OTA

[quartermaster_q]

Hunting down these sorts of men, the kind who bought and sold the innocent, seemed to be a pet project for Bond, and while Q wasn't totally sure what had inspired the man's mission, he respected it.

The first time they'd followed a lead like this, it hadn't gone as hoped. Though this time around at least Q was prepared to play the part. Currently he was alone in the bar, deliberately dressed a bit younger than usual, his glasses swapped out for contacts, and his hair styled in a way that made him look younger. 

Q looked young anyway, but like this he truly looked too young to be a bloody quartermaster.

This was just reconnaissance though. They knew their target frequented the bars on this street, and Q's job tonight was to simply catch his interest. He had tanner in his ear, Eve on his phone sending texts, and he wouldn't have been surprised if Bond was listening or watching as well. Though he was sure they were all bored out of their mind right now. There was no sign of their mark, and he was yet to be approached by anyone who might be involved in the ring. ...Or anyone, for that matter.

(OTA! Q is kinda on the job right now, so expect him to play a part, even if you know him. Your pup can be mistaken for the target, an associate of the target, or just get have a nice chat. If you're in the mood your character can even mistake Q for an actual possible victim/target. The choice is yours.)

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[0_0_7]

The night was clearly a bust. They all knew it. But it wasn't yet closing and there was always a chance Q might be spotted. But Bond was bored and so he came into the bar and sat down the bar a bit, watching the younger man.

He may as well have a bit of fun.

If no one else was going to try to pick Q up, he may as well. Hell, if their mark was around he might see the older man take an interest in Q and take the bait.

So Bond stared at Q with intensely blue eyes and he told the bartender to get him a drink. And he waited for Q to notice him.

[quartermaster_q]

Well, this wasn't anything he'd been briefed on, and Q couldn't tell if James was having a go, or if this was a new tactic. Either way, it seemed best to stay in character, and Q offered a shy smile as he accepted the drink.

He supposed it wasn't a terrible approach, they'd been together when they'd coaxed Tony out of the shadows. ...Even if he had turned out to be CIA.

[0_0_7]

Bond truly appreciated how Q put himself into these legends. If one didn't know him they'd utterly believe he was vulnerable and young. Younger than Bond, of course, but Q was hardly a child.

Bond caught the smile and raised his glass to him. It looked as though he was looking at Q while he did it but he was subtly scanning the room, looking to see who might be noticing their exchange.

[quartermaster_q]

Q did the same, but no one seemed to be watching yet.

Deciding to be bold, he slid off his stool and moved to sit beside James.

"Thanks for the drink," he said softly. "No one else has bothered tonight."

A coded way of letting James know that he'd not been approached at all tonight.

[0_0_7]

"That's a shame," Bond replied quietly. "You look good tonight. People should be scrambling for you."

He sipped his drink and his eyes moved over the crowd just one more time, then he turned to look at Q more directly. He offered his hand.

"James," he said. Introductions were necessary, after all, since they'd only just met.

[quartermaster_q]

"Quinton," Q replied, falling back on what came the most naturally to him now as he took the offered hand.

He was about to say something more, but bought himself some time by pausing to sip his drink. ...They were being watched now, and he toyed with his coaster, twirling it, then letting the logo point towards their observer before putting his cup down.

"Lucky you, no competition."

[0_0_7]

Bond noticed the coaster but didn't immediately look.

"That remains to be seen," he smiled. He casually touched Q's back, light and sure. Not a trace of hesitation. But it was brief and he pulled his hand back. That was when he put down his drink and reached into his pocket, a ruse which allowed him to look in the direction of their watcher as he pulled a business card from his pocket. He smiled and handed it over.

"There, now you know who I am," he said. "You're exceptionally beautiful, if you don't mind me saying," he added with a heated look in his eyes and a predator's smile.

[quartermaster_q]

Taking the card with both hands, Q turned it over and admired it, as if he'd never been offered someone's card before.

"Thank you," he smiled. "You're very handsome yourself."

