chapter two
a rude awakening
EVER SINCE she was a little girl, Rory always loved the shop.
Some would say that she's biased, but she couldn't help it. Who wouldn't love an organisation that bought them freedom? As a little girl, she was always taught that the world is a dark and cruel place. That life should be lived by a simple code — kill or be killed. Which was, to put it simply, very fucked up. But, after being saved, she had quickly learned that life is more than being a highly skilled murder-child. It was more than just surviving, and thinking that it's you against the world. Life was, well, living.
And ever since then, she'd been grateful.
The last time she had been here was when she was twelve. Now, she was twenty-two. Back then, she didn't have much — now, she didn't have much either (she had no job, and maybe like two or three friends, but OK), but she was living. She wasn't some weapon. Or some murderer. She was human. It's come to a full circle. Funny how life worked.
"Ladies first," Harry smiled, upon opening the door for her once they've arrived.
A warm breeze with a hint of pine and lavender greeted them, as they walked through the tailor in a swift manner. It was like clockwork. Rory memorised each step, heading towards the dressing room to the right, silently following Harry in tow, and shutting the door behind her with a click.
"Do you remember the day I took you here to this dressing room, for the very first time?" Harry's voice bounced off the walls, watching as Rory came to approach her own grimly reflection. There was a small cut at the end of her lip, and a few bruises mounted on her fist, but other than that, there was nothing else Rottweiler had inflicted.
(Rather, she inflicted more damage on him. Served him right.)
Rory lightly chuckled. "We were late, as always," she replied, "and Merlin scolded us, yet again."
"Well," he shook his head, placing his palm up against the mirror before the glowing circuits underneath began to scan his hand. "I think it's time we have a little bit of some déjà vu tonight."
The floor they stood on suddenly began to descend. Harry stood back, removing his hand from the mirror, as the four walls that surrounded them slowly faded into a burgundy brick wall. The tiny light that sprouted above started to shrink, and for a moment, they were covered in darkness.
"So," Rory started. "How'd you know that I was arrested?"
"I'm a Kingsman, Aurora." Harry replied, with a jokingly smug look on his face. "It's what we do."
Rory rolled her eyes. "I'll take your word for it, stalker," she shot back, crossing her arms. "It's good that you still haven't lost your charisma after all these years or I would've thought you've gone old and boring."
"It appears to be the same situation, as for your... wit."
Rory chortled in response, to which Harry shook his head.
"Earlier," he added, "I'd been with another candidate — originally, he'd been the only one I would've collected. Perhaps, because of my close relationship with his father. I figured, I'd be a mentor to him as much I was to his father. The least I could do."
"Unwin's son?" Rory suddenly piped up, turning to Harry with a curious look on her face.
Harry was surprised. "You still remember?"
"I've been arrested once, and you already doubt my memory."
"That seems fair enough." shrugged Harry, "anyways, Arthur— "
"Is he cute?" She cut off Harry.
"Pardon?"
"Unwin's son, is he cute?"
Harry chortled. "That, my dear, is for you to decide."
The floor then stopped sinking, leading them to an underground four-person subway. Rory followed Harry, taking a seat parallel to him and buckling in.
"Anyways... " Harry continued, as the car leaned forward. "Arthur had told us initially to select one candidate and bring them here by today, however, the idea of you being a Kingsman — for some reason — crossed his mind."
"So, he gave you an exception?"
"Precisely," Harry answered. "And he's probably the laziest arse in the whole agency, which could explain why he tasked me to collect you, instead of doing it himself, but I don't doubt for a second that he has great taste when it comes to choosing an agent."
"Mm." Rory hummed. "Quite a compliment the two of you put together."
"I don't know about him, but I try my best."
💋
"GALAHAD, SECOND time today?"
Merlin sounded rather smug, although his expression was faintly wiped from his face once he caught a glimpse of Rory standing next to Harry — all grown up, a lot taller, and still holding her head up high, just like the last time he'd seen her.
"It appears that you've got quite a lucky catch, today, Galahad," He nodded towards Rory.
"Another compliment from a Kingsman, today must be my lucky day," Rory jokingly retorted.
"Actually, she's Arthur's," Harry replied, patting Rory on the shoulder.
"I see," Merlin nodded. "Well, I'll notify him that all the candidates have been completely submitted. In the meantime, if you will, Aurora."
