The movement outside the window caught my eye even though it was pitch black outside. Thinking it was one of my damn criminal neighbors, I walked out back touring around the pool slowly, keeping my eyes peeled for one of the lil fuckers. I gave up after I'd looked for about five minutes, figuring they'd long taken if they'd even been out there to start with and was heading inside when a light tap on my shoulder made me jump five feet in the air, shrieking. Acting solely on instinct, I elbow the 'attacker' in the stomach and stomp on one foot, whirling around to face him or her with my fists at ready.

I left out an enormous sigh of relief when I see Will doubled over trying to catch his breath and examine his crushed toes at the same time. "Holy fuck, Will, you scared the piss out of me. I almost busted your face!"

He wheezes slightly, still catching his breath before he replies. "Excellent…reflexes…milady."

I roll my eyes and lead him over to the lounge chair, settling him down before I ask anything. "You're lucky you didn't get the full treatment. If I hadn't caught myself, well, let's just say Toga'd be very angry with me." His eyes pop open comically, and I shrug. "I lived in New York; you learn to defend yourself pretty quickly."

My eyes rake over his haggard appearance, and the sadness in his expression gives me pause. What the hell is he doing here anyways? Why had he run off on Toga in the first place? And how can I stay mad at him when he's looking at me like a kicked puppy and my heart is melting into a puddle on the floor?

Sighing heavily, I pull him into my arms, cradling his head in the crook of my shoulder and start to rock just a bit. He clings to me, and I realize just how much he needed this, and it disturbs me that I didn't notice when I spoke to him earlier. I murmur soft reassurances into his mussed hair, pulling him so close he's almost in my lap. We stay in this position for awhile, and his body finally starts to relax, the tension seeping out slowly bit by bit.

When he lifts his head, I cup his cheek, running a thumb over his jawbone lightly. He doesn't speak, and I don't want to push him, so I stand, extending my hand to him. He gives me a puzzled look, but gets up anyways, following me into the house. T and Turmoil are watching cartoons, and simultaneously give us an odd look, which both creeps me and makes Will self conscious.

"His head is full of blood and bottles," Turmoil observes.

I give T a withering look and he distracts her with a new cartoon, and they curl back up on the couch. Leading him into the bathroom, I turn the shower on nice and hot, and hand him a towel. "Take a nice long shower first. I'll find you something to wear about the house, and be back when you're done. Then we can talk, okay?"

He hesitates for a moment, then he nods, and I start out the door when he finally speaks. "Where are the other gentlemen of the house? Are they not home?"

I cock my head to the side, curious as to why he would ask when I remember how well him and the pain in my butt get along. "Oh. Loth and Seth are out doing the bot thing. The Dynamic Duo are either playing the Playstation with the hubby or down in the basement. It's hard to keep tabs on everyone at once," I explain.

It seems to have satisfied him, so I close the door behind me and head straight for the computer. The minute I see Toga, I tattle on him, leaving out the almost beating him down part. I can tell his flight has upset her, and when she says he just left Rella's before he came, I'm not surprised. She tells me to let him stay the night, and I gape at the screen. I know Will doesn't stay overnight very much, and it worries me that she's letting him. For a moment, I panic, hoping I'm not going to screw something up big time in the process of trying to help them out.

Toga signs off before Will gets out of the shower, and I grab some pajama pants and a t shirt for him to wear to bed. I knock on the door, waiting for him to respond before opening it, and almost have a heart attack. He's standing in the steamy bathroom, swathed only in a towel, trickles of water streaming down his hard chest. His hair is hanging around his face, also dripping water, and suddenly, I'm almost drooling. I feel myself blinking like an idiot, and I cover up for my incredibly flustered state by thrusting the clothes at him and high-tailing it for the bedroom without a word.

I sit on the bed, trying to hinge my jaw back into place as I stare at the wall. "Bad, bad, wicked, evil, naughty Deli. You're not supposed to be drooling. He needs someone to listen. Quit thinking about licking that water off and focus. Goddamnit, can't you get your brain out of your pants for one fucking…second…" I trail off, his shadow in the doorway catching my gaze.

He's smirking, and I flop backwards on the bed, groaning. "Oh bloody fucking hell. Is it too much to ask that just once I don't make a fool out of myself in front of you? I mean, seriously, it's getting to be really sad," I pout, too caught up in my own rant to notice his approach.

