Chapter Text
Captain Ethan Waters liked Credenhill well enough, but something about it just felt... off.
He was on-base supporting Captain Price. They had been in Basic together, and knew each other well. He knew the general rules, of course:
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Ignore Ghost.
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Keep a fire extinguisher nearby in case of Soap.
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Don't pretend to be Price.
The last part was the most important, and apparently many people forget that rule and try to order the 141 around as if they owned the place. All of those people either left crying, or came back in body bags. Plural. So, no, Waters wasn't gonna do that, thank you very much.
Apparently Price needed some help setting up testing for the SAS that was happening on his base. He was happy to help his old friend. He was going to proctor the written tests, then help Price watch over and grade the field tests. Easy.
He jovially greeted his old friend, politely smiled at the three 141 members he was introduced to, didn't take it to heart when he got glares in response from everyone except for Soap who grinned a little too wide in Waters' opinion. He shrugged it off, and followed Price to his office. He sat across from the man as he sat heavily in his armchair and sighed.
“Stressed?” Waters needled as he settled into his chair.
“Brass have been on my ass non-stop asking for updates even though they have the completed project report in their bloody hands,” Price sighed as he held out his hand to the side. A lighter dropped into it from the ceiling, and Waters frowned as he looked up. The ceiling revealed no answers. Price waved his hand to re-gain his attention. “Bug problem. Don't worry about it. It's harmless.” He reached into his desk and pulled out a cigar. “Do you still smoke?”
“Ah, no. I quit thanks to the missus.”
“Ah, good man.” Price set down the lighter and instead simply clamped the unlit cigar between his teeth. “Let's talk about timeline, then I'll show you where the classroom tests are going to take place.”
The meeting took about fifteen minutes before they were standing once more. Price left the lighter on the corner of his desk as he guided Waters out of his office, and shut the door. Creaking on the other end of the door had him pause before Price urged him forward. He shook himself and resigned himself to a weird time at Credenhill.
The following morning, Waters woke up and started preparing for the day. He dressed in his uniform, then frowned down at his jacket. He was missing his rank patch. He checked his backpack to no avail, then resigned himself to asking Price for a spare. Breakfast went by with no issues, even if Soap was still grinning at him from across the room. He reported to Price after breakfast, finding the man already in his office with his head in his hands, staring down at a stack of papers.
“Did you even eat,” he asked with a laugh, and shut the door behind him.
“Kyle—that's Sergeant Garrick—brought me a tray. The boys do a good job of making sure I take care of myself when shit hits the fan.” Price sighed and straightened up to look at Waters. He frowned. “Where's your rank?”
“Woke up this morning and it was missing. Must've gotten lost somewhere between packing and here. I was gonna ask you for a spare—I'll give it back once we're done here.”
Price sighed again and rubbed his eyes. He kept his eyes shut, held out his hand to the side, and barked, “Give it back, and don't take it again.”
To Waters' surprise, the ceiling opened, and his rank patch fell down into Price's palm. Price murmured a quick thank you and handed over the patch. Waters watched as the ceiling tile fell back into place.
“What--”
“Bug problem. Don't worry about it. It's harmless,” Price murmured. Louder, he went: “Stop stealing my friend's stuff! This isn't the captain I was bitching about the other day. Let the others know.”
Waters heard skittering in the ceiling and looked at Price with wide eyes. “There's someone in your ceiling.”
“Aye, I'm fully aware. That's Roach. You'll meet him soon.”
Waters gently sat down and replaced his patch. “You were bitching about a captain? Need I ask who?”
“The Prima Donna herself.”
Waters scrunched his nose in disgust. “Ah. Yes. Her. She's been... bold lately. Your team knows?”
Price slouched over the desk. “They knew a captain has been giving me trouble. I apparently forgot to tell them it was the female captain that was giving me trouble. I need to make sure those muppets don't harass you any further while you're here.” He pulled out his phone just as it pinged. He stared at it for a few seconds then looked up at his door. “Enter.”
Sergeants Garrick and MacTavish both entered, both looking a little sheepish. “This isnae the Cap?” Soap asked.
“No. The captain I hate is female. What did you two do?”
“Nothing yet,” Gaz lilted, then turned to Waters. “I apologize. We thought you were the one giving our cap a hard time. We've been extremely rude to you. Please let us know if there's any way we can assist you while you're here helping Price.”
Waters leaned back and laughed. “You call that rude? That was more like light teasing. I can handle that. John has done much worse to me, I assure you. Thank you for your apology. If there's anyway I can support you Sergeants, please let me know. I'm happy to--” he cut off as a third head sheepishly popped around the door frame. “Ah, I take it this is Roach. Hello, Bug Problem.”
Roach ducked his head and fully entered the office, followed by Ghost. Price nodded. “Good to see you both. Meet my old friend, Ethan Waters. He and I were in basic together. Stop giving him shit. The horny captain arrives tomorrow. Save your pranks for her.”
Waters tapped his chin. “Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure she's scared of cockroaches...” Roach perked up and Soap started grinning again. “She gets real antsy when she hears things in the walls.”
Soap began bouncing, then grabbed Roach and ran out of the office. Gaz rolled his eyes and followed. Ghost shared a look with Price before Price waved him off and Ghost slunk out, closing the door behind him. Waters turned his attention back to Price. “They're good lads.”
“Sorry about all that. Need anything else from me?”
“The tests?”
Price swore violently as he scoured his office, and Waters' laughter rang down the hallway.