Disclaimer:I don't own Taz & Up. However I do own all other characters. 'Kay?

A/N: Spanish from Google Translate, but my Spanish is teaching me so hopefully I will be more accurate in future…

Song of the chapter: Something that I want, Grace Potter-

"Right when you think you know what to say,

Someone comes along and shows you a brand new way."

Taz was fifteen years old when she met Commander Up. It was her birthday, her Quinceañera. She was sat at the edge of the dance floor wearing the ugly dress that she'd been forced into by her mother earlier in the day. It was bright pink, strapless, with sparkles that spiralled all around Taz's chest. Oh, and to top it all off, the entire skirt was made up of disgusting, frumpy, gag-worthy frills. Taz wanted nothing more than to rip the ugly dress off of her body and go to bed wearing her favourite and much more comfortable pyjamas.

She was pissed off. She was pissed off with these happy people that were dancing past her without a care in the world. She was pissed off with the dress. She was pissed off with her brothers for picking on her because of her dress. But mostly she was pissed off with her mother, who had taken it upon herself to bring all of the idiot 'bachelors' between the ages of fifteen to nineteen to meet her.

Her mother had always been one for tradition; it seemed that the tradition to meet the person you will marry at your Quinceañera was no exception. That wouldn't be so bad; Taz had always preferred the company of boys, but her mother was insisting to use her proper name: Ticiana. It was an awful name; it made Taz sound like the kind of girl that enjoyed wearing frumpy pink dresses. Hence her nickname: Taz. Ticiana Adella Zafina Castro.

"Hey Ticcy." Taz looked to her left to where one of the recently introduced boys had decided to sit beside her. His hair was a dark brown colour that looked ever so slightly red when under the light, his eyes, as most Hispanic people, where brown. He was pretty good looking, Taz had to admit, but from the first moment he had opened his mouth Taz had been assured of her suspicion. He was an idiota.

"Callar, dat's not my name," Taz said angrily. "Tonto."

"Fine. Ticiana," Nile responded quickly. "Sorry."

"Dat's not my name either." Taz turned away from the boy, hoping he would go away and leave her in peace.

"Then what is your name?"

"Caller! Desaparecer! I don't want to talk to jou idiota!" Taz cried, shoving Nile off his chair.

"Whoa, okay. Calm down, unfuego," Nile replied, smirking slightly. Taz kicked him. "Okay, okay, I'm going!"

Nile never got the chance to go anywhere.

There was an ear-splitting crash. From where Taz was she couldn't see what was going on, but the screaming told her that whatever it was, it was bad. Windows of the building were smashed inwards, sending glass fragments everywhere. Taz could barely think straight as the screaming of her family and friends pierced through her head, but her survival mode kicked in and she was able enough to grab Nile by the arm and drag him under the table, shielding them from the falling fragments as the window right behind their head smashed, showering the table top above them with glass pieces that would have ripped them both to shreds.

"What's going on?" Nile asked, panic full in his voice. He looked at Taz, his eyes glistening with intense fear.

"I don't know," Taz replied. She fought the temptation to curl up in a ball and hide, forcing herself to peep out from under the tablecloth. She was just in time to see masses of shiny metallic bodies filing into the room through every window, ten to each window, two at a time. "Robots," she breathed, the word sounded as horrified as her expression looked.

Taz watched as the robots marched into the room, their bodies glittering in the light, their black eyes merciless as the shot down every and any human that got in their way without even a seconds pause. Her heart pounded in her throat as she saw members of her family disintegrate in front of her eyes, unable to bring herself to move, fixed to the spot with terror like none she'd ever experienced before. Okay, yeah, these people were people that she'd only met a couple of times and had probably only come for the free food, but they were still her family.

"Must destroy all humans. Must destroy all humans. Must destroy all humans." Taz thought she was going to be sick, her throat dry and her stomach churning horribly as she heard the cold, metallic calls of the robots. They were heartless, destroying machines that couldn't feel guilt or remorse. It made Taz's entire body feel weak, and weak was something Taz never wanted to be.

