Keeps Raining All the Time by eponymous_rose (PG-13)

[elmey.livejournal.com]

Fandom: MAN FROM UNCLE
Pairing: none
Length: 4645 words
Author on LJ: eponymous_rose
Author Website: eponymous_rose at AO3
Why this must be read:

Disclaimer: This was written for me, etc.--never mind that; Keeps Raining All the Time is a beautifully written tense, angsty, engrossing story that examines faith and trust and friendship--and what they can possibly mean in the netherworld of spies and their games of betrayal.

Illya goes undercover, a supposed turncoat now working for Thrush--his only contact with UNCLE his regular meetings with Napoleon. We see through Napoleon's eyes: the meetings Illya keeps, the meetings he misses, the tension rising as the stakes rise. As the unanswered questions mount, even Mr. Waverly's faith in his agent seems to waver, until all Napoleon has left is his own need to trust his partner, a trust we begin to fear that Illya may already have betrayed... Wonderful pacing, almost unbearable tension--this story will keep you guessing until the end.

"Illya?" Napoleon's right hand was clenching the phone too tightly, and his left was already fumbling across the table for a piece of paper, a pen, but of course it found nothing; written records left traces, and traces could be followed. He stilled his fingers' nervous explorations. "What happened? Why haven't you been-"

"I don't have time to explain. The warehouse. Twenty-five minutes. Come alone."

There was a click, and the line went dead.

Keeps Raining All the Time