A/N: Hey there everyone! I know it's been a while since I've updated this story, or Life of a Mercenary, but I've been extremely busy as of late. I made the idiotic choice of taking three weekend classes (which thankfully end this weekend!), taking more than a full course load, joining a few different times on campus, as well as being in my honors program. Also, I've had a few health issues (such as falling down my stairs and having surgery for an unrelated medical issue) that have been taking up my time. However, I'm happy to say that (to my knowledge) all is well! So I wanted to get right back into the swing of writing. I had written this chapter actually several months ago, but I guess I never actually got around to uploading it (though I was almost sure I had). Regardless, I thought it would be a good chapter to publish before I finish up work on the third part of the Gauntlet in Life of a Mercenary. The next chapter I publish for that one will probably be well over seven thousand words, so it's going to be a fairly hefty chapter. And after that it should be only one to two more chapters before I start the next installment of the series. I will be sure to keep you guys posted, and I'm going to shoot for regular update schedules! I'll write what those will end up being in the author's note of the new chapter for Life of a Mercenary, but for right now, I'd like to thank you guys for being patient. I know it's not fun waiting for a story you really want to read to be updated. Anyhow, I hope you guys like the new chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Expendables or the Losers, just my OC, Sky.

Growing Pains

New Orleans, Louisiana

December18th, 1997

Barney Ross felt entirely out of place in the small auditorium full of loud kids, excited parents, and frantic teachers. There were strands of garland hanging up along the stage and around the doors in an uneven pattern, obviously having been done by the students. Twinkling lights were hanging from the ceilings along with paper snow-flakes and icicles made of some sort of plastic, that created a pattern that would've been pretty if he wasn't suffering from a hangover; at that moment it was just aggravating. As was the sheer amount of noise in the small room.

"What the hell am I doing here?" Barney mumbled to himself. He already knew the answer though. And the answer came in the form of one hyperactive genius blonde and a smart, big-eyed brunette.

The second the two kids had come home a month ago, chattering on about the school play they were both in, Barney had known it would only be a matter of time before he was roped into going. He knew it the second that he and Tool had gotten shot the look by both Lee and Gunnar, as they listened intently to the kids going on and on about the play. It was a look that said my-kid-is-excited-and-you-better-damn-well-be-excited-too-or-God-help-me-there-will-be-consequences. He and Tool had been as enthusiastic as they could be about an elementary school play, but neither Jake nor Sky seemed to realize their excitement was largely forced.

The second they were out of earshot, the Italian had sworn that he would not be going to a school play under any circumstances, no matter how much he loved the two children. Tool had been quick to echo the sentiment, and make his position on the issue known as well. Lee had immediately started arguing, pulling out his knife to threaten them, but Gunnar had stopped the Brit and assured the two other men that it was fine that they didn't want to attend the performance; that they weren't obligated. He had respected their decision and they wouldn't make them attend if they didn't want to.

That should've been his first tip off that something was wrong.

The following weeks had been filled with the kids going on about their parts and practicing their individual routines anddances at the tattoo shop at the insistence of Lee and Gunnar. They said it was important that they got their parts down to a 'T', but Barney knew what the two men were doing. They were trying to get Tool and Barney to change their minds, by showing them just how hard the two kids were working, and how they were so excited about the upcoming play. At first, Barney and Tool tried not to watch the practice, completely aware of the game the two other mercenaries were trying to play. It took only two days before Tool started sitting in on the practice, and three before Barney also hung around for moral support. But still they had held firm on their decision not to attend.

Tool had been the first one to crumble in his resolve.

Four days ago when Jake and Sky were trying on their costumes to insure they fit and going over their dances, Tool had turned into a pile of mush. It might have been the fact that Sky was dressed up as a doll—cloaked in a pink leotard, purple, fluffy tutu and a purple flower headband on her short curly locks—that did the tattoo artist in. Or it might have been Jensen dressed up as one of the mouse soldiers—decked out in a one-piece brown suit, a tail that he kept stepping on, mouse ears attached to his blonde head, and a nose and whiskers drawn on his face. Honestly, it was probably both. Barney had almost been done in by the sight, but by sheer willpower, he hadn't been swayed by the adorable scene before him.

