Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

As Hanzo began to make the walk towards the communal area adjusting his ponytail as he walked, his mind started to wander considering how he had let himself, a once proud shimada, be coerced into a sleepover of all things, a night away from his warm comfortable bed and even warmer cowboy. Well he knew HOW it happened, the younger members of overwatch had approached or more accurately cornered him with devilish smiles and asked him in saccharine sweet tones and despite his initial staunch refusal to even consider attending such an event it turns out even the feared Hanzo Shimada is no match against Hana songs pleading face and Illari’s quiet sorrowful “please?”. He just couldn't seem to wrap his head around why he had conceded not only to the ‘sleepover’ but to wearing these garish blue monstrosities trying to pass themselves off as pyjamas. A sleepover with the younger agents of overwatch, undoubtedly an event destined to be terribly awkward and full of tension as he tried helplessly to not appear as awkward and strangely intimidated by these children as he clearly is.

As he finally rounded the corner he spotted the gaggle of young adults crowded around each other talking, each of them wearing their own pajamas and holding sleeping things. Hanzo stood observing for a moment considering the consequences of simply turning around and leaving, however before he could commit to his definitely not cowardly plan of running away from a bunch of children, DVA or as she keeps telling him to call her, Hana catches sight of him and excitedly shouts his name causing the others to turn and stare.

“Hanzo!” she says running up to him and grabbing his arm, “we were waiting for you, Illari thought you’d ditched us to do whatever boring thing old archers do!” Before Hanzo could begin to speak Illari spoke up from across the room “I did not doubt that Mr Shimada would honor his word..” this quiet utterance from the young girl made the archer stop suddenly and change his words from a biting sarcastic critique of Hana and her lack of aim upon the battlefield to instead look towards Illari, “thank you..” he softly said towards the young girl. Hanzo had to admit, if only to himself in the deepest parts of his mind, that he rather liked Illari and enjoyed the quiet moments they occasionally spent together, often in the gardens. The outside seemed to bring an often unseen side of Illari out; she seemed more at peace amongst the silent companionship of the slight blue sky and the soft rustling of plants, the slight rays of sun hitting her face as she sits in thought, compared to the rather boisterous and loud personalities that organisations like overwatch often seem to gather it was peaceful and Hanzo felt a long dormant protective flair when faced with Illari and her quiet heartbreak which scares him somewhat.

Whilst he does rather begrudgingly appreciate the other youthful agents, he feels a sense of understanding and compassion towards Illari which is mostly absent in his encounters with the others. “Well come on old man” Hana’s voice cut through the scene and brought Hanzo out of his thoughts and back to his current situation, being dragged towards the group and pushed to sit on the floor whilst still wearing the so-called pajamas and carrying his sleeping supplies under one arm.

Once the older man was seated with his back against the plush couch the younger agents settled into a rough semi-circle around him, as Hanzo looked around and noticed various different pairs of eyes on his form the hair on the back of his neck began to stand on end and he felt a little like he does upon the battlefield, the thrum of energy in the air and the knowledge of eyes staring upon him undoubtedly seeking his vulnerabilities and searching for where best to strike. The only missing sensation was the blood in the air and the feel of the thick, cooper liquid settling upon his skin, painting his body in a collage of pain and suffering, every fleck of scarlet paint adding to the horrific beautiful painting being created upon his body with every notch of an arrow. Yet despite this he still felt more in control and brave there than he does sitting in a circle with people half his age.

Once everybody was settled onto the floor or perched upon a cushion Lucio spoke up, “Okay guys! Sooo the first plan is a complete classic, drumroll please miss song..” he spoke with a flourish of the hand towards Hana who began to drum on her thighs until it eventually crescendoed. “Truth or dare!” the excitable young man said with a whoop. Hanzo immediately made an aborted move to get up and flee before being pinned back into seat by a begging look sent his way by Illari, who was clearly as out of her element and anxious as Hanzo himself if not probably more . He was suddenly frozen, this girl, quiet, kindhearted and damaged, was looking to him for something akin to reassurance. As bad as an idea it is to rely on him, Hanzo can’t let someone who's looking towards him with a request to simply stay and reassure them down again, not after all the effort he’s putting in to forgiving himself and repairing his relationship with Genji. So against his better judgement he stayed, sat down and looked towards Lucio again.

“So i'm not sure how we should decide who goes first” Lucio admitted, Kiriko immediately shot her hand up, looking unfairly, extremely comfortable in her matching pajamas curled up in brigette’s arms who was wearing the matching pair to Kiriko's pajamas, “Oh Oh Oh!!” she exclaimed. “This isn't a classroom Kiriko, you don't need to raise your hand” Lucio chuckled out towards the excitable young woman. “Oh fuck yeah, uhh I mean we can just go from the oldest goes first” she suggested with a devilish smirk upon her misleadingly innocent face, Hanzo immediately rubbed at his temples feeling a migraine already forming, imagining an entire night spent with these fully grown adults who are suspiciously childlike. “I personally love that idea Kiri!” Hana agreed with nod of her head, there was a murmured sound of agreement from around the round room and Hanzo could already feel his hair getting grayer and as much as Cassidy said he loved his gray hairs Hanzo was loathe to get more from something as petty as what will undoubtedly be a rigged game of truth and dare. “Fine” Hanzo acquiesced. “Am I asking someone or being asked?” he questioned, from the questioning glances passed between the group he guessed that his lack of a fight had thrown them for a loop, he inwardly smirked glad that he was still able to be surprising even at his age.

