"Hey."

Leonidas slowly stepped into the Spartans' quarters, eyes trained on Alia, who was coiled tightly on her bunk and staring at the floor. Her day had gone from perfect to almost getting assaulted in her own home, leaving the scaly Spartan scared, confused, and vulnerable. It was an emotional state that most humans could relate to: the feeling of wanting to curl up in a hole somewhere to hide from the world and never come out again. However, there was no such hole to slither into, and there was no hiding from a concerned Leonidas.

The viper neglected to respond to his greeting. Instead, she opted to coil herself even tighter, wrapping her arms around herself protectively. Leonidas sighed sympathetically; only a few months ago, if someone had told him that a viper could incite such tenderness in him, he would have called them crazy. And yet, here he was: about to console Alia one-on-one, because he of all people knew how to approach the situation with a gentle touch. The Ranger sat down next to his friend, placing his hands in his lap and never letting his eyes off of the serpent. His question was simple: "What's going on, Alia?"

"I was so terrified…" the viper whispered, "I could have killed him. He could have killed me…"

"Hey," Leonidas said again, this time a little more forcefully as he put a hand on her shoulder, "I was there, remember? And now I'm here. No one is killing anyone. Now could you please answer my question? I'm not upset; I just want an explanation." It was a good thing that he could control his psionic connection to his father; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to get away with this. Titus had spun one fancy tale to the man, and the Commander had just eaten it right up, believing that the Centurion was the victim. Hawk, knowing that he was nearly untouchable, had mostly taken the fall for getting physical and threatening Titus, leaving Leo to put the traumatized viper back together before someone came looking for him; his involvement was still known, and there were bound to be questions.

"Leonidas…" the viper began slowly, "Can I trust you with something… private?"

"Of course," the Spartan King said reassuringly.

Alia took a deep breath. "Are you aware that vipers… shed? Like terrestrial snakes?"

"If I wasn't before," Leonidas answered, "I am now. Are you shedding?"

She nodded. "It takes approximately eighteen to nineteen months for most vipers. I was always a little slower to molt than the others, but… well…" the serpent inhaled again, clearly steeling herself, "the twelfth shedding is always very important in our culture. It is like… a coming of age. It marks a new stage in life, and is rather sacred. Normally, shedding is simply done at home or in a clinic in some cases, but…" she trailed off, visibly embarrassed.

"Is there some kind of hormonal shift?" the Spartan leader guessed, trying to keep the conversation going, "Is that why you've been feeling so strange?"

"Yes," Alia nodded again, reminded that they shared a psionic link, "In addition, the days prior to actually molting are… uncomfortable. Even painful. All of my senses are driving me crazy. Even my eyesight has declined, which is irritating in its own right." She then added under her breath: "And your pheromones are a mixed blessing."

Not fully understanding that last sentence, and surprised that his friend's eyes weren't working properly given her total lack of visible symptoms, Leonidas decided to focus on the matter at hand. "Go on," he urged, "You said that shedding is normally done at home. I take it this one is different?"

"There is a… ritual of sorts," the serpent explained, "Normally, I would be helped by my family or…" she blushed through her scales, "my mate, but neither option is available to me here. Plus, I lack the required space; it is meant to be a private and very intimate process. Rocks and water are preferable, but at this point, I do not care; I just want to get everything over with. Today has been too much for me, and I feel that waiting any longer will break me."

"Well," the Ranger said slowly, "you may be in luck on that front. I can pull some strings and get us to land near a lake or pond somewhere. Rocks and water, you said?" the viper nodded, and he continued, "Then I'll try to push for a mountain lake. If all else fails, you can use the shower for water and privacy… but I'll try to avoid that."

The scaled Spartan was now sitting up, looking directly into her leader's eyes. "You would do that? Weaver said that he can 'pull some strings' with Razor as well."

