There was always something. A mistimed guard. An escape. Eliot too far for immediate backup. You and Harry with the damning file. Harry and you rushed down the halls, his hand gripped tightly in yours. Breanna’s voice directed you.

Your heart dropped as the goon stepped into the hallway. Shit. You pushed Harry behind you on instinct. “Eliot, we’ve got trouble.” You said into your coms. You glanced over your shoulder at Harry and handed him the file. The file that would prove Reynolds’ embezzlement. “Take the files. Get out. Now.”

Harry stared at you for a beat. His face screwed like he wanted to argue with you.

“I’m on my way.” Eliot growled through coms. “Keep ‘em occupied. Harry, get to the truck.”

He nodded and grabbed the file. Then, he took off down the hallway behind you. He’d find another way out. The goon took a step forward. You rolled your shoulders and got into the stance Eliot had taught you a long time ago.

The goon was easily twice your size. Practically a mountain of a man. And the fight was brutal. You got in a few solid hits. But one solid hit to the face and it all went black.

The world came back in a violent haze. It spun and shifted with your blurry vision and ringing ears. Your head pounded – just behind your eyes – and your cheek radiated a throbbing pain. Blood on your lips. Some on your forehead too. Fuck, you felt like you got punched by Eliot.

You groaned. A voice – familiar and urgent – danced outside your understanding. You blinked a few times, and forced yourself to focus. You vision cleared with each blink. Basement. Stacked boxes and concrete walls were a dead giveaway. The familiar urgent voice said something you couldn’t quite make out again. You tried to lift your hand, but couldn’t. Ropes. Tied to a chair, then. Great. Just great.

“Y/N? Please wake up.” Harry’s voice finally came through. “Y/N? Come on, please? Please wake up.”

“Harry?” You groaned, your head still spinning slightly. “My head hurts.”

His voice came again over coms. You could practically see his face creased in worry. “I know. I know.” He soothed. “Just hang tight, okay? Eliot’s already on his way.”

“We blown?” You whispered, testing the ropes again.

“Just you and Harry.” Sophie replied.

Before you could reply, Reynolds – the evil CEO of a healthcare company – and the same goon from earlier walked in. “Shit.” You whispered. “This is gonna get bloody.”

“Ah! Look who’s awake!” Reynolds smiled sinisterly and walked toward you as he wagged his finger. “You, you tried to steal from me.” He glanced at the goon. “I want to know who they work for.”

The goon nodded and started to roll up his sleeves. “You got it, boss.” And with that, Reynolds walked back out. Fuck, this is gonna hurt.

The first hit knocked the wind out of you. A blow to the ribs. You groaned. Another to the cheek.

“Who do you work for?” The goon yelled in your face.

“Fuck you.”

The next hit never came. As the fist came, an arm caught it. Eliot’s snarled face came up over his shoulder. And as he pulled him away, you let yourself slump into the chair. Thank god for Eliot.  

You sucked in a breath through your teeth as Eliot finished wrapping your ribs. He’d gotten you out alive and only slightly banged up. A butterfly bandage on your forehead, a bruise on your cheek, a split lip, and a set of bruised ribs. Not the worse you’d had, not the worse than the others had. Still hurt though.

“Thanks, El.” You half-smiled and winced immediately, as Eliot stood. “I appreciate the patch up.”

“Always.” He nodded, cleaning up the mess of medical supplies on the table in front of you. “Just next time, run. Don’t try to fight like that.”

You made eye contact with him. “You know why I did it.”

“I do. That’s why I’m telling you not to do something stupid like that again.” He looked pained, worried. He was always concerned when it came to protecting you. You knew he knew what you were feeling back there.

“Harry –“ You started, but stopped short as the man in question walked in. You and Eliot shot each other a quick look.

“You called?” Harry asked. His forehead creased slightly with concern. Eliot walked out.

“Hey!” You gave him a small smile. “How are you doing?”

“Me?” Harry asked incredulously. “I’m fine. You’re the one who got beat up.” He held up a bag of frozen peas and sat next to you. “May I?” You gave a small nod and he gently placed the peas to your cheek. Cool relief came instantly. You let out a soft sigh as the cold hit your skin. “You know, I still don’t know why you did that back there.”

