New in Town (Steven Grant)
Summary: Steven finds an unlikely friend when a seasoned wildlife biologist starts working at the natural history museum. When things start to go off the rails in his own life, she becomes the only person he feels safe asking for help.
Warnings: Light cursing, brief sexual tension (no smut this time)
Word Count: 4,100
Author's Notes: This is literally my first time posting fanfiction on anything, so thanks for stopping by!. This is pretty much a self-indulgent fic that rides in the uncanny valley between a self-insert and a fanfiction with an OC. The character gets described briefly, but a name is never used, so take it for what you will. This mostly follows the plot of the first couple of episodes with some tweaking. This is kind of meant to be a series, so let me know if you'd be interested in seeing more!
The city of London was more interesting than she had originally expected.
She had always heard all of the romanticism of the historic town, but she had never felt the overwhelming urge to go there. The architecture was old, looming, and yet had an air of life as small coffee shops filled the empty caverns and people bustled in and out of them excitedly. Upon taking a deep breath, though, she scrunched her nose at the hazy, dirty musk that the city had, accentuated by the almost constant rainfall.
She had always loved the rain, though – even craved it. As she walked over to the coffee stand, she didn’t even bother with an umbrella since it was nothing more than a small drizzle over them. Rolling her eyes at the grumpy brits hunched under umbrellas, she gave the woman at the coffee shop a bright smile as she ordered some iced coffee. She walked off with it and took her first sip with a contented hum, not minding the looks she was getting from folks.
Making sure she was still on time, she made her way up the magnificent stairs of the natural history museum with awe. It was an incredible museum, and she smiled knowingly at the banners advertising their immense Egypt exhibition. She smelled how the air changed from the cold and hazy of London to the dry and aged air of the museum as she passed through, noting the warmth going through her body.
She walked up to the security man, who gave her a fairly uninterested smile – that was, before she pulled out her faculty pass to the museum.
He cocked his head. “Faculty? You new?”
“Doing some research with your Zoological collection."
He immediately took notice of her mild American accent, smirking slightly. “Needed some help from across the pond, eh?”
She smiled through the twinge of annoyance that pinged in the back of her head. “Actually, I’m coming over to provide some expertise and help with your Scottish Highlands Cat population that’s struggling,” she held out her hand, “– I mainly work with large carnivore ecology and conservation, but I’ve got a fair amount of experience with smaller mesocarnivores.”
The man gawked slightly as some heat rose into his cheeks, clearly embarrassed. He grabbed her hand limply before scanning her badge and letting her in. She felt his gaze on her back slightly as she meandered through the museum, adjusting her large messenger bag. She had intentionally gotten there early so she could explore the museum in more detail before she began working in the back…
......
Steven’s neck twinged as he shot up his head, trying to shake the exhaustion from his soul. It was deep and dark, pulling down his spine. The hard sandstone bench across from him called with a sinister seduction as he gripped the glass tabletop in front of him, attempting to ground himself.
“Now we don’t need to be falling asleep at work, you bloody moron,” he muttered as he rubbed his palm down his face.
The lack of sleep the past week was catching up to him, hard.
He sighed, trying to take his mind off of things, running his own trivia game in his head on all of the Egyptian artifacts he could see from the gift shop counter. His gaze bounced desperately from the Osiris and Iris statues to the jackal depictions, around the urns and coffins, recalling in perfect detail everything about them. There was a deep sadness that welled in his heart that this is where he had ended up – behind a gift shop counter instead of out in the collection, telling children about this ancient world and making their eyes go wide in awe.
Maybe one day.
His breath hitched in his throat when he caught the sight of a woman walking through the Egypt collection. She was tall – probably only an inch shorter than he – and long, copper and blonde curls cascaded all around her, like a painting of a Celtic deity. She had a strong Celtic nose and bright blue-green eyes that went over each of the pieces of the Egypt collection with an almost academic interest, full lips parting slightly as she silently worded the descriptions to each of the pieces to herself, even occasionally bringing out a journal and jotting things down. Heat immediately came up behind his cheeks, chiding himself for staring at random women, and yet he couldn’t take his gaze off of her. There was a strange twinge of familiarity that she brought about in him, one that he couldn’t place in his right mind.
