"Friday the 13th"- Chapter 16

[mrua7.livejournal.com]

This series updates only on Friday the 13th. Chapters 1 through 15- (on AO3) if you want to catch up. Reading chapter 15 will help put this chapter in perspective.

It was Friday the 13th, though that had no meaning to the likes of George Dennell.

After greeting Napoleon, Illya, Mark and April while they were sitting at the back table in the Commissary, they made him an offer. One that he thought was highly unusual.

He knew field agents were a superstitious lot, but this took the cake.

They offered him of all the lucky charms as Illya had apparently created some sort of lucky coin that incorporated symbols to ward off the ill-luck of this particular day.

George couldn't refuse; not that he believed in them, but he just didn't want to offend the others. These agents were his heroes and for them to even consider giving him their trinkets was sort of an honor.

He stuffed the collection into the pockets of his suit jacket with his thanks, and set off back to his office with his mug of black coffee in hand.

"Wait up George, darling," Dancer called after him. "I'll walk with you."

"Gee, sure April. Say do you believe in all that mumbo jumbo they were talking about with their lucky charms?"

She held up her wrist, letting her bracelet filled with charms jingle. "I have my own collection. Honestly it's not that they might really bring luck, but I figure an agent can use as much luck as they can get, real or imaginary."

"So you're saying it's more psychological, mind over matter sort of stuff?"

She smiled at him before turning town the corridor towards the elevator. "Maybe, maybe not. I think I'd rather not take a chance and tempt fate. See you later darling, I have some paperwork to do. No one's on assignment in the field today, even Mister Waverly has his superstitions Friday the 13th.

"That's true, though I find it odd that a man of Mister Waverly's experience would concern himself with the concept of luck, good or bad."

George reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a hot pink rabbit's foot, which promptly slipped through his fingers and fell to the floor.

At the exact moment George bent over to pick it up someone from maintenance carrying a step ladder on his shoulder swung round the corner. If Dennell had been standing he would have been clocked right in the head.

However, he was so focused on picking up the rabbit's foot that he didn't even notice his near mishap.

He continued on his way, burying his nose in a folder that had been tucked under his arm. George was oblivious to a section of the corridor that had just been mopped, and though someone in front of him slipped and fell, he managed to walk right past without a misstep.

As he walked towards the pneumatic doors to the Personnel Office of which George was now the department head, they delayed opening. Finally they whooshed apart, but he never noticed as he was still reading the file.

Dennell had been promoted after he was involved in exposing the THRUSH mole in the Waverly Ring Affair.

Carla Drosten was the guilty party, though it took him a long time to get over that. She was someone he trusted implicitly, but not anymore.

"No siree," George said aloud. "I need to stay alert, though I may not be a field agent, I've got the eyes and ears of one now...lesson learned. "Just call me George 'the fox' Dennell."

He walked past several desks where his assistants were were usually seated, though they were out to lunch., One of them must have plugged in a fan as the room was a bit warm.

The cord stretched across on the floor where Dennell was walking and of course he tripped over it.

He staggered, trying to keep himself from falling but missed grabbing the edge of one of the desks and instead his hand latched onto a potted fern.

George went flying, somehow landing in his own chair and at the same time the planter came to rest on top of his desk.

Without batting an eye, he tossed the rabbit's foot and the other lucky charms in his pocket into the trash bin.

"Who needs this nonsense," he mumbled. He set the folder he'd brought with him aside and picked up another.

It was time to review potential field agents; he still envied them, people like Solo, Kuryakin, Slate and Dancer who faced danger at every turn.'

Even though they didn't always come away unscathed, they did their job and did it well… and so would George Dennell. After all, what dangers did he have to face here at headquarters?

Comments

[mrua7.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I think George is good for that now and then.