Trompe-l'œil

== One: Chicago's Attractions ==
‒Think the hat will keep me incognito here?‒ asks Raleigh over the Bond he and Mako share, flopping onto a bench in Union Station's Great Hall.
Mako adjusts his 'No Home Like a Shatterdome' cap (decorated with /Gipsy's wings, star, and shield logo). ‒They have worked so far.‒
‒Which is why you keep buying me new ones.‒
‒I keep buying them because they keep working.‒
‒Riiiight. You just want an excuse to mess with my hair.‒
Mako stifles a smile.
Raleigh lets his through, tugs on her sleeve. ‒C'mere a sec.‒
‒What are you planning, /saiai?‒ She sits in his lap, tucks her head under his chin. 
He wraps an arm around her waist. ‒A video for Hermann since his birthday's coming up. Better early than never.‒ 
‒That's a wonderful idea.‒
Raleigh grins as he pulls out his battered phone, thumbs on the recorder, and chirps, „Hey, Doc! Happy birthday! Mako and I are on our way to Pennsylvania to try the best Philly cheese-steak sandwiches. And—oh yeah—visit Cait and Serg, too. Anything you want to recommend we do while we're there?“ He grins wider. „Tell Newt that Gips'll give him a free pass for the day. She said she and the rest of the kids got you something, but they're not sure it'll get there on time.“
Mako beams, says, 「Hello, Gottlieb-hakase! Many happy returns this day. We sent our gift along with the one from your hackers. Raleigh said you had some experience with it. We wish you well. Goodbye and be well!」 
They both smile and make victory signs.
Raleigh turns off the recording app and he and Mako swap phones; she cleans up the video, he browses Tumblr.
They tap away for a few minutes.
「Mako?」
「Hmm?」
「Think we have time to visit one more place?」 He nuzzles her cheek, offers his screen.
「I believe we do, but you need to shave,」 she giggles. 「This—」 Runs a finger along his stubbly jaw. 「—tickles.」
A frantic /shushing grabs Raleigh's attention and he looks up to see a full quarter of the Hall watching him and Mako. 「Don't these people have better things to do?」 he grumbles.
「You /are very cute. I would probably do the same.」
「Nah, that can't be it. It's /gotta be the pretty girl next to me. Or it could be because we're speaking a language that's unusual this side of the Wall,」 Raleigh chuckles as he snuggles up. 「So planetarium? Or dinosaurs?」
「We have time for both. Our train doesn't leave until five in the evening,」 Mako murmurs with an affectionate smile.
Raleigh slides out from under Mako and to his feet. 「Let's go!」
It's a short cab ride to the Field Museum.
Raleigh barely clears the admissions counter before emitting a rather undignified squeak and dragging Mako into the high-ceilinged hall.
"It's Sue!" he squeals. "I've always wanted to see her!"
Mako tilts her head as she takes in the famous /T. rex.
Raleigh pauses in his admiration to ask, "What's up?"
"I expected her to be taller," admits Mako.
He tries and fails spectacularly to suppress a laugh. 「Sure, she's no Otachi, but she still could've eaten you in two bites.」
Mako concedes, 「Of course she could've,」 with a pout.
He cocks his head and an eyebrow at her. 「You're designing a chain sword to kill her, aren't you?」
「Possibly.」
Raleigh rolls his eyes and tugs her toward the stairs. "The other dinosaurs are on the next floor!"
Mako grins and keeps hold of his hand as he darts from exhibit to exhibit like a kid on a field trip.
He ducks into the Paleolithic mammals room and stuffs his hat in his pocket, feeling anonymous enough to go without. He moves closer to the smilodons, turning to Mako and grinning.
/Affection flows through their link. 
「There's a special tour at three, but we should leave now for the planetarium if we want to make our train on time,」 she murmurs, leaning against him.
「Aww, let's hang out here a little longer.」 He gently settles his chin in her hair, careful not to mess up the styling. "See those?" Raleigh asks quietly, tilting his head toward the murals behind the skeletons. "Original paintings by Charles Knight. Pretty much single-handedly created the field of paleoart."
Mako hums appreciatively.
A cheer goes up as a flock of schoolkids fly into the hall and flit among the skeletons and models.
Raleigh clocks their t-shirts and blinks—
‒/you're on the spectrum a lion rampant they can because they think they can tear up the flirty phone number‒
‒Are you alright?‒
‒Yeah. It's been a long time since I've seen that design.‒ Raleigh presses his cheek against Mako's hair. ‒Hopefully, that teacher got fired.‒ 
She gently squeezes their entwined fingers. ‒Perhaps we should head for another exhibit?‒
‒Nah.‒ Raleigh shrugs and sways in place as he takes in the general mood in the room. ‒The racket's nice white noise, too.‒
Mako hums as she presses against his chin.
"Psst. Don't tell the Doctor Griffin, but I think I see /Danger's pilots," one of the kids whispers.
Mako nudges Raleigh's shoulder.
He pulls the cap back on. 
A few of the kids drift closer, trying to be subtle as they check Mako and Raleigh out.
"It's them! It's really them!" hisses one of them.
One preteen walks straight up. "Hi. Are you /Lady Danger's pilots?" she asks.
Mako smiles brightly, declares, "You're Liam's sister."
Raleigh straightens in surprise.
‒After you met him, he eventually came to work on /Danger's electricals and shared quite a few pictures.‒
"Ms. Mori." The girl bobs her head and grins and /there's the resemblance. "Liam says 'hi'. He's working in Dublin now."
"That is good to hear. You must be Colleen," Mako answers with a smile.
Colleen glows. "I am. You must be Mr. Becket." Bows to Raleigh. "Can we get your autographs?" 
Raleigh laughs. "Caught me. How's Liam doing?" He digs around for the Sharpie Herc suggested he carry at all times.
"Very well." Shifts her feet. "He said you're pretty cool. It's 'Lee', by the way, Ms. Mori." Lee holds out her brochure.
Mako signs the blank space in the Notes section. ‒Do they seem quiet to you?‒ 
Raleigh does the same. ‒Yeah.‒ Blinks. ‒Ah, would'ye look at that. It /is the same teacher.‒
‒Would you like me to say something to him?‒
Raleigh snorts. ‒Not worth the effort. He's not gonna change.‒ 
Lee's still hovering, beaming at her brochure.
"If your classmates would like autographs, have them come over ... discreetly," Mako suggests quietly.
Lee nods and whispers to another student.
The kids start pausing near them on their way around the room. 
Meanwhile, the teacher remains oblivious, even as Mako and Raleigh slip out to meet their train.
== Two: Train Rides and Feathered Hugs ==
"Hey, Ray."
"Yancy! How long can you stay this time?" Raleigh hugs his brother tight, gently scratches under the fluffy white feathers Yancy folds over his shoulders.
"I can stay 'til you wake up." Yancy tries for a headlock and a noogie.
Raleigh laughs and tackles his brother into poppy-dotted grass.
Tiny feathers from Yancy's wings fluff into the air on impact. One floats down and settles between Raleigh's eyes. 
He scrunches his nose to dislodge it.
Yancy shakes his head and smiles fondly. "You've been busy, kiddo."
"Yeah. I'm sorry we didn't spend a lot of time together while I was on the Wall." 
Yancy swats the back of his head. 
"Hey! Ow!"
"Don't blame yourself for that," Yancy chides as he sits them up and cradles Raleigh in one of his wings. "Hard to hang out when I kept taking you over."
Raleigh concedes.
"Lemme tell you, though, being in your body was disorienting as hell. For one, not mine; for two, you're built different, brain- /and body-wise. It took me a few tries before I could move properly." He mimes trying to find balance on a pitching boat. "Your cat could tell the difference, even if no one else could."
"So ... what's with the takeovers, anyway?" Raleigh cards his fingers through Yancy's left wing feathers, pulling loose, bent, or damaged ones. He gathers them into a small pile.
"Honestly, I have no clue." Yancy bites his lip, nibbles it. "But ... I think me dying in the Drift left some of our connection in place, just enough to pull me through sometimes." Shrugs. "That's my best guess, since it doesn't happen to anyone else here."
Raleigh frowns, his brows lowering. "'Here'?"
