This is my specialty - rare pairings almost no one else ships.
This takes place in the 2001 series, though, the 1979 series could work too. Whatever which way you want to envision it.
Disclaimer: Cyborg 009 belongs to Shotaro Ishinomori and all those other people who did stuff with this series.
It was a cloudy and muggy day.
The humidity was almost unbearable and had driven most of the cyborgs indoors (Only a certain Brit decided to brave the harsh conditions and that was only because there was a Shakespearean-styled bazaar going on in town). Thankfully, there were plenty of activities for the house-bound cyborgs to enjoy. Jet, Joe, and Pyunma quickly took over the living room to play video games. Francoise sat nearby, reading an Agatha Christie novel. Chang settled down in the dining room to do some calligraphy. Geronimo was helping Gilmore build a new multi-purposed TV. Ivan was fast asleep. And Albert had been driven back into his room by the humidity with a fan and several buckets of ice.
All in all, it was shaping up to be a peaceful day.
So, of course, it didn't last.
The occupants of the living room jumped when the front door suddenly swung open with a loud crash. Jet, who was already precariously leaning on the edge of the couch, fell to the floor and dropped his controller, which caused his player to commit suicide via bottomless pit. Needless to say, Jet was not happy.
"What the hell!?" Jet jumped up and rounded on the poor sod who had come in. "What the hell did you do that for!? I was just about to win!" Pyunma, who was seated next to the teen, rolled his eyes because Jet was nowhere near close to winning.
Great Britain, who was still standing in the open doorway and looking like he'd just ran the whole way back, gave Jet a confused look. He started gesturing wildly out the door, then to himself, and then just generally flailing around.
The other cyborgs stared.
"Um." Joe said, summing up what they all felt.
"Guys," Jet said seriously, putting his hands on his hip. "I think GB has finally snapped."
GB stomped his feet in frustration and flipped Jet off.
Francoise got up and intervened before a fight could break out. "Settle down you two. GB, what's the matter?"
GB began gesturing again: he pointed out the door and mimed writing. He then proceeded to stomp around threateningly, and the concluded by pointing at his throat and shaking his head sadly.
"Something happened at the bazaar and you lost your voice…?" Pyunma guessed hesitantly. GB nodded eagerly and started gesturing again.
"Here, GB," Francoise stopped him and lead him over to the couch. "Why don't you write down what happened instead of playing charades?"
GB agreed with a sheepish nod.
"Joe, could you get some paper and pen?" Joe nodded and accelerated off, eager to fulfill Francoise's request.
Jet poked GB's head. "You know, I kinda like him like this." GB bit Jet's finger. "Oww! You bastard–!"
Thankfully, Joe returned before a brawl could erupt (again). GB quickly took the proffered paper and pen and began writing furiously. In a matter of minutes, he was done and passed the message off for Francoise to read.
"'I was at the bazaar and I came across this fortune-telling tent. I'd thought it'd be a bit of fun to get my palm read and what not, so I went in. The lady went about, having me draw cards and looking at my hand and peering into her crystal ball, you know, the regular fortune-telling stuff. But then she started telling me stuff about my past and getting it right. She even alluded to Black Ghost! I understandably freaked out and then she started chanting this mumbo-jumbo and vanished and I found I couldn't talk!'" Francoise blinked. "Wow, that's…"
"That's some story!" Jet finished for her with a smirk. "A witch cursed you? Get real!" GB scowled at the red-head and took the paper back. He scribbled something on it and thrust it into Jet's face.
"'I don't think it's magic; I think it's Black Ghost! Whoever that lady was, she knew about them and about me being a cyborg!'" Jet read off and frowned.
"Well, that certainly is a possibility," Pyunma said and stood up. "Come on, we need to tell the others."
One round up later, everyone (with the exception of Albert, who was still suffering in his room) was gathered in the lab. GB was seated on the bed, several sensor attached on and around his throat. Gilmore was quickly tapping away at the computer, sorting and shifting through the information coming in. Finally, he sat back with a sigh.
"Well?" Joe prompted.
"Well, there's nothing wrong with his throat. In fact, GB's as fit as fiddle. There's no internal damage, no bugs, no virus, nothing." The professor sighed again, and moved to help GB remove the sensors.
"But then what is it?" Joe sounded like how all of them felt: frustrated and confused.
"I don't know," Gilmore shook his head and put the sensors away. "Either the Black Ghost has advanced far beyond my capabilities, or this is something else entirely." He turned back to GB and shoved a clipboard and a pen at him. "007, I need to know everything that happened! Even the smallest little detail may be important!"
GB stared at the paper, tapping the pen against his chin as he recollected the events of the afternoon. He began writing, gradually transferring everything to the written form. Finally, he finished with a flourished and handed it back to Gilmore with pride.
