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bcdrawsandwrites · 8 months ago

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Pride and Fall

Fandom: Team Fortress 2 Rating: K+ Genre: Angst, Friendship Characters: Demoman & Sniper Fic Description: A few months after the events of the comics, after a lost match in the middle of a violent rainstorm, Sniper's mind is abruptly elsewhere. Demo gathers what might be wrong, and steps in to help. Warnings: TF2-typical violence, references to past character death. Beta Readers: @mechmolar and @gonturan0 ILLUTRATOR: @doctor-phil!!! Check out the illustration here! Notes: This is for the @tf2bigbang! Finally participating in one of these! (Do you ever think about the fact that Sniper died in Demoman's arms? Because I think about the fact that Sniper died in Demoman's arms a lot.)

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Well, ye win some, ye lose some, was all Demo could think when he heard the telltale sound of an enemy spy decloaking behind him. The knife striking into his spine was excruciating, but brief, and expected.

The water immediately dousing him upon respawn was not.

With a cry of disgust, which was echoed by several other mercs who had also gotten picked off during the humiliation round, he stumbled out from the rain that was pouring through a hole in the spawn room roof. "Bloody rain season," he grumbled, wiping himself off for all the good it would do.

Soldier, who had respawned with him, crossed his arms. "We may have tasted bitter defeat, men, but that will only make our next victory that much sweeter!"

In spite of the chilly weather, Demo couldn't help smiling at his friend. "Aye, not a bad thought." He turned to see what the others thought of the sentiment: Spy was leaning against the broken spawn door, not seeming to care, while Heavy shrugged and gave a nod.

And then he saw Sniper.

The man had stumbled out from the rain, but was staring blankly at the water around his ankles, his face pale. For a moment, Demo wondered if Sniper was sick, only to realize just why Sniper might react poorly to the water everywhere.

Frowning, Demo reached out, placing a hand on Sniper's shoulder. "Are ye all right, lad?" he whispered.

"M'fine," Sniper grunted, his voice tight.

The others were saying something about the Pyro, but Demo ignored them for the time being. He kept his hand on Sniper's shoulder, his stomach sinking. "The match is over, lad. We lost."

Sniper did not respond.

"Better get yer things," Demo went on. "Ye know BLU's gonna pitch a fit if we dawdle."

Again, no response.

Sighing, Demo wrapped his arm around Sniper's shoulders. "Come on, lad," he murmured, guiding Sniper toward the lockers. "Let's get yer stuff."

Thankfully Sniper was conscious enough to retrieve his wallet and keys, and was able to carry his weapons without much of a problem, but still he never said a word. His steps sloshed heavily through the water on the floor, and he nearly fell as Demo guided him down the stairs. The others had already gone on ahead (aside from Spy, for some reason, but he seemed to know what he was about, so Demo let him be), and Demo grimaced when they finally reached the ground floor and faced the thunderstorm outside.

"Think ye can make it back all right?" Demo asked.

Sniper blinked wearily from behind his glasses. "Respawn'll send us back to base soon," he mumbled.

"Aye, if you're sure about leavin' your van behind."

Growling, Sniper threw himself forward, trudging out into the rainstorm, only to stop again, staring blankly ahead.

"Stay with me, lad," Demo grunted, throwing an arm around him again and marching through the rain, forcing Sniper's legs to move with him. He glanced over at him—not something he could do subtly with Sniper on his blind side, but Sniper was in no state of mind to notice—and frowned at seeing his companion with a hand digging into his chest. "No bullets there, friend."

Up ahead, he could barely make out blurry red shapes heading out of the sawmill territory. So they weren't impossibly behind the others—not that Demo wouldn't have been able to find his way back if they were. It might've been nice to catch up, but he didn't trust that Sniper's gangling legs would be able to keep up at the moment, with the way they were struggling to maintain a basic walking speed.

As the path led them out through the gates and turned downward, Demo winced; the path was even more treacherous here, with the rain mingling with the dirt path to create slick mud on an inclined surface. It was made worse by the others who had already traversed it. Heavy's footprints in particular were deep—he must be having a time crossing this place—and Demo took care to avoid them when possible.

"How're ye holdin' up?" he asked, raising his voice over the torrent of rain.

Sniper muttered something Demo couldn't catch.

"Aye, cannae argue with that." Sighing, Demo squinted through the rain, holding out a hand to his forehead to shield his eye for a moment. "We'll be there soon. Just hang on—"

And as he spoke, Sniper's foot caught on one of Heavy's footprints, and he slipped out from under his arm, crashing into the muddy ground below and letting out a strangled gasp.

