"Don't even think about it," Shaw warns.
"What should I be thinking about then?" Root questions feeling a small thrill of reassurance when Shaw's hand moves to tangle with hers after Root's little confession about how she'd been hiding since she was twelve.
It shocked her more than anything seeing the honest albeit small smile crossing Shaw's lips before she gave an answer. "Maybe someday."
"Hey, you two no time for the smoldering glare eyes or whatever else you two are thinking of the end of the world is still a possible thing if you don't get that ass of yours moving Shaw." The one Root was truly considering knee capping soon interrupts. "Plus you still have to tell Harry about Sa….."
Root's attention snaps to the dark-haired one at the almost usage of her true name as said woman trails off warry now under the total weight of her glaring stair. "Call me Root," the hacker growls needing to bite the end of her tongue to keep the ending 'Bitch' title off for the moment choosing instead to add a correcting "Only I get to comment on Sameen's ass." letting her arms wrap around what she could reach of the copied Shaw still offered in front of her at the moment.
"Only comment?" Shaw chuckles almost as if she hadn't meant to say the words aloud as her gun-free hand lifts to card her fingers through Root's scalp, carding deeper into her hair toying absently with a few strains. Another glaring not real Shaw move. Hannah yes, but not Shaw, Root filed away even as she felt herself leaning into the soft touch the longer Shaw allowed the hacker's finger to linger against her backside through the barrier of her jeans pockets.
"I couldn't stand you when we first met." Shaw sighs in confession meeting Root's wavering gaze as she continues the soft playing with Root's hair between her fingers.
One of Root's deeper meaning smiles flashes now as the hacker's hands join Shaw's holding her touch against the scared mark of Control's scalpel behind the hacker's ear. "Kiss, Kiss to you too Sweetie."
But then Shaw was stepping away from her. The cold mask Root can't help but adore from afar falls across Shaw's expression while Root can only stair in quiet heartbreak as Samaritan relays a few new lines of instructions. ".
"Always the quiet ones." Shaw scoffs once the information had concluded. "Up." She instructs and its not until Shaw's fingers tap under Root's chin with a repeated "Up." Command that the hacker realizes Shaw was talking to her.
Of course, Root obeyed dragging her tired, stiff, uncooperative body upright under Shaw's quiet watchfulness. A struggle she'd gladly make a thousand more times over considering that once she was on her feet Shaw's lips were pressing on the possessive side of soft to hers.
Root could feel the hesitancy, the unsureness of the way Shaw's mouth moved on hers but not even that could dull the hungry fire she feels along with the warry undertone.
"Keep her out of trouble." Shaw growls once they separate from the kiss but not completely from one another. "and I'll go make sure Finch makes it till tomorrow."
Then she was gone and out the door before Root could truly savor the feeling of warmth against her lips or the strained tugging pull of how hard Shaw had been holding the tee shirt Root had put back on.
"Before you start yelling, there's something you should watch. Understand where she's coming from a little more." Root's newest captor instructs pointing towards the open laptop she'd been typing on whilst Shaw had been playing delectable distraction. This is only one of them mind but we've done our best to piece it back together enough to give you a glimpse of what it was like for Shaw when…"
"When it was her turn as Samaritan lab rat?"
The other woman's head drops in shame at the coldness of the asking. "Just watch it first, Sam please get a little perspec…."
She was quicker on the dodge than Root had been expecting as the hacker's fist lashed out for the first initial punch to the talker's jaw.
"You're in no shape for fighting Sam." The woman ticked "You need to rest, to heal."
Again, the sound of her real name only had Root seeing an even darker shade of red as she pivoted around as the almost dancer-like movements of the other woman began to circle around her. "Keep calling me that and I'll be happy to show you just how in shape I am."
"I'm not gonna fight you."
Root rolled her eyes at the comeback as she dipped into a loose fighter's stance. The burning in her chest flaring up making breathing tricky.
The jingling of Bear's collar pulls Root's attention before the dog himself pawing at her pant leg with a warning whimper before he sits down at her side.
"Okay then if you won't listen to me then listen to the dog." Bear gives another coaxing whimper pawing again at Root's pant leg to get the human to sit down. "She put him in charge anyways so might as well listen to him."
Grudgingly Root follows Bear's lead in folding herself down onto the floor with her back to the sofa. Bear immediately laid himself over her legs. Even Root had to admit the pup had been right.
Even she knew her heart rate was climbing too high so soon after her surgery to be healthy recovery.
"Good, now Shaw won't put a bullet into my knee."
"Doesn't mean I won't." Root huffs as her fingers slide even more into Bear's furred back when the offering of the still-opened laptop is lowered down to her.
"It's not going to be easy to watch but think of it like a test. find what tricks Samaritan played with Shaw vs what you think they are playing now with you."
"Run a scan of my mind to find any bad coding?"
Her babysitter smiles "If you wanna see it like that." She shrugs still handing over the computer. "you were always good at that anyway. Why stop now?"
Root hated how she puffed in pride at the praise. "For all I know this is just a trick for me to lower my guard so Samaritan can pick even deeper into my head than they've apparently already gone."
At this, the stranger laughs the sound pulling again at something deep in Root's mind. The parts still considered Sam's memories whenever Root had tagged along on all those side trips to the library.
Even now as the stranger walked away Root sees the outlined phantom of her once best friend standing a few steps behind the taller of them. "Whatever you decide I'll be hitting the trail again, okay Sammy? Try not to die of dysentery before I get back."
Root hates herself for the giggled laughter she gives in answer at the teasing. "Sure Hann." She hears herself answering as her fingers tug what had to be painfully into Bear's scruff at her own slip up missing the glowing smile her words had drawn from her watcher.
She was breaking too easily.
She can't let Samaritan win.
"Time to fix my coding." The hacker muses as Bear yawns sleepily from his sprawled place against her lap.