You chuckled despite the pain in your ribs. “You’re lucky you’re cute, you know. Everyone else figured it out, hell, I think Breanna just won the bet.”

“Wait, you think I’m cute?” Harry’s eyes widened and a blush crept up his cheeks.

“Obviously. Why do you think I always try to protect you?”

“Well, I assumed it was because I was on the team.” He chuckled. “But now I’m thinking there’s a lot more to it than that.”

You smiled at him fondly. Your Mr. Wilson, so bright yet so oblivious sometimes. “And what do you think that is?”

“You like me.” His eyes crinkled in the way it always did when he was really happy. And he was holding back a laugh.

“More than I’d like to admit.” Your voice turned soft with an unspoken love. That thing you’d buried deep. It had come out in smaller moments before, and had started to fester after only a few months into his redemption journey.

His eyes searched your face, as if looking for the lie. After a moment, he softly asked, “Can I take you to dinner? When you’re all healed up, I mean.”

“It’s a date.”

Do not copy to another site. Ask for permission before bookbinding. I EXPLICITLY FORBID ANYONE FROM FEEDING MY FICS TO AI. All rude comments will be blocked and deleted.

Breanna had invited you to dinner in the courtyard tonight. The space was lit with soft string lights and candles. The soft lighting was calming and peaceful, settled your anxiety and nerves into a simmering excitement low in your belly. A small vase of pink and white flowers sat next to a candle at the table. It never ceased to amaze you just how sweet Breanna could be. All romantic and dorky and perfectly sweet while being completely secretive and shady.

She waved you over to the table, and pulled your chair out while you took off your coat. A warm saccharine feeling swelled in your chest.

“Stay here. I’ll go get the food.” She gestured for you to sit, eagerness in her voice.

It was nice, having dinner like this. Just the two of you in her family’s courtyard, a nice meal, and good conversation.  

She was beautiful tonight. Well, she was beautiful all the time, even when she was exhausted at her computer under a blanket, but tonight she looked exquisite. Her hair was pulled back in a low bun, with two braids circling her head like a crown. She wore a white marbled hoodie under a light pink blazer.

“So, how did your interview go?” She asked before taking a bite.

As you answered, her phone dinged and her attention went to her phone. You raised an eyebrow and paused. “Everything okay?”

She sighed, and flipped her phone screen-down. “Just my family. It’s fine.” She glanced down at the meal and jolted in surprise. “Oh, but you know what, I just realized I forgot the hot sauce. I’ll be right back.” Before you could say anything, she went inside, phone in-hand.

You sighed. There it was again. Her super-secret job. It didn’t truly bother you, not really. It was important to her, so it was important to you. But she kept you firmly separated from it. Breanna wanted to keep you safely away from it all. Apparently it ended her last few relationships. It never worried you, though. You could handle a bit of shadiness. You just hoped it wasn’t the kind of stuff that hurt people. That thought curdled your stomach. It was practically your only worry with Breanna.

She came back a few minutes later with a bottle of hot sauce and an embarrassed smile. “Sorry about that. You were telling me about your interview?”

“Oh, yeah!” You smiled, “Like I said, I think it went well. Hopefully I get it. I’m not sure how long I can stay at my current job.”

“You will. You’re more than qualified.”

The conversation continued from there. At certain points, you almost forgot to enjoy the food. The topics of discussion bounced around in the way it often did when you’re comfortable with someone. Everything from the state of the world to her latest robotic creation to new movies. It was nice. Until she suddenly jerked again.  

She cursed softly. “I can’t believe I forgot the side salad! I grabbed the hot sauce, but completely forgot the side salad.” She excused as she disappeared back inside.

A shot of… dare you say disappointment hit your chest. Yeah, you suppose it was disappointment. Disappointed for the interrupted date. Here you were, completely falling for this woman, and she kept running away to do god-knows what. Frankly, it wasn’t the fact that her family needed her, or the fact that she kept leaving the table. No, it was more the fact that she couldn’t – wouldn’t – tell you about it. And you understood. You did. But, man if it didn’t hurt all the same.

She was gone longer, this time. And you got the hint. Whatever was going on, her family needed her. You sighed, and took another bite of your food. Maybe you should head out…

You were pulling on your coat as Breanna rushed back in. “Oh, no, no, no, please don’t go.”

