Archive of Our Own

Unlike most people his age, Emre didn’t care as much about his sleep. He got up early every morning to do a little work out before his mom made breakfast, and then he’d decide what he wanted to do that day. Today, though? He’d been waiting for this day for two weeks! There was no way he was going to sleep in!

News had traveled fast through school, starting with their government teacher, who had been talking to a colleague at a conference last week. The ambassador for Denmark was coming to Istanbul to discuss what defenses they could implement for the city. Emre had read about her last year and since then, he’d been following her expansive work like it was a monthly comic. Cecilie Skov had a resume that was absolutely stacked, or at least he assumed she did, he had never seen her actual resume. Her story of working up from poverty into a lawyer for non-profits, then becoming an appointed official who had done so much good work during the ongoing Omnic Crisis, was so inspiring to Emre.

Not that he expected he’d ever face something nearly as exciting as that, but he could admire from afar. He wished he could meet her, talk face to face, ask her a billion questions about the thoughts and plans that went through her head, but he’d settle getting to watch her enter city hall from the streets.

So, Emre skipped the workout this morning, just sticking with the shower. He didn’t need to risk any body odor in Ambassador Skov’s presence, or a bad hair day for that matter, since it was one of his best physical qualities. He combed back his hair, applying just a little gel to it. He brushed his teeth, and it was so refreshing to get to do that without worrying about breaking a bracket. Removing your braces was really worth the hype.

He went to his closet, unsure what to wear at first, before deciding on a henley with jeans. It was put together enough that he wouldn’t look like trash, but not too fancy like he was trying too hard. Not that he’d even be noticed, but still.

He put on comfy socks and hurried downstairs. His mother was in the kitchen making breakfast, while his father read the latest news on his tablet.

“Paşam, you’re down here earlier than expected,” she remarked. Emre walked over and leaned down, letting her kiss his cheek.

“I wanted to make sure we get to city hall in time.”

His father chuckled. “When I was your age I didn’t find politics fun.”

“It’s not the politics that interest me, Dad. If anything, those bother me. Why can’t we all get along?” Emre stuck his tongue out in a small bleh gesture. “No, I’m interested in the civil institutions and the people who run them.”

“Those are… still a part of politics, and I didn’t enjoy those at your age, either.”

Emre groaned, while his mother laughed.

“Oh my, are we raising a diplomat, Aslan?”

“Possibly, Zehra.”

“I don’t want to go into politics,” Emre protested. “I’m just… I’m very interested in the work of Ambassador Skov. Her intelligence is remarkable! Not because she’s a woman, I mean, compared to men and women she’s super smart, and some of the moves she’s made during the Crisis are super impressive, and…” His face felt hot. He sat down at the dining table, folding his arms and hiding his head. “None of this is coming out right.”

His father patted his arm. “Relax, Kuşum, I’m only teasing. It’s better for you to take an interest in civil proceedings and local politics than to ignore them and make terrible choices.”

“That’s right,” his mother agreed. “I also appreciate the work of Ambassador Skov.”

Emre perked up, lifting his head to look at his mom at the stove. “Really?”

“Of course. I’ve been following her accomplishments.” She scooped some menemen on a plate and turned to him, a smile on her face. “Her recent defense of Copenhagen is something to be admired.”

“Yeah, it was amazing! The way she tricked the omnic forces into destroying a dupe facility, only to take them down instead when she set off the charges!”

Emre belatedly realized his mistake. He glanced at his father, whose face had fallen slightly, that cheerful bravado doing its best to hide his sorrow.

“Of course, I wish…” Emre sighed. “Sorry, Dad.”

His dad nodded and turned to him with a smile, but his eyes were visibly glossy. “It’s okay. Tief will come back to us one day. I just know she will.”

T-573 was an omnic assistant at his dad’s job, who had been on his team consulting for the logistics manager before the crisis started. They called her Tief, and although she wasn’t as involved in the process as she could’ve been, she was still valued and appreciated.

She had been converted just like the rest, and for all they knew she could be dead, buried in a scrap heap or untouched battlefield. Emre hoped she wasn’t, if not because he liked her, at least for the sake of his father.

His mom set a plate in front of him. “Now eat, boy, or you’ll be late, and then how will you manage to make brief eye contact with Ambassador Skov?”

She winked at him, and Emre laughed. “Thanks, Mom.”

“Of course, Paşam.” She gave his father a kiss, and Emre rolled his eyes, playing up his faux discomfort. She ruffled his hair with a laugh. “You’re almost seventeen. What’s going to happen when you get a little girlfriend?”

“There’s no time for that, Mom. In between football and trying not to fail all my classes, I’m completely booked.” Emre took a bite of his food, closing his eyes. “Mmm.”

“Get off the boy’s back, Zehra,” his father argued. “We don’t need grandbabies any time soon.”

“I know that, but we’ve taught him about protection–”

“Ugh, Mom!”

His parents laughed. A car honked outside. Emre started shoveling food into his mouth, because he knew it was his friends. They were early for once, something he did not account for.

“Emre, slow down!” his mother urged.

Emre did so, slightly, and when he was out of food, he took the water his mom graciously offered and guzzled it down, swallowing in one gulp. It hurt like hell, but he knew his friends would ditch him if he didn’t hurry up, or at least, they’d give him a lot of grief for being slow. He stood up, hurrying to the front door, grabbing his jacket off the hook. It was mid October, and a colder day at that. He put on his shoes, hopping on one foot to maintain his balance.

“Do you need any coffee?” his mother called out.

“Nah, we’ll pick some up on the way!” Emre made sure he had his phone on him, ready to walk out the door. He paused, then walked back into the kitchen, giving both his parents a quick side hug, first his mom, then his dad. “Love you.”

“Aww, just as sappy as your father,” his mother cooed. “Now move along, this could be a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

Emre nodded, heading out the door. He was faced with his friend’s van, wheels hovering gently above the ground.

Demirel stuck his face out the window. “Get your ass in here, Sarioglu!”

Emre smiled to himself, walking to the van’s backdoors, opening it up and getting inside.

“Damn, you were all up before me?”

Tamgul laughed. “It’s a freaking miracle. Usually I can’t get Turkoglu up before noon.”

“Oi!” her twin piped up, headphones over only one ear. He was always listening to some type of music. 

“Sleep well, Sarioglu?” Aytuna asked softly, sitting in the passenger seat. Everyone took turns getting that one. Demirel always drove.

“Yes. Though it’s not the same without a good workout.”

“You’d marry your workout machine if you could,” Halime remarked.

“Still a better romance than Twilight,” Nadir joked.

Their group had started with just Emre, Demirel, and Halime. They met their first year in school, and had stuck together ever since. Demirel Kocaman was always the big guy, standing up to bullies on the schoolyard. Emre was catching up in height now, but back then he might as well have been the Hulk. Halime Kent was as witty as she was badass, with jabs that could strike your ego just right. She was an insanely good writer, when their first pieces were creative fiction.

He learned a lot from the both of them, and they had learned from him and his supposed ‘bleeding heart’.

Then, Emre Nadir moved into town. Emre was initially disappointed that he couldn’t use his name in class anymore, but Nadir was kind and bright, even if he was somewhat awkward. They folded him in with ease, and overnight Emre started getting called Sarioglu by his friends. Strange, at first, but he had gotten used to it. The Yilmaz twins, Tamgul and Turkoglu, came next. Their first day, Demirel had stopped some jerks from picking on Turkoglu’s name, and just like that, they were a part of the group. Those two were like fire and water; Tamgul’s tongue got her in trouble, while Turkoglu would rather go with the flow. Then high school hit, and one day, Tamgul brought a girl named Aytuna Hasim over to their table. She was a wallflower, but underneath that, she had a sharp mind and a good sense of humor.

