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Chapter Text

The first time it happened, he told himself it was just a matter of professional integrity.

It had been a stressful week. Atlas had gotten a whiff of an opportunity to widen the Lackadaisy’s territory and he was moving heaven and hell to not let this chance pass him by.

Apparently, some high-ranking crime boss had recently kicked the bucket and Atlas had seen it as a chance to erase some of the competition from the map. However, he was not the only one who had been drawn in by the sent of blood. The rumor of rats fleeing the ship, had quickly made its round.

Knowing the kind of people involved in their certain métier, it wasn’t hard to guess that the Daisies probably wouldn’t be the only once interested in using this unique situation.

Taking out a gang this large, even while they were at their weakest would be no child’s play. If they really wanted a chance to succeed, then they needed more manpower and they needed it fast.

So, in a strike of strategic calculation, aided by conveniently aligning goals, an unusual alliance was formed.

Atlas had decided it was the best cause of action to team up with Asa Sweet to make sure they didn’t get in over their heads. The agreement was that in the end, the Daisies and the Marigolds, would split their spoils in half. Something that would both gain them greatly and might hopefully, be the start of an at least peaceful coexistence.

Despite all precautions though, the practical execution of the plan had rather quickly turned out to be even harder than expected.

The actual erasing of the remnants of the leaderless gang had of course fallen into the department of Mordecai and Viktor, but from the moment they had started their hunt, it seemed like they had kicked a hornet’s nest.

Apparently, knowing that they were about to go down, some of the gang members had decided to go out with a bang. Fighting in a way, only men who had nothing left to lose, could. For days it was nothing but massacre after massacre. There were quite a few losses on both the Marigolds and the Daisies side but in the end they returned victorious.

[…]

Mordecai and Viktor had run themselves ragged, for almost a week. Raiding suppliers, stealing cars and taking out hideout after hideout. The weariness of the last days was getting to them, so much so, that they didn’t even have the energy to really argue with each other. Though leave it to Mordecai to try anyway.

“I just don’t understand, why you can’t simply admit, that this mess was your doing “, the smaller feline exclaimed with an exasperated huff.

The triggerman had just started a halfhearted - and very one-sided - discussion over who’s fault the bloodstains on the backseat of the car were, when he could feel the exhaustion of the last days overtake him.

Viktor had not even had the energy to yell at the smaller cat for once. Only releasing a tired groan before growling:” Vysrať sa. Just-...Shut up.”

Mordecai remembered muttering something in response when his eyelids had suddenly become very heavy, and he had accidentally fallen asleep in the car on the drive back.

It was a sloppy mistake.

Viktor and he didn’t know each other that well yet. They had only been working together for barely a few months.

They could have easily gotten ambushed or Viktor himself could have used his vulnerable state to finally strangle the triggerman to death for always getting on his nerves - after all Mordecai had shot their driver for less -

-But he hadn’t.

In fact, the burly feline hadn’t even made a comment when Mordecai had jerked awake as the car had come to a hold in front of the little Daisy, sometime later.

Maybe the sour giant had just been glad that the triggerman had finally stopped talking for once?

Whatever it was, Mordecai didn't have the time to puzzle it out because immediately after their arrival Atlas informed them,  that he needed his heavy hitters at a meeting in less than an hour and at that point the smaller feline couldn’t help but be grateful for the extra bit of sleep.

Still exhausted and itching to take a long overdue shower to properly wash away the blood and grime still uncomfortable clinging to his claws and fur, Mordecai had subtly tried to get Atlas to delay the meeting until the morning, but apparently, whatever was going to happen in that gathering couldn’t wait.

Viktor had chimed in and tried to give the younger cat an out, by offering that maybe someone else could tag in for them. But of course, Mordecai still new and eager to proof himself had taken it the wrong way. Completely misinterpreting his partners concern about their exhausted state, as an attack on his capabilities.

“Excuse me, I am perfectly capable of performing my duties as usual”, Mordecai hissed, throwing Viktor an icy glare. The Slovak only slightly squinted his eye at him in response.

“Oh, don’t you give me that look! If you need a break, fine! But don’t you use me as an excuse just because you’re to proud about losing your touch- ”, Mordecai rambled angrily, as he pointed an accusatory finger at Viktor.
“Nevďačný spratek, will you ever shut up?! Am trying to be sensible!”, the bigger feline snarled.

“Well, how about you try forming a grammatically correct sentence first!?”

Before their argument could spiral any further, Atlas cut them off by loudly clearing his throat.
”AHEM…As much as I hate to interrupt, gentlemen, we’re running a bit on a tight schedule here.
So-”, he started, making a pause to level the partners with a calculating look,” Is there a problem or not?”

Viktor was already opening his mouth to protest but Mordecai swiftly tried to cut him off by holding up a hand right in front of his partners face.

To probably everyone’s astonishment, this actually worked. As Viktor seemed so caught off guard by the gesture that he could only blink at the triggerman in silent bewilderment.

“No, there is no problem, Sir”, Mordecai replied sternly, a hint of annoyance underneath the carefully neutral tone of his voice.

From the corner of his eye, he could see his partner was throwing him a look that made clear he thought this was a bad idea but kept otherwise quiet. Still the tuxedo cat made the wise choice to finally pull his hand away from the angry Slovaks face, who’s expression seemed to suggest that he had already been calculating if it would get him fired if he bit it off.

Atlas hummed, his piercing gaze boring into that of the triggerman. His sharp eyes scanning the smaller cats face for something.

“Good”, he replied after a few seconds, apparently having been satisfied by whatever he had or hadn’t found in the younger cat’s expression, “ I will meet you here in an hour.”

Mordecai released a small breath as he watched his boss walk away, feeling a bit lighter by his employer’s apparent trust in his abilities.

He would not regret this!

[...]

He was deeply regretting this.

The meeting itself had barely started yet the younger feline could already tell that the whole thing would be an almost insufferable affaire.

The attending parties were the Daisies, the Marigolds and someone from the inside of the gang they had just taken out. He was a sleazy upper-class man by the name of Erskine who spoke and carried himself in a way that reeked of old money.

He had been the one to give them insider information on hideouts and suppliers, in exchange for the insurance that his side of the business would be excluded from their rampage. Showing not a hint of remorse for selling out his fellow men, in order to safe his own skin.

Saying Mordecai wasn’t a fan of the two-faced snob would be quite the understatement. He didn’t trust him, and going of off the suspicious scowl on his partners face, he wasn’t the only one sharing this opinion.

Previously all parties had been equally dependent on the other, but with this new offer on the table, the balance had shifted in Erskine’s favor, and he was all too aware of it.

“So, gentlemen, why don’t you tell me why exactly I should take you up on your offer?”, Erskine asked, a bored expression on his face as he lit his cigar.

“You just barely escaped a sinking ship Mr. Erskine, everyone knows that. Mr. May here and I, are offering you a chance to – let’s say – invest in a new vessel. One that is willing to take care of the sharks that have been lured in by the bloody wreck. This way, you get to keep doing business as usual and we get to take our cut as well. A true win-win-situation,” Asa Sweet explained jovially, while he poured three glasses with some obscenely expensive looking brandy.

“Hmm…And who says I’m interested in carrying on business as usual?”, Erskine hummed, lazily raising an unimpressed eyebrow, “Sharks may have been intimidating to a drowning man, Mr. Sweet, but as you might have noticed I have long since made it back to shore and currently I feel I have lost interest in returning to the “seafaring”-business.”

He sent Asa an almost amused look, making a deliberate pause to take a slow drag of his cigar.

Mordecai fought the urge to roll his eyes.

They all knew the pompous prick held the cards, there was no point in him making a show of it.

“So, tell me”, Erskine continued, lazily exhaling smoke,” Why shouldn’t I simply take this opportunity to turn my back on these treacherous waters, your ‘kind’, seems to thrive in so much?”

