The Talk part 2

A Widowtracer Overwatch story by Asylumchild

Overwatch and all characters within are trademarks of Blizzard Entertainment. This is a work of fan fiction and is intended for entertainment purposes only. No copyright violations are intentional. All people, places, and situations are completely fictional and no relation to anyone real living or deceased.

1

Kusanagi Facility, Yokohama, Japan

The evening sky was pale in the moon and stars ahead provided a lot of cover. The guards were alert which made things tougher but not impossible. Several troops in black blast armor made their way quiet as shadows, winding their way through the terrain and taking out two of the Kusanagi guards who roamed the grounds. The guards didn't even get a chance to squeeze off any shots. They made their way to the doors and fanned out.

An imposing figure in black armor and hood floated more than walked to the cleared area. He looked around from the confines of a skull mask that hid his face from view and offered better night vision than the simple goggles his soldiers had. No one had noticed them, but that was about to change. Reaper touched the side of his mask and activated a transmitter in his ear.

"Widowmaker," he growled in an unnaturally demonic voice, "are you in position?"

About eighteen meters, hidden in the shadows and low angles of a nearby parking garage, a lithe French woman was knelt in a steady pose with a fully extended sniper rifle at the ready. Widowmaker already had her infravisor in place to allow her vision to narrow in through her scope and see Reaper's mask look in her direction.

"I am in position," she replied simply and watched as the hooded man turned back to the assembled men.

Reaper nodded and one of the Talon soldiers threw a pulse grenade at the sealed front doors. The device exploded and sent out a sonic wave of low emitted sound, shattering all of the glass in a two meter diameter. Before the glass had even finished shattering, the Talon soldiers were on the move. Reaper drew his twin shotguns and followed the troops.

Two hung back to take out any guards who came down from the upper levels while Reaper and the remaining four troops went towards the basement levels.

Guards came down as the alarm sounded and Widowmaker watched calmly from her perch. The troops who came with Reaper and her were adequate at best. No more than meat shields really while Reaper collected the payload and she secured the perimeter. Problem was, she didn't have to do much securing. The guards had standard assault rifles which meant that Kusanagi was not exactly dealing with legal goods. No one had men with that much firepower watching over some simple offices and commercial labs. Looks as if Talon's intel was correct about the quiet little Japanese facility holding more than basic cybernetic research.

Widowmaker took out one of the guards who seemed to be a pretty good shot. He had even ducked behind cover as the Talon troops were firing. The guard wasn't counting on a sniper. She let her breath out slowly and took out another guard who had managed to shoot and possibly kill one of the Talon soldiers. That left one inside and more guards came down the stairs, firing as they came.

The fool who was left in the shattered lobby actually had the audacity to ask for help. Widowmaker shot three of the guards before they could even cause any real damage and made their companions rush back up for cover.

The other troops outside started to rush in to back their fellow troop up when Reaper and the four others came rushing up the stairs.

"Idiot," Reaper growled as they stumbled in the lobby. "You don't need help when you have a sniper!"

He accented his point by shooting the stupid trooper in the face before starting through the blasted door.

That's when the scream of a missile pierced the air and exploded in a fiery ball so magnificent, it lit up the whole area in orange glory. Widowmaker was temporarily blinded and when she looked once more, she saw the Talon troops down, a whole section of the wall gone, and Reaper scrambling to his feet as flaming debris floated down like deadly cherry blossoms in the Japanese night.

She also saw an avenging angel with blue and gold armor come streaking down from the sky in the aftermath.

"Overwatch is here," Widowmaker reported and trained her rifle at the armored woman as she blasted two more smaller missiles at the disoriented troops. Her crosshairs focused on the exposed part of the woman's face and Widowmaker took a deep breath but moved her finger from the trigger.

"If you're trying to star gaze," a perky voice said cheerily from behind her, "You need to aim that scope up a bit higher, love."

Reaper's ears were ringing as he rolled away from the force of the blast. The woman in the armor – Pharah he knew – landed gracefully and switched to a wrist mounted gun. He blasted two shots from both of his guns as he scrambled for cover. They pelted her armor but otherwise did little damage. Her bullets, however, shredded the ground and a nearby parked car that Reaper dived for cover behind.

Reaper wondered where his covering sniper fire was. He twisted his head and looked up at the post Widowmaker had taken only to see sparks of gunfire and answering flashes of blue pulses and slipstreams. Tracer is here too, he thought.

Pharah's gunfire stopped momentarily and Reaper took advantage of it by popping up to take a shot again with both barrels. Much to his shock, she had stopped firing, but only because she had switched back to her short range missiles.

Reaper cried out as he ducked away from the car and was thrown forward with the force of the blast. His shoulder popped painfully as he rolled with the hit as best as he could. Not waiting for Pharah to reload or take advantage of his lack of cover, Reaper ran full on to where the cloaked Talon flier waited.

He heard a distant scream from his right and above and saw flashes of light just as the flier was in range and decloaking.

"Widowmaker," he said, pressing his intercom, "fall back to the ship. We got what we came for."

There was no reply and he scrambled aboard the awaiting ship.

"Widowmaker, do you read?"

The Talon pilot flipped switches and began take off procedures as a missile from Pharah exploded on the hull.

"Widowmaker, do you copy!?" Reaper screamed into the intercom.

"Reaper, sir," the pilot said, "The shields are at seventy six percent, if we take any more continuous heavy damage," another explosion rocked the flier violently, "we'll be destroyed on the ground."

Reaper started to make a reply when his intercom buzzed for a second and a voice came over it loud and clear.

"Tell those Talon bastards their little spider has been crushed," Tracer said in a voice so cold it made Reaper shudder. He started to call the girl's bluff. There was no way they had subdued or even killed Widowmaker. No way would they do that. Then he remembered what Widowmaker had said about Tracer and what happened at King's Row when she had assassinated Mondatta. He never pegged the young agent to be the vengeful type. It was a sobering surprise.

