So it seems there is a new abundance of Teslen fic. Which is good. Always good. But, the other night, as I was sifting through said abundance, I developed an overwhelming urge to have a story where, in a season five-ish scenario, Tesla and Magnus just didn't magically fall into each others arms with protestations of love and affection. And, as such, this happened.

Mostly for insufferablyteslen and her amusing ovary explosions :P

xx

"I... I still don't get it," he said, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, Magnus... C'mon..."

She merely chuckled in that enigmatic way that always had him about to tear his hair out (whether the frustration was sexual or not, Will refused to think on) before pursing her lips in a secet little smile.

"Deep breaths," she advised. "I'll admit, it is a bit much to take in all at once."

"Gee, thanks for understanding, Doc," he drawled, drawing another little chuckle from her. Apparently she was too please with herself to rise to the bait.

"Would you like to take a closer look?" she offered, gesturing towards the monolithic structure."Or are you content to merely watch from afar?"

Will shot her a disparaging look, struggling to contain his embarrassment at having been merely looking at the structure for a good ten minutes at least. With some effort, he took a few steps forward, unsurprised to find his knees were a little less steady than normal.

Well, what do you expect after being introduced to maybe the biggest secret in the history of his working life?

He glass and white (he wanted to say metal?) gleamed under a rather fair, if not entirely accurate approximation of the Earth's sun. His eyes kept catching on every second thing. The trees, the grass, the water, even the path. It was all... surreal.

He couldn't wrap his head around the fact that it was all... here, yet alone underground. How could no one have see it? Even if it was using parts of Hollow Earth, even if she'd had a century and a bit to do it... He still didn't get the 'how' of it all.

He turned to Magnus, ready to ask, once more, 'how' only to realise she was still a few steps behind him, frowning down at her phone.

Will continued to watch as she punched a few keys, frowning again as the little machine beeped angrily in her hand.

"Bureaucracy follows you everywhere, eh?" he joked, wincing a little at the uncomfortableness of it all but he was determined to repair at least some of their relationship.

"Oh... No. I- uhm," she stuttered, a very faint blush colouring her cheeks. If Will didn't know any better, he'd have said his boss (if she was still his boss) was embaressed. Suddenly, his curiosity surrounding her underground achievement fell away. After all, a blushing Helen Magnus wasn't something one came across every century.

"Magnus?"

"Let's get inside, shall we?" she half snapped, her smile forced and way too amusing.

"Sure," Will agreed, feeling somehow smug.

Magnus, as if just to prove not everything had changed, took of at something of a gallop, her stride forcing Will to jog to make up the distance she put between them in less than five seconds.

"So," he started. "What's new, Doc?"

She shot him what could have been an annoyed look and Will realised with a start that her zen was well and truly gone. Whatever pride she'd taken in showing him accomplishment was totally wiped away by the contents of two text messages and Will couldn't help but want to get his detective hat on.

"Things are different here, Will," she said, still sounding distracted. "You will have more responsibilities, more expectation and..." she paused, as if contemplating the intelligence of her words. "And more trust." Her words were tinted with something slightly ironic but Will couldn't make out the hidden meanings she was lacing everything with. Though he did wonder if she was maybe poking fun at his behaviour in the last few months of their working relationship.

"I haven't accepted the job yet," he replied weakly.

She gave him a disparaging look that, unlike her earlier statements, he understood in a heart beat.

He was going to accept the job and they both knew it.

She wouldn't take the risk of bringing him down to see her longest running secret if she wasn't sure he'd take the job.

The implications made him bristle but it wasn't enough to stop him following her up the long and winding path to the imposing doors set into the building.

He watched in awe as they slid back with a barely audible hiss, sliding into the walls and allowing them admittance to a beautifully light and spacious atrium entrance. Two imposing staircases wound up either side to the room, meeting in a large, elevated balcony that seemed to provide admittance to the upper levels though Will could barely make out the details, too absorbed in the simple magnificence of everything that surrounded him. Beneath the balcony and stairs were several oversized arches, each branching off to wonders Will was certain he would never stop marvelling over.

