aperture_high | jesse mccree meets his new dads

jesse mccree meets his new dads

[Most solitary confinements, McCree imagined, would be dark isolating places. A place you were supposed to hang your head in shame, sit in a corner and think about all the bad and terrible things you've ever done. (He's done a lot, to be fair). Not Overwatch's confinement. The miniature prison was likely built by Torbjörn himself, with cell walls blue and see-through, like four of Reinhardt's shields were boxed together. They were vaguely glowing, as if the light of them was for the express purpose of ensuring he was to be maintained like an animal on display. None of the other gang members were here. Most of them didn't have the misfortune of being captured. He decided the only thing he could do was keep his head held high and wait for the consequences when he was otherwise at the lowest he's ever been.

Deadlock had been hit pretty badly by this, though he didn't think they were dead done. Not yet.

Not a damn thing he could do about it either way. Maybe it was for the best.

His hat darkly obscures much of his face. He smells like sweat, iron and regret. He's got his hands cuffed at his front and been given one piddly chair to sit in the center of his cell, which he occupies by splaying his legs wide out and taking up as much space as he can. The spurs of his boots rest his feet at a comfortable angle for it, and he didn't have to push much to slightly tip legs of his chair. It makes a satisfying clack when he bends his knees forward, loud and echoing down here. Didn't even know exactly where he was--just that he was starting to lose his patience in waiting. If they were going to kill him they would have done it already, he's sure. Clack. He's heard whispers, something about an interview. Maybe a deal, if he had to guess. Clack. Clack. He's not sure how to feel about his prospects at all. He sort of just wishes there was something more lively to look at than these walls.]

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[ Reyes’s voice doesn’t carry all that far, but it has some presence as he enters the room where the big, glowy prison stands. It sounds like he’s talking to someone as he’s walking in, though they’re probably trailing behind him. He’d taken it upon himself to drag this scruffy thing into their establishment, so it’s only natural that he take the first step right? Gotta take this in the right direction right off the bat.

So despite having entered the room mid-dialogue, he suddenly clamps his mouth shut and folds his arms tight across his chest in his usual formidable display. At least, that’s the intent. He doubts an uppity little bandit brat would actually become intimidated, but he’s gotta set the tone. No way he’s going to let him set the pace of this interview (should he even be smart enough to do that).

Ugh, interview is putting it lightly. It’s more like an ultimatum. ]

You're lucky we even let you live at all, kid.

[ He narrows his eyes at him, like he's trying to decide between a bad cop persona or a stern, disappointed father. He's never really done this before, but then again, he's never encountered a kid during a mission that reminded himself of his own younger self. So maybe there's a little bias. ]

[The person Reyes is talking to is instantly recognizable, of course, even as the conversation falls by the wayside as they come upon the cell. Strike Commander Jack Morrison, blue coat and all, trails a few steps behind, but quickly catches up when Reyes comes to a halt in front of the captive. Standing next to each other, the two practically look like night and day, not that Jack is any less intimidating. Just a different kind.

He does, however, seem kind of exasperated, like the conversation they didn't get to finish wasn't exactly a nice one.]

Don't.

[It's chastising--he addresses Reyes with no small amount of exasperation, clearly not thrilled with the fact that he's threatening a kid (or maybe he's just not thrilled with the fact that Reyes brought the kid back at all). But they have dossiers on Jesse McCree. Jack has read them, even though dealing with the Deadlock Gang had been Gabe's responsibility. There's talent and maybe a good (albeit misguided) person, here in front of them in the cell, and he's young. He thinks that maybe they can make this work.

Doesn't mean it's going to be pretty. Jack feels a little dirty just being here, but he's seen what the kid can do.]

We'd like to talk to you, Jesse.

[The hat lifts at the sound of voices and McCree's eyes give Jack a quick once-over and then pass before settling on Reyes. He recognizes the voice. Recognizes the man. Incredibly hard not to when Reyes was in the pit and they were going at it like they both had everything to lose.

