#and while we're talking about newer Operators

[johannstutt413]

(requested by anonymous)

Asbestos parked her door-shield in front of the Doctor’s office door after closing it behind her. “Hey, you done yet? We’ve got some drinking to do.”

“This is four days in a row,” he sighed from his desk. “I’m starting to get used to having a hangover in the morning. Why are you so insistent about this?”

“You’re the one who begged to come on an expedition with me. If you wanna roll into a cave with me, you’re gonna have to pull your weight. I’m not sandbagging for your slow ass. Come on, damnit, daylight’s burning!”

He groaned, resolutely stationary. “But what the hell does getting drunk have to do with spelunking? And you’re the one who asked me to go with you by giving me a suit in the first place!”

“Because I had a spare, and it had to go somewhere, didn’t it? Sheesh.” The Savra crossed her arms and started tapping her foot. “Come on, time’s a-wasting. You know I won’t leave until you come along.”

“...Goddamnit. Fine, let’s go.” The Doctor stood up, threw his jacket on, and followed her through the double door...which she left in place. Of course she would.

She put her arm through his and tugged him all the way to her bar of choice - in other words, the one with the least amount of people. In fact, the only other person there was the bartender, a Forte with as many scars has he had fingers and said about as many words in a night, so in other words, it was just the two of them. “Give us both a whiskey lullaby, and keep it coming until this boy here becomes a man.”

“I’ve been one for a few years now, thank you very much.” He took the glass as it was put in front of him, took it straight to the back of his throat, and, admittedly, relished the burn for a moment. “You’re gonna be the death of me, one way or another.”

“Might as well be; otherwise, you’d never leave your office.” Asbestos took her one drink for the night slowly, monitoring the Doctor as he downed his second.

Then his third. He was getting much better at this. “Do you do this to everyone who tries to talk to you? Not that that’s many people, I imagine.”

“Magallan and Click didn’t need a test, and we only talk about our expeditions, so I didn’t bother. You, though? You need all the toughening up I can give you.”

“The hell does that mean?” His eyes narrowed; he’d let his hood fall down during the walk-drag there, and it gave his expressions an extra note of sincerity, like a fighter throwing aside their training gear. “Do you know the shit I’ve seen?”

She snorted. “No, and you don’t either, so don’t try that shit with me.” And there went number four.

“I wouldn’t if you didn’t pull out all the stops to annoy me...What’s your real game, anyway? There’s being tsundere, and there’s being a sadist, but you don’t really seem like either to me.”

“Tsundere? Wow, alright, nerd.” Asbestos, breaking tradition, finished the rest of her first glass and signaled for a second. “Who needs a game? I just want to be a jerk - is that so hard to understand?”

He slammed his free hand on the table. “Damn right, it is. Why d’ya wanna go around like that? The hell makes a person make that their whole goal in life?”

“Does it matter? I don’t want the baggage that comes with all that shit. All a friend would do is hold me back, anyway, and I’ve got too many crazy-ass caves to climb around in to make time for that. Especially a scrawny mite like you.”

“Maybe I am scrawny.” The Doctor, seeing double after his sixth glass, drifted his focus to her tail. “But that makes me pretty fast.”

The Savra followed his gaze and shifted so he couldn’t stare. “The hell are you staring at?”

“Heheheh...Nothing.”

“You’re a terrible liar. Hey, dumbass.” She snapped her fingers in his face. “My eyes are up here.”

It was too late; he was already pretty far gone by this point. “I’ve made my choice...Swish!”

“Swish?! What th- kyaaa~!” Without giving her any time to react, the Doctor had bolted out of his chair and was now standing behind her, grasping her tail with one hand and stroking it with the other.

“So smooth~” It was nice and warm, too. “Hehe- ow.”

The ‘ow’ was because Asbestos had kicked him off of her and was standing over him, hands on her waist. “Who the hell said you could touch my tail, because it sure as fuck wasn’t me!”

“But it’s all smooth and warm...You really gonna hog that all to yourself?”

“It’s my tail, asshole, that’s my right!” She groaned. “Forget it. You always get like this after five or so. It’s my fault as much as yours.”

The Doctor sat up, rubbing his head. “But you keep letting me get away with it~ Just admit it: you like when I do it.”

“...I’m taking you home. Come on, let’s go.” The Savra pulled him to his feet and started dragging him behind her again.

“♫’Bestos-chan is best girl♪” He sang to himself as he stumble-slid along behind her. “♫’Bestos-chan is best girl♪”

Asbestos was blushing, in spite of herself; her tail was lit up as a result, too. “Sh-shut up. Seriously, your voice is more grating than a piton on a rock face.”

“But you aaaaare best girl. Heh. You make, ♫dum-dum Hurt so good! C’mon, baby, make it hurt so good!♪”

“...Goddamnit.” He was always so cute after she knocked some sense into him, but...No. Giving in would just make him think he had a chance of getting through to her, and she couldn’t risk that. She had way too much to do and not enough heart to spare for him...At least, not that she wanted to admit to having.

