fandomtownies | Portalocity arrivals area: Saturday Sept 14, afternoon.

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Portalocity arrivals area: Saturday Sept 14, afternoon.

Kaidan had sent a text as promised. Carrying and overlarge duffel bag, in the same outfit he'd left the island in. Cargo pants, t-shirt, boots. A little more wear and tear on the boots, the leather of one toe had a distinct bitemark impression from one of the little Kroglettes. He smiled every time he looked at it. She was his favorite, the feisty little runt of the first hatch.

It had been a good few days after a very long month. He still badly needed sleep, but that was a never-ending problem lately, and had been for over a year now. At least maybe now his brain could content itself with something. The mission had been a success. Impromptu and done mostly out of panic, the Hail Mary had succeeded. The galaxy wouldn't be the same, but he couldn't help but think it would be better. Maybe a little more stable. Maybe give him a little more room to breathe for just a little while longer.

He waited for the portal to open and when it did, he stepped through. Back to the island he went.

[For the one or two, could be open if you have a reason to be there, sure. Wanderer returns. OCD below.]

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He'd texted. Wasn't sure they'd be there or whether they'd be waiting for him at home.

Bet your ass Jack was there. She didn't even wait for the portal to close behind him before she was punching Kaidan in the chest and demanding, "Well?! I assume something went fuckin' right since you've been gone a goddamn month, so fill me the fuck in!"

Hi. She'd missed you.

Kaidan oofed and scowled down at her, "Dammit, Jack! Hello to you, too. Where's Kanan? I don't want to have to go over this more than once."

"On his way," Jack shrugged, "I've been here for an hour. You can at least tell me it worked, asshole!"

"It worked," Kaidan said, rubbing a hand over his face, "I'm still kind of in shock about it, but yeah, Jack. It worked."

Jack didn't know what to do with the upswell of emotions so she just punched him in the chest again.

Maybe a little less hard this time.

"Ow!" Kaidan protested with a laugh, "Jack! Knock that off!" He caught her shoulder and pulled her in for a hug whether she wanted one or not. Letting his face hide against the top of her head for a minute, just kind of being there.

"You need to shave," he mumbled against the stubble.

Yeah, well. That'd get her head shaken from side to side very quickly just to run the stubble all over his face.

"Shut the fuck up, asshole, I'll shave when I wanna," she told him. It was muffled because her face was pressed against his chest a little. Hugging him back, also hiding. Mostly holding on until all the dumb emotions settled into the one she knew and was used to. Just like they always did.

There was one (1) surprisingly soggy Jedi incoming, and one (1) incredibly pleased with himself spotty dog trotting along with him, clad in his vest vesty vest. Kanan didn't seem too concerned with the sogginess - these things happened when you had to reel an excitable dog in from a frolic with the ducks - and was entirely intent on making his way in to the arrivals area, dripping or not.

... Of course the soggy dog was the first to plow into Kaidan. Kanan had given up trying to beat Stance anywhere. But he was definitely hot on the pup's heels.

"Kaidan!"

Kaidan crouched to catch the incoming puppy, laughing when Stance barreled into him and then making quiet 'Ack!' noises when he noticed how wet the puppy was. "Hi, buddy! Were you playing in the pond? Did you chase all the ducks? Did you make Daddy go swimming?" He held his face out of licking range with another laugh, "Yeah, I missed you too, Stance."

Because when your friend's about to catch a headful of a pure riot of emotions, might as well give him that small burst of nothing but happy first.

Then he was standing and offering Kanan a hug with a wry look. "Since I'm already wet. Hi, Kanan."

Kanan smiled faintly, stepping in and pulling Kaidan into a tight hug. It had been a while, Kaidan had been missed, and Kanan had been worried. That hug hopefully managed to get as much across, too.

"Hey, buddy," he said, squeezing tight. "Good to see you."

Kaidan hugged him back and let himself breathe. This was why the island felt anything like home. Kanan, Jack, Sparkle, Hernando. The friends he had here. The people who missed him and worried about him just as much as he missed and worried about them, when there was distance.

"It worked," he told Kanan quietly, "We did it. They were waiting on Saradril. Took awhile to get them all home."

It was worth it. What they'd done had mattered.

"Thank the Force," Kanan murmured, holding on. Letting Kaidan breathe as long as he needed it. "That's some of the best news I've heard in a long while."

Hands-down, really. It was difficult to top that even on a good day.

"And how are you holding up?"

"Honestly?" Kaidan swallowed hard. "I need about three weeks of sleep and for things around me to be calm and normal for awhile. It was.. It was hard, Kanan. Not just going back and checking but even after. Bringing them home. It was a good thing, it was the best thing. It was a badly needed thing, a hope and a healing everyone needed. And here I am whining because I'm the last human Spectre and it was a whole thing, because.."

There went his breathing, right out the window. "They think it was him. That's what they were all meant to think. Had to think. I had to be there in it, and hear how I was finishing something Shepard started." He went quiet, "I just can't do it. Not right now. I just can't be in the center of that right now. It's still too raw."

Kanan gave a small nod. Didn't begrudge Kaidan some ragged breathing.

"Take your distance, take your time," he said, hand reaching up to rub circles on Kaidan's back. "I've got you, buddy. You don't have to be in the middle of it right now. And if and when you do need to go back, just say the word. You don't have to do it alone."

"Yeah, you need to come with next time," Kaidan said, trying to lighten the tone, "I got no end of hell from the Normandy crew when I mentioned you. They get why Jack didn't come with, she isn't really a people person, but they all want to meet you, buddy." He laughed, "Vega didn't believe me when I said you two sound alike. He's demanding proof."

"And there's no proof quite like meeting a guy in the flesh," Kanan agreed, leaning back and grinning. "I've heard him already, he was in a recording Jack was watching when I paid her a visit one day."

...

"It was weird."

Super weird.

"It's weird from here too, buddy," Kaidan said, leaning back. "You act like Garrus, you sound like Vega. It's wild." With a gesture at the door with his chin, he asked, "How've things been here? Quiet, I hope?"

Kanan kept an arm slung over Kaidan's shoulder as he looked doorward, and then started walking that way, soggy dog keeping pace.

"Quiet since the end of summer, anyway. You missed some... weird stuff."

And some outright horrible stuff. Which probably went without saying at this point, though he didn't doubt he'd get around to saying it eventually anyway.

"Spent half a week in a loth-cat outfit," he'd never call it a raccoon suit. "Spent about as long as a wolf." A beat. "A big one."

"I was here for enough of it," Kaidan said with a small shudder, "Tolouca Lake was... enough." He forced himself not to think about it, and then smiled a little, "Not quite as fun as Jack trying to ride dinosaurs. Little sad I missed you in a Tooka outfit, Kanan. Tell me you got pictures of that?"

The wolf thing made him blink. "You got a new animal form? Did the island decide the Tooka suit was close enough or something?" That was a little concerning. He stepped past that for the moment. "And here you'd been teasing me about turning into a large dog someday."

"Of course there are pictures," Kanan replied, smiling wryly. "And if there aren't, we can ask Sparkle if we can borrow his for a demonstration. Jack made mine go poof, but I think he got to keep his." A shrug. "No idea why a wolf now, but I'm not complaining. Even if I have a bit of trouble with doors."

...

"Fitting through them, I mean."

Mod your fun. No Kaidan necessary.

Slow today because I'm trying to catch up. Kaidan's back. I'm still working on Fenris.

Yay welcome back!

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Anyone else who needs a Kaidan.

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