528Cortana looked out the window at the seemingly endless fields they lived amongst. She couldn't see much in the distance but John told her he could see the city nearby. The colony they lived on was one of the farthest away from Earth. Because of this, it wasn't overly populous. It was relatively easy to hide and left properties with open spaces more crowded planets could never afford.
She ran her hand along the windowsill and reflected upon the past year and a half. A year ago they had completed this home. Since then they'd hardly seen another soul and Cortana couldn't help but feel happier than she ever had. It honestly wasn't all that different from their time on the Halo campaign in many ways. It was without a doubt much quieter, but even then it had just been her and John. She knew that there were people out on the rest of the planet, but John really had no concern or desire to seek them out. The few times they had left for something they couldn't have delivered he had been very tense.
She saw John walk to a small outbuilding they'd built carrying what looked to be a large tree trunk over his shoulder with little exertion. She smiled, put on her shoes and went outside.
"What do you plan on doing with that?" she laughed. He dropped the tree on the ground with little caution and crossed his arms.
"I've never slept in a bed big enough for me, I figured now is just as good of a time as any to make one," his tone was rather matter-of-fact. Cortana knew she usually couldn't discern much from the tone of his voice but rather how he moved and his facial expressions. She hadn't realized everything she'd been missing with his face obscured by a visor and his whole body covered in armor. The first month or so of them living together she couldn't stop simply staring at him, almost meeting him all over again. Yes, she had spent a large part of her life existing in his mind and she could still recite his service record verbatim but nothing compared to seeing the crows feet around his eyes, the few and far in between smiles and seeing the years melt away while he worked outside.
He was still very pale but not as ghostly as he was most of his life. He didn't grow his hair out by any means but it was longer than it had been since his service. He shaved whenever he felt like it, usually letting a few days of stubble grow. He had a large scar that started on his chin that went up to his left cheek where hair wouldn't grow and a similar scar through his right eyebrow.
"Can I help?" she smiled.
"Sure, open the shop door and help me check out tools."
John insisted on keeping accurate records of the tools they had amassed for his growing woodworking hobby. Cortana found herself surprised at how much he seemed to enjoy relatively normal tasks-she supposed that perhaps he had enough of excitement.
She turned on the lights and opened up the large shop door. John hefted the tree and set it down on his large work table. Seeing him accomplish such ridiculous physical feats should've seemed odd to her but Cortana really hadn't had much contact with other humans in a while. Even though somewhere in her mind she knew he was nothing short of extraordinary, he was her normal, her standard by which she measured everything. She even had to remind herself that not being able to keep up with him running or in feats of strength was more normal even though her competitive nature told her otherwise.
As he worked, Cortana mostly watched even though she'd hand him a tool here and there. She couldn't help but think about how freeing it was to be able to just exist-she didn't have to constantly process or calibrate information she observed, she could just see it and take it for what it was. As an AI, she would've been compelled to process the angles at which he cut wood, the rounds per minute of the buzzsaw and the exact origins and type of tree he was using.
In a few hours John had fashioned a rustic, sturdy, enormous frame. She and John worked on staining it a dark brown and opened the windows to let the fumes escape. She crossed her arms and admired their work.
"So I suppose we're going to have to go into town to get a mattress for this thing,"
John frowned immediately.
"We could order something and it'd be here in an hour but we just ordered in kitchen appliances and I know you don't want to draw too much attention,"
After John was discharged from the UNSC, he had felt lost and very wary. After effectively ending two wars and saving the entire universe multiple times over, he couldn't help but feel empty and abandoned by the only life he had ever known.
He went as far away as he could from anyone or anything making it very difficult for anyone to find him. He dreamt of fading into obscurity instead of being the savior of the human race. He didn't want anything from the UNSC and as far as Cortana was concerned the UNSC owed John the dignity of a quiet, remote life. John wouldn't voice his opinions as loudly but Cortana could see it in the measures he took to remain hidden. John hated the attention of going into town so he seldom did.
"And unfortunately I can't carry a mattress by myself and if you go by yourself and run home six miles with a mattress it'll seem a little ridiculous so I think you're stuck coming with me."
