Fanfic -- Big Brother

[dunmurderin]

Title: Big Brother
Originally Posted: Circa November, 2004
Note: This piece is a sequel to Fear Factor. You don't necessarily have to read it first, but it's probably a good idea. You may also want to catch Wonders Never Cease and Making Do for more Low-Light apperances.
Continuity-wise, this story takes place in my own version of the GI Joe universe. It is loosely based on a mix of Devil's Due/Marvel continuity with some Sunbow/DIC tossed in for kicks and grins.
Disclaimer: The only character I 'own' is Karen. Everybody else belongs to Hasbro, et. al.
Author's Note: Once again thanks to the ever-lovin' blue-eyed Danielle for her assistance in beta-reading this piece as well as her encouragement and assistance on military details. Any mistakes in military protocol are purely mine own.

Big Brother


The Pitt, Wright-Patterson AFB. November 1st, 2004 -- Hawk's Office, 0900 hrs:

Never thought I'd be having this conversation with one of my Joes, thought Hawk . Or atleast, not with this Joe. Falcon, sure. Clutch, of course. Shipwreck? Most definately; I'm sure there are dark-haired children who sound like a Popeye played by Jack Nicholson in every port from here to Vladivostok.

There was the squeak of someone shifting on upholstery. "Sir?" Hawk shook himself from his reverie, looking across his desk at Low-Light. The sniper was looking back at him, expression wary. "Did you want to talk to me? Or are we just going to sit here staring at each other?"

"Yes, sorry," Hawk said, sitting back in his chair, studying Low-Light. "I suppose you know why I wanted to see you?"

Low-Light sat with his hands on the arms of his chair, his posture ram-rod straight. Ice blue-eyes stared at Hawk as if he were just another target. Creepy bastard. Hawk felt guilty for the thought. He prided himself on knowing all of his Joes, on being involved with his people. Unfortunately, some were easier to know than others.

"Yessir," Low-Light said, shifting in his seat. The movement reminded Hawk of a glacier sliding down a mountain pass. "You heard about my girlfriend and me having a baby."

Hawk smiled. "It was hard to miss, I'll admit," he said. "Firewall was rather -- thorough in getting the word out."

"You got the email, huh?" Low-Light snorted, half-scowling, half-smirking. "Thought the dancing baby with my head on it was a little too Ally McBeal. I'm surprised she didn't take out an ad in the base newspaper."

Hawk chuckled. "I suspect she's saving that for the big day," he said. "But, you're right, that is what I wanted to speak to you about."

Now it was Low-Light's turn to look uncomfortable. "Yessir," he said, shifting in his chair, this time like a nervous glacier.

Good, Hawk thought. That's more like it. What he said was: "Now, you're not in trouble," he said. "You know that; legally, there's nothing I can do about this situation. You and your lady friend are consenting adults and frankly, it's not my job to keep a watch over your private lives." He paused. "Unless there's a chance of your private life affecting your professional one."

"Yessir," Low-Light said again. "It won't. I'm here for the team, this isn't going to change anything as far as the Joes are concerned."

"I think we both know that's not true," Hawk said. "Children change things. They put them in a new perspective."

"I'm not leaving the Joes, if that's what you're worried about, sir." There was an edge to Low-Light's voice, a cynical one that made 'what' sound like 'all' to Hawk's ears.

Hawk winced, inwardly. He prided himself on knowing his team, being concerned about his people the way a father was about his children, but just like any family some kids got more attention than others.

Especially with Snake-Eyes bringing home his very own ninja clan. God, I should be glad it wasn't the other way around. Sure, I could trust Low-Light with a group of ninjas, but I wouldn't trust Snake-Eyes to take care of my plants, let alone a pregnant Scarlett.

"Easy, son," Hawk said, holding up a steadying hand as he worked to supress a shudder at the idea of a pregnant Scarlett. His free hand softly knocked on his mahogany desktop. "Nobody is questioning your dedication to the team. What I'm concerned about here are your plans. Not just for the team, though I'm glad to hear you're staying. But what are your intentions toward your lady friend, and your child?"

At the word 'child', Low-Light took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Sir, can I smoke in here?" he asked, a thin thread of nervousness replacing the cynicism in his voice. "Please?"

Hawk nodded. "If it makes things easier, yes," he said.

"Thanks." Low Light pulled a lighter and a battered pack of cigarettes from a pocket, shaking one out and lighting up.

"We're still talking about that," he said after his first drag. "I asked her to marry me, but Karen wants to wait. Doesn't want to rush into anything. She did that once, when she was younger, doesn't want to make the same mistake twice."

"Sounds like a smart lady," Hawk said.

The ice in Low-Light's eyes melted a bit as he smiled. "She is," he said, simply. "Better than smart, sensible. She wants to wait on the marriage, she figures the way things are these days, nobody's going to care if the kid's in the wedding pictures."

Hawk chuckled, nodding. "True, true," he said. "Is she planning on moving down here? "I had Jaye do some checking for me. You can sign your SGLI over to Karen, even without being married, but if you're not married Tricare would only cover the baby once it's born."

"Yeah, figured," Low-Light said. "Karen's got coverage through the State of North Dakota; she's a game warden. An' our families are still up there, her folks, my folks, they'll look out for her."

"Good," Hawk said, nodding his approval. "But, what about you?"

Low-Light looked puzzled. "What about me?" he asked, following it with a belated "Sir?"

"If Karen and the baby stay in North Dakota, that'll make seeing them difficult, won't it?" Hawk studied Low-Light's face. "I'm perfectly willing to grant you all the leaves you need, but there is a limit, Low-Light."

