This is in response to a challenge posed by Prattling Princess I don't remember how long ago. A couple years and three versions later, and I've finally finished it. It was written mostly for my own amusement, but please tell me what you think.

Disclaimer: I do not own Alex Rider or any of the characters involved.

"James! Are you coming to bed?"

"Couple minutes!" James, more commonly known as Wolf to us, called back, hefting a box onto a pile. He turned to grab another and, as he was putting it up, knocked over an older box.

He cursed softly the entire time he was gathering the scattered items to put away. Vaguely he noticed that it was a box of his things from before he had moved a couple years ago. He slowed down, remembering how he had gotten some of them. This knife had been a gift from Snake one Christmas and, while it had nearly killed the Scottish man, it had saved both of their lives in the end. And this stuffed wolf had been given to him by his goddaughter, Eagle's oldest, who was about to turn seven. Both of these he set aside.

Old clothes, a couple of books he had read once or twice, even a bloodstained shirt, all of these went back into the box. But he paused when he picked up an old box of matches that only had a couple left inside.

James smiled slightly when he thought of how he got this particular box of matches, of the boy who had thrown them at him days before saving his career by literally kicking him out of a plane, and this made him remember the first mission he had led more than just his unit on and the awe at seeing the Agent they were to help in action and the shock upon finding out the Agent was Cub, the boy from training. He remembered finding out about the kid's operation and sending a card. And he remembered another mission around a year after that where he met Cub again, remembered the kid getting shot and... He still couldn't believe how much blood a human body could hold.

Another damn forest, in minimal light, in the wet and cold. If they kept getting missions like this, they were going to catch pneumonia or something. He was surprised they hadn't yet.

Wolf took a quick glance back at his unit. Eagle was behind him and, judging by the expression on his face, he looked to be thinking up some inventive new curses. Snake was next and he was alternating glances between where he was stepping and the small tracking unit he held. And at the end of the line was Fox, back from his first stint with SO - and where there was one, there was usually more.

Wolf faced forward again and lifted a fist to halt the team. They stopped without question and went into immediate crouches, quickly adjusting the grips they had on their guns.

Eagle cocked his head in question and Wolf shook his in response. He hadn't seen anyone and he'd continue to lead. What he had seen was the ridge they had come upon.

Wolf slid off his rucksack then carefully eased up to the edge, dropping to his stomach to peer over it. He was waving Fox, the unit's sniping expert, forward when Snake bit out a soft curse.

"The tracker should be just ahead," he whispered, his voice barely carrying to Wolf who was about six feet away.

"I didn't see anyone," Wolf muttered to Fox.

The brunet nodded, settling his rifle and peering through the scope. There were several minutes of silence before Fox spoke. "It was in a watch, right?"

"Yes," Snake responded, verbalizing Wolf's nod.

"It's laying next to a rock." Fox shifted slightly so he could more easily look around. "I don't– Shit," he breathed, cutting himself off.

Wolf could see that the reason Fox had cut himself off was because of someone had stumbled from the treeline, he just couldn't make out why Fox swore.

"It's the Agent. He's injured," Fox said.

Wolf twisted. "Eagle, see if you can find a reliable way down."

Eagle nodded and pushed to his feet from his knees. Before he had crouch-walked even a few feet, he hit the ground as a gunshot echoed through the air.

Wolf spun back as Fox made his own shot. Both men clearly saw the way the Agent stumbled again and overbalanced, hitting the ground hard, but Fox was the only one who saw the original shooter, the way his head snapped back through a fine mist of blood, and how his body collapsed.

Wolf, displaying a remarkable lack of forethought and/or disregard thereof, moved to the edge of the slope and slid down it, drawing cusses from his teammates. He quickly made his way over to the Agent as the male was starting to push to his feet.

A bullet hit the ground a couple feet from Wolf so he tackled the Agent and covered him rather than help him up as he initially intended. Several more gunshots quickly followed.

The Agent grunted in surprise then started to struggle.

"I'm with the SAS," Wolf said into the Agent's ear, half-shouting to be heard over the gunfire. "We're here to extract you." What the hell was the damn pass phrase? "Fucking phrases. I can't remember the fucking thing so you'll just have to trust me."

Both of their gazes shot to the left when they heard something just under the gunfire.

"This way," the Agent rushed out, shoving Wolf off and scrambling to his feet.

Wolf sprinted after the blond, seeing both the limp he was trying to hide and the cave he was angling toward. They had barely gotten inside and dove to either side of the opening when the grenade exploded.

Wolf cautiously lifted his head when the ringing in his ears died down some a minute or so later. He blinked at the gloom, glanced toward the cave entrance, and promptly began to blister the air with curses when he saw the pile of rubble blocking the way out. He pushed to his feet, staggering slightly once upright, and looked for the Agent, straining his eyes to see in the dim light filtering through the small gaps at the top of the collapsed area.