He heard the visor hit the ground and the sound of a pulse pistol firing before silence of a dead connection.

The flier rocked again and Pharah flew into view as she took aim at the cockpit.

"GO!" Reaper yelled and the flier blasted up, almost knocking Pharah aside in it's escape. He opened communication once he was sure they weren't being pursued and the flier was safely cloaked.

"This is Reaper reporting in," he growled.

"Proceed," a steady low voice replied.

"Payload has been retrieved," he said. "casualty count seven."

"Seven?"

"Widowmaker was killed in action," Reaper said clenching both his fist and his teeth.

There was a few moments of silence and Reaper was planning on how he could kill the pilot and hijack the aircraft to try and find someplace to hide the wrath of Talon for losing one of their top agents.

"The payload is secure?" the question came as somewhat of a surprise.

"Yes," Reaper replied, not allowing any doubt or fear to even tint his demonic voice.

"Then Widowmaker is of no consequence," the voice said calmly. "She served her purpose. Return to base and deliver the payload as soon as you land."

"Yes sir," Reaper replied and clicked off the communication link.

Widowmaker is of no consequence. That statement echoed in his head. She served her purpose.

So, she was nothing more than another weapon in the arsenal of Talon. Reaper huffed a disgusted laugh. If the fools thought of him only as a weapon to use and dispose of so easily, he would prove them wrong. Dead wrong.

As the aircraft made it's quiet journey to the hidden Talon carrier in the Sea of Japan, Reaper made backup plans in his head just in case Talon ever thought he was of no consequence.

A small Overwatch airship landed near ground zero of Kusanagi. The side door opened to reveal Winston and Mercy who helped Tracer and Pharah quickly lift up the limp body of Widowmaker. Once all were in, the door closed and the aircraft took off.

Tracer touched Widowmaker's cheek and ran a thumb gently over her face. "Amélie," she said softly, "are you alright, love?"

A small smile played on the cold assassin's lips and one golden eye opened before she grimaced slightly. "That was an excellent shot, chérie," she said indicating a bruised shoulder.

"I almost had to remind you to actually get hit," Tracer frowned playfully. "I know we were trying for a realistic fight but I think you got so much into it that you had forgotten you were supposed to take the fall."

Widowmaker laughed a sly chuckle. "Fighting with you has never truly been fighting and you know this," she said.

Mercy came into view with a scowl and maneuvered Tracer away. "Alright you two," she said disapprovingly, "Now is not the time for whispering sweet nothings in each other's ears. We might have gotten Widowmaker out and helped her with phase one of defecting from Talon but keep in mind, this is not fun and games."

Tracer blushed and nodded sadly. She knew what Mercy meant. Although she had convinced Winston and Mercy to help Widowmaker escape, she hadn't completely convinced them that Widowmaker was truly defecting to their side or wasn't still a threat.

Widowmaker looked at Mercy with her normal stoic expression. "We destroyed my infravisor and left my rifle behind," she stated as she reached out and touched Mercy's arm. "I need you to make as thorough a scan as you can to not only make sure I have no tracking devices implanted in me, but no killswitch devices either. It would do no good to extract me if I can be tracked or killed."

Mercy visibly paled but nodded. Winston opened a few compartments and handed the doctor a hand-held scanner which she adjusted to X-ray.

Widowmaker lay back and stayed absolutely still as Mercy started scanning every inch of her.

"Mercy is right, Tracer," Winston said, capturing her attention away from the examination. "You may have convinced us to go with this highly unusual 'rescue', but until Widowmaker is proven to have genuinely defected and poses no threat to us or Overwatch, she will have to be held and under observation."

Tracer started to protest until she heard Pharah clear her throat.

"You forget that you were also fraternizing with the enemy," The Egyptian said with a cold tone as she removed her helmet.

Tracer turned to her but saw that Fareeha's eyes held a warmth that showed she didn't have full convictions of her words. She trusted Lena enough to help out with this operation as did Mercy and Winston, but their trust only went so far.

"You know I wouldn't jeopardize us," Tracer said quietly. Fareeha nodded and her face was understanding.

"We know," Winston said patting her shoulder. "You can fly by the seat of your pants at times, but we know you always have the best intentions at heart. I'm sure we will find that Widowmaker is … well … at least salvageable."

Tracer sighed just as Angela suddenly spoke up.

"Scheisse," Mercy cursed. "I think I found a tracking device. I'm going to have to take it out now because it may not just be a tracker."

"Fareeha," she said to Pharah, pointing to her portable medkit, "hand me the scalpel, the forceps, and..." she paused and addressed Amélie with notable compassion, "my apologies but we will have to sedate you. You see, the device is located in the base of your skull. I am not sure how to proceed with your … um … unusual physiology. I can tell you have had artificial cardiac dampening, and bio-engineered respiratory and circulatory enhancements, but I'm not sure of anything else and, unfortunately, time is not on our side for a proper analysis."

"When I got my trimonthly treatments," Amélie explained, "Talon usually put me under with a rather large dosage: about fifty Ccs."

Mercy gaped as Pharah handed her the instruments and hesitated on the sedative. "Fifty!?" Mercy said with horror. "You really require that much with your frame and build?"

Amélie shrugged. "I have also been enhanced with pain suppressors and drug screens. You won't have to worry about it affecting my heart since I already have a lowered heart rate. No chance of respiratory failure or cardiac arrest; however, the sedative will only last about ten minutes at the most before it wears off so you will have to work fast."

Angela and Pharah scrambled to get the proper dosage quickly as Amélie turned and lay flat on her stomach.

"Oh, God," Lena said worried. "Are you sure about this? What if something goes wrong?"

