Tables turn...(JT)

[Stephen Colly]

The dust smoke rising from the battlefield was settling and the Allies could see the extent of the damage done. They had recently won a small skirmish near Paris. A few fields away were a French town where they’d take any prisoners found to. Across the battlefield, through the smoke, a line of grey-clad defeated members of the German army and their victors laughing and cheering and jeering behind them. It was a glorious sight for any Allied soldier, watching as another small nail was banged into the coffin of this “evil” as many called it. However, like all battles, there had been casualties from the British side and these bodies, and those of the wondered were being driven away in horse drawn and motor ambulances.

One of the German prisoners fell down and was jeered and laughed at. ”Stop that.” a crisp, sharp voice was heard over the drone of the aeroplanes over heard. The soldiers stopped and looked up as their smiles faded, seeing who had spoken. It was Stephen Colly, however, this Stephen Colly was not the Stephen Colly of past years. He had become a Sergeant surprisingly only a few weeks ago and had been sent out within days of him getting his chevrons. As well as this aspect of himself, he had changed physically too – his hair was darker, the usual worried expression had gone from his face and that of a stern person-in-command had appeared; he was fitter in his body, and he stood rigid. Mentally changed? In a way, he was less scared then he had been, but he was still inside a shit-scared boy of 21. He had experienced traumas in his life-time that he’d never be able to rid them completely.

”Sorry sarge.” one of the soldiers muttered to him on their way past him, ”It’s alright Toms.” Stephen muttered, and returned the salute the man had given him, he sighed as he glanced up at the defeated soldier’s faces as they stopped in front of him. They were young; one of them was his age probably. He walked down the line of them, looking at their Nazi uniforms and not really understanding what ranks they were. Some of them were quite good-looking but that thought was cast from his mind as soon as it had arrived – he would not think about personal things whilst here – he had Henry to see to when he got back...

He approached the end of the line and stopped short, the last man on the end was familiar – very familiar and he felt his stomach drop. No...? Surely not?! He walked closer to the figure at the end and stood in front of him....

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Ed slowly opened his good eye to the sights of smoke and devastation. All he could hear was the ringing in his ears as he raised himself from the earth to look out of the ditch that quite possibly saved his life. He and his men, along with a large detachment of Wehrmacht soldiers were pulling back and heading northeast when they avenue was rapidly cut off. With no armored support to speak of the British artillery hit hard and the ensuing firefight was quick to neutralize the group of German soldiers. So far the war had treated Ed with good graces, but today started out not being one of those types of days. Little did he know, he hadn't seen the half of it yet.

Once McMillan's senses starting returning to him he cold hear faint yells in both German and English, sounded as if they were rounding up the healthy ones and trying to treat the wounded. Ed appreciated an honorable opponent, now he was a firm believer in all is fair, but once the shooting is over a soldier is to be given certain rights. His views on cowards and such were quite different. As he looked around he tried to find his personal troops, chances are that they were dead or he would see them once they were all corralled up, but he wanted to know if they were alright. He was glad he had left Tessa in the kennels this time. He shook a few guys in the ditch with him but they were long gone, no telling how long he had been laying there. The mud slowly trudging it's way back to the depths of the depression had covered a large majority of Ed's uniform hands and face, something he wanted really, he may be all but captured at the moment, but he was still hoping to give them a hard time when he could.

As he was herded into lines wit the rest of the surviving troops he grimaced often, most all of the Brits were new from the way they carried themselves, not to mention small, probably couldn't hit anything with a rifle past a hundred meters either. Course there were probably plenty of those types of troops all across this war. Still, Ed wasn't one of those, and being treated like dirt by them didn't sit very well in his gut. In the next few moments he would miss the sight of rookies, their cleanly shaved faces and their utmost dismissal of respect in all aspects of this conflict. For there stood a familiar face, and all too familiar face, but that seemed to be the only memory left within this memory, the rest had melted away and the true man had finally risen forth. Colly. Of all the places and all the faces, this is the one belonging to my captor? God, you really do get bored up there huh?! This was not the Colly of old, not the Stephen Ed knew for so long. This was his predecessor taking the shell over. Ed slouched his shoulders to try and shorten his stature, the left side of his face was mostly swollen and he could only open one eye, the mud was probably helping as well. He didn't want to be noticed, not by someone that knew him, especially not Colly. The dirt still in his mouth gritted between his teeth and the dried blood on the side of his face tugged at his hair when he clenched his jaw muscles. Maybe he could get away without being seen...maybe if he wasn't standing in a line of Wehrmacht soldiers fully clad in a very muddied SS uniform. The Wehrmacht wore grey and the SS were wearing black, once things got cleaned up he'd stick out like the nail needing to be hammered. At least he could easily spot the remnants of his command as well.

