Chapter 1

*beep beep beep*

As the alarm started ringing, the eyes of Amélie "Widowmaker" Lacroix shot open.

After she realized where she was, she let her eyes close again, relaxing her body, willing to indulge in the comfortable warmth of her bed for just a few seconds longer. Such contrast in comparison with the bed they had back in the base, the thin layer of cloth was only slightly better than sleeping on the ground, and was constantly covered in sand from the times when she was too tired to take her uniform off. Back there, on the front, she was the Widowmaker, the deadliest sniper in the modern history of the USA, surpassing the body count of Chris Kyle and other great marksmen of this era. Simply mentioning her name struck fear into the hearts of even the most fanatic enemies, as she killed from the shadows, only to vanish again, leaving more corpses to bury. At least that's what the propaganda would have you to believe, in Amélie's opinion, she was only another soldier in another meaningless war. She was indeed better than the most, apparent by the fact that she was currently alive, but in the end, only a small insignificant pawn in the face of this great conflict.

Breaking the line of her thoughts, she got up. Already missing the war embrace of her blanket, she put on her bunny slippers and made her way to the kitchen. The slippers were a gift from her brother, and while the design was questionable, the comfort was not. The cosy feeling of the soft fabric made her every day journey just slightly less tedious. Bunny ears dangling around her feet as she walked, she finally arrived to her destination, immediately turning on the coffee machine. In the desolate desert of Iran, she was the Widowmaker. Here, she is Amélie Lacroix, an ordinary high school teacher.

Turning on the TV, the voice of a young reporter, standing behind some sort of a parliament building has filled the room.

"Last few remaining pockets of resistance have been successfully destroyed as our troops finally reached the city centre. With Tehran falling, it would seem that the war with Iran has been brought to its end. This is a great day for democracy, freedom and all the people of Iran who have suffered under the oppression…..

Amélie absent-mindedly listened to the ranting, while stuffing her mouth full of cereals. There was no one to comment on her unconventional eating habits, so she let the milk drip on the table, fragments of cereals flying out of her mouth right on the carpet. She could clean it once she got home. It's not like she had anything to do, and every second spent cleaning or doing other basic tasks, was one where she would not just stare into a wall. Having enough of patriotism for today, she turned the TV off. The reporter's speech was delivered so enthusiastically, that Amélie has been left with no doubts that the greatest danger he ever faced in his life was slipping on a banana peel or such. Those kinds of people were usually the most vocal supporters of war. When the letters of conscription started flowing in, many celebrities and people with influence suddenly developed medical conditions making them unable to serve. Thankfully, they healed rather quickly, just around the time the conscription quotas were met. And they say miracles don't exist. She still remembered her letter, or rather the one of her brother, whom she chose to volunteer instead. Such a little unassuming piece of paper, had she known what the future held for her, she would have tore the paper to shreds, serving the few months in prison instead. Well, no reason to delve in the past.

As she sipped the last few drops of caffe, she checked her materials, inspected her clothing and like any normal person, left for work. The BMW in front of her house blinked a few times, signalling being unlocked, even making little sound effect, so all in the close vicinity were made aware that you are richer than them. As Amélie sat into the leather seat and accelerated, she was reminded of one of the very few benefits of her military career, special ops treated their people like an expendable piece of equipment, but they did pay well. Funny, in the past, she would dream of having a car such like this, now, she dreamed of never having to go through the ordeal that allowed her to be able to purchase it in the first place. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, she supposed. Stepping on the gas pedal, she rapidly neared her place of employment - The Overwatch high, she sometimes wondered about the strange name, but headmaster Morrison had assured her that it is in fact, very original.

Parking her car along of the considerably less flashy vehicles of her colleagues, she made her way inside. Going through the halls, the students greeted her respectfully, pretending to be going about their business, only to turn their heads once she passed them, getting a good look on her ass. That was just something that came with the job of looking after a bunch of hormonal teens. That excuse could not be applied to the other teachers, doing pretty much the same thing, albeit bit more discreetly. At least with the exception of Jesse McCree, the PE teacher, who bothered with no such formalities and started to his heart's content. She respected his boldness, and expressed her respect by tripping him whenever he made the mistake of getting too close. It wasn't done out of malice, rather it was a little game she used to kill boredom, and respect to the man, he took it like a champ. Eventually she opened the doors of the classroom, and began the lecture.