Yancy shrugs. "There're other folks stuck on this side of dreams with me." Chuckles. "We hang out, compare notes sometimes."
Raleigh's heart stutters. "Any-anyone I know?"
"Yeah, there are." Pulls Raleigh close. "They'll visit when they can."
"Why haven't—"
"There are rules. I don't understand them, but." Shrugs.
Raleigh sighs, switches wings to groom Yancy's right side. "Well, I think your guess is right on." Another sigh. "Too bad I don't remember much of these visits when I wake up."
A long moment of silence.
"It's a protective thing," Yancy offers quietly, closing his eyes. "If you decide you'd rather be with me here, you might decide not to wake up—"
"And it's your job now to make sure I keep going," Raleigh finishes. "I can get where some people might not wanna let go," he murmurs. He spins a broken secondary between his fingers. 
Yancy cracks an eye. "Keep petting, please."
"Yes, sir," teases Raleigh, returning to work on Yancy's feathers.
They sit in the sun together, soaking in the sounds of chirping birds and crickets.
Yancy sighs, "Time to go."
"I know." Raleigh sighs, too, but gets up and hugs his brother close, his fingers sinking into Yancy's scapulars as he buries his face in his shoulder. "Love you."
"Love you, kiddo. Now get back to Mako." Yancy presses their foreheads together, shoves Raleigh with a cheeky grin.
Raleigh wakes with a start. He blinks sleepily at unfamiliar sights and smells and sensations—Train to Pittsburgh. Right.—and some very familiar ones: Mako's face, her soap, her fingers stroking his bangs. "Hey," he murmurs.
She looks at him tenderly and fluffs his hair.
He melts and leans into her touch.
"Have a nice nap, /saiai?" She turns a page in her book.
"Uh-huh. Yancy and I hung out." Raleigh's face heats. "That ... that sounds weird, doesn't it?"
Mako gives him a wry smile. "Don't worry. We meet in dreams, too. Mine are not as long as yours, but he is ... interesting."
"And what's the verdict so far?" he asks as Mako gently shifts him into the perfect train-cuddling position, shoving the armrests out of the way with her elbow.
"You have much in common," Mako admits with a faint crackle of jealousy along the link, "but you are the sweeter one."
"Jazzy's gonna love you—she thinks the same way and she's always wanted a sister," Raleigh hums as Mako pillows her head on his shoulder. "Says I don't do her nails good enough," he teases. 
Mako giggles at Jazzy's bossy tone in a shared memory of a failed manicure. 
"Hey, Mako?"
"Yes?"
"You think you and Yancy would've been Drift Compatible?" Raleigh cringes, flutters. "Uh, sorr—"
Mako captures his hands, traces his heartline with a fingertip. "It's alright." She closes her eyes and takes a breath. "Perhaps, but I think he would've been a better match for Chuck than for me."
Raleigh raises an eyebrow. "Why Chuck?"
"Steady enough to balance Chuck's temper, experienced enough to gain his respect. Chuck needed an older brother—or a father; I needed a partner," she finishes quietly, a sorrow /aching along their link.
"Thanks." Raleigh's muscles yield their tension and washes /love, pure and simple, over Mako.
"For what?" Mako tilts her head back to meet his eyes.
"A lot of things."
Her flood of /understanding and soft /affection warms him and he presses his cheek against her hair.
== Three: Pressure ==
They're cracking yawns and shuffling away from the train when they spot Sergio holding a sign.
-Goldie and Blue-
"Asshole," Raleigh murmurs fondly.
Mako /queries.
He replies with a memory of the Great Snowball Fight of Twenty-seventeen.
She hides a laugh behind her hand.
Sergio smiles. "Figure it's best to go by nicknames, since you've got reporters on your six." Snorts. "Keep pulling stunts like Chicago and you'll never be rid of 'em."
"We were real discreet about it," protests Raleigh.
"Maybe, but you thought the kiddos would stay quiet about it after they got home?" Sergio tosses back. "You're lucky you made it out of the building before the story went viral."
"Thank you, Ranger D'Donofrio," greets Mako and she bows. "For both the advice and meeting us here."
Sergio bows in return. "Aww, none of that, Blue. I haven't been a Ranger for years now." He offers a hand to Raleigh. "Looking good, there, Goldie."
"Same to you." Raleigh shakes, then drops their bags to rub the soreness in his newest burns. 
Mako's hip aches in answer and she absently massages the joint.
Sergio's russet gaze sharpens. "Or not. Trip that long probably has your legs hurting like you've been stabbed. C'mon, I drove here and the walk to the car'll stretch 'em out."
"Yeah. Thanks for that." Raleigh grimaces faintly, his scars feeling a little better now that he's moving.
"Not a problem, Goldie." He crinkles his eyes and slings Raleigh's ruck over his shoulder.
Raleigh snags Mako's satchel.
Mako yanks him up short by the satchel's strap and swaps it for their travel backpack.
"I can carry it."
"Yes, you can, but I want our camera." She digs into the bag.
Raleigh squeezes shut his eyes, makes a pained noise ,and laces his fingers with Mako's.
"/Saiai?" Mako stops, looks at him with concern.
"'m fine. Could we move? Faster? Leave?" he grits out. "Overload."
Mako pulls him along at a brisk walk.
The noise gets more confused.
Raleigh winces at a loud-sharp something.
Walks a few more steps.
Recoils and snaps open his eyes at touches to the sides of his face.
Sees Mako settling headphones on his ears.
She holds him gently with a wrapping of /quiet and /comfort.
He rediscovers how to breathe.
Soft, comforting music starts flowing through the headphones.
Raleigh shivers as Sergio brackets him from behind. ‒Thank Sergio for me. For blocking.‒
Mako tugs him into a relatively quiet corner. 
He matches his breathing to the thump of Mako's pulse against his wrist.
Sergio plants himself between Raleigh and the corridor. "He alright?"
"No. He said thank you for keeping the touch away."
"Ah. You're like Cait and I."
"Yes. The same but different; Raleigh has Asperger's syndrome," Mako replies as she slides her thumb across the webbing of Raleigh's fingers.
Sergio acknowledges, carefully rubs soothing circles against Raleigh's back.
Raleigh squeezes Mako's hand. "'m a little better. We can move."
"If you're sure, kid."
"Yeah. Music stays on. Keeps it down." He shivers and he rides it out, concentrating on Mako's warmth to block out the other sensations. "'m good."
"The car's not much farther."
The trio set off.
Raleigh doesn't look around or up, keeping his eyes trained on his scuffed boot-tips and the linoleum floor. 
When they transition to pavement and concrete, he glances up and sees rows of cars. Some of the stiffness and shivering bleeds away as Sergio leads them directly to a gorgeous twenty-fourteen Camaro parked in the very first rank. He pushes a headphone away from an ear. "It's the movie Bumblebee," he coos. "Yours?"
Sergio grins. "Being a hero has a few perks." He pops the trunk, moves to load Raleigh's ruck.
"Keep that out," Mako says for him. "Raleigh needs it right now."
Sergio passes the bag to Raleigh. "So you're riding in the back?"
Raleigh nods as he slips the headphone back into place and folds himself into the car, ruck in his lap.
Sergio keeps the ride quiet, his voice low as he asks Mako about their journey and how she was adapting to fame. In between questions, he glances in the rearview mirror, studying Raleigh. 
The third time he does it, Raleigh gives him a thumbs up before snuggling deeper into his seat.
‒/Saiai, we're not visiting anything today.‒
‒I know. 'm sorry.‒
‒Do not apologize for who you are,‒ Mako replies as her /warmth-comfort-serenity flows over him. ‒I adore you. Raleigh ... you are worth more than anything.‒
‒Anything?‒ 
Mako blushes and ducks her head. 
‒Just teasing.‒ Raleigh presses /tenderness against her mind. ‒Thanks for getting me through that. Thought I was good.‒
‒I handled it properly?‒ She glances back, hand resting on the left side of her seat. 
Raleigh laces their fingers and squeezes gently. ‒Y'did good, Mako.‒ He fills their Bond with /approval. ‒Real good.‒
Mako smiles and releases Raleigh's hand.
== Four: Heartache ==
Eventually, Raleigh feels brave enough to stop the music and pull off the headphones. 