You sighed. “Look, Breanna, I get if something’s going on with your family, but I’d rather you just, you know, tell me next time. Instead of just lying and running out like that.”

She ran a hand over her hair and looked down. Her lines of her face tight with worry. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s just… my family, my job, is… we’re shady, man. You know it ended my last relationship, and I don’t want it to end this one. I really like you.” Her eyes danced over your face, searching for a reaction.

“And I’m fine with that, Breanna.” You smiled, “Really, I am, but just talk to me next time, okay?” Her shoulders relaxed and she nodded. “I just have one question.” She inclined her head. “You’re not, like, hurting people, right?”

She shook her head. “No, no, we don’t hurt people. I mean,” her head titled, “we do, but only like super bad guys.”

 You laughed. “What? Like Robin Hood or something?”

She smirked and chuckled. “Yeah, I’m like Robin Hood.”

The disappointment and hurt left like it was never there. Replaced with contentment and satisfaction of knowing everything was alright in your relationship. That little bit of knowledge she told you meant the world, all things considering.

“Alright, Robin Hood,” you smiled softly, relishing in the contentment of the moment, “you have some family business to attend to. We can do something when you’re done.”  

The square pink box was balanced carefully in your hand as you knocked on the light blue courtyard door. The cake had come out perfect. A new recipe and a whole lot of experimenting had resulted in the best lemon blueberry cake you’d ever made. You were practically buzzing with excitement at showing Breanna. You’d texted her you were coming over the second you finished icing it. It was always so much fun sharing your baked goods with others, but especially Breanna. Maybe it was sharing it with someone you cared about (you wouldn’t say love, but it was definitely something close).

You knocked on the door. After a few moments, no one answered. With a frown, you knocked again. Huh. Usually, Breanna told you if she was busy, or gone, or doing her Robin Hood thing. You called her, just to be sure.

It went to voicemail.

“Hey, Bree. I stopped by your place, but I guess you’re busy at the moment. I finished that cake I was telling you about. Guess I got so excited, I forgot to make sure you were available. Come over to mine when you’re free,” you moved to lean against the door, “and we can watch that movie you were telling me about the other day- “ you were cut off with a gasp as the door moved beneath you.

That’s weird… That door was always locked. Always. Breanna and her family were crazy serious about security. (You imagined it had something to do with her vigilantism.) Concern rose in your chest. Your heartbeat thundered in your ear. You ended your voicemail. If something bad happened…

 You pushed the door open. The courtyard looked the same as it always did. Nothing out of the ordinary.

“Breanna?” You called, concern lacing your voice. You set the cake box on one of the tables and crept further into the courtyard. “Hello? Breanna, you here?” Voices echoed from inside. You walked toward them. “Hello? The door was unlocked. Is everything okay?”

You walked over to the wooden door with windowpanes. Inside the bar stood Breanna and four other people: two older women (one brunette, one blonde) and two older men (one familiar – Eliot, you think – and the other not). Her family. It had to be. You’d never met them, but Breanna talked about them since she’d told you about the true nature of her job.

Oh, thank god. You let out a sigh of relief, and let your shoulders drop. She was busy, though, so you turned to leave. One of the biggest tenets of your relationship was the boundary between you and her work. It was one you respected above anything. With your back turned, you didn’t see Eliot’s eyes lock onto you, or everyone else’s heads turn, or Breanna’s eyes widen as she ran over to the door.

“Y/N?” Breanna’s voice stopped you short. You spun around, eyes wide. “What, uh, what’re ya doing here?”

“Uh, hi.” You gave an awkward wave. “The door was open. I was just making sure everything was okay.”

She shot her family a look and came up to you. “You didn’t say you were coming over today. We’re, uh, we’re a bit busy.”

 “I texted. Got a bit excited and forgot to see if you actually responded.” You smiled sheepishly. “Sorry. I brought cake.”

She shook her head fondly, then glanced behind her again. “Well, since you’re here, do you want to meet my family?”

You tried not to smile. It was something you’d discussed briefly before, but Breanna wanted to keep you safely away from her job at all costs, even if that meant keeping you away from her family. The whole Robin Hood thing wasn’t a dealbreaker in the slightest. It was completely in character, and, if you were being honest with yourself, incredibly attractive. “I’d love to.”

