Aria/Jackson rendezvous

[only_one_rule]

The room had probably been a supply closet at some point; certainly its size and shape seemed to suggest that, as did the heavy shelves that had been bolted to the walls, though they were devoid of anything by the time they had discovered it not far from the living quarters and the barricade they had set up against roving monsters. It added a little thrill to the proceedings to know they were beyond the 'safe zone' and more than once had necessitated a quick retreat when the halls were too full of foes.

Aria slipped into the room to find Jackson already there, just as she had known he would be. She allowed another sly smile as she spotted him, though she turned her attention towards using her biotics to shove the remaining shelf up against the door before greeting him properly. Only once the heavy shelving was firmly in place did she turn, sauntering towards where he waited. "Well now, where were we? Planning an invasion, I believe..."

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[suckmyyankeeballs]

Jackson had sutured the old, thin, and narrow mattress a year or so ago, and it was somewhat miraculously still there in the corner of the room, half hidden behind some shelves, all these months later. It was certainly not the height of comfort, but it was a slight step-up on lying on the floor, when they were in the mood for lying down.

When Aria walked in, he was standing on the side of the room, leaning against a shelf and wishing, yet again, for a goddamn cigarette. At least the wait was over, and now he could indulge in another one of his vices, or so Reid would have called it.

"Invasion, takeover, infiltration, annihilation," Jackson listed as she came close, watching his fill and doing nothing to hide the admiration he had for her body. "We have options."

Of course the foreplay wouldn't stop now that they were here. Some days, it didn't stop at all, and they were still discussing strategy by the time they left the supply closet.

He caught her hand and pulled her close, his other hand sliding around her waist, to the small of her back. He smiled at her from up close, now, easy, laid-back and cheerful despite the knowledge that they could be interrupted any second by a threat to their lives. "Tell me, Aria," he asked, against her lips. "Who would you send to infiltrate them?"

Since he damn well wanted an answer, his lips traveled along her jaw line instead, curling his fingers to stroke her back.

[only_one_rule]

"To gather information, or to kill them all?" she asked, tipping her head to one side to allow him better access. Her own fingers found his arms, dragging slowly over his biceps and up to his shoulders, where she paused and kneaded like a contented cat.

"If I just wanted to gain information... Glen," she decided, "he's old and non-threatening, and he talks so much that you don't realise you're actually giving him information at the same time. If he shuts up at all. Same with Boyd, and it'd have the added bonus of having him not here." She paused to give an appreciative sigh as his lips found the sensitive spot at the juncture of her jaw and crests. "Chiana, maybe, she has a knack for getting places she couldn't - though I don't trust her to keep her pretty mouth shut."

[suckmyyankeeballs]

Oh, but Jackson loved that spot, and made full use of it - until she stopped talking, which meant trailing his lips back up that lovely crest, so that he could be whispering in her ear as he tipped her forward into him. "You just gotta make sure she knows where her best interest lies." And it was, as far as he was concerned, with them. The new kids were useless, softened by luxury, no matter what they had just witnessed them do against the unleashed monsters. That had been easy, compared to what they lived with.

"Glen's a good choice," he added, letting go of her hand to stroke it down the back of her head, to her nape, extremely used to, and fond of, the inhuman feel of it, all bumps and creases, "if he doesn't let his conscience get the best of him. Boyd..." He did not have to tell her how much he appreciated the man, given how often he went with him and his crew on their crazy missions. "Advantages and drawbacks." To sending him there. They needed Boyd, or someone like him, up here.

Not to mention that Jackson would miss him. But that couldn't factor into that type of decision.

[only_one_rule]

"We've all survived this long because we've managed to work as a team. Anyone who forgets that is likely to get an unpleasant reminder," Aria said. She wasn't even implying that she'd be the one delivering it - there were plenty of people far more invested in keeping the group together than her, and she had no doubt there'd be a swift punishment for anyone endangering that balancing act.

Smoothing her fingers over his neck, she then delved them into his hair; her nails were short but still elicited tingles as she dragged them lightly over his scalp. She wasn't normally a fan of hair on her lovers but humans looked a bit funny completely shaven so she was willing to compromise on this.

"Would you send anybody else? Given that you're obviously reluctant to send your best friend," she added with a smirk. Her own feelings on Boyd were far more cut and dry - he might serve a purpose in the group but she didn't like him much.

[suckmyyankeeballs]

Jackson let the slander go; qualifying any relationship on board as that of best friends was a joke in and of itself. They didn't have room for childish drama, or even the more mature kind, if they could help it, and such notions were those of children. So he only greeted the words with a quick, amused smile of his own as his hand slipped under her top to find skin, fingers light on her skin for now as he reviewed their current roster of people.

