*England: London*

The air was cold and dry, the sun has hidden itself behind the thick clouds and the airport is bustling with activity.

Lena stepped out, smiling happily as she scans the crowd. It was not long before she saw her.

"Emily!" she shouted, running towards her.

"Lena!" a woman cried out, matching her enthusiasm.

Both women happily embrace each other as Quillion came with all the luggage.

"Emily, let me introduce you to the Caveman! This is Tim" she introduced.

"Great to finally meet you, Lena has told me a lot about you, though you look nothing like a caveman" Emily said with a smile.

"Pleasure" he replied.

Though he tried his best to match the positive vibe but he could not help but feel a sting of jealousy at the happy couple before him.

"Common! Both of you must be knackered! Let's go back to my place" Emily said excitingly.

Pulling Lena with her, she gave him quick look and added playfully.

"Well common then! The sooner we get back, the sooner we can have a cuppa!"

Quillion stood there as they ran off, trying to figure out what she just said.

Knackered? Cuppa?

Though Lena used strange words, they were somewhat more understandable.

"Well she was working with people from other countries for years so it makes sense that she toned the slangs down" he thought to himself, wishing he worked with the British army before.

Squaring his shoulders, he ran after them, careful to keep a certain distance so people will not suspect he is a bodyguard.

They took a 'tube' to King's Cross Station and excitedly ran through the crowd, oblivious to the fact that Quillion lost sight of them.

He looked around frantically before he spotted them in the distance due to Emily's red hair, which annoyed him that he needed to use her as a beacon.

Lena was like a tourist and Emily the tour guide as they ran endlessly to different parts of London.

First they took a detour to Queen Mary's Rose Gardens to look at the Christmas Decorations before running to the University of London, where he almost had a fight with an Omnic who picked up a bag that he dropped as he ran. He was barely able to catch up when they stopped outside the British Museum, Emily saying something to Lena before they ran off again.

Making a beeline down to China Town through the impressively curved Regent Street to look at various shops, they ran past Trafalgar Square, pushing through a crowd watching a live performance, before stopping again at Buckingham Palace to laugh at something, which he saw from afar that they were imitating the Queen's Guards before darting off.

What surprised Quillion however, was how far Emily's place is. He thought since they travel on foot it is close from the station, but it took them about 2 hours to reach from King's Row.

He also noticed that even from this distance, he could tell that Lena is happier than she's ever been with anyone in Overwatch. In fact he could not think of anyone that is happier than she is now.

But what concerns him is that they are getting dangerously close to King's Row but breathed a sigh of relief when they ran towards Hyde's Park instead.

By the time they finally reached the apartment building, they were both panting and laughing as Quillion slowed to a walk as he made his way towards them, studying their surroundings carefully.

"Wow… You kept up" Lena panted.

"Yeah… You are not like the previous few sloths who were assigned to us" Emily added.

Kept up? Sloth?

"You mean there are previous bodyguards that you both avoided?"

They just smile at each other knowingly before laughing. He quickly made a mental note on this to be at high alert not only for any potential attack, but now to keep track of Lena carefully.

"Impressive, you manage to drag all this along too, guess your gym muscles ain't for show" Emily said as she grab Lena's luggage off him.

"Well, our apartment is number 414, buzz us here whenever you want to visit" Emily said.

She pointed to the buzzers next to the door, surprising him. Buzzers still exist?

"So I take it that I am staying somewhere nearby?"

"Yup, just next door so in case things go to pot, you can come over immediately" she said, indicating to the building on their right.

"All to what?" Quillion asked disguising his frustration with a fake pant.

"If there is trouble, you are close by" Lena said quickly.

"Yup!" Emily said brightly "Here are your keys. Get yourself some rest and come over in an hour for a cuppa!"

With that they quickly enter their apartment building and slammed the door, but not before he saw Emily push Lena against the wall, locking her lips on Lena's just as the door closes, enflaming him with jealous anger.

He was about to reach out to force the door open when he heard them moaning through it.