"Damn right I will," the Spartan leader responded earnestly, meeting her gaze, "If Razor's backing this, there's no chance we can't get it to happen. I think my added weight will make him happy. And if it brings you back to fighting shape while letting you live comfortably, then as your Captain and your friend, it'll make me happy."

"Then I have one more request of you," Alia said softly, leaning in slightly, "Would you… help me? With the ceremony, that is."

Leonidas drew back a little, somewhat taken aback. "Didn't you say that's reserved for your family or mate? I get that you don't have either here, but of all people, you ask the living weapon who killed the strongest male viper out there?"

"Actually," the serpent gave a small smile, "That is part of the reason why I am asking you. Not only are you the person I trust the most, but you are… the Kingslayer, to quote myself. I suppose that, for the purposes of this ceremony, you would be my champion, rather than my mate. Are you willing to accept that role?" She then quickly added: "If the answer is 'no', I understand."

The Kingslayer closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again. He took her hand, and it was only then that the viper noticed that she was trembling. "I'm all yours, all the way."

She fought back tears, overwhelmed with a maelstrom of emotions. "I am sorry for coming to you with this so suddenly. I felt like I was going to die, and I… I just had to… to…"

"Shhh…" Leonidas cooed, "Come here." He shifted closer while tenderly pulling her into his arms. The serpent cried into his chest; this was the only place where she felt safe enough to let herself be vulnerable. The only person who she trusted enough to comfort her. The Ranger kept his breathing deep and slow, holding her to him gently, but protectively. It was good to move on from what happened with Titus, but only if they took the time to process it and let the resulting emotions run their course. Alia was strong, and this would never keep her down, but she needed a moment to properly recover, and if that meant crying, then the Spartan King was prepared to catch her tears with his shirt.

After a minute or so, the viper's sobs quelled, and her shaking stopped. Her breathing slowed to match her champion's, and she took a moment to savor his warm embrace. For a man so notorious for his brute strength and reckless violence, he was exceptionally caring and gentle with her. What he lacked in tact and grace, he made up for in sincerity and devotion. The super-soldier was trying, and by the stars, he was succeeding. Alia lifted her head up to look at him, a pulse of love running through her as she saw that he was meeting her gaze; something that he so rarely did for anyone. "I…" she began, but found that nothing profound came to her, so she returned to nuzzling his chest. "Thank you, Leonidas. You take such good care of me."

"It's your fault," the Spartan leader chuckled, "You're the one who taught me how to behave like this. Without you, I'd still be some dumb brute."

"Oh, stop it!" the serpent laughed, punching him lightly in the shoulder, "Many words describe you, but 'dumb' was never one of them!"

He cocked an eyebrow playfully. "Careful. Keep saying stuff like that and I might start believing it."

"Mmm. Then perhaps I should remind you every day?"

"Let's worry about tonight, first. We'll see how much I deserve that after I inevitably mess up your ceremony, eh?"

"You will do just fine," the serpent assured him, placing a hand on his cheek, "I would not ask you to do this if I was not confident in your abilities."

"I'll make arrangements," Leonidas grinned, "I'll talk to Razor, help him work his magic and get us to a good place. We'll have to sneak out at night, since that'll ensure that no one bothers us. I used to slip out all the time as a kid, back when the Avenger was grounded, so I know how to get away undetected and back by morning."

"That works," Alia nodded, "The time of day is inconsequential."

They sat for a short while as the viper explained the mechanics of the ritual, and what her human companion would have to do. Leonidas was not allowed to speak until the ceremony was over unless absolutely necessary, and help only with the physical removal of the old skin; everything else, Alia had to do herself. It was also his duty to keep possible intruders or threats away, such as local wildlife. Since silence was paramount, he would bring a sidearm and a combat knife for this, since his axes were too large and eye-catching to smuggle out easily. Plus, weapons were supposed to be absent anyway, so a knife and pistol were pushing it as it was. Luckily, he could probably defeat any potentially-dangerous animals with his bare hands, and the Colt .45 that Weaver had given the serpent would be a perfect candidate for the emergency sidearm.

