A/N:
Warning: chapter 42 has not been subjected to Beta-reading yet. Warning: Chapter 42 contains in all likelihood major spelling errors. Warning: Chapter 42 also contains grammatical errors. Be advised that chapter 42 contains errors in general. Warning: Chapter 42 contains lots of warnings. Chapter 42 has not been field tested. Chapter 42 is still a prototype. Do not attempt to read chapter 42 at high speeds or under high g-forces. Chapter 42 may spontaneously self ignite. Please don't try chapter 42 at home. Chapter 42 has been done by trained professionals in a safe environment.
I can't honestly think of any more bullshit now. You have been warned of chapter 42. With warnings. And even more warnings. Oh yes, please don't feed chapter 42.
There will be some additional notes at the bottom.
For now I hope you enjoy chapter 42, I certainly didn't.
-/-
Watchpoint: Gibraltar, private quarters of Lena Oxton an hour later
Lena and Amélie were leaning against the wall behind the bed, the blanket falling loosely over their naked hips. Usually they would cuddle now, relish the feeling of heir soft bodies caressing each other in a soft embrace, but not this time. They both sat next to each other like stunned teenagers after their very awkward first time. Their elbows were the only part of their bodies which sporadically touched the other.
Even though they were both adequately exhausted, Amélie finally decided it was time to spill the beans and face the consequences. She started feeling like a coward. Amélie despised cowards.
So, with some reluctance in the beginning, she started to talk about St. Petersburg. She spent at least half an hour telling her girlfriend what she had been doing while she had been on Morrison's extra assignment. Not that she had mentioned even a word about it being an assignment from Morrison or how most of what she did were her orders. Maybe she should have. Maybe it would have cleared things up more easily. But Widowmaker didn't. She felt her mouth moving on its own, while she herself was strangely disconnected to her own body, barely more than a spectator to the events.
Numbly Widow explained how she tracked down Katya Volskaya's male hooker, how she tricked him into opening the door for her and how she forced him to contact his employer under a made up pretense. The assassin didn't look at Lena as she went on, detailing every step along the way. She explained how they waited for Katya to arrive and how she proceeded to put them into a position suitable for her needs. It had been too easy.
At least the part where she had done it all had been.
The part where she had to tell Lena about it, not so much.
Amélie choked a little, not really wanting to go on, but left with no other choice. She would do this now, she would say it. She had to do it. There had been a time when disobeying an order would have been unthinkable. But for Lena...
"I killed her. Not only her, her little man whore too. It was textbook work, there is no way anyone would suspect a thing. It will look like murder suicide." Widow stated distantly, tired eyes staring dead ahead, not daring to meet Lena's. Amélie felt Tracer's gaze burn holes into her cold blue skin, she thought she could feel Lena's disappointment, her silent reproaches. Amélie was sure about that, she thought she knew exactly.
Lena stared at her girlfriend with wide eyes, feeling like a whole train filled with trucks filled with bricks just overran her at full speed. Her brain tried to come up with a plausible reason, but failed miserably. "Why?" she managed somehow, her throat feeling sore and bitter. She didn't understand. Why would Amélie just go off to murder Katya Volskaya? "Why would you do that?"
Tracer wasn't sure what hurt more. The revelation that Amélie killed someone again or the way she was opening and closing her mouth, obviously fighting with herself over an answer. She was lost.
For the first time in a very long time, Lena wasn't sure what she should do. Had all her trust and support been misplaced? She refused to believe this. There was no way she would have misjudged Widow's character this fundamentally. There had to be a valid, logic reason to it. No matter how unlikely it seemed now. There had to be one.
Widowmaker wouldn't just run off and murder an industrialist.
Would she?
No, no. There has to be a reason. There has to be more to it.
"Look at me, Amélie!" Tracer demanded and felt a punch to her guts when Widow complied. There was so much pain and sorrow in her beautiful golden eyes. So much hurt and despair. Lena inhaled sharply "Why did you do that?"
There is more to it.
"...Sorry." Amélie whispered. She couldn't tell Lena. She couldn't. It was too important. If she told Lena and Morrison found out, the deal they had would be off. They needed to bring down Talon. Widow couldn't tell Lena for her own good, she couldn't. When everything was said and done, when -not if- Talon would be nothing more than a pile of burning ashes, then Widow could tell Lena the whole thing. But until then...
"Don't you dare be sorry for not telling me!" Lena barked. "Don't you think I deserve to know what's going on after all you just told me? After all you-" Tracer stopped herself, her mouth snapping shut. Somewhere in the back of her mind a very disturbing thought suddenly began to take form, sticking its ugly head out toward the front and into her consciousness. It couldn't be. That was impossible... or was it?
The face Widow made when she had opened her secret assignment from Morrison flashed back into Lena's face. The unreadable expression she had worn. Widow had told her that she wouldn't like the orders Widow had received.
There is more to it.
"It was your assignment." Lena all but forced out to say. "Your secret orders." She gasped. "Bloody hell Amélie please don't tell me you had orders to do that." She pleaded, refusing to believe what that revelation would entail.
Widow's eyes were wide as saucers and Lena could see how she wrecked her brain to come up with a reply. More than a little reluctantly she managed a uncomfortable "I promised you that I'd never lie to you." She said and didn't add that Lena had promised to not ask questions about her secret assignment. It was too late.