Mordecai hadn’t missed how the man’s eyes had lingered on him for a second, at the word, ‘kind’. It made a tinge of irritation bubble in his chest, but he brushed it aside, expression remaining carefully blank.

“It is true, you could take your copious amounts of money and simply take your business elsewhere. Hell, if you so desired you could probably even become legit, by simply leaving this miserable little city behind. Starting off with a clean slate somewhere far away from here. But if that were the case, we wouldn’t even be having this discussion. So, there must be something else you want”, Atlas stated cooly, a sharp glint in his eye as he leveled Erskine with an equally unimpressed look.

“And what exactly would that be, Mr. May?”, Erskine inquired, a challenging smirk curling around his lips.

“You want the thrill ”, Atlas responded confidently,” You may have the money and the power, but all that is quite boring without the excitement of the risk, isn’t it?”

The upper-class man rose from his seat, rolling his cigar between his fingers as he slowly began circling the room.

“Alright, you got me. I’m listening. What are you proposing?”, Erskine asked, his curiosity finally peaked.

“You just lost the majority of the men who carry out your dirty work. We’re offering to take their place -temporarily that is - in exchange for some "assistance" in dealing with an old "pal" of yours”, Asa explained nonchalantly, having not so subtly jumped at the opportunity to join back into the conversation.

“Hmm, a favor for a favor, so to speak”, Erskine hummed contemplatively, having come to a stop in front of Viktor. He was dangerously invading the Slovaks very cherished personal space as he eyed the enforcer up and down like cattle for sale.

“Say, who does this one, belong to?”, Erskine inquired distractedly, cigar clammed between his teeth as he took another step towards the bigger feline.

Viktor growled at him in warning, looming threateningly over the cocky man.

“Woah, there, relax. Aren’t you a sensitive fellow,” the upperclassman joked but, made the wise choice to take a slightly intimidated step back.

Mordecai raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of subject.

“Mr. Erskine this is Mr. Vasko, my left-hand-man if you will. I’d advise you to rather keep your distance, he isn’t too keen on strangers invading his personal space”, Atlas warned flatly, throwing the Slovak a sharp look as to make sure the enforcer wouldn’t do something stupid.

Viktor clenched his fists at his sides, looking like he had bit in a lemon as his tail flicked in anger, but he seemed to have gotten the message. Obediently remaining in place, the scowling behemoth seemed to have resigned himself to silently glare daggers at the cocky man in front of him.

“You wouldn’t by any chance be interested in letting him go, Mr. May, would you? I could use a tough looking fellow like him and I’ve always had a thing for putting ill-mannered dogs in their place. Especially the feisty once”, Erskine chuckled, the sadistic tone in his voice made Mordecai’s skin crawl.

The triggerman could tell it took his partner a considerable amount of self-control to not lunge at Erskine right then and there and he could not blame him in the slightest. Both Viktor’s and Mordecai’s gaze quickly shot to Atlas. Surely their boss wouldn’t tolerate such blatant disrespect towards one of his most efficient employees- and by extension him.

“Mr. Vasko is a quite cherished asset of mine, so… no. Not as long as I can help it”, Atlas responded sternly, after what Mordecai felt had been a bit too long of a hesitant pause. Atlas face remained as always unreadable.

There had been a hint of a reassuring finality to his employer’s tone, yet Mordecai couldn’t shake the feeling that for a second there, Atlas might have seriously considered Erskine’s offer. The younger feline found himself strangely annoyed, at the thought.

“Hmm…A shame”, Erskine hummed, before turning to Viktor with a crooked teethed smile that didn’t reach his eyes,” Though I suppose it’s better this way. After all, any decent businessman knows it’s almost always a bad idea to invest in damaged goods.”

“Because you know so much about good investments”, the triggerman murmured under his breath.

He froze at the deafening quiet that flooded the room in an instant.

He hadn’t meant to say the words out loud.

Mordecai was usually not the type to let men like Erskine have the satisfaction of getting a rise out of him and the insult hadn’t even been directed towards him, but that last comment had been just-

He tried to meet Atlas gaze, but instead of reassurance he was met with a calculating blankeness.

He realized right then, that he had made a mistake.

He could back down, he should- 

But that man-

it was simply unprofessional! 

“What was that?”, Erskine questioned, a hint of something dangerous underneath the otherwise neutral tone of his voice as he half turned his head in the triggerman’s direction.

“Mr. Erskine, please excuse my young employee he-”, Atlas started, trying to defuse the situation, but Erskine waved him off as he slowly crossed the room.

“No, no, Mr. May. Let the boy speak for himself”, he chided, tone cold as ice. He calmly came to a halt in front of Mordecai. Uncomfortably close.

Mordecai had to suppress the urge to take a step back.

Erskine had a few inches on him, looming over the triggerman like a predator that had just spotted new prey.

Mordecai hated how it made his neckfur bristles.

He took a slow drag of his cigar, leaning in close, to blow smoke into the smaller cat’s face. “ I’d love to hear what the kid thinks he’s getting at.”

Mordecai tried to stifle a cough, tail flicking in anger as he defiantly met the taller man's eyes.

He would not let himself be intimidated by this- this spineless-crooked-teethed-backstabber!

“I said", he started through gritt teeth," Regarding the state your latest “investment” left your current business, don’t you think it’s a bit much to still call yourself anything close to decent in your practice, Sir?”, he spat, trying to keep his face completely expressionless.

A dangerous quiet streched between them, as the triggerman and Erskine stared at each other.

Mordecai saw from his periphery that Viktor was subtlety shifting one hand towards his gun-

and then-

“I have to hand it to you boy, you’ve got some guts,” the taller cat chuckled darkly after a beat of tense silence, blowing another round of smoke into the triggerman’s face, “Better be careful with this one, Mr. May. I think you’re giving your dogs to much leash. One might get the impression you don’t know how to teach them manners.”

Mordecai didn’t remember the last time he had wanted to shoot a man this badly, but Atlas was throwing him a stern disapproving look, so he kept his mouth shut.
The triggerman could still feel the anger boiling in his veins, but Atlas had taken over the talking and he and Asa had subtly steered the conversation back to business.

The hours ticked on and slowly the younger feline could feel the tiredness seeping back into his bones. He was exhausted and Erskine made another comment that made him want to ram the disgusting cigar up the man’s nose-

He was distracted, not noticing the shadows that had suddenly crept up to the door.

His carelessness could have been a fatal mistake if it hadn’t been for one of the Marigolds who had quickly alerted the room to the presence of their uninvited visitors.

The whole situation might also have totally gone to hell if it hadn’t been for Viktor, who had instantly turned over two of the heavy tables, giving most of them enough cover, before they could be pierced by machine gun fire.

When the bullets started flying Mordecai had also not missed how Viktor had shoved Erskine a bit harder than necessary to the ground, dragging the man rather roughly out of the line of fire. He couldn’t really enjoy the show though as he quickly lost sight of them in the chaos.

The rest of the Marigolds quickly sprang into action as well, using the provided cover to take out the main gunman. Meanwhile Mordecai darted from side to side, returning fire to distract their attackers, so Atlas and Asa could slip away through a back door.

It was a messy blood bath and once it was all over, it had been a miracle that no one had gotten killed or seriously hurt – well, no one who counted anyway.

[...]

Atlas had been furious afterwards. His eyes fuming with cold rage as he had ordered the partners to his office, once they had returned to the Lackadaisy. Giving them the dressing down of their lives before they even had the chance to shut the door.

“I know it has been a long day, but you two have acted beyond unprofessional tonight! Now before I rip your heads of, does one of you might care to explain to me WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED BACK THERE?!”, Atlas yelled, glaring daggers at his employes as he was towering behind his desk. “What about you Mordecai, huh?! Earlier you couldn’t seem to keep your mouth shut either”, he hissed at the triggerman.

