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"Standing Outside the Fire"Written By: Honor Disclaimers: Mine! Mine! Mine! Pairings: 2x5, 3x4 Warnings: AU, language, twisted humor, lime, lemon,
some angst, significant OC, brief moments of sap, romance, a bit of
violence Archived: On Gundam Wing Diaries Betas: Velvet *huggles* Author’s Notes: You know those dreams that
you keep dreaming over and over again for weeks? The ones that don’t
go away until you write them down? Yeah, that’s exactly what
happened. I passed the idea by one of my betas, to see if it was worth
putting on paper. Her response was “Write it. NOW.” So I
wrote it. The rest is…ah, what follows after my insane notes.
Feedback is my diet…and I’m getting
pretty lean so send me something to munch on, okay? Flames will result in me tormenting you for your
inability to read warnings. And I’m good at tormenting. Just
ask the boys. *emphasized* /thought/ //phone// "Standing Outside the Fire"
Live as brave men; and if fortune is adverse, front
its blows with brave hearts.
Her hands idly moved the teacup around and around in its saucer as she remembered the look on his face. It had been the most heart wrenching mix of bewilderment, hope and determination. /Come back, Duo. Let me give you what you should have had in the beginning./ “Hey, beautiful!” Jamie looked up as Duo’s voice rang out, smiling without thinking about it. “Hey, gorgeous.” She took in the other two with a nod. “Gentlemen.” /GREAT GOD IN HEAVEN!/ It was all she could do to keep her mouth from dropping open. Even in their bedraggled state, these three were eye-catching. One of them was tall and lean, dark auburn hair over one side of his face. His visible eye was a brilliant green. The other was of Japanese descent, unless she missed her guess but he had chocolate brown hair instead of black and the most incredible blue eyes. /And I can just imagine what they’ll look like once I get some meat on them and in a decent pair of clothes./ “Sit down, please.” They sat across from her, and she found it very interesting indeed to see how they sat. Duo sat so that he could face her directly, but the other two angled their chairs so that they could see to the side and to some extent, behind them as well. /Street instincts. Never trust anyone. Never trust anything. Okay. I’ve got to remember what these kids have been through and act accordingly, otherwise this is never going to work./ “Duo, I assume, told you everything.” They nodded. “You gotta know, Jamie, that these two don’t talk much.” Duo shrugged, palms out as if to say ‘don’t take it personally’. “That’s fine. Neither do I, really. Are there questions that I need to answer?” “We got a few,” Duo replied promptly. “What do you do that gives you so much dough?” Jamie leaned back in her chair, readying herself for an onslaught. “I’m an author. I write anything under the moon from romance to ghost stories, under several pen names.” “Like who?” “Ever heard of D.B. Baca?” The boy with blue eyes snapped his head around. “You’re D.B. Baca?” Jamie grinned. “Yup.” She wasn’t really surprised that one of them recognized the name. She wrote a lot of sci-fi under Baca’s name. Duo let out a low whistle. “Man, no wonder you’re rollin’ in it. Kay, next question. Why’d you build such a large house?” “I had hoped to have a large family,” she answered honestly, a remembered sadness flashing through her eyes. It was the tall Latin that asked the next question. “Why are you willing to take us in?” Jamie turned to the silent teenager, wondering how to respond. “There’s a lot of reasons, really. Because you need help, and the system has obviously let you slip through the cracks. Because I have a huge house that’s too silent at night. Because I want a family, and you boys need one. Maybe it’s even because I believe in karma. Pick your answer. But they’re all true.” There was an air of hesitation around the three, something that shouted ‘not yet’. Jamie bit back a sigh and prepared to negotiate. “Look, this doesn’t have to be a permanent ‘yes’ or ‘no’ thing. Why don’t you try living with me for a week? If you don’t like it, we’ll figure something else out. If you do, then I hope you’ll consider letting me adopt you. Deal?” Duo looked at his two bookends, exchanging silent communication. Finally all three nodded. Duo took the assent as a sign of trust as well. “Jamie, this is Heero,” he jerked his head to indicate the Japanese boy on one side, then the other, “and Trowa.” Jamie nodded back. “Pleased to meet you.” + Considering how much Duo had put away at lunch—and Jamie knew that he hadn’t been full, he had just stopped eating—she made a LOT for dinner. Usually when she made Slamgullion, she used one deep electric skillet to make it in. That usually left her with three days of leftovers. This time she made two skillets worth. All three had gone upstairs to take a bath, borrowing her clothes to change into. She was thankful that they were all near her height and size, otherwise she would be stuck for ideas. Trowa was a little taller than she was, but she liked her pants longer than usual. No problem. /I still have to go shopping for them, though. They can’t just keep borrowing my stuff./ The collies were beside themselves with happiness. They had taken instantly to the new boys and immediately started to follow them around the house. Typical collie behavior. Four people were much more fun to herd than just one, after all. The thundering of feet down