So, you guys ready for McSombra fluff? Because McSombra is a rare pair and I just want to give them love? I hope you are, because that's the only thing you're getting in here. Well, that and some dad Gabriel Reyes, cause I want to give him love too.

(Sombra is 15-ish and Jesse is 16-ish)

Surviving as a street rat is hard. Surviving as a street rat who is an illegal immigrant is harder. Surviving as a street rat who is an illegal immigrant, and who is being hunted by two bloodthirsty gangs who want you dead? Well, now, that's just impossible.

Or, well, it would be for pretty much anyone else in the world. For Sombra? That was just another boring wednesday.

Most people marveled at her ability to not only stay alive, but also thrive (or, thrive as much as a homeless orphan could), but those who knew her weren't surprised. After all, if there was anything in the world she could do, it was survive. (Well, really, if there was anything in the world she could do, it was hack, but for the sake of sounding cool and tough, we're going to just replace that with survive.)

Plus, it helped when her...friend-person-guy, whom she flirted with and sometimes kissed, was very handy with a gun.

Jesse and Sombra had a nice thing going, a routine they had developed over their three years on the run together. It worked almost perfectly.

Why only almost? Well, sometimes they were a little too ambitious, a little too cocky. Developing a bad habit of biting off more than they could chew. This was one of those times. But they wouldn't know that until much later.

Right now, they were experiencing the height of luxury, lounging on a couch and watching crappy telenovelas, while snacking on cookies and candy. Sombra was using his lap as a pillow.

"Ya ever plannin' on tellin' me whose house this is?" Jesse asked, idly running his fingers along the glowing enhancements implanted into Sombra's skull. An odd habit he had developed, but one she wasn't going to complain about. It was rather enjoyable for him to soothe the slight sting they constantly emitted.

Sombra hummed, as if considering something. "Well, I could, but...that's no fun." The television continued to drone on in the background. Surprisingly, Sombra seemed to be engrossed in the plot, fully focused on the show.

A chuckle fell from Jesse's lips. "Ya sure do like them telenovelas, don't'cha?" She half-heartedly slapped his leg in retaliation. "Hey now, no need to get violent. I think you're cute."

""I'm not cute. I'm tough and powerful. You should fear me, Vaquero." Jesse laughed once again, and she grumbled under her breath at him. It just wasn't that scary when she was practically drowning in a hoodie and sweats that must have been at least three times bigger than her. Whoever lived here must have been very large. Or, at least his (her?) clothes were.

"No can do, Pumpkin. See, I already know that yer as sweet as sugar."

"I'll kill you."

"Sure ya will, Darlin'."

Sombra growled, but she, too, was grinning. It was rare for them to have this opportunity. To lay down and pretend they were just...normal kids. Watch stupid T.V., eat without worrying about when their food supply would run out. Sleep in a real bed. Not only a real bed, but one with heaters and fuzzy blankets and padding and So. Many. Pillows. That was one of the benefits of breaking into the houses of the rich.

That was one of the benefits of breaking into the house of Gabriel Reyes.

There were plenty of risks that came with it. After all, Gabriel Reyes was a hero of the Omnic Crisis, leader of Blackwatch, best friend of Jack Morrison. But then again, Sombra always liked risks. She swore that it would one day be the death of her.

"Go to sleep, Darlin'. I'll take first shift," McCree hummed. Sombra didn't object. Every time she blinked, it was harder to open her eyes again. Rest sounded so nice right then.

"I'm gonna go to the warm bed. Wake me up in a few hours so I can keep watch. Buenas noches, Vaquero."

"Sweet dreams, Sugar." Jesse's lips pressed against her forehead softly, as if to say goodnight. And this did not make Sombra blush at all. Nope. Not one bit.

"You're such a sap, Guapo."

"Hey, now, yer the one callin' me handsome!"

"Shut up."

"Why don't ya make me, lil' missy?" Jesse meant for it to be an offhand comment, serving no purpose besides making her more flustered. But he was certainly not complaining when she took his advice and pressed her lips to his.

The kiss lasted no longer than a few seconds, and when Sombra pulled away, she grinned. Violet eyes met his brown, both pairs sparking. "Well, who's the sap now, huh?"

"Still you. I just kissed you cause you wouldn't close your big mouth."

"Well, if that there's the punishment for talkin' so much, I might just do it more often."

Sombra snorted, "You're impossible."

"I can be anything ya want me to be, sweetheart."

"Can you be quiet?"

"Well, hey now! That just ain't fair."

Sombra didn't reply this time, instead opting to just grin and poke his nose. "Boop." Jesse laughed, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close, rolling with her on the sofa until they were tangled together. His cowboy hat had fallen off in the ruckus, and Sombra grabbed it to plop it on her own head. McCree giggled.

"Weren't ya supposed to be goin' to bed?"

"Well, you're very distracting."

Jesse grinned, before standing up and throwing Sombra into a fireman's carry. "¿Qué? ¡Bájame! Jesse McCree, te juro que si no me bajas ahora mismo, te mataré y todo lo que te importa. ¡Lenta y dolorosamente! ¡No soy una saco de patatas para que lo deseches!" She kicked his stomach while screeching at him in her native tongue, but he didn't flinch.

"Well, what if I care about you?"

"Now is not the time to flirt!"

"Darlin', there is never a wrong time to flirt."

Sombra grumbled something in Spanish about 'Vaqueros estúpido', and 'idiota pequeño'. Jesse just chuckled.