The architecture of the place alone boggled the mind, let alone the logistics of building such a place so far beneath the surface. For all he'd begrudged Magnus' secret keeping, he now marvelled at the fact that she'd been able to keep such a massive project under wraps for so long.

"Will!" two very familiar voices chorused from the mezzanine balcony, distracting him from his internal monologue of praise for the building and its creator.

Henry and Kate were, before he could blink, sprinting down the staircase towards him. He chuckled, opening his arms wide as they both barrelled into him, forcing him to take a few steps back at their embraces.

"Took you long enough," Kate growled, her grip on him more protective than he'd anticipated.

"Isn't it cool?" Henry enthused, pulling back and shoving his hands into his pockets as he rocked back on his heels. "And just you wait until you see the waterfall up close, dude."

Will merely laughed at both of them, easing Kate off of him before slinging an arm around her shoulder. She didn't protest the contact, much to his surprise which made him wonder if Magnus had contemplated the idea of not inviting him down at all.

He opened his mouth to say something to Magnus, who was merely standing back and watching their reunion with a small smile, when, out of nowhere, her phone went off again.

Her frown was back as she read the message, this time with a slight touch of anger that made Will thankful that her frown wasn't directed at him.

Henry and Kate were babbling away excitedly to him, their eyes alight with joy at being able to show off their new home to him though Will could barely keep up. His interest in whatever had Magnus so frustrated didn't help either...

"Is something wrong?" he finally asked. Both Henry and Kate gave him a dubious look before sharing a glance of understanding between themselves. In one smooth movement, they stepped back from him and Magnus, as if afraid of what he might provoke.

"Nothing I can't handle," she announced, flashing them all a far too tense smile before stowing her still beeping phone in a pocket. An uncomfortable silence fell over them all as they continued to listen to the shrill beep of incoming messages.

"You gonna get that?" Kate said but, much to Will's surprise, her tone wasn't sarcastic or even aimed at provoking Magnus. But she did. The look Kate received was scorching and made the younger woman recoil ever so slightly but, again to Will's surprise, Magnus did indeed check her phone.

A few tense moments passed and, again Magnus frowned though this time she murmured something too. Something that, to Will, looked a lot like 'blasted, sneaky vampire'.

He sincerely hoped his lip reading skills were failing him.

Pursing her lips, Magnus' gaze snapped up at and she gave them all one of those painfully tight smiles.

"Can I trust you both to show William around?" she asked rather pointedly, hands clasped before her.

Kate nodded as Henry stuttered out something in the affirmative while Will bit back a complaint at being discarded so quickly after his reception.

"Excellent," Magnus continued. "Will. I'll be by later and we discuss the particulars."

"I haven't said yes yet," he reminded her but, once more, she merely chuckled.

"If you need me, I'll have my phone," she said over her shoulder, her trademark heels clacking against the floor long after she disappeared down one of the corridors that still had Will reeling.

"So," Will said, turning to his two friends. "Who's gonna give me the tour?"

"There is no way you're going to convince me that we have another Sally," Will said with a laugh.

"Not another Sally," Henry said, shaking his head.

"A Sall-him," Kate agreed. "Apparently Magnus is out to build an arc or something."

"Does this mean mini-merepeople?" Will asked.

"Only if Sally can stop treating him like a little brother," Henry replied. "She's attached to him but apparently four decades in age difference puts a different spin on the relationship."

"Not for his lack of trying," Kate allowed.

"Oh, no. No. No mermaid flirting tails, please," Will said, holding up a hand.

"She's still keen on you, though."

"Next topic please!"