Their friendship had lasted the test of time, and the biggest test was from the Omnic Crisis. Even as school shut downs kept happening and the threat of attack loomed over their heads, they stuck together, withstanding it all, because what the hell else were they gonna do? It’d be depressing if they just gave up on each other.

Demirel started driving. He had bought the van second hand a few months ago, convinced it was a worthy investment, and nobody stopped him; once he had a ludicrous idea, he went through with it, simple as that. And hey, the van was still running. Maybe not perfectly, but it was functional, and that convinced him it was worth it. And Emre a little, too. He shouldn’t have doubted Demirel.

“I can’t believe we’re spending our Saturday watching a woman enter a building,” Turkoglu muttered.

Tamgul smacked him lightly upside the head. “This isn’t just any woman, Kanka. This is Ambassador Skov!”

“Singlehandedly keeping Denmark from turning into a speck on the map,” Nadir added, scrolling on his phone excitedly. “She’s so cool. I’d love to be a leader like her one day.”

“Keep dreaming,” Halime retorted. “I think you’ll do good, but not as good as her, Fistik.”

“Never underestimate a woman with a mission,” Tamgul affirmed, a smug expression on her face.

“Listen, Turk, I don’t know why we’re going either, but we’re gonna have a good time,” Demirel interjected. “Plus, I’m sure there’ll be a good food truck someplace.”

Emre smiled. Leave it to Demirel to always think with his stomach.

“It’d be nice to meet the woman stopping all these fuckass Omnics,” Tamgul added.

“Woah!”

“Uncalled for, Gülüm.”

“You know how Sarioglu feels about this.”

“Guys, it’s fine,” Emre said, even if his heart was beating a little faster, even the slightest bit of conflict putting him on edge. “I don’t miss Tief as much as my dad does.”

Tamgul didn’t apologize, but he expected that. She was always speaking her mind, and he wouldn’t ask her to change it. He would ask her to be a little more sensitive about what she said, though. People had feelings and they didn’t always appreciate her blunt attitude.

“Tatlim,” Aytuna murmured, and Tamgul looked at the car bed.

“Guys, the chances of us meeting Ambassador Skov are so low,” Nadir pointed out. “She’s got work to do and can’t be held up by a group of kids wanting her autograph.”

Emre nodded. “Just getting to see her in person is worth it, though.”

“Speak for yourself,” Turkoglu muttered.

“Kral, sometimes you gotta do stuff you don’t wanna do,” Demirel replied. “We head to the arcade all the time, even though the one you like has sticky floors that drive Halime crazy.”

Turkoglu seemed properly chastised by that, shutting his mouth and stopping his complaints.

“I hope I can write a good story for the school paper,” Halime said. “You got the camera, right?”

Demirel held up the bag with one hand, a testament to his strength. Emre was a little envious of it sometimes. “Right here.”

“Iyi ki varsin.”

“Ruh ikizimsin.”

Emre smiled to himself. Being friends with these two since he was a boy meant he had seen every evolution of their relationship, as they went from friends to something that wasn’t quite romantic but wasn’t exactly platonic either. Ten years, and they still hadn’t confessed anything to each other. Not even an ill thought out secondary school kiss. Completely insane.

The van slowed. Emre looked out the window, seeing other cars and people walking towards Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. It seemed everyone wanted to get a look at the Ambassador Skov.

Demirel was fantastic at parallel parking, worming the van into a tight spot without bumping into anything damagable. As soon as they were parked and the engine shut off, Halime opened the van’s side doors, being the first one out. Everyone else followed suit.

“I checked the maps before we came,” Nadir announced. “There’s a cafe nearby. We should stop there before I pass out.”

The others laughed. Nadir was always prepared. As they walked, careful not to run into other pedestrians, Emre took stock of his friends. Halime and Demirel were making sure his camera was functioning correctly, standing closer to each other than they really needed to. Tamgul and Aytuna were walking close together, hands brushing against each other’s. Turkoglu was listening to Nadir talk about his latest hyperfixation, a subtle smile on his face as he watched the other boy’s animated expressions.

While he was right in saying he didn’t have time for any relationship, Emre acknowledged that he also deflected like crazy, because he wouldn’t even know where to start. He had never really felt those fuzzy, warm feelings for someone else, not the way his friends did for each other. Sure, he’d been attracted to people before, he wasn’t immune to hotness, but nothing like what love was described as in the movies.

Maybe one day. Right now, there was more important stuff to worry about, like if there would be a world to find love in in the first place.

They walked into the cafe together, the smell of coffee and pastries filling the air. There was quite the line, giving them all plenty of time to decide what they wanted, which meant Nadir had no excuses not to be ready when they got to the register. Halime had pulled her tablet out, writing down everyone’s drink orders, with Nadir’s being last, obviously. The group always picked on Emre about how sugary he wanted his drinks, but he’d own that with pride; they tasted better, anyway. He imagined it was the same principle as whiskey vs. cocktails, something he’d test out one day.

Halime, obviously, ordered for everyone, and when she went to pay, Demirel covered the bill.

“I got it, Güzelim.”

She smiled, a soft blush on her cheeks. Emre tried not to smile too much at that, otherwise he’d never hear the end of it. “Thanks.”

Emre sipped on his warm, sugary beverage as they went back outside. There was security detail now, circling the city hall like protective hawks. It made him feel slightly safer. The truth was, there was always a risk to coming out and seeing Ambassador Skov. The communication pathways in Istanbul were secure, but there was always that chance they weren’t, that something could’ve slipped through the cracks. The soldiers made it less scary than it was.

Turkoglu found a bench with a good vantage point and sat down. Tamgul sat next to him, and Aytuna sat next to her. Demirel snapped a few photos of the soldiers, while Halime had her stylus out, ready to jot down notes for her story. Nadir leaned against the bench, standing behind Turkoglu, holding the drink carrier so their intrepid reporters wouldn’t spill anything.

Emre checked the time on his phone. Almost ten. This was a lot of trouble for thirty seconds, he knew that, but he was going to take this chance with both hands. He had to see her, had to know she was real, that there were… there were still people fighting the good fight.

Like Overwatch.

He didn’t like volatile politics, but that was one strong opinion he had. Overwatch was doing good, uniting people from different countries and backgrounds in the fight for their world, and he admired and respected that. Especially Gabriel Reyes. He moved so quickly the enemy couldn’t even see him coming, like a blur with guns. Emre sometimes wondered what it’d be like to be a hero. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be one, even a local one.

That’s okay. Mom always says several smaller acts of kindness are better than one big heroic moment. He sipped on his coffee. Even though it would be pretty awesome.

He noticed the soldiers around the square straightening up. A black armored car was coming down the road.

“They’re a few minutes early,” Halime murmured.

It approached the city hall, before winding around the fountain and parking in front of the building. Emre could barely hear Demirel snapping shots over the sound of his own heartbeat. Why was he so nervous? It wasn’t like he was personally interviewing Ambassador Skov.

The car’s back doors opened. A woman in a sharp turquoise pantsuit with strawberry blonde hair tied up in a bun stepped out of the vehicle. She turned back, helping someone else out of it when–

BOOM!

An explosive went off in the courtyard. Soldiers descended, guarding Ambassador Skov from the threat. Emre dropped his coffee as the panic settled in, and omnic troops began running in from the alley ways in all directions, their movements as stiff and robotic as they appeared. His friends all shouted, hurrying to get up and help each other out of there, as people panicked and ran away.

Emre was frozen, staring at the car, as the omnic troops attacked the soldiers trying to protect Ambassador Skov. They shielded her from the bullets, rushing her up the path and towards the building. He breathed a sigh of relief when she got to the door.

“Sarioglu!” Tamgul shouted. “Stop admiring the scenery, Aptal!”

That got his muscles working again. He turned, ready to join the droves that were evacuating the premises, just like the soldiers who weren’t fighting instructed, when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He stepped closer to get a better view.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Demirel snapped. “Let’s go!”