Surprisingly Brigitte was the first to recover and looked at him from across the circle her auburn hair tied into loose braids, clearly done hastily, and said “Truth or Dare Mr Shimada” as Kiriko nudged her partner in the ribs with an admonishing “Oh don't call him a Mr, he’ll get a complex”. As the exchange was taking place hanzo was weighing his options, he could pick truth and potentially be asked something terribly embarrassing or pick dare and do something equally as embarrassing, so truly there was no way that he was winning this exchange. He decided to simply bite the bullet and throw out a quiet “If I must choose then I suppose I shall choose truth” a loud “Boooo!” was thrown out from the crowd but it didn't take a genius to gather who had done it judging by Hana’s little smirk.

Once it was quiet enough again Brigitte took a second to consider Hanzo’s imminent verbal execution. Humming and hawing, tapping her finger against her chin, once Kiriko whispered into her ear though a fire lit in her umber eyes, “Hanzo, have you ever….” she trailed off looking towards Kiriko and at her nod she continued, “..had sex with another overwatch agent”, the young squire began to blush and hid her face in Kiriko’s shoulder as said girl began to laugh hysterically, bending over clutching her stomach and wiping tears from her eyes. As Hanzo surveyed the rest of the cohort of delinquents pretending to be overwatch agents he saw most everyone is in a similar state to Kiriko, clearly finding the idea of the reserved, grumpy archer being in a relationship or even more outlandishly having a simple fling. The only outlier to the hysterics was Illari who despite sporting a small smile was showing no outward laughter, the sight only hardened Hanzo’s resolve as embarrassing as this night would undoubtedly be he wasn't going to let that stop him.

Once everybody had calmed down a modicum Hanzo decided this was his opportunity to strike, with the same deadly precision he uses to wield storm bow he declares, “yes I have, do I get more points if I admit to having slept with more than one?” as he finishes talking a second of stunned silence shrouded the previously raucous group before a litany of shouts and questions began anew, “The question did not say I had to name the other parties involved” he smugly remarks as all five voices began to ask the same questions over each other of, who, when and a loud “what the fuck!?” from Kiriko.

“I suppose it is my turn to ask?” Hanzo stated smugly, “and I believe that if we follow the oldest to youngest idea, then Lucio truth or dare?”. Lucio looked around the group nervously before finally landing on Hanzo “Dare I suppose” he chuckled uneasily. Hanzo took a minute to pretend to consider his options before landing on saying “Hmm, let Hana have access to one of your social media accounts for let's say 10 minutes?” he looked at lucio with a gleeful smirk as Lucio exclaimed “10 minutes!? What about like 5?! Please..” he asked with pleading eyes towards Hanzo. As Hanzo considered his pleading frame he said a simple serene, “No, the rules are the rules”. Lucio sorrowfully fished into his pocket and handed his phone to Hana as though sending it to the executioner. Hana received it with a smug look, however Hanzo didn't miss the reassuring look she sent to Lucio and how the DJ relaxed in response.

Once Lucio had released his phone from his person he turned towards Brigitte who was somehow more entangled with Kiriko than the last time Hanzo had looked. “Truth or dare” he asked with a lingering sour expression from the loss and potential imminent implosion of his career. Brigitte looked up from her hushed conversation with Kiriko as if suddenly being reminded that they were playing a game and let out an awkward giggle before answering with a hesitant “dare..?”. In an instant Lucio's bad mood shifted and he got a gleeful look within his eyes, “well than I dare you to…. Sit on the opposite side of the circle from Kiri for lets say.. 15 minutes”. At that Brigitte looked up with clear sadness in her eyes yet she stood without argument and untangled from her girlfriend and moved to sit next to Hanzo instead. Hanzo reached out and patted her shoulder with a sincere look saying “you shall survive you are strong and will return to each other once more”, as he looked at Brigitte he heard a small giggle from his left where Illari was sat and let his own lips quirk up slightly in response. Glad that the young woman was happy.

Soon everybody had been dared or answered a question - none as embarrassing as hanzo’s he noticed- and for the final go it was apparently unanimously decided that it should be Hanzo again, Kiriko always being one to take an opportunity decided to speak up “soo Hanzo..truth or dare” she declared with a simper. Hanzo sighed and said drearily, “does it really matter which I choose?” Kiriko answered the question with a simple smug shake of her head and hanzo bite the bullet to say “fine dare” a brief flicker of disappointment flew across the gathered audiences faces but the young fox wielder snapped back swiftly and retorted with “well then smart man, I dare you to give us a list of who you slept with!”.