"Stupid stupid stupid!" Quillion scolded himself.

Why does he even feel jealousy like a schoolboy? Lena is an amazing young woman, why shouldn't she be in a relationship?

Besides, Emily has been her girlfriend for a long time and they've waited for this day for years, of course they would act this way...

He only knew her for less than a year and he never actually made any attempts to be more than her friend.

Still... It lingers on like a bad taste.

"Maybe I really am tired..." he said to himself as he tore away from the door to his apartment.

His room was better than he expected, the only complaint he would give would be the neighbour's dog that is barking.

It contained everything expected for an apartment. A queen size bed, a spacious shower, clean kitchen, but most importantly, his window is facing Lena's building.

Opening the biggest luggage, he chuckled when it contained another bag inside that has a label 'Standard Equipment' in Torbjorn's handwriting.

"Talk about a Bag-ception" he joked to himself.

To his disappointment, the bag does not contain any weapons, only holo recorders, communication interceptors, a small black box, and an Emergency Beacon.

After installing all the necessary hardware in and outside his apartment, he opened the black box and saw it contains a pair of sunglasses with an instructions manual and a note.

He could not believe his eyes when he read that what he is holding is state of the art X-Ray Trackers that will have friendlies glow green and unknowns as red as long as there is body heat.

Putting on the glasses he was amazed at the quality that the screen transmits when he looked at himself. Besides the red glow, the details are so clear it was as if he was using his own eyes.

Looking directly ahead, he could see that the neighbour's dog but it is somewhat blurred.

Eagerly he read the note and laughed at a clearly angry warning from Torbjorn's.

Whoever is using this, stop spying on people! If I see another clip of you snooping around, you're gonna regret it!

Following the instructions, he input his DNA into it via a needle that popped out.

A list of people came up on screen who have previously input their data and he notice that Lena has already added hers.

Testing the glasses once more, he saw his body gave a steady green glow while other rooms with occupants remain red. He could easily see people and animals going through their routines.

"Wow... Now this is nice" he thought to himself.

He looked out his window and was surprised to find that a green glow is directly in front of him, and she is frolicking with the red glow on a bed, obviously being intimate.

Very intimate.

Jealousy raged within him once more as he rip the glasses off.

"Calm... Calm..."

*One Hour Later*

Quillion must've buzzed three times with no answer, which annoyed him slightly as his hands became numb from the cold, still unfamiliar with the climate. He took the time to look around and appreciate his surroundings.

The buildings still used old-fashioned bricks and are bursting with its English culture.

Further down the street there are people enjoying their beer in a pub, which is fascinating for him because it is only 3pm.

He could not help but appreciate how different and unique the culture is from what he was used to.

He took great care not to use the glasses as it has a recording software that HQ will study after his mission is complete. Instead, he walked to the alley between their buildings and check their window for any signs of a break in, but nothing was out of the ordinary.

He walked back and pressed the buzzer the for the fourth time.

"Who is it?"

"Tim" he replied promptly.

"Oh, common in!" Emily replied as the door click open and was met with warm air, which he quickly stepped into. He took a moment to warm up before taking the elevator, making a mental note where the staircases and potential exits are.

It was not long before he found door 414, which was decorated with a Christmas Wreath. Just when he was about to knock, Lena opened the door.

"Heya!" she said cheerfully, "Common in then luv! You must be freezin'"

The first thing he noticed was that she was not wearing her Chronal Accelerator, just a simple white shirt and her orange leggings.

Looking around, he saw that the apartment is also quite comfortable.

Spacious and well decorated, it brims with the vibe of a home that he had not felt for a very long time.

"Make yourself at home, Emily's making us some tea, be right back!" Lena said, leading him to the sofa before walking into what he presumed is the kitchen.

Looking at the balcony he saw that her Chronal Accelerator is charging under the Christmas Tree.

Then he saw the bag that contained his pistol on the seat in front of the sofa.