“Sir, I’m sorry but even if I had seen the men sneak in earlier-” Atlas cut him off by slamming his fist on the table.

“Do you have any idea that your childish stubbornness has almost presented us as vulnerable?! This line of work doesn’t allow room for sloppy mistakes! So, next time you feel like you’re not up for a job, you tell me, IS THAT CLEAR?!”, Atlas snarled, leveling the smaller feline with such an intense glare that Mordecai had to avert his eyes. “Yes, sir”, Mordecai answered quietly, not daring to meet his boss’s furious stare.

“Good. But I wasn’t even talking about that”, Atlas huffed angrily, throwing his arms up in exasperation,” You’ve never had a problem dealing with people like Erskine before. You know better than to let them get under your skin. What has gotten into you!?”

“BOTH OF YOU!”, he clarified sternly, as he turned to point an accusatory finger at Viktor. “Don’t think I didn’t see how you elbowed him behind that table, Vasko,” he growled, shooting the Slovak such an infuriated look, that even old-vinegar-tom didn’t dare to meet his deadly gaze.

“Though from you this kind of behavior was at least somewhat to be expected”, Atlas sighed before turning his disapproving stare back on the younger feline,” From you though Mordecai I thought I could expect a bit more professionalism.” The tired disappointment in Atlas’ tone felt somehow worse than his boss’ anger, it made the triggerman almost wish the older cat would start yelling again.

“Vell, you have to admit it was little bit funny though”, Viktor stated, if it was in an attempt to lighten up the mood or to defend Mordecai was hard to say, but oh if looks could kill the Slovak would have keeled over dead from the way Atlas was glaring at him.

“Get out of my office, NOW”, Atlas bit out through clenched teeth, “AND CLOSE THE DAMN DOOR BEHIND YOU!”

[...]

Having hurried outside to escape Atlas’ wrath, Mordecai sank down on the steps to the garage. He leaned back against the wall, pinching the bridge of his nose with an exhausted groan:” Well, that could have gone a lot better.” “Could have been vorse”, Viktor shrugged as he sat down a few steps below the smaller cat so they could see eye to eye.

“Did you really elbow, Erskine on purpose?”, Mordecai asked, curiously peaking at Viktor over the rim of his glasses.

“Ehh…Might have punched him too”, Viktor confessed, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.

“Once?”

“Twice”

Mordecai couldn’t help the snort that suddenly escaped him at that, only partially succeeding in trying to hastily disguise the sound, by clearing his throat. The sleep deprivation must be really messing with his brain.

“Atlas doesn’t need to know though”, the Slovak chuckled,” Is angry enough already.”

“I’ll take it to my grave “, Mordecai deadpanned, before slowly getting up on his feet, “Which might be quite soon if I don’t get into a bed already.”

“Povedz mi o tom”, Viktor mumbled, craning his head from side to side, neck joints audibly popping back into place.
“Vant a ride? Vas about to head home anyway”, he asked casually, looking up at Mordecai from his position on the stairs.

The tuxedo cat was about to decline but found himself hesitate for a second.

Of course, he wasn’t going to let Viktor know were he lived. That would be foolish even given that he could trust Viktor enough to probably not murder him in his sleep- Not that he trusted him at all! It was quite a far walk though and he felt exhausted- So maybe if he just let Viktor drive him a block or two away from his actual apartment-

“Why not”, Mordecai suddenly heard himself sigh.

After all, wasn’t having your partners back simply just a matter of professional integrity?

Chapter Text

The second time it happened he figured it was the adrenaline.

It was supposed to be an easy job. They had only been tasked with roughing up one of their suppliers a bit. A shady guy who had recently tried to scam them by stretching their booze with water. However, things had quickly escalated, the moment that little maniac had suddenly flung a stick of dynamite their way, blowing up half the barn they were in, in the process.

Everything after that had happened so fast.

Swirled up dust and smoke made it hard to see. Flames were rising everywhere. Hungrily devouring everything in their path. Suddenly Mordecai caught the glimpse of something shiny out of his peripheral. His body moved before he even had a chance to fully register the situation. Instinct and muscle memory fully taking over.
There was a shot, followed by the sound of a body hitting the ground hard. It took the triggerman a second to realize what had just happened.

Still disoriented by the blast, Viktor hadn’t seen that their target had used the commotion to scramble out of sight. The maniac had been pointing a gun at him from the rafters of the building. Having recovered quicker than his partner, Mordecai hadn’t hesitated a second. Taking the guy out with a single shot, before the man could even get a chance to pull the trigger.

What the smaller cat had failed to notice however was the creaking wooden beam above him that suddenly came loose. He only heard Viktor cry out to him in warning before he looked up to see something heavy and hot come smashing down on him. He closed his eyes, reflexively cowering down to the ground in a futile attempt at shielding himself from the incoming hit.

He heard the crash of wood and a guttural animalistic scream, but to his surprise the impact never came.

Yet, the sight he was met with, when he dared to open his eyes again was enough to punch the remaining air out of his lungs all on its own.

There, towering above him, whole body shaking and growling in effort, was Viktor. Barely holding a massive burning beam on his shoulders as flames were licking at his clothes and fur.

For a moment, Mordecai was frozen in complete awe of the image before him. It was like time had slowed down.

Engulfed in smoke, fangs bared and snarling like a wild beast, fur and fire blurring together, his partner seemed almost inhuman. Like some eldritch creature born in ash and embers, the surreal vision of a burning god.

The triggerman was quickly startled out of his marveling stupor by Viktor swearing loudly as his bad knee started to buckle. “MOVE!”, he growled through clenched teeth desperately digging his claws into the smoldering wood to keep it from slipping.

Mordecai hastily scrambled out of the way. Not a second later with another guttural groan the ginger tomcat pushed the massive beam off his shoulders. Mordecai had to gulp as he heard the hard thud of wood crashing on the ground on the exact spot he had been cowering in less than a minute ago.
There wasn’t much time to dwell on it though because shortly after the whole roof began making an ominous creaking sound, which both took with one look to one another as their cue to take their immediate leave.

[…]

Minutes later they emerged from the building. Violently coughing, they threw themselves to the ground, rolling from side to side, in an attempt to snuff out any flames that had taken hold of their clothes and fur. For a moment they just kept laying there in the cool wet grass, heavily breathing in the sweet fresh night air.

“This suit is ruined”, Mordecai finally broke the silence, getting to his feet and frantically trying to brush off some of the dirt and soot from his trousers to no avail, “Oh, great and my tie! Look at it! It’s completely burned! It hardly looks like a tie anymore! Don’t even get me started on my- OH NO! MY CUFFLINKS! They melted!”

Viktor only chuckled at that, slowly getting up with a painful hiss.

“You think this is funny!? These are irreplaceable! They- Are you even listening to me!?”, Mordecai shortly halted his outraged rambling to glare daggers at his partner. Viktor, completely unimpressed by the triggerman’s tirade, simply turned his back on him to walk towards the car.

“No, no, never. Great tragedy, really”, the Slovak responded flatly, the way he rolled his eye somehow audible in his voice.

Mordecai was about to send an insulted diatribe about respecting the value of good cufflinks his way for that, but the words died in his mouth the moment he got a glimpse at his colleagues back.
From this angle the smaller cat could clearly see parts of large angry burns on the bigger cat’s neck and shoulders. Mordecai knew from experience that wounds like that had the unfortunate habit of leaving rather nasty scars. His partner was also slightly favoring his good leg a bit more than usual as he walked.
There was an unfamiliar tugging feeling in the triggerman’s chest as the thought crossed his mind that maybe his cufflinks were not the only irreplaceable thing that got permanently damaged that night.

“You are coming or not?”, Viktor called out to him, turning around with a raised brow before lazily leaning against the driver side of the car. Mordecai only huffed a bit exhausted in response, before climbing into the passenger seat.

