Moira and Nathan

[x-mactaggart.livejournal.com]

Nathan brings Moira some food down because she's being bad and ignorning those kind of things. This leads to idle chatter and then not so idle snuggling.



This was getting to be a habit. Balancing the tray carefully, Nathan
made his way into the medlab, heading towards Moira's lab. But if he
didn't bring her down food, she wouldn't eat. And coffee, much as she
liked to pretend she could subsist on it, really wasn't enough.

"So," he said, finding her bent over her computer scanning what looked
like test results of some sort, "are you going to eat this tonight, or
do I have to sit here and make eyes at you to get you to do it?"

Moira had felt him approaching a few minutes ago, else she would have
jumped out of her chair in fright. "We need ta put bells on ye," she
grumbled, but straightened, hands rubbing the small of her back. "Nay
need ta make me eat--starvin' over 'ere."

"Went for protein," Nathan said, setting the tray down on her desk.
"Stir fry? Lorna suggested it. Apparently there are more uses for woks
than as funny hats. Gar and Vasily will be so terribly disappointed."

"Nay after ye explain tha' they can use it as a 'at AFTER they eat,"
she said, laughing as she scooted closer to the food, stomach
protesting the lapse in eating that day. "Yer a saint, love."

"Should be easy on the stomach, too," he murmured, dragging one of the
other chairs over and watching her dig in. "Don't think I don't know
you weren't feeling well this morning."

"'Tis from nay sleepin' well...or all." Before she had crashed last
night, Moira had been up for two days straight, working with Jono.
"Lad seems stable now. If, well, bodyless."

Nathan sighed, leaning back in the chair and watching Moira eat.
"Still nothing from you-know-who about what to do next," he said,
tapping his temple with one finger. "Just buzzing still."

"...I'm nay goin' ta say a word 'bout ye refusin' 'ealin' off 'and,"
she muttered darkly after swallowing. "Nay a word. Speakin' o'
words, wha' th' bloody 'ell 'as Bella been sayin'? New words?"

Nathan sighed again, but smiled this time. "Wanda's been teaching her
Rom profanity," he said delicately. "She's taking to it very well. And
she ate your pillow again." He gave Moira a very innocent look as she
sputtered and set her glass of juice down before she could spill any
more of it. "And yes, I waited until you were drinking to say that."

"Bastard." Reaching over, Moira kicked him lightly in the shin. "Why
did she eat me pillow again?"

"I have no idea. But I foolishly left her out of her cage while I ran
down to the library, and when I came back upstairs she was dancing
amid the falling down, shrieking happily. Then she bit me, twice,
while I was trying to clean up." Nathan extended his hand to show
Moira the quite-obvious bite marks. "Very bitchy bird, that one."

"Awww." Leaning over, she kissed the spot on his hand before going
back to her food. "Ye were interruptin' 'er fun, tha's wha' was goin'
on. Tha' makes, wha', third pillow she's destroyed? All mine, I
might add."

"It's like having a three year-old around," Nathan grumbled, folding
his arms across his chest and watching her eat, very intently. She
seemed hungry. Lots of appetite was good.

It was very hard not to noticing him staring. Moira glanced up and
raised an eyebrow. "Wha'?"

"I'm watching you eat," he said, mock-gravely. "Just to make sure you
do it. I don't trust you, you know. If I got up and left right now,
I'd come back down and find most of that ice-cold and still there in
another few hours."

She gave him a mock-hurt look. "I wouldnae! It would only be for two
at th' least. Nay more. An' there are thin's called microwaves."
Still smiling, Moira leaned over and kissed him on the cheek gently.
"Thank ye for puttin' up wit' me."

"I don't 'put up with you'," Nathan said quietly, a faint smile
tugging at his lips. "If you didn't work your ass off to help people,
you wouldn't be the woman I'd fallen in love with." He tilted his head
back and forth for a moment, rubbing at the back of his neck. Stiff
again today. "I'm just very bored," he confessed. "Do you know how
much it takes out of my day not to be training? But I promised Scott I
wouldn't so much as look in the direction of the Danger Room until
Madelyn cleared me completely."

