by SA Payne
were three sorts, enemies, competition, and non-threatening useless civilians. "I'm not going to be your competition either."
Vince just snorted in agreement at that. "Not even if you started trying today."
He moved to the table and saw their luggage sitting, waiting on the table and a small note card.
"I'd like for us to be friends." Ichi very deliberately turned his back to Vince and trusted the man that had been trying to kill him less than an hour before.
That left Vince floundering. As much as he hated Conti and often hated the life he'd been living, he understood it. He could logically know what to expect. This was new and he knew he what to
say, how to fake things but that wasn't what was required.
Finally, he shook his head a little bit. "My loyalty is to Jude."
Ichi turned, holding the card. "That's fine." He smiled gently as seeing the uneasy, almost painfully uncomfortable, look on Vince's face. "I'm sorry for what Conti did to you."
That only made the confused unease worse. "It was his right."
"No, it wasn't." But just like Rye, Vince couldn't be convinced so easily or so quickly. He glanced down to the card and if he wasn't so emotionally exhausted he'd have swallowed his own tongue
in shock. Living Companions had granted both Ichi and Rye restitution, a shocking, frightfully
high sum of money, all legal and proper. He knew they were being bought off but, frankly, he
couldn't bring himself to care.
Ichi grinned at the Mercury Fire Ants as they moved in ant like agreement carving out their new
home. They were an odd species, breeding just enough to fill the space and resources open to
them, like goldfish in progressively larger bowls. He was guessing that once the queen made
herself at home, he'd have several hundred ants within a month. The new lab was far better laid
out and he was taking advantage of starting over.
A footfall, too soft to be someone from Avalon, sounded behind him. "Hello, Vince." Ichi spoke to the air, knowing it had to be the blonde. He could move silently but was smart enough to give his
new friends fair warning when he was behind them.
"Mr. Ichi." No amount of being told different had been able to convince Vince or the handful of his siblings that had shown up to be less formal than that. Even if the formality, the distance,
they placed between themselves and everyone else made the folks from Avalon uncomfortable.
It was something Ichi understood. Vince had been circling closer and closer to him like some
timid, kicked dog. More so over the last weeks, with Rye and Gardner off on a job. Vince was
both more skittish and, in some ways, less than his siblings and as the weeks had passed
seemed unable to fit in with his siblings or the folks from Avalon.
It was only those times when he'd show up and just sit in the corner of Ichi's lab that the blonde
seemed to relax at all. Even if having the other man sitting, studying everything he did, was
unnerving, Ichi tried not to mind. It was important to Rye that the few remaining siblings he had
were given a chance at connecting on a human level and it was a small enough thing for Ichi to
do to help.
Ichi didn't glance from his ants. "Any word from Rye?" He knew there wouldn't be, old habits died hard. Just as Vince was taking Rye's request tòlook after Ichi' as seriously as if it were a to-the-death command.
"About that, sir."
Those were frightful words. Ichi felt his heart stop beating, his blood go cold. Rye was hurt, or
dead, he wasn't going to make it back. It didn't matter that he'd been very strict with what kind of jobs his fledgling security company accepted. He'd so far tracked down a runaway teenager from
a wealthy family and stuck to testing if already established security on companies and military
bases. Thief work, Vince had called it but none of the siblings had complained too loudly about
not having to kill anyone to survive.
Just because it was low risk, didn't mean accidents didn't happen. Rye had insisted he join each
sibling on their first job, to make sure they were stable and okay. He'd been gone for the better
part of the last two months and Ichi gritted his teeth and accepted it. They were still figuring
things out but Rye was smart, he was establishing a system that, once in place, would allow him
to stay close to Ichi at all times.
Except, Vince had come to him, quietly, with his flat, emotionless voice that could announce cold
death without a hint. Ichi sat upright but didn't turn around. He couldn't look at Vince, couldn't see nothingness in his blue eyes, or worse, sympathy.
"What about, Rye, Vince?" He asked carefully, prepared to dismiss Vince and fall apart in private.
There was a pause and a soft shift of feet. "Hey, baby." A warm, delicious voice spoke.
Ichi about startled from his seat. "Rye!" He spun around now, ants forgotten and standing in the
doorway was Vince, Gardner and Rye. The blonde was grinning like a mad man at his part in the surprise and Gardner, a dark haired man that was so ordinary looking that Ichi had a difficult time remember just what he looked like, stood beside Vince carrying a small box. Rye, however,
stood just inside the lab doorway and he was smiling widely.
There was no thought to being shy, or being reserved, Ichi literally flung himself against Rye with enough force to stagger the stronger man back a step. Warm arms wrapped around Ichi's waist
and lips parted to his own. Ichi heard Rye moan softly, deep in his throat, a moment before one
of the hands at his waist slid lower to the top of his ass and pulled their hips together.
"Shit, get a fucking room." Gardner mumbled and earned himself an elbow into his ribs from Vince.
Rye broke the kiss but kept his forehead pressed to Ichi's for a moment. "Missed you."
"Same." Ichi whispered back but Rye didn't seem willing to let him go.
"And watch your language, Gardner." Rye's voice took on a sterner tone.
It made the dark haired man duck his head slightly. "Yes, sir."
"What're you doing back so soon? I thought you had some tracking job..." Ichi tended not to ask for many details but Gardner was the best tracker of the surviving siblings, the man could find
anything if given enough time.
"We did, got it and came back." He nodded to the box Gardner carried.