The car is filled with soft music. The occasional lyric floats by in a language Raleigh doesn't recognize.
"So, where're we staying?" he asks as he digs into the ruck for his comfort food.
"With us, if that's okay," replies Sergio. "It's fairly quiet—especially since we're down one argumentative lab monkey at the moment—and no one's gonna be awed by your fame or ask stupid questions."
"That good with you, Mako?" Raleigh manages around a hunk of beef jerky. 
"Of course," she answers.
"Thanks for packing snacks for me. Yancy used to forget I have to eat after an overload. You want some?"
"Yes, please." Accepts the piece Raleigh offers. "I believe there are some matcha muffins for me in there, too." 
Raleigh digs about in a couple of pockets, makes a vague noise of victory as he finds and hands over the package. "You are awesome and wonderful and amazing," he adds.
"You two are so weird," Sergio declares as he heads the car into an underground parking garage.
"Says the dude who has a mental connection to his copilot," Raleigh quips as he cautiously cracks open the door.
"Pot, meet kettle," drawls Sergio.
Nothing outside but muffled street noises and dull chatter from people walking to and from their cars.
Raleigh exhales.
"Keep the headphones handy just in case," advises Sergio. "Folks are a little louder at street level." He locks the car and sets the alarm. "People might mistake you for grad students, by the way. Cait and I bring in a lot of 'em."
"Mako, sure, but me? Nah." Raleigh shakes his head, slinging his ruck over his shoulder. "I'm way too old."
Mako swats his hands away from her satchel and their rolling suitcase. 
Raleigh whines faintly in frustration. 
Mako settles his hat with a reassuring kiss.
"Age isn't a thing in college anymore. Besides, you look younger with your hat on and you're eating like the kid you actually are, squirt."
Raleigh pauses mid-chew on his fourth piece of beef jerky.
Sergio laughs. "Don't worry about it. You'll fit right in."
"If you say so."
They reach the street, which is tree-lined and has sidewalks fairly thick with what look like students.
"Fresh meat for the DriftSci grinder, Mr. D'onofrio?"
The kid's—he can't be much more than eighteen—glib attitude and thick Boston accent are almost enough for a sneer from Raleigh.
‒Easy, /saiai,‒ soothes Mako.
‒Sorry. Noisy East Coasters piss me off. No idea what it was like.‒
Mako's presence flickers, then washes more /calm-comfort over Raleigh.
"Friends, actually. They worked on the Jaegers," Sergio replies easily.
The kid's eyes widen. "Cool! Didya meet any pilots besides him and Doctor Lightcap?"
Raleigh chafes as the oblivious hero worship rubs him the wrong way.
"Yes, we worked with quite a few," Mako responds calmly.
"Which ones?"
Kid must have a mental catalog.
"All of the teams stationed in Anchorage and Hong Kong, including those there at the very end of the war."
The hint clearly goes right over the kid's head.
"What were they like?"
"They tended to keep to themselves." 
Raleigh winces as Mako's end of the Bond sucker punches him with grief-spiked impressions of the pilots they lost.
"They were good people," she finishes quietly.
"Yeah. We were pretty close," Raleigh says as he squeezes Mako's fingers and presses /comfort-home-understanding down the link. "Made losing 'em hurt like hell."
"O-oh. Sorry. See you around, I guess?" The kid practically trips trying to leave.
Raleigh watches him flee with an embarrassing amount of satisfaction and a faint smile.
Mako tightens her hold on his hand.
"House?" Raleigh asks, keeping one eye on the tightening lines around Mako's mouth.
"Two more down." Sergio clears a path and they make it to the front gate in one piece. He unlocks the gate, then the front door, and invites them in with a gesture.
Mako and Raleigh duck inside, peel off their boots.
"Cross the front room and hang a left," says Sergio. "Last door on the right is yours."
They find it easily enough.
"Bathroom's through the other door. Towels are under the sink," Sergio says as he strolls up. "I'll collect you when it's time to decide on dinner. It'll be just you two, Cait, and I tonight." He softens his eyes. "If you want, we can order in or cook." 
Raleigh smiles gratefully.
"Anything you want while I'm up?"
"Start a kettle for tea?"
"On it. Just follow the whistle."
"Sounds good," Raleigh answers quietly.
Sergio pats his shoulder and walks silently away down the hall.
Raleigh closes the door and exhales. He carefully tucks their stuff in a closet and looks up.
Mako stands near the edge of the bed, head cradled in her trembling hands. 
He gently sets a hand on her shoulder.
Her knees fold under his touch, stammers, "I-I—"
"'s'alright," Raleigh soothes as they sink to the floor. "The hurt's okay."
Mako chokes back a sob, wraps her arms around herself.
Raleigh embraces her from behind, rocks the back and forth as their grief mingles through the Ghost Drift.
Mako's breathing slowly evens.
The kettle whistles in the distance.
Raleigh ignores it. "Mako?"
「I think it was a combination of events: your near-panic attack and being reminded of our family.」
「Makes sense.」 Kisses her temple. 「You want that tea?」
「And my muffins?」 Her request is tinted with shyness.
「Of course.」 Raleigh stands, arranges all the pillows in the room on the window seat, then he gathers Mako in his arms, carries her over to the window seat, and settles her in the nest. 
Mako grabs his hand as he pulls away. 
「'm here and I'll be right back,」 he soothes. 「I'll always be here, Mako.」
He pads to the kitchen, pours hot water into the teapot, and gathers the tray of cups and cookies Sergio set out. He returns to the guest room, kicks the door shut behind himself. The tea tray goes onto the bedside table he drags next to the window.
Mako pours tea into the cups.
Raleigh snags the muffins, perches beside Mako. 
They curl around their tea and each other.
== Five: Dinner and a Show ==
Dinner is quiet, comfortable, and delivered from the Vietnamese restaurant a few blocks over.
Mako, tears dry and muscles relaxed, nestles against Raleigh's side.
He keeps his arm wrapped protectively around her waist and peppers her face with tiny kisses between bites.
"Knock it off with the display of affection, you two," grumps Sergio. "You're making me look bad."
Cait giggles and pats his head. "It's okay, hubby. We all understand. You're getting old—"
"Hey!"
Mako laughs.
Raleigh almost chokes on his drink.
"You okay there, Becket?"
Raleigh manages to swallow and flashes thumbs up.
Sergio nods. "So, umm, not sure how to bring this up ...."
–Brawler's here! I want to go play with him and Romeo. Can I? Can I?!– Gipsy squeals, wiggling with excitement.
–Of course, doll. Since when do you ask first?–
–Because I'm worried about you two since you're not all the way better yet.– Gipsy washes a wave of /love over both of them, aiming a little more /warm Mako's way.
–Go play. We'll be fine until you return.– Mako presses back /affection laced with /amusement.
–Thank you!– Gipsy flits away, trailing sparkles of /glee.
"You're not sure how to bring up the AI who just zipped through your head asking to go play?" drawls Raleigh. "We know exactly what you're talking about."
"Aaand they're off to blast some poor, unsuspecting guild to smithereens," Sergio sighs. "She's the sort who drops in on you now and then?"
"Not our girl," grins Raleigh. "She always checks in when we're bedding down and when she wants a chat or an explanation of something she's come across."
"She also maintains a watch on our environment," Mako adds as she pecks Raleigh's cheek. "We've had problems with Kaiju cultists, so she monitors nearby security cameras." Steals a noodle from Raleigh's pho.
He sneaks a bite of her chicken mì quảng in retaliation.
"Ugh. Don't we know it. I think we get, what, one death threat through the mail every month or so? Same batch of fruitcakes every time," Cait complains as she laces her fingers with Sergio's. "The Monkeys keep the best letters to laugh at later."
"They've started a 'wall of fail' in one of the storage rooms." Sergio takes a bite of bánh bèo. "I'm just sorry I missed the time the missionaries made it through the building checkpoint and tried to 'convert' Chuck. Security said they'd never seen people in robes move that fast," he adds with a chuckle.
A smile tugs at Cait's lips.
"Wait, wait, lady Chuck? With the hair?" Raleigh mimes something draped over his shoulder. "She still works for you?"
"That she does."
