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“Tomorrow’s midterm will be a comprehensive field exam. Y’all will have three hours to retrieve the artifact and reach the drop point,” Coach Brunt spoke loudly to the gymnasium of nervous VILE trainees, all sweating from the day’s class. Sheena caught Black Sheep’s eye and grinned smugly. Black Sheep rolled her eyes and shifted her focus back to Coach Brunt.
“I will assign you to groups. All group members must arrive to the drop point. If anybody is missing, your group fails. If you are late to the drop point, your group fails. If you fail, you’re out of the program. Got it?”
Black Sheep bumped Gray with her elbow as the groups were assigned. “Us?” she mouthed at him. He nodded.
“Black Sheep, Graham,”- Gray winked at Black Sheep- “Sheena. Y’all are lucky group thirteen,” Coach Brunt announced.
Gray’s eyebrows raised and Black Sheep’s mouth dropped. She looked over at Sheena, who was sneering right back.
--
“No way! We’re going to fail because of her. She’s evil.”
“Come on, Black Sheep. Sheena’s not that bad once you get to know her. She’s just insecure,” Gray tried, unconvincingly. The pair was walking to the helipad, the starting point for Brunt’s exam. Brunt had specified that the trainees were to wear their standard uniforms and arrive with no equipment, so they were empty handed. Black Sheep was accustomed to relying on her own dexterity above all else, but she knew Gray had become fond of the crackle rod she’d swiped for him.
Black Sheep squinted at him. “You’re taking her side?”
“No, no, I would never,” Gray amended quickly, rubbing the back of his neck. “Listen, can you try to tolerate her? Please? Just for the exam.” They were arriving at the helipad, where a backpack of equipment was waiting for each group. Sheena was already standing with theirs.
“Fine.” Black Sheep huffed. “It’s only three hours, I guess.” Gray smiled and gave her a thumbs up.
Sheena rolled her eyes when they approached. “Hey, Gray, took you long enough,” She complained. “Changing diapers?” Gray gave her a Look. “Fine. But she better not get in the way.”
“Whatever, I’m the only reason you’re going to pass,” Black Sheep retorted.
“Ladies, be civil,” Gray interjected before Sheena could reply. He’d shouldered the pack and was holding the information sheet. Each group had different routes and artifacts to retrieve, but all were finishing at the same drop point. Some groups had already left.
Black Sheep and Sheena exchanged their own look, one that promised trouble, before following Gray into the jungle.
--
Everything was going perfectly. That is, until Sheena demanded that she, not Black Sheep, be the one to retrieve the gold totem from the cavern. At a look from Gray, the younger girl backed down. Sheena was halfway down the steep slope, descending with the aid of a rope Black Sheep had tied to a tree trunk, when the knot gave out. She’d slid the rest of the way and sprained her ankle and the wrist she’d landed on. It’d taken Gray and Black Sheep thirty minutes, and the help of some ingenious rigging on the Aussie’s part, before they’d pulled her out, the totem cradled in her good arm and spewing insults to Black Sheep’s ropework.
Now the trio was trudging through the jungle- Gray leading the way with a machete, Black Sheep following close behind, and Sheena bringing up the rear. The latter limped at a slow pace, and they had to constantly stop so that Gray could help her over fallen trees and other obstacles.
“Can you help her, Black Sheep?” Gray asked when they reached another downed trunk. “We’d be faster if I didn’t have to stop.”
Black Sheep looked to Sheena, who rolled her eyes but didn’t protest as Gray quickly scaled the tree and dropped to the other side. They could hear him resume hacking away at the thick jungle foliage as Black Sheep cupped her hands to hoist the older girl up. Sheena leaned on Black Sheep, one hand on the shorter girl’s head as she hopped into her cupped hands. Black Sheep, not as strong as Gray, struggled to lift Sheena up and end up pushing her butt while the blonde scrambled to the top.
“Ow!” Sheena hissed. “That effing hurts!”
“You weigh a ton,” Black Sheep retorted as she clamored up beside her. Sheena growled and pushed the redhead, sending her down the other side with a yelp.
“Black Sheep? Is everything alright?” Gray called, coming back into view down the crude path he’d made.
“Oh, she’s fine. Just slipped- you’ve got to be more careful!” Sheena chided. Gray looked down to Black Sheep, his expression questioning the story.
“... Yeah,” Black Sheep agreed, standing up slowly. “Just slipped.”
Gray grinned. “Be careful. I can’t carry you both.”
When he’d gone, Black Sheep glared at Sheena, who smirked.
“Alright, come on,” the redhead said through gritted teeth, holding up her arms for the other girl to slide into. Sheena pushed off the trunk and Black Sheep quickly stepped away, letting her fall.
“Hey! You little brat!”
--
When it neared three hours, Black Sheep had her arm around Sheena, the older girl leaning onto her shoulders to move faster. Neither uttered a complaint- no stupid rivalry was worth being cut from the training program.
“My girls finally getting along?” Gray announced when he saw. “Now that’s a sight I never thought I’d see.” They both rolled their eyes at him.
--
They made it to the drop point with only ten minutes to spare.
“What took y’all so long?” Brunt barked when they arrived, but then noticed Black Sheep supporting Sheena’s weight. “Well, at least y’all made it.” Ten minutes later, eighteen trainees were automatically cut from the program when the timer buzzed and six groups had not returned.
Black Sheep was a little less than pleased with their grade, but Gray seemed happy. Once they’d delivered Sheena to the infirmary and were headed back to their room, he ruffled her hair.
“See? Wasn’t that hard, was it?” he joked. Black Sheep knocked his hand away.
“Really? Sheena’s your girl?” she griped.
“Nah, you’re my only girl,” he answered, showing off his dimples when she squinted at him.
--
When Sheena returned to the room with temporary casts on her wrist and leg, Gray slipped her the twenty U.S. dollars he’d promised- plus another ten, just for her extra trouble.