As she mechanically repeated french words and phrases for the class to remember, she idly let her eyes slide across the classroom. In the very front sat Winston, enthusiastically taking notes and answering questions, despite already knowing enough to pass the test several times over. Such sentiment would probably be rewarded with bullying and cruel jokes, were it not for the fact that Winston was built like a tank. The behemoth of a boy, with enough muscle in his 18 years of age to put even elite soldiers into shame, cut quite a terrifying figure, but as it often was, you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. The shy and gentle boy was the living definition of the word "nice", sometimes too much for his own good, shown by the fact that he was letting Ashe, sitting right beside him, blatantly copy all of his notes.

Speaking of the devil, Ashe was the class delinquent, and was not sitting in front of the teacher's desk by her choice. She remembered that back before her departure, Ashe would drive her crazy by the constant disobedience and generally being a pain in the ass. After she returned from her two years' involuntary exotic vacation, she found herself less than tolerable towards Ashe's theatrics. The most ruthless of soldiers who cut throats like it was butter, pissed their pants upon hearing she was making an inspection, she was feared more than death itself, by enemies and her own men alike. So when on the very first day of her resumed job, Ashe threw a paper plane, expertly hitting her butt, she… Well….. Calmly explained Ashe the importance of discipline. It did work, despite leaving the girl traumatised for the better part of a month and somehow creating a phrase "to Ashe someone", which firmly placed itself into the everyday vocabulary of most of the student body. Oblivious to everything that was happening around her, Hana Song happily played on her phone, hidden under the table. She was not fooling anyone, but she was quiet, and did well enough on the tests, so she let it slide.

Her inner monologue has suddenly been interrupted by a loud noise, coming from the back of the classroom. As she traced the cause of the disturbance, her eyes settled on Lena Oxton, also known as the Tracer for her athletic achievements, snorting loudly with her head on the table, sleeping like a rock. At the moment, it was as if the time had stopped, everybody froze, well aware of the catastrophe that was going to meet the poor gir, enjoying pleasant dreams in the middle of the class, right under the nose of the most merciless teacher in the entire school. Lucio, the boy sat next to her, valiantly tried to wake his friend, color draining from his face as she slowly, in measured steps, approached her victim. It reminded her a scene of a soldier, trying to patch up his mortally wounded comrade as the enemies were closing in on their position. When their eyes met, Lucio, a hero up until the end, nudged her shoulder one last time, and then retreated, praying for the girl to survive what will inevitably follow.

When Amélie reached the girl, she took a moment to inspect her sleeping form. The short but thick brown hair was wildy flowing over her face, not resembling any conventional hair style, under it rested two big brown eyes, though currently closed. The area around her nose was covered in light freckles, adding up to the tomboyish impression of the girl. She wasn't a classical beauty like Angela, but still charming in her own little way. Dismissing the thoughts, she raised her hand, proceeded to smash it on the table, right next to the sleeping girl's head.

It worked little too well. As Lena's body spasmed violently, she practically launched herself off the table, knees hitting its side, making her stumble backwards, legs striking the chair that she managed to trip over by her sudden movement. Still unaware of what was going on, she fell, her head rapidly descending towards the table behind her. A strong arm caught her. Lena, currently being held in the air with an arm wrapped around her back, looked into the face of her saviour. And Froze. Wide range of emotions passed her pale face, looking into the eyes of professor Lacroix, both the most terrifying and the hottest teacher in Overwatch high school. She did not look impressed.

"Ehm…. So…" She looked up, managing to put on a not very self confident smile , "The answer is .. Oui?"

From the blank stare of her teacher and cringing faces of her fellow student, she deduced it was not the right answer. She did not have too much time to think about it, since professor Lacroix, has not-so-gentely dropped her back onto her chair.