"Ticiana?" Nile asked, sticking his head out of the tablecloth. "Oh, Dios mío." Taz looked at the boy next to her, his eyes were filled with terror as he watched the scene in front of him. He looked at her, and she pleaded with her mind, praying that her face didn't look as frightened as she felt, and more importantly any more frightened than Nile's face looked.

"Humans." Taz turned her head sharply and let out an eardrum-piercing scream at the sight of the robot towering above her, it's hand held up, fingers pointing towards her. She grabbed Nile by the shirt and shot backwards further under the table, yelling out as the robot's lazer beams hit the tabletop and it splintered around her, sending pieces of wood and dust everywhere, the splinters piercing her skin and the dust embedding itself into her hair and clothes. She stood up, grabbing Nile by the arm and ran towards the door, not really registering her dress tearing as it got caught in a sharp piece of wood. Taz was too occupied by not getting hit by lazer beams.

Then there was a scream. Well, there had been lots of screams but that was a scream Taz knew from anywhere, she stopped dead and spun on her heel, searching for the owner of the scream. Taz's eyes landed on her littlest brother within a second. She could just about see him through the fire and the smoke. There were two robots that had hold of him by the arms and were dangling him in the air where he screamed and thrashed around, tears streaming down his little face. Taz's heart filled with hatred, how dare they do that to her brother? Her blood was boiling and she thought she was about to explode with anger. She grabbed the edge of dress and tore off the excess material, her eyes still fixed on her brother and the robots.

"Ticiana, what are jou doing?" Nile asked, nervously. Taz ignored him and knelt to the floor, scooping up the nearest object to hand, a large splinter of wood from a table much like the one that had exploded around her and Nile. She felt the wood splinter in her hands for a second, planning what she was going to do.

"Nile, get outside. Get as many people as jou can and get outside," Taz instructed, still facing the robots. Nile watched her face as she talked, he could see what she was planning to do etched into her features, even if they were messed up with dust and dirt.

"Ticiana! You can't!" he cried, grabbing her arm and trying to pull her small frame with him. Taz growled at him and shook his grip off.

"No! I have to!" she yelled. "Él es mi hermano!"

Nile gave her a desperate look. "Ticiana, por favour-"

"My name isn't Ticiana!" Taz cried. "My name is Taz! Ahoravan, idiota!" She turned around and jogged forwards through the rubble and the fire.

"Taz!" Nile shouted, following her and dodging a large chunk of plaster that came flying towards his head. "TAZ!" Taz turned slightly at the sound of her name. "Por favour." Nile sounded desperate. His brown eyes were pleaded with Taz's heartstrings and almost made her walk back to him. But her brother's screams were echoing behind her.

Taz shook her head. "Ir, Nile. Ir." She disappeared into the smoke.

Taz could barely see anything through the thickening smoke but she could hear her brother's screams and ran towards them. As she approached her brothers face went from terrified to shocked. He stared at her, waiting for his big sister to disappear past like his brother and mother had. But she didn't. She raced forwards, a large splinter of wood in her hands.

"Get off my brother que la polla!" The robots didn't hear her, and that pissed her off even more. "YOU BASTARDS!" she screamed, charging forwards and forcing the splinter of wood through the metal of the nearest robot's back. The robot went into a total freak out, flapping its arms around, completely unable to control it's body anymore. After an agonising few seconds it fell backwards, hitting the floor with a smash.

"You will regret that, puny human," the other robot said as it's body turned mechanically to face her.

"Let my brother go," Taz growled. She defenceless now, the only thing she had left was her anger, she didn't know how far that was going to get her but she knew she was about to find out. The robot lifted it fingers towards her and she threw herself onto the floor as the lazer beams shot over her head, making the fire even worse. Leon was screaming loudly and making Taz's teeth grind.