Gilmore accepted it and began to read. "'As I've said, I went into the tent for a bit of fun, not to actual get my fortune read. In fact, I almost didn't notice it all! There wasn't any sort line, like at some of the other events and people just walked right past it, like they didn't even notice it. In hindsight, it seems really suspicious, but at the moment it just seemed like a harmless fair game…" Gilmore trailed off and skipped ahead. GB pouted. "Then things started getting weird. She guessed correctly that I was an actor who had lost a love and had fallen from grace. She mention how there was a dark shadow hanging over me and my friends, that a Black Ghost was haunting us, but that I was baring the burden of being more metal than man rather well.
"'At this point, I was starting to get freaked out and I demanded that she explain how she knew all of this. She just laughed and ignored my demand, saying that I needed to reveal what I had hidden or something like that and that until I gain the courage to speak, she would take away my greatest asset: my voice. Then she started cackling and chanting and these blue clouds started swirling all over the place and then she vanished.'" Gilmore set the clipboard done, looking thoughtful. "Well, it doesn't sound like a Black Ghost plot…"
"Yeah," Pyunma agreed from where he was leaning against the wall. "Even if they did concoct this sort of plot, they'd aim it at taking away our powers, not just GB's voice."
There were several murmurs of agreement.
Gilmore looked over what GB had written with a frown and turned toward the Brit. "Are you sure this is everything?"
GB averted his eyes and shrugged his shoulder, easily conveying the message. "Well…"
Gilmore leveled GB a stern look. "007, I need to know the full picture if we're going to get your voice back." He passed the clipboard back to GB, masking a confused look. After all, it wasn't usual of the Brit to withhold important information.
GB reluctantly accepted the clipboard and hunched over to write. What shocked everyone, however, was when a blush spread across the shape shifter's face. Jet snickered to himself, excited, because whatever it was that GB was writing was obviously embarrassing and Jet always relished teasing others.
GB finished quickly and shoved the clipboard back at Gilmore. With his hands free, he crossed his arms and steadfastly stared at the wall.
Gilmore, confused by GB's behavior, read the message. A single eyebrow rose.
"Well?" Joe asked nervously, trying to peer over the professor's shoulder. "What is it?"
Gilmore cleared his throat and read. "'The gypsy-witch or whatever said something before she vanished. She said that the only way to break the "curse" was to confess to my heart's secret love.'"
There was pause.
Jet couldn't help it; he burst out laughing. "Wait, really? Like in those fairy tales with 'True Love's First Kiss'?" Jet doubled over and leaned against the wall to keep from falling.
"Aw, I think it's kind of romantic, in a weird sort of way." Chang said, trying and failing to hide his giggles.
GB scowled (though his face twisted into something more hilarious than threatening) and flailed his arms about, as if trying to wave Jet's words from the air. Unfortunately, he was unable to shout at Jet to shut him up so the teen was able to easily ignore him.
Gilmore hid a chuckle and turned to the flustered Brit. "Well, I don't think the Black Ghost would concoct such an inane plot so it's probably safe to say that they're not involved. Of course, we have no way of knowing if this will work until you actually confess…"
Jet, having gotten his laughter under control, casually leaned against the wall, looking smug. "So, who is it, GB? Who's your 'secret love'?"
Before GB could pounce on the teen and try to forcibly shut him up (preferably with physical violence), the door to the lab hissed open, and Albert walked in, looking confused.
And without of shirt on.
This is easily explained away by the fact that the German also had a portable fan in one hand and glass of water filled to the brim with ice and a damp towel draped over his shoulders. But, the fact of the matter is, Albert did not have a shirt on.
With everyone's attention briefly turned toward the door, almost no one noticed GB turn a bright shade of red and avert his eyes. No one, that is, except Francoise, who had a 360o view of the room. Before, she would have brushed it off, assuming that GB was just modest about those sorts of things, but now, with the knowledge that GB secretly loved someone…
Francoise hid a grin as a picture began to form in her eye. For you see, this isn't the first time she's noticed something like this from the Brit. Back then, she had just brushed them off, attributing them to some other cause, but now, as she reviewed them with what she now knew, the true cause became quite clear.
And, to make things even better, she hadn't just noticed this things from the Brit…
While GB tried to hide his blush and Francoise plotted quietly, Albert was confused. After all, he'd just walked in on everyone gathered in lab, which usually only happened when something big was going on.
"Uh, what's going on?" Albert surveyed the scene, taking stock of everyone's posture and expression, trying to get a read on the situation. Then his eyes fell of GB, sitting on the lab bed and looking embarrassed, and he forgot about doing that in favor of feeling intense concern. "Is GB alright?"
"Oh, he's fine," Gilmore hurriedly assured him. "He's just–"
"Speechless. Literally." Jet irrupted and then cracked up at his own joke.
"Okay…?" Albert gave Jet a confused look and then turned to the scientist for a proper answer.