"Aw—!" A streak of curses hissed its way out of Demo's mouth as he stooped down, preparing to lift Sniper out of the mud. "Are ye all right?"

The fall had knocked Sniper's glasses askew; his eyes were wide and unseeing, his hand gripping the side of his chest, his breathing rapid. He made no sign of acknowledgment as Demo struggled to pull him up to his feet.

"C'mon, Mundy," Demo grunted. "On your feet!"

"Th-they got me," Sniper panted between gasps. "There's no respawn."

"Sure there is, ya campy weasel! Ye were just talkin' aboot it!"

Sniper's feet scrambled and kicked against the slippery mud, and Demo heaved a sigh. "All right, lad, ye asked for this." With that, he lifted Sniper off his feet and threw him over his shoulder. "I'll carry ye back tae yer van like a sack o' potatoes if I have to."

Unfortunately carrying a grown man over his shoulder didn't exactly make the trip back any easier, but he'd navigated worse roads when intoxicated. (Speaking of, that didn't sound like a bad idea, but it could wait for now.)

But the feeling of Sniper's weight against his shoulder in combination with the humid atmosphere and rain brought another problem—memories of a doomed, underwater country, flooding with water, which was slowly turning red around him, Sniper's weight growing heavier against his shoulder, in his arms.

A sudden fear seized him, and he frantically patted Sniper's back. "Are ye still with me?" he asked, voice shaking.

Sniper did not answer, but his rapid breathing was at least not slowing dangerously, and he was not growing heavier, so, there was that.

...Not to mention they'd both just come fresh off the respawn, so neither of them would be injured. Somehow the thought was not helping as much as it should have. Demo shook his head. "Keep it t'gether, Tavish," he grunted, and kept going.

It felt like far too long before he heard the rumble of a car engine, and peered through the rain to see Engie's truck rolling out of a covered area. With a sigh of relief, Demo hauled Sniper forward and into the partially hidden area where they'd parked their cars. Only two still remained: Spy's sports car, and Sniper's van. Demo heaved Sniper onto his feet. "All right, lad. Here we are."

Groaning, Sniper stumbled where he stood before raising his head to see his truck. "...'Preciate it, mate," he muttered, feeling over his chest again. "I... uh. M'sorry about that."

"S' all right. Are ye in a state ta drive, though?" Demo huffed out a laugh. "I'd offer tae m'self, but, uh..." He tapped the side of his eye patch.

"Nah, s'fine, I can manage." Already he was pulling open the door and climbing in, and Demo joined him on the passenger's side. Only when they were inside the van did Sniper seem to finally relax, sitting back against the driver's seat, rainwater dripping off of him. He took in a few deep breaths.

Demo grunted. "Ye make it look like yer the one who had to haul yer own lifeless lump through a bloody storm."

Sniper cracked a smile, shaking his head. "Thanks for that, though."

After taking a moment to calm himself, Sniper whipped out his keys and started up the engine. With the windshield wipers slashing in front of them, they eased their way out onto the road, which was easier said than done with the muddy state said road was in. For once, Sniper pulled his glasses up, leaning forward as he squinted over the steering wheel, while Demo subconsciously gripped the door of the car to keep steady. For several tense minutes the van lumbered down the slippery, hilly road, and neither of them spoke.

It wasn't until the road leveled out that Demo let out a breath. "Glad ye shook that off, mate," he said with a relieved laugh. "I dinnae think I'd've managed."

"I can drive in just about any weather. 'Cept for snow, anyway."

Demo hummed, nodding as he watched the world pass by through the window. The rain pounding on the roof and the rumbling of the engine nearly lulled him into a doze until he took another look at the Sniper. Now that they were in a somewhat safer situation, Sniper had put his glasses back on, and was sitting back against his chair again. But he was not relaxed; he stared straight ahead at the road, not in concentration, but with a faraway look, as though he were looking at a different scene entirely.

"Ye got two eyeballs, mate," Demo said, and Sniper jumped in his seat. "Keep at least one of 'em on the road."

"Sorry." Sniper shifted uncomfortably in the rain-soaked seat. He was at least focused now, but his shoulders were hunched.

It was certainly strange seeing the man so tense, given how relaxed he tended to be outside of battle. "Are ye sure yer all right?"

Feeling over his chest and side again, Sniper frowned. "I'm not bleeding."