Breanna reached out and took your hand. Her palm was slightly sweaty. With a gentle squeeze, she tugged you toward the small crowd that had gathered in the doorway. “Uh, guys, this is my partner, Y/N.” You waved awkwardly to them. “Y/N, this is Sophie,” she pointed to the older brunette woman, “Parker,” she gestured to the blonde woman, “Harry,” next was the lawyer-looking man, “and you already met Eliot.” Last was the man you’d met the first time you were here.

“Hi, it’s nice to finally meet you all. Breanna talks about you all the time.” You said.

“All the time, huh?” Parker eyed Breanna.

“I mean, I only told them the basics.” She shrugged innocently. “They’re cool with it.”

All eyes landed on you. Eliot’s eyebrow raised and Sophie scanned you. “You guys are like Robin Hood, so yeah, I’m cool with it.”

“Besides,” Breanna continued, “I ran a background check and they’re clean.”

“Wait, what?” You asked. That never occurred to you, but you supposed it made sense. Criminal vigilantes had to make sure the people who got close were actually who they said they were. Had it been anyone else, you might feel violated, but knowing Breanna, it didn’t feel like a privacy violation so much as assurance. And it meant she wanted to keep you around. “I feel like I should be more weirded out than I am.” You mumbled to yourself.

She squeezed your hand and awkwardly chuckled. “Yeah, sorry about that.”

“Well, it was lovely to meet you, Y/N, but we have some work to get back to.” Sophie interrupted, her voice pleasant and gently urging.

“Oh!” You jolted slightly at the reminder. “I should let you get back to what you’re doing.” You moved to pick up the cake box, hand still intertwined with Breanna’s. “You guys should enjoy this, though.”

“Is that cake!?” Parker bounced on her heels and reached out. Eliot snatched her around the waist and pulled her against his chest.

“No, no, you brought that for the two of us.” Breanna protested. Her face was creased with a bit of guilt.

“Hey, it’s okay, Bree. I want you guys to enjoy it.” You tried to hand her the box.

“Or you could join us.” Sophie’s voice once again interrupted.

“What?”

“I’m just saying, you already know what we do, so why don’t you come in and join us for a slice?” She continued.

Breanna bounced on her heels, her eyes sparkled with excitement and her face lit up. “You serious?” Sophie nodded. “Yes! Come on! I can’t wait to show you around!” She laughed and moved to tug you inside.

You’d never been inside their actual base. Only the courtyard. It truly was beautiful. High ceilings with stained glass and a glorious bar. There was a bay of TVs on the stage, with the bank statements – among other things – for some tech CEO. Paintings and pictures lined the peeling walls. It was gorgeous and homey. Breanna dragged you over to the bar as you gawked. You placed the box on the bar top.

Eliot pulled plates and a knife from somewhere behind the bar. The cake had survived the trip from your apartment well. It still stood with its candied blueberries and lemon peel perfectly placed on top the carefully applied cream cheese frosting. You took it out carefully. Eliot twirled the knife (impressively) and handed it to you.

“What is it?” He asked as you handed out slices.

“Lemon blueberry with cream cheese frosting. I’ve been working on this recipe for a few years now.” You replied, forcing the pride and excitement at people trying your food down.

Breanna leaned against you as everyone ate. Her shoulder pressed against you, her thigh too. You leaned into her too, taking comfort in her warmth. Your free hand brushed up against hers, and her pinky linked with yours. A blush worked its way up your cheeks and you ducked your head to hide it.

 “How’d ya get the blueberries so even?” Eliot asked after a sound of satisfaction.

Your attention turned to him as you softly smiled. “If you wash them and toss them in flour, it prevents them from sinking.”

“Huh.” He took another bite.

“So,” Harry started, “how did you two meet?”

You and Breanna looked at each other, and she launched into the story of her ace-ing rescue.

It was nice, being part of a family like that. Breanna’s family was incredible. It was a bit awkward at first, and you let her do most of the talking at first, but they were easy to warm up to. Maybe it was the fact that Breanna’s touch never left yours, but a warm saccharine feeling stayed with you the whole time. They didn’t let slip much about the actual details of their work. But they were thieves. Obvious, from everything you learned. And you feel like that should bother you more than it did. The world had gone to hell. It felt good, knowing there were people working to fix the worst of it.

