Ok, so I'm sorry to all those people who waited. If anyone did. And I know that almost nobody will actually be reading this AN, because I left one in a previous chapter asking people to say 'I read it' or something in a review (Yes, a cunning strategy to get reviews – feel free to use it).

I think one person actually said something. Whether or not people just aren't bothering to review, or whether you aren't reading it, I'll never know...

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Damn.

Alex had unpacked the essentials by the time his new unit had come back. When he heard the keys in the lock clicking, he hastily rubbed away as much soot as possible off his face.

When the first of the men walked into the room, Alex turned to face the door. Lynx didn't say anything when he saw Alex, just raised his eyebrows in disbelief. When he stopped walking, and Dog careened into the back of him, Alex heard an exclamation, "Wha-? What's wrong?"

"Turns out I was right, guys."

"What? No way." Lynx was pushed out of the way by Shark and Dog.

When they did get a sight of Alex, they looked confused. "Why are you covered in...mud?"

"Soot." Alex corrected him, smiling. His teeth looked blindingly white in comparison to his face.

"Ok...why are you covered in soot?" Shark ventured.

"I didn't have a key. Since when did these cabins have locks anyway?"

"Wait, you didn't have a key. So – oh," Shark looked at Alex in astonishment.

Lynx asked curiously, "You didn't think about waiting for us?"

"I didn't know you would be so quick to come back. And who's chimney is that dirty? Why were you so fast to come back anyway?" Alex queried, completely unperturbed by Dog, who, after figuring out why Alex was so dirty was staring at him in amazement.

"When we asked if you were our new room mate, Sarge didn't really tell us. He just said, 'If he is, I would get your sorry arses back to that cabin before he blows it up.'"

"Oh. I'm not that bad." Alex' lip quirked. The other three were left wondering whether he was being serious or not.

After a short, yet awkward silence, Lynx extended his hand. "Welcome then. We're H-Unit. This is Dog, obviously. Shark," he pointed, "and I'm Lynx. But you knew that didn't you...Butterfly?"

"Umm...it's actually Owl," he replied awkwardly, "And, uh, yeah I did." He tried a charming smile, in hope they wouldn't make him start lying already.

"Ok. How do you know our names?" Crap.

"Sarge told me." Again with the smile. It didn't seem to be working. It was slightly frustrating that H-Unit was asking him questions already. I guess they wouldn't just let a new member turn up without any interrogation. It's in their nature. Our nature. Alex corrected himself mentally.

"Ah, cool." Lynx smiled, but looked thoughtful.

"Have you been here before?" Dog asked. It was so out of the blue that Alex let his cheerful mask slip.

"Uh, no. Why?"

"You know, Sarge and all." With no response, Dog continued. "'Welcome back?' What's that about?"

"Ah," Alex laughed, as if remembering something. It was a good stalling technique he had used a lot on friends at school. Finally he came up with a plausible story – or at least the first decent one that came to his mind.

"My friend went here once. Apparently we look really similar. It was really embarrassing – he and I were out once and he saw Sarge. Apparently Sarge was out on service leave. Sarge mistook me for my friend and called me to attention. I had know idea what he was doing. I mean, I'm just at the park with my friend and this big guy starts walking over, yelling at me? I was a little freaked to say the least."

Dog was grinning, and Shark and Lynx were shaking their heads in amusement.

"My friend rescued me. Thank god."

"So your friend came here? What was his name?" Dog asked curiously.

"Ah, he wasn't here for long." Alex replied uncertainly.

"We might still know him." Dog pressed.

Uhh, should I risk it? Alex mentally deliberated. If I did it would get them off my back. And it would give me a good excuse if K-Unit thinks they recognize me. Alex mentally took a deep breath and feigned confusion, "I think he was called...Umm. It was something strange, not like a type of animal you know. Cub, maybe? Yeah, that was it. Cub."

H-Unit's eyebrows rose, "You're friends with Cub? No way! That kid that was here for a couple of weeks?"

Alex feigned confusion, "I think so. I never did figure out how he got here in the first place...?"

"Apparently his rich Daddy paid for a trip here." Dog mocked, for some reason his voice had jumped an octave in pitch, "What's surprising is he actually made it. He didn't back out or anything. He's a legend here, you know?" Shark grinned.

"Sarge uses him as a binning opportunity." At Alex' awed confusion, he continued, "You know, 'I knew a school boy who could do this better than you soldiers!' An excuse to send Unit's on treks and stuff."

Inside Alex was grinning, but on the outside, he winced. "I didn't know he was that big a thing here."

