Wufei looked over the final reports and snarled softly. “Idiot! Fool! He has no idea what he's done. He's proud of the fact that he killed at least one person and probably more.” Milliardo glanced up from the brief he was reading to give Wufei a grim look. “Your legal team will make mincemeat of him in no time. Don't blow your top; I like your hair the way it is.” Wufei made a note in the report, shut it and tossed it back into his briefcase. “Glad you do. We're supposed to meet with Quatre and the others in...” He glanced at the clock on his desk, “ten minutes. We'll never make it. I'll call Trowa and let him know.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and pressed Quick-dial 5. It didn't take long for them to be connected. Wufei spoke to Quatre, on a hand off from Trowa, for a few moments, suggesting several stratagems and how to implement them. Quatre asked if he was going to head the team but Wufei told him it wouldn't be a good idea as he was friends with both Heero and Duo and it might be construed as a conflict of interests if he represented anyone. Milliardo rolled his eyes; Wufei was only interested in justice. He was as impartial as a person could be. Wufei noticed this and laughed. “Not everyone knows me like you do. Come. Let's go do something fun. What shall we do?” Milliardo laughed. “Something that doesn't involve a book. Or a report. Or anything with paper that I have to read.” Wufei nodded. “There's a gym, eight degrees and six levels from here. I've been wanting to go for some time. And after that, you have to get robes, if you're to go to the clan meeting with me.” Milliardo snorted. “I'm beginning to believe that I really need to rethink that decision. Robes? I'm not looking forward to that.” “They're very comfortable. Really.” Wufei gave Milliardo an amused look then took his hand and pulled him toward the door. “Come on, let's go. After meeting and getting robes, we'll go to the gym, I'll even spot you two points.” “Like I need two points from a half-pint like you.” Milliardo drew himself up to his impressive 6'4” and looked down on Wufei. Wufei just smirked up at him. “I learned how to play from Duo.” Milliardo deflated. “Maybe I won't turn you down after all.” They continued their companionable argument on the slide way, but changed to planning their transfer to Mina Hurr on the escalator. Wufei looked up from the discussion of what they should pack to remark, “I think we've gone up one level too many. There's a slide over there that'll get us back on track.” Milliardo frowned at him for a second. “I don't like the arrangement of this station. It doesn't make sense. How the hell can we get lost in a closed environment?” Wufei nodded. “I know. But like most colonies and stations, it wasn't really planned. It sort of grew. As they need more room, they just add a section.” Milliardo made a face. “And they just tack it on ... somewhere. No wonder most colonies are rabbit warrens. And stations aren't much better.” “That's one of the reasons Duo's working on a full design. With allowances for expansion. Quatre doesn't know about it yet. Duo wants it to be a surprise. Heero's helping.” It took them several more minutes to get oriented again and ten minutes to reach their destination. Quatre was glad to finally see them. He came out from behind his desk to give them both a hug. “Milliardo, you look well. Wufei, the same. Duo and Heero are meeting their new personal secretary. I'll be looking for one for you as well.” Wufei shook his head. “We don't need a personal secretary. We can...” Quatre gave them a look. “I know who you're using just now and you're giving her a nervous breakdown. I'm looking for just the perfect person. And you will not do anything to make whomever I pick leave. Do you understand?” Both Wufei and Milliardo quailed beneath the power of Quatre's look. No one messed with Quatre when he got that look on his face. They were spared a true confrontation, not that either Wufei or Milliardo would have actually said anything, by Duo bounding into the room. “I got it. Ira! He and Janet are dating. This way, they don't have to be separated and I bet Wufei will like Ira, he's thinking about attending law school. And ...” Duo gave Wufei a grin. “Hi, Wu, found you a guy.” Wufei gave him a mock sour look. “Thank you so much. But I already have one.” Milliardo laughed, bowed mockingly and posed as if for a photographer. “Yes, and a fine one, if I do say so myself.” The laughter drew Heero, Ira and Janet in from the other room. Quatre introduced then to each other and settled in to tell them everything he could about the upcoming lawsuit. Duo and Heero were to be witnesses and Wufei was to head the legal team, although he wouldn't be in the courtroom. Milliardo would handle the