C&C are most definitely welcomed and appreciated...
Legal Stuff
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GW do not belong-o to me-o... though I wisht it did *Sigh* (I'd rather have Duo and Heero heh) AnyhoO, dun sue me cawz am all I got is uhm... stuff you don't want? Am toy with them so much fun~!!!
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AC 203
**At Relena's mansion**
'Anything is better than this,' Heero murmured to himself. 'Give me Trieze Khushrenada, Zechs Marquise, or better yet… Lady Une… anything but this.' Heero groaned to himself in an almost pitiful way. What was there in the universe to make our Perfect Soldier miserable?
"Uncle Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeero~!!!!!!!!" a bubbly voice called out.
Heero opened his eyes slowly and peered into a heart-shaped face with blue eyes and purplish hair gathered into one long braid. The boy bounced on Heero's lap, thus ensuring that Heero wouldn't be having any kids soon.
"Hn. What is it, Solo?"
"Uncle Heero, can I call some friends over, please, please, please, PLEAAAAAAAAAASSE?? I would love you forever and more and more and more, Uncle Heero~!!" Solo shouted.
'Please… shoot me... Now…' Heero pleaded silently.
"Fine."
"Yay! Thank you, Uncle Heero, you're the best~!"
This was supposed to be a simple job, so Relena told him. 'It would be good practice to watch over the kids,' she told him slyly when all the ex-pilots and their friends stopped by. Heero didn't know where they were going and he didn't care. He looked at Duo and Hilde's brat call up his friends. So much in every way just like Duo. He had the large eyes--but blue thanks to Hilde--the bubbly personality that could only match Duo's, and the unmistakable braid. Solo ran to Heero and he braced himself for another lap attack. To his surprise, Solo sat down in front of him and peered up at Heero with his blue eyes.
"Uncle Heero?"
"Hn?"
"When am I gonna have a cousin to play with? Daddy told me very soon and he did some weird blinking thing with his eye at mommy this morning. I thought that was cool but I didn't have time to learn it but anyways coz I was coming here to your house and Mommy told Daddy to be quiet why though I don't know. So is what Daddy said true? Are yah gonna give me a cousin on my birthday? Huh? Huh?" Solo ranted on and on just like Duo~!
Heero's eyes grew bigger and bigger with each word that ran from Solo's mouth. Doesn't the brat ever stop talking?!? Luckily at that moment, the doorbell rang. Solo forgot about his question as he ran towards the big oak doors. Their servant, Meilan, opened the door first. Solo pouted but it soon went away as his friends came in. The big heavy door slammed, but not loud enough to cover the six chattering mouths. 'How can four-year-olds have such big mouths?' Heero thought to himself.
Heero stood up and was about to go greet them when running footsteps could be heard. Heero panicked and stood still, not sure what was going to happen next. He wasn't accustomed to this new "baby-sitting" thing. But he can do it... he's a Gundam pilot, isn't he? A blur of six little bodies rushed past him and then halted. The wild group turned around and ran towards Heero, knocking him down flat on his back. Aa, so what if he was the Perfect Soldier; he could have easily withstood the blow but decided against it. It would be a nice change for once to be the one lying on the ground. Waiting for what seemed forever, Heero opened his eyes and saw six angelic faces peer down at his.
"Uncle Heero, Uncle Heero~!" they chorused together.
"Hn."
"Are you okay, Uncle Heero?" asked an Arabian looking boy.
Triton had the brown hair of his mother and the deep-set eyes of soft blue of his father. He offered a chubby little hand towards Heero's direction. 'Not much good your strength would do, Triton,' Heero thought. He accepted his hand anyhow and pushed himself up. Heero glanced down at the little bunch, who were all squabbling and playing with their new model Gundams. Triton offered Heero a smile, and Heero couldn't resist but to give him a small smirk-the closest he could come to a smile-and Triton smiled even wider with his blue eyes. 'He's a good kid,' Heero thought.
"Alright, now, what do you guys want to do?" Heero asked after he got up.
Heero's eyes grew wide as realized what question he had just asked.
"Let's go play outside-"
"I wanna ride in your suit, Uncle Heero-"
"Lemme play with your katanas daddy gave to you-"
"Let's go to the park and EAT-"
"Learn me the pressure points, Unky Heero-"
"Where do you keep the horses?"