Henry and Kate chuckled. With a sigh, Will relaxed back into the plush couch of the media room the others had led him to. There was a large window on one wall, the curtains drawn back to give them a post card perfect view of the waterfall and surrounding lake. Will could see the rock wall that enclosed what he'd learnt to be a rather large cavern but, between the artificial sun and the sheer magnitude of it, he struggled to remember that they were, in fact, underground.

It was a marvel.

Like Magnus.

Speaking of which...

"What's up with Magnus?"

Henry and Kate shared a look of uncertainty.

"She's... different down here."

"Different how?"

"Well..."

"Just different."

"Bossier."

"Sassier."

"But nicer."

"But still sassy."

"Let's use proper sentences, children," Will cut in.

"It's the vampire's fault," Kate said, crossing her arms.

"Tesla? Tesla's here?" Will asked incredulously.

"He's here," Henry said sadly.

"Really here."

"Really, truly here."

"In all his glory," Kate said. Will wondered if it was really awe he could hear in her voice.

"I thought we weren't talking about it," Henry grumbled.

"We aren't," Kate replied rather defensively. "This isn't talking about it."

"It's close enough," he asserted.

"Again with the full sentences," Will suggested.

Kate sighed heavily as Henry averted his gaze, suddenly becoming fascinated in the neatly knotted laces of his shoes.

"We walked in on the Doc naked," Kate said. Her tone was far too matter-of-fact for Will's liking considering all the images she'd just forced to assault his brain.

"Only part naked," Henry mumbled.

"Part naked. With a naked vampire."

"Oh god," Will groaned.

"While he was trying to convince her to try out handcuffs."

"Oh god."

"And-"

"No more," Will pleaded.

"And-"

"I said stop."

"And-"

"I swear to God, Kate, if you continue I will never forgive you."

"Ditto," Henry said, his face beet red.

"And it was disturbing and you're both babies," she finished with an impressive pout. "I don't see why I should have to suffer and Will be immune."

"Because I've almost succeeded with the mental bleaching of that particular detail from my brain," Henry whined.

"And I'm scarred enough, thank you very much," Will put in weakly. He had expected that Tesla would be about in some capacity eventually but 'naked tie-er-up-er of Boss Lady' was not exactly the job description he had in mind.

"Oh quit complaining," Kate muttered. "You didn't actually see it."

"But does this mean that she and Tesla are-"

"NO!" the other two said in tandem, eyes wide.

"Don't say that," Kate hissed. "She might hear you."

"What?"

"Dude, she's right. Don't go there."

"Go where?" Will asked, genuinely perplexed.

"Go insinuating," Kate whispered almost fearfully. "That Tesla and the Doc are... You know. A thing."

The last word was said with more apprehension than Will thought fearless Freelander was capable of.

"So she's just... letting him tie her up?"

"Dude!"

"I dunno what they're doing," Kate said, shaking her head. "But they're not a thing. At all. Ever. Apparently."

It took a second but then realisation dawned.

"You asked her," Will breathed, his own eyes now wide in fear.

"I drew the short straw," Kate allowed with a dirty look for Henry.

"Yeah, and we both got chewed out for it," Henry retorted.

"Oh man, you guys are so screwed," Will said with a chuckle. "She's never gonna let you live that down."

"No need to remind us," Kate said bitterly.

"So what did she say?" he asked rather eagerly. "Are you both grounded?"

Kate slapped him over the head while Henry punched his upper arm with enough strength that he knew he'd probably bruise.

Henry muttered something dark and unrepeatable under his breath.

"She told us, on no uncertain terms that, firstly, it wasn't our business, no matter what we walked in on."

"And secondly that we have to knock more."

"But that she was most certainly not 'the vamp's girl'," Kate surmised.

"I told you not to use that phrase to her face," Henry said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, well, I didn't see you volunteering to go find out the gruesome details," she bit back.

Again Will laughed, running a hand through his hair. As stomach turning as the whole idea of Magnus and the vampire getting naked was, he couldn't help but be intrigued by the rather staunch negative Kate had received.