"Lena Oxton, you will be staying after class to discuss this matter"

All the energy draining from her, Lena slumped into her chair. Frustrated, she turned her head towards her classmate

"Lucio, why the hell didn't you wake me up" "

"Lena, shut up, just shut up"

Amélie Lacroix did not feel surprised. In fact, since the war, she had not been able to feel any stronger emotion, still, the current situation had her mind wander. Her students could be divided into two simple categories, according to how they passed the time in her, admittedly, not overly exciting lectures. First category, such as Hana, used their phones and other tools to kill boredom, second, and easily more numerous, simply observed her "assets". Never had the class paid so much attention as in the moment when she had to bend over to pick up something from the ground. Lena Oxton fitted firmly into the latter, She gazed onto her breasts with the same intensity like a preached man looking on a glass of water. So her choosing sleep over the show was certainly unusual. Oh well, she will get to know soon enough.

Finally, the bell rang. In a blink on an eye, all the people inside went from totally stationary, to madly rushing towards the door. It was a captivating scene, there was no place for comradery, elbows connected with faces, legs were tripped, hair was pulled. If you hesitated to harm your kin, even for a second, you would be knocked down by those who did not. Like fire was licking their feet, all the students escaped the classroom, well, safe for one.

Lena Oxton felt sweat running down her face, as she cautiously approached her teacher, She always dreamed of professor Lacroix, telling her to stay after class, but she had the feeling that this will not go down like in her fantasies. And truly, instead of her professor declaring that it's a bit hot in here and taking off her clothes, she merely gestured her to sit next to her table.

Unlike all the other students, she actually still liked professor Lacrox, and not just for her looks. While her reason was a bit more personal, everybody liked the professor back then, before she had to leave for war. She was easily the kindest and most understanding teacher in the school. There are no wrong answers, she always used to say, with that smile of hers, ever present on her face. Lena still remembered the last day, when she told them that she would be leaving for a while. When she revealed the reason for her sudden departure, everybody was terrified, nobody could imagine professor Lacroix of all people, harming another person. Nobody said it, but with someone like her, all knew that she would probably not come back. On that night, she remembered the moments she spent with her teacher, she was there for her when nobody else was, her kind words of support being what kept her going. She cried herself to sleep, praying to whatever divine being was there to keep her safe.

"Dont worry about me, I will be fine, just keep studying, I expect you all to speak fluent French when I come back" Professor Lacrox was waving at them, smiling as the car doors closed behind her.

Even in her final moments before being shipped to the frontline of the bloodiest conflict since Korean war, she still worried only about them. In the end she really did come back, but… definitely not alright. When she heard that the professor was combing back, she could not help herself but cry in joy, as did the rest of her classmates. What followed was not what anyone expected. Gone was the constantly well spirited teacher they all knew and loved, what they got instead was a cold, apathetic woman, who simply recited what was written in the book, quite literally destroying anyone who dared to argue, or do anything, really.

Now she was known as the bane of the school, but to Lena, it wasn't fair. Nobody could be expected to stay the same after what she must have seen. She was sure that she would come back to her usual self eventually, and even as half of the year had passed and there were no signs of change, she was going to support her how little she could. At least that has been the idea. Considering her current situation, she wasn't exactly keeping with her inner promises. Just as her ass hit the chair, she began.

"And I am really really sorry, I didn't mean to sleep, I was tired because of all the running I did before, I know that's no excuse, and I definitely won't do it again, I…"

Amélie sat in silence, listening to the girl's extensive, and rather emotive apology. From anybody else, she would consider it as just trying to avoid punishment, but seeing the honestly apologetic face of the girl in question, it was not the case here. Lena, for all her bravado, has always been a nice girl, aming only to please those around her. Maybe it was because her mother died shortly after she was born, but the girl has always been clinging to her. Even at the age where revolting against the authority was the norm, Lena was always treating her words like some kind of holy scripture. The pure bliss of happiness on her face whenever she complimented her work was a funny but pleasant sight.

Fast forward three years and not much has changed. Now she had bit more curves in comparison to her 15 years old self, but probably less than she would have liked. Well, at least she didn't have to worry about her chest ruining her balance when she was running. What apparently did not change was the nature of the girl, who seemed honestly upset about displeasing her. Amélie did not like to pretend, but she still smiled for the girls sake, hopefully convincing her that she wasn't about to give her the Ashe treatment.

"I suppose that is… understandable, I am aware that my lesson are bit less exciting than they used to be"

There, she even threw a bit of empathy in, that should calm the girl down. As the words rang through the empty classroom, Lenna recoiled back.