As he checked out other visitors, his dark, pooly gaze would bounce back to her intermittently.
Eventually, after what felt like ages, the strange woman came over to the gift shop area of the exhibit. She had a casual, interested look in her eyes as she looked through all of the items relating to the Egyptian goddess Bastet, a smile curving along her full, soft lips. She gingerly folded a journal and book on the cat goddess under her arm before looking over towards the counter. She met her eyes to his and hers brightened, walking over to him.
His heart rate picked up the moment they locked eyes, his Adam’s apple bobbing nervously. There was an otherworldly air to her that had his whole body reacting to her, viscerally, and he couldn’t even pick out exactly what it was about her. There was something to the smooth curves of her body and huge blue-green eyes that had him enraptured.
Oh damn it, he thought, keep it together.
Not only was he overwhelmingly embarrassed that he had been staring at her for so long, but now the poor woman was going to come over and interact with the blushy, stuttering, anxiety-ridden mess that he was.
When she came over, he gulped and sucked up as much of his nervousness as he could, giving her a pleasant smile. “’Ello there, miss. Find something you liked?”
“I did, actually,” her calm energy flowed from her, making his heart beat more but his body calm slightly, “I love the collection you guys have here – it’s nothing like what we have in Denver, you know.”
He was so focused on not making a fool of himself that it took him a moment to even notice her accent. Glancing down at her chest to avoid her eyes, he saw the visiting faculty badge on her heart. His anxiety stepped aside for a moment as genuine curiosity came to the forefront of his mind.
“Visiting faculty,” he spoke aloud as he read, coming back up to meet her gaze. “What for?”
She laughed a little bit, which was so sweet it sounded like velvet in his ears. “I’m actually working with your guises’ zoological collection, specifically the Scottish Highlands Cat.”
He cocked his head in slight confusion. “You mean the dead ones in the back?”
A knowing smile came across her face. “Weird, I know. What’s so incredible about museum specimens is that they can still have viable genetic information even after a hundred years -- did you know that? – so that we can understand what the genetic diversity of a population looked like all the way back then. Using that, we can understand how it’s changed over time and, specifically with the Scottish Highlands Cat, understand how much of their current genetic diversity is from hybridized domestic cat genes.”
His mouth was slightly agape with all of the detailed jargon that just spilled out of her mouth like poetry. He understood about five words in the entire thing, but he wanted nothing more than to hear her keep talking.
“Sorry,” she chuckled, “that was probably more confusing than helpful."
He shook his head quickly, reaching his arm out towards her “No! Er- well, it was- but you explained it really well, I think.”
Back to the blushing idiot, stumbling over himself trying to not offend her. Instead of getting annoyed like he thought she would, however, she smiled at him sweetly.
“Well, thank you,” was that a bit of a blush on her cheeks? “What about you?”
Steven raced through his head trying to figure out what part of the conversation he had missed where that question made any sense, quickly starting to panic.
“I, uh… what do you mean?” The thought of her being able to see her blush made him blush even harder. God, he just wanted to crawl in a hole and leave his body completely-
“What has you working at the museum?”
Oh.
“It’s probably the Egyptology stuff, innit?” He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, looking around at all of the Egyptian artifacts surrounding them. “I’ve loved just about all of it since I was a lil’ kid, always wanted to know more about it. It just fascinated me in a way that nothing else does – the gods, the societies, how people interacted with their gods through burials, all of it.”
Realizing he started rambling, he looked back at her. She was watching him intently, nodding at his words.
“That’s exactly how I am with wildlife ecology and evolution, conservation – all of it. I can’t imagine doing anything else with my life, you know?”
