Swimming the Gauntlet
Q watched as Eve left - the absolute traitor - before turning back to the double-0s, just in time to see Alexis fling herself at him, sending them both back toppling back against the wall with an oof.
"You did good, hun" she whispered, too low for even the other alphas with heightened senses to hear, "I'm so proud of you".
To his mortification, he felt his eyes burn, and Q quickly buried his face in her neck to stop her from seeing. As per usual, however, Alexis seemed to know exactly how he was feeling, and she somehow managed to wrap herself even more around his smaller frame.
He breathed in her scent slowly, savouring every moment. The last few hours, days, weeks, months, even, had been stressful and chaotic and draining, and Q wasn't used to opening up like he'd just done at all, let alone doing it twice in one week. So he let the alpha's scent calm him, warm and earthy and something that could only be described as smelling like summer. He would very likely never tell her this, but Alexis' scent reminded him of his mother, the first formidable alpha in his life, yet equally soft and caring and safe.
Q didn't realise that they were even moving until he suddenly found himself being lowered backwards. He panicked, briefly, before two large hands wrapped around his waist and he was unceremoniously pulled down onto someone's lap. Letting out a disgruntled sound, he awkwardly twisted in the alpha's grip only to be easily rearranged once more.
"Oh calm down, brat, before you have a fucking stroke!"
Duncan.
"Well maybe if you lot didn't pick me up and move me whenever you felt like it, then I wouldn't be stressed!"
The man sighed, a ghost of warm breath against his neck, before placing one hand under both of the omega's legs and swinging him around so he sat sideways on his lap. Before Q could protest, however, Duncan leaned further back into the couch, wrapped one arm around his knees, the other around his shoulders, and then gently yet purposefully turned Q's face until it was pressed against his neck and-
The omega took a slow deep inhale.
Yeah. Okay. Maybe this wasn't so bad after all.
"There you go" Duncan said quietly, his grip reassuringly - but not overly - firm, "You need to calm down, brat, your scent is too fucking anxious for it to be healthy".
Q breathed in the man's own scent - spicy and relaxing and vaguely alcoholic - and immediately felt his heart rate start to slow.
Stupid bloody pheromones.
"I think we can abandon the roster for today" Alexis said and - oh yeah, where had she disappeared to? Yet as soon as the omega even had the thought he felt another warm presence against his back as she threw both arms around his neck and rested her chin on his shoulder.
"Easy for you to say, when you've already had your turn" Edie muttered petulantly, but the redhead refused to back down. "Well, maybe if someone hadn't decided to go behind their Quartermaster's back, the roster would still be in place".
009 paused, grimaced, and then, rather surprisingly, turned to Q.
"I… I'm sorry… about that. I just… I mean, you heard what Charlie said, sweetheart. It's… It's difficult, for us to trust you, when we don't know a thing about you".
"That's not true" 002 quickly said, "We know he likes sweet things".
"And tea" Saif added, "And sarcasm... And making us explosives".
Q couldn't help but smile, his face still half-hidden by Duncan's t-shirt.
"You're only saying that 005, because you want more explosives".
"I always want more explosives" he replied seriously, still perched on the edge of the coffee table, "But I'm, uh… I'm sorry too, for what it's worth. I don't know if you know that I was actually involved in this entire thing too, I mean, probably not, but-"
Q snorted and then quickly tried - and failed - to cover it with a cough. Saif frowned, confused. "You alright there, Quartermaster?"
"Yeah!" he replied hastily, "Yeah, no, definitely, I am one-hundred-percent okay, I just, uh… you're not meant to be the best double-0 at subtly, are you?"
His frown deepened, now beyond confused and Q tried desperately not to laugh. Or cry. Or possibly both. Either way, he should probably clear this particular matter up before it went any further.
"I've known that you were involved since day one".
"What?!" he exclaimed, "No! You couldn't have! How?!"
Q gave the man a rather pitying look. "I hate to break it to you, 005, but you're kind of… well… obvious".
Alexis burst out laughing and even Duncan smirked. Both Edie and Charles remained apprehensive, however, as if expecting another scolding, but Saif looked devastated.
"No I'm not! I can't be! I'm a double-0!"
