Alphas Fic: Challenge, Password, Countersign
Title: Challenge, Password, Countersign (Part 3 of the Antiphony Series)
Characters/Pairing: Rachel, Gary
Genre: Friendship, Pre-Ship
Fandom: Alphas
Word count: 1500
Rating: PG
Summary: "... a well-known sign-countersign was that used by the Allied forces on D-Day: the challenge was 'Flash;' the password, 'Thunder;' and the countersign (to challenge the person giving the first code word) was 'Welcome.'" In which simple activities and conversations unlock potential, without either party quite recognizing it.
The scent of rubbing alcohol drifted down the hallway and into Rachel’s office, strong enough to identify without her abilities. The undercurrents of coffee and rice were more subtle and were ultimately what drew her out. Rachel followed the scents and was surprised that they lead to Gary’s tiny office. His desk was covered in paper towels, bottles, and tools while he studied a partially dissected cellphone. He was so absorbed in whatever he was doing with the phone he didn’t notice her at all, so she watched him from the doorway for a moment.
Everyone had been a little more protective of each other after the kidnapping incident. They still didn’t know who had taken Gary, leaving the whole team on edge. Bill and Hicks tracked down leads, constantly in and out of the office. Sometimes they took Nina but they almost never brought the two youngest Alphas along; Gary was practically on house arrest and the older members all prefered that Rachel examine evidence back at the office until things were “more secure,” whatever that meant. Meanwhile, Dr. Rosen spent hours on the phone with Agent Sullivan and her contacts. He also spent a lot of time with Gary. To everyone’s surprise, Gary was taking it all well. Whenever she had tried to talk to him, he just replied, “I knew you all would find me.” Rachel shook her head. In many ways, he was stronger than they gave him credit for.
“Gary, what are you up to?”
“Hicks spilled coffee on his phone and then tried to rinse it off in the sink. He needed help cleaning it.”
Rachel smiled. “That’s nice of you.”
“Friends help each other,” he said, squinting at the battery. “Hicks is my friend.”
Rachel eased into the office to get a better look. “Did he tell you that?” It sounded suspiciously like something Bill had told her last week when trying to steal her grapes at lunch.
“No, I told him that, after he knocked over the coffee.” He paused to flick through some signals. “I said I could help him.”
She watched him work for a moment. The Q-tips, paint brushes, and screwdrivers were arranged neatly. His method, however, wasn’t particularly organized; he’d take long pauses to flick through his frequencies, looking back and forth.
“So, what are you looking at?”
“User manuals, patents.” He picked up a tiny screwdriver. “YouTube.”
“YouTube?” A dangerous thought entered her mind. She felt bad, but she had to ask. “You have done this before, right?”
“No, but it’s okay because Hicks doesn’t know that.” Horrified, she was about the snatch the tool out of his hand when he angled towards her with a grin. “That was a joke. I was joking and you fell for it. Ha.”
She giggled, mostly with relief.
“I did this for my mom a few months ago. She spilled tea, not coffee, but it’s same problem-water, acids, sugars.” He dropped the battery into the jar of rice.
“Can I help?” She leaned over to look at the tiny keyboard he was working on. “And maybe you can teach me?”
He glanced over his shoulder at her, eyebrows drawn a little in surprise. “Yeah, I-I could teach you.” He pointed to a little microchip he’d set off to the side. “That’s the SIM card. It stores all the contact information, so it’s really important. Check it for any stains.”
Rachel dragged in a chair from the hallway and settled in next to Gary. She looked at the chip for a moment. “It’s clean, I think. There’s still a little water in this groove here.”
“That’s okay. It’s not in the gold part, right?” She nodded. “Put it in that jar there, with the rice.”
“Where did all this come from?”
“Bill is getting paranoid. He should talk to Dr. Rosen about that.”
Looking at the rice, Rachel had an idea. “I’ll be right back.”
A short walk down the hall brought her to Nina’s office. The pusher was removing her bright red nail polish and had bottles of pink varnish lined up on her desk. Rachel knocked softly on the door. “Hey, Nina. Do you have any new purses or shoes?”
Nina smiled. “I’ve got some great Louboutins,” she said and leaned forward like a cat about to pounce. “I know you don’t like the stilettos, but if you wear them around office for a few hours-“
“Thank you, but that’s not quite what I had in mind.”
Rachel’s rambling explanation took far longer than it should have and Nina was skeptical at first-“Can’t I just buy him a new phone?”-but she gave in eventually with a quip about keeping ‘Gary off the streets.’ (Rachel thought she was only half joking.) After rummaging through boxes for 5 minutes, Rachel walked away with a handful of silica gel packets and an adorable little YSL purse. Back at Gary’s office, she held out her find and said, “I thought these might help?”
“Yeah,” he said, eyebrows rose. He took the silica from her and poked through the little pile. “Where did you get these?”
“Nina went shopping yesterday. Stores pack them with purses and shoes to absorb moisture and that’s what you’re using the dry rice for, right? These should work, too.”