“Vas good shot, back in barn”, Viktor stated casually while he started the engine, “Right between eyes. Pretty good.”
“Right, between the eyes”, Mordecai corrected flatly, before awkwardly adding,” You were not too bad yourself.”

Viktor only shrugged in response, turning his head slightly so that Mordecai was no longer on his blind side. An earnest glimpse of careful appreciation entered his good eye.

They shared a short knowing look, an unspoken “thank you” hanging in the air as an expression almost like a smile hushed over their faces.

As Viktor turned back to start driving, Mordecai could tell he was trying to suppress a hiss. The movement must have been aggravating the burn on his upper back. The tuxedo cat found his eyes drawn to Viktor’s neck, feeling a sudden urge to reach out and peek underneath the collar of Viktor’s shirt- Only to look at the wound of course and - and to assess the damage!

Heart hammering in his chest at the mental image of his own small hands carefully gliding over Viktor’s strong shoulders, Mordecai quickly had to avert his eyes.

In an attempt to calm his oddly flaring nerves and occupy his hands the triggerman pulled out his half-burned handkerchief, reassuring himself in his mind that it was probably just the rest of the adrenalin making him all jittery, while he started cleaning his glasses.

[…]

Little did Mordecai know that he would startle awake with the same unfamiliar feeling in his chest, later that night. The strangely comforting vision of a benevolent burning god lingering before his inner eye as he drifted back off to sleep.

Chapter Text

The third time it happened he blamed it on the alcohol.

It was the day of Atlas and Mitzi’s wedding and right from the start Mordecai had hated almost everything about it.
A week prior, Atlas had called him into his office to inform him that his only job for the wedding would be to carry a gun with him and to make sure that no unwanted guest could get a chance to interrupt the festivities.

He distinctly remembered that having to hide behind a Ficus to escape the wrath of some flapper girls, had not been part of that job description. Yet that was precisely the situation the triggerman had found himself in less than two hours into the event. Thinking back the whole day had seemed to have its personal vendetta against him.

[…]

It had all started out with Mordecai not being able to complete his outfit for the occasion, because he still hadn’t been able to replace the cufflinks, he had lost in that fire a couple months ago. He had to use another pair which weren’t terrible, but they just didn’t quite match with the color of his buttons the way the others had. It was a minor nuisance at the time but in retrospect one might be inclined to call it a bad omen.

The ceremony itself, actually, had been almost pleasant. It was a rather small affair with only close friends and family present. The church’s layout had also made it an easy enough place to secure. He might even have been inclined to call it nice, if it hadn’t been for the flowers used as decoration which had made his eyes water and clogged up his nose halfway through the ceremony, which to his frustration had Mitzi convinced that he had been moved to tears by the couple's wedding vows.

The rest of the festivities were to take place in the caverns of the Lackadaisy and that is where Mordecai’s nightmare truly began. The speakeasy had filled to the brim with people, only moments after they had arrived. Although knowing that every guest who entered was thoroughly searched for weapons and having made sure himself that there were twice as many men standing guard as usual, Mordecai couldn’t help but feel on edge.

Dutifully he had fulfilled his role as Atlas’ shadow for the first hour or so, standing awkwardly to the side as the newly-weds received gifts and congratulations. He was just in the middle of scanning the room for probably the fifth time in the last two minutes when Mitzi had turned to him with a cheeky smile asking: “Everything all right, hun’?”
“No sign of trouble so far”, he replied matter-of-factly.

Mitzi and Atlas suddenly seemed to have a whole conversation based on looks alone that Mordecai couldn’t have deciphered even if he tried.

“You know, Mordecai, you seem a bit high strung. Why don’t you go and loosen up a bit?”, Atlas suggested, patting the smaller man’s shoulder.
“What?”, the triggerman asked perplexed, clearly, he must have missed something.

“Yes, sweetheart, why don’t you go and have some fun?”, Mitzi purred only shortly glancing up at Mordecai before her eyes darted right back to Atlas, as she began pulling her husband towards the dancefloor.

“Fun?”, Mordecai repeated a bit disbelievingly,” But I thought I was supposed to-” “Yes, yes, but this is supposed to be a celebration! So go celebrate! “, Mitzi ordered impatiently,” See it as your wedding gift to us!”
Atlas simply chuckled helplessly as he and his bride disappeared into the crowd.

Having had mentally resigned himself to hovering around the couple for the remainder of the night, Mordecai felt a bit lost when the Mays suddenly abandoned him as they made their way onto the dancefloor. Left to his own devices and unsure what to do with himself, Mordecai planted himself at a wall close by, trying to keep an eye on things from a distance.

[…]

Only a few minutes later this turned out to have been a terrible idea, as this is where he found himself now, hiding behind a Ficus as two very offended women were shouting at him.

His urge to be able to trade places with the potted plant only grew once Mitzi suddenly appeared and instead of coming to his aid only started taunting him. Since letting himself be made fun of had also not been part of his job description, the triggerman took the next best opportunity to slink away behind his new botanical friend while the ladies were distracted by discussing more creative ways of needling him.

The crowd had grown rowdier, the noise of clinking drinks, music and people shouting over one another echoed through the cavern and made his ears ring. Feeling exposed in the open crowd and fearing a return of the flapper girls, Mordecai made a beeline for a nearby storage closet. Knowing the general state of the caverns the room would probably be dusty and rat infested, but right now even the company of rodents seemed better than risking the chance of having to talk to another person.

[…]

Barging into the room and swiftly closing the door behind him, Mordecai released a heavy sigh as he leaned his forehead against the sturdy wooden door that thankfully muffled the sounds from outside. Finally, some peace and quiet-

“You looking for place to hide?”

Mordecai jumped at the sudden gruff voice behind him. Hand already reaching for the gun hidden in his breast pocket the triggerman swiftly turned around only to promptly find himself almost face to face with a familiar burly feline.

“HIDING?! Who says I’m hiding!? No one is hiding! And-and what are you even doing here?”, Mordecai exclaimed defensively, hastily pointing an accusatory finger at Viktor. The bigger cat took a step back trying to give his partner a bit more space. It hardly made a difference in the small room, but Mordecai appreciated the effort.

Viktor unsubtly looked to the side, ears turning down in shame as he replied: “Too much noise. Am also hiding from Ivy. She wants me to dance.” The bigger cat's nose wrinkled with visible dislike at the thought.
Taken aback by the earnestness in the Slovak's voice, Mordecai awkwardly cleared his throat. “I might be hiding from some rather enraged ladies, myself”, he sheepishly confessed after a beat of silence.

“I hate parties”, they sighed simultaneously with equal amounts of disgust.

Their eyes met and suddenly both couldn’t help a soft snort that escaped them at the realization of their shared misfortune. Lifting some of the tense awkwardness that had hung between them.

Shortly after, Viktor had produced a small flask from somewhere. Filled with absinth strong enough to make Mordecai’s whiskers curl when he took a hesitant sip of it.
“We can’t really stay here forever, can we?”, Mordecai coughed after a moment of companionable silence, he could still feel the burn of the alcohol in his throat.

“No, don’t think so”, Viktor hummed, cocking his head a bit to the side he suggested, ” But ve can go and get another drink. Might make people little less annoying?”
Seeing as his only other option would be to stay in a dusty broom closet for the rest of the night the triggerman reluctantly agreed: “Fine, but only one drink!”

[…]

Opening the door of their hideout, Mordecai’s ears were instantly assaulted by the cacophony of noise echoing through the cavern. Turning back to Viktor, his partner seemed similarly displeased by the sudden increase of volume, but that was not the only thing that had caught the triggerman’s attention.