PR side of things. Trowa would coordinate all their efforts and Quatre would be ... Quatre. They discussed several more things and decided to break for lunch. Or brunch. Duo just growled, “I don't give a flying fuck what you call it. Food! Now!” The rest laughed and started suggesting restaurants to go to. Janet and Ira showed their appreciation of their new status by suggesting a small, out of the way place that had good food and reasonable prices. Janet called ahead for a reservation, something that sent the hostess into a tailspin when she got the name, Winner wasn't common. . It didn't take them long to get to the restaurant. It was, as Janet had said, small, out of the way, and very nice. It was neat, homely and very Italian. Duo gave the name to the hostess, who immediately led them to a small alcove with a large circular table in it. The table could easily have accommodated half again their number so they weren't crowded in the least, and there was plenty of room behind the chairs. Their waitress handed around menus and asked for a drink order. Ira ordered a small red wine, but everyone else ordered ice tea, coffee or water. Ira settled back in his chair, sipped his wine then sighed, “I'll be glad when we transfer to the new colony. I can't wait to get a car. A real, gas powered monster. Something that goes really fast.” He settled deeper in his chair, putting down his wine and miming steering. Duo rubbed his cheek for a moment. “Why are we having cars?” He turned to look at Quatre. “Cars, anything that produces hydrocarbon pollution causes the scrubbers to work harder, makes it necessary to clean them more often and is inefficient use of resources. Electric vehicles of some sort are a much better idea. Electricity is free, easy to move and clean. And speeding isn't possible.” Ira made a rude noise. “Oh, please, I'm not as crazy as everyone thinks. Speeding is dangerous even if you know exactly what you're doing. I never speed on public highways, with the obvious exceptions.” Quatre had a strange look on his face. “Duo, you just saved the colony about twenty trillion euros. A year. Thank you.” Duo just nodded a bit smugly. “Welcome. Does this mean the meal is on you?” Quatre laughed. “Sure. There are several other things I think I'll turn over to you and Heero. Wufei has the legal end under control, Trowa has my personal schedule lined out and Milliardo has PR on its toes. Things are looking good.” Duo moaned, “Aww, Quat, why'd you go an' jinx things like that. Something awful is bound to happen now.” Trowa just shook his head. Duo was a mass of contradictions but they had gotten used to his superstitions. Wufei glanced at Heero and shrugged. He wouldn't have admitted it under torture, but he had a feeling too. He took Milliardo's hand in his and waited. Heero looked at Duo for a moment. “Any ideas?” Duo shook his head. Wufei greeted the return of their waitress with relief, maybe if they distracted Duo with food he wouldn't drop into depression. Heero rubbed Duo's back for a moment whispering softly to him. He finally smiled and said, “Ok, ok. I won't go all manic-depressive on you. But ... spacers luck says something bad will happen.” “Right. Now the waitress is waiting for our orders. What do you want?” They gave their orders, Duo for spaghetti bolognaise, Wufei ravioli with ragu, Trowa lasagna, Quatre eggplant parmesan, Heero chicken cacciatore, Milliardo tortellini with peas and mushrooms in alfredo sauce. The waitress wrote it all down, smiled in a flirtatious way at Trowa and left to turn in the order. Quatre sniffed a bit at the flirtation. “Hussy.” Trowa snickered, “Who me?” which made Quatre laugh. Wufei shook his head. “She better watch out or she's going to have problems she doesn't want, or get fired.” Duo gave Wufei a sharp look. “You going to give her grief for a bit of flirtation?” Wufei shook his head. “No, but her boss might. He's looking this way right now, and he doesn't look happy.” They went back to discussing the colony construction until the waitress brought their food. She placed their plates in front of them, flirting all the while. Duo realized exactly what Wufei was talking about when he saw that she'd gotten to orders right but had put the plates in front of the wrong people. She left without realizing it, so they switched plates around and started eating. Janet glanced at the table then realized what was bothering her; the flirtatious waitress hadn't brought them any breadsticks or salads. They'd been so involved in their conversation that they hadn't noticed. She signaled the hostess to ask for their missing food. She noticed that Quatre was also frowning. Heero glanced around, poked Duo who blinked at the table for a second then kicked Trowa under the table. Wufei, sensitive