#spyau

The domesticity only grew following dinner. The three of them washing and drying dishes in the kitchen together before Ice insisted Emma shower and get her pyjamas on. 

Once again, she was incredibly reluctant to be separated from them. It was Ice’s turn to stand outside the bathroom door and talk to her as she showered. Mav finished cleaning the kitchen, unable to stop snickering as Ice explained in great detail the steps to a tactical clearing of a house. If nothing else they would come away from this with all of their basic spy-craft skills refreshed. 

With her showered, teeth brushed and pyjamas on, Ice and Emma returned to sit on the couch with Mav. As she snuggled up in Ice’s lap, Mav slid across to close the distance. He had spent the rest of the time waiting for them by drawing up a polybius cipher grid. 

She watched with solemn eyes as Mav explained how it worked and then how it could be made more complicated by shifting the letters or randomising them. She frowned, taking the pad and writing in the cipher for a long moment before handing it back. 

How do you know where the letters go if its random?

“You have a big clue in your name, Emmie,” he said with a crooked smile. “Do you know what the most common letter in English is?” 

She flashed a single finger followed by all five. Ice and Mav chuckled and nodded. 

“Yes, clever pants, it’s E. If you can find E you can figure out most other letters from there,” Mav leaned in, letting his shoulder rest against Ice’s bicep as he took the pen from Emma and began giving a proper lesson on the pattern of language and code-breaking. 

When he was finished, she was fully tucked into Ice with her feet in Maverick’s lap. He could see her eyelids were getting heavy and dropped the notepad onto the floor. 

“Bedtime, kiddo,” he said and stood. With perfect synchronicity Mav bent to scoop her out of Ice’s arms as the other man shifted and lifted her to him. 

She clung to Ice for one more moment with a hug before letting Mav take her. 

“Night, Squeak,” Ice said with a false yawn.

She yawned back. 

She was still too light in his arms but at least she looked like someone loved her in her unicorn-cross-kitten pyjamas. He carried her into one of the bedrooms and laid her in the bed. 

“Try and get some sleep, honey,” he mumbled to her. “I’ll stay for a while. I’ll leave the door open. If you wake through the night just come and find us, OK?” He brushed her fringe from her forehead. 

Face grave, she nodded and curled her fingers into his pocket. Mav let her, thinking she was just looking to hold on to him for a while but with a little fishing she brought out his butterfly knife. 

“Don’t touch that, kiddo,” he said, the sternest he had been with her yet. “It’s really sharp and really dangerous.” Mav plucked the knife from her hand without hesitation. “You know Ice and I will let you have things to figure out how they work, but not knives or bullets. They’re dangerous.”

Emma was clutching the blanket, face stricken as he lectured her.

“Here,” Mav took one of her hands and ran her fingers over the ridge of scar that crossed three fingers on his right hand. “Feel that? I messed up a knife trick and almost lost the use of those fingers.”

She took his hand and ran her fingers over his slowly, mapping the scar herself this time. 

“If Ice or I tell you not to do something, it’s always to keep you safe,” Mav said. 

Emma nodded again. She tried to stifle a yawn. 

“Sleep, kiddo,” he mumbled, hiding the knife in the other pocket. “We’ll still be here in the morning.”

He could tell she didn’t quite believe him. Rolling onto her side, Emma gripped his pants in her fist and fought the weight of her eyelids. Mav didn’t move. He simply laid a hand on her shoulder and waited. 

Ice was still on the couch, scrolling on his phone with a serious look on his face. Maverick flopped down at the other end with a sigh. He was exhausted. His limbs pleasantly heavy and brain ready to stop for a while.

“She is asleep,” he said quietly. 

“Good.”

Mav closed his eyes and pressed his head into the back of the couch. 

“I’ve been reading the report of what Goose extracted from that drive.” Ice’s voice was pitched down in his attempt to stay quiet as well. “There is no reason why she should have been there, Mav. It wasn’t a drop-point or a storage facility. It was just a gang-house. It doesn’t make sense.”

With a concerted effort, Maverick kicked his brain back into tactical thinking once more. He didn’t bother opening his eyes as he spoke. “She was probably a hostage.”

“What?” Ice’s anger raised his voice and Maverick cracked an eye to glance back toward the bedrooms. When Emma didn’t appear, Ice continued speaking, quieter once more. “What do you mean a hostage?”

“She was probably being used to keep a rival gang in check, or to secure an alliance between two parties,” Mav said with a sigh. He turned his eyes back to Ice. “In all honesty, she might not even have been taken. She might have been given up.”

A cold fury lit Ice’s eyes, the blue chilling down to resemble glaciers. His jaw ticced as he ground his teeth together and Mav watched his fingers shift to press over his palms. He knew that feeling well, the urge to have a weapon in hand to exact justice. Maverick would be lying if he said he didn’t feel the same way. His own fury was muted beneath the weight of reality though. 

“How do people live like that?” Ice hissed. 

“Desperation.” Mav closed his eyes again and sank into the couch a little more. “Greed. Stupidity. No better options. Lots of reasons, Ice.”

There was a long silence. 

“Sorry,” Ice mumbled.

It surprised him. Mav lifted his heavy eyelids once more and stared.

“Your… history. Sorry, I was probably insensitive.” Ice said with a wave of his hand.

Maverick snorted and closed his eyes again. “Don’t worry about it, Kazansky. I’ve got thicker skin than that.” He yawned before he could stop it. 

“You’re also going to fall asleep if you don’t go to bed.” Ice’s voice was back to business once more. 

“I am in bed.” 

“Don’t be stupid, Mitchell, you aren’t sleeping on the couch.”

“What, you are? You’re too big to fit.” He dragged his eyes open again, frustration filtering in at the constant interruptions to his shut eye. 

“There’s another bed in this house,” Ice said as though it were obvious. He stood, now towering over Mav on the couch. 

“There is one other bed in this house,” Mav pointed out, stalling for time as he attempted to compose the fluttery reaction in his stomach. 