"That don't answer the question."

Sighing, Sniper tipped his head back. "Ask me again once we're back. After we've got a couple drinks in me though, all right?"

Any other time, Demo might have brightened at the suggestion of getting a few drinks. But in this case...

Well. He hadn't exactly become an alcoholic for the fun of it.

Nodding grimly, Demo faced the road again, feeling far too awake to nod off to the sounds of the rain and the car motor. They spent the rest of the journey in silence.

Eventually the van turned into the hidden entrance of the base before pulling into the garage. When Demo raised a brow at Sniper, he only shrugged. "It'd only get stuck in the mud if I parked it outside."

"Makes sense," Demo murmured, stepping out and heading for the fridge. Sure enough, they still had some bottles of Cerveza Royale left over from their last celebration, and he grabbed a couple plus a bottle opener before following Sniper into the base.

It was oddly quiet for a post-match evening, but then, they didn't have much to celebrate tonight. Presumably Medic and Engineer had retreated to their lab and workshop respectively, Heavy was probably eating a post-match snack, and, judging by the sounds coming from the lounge and the phone, Scout was watching TV while Soldier was on the phone with Zhanna. The mess hall was empty, but it wasn't the most comfortable place to get smashed. As it was, Demo suggested they head into the rec room, where a few couches sat in one corner.

The two of them plopped down onto the cushion. After whipping out the bottle opener, Demo cracked the bottles open and handed one to Sniper.

"Cheers, mate," Demo said, and the two clunked their bottles together before taking a swig. But, looking over at Sniper, he frowned.

Sniper took several deep gulps before pulling the bottle away and heaved a sigh. He leaned back, his head tipped up to look at the ceiling.

Silence settled over them for a moment.

"So... did ye manage tae climb on the roof o' that sawmill?" Demo ventured.

"Sort of," Sniper replied. "Turns out it has an attic space, so I crawled up in there. Not a bad place for a nest. No one thinks t' look up that high."

"Aye, that's what makes sticky-jumpin' work, too."

"Was a good spot for a while," he went on. "Got a few good shots in... 'til we lost." And then he dipped his head.

Both of them knew it wasn't the loss that bothered him.

Demo frowned, a memory striking him. "Ah, the BLU sniper, was it?"

"Yeah. Second he realized where I was, he shot at me through the ceiling." Wincing, Sniper rubbed his leg. "But that didn't kill me. The ceiling collapsing did, though."

Letting out a low whistle, Demo shook his head. "Rough way t' go, mate." He took another swig of beer. "Hate t' say it, but ye looked like death warmed over once ye came out of spawn."

Sniper snorted humorlessly. "Heh. Death..." Throwing the bottle back, he drank deeply from it before staring down at it, watching the remaining liquid swirl around within. "D'you... d'you remember New Zealand?"

Demo grunted. "Not much. I was still shakin' off that moonshine ye dosed me with."

Nodding grimly, Sniper continued: "Well... we met my parents there—my rea—my birth parents. N' they... they both buggered off."

Something struck Demo, and he sat back, brow furrowed.

"The place was flooding, my dad took the sub, and... we saw lights comin' toward us, and I thought it was my dad comin' back, and..." He leaned forward, arms resting on his knees. "I see the Medic, grinning like a madman and standin' with all a' Gray's men, and—"

"They shot you," Demo finished, his gaze distant. "I remember that. Remember holdin' ye above water. Didn't strike me 'til I heard the bloody grays boastin' aboot killin' ye, that there was..."

"No respawn." Sniper's head hung. "Yeah."

"I tried t' get ye to stop bleedin', but... Mate, ye were so heavy. I think ye were a corpse by the time they bullied us onto the ship."

Sniper did not lift his head.

Demo continued to stare into the distance. "I... I thought I'd lost ye." After a pause, he he took a longer drink, and belched. "Might've gone a bit mad after that. Was a right mess, cryin' and cussin' out those..."

Brows raised, Sniper turned to face him. "You were... upset over me?"

"Of course!" Demo exclaimed, swinging out his arm, and Sniper flinched back to avoid inadvertently getting hit by the bottle. "It's one thing when you're fightin' every day, dyin' and comin' right back from it, but when it's permanent?" Shaking his head, he leaned in closer, looking Sniper in the eye. "Ye think I wouldn't?"