"I wanna play Oz's and Gundams-"
"Let's tie Uncle Heero up-"
"That's enough," Heero said with a low growl in his voice, mustering up his best death glare as he could. It's been a while since he had used this feature. All he used was a blank expression and a snarl.
It was enough to get their attention and enough to stop the commotion. Heero looked at each little boy in turn, making sure they got their full share. Heads were bent down and feet shuffled as they tried their "guilty angel" act. It worked a bit on Heero, but he wasn't the Perfect Soldier for nothing!
"Now, one at a time, tell me what you want to do and we'll evaluate the time, provisions (patience... ), and availability to do it, alright? Is that clear?"
Waves and murmurs of "Yes, sir's" were chorused.
"Alright then, let's start with Solo," Heero said, facing him.
"You know you are my most favoritest uncle! 'Coz you know why? It's coz-"
"Get to the point, Solo, or don't speak."
"Heh… heh… gomen, Uncle Heero… I juss wanna go outside to the park and play frisby and catch and football and eat by the lake and watch the swans and feed 'em too and then I wanna eat again and feed the squirrels with nuts and-"
"Okay, Solo, point taken," Heero said with a sigh. "Lionel, what do you want to do?"
Lionel's face lightened up at being called next. He edged his way closer to Heero and clung onto a leg. Heero tried shaking him off gently at first, but only concluded to the thought of knocking Lionel off his leg. Either that or having the option to saw his leg (or Lionel's arms) off. He peered at the emerald eyes that stared straight at him under blond hair, his bangs all gathered at one side to hide an eye.
"I want to go the new circus and watch the clowns," Lionel said quietly. He eventually let Heero go as he growled again. Turning to the next kid, Heero thought about running from the room and go hide somewhere. But he couldn't; they were his responsibility, unfortunately. Relena told him to view baby-sitting jobs as "missions." Where did the woman come up with this stuff?
"Hotori, you're next," Heero said, moving to sit on the sofa.
Bad move.
Hotori did a double summersault onto Heero's lap, ending with a smile and crinkle of his cute nose. His tan skin was hidden beneath the Chinese outfit similar to his dad's, but black all over with silver cuffs. Black beady eyes took on the shape of almonds as he unsuccessfully tried to blow away the bronze colored hair he inherited from his mother's side.
"Like I stated before, Uncle Heero, I wanna play with the katana's daddy gave you," and with another crinkle of his nose, he jumped off Heero's lap.
'What have I become?' Heero thought. 'I certainly am not Santa Claus, but why am I cradling these little brats as if I were that fat jolly man?'
"Zeshyn, what do you want to do?"
Much to his dismay, Zeshyn jumped onto his lap.
"I wanna go into your battle suit, Uncle Heero. Daddy said it was qu-quite the… uhm… mac-macheeeeene. Is it anything like the Tallgeese, Uncle Heero?"
Heero deliberately ignored the last question of the lavender haired boy. 'Yes, lavender, that's what you get for mixing blond and near blue-ebony hair,' Heero thought. With eyes the color of his father, Zeshyn repeated the question. Zeshyn quickly got off Heero's lap as he felt the agitation and annoyance.
'Here goes another one… one more to go after this one… Oi.'
"Zieran… think of something to do."
Zieran stood where he was standing, looking thoughtfully into the sky. His double-edged brows arched up--frighteningly like his father's--and placed one finger on his chin. He stood as proud as an aristocrat did. Finally, looking squarely into Heero's worn out Prussian eyes, he said,
"Mother told me space was a place for peace. I'd really love ya for it if you could take me in a shuttle and go to space."
Heero's mouth dropped open at the request. He wanted to yell at Zieran, but decided against it. He couldn't--he didn't--want to tell a young boy what a ridiculous idea that was. He had remembered a point and time when he had wanted to do something but the only reply he received was a harsh one. One that stung his little heart and one that vowed to never let the feeling happen again.
"Okay, Triton, you're up," Heero said with relief in his voice. 'Last one,' he said gleefully.
Almost shyly, Triton gently climbed onto Heero's lap and placed his short arms around Heero's neck. Heero was surprised (and secretly pleased) at this. 'Finally, a normal kid who didn't decide to mercilessly jump on me.'