After everyone finished their slice (two for Parker), Eliot took the dirty dishes and disappeared down the hallway. Breanna guided you back to the door. Her hand never left yours. Spending time with her like this was the best part of your week. And meeting her family was a huge step. One you relished in.

“I had a really nice time. Thanks for letting me stay.” You smiled, brushing your hand against her cheek. Her face went soft. Eyes fluttered half-shut, lips dropping just slightly.

She leaned into your hand. “Yeah, well, I’m just glad I forgot to set the door security. Otherwise, I would’ve missed you.”

You giggled softly. “Yeah, me too.” You let your hand drop to rest against her chest. “Come over when you’re done saving the world, okay?”

Part 3: The Pair of Aces Job

Part 4: The Acing It Job

Do not copy to another site. Ask for permission before bookbinding. I EXPLICITLY FORBID ANYONE FROM FEEDING MY FICS TO AI. All rude comments will be blocked and deleted.

‘We’ve got a case.’ Nate said as he sat down at the desk next to Sophie, everyone looked at him. 'Where?’ Parker asked. 'Y/H/T.’ 'Great.’ You sighed, leaning back in your seat. 'Women’s husband was almost beat to death, in an Underground fight.’ Hardison explained. 'Let me guess Freya and Gillian?’ You asked, the group looked at you before Hardison clicked the clicker and their images appeared on the screen. 'Yeah, how’d you know?’ He asked. 'I grew up with them might have also took part in some of the matches before it turned dark.’ You told the group, they looked confused before nodding. ‘Do you want to tell us about them?’ Nate asked, you shrugged your shoulders. ‘Gillian’s rich, well was rich, used her parent’s money all the time. Freya well she was always active, she succeeded in all your types of fighting.’ You said, Hardison nodded as he brung up other photos, showing proof of that. ‘And they haven’t changed a bit.’ He said, you smiled.

'So what’s our way in?’ Eliot asked, you held up the envelope that was delivered to you on the way out. 'High school reunion baby.’ You said, shaking it. 'But I need someone to be my husband.’ You looked at the three men, Nate then looked to Sophie and smiled. 'The wedding job?’ Sophie asked, you nodded. ‘Who are we thinking?’ She asked. ‘Well, Nate could play my sugar daddy if he wants?’ You asked, he pulled a disgusted look before ‘What’s a sugar daddy?’ Parker asked, you turned to her and opened your mouth to say something before stopping yourself. ‘You go on dates with them, to events or even just dinner when they’re felling lonely and then they pay you.’ You explained briefly. ‘I think I’ll become a sugar daddy.’ She announced, you shook your head. ‘You can’t become a daddy, you can either become a baby or a mummy if you want.’ You said, she raised an eyebrow at you. ‘Guys.’ Hardison said, you both looked at him. ‘Sorry.’

'Are my eyes deceiving me? Or is that little old Y/N?’ You heard the voice and you turned around to her. 'Freya? Gillian and Gregory.’ You asked fake shock in your voice, they all smiled widely and pulled you in for a hug. 'Wow, long time no see.’ You said, clasping your hands behind you. 'Yup, who you brought with you?’ They all looked to your side when you held your hand out and felt the items disappear before you turned and smiled widely at Eliot. 'Oh sorry, this is my fiancé Henry.’ You said, wrapping an arm through his you brought him towards them, and they smiled. 'Fiancé?’ They asked shocked. ‘Stall, can’t get his details yet.’ Hardison said, you squeezed his arm. 'Oh yeah, Henry here proposed to me after one of his fights. Could have been more romantic but it’s was him that was giving me the ring, that’s all that matters.’ You told them, watching as Gillian and Freya shared a look, you had them hooked. 'Fight?’ Freya asked, you smiled they had already taken the bait. 'Yeah, you’re a six-time champion aren’t you baby?’ You asked him, turning and resting a hand on his chest. 'Yes darling.’ He replied, 'Wouldn’t have been able to do it without you.’ He replied, and you both had to stop from gagging at how over the top you both had to act.