Emre squinted, finally making out what he was seeing. It was a ravager unit, one of the big scary omnic forces, holding a small person. No, not a small person. A child, in a heavy coat with a fur ruff, both of them hidden from the fighting in a dark alleyway. He glanced around. Nobody else had noticed.

He didn’t think twice. Maybe he should’ve, but he didn’t. He ran.

“Sarioglu!”

“Orospu çocuğu!”

“What are you doing, man?!”

He had never run so fast in his life. The ravager was descending farther into the darkness, and he couldn’t let that happen, not in a million years. He tried not to think about the possibilities, all the things that could happen to someone so young in the omnic forces’ grasp. His calves faintly burned, but he didn’t stop running, didn’t slow down, even when he made it to the ravager, deep in that alleyway.

He punched it full force in the chassis. Unfortunately, that didn’t work very well.

“Amina koyayim!” He pulled his hand back. His knuckles were bleeding and twitching, and bad news for him, the ravager had definitely noticed his presence. It stared at him blankly, like even this thoughtless being couldn’t believe he was that stupid.

It reached for him. Emre took a step back, barely dodging its swing. It advanced on him, so swift the news articles didn’t do this thing justice. It was fast.

“Help!” the child screamed, before the ravager had its hand over their mouth again.

The ravager tried to make a run for it. Emre blocked its path. It was hard to think straight with the pain emanating from his muscles. He just knew he had to help this kid.

He didn’t know they’d help him.

They delivered a sharp kick to the ravager’s torso, enough to make it falter in its stride. Emre saw his chance, using his uninjured hand to pull on the arm holding them in place. He used every bit of strength he had, praying to anything that could hear him to please let him succeed, please save them both.

The metal arm budged slightly, as the kid kicked the ravager again, wiggling frantically in order to get free. They finally slipped out of its grasp, and Emre moved to catch them before they hit the ground. He looked around. There were more omnics entering the alley the way they came.

“You like piggyback rides?”

The kid frantically shook their head.

“Then sorry for this.” Emre hoisted the kid up onto his shoulders. “Hold on tight.”

He ran for the other end of the alley, going as fast as he could, hearing the footsteps following close behind him. He didn’t have much time to make decisions, so he went with his instincts, hoping that living here all his life would save them.

He ran onto the street, turning left. He used to go skateboarding with Halime and Demirel down this street; they’d grind against the fountain in the roundabout, the same fountain he ran through now, buying him a few extra seconds since the Omnics couldn’t do the same, and he figured they were too clunky to jump over the thing. 

He ran farther ahead, then turned right.

“It’s a dead end!” his new companion exclaimed, less panicked and more informatory.

Emre took a deep breath. Before him was a large fence. He had done this a million times. He could do it again. He quickened his pace, building momentum. Muscle memory guided him through the motions; he hopped onto the trashcan’s edge, using the force to grab the ladder of the nearby fire escape. He climbed it until he was on the first ledge. He looked over it, realizing the fault in his plan. He usually rolled after jumping over the fence to avoid breaking anything.

He could hear the ravagers approaching. He didn’t have a choice.

He crouched on the railing. “Hold on tight!”

He leapt across the sky, making it over the fence, resisting the urge to roll. He’d take one for the team this time.

The full force of landing from such a height onto his legs fucking sucked. His knees buckled, and he fell forward, nearly dropping the kid. He straightened himself up in time. He attempted to run again, but stumbled.

The kid lowered themself off of Emre and helped him back up. The adrenaline was wearing off, and his limbs were starting to feel like jelly. They helped him past the alleyway. There was a playground nearby. If they could just reach it…

Emre forced himself to go harder. He sped up, forcing his legs to work even though they were currently failing on him. They made it to the equipment, a big jungle gym, plenty of normally hot metal places to hide. Thank god it was October.

Crawling was easier than walking. Emre made the kid go first up the steps of the structure. It felt a lot more cramp than it did last year; he had waited so long for those growth spurts and now they were biting him in the ass.

He managed to get himself away from the clear view of the opening at the bottom. He never noticed how… exposed these things left you, but he was just lucky there was a modern playground around here; a lot of Istanbul playgrounds stuck to the archaic styles from when his parents were kids.

He took a deep breath, while the kid he was with discreetly looked out the window. They had flowing red hair, a face covered in little freckles, and the most striking green eyes he had ever seen. They were little; not toddler aged, but still far too young to be going through this. The way they looked out that window… it seemed they had been in situations like this before, or at least, were trained for them. But why?

“What’s your name?” he asked.

They looked at him cautiously. “Freja.”

“Are you a boy or a girl?”

“Girl, but that’s not really something you ask someone you just met.”

She said it matter-of-factly, like kids often did. He chuckled.

“True. I just wanted to know a little more about who I just saved from certain death.”

She glanced at his hands, then back at his face. “May I ask you a question, then?”

“I don’t see why not. Ask away.”

“What’s your name?”

“Emre.”

“Are you a boy or a girl?”

He grinned. “A boy.”

“How old are you, Emre?”

“Sixteen, almost seventeen. You?”

“Seven. My birthday was last month.”

Her accent seemed familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it. “Do you live in the city?”

“No. I’m just visiting.”

Emre snorted. “Rough vacation then, huh?”

Freja smiled a little. “Yeah, this isn’t very fun.”

“You’re telling me.” Emre sighed, then winced as he accidentally moved his hand. It hurt, his legs hurt, everything hurt, and with the adrenaline fading he was feeling a little tired, and woozy. “Bok. Hope nothing’s broken.”

Freja hesitated for a moment, before removing the fur from her collar with a distinct snap. She gently lifted up his hand, before pressing the lining under the fur to his wounds.

“The bleeding needs to stop.” Freja glanced out the window. “The bots aren’t here, at least. They left.”

“That’s good.” The pressure was uncomfortable, but he knew it was for his own good. “Let’s hope they scab instead of scar.”

“Do you live here, Emre?”

“In the playground or in the city?”

Freja rolled her eyes. He chuckled.

“I live in the city. Not at the heart of it, but not at the outskirts either. Just in the middle, you know?”

“I don’t. This is my first time coming here.”

“I guess that’s true. You definitely don’t sound Turkish, either.”

“I’m not. I’m Danish.” Freja sighed. “Mama is here on business. I just tagged along.”

“Let’s hope next time she hires a babysitter.”

“That might be a challenge. Everyone says I’m a handful.”

“Well, you did derail my day.”

She hummed. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t worry about it, Frej. I’m a man of adventure.”

Freja turned her attention back out the window. Emre reached into his pocket with his uninjured hand, pulling out his phone. Dozens of missed calls and texts. Variations of asking if he’s alright or where he went or what the hell is wrong with him.

He tapped his mom’s contact, then hesitated. There could be a hacking unit in Istanbul right now. If he sends anyone his location, he could be dooming both him and Freja. He glanced at her. He didn’t know why that ravager unit tried to kidnap her, but it must mean the omnics want her alive. For what purpose? He had no idea, but he wouldn’t risk it. Emre double checked his location blocker was on, required software in Istanbul he was now grateful for, and he just had to hope it worked as intended.

‘I’m okay,’ he texted to his mother.

Her response was immediate. ‘You worried me to death! Where are you?’

‘I can’t tell you’

Three dots appeared, then disappeared, then appeared again.

‘Emre Sarioglu, you tell me where you are RIGHT NOW.’

‘I can’t’

She called him. He answered, bringing the phone up to his ear.

“Emre–!”

“Mom, listen to me. I can’t tell you where I am. I know where I am, but I can’t tell you.”

“The whole city is going into lockdown. You need to come home.”

“I can’t, I…” Emre took a deep breath. “I intercepted a kidnapping.”

Seconds passed in silence before he got a response. “What?!”