"I wanna play Oz's and Gundams, Uncle Heero. Me, Hotori, and Zieran can be the Gundams and Lionel, Solo, and Zeshyn can be the Oz specialists. Oh, you can play, too, Uncle Heero! You can be the captured Queen of the World," Triton finished. Heero looked around the room, observing thoughtful faces.
Finally, a voice spoke.
"Oi, Triton!" Solo started.
'Here we go,' Heero thought warily as he rolled his eyes.
"Oi, Triton! I'm gonna whoop yer butt with my specially equipped Oz Deathscythe!" Solo shouted, taking his Gundam towards Triton.
Triton sat frozen in Heero's lap, his arms glued around Heero's neck. Blue eyes wide and an increasing grin took over Triton's features.
"Come and get me, you monster!" Triton yelled, bells ringing in Heero's ears.
Just as Solo was going to reach Triton, his arms unraveled from Heero's neck (to his relief) and grabbed his Gundam from the other side of Heero.
"I must protect Queen Heero with my Sandrock Gundam!"
So there was Heero, sitting on the sofa with a brown-haired boy and his Gundam standing in front of him. The purple-haired boy made sounds as he flew his Gundam to and fro, a menacing feature upon his eyebrows. There was a clash of metal and sounds as the two opposing forces met.
This was the other's cue to race for their Gundams and to save or destroy the Queen Heero of the World.
"Oz Specials Lieutenant Zeshyn reporting for duty with Oz Tallgeese!"
"Oz Captain Lionel reporting for duty with Oz Heavyarms!"
"Rebel Fraction Commander Zieran ready to blast the enemy with Gundam Epyon!"
"Rebel Fraction Lietenant Hotori ready to justify the earth with Gundam Altron!".
Much to Heero's displeasure, the boys rushed over to where Triton and Solo were.
Triton made a mad dash to Heero and buried himself behind him. Before he knew what took place, Solo and the rest of the little boys came charging towards Heero. Little bodies squirmed all over Heero as they fought their "battle" and screamed "Ninmu Ryoukai!" Heero didn't think nothing of the boys' strength, but with all the metal, scraping, tumbling, and yelling that decided to circulate around Heero-he's had nearly all he could take.
There was a tangled web of limbs, Gundams, and yelps of fighting lines. Triton found his way out of the mess and darted through the oak doors, clambering upstairs and laughing insanely. That same laugh reminded him of that time his Father had lost control when he was piloting one of the most powerful suits. Heero shuddered when the blond-haired pilot came into mind. To see him like that could penetrate even through the deepest shells.
Sinking into the sofa, Heero closed his eyes and took in the peaceful sounds. Only a few times did he hear a thump on the floors above him. Heero woke up when all noise had ceased. 'What are those brats up to now?' Heero questioned to himself. Warily, Heero went upstairs and searched room by room for the boys.
"Hn, Let 'em stay lost… it's for the better of humanity," Heero said.
After a few unpleasant hours of searching for them, he gave up and retreated to the kitchen. His stomach was making demands in which only the cook could hope to settle. That's strange… He didn't hear the usually bustling cook humming her French tune. His legs stopped him from walking any further as his eyes lay on the most horrific sight of all. Powdered ghosts with emerald, blue, black, hazel, and platinum blue eyes were blinking all around the kitchen. Like little gremlins, they were. Their short stubby bodies were covered from head to foot with flour, and as they walked and ran everywhere in the kitchen, they left their demonic trails.
Hotori was on top of the counter playing with a pair of Relena's silver chopsticks, cutting them across the air, his Chinese suit spotted with patches of white. Solo had the pots and pans out, drumming on them with a horrible beat. Zieran was over-watering the red roses kept by the bay window, the excess water trickling down the sides of the pot and made a dirty puddle on the floor. Triton was about to reach for the bright knives and Heero guessed he was trying to do what his mother used to do. Heero stalked over to Triton and cleared his throat behind him. Triton dropped his hands immediately and peered into Heero's face. There where smudges of flour on his face and all over his hands.
Heero made sure the knives were out of reach as he turned around to the squealing of Lionel. Up on the huge marble counter stood Lionel, trying to balance himself on the very edge of the silver trimming. His eyes were wide and arms spread out like the wings of an eagle. Lionel slipped on a mound of flour and screamed. Before he hit the ground, Heero ran to the counter avoiding flour mines and little boys, and dived to the ground. Landing with a satisfying 'THUD' on Heero's back, Lionel smiled triumphantly and clambered down Heero's back. He pecked Heero's cheek that left a white round spot on his face.