“And I promise not to murder you in your sleep.” Ice shot him a snarky smile. 

“Alright,” Mav said as he heaved himself to his feet. “I make no such promise in return.”

Ice’s chuckle was like dark chocolate, sweet and bitter at the same time. He led the way to the bedroom, flipping lights off as they went. 

Mav took the side closest to the door, stretching out on his back with a sigh. He felt the mattress depress beside him, listened as Ice gave a sigh of his own and wriggled for a moment. Within record time, the other man’s breathing had evened out and he was asleep. 

It took a little longer for Maverick. His heart didn’t want to settle down, it was too busy thudding loud enough to wake the dead in his ears. Once it finally receded to background noise once more, he lay there listening to Ice’s breathing and arguing with himself over their newfound companionship. 

Somewhere around the third cycle in the same argument, Mav slipped into sleep.

Gasping, he surged awake and into an upright position. One hand searched beneath his pillow for his Beretta, he scanned the dark room. 

Emma was cowering by the end of the bed. Mav deflated immediately. 

“What is it?” Ice’s voice was thick with sleep.

“Sorry,” Mav said, working hard to calm his heartbeat. “Automatic reaction. Come here.”

For a horrifying second he feared she wouldn't. She was crouched, covering herself with her arms. He beckoned to her before patting the side of the bed beside him. Her body unfolded, the arms coming around her chest now and hugging at herself. 

“You OK?” Ice mumbled. 

“Go back to sleep, Kazansky, I got it.” Mav turned and patted Ice’s shoulder lightly. 

The other man gave a sleepy sigh, rolled to face him and apparently dropped off once more. 

“Come here, baby,” Mav said again, reaching out for Emma. “I’m sorry. I frightened you.”

She gave a nod, crossing the last of the distance between them and standing at the bedside. 

“You have a nightmare?” He yawned.

Another nod. Now he could see the haunted look in her eyes. 

“Climb up.” He pulled the blanket back for her. “Come sleep here.”

Without any hesitation this time, she climbed into the bed, over Mav, and settled between the two of them. 

“Better?” He asked, laying back down beside her. 

She nodded and reached out to take Maverick’s bicep in her hands. With her warm little hands clutching on to him it was weirdly easy to resettle himself back to sleep.

Two bony knees were digging into his back. Ice woke only as the pain reached a tipping point. He hadn’t dreamed for once. It was a pleasant surprise. An even more pleasant surprise was the heavy weight of Mav’s hand on his waist. 

Ice shifted, rolling away from Emma’s jabbing knees and flattening out onto his back. He looked at the pair of them. 

Emma was twisted in the middle, her legs against Ice and her torso flat on the bed. She was holding Mav’s forearm like a teddybear. Mav was rolled toward her, his other arm stretched out over her and still resting on Ice’s hip.

His first thought was dangerous; they were adorable. His second thought was even worse; he wanted to stay. 

That was not a possibility. He couldn’t stay. Stay where? This was a safehouse. Temporary housing for a lost little girl. It was not a home. 

But damn if he didn’t wish he could give her that.

Maverick’s words from the night before haunted him. The idea of anyone giving Emma up was repulsive. Especially for their own selfish gain. It made Ice want to commit murder. It made him want to track down her parents and enact war crimes. 

Thinking those thoughts wouldn't get him anywhere. Ice sighed a little and rubbed his eyes. What he needed to do was get back to work today. That started with getting out of the warm, comfortable bed, and getting coffee.

He hesitated one more moment, tracing the soft expressions on Emma and Mav’s faces as they slept. Mav’s stubble was coming on strong now he hadn’t shaved for a few days, his hair a wild mess from sleep and flopping over his forehead a little. Even in sleep there was a small smile playing around his mouth. 

Ice bit back a sigh. He shifted Mav’s hand off his hip and onto the mattress, letting his fingers linger, before he rolled up and out of bed properly. 

With a coffee and his phone, Ice settled himself at the table on the patio. He was most of the way through the morning headlines when movement in his peripherals caught him. Emma was wandering the house.

“I’m out here,” he called. He couldn’t help the smile it caused as she made a bee-line for the back door. “Good morning.” Ice leaned back in his chair as she moved to him and climbed into his lap. 

“Hi.” The word was a whisper. 

Ice felt very accomplished that he didn’t choke on his coffee as she spoke. Instead he set his mug and phone down and pulled her into a tight hug. He pressed a kiss to the top of her messy hair, unable to contain the fireworks of happiness one little word set off in him. 

“Hi, sweetheart,” he mumbled into the top of her head. “Thank you for speaking to me.”

She nodded back, pressing her cheek into his chest. 

“Did you sleep OK?” Ice asked her, hopeful to get more words out. 

Emma nodded again. 

“Good. I did too,” he said, trying to mute his disappointment over her silence. One step at a time, he tried to remind himself. “Happy there? I’m going back to reading.”

She shifted, settling in properly as Ice picked his phone back up and continued reading. He alternated the phone and his coffee, unwilling to use the hand that was wrapped around Emma in a loose hug. 

After watching him swap for the second time, Emma took up his phone and held it for him to read. Ice chuckled, placing another kiss on her hair in fondness. 

“Thank you, Squeak,” he said. 

Eventually Maverick appeared, coffee in hand and a bowl of cereal for Emma. He was showered and clean shaven once more, much to Ice’s disappointment. 

“Morning,” Mav said, a bright smile hitting Ice’s chest full force. “Here, kiddo, come and eat.”

Mav placed the bowl down at an empty chair before taking the one across from Ice. Emma wriggled, getting her feet under her and planting them on Ice’s thighs. He got a second to react before she stood on him. An “oof” of effort snuck out of Ice as she leapt to the chair adjacent.

“Emma,” Ice chastised. 

Maverick snorted into his coffee mug with poorly concealed laughter. 

She shot him a look that was probably attempting to be guilty but her delight undermined it somewhat. 

“Need to get this kid into rock climbing,” Ice commented drily. “Maybe she’ll stop using me as a jungle-gym.”