“A–A ravager was carrying a girl away from the scene. It–It wasn’t outright killing her. I think the omnics who attacked today were trying to take her. I–I couldn’t let that happen!”

He could hear his mother’s light, hysterical laughter. “Oh, Yavrum, you’re too good for this world. But you’re too little for this. You can’t do this all by yourself.”

Emre had to admit his ego was slightly bruised, but he also felt way out of his element, so she wasn’t exactly wrong. “I don’t have a choice. I can’t risk exposing our hiding spot.”

“But you said it yourself, they want her alive–”

“They don’t need me alive, Mom.”

The other end went so quiet he thought the call disconnected for a moment. Finally, “What can I do to help?”

“Send me a map of the public safehouses. I won’t tell you which one I’m going to.”

“Al–Alright. I will. You, um… I’ve never had to be in this situation before.”

He laughed a little. “You and me both, Mom.”

“I… I love you, Emre. Please be okay. I can’t… I can’t lose you…”

Her teary voice made him tear up. “You won’t. I promise. I love you, Mom. Someday, we’ll laugh about this.”

“That would be nice.”

Hanging up was hard, but Emre knew he had to do it. Knew he had to keep moving. The tears stinging his eyes, the lump in his throat… part of him wanted to curl up in a ball and hope it would be over. That everything would be fixed. That he could go to sleep and wake up in his bed all nice and snug and ready for another good, kidnapping free day.

But he couldn’t. That wasn’t how reality worked.

He turned back to Freja. “I… she’s going to–”

“I know,” she interrupted. “Your mom is loud.”

He let out a watery laugh. “S–Sorry, I just… this is a lot…”

Freja wrapped her thin arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder. “It’s okay. You were very brave back there. You can take a minute.”

A few tears rolled down his cheeks. He breathed deeply, trying to minimize his feelings, because the last thing Freja needed was her impromptu bodyguard having a mental breakdown. He glanced down at his knuckles, the fur collar having slid off. The skin was already scabbing. His legs still hurt like hell, but the ache was dulling. He was recovering already, and he would keep recovering, because his mom didn’t raise a fucking quitter.

Emre checked his messages. A screenshot of the safehouses on the map, with the message, ‘Come home safe. I love you.’

He straightened his posture. His other hand still hurt, but while he could text one handed (thanks to many, many workouts in the past) he couldn’t zoom in one handed. Emre scanned for their location, then looked around at the surrounding safehouses.

He pointed at one. “This one is closest, but the path is too clear.”

Freja lifted up her head, looking at his phone. “Don’t we want a clear path?”

“No, because that’s where they’ll expect us to go. According to them, we disappeared back there in the alley–” He pointed with his thumb behind him. “–so logically, we’d go to the closest one. Not to mention it’s near city hall. That means they can patrol back and forth.”

He scanned the map, before pointing at another one. “There. More interconnected streets. It’d be like a hedgemaze they can’t look over, and I know the path. It’s farther away, so they won’t be expecting it. The thing about humans is that we’re unpredictable.”

He turned off his phone, putting it in his pocket. “We have a plan. We… we can do this.”

“We can,” she agreed.

“How do you manage to stay so calm?”

Freja looked at the ground. “This isn’t my first time being hunted by bots.”

“So this is a regular thing for you?”

She smiled sadly. “Yeah. Unfortunately, it is.”

“Let’s hope it’s your last time, then.” Emre moved his legs. “I don’t think they’re broken, by some miracle.”

“It’s a good thing you’re freakishly tall.”

Emre laughed. “Excuse you?”

“You’re like an elf. Or Reinhardt Wilhelm.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” Emre got himself into a crouch, careful not to bump his head. “I’ll pop my head out. Be ready to move.”

“Okay.”

He crept down the jungle gym, peeking outside the entrance. There weren’t any omnics in sight. He could hear them in the distance, though, faintly marching.

“We’re clear.” He climbed out of the jungle gym, getting to his feet and stretching his legs. His calves still hurt, but he wasn’t bucking immediately so his bones weren’t broken. Freja climbed out after him, fur collar back on her coat.

“Ready?” he whispered.

“No, but I have to be.”

He dashed across the playground, ducking into the nearby orchard, the cover of trees and whatever vegetation remained mid harvest hiding them from view. Freja followed close behind. Emre had been worried she wouldn’t be able to keep up, but she seemed fearless. He had cried more than she had. What sort of life did she lead in Denmark that this didn’t concern her as much as it concerned him? Why the hell was she getting chased by omnics on a regular basis?

The shade kept them covered as they traversed across the grass. They weren’t invisible by any means, but they were harder to spot among the changing leaves. He saw the path in his mind’s eye–there was another cafe up ahead, and across the street from that was a boutique. Down the road from the boutique was an arcade, and if you turn right it’ll take you to a bike path. Follow the bike path until you get to the large grocery store, where a safe house is hidden.

Sounded easy enough, but the distance between each little checkpoint wasn’t anything to sneeze at. It’d take them some time to get from place to place without alerting any omnics to their location, not to mention how much open space they’d have to go through in order to get to their final destination.

But if they stayed put, they may as well lay down and die, and Emre refused to do that. He told his mom he wouldn’t die, and he intended on keeping that promise.

They reached the edge of the orchard. Emre looked around at the street before him. It was like a ghost town, eerie and empty, but it was clear. He beckoned Freja to follow him as he hurried to the cafe, avoiding cars and bikes and keeping as quiet as possible.

The marching was getting closer. It was getting louder. He knew he couldn’t outrun them here; he got lucky with the fountain and his favorite parkour spot, but there was nothing around him that could help that same way. The best option would be to hide. There was a bell in the door of the cafe and boutique. That would give them away, if the doors were even unlocked. Plus there could be people hiding in there already. Emre wouldn’t sacrifice their lives.

They’d have to get to the arcade. It didn’t have a bell. It was a good kilometer and a half away, but they had no other choice.

He reached back for Freja’s hand, taking it in his own and pulling her forward. He lifted her up onto his shoulders.

“Sorry, but I have to.”

“I like living. I’ll manage.”

He dashed in a straight, diagonal line. His throat was dry, and soon enough his lungs hurt, but he wouldn’t stop now. It felt like he was dying, though, like every cell in his body was begging him to stop, but he wouldn’t stop. Again, he told his mom he’d survive, and he fucking meant it.

He didn’t do track, nor did he use a treadmill often, but Emre would usually take two laps around his neighborhood every day in the evenings, one walking and one running. He never thought he’d have to be a hero with it, but life can really surprise you.

Freja was holding on tight, head next to his while her arms were crossed in front of his chest, eyes closed to block out the wind. Every time he had the urge to stop, he thought about her mother. Her poor mother, who wouldn’t know what happened to her, who would blame herself for bringing her sweet baby on this business trip. It’d be a cold day in hell before Emre let her think she killed her baby, whoever she may be.

The marching was getting farther away, but not enough for him to feel comfortable with it. The pace at which he was running and the volume at which they were marching didn’t suggest he’d gotten out of the woods yet. Thank you, Nadir. Couldn’t have gotten to this point without your maths tutoring.

But maybe it bought them some time. He was over halfway there, he knew it, even as his lungs and legs burned. He’d have to find water in the arcade, otherwise he wouldn’t be able to keep going. He was already pushing it as is, stumbling a little on a stray rock in the road, making Freja yelp before she realized she had and closed her mouth. He maintained his balance, barely, and he thanked his lucky stars he could finally see the arcade.

There was marching coming from in front of them now, and it was getting louder. He was surrounded. He slowed to a walk, crouching so Freja could get back on the ground, and then rushed to the door of the arcade. It was unlocked, and for once today, things were looking up. Emre held the door open for Freja, before stepping in himself, trying to control his breathing.

“Get… get away from the windows.”

They walked deeper into the building, and once they were safe from the view of the outside, Emre collapsed onto a booth.

“Okay, we’re… almost out of the woods.”