Amélie looked over her shoulder and took Lena's hand in hers. "No worries, chérie," she said softly. "I am quite sure the doctor knows what she is doing once she gets me under."

Lena nodded as Mercy quickly injected Widowmaker with a clear liquid. Amélie sighed and went limp.

"OK, we need to be quick about this," Mercy said taking command. "Pharah I need you to dispose of this thing as soon as I get it out. Lena, I need you to take this scanner and hold it steady so I can pinpoint exactly where it is."

She took a deep breath as Lena held the scanner to show the x-ray of the base of her love interest's skull. The bones were visible as well as a faint outline of the muscles and ligaments and, buried under some tissue at the base of the skull, a small round object the size of a dime. It looked like it could be a small explosive device.

"Nine minutes," Pharah said reminding them of their precious seconds.

Mercy quickly cut into the woman's neck with skill precision. She only had a few moments to marvel that there was little blood and that it seemed to flow slowly before she held the wound open with her fingers and reached in with the forceps. She maneuvered around to grab the object by the edge and pull it loose from the surrounding tissues it was buried in. No ligaments or muscles were torn as she was just pulling it out before the slow ooze of blood started to fill the incision. Once out, she handed the object to Pharah.

"Possible explosive," Pharah said nodding and quickly went to the side door. "Hold on tight," she warned before pulling the door open slightly – which caused the air to penetrate the vacuum and everyone's ears to pop – and threw the object out before shoving the door back closed and sealing the cargo area shut again.

Mercy used sterile gauze to wipe away the amazingly small amount of blood before she placed a small device from her kit onto the wound. A yellow light glowed for a moment before she removed it and examined the now smooth skin on Widowmaker's neck. There was no scar and the nanobionic device sealed her incision within seconds.

"Your medical stuff is amazing, Angela" Tracer said in awe. "You were able to do that with a few moments to spare."

"Six minutes and thirty two seconds to be exact," Pharah said as she clicked off a timing device on her gauntlet.

Mercy smiled. "Thank you, darling. I only hope she thinks so when she wakes up."

"And when she does wake up and we are back at base," Winston said with a serious look directed at Tracer. "We are going to have to have a talk."

Tracer sighed and looked squeezed Amélie's hand. "I know," she said. "I'm prepared for it."

2

Overwatch new Headquarters, Gibraltar Point The Next Day

The Gibraltar Point did not have a detention center. Since Winston had reinstated Overwatch despite the PETRAS Act, they were staying under the radar and the facility had adequate accommodations. That means held and under observation meant Mercy's lab and med center.

Widowmaker did not protest nor did she expect to be catered to. Although they treated her with polite indifference, she was a prisoner. That was to be expected.

She had not been allowed to see or communicate with Lena and that was also to be expected. The girl was in almost as much trouble, if not more, for the situation. Amélie felt confident that Tracer could find a way out of her predicament but her heart still went out to her and worried for her safety. She secretly chided herself at her worry. Unlike her, Overwatch trusted Lena and were even her friends. She had a much better chance of getting out of trouble than Widowmaker.

Amélie had already started to extend the olive branch as it were and show she truly meant to defect. She not only agreed to allow Mercy – or Angela, Amélie had learned was her given name – full medical examinations, she was the one who suggested it. She had allowed a small blood sample to be taken as well as a cheek swab. Angela had been really taken aback by how long it took to draw a blood sample. The swab was to get a DNA sample as they both determined most of Amélie's enhancements were genetic engineering and not cybernetic in nature. This intrigued Angela to study more but Amélie saw right away that Mercy was more interested in her as an actual person than a lab rat.

She never did anything without asking first, always asked if she was comfortable, and was adamant about Amélie telling her if something was uncomfortable or painful and she would stop a test immediately if it was. Given the gentle nature and bedside manner the doctor had, none of her tests were unnecessarily uncomfortable or painful.

She was so engrossed in her research and getting to know Amélie that it was Widowmaker who noticed Angela growing weary.

"Angela," the French woman said with a surprisingly friendly smile. "I am glad that you find me to be so fascinating, flattered really, mon amie, but you should get some rest. I promise you, I am going nowhere and am willing to answer questions and cooperate with any tests you may think necessary."

Angela looked a little startled. "Ah," she said blushing a bit. "Ja, I think you are right. Sorry to ask so much of you all at once. I apologize if I went too far."

"Non, Docteur," Amélie said. "You have shown more interest in me than what I have become and that has impressed me."

"How much do you remember of who you used to be?"

"I get bits and pieces, fragments really," Amélie replied. "It is difficult at times because I see faces or hear voices I should know, and know that I should know, but details are fuzzy at best."

Angela nodded and started gathering up her equipment quietly.

"If you also mean Gérard," Amélie said a little above a whisper, "I also remember his voice. I remember his laugh and his touch."

Angela turned back to the woman who sat forlornly on one of the examination beds. Widowmaker's face was still stoic but her eyes were warm instead of the cold gold they normally were. Angela saw emotion swirling in the depths of those golden orbs and it moved her.

"I remember he loved me," Amélie whispered. "And I loved him. I loved him so much. I was so scared when they took me. I remember now that I thought of him as they took me away and placed a black bag over my head. I remember so little of what else happened but I remember his voice and I can almost see his face."

Angela found herself nearing the woman as she closed her eyes, trying so hard to piece together a fractured mind. Lena had been right, she realized. Amélie Lacroix was gone, but she was not dead as they had feared or thought. Not entirely. She looked up as Angela placed a comforting hand on the woman's shoulder.

"It was not me who killed him," she said and Angela saw the first traces of tears in her eyes. "I was not in my right mind. I don't know how far gone I am or how … how I'm ever going to live with the regret of the things I have done."

