Chapter Text
Hei sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that evening. Yesterday had been disastrous. He had wanted - hoped - he would be able to get information out of Carmine about Bai’s disappearance. Instead Carmine had poked holes in his already unsteady foundation forcing him to come to terms that his walls were cracking. He should have tried harder to keep her safe, but he had failed so many times trying to protect people. The sting of loss was still bitter in his mouth. He had faced MI6 still hazy with rage and loss, he would have used all of his abilities to avenge Carmine. The look on the blonde contractor’s face when he had attacked even though it was not the rational response was worth the lecture he had gotten from Huang shortly after.
The morning had not been much better as much of it consisted of his debrief post mission in the park. Huang had proceeded to once again berate him at length about failing to follow orders like a good monster. From there Huang seemed to take a substantial amount of joy in holding it over him that he had required to be rescued. At least that is what Huang had decided. I would have managed. It just would have been a lot more dangerous, and I would probably have had to kill more people. Hei had grumbled to himself at the time while ignoring much of Huang’s rant. It was not the first time he had gone against orders, and it would not be the last. The members of the executive rank in the Syndicate all knew he would do it again should his interests not align with theirs.
After his rogue activities last night with Carmine, Hei doubted that the next mission would be long in coming. The Syndicate tended to get antsy when things didn't go how they wanted, and would push that team with typically something more difficult shortly after. It was their way of weeding out weak teams. Hei wasn’t weak, he had faced this before. There would be the typical stress on ensuring he did not screw up this time, because he would eventually stop being useful. Ten years I’ve kept up being useful, with no end in sight. Hei bemoaned internally.
Carmine’s death had forced memories from five years ago back to his focus. Memories he had managed to block out, she had managed to rip off the proverbial band-aid he had hidden them under. He felt unstable, but he couldn’t let it show and the effort was taking a toll on his focus. The only reason he had shown up at his cover job - bartending this time - was he had needed to get out of the apartment. The walls had started to close in and even his long walk in the afternoon hadn’t managed to lessen the tightness in his chest.
So he had decided to pretend to be normal, pretending nothing was wrong. Just be Li Shengshun, the harmless exchange student who wasn’t bothered by Contractors or plagued by memories of Heaven’s war. That was what he had wanted, it should have been something easy to slip into… Li Shengshun had the easy carefree life Hei wished desperately to have, but like many things in his life in the last ten years, he did not get his way.
He hadn’t realized what had immediately put his senses on edge when he arrived for his shift, but it had not taken long for him to find the source of his unease. Of all the bars in Tokyo, why did the blue haired MI6 agent have to come to the one he was using as his cover. Hei struggled to contain his inner turmoil, turning to breathing exercises to remain calm and his mask in the form of Li Shengshun.
It wasn’t completely working despite his best efforts. He felt like he was constantly taping up parts of his mask to keep things in place. Calm down. This is a public place. You can’t zap her. She can’t attack you here either. His nerves were already beyond fraying from the last 24h events, but he needed them to hold out a little longer. Just long enough so that he would manage to make the walk home. Should he mess up in front of the blue haired Contractor, he would need to ensure she was taken care of. She shouldn’t be much of a problem, water was an excellent conductor, unlike her blonde counterpart. If he was here and Hei messed up, Hei knew he was not in an emotional state to face off against the blonde tonight. It would be all instinct and reaction. He couldn’t afford to be complacent regardless if MI6 was present, not if he wanted to live.
Hei focused on his surroundings to bring himself out of his head. The dim lights shrouded himself and the various customers in the bar in light yet warm shadows. Shadows he could work with should he need. Various types of alcohol vied for prominence with his sense of smell, the hoppy scent of beer winning over the others. There was the low hum of chatter behind him as customers conversed with each other, for the most part quietly. The other contractor refused to comply with the social norms in Japan. She was loud and unafraid to seek out the other customers should they strike her fancy. Hei willed the tension out of his shoulders as much as he could while looking over the room.
