"The You Don't Have a Partner Affair" - Epilogue by Glennagirl

[mrua7.livejournal.com]

Glenna is having LJ issues, so she asked me to post this for her. It wraps up this year's spring Round Robin.

Napoleon Solo knew the rules, he understood the parameters in which he was supposed to operate.  He also suspected that Angelique was nowhere in Headquarters, but rather off in some special facility where her wounds could be tended to and an interrogation facilitated by someone less friendly than himself.

"Ah, sweet Angelique." He let that escape as he watched Illya's steady breathing from a recliner in the newly decorated room in the Medical suite.  UNCLE was taking care of its own, as was expected.

The door opened and Napoleon looked up to see April and Mark enter the room.  She was looking a little less casual than the optimistic Brit; the continuing suspicions about Illya and the pretty agent reminded Napoleon to keep an eye on the two of them.

"How's our comrade?" Mark took one of the other chairs and slumped down into it, a veneer of fatigue now evident.

"Good, stable.  The doctor says he'll be up and at it again in about a week.' Napoleon let out an involuntary sigh as the familiar sight of standing vigil around a hospital bed bit once more at his emotions.

"Say, any word on, um... Angelique?"  April turned from her attention on the patient to look at her superior.

"Napoleon! I swear, what is it about that woman that makes you care?  If it weren't for her Illya would probably not be lying in this bed, and... " She stopped at the realization both men were looking at her with strange expressions on their faces.

"Miss Dancer, do you really want to go down that road?" Napoleon wasn't scolding her, but his daliances weren't open to inquisition.  Not by anyone.  Well, maybe Mister Waverly but, no one else.

April found a chair and sat down, the point was taken and she was finished.  Her attention shifted back to Illya as he groaned upon awaking from his drug induced sleep.  He opened his eyes, took in the room and then the three people staring at him.

"I'm fine. Can you get me out of here?"  He was lying, of course.  The wound site was throbbing and his head was appropriately aching.  The memory of where he'd been and the struggle to break free of the mind control device, or whatever it was, made him suddenly wary of what he was now experiencing.

"I know what you're thinking Illya.  This is real.  You were shot and then April and Mark showed up to save the day.  We will, of course, need to go through a thorough debriefing and some... you know." Illya grunted again, too tired to roll his eyes.

"A psychological exam.  I suppose it won't hurt."

All three of them nodded in agreement.  Each of them, including Illya, were grateful once more to be alive, intact and victorious over yet another THRUSH attack.  The world was safe for a minute.

Napoleon looked at each of them, all of them his friends and companions in this continuing battle against the evils that assaulted society.

"Anyone hungry? I think I'll make a run over to Luigi's and bring us all back something.  I think a shared meal is in order, just among friends." His smile incited a unanimous agreement.  It was good to have each other's backs.  It was good to have this bond, the friendship...

This had all started because of a lie, a deception intended to make Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin believe that the other didn't exist, that they didn't have partners.  But, because of the partnership they had, the experiment had failed.

Napoleon's thought as he exited the room on his way out of Headquarters and on to Luigi's...

He didn't just have a partner in Illya Kuryakin.  He had a friend, a brother.

This affair was over and done with.  The partnership... That would never end.

Comments

[glennagirl.livejournal.com]

Always the faithful duo. Thanks for writing for the RR, it was a lot of fun.