♡ — MEME . ›› @rckflag sent : a kiss during combat . ( and then i cheated & did directly after combat sue me )
IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT FOR EVERY V I C T O R Y THERE IS A P R I C E ; never before has the phrase rung as true for harley as it does right now . all things considered , they’ve triumphed : starro is defeated , waller isn’t going to blow their heads off , the corto maltese government has been overthrown — all in all , it SHOULD be cause for celebration . ( how often do people like them get to say they’ve won ? ) she should feel elated . after all , isn’t victory is supposed to be sweet ? [ . . . ] so then why is the taste in her mouth so bitter ?
inhale , exhale . — smudged eyelids fall to a close , thick lashes fanning ‘cross grime - smeared cheeks , and she will feel her ribcage rise , air drawn into her lungs with each shaky breath . she knows EXACTLY why . no matter how exhilarated she may feel , high on the adrenaline that comes with each battle win , relieved to have made it out alive , she cannot help but still linger on those lost along the way . boomer , krill , flag . the one constant in every mission , the one team member she could always count on to have her back [ . . . ] GONE in an instant . worse still , gone for nothing . — the drive he’d died for was never going to see the light of day , all the secrets it contained sure to die with each one of them . what a load of bullshit . tired eyes open slowly , harley's gaze downcast as she kicks the toe of her boot ‘gainst a pebble half - heartedly .
. . . sebastian is the first to notice , noisily chittering ﹠ scratching at his master’s collar to get her attention . cleo is next , head turning in the direction the rat is gesturing to , mouth falling agape as the words ‘ look ! the rubble ! ’ spill forth . she’s followed closely by dubois ﹠ nanaue , a murmur of ‘ ho-ly fucking shit ’ coming from the former . harley is the LAST to look , blue eyes rolling as she swivels ‘round to see for herself what all the fuss is for . ❝ jeez , what’s all the commotion abo— ? ❞
final syllable never comes , all thoughts grinding to a halt when she sees him . he's limping away from a mountain of debris ﹠ rubble , certainly looking worse for wear , but more importantly — he's ALIVE . bloodied , bruised ﹠ breathing . ❝ flag . ❞ with a breathless sigh , a faint laugh falls from plush petals , a mix of relief ﹠ disbelief immediately washing over her . [ . . . ] as though someone has flipped a switch , suddenly she is on . ❝ flag ! ❞ louder this time , cast out from ‘tween grinning lips , and ‘fore she even has time to think about it , she is running t’wards him .
. . . admittedly , throwing yourself at someone who appears to be grievously injured probably isn’t the wisest thing to do [ . . . ] but given that she thought he was DEAD ? harley thinks that deserves an exception . — body collides with his own , arms flung ‘round his neck ﹠ face pressing into his chest as she tugs him into an tight embrace . ❝ i - we thought y’were dead . ❞ drawing back , arms move for palms to position themselves on either side of his face , as if to feel if he’s really there . wide , searching gaze peers up at him with uncertainty , a hundred things unsaid now racing through her mind .
and then she says them all without saying anything . — lips press to his almost forcefully , as though she fears that he could slip through her fingertips at any moment . she can taste the metallic tang of blood ‘pon his tongue , can feel where his lower lip is split [ . . . ] yet she doesn’t care . ( hell , she’s sure she’s no better right now ) . instead she SAVOURS every second of the kiss , one hand moving yet again , this time trailing ‘round the back of his neck to cradle the base of his skull .
. . . it’s over all too quickly for her liking , harley finding herself grateful that he’s NOT dead because boy , is she going to want to do that again . ❝ HOW are you not dead ? ❞