Achilles

The girl on the ground actually growled in her throat while holding her face before she was suddenly in a crouching position, one Roslyne recognized immediately, easily jumping over the leg that was kicked out in an attempt to trip her. It was enough to make her laugh, and the brunette made a conscious decision not to harm her any farther, as it really just wouldn't be fair.

She waited patiently for her to get off of the ground, moving gracefully as she dodged punches. Obviously, Roslyne had done a good job of riling this girl up. She remained silent while the other girl grunted with exertion, throwing some high kicks as a small crowd of soldiers began to assemble around them.

Roslyne didn't pay much attention to them, not really wanting to get socked in the face just because she got distracted. She knew better than that.

Ducking out of the way of a particularly sneaky blow, Ros smirked, shaking her head. "Are you finished yet?"

The girl just narrowed her eyes, lunging forward only to get hauled back as a pair of arms grabbed her from behind. The familiar ginger-topped head of Mücher lowered to the girl's ear, and he basically growled out, "Richardson, you need to calm down."

"Calm down?" She huffed out. "Some random god damned stranger just infiltrated our base! How the fuck did she get in?"

The man rolled his light eyes before look at Roslyne and fighting back a smile. "She's not a stranger. Now, behave," he told her, releasing her roughly. "Though, I've got to ask, how did you get in?"

"You honestly think two guards are a big enough match for me?" She teased, walking forward, past Richardson, and hugging him."Don't worry, though. I left them alive."

Mücher chuckled warmly, leaving a hand on the back of her neck as he peered down at her. "Come with me. I think someone would like to know of your arrival."

Roslyne couldn't even try to fight the huge grin that spread across her face, all thoughts of the skirmish that had just taken place forgotten, and she eagerly followed her friend as he turned and started walking.

Richardson skipped ahead, turning to face the soldier as she walked backwards and questioned him angrily. Roslyne would have jumped in and shut her up with a few well-aimed, sarcastic jabs, but her mind was a little too busy, reeling at the thought that she was on her way to see Bane, after years of being apart, she was finally going to be with him again.

As they walked, some of the other mercenaries approached them, all of them familiar, and they pat her on the back or told her how good it was to see her again. It was lovely and served as a nice ego boost. She felt at home, even if she wasn't used to the tunnels.

Mücher led her into a different underground corridor, one that opened up into a much smaller room. Water was rushing through in a man-made river, large bridges arching over it from one side to the other, and the three crossed one, only able to see the far side of the room clearly when they were walking on the downward slope.

It was set up as a workroom much like the one in the compound that Roslyne had spent so much time in-- steel table, various gadgets, the workings of what would probably later become bombs, and leaning over it, back turned to the visitors, was a hulking man so painfully familiar that Roslyne's stomach muscles twisted and coiled inside of her.

She raised a hand to her mouth, feeling a stinging at the back of her eyes that she quickly blinked away, and Mücher simply squeezed her shoulder, letting her walk ahead and stopping the Richardson girl from following.

She walked quietly, heart absolutely racing, and wondered how close she'd be able to get without him noticing. Sneaking around was something she got pretty good at under his training, but Bane was always better.

The brunette reached the end of the bridge, stepping onto concrete, and slunk forward, biting her lower lip as she approached the mercenary. She wondered what his reaction would be, if he would remain stoic as always, or if he would let himself slip up, draw her into his arms tightly. Hearing him breathe through the mask would be so fantastic, so soothing, and his voice-- that completely distinguishable sing-song, mechanized pitch. It almost made her laugh, but she bit it back, moving closer, closer, until she was standing directly behind him.

She exhaled a shaky breath, raising a hand, though she didn't know what she would do with it, tap his shoulder, rest it on his back, she had no idea how to proceed, and the fact that she could faintly hear that steady hum of his breathing now wasn't helping matters.

Tilting his head ever so slightly to the side, not enough to actually catch sight of her, Bane spoke, and it made Roslyne's breath catch in her throat.

"It is unwise to approach a dangerous man from behind. I've taught you this, Camille."

Her breath did not return to her, and Roslyne felt her heart sink in her chest, hand falling back to her side. Camille? Who the fuck...

She turned back to where Mücher and Richardson stood, closer now, the female with a tiny smirk on her face while the man stared wide-eyed.

He-- He taught her?

A flurry of emotions raged inside of Roslyne-- disappointment, anger, betrayel, and without saying anything in response, she turned around and shoved past the other two, seeing Camille open her mouth to say something and simply shouting, "Fuck off!" as she took off over the bridge.

She could vaguely hear Mücher calling for her, but the water rushing around her drowned it out. The brunette chanced one glance over her shoulder, briefly seeing the redhead talking animatedly to Bane, who was now standing stiffly and turned in her direction, icy eyes locked on her retreating figure.

Roslyne shook her head, picking up her pace and hopping over the railing of the bridge to cut a corner. She landed in a crouch and sprinted forward through the tunnel that the soldier had led her through. Others turned to look at her as she entered the giant room, but she ignored them, pushing past the bodies and scrambling into the darker parts of the sewers, desperate to escape.

How could he do that? How could he just replace her like that? She had thought that their relationship was one of a kind, and yet, he was doing it all over again, with someone else.

Roslyne climbed the ladder up to the surface with tears streaming down her face, hauling herself out of the manhole and quickly kicking it back into place.

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hands, jogging to her car. She needed a shower, and a workout, and another shower. There was no time to sleep, no more time to cry. She just needed release, and she was going to get it.

Henry was waiting up for her, face pinched, like he was ready to apologize for their conversation earlier that day (it felt like so long ago, him warning her to stay away from Bane, as always. The irony was not lost on her), but it quickly changed to confusion when he noticed the state she was in.