That all changed yesterday.

Lee Christmas, the badass knife thrower of the mercenary group, had somehow managed to come down with a cold. Barney had thought nothing of the illness of the Brit, and had gone on about his day. That is, until he got a call from said knife thrower, letting him know that he would be the one picking up Jake and Sky from school. Apparently Gunnar was out running some sort of errand, Tool was getting supplies, and he was blowing chunks in the bathroom upstairs to the point that walking in a straight line was impossible. It hadn't been a big deal; Barney had picked up the kids before. He knew the route to the school, and he didn't mind the walk.

An hour later he found himself at the school, sitting in one of the chairs outside the auditorium where Jake and Sky had apparently been going through the dress rehearsal for their play. Lee had neglected to tell him that he didn't have to show up at the normal time since they'd be spending an extra half an hour prepping at the school. So Barney was forced to wait for them outside the auditorium until they were finished. With each passing minute he grew more and more annoyed with having to wait. He wanted nothing more to pull out a cigar or start cleaning his revolver, but both were acts not at all welcomed in an elementary school; the second liable to get himself arrested.

Just when he had been about to call Lee and yell at him for his mistake in the time, the door to the room had opened and a wave of seven and eight year olds flooded through, each one of them pausing to give him a curious look. When Jake and Sky had walked out of the room and spotted him, they smiled so bright it was as if he were looking into the sun. Pride had been written across their faces as they ran over to him, hugging his legs and introducing him to all their friends as 'Uncle Barney', one of the best uncles in the entire world. Jake had chattered on at a mile a minute about how cool his was, and how much he looked up to him, before Sky had smiled softly at the group of kids who'd taken an interest in the Italian. With absolute happiness and confidence she had stated loud and proud that he would be at their performance the following night, sitting front and center with their family because he loved them so much.

When she turned her big brown eyes his way and Jake let loose his bright baby blues, he knew he was done for.

Walking back into the tattoo shop with the two kids chattering excitedly about where he should sit and how they'd be looking for him in the crowd, he felt his eyebrow twitching as he spotted Lee who looked remarkably healthy for a man who had been 'blowing chunks' just an hour before. Barney kept all his comments to himself until the kids went upstairs to do homework; after that he promptly cursed Lee out before informing the Brit that he would be showing up to the school at seven. The rest of the night he'd spent with Tool, slamming back drinks at the bar. A choice he was regretting right at that moment.

"My head is killing me," Tool muttered as he plopped down in the chair at Barney's left, massaging his temple with one hand while holding a large bottle of water in the other. "Remind me again why we thought last night was a good idea?"

"I'll let you know the second I can hear my own thoughts," the Italians retorted, looking around at the large amounts of people flooding through the doors or the brightly lit auditorium. "Where the hell are Christmas and Gunnar?"

"Talking to Jake and Sky, I think. Giving 'em some sort of pep talk, or some shit like that," the tattoo artist replied, ignoring the pointed look and scoff from a woman seated in the row just behind them. She obviously didn't appreciate his vocabulary. "I wasn't really paying attention. Way too many screaming kids around here."

Nodding, Barney silently agreed. The only screaming children he was willing to tolerate were Jake and Sky. All the others were just grating on his nerves.

The row in front of him and Tool began to get filled up with excited parents who already had cameras out, even though there was more than fifteen minutes until the show actually started. They were chattering excitedly, talking about whose kid was whose and what part they would be playing. One of the fathers turned in his seat, probably to see if he knew anyone in the next row, but he promptly turned around the second he saw the groggy looking tattoo artist and annoyed Italian. The parents all began whispering and tossing looks towards them. Barney was just about to curse them all out and tell them to mind their own business before Lee and Gunnar appeared, taking the two seats just beside the Italian.