Here sat Jesse McCree, 'kid' as he was probably going to be called now, the one who lost. Certainly not without a hell of a fight. McCree cranes his head and looks for any obvious wounds he might have left on the other man. Any grasp of an ego he could take with him to keep company in this stupid cell.

Clack... Clack...

But lord, these two fellows were night and day. Good cop and bad cop, the cliche right down to blondie using his first name while the other demeans him with a cute pet name. He would laugh but only gets as far as a slow smirk before the cuts on his lips and the bruise under his eye reminds him they're there.

Clack.]

Now what, oh what, would the illustrious Overwatch want to talk about with little ol' me?

Edited 2016-07-15 05:54 (UTC)

[ The kid isn't wrong, technically. He's still a part of Overwatch, so he doesn't bother correcting him despite his annoyance. With Jack beside him now, and trying to take control of this little interrogation/interview/ultimatum, he pauses a moment to let whatever he has to first.

He can kind of predict what Jack will bring up, things about Deadlock, what he's going to do from here, then ease into how he's got choices, you're still young- things of that nature. All Gabriel can think about is how much he wants to just smack the brat's smirk right off his face. At least he can see the wounds, how beat up and hopeless the kid is- he'll have to take the offer (while Gabe on the other hand did very well to hide his wounds and pain; years of training kind of takes the edge off on some of the damage he sustains).]

Cut the sass and listen up.

[ Playing Good Cop/Bad Cop is a process, one he doesn't quite care for since it required all this pussyfooting around, but he's not going to interrupt Jack until it's his turn again. ]

[Still, it is incredibly obvious who is Good Cop and who is Bad Cop. It's almost comical how well they fit their roles, and he's sure McCree is having a good laugh to himself, if he's not scared shitless of what's going to happen to him. Which he should be, really. He must know that all of this is going to end poorly.

Well, sort of. Jack is still a little lukewarm on the idea, even though he'd argued alongside Reyes for it in the mission debriefing. As much as he thinks taking on a gang member is a bad idea, he saw McCree during the sting. They can make something of him. Point him in the right direction. Help him do some real good.]

We want to make you an offer.

[It's really not much of an offer. He knows it's wrong, and incredibly unfair to a kid who's likely had a difficult life. Jack tries to remind himself that Overwatch is a much better place to be than Route 66. Hopefully McCree will come to see that, too.]

[The smirk doesn't really fade, like it's there as a polite formality to hide the fact he's mulling on this situation. He's been on the other side of conversations like this before when weapon deals weren't going as smoothly as they should have. We want to make you an offer is just dolled up business talk for this is an ultimatum and don't be stupid about it. Looking at the other facts wasn't comforting; they infiltrated Deadlock and did a bang up job of it. Most of the other gang members were presumably behind bars or frankly dead. McCree saw a lot of bodies drop. They weren't the type to fancy being taken alive and McCree sure as hell fought with that kind of desperation and ferocity. A few got away but... given Overwatch's current string of successes and public favor maybe they'd go after the stragglers.]

Well you came to the right guy.

[They'd be wasting their time and resources if that was the case. Overwatch surely had bigger fish to fry now. He raises his hands in a gesture of offering, even if all he can offer are chained wrists. It's almost mocking.

But hey, if that's what they want, then McCree would be more than happy to feed them some bullshit if that's what they had a taste for.]

If you're lookin' to buy Deadlock brand Propane and Propane Accessories, you just found the best product in town, I tell you what.

"ok, gabe, u can kill him," says jack

"w/ pleasure," says gabe as he punches mccree's head off

[ He figures the kid's been through some shit, and that some of said shit involved going through situations like this all the time- so he's expecting either a favorable answer or something absolutely shitty and childish.

Like that.

Even if he likes to get Jack's goat every now and then through subtle ways, he isn't willing to let Jesse's behavior slide. Only fellow members can mess with other members. You mess with one, you mess with all of us– you're challenging the name, the authority, and if even one perpetrator gets away with it scott-free? Who's to say their image won't falter little by little? That's usually a very military mindset, but it's really not that different if you think about it.