They made it to the Doctor’s place without any more major altercations - no, just him singing his love to her off-key and her telling him to shut the fuck up. The usual post-bar routine. Tonight, though, things took a bit of a turn as the Savra opened the door for him, but he refused to let go of her. She dragged him into his apartment, but still, he hung on with a strength he’d never shown before...What was his damage? “Hey, we’re here. Get off. Train stops here.”

“Why should I?” Once she was stationary, the Doctor wrapped around her leg instead. “Then you might leave~”

“Yeah, that’s the idea, weirdo. Seriously, you turn into a perv when you’re drunk.”

He chuckled, chasing it with a hiccup. “Maaaybe.”

“You’re insufferable.” And yet… “Alright, look, if you let go of my leg, I’ll consider staying for a nightcap, but you can’t cling on me like fucking moss if I do, got it?”

“Alrighty-ighty-oh.” That convinced him; the Doctor let go of her leg.

She sighed, helping him to his feet. “There. I said I’d stay, so I will, but don’t get any funny ideas.”

“Sure.” Immediately, he kissed her, full on the lips, as he hugged her as tightly as he could manage. When Asbestos kneed his crotch, he pulled back, but he didn’t look like he was in any pain. “See? Not funny in the slightest.”

“...I’m never taking you drinking again. Forget the expedition, this shit isn’t worth dealing with-”

The Doctor, who seemed to be drifting in and out of consciousness up to this point, cut the act and stood up to his full height - a good half a foot taller than her. “You know you won’t.”

“The hell?” Asbestos stared at him for a moment. “That...was all an act just now, wasn’t it?”

“If there’s anything you taught me to do, it’s put on a front. You know I’m not a touchy-feely guy.”

The Savra shook her head. “Maybe not when you’re sober, but- Oh fuck, wait a minute.”

“Yeah.” He smirked. “Like you said, you don’t know the shit I’ve seen; I’m not even talking about the part even I don’t remember. This was never about toughening me up, Asbestos; we both know that.”

“You leave one chink in your armor, and the whole suit is worthless.” She sighed, wishing she’d brought her shield with her.

The Doctor nodded. “Especially when you wave it in front of the guy with a knife aimed at it, begging him to stab at it. The thing is, I know this isn’t about needing a friend, because you don’t really need those, so what is this about? Why tempt me like this, only to push me away every time?”

“Well, it’s not playing hard to get, I promise you that.” The Defender looked around for a place to sit before deciding on the bed, since it was her only option in her immediate vicinity. “Look, I don’t...I don’t want to leave anyone behind when I go, alright? This Oripathy shit is gonna kill me one way or the other, and when it does, I don’t want someone missing me when I’m gone.”

“...That’s it?” He’d sat down next to her, partially because his knees were kind of wobbly, but also to signify he was genuinely paying attention at this point.

She repaid him for that by punching his arm. “Yeah, that’s it, asshole. Seriously, I bare my soul to you, and you still bitch at me.”

“What can I say? I learned from the best.” After a moment of silence, the Doctor sighed. “So, what? You just wanna leave and forget any of this happened?”

“Yeah...No...Damnit, you’ve got me all confused.” Her tail was glowing again.

He put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry about going overboard earlier. It’s not...I just...God, no, there’s not a single good explanation for that, is there?”

“You’re desperate? Hopelessly in love with me, willing to drag yourself through the mud behind me and get beaten to shit just to be near me?” When he didn’t say anything, the Savra sighed. “Of course you are.”

“Calling it love is too generous; I’m just a masochist who thinks you’re cute.”

Asbestos shook her head. “It just had to be you, didn’t it?...Alright, how about this: when we’re both less intoxicated, and I’ve gotten my shit straight, I’ll get back to you on where I want this to go. Sound good?”

“It’s better than nothing.” He sighed. “Until then?”

“Until then?...Eh, why not? One for the road.” She ambushed him, giving him a kiss on the cheek before walking out the door.

The Doctor watched her leave, stomach full of butterflies and alcohol-induced nausea and head absolutely spinning. Was that really it? No, it didn’t feel right-

The Savra walked back into the room and closed the door behind her, shaking her head. “I’m staying the night. The jacket’s coming off, but nothing else is. We’re gonna lie in that bed together, in a warm and tender embrace, and that’s as far as we go tonight. Got it?”

“You read my mind.” His shoes flew into the wall across from him and ricocheted off. “Really couldn’t get me out of your head this time?”

“That’s not it...I’m just cold.” The words rang hollow even as she said them, but it didn’t matter; the way her tail curled around him instinctively once they were both lying down, or the way his heart beat lulled her to sleep as she set his head against his chest, or the way he took it all in stride, seemingly grateful just to have a chance at all - those were the realities of the situation, and those were all she needed to come to terms with it for the night.

Because, even if she didn’t want a friend, it was nice to have someone to do this kind of thing with...