In the dim light of the storage room, he had failed to notice that the Slovak was uncharacteristically dressed to the nines. He was wearing a fine three-piece suit in which he seemed a bit uncomfortable. A shame, Mordecai thought, his partner looked rather dashing in it.

[…]

Having settled in on the least busy end of the bar and with something called bunny hug making its way through his system, Mordecai slowly began to grow used to the level of noise around them.

“So, vhy are they angry?”, Viktor asked, curiously lifting an eyebrow.
“The ladies I mean, from earlier “, he clarified after the smaller cat had only looked up at him in confusion.

“UHRG…I don’t know! Apparently, I misunderstood that woman’s attempt at asking me to dance? But she only asked me what it looked like and then her friend was suddenly yelling at me? Before I knew it, I was hiding behind a potted plant and Mitzi was taunting me and-,” he interrupted his own rambling with a groan burying his face in his hands.

“You hid behind plant?”, Viktor asked with a snort.

“Oh, don’t you laugh at me!”, Mordecai hissed, staring into his drink like it might hold the answer to his predicament,” I just- I don’t get people and their constant need to communicate in strange gestures and innuendos. Why does everyone seem to be speaking a language that only I can’t understand?”

He hadn’t meant for that last part to slip out, but the alcohol had loosened his mouth. It was probably pathetic to get so worked up over nothing, but the words of the woman had stung quite a bit, even if he tried not to let it show. He was already preparing himself to be laughed at again but to his surprise he suddenly felt a heavy warm paw on his shoulder.

How strange, normally the triggerman wasn’t a fan of being touched – in well, frankly in any way really – but to his own astonishment the usual disgust at the intrusion of his personal space was replaced by something almost like comfort. Maybe he was already tipsier than he thought.

Carefully looking up he saw that Viktor was leveling him with a sympathetic look, something like understanding twinkling in his good eye.

“You are not missing much. Most people make no sense vith their faces either”, the larger cat promised, “Like that one over there.” Viktor pointed to a man and a woman talking next to the dance floor. Both seemed to be in the middle of a very heated drunken argument.

“Is she going to slap him?”, Mordecai mused, unconsciously leaning closer to Viktor to whisper conspiratorially in his ear.

“He would probably deserve it. I think he spilled drink on her dress”, Viktor hummed, taking another sip from his glass.

“Oh please, that dress was doing nothing for her anyway! The color clashes terribly with that of her fur. If she has to throw it away after this, then he did her a tremendous favor.”

Viktor snorted at his snarky comment and was about to reply something, when they both watched in astonishment as the woman suddenly slapped the man before pulling him into a rather violent looking kiss.

“Lord, what has gotten into people!”,Mordecai squeaked, covering his eyes like he was witnessing something incredibly obscene. “Like I said. Makes no sense”, Viktor chuckled into his drink,” Vant to do another one?”

Mordecai peaked at him through his fingers, desperately trying to keep the smirk tugging at his lips at bay. “Who’s next?”, he asked, not quite able to hide the giddy excitement in his voice that had suddenly appeared in his chest. The alcohol must have been really starting to get to his head.

“Your pick, little killer”, Viktor shrugged looking at Mordecai with such a genuine smile that the smaller cat began to doubt whether he was actually talking to the same bulky feline, that had been given the nickname ‘vinegar’, due to his usually sour personality. Then again Mordecai also couldn’t remember the last time he had been so close to a genuine laugh than a few minutes later than he had pointed out a snobbish looking elderly man who was stuffing his face with tiny canapés and Viktor had called him a posh overfed hamster stuffing his cheeks for the harsh winters of the next financial crisis.

[…]

Sitting there with his partner, alcohol comfortably dulling their senses, cracking rare smiles and snorting while they made fun of the other party guests, Mordecai had almost forgotten about the unfortunate Ficus-incident earlier that day, but only almost.

The smaller cat had just been able to coax a throaty laugh out of the bigger feline, a sound that sent a strange warm feeling through Mordecai’s chest, when one of the flapper ladies from earlier suddenly approached the two men.

Not wanting to risk being yelled at again, Mordecai promptly tried to school his face back into his usual neutral expression as he was suddenly dragged onto the dancefloor by the tenacious flapper.

[…]

All the tension from earlier that day suddenly seemed to flood back into him as he was standing stiff as a rod on the dancefloor, hopelessly overwhelmed by the chaotic and fast rhythm of the music.

The woman,- apparently her name was Silvia - tried her best to give him directions but Mordecai only found himself frozen in place. Wishing that the floor would swallow him whole and his face apparently showing as much, the triggerman was about to make a run for it when a familiar hulking form suddenly appeared behind Silvia.
“Excuse me Ms., vould you mind if I …ehh…take over?”, Viktor asked politely, after having tentatively tapped the flapper’s shoulder.

Silvia only shrugged, stepping back in slightly disappointed surrender: “He’s all yours Mr., but I’ll warn you, you’d have a better chance getting that Ficus over there to dance.”
Viktor glared at her as she walked away. “Feisty that one “, he huffed.

“Feisty but sadly also right. I fear I do have about as much sense of rhythm as a potted plant”, Mordecai sighed, growing more uncomfortable with every second.
“Come on, lets grab another drink. Preferably something strong enough that it helps me forget that this night ever…happened-…”, he trailed off watching in shock as Viktor suddenly began somewhat rhythmically moving to the music.

“What on earth are you doing?!”, Mordecai asked exasperatedly,” Are you trying to look like a fool?” The bigger cat only rolled his eye at him in response giving him a sheepish smile. “Come on, I can dance better than plant and so can you”, he said, offering Mordecai his paw.

The smaller feline only gaped at him, mind going a million miles an hour as he tried to figure out if the bulky feline was maybe messing with him.

“I thought you didn’t like dancing?”, the triggerman stalled, feeling more than a bit torn.

“Ehh, well Ivy said dancing is about good partner and in work you are good partner so…?”, Viktor reasoned seeming to grow a bit unsure of himself the longer Mordecai hesitated.

Should he really risk his dignity in favor of trying to prove some girl wrong? Oh, who was he kidding?! Whatever was left of his dignity after all that had happened this far, would probably not be much more besmirched by a clumsy attempt at dancing.
Having made his decision Mordecai tentatively took Viktor’s paw.

“Do you even know what you’re doing?”, he asked as he hesitantly began to try and imitate his partner's steps. “Have no idea”, Viktor chuckled, seemingly growing a bit bolder in his ‘moves’.

“But-What if we do it wrong?”, the smaller cat asked, meeting his partner's eyes with visible uncertainty. “Then maybe ve can be vrong together?”, Viktor answered with a shrug, leveling Mordecai with another one of those gentle and earnest smiles that made a warm fluttery feeling appear in his stomach.

[…]

From the outside, they must have looked pretty goofy as they tried to copy the steps of the more experienced dancers around them, their stiff movements not at all in sync with the rhythm of the music. Somehow though Mordecai couldn’t really bring himself to care. Although they were both beyond clumsy, they somehow made it work, breaking out in actual laughter every time they accidentally bumped into each other.

As time went on, they seemed to get better. They still must have looked pretty silly, but both had to look less and less on their feet to make sure not to step on each other’s toes. The two seemed to start enjoying themselves even more, as they slowly figured out how to move with, instead of around, each other.
At some point they were even joined by Silvia and her friend again. The girls tried to give them advice on how to improve their technique by demonstrating to the boys how it should be done and slowly but surely it seemed to be working.

Ivy also made a short appearance, but she only seemed to be there to tease Viktor a bit before she was called back by her father, who apparently thought it time for a young girl like her to leave.

Truth be told, the smaller feline didn’t really pay them any mind. Goofing around with Viktor the world seemed to simply fade away and for the first time in ages Mordecai openly laughed in a way he hadn’t since he was a boy.

Maybe it was the alcohol making him see things that weren’t there, but the triggerman could have sworn that every time he laughed, Viktor seemed to get this odd warm look in his eye. It made Mordecai feel like his insides were melting, but in a good way.