"Dear lord, Morrison ordered you to kill Volskaya." Lena couldn't believe the words she was saying, but it suddenly made so much more sense. The ugly thought she had. It was true. Now she was absolutely certain that there was even more to it than she had thought. Still, it begged the question, what was the Commander playing at? Why did he tell Widowmaker to kill Volskaya? Plausible deniability? A scapegoat? That didn't sound like Morrison. Something didn't fit. Lena was missing an important piece of the puzzle. Still, the Commander had sent Widow to assassinate someone.
"Oui" Amélie replied. She shouldn't have been surprised that Tracer would be more than capable to make the connection between the secrecy about her assignment from the Commander and the murder of Katya Volskaya. Maybe a part of Widow had hoped that Lena would figure it out.
"Why did you go along with that crap? Sweet mother of Jesus, why did he do that? What's going on?" she demanded to know, reaching over to her girlfriend turn Widow's face toward her, so that she was forced to look at her. Pain and shame were still written all over Amélie's pretty features, her lips pushed into a fine line. "Fucking hell, when I brought you here, luv, you ending up doing Morrison's dirty work for him wasn't exactly what I had in mind! I wanted you to have a good life. A life of your own. What does that bloody Yankee think he's doing?" Lena was fuming as she set her hands on her girlfriend's shoulders. "And why are you going along with it? Why are you doing this? What did Volskaya do? Is this what you really want, Amélie? Are you really doing this because you want?"
Widowmaker felt cornered like never before in her life. A feeling she usually didn't handle well at all.
"Oui!" she admitted. "I did it for you, cherie. For you. So you'd be save."
That felt like a slap to the face to Lena. "M-me? How does killing Volskaya help me? Amélie, dear, I love you, but... I don't want you to kill people like that."
Widowmaker needed to find a way out of this particular corner. She needed to give her lover something to work with. Something which wasn't the whole truth behind the deal. This way, maybe, she would be able to honor her promise to Morrison and to Lena alike. "Remember when I told you that I went to him after you were hurt in Austria?" Amélie asked with an uncharacteristically small voice. It made her seem so fragile and vulnerable, a state no one else but Lena would ever get to see and live to tell the tale.
Tracer nodded, silently urging Widow to continue. The bigger picture eluded her. Maybe it would all make sense. "I told you that he had his reasons... And they were really good reasons. I overheard something I shouldn't have heard." Amélie's lower lip started quivering. "I promise you, I'm doing this for you and me, for us, I swear! You know I'd do anything for you, anything you want, but this is... greater than you and me. It's better if you don't know. You need to trust me for this, please. Je vous en supplie, ma chérie. I'm sorry,please don't hate me for this. I just want you to be save." Amélie fidgeted around on her place in the bed, nervously playing with her fingernails, as she kept stealing quick glances of Lena. She hated this discussion, she hated every moment of it, hated that she couldn't tell Lena. But Amélie thought back to the horrifying image of Tracer being held captive by Talon and knew that she had to do everything within her capabilities to ensure that would never come to be. The thought of being left by Tracer just to keep her out of harm's way was mortifying to a degree where it made Widow nauseous. "Just... please..." she said in a barely audible whisper. "I said I'd never lie to you... but... please don't... don't make me tell you..."
Lena shook her head ever so slightly, signaling that she didn't have any intention of making Amélie do that. It wouldn't have been right. Of course she wanted to know what happened exactly, but she trusted Amélie implicitly. Her girlfriend had a reason to be so distraught about this matter, so pressing it would have been wrong. Tracer was sure that Amélie had given Morrison a promise to not discuss this matter with anyone. She just hoped for his sake that the commander didn't force that promise out of Widow. Orders and promises, were ingrained into Amélie's mind, Lena knew. She couldn't defy them easily.
"There is more..." Widow forced herself to go on.
"It's ok, luv..."
"Non, it isn't..." she inhaled sharply. There was no point in hiding this now. Widow didn't want to appear like she was left with no other choice, because she could have just walked away. She didn't. "I enjoyed it. The hunt, laying out the trap, the moment when I had them where I needed them, when I made them seal their own fates by sitting them down on the couch. They had no idea what was going on. It was such a rush. Making Volskaya pull the trigger before forcing her to shoot herself, too. I enjoyed that so much." She confessed. "I know it's not normal. But I can't help it. I really can't. I tried so hard to not like it, but it's... it gives me pleasure. And there is nothing I can do against it Please don't hate me, Lena." Amélie's voice was barely more than a whisper while she played with the nails of her thumbs. The clicking noise was almost louder than her voice. "I'll do anything you want, just... don't hate me." She swallowed audibly, forcing her hands still. "Don't leave me."
The words stung. Like needles into a badly healed wound they stung.
At a loss for words, Lena said nothing. For a solid minute, she said nothing. They had been at this point so many times before, so many endless reassurances, so many whispered sweet nothings, so many promises that she would never go anywhere. Amélie was still scared of being abandoned, of being left alone. Scared that Tracer, the only person that ever truly meant something to her, would grow tired of her antics.