to all his friends, poked Milliardo, who was already aware of the problem and wondering if Quatre was going to lose his temper or just not tip. The hostess came over to see what was wrong, Quatre asked politely for their breadsticks and salads. They were brought to the table by the day manager, who apologized profusely and offered their meal free. Quatre shook his head at that and announced, “That's not necessary, we should have noticed earlier. Please bring the waitress to the table. I'd like to talk to her for a moment.” The girl showed at once and stood, waiting for Quatre's comments. “Do you like your Job? And what is your name, you seem to have forgotten your name tag. That's not a good thing to do. No one will compliment a waitress who is so ashamed of her name that she won't give it out.” “Um ... yeah, I kinda like my job. My name is Sharon and I hate name tags, they're always getting caught on something.” “I see. You should speak to your boss about that. Now.” Quatre's eyes turned cold. “The service you have given is unacceptable. You've flirted with everyone at the table. Forgotten who got what dish and left off half our order. Salads and breadsticks come with every meal, don't they?” Sharon twisted the corner of her apron for a moment. “Um ... yeah, they do.” Quatre made a face. “Yes is an acceptable answer. So, why did you forget them?” “Well, I just forgot. There's this ... um ... busboy, you see. And we got to talking and I just forgot.” The day manager interrupted at this point, telling the girl to go to the back, he'd talk to her later. And he'd wait on this table himself. She headed to the back, glaring over her shoulder. “I'll fire her. And I really will wait this table myself.” Heero glared at Quatre for a moment then let up as he said, “Don't fire her. She needed a wake up call, I hope you don't mind me giving it to her. And you really should have a talk with her.” The day manager turned out to be an efficient, quiet and pleasant waiter. They all noticed that Sharon hovered in the background, watching avidly. After a bit, they got back on stride and conversation started flowing again. Ira wanted more information on why carbon fuels were so hard on scrubbers so Duo spent most of the rest of the meal talking. Quatre just listened, a slight smile on his face. . When they got up to leave, the manager offered them a free meal again, Quatre turned him down, saying the food was excellent and the service very good. The man laughed softly. “There at the end, I surely hope it was. Good day.” They paid their bill and left, Quatre smiling again. When they got back to Quatre's office, he settled at his desk and handed Duo a sheaf of papers. “Here, see what you can make of this. As soon as this legal wrangle is done, we're going to Mina Hurr and starting the real work. I'm sick of shepherding this company through the convoluted mess Father made of it. I'm going to finish straightening it out if it kills me. He never let the left hand know what the right was doing. It made him feel more in control. It makes me dizzy.” He sighed and rubbed his forehead. He'd been trying to sort things out for two years now and was finally getting a hand on things. He'd managed to find department heads he could count on and trust. He was almost ready to leave the nitty-gritty to them and only take a hand when they couldn't handle things. It was a real relief. He leaned back in his chair and was just beginning to relax when Wufei’s phone began to ring. Wufei answered it, giving his name then listening. Everyone jumped when his phone shattered on the wall. No one spoke enough Taiwanese to understand what he was saying but the meaning was clear. Wufei was not happy. Duo approached Wufei carefully; it wouldn't do to have an incident between them. “'Fei? What is it?” Milliardo eased up behind Wufei, careful that he saw what was going on, then wrapped his arms around him. “Hush, love, just take a deep breath then talk.” Wufei leaned against Milliardo and shook his head at Duo. “Relax, Duo, I'm not going to self-destruct.” Heero snorted, “No(,) that's my trick. What has you ready to blow?” Wufei sighed, “The Galactic Tours Company has declared bankruptcy. The company is officially out of business. Damnit. Now what?” Quatre sucked in a breath and punched a button on his desk console. “Ok, that means we go with criminal charges. I'll press them on Mina Hurr and we'll leave for there in two days. I think we can get them to come to the colony, then they'll get a really nasty surprise. Mina Hurr is an independent political entity as well as my private property.” Duo suddenly got a very evil expression on his face, a combination of joy and cunning that Wufei copied in about two seconds. Heero just whispered, “Oh, yeah.” Milliardo gave