Lady of the Lake
Pairing: Ginger Ale/Elizabeth x Merlin/Hamish
Warnings: None
A/N: I plugged in the Scottish phrases into google to get a pronunciation and I’m now convinced that Scottish Gaelic is being spoken telepathically because there is no way the words on the screen are matching what I’m hearing.
Reminder: I haven’t seen Kingsman: The Golden Circle, so I’m just using the Wikia, IMDB.com, some gifs, and my own weird ass brain to make up this whole ass story.
Tag List: @zeldasayer , @romanticgumchewer, @tarrevizslas , @coolmaybelateruniverse , @the-feckless-wonder, @lavenderl3mons , @pascalisthepunkest , @mandoandyodito , @randomness501 , @fioccodineveautunnale [please message me to be added or subtracted if you were just here for some Jack Daniels goodness! I don’t want people being tagged in something they don’t want]
[PART 1]
Part 2
Building up the Reserves
Merlin walked into the tech room feeling lighter than he had in weeks. The look Shirley gave him during their call the night before told him she meant business when she said to go home and get some sleep. And he wouldn’t be surprised if she flew the whole four thousand miles to kick his ass over it, too. He smiled at the thought and felt that Ginger was lucky to have such a friend.
At the thought of her, Merlin felt himself flush with embarrassment. He hadn’t meant to slip and call her m'eudail in front of Shirley, it just sort of… came out. They both had kept their relationship a secret from their co-workers – not out of fear, plenty of Statesman and Kingsman agents and staff were in relationships with each other. No, they kept it as something they could have all to themselves. This work of spy businesses took everything from them – their lives, their families, even their names. No. This was for him and for her and only for them. For now.
“It’s getting late, Ginger. I don’t want to keep you any longer. Let’s leave, all this will be here tomorrow.” Merlin stood up from his chair and he could feel his back pop after being hunched over the table for so long. He was getting a little too old for this and vowed when things returned to normal, he was getting a new desk and a better chair.
Ginger followed suit and as the two stood there stretching, she realized she didn’t know where she was going. Under normal circumstances, she would have probably stayed at a Kingsman property – akin to staying at Stateman property back home, but they were all destroyed. And she wasn’t told what, if any, hotel had her reservation. She stopped and realized that she didn’t even have a cover name to register for one.
“You’ll be coming home with me, Ginger.” Merlin seemed to sense her dilemma and when she turned to look at him, he smiled. “It’ll be some time before we have visitor quarters for you to stay at, but my guest bedroom is quite comfy.”
“Merlin, I couldn’t possibly impose!” She didn’t get very far before he cut her off.
“It’s not. In fact, I’m glad you’ll be staying with me. I find these days a little more lonesome than I’d like and having your company around would do me a world of good.”
He smiled shyly at her and Ginger was pretty sure she was going to melt on the spot. She didn’t care about imposing on his house, she worried that she couldn’t contain herself around him. But she found herself nodding and they headed to his cottage on the outskirts of the city. It’s only a few days, Elizabeth, you’ll be fine, she thought.
Now if only she would listen.
—***—
Harry Hart walked into the work space, breaking Merlin out of his thoughts and the two men smiled at each other. They had been agents together since they both were recruited by the organization and Merlin was glad to see his old friend back home. They had vowed that together they would work to rebuild Kingsman back to its pre-destruction peak.
The arrival of Statesman agent Tequila in Scotland had been a huge boon to the organization, and he had been training the first round of UK recruits for the last few months. But to fill their need, junior agents – some ready to rise in the ranks – had been brought over from Statesman. But they desperately needed senior agents to support Eggsy and Harry.
“Tequila is coming down today to review the new trainees and go over the list that Statesman sent of senior agents that can be transferred here.” Harry set down his stack of papers and he cocked his head while looking at his friend. “You look rested today.”
“I did. Shirley Temple from Statesman called to yell at me that I looked like shit and to go to bed.” Merlin smiled at the memory. Harry laughed.
“Well, I’m glad she did, you’re stressing yourself too much. We’re nearly back up to speed tech-wise thanks to you and Ginger Ale’s team has been active in recreating our weapons at a good speed. But I should talk to Champ and her about sending tech people over this way until we can recruit our own specialists.”