Heero banged his head on the floor, wondering what he had gotten himself into for the millionth time that day.
"Jenai! Jenai, where are you?" Heero cried out. "Aa, how could I have been so dense? She took the day off… no wonder the food this morning tasted blah," Heero said.
At the mention of food, Solo stopped his banging and the braid whipped around him as he tried to help Heero up.
"Hey, guys, Uncle Heero offered to make food for us!! Isn't he the coolest uncle ever??" Solo said, piercing through the racket.
Heero groaned and remained on the floor. Solo stood there, then he crouched and poked Heero on his sides. Finding this very amusing, the other boys gathered around Solo and took turns poking Heero.
"Is Uncle Heero dead?" Hotori whispered, his black eyes wide.
"Who knows," said Lionel, "I landed on him pretty hard."
"Well, keep pokin' him til he wakes up," Solo directed.
The boys happily obliged, for it tickled them to see their Uncle Heero act as a dummy. Heero forced himself into a slumber on the floor covered with flour and mud and dirt from the plants and who knows what else. After five long minutes of poking and talking to each other, the boys were about to give up when Heero growled and sat up. His eyes were still closed as the boys yelped and backed away. Prussian blue eyes stared at the boys, eyes glazed over. He screamed as if something had changed in him and grabbed Solo's braid.
"You're mine, little one," Heero said, laughing maniacally.
Solo's eyes were wide open and his jaws were set to catch some flies if he didn't close his mouth soon. The other boys screamed and scrambled and dodged Heero's other hand. Heero bounced up, suddenly seeming bigger than usual to the little boys. Under his left arm, he held Solo, who was whimpering and pouting. Making a sudden move, he caused the boys to run out the kitchen. A slow smile formed at the tips of his lips.
"This is going to be fun," Heero said, "Omae wo Korosu." The last words said by Heero brought out a gasp from the now struggling Solo, his braid whipping about in every direction.
"Wah, Uncle Heero, wake up! It's me, your most favoritest nephew, Solo! Where's Uncle Heero? What have you done with him, oni?"
"An oni, am I?" Heero said, baring his pearly whites to Solo.
'They are very loud for things that are small as they,' Heero thought as he climbed the stairs. He easily traced the remaining boys, picking them up by the shoulder and joining them with Solo. As soon as Heero captured all six, he stalked to the bathroom on the third floor and filled the bathtub to the brim with slightly hot water. He threw the boys in, clothes and all, and stared at them.
"I expect you to clean yourself. Meilan will be in here shortly to clean your clothes. No horseplay and no splashing the water out…" Heero said, "or else."
"Or else what, Uncle Heero?" Zieran asked.
Heero's eyes glazed over and that was his answer to the miniature Aristocrat.
"Oi, Uncle Heero!" Solo shouted.
"Hn."
"I'm hungry."
A chorus of "Me too's" soon followed and he glazed his eyes over again to shut them up. He walked out of the room with a smile that couldn't be detected by the boys, Heero let out a little laugh. He hasn't had that much fun or exercise since the war was over. 'Aa, the war that brought about the peace, my wife's dream.' He clambered down the stairs and stepped in the kitchen. For ones so young, they sure did create a huge mess. Heero sighed as he started picking up the pots and pans.
Heero ran upstairs to check on the boys after he finished cleaning their mess. They were still in the bathtub, bubbles floating everywhere. From the depths of the bathtub, a huge mound of bubbles rose up. Emerald eyes peered out from the film of bubbles and ducked down. Heero shook his head and went to the kitchen again to try and cook.
"Of all the times to take the day off, Jenai," he said, "and you didn't even restock the food!!"
He thought about calling in Meilan to cook, but only if the boys liked burnt food; he certainly wasn't in the mood for Meilan's cooking. Heero moved himself about the kitchen, opening cupboards and finding nothing but silverware, dishes, glasses, pots, pans, and many more kitchen utensils. His Gundam was more organized than this, he thought silently. After a few more minutes of searching, Heero found some Ramen Noodles packages.
