Quaranteam - AU Ch. 11

"Ty, what brought this on?"

Just thinking about it was boiling the rage within him, but he was sure as hell not going to give her the details. "...I'm feeling a little more contemplative than usual after learning the fate of that fiend. People lost their families to him, after all."

"He hurt Dr. Morgan's family, but that's because he didn't do what he was told, right? Any others should still have been safe."

Ty deflected, since the truth was horrifying. "After what we saw on the video, I couldn't help thinking about what I'd feel if he took or harmed mine. I couldn't handle it."

"That doesn't mean you have to treat us like glass sculptures."

"No. But it also doesn't mean I have to be ok with you ladies making choices that put you in danger for no reason. The base was locked down tonight. You'd have had to go home, and if you dropped me, that would have meant an extra trip once the meeting was over. So, four opportunities for someone to harm you, when going by myself meant just two opportunities for someone to harm me. It's pretty simple maths, love."

Lottie stood and pulled him to his feet, surreptitiously reaching into her pocket to end the call. It was too late, but she made the effort anyway.

"Ok, Ty, let's go inside. It's cold out here."

"Sure."

--

Ty had figured someone would be listening to them. It was one of those inevitable facts of life. But he hadn't expected that everyone was listening to them. Lottie had barely dragged him through the door when the entire household, save the kids, mobbed him, sending him crashing to the floor in a pile of bodies.

Lettie had buried her face in his neck, her body wracked with sobs. In fact, not one of the ladies had dry eyes and more than one seemed to be downright embarrassed. Even Addie was there, her eyes glistening along with the others' as she piled in for a hug.

"I'm sorry I slapped you."

"I'm not. I deserved that, Lets. It was a stupid thing for me to say, so I'm sorry too. But I need for you...for all of you to understand how I feel about this. Putting yourselves in unnecessary danger is tantamount to killing me."

Lottie ran a hand across his cheek. "They- we do, Ty. I...had a phone going in my pocket. They were all listening. I'm sorry. I didn't know you were going to say all that and I didn't have a chance to cut the call."

Huh. Not exactly how I expected to have everyone learn about my insecurities, but what can you do?

Ty shrugged, giving the group a wry smile. "I...guess I made you all worry. Sorry."

There were few words exchanged as the dogpile slowly raised itself from the floor, and Ty let everyone know that they could have any further discussions after they all woke up. Even as everyone was dispersing, Ty grabbed Addison's arm and held her back for a moment.

"I can't apologise enough for just leaving you hanging, Addie. Things got a bit hectic tonight, so I hope it's ok if we don't do anything until tomorrow. Unless Alice has already administered the serum?"

The auburn-haired woman shook her head, patting the hand that held her arm. She was actually quite touched that he'd take the time to say that to her, despite his emotional state.

"You don't have to worry about me, Ty. I understand that things happen, and this was quite a big deal, if what I've heard from the girls is true. Either way, the good doctor advised me to hold off. She was saying that the timeline for how long it will take the serum to kick in was quite a bit off for Australians."

"Yeah. It's much shorter for the lovely Aussie ladies. The itching need kicks in after a matter of hours, not days, as the rest of the world experiences. It's something we have to plan for in terms of distribution."

"Well, I'll be certain to give you a hand in terms of that when I can. I think Admiral Matters is expecting me to coordinate with you if any naval resources are needed. Not that I'd be able to order them to sail on my initiative."

"Makes sense. Once we get started, it's entirely possible that we'll have boatloads of refugees coming from Papua New Guinea or Indonesia, all looking for access to the serum and safety. We'll need the navy keeping things in check then."

Addie looked thoughtful. "What about New Zealand?"

"We've heard very little from the Kiwis, which would be terrifying, but we've seen signs of life and they have technically spoken with us. Companies are still functioning, so someone is still around. I won't presume to order the Navy around...except in an emergency, but if you could advise the admiralty to keep some patrols on our coast facing that way, it'd be helpful. Now, I'm sorry, but I'm going to bed. We can speak more in the morning. Or whenever I wake up after this."

He released her arm, and she surprised herself by reaching over and pulling his head down to her height to plant a kiss on his cheek.

"Get some rest, Tiberius. Though I can't say it myself yet, you are loved here. Those women, they wept for your pain. They do understand, ok? But you must try and understand them too." She made a sweeping gesture to encompass the house. "They want the same thing for you that you do for them. So, find some way to compromise. Take that as advice from someone that isn't as emotionally invested in you...us...as the others are. Yet, anyway."