Tracer looked at her girlfriend coming apart like that and for some reason knew exactly what was happening. She could see why Amélie did what she did. She knew why she acted the way she did. None of this would have happened if Widowmaker wouldn't have been so utterly fucked up by other people or if her mental weaknesses wouldn't have been exploited someone who obviously didn't know better. Right about now Tracer cursed the day Amélie asked Mercy to not put anything about her mental problems into her file. She had been ashamed of it. But maybe it would have told Morrison some things he shouldn't do. Like give her direct orders. Or make her promise stuff. Her healing process wasn't far enough down the line for Amélie to handle those things like a normal human could.
Lena was furious inside. Boiling with anger, seething with rage.
But not at Amélie.
Yet again Tracer found herself angry beyond reasonable comparison at someone she never even saw before. A ghost under the name of Talon. There were times when it was all too easy to forget what happened to Amélie once you got used to her blue skin and cool touch. And Lena got used to it a long time ago, to a point where she found herself actually surprised how hot other people felt. It was so easy to think that Widow was just another completely normal woman, so easy to forget what had been done to her. But that didn't change the fact that Widowmaker was no normal woman and, if Mercy's diagnosis was anything to go by, would most likely never be.
She was furious at Morrison for daring to use Widows engraved loyalty to his advantage, angry at the fact that he made her what she used to be. An assassin. She gave the Commander the benefit of the doubt and allowed that he didn't know any better.
Be that as it may, whatever Morrison was playing at, Tracer would have a word with him. Soon. In private. And she would give him a piece of her mind. Because no matter how she twisted and turned it, in the end Amélie was the victim. She had to carry the burden, face the ghosts which would haunt her and deal with the impossible situations it would place her in. Situations like the one they were in right in this moment, with a completely distraught, upset and almost hysterical Widowmaker, who was scared to death of being alone again. I'll do anything you want, just... don't hate me. Don't Leave me. Lena heard those words in the back of her mind over and over again. It made her shiver.
Damn them all. Damn Morrison. Damn Talon. It's all their fault she is like this. Those are some pretty serious abandonment issues, luv. And I have no idea how to take them away from you. I tried, believe me, I tried, but oh god I don't know how I can make you see. How I can make you realize that I'm not going anywhere. I want to help you so bad, I want to take all that pain away from you. Just tell me how. Tell me how I can make you smile and laugh again.
"Chérie?"
"mh?"
"Please say something..."
Lena didn't, instead she just got up from bed and started putting on her clothes. She made it into her undies and halfway into her pants before she noticed Widowmaker's questioning and borderline hurt gaze. Giving her a gentle smile, Lena moved toward her dresser and picked one of Amélie's outfits stored there, handing it to her lover.
Widow felt her heart stop and sink into her pocket, but she wordlessly followed Lena's example and got dressed, mentally preparing to be kicked out. Her hands felt numb, to a point where it was almost impossible to close the buttons of the black blouse Lena had handed her. What would she do now? She was actually only a moment away from simply telling Lena everything about the UN, about the truth behind the Petras-act, about Overwatch, about Morrison and Reaper. She was only moments away from spilling very last detail in a panicked attempt to not be left alone, not caring what it would do to her still active mental inhibitors which were enforcing loyalty and made her more inclined to obeying direct orders from people she acknowledged as her superiors. But just when Widow inhaled to speak up, Tracer beat her to it.
"Let's get something to eat, ok? The world looks better with something to eat." she said with a warm, loving smile on her lips, holding out a hand for Widowmaker to take. "I'm not mad. Let's go." She thought that maybe, if they'd just go about a fairly normal daily routine, Amélie would calm down and relax a little. If Lena showed her that she wasn't going anywhere, maybe they could have another discussion in the afternoon. One not loaded with emotions.
Blinking, and utterly confused about what was happening, but happy to have some more time with Lena, Amélie reached for the warm, soft hand and offered no protest when she followed Lena through the corridors of the Watchpoint. By now the sun was already on the rise, standing more than half way above the horizon. The light was bright and warm, completely contradicting the way Amélie felt.
The walk toward the mess-hall was spent in silence yet again, but at least Lena didn't let go of Widow's hand, dragging the feared assassin behind her. That was until they reached their destination and Tracer let go of Widows hand in the end.
They stopped and Amélie looked at Tracer for a moment, but said nothing.
It's not like you need to be ashamed because of your girlfriend or something. Fareeha's words from the other day were echoing in Amélie's mind. As much as she tried, they wouldn't go away either. Automatically following Lena into the mess hall, where the two were dutifully lining up at the end of the line waiting to get their food, Amélie allowed herself a moment of reflection about their relationship. Truth to be told, she didn't have the first clue where they stood. There was a time when their secrecy about their relationship made perfect sense. But Widow had to wonder why they still kept it going. They never really talked about it. Was it maybe what Lena wanted?
Being late morning, it was obviously breakfast time. As expected the mess hall was filled with all sorts of people, technicians, soldiers and security personal, maintenance-crews and agents. People were running around with tablets filled with scrambled eggs and bacon, with cereals or bread and jam. The waitresses were re-filling everyone's coffee or serving the people's plates who were waiting in a line at the buffet. Lena and Amélie were at the end of the very same line.
The curious thing was, levitating directly in front of them was no one else than Zenyatta. The Omnic monk.
"Oi, Zen." Lena said with a frown "Why are you lining up at the serving counter? Not to be mean or anything, but it's not like you can eat our food, can you?"