"They're just about to start," Gunnar whispered excitedly, looking far too much like his son in that one moment.

Lee pulled out his camera and got settled into his seat before smirking at the Italian beside him. "Good to see you showed up." Barney merely grunted. "Sky and Jake are specifically going to be looking for you and Tool, so be sure to give them a big wave when they're on stage."

Another grunt.

"You sound cheerful," the Brit commented sarcastically.

"I'm hungover. Leave me alone."

"That's your own fault."

"Shh! It's starting!" Gunnar shushed them both, pulling out his own camera to start recording everything. The lights started to dim in the auditorium and before they knew it, the curtain was opened, showing a stage that was decorated like a living room on Christmas. There was an obviously fake fireplace in one corner, a large Christmas tree with presents scattered underneath it, and couches along the stage. There was a boy and a girl, dressed up to look like adults sitting on one of the couches with microphones in their hands, stage whispering and acting as if they were having a conversation. From the side of the stage a little boy dressed up as a soldier walked in with his own microphone and started narrating.

About thirty seconds into it, Barney started to tone the kid out. He knew what The Nutcracker was about, he didn't need to hear whatever the boy was saying. That and the sound system in the auditorium was crap and was only serving to make his migraine worse.

So instead of listening he just watched with half-interest as he waited for Sky and Jake to appear on the stage. There was a few funny moments where the little girl playing the lead had to struggle to unwrap the present containing the nutcracker and where the narrator was caught picking his nose off to the side of the stage, but other than that Barney was bored out of his mind. And one quick glance at Tool—who was starting to doze off—showed that the tattoo artist was even less enthused than he was.

When the curtain closed after the first part and he had still seen no sign of either of the children he'd come to love, Barney started to get annoyed. Where the hell were Jake and Sky? Why weren't they on stage yet? They were far more talented than any of the other kids he'd seen so far.

"This is bullshit," he mumbled under his breath.

"Shh!" Lee and Gunnar both shushed him, their attention focused solely on their cameras so they wouldn't miss a second.

Barney rolled his eyes and was about to tell the two men what they could do with their cameras before the curtains opened again and the narrator was back. He said another few lines that Barney didn't pay attention to, before music started filling the auditorium and a bunch of little boys either dressed up as soldiers or mouse soldiers started filing on stage.

That was when he saw Jake. He was the first little mouse soldier walking onto the stage, his fake sword in one hand as he stepped forward to the beat of the music, leading the other little mouse soldiers forward behind the mouse king. There was a bright smile on his face as he looked out to the crowd, scanning the faces before his eyes landed on them. Forgetting where he was for a second, Jake stopped walking and waved wildly towards them, earning a laugh from the crowd and a smile from Barney and Tool as the mercenaries all waved back. Remembering his place, however, Jake quickly kept walking to get back on beat as the soldiers and mice men partnered up with each other to start 'sword-fighting'. It was all obviously choreographed, but as Barney looked at the blonde boy just past center-stage he saw that Jake was seeming to add in his own moves while doing something that suspiciously looked like it was from The Matrix.

Barney couldn't help but laugh out loud at that.

After the 'fighting' was done, the mouse soldiers followed their king away as the soldiers triumphed. When the curtain closed again, Barney clapped happily. He was feeling slightly better about the whole thing after seeing the bright smile on Jake's face.

"Did you see him? Did you? Oh, my boy did so great!" Gunnar whispered to the other men, his grin stretching from ear to ear.

Lee started smiling too as he waited for the curtain to open again. "Sky should be coming up soon."