“It’s your own fault for being so tall and broad,” Mav replied in a just-too-breezy way. 

Ice looked up from Emma, an eyebrow raised and a questioning look on his face. 

Maverick simply smiled back and sipped his coffee. 

He filed that away for later inspection. 

“Alright, kiddo,” Maverick said, letting the moment pass. “Today we have to head back to the agency. You, me and Ice are all going, OK?”

Emma glared and, after a beat, rolled her eyes at him. 

The both made strangled noises trying to stifle their laughter, Ice setting his coffee down and covering his mouth with his hand. Mav was the first to recover his composure.

“I know you don’t want to. But we have to. Ice and I need to see about a few things,” Mav said, dancing around the ugly truth.

Ice’s good humour died a violent death. They needed to “see about” where Emma was going to be placed and finding a permanent home for her. They needed to find out who her family was and why she had been in that house. It had been a delightful 36 hours of playing house, but reality had a way of seeping through the cracks. It was time to get back to the real world. 

“Eat your cereal, we’ll get dressed and Mr Particular can drive us to work.” Mav shot her a smile but it was a weak imitation of his usual joyful expressions. 

She delayed eating for as long as she could, letting her cereal go soggy and sad in the milk. Maverick and Ice let her get away with it, knowing she was stalling for time. When that was done, Emma milled around in her room, looking at all her clothes and making a show of picking them up and putting them down like she couldn’t decide. 

In truth, Mav felt the same way. He didn’t particularly want to go to work. He loved his job, most of the time, he loved the agency and his co-workers, but he wasn’t ready to face the fact that Emma was going to be put into foster care. A place Maverick was very well acquainted with. 

Not all of his memories were bad. Not all the homes he had were nightmares. But, he had still ended up as a member of an anarchist militia with malicious intent. It was a small miracle he had managed to get out in one piece. Mostly one piece anyway. He didn’t want that for her. 

Emma finally settled on a pair of jeans, a simple white shirt with the Powerpuff girls on the front, and her boots. Mav gave her a double thumbs up and let her get dressed in private. Ice was standing in the kitchen packing a backpack with food and a waterbottle.

The ride to the agency was quiet. Mav sat in the back without Emma even asking him to. He didn’t particularly feel like being separated from her on what was probably their last day together. 

“Alright, kiddo,” Mav said as they drew close to headquarters. “Ice and I probably can’t stay with you the whole time we’re here. We’ll have to go and do some work without you. But you’ll be safer here than anywhere else on Earth, I promise.”

Emma’s face told him she wasn’t entirely convinced, but she gave a small nod anyway. 

“If you really need me,” Mav said, lowering his voice and leaning in like it was a secret between the two of them, “You can ask Goose to find me. I’ll introduce you to Goose when we get there.”

She nodded again, eyes still unconvinced. 

They slowed to a stop in the underground carpark. Ice let out a short sigh. Maverick couldn’t help but agree with the sentiment of it. After a beat, he pushed all reluctance away and smiled at Emma.

“Let’s go, kiddo,” Mav said before climbing out and moving to her door. “Want a piggyback?” He turned to let her clamber on. 

He could have argued that he was carrying her to help her nerves, keep her calm, but in truth it was a purely selfish deed. He wanted to carry her to help his own nerves. 

As the three of them approached the elevator the doors opened. Charlie, clad in her usual leather bomber and black cap, stepped out with Penny on her heels. Penny had her nose to her phone and only looked up as Charlie came to an abrupt stop in front of her. They were clearly off on a mission as he recognised the slim bag over Charlie’s back as her favoured long-range rifle. Penny was her spotter and tech, they went almost everywhere together. 

“Hey Mav, hey Ice,” Charlie said, interest heavy in her tone. “Is this the kid everyone is gossiping about?”

“Charlie, Penny,” Ice gave a nod and a friendly smile. “Emma, this is Charlie and Penny. They’re agents too.”

Emma’s arms tightened on Mav’s shoulders for a second. He gave her legs a small squeeze in reply. 

“Nice to meet you, Emma,” Penny said with her bright smile.

“I still can’t believe Viper agreed to let you look after a child, Maverick,” Charlie said, her voice dry but her eyes laughing. 

“Hey, I can be a responsible adult,” Mav shot back. “If I actually want to be. Which I don’t”

“Which he doesn’t” Ice said in the same moment. 

The women laughed. Mav felt Emma’s tension soften out of her a little. He glanced over his shoulder to her with a smile.

“We need to get going, Charlie,” Penny said, back to business. 

“Good hunting,” Ice said.

They exchanged nods and went their separate ways.

In the privacy of the elevator, Ice stepped closer and rubbed Emma’s back with one hand. She laid her head onto Mav’s shoulder with a small sigh. 

“You’re doing great,” Ice mumbled to her. “You can do this.”

It took immense willpower to hold himself back from leaning them into Ice properly. All he wanted to do was make the half a step sideways that would have the pair of them pressed into Ice’s chest. He wanted to snuggle into Ice’s warmth and let those soft words wash over both of them. 

The elevator doors opened and instead of indulging his stupid fantasy, Mav stepped out with Ice close behind. The hall was relatively busy, agents and techs marching here and there with serious faces. The sound of phones ringing and voices could be heard from the partitioned rooms off the hall. As they passed, a few people stopped to stare but several more carried on with their intense looks of concentration. 

Emma’s arms tightened again and beneath the noise of the office, Mav heard her breathing coming in short sharp bursts. 

“Easy, kiddo,” Mav mumbled to her. “Our office is quieter, I promise.”

She was trembling like a jackrabbit by the time they made it into their office. 

It was a smallish space, dominated by their work desks in the middle. A bench ran the right wall, covered in tools and bits and pieces. The left wall held racks of shelves, covered in packs and equipment. Goose was already sitting at his desk, sipping coffee and typing faster than a machine gun. He glanced up with a distracted smile, fingers not missing a beat on the keys. 

“You two are late,” Slider commented from the far wall where he was tinkering with something, the burnt smell of solder lingering a little. 