Raleigh pillows his chin on Mako's hair. "How's she doin' these days?"
"Umm, she's been, uh, away for a bit. I guess you'd call it a sabbatical." Cait picks at her food. "The boys are doing okay—"
"Dunno about 'okay'," amends Sergio. "Sure, they haven't burned the place down—"
"There was that one time ... with the soldering iron?"
"The damage from that was pretty minimal."
"They evacuated the building."
"Standard procedure." Sergio waves his fork. "Anyway, they haven't set fire to the lab, but they might be a bit, uh, less focused without her around."
"She does tend to keep them in line."
Sergio snorts. "Not quite what I meant, Eleven."
"Wha—"
Sergio offers her a bite of his meal.
"Ooo!" She nips it from his fork and hums. "Yummy!"
"Forget flowers, pancakes are the way to a woman's heart."
"Yep!" Caitlin aims her chopsticks for another mouthful.
Sergio gently smacks her hand.
She sticks her tongue out at him.
He does it right back.
Mako and Raleigh exchange a look and smile.
Mako snickers as she eats, occasionally offering a bite over her shoulder and Raleigh manages to eat them without dropping a crumb.
Soon enough, the bowls and plates are empty.
"You two go relax; we'll clean up," says Sergio.
"But—"
"Go, go!" Cait shoos them toward that living room. "We'll be there in a minute."
Raleigh huffs, shuffles into the room, then spots the PS2 under the TV, dives to check if it's connected; it is and he squeals happily.
""What're you doing in there?"" hollers Sergio.
"You have a PS2 and all the connections!"
Sergio strolls in, chuckles, "It's a recent addition to the menagerie."
"I think I spotted /Soul Caliber—" Raleigh ejects the disc. "—and this's /Street Fighter? That's /old."
Cait flops on the couch.
Sergio lifts her feet out his way, settles them in his lap, sets to massaging.
"Like some—ow!" Cait gently nudges Sergio's head with a foot. "No pinching!"
"You're only as old as you feel," he grins.
"Mako?"
"I get to be Elena."
"Then I call dibs on Ibuki." Raleigh checks the disc to make sure there aren't any smudges, wipes it on his shirt to make sure, and puts it back in. 
Mako offers /tender-soft-encouragement and makes grabby hands for a controller.
Raleigh passes one over, fires up the system. The old, familiar routine of setup reminds him of Yancy doing the same. "Where'd you find this beauty?"
"One of the grad students pulled it out of an old dorm and brought it with her. She repaired it in her down time. Which one was it again?"
"I think it was Sibeal? She's—oh." Cait's expression goes blank.
Raleigh waits for it—
–Brawler and I want to play, too! We'll take the third and fourth rounds with different characters,– Gipsy says as she bounces around in the Bond.
–Can you do that with older stuff like this?– Raleigh asks, projecting faint surprise.
–If it's got a chip, we can mess with it,– Gipsy hums as she tabs through the player options and starts multiplayer with Elena versus Ibuki as the first match and Akuma versus Chun-Li as the second. –This thing's pretty easy to manipulate.–
–Gotcha.–
Raleigh and Mako switch to Hard after three matches get them into the feel of the game.
Brawler and Gipsy play at the Epic level, using their ridiculous AI speed to pull off otherwise impossible combos.
Mako and Raleigh fall asleep on the couch together after the last match, peacefully snoozing away when Cait and Sergio cover them with blankets.
== Six: Overload ==
"People down here think I'm crazy, but I don't care~
Trials and tribulations, I've had my share~
There ain't nothing gonna stop me now 'cause I'm almost there~," sings Raleigh as he bustles around the kitchen putting the finishing touches on breakfast. He catches some motion in his peripheral.
"'offee," mumbles Cait as she shuffles in and flops at the table.
Raleigh slides her the first full cup. "Sugar and cream are right in front of you." 
"Thaaanks." She dumps cream, most of it into her mug.
"Mornin'," yawns Sergio as he drops in next to Cait.
She murmurs what might be a reply.
Sergio nuzzles her cheek, accepts a cup from Raleigh. "Thanks."
"You're welcome." Twirls to the oven and back. "Crepes and pancakes, jam and butter." Sets the plates on the table, sighs, "Wish I had some Nutella."
"That stuff's rarer than opals." Sergio sips, forks a couple of pancakes. "Tough to get all the ingredients in the same place still."
"Yeah, but I'm hoping Jazzy can hook me up with some." Raleigh spins back to the stove. "She's got a knack for finding the best food."
"Ah, I remember the tea at the Icebox."
"And the /chocolate," hums Cait.
"Hopefully, cross-Pacific shipping will pick back up now."
"Can't happen soon enough. I miss real Sumatra." Cait frowns at her mug. "Or Kona."
Sergio sighs long-sufferingly around a mouthful of pancake and jam.
"Heard it before, huh?"
"Yup." Dodges Cait's elbow. "I agree with her, though."
Raleigh chuckles, arranges a serving of scrambled eggs and rice on a plate, passes it to Mako as she enters.
She smiles warmly, takes her place at the table. "Join us, Raleigh."
"Just finishing up." Raleigh kisses her crown, eases into the chair next to hers, heaps his plate with food.
"You must've been up early to make all this." Cait encompasses the spread. 
Raleigh shrugs.
Mako frowns. 「A nightmare?」 
–/red lights burning in the way get out category five our first ever roaring echoes screaming– 
She shakes her head clear. 「Yes, then.」
"Bad night?" Sergio asks. 
"Kinda. Kaiju paid me a visit." Raleigh sighs. "The noise of it woke me up."
Sergio and Cait exchange a Look.
"Don't tell me you guys had the same dream."
"Not us, but—" Sergio studies the surface of his coffee. "—one of the boys probably did and yelled."
"He was doing so well, too."
"Uh, there are people living upstairs?" ventures Raleigh.
Cait pushes away from the table, murmurs, "Maybe we need to try medication ...."
"Three of our lab assistants." To Cait, "I'll bring meds up with him later, Eleven."
Cait ruffles his hair, leans against his side. "Thanks, hubby-mine."
"Didn't you have something to ask our guests?"
"Oh! Right! I'm hoping you'll come to class with me this morning and demonstrate a 'Drift soulmate' neural handshake." Dims a little. "If you're not feeling up to it, though ...."
"I'm fine to Drift," Raleigh reassures. "What kind of gear are you using?"
Cait sparkles. "My Mark VI Pons!"
"Mark VI?" Raleigh cocks his head.
"The funding cuts couldn't stop Science!" 
Sergio drawls, "Those grants from Shinohara didn't hurt, either."
"You kept working on it even though there weren't new Jaegers?"
"Of /course! Mako even installed Mark V-point-five in /Danger!" Cait leans across the table. "Could you tell the difference from your old Mark III rig? Was it clearer? Brighter? Less tiring?"
"Ellllllleven," warns Sergio.
"It's /data," pouts Cait.
"'Brighter'," Raleigh mumbles. "That's—that's why—" Swallows. 
"That's why we came out of alignment at the neural test. We weren't ready for the clarity of our memories," finishes Mako quietly.
Cait blinks, glow fading rapidly. "I-I didn't think of that. It could've—"
"What's new in the Mark VI?" interrupts Raleigh.
Cait takes a deep breath. "Well, more of the parts are quantum for—" Shifts her feet. "—for increased speed and clarity. We've EMP-shielded the whole thing—"
"If there's ever another Leatherback, the Jaeger might stop, but the pilots won't get the same nasty shocks," adds Sergio.
Mako hums approval.
"There're new fail-safes in case there's a loss of power or connectivity that properly terminate the handshake—instead of just snapping people out of it—and the safety margin between COROs /should be twenty-five points now, thanks to some software upgrades from Hermann, but we haven't tested that fully yet." 
"I had no idea you've been doing all this work," Raleigh admits, "and I'd love to give this new rig a try. You in, Mako?"
She nods.
Cait sparkles, skips out of the room. ""To Science!""
"That hasn't changed," laughs Raleigh.
"I wouldn't have it any other way," says Sergio, "buuuut you two should probably grab showers before Cait puts you on display. I'll clean up in here."
"I took one earlier," says Raleigh.