She gave him a gentle smile and left him standing there, with nothing to do but mull over her words in the now empty hallway.

It was going to be a long night, with little in the way of rest to be had.

--

Marshall Household, Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia - November 5, 2020 - 7:00 AM AEDT

--

As Ty trudged to the table, coffee in hand, everyone in the kitchen just turned to watch him. He had certainly been right that it would be a restless night. Nightmares and visions of gruesome scenes tormented his sleep, each different, each horrible, but all ending the same, with Ty alone, enveloped only in the silence of an empty home. Seeing his family in pain hurt him, but that silence...that silence threatened to destroy him. Needless to say, he greeted the morning with all the enthusiasm of the living dead, and everyone noticed.

Beatrice leaned over his shoulder and nuzzled his cheek as she spoke. "Cherie, are you alright? Your complexion is horrible."

Ty grunted, tilting his head gently to bump against hers. "I just need coffee." And a chance to reassure myself that everyone's here and safe.

Ty mentally shook himself; he needed to snap out of it. They needed to see him stable, or they'd worry. Taking a deep pull from his mug, he felt a shiver run through him as the steaming brew brought his brain online.

"Sorry. I had a lot to think about from last night, so I was up a bit after we dispersed. That's on me." He took another sip of coffee, turning in his seat to meet everyone's gaze. "Putting my lack of self-care aside, we, that is, all of us, need to discuss plans for the future and then get back into planning the rollout. The kitchen isn't really the best place for this, so, would you like to all adjourn to the lounge?"

Ty pulled several chairs into the lounge to make up the shortfall, making a mental note to see about purchasing an extra sofa so everyone could sit comfortably.

Liz was the first to speak. "So, what did we need to discuss?"

Ty turned to look at her, gesticulating broadly. "Plans. What each of us wants from this relationship."

The young brunette looked at him expectantly. "So, why don't we start with you then?"

Nodding, he spoke, making eye contact with each woman in the room in turn. "Okay. So, here's whereI stand, at least. I never expected any of this. But things have accelerated, and as I said yesterday, there's a great deal of fear in me. But a lot of happiness too." Ty gestured towards the twins, Talia and Alice. "You all know that I've proposed to my first four partners and haven't added to that count since. That's not because I don't want that kind of relationship with the rest of you, because nothing would make me happier." He gave them all a crooked smile. "I simply want all of you to make your own decisions on the topic, with the knowledge that I am more than happy to make it official with any or all of you."

Addie tapped a finger to her lips as she thought. "So, you know for certain that there will be legal reforms happening? Because that would be a rather big blip on the radar here."

Again, Ty nodded. "I've spoken with our JAG office, and while they don't work the same way as federal lawmakers, they tell me that the laws against bigamy will be changed before this month is out, so as to streamline the process for newly forming Teams. So, in line with that, I want each of you to consider whether marriage is what you want from me. I'm not expecting an answer to that question any time soon, and quite frankly, there is no wrong answer, so 'not yet' is a completely acceptable response. Just think about it. As odd as it may sound, I want to do the right thing by all of you."

Talia chuckled. "And in so doing, just how many brides do you intend to have?"

"I don't know. I don't really need any more partners. If Uncle Jon was serious about the South Koreans and Miss Mi-Rae, then it'll be just one more for a dozen, right? That was what you told us, Grace."

Grace had seated herself next to him, so Ty just turned his head to look at her and the American woman nodded, but at the same time, she gave a noncommittal shrug. "I think you'll find that I told you that the degree of protection plateaus around a dozen partners. Not that you need that many. You took that one out of context."

The entire room was silent as each woman looked at Grace, who just wore a bemused expression.

Ty just hung his head. "Seriously? Fuck. I need more coffee. I can't cope with this without more coffee." Slowly, he raised his head and looked at Grace while mumbling under his breath. As he shuffled past her and to the coffee machine, she could have sworn she heard him mumble 'fucking eleven'. She turned to look at him, but he just ploughed on. "Well I feel like an absolute knob right now, Grace. Thanks. But on the bright side, once I have a dozen, as I figure I will soon enough, I don't need to worry about partners anymore."

Grace giggled. "Good luck with that. You do realise that you're a VIP now, right? And financially secure, to boot? You're unlikely to stop at twelve."

Ty paused mid pour. "Please tell me you're joking."

She just shook her head and smiled, and Ty felt his head throb.

"I give up."

--

The ladies had waited until Tiberius had been in the shower for a few minutes before they erupted into conversation. Every one of them had envisioned themselves in a wedding dress at least once in their lives, but until very recently, most of their fantasies involved a faceless groom. Now, those fantasies were replaying in their head, but there was now a certain burly soldier with steel grey eyes in the tux at the altar.