"Hn. This'll do. If they complain, it is their dinner they are throwing away."
He found a huge pot and filled it with water, watching it boil slowly. He added the noodles and seasoning into the water. Stirring it with a wooden ladle, Heero put it down as he heard a shrill cry coming from the bathroom. Running upstairs, he forgot all about the noodles. Zeshyn was in the middle of the bathroom, in a blue towel, and crying. All the other little boys were in towels gathered around Zeshyn.
"What's the problem now?" Heero asked to himself."
"Soap gots in his eyes, Uncle Heero, and he won't stop crying!" Solo offered.
"Hn."
Heero walked to Zeshyn and gathered him in his arms.
"Does it sting bad, Zeshyn?"
"Yeah ::sniff::, it hurts!" Zeshyn said after another long sniff.
Awkwardly, Heero stalked out of the room with Zeshyn in his arms and a talking group of curious boys following behind. Heero let out an irritated sigh as Zeshyn clung to his neck. Out of the corners of his eyes, he peered down at Zeshyn, his bangs plastered to hide his eyes. Zeshyn came to a sniffling state, dropping his tears. Placing Zeshyn on his bed, he ordered Meilan to give the boys their clothes and to help them dress. Zeshyn sat on the huge ruffle satin bed, rubbing at his eyes.
"Hey, don't do that," Heero said, "you'll irritate your eyes further."
Immediately, Zeshyn stopped rubbing his eyes and struggled to open them. The result was more crying and complaining. Heero plopped himself on the bed and looked at Zeshyn. Surprisingly, he wiped away Zeshyn's tears, silencing the boy. His face was still twisted with pain, and Heero held Zeshyn in his arms, telling him that everything was going to be all right. Heero had remembered a time when he was in great pain, and how comforting it was to have someone be strong for him and confident.
Zeshyn opened his eyes and peered at Heero through watery vision. He smiled at Heero that made him feel… fuzzy? Soft? He didn't know, but he gave a smile (a smirk if you wanna call it that) in return, which brought out a hug from Zeshyn and a "Thank You." Solo came running through the door, his loose hair flying after him. His eyes were wide and he was panting.
"Uncle Heero, Uncle Heero~! There's somethin' in the kitchen. Hotori thinks it's a big, black demon trying to take over us, so he gots Aunty Lena's silver sticks to fight it. Lionel went after him, but he came back with that awful black thing on his face. Triton's doin' some weird dance thing to try and take that demon outta him. Ya gotta come and rescue Hotori, Uncle Heero!!"
Zeshyn clutched at Heero's neck with all the life he had, for Heero was running down the three flights of stairs. Heero staggered towards the kitchen, black smoke steadily pouring underneath the doors. Remembering that he had Zeshyn in his arms, he placed Zeshyn on the sofa and told him to stay there. Zeshyn rubbed his eyes and squeaked out "Okay" as Heero rushed to the kitchen.
Black smoke filled his lungs and blurred his vision as soon as he stepped through the door.
"Hotori! Hotori, where are you? Speak up, boy!" Heero shouted.
Heero didn't hear anything, and he kept moving forward.
"Hotori, answer me!" Heero shouted again into the thick smoke.
"Un-Uncle HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERROOOO!" a tiny voice broke through.
"Keep talking, Hotori!"
"I tried to fight this demon and bring justice to the kitchen like Daddy would have, Uncle Heero! I didn't mean to-" and Hotori kept babbling until Heero reached him. Well, more or less, he stumbled over Hotori.
Grabbing Hotori by the collar of his shirt, he retraced his steps back towards the door. He could hear Solo's shouting outside. Finally, falling through the door, Heero emerged coughing and gasping for air with Hotori under his arms, face covered with soot.
The other little boys ran to Hotori and exclaimed about how brave he was and how Triton had danced away the evil demon that got inside of Lionel earlier. Hotori lifted his head and allowed himself a smirk before being plopped down on the sofa, Heero's face hovering above him.
"Hotori, you shouldn't have gone in there. Do you know how dangerous it could have been for someone as small as you?"
Hotori hung his head as a tear made its way down his ashen cheek, leaving a clear trail of tan skin. He sniffed once before speaking.