Despite Hanzo having a suspicion that this dare was against the unspoken rules of truth and dare he had an even stronger suspicion that even if he protests it wouldn’t change the outcome. And so he decided to simply answer in the least clear way he could. “Well the first person I was involved with in Overwatch was when I was younger, I believe he now goes by… soldier 76?I then briefly had a fling with baptiste, then I believe the next was the large german man reinhardt is his callname I think. Must I continue or is this shortened list acceptable” he looked around the room as he stopped reminiscing and took in the gawking and horrified faces before deciding to finish the job and really blow their minds “oh I should probably mention cassidy, we have been together for around 5 months I reckon” in reality Hanzo knew exactly how long he and cole had been together but that was for him and his cowboy to know. The previously stunned silence in the room suddenly exploded with this newest development as the others surrounding Hanzo suddenly found their voices. Hanzo decided he was finished listening to the yelling and stood suddenly before turning to a quiet Illari and asking “shall we set up the games whilst they finish their freakouts?” The quiet woman stood with a small snigger and a nod before walking away with the archer.

Chapter Text

Hanzo and Illari settled next to each other near the copious amount of gaming systems in the base courtesy of one Hana song, Hanzo decided to not even attempt to turn on any of the consoles despite that being his excuse to evacuate with Illari. Whilst he knew he was talented he was also realistic and understood his limitations, plus he didn't want to deal with Hana’s rage if he broke something

- Again -

So instead while the others got over their shock and grabbed an astonishing amount of junk food for the small amount of people here he turned towards Illari again.
“How did you get talked into attending this affair?” Hanzo enquired curiously, Illari’s gaze was downcast and she looked almost embarrassed as she began to shyly admit, “well I wasn’t going to come to this originally, I just didn’t want to interrupt or i'm not sure.. insert myself into their group when they were probably just being polite inviting me”

Hanzo considered the young woman as she seemed to get lost in her own thoughts and self deprecation, once she stopped to finally suck in a breath Hanzo put a hand on her shoulder and caught her eye, brown meeting brown, he felt his eyes crinkle in the corners as he tried to smile reassuringly at her “trust me…they would not extend an invitation to someone out of pity, if they invited you it is because they want you here”. Illari stayed looking into his eyes for a moment, searching maybe for a hint of lies or maybe just to absorb his words.
Hanzo glanced away with a small grin and added “I may be an exception though I believe I am simply here for you young people to make fun off and run circles around me so if anybody is here due to pity it is not you Illari”. At this Illari’s face suddenly hardened almost imperceptibly and she firmly countered Hanzo’s statement

“You are here because we enjoy your company, even from the little I have heard all of us here do. Hana enjoys how you will fight and bicker with her whilst still being somewhere safe for her, she talks about you like a sister would.” Hanzo tried to interrupt her sudden impassioned defense of him to himself but couldn't get a word in before Illari started once more. “Lucio enjoys that he doesn't need to keep up his loud and energetic persona around you 24/47 that he is able to simply exist quietly without pressure, Kiriko has apparently missed you for years but she hasn't felt as though she could come to you and admit that until recently and now she is delighting in seeing you becoming more open and happy”.

Illari suddenly cut herself off and looked around almost checking for listening ears and then continued in a noticeably quieter voice, “and I feel comfortable around you, you don't judge me for where i've come from or what i've done, i know that the others say they don't but i know that you can’t, we have both made mistakes we have both spilled the blood of those we love and we can both never quite get back what is lost - but when you sit quietly with me it lets me see a future past the grief and darkness of my actions. So no, we wanted you here because of who you are, not as a joke”

“Brigitte likes you simply because of how Kiriko talks about you, but she also apparently enjoys when you are tuning your legs in the workshop with her, the conversation and comfortable silence makes her content,".Hanzo looked away from the young girl and attempted to discreetly wipe his eyes, he turned back towards the damaged but not broken young woman and responded with a slight hoarseness to his voice, “thank you Illari, your words mean a lot to me and I hope you know that I also enjoy your company brings me peace”

As the conversation lulled into silence Hanzo reflected on her words as the rest of the group bustled around him paying no mind to the internal storm brewing within the archer, if only Cole was not so insistent on him ‘feeling his feelings’ and not ‘bottling everything up until it explodes and he kills someone’ he could have gotten through the sudden onslaught of feelings and the such without losing his carefully maintained calm.

Hanzo looked around as the others began to settle into seats, with him and Illari taking up the main portion of the couch Hana and Lucio pushed the beanbags together and curled up next to each other with a multitude of different controllers in hand.

Hanzo’s eyes roamed the rest of the room before landing on Kiriko and Brigitte or atleast what he thinks is them, in all honesty the pile of limbs intertwined on the nearest other seat could be anyone but looking closer at the matching pajamas and clasped hands it was certainly them.

