Holly Jasmine Page (shewhodrifts) wrote in commandhq, @ 2018-03-18 21:21:00 |
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Entry tags: | holly page, p: mena, p: mj, scott deacon |
Who: Scott Deacon & Holly Page
What: Old friends and ex-flame reunite
When: 16th March, early afternoon
Where: Kitchen area of staff barracks
Rating: PG-13, language
Transfers were commonplace in the Regiment, expected even so when Scott had gotten the order to pack his things and move from Texas to Washington he wasn’t that surprised. Things moved at a fast pace, quicker than they could keep up with at times, especially as every day a new super was being discovered. Scott unlike a lot of people wasn’t afraid of supers, definitely did not want to be one of them as it was a challenging path to walk because society as a whole was afraid of things they didn’t know or understand. Becoming a handler seemed a natural progression from a soldier in the field especially as it gave him a lot of opportunities to hopefully turn things around, for better not so much for the worse.
Limbo seemed nice so far, definitely different from Texas, he could actually see the sky and his room was spacious. Small things made the world go round and Scott was nothing if not appreciative of those things. He had a whole new team which meant he needed to put in the time and work to get them on side or at the very least to understand who they were and what made them ticked. Not everybody was going to be happy about their situation or like him very much because he was a handler, but didn’t mean he was about to give in to the inevitable. Not if he could do something about it.
Of course the other thing Limbo had over Texas was one Holly Page, his old friend and ex-flame. Hopefully things wouldn’t be awkward because that was definitely not what he was going for, not when this was in effect her stomping ground. He was planning to seek her out as soon as he’d unpacked and gotten settled in but luck it would seem had other plans because when he rounded on the small kitchen on their floor there she was in all her… well, glory.
Alright, play it cool, Deacon.
“Hey stranger,” he quipped with a smirk. “Long time no see.”
Holly didn’t pay too much attention to the comings and goings of new handlers. She tended to look at the transfer list once or twice a month because people came and went so quickly that it wasn’t worth learning names until people came and stayed. If they were still here in a couple of weeks, she would make an effort to get to know them at least partially on a professional level. Otherwise, getting to know new people was an effort she couldn’t bring herself to put in just yet. It took time for Holly to get to know new people, it took even longer for her to consider thinking of them as an acquaintance, let alone a friend.
Perhaps that was why she felt so lonely here. Because really, outside of Lucas and Evan she had no one. None of the other handlers she was particularly close to and she definitely had kept a professional distance between herself and her team - for their own good as much as for hers. And so most days when she didn’t have training, Holly was on her own doing paperwork, working out or reading. Lucas was often doing other things, and Evan was slowly ingratiating himself into the ranks of the handlers so Holly wasn’t about to stop him from making friends just because she was a big old loser who didn’t know how to.
She had finished the food she’d made and had washed her dishes, the only thing outstanding was her glass of water which sat untouched on the counter, ice slowly melting and leaving condensation trails dribbling down the length of the glass and pooling on the top.
She was drying off her hands when she heard footsteps behind her and then a voice that caused chills to ripple down her spine. She pressed her lips together and took in a deep breath through her nose before her fingers caught on the glass and she turned on the spot to look at Scott Deacon.
Had it really been six years?
“That’s an understatement,” she responded with a small smirk, taking a sip of her drink and watching him over the rim of her glass, other hand gripping the counter so she didn’t just fling herself at him. “First Evan, now you, it’s a bloody good thing none of the rest of our unit signed up to the Regiment otherwise this place’d burst at the seams.”
She tilted her head, suddenly wishing she had more on than just jeans and a tank top. What she was wearing didn’t seem fitting for a reunion like this. Not when he was looking so put together and good. It wasn’t fair.
She put the glass back down on the counter and Holly forced her body language to relax. “Welcome to Limbo, gotta be a step up from Inferno, right?”
She looked good, really good, but Scott kept his mind from wandering too much as it had been six years and that was a long time for anyone. He proceeded to fold his arms across his chest and prop himself on the edge of the door as he smirked at her comments. “I’m pretty sure a couple wives would have a thing or two to say about that if they gave it even as much as a thought.”
