Mutual Understanding
Emilia sat at a table in the mess hall of the Base of Operations. Sitting down with some rations, she ate in silence as the room echoed with conversing members of the JTF, civilians and other Division agents.
It had been a few days since she helped the JTF free the post office from gang violence. It was far from easy and a few JTF members were lost in the gunfight.
Looking around as she took another bite of her food, Emilia noticed some other agents staring at her.
She nodded to them in greeting but received nothing in return.
"Well fuck you too." she said into her glass of water as she took a big gulp.
It wasn't uncommon to come across people who didn't feel the need to be friendly to others. But damn, it was annoying.
Picking up her backpack from the bench she sat on, she plopped it onto the table and began rummaging through it.
Pulling a book from within, she began reading it silently to herself.
The agents staring at her all got up from their table and left, leaving her alone.
The table she sat on shook for a moment as someone sat down on the opposite side. Glancing up from the book but for a moment, sapphire blue met piercing emerald.
He looked to be in his mid to late twenties, short brown hair hidden under a navy blue beanie. A rifle sat holstered to his back and a very distinct scar stretched down his left eye.
He noticed her staring and surprisingly grinned. It was quite the contagious grin too, seeing as how Emilia smiled back.
"Hey." he said in response, putting a pistol on the table and began opening his backpack.
"Uh, hi." she answered a bit nervously, looking down at her book to turn a page.
"How long have you been activated?" he asked, scooting over so they sat face to face.
Looking up from her book, her right brow rose. There were a few moments of awkward silence as she finally gave in.
"About a week." she answered truthfully.
"Me too, but I kinda did my own thing beforehand." he admitted.
Another few moments of silence before the young man held out his hand.
"Leon Marx. Second Wave Division Agent."
Emilia shook his hand back and nodded in respect.
"Emilia...or you could just call me Agent Brant. Emilia is kind of a long name...and a little too fancy for most people."
That contagious smile crept across his face again as he chuckled.
"Alright." he replied. "Nice to meet you, Ms. Brant." he took a look around the room and sighed. "Damn...it's a lot worse than the news made it out to be, huh?"
Emilia nodded. "Yeah...it's pretty bad."
"So...what did you do before you got activated?" he asked a bit naively.
Well he's awfully friendly. Emilia thought, giving off a sheepish smile.
"I...was a culinary student here in New York." she answered.
Leon's intrigued smile fell flat as he coughed into his hand.
"Oh...shit, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"
Emilia shook her head. "No, it's okay. Everyone was somewhere when shit hit the fan, right?" she stopped momentarily to look down at her book. "Some of us closer than others."
Flipping another page in her book, Emilia watched Leon as he rummaged through his own pack.
"I just don't understand what can drive people to murder and looting in times like this." he says a bit naively as he continued to rummage through his pack.
"I mean...shouldn't people come together and help each other? Isn't that how shit like this is supposed to work?" he questions in her direction, an irritated "shit" escaping his lips as he sticks his arm even deeper into the backpack.
"Not everyone sees it the same way you and I do." she answered truthfully, turning yet another page in her book.
"That's something you and I agree on, at least." he agrees, pulling out some dried fruits and extra ammunition from his pack.
"Some people care only about themselves or their loved ones." Emilia adds, finally deciding to close her book. "But not everyone is like that...someone was good enough to rescue my kids."
At this statement, Leon looks up at her with a mouthful of dried fruit.
"Y-you have kids?" Leon asked with his mouth full, chuckling afterwards after he swallows. "Someone was in a hurry, huh?" he joked, sending a cheeky grin in her direction.
Emilia's face turned blood red, eyes widening in shock. "N-no, they aren't my kids!" she exclaims, nearly hitting her knee against the table. "They were kids I was looking after!"
Leon puts his hands up as if he were surrendering. "Whoa, calm down….I-I just assumed…."
That awkward silence returned and Emilia thought she would pass out in embarrassment.
"Uh...what happened? If you don't mind me asking."
"Some…." Emilia let a long sigh escape through her nose. "Some Rikers got into the apartment complex we were staying in while I was out looking for food and medicine." she answered. "Scared the hell out of me when I got back and saw all the bodies everywhere."