Zenyatta slowly turned around. "Greetings." He offered with his usual calm and peaceful voice. "An excellent question, indeed. Is it weird for me to participate in the daily rituals everyone here has grown accustomed to? I wish to experience the way a human day is structured, hoping that it might provide some insight."
"Experience a human day?"
"Precisely."
Tracer laughed cheerfully. "Nah, not weird at all. Actually I think it's kind of cute."
"I am relieved. Though I fear the cook will be somewhat puzzled. But I shall cross that bridge once I reach it." He gave a soft humming noise. "Anyway, how are you fairing, Amélie?"
Widow didn't react, completely zoned out, until Tracer nudged her in the side.
"Pardon, you were saying?" she asked, her voice back to being as icy as usual, with the haughty touch which was so typical for Widowmaker.
"It's of no importance. I have to say, though, it's good to see you two together. You make for a fitting couple, if I dare say so-"
"Shh!" Tracer hissed, glancing over at Amélie. Her girlfriend always got so uncomfortable in public. Lena wanted her to spare the attention. "No one knows."
Tracer had no idea about the thoughts Amélie actually had. She thought that she was doing something good for her girlfriend. To her keeping up the secrecy had a crystal clear reason. Amélie was not used to attention in public and preferred to be left alone. Lena didn't want her to feel uncomfortable by holding hands in public or short PDAs.
"You're ashamed of me, aren't you?" Widowmaker asked quietly. Lena's jaw literally dropped. What?! "Ashamed of being with someone like me." Amélie continued in a whisper, and tried to smile. It wasn't like she could blame Lena for it. Her girlfriend was so well respected, so many people looked up to her. She was a role model. "It's ok. Really, I understand. Everyone would give you a hard time. Especially now..." Amélie tried to pull off another supportive smile, but it only looked tortured "Don't worry, I don't mind being your dirty little secret. As long as we can be together behind closed doors, I don't mind. Just... I want to know." She spoke in such a hushed voice that there was no way anyone could have overheard them. Maybe Zenyatta right in front of them, but he had artificial hearing. For any organic ear the noise in the mess hall would have been too loud to overhear them.
Tracer stared at Amélie with an open mouth, so taken aback by what she was hearing that no immediate reply came to mind. It was a huge wasteland in her head, the lone tumbleweed rolling past at high noon. All the time she wanted to help Amélie. All the time she had been causing damage. She should have known better.
Damn luv, you take abandonment issues to a whole new level. Damn... what do I do...
And then it hit Lena. Like lightning in a thunderstorm it shot through her. She grabbed Amélie's hand again and without a word she dragged her away into the middle of the mess hall.
Lena made it exactly two steps before the first colleagues of hers noticed her presence. Or better yet, noticed the fact that she was holding hands with Widowmaker. Many eyes were on them, all filled with a certain kind of curiosity. The former pilot quickly found a table in the middle of the mess hall, occupied by Hanzo and McCree.
"Sorry you two," she said with a cheeky wink, letting go of Widow yet again, before she effortlessly jumped on the table with one quick step. McCree was barely able to safe his cereal from certain doom in form of being kicked over and Hanzo instinctively grabbed on to his cup of tea, thus saving the liquid from an equally permanent demise. It was very dishonorable to spill tea after all.
Tracer cleared her throat loudly, but not before smiling at Amélie for another time. Whatever was going to happen, Widow had that feeling that it was not going to be good. She knew that look on Lena's face and usually it was never followed by something productive.
"Folks, may I have your attention for a minute?" Tracer shouted at the top of her lungs, to make her presence known to the busy lot in the mess hall. Everyone was going about their own business, but Lena wanted their minds focused on her. It worked. A few moments passed and the constant background talking, the rattling of dishes and the footsteps on the ground did indeed quiet down until it was almost completely silent. Lena smiled at how smoothly that worked and turned around once to see if everyone was paying her attention. She did spot Angela, her blond mane and shining blue eyes were hard to miss, sitting on a table together with Reinhardt and Torbjörn, but other than them and the two she annexed the table from, Lena didn't spot anyone she immediately recognized.
Lena could have sworn that the mild smile on Mercy's face showed that the doctor had a pretty good idea of what would follow. But her best friend smiled a lot, so she couldn't be sure. It didn't really matter either, the former pilot would see this through and maybe take away one of the largest concerns of her lover once and for all. It would be worth it.
"Thank you!" Tracer said loudly. "There is something I want to tell you all. You might not see where I am going with this immediately or why I am telling you about this, but please bear with me for a bit. It will all make sense eventually. And since you all like to gossip anyway, you'll all love this." She took a deep breath. This was the right thing to do. It needed to be done. No more hiding. Fuck it. "So, here it goes. For the past year, give or take a little, I have been with the love of my life. The person who makes me smile, laugh, sometimes cry, but who makes me, overall, wholly happy." Lena paused when some people expressed their approval, but quickly continued. "You all know how I swing. You lot all know that I have a certain preference for the fairer sex." She said and was forced to pause again when someone spoke up.
"You mean you're too gay to draw a straight line!" someone tossed in and everyone else joined in a short round of good willed laughter. Tracer herself giggled a little.