Finally, he threw her down onto a bed, and she glared at him. "Sorry, Honey Bee, but I jus' couldn't trust ya to pry yer attention away from me long enough to get to bed." His reflexes weren't fast enough to dodge the pillow thrown at his head. "Sweet dreams, Pumpkin."

"I hope you choke in your sleep and die so I don't have to deal with you manhandling me anymore."

"Love ya, too."

0o0o0

Gabriel Reyes decidedly did not like vacations. He was far too much of a workaholic for them to hold any appeal. But Jack had forced him to take this time off, doing everything short of drugging him and dragging his lifeless body all the way to Hawaii. The boy scout could be very persistent when he wanted to be.

So here he was, lying on his bed in the five-star hotel Morrison had booked for him, scowling at the ceiling as if that would magically transport him back home.

Gabe had been on this vacation for almost a week now, and had long since given up trying to work. Jack had gone so far as to change all the passwords for his work tablets and computers. Gabriel had set up a memo to remind himself to fill the Strike Commanders office with shaving cream. And cockroaches. Lots and lots of cockroaches. Maybe a swarm of angry bees. Steal all the office supplies and burn them so Jack couldn't do his paperwork. Get some skunk gas and place it in the air vents so the office would reek for months. While he was at it, he could crank up the thermostat. Boil Jack alive. That would teach him a lesson.

But until he got home, Gabriel could do nothing. This torture was going to last another five days. He had to get through another 120 hours of this.

Well, technically, he only had 116 hours and 42 minutes left, but close enough.

This was crazy. He was a super soldier, one who had been through battles and torture. He had fought his way through the Omnic crisis with nothing but his bare hands (and military provided weapons but shhhh, he's being dramatic). One vacation should be a piece of cake!

Glancing at his watch, he noticed it was only 116 hours and 40 minutes to go this time. Someone kill him. He's suffering.

A knock at the door forced Gabriel to stop wallowing in self-pity. "Housekeeping!"

"Come in!" He shouted, not bothering to even stand from where he was sprawled over the bed on his stomach. The door creaked as it opened, and he could hear the footsteps hesitate for a moment when they saw him on the bed.

"I, ahm, is this, uh, a bad time for you, Mister Reyes?"

"No," Gabriel didn't elaborate.

"Oh, um, alright then. I'm just, uhm, I'm just here to, ah, clean your room? If that's...okay?"

"That's just fine. You can pretend I'm not here."

"O...okay, sir..."

Gabriel listened as the worker bustled around the room, cleaning everything she could. It didn't take long for her to finish; he hadn't really done anything, so there wasn't much of a mess.

Two minutes and twenty-four seconds passed before the noise stopped for a moment. "That was, uh, that was the last of it. Do you need anything else?" Gabriel grunted noncommittally. There were a few more seconds of silence as the housekeeper tried to figure out what to do. "Well then, I, uh, I'll just be going." The footsteps hurried out of the room, and the door closed once again with a squeak.

Now there was only 116 hours and 34 minutes left. Gabriel buried his face into a pillow and groaned. How was he ever going to survive this?

0o0o0

It was two days later when he finally snapped. Gabriel bought himself a private jet back home, making sure that no one would know about it, especially Jack. The strike commander would have his head if he learned Gabriel had cut the vacation short. But what Commander White Bread didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

And Gabriel was just so happy to be home. It was familiar. It was solitary. He could do all the work he wanted. No one would look at him strange if he survived off a diet of nothing but Coca-Cola and potato chips (except maybe Dr. Ziegler).

He was going to get home, crash onto his couch, and work like a maniac. Or, at least, that was the plan.

Instead, when he got home, he found his house broken into.

It was a gut feeling at first. Possibly he had subconsciously noticed a bunch of little things that let him know something was wrong. The broken twig on his doorstep. The light on his security camera glowing purple instead of its normal red. Or maybe it was just a lucky guess. But the moment he saw his house, he knew something was wrong.

Millions of scenarios worked through his mind at once, almost all of them horrible. Talon had broken into his house in search of classified information about Overwatch. A group of terrorists had set up a bunch of bombs. Null sector was trying to kill him before he could stop their rampage.

What should he do? Calling Jack would lead to a SWAT team arriving at his house in seconds, and that could be catastrophic. And this... It could be an opportunity to get information about whatever terrorist group was in his home.

Before he could think about it enough to talk himself out of this, he had grabbed his hidden pistol and silently snuck into the building.

Whoever was stupid enough to be in here was going to pay.

0o0o0

"D'ya think we'll ever get to stop runnin'?" Jesse asked, as he braided Sombra's hair. She wasn't quite sure where he had learned how to braid, but she didn't really care.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, d'ya think we'll ever be able ta jus' settle down? Live a normal life, away from the gangs an' stuff?"

Sombra sighed, closing her eyes. "McCree, we've talked about this. Normal lives weren't made for people like us. We made our choices, and this is where it landed us. At some point, you will have to accept that."

"I could get a job. Something that pays okay. We could buy a house and jus' live there. Don't tell me that don't sound appealin'."

"Come on, Vaquero. Look at us. An obnoxious, horrible, idiot flirt of a cowboy with a criminal record--"

"Hey!" Jesse objected. Sombra just giggled and continued.

"And a beautiful, wonderful, powerful illegal immigrant who is being chased by two gangs and probably several governments. Normal life wasn't made for people like us."

McCree knew she was right. Life dealt them their hand early on, and this is how they played their cards. He didn't regret it; because of that, he got to meet Sombra, got to fall in love. But sometimes he wished they were different people. Normal kids who could just have a normal childhood.

It was unrealistic, but all fantasies are.