"This apartment complex wouldn't happen to have been in Brooklyn would it?"
Emilia suddenly lifted her head in both surprise and curiosity. "You were there?" she questioned.
He nodded. "I stopped by a similar area to look for supplies when I heard a commotion. A kid was crying and there was yelling...then I heard the gunshot and ran up there."
There were a few moments of silence as Emilia nodded in understanding.
Well…..I did say that I wanted to meet whoever saved Jonah and Janie. She admitted in her head. I guess now's the time to do just that.
"You saved those two...I'm glad you were around when you were." she thanked, breaking the silence. "I...can't imagine what I would have found if you hadn't stopped by to save them." she looks up at him, a serious look on her face. "Thank you."
Leon rubbed the back of his head. "U-uh...no problem."
Almost an hour passes as the two conversed over lunch. Emilia found it strange at how easy it was to talk to this person. She wasn't sure if it was because of that god damn contagious smile of his, or the fact that she actually needed to get shit off her chest.
Regardless, it was a nice change from walking down the cold, infected streets of New York...watching your back for thug life shit heads waiting to shoot you in the back.
"This is a little personal to ask, and I apologize, but where are you from? You've got quite the accent on 'ya." he smiled.
She laughs at this and nods in agreement.
"Yeah...the accent has received quite the amount of stares." she laughs. "I'm from the South, so...I knew what I was getting into when I came here. Well...before the dollar flu hit, anyway."
"Small world...I'm from Alabama myself." he reveals. That god damn smile crept back on his face and Emilia almost wanted to throw her book at him. "You've been more open to greeting me than other agents around here."
"People don't appreciate southern hospitality, I guess." Emilia laughed, shrugging.
"Right? I mean, they act like we're from another planet or something." he laughed out, making a waving gesture with his hand.
Both of them laughed and Emilia felt a strong sense of mutual understanding happening between the two of them. Other than Agent Lau, this Leon Marx was the closest thing she had to a friend so far out here.
"Can't believe they got this place back from the gangs in the area." Leon said in awe, breaking Emilia from her thoughts. "I heard there were a lot of them."
"Uh, yeah. The JTF are pretty resourceful." she added.
"I heard only one Division agent was here to help fend them off. Props to that guy for taking them out."
Emilia couldn't help but giggle.
Leon's head tilted to the side like a confused german shepard being asked if they want to go outside.
"What's so funny?" he asked, that contagious grin creeping on his face once more.
"Nothing." she replied.
"Bullshit, it's nothing." he said mid chuckle. "Why are you laughing?"
"It's...just the way you said that. It was like you were in awe of them as if they were a superhero or something."
"Wouldn't you think that highly of someone if you were told that they took on a large force and killed nearly all of them by themselves?" he asked.
"I guess...maybe." she answered with a shrug. "I mean...the Division did teach all of us how to handle certain situations. It wouldn't be that impressive if people knew about training and that Division stuff thety made us do." she explained, her ego going up just a little.
"I wonder if they're here?" he questioned, looking around.
A devilish smirk crept up on Emilia's face as her chin sat in her upright hand.
"Oh, I'm sure they're closer than you think." she chuckled out.
"Hey Agent!"
Emilia and Leon look over to see two JTF soldiers walking by their table.
"Good work the other day with those thugs!" one of them called from across the way, giving a nod of respect. The other JTF soldier walked next to him and waved at her.
Emilia waved back with a smile and a nod. She looked over to Leon and nearly laughed aloud at his dumbfounded face.
"What?" she questioned, shrugging. She put her book into her backpack and zipped it up tight.
"Brant!"
Looking over she saw Agent Lau beckoning her over.
"Duty calls." Emilia said with a smile as she put on her backpack.
"The person who got this place back was you?!" he finally asked aloud.
Before walking over to Agent Lau, she turned her head and smiled.
"You never asked."
(There you go! Another short look into my agent's journey through infected New York. Leon Marx, by the way, is the wonderful imagining of a close gaming friend of mine. We co-oped this game together so I thought the one-shot would be all the better if I included his agent. If you guys want to see more Division one-shots, let me know what you guys think of this one. Your reviews and writing tips are greatly appreciated. Hope you guys liked it! ^.^)