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"Straight to My Head"Written By: Miss Murdered Disclaimer: I don't own the GW characters - am just borrowing to torment for my amusement Rating: NC 17 Warnings: light angst, awkward romance, some smut Pairings: 1x2 Summary: Heero's yearly Preventer
evaluation is usually an annoying formality. But this year, it is
much more complicated due to a certain Duo Maxwell... "Straight to My Head "
Chapter 6: Tap the Brakes The drive was uneventful, in convoy, and they arrived at the disused Preventer airstrip which was now being used as a makeshift spaceport. The private space shuttle gleamed in the late afternoon sunlight and Duo whistled as they drove up to it. Heero stopped the car and waited until the "all clear" came over the radio before he got out, Duo following his lead, their weapons close at hand. The Preventer team who had prepared the shuttle approached and handed over a tablet with the details of the checks they had completed to Heero. He glanced through them, then scanned around the abandoned old airstrip and then towards Duo who was stood alert, awaiting orders. There was no danger. Nothing visible. But Heero still felt on edge - that prickling sensation on the back of his neck that made his hairs stand up on end. There was an element that he just had to trust that these fellow agents were legitimate, that Une used only her best and brightest to protect Emilia but still Heero knew what desperate men could do. And desperate men could sabotage a shuttle or could maintain an act until the very moment Emilia was out in the open. Yet Heero had no choice. He finished checking the tablet and then accompanied one of the Preventer mechanics onto the shuttle so that he could see the layout all the while leaving Emilia in the car with Duo outside, gun in hand now, the same anxiety showing in his posture. Heero knew why they both struggled with trusting anyone within Preventer. During the war they had only had each other and a small circle of allies. Preventer was different - bureaucratic, full of ex-OZ and Alliance people, and it made it hard for Heero to feel at ease even when he was very aware that all these agents would be heavily vetted. Une wouldn't put Relena's daughter in any danger - Heero knew that logically yet still he felt that unease that would not cease until Relena was safely with her mother within the Peacecraft security detail. After a scan of the layout and a quick trip to the cockpit, Heero returned to the tarmac and simply nodded to Duo who opened the car door and offered a hand to Emilia. "Time to fly, sweetheart." Emilia had heeded her father's words about listening to Heero and Duo as she had been told to keep close to them and she did so as they made the short walk to the shuttle. Once onboard Emilia picked her seat and placed her teddy bear on the seat next to her, putting a seatbelt on it for safety. Heero stayed onboard as Duo went to retrieve suitcases and Miss Campbell and he leaned against the seat opposite her as she wriggled in her chair, her dress gathering underneath her and Emilia smoothing it out. She struggled with her own belt and Heero leaned over. "May I?" "Of course, Uncle Heero." He helped her, the task feeling oddly parental to Heero and when he straightened back up he saw her fuss with the bear once again. "Sit up, Mr. H," she said, telling the bear off in a tone that again sounded all to familiar. "Mr. H?" Heero asked, a slight smile across his face. "I wanted it to name it after you but I couldn't say it right when I was younger," Emilia explained, a slight blush to her cheeks, "so mummy suggested Mr. H." "Good choice," Duo said then, leaning against the door to the shuttle, Miss Campbell having made her way on board and taking a seat across from Emilia. Emilia smiled at Duo. It seemed she had already warmed to him but that didn't surprise Heero. He was a natural and a child at heart. Of course, Emilia was going to like him. Duo put a hand on Heero's shoulder. "They're all ready, better get going, 'Ro." "We'll be in the cockpit," Heero instructed, "keep your seat belts buckled until we get out of Earth's atmosphere." "I know," Emilia said with a roll of eyes. With that, Heero and Duo made their way to the cockpit, the stairs to the shuttle already detached and door locked. Everything was being done quickly and they had a short window for take-off to make sure their flight would be ignored among the regular commercial shuttle flights taking place. They stepped into the cockpit and Duo moved towards the co-pilot's chair. Heero grabbed for Duo's arm, maybe a little tightly and Duo started, unsure. "You pilot." The only words that came out of Duo's mouth was a sound that appeared to be a "huh" but it was inarticulate and vague. "You always were the better pilot," Heero said as he saw the way Duo's mouth was a little ajar in confusion. "I haven't flown in years," Duo admitted. "You don't forget. It's in your blood and I'm your co-pilot." Heero could see the thoughts flickering around in Duo's skull. It wasn't that Heero was trying to make some romantic gesture - unconventional as it was. It was a simple fact that Duo had been a better pilot - he had trusted him implicitly during the MarieMaia incident as his instincts were sharp and his skills simply exceeded his. It was as though Duo was more than just someone who piloted - it was a