After hanzo had finished cataloguing where everybody was settled Hana dropped the various controllers onto the ground in front of her before clambering up from her beanbag and once she had all eyes on herself she announced,

“Cause we’re an even numbered group we can do groups of two! So everyone gets a turn to be dominated by yours truly” she proclaimed with a hand upon her chest, eyes half closed and a cocky smirk on her face. A collective groan and roll of the eyes seemed to travel around the room in response to the cocky woman's words.

Lucio got to his feet to stand shoulder to shoulder with the woman and confidently said “I’m with Hana obviously” Hanzo turned and caught Kiriko’s eyes both of them trying to hold in uncharacteristic giggles, the longer they stared into each others faces, their mouths morphing into smiles. Before the dam finally broke.

The two of them burst into uncontrollable laughter, their stomachs contorting and smiles stretching out of control. Before Hanzo could regain his composure Kiriko turned to a confused lucio and in between chortles managed to squeeze out “so you’ve, finally admitted it, huh froggy?”

At this Hanzo let out a completely undignified and embarrassing snort causing everyone's eyes to turn from the red faced Lucio towards him as he covered his face and tried to calm down before talking, turning to Kiriko and remarked “this is just like Genji and what was her name, when we were younger. Chasing tail but never committing the little player”

At the unusual comment from the archer Kiriko’s laughter renewed as she collapsed further into Brigitte who was looking at the scene with soft eyes. Hanzo turned towards Illari, still sporting a smile which softened upon seeing the younger woman's own nervous and shaky smile. He reached out with a hesitant hand, pausing slightly before he made contact, suddenly doubting himself. Before with a renewed sense of confidence he pushed past his doubts.

Placing a hand on Illari’s shoulder causing her to turn towards him, her eyes still doubtful and nervous, he smiled softly at her before murmuring “are you feeling okay?” Illari nodded swiftly, her hair shaking as she nodded with such ferocity. Hanzo narrowed his eyes as he considered the damaged woman.

“You're not okay, I can tell”

As Illari’s face fell, Hanzo swiftly added “but you will be okay, you do not have to laugh or feel happy now, it will come with time. The darkness will fade, not disappear but clear…slowly. Like a thick fog, slowly receding and whilst there will be times that it returns it will always dissipate someday, you will be able to breath and laugh easier trust me”

Illari slowly looked into Hanzo’s eyes and nodded at a slower pace. “Normally I wouldn't believe a person if they told me that, but I feel like if anyone would know it is you, so uh thank you”, Hanzo smiled softly and patted her shoulder before Hana cleared her throat and the room quieted down again.
“So I imagine we already have our teams correct?” Kiriko and Brigitte nodded in scarily perfect unison as Lucio stared up at Hana from his spot lounging on the bean bag with hearts in eyes and a simpering smile spreading on his cheeks as the gamer set up the console.

Hanzo turned to Illari and with a shrug of his shoulders exclaimed “seem’s it's you and me left sunshine, I will apologise now as I doubt I will be much help with these games”. Illari stared up at the chuckling archer with a gleam in her eyes “sunshine?” she asks with a smile.

Hanzo seemed to suddenly realise what he had said, his eyes widening and a subtle blush spreading over his cheeks, “I uh let’s just ignore that I said that shall we?”. Illari smirked, one of, if not the biggest grin Hanzo had ever seen grace the Peruvian's face. Despite his flushed face he couldn’t help feeling proud of her, smiling and laughing even if it is at his expense.

“Let’s go lose at video games then shall we sunshine”, may as well own it, if it makes her laugh…

The still slightly flushed archer and smirking medic stood together and grabbed their controllers, Hana shot them both a cocky smirk “get ready to lose”. Hanzo shot a look towards Illari, raising an eyebrow and turning to walk back to their seats, he heard Illari turn with and fall into step beside him.

As they settled back down together Hanzo handed a controller over to Illari with a grimace, “I was not joking before, I do truly believe I am terrible at these” Hanzo admitted sheepishly. Illari looked downwards towards her controller, grasped firmly in her hands, finger tips going white. “It’s okay, I’ll also most likely be horrendous” she admitted with a shake of her head. Her already messed up hair is coming further undone from her normally neat braid.

As they collapsed further with each other Hanzo examined the controller held firmly within his bow worn, callous riddled hands. Turning it this way and that, getting used to the familiar yet distant feel of the joysticks and D-pad, the hours spent watching Genji use these whilst he trained and worked himself into the ground. Fruitlessly fighting and striving to be better, trying to touch the goal post that's constantly shifting and moving further away from him.

The sudden loud sound effects coming from the TV stopped his spiralling as he began to focus on the task at hand, not horrendously embarrassing himself in front of everyone here. “-and that’s how you play!” he heard Hana finish explaining, that would have probably been useful for him to hear. Hanzo grimaced to himself, well at least he could try to pick up on the basic’s watching the others play. He glanced over to Illari, the young woman holding the controller with trepidation looking like it may bite her. Compared to the others holding them with such familiarity it reminded Hanzo of when Genji would wear him down enough to play with him. He leaned into her and conspiritally whispered “do you have any idea how to do this, because if not I fear we are completely and wholly screwed sunshine” Illari looked at him “well then we are most definitely screwed” she said resolutely, “sarcastic is a good look on you” he quipped with a smile.