Low-Light shrugged. "We've made the long-distance thing work so far," he said, back stiffening, eyes icing over again as he looked back at Hawk. "I've got a cell phone plan that'll let me call Mars if I wanted to and I see her when we can both arrange it."

"And what about missing things like your child's first words, or first steps?" Hawk asked.

Low-Light's free hand tightened on the arm of his chair, knuckles going white for a moment. "Sir, even if she moves to Fairborne, I'd still be missing those things when I'm out on deployment. At least back home, she's still got her family and friends."

"True, but there is a limit to what she can talk about with them," Hawk said, in a neutral, devil's advocate tone. "Here, she'd have other military wives, other Joe wives, to talk to."

Low-Light was scowling openly now. "Sir, she doesn't want to get married yet," he said, visibly struggling to keep his words, if not his tone, civil. "We talked last night and the night before, we've been talking as much as we can since she told me about it, and she understands -- just like she did before I knocked her up -- that I can't tell her everything about where I'm going and what I'm doing, that I could get hurt, that I could die."

"And you know as well as I do that there's a difference between being told something and truly knowing that it can happen," Hawk said. To his embarassment, he found himself struggling to keep from raising his voice. I see what Psyche-Out means now; the man could annoy for his country.

Low-Light paused long enough to stare down at his cigarette, shoulders slumping as it seemed like some of the anger drained out of him. When he spoke again, his voice was lower, calmer, but his words were harsher. "She kind of figured that one out after Duke nearly fucked us over in Sierra Gordo. We've been togther two years; she's not some bubbleheaded skank I picked up for shits and grins an' I'm not some dumbass E-1 who just figured out what else his pecker can do, sir. Karen, she's an -- an angel." Another pause as Low-Light seemed consider his choice of words. "Yeah," he said, nodding. "An angel -- a hardass angel. Y'know, in God we trust, all others pay cash?"

Hawk sat back and looked Low-Light over, once again finding himself marveling at the man's ability to switch from being maddening to being...well, almost tolerable. Still, his lady-friend must find something likeable about him. Other than the obvious. Leaning forward, Hawk put his hand over his mouth, furrowing his brow and coughing in an effort to try and hide the snicker as he put on his serious I'm-the-General, I'm-here-to-help face. "Well, sounds like you've certainly got your head on straight, Low-Light," he said. "This Karen certainly sounds like someone pretty special."

Low-Light gave Hawk a no-shit, sir look. 'Sir, she puts up with me," he said. That's beyond special. Jinx dating Falcon? That was special. Short-bus special. Me and Karen? Miracle is too mild a word."

Hawk's smile was tempered by a stab of wistfulness verging on jealousy. Ahh, Barbara, what could have been. "Have you told your folks yet?" he asked.

Low-Light flinched visibly, before taking a drag from his cigarette. "Not yet. Gonna call my dad tonight," he said, looking guiltily down at his hands. "He'll tell Mom for me. Easier that way."

Hawk raised an eyebrow, waiting for an explanation. Low-Light stared back, clearly not wanting to give one. For a while, the two men sat in silence, each waiting for the other to concede.

Give it up, boy. Hawk thought. You may be hot-shit as a sniper, but I've faced down Congress.

Finally, Low-Light sighed. "I love my mother, I really do," he said. "She's a good woman, but she's a little on the conservative side. I mean, she's not Posse Comitatis conservative, but she finds out I knocked Karen up and we're not planning on getting married immediately..."

"She'll be upset," Hawk finished for him.

"Yeah, she'll be upset the way the Grand Canyon is a little hole in the ground," Low-Light said. "I'm hoping Dad can help soothe the way. They've been on pretty good terms for a while now. I figure he can break the news a lot more gently than I can."

Hawk nodded. "But you are going to talk to her about it?"

Low-Light nodded. "Yessir," he said. "I've already got leave to go home around Veterans' Day for a few days, it's the Lutefest back home at our church. Kind of a big deal, pickled herring and Scandinavian folk stuff. Gives me a chance to talk to Karen and to my Mom face to face."

Hawk considered. "How many days do you have requested?"

"Three," Low-Light said. "I was going to leave Thursday night, after lights out and I'll be back early Monday morning. If I limit my stops, it'll only take about eighteen hours or so."

"You're driving?" Hawk said. "There's a base just three hours from Crosby, we could fly you in."

"No thanks, sir, I like the drive. Gives me time to think and stuff."

Hawk considered his next words carefully. "You spend a lot of time alone, don't you?"

"I'm not exactly Mr. Social, sir, no," Low Light said. "Prefer it that way. Crowds make me nervous."

"Understandable," Hawk said, nodding. "But, look, it should go without saying, but you'll be going through some rough times up ahead. If you need someone to talk to, about anything, I'm here. Your teammates are here for you."

Low-Light grunted, nodding. "I know, sir," he said. "We done now?"

"Yes, yes," Hawk said, smiling. "Send Jaye in here, if you dont' mind, I'm adding two days to your leave, give you some extra travel time, alright?"

"Thanks, sir," Low-Light said, his usual smirk coming back to his face as he stood, saluted and turned to leave. "Actually, I was planning on havin' a chat with a couple of 'em about the help they've given me so far."

"No shooting teammates," Hawk said. "No matter how much they asked for it."

Low-Light frowned. "Even with a paintball gun?"

"Even with a paintball gun," Hawk said. "Or a squirt gun or spitwads, water balloons or any other alleged joke projectiles not otherwise mentioned previously."

Low-Light sighed. "You're the boss, sir," he said, stepping out the door. "Hey, Jaye! Hawk wants to see you, ASAP."

Hawk leaned back, sighing. At least Duke never gives me these problems...