The man gestured to the steel doors behind him.
Rory nodded slowly, pulling the heavy doors open, to reveal an array of chattering noises and distinctive faces she wasn't familiar with. Behind her, she felt the door suddenly slam, making a short thundering noise that provoked a few heads to turn to her direction simultaneously.
From what she could see, there were two female candidates, while the rest were male. Most of them had been dressed in posh-like apparel, and matching faces that took in such pride. Well, most except one. There was one blond, who stood at the sidelines, looking like an outsider compared to the others. She could tell by the mere fact that the rest were clumped into one group, while he stood outside of their circle, alone.
"Fall in," Merlin suddenly spoke. The chattering instantly ceased and the group fell into an orderly crowd.
Rory promptly stood next to a blonde female, as she tucked her arms behind her back, and held her head up instinctively.
"Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Merlin," the bald man started. "You are about to embark, on what is probably the most dangerous job interview in the world. One of you— " he emphasized, " —and only one of you, will become the next Lancelot."
He then walked over to one of the cots, snatching on top what appeared to be a folded plastic duvet. "Can anybody tell me what this is?"
Everyone — aside from the blond — rose their hands.
Merlin pointed. "Yes?"
"Bodybag, sir," said the candidate. Rory turned her head, finding herself staring at one of the posh boys.
(Looked like a prat.)
"Correct." Merlin replied, "Charlie, isn't it?"
"Yes, sir," the boy — Charlie — said.
"Good," said Merlin. "In a moment, you will each collect a body bag. You will write your name on that bag. You will write the details of your next of kin on that bag. This represents your acknowledgement of the risks that you are about to face, as well as your agreement to strict confidentiality. Which, incidentally, if you break, will result in you — and your next of kin — being in that bag. Is that understood?"
Everyone nodded.
"Excellent. Fall out."
With the last word, the man turned on his heels and left the room. The candidates scattered around to their designated bunks, leaving the two empty luggage-less ones to Rory and the blond outsider.
The bed creaked under Rory's weight, as she sat on the edge, reaching out for the pen that was placed on top of the body bag. She didn't think twice about writing Luna's name on the dotted line above the word's Next-of-Kin — not like she had a choice, anyway. Her mum wasn't very approving of her relationship with the Kingsman (apart from Harry), and her dad... well, she never really had one. So, there's that.
There was a certain heaviness to the pen, as she held it, along with a small reflective glint on the other end — which, she later learned to be a tiny bulb. Weird. Fancy pen, but weird. She shrugged the thought off and began to write, anyway.
"Roxanne. But, call me Roxy."
A female voice broke the silence, making Rory look up from her bag. She found herself staring at one of the two girl's that she stood next to just a few moments ago, talking to the quiet outsider.
"I'm Eggsy," he replied, shaking the girl — Roxy's — hand.
"Eggy?"
Rory snorted, earning a look from Roxy.
"No, Eggsy," Eggsy corrected immediately after.
Roxy shook her head profusely, ignoring his remark. She, instead, turned to the girl across the cot and smiled. "Hi," she loudly started, "I'm Roxy."
Rory returned the smile, walking over to the girl with her hand outstretched. "Rory."
"Rory, Eggy." Roxy replied, shaking Rory's hand as her eyes flickered over to Eggsy, "Eggsy, Rory."
"Rory?" Eggsy gave his hand to shake. "That's a guy's name, innit?"
"Eggy?" she mocked. "That's a food's name, innit?"
He smirked. "Touché."
"Eggy?" A heavy voice had suddenly intervened. The prat. Of course. "Where did they dig you up?"
"You know we're not allowed to discuss who proposed us," Roxy scowled.
"No need to bite his head off. Charlie's only making conversation." Another voice spoke up, turning to Charlie. "Right, Charlie?" He then let out a hand. "I'm Digby."
"Digby," Eggsy repeated, shaking his hand.
"Eggy, this is Rufus," Digby introduced. "Rufus, Eggy."
Rufus reluctantly shook Eggsy's hand. "So, Eggy, are you Oxford or Cambridge?"
Eggsy shook his head. "Neither."
"Saint Andrews?"
"Durham?"
" —no, wait, I think we may have met." Rufus suddenly piped up. "Did you serve me at the McDonald's in Winchester service station?"