"So if they're not... dating," Will said, scrunching up his nose at the word (it didn't fit their nearly 300 year old boss very well), "what are they doing?"

"Each other," Kate said quickly with a rather evil grin. "A lot."

"But they're not..."

"Nope."

"And he's OK with that?"

"The vamp? Yeah. Seems to be. Though he leers more now."

"Do you think that's what the text messages were about?"

"The Boss Lady sexting?" Kate asked with a snort while Henry moaned his disapproval.

"OK, when you put it like that..." Will muttered in disgust.

"Can we go see Biggie or something?" Henry asked. "I think I'm gonna be sick."

"The Big Guy?" Will echoed, unable to keep from grinning.

Now that was one of Magnus' old friends he wouldn't mind catching up with again.

Meanwhile:

Helen knew she was rushing. Her strides were getting longer and her pace more hurried but she couldn't help it.

Stupid, bloody vampire.

It was all his fault, she thought angrily. She'd left him alone for ten minutes with one instruction and, of course, he couldn't very well listen, could he.

No, instead he had to text her. Repeatedly. Bemoaning her absence.

For someone tied to her bed head, he was rather clingy.

"You are impossible," she growled as she threw open the door only to be greeted with a naked, smirking vampire. He was lounging on her bed, his phone in one hand and what Helen had thought were vampire proof restraints in the other.

She tried her best not to stare at the more exposed and... enlarged parts of his anatomy but, as her eyes settled on his long, lean forearms, Helen wasn't sure she'd really succeeded in the not starting thing. In fact, she was quickly mesmerised by the play of muscle, the way it all bunched and released as he toyed with his phone.

"I told you not to leave for so long," he said with a nonchalant shrug.

She pursed her lips, shaking off the overwhelming arousal that would have, normally, been her undoing. She was determined to make him pay this time.

After all, she'd let the incident with Kate and Henry slide, hadn't she? And it really wasn't her fault. He should have locked the damn door.

"And I told you I'd be back as soon as I could," she countered, crossing her arms.

"Close the door, dear," Nikola replied with a grin. "There's a bit of a draft."

"Get dressed."

"Get naked."

His counter, while tempting, was not enough when she was this annoyed with him.

"Get out of my bed," she said, shifting her weight. "And don't forget to delete those damn messages."

His grin, somehow, grew more devilish.

"You liked it," he said, voice low and seductive.

Helen fought a shiver.

"I'd ask you not to send such explicit material on Sanctuary phones."

"Would you rather naughty emails?"

"I'd rather you behave yourself, Nikola."

He chuckled again and swung his legs off the edge of the bed, discarding the cuffs and the phone.

"You should know better than to leave me and my magnetic powers alone with these," he said stalking across the room to her.

She ignored his statement, pointing one longer finger in his direction as she narrowed her eyes.

"No," she said firmly. "No sex. Not when you can't behave."

He didn't reply but the hungry look in his eye said more than Helen could have ever thought possible.

"No," she said again. Nikola smiled, closing what little distance remained between them. While she could feel her pulse rapidly spiralling out of control and a little voice in her head was reminding her that she had a protégé to attend to, it wasn't until he backed her up against the wall that Helen remembered she could, in fact, speak.

Not that Nikola gave her the chance.

"Leaving me locked up was not nice," he half growled. Helen swallowed heavily but tried to stand her ground.

"No sex," she said again, her voice shaky.

He pursed his lips at that but, without another word, he sank to his knees, hands slowly pushing the fabric of her dress up.

"Fine," he almost purred. "No sex."

Helen let her head fall back with a thunk, tangling her hand in his unruly hair.

"I have to go deal with William," she tried.

"I'm sure he can wait," Nikola replied, pressing a kiss to her knee cap so gently that it made her toes curl.

Swallowing, Helen tried to breathe evenly, assuring herself that yes, in fact, Will could wait. In fact, he could wait a very, very long time.

Can anyone tell I've been doing a lot of dialogue exercises :S