#Thenamesh Special Forces AU

[softquietsteadylove]

Hello, Love!

I don’t know if you are familiar with that but you know these days when you have such high anxiety and doubt about yourself? And that one friend who is your little light at the end of the tunnel?

How about Thena has this moment and Gil is there to hear her out and helps her calming down?

Would love to see some comfort moment between them!

Choose the AU.

"Boss?"

Thena winced as the knock and gentle voice came. She should have known he was still here, and she should have really guessed that he would just be able to sense that he should come to her office.

Gilgamesh had a bizarre sixth sense for when she was feeling less than her best.

He hadn't been in her unit long. Hell, the unit hadn't existed long, by this time. But every time she seemed to hit a wall with the brass, or they came back from a mission she was less than happy with, he seemed to know.

He would kind of drag his feet in leaving, hang around a little later than necessary. And then he would inevitably end up at her office door like this, asking to come in with such a soft tone.

How was she supposed to say no?

"Come in, Gilgamesh," she sighed, standing above her desk, staring down at the files she had been slapping around for the sake of her frustrations.

He poked his head in so timidly for a man of his stature. His shoulders followed as he slipped in unassumingly. "It's kinda late, isn't it?"

"I could say the same to you," she raised her brows at him, tipping her head to the side faintly. He didn't back down, though. Gilgamesh was frustratingly unintimidated by her. "It's a bad look for the team to be here later than the boss."

"Sorry," he smiled faintly, gripping the strap of his bag over his - truly massive - shoulder. "But, I mean...the question still stands, doesn't it?"

Damn this man and his emotional perception. She had no idea how he wasn't in the interrogation or psych branches. But she had to count herself lucky for that.

He looked around her office, which he had been in a handful of times before. As her chosen second in command, he had been in it more than anyone else, even the runner up being Kingo. "That's a lot of files."

Right, her migraine. She looked behind her and around the room, files simply stacked as tall as they could go without falling over. "Yes."

He chuckled faintly. He was also the only one not afraid to laugh in her presence, which she both respected and resented about him. He really seemed to see her as just some person--a real human, instead of the Goddess of War. "Seems like a lot to put on your plate."

"Well, that is what happens when you start your own division team," Thena sighed. She knew this came with the territory, perhaps she didn't think that it wouldn't be quite this...heavy.

"Is it just standard paperwork?" Gil shrugged, drifting closer to a file withing his reach. He kept his eyes on her, waiting for her to hiss at him or something. He picked it up, "reports and personnel files?"

"It is," she admitted, and didn't even want to do that much. But he was already reading the damn thing. "Paperwork for me to file, things that had to be filed before I was even the team leader, things for me to file now that I am. It's about six months worth of paperwork that has to be done within two weeks."

"That hardly seems fair," he frowned, setting the file down again.

"And does the agency prioritise fairness?" she eyed him. "Mister-Suspended-For-Rescuing-A-Cat?"

He chuckled, and his smile was so infectious and welcoming. It was hard not to smile when he smiled at her. "Okay, you got me there."

Thena looked back down at her desk. "Don't mind me. It's just some dirty work that has to get done. I knew it would come with the territory when I applied to have the Special Ops team designated anyway."

"Did you know you would be taking it on yourself though?" he frowned, even stepping closer to her desk and the chair that was across from hers.

"Yes," she sufficed to say. Didn't she do everything alone?

"That doesn't seem like the purpose of a team."

She frowned up at him as he swung his bag down to the floor to lean against her desk, seating himself as if he were just so at home in her office. "Excuse me?"

"Well, I guess the other guys don't have the clearance for all this," he shrugged as he picked up another folder of papers waiting to be signed and reports waiting to be reported.

"Gilgamesh," she said sharply, but her usually razor sharp tongue really just bounced right off this guy. Her crossed arms tightened and her frown deepened, "Gilgamesh!"

"I'm not saying it'll be fast, but doubling one is still twice as fast, right?" he went on, even picking up a pen - her pen! - to scribble his name on the papers. "Y'know, Kingo's really good at forging handwriting. If you have stuff you know only needs your name, I bet he could help-"

"Gil!" she barked, and finally, he looked up at her. She leaned over her desk, assuming the posture that usually worked to help her assert a certain predatory stance. He didn't even blink. "Go home."

He didn't even humour her, just looked back down at the paper.

"Gilgamesh, that is an order."

"It's almost midnight."

What? No, it wasn't. Thena looked over her shoulder at the clock above her desk. Fuck, it really was getting past 11:45; she hadn't even realised. She looked at him again, scribbling away, "all the more reason for you to leave."

"Not unless you're leaving with me," he looked up at her, "ma'am."

Her eye twitched; she needed sleep. She pulled out her chair roughly, "I could write you up for insubordination."

"And do even more paperwork?--I wouldn't," he snorted.

Fuck, he was right. Thena grabbed another pen for herself and aggressively swiped her signature over another paper. She glared at him, "you don't have to do this."

"I know," he admitted immediately, under no delusion that he would be rewarded for his disobedience. "Just doesn't seem right to bury you under all this. You can tell everyone you did it all yourself, if it's for your reputation. But I can't let you take this on alone."

He had such a tender heart. It was part of why she picked him, sure, but she didn't think she would ever have to be on the receiving end of such...tenderness.

He looked up at her, catching her glowering at him, and smiled.

Thena looked down at her paper, slashing through it with another signature. Her heart did a somersault in her chest. Perhaps she was more fatigued than she had initially thought. "Did you at least eat something?"

"I did," he volunteered between papers, "I'm sure you didn't."

That wasn't any of his business. "If I didn't?"

"Well, if you didn't," he shrugged, looking down at the done stack of papers to his left, "I would say I have some leftover lunch in my bag. But I'm sure my team leader is responsible enough not to starve herself while she's-"

"Okay, enough, just give it to me," she growled at him. And again, her snarling did nothing but encourage him. He bent down with a grin and handed over a perfectly wrapped riceball. "Please don't tell me you hung around here this late just to catch me doing paperwork."

"No, of course not."

Right. No, of course not, that would be ridiculous. She chewed her bite before asking, "so...what then?--why are you here?"

He smiled at her again, even more gently than last time (and yet the affect on her accursed heart was just as bad). "I was looking out for a friend."

Thena looked down at the rice ball. It had been in the fridge all day, but pulled out long ago enough that the rice wasn't hard. It was delicious, actually. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had a friend.

She'd had teammates in her days in the academy. They had hated her. Trusted her, maybe, feared her, absolutely, but they certainly didn't like her. Even last she worked with Minerva, she wouldn't have called them friends (no matter what Minerva had to say about that).

She smiled; maybe having a friend wouldn't be so bad.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #friends I call this: how to catch feelings by Agent Thena Down Bad #I mean girl #listen I would feel the same #this super sweet super cute super hunky agent hangs around #just to help you do boring paperwork #even saves some of his lunch for her because he knows she hasn't left her office in literal hours??? #what is his uniform made out of? #boyfriend material #anyway he starts bringing extra lunch just for her #Kingo notices Gil starts hanging around the Boss more and more #and at first he doesn't think anything of it #and then he sees Gil literally run to hold the door open for her #or they come back from a mission and Gil picks up all the bags before Thena can have a chance to tell him not to #and Kingo is like ohhhhhhhhhhh #he's down bad #down hORRENDOUS #and listen Gil #I get it

[softquietsteadylove]

Would you do a Thenamesh soft moment with a forehead kiss? Whatever AU goes with it :)

Gil came out of his room with a yawn. It was some time late evening, it seemed. His sleep schedule still wasn't entirely back to normal with the heavy pain meds he was on for his injuries. But he would be in physiotherapy and on desk-duty at work soon enough.

Maybe it was insane to look forward to being back at work given that he had been shot and his collarbone was broken pretty badly. But what could he say?--he missed his job.

He missed Thena.

Although he was seeing more of her than ever, in his current state.

He smiled when he came into the living room, leaning on the wall with the soft glow of his lamp warming the room up. She really was beautiful.

Thena was stretched out on his couch. She kept saying she had to stop doing this, and yet every time he let out a yawn, she would tell him to go and lie down and she would tidy up and then head home. And then he would inevitably come back out to her asleep like this.

Thena had a real angelic look to her, despite the hardened Goddess of War image she presented. She was laid against the arm of the couch, a throw pillow behind her back and head, her hair splayed out behind her and reading glasses still on her nose.

Gil walked over (his limp was improving by the day). He took his time sitting down to look at her. He pulled her glasses off, pushing her hair back when it fell forward with them.

Thena moved faintly in her sleep, pushing the angle of her cheekbone up against his touch more with a sigh.

"Sh," he whispered reflexively, unwilling to give up the opportunity to gaze up on this wonder of beauty just yet. "It's just me."

Thena adjusted on the little set up she had on his couch. It couldn't have been good for her back, but he supposed she was getting pretty used to it. Her eyes fluttered, "Gil."

"Yeah, I'm here," he smiled, getting lost in letting his finger trail over her silken skin. She was so pale, and so blonde, but it really worked on her. Everything worked on her.

These were not the kind of thoughts to have about his boss.

Despite his efforts to lull her back into sleep, she was too alerted to his presence, her eyes fluttering open slowly but surely. She looked like a goddamn fairy tale princess, her eyes soft and green, her lips parting gently. She smiled, "hey."

"Hey," he whispered in the quiet of his living room at some godforsaken hour in the morning. He leaned his back against his coffee table, which Thena had files and papers spread over liberally.

Thena inhaled, trying to muster some energy as she turned over to face him more. "What time is it?"

"No idea," he shrugged. It was probably some time around 3 in the morning. He tilted his head at her, "you comfortable?"

Thena nodded, even though he could see the awkward bend of her spine in her current position. "I've got to stop doing this."

"I keep telling you I don't mind," he whispered in light admonishment of her insistence that she couldn't be falling asleep at his place. "If anything, I keep telling you to just let me set out real blankets and pillows for you."

"Oh, stop it," she sighed, turning herself again, twisting the blanket with her. "There's no need. I just dozed off looking over some things Kingo sent me."

She had done so pretty consistently since she started helping him around the house.

"Sure," he chuckled, ignoring her stubborn - cute - little pout as he reached up with his good hand and adjusted the blanket over her. "Well, feel free to doze off again--is all I'm saying."

"And what about you? Did you just get up?" she whispered, her eyes running over him in the faint light casting shadows all over the place. She automatically started rising up from the couch.

"Hey, take it easy, Boss," he whispered back, putting his hand on her shoulder to ease her back down to her pillow. Maybe he should get new ones--ones that would be more supportive of her neck and gentler on her hair. Since she was sleeping here so much.

Thena sighed, settling back on the pillow as directed. Her eyes travelled over him, and he felt exposed in his white t-shirt and dark sweatpants. He usually slept shirtless, but - again - felt too self-conscious doing so with Thena around.

"Are you in any pain?"

Gil smiled. She asked him that all the time now, since leaving the hospital. He knew she cared--more than she would ever really be able to put into words, knowing her. He tapped his thumb against her cheek, "I'm fine, Thena--really."

She didn't show any sign of response at first, searching him for signs that would contradict his statement. It seemed she was always doing this, lately.