"Hmm," he let out thoughtfully after a moment, tilting his head into her hand. "You got me there, darlin'. If I thought we could trust him, I would've said Andras, but..." Much as he enjoyed conversation with the other doctor, Jackson had yet to take a good measure of him. Or at least good enough to satisfy his distrusting tendancies. Down there, who knew who might turn.

[only_one_rule]

Aria didn't know whether she was pleased or disappointed when he failed to rise to the bait - possibly both, given that she didn't mean to hurt him, only get under his skin a bit. Jackson wasn't the type to be easily needled, though, and she liked that about him. There were plenty of other people she could rile up if she wanted to for entertainment's sake, though she rarely bothered.

"Not to mention sending away the only person who can coax palatable meals out of what we're given would be shooting yourself in the foot... or stomach. Those particular talents would be wasted down there."

[suckmyyankeeballs]

"Acceptable loss, if I was certain he wouldn't turn on us," Jackson replied easily, as he let his mouth fall back down to that wonderful spot. Andras's talent for cooking was not to be dismissed, of course, but the lack of that particular comfort would be worth the intelligence gathering the man could accomplish downstairs. People talked to him, Jackson included. He was that kind of man.

[only_one_rule]

Aria gave a hum of satisfaction, her fingers curling in Jackson's hair as his tongue flicked out to taste her skin. Suddenly she tightened her grip, pulling back as swiftly as a snake striking and crushing her lips to his insistently. Her own tongue slid past his lips as she backed him towards the wall; they collided with a thump that twinged more than one lingering bruise.

"It all comes down to trust, doesn't it?" she murmured after a moment, her lips brushing his, her breath hot and sweet. "None of us chose to be here, so what reason do we have to trust one another?"

[suckmyyankeeballs]

"You can only ever trust people to be true to their nature," Jackson agreed, the back of his head smarting slightly from bumping against the wall, but see if he cared. He had always loved strong women, and a little roughness was not unpleasant.

"I just don't know what his is for sure," he went on, smiling lazily before he kissed her again, with the same sudden fire she had just displayed, fingers working her top open and off of her.

[only_one_rule]

Aria shrugged the top off her shoulders - coming to the Proserpina hadn't changed her preferences for form-fitting clothes, though she mourned the loss of her favourite jacket, having found nothing similar to replace it with in her time on the station. Her own hands worked busily to divest Jackson of his shirt and vest; so many layers, but then, humans were always cold, weren't they?

"What about Rat?" she said when they had come up for air a minute later, their hands and lips still exploring the newly-exposed flesh on display. "He certainly knows how to play a role..."

[suckmyyankeeballs]

"And if we were to set up a theatre, he would make a perfect leadin' lady," Jackson confirmed without missing a beat, his voice a little rougher than usual, and he leaned back for a moment to just watch her. She was gorgeous, and her talk of trust - he knew what it meant, that she would be like this, with him.

He also knew what it didn't mean.

"I don't know that he'd have it in him to play the long con," he went on, fingers fanning out across her ribs, stroking down over her hip, saying the same things his eyes were saying: beautiful, gorgeous, magnificent.

[only_one_rule]

"How long would we need, really?" she all but purred, hooking her finger in his belt and pulling him in for another kiss. She liked the way he looked at her, though of course she would've questioned his eyesight (and sanity) if he had done any differently.

Deftly she began to unbuckle the belt, slipping her hand into his trousers as soon as she was able and curling her fingers around him. She smiled at his sudden intake of breath. "How much longer are we going to wait?" The question had more than one meaning, of course, though she was curious to see which he would address first.

[suckmyyankeeballs]

"Darlin', you always make it so difficult to keep my brain goin'," Jackson pointed out, although the warmth in his drawl made it clear it really wasn't a complaint. At all. Whatsoever.

Especially not when she shifted her hand and squeezed just right.

"But those are two very different questions," he answered all the same, working his hands around hers to go and take care of her own pants. "Especially when we don't know what'll be decided."

There was a hint of a question in his tone, which he trusted she would be able to decipher. Had she had this very conversation with others? Did she have an idea who would vote for which option?

[only_one_rule]

"I'll give you one thing - all that talking has certainly done wonders for your stamina," Aria chuckled when she had regained proper use of her own tongue. She sighed as she shifted, raising her forearm and laying it over her eyes to block out what dim light they had. "If I had you back on Omega I'd have cloned you in a heartbeat - would have had plenty of happy customers to swindle then."

[suckmyyankeeballs]

"It's for the best, really," Jackson stated in a lazier drawl than usual. Stamina or not, his tongue and, well, his entire mouth were feeling the strain of the workout. And it had been entirely worth it. "The world's better off with just one of me in it."