The musical lilt indicating the beginning of the game snapped the two of them out of their conversation and they concentrated on the game. Hana and Lucio had the same look in their eyes as they do on the battlefield, concentration and resolve evident in their gazes. In comparison the pile of limbs holding controllers known as Kiriko and Brigitte looked half asleep already, barely bothering to spare a glance towards the screen. But knowing Kiriko she will still somehow win.

The game was over in a blink of an eye, Hanzo was left reeling it felt as though he had pressed at most 10 buttons in time Hana had hit at least 70, judging by Illari's face she was feeling something similar. Hanzo decided to speak up to protect both of their sanities, “this feels distinctly unfair to those of us with hobbies outside of a television screen” Hana spun around with a smug glint in her eyes, “well anything is unfair when you challenge the DVA!” the korean said striking her usual DVA pose, you could almost see the sparkles radiating off her.

Illari turned to Hanzo and proposed “well if it is useless to even attempt to beat THE dva shall we go to the kitchen?” Hanzo smiled nodding serenely and grabbed Illari’s outstretched hand and pulled himself off the sofa, feeling the creak of his prosthetics and the familiar sting in his lower back. He occasionally has to remind himself that ageing is a privilege, even if it is bullshit.

Chapter Text

Once standing straight again the two of them walked into the kitchen and managed to hold the smiles until out of sight from the wonder twins of gaming. Illari leaned against the sprawling countertop chuckling under her breath as she ran her hand through her disheveled hair, unbraiding her normally neat and uniform style.

As the woman began to rebraid her hair Hanzo looked around the usually bustling kitchen which for the first time he could remember was quiet and empty. He turned towards Illari, who was tying her braid off and with a confused look questioned “where is everybody else? The kitchen is never this quiet”. Illari looked around the kitchen, noticing the lack of people and usual noise coming from multiple conversations occurring at once.

Humming and quipping “they probably got scared off by all the screaming”. Hanzo chuckled rubbing his tired eyes with his hand, pinching the bridge of his nose and looking upwards towards the ceiling, “I am definitely to old for all this excitement these days”

He was feeling extremely tired considering how late he usually can stay awake for, being a sniper means he has spent days on roofs just watching and waiting but a few hours around this lot had his eyes drooping as though there were weights dragging his eyelids down and they got heavier every time he opened them again, his prosthetics rubbing him annoyingly.

God was he getting old

Illari looked up and down, categorising hanzo with a scrutinising eye. “Your legs, they are hurting aren't they” sometimes Hanzo forgot the young woman was a medic and quite a proficient one at that, she is still so young he struggles to think of her as the strong professional medic she is.

“I will be fine, they have felt worse” Hanzo swung himself off the counter and turned towards the piles of junk food gathered by the others earlier and definitely not in an attempt to move the conversation forward and away from himself he began to reorganise the piles and put some of the unmanageable amount of food back away, don't want anyone getting a heart attack from eating the 7 packets of ‘Sour Strips Xtreme’ at once.

Illari placed a hand on his shoulder stopping him as he reached up to put another tub of chocolate away, he turned his face towards her as he continued to stretch, inwardly cursing whoever made this kitchen with only weirdly tall people in mind. As he continued to stretch, tiptoeing to try to gain the last inch or two of height to reach the blasted top shelf. As his fingertips finally brushed the surface and he managed to slip the tub up, the pain in his legs shifted from the usual ignorable ache that comes after a long day to a stabbing pain coursing through his lower half, like a burning in his veins. The sound of blood rushed to his ears muffling whatever comment Illari was making.

Hanzo tilted his head back hissing through clenched teeth, he reached out and leaned onto the counter pressing his weight into the firm surface trying to alleviate some of the anguish running through his lower half. Hanzo took some deep breaths trying to clear his mind and ears he knew Illari was talking to him he just needed to concentrate and listen. He tensed his fingers and gripped the counter top, his knuckles turning white under the strain.

The pain emanating from his fingers, lighter and not as all encompassing, helped to distract him enough to finally hear what Illari was saying to him. “It’s okay, just try to breathe”, for the first time hanzo noticed the tightness of his chest and tried to suck a breath in through a pinhole throat, not enough, he couldn't get enough air. He could feel tremors running up his arms like a ripple running through him, weakening him.

Illari’s warm hand pressed to his chest broke through the shroud of pain clouding and smothering him “breath with me Hanzo, you are not going to die, you can breathe.” hanzo nodded shakily trying again to suck in a breath, with the grounding weight of a hand on his chest he managed to take a shallow breath “deeper Hanzo copy me, copy my breathing”

Hanzo finally heard the deep breathing of another and his mind automatically began trying to match the rhythm in his own body. As his breathing slowed the pain coursing through him took over the forefront of his mind again, he turned to Illari and with a strained voice reassured the young woman “im okay…. im okay, sorry” he cast his gaze away from Illari’s searching eyes.

