When in Rome

Chapter One: Spilled Coffee

Not every day could start out with blood, guts, and fabulously wealthy gore. Some of them had to be prepared for, and likely with whatever the 1960s used instead of PayPal. And for Spy, those bloodless, gutless, and goreless days started with a shower. 

Italy was a beautiful country, but that didn't make up for the amount of time it took to get there from measly ol' 'Merica. He had to be in Italy before the end of the day - assassinations don't just happen by themselves, and he was going to get paid a healthy amount of cash just to do some old guy in.

Mask fresh and washed, gloves ready, and snazzy suit pressed and dry cleaned - Spy was looking sharp as ever, and feeling sharper.

And just as sharp as a burn might feel against the tongue, Smokescreen was dealing with her own preparations. After all - not every day could start with a nice cup of overly sugared joe. Some of them started with high pitched nagging and threats of visitation from one's 'biological mother'.

Ever since she got the call, Smokescreen had been waiting for someone, ANYONE, to take her literally anywhere that wasn't within her mother's reach. Any excuse to get out of visiting her family - she would take ANYTHING. 

But begging people who happened to be hungry was, apparently, not the best way to go about securing a plane ticket to literally anywhere.

Instead, she found herself pacing the kitchen floor of Home Base, where most mercs ignored her existence. It wasn't until Apothecary opened the double-doors did someone ask what she was doing.

Cup of coffee in hand, Smokescreen looked beaten down from the morning. Sipping at the glass, as a vampire might sip at someone's soul for strength, she gave the simple answer, "Oh, I'm just pacing."

"Are you sure you're alright?" Apothecary leaned to the side, as though seeing the cup in full HD required doing so.

Smokescreen corrected her posture and nodded her head. She didn't want her little friend worried about her - that had always been her job.

"It's just family drama." She told her. "Honestly, I just wanna get away from everything for a bit. Buuut-" She cocked her head to her shoulder, rolling it around until her gaze landed back on Apothecary. "No one seems to be going anywhere."

As though beautifully synchronized to ruin his day, Spy waltzed through the doors, pausing for a brief moment to look at the two women blocking his path.

"Ah. You two." His voice filled with distain as he pushed pass them. "I only stopped by for a quick coffee break. Do me a favor and leave me alone."

Apothecary simply nodded, stepping away from the entrance and towards one of the many tables spread out around the cafeteria. Smokescreen, however, seemed to have selective hearing.

The kind that may make you wonder if she was actually deaf.

Smokescreen was like a dog perking up at the word 'park'. With a grin, she began to step forward, forgetting about her past troubles for the sake of being an annoyance.

As her foot landed onto the ground, however, she felt a tug on the sleeve of her shirt. She looked down to see that Apothecary had grabbed ahold of her uniform.

"Sorry. I just," She let go a moment later, her eyes darting to the side. "I don't think you should be doing that."

Smokescreen's heart deflated, but she didn't want Apothecary to be any more stressed out than she already was.