Angela nodded and rubbed Amélie's shoulder. She wanted so much to pull her close and comfort her but, given circumstances, she had to hold back personal feelings. "It will take time," was all she could say and hoped it would be enough.

They had situated Amélie in one of the bunker rooms – not one near Lena – and Angela gave her a quick once over, showing her a small bathroom with standing shower, a single bed, and standard pillow and sheets. She apologized for the rushed accommodations but Amélie had said she understood and bade Angela farewell for now.

Mercy left the room and locked the door behind her to find Fareeha standing a little ways down the hallway. She leaned against the far wall dressed in a sleeveless undershirt, baggy black cargo pants, and combat boots. A simple .45 was strapped to her slim waistline and her arms were crossed below her chest. Angela blinked for a moment at the display of feminine strength. Fareeha was a sight to behold.

"They put you on first watch, huh?" Angela asked as she approached the Egyptian.

"Actually, I volunteered," Fareeha said with a small smile. "What do you think of her?"

"Well, medically speaking," Angela started while glancing back at the doorway, "she is beyond anything I have ever seen. I would have thought they butchered her with all of those experiments, but I am simply amazed at the absolutely terrifying accomplishments they achieved."

"Like what?"

Angela looked back at Fareeha and noticed the woman had uncrossed those beautifully muscled arms, letting them fall naturally to her sides.

"For instance, all of her muscles have been augmented to be denser but flexible," Angela explained quietly as to not be overheard. "This allows her to have an increased strength and agility despite her thin build and her bone structure has been enhanced to become denser as well so that she can sustain weight and stress without breaking anything. In other words – and I'm making an educated guess here – she could probably easily leap a great distance even without the aid of her grappling hook and fall a good distance without serious injury to her bones or joints."

Fareeha raised an eyebrow. "She sounds impressive," she said with a slight frown.

Angela scoffed and gave Fareeha a warm smile as she tenderly reached up and caressed the woman's cheek.

"She isn't without her flaws," she said. "I'm probably going to have to use some nanobiology applications to keep her from falling apart in the long run. I don't think Talon really expected her to be totally indestructible, otherwise they wouldn't have given her regular treatments every three months.

"Besides," Angela said poking Fareeha playfully in the ribs and getting a rather girlish giggle from the woman, "genetic engineering and augmentation is still not a better substitute for good old fashioned diet and exercise."

"Neither is a good night's sleep," Fareeha said pointedly as she playfully slapped Angela's hands away to keep from getting tickled more.

"Ja, ja," Angela said with a laugh, and kissed Fareeha's cheek. "The way you fuss over me, you'd think you were older."

"You want me to come tuck you in and read you a bedtime story like you used to do when I was on base with Mama?"

Angela gave Fareeha an amused look as she walked away. "No no," she said "but it's good to know you remember the stories I told you. Don't fret so much about our guest. I doubt she is going to cause you any trouble."

Fareeha nodded but sighed as Angela disappeared down the hall. She looked back at the closed door of the room that contained the most notorious assassin formally of one of the most dangerous terrorist organizations in the world. No doubt resting up for whatever was to come. Time would tell if she was preparing to join them or betray them.

3

Gibraltar Point, the Next Day

It was several hours later and Tracer heard a knock on her door. She groaned a bit and stretched, not realizing she had fallen asleep. She had worried about what was going on with Amélie. She opened her door to see Torbjörn.

The man was half her size and twice her age and had always been a good friend. The grumpy older Swede nodded as she opened the door.

"C'mon, Trouble," he said with a fierce grin. "Everyone's all gathered to hear what you've gotten yourself into this time."

His nonchalant and playful tone gave Lena some hope. She grabbed her chronal accelerator and strapped it on while he waited.

"Be honest with me, Torb," she said as she adjusted the shoulder straps, "just how big a mess am I in?"

"Well," he said running a hand through his beard. "It is definitely up there with the world's worst things, but that's why we're all waiting to hear what you have to say because you aren't one for messing up like this."

"I promise, it sounds a lot worse than it is," Lena ran her fingers through her hair and looked about the room to see if she had forgotten anything.

"I think it sounds more shocking than bad," Torbjörn said.

They didn't say much on the way to the main lab. They didn't really have an assembly hall in Gibraltar either.

"So," Torbjörn whispered, "is it really her?" He looked about to make sure they wouldn't be overheard.

"Hmm," Lena thought about it. "I'd say yes and no. She's … changed. I don't mean like the whole blue skin and whatnot either. She's … well, I guess I'll have to explain everything to everyone all at once."

"Fair enough," Torbjörn said as they reached the lab. He opened the doors and they stepped inside.

The lab was lit pretty well but still it seemed a little menacing to Lena. Winston sat on a large tire that served as a chair for the big guy. Some folding chairs had been set up and Lena noticed Mercy sitting in one by Winston. She paused as she saw another face she hadn't expected to see sitting on the other side.

Jack Morrison, also known as Soldier 76, was once strike commander of Overwatch in its prime and stepped down to allow Winston as acting commander while Overwatch was still on the outs. His face was handsome and stern and his hair was mostly white and cropped short. He sat in a relaxed position with his arms crossed and reminded Lena of a strict father.

Behind him, standing more than sitting, were Reinhardt and Pharah, both out of their armor and wearing their gray tank tops and black cargo pants. Fareeha's expression was softer this time but Lena refrained from giving her a smile. Reinhardt had a blank expression but his eyes watched her curiously.

She saw more of a silhouette of the cowboy known as McCree laid back in a seat farther out. If he didn't periodically puffed out a small cloud of smoke from his cigar, Lena would have thought he had kicked back and was taking a nap.

No sign of Widowmaker but that wasn't a surprise. Lena hoped she was alright.

Torbjörn led Lena to stand more or less in front of the assembly and took his seat by McCree. Tracer looked at their faces, both stern and hopeful, and swallowed.