"Uh, well, it's a bit hard to say…" The professor floundered, trying to find a better way of phrasing the situation so it didn't sound completely bonkers. He soon gave up. "GB has been cursed, for the lack of a better word, by a gypsy to be unable to speak."
Albert stared, sipped his water, and then shrugged. "Alright. Not the weirdest thing that's happen to us, but it's up there. So what are we doing about?"
Jet opened his mouth to answer but was rendered unable to speak by the fit of giggles that took over. Chang answered for him. "Apparently, GB needs to confess to his secret love! It's like a fairy tale!"
Albert sipped his water and contemplated this. "How would he confess if he can't speak?"
"Oh, uh." Chang floundered. "I hadn't thought of that…"
"He could probably write it out or something." Joe said, thoughtfully rubbing his chin.
"Or just kiss them." Jet added, snickering.
"It is like the tale of the little mermaid."Geronimo spoke, for the first time since entering the lab.
"That's…" Jet blinked. "That's actually super accurate."
"Eh? What are you guys talking about?" Joe looked between the two Americans, confused.
"You've never seen The Little Mermaid?" Jet stared at Joe like he'd just grown two heads. "After all this is over, you and I are doing a Disney marathon." Jet shook his head. "Anyway, the basic story is that there's this mermaid who falls in love with a human and trades her voice for a pair of legs. However, she needs to confess her love to the guy within a certain time period or else the spell will break or something."
"Let's just hope GB doesn't turn into sea foam if he doesn't confess." Pyunma added with a smirk. GB stared at the sea cyborg with exaggerated horror.
"So, back to the main point, who's GB 'secret love'?" If Albert looked hopeful, yet saddened, no one saw expect Francoise, who would've cackled to herself if it were in her nature.
"Well, that's just it," Chang put his hands on his hips, annoyed. "GB won't tell us and it seems like he won't for some time." The Chinese sent a glare in the Brit's direction, which GB responded to by sticking out his tongue.
"And that is a problem." Gilmore sighed and sat down in front of the computer. "If GB won't confess, the only other option is to track down this mysterious witch."
GB frowned, looking incredibly guilty. Gilmore rushed to correct this. "You don't have to do it if you don't want to, GB. I, and I'm sure many others in this room, know how hard love is and how nerve racking a confession is, especially if you're being forced." The professor gave GB a fond smile. "We'll sort out this mess some way or another."
"Except that one way is super easy while the other is a load of work." Jet mumbled under his breath, which earned him a kick in the shins from Joe and a punch in the shoulder from, surprisingly, Albert. Nursing his hurt ego smarting appendages, Jet retreated in the background, sulking.
Gilmore brought up a map on the computer and zoomed in on where the Shakespearian bazaar was being held. "Hopefully, we can narrow down some places of interest to search. Thankfully, Japan is not a big place, comparatively speaking." The cyborgs crowded around the professor to see the map and Francoise took the opportunity to sneak over to GB. After all, she didn't want to have to search for the witch and she was confident that she could convince GB to talk.
"Hey." GB looked up at when she sat beside him and then returned his gazed to the floor. However, Francoise could see him sneaking glances at the group, particularly one still half naked German.
"I know who your secret love is." She made sure to say it in a teasing tone and GB, predictable, spun his head to look at her in shock so fast that Francoise could hear his neck crack. Francoise smiled. "My sight and hearing are cybernetically enhanced. I don't miss much." GB blushed and averted his eyes to stare at the floor, as if mentally pleading for it to swallow him whole.
Francoise put a hand on his shoulder, bringing his attention back to her, and gave him a gentle smile. "I think you should confess."
GB cocked his head and gave her a look.
"I've noticed a lot, most from you, but a lot from him," she nodded her head towards Albert, "as well."
GB gave her a suspicious, yet daringly hopeful look. He then mimed a stoic expression, pointed at Albert and then looked back her with a questioning look.
"How do I know I'm not misreading him?" Francoise guessed. GB nodded, proud. "Well, yes, Albert is bit harder to read than the others, but he's not impossible. Especially if he thinks no one is looking."
GB still looked unsure and he mimed pulled at his leg. Francoise laughed. "No, I'm not pulling your leg. It's not usually in my nature to do, is it not?" GB nodded slowly, as if he were having trouble processing the implications of what she told him. He stared at the wall, then at the floor, then off into space. A wide grin began to spread across his face and the Brit stood dramatically. This attracted the ever keen Jet's attention.
"Eh, what are you doing?"
Which, of course, caught everyone else's attention.
However, unlike most people, GB felt more comfortable in spot light and he confidently marched over to Albert and proceeded to snog the hell out of him. After a second's pause, Albert eagerly returned the kiss.
The other cyborgs (with the exception of the knowing and currently smirking Francoise) stared. And then quickly looked away because the kiss was anything but chaste.