The robot turned its attention back to her brother for a second and slashed its metal claws across his chest. He screamed out in pain. "Leon!" Taz screamed, hurling herself off the floor, an abandoned chair in her hands. She lifted the chair above her head and before the robot even had time to react she whacked it across the head with all her might. The robot was slightly dazed, shaking its head about in confusion. Taz grabbed her brother and yanked him out of the robot's arms and put him on the floor. "Run. RUN!" she yelled, pushing him through the smoke.

"Taz!" Leon shrieked, gripping his older sisters arm. "I'm scared." Tears were streaming down his face, along with blood that was gushing from a cut on his forehead. He was a sorry sight, but at least he was alive.

"Sè hermano pe que no, I know. Just run, okay Leon? Run." Taz kissed her little brother and gave him hug before shoving him away and into he smoke. Taz turned back round; the robot had fully recovered and was staring at her. "What are you staring at, idiota?"

"You are a very foolish human," the robot told her mechanically.

"Shame, just when I thought I was getting smart," Taz responded coldly. The robot walked towards her quickly, it's hands ready to grab her. Taz growled and kicked it in the chest, hard. It stumbled backwards, giving Taz chance to find another weapon. A discarded mop. She grabbed it with both hands and swung it like a golf cue at the robot's legs. The mop lifted the robots legs off the ground and it fell on its front. Taz ran backwards through the smoke, she couldn't see where she was going; she just prayed that she was going in the right direction.

The robot was up again and following her, it lifted its wrist up and thumped a button rapidly. Taz's eyes widened, that was a form of communication, right? It had to be. She turned, swinging the mop again. It made a satisfying 'THWACK' against the robot's chest. The robot grabbed the mop with both its hands and tried to pull it from Taz's hands. She kept hold of it and yanked it back through its slippery metal fingers. "No fucking way," she hissed. She began to run again, pushing her way through the rubble.

She stopped dead at the sight of two figures ahead of her, both were exactly the same size and their footsteps were clanking unnaturally against the floor. Taz yelled out as the robots came into full view and swung the mop at both of their heads. They staggered around, dazed. She went left, so she was facing all three robots. The only thought going through her head was if Leon had made it out. Oh, and that she was doomed.

Lieutenant Up ran into the flaming building, his zapper held high, shooting every robot that got in his way.

"Guys!" Commander Jed yelled over the noises of screaming and lazer beams. "I'll go left! Danny, you go right. Up, straight ahead!" Both Lieutenant and Ensign nodded and headed in their direction. Up made his way through the burning wood and material, he was pretty sure this had been a Quinceañera before it had been rudely barged into. He then heard a loud scream up ahead, it was an angry scream, the kind of scream people do when they're about to burst with hatred. Up ran forwards quickly, trying to find the source of the noise.

And then he stopped. He could see her. She was a short girl; no more than four foot five. She was wearing a frilly pink dress that had been torn to make movability easier; it was dusty and dirty, as was her skin and hair. She had a large gash on one arm and her face was streaked with blood that had trickled from a cut just under her left eye. She looked furious; her dark eyes were filled with hatred as she charged towards one of the robots with half a mop clasped firmly in her hands, sharp point forwards. Her shiny black hair had fallen from its elegant twist as she had fought and was now trailing behind her in a mass of curls, small pieces stuck to her face with sweat and blood.

Up stared at the girl in shock as she shoved a sharp wooden point through a robot's forehead, it fell back onto the floor about two metres away from another dead robot that Up could only assume she had destroyed as well. The other two robots lifted their fingers and she threw herself onto the floor and behind a wooden table, shielding herself from the lazer beams. From the ground she grabbed a large chunk of plaster and launched it at one of the other robots, swearing in a language Up guessed was Spanish. She screamed in terror and rolled to her right, away from the robots large metal foot that had been aimed at her head. The other robot bent down and picked her up. She yelled out and kicked it in the face, making it drop her again. She ran backwards and screamed in a mix of Spanish and English that Up couldn't understand.