His arms slide around me and before I can even register it, he's wrapped around me from behind, his face in my hair. I sigh softly, letting him get comfortable, and twine our hands together on my tummy. A long while passes, and neither of us speaks, just soaking each other in. I break the silence eventually, never being able to stand quiet for too long. "So, since I've done the jackass ritual, I think it's safe for you to tell me what's going on. No way could you feel any dumber than I did a few minutes ago."

This earns me a half a smile, and I cheer in my head. I'd make an ass of myself a hundred times more if it'd make him feel better. He starts talking, repeating some of the stuff I've already heard about claiming, and the weekend, but going into more detail than he did previously. When he finally finishes, he looks miserable again, and I have to stop myself from simply hugging him and telling him it will be alright just to see the light in his eyes go on again.

I try it to explain as best I can how I view claiming, and he listens, drinking in every word I say as if it's gospel. It makes me feel important, but I also warn him that I'm a bit of an oddball when it comes to claiming and my viewpoint on it, and that maybe I'm not the person to give advice on it. He gets that wounded look again, and I cave, jabbering on about me and Raj, and our understanding and anything I can think of that I've heard or been told. It comes to me that for some reason, he feels like it's something he has to do or the whole world will come crashing down on his head. Not only that, but he feels like he's bad for not really taking as much interest in it as other people do.

It pisses me off, because I know where this all comes from, and it makes me wanna punch something. Or more constructively, it makes me want to punch someone. Maybe a few some ones, at that. The fact that they're twisted and outdated opinions have made Will feel bad simply infuriates me. Before my rage manifests itself in a very inappropriate manner and scares the hell out of Will, I push it back, saving it for another time and place. It'll be useful at some point, I'm sure.

I switch positions, laying flat on my back, scooting my butt up against the wall and crossing my legs Indian style, which is a weird yet comforting position for me when I'm thinking. Will follows, curling up on his side and laying his head on my tummy. I'm amazed at how comfortable he feels here, sprawled on my bed pouring his heart out in borrowed jammy pants. For a second, my heart does funny little flips and my chest tightens, but once I get myself under control, I start talking again, trying to get him to interact more.

We talk for an hour before it starts to wear a bit, and I head to the kitchen to make some Berry Zinger tea. He startles me again when I turn to find the teapot; I hadn't realized he'd come along. Guessing that he's not feeling up to being alone for any amount of time, I go back to making the tea, chattering about inconsequential things and getting out two croissants to munch on. We head back to the bed, big steaming mugs and pastries in hand, and curl back up.

The topics drift to more neutral things from time to time, and every once in awhile I hit on something he doesn't want to delve into, which leads him to flirt outrageously, hoping to distract me. I'm assuming this is something he gets from Toga, because she is the queen of worrying about everyone but herself, and distraction is one of her favored methods. Luckily, I catch him, and hold firmly, pressing only slightly for his responses on those topics before he gives in.

Another break occurs about 4 am, when we've started to get silly and sleep deprived, and we end up in a tickle war. I pin him down and he's laughing and squirming until he manages to flip us. He gives me a triumphant grin and I stop fighting, a matching grin lighting my face as I look up at him. We're still staring at each other, grinning like idiots when the door opens, and a loud exclamation of "Bloody fucking hell, you've got to be kidding me" echoes through the room, closely followed by a menacing growl.

Will gives me an unreadable look and moves, sitting up on the bed quietly. The happy expression leaves his face and I ponder smacking the shit out of Fangy, no matter how much I adore him. I right myself, giving Raj a look, and my mate rolls his eyes. He heaves a huge sigh, and I give him a similar treatment. Finally, his lips quirk in a small smile, and he blows me a kiss. I catch it and make a show of putting it in my pocket for later. Then he grabs Fangy's arm and shoves the muttering clone out the door.

"We'll sleep out on the sofa bed. TnT are sleeping with the baby and the bots are in their room, I'm sure." He says nothing more, but gives Will a nod, and the poet blinks at him in surprise, but recovers quickly to nod back before my mate takes his exit, shutting the door tight.

I look at Will and note that he's got a hint of that sly smile on his face, and it takes every ounce of control I have not to giggle. Instead, I clear my throat and say, "Well that almost sucked."

"Indeed. It seemed…sucking…was eminent," Will replies glibly.

His response sends me into gales of laughter, and the smile comes back. I feel that weird tightness again, and flop back on the bed. "So where were we?"

In a flash, his fingers are digging into my ribs and I'm fighting him off, gasping for breath. I'd meant where had we stopped talking, but I guess that can wait for the moment. We still have lots of time to get through it all. And I'm willing to work through as much as he needs, simply because he and Toga are my friends, and I'd do anything they needed.