“Huh.” Gary smiled a little. “That’s good. That’s really smart, Rachel.”
They spent the next half hour examining all the parts of the device-logic board, speaker, microphone, and too many tiny screws for Rachel to count (Gary counted 47). It was a different challenge for her. While Gary dismantled the phone, she looked and felt for residue on the delicate circuits and gently cleaned it away. They would occasionally switch tasks and check each other. She pried out the camera with her fingernails; he went over the microphone with tiny dabs of rubbing alcohol. The coffee hadn’t gotten too far into the case and Gary had taken the battery out quickly. With luck, the phone would be fine.
Gary was putting the keyboard into another jar of rice when Rachel noticed something on the back. She grabbed his wrist and gently pinned it down on the desk. Keeping her eyes on the plastic, she said, “Sugar grains. There. Brush, please?” She vaguely felt him place the paintbrush in her outstretched palm. Rachel slid her hand up to cradle Gary’s hand in hers as he held onto the keyboard-she didn’t want to risk jostling the sugar deeper into the piece. She touched the dry bristles to the sugar, picking up the six grains that had hidden in a crevice.
As her other senses returned to her, she noticed his pulse in his wrist; it was a little quick, actually. She then realized they were sitting much closer than she remembered and every muscle of Gary’s body was frozen stiff. She looked up at his face, which was a little more blank and a little more pink than usual.
“Oh, I’m so sorry! I wasn’t thinking-“
“No. It’s-it’s okay. I was just surprised. It’s okay.” He glanced at her briefly before looking back the desk. “Really. I didn’t mind.”
“Oh. Alright.” Her face felt a little hot.
They finished quickly, tucking plastic, glass, and metal into Ziploc bags with silica packets and rice to wick away any remaining water overnight. Gary would reassemble it all in the morning. Finally, Gary had one more surprise.
“Thank you for the help, Rachel.”
“You’re welcome,” she said as she tucked her hair behind her ear. “It was kind of fun.”
Dr. Rosen knocked on the doorframe before he could reply. “Ready, Gary?”
“Yes, Dr. Rosen. Bye, Rachel.”
Dr. Rosen gave her a smile and a brief nod before leaving Rachel alone in the transducer’s office. She sat in her chair for a minute, twisting the bracelet Gary had given her. The memory of warm fingers resting in her palm distracted her thoroughly until Nina appeared.
“You ready to head home, Rach?”
She flexed her hand to shake off the feeling. “Yes,” she said, taking a deep breath. “Let’s go.”
Characters/Pairing: Rachel, Gary
Genre: Friendship, Pre-Ship
Fandom: Alphas
Word count: 1500
Rating: PG
Summary: "... a well-known sign-countersign was that used by the Allied forces on D-Day: the challenge was 'Flash;' the password, 'Thunder;' and the countersign (to challenge the person giving the first code word) was 'Welcome.'" In which simple activities and conversations unlock potential, without either party quite recognizing it.
The scent of rubbing alcohol drifted down the hallway and into Rachel’s office, strong enough to identify without her abilities. The undercurrents of coffee and rice were more subtle and were ultimately what drew her out. Rachel followed the scents and was surprised that they lead to Gary’s tiny office. His desk was covered in paper towels, bottles, and tools while he studied a partially dissected cellphone. He was so absorbed in whatever he was doing with the phone he didn’t notice her at all, so she watched him from the doorway for a moment.
Everyone had been a little more protective of each other after the kidnapping incident. They still didn’t know who had taken Gary, leaving the whole team on edge. Bill and Hicks tracked down leads, constantly in and out of the office. Sometimes they took Nina but they almost never brought the two youngest Alphas along; Gary was practically on house arrest and the older members all prefered that Rachel examine evidence back at the office until things were “more secure,” whatever that meant. Meanwhile, Dr. Rosen spent hours on the phone with Agent Sullivan and her contacts. He also spent a lot of time with Gary. To everyone’s surprise, Gary was taking it all well. Whenever she had tried to talk to him, he just replied, “I knew you all would find me.” Rachel shook her head. In many ways, he was stronger than they gave him credit for.
“Gary, what are you up to?”
“Hicks spilled coffee on his phone and then tried to rinse it off in the sink. He needed help cleaning it.”
Rachel smiled. “That’s nice of you.”
“Friends help each other,” he said, squinting at the battery. “Hicks is my friend.”
Rachel eased into the office to get a better look. “Did he tell you that?” It sounded suspiciously like something Bill had told her last week when trying to steal her grapes at lunch.
“No, I told him that, after he knocked over the coffee.” He paused to flick through some signals. “I said I could help him.”
She watched him work for a moment. The Q-tips, paint brushes, and screwdrivers were arranged neatly. His method, however, wasn’t particularly organized; he’d take long pauses to flick through his frequencies, looking back and forth.
“So, what are you looking at?”
“User manuals, patents.” He picked up a tiny screwdriver. “YouTube.”