This was just flirting though. If they wanted to hook the right guy, they had to change the dance a bit. Though Q couldn't see an easy way of getting there. ...Well, okay, he could see one way, but he had a feeling Bond might be cross about it later.

With no other visible options, Q let his elbow go a bit too wide as he pulled out his wallet to tuck James' card away, knocking over the other man's drink, right onto his trousers.

"Oh! Shit, I'm so sorry," Q said quickly.

[0_0_7]

He knew who they were after and Bond knew what they'd be looking for. Not just that Q would be desirable, but how he might react in a given situation. So when Q provoked him Bond was quick to react.

Anger flashed in his eyes and he reached up to hit the younger man, just barely stopping himself and looking around the bar to see if anyone might have seen him.

"You stay right here," he said dangerously. "I'm going to the loo to clean up."

Then he rose and moved off, muttering to Tanner to stay on Q.

[raisedbycarnies]

Stay in London. Don't cause trouble but keep an eye out. Theoretically, that's not too hard, but this place is so choked with agents I'm amazed it doesn't empty when spy season ends.

For once, Clint wasn't on the job beyond the usual and half of the work for today was looking casual as he strolled around, his duffel bag present as usual. If he went to the gym as often as he carried his gym bag around, he'd...well Clint didn't know. It wasn't like he didn't hit the gym daily anyway. This just wasn't his gym bag.

"Jiminy," he said, nodding at Q and falling in step with him. They'd met once before but not recently but Q was hard to forget.

[quartermaster_q]

"Now's not a great time for pet names, Clint," Q said, smiling for show in case anyone was watching him, but his tone making it clear he wasn't here on anything but business.

He could feel eyes on him, and his smile softened a bit as he played it slightly coy, raking his fingers through his hair and doing his best to seem bashful. This was the only role the Quartermaster could play convincingly, he was by no means field agent material, but he had this down pat.

"It's Quinton, actually. I don't suppose you'd like to buy me a drink?"

[raisedbycarnies]

"Clint and Quint? Nah, can't do it. I think we should break up on principle," Clint says, shifting his posture slightly so that now he's the confident older man looking to score. "Care to share about your target?"

Nat would possibly fall off a chair laughing if she could see him now.

"Or should I just play cute?"

[quartermaster_q]

"Trafficking ring," Q said, scratching his jaw to obscure his lips as he spoke, then smiling as his he leaned in slightly, one hand on Clint's chest as if flirting, his touch soft as his words.

"Is anyone watching us?" he asked, his gaze casually combing over the crowd behind Clint, but finding no eyes on them over there.

[raisedbycarnies]

Clint raised his eyes and put on an abashed expression, like he was afraid to be caught. He scanned through the crowd and his eyes landed just left of a man who was watching in their direction.

"On your seven," he said. "Tacky gold chain. I think you'd call him a chav?"

[quartermaster_q]

Q remained in character, smiling and leaning in to speak in Clint's ear. His body language wove tales of youthful seduction and innocent charm, his hand moving to Clint's shoulder and a smile resting on his lips.

"Interesting, but I'm not sure that's who I'm looking for. Buy me a drink, let's see if he stays interested. ...Unless you've got elsewhere to be."

Q would always be a slightly frumpy little boffin, no matter how many times someone had combed his hair today. However, he was actually quite good at this. ...No doubt a side effect of spending so much time with Bond.

[raisedbycarnies]

"Not your type?" Clint asked. He smiled and held out an arm, pretending to be funny and gallant but slightly buffoonish. It wasn't much of a stretch for him.

"I'm out tonight on intel. If something's going on then I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. What's your poison?" Clint nodded down where one of the establishments had raised their windows all the way up. Good access to the street.

[quartermaster_q]

"Tea, generally, but for the sake of my cover, a vodka and coke, I think," Q replied, still smiling as he made his way yo the bar, staying close to Clint's side.

[codenameathos]

Athos came to sit at the bar beside Q and ordered a single malt from the bartender. "Please tell me you've run this one by us."

