the vanderwood route.

one - names.

When MC came to, she was moving. She rubbed her face and groaned before forcing her eyes open to the harsh sunlight.

Where the hell am I? she thought with still-slightly-groggy panic, wrenching forward until something made a snap sound - oh, a seatbelt. That explains that, at least. She pulled the belt to loosen it and stretched, rubbing at her eyes again. What the -

“Oh, look who decided to wake up,” a vaguely familiar voice said without inflection. MC looked over sharply - and blinked at the black-clad figure driving. That was real?

“Fuck,” she declared, and fell back against the headrest.

The driver snorted a laugh. “My thoughts exactly.”

“You say that as if you had to kidnap me.”

“What, do you think this is my idea of a good time?”

“The kidnapping people thing? I don't know, probably. Stranger danger or whatever.” MC slipped her phone out of her pocket as subtly as possible while she spoke - it opened back to that weird app.

Unknown: Hey, you still there?

Unknown: Who's that with you?

Unknown: ...Oh.

Unknown: Well, that's a shame. I can't use you now.

Unknown: Maybe someday we’ll meet again… MC.

As soon as she read the messages, they were gone - and replaced with ominous active greentext, too fast to read even if she could understand it.

Unfortunately, Messenger.apk has stopped.

Then her phone crashed.

“...do I?” MC was still looking at her dark screen with her eyebrows drawn together when her captor’s voice registered.

She ran a hand through her hair and squeezed her eyes shut. “Uh, what was that?”

She felt them look over and heard them sigh, then tap a ridge in the dashboard. “Put it here.”

At her non-response, they elaborated, “The phone. We're in a dead zone now, but I really don't need you to be a pain in my ass later with cops or whatever. This is the easy way.”

MC rolled her eyes but complied, not keen on getting on getting on a Bond villain’s bad side. “Crashed anyway,” she grumbled.

“What?”

“Nothing. What were you saying before?”

____________

Vanderwood felt some tension leave their shoulders when the girl put her cell on the dashboard. At least she appeared to have some amount of common sense.

“What were you saying before?”

What were they saying? Oh. They almost smirked. “I said, come on, I don't look like a dangerous stranger, do I?”

She gawked at them. "Yes."

They couldn't help it; they chuckled. “Fair.”

“Wow, that was almost an emotion,” MC chuckled back.

Vanderwood rolled their eyes. “Am I like talking to a brick wall? I get that a lot.”

_________

“Yo, I didn't mean anything by it,” MC responded instinctively, then immediately questioned herself - was she comforting them? does Stockholm syndrome usually set in this quickly?

Evidently they were put off by it too, by the look they gave her. She coughed.

They shook their head, then flicked on the radio. She sighed gratefully, leaning back against the seat and closing her eyes again.

__________

“Hey, come on. We're here.”

Vanderwood leaned against the open passenger-side door of the car, looking at the girl in disbelief. She fell asleep. The drive to HQ couldn't have been more than twenty minutes.

Her mouth hung open, but she still somehow had a lock of hair stuck to her lip. Graceful.

“Hey… Girl. You gotta wake up now.”

Just as they moved to shake her shoulder, she yawned, then opened her eyes. “I do have a name, you know, Mysterious Stranger.”

“...Don't call me that.” Sounds too much like something Oh Seven would say.

“Then don't call me ‘Girl’.”

She took off her seatbelt and slid down from the car, ignoring Vanderwood’s hand when they offered it. Fair enough. They wouldn't trust them either, if they were her.

“Fine. What is it, then?”

She gave them a look, probably surprised that that was all it took. “I’m called MC.”

They nodded, repeating, “Okay. MC. You gotta wake up now.”

She glared in annoyance before rubbing her eyes with her hands. “I'm awake. Are you? Shouldn't you have me handcuffed or something?”

__________

MC flinched as soon as the words left her mouth, and she swore she heard Mysterious Stranger laugh.

“Do you want me to?”

Something in their tone made her blush, but she ignored it. “I mean, no, but what if I run?”

They smiled. Maybe. This person had really mastered the art of non-expression. “You can if you want. I miss getting to use my taser.”

What the fu-

“That was a tazer?!”

She rubbed the spot from before, eyes wide. The stranger snorted.

Beep. “Hey, don't…!”

– Oh. Just a key card.

They pocketed it and pressed another button by the door lock, which produced another beep.

“Special Agent Mary Vanderwood.”

”Security disarmed,” replied a tinny, artificially feminine voice, before a final long beep.

MC raised an eyebrow. “Is that your real name?”

They looked back at her and smiled - actually smiled. “Of course not.”