As he retrieved it, he saw polaroids stuck onto the wall under a tray of books.

Studying the pictures, he saw the majority of them are of Lena and Emily holding up Track Trophies, as if they competing with one another for the first place.

"Well... That explains how they could run across half of London without stopping..." he thought to himself.

From the pictures, he learned that Emily is working as a nurse and Lena spent most of her time as a pilot.

"They look... Happy..." he thought to himself as he took a seat on the sofa.

If given the chance, could he make someone that happy?

Clattering sounds turned him around as Lena and Emily came back with some tea and biscuits and sat down next to him, with Lena in the middle.

"So... It's Quil isn't it? Since you are our bodyguard, I suppose you would have to be around us like a tick eh?"

"If that means I'll be nearby at all times? Yes" he said, accepting the tea from Emily with a nod of thanks

"Well don't go spying on us then, we need our privacy too ya know?" she said with a mischievous wink and poking Lena, making her jump.

"Ooookay! I think it is time to change the subject!" Lena exclaimed, her face bright red with embarrassment.

Quillion pretended not to see this by raising his teacup higher as he drank, his teeth gritting on the mug with annoyance.

"I agree, we need to discuss our escape plan if something does happen" pressing a few buttons from a device on his wrist and a map of London appeared above it.

It was a simple plan, Quillion will clear a path to the safehouse (codename: The Pub) and distract the attackers long enough until reinforcements arrive. If the safehouse is compromised, they will need to relocated to the extraction zone somewhere near the outskirts of the city (codename: Farm).

To his appreciation, both Lena and Emily listened intently, though their munching and slurping did annoy him. Especially when they kept holding hands.

He also noticed that he is getting annoyed too easily.

After what felt like 10 minutes Quillion looked out the window and was shocked to find it completely dark outside.

"Wha...? Did I take that long to explain everything?" he asked in shock.

He looked at the time and saw that it is only 4:30pm, causing him to run towards the window to check if anything is blocking the lights.

Both women laugh as they witness his reaction.

"Don't worry Quil, it gets dark here much faster during the winter periods, thought you'd have read that up" Lena explained.

He felt his face grow hot and shrugged.

"I never been to Europe" he said blankly.

Emily stared at those words.

"You really are a caveman aren't you my duck? Where'd you find him Lena?" Emily exclaimed.

"Duck? That 'Caveman' title again?" he thought, his anger flared again at the supposed insult.

A kettle whistled loudly from the kitchen.

"Bollocks!" Emily said, running to the kitchen.

His anger must've been visible as Lena quickly stood up to confront him.

"You need to calm down luv, 'Duck' is just a slang for 'Dear' here, don't worry about it" she whispered.

"But why would she even call me a duck?" he replied harshly.

"It's because you said that the UK is part of Europe"

"It is isn't it?!"

"You didn't read much about our history haven't you?"

"Only about your mission at King's-"

He paused in horror as she stares at him.

Quickly turning around, he looked down to her Chronal Accelerator, unable to meet her gaze.

"I'm sorry, I'm just..."

"It's alright" she said sincerely.

"Anyone hungry? I know a great chippy nearby!" Emily said as she returned from the kitchen.

"Same place?" Lena asked excitingly.

"The very same" Emily replied happily.

"A what?" Quillion asked.


*London: Chippy?*

The place is bustling with customers, the smell of chips filled the air, accompanied by the sound of scalding hot oil deep frying fish. Turns out a "chippy" is a fish and chips outlet a few streets away.

"I'll take the Cod with chips!" Emily ordered.

"Haddock for me!" Lena added.

Quillion waited for them to take their seats near the window before he walked in and simply pointed to an order without actually looking and sat on the other side of the store that has an old metal table.

He took the time to record down their activities on the mission journal while eavesdropping on random customers.

Mostly their conversations revolved around Christmas shopping, family visitations, while some are angry as they had to work on Christmas day.

"Excuse me amigo, is this seat taken?" a woman asked, grabbing the chair opposite him.