Liz actually burst into giggles as she looked at everyone's expressions. "Did everyone just imagine the same thing?"

Juno's own smile was twitching a little. "I can't help but feel that his expression would be completely ridiculous on the actual day. Torn between proud and happy and exasperated, leaving him with that goofy grin he sometimes has on." She paused, looking around. "Does that mean everyone's considering a ring?"

Liz shrugged. "I think I'll take him up on that answer of 'not yet'. I really want to get to know him more. But I do really like what I know so far.

Addie nodded. "I'm in the same boat on that. I'll need some time before I make a decision on marriage. I mean, I'm not even imprinted yet. I'll get to know him eventually, but for starters, I'm going to get my shot, have him fuck my brains out and worry about the rest after I wake up."

"Lucky. Ty won't imprint me yet." Zoe pouted a little as she said that. Ty had told her very vehemently that he wasn't going to imprint her until she'd regained a portion of her weight. The serum used the body's resources during the imprinting, and in her state, it'd likely be dangerous.

Alice tutted at her, pulling her into an embrace. "For your own good, darling. He has promised you that he will, so you know that he'll keep that."

She sighed, letting herself sink into the doctor's pillowy breasts. "I know. But it's so frustrating. In my fantasies, he's been the face at the altar for years. You must remember how it felt to be 19 and full of hormones."

"Especially when you're surrounded by a bunch of other women who are basically constantly horny. I swear, if I didn't air out the house every morning it'd smell like damp pussy in here all the time." Lettie couldn't contain her laugh as she spoke, and it was contagious. The room dissolved into laughter.

Béa was the first to regain her composure. "So, Addison and Elizabeth are going to take their time with their decision and Zoe is a 'yes'. As for me, it has always been my dream to one day say, 'I do', so I am also a 'yes'. Grace, Juno, how about you?"

Grace shrugged. "I'm undecided. I planned on forging a career in the Air Force so I never thought I'd get married. Maybe with the right guy I'd have gone with a de facto situation or something, but I hadn't really considered a ring. Maybe I'll revisit it later. Ben wanted a full commitment, but I baulked. I know Ty won't pressure me, so I'll take however long I need to figure it all out. "

Juno's voice was soft, and she just stared off into the distance as she processed her thoughts. "I never wanted to get married. But that was also because I believed that the man I wanted to get married to was out of reach. I have the option now, and the kids need their dad. I...might need him too, but I'll think about it some more. Some of the habits of a single mum are hard to break."

Béa nodded as if confirming something to herself. "Alright then. We can all take our time and consider. Do we actually know anything about this woman from South Korea? Or when she is coming?"

Lottie tapped a few keys on her tablet. "End of the week, at the earliest. General Hoffmann will let us know more after the ambassador arrives here."

"Does anyone have a grasp on her personality?"

Liz laughed. "She's a celebrity and an actress. We won't know until she gets here and takes off the mask."

"Ok. We can worry about her later then. I'll do some research on my own. Moving on, does anyone have any suggestions on how we can ease our silly man's fears? Do we make up his dozen ourselves by finding him a good therapist to bond with?"

Alice laughed. "No one would go for it, Béa. Most therapists have a not-so-little thing about not bringing work home with you. I've given him a few names. He's going to choose one and we'll set up a remote session to start with. Leave that part to me. I'll get all of you involved if he drags his feet."

Zoe had perked up when she heard Béa's words. "Hey, I really like the idea of us picking his 12th partner. We can make sure it's someone that would suit him and can support him."

Lettie immediately nixed the idea. "I think that might be a dangerous proposition, Zo. The big guy is already struggling with General Hoffmann's interference. If we pile on here it might backfire on us. We don't want him to shut us out, so let it happen naturally. If Oracle spits out another match, or someone specifically designates him, we'll address it then."

That would have sparked another discussion, but Ty walked back downstairs at that moment, both kids rubbing the sleep from their eyes as he cradled them in his arms.

"The idea is to have Oracle not do that, Lettie. And if there's a way to remove myself from the list of candidates, I'll do it. I have everything and everyone I could ever want. Anything else is just inviting trouble."

Lettie rolled her eyes at him. "Trouble seems to have a standing invitation to our home, big guy."

"And danger's freeloading in the basement."

"You seem to like flirting with danger."

Ty grinned. "If I didn't like flirting with danger, we wouldn't have even been friends, love."

--