#also she hates socks bc they’re foot prisons

[pretty-emo-dad]

Mike wheeler is actually something that can be so personal

[itsthesinbin]

Warning (Soldier 76/OC feat Jacko)

sort of a part two/continuation to guided, but not featuring the junkers.

This is after Jacko’s returned to her home. A couple of “visitors” show up to her house- just the people she needed to see, actually.

Faucon belongs to @milked-goats / @writing-goats!!

Also under a read more bc LONG

Soldier 76 was a tired man. A tired man wandering the Irish countryside chasing some tale of some kind of… gang… terrorizing a local town. The people say they’re demons, but he figured the people were just scared. Not the first time he’d heard a bunch of assholes be called “demons”, anyway.

His companion- a tall French Woman by the alias of Faucon- walked behind him. Both must’ve looked ridiculous, walking along a forest path in full armor. Faucon knows she wants to get out of her heat-prison, but Soldier insisted on staying in gear. Who knows when they’d ambushed? Especially in these dense trees.

“Soldier,” the woman behind him started, taking a moment to figure out the translation to what she wants to say. God she wishes she studied English more often…

“Are you sure this is… right?” Hopefully that gets the point across. She just wants to make sure they aren’t lost.

Soldier had to think for a second, looking back at her. She glanced around at the trees, as if trying to figure out where they are. He sighed, running a gloved hand over his head.

“No- but I know we’re not lost. We just need to patrol around, then hurry back to a city to catch our flight back to Egypt.” Ana’s going to kick his ass for taking so long to get back to the necropolis.

If they’re lucky, the punks were eaten by fucking wolves and they can just leave.

But, as usual, luck was not on Soldier’s side.

A rustling caught the old soldier’s attention, he whipped around, weapon pointed towards the noise. He scowled behind the mask, trying to find anything- be it human or animal.

“Faucon, can you get up in the sky?” She looked up, frowning at the thick branches above her. There’s no break in the tree canopy, aside from the odd tiny holes. No way she could break through. She’d simply get branches and leaves stuck in her jetpack. She grunted out an “mm-mm”, stomping her foot angrily. He sighed. She frowned in response.

“Je suis désolé*,” she apologized. He leant his rifle on his shoulder, slowly walking again. She followed, keeping a closer eye on their surroundings.

“No need to apologize,” he grunted. “Can’t help that the trees here are so damn thick-” A large branch landed in their path, startling the soldiers. 76 jerked back, pulse rifle aiming upwards. They looked up, seeing something vaguely human shaped dart through the trees. Faint giggling could be heard, making the younger woman shudder.

A faint blue light suddenly lit up, at the far end of the path they’re on. The soldiers pointed their weapons forward. The light bobbed up and down, seemingly beckoning them to follow it. Faucon almost started walking, but Soldier moved his hand to block her path.

Before any action could be taken, shadows appeared around them. In the trees, among the bushes- bright eyes glowed in the dark. When had the sun set? Was it truly set, or were the trees just that thick?

A… creature stepped out of the brush. Nearly human in appearance, but with glowing gold eyes, black fur, and long claws. More of them stepped out- too many to count. Some sat in the trees, some hung behind. The humans were clearly outnumbered.

“No choice,” Soldier growled. He backed up, pushing his charge back. Without any further prompt, the two began to run. Like hell they could take on that many of those… things.

The monsters were definitely up for a chase, however.

Soldier fired his rockets into the pack, hoping to deter them. It injured a few, but it also just made the rest angrier.

An orange light appeared ahead of them, similar to the blue one from before. It floated in front of a break in the trees, on what looked like a worn dirt path. Soldier didn’t notice it at first- but Faucon did.

“À travers les arbres**,” she commanded, suddenly taking control of the situation. She gripped Soldier’s wrist, pulling him through the small gap between the trees. The older man almost tripped over roots- and his own feet- but managed to follow closely. The creatures roared, struggling to fit between the trunks at once.

It gave them enough of a head start to try and hide.

More orange lights appeared, a trail of them leading down the worn forest path. With no other choice, Faucon and 76 followed the disappearing- and reappearing- flickers of light.