“Bite me,” Mav said with a grin. He turned to look at Emma once again. Her eyes were flickering from Goose to Slider, wide and uncertain. “Emma, this is Goose.” Mav nodded at the man at the desk. “That’s Slider.”

“Be nice,” Ice said as Slider’s mouth opened to reply. 

“What the fuck? I am nice,” Slider protested. “Just not to him.” He pointed the soldering iron at Mav with a grin. 

“Feeling’s mutual, asshole,” Mav laughed. “What do you think, Em? Ready to get down?” 

She tightened her arms. 

“OK.” Mav shrugged and carried her over to his desk. He nudged his chair out of the way and crouched at the desk instead, core and thighs straining to keep him steady with her weight on his back. 

He heard a small breath of laughter from her and a swell of victory rose in his chest. Even when she was scared and unsure, he could make her smile.

It took another fifteen minutes before she was ready to stand on her own. Mav didn’t let on that his feet had gone to sleep several minutes ago and he was intensely uncomfortable. He merely dragged his chair back over and sat down properly at his desk. 

Emma lingered by his chair, her eyes continually straying to where Slider was still tinkering at the bench. Mav clicked through his emails, keeping tabs on her in his peripherals. 

For the second time that morning, his willpower was tested. Emma slowly released her hold on the arm of his chair and inched across the office to get a better look at what Slider was doing. Mav knew if either he or Ice said anything or moved at all, it would spook her back to them immediately. He held perfectly still, pretending to read a report. He could almost feel Ice doing the same across the room. 

She came to a stop about a metre from Slider’s elbow. The tall man glanced up, shot her a smile, and then returned to what he was doing. 

She inched closer. 

“Here,” Slider said, voice more gentle than Maverick could ever recall it being. He passed Emma a set of pointy-nosed pliers. “Hold that wire right there. Don’t move, OK?”

And just like that, she was by his elbow properly, head bent to the task and holding the wire in place. 

“Wanna know what we’re making?” Slider said, as more acrid smoke rose into the air. 

She nodded. 

“A listening device.” He launched into an explanation of the inner-workings and where he was planning to put said device when he was finished. 

Mav listened with half an ear as he skimmed the report from Goose, regarding the house they had found her in, a second time. He had avoided opening the emails that involved Emma while she was with him, he knew she was sharp enough to be reading over his shoulder. 

The next one he opened was a summons to their version of an HR division for a meeting about Emma. It made his stomach sink and bile rise. He was being stupid, he knew that, but the closer the meeting got, the less he wanted to go.

“What do you think?” Slider asked as they finished it up, bringing Mav out of his pouty thoughts.

Emma flashed him her small smile. 

“Not much of a talker, huh?” Slider joked. “That’s alright, means you wont have to worry about listening devices.” 

The rest of them chuckled at his lame joke and Emma smiled again. 

“Hey, kiddo,” Mav called to her as he stood from his desk. The meeting was in ten minutes time. “Can you come here a minute?”

She was back at his side in an instant. Mav’s heart warmed again and his stomach sank lower. He really didn’t want to go to this meeting.

He quickly scratched out a coded message, using a basic A1Z26 to save time. Emma gave him a mildly insulted look as he slid it across the desk to her. 

E. I need to ask you some questions. I need your last name and your birthday. M.

She deciphered it swiftly, already half-memorising the important letters in the code and figuring it out without using a reference. 

Maverick blinked. He knew she was smart but this was something else. She had her own reply written down after only a few small pauses to count on her fingers. 

M. Emma Valeria Collins. Birthday K H. E

Mav blinked a second and then realised K H was actually 11-8. A November baby. 

“Thank you,” Mav whispered to her and ruffled her hair. “Stay here with Goose and Slider, I have to go to a meeting.”

Her eyebrows pulled down and she glared at him. 

“I know you want to come with me, Em,” Mav sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “You can’t this time. Besides, you had fun with Slider, I know you did.”

She turned and glanced over to where Slider was at the other side of the room, now getting a pack together. Her eyes then moved to where Ice was standing and tucking his phone in his pocket. 

All eyes turned back to her as she let out an indignant squeak. 

“I know,” Ice said, stern and professional as he always was at work. “You’ll be fine here though. Mav and I will be back later.”

Emma clenched her fists and stomped a booted foot on the floor. 

“Don’t give me attitude about it,” Ice replied before rounding his desk and coming over. 

Mav rubbed her back a little in apology. He didn’t like the strict turn Ice was taking but he wasn’t about to argue about it. Not right then, anyway.

Ice sunk onto one knee in front of her and tilted his head a little. “Have I ever lied to you?” Ice said, voice serious. 

Emma gave him a baleful stare. 

“Have Mav or I ever said we’d do something and not done it?” Ice continued. 

She didn’t respond at all. 

Ice waited her out. His entire attention focused on her. 

There was a minute shake of her head. Ice nodded slowly in reply, eyes still on her alone. 

“See? There. We’ll be back. You’ll be safe.” 

Emma let out a noisy sigh and pressed herself to Ice in a hug. He held her close, whispering in to her ear. Mav caught it, as he was less than a metre from them. 

“I need you to try for me, sweetheart. If you get too upset Slider and Goose will bring you to us, OK?”

She gave a small noise of ascent. 

“Good girl,” Mav mumbled. “We gotta go.”

Emma released Ice, turned on her heel and threw herself into Mav’s arms instead. He gave her a squeeze strong enough to force a much happier squeak out of her. He kissed her temple and released her once more. 

As she stepped back from them, it felt a little like a piece of his own heart had gotten lodged in her and pulled out of his chest. Mav took a deep breath, trying to fight the uncomfortable pain it created. 

They walked to the door, looking back once to give her a smile and a wave. Maverick frowned as they stepped into the hall. He rubbed at his breastbone, unable to stop himself. It truly felt like he was now missing something that he hadn’t even realised was there. 