Trowa a resigned glance and had it returned with a small quirk of amusement. They broke up the gathering and each couple left for their own residence. Wufei had to grumble a bit at Milliardo. “I swear, that is one of the things I'm going to stop. Declaring bankruptcy to get out of a civil lawsuit is ... dishonorable. And unjust and ... and ...” Milliardo hugged Wufei, tucking him under one arm. “Shush, you'll just get yourself all worked up and then you'll have stomach trouble again. We'll get them. Especially if they're stupid enough to go to Mina Hurr to fight confiscation of assets there.” “Think they will?” Milliardo shrugged. “Yeah, I do. That sort always believes in their untouchability.” Wufei snorted. They made it home without much trouble and settled in for the rest of the day. Wufei worked on his constitution and Milliardo handled some public relations things that his subordinates couldn't deal with. . Quatre and Trowa settled in at their desks to make arrangements to lure the entire board of directors of GT over to Mina Hurr. “So, is there anything of theirs on Mina Hurr or do I have to find some other way of luring them in?” Trowa sighed. “There's enough merchandise and equipment that we can count on the directors of Sales and Construction. The Director of Acquisitions too. But the rest? I'm not sure about.” “I'll take it Sales and Tourism will come, the rest of the board can be hooked by freebies. I'll take a bit to figure out what it'll take for each one but we'll get them.” Trowa smiled in satisfaction. “I know we will, you've never failed yet. And I don't see you falling down on the job this time either. I've got a few ideas, let me do some research and I'll outline it for you.” “Ok. I've got some things to go over with Iria. It's nice to have my whole board of directors be my sisters. At least when they're one's on my side. I can finally get down to building my colony. Another month and I'll be spending no more than five days a month running WEI.” “Thank goodness. You can be a real bastard some days.” “I know, but you love me anyway.” “I do. With all my heart. Back to work.” Trowa gave Quatre a loving look that turned stern at his last words. Quatre gave him a lingering look that promised 'things to come' and went back to his work. Trowa turned to his computer and started opening files. He searched each man and woman by name and found a few things he thought would be helpful. He made notes and sent everything to all the others in a compound file. He even had to zip it, and in this day of lightening fast computers that really said something about it's size. . Duo and Heero loitered along, taking their time about getting back. Duo was still on light duty and Heero wanted to enjoy the two days they had left before they went to Mina Hurr. After they got there, who knew what they'd be doing. Troubleshooters were notorious for being overworked. Not that he really minded, after the months and months of enforced inactivity, he was anxious to be doing something worthwhile. Duo looked up a Heero. “Why so quiet? Something wrong?” Heero smiled at Duo. “Not really. Just thinking. I'm really ready to be actually doing something. That bit of action we got last month just whetted my appetite so to speak.” “Me too. I can't believe I was that careless. But ... Relena. You know.” “Yeah. I do. And you weren't careless, it was bad luck and nothing more. I looked at all the recordings I could find. You were perfect.” Duo sighed happily; any bit of praise from Heero was a major accomplishment. “Well, thanks. I feel a lot better. I'm almost 'hundred per', we going to the gym?” “Yeah, I thought we were.” “Ok, just wanted to be sure. We're not headed the right way.” “Short cut.” Duo groaned. Short cuts on a station as old as this one could lead into all sorts of lost. Luckily for them it didn't, this time, instead they walked out of a narrow support corridor and into the mainline corridor about 25 feet from the front door of the gym. It was bright and clean, with a huge open area filled with machines and chatter. The thump of weights and the whirr of treadmills let them know that this was a working gym, not one of those kinds that catered to the social set. They were approached by one of the trainers, who asked if they had a membership or did they need a day pass. Duo turned to reply and found himself blinking at a stare of stark terror. “Hey, dude, what's the matter. Easy there, don't ... Heero! Help me!” Heero leapt to help Duo who was holding up a limp body by main force. The man had nearly fainted and was hanging off Duo's shoulder. Heero grabbed him and kept him on his feet while Duo grabbed a stool from behind the front desk. Heero dumped him on the stool and wondered what to do next. He wasn't good with fainting