"He probably doesn't either. He just disappeared one day, after messing around with the RTI activity. It was hilarious. Hey," realization dawned on Shark's face, "If you know him, you should...I dunno...call him and talk to him and stuff. Tell him what we said. We could have a talk to him."

"Thank god Wolf's not here, or he'll be yelling at him across the phone. They weren't too friendly I heard." Dog put in.

At Alex's hesitation, Shark continued, "Oh, don't you have his number? That sucks. I'm sure we can find on the files or something. If we hack, at least."

Shit, now they're going to be digging around in my files. And if they really can hack, they'll know who I actually am. Was.

"He's dead."

Even Alex was surprised by how sudden his excuse was. The rest of the unit looked shocked, Lynx's eyes flitted around the cabin in surprise, before he spoke quietly, "I'm sorry."

"Yeah." Alex forced his voice to become hoarse. He shook his head as to clear his mind.

"Nah, don't worry. I hadn't seen him in a while anyway." Alex continued, faking emotional pain.

"What happened?" Dog asked quietly. Shark nudged him disapprovingly.

"Car crash."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"Nah, like I said, I hadn't seen him in ages."

There was a massive pause, until Lynx said, "We should probably tell K-Unit. They'll come back from a day exercise soon."

"Not for a few hours, at least."

Dog laughed, "You never know with them. They're pretty much the best. Apparently they nicked matches off Sarge once to start a fire for their rations. I can't remember who actually did it though..."

"Too risky if you ask me." Lynx growled. He was always the respectful one. Nicking matches off Sarge was more than one step to far.

"I would if it was after a ridiculously long hike they did. We won't have to wait too long to tell them," Shark said sadly.

"What? Why would they care anyway?"

Dog laughed, obviously trying to shake off the bad feeling in the room.

"They say that the kid was an embarrassment, but the way they talk about him..."

"They seem to have liked him a lot. Eagle even said something about him saving Wolf from being binned. He was telling us when Wolf had walked into the cafeteria. After Eagle and Wolf disappeared, and not too quietly either, we didn't see Eagle when Wolf returned." Lynx continued.

"He came back the next day with a black eye." Alex laughed – really laughed, and then stopped when he realized he hadn't properly for a while.

"What did Eagle say?"

"After? Nothing. He had his mouth shut. But just before Wolf chased him out, he said something about an air jump. That's all we got."

"So, if there's Eagle and Wolf, who are the other two who knew him in K-Unit?"

"Snake, the medic, and Fox. I remember Fox left for a while for some reason. He left just after Cub, then just turned up as quickly as he left. Wolf seemed a bit down, but no one said anything. I mean, two members leaving all of a sudden? It's hard. He took it out on all the newbies that came to join. They ended up creating a new unit just for them after, because Wolf ended scaring them out of the team."

"We call it Broken-Unit. After what Wolf did to them. Mentally and physically!" Shark laughed, a low hearty laugh.

"Did he really miss Fox that much?" Alex was surprised, he didn't think Wolf had any emotions to be honest.

"And Cub. It was strange to be honest." Lynx's eyebrows furrowed down. A while ago, Alex had sat down on his bed, and now, after having moved around a bit the sheet was effectively covered in soot.

On that last, strangely nostalgic feeling, Alex got up. "You guys mind if I go have a shower?"

"Yeah sure. You know where they are?"

"No," Alex lied.

Dog pointed down the hill from where he was lying on his back, on his bed. "By the food hall. Behind Sarge's office."

"Ah. Cheers guys," Alex got up, and with a towel.

After a quick shower, clearing the soot off his face and out of his hair, he quickly dried off, looking around nonchalantly in case someone walked in.

He heard footsteps long before he saw anyone walk through the doors to the shower block.

By this time, he was already changed, and was just retying his laces on his heavy boots.

When he looked up a short, muscular, dark man was looking at him.

A taller man followed behind him.

"Wolf?" the second man asked.

The first man just ignored him, instead addressing Alex, "Do I know you?"

Alex, now finished with his boots, stood up to shake Wolf's hand. "Owl. Wolf, I'm guessing."

Wolf simply stared down at it, like it was an insult. Eventually he took it, replying, slowly, "Yeah... Owl huh?" The handshake was strong – painful almost – and Alex knew that the man was sizing him up. They're so territorial here, Alex thought. It's like I'm so intruder looking to steal their...pack. It would work at least...K-Unit is really just Wolf's pack.

It was odd thinking of it that way, but in most respects, it was true.

"I could swear I know you."