Sombra didn't like him thinking like that. It made her heart hurt a little. Of course she wanted that life. But it was impossible. Wishing for something that was never going to happen was a pointless venture.

"M'sorry. I didn't mean to upset ya."

Sombra sighed, leaning back into him. "It's fine. I just don't want us to get our hopes up." And I don't want you to realise that you could have that life, if you left me.

Jesse finished braiding, pulling back and admiring his handiwork. Sombra grumbled in complaint, snuggling back into him. He laughed, but wrapped his arms around her anyway. "How much longer do we got left here?"

"Two more days. Rey-- He's supposed to get back in three days, so we should leave early. Just in case," Sombra almost let the name 'Reyes' slip, but Jesse didn't seem to notice. That was good, because he'd probably flip out if he discovered just how dangerous staying at this house was.

"Well then, let's take advantage of the time we got left!" He was on his feet before Sombra could object, dragging her with him. "I think I saw a radio 'round here somewhere earlier..." Jesse trailed off, wandering around in search of the radio, still dragging Sombra along with him.

Her complaints were half-heartedly mumbled as he forced her to be active. "To the right of the T.V.," She muttered, remembering seeing the radio there.

Jesse grinned, all but skipping over to the T.V., exclaiming in triumph as he found what he was looking for. He flicked some switches, turned a knob, and then an old country song was filtering through the speakers. Wasting no time, Jesse spun around to her, giving an exaggerated bow. "May I have this dance?"

"¿Lo dices en serio?"

"As a heart attack." Sombra continued to stare at him, utterly baffled. "Oh, come on! Live a lil'! Unless yer afraid that I'm a better dancer..."

Sombra knew he was taunting her. He wasn't even being subtle about it! And yet, it worked. "Oh, I'll show you dancing, Vaquero." Jesse grinned.

Yeah, their lives weren't perfect. Their lives really kinda sucked. But at the very least, they knew how to make the most of it.

0o0o0

Before today, Gabriel Reyes could count the number of times he had been surprised, really surprised, truly surprised, on a single hand, without even using his thumb. So one would think he would know how to deal with any situation.

Except, Gabriel wasn't sure how to respond to this new development. Because, instead of terrorists tearing his place apart, he found two children. They couldn't be much older than Fareeha. And yet, they had somehow managed to break into his house. His house, which had security beyond comprehension.

It could be a trap, the logical part of his brain whispered. Talon or Null Sector could've sent in two kids to throw him off guard, or to gather information without being too suspicious.

He was tempted to listen to that voice, except these kids weren't gathering information. They were braiding each other's hair and dancing.

Reyes half expected to wake up back in the hotel. Maybe this was all just a dream. He really hoped this was all just a dream.

Because, really, how on Earth was he supposed to deal with two children dancing in his house? He had been trained for many things, but childcare was not one of them. That was more Ana's forte. She was the mother. Or maybe even Jack! The golden boy had to be good with kids.

Gabriel briefly entertained the idea of calling one of them, but what was he going to say? 'Hey, I snuck back from the vacation you forced me to take, but now there are two young children in my house and I need your help to take care of them' was not a good conversation starter.

He could always just kick them out but... If what they were saying was true, they were street kids, ones who only made it this far by pure luck. Was he really going to just send them back to that life? What if it was Fareeha?

What other choice did he have?

Well... maybe he could... his own train of thought was cut off by an imaginary Jack Morrison.

'No.' Imaginary Jack said in Gabriel's mind. 'Overwatch will not recruit children. And Blackwatch definitely will not.'

Somehow, Reyes managed to get offended at his imaginary version of Jack. But imaginary Jack did have a point.

Still, there could be exceptions, right? These kids managed to break into his house, without help. Those kind of skills were perfect for Blackwatch.

'They're kids!' Imaginary Jack shouted at him.

They weren't, though, were they? Being kids was a luxury neither of them could afford. It was all too obvious, from the guns at their hips, to the sharpness of their features, a tell-tale sign of malnutrition, to the conversation he overheard where it had been revealed they were being chased by gangs and governments-- gangs and governments! Plural!

Besides, they wouldn't be going on missions. Even Gabe wasn't reckless enough to send 16-year-olds (?) on missions. But they could stay at base, learn skills. Honestly, they would be more like strays than anything else.

Convincing Jack would be tough, but Blackwatch was under his jurisdiction, not the Strike Commander's. Gabriel had a feeling that convincing Jack would be a thousand times easier than convincing the kids.

'Trust no one' was practically the motto of every street kid. Especially when they were talking about governments. Because remember children, governments are mostly corrupt, and don't care about you unless you're rich and white.

Imaginary Jack scowled, but didn't disagree.

Suddenly, he felt a gun pressed to the back of his head. Well, crap. This was about to get interesting.

"A'ight, now, why don't ya stand up, nice an' slow." He recognized the voice as one of the kids. It was stupid of him to get so lost in thought, still crouching behind a couch, which provided minimal cover.

"Look, kid, I'm not here to hurt yo--"

"Save it. I've heard that lie a million times, it all sounds the same by now." Gabriel didn't like anything that sentence implied. He began to stand, just as the kid had instructed. He was not in the mood to get shot, especially not by a child. Jack and Ana would never let him live it down. "Jus' like that, partner. So, now, here's what's gonna happen. You're gonna sit down an' let us tie ya up. Ya look strong, you'll be able ta get outta it eventually. An' then, we're gonna mosey our way on outta here, and yer not gonna follow us, unless ya fancy a bullet in yer brain. Ya understand me?" Just how southern was this kid? There is no way that accent was natural. "Do ya need me ta repeat myself?"