The ceremony itself would consist of Alia repeating several phrases in her native tongue (which she did not explain, since the Spartan King wouldn't be able to understand them anyway), breaking open the old skin, then moving into the water to have it removed. Leonidas would help with this, then the new skin would be "washed" in the water to clear any residue or other unwanted material. A relatively simple process overall, but one that was extremely important and could easily get botched by an unsteady hand or inattentive moment. She assured him that the ceremonial purposes of this process weren't nearly as important to her as the interpersonal intimacy and eventual success. All he had to do was his best.

Once everything was thoroughly explained, the Ranger left to set the plan in motion. Alia was left on her bunk, feeling extremely good once again. Not only had she gotten that information off her chest, but she was finally going to take care of her twelfth shedding ceremony. And with Leonidas, no less! This was all an excellent reminder of how many people the viper had looking out for her. When she really thought about it, there were multiple very capable killers who would likely bring the pain to Titus if she simply asked them to. Back in the hallway, both Leo and Hawk seemed like they were ready for any excuse to bury the man. The latter's motives weren't exactly clear, but the Kingslayer's were plain as day: he cared deeply for her on a tremendously personal level, enough to be willing to take on a man much bigger and more experienced than himself without a second thought. And then immediately pivot to being the most tender, loving man that she had ever met.

"He really is unique," the serpent sighed happily, "I am extremely fortunate to have met him."

…

"We're clear," Leonidas whispered, turning to look at Alia behind him, "Last chance to change your mind."

"Never," Alia said firmly. The super-soldier could almost hear her heart pounding; there was a certain aspect of her voice that told him that there was adrenaline coursing through her veins―or whatever the viper equivalent to adrenaline was, anyway. A tiny tremble in her tone, and a small raise in pitch with a slightly breathy quality; it all spoke volumes to the Ranger. And, of course, it helped that he could literally feel her emotions.

The two Spartans darted out into the night, hitting the earthen ground silently and moving quickly toward the nearby lake. The area was lightly forested, which meant that the Avenger had landed in a clearing some distance away from the body of water. This made the trip longer, but also meant that the duo was much less likely to get caught. Leonidas had opted to bring a backpack with extra clothing and supplies, since they wouldn't want to run through the woods at night while cold and wet. His knife was strapped to his leg, with the Venari (the name of the Colt .45, which was etched onto the slide) on his belt, and the Spartan King made a mental note to try incorporating such things into his armor; extra weapons were never a bad idea, and Weaver seemed to be a good source for high-quality guns. They had both chosen to wear their civilian clothes for this, since the idea was to avoid combat. If they needed armor, then they had bigger problems on their hands. Or, more specifically, Leonidas had bigger problems, since he was meant to handle any potential threats before they could interrupt Alia.

Soon, the duo arrived at the lake. It was well out of view of the Avenger―somewhere close to a kilometer away, Leo guessed―and surrounded by steep slopes on all sides except the direction they had come from, where the incline was substantially shallower. Those slopes ended in masses of rocks, all of various sizes, and the shore held several boulders that appeared to be of adequate size and placement for Alia's purposes. The moon was particularly bright that night, so they were able to see rather clearly as they approached the water.

"Alright," the Spartan King said as he removed his pack and weapons, "I'll strip down and get wet. You find a good spot, and I'll stay nearby." Alia lingered for a moment―probably debating whether or not she wanted to watch her champion undress―then slithered away to find a suitable place to begin her rite of passage. Leonidas, on the other hand, wasted no time. He stripped down to his boxers and waded into the water without hesitation, suppressing the instinct to pause as the cold liquid hit his bare skin. It wasn't unbearable, but it was certainly much cooler than the already brisk night air. He kept his belt slung around his neck like a bandolier in order to keep the Venari at hand without getting it soaked.