"You okay?" Wolf called. He finally caught the small movements the Agent was making and started to pick his way over.

"Okay is a relative term," the other gasped out, voice strained. "One of those bullets hit me."

Wolf grimaced, kneeling next to the man. "Where?"

"Arm. Shoulder I think." There was a short huff of a laugh then a cough from the dust in the air. "Hard to tell with the way my chest is burning."

Wolf cursed again, digging through his pockets. A couple ration bars, some water purification tablets, some gum that Eagle had sneaked in, a few loose bullets, some change, and a box of matches.

"How're your fire-building skills?"

"No wood," the soldier grunted. He heard the Agent start to shift around and set a hand on the smaller man's chest to hold him down, feeling the wet shirt sticking to the man's skin, the hot blood that was coming from the wound, and the shivers shaking the smaller male's frame.

There was a sharp intake of breath. "Th- there should be some... dry wood in here. I... I camped in here... the other day," he said, gasping in pain. "Wouldn't have if I knew... it might collapse... The wood's... in back... To the left."

"Alright," Wolf nodded. "You stay down. My team will dig us out then our medic will tend to you." He got up and moved to where the Agent had indicated.

As Wolf was making the fire, the Agent spoke up again. "So, was it by chance you got stuck here or...?"

"We were deemed best suited."

"Lucky you... Your unit, is it still Eagle and Snake? And who replaced Fox?"

Wolf froze then twisted toward the Agent who had propped himself up on an elbow.

Brown eyes met Wolf's as lips twisted in a wry smile. "Hey Wolf. Been a while."

"...Cub?" Now that he was actually looking, Wolf could see the boy in this mostly grown teenager. The blond was taller and had the lithe muscles seen in gymnasts and martial artists. His voice was deeper, his hair a shade or two darker, his face leaner, his eyes older.

Wolf realized that he was looking at a man who had been through a lot, not some rich kid - something he had thought and disregarded at Point Blanc.

He moved over to Cub. "Think you can walk so I can get a better look?"

The teen looked up at him. "...Depends."

"On what?"

"If I pass out."

Wolf rolled his eyes, crouched, and picked up the blond, who yelped in surprise before biting his lip as his head lolled against Wolf's shoulder.

"Cub?"

"That... hurt more... than I expected," he gasped in response.

Wolf set Cub next to the fire and was about to kneel next to him when they heard a muffled yell.

"Wolf?"

He glanced at the rocks then Cub before jogging over. "We're okay!" he called back. "We're in a cave so you can dig! The Agent needs First Aid! He's bleeding badly!"

Snake's voice came back. "Put pressure on the wound for now! A chopper for Evac is on the way!"

Wolf went back to Cub, who he could now see was pale and shaking badly. He must have suppressed it when Wolf had lifted him.

"We need to get your shirt off," he said.

Cub mustered up an amused look before trying to do as asked. He halted himself, hissing in pain as he pulled the wound.

"Hang on." Wolf drew out his boot knife and reached for Cub's shirt with his free hand. "I'm going to cut it off," he explained when he saw the way the blond tensed, reminding him of the teen's Agent status. And that was something that was far too easy to forget when you looked at the boy.

Cub nodded, leaning back against the rock wall again. "If you say so. You're just kinky like that, aren't you?"

Wolf paused, scowling, then shook his head. "You sound like Eagle," he muttered, knowing the teen was trying to make light of the situation.

Cub laughed softly. "That isn't something I wanted to know."

Wolf rolled his eyes then went to work. Once he had the shirt off, he winced slightly at the wound. It wasn't the worst he had seen and shouldn't scar too badly or anything, depending on how long it took to get treated properly.

Wolf hesitated then yanked his own shirt off, ignoring the blond's joke of "I knew it", before moving behind the teen and lifting him to sit in his lap, leaned back against Wolf's chest.

"What are you doing?" Cub demanded, trying to pull away. "I wasn't serious!"

"You're getting too cold and this will make it easier to stem the blood flow," Wolf retorted, wadding his shirt against the wound with one hand and using the other to hold Cub still. "Just relax."

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one being manhandled," he muttered before sighing and letting himself sag against the older man with no further protest. He really was cold and Wolf was like a furnace and with the fire in front of him, he was starting to warm up.

Wolf glanced down at Cub and decided to keep his mind off the situation and keep him alert. "Eagle and Snake are still in my unit. Fox wasn't replaced. He just works for SO on occasion."

"...Oh... Being a spy sucks."

Wolf blinked. "Then why don't you put in a request to be solely with the SAS?"

"I can do that?"

Wolf frowned. "Yeah. You're still technically a member of K-unit."

"Oh." Cub chuckled softly. "...Y'know, this is so not how any of my fantasies have gone."

"What?" Had the kid hit his head or something?

