salute [h.s]

chapter 5 - family feuds & bombastic brothers

"Pips, darling, why don't you come downstairs? Andrew and Mimi have been waiting to speak with you!"

Piper rolled her eyes, ignoring her mother's shrill voice and focusing on the task at hand. She was winding her red hair around a curling iron that had seen better days, trying not to burn her fingers. When she had originally arrived at her mum's house in Finchley, she had been wearing a pair of joggers and an old jumper, her hair a mess on her head. Her mum had so joyously announced that her brother, Andrew, upon hearing that Piper was coming to dinner, was making a special trip up with his wife Mimi. Piper had immediately sequestered herself into her bedroom and spent the next half hour fixing herself up. No way was she giving Andrew the satisfaction of seeing her dressed like a slob.

Piper twisted the last strand of hair around the curling iron and hissed when her finger pressed down on the hot rod. She said a couple of choice swear words as she stuck the finger in her mouth, trying to cool the fiery sensation on her skin. With a sigh, she turned off the curling iron, tucking the half curled strand behind her ear and hoping it didn't stick out too much. Standing, Piper brushed her hands over her outfit for the night and made sure she looked alright. It wasn't perfect, but it would do.

Looking up in the mirror, Piper caught sight of the wall behind her and turned to look at it properly with a sigh. Standing in her bedroom now was weird, especially since this room was a shrine to 2006, the year that Piper moved out to go to uni. Posters had been cool back then, apparently, because there was barely a span of wall that didn't have a poster plastered up. Every band Piper had liked back then – Coldplay, Ok Go, Panic! At the Disco, Green Day, The Veronicas, The Rapture, the Red Hot Chilli Peppers – was represented on her wall. Above her bed was the holy grail, a signed band poster from the Arctic Monkeys' album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (to this day it was still Piper's favourite). She had fallen asleep looking at it for months, fondly remembering the way she had nearly lost her mind standing in front of Alex Turner.

The other wall of her room was film posters and TV – David Tennant and Billie Piper stared back at her from the wall; also, Supernatural, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, 300, Lost, Dexter, Firefly, and of course Daniel Craig's James Bond. Looking back at it now, Piper couldn't believe how much of a nerd she was. She was watching these things before they were cult classics. No wonder everyone used to make fun of her in high school.

Because her room had been quite literally untouched since she had left (except for the tracks of the vacuum in the carpet, her mother's work) the only clothes she had to choose from in the closet were things she hadn't worn in nearly ten years. The only thing that had fit was a floral dress, and fit was being generous. She had to suck in her stomach just to get it on and the hem only came down to the tops of her thighs. Having been blessed with a decent set of tits since high school, she could barely breathe behind the tight fabric.

She had considered changing but then thought, what the hell. She was a hot lady now. She didn't have to be ashamed of herself. She was dating a fucking spy. Well, maybe dating was a bit generous. Her and Harry had shared an absolutely amazing night together on Thursday, but other than that, they hadn't seen much of each other. She had ended up working a double shift on Friday to cover the overnight in T branch and at 8 the next morning when she was off, Harry had surprised her by showing up as she was leaving and offering a ride home. It would have been nice if she hadn't fallen asleep three minutes into the car ride, sinking so deep into slumber that Harry had been forced to carry her upstairs to her bed. She had woken to a post it stuck to her forehead that simply said sweet dreams petal – 2.

She wished that she could say she was dating Harry. It would be the first time in years that she could claim to have a boyfriend. But she wouldn't dare presume that it was what Harry wanted too. He seemed the type to have flings, not girlfriends. He didn't have the kind of lifestyle that allowed it. Piper couldn't even imagine what it would be like to wait at home for him while he was on a mission, knowing he could be dead.