Gabriel held back a chuckle. "No, sir. But I do have one question."

The boy hesitated. McCree, was his name? "Shoot," He said after a second of consideration.

"Do you have military training?"

"What kinda idiot question is that?"

"So that's a no?" The boy didn't respond. Gabriel couldn't stifle his laugh this time, and the gun pressed harder into the back of his head.

"Somethin' funny ta ya?"

Reyes shook his head, before pivoting and yanking the pistol from the kid's hands. Somewhere in the mess, the gun went off, but the bullet didn't hit anything important. "Alright, kid, I get that you've heard this a lot, but I'm actually not here to hurt you, even though you broke into my house. I just want to help. And right now, you're in no position to argue, so will you at least hear me out?"

Finally getting a good look at this boy, Gabe did not like what he saw. He was too skinny, posture too tense. And he really went all out on the cowboy aesthetic, down to the cowboy hat and leather holster. It didn't go unnoticed how his hand instinctually hovered over said holster, despite the fact that it was empty. "Not like I have much of a choice, huh?"

"No, I guess you don't. Now, look, I heard your little conversation, I know the situation you're facing. The life you're leading, it's going to get you a one-way ticket to a bodybag. Right now, I'm giving you a way out. All you have to do is come with me, and see what I have to offer. If you chose to walk away, you can do that. But at least give me a chance." That was a lie. If this kid chose to walk away... well, Gabriel didn't know what he would do, but no one was getting sent back to the streets if he had anything to say about it. "What do you say, kid?"

"What do I gotta say? Well, lemme tell ya this," He leaned in, as if sharing a sacred secret, "ya really should worry less 'bout me, and ya should be a bit more scared of my partner." Gabriel swore, as another gun pressed into the small of his back. Wonderful, that's exactly what he needed.

"Rule number one, Reyes, is never let yourself get distracted. It gets you in situations like this." Her accent was different from the boy's, almost purely Mexican. There was a hint of southern, however, probably something she had picked up spending so much time with a try-hard cowboy.

Gabriel had the distinct urge to slam his head against the wall. How exactly a super soldier, leader of Blackwatch with the highest grade of military training, managed to get outmaneuvered by two children was beyond him.

Turning around to face the girl, while doing his best to keep the boy in his line of sight, he sighed, figuring out how he was going to escape this situation.

"Put the gun down, por favor, you're not going to be using it," she said. He considered that for a second.

"Are you willing to bet your friend's life on that?" It was a bluff, one he desperately hoped the girl would fall for.

She laughed. "Do me a favor, Gabrielito, turn your head to the left, and look at the ceiling."

"I... what?"

"I just want you to see the camera." He followed her instructions, and sure enough, there was his security camera, blinking purple instead of red. "I hacked that a while ago. It's recording everything happening right now, and uploading it to my servers."

Gabriel shifted uncomfortably. How old was this kid? How did she manage to learn how to hack military grade hardware? He didn't ask either of those questions, no matter how much he wanted too, instead asking, "What's your point?"

"You could use the gun to shoot Joel, but if you do, I'll send that footage to every holovid in the world. I'm sure the civilians would love to see 'Mighty hero, Gabriel Reyes' shooting a defenceless kid." Oh, this girl was good. This girl was really good. Perfect Blackwatch material. That is, if he could convince her to join. "Oh, and, I have a kill switch set up. The moment my heart stops beating, the video will be released. So don't think about hurting either of us."

"You didn't have time to set up a kill switch."

The girl giggled, "You spied on us for a while, no? So you saw my enhancements, I assume. I don't need anything to hack except my brain. Meaning, I had plenty of time." Grinding his teeth, Gabriel tried to find a way out of this situation.

"This kind of blackmail is illegal."

Silence followed his statement, until she finally spoke. "I... that's what you're choosing to focus on right now? Really, viejo? The legality of blackmail?" The nickname made him want to roll his eyes, but he didn't give her the satisfaction of seeing it.

He shrugged. "I'm just stating the facts."

"No, you're just stalling. And I'm getting rather impatient, so you better make your decision fast."

Well, Gabriel decided, if she was using the camera to blackmail him, the solution would be to get rid of the camera. So he lifted the gun in his hand, and shot it. "There. That's my decision. Will the two of you listen to me now?"

The girl glared at the camera, as if personally offended by its failure. "Well, it's not like you're exactly giving me any options," She growled, raising her hands in a sign of defeat. Slowly, she leaned down to set the gun on the floor, and Gabriel felt some of the tension leave his shoulders. She straightened back up.

But then she kicked the gun behind him. Towards the boy. Who now held said gun in his hand. And was leveling it at Gabe's head. Wonderful.

Once again, he was surprised at how these kids managed to communicate silently better than most trained military men. And more so, how they managed to outmaneuver him.

Actually, they probably used age to their advantage. They probably relied on people brushing them off as children.

Before he could ponder their skills for any longer, the cowboy was standing and smirking, looking all too smug. "Tired of this yet? 'Cause we can keep outsmatin' ya all day, if that's what'cha want."

Gabriel looked at the floor. Posture slumped, eyes on the ground, deep frown wrinkling his face, he was the picture of defeat.

At least, he was the picture of defeat until he lunged for the boy.

Everything happened at once. The boy pulled the trigger, they both crashed to the floor, someone--Gabe's still not sure who--screamed. Briefly, he registered a nasty pain in his leg, but it was something he could deal with. His hands were around the kid's neck, and he pushed down on an artery.