"Fine," John took out his tablet and made note of the bed frame dimensions while Cortana cleaned up the mess they made building the frame.
John drove quickly. Cortana could tell he was on edge and wanted to get this process done as quickly as possible.
John parked the vehicle roughly in the back of the parking lot. He wore sunglasses to try and hide his distinctive eyes. Cortana thought it was a little pointless because he was almost seven feet tall but she didn't really care if it made him more comfortable.
They walked into the mall complex-it was small for the standards of other planets but it still had plenty of things. It was relatively crowded for the time of day. They reached the interface that would allow them to customize a mattress. Cortana sifted through the hologram looking at various choices and specifications. She felt pretty amazed at the amount of variations that existed on a mattress.
"What do you want in a mattress?"
"For my feet to not hang off and for the frame to not break."
Cortana rolled her eyes.
"Hi, welcome to our furniture emporium, can I help you two decide anything?" The associate was well dressed and seemed like a nice-enough twenty-some year old man.
"Sure," Cortana smiled. She handled situations like this well, she actually liked talking to people despite living in the middle of nowhere. "As you can see, my…" she paused. It wasn't a big deal to live together and be unmarried but she couldn't think of a word that described their relationship. "We are looking for a bed that he can sleep," she rephrased, "He is rather tall, John could you hand me the tablet,"
Cortana looked up at him and he didn't really seem phased by her referring to him as her husband. He produced their tablet and Cortana leaned over to show the associate. "You see, we need these measurements."
He looked at the specifications and nodded. "Okay, that's entirely doable. Do you know what you want for firmness?"
"Not really," Cortana shrugged.
"How do you both sleep?"
"I sleep on my side," Cortana answered quickly. She looked at John.
Without looking down or making eye contact he spoke, "I sleep on my back," he said effectively to the air above the associate's head. Cortana held back a sigh. She could tell he was oddly nervous about this excursion out, he hated attention. He wasn't really what she'd call shy but he was a man of concision; if he could say something in a few direct words he would.
The associate proceeded to make a bunch of recommendations until they chose something agreeable.
"Should be ready in an hour, help yourself to refreshments in our waiting area,"
John stood perfectly still and looked straight ahead. It made Cortana feel fidgety. She ran her hand down his arm and grabbed his hand.
"What's wrong? It's all fine," she traced the outline of his palm with her fingertips in a way she knew he found comforting.
"I just have a weird feeling."
Cortana frowned. John's feelings were always grounded in some reason. His instinct was almost always correct.
"Bad weird?"
"No," he paused. "Just weird weird."
"Chief,"
Cortana almost saw it happen in slow motion. John stiffened and turned to see a tall, well dressed woman. Her brown hair was pulled back in a loose braid that draped over her right shoulder. Her most prominent feature was her large, wide-set spartan blue-green eyes.
Cortana could tell John was shocked which was really saying something-very few things surprised him. Cortana looked at the woman once more and picked her brain. Before Cortana could place exactly who she was, John spoke.
"...Kelly," he spoke quietly. Well, that must've been John's weird feeling.
Cortana watched as Kelly reacted very oddly to John's presence. She looked like she was on the verge of tears and laughter all in one, an odd expression on a Spartan's face. In three long strides she made her way to John just stared at him.
Kelly pulled away and looked John square in the face, she took off his glasses and looked directly into his eyes. Kelly shed a tear when she found whatever she was looking for.
"It really is you, I thought…" she paused and wiped at her eyes, her lip quivered. "I don't know what I thought, but I didn't think that you'd be here of all places." She took a deep breath and quickly composed herself. "You have to come to my house."
Cortana was feeling a little ignored at this point. John looked at her, clearly wanting her thoughts. Kelly glanced at her and noticed her for the first time.
"Who is-"
"Later," Cortana spoke, smiling at the other woman. "We'll come over after we're done here. Put the coordinates of your home here," Cortana handed her a tablet.
Kelly handed John the tablet after putting in the location.
"Alright, your mattress is on a hovercart near the front of the store," the associate paused. He looked from John to Kelly and back again. "Oh is this your sister?" Kelly tensed up a little bit.
John answered without hesitation. "Yes. Yes she is."