Needledrop

18

"What," I start to tease her playfully, "no whiskey to ease my pain." She glares at me as I smile back at her.

"I'm not feeding your addiction." She tells me as she gets to work on my arm. "Brett informed me that you're an alcoholic." I let out a groan, mentally promising to kill him. Actually, Athena had been a good influence on me. I'd started drinking less and less through this past year, having almost completely stopped.

"I'm going to kill him." I grumble. All she does is smile at me. She starts to stitch the wound shut, her soft hands working smoothly and swiftly.

"Jake woke up." I tell her, breaking our comfortable silence.

"I'm sure Giovanni is very happy about that." I can hear the smile in her voice.

"I bet we're not going to be able to separate the two of them for the foreseeable future." I smile, both of us falling back into a peaceful silence.

"Brett plans to propose to Keya tonight." She tells me softly, finishing with the stiches. I hiss slightly as she ties the knot on the thread. "Where are the scissors?" She asks. I shrug slightly, reaching into my boot to pull out a knife. I go to hand it to her but stop dead in my tracks. Athena places her teeth on the thread, her amazingly soft lips skimming against my skin. I whip my head around when she pulls away, starting at her amazed as my cheeks burn likely the same colour of my hair.

"I was, what?" I ask, fully flustered.

"I'm not done." I shut my mouth and turn to look at the stove. She places a piece of bandage over the stiches. "Try not to tear these ones out, please?" She asks sweetly, but my mind is racing somewhere else. She gives me a smile then goes back to cooking. I take a breath, getting up. I'm about to leave the kitchen area when fast footsteps rush into the room. Rochet comes running in with a note in his hand, Zelanna with two boxes in hand.

"What's going on with you two?" I ask with a raised eyebrow.

"Our parents have invited you to a ball." Rochet says, completely out of breath. Athena offers the both of them a glass of water. A while back we went to the twin's home planet to see if their parents would join the resistance. They would not see us, upset with their children.

"We have picked out some outfits for you to wear, we also have to teach you the traditional dance." Zelanna gasps out.

"I know it." Athena says with a wide smile. "I believe I helped invent it." A wonderful look fills her features. "I will teach it to Wynnona, worry not. Thank you both." They hand us the letter and boxes before rushing out. I don't look at the outfits, instead placing them in the room Athena and I share. For the first two weeks with us she slept alone, waking up every single night from her terror dreams. At one point she snuck into my room and into my bed. The next morning, I woke with her cuddled to my chest. She said that she had slept peacefully, so now we share the room.

I wrap some plastic securely around the bandage, taping it down before stripping and showering. After the quick shower I get dressed in my usual attire. Leather jacket, jeans, boots, and tank top. Once I'm dressed fully and done, I go to join Athena in the kitchen.

"It will be a day's journey to the planet, I suggest we leave tomorrow morning with everyone." She tells me as I look at the invitation.

"We don't have to leave right away." I read through the invitation. "The ball is in two weeks." I go to the stove to stop anything from burning as she looks over the invitation.

"I missed that." She says, confirming what I read. "So, give Jake the two weeks to heal up a bit then see if he's able to join?" She suggests. I turn around, fake saluting her.

"Yes captain." I speak in a higher voice, like a chipmunk, causing her to laugh. I smile proudly to myself as she calms down, going to take a step towards me. She trips over something however and starts to fall to the ground. I rush forwards, catching her in my arms. She clings to my bicep with one hand, the other draped over my shoulder. I clutch her tightly to my body, holding her upright. Her face is incredibly close to mine, our breath mingles between us. We are so close. If I leaned forward just a bit, our lips would touch.

Is it just me or is she getting closer? I start to slowly lean forward, my eyes flickering between her bright hazel eyes to her plump pink lips.

"Wynnona!" I hear someone shout my name from inside the ship. Almost instantly I identify it as Keya. Athena leans away from me just slightly to peer over her shoulder. I lift my head to look at the intruders.

"We just interrupted something, didn't we?" Brett asks softly, giving me a knowing look.

"No." I say at the exact moment Athena says, "yes." My heart flutters as she realizes what she's said and blushes the same crimson as my hair. She pulls away from me to go back to the kitchen. I turn to glare at my brother and his fiancé. I'm so happy for them, but still feel a pang of jealousy seeing papa's diamond flower ring on Keya's hand.

"Congrats Smith, I was right all along." I walk over and punch him in the shoulder. "You are going to reach happiness before me."

"Not unless I die first." He jokes with me. I go to grab the necklace dangling around my neck, pulling off Dad's ring.

"Take it." I tell Brett, handing it to him.

"I can't possibly-" I cut him off by grabbing his left hand, slipping the beautiful ring onto his ring finger. The ring fits him perfectly. I stare at the beautiful ruby in the middle of the ring, silver, perfectly carved talons of a dragon or bird clutching the side of the deep red ruby.

"Really, you're going to need them much sooner than me. Dad and Papa would want you to have them." He pulls me into a tight hug, thanking me softly. Keya steps forward and joins the hug, kissing my cheek.

"You have no idea how happy of a day it's been." He tells me as he takes Keya's hand, leading her to the kitchen. I follow them into the kitchen, reaching into the fridge for a beer when Athena kits my hand with a fork.

"Hey!" I glare at her.

"No." Is all she tells me, turning back to what she was doing.

"Why not?" I sigh, closing the fridge.

"Because you're an alcoholic." Brett says with a cheeky smile. I turn my glare to him.

"Brett run; I'm going to kill you." I start to chase him from the room. "And I am not!" I shout at Athena as I chase after Brett. She and Keya laugh at us as Brett runs from me in slight fear, but mostly amusement.