There was a struggle, and then the kid went limp, courtesy of pressure on a certain artery.

The girl was still kicking though, literally in this case. When Gabe tried to stand, a kick to the shin shoved him back down, face hitting the floor with a loud crack. Before he had time to recover from that, she had thrown herself onto his back, clawing and punching as if her life depended on it.

Military instincts kicked in, his body moving without his mind's permission as he threw the girl back against the wall. Immediately he froze, regret crashing over him in waves. Especially when he met her vibrant purple eyes, which rolled up into her head. She collapsed on the floor immediately after.

And finally, finally, Gabriel had a moment to relax. A moment for him to clear his mind and figure out what to do.

Granted, that moment only lasted about half a second before the girl started thrashing violently. Because, yes, that's exactly what he needed right now. A seizure. Fantastic.

Sighing, he threw the writhing body over his shoulder, and did the same to the cowboy. His super-soldier strength would have let him carry grown men like this, so it wasn't a surprise that he could get two children out to his car. But he still didn't like how small they were. How he could feel their rib cages even from under their shirts.

There were bigger concerns, though, so he shoved the parental instincts down to the back of his mind, focusing on just getting to Overwatch Headquarters. Ziegler would be able to help them.

0o0o0

Gabriel probably should have known people would freak out when he marched in, home early from his vacation, bullet wound in his leg, and two unconscious children thrown over his shoulder, one of them seizing like crazy. But honestly? The thought didn't even cross his mind until he walked through the doors.

"Gabriel. Matias. Reyes. Why are you back from vaca-- I'm sorry, better question, why do you have two kids and a bullet wound?!?!" If the situation were different, Gabriel would have been cackling at Jack's scandalised tone. As it were, he had problems to deal with before he could make fun of his friend.

"I don't know, long story," He responded, slightly distracted by making sure neither of the kids fell to the floor.

Jack sputtered, baffled. "You don't know? Wh--How do you not know?!" Despite his badgering, the Strike Commander had lept in, taking the cowboy from Gabe's arms.

"I'm a little preoccupied right now, Jack!"

"Yeah, I noticed."

Scowling, Gabriel ran through the base, Jack following close behind with an assortment of questions, none of which Gabe had time to answer.

Finally, he had arrived at the medical ward, not without drawing attention. It felt like everyone in the building was surrounding him, begging for details that he didn't want to give. But he paid them no mind, instead bursting into Dr. Ziegler's lab, where Fareeha seemed to be getting stitches, with Ana holding her hand and whispering reassuring things in her ears. All three of them turned to look at the intrusion in shock.

"I need a medical bed, stat," Gabriel said. Angela burst into action, shooting up like a bullet and preparing the room.

"What information do we have on the patient?" She asked, speaking in her Serious Business Voice™ as Gabriel set the girl down on the bed.

"No information, it's a Jane Doe, but she's got some advanced cybernetics, and I'm guessing they broke," Gabriel didn't mention he was the one who broke them. He'd get to that whole situation later.

Dr. Ziegler growled at the minimal detail, but didn't hesitate for a moment as she began the exam.

For the first time since he broke in, Ana spoke up. "Yeah, hi, excuse me, but does anyone want to explain to me what's going on? Or am I supposed to just figure that out myself?"

"Long story."

"Long sto-- Gabriel! What did you do?!"

"Why do you insist on blaming everything on me?"

"Well, am I correct in blaming you?"

"That's not the point!"

"How is that not th--!!"

"Everybody out!" They both startled at Dr. Ziegler's command. "I have a patient to attend to, so unless either one of you can assist me, I suggest you remove yourself from the vicinity!" Gabriel knew better than to mess with her when she started using long words.

He and Ana made their escape, to find a very confused Jack Morrison waiting for them, Cowboy still in his arms. At the sight of a second kid, Ana spluttered in a way Gabe usually would've found hilarious. "Alright, you had better explain exactly what is going on, or I swear, I will lock you in the freezer for a month and leave you to freeze to death!"

"Just--Argh, I need to deal with this kid," He growled. Before that moment, he hadn't actually thought about what to do next. "I-- Jack, can you put him in a holding cell?"

"I'm sorry, you want me to put an unconscious kid in a holding cell?!"

"I don't know what else to do with him! Just... do it. I'll take him out as soon as he wakes up."

It was clear that Jack wanted to argue, but Gabe fixed him with a 'Look', and he obeyed. "You better have a good explanation for this," He muttered as he walked away.

Sighing, Gabriel slumped down, leaning against a wall with his head in his hands. Ana looked at him, concerned. "What happened, Gabriel?"

He opened his mouth a few times, unsure how to start the story. "Well, remember how you and Jack sent me on that vacation? Well, I snuck back a few days early. And when I got home, there was a... surprise waiting for me..."

0o0o0

Ana would normally consider herself an open-minded person. And yet, she couldn't quite wrap her head around this situation. "Wait, so, a child cowboy, and a child hacker, bro--" Gabriel cut her off.

"'Broke into my house', yes, Ana, and if you say that one more time, I think my head is going to explode." She was half-tempted so say it again just to spite him, but held back.

"But how? Do you not have any security?"

"That's the thing! I have military grade security, stuff that has been tested time and time again. The stuff is seriously good. But, somehow, they got past it."

Ana rubbed her temples. Because none of this made any sense. "So, we're looking at super-genius, homeless, criminal children?"

Gabe bristled at the implications in her words. "They're not exactly criminals. Well, technically they are but..."

"They're just kids," Jack finished for him, speaking for the first time since the beginning of the conversation. "Kids who do what they have to do to survive."