[Stephen Colly]

Before he could have a closer look at the man on the end, Stephen felt someone tap his shoulder and he turned to see a Staff-Sergeant bearing down on him. ”Sergeant Colly, take these prisoners back to base, they will be looked after there.”

Stephen nodded swiftly, saluted and watched as his superior walked away from the crowd. There were seven prisoners in total in the line, all very muddy, all very tired-looking. He had taken the trouble to learn German over the long period since coming back from being in the SS cells, and so he spoke the strange language to these men – shakily it has to be admitted, but understandable – ”Folgen Sie mir oder du wirst erschossen.” He barked and marched away, allowing his men to push the German soldiers forwards. The four Tommys who were tasked along with Stephen, leered at the prisoners, laughing and mocking them but Stephen didn’t care what they did anymore. He was thinking quickly about how to talk to the familiar faced man he’d seen on the end; it would be amazing to think that it was his old friend McMillan. Ever since their last meeting, Stephen had tried to keep McMillan out of his mind, and when he was with Henry, he was almost forgotten, but now...the memories came back.

They walked on in silence. Before long, Stephen felt he must try and make contact again and so dropped back a step, signalling to two of his men to go on in front. In the company which they were among, none of the Tommys knew who McMillan was. They’d heard storied obviously, but none knew what he looked like. Stephen fell into step next to the familiar-faced man. For a moment, he did not speak a word, but he then turned and stared at the face – it was wounded, the injuries were new but the face was old.

”Ed.” the name felt odd on his tongue after not really ever mentioning it for so long. The boy looked away, straightened his back and took a deep breath as to not show feelings and as to not show his men what he felt. He would not be made to look an idiot like he had done in years gone by. He tightened his jaw muscles, his face now blank, free of emotion but his eyes let him down – they told the story of his feelings as he looked upon the man once again.

Translation

Follow me or you will be shot.

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

It had been quite some time since Ed had laid his eyes upon Colly, but there was no way he would ever forget the lad. But things seemed different with him, he was no longer that young boy Ed had been so accustomed to seeing and talking to, it seemed that Stephen had grown to be a young man, war had a way of doing that to people. Ed half smiled on the inside, knowing that the good people were still out there and still moving forward in their lives was a blessed feeling. Good feelings were rare and very hard to hold onto, he'd miss it soon enough. Colly seemed to be the one in charge of this parade, that was indeed a far step ahead of what McMillan remembered.

The line began to slowly trudge onward, just a small drawn out column of defeated men and Ed was bringing up the rear of it. Looking up the line was depressing to say the least, no one had their head up, nor were they showing any signs of confidence. Ed didn't know why, for most of them the war was over, in a good way that was, they'd spend the rest of it eating warm meals and sleeping in warm beds, maybe one or two would spend it in the infirmary if they didn't get away from the front lines any quicker.

After a short distance, even though it seemed to take ages to get that far, Colly began to drop back in the formation, Ed had mostly kept his eyes on Stephen, it was the only comforting sight around, the rest were either miserable soldiers or dead trees and craters. Colly signaled for a few of the men to move up ahead in the group and they obeyed. Giving orders huh? Glad to see you've grown into your shoes. Ed thought as the gap between them shrank. Ed tried to keep his head down and angled away from Colly as he continued to slouch, doing what he could to not appear to be who he was. It was a failed attempt, in a few short steps Colly was right next to him and not long after McMillan's name drifted through the air. Ed thought about trying to play dumb, but there was no use, not that he expected to get out of this situation without being noticed, but he was hoping it would be later on.

McMillan cleared his throat and spit the gunk and mud out on the ground as he rolled his shoulders around as his back had grown stiff from hunching over. He took a deep breath and blew it out, the portion he forced out "Yeah, it's me..." with a slight grunt. He began to look around at everyone slowly as he walked upright. Didn't seem like anyone had taken notice to the two of them yet, but too much chatter and this reunion would be short lived, and Ed feared it all to literally. "...Sarge."

[Stephen Colly]

"Yeah, it's me...Sarge."

