Sophie arrived at the Afterlife and headed straight for Rogue. Her menpo sat snugly on her face. Squama had outright laughed when she’d walked in wearing it the first time, though Rogue had just assessed the look quietly.

“That supposed to be a Shinigami?” She’d asked. When Sophie confirmed, Rogue had called it fitting. Thus, her official title was born, though it was kept quiet for the most part.

Squama saw her coming and called out to her.

“Heyyy, how’s little Gami doin?” Sophie wanted to punch his grinning face. Eventually she gave him a light tap on the belly before replying.

“I’m good, Squama. You’re looking as annoying as ever.”

“Oh you wound me,” he said, clutching his heart as though he’d been shot. Sophie burst into laughter and he quickly followed. “Alright, go on in. Da boss isn’t busy at the moment.” The big man spoke, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye.

Said boss was watching the interaction with a small smile. Sophie sat down.

“Well? What can I do for you?”

“What? I can’t just come and hang out with my favourite fixer?” Rogue looked at her blankly. “Oh alright. You’re no fun, jeez.” The girl grumbled. “I feel like it’s time I started looking for some people. Y’know, form my own crew, that way I can do some bigger jobs for you.” The older woman thought about it for a moment.

It was something Sophie had been quite surprised about, when Rogue said she could build her own crew. However, Rogue really only had one main rule for her inner circle. Always check with her before taking a job. The Queen of Fixers had even taken the initiative to send the young merc to other fixers in the city. Of course, they were aware that Rogue had to be informed of what kind of work Sophie took but it wasn’t too bad of an arrangement.

“You’ve been doing fine as a solo so far. Why the sudden need for company? Feeling lonely?” Sophie shot her a dirty look for the last comment. She’d never admit it but that was partly the case. Misty and Vik had both been fairly busy lately and the Mox were on the brink of war with the Tyger Claws, meaning Rita was busy as well. That led to the young girl feeling, as Rogue had so accurately guessed, lonely.

“You’re right, I won’t deny that. But I’m not stupid. If I had someone that could cover my weaknesses, I’d be able to do a hell of a lot better. We both know this so don’t play dumb.”

“Alright kid, I’ll have a look for someone. Any requirements?”

“Hmm. Admittedly I’d feel more comfortable if they were female. If they were a netrunner that would be even better. It’s my biggest weakness at this point in time.” Rogue nodded along, clearly agreeing with her.

“I’ll let you know if I find anyone. Now, I’ve got a call to take,” she said, allowing her eyes to light up. Sophie didn’t find the dismissal rude. The woman worked pretty damn hard to keep things running for Night City’s top mercs.

-----------------------

A few days later, Sophie received the message she had been waiting for: “Get your ass down here, I’ve got someone for you. Better get along with her as well, it was a pain trying to find a good candidate.” The girl smiled wryly at the words.

When she arrived, she found an unforgettable face sitting next to Rogue. Who could possibly forget the tragic netrunner, Sasha Yakovleva, after all? The woman wore the same outfit as she did in the music video, a full body netrunner suit with no sleeves and small slits on the side of her legs, showing off her thighs. Over the top, she wore a pink mini jacket that didn’t even cover her breasts.

Sasha was also slightly younger than what Sophie remembered, and her body didn’t seem to have as much chrome. Still, the younger girl’s brain had been slightly fried after looking at her. Fuck. She’s so hot.

The netrunner looked at her as she passed Squama, settling in beside Rogue.

“This is who you want me to work with? Sorry Rogue, but I’ve got no interest in watching a young kid die. I thought you were better than that as well.” Sasha got up to leave, making Sophie curse at her own youthfulness.

“Sit down Yakovleva.” She obeyed. “Now, Sophie here may be young. But I can guarantee that she’s good. And for the record, it was her that came to me for work.” The netrunner’s face showed blatant skepticism before turning and scanning over Sophie’s form. The younger girl blushed and started fidgeting.

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“Hmm, she doesn’t look that impressive.”

“I can guarantee that you’ve done less merc work than she has. She’s more experienced and if it weren’t for her desire to cover a weakness, plus her own specifications, I’d be pulling someone better to work with her.” Rogue paused, “this isn’t an interview for her to join you, it’s an opportunity for you to be part of Sophie’s personal crew.”

“What!? How has this kid got more experience than me!?” Rogue didn’t reply, instead tossing her a shard. The woman took it and slotted it, making Sophie raise a brow. Rookie move, taking a shard and not questioning it. The younger girl shot Rogue a look.

“Your mission record. No details, just everything you’ve done. It’ll be better if she sees you in action personally.” With that answer, Sophie could only hope the netrunner would give her a chance. Sasha was a brilliant netrunner, one that Sophie believed had been held back by Maine. If she could rope the netrunner to work with her instead, she would be ecstatic. While her thoughts whirled, a defeated sigh was released.

Sophie looked over, finding the hot netrunner staring at her in disbelief. She slumped back, clearly trying to process the small bit of data she’d seen. Finally, she started speaking.

“Alright, fine. I’m not gonna pretend I’m happy about it but if that record is true, I can see why Rogue likes you. However, I want proof of your skills.” Sophie looked at Rogue, begging her with her eyes. The woman sighed.