[…]

They had to take a break when the Slovaks bad knee started acting up, only to find themselves many bunny hugs and a bottle of whiskey later, back on the dancefloor.
To his own fascination, Mordecai even found himself giggling out loud when Viktor had unexpectedly twirled him around. They almost seemed to have found their ‘groove’ when the fast energetic music suddenly changed to a slower song.

Almost instinctively both partners had stepped closer together. Viktor had laid his arms around Mordecai’s waist and the triggerman had put his arms around the enforcer’s shoulders. They had trouble matching the rhythm at first. If it was from the continuously rising amount of alcohol in their blood or simply because they were amateurs was hard to say at this point.

They simply kept swaying aimlessly from side to side. Time seemed to have long lost its meaning and if it were up to Mordecai, they could have stayed like this for all of eternity.

It was probably the alcohol talking out of him at this point, but standing there in each other’s arms, both unconsciously tightening their embrace ever so slightly as the song went on, the triggerman couldn’t remember ever having felt so light in his entire life.

Nuzzling his head against Viktor’s warm and sturdy chest while his partner leaned his head on his, Mordecai couldn’t help the deep happy sigh that escaped him.
He vaguely remembered seeing the flash of a camera out of the corner of his eye, as he had gazed up at Viktor who was looking at him with that warm odd look again. After that his memory became somewhat ragged. He still remembered the song ending and ordering yet another bunny hug but after that he must have blacked out.

[…]

The next morning Mordecai had not only woken up to a skull crushing hangover, but also to being warmly curled up in a very big familiar jacket. With his brain running rather sluggish, it took him a couple moments to realize that his head was also resting atop a very comfortable thigh belonging to said jacket's snoring owner.

One of Viktor’s arms was soothingly draped over Mordecai’s upper back, holding the smaller cat in something like a loose hug. Before the triggerman got the chance to overthink the whole situation too much, any racing thoughts were abandoned by the sudden feeling of bile climbing up his throat.

This quickly led to him having to abandon his oddly comfortable place behind apparently the Lackadaisy’s bar of all places, to upchuck into the closest potted plant.

The Ficus and he should really stop meeting this way.

Chapter Text

The fourth time it happened…he didn’t even really have a name for what it was.

It was a stormy autumn night in St. Louis. It had been raining heavily for days. Cold autumn winds howling through the air, sending a chill down the spine of anyone who even dared to think about stepping outside.

Mordecai was seated in his cozy office above the little Daisy Café, having turned to his task of bookkeeping for most of the day. Every so often glancing outside in the vague hope that the rain pattering against his window might hold up long enough for him to slip home without getting soaked to the bone. But as time ticked on the weather only seemed to grow worse. Heavy storm clouds had rolled in during the afternoon and the wind had picked up since then as well.

Earlier that morning Atlas had given the triggerman an envelope that had arrived for him from New York. The younger man had wanted to read it at home in the comfort and security of his apartment, but by the time Mordecai would usually go home the winds and thunder seemed to be shaking the building in their intensity. Making it seem like a rather bad idea to leave anytime soon.

At the same time, the envelope in his pocket seemed to grow heavier with every second. He tried to ignore it at first but at some point, the urge to finally hear news from his family won over.

[…]

Pulling out a letter opener he hastily yet carefully sliced the paper open, greedily taking in every written word. He was delighted when he recognized his younger sister's neat handwriting. Esther was as dry and heartwarmingly sarcastic in her words as always, as she recounted to her brother the most recent things he had missed.

His heart swelled with pride as he read that she had finally gotten that promotion she had been working so hard for. He even found himself almost smiling as he read her ranting about the newest misstep of their brother-in-law, Toni.

He had never met the man in person, but apparently, he was a kind if a bit clumsy fellow and from the way Rose had talked about him in other letters, he seemed to make her happy.

There was a small hurtful tug in his chest as he remembered that he had missed their wedding last year. Mordecai knew it was better that way. It only would have put his family in danger if he had gone back to New York, that didn’t make the feeling of guilt weigh any less though.

It was almost like he could hear his sister's charmingly snarky voice again, when he let his mind drift a bit as he continued reading.

He could picture her rolling her eyes at their mothers fussing and how her gaze ever so slightly softened when the topic switched back to their youngest sister. “Oh, and you won’t believe it, but pretty soon there is going to be another addition to the family. That’s right, our little Rose is going to have her first child! Time really does fly, doesn’t it? I wish you could be here so we could feel old together.”

Suddenly there was a lump in the triggerman’s throat and the words on the page began to swim before his eyes.

[…]

Minutes later he found himself rushing into the Lackadaisy’s garage. He didn’t really know why he had gone there of all places. He only remembered that suddenly his office had grown too small. He had been restless and wanted- no, needed something…but he didn’t really know what.

Still his brain had steered him to the place he knew Viktor was usually working. Even if he didn’t know why, the prospect of being near the familiar behemoth seemed oddly soothing to his upset mind.

He wasn’t thinking clearly, rambling some apology for interrupting his partner in his work, the second he had stumbled through the door. His eyes were stinging so he avoided really looking at the burly feline that from what he could tell was tinkering on the other side of the car. It was only when thunder seemed to shake the building and Viktor dropped some tool, that Mordecai noticed that something wasn’t right.

“Viktor?”, he asked, slowly rounding the car so he could get a closer look on the enforcer.

There was no response and slowly it began to dawn on Mordecai that his partner didn’t even seem to register his presents. He had his back turned to the triggerman, but the smaller feline could tell he was on edge, by the way his fur stood up while he was holding on to a part of the engine with a white-knuckle grip.

Carefully moving in front of the Slovak, Mordecai saw that Viktor had some strange faraway look in his eye. He seemed to be looking right through the smaller cat, his pupil blown wide in what could only be described as fear. His hands were shaking and he was breathing heavily.

Mordecai could only watch helplessly as with the next rumble of loud thunder Viktor suddenly slid down the side of the car. The bigger cat curled into himself, clasping his paws over his ears with a quiet whimper. It was almost surreal seeing the otherwise stern feline suddenly look so small and vulnerable. The image didn’t seem right. It tugged at the triggerman’s heart.

He didn’t want to leave Viktor alone like this, but he also didn’t really know what to do either. Every loud noise seemed to make his partner shrink back more into himself. Mordecai carefully tried to get the bigger cat’s attention again, by softly calling out his name, but there was still no reaction.

Trying to reach out to the bigger feline in his heightened state of distress also didn’t seem like a good idea. After all, the enforcer was not a stranger to pummeling a guy for less than invading his personal space, even on a good day. So, he was pretty sure there would be no positive response to touching him when he couldn’t even be sure his partner would hear his warning in advance.

Unsure of what to do, Mordecai finally made the decision to simply sit down on the dirty floor next to Viktor. He would probably fuss and complain about the dust and grime later but right now the urge to comfort his partner seemed more important. “I-I’m just going to sit down next to you now, so please don’t strangle me”, he said before he carefully lowered himself to the ground. Making sure to leave enough space between them so that the Slovak hopefully wouldn’t feel cornered.

There was a beat of silence as Mordecai frantically tried to think of a way to help. His mind drifted back to his sisters. What had he done when one of them was distressed? Well, usually it had been Esther who had come up with something. Emotional things had never really been his forte. He wished she was here now. She would know what to do.

“Did I ever tell you about my little sisters?”, Mordecai asked quietly, feeling the need to somehow break the tense silence hanging in the air, “I have two, Esther and Rose. Rose is the youngest. I think you would quite like them. Especially Rose, she's a lot like Ivy.” -or at least she used to be, the thought made his chest ache.

The smaller feline was no stranger to holding entire conversations with the untalkative behemoth without the other having to say a single word, so his partners inability to answer or even register any of his ramblings, didn’t really discourage him from continuing.