"You can do this," he whispered to himself, "You're just helping an alien woman peel off her own skin in water that would probably kill her after long enough without your body heat." The Kingslayer couldn't help but smile for a second. "Y'know, normal stuff. Different is my normal, as I always say…"

Leonidas followed the faint sound of scales on stone until he was sure that he had located Alia. The Ranger had let the viper get a head-start, so that he wouldn't see her until she was done. This wasn't so much part of the ceremony as it was a courtesy; Alia would be nude for this, and while the teenage super-soldier had defied many social norms with the viper before, basic privacy wasn't one of them. So instead of trying to peek at the serpent, he focused on his knife. The Spartan had strapped the blade to his upper arm like a diving knife, just in case it was needed as a utility.

"A knife is so much more than a weapon," he remembered Ghost telling him several years ago, "Its uses are limited only by the situation and your imagination. Obviously, its primary purpose is to cut things, but that isn't limited to anything. It can cut anything that needs cutting, as well as pry things open or apart, and even be used as a screwdriver in a pinch―I speak from experience for that one." In the back of his mind, Leo had been faced with a 'just in case' moment, where he had worried that Alia might need help earlier in the process than intended, or perhaps something would need… extra persuasion to remove.

The Spartan's thoughts were interrupted by the sight of Alia emerging from behind the rocks. The now partially-split skin wasn't exactly attractive, but… actually, Leonidas had to pause mentally to wonder why that thought had even occurred to him. Since when had he cared about appearances?

The viper smiled as she saw him, and Leo drew himself up to his full height, arms at his sides as if standing at attention. The Ranger kept his eyes trained on Alia's face, determined to show respect towards his companion, despite the fact that his gaze naturally wanted to drift downwards. He waited for the serpent to come to him, then proceeded to move behind her and start peeling off the dead skin. Leonidas tried to ignore the fact that he was operating purely on guesswork and gut instinct now, with no actual knowledge of how this process was meant to go. Alia was trusting him; he had to do this right. With trained hands and firm determination, he quickly got the hang of it.

The old skin actually came off relatively easily in the water, with no need for the combat knife or any excessive force at all, for that matter. In fact, the Spartan King was able to gently remove large portions of molted skin while taking time to massage key areas; it just felt right to do so. Alia emitted pleased sounds in response, so he was doing something right, at least. Weaver's teachings were really coming in handy! It took several minutes of cooperative effort to finish, but when they were done, Alia turned to give her champion a warm smile before falling backwards to swim out into the water. Taking this as an invitation, Leonidas followed after her, finally letting his eyes roam as the viper moved about. He made sure not to go so deep that the Venari would get wet, but was able to wade in deep enough to get a good view nevertheless.

Even after years of learning to suppress such thoughts, the young man couldn't help but admire the beauty of the creature before him. She moved through the water with a certain grace, totally unafraid to dance around her partner and show herself to him without a care in the world. Though he expected his eyes to stop at certain parts of her body, instead Leonidas was simply awestruck at the sight of Alia as a whole, her scales more vibrant than ever, with an unfamiliar but not unpleasant feeling rising in his chest. In that moment, he entirely stopped being a soldier and forgot about life, enjoying himself as the viper happily swam around him in silence.

Eventually, both Spartans grew cold in the water and returned to shore. The Ranger dried off with a towel from his backpack before throwing on a fresh set of clothes. Looking over at Alia, though, he neglected to put on a shirt; she had opted to remain fully nude for the time being, which was somewhat surprising, considering the fact that it wasn't a particularly warm night. It also meant that the viper wasn't ready to return yet.

"Something wrong?" he inquired, heart skipping a beat as he suddenly added: "Did I do something wrong? Did I fuck it up?"

"No," Alia giggled, slithering up and gently hugging him tightly, "You did everything correctly. You were perfect, Leonidas." She pulled back and stared into his eyes for a moment, sighing, "I want to remain out here for a little longer. Will you stay with me?"