"Thena," Gil said gently, leaning forward. He frowned, "I'm okay, you know. We're both okay."

Her brows knotted up even more, her eyes staring at his sling. "Gil, I'm-"

"No," he shook his head. "Nope, nu-uh--no more apologising. Thena-"

"Gil," she whispered, her voice becoming high and thin. She blinked, and he caught the glassiness in her shimmering green eyes. "You...because of-"

He moved his thumb from her cheek to press into her lips, without a better way of silencing her and her insistence that his injuries were somehow her responsibility. His eyes followed his thumb as he moved it across the plumpness of her bottom lip to the corner of it. "No more of that. It's no one's fault. And you were the one who pulled me out of there, if I have to remind you again."

Thena sighed, at least not arguing with him for the moment. She probably would at some other time, but he could handle that then. For now, she sank back into the couch.

Gil traced his thumb down her other cheek, following the natural slope of the hollow of it. "You are the reason I'm here, Thena. Never forget that."

Her eyes fluttered shut as he leaned all the way forward, pressing his lips to her forehead. It wasn't the first time he'd done this, and it most certainly wouldn't be the last. But this did feel...different.

She blinked at him a few times as he pulled back, solidifying the realisation that he had, in fact, actually done that. He gulped. "Uh-"

Thena reached her hand up to his cheek, pulling him back to her slowly and gently. Her lips pressed to his cheek, still close enough to brush against his skin as she whispered, "go back to sleep, Gil. I'll be here when you wake up."

These were not the things he needed to hear to not think about his boss like this.

Thena settled herself on the couch and throw pillow again, her eyes drooping. She blinked at him, "get some rest."

He just nodded, not trusting himself to speak intelligible words. He stood with the help of the coffee table supporting him, turning out the lamp.

Even without its warm, yellow light, Thena still glowed like a vision form a dream.

"Night, Boss," he whispered as he limped his way back to his room. Not that he was going to get any sleep. His heart was pounding and he was just going to be thinking about the feeling of Thena's lips against his cheek for the rest of the night. Forever.

That was why it was so important to keep calling her Boss--so he could remember that this was the woman he respected and worked with on a daily basis. Not at all the woman he was painfully in love with.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #I have been wanting to expand on this #on them #ever since I saw a tag saying that Thena definitely fell asleep on Gil's couch #because she obviously does #and I clearly couldn't decide who should kiss whom #if that wasn't obvious #but listen #these two are getting very comfortable with these little affections #and then rationalising them to themselves in their minds #like they're really here being domestic with each other on the daily #and being like yes hello fellow colleague #and then kiss each other on the cheek in the kitchen #like...guys...come on

[softquietsteadylove]

Hi I've got 4 requests for Agents AU 'cuz damn it is so good, so I'll just leave it here and maybe you can consider writing it🤲

So for the first part here it is: I am craving for some rivalry here, some big jealousy, with a bit of friendly competition. So what if Thena and Minerva in one room. Just them reporting to their bosses. Minerva over-complimenting Gil and Thena seeing that moment as a competition, like a who knows Gil better so both of them started throwing compliment on how good Gil is and how good looking he is🤭 But their bosses suddenly asked if Minerva wants Gil to be on her team permanently. And we all know Thena lost it there, she complained that Gil is still under her team and they can't do that without her permission. But while Thena was talking Minerva barged in calmly that she wants (likes) Gil on her team and suddenly looked at Thena and said that she thinks Gil is considering it. So Thena was just shocked about it on how she felt something different when Minerva said that she "wants" (likes) Gil on her team and how Gil was considering it. And meeting dismissed.

"Thena!"

"Minerva."

"How is Gil?"

Thena looked up. They had both said it at the same time, and it irked her that Minerva was asking when she arguably got to see Gil more often than she did, now.

Minerva just smiled, though, "he never has lunch with us--I just assume he's going to eat with you."

Thena bristled. She was right, of course, she and Gil ate lunch together as often as they could since his transfer. He sometimes had something delicious and home cooked, but even when he didn't they could order out, or they could cobble together snacks from the vending machines for all they cared.

Thena was glad to have the time with him at all.

Minerva continued on, regardless of Thena's answer, or lack thereof. She smiled, "Gil is doing better in Extrication than I ever could have hoped!"

Was that so? Thena sighed, slumping in her chair as they waited for the Section Chief to get out of whatever other meeting he was attending before theirs.

"The team just loves him, but I suppose I don't have to tell you how charismatic he is."

No, she didn't. Thena's eyes flicked to the clock, which seemed to be mocking her with its lack of a seconds hand to show her how much time was really passing. She eyed the minutes hand, willing it to move even a centimetre.

"He really is so sweet and lovely," Minerva continued to compliment Gil, perfectly capable and willing to carry on the conversation by herself. "Such a dream come true."

For whom? Thena continued to attempt to ignore her old colleague. She had no real vitriolic dislike for Minerva, they simply didn't get along spectacularly well. Her chattiness didn't help things, either.

"I have half a mind to ask for his transfer to be made permanent."

"Well it isn't!" Thena snapped, although even then, Minerva lacked any real knee-jerk reaction to her. Thena tugged at her suit jacket and then the hem of her skirt, "Gil's transfer is on a temporary basis. That was the agreement."

"Unfortunately," Minerva sighed. "I thought he was rather starting to like-"

Thena's eyes flared but her impulse to stand from her chair was well timed with the entry of the Chief. She puffed through her nose, trying to compose herself, "sir."

"Agents, sit," he greeted/ordered as he sat behind the desk to face them. "I have already kept you waiting so let's keep this brief."

"Yes, sir," Minerva began with that same smile on her face. "I think the transfer of Agent Gilgamesh is going swimmingly!"

The Chief at least looked at Thena to corroborate whether or not that was true.

Thena looked down at her lap, "I am sorely lacking in management on my team, sir...but we've survived."

"He does seem to be doing well in Extrication, and the unit has even done a few operations with him in tow by now, hasn't it?"

"Yes, sir," Minerva beamed at the opportunity to sing more of Gil's praises. "Gil is such an asset!--I think to any team. And they think so too."

Thena resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She did mutter, "my asset."

"He's a dream to have under me, sir," Minerva grinned.

Thena flinched in her seat. She could think Minerva was doing this on purpose, if she wasn't such an airhead. She glared over at her, but Minerva indeed wasn't looking at her at all, just sitting there smiling.

"Well," the Chief lazily flicked closed the files in front of him. "What if he were?--your asset, that is?"

"Sir?" Thena frowned, which he seemed to have anticipated based on the way he braced himself. "The transfer was temporary, and I only agreed to it on that basis."

"You agreed to it after the fact, Agent," the Chief 'reminded' her sternly. "The transfer was in fact punitive measures after a death occurred on an operation under the Agent's watch. The transfer is, in fact, to make sure he can still operate as an Agent at all."

Thena let out a slow breath. She wouldn't do anyone any favours by losing it now. "Yes, sir."

"And if the Agent is doing better in Extrication, then I don't see why I need to discuss this further."

Thena bit the inside of her lip.

"Well then," Minerva smiled and nodded to the Chief, "if that's-"

"What about Gil?"

Both other agents looked at her.

Thena cleared her throat, "should the choice not be Gilgamesh's, sir? He applied to Special Ops. He's been a member of the team and a supervisory agent for years in my command. I don't know if a transfer against his wishes is...the best move."

"Ah, yes, right," the Chief mumbled, only now reminded that Gil could make the decision for himself. "Well, arrange the meeting with him, Agent."

Thena blinked, "sir?"

"Ask him," the Chief barked at her. He stood and tugged at his decorated jacket, "and report back."

Thena gulped as the Chief decided for himself that their meeting was over, walking out briskly. Minerva stood and followed, brushing her hand over Thena's shoulder on her way out.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #pt 1 #okay we've got a few parts #so strap in #I tried to fit a good amount of your requests in! #I like the idea of Thena and Minerva being rivals #and I don't think Minerva means any harm #she just...gets under Thena's skin #I think Minerva really likes Thena and admires a lot about her #she just has a very positive attitude about things #and I think to contrast that Thena envies how relaxed and charismatic Minerva is #things have always come easily to her which annoys Thena #and this whole Gil debacle... #doesn't make that any easier #get ready for drama #and suffering :)

[softquietsteadylove]

For part 4: I've got this idea of mine where Thena blaming Minerva for what happened to Gil and she ordered her that he wants Gil back under her after this mission.

I want you to decide for the rest! I know this is a lot and I am sorry TT, I just wanna say again that your works are beautiful and so are you. Thank you! xoxo

"How'd it go?"

Thena closed the passenger side door with a huff, clipping her seat belt rather aggressively. "It could have gone worse, I suppose."

"So you didn't mouth off and get fired?" Kingo asked as he pulled out of the lot of the agency office building. "I would say I was impressed if you weren't already on suspension for it."

Thena just shrugged. She didn't much care about the suspension, even considering she was a senior agent, and this kind of thing would reflect on her for a very long time to come. It was a well deserved suspension, given how she had screamed in the face of not only Minerva but the Section Chief as well.

All that having been said, Gil had almost died.

The recovery operation was a success. Thena was the best when it came to infiltration, especially after things had already not gone to plan. She and the rest of Special Ops had arrived at the scene and cleaned things up concisely and without mercy.

She had gone further in with Kingo, intent on finding Gil. At the very least they had confirmed that he wasn't one of the reported casualties, but that still left him as potentially injured.

Thena had found him in one of the back corners of the labyrinth of storage lockers. He was barely breathing and there was blood everywhere. If they had been any later, he probably would have...

She had gone in the ambulance with him, Kingo having covered for her absence, with Minerva's help to corroborate Thena's definitely-good-enough reason for leaving the scene.

She owed that much to Minerva, and after she had gotten in her face about the whole thing being her fault. That was unfair of her, and Thena knew it. She knew what being a team leader meant--what it meant to have people's lives in their hands and be solely responsible for it when things went bad.

She was feeling...fragile.

Minerva had taken it like a champ, because of course she had. She didn't reprimand Thena for it, didn't shout back at her, didn't even demand an apology for it later.

The Chief still had her suspended for her behaviour but Thena hadn't cared then and she still didn't, now.

"Did you do what I told you?" Kingo asked as he drove, letting Thena take it easy in the passenger's seat.

Thena crossed her arms, "I displayed...appropriate remorse."

Kingo rolled his eyes, "come on, Boss. I can't do shit with both you and Gil out of commission."

"I know," she mumbled, looking down at her bag on her lap. She really had attempted to appear apologetic for her actions. "I did offer my apologies for it."

"Did you seem sorry?" Kingo looked over at her as he slowed to a stop, "really?"

Thena rolled her eyes and shook her head, "sorry enough."

"So, no," Kingo scoffed and shook his head as well. "If you and Gil get fired, I've gotta get out of this line of work."

Thena smiled, "we're not fired, Kingo. Not yet, anyway."

"Yet," he huffed as he started driving again. He glanced at her, "the transfer?"

"I said that even if I was fired, Gil would be back on Special Ops in exchange."

"Thena-"

"It was the only way I'd go peacefully," she shrugged, repeating it exactly as she had stated it in her probation hearing. "That's all that matters."