Freja looked at him with those big green eyes. “You need to drink something.”

She walked in the direction of a concessions’ stand.

Emre forced himself up. “Wait!”

She paused, turning to look at him with an eyebrow raised. “What?”

He doubled over, taking deep breaths. The parkour had already been pushing it, but a sprint through a few miles of Istanbul without water? He felt like he was dying. He probably was dying. “We… we can’t set off alarms… or pay for that matter…”

Freja walked through the concession’s gate, grabbing two large bottles of water out of a fridge. She then unzipped her coat pocket and reached in, pulling out a coin purse. She took a few units out and set them on top of the fridge.

“That should cover it.”

“Are you… sure it’s enough?”

Freja smiled slightly. “Does it matter? I don’t think they’ll judge two kids underpaying them to survive. ‘Sides, I left them more than enough. Those coins are worth five pieces individually.” She offered him one of the water bottles. “Drink. I can’t do this alone.”

Those five words got him moving again. He took the water bottle, taking a nice long swallow of it, groaning at the feel of cold water against his dehydrated throat. Freja giggled, and Emre’s face got hot. He capped the water and chuckled. “S–Sorry. I didn’t make you uncomfortable, did I?”

“No. It was funny.”

Emre sat in a booth again, giving himself a bit of a rest, while Freja joined him in the seat across, sipping at the water bottle that was almost half her height.

“Do they make everything big in Turkiye?” Freja asked bluntly. “The playgrounds, the water, the boys. It’s all so big.”

Emre grinned. “I’m not even that big. You should see my friend. He’s built like a tank.”

“I wish he was here then.”

He sighed. He hadn’t checked the messages in the group chat yet. Part of him was scared to. What if he opened it and it turned out one of them did die? The other part of him was busy keeping himself and this small human alive, and he really needed to keep a one track mind about this. “Yeah. I wish that too.”

Freja looked around the arcade. “We could hide out here.”

Emre shook his head. “In theory, it’s sound, but in practice we’d be sitting ducks.”

“I like ducks.”

He smiled, bemused. “Do you, now?”

“Uh huh. And puffins. Once a year, we go to the cliffs and throw the puffins off them so they’ll fly.”

Emre chuckled. “That’s one way to teach them.”

He took another long drink of water before getting up.

“We need to keep moving. There’s a bike path when we round this corner. I’m waiting for the omnics to be farther away before we go back out.”

“Is there enough time for a game, then?”

“I hope not. The sooner we get to the safe house, the sooner we’re not running for our lives.” He tucked the water bottle under his arm. “Stay here until I give the signal.”

Freja nodded, then asked, “What’s the signal?”

“I–well… I’ll just call out for you, okay?”

“Okay.”

Emre rounded the corner and walked, then crept, closer to the arcade door. He couldn’t see any omnics outside, at least, not yet. He positioned himself as strategically as he could, pressing his ear to the glass. The marching was very faint, but this was thick glass, meaning it wasn’t as far away as it appeared.

And it was getting louder, much, much faster than he anticipated. He hopped over the prize counter, falling on his ass on the other side. He got himself into a crouching position as the marching was now almost deafening. It stopped suddenly, and he held his breath, hoping that Freja wouldn’t try to come out and take a look. A red light bathed the arcade, running over every surface. Even after all of his class discussions and limited personal research, he didn’t know what that meant. What were they seeing?

The light vanished, and the marching continued, getting softer now. He breathed a sigh of relief.

“Frej!” He called, getting out from behind the counter. She walked over to him right as he managed to gather his bearings. She nodded at him once, calm and assured, and he wished he had that resolve in himself right now. At least he was good at pretending he did.

He slowly, very very slowly, opened the arcade’s door, looking back and forth on the street. The omnics were walking to the left, a good distance away. Emre reached behind him, Freja took his hand, and he hurried to the corner of the block. There were thankfully no omnics on the side of the building, and once again, luck was on their side today. He could see the bike path just up ahead.

“Freja, let’s…” He stopped, noticing her peeking around the corner they just came from. “What are you doing? We’re almost home free.”

She hummed, brow furrowed in thought. He sighed and walked back over, taking a look at what she was seeing. The omnic duo was several meters away, enough that the two humans would have a good head start, but their red eyes were trained on a cat one of them was holding. Even from far away, Emre could hear the creature’s yowls, trying their damndest to get away, sounding like they were in pain as the omnic held onto them, although it didn’t seem to be attacking.

Freja turned to him with big eyes. He had lived in a city with stray cats his whole life, adorable hellions that would beg him for scraps if he happened to be eating a kebab on the sidewalk, and yet he still couldn’t resist those pleading eyes. He looked around for something he could use, and right by the trash can was a broken jar with enough glass left to make a good distraction.

He picked it up, channeling all he had learned from playing rugby with the other boys back in grade school, and chucked it as far as he could across the street. It shattered against a solid brick wall, and Emre watched as the omnics’ attention was pulled to it. The cat took their opportunity, extending all of their limbs and pushing the metal hands away effectively enough they could land on the ground and escape.

“Come on, before they realize who did it,” Emre urged, leading Freja to the bike path. There was  a wide smile on her face, and this time, it was a real one. A beaming, bright smile that lit up his heart, and made that risk worth it. And it was contagious.

They ran for a couple of seconds then slowed to a walk, not wanting to drop their waters or tire themselves out again. Wildlife ran along the paths, experiencing the same panic Istanbul was today, collecting food as quickly as they could. Freja watched them scurry, and Emre watched Freja. There was so much mystery about her. Emre tried to remember how he was at her age. Of course, seven-year-old him was scared of spiders and couldn’t play a game without going over the rules a couple of times, just to make sure he wasn’t breaking them. If he had been in this situation… he would already be kidnapped and maybe even dead.

Freja hadn’t even cried. He cried more than her somehow. It didn’t make any sense.

“So, you said you’re here on business. What does your mom do for work?” Emre asked.

Freja stiffened slightly, her posture tense. “She’s, uh… she talks to people.”

“Some sort of negotiator?”

“Yes. What about your family? What do they do?”

He knew she was trying to change the subject, get the spotlight off of her, but he wouldn’t call her on it. At least, not yet.

“My dad’s in project management. That’s basically where he arranges construction crews for building… well, buildings. Not to mention all of the tools, the materials, and the estimated timeline. The architects design the buildings, he gets it done. My mom’s a professor for the culinary arts. She used to be a chef, but restaurant life is a lot of work, so now she teaches people to do it themselves.”

Freja nodded. “And what do you want to do one day?”

Emre sighed. He had been getting asked this his whole life. What did he want to be when he grew up? Take this quiz and find out what the best career would be for you out of only five options. High school is almost over, gotta start thinking about the next steps. And although he had been coming up with answers on the spot for so long, right now he didn’t have it in him to lie.

“I don’t know. Life… life is so unpredictable. I’m not ready to grow up, but I’m going to have to sometime. I’ve never been good in school, and I’m not great at handiwork either. I’ve thought about becoming a chef since I like cooking, but I saw how it drained the life out of my mom for years. I’m good at being a leader and getting things done, but that doesn’t narrow it down, does it?” He chuckled. “Sorry for trauma dumping, I know you don’t need it right now.”

He glanced at Freja, and to his surprise she didn’t seem annoyed with him or confused. She was listening, and thinking too, from the looks of it. Silence passed for a good minute before she stopped on the trail. He stopped too, turning and making eye contact.

“Well, Emre, I think you’ve proven you’re good at helping people,” she finally told him earnestly. “Maybe one day you’ll be my actual bodyguard.”

He laughed. “Again, what kind of life do you lead where you need a bodyguard?”

She rolled her eyes, visibly trying not to smile. “Just take the compliment.”

“I will. It… it means a lot, from someone as brave as you.”

“Thank you. That is how you properly accept a compliment.”