"Then I'll be back shortly," says Mako as she pushes to her feet and glides out.
Raleigh watches her go, sighs wistfully.
Sergio gathers empty serving dishes and cutlery. "You and Mori are certainly getting along well."
"I used to tease Yancy about doing the Becket Special and now /I've gone and done it."
"Head over heels, huh?" Scrapes crumbs into the compost. "Looks pretty mutual, too."
Raleigh hums, hops to his feet, collects plates and mugs, deposits them in the sink. "It's been awesome and amazing and so ... /easy to get in a rhythm with her. It's sorta like how Yancy and I were."
Sergio loads the dishwasher. "You dealing with all the closeness okay?"
"Most of the time, it's no problem, but—" Takes a deep breath. "—sometimes I'm afraid of losing her, too."
Sergio puts a hand on his shoulder. "Neither of you's going anywhere without the other. Trust her and trust yourself, kid. "
"I'll do my best." Raleigh smiles a laugh. "Mako makes it pretty easy."
"That's the way it should be." Grins. "Now, unless you wanna play it /really casual, I recommend putting on something a little more formal than your sweats."
"Thanks for the advice."
"No problem." Sergio turns back to the dishwasher.
Raleigh skips off to the guest room, digs a collared shirt and khakis from his suitcase..
He's buttoning his shirt when Mako comes out of the bathroom, hair damp, but dressed for the day.
Mako smiles, straightens his collar.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
Muffled yelling and a /thump from upstairs.
Mako and Raleigh glance at the ceiling.
"Boys're up," Sergio explains from the doorway. 
"We ever gonna meet these guys or do we have to take your word they exist?" teases Raleigh.
"You'll see them if you visit the lab this afternoon." Gives them a once-over. "You ready for this?"
"As I can be," sighs Raleigh.
Sergio assesses. "You're sure you want to do this?"
"Yeah. I'll be fine," Raleigh reassures.
"Let's go then." Sergio heads for the front door. "Keep me posted, though."
"Will do."
Mako and Raleigh step into their shoes and leave the house on Sergio's heels, arms linked and faces warmed by morning sun.
They've passed several blocks of houses and apartment buildings when Mako says, 「You saw Slattern in your dreams again.」
「Mhmm.」 Raleigh swallows. 「It was tearing /Striker apart and Chuck and—」 Shudders.
「It was a dream. You killed the real Slattern.」
「I know, but ....」 /Guilt-shame-sadness flows from him.
Mako shoves the emotions aside. 「We did everything we could, as did Chuck and the Marshal.」
「But—」
「Raleigh, Chuck and I never expected to live long.」 Softer, 「We nearly died as children, we planned to die as Rangers.」 Deep breath. 「I believe he was at peace with his death, as was the Marshal.」
「I wish ... I wish I could get that through to my subconscious,」 Raleigh sighs.
「The nightmares will pass away in time.」
「I can't wait.」
"We're here," announces Sergio, opening the door to a modern glass-and-steel building. "The whole sixth floor is ours," he explains, "but the auditorium is down that hall."
"Cool."
Cait's bouncing on her toes and grabs Raleigh's arm as soon as he's inside, towing him to the low stage at the front of the room.
A sea of faces—not an empty seat or a familiar face in sight—watch with obvious interest.
"Mako, Raleigh, this is ...." Cait furrows her brow.
"Mike," supplies the bearded grad student flanking her.
"Mike! Right! He'll be helping me with the equipment for the demonstration."
"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Becket, Ms. Mori," he greets, bowing deeply.
"The same, Mike," replies Mako with a shallower bow.
Raleigh bobs his head.
"If you'll excuse me." Mike bows again and bustles off to help Cait with the Pons.
"Can we ask questions?" calls a voice from the middle of the room.
"Please, go ahead," says Mako.
"What's it like at the bottom of the ocean?" someone hollers.
"Very dark and wet," quips Mako.
The audience giggles.
"How would you describe the Anteverse?"
Raleigh shrugs. "I was a little too busy to get a good look at it—"
Nervous laughter.
"—so all I can really say is it was weird."
"Weird how?"
"'Not right' weird."
"Sooooo ... Cthulu weird?"
Raleigh chuckles. "Kinda like that, yeah."
"So, umm, this isn't really a question, but, Ranger Becket, I want to thank you for saving me and my family back in twenty-seventeen." A beat. "I thought Yamarashi would get us for sure."
Raleigh ducks his head. "Umm, you're welcome, but me and my brother were just doing our job."
"I really don't care /why you did it, I'm just glad you did."
Murmurs of agreement and approval fill the room.
Raleigh shifts, tries to ignore all the eyes on him.
Mako takes his hand in hers, runs her thumb over its back.
"Okay!" Cait bounces over. "Ready~?"
Raleigh flashes thumbs up, Mako nods.
"Shiny!" Twirls to Mike, chirps, "Hook 'em up, Monkey!"
Mike passes over squid caps, checks connections after Mako and Raleigh settle them on their heads.
"Ready?" asks Cait.
"Ready."
"Then, neural handshake in five ... four—"
Mako squeezes Raleigh's hand.
"—three ... two—"
He squeezes back.
"—one. Neural handshake initiating."
Raleigh closes his eyes, takes a deep breath—
Black smoke curling over Romeo, flat on their ass, you reach
for Chuck's hand as the blue monsters' screams echo
of the surf off Fire Island as a late winter storm rolls
up the mountain road to Tams' place, lap full of shells from the
beach under the aurora, huddling in a borrowed sweater, wondering if
you'll ever be a Ranger, take your place with Chuck and
Marshal Pentecost, growling, a fixed point in Hong Kong, striding away
to gather The Stacking and Ruby Glittershine from under the bunk
with a feather in your hand, Yancy's face lighting
up when you pin him on the Kwoon floor, prove yourself his equal.
"Right hemisphere calibrating," announces Mike.
Mako and Raleigh raise their arms for the first form, perfectly synced.
"Left hemisphere calibrating."
Raleigh and Mako brace their legs for the second form, perfectly synced.
"Connection complete, neural handshake strong and holding."
Mako and Raleigh flow through further combat forms, sync staying flawless.
The air around them fills with waves of /admiration.
Raleigh follows Mako through a few Shaolin stances, then leads the way through a bit of /la canne.
"That's enough for today," declares Cait. "Neural handshake ending in three ... two ... one. Neural handshake terminated."
Drift blue and surf pounding a beach before a long-ago storm in Tanegashima blur-swirl-fade away.
The audience claps and cheers and buzzes?
Raleigh shakes his head and the drone gets louder.
–/Saiai?–
Raleigh grits his teeth. –The crowd. Overload.–
Mako takes his hand, beckons Cait over and whispers in Cait's ear.
Raleigh starts counting down from four-hundred-five.
Cait presses something flat and plastic into Raleigh's hand. "This'll open the lab door. Sixth floor, five steps straight ahead of the elevator."
"Thanks," he croaks, then he stands and stumbles out.
As the door closes behind him, Cait sings, ""So ... who has questions for Ms. Mori?"" 
Draft 2
== Seven: The Bridge ==
Raleigh fumbles the keycard through the lock on the DriftSci lab. It /snickts back; he ducks inside and slides down the door.
Deep breath. 
‒Two-hundred-and-sixty 
Two-hundred-and-fifty-nine
Two-hundred-and-fifty-eight 
Two-hundred-and-fifty-seven
...
One-hundred-thirty-one
One-hundred-thirty‒
Raleigh exhales, drops his head back against the door, takes in the lab. 
A sign, -Lightcap's Not Here-, confirms the place's empty but Raleigh doesn't remember it, perched as it is on a bank of monitors or otherwise.
He stands up, "She sent me?", shifts his weight from his left leg to his right (the stimming helps almost as much as the counting). "Said I could hide for a bit?"
The sign vanishes.
A grad student about Raleigh's height comes out from behind the desk with a dark look—
‒I /know this guy.‒
—blinks and approaches.
"Hi?" Raleigh slides back, shifting into a fighting stance. "Where can I hide and be outta your way?"
The student keeps eyes on Raleigh as they open a door, push it wide, and step out of the way. 
Raleigh investigates, but, ‒/Why do I know this guy?‒
A mostly bare second room with—!
