TWO

❛ So, yeah, you are fucking lucky! ❜

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NOTICING HER ADVANCES, Ladybug turns tail and sprints down the carriage isle towards the back of the train. Vanessa strolls after him slowly, watching as he skids to a stop near the toilets with his head whipping back and forth while he contemplates hiding in the loo or not. She lifts up her dress slightly, slipping out her gun as she nears him.

He slowly steps back with his hands out in front of him, "Hey, hey, lady. Don't you think this is a little impractical? I— I—"

Laughing quietly, Vanessa's hand shoots forward, grabbing the back of his head and smashing his skull against her lifted knee. He lets out a loud yell before flicking his arm up to curl his hand around her wrist to prevent the gun in her palm from shooting his brains out.

She throws him sideways against the wall and he scurries up quickly, kicking her arm roughly and the gun skids towards the open bathroom door behind her. She glares at him before reaching down.

He rushes forward, grabbing ahold of her shoulders and keeping her from bending over. He slams her back against another wall, and she grunts before pushing him off and he stumbles back.

"Look, I don't want to hurt a woman," He breaths, his eyes flying out the window for a moment as the train rolls to a stop.

She shrugs, "You don't have to," She steps forward once more and sends a kick to his stomach, causing him to slide down the wall with his hair falling in front of his face.

"You just kicked me with your heels," He grumbles lowly, "That hurt."

She hums, requiring her pistol from the floor, "That was the fucking point."

He attempts to swing his leg and take her ankles out, but she simply steps back, tilting her head as he scrambles off the floor in a hurry.

"You can't shoot me," He nods towards the weapon in her hand, "Not on a very busy train."

Without even bothering to speak a reply, she smacks the butt of the gun against his temple and he collapses to the floor with a loud groan. He takes the opportunity to jump up and send a punch directly across her jaw, his strategically placed ring cutting her cheek bone. Her head whips to the side and her mouth drops slightly as she slowly returns to meet his gaze.

"Why are you trying to kill me?" He mumbles, as she delivers another kick to his gut, "I don't even know who you are."

He grabs her biceps and shoves her against the wall once more before delivering a hard head butt to her nose. Blood immediately seeps from her nostrils and she rolls her jaw.

"You fucking cunt," She snarls, jerking her head forward and smashing her skull against his nose in return.

He immediately releases her and his hand flies up to his bleeding nose, whereas she just lets her bleed down onto her chest as she stares at him.

"Where's the fucking case?" She mumbles.

"You're here for that too?" He straightens up, dropping his bloody hand to his side, "Look, would you believe me if I told you I don't have it anymore?"

She narrows her eyes and tilts her head slightly before sighing, "No," She takes another step forward, but an unfamiliar voice stops her in her tracks.

"You're bleeding," The voice says simply.

Noticing Ladybug's fake smile plastered across his face, Vanessa turns and looks at the ticket master as he stares up at her, his gaze primarily on her bleeding nose.

He jabs a finger at the both of them, "You're bleeding."

Vanessa smiles gently, pressing a finger against her nostrils before chuckling while hiding her gun behind her back, "We bashed heads. We're both completely fine."

Behind her, Ladybug hums enthusiastically, "I'll take this bathroom," He motions to the door beside him before turning and pointing down another carriage, "You can clean yourself up in that one."

Grinding her teeth, Vanessa nods in agreement, "Yeah. Will do."

"Ticket?" The ticket master now looks over at the blonde man, who begins to ramble about the absence of his ticket and why he didn't get off at the last stop.

Rolling her eyes, Vanessa turns and heads toward the other bathroom, shoving her gun back into her holster while attempting not to make eye contact with anyone seated.

"You alive over there?" A voice speaks through the comms, as she slides the bathroom door closed.

"I'm fucking perfect," She snaps.

"Didn't go well then?" He purses his lips.

She clutches onto the sink, dropping her head down with a groan, "No, it fucking didn't. I went easy for some obscene reason. There was several occasions where I could've fucking killed him—"

"But, you didn't. Yeah, you have a tendency to do that. I mean, last time you let someone live, you married him," He mutters.

"You're not fucking funny," She spits, raising her head to look at herself in the mirror, watching as more blood runs down her face, "That cunt gave me a nose bleed."

"Wow. You really did go easy on him," He snorts, "You are a changed woman."

"James, I swear to god I will rip out this ear piece and you'll never hear from me again. And you'll have to be the one to tell the boss why I didn't complete the mission," She hisses, running her hands through her hair before lowering herself down onto the closed toilet seat.

"I will not be telling him anything. Not when last time he nearly murdered me," He mumbles quietly, before listening to her breathing, "You are cleaning your nose bleed, right? Pinch the area above the nostrils."

"It's stopped fucking bleeding now," She grumbles, "Could've done with that information two minutes ago."

"Nessa, go and do your job," He snaps angrily, "You're on that train to kill a man, not for a vacation."

She stands up again, whirling around to face the mirror once more. She grimaces at herself and begins to reach down for a piece of toilet roll to remove the blood on her face, but a loud crash causes her to pause. With furrowed brows, she straightens up again and unlocks the bathroom before stepping out, peering around the corner to see two figures flying outside of the window. Ladybug is the first man, and as she advances closer, she realises her husband is the man behind, shouting angrily as they both attempt to clamber back into the train.

