Leopard shook off his surprise. "What-"

He froze. Blood soaked through the leg of Jaguar's uniform.

"Shit."

Jaguar had just taken a bullet for him.

Leopard slid out from under the smaller male carefully. He crouched low behind the jeep, pulling Jaguar out of the line of fire. He tugged the blonde into a sitting position, leaning him back against the jeep.

Jaguar was cooperative, but snatched his gun out of the dirt. The two sat silently for a moment, Leopard shaken, Jaguar shaking, before rejoining the fight.

Leopard couldn't help but detachedly notice the skill with which Jaguar fired, each shot a perfect hit.

The fight was settled quickly after that, but only four of Scorpia's operatives were captured. The others had been killed or taken suicide tablets. Standard Scorpia procedure.

As the SAS units got organized, some went to doublecheck the bodies, others removed their injured unitmates from the field, and still more went about inventoring the casualities.

Leopard slumped down against the hollowed out jeep with a sigh of relief, resting for a moment before turning to inspect Jaguar.

The smaller male was still tucked into a corner of the wreck, eyes half-lidded with exhaustion. Leopard moved towards him, noting his pained expression.

"C'mon kid, don't pass out on me now," he encouraged. "I'll have to haul your skinny arse back to camp."

He was rewarded by a slight twitch of Jaguar's lips.

"Let's see what I can do for ya, eh kid?"

Jaguar watched him quietly as he inspected the injury. Finally, Leopard leaned back on his heels.

"The bullet's in there pretty deep," he informed. "And there's alot of blood. I'm gonna wrap it up to slow down the bleeding, but I'm no medic. I'll get you to Shark."

Jaguar blinked, Leopard reading the uneasiness in his eyes.

"And if anyone starts giving you shit, I'll kick their bloody arses."

Jaguar outright laughed at that, a little confused but not willing to complain about the sudden camaraderie.

Leopard slid out of his jacket, wrapping it around Jaguar's injured leg.

"Just above the knee, brat," he informed. "I'm a little surprised you haven't passed out on me."

The blonde smirked slightly. "Not like I haven't been shot before," he snorted.

Leopard looked at him for a moment. "I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that with such a smug expression."

Jaguar had the decency to look a little embarrassed. "Well it's true..." he mumbled.

"Most people aren't proud of it though," Leopard retorted dryly. "Now shut up so I can get you out of here."

Jaguar looked at him warily as he leaned closer. "Oh no," he started, mortified. "You are not carrying me."

Leopard snickered, scooping him up despite his protests. The two squabbled until Jaguar cut off in mid expletive with a gasp of pain.

"Shit, sorry," apologized Leopard quickly, adjusting his hold.

Jaguar let out the breath he'd been holding slowly. "Bloody hell..."

Leopard started off across the ruined streets while his burden was distracted.

"I'm never going to hear the end of this," he muttered.

Jaguar huffed. "And I am? You didn't have to carry me bridal-style."

"Point taken," agreed Leopard, "but I actually did. You weren't going to be able to walk, and carrying you any other way would have put a lot of strain on your leg."

Jaguar mumbled something unintelligible, presumably swearing in something other than English.

As Leopard approached the hastily set up camp, a couple of soldiers jeered at them.

"Hey! Look at the runt!"

"Aw, does the little baby not know how to walk on his own?"

"What happened, twist your ankle running away?"

At the last comment, Leopard snapped. Jaguar had tensed up in his arms, refusing to make eye contact and shaking slightly. The kid seriously didn't need this shit right now.

"Actually," Leopard snapped, "he got shot in the leg when he tackled me out of the way of a sniper shot."

The effect was obvious, total silence reigning. Leopard stalked past. "Chew on that, arseholes."

He ducked into the med tent, ignoring the whispers breaking out behind them. "Shark!" he called. He figured Jaguar would be more comfortable being treated by a medic from the same unit.

"Leopard!" Shark hurried over, confusion evident as he caught sight of them.

"How's Lemming?" Jaguar asked, tilting his head to look at the man.

Startled, Shark did his best to respond. "A lot better than he could've been. That crazy stunt you pulled meant he got out in minutes, and got treatment a hell of a lot sooner than he would've otherwise."

Leopard frowned slightly as he felt the tension begin to drain from Jaguar's body. "Keep awake brat," he reminded.

Jaguar shook off the urge to relax. "Yeah, yeah I know," he responded tiredly.

Shark noticed the jacket tied around his leg, face shifting to one of concern. "He's hurt?" he demanded.

Leopard nodded. "Caught one right in the leg. That's why we're here."

"You're okay?" was the next question.

Leopard nodded, smiling a little. "I'm fine."

Shark sighed in relief, before directing them to an empty corner of the tent.