"Well," she said with a slight smile, "guess the gang's all here then."

Winston nodded and simply said "OK, Lena, you know why we are all here. Care to explain how you ended up fraternizing with one of our worst enemies and then talking us into intercepting a Talon mission with a secondary objective to capture that same enemy and bring her back with us?"

Lena took a deep breath. "Alright," she said. "It all started about three months ago. It was after we had that little run in with them gang-bangers at that Omnic facility. Emily broke up with me that next morning..."

Lena told them of how the break up had happened and why and how it had sent her on a downward spiral of self loathing and drinking. She told them at how she had tracked down Widowmaker in Spain and tried to get her to kill her – which earned quite a few gasps of surprise and an "oh, Lena," from Mercy.

Her story continued as she told of how Widowmaker had found and had a heart to heart chat with Emily, found Lena at one of her favorite pubs, and pretty much told her everything.

All eyes were on her and some wider than others.

"Let me see if you can clarify," Jack said leaning closer. "You aren't just fraternizing with Widowmaker, one of the world's most disreputable assassins, you are actually in a romantic relationship with her?"

"Jack," Lena said frowning. "We've all known I was a lesbian for quite some time now..."

"I'm not questioning your sexual preferences," Jack said with a huff. "Frankly, I don't give a damn if you like birds over bees. Being gay isn't the problem, Lena, your choice in partners is."

Lena looked down and blushed.

"I know you loved Emily – hell, from the looks of things you two still do – but I find it so..." he ran his hands through his white hair. "Well, it just blows my mind that you and Widowmaker, of all women in the whole world, somehow you two ended up together."

"I think the real question is," Winston said grabbing everyone's attention, "you seem to trust her enough to be involved with her but can we trust her? Better yet, why should we trust her?"

"I am sure in time, Amélie can prove-"

"Amélie?"

The question had come from the back of the assembly. Everyone shifted at the sound of the new voice and Lena looked over where a tall figure in a hooded cloak, dusty and tattered, came into the light. The woman reached up and pulled her hood back showing a beautiful older face with an eyepatch covering her right eye while the other stayed sharp and quick with a similar tattoo to Fareeha's. Her hair was gray and fashioned into a braid and her one eye focused on Lena.

"Captain Amari?" Lena asked. Her wide eyes swept from the legendary Overwatch Second-in-command to her daughter. Fareeha merely nodded as if confirming Lena's suspicions. "I thought you were-"

"Dead?" Ana said with a charming smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Oh, everyone thought I was. I even thought I was. Most importantly, she thought I was too."

"She?" Lena blinked. "You mean … Oh, God, Amélie did that?"

"We were on a rescue mission, years ago now," Ana Amari began. "Talon had a new sniper. We only knew she was like a wraith: fast, invisible, and deadly. I had perched nearby to cover the Overwatch team while they rescued some important people. The sniper was there and killed many of our agents. She was fast and elusive, but I was better.

"I shot a glancing bullet that caught her in the temple and cracked off her helmet," Ana said with a voice thick with emotion. "I readied my aim to put another bullet into her head when she looked at me and I saw a real ghost. I was in such shock at seeing Amélie Lacroix that I hesitated and it cost me."

The assembly was deadly quiet. Ana turned to Jack and shook her head.

"I told you it was her," she said in a whisper, but the whole room heard. "I told you what I saw and you didn't believe me."

"No," Jack said. "I didn't want to believe you, Ana."

The room was silent once more. Finally, Lena found her voice.

"I don't know what happened that day, Captain," she said. "All I know is, she is not the Amélie Lacroix she once was nor is she the Widowmaker that Talon had conditioned her to be. The sniper you met that day, who shot you and left you for dead, is not the woman we currently have in our possession. She was not just kidnapped and tortured, she was brainwashed, forced into servitude to become a sleeper agent. She has begun to wake up. I've seen the changes in her. I have fought her on numerous occasions and seen the changes."

"Are you sure?" Ana said skeptically. "I knew Amélie and I'll admit, I was shocked that she had turned to Talon and betrayed us like she did."

"I'm telling you, she would never have betrayed us of her own free will," Lena said.

"How can you be so sure, Lena?" Jack asked. "You barely knew her."

"I knew her enough to try and taunt her and tease her when we fought to try and get a rise out of her," Lena said. "I was trying so hard to get her to come out, get mad, feel something … anything!"

Lena sighed and ran a hand through her hair before looking at Ana. "At King's Row, she assassinated Modatta after fighting with me, I barely escaped with my life and he was dead. I tackled her – was so hurt and enraged – and you know what she did? She laughed at me. She laughed at my pain. Then, she threw me over the side of the bloody building we were on so I wouldn't get captured by Talon agents who had arrived in a transport to pick her up. She didn't kill my stupid arse that was straddling her bloody chest asking stupid questions and she didn't allow Talon to take me. What kind of cold blooded killer laughs at a stupid stunned girl but doesn't kill her or let her get captured?"

The room sat confused. She could tell even Ana's brows knit at the strangeness of Widowmaker's actions.

"Then, there was Spain," Lena continued. "We fought, same as we always did only I was being sloppy on purpose with my stupid suicide mission, and when she had me, in her sights, bang to rights, I told her – flat out told her – to kill me and you should have seen the absolute horror on her face. She looked as if she were about to be sick. I yelled at her 'do it! Isn't this what you've wanted!' and you know what she did? She turned tail and ran from me screaming about how I didn't have the faintest idea what she wanted."

All eyes were on her again. "Now, tell me I was wrong and that she's a cold calculating killer still. Tell me she's still a programmed psychopath when she has all but flirted with me when we fight, calling me mon chérie even, and passing up two perfectly good opportunities to make me take a dirt nap."