"Well, I can't deny that. And I never made a secret about my sexuality either. I was always upfront and honest with it. However, I have kept the existence of my girlfriend, the woman I truly love from the bottom of my heart, a secret, because I feared how you all would react. Not toward me, I can handle you all just fine. I was afraid of how you all would be to her. But today my girl asked me if I was ashamed of her." Lena paused and noticed how the room had gotten strangely silent. Usually there was always some kind of background noise, as it would be expected from a mess hall this size, filled with people. Someone always coughed, dropped a fork, cleared a throat or moved a plate. Not this time. It was silent.
"That is something I will not accept or tolerate. I will not allow even a moment of doubt of where my loyalties are or how my priorities are sorted. Because as far as I have influence over this matter, she will always come first, just like I am sure that you all will put your families first. If there is one reason we all fight for what is right it's our homes, our families, the ones we love. And that is fine, it's how it should be. Without family we might just as well not fight at all, because what would be the point? It's what makes us who we are. There is nothing more important than family." Lena was interrupted by a wave of agreement before she could continue. "So, I am here to tell you all that for the past year, I have been in an intimate relationship with none other than Amélie Lacroix. You all might know her better as Widowmaker. She is my family. The reason I fight." Lena gestured toward an obviously stunned French woman, who did not enjoy the attention of the entire mess hall for even a microsecond. If glances could kill, Amélie would just have committed mass murder.
"What are you staring at me for, eh? Never seen my face around here? Lena is talking, not me!" Widow hissed, trying to hide how deeply moved she was. If she wasn't in public, she'd be smiling like an idiot. She hadn't expected that. Not at all. But it was very much welcome.
A surprised murmur was going through the crowd, no one really sure what to think or do and Lena didn't really leave them time to figure it out either, as she continued:
"I am aware that she isn't exactly a popular face around here. And I know that she can come across as a little rude at times." Lena made eye contact when she said that, but Widow just shrugged. "Many of you are convinced that she has ulterior motives for being here and some of you were rather vocal about those opinions too. And you would be completely correct. Widowmaker didn't come here only because she was fed up with Talon. She didn't come here simply because she saw a way out when she saved Mercy's life. She has anulterior motive for being here.
Me.
I'm her ulterior motive. She is here because of me. Saved Mercy's life because she is my best friend. Put up with all your hostilities because she wanted to be with me. I'm the reason she is here."
"I know that most of you think of me as their friend and it's really great that we get along so well. But if you really want to be my friends, I ask you to accept who my heart has chosen. Because no matter what, I cannot and will not change my mind about this. If it comes down to it, I will chose Amélie, even if it means leaving all this behind. I love her so much, that I chased her time after time again, until I finally got through to her, until I was finally able to bring her here. Away from Talon and to us. To me. Family, remember?
I want you all to know that I never betrayed anyone of you while doing this. She is here with me now, not the other way round. I would be at Talon with her if that was the case. But I am not. I promise you that Amélie means you no harm. That said, I once again ask you to accept this. Us. You don't need to understand it. But accept it. Otherwise, I'm sorry to tell you, that you can all go and kiss my gay ass. I made my choice."
And with that Tracer reached down to a completely stunned Widowmaker and pulled her onto the table, where she pulled her into a tight embrace, giving her the mother of all scandalous kisses, filled with burning hot passion, her hand on the small of Widow's back, the other burying in her hair.
They didn't even notice how the stunned silence of the mess hall continued.
Everyone just stared in silence, not knowing what to think, not believing what they saw and surely not certain what to make of what they heard.
Lena broke away from Amélie, leaving a thin line of salvia spreading between their lips, which quickly disappeared. Tracer was still holding her girlfriend tightly, preparing to just walk away from it all. It would have been worth it. Screw Morrison if he dared to mess with Widow. He would get his talk, oh yes. That was right up there on Tracer's agenda.
Then her eye caught Mercy, who had pressed her fork into Reinhard's hand, smiling innocently while she kept the German knight exactly where he was. Sitting on his ass. In the meantime, Torbjörn had gotten up. The grumpy dwarf stomped toward the middle, looking as pissed off as always.
"What are you all gawking at, eh? Ohhh-hoo, she's gay, biiiig surprise. Never seen a happy couple before?" he shouted. "Would have anyone of you had the balls to admit something like that?"
Silence.
"No! No, you wouldn't. Tracer has more balls then we all together. They're happy together, so at least have the decency to act like human beings and be happy for them! Now get off your sorry asses and give them a round of applause! Where are you manners?" he roared. Torbjörn could be really scary when he was angry, despite his size. It was probably the way he waved around his prosthetic hand to emphasize his point and the way his face contorted in burning fury. The Swedish engineer commanded authority and respect like very few others could. So when he gave the whole of Overwatch a lecture, people actually listened. His word had weight.
There was a bit of delay before the first clapping sounds started.
But it happened none the less.
Widow seemed slightly uncomfortable as the applause started getting louder, so she glanced over at Lena for some pointers on what to do now. But Lena could only grin at her as they were applauded. She pulled her purple girlfriend
"Still think I'm ashamed of you?" she asked and Widowmaker only shook her head with wet eyes. "I will always stand right next to you. No matter what." Lena couldn't stop smiling. "Get that into that stubborn head of yours. Otherwise I'll have to write you a note."
"I love you, Lena." She choked out, not caring about anyone seeing her cry and laugh at the same time. "I love you so much." She said and gave her girlfriend another kiss, salty from her tears of joy and relief.