"I'm sorry Uncle Heero. You were busy helping Zeshyn and I was the only one with experience to fight that demon inside your kitchen. I tried to help," he said, sniffing again. His black eyes watered and were about to spill, but Heero grabbed Hotori and placed him on his lap. Taking his hands, he lifted Hotori's chin and looked him evenly in the eye.
"What you did was also honorable, Hotori, and you would have made your father proud with your bravery. But wait until you are a bit older before going into adventures like that. Okay?"
Hotori sniffed through a smile, and hugged Heero as hard as he could. Heero had to pry Hotori's arms from around his waist as he remembered the smoky kitchen.
"Stay," Heero said.
He walked back into the kitchen, the smoke presenting itself as a nuisance. Burning his fingers on the burners, he managed to turn the stove off. The windows were propped open and slowly the smoke began to clear. Heero felt irritated, for he spent the last hour and a half cleaning the kitchen spotless.
Nothing seemed to be damaged, just a lot of smoke. Looking at the pot that used to hold the noodles, Heero cursed under his breath.
"Awwwww!!!!!! Uncle Heero, you says a bad word. Does this means I get to tell Aunty Relena what you said?" Zieran's voice asked.
"Zieran, what did I tell you before I went into the kitchen?!"
Zieran shuffled his feet and looked to the ground.
"You, uh, you said to uhm... to err... to stay."
"And why aren't you with the others, hmm?"
"I thought I could help you clean the mess, Uncle Heero," Zieran said, nearing the tear zone.
'Why me? Why such whiney, crying, sniffling brats?!?' Heero felt like pulling his hair out, but then it would have added to the mess in the kitchen.
"Alright," Heero said, sighing, "go get the roses out of here."
Zieran smiled and rushed towards the flowers, tripping on his feet as he passed Heero. Heero's arm automatically reached out and caught him by the collar. Smiling sheepishly, Zieran advanced in a more cautious state of manner.
Heero walked to the stove and looked at the pot. He couldn't believe it. Then again, he would believe it. There was a clean hole burned through the gigantic pot. Clumps of black matter stuck to the insides of the silver-turned-black pot. Around the stove, there were more clumps of black matter. Taking a sharp knife, Heero attacked the clumps around the stove first. Easy stuff.
There was a heaving and a sighing sound coming from the bay window. Zieran was squatting, his eyebrows furrowed, determined to move the pot of plant that was as big as him. Sticking a tongue out, he tried again but to no avail. He straightened up and watched Heero work effortlessly, and took a firmer grip on the sides of the pot. With much grunting and pulling, he finally moved the pot. Slowly but steady, Zieran pushed the pot across the floor. Smiling with sheer delight at his little strength, Zieran pushed the flowers out to the deck.
Making much noise when re-entering the kitchen, Zieran took up a steady march towards the door. Before leaving, Zieran eyed Heero's back once more. Suddenly, Zieran ran to Heero, clasping both arms around Heero's waist.
"Thank you, Uncle Heero, for letting me do something. Solo's the one who told you about the demon, Hotori was the one who fought the demon, Triton's the one who danced away the demon from Lionel, Zeshyn gots soaps in his eyes, and Lionel got to jump down on you," Zieran said, walking away.
The boy has never said this much in one breath, and Heero smirked as he heard the door swing shut. After disposing the charred-pot, Heero washed his hands and decided to order take-out. Heero walked out of the kitchen and into the dining room. All of the little monsters were clothed except for Zeshyn, who was still disdainfully rubbing his eyes. As soon as Zeshyn saw Heero, he immediately put his hands down.
Turning on the television and the Playstation, the boys started playing one of their favorite games. Dragonball Legend. Heero called to Meilan to dress Zeshyn. He watched the boys play, bicker, and argue until the door bell rang. Solo shot up faster than lightening and ran towards the door. Heero wasn't far behind. Solo walked back to Heero, his arms stuffed with brown bags.
"FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD~!!!!!!!" Solo's voice rang through the hallways.
Heero grimaced and paid the man who delivered his food. Shutting the door, in the middle of the hallway he saw the group huddled around Solo. Heero ushered them into the newly-cleaned-for-the-second-time kitchen, passing out silver dishes and silverware around the huge alabaster table. Heaping large amounts on each plate, Heero was about to wolf the food down when...
"Uncle Heero~!" Lionel complained, "I can't reach my food~!"
