Hey guys! Sorry it took a while to update. I've just been busy with school and trying to wrap up all my senior stuff (not to mention battling senioritis...) Anyway, don't be too mad because I HAVE been writing. I've just been too busy or lazy to edit them. So I have several stories lined up, just need to polish them a little...or a lot. But hopefully it'll be up sooner than this one took.

So, this is just a little thing between Tseng and Elena when she's first getting on the job and Tseng has to train her a little bit. The word that was given was "gun." And obviously in their line of work, there was a lot I could do with it, so much that my mind went a little crazy and I got a little overwhelmed and the only thing that survived was this. Sorry it's not super, but I've just been trying to finish school, which I will be done with after tomorrow. (WOOT!)

Please let me know what you think! (Or if you have any requests/ideas for me.)

Closer to You

Tseng studied the new recruit as she practiced putting her gun together. It was slightly entertaining to watch, if not for the fact that she actually looked like she was having fun, then for the fact that she was doing it instead of practicing shooting like she should have been. She would set the pieces down in front of her and then try to assemble and load her gun as fast as she could. Once she did, she would always smile and then take it apart, put all of the pieces down, and do it all over again. She was quick, he noticed. That'd definitely be to her advantage. And she'd need all the advantage she could get with her small stature. She was very lithe, which could perhaps also be to her advantage if she used it right. Unfortunately, she didn't seem to be very good at noticing things, for Tseng had been standing and watching her for the past couple of minutes. He knew he had a talent for sneaking up on people, but this time he hadn't even been trying. He doubted she'd turn and see him anytime soon, so he cleared his throat.

"If you try to go any faster, you might break it."

The girl jumped and spun around. Her eyes widened when she saw him. "Oh, I'm sorry Tseng—sir!" she blurted out quickly. "I wouldn't break it. I was just, uh, waiting for my trainer to come and—"

"Sorry to keep you waiting," he said. "I had some important business to take care of first."

"That's alright, but…" she blinked, confused. "You, sir?"

His brow furrowed. "I'm not quite sure I understand," he said.

The girl shifted. She was nervous. Now that she was turned towards him, he could see that she was young. Painfully young. It shouldn't bother him; he had been younger than her when he first joined the Turks, but there was something about the innocence of her face that put a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach. At the same time, however, she had on a look of determination that Tseng knew well. It was the same look her sister got when she was faced with a difficult mission. If she was anything like her sister, this girl was in no way as innocent as she looked. The reports he had received confirmed this. She'd received high marks at the academy and had scored well on her preliminary tests. She was an excellent candidate for a Turk. Now, he only had to train her.

"I just didn't expect…you," she said.

He raised his eyebrows. "And why is that?"

Her cheeks turned a light pink. "Well, it's just that, you're the Director. I thought you'd have more important things to do than train a rookie."

He straightened. "I usually don't," he admitted. "But since you're going to be my new partner, I thought it best if I did."

The girl sucked in a breath, her eyes widening. "Your—your partner, sir?"

"Yes. That's why it's imperative that you train." He was surprised when Elena looked away and he saw the uncertain look on her face. "Is that a problem?" he asked, feeling more offended than he should have.

Her eyes widened again and she looked back at him. "No, sir! I just thought Rude would be my partner since Reno…"

"He's injured, not dead," Tseng said. "You'll be sent on missions with them as well, but if I am to have a partner, you will be accompanying me."

She bit the inside of her mouth. "Oh."

Tseng frowned a little. "If you'd prefer to work with someone else—"

"No, sir!" she rushed out. She smiled a little. "It's a privilege to work with you. I won't make you regret your decision."

She seemed excited now, her eyes shining with eagerness. Tseng wondered what had happened to this girl. From what he had heard, she hadn't wanted to become a Turk, despite the wishes of her father and the legacy of her sister. She'd hated them. Yet one day, she'd signed up and had been working to become one ever since. And here she was. Determination, he thought. Another trait that would do well for her.

"Whenever you're ready," he said, bringing up a target.

She nodded, reaching for the ammo in front of her and loading the gun. She aimed at the target, the gun gripped in both of her hands and fired. Her whole body jerked in rhythm as several loud bangs went off. When she had finished the whole clip, Tseng pulled the target up closer. He studied it and frowned.

"You should try to be more precise," he said, when he saw that the bullets she had fired had punctured the target but failed to hit their true mark. The girl looked embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, Tseng—sir," she added hastily at the end. "I just—"

"Elena," he said, cutting her off sternly, "You can't let your nervousness or any other emotion affect how you perform. As a Turk, you have to be at your best at all times. It could mean the difference between the life or death of you or your partner."

She nodded, looking subdued. "Yes, sir."

Tseng gave a nod and set up a new target. He gestured at it. "Try again."

Elena reloaded her gun. She paused a moment, studying the target before she raised her arms and aimed again. She fired until the clip was empty once more.

Tseng sighed a little. "Better, but you're still all over the place. Unless you're trying to keep the target alive, you should concentrate in the chest area. More precise shots will reduce the risk of them getting back up again."

"I'm sorry, sir," she said, again, looking down, ashamed. "It's just been a while since I've trained with guns."

Tseng paused. He was aware that she had switched from specialization in fire arms to martial arts when she was in school, something that had come as a shock to her family. Still, her performance was strange. She should be shooting much better than this, even if she wasn't specialized in it.

"I know," he said. "However, you received high marks when you did. The preliminary report also said that you still had an affinity toward it. Our instructor is rarely wrong."

Elena bit her lip again.

He considered things for a moment and then pulled up another target. "Try again."

She repeated the same process: reload, aim, shoot. At the end, Tseng still shook his head. "You're still holding back."

She looked confused. "What do you mean?"

Tseng walked up to her, ignoring the uncertain look that crossed over her face. He raised her arms. "Relax your shoulders," he said, pushing them down from the tense position they were in. He ran his hands down her arms, adjusting their position until her finally got to her hands. He placed his hands over hers, moving her fingers to grip the gun correctly. All the while, Elena stayed still. She didn't protest when he shifted her, but he could tell that she was holding her breath. She didn't let it out until he was done and had moved to stand behind her. He checked her stance one last time and nodded. "That's better. Now try."

She pulled the trigger. The bullet went straight through the chest.

"It worked!" she said, excitedly. She turned to look at him and smiled. "Thank you, sir."

Tseng's eyes met hers and for a moment he felt frozen as those warm, brown eyes looked at him, full of admiration as well as something else he wasn't entirely sure of. A strange feeling started to settle in his chest as he stared into them. It only deepened when he saw her blush again. Her eyes blinked and her gaze traveled down, settling around his chin. Tseng had the uncomfortable feeling that she was staring at his lips. He quickly stepped back away from her.

"You should practice for an hour or two," he said, turning his back to her and walking away slightly. "I'll be back later to see your progress."

"Yes, sir," she said.

Tseng nodded at her once and then left, ignoring the feeling that lingered in his chest.

When he left, he didn't look back, missing the happy look on Elena's face as she watched him walk away. She glanced back at the ammo in front of her and reloaded her gun. She held the gun in one hand and shot at the target across the room. She shook her head and smiled when she checked her work.

Her aim was perfect.

Well, there ya go. Hope you enjoyed. I just had to have a little bit of touchy Tseng. Because who wouldn't want Tseng touching all over them? (Especially Elena. Lol.) And I hope you got the ending. Elena wasn't as bad as a shooter as she made it out to be. I wonder why she did that? ;)

Keep on blazing!