The robot's both came towards her, their hands held up. All Up did was stare as she punched one of the robot's in face, yelling out in pain as all she achieved was a broken knuckle. The robot's backed her up against the wall. She shoved against their chests, her eyes blazing with fury as she screamed at them. The robot's picked her up, upside down. She screamed loudly and clawed at the robot's legs as they began to debate how to kill her in the most painful way. As the first robot slashed at her stomach she grimaced and squeezed her eyes tightly shut, fighting back both tears and screams. Up finally came to his senses then. This girl, this loud, crazy, brave girl was going to be killed. And he was a just stood there. He ran forwards.

"Put her down you pathetic pieces of shit!" he yelled, holding his zapper up to the robots. "I'll fucking shoot you!"

Taz bit her tongue as she felt a large pain across her stomach. She could feel the warm blood trickling down her body from the cut and she closed her eyes so she wouldn't cry. These robots weren't going to make her cry; they weren't going to make her scream. They could kill her, but they weren't going to get the pleasure of her pain.

"Put her down you pathetic pieces of shit!" Taz's eyes shot open at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, a thick southern accent to it. There was a man stood in front of her. He was a Starship ranger, she could tell by the uniform. He was tall and bulky, with a mass of brown hair that had tiny strands of silver in it, as did the wispy moustache on his upper lip. His eyes were blue, Taz had never really seen blue eyes before and she instantly thought they were amazing. They were beautiful. So bright, so shiny, so pure. He was stood there, a huge black gun in his hands, held up towards the robots that had her by the ankles. "I'll fucking shoot you." The robot's just stared at the man as he stood there. "I swear it! I will!" he yelled. He looked angry, really angry. Taz could see it etched into every one of his features. The robot's still did nothing. The man growled loudly and pulled the trigger twice. The robot's grip on her ankles loosened. Everything went black.

Up hadn't wanted to shoot them while she was in their grasp, but they weren't doing anything and one of their claws was horribly close to the girl's neck. The girl hit the ground with sickeningly thump. She slumped to the floor in a heap, looking pretty much dead. Up's heart raced. She couldn't be dead. He would save her. Up raced forwards, shoving the robot's bodies out of the way and reaching the girl. Blood was running down her face much more now, from the cut on her head. There was so much blood that it was even staining her hair red. But then, cuts on the head always bled loads, right? Up gulped and checked her pulse. He nearly screamed in relief. Her pulse was fine. She was just unconscious. He grabbed the girl's shoulder and shook it lightly.

"Hey!" he said. "Wake up!" The girl didn't move. He shook her shoulder harder and tapped her cheek. "Wake up! God damn it, I need to get you out here. Now wake up!" The girl's eyes flickered open slightly. For half a second Up was a bit dazed. Her eyes were even darker and more intense close up; it made his mind go blank for a second. "Hey," he said slowly. She frowned at him.

"Hey?" she replied. Her voice held a thick Spanish accent, it suited her.

"Are you okay?" Up asked.

"¿Qué piens austed?" her voice was breathy and ragged, Up had a small feeling she didn't even realise she had spoken in Spanish.

Up gave her a questioning look. "English? Please?"

She looked at him drearily. "Uh...not really. Who are jou?"

"Okay, I'll carry you," Up said, about to put his arm under her legs. She slapped his arm.

"I will walk," she said decidedly. She hurled herself to her feet, her fists clenched with determination as she fought with consciousness. "Who are jou?" she repeated as Up stopped her from falling for the third time.

"I'm a Starship ranger," Up replied.

"I know what you are, imbécil. Who are jou? What is your name?" she drawled, her voice weak as she stumbled forwards, refusing Up's help with walking.

"Up."

She gave him a weird look. "What da hell kind of name is dat?" she asked. Up laughed. The girl almost smiled.

"It's not my real name." The girl nodded. "What's yours?"