The blue haired one smiled at him, raised her glass giving it a slight shake, signaling she wanted another. Hei sighed again. Astoundingly she had consumed yet another drink, her 28th according to the running tab they had at the bar. He knew she was a contractor but that much usually resulted in alcohol poisoning even by their kind. When will she leave? He growled to himself. Hei felt the tension return and anger he had tamped down welling up again. With a small smile and slight nod, Hei gripped the counter of the bar tightly with his left hand, willing some of his anger out his fingertips and into the wood. With a deep breath he reached for the red bottle she had currently been using as her chosen poison.
April, he had discovered her name was, had been there an hour before his shift had started. Terrorizing the evening staff as she stayed on the fine line of being boisterous but not to the point of having to be removed from the premises. He hadn’t managed to get much information out of her that he had not already known. Yet in her drunken state she did not shy away from letting people know she was with MI6.
He was almost ready to escape her presence and he most certainly intended to ensure she did not notice when he left. Hei had managed to deflect her advances all night, but he felt should he fail escaping unnoticed, there was a very real possibility that she would insist on further contact, or worse, attempt to follow him home. Hei shivered involuntarily at the thought. He must avoid that at all costs.
“Hey cutie! How about when you bring over the next round you join me?” April called out to him from her table, giving him a wink and patting the seat next to her. Do not commit murder at work. Deep breath, you are Li Shengshun, innocent exchange student from China. He schooled his features into Shegshun’s smile as he added the drink to the tab before he poured it for her.
The drink smelled vaguely of raspberries, however he was sure it did not taste the same. Most fruit flavoured alcohol, he found, tasted more like medicine than something he wanted to drink. Slipping an orange wedge on the side he placed the drink on the tray and projected an outward calm he certainly was not feeling, as he walked over to her table.
“I can provide you with further beverages, however as this isn’t that type of club. I can’t join you.” Hei maintained his strained smile as he placed the glass down in front of her and collected her discarded drinks. Hei felt the hairs stand up on his neck a moment before he felt her hand on his arm. It took his years of training not to flinch or slap her hand away. He looked up at the sudden contact, his smile -and mask- straining, verging on the point of breaking. Hold it together! Hei screamed at himself.
“Aww, but can’t you make an exception for me? I’m surely the best customer tonight.” April purred at him, pouting her lips. He could feel bile in the back of his throat. She was not the type of person he had any interest in… not that he had the chance or ability to be interested in someone for himself. Hei found her advances left him hollow and disgusted. He had to physically resist himself from committing murder, as her hand stroked down his arm. He backed away quickly. Hei decided tacitly, it was more important to keep an eye on her as he made sure to ensure there was distance between them before he turned, fearing if April was within arms reach, there would be other things she might attempt to grab.
His whole body tingled this time, screaming a warning, as he spun around, only slightly slower than his usual speed, and almost collided with her blonde haired counterpart. Hei felt his heart stop while all of his muscles coiled ready to strike, adrenaline flooding his system. He managed to maintain his balance, quickly avoiding crashing into the man, keeping the tray of glasses he held on to just steady enough that none of the glasses fell to the floor. Shit! When did he get here?! Hei couldn’t stop his eyes widening in shock at the sudden appearance of Carmine’s killer. His instincts told Hei to flee to the other side of the room, and fast or at the very least unleash a deadly burst of his powers directly into the unsuspecting blonde. He needed distance, but instead rooted himself to the spot, maintaining his cover.
“Oh! Uh-, I-I’m sorry. I didn’t see you there.” Hei muttered as he attempted to recover, running a hand through his hair. The blonde had somehow entered the building without him noticing. If this had been a battle you would be dead right now. He chastised himself, the thought shook him to the core. Had he been so preoccupied with April? Carmine was right, his emotions were getting the better of him, if he wasn’t careful, they would be his death. He needed to get out of there, and quickly.
“That is quite alright. I do seem to have that effect on people. I see you have been keeping my friend occupied.” November smiled warmly down at him, the few inches height difference seeming to be so much more in Hei’s mind, before he looked past Hei to April. “Have you at least behaved this evening?” the smile had disappeared into a disapproving frown.