The Spartan King let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah, I think I brought a couple of blankets. Let me grab those and we can find a good place to sit." This wasn't entirely true, but it wasn't a lie either; Weaver had actually loaded the backpack for him, and had been quite thorough in his selection of supplies. The super-soldier had still been the one to bring it all with them, though.

They found a large boulder with a flat, mostly horizontal top face, and Leonidas scaled it easily to lay out one of the blankets on the stone surface, serving to put something between them and the hard rock. Alia followed him, and quickly found her spot under the second blanket next to Leo, where she nuzzled her head against his chest affectionately as he looked up at the stars.

"This was certainly a night to remember," the young man said contentedly, "In more ways than one."

"Oh?" responded the viper, raising her head.

Leo grinned. "Well, it's not every day that I sneak out in the middle of the night with a young woman to help her with her rite of passage, is it? And I have to say that I've seen and done some things tonight that I won't forget anytime soon."

"Would you want to forget anything?" Alia asked curiously.

"Nope," the Ranger said happily, "This is a reminder of what I'm fighting for."

The serpent's expression dropped ever so slightly at the mention of the ever-present war against ADVENT. But instead of letting that spoil her mood, she quickly leaned in and, before Leo could do anything to react, pressed her lips against his. The Spartan King was stunned for a moment, and when the viper pulled away, he was speechless.

"Would you want to forget that?" Alia said with a sly smile.

"Uh… no," Leonidas answered, dumbfounded, "I… for the first time in my life… I don't know what to say."

"Then do not say anything," the serpent cooed, gently pushing him onto his back, "You are better at speaking with your actions, anyway." She nestled her head on his chest again, quickly drifting off to sleep as the young man looked up at the night sky.

The last thing the Spartan leader had expected was a kiss, and it took him several minutes to recompose himself and snap back to reality. When he regained his senses, Leo looked around and, for the first time in a long time, took the opportunity to admire the simple beauty of the surrounding scenery. Instead of trying to tactically analyze the terrain or look for potential threats, he simply took in the sight of the picturesque mountain lake under the moonlight. The faint sound of wildlife echoed through the silent trees, and the scent of the water mixed with that of evergreens in a strangely pleasant blend. And of course, there was the magnificent young viper woman on top of him―arguably the most delightful sight of all to the young Ranger.

Leonidas was many things: a champion, a leader, a Kingslayer, a son, a soldier―but most of all, he was in love. He had spent his whole life fighting, and now he had something to fight for. Really fight for. A reason to come back alive after every mission, and something worth looking forward to every day. The Spartan King had been in love with Alia for some time, but had never realized it until now; he was always too caught up in other matters to notice how she made him feel. But that didn't matter anymore, now that the viper had taken the leap and brought her own feelings to light. There was no way to ignore it, nor did Leo believe that there was a need to. This felt… right. "What did I ever do to deserve a woman like you?" he whispered to the sleeping serpent.

A song suddenly came to mind: Something Good from The Sound of Music. The young lovebird softly hummed the tune to himself, already thinking about learning it on guitar. It would make an excellent treat for the viper, to play and sing it for her.

Like a switch had been flipped, all of his thoughts were now revolving around Alia. And it felt great. For years, the only thing that Leonidas could focus this much on was the ongoing war. Conflict had been his whole world, but now his world was sleeping peacefully against his bare chest. He had thought that this kind of thing only happened in fairy tales and movies; falling so thoroughly, head-over-heels in love in one night, let alone with the perfect person. But it was happening, and it felt amazing.

"This is what you meant, about my pheromones," he mused quietly, "Why were you hiding this all from me? What were you scared of?" Leo looked down at the viper, appreciating how absolutely at-peace she looked. Frankly, it was adorable. "Eh, whatever. Better late than never."

A/N: What a long time coming, this was. And what a long way we have yet to go! As anyone who's been in love will tell you: it's not the end. It is in every way a new beginning. Hidden plans have yet to be revealed, cards have yet to be played, and not everyone is who they appear to be…

Stay tuned! And as always, have fun and stay safe out there! -VV