Valentine's Day challenge story: Love Is In The Air
Title: Love Is In The Air
Author: TalliW
Characters: Nick Cutter, Jenny Lewis, Stephen Hart, Tom Ryan, Sarah Page, Captain Becker, James Lester, Christine Johnson, Helen Cutter, Cutter clone, Danny Quinn, Mick Harper, Lieutenant Lyle, Captain Wilder, Finn
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: Primeval is the property of Impossible Pictures. I write just for fun.
Acknowledgments: Thanks to Fredbassett for beta-reading. I couldn't have done it without you.
Finn und Lieutenant Lyle belong to Fredbassett.
Summary: Stephen has a new job and an important mission leads him back to the ARC.
AN: Sort of fix-it story written for the Valentine's Day challenge in Cutters Lab
"Hi, Stephen."
Only a moment later Connor registered that Stephen shouldn't be sitting on the top of the locker cabinet in the ARC's changing
room.
"What are you doing here? And what does that outfit mean?"
Stephen looked down at his short white tunic and shrugged his shoulders. "It's regulation. They are very keen on proper
working clothes. But you quickly get used to it. It's very comfortable."
"I bet," Connor mumbled, flustered. Stephen's tunic wasn't hiding much in his current position.
"And that bow in your hand?" he asked.
"Is my implement. For my new job. But you shouldn't seeing me at all. I guess my perception filter isn't properly adjusted yet."
"And what... Ouch. Why did you do that?" Connor stared in shock at the small arrow which had hit him square in the chest
and was now dissolving before his eyes in his body.
"To answer your other questions I'm the new Cupid and I'm here to make sure you're falling in love with Abby."
Connor rubbed his aching chest in annoyance and glared at Stephen. "But I already love Abby."
"Now you love her even more," Stephen replied smugly.
"You should have shot Abby. She’s the one who needs a push. Not me. She hasn't even said anything about my Valentine present this morning."
Connor sounded rather angry and Stephen thought it was perhaps for the best to retreat for now. His supervisor had warned him about ungrateful recipients. He could always finish the task later.
"Have to go now. Another client is waiting," Stephen called and vanished into thin air, a moment before Abby walked in the changing room, finding a confused Connor who was poking and prodding at his chest like a maniac and babbling about crazy angels.
Stephen blinked as he spied his next target. He hadn't expected Cutter to have changed so much. Now his old friend looked pale and haunted, and far too depressed for Valentine's Day.
Apparently his help was desperately needed. So Stephen quickly drew his bow and aimed at Cutter. 'Oh no.'
"Is everything all right, Sarah?" Cutter asked in concern, as Sarah stumbled lightly as the invisible arrow hit her thigh.
Stephen could already see the dopey look in the woman's eyes as the magic began to work. But she hadn't faced Cutter yet. So there was still a chance to prevent disaster.
"Sarah, have you finished that report yet about the amount of destruction Connor and Becker caused in the British Museum?"Jenny asked, from the office entrance.
Stephen rushed forwards but it was already too late. He groaned in annoyance as Sarah gazed, now lovestruck, at the woman he had been ordered to pair off with Cutter. The job was more difficult than he had assumed. At first making people fall in love with each other had sounded so simple.
Then Sarah stepped forwards and gave Jenny a big one right on the mouth and Stephen felt a strong urge to curse and rant. He really should have minded the advice of his predecessor to always have some reversal arrows handy.
Jenny Lewis looked just as shocked as Cutter but Stephen could also detect a slight spark of interest in Jenny's eyes. That meant he had to act fast or Cutter would end up alone and grumpy.
When Sarah fled the room, blushing furiously, Stephen had already nocked the next arrow. Determinedly, he shot it at Jenny, then added a second for good measure. Better safe than sorry. Sarah Page was certainly more attractive than Cutter.
Doped by two arrows, Jenny gazed, enamoured, at Cutter who seemed a little confused by her behaviour.
In the meantime Stephen prepared his bow to give Cutter his love shot and finish the job for good. But Stephen's plans were thwarted by the familiar blaring of the the anomaly detector.
Cutter was out of the door before the arrow could reach him, with Jenny close on his heels. So Jenny had the pleasure of a third shot. Stephen just hoped she wouldn't run around goo-goo-eyed for the rest of her life.
After the team had left the building Stephen witnessed a heated video telephone conversation between Lester and an arrogant woman who was apparently after Lester's position and watched Lance Corporal Finn wanking off in the armory.
Feeling a little bored, he considered getting comfortable on the roof and taking a sun bath when he suddenly spied Helen outside the ARC. It wouldn't do any harm to make sure she wasn’t planning something nasty. So Stephen followed her and ended up in an abandoned factory building.
Was that...? No, it wasn't Cutter but an outwardly exact copy, albeit apparently none too bright.
Stephen bristled at the callous way Helen was treating the poor clones. Whatever she had planned it wasn't something good.