“When I was younger my sisters and I were often home alone. One time they build a pillow fort and Esther forced me to read “The Art of War” out loud to them. In hindsight that had probably been a mistake because they used one of the tactics against me later and chased me around with spiderwebs on a broom “, Mordecai couldn’t help the fond tone that crept into his voice at the memory, “Back then I always acted like I was annoyed by all the noise they made and their constant teasing, and don’t get me wrong I definitely was but… If I’m honest, sometimes I’d give anything for a chance to go back.”

The lump was back in his throat, but having started to open up, it was like the words just wouldn’t stop flowing out of his mouth.

“I haven’t seen them in years,” he sighed, absentmindedly rubbing his arm in a self-soothing motion,” Sometimes it feels like it was only yesterday that we were three naive kids getting on each other’s nerves. But now my little Rose is going to have her first child. I’m going to be an uncle and I can’t even -”, he interrupted himself as he felt his voice start to waver. He tried to compose himself as he cleared his throat.

“I’m sorry…I…You probably don’t even want to hear any of this right now…if you can even hear me at all. I want to help you, really- I just-”, he cut himself off with a sniff, angrily rubbing away the wetness that was pricking at his eyes, “This darn dust.”

Suddenly a fluffy tail wrapped itself timidly around the triggerman’s middle.

Surprised Mordecai looked up. Viktor’s head was resting on his knees. His face was pointedly turned away from the smaller cat and mostly burrowed in his arms, but he could tell he had his attention by the way one of his ears was slightly turned in his direction.

The triggerman knew his partner usually wasn’t a very touchy person, neither was he, it was one of the few things the two had in common. Yet he also couldn’t help but feel oddly comforted by the gesture, instinctively leaning against the bigger cat’s side with a sigh.

He could feel Viktor relax a bit as well after that as his partner released a shuddering breath. Tail curling a bit tighter around the smaller cat, in what was probably supposed to be a reassuring gesture.

There was something strangely soothing to feeling so engulfed in another person’s warmth, that Mordecai could physically feel how his composure started to crumble.

They sat in silence for a minute before the Slovak quietly asked:” You miss them?”

Viktor’s voice sounded oddly small and raw. Mordecai could only manage a small nod in response, suddenly not trusting his own voice anymore.
“My daughter Alena, she turned ten last month. Haven’t seen her since she was baby”, the Slovak rasped, emotion bleeding into his tone,” It is hard knowing all the things you missed…and will keep missing. Yet you can never go back.”

“Does it ever get any easier?”, Mordecai whispered, a shiver went through his body at the thought of possibly never seeing his little sisters again. At never again hearing Rose giggle or getting outwitted by Esther or have his mother pet his hair when he got sick.

“Not really”, Viktor sighed, uncurling himself a bit more as he leveled Mordecai with a timid glance,” Is not quite as bad though if you know you are not alone.”

Mordecai would by no means describe himself as a very cuddly person, neither was Viktor, but something in their dynamic was shifting that night. An unspoken exception to the rule, weaving itself into the very fabric of whatever strange thing it was that they had between each other.

A shared longing for comfort for when cherished solitude turned into loneliness. A wordless understanding of carefully hidden needs. A silent agreement to never tell another soul, as two bodies huddled closer together.

And while he would later complain about the dust from the dirty floor and the oil stains on his pants, Mordecai almost felt like home when he nuzzled himself further against his partner's warm side as Viktor leaned his head on his.

Neither making a move to lean away as they listened to the raging storm outside.

“Misery loves company I suppose.”

Chapter Text

The day it finally clicks was on a snowy winter night.

Mordecai was standing in the alley behind the little Daisy Café, breathing in the cold night air as he buried his paws in his pockets. If he strained his ears a bit, he could still hear the faint sound of music and cheery chatter travel up from deep inside the Lackadaisy’s caverns.

Mitzi was throwing one of her infamous new-years-parties, flooding the speakeasy with people who were merrily dancing and drinking the night away.
As usual, Mordecai had been acting as Atlas’s shadow until his employer had excused himself to spend some private time with his better half somewhere upstairs.
The festivities had long grown a bit too rowdy for the triggerman’s taste, so with no immediate danger in sight and his main function gone for the time being, he had swiftly decided to take a short break from the drunken crowd and the noise.

Though Mordecai would probably rather be caught dead before he would admit it but the commotion wasn’t the only reason he needed some fresh air.
Ever since his hasty departure from New York, the end of a year had a tendency to get the tuxedo cat into a sort of wistful mood.

The cheery voices of friends and families celebrating the beginning of a new year inside the caverns had stirred up an old familiar feeling in the moody feline. So – like with all things concerning feelings- Mordecai had rather wanted to avoid dealing with it.

Though so far, the only thing he seemed to have successfully escaped from by his hasty departure was the eruption of noise that boomed through the speakeasy ever since the clock had struck midnight.

1924… It didn’t feel real. Sometimes his old life before St. Louis seemed like ages ago, but tonight…His mind seemed to refuse to comprehend that it had really been three years already…

Three years.

A sudden wave of laughter traveled through the streets as a group of people passed by the empty alleyway. Scraps of happy conversation bouncing off the nearby walls as their voices slowly faded into the distance. There was an annoying tugging feeling in the triggerman’s chest at the sound.

Looking up at the dark sky, Mordecai, let his mind drift alongside the snowflakes sauntering towards the ground. Lately his mind had been wandering a lot to his family in New York. Old memories of his childhood melting into newer ones during his time at the Lackadaisy. He couldn’t help but ponder how his life had turned out.

What exact choices had brought him here of all places?

It wasn’t often that the icy triggerman would willingly face this side of himself. The one that still longed for the old days and foolishly kept on hoping for better times to come. Nostalgia, he knew, was a wicked drug, twisting memories into much nicer pictures than they had ever been. Yet, here, in the perceived secrecy of the night, he would indulge it.

Only here, would he let himself wonder, if maybe- under other circumstances, his life could have taken a different - dare he say, happier - turn.
Then again, wasn’t his life right now quite happy? Well, as happy as it could get for someone like him anyway.

After all, he was still alive, wasn’t he? Which -considering some of his past choices- was really, quite the surprising development. Sure, he was still a wanted criminal, but he had also somehow stumbled upon possibly the only people on this earth who didn’t seem to mind that at all about him- quite the opposite, actually. The Lackadaisy crew had taken him in and given him a new life- a new home-

“A new debt”, added a darker part of his mind.

Still, he owed them a lot and as reluctant as he was to admit this to himself, they had grown on him.

“Especially a certain sour giant? “, inquired that mocking voice in his head again.

He shook his head, discarding the thought with a sigh.

It was a foolish thing, sentimental. Getting attached was a dangerous game in this kind of life. Emotions were an untrustworthy and altogether unnecessary business. One that had brought Mordecai nothing but trouble in his past and yet-

He couldn’t bring himself to feel remotely bad about this perceived personal failing of his. He wanted to feel annoyed with it, to be mad! But he couldn’t. And really could anyone blame him?

One one-eyed look from that shaggy behemoth, one word uttered in his infuriatingly broken English and all of Mordecai’s carefully curated composure seemed to crumble. No one had ever gotten so easily under the triggerman’s skin. It was ridiculous, completely illogical, and also… terribly endearing.

It was the strangest thing and all he could earnestly muster up in response was to feel incredibly… lucky.

Well, and wasn’t that quite the revelation?

“One day that luck will run out”, whispered that nasty little voice again.

A cold breeze ruffled his fur, making him shiver despite his thick winter coat.

As if on cue, a door opened to his left and a familiar hulking form quietly took his place next to him. Speaking of the devil-

“Are you looking for a place to hide?”, Mordecai asked teasingly, not bothering to turn in his companion’s direction.