He takes a step forward, shoulders hunched as if he's preparing to smash through the prison with it and glares darkly at the smug-ass cowboy wannabe. Kid's got cajones, that's for sure, but there's no point in showing any sort of admiration for his spunk right now. There's the reality of Jesse's situation, and he has to make sure he knows that so he won't take their offer so lightly. Unlike Jack's line of thinking, Gabe thinks this is much better than being in some ragtag group of misfits, or going to jail, or being released into the world on his own to stir up even more trouble now that he has no direction. Unfair? This is as fair as it gets. ]

You think this is a fucking joke, punk? Making smart-ass remarks like that won't get you far around here, so I'll say this once: You can be tried as an adult, and thrown in jail to rot for who knows how long. Maybe even the rest of your pathetic life.

[ Then he shifts his weight onto one side a little, unfolding one of his arms from his chest and jabbing a thumb towards himself. ]

Or you can bring that sharpshooting to Overwatch and blow off some real steam.

[ Maybe that's not 100% true.... you still gotta work... but hey, gotta make it sound more appealing somehow, right? ]

[Though Jack is much more patient than Gabriel, even he seems a little exasperated by the sass level of someone who really has no business sassing. He knows it's just a defense mechanism, and that McCree is truly powerless in that situation, but that doesn't mean it's any less frustrating.

And it seems to tick Gabe off, too, which is not exactly what Jack wants to happen, because he knows how he gets. He hadn't exactly been in the thick of the fighting, on this one, but he knows that the bruises both Gabe and McCree sport were given by the other. Tense is probably an understatement. He raises a placating hand.]

Reyes.

[There's caution in his voice, like he's tugging on an invisible leash. Maybe that will just make things worse, but Jack already doesn't like where this is going. He'd prefer if this didn't get out of hand, even if that means he has to clarify the deal himself.]

I think you could do some real good with us, Jesse.

[His wrists lower but the smirk stays plastered on his face. He knows he faces a life-time of jail. He's too young for that but looking back on the past barely-two decades of his life he's sure he deserves it. He knew it wasn't a particularly noble or good life; he tried to do right by it in his circumstances, had his own moral codes that still had to be kept in the confines of an amoral life, but it was the only kind of life he knew.

It never crossed his mind it could even be anything else.

Now that it is crossing his mind, the smirk falters. He struggles with what to do with it for a moment which just lends himself to looking a little confused.

It's not like Deadlock was out there murdering or pillaging... they didn't have blood on their hands (most of the time!), they were just moving products so others could go out and do whatever they were going to do with it. Start wars. Stop wars. Protect. Destroy. Save. Kill. Whatever their reasons were, it was never any of Deadlock's reasons. A weapon was just a weapon--only thing that mattered was the hand that used it.

Jesse McCree never really questioned what he'd do if any of that was in his hands. Now he sits here in this jail cell, being presented with this "choice" like he actually has one to make. There's a flash of anger in his eyes, they dart from Jack to Gabe and a sneer starts to form.]

What... going out there? Saving the world? Yeah, sure, sounds great. Fillin' your ranks with ex-gang members to do it. [He half spins in his chair, gesturing to the otherwise empty room, his voice raising a little.] That how you two started out?

[ He doesn't like the way he's being reined back, and with a simple raise of a hand, no less. Bristling a little, he tries to muscle past the line of questioning Jack sets up. He's aware he might be breaking the procedural order of questioning, but he's never really been good at sticking by the book.

The bit where Jesse asks the question goes purposely unanswered. They're the ones asking the questions here, not you, kid. ]

You'll only wish you were just going out there and saving the world. You'll be cleaning up your own damn mess, alongside all the previous misfits that finally found some damn pride in themselves trying to keep order in this world. You'll fit in just fine, kid.