the stairs and over the wood floors heralded Duo’s arrival. Jamie barely was able to set the table before he slid into the kitchen. “Aw man, that smells *sooooo* good! What is it?” “Slamgullion,” Jamie replied, mouth twitching. “I still have no idea what it is.” Duo’s lamentation didn’t last long. “Is there a lot of it?” “Yes.” “Good.” Duo sprinted back to the doorway and hollered, “HEY RO! TRO! IF YOU DON’T GET DOWN HERE I’M GOING TO EAT YOURS TOO! Hey, Jamie, what’s for dessert?” “I’ll need help on that,” she admitted, trying not to laugh at the show she was getting. All fifteen year old males were universally the same, it appeared, when it came to food. “I was going to make some fudge, but it takes two people to make it.” “No sweat, I’ll help you.” Duo turned to bellow again, only to cut himself short as Trowa appeared. “We heard you, Duo,” Trowa assured him dryly. “Which isn’t saying much,” Heero added from behind him. “The whole neighborhood probably heard you. Move so we can eat.” Jamie was biting her lip in order to keep from laughing. The banter that they shared was just so comfortable, she knew that they had been friends for a while at least. They sat down in relative silence—punctuated by Duo’s moans of bliss—and Jamie watched in fascination as all three boys cleared out every particle of food that had been set on the table. She was keeping a running tally as they helped themselves to second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth helpings. When their plates (and the serving bowls) were clean she announced dryly, “Duo wins.” All three looked at her blankly. “Duo ate seven helpings, and Heero and Trowa ate six. So Duo wins.” Duo started laughing. “You were keeping track?” “Yup. Call it curiosity. Are you going to help me make dessert now?” “Sure!” Duo started clearing his plate from the table. Heero watched him, thinking hard. “How complicated is dessert?” “Ah…not very.” As far as Jamie could tell, that was the first question that he had ever asked her. “But the timing is crucial.” “I’d better do it.” Heero gave her small shrug. “Duo isn’t good at cooking.” Duo groaned, hanging his head over the sink. “I burn his breakfast *one* *time* and he still won’t let me forget it!” “You’re too easily distracted,” Heero told him, Trowa nodding vigorously in support. “Alright.” Jamie wasn’t going to touch that with a ten foot pole. Once the table was cleared she started taking the ingredients for fudge and setting it out on the counter. Heero came to stand beside her while she was getting everything out and she began giving him directions. “The directions for this are actually on the back of the marshmallow cream can. If you don’t mind, can you start melting the butter in the saucepan?” Heero dropped a stick and a half of butter into the huge pot and slowly started to move it around so that it wouldn’t scorch. He kept an eye on Jamie as she started measuring out the milk, sugar and prepped the bottles that she would need. “You’ve done this before.” Jamie shrugged good-naturedly. “Is it that obvious? I grew up with this recipe. I don’t get to make it often now, because you really need about four set of hands to do it.” “Hn.” Jamie was practically bursting with questions. How had the three become such fast friends? How had Heero come to the states? It was obvious from the way that he spoke that English was a second language to him. He spoke it well, but there was a lilt to certain words that a native speaker wouldn’t have. /I can’t ask any of those questions. They don’t trust me enough yet./ She turned the conversation to something less touchy. “Do you watch anime, by any chance?” Heero blinked, turning to her without ceasing the slow motion of his hands. “Yes.” “Oh good. I enjoy it more when I can watch anime with someone else. Are you strictly mecha or do you enjoy shojo too?” “I like all of it,” he answered simply. After a beat he added, “Except Evangelion, Weiss Kreuz and Wolf’s Rain.” “Urk.” Jamie grimaced in agreement. “Those ended horribly. I don’t care for them either.” Abruptly she realized that the butter was melted and started dumping in the sugar and milk. “Alright, now we need to stir that until it’s at a roiling boil. Then it needs to cook for another four minutes. Don’t hesitate to switch with me if your arms get tired.” Heero gave her an eloquent Look. “Fine, fine. You’re superman’s twin brother and you’ll never get tired.” Jamie rolled her eyes. “Forgive the insult.” Trowa came in to stand uncertainly in the doorway. “Is it alright to feed the dogs a treat?” “Ah. Sure.” She had noticed as soon as she had introduced the boys to her collies that Trowa seemed especially sensitive to animals. Since having the dogs around seemed to put him at ease, she didn’t question his attachment to them. “There’s a ton of turkey in the meat drawer that’s going bad. Feed that to them.” Trowa nodded and dug out the turkey, calling the dogs with a soft whistle. There was a series of clicks as toenails hit the wooden floor, the collies skidding to a halt inside the kitchen. They looked at Jamie in confusion and she pointed to Trowa. “He called you, not me.” Trowa knelt as they turned expectantly to him, giving them a slice of turkey each. After swallowing the turkey down whole they both attempted to climb into his lap and lick him to death. Trowa smiled at them, rubbing at their heads and murmuring softly in their ears. “It’s boiling,” Heero announced quietly. “Right.” Jamie set the timer on the