Author's note: This story is a sequel to Leave Me. Spoilers for season 2.
*****
Nikita had won. Hadn't she? Percy was dead. Sergei Semak was dead. Amanda was, well, on the run, but certainly less of a threat to her now. And yet Division still stood. She was standing in it. In the heart of the beast, Operations, where she had access to everything Division was doing, all their little secrets, where each and every single surviving member was. The people who had been hunting her for years, all convicted criminals, most of whom had taken countless lives, and now she was technically their boss. It really was funny how things worked out.
Of course Percy was the one responsible for Daniel's death, and countless others, so technically her vendetta had been against him. Division was his weapon, something Nikita had always believed she would need to take apart piece by piece to destroy him. As it turned out she hadn't, and as much as part of her wanted to burn this place to the ground Nikita recognise that most people working for Percy had been just as much his victims as people he killed. He had talked about giving them a second chance, a chance to serve their country, but he had turned them all into his own personal army of monsters. Nikita had given herself a second chance, perhaps even a third. These people deserved to have the same.
Despite being willing to kill them all only a matter of hours ago Nikita would do her best to keep them alive and safe, something she wouldn't have to do alone. There was Michael, who had been vital in securing the black boxes, something which had taken a few months but was worth it to remove Percy's contingency plan. Berkoff had actually ended up helping too, and was now sitting a few feet away from her ready and willing to obey her command. On the other side of her was the head of Division Ryan Fletcher who not only arranged the raid on Division but had successfully struck a deal with the president to give the people working at Division a second chance. Nikita didn't like the idea of having a boss again, but she didn't want to officially run Division and if she had to have a boss she was glad it was him. Then of course there was her partner. Her lover. Her everything.
Suddenly a voice awoke her from her thoughts, "You should go to him."
Nikita turned to Berkoff and frowned, "What?"
"Michael." He said, "You've been staring at him for the last hour."
Nikita smiled, "I haven't been staring at him."
It was true, although she tried to take in everything going on all the screens in front of her, and her surroundings in case anyone loyal to Percy tried to sneak up on her, Nikita's eyes had continuously wandered to medical. Specifically to her two closest allies, both of whom had been injured during the assault on Division which Nikita felt totally responsible for. Which of course was ridiculous as they had both had every right to take their final revenge against Percy as she had done, both of them making it very clear they were in this with her to the end. That didn't stop her feeling guilty though.
Feeling a little confused Berkoff began blathering, "But you guys are, you know... together, right? Because Mikey's never really been much of a conversationalist but he's obviously crazy about you and-"
He said a whole lot more but Nikita couldn't register it or anything else because her lover was on the move. The doctors and Michael were trying to talk her out of it but it was no use, when Alexandra Udinov made up her mind to do something nothing could stop her. That was one of the many things they have in common, Nikita briefly smiling at the thought as her heart pounded in her chest with increasing force the closer her lover got to ops.
When finally she appeared, dishevelled and bandaged, Alex spotted her immediately and choked out, "Nikita."
"Alex." Nikita said breathlessly, tears running down her cheeks at the sight of her baby girl.
Alex wasn't sure what she was expecting. Most likely ordered back to medical, she supposed. Perhaps with Nikita coldly dismissing her or perhaps getting angry like she would have done not that long ago. It didn't really matter, regardless of the action and how aching her body was Alex needed to see Nikita. To see with her own eyes the older woman was ok. That they were ok. That everything was ok. Because as she had told her lover before the raid on Division any outcome where Nikita wasn't ok was nothing short of a devastating failure for her. So seeing Nikita alive and well was all she needed. After this, if it was what Nikita wanted, she would happily slink away into the shadows to lick her wounds.
Instead Nikita rushed over to her and pulled Alex into her arms, both women clinging onto each other for dear life. Again that would have been enough for Alex but when Nikita eventually pulled back she paused, cupped the younger girl's tearstained cheek and then after another pause kissed her right there in front of everybody.
The kiss only lasted a few seconds but it was passionate and loving while still being incredibly gentle, a simple press of lips to lips which meant so much to both women. For Alex the most important thing about it was Nikita wasn't ashamed of her. That she wasn't going to have to hide in the shadows, the mighty Nikita's dirty little secret, but now finally people would know she was with this goddess. Know that this goddess was hers, and be jealous of her for it. Be in awe of her, kind of like a certain geek very close by who was the first one to utter a sound after Nikita pulled back and exchanged a soft smile with Alex.
"Ohhhh." Berkoff muttered silently to himself in realisation, "Cool."
"Shut up nerd." Nikita said dryly once she had turned to look at the hacker, the smile leaving her face.
"Hey, I'm happy for you, really." Berkoff quickly assured the assassin, "I, I just didn't see this coming."
Turning back to her girlfriend Nikita smiled, "Me neither."