"Oh my god, I made her feel bad" That thought hit her with the strength of an avalanche. "Dammit, how could I be this stupid, now she has to think that the whole sleeping buissnes was an insult to her, that I was making a fun of her."

Her absolutely inaccurate conclusion continued to grow inside her mind, she was imagining just how much of a mental blow she just delivered to her favourite professor. Lena's mind went into an overdrive, she had to fix this somehow, and fast.

"No, No, No, that's really not true, your lesson are fine, not fine, ehm, great, really"

Professor gave her a questioning look, one that had her sweating even more than she already did. Alright so she could just blatantly lie, still, she had to say something positive.

"I mean, you are a really great teacher, you would always help me with my problems, and never get angry, and.. and not just me, everyone, you were always nice to everyone regardless of their grades, you never actually gave Ash any serious punishment, even though she totally deserved it".

Lena couldn't tell if this was working or not, the poker face her professor wore wasn't giving her any indication either way. She needed something specific, as all the possible and impossible thoughts kept flowing through her head, she finally got it.

"Remember the time when you took the class to Yellowstone park, I was trying to climb this big tree, but I fell and twisted my ankle, you patched me up and actually carried me the whole way back"

That memory of being carried by her beautiful teacher made her blush a little every time she recalled it. Amélie did remember it, it felt like a distant memory, despite happening just three years ago, but at the same time, the memory was still vivid. As she thought about it, she remembered something. She opened the drawer and quickly began to go through the folders marked by years. Luckily, she had a habit of keeping all documents in one place, and eventually found what she was looking for. Lena looked as the professor pulled out a group of old pictures, she drew one and put it on the table.

Lenna froze, memories rushing back to her upon seeing the photo, It was her and professor Lacroix, on the very school trip she was talking about. They were standing in front of a river, 15 years old Lena was standing there grinning from ear to ear, wearing a yellowstone shirt she bought from the nearby shop. It was a bit too big for her, the loose fabric hanging around her waist making her look like some sort of a child trying on her parents clothes. Damm, one picture they had together and she had to look like a total dumbass. Next to her stood Amélie Lacriox.

Only when she was seeing her in the picture, she realized how drastically different current Amélie really was. The professor in the picture has also been smiling, standing there with her arm around her shoulder, pulling her to her side for the picture. The stark contrast between the relaxed smiling professor, having fun with her student, and the woman sitting in front of her reminded her just how much has changed in those three years.

Amélie, despite maintaining her facade, had exactly the same thoughts as Lena did. That happy woman in the picture was Amélie Lacroix, loving teacher who had died the moment she pulled the trigger for the first time. She never came back as she promised, she lost her life like so many young Americans, alone and far from home. Instead the Widwomaker took her place. For a while, they both just sat there, each absorbed by their own thoughts. Surprisingly, it was Amélie who spoke first.

"Those were good times''

That seemed to pull Lena out of her haze, she looked up to her.

"Yeah, they really were ''

She stayed quiet for a few seconds, conflict apparent in her expression as she wondered what she should say next. She pulled her chair a bit closer, finally looking into Amelié's eyes. They seemed tired, dead, almost.

"You are a great teacher, and I.., I wouldn't want to study under anybody else"

Amelié held her gaze, but face still blank,

"even now ?"

"Yes"

Lenna was surprised just how resolutely her answer sounded.

"You were always there for me, so even if things changed, I will do the same for you"

Amélie gave her a strange look, but she held her ground, not willing to have her words questioned, she meant what she said. And then, suddenly, the teacher chuckleded.

"Congratulations Lenna, you managed to distract me for nearly the all the time we had"

Were they talking for that long, she didn't even notice. The spell suddenly broken, Lenna realized just what exactly she had said to her professor. Her face turning red as a tomato, all the implications of her words hit her.

"Oh my god, did I really say that, that was so cheesy, like from some bad romance novel"

she thought.

Mortified, and wishing to be just anywhere else, she desperately ran her brain to come up with some witty response that would nullify her earlier declaration. In spite of her mental effort, she came up with absolutely nothing, and was left to sit in front of her professor, silent, her facial features cringing and displaying various shades of red. Finally, Amélie took pity on her

"Seeing as due to your clever ploy there is no time to administer any punishment, I will let you go this time, please mind your behaviour in the future miss Oxton."

