Fic: A Friend In Need
Fic: A Friend In Need
Author: LMX
Fandom: Leverage
Rating: PG-13 (language)
Pairing: Gail/Hardy
Spoilers: The Carnival Job 4.6
Warnings: Language, OFC
Notes to explain the poll are at the bottom. Dear God I hope this makes sense to anyone but me.
Thank you to the following people for helping me decide the direction of this fic:
postitnotejunky, jesco0307, sheryden, rozabellalove, katrien1989, jendavis
- -
It took him three attempts and one wrong number, because his vision hadn't quite caught up with the real world yet and he didn't have any of these numbers stored on his phone. Not to mention his right hand was pretty much a paperweight after he'd finished picking all the glass out of it by touch. He made a careful list of ways he could train up his ambidexterity while the phone was ringing, but it was a relief when she picked up. The dialling tone was not helping his headache and he was likely to forget most of it anyway, the way his head felt at the minute.
"What?"
"Scorcey, calling in that favour," he grumbled at her sharp tone. "Need an overnighter, maybe two."
"Shit, Spencer." Gail obligingly dropped her volume and her tone, even as she complained. "I had plans tonight."
"I can move down the list," Eliot reassured her, squinting at the next name down the list and wondering whether his glasses would help or make things worse. It was almost a belated realisation that while there were other people on the list, this time around it had to be Gail.
"No. It's alright. I know you've got a system." There was a quiet almost sigh. "I'll be there in thirty, have you got somewhere to stay 'til I get there?" He must have been quiet a beat too long because Gail pressed, "People, cameras, security...?"
"I know the fucking drill, Scorcey," he managed. "There's a bar, McRory's. Look it up, or get directions off Darcy."
"This the same place as she met you? Staying in one place, Spencer... Didn't you give me a lecture on that last time you were over here babysitting my busted ass?"
"Any time but now, Scorcey?" Eliot pleaded, and winced at the cackle on the other end of the phone. "Come looking nice. I've got a cover to hold."
"I'm on my way, sit tight."
-
"Nurse Gail?" she asked in Eliot's ear, sliding her hand into the middle of his back again as he dragged her out of the bar. He shrugged off her arm and nearly stumbled off the sidewalk into the road.
"What?" he groaned. "You prefer I tell them you're Gail Scorcey, and see how long it takes Hardison to google your record? See how much longer it takes him to link your service record to mine and..."
Gail grabbed his arm as he stumbled again, and ignored his wince until he was stable on his feet. "Damn, Spencer. Just... Darcy said things were different with you."
"Darcy talks a lot of shit," Eliot grumbled.
"Darcy isn't the only one who's been talking about you recently. You've called in a lot of favours in the last few months, and all of them here. We're worried about you, Spence. Really fucking worried."
"Home now. Lecture later?" Eliot asked hoping his voice didn't sound as whiny to Gail as it had to him just then. She just shook her head and led him back towards her car.
-
"Why aren't your new team doing the babysitting?" Gail pressed, when they were safely back to his apartment and all the locks that could be locked were locked. Eliot was heavily medicated and Gail had shoved him onto the couch with his first aid kit all unpacked so she could check his handy-work.
"I'm their hitter. They're all civilians."
"So you wouldn't trust them to keep you safe while you're hurt?" Gail pressed, eyes all on what she was doing.
"I wouldn't trust them not to get in to trouble," Eliot replied, wheezing a little as Gail pressed down on each of his ribs in turn. "They could probably keep me safe fine, and even patch me up if I let them, but then if they needed me they'd remember I was hurt and they wouldn't call." Eliot was vaguely aware that he was rambling, but Gail had picked up a pair of tweezers, disappearing into the wound in his hand and bringing out glass he'd missed and he couldn't feel a thing so he wasn't going to start complaining. "You're not here for me, sweetie. You're here for them."
"Now's the point where I tell you that you're getting over-friendly so you better shut up." Gail gave him a grin. "I'll be here if your team calls needing you, alright? In the meantime, you're gonna rest and I'm gonna watch your back."
He was more than most of the way to sleep before he remembered why it had to be Gail this time around. "Took down Roper today, Gail," he muttered, and flinched as Gail caught and pulled on something in his hand that felt big enough that it should belong in there. He opened his eyes to watch the piece of mirror clatter onto the tray and didn't meet Gail's eyes.
"He dead?" she murmured back, putting down the tweezers very purposefully.
"Didn't have time to check or make sure. Had a hostage with me, and I was..." Eliot shrugged and gestured at himself awkwardly. His hand was bleeding again where the glass had come out and Gail picked up a dressing and pressed down. "I would have put a bullet in him if I'd had time."
"Thought you swore off guns," Gail's voice was uneven, cracking at the edges.
"There are exceptions."
"Well then, even if he's not dead... I guess this one's got to be a freebie. No more lectures. Not tonight."
"Hardy would have been proud of what you've made of yourself, Gail," Eliot managed, feeling like he was talking through a mouthful of cloth.
"Go to sleep, Eliot." Gail patted him on the arm - firm pressure, not sharp. A hitter's touch. "My turn to hit whatever comes through the door."
"Yes ma'am."
And he did.
-----
Person A (The guy in the carnival - Roper) was:
The doctor/hitter/sister's boyfriend (4 votes out of 6)
Causing Eliot to think about - His father
Causing Eliot to think about - Someone who took his sister as a child and he got there in time, only he wasn't strong enough to stop violence/bad things from happening
Person B (The girl in the bar - Gail) was:
A doctor
A hitter (3/6)
His sister
Only I've just checked and this wasn't quite the finished voting, because I panicked after people started posting fic and checked then instead of waiting. So 'his sister' got equal votes. Oops...