The quartermaster was clearly on an operation, and Athos hadn't been told about it, but it hardly meant that Five didn't know about it. They had their hick-ups in communication, like every large enough organisation.

[quartermaster_q]

If Q hadn't been playing a part, he would have looked insulted by that. He knew how to do his job, and he knew the parameters of said job. It seemed any time they met Oliver was looking for a reason for conflict, and honestly, Q didn't have time for that nonsense. In a day and age where both sides were constantly fighting for funding, dealing with mergers, or even to just exist at all under the new joint security director, arguing among themselves was like shooting themselves in the foot.

But Q's smile fell easily into place, and his tone was placid and calm as ever, not wanting to draw attention.

"We're collecting information on an international trafficking ring," he said, moving his glass a bit to partially obscure his lips. "Though I'm sure if you're eager to see whatever bit of paper had to be rubber stamped, it's probably still sitting on C's desk."

The fact that he'd even mention C's name ought to make it clear he wasn't in the mood for a pissing contest. No one liked that troll, as far as Q was aware.

[codenameathos]

"Splendid," Athos simply returned, on his usual listless tone. He was slightly surprised to have been told anything about the operation itself, when a simple 'Yes' would have sufficed. Past experience had told him that a 'no' was often possible, or he would not have asked. "I'll leave you to it, then," he told him with a small smile, and politely raised his glass at the young man, much as any patron would have had, before moving away to have a drink in peace.

[quartermaster_q]

Not long after Oliver walked away, Q was approached by someone else. An older gentleman who wasn't shy about resting a hand on Q's back as he ordered them both another drink. To an outsider, it looked like light flirtation, but to someone in the know, there were some obvious tells that something was off. Starting with the way the man constantly seemed to be touching Q, as though getting him acclimated to being handled. A bit like grooming, really, but also a good way of testing how much of a fighter Q might be.

Usually Q would have drawn away, but this was all part of playing a role, and so he acted oblivious to any trouble.

Their chat had been going on for a while when Q started to occasionally touch his ear. To someone on the outside, it might have looked like a nervous twitch, but to another agent it was a sign that something was amiss. In this case, it was a sign that Q's earpiece had stopped working.

Given that this was just intel gathering, Q decided to try and avoid any trouble by making his excuses to leave. However, as he started to get to his feet, the stranger caught his wrist and forced him to sit back down. Q didn't think he'd been made, but it did seem as though his new friend wasn't ready to let him walk away.

[codenameathos]

There were some things that, as an agent, you were trained to do subconsciously. Admittedly, once he'd had enough alcohol, Oliver was a lot less able to do these things. But the night was still young, and he noted the comings and goings in the bar without having to think about it.

Until, of course, he noticed the young quartermaster touching his ear.

He only had to think back to know that the older man with him had come into the bar after he and the quartermaster had exchanged a few words. So when he stopped Q from leaving, that offered Athos an array of options. Not knowing whether the bar staff was involved narrowed them down, however.

He downed the rest of his glass, paid for it, then headed over to the two. "I'm ready for you now," he told Q, and gave the older gentleman a polite smile. "I'm afraid he and I had a prior engagement."

[quartermaster_q]

Q could feel his wrist starting to swell slightly. Sprained, most likely. Though he remained still, only barely showing any signs that he was in pain. However, he couldn't stop himself from gasping as the man briefly tightened his grip before letting go.

"Of course," the stranger replied, holding Olvier's gaze for a long moment. "He's all yours, I was just saying goodnight."

The man paid for his drinks, then Q's as well. "I hope to see you again, Quinton. Tomorrow, maybe?"

Q nodded a bit, but stayed silent as he got to his feet to leave with the other agent.

[codenameathos]

"Have a good evening," Athos told him with another polite smile, then put a hand on Q's back and drew him outside.

[quartermaster_q]

Q kept close and didn't look back, even though he could feel the man watching him.

It wasn't until they were outside that he spoke up.

"Thank you," he said simply and quietly.