Sniper shook his head, leaning back. "I'd captured you, mate. I poisoned you. I had a—"

Demo belted out a laugh, cutting him off. "With some o' the best moonshine I've ever had injected in me veins!" He slapped himself on the knee, grinning. "Wouldn't mind if ye shared some o' that again!"

For once, Sniper cracked a smile, letting out a huff of amusement as he shook his head. It lasted only a moment. "Didn't think anyone cared that much."

Quieting down, Demo lowered his head. "Wasn't alone. When those gray scum pried me from yer corpse, I saw the others tryin' to hold Soldier n' his lady back. They were furious, n' Spy and Miss Pauling were right torn up. Couldn't say for sure aboot the Pyro, but the thing is… I don’t think… any of us knew we cared that much aboot you.” He turned, looking Sniper in the eye. “Not until we lost ye.”

Sniper's only response was to stare forward into the darkened room, swallowing.

"...'Course," Demo went on, "I've no doubt it was worse for ye." Sighing, he studied his own bottle. "No respawn, and ye must've been out for hours. Can't imagine."

Once again, Sniper was silent, turning slightly away, his lips pulled into a tight line. He opened his mouth, shut it, then downed the rest of his bottle before saying, quickly, "I saw my parents."

"Aye, lad, we all saw yer parents. Terrible people."

"No." Sniper's voice was thick. "Not them. My real parents."

The words swam around Demo's head, their meaning confused by more than the alcohol in his system. They sank in slowly. "Yer... real parents," he repeated slowly, then blinked. "Yer adopted parents?"

Sniper nodded. "My parents." Gritting his teeth, he clenched his free fist. "You don't gotta believe me, but I know what I—"

"Lad, lad," Demo said, a chuckle shaking his words. He clapped a hand over Sniper's shoulder, and the other man jumped. "We've seen plenty o' magic, now, an' we've been ta' Hell and back. What makes ye think I wouldn't believe the opposite exists?"

Shrugging feebly, Sniper shook his head. "Medic didn't."

"Bah!" Demo waved a dismissive hand. "What's he know aboot th' afterlife?"

After heaving a long sigh, Sniper leaned forward, arms resting on his knees. "Point is... I saw them, there, up in the clouds... and we talked, and..." His grip around the empty bottle tightened, and his voice became a low growl, "Dad says... says he was proud of me."

Despite the alcohol, a tension settled over the two, growing tighter and tighter. Demo swallowed, then opened his mouth to speak, only for Sniper to sit bolt upright and slam his empty bottle against the floor, shattering it.

"Bloody wanker!" he snarled. "Couldn't've said it when he was here! Couldn't've said it when we were both alive! All those years, yellin' at me over the phone, goin' on about how much he hates my job, my life choices, and now he tells me? Now? When I'm not gonna bloody see him again until—?!"

His voice cracked, and he stood abruptly, storming into the dark room.

Stammering, Demo stood up, setting aside his beer and wobbling after him. It would be hard enough to see with two eyes, but Demo had to take extra care not to bump into any of the equipment in the room, keeping a hand out in front of himself. He lost track of Sniper, and cried out when his outstretched hand collided with the side of the wrestling ring. He pulled his hand away, shaking the pain out of it, when a sound caught his ear—a faint sniff. Frowning, he headed toward the noise, and finally spotted the dim form of Sniper hunched over the pool table. He was quiet.

Demo crept closer, placing a hand on Sniper's back. He was trembling.

"Now, lad," Demo said, his voice soft. "C'mon, now."

Sniper's breathing hitched, and Demo wrapped his arm around him. To his surprise, Sniper did not pull away, but leaned into him as his shoulders shook.

As Demo held him, old memories arose—memories of standing at a funeral for two parents, throat torn by the apology he'd never be able to voice. Then came the memory of another funeral, for another parent—one as equally displeased with him as his living mother.

What were any of them saying on the other side? Did they accept his unspoken apology? Were they voicing the pride for him that they'd never expressed in life?

He cast a glance at Sniper, who was fighting a losing battle with tears against his side, and decided it was better not to know.

As Sniper's trembling began to calm, Demo rubbed his back. "For what it's worth," he said, "I'm proud of ye. And I won't wait 'til we're at no pearly gates to tell ye."

Sniper let out a snort, and Demo imagined a shaky smile crossing his face. "Thanks, mate."

"Anytime, lad."

#tf2 sniper #tf2 demoman #team fortress 2 #tf2bigbang2024 #fanfic #my writing #flickering fanfic #(tagging with that because this scene takes place during a future chapter!)#also man I hope I got Demo's dialect right here

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