cajunandfire - Tumblr blog

cajunandfire · 11 days

Note

Hi Issy! For your Madeleine Timeline:

What was Madeleine up to during the Ambrose Island mission?

Thanks for the ask Mythy! I hope you enjoy this! Big thanks to @cajunandfire for helping me with this one!

Madeleine had a talent for finding places to hide. They were places where she could read or enjoy a nice view with no one ever knowing she was there.

This time she’d found a cozy spot under a balcony, behind the large electricity generator. Perfectly out of sight if someone were to pass by, yet still overlooking the vast Andaman Sea, with it's warm, salty breeze washing over her.

For security reasons, she was not allowed to interact with any of the ship’s crew. They couldn't know she was on the ship at all. However, staying in the dark quarters for an extended period of time made her nauseous.

She did feel a bit guilty for needing so much time to herself. It was overwhelming dealing with everything going on in the ship. The cramped space, planning for her father to infiltrate the Ark Society, and now having to take a detour to eliminate one of Grey’s ex-operatives. She was constantly retreating to her room or her hiding places to wind down.

Perhaps after years of living with her parents, she found it hard to fully trust her uncle. She was never really around other adults for so long, and they especially never knew her real name and identity, it felt like she was doing something wrong just by speaking to him.

Madeleine let out a silent sigh, allowing herself to melt into her book with the hum of the generator serving as white noise. She had found a way to avoid the arguing and stressful planning occuring within the ship's walls.

Perhaps this was her talent, finding peace among chaos.

That was until the slow hum of the generator abruptly stopped.

It hadn't been turned off manually, no one except her was anywhere near it, likely a malfunction.

After a few minutes, she could feel footsteps hurriedly approaching, it was Lucas's assistant, Ms. Hall.

She had barely seen Olivia, let alone spoken to her, after they met in Berlin. She spent almost all of her time with her computers, and Madeleine wondered how she wasn't horribly seasick.

Olivia mumbled angrily as she stomped over to the generator. Madeleine stayed quiet and watched her pull the cord in an attempt to restart it. When that didn't work she reverted to kicking it while swearing under her breath. Olivia hadn't noticed Madeleine sitting in the corner, and part of her didn't want her to notice. She had no clue what to say, so she said nothing.

The angry woman knelt down and pulled the generator’s panel open. She was less than four feet away from Madeleine, and yet as far as she could tell, still hadn't noticed her. Madeleine stayed completely frozen, wanting to see how long she could remain unnoticed.

Olivia dug around in the generator for a moment before ripping out the battery. After a quick examination, she tossed it aside.

“Hey, kid,” she barked, “hand me that battery behind you, this one's busted.”

Madeleine jumped and embarrassingly looked away. How long had she known she was there? Had she been trying to avoid her as well?

“The battery, behind you.” She repeated with frustration.

“Right, sorry.” Madeleine quickly tossed a bookmark in her book and grabbed the battery. It was heavier than she expected but she still passed it to Olivia.

“Thanks.” She grumbled.

She impatiently attempted to shove the battery in, but grew more agitated when it wouldn't fit properly.

“Ugh, come on! I don't have time for this.”

Madeleine stood, book still in hand, and peeked over at Olivia's attempted handywork.

“Fit! You stupid son of a-”

“You're putting it in backwards.” Madeleine commented.

“What?” Olivia turned to face her.

“The battery’s facing the wrong way.”

Olivia looked back and examined the battery. She was, in fact, trying to put it in backwards. With a soft blush of embarrassment, she rotated it. It fit perfectly with a satisfying “click.”

“Uh…thanks.” She mumbled, pulling herself up.

With a few pulls of the cord, the generator began slowly humming again.

“Maybe I have been working too hard,” Olivia sighed, “you’ve got the right idea, hiding away out here, it's nice.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” She replies somewhat awkwardly.

“What are you reading?” Olivia asked, glancing at the book in Madeleine’s hand.

“Oh, 1984 by George Orwell. It's kind of a comfort book for me.”

Olivia looked at her with a puzzled expression, “That's an… odd choice for a comfort book.”

“Well, I don't find the subjects comforting, but it's a story for me to get completely invested in. I think that's why I enjoy darker stories.”

Olivia shrugged, “Yeah I guess that makes sense.”

There was a short moment of silence between them, when Olivia suddenly said. “I could use a cup of coffee, do you wanna get something to drink?”

Madeleine was stunned for a minute. The two of them had barely looked at each other for the past few weeks and now she was offering to go hang out? She wasn't sure how to respond at first, but Olivia seemed genuine. What could it hurt?

“Yeah, that sounds nice.”

Olivia turned and left with Madeleine close behind her. The kitchen was just down the hall from where they were, so the walk was short.