At the end of a trail, and old cabin sat in the middle of clearing. The two stopped, startled to find anyone living this far out in the wilderness. They caught their breaths, checking behind them to see if they were followed.

Faucon nearly screamed as the door to the cabin slammed open.

“Oh, I’m so late! I hope they’re-”. The soldiers looked over at the new voice, seeing a very… small woman struggling to hold a large bag- and an even larger hat. The orange-haired woman stared at them for a moment, before sighing loudly in relief.

“Oh, thank the spirits. I thought I was TOO late,” she said, putting her hand- and hat- over her chest in relief. Soldier started to say something, but was cut off by loud snarling.

“Dammit- now we have to protect a civilian,” he growled, pulling his pulse rifle out. Faucon readied her SMG, moving back to keep a closer eye on the smaller woman.

“Protect me from what? The Phouka? Oh, please- I handle them on a daily basis,” she laughed, easily brushing past the confused soldiers. 76 shook his head, grabbing her shoulder roughly.

“Get behind-” The pack appeared, growling loudly. The woman pulled her shoulder away from 76’s hand, walking forward. The monsters seemed to stop- and a few even backed up.

“Oh hush now- I know what I’m doing,” she said, pulling her hat on. She whipped her bag around, digging through it. A faint chiming could be heard- bells jingled on the outside of the messenger bag.

Out comes a large, iron horseshoe.

The creatures- Phouka, she called them- cried out in anger. The woman approached them, holding the horseshoe out. The phouka growled and hissed, before turning and running.

Once she was sure they were gone, the seemingly-crazy woman turned back to the stunned soldiers. She put the horseshoe back in her bag, fishing something else out. She hurried towards them, a smile on her face.

“You two can call me Jacko- now where did I put-” She huffed, before letting out a happy “ah!” as she pulled out two daisychains. While the two were gathering their thoughts, Jacko shoved the small bracelets onto their wrists.

“Keep those on while you’re in my home. I’ll give you something stronger before you leave. Now come in! The tea’s about to be ready and we need to let the Phouka run off for a bit.” Without giving the two a chance to decline, she ushered them inside.

The house’s decor was just as eccentric as the woman who owned it. Charms and wreaths hung on the walls, what looked like Halloween decorations sat around the small living room, and a ton of different plants grew in various hanging and stationary pots.

“Make yourselves comfortable,” Jacko said, hurrying to the kitchen. Faucon slowly slid her jetpack off, before sitting on the loveseat. 76 stayed standing, clutching his pulse rifle. Something was off about this woman- this whole situation.

The small woman returned, carrying a large tray with tea and cookies. She had taken her hat, cloak, and boots off. All that was left was a dark orange sundress and socks.

She set the tray down, looking up at him with unnervingly large green eyes. He chewed on the inside of his cheek- a nervous habit he could never break.

“You can sit down, you know! Just because I know how to ward off some of the fair folk doesn’t mean I could beat you in a fight,” she laughed, sitting in an old armchair across from the loveseat. She waited for the older man to sit- although he just… stood there. She guessed he was suspicious. That’s fair.

“Anyway, I know you’re curious and suspicious, but I can’t explain too much at the moment. Not without giving away some very important details for later.” Soldier sneered behind his mask. What the hell was this woman talking about?

“For the incident that happened just now, know that there are creatures long-thought fictional roaming around the world,” she started, voice turning deadly serious. “Keep your eyes on the shadows- but don’t linger too long. Many hate being stared at.” She got up again, going to a large cabinet at the back of the living room.

“Now, do you have something I can call you?” Faucon snapped out of her confused stupor, watching the woman dig through the cabinet. Bottles and dried plants were pushed aside as she muttered to herself.

“... Faucon,” the taller woman said. “And Soldier 76”. Jacko nodded, mumbling a “nice to meet you both”.

“Ah- there they are.” She pulled something out of the very back of the lowest shelf. She came back over, handing something to both visitors. Faucon examined the item.

It was a heavy bracelet, covered in red cloth to keep from biting into the skin. She looked at Jacko in confusion.