"I know" he replied sagely, "That's why it scares me".
The alpha still looked rather distraught and the Quartermaster started to feel kind of bad for him.
"I didn't know for certain, if that helps" he added, watching in amusement as 005 immediately perked up again, "At least, not until that night at the pub".
Saif deflated.
"We were playing Never Have I Ever" Q explained, "And the story of the day was something along the lines of me being the long lost prince of England… And then you asked if I'd ever been to Buckingham Palace".
Alexis snorted. "Smooth".
"Shut up!" Saif protested, "I thought he was drunk!"
"I was" Q replied, narrowing his eyes at him, "Which is exactly what made it such a dick move!"
"... I'm sorry?"
He sighed. "... Fine. But I demand retribution in the form of cuddles!"
Saif blinked. "I mean… yeah, that sounds like a win-win for me. Budge over, Alexis".
She grumbled half-heartedly but did as told, somehow managing to curl up against the back of the couch while keeping both arms wrapped loosely around Q's shoulders. Saif easily fit himself into where she had once sat, both hands immediately going to the omega's hair. He let out a happy noise, too tired and stressed and drained to feel embarrassed, and wriggled closer to Duncan who immediately tightened his hold.
It would be easy, so, so easy for him to fall asleep like this, surrounded by his double-0s and warm and comfy and safe… but there was still just one thing that he needed to know first.
"Did you three actually believe all those stories?"
Saif's hands briefly paused in his curls before he resumed his petting, but Edie and Charlie had no distractions to prevent them from answering. Instead, they both flushed, and Q stared back at them in disbelief.
"Wait, seriously? You did? Every single one of them?!"
"Well… I mean, you are… you know" Edie shifted awkwardly in her seat, "You're… different".
Charlie nodded. "Exactly! I mean, looking back on it now… well, it's kind of obvious, but at the time…"
"We couldn't put anything past you, sweetheart" she finished, "And we still can't, I guess, considering you managed to pull off all of this, but in saying that, I still wouldn't be surprised if they had all been true".
Q stared at them, fearing for the safety of England and his agents both.
"You lot really are absolute bloody idiots if you genuinely thought for even one moment that I was somehow the secret illegitimate child of a British prince and Russian double agent, who was killed on a mission by a group of dalmatians, leaving me to be raised by Boothroyd and Mansfield with only Excalibur as a link to my past, before I ran away to join the circus as an acrobat where I helped them smuggle drugs across Europe before being found by M once more who promptly offered me a job!"
He gave them an exasperated and slightly mad look.
"Seriously, just how on earth have you lot managed to survive this long?!"
"... Sometimes, I honestly don't know".
Saif gave his hair a gentle pull. "But we have you now, you little menace, and something tells me that our survival chances on missions have already doubled".
Duncan snorted. "Yeah, if he doesn't fucking kill you himself first".
Q automatically bit at his neck in annoyance, before suddenly freezing as he realised what he'd done. 003's arms tensed around him too, but when he spoke, his voice was as even as ever.
"Don't start things you can't finish, brat".
As if Q hadn't just acted as though they were mates, as if he hadn't just playfully nipped at the alpha without so much as a second thought, as if he hadn't just realised that he'd never been so calm and relaxed and safe and happy around an alpha since before-
Since before.
He swallowed thickly and tried his best to mask his scent before his sudden panic became obvious, but, of course, the double-0s were too bloody observant for it to make a single damn difference.
Duncan carefully pulled back, not enough to disrupt the other's hold on the omega, but still just enough to see his expression.
"What's wrong?"
Q tried and failed, to bury his face in the man's neck once more, but he couldn't escape the agent's intense gaze. Or any of the others, either, for that matter, as Saif gave his curls a slightly harder tug in admonishment when he tried to look away.
Edie slid down off the edge of the couch to the floor, shuffling closer until she could rest her head on his lap and wrap both arms around his waist, looking up at him imploringly. Charlie also moved, lifting Q's legs until he could slide underneath them, his large hands warm and grounding on both of his ankles.
"Sweetheart?" 009 pressed, and the Quartermaster closed his eyes so he wouldn't have to see them.