Raleigh sighs with relief. 
—a couch!!!
"Thank you." The tension drains from his spine and shoulders. "'m Raleigh, by the way." 
Student nods slowly.
Raleigh cocks his head. "I swear I know you from somewhere."
::You really have no idea? I'm /hurt.::
Raleigh's niggle gets stronger and he signs, ::Would I be asking if I did?:: 
::I hear fine, Becket. Lost my voice.::
"Why do you know me?"
Student rolls their eyes. ::Maaaaaaybe because you're all over the news? Just maybe?::
"Oh. Right."
Student sighs, unclips an ID card from a pants pocket, and hands it over with an exaggerated bow.
-Logan Jones-
Raleigh glances up, squints.
Jones waits with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh." Raleigh hands back the card. "/I~ remember you now!"
::Gold star, Blondie.::
Raleigh's old temper—
Mako /queries from the auditorium.
—teases his voice. "/You're the asshole who beat up Yancy at the Icebox ... and then I kicked /your ass.
Jones puts his shoulders back. 
–Fought him for bruising Yancy and calling me Rain Man.–
Mako puffs /amusement. –If you'd rather, I'll kick his ass for you.–
Raleigh presses back /affection. –Pretty sure I can handle him.–
Jones signs, ::Don't remember it like that.:: 
Raleigh raises a brow and lets it slide. "What're you doing here?"
::I /work here.::
"Wouldn't 've picked /you for a bookworm." 
Jones huffs, plonks into the swivel chair at the room's central desk, and puts his feet up, waving Raleigh to a second couch.
–Guess even assholes can change.– Raleigh settles in, crosses his legs. "What do you do?"
Jones leans over, flips a few switches on some sort of cobbled-together electronic ... thing, and keys a command into his computer.
The light quality shifts and—
Raleigh's sitting on a (slightly out-of-place) rock on the tundra. He twists around—
Long, yellow-green grass, distant mountains, scrubby pine trees.
—soaking it in, his entire body relaxing in his home-away-from-home.
Jones smugs. 
"It's ... it's a holodeck," Raleigh breathes. "You have an honest-to-goodness holodeck." Unfolds himself from his rock, tries to look every way at once in a loopy spin. "'s incredible!" Runs his hand through the grass—"Did you ...?"—which apparently leads to a wall. 
Jones whistles. 
Raleigh attends. 
.::Had help.:: 
""Take it the visitor's enjoying The Bridge,"" says the rattling branches of a pine tree—says the person opening a door—stopping short. "Becket? What're—"
"Jackson!" Raleigh flies across the space, arms wide.
"Don't—!" Jackson puts his arms up to fend Raleigh off.
Logan dives after him.
Raleigh collides with Jackson in a bear hug.
Jackson flails his arms and topples backward.
Logan finally catches up.
All three of them hit the grass in a pile.
"Owww," Raleigh whines faintly. "You guys okay?"
Logan gets free first, grabs Raleigh by the shoulders and tosses him aside.
Raleigh skids on his butt for a couple of feet.
Jackson swats irritatedly at Logan, who's fussing around him. "I'm fine. Just help me up."
Logan does.
"Now go help him, ye rude bastard." He shoves Logan gently in Raleigh's direction.
Logan scuffs over and offers Raleigh a hand, pops him back to his feet.
Jackson looks around. "Trying to make the Yank feel at home or just showing off?"
Logan shrugs, but he's grinning.
"Whaddya think, Becket?"
"It's ... it's incredible." Squints at a tiny rock cairn at his feet, one /exactly like— "Are these my pictures?" 
Jackson looks to Logan. 
Logan shrugs. 
"Well, can you look?" 
Logan heaves a huge sigh, taps away. 
'Locating source images' scrolls from a random patch of sky—a corner, maybe?—and then a navigation window shimmers to life with an endless grid of images. 
Logan taps on one—it blooms, filling the window, and sure enough—
"'RB_AK-USA_2010'," says Jackson. 
"How'd you even get these?" 
Jackson prompts Logan. 
Logan rolls his eyes, slumps around in his chair, opens the file location, pokes at the folder tree. 
'ANK_2019', 'Scan Dump 2', 'Pietr', 'CKD'. 
"One of Rapunzel's," explain Jackson. 
"So this place splices them together into ... this?" 
The sky flickers into a text document. 
-Adds Internet-, types Logan. 
"D'you want more of them? I've got—I mean, I spent ...." Counting it up'll lead him down a path sore with nostalgia; instead, "I spent a lot of time there."
-Really.-
"I'm not scanning them," says Jackson—
A flash of white-tipped black in the grass.
"Was that a fox?"
"Maybe," smirks Jackson. "We like to make these things realistic as possible—" 
/THUNK
A stunned Arctic fox and a clump of pixelated grass resolve into a lime green, dotted Roomba and a lab wall. 
Jackson squints. "Is it actually gonna reset this time or ...?" 
Logan looks heavenward, rolls his boulder-chair through the grass (which honestly looks really weird), nudges the Roomba with his foot. 
It whirs to life—it's suddenly a fox again—and tears off behind a tree. 
"Show 'im the desert one," says Jackson. 
"There's more than one scene?!" Raleigh's voice cracks.
Jackson scoffs, "'course there are. You think we sit on our hands all day around here?" To his brother, "Give him the grand tour."
Logan tosses a salute, spins his boulder back to a tree.
Jackson huffs, drops himself onto the rock-couch and hoists his legs onto the cushions. 
Raleigh studies him: his rhythm, his movement ... they don't belong to the Jackson he remembers. 
The holodeck shimmers, then—
Harsh blue sky, sunset-orange sand and scrubby plants as far as the eye can see.
"The walls're are a shit-ton more interesting than me, mate." 
"You move differently."
"The walls look differently." Grimaces, shifts. "That'd be the nerve damage—" Bumps up his right knee. "—and the prosthetic."
Raleigh's new burns ache sympathetically—he winces, rubs his right arm.
The brothers trade a look, then Jackson shrugs. "Limping's better than dead." Settles deeper into the couch-turned-sand dune. "Tried that once." Wrinkles his nose. "Didn't like it a whole lot."
"When did ...?"
>"When d'you think, Becket?" 
Raleigh whirls to Logan. "You said you couldn't talk!" 
He shrugs. 
Jackson frowns at him, "Last fall—"
>"Brisbane." 
"We lost his voice, my leg, and /Vulcan; didn't lose the city."
"Or—" Raleigh swallows. "Or each other."
Jackson looks away, rubbing his neck. "Sorry." His hand stops. "I ...." Falls to his lap. "Yea." 
Mako sends /comfort-warm. –You have me, /saiai, even if I can never replace him.–
Raleigh holds her warmth close. 
Logan taps the keyboard—
They're underwater. 
The bright fish darting about nearly pull Raleigh to his feet, ready to chase them.
Bubbles of /affection-giggles float from Mako.
—smirks, waves at Jackson.
He looks over.
::You have essays.::
Jackson drops his head back. "Bring 'em here." Holds out his hand.
::Not your Monkey.::
"We're /both the Doc's Monkeys. Says so on the business cards."
Raleigh croaks around the ache in his chest, "Is that your official title?"
"He can still kick your ass, you know. Broken neck hasn't slowed him down."
Raleigh huffs a laugh. "Oh really?" Turns, rolling up a sleeve.
Logan waves him off as he pushes to his feet. He plucks a pen from an empty workspace topped with a plush koala and a thin layer of dust, grabs a thick stack of bluebooks from the corner of his own, presents both to Jackson with a flourish. ::Put it back or she'll hit you.::
"She doesn't count pens," Jackson grumbles.
::You sure?::
Jackson looks away, then at the pile of paper on his lap, and runs a hand through his hair. "Christ." He sighs. "This's gonna take the rest of the afternoon." He drops his hand to his lap. "Sorry, Becket. Gotta monkey. These have to be back by tomorrow afternoon. Logan'll entertain you."
Logan taps another command.
They're on the original /Enterprise.
Raleigh gapes.
"You're still an asshole," says Jackson, though it lacks bite.
Logan shrugs.
"Oh man, you are /soooo telling me how this works," says Raleigh.