[ He unfurls his arms, trying to keep himself from blowing up at him. At least he looks rather put together on the outside if a bit shouty, but it doesn't take a genius to realize that Reyes is a bit of a hard-ass. ]

[A very large part of him wants to just kind of yell at everyone to stop being completely ridiculous and discuss this very serious situation like adults, but he also knows that's far too much to hope for. McCree and Reyes are both too riled up from the fight, so he has to be both Good Cop and the voice of reason. Throwing this kid in prison for the rest of his life is something Jack doesn't necessarily want to do, but he can see McCree choosing that option just to spite Gabe.

He would rather that didn't happen.

So he's quick to step in again, this time sort of physically inserting himself between the two men, even though there's already a hard light jail cell to do that for them. Reyes might not want to dignify McCree with an answer to the question, but Jack will. He speaks calmly, deliberately. Maybe he sounds a little like a disappointed parent.]

That's not how we started out.

[Obviously. Everyone knows their story, sort of. Maybe not the more classified details of being government experiments. McCree is just trying to get under their skin.]

And this is not something we usually offer. [He'll just dispel the notion that they take in criminals on the regular right then and there. McCree is, apparently, worth the risk.] Trust me when I say the authorities would like nothing more than to see you in maximum security prison for the rest of your life.

[We're on your side, is what he's trying to say. Even though he's a criminal. Jack is willing to put in the time, effort, and resources to rehabilitate this kid. Give him another option. Let him make something of himself.]

Which is fine by us, if that's what you want. This is your choice.

[McCree sighs loudly and slumps in his chair--the very epitome of teenage vindication. It's not like he really has a choice here, even if they're framing it like he does. What kind of idiot is going to go and shoot themselves in the foot like that? Even if he's not thrilled with the idea, cynical and suspicious as hell of their offer, he at least knows for a fact what's waiting for him behind bars.

A whole lotta' nothin'.

At least he can still do something with himself, even if he suspects he's going to hate a lot of it. Jesse McCree's never been afraid of venturing into the unknown. He gives Gabe and Jack some long hard stares again. His lips pull into a frown. For a brief second he thinks about what it'd really mean to clean up after his own messes. What if he could actually do some good in the world... like a real hero? It's stupid, and he dashes whatever optimistic hope he might have tried to give himself in light of the reality of this situation.

He's got a lot of questions, most of which amount to why me but he already knows the answer. It's pointless to ask. Just as much to keep arguing. McCree half-rolls his eyes and shakes his head.]

Sure. Fine. [He raises his wrists again, metal clinking lightly together in a much more humbled offering of himself instead of in declaration to the otherwise emptiness of these cells.] Which one of you gents gets stuck babysittin' me first, huh?

[ Jack steps in, and Gabriel seems to back down a bit at least. He shuts up, anyway, and lets the Good Cop do his bit to even things out. He'd kind of let his emotions get the best of him– let this kid get the best of him for a brief moment, so he backs off to collect himself.

It's true, they didn't start off that way, but he knows what it was like to be a rebellious little shit and what little good that did for himself in the end. He folds his arms slowly back over his chest again, waiting silently for Jack to finish. A couple of nods thinking 'Yeah, this is a special case'. Gabe still isn't 100% sure why he'd decided to give this kid a chance, and if he had been before, he sure as hell is letting some doubts seep in now. But he's made his bed and now he's gotta lie in it, because now here comes the part where he has to assume responsibility.

He brought him here. It's only logical that he has to break Jesse in first. ]

Who do you think?

[ This could be fun, though. He's used to training young, uppity new recruits, and breaking their backs until they both hate, fear, and respect him all at once. They're from all walks of life, some probably even more troubling than Jesse (he doesn't know- he doesn't ask, that's much too personal), so this should be no different. ]

[It's obvious who McCree is getting turned over to, but Jack is Jack and he's going to needlessly clarify because that's what he does.]

You'll report to Commander Reyes.

