Work Text:
For what may be the fifth time this night, Ava tugs her dress upwards and curses the impracticality of off-shoulder dresses. She blows a breath out as she follows the girl she’d been assigned to work with, Beatrice, up the stairs.
They lean on the walkway's railing overlooking the party and Ava tries to see whatever Beatrice sees.
“Four O’Clock. That’s Kristian, one of Adriel’s newest and most loyal,” Beatrice speaks, tilting her head slightly in the direction Ava is supposed to look.
Ava squints her eyes and assesses the man. He hardly seemed like a threat. He smiled too widely and clung to the tattooed man at his side. Ava couldn’t picture how he was any different to Adriel’s other fanatics.
Ava wets her lips as she watches Beatrice focus and mutter a few things to herself. Well, as much as Ava was unimpressed with her assignment saying that she’d be acting as the girlfriend of one of the OCS’ top agents, she couldn’t deny that Beatrice was attractive.
She wore a black tailored suit that is perfectly pressed with a pair of leather loafers that shined under the lights. On anyone else, that completely buttoned shirt and pulled-up thin black tie would look a little too stiff, but Beatrice made it look natural and relaxed.
This is your work partner, Ava, she reprimands herself. You shouldn’t be thinking about how attractive she is right now. You have a mission.
She finds her internal debate cut off when Beatrice spins around and slides a hand on her back pulling her close. Her breath brushes against Ava’s face and while she seemed to try to keep her cool, Ava notes the hint of a blush on her cheeks.
Just as quickly as it occurs, it ends. Beatrice spins back around and leans against the rail once more.
Ava gapes, “What was that?”
Beatrice rolls her eyes. “I hoped you’d be more perceptive. One of his followers was coming our way and staring at them would make us look suspicious. Two lovers entangled doesn’t.”
Beatrice bites her lip and carefully pulls the fallen part of Ava’s dress back up to her shoulders. “Apologies.”
Ava’s cheeks redden. She hadn’t even noticed.
She rubs her hands together and pushes all of the feelings Beatrice’s touch just conjured to the side. They had a mission.
“So, help me be perceptive,” she answers. “What’s our plan?”
Beatrice hums. “We slowly filter downwards. The dance will start in,” she lifts the sleeve of her jacket up to check her watch. The face rests on the inside of her wrist. “Exactly half an hour.” She looks at Adriel’s group. “In this crowd, we’ll capture Kristian and bring him back to the OCS.”
Beatrice loosely places a hand against Ava’s waist and walks along the walkway. “In the meantime, we must blend.” She waves a hand and calls a waiter holding a tray of champagne flutes over, grabbing two. She places one in Ava’s hand. “So, let us toast.”
Ava clinks her glass against Beatrice’s and swallows the entire flute without thought. She’d need more than one if she was going to make it through the night without doing something that crosses the line of professionalism with Beatrice.
Their motions are slow. With a hand on the small of Ava’s back, Beatrice leads them through the crowd to the canapes. They make idle conversation with the guests, neither confirming nor denying affiliation with Adriel.
Ava struggles to contain her audible relief as the crowd is called downstairs to dance.
Once they’re mingled in with the crowd and the music starts, they stare at each other. “What do we do now?” Ava whispers, looking at how intimate the couples dancing were.
Ava watches as Beatrice swallows sharply. “We dance.”
Beatrice steps forward and places a hand on Ava’s waist and the other against one of her shoulders. Ava takes in a shaky breath and stares.
“Hold me,” Beatrice demands, her voice low as she scans the crowd. “If we fail the mission here-”
Ava darts her eyes around and notices the way most of the women have their arms draped over their partner's shoulders. She slides her hands up and matches the motion, effectively silencing Beatrice.
They fall into a quiet waltz and soon the music fades into the background as Ava focuses on Beatrice’s eyes. To hell with professionalism. Her partner was beautiful.
“What was that?” Beatrice whispers with furrowed brows.
Shit. Did she say that out loud? “Um, I,” Ava takes a deep breath, “You’re beautiful, Beatrice.”
The frown remains on Beatrice’s face as she pulls back to twirl Ava under her arm. “Flattery is not part of the mission.”
“I know,” Ava answers. “I just had to state the facts in front of me.”
Beatrice looks away for a moment and clears her throat. “Well, I suppose,” her eyes trail down Ava’s frame, to the red dress that so often fell from her shoulders. “It would be a lie if I denied how radiant you look in that dress.”