To demonstrate his point, he swung his legs back and forth, hands with silverware, scraping the surface, and eyes level with the table. Heero looked about in dismay as he saw the same result with the other boys.
Sighing, Heero got up and walked towards the living room. He found six plush pillows and returned with them. Short little legs were still swinging simultaneously, silverware scraping on the surface, and impatient little sighs escaping. Heero ordered all of them to stand on top of their chairs. In each seat, he placed a pillow. As he finished, he told them to sit down. Their elbows resting on the table, they murmured their "Thank you's" through mouths full of orange duck, rice, lo mein, shrimp, clear noodles with mint leaves and beef, and who knows what else Heero had ordered.
An hour or so later, bellies full and a sink full of dishes to clean, the troop marched to the living room. Sprawled out across the floor, Heero was surprised it was almost eleven. He felt himself a bit weary also from the days' excursions and the "excitement.
Kids are a totally different life force than Gundams are, he thought. His Gundam brought him a quick happiness, but it soon faded. Nothing good had ever lasted in his life. A few times he attempted to end his life, to finally be free of the chains he and others had set around him. But he met Relena, and she slowly and painfully opened his eyes to new possibilities. It's been a few years after the war between the Colonies and the Earth, and now things are normal.
Heero had had a hard time accepting that fact. What was he to do with his life now? All his life, he had been trained to be the perfect killing machine, swift, efficient. He didn't have a place with this new world. He never felt like he belonged anyhow, only feeling right when he was in the cockpit of his Gundam. Those days were cold, so very cold, and he feared those days worse than battling the enemies or conquering Wing Zero.
Relena found a place for him, in her heart, and unbeknownst to himself, he was grateful for what she offered. Heero drifted out of his thoughts and looked about him. Several little heads were resting on his legs and around him, Solo curled with a smile peacefully in his lap.
"Such little monsters when you are sleeping," Heero whispered to the group
They stirred a bit, and Hotori crinkled his cute nose before yawning. Triton's legs were resting on top of Zeshyn, who's arm covered his face and Lionel's. Zieran used Hotori's leg as a pillow. Smirking at this, Heero felt the fingertips of sleep draw his eyelids down.
Whispering and muffled laughter woke Heero up. He yawned, stretching himself gracefully. Looking at the clock again, it was... what? Ten in the morning? The boys were still sleeping there, Solo sprawled all over Heero. Hotori was sucking his thumb, making grunting noises. He looked around at who was making the noise. Abruptly, the laughter stopped.
Heero got up, and Solo refused to let go of his position. So walking around to the kitchen with a sleeping Solo in Heero's arms, Relena and Jenai met his gaze. Their wide smiles and shaking bodies revealed their true nature. Heero growled at them and they silenced immediately. Solo's eyes opened slowly and he yawned, stretching like a black panther.
"Oi, Uncle Heero, you're the best. Now you're cooking us breakfast too?" Solo said sleepily.
"What have you done to these boys?" Relena asked him innocently, eyes wide with a sparkling smile.
"Nothing. Why don't you ask these little brats what they did to me," Heero said.
Heero gazed long and hard into Relena's eyes, and she stood her ground. He found himself missing her that night, not being able to turn over and hug her in her sleep or just watch her as the moonlight played on her beautiful features, which were teasing him right now. He smirked at her and walked over to Jenai.
"Make sure you put Solo next to Hotori, Jenai," Heero said gruffly, handing the boy to Jenai.
Jenai took him into her arms and smiled fondly at the now-silent chatterbox. Heero took Relena's hands, drew her close to him, and kissed her hungrily.
"I've missed you, too, Heero," Relena said after a few minutes.
She took his hand and kissed it softly, leading him to the table. Heero sat down on a chair, pulling Relena on top of him. She giggled her melodious laugh and looked into his deep eyes.
"Heero."
"Hn."
She drew her face closer to Heero's.
"There's something I've been meaning to tell you..."
Heero eyed her lips as she talked.
"Hn."
"Solo, Hotori, Zeshyn, Lionel, Zieran, and Triton are going to have a cousin..." she said.
"Hn?"
"Two, to be exact," Relena said, blushing mildly.
"TWO!?!?" Heero said, and all talk was muffled as Relena leaned in, kissing Heero deeply to silence him.
~Owari~