It was probably a minor miracle that Mav had never really had to spend much time in the HR offices. His paychecks were always prompt and, despite his penchant for chaos, he almost never endangered anyone but himself, so it was usually Jester or Viper chewing him out for a stupid stunt. 

It was a small corner of a mid-level floor. The space had vast windows and a dusty fake plant but that was as far as they bothered with ambience. Three desks were lined up through the middle of the room, one an utter mess of papers, one neat and tidy and the third a mix of the two. Ice and Mav paused at the door, scanning the space for their assigned HR person. At the desk furthest from the door, closest to the windows, a hand was waving them over. 

They were medium build, with hair that was bright, shocking red and half-shaved-half-long. A nose ring, two lip rings and a bar between the eyebrows glittered under the florescent lights. Maverick found himself instantly at ease. This was his type of person. He snuck a glance at Ice from the corner of his eye; the other man had his mild expression locked in place, making him impossible to read.

“Hi, I’m Kit. Please, take a seat, agents,” there was a softness to the consonants and as Mav sat he realised they were also wearing hearing aids.  

“OK. I have worked through most of the paperwork to have the girl submitted to the foster system, I just need some more details,” Kit said, all business. “Do you have her first and last name?”

Maverick opened his mouth and nothing emerged. His chest still held a slight ache and the words “foster system” had felt like a knuckle driving straight into it. He could feel Ice watching him, he could feel the patient eyes of Kit the HR employee waiting for him. He tried again.

“Yeah, it’s Emma Valeria Collins. Hey, how do I go about getting registered to be her carer?” 

Iceman made a strangled noise beside him. A noise that usually would have made Mav laugh for days. But right now all his attention was focused on Kit.

They blinked. After a pause to catch up, they shuffled the papers and gave a short sigh. 

“Agent Mitchell—“

“Mav,” he corrected with a winning smile. 

“Mav,” they gave another short sigh, “Emma is a ward of the state. The government won’t let just anyone have a child they found in a closet.”

“I know,” Mav said, “That’s why I want to know what I have to do to be allowed to keep her.”

He ignored the loud sigh Ice gave and the way he rubbed at his forehead. Kit appeared to be fighting a smile, their left lip ring sparkling a little more. 

“OK.” Kit let the smile out. “You’re sure, agent Mitchell, Mav, that you want the responsibility of a ten year old?”

No, he was not sure. He had no idea what a ten year old needed beyond a stable home and someone to love them. He had no idea what a little girl needed. He had no idea what he needed to be a dad.

What he was sure of was that he never wanted her to be passed off to someone else ever again. He was sure that if anyone in the world could give her a steady place to rest, it could be him. He was sure that if he could avoid dropping her in the same chaotic childhood he’d had, he damn well would!

“Yes,” he said, cocky confidence shining through. 

“Mav,” Ice spoke up for the first time. “What are you doing?”

He turned to face Ice head on. There was a conflicted twist to Ice’s eyebrows but otherwise he looked irritated as usual.

“Come on, Ice, you know how she is,” Mav said. “She isn’t going to last in a foster home. It’s going to be the worst thing possible for her. She knows us. She trusts us. How can we just give her up?”

“We’re not dads,” Ice rebuffed. “We’re not even a ‘we’.”

Well, that was a suckerpunch. Mav tried to ignore the sharp pain it added to the ache in his chest. 

“We’re spies,” Ice was still talking. “We don’t raise kids.”

“Why not?” Mav argued back. “I’ll do it without you, I don’t care. I was only including you because I know you love her already. And she loves you, dumbass. And who says I can’t be a dad and a spy?”

“The government,” Kit interjected, their face caught between exasperated and amused. A look Maverick tended to inspire in people often. “Mav, the government will deem you unfit to foster or adopt. You need a… more appropriate job and a home that they deem fit for a child.”

“See,” Ice crossed his arms tight over his chest. 

“OK, I can arrange that.” Mav turned away from Ice. “How do we apply?” 

There was a beleaguered sigh from Ice but he didn’t speak. 

“I’ll look into it for you.” Kit shuffled more papers. “If this is your plan, then I think this meeting is pretty much over. The only other thing I need is her date of birth.”

Mav rattled it off, a surreal sense of victory hitting him.

Holy shit, he was really going to do this.

“Thank you,” Mav said earnestly. 

“You’re welcome,” a smile was tugging at Kit’s mouth again. “I’ll let you know when I know something. You’ll probably need to report this to Agent Heatherly.”

Mav gave a nod and stood. Ice followed him, presence looming ominously behind him all the way back to the elevators. 

“Just say it, Ice,” Mav mumbled out the corner of his mouth. 

There was a heavy sigh. Ice scrubbed at his face with his hands. They stepped into the elevator together and as the doors shut, Ice finally spoke. 

“Mav, what the fuck?”

Maverick waited, a pleasant smile on his face. He knew it was the warm up for the tirade Ice was about to go on. 

“What the fuck are you doing? You can’t keep her. You’re going to throw your career away to adopt a ten year old? It’s been 36 hours,” Ice said. His hands were making small punctuating gestures, betraying how worked up he was. “What happens when she throws a tantrum for real and you realise you can’t do this? What happens when she’s sick and it’s just you and you realise you can’t do this? You’re going to seriously fuck her up if you tell her you’re keeping her and then give her away again when she causes trouble. Because she will cause trouble, Mitchell, she’s a kid.”

He wanted to be hurt and angry and antagonistic, but somehow Ice’s words were just cementing his choice more and more. He wanted to be there when she hurt herself. He wanted to face down her tantrums and help fix them. 

Fuck. He wanted to be a dad. 

“Stop smiling!” Ice snapped. “This isn’t a joke.”

That caught in his craw. 

“I’m not fucking joking,” Mav’s voice was so sharp Ice’s own mouth snapped shut. “I want to keep her. I want to be her dad. If anyone has no idea, its you.” Mav jabbed a finger at him. “You have no idea what the foster system is like. You have no idea what it means to be an orphan. And you have no idea how much fucking courage it takes to be her every single day now. So shut the fuck up, Iceman. Either help me or get out of my way.”