stove. “I better get the pan ready.” As she sprayed Pam into one of the Pyrex dishes, she kept an eye on Trowa. It was the first time since meeting him that he seemed truly content. “Are you a dog lover, Trowa? Or just an animal lover?” “Animals,” Trowa confessed, looking up at her with a small smile. “Actually, I prefer cats.” “Hm.” The timer went off and she quickly grabbed the pot and moved it to a cool eye. “Okay, Heero, here comes the four hands part. Just keep stirring.” “Ryoukai.” Recognizing the word, she started laughing as she poured in the chocolate chips and the marshmallow cream. Duo slid into the kitchen, eyes bright with anticipation. “Is it done yet?” “No. Give us two minutes.” Heero stirred quickly, mixing everything together. Once it was blended into a smooth chocolate, Jamie had him hold one handle as she scraped the chocolate into the waiting pan. Unable to resist she announced, “Ninmu kanryou.” Heero snorted in amusement. Duo ripped open three draws before he found a spoon big enough to suit his purposes. “I get the pot!” “I get the spoon!” Jamie snatched the stirring spoon quickly. Heero and Trowa shared a look before declaring, “We get the pan.” Duo looked up from pot scraping. “Oh you are *so* funny!” Jamie had no doubts that between the two of them, they could eat the whole pan too. “Milk anyone?” she queried dryly. + It was late but the three boys in the bed weren’t asleep yet. Trowa and Heero both had taken a good look at their friend’s cuts and bruises, but Jamie had patched him up well. There was nothing more they could do on that end. Now they snuggled in on either side of him, both collies curled up at the foot of the bed and keeping watch over them. “I like her,” Duo whispered. “I do too,” Trowa confessed. “You could see that she wanted to ask us a lot of questions, but she didn’t.” “Hn,” Heero frowned pensively. “It just…seems too good to be true.” “Yeah,” Duo snorted bitterly. “I know what you mean.” “Let’s wait and see.” Trowa settled more firmly into position, eyes sliding shut. “Okay.” + Jamie stifled a yawn as she walked to Heero’s bedroom. The boys had told her which rooms they had chosen to claim for the time being. But his room was empty, bed perfect. /Hmmm. Well, maybe he changed his mind./ She went to the next bedroom, which was supposed to be Trowa’s. Also empty and showing no signs of occupation. Frowning a bit more she went to Duo’s. All three boys were tangled up together, dogs curled up at the foot of the bed. Jamie’s heart twinged at the sight. /Are they so afraid of being alone that they can’t sleep without each other?/ She looked at the dogs, which had woken up at her entrance. “Traitors,” she whispered to them fondly. “Two pieces of turkey and some tag around the living room, and you switch loyalties.” Their tails thumped happily against the blankets. Snorting in amusement she walked to the bed and started shaking shoulders. “Come on guys. Time to wake up. Breakfast is ready.” Heero started awake, looking around with wide eyes until he remembered where he was. Then he looked up at her, uncertain. Jamie turned her smile up a watt. /You don’t need to worry about me, kid. It’s kosher./ “Morning. I’ve got waffles downstairs with your name on ‘em.” He relaxed and nodded. Jamie nodded back, noticing that Trowa was already awake and climbing out of bed. “Hey Duo, rise and shine.” The only response she got was an incoherent mumble. “Ah…he’s not a morning person I take it.” Trowa shook his head. “No.” “Hm. Where’s his ticklish spots?” If Duo had been awake at this point, he would have bolted at the sight of three evil grins aimed at him. As it was, he was still naively unaware when three pairs of hands attacked his ribs, the back of his knees, and the back of his neck. Duo started awake, laughing uncontrollably and squirming in a vain attempt to remove himself from those wriggling fingers. “I’m awake, I’m awake!” “What did he say?” Jamie asked innocently. “Didn’t understand him.” Trowa shrugged, as if this was no great loss. “I *said* I’M AWAKE!” “Awww.” Jamie shook her head forlornly. “He’s awake. There goes all our fun.” The collies decided at this point that they had been missing out on something exciting and came forward to settle on Duo’s chest and arms, licking any patch of skin in sight. “Ack!” Duo started squirming, trying to get free. Jamie chuckled, but called the dogs off. Duo had probably been tormented enough for the morning. “Zane, Zathris, off. Come on, get off of him. He has to eat breakfast.” The dogs obediently jumped off the bed, following their master out of the room. Jamie turned to call over her shoulder, “Come down soon. You don’t want cold waffles.” Duo perked up. “Did she say waffles?” “Yes.” Trowa shook his head, resigned. “Cool!” Duo bounced out of the bed, hot on Jamie’s trail. “Heero.” Trowa stared pensively after Duo. “How did Jamie react when she found us together?” “She just smiled at me. I think…I think she understood.” Heero hugged himself tightly. “Maybe she did.” Trowa wasn’t quite sure what to think of Jamie, but he knew that she often saw more than most people would. She saw the intent behind the actions. “Let’s get some breakfast.” Heero nodded. “Before Duo eats everything.”
Honor: In case you haven’t figured it out yet,
this one goes at a much slower pace than ‘The Best Laid Plans’.
This will be a warm fuzzy kind of read, not jumping-up-and-down-in-your-seat
kind.
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