He knew that he needed to find out what their intentions were, especially since they were all currently wrapped around him like limpets, but he also didn't want to risk angering the pack or make them draw away from him because as much as he loathed to admit it, he really did crave their kind words and casual affection. But if he didn't ask…
"Alexis said that you weren't… courting me. Not in the traditional sense, at least, but… but as far as I know, you lot have never acted this way around an omega before and- and alpha's don't just… do these things without wanting something in return, so…"
"So you want to know where we stand" Duncan summarised, and Q nodded, eyes still tightly shut so he wouldn't start to overthink their reactions.
003 shifted slightly beneath him and then sighed.
"Well fuck if I know".
"Duncan!" Alexis immediately scolded, but Q couldn't help but snort in laughter, absurdly grateful that at least one of these idiot knotheads was just as confused by their relationship as he was.
"What?" he protested, "I don't fucking understand why I like him, I just do! And it's not about sex for me, I get enough of that in the field. And Blair's fucking ace or whatever, so it's not about that for him either! I just… I just like the brat!"
Q smiled, only somewhat reluctantly reopening his eyes to look up at the grumpy alpha who was still holding him close.
"I like you too".
To his amusement, the alpha lightly flushed before gruffly clearing his throat and avoiding his gaze.
"Yeah, well… good. You better, you fucking brat. I don't just let anyone sit on my lap you know".
"Outside of missions" Q corrected, oddly amused by the whole thing.
"Outside of missions" he agreed, "Now stop looking at me like that and go fucking ask someone else, alright?!"
"Congratulations, Quartermaster" Saif said dryly, "You've just tamed our resident psychopath".
"Oh like you're one to fucking talk!"
"Boys" Alexis warned, both arms still draped over Q's shoulders, "Since you're so keen to talk, Saif, how about you go next?"
The man sighed, his breath warm against the omega's neck even as his hands continued to run through his hair.
"I'm the same as Fortier" he admitted, albeit reluctantly, "It's not about sex for me, no matter how much I flirt with you. I just… I like this level of affection. I like being able to pet you and- and cuddle you without any expectations. We don't get that on missions, at all, and none of us are exactly… good at the whole relationship thing, so we don't get to do this with anyone outside of missions either".
"It's the same for me" Alexis continued, "I mean, don't get me wrong, honey, you are fucking adorable and I would gladly jump you given half the chance, but... that isn't what I want in the long run".
The omega felt himself flush at her more-than-a-little-bit-obscene words, but he also started to feel the tendrils of hope build in his chest that maybe he could keep this, maybe he could still have this, the attention and affection and safety, without being expected to do more.
"Ditto for me" Charlie added, "Like Duncan said, I don't particularly enjoy sex to begin with, but I still like to cuddle and all that. It's just impossible for us to find that level of… casual intimacy with anyone, because of our jobs. So I'm happy to keep things as they are, as long as everyone else is okay with it".
"Same here" Edie finished, "It's… nice to have this whole affection thing with no strings attached, and I've definitely felt… calmer since we started. I think it's good for us. For all of us".
Q felt like his heart was going to burst. Or else that he was going to cry. Or maybe laugh. Or maybe both. Of course he'd known that the double-0s weren't wired like normal alphas, and of course he hadn't expected them to expect anything more than this, but hearing it come from them directly, listening to them as they all said one by one that they were happy to continue hugging and petting him without demanding any more, it was…
It was huge.
He felt a weight lift off his shoulders that he hadn't even realised he'd been carrying, an insurmountable relief that negated the stress he'd been feeling since the first double-0 had walked into his office, and he couldn't keep the ridiculously sappy grin off his face even if he wanted to.
Which is, of course, exactly the moment his phone rang.
Q groaned and let his head fall back against Saif. He didn't want to move, he was comfy and warm and safe and the happiest he'd been in months - if not years - and the last thing he wanted to do was leave his pack and walk over to his desk and answer the bloody phone-
"Quartermaster's office".
His head whipped around so fast he was worried he'd given himself whiplash, but that particular thought could wait because somehow, somewhere, somewhy, Alexis had managed to expertly detangle herself from their puppy pile and silently walk across to his desk to grab his headset and answer the phone.