-/-
Prison block, at the same time
Sombra didn't expect that DVa would actually come back.
They never did, no matter what they told her. It was an unfair comparison, Sombra acknowledged, she hadn't had wild, dispassionate sex with Hana... yet. Not that her chances were particularly high. That didn't mean she couldn't dream. That girl had an inexplicable appeal to herself, one that made Sombra want to seduce and corrupt her in the best possible way. Make her doubt her own sanity by fueling a carefully ignited flame inside the gamer to a point where it was a blazing inferno.
Wishful thinking.
Sombra was convinced that the next face she would see was Reinhardt's or Zarya's who would drag her back to the interrogation room to finish what they had started. Olivia had taken DVa's advice to get some shut eye in and actually fell asleep the moment her head had connected to the mattress. Overwatch considered this a prison cell. Talon would have called it the VIP visitor accommodation. The view out of the room sized window was absolutely breathtaking. It had been the last thing on Sombra's mind when she had drifted into a long, sleepless slumber the day before.
The warmth of the early morning sun on her skin was what had woken her up. It was almost like home. Warm and bright the sun was shining into her cell, flooding the small room and bathing it in orange, teasing her skin and giving her energy. If it wasn't for the fact that Sombra couldn't just open the door and go for a stroll in her home town, maybe visit the bakery, say hello to Alejandra and enjoy some coffee there, it would have been perfect.
Slowly sitting up and blinking the dreaminess out of her eyes, Sombra noticed the thin blanket sliding off her body, but she didn't care. It wasn't like she expected a visitor soon, at least none she would have had to be decent for. Screw the eyeful the old knight would get. And with that thought Sombra had all but forgotten about her perfectly shaped, firm and pierced breasts hanging out in the open for everyone to see.
That was when the door creaked and Sombra tilted her head curiously toward the door. She was more than a little surprised to see Hana, with a tray in her hands. "Good morning. I thought I'd bring you some-" DVa took two steps into the cell before she stopped, like she was suddenly rooted to the floor like a thousand year old oak, sporting a deep red flush on her face. Judging from her posture and facial expression it took a lot of effort for the petite Asian to not drop the tray she was carrying on the spot. "You're naked!" she squealed, quickly putting the tray on a tiny table before spinning around to look away. She wished she hadn't seen the two golden ornaments on Sombra's breasts. But she had. And she couldn't get the image out of her mind. They looked good on her, Hana had to admit but immediately scolded herself for that thought. It was naughty. She shouldn't think about something like that.
"Hu?" Sombra blinked looking down on herself. Yes, she indeed was naked, presenting her exposed upper body to the world. Or in this case to a very flustered DVa. She grinned, enjoying the younger girls embarrassment. "Does it make you uneasy?" she asked with feigned innocence. "It's no big deal, why don't you turn around and take a look if you want, hmmm?"
"Sombra!" DVa squealed, feeling her cheeks burn up to an impossibly high temperature. "Cover up! I don't wanna see your b-boobs!"
There was a mocking gasp from the hacker. "Is that right? Is there something wrong with them? Should I be insulted?" Sombra continued to tease, fighting the urge to stand up and walk up to poor DVa stark naked. It might have been a little too straight forward. Ha. She chuckled to herself. Straight... suuuure. Oh well, take what you get. Nothing wrong with it.
DVa made an absolutely adorable sound which could have been a suppressed whimper. "They look great, Olivia please! Cover up already!"
"Fine, fine, chica." Sombra replied with a soft giggle, knowing exactly how flustered Hana got whenever Sombra used the pet name she had given the young Asian. "Anything for you." She purred, pulling on the blanked to cover herself. "You can turn around again."
DVa did so very carefully, as if she was expecting Sombra to mess with her. But the hacker had indeed pulled the blanket over her chest again and wrapped it around herself a little. Hana chose not to comment on how a blanked was hardly an adequate article of clothing. She knew full well that it would have only prompted Sombra to tease her even more. "I brought you some breakfast." Hana said, carefully nodding toward the tray which had some scrambled eggs, bacon two toasts and a glass of orange juice on it.
"Gracias, Hana. I appreciate it." Sombra smiled honestly, enjoying how much Hana reacted to her teasing. It was almost too easy. The girl, she was hardly a woman yet, was so obviously inexperienced, which Sombra didn't realize she would find endearing. There was an air of innocence surrounding Hana, like she was somehow physically incapable of deception. For some reason that had a calming effect on Sombra. She felt like herself around DVa.
"No big deal. The mess hall was on my way anyway." Hana replied and tried to play it cool, ignoring her burning blush. Everything about Sombra was exciting it its own regard, the way she spoke to her, the way she acted, the way she carried herself, her attitude and her style. Sombra was all too confident, yet also a little playful. She was sexy as hell despite her being obviously dangerous. She could be dead serious in some moments, but lighthearted in the next.
In short, Sombra was everything Hana wanted to be so badly. And she was so close to her. It all sent a spark of excitement through Hana, no matter how much she tried to tell herself that none of it was the case. Shrugging this particularly unwelcome thought off, Hana instead watched as Sombra reached for the tray and set in down in her lap. While she did so, DVa took the time to study the hacker's sidecut, the short hair seeming almost impossibly soft, only interrupted by fine lines of bare skin where some of her implants were. The only parts of technology that weren't removed. Mercy was concerned of possible damage to the hacker's brain.