Logan smirks, beckons. ::Think you can keep up?::
"You bet your Aussie rear-end I can," Raleigh scoots over, sits shoulder-to-shoulder with Logan. "Show me the magic."
== Eight: Dance Partners ==
"Thanks for agreeing to another dog and pony show," says Sergio. "The club'll really get a kick out of this."
"It'll be good to get in a workout and if the kids learn something, even better," Raleigh replies.
"Mind if we record your bout to go over at the next meeting?
"That will be fine," says Mako. "Perhaps your students will identify areas for us to improve."
"A lot of them are just starting out, so they'll probably be the ones learning." Sergio smiles. "I'll go set up the camera and hype you."
"Thaaaanks, Sergio."
"'welcome, Becket." Sergio strolls out the door from the green room into the dance studio he and the martial arts club had commandeered for the afternoon.
Raleigh huffs, joins Mako in stretching.
The door opens and Logan ambles in.
Jackson, a step behind, greets, "Hey."
"Good afternoon."
"Hey." Raleigh bobs his head. "You guys going to put on a show, too?"
Logan shrugs, slides out of his shoes, kicks his socks aside.
"Yup." Jackson stoops to pull off his. "Don't have much choice, seeing as we're assistant advisers."
Raleigh grunts, side-eyes him as he sits and stretches his legs.
The 'skin' of his left foot is pale with a plastic-y sheen; the whole thing looks stiff and awkward.
"You know it's rude to stare, ay?" growls Jackson.
Raleigh feels his face heat, looks away. "Sorry."
Jackson snorts, goes back to stretching.
–I don't know how he does it.– Raleigh shudders.
Mako sends a pulse of /admiration. –He is a survivor. He has adapted to his circumstances, as you did after Anchorage.–
Raleigh hums into Mako's flow of /pride-comfort.
Sergio pokes his head through the door. "Any objections to being the opening act, Joneses?"
"Nope," says Jackson.
::Yes!::
Sergio sighs. "You're the opening act. Get out here."
Logan scowls, slouches over.
"Drama llama," mutters Jackson.
Logan spins—
Jackson ducks—
—whiffs a slow haymaker.
—pushes his brother into the studio.
Raleigh steps—
Mako tugs his sleeve. 「Be on your guard if Logan challenges you. He's still dangerous.」
「That punch didn't look like much.」
「He was holding back.」 
「How do you know that?」
「I studied both brothers.」
「/Them?」 Raleigh's eyebrows jump to his hairline.
「They were the longest serving Mark III pilots and—」
""You lot coming or not?"" Jackson yells.
Raleigh cringes. 「Well, I've done okay against him in the past.」
「That was before Anchorage, before Hong Kong.」 Mako bows her head. 「Your injuries have slowed you; his will not have affected him so much.」
「And once he gets worked up, he's probably just as mean as ever.」 Raleigh takes a deep breath. 「Guess I'll just have to play it by ear.」 
Mako hums an agreement, offers her arm.
Raleigh accepts and they slip into the studio.
The Jones brothers hold center stage, circling each other: Logan grinning and casually swinging his hanbō; Jackson in a tense low guard, teeth clenched.
Logan breaks the stalemate, snapping a strike—
Jackson blocks before it connects with his knee, twists—
—pivots away from a hip-level counterstrike—
—only to use the staff like a kendo shinai.
—dodges the hefty hit.
–Hard to believe they're Drift Compatible. They don't have any rhythm,– observes Raleigh.
–It's more faint than it was, but it's still there.–
Raleigh cocks his head.
Three strikes (Logan), three blocks (Jackson), a somersault (Logan), and a low swipe (Jackson).
–I see it now, but it's still hard to believe they're Compatible.–
–But they are and they made it work.–
–I wonder what their Ghost Drift is like.–
–Their sync rate was low, so I doubt it is very strong.–
–They must have /something.–
Jackson drops to his knees—
Logan closes in—
—drives him away with rapid swipes at his ankles—
—darts, strikes—
—knocks his legs from under him, throws himself to his feet.
—rolls clear, hops up.
"Stop playing with me," growls Jackson. "Fight."
Logan hesitates, eyebrow raised.
"/Fight, jackass."
Logan shrugs, lashes for Jackson's right hip—
Jackson steps back—
—lunges, closes the gap, slashes overhand—
—blocks awkwardly, wobbles.
—presses his advantage, forces Jackson back back back until he's pinned to the wall, Logan's hanbō pressed (lightly) against his throat.
Jackson snarls, shoves Logan away, unleashes a flurry of blows aimed at Logan's ribs.
Logan, though, blocks them all and slowly, steadily takes back the offensive.
–He's kinda impressive when you're not defending yourself.–
Mako's lips twitch. –You should tell him that.–
–I'm not gonna feed his ego!–
Mako replies with a mental shove.
On the mats, Jackson windmills his arms as his left heel slips—
Logan nudges his shoulder.
—topples, lands flat on his back with a wheeze as the air's knocked from his lungs.
Logan grins, pokes Jackson's forehead with the tip of his hanbō.
"Yeah, yeah. No need to gloat," grumbles Jackson. "I'm done."
Logan drops his staff, offers a hand up.
"Give 'em a hand, folks," says Sergio.
Polite applause from the martial arts club, Raleigh, and Mako.
Jackson accepts the help, levers himself to his feet, sways, swats away Logan's hovering hands.
Logan makes a somewhat apologetic gesture and the brothers head for the sidelines.
"You two ready for a go?" asks Sergio.
Mako and Raleigh exchange a glance and nod, step together to the center of the room, take their places, and bow deeply.
Raleigh sets his feet in his usual starting position, watches Mako with narrowed eyes, searching for a clue to her first move—
She strikes high, fast, and from /la canne—
—parries with a smile, then hisses as he overreaches on his counter—
—taps his left arm, laughing—
—trips her with a slow sweep—
—accepts his help up, strikes for his ankles.
—spins away, steps back grinning.
It's all give and take—/guard-turn-parry-dodge-spin-halt-thrust-sweep-laugh—more like dancing than fighting and Raleigh wants it to keep going and going and going but he /hurts and switches to striking left-handed and Mako falters after landing a solid hit on his hanbō and they need to stop before their bodies force them to.
They drop their staffs and touch their foreheads together, arms resting on each other's shoulders. They breathe heavily, sweat dripping.
The audience cheers and applauds, even Jackson.
(Logan ... not so much.)
Sergio offers a water bottle; Raleigh passes it to Mako.
She accepts, says, 「We're going to be sore in the morning,」 with a wash of /love-pride-hurt and scars aching in time with her heartbeat.
「Not if we take a long, hot bath tonight.」 He nuzzles her temple, takes a deep breath perfumed with her shampoo.
Mako hums and they step slowly together to the edge of the room.
All around them, the members of the martial arts club chatter excitedly, but give them their space.
They trade off drinks from the bottle, catalog their aches, as the crowd begins to wander off.
">Wanna rematch?" says a quiet, hoarse voice at Raleigh's elbow.
{He turns, blurts, "I thought you couldn't talk!"
Logan shrugs. ::Only try when I don't know a word.::
"And you don't know 'rematch'?"
::No need. Not many want a second try at me.:: He smirks. ">You're an exception."} >since Logan talks above, this whole exchange no longer makes sense<
"[What about that bout with the Lins?"
A grimace flickers across Logan's face and he says, ::Aren't] you forgetting something?::
"Uh, no?"
Logan rolls his eyes, shows off a crescent-shaped scar on his forearm. ">Jog your memory?"
Raleigh's mouth fills with a ghost of copper.
–/Saiai?–
–I ... I think Yancy might've done something while I was, uh ... elsewhere.– 
–Do you want to excuse yourself?–
–Nooo ... I think I can handle this. Just stop me if I get outta hand.–
Mako pushes /reassurance-warmth across the Bond.
Logan clears his throat, taps a foot.
"Sorry. Little distracted."
::Careful, now—:: A nasty toothy grin. ::—that's how you get your neck broken.::
Mako steps—
"Maybe another day," says Sergio. "We have to give the room to the ballet class."
Logan pouts.
The audience groans.
::We can't let them down, can we?::
"You /know how seriously the dancers take scheduling."
