Very short piece just because I was thinking about the relationship between Face and Hannibal. As usual, I don't own the ATeam, blah blah blah.

Trust.

Face trusted military order and needed, or rather craved, the peace that it brought to his soul. It was only through regiment and order he found any sort of peace with himself. Whether it was the pop-pop-pop of rapid gunfire, the cadence of the marches from training, or even in the chaos of lifting off in Murdock's chopper amid smoke and gunfire, life had order and rhythm. A hellish, nightmare-producing rhythm, but a rhythm none the less.

There was no doubt Face trusted Hannibal in the field. Not only was he quick to follow the orders, he was quick to execute the plans, quick to speak when they wouldn't work, and quick on his feet. It didn't take long for Hannibal to designate him 2IC of the team before it was even official. Face was flawless in the field and on the team.

But beyond the missions, when life as they knew it took a minute to settle down, Hannibal could see it. When they would return from a mission, filthy, tired, and battle-scarred, he could catch a glimpse. When the small talk turned into deep disucssions about girls back home or how they felt after their first kill and wondering if that feeling would ever really go away, Hannibal could read the flicker passing through Face's eyes. When they talked about how all they all wanted was to get out of this miserable war, Hannibal could see it. It was during these times that Hannibal listened much more than he spoke; he needed to know, to truly know, these young men. He needed to know what made them tick, what gave them drive. And when Face would slip and let him catch a glimpse of what was beyond the mask, he could see it. The panic on this young Lieutenant's face. This hellhole was all he had. These guys, this new team who worked better together by the day - this was all he had. Face had mentioned once - just once, after a few drinks - to Hannibal that there was no one waiting at home for him. No one. That's why Face gave all he could here in the war - he was not only determined to impress, to be the best, but he also didn't really care if he went home in a bag or not.

And Hannibal was determined to change that.