"Well, that was…" Jet floundered for the right word to accurately describe their current situation.
"Abrupt?" Pyunma suggested, gaze fixed on the ceiling.
"Sudden?" Joe added, studying the floor.
"Unexpected." Jet settled on, staring at the wall.
"You know, we can hear you." A very British voice said. This was followed up by a cheer from said Brit. "Cor, I can speak again!" GB did a little jig, to the amusement of the others, and pulled Albert in for a victory kiss.
Gilmore quickly broke them up before they could get too graphic. "Settle down, you two. I know you're happy, but I'd prefer it if you continued in the privacy of your rooms." The new lovebirds had the decency to look sheepish.
"Alright!" Jet announced loudly, herding Joe and Pyunma toward the door of the lab. "If that's all, we'll be go–"
"Hold it." Gilmore's stern voice stopped them. "I still think we should search for this witch."
A collective groan went up. Gilmore looked a little guilty (after all, down time was far and few in between) but remained firm.
"Whoever this person is knows about Black Ghost and us. Not to mention, she seems to have some strange powers far beyond our comprehension. It would be prudent to search for her even with GB's condition resolved."
"Aw, but professor!" Jet protested vocally, as he was wont to do. "She's obviously not part of Black Ghost, so she can't be that much of a threat…"
"But we don't know that for sure. She could be a very dangerous person!" Gilmore countered.
"Could it at least wait a day?" Pyunma suggested, trying to reach a compromise. "Or at least until the humidity dies down a little?"
"Yes, I would also suggest that." Albert added. "I don't know about you guys, but this humidity is rather unbearable, especially if we have to do physical assertions." He jiggled his cup so the ice clinked to emphasize his point.
"That is a point…" Gilmore frowned, unsure. It was true that some of the cyborgs, especially the earlier ones, might not fare as well in this type of weather. But that did not apply to all of them.
Francoise decided to her bit, adopting her best sad, worn look. "We get so little time to relax and enjoy ourselves. Surely it could wait…?"
Gilmore caved. "Alright, alright." There was a cheer. "But first thing tomorrow morning, no matter the weather!"
"All right, professor!" Jet gave Gilmore a mock salute and rushed out with Joe and Pyunma in tow. After all, there was a game he needed to beat them at.
The others trickled out a slower pace, returning to their various activities. Francoise, however, made sure to stop GB and Albert as they headed out together and ask that they try to keep it down.
GB just gave smirk that said 'I make no promises'. Albert, thankfully, gave her a more concert answer, and the two went off, exchanging hushed tones.
Francoise smiled fondly at them and started her way back upstairs. Before she headed back to the no doubt chaotic living room, she decided to do a quick check on Ivan. He was due to wake up soon.
She quietly opened the door to Ivan's room (which also functioned as a game room, if games meant quiet card games only. A little leniency was allowed when Ivan was awake, though that only meant not-quiet card games) and snuck up to the sleeping babe. He looked so peaceful that Francoise couldn't resist tenderly stroking his hair. If only they could all be like this…
'Good afternoon, Francoise."
Francoise jumped, surprised. "Ivan! You're awake!"
'Yes. And I have been for a while.'
Francoise frowned, feeling guilty. "Oh, I'm sorry. Why didn't you-?"
'It is no fault of your own. I purposeful did not alert anyone so I could practice a new skill.'
"Oh?" Francoise picked Ivan up and cradled him in her arms. She was curious. After all, Ivan had a much larger range of powers than the others and he was frequently developing new techniques.
'Before my last sleep cycle, I was working on an illusion technique. It was what caused me to fall asleep sooner than expected.'
"Ah." They had wondered a bit about that. "An illusion technique? Like seeing things that aren't really there?"
'Precisely. You may have noticed my use of it earlier, along with some minor mental suppression.'
Francoise frowned. "What?"
'GB made quite a fuss about it.'
Francoise's mouth fell open. "That was you!? With the witch and the curse and the not-being-able-to-talk bit?"
Ivan's reply was tinged with smugness. 'Yes, that was me. Good, wasn't it?'
Francoise had to take a minute to stare dumbly at the esper. Then a smile broke over her face and she laughed. "It was brilliant! But how'd know-?"
'About those two? It was hard not to. They practically blasted it out mentally. I had to start deliberately blocking them.' Ivan gives a small shrug, or as best as a baby could give one. 'So I decided to do something about it.'
Francoise laughs again. "That truly was brilliant. You should have told me, I would've gladly helped!"
'Next time it comes up, I will surely include you. I did have a bit of trouble coming up with a plan. I'm afraid my efforts came off a bit cheesy.'
"Knowing GB, he probably didn't even notice." A thought occurred to her and she paused. "…we will have to tell Gilmore, before he sends us off on a while goose-chase."
Ivan nodded. 'I concur. But first, I would like some milk.'
THE END