It was only then that Ichi remember how frightened he'd been with Vince being so discreet and
assuming the worst. He pulled out of Rye's remaining arm and thumped the red head hard
enough to get his attention. "Never scare me like that again! I thought, with Vince, I thought something had happened!"
"Ow, hey, don`t." Rye half laughed. "Blame Will and Amanda too, I made them swear to secrecy.
Been planning this for too many months and you're too smart of a man to fool easily."
"What're you talking about?"
"If you were anyone else, I'd have bought you chocolates or flowers but, happy birthday." He waved to the box Gardner was holding.
Ichi blinked, surprised and counted up the days, sure enough today was his birthday. Normally he
only remembered because Will and Amanda teased him for being old but they hadn't. "I'd
forgotten."
"I know, I asked everyone to not remind you. Go on, take the box."
"Birthdays aren't that important to me, you know you didn't have to do anything." Ichi started but as soon as he saw what kind of box it was he started to get excited. The weight was right too
when he took it from Gardner. The read out on the top confirmed it. "Oh, my God."
Rye grinned wider. "Seven Trillions to start your new swarm. All from different hives too so they'll be a good breeding set."
"How... how did you manage this?" Ichi hurried the box over and started pulling up the details
from the read out. "I had to get my original swarm one at a time, it took years to get seven."
"We had eight."
"One of the little fuckers bit me and I smashed it without thinking." Gardner protested, showing the spot on his arm that was still black and swollen from the toxin.
"Language." Rye warned softly.
"Sorry."
The idea of Rye stumbling on a hive, waking a hive, being brought down by a hive, made Ichi ill.
As much as he wanted his swarm back, he never would have allowed Rye to be the one to
replace it. It was easier to risk his own safety, his own life, not Rye's.
Ichi stood so long just staring at the sealed cold storage box that Rye wondered if he'd done
something wrong. He'd seen folks from Avalon celebrate birthdays, seen other people as well,
but had no real experience with it. When he'd noticed Ichi's was fast approaching, he'd spent
hours in discussion with Will trying to learn what was proper and right. They'd gone over all the
traditional gifts, a few Rye had indulged in as well that were waiting back in their apartment, but none seemed proper.
"Will said, he told me, that a birthday gift should be perfect for the person receiving it. He said, it should make the person happy and surprise them." Rye tried to explain and wondered if he'd
done something horribly wrong. No where in all his research had he ever seen anyone giving the
person they loved highly dangerous insects for a gift.
Ichi sniffed softly, refusing to sob like a child over the romance of how thoughtfully perfect the swarm was. He glanced over to Rye with a small grin on his face but at the worried, uncertain
look on his love's face the smile grew wider. In fact, he was grinning so largely that his face hurt and it felt a little like someone else's smile. He'd been feeling that way a lot since he'd met Rye.
"It's the most thoughtful, most perfect birthday surprise I could imagine." Ichi finally announced and three faces lit up but all Ichi could see was Rye's.
"We've a party planned too." Vince announced. "Will planned it but we helped." None of them had been to a party for pleasure before but the rest of the folks on the station from Avalon had
helped and it felt, almost, like a real family.
"A party?" Ichi felt overwhelmed, torn between the expectant humanity in the siblings so eager to try a real celebration, his own excitement at meeting his new swarm and simply dragging Rye
away for some private time.
"There's a cake." Vince nodded but while his voice was empty and careful, his blue eyes
sparkled.
"A cake?"
"Alright!" Rye stepped in, his eyes having never left Ichi. "Both of you out. Gardner, go see Will or Amanda, get that bite looked at."
Matching `yes sirs' preceded the pair leaving and the door shutting tightly behind them, leaving
Rye alone with Ichi. "I'm hoping at least four come out of cold storage okay." He said into the empty silence of the lab.
"They're hardy, they can take a lot." He felt feverish with the way Rye was watching him, those grey eyes so intent. "The ah, the journal accepted my paper on the nesting habits. They were
quite impressed. There's been talk of my actually presenting the paper at several universities."
Rye couldn't wait any longer, he hurried over and gathered Ichi back into his arms, pinning him
between the work top and his own chest. "Of course they do, you're brilliant." He whispered just before he licked Ichi's ear. "Happy birthday, god I missed you."
The lick made Ichi whimper and his knees go weak. "I should, the swarm, I should get them
settled..."
"Soon, I'll help... need you too much though." He sighed and rubbed his hips across Ichi's not at all surprised to find the blushing entomologist equally aroused.
"Door... still doesn't... oh god... lock." Ichi sighed out an tilted his neck for Rye to exploit.
Rye chuckled. "Don't care, going to take you right here and tonight?" He bite Ichi's neck hard enough to earn a surprised yelp. "Don't expect to get any sleep."
The threat was real and one Ichi had been thinking about making to Rye when he returned. He
moaned and found his hands working to open Rye's pants for him, eager, needing, and only half
caring about the unlocked door. Behind him his new ants were carving out their home and beside
him sat the swarm waiting to be released into their new enclosure but all Ichi's mind could
process was the feel of Rye holding him.
"Missed you, missed you so much." Ichi groaned but it wasn't in response or reference to the strong hand that had managed to worm it's way into his pants.
"I know, I love you too." Rye grinned and answered.
And for that single moment, both clung to each other and spoke of love with flesh and sighs; they
saw the future stretched out before them. A time filled with many more birthdays and
anniversaries, filled with laughter, family and friends. There would be work and
accomplishments, threats and failures, joys and fears. It was a future they'd risked so much to
see, lost so much to gain and so long as they could cling to each other it was one that held no
fear for either.
The End