Vanessa steps over the debris of the snack room before grasping Ladybug's wrists and yanking him up back into the train before taking Tangerine's hand and lifting him up.

The blonde man skids back, pressing his back against a wall as he stares at Tangerine, thinking the man is about to attempt to kill him once more, but he seems slightly occupied.

With the wind blowing his curls, Tangerine stares at the woman in front of him in complete and utter shock. His mouth falls slightly open and his eyebrows cinch together in confusion. He attempts to say something, but no words leave his mouth. He raises his hands to run them over his face before looking back at her.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" He yells as he stares at her.

She throws her arms into the air, "You're welcome for fucking saving your life!"

He shakes his head, dismissing her words before repeating, "What the actual fuck are you doing here?"

Behind the pair, Ladybug's head tilts in realisation. He wags a weak finger at them both, "Wait, you two know each other?"

Tangerine looks at him and points to the woman stood in front of him, "You know her?" His head snaps back to Vanessa in an instant, "How the fuck does he know you? Why the fuck are you even here?" His chest pumps up and down while she bites her lip and he finally notices the amount of blood covering her face and chest, "Why are you fucking bleeding so much? Fuck! Will you fucking answer my question?" He rambles, his eyes never once leaving her body.

"You seriously didn't think I've been a bartender for all these years," She laughs.

His face screws up, "What the fuck does that mean?"

"I'm in the same business as you, Tan. I'm an assassin," She explains, her hands moving up to rest on her waist as she watches his expression drop even further.

"You what? You've gotta be taking the fucking piss!" He shakes his head frantically, "The whole time we've been married, you've been a fucking assassin? And I didn't even fucking know?"

Ladybug's jaw drops, "I— what? Married?"

They both ignore him and Tangerine glares at his wife with fury bubbling through his veins.

"Did Lemon know?" He snarls.

She shakes her head, "You think he would keep anything from you? I would be fucking stupid to tell him."

"No, you're fucking stupid for not telling me in the first place," He snaps.

"This is rather entertaining, I must say," James laughs and she hears him crunch down on some food, "He's so unbelievably stupid for not figuring it out."

Vanessa looks down at the floor while she listens to her brother and Tangerine watches as she attempts to bite back a laugh.

"Even I knew and I only seen you twice a year," James chuckles.

"Who the fuck are you listening to?" Tangerine calls, causing her head to shoot up, "Is it James?" He notices as she purses her lips with a smirk, "Oh, that fucking bastard!" He steps forward, holding his hand out, "Give me your comm."

"This will be hilarious," James claps.

"Tangerine, stop acting like a child. This is now where near a big deal," Vanessa says gently, stepping back as he moves forward.

"Not a big— not a big fucking deal?" He scoffs, "You've been lying to my face since the day we fucking met. Give me your comm," He grasps one side of her head before taking the comm from her ear with his other hand. Rolling his jaw, he drops the device to the floor and smashes his shoe against it, shattering it to pieces.

Vanessa's jaw drops, and she sends a shove to his chest, sending him tumbling back against the wall, "What the fuck is wrong with you, eh? Why the fuck did you do that? I needed that to talk to him!"

He shakes his head, wagging a finger in her face, "You are not allowed to be fucking angry at me. Nessa—"

"My code name is Trigger," She corrects, her eyes flicking over to Ladybug for a split second.

He shrugs, "I don't give a flying fuck! I've known you as Vanessa since the day we met, so that's what I'm gonna fucking call you. Maybe if you'd have actually fucking told me the truth about your job for the very fucking beginning, then I wouldn't be blowing your mission, or whatever the hell you're doing here."

Vanessa gawks at him, before whirling around and running her hands in her hair, "I married a fucking twat."

"Thank you, sweetheart," He smirks sourly, "Your words really warm my fucking heart. The same heart that's just been fucking shattered!"

She scoffs, "Stop acting like it's the end of the world, Tan. Me being an assassin makes no difference on your life whatsoever."

"Yes it fucking does," He shouts, stepping away from the wall, "It fucking does! You could've partnered up with Lemon and I and I would've been able to make sure you're fucking safe!"

"Tan, I started being an assassin years before I met you," She snaps, "I was an assassin when we met! I was supposed to kill you, but hey, I fucking didn't!"

"Oh, well, thank you so fucking much, love!" He throws his arms into the air, "I'm so fucking lucky!"

"Yeah, you are!" She screams, "Because I got into a lot of fucking shit for not murdering you and your bloody brother. My own brother nearly got killed because of it! You're lucky that I stayed with you to patch up your wounds when you came back from bad missions, and keep you from doing stupid shit on nights out! So, yeah, you are fucking lucky!"

His gaze softens slightly and his eyebrows furrow, "What the fuck do you mean you're brother nearly got killed?"

She shakes her head, "That's— that's not important."

"No," He steps closer, but she doesn't move back this time, "It fucking is."

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WORD COUNT: 2121

meh
next chap is a flashback