"Good!" Standing up, she moved around behind and started working on
his neck muscles. "I'll 'elp 'im kick yer ass from 'ere ta Hawaii
if'n ye think 'bout goin' there until yer medically cleared."

"I don't like Hawaii," Nathan murmured, trying not to wince. His
muscles were protesting, loudly, even at the gentle massage. "Would
much prefer to go back to Santorini. Wouldn't you?"

"'old still, this'll 'elp," Moira muttered, not letting him pull away.
The muscles really did need to be worked on in order for them to
finally relax. "Mmm, Santorini sounds lovely. Nay sure when we could
go, though."

"Eh, it was a passing fancy," Nathan said dryly. "I know we're not
liable to get out of here anytime soon. Christmas, though, right?" She
paused, one hand resting lightly on his shoulder, and he covered it
with one of his. "Back home, even if it's only for a few days..."

"God, aye. Because I'll go insane if'n we dinnae." Casting a glance
behind them, making sure no one had decided that now was the perfect
time to start bleeding, Moira walked around and then settled firmly
onto Nathan's lap. "Comfy."

He let the air in his lungs out on a sigh, relaxing and wrapping his
arms around her as she laid her head on his shoulder. "Not comfy," he
murmured. "Perfect." He kissed the top of her head, then closed his
eyes, reaching out a bit clumsily along the link - his telepathy was
still a little raw - in a caress.

Purring slightly, she snuggled closer. The link had been awfully
quiet lately, not only because of the pain on his end but also because
she had needed been able to concentrate with Jono. "Missed tha'," she
admitted, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Well, I'll see if I can minimize the head injuries in future," he
said dryly, deliberately letting her thoughts about Jono pass without
paying too much attention to them. Self-centered as it might be, he
didn't want to think about Jono or any of the other problems around
here just now.

"Good boy, Nathan," Moira said, giggling slightly into his shoulder.
"We need ta get out for a night, at least. Dinner, movie...sound
good?"

Nathan opened his mouth, then closed it again, a slow grin breaking
over his face. "Oh, you know what comes out this week?" he said
finally, relishing the idea. "'Alexander'. Historical movie, one
that's liable to be horrifically inaccurate... what say we go and
nitpick?"

"Oohhh." She nearly bounced. "I forgot 'bout tha' wit' everythin'
goin' on! I can mock it! A lot! An' then we can go some place
stupidly expensive an' relax."

"Sounds like a plan to me," Nathan said firmly, leaning forward a bit
and kissing her. Which, funnily enough, made her stop
attempting-to-bounce. She wrapped her arms around his neck and
returned the kiss with interest. #Moira...?# he sent wistfully as they
approached the point of needing to take an oxygen break. #Do you
really have anything you need to do right now?#

Giggling, she shook her head. #Nay right this SECOND,# she sent back,
nuzzling at his neck as the door behind them closed suddenly. #I'm
technically on break in...a minute. Are ye...oh, tha's a nice mental
image.#

#Really?# Nathan sent with a mental laugh. #I'll make note of that...#
His eyes darted around the room, lingering briefly and thoughtfully on
the desk before he decided that no, the couch was a much better idea.
They were both old and decrepit, after all.

"If anyone knocks on the door..." he murmured aloud as she slid off
his lap and he stood up, nudging her in the direction of the couch.
"We're not here. We ran away from home. Right?"

"Off ta Rome!" she agreed, cheerfully, grabbing his hands and pulling
along as she backed up into the couch. "Nay 'ome at all. Nope. Come
'ere."

He did so obediently. Never let it be said he couldn't take orders.
"You know," he said, sliding her lab coat off her shoulders, "we
really ought to just bow to the inevitable and replace your couch down
here with a hide-a-bed or something..." That got a snicker, but a
definite 'less talk, more action' vibe was coming down the link.

They definitely needed, at the very least, a bigger couch, Nathan
reflected as she pulled him downwards quite insistently.

Giggling as she bounced slightly when she hit the couch, it didn't
last long. Not with that kind of kiss. And that thing he was doing
to her back. And her neck. God bless telekinetics.