“Eh?” Hei threw on a confused expression, before looking behind him at April who beamed at November. There was no way Shengshun would know these two knew each other, let alone worked together.
“Of course! Li here wouldn’t even let me convince him to join me.” She pouted and leaned forward as she gestured at Hei. The position highlighted her breasts, but remained unappealing and ignored by Hei. It seemed the blonde also disapproved of the sight. They were larger than ones he typically enjoyed, not that he had much experience. Hei cut his thoughts off there before She popped up in his mind. He needed to control his features, and thoughts of H er he could never keep the disdain from showing on his face.
“As I told you April-san, this is not that type of club.” Hei sighed and turned slightly to face her, trying to maintain at least a peripheral view of the blonde.
“Oh, you would make a killing at a host club! Don’t you think so November?” April smirked before taking a drink. November raised an eyebrow at April. Hei could feel his skin break into goosepimples as he knew November was looking him over. Hei glanced around nervously. I can’t do this. I can’t snap here! I need to leave now! He had just wanted a quiet evening pretending to be Shengshun so he could sort out the turmoil he had been battling since Carmine’s death. If there was a higher power, Hei was certain they would be laughing at him right now.
“While I am inclined to agree, considering he has managed to keep your path of destruction to a minimum.” November glanced around the bar in surprise. “As he says, this is not a host club. Settle your bill April. It’s time to go.” November chastised April before he turned and smiled at Hei. Hei swallowed nervously, shifting from one foot to the other.
Hei suddenly felt November’s hand brush the small of his back motioning him to the bar. Hei’s breath caught in his throat as all of his muscles tightened at the contact. He glanced quickly over to the blonde again, certain his slight reaction had been noticed. Don’t react, don’t panic. He screamed to himself. All thoughts of April being a threat were gone, the blonde called November had gotten too close. Hei quickly stepped away and retreated behind the bar. He did not care if Shengshun shouldn’t have scurried quite so quickly away from the contractors. The tension in his shoulders lessened infinitesimally with a physical barrier between him and the contractors, even though Hei knew it would not keep him safe should they use their powers, it would at least dissuade them from touching him.
“Fine.” April groaned as she slid herself off the chair and sauntered over to the bar. She flicked her sunglasses open before putting them on and recovered a card from within her bra. Hei accepted with a reluctant smile and attempted to hold the offending item as little as possible as he processed the transaction. April accepted the card back with a smirk.
“You sure you wouldn’t want to join us after you’re off? I might even be willing to share you with November.” April leaned further over the bar. Hei instinctively leaned back before he managed to stop himself. Not in a million years would I want to leave here with you. Hei bit down on his emotions and shook his head slightly. He wasn’t sure he would be able to keep the venom out of his voice. The sooner he could put some distance between himself and both MI6 agents the better. Hei swallowed thickly, it was expected of him to thank her or say goodbye, as was custom in Japan.
“Have a good night April-san.” He gave her one of his least strained smiles of the evening. Let the door hit you on the way out! Watching with no small amount of glee as November held out his arm, gesturing for her to lead the way out the door.
“Come on April, leave him alone. It seems you are not his type.” November called over to her. Hei took his eyes off of April’s exaggerated saunter, and noticed November was looking at him. The predatory glint to November’s eyes made his insides squirm. He couldn’t know… could he? Hei thought in mild panic. His blood suddenly ran cold as he realized his Black Reaper mask had been off for much of the time he had been with Carmine, including when November had killed her. The unsettling feeling of something crawling down his spine kept him rooted in place. Oh fuck, he could. Hei tried his hardest to ignore the sinking feeling in his stomach at his realization. He would have to find out if the MI6 agent had figured out who he was.
Hei watched as November’s eyes left him and rolled to look at April. November’s face morphed into a disapproving scowl before he led her out of the bar. Hei held his breath for a moment, waiting to ensure they both were gone. Finally! He let his breath out in relief forcing his muscles to relax. He would have to be on his guard to ensure that his walk home tonight was not interrupted by MI6.