Red Queen One-Shots

Hidden Intentions (Shade x Farley)

A/N 1: The deeper I thought about writing more Imagine Shade Was Still Alive stories, I realized I had to confront a certain aspect that soon revolved a specific image (guess which). This alternate concept takes place roundabout the King's Cage chapters 16/17 (stress on alternate – I picked a date here but I can only assume when exactly it was in KC so the changes make it happen right then 😉).

This door posed no resistance. Voices drifted through and became louder as Shade jumped inside, cleaving to the corner of the room as he counted three persons sitting on a bed crammed into an office.
"... You're sure this works? It's not too demanding?"
"It was your idea to ask, I just saw to it!" A helpless laugh escaped her throat and Shade startled as he recognized his sister. Before her brown eyes found him, the third touched her hand, winning her attention.
"I've checked the supplies myself, we can do it," the third, Cameron, agreed. She smiled at his sister who, despite smiling back, looked up just enough to notice him.
Their gazes locked, freezing them both yet likely for very different reasons. Shade sank into her eyes, wanted to. To see her safe, to see her at all, and, for the fragment of a heartbeat, to imagine Gisa's eyes, so similar, were those of Mare who had been a hostage for three months now.
"What are you doing here ...?" Gisa whispered and truth be told, he could've asked her the same. But no one replied as Gisa started to giggle like a fool, a habit that felt so awfully normal like home that it hurt.
Everyone was blushing as his entry became obvious to the other two, also the first speaker, who finally turned her head over her shoulder, not the least bit surprised to see him. "That's inaccurate," Diana said. "The real question is, what took him so long?" She smirked at him yet despite her amused tone, worry showed in her frown that Gisa and Cameron couldn't see from this angle.
An angle, he couldn't help noticing, becoming her marvellously with the way her chin-long curls framed her cheek. No, he wasn't beyond being left speechless by her beauty when she glowed like this. He had no idea how long the awkward silence lasted until he snapped out of it and stepped over, resting his hand on Diana's shoulder before she rose and went to him.
After quickly exchanging glances, strangely nervous, Cameron and Gisa jumped up, shoving together the papers on the bed. Diana slammed shut the folder and Gisa hugged him.
"I'm glad to see you", he told her quietly although he still didn't know what she did here in the Rocasta base, so near to military operations.
"So am I," Gisa replied, released him and left, taking Cameron by the hand.
"What was going on here?" he asked as he dropped behind Diana on the bed, unstrapping his boots.
"Classified information," she answered but he heard – she couldn't hide it from her tone, he knew her well enough now – that she wasn't all business. He snorted, done with the shoes, and inched closer until their legs met and his chest was to her back.
She sighed, but his digging she must've expected didn't come. Indeed, he didn't care, not right now. What he wanted was just this, leaning on her, his face on her neck breathing in her scent. His arms embraced her from behind, hands resting on her five-months-belly. An instance of grounding, only strengthened by the tiniest flutter he could feel of their baby.
He longed to forget his shame by holding his world in his arms. This part at least.
Diana weaved his fingers with his, her posture shifting ever so slightly until he couldn't say who leaned on who.
"I really wondered what took you so long, you were expected back half a day earlier," she said eventually.
He hmphed. "Not unusually late."
"You're so quiet."
"Classified information," he murmured. She stirred while he hugged her closer.
"Maybe better this way," she said. She must be rolling her eyes. "That I don't give you orders anymore." But her pulse was quickening against his cheek. He'd been sent on missions she wasn't responsible for, true, and it left her scared for him despite everything.
He understood that well enough, his own worry for her currently quelled knowing she held back due to her pregnancy. Still, her reaction flustered him when, ironically, she was wrong in this specific case.
"You needn't have worried, Dee," he said, and she released a relieved breath, likely thinking of a relatively harmless operation.
Well, it had been, and he yearned to leave it at that, to stay a few minutes longer in this intimate cocoon.
He doubted he had the right to make a wish right now, when he'd already chosen safety.
Just one more second, one kiss on the bare part of her shoulder, and he broke the embrace, sinking on the floor to his knees to face her.
He met her eyes, then lowered his gaze, gathering himself once more. His fingers playing with a loose curl of hers. Looking up, he confessed. "I strayed from orders."
She raised her eyebrows. "Now that's nothing new but it doesn't sound – "
"Safe? It was completely, utterly reckless. I could only hope not to be too stupid.
"Because I aimed to free Mare."

The Scarlet Guard used Shade as backup for escapes sparingly, regarding the limits to people he could bring with him. When he wasn't assisting in the taking of Corvium, his new handler Blake sent him on reconnaissance missions. Shade kept waiting for assassination orders though they never came – so far. Due to his ability, it tended to be spotty work, often including theft and sabotage rather than infiltration. Between jobs, that left him chances to see Diana who planned altogether different operations. Growing enmeshed with Command as she was, who knew how far she was aware how he was tied into the greater picture.
Unlike during their first cooperations, Diana appeared fine with it now, him under another's orders. He felt less so and as Blake had Shade follow the front movements and searching Corvium for weak spots, he'd been itching to approach the royal progress. It happened that he was to visit the same locations – afterwards, to listen for whispers of treason against King Maven. Bitterness filled Shade as he was close but carefully kept away from Mare, who was always on the screens beside her captor.
Shade had believed it reasonable. He'd seen the brutal results of Nanny's infiltration. He'd stayed behind during the failed pro-Cal coup. But while the banished prince was reined in, he'd helped the Guard win Corvium, cheered with them as Cameron's brother Morrey was freed even as everyone chewed at still seeing Mare as the king's trophy and mouthpiece.
When he received the orders three days ago, Shade had had enough of waiting and playing safe. He had this ability that had proved so useful, had saved his loved ones' lives so many times, he had a duty to Mare to at least try.
Would she not expect him to try?
He would grind his teeth no longer and enter the royal party. The opportunity sounded almost a ploy, find out who the king was meeting at the Choke, implying that Shade would evade Maven and come from the other side.
This time, he picked the confrontation.