Okay, so… For once I actually managed to write something from start to finish without posting it while I wrote. *Pats self on shoulder* (FYI: That's a first. –I've managed a couple of chapters before but never a full story…)

It's just around 14k words in total, spread over 7 chapters.

Warnings:
language, a couple of oh shit moments, some bodily harm does befall someone in a slightly graphic manner, and friendly bullying...?
(In other words, expect what you usually find in my stories.)

"Spider two-three, this is Viper two-five. How copy?" Boxer said before releasing the button on his radio to wait for response. He cast a glance over at the person in the driver's seat, and Charlie looked back at him.

"Viper two-five, good copy. Go ahead."

"Spider two-three, we've got what looks like a checkpoint coming up ahead, it isn't marked off on our maps. Do you have information of any new friendly activity in the area? Map reference, numbers following, six-three-niner, eight-niner-one. Read back. Over."

"Viper two-five, I read back. Requesting information about possible unannounced checkpoint up ahead at map reference six-three-niner, eight-niner-one. Over."

"Spider two-three, that's right. Will you check? Over."

"Viper two-five, we will check. Wait out."

Boxer nodded to himself while the radio went silent.

"You know, could be some poor grunts with the order to search vehicles on their way to Bagdad." Charlie shrugged, he was driving fast along the gravel road with just one hand on the steering wheel.

"Well, anyway… Until we know if we should have our guns ready, why don't you take that lead foot off the gas pedal big bro…" Cooper prompted from the back and slammed his left hand down on the top of Charlie's seat.

"What? Suddenly you're afraid of a little contact?"

"No." Cooper sat back and folded his arms, "I just want to know if I should be prepared-prepared or just prepared. Besides, if Mamma saw you driving like this, she'd throw a fit!"

"Thought you said this kid brother of yours weren't a scaredy-cat." Box teased in a low rumble, earning himself a swat at the back of his head.

"I ain't afraid, I just…" Coop shrugged, "I don't wanna get ambushed."

"Yeah, we got ambushed on one of our tours before you guys picked us for your team…" Duncan reminisced, "Not fun."

"What?!" Charlie slammed the break and turned around in his seat to look at Cooper, "You never told me that! Why the hell didn't I know that?"

Offering up what was supposed to be an innocent shrug and a nervous laugh, Coop looked anywhere but at Charlie.

"Coop."

"Okay, yeah well…" Cooper wasn't quite ready to explain what had happened just yet, or why he hadn't told Charlie about it.

"Spit it, kid…" Charlie's blue-green eyes went impossibly cold as he pinned his younger brother with his stare.

"Everything turned out alright…" Cooper tried, "Wasn't anything to tell."

"Look, I get why you don't tell Mamma about this, but I need to know that kinda stuff." Charlie growled, "What happened, where and why?"

"We got ambushed out on patrol. Me, Dunc, our team leader, and two other guys." Cooper swallowed, "One car upturned on the side of the road, we stopped to check, a couple of cars came out from nowhere."

"They shot out our tires. Tagged Mark in the shoulder." Dunc filled in, "We about ran through all of the ammo we had before CAS came to the rescue."

Coop nodded.

"Where?"

"About 50 clicks north-north-west of Karbala." Coop answered with a smile that was practiced muscles doing what they were told to do, rather than a display of anything positive.

"Did the two of you get hurt?"

While Coop answered 'no', Duncan told the truth.

"He sprained his left elbow and needed a collection of stitches. I needed minor stitchwork." Dunc shrank a little at the warning look Coop shot him, "What, it's the truth! Besides, if he ever sees you without at least a long pair of surfer-shorts, he's gonna have questions."

"Okay. How bad was it for that kid?" Charlie asked Duncan, pointing at Cooper.

"He-"

"It was just a couple of graces… Outer thigh…"

"A couple of pretty deep graces…" Duncan corrected, dodging Coop's paw coming after his head.

"Hey, I could walk just fine. Just graces."

"You were limping, and the doctor suggested that you should have used crutches for a couple of weeks."

"Suggested. Didn't straight out tell me to do so."

"I see he's related to you…" Boxer drawled and lolled his head over to look at Charlie.

"Shut it." Charlie shoved Boxer's shoulder to make his point, before he pinned Coop with his eyes again, "When we get back to the FOB, you're showing me those scars." He paused slightly as he looked down at Coop's legs before hesitantly adding, "You said outer thigh, right?"

Coop sighed, then dragged his answer, "Well, yeah… Kinda."

"Kinda?"

"Backside-slash-outer-thigh is more accurate I think…" Duncan chuckled, before Coop slapped the back of his head, "HEY!"

"Idiot." Coop whispered under his breath as he scowled back at Dunc who couldn't keep from laughing.

"Oh…" Charlie caught on to what Dunc was saying and started laughing just a little too. "I see why you're not too hot for an ambush anymore…"

"Shut it…" Cooper rolled his eyes, "It's not funny."

"It is. Kinda." Charlie chuckled as he turned back around to start driving again, just as the radio sparked to life.

"Viper two-five, this is Spider two-three, how copy?"

"Spider two-three, copy 5 out of 5. Go."

"Viper two-five, it looks like we have a last minute checkpoint set up at the map reference you gave. You're going to get stopped, but it's our guys so you should be alright. Over."

"Spider two-three, thank you. We'll proceed. Out." Boxer smiled as he ended the radio call.