The way Ed said it, sent shivers up Stephen’s spine, but he forced the thoughts that developed out of his mind quickly. He smirked slightly and glanced at his old friend. He had changed; he looked older and even more battle-scared than the last time Stephen had set eyes on him. What do you do with yourself hey Ed? Stephen thought as they trudged along the battered track. He glanced up at the blown-out trees and the tiny blades of grass along the track, the place was so dead looking...and the line of soldiers walking along made it even worse.

”I do not know if I can get you out of this one Ed...” the boy muttered, his accent was still the same but his tone of voice was serious. ”I am only a sergeant...” he muttered and slung his rifle over his shoulder a bit more. He took his helmet off and put it under his arm, ruffling his hair which was slightly longer than it should be. He placed his helmet back on his head and stuffed one hand in his pocket. He didn’t know what to say, he was walking next to the man he had used to love...this man had saved his skin so many times that he should really try and save him now...He gulped, feeling his mouth become dry.

”Long time no see.” he mumbled, but sort of gave up as he realised it wasn’t going to work, and he could feel eyes upon him from the other German’s turning round in the line. They walked on in silence for the next half an hour. The silence was eerie and Stephen soon drifted back up to the front of the line and walked on, quickening the pace slightly. They arrived at a small farm which was along the road. Stephen stopped the small possession and marched up to the door, it opened and a man came out, glancing at the German faces and spat on the ground at them. Stephen touched the man’s arm lightly before muttering something in French. The man nodded, pointed to a small barn away from the road and on the other side of the house. He saluted to the man who retreated into his house. ”We shall rest here.” he said as he walked back towards them, he glanced at Ed as he did so and then back at his men. ”Take them to the barn, apart from him.” he pointed at Edward. The men obeyed and grabbed the POWs and took them round. Stephen watched them as they disappeared from view. He sighed, took his helmet off and lightly touched Ed’s arm before beckoning him to follow. They’d have a little bit of time to themselves; the other soldiers could look after Ed’s men, the French man had said he’d get some food for the Allied soldiers.

Stephen strode ahead, around the house and towards a small out house. He entered it, pushing Ed in front of him. They were out of view of the house and the barn on the other side. They could talk now. It was slightly cramped and Stephen moved around Edward slowly to an upturned bucket and sat down on it, placing his helmet on the floor. ”Sit.” he muttered, nodding to the other bucket. There was a little light coming from a window at the end of the out house. He rubbed his face and glanced over at Edward. God he had missed him. He was still beautiful....Stephen looked away and down at his hands. His strong front was beginning to weaken as he sat. "W-why the f-fuck are you h-here, Ed!? Why y-you?" the slight tremor was there. "I thought I'd f-forgotten about you...I thought..." he cursed under his breath at the predicament he was in.

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Ed walked along for a bit then Stephen said he doubted he would be able to help. Ed smiled slightly as he listened, he never really thought about Stephen being the one helping him out, he never wanted him to risk so much. "I don't want you too Stephen. Too much has already been risked for the two of us to still be walking, the odds will see us killed soon enough if we keep these things up." Stephen was no longer the young boy of the past years in the war. He was no longer the idea that Ed was fighting for, he had finally given in to all the horribleness that is war. He was no longer innocent, no longer naive. It seemed that the longer this war went on the more Colly would become a soldier instead of a human, it made Ed's stomach turn.

The group slowly drug themselves forward to who knows where, Ed didn't really care, for the moment he didn't have any worries, he knew what being captured was like for German soldiers, course his situation might prove to be different than most in an Allied prison. Not that he had any intentions of making that far, he'd done plenty of horrible things, one more wouldn't stack the pile that much higher.

Soon Ed was singled out. Don't make this too obvious! he thought as he stood there watching the rest of the prisoners be hearded into the barn. Colly lead the way toward a small house Well there is a change of pace. He thought as he moved behind his old friend. When they came up to the door things changed and Colly pushed Ed inside, maybe it was for visual reassurance for Colly's other troops, maybe it was just the way things were now, he hoped for the first but feared it was the latter of the two. Then Colly told him to sit rather blandly, it was an all to eerie experience for Ed. What had happened to the young man looking for his horse?

Finally things seemed to ring a more memorable bell, Colly began to appear less confident about what he was doing, and his stutter returned. "You brought me here Colly, but if you're talking about earlier, well we were moving along the front to reinforce a weak spot, you know I'm a capable commander, that why me. But enough with the bull crap, congrats on earning your stripes, I'm guessing you are making this a career of sorts are you?" He asked, worried what the answer might be.

