Mercenaries at the door

[mitochondriaaya]

Sometimes a man simply had to check in on his girls. They'd run a mission in Canada and the college was ENTIRELY on the way back after all...and the team wanted to see the girls too and...

...and Nevada couldn't really shake their last letter from his head. The girls were living with some unvetted young men and that could prove problematic. The helicopter set down in on the school pad (usually used for medivac units) and Nevada swung to the ground, waving off one of the school aides coming out to greet him,

He had an address. And a mission.

And after a quick run, well, a door to knock on. The pair of mercs that had followed him chuckled at the politeness but hey, it never hurt right?

Comments

[sliceitwithwind]

"...Because they are." No, he seriously didn't get it, "They should be protected. And helped to grow into whatever they want to be. Because they're precious."

[mitochondriaaya]

"You're an unrelated, grown male with no prior ties to the girls insisting on these qualities. That is a suspicious thing in this world." Nevada informed him easily. Less as an argument and more...to see how he'd respond really. The letters had said Dilan was...odd.

This could fall under the term 'odd'. Yes.

[sliceitwithwind]

Dilan frowned and said, "I think this is one of those things I can't explain to sane people. You should ask Braig."

[mitochondriaaya]

"...that may be the first time I've been called sane," Nevada laughed. "Yes, please, I'd like to speak with him as well."

[sliceitwithwind]

Dilan closed the door gently in Nevada's face and wandered off. "Braig!" could be heard in the background.

A few minutes later a much, much shorter man opened the door again, "Mr. Nevada. Hi."

[mitochondriaaya]

Nevada...didn't take it personally? Not after such an odd conversation with Dilan and being called sane. So, he was wearing a rather wry smile when Braig opened the door again, "Braig, hello. Did I come at a bad time?"

[sliceitwithwind]

"No, although the girls won't be home for a bit." Braig said, leaning casually in the door, "Did Dilan remember to invite you inside? Your guards can either disarm or wait outside."

[mitochondriaaya]

"He did remember," Nevada admitted with a chuckle. "We just got sidetracked before actually moving. And for now they'll stay outside. They've wanted to see the campus."

[sliceitwithwind]

Braig nodded and stepped inside, holding the door for the older man, "Welcome to our home. The girls have the upstairs, so if you want to poke around up there you'll have to do it alone. We're pretty big on making sure that they have their own space."

[mitochondriaaya]

"Why?" he asked the same question of Braig as he had of Dilan as he stepped through the door. Slow scan of the living room? Check! "Adopting freshmen is not a standard here."

[sliceitwithwind]

"Sometimes Dilan gets notions." Braig said, gesturing towards the living room, "He's actually an excellent judge of character, he just can't explain why he feels like he does. He saw the girls, he liked them, we gave them a trial and it's working out. Last person he adopted was Pierce, and he's been living with us for three years now."

The living room was, well. The living room. Aside from the laser grids over the windows it was a perfectly normal looking living room.

"Ah, careful. Cat's in here somewhere...let me see about chasing her upstairs."

[mitochondriaaya]

Nevada crossed over to the couch and seated himself; amused. "Notions," he chuckled. Just...notions. "Does he have any history of obsession?" Just to be aware!

"And yes, the girls wrote about Cat. Would closing my eyes help?"

[sliceitwithwind]

"Probably." Braig admitted, chasing the fluffy thing up the stairs before settling down, "He has obsessive-compulsive disorder, but has never developed an obsession with any person, and that includes me."

[mitochondriaaya]

Nevada closed his eyes until Braig settled down as well, the peeled them cautiously open. "you understand the need for the questions," he was sure the boy did. "This situation may be safe, but it is outside the various plans we all discussed with the girls."

[sliceitwithwind]

"I've been expecting them." Braig said simply, "So has Pierce. We've tried talking to Dilan about it, but really if it doesn't have to do with science or something immediate he tends to dismiss it."

[mitochondriaaya]

"What do you foresee with the girls living here, possibly long term?" Nevada asked easily.

[sliceitwithwind]

Braig shrugged, "Honestly? They're good roommates. Chances are that they'll help Dilan learn more about making friends and being a good one...they've been watching My Little Pony with him. I'll keep renting them the house after we finish our doctorates if they want it."

[mitochondriaaya]

"They are very dedicated young women and we will raze the campus if they are betrayed or killed." He said it simply, easily, like commenting on the weather. "That said...My Little Pony?"

[sliceitwithwind]

"That's fair." Braig said without so much as the flicker of an eyelash. "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. He takes notes on it. Dilan is...different. He's a genius, he really is, but he's also got a very...loose grasp on morality and social acceptability. It's an ongoing project."

[mitochondriaaya]

He thought about that for a moment then chuckled again, "Well, it will give them a chance to catch up on media they missed." Or something like that anyway. "How are they taking to the situation here?"

[sliceitwithwind]

"They seem fine with it?" Braig said, "I don't want to speak for them, however. We do tend to have dinner together when everyone is home. They have two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a mini-kitchen upstairs."

[mitochondriaaya]

"I'll be speaking with them as well but your feelings on the matter are important as well," especially if this went long term. "What do you do, Braig? Aside from pursuing an esoteric doctorate."

[sliceitwithwind]

"Mostly the doctorate." Braig said cheerfully, "I'm independently wealthy. So my time is spent between working on my doctorate and trying to help Dilan become somewhat integrated into society."

[mitochondriaaya]

"And what do you intend to do with your doctorate once you achieve it?" he asked, curious. "I'm not entirely sure what the applications of of what the girls have described to me would be." The non-military applications anyway!

[sliceitwithwind]

Braig shrugged, "Get another doctorate, probably. Oxford, maybe. Something more academic, less life-or-death."