“Do you like those Cassandra Snow novels? I feel like everyone's been talking about those for years.” Olivia asked.

“Ugh, not at all,” Madeleine replied disgustedly, “Dad had to read those for an assignment once but I could barely make it halfway through the first one.”

“What kind of assignment was that? How does reading a crappy book series help kill someone?” Olivia chuckled.

“You'd be surprised what comes in handy.” Madeleine replied vaguely. “One time he had to dress up as a clown.”

“Oh, I also know about that flamingo costume 47 wore back in Miami. I wouldn't have guessed that robot could be so amusing.”

Olivia huffed in laughter but Madeleine was silent. She avoided eye contact with Olivia even when they got to the kitchen. Madeleine sat by the counter while Olivia dug around in the pantry.

“Do you want some coffee?” She asked. Madeleine kept her eyes fixed on the counter and didn't respond .

“Hey,” Olivia snapped her fingers to get her attention.

“Don't….call him that.”

“Huh?”

“My dad, don't call him that.”

Olivia looked surprised, “Call him what? What are you talking about?”

Madeleine replied with a slightly more agitated time, “You know, a robot. You talk like he's some kind of machine.”

Olivia bit her lip, “Look, I don't mean anything by it he's just…”

“Just what?”

“Oh come on, you know what I mean…emotionless.”

Madeleine crossed her arms, “It's not that he doesn't feel emotion, he just expresses it differently. He's still human.”

Olivia sighed and leaned against the pantry door, “Yeah, you're probably right. He's just so damn intimidating. Having him as a father must be terrifying, right? Hell, I bumped into him in the hallway and he looked like he wanted me dead.”

Madeleine’s posture relaxed, “Well, don't take it personally. He's like that with most people, but he's actually really sweet once you gain his trust. It’s just hard for him to open up to others, he never really trusted anyone other than my mom and I before you and Uncle Lucas showed up.”

“I guess I can understand that.” Olivia turned back to the cabinet and pulled a jar of coffee grounds out.

She prepared some water and started spooning the grounds into the coffee machine. “You never answered my question, do you want some coffee?”

“No thanks, I can make myself some tea.”

Madeleine moved to get up but Olivia dismissively waved her hand. “I can get it. We only have peppermint and lemon, what do you want?”

“Peppermint, please.”

She nodded and turned on the coffee maker. The kettle hand been left out from that morning, so Olivia filled it with water and put it on the stove.

“You know,” Madeleine began, “I could say something similar about Lucas.”

Olivia leaned on the counter. “In what way?” She asked.

“I just feel like he hates me. He's never rude or anything but the way he talks to me, or doesn't talk to me I should say, feels very dismissive. Although, I guess…I don't blame him for wishing I wasn't here.” Madeleine looked down at her hands.

Olivia sighed, “You definitely shouldn't take that personally. It's not that he hates you, he just…doesn't know how to except you, I guess.”

Madeleine raised an eyebrow, “What do mean?”

“Well, think of it this way: Grey spent decades hunting Providence and tracking his long lost brother. The entire time he assumed his brother was alone, working for the ICA against his will, and killing to survive. Come to find out he's actually got a stable job, a girlfriend, and you. It's just jarring for him.”

This gave Madeleine a lot to think about. “I never considered that way. He must feel like such an outsider.”

Olivia smiled, “Give him time, he'll come around. Just know, he really does care about you. I can tell.”

A soft smile crept across Madeleine's face. Before she could say anything, the kettle whistled loudly at the same time that the coffee pot filled. Olivia turned of both appliances and poured the drinks into two mugs.

“I never liked tea that much.” Olivia commented. Even the caffeinated ones don't wake me up. It's kind of just bitter and boring.”

“Don't let my mom hear you say that. Tea is how we all relax after a long day.” she replied with a chuckle.

Olivia smirked, “Oh, right, the whole ‘British-tea-thing.’ I wouldn't want to get myself involved in all that.”

For the first time in weeks, Madeleine laughed. Suddenly she realized something. She was enjoying Ms. Hall’s company. Conversation came naturally between the two of them, and she found herself wanting to hang out with her more. It left a warm feeling in her stomach at the thought of them actually becoming friends.

Olivia handed her the mug of tea, “Here you are, your royal highness.” She said in an exaggerated British accent.

Madeleine laughed again, “Thank you, Ms. Hall.”

Olivia sat down beside her, taking a long sip from her coffee. “Please, my friends call me ‘Liv.”

Madeleine took a sip from her tea, a warmth filling her chest.

“Thanks, ‘Liv.”

#yay!#check this out #hitman #hitman fanfiction #Madeleine Burnwood #Olivia Hall

6 notes · View notes