They continued walking, falling into a comfortable silence for a while. The peacefulness of nature contrasted with the chaos going on in the outside world. Outside of this trail, there was conflict. There was war, destruction, pain. Hell, they had been looking face to face at it for the past… hour? Time passed differently when you were running for your life.

Right now, all there was was the sun, and birds flying overhead, and the rustling of the browning leaves.

“I’m not being honest with you.”

Freja’s voice cut through the silence, clean as a blade.

“I know. I’m more perceptive than I look, Frej.”

“Well, I know why they want me. Mama doesn’t just work in negotiations. She’s… she’s important, and if they get me…” She hugged her water bottle, squishing it slightly, and Emre watched the liquid inside adjust to the new strain. Like she had been doing all this time. “The worst part is, I don’t know if Mama would even pay up.”

“She would,” he replied.

“Are you sure? She’s devoted to Denmark, and… and cold to me.”

He often forgot not everyone had parents as cool as his, and the weight of his breaking heart was heavy inside him. “Sometimes mothers have a strange way of showing affection. If there’s one thing I know about her, though, she’d lay down her life for you, okay?”

She scoffed. “You haven’t even met her. How could you know?”

“I don’t, but once I become your bodyguard, I will.”

Freja laughed, and Emre smiled to himself.

“That’s how I know. Your whole face lights up when you’re happy. Who wouldn’t choose you?”

“Thank you, Emre.”

They were reaching the end of the trail, and he drifted to the side, trying not to make himself noticeable. Freja followed his lead. He went off the pavement, hiding among the trees, getting a lay of the land.

There were omnics outside of the grocery. Patrolling, waiting for someone to step out, or try to go in.

“Orospu çocuğu,” he muttered.

“That sounds bad,” Freja whispered.

He looked at her, then looked at the omnics, and dread settled into his stomach. They couldn’t outrun the omnics. Even with a distraction like the one that saved the cat, they wouldn’t be able to separate all of the units surrounding the building. They could try to go to the back, but he knew there’d be just as many omnics there, because that was only logical.

It hit him; this was it. This was how he died. They weren’t both going to make it.

And yet, that didn’t make him as sad as he thought it would. He was terrified, but… he glanced at Freja. If it meant she’d make it back to her mom, back to Denmark, safe and sound… he’d do it. No questions asked, no negotiations made. He’d do it.

He was going to do it.

He dropped the water bottle, and Freja followed his lead. He turned to her, kneeling down before putting his hand on her shoulder. “Alright, listen to me. As soon as it’s clear, you run to the doors, you hear me?”

Freja’s eyes went wide. “But what about you?”

He sighed, unable to make eye contact, and that gave him away.

“No, Emre! We go together, or–or we wait for the army to show up!”

“That could take hours, and we don’t know how long it’ll be before they take to the wooded areas and search.”

She trembled slightly, lip wobbling. “But…”

“We can’t both make it.” A tear trickled down her cheek, and he wiped it away. “And I’d rather it be me than you.”

He stood back up. “Promise me you’ll tell my mom.”

She shook her head. “No…”

Emre took a deep breath, the last one he’d probably ever get. He counted down in his head. Three, two, one.

He ran.

“Over here!” he shouted. The omnics heads snapped to him, eyes focusing in, and he knew that meant he had their attention. He ran in the opposite direction of the grocery. “Come on, yavşaks, come and get me!”

He picked up in speed, hearing the whirr of machinery legs and circuits as he sprinted as fast as he could away from the building, dodging hover cars in the parking lot like it was his fucking job, and that gave him an idea. He rammed his body into a car, setting off the alarm, blaring and loud in its intensity. He slammed into more, more of them going off. If that could overwhelm the omnics even a little, he could buy a little more time for Freja.

He could hear them gaining on him, and adrenaline kicked in for the second time that day, fueling his muscles and pushing him farther, farther, farther! He thought about Freja, her big green eyes and her round, innocent face, who had clearly seen more horrors than anyone should in their fucking lifetime. He’d do this for her. He’d make his last hurrah count!

He dashed for the entrance, running past the sign and getting onto the road, uncharacteristically without traffic. He saw another alleyway, heading straight for it, but he realized too late one of the omnics had blocked his path. He ran right into it, face colliding with its chassis, and he stumbled backwards, losing his footing and landing on his ass. He clutched his nose, blood already seeping through his fingers, as the omnic pressed a foot to his chest and pushed him down, pinning him onto the ground.

He struggled, the pressure against his sternum downright painful, and all he could see was the sky. He heard more of the omnics approaching, their shadows casting across his face, and he couldn’t breathe right.

“This one interferes with Anubis,” one of them spoke, and he recognized that voice, the cold in his veins freezing further into ice.

“T–Tief?” he choked out. She moved until he could see her face, and she looked the same yet completely different, hollow in a way she hadn’t been before. “Y–You’re… alive…”

He heard her arm convert into some sort of weapon.

“Where is the target?”

“You’ll… you’ll never get her–OW!”

The foot pressed harder against him, and something had to have cracked, pain shooting throughout his body. He wouldn’t back down, though. He had come this far, and he’d go down with dignity.

“Kiss your… evil plans… goodbye…”

“It refuses to cooperate,” Tief announced. “Anubis states we must execute it.”

She pointed her weapon, a cannon instead of a hand, right at his face.

He closed his eyes, fate fully setting in. He didn’t see a light, or all of his memories flash before his eyes, but he felt the realization that someone was going to have to tell his mom what happened. She’d have to come identify his body, see that her baby was dead in front of an entire audience. At least she got to talk to him before he went off to go be a hero.

He hoped she could forgive him. He hoped she’d be proud of him. Because his death meant that little girl would get to live the rest of her life, and he could absolutely make peace with that.

“Hey!”

A new wave of fear shot through him as he opened his eyes, craning his head to look at the source of that sound, even though he knew instinctively who it was. Freja was standing there, fists clenched, not a tremor or shiver in sight as she stood as tall as she could.

“You leave him alone!”

“Fr–Frej, what are… what are you doing?!”

“The mission has not been compromised,” Tief stated, as Freja walked forward, a knight in fluffy fur.

“It’s me you want! You let him live, and I’ll go with you, with no kicking and screaming too. Just don’t kill him. He didn’t do anything! It’s all my fault!”

Dammit! She was too altruistic for her own good! The one time he needed someone to be selfish, and they didn’t follow through!

“Anubis declares this is an acceptable arrangement,” Tief replied. The foot was lifted off of his chest, and Emre took in greedy gulps of air, before rolling over and getting onto his feet.

“I won’t let you–!”

What happened next could only be described as a miracle. A cat landed on the ground from a nearby dumpster, getting in between Freja and the omnics. Then another joined the first, running out from an alleyway. Another came from bushes close by, then another, and another. Cats descended onto the streets from all directions, some from the sky. There had to be at least two dozen, maybe three, although from his best guess, probably four. They were everywhere, circling the situation like hawks. They yowled at the omnics, surrounding them completely, somehow intimidating them.

“We–We cannot attack!” Tief shouted. “It goes against the directive!”

Emre had no idea what that meant, but he’d take the opportunity. He ran forward, grabbing Freja’s hand and running with her to the building. The cats let them through, giving them a clean shot back to the grocery. Everything hurt, from his face to his chest to his legs, but they were so close, he couldn’t give up now! He thought they wouldn’t make it, that they’d almost get there and get taken down, and all of that hard work for nothing. But the door was a meter away, and as soon as Emre got to the curtain blocked glass, he started pounding on it like it owed him a fuckton of money.

“Help!” he shouted. “Help!”

“Help! Help us!” Freja screamed.

Seconds passed before the doors opened, a scared yet determined looking clerk stepping aside.

“Come on!”

The two of them ran inside, and right before the doors shut, Emre noticed the cat from before, the one he almost didn’t help save, looking back at him. A quiet understanding passed between them; their backs had been equally scratched.

