[ Survivor AU ]

[bothbarrels]

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[ghostthatlingers]

It had been one very long year.

She's not sure why she's here. This bar had been a favorite of theirs, the regulars and bartender knew them by sight. Their usual seats at the bar were even open when she came in and she found herself drawn to them despite that voice of reason telling her what a bad idea it is to even be here. It's been a place she hasn't dared to set foot in since she lost him.

Everything has changed, even in a dumb place like this and it hurts sitting here, in the same fucking seat she sat in with him, and not recognizing a single person in this place. It's a mistake being here, one she realizes acutely when the bartender comes over to take her order. Yet, she opens a tab and orders a beer.

As the bartender grabs her drink, she pulls out her wedding band from her pocket and absently plays with it. Leonard's is safely tucked away at home, one of the few mementos she allowed herself to keep after his passing. She's tried not to stay in the past, to move on, even throwing herself into her work more than usual this last month to keep her mind occupied as the date drew closer. Even after a year, it was hard coming home to an empty house and waking up to only realize she was dreaming about his presence.

It's been a long year and she has a feeling she'll be calling a cab to take her home before the night is over.

[bothbarrels]

He's been living a pretty transient lifestyle with the business he's in, but he does have a home base in this city that he returns to now and again. He's just returned from a lengthy job and he's slowly recuperating from the stress and tension doing this kind of work can inspire.

Today has been a nice change of pace—a lot slower pace, that is—and he's capping it off by visiting a local bar for a drink. He savors it slowly and rests his elbow on the bar. Yeah, unwinding like this is just what he needs.

A little while later he notices the woman who's sitting a few seats down. He recognizes her. They'd been on a mission together a while back, both having been hired by the same client. He watches her for a moment before arising with his drink to move to the seat next to hers.

"Hi. Remember me? We worked a job together a while back."

[ghostthatlingers]

He startles her out of her thoughts and the ring is quickly pocketed. It only takes her a moment to regain her composure and she sizes the other man up. He's familiar and it takes her a second longer to actually place a name with the face.

"Yeah, I remember. You call yourself North, right?" Real names were a luxury in their line of work.

[bothbarrels]

He can't help but notice her evasively tucking something away but just what is none of his business. He's sort of noticed the pensive look on her face but when he first spotted her he didn't take it to mean anything much.

"Yeah. That's me," he responds to her inquiry. "And you go by Texas, right?"

[ghostthatlingers]

She nods and glances around the bar. "Yeah, but you can just call me Allison. Codenames don't really fit in here."

[bothbarrels]

He smiles. "You're right about that. I'm Andrew."

[ghostthatlingers]

This isn't the best day for her to want to make pleasant conversation with an almost stranger, but it's better than being alone with her thoughts. She holds out her hand to shake.

"So, what brings you out here? I didn't think you lived nearby."

[bothbarrels]

He shakes her hand pleasantly and returns to his drink.

"I do, actually. I'm not there often, though. Almost makes me wonder why I keep paying rent on the place but I do love it there."

[ghostthatlingers]

"It's got a certain charm to it. I grew up around here and find my way back pretty often." How much longer, she's not sure. She and Leonard invested in a home and had talked about starting a family, but now it's a lonely place full of memories.

[bothbarrels]

"There are always those places that draw you back. Sometimes it's friends or family, but sometimes it's just the city." That's what it was for him.

[ghostthatlingers]

She gives a slight nod. "You on your own here?"

[bothbarrels]

"Yeah. My sister doesn't live far either, though. Couple towns over. What about you?"

[ghostthatlingers]

She shrugs and her gaze focuses on the wall behind the bar. It helps her keep her composure for the words that come next. "I live here alone. It's my hometown."

It hurts more than it should a year out and she downs what remains of her beer before flagging down the bartender for a shot of tequila.

[bothbarrels]

With his connections it's not hard to track down a job that requires two people and once things are tentatively arranged (with him promising that he will have an agreement with a partner soon), he gives her a call. She agrees to join him and he's able to finalize things. Their role is to ensure the delivery of a large shipment. It should be simple enough, and would give them a chance to see if they can work together before taking on something harder.

It's up to them to make their own travel arrangements and he books two plane tickets out to the location where the job will start. He gets to the airport in plenty of time and keeps an eye out for her.

[ghostthatlingers]

It's not the competency in which he handles everything that surprises her, but his willingness. She had been apprehensive about teaming up with another mercenary she had only worked with once before and knew little about, but he quelled that quickly with the professionalism he handled everything. It's a nice change to not have to worry about anything leading up to a mission beyond getting herself and her equipment to the spaceport on time.

She spots him quickly and heads over to meet him. This time, she feels far more put together now that there are a few days between her and that dreaded anniversary. Work is a far better use of her time than mourning and her wedding ring is tucked away safely with his at the house. It's only a risk to bring it along and that is something she can't bear losing.

"I was wondering if I'd have to hunt you down," she says in greeting. "Got the tickets?"

[bothbarrels]

"You know what they say, if you're not early, you're late." He peeled out the tickets and handed hers to her. "We have a six-hour window in case of delays, so we'll probably be getting there early, too."

[ghostthatlingers]

He doesn't waste much time on pleasantries, which is nice. She nods and looks over her ticket before pocketing it. "Good. That gives us time to scope everything out before getting down to business."

[bothbarrels]

"Added bonus," he says. "I like to have all my ducks in a row. Have you checked all your equipment in?"

[ghostthatlingers]

"Yeah, I got that taken care of. This isn't my first trip out of town." She readjusts the strap of the duffel slung over her shoulder. "Are you used to babysitting your partners?"

[bothbarrels]

He breaks out in a smile. "Well...maybe. I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page."

[ghostthatlingers]

"You do your part and I'll make sure I do mine. I can handle boarding a ship, though I do appreciate not having to mess with the paperwork." That part had been great. Now if he could not bother her too much about the basic details that only an idiot would mess up on.

She leads the way to their gate so they can wait for boarding.

[bothbarrels]

It was something he hadn't even realized he was doing, which wasn't a good thing when he was trying to establish a new partnership. He wasn't going to make excuses for it, though. He was used to controlling all the details and having a new partner meant he'd have to let go of a few things. "Luckily I don't mind the paperwork," he said to cover up for it.

[ghostthatlingers]

"Then this could work out." Depending on how the assignment went, of course. She settles in at a table and drops her duffel onto the ground beside her. "This a new client or repeat?"

[bothbarrels]

"They're a repeat. They prefer teams who are experienced with one another, which is why I contacted them. Last time I worked for them was with my sister."

[ghostthatlingers]

"They know not to be expecting her, right?" Hopefully. That kind of confusion could cause problems if they thought they were hiring one team and got another.