Author: LMX
Fandom: Leverage
Rating: PG-13 (language)
Pairing: Gail/Hardy
Spoilers: The Carnival Job 4.6
Warnings: Language, OFC
Notes to explain the poll are at the bottom. Dear God I hope this makes sense to anyone but me.
Thank you to the following people for helping me decide the direction of this fic:
postitnotejunky, jesco0307, sheryden, rozabellalove, katrien1989, jendavis
- -
It took him three attempts and one wrong number, because his vision hadn't quite caught up with the real world yet and he didn't have any of these numbers stored on his phone. Not to mention his right hand was pretty much a paperweight after he'd finished picking all the glass out of it by touch. He made a careful list of ways he could train up his ambidexterity while the phone was ringing, but it was a relief when she picked up. The dialling tone was not helping his headache and he was likely to forget most of it anyway, the way his head felt at the minute.
"What?"
"Scorcey, calling in that favour," he grumbled at her sharp tone. "Need an overnighter, maybe two."
"Shit, Spencer." Gail obligingly dropped her volume and her tone, even as she complained. "I had plans tonight."
"I can move down the list," Eliot reassured her, squinting at the next name down the list and wondering whether his glasses would help or make things worse. It was almost a belated realisation that while there were other people on the list, this time around it had to be Gail.
"No. It's alright. I know you've got a system." There was a quiet almost sigh. "I'll be there in thirty, have you got somewhere to stay 'til I get there?" He must have been quiet a beat too long because Gail pressed, "People, cameras, security...?"
"I know the fucking drill, Scorcey," he managed. "There's a bar, McRory's. Look it up, or get directions off Darcy."
"This the same place as she met you? Staying in one place, Spencer... Didn't you give me a lecture on that last time you were over here babysitting my busted ass?"
"Any time but now, Scorcey?" Eliot pleaded, and winced at the cackle on the other end of the phone. "Come looking nice. I've got a cover to hold."
"I'm on my way, sit tight."
-
"Nurse Gail?" she asked in Eliot's ear, sliding her hand into the middle of his back again as he dragged her out of the bar. He shrugged off her arm and nearly stumbled off the sidewalk into the road.
"What?" he groaned. "You prefer I tell them you're Gail Scorcey, and see how long it takes Hardison to google your record? See how much longer it takes him to link your service record to mine and..."
Gail grabbed his arm as he stumbled again, and ignored his wince until he was stable on his feet. "Damn, Spencer. Just... Darcy said things were different with you."
"Darcy talks a lot of shit," Eliot grumbled.
"Darcy isn't the only one who's been talking about you recently. You've called in a lot of favours in the last few months, and all of them here. We're worried about you, Spence. Really fucking worried."
"Home now. Lecture later?" Eliot asked hoping his voice didn't sound as whiny to Gail as it had to him just then. She just shook her head and led him back towards her car.
-
"Why aren't your new team doing the babysitting?" Gail pressed, when they were safely back to his apartment and all the locks that could be locked were locked. Eliot was heavily medicated and Gail had shoved him onto the couch with his first aid kit all unpacked so she could check his handy-work.
"I'm their hitter. They're all civilians."
"So you wouldn't trust them to keep you safe while you're hurt?" Gail pressed, eyes all on what she was doing.
"I wouldn't trust them not to get in to trouble," Eliot replied, wheezing a little as Gail pressed down on each of his ribs in turn. "They could probably keep me safe fine, and even patch me up if I let them, but then if they needed me they'd remember I was hurt and they wouldn't call." Eliot was vaguely aware that he was rambling, but Gail had picked up a pair of tweezers, disappearing into the wound in his hand and bringing out glass he'd missed and he couldn't feel a thing so he wasn't going to start complaining. "You're not here for me, sweetie. You're here for them."
"Now's the point where I tell you that you're getting over-friendly so you better shut up." Gail gave him a grin. "I'll be here if your team calls needing you, alright? In the meantime, you're gonna rest and I'm gonna watch your back."
He was more than most of the way to sleep before he remembered why it had to be Gail this time around. "Took down Roper today, Gail," he muttered, and flinched as Gail caught and pulled on something in his hand that felt big enough that it should belong in there. He opened his eyes to watch the piece of mirror clatter onto the tray and didn't meet Gail's eyes.
"He dead?" she murmured back, putting down the tweezers very purposefully.
"Didn't have time to check or make sure. Had a hostage with me, and I was..." Eliot shrugged and gestured at himself awkwardly. His hand was bleeding again where the glass had come out and Gail picked up a dressing and pressed down. "I would have put a bullet in him if I'd had time."
"Thought you swore off guns," Gail's voice was uneven, cracking at the edges.
"There are exceptions."
"Well then, even if he's not dead... I guess this one's got to be a freebie. No more lectures. Not tonight."
"Hardy would have been proud of what you've made of yourself, Gail," Eliot managed, feeling like he was talking through a mouthful of cloth.
"Go to sleep, Eliot." Gail patted him on the arm - firm pressure, not sharp. A hitter's touch. "My turn to hit whatever comes through the door."
"Yes ma'am."
And he did.
-----
Person A (The guy in the carnival - Roper) was:
The doctor/hitter/sister's boyfriend (4 votes out of 6)
Causing Eliot to think about - His father
Causing Eliot to think about - Someone who took his sister as a child and he got there in time, only he wasn't strong enough to stop violence/bad things from happening
Person B (The girl in the bar - Gail) was:
A doctor
A hitter (3/6)
His sister
Only I've just checked and this wasn't quite the finished voting, because I panicked after people started posting fic and checked then instead of waiting. So 'his sister' got equal votes. Oops...