Prologue: Pharah and Fareeha
Pharah was strong, she could fly, bullets never hurt, she was protected and protective. Pharah was everything that Fareeha wasn't.
Fareeha was weak, she was guilty of crimes to herself and others, she was cowardly. Pathetic.
Angela had quickly noticed small differences between her Pharah and Fareeha, her girlfriend was very secretive about the latter, often trying to seek solitude in the shower or when she thought Angela wasn't around. Fareeha was small and scared of her own weakness. Angela was worried.
Mercy never missed the way Pharah would scratch her wrist in tough missions, only ever her right one, and the boisterous yet nervous laughter when something wasn't going quite to plan, then the tough, useless orders than followed that usually made things worse at first then better towards the end.
Mercy never missed the way Fareeha would occasionally slip through the cracked mask named Pharah, she always knew how fragile Fareeha's facade was, yet never pushed, never crossed the boundry.
Mercy never missed those weaker moments that were faster than Tracer on speed during a mission, she stuck close to Fareeha in those moments, giving her a boost and comfort, helping her get on with the mission without any breakdowns.
It was safe to say that Angela "Mercy" Ziegler was very observant.
Pharah was a mask that even her mother couldn't see through. Pharah was a mask that had been repaired so often that you couldn't even tell who she was any more. Pharah was cracking again.
Angela was warm, she cared for both Pharah and Fareeha, Angela saw Fareeha's scars and Pharah's cracks, Angela never pressed despite being a doctor.
Although Pharah's cracks were new, Fareeha's scars stayed old, seventeen vertical lines on her right forearm, no more, no less, old and faded.
Angela held Fareeha when Pharah had cracked, Angela kissed Fareeha in those lonely shower times, staying naked with her, not judging, not talking, just comforting.
Time seemed to repeat itself as the next day Pharah was back, with another patched crack, waiting to be broken again.
The universe had other plans though.