Kingo snuck his eyes over to her as she toyed with the bag on her knees. She was fidgeting. "You really think Gil is going to still work here if you don't?"

Thena ignored him. "It's just one more week."

Kingo made a grand show of rolling his eyes at her as he pulled over, "I don't know, Boss. I've already neglected all the paperwork I can. They're going to start asking me to actually do it instead of waiting for you to get back."

Thena gave him a smile as she gripped the handle of the car door, "serves you right."

He leaned down to look at her even as she got out, "just come back soon, please? And tell the big guy I want him back even sooner!"

Thena waved to him as he drove off again. She had to admit, Kingo didn't drive as much like a hellion as she had initially expected he would. And he had very helpfully given her a ride whenever she needed it during her suspension period. She turned, letting herself into the apartment with her key.

"Hey!"

"Hey," she smiled as she walked in, kicking off her shoes by the door and walking into the kitchen. "I'm getting a little too used to not having to wear heels."

"Well, it's not like you need 'em."

Thena rounded the corner, leaning against the wall as she admired the sight of Gilgamesh in the kitchen, on his feet, alive and well. Moderately well, "what's on?"

"Just some easy pasta," he smiled at her from the stove, stirring it with his left hand while his right remained in a sling. She gave him a look and he laughed outright, "relax, nothing strenuous involved."

He had taken a bullet to the leg, as well as endured a shattered clavicle that would have him in a sling for two months. He would still be on desk duty even by the time he was cleared to return to work.

Thena wandered closer, inhaling the delicious smelling sauce. He really was a surprisingly skilled home cook.

He looked over at her, the sizzling of pasta underscoring them. "Get fired?"

"No, but I think Minerva vouched for both of us," Thena sighed. She didn't love the idea of being indebted to her old comrade, but she had to admit that she owed her quite a lot, at this point. "They said that the suspension will be over next week, and after that they'll 'keep an eye on me', so... "

He nudged her with his good elbow gently, "I told you not to speak your mind. Just tell them you're very sorry for what you did and move on."

She raised a brow at him, "is that what you said at your probation hearing?"

"No, I told them that they were old bastards who could go to hell."

Thena laughed, partly from the joke, and partly because it probably wasn't that far from the truth, knowing Gil. For all the shit she got for not minding her manners around their superiors, Gil was a pretty honest guy, even in the worst scenarios.

Gil turned off the stove burner and turned to her, "you were pretty hurt, after that op. I couldn't just let that go."

She looked up at him too, her eyes drifting over the sling holding his arm and then down over the extensive bandaging he had received in the hospital. Even a week after being released, some of them still had to be maintained regularly. "How do you think I felt?"

He smiled, giving her shoulder a squeeze before moving to the cupboard with the bowls, "hey, we got through it--both of us."

Thena moved faster, bumping him out of the way with her hip to reach them before he could, "barely."

He smiled, letting her reach them for herself, instead moving to get them both water glasses. "But we did."

Thena set down the bowls beside the pan of pasta. She had apologised plenty already, and that was after Gil had awoken and told her he didn't have any clue what she was apologising for (and telling her to take it back, too). But seeing him more in the past week than she had in the past month still made her heart clench in her chest.

"Thena?"

She smiled, spooning out plenty for both of them (although that meant that his serving was double the size of hers). "Sit down, Gilgamesh."

He chuckled, obeying the order with a big grin on his face, "yes, ma'am."

She let him see her rolling her eyes at him as she came over with their lunch. She sat down, leaving her suit jacket on the back of her chair. She kept forgetting things at Gil's place, being here to help take care of him so often. She had reminded herself plenty of times already not to get so comfortable here.

"Hey."

Thena looked up, already smiling because Gil was. He twirled some pasta around his fork from his bowl and held up the bite for her. He was cute; she shook her head at him. "I have my own."

Gil shrugged, "you need more. This is why you're so skinny."

Thena's jaw dropped, although it made an opening for Gil to poke at her lip with the pasta fork. She huffed before biting down on it with a glare. "You are still my Agent, Gilgamesh."

"Sorry, sir," he laughed as he pulled the fork back. "Y'know, I thought you were kinda skinny for an Agent when you first recruited me, too."

"Oh, did you," Thena scoffed as she took a bite of her own lunch. "What else did you think?--since you're feeling candid?"

Gil shrugged, his shoulders still moving with his barely contained laughter, "that you weren't nearly as hard to read as everyone said you were."

She rolled her eyes again.

"And that you were kinda pretty, too."

She stopped in the middle of bringing her fork up to her lips. She looked over at him but he was shovelling in another bite, as if he hadn't even heard what he'd said.

"This is isn't bad for only having one hand," he commented as he took a massive bite for himself.

Thena just sighed and took another bite as well. It was moments like this that made her not want her suspension to actually end.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #pt 4 #no you're beautiful anon!! #but really thank you #thank you for entrusting me with your idea! #I hope you like how it's turned out! #very drama very angst #but with a happy ending #because I am a soft hearted bird #I am a soft birb #and I cannot take heartache #I think Thena would understand what position Minerva was put in #and while she's not happy about Gil being put in danger #I don't think she would have it in her to really truly blame Minerva for him getting hurt #and Minerva also understands why Thena lashed out #especially when she saw her leave in the ambulance with him #hunched over his body with tears in her eyes #The Chief had already told her she was on suspension #he turned around to reprimand her some more and Kingo said she was...injured #Minerva agreed yes sir she also needed medical attention that's why she's gone #anyway #Thena is helping take care of Gil #because the doctor asked if he lived alone or if he had someone who could help him #and Thena said I volunteer as tribute #she's there more often than not #like she goes back to her place sometimes #but it's really not as often as one might suspect of 'platonic co-workers'

[softquietsteadylove]

For the 3rd part: The angst of most angst...Gil's mission didn't turned out good. Thena received an order to back-up Minerva's team and Thena's heart just fell but she didn't want to jump into conclusions. Kingo rushed into Thena's office, Thena didn't ask Kingo how the mission went, she asked him desperately with pain and guilt on how and where he (Gil) is. But Kingo didn't tell her anything. So Thena stubbornly ignored him, she prepared her equipments but Kingo said she is not going and finally revealed that Gil talked to him and asked him to take good care of her while he was away. Kingo felt something off but he still obeyed Gil, he also reminded Gil that he had made a promise to Thena, he must be back, he must comeback.

Thena had no time to breakdown, she felt guilty, she had to be strong for him. She desperately want to see him. Kingo knows that he can't change her mind and he just followed her as soon as she gears up.

"Okay, team, this is quick and dirty," Kingo briefed the team as they suited up in their protective gear. "Extrication's op ran into a bump in the road and they need our help. We're looking at minimum seven injured and possible two casualties. We don't know who, don't know if it's our own or not. We keep our eyes on the prize: we infiltrate, we take down, we save everyone we can."

"Sir!"

"Five minutes out!" Kingo sent off the rest of the team as their current second-in-command. He had to go get the boss.

"Thena?"

Thena was trembling. Her back was to her door, but Kingo could see her shoulders shaking, how tightly she was holding herself. Her weapon was sitting on her desk, not even holstered yet.

"Boss," Kingo tried again, stepping into her office and closing the door behind him. "Boss, we gotta go."

She nodded, clearing her throat. She tried to say something but all that came out was a positively pathetic whimper from the back of her throat.

"Hey," Kingo said gently, although it just seemed to make things worse. He rounded her desk, moving closer to his friend in her moment of weakness. He put a hand on her shoulder, alarmed to find that the shaking was actually much worse than it looked. "Hey, hey, come on."

"Kingo," she managed to whisper as she tried desperately to get a hold of herself. But her throat was so tight her neck was straining to keep her breath in her lungs. She was holding her arms so tightly they would probably bruise. She sniffled, "Gil-"

"We haven't heard anything new," Kingo told her exactly what she needed to know. It was true; they had heard there were casualties, and that their line of communication had dropped with the Extrication team. He didn't know any more than that.

"I-I c-can't-" Thena gasped, trying so, so hard to rein in her control of herself. He had never seen her like this.

"Okay," he whispered, pulling her against him completely. It wouldn't surprise him if she gave him hell for it later, but it was now, and she needed it now. He rubbed her back as she pressed her face into his shoulder, "let it out, Boss."

Thena gripped his shoulder and let out a positively grievous wail.

Kingo felt shaken. He had never seen Thena like this, or felt pain radiating from her to this degree. Not even when Gil first got taken away from her was she like this. He patted her shoulder in a poor attempt at optimism, "it'll...be okay."

She pulled away, swiping at her cheeks rather angrily, "don't bullshit me."

He let out a laugh, only because he didn't know what else he could do. He moved to swipe away a few more tears of hers, only for his hand to get slapped away. At least she was feeling more herself, "sorry, Boss."

Thena cleared her throat, "this is...I wasn't... "

"Hey, I'm scared for Gil too," Kingo shrugged, easily excusing the perfectly human display from his usually statuesque boss. He tilted his head at her, "maybe not the way you are, but-"

Thena glared at him, but he shrugged again. She sighed; he always had been oddly talented at seeing through people, including her. Although he had to concede that the only one better at reading her than him, was Gil.

"He asked me to take care of you," Kingo muttered, which brought more of her distress to the surface again. "He worries about you; not being here, and all."

Thena sighed, although even that was shaky. She licked her lips and looked at him, "he promised."

He promised to come back to her; he always promised that.

"He'll be okay, Thena," he said more softly. "You know Gil. He's strong, he's tough, he knows what he's doing. I'm sure he'll have things under control by the time we get there."

Thena swallowed, nodding and blinking away the last of her tears. "Two minutes."

Kingo smiled; no one was tougher than the Goddess of War. She was tough, she was baddass, she was fierce. She had survived getting taken by the enemy and tortured for information. She had directed mission after mission of some of the most high risk ops. She regularly had to face down sending the man she loved into dangerous situations. "Two minutes."

"Two minutes," she repeated, finally reaching for her weapon to clip it to her belt.

Kingo eyed the lovingly wrapped lunchbox before she took it and carefully deposited it into her desk drawer.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #pt 3 #we're getting there! #I really love the relationship Thena has with Kingo #not just in general but especially in this one #I think he really gets her #he understands why she is the way she is and why she does what she does #he's good at reading people #which is why he and his salad are so tired #being stuck witnessing Gil and Thena love each other silently #and sometimes it's not even silent #but you know #he watched Thena look at her phone constantly #wait on every text just in case it was Gil #he got texts from Gil at all hours about how Thena was doing #all while stuck in the middle of these two lovebirds #and their romeo-juliet shtick

[softquietsteadylove]

For the 2nd part: The angst starts here...Gil visiting and also brought some lunch for them but Thena just give him a cold shoulder. But he couldn't figure out why and she's all snappy and sarcastic suddenly saying that she thinks he's liking his new team now to be considering to be there permanently. And Gil addressed it calmly that he never considered it and he wanted to be back immediately on her team. But she just asked him to leave even though she doesn't want him to.

What Thena didn't know is Gil was there to talk to her before leaving for a mission, a mission that is very risky and dangerous but he never got to tell it to Thena.

"Boss?"

