Second Kiss

Disclaimer: I do not own Storm Hawks or anything else that might seem familiar that aren't part of my works. However, I do own Emma. Dick, Mikki, and Terra Mojave are owned by Hawk Masters. Please enjoy.

Love is one of the mysteries of life. No one can really understand it as it turns both men and women into their most demeaning form. And yet, no one can really live without the alluring powers it gives, whether it is the basic instinct to breed or just the feeling that someone other than family and friends. It is especially important to those who have felt loneliness.

It had been quite a few days of normal activities for the Storm Hawks and their friend as they traveled the world of Atmos. Since there was no Cyclonian activity going on, their Gaian friend, Emma, wanted to at least see how the other Gaian settlers were doing without her being in the future to mess things up. Without hesitation, the squadron flew to Terra Mojave, the Wild West-like terra and the nearest from their position. There, the group met up with Mikki, Jack's hot wife, and Dick, who had taken a liking to the older teen when he first saw her.

Afterwards, the Storm Hawks left the terra, this time, with Dick deciding to come with them. His reason was that Mojave didn't have that excitement he was looking for, but this was only part of it. He was going to go with them when the squadron would appear again on the terra next time. What made the difference now was that he quickly caught sight of the young brunette and felt the "special" connection between her and himself. She felt a little bit of the connection, but she didn't know if it was another crush or the real thing. Besides, the girl knew that Dick could do at least better than her.

It had been a few days since they left Mojave and the trip had been quiet for the most part. Emma was in the bridge, staring up at the night sky and thinking about the experiences she had on Atmos. Some were good, some were bad, mostly bad; but even with her fond memories of this world, it didn't replace what she felt when she was back home. However, she couldn't leave this world, not yet…

"Heh, reminiscing on the past weeks here?" asked a voice as she turned to look at the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Gaian staring at her. Oh yea, she almost forgot that he was an Esper; a person with extra-sensory powers like telekinesis and mind-reading. It scared her a bit, but she didn't mind. She had a thing for accepting the strange and abnormal. Otherwise, the teen would have screamed her head off when she met the first strangest thing.

The teen boy approached her before sitting next to her and placing his hand on hers. She tensed up before relaxing; the girl just looked at his caring face as he gave her his warm smile. He started to caress her hand before soothing speaking, "You really are something, kit; facing all those dangers in order to keep alive and save your sister." Then, he placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "You are definitely strong if you made them out alive."

She sighed, before saying, "Nah, it was mostly dumb luck." She didn't have a true answer of making out of the perils alive. But she thought that however she made it through alive, it was on sheer dumb luck. Of course, she knew that it was going to run out one way or another.

Dick just looked at her before saying, "It might be some of it, but you have really good skill as a fighter. I should know, you were about to beat me." The brunette rolled her eyes, knowing that he went easy on her earlier. She would have been creamed if she fought him at his best.

"Yea, right; you know that I'm not really that strong," she spoke while looking away. The boy just huffed in annoyance. She shouldn't put herself down like that. It's unhealthy. Besides, she was strong.

"Atmos, why don't you have more faith in yourself? I mean, you face a lot of dangers that no one back home has. Why don't you have confidence in yourself?" he asked, nuzzling her head. She sighed, feeling a little warm from his nuzzling. She was knew the reason more than anyone.

"Like I said before, there were all flukes." The brunette answered, trying to sound a little stern. "Besides, do you imagine me, a loner that has been living outside the world metaphorically, to actually have this kind of life, along with you as a lover?" The Esper only looked at her, smiling. He liked it when she mentions him as a boyfriend.

"Emma, it is okay to not be too prideful, but never sell yourself short. You are strong, smart, and beautiful, no matter how anyone else sees you. Besides, you're not alone now. You have friends here; the Storm Hawks, other sky knights, the PFE, and me…" he answered as looked at her face. Emma just sighed before staring at him, noticing the moonlight glittering in his eyes. She still couldn't believe how he could love her, or if she really did love him. Why was love so hard in the older years instead of childhood?

Now for the next moment, whether it