He ducked his head and flexed his hands from where they’d come to rest around his upper arms.
“Yeah, I guess,” he began before lifting his head at which point a slow teasing smile tugged apart his lips. “Though I mean I gotta say that the locals aren’t a little questionable at best. There’s this one in particular, real hard ass, no sense of humour from what I hear.”
Holly felt her jaw clenching a little when Scott smiled at her and she knew that six years had not been long enough. And that wasn’t fair. She folded her arms across her chest and rolled her eyes a little, still leaning against the counter as she stood with her legs crossed at the ankle.
“Yeah, I’ve heard that too,” she told him, her own lips twitching in the corner but her eyes were alight, “heard she doesn’t take being teased too well either, she’s bound to throw a punch or two in response.”
Wetting her lower lip, she added, “Plus she’s pretty used to being in charge, so no newbie upstart’s gonna think he can come along and start taking the piss without repercussions.”
Holly could be and was a hard person to read at times except of course if you were Scott who’d had the privilege of seeing her at her most vulnerable stripped back raw so he knew she was taking all his comments in her stride. “I dunno, from what I hear this newbie upstart can keep up with her.”
He pushed away from the door and joined her where she was settled, a light nudge being given to her side.
“It’s good to see you.”
Holly felt her breath stutter a fraction though she controlled it quickly when Scott came beside her and nudged her with his shoulder. She chuckled and nudged him back, turning her head to look back up at him and offering him a small smile.
“It’s good to see you, too,” she reassured, just in case he’d thought she wasn’t pleased to see him. She was, it was just a surprise. She hadn’t been expecting to see him until their unit reunion in six months’ time.
She wanted to tell him she’d missed him, but the words wouldn’t form on her tongue, so she just nudged him again and tipped her head to rest it against his shoulder for a second.
“You must be taking over Sangha’s old team,” she told him, thinking about her recent conversation with Bear. “There’s some …personalities on that team.”
Scott was rather purposefully not focusing on how good Holly looked or how the scent of her hair drew him back into some rather… heated moments. He knew it would be difficult coming here and seeing Holly again but he hadn’t anticipated how strong those feelings would be.
“Is that right?” He asked, tipping his head to look over at Holly. “You got any pointers for me? Or any advice?”
Never hurt to ask, especially when Holly knew more than he did.
“They might have some questions about what happened with Eric- the handler that was demoted for being a super in secret. Stay away from him, he’s a piece of work.” Holly sighed, rubbing the back of her neck, feeling that familiar tension creeping up her spine. That had been a mess; they’d all been questioning the last few years and their decisions, their actions, just in case they’d been messed with. Just in case there was a chance he could have messed with their heads. It made her so angry, because it was exactly the kind of thing that many people were afraid of.
She shrugged a shoulder, looking at her feet. “Their handler wasn’t particularly active with them before she left, so they’ve been a bit directionless.”
He’d heard something about that, scuttlebutt had a way of getting around, but Scott didn’t tend to listen to it unless he’d verified it as being correct himself. Better to hear it from the horse’s mouth than take it from the flies.
“Well they’ll definitely be kept busy now that I’m here,” Scott affirmed with a smirk. “They won’t know what hit them.” He didn’t like the thought of a team being left directionless especially when they all had skills and abilities that could if directed right be used for good and maybe one day have people view supers differently.
“You’ll probably come across a bit of resistance,” she warned, “so go in slow. But you’re an old hat at this by now.” Holly smiled a little, “It’ll be good- there are some people on your team I’d like to get involved with cross-team training once you’ve got them settled to having a new handler.”
Picking up her water again, Holly took a long drink of it and ran her thumb along her lower lip. “And once you’ve got settled, I challenge you to a co-op combat sim in the hologym.”
“Cross-team training makes sense,” Scott agreed with a nod of his head. “Count me in. I’ll work on getting the team on side with it.” He did not look at her thumb on her lower lip. No. He definitely did not do that .
Scott chuckled and held out a hand with a smirk.
“Challenge accepted.”