"No," said Eggsy. "But if I had, I'd have given you an extra helping of secret sauce."
Rory snickered at the crude gesture he did with one of his hands.
"It's definitely Saint Andrews." Charlie retorted, before turning to Rory with a smug smirk. "You, on the other hand," his eyes darted up and down, before he stretched a hand for Rory to shake. "I believe that we've met at an Oxford tour."
Rory turned to him, feeling a forced smile tug on her lips, as she stared at his hand. "We have, haven't we?" She squinted her eyes, taking a cautious step towards the lad. "Yes, I remember, mostly because I can recall that that was one of the worst tours that I've been to."
Charlie smirked. "I beg to differ."
"I beg to piss off," she calmly replied.
He scoffed offendedly in response, turning on his heel and walking away.
"He's an interesting lad," Rory turned to Eggsy. "But anyone can do better than that."
"She's right." Roxy hummed in agreement. "Just ignore them."
A brown-haired girl with a fringe then approached Eggsy, holding a pen and wearing a smile that she quickly flashed towards Rory — which Rory returned. She then offered the pen to Eggsy.
"You need a pen?"
"Cheers," replied Eggsy, taking the pen.
"Amelia, isn't it?" added Roxy, which Amelia nodded to in response. "Amelia, Eggsy and Rory."
"Hi, Eggsy, Rory."
"Amelia." Rory nodded.
There were a few snickers from behind, making Amelia shake her head enough to bob her fringe. She shot the triad a quick glare, before turning to Eggsy sympathetically.
"Don't take any notice of those guys." She briefly shook his hand.
"That's what I told him." Roxy sighed, noticing the way he eerily looked at the body bag perched on the bed. "It's just scare tactics. Classic army technique. No one's gonna die."
He glanced behind them, listening to the sneers and mocking laughs. "Shame."
💋
Rory was an insomniac. It would take her hours, even at times the whole night, before she would feel the drowsiness finally dawn upon her—and unfortunately, this was one of those nights.
In one hand, she could feel the cool metallic texture of the pen, keeping her amused as she continuously attempted to squeeze her eyes shut. In the other, she felt her nails dig into her skin, the familiar pain fading into her palms as she felt the warm stain tingle against her fingertips.
"You have to stop doing that." Her mum's words echoed through her head.
For a moment, she felt the warmth on her hands briefly wash away. At first, she'd thought it was just her imagination playing with her, but as the feeling continued to spread throughout her body, panic suddenly rushed in. Her eyes shot wide open, only to have her ears be greeted by the gentle slosh of water—
Water!
Within seconds, Rory jolted upright, watching the others do the same as her mind had attempted to register what was happening. There was water. Lots of it.
What the fuck?
" —shit on a brick and feed it to a donkey." Rory suddenly blurted out, scrabbling to hurriedly get off her cot and stand up. Her hand immediately hit the light switch next to her, which had been ultimately useless when the lightbulb emitted a few flickers before dying out completely.
"Useless bitch," she quickly turned to Eggsy. "Does yours work?"
He flicked the switch on, immediately being drowned by the illuminated light that seemed to have answered the question. Eggsy nodded in panic. "Yours doesn't?"
Rory shook her head, slightly panicked. "No?"
What the fuck is happening?
"The fuck is this?" The lanky boy shouted from her right.
"It's not a coincidence that I got a cool bloody pen the same night my bulb becomes a bust— " her hands scaled the walls, the pen still attached to her palm.
"What's going on?"
"Oh shit. Jesus."
"All right, no one panic," Charlie bellowed. "Listen to me. Stay calm."
In a haste, an idea suddenly popped into Rory's flustered mind. "—of course! A fucking pen."
Her hands shakily tapped the point-less end to reveal a flashlight that had been disguised as a pen this whole time.
"Oh, that's bloody useful," said Rory. "Great. A fucking flashlight will keep us bloody alive. Thanks a lot, Merlin. I don't suppose anyone's got any idea to get the oxygen going?"
"Fuck," Charlie's eyes widened, at the thought of an idea. He pointed towards her. "Loo snorkels, loo snorkels!"
"Loo snorkels?" Eggsy repeated, looking quite baffled.
"Showerheads!" Roxy screamed in response.