Illari shook her head at his apologies and wrapped an arm around the archer, “let's get you sitting down, come on. Lean on me” Hanzo began to slowly transfer his weight, cautiously leaning on the medic before beginning the slow shuffle into the other room.

As the pair stepped into the room the sound of laughter and shouting cut out, with Kiriko and Brigitte leaping up and aiming a barrage of questions towards the two. Illari shook her head and told the pair to get the sofa clear of wrappers and gaming controllers so they could get Hanzo sitting down.

Once hanzo was near the sofa he gingerly lowered himself down, letting out a sigh of relief once he was sitting. Illari stood in front of him and firmly said “we need to get your prosthetics off, or the pain is going to continue growing” her tone of voice and steely eyes left no room for arguments. When she began to reach for his legs however Hanzo still flinched back, bringing his legs out of her reach. “At Least let me do it myself” his voice was still weak and a touch warbly.

He reached down and began to make the familiar motions of undoing his legs, before finally detaching them. Over his own pained breath he heard everyone else in the room also sharply breath in a choir of sympathy, Hanzo’s least favourite sound unfortunately.

He spared a glace down towards his stump, seeing the inflamed and red skin surrounding where the prosthetic and skin meet. Hanzo wasn’t that worried as his legs had definitely looked and felt worse. Looking around the room however it seemed like the younger individuals did not share his thoughts on the subject.

Hana looked pale, which makes sense as the only person in the room other than him that isn't a medic. Said medics however seemed to have congregated in a huddle and from what Hanzo could overhear from his position they seemed to be discussing what to do now. After a few minutes of hushed discussion about him Hanzo finally spoke up, “if you are going to discuss me it is usually polite to do so out of earshot”

A majority of the gaggle at least had the decency to look embarrassed at the callout. “It is not the worst it has ever been, I simply need some painkillers and maybe a heating pack. I obviously need to make some adjustments later”, hanzo looked around at the tight faces of the young agents, clearly unsure about the legitimacy of his claims. “Listen once it becomes this painful there is not much to do other than wait and keep it out of the prosthetic”.

After another moment of silence Illari nodded and her gaze relaxed a modicum, “well we can at least help to distract you and keep you company until you are able to move again”. The others perked up at the mention of doing something and being able to help him. Whilst he wasn't usually comfortable with this pity he should probably accept it this time. He can't exactly walk away from it anyway, considering that his legs are on the other side of the room.

With a sigh he acquiesced to his current situation, “well you will have to find an activity that I can do without standing or moving all that much”. As Hana and Lucio began to turn off the consoles that were playing a light background music during the conversation, Kiriko and Brigitte began talking to each other quietly; Kiriko looking slightly distressed.

Before the guilt simmering in Hanzo's gut could boil over, Illari reentered the room. Hanzo startled slightly, not having noticed that the woman had even left. She knelt down next to Hanzo and dropped her armful of supplies, holding some painkillers and heating packs clearly gathered from the nearby first aid kit. “I'll grab you something to take the painki-” before she could finish her sentence hanzo threw his head back and swallowed two tablets dry.

Illari blinked a couple of times before smiling tightly and asking “are you okay, genuinely?” hanzo nodded, lifting the corners of his mouth trying to reassure the anxious woman. “Im am fine now, thank you… you should probably go and make sure that don't propose Just Dance or something” illaris head dropped towards her chest making strands of her dark hair cover her face, her shoulders shaking almost imperceptibly as she let out a deep exhale and began to chuckle.

She placed her hands on her legs and pushed herself up with a groan, leaving hanzo alone as she wandered away to corral the troublemakers.

Once alone again Hanzo let out a deep sigh and clenched his eyes closed as he waited for what was for sure going to feel like an eternity for the painkillers to begin working their magic.

Once he opened his eyes once more he noticed in his peripheral vision Kiriko, studying him with a cautious eye; most likely doubting the validity of his claim of being all right. Tired of her observing, unnerving gaze he gestured her over patting the cushion next to him.

Kiriko ventured over towards him, nervous like a baby deer walking towards a wolf. Before settling next to him, still looking concerned, Hanzo shuffled closer to her as well as he could in his current state.

“Why do you look so scared?” Kiriko cast her gaze away from his face, “are you certain you will be okay? Your legs look…. bad” she quietly murmured with a frown, fiddling with her fingers looking uncharacteristically nervous and unsure.

“Well they definitely hurt I won't lie but i've felt way worse, don't worry”

“I just didn't know that it gets like that, I thought you did regular maintenance?” the young woman queried. “The technology is quite dated and to be entirely honest I'm not exactly able to update them, I need my legs.”

Kiriko’s brow furrowed slightly, the young woman clearly in thought before she peered around the room catching a glimpse of red hair and smiling before turning back towards the archer.

