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“You knew!”
D.Va could hear the howling from down the hall, and despite her reservations she finds herself creeping towards the noise. It sounds like 76, except he so rarely raises his voice, and there’s such an edge of anguish in it that she almost doubts it’s actually him. A glance over her shoulder tells her Lucio is behind her, his face filled with concern. Of course he would. He’s drawn to hurt, he’s built to soothe.
They round the corner, and D.Va recoils. It is 76, but at the same time, it… isn’t. The normally proud man is on his knees, his pulse rifle discarded carelessly. There’s a burn on his forehead and bloodstains on his jacket, the bottom of it practically shredded to ribbons. Still, there doesn’t seem to be any clear reason why he would be hurt enough to fall to his knees. The strangest part of the whole scene, though, is Mercy. She stands in front of 76, her face screwed up in pain, but making no move to help him or heal. Ana leans against a wall, her eyes closed. Tracer has a hollow look on her face that makes D.Va’s stomach turn.
“You knew, and you didn’t tell me!” 76 shrieks, his hands flying up and pulling at his own hair. “What did you do to him? Why is he like that?!” His voice is raw from screaming. “Gabe.” The name crawls out of him, dark and deep, and he curls in on himself. “Gabe.” It comes out like a plea, like a prayer.
D.Va lifts a hand to her mouth, and Mercy catches the movement, her eyes darting to meet D.Va’s. She doesn’t say anything, but the look is enough. You shouldn’t be here. Blue eyes cut back to where 76 is half-curled on the floor.
“Jack.” Mercy breathes, and 76 shudders. “Jack, it’s not him anymore.” She walks towards him, kneels in front of him and rests a hand on his shoulder. He twitches at the contact. His shoulders are shaking and it only takes a moment for D.Va to realize, horribly, that he’s crying. The mask hides the worst of it, but pitiful little whimpers escape and she begins to wish that she’d never come to investigate the screaming. Behind her, Lucio tucks his hand in hers.
“It’s him. Fuck, it smells like him.” 76 chokes out. “Oh, god, Gabe. Gabe.” Mercy reaches for him and with the gentle firmness of a medical professional, pulls him against her. D.Va glances away. She shouldn’t have been here. This moment is too private, too intimate for her and Lucio. Mercy lifts her hand to 76’s face, cradles his jaw briefly before moving to the clasps on either side of his mask. D.Va hears a gentle clicking and sees only a brief glimpse of a scarred, pale face before 76 presses his face into Mercy’s neck and sobs. “Gabe.” He repeats. Mercy doesn’t look at him, doesn’t say anything. One hand is wrapped around 76’s back, the other loosely laying to the side, holding his discarded mask. Her eyes are far away, as though she’s remembering something from long ago.
Tracer chokes suddenly, then warps away. Ana sighs and pushes herself away from the wall. “We’ll talk about this later.” She says to Mercy, her voice high and cold and holding none of the warmth that she usually reserves for her friends. Mercy doesn’t say anything, just pulls 76 closer. His hands clutch at her armor, his feet sprawled out behind him. He clings to her like a lifeline. Ana turns to leave, only sparing Lucio and D.Va a brief glance as she walks by them. It’s clear that they won’t be punished for snooping. In this situation, they are wholly unimportant. Besides, what they saw was punishment enough.
“Hana.” Lucio says finally, his voice soft behind her. “Hana, let’s go.” He tugs gently at her wrist, pulling her out of her horrified revere. She lets him lead her away and his hand moves to lace his fingers with hers. Once they’re far enough, he begins to hum quietly.
“Lucio.” She chokes out finally, her eyes cresting with tears. His humming gets a little louder, his arm moving to wrap around her shoulders. She wipes uselessly at her tears. She doesn’t even know why she’s crying. She barely knows 76. He takes care of them, though. He ruffles her hair and plies her with food. Somewhere along the line he became a rock for them. He’s supposed to be the strong one. She needs him to be the strong one. “I…” She starts, trying to describe the feeling but somehow at a loss for words.
Lucio pulls her a little tighter against him. “I know.” He says quietly. “I know.”