Gil stepped into Thena's hurricane of an office. She always kept it neat, although sometimes if he opened up her desk drawers they would be an absolute disaster. But currently she had files sitting everywhere, some open, some closed, some jamming her paper shredder.

It wasn't like her to be so out of sorts.

"Thena?" he tried again, stepping in and pulling the door closed behind him. He set down the lunch he brought her on the desk.

"Not now."

He frowned at the sharp tone of her voice. It wasn't like her to be snappy. Cold, sure--terrifying, to some. But she wasn't usually like this with him. "You okay?"

She finally turned to look at him, but she seemed...angry. Not necessarily pissed off, but...annoyed? There was a mix of a few things in those stunning eyes of hers.

Gil sighed as he adjusted his bag strap on his shoulder. He knew she had a meeting with the brass, and he was sure his transfer had come up as a topic. But he wasn't allowed to ask directly about it until his probation was up. "Did things go well?"

"Ask Minerva."

Gil raised a brow at that. Thena was many things, but petty?--no. Passive-aggressive wasn't really the Goddess of War's style.

"She was singing your praises," Thena finally said more than a few words to him, although she still seemed agitated. She slapped some files down on her desk. "Thinks you're really liking Extrication."

"Like is probably a strong word," he shrugged. He hadn't screwed anything up, yet. Not that he did much of anything other than follow orders and fill out paperwork.

"Really?" Thena examined him in a way that made him feel like they were strangers. "She's quite in favour of your transfer being permanent."

"What?" Gil leaned forward on her desk as well, matching her rather combative stance. "No one brought that up to me."

Thena looked like she was about to say something but bit down on the inside of her lip. She looked down at her desk, her ponytail falling over her shoulder. "It was a surprise to me too."

Gil melted a little. She seemed so...downtrodden. He had asked Kingo at length how she was doing since he had been transferred. Kingo was certainly at his wit's end about it, but he still obliged him and told him every time Thena had a bad day, or tried to stay late in the office, or forgot to eat lunch.

"Is it-" Thena started and the paused, dropping her rigid posture until she was all but slouching. She looked down at the desk, "is that something you want?"

No. No, he wanted to be back in Special Ops--he wanted to be with her, again. "No, and I didn't think-"

"Well, Minerva thinks," Thena cut him off, and he could feel herself trying to saw off the feelings of hers he was getting too close to discovering. "And the Chief thinks so, too."

"Well, I don't care what they think," Gil said gently, trying to get a look at that face that brought him more peace than he thought possible in a line of work like this one. She avoided his eyes. "I want to be here."

"Gil," Thena looked up, again seeming on the brink of something before swallowing it. And it seemed like a big pill to swallow. "I...I'm sorry, I can't do lunch today."

"Oh," he blinked, deflating some. He reached slowly for the lunch he had brought her before pulling his hand back. Maybe she would eat it once she sorted out whatever had her so mad.

She turned again, shaking her head and drawing her shoulders up. She swiped at something on her face before rifling through her files again, "later?"

"Uh," he gulped, looking down at his phone, "yeah. Yeah--later."

"Hm."

He walked out of her office slowly, hoping to get another look from her. But she was focused in front of her. He closed the door again just as quietly.

Gil, you on your way?

He sighed. The operation was big; high risk and high reward. It was so big that even he was being dragged into it, minimal experience and everything.

I'll be there.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #pt 2 #I hope you like it! #I know you might have imagined something a little different #but these two #they know each other #and I think they would still be civil even with emotions running high #or maybe I'm just soft hearted #but I still promised you some drama and some angst! #Thena is already putting some distance between herself and what's going on #because if she clings to Gil and he still gets taken away #it will break something inside of her #they have been having lunch together when at all possible #not that it's that often but it still happened #and even when it couldn't #he was texting Kingo 24/7 about how Thena was doing #Kingo had to silence Gil's notifications on his phone

[softquietsteadylove]

For the Agents AU, what if Gil was moved in different station for what he did? Or he would be working for a different boss temporarily (*whispering* a boss that is a rival of Thena on agent team or something and ON GILGAMESH, a boss that Thena would be jealous of🤫).

Gil visited her in the hospital and that's when he informed her that he was assigned to a new boss temporarily, but also assured her that he would be back on her team and will be always on her side. At first she was about to make a call to have him back on his agency (we all know she would never allow this) but Gil refused, he told her that he would be back to her in no time. She thanked him for protecting her and she wished him luck. And once he left her she was furious and I could imagine her throwing a tantrum of course having to know that he had been transferred to a supervisor who is a rival of hers, and he will be spending his time working for that boss.

Thank you!!! :3

Thena turned, sensing the presence in her doorway. "Hey."

"Hey," Gil smiled, although she could already feel something wasn't right. He seemed downtrodden, and he was hunched in on himself like a guilty kid. It was always an easy way to tell he had bad news.

"How did it go?" she asked as she sorted away the last of her things. She was finally cleared to come back to the office, although field work was another two weeks away. But at least she could find out how Gil's assessment hearing had gone.

"Well," he smiled and winced simultaneously, dragging himself inside her office with his go-bag slung over his shoulder. "I'm not fired."

"That's," she measured him with her eyes, tracking any indicator of what had him so uneasy, "good?"

"I'm not suspended either," he mumbled, "technically."

Thena set down the files she was trying to catch up on, pushing away anything that wasn't Gilgamesh. "Gil, what is it?"

"They're, uh," he looked down at his shoes, "transferring me."

"What?!"

"Temporarily," he was quick to amend, but it did nothing for the rapidly growing ache in her chest. "They're putting me in Minerva's unit for a month."

Minerva was a very competent, and bizarrely friendly, team leader who ran an aggressive extrication unit. They specialised in breaking in and retrieving, and every member needed to be nothing if not resilient.

"They're moving you to extrication?" Thena blinked as if he hadn't just told her that. She was still processing the 'Minerva' part.

He nodded, though, his mouth caught between a frown and a snarl. "I think they just want to know that I can behave if I'm on a tighter leash."

"And they think Minerva's leash will be tighter than mine," Thena assessed, to which Gil shrugged in reluctant agreement.

Gil shifted on his feet, no more comfortable with the position they were in than she. "Didn't you two come up in the ranks around the same time?"

Yes, she had worked with Minerva plenty before they became their own unit leads. Minerva was very warm in nature, very pleasant, but also exceedingly calm under duress. She had no temper to her, no buttons to push. In a lot of ways, she was a balance to Thena's own colder, more aggressive method of handling things.

The last time she spoke with Minerva they were both fighting to attain a certain Agent on their teams.

"It's just a month," Gil shrugged again, his voice going thin as a whisper. His throat was tight. "I'll be back before you know it."

Wrong; she was going to feel every second of his absence. Maybe it was a good thing she was being forced onto desk duty for two weeks. She would have more mind-numbing paperwork and less time to think about Gil working under Minerva.

"Hey," he moved around the side of her desk and closer to her. They had become closer naturally since their little rescue operation. And this was exactly why he was being transferred out from under her in the first place. He leaned his head down to hers, "one month."

"One month," she whispered back to him.

"Then I'll be right back here," he smiled, hoping to get one in return.

Thena made the effort--the attempt. It wasn't great, but he appreciated it all the same. "Right back here."

He leaned in, hand on her shoulder as he pressed his lips to her temple. "Where I belong."

"Where you belong," she repeated faintly as she felt him pull away. She held his eyes as he dragged himself back to the door. "One month--and not a second later."

He grinned at her, giving her a sharp nod (and a wink?). "Yes, Ma'am."

Thena waited until her office door was closed behind him. She counted to ten before picking up her thick stack of files and slapping them down on the desk and throwing herself into her chair. She breathed out a rough sigh, slapping the back of her head against her chair.

"This a bad time?"

"That door is closed for a reason."

Kingo walked in anyway, hands in his pockets. "So...Gil told you the news."

Thena toyed with her pen in her hand. "He should be grateful they didn't resign him to desk duty for a year."

"That doesn't mean extrication is the better answer though," Kingo raised his eyes to hers, "does it?"

She avoided looking at him. Kingo was a master of reading people, and she - somehow - was not exempt from that rule. She just didn't think Gil would like working in extrication. She didn't think it was a good fit for him, and it was never a smooth procedure to just insert a new team member into any specialty division.

Minerva had said she thought he'd be a great candidate. Thena had fought tooth and nail to have his application given to her instead.

"Well, I'm sure he'll like it in special ops," Minerva had smiled so blithely at her, not an ounce of malice in her petite little body. "I was looking forward to having such a handsome subordinate, though."

"Boss?"

"It doesn't matter what we think, Kingo," she muttered, finally. She tossed her pen onto her desk. "All that matters is that we all get through this next month."

Kingo pursed his lips, and she immediately knew he was about to say something borderline outrageous. "Are you worried about Gil working under Minerva? Or...are you worried about him being under-"

"Kingo!"

He snapped back physically, scrunching his shoulders and holding his hands up. "Don't mind me. Just...talking to myself."

She huffed; how was she supposed to endure Kingo without Gil to balance him out?

"Don't think like that, Boss," he grinned at her, as if he could read her disparaging thoughts right off of her. "I promise I'll be the perfect right hand. You won't even have time to miss the big guy!"

"Kingo-"

"You can count on me, Boss Lady!" he snapped his wrist in a crisp - and also mocking - salute before heading right out the door again.

Thena hung her head in her hands, groaning. She missed Gil already.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #Kingo immediately is like you can count on me Boss! #Thena: I can't read suddenly #but really Kingo knows how keenly she's going to feel Gil's absence #he knows what's going on with those two #obviously #and was the first one to see and hear how angry Gil was about the transfer in the first place #he's a worry wart over Thena even when he's on her team #the next month is going to be unbearable as far as Kingo is concerned #he's going to have hundreds of texts from Gil asking about if Thena is okay #all hours of the day #how is Thena doing? #is she okay? #has she eaten yet? I told you to remind her to eat every three hours #and don't let her stay too late #drag her out of her office if you have to #Kingo here like: YOU STILL WORK IN THE SAME OFFICE BUILDING ROMEO JUST TAKE THE ELEVATOR AND COME SEE HER #Minerva runs into Thena and makes light conversation #Thena definitely doesn't think about sawing her way out of the elevator to scale her way up the shaft to avoid her #she asks how Gil is doing in extrication #Minerva says he's doing well at least #Thena makes a light comment about him staying if he's happy there #Minerva: oh no darling all he talks about is getting back to you #Thena: ❤️❤️❤️

[softquietsteadylove]

For the special force AU:

how about Thena putting together her Team and meeting Gil the first time? Like a little flashback?

They called her the Goddess of War.

Well, her name really was Thena. It wasn't an amazingly creative nickname. But it certainly was true, given she was known for being particularly vicious, whether it was in the field or the office. But what she lacked in social skill she made up for in sheer ability.

Gil had to admit he was surprised. He had heard about the Goddess of War, and everyone knew she was a top agent--they had to know that if they were applying to be part of her special ops team. But he hadn't heard anyone mention that she was literally the most beautiful woman on the face of the earth.

He thought that would have been mentioned at some point.

