Leverage, Parker/Eliot, He finds her at the grave everyday and he realizes, for a girl who spent her whole life disappearing, she had never once said goodbye.

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Saying Goodbye Together

She'd never said where she grew up, where she was born, not to the team, not even to Eliot, and Eliot never pressed. He knew enough; he knew that she told him what she wanted him to know and he knew how to recognize the truth from the shield. Not lies, he refused to think of them as lies, they were protection that was all, protection against all the hurt the world had thrown at her.

He knows that if he'd wanted he could have asked Hardison to try and find her in the system, but he didn't want that, not ever. The only way any one of them would find out would be for her to know that she can tell them if he has his way . . . and he pretty much does get his way, because the one time Hardison made the suggestion and offered to find out 'useful information', Eliot was really firm in conveying that Hardison shouldn't do that. Upside down over the balcony railing kind of firm and judging by the fear in Hardison's eyes when Eliot set him down again, he figures the hacker got the message.

So it's a surprise when they're on a job and Parker stops sleeping. For someone who's been through so much in her life, Eliot's always been amazed at how much she sleeps and how deeply, so it's easy for him to notice the change. He's also noticed how close she's taken to walking to him. They're together, everyone knows that so it's not really in an issue in that sense, although normally they're pretty discreet about it. But she's taken to walking so close that he's tripping over her or if he stops, she ploughs into the back of him and Eliot finds it pretty unnerving, but he figures it's her way of saying she needs some reassurance, so he cooks the food she likes and he holds her close at night and when they're just sitting in front of the TV, he's the one to initiate the hugs, just gentle and affectionate, but he hopes she understands that he's telling her he's there with her.

It's their third day in the town when she first disappears. It doesn't matter because she's got time on her hands, she's not supposed to be doing anything else, but it's something that Eliot isn't used to. When she comes back, she's almost set to climb into his lap at a briefing with Nate and the rest of the team, which is a little unnerving to say the least. He tucks her into his side, holds her close with his arm around her shoulders and she snuggles in content for the minute.

She vanishes for the second time later that day.

By the end of the following day, when she's disappeared another two times, he's getting worried and is keeping a much closer eye on her. That night when it's just the two of them, he asks, "Is there anything you want to talk about?" just in case she decides that talking is a good idea.

Talking is a good idea as it turns out, but it's not what's at the heart of the matter that she talks about . . . she starts with the merits or otherwise of various brands of popcorn and how the stuff that Eliot makes from scratch is better than all of them, what the best fortunes are that she's had from a fortune cookie and maybe they should have some fortune cookies now, because maybe they need to know what's going to happen . . . before she's finished, she's told him about all the rigs she's ever made for herself and what materials are best and which ones were, in her own words, "seriously sucky".

He knows that none of it is what really bothers her, but he's not got anywhere better to be, so he listens and she rambles and just before she finishes she says, "I lived here for a while when I was a kid," and then she's finished and she's dragging him to bed saying they need their sleep because she's sure Nathan will have lots for them to do the following day.

So he got the piece of the puzzle he really needed and somehow it isn't the big surprise he expected it to be. She's asleep , head resting on his chest as his fingers comb through her hair and he figures that it's more than living here, something bigger than that happened here, something at the core of who she is. He presses another kiss to her head before he closes his own eyes.

She's barely left the bed before he sits up and starts to pull on his own clothes and she's stammering out that she just needs to pick something up from the store, that she'd forgotten she needed extra toothpaste. He agrees and says he's going with her, after all he's awake now anyway. He figures next time he'll be more subtle and actually give her time to leave the room before he tries to follow.

He climbs back into bed and lies down after their impromptu stop at the twenty-four hour convenience store down the street and listens as she brushes her teeth again in the bathroom. He closes his eyes and pretends to fall asleep, unsurprised when as she leaves the bathroom, she stands looking at him but does not lie down herself. He listens, careful to keep his eyes closed and his breathing even, until she slips out the door, then climbs from the bed himself and heads out to follow her.

He's careful, hanging back far enough that she doesn't notice him, but never letting her get too far ahead that he'd be in danger of losing her altogether. It's a surprise when he discovers that the place she heads is a graveyard, but when she does, he thinks he knows where she is going.

He gives her time after she stops by a grave. She stands still for a while, looking at the headstone and then she sits down, ignoring the cool air and the dampness of the grass. She sits and stares and he wonders what answers she's looking for. She's been sitting there for about fifteen minutes when he crosses to join her. He makes enough noise that she knows she's not alone and he stops at what he figures is a respectful distance and says her name quietly.

She looks up at him and he can see the twist of emotion in her face that shows she doesn't know what she should be feeling or what she should be doing. He crosses and kneels beside her and she leans into him, accepting as his arms wrap around her and pull her closer. He presses a soft kiss to her head, then settles himself in for a wait, pulling her tight and warm.

Together they sit, without a sound and they wait as the sun rises and when she finally stands, he gets up with her and they walk back to the hotel without a word. They shower and change and meet the others for breakfast and they don't talk about the grave at all, but when in the quiet hours of the afternoon, she vanishes again, he knows where she's gone and he goes there too.

He acknowledges her, lets her know he's there and then moves away to sit on a bench a few rows down and there he waits until she's ready to go. She comes to him and he slips his arm around her shoulders and lets her bury herself into his side as they walk.

The next time she goes, just before she leaves she says, "I thought I'd go out . . . do you want to come?" He nods, stops what he's doing and slips on his shoes and jacket and follows along without a word, slipping his hand in hers as they walk.

When they get there, she stops by the bench and he lets go of her hand and presses a kiss to her forehead before saying, "I'll be here when you want me, unless you want me anywhere else." He sits down and watches as she walks back over to the grave.

She doesn't stay as long this time, but as far as he can tell she still hasn't said or done anything but as they walk back, she suddenly says, "My brother liked strawberry ice cream best," and he knows he was right when he thought it was her brother they were visiting.

He wonders whether he's handling this right; he doesn't know, not for sure. She's not normal so he's not sure that normal rules apply in cases like this and well he's not entirely sure that he's normal either, but he hopes that she knows at least that he's trying to do the right thing and that in her own way, she'll let him know if he's getting it wrong.

They're leaving town in a couple of hours and she has packed her bags and is just sitting staring out of the window. She hasn't been to the grave today, hasn't mentioned it and he knows they're running out of time if she does want to go. He takes a deep breath and crosses the room, leaning over her and wrapping his arms round her. She smiles up at him, her own hands wrapping round his arms and keeping him close.

"Do you want to say go and say goodbye?" he asks quietly and she looks at him surprised. "I mean, you don't have to, I just thought . . ."

"Say goodbye?" she says tentatively. "Can we?" He nods. She bounds to get ready, seemingly enthused by the idea.

She takes him with her to the grave and there she begins to talk, she tells him of her memories of her brother, tells him how he died and how she felt and how she feels about it know and when it comes time to go, together they say "Goodbye" and he knows that it may not have been the right answer, it may not have changed anything but at least he did something and she knows that they're in it all together. Most of all though, he knows she trusts him with more of the truth than anyone else and he loves her all the more for it. He whispers his own goodbye and silently he promises her brother that he will always look out for her and do all he can to protect her from the world.