part of him and Duo had had a weird empathetic relationship with his Gundam that differed from Heero's own. His Gundam had been a machine of war. Deathscythe had had soul, at least according to Duo. Duo pressed a brief kiss to Heero's lips - a thank you maybe, as weird as the reaction was, and when Duo got in the pilot's chair, adjusting it and flicking switches, he had a big smile on his face. "Knew there was a reason I loved you," he said, his tone flippant but as soon as the words had left his mouth, there was awareness of the implication of the word "love" that suddenly made the cockpit seem smaller than it already was. They'd never said "love" - not directly, not to each other and the first time it had been mentioned, it had been a sarcastic comment and Duo for a change had gone a shade of red that reflected his embarrassment. "Um.. 'Ro." "You have clearance, Shuttle 99012." "Not the time," Heero said as he took the co-pilot's chair. It was not the time, thankfully, and the distraction of the mission was needed. They completed the pre-flight checks and they were soon blasting off out of the earth's atmosphere, Duo's brow knitted in concentration despite the fact his fingers knew what to do, his natural ability as a pilot admirable and Heero did everything Duo instructed without comment, the awkwardness between them dampened down when there was an important task at hand. However, once they were on course and auto-pilot was engaged a heavy feeling permeated the cockpit and Duo was not helping matter. Instead of making light of what he'd said, he focused on the buttons he didn't need to on the panel and the coordinates that were already set. Duo was the one who changed the mood with a little comment, a curve of his lips and a chuckle - and right now he was not doing that and Heero wasn't sure how to make things lighter - how to stop the sharp feeling in his chest. Instead of remaining in the awkward atmosphere, Heero got up and mumbled out that he was going to check on Emilia - hiding behind a child so he did not have to have a conversation with Duo that they clearly needed to have Though despite the fact he was using Emilia as a distraction, it soon became apparent that he had needed to check on her. As when he left cockpit, the gentle swish of the door closing behind him, Heero saw that Miss Campbell head was lolling and her mouth was agape. He reached for his weapon, his instincts alert until Miss Campbell snored loudly, the noise almost waking her up due to the force of it. Emilia giggled in response to the snore and Heero stopped the motion towards his gun. He was glad he had only reached for his weapon and it was not poised in his hand - he didn't want to show Emilia that side of himself. Of course, Emilia had been around security protocols and weapons her entire existence which was ironic considering Relena's Pacifist politics. The politics that made her and her daughter her target. But despite the fact that Emilia had always been around guns, Heero didn't want her to see him with a weapon - for her to see his twitchy finger and his paranoia. "She doesn't like space travel," Emilia explained, "she took some sleeping pills before we took off." Heero's brows knotted in concern and he approached Miss Campbell to check she was okay - the answer was a loud snort and Heero backed off and took the seat opposite Emilia. "Would you like me to sit with you for awhile?" Heero asked. He wasn't quite sure what to do - whether to join her or not. Duo didn't need a co-pilot and Heero was not keen on the idea of Emilia being alone with Miss Campbell being asleep. He would report to Relena that he didn't think the choice of tutor was the best when she had ignored her charge as soon as the flight had took off. "Yes," Emilia said and she reached for her satchel, bringing out a small notebook and a purple pen where she pretended to write some notes as if she were an interviewer. She peeked over at Heero after a few minutes. "Are you and Duo married?" Heero didn't know what to say to Emilia. He blinked and tried to figure out how to respond and why it had ever occurred for a five year old to ask such a question. Emilia didn't take offense at his silence, instead, she turned a page and went back to her notebook. "Mummy says you and Duo are like an old married couple." Relena. Of course. It had to have come from her. He didn't understand how they could be a like "an old married couple" as Heero didn't really know any old married couples to compare. "No," Heero said, finally, "we're not." Emilia nodded and ripped out a page in his notebook handing it over to Heero. It showed a picture of what he assumed was him - though he had an excessively large head and no arms and what he assumed must've been Duo as he had a line coming from his head that must've been his hair. His head was large and he too had no arms. Heero was not going to be an art critic to Emilia and let her know that he required arms - he just smiled. "I think you should get married. I'd like a pretty dress." Heero only folded the picture carefully, putting it in the inner pocket of his Preventer jacket as Emilia started drawing something else. He had no idea what else to say to her but she didn't seem to care as they sat in companionable silence together as Heero tried to consider what Relena had meant about them being an like "old married couple" as the Earth slipped away. |