“I’ve informed Padre that you’ll be swinging by. He’s set aside a few smaller jobs that’ll test how well you two work together. That should suffice as a demonstration of each other’s skills. If you finish them and aren’t happy with each other, I’ll separate you both. All clear?”

“Yes boss,” Sophie spoke teasingly, as she rose. She looked at the gobsmacked netrunner, “you gonna sit there all day?” With that, the thief continued walking. Sasha spluttered, grabbing her bag and hurrying to catch up.

As they walked, the older girl continued to stare at Sophie. Eventually, she asked her question.

“What…What the fuck was that!? She just lets you speak to her like that!?” Sophie looked at her and grinned.

“I’m special.”

Once the pair had exited the Afterlife, Sophie walked towards her car. Sasha realised and quickly tried to stop her.

“Hey come on, we can’t just steal someone’s car!” The younger girl who had just been told not to steal her own car, slowly turned her disbelieving eyes to her new partner. Rather than speaking, Sophie had the Quadra’s doors open while staring at the netrunner. The look on her face was priceless as the thief slipped in, then she sighed.

“Alright, I guess we’re meeting there?” As she spoke, Sasha turned and began walking away…Sophie realised something and called out, her voice teasing.

“Oh? Does someone not have a ride? Well, I suppose my benevolent self could allow you to ride with me.” Her partner froze, then turned slowly. A faint dusting of pink rested on her face as she quietly walked back. She hopped in the passenger seat.

“Thank you.” She spoke quietly, clearly embarrassed. Sophie, satisfied with her minor victory, grinned at her but didn’t continue to tease her. The car lurched forwards, quickly picking up speed as the two girls headed to Padre’s typical spot.

-----------------------

It was Sophie’s first time meeting Padre and she wasn’t entirely sure what he would be like. She hoped he would have a similar personality as the one he had in-game. When the pair of girls arrived, they made their way over to a table where Padre sat. He watched them as they approached, curious and assessing.

The fixer greeted them first.

“You must be Sophie,” Padre began, his voice warm and kind, “Rogue speaks highly of you. And this must be Sasha. New blood, yes?”

“Something like that,” Sasha replied, her tone was friendly.

Padre nodded and got straight to business. “I’ve got two tasks for you. Simple enough. For the first, a shipment of medicine has been stolen. It needs to be found and returned here. For the second, my client wishes to have a certain document retrieved from a rival business. Deal with both for me.

Sophie and Sasha exchanged a glance. “Any details?” Sophie asked.

Padre handed Sophie a data shard. “Everything you need is here. I expect results soon.”

The pair nodded and left, climbing into Sophie’s Raven. The thief gave Sasha the shard first. “Tell me where I’m going, then look through the rest of the data.” She paused, then added, “make sure you scan the shard before you slot it. Can never be too careful.” The netrunner nodded in understanding, scanning the shard. After she found nothing, she slotted it in. After a few moments, Sophie had the first destination, a rundown motel in Santo Domingo.

-----------------------

The first job, retrieving the stolen meds, was rather simple. A small crew of thieves had intercepted the shipment and escaped. The pair of girls simply needed to slip in and find the items. Padre had, however, offered an additional reward for the successful neutralisation of the thieves. Apparently, it wasn’t the first time they had klepped something they shouldn’t have. Sophie was happy to oblige.

When they arrived, the pair discovered that it was going to be fairly easy to get in. The girls linked up via holocall and Sophie gave Sasha permission to make a link to her optics. The younger girl wanted her partner to see how skilled she was.

The netrunner stayed in the car, meaning Sophie approached the motel on her own.

“I’m in their systems. Seems like there are six of them, spread through the building. You’ll have to sneak past them to grab the meds but the cameras and alarms won’t be an issue.”

“Guide me to each one.”

“What? Aren’t we just here for the meds?”

“Padre wants them dead, Sasha. That means they die.” There was no reply for a moment. When it came through, the netrunner’s voice was shaking slightly.

“Alright. The first one is…” Within a couple of minutes, all of the targets had been taken down, allowing Sophie to walk out with the re-stolen meds casually.

When she got back in the car, she could see that Sasha was slightly pale. It took her a second to realise what had happened.

“Sasha…Have you not killed anyone before? Or even seen death like that?” A shaky nod in reply had Sophie mentally facepalm herself. “Okay well, that’ll be my responsibility from now on. However, you have to be willing to protect yourself. Understand?”

“Yeah. I get it. I won’t let you down.” Sasha’s skepticism towards Sophie had vanished, replaced by both respect and fear.

“Good. Let’s do this next job quickly, then we can go out and get to know each other better. How’s that sound?”

Sasha smiled at her, accepting the invitation.

-----------------------

The second job went just as smoothly as the first. Sasha ran interference, ensuring Sophie had a clear path to the target documents. Ultimately, it only took two minutes total to get in and out, with nobody in the building aware of the theft. The girls dropped everything they had stolen off with Padre, then headed to Lizzie’s.

They spent the rest of the evening there, getting to know each other better. Sasha’s initial reluctance had disappeared and the pair had found that they got along well. Sophie loved it, enjoying the feeling of making a new friend and spending time with them. Rogue had asked them to see her the following day, thus Sophie dropped her partner off in the early hours of the morning, leaving a promise to pick her up later.

Today was a good day. A very good day indeed. Sophie mused to herself as she drove home.