jinglejangle | •call me out

[It's one thing to consider all the things she would say to Jesse when she caught up with him. It's another thing to be confronted with the reality that he's right there. She's not as prepared as she thought she would be.]

[Her feet start moving, carrying her towards the bar. One step at a time. Literally. Her thoughts feel strangely empty, like there should be words there that she's prepared to say, but there's just nothing. Nothing but the same question that's been running through her mind since the day she started this hunt. She touches a hand to the counter as she slides into the stool next to him.]

Hey Jesse. Been a while. [There's almost a smile on her lips, but it's a bit too strained.] Where've you been?

[He hears the steps approaching and doesn't think much of it - he's bracing himself for a fight more than anything else, is well aware of how notorious he's become, but whoever it is sits next to him.

He's surprised to hear his name, and when he turns to look at the woman it's like being punched in the gut. He'd know an Amari anywhere, and while it's been years there's no forgetting Fareeha. The bright, gifted girl who wanted to be in Overwatch so badly...

She's here, in this shithole of a bar, and for a moment he's at a loss for words. But he smooths it over with a grin, tilting his glass at her.]

Oh, y'know, here and there. Been seein' all the sights I never saw before. [He takes a sip.] Whatchu doin' all the way out here?

Looking for you.

[Her answer comes easy that way that the truth usually does with her. Blunt and direct, and maybe with a hint of accusation that she doesn't mean to be there but is anyway. It's hard to keep it all out of her voice. She hasn't seen the man in years, and he's clearly just as surprised to see her. But she also knows him like a brother, so he's going to have to try harder than that to throw her off.]

Heard you've been making trouble out here, so I thought I'd come see what you've gotten yourself into.

[The barkeep steps over to ask her order, and she puts one down that she has no intention of drink. But it gives her and Jesse more privacy if they're occupied.]

Lil ol' me?

[He says, like he isn't older than Fareeha.

He's not surprised she's heard of him, though. Making international headlines will do that, and he looks a little bit sheepish.]

Y'sure you want to be getting into this?

[Not that he thinks her incapable - she takes after her mother in more than just her looks, after all, and he knows how much work she's put in to get to her station. Still, a part of him doesn't want to risk her getting involved in the dirty work he does.]

Haven't decided that much yet. [After all, she doesn't really know what McCree has been getting up to. Sure, she's read the headlines and the opinions on what might be going on in his head... But it's not the Jesse that she knows. No one knows him like she does--at least, that's what she had thought.]

Thought we could start with the basics, you know? Like why you up and disappeared. No letters or phone calls... Must have been something important. [At least, she hopes it was.]

Fair nuff.

[He sets down his whiskey, resting his chin in his hand.

He's not... Surprised by the question. If he was in her shoes, it's exactly what he'd be wondering. Still, this isn't exactly the time or the place. Seeing Talon - Blackwatch - on the train... He knows they've got eyes and ears everywhere.

But she's clever. She can read between the lines.]

Things were gettin' a bit hot. Decided I needed to take the time to cool off, but turns out I'm no good at stayin' out of trouble.

[There was a darkness he saw, and he couldn't stand for it. It went against everything he believed, the change he'd been trying so hard to make.]

[She could read between the lines, yes... but that didn't mean that she liked the answer. They'd already lost enough of their family. First her mother; then Jack and Gabriel. Then Overwatch disbanded entirely, and it had been heart-wrenching to watch everyone go their separate ways... To watch her family get torn up like that.]

True. You're the worst at staying out of trouble. [The agreement is a grudging one, but she's not ready to not be sore at him. Even if she missed his dumb cowboy charm.] Which is why you should have called. You know any of us would have come to help you. [At least, she would have. In a heartbeat.]

Edited 2020-06-25 00:19 (UTC)

[He knows they would have, and that's the worst part. Overwatch was the closest thing McCree had to a family - Deadlock had been good, had been a home, but it hadn't been much of a family. Not the way Overwatch had been. There weren't people like Reinhardt, or Ana, or Gabriel in Deadlock.

And that's the problem.]

Y'all shouldn't be gettin' your hands dirty for me.

[There it is. That's the Jesse she remembered. The one that always thought so highly of them, but never seemed to notice how brightly he shone, too. Pharah exhales a sigh, wrapping her hands around her drink when it's delivered. The one she said she wasn't going to drink... The one she brings to her lips and takes a gulp of because she doesn't know what else to do with this man.]

And we're supposed to let you dirty yours instead? [A beat of silence.] That's not how family works, Jesse. And you know it.

•call me out

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