Ed cleared his throat before he addressed the last part of what Colly had to say. "Forgotten about me, that's just a slap in the face, no matter what way you mean it, we've been through too much, you'll be part of me until the day I'm dead and gone, there is no way around it. I'd like to think you'd remember me as well." He thought about the really old times, back when they wore the same uniform and Liam was sane, those he missed the most. "I ran into Liam a while back, don't be surprised if he brings me up, but I don't wanna talk about it." (Sorry, we haven't finished that thread yet)

Ed was going to be leaving one way or another, but he would sit for a while if that is what Colly wanted, he'd rather take his chances unarmed on open ground that to see Colly attempt something as crazy as what he had done before. He would let time slip on into darkness if he could, but he wasn't going to overlook an opportunity to get the out of this perdicament.

[Stephen Colly]

Stephen had thought he’d be able to act as a Sergeant would...he had always thought his ability to be a good soldier ever since he’d last seen Ed had been alright. When he’d turned away from Ed that last time on that morning, he’d changed his life around. But now, everything was back to normal – Ed did something to Stephen which other people didn’t. It awakened a feeling in him that he only felt for Henry....and no matter how hard he tried, it would not leave.

You brought me here Colly, but if you're talking about earlier, well we were moving along the front to reinforce a weak spot, you know I'm a capable commander, that why me. But enough with the bull crap, congrats on earning your stripes, I'm guessing you are making this a career of sorts are you?"

He laughed drily, ”No...no Ed.” he shook his head. ”I just s-stayed l-loyal to m-my country.” he stuttered, knowing it would sound rather mean of him to say to Ed as Ed had done the exact opposite in Stephen’s eyes. ”I changed after I left you. I became a new person. I found someone, Ed. Someone like me.”[//b] he glanced up at Ed, looking at him straight in the eye, ”You don’t know how liberating it feels...sort of funny in a way, two of us breaking all the rules and laws in the land...” he smiled at the thought, looking away and taking a little piece of twig from the dust-covered plant pots on the shelf next to him, beginning to twirl it in his fingers.

"Forgotten about me, that's just a slap in the face, no matter what way you mean it, we've been through too much, you'll be part of me until the day I'm dead and gone, there is no way around it. I'd like to think you'd remember me as well. I ran into Liam a while back, don't be surprised if he brings me up, but I don't wanna talk about it."

Stephen thought about this, yeah he had tried to forget about Ed. He had thought he’d never see the man again and now...here he was. Fate worked like that. ”I had to try and keep you out of my mind. You and I would probably never see it each other again...I didn’t want to keep my hopes up, Ed.” he mumbled, feeling rather daft at saying that. ”How did Brentwood take it?” he asked, funny, Liam had not said anything to him but having said that he had not seen the mad-man in a while...

The boy stood up, he’d grown since Ed had seen him last no doubt. He took his helmet off, revealing his hair and set it down on a shelf. He ran his hand through his hair, sighing and sat back down again, his eyes now on Ed and would not leave him. He stared at him, still in love with him. After a few minutes of silence, he said ”You know when Henry and I are together....I sometimes feel I can not love him properly because of you.”

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Ed fidgeted on his bucket to get a little more comfortable while they caught on things. Then Colly brought up the inevitable subject, being loyal to his country, Ed appreciated the way he worded it to not sound mean about it, but he still thought that there was probably an underlying meaning. That feeling would probably never go away, McMillan always felt like he had to defend his decision around people, even though he never truly cared what most of them thought. Stephen was different in that sense, Ed could be himself more, be relaxed, he knew that their bond superseded the sides of war, it had been proven time and time again.

they had entered the house Ed had slowly began to relaxSort of funny? He thought to himself after he heard Colly say it. You got that right. he laughed a little to himself, but not in a demeaning manner at all, more like you do with a friend, and they are dancing around the blunt way of saying things. He knew that wasn’t the way that Colly meant it either, but it was sort of like an inside joke, poke a little fun and try to get a smile. ”I can’t blame you for trying to not get your hopes up, I probably should have done the same, might give it a shot someday.” he took a deep breath and exhaled quickly when Stephen asked about Brentwood. McMillan stood up and slowly walked over to a nearby window, it had dirt and most of a curtain left on it, he didn’t want to be spotted. ”Well Liam is a bit…uh…finicky you know. He wasn’t exactly the happiest of people.” It couldn’t have been a more vague statement, but it was a wound that had not yet healed inside Ed, it pained him to think about Liam just like it had when Colly was in that SS prison.