A low half-chuckle escaped from deep within the Slovaks chest at the old inside joke.

Mordecai liked the sound, it never failed to stir up a pleasant fluttery feeling in his stomach.

“Not my fault you always blocking best spots already”, he quipped back, before without warning he draped something lightweight and warm around the smaller cat’s shoulders. Mordecai blinked up at Viktor in slight surprise.

“Is cold today”, Viktor stated quietly, as if that was all the explanation needed.

In the dim light of the alleyway and with his hands somewhat numbed by the cold, it had taken the tuxedo cat a moment to recognize the woolen item, around his upper back, as the scarf Mitzi had gifted to him during the holidays. The material was terribly itchy, and the pattern was a bit too extravagant for the triggerman’s taste, but the color was nice. It was also efficient at keeping out the cold, so he hadn’t buried it in the depths of his closet just yet.

“Thank you,” Mordecai replied softly, as he neatly rewrapped the scarf around his neck, a comforting warmth settling along his shoulders.

“You were looking for me?”, he asked after a beat of companionable silence.

“You vere gone for little bit long”, Viktor answered with a shrug, “Left me all alone with noisy bunch.” The Slovaks' nose crinkled up in disapproval at the last part but there was no real accusation in his tone. Still, Mordecai knew him well enough by now to tell that he had been worried.

“Sentimental oaf”, he thought fondly. Not entirely sure if the comment was directed at Viktor or himself.

“Hm?… I must have lost track of time”, Mordecai hummed, as he pulled out his trusty pocket watch. He really had been gone for a while.

“Vhat vere you doing here?”, Viktor asked, as he glanced along the otherwise empty alleyway, before his one-eyed stare landed back on the triggerman.

“I was just… thinking”, Mordecai replied truthfully, silently hoping that his partner would simply leave it at that.
He was no longer particularly interested in examining the confusing contents of his inner workings, much less sharing them with anyone. Let alone with one of the subjects of said reminiscing. Also, something about the way Viktor kept looking at him made him feel strangely jittery.

“About vhat?”

Well, someone seemed to be in an unusually chatty mood today. Great.

“Oh, just this and that…”, Mordecai deflected, before he glanced off into the distance, unwilling to meet his partner’s undoubtedly sympathetic gaze.

That was another thing about Viktor, the man sometimes seemed to have the uncanny ability to sense when something was weighing on the triggerman’s shoulders. He also was rarely the type to pry, which Mordecai appreciated.

After all, there was no point in dwelling on things which couldn’t be changed anyway. Some demons were simply best left alone and that was that.
It was one of the few beliefs the partners could agree on.

Mordecai didn’t know too many details about Victor’s life before the Lackadaisy. The past was a topic both weren’t too keen to talk about, yet from what the smaller feline had gathered so far, his sour companion and he were mostly sitting in the same boat. Life hadn’t been easy on either of them.
On the run from past sins, with nowhere to go and nowhere to call home – up until Atlas had crossed their path, and the rest was history.

“You alright?”
The Slovaks ' question had startled the triggerman out of his thoughts.

“Yes, I am fine. So, if you don’t mind, I think we should return-”, Mordecai started, ready to end this conversation but Viktor cut him off.

“You’re lying”, he stated, sounding mildly accusatory in his tone. Caught off guard, Mordecai looked up, trying to read the Slovaks puzzling expression. There was a hint of something familiar behind those sternly pulled eyebrows, was he-… nervous?

“I-Excuse me, what? I am not lying!”, the triggerman exclaimed defensively.

“Yes, you are, your ear always twitching like that when you lie”, Viktor pointed out, voice slightly raised with growing agitation, gesturing at the ear in question for emphasis. The triggerman clasped a paw on the misbehaving ear, as if to get rid of the evidence.

“I well- It also always twitches like that when I’m nervous!”, Mordecai shot back immediately, to late realizing that he hadn’t helped his case at all with that.

“Okay, then vhy you are nervous?”, Viktor asked exasperated, throwing his arms in the air.

“Why?! Well because you’re nervous! And you being nervous makes me nervous!”

“I’m not nervous!”

“And I’m not lying!”

“FINE!”

“FINE!”

They turned their backs on each other, pouting with their arms crossed as the tense silence slowly lost its steam and turned into awkwardness. Mordecai tried to suppress a shiver; the cold was getting to him.

He looked over his shoulder at Viktor who was glaring back at him, but there was no real heat behind it.

“Was there anything else you wanted from me?”, Mordecai huffed, with a defeated sigh and turned around to face the surly Slovak.

Viktor opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again. His brief burst of anger seemed to have turned back into that peculiar anxiousness. Mordecai watched with mild concern as his usually valiant partner struggled to find the courage to say whatever he wanted to say.

“I-…”, he finally started, as he pulled a small box out of his pocket,” Vanted to give you this…uhm… happy new year.”

He held out a small box to Mordecai, that looked even tinier in the Slovaks massive paw. Viktor’s ears were turned down in visible uncertainty as he hesitantly met Mordecai’s eyes.
The triggerman took a moment to disbelievingly look back and forth between the present and Viktor, before finally ever so slowly taking the box into his paws.

“You got me a present?”, he asked perplexed, a million questions on the tip of his tongue but when he finally opened the box he was lost for words,” what-…I-…”

“These are cufflinks”, he finally managed to state the obvious.
Not just any cufflinks. They looked almost identical to the ones he had lost in that fire about two years ago! Mordecai wrecked his brain frantically trying to think if maybe he had ever read in a book what on earth the appropriate way to react to something like this was.

Meanwhile Viktor sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck as he started to explain: “You always complaining about losing that one pair …and Mitzi said they look similar but if you don’t like them, I can take them ba-”

“NO!”, Mordecai exclaimed, quickly having snatched the box out of Viktor’s reach,” I mean, no, they…” He cleared his throat in what he very confidently tried to imagine to be a very subtle attempt to regain his composure. Which might have been slightly undermined by the fact that he was still clutching Viktor’s present to his chest.

“They are very nice. Thank you…”, Mordecai finally managed to reply in the most forcefully neutral tone he could muster, “I’m afraid though I didn’t get you anything.”
Viktor only looked at him a bit funnily, before opening his coat to reveal a familiar red tie.

“You...eh... already did”, he said with a shrug as the tiniest of smiles found its way onto his face, “Remember? You said I should make better choices in vardrobe.”

“Well, to be honest I didn’t think you would actually listen to me”, Mordecai replied still a bit taken a back, but he slowly felt the awkwardness of the situation subside as he dryly added,” Also it’s crooked.”

Viktor made a face at him, an expression somewhere between annoyance and fondness that Mordecai had long grown accustomed to. Feeling that they had returned to their familiar ground of quarreling, the triggerman felt a sudden surge of boldness wash over him.

“Oh, don’t you roll your eye at me!”, he nagged, stepping closer,” come on just let me-”

Without thinking Mordecai reached to straighten Viktor’s tie and as he went to smooth it down his paw lingered on his partner's warm chest. He could feel the steady thrumming of Viktor’s heart beneath his palm, could feel how their heart rates seemed to quicken in unison as they became aware of their sudden proximity.

Mordecai felt the Slovaks warm exhale ghost over his left ear, all too aware that the resounding shiver up his spine had this time not been caused by the frosty winter air.

He looked up, holding his breath as Viktor’s hand suddenly found its way to his cheek to wipe away a snowflake.

They were so close.

Viktor’s gaze was locked with his, one piercing green eye warmly peering into his two.
There was a moment of hesitance, a hitching breath, and then, as if compelled by the same force they finally closed the distance between each other.

Both closing their eyes as two different sized muzzles gently found each other on a cold winter night.

And as Mordecai opened his eyes, only to be met with that odd warm look on Viktor’s face again, he finally understood:

For this time, he knew that the same expression was mirrored on his own.