He knew exactly what she meant. So much so that he was subconsciously leaning over on the counter, bringing their faces closer. He opened his mouth when the voice of his boss rang through the large, cavernous hall they were in.
"Back to work, Grant!" The voice was piercing and rough, ruining the mood of the whole room. Steven chucked in embarrassment, looking past her shoulder and seeing several people waiting to get checked out behind her.
"S-so sorry, but it looks like I need to…" he looked back at her, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.
The woman flicked her wrist in dismissal, smiling. "Don't worry about it! I'm sorry for taking up your working time."
She turned to walk off, but she felt a warm hand grab her hand. She turned in surprise to see Steven had come around the counter and was facing her directly now, a dark curl still in motion on his forehead. His eyes were wide with an almost desperate pooly-ness.
"I, uh… how long will you be working here, love?'
Now it was her turn to blush lightly.
"I'll be around for a while, I'm assuming I'll see you?"
His hand was warm and callused around hers. "Y-yeah, I'll be here."
"I'm looking forward to it, then."
With that, she finally made her way to the back of the museum, where only volunteers and faculty were allowed. Steven's dark gaze followed her all the way until she disappeared behind the mysterious door to the zoology lab. He wondered if he could sneak in there…
…..
Turns out she wasn't just being polite with the intent to see him again – she had actually started coming around to his counter regularly to chat. After the first couple of times, she came up and bluntly asked if she was annoying him, always coming around like this – which he almost too eagerly shot down, reassuring her that it was wonderful to have her come around and talk with him. As much as Steven would want to crawl into a hole if she ever knew, he was honestly just relishing in awe at the fact that someone, especially such a warm, thoughtful person as she, seemed to truly notice him. He had gotten so accustomed to people just moving their gazes past him on the bus, or having a glazed-over look as they politely interacted with him at the gift shop counter, that he didn't know what to do with himself when she would come around. Practically every time she would walk away he was sure that he had made a fool of himself, that she would be weirded out and not come back, but she did.
Over the two weeks since they had met, they had developed a slight routine of her coming before her work in the back began to say hi, ask how things were, and he would get to learn a little bit more about the incredibly complicated work that she was doing, all the while she would catch glimpses into the irreducibly wonderful and intriguing world of Egyptology.
That's why, when he didn't come into work for two days, she felt the absence deeply. The first day, she had cast the counter a wary glance, but shrugged it off, figuring that he had taken the day off or slept in. The second day, though… a feeling began to spill into her gut that had her shaking her leg under her desk the whole time she was at the museum. There was anxiety gnawing at her gut, telling her something was wrong. There was a deeper part of her still that was terrified for the worst and wanted to take off looking for him. She chided herself slightly for being so nervous about Steven, but she knew more about his situation than she wanted to let on.
In the darkness of her apartment, she spoke to herself clearly.
"You don't think something's happened?
Almost as soon as she had said the words, she could feel a presence arrive behind her. She didn't bother to turn around when a warm, feminine, deep voice came over here ethereally.
"Khonshu has yet to inform me of anything serious. I haven't heard from him at all, though."
She signed, putting her hand on the top of her knee in an attempt to keep it from jumping so badly.
"Do you know where he is? Should I go after him?"
"Your time to intervene in that way isn't upon us yet," a tall, dark, feline form curled around her bed serendipitously, a long tail of deep velvet curling behind in its wake. She saw the air warp around Bastet slightly, as it always did when she appeared to her. A sign of her otherworldly aura, how she was something curling its tendrils in her head rather than something of the world she knew. "It'll impact your relationship greatly. As I understand, Steven is not aware of his avatar nature."
She signed, looking over to the god. "Right," she muttered, shaking her head at the absurdity of it all. "It was cruel of Khonshu to choose someone that fragile to begin with, don't you think? I didn't know how bad it was."
A long, slow blink behind long eyelashes. "It certainly wouldn't hold with the council. Then again, neither would I".
"What do you mean?"