::Think of the children!::
Sergio smiles sweetly and points to the exit. "Drop it and get out before I have you checking every one of Chip's connections. By hand."
Logan replies with a fantastic eye roll and a /hmph, but heads out the door. 
"I'll smooth things over with the dancers and meet you at the house."
"Good luck," says Jackson.
Sergio chuckles. "I'll need it."
Logan's bouncing on his toes in front of the elevator when Jackson, Raleigh, and Mako catch up.
"Still don't get tired, huh?"
Logan shrugs.
The elevator /dings and they all shuffle in, then out again when they reach the ground floor.
The late afternoon sunshine feels good on Raleigh's skin and he inhales a lungful of fresh air, lets it out with a happy sigh.
"Anyone else want dinnie?"
"Hell yeah. I could eat a /pony," declares Raleigh.
Mako sighs fondly.
"Cool, cool. I'll drive," says Jackson, jingling a set of keys.
Logan hisses, nabs them from his hand—
"Oi! Gimme those!"
—hops a fence, and vanishes.
Mako suppresses a laugh. "It seems he doesn't approve of your driving."
Jackson huffs, resumes trudging toward the house.
Down the block, a dog barks.
"Was that ...?"
"Yup."
"He's making good time?" offers Raleigh.
"He'd /better be. That dog would love to take a chunk outta him." Shrugs. "It's the cats."
"Shouldn't we help?"
"Nah. He needs the exercise." Jackson smirks.
== Nine: Quiet Conversations ==
After a peaceful dinner, Mako and Raleigh step out the back door of the to enjoy the sunset.
An army of cats watch from the bottom of the steps.
Raleigh smiles.
The cats size him up and he'd /swear they look disappointed.
Mako shrugs and pulls him down to the top step.
He sits, snuggles up close.
She rests her head on his shoulder.
Behind them, the door opens.
Cats nyan.
Door closes.
">Don't mind them," rasps Logan. ">They only love you when you have food." He sets a bowl of kibble in front of the cats.
They tuck right in.
Logan settles himself on the bottom step, leans back on his elbows.
They all watch the sky slowly change color.
Crunching.
A hiss.
Logan hisses back.
The cats drop their hackles.
"Shaolin style is not the only thing Lin Feng taught you," says Mako softly.
Logan shrugs. ">Man needs a hobby."
Raleigh snorts. "Beside starting fights, you mean?"
Another shrug.
An especially long-legged tabby flows into Logan's lap.
He absently scratches behind its ears.
A calico separates itself and flumps down on Mako's feet.
A seal point presses against Raleigh's leg, sets to purring.
A long pause full of street sounds, birdsong, and crunching.
Mako breaks the quiet. "May I ask a question?"
">Just did."
She frowns. "Why did you hold back against your brother today?"
">Didn't wanna hurt him." Sighs. ">I'm strong as ever and he's not."
"You've changed," blurts Raleigh.
">Maybe." Logan twists around—
Tabby grumps.
—looks at Mako, smirks. ">He's not the first person I've let off easy. Ask Pretty Boy there."
Mako raises an eyebrow.
Raleigh racks his brain.
Logan rolls his eyes. ">That the time I /didn't beat you with a stick—even after you fuckin' /bit me—when I could've?"
–Yancy, what the hell did you /do?– Raleigh rubs his neck. "Oh. Right. Thanks for that."
Logan laughs a little, says to Mako, ">/You should thank me, too."
"Really."
">Yeah," he drawls. ">Such a shame I went and got myself too beat up for that Compatibility test we were s'posed to take. Cost you a shot at being my copilot."
–Mako, what's he talking about?–
–I'll explain later, /saiai.– She takes a deep breath, centers herself. "You sabotaged the test by intentionally losing a fight. To Raleigh."
">Yup." Logan twists back around—
Tabby grumbles.
—resumes ear scritches. ">Guess I saved the world. Should probably call the president and ask for a medal."
Mako's lips curve into a smile. "Perhaps you should."
Logan scoffs.
"Don't encourage him, Mako," teases Raleigh.
">Don't you have somewhere useful to be, Pretty Boy?"
"I should probably check if Jackson's lonely." Raleigh pushes to his feet. "You'll be okay if I leave you with him?"
"I'll be fine. Go." Mako squeezes his foot.
Raleigh grins and saunters inside. He pokes his head into the living room, calls to Sergio, "Know where Jackson is?"
"Den. Upstairs, first door on the left."
"Thanks."
"Careful, though," adds Cait, "he's grumpy tonight."
"Gotcha." Raleigh climbs the stairs, raps tentatively on the doorframe.
Jackson looks up from the tablet propped on his lap, stylus halting its motion. He's sunk deeply into the cushions of a puffy chair, feet stretched out in front of him on an ottoman.
"Can I join you?"
Jackson inclines his head toward the couch opposite his chair.
Raleigh pads over, folds himself to sit cross-legged on the cushions.
"Help yourself to any book that catches your fancy or one of the tablets," Jackson offers before turning back to his own.
Raleigh snags an older model from a shelf, skims the list of games installed, and picks a pattern-finding one. 
Jackson taps away.
Raleigh completes one puzzle.
Then another.
"You still draw?" he asks.
"A little," answers Jackson without looking up. "Mostly digital these days." A few more taps. "You?"
"Not for a while. All my gear's still in storage."
Another puzzle's done.
Jackson frowns at his screen.
"Logan ever pick it up?"
"Nah." Squints, pokes something with the stylus. "Did seem to catch some of my CAD training, though." More poking. "He builds most of The Bridge's environments."
"Huh." Raleigh finishes another level. "What do you do?"
Jackson sighs, sets his tablet and stylus aside. "Grade essays, do—" Takes a deep breath and massages his right hip. "—whatever Logan and Chuck don't have time to."
"So you're sorta the Jackson-of-all-trades?" Raleigh quips.
Jackson rolls his eyes. "Haven't heard that a million times already." He keeps rubbing his hip. "Uh, noticed you—" Mimics Raleigh's left-arm grip from their time on The Bridge. "—at the lab." Takes a shuddery breath. "That a new or old hurt? If you don't mi—"
"'s'okay. It's old. From ...." Raleigh looks away, chews his lip.
"Anchorage," supplies Jackson quietly.
Bird song and chatter from the street below drift through the open window.
"You find anything that works for the pain?"
Raleigh studies his boots. "Not really. Massage like you're doing is probably the best. Painkillers when it cramps too bad to move."
Jackson grunts.
"It eventually gets a little better," offers Raleigh.
Jackson closes his eyes and nods absently, then lets his head fall onto the back of his chair.
A five-count of street sounds.
"Jackson?"
"Hmm?"
"You have nightmares about it, don't you?"
Jackson lifts his head, cracks an eye. "Why do you say that?"
"'cause I do, too." Raleigh takes a breath and plows on. "Wondering if I could've done something different and ...."
"Yeah." A shaky sigh from Jackson. 'least one a week, like last night." He shuts his eyes, lets his head roll back again. "Figure Logan's wishing to be deaf, too, so he could get some decent sleep. Keep waking the poor bastard up yelling."
Raleigh cringes sympathetically. "He seems different now."
Jackson shrugs. "Spent a couple days in a coma. Something probably broke."
"It's an improvement, if you ask me."
Another shrug.
"The nightmares get better, too." Raleigh's voice warms as he continues, "'specially if you can find a partner to help you through them."
"Like Mori, ay?"
Raleigh feels his face relax into a smile. "She gets it."
A huff.
"You've got your brother?"
Jackson raises his head, scrubs a hand over his face. "He does his best ... but he's still /him, ye know?" Waves a hand near his head. "He /can't get it."
Raleigh frowns. "Umm, you guys don't have a, uh, mental connection? After all those years Drifting together?"
Jackson crooks an eyebrow. "We can tell when the other's hurting, get a few vague pictures, but that's it. Nothing like Lightcap and D'onofrio."
"Wha—How—"
"I live /and work with them. Hard to miss after a while."
"Oh. Right."
"You and Mori, too, yea?"
Raleigh nods hesitantly.
Quieter: "And your brother?"
Raleigh swallows, sketches a tiny nod.
They listen to the evening sounds.
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