“You know, Brigitte would be totally up for helping you upgrade them. I could even ask her for you! Her dad would also help no doubt.” hanzo smiled softly at the enthusiastic woman “that would still leave me legless, it's very kind of you to offer but-” Kiriko let out a sharp noise, cutting Hanzo off.

“You are safe here Hanzo, obviously your precious cowboy would relish the opportunity, but pretty much everyone on base would be completely willing and happy to help.” she peered up at the archer, puppy eyes on clear display, clearly moments away from begging. “Let us help you, you can be totally in charge of how your legs get updated but please I don't like seeing my friends in pain”

Letting out a deep sigh hanzo cast his gaze towards his legs leaning against the end of the couch, taking in the frayed wires and worn down metal, before turning back towards Kiriko and matching her gaze towards the others milling around and talking amongst each other, noticing Hana and Lucio giggling at something on the woman's phone, brigitte making eyes at Kiriko and blushing when Kiriko meets her eyes. Before finally landing on Illari sitting a distance away from the others and staring at the two sitting on the floor, quietly keeping guard.

Finally turning back towards Kiriko “I’ll think about it.” Kiriko blinked at him before breaking out in a blinding smile and jumping on Hanzo wrapping him in a tight grasp, shaking him back and forth before gasping slightly and jumping back looking worried.

“Oh shit. Sorry, are you okay? God, sorry” Hanzo chuckled before reassuring Kiriko “Its okay dont worry”. Kiriko breathed out a sigh of relief before more gently putting her arm around his shoulder.

After a few more minutes of discussion between the two, everyone else began to meander towards the huddle.

Once everyone was nearby Hana excitedly began explaining with swift hand movements. “Okay me and Lucio were brainstorming and we have decided that we are going to do a sleepover classic, makeovers!”

Chapter Text

In a blink of an eye Hanzo was turned around, his back facing Hana as the young woman began to gently untie his hair. The mech pilot clearly still rattled by the proceedings was taking her time to run her lithe fingers through Hanzo’s locks until it settled against his neck, covering his face and obscuring his view with a curtain of ink dark hair already being manoeuvred in Hana’s hands and parted in the beginnings of a braid.

In front of him Kiriko came into view holding a plethora of different nail polishes, an excited grin splitting her cheeks in such a wide beaming smile her jaw was sure to be aching sooner rather than later.

As Hanzo felt Hana begin to twist his hair into what feels like a fairly complicated braid. Add that to the list of the young woman's ever growing talents. His vision was slowly becoming more and more clear as his hair was pulled out of his face and tucked into the braid.

As Hanzo’s vision was cleared again he saw Kiriko studying the wild amount of nail polishes in her container comparing two practically identical green ones before casting them aside and beginning to examine a bottle of obviously loved and well used maroon, chips of paint coating the lid and mostly empty.

The woman held the bottle up to the light, swirling it around the bottle seemingly judging something beyond Hanzo’s understanding as he was still trying to calm the burning in his legs as the painkillers kicked in.

Kiriko brought the nailpolish up towards hanzo’s eye line before grabbing his hand and starting to turn it, judging whether her choice would suit him.

She squinted her eyes before nodding confidently and beginning to unscrew the cap of her chosen polish.

Once the cap was off and the strong scent began to assault hanzo's senses he felt a sharp stab of pain running through his scalp before in the next instance Hana was leaning on his shoulder looking into his face and already spouting apologies.

Looking at her face taking in her features and noticing how much younger the girl seemed not made up in her usual makeup and face paint she used whilst streaming. He let out a low chuckle, his chest rumbling with the deep sound.

“No worries, my scalp was handled worse in my youth, my mother had a gentle hand for all but hair care” still looking concerned Hana’s face disappeared back behind him.

Slowly beginning to pick up the braid she had started previously, Hana curiously peeked out from around his back to cop a peek at the nail polish Kiriko was beginning to apply to his first hand, his nails finally up to her standards.

Hanzo was beginning to feel like a primped poodle as Hana began to incorporate the ribbons she seemingly procured from thin air and Kiriko started on the next hand, looking more serene and relaxed then she has in awhile, as her hand kept making methodical strokes up and down to his nail bed to the tip of his fingers she looked, happy.

The glossy sheen of the polish catching the lights shined and appeared glossy as Hanzo's hand was manoeuvred by Kiriko the older archer deciding that complying and simply allowing himself to be all made up would be easier.

He doesn't enjoy it……. Not at all.

Hana’s fingers suddenly snap uncomfortably close to Hanzo’s ear, she makes a gesture towards Kiriko and then points towards the pile of supplies she gathered before beginning.

Tilting his head back and looking at Hana to try and puzzle out why the woman isn't talking and instead choosing to poorly mime out her requests. As he noticed the bright woman clenching another hairband between her lips, gathering sections of Hanzo’s hair to pin up.