Kingo fidgeted beside him in line, "dude, she's so-"

"I don't want to hear anything about being badass."

Gil did his best to contain his laughter as Kingo's spine snapped straight so quickly he could swear he heard it.

Their new boss and team leader looked up at them finally. She had striking features, razor sharp bone structure under startlingly pale skin. Almost as pale as her whiter-than-platinum blonde hair. She leaned against the bullpen desk, "I'm no more or less badass than any of you. That is why I selected you, no?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Each of you excels in something far and beyond anyone else in the agency," she narrated, eyes scanning over them. Gil met her eyes for just a second as she passed over him. Her eyes were green. "That's why I chose you."

"Yes, sir!"

"But I can un-choose you," she tipped her chin up, and Gil was pretty sure it was almost the beginning of a smile. No one else seemed to think so, though, already quaking with nerves. "The next month we'll see if you have what it takes to be directed by me in the field. And ultimately, if I don't think you're a right fit for the team, then back to rank work you go. Am I clear?"

"Yes, sir!"

"You two," she eyed him and Kingo, "stay. The rest of you, back to work. You report here in the mornings now. It's oh-nine-hundred and not a second later."

"Yes, sir!"

"Dismissed," she looked down at the desk again, not even watching the rest of the candidates file out of the room.

Gil snuck his eyes towards the door as a few started whispering to themselves before they were even out of the room, like school children. Rookie mistake; she didn't say anything, but the boss lady made two sharp flicks of her pen on the files she had in front of her. They were already out of the running for placement on the team.

She drew herself up again, arms spread out and shoulders sharply angled, giving her a certain amount of presence. It was easy to forget that she was actually pretty normal statured as far as women went. If anything, she was a little skinny for being such a skilled fighter.

"You," she pointed at Kingo with her pen. "Sharp shot."

Kingo had both the best aim and the best actual shot record in the agency. "Yes, Boss?"

Gil nearly flinched, wondering what the sharp edged woman would have to say to the casual way of addressing her. They were a little higher ranked than some of the other agents she was considering, but certainly they weren't exempt from addressing her properly.

She raised a brow at him.

Kingo cleared his throat, "Boss...lady?...ma'am?"

"Hm," she let out singularly, but Kingo didn't get the little pen mark of doom. "You're...chatty, so I hear."

"Is that really in my file?" he couldn't resist muttering to himself.

"Yes." It obviously wasn't. "And I would like to use that to my advantage."

Gil watched the exchange cautiously. She was testing them both, that much was clear. He just wasn't sure how she was assessing them--and for what.

"How so?"

"I want...gossip."

"You?"

"I want things that aren't in any file," she clarified, keeping her eyes on Kingo. "It doesn't have to be anything sordid, but I do hope that if there's anything about any of your fellow candidates you feel I should know..."

Kingo stared right back at her. It could be a test of his loyalty, to see how easily he was turned on his own with so much as an order. But then again, it could be a test of how well he took orders. It could just be a test of if he lied on his file, for all they knew.

"Well?" she drawled.

Kingo straightened his shoulders. "Nothing worth reporting, I'd say. A friendly rivalry or two, but nothing that would distract them in the field. One is sorting out the tail end of a divorce, but he's a good father, so he hasn't let it affect his work. One of them does smoke, but I've never seen her ask for a smoke break, and she obviously still passed the fitness test."

Everything as promised; nothing worth reporting. It was both things that Thena would want to know as a leader but also the immediate promise that they wouldn't impact the team's work. They were nonstarters, as Kingo was telling her. He had both protected his fellow agents' personal affairs and reported honestly to his superior.

Again, Gil saw just this faint twitch at the corner of her - amazing - lips. He could swear it was a smile (of sorts).

"Very good," she nodded, taking the information for what it was. "Dismissed."

"Yes, sir," Kingo turned on his heel, catching Gil's eye ever so briefly before leaving as asked.

Gil was on his own.

"Gilgamesh," she murmured, looking over his file right in front of him. She nudged the papers lazily with the end of her pen. "But you go by Gil."

He shrugged.

"You can lift almost double what your fellow agents report," she looked up at him, one of her heels coming off the ground faintly. "And you did exceedingly well in your combat training and tests."

He shuffled a little in his stance, unsure if she wanted boastful confidence or sheepish modesty. "If that's what it says there."

She tilted her head, flipping his file closed. "Why do you think I selected you for this team?"

She had just listed one of his biggest assets as an agent, so why ask him? He had been asked to join countless special divisions since becoming an agent, thanks to his size and his strength. Everyone from homeland security to infiltration wanted him.

Gil looked at her--really looked. Her eyes were actually quite expressive, despite the facade she put on. There was no hiding what was in them and that beautiful colour. And he was pretty sure he knew what she was really asking. "My great sense of humour?"

There!--a real smile!

He brightened (he was never any good at hiding what he was feeling). "Is that a laugh?"

"No."

"Almost," he murmured, which he was pretty sure would have gotten him kicked out if anyone else were present for it. But they weren't, and he wasn't. He lifted his eyes to hers again. "I'll get you next time."

Her ice cold glare melted a little and he was pretty sure she did actually think he was at least a tiny bit funny. Maybe amusing, at least. "No one will believe you."

"I'll just have to try harder," he grinned to himself, setting his shoulders again. She resumed the cold, polished mask required of a team leader. But he could still see the very human warmth in her eyes. "Is it because of the cat thing?"

Her eyes sparked, even if her face was as still as a statue.

How had no one ever noticed this before? She was way easier to read than people thought. Or maybe she was deliberately letting him read her just to test him. Oh well.

"That stray cat that got caught in the tree outside of the main office?" Gil repeated, standing by his statement. "I spent all morning trying to get it down. I didn't call in my lateness and got suspended for a week without pay just because of some stray?"

"And you were asked why."

So, that was the reason. He smiled, "poor thing was scared. I couldn't just leave it there."

Another real, almost gentle seeming smile crossed Thena's face. She tilted her head at him, "that was the statement you gave. It's not attached to your suspension notice but I asked around for it."

Kingo must have told some higher up he knew would be close enough for her to hear it.

"That is the reason I chose you," she said without the forced sharpness of her tone. It was actually a lot softer, even higher than she could make it seem. "Because you cared so much for a strange animal that you couldn't abandon it. Nor did you contest your suspension--which you could have."

"Yeah, but I had a new cat to take care of."

She caught it right away, but it had happened, clear as day: she laughed.

Gil felt something rattle in his chest as she pinched her lips together and pretended to look down at her papers again. His life belonged to her, now--no questions asked.

She looked up at him, offering a sleekly shaped eyebrow with the remains of her smile, "congratulations."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he shrugged, and he didn't really consider making someone laugh something to gloat about anyway. "No one will believe me, sir."

She nodded, her smile remaining. "You and Kingo will be my leads. You'll report here at 0800 and I will tell you how the rest of this week will go."

"Yes, sir, Boss," Gil offered a smile--just a small, sheepish one.

"Don't test your luck," she advised him, back to keeping her smile very much in check.

It seemed she really couldn't control that one little corner from twitching upward, though.

"Yes, ma'am," Gil nodded and took his leave. Maybe joining the special forces would turn out to be not so bad.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #oooh I really like how this turned out #this is how it happened #I know I get to decide that but this is how it happened now #Gil immediately able to get a smile out of her #and deciding #this is my reason for living now #and Thena here thinking she's the unrbreakable Goddess of War #enter one (1) cute guy who's good at cooking and she's done for #Gil tells Kingo he got her to smile #and if it were anyone else Kingo would be like no way #but he knows Gil and he's like...really? #Gil's like yeah I think she's actually really nice when she wants to be #no one else ever gets to see this side of her though #I wonder why...

[softquietsteadylove]

For the special force AU:

After Gil’s rescue.

A Soft and quiet moment between them in the hospital before the consequences for his action? :)

"Out."

"Easy, big fella," Kingo said gently, holding up his hands as he took a few steps towards Thena's hospital bed, and the chair where her 'guard dog' was seated. "Just came to see if you needed anything."

"I'm good."

"Come on, Gil," Kingo pleaded as softly as possible. He knew his partner would be reeling from what had happened to their boss--their friend. He had heard that absolutely no one had managed to get near her with Gil by her side. "She's okay, right?"

"She better be," he finally let out a sigh, uncrossing his arms and turning his head halfway away from Thena and towards his partner. "It's the only reason I'm here and not hunting down those bastards who left her in there."

"You know, if anyone were to hear you threaten the brass like that it'd be your badge," Kingo murmured, to which Gil didn't even offer a shrug of acknowledgement. Kingo looked at him, seeing the evidence of his unwillingness to rest if it left Thena unprotected. "Just...yell if you need me, okay?--either of you?"

Gil let out another heavy sigh, "thanks, man."

The door closed quietly behind him. Gil sat up in the chair he had pulled up to the side of the bed. He looked at Thena, sleeping as if she hadn't been kidnapped and brutalised on a tuesday afternoon.

It was true; no one had managed to come anywhere near her with him there. And he had no regrets about it. Clearly their bosses didn't give a shit about her, and if they thought they had any right to offer their apologies after...well, they were wrong.

Gil leaned forward, pushing some hair away from her cheek. His finger brushed the pale - and already bruising - skin there, and she leaned into his touch in her sleep. He smiled, undeniably melted by the subconscious trust she had in him. Standing, he leaned forward to touch his lips to her forehead. "Come on, Boss. I need you to open those eyes for me."

As if she'd heard him, her lashes fluttered, and soon he was reunited with that stunning favourite colour of his. "Hey."

"Hey," he beamed, although he had to blink away a few tears threatening to fall. He ran a hand over her hair, far too affectionately for his boss. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I've been strapped to a chair and beat up."

Gil huffed, but Thena gave him a tired attempt at her usual glare; she thought it was funny. "Now?--you're making jokes now?"

Her smile was heavy and hazy, fighting against the pull of anaesthesia. But it was there, and it was real. "You seem like you need it."

Gil still hadn't stopped brushing his hand over her hair, against her temple, her cheek. As if she were a ghost and he was trying to discern if she was real or not. "I need you to be okay."

"Then I'm okay."

He sighed, relishing the moment in which he let his palm hold her cheek, and she let her cheek lean into it more. They wouldn't have this opportunity for a long time coming--maybe never. "Thena-"

"Gil," she pressed, and he sat again, pulling her hand into his. "I know you went against orders to come and rescue me in there."

"How is that the problem?!" he shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "And not that I was ordered to stand by and watch while-"

"Focus, Gilgamesh," she crooned even more gently than normal. It still worked like a charm, grounding his attention to her in an instant. "You saved me--you. That's all that matters."

He let out a breath, at least some steam having left him. He nodded, accepting at least that much as he leaned forward again. He slid their fingers together, "what hurts?"

Thena gave it a test, shifting faintly under the thin hospital blankets. "Everything?"

"They should have you on stronger meds," Gil growled, ready to storm out into the hall and demand some from the nearest medic.

"Mm," she kept his hand locked with hers, however weakly. She shook her head, fighting to keep him with her. "No, just...just leave it."

"Thena," he whispered, sounding positively agonised about it. "I don't want you to be in pain."