"Rosie, Jesus, you look awful," he frowned. "And, you smell even worse."

Roslyne said nothing, just flipped him the finger and stomped to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

The first time she sees Bane in three god damned years, and she finds this out. It was not how she planned their reunion.



The punching bag swung back and forth violently, chain rattling loudly with every punch that Roslyne threw. She breathed harshly, inhaling for a few short moments before blowing it all out through her teeth. Sweat was dripping down her body, and she could feel a few people watching her, as they always did, but the brunette ignored it and carried on until her arms were screaming at her, and her legs ached fiercely from her occasional rounds of kicks.

It was close to midnight when she retreated to the locker room of sorts, showering just to rinse herself off and braiding her wet hair. She slipped into a pair of jeans shorts and zipped a thin jumper up over her sports bra. Roslyne was still angry, but she had to admit that she was feeling more relaxed after her workout, whether it was because she blew off some steam or because she was dead tired, now, she didn't know.

Upon walking through the front doors, she nodded to the young man who worked at the desk, pulling her keys out of her bag, and let her eyes adjust to the darkness. She had parked close by, could see her Jeep from where she stood, meaning she could also see the figure leaning against it.

Roslyne inhaled sharply, recognizing the muscled build immediately, and clenched her keys so tightly in her hand that they began to cut into her palm.

She had been so ready to see him just a few hours ago, and now, all she wanted to do was get away from him. What was he even doing out in the open in the first place.

Setting her jaw, Roslyne began to walk over, attempting to clear her head as she did. As she got closer, she could see that the man against her car was in disguise-- incognito, and she almost tripped when he looked up at her with a handsome face-- mask nowhere to be seen.

Her eyes widened and watered a bit, but she blinked several times and stopped a couple yards away, arms hanging slack at her sides.

His full lips quirked upward, making her heartrate speed up unhealthily, and she looked away. This was the second time she had seen him without the contraption, and it was just as breathtaking as the first time.

Bane was silent for a little while, dressed in one of his black t-shirts and cargo pants, though they were lacking the knee-pads and other add-ons. He was still wearing his boots, but everything seemed so much less intimidating now that he was staring at her with a fully-revealed human face.

"You're upset with me," he spoke, and it sent a chill down her spine.

Roslyne swallowed the lump in her throat, fingers twitching by her sides, and she replied sarcastically in a cracking voice, "What gave you that impression?" She wanted to run over to him, wrap her arms around his bulky frame, tell him how much she had missed him, and yet. "This isn't how I wanted this to go."

She finally raised her gaze to meet his, watching as he reached into his pocket to pull out what looked to be an inhaler, and put it to his mouth, sucking in a deep breath. Venom, she thought with a small smile.

"Believe me when I say that I had not anticipated a reunion such as this, Roslyne."

Hearing him say her name, even if it was in a voice she wasn't entirely used to-- lower, easier to place the accent-- made her body start to tremble. All of the previous anger she had felt came rushing back to her, but there was also happiness at seeing his face and longing for him and a certain satisfaction.

"I just... wasn't expecting to discover something like that." It felt like he had cheated on her, or something, which was completely ridiculous since her and Bane never...

The mercenary straightened up and took a few long strides closer to her. Roslyne was torn between backing up and meeting him in the middle, deciding on option three and staying right where she was.

Lowering his head to stare at her directly in the eyes (a very unnerving experience after years apart), Bane reached out, letting a large hand settle on her shoulder. The girl fought to regulate her oxygen intake and not break eye contact. She would not be frightened or intimidated, though the physical feeling of him touching her was gradually making her walls crumble.

"She is nothing like you," he enunciated very clearly, emphasizing every word.

Roslyne let her eyes flit away from his for a second, blinking several times as her bottom jaw stuck out a little farther in a stubborn expression.

"I don't really care who she is." The way his eyes danced with amusement was not helping matters. "I'm not a jealous ex-girlfriend or anything. You need all the soldiers you can get, male or female."

It tasted like bile coming out of her mouth, and she shrugged out from under his grip, walking past time to unlock her car. Roslyne's palm was bleeding from the keys, and she made a face, wiping the metal on her shorts, then throwing her belongings into the passenger seat.

She could feel Bane behind her, heart beating dangerously fast, and turned around to meet him once again. "I know you're not used to people being mad at you, or whatever, but you're gonna have to live with it for a couple days. See, normal people have these things called feelings," she bit out mockingly, trying to stay calm as he stepped closer, still fighting a smile. "And, when they see things like I saw earlier today, this weird thing happens where they get a little hurt, okay?"

"I know what feelings are, Roslyne," he said lowly, reaching down to grab her hand.

The brunette frowned.

"For example, right now, I'm feeling something akin to joy, even as you lecture me on proper human etiquette." She bit the inside of her lip as they threatened to turn upward. "And, I'm feeling regret for offending you." He let go of her hand only to raise his to tilt her chin upward. "I'm feeling many things at seeing you again-- all positive emotions, I assure you."

A smirk crept onto Roslyne's face, and her breath caught when he rested his forehead against hers.

This was Bane, her Bane, her best friend. He trained her, he fed her, he clothed her, he provided entertainment in the form of books and himself, he trusted her, and she trusted him, and with a rather scathing laugh, Roslyne mumbled, "I see being three years apart hasn't done anything to make you any less impossible to deal with."

He grinned-- really grinned-- showing off crooked teeth, and those familiar crinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes (fuck, he was gorgeous). Roslyne gave in, slinging her arms around his neck and pressing herself against him.

God, she'd missed him. So fucking much.

He chuckled and squeezed her tightly, somehow managing not to crush her petite body. Her feet did not remain on the ground, which was not surprising since he was so much taller than her. It felt good, though, like she was home again.