Stephen scratched his head and pondered his options. Shooting love arrows at the wrong people was bad style. But he couldn't let Helen continue with her devilish activities.
"I'm so sorry I was so mean. How could I be so obsessed with Nick and that artefact when I have you? I promise you everything will be all right now. I will care for you and the others for the rest of my life. Let’s pack up and go home."
Grinning, Stephen watched how Helen stepped into an anomaly hand in hand with the Cutter clone. The cleaner clones had thrown away their weapons and followed the happy couple with a broad smile on their faces.
Stephen just made it back to the ARC when Cutter and Abby arrived, talking excitedly about a baby they had delivered, whilst Connor was teasing the new poster-boy captain about his lack of sense of direction.
It made Stephen a little sad to miss out on all the fun. He had liked being part of the team. As nice as it was in the afterworld he hadn't met someone familiar yet and still felt a little lonely.
Then Jenny walked into the atrium and Stephen stopped dwelling on the past. He had an important job to do. And this time he would get it right.
As Jenny approached Cutter, Stephen sent the arrow flying. If he was lucky Abby would chat with Connor now and he could take care of her as well.
Unfortunately Jenny's left foot slipped at that moment. She stumbled against Cutter and pushed him sidewards. The arrow missed Cutter by about five centimetres, bounced against the opposite wall and ricocheted towards Becker.
"Oh, you have really nice eyes," Becker said admiringly to Connor, who was completely flabbergasted.
"Bugger!" Stephen cursed under his breath. The team seemed destined to make it difficult for him.
Another arrow was sailing through the air and hit Abby at exactly the second she looked at Connor.
Stephen eyed his bow in confusion. He was sure he hadn't shot that one. Someone was meddling with his mission.
"Hey, leave him alone. That's my boyfriend," Abby hissed at Becker and stepped protectively in front of Connor.
"Am I?" Connor asked hopefully.
"Of course, silly. How could you ever doubt that?"
Cutter and Jenny watched the scene unfold before their eyes and raised their eyebrows in unison. That wasn't the impression they had got this morning when Abby was ranting in the lunchroom about Connor's idiotic ideas about proper Valentine's presents.
It seemed Becker was not ready to give up so easily on Connor. He glared at Abby and tried to shove her out of the way. But before a real fight could break out, Becker was hit by a silver bolt, which Stephen recognised as a reversal arrow. Becker instantly turned back to normal and grinned at Abby in a friendly fashion. It saved him from a mean kick in the nuts.
Stephen sighed in relief. Wherever that other shooter was he was good and definitely better prepared.
"I can you assure we are quite effective in dealing with the anomalies on our own." Stephen heard Lester's voice in the corridor and almost didn't notice that the unknown shooter had sent another arrow on its way. This time it was heading in Cutter's direction.
That shot might even have been a strike if not for the woman who had just barged into the atrium with a soldier in tow whilst an aggrivated Lester tried in vain to stop them.
'So the other shooter wasn't infallible after all,' Stephen thought, amused.
The woman, Christine Johnson, Stephen remembered her from the video phone call, swiveled around and glared at Lester. Now Stephen had the chance to study how effective the love arrows really were.
Christine’s eyes softened as soon as the arrow hit her and an apologetic smile flittered over her face.
"I'm sorry, James. Don't think I intend to intrude on your affairs." She gently touched Lester's arm and swept her tongue across her lips in a very sensual way. "I'm just offering my help. My department has gained some insight into the anomalies as well. Perhaps we can work together.You know I'm also on good terms with the Prime Minister. I might get you a bigger budget. A much bigger... budget."
The soldier accompanying her asked, perplexed, "Ma' am, is everything all right? Are you feeling well?"
"Of course, you moron," she snarled at him.
"But I thought we were here to take over the project."
"That was never my agenda, Wilder! I wouldn't do that to such a dear old friend and on Valentine's day as well. " She turned back to Lester and smiled sweetly at him. "My God, James, I could swear the minions get more stupid with every passing year. Why don't we go somewhere more private where I can fill you in about everything we have found out about the anomalies so far? And then perhaps we can brush up on old times."
Cutter furrowed his brow as Lester led Christine Johnson into his office. "Something very strange is going on here," he whispered to Jenny.
Stephen could only agree with Cutter's view. There was some dork on the loose who was firing unauthorised love arrows all over the place. This guy had to be stopped before he wreaked havoc. But first things first. Cutter and Jenny were destinated for each other. He had to get them together before he went chasing this other shooter.
"I just don't believe it. Now I’ve had enough of this nonsense!' Disgruntled, Stephen observed how his arrow hurtled off through a window on the righthand side of the second floor whilst the other one went in the opposite direction.
What were the odds that they would both fire at exactly the same time and that their arrows would collide?
Stephen rushed up to the railing from where the other arrow had come from.