"I'm fine," was the first thing out of her mouth, only to realise that it was utter bullshit as far as Gil was concerned. She corrected herself, "just stay. Just...just...please?"

He all but collapsed, weak in the knees at the sight of those eyes pleading with him. They always said so much more than she ever did aloud. He nodded, helpless to do much of anything else for her. He brought her hand up to his lips, "yeah--yeah, of course, Thena. I...I'm right here."

She closed her eyes again, evening out her own breathing as well. "If they know I'm awake they'll have you dragged out of here to question us both."

"They're not coming anywhere near you so long as I'm here."

"Gilgamesh."

"I mean it, Thena," he reiterated. He gave her hand another squeeze, "they have no right coming to talk to you when they're the reason you're in here. They can wait until you're released, and that's if I'm feeling generous."

She peeled her eyes open again to smile at him. "If only I could have you as protection for every time I had to talk to those-"

Thena cut herself off to yawn, not even attempting to cover her mouth as she did. Gil tugged at her blankets. "You should go back to sleep; get all the rest you can before the questioning begins."

"Can't wait," she mumbled, although her injuries and the medication she had for them were subduing her again. Her hazy eyes found his again. "You'll be here...right?"

He smiled at her, keeping her hand firmly in his, "I'm not going anywhere."

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #hellllllllllll yeah #I love a gentle moment after some angst #helps soothe the wound y'know #Gil is so devoted #he hasn't left her side #and he's not going to any time soon either #he meant it when he said no one was going to come near her #he doesn't give a shit if their bosses come in wanting to question them #if they so much as look at her while she vulnerable #vulnerability that's their fault to begin with! #he's going to have some very unprofessional words for them #he stays with her the whole time she's in the hospital #he practically begs them to up her pain meds #they're hesitant #but he tells them that when she woke up she said she was in pain #and he has those big sad eyes when he tells them #so they up her pain meds #and next time she wakes up he feeds her some sliced apple by hand #y'know like coworkers do...

[softquietsteadylove]

Hi!

In your latest thenamesh special force au Gil said he doesn’t trust them to keep her safe.

What if something happens that puts Thena in great danger and Gil rushes to protect and safe her? Bonus if he carries her in his arms!

"Fall back! I repeat, fall back: area is not secure!"

"Move in!" Gil announced before any order was given. Technically he was second in command in Thena's absence, him and Kingo being the most senior Agents present. He didn't need to hear anything else.

Thena was in danger, and he wasn't going to allow it.

The junior agents were scattered around, some having been taken out as soon as they were in the building.

Gil hauled one up by the collar of his shirt, "what the hell happened in here?!"

Kingo put a hand on his friend's shoulder, squeezing as best he coudl over their thick layers of protective gear. "Take it easy, Gil."

"Th-They were waiting," the young agent squeaked out. "We didn't know until all units were in the building. Something came through the vents, then they jumped us."

Gil dropped the kid to the ground again, stepping around his body and proceeding with caution around every corner. "Eyes up, masks on, people!"

Kingo hand signalled the rest of the unit following behind them. Kingo leaned closer to Gil, "Boss was in the third unit to enter."

Which meant she shouldn't have been too far in the building by the time things went wrong. Gil walked around their comrades as they proceeded. "Tell medical about all these stupid kids."

"Come on, man," Kingo admonished. "You were all buddy-buddy with these 'kids' less than a week ago."

"And if anything happened to Thena, I'm gonna have them all kicked out of the agency or worse."

Kingo gave up on trying to talk him out of it, knowing it was a lost cause. Gil and Thena both weren't the best at being particularly logical when it came to one another. "Focus, Gil."

It only managed to rile him up more, because it wasn't Thena's soft voice telling him that. "Fuck you."

"Okay, good talk," Kingo sighed until they came across the most troublesome area. "Shit."

Clearly they had put up a fight on both sides. Agents were sprawled about, but so were some of the low level participants of the operation they were busting.

"Boss!"

"Thena!"

She was a few feet away from the rest of them, probably having tried to go further in before whatever was in the vents had incapacitated her as well. She had even pulled off her bulletproof vest, probably to check herself for injury after being shot at.

"Thena!" Gil rushed over to her, practically sliding on his knees to reach her. He pulled the inner material of his collar down from his nose and mouth, pulling her up into his arms.

It was in complete disregard for protocol. He didn't check for her injuries first, he didn't wake her and ask her the standard 'can you speak',. 'can you breathe', etc. He pulled her into his arms and all but shook her in his desperation to see her open her eyes again.

"Gil?" she groaned out, pinching her brows together as she came to.

"Thena," Gil gasped out in relief, pulling her closer and cradling her head protectively. "You're okay!"

"What are you doing here?" she frowned, glaring at him out of one eye (with some blood from her forehead having gotten in the other). "You were ordered to wait as backup."

"I know, but the kids blew it and we had to move in," he scoffed, reaching into his standard issue cargo pants and fishing out what was definitely not a standard issue handkerchief. He wiped some blood from her eye before dabbing at her forehead. "Can you stand?"

Thena nodded up at him, "it looks worse than it is. All that really happened was we spooked them out the back of the trap. Tell me we were waiting for them at the rear."

"Yes, we got 'em all," Gil chuckled, letting her grip his sleeve in need and then release it almost immediately. He frowned at her, "I know I asked if you can stand, but are you sure you should be on your feet?"

"It's fine, Gil," Thena attempted to protest, although she didn't actually succeed in attempting to pull herself up out of his arms. "Just...I'm just...jus-"

Gil shook his head. Whether it was blood loss or a concussion or the gas, he wasn't about to let her try walking by herself. Medical would have his head for moving her without their permission, and the higher ups probably wouldn't be happy with him either.

Thena would be livid once she woke up again.

But Gil picked her up in his arms, carrying her like a bride back the way they came, past the rest of the agents also being collected in the aftermath of the disastrous operation. He had no sympathies for the kids being picked up off the ground. Not with Thena lying limp in his arms as she was. He bent his head down close to her, "almost there."

"Gil," she sighed, drifting in and out of it as he carried her. "M'fine."

He smiled down at her. She would absolutely have his badge for thinking she looked kind of cute when she was sleepy, but he could keep that thought to himself. "Yeah, you seem real fine, Boss."

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #Gil to the rescue! #we love to see it #the thing with more action based aus like this #is that Thena is literally called the Goddess of War #she can take care of herself #and Gil knows and respects this #Gil makes exquisite Respect Women juice #but he also likes Thena more than he should #so on the one hand #she's his tough as nails boss #whom he fully believes could kill anyone with one hand tied behind her back #on the other hand #he thinks she's cute and pretty and smells nice and is kind of delicate #she makes people at the agency cry at the very idea of her wrath #but Gil is like let me carry that heavy bag of gear for you! #She's called the Goddess of War but Gil is like Thena has a cute laugh #She has beaten every single member of the team in hand to hand combat #it's practically a right of passage to get your ass handed to you by her #an honour and a privilege even! #and yet Gil's like it's cold take my coat #and while no one is really brave enough to bring it up #maybe they ask Kingo like...doesn't the Boss get mad at Gil for that stuff? #and Kingo is like no chivalry is not dead its name is Gilgamesh #but don't try it for yourself because she WILL break both your knees #Gil knows she can take care of herself #it just doesn't stop him from wanting to take care of her too

[softquietsteadylove]

Hi can I request 2 parts for Spy/Special Force AU?

I have been craving for some angst and drama, so I am really sorry for this.

So for the 1st part. We always see Gil in dangerous situation but now...what about Thena was caught. Gil didn't know that it was Thena not until they presented her to him. He had to watch her getting interrogated and tortured and he can't do anything about it because he's undercover. He tried to negotiate with them without getting suspicious, but it didn't work.

"So, what do ya think, new guy?"

"Ask about the arms deal happening at the end of the week."

Gil took the instructions coming through his earpiece silently. "Not a bad place, but do you guys really have the stuff necessary to secure all this square footage?"

He got a couple of looks and tried to remain calm; using 'secure' like that would definitely get him suspected of being an undercover Agent.

"I know a guy with both hands under the table, I mean," Gil shrugged, keeping his arms folded and tight to his sides. He didn't manage to sneak anything in with him weapons wise. His fists were weapon enough.

"Don't worry about it," one of the ones who had been showing him around for the last week shrugged. "We've got more incoming."

Gil nodded. It was as much of a confirmation on the weapons trade off as he was going to get, and he wouldn't risk asking about it further. His brows furrowed as they reached their destination: a control room in the basement with the window smashed out. "We catch something?"

"You could say that." His grin gave Gil a bad feeling.

They turned on the singular light bulb that lit the decrepit little space. There was a small figure in a chair, ziptied to the armrests and legs by the wrists and ankles. They were visibly too tight, drawing blood no matter how still they tried to remain.

Gil's heart stopped.

He tried to stay still. He would know that figure anywhere, as much as he tried not to. The slight frame, the slope of the shoulders and the prominence of the clavicle under the buttoned work shirt. The stockings were torn, probably from getting dragged to and fro. Shoes were probably the first thing taken from them.

He knew it was Thena before they pulled the burlap off her head.

As soon as it was off they punched her square in the jaw, whipping her head around and making the chair screech on the concrete floor. It was just heavy enough not to topple over with her in it.

Gil kept his face as neutral as he could--their lives depended on it. They were watching him, checking to see if they had found the weakness they thought. If they had found their mole. "Where'd you find her?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," the worker bees around him snickered as they watched the show.

Gil kept his fists clenched under his armpits, digging his short nails as deep into his skin as he could. His teeth were clenched so tight he could barely see straight.

Thena didn't utter a word as they laid into her, taking every slap and punch with little more than a grunt or a burst of air. She kept her eyes shut as they hauled her head up by her hair, still pulled back into a ponytail.

They hadn't gotten her at home, she was still dressed for work, whether they got her coming in or going home. Gil felt sickened to wonder how long they'd had her captive.

"We got a tip that there was a real pretty blonde hangin' around," the one doing the beating said to Gil, giving Thena's head a shake by her hair. He turned his face into hers, inhaling against her cheek. "Had to go and find 'er for myself."

"Don't move a muscle, Agent. Stay on target."

Those fuckers. The brass knew Thena had been captured and were still ordering him not to move? How far were they planning on letting this go? How long had they been listening to Thena get hurt?

Eyes were still on Gil in the room, monitoring how far they could push him. He still hadn't let a crack show, yet. "Y'know, someone let us know that she was with the Fed."

Of course someone had tipped them off. How else would they have been able to get the drop on the Goddess of War?

"Y'know what they say, big guy," another one slapped him on the shoulder before strolling into the semi-connected interrogation room. "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer?"

Gil wiggled his fingers against his palm, feeling the blood he'd drawn. He was nearing his limit. Thena pried her least swollen eye open and looked at him, managing just a little twitch of her lips. No one else would be able to recognise it as a smile--they'd sooner assume it was a flinch.

But Gil could always tell.

Thena shut her eyes again as they wrenched her head back, exposing the length of her neck.

"She is a pretty thing, huh?" the new one looked back at Gil, trailing a finger along her throat.

"Agent, do not move. I repeat: stand. Down."