The sight of this couldn't help but remind Hanzo of a mostly forgotten memory, him but a child sitting upon his mother's lap as she was braiding his hair, weaving decorations and intricate designs into the young boy's scalp. A rare moment unsullied by expectations.

Just soft hands, affection and quiet conversations.

His father did promptly return with a handful of elders, commanding Hanzo’s mother to remove the braids. Once his hair was undone the moment was over, the warm bubble popped. The warm hands of a mother can only chase away a chill for so long.

Hanzo felt a tap on his shoulder and blinked rapidly, clearing his vision and listening to Hana as she asked if he liked his new hairstyle.

Running his calloused hand over the intertwining braids, the soft flow of his hair contrasting and catching on the worn skin of a man who lived rough multiple times. He felt the braids twist and meld together before meeting at the bottom.

Intricate designs done by skillful fingers.

“So not to uh bring up earlier convos but-” Kirikos eyes darted towards Hana behind Hanzo’s head, there was a huff of warm air tickling his newly finished braid as the young women tried to chuckle discreetly at what was sure to be a prying question.

“There were a lot of conversations tonight, I'll need some more context kiri.” hanzo admonished the young yokai.

“Well it kinda seemed like you got uh ‘busy’ when you were younger huh?” she laughed with a devious smirk and a dangerous glint in her normally kind eyes, fingers still curling in her from her quotation marks. Hanzo had a slip of a smile on his face, the smallest slither of canine teeth poking out onto his lips creating a dimple in plush lips.

“Well after a life of living by the clans laws and expectations once I had left, I may have decided to regain the experiences I lost out on”. As hanzo talked he got lost in his memories, some good some bad and a select few great.

He glanced back towards the young woman and saw a myriad of emotions flash on the youthful faces. He smiled softly and began to recount experiences and stories making a conscious decision to stay clear of the harder times, where the beauty and joy of life became overshadowed and hard to see through the hunger, pain and loneliness.

The first time he met a man at a bar and went home with him, emphasising his lack of confidence and moves, how he fumbled through flirting and the embarrassing end of the encounter which led to Hanzo trying to sneak out and tripping over his own legs with his pants still half way up his thighs.

As he continued to narrate his hands flailing and gesturing he noticed the others beginning to tune into the story, heads turning and conversations faltering.

Before long Hanzo had a gaggle of adult women sitting cross legged around him like children listening to a story, looking nothing like the capable women they were outside of this comfortable, warm bubble they've created.

Eventually Hanzo faltered in his storytelling, fumbling over his words and struggling to remember details. However a quick glance around the impromptu storytime circle showed dropping eyes, Kiriko and Brigitte curled around each other in a mess of limbs; the swede beginning to drool onto her girlfriends shoulder.

The only one still showing signs of lucidity was Illari, sitting a shoulder's length away from Dva who had collapsed onto a pillow resting upon Lucio’s lap. Her hair though ruffled was still pinned back and her almond eyes whilst dimmed and tired still seemed focused on Hanzo’s words.

Making eye contact with the Peruvian Hanzo gestured around the circle of sleeping people and whispered, “seems that we are the last ones standing then”, Illari blinked slightly and looked around the room and noticed the sleeping forms of her teammates and with a surprised look on her oval face, “shame, I was enjoying hearing about you losing a game of chess to a man with a pigeon” she spoke quietly.

Hanzo nodded in agreement “that is a good story, the pigeon actually played the winning move, i'll finish it for you one day” he spoke as humour filled his eyes.

The archer began to stretch and made an aborted gesture to stand before seemingly remembering his legs were leaning against the other seat. Illari, noticing his gaze, stood smoothly and picked up the prosthetics before depositing the limbs next to the man.

Smiling in thanks he began to refasten and attach his legs, rolling on his liners and checking the port before clicking it into place, wincing slightly and turning his leg checking for issues before hefting himself up and wobbling slightly before he managed to regain his stability he felt a slender hand hold softly yet firm and stabilising him, once steady the sensation on his arm left leaving behind only a slight remnant of heat.

Looking around the group Hanzo turned back towards the young girl and smiled faintly, just a small uptick of his lips, before whispering “we should probably clear up some of the mess and get them all into more comfortable positions” Illari only nodded grimly a facade of steely resolve typically reserved for battle. “I understand, I don't think anyone on base could handle Hana if she woke up with a sore neck.”

Soon after the pair began a silent mission to clear a small amount of the mess left in the wake of the overexcited group and begin to softly and carefully manoeuvre the young soldiers into more sustainable and comfortable sleeping positions.
With a talent honed over years of practice Hanzo slowly began to shuffle Hana backwards and off of the DJ’s thigh laying her straight back on a pillow laid out by illiari in preparation.

Once the gamer was settled he turned his attention towards the young man slumped over, sleeping upright and began to gently lay him next to his partner. In an instance once he was laid out next to Hana the pair began to shuffle together in their sleep, quickly ending up curled together soft breath mingling.

Hanzo and Illari looked at the pair then to each other with knowing smiles, those two are not subtle.