Too late Hana realized that she had been staring at Olivia and that the other woman had noticed a while ago, looking back at her with a subtle, almost gentle smile which held noting but a weird sense of honesty.
"You don't have to do this, you know?" Sombra stated as if it was only a side note, as she began forking eggs onto one of the toasts DVa brought along.
Hana looked at her for a moment slightly incredulous. "Do what?"
Sombra shook her head ever so slightly. "Keep me company and be nice to me. Not that I don't like it." Not that I don't like you. "You caught me."It will be so much easier for you, kitten. "We all know how this will end. It's not like I'll walk away from this." She said with such indifference that Hana was actually taken aback for a solid minute.
"I-I'm only appointed to take care of you, nothing else! Don't flatter yourself." She pressed out, sounding as convincing as a kid coming up with excuses as to why exactly it was caught with the hand buried up to the elbow in the cookie jar.
"Is that right?" Sombra smiled, seeing straight through DVa and making no secret about it. "Don't do it to yourself." She said with a seriousness in her voice that made something inside DVa cringe awkwardly.
"Do what?" Hana forced herself to ask.
"Grow attached." Sombra said. I will only hurt you. One way or another, I will hurt you. I don't want to hurt you. You are so precious. She sighed, absent mindedly continuing to play with her eggs. She wouldn't have minded DVa growing attached. If they had met in a bar in Mexico. Or anywhere else in the world. Somewhere where they could run off and experience an adventure together. But they hadn't. And they couldn't. "Your Commander won't keep me around when he's done."
"W-what?" Hana stammered. It took her a moment longer than she liked to realize what Sombra was hinting at. "You think we'll kill you when we have what we want from you?" she gasped.
"It's the logical thing to do." Sombra shrugged. For some inexplicable reason she had never really thought that there would be a good end to this story. To her story in general. She felt that there was more to everything she did than she knew. It was weird how she often didn't do things she wanted to or did other things she actually didn't want to do. It had no pattern and it was only a hunch. But Sombra had the feeling that she had a purpose to be at the Watchpoint. A purpose which exceede being a prisoner.
She, however, didn't have the first idea what it could have been. All she was certain of was, that Overwatch wouldn't like it. She felt like a puppet which the puppeteer had left to herself for a moment. The strings, however, were still attached and Sombra knew that it was only a matter of time until someone would pull them again. She was a puppet. She knew she was.
DVa punched her on the shoulder with an expression of horror on her face. "No one will kill you!" she gasped. "They just want to know a few things. Just tell them and we'll leave you alone. I'm sure if you want you could even stay here! I mean we took that blue bitch in too, why not you as well?"
Sombra chuckled heartily. "Are you trying to play the good cop, chica?"
"What? No! Of course not, I just don't want you to suffer."
"Oh? Not just appointed to be my caretaker after all, are we now?" Sombra was back to teasing, trying to divert her own dark thoughts to some more lightweight topics.
"It's not that! It's not like I like you or anything! I just don't want you to get hurt, ok?" Hana stammered, feeling her face burning up yet again. Why was her body never complying with her brains commands! Now was not the time for a childish blush! Why was Sombra making her so nervous in the first place? Sure, the hacker was amazing and definitely appealing. But so was Tracer and she had never made Hana so... uneasy. In a good way. But Tracer never flirted with Hana either. Sure, why would she? But DVa got the feeling that flirting was exactly what Sombra tried to do. It shocked her that she found it to be exciting. Very exciting. She shouldn't feel this way. It wasn't normal. Why did she like it? It was too much for her to handle.
"And why is that?" Sombra asked, winking cheekily. DVa couldn't take any more, she needed some air. It was almost like Olivia had taken up all the space in her mind and now Hana couldn't think straight anymore.
"Forget it!" she snapped quickly, turning to leave, but she was stopped by a warm, soft hand holding hers. Not in a forceful manner. Sombra was gentle and applied next to no pressure. Hana would just have to move her hand even a little and she'd be free. Not that she wanted to. "Wait." Sombra said, all the teasing gone from her voice. It was like she noticed that she had gone one step too far for Hana.
"Did you have breakfast yet, Hana?" Sombra asked and for a moment DVa glared at the hacker. She couldn't lie to her. She couldn't just go. So, being incapable to form a reply, Hana shook her head no. "Care to join me then?"
Not moving for a second, Hana finally decided to allow Sombra guide her to the spot next to her, not letting go of her hand while doing so. DVa sat down on the bed, uttering a barely audible fine. The spot next to Sombra was warm and comfortable, the close proximity to the other woman making Hana both tense and strangely relaxed at the same accepted a delicious looking toast topped with scrambled eggs and bacon and watched Sombra prepare another. It was such a uncharacteristic task for Sombra to do. So shockingly mundane, it didn't really fit, but at the same time it fit perfectly.
In that moment Hana wondered what had driven the Mexican to become who she was now. The sunlight was playing with the dyed tips of Olivia's thick, otherwise brown, hair, highlighting her silhouette. Hana was suddenly acutely aware of the other woman's distinctive smell, cinnamon mixed with the odor that only originated from freshly opened electronic hardware boxes.