Lena, realizing that the embarrassing scene was finally over, practically jumped from her chair

"Yeah, I mean, yes, totally, I will be as focused as, ah well… something really really focused"

She wasn't really proud of that less than stellar comparison, but all the adrenalin leaving her, her brain was already running out of steam.

"Ehm so sorry again for that sleeping stuff, won't happen again, I promise, sooo… see you later prof"

and with those words she fled the classroom. As the door was closing and panic slowly leaving her she muttered under her breath

"And it's not like it was ploy or anything, I was being honest"

It was more to herself than any other, it wasn't like prof could hear that, she was awesome but didn't have enhanced senses or anything. When the doors closed, she realized that she was not alone, the entire class was waiting beside the classroom, and since no screaming had taken place for them to obtain information, they surrounded her like a flock hungry vultures would a dying animal. Though in this case, the animal was her, the flesh was the information, and she wasn't dying, which in itself was noteworthy, since she just presumably got chewed out by the infamous professor Lacroix. Not enjoying the spotlight, she laughed nervously.

"C'mon guys, it's alright, she didn't Ash me".

Nobody paid mind to Ash, ranting about how that totally wasn't an actual word, all hungrily expecting the information of what had happened in the classroom. Lenna, realizing that what happened was too embarrassing to tell, quickly made up an alternative story of her just getting told off, and left her disappointed classmates behind her, as she jogged through the halls.

Every detail of the conversation was playing over in her head, as she travelled home. When she overlooked the embarrassment, what happened was actually pretty great. She had a nice, comfortable moment with her teacher for the first time since she came back. She opened up to her. Well kinda, definitely more than ever before.

Even after all these years, she had the picture, that knowledge left her with a warm feeling inside, and not the one she usually associated with the attractive professor. Now that she had a firm proof, that no matter how much she changed, there was still something of her old self hidden deep down inside, Lenna swore to herself that she would dig it out.

When she was younger, she was labeled to be a troublemaker, she didn't really know how to deal with people, so she played the role of the class clown, seeking some sort of comfort from the laughs around her, hoping it would earn her a place in the collective she struggled to fit inside otherwise. Needless to say, it did not, people laughed at her, not with her, all it did was to alienate everyone further. Even when she realized it, there was no option but to continue, because it was still better to be the funny dumb kid and deal with occasional mean jokes at her expense, then to be openly despised and hated. That of course, did not make her very popular with the teachers and only resulted in more beatings from her father. It was the time she was at her lowest, and then, Amélie Lacroix came.

She quickly recognized what was going on, and unlike any other teachers, actually took steps to fix it. She offered the girl comfort, guidance, and many other things she lacked. Fresh out of university, the beautiful and intelligent woman, loved by everyone around her, spent a great deal of her own time and effort to help some random girl whom all others considered to be a menace. She taught her young self the meaning of friendship and self respect, and Lena did not let all her efforts be in vain. She got a new perspective on life, gradually managed to make real friends, started doing sports, and with her mind in the right place, she did pretty well academically too. All of that was thanks to one person, Amélie Lacroix.

Now it was time to return the favour, her professor was suffering, she could tell. She didn't make it obvious with her ever lasting facade, but in comparison to her old self in the picture, it was clear as a day. But she won't give up, not when she finally made some progress.

Seems like she will be getting detention a bit more often from now on, and if they get closer as a result of that, well, she will be graduating in little over a year anyway. Lena was grinning wildly, letting her imagination run loose, despite knowing just how unlikely such situation was to ever occur.

She entered her house, stepped over all the empty beer bottles scattered around the living room, ignored the smell of vomit and her intoxicated father swearing loudly from behind the TV. Nothing could ruin this day for her, and with that, she retreated to her room, already thinking about various ways to bring her plant into motion.

So that was the first chapter. It was more like an introductory one, intended to show you the overall theme of this story. Of course, all can change according to the feedback I will, hopefully receive. Real plot will begin in the second chapter, which is currently being written, and should be out relatively soon.

As this is my first fanfic, Any constructive criticism is wholeheartedly welcomed. Was it too edgy? Were the jokes unfunny? No need to be considerate, I know what I am getting myself into.

By the way, I know nothing about american schools, aside from the low survival rate, so feel free to correct me.

Cheers.