The first thing that strikes him about her is her eyes, which are purple.

"Omnic?" he thought, but her eyes are too lively to be machine, they brim of mischief and confidence.

He shook his head observed her as she adjust the chair to face the kitchen before sitting down.

Having being trained to recognize potentially dangerous individuals, he could tell she is no pushover, he could tell she has some combat experience.

Despite wearing a bulky jacket, jeans and a cap, he could see her body structure is similar to Lena's but less bulkier than Brigitte.

"A vet from some army?" he thought to himself.

"Like what you see?" she said with a sly smile, her eyes shifted from the kitchen to him.

His eyes quickly darted to where Lena is and saw that they are still chatting away, oblivious to his presence.

"Ahh... You're a stalker... Tsk tsk tsk... Naughty naughty" the woman said, following his gaze.

"You better find yourself a new seat if you don't want to get hurt" he threatened.

"Calm down, I was only teasing" she said, raising both her hands in mocking surrender. He notice both her hands have exceedingly long nails under the gloves.

"Tease someone else"

"Common, don't be so fresa about it, you're the only stalker here with hair looking at her"

Those words caught his attention.

"What?"

"I don't like bald men, they always look like they're up to something ya know?"

"No, you said they are looking at her, who is looking at her?"

The woman's order came and she took it with a nod of thanks.

"Have a good Christmas" the woman said, standing up.

He was about to stand up to ask more questions but she leaned forward and reach out her hand towards him.

"Don't follow me, just watch out for bald guys" she said, tapping his nose and saying "Boop" before walking away.

"Maybe she is a troublemaker, just a bunch of lies" he thought.

Sitting back down, he could not help but to begun to scan the room for bald men, which there isn't any.

"Yup, a liar and a troublemaker..."


"Can't wait to eat this!" Emily said as they walk back to their apartment with their piping hot fish and chip.

"Mind filling me in what is the plan for tomorrow?" Lena asked.

"We are going to Old Trafford for the big game!" she said, smiling proudly.

Lena squealed with delight.

"How did you get the tickets?"

Keeping a reasonable distance, Quillion tried to push the woman's words out of his mind but he could not.

By the time they reached the street of their apartment, he waited at the end of the street as a precaution, waiting a few minutes or so before going into his room.

After turning on the heater he opened the bag and is impressed with the presentation.

The golden coating for the fish is sizzling hot and crispy, covered with a dash of red chili sauce, the chips are thick and soft but crunchy, a golden-brown sauce over the steaming mashed potatoes, accompanied with a cup of mushy peas.

"This would be a great addition to the sketch book" he thought.

But he knew better than to leave something like this out in the cold.

He smiled and ate the best fish and chips he has ever tasted.

Satisfied, he stepped into the shower and as he was adding shampoo to his head, there was a knock on the door.

He whipped his head towards the door, wondering if it is the neighbor's door when the knocking started again.

"Quil? It's me, you asleep?"

Lena?

He ran out of the showers and looked at the holo camera he set up. Through stinging eyes, he saw it is Lena outside of his door.

Alone.

"Give me a minute!" he called.

Pushing away the ridiculous thought to open the door with nothing but his towel on, he threw one whatever he could grab.

"Am I bothering you? I can always come back later" she asked.

"Oh no, not at all" he said as he opened the door.

An awkward silence set between them, which is odd as she always have something to say.

"You... Want to come in?"

She shook her head.

"Actually, I just have two things to say to you. First, I'm sorry if Emily caused you a lot of frustrations today"

"Ahh... She wasn't that bad, just the jetlag" he lied.

"Second" she said, ignoring his reply "I need you do me a huge favor because you are the only person I trust here"

"Sure, what is it?"

"You have to promise me that you will go through with this" she said.

"You know I always keep my –" Quillion began.

"Promise me" she cut him off, looking at him in the eye.

He looked at her curiously, it is not like her to be so assertive. She should know that he would do anything for her, let alone make a promise on it.

"I promise I'll do this favor for you"