All characters belong Hideo Kojima and Kojima Inc. This takes place before the Metal Gear series. Remember, smoking causes cancer and other ailments.
Cigars and Cigarettes
By Marie Nomad
Solid Snake sighed as he leaned against the tree. He had been training hard for his first mission in Foxhound and to hopefully lose his rookie status. He didn't even get a chance to smoke yet. The young man reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette from his pack. He lit it up and inhaled deeply. He felt the taste of nicotine and smoke in his mouth and his lungs and exhaled. "Ahhh…"
Suddenly, a hand snatched up the lit cigarette and Snake stood up at the sight of Big Boss.
"You get distracted too easily and what is this?" Big Boss waved the cigarette in front of him while he had an angry look on his face.
"It's a cigarette."
"I know that it's a cigarette but why are you smoking?"
Snake blinked at the older man's stern attitude. "I like it?"
"Smoking is bad for your health! Every time you smoke one of these, you lose five minutes of your lifespan! Are you that eager for death?!"
"No sir! But… don't you smoke?" Snake was sure that he saw Big Boss smoking those huge cigars at his office the first time they met.
"That is entirely different. Cigars are more refined and you don't inhale when you smoke these babies. Oh, they are smooth and require a certain skill to smoke and when you see someone smoking a Cuban cigar, you know that person has power. Cigarettes are not healthy."
Snake stared at him completely confused. "But… aren't cigars bad for you too?"
"Some say they are but I don't believe them." Big Boss shook his head. "Listen, kid, your life is not as long as you think. Don't smoke your lifespan away!"
A moment passed between the two and Snake had to point out. "But you are."
"Well… that's… entirely different! I've been exposed to two nuclear bombs and so a cigar won't damage me any more. Besides, these cigars helped me on numerous missions!"
"I know; my cigarettes are lucky charms!" Snake held up his pack with the name 'Lucky Strikers' on it.
"But they will kill you!"
"No they won't."
"Also, any decent soldier won't smoke cigarettes on a sneaking mission. They just scream out, 'Hey, here I am!'."
"Snake Pliskin from Escape from New York did."
Big Boss hit his head. "That is fiction this is reality!"
"Why don't you both just quit smoking?"
The two looked to see Gray Fox standing there. Snake gazed at him impressed and feeling a little intimidated by such a heated discussion about smoking.
"I won't quit. He should quit." Big Boss pointed to Snake.
"But why?" Snake asked.
"Because… well, you just can't!"
"Aren't the both of you acting a little immature?" Gray Fox asked amused about this heated argument. It had been so long since Big Boss acted so brash like he used to. Maybe this Snake had managed to strike some weird nerve in the older man.
"He started-" Big Boss tensed up. "This is stupid. I am arguing with a rookie about smoking. Fine, go ahead and kill yourself." Big Boss walked away with a tired sigh.
Snake frowned as he stared at his pack. Gray Fox shook his head. "Ignore him. Go ahead and smoke but remember to take care of your health."
"Yeah." He shrugged. He got out another cigarette and lit it up. It wasn't like he can quit anyway.
The End…