There was a benign ding and the elevator doors opened. They stayed in place, glaring each other down. 

“Fine.” The word was spat like a curse from Ice’s lips. “Then don’t bitch me out when I tell you what I think you’re doing wrong. You’re going to need help because you’re barely more than a child yourself most days.”

“You’re a fucking asshole, you know that?” Mav shook his head. There was a bizarre cocktail of delight, irritation, fear and lust shaking around in his stomach. It made him feel light and airy with a side of nausea. 

“Yeah, well, you’re stuck with me now,” Ice muttered. 

They stalked back down the hall to their office.

"— no, watch. Are you watching?” Goose was half-laughing as he spoke. “Watch closer.”

Ice followed Maverick into their office to find Goose performing sleight of hand tricks for Emma and Slider. 

If he wasn’t so caught up in the tumult of emotions ripping around his chest, Ice would have smiled. As it was, he couldn’t think of anything except the fiery passion in Maverick’s eyes as he told Ice to shut the fuck up. As he declared, loudly and proudly, that he wanted to be Emma’s dad. 

It had felt like being punched. No, it had felt like being in free-fall at terminal velocity and having your chute pulled. He had been yanked to a sudden stop. He could still feel the bruises of it. 

Maverick was dead serious too, he was willing to give up his place at the agency to be with Emma. He was willing to walk away from their petty rivalry to put this little girl first. It was shocking. But it also wasn’t. The tangled knot of things was both looser and tighter. He was a walking paradox. 

Ice moved to his desk and sat down with practised care. He could feel Slider’s eyes on him, searching him for an answer, but Ice couldn’t look at him. He was busy looking inside himself. 

Envy. 

It was a deep, writhing, bruising envy. 

He watched as Emma grabbed Goose’s hand and attempted to follow the coin he was hiding and revealing. He watched as Mav folded himself into a tailor seat beside her, laughing easily, always smiling. 

Ice forced himself to look at it. Forced himself to resist the urge to get up and go to the gun range and shoot until he was unable to lift his arms. 

He envied them. Both of them. 

He wanted so desperately to be part of it. He wanted Emma to look at him with that unguarded trust she had for Mav. He wanted Maverick to gaze at him with the open adoration he had for Emma. He wanted to be the centre between the two of them. He didn’t want to be left behind. 

And, fuck, Ice had pushed himself onto Maverick for just that reason. Claiming that he knew Mav would need help, would need him. In truth, Mav wouldn’t need him, he was better at this than Ice was. He had Mother Goose over there doing magic tricks and raising his own son to help him out. He had a far better grasp on the realities of being an orphan and how to help Emma through life. 

What Ice wanted was for Mav to need him. Or rather, want him. So envy raged hard. A seed of delirious hope underneath it. Maybe, just maybe, if he pushed them a little, made himself indispensable in some way, they would need him too. And they would keep him. 

Maybe they would even love him. 

Small hands tugged at his arms, unfolding them from his chest. Ice had been so caught up in himself he hadn’t even noticed Emma approaching. He looked at her, concern overtaking everything else as she frowned up at him with sad eyes. 

Ice glanced up to find the rest of the agents in the room had returned to their desks to get back to work. He could see Mav watching them from his peripherals every few moments. 

Emma climbed into his lap and wrapped him in a tight hug. Ice returned it automatically. It wasn’t until she leaned back and stared into his face that he realised; this hug wasn’t for her, it was for him. 

His throat closed over and he attempted a weak smile at her. Upon seeing it, Emma hugged him tightly again, her little cheek resting on his shoulder. 

“Thanks, Squeaker,” Ice mumbled, voice thick. “I needed that.”

It made it infinitely easier for him to push down the uncomfortable emotions and get back to work himself. Emma stayed there, snug against his chest as he worked on planning for upcoming missions and following up on intel already gathered. 

Around mid-afternoon an email pinged in from Goose. Ice automatically looked up with a frown. He found Goose watching him with a heavy expression. His eyes turned to find Maverick also looking solemn, his shoulders caved as he leaned on his desk. 

Ice checked on Emma, finding she had dozed off at some stage and he hadn’t even noticed. He clicked the email open. It was a report on the status of Austin Collins and his wife Samantha. It was dated for the day before.

His eyes automatically found Mav’s. For once, the man wasn’t smiling. 

He read the report, heart sinking with each line. 

Emma’s parents had known ties to a small gang. Austin had an extensive rap sheet involving burglary, gun running, weapons charges and multiple incidences of assault against another man. Samantha had two weapons charges but was otherwise clean. There was an open kidnapping case for their daughter, Emma Collins. Yesterday morning, barely 15 hours after the report of kidnapping had been filed, the Collins’ had been found dead in their home. 

Ice felt his face shift to the same haunted expression Mav and Goose were wearing. 

The other two stood and moved to stand by Ice’s desk. After a beat, Slider joined them. It was abundantly clear they had all read the report, their eyes pitying as they looked at the sleeping girl. 

“So,” Goose started when no one else said anything. “Stop me if this sounds too crazy. I can knock up an identity for Mav, slot him into the foster system as a registered home. Give him an office job and some respectable details. Then you call in that you’ve found her and we do a little magic to get her placed with you.” He waggled some jazz-hands at them and attempted a smile. 

“That feels a little too convenient,” Slider said. He leaned his butt onto Ice’s desk and folded his arms. “The same guy that finds her is a foster carer? They might get suspicious that it’s all a way to keep her kidnapped.”

“Well, we have to report her found,” Goose said, his lips half-hitching in a mirthless smile. “If she’s found with us and we haven’t turned it in, we’ll be on the hook for the kidnapping.”

“How about just changing the status of her case? Could you just close it?” Mav asked, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Hack the police database?” Goose chuckled. “I love your faith in my abilities, Mav, I really do. But that would take about 2 years with a supercomputer. They’re way over-funded.” 

They fell silent. All of them frowning heavily as they tried to pull apart the puzzle. 

