[ Even now, with the battle fought, Snake hasn't quite extracted himself from the thick of it. It's why his shoulders go tight and his head snaps up when he hears footsteps, only relaxing (and only slightly) when he sees who it is.
He hadn't made any contact with Niko during the fight, knowing how much his friend would have despaired at how everything had turned out. None of them really wanted it to go this way (except for maybe a few psychopaths among the crew), but it seems to Snake they'd been screwed before they ever started.
The hug isn't something he's braced for, and so his body goes stiff when Niko's arms first wrap around him. Snake isn't much of a hugger. Even with Otacon, they have the wind-up of their handshake so that he can psych himself up.
But after a few seconds, he lifts both arms (flesh and glass) to gingerly return the hug. Glass fingers curl into a fist as he forces out a breath. ]
I'm sorry that it went this way. [ Niko had probably gone over as one of the negotiators, so the fact that he got back here in one piece is the only good news Snake has heard in the past day or so. Snake has no idea if Niko ended up having to fight or kill the people he'd wanted to save, but he isn't going to ask. ]
no subject
He hadn't made any contact with Niko during the fight, knowing how much his friend would have despaired at how everything had turned out. None of them really wanted it to go this way (except for maybe a few psychopaths among the crew), but it seems to Snake they'd been screwed before they ever started.
The hug isn't something he's braced for, and so his body goes stiff when Niko's arms first wrap around him. Snake isn't much of a hugger. Even with Otacon, they have the wind-up of their handshake so that he can psych himself up.
But after a few seconds, he lifts both arms (flesh and glass) to gingerly return the hug. Glass fingers curl into a fist as he forces out a breath. ]
I'm sorry that it went this way. [ Niko had probably gone over as one of the negotiators, so the fact that he got back here in one piece is the only good news Snake has heard in the past day or so. Snake has no idea if Niko ended up having to fight or kill the people he'd wanted to save, but he isn't going to ask. ]