“YouTube?” A dangerous thought entered her mind. She felt bad, but she had to ask. “You have done this before, right?”
“No, but it’s okay because Hicks doesn’t know that.” Horrified, she was about the snatch the tool out of his hand when he angled towards her with a grin. “That was a joke. I was joking and you fell for it. Ha.”
She giggled, mostly with relief.
“I did this for my mom a few months ago. She spilled tea, not coffee, but it’s same problem-water, acids, sugars.” He dropped the battery into the jar of rice.
“Can I help?” She leaned over to look at the tiny keyboard he was working on. “And maybe you can teach me?”
He glanced over his shoulder at her, eyebrows drawn a little in surprise. “Yeah, I-I could teach you.” He pointed to a little microchip he’d set off to the side. “That’s the SIM card. It stores all the contact information, so it’s really important. Check it for any stains.”
Rachel dragged in a chair from the hallway and settled in next to Gary. She looked at the chip for a moment. “It’s clean, I think. There’s still a little water in this groove here.”
“That’s okay. It’s not in the gold part, right?” She nodded. “Put it in that jar there, with the rice.”
“Where did all this come from?”
“Bill is getting paranoid. He should talk to Dr. Rosen about that.”
Looking at the rice, Rachel had an idea. “I’ll be right back.”
A short walk down the hall brought her to Nina’s office. The pusher was removing her bright red nail polish and had bottles of pink varnish lined up on her desk. Rachel knocked softly on the door. “Hey, Nina. Do you have any new purses or shoes?”
Nina smiled. “I’ve got some great Louboutins,” she said and leaned forward like a cat about to pounce. “I know you don’t like the stilettos, but if you wear them around office for a few hours-“
“Thank you, but that’s not quite what I had in mind.”
Rachel’s rambling explanation took far longer than it should have and Nina was skeptical at first-“Can’t I just buy him a new phone?”-but she gave in eventually with a quip about keeping ‘Gary off the streets.’ (Rachel thought she was only half joking.) After rummaging through boxes for 5 minutes, Rachel walked away with a handful of silica gel packets and an adorable little YSL purse. Back at Gary’s office, she held out her find and said, “I thought these might help?”
“Yeah,” he said, eyebrows rose. He took the silica from her and poked through the little pile. “Where did you get these?”
“Nina went shopping yesterday. Stores pack them with purses and shoes to absorb moisture and that’s what you’re using the dry rice for, right? These should work, too.”
“Huh.” Gary smiled a little. “That’s good. That’s really smart, Rachel.”
They spent the next half hour examining all the parts of the device-logic board, speaker, microphone, and too many tiny screws for Rachel to count (Gary counted 47). It was a different challenge for her. While Gary dismantled the phone, she looked and felt for residue on the delicate circuits and gently cleaned it away. They would occasionally switch tasks and check each other. She pried out the camera with her fingernails; he went over the microphone with tiny dabs of rubbing alcohol. The coffee hadn’t gotten too far into the case and Gary had taken the battery out quickly. With luck, the phone would be fine.
Gary was putting the keyboard into another jar of rice when Rachel noticed something on the back. She grabbed his wrist and gently pinned it down on the desk. Keeping her eyes on the plastic, she said, “Sugar grains. There. Brush, please?” She vaguely felt him place the paintbrush in her outstretched palm. Rachel slid her hand up to cradle Gary’s hand in hers as he held onto the keyboard-she didn’t want to risk jostling the sugar deeper into the piece. She touched the dry bristles to the sugar, picking up the six grains that had hidden in a crevice.
As her other senses returned to her, she noticed his pulse in his wrist; it was a little quick, actually. She then realized they were sitting much closer than she remembered and every muscle of Gary’s body was frozen stiff. She looked up at his face, which was a little more blank and a little more pink than usual.
“Oh, I’m so sorry! I wasn’t thinking-“
“No. It’s-it’s okay. I was just surprised. It’s okay.” He glanced at her briefly before looking back the desk. “Really. I didn’t mind.”
“Oh. Alright.” Her face felt a little hot.
They finished quickly, tucking plastic, glass, and metal into Ziploc bags with silica packets and rice to wick away any remaining water overnight. Gary would reassemble it all in the morning. Finally, Gary had one more surprise.
“Thank you for the help, Rachel.”
“You’re welcome,” she said as she tucked her hair behind her ear. “It was kind of fun.”
Dr. Rosen knocked on the doorframe before he could reply. “Ready, Gary?”
“Yes, Dr. Rosen. Bye, Rachel.”
Dr. Rosen gave her a smile and a brief nod before leaving Rachel alone in the transducer’s office. She sat in her chair for a minute, twisting the bracelet Gary had given her. The memory of warm fingers resting in her palm distracted her thoroughly until Nina appeared.
“You ready to head home, Rach?”
She flexed her hand to shake off the feeling. “Yes,” she said, taking a deep breath. “Let’s go.”