And true to his word, Sky was a part of the next group. Barney was only vaguely paying attention to what the narrator was saying as the curtain opened up. All his attention had immediately been drawn to the very front row of the stage where Sky was kneeling down, with around twenty other little girls dressed just like her. She, however, was at the very front and was currently scanning the crowd just as Jake had done earlier. Except when she spotted them, she didn't start furiously waving, but instead smiled brightly and looked down shyly when she saw them waving back at her, giving her thumbs up. Soon music was playing and Sky and the other girls were up on their feet and dancing, making small jumps and twirls across that stage that Barney had to admit was pretty damn adorable.

All too soon, Sky's part was over and the curtain closed, signifying the end of another part.

"Sky was precious!" Lee immediately blurted out, turning to Barney and practically shoving the camera underneath his nose to show a picture he had of Sky mid-jump with a large smile on her face. "Look at this shot! I'm gonna get it framed!"

"Hey, can I get a copy of that one?" Tool asked, looking over at the picture—both men moving in on Barney's personal space without seeming to care at all.

"Sure."

"You have good shots of Jake too, right?" Gunnar questioned.

"Of course, I'll show you all after the—"

"Shh!" A few parents from the row ahead of them shushed them.

Almost immediately Gunnar and Lee—the two who had been the happiest about the whole play—tossed some of the fiercest glares Barney had ever seen them give towards the slightly balding man in front of them. "Who are you shushing?" Gunnar demanded, his eyes narrowing.

The man immediately paled which only got worse as Lee snarled at him. "Why don't you just turn around and mind your business, friend?"

The man didn't hesitate to do as he was told, which amused Barney greatly.

With Jake and Sky's parts of the play done, the four mercenaries spent the rest of the play grumbling or wondering when the show would be over so they could see the two children. Barney thought he was just about to lose his mind and walk out when thankfully the play ended and the children all came out to take their bows. They all made big shows off themselves whistling and cheering whenever they saw Jake or Sky before the kids disappeared backstage once again and the parents were being ushered into the cafeteria for snacks. They decided however to skip snacks and instead wait by the cafeteria door for Jake and Sky.

"Dad!"

"Daddy!"

The voices of the two children that they were waiting for, caused a large smile to appear on the faces of the four mercenaries as Jake and Sky—the former holding his fake sword up in the air—ran down the hallway. "Did you see us? I waved!" Jake cheered, coming to a stop in front of the four men, practically buzzing with energy.

"You bet we did! You were so good! I'm so proud of you!" Gunnar beamed, scooping his son up into his arms to kiss his cheek.

"I almost tripped during my dance," Sky admitted, shifting from foot to foot, her little tutu flowing as she moved.

Lee crouched so he was at her level and pulled her into a tight hug as he kissed her forehead. "You were perfect, love. You were beautiful on stage."

Suddenly Jake and Sky both turned to look up at Barney and Tool, eyes wide. "What did you guys think?" Jake asked.

Tool answered before Barney got a chance. "It was awesome. You two kids should be actors!"

Their eyes shifted over to the Italian and he couldn't help but smile at the hopeful looks in their eyes. They wanted him to like their performance. "It was the best play I've ever seen," he answered honestly. After all, it was the only play he'd ever seen, but they didn't need to know that part.

His answer caused them to beam.

The two launched off into an explanation of some catastrophe that happened backstage—the wooden nutcracker they were using apparently did break and the teachers were rushing around to the classrooms trying to see if there were any spare ones—with Jake largely giving the explanation and Sky adding in details whenever she saw fit—or whenever Jake paused in order to breathe. Tool and Gunnar were largely the ones engaging the two kids as Lee moved over to stand next to Barney.

"See, it wasn't too bad."

"It was alright," the Italian shrugged.

"You enjoyed it. Admit it," Lee smirked.

Barney looked to the two kids, positively beaming as they continued to speak at a mile a minute. He smiled seeing them look so excited. "They seem happy."

"They are. Just so you know they're going to be auditioning for bigger roles for the next play in the spring. It's going to be Peter Pan. I already told them you'd be front and center so be sure to clear your schedule. And try not to be hungover again."

"I don't have a choice, do I?"

"Not at all."