women, fainting men were way beyond him. A tall, blonde woman came striding up, an annoyed look on her face. “What the hell is going on here?” Duo shrugged, a rather blank look on his face. “I have no idea. He came over to ask if we wanted day passes or were we members, then he went white and ...” he waved a hand at the man. “Heero and I just stuck him on that stool and here we are.” Heero was bracing the man so he wouldn't fall over. He gave the woman an assessing look, read her name tag and replied, “He's hyperventilating, pulse rapid but strong, sweating a bit. Does he have a heart condition, hypoglycemia or diabetes?” “Not that I know of.” Just then Ted spoke. “Gu ... gun ... pilot...” “Gun Pilot? What the hell are you going blathering about, Ted?” “Jessica?” The woman turned to look at Duo. “Yes? Just a moment, let me get him on the floor.” Heero helped her get Ted on the floor with his feet on the stool. He looked around, a little uncomfortable with the rapidly gathering patrons. Ted meanwhile was alternately stammering and wheezing. He finally managed to point at Duo and say clearly. “Gundam Pilot. Him.” Jessica took a good look at Duo. “Yeah, Duo Maxwell, so what? What's that got to do with you acting a fool?” Duo caught Heero's eye and they shared an amused look. “But ... but ... Gundam pilots! They're ...“ Ted stammered off as the men standing around started to shift and mutter. Duo turned a bit pale and Heero edged to get Duo at his back, or at least beside him. Suddenly, someone from the back of the crowd announced in a firm, carrying voice. “Hey! Give 'em some room. They don't look so good.” Everyone backed off quickly, leaving Heero, Duo, Jessica and Ted in a clear area that comprised about half the center of the room. And many of them had put a machine of some kind or other between them and the clear area. Heero nudged Duo who was easing towards him, readying himself for attack. “Stand down. I'm jumpy too, but look around.” Duo looked around then smiled. “Ok, folks, nothing to see here. Just a guy with a Gundam Pilot induced panic attack. Thanks for your consideration.” Jessica just snorted again and stepped over Ted, who was still pale but recovering a bit. She nudged him with a toe on her way over. “Up as soon as you can. Go into the back and lie down over your break. You can take the back room for the rest of the day.” Ted groaned, rolled over and got to his feet. He cast one wide eyed look over his shoulder and hurriedly staggered into the back. Jessica said, “Ok, now that that's over with. Day pass?” Duo grinned, “Yes, please. Two, if you don't mind.” Jessica filled out a small card and handed it to Duo. “Read and sign.” She bent her head over the desk again, “and one for you too, Mr. Yuy.” Heero took the card, a standard disclaimer, and signed. “Why don't you have this computerized? Just asking. In this day of computers and data bases, it doesn't really make sense.” “It does if you have a bunch of ham handed jocks who could break an anvil running in and out.” Heero looked blank for a moment. “They need better training then.” Jessica looked at him for a moment. “I suppose you'd know. But, they get their nuts involved in it and all hell breaks loose.” Duo just laughed. They collected the key cards that would let them access lockers and towels, the sauna and PT room. Heero examined Duo carefully for a moment. “Feel like a real workout, or are you still off.” Duo considered that for a moment. “Um ... I'll try. But I'm clapping out if I need to.” “Wouldn't expect anything less, you're not stupid. Wonder if they have a real dojo or do we have to use an all purpose room?” Duo got a wistful look on his face. “I hope they have a real dojo. I miss the one at Quatre's place. It was really nice. Wufei used to take me there and we'd work out to forget.” Heero hung his head a bit, looking forlorn. “I'm sorry. I missed you so much.” “Don't be sad.” Duo hugged Heero gently. “It's all over and we're building a new life here. Let's ask.” They found Jessica again, she'd left the desk when she'd seen that Heero was upset. She just pointed to a door at the end of a short hall. “Showers on the left. Sauna and PT room on the right, dojo at the end. Just don't freak out if you wind up with an audience. I'll tell 'em to say behind the pillars. Ok?” Duo nodded, “Sure, you got any safety weapons?” “Yeah. On a rack on the wall. Anything loose in the dojo is free for you to use. Personal weapons go in the cages and are kept locked. Only the desk and the manager have a key on site.” “That's good. Heero? Ready?” Heero just grinned and nodded. They ambled down the hall, discussing what they were going to so. Duo wanted to warm up with some yoga but Heero advised the slightly more active Tae Chi. Duo shrugged, telling