The Collector

7

Standing up slowly she still held the knife near his neck. Smirking once more he raised his hands slightly in submission. "Congrgratulations Miss Shallow. Yee pass." Taking slow breaths her frown disappeared and a soft smile appeared. Lowering the knife, she closed it and handed it to him, both nodding at one another. Scout immediately jumped over the ropes and hugged her triumphantly turning towards Spy laughing and pointing a finger at him. "That's what I'm talking about! You got owned!" Lighting a cigarette, he placed a hand behind him only staring daggers into Scout. Heavy's thunderous laugh echoed in the room and Engineer also joined them in the ring, cheering as well. Sniper stayed where he was only smiling at her, "Well done, luv." Leaving hastily not wanting to ruin the celebration.

Everyone returned to the main area to tell the rest of the team what had happened. Scout did most of the talking and Emma slipped away to her room where she cleaned her new wound and placed a small band-aid over the cut. She was a bit disappointed Sniper hadn't joined them in the celebration but appreciated that he watched to make sure she was safe. She saw him as she dodged at one point. Looking at her new wounds and old ones she frowned. She never thought she would get more but here she was. Receiving more reminders, some good, some bad.

~~~~~~

At dinner everyone bullied Spy, but he just ignored them. Everyone drank in her triumph but not too much as they had work the next day They had also told her about their evaluations, how they became part of the RED team. Everyone was picked by hand because of their skills, especially Soldier. He was also picked because of legal reasons but he was also in World War II so that said something. Spy hadn't told his story, but she didn't want to push him. Scout did, receiving a bloody nose and almost starting a food fight that Heavy quickly stopped by just looking at them. 

She had also asked what she should do the rest of the time before Pauling came back. They said that she should stay in shape and just train by herself in the training gym. She wasn't really out of shape per say but she noticed she had picked up a bit of weight. Some of them thought she looked great but kept it to themselves. That night she felt the pain Spy had inflicted on her. She craved a hot bath where her muscles could relax. Her mind had also drifted to Sniper. She wondered about him, the fact that he wasn't half the time there and his past. Only knowing about his parents, a little bit about his childhood and that he's different from his teammates. They were all different and interesting. What's your story?

The next few days she had spent most of her time in the training gym and shooting range. They also took her to town to get a few personal things for her room and herself. Most of the shopping consisted of her and Pyro going teddy bear hunting. She picked a narwhal teddy bear as it matched Pyro's unicorn. She was convinced Pyro was a female but other times her suspicions were thrown out the window when the others told her stories about their assignments. Her storage room was starting to look like a normal room. It looked more lived in. She had also bought more clothing to choose from and had supplied herself with the necessities.

Pauling had arrived at the end of the week. She took the evaluations from Sniper and Spy while accepting Heavy's word that she was ready. Not for proper field work but she could at least take care of herself if something went wrong. She had also arrived with Emma's new code name and outfits to choose from.

Her code name was Collector. It wasn't a very intimidating name, but her role was finding and compiling valuable information stealthily, whether it be with her eyes or taking it in person. She also had to "stalk" people to find where they're hiding their information. She was given that role as she wanted nothing to do with killing or being killed. So, it fit her perfectly.

She also had the option to choose from three different outfits, only two things stayed the same. They all had red shirts with her new emblem on the shoulder – the emblem was a hand that seemed like it was about to pick something up – and they were all quite slimming in a way. The one she liked the most had slim cargo pants with knee high combat boots and a three-quarter split-neck t-shirt. She had not realised she had picked a shirt similar to Sniper's. 

Upon trying it on it was very comfortable and easy to move in, although it looked very tight. She wanted to show the others, especially Pyro and subconsciously to Sniper. Arriving in the main area everyone froze in their tracks, shocked and bewildered by how good she looked in her new uniform. Everyone was impressed, Scout's mouth fell open and Sniper had a blank expression.

He couldn't help feeling warm looking her up and down. It fit her flawlessly, highlighting her feminine form and shaping her perfectly. The realisation of her finally being part of their team hit him like a truck, a surge of worry burst through him. Everyone complimented her and she only smiled her usual bright smile. Pauling gave everyone their assignments for the upcoming week and even Emma had a few. Saying her goodbyes she congratulated Emma one last time and left.

That night they drank in celebration – they were also allowed to drink more – welcoming Emma officially to the RED team. She was very excited and couldn't wait for her assignments. She was also very happy that Sniper had stayed to celebrate with them, drinking more as well. They partied till one in the morning and Emma was able to make it to bed alone that time. Dreaming "happily" about her new role in the team and what her first job had in store for her.