Gil watched the hand trail down her neck to her collarbone, just barely peeking out from her blouse. He pulled out a knife, cutting off one button, then another.

The two in the room grinned at each other as the third button popped off, exposing just the hint of a white bra with floral lace. "Should we see how pretty?"

If the window weren't shattered before, it certainly would be now. Gil grabbed the head of the first one, slamming it down on the table so hard it only took the one hit to incapacitate him.

The other one reached into the back of his jeans, "fuckin' mole-!"

Gil turned his shoulder out to him, ramming him against the wall with his shoulder driven directly into his solar plexus. The wind left him and he slumped down the wall. For good measure, Gil kicked his teeth in.

"Hey, what the fuck-"

Gilgamesh was by far the strongest on the special forces team--probably one of the strongest agents in the field, if not the strongest. He grabbed the creepy one by the hand, twisting it all the way around to pop it off the wrist.

The creep screamed and howled in pain.

The one who had been doing the beating held up his hands, backing away from Thena on the chair, who was swaying faintly in her attempt to remain conscious.

"Agent! Stand down, this is a direct order!"

Gil tore the earpiece and its connected mic out of his ear and crushed it under his foot. He kept his eyes on the man with Thena's blood on his knuckles.

"H-Hey, big guy," the idiot was at least smart enough to try and barter his way to safety. "Look, we both know you're not gonna kill me-"

"Says who?"

The smaller of the two men shrank a little. Maybe his life wasn't as insured as he thought it was. "O-Okay!--okay, look, I'm sorry! I-I'm sorry, man! You want info?! I'll tell you--I'll tell you everything! Who tipped us off, how we scoped out your headquarters--everything!"

Gil grasped the bastard by his shirt, slamming him up against the wall, black in the eyes. "You've got a lot of nerve bartering with me after what you did to her-"

"Gil."

The beater hit the floor like a sack of bricks.

Gil moved in front of Thena, lifting her chin as gently as he could. She'd have one hell of a black eye, and her naturally sharp cheekbones were split and swollen. "Hey."

Thena blinked her good eye, lifting her head shakily as Gil cut open the zipties slicing her wrists and ankles incrementally.

"Backup better be on the fucking way," Gil growled as he get her freed. Her body naturally folded in on itself in its injured and vulnerable state. Gil shirked off his jacket, pulling it around her and even zipping it up over her exposed chest. "Or those old fucks are next."

The beater was trying to crawl to safety.

Gil slammed his heel down on his back.

The beater threw up anything that was in his stomach.

Gil leaned down, pulling his head up by the hair, as he had done with Thena mere minutes ago. "You're gonna tell us everything."

He nodded.

"You're gonna cooperate with every agent you see."

He nodded again, more vigorously.

Gil dropped him. If they did get some valuable information out of him it would be the only thing saving his job after this stunt. He turned, catching the creep trying to struggle to his feet. "And you."

Thena didn't even blink as Gil grabbed his shoulder, then his jaw, and twisted. She watched as the man's lifeless body fell to the ground. She looked up at Gil, "I'm going to pretend I didn't see that."

Gil said nothing. He had no remorse for someone like that. He nudged his body out of the way, picking Thena up and sitting down in the chair for himself with her in his arms.

The sounds of their fellow agents storming the building started at the top of the building and travelled through its open, gutted remains. They would be with them soon enough.

Gil sat and waited. He would be lucky to be suspended and on probation. Much more likely, they would have internal affairs investigate him for his disobedience. Worst case scenario, they could find him in breach of protocol and fire him.

Thena shuddered in his arms.

He would accept any punishment they gave him--gladly. He turned his head, pressing his lips to her temple in the slim window of being alone with her.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #okay strap in #this is an intense one #I know you asked for 2 parts #and I did love this ask #but I couldn't find a good time to cut things in half #so I just combined them into one long one #I hope you like it though!!! #listen...I know I've said this in the past #but you read the ask #it's time for pain and suffering and drama and angst #but don't worry #Gil is here #and he's not going to stand by and let this happen #to HIS Thena? #please #Gil has to be all but restrained to let the medical team take her off his hands #even once she's conscious and being checked over #he's not far #hovering close by #ready to snap at anyone who gets too close #they're taken in separate ambulances #Thena needing more critical care than him #Gil is growly the whole time demanding to see Thena as soon as possible #he gets cleared to be released and the first thing he does is set up camp by her hospital bed #no one except their own team comes near her #or they get him barking in their face #no one has ever seen him like this #but no one is surprised either

[softquietsteadylove]

Hi! I very much liked the idea with thenamesh special force au! Would you write another one? Would be pretty awesome!

You are absolutely amazing! Hope you know how much we love you and appreciate your hard work to feed the fandom!❤️

"Hey Boss, what're you doing here?"

Thena looked up from her paperwork at the familiar - and comforting - voice. She sighed, blinking against the hard light of just her desk lamp. "I could say the same to you."

"I mean," Gil glanced behind him, as if it weren't just them and the empty, darkened halls of the office. He leaned against her doorway, his go-bag slung over his shoulder. "I'm only getting out this late because Kingo and I were hitting the range and then I dozed off in the locker room."

Thena tilted her head at him, setting her pen down, "you shouldn't be dozing off at work at all, Agent."

He grinned at her, the low light catching the handsomeness of his features, "yes, Ma'am."

Thena looked down at her abandoned pen, "what has you so tired, Gil?"

He set his bag down, drifting further into her office and pulling up a seat a little too comfortably. Most of the team was terrified of their boss, but Gil always claimed he didn't know why.

Thena was a sweetheart if you got to know her.

"Well, I've been helping some of the new recruits with their training drills and stuff," he shrugged, watching her completely abandon the paperwork she was trying to get done before he'd caught her.

"They can handle their own training, Gilgamesh."

He wasn't the least bit intimidated by her cold tone. "I had more selfish reasons too, if it makes you feel better."

"Oh?" Thena raised a brow, and he caught the faintest beginnings of a smile on those lips of hers. "And what would those be?"

"None of them are anywhere near good enough to be considered for the special forces teams, that's for sure," Gil shrugged, toying with the little knob on her lamp (Thena wasn't a desk decoration kind of person). "But sometimes senior officers will oversee newer agents in low-risk raids and stuff, right?"

Thena tilted her head at him. Anyone else trying to pull this would be getting an earful about it, of course. They both knew it, too. But Thena frowned, "you're sacrificing your own rest and time off because...you don't trust the new recruits if I go with them?"

"I don't trust them--yet," he added firmly, not one to be completely negative about anything. "Not to keep you safe."

Thena leaned back in her chair, "I'm the Special Agent here, Gil. Isn't it my job to keep them safe?"

"Not if they can't even do an area sweep properly," Gil rolled his eyes more openly than before. The hint of Thena's smile was back, encouraging him to go on. "I'm just saying...you don't believe in dragging dead weight, right?"

She nodded.

Gil stood again, leaning over the edge of her desk, "so I'm making sure they won't be."

Thena smirked at him, "you're really just soft--you do realise that, no?"

"Okay, maybe," he shrugged, and finally - finally! - he got a real smile, and even a little laugh out of her. There was no stopping him now. "Now, you comin' or not?"

"Gil," she sighed, picking her pen up again, "I have work to do."

"It's way too late for you to be here," he shook his head, putting his larger, heavier hand down over her pen (and her hand just happened to be under his). "As you pointed out yourself, to me."

"That's part of the job of being the boss," she shrugged, ready to argue with him until the sun came up. She laid her other hand over his (to remove it).

Gil laid his other hand over hers, both of them playing this bizarre game of who would give up first. "What did you just say to me?--something about sacrificing my rest and time off?"

Thena did her best to look annoyed with him. He was being a little brazen with his team leader and senior ranking agent. But he was so damn cute.

"I don't care what it is, it can wait," he said more softly, his hands still laid over hers. He was so warm. "Go home and get some rest, Thena. Please?--for me?"

What a gut punch; Thena looked down at her desk with a sigh, lest she have to look at those deep brown eyes and suffer yet more cardiac distress. "Fine."

"Okay then," he declared with a grin. He pulled gently in his direction, both of his hands around both of hers.

Thena huffed, remaining in her chair, "you go. I promise I'll pack up and be right out."

"Nu-uh, Boss, you're comin' with me even if I have to carry you out myself!"

Thena tried to not let that get to her--tried not to imagine what it would be like to be in those arms of his. They were just talking about her being his boss, and just how forbidden all of this was. "You wouldn't dare."

Gil released her hands, only so she could grab her phone and a few things from her desk and shove them into her purse. He kept his eyes on her as she rose from her seat, dusted off her skirt suit - somehow pristine and stark white - and reached for her desk lamp. "I'm a little more daring than you think, I'd say."

How could he be so cute and say things that were so sexy?

"Watch yourself, Agent," she reminded him with a teasing tone as they made their way to the elevators.

"Yes'sir, boss lady," Gil chuckled, giving her a mocking salute and taking the liberty of pushing her onto the elevator ahead of him.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #admittedly...I don't entirely know what 'special forces' they are #or what special forces do #which makes me nervous to write action scenes #that and all my brain is going to do #is recreate the scene from Salt #yOu KnOw ThE oNe #the one that reorganised my brain permanently #but anyway #I did say that Thena knew all this stuff about GIl #stuff that she shouldn't have #stuff she had no business knowing as his superior officer #well...this is how #just the two of them #workaholic Goddess of War #and her special forces number 1 agent #of an FBI-esque organisation #and the romance of being the only two left in the office

[softquietsteadylove]

JESUS your prompt with Gil being a special force agent was sooooo good! The DRAMA! my heart! Pls do a part 2! the mission and if he fulfilled his promise! I need to know! May the drama, action and sweetness be with you! :D

Gil opened his eyes to a white ceiling and a dim light over him. Last he remembered was the operation and covering the stairwell. He was pretty sure it was going well, last he recalled.

He tried to raise his hand to rub his eyes but found it occupied. He looked down, and now he was pretty sure he had died during the sting and was now in his own personal heaven.

Thena was asleep in the chair next to his recovery bed, head on her arm, her hand holding his in her sleep.

Yeah, he had definitely died. He must have, for this to be happening.

"Hey, man."

Gil startled, looking over and getting just a peek at Kingo, where the curtain between their beds had been pulled a little too far. He could just see a little bit of him. "What happened?"

"It went fine until there were more unsubs than we thought," Kingo narrated, his eyebrow doing a lot of work to help him express what he thought of it all. "One of them tried to take the stairwell to escape and, well, that's where you come in, pal."

Right, now Gil could recall the weight of three men plowing into him, pushing them all down one and a half flights of stairs. And that was before he had to fight and apprehend them all, too.

"Good thing you were in there," Kingo puffed out a faint laugh. "That's the Boss, though--doesn't leave any stone unturned."

Yes, that certainly was their surprisingly fretful and caring boss. Gil snuck a look back at her on his other side, probably completely concealed from Kingo's view by his body. At least for the time being, so long as he could be cool about it.

"Relax, I know she's there."

Fuck.

"She came in a few hours ago, after everyone else and the higher ups had already come in to tell us the mission went well," Kingo snorted amidst his quiet laughter. "She took one look at you and didn't leave your side--obviously still hasn't."

