nightelf37: Remember: I own absolutely nothing here. Team Fortress 2 is by Valve, and this fic belongs to MickeyDismantle. This here is a deleted scene from Chapter 9, which was revealed to have been so at chapter 10's Author's Notes. I would like to thank ksv12 for finding this, and I was surprised to hear that it was also found in the site Archive Of Our Own before it got deleted there as well. And this is why the fandom can't have nice things.

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"Scout?"

He spun around in a flash to find Miss Pauling standing behind him, looking slightly puzzled.

"M-Miss P!" was his only jumbled response.

"Who were you talking to?"

"No one! I mean, I wasn't talkin'. That's crazy. Not that you're crazy or anythin'! Must be the wind...or somethin'."

Miss Pauling passed the redness of his face off to the cold. "...Yeah, I guess. So, um. I just wanted to come see how you were doing."

Scout swallowed. This was exactly how his fantasy happened! "Better than ever now that you're here!"

But instead of confessing her unrequited love to him, she sighed. "No, but really. You're doing a pretty brave thing here. It's alright to be nervous."

Damnit. Well, it was worth a shot. "...Nah, I ain't nervous." He turned his back on her, staring out into the giant crater.

"Well, if anyone can pull this task off, it's you. So, I'm glad you're here."

The sentiment actually cheered him up and he turned his head to smile at her. "Thanks, Miss P. I'm glad you're here, too."

Of course, he was always glad to have her around. But for once, it wasn't just because of her pretty face.

Her hand was suddenly on his shoulder and she put just enough pressure on it to make him lean towards her. Before he could react, she stood on her toes and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. The chill was gone. The fear eliminated. The snow melted beneath his feet as the blood rushed to his skin and turned him a shade of pink.

It was the closest thing to elation he ever felt.

"Just be careful and stay alive, okay?" Miss Pauling said.

Scout couldn't register what she had said. His head was still floating in the clouds. But when he was finally cognitive enough to turn and look at her, he saw the sincerity in her face. And for once, he didn't feel lustful; he felt protective.

He opened his mouth to respond to her request but, suddenly, there was a flash of blue light. They both turned towards the source and their eyes widened slightly at the sight of the robot teleporter beaming up into the clouds from down the mountain.

"It's starting," Miss Pauling said under her breath.

"Bring it on," Scout goaded. "This won't be so bad!" But no sooner had the words escaped his mouth that four more teleporter beams shot up nearby. "…We're fucked."

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nightelf37: And that's it. See ya on Third!