"Taz."

"What the hell kind of name is that?" She smiled properly this time. It was pretty smile that lit up her whole face. And in the state she was in, that was huge improvement.

"It's not my real name."

The pair of them stumbled onwards. Well Taz stumbled, Up walked with her, steadying her whenever she fell. He gave up asking to carry her after the fifth time, it only led to glaring. Finally they reached the door, where Commander Jed was checking all the survivors. Up looked down at his companion. She looked drained, completely and utterly drained. She took a small step forwards and as soon as her foot touched the ground it buckled and she went flying towards the ground. Up raced forwards and caught her around the middle. Her head lolled onto Up's shoulder. She'd passed out. Up smirked down at the tiny girl in his arms and put his arm under her legs, lifting her off the ground like she was as light as a feather. Which she actually kind of was.

"Up?" Up turned around to face his commander. The commander looked at the small girl in his lieutenant's arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Uh…this is Taz. She needs to go to the ward," Up said quickly, feeling that he needed to explain the situation. Commander Jed nodded slowly, looking pretty bemused. "So can I…?"

"What? Uh, yeah, sure." Jed nodded and smiled at his lieutenant, trying desperately not to laugh. Up frowned slightly, smiled back and turned around, heading towards the hospital ward.

The next time Taz saw the world she was lying in a white bed with white covers and a white pillow. She was also wearing an overly large white shirt that came completely drowned her, coming down to about her knees. She opened her eyes slowly. Everything was really bright and there were two bright blue orbs hovering above her. Her eyes came into focus and realised that the blue orbs were actually Up's eyes.

"Oh!" Up exclaimed. "You're awake!" He looked behind him. "Leon! She's awake!" Taz heard one word: Leon. She shot up, nearly head butting Up in the face. "Whoa!" She shoved him slightly so he moved enough for her to see her brother. He was sat in a bed on the other side of the room, his chest and head wrapped up in white bandages. He saw her and grinned, lighting his whole face up. Taz grinned back.

"Taz! Estás vivo!" Leon cried, trying to pull himself out of bed.

"Oh no you don't!" Up instructed, rushing over to push him back under the covers. "You'll just hurt yourself again!" Leon glared at the older man and pursed his lips.

"Hacer lo que dice, Leon," Taz told her younger brother. Leon looked at his sister, sighed and lay back in the bed. Up looked at Taz in astonishment.

"What did you say to him?" he asked.

"I told him to do as jou said," Taz replied. Up grinned. "Hey, where are de rest of mi familia?" His face fell. Taz heard a little yelp from her brother and a slight sniffle. He propped himself up onto one elbow and gave her a sorrowful look. She knew exactly what he meant. Her mind went blank, she couldn't think, she could just about hear that Up was talking to her, telling her it was going to be okay, but she wasn't listening. She stared at her brother, thinking of her mother, her father, her other brother: Tristen. She thought of earlier that day, when all she'd wanted was for her mother to go away, now Taz would do anything to get her back. Tears welled up Taz's eyes but she blinked them back quickly.

"Taz?" Up asked for the thirteenth time. He followed her daze to Leon who was now crying again. Up had been able to tell as soon as he'd laid eyes on Leon that he was related to Taz. His hair was slightly lighter than Taz's and his eyes held slight flickers of green but they shared the same slightly upturned nose and high cheekbones, and their smile was the same.

Leon had been the one to tell him that the rest of Taz's family was dead. The little boy had cried and cried as the words had tumbled out of his mouth. About how him and his brother had always teased Taz. About how Taz and their mother were always fighting, that his father always had to force them apart and would say something funny, then they'd both laugh and hug each other. About how his father had taught them all how to climb up the big tree in their garden and had taken them on fishing trips. The two boys always pushed Taz in the lake. Up had nearly cried just listening to the little boy as he rambled on. "Taz?" Taz looked up at him, her eyes were watery and she was frantically blinking, trying to fight the tears.

