My home is not a place, it is people. -Lois McMaster Bujold


"Just give us what we want to know, and we'll let you go." The first masked man said as he moved to stand in front of her chair again. She glared at him, tugging at the ropes around her wrists and ankles. "We just want to know where the object is." The other one commented from behind her, casually touching her cheek. "You wouldn't want us to go in and find it ourselves, would you?" The other one smiled nastily, "We're not in the habit of leaving traces behind. Tell us where it is and we won't burn the place down." She shook her head once and continued to say nothing. She didn't know what they were talking about or where it was. They were idiots to believe that the threat of burning her house would get her to talk. As much as she cared for it, it was a place. It could be rebuilt. Her family, the people she deeply cared for were all safe. Her home was in them, not the physical place she lived. Home was Max's arms around her. Dad, Mom, Stephen, Sol, Aunt Maggie and Uncle Justin...they was also home.

The longer she said nothing, hopefully the longer it gave people time to find her. If these two truly knew that she had no idea what they were talking about, she had a sneaking suspicion, she'd wind up floating in the nearest river.

She knew she couldn't hold out indefinitely, but maybe, just maybe she could hold out long enough. They'd come for her, they would. Hopefully it'd be soon. Before the two kidnappers decided to get creative. Before she caved.

She flexed her wrist slightly, trying again to see if there was any slack in the ropes that she could manipulate.

She wanted to go home.

She slowly woke up, the sun shining on her face and the warmth of two arms around her. Max, she smiled sleepily. She raised her head slightly to check the time before she realized it was a weekend and neither of them had any plans for the day. She contemplated briefly getting up before deciding that she really didn't want to and that it was so nice and warm right here that getting out of bed and having the initial shock of not having that warmth was not something she was after now. She did however manage to slowly and carefully turn around so that she was now facing Max.

Max, her husband, lover, friend...she loved watching him while he was sleeping. There was this absolutely adorable look on his face when he was sleeping. Relaxed, peaceful, boyish, she smiled softly as she brushed some hair out of his face. She loved him so much, her hero. A knight in jeans and a t-shirt.

She stayed like that for a while, just sort of watching him sleep and snuggling in his arms.

Life was just about perfect right here.

He didn't call.

He'd made it back safely and he hadn't called to let her know that he was alright and that the job had gone off well. So she'd been anxiously waiting at home for the call and getting more and more nervous by the minute. She'd finally called the wife of his mates and she'd reassured that they had come home and that Max had told his mates he was heading straight home.

So she picked up her things and headed over to his apartment. She found him there completely dead to the world asleep. She quickly made herself comfortable in his kitchen as she quickly made him something to eat and left it with a note in his fridge.

She couldn't stop herself from lightly caressing his face in his sleep once before she left. She'd see him later.

You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

Dia really loved waking up next to him. She wasn't quite sure why. Max should be everything that a good little girl runs away from, but she found herself irresistibly drawn to him. To his charming grin and his snarky comments and the absolute lovely way he made her body sing. He was exactly the type of boy that her mother would hate. She could hear the lecture now.
"Claudia Susan Gates-Jones, how dare you do this to me, to your father and the family...how dare you shame us so?"

She rubbed a hand across her face tiredly. There was a reason that she communicated mostly with Sam these days. The fight with her mother had reached epic proportions and they'd stopped speaking to each other.

Her mother had been against her going to school, living on her own, not being the perfect little socialite and making a brilliant match and having two children and being an excellent member of society. Her almost -marriage to Barry had been the only thing she'd done right according to her, and look how that turned out, Dia mused. She looked back down at the sleeping man beside her. So different from Barry, Max was a million times over the man Barry hadn't been. Not that her mother would ever see that.

She'd never see how happy Max made her daughter or how they kinda completed each other in a weird way. How the day just seemed better when he was with her.

Sam would get it. He'd grumble and he'd growl, but he'd get it. Simon...her biological Dad would get it. He'd also grumble and growl and posture, but he wanted her to be happy. Most of all that's what he wanted, no matter who with. Carolina...Mom got it more than Dad did (being the more persceptive one sometimes). All of them understood and were willing to let her be herself, willing to give Max a chance.

Mother...would never get it. And that hurt most days. Dia laid back down, curling herself around Max's body. Maybe one day, Mother'd come around.

Maybe.

Dia was excited, she'd was getting ready to start the next round of testing for the magical Kevlar vests. She had some new colleagues joining her as well. She felt very confident about these next tests. The formula was almost perfect.

She puttered around, waiting for everyone to arrive.

GENERAL INFO:
Full Name: Claudia Susan Gates-Jones
Nicknames: Dia, Susie, Boomer
Birthdate: March 17
Age: 27 at the time of destruction of Archangel
Phobias/Fears:  Fear of being left behind,  hates politics,
Intolerances/Annoyances: Freezing under stress, people getting in the way instead of helping in hairy situations. People not understanding about proper cultural context.
Quirks/Habits: She's smart and she knows it.  Has a hard time with willfully ignorant people.  Loves kids and is wildly enthusiastic about people she sees as having common interests with her.   Will prefer to not say anything if she doesn't feel that she knows enough about the subject.  Has a Sharpie fetish.