Heero that, as he considered this physical therapy, it was up to him. Heero nodded, “Tae Chi it is then.” “Ugh ... and Chang Long Form, right?” Heero smirked, nodding. “You know it.” They opened the doors to see the dojo. It was huge, light, airy, and perfectly appointed. The mats were clean and the side areas neat. “It's good. Let's get changed.” Heero's approval was subdued but Duo knew he was really pleased. They entered the locker room, found their lockers and realized that they didn't have sweats or gis. Duo blinked for a moment. “Well, shit.” Heero just went to see the towel boy, who was an older man and asked him about sweats or some sort of gym clothes. He just grinned, “Size? You guys are always forgetting. Jock?” Heero gave his size, rejected the supporter and gave Duo's size, refusing a supporter for him too. Neither one of them liked a so called 'jock strap' and refused to wear one. “Here, just sweats but they'll do.” Duo accepted the gray sweats with a grin, Heero had no idea how sexy he looked in the slightly too tight clothing and Duo wasn't about to tell him. Heero always got his sweats one size to small. They returned to the Dojo and entered, leaving their soft cloth slippers at the door. Everyone on a station usually wore the soft, felt soled slippers, unless boots or shoes were more appropriate. Duo walked to the center of the mat, looked for the shrine every dojo had, then saluted it. Heero followed and also saluted the shrine. Then they faced each other. Duo nodded and they turned to face the front of the dojo. They moved in perfect unison. Heero called the stances because Chang always did. Some of the names were very descriptive and some rather fanciful. They moved slowly through the stances of the form. Duo breaking a light sweat near the end. “And cross hands ... feet together ... bow.” Heero looked over at Duo, who was grinning like a maniac. “How do you feel?” “Good, good. I'm sweating a bit more than I like but not bad. I'd like to get some water. Then pushing?” Heero shrugged. “Or a full out, if you think you're up to it.” Duo pumped one fist in the air. “Yes! Water, for both of us, then I want a full out. You'll kick my ass, but we need to see where I am in relation to where I should be.” So they returned to the middle of the mat and squared off. Heero just stood in a relaxed stance that would have confused any other opponent, but Duo knew better. Heero kept his eyes on Duo. Duo might be slight and still a bit under fighting weight, but he was quick as a snake and knew more about street fighting than anyone, even Heero acknowledged his supremacy. The only real advantage that Heero had was strength and, since he wouldn't use it against Duo, they were fairly evenly matched. Duo feinted, left then right, he attacked down the center but turned at the last moment and launched a kick at Heero's ribs. The only reason his attack didn't work was that Heero realized what he was up to at the last moment. The only defense he managed was to turn so the kick hit him across the buttocks instead of in the ribs. Heero's return was swift and vicious, he launched a kick at Duo's head, which he ducked, but that left him open and Heero grabbed one of Duo's feet and jerked, dumping him on his ass. Duo managed to get his ankle out of Heero's grasp and roll. He didn't roll far before he used a kip up to get back to his feet. Then he used the momentum to launch a punch at Heero. They were both a bit surprised when it actually connected. Heero backed up and set himself. Duo didn't follow up as Heero expected, instead he backed off and made Heero follow him, right to the rack of weapons. Duo snatched a knife off of the rack and suddenly things were very different. Heero went on the defensive at once. Duo with a knife in his hand was nothing to fool around with and Heero knew it. When he saw that Duo had a knife in each hand he knew he was in trouble. Duo used a style he'd learned on L-2, holding one knife in a backward grip and the other forward. This odd grip allowed him to slash with one hand and stab with the other. And suddenly, Heero was surrounded by a web of glittering pseudo-steel, and very glad that it wouldn't cut him. Instead it just left rather embarrassing purple marks where Duo touched, the wider the mark the deeper the cut would have been. The watching martial artists gasped and whispered, Heero was technically dead. Duo had managed to cut his throat with a quick stab and flick. “Gotcha! Heero, you should see your face.” Heero touched his throat and laughed at the purple stain on his fingertips. “Damn, you're better than I thought you'd be.” Duo leaned over, hands on his thighs, and panted, “Yeah ... but my ... endurance ... is for shit. Ugh!” He flopped down on his back and struggled to get his