'You’ve got to be kidding me?’ You said loud enough for them to hear you, pacing back and forth you listened to Hardison talk, informing you of everything they had been doing since you had left. 'I’m getting married on Friday and you’re telling me this now?’ You asked annoyed at Hardison, he asked what you wanted ordered in tonight, you shook your head. 'Yeah whatever.’ You sighed hanging up. 'Everything okay?’ Freya asked, Gregory arrived at the table with the drinks. 'No, the venues just cancelled on us.’ You said, Eliot’s eyebrows dropped. 'So were gonna have to cancel the wedding.’ You sighed as you turned to him, placing a hand on your chest. 'Don’t be ridiculous, hold it here.’ Gillian said, you looked at her before looking to Eliot. 'Here?’ You asked, pointing at the table. 'Yes, Father Michael would love to do it for you.’ She said, you shook your head slightly. 'Really? I’d just have to phone in my group, and they’d bring everything else.’ 'Is that necessary?’ Freya asked you, you nodded quickly. 'Yes, I mean it’s our publicist, my bridesmaid and best man, father of the groom and my dress.’ You said listing them off, they shook their heads before Gillian took a gulp of her drink. ‘Okay, just phone them in and we’ll just have a venue for you.’ She said, you smiled widely and nodded, before getting your phone out again.

'Can I give him a good luck kiss?’ You asked, Freya nodded, and you left her side and pushed your way through the crowd, Nate noticed you and tapped Eliot’s shoulder. He looked at you and moved over and lowered himself. 'Don’t fight Victor, hit him once or twice but don’t let him get more than three punches in.’ You warned him, sending a glance to Nate who nodded as well. 'Why?’ he asked, looking over his shoulder. 'Please.’ You said he nodded, and you looked behind him before leaning forward and pressing your lips to his. You pulled back and smiled before dropping your hands and turning around, running your tongue over your lip.

'Change of plans.’ You said, of course he wasn’t going to listen and now he was going to probably get killed by him. 'What do you mean change of plans?’ Nate asked, you looked over to where they were standing, they were watching you. 'You’ll see.’ You told them before a hand reached out an grabbed you, you looked at the person behind it. ‘Y/N.’ Freya said, you turned to her. ‘I’m not letting my fiancé get beat to death.’ You said, she sighed before you yanked your hand from her. Pushing your way through the crowd, some people moved for you others stood their ground until you shoved pass them. You quickly pulled yourself up into the ring, ducking between the ropes as you marched across the ring. Moving between Eliot and Victor, reeling your arm back you punched him and he stumbled, hitting his jaw that he broke in school. You quickly used this and hit the back of his legs, as he dropped down you wrapped your arm around his neck, pulling him tight to your chest as he fought against your arm. 'Huh? Is what you wanted?’ You asked, looking directly at Gillian and Freya, they were smiling. ‘I’ll fight, but you give me an opponent worthy of my time, after all I’m Athena, the goddess of war.’ You announced, the crowd went silent, the murmuring started and then the crowd started cheering loudly. Chanting the phrase you hadn’t heard in a long time. 'Fine.’ She sighed. 'Victor leave.’ Freya commanded. 'Wrap your hands and be ready in five minutes.’ Freya said, you nodded and let go of Victor, he gasped for air and looked at you panicked before leaving. Nate and Hardison ran over to you, as you helped Eliot off the ring and Parker arrived at your side with tape. You quickly climbed out your jeans, glad you placed the shorts on underneath, you kicked them off the edge. 'Are you sure about this?’ Parker asked, you nodded before reaching up with your free hand and taking the earpiece out. 'Yes, keep them back even when it gets messy okay.’ You said, she nodded. 'Why me?’ She asked, finishing the wrapping before holding her hands up, allowing you to punch them to check the tape. 'You can remove yourself from emotions quickly.’ 'Treat this like any other case.’ You warned her, she nodded and left the ring as your turned around to be met by a tall man, who was rolling his shoulders and tapping his gloves together. 'You ready?’ The man asked. 'Yup.’ You said rolling your shoulders. He smiled wickedly before swinging at you, you blocked him with your arms before, allowing him to get a few punches in before you started hitting back.