"Being shot and stuck in a cave never factored in... Not that candles and flowers ever really have either."

Ah. Blood loss turned Cub into a babbler apparently. May as well play along. "And I probably don't fit as your ideal partner either."

Cub's head started to droop so Wolf shook him slightly. "You've got to stay awake."

The blond's head jerked up again. "You kind of are."

"What?" Maybe... Maybe it wasn't the blood loss talking. Maybe the kid was insane?

"My type. You're strong, you don't seem the type to just roll over, you're not bad looking. I wouldn't have to protect you either."

Wolf just blinked in surprise, his grip loosening enough to allow the dazed Agent to twist slightly to look up at him.

"Wolf?"

He probably shouldn't be asking this since he doubted Cub would normally share, but he couldn't help himself. It was like watching a train derail. "Have you always...?"

Cub blinked slowly, struggling to open his eyes again. "Liked guys? Yeah. Girls too."

"And me?"

"Well, you were an ass at training, but it was kinda hot the way you took charge at Point Blanc." He shrugged, wincing when Wolf reapplied pressure to the wound. His head drooped a second time and jerked back up again. "Can't stay awake."

"You've got to, Cub. Don't give up, okay? Keep talking or something." Wolf saw that the teen was starting to drift so he squeezed the injured shoulder.

Cub's eyes popped open as his back arched stiffly. He sagged back and glared up at Wolf. "Bastard," he muttered.

Wolf smirked back. "Brat." His smirk faded. "Sorry, but you need to stay awake." He glanced at the entrance. There didn't seem to be any progress but he thought he heard more voices than just his team's.

He felt Cub's good hand settle on the back of his neck so he looked down and got yanked into a kiss. Wolf froze and his eyes flew wide.

After several seconds, Cub's hand slid away and his head lolled against Wolf's neck, breaking the man's shock.

"Cub!" He gently shook the teen, whose only response was a soft moan. Wolf tilted the blond's face up, feeling the fever that had already set in.

Cub's eyes were half-lidded and fluttering and his lips were starting to tint blue.

"Cub!"

"Wolf!" The soldier jerked and turned, seeing Eagle peering in at him. He gathered Cub into his arms to carry him over.

"Tell me the bird is here," he bit out, picking his way up the pile of rocks.

"Yeah. Just waiting on... Is that Cub?"

Wolf nodded, passing the unconscious teenager through the opening. "Watch his left shoulder."

Eagle nodded, passing the blond to another soldier before turning back to help Wolf through once the man had gathered his stuff.

Fox nodded to Wolf, watching Cub get loaded into the helicopter. "Change of orders," he said, tossing Wolf his pack. "We're to follow through on the information the Agent was able to pass on. L-unit's to aid. You're ranking."

Wolf nodded, yanking a new shirt on, covering some of the blood. He started to issue orders, a corner of his mind on the aircraft flying away and the dying member of his team held within.

"Move out."

"James? What are you doing?"

He glanced back. "Putting stuff away. I knocked over a box. It's some of my old junk. Some is from around my first couple years in the SAS... We should try to find blackmail material for Ben's wedding."

Soft laughter reached him. "Well, it's getting late. Why don't we both finish going through old memories in the morning? We can pull out all the old blackmail material then."

James chuckled in response, pushing himself to his feet with a grimace. "Alright." He listened to the other leave the attic as he looked at the matchbox again before pocketing it and picking up the other two items.

Ten minutes later, he crawled into bed and reached for his bedmate, thoroughly kissing his lover.

"What was that for?"

"I found an old box of matches," he muttered around a yawn.

Brown eyes blinked at him. "Really?"

A tired smile and soft kiss were the only answer.

"I can't believe you kept that. Have you always been so sentimental or was it a random occurrence?"

"Hey, I'm not that bad... Am I?" He scowled when he received his own smile and kiss back as a reply. "It was still useful."

"But the box was emptied and you kept it. Or did you refill it?"

An embarrassed scowl was Wolf's only response.

"Admit it, you're sentimental under that callous exterior," was said with a teasing smile.

"...Shut up and go to sleep."

Laughter echoed around their dark room. "I love you too, James."

James smiled and pulled the thinner body to him. "You always have to have the last word, don't you?"

"Look who's talking."

Wolf chuckled, dropping another kiss on soft skin. "...You don't mind that I still have it, do you?"

Brown eyes opened and met his. "No, James, I don't," was the soft answer. "I think it's sweet, even if I don't know your reasoning."

A soft blush stained vaguely Hispanic features. "It marked a first step for us."

"For you. The first step for me was when you get shot trying to protect me."

"Sorry, but I didn't keep the bullet."

"With how you're suddenly sentimental, I would have expected you to have. Or at least the shirt."

James scowled at the younger blond, blushing again. "Shut up and go to sleep Alex."