Once they had entered the house Ed had slowly began to relax, he hadn’t noticed it before but this time around it was clear as day. Colly was growing up into a fine young man, filling his shoes properly and such. Ed sort of smirked, he was glad Colly had walked into the den of Satan and was still on his feet, he hoped, more so than anything else, that Stephen would walk away from this whole mess, either when it ended or sooner, and that he would do so under his own power.

He paused for a bit at Colly’s last statement though, it brought a deeper set of thoughts into the air. Ed cleared his throat and asked ”Can’t love him…because of me?!” Ed pointed his hand toward his own chest, all of his fingers extended into a straight line toward the center of his abdomen. ”I don’t even know how to take that. And not that it is any of my business in the first place, but I don’t even know who Henry is, I’m guessing he doesn’t know who I am either, I dunno, maybe he does, but what do we have to do with one another?” He didn’t want to seem too confrontational about it, his first question was still while he was caught of guard, but the rest of his words feel with a softer tone.

[Stephen Colly]

The atmosphere was almost relaxed in the little house they occupied; two old friends sitting together, divided by war in this ghastly world. It was a funny thought that the two of them could get shot because of what they were doing, and their defence? We are friends? No, didn’t work in war, in war you were separate, friendships didn’t exist across lines.

When Ed spoke of Liam, and how he was exactly happy about it all, Stephen smirked. ”Yeah, I can imagine....he went ballistic when I told him that first time the two of us met.” He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced up at Ed as he stood up. ”I haven’t seen him in months. I’ve heard he has gone pretty mad recently...well, madder than he was before...” he smirked, remembering Brentwood and his mad antics...”Met his brother as well, equally mad.” he laughed slightly.

When Ed started questioning about Henry and what it all meant, Stephen quickly stood up and touched the man’s arm lightly. ”Oh, no what I mean is that....actually don’t worry. No, the two of you don’t know each other, he is a child hood friend...J-Just forget about it.” he sat back down and laughed nervously and twisted his hands together. Silence filled the place once again, only the few noises outside could be heard.

”Ed. Tell me about your family....” Stephen suddenly said, realising that he did not know much about the man’s upbringing...he heard he had a brother but that was about it. How could a man leave his family let-alone his friends behind him in search of ending a war realistically only politicians could end? ”I know this is an odd question for such a time as now but...well, you’ve never really spoken about your family before and I was wondering....wondering if you could now?”

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Ed shifted his weight from his right leg to his left leg as he peered out into the wasteland of a countryside. This area of France had been hit much harder than most others, fought over time and time again, bombs dropped on most buildings, artillery pounding the hillsides and trees, it was really a depressing sight for anyone that hadn’t lived in it for so long. Ed wonder for a brief moment if the rest of the world would look this bad before it all ended, but that was too far ahead to dedicate too much of ones mind to.

Then Stephen brought up a subject Ed had never known existed, Liam had a brother. ”Wait, hold on a second, Liam has a brother?! Since when?!” Ed had turned sharply to look upon Stephen, his eyebrows were creeping up his forehead with curiosity. McMillan had never heard Liam speak a word about having a brother. Maybe it was a sensitive subject, Ed had no idea. Ed stood there a moment and thought about what Liam’s brother looked like, how they may have gotten along, what it must have been like growing up with a brother. Ed couldn’t get too far into his thoughts before Stephen mentioned that Henry was a childhood friend and to leave the subject alone. Ed nodded and respected Colly’s wishes to let the subject be as it was and no more.

