Meanwhile, back at Groznyj Grad... [Night Search Corpus 2]

[raidenovitch.livejournal.com]

Raikov's boots struck the floor hard and fast, as he paced furiously around the central building.

He was not pleased. Not pleased at all.

Being thrown off of Ocelot was not the greatest moment, but he could grudgingly admit that Ocelot was needed elsewhere.

So, of course, as soon as they had all left, it had been just him and the Colonel, and a shared wicked grin.

And they'd just settled into the mood when Raikov had been turfed out, again.

He was too annoyed at the whole situation to say much to the Colonel, although he was not personally angry with him. Jesus motherfucking bastard christ, he couldn't concentrate on a thing.

And the worse part was he couldn't go back to his quarters to deal with it himself, not when he was supposed to be keeping tabs on absolutely everyone on-base.

Anyone who came near him right now would live to regret it.

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[raidenovitch.livejournal.com]

Raikov watched the other two Ocelots leave with the MENTs. That left him, Volgin, Krauss, and Ocelot.

Volgin was not going to be in any sort of mood other than electrical and angry, he foresaw.

But he looked at Adamska, and felt a twinge of pity. The man that had been killed was one of his. That had to hurt his comrade Major.

He rested a hand, cautiously, on Ocelot's shoulder, not very good at expressing such things as apologies or gentle well-wishing, but he tried, anyway.

[major-ocelot-2u.livejournal.com]

Ocelot snorted softly.

He was quiet for a moment, then he raised his gaze and met Ivan's, his eyes like hard little stones of unreflective blue.

"A true Ocelot wouldn't have gotten caught unaware. He would have had been more proactive. Sergei was never with the agenda. He only knew how to react, and it killed him."

He scowled, and shook his head bitterly.

"He could have been a real asset, but the heart wasn't there." Ocelot paused, looking away. "And I couldn't keep spoonfeeding him his motivation forever."

Raikov's expression was unreadable.

"It's better this way," Ocelot said, grimly. "He wasn't cut from our cloth."

If he grieved for anything, he would grieve alone. And he wouldn't grieve for any irreplaceable void left by Gurlukovich's premature exit.

No. He would grieve for the lost potential of the boy he had known, had nurtured.

Ocelot sorely hated being disappointed.

Raikov was still looking at him, and he turned, eyes narrowing.

"What?" he demanded. "Do you think I'm some kind of monster? Should I crank out a few tears?"

[parabellum-p08.livejournal.com]

Krauss frowned as he tucked his flask back into the pocket of his coat. He pursed his lips, thoughtful, drumming his fingers on the table with a distinct pause where the first beat should have been, a hesitation before the second, and trying to act disinterested in the young Majors’ conversation.

Denial, that was it, he decided at last.

He hadn’t believed his Stefan was dead either, genuinely hadn’t believed it at first, until the grim reality sank in. The silence, and the world all around him seemed dimmer, as if a marvelous golden light had been snuffed out.

And it would do no good to call him out on it, but further his bitter resolve.

Two in one night, he mused bitterly to himself.

Raidenovitch’s gesture, while genuine in intention, had only made things worse. Krauss, however, knew when diversion was the best course of action.

“What do you think, Colonel?” He asked softly. “An immediate roll call to be sure everyone is present and accounted for. I’ll get to it, with your word. It should go quickly with help from comrade Raikov.”

His tone was even, but his warm smile suggested the orders were for the best for numerous reasons.

He started to get up, before Volgin even replied. “Come now, Ivanko. I’ll even take the flame patrol this time.”

[major-ocelot-2u.livejournal.com]

Ocelot scowled, aware of the gloved hand that lay on his shoulder.

Not wanting it to depart just yet. Hating himself for that.

"Raikov," he said.

A pause.

"Sorry."

He muttered it, meeting the Major's eyes slowly, lingeringly.

"I just need to go shoot off a few rounds. Relax."