"Oh, hey Alec!"
She grinned, putting the headset and microphone on herself before waltzing back over, somehow managing to insert herself right back where she had been before, a warm presence against Q's back even as she continued to happily chat away with 006.
"No, no, everything's fine! The Quartermaster is just a little, uh… pinned down at the moment".
She gave him a wink and he rolled his eyes in exasperation. He'd panicked slightly, when Alexis had first said 006's name, given that they'd already had their daily phone call this morning, but if he was still talking to his packmate and not demanding that Q speak to him instead, then he reasoned that it couldn't be that much of an emergency.
"No, Alec, I do not mean like that".
The omega felt himself flush once more, and quickly turned away so she wouldn't see it. He didn't have any pressing things to discuss with 006 after all, so he was happy to let them talk to each for a bit, especially since their whole weird-mind-linking-always-in-contact-telepathic-connection thing seemed to be on a text-only basis. Chances were, it'd been at least three months since Alexis had last heard her packmate's voice.
A quiet beep drew him back to the present, and he frowned as his pocket vibrated in an SOS pattern. Based on the sudden tensing of the agents around him, they'd obviously picked up on the subtle code as well.
Awkwardly twisting to fish his phone out of his pocket, he tapped the power button to see that he had a message directly from M. Quickly unlocking the screen, he read it once, twice, and then grinned, spinning around to face Alexis and making grabby hands at the headset.
"Hang on, Alec, our Quartermaster wants a word… Yes… Yes, I will… Okay then, we will… Yes! God, stop being such a mother-hen, he's fine! Now here!"
She took off the headset in exasperation and handed it to him, and Q wasted no time in putting it on himself and adjusting the microphone.
"Hello cub".
He couldn't help but smile.
"006. Are you ready to blow shit up?"
"… Believe me when I say, in complete honesty, that I have never heard a sentence that I've loved so much".
Q laughed and tried to ignore how other double-0s surrounding him smirked in response.
"Well then, your equipment, as it were, should be arriving sometime later today. M has gotten the go-ahead from the PM to blow the chemical factor sky-high. Think you can do it?"
"I'm wounded that you ever even doubted me" came the teasing reply, "But, speaking of chemicals…"
"You found out what type of drug they're making?"
Alec's voice turned serious. "Yeah, I did. And it's nothing good".
Q felt himself tense, even as Duncan turned him to lie back against his chest, and Alexis once again wrapped herself around his shoulders.
"Our phone call this morning was shorter than usual, so when I returned from my supposed smoke break, the other guards hadn't been expecting me. I heard them talking from inside the office, so I paused and listened in… It's a testosterone drug. For alphas".
Q swore and quickly tried to think. It was rare these days for an alpha to go into a full-on rage, but when they did, the results were devastating. Casualties, injuries, destruction, and more often than not, the alpha themselves were seriously harmed as well, some even to the point of death. It was usually only triggered by an alpha getting much too close to someone else's omega while in a rut, but in very rare cases, a rage could be caused by a hormone imbalance. More specifically, by too much testosterone.
"... Your orders still stand" he finally eventually, "Now, more than ever. If Ourumov manages to distribute that…"
"I know" Alec replied grimly, "We can't risk it getting out. I'll finish my shift here, sleep for a few hours, and then sneak back in. Hopefully, I should be able to plant the explosives without anyone seeing me. You got an extraction team on standby?"
"Since last week" he confirmed, "As soon as you're out of there and the timers are set, they'll pick you up, and then it's a one-way trip back to London".
"I look forward to finally meeting you in person, cub".
"Likewise, 006". Q smiled, despite the nerves gnawing at his heart. "But be careful, alright? Your safety is our top priority, the mission be damned! If there's a chance that you won't make it back out, then fuck the explosives, you get the hell out of there! Is that understood?"
"Understood, Quartermaster. 006 signing off".
Q reluctantly reached up to disconnect the headset, the beginnings of dread starting to swirl deep in his chest. He knew that Alec was a good agent, knew that despite the man's outgoing and friendly nature he was still one of their best agents…
But despite all that, he still couldn't help but feel that something was about to go terribly, terribly wrong.