He certainly was better off knowing there weren't other ones of him around, anyway.

[only_one_rule]

"Rarer commodities are good too - drives up the price." Aria grinned - not that she was planning on pimping him out, at least not up here. "I coul--" She bit off her sentence as a loud crash sounded in the hallway outside their door, and a moment later the door itself rattled as something large and heavy collided with it.

[suckmyyankeeballs]

From lazily resting his head against her thigh, casually sprawled between her legs, Jackson reacted immediately, reaching for his rifle and getting to his feet, pointing the weapon at the door. It was holding, for now.

"Get dressed," he told Aria in a whisper, not an order - he was letting her know he'd keep watch on the door as she did, and expected her to return the favor afterwards.

[only_one_rule]

She was on her feet in an instant, slipping into her clothes and boots as the shelf juddered and shook. Perhaps stupidly all she had brought with her was a small pistol in an ankle holster, but then, she had recourse to other defenses.

Drawing the gun, she took up position next to Jackson, nudging him with her shoulder as she drew a bead on the door. "Go on."

[suckmyyankeeballs]

It was a quick affair, throwing clothes on, pulling his boots on, then immediately picking up his rifle again. He was all business now, as he set his sight back on the shaking door, but it didn't mean he wasn't himself about it.

"Let's go, darlin'," he murmured with a half smile, trusting her by his side as he had any good man in the army.

[only_one_rule]

A nod, and then a flair of blue as the shelves were shoved roughly to one side by Aria's biotics to allow them access to the door. They managed to set themselves at appropriate angles to the door just as it burst open to reveal a hulking amphibious-looking creature, all limbs and gills and teeth. It was too large to fit through the doorway, though it flailed its main arms into the room - Aria heard a BLAM beside her as Jackson unloaded a shot into its chest. This was enough to drive it away from the door long enough for them to slip outside and Aria did so, preferring the slightly more open space of the corridor to being trapped in the small room like some sort of offering.

"Come on then, fuckhead, let's see what you've got."

[suckmyyankeeballs]

They made a good team, all the more so by now. When the thing leapt towards them again, a telekinetic blast disoriented it long enough for Jackson to get another good shot at it - this time, at its head. It was the weak spot of most creatures they'd met, except a few, usually very notable, exceptions. It was always a good bet, as far as Jackson was concerned, much better than guessing at where its vital organs might be.

The shot reached its mark, drawing a guttural sound of agony out of the creature before it charged again, fury renewed by pain.

[only_one_rule]

Never one to give ground without a fight, Aria refused to budge as the monster thundered towards them. She raised her handgun and trained it on one of the creature's small, piggish eyes, waiting until it was almost upon her before pulling the trigger. With a howl of pain it struck out in anger, though half-blinded all it succeeded in was sending its claws raking across Aria's arm and throwing her against the wall before turning its attention to Jackson. As he watched, its outer jaws opened wide, long tongue whipping out to taste the air as it chattered its inner teeth at him threateningly.

[suckmyyankeeballs]

"You're one ugly sonuvabitch," Jackson commented as he fired again, a round of shots at its head, stepping back as it came at him until, finally, it collapsed. The sound of steady gunfire was followed by an eerie silence, and Jackson looked over at Aria to see her get to her feet. He'd check her over when they were back behind the barricade, but right now, their priority was getting there (and, if possible, bring the creature with them for Andras to do his thing). The gunfire would have drawn attention, and not just from their side.

"Think it'll taste like fish?" he asked hopefully, keeping his rifle drawn, ready to fire, but grabbing the creature by one of its legs and waiting for her to do the same, so they could drag it together.

[only_one_rule]

"As long as it tastes better than it looks," Aria replied, gritting her teeth as she leaned down to grab hold of one slippery limb. Her arm was dripping blood, dark purple against the black of her jumpsuit, but she ignored it as they began to drag the carcass backk towards the barricade. If there were any other creatures in the vicinity they'd find out soon enough.

[suckmyyankeeballs]

They thankfully managed to make it to the barricade without trouble, and the sentinels on duty just then took charge of the animal while Jackson nodded for Aria to follow thim towards the medlab. It was a nasty-looking cut, but he was mostly worried about whether the creature might have secreted poison.

"Take a seat," he told her with a nod at the room in general, so that she could choose which seat she prefered. There was a table, for their surgeries, but people generally prefered one of the chairs.

He washed his hands quickly, then grabbed a clean rag to clean the wound. They had a few mad devices which Tam had taught him to use, but they were mostly stuck with the basics as Jackson knew them.