Shadows of the Past: Watching
Sep. 7th, 2006 05:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lit_galWatching
sasha_anu is up tonight with her request for: "Shadows of the Past. Since I'm torn between Jim and Michael, I'll let you go with whoever has the greatest pull."
Nine years ago, one of Jim's missions went bad when his team ran into a unit run by an agent named Michael. The unit barely survived. Now, Jim comes home to find that Michael and the organization he represents is interested in both him and Blair.
sasha_anu is up tonight with her request for: "Shadows of the Past. Since I'm torn between Jim and Michael, I'll let you go with whoever has the greatest pull."Nine years ago, one of Jim's missions went bad when his team ran into a unit run by an agent named Michael. The unit barely survived. Now, Jim comes home to find that Michael and the organization he represents is interested in both him and Blair.
Michael studied the sharp lines mowed into the grass of Rainier. The perfect, even pattern carved into green fascinated him. The job for which he'd sent would spoil the pattern: ruin the image of quiet safety. To the north, a blonde student who enthusiastically chewed her gum plopped down on the lawn, her long legs folding under her Indian style. Nikita didn't even glance toward the van, but Michael trusted her to have the scene and his position fully mapped.
Blair bounced down a sidewalk, the red highlights in his hair bobbing with each step. The last time Michael had seen the young student, he'd looked worn, and more than a little pissed. Now he smiled with enthusiasm as he talked with his companion.
In the security of the van, Michael allowed himself to consider Blair and Nikita. So alike. Both valued loyalty above even self preservation. He remembered when the helicopter had landed on that Montana field. Ellison had writhed in silent agony, and Blair hadn't even looked up as the agents had surrounded them with weapons drawn. He'd knelt next to his partner, holding one hand and muttering words too quiet for Michael to hear.
Finally, Blair looked up with tears falling.
"Fix this. You won, okay, now fix whatever the fuck you've done to him," he'd screamed over the sound of the helicopter blades beating the air.
One of the soldiers had grabbed Blair's arm, pulling at him, and Blair had clung to his partner, silently fighting. However, when the medic had bent down, giving Ellison the shot that made his body go still, Blair had gone equally still. He'd stood, shell-shocked and compliant as hands searched him, finding the gun he hadn't even tried to use.
And now Michael watched as Blair smiled, talking with such enthusiasm that his hands flew. Waiting for Blair to separate from his companion, Michael turned his attention to Nikita. Sprawled in the grass, she scratched absent-mindedly, and Michael wondered if she would have become a college student if Section hadn't stolen her out of her life. Of course, maybe her willingness to help others would have made her a target for something more dangerous than Section.
Nikita shifted so that the sunlight through the tree branches created a tiger-striped pattern over her legs, but Michael's attention immediately returned to the target as Blair angled off, heading east through an avenue of tall oaks that blocked out the sun. The op called for a public hit, something flashy enough to send a warning to other curious eyes that might watch from the shadows, so Michael slipped on a coat.
As he stepped out into the sun with a weapon tucked invisibly into a fold of the coat, he suffered an unusual moment of conscience. Looking at Nikita and remembering the loyalty of Blair, he found himself envying their certainty. He didn't want to bring them more pain, but he still stepped away from the van and took a path across the lawn toward his target.
As the van rolled away from the curb, Michael wondered if Blair would cry at the funeral. He wondered what the man would think when he learned the truth. Walking steadily, he reached the courtyard with the fountain. A few college students chatted in a far corner, and the Michael slowed to give his distraction time to move in.
A young man with stringy hair came sailing into the courtyard on a skateboard. As he went to jump a low set of stairs, the skateboard darted out from under him, sending him flying to the damp ground. He cursed loudly, and the students all turned to watch, laughing as he picked himself up.
Pulling out the weapon, Michael placed two silent shots in his target's heart, and the body slid off the fountain's edge with a dying sigh, folding in on itself as it collapsed to the ground. Michael continued walking toward the van that waited at the pick up location. Nikita had already disappeared; the skateboarder rode quickly down the sidewalk in the opposite direction.
Michael heard the first scream as the van door thumped closed. Someone had discovered Alex Barnes' body.
As the van pulled away from the curb, Michael wondered again how Blair was going to react. As they left the manicured lawns of Rainier behind, Michael just hoped he wouldn't have to visit Blair again too quickly.
Blair bounced down a sidewalk, the red highlights in his hair bobbing with each step. The last time Michael had seen the young student, he'd looked worn, and more than a little pissed. Now he smiled with enthusiasm as he talked with his companion.
In the security of the van, Michael allowed himself to consider Blair and Nikita. So alike. Both valued loyalty above even self preservation. He remembered when the helicopter had landed on that Montana field. Ellison had writhed in silent agony, and Blair hadn't even looked up as the agents had surrounded them with weapons drawn. He'd knelt next to his partner, holding one hand and muttering words too quiet for Michael to hear.
Finally, Blair looked up with tears falling.
"Fix this. You won, okay, now fix whatever the fuck you've done to him," he'd screamed over the sound of the helicopter blades beating the air.
One of the soldiers had grabbed Blair's arm, pulling at him, and Blair had clung to his partner, silently fighting. However, when the medic had bent down, giving Ellison the shot that made his body go still, Blair had gone equally still. He'd stood, shell-shocked and compliant as hands searched him, finding the gun he hadn't even tried to use.
And now Michael watched as Blair smiled, talking with such enthusiasm that his hands flew. Waiting for Blair to separate from his companion, Michael turned his attention to Nikita. Sprawled in the grass, she scratched absent-mindedly, and Michael wondered if she would have become a college student if Section hadn't stolen her out of her life. Of course, maybe her willingness to help others would have made her a target for something more dangerous than Section.
Nikita shifted so that the sunlight through the tree branches created a tiger-striped pattern over her legs, but Michael's attention immediately returned to the target as Blair angled off, heading east through an avenue of tall oaks that blocked out the sun. The op called for a public hit, something flashy enough to send a warning to other curious eyes that might watch from the shadows, so Michael slipped on a coat.
As he stepped out into the sun with a weapon tucked invisibly into a fold of the coat, he suffered an unusual moment of conscience. Looking at Nikita and remembering the loyalty of Blair, he found himself envying their certainty. He didn't want to bring them more pain, but he still stepped away from the van and took a path across the lawn toward his target.
As the van rolled away from the curb, Michael wondered if Blair would cry at the funeral. He wondered what the man would think when he learned the truth. Walking steadily, he reached the courtyard with the fountain. A few college students chatted in a far corner, and the Michael slowed to give his distraction time to move in.
A young man with stringy hair came sailing into the courtyard on a skateboard. As he went to jump a low set of stairs, the skateboard darted out from under him, sending him flying to the damp ground. He cursed loudly, and the students all turned to watch, laughing as he picked himself up.
Pulling out the weapon, Michael placed two silent shots in his target's heart, and the body slid off the fountain's edge with a dying sigh, folding in on itself as it collapsed to the ground. Michael continued walking toward the van that waited at the pick up location. Nikita had already disappeared; the skateboarder rode quickly down the sidewalk in the opposite direction.
Michael heard the first scream as the van door thumped closed. Someone had discovered Alex Barnes' body.
As the van pulled away from the curb, Michael wondered again how Blair was going to react. As they left the manicured lawns of Rainier behind, Michael just hoped he wouldn't have to visit Blair again too quickly.
