Halo: Reach – Jun –"Through the Eyes of the Sniper"

Medical Care Facility, CASTLE Base September 2 2552, 2:57

(Jun's POV)

A few days passed since Misha's recuse. I hadn't really gotten any proper news. Doctor Halsey kept saying that she was going to be fine, but assurance wasn't really enough for me. I needed to see her for myself. She was in really had shape when I found her. These few days were heart-rending.

Finally, I had been informed that she had woken up and was requesting for me. Almost immediately without hesitation, I made my way to her. I opened the ward door slowly, and there she was, sitting on the bed, staring out the window, her left arm in a sling. As much as I didn't wish she had to endure so much pain, I was glad she was alive.

"Six?" I called out.

She turned her head, and flashed a wide grin. "There's my superhero!" She slowly and carefully got up.

I returned the smile. "Sit, Six. You need to rest."

"I'm good, I'm good." She assured. That was a bit of a lie. I could see the hurt in her green eyes, even as she gave me her smile. "Jun, I really don't know how to thank you for what you did. I didn't think anyone would be coming back. I had thought that… this was it. This was my time to go."

I walked up to her and sat beside her. "Well, it obviously wasn't. I came back because I never felt right about leaving my team behind."

When I said "team", the smile she wore disappeared like smoke. "Uh… Jun… Emile, he's…"

I stopped her. "The Marines who came along with me found Emile. We couldn't find Carter though. We've been trying to locate him. Then they… found debris that used to be part of Carter's pelican…"

"Jun… I'm so sorry. I know you wanted us all here. I'm sorry it was only me." She apologized.

"At least you're here, Misha. That's good enough." I said, but the loss of Noble Team started to tug at my heartstrings. I got up. "Six, you need some rest. I'll leave you alone. Just take care of yourself. Okay?"

She was disheartened, I could tell. "Okay."

I turned and began to walk out. Then she stopped me.

"Wait, stop, Jun!" I turned. "I need to give you something." She got up and walked over to a table right next to the bed. She picked something up and then proceeded to walk to me. "I think you need to have this." She held out her hand.

"What is it?" I asked, before I even took a look at the object.

"Emile's dog tags."

I froze.

"Look, I know that you two were the best of friends. You two never went anywhere without each other. You always had Emile's back, and he had yours. A friendship like that is hard to come by." She said.

Emile and I were good friends. We were from Alpha Company, and we never parted. We looked out for each other. We were brothers. Brothers till the end.

"I think it's only right that you keep these." She continued. "I'm sure this is what Emile would want."

After much thought, I took the dog tags from her hand and looked at it with disheartened eyes. "Thanks, Misha."

"Hey," She called, and I responded by looking up at her. "I'm sorry I'm broke the promise."

"What promise?" I asked.

She sighed, and sat on her bed again. "You told me to take care of Emile. And I didn't."

"Jun, make sure nothing falls into enemy hands." Carter ordered.

"I'll do what's necessary, Sir. Good luck."

"You too, rifleman."

"Good luck, Six. Make sure you take care of Emile."

"Very funny, Jun." Emile said, humourlessly.

"Good luck to you too, Jun." I wished, and nodded.

"I'm so sorry, Jun. It's my fault. Emile is dead because of me! It's my fault! I was there, I should've done something…"

I was taken aback by her sudden change of emotion. I could tell see had been keeping this inside her heart though. I sat beside her. "Misha, it isn't…"

"And the rest of Noble Team…" She sniffed, tears flowing down her cheeks, where I noticed there were scratches embedded on them. "I was there when they all died… I could've done something, you know? I mean, anything!"

"Misha, you couldn't have done anything. Nobody could have. All of this was beyond your control. You can't blame yourself." I tried to console her. I knew what she was driving at.

"I know, Jun, but… it hurts so much that their all dead…"

"Tsk… Misha… I thought you'd know by now."

"Know what?" She asked.

"That Spartans never die. They're just missing in action." I gave a tiny smile.

She managed to give me a teary smile, after hearing my answer. Then, she leaned in and gave me a kiss on my cheek, before resting her head on my shoulder. "It'll be okay, right?"

"Of course." I promised, and held out my hand.

She took it and squeezed tightly. "There'll be another time." She whispered.

I heard those words. I wanted to ask what she had meant, but I pretty much got it. There'll be another time for us to live, another time for us to breathe, another time for us to grieve for the loss of our comrades. But for now, it's our time to fight. We're going to fight till out last breath and win this war no matter what. But as of now, I'm going to comfort my friend, because she needs me right now. "Yes." I agreed. "There'll be another time."