Slider’s mouth opened and closed once. Twice. His eyes flicked to Maverick and he opened his mouth a third time.

“Spit it out, Sli,” Ice said, an ironic smile on his face. “What’s the crazy idea?”

The other two turned to Slider, hope clear in Mav’s eyes. 

“Well…” Slider cleared his throat and raised his hands in a slowing motion. “Don’t overreact. But if we can’t change the case remotely, what if we change the status physically?”

Ice was already shaking his head with incredulity. Goose was simply staring, mouth half agape and eyes wide. Mav was grinning, all teeth and confidence. 

“Yes,” Mav hissed. “You’re actually kind of good at this when you try, you know that?” He teased at Slider. 

“Fuck you,” Slider chuckled back. 

Goose waved them down with two hands. “Wait.” He turned from one to the other in quick movements. “Repeat that for me because I could have sworn you just suggested breaking into a police station and then into the casefiles and changing an active kidnapping to a closed case.”

“I mean,” Mav smirked, “it probably actually wont even be the hardest job we’ve ever done.”

“Yeah, compared to Minsk this will be a breeze,” Slider shrugged.

“One with less fires, I hope,” Ice said, allowing himself a small smile. 

His heart did a funny little flippity as Mav shot him a wide smile and winked. 

Emma stirred, Ice’s voice must have finally woken her. She looked up at them all with sleepy confusion. 

“I’m hungry,” she said in a small, clear voice. 

“Well then we better get you some food, huh?” Mav said, his smile growing impossibly wider. 

She sat up on Ice’s lap before hopping down to the floor. He wanted to keep her there, hug her close and whisper how proud he was of her. But he wouldn’t hold her back if she wanted to go. 

“You want cafeteria food, kiddo?” Mav asked, searching through the backpack Ice had packed and pulling out a muesli bar. He tossed it to her. 

She shrugged, tearing into the bar. 

“How hungry are you?” Mav asked. 

Ice glanced at Slider and Goose, the pair of them were watching with amused expressions. They had yet to see MavDad in action the way Ice had. In fact, he had already grown so used to the paternal way Maverick was, it was more amusing to watch Slider and Goose’s reactions. 

Emma shrugged again. 

“Hey, shrugger,” Ice said, catching her attention. She looked at him, chewing vigorously. “Are you very hungry, or a little hungry?” He placed his palms wide apart for “very” and pulled them close for “a little”. 

After swallowing she spread her hands wide. He grinned at her, melting as she grinned back with full cheeks from another bite.

“This kid is too cute,” Slider said, almost wistful. “I can see how she got you both wrapped around her finger.”

“Yeah, Mav, Carole and I are gonna ask you to babysit a lot more now, I hope you know that?” Goose said, his moustache twitching up in a smile. 

Ice, who had been watching Emma the entire time, saw her glance sharply at Goose. She looked back over to Mav, a small line of concern between her brows. 

“Food?” Ice suggested before Mav could reply. 

The five of them filed into the hallway. Slider leading the way, Emma and Ice behind him, Goose and Mav bringing up the rear and muttering to one another in low voices. Ice could have heard them if he tried hard enough, but he tuned them out in favour of focusing on Emma. 

Tension was crawling back over her shoulders as they passed agents going here and there. Ice placed a hand on her far shoulder, keeping her close to him as they walked. Slider, either naturally or with intent, was clearing a path for her through the busy people. 

They reached the elevator, Emma managing to stay on her own two feet for the length of the hallway. She looked up at Ice. 

“Going down, Squeaker. Push the button,” Slider said as he leaned on the wall by them. 

With a tentative smile at him too, Emma reached out and hit the down button. 

Ice had to crush a sigh as he looked at her. He couldn’t imagine his life without her anymore. It had been such a short time, but now she was under his guard, he wasn’t sure he could ever have her anywhere else. He had meant what he said to Maverick before. He had best get used to having Ice around now. 

The five of them crammed into the elevator with four other agents that were waiting. The noise of distress was barely out of her before Ice had her swept up into his arms. Slider placed himself on the other side of her, making a very obvious barrier between her and everyone else. 

Emma shook uncontrollably, clinging to Ice and hiding in his neck as the elevator descended. 

“I got you, baby,” Ice mumbled to her. “I got you.”

Ice turned, keeping Slider as a barricade behind them but pressing Emma into Mav as he held her. 

“Woh,” Mav was immediately close, his hands on her shaking shoulders. “We’re almost there, honey.”

“Too many people,” Ice sighed. He and Mav locked eyes, profound understanding passing between them. Ice leaned a little closer to him without even registering his movement.

Mav nodded in reply, now half pressed into Ice and Emma’s side. 

The ding sounded and the elevator emptied slowly. The hallway beyond was a crush. Agents moving to and from the cafeteria, the armoury, the quartermaster. By the time they were barely in the hallway once more, Emma was sobbing. 

“Stairs,” Ice said, voice tight. 

With the expert efficiency years in the trade had given them, Ice and Mav moved down the hall toward the stairwell. Slider ranged in front, using his bulk again to clear a trail through the bustling corridor. Goose followed, his old field skills getting a work out after a few years of being at a desk.

Slider held the door to the stairs, ushering Ice and Mav through before he and Goose took a station outside in the corridor. 

“Shh,” Ice soothed, the silence of the stairwell hitting them like a physical force. “Hey, you’re OK.”

Maverick was pressed close again, face pinched as he watched Emma cry. 

“Do you want to go to Mav?” Ice asked her, voice quiet. 

She couldn’t respond but Ice moved to pass her over anyway. Mav had his arms out, hooking one under her and moving to pull her away. There was a loud noise of distress and he froze. He shifted closer once more, leaving her clutching to Ice’s shoulder but now stuck with her other hand clutched onto his shirt as well. They were effectively Velcroed together by a sobbing ten year old. 

Ice’s heart throbbed uncomfortably. He was desperate to comfort Emma, but the proximity of Mav was slightly intoxicating. Everything he had been raging against the last 24 hours rattled against his brain. The irresistible urge to be part of them rose and Ice gave a sharp sigh. 