"Hey, what are you doing there?" he growled at the kneeling man with the bow in his hands.
"My job," the man said laconically. "I’ve been appointed the new Cupid."
"But that's my... Ryan? Is that really you?"
"Stephen? It's great to see you again. By the way... nice tunic."
"I could say the same. But it seems they have made a big cock-up and appointed two to the job."
"Or they needed two Cupid's to manage the growing populace," Ryan replied.
"Mmh, that's another possibility. But then they should have informed us."
"Have you ever known the bosses tell us anything? We are just expected to follow orders."
"Well! However, we should work together. Cutter is turning out to be an especially hard case"
Ryan snorted. "You expected something else from him?" Mischievously he added. "But it's a good idea. We always were a great team."
"Cutter! Do you remember that drink we talked about? How about tonight?" Jenny asked down in the atrium.
Stephen and Ryan had their bows drawn and both of them had an arrow nocked. Now they waited with bated breath for Cutter's answer.
"I don't know. Perhaps another... Ouch!"
"Everything all right, Cutter?"
"Yes, just a little back pain. It's already over. I would be delighted to go out with you for a drink, Jenny Lewis. I know a nice restaurant not far from her. Let's go."
"Now? But your report. Lester will..."
"Lester has his hands full with his visitor. He’ll probably not even notice we’re gone. Come on, let’s get out of here before someone decides to bother us with some rubbish."
Jenny laughed softly. "You are impossible."
"People say that's part of my charm."
"Do they? All right. You win. But I'm paying."
"Oh no, Jenny Lewis, you'll not. After all it's Valentine's Day. I'm lucky to spend it with such a beautiful woman and I certainly will not spoil our first date by behaving like a miser."
"Mmh, I think I like this new side of yours, Nick."
"Yay! Finally!" Stephen burst out.
"Looks like Cutter can be a right charmer if he's high on love. Who would have guessed?"
They laughed at each other whilst Cutter and Jenny sauntered out of the ARC arm in arm.
Sarah stared longingly after Jenny and that reminded Stephen of his previous mistake.
"Ryan, do you have still a reversal arrow in reserve?" He gestured to Sarah with a faint blush. "I shot her accidentally."
A minute later Sarah was cured of her crush on Jenny and started flirting with Becker.
Stephen and Ryan grinned with satisfaction as Abby kissed Connor in the middle of the atrium. Another couple who had finally found each other. They had done a good job.
Then Ryan saw Lester being dragged into the empty conference room by Christine Johnson.
"I should hit her with a reversal arrow," he said.
"No, leave it. Lester doesn't seem to mind. At least now the woman isn't after his job anymore. Besides, I already checked her data. She is registered on the list of the lost causes. Perhaps a liaison with Lester will do her some good."
"If you think so." Ryan shrugged his shoulders and just caught a glimpse of Wilder vanishing with someone into a storage room.
"Stephen, did you see that?"
"Finally a couple who don’t need a boost." Stephen cheered.
"But Lyle and Captain Wilder?"
"Stranger things have happened."
"Really? When?" Then Ryan's eyes grew wide. "Oh wow! Wilder is good at deep throating."
"My god! That's... I'll now ... you know... go tidying up." Stephen grasped his bow and walked towards the exit. "Let’s hope the two other arrows haven't accidentally hit some passer-by."
Ryan snorted and reluctantly turned away from the two inventive men. "The ARC is a secure facility. If there was someone outside it's an unauthorised person and so he or she has other problems than just falling in love with a stranger."
But he followed Stephen anyway.
"Nice to meet you, Mick Harper. My name's Danny Quinn. Can I give you a ride?
"I would like that, Danny."
Stephen and Ryan watched both men smiling fondly at each other before mounting a motorbike together and driving away.
"Ooops," Stephen mumbled. "Seems like our arrows have found some other targets. That might cause trouble if they are already in another relationship."
Ryan browsed furiously through his notebook. "Nope. Both single and both in desperate need of a shag. I wonder what they were looking for here? Quinn is a police officer."
"Oh, handcuffs. Kinky," Stephen replied, grinning. "I think they make a nice couple. We should keep an eye on them but otherwise not interfere. Why waste reversal arrows?"
"All right. Might save the team the trouble of dealing with more nosy idiots. I bet they weren't here by sheer chance."
Ryan turned to Stephen and eyed him from head to toe. "And what now? Have you got any plans for the evening?"
With a wicked grin on his face, Stephen stepped forwards into Ryan's personal space until the fabric of their tunics touched.
Their bows clattered to the ground as both men sank in each other’s arms...
Some minutes later their transmitters crackled and the voice of their superior rang out.
"Uh, hello, urgent message for Cupid Stephen and Cupid Ryan. Employees of the greater good aren't allowed to ...“ cough „ ... Oh my. Very impressive. Switch the audio on and zoom more to the left. Have we got the equipment to record that?"