“I don’t need help, Harry.” Merlin protested. The tech room was his only domain now that Tequila had taken over training and he didn’t want people underfoot as he worked. He could handle it fine, but Harry shook his head.
“No, Hamish. I’ve been watching you; you need help and that’s final.” Harry looked down at his friend as Tequila walked in the door with his own large stack of files. The three men shook hands and sat down to review everything. After a few hours, it was agreed that Harry would continue seek new recruits in the UK and Tequila would request the transfer of six senior agents from Statesman to help with the growing caseload.
“Do you think the current trainees will be ready for the field by the time the new agents arrive?” Merlin asked. He was doing calculations for weaponry and realized if these agents were going into the field soon he was absolutely going to need help. He narrowed his eyes at Harry, who chose to ignore it.
“Some of them will, I got a good batch right now that can be partnered up. But there are two or three that still need a little more time. But it won’t break the current caseload.” Replied Tequila. “In fact, I say give it another month and we’ll be set.”
“With the recruits we have coming up, combined with the new agents from Statesman and the ones we have currently, I suspect we’re nearing half capacity. Still, there is plenty of room to grow.” Harry looked down at the files. “I’m grateful Statesman has helped with this, Tequila. I think we’re done here, but let’s talk more about UK recruitment at lunch.”
The three men stood up and shook hands again. As Harry and Tequila left, Merlin went back to his desk and sat down. Pulling out his phone, he messaged Ginger.
Harry wants more tech agents here; can you spare some for a few months?
Sure, but it depends on how many do you want
Three should work for now.
Good, I’ll talk to Champ and we’ll see about getting them out there. How soon do you need them?
As soon as you can bring them out here.
He paused a moment before he kept writing.
I hope I didn’t embarrass you last night.
What do you mean?
You know what I mean.
You didn’t. You’ll never embarrass me by calling me that.
Does Shirley know?
Nothing yet.
Okay. Let me know what Champ says about the specialists.
I will, m’eudail.
Tha goal agam ort.
Four thousand miles separated the two of them, but for a single moment they didn’t feel the miles at all. They couldn’t see each other, but they both carried big grins on their faces as they stared at their phones. I love you.
—***—
Despite her complaints that her staff wasn’t at the size it needed to be, Ginger made the case for Merlin’s request to Champ and Brandy a few days later. She recommended three agents that were already spending time working on Kingsman tech and pointed out that if they went to England even for three months, they’d get more work done and faster. And the faster the work got done, the sooner she could reassign them to Statesman work. The two agents agreed with her argument and signed the transfer papers for her crew.
As they ended their meeting, Champ asked Ginger to go with her agents to London to help them get settled. She happily agreed until he told her to take two weeks. She began to protest that she didn’t need to be away that long, but Champ held up his hand.
“Ginger, you’re going for two weeks and you’re going to make sure your team is representing Statesman admirably. Chai will be in charge while you are gone, and I’ll make sure the agents know to take good care of their stuff until you come back.” She huffed a bit but nodded – Champ’s word was final.
After she left, Brandy and Champ discussed new recruiting techniques to find more tech specialists. They both agreed with such large growth that they needed dedicated support staff like Ginger and her crew. Once they were satisfied with their new battle plan, Brandy left to review case files. Champ sat back and took a swig of bourbon and thought about Ginger. He felt fatherly affection for her and wanted her to be happy. Burning her out wasn’t part of his plan and if he had to force her to take a mini vacation using devious means, then so be it.
He dialed Shirley’s extension and he smiled when she picked up. “Shirl, I just wanted you to know I’m sending Ginger to England for a couple of weeks with some crew we’re sending over.”
“Two weeks? You think it will take that long for them to get settled?”
“Naw, the three she’s taking will be fine.”
“Then why send her?”
“She needs a vacation and frankly this is the only way she’ll get the hell out of this building for more than three hours.” Shirley laughed, but he wasn’t wrong.
“So, you think she’ll actually take some time to relax while she’s over there?”
“I think a certain someone will make sure.” Both smiled into the phone, knowing Champ was right.