"But will she be safe with us?" McCree spoke up and the room actually visibly jerked at the sound of his voice. "I know killers – hell, I'm a killer – but I only kill what needs killin'." He looked up and the red flare of his cigar gave him a menacing gleam to his otherwise dark eyes. "How do we know that she doesn't have some reprogramming in that pretty little head of hers that will send her off to psycho la- la land and kill us all in our sleep like she did Gérard?"

Lena sighed. She didn't have an answer for that. She closed her eyes and felt the tears forming. She didn't want to give up on Amélie. She knew the woman needed help and was making progress to become someone new and escape the nightmare she had been made into.

"Actually, I can attest to her mental state," Mercy said shyly raising her hand to get attention. "I had Athena monitoring her vitals with me while I asked her questions, talked to her, and ran some tests on her enhancements."

"The subject of Widowmaker appeared to have a calm demeanor," Athena's smooth AI voice said. One of the larger monitors switched from her logo to a chart showing a female form. A red pulsing showed where her heart was beating, albeit very slowly, and other lines and numbers ran on the side showing breathing patterns and heart rates. "According to normal human stress indicators, and adjusting them appropriately for Widowmaker's enhanced physiology, she exhibited no factors of stress, increased biorhythms, increased respiratory, or perspiration associated with lying or untruthful words or behaviors. Prognosis, all conversation and actions were deemed genuine and truthful. No threats were imminent or detected."

"Show us her brain activity during the tests as well, if you please Athena," Mercy said.

The chart changed to a front and side view of Amélie's head in an X-ray mesh showing a spectrum of colors slowing changing from red to green in some areas like a meteorologist following storm patterns.

"As you can see," Mercy said as she stood and pointed to several of the red areas. "Increased activities in the amygdala would show her aggression and more psychotic nature we expect her to have. Notice that these areas are only slightly red and mostly green showing that she is calm and reserved. The temporal lobe, most associated with long term memory, has shown some signs of tampering with," the screen enlarged to show a larger area in red. "According to these readings, the temporal lobe has been regenerating and thus overpowering the suggestions implanted to the parts of her brain that would make her more aggressive.

"I would have to run more tests however," Mercy said with a sigh, "but it is my diagnosis that she has experienced so much trauma from the conditioning she originally received that it would be impossible for her mind to even retain a secondary conditioning. Despite all the biological changes that have been performed on her, she is still human and the human mind can only take so much. If Talon were to 'over-condition' her, they would ruin the programming they so meticulously implanted already and, thus, make their perfect, emotionless, and controllable assassin brain dead."

"That was a lot of medical talk, doc," Reinhardt said with a chuckle. "Want to dumb it down some for the rest of us?"

The assembly chuckled, making the mood altogether less tense and even Mercy smiled a bit.

"Ok," she said and thought about it. "Hmm… well..."

"It's kinda like this," Lena spoke up with a sudden burst of insight. "Think of if you had a cuppa tea, right? You put in your cream and sugar, as you please, but the teacup is only so big and can only hold so much tea. After you already added the cream and sugar, if you poured in some lemon or a good shot of Bailey's or whatnot, the tea cup would overflow all over your coffee table and make a big mess out of the whole affair."

"So, in order to have a proper 'cup of tea'," Winston nodded understanding, "you could only add so much to what's already there and if you added or tried to change it too much, it would overflow."

"Yes, but what about if you drank some of the tea to make room for more sugar and cream?" Fareeha asked. "To go along with that analogy."

"Impossible," Angela said shaking her head. "They tried to do that by wiping her memories. The human brain can repress long term memories in order to make room for short term, but even then, flashbacks occur and those memories are never fully erased or gone."

"Much like a computer," Athena piped in with an unusually cheerful sound to her otherwise monotone voice, "Unlike a computer's data banks, which can be purged or formatted, the human brain is not physically capable of such a thing. Even with the advancements of psychology and medicine, the human test subject would die if large parts of the brain were destroyed."

"So if there's no chance of her having a secondary sleeper program in her noggin," Torbjörn said slowly, "what kind of damage are we really looking at here?"

"From my analysis," Athena stated, once again in her smooth female monotone, "possibility of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is very likely; however, with proper treatment at early stages, the trauma of her kidnapping, torture, and conditioning can be eased and worked through without causing any further psychological damage. There is a very low chance of her having a mental break down or becoming depressed, suicidal, or other such disorders if treatment can be arranged early on."

"And what treatment can be done?" Lena asked. "Mercy is a great doctor but she is not a psychiatrist."

"Affirmative," Athena agreed. "I suggest the members of Overwatch, once she is indicted into our ranks, make sure to have her express any repressed memories that resurface. If they are negative, help her to understand that she went through a traumatic or unpleasant experience and that it is in her past. That experience is over and she survived it."

"Also," Lena said with a sad voice, "like you have said, I didn't know her that well before she was taken, but you'll have to understand, she is never going to be who she was anymore. Amélie Lacroix is still there, her personality and certain things that made her herself, but she has also received training and other changes to where she is Widowmaker. What I mean to say is, she will have some shadows of her former life but she will mostly have to deal with who she is now and not who she was."

"So, if we take her in," Ana said surprisingly, "we'll have to help her to be our Widowmaker and not their Widowmaker."

The whole assembly was just as surprised as Lena was at Ana's words. Lena cleared her throat.

"So, about me fraternizing," she said in a timid voice. "What trouble am I in?"

Winston cleared his throat and looked around but it was Jack who spoke.

"If I may, Winston?"

Winston nodded and Jack looked at Lena with a sly smile.

"You are a crazy kid, always have been, probably always will be," he laughed. "I think you did good seeing what we couldn't. Truth be told, if she works out, I see Widowmaker as more of an asset to Overwatch than a liability. She has also had some insight into our enemy and so her intel can be crucial to their schemes, tactics, training, etc."