What she could interpret as a sigh came from the presence, though nothing presented itself as such aside from her shift in aura. "Lesser gods were not intended to take avatars – according to them, it wasn't worth the potential trouble it would cause. Hence why Ammit presents such a troubling situation."
The response raised more questions than answers, but she knew better than to bombard Bastet with buts and whys. Much to the mysterious nature of all Felidae, Bastet was a creature of few words. As she understood, it was exceptionally unusual that she had been selected as her avatar to begin with. Gift horse and all that.
The goddess walked up and placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up. The many gold and lapis adornments on her head and neck shone brilliantly in the moonlight, the mysterious, otherworldly pools of her eyes focusing on the biologist. She interpreted an almost playful look in her eyes
"I can tell you've grown attached to him, my dear."
The biologist blushed slightly, avoiding the gaze of the goddess looking above her like a parent. "He’s pretty cute."
"I sense that Steven will need a warm, stable spirit by his side for the days to come – someone who can protect him and help in understanding the new reality that will be presented to him. You know I would not have called you to him if I did not think you would be crucial to this."
Her words were sobering. She nodded, feeling the intense, velvety energy coursing through her from the goddess's hand.
"I understand."
"Also…" the playful lilt returned to Bastet's voice, "you have yet to take advantage of the pleasure aspect of my power… it is a gift you can seize at any time, without judgement."
She shifted uncomfortably under the intense gaze. "I know… I just want it to be me who they are attracted to, not the power you give me. It feels manipulative."
The grip on her shoulder tightened slightly. "You are a deeply sensual spirit to begin with. All my power does is accentuate what's already there – and from what I've seen, he's already… quite enthralled with you."
The biologist's gaze shot up to the deity, her response bordering desperation. "You think?"
A smile – or the curl of her feline mouth that she knew was her version of a smile. "If you were to pursue him, I sense he wouldn't resist. You need to be cautious, though. He's a complicated, broken man. You have to be prepared before you take that step."
She nodded thoughtfully. The biologist wished that things were different – that their introduction could have been natural, in a world without Egyptian deities to twist the strings of fate together. There had been several lingering moments in their conversations where she had wanted to blurt out who she was, the true reason why she had randomly taken a chance to come out to the British Isles and undergo the research she was, at the museum she was. Her heart swelled at the adorable, nervous man – his mop of dark hair, the curve of his upper lip, his huge, pooly dark eyes. She also loved his personality, how he would lose himself and leave his anxiety behind while he explained complicated historical concepts to her, all the while he would stare at her in awe and intrigue while she would excitedly teach him about her world and all of the wonderful aspects of nature that she had fallen head over heels for. It was the first time in her life that she had experienced someone that was just as enthralled with her as she was with him; someone who she could see herself spending late nights and early mornings with.
Was it strange to be so in love with a man she had barely known for two weeks?
......
Approaching the museum the next day, her heart sank. Still an empty counter. Still no Steven.
The grimy fingernails of dread crept up the back of her neck, forming a pit in her stomach. The gargantuan halls of the museum closed in on her as she made her way to the zoology lab, head down, hair falling in her face. She felt the comforting presence of Bastet nearby, but even her energy was tinged with worry.
She had just laid her fingers on the handle to the lab door when she heard a commotion in the main hall. Her anxious mind dictated that she turn around and see what was happening, turning and moving cautiously into the main collections hall.
There Steven was, taking a box of stuffed animals abashedly from Donna.
He looked like shit. His hair was tangled and tinged with dirt, and she saw deep, exhausting bags under his eyes. Wrinkled clothes cling to his body, his olive skin with scratches and dirt cascading over it.
When he first locked eyes with her, he saw the deep, unrelenting tiredness that seeped into his irises. But when he looked at her, his eyebrows raised and a smile crept on his features – almost one of relief, she thought.
When she came up to him, she could immediately smell the stress sweat and grime coming from him, but she couldn't care in the least. He looked to the left and right of her anxiously before leaning in and whispering to her.