Alex just shrugged, "I get that a lot. I just joined H-Unit." He smiled. Wolf glared, though not for anything Alex said. Alex had learnt from his previous stay here, that glaring was pretty much how Wolf looked all the time. Maybe he's waiting for the wind to change again...

"I'll see you later then." Alex disengaged from the increasingly painful (and long) handshake.

"Are you sure I don't know you?" Inside, Alex was cringing. He had tried to change himself as much as possible before even getting in the jeep that would bring him here. He had gotten a completely different hair style – short and cropped – as well as naturally having gotten taller and grown up.

Having compared himself to an old picture of him with Tom, he was quite satisfied with how different he looked, but apparently it wasn't different enough. If Wolf still recognized him, Fox wouldn't have any trouble at all.

"Who do you think I am?" Alex laughed.

"Just...no, never mind."

"Who?" Alex asked, letting the curiosity of Sam take over.

"Cub." Wolf looked into Alex's eyes critically, searching for a reaction.

Alex sighed. "I was talking about this to my unit. Apparently he went here before right?"

The two men nodded, confused by Alex's sudden change in demeanor.

"I often get mixed up with him. I knew him once though. We were friends."

The taller man nodded, but Wolf continued, "'Were?' You don't still know him?"

Again, Alex had to project a bitterness into his voice.

"He died in a car crash."

Wolf paled, and the man behind him took a step back, as if to steady himself.

"He's...he's dead? Cub's dead?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't know you were so close to him."

Wolf glanced up from the floor. His eyes had hardened.

"We weren't. He was nothing but a tag-a-long. We simply knew him, that's all." He growled.

Alex didn't let the shock pass over is face from the sudden edge to Wolf's words. Even the man behind him – Eagle, Alex had remembered – was shocked.

A mask of indifference appeared as soon as Wolf's compassion had disappeared, had it ever existed at all.

"Just letting you know then. And he seemed like more of a person to be just a tag-a-long." Alex growled.

Wolf glared, but Alex wasn't fazed. Is this him being emotional, or did I take it a step too far? Alex pondered.

"I should go." He said, abruptly.

He left without anyone saying another word.

On his way back to the cabin, he felt two pairs of eyes boring into his back.

Not a great start, Alex. Mentally chiding himself, he sighed, resigned to the long trek up the hill.

Wolf

I watched the way the young man walked back up the hill.

It was him. But no, it couldn't be. But it was. But it wasn't.

I shook myself, growling. Eagle interrupted my thoughts, "You really think it was him?"

"I dunno Eagle. It looks like him, and sounds like him. But Owl is so different to Cub. Cub was so..."

"Innocent?"

I looked at my team mate in surprise. The taller man continued, "I noticed it too. He looks really...serious I guess. I don't know how to describe it. His eyes are just so cold, you know? I can't describe it, but you saw, right?"

"Yeah." I nodded. I knew what Eagle was trying to say.

It had been a while since Wolf was shocked as to what to say. He couldn't put his thoughts in words, and even if he could they would be a train wreck.

He resigned himself to sleep on it, before confronting Owl to ask how much he knew about Cub.

When he got back to the cabin, he didn't have to explain anything. It's good that Eagle did though, because Wolf looked rather disturbed.

Last time he had seen Cub, he had been riding down a mountain on an ironing board. He had really hoped the kid had gotten himself out of a soldier's world.

"We'll check later, OK Wolf?" Snake reassured.

"Yeah, I'm sure we'll recognize him if it is him." Eagle repeated, the third time that night.

The Point Blanc incident must have been a one off. Cub wasn't a dumb kid; he knew that this life wasn't the most desirable. Teenagers should be able to complain about homework and not getting enough of a sleep in on the weekends. Not terrorists and drug gangs.

No, Owl's just some guy that knew Cub when he was younger. But if they were the same age, Owl would only be...16? 17 maybe? How long had it been since Cub was here?

Owl isn't Cub. He can't be. Wolf hated himself for that moment. Because he couldn't figure out why he was so worried about this.

Cub and Owl seem so similar. The appearance, obviously, but the lazy lop-sided grin, that mask of indifference, that calculating, collected look.

Nothing was making sense.

Owl can't possibly be Cub.

Right?

I'm definitely not satisfied with this. I wrote this in one night, and I'm pretty much improvising when it comes to the plot.

I guess I'll have K-Unit find out eventually, but still...I dunno.

It seems really boring this chapter...like a filler.

Oh well, I wrote it really quickly. I haven't updated for a while.

Sorry guys,

xxx T