"Exactly," Gabe concluded, sinking into his chair.

Somehow, though, the fact that they were just kids trying to survive made it worse. This whole situation was absolutely bonkers. "So what do we do with them now? We can't send them back to the streets. I mean, they've got to be younger than Fareeha. What if it was her...?" Ana trailed off, just the thought making her nauseous.

"I have an idea, but you're not going to like it."

Jack sighed. "Do we ever like your ideas?"

"Well, no, but you might be particularly opposed to this one." He wouldn't meet their eyes, which concerned both of them.

After a shared glance with Jack, Ana spoke up. "Well, it can't be that horrible. Your judgment can be a little questionable at times, but it mostly works out for the best." Was she trying to convince Gabriel, Jack, or herself? Maybe all three.

"Just... hear me out, okay? These kids have nowhere to go. They're used to the worst kind of treatment, especially from governments. If we try to just... be all nice and kind without asking for anything in return, they'll leave within the week," He paused, as if building up the courage needed to speak the next words. "But if we do ask for something, they might agree." Once again, a long pause followed his words.

"I don't see what you're implying." Jack shifted as he spoke.

"I could recruit them into Blackwatch."

Gabriel had expected an instant nuclear reaction to his words. Instead, the explosion was more delayed, as they both stared at him for a solid six seconds, as if waiting for a punchline.

"You're serious," Jack said.

Ana let out a noise that Gabe couldn't quite identify. "Wh-bu... No! We're not--No!" And there was the explosion. "Gabriel. Matias. Reyes. Are you? out? of your? Mind?!" He flinched at the sharpness of her tone. "You want to recruit two children into Blackwatch?!"

"I... Yes?" Something hard hit him in the face. "Did you just throw a clipboard at me?"

0o0o0

Sombra didn't open her eyes when she woke up. She heard footsteps around her, meaning she was being watched. Letting whoever was there know she was awake could be catastrophic.

So she sat, still as a stone, doing a mental check up on herself.

Judging by the constant beeping of something sounding like a heart-monitor, she was in some kind of hospital. The scent of latex and medicine confirmed this for her.

Physically, everything ached. She shifted as inconspicuously as possible, trying to get a feel for how injured she was. Pain shot through her spine toward her scalp the moment she moved, like a shock of electricity burning into her.

Ah, so her cybernetics were the cause of the pain. But she wasn't dead, so that was a good sign. With a bit of time, she could fix them, then.

Which left one major question: What happened?

Sombra remembered Gabriel Reyes finding them at his home. There had been guns, but no real fighting. Until he lunged for Jesse.

Speaking of, where was Jesse? Based on the sound of breathing, there was only one other person in the room with her, and the footsteps were far too light to belong to him.

So where was he?

Against her better judgement, Sombra tried to open her eyes, only to immediately shut them again. Everything was too white, too bright, and it burned.

She must have made a noise or something, because the footsteps stopped. "Ah, good, you're awake. I have a few questions about your cybernetics, if you're feeling up to answering them." A gentle voice spoke up with a thick Swiss accent.

"Where is Je-- Joel?" Sombra replied through gritted teeth, once again attempting to open her eyes. She had almost said 'Jesse', instead of using the fake names they both had.

The woman with her was beautiful, blonde hair and blue eyes. Were she in a photograph, Sombra would've thought she was photoshopped. "Joel, is that the boy who was brought in with you?"

"Where is he?" She asked once again.

"Safe." That answer was far too vauge for Sombra's liking. "Don't worry, we won't do anything to harm you. We just want to help. Can you tell me where you got your cybernetics done? They're quite unique."

Sitting up, Sombra scanned the room. There was a single door on the far left side, one that didn't appear to have a lock. But how to get there without Blondie stopping me...

"You should probably lie back down. I don't want you to hurt yourself anymore."

On the desk. There was a small pistol, looking rather weak. If Sombra could grab it, she'd at least have something to defend herself with. But the desk was so far away, and Blondie wasn't going to let her stand.

"Are you okay, liebling? You look worried."

"I'm... I'm thirsty. Is there... Am I allowed to drink something?" Sombra did her best to sound and look like a small, scared child, complete with her wide eyes and wavering voice. Get people to underestimate you, to write you off as nothing more than an insignificant kid, and you'll have the upper hand.

And it definitely worked, if how the doctors face somehow softened even more was any indication. "Of course. Let me get you some water."

She turned her back, walking to the sink in the right corner of the room. As silently as possible, Sombra stood, racing over to the desk and taking hold of the gun. Spinning on her feet, she faced the doctor once more.

"Now, let's try this again, hmmm?" She knocked back the safety, grinning at the doctor's shocked eyes. "Where. Is. Joel?"

0o0o0

Breaking the doctor had been easy, unsurprisingly. She--Ziegler, the name tag said--wasn't a soldier, and therefore not trained for fighting. All it took was a shot to the foot and a few small threats, and Ziegler told her everything she knew--which wasn't much.

Still, she had a place to start.

Doctor Lady was unconscious in the medical bay. The butt of the gun to the back of her head had knocked her out cold.

Sombra walked through the halls, making no noise. Her invisibility was activated, allowing her to travel unnoticed. Everyone walked past her, no idea that anything was amiss. It was funny, really. People were so clueless.

Her mind was running through pages upon pages of code, scouring the computer system in this building in the hope of figuring out where Jesse was being held. After a few minutes of aimless wandering, she found him.

Holding cell 138, currently occupied by one John Doe. Notes: If Gabe doesn't tell me why I'm locking up this child, I'm going to kill him. --Commander J. Morrison.