Ava smiles. “You think so?”
Beatrice steps closer, crossing a boundary of intimacy that the other couples around them had fallen into. “Undoubtedly.”
Ava feels herself leaning forward and despite all logic and training that told her to pull back, she couldn’t. After a few short moments, Beatrice starts to match her. Just a few more inches and their lips would-
Ava jumps back in surprise as the music ends and turns into something more upbeat. The couples pull apart and dance more freely.
Beatrice blinks rapidly and grabs Ava’s hand, leading her to the edge of the dance floor. “Now is our chance. The chaos of the crowd will serve as the perfect distraction, and,” she points at Kristian as he walks away. “It seems someone is not so fond of it.”
Ava bites her lip. She had almost kissed Beatrice. She barely knew her and yet… she really wanted to continue where they left off.
When she realises Beatrice is waiting on her response, she nods. “Right, so how do we go about this?”
A smile forms on Beatrice’s face. “Well-”
Ava listens to her elaborate plan. Ava would catch him from the right of the floor. She’d trip into him and apologise rapidly. She’d try to pull away, but her ankle will fail her. Then, she’ll ask for him to take her somewhere quiet to sit because she ‘needed a moment.’
In that distraction, Beatrice would come from behind and knock him out. From there, it would be a quick extraction out the back, a path mapped for them before they entered the building.
“I can do that,” Ava agrees, stepping away from Beatrice. “I’ll see you soon.”
Beatrice’s brows furrow for a moment before she nods. “Of course.”
Step one begins. She walks in Kristian’s direction and in the last moment before impact, she looks away and just as planned. She stumbles forward with her foot at an angle, landing directly against his chest.
“Are you okay, miss?” Kristian asks, helping her right herself.
“I think I’m,” Ava starts, taking a step back, “Ow, ow, my ankle.”
Kristian panics as expected and reaches for her arms to stabilise her. “Oh dear, I’m sorry, do you need anything? Is there someone to call?”
Ava shakes her head and limps albeit a little dramatically. “No, no, I’ve already inconvenienced you so much.” She pauses and looks up at him. “But would it be too much trouble to take me to a quiet room to recover before I return to the dance?”
Kristian purses his lips for a moment and stares at her. But seeming to not find what he’s looking for, he agrees. “Of course, miss.” He places a hand on her shoulder as she limps. “Right this way.”
Ava almost groans by the time they finally make it to a small room down the hall with a ridiculously comfortable couch in it. Having to drag her leg behind her the entire time in heels was extremely unpleasant. She reaches for him as she tries to walk away. “Oh thank you, you’re so kind to have helped me, especially after I tripped into you.”
Kristian shakes his head with a smile and pats her hand. “It is no trouble, I’m sure it was I who wasn’t looking.”
Ava almost feels bad for him with what comes next. He was an almost decent man, had he not been a follower of Adriel.
He slumps beside her on the couch as Beatrice places a needle in his neck, effectively knocking him unconscious.
She offers Ava her hand. “Are you okay, did he try anything?”
An amused smile takes over Ava’s face. “You almost sound concerned. What happened to focusing on the mission?”
Beatrice huffs and looks away. She walks over and grabs one of Kristian’s arms. “I just want myself and my partner to return to the OCS.”
Ava shakes her head with her smile still on her face and joins Beatrice. She grabs his other arm and lifts him. “So do I.”
Beatrice meets her eyes, and for a moment, Ava thinks the corner of her lips had quirked up. But just as quickly as she noticed it, it was gone.
Together they carefully follow the paths given to them by the OCS and before they know it, they’re out of the building and Kristian is being loaded up into the van.
“I-” Ava speaks, turning to look at Beatrice.
“I-” Beatrice repeats, copying the action.
Ava laughs. “You first.”
Beatrice bites her lip. “I wouldn’t mind continuing what was occurring on the dance floor.”
Ava grins. “The dance?”
A flush forms on Beatrice’s cheeks. “No, the…”
Ava decides to stop teasing her and slides a hand up to Beatrice’s neck. She uses her grip to pull her down into a kiss.
Beatrice’s lips are still for a moment before she catches up and matches Ava’s motions and presses her lips firmly against Ava’s.
They pull away and Beatrice smiles. “I wouldn’t mind being your partner again.”
Ava reaches for Beatrice’s hand and slides hers into it, leading her to the waiting van. “Neither would I.”
They return to the OCS with Kristian captured and something a little more than a successful mission between them.