"You may have been involved with her," Winston added, "but you didn't betray us and you didn't work with her to undermine or destroy what we have."

"I move that Lena becomes Widowmaker's guardian," Jack said.

"Do you think that's wise?" Mercy asked. "No offense, Lena, but I don't know if she's really equipped to help out our newest 'recruit'."

"Several things come to mind," Jack said holding up a hand and counting reasons on his fingers. "One, she has already been thoroughly associated with combat and fighting tactics of Widowmaker. Two, she's involved personally with the woman and knows her better than any of us now. Three, it would be a good penance, a labor of love if you will, to have her keep and eye on and help our 'rookie' into the fold so to speak."

There were murmurs of approval around the assembly.

"I move that there be no charges of treason against Tracer," Winston stated aloud. "Nor any charges against her for fraternizing with a known enemy. All in favor?"

There was a chorus of "ayes" and Lena let out a breath of relief.

"Thank you all," Lena said "I promise, I will do what I can but it will also take some effort from you. I know what you must think of her, but don't let her past cloud your judgment."

"One thing," Ana said and Lena's smile faded some at the sound of the woman's voice. "I want to meet her. I want to see her with my own eyes."

Lena looked at Winston who nodded.

"Go and get her," he said. "We'll wait."

4

Gibraltar Point, A Few Minutes Later

Lena had hurried quickly down the corridors to the barracks of the headquarters with equal parts excitement and fear. She had no idea what they were expecting or what would happen but she knew they were giving her the chance they both hoped for.

No one escorted her and she felt a little thrill at that but, then again, they always knew they could trust her. That made her feel very happy knowing that hadn't changed.

She reached the door and was about to knock when it slid open and two quick hands grabbed Lena by the shoulders and pulled her inside. At first, Lena panicked as she was roughly spun against the adjoining wall, but her fears melted and her small cry turned into a moan as cool lips pressed to hers. The hands that held her moved up her arms and buried long fingers in her hair and nape as Lena placed her hands on curved hips that pressed her up bodily to the wall.

When the kiss parted, Lena looked at heated golden eyes like twin suns and smiled languidly.

"My God," Lena breathed, "and everyone thinks I'm the troublemaker."

"Maybe we should change my call sign from 'Widowmaker' to 'Troublemaker',"Amélie laughed in a sultry huff and leaned her forehead to her lover's.

"Mmm," Lena kissed her again softly. "I have good news and maybe not bad news but somewhat worrisome news."

Amélie lifted an eyebrow. "Good news being you have time to finally play?"

Lena felt her knees grow weak and she shuddered sensually. "Oh wow," she whispered as Amélie swayed her hips into hers. "You have no idea how much I wish to, but no. Mark my words, I await the moment when we can finally play because, I will be honest and tell you, it has been on my mind since you first kissed me three days ago."

"Ah, this is business then," Amélie said with a small pout that had Lena's head spinning. "You had your talk with your friends?"

Lena ran her fingers through Amélie's hair and marveled at the long luxurious waves of darkness. "Well, that's the good news. They are our friends now and they wanted me to come get you so they can finally meet you."

Amélie's face fell for only a moment but her eyes locked once again on Tracer's. "What can I expect?"

"No worries love, really," Lena said softly. "It's a bit strange I know. They want to make sure you are really wanting to be one of us. They want to help you truly be who you can be without fear or control. To be honest, they are a little scared but they won't admit it."

"I'm one of the most renown assassins in the world, chérie, I didn't think they would just welcome me in with open arms."

"Well, we have our fair share of people who can be scary if they want to be."

"Are they expecting us now?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Lena sighed before pressing a long slow kiss to Amélie's lips, savoring the textures and flavors. "But they have assigned me to be you're 'guardian' which means, I get to keep an eye on you and welcome you into the fold."

Amélie made a noise and rolled her eyes. "Sounds like a babysitter."

"No, I wouldn't say that," Lena said with a wicked smile. "It means you and I are going to be close and we don't have to sneak around and we don't have to worry about it. I think that's a pretty good thing."

"When you put it that way," Amélie said cupping Lena's face. "I think I will enjoy you being my superior officer. Do I address you as 'Mademoiselle'?"

Lena chuckled softly and lightly slapped Amélie on her rounded rump. Golden eyes widened an a low purr was heard that made Lena's spine turn to jelly.

"We'd better behave for now and go meet the others before they send Fareeha or Reinhardt to drag us by our ears," Lena said.

Amélie took Lena's hand and led her out of the room. "You started it," she said with a playful smile and a smoldering look in her eyes.

Lena laughed and bumped Widow's shoulder. "I did not," she answered with mock outrage.

They made their way to the assembly and Tracer gave Widowmaker a smile and nod of hope before opening the doors. She led the way and stood where she had been before as Amélie walked tall and proud before her new associates.

"Everyone," Lena said formally. "May I formally introduce Amélie Lacroix, also known as Widowmaker."

Not knowing any proper protocol, Amélie merely looked at the faces of all gathered. Some she knew, others she found familiar, and others were complete strangers. One in particular caught her attention.

She couldn't be sure, but the older woman with the long gray hair seemed familiar in many ways. She found her looking at the tattooed eye and glanced at Fareeha, who had a similar tattoo on her opposite eye. The older woman did not speak but was content to have Amélie examine her, racking her healing mind for a name.

Finally, the woman stood and approached Amélie slowly until she stood, eye to eye, with her. A small sad smile twitched at her lips and her one good eye grew shiny with unshed tears. She only stood and placed her hands to her sides.

"It is you," the woman whispered. "I knew it wasn't my imagination. It really is you, isn't it Amélie?"

"Somewhere deep inside," Amélie said softly. "A small part of me started trying to come out, reminding me of who I once was before all of," she gestured at her body, "this."