He reached the arm not holding Emma aloft around Maverick’s shoulder’s and pulled him close. After an awkward pause, Mav’s free arm settled around Ice’s waist. He bent his head to rest on Ice’s other shoulder, a mirror of the way Emma was. 

Time stood still. Both Mav and Emma were warm and comfortable, they fit perfectly in his arms. Ice closed his eyes a moment and surrendered. 

Something in the atmosphere shifted. Emma’s sobs slowed and settled out of her. The three of them stayed glued together anyway. 

“You alright, honey?” Mav said, his voice a little strange. 

Emma shook her head at him, sniffling. 

“Too many people, huh?” 

She nodded and gave a shudder. 

“Take your time.” Mav rubbed at her back gently. “I don’t particularly like crowds either.”

Ice’s smile was a little sad. He gave Mav a squeeze automatically. The other man turned his head up with a smile in reply. They were nose to nose. Ice could see the detail in Mav’s green eyes, there were darker rings of brown around his pupil. There was a small, almost invisible scar above his right eyebrow. 

A thrill ran through him, sizzling from his toes to his hairline. Ice felt his smile widen. 

“What about you, Ice?” Mav asked, voice practically a whisper. “How do you feel about crowds?”

“Unfavourably.” 

He felt they were having an entirely different conversation than the words coming out of their mouths. Maverick’s arm tightened around him and they pressed a little closer. 

There was a low growl from Emma’s stomach and Mav spat a puff of laughter into Ice’s face. He laughed right back, scrunching his expression up in mock-distaste. Emma gave a soft huff of laughter herself and they turned to her with their smiles. 

“Food?” Mav said.

She gave a slow nod.

“The cafeteria might be a little busy but we’ll make sure you’re tucked away from everyone, OK?” Ice said and released his arm from around Mav. His other arm was beginning to ache from the weight of her. “Go to Mav for a while, Squeak,” Ice said and passed her over. 

She frowned at him but complied, clambering onto Mav’s back as she had that morning. Ice pressed a kiss to the side of her head and led the way back into the corridor.

Slider and Goose were leaning either side of the door, waiting patiently. They turned with concerned eyes as they appeared. 

“Ready?” Goose said, smiling easily when he found Emma clinging to Mav’s back once more. 

“Let’s eat.” Slider led the way to the cafeteria. 

The room was large and echoey, a few nooks lining the walls with armchairs and low tables, several tables scattered through the middle of the room. There was a large group at one, laughing and cheering at something. Slider steered them all to the opposite side of the room, far from the service counters and the clamouring group. 

Mav deposited Emma in a chair and sat down beside her. He glanced up at Goose with a cloying smile.

“Yes, dear,” Goose rolled his eyes with good humour. “And what does the munchkin want?”

“I’ll get hers,” Ice said and ruffled her hair a little. “I’ll be right back, Squeak.”

Once again her frown was heavy but she didn’t argue with him. 

The three of them headed to the counters. 

“Kid’s pretty attached to you already, Ice,” Goose remarked. 

“I know,” Ice kept his tone even. 

“Feeling’s mutual, huh?” Slider said, somewhere between earnest and teasing. 

He didn’t bother with a reply. They knew. The situation couldn’t have been more complicated and more simple at the same time. 

With their food collected, they returned to Mav and Emma only to find two more of the chairs at their table had been occupied. Wolfman, his cowboy hat tipped back on his blond hair and one long leg kicked out, was sitting at the end of the table. Beside him, Hollywood was leaning on an elbow, sipping a cup of coffee.

“Ice, Slider, Goose,” Wolf said in his drawl as they slid into seats at the table.

“Wolf,” they gave him a nod of greeting. “Wood.”

“We just dropped by to meet the kid,” Wood admitted with his Hollywood smile. 

Emma had climbed into Mav’s lap at some stage but was staring at Wolf with wide eyes. She glanced at Ice as he sat down beside her and Mav. He placed her bowl of fried rice in front of her with a pointed look. 

She took up a spoon and shoved a mouthful in before turning back to Wolf again. 

“Now you’ve met her, you can leave,” Slider smirked. 

“Suck my dick, Kerner,” Hollywood said as Wolf gave him the finger. 

“Such language around small ears!” Goose protested in a soaring voice. “The profanity of you two.”

There was a low rumble of laughter from the group. 

“Actually, we also came to talk shop,” Wolf said turning to Goose.

Ice tuned them out. Usually he would have listened and weighed in regardless of who they had come to get advice from. He took pride in his ability to offer solutions and angles they hadn’t seen yet. 

Today, he couldn’t care less. Something had changed in the stairwell. Maverick was sitting close beside him, their thighs pressed tight together beneath the table. He had to school his face as Mav knocked the toe of his boot against Ice’s beneath the table. He was strangely giddy from the action. 

Despite Ice and Mav acting like lovesick teens, Emma’s head was moving on a swivel. She was looking from Goose to Wolf and Wood as they discussed the finer points of a SCIF room and how to breach one.

“It’s just not going to happen, boys,” Goose shook his head at them again. “Your best bet is getting what you need brought out by a mule.”

“Keep eating, you,” Ice nudged her. Emma quickly stuffed another mouthful in but carried on listening closely as Wolfman and Hollywood laid out the skeleton of a mule-recruitment plan. 

For the first time, it occurred to Ice that perhaps this was not the ideal place for a ten year old girl to spend her free time, and they possibly shouldn’t have encouraged her quite so much. In the future they would need to get her some healthier hobbies. At least until she was older. 

He was about to mention it to Mav when reality burst back in at Mach 10. 

There was no real future here. He had no idea whether they would even get to keep her. And Ice himself, not three hours ago had proclaimed there was no “we”. What did it matter that Mav had consented to be held by him? It was clearly to comfort Emma more than anything. He didn’t belong there.

After today Emma was going home with Maverick and that would be the end of it. He should be glad. He was getting his life back.