McMillan shook his questions about Liam’s brother and this Henry guy when Stephen asked about Ed’s family. ”Huh, I guess we never really covered that topic have we?” he asked rhetorically in a surprised sense. ”Well I was born in Ireland, near the western coast, pretty little town really. My mom worked in a bakery, oh she could cook lemme tell ya. Never ate a bad meal in my younger years. My father was a farmer, bit stocky, kind of the quiet type. Worked out well that he could grow it and my mom could cook it.” Ed stood there and let his gaze drift as he thought of his parents and the days when he was a young boy. Given the circumstances they seemed so very far behind him now. The smile that had been growing on his face stopped and began to fade as his memories progressed on in his life. ”My, uh, my mom died when I was fifteen, horrible illness. Soon enough things went from bad to worse and my dad took me to America in hopes that things would get better. I know he meant the best but we left the bad times to end up in the worse times really. Things…things got pretty rough for a while until I joined the Army. Helped keep food in my gut and cleaned up my attitude quite a bit.” he sighed quickly before swallowing and continuing on, he couldn’t do this with just anyone, open up so much, only with Stephen. ”When I was twenty two my dad died, was his own fault really. I guess I ended up feeling a bit homesick and when the war was just getting underway I was able to transfer into the British Army.” He paused for a moment to see if he still had Colly’s attention, when he realized he did he sorted out the last part of his family tree. ”And last in the story comes my brother, half brother really, I didn’t know about him until right before I joined Rafael. Said that he and I had the same father. It was an emotional time for me knowing what was about to come and I didn’t take it very well, think it might have created a bit of bad blood between us. I told him I didn’t believe him, spit in his face if I am recalling it accurately.” Edward’s head had slowly drooped as he spoke of his brother. ”But the truth is I kinda had a feeling when I first saw him, then he started talking, we are a lot alike really. I believed him, but I haven’t seen him since, dunno if he’d want to see me really.” He cleared his throat and looked back at Stephen. ”Got any secret brothers of your own?

[Stephen Colly]

Edward did not know Brentwood had a brother? But the two of them had been friends – brothers really – since before Ed had transferred to the Nazis...jeez...

”Umm...since forever? I dunno, it was an odd circumstance in which we met...” he remembered the day in the street and Tyler had slapped him in the face for talking “gibberish” apparently. ”Like his brother....down right stubborn....and....and doesn’t listen to anybody apart from himself...” he sighed and looked out of the window again. The landscape was bare, nothing seemed to be coming or going oddly enough, nothing but the dust of the battle-fields far off.

And then Ed told his story. His own story. Stephen sat and listened, staring at the man – idolising him now it seemed. He spoke of his mother, how she had died, and how his father had taken him to America...how he’d been an Irish boy because of where he lived. Wow, Ireland...seemed so far away to Stephen. Ed had done a hell of a lot in his life and even more-so now. Wow, and he found out he had a brother, gosh how odd things were and how fare seemed to work like that.

”Wow.” Was all Stephen could say at the end, he had hung on Ed’s every word, wanting to learn more and more and final had. It was the first time he had ever heard him speak of his family, his life before the war and it just re-confirmed the age-old-saying of how soldiers were human beings and had lives and families beyond the battalions and regiments they served in.

”No...ha....no. Just me, my mother and father. Got a cousin though but he is a bit of a bastard so haven’t really seen him in months.” he smiled sheepishly at Ed. ”I’ve never heard you speak like that before...you have done so much in your life...its amazing.” he stared at Ed, giving the man a small salute and laughing. ”I respect you Ed. You have made some hell big decisions in your time....wow.” he shook his head in slight disbelief and looked away.

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

(OOC:Sorry it’s short, don’t have much to go on atm.)

Ed shook his head and smiled a bit. "I dunno about amazing, just been around longer than you have is all. You still have plenty of stories of your own to live through so you can tell the young ones when you get to be an ancient old fool like me." Edward said with a wink and a chuckle as he stepped away from the window to take up his seat once more by Stephen on his bucket. He fidgeted a bit to get comfortable then interlocked his fingers in front of him before turning his palms out and stretching, popping his knuckles and then sliding his hands behind his head and leaning on the wall behind him. It was a rickety old home, probably not helped any by the war either. But it kept the weather out and the mold in, what more could a war torn soldier ask for?

Ed looked over to his friend. "So, boss, as that is what you are right now. What's the plan out of this mess we have found ourselves in?" McMillan wasn't panicking any, it was not Stephen in danger. He was not worried about the outcome, it was either they were found out and he was shot, or they would pull it off and no one would be any bit the wiser. Knowing your only possible outcomes tends to set the mind at ease, even if it was death, he had no regrets keeping in touch with Colly. ”Oh, and if the plan involves me getting my stuff back, I’d really like that, be kinda difficult to explain having escaped or maybe even having not been captured at all and loosing all of my gear.” he winked again, he wasn’t actually going to ask Stephen to put himself in a place to be caught up in this red handed, but an innocent distraction wouldn’t go unappreciated.

[Stephen Colly]

OOC – so sorry it’s taken me forever to reply to this JT – been very busy!