“Iron bracelets- the red is to make you invisible. Although… I guess he’d be safe. Those Phouka must’ve been after you, miss,” Jacko explained, eyeing the red on Soldier’s jacket. “Just to be safe- wear those as you leave the forest. They should ignore you”. Jacko sat again, pouring tea for her guests.

Once the tea was poured and the cups were dispersed, Jacko divided up the cookies. WIthout thinking, Faucon took the plate happily. Soldier tried to stop her, but she hungrily shoved a cookie in her mouth. Double fudge… Delicious.

Faucon didn’t see the glare Soldier shot her way.

“This visit has to be short- you two have a flight to catch”. Soldier raised his pulse rifle, startling both women.

“How do you know that? Who do you work for?” Jacko shook off the shock, letting out a small sigh. She frowned, nose wrinkling slightly with the action. Faucon found the look to be quite adorable, and couldn’t help but snicker behind her cup.

“Whatever I said, you wouldn’t believe me. Just know I work for someone who wants to help you- all of you.” Not a complete lie, on Jacko’s part. Soldier growled, moving forward. He slammed his hand on the coffee table, making the women jump. Faucon was definitely enjoying this… display, though.

“Cut this shit out. Tell me who you’re working for or I’ll-” “Kill me? Or take me to the authorities? You’re not part of Overwatch, anymore, sir- you don’t really have any authority here.” The sternness in her voice made him reel bad- as well as the knowledge she had. Who the hell was this woman?

“Now, I suggest you either sit down, or calm down, before I have you escorted out of this house”. Soldier didn’t know if she had other people- guards- here, so he just, reluctantly, shut his mouth. Faucon grabbed his sleeve, pulling him to come sit with her. He grunted, letting out a huff as he flopped himself on the old loveseat. Faucon resisted the urge to lean against him as Jacko sat up straight.

“You two are in danger- as is every previous Overwatch soldier. You’ll get a message soon- I don’t know from who. I’ve only heard them be called “the ones on the rock”. My sources are very… ridiculous, when it comes to details,” Jacko explained. Before Soldier could open his mouth, she continued. The two notice her eyes seemingly glaze over.

“The shadow’s searching- he’ll attack the ones on the rock, followed by his imps. After the attack, the ones from the rock will send the message. No matter what, you must answer it,” she said, voice sounding… far away. Faucon reached a hand up, waving it in front of her line of sight. Jacko’s eyes barely twitched in her direction.

The eccentric woman suddenly snapped out of her stupor, shaking her head. Soldier stood as she shook the disorientation away.

“I’ve heard enough. I don’t know how you got this information, but we’ll be keeping a close eye on you,” he growled, heading for the door.

“If you don’t heed my warning, you’ll ruin many lives!” Soldier ignored her.

“Faucon! Fall out- we need to hurry back to town.” Faucon quickly stood, followed by Jacko. The frenchwoman started to leave, but Jacko grabbed her arm. She looked back as the smaller woman picked up a small, cloth-covered box.

“Take this- open it when you’re alone,” she said slowly, as if knowing Faucon had trouble with english. Faucon held the box awkwardly, staring down at the black cloth wrapped around it.

“There’s a way to contact me inside- as well as a few… extra items you might need, later,” Jacko said quietly. “Just… do not open it while you’re still in Ireland. Wear the iron bracelets until you’re where you need to be. Then open the box, when you’re alone. Soldier will take the items inside if he sees them”. Faucon, despite knowing she should tell Soldier about this, hesitantly nodded.

She slipped the medium-sized box into her bag carefully, before grabbing it and her jetpack. She hurried after her Commander, leaving the seemingly-crazed woman alone in her house.

The iron around her wrists felt more like shackles, clinking heavily against her armor. The two soldiers walked in silence, processing what had happened.

She reached over, grabbing the older soldier’s hand. He held it limply, thoughts more focused on the woman back in the cabin. She heard him mutter something along the lines of “this whole place is ridiculous”.

Neither of them saw the creatures of the forest scurrying past them, through the trees. The only thing Faucon managed to catch was a small hiss, and golden eyes darting back into the shadows.

The grip on Soldier’s hand tightened, as they made their way out of the forest.