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softquietsteadylove · 8 days ago

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Just Gil causally cracking some bones because they dared to slap Thena

AU is free to choose :)

"Oh, come on."

Gil shared the sentiment. He pulled the truck over, already bracing himself for whatever trouble was about to take place. He was sure they were just drunk kids partying, but sometimes that was the worst kind of citation to give.

Thena walked ahead, as the White Wolf would. They were almost at the end of their perimeter check and on their way back home when they spotted the fire through the trees. It wasn't in a particularly big clearing, the fire was way too large for the wildfire regulations of the state. And every once in a while it would surge, and it was definitely because they were tossing liquor onto the flames for fun.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Who the hell are you?!" Thena snarled right back at them. She walked into their little bonfire, happily knocking over an abandoned camping chair and a few bottles on her way. "Anyone want to tell me why you have a fire the height of a tool shed built in the middle of the damn woods?"

"Fuck off, Tomb Raider, it's open land, we can camp where we want."

Gil grimaced. So, this was going to go even worse than he expected. He attempted to inject some reason into the conversation. "Look, guys, the fire is way too big, it's a hazard. It's not a properly dug fire pit, or raised off the ground."

"Oh, sorry Sparky," another of the young men laughed at them. They weren't slurring their words but they were clearly far from sober. "I didn't realise the cops get called on people just trying to have a good time."

"We're not cops, guys, we're the fire department," he frowned, crossing his arms at them. "We don't care if you're walking around with booze or smoking anything. What we care about is you not setting the entire area on fire in the dry season."

"Oh yeah?" a particularly cocky, particularly mouthy one stood up from a log. He tossed his lit cigarette - at least, Gil thought it was a cigarette - on the ground (literally after he was just told to put it out properly!). He sauntered over to them, bottle of whiskey in hand. "If you're firefighters, doesn't that mean you're public servants? My tax dollars pay your fuckin' salary!"

"Our salary has nothing to do with your rich daddy," Thena snapped at him, pushing him back from Gil and into a position where it was harder to ignore her again.

"Hey, you're not allowed to touch me!"

"Oh, really?" she drawled, picking at his button up shirt - why would he wear that camping - and then his baseball cap and then just giving him a pat on the cheek. It was lighter than a slap but harder than something one would call affectionate. "Every single one of you needs to pack it up. If you're still here by the time we come back with the hose, you're getting sprayed."

"Won't that, like, kill us?"

"If only I could be so lucky," she rolled her eyes at them. She walked towards the other two, examining the scene. "We may not be cops, but you might not want to be caught with this amount of liquor. What if mummy and daddy discover what their precious little angels are up to?"

"We didn't-"

"Clean it up!" she snapped at them.

But they weren't high school kids, they were easily in college, maybe even graduated. And Gil didn't like the looks on their faces. He rolled his shoulders, drawing his posture up. "Seriously, guys, I don't want to have to come back and turn you over to actual cops."

The other two looked at their ring leader. Their complacency had limits, it seemed, but he didn't exactly tell them to stand up and fight his battle like little minions.

Thena walked past him again, and Gil had to admit he watched the guy closely. He didn't like the vibe any of them had, especially that one. He put his hands in his pockets, ready to get back in the truck.

"Hey, Snow White?"

"What did you-!"

Gil felt as if he'd heard a gunshot. The slap had a real crack to it, because the bastard hadn't held anything back. He looked happy about it, too--proud of himself. For...slapping a woman across the face.

He laughed as Thena stumbled back, blinking through the shock of it. "If you can touch me I don't see why I can't do the same. Don't say I'm not a feminist, because I'm not gonna go easy on you just for being pretty."

Thena recovered quickly, she moved her tongue around in her mouth and spit after probably nipping her tongue with her teeth from the impact. She glared at him. "And they say chivalry is dead."

"Come on, man."

"Yeah, let's just leave."

Gil ignored the other two. His only problem was this motherfucker. He walked over to him calmly. He had to be calm. His chest was burning but he controlled his breathing as he went over and picked the guy right up off the ground.

"What're-"

His little friends yelped as Gil slammed the guy down into the dirt. It was soft forest floor, he was fine; he couldn't be unconscious yet. Gil grasped his shirt again, lifting his head up before bouncing it off the ground like a ball.

"Hey," Gil leaned in, snapping his fingers in front of his dazed eyes. "Stay with me, Sleeping Beauty. Pay attention."

The guy just groaned, barely holding it together.

Gil picked him up again, adjusting him a few times until he could stand on his feet. "You think it's funny to slap a woman?"

The self proclaimed 'feminist' attempted to mumble something, but it was completely incoherent. It was honestly a total coin toss whether it was an apology or something that would just piss him off more.