[He folds his arms behind his back all officially. This is probably their last hurdle to surmount. Jesse is still stinging from going toe-to-toe with Gabriel, and he hopes that his good sense wins out over any pride. He'd considered taking on McCree himself, if only to avoid the fireworks that are definitely going to come from sticking these two personalities together, but he knows full well that the kid's talents will be more useful to Blackwatch.

It's a publicity thing, too. Jack is not at all sure how to present McCree to the public. There's going to need to be some rehabilitation, first.]

Understood?

[Oh. Okay. Bad cop's name is Reyes. McCree gives him an up-and-down like he didn't give him a proper look over the first time he stepped into the cell. He is probably not going to call him by that actual name very often, be it teasing, insulting, affectionate or otherwise. He's used to bossy types, at least until he became a sort of king of the Deadlock roost. He started taking a shine to it, so like hell he's going to give the idea of it up so easily even if he's in a completely different roost now.]

Sure thing, boss.

[Whether that was meant for Gabe or Jack is indeterminate. McCree's tone isn't sarcastic but too casual for it to have any serious respect behind it. So long as he's someone's dog he might start calling everyone--even the janitors--boss if it undermines his new esteemed Commanders. The least he could to is bring these assholes to his level if they were strong-arming him into this business anyway.]

[ After all us said and done, Gabriel probably would've insisted he take the little cowboy now more than ever just to see if he could even get him to work with the team and put his skills up to the test... which also meant breaking him down bit by bit like working out a group of muscles to see if he'd build himself back up stronger. That's how he sees his unit, as working muscles that push themselves to become stronger and more efficient, and he doesn't tolerate weak links.

Let's see if the gunslinger that gave him such a hard time is what he's cracked up to be.

He doesn't appreciate the all-too-casual tone and the way he looks at him like he thinks he can outwit him, but Reyes can play this game. It's nothing new to him. Just gotta keep a cool head (or at least the best he can).

Turning to Jack, he makes sure his voice carries. ]

Let's see if Billy the Kid here can keep up with the rest. One thing we don't tolerate is slackers.

[ He'll throw him straight into the slammer if McCree decides to make light of his situation here. ]

Edited 2016-07-19 05:34 (UTC)

[At that, he offers McCree a sort of sympathetic glance. Jack knows more than anyone how Gabe can be, and in certain circumstances, wouldn't wish him on anyone. He paces the room a little, finally settling on what seems to be a command console for the cells.]

Any funny business, and the deal's off.

[This is a risk. A big one. Jack might be playing Good Cop now, but he's not going to hesitate if Jesse tries to cross them. But he thinks Reyes can make that abundantly clear. He casually punches in a few codes on the glowing blue console, and the hard light walls shut down with a ka-thunk.]

Let's go, Jesse.

[Obediently, McCree stands and makes his way towards the two men with slow easy steps. He keeps his hands at his front, plain and easy to see. No words at the moment but he sure is relieved to be able to stretch his legs at the very least.]

[ As Jesse languidly walks past, Reyes has half a mind to deliver a swift kick to his backside to get him moving. He refrains only because Jesse’s not a prisoner or anything like that, just an unwilling recruit. Reyes remembers when he first joined the military– he was so young, only 16 years old after dropping out of school. With so little options in his life at that point, the life of a soldier seemed like the only path for him (not to mention his family probably felt the same way).

He remembers how he felt when he arrived on base, how overwhelmed he felt, but it ended up being the place he felt most at home. It suited his aggressive and task-oriented style. He can’t see the same sort of dedication from this kid, even if he had more talent in his pinky finger than some of the adult privates back on base and even some of the people on in his own unit. The kid has a lot of potential, and while he can see him being a huge thorn in his side, he sees him as a great asset as well.

Walking alongside them, his long strides bring him side by side with Morrison quickly as Jesse walks behind them. Not wanting the kid to overhear their conversation, he keeps his tone low. ]

He’ll be a different person the next time you see him, I’ll make sure of it.

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jesse mccree meets his new dads

bleh bear with me im still figuring out his thought processes

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