#deatiny

Another late entry (really late, this time) and it’s my first foray into the world of Destiny fanfic.  My NaNo piece this year centered around the game and the potential relationship between Commander Zavala and my Awoken warlock, Alina.  It’s yet another thing on the rather long list of fics I need to finish & post. A/N - Felix is a titan and is married to Oscar, a hunter.  They’re both human and love Alina dearly (and she them).  Even though the Destiny event is called Crimson Days, I figured it was suitable to use for this since it happens at the same time as Valentine’s Day and does focus on the bonds you have with fellow Guardians.

There were certain times during the year the Tower transformed into something special to celebrate a new version of old earth holidays and traditions.  Alina had missed her first Dawning event in the winter because she had been on a mission on the Dreadnought.  It was supposed to be simple – Cayde had some supplies he needed gathered up – but word got out she was there and the next thing she knew, she had a litany of things other people needed taken care of 'since you're there anyway.”  She didn't even know about the Dawning until after she'd returned and overheard numerous other Guardians discussing the gifts they'd given and received as well as the shenanigans she missed out on.

Her disappointment was alleviated a bit when her best friends (and the other two-thirds of her fireteam), Felix and Oscar, greeted her with huge hugs and a gift – a shader for her armor that she'd had her eye on for a while but could never quite save enough glimmer to buy.  She felt guilty and got a little misty-eyed because she hadn't returned the gesture.  Her friends just laughed and said that she didn't need to worry about it.  It made her feel a little better, but not much – she was still considered the neophyte even though new Guardians showed up at the Tower every day. That label irritated the heck out of her and even though she'd taken care of a lot of heavy hitters in the bad guy department, few Guardians wanted anything to do with her, thinking she didn't know what she was doing.  Felix and Oscar were the exception, though; they always had her back and made her feel welcome and wanted.  Her mood was also assuaged by the reassurance that she'd most likely be around for the next round of festivities.

When the next celebration happened – something referred to as Crimson Days – Alina wasn't around because there was a mission that needed handled on Mars.  She also missed the next event, and the one after that, and the one after that.  It quickly got to a point where the warlock just accepted the fact that she'd have to enjoy the Tower's holidays vicariously through her friends.

One morning, Alina wandered into the Vanguard briefing room to check the mission schedule and was pleasantly surprised to find out she would be around for that year's Crimson Days festivities.  A smile lit her face as she raced off to let Felix and Oscar know and she hoped they could make plans together.

Alina did a little research into Crimson Days, not wanting her ignorance to cause her to make a fool of herself.  She found out that it was a time to celebrate the relationships one forged with their fellow Guardians, whether it was a bond of friendship or one of love.  She also found out that Shaxx in particular loved this holiday and even set up special Crucible matches to celebrate.  Felix and Oscar tried talking her into giving it a go, but Alina hated the Crucible; the idea of killing a fellow Guardian, even if it was just 'training' and they were revivable made her sick to her stomach.  Fallen, Taken, Hive, Cabal...  she'd kill them until she ran out of bullets but she couldn't do it to her fellow Guardians.  One of the workers posted a schedule of events that covered the week the festivities would run.  Alina perused the list, her eyes lingering on the Day of Dancing.  Alina might still be considered the new kid on the block, but the one thing she could do, and do damn well, was dance.

Felix explained that the Day of Dancing was just that – whatever Guardians were around took turns queuing up different songs and spending the day dancing around the tower. Sometimes there were these things called 'line dances' where everyone around lined up and did the same moves.  Alina had seen Guardians do something like that around the Tower on a normal day – a bunch would gather around and just start moving the same way, usually to celebrate a hard-fought victory.  She was a quick learner and often stood on the outside of these groups, learning the moves before trying to participate.

The Day of Dancing was held toward the end of the event, on the last day.  Things got off to a slow start – only a handful of Guardians were milling about the Tower, taking turns selecting the music for everyone to move to.  Alina stayed on the outside edge of the group, not wanting to draw too much attention to herself.  If people noticed her dancing, she didn't mind, but she danced for herself and didn't care if people paid attention to her moves or not.  Gradually, more and more Guardians showed up and it wasn't long until the music was echoing across the Tower Courtyard, dozens of Guardians moving together to the melodies that inspired them.

Every couple of songs, someone would play something that would have them all use the same moves, over and over again in sync.  Alina figured this was the 'line dancing' Felix had talked about and thought it was fascinating to see so many people do it at once.  Felix told her that this was hugely popular a millenia prior, so all of the songs they used were really, really old.  The first dance she witnessed was to a simple ditty called the Cha Cha Slide.  Alina watched as about twenty Guardians lined up, got themselves synced, and started moving as one unit.  She watched, transfixed and wanted to participate in the worst way.  So, she stayed off to the side and watched intently, her body soon mimicking the groups movements.  The song was nearly finished before she felt confident enough to join the back row of the group.

And so it went – a song would come on, a group would start to move together, and Alina would watch, staying off to the side to copy their movements until she was confident enough to join in.  Hours passed and several of the songs were repeated, which gave Alina the chance to jump in from the beginning.  Her confidence grew and it wasn't long before she was adding her own flourishes – extra steps here, a hip swivel there, and a 360 spin with a bow and a small kick.  She couldn't remember the last time she had this much fun.

When it was time to end the day's festivities, the DJ announced that she had found the perfect song for the occasion – a classic number called the Cupid Shuffle.  She started the music and again, Alina watched for a minute or two before jumping in.  She was so wrapped up in what she was doing she never noticed a figure sidle up next to her and start dancing.  Her head was bopping, her hands shaking, her hips rotating as she swiveled them around.  The next thing she knew, she was face to face with Commander Zavala.

Her smile evaporated as she faced the man she had a tremendous crush on.  There was something about him that she found enticing, but at the same time he intimidated the Void out of her.  He could be brusque and often came across as cold and distant, but Alina had witnessed first-hand how deeply he cared about the Guardians serving under him.  Felix and Oscar knew about her infatuation and told her she should say something, but she was too afraid – afraid of the potential rejection, afraid that she might somehow offend him and get stuck on shit missions for the rest of her immortal life, afraid that she'd be the laughing stock of the Vanguard.  So she admired him from a distance, careful to keep her stares hidden.  She would occasionally find an excuse to stand close to him, enjoying the pleasant tingle her aura gave off in his presence.  Now here he was, standing in front of her wearing his armor and a rare, honest-to-goodness smile.