Stephen watched as the man got comfortable as he could. He smiled slightly and shook his head – ”Nah...dunno about children – they and I don’t get along....” he smirked and ran a hand through his sweaty hair, glancing up at the window and looking out quickly – no one was about but his men would probably come looking in a bit. He wanted to stay here with Ed but he knew they’d have to say goodbye to each other soon. He had little clue as to what to do in this horrid mess they were in – to get Ed to punch him and then run away would look like Stephen had been attacked and could come off well.

Then Ed asked what was going to happen, calling him “boss.” It felt odd, he’d always called him the boss and now it was the other way round. Stephen really did not know what to do...a little diversion would have to be thought up of quickly and be executed in a way which wasn’t too obvious.

”Umm...well, I was thinking if you hit me and then leave, I could say you beat me up and you fled? That’s all I’ve got so far.” he mumbled, feeling pretty thick as he said it, not wanting to see Ed’s face at his idea just in case it was something he didn’t want to see. ”And not sure about your gear, unless you want to wait until night fall and I can get it to you?”

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Ed smiled a little bit as Stephen talked about ho well he didn't get along with kids. Ed figured that it was fair enough, he didn't get along with them too well either.

Then things took a turn for the surreal. Colly speaking about Ed hitting him reminded McMillan all too much of a time when Colly had been imprisoned by the Waffen SS. The smile he had been sporting quickly disappeared and a bit of a grimace took over. "That's not gonna happen Stephen. We both screwed up last time and I ended up having to hit you, something neither of us enjoyed. This time that we have met had nothing to do with us taking risks we should not have. This time it just so happened that my men and I regrouped with a large force that was retreating, a large force that your unit was already placing into it's cross-hairs. There is no fault to place here, and we have more than one option I'd like to think. So before we start hosing this place down with testosterone and slugging one another into a bloody pulp, we need to think, we have the time." Ed swallowed having just spoken more than he was used to doing so in a single instance and placed his head onto one of his hands.

Colly mentioned that waiting until night fall could give them better odds of Getting Ed the out of the predicament he had walked into. Didn't involve anyone getting hurt either, which was to his liking, Stephen would probably like that as well. "My vote is for waiting until the sun has drooped below the horizon if you really think it will improve my chances of getting out of here. Besides, I only just arrived, and I haven't seen you in ages, would be quite rude of me to leave now." Ed's smile returned and he winked at Colly.

Ed placed his elbows on his knees and interlaced his hands in front of himself. "So..." he started. "Care to tell me about this Henry guy? Tall dark and hansom huh?" He smiled a little bit bigger than before as a gust of breath came from his lungs and out his nose as he almost laughed at what he had said but in a joyful way, not demeaning at all. Honestly Ed was glad to hear that Colly's life had taken a turn in his favor, too long had lady luck turned him the cold shoulder. Now he had found him someone special and wasn't being hit or shot at or captured. Even though they were in the worst place in the world, Ed was very happy Colly's life was the best for miles around.

[Stephen Colly]

"That's not gonna happen Stephen. We both screwed up last time and I ended up having to hit you, something neither of us enjoyed. This time that we have met had nothing to do with us taking risks we should not have. This time it just so happened that my men and I regrouped with a large force that was retreating, a large force that your unit was already placing into it's cross-hairs. There is no fault to place here, and we have more than one option I'd like to think. So before we start hosing this place down with testosterone and slugging one another into a bloody pulp, we need to think, we have the time."

Ed spoke sense. Yes, they needed time to think and that time they did have. It was tense in the room as Stephen tried to work out what to do, but failing miserably. Edward spoke on, saying that it would be best to wait until nightfall for him to leave – made sense. But what to do until now? When Ed said about it being rude if he left, Stephen smirked and gave a short laugh. ”Yeah, wouldn’t it just?” he didn’t know if Ed was joking or not but as he wasn’t moving right now, Stephen had to take that as not a joke.

He then asked about Henry and Stephen’s smile broadened even more. ”He is.” he nodded and rubbed the back of his neck in a nervous manner. ”You don’t understand how amazing it is to find someone like him...He’s in the Air-force.” he said proudly. He loved Henry and he hoped Henry loved him. They had once been caught by a priest but that priest had not said anything to anyone else. Maybe, some day they would not be discriminated. ”What about you, Ed? Any ladies?” he glanced over at his friend hoping he’d say yes. The man needed someone in his life.