The woman smiled and nodded. She hesitantly moved a hand to Amélie's face. The French woman didn't flinch. She stood still as the other woman cupped her cheek. A single tear fell from her eye.

"Do you remember me?" she asked softly, "do you remember anything about me at all?"

Amélie looked into the woman's good eye, the tattoo there. A symbol made from an Egyptian hieroglyph. Horus perhaps? She had heard about the Egyptian deities before but not an exclusive study into the theology of the region. That eye sparked something in her mind.

"Your eye," Amélie said confused. "I remember that eye, but … I can't …"

"It is alright," the woman said. "We can start over. My name is Ana. Captain Ana Amari and I was second-in-command with Overwatch before the PETRAS act."

"Ana Amari," Amélie confirmed. Suddenly, it came to her. She remembered a glimpse of that eye.

Do you see the sniper, Widowmaker?

Negative.

The bullet cracked and a sharp pain smashed the side of her helmet as it shattered. The sniper had shot her helmet. Widowmaker felt anger burn at her own incompetence. She would not fail. She brought her scope to bear, focusing the face of an Egyptian woman with an Eye of Horus tattoo and a horrified expression.

"Amélie?"

Widowmaker pulled the trigger and watched as the enemy's rifle scope and right cybernetic eye exploded with a shatter of glass and a splash of crimson. She never even screamed.

Amélie's eyes focused back on Ana Amari's face in the here and now. Ana merely nodded at Amélie's horrified expression.

"You remember," Ana stated.

Amélie started to cry as a strangled noise came from her throat. She was about to turn away when the older woman pulled her close and hugged her tightly.

"I … I did this?" Amélie said.

"No, not you," Ana said soothing the poor woman. "Widowmaker did this."

"I am Widowmaker," Amélie said confused.

"No, I meant the Widowmaker that was an agent of Talon did this," Ana reiterated. "You are Amélie Lacroix, and you are no longer that Widowmaker."

Amélie hugged the woman back tightly and understood what she was saying. It didn't matter what her past was, they were accepting her and who she was now.

Ana pulled away and silently addressed an older man who was also slightly familiar. He nodded at Amélie. A rather large man with a mustache also stepped forward with a look of awe and recognition on his face. Another man, who was the opposite of the other man and came to Amélie's waist gave her a small salute. Their faces were familiar but she couldn't remember their names.

"Reinhardt," the giant said with a booming bass voice and a smile as broad as his chest. "It is so good to see you again. I know it must be strange, but I look forward to getting to know you again."

The smaller man nodded solemnly. "Torbjörn," he said and stroked his beard. "We never had many memories from before, Lass, but I will be happy to make new ones. I'll be by your side. You need anything, you let me know."

"It really is you," Jack said. "We thought you had been killed. After Gérard was found and you weren't, we feared the worst."

"If they had killed me, it would have been better than what they did," Amélie said with a fire to her voice. "But, they did not and I cannot change what was done in the past."

Amélie told them all she could remember of what happened: the bits and pieces of fragmented fears, commands, and the implanted thoughts she knew weren't her own. She told them that she started seeing Gérard's face and hearing his voice. She looked at Lena who gave her a reassuring look and encouraged her to tell all. Amélie found it easier to tell with Lena's encouragement. Never once did the Overwatch assembly judge her or condemn her for what happened.

"The fact that you have come through this like you have shows great potential and courage," Jack said. At first he hesitated, but then patted Amélie on the shoulder. "We had to be sure you had broken through what they had done. I'm … I'm glad to see you again, Amélie."

"Do we accept her into our ranks then?" Winston asked.

"She has my vote," Ana said.

"I'm for it," Jack seconded.

One by one they nodded or gave approval before Winston nodded and approved her as well. Lena came up and hugged her tight.

"Now, we just have to put you in the system," Lena said.

Amélie took a deep breath and nodded.

Winston noticed and cleared his throat. "Just so you know, this is not to keep you under any sort of control," he told Amélie. "You are going to be a probationary member but we try to keep track of all members for safety as well as mission team assemblies and the like."

Amélie nodded as Winston walked her to a rather large computer with three huge monitors. All of them had a logo with a capital A that pulsed with artificial life.

Winston nodded. "Alright," he said. "Athena, Overwatch Initiation Sequence 20167."

Amélie flinched a little as a disembodied woman's voice confirmed the action as dictated by Winston.

She looked over at Lena who smiled and nodded. "Don't be nervous, Love," she said. "This is to make you official."

There was a green laser that scanned Amélie briefly from head to toe and she stood perfectly still.

"Please state your name and your preferred call sign for records and voice recognition," Athena said.

"Amélie Lacroix, call sign: Widowmaker."

There was some data compiled into a file that contained her picture and voice recognition. "Confirmed, Lacroix, Amélie call sign: Widowmaker. Probationary Overwatch member #2017."

"Welcome to Overwatch," Ana said proudly.

The others came one by one, some hugging her tight, others patting her on the back. They all showed her acceptance and friendship.

A rugged cowboy made his way up to her and stood for a moment, seemingly sizing her up. She merely looked him in the eye and did not flinch. After a few moments, he reached out and took her by the hand before chastely kissing her knuckles.

"My name is McCree, ma'am," he said like a complete southern gentleman. "I never got to meet you before, but I am honored to meet you now."

"McCree," Lena growled playfully and moved between Amélie and him with her hands on her hips. "Don't flirt with my girl, you scoundrel."

"I ain't flirting," McCree said with his hands up and a big grin on his face. "I was just saying howdy."

Amélie chuckled as Lena put her arm around her protectively. "So, you tease Lena?"

"Every chance I get," McCree said tipping his hat at the adorable Brit.

"I think we will become good friends, Monsieur McCree,"

Lena gaped at Amélie as McCree laughed but soon giggled as well when Amélie kissed the top of her head.