Not that DVa would have ever admitted it, but the Mexican hacker smelled great to her. Interesting... new. In a very fascinating way.
"Why did you join Talon?" Hana asked out of nowhere, not knowing where the question even came from or why she decided to give voice to it. Sombra looked up for a moment, an unreadable expression in her face, before she turned her attention back to the second toast.
"I don't really know. I needed money and was searching for something. I found it and that was when Talon contacted me. They made a good offer, so I joined."
"Money?" Hana frowned.
"A girl gotta eat." Was the shockingly dry reply. That was... a perspective, DVa guessed. Though she suspected there had been more to it. Not that she had a right to press the matter.
"We are feeding you." Hana shrugged and bathed in the sound of Sombra's cheerful laughter. It was making the room even brighter somehow.
"I can't join you." Yet again Sombra had an easy time figuring out where her new found friend was going.
"You can't or you don't want to?" Hana challenged. "I mean, I get it we don't pay as well as the baddies probably do, but I bet the food is better!"
Olivia actually laughed at that. "Oh you bet that the food is better! But... it's not that, chica. I.. just can't." she said tilting her head slightly, hoping that DVa would understand what she was trying to say. That she didn't have a choice. That there was no other option for her. She didn't know for sure why she was so certain of this. But she was. There was no other option for Sombra. She had to do this. Anything else would be her demise.
"Why not? If Widowmaker was able to pull it off, you can too."
Why does she have to have a point there? Sombra wondered, pondering the thought for a moment How did the little spider do it? How did she rid herself of Talon. How did she walk away without any problems? It can't be that easy. Or is all just in my head? Damn, I've been there so many times before. I never could leave. Why now? Why did I get so far?
A sudden rush of pain shot through Sombra's head and she cringed visibly. The thoughts were forced out of her head, against her will.
A puppet. The puppeteer taking control for a moment again.
"Are you alight?" Hana reached over, holding Olivia to give her some support.
"Si, si. Don't worry. Just a little headache." Sombra shrugged. "Let's say I could do what you say, how would that work, hm?" she asked, deciding to humor this particular train of thought for moment, no matter how dangerous it was for her. The pain in her head was still lingering around and she knew it would come back if she continued this. Wrecking the train was inevitable and as train-crashes went, they tended to leave a trail of destruction in their wake. She took a bite from her toast, waiting for Hana to reply. She wanted to hear it. She wanted that little glimpse at a better life. No matter the cost.
"All you really have to do, is tell us what you know about Talon. Then you say you will help us, Morrison will do for you whatever it was he did so Widow could stay and together we'll destroy Talon."
"Awww, it sounds so easy when you say it like that" Sombra grinned and gave Hana a light push with her ellbow.
"That's because it is this easy!" DVa insisted. "Bunch of thugs don't stand a chance against us."
A defeated sigh slipped over Sombra's lips. "Nowhere close. Even if I wanted, I can't share what I know."
"You keep saying that you can't! Why not? What's keeping you? Did they plant a bomb in your head and blow you up when you say a certain word?" Hana huffed and Sombra only laughed, but differently this time. Almost sadly.
"Oh chica..."
"What?" DVa asked with an adorable little pout, balling her hands into small fists.
This particular picture -Hana sitting on the disheveled bed with the autumn sun shining warmly into the cell, reflecting in her big brown eyes and making them glow- Sombra would never forget. She memorized it forever, simply because it was the first time in her life that she felt like someone could actually become her friend. Like someone would see past her many mistakes and might trust her. Someone Sombra could trust as well. She smiled sincerely and leaned in to softly kiss the gamer on her cheek. "Never change, Hana." Olivia whispered caressing the spot she had just kissed with the back of her fingers. "Never change."
-/-
A/N:
Alright my friends, that's it for this one.
First things first:
The guest I complained about last time actually apologized to me. Takes some cojones to admit when you're wrong. Apology accepted.
So this is "the talk" between Widow and Lena. And I absolutely hate it. I hate it for so many reason I cannot exactly pinpoint, which is frustrating me to no end. At some point I was just like, fuck it, let's get it out of the way and move on. Which I did, after I reworked it like a bazillion times. Widow's behavior just seems off, the way she acts in regards to her mission is off, everything is off. My idea was that she would want to honor her promise to Morrison and help him bring down Talon and that she knows that ultimately it is for both her an Lena's best interest if she does. But she is also so utterly loyal to Lena, so I knew she'd have to tell her some way or another. Which would stress her out. Which I tried to show. Which turned out not the way I wanted it. Let's move on to the next chapter, so we can all forget that talk ever happened.
My beta is really busy these days, but I really wanted to publish something. I will change this chapter to the corrected version once he worked over it. So don't worry, my atrocious spelling will be fixed.
Should anyone of you want to tip and finance my addiction to coffee, you can:
tipeee com slash e82s-fanfiction
A HUGE thank you to my supporters at Tipeee
FinickyCat
JellyNolVen
DarthWhiskey
That's all from me. I promise touchy-feely times are mostly over. It's soon time to kick ass and take names. Next chapter is already in the line and mostly done, so you can expect it somewhat soon-ish.
See ya folks around, I love you all
o7
E82
-/-
Translations:
Je vous en supplie, ma chérie (French) = I'm begging you, darling.