The clerk locked the door again and turned to Emre. “By Allah, you look rough, man.”

Emre chuckled, but it turned into a cough, which then turned into coughed up blood. Some other people came over, helping Emre to a cot and laying him down.

Cold hands removed his jacket and pulled off his henley.

“I’m Ceyda,” she introduced. “I’m a paramedic.”

Ceyda got right to business, feeling around his chest for cracks (just burning pain levels of bruising) and setting his nose (which was the fucking worst but did feel slightly better afterwards) before bandaging both. She helped him into his shirt and left him alone after that, presumably to tend to someone else, and Emre felt someone else’s presence by his side.

“This has officially been the craziest day of my life,” Freja spoke.

“Really? You said you’ve done this sort of thing before.”

“I’ve never been saved by a bunch of cats before.”

Emre laughed, and it immediately hurt. “Good to know I’m not the only one. You could’ve died.”

He moved over on the cot as carefully as he could and she laid down next to him, snuggling up to his side. He got the sense that was hard for her to do, but nearly dying together changed up the boundaries you had with someone, at least for a little while. If it brought her the same comfort it brought him, he wouldn’t question it.

“You almost did die. And look at us; we both made it.”

“Because of an act of god, Meleğim.”

She took his hand. “What does that mean?”

“My angel.”

“I like that. Makes me sound super cool.”

“You are super cool.”

“I think you’re cooler.”

“Your hands are freezing, so I’d argue that’s you.”

She giggled again. He smiled to himself, eyelids heavy as his body, recognizing it was finally in a safe place, began to shut down and rest. He didn’t know if he fully fell asleep or was just drifting, but he was roused after some time when Freja shook him. Emre, of course, immediately panicked, opening his eyes thinking he was about to be running for his life again, but he wasn’t. He looked up, instead seeing a duo of Turkish soldiers staring at him, weapons raised. Well, maybe too soon to declare he wouldn’t be running from another threat.

“What are you doing with the ambassador’s daughter?” one of them asked, voice steely.

He must’ve been half dreaming still because they definitely could not have just said that.

“The what now?”

As if the universe was answering his question, a very familiar woman with green eyes identical to Freja’s pushed past the soldiers, relief flooding her features.

“Freja! My Freja!”

“Mama!”

Emre blinked, bewildered as she picked Freja up and spun her around, clutching her tight to her chest.

“Oh, pus, I thought you were dead!” She set Freja on the ground. “Don’t scare me like that ever again.”

Freja nodded, then gestured to Emre. “Mama, this is my new friend, Emre. Emre, this is–”

“Cecilie Skov,” Emre blurted out. It all clicked. Why the omnics wanted her as ransom, the reason behind her constant calmness, the dry sense of humor, hell the fact she was even in Turkiye in the first place. It was so obvious now. He could see Cecilie’s features in Freja’s face now, the roundness, the subtle eye bags, the pouty lips, and of course their matching eyes.

The older Skov seemed amused, slight smile on her face that mirrored Freja’s. “You’ve heard of me?”

He got to his feet, shaky from exhaustion but not about to pass up this opportunity. “Of course! Y–Your work during the crisis has been amazing! I mean, I–I hate that you have to do any of it and that any of this is happening, but you’re… you’re handling it well, and I admire you.”

“Oh, I… thank you, Emre.”

“Mama, that is high praise from Emre,” Freja reassured her. “He’s the one who protected me from all the bots. He was about to die so I could live, but I didn’t let him, and then a bunch of cats showed up.”

Ambassador Skov raised an eyebrow. “Oh. That… truly does mean a lot coming from him, then.”

Everything that had just happened was even more worth it now. Ambassador Skov seemed genuinely flattered. He had impressed the Ambassador Skov! He would’ve been over the moon if he wasn’t in total pain.

“Sarioglu!”

He perked up, relief replaced quickly by nervousness.

“Move out of that way, our buddy’s in there!” Demirel boomed.

“My apologies, but we can’t do that,” one of the soldiers replied.

“Come on, he’s our friend!” Tamgul shouted. “You gotta let us see him!”

“No.”

“Can you at least tell us something?” Halime pleaded. “Is he alive at least?”

“He’s alive.”

“Oh thank Allah!” Turkoglu exclaimed.

“I did not want to be the only Emre,” Nadir added.

Then a voice piped up that Emre wasn’t expecting to be so loud.

“Just let us see him,” Aytuna said, louder and more confident than he had ever heard her. “We just need to know he’s alright, sir.”

Ambassador Skov turned to the soldiers. “Let them through.”

They stepped aside, and immediately Emre was bombarded with the love of his friends, all panicked and relieved and thankfully unharmed. First from Halime, who wrapped her arms tight around his neck and rested her nose against his shoulder. “Don’t you ever do that to me again.”

He hugged her back. “I promise.”

They were then lifted up by Demirel, and Emre coughed as his grip got a little tight.

“I’m so happy you’re alive!” He set them both down, and Emre separated from Halime only for Demirel to punch him in the shoulder. “But fuck you, yarrak, you scared me.”

“That makes two of us,” Tamgul replied. Emre didn’t think she was going to go for the hug, but suddenly her arms were wrapped around him tight, holding him close. It was only a few seconds before she pulled away and patted his back, looking awkward as hell about it. “I’m, uh… you look rough.”

“I feel rough.”

Turkoglu pulled Emre in for a side hug, and once he was out of that, Nadir pulled him in for one too. Aytuna hesitated, but he pulled her into an embrace, rubbing her back as he felt tears on his shoulder.

He pulled back, looking at Halime. “How did you guys know I was here?”

“We’ve been going to every safehouse,” Halime answered. “This was the last one on our list, so if you weren’t here…”

“Kanka, what were you thinking?” Tamgul asked.

Emre glanced over at Freja, watching this silently, and beckoned her forward. “I wasn’t thinking. I just knew I needed to act.”

Freja walked forward, looking up at the group of teenagers with wide eyes, and waved. “Your–Your friend saved my life.”

“And for that, I am very grateful,” Ambassador Skov interjected. 

Halime whirled around, radiating excitement. “Wait a minute, you’re Ambassador Skov! Oh, this is so exciting! Can I get an interview for our school paper?”

The older woman hesitated. “Well… I’m not sure that–”

“Mama,” Freja urged. Her mother sighed.

“Yes, of course, after my meeting.” Ambassador Skov took out a business card and offered it to Halime, who took it eagerly. “I look forward to a video call with you.”

The older woman turned to Emre, and although he was taller than her, he never felt more in awe of another person. Even in a casual setting, she emitted power like a dangerous aura.

“Thank you for saving my daughter, Emre. Have you ever considered a career in search and rescue?”

Emre chuckled. “Not until this moment.”

She smiled at him, genuinely, so close to Freja’s. “I’d look into it. You’d be really good. Say goodbye now, Freja.”

Emre knelt down as Freja surged forward, giving him a hug. Neither of them spoke. Her lithe arms were tight around him, like she didn’t want to let go, and he understood that. However, she had places to be. He gently pried the death grip she had off of him.

Her eyes were wet with tears. “You were very brave.”

“Not as brave as you were, Frej.”

“Will I ever see you again?”

“I hope so.” He stood back up, as Ambassador Skov took her daughter’s hand and led her away from the group, disappearing into a sea of military men while Emre’s friends started freaking out about what just happened.

And for the first time, Emre knew what he wanted in life.

15 years later…

Emre sat typing at his desk, trying to ignore his aching back so he could finish this report. He was so close to having it done and having his weekend free, which meant he could spend time with the new recruits in Search and Rescue.

He looked over his work quickly, correcting types and odd sentences, as someone knocked on the doorframe of his office. Emre glanced up and smiled before going back to his work.

“No ‘hello’, Private Sarioglu?” Tief remarked lightly.

