Post 521: Saved

Stardate: 71025.1800
Title: Saved
Author: February Grace
Scene: Shuttle/Indy
Time: Following "Judgment Day 1-3"
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"MMMPH."

"February."

"MMMMMPH!"

"Open your eyes."

"Don't wanna."

"Come on now. Open them."

February realized she recognized the voice she was hearing- but that given where she had been when last she closed her eyes, she couldn't account for the fact she was hearing it.

"TC?"

"That's right." Blane said, ruffling her hair gently. "Wake up, kid." He affixed the oxygen mask to her face, and she breathed deeply. She coughed a few times, then resumed inhaling as much of the fresh, pure air as she could.

"Reece?" she mumbled, still lightheaded. She looked to her left, and saw that Dabin had a mask over his face as well, and was just starting to come around. It was obvious that their rescuer had arrived just in the nick of time..

"I've got you both. Time to go home." Blane tightened the restraints of February's seat around her, and then returned to the pilot's chair and powered up the engines. The shuttle began to climb.

"But we were buried alive," February pulled the mask from her face, her expression puzzled. "How did you ever,"

"Magic." TC replied. He thought of all the tricks he'd learned as a Special Ops agent- some far too dark to be called 'magic'. Yet, pulling off rescues that no one else thought possible was one skill that he was glad he retained from his previous line of work.

"However the hell you did it," Reece spoke at last as he began to finally catch his breath, "Thank you, Mr. Blane."

=/\=-----Later, aboard Independence-----=/\=

After being quickly checked over by the EMH and also making sure that Simon was going to recover from his injuries, Reece and Grace had been released from Sickbay with instructions to take the next day or so off, and to be re-checked before returning to their regular duties.

The couple parted company at Sickbay; wanting to be seen going in separate directions for the sake of public appearances, at least for now.

Back at her quarters, February crawled into a hot sonic shower, sank to the floor and just let the heat seep into her body for a good hour before she could begin to find the strength to move.

When she finally put on her robe and exited the bathroom, she found that Dabin had quietly found his way there and was waiting for her. He was dressed in faded blue jeans and a button down shirt, and she was amused to see only socks, but no shoes on his feet as he stood beside the bed.

He had taken every spare blanket from the closet, knowing how she hated to be cold, and piled them on top of one another on the bed. He had fluffed all of the pillows, fed the cat, and replicated a hot meal, which was set up and waiting for her on a tray beside him.

"I could really get used to this," she warned him. "Be careful or you'll spoil me completely."

"It would be impossible to spoil you." He embraced her, and she rested her head on his shoulder. *I'm just glad that you're not convinced by all that has happened that we're not meant to be together, after all.*

His thought troubled her, as she had not only caught him thinking it several times since their unusual wedding in the snow, but had also heard him say the words aloud more than once since Salvek had announced that they were legally married.

"Sit down." She indicated edge of the bed, and he looked worried. "Don't worry, just sit."

*Here it comes.* He thought. *She wants an annulment.*

"No, I don't, and I'm not going to want one, either." February replied aloud. "Dabin, I have actually lost track of the number of times you've asked me, or yourself, if I was really in this for the long haul. I know that. . ." she stopped short of using Jaine Hood's name.

"She really did a number on you. I know she used every excuse to try to blame you, the universe at large, or anyone who happened to pass by her in the hallway on a given morning for what she perceived as flaws in your relationship. But you have to know something, and promise me you'll try to remember."

She held his hands fast. "I'm not her. And it was not you, it was never you. It was her." She realized that part of this insecurity on his part could be coming from Reece's previous host memories as well, and added, "I'm also not Deveral,"

Dabin looked away.

"I'm not going to run away. You're just going to have to accept the fact that you're stuck with me."

"I should be so lucky." he whispered.

"Unless," another thought occurred to her, "and I'm only going to ask you this once. Do you regret staying here? Or marrying me?" Maybe subconsciously, he was the one who was having second thoughts. "If you want out, now is the time to tell me."

"Oh, February, no." He reassured her. "That has never occurred to me, not even for an instant."

"Okay then," she smiled, "now that that's settled, we go forward from here. We don't look back, and we don't take anything as a sign we don't belong together." Her eyes lit up as she watched his expression change, and he drew a deep breath then sighed with relief. "Deal?"

"Deal." He smiled as well as he began brushing her hair back and away from her face. "There is one issue though that we hadn't thought about, that will need to be addressed," he added, and February's brow furrowed with concern.

"Oh? What's that?"

He pointed toward her cat, who had settled himself onto the bed atop all of the quilts, and was now contentedly grooming himself smack in the middle of it all.

"Someone has to tell Sparrow that he's going to have to share his side of the bed from now on."

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Lt. (jg) February Grace
Helm/Flight Controller
USS Independence NCC-90791