Sombra frowned. If Jack Morrison was involved, that might make things difficult. She and Jesse did their best work in the shadows, hiding behind smoke and mirrors. The high and mighty Strike Commander of Overwatch would be sure to draw far too much attention. They had to get out of here as soon as they could.

0o0o0

Gabe and Ana stood in front of holding cell 138, chuckling at the note Jack had left behind. Jack scowled at them. "Stop laughing."

"Or what? You'll kill me?" Jack just scowled harder. "Relax, Golden Boy. I'm kidding," Gabe said, trying to hold back the rest of his laughter.

"Don't we have more pressing matters? Like the child in the holding cell?"

Gabriel threw an arm around his shoulders. "Oh, Jackie, we have to find some time to enjoy life's little pleasures." Jack shrugged him off, almost laughing himself as Gabe stumbled from the change of balance.

"Boys, boys, you're both pretty. Can we move on now?" Ana cut in, smiling at her friends' banter.

"I don't know, can Jack stop making death threats?"

"Can Gabriel stop being an idiot?"

"Hey!" More giggles overtook the group.

The laughter died off when the boy in the cell began to stir. It started slowly, just him shifting his head until he seemed to catch that something wasn't right. Instantly, he jerked, muscles clenching as he struggled against the handcuffs he was in. Eyes darted around the room, a panicked look on his face.

"I suppose I should go in there," Gabriel sighed. Still, he made no move to actually enter the room. "We need to convince him to join Blackwatch." Glancing at Ana and Jack, he saw the same hesitation on their faces.

Managing to convince his friends about the Blackwatch recruitment had been difficult, but with a lot of pushing and a few puppy dog eyes, Gabriel had won. But he had a feeling that his 'puppy dog eyes' tactic wouldn't work quite as well with the boy. "I'm going to go in there now," He said, getting ready to play bad cop.

"I wouldn't." All three adults spun on their feet, each gripping a gun as they turned to face the intruder. They were met by the girl with cybertech. (Okay, he really needed a name for these children. He couldn't just keep using descriptions.) She stood in front of them, head raised, stance relaxed, but ready to fight, and a small pistol aimed at them.

Ana sucked in a breath. This girl did look similar to Fareeha in some ways, and it was clear her maternal instincts were kicking in. To her credit, she didn't act on them, not wanting to scare the girl off.

"Look, you really don't have a choice in the matter, kid. We're going in there, and that's that." Gabriel's voice was gentle, but still firm.

The girl just grinned, smug as a spider with a trapped fly. "Aww, you trying to be scary?" He wasn't, but she didn't seem to know that. "Isn't that sweet. But, Gabe--you don't mind if I call you Gabe, do you? Well, here's the thing. See, you could go in there, and physically, I couldn't stop you."

"But?" Jack asked, gun lowered again.

The girl chuckled, eyeing the pair of them. "Look, I'm not here to fight. I just want to show you something I found," she said, one hand coming up to make a flourish in the air, revealing purple holograms. It was impressive, not to mention incredibly advanced technology. But Gabriel was more worried about the information on those holograms.

They were mission reports. More specifically, Blackwatch mission reports. He glanced at Jack and Ana, both looking very surprised, despite their attempts to keep their expressions neutral.

"See, you could go in there and interrogate Joel. But then, I could release this information to the public. And I'm sure they would love to know what Overwatch has really been up to these past few years. How do you think that would play out?"

Gabriel swallowed several times, searching for the right words to say. Jack beat him to it. "How... did you find those?" He was trying to keep his voice calm, but the panic was evident.

The girl smiled, looking all too smug. "I have my ways. Oh, and, also, I've set up a kill switch. The moment I die... this information will appear in every news outlet in the world."

"We--! We have--we have state of the art security! Whole teams whose...whose sole purpose is...is to create firewalls to--to protect us from this-- from this kind of...security breach!" Jack was clearly panicked now, realising the extent of what would happen if the girl followed through on her threat.

And the girl? She was laughing. "Yeah, you do. But they kinda suck. Or maybe I'm just that much better than them. The point remains, though: if you don't let us go, these 'super secret' files will be available to anyone with internet. And I'm getting impatient. Who knows? If you don't decide soon...my finger might just slip." While she was speaking, she opened up a new hologram, this one just a button with the word 'RELEASE'.

Okay, new plan. "Alright, Chica. You want to negotiate? Let's negotiate," he said, crossing his arms and leaning against a wall.

The girl tilted her head, clever eyes seeming intrigued by his proposition. "I think you misunderstand what's happening right now. You are hardly in a position to negotiate." Still, she wasn't releasing the information, or shooting them. She was curious about what he had to offer.

"Are you sure about that?" The girl responded with an eyebrow raise, inviting him to continue. "You could release this information, sure, and it would be pretty bad for us. But no one could prove you didn't fake those documents. We could convince everyone it was an act of terriorism, and they would believe us. Sure, the U.N. would be pissed, but they wouldn't shut us down."

"Gabriel, what are you doing?" Ana hissed.

He ignored her.

The girl considered that for a moment. "Then why haven't you taken that risk already and killed me?" Gabriel frowned, realising once again how sure these kids were that they were out to kill them. "Unless... you want something from me."

"Clever girl," He rumbled approvingly.

"What do you want, Gabe?" The use of his nickname threw him off every time she used it. Though, that was probably the point.

"Join us." At his words, the girl let out what could only be described as a cackle. "I'm not joking."