He hummed. “I need to get this done before I move onto anything else.”

It had taken some time for him to be comfortable around Tief again, especially since she didn’t remember what she had done that day in October. But she had more than made up for it in the following years, joining the military after the crisis and later on entering Overwatch on his recommendation. He should’ve expected her to end up with a dazzling personality. Charming, intelligent, witty, with a quiet wisdom that came with the year she spent at the Shambali Monastery. She was practically his sister at this point, too, since Mom and Dad had taken her in and declared her last name to be Sarioglu.

He did one more read through his report, double checking it sounded coherent, and then pressed the send button at the top. He shut down his PC and leaned back, immediately feeling better. He got a look at the pictures on his desk. The ones that always made him smile.

Halime and Demirel had sent him photos they took during their assignment in Dublin. He had noticed the not so subtle engagement ring on Halime’s ring finger, but he bet they’d reveal that at the annual dinner they held. He loved reading through Halime’s work, and if it were up to him, he’d only do interviews with her. But alas, bias and all that. Demirel’s photos had only gotten better in the years they’d been apart. He had won some awards for it, too.

Emre glanced at Tamgul and Aytuna’s wedding photo. Their dresses had been gorgeous, and the sword themed photography was the icing on the already very delicious cake, and speaking of delicious cake, wow. It wasn’t a surprise to him they ended up getting together; it only took a week of them rooming together in college for them to confess their feelings and go further. Tamgul had gone into engineering, and Aytuna went into counseling, and they ended up working in the same skyscraper.

Nadir and Turkoglu’s photo at an awards ceremony sat next to it. It was no surprise to Emre they both went into science, eventually becoming revolutionary in their respective fields–physics and chemistry. They were currently touring across Europe, speaking at different institutes about their discoveries. They had gotten together almost immediately after Emre’s adventure in Istanbul; nothing like nearly losing a friend to get you confessing to another. So while it was a pain to heal from that, at least something good came from it.

He looked at the group photos of them, the one at their high school graduation and the one they took just last year. The seven of them had changed a lot, but whenever they met up together, it felt like they were back in school, that easy banter flowing between them, only with less whiny voices and majorly successful careers.

“Are you ready to meet the recruits?” Tief asked.

Emre stood up. “Of course. Although, you sound oddly insistent about this batch.”

He glanced at Tief, and although she had no physical features to give away her feelings, her posture was relaxed, and when she spoke, her voice was full of mirth.

“I just think you’ll especially like them.”

He followed her out of the office, smiling and saying hi to passerbys as they went to the break lounge. He always loved seeing new rookies, because although he had been frustrated with leadership as of late, Overwatch truly was a good cause to contribute to, and they had every right to be excited about it. He sure as hell had been when they brought him into the fold when he was just nineteen.

He took Ambassador Skov’s words to heart and joined the Turkish armed forces as soon as he was able, coming in on the tail end of the crisis. Emre hadn’t become an official part of Overwatch until afterwards, but he had gotten to fight alongside some truly incredible heroes, and for that he would always be grateful. Because this was his passion, what he wanted to do with his life, and although that came with downsides, it made him happy and that was all that mattered.

Emre walked into the lounge, clapping his hands together to gather the attention of the recruits. There were only four, which made sense, given that Search and Rescue wasn’t the most glamorous department in Overwatch.

One, however, caught his attention immediately, as she stood up and exclaimed, “Emre!”

That gave him pause. She was taller than average but shorter than him, with an athletic looking build. She had a round face, was covered in freckles, with these beautiful green eyes that seemed familiar yet he couldn’t quite place it. Her hair was bright red, tied into a ponytail, with blonde tips.

“Do I… know you?”

She walked up to him. “I’d sure hope so.”

Then, she smiled, and it hit him. He knew instantly who she was, with the way her face lit up like it was the sun, the crinkle in the corner of her eyes, the subtle dimples making themselves known.

“Freja?”

Freja laughed, and that cemented it. He’d recognize that laugh anywhere. It really is her. “I gotta say, seeing you become the legend you are? Worth every hardship that day we shared in Istanbul.”

He didn’t know what he felt. Excitement? Confusion? Nerves? And there were a million things he could’ve said to her, and instead he went, “You grew up.”

Dammit, why the fuck did I say that?

She took it in stride. “That’s often what children do.”

He heard laughter from nearby, from both Tief and Angela. He turned to them, where Sojourn was also standing, amused. The other recruits on the couch seemed incredibly confused. Emre rolled his eyes.

“Right, right, laugh it up. It’s not like this is a big moment for me or anything.” He turned back to Freja, offering his hand. “Speaking of big moments, we ought to celebrate meeting again.”

She took it, ignoring the laughter from around her. “And you ought to show me where the good spots are.”

“My pleasure.”

The bartender set two glasses of whiskey down in front of them. “Let me know if you need anything else, Sarioglu.”

Emre did a small salute as the guy walked away.

Freja picked up her glass. “He seems to be comfortable with you. Are you a regular?”

“Yeah. I like to mix things up from time to time, but this is my favorite pub. Might even place an order for some food. Their fried appetizers are incredible.”

She smiled, taking a sip of her drink, closing her eyes as she savored it. The face she made when drinking good whiskey sent a shiver up his spine, the following hum making him think wrong things. Very wrong things to think about your new subordinate. She opened her eyes back up and frowned.

“What’s wrong, Emre?”

He sighed, taking a swig of his drink before answering. “It’s just that… I knew you when you were a kid, and now you’re here and my subordinate and… what does it say about me that I think you’re hot?”

She raised an eyebrow. “That you have good taste.”

Emre sighed. Freja rested her hand on his shoulder.

“That was a previous chapter of our lives, and you weren’t attracted to me then, right?”

He shuddered at the thought. “Of course not. You were practically an infant.”

“I was not.”

“Might as well have been.”

“I saved your ass.”

“Saved yours first.”

“The horde of cats saved us both.”

Emre chuckled. “Damn, I almost forgot about that.”

“Regardless, now we’re in a new chapter, so don’t make yourself feel bad.” A smirk formed on her face. “So, you think I’m hot?”

He should’ve known she wouldn’t let that slip away from her. “You look in the mirror, right?”

“I know. Just nice to have it affirmed.” She patted his shoulder once then pulled back her hand. “I meant what I said back at the Watchpoint. I was… I was really happy, seeing you make a name for yourself. Especially since you inspired me to do the same.”

Emre blinked. “Really?”

Freja nodded, a slight flush on her face, eyes avoiding his face. “That day in Istanbul made me want to help others the way you helped me. You weren’t even a superhero or anything. You were just a kid that saw something wrong and knew you had to fix it, and I wanted to be that kid, too.”

He smiled, face feeling similarly hot. “Funny. You did the same for me. It felt good making a difference, and it made me realize I wanted to do that for the rest of my life.”

She met his gaze, green eyes as captivating as they were back then. It was interesting how he could see the Freja of his youth and the Freja of the present at the same time.

“A lot’s changed in fifteen years,” she commented. “Although I’m surprised you didn’t recognize my name.”

“In my defense, it’s a very common last name.”

She laughed again. “My point is that we’re not the same people we were in Istanbul.”

“We should get to know each other again then,” Emre agreed. “Let’s pick up where we left off.”

“Ooh, how’d your mom react?”

He groaned. “I barely got out of being grounded. If Mom hadn’t been proud I wouldn’t have had any fun for a month, and that’s if I was lucky. What happened after you went back to Denmark?”

Freja grinned. “Mom hired a babysitter during the next diplomatic mission.”

“I’m glad she learned from her mistakes.”

“Me too.” She sighed. “It’s going to be different, being in the big league.”

He held up his whiskey. “If we could make it in the little league, we can make it here, Meleğim. Are you ready?”

“This time? Yeah, I am.”

They clinked their glasses together, the definitive sign of their next chapter.