"Meet me in the back tonight, yeah? Inventory?"
She didn't know if he intended for that to imply what it did, but she immediately felt the ache in her low belly from his words. His voice was breathy and tired, but with the sweet lightness of his accent that curled its way through her oh so pleasantly.
"Uh…" she shook her head like she was trying to force her self-indulgent thoughts out of her head. "Sorry. Inventory?" Her look changed to one of worry. "Where have you been? You look like shit – are you okay?"
Slight exasperation tinged his movements as he sat down the box hurriedly and grabbed her shoulders, making her raise an eyebrow at the sudden boldness he was showing.
"Look," Steven's gaze bore into hers, scratched jaw set with tension. "I know we've only known each other for a small bit (was this going where she thought it was?) but I feel as though I can trust you. I don't know why, but I do." Her heart swelled at how sincere he was being.
"I've had some really weird… dreams… recently, and they're messing with my sleep a bit. This is a really weird favor, but… I'm wondering if I could talk them through with you?"
He paused for a second, trying to gauge her reaction. The facade of boldness he had put on was shed quickly in favor of the true anxiety he felt. Her face showed concern, but he thought he saw a deep, caring note in her.
"I know it's weird, but… you're really smart, and you're just about the only person I know who wouldn't treat me like a right loon, you know?"
A smirk played on her features and she brought a hand to her face in a ponderous fashion. Steven’s eyes followed the way her thumb barely graced the bottom of her full lips.
"Well, I wouldn't think it would be bad to be compared to a loon myself," a small, playful smile made its way to her lips, "they're actually pretty badass birds."
She chuckled at the utterly confused look on his face, making him blush. She put her hand on his shoulder and smiled more genuinely.
"I’ll have to inform you more about loons sometime. Anyway – I wouldn't mind at all, Steven. If anything, I'm flattered that you would come to me.”
Her haze flickered to Steven’s throat as his Adam’s apple bobbed nervously. She wasn’t thinking as her lip came under her teeth, the soft pink flesh being held back by a canine. Steven mentally slapped himself for looking.
Their eyes flickered up to each other, and Steven hummed nervously, reaching a hand to the back of his neck.
“So that’s a yes?”
“Yeah – though I feel somewhat obligated to remind you that I’m an animal behaviorist, not a human one… I have been told I’m a good listener for both, however.”
A small ‘right’ came out of Steven’s mouth and trailed off into the air, which he swore was getting warmer for some reason. He held her gaze for a few moments longer, occasionally stealing a glance at her lips and face. There was a piece of his mind that chided him for opening up to her, knowing what usually happened when he would try to be genuine with women. To not approach them like a stiff board, with the facade of normalcy that they all seemed to be comfortable with. Even just asking her if she would sit and listen to him made him feel open, raw and exposed, almost as if she could watch his heart pound in his chest and take it at any moment.
Simultaneously, he caught waves of calm energy that came from her. She hadn’t reacted like he had expected at all – where he was grimacing in anticipation of rejection, he was met with humor and sincerity. It was as if every time he messed up she cocooned him in warmth and mirth, comfort, safety. He felt safe with her – like no matter what happened, he wouldn’t freak her out or make her leave. She was solid, beautiful, wise, and warm. There was almost a supernatural aspect to her being, like she had a power beyond her years.
As she bid him adieu and walked back to her lab, that wave of familiarity came back to him – it was coated in dust and archaic energy, and as he saw the Bastet notebook she was carrying clutched in her fingers, it connected with the familiarity in such a strange fashion – a flash of lightning – that he didn't know what to do with.
“She’s literally like a goddess, in’ she?” He murmured to himself. Given how weird things were getting, it didn’t even come off as too strange to him. If anything, it caused a heat to enter his belly that he shook his head over, picking up the plush Bastet toys and taking them back to the gift shop counter.
......
A/N: Thank you for reading! Feedback would be awesome, but be nice lol. Let me know if you'd be interested in me posting more in the future.