Gil grabbed the front of his shirt again, making sure his head wasn't wobbling around when he spoke to him. "If I ever see you again, I'm gonna rip your little bobble head right off your scrawny shoulders."

Gil wound all the way back, landing an open palm slap that felt like it shook the trees. His little buddies were silent, unable to even freak out. Gil tested the kid's balance but he might have fainted from the slap. He shook him.

A few of the bones in his ear might have been damaged from that.

But Gil huffed. When his eyes opened again he let go of him. He stumbled and then fell over, trying to drag himself anywhere that might be safe.

"L-Listen, we're sorry, okay? We'll clean all this up!"

"We'll put out the fire! You'll never see us again!"

Weren't so complacent now, now were they? Gil rolled his eyes. He watched as they put an arm each over their shoulders to drag their positively incapacitated friend away.

"Anything else, buddy?" Gil leaned in for the final word from the man of the hour. His head was dangling and he was trying to mumble something again, although the side of his face was swelling rapidly. "Wassat? I can't hear you!"

"He said he's sorry!"

"Very sorry!"

Thena stepped aside as they rushed him away, she was assuming to the designated area for parking up the trail slightly. "Should we be letting them drive anywhere?"

"I'll call them an ambulance," Gil shrugged, pulling out they keys that had fallen out of their new friend's pocket when he was on the ground. He tossed them to her, "he's probably a little concussed."

She chuckled, examining the keychain, featuring their very expensive alma mater and the logo of the luxury car brand in question. "I'm not going to thank you for the knight in shining armour act. If you hadn't have knocked his lights out I might have given it a go."

"Sorry to deny you," he smiled halfheartedly. He knew that Thena wasn't the type to shy away from a fight, and that she wouldn't think it was helpful for him to lose it on a bunch of spoiled brats over it. But he scowled anyway.

She made a face as he just barely brushed the tips of his fingers over her cheek. "I'm fine."

"It's swollen," he corrected. He could still recall it perfectly, replaying it in a morbid and horrific way since the second it happened. The wind up, the glee on that asshole's face. The way Thena's silhouette against the fire was so much smaller than his.

She shrugged, testing the damage for herself with her own palm. "So I'll have a cold one when we get home. By tomorrow, it won't even matter."

By tomorrow she would have a bruise, and Gil wondered if this anger in him was really going to go away just like that. He wasn't usually the angry type, but he couldn't just let something like this slide.

"Thanks," she said more quietly, nudging his arm with the back of her hand. She slipped her hands into her pockets as she started in the direction of the truck. "I know you were just being sweet."

He sighed. If that was how she wanted to think of it, then he wouldn't stop her. But sure, what he thought was a completely natural response could be chivalry if she was used to living with wild animals.

Thena was already on the radio, ordering medical assistance to their location. Gil dragged his feet behind her until he could pull himself up into the truck cabin as well. "I suppose we should wait until we're sure those morons get picked up."

"I guess," Thena said lightly. And he knew damn well it was her way of saying they didn't have to rush home. If she was in pain, there was no way she was going to show it that easily. It simply wasn't her style.

"Y'know, if your boys hear about this they'd be just as pissed as I am," Gil muttered in his own defense. And smiled, because it did get a laugh out of her.

"My boys are just as bad as you are. But they would know better than to step in for me," she gave him a pointed look. He shrugged and attempted a cute smile. She rolled her eyes at him and settled into her seat more comfortably. "You fellas have too much sympathy in you. But a swift kick in the nuts always does the job for me."

Well, he could definitely agree that it was deserved, in this case.

#Thenamesh Wildfire AU #thank you so much for the ask!!!#listen I love this au so much #I really thought about it #and any Gil would do this #but Gil doesn't really like to get into fights here much #firefighter Gil is a tree hugger not a tree fighter #but then that dick just full throttle strikes Thena in the face #and he sees red #he says I'm going to kill this little boy #they do wait in the truck just chatting #eventually they hear the sirens #when they pull onto the driving trail they can see the EMTs with the idiots trying to explain things #Thena tosses the key out the window #they'll find it eventually #they get home and she's like well what a night #but Gil's not buying it #he hands her a beer straight from the fridge #she pretends she's drinking it but he can see her putting it on her cheek every time she thinks he's out of the room #he makes her favourite meal and lets her get all cozied up by the wood oven #the next day he drops by the station and asks about the disturbance he found last night #he finds out they confessed to everything #including how one of them 'got drunk and ran into a tree'#Gil: oh no that's too bad darn kids okay see ya later chief #that kid is gonna have balance problems #and yes he was concussed #you ever watch him slap someone in one of his movies my god

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