[ Survivor AU ]

[bothbarrels]

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[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.

[bothbarrels]

"They're not expecting her, no." He shifts his carry-on on his shoulder. "Apparently you've worked for them before as well, so they were eager to see how we work together."

[ghostthatlingers]

"I thought the name sounded familiar." It's probably one of the many she picked up this last year of working overtime. "I should make a spreadsheet or something to keep them all straight."

[bothbarrels]

"You don't have one?" He kept one for tax purposes if nothing else, though it made it easier to have a consistent network going as well.

[ghostthatlingers]

"Not an updated one," she replies with a slight frown and glances away. That was one of the few things Leonard had done for her since he was far more tech savvy. She knows it'll bite her in the ass later, but she hasn't been keeping up with it as much as she needs to.

[bothbarrels]

"I can help you network, too, if this works out. I'm sure I have information you don't have."

[ghostthatlingers]

"I've got plenty of connections, but we can compare notes when we get back." And maybe that'll be incentive to get all her paperwork in order finally. "I've got records, I just need to organize them."

[bothbarrels]

"I look forward to it," he says, stifling a urge to talk about how important organization is. That's the sort of thing he would have said to his sister.

[ghostthatlingers]

"We can do it at my place. I've got space for us to set-up and work." She reaches into her bag to pull out a book she had brought for the flight. She's not sure how talkative he'll be on the ride over and she always packs to be ready for travel.

[bothbarrels]

"Sounds good." The emergence of her book seems to be a clear signal she'd like to disengage for a while at least and he pulls out his COM pad to look over the information on their job again—just in case.

[ghostthatlingers]

She'll be content to read until shortly before their boarding time unless he interrupts her. Reading doesn't have the usual activity level she prefers, especially right before being forced to sit still for who knows how long, but there's not exactly a gym nearby or a place to jog. It'll have to do to keep her busy.

She checks the time before slipping her book back into her bag and nudging him with her foot to get his attention. "Got everything you need for the flight?"

[bothbarrels]

"All set," he confirms. She has good timing because that's when their flight is called and he stands. "Should be about a four-hour flight."

[ghostthatlingers]

"And then we can hit the ground running." She takes a moment to stretch herself before getting in line. Her bag is shoved into the overhead compartment and she takes a seat by with a few items from it to keep herself entertained for the trip.

"So, I've seen you in action in the field. What does your sister specialize in?"

[bothbarrels]

"Fast-running, boots on the ground work." She'd started out as stealth but that had never suited her. In fast she'd seemed to sabotage herself when she was supposed to be taking on that role.