"See…" Charlie grinned a wide smile, as he forced the vehicle back into gear, "Nothing to worry about."

"Hey, better safe than sorry…" Boxer shrugged, "When am I gonna be able to pound that into your thick head."

"Hey, first you've gotta pound it into the other Texan's thick skull…"

"You two are impossible." Box rolled his eyes and shook his head, then he turned to the back to address Dunc and Coop, "At least I only have to deal with this one today, since Wyatt and Pete was forced to finish up some paperwork."

"You're not much better…" Charlie replied in a casual tone and jabbed Box with his elbow. "And besides, Pete ain't like that…"

"I'll agree about Pete, but I won't agree on that other stuff. I'm much better." Box scowled back at the slightly shorter edition of tall Californian, "I'm usually the voice of reason when the two of you get bored."

"You're the voice of boredom, that's what you are…" Charlie teased.

"Hey Coop…" Boxer looked straight at Coop, "How have you survived with him as a big brother? It must've been hell, right?"

Cooper hitched up his shoulders a little, "I'm not really sure, but I think Delta-Daycare helped a lot. Y'know, I didn't have him 'round all the damn time…"

"Kid, if you plan on being funny, try doing it without butchering Texan while you try. Okay?" Boxer chuckled, "Delta-Daycare…"

"Nah man…" Charlie shook his head, "I think him butchering that annoying drawl of yours is the funny part. If you start counting of the languages that kid can speak well enough to fool you into believing it's his only mother tongue, I'm pretty sure he's only mocking you with the accent…"

"Are you?"

"No…" Cooper shook his head, but the corners of his mouth curved slightly upward.

"How many languages is it?"

"Like… 3…" Coop shrugged, "Not that many…"

"You're taking the Scandinavian ones as one again?" Charlie growled, "Dude, they're alike… But definitely not the same! You've gotta spend more time with Grandma Tordis next time we get the chance to go to Norway!"

"Five then…" Coop corrected, "Still not that many, three of them is very alike. And two of them I've grown up with."

"Think I can about five languages that well too…" Box shrugged.

"No…" Charlie shook his head, "Not if you take Kurdish, Italian and Arab into that count. No one will think you're native by the way you speak those three… Spanish… Yeah, you could prolly fool someone to think you grew up with it."

"Uh… Charlie…"

"Yeah…"

"You better step on that pedal again brother, because there's this truck coming up behind us…"

"Truck?" Charlie furrowed his brows and looked in the side mirror, seeing the truck Coop had mentioned. "Damn, that thing's got some speed on it…"

"Uhuh…" Cooper agreed.

"Must be going 60, easy." Dunc admired.

"It's going more. We're going 60 and it's closing in." Charlie frowned as he peeked in the mirror again.

"Yeah, that one is going like a bat out of hell, that's for sure." Boxer frowned, twisting around to look in the side mirror on his side. "What do you think Norway? Give them a few warning shots?"

"Well, they're obviously not driving like this just for fun… Not here, not after they've seen this car, or the checkpoint up front… We're pushing 65 now, Coop are they still?"

"Closing in? Yep!" Coop answered, "Didn't think those kinds of trucks could go this fast…"

"Oh, some will reach 105 without any tampering." Boxer shrugged.

"Why do you know that?" Dunc almost whined with frustration in the backseat.

"Yeah! Why?" Charlie wanted the answer as well.

"Oh, Wyatt's old pick-up can originally flat-out go about 85, maybe a bit more on a good day. And that thing is from the stone age." Box shrugged, "A guy we were in the same class as had one just like it, but got his older brother, who is a total grease-monkey to put something bigger under the hood. He managed to force it up to 120. Trust me, you do not want to be in a pickup going 120. He eventually crashed it, but at a much slower speed. Walked away from it unscathed, a couple of years ago he bought a brand new truck, it goes 105 without tampering."

"Okay, thank you." Charlie frowned, "I doubt this 'vee will go that fast with all this weight in it…"

"This Humvee can't go that fast anyway. Top speed is somewhere just on the other side of 70, when it's not carrying extra weight." Coop shot back as he twisted around to get his M-4 which he had stocked away behind him. Then as he had the weapon on his lap and checked it he looked up at Boxer, "Box, permission to scare them onto better thoughts?"e

"We don't want-" Boxer didn't get any further before he was interrupted by multiple cracks from multiple weapons.

"HELL! They're shooting at us!" Charlie cussed and swerved a little, "Lil bro, I think that was the permission you needed."

"Yeah." Box agreed loudly, before he tapped Charlie on the shoulder, "Imma crawl in the back and hand these two ammo when they run outta it."

"Good thinking." Charlie nodded as he tightened his grip on the steering wheel, "I'm going to try to keep this turtle on the road."

MACGYVERxDELTASPECIAL

While it wasn't exactly a good idea, actually it was a very bad idea, rolling down the rear windows and sitting in them seemed like the best option for potentially hitting their targets. And besides, he was only following Cooper's lead.

The oversized Californian he had been tight with ever since they were 18 and in basic had rolled down his window, hooked his legs on the seats and belts in some weird way and was hanging out of the window, firing back at the ones shooting at them.

"DUNC! IN!" Cooper suddenly yelled as he slid back inside, Dunc didn't wait for an explanation as he did the same.

Okay, I'll leave you hanging here until tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed it so far.

*Evil grin*