Chapter Text
The holidays were always stressful for Soap, no, John. He was John while around his family.
The stressors he suffered from then were ones it felt like everyone had; what to get people, working off the meals, and making it to family gatherings. Now he had to do all of that and remember how to be a normal person. John had to remember to be John, not the 141's Soap MacTavish, not a soldier. Worse, he had to remember not everyone could take 'classified'* as an answer.
But he always looked forward to coming home at least for a few days during this time of the year. This year was only a little different. One of his sisters had adopted her foster son! He hadn't gotten to meet the kid yet, and any chances of leaving this year had been squashed until now. A well-deserved rest, Laswell had told all of them.
Parking his car, Johnny quickly marched up to the door and gave it a few rapt knocks. When it opened, the tension left his shoulders enough to ease some of the seemingly permanent aches he felt. It smelled just like he remembered. "Ma!" He yelled as he dropped his bag and wrapped his arms around the older woman.
"So, Joseph, how's settling into ma sister's home goin'? New friends?" When was the last time John had to talk to a child, not in an active war zone?
"S'okay...Can I ask you something?" The teen looked up at him. The lad had just the biggest eyes, right bonnie, and big lashes, with how dark they were. They reminded him of Simon
"Ask away, kiddo-"
"Miss Marsha said you were in the military...Are you SAS?" John blinked slowly and opened his mouth before nodding slowly. He wasn't sure where this was going. "Cause my uncle was, or I guess maybe IS still in the SAS and I was wondering if you knew him..." Joseph's eyes glanced away. He was checking to see if anyone was watching or listening, that would be Soap's first move too.
"Maybe, but ye gotta tell me his name first, Joe. Plenty of people in the SAS, doesn't mean I'll know'em."
Joseph gently grabbed John's hand and stood up, giving the older man a small pull to follow. And follow John did, curious to see where this would go.
The boy chatted quietly as they walked down the hall, "I can't just tell you his name because it's like all the old people know his name. They just tell me he's gone and or hiding ‘coz he's a coward. But I know they're wrong, adults just don't listen to me. I hope you're different."
"Lad-"
“Uncle Simon was never a coward. I mean, sometimes he was, but only in social situations where he had to talk. Dad wasn't the same, he could talk to anyone and anything. Come on, I have a photo in my suitcase, lemme show you!"
Finally, John stumbled into said guest room that held Joseph's suitcase. The young teen quickly rummaged through a few books, old ones to that had faded sticky notes in them (clearly not written by him), before procuring a bent and aged photo. Wide eyes stared up at Soap with careful and hesitant hope as he handed over the folded-over photo. "His name’s Simon Riley... Sargent Riley, I think? I don't remember anymore. Like, his rank, not his name. Look, you’ve probably heard ‘bout my family but…please?"
John felt bile creep up his throat as he unfolded the photo. Even without the years of sleepless nights and pain plaguing the face of the man in the old family photo, Soap knew who it was; the cropped, yet still shaggy blonde hair, the biggest bonnie brown eyes, the split in the man’s top lip near the corner, it had to be Ghost. "Aye...I do know him. You...that's-. Excuse me, Joseph. I need to make a few phone calls."
Johnny had nearly run out of the house while dialing the number Price had given him. “Common common common, Captain pick up the damn phone!” it took a few rings before Soap could breathe as he heard Price pick up.
“What’s the emergency, Sargent?”
“Well, it’s not exact-” John didn’t even finish the sentence before Price hung up. So, he did what anyone else would do.
“Soap, stop fuckin’ calling me if this is not an emergency. Five times now, so it better be worth my damn time.”
“Aye, sir, I promise. Just, I need ye to tell me the truth. Off the record, ‘course, did ye know Simon’s wee nephew is still kickin’?”
“What the fuck did you just ask me?”
“Captain, just, listen to me. Mah sister just took in this new kid from the system, he looks just like Ghost. Ignoring tha’, the kid just handed me a family photo that has Ghost in it lookin’ ten some years young and less like he fell into a blender.”....