Three opponents down, you walked around the ring taking deep breaths before you were hit from the back, disorientating you. You turned around and flung a fist at her, connecting with her jaw before raising a leg and kicking her stomach, sending her back into the ropes. She grabbed your hair and flung an elbow at your shoulder, letting go of your hair she pushed you away causing you to trip, she then grabbed your arm and pulled it back, wrapping a leg over your shoulder she flipped you over, landing hard on your back you rolled over and quickly got to your feet, the blood pumping through your body mixed with the cheering of the crowd as you both stood across from each other, both of you raised your hands, you licked your lips before she flung a punch, connecting with the side of your head, causing the room to spin. Using this to her advantage she round house kicked you and you dropped to the ground. Rolling onto your side, you let out a shake breath, blood mixed with salvia trickled out as the crowd screamed. Being slammed onto your back made you gasp, and you looked at the pressure on your waist. Freya was straddling you, flinging punches at your face before you could block her. Your head was being flung side to side. 'Looks like the goddess of war, is just a myth.’ She said, and something snapped in you. You looked at her through her punches and smiled, she faltered slightly before you snuck your legs our and wrapped then around her waist and flipped you both over, so you were on top. Giving her a few punches, you leaned back before she was breathing heavily, salvia mixed with blood trickled out her mouth as she looked up at you, your face covered in scrapes. 'Announce it Gillian.’ You shouted loud enough for everyone to hear. They looked at you before looking at Gillian who was having an internal fight with herself, before she huffed. 'And the winner is Athena, goddess of war!’ She said, and the crowd went wild before stood up and hobbled over to the edge, Hardison was there helping you down. 'Did you get everything?’ You asked him. 'Yup and more.’ He said. 'Great cause I’m gonna need to sit down soon.’ You told him, he was moving quickly away from the crowd and into a slightly more secluded area. 'Like now.’ You said, he nodded and turned quickly sitting you down on the ground, the cold cement hit your thighs, but you didn’t care. 'Where are the others? You asked, not seeing them anywhere. 'Making sure Eliot is looked after before he looks after you.’ He told you. 'Okay, I need to make a stop before we go back.’ You told him. 'Where?’ He asked. 'Church, I need to confess my sins.’ You said, he looked at you confused but nodded.

‘You’re Athena.’ The lady said, you looked at her through the swollen eye before nodding. ‘I was, just won my last and final round.’ ‘Thank you.’ She said, you nodded at her before standing up and limping across the room and disappeared into the back, letting them finish up with the client. ‘What you did was stupid.’ Eliot’s voice echoed through the empty flat, you hummed in agreeance as you bent down and got ice out the freezer. ‘You not going to say anything?’ He asked, you shook your head. ‘Let me guess.’ ‘You needed money to get through school, you thought it’d be easy, it was but then got better and more people started noticing you and your fame quickly grew.’ He said, you tilted your head slightly. ‘Close.’ You said quietly. ‘I needed the money but it was for my father, he was ill, but he was determined for me to go to school.’ You said wincing slightly when you applied the ice. ‘He didn’t make it, so I went to fight that night, anger got the better of me and I gave my opponent brain damage and she was in a coma for a month before her parents decided to removed her life support.’ You said, keeping your head low as the tears fell. ‘I continued fighting, the only way I could do anything but all the money that I won went to her family, I paid for the funeral of the person I killed, I should’ve been in prison but Gillian used the strings she had to bribe the officer, Gregory.’ You explained to him, reaching up and wiping your wet cheeks. ‘He as there when we meet them.’ Eliot said, you sniffed and nodded as you finally looked at him. ‘He’s there back up plan.’ You said, your hand was freezing but you continued squeezing the ice bag, that was now almost mush. Eliot walked over and pried it from your hand, you watched as he set it on the table before taking the cold hand and rubbing his over it, getting some heat back in it. He stopped when it was warmer, before he placed his hands either side of your neck, making you look at him. ‘It was an accident.’ He told you, your bottom lip wobbled, and his thumb reached out and rubbed underneath it. ‘You’ve paid for it, probably in more ways than you should’ve.’ He told you, you looked at him and tried to shake your head. ‘We’ve all done something that we wish we never, something that scars us, but doesn’t define us.’ He said. ‘You got Nate in your ear?’ You asked him teasingly, he scoffed and shook his head. ‘No, I’m telling you the truth.’ He said, you nodded and he leaned forward, pressing a kiss to your forehead before he rested his forehead against yours.