"S–showerheads?"
Rory, slightly, felt relieved. "Fuck, yes."
"She's right," said Charlie, motioning everyone to move. "Go fucking go!"
Eggsy pointed to the door. "Hey, hang about, what's wrong with the fucking door— "
Eggy's voice was drowned out by the silence and before she knew it, Rory was on top of the ceiling, taking a large gulp of air as she felt the cold water submerge her. Her eyes snapped open, burning underwater, with the tiny light sprouting from the pen being much of help in the dark. OK, she took it back — maybe, it's helpful. She then quickly swam to the group hunched behind the toilets, keeping her grip around the light.
She motioned to the closest one to lend her a tube, as she let her lungs exhale slowly and inhale the foul-tasting air that came from the toilet.
Rory let out a few gulps of air, replacing them with a few from the tube, before she returned the tube and swam towards the mirror. For some reason, she could vaguely remember the precinct glass wall staring at her the same way their bathroom mirror had been staring at her. It somehow had the same reflection, the same glint, and with an unfortunate amount of desperation that filled her lungs quite ironically, it was the only theory that she could hope for at the moment.
She shone her flashlight against the mirror, which poured out on the other end, with a few rays shooting back. It was enough for Eggsy — who'd been attempting to pry the door open — to notice.
With the excessive amount of bubbles leaving Rory's lungs, she quickly swam out of his way, watching as he quickly held onto the sink, slamming his fist against the glass. There was a loud bang, and Rory could feel the continuous burn in her chest. He rose his fist again, slamming it back into the glass. It had been a merely successful attempt, the glass cracking under the sudden pressure, and the heavy grip Rory had against her fist returned.
She felt it burn everywhere. Being underwater for too long was something she had never learned, and she was yet to learn. She could feel her eyes burn, her lungs burn, her palms burn as her nails dug into her pained skin.
Rory watched a string of blood flow into the water, as the satisfying sound of the glass shattered against Eggsy's fist.
Just as she was about to drown, surrounded by her own blood (she really needed to stop doing that), there was an unexpected force that dragged her out. There was an ear-piercing splash—
And suddenly, Rory let out an airy gasp.
The brunette fell to her knees, stumbling and hitting her head on something, as she spluttered to get the water caught in her throat out. Her hand latched on the first thing she reached, gripping as hard as she could before she continued to cough out more water. Unbeknownst to her, it had been Eggsy's bare shoulders, and even he was too busy heaving to notice.
"Congratulations, on completing your first task," Merlin suddenly spoke up. "Charlie, Roxy, well done."
"For those of you who are still confused, if you can get a breathing tube around a U-bend of a toilet, you have an unlimited air supply," he explained. "Simple physics, worth remembering."
His eyes darted to meet Rory and Eggsy's gaze, pointing his pen towards the two. "Eggsy, Rory, well done for spotting that was a two-way mirror."
"He's probably seen enough of them," Charlie added, making Roxy and Eggsy glare at him.
Rory merely rolled her eyes. Yup. Prat.
"Yeah, you can all wipe those smirks off your faces. Because as far as I'm concerned, every single one of you has failed. You all forgot the most important thing... teamwork."
Rory pushed herself shakily off the ground, watching as Merlin pointed towards the leaking room. She blinked twice, though her blurry vision was clear enough to show her something that made her stomach churn.
It was Amelia. Slumped against the divider. Completely still. And if it weren't for the fact that they had just drowned literally seconds ago, she would've thought that the woman had fallen asleep. But, no. She was dead. And yet again, Rory felt a sting in her eyes and a hitch in her throat.
"So much for classic army technique."
💌
rewrite: 07/01/20
looking back, that scene with amelia (hey, namesake) was FUUCKED up. esp now that we know she faked her death. classic army technique my ass.
jk ily roxy morton
y'all know what to do, vote, comment ur thoughts, and imma see u on the next update <3 x
EDIT: OK SO THAT SECRET SAUCE REMARK ,, is it just me, OR HAVE I NEVER SEEN THAT VERSION OF THE FILM (i edited it in as soon as i saw that while rewatching bc ??? i have never seen it and now i'm losing my mind. i probably saw the child friendly version, since the one i watched before zoomed in on the princess tilde's face before it got to the butt LMFAO anyways moving on)