breath back. He was nearly as strong as before he was injured but the days of laying around, recovering, had taken their toll on his endurance. Heero shook his head. “Ok, you're going to be on a treadmill every day until you're back to battle ready. Catch your breath and we'll put you on one now.” “I have been on a treadmill. You know that, you set the parameters for my workouts yourself.” Duo couldn't help but sound a bit indignant, or petulant if you weren't in a charitable mood. Heero was, so he just tickled Duo's ribs with his toes and held out his hand. Duo took it and allowed himself to be pull to his feet. They both reached for nonexistent weapons as applause broke out from all around the mats. Heero pivoted and put his back to Duo's and they both took up defensive stances, then they both laughed. Everyone had frozen and some of the people had that 'deer in the headlights' look which made both Duo and Heero laugh at them. This broke the tension and all the observers crowded around to talk to the two pilots. Heero eased through the group simply announcing, “We can't talk to you unless we can get our backs to something. Twitchy, sorry.” No one said anything, in fact, they cleared the way so that both men could stand in a small alcove usually occupied by a small table and wall scroll. They spoke with people, signed autographs(,) which made Duo actually giggle, and managed not to freak out. It wasn't long before Jessica showed up and chased off most of the people, telling them that the two were supposed to be working out, not gossiping like old women. Heero gave her a nod of approval and he and Duo left for the front of the gym where all the equipment was. Duo took a mill and Heero set it up, then he got on the one next to Duo and they both began to jog. They started out fairly slowly but Heero's mill sped up at an amazing rate, at least to the trainers who were watching carefully. Duo's mill sped up too, but at a slower pace, to allow for his reduced endurance. Heero had planned well, they ended their workout at the same time, both of them sweating and panting. Heero checked the readout and nodded. “Good, if it wasn't you, this would be very good. For you it's ... fair.” Duo made a face. “How fair?” “In percentages, 100% being your personal top form ... 85%.” Duo sighed. “Not good. Fair is your best assessment?” Heero patted Duo's shoulder then pointed to the readout over it. “This is 145% for anyone else. You'll get back in top form in no time. Believe me. Come on, shower, home, tea.” Duo had to laugh. “Ok, shower, home, tea. Sounds good. Right behind you.” They showered and went home, greeted at the door by a very happy little dog. Duo settled on the floor to play with Binky while Heero made tea. This was the time that Binky liked best, her man played with her and petted her. She was alone for much of the day, a walker came to take her out but that wasn't her man. She barked and jumped all over Duo, a thing she wasn't allowed to do except when he lay down on the floor, a signal that it was play time. Heero watched and laughed happily as Binky scrambled all over Duo, licking his face and tugging at his shirt with her little teeth. They played until Heero finally called an end. “Come get your tea, she's starting to pant too much. We need to walk her more. She's getting two walks a day from the walker but I don't think the man walks her far enough.” Duo took the thermal cup that had kept his tea drinking temperature and patted Binky down on the couch. He let her crawl into his lap as he sipped tea and relaxed. Heero settled on the other side of the couch with his own tea. They listened to music for a while, Binky fell asleep between them, then eased off the couch. “I'm ready for bed. You?” Heero stretched and yawned. “Yeah, me too.” Duo copied Heero then turned for the hall. “I'm so going to be sore tomorrow.” “I'll give you a rub down before we sleep.” Duo grinned. “Thanks.” They stripped down and got into bed. Heero produced a bottle of massage oil and rubbed Duo down with efficient but gentle motions. Duo moaned softly. “Man, that feels so good.” He rolled over and gave Heero a lascivious, flirtatious look. “Wanna do somethin' else with that oil?” “Yes, but not now. You're too tired to really enjoy it.” He leaned down and kissed Duo, taking his time and doing it really right. Duo sighed his disappointment. “Maybe, but it's not right that you have to do without.” Heero shrugged, crawled between the sheets and turned out the lights. He rolled over to hug Duo and whisper in his ear. “I'm not doing totally without. I pay a regular visit to Madam Rosy Palm and her five sisters. Sleep now.” After Duo finished cackling 'like a hen laying an egg', they did. |
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