"What?" her accent had become even thicker, this was a sure sign to Up that she was upset. Without thinking about it Up sat on the edge of her bed and pulled her towards him. He wrapped his arms around her small frame and traced her spine. She was so small; he was almost scared he was going to break her. But he knew that wasn't possible, she was much stronger than she looked. Up waited for her to shove him away and slap him, but she didn't. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned against his shoulder.

"You know," he whispered in her ear. "It's okay to cry." She shook her head. "It is, I promise." Taz believed him. She didn't know why, but as soon as he promised it was okay the tears suddenly started pouring from her eyes. Up pulled her closer to him and shuffled to sit on the bed fully, his arms still firmly clasped around Taz's waist and holding her as she curled up in between his legs and buried herself in his chest. Her tears were soaking his shirt through the skin but he didn't care.

Taz felt weird for crying, she hadn't cried in years. And the first time she did she was crying in the arms of someone she had only just met. A Starship ranger with beautiful eyes that she didn't even know the age of. But it felt right, in a weird way. Finally her eyes dried out and she sat up and looked at Up's face. He smiled at her slightly and she found herself smiling back weakly.

"You okay?" he asked. She didn't reply. She just leaned back against his chest and put her head on his shoulder. He smiled slightly and rested his arms on her hip. After about five minutes of silence it became apparent that Leon was fast asleep. Taz looked up at Up and bit her lip slightly, debating what to say.

"How long have jou been a Starship ranger?" she asked him.

"I joined the academy when I was sixteen and I graduated when I was nineteen," Up told her. Taz pursed her lips.

"And how old are jou now?" she questioned.

Up smirked. "Twenty two." Taz's eyebrows shot up and her eyes focused on his hair, more importantly, the tiny silver strands within the deep brown. "Yeah, well. Being a Starship ranger isn't exactly the most stress free job out there." Taz debated that for a minute and then shrugged in his arms.

"How old do jou have to be to get into de academy?" she asked. Up gave her a look. What was she thinking?

"You want to join?" Taz nodded once. "What about Leon?"

"Leon is my half brother, he will live with his Aunt. I will not be welcome," she told him quietly. Up tightened his hold around the fifteen year old, feeling that this conversation wasn't helping her state of mind at all. And neither was the news he was about to give her.

"You have to be sixteen," Up said. Taz's whole body sank down into the bed. "But!" Taz looked up at him intently, begging for the next sentence to be a good one. "There have been exceptions."

"Have any of them been niñas?" Taz asked. Up gave her questioning look. She sighed. "Girls?"

"Oh, uh...no." Taz's shoulders drooped. "You can be the first! You want to do combat, right?" Up grinned at the girl in his arms and was rewarded with a big smile in return. She nodded.

"Jou really think I could be an exception?" she asked quietly.

"Well, you're probably tougher than half the intakes put together. So, yeah!" Taz grinned. "We just have to convince them all."

"Jou will help me?"

"Of course." Taz grinned again and threw her arms around Up's shoulders and pushed him back in a tackle. Up laughed breathily and hugged her back.

Private Danny walked into the hospital ward, searching for his Leuitenant: Up. As he walked in his mouth dropped open at the sight of Up sprawled across one of the hospital beds with a small black haired girl on top of him. He had his arms around her waist and was laughing as he hugged her. The girl propped herself up on his chest and smiled at him slightly.

"Why?" she asked. Her Hispanic descent was very noticeable in her accent.

"You deserve it," Up replied, smiling at her. Danny decided this was his cue to speak.

"Up?" Both of them turned their heads to look at him. The girl sat up and Up shuffled out from under her and stood up.

"Yeah, what's up?" he asked, as though nothing had happened.

"Uh…Commander Jed wants to talk to you," Danny explained. Up nodded.

"Okay. I'll see you later Taz." The little Hispanic girl waved at him slightly as she settled back into her bed.

A/N: You like? Please do tell