It took her a few seconds to calm down enough to form a response. "I know," she said through her giggles, "That's what makes it so funny! You just... 'Join us.'" She lowered her voice in a terrible impression of his before continuing in her regular accent. "Oh, that's too good. You're so cute."

Gabriel instiantly glanced at Jack and Ana, who were torn between confusion and amusement. Inwardly, he sighed. He hadn't been called cute since he was eight years old, and they were never going to let him live this down. "I'm serious. You and... Joel, you said his name was? The two of you can quit this whole 'Bonnie and Clyde' thing, and come to work for Blackwatch."

"I bet the U.N. would love that, wouldn't they."

"Let me deal with the U.N. But for now, you and Joel can join Blackwatch, actually do some good in the world. We could use a hacker as advanced as you, and Joel seemed handy with his gun. You'd fit right in."

"Except for the fact that we're kids?"

Gabriel hesitated. "Yeah, except for that."

There was silence, as the girl worked over the offer in her head. All the adults holding their breath, praying for her to say yes, because they had no idea what they would do if she didn't. "I want to talk to Joel. Alone."

"That's...fair. But we'll be right here, so don't even think about trying anything."

"Deal."

0o0o0

Deep breath in. Deep breath out. Repeat.

Sombra would find him. She could come for him. It would be okay.

Unless, that traitorous part of his mind whispered, unless they've got her too. Unless she's already dead.

"Shut up," Jesse muttered into the silence. Sombra was the strongest person he had ever known. There was no way anyone could take her down. Not Gabriel Reyes, not Overwatch, no one. And she would come for him.

Minutes ticked by. There was a clock in the room, loudly counting the seconds as they passed. Oh, that was petty, he thought. They were gonna let him stew in here all by himself for who knows how long.

Forcing himself to look away from the clock, he studied the table. Eyes tracing the scratches marring the steel, wondering who else had been in this room.

Almost fifteen minutes had passed before the door creaked behind him, alerting him of another presence in the room. "Finally. It's about time one of ya showed up. I was gettin' bored waitin' 'ere all by myself."

"Well, I'm so sorry to keep you waiting, Joel." He whipped around, delighted to find his hacker in the room, instead of someone waiting to kill him. Jesse grinned.

He opened his mouth to speak, to shower her with praise and tell her how amazing she was. Before he could get a word out, however, she held up her finger, telling him to be quiet.

Purple screens flew in front of her face, ones and zeros running faster than Jesse could hope to understand. After a few seconds, Sombra grinned, turning to a corner of the room. "Nice try, Reyes," she said, and then the tiny camera Jesse hadn't noticed before she pointed it out turned purple. "Okay, now you may speak."

"Have I ever told ya just how wonderful ya are?" Sombra snorted at the compliment, kneeling behind him to inspect the handcuffs trapping he. A second later, they clinked open. "So, what's the plan, Buttercup? How're we gonna get outta this one?"

"We're...not," Sombra replied, moving to stand in front of him. He arched an eyebrow, urging her to explain her very ominous statement. "They...Overwatch... Blackwatch made us a...an offer."

Jesse furrowed his brow. He knew vaguely what Blackwatch was, what they did, from Sombra telling him. Making offers to criminals? He was pretty sure that wan't their forte. "What, reduced sentence? Ya know it don't matter, yeah? There's no way any jail could hold us. We'd be out within a week."

"No. They want us to...join Blackwatch." Jesse raised his eyebrows, surprised that Sombra was even considering this. "We don't have to. Really, we could leave at any time, with our skills. But..."

Jesse waited a minute for her to finish the sentence. "But...?" He prompted after a little while.

"You told me today--yesterday maybe? I don't know how long we've been here. But you said...you said that you wanted to be a normal kid. And I know that signing up for a military watchdog organization's classified black-ops division isn't exactly a 'normal kid' thing to do, but it's probably the closest we're ever going to get."

Jesse felt something fluffy and soft and disgustingly sweet bloom in his chest. He knew how scared Sombra was of governments, how dedicated she was to life on the run. But she was willing to give that up...to push through her fears for him.

She seemed to take his silence as a bad sign because she quickly started rambling. "I mean, we definitely don't have to, we could just leave right now. You know, it was kind of stupid of me to even consider it, much less suggest it. I mean, they're probably just using this whole thing as a plot to gain our trust, and then--mmmph!" Her words became muffled when Jesse pulled her into a hug, squishing her face against his chest.

"I love ya so much, Honey Bee." Sombra was glad her face was hidden now because that meant that no one could see her blush at his endless supply of awful nicknames. "But we're only doin' this if you want to. I ain't gonna make ya give up your life for me. For this," He said, pulling back just a bit to look at her.

She stared at his chin, almost afraid to make eye-contact. "I...I do want to. Or, at least...I want to try. I--I'm so tired of running, Jesse." It was the first time she admitted that to him. Actually, it was the first time she admitted it to herself.

She was tired of running, of having to stay three steps ahead of the people chasing them, of having to be perfect. Of having to be infallible, in fear of making another mistake.

Jesse sighed, looking at her with one of those soft expressions of his. Gently, he leaned down to press his lips on the top of her head. In the back of her mind, Sombra remembered that they were standing in front of a two-way mirror, and the leaders of a very revered military organization were watching them, but right now, she didn't really care. She just let herself fit into Jesse's hug, let him wrap her in a sense of security that she rarely indulged in.

"Well then, let's go join a military watchdog organization's classified black-ops division," Jesse said, a smile on his lips and in the words. "I think you and I are gonna have some fun here, Darlin'."

Welp, iI loved writing this! I hope you enjoy it! Bye my Lovelies!