Gil blushed, his hand aching to tighten around hers but not wanting to risk waking her and ending his little moment of bliss.

"She really cares about you, big guy," Kingo said softly from his half of the room. "Tries not to--I guess it wouldn't look too good for her rep. But it's obvious you mean a lot to her, at least from where I stand."

"Well," Gil sighed, now free to look at her all he liked with Kingo's graciously given secrecy. She looked even more beautiful than she did when she had her stern Goddess of War face on. "She means a lot to me, too."

"Oh my god, I'm going to sleep."

"You brought it up!" Gil hissed at his partner, who was already faking a deep, loud snoring next to him. Gil rolled his eyes, at least shifting to look at Thena again. As soon as she did wake up he was going to tell her to sleep in a proper bed, for the love of-

"Gil?" Thena blinked herself awake, pulling her head up and cracking her neck through her discomfort. She looked at him, finding him still asleep. She sighed, "what am I going to do with you?"

Gil let himself 'awaken' as he felt her fingers brush over his forehead. If he let this go any further he might not be able to live with himself. He opened his eyes and the first thing he did was smile at her, "hey."

"Hey," she smiled back, resisting the urge to put a nautical mile of distance between them. In just this particular moment, her concern for him won. "How are you feeling?"

"Well, I'm guess I'm pumped full of drugs at the moment, so not so bad," Gil noted lightly, much to Thena's chagrin. He was always like this, happily reporting that so long as things went well, then he could endure whatever collateral damage he had suffered in the process.

"You had quite a fall, Gil, and then quite a fight," Thena informed him more firmly, one hand still on his, the other smoothing down some of his bed head for him. "It's nothing to take lightly."

"But I still did it," he proclaimed proudly. She blinked at him in confusion, but his smile only grew, "I cam back to you...alive."

"I suppose you did," she cleared her throat, finally pulling back and standing, brushing off her skirt suit and smoothing down her hair.

He supposed it could have been the weird hospital lighting, but Gil really could have sworn there was a little bit of pink in her cheeks. "I will next time too, Thena."

She spared him another, quickly withering glare. Her hand brushed over his shoulder ever so lightly - and too quick for his hand to come up and reach for it to keep it there - before she went to retrieve his doctor, "consider it a direct order."

Kingo lay in his bed, wide awake and wishing he weren't.

#Thenamesh Special Forces AU #Poor Kingo #he and his salad will never know peace #you don't understand #the weakness I have for the handholding #the holding vigil while the other is hurt/asleep #and especially if they try to pretend they weren't doing it afterward #but just this time #Thena is like I am not letting go of you until I know you're not concussed #and even then #she's obviously not letting go by choice #she's just going to come back with his doctor and be that annoying spouse #who asks way too many questions about everything #but she's not his spouse she's his commanding officer #and Kingo is lying there just like #please don't let her know that I was awake for all of this

[softquietsteadylove]

Hi. Have a request for a prompt! Thenamesh au where Gil is a special force agent and Thena being his commander in charge. Gil is at a risky dangerous mission and Thena, having a secret crush, is watching worriedly through his and the other teammates bodycam, talking with him at a quiet moment. A bit of angst and fluff? :) would be interesting to read something like that!

"All teams in position."

"T minus ten minutes," Thena spoke into the mic from the safety of the command post. She eyed the monitors, displaying their access to the security feeds as well as her team's body cams. "This happens fast, it goes smoothly. You move as we practised...no one gets hurt."

"Yes, sir."

Thena stepped back, holding her arms folded around herself. They had gone over this, they had trained and planned for it. Everything was in place and things were expected to go fine. But she was worried.

She shouldn't have been. It was...inappropriate for her to be.

But her eyes drifted up to the corner monitor, displaying Gil's position at the end of the hall. He was one of the only ones of the team isolated from the others. But his strength would be needed if they had to restrict access to the windows and stairwells.

"Hey, Boss?"

Thena switched over channels, uncaring how suspicious it was to want the privacy. "Gil."

"Sorry," he sounded like he was smiling. He could always speak casually, even if they were in the middle of a critical and dangerous mission.

"No, what is it?" Thena asked softly--too softly.

"I guess," he sighed. Anyone else pulling this would have gotten an earful about her not being a therapist, and that if they were having doubts then they didn't have to be part of her squadron. But Gil was different. "Are you sure you're safe over...?"

Thena bit into her lip, trying not to smile. It was silly, really. She was in a secure location, the command post for operations being just within range for her to keep an eye on her team. "The area's been cleared. We're perfectly safe."

"You're right," he mumbled, shifting anxiously as their countdown continued. "You know I just...worry."

She did know. She knew that he was entirely too sweet for this line of work, and that he was a great home cook, and that his favourite colour was green-

"What if they know where you are?"

"They don't," she answered plain and simple, hoping she sounded like a commanding officer when she said it. This wasn't the first time she had gone out of her way to assure Gilgamesh wasn't worrying about her when he needed to have his eyes in front of him.

"I guess they'd be in for somethin' else even if they did," she heard him chuckle on his end. "I wouldn't wanna face down the Goddess of War one-on-one."

Thena let out a faint laugh before she could stop it. He heard it, though, and she could tell. "Focus, Gilgamesh."

"Yes, Ma'am." It sounded dangerously like flirting when he called her that.

"Gil," Thena began again before she could stop herself. But her nails were digging into her palms and her heart was pounding. "Keep your eyes on the prize. No unnecessary risks."

"Get in, get out," he finished for her, and she watched his bodycam rise slightly as he straightened up his posture again.

"Just," she paused, her throat tight and dry. "Come back...to me."

Whoops.

"Alive!" she rushed out to add on, "come back to me alive!"

There were a few seconds of silence on his end, and Thena felt as if the temperature in her saferoom had increased tenfold.

"Count on it," he promised her, sounding much more serious than he had before.

"Gil, I'm serious."

"So am I," he responded quickly. "We'll be back before you know it, Boss."

Thena went back to folding around herself, pacing as their time ran out second by second. "You better mean that."

Gil held position as the first unit blew the door open down the hall. They were out of time. The image of his cam feed blurred as the smoke bombs went off.

"Thena, I promise."

#Thenamesh AU #the dRAMA #I have a weakness for the #commanding officer is weak for one (1) of their own #also I watched Salt when I was home sick #and it changed my brain chemistry #it's actually such a good action movie #it legitimately didn't go where I thought it would #and also #when she blocks off the cameras #and Liev Schreiber tells her to get her 'goddamn panties' off the camera #altered something in me #anyway #CIA (or whatever) Thenamesh #Thena has to keep her cool #but every time a mission is over all she does is fall to her knees until she hears Gil's voice #and he's all cheery like #Hey Boss everything went great and I only got shot twice! #and Thena is so cool and collected #but on the inside she's a wreck #Thenamesh Special Forces AU

[softquietsteadylove]

Thenamesh Boxer/Ballerina Au, Thena watches Gil (out of his sight to not distract him) as he trains (let it be a good and serious match) with Ikaris (who is also good) and is pretty impressed how fast, strong and agile he really is.

"He's good."

"Hm," Thena agreed quietly, her eyes glued to the ring as Ikaris and Gil moved around each other. Her hands had been clasped together anxiously since the two of them stepped into the ring.

This was just a friendly match for charity--a friendly match for old time's sake, as they said. Gil was happy to participate for a good cause, and had even cut back on his class hours to train for it in preparation.

She had watched him train a few times; she knew how good he was. But she also couldn't help but wince every time Ikaris got a hit in, the sound of the gloves on their headgear like a ball being slammed against a gym floor at full force.

"I thought you wanted to see this," Sersi smiled, nudging Thena from beside her. The sweet assistant teacher was much more invested in the fight than Thena.

"I said I wanted to support Gil," Thena muttered, shrivelling as Ikaris landed two hits on either side of Gil's head.

"He'll be fine," Sersi attempted to soothe her unusually nervous companion. "You said they were both professionals, and Ikaris isn't here to fight too intensely."

Thena kept in mind the day she had walked in on Gil absolutely wailing on Ikaris for whatever reasons they'd had. She let out a breath as the bell dinged, signalling the end of this and the break before the last round.

Sersi gasped as Gil smiled at them, waving on his way back to his corner.

Thena offered a softer smile, wiggling her fingers in a wave back to him. Her heart leapt as he shook his head, the sweat from his fight making his hair look a special combination of unkempt and cool. She had seen him practice, and she knew his strategy, too.

"I just have to wait for him to get tired out," he had told her with a laugh, as if it didn't mean letting Ikaris lay into him until that point. "He gets real sloppy once he runs out of steam, and that's when to really get him on the ropes--literally!"

Thena sat up even straighter - practically hovering on the edge of the bench - as they stood for their last round. "You can do it, Gil."

He couldn't possibly have heard her whispered encouragement, but he did turn and wave at her again before getting back to it.

Ikaris was panting, having properly tired himself over the course of the first rounds. He had a lithe, wiry figure. A little taller but a little more lean than Gilgamesh. He was all about wide, powerful strikes.

But Gil was a champion of endurance. He could take a few hits to the arms, the shoulders, even his sides. So long as he tempered what headshots came his way, he could outlast most anyone, and that included his old buddy from the pro circuit.

Ikaris made a few swings at Gil, his momentum dragging him around the floor. Gil let him, easily sidestepping and dodging him until his shoulders were sagging.

Gil tossed away Ikaris' strikes easily, the swing of them having decreased in power by at least half. Gil got in close, pulling his elbows in to get in fast but strong lightning shots.

Ikaris stumbled back as Gil bombarded his torso with stingers. He blocked one for every three, maybe, ending up against the ropes of the ring by the time Gil came in with the gut shot.

Gil stood back as Ikaris slumped down onto the floor of the ring. The count was had and his fist was raised in the air.

"And the king takes it!"

The crowd erupted in cheers, some jumping to their feet, everyone clapping at least. Thena clapped as well, leaning against Sersi's shoulder. "Thank goodness."

"I'd hate to see what you'd be like if he'd lost," Sersi giggled. She had known about Thena fancying Gilgamesh for longer than even Thena had, but it was sweet to see the reserved teacher so open about it now.

Thena kept her eyes on Gil as he pulled his headgear off, letting his gloves be taken for him. Those in his corner came over, swarming him with water and buckets and towels. She looked at Sersi, "you should attend to your beau."

Sersi blushed faintly, although her purse was already on her shoulder again. "Are you sure?"

"You go ahead," Thena smiled as Sersi started to rise before her sentence was even over. "Treat him to dinner for his loss."

"Oh, hush," Sersi snickered at her, "you tend to your boyfriend."

Thena smiled, waving again as she finally caught Gil's eyes unobstructed. He gave her that smile of his and she stood, ready to go over to him. She intended to do just that.

#Thenamesh Ballerina/Boxer AU #Gil is definitely a great fighter #and as strong and muscular as he is #I think he'd be really smart in a real fight #half of boxing is getting points and landing hits #Thena...really likes watching him #just like he likes watching her dance #there's a certain beauty to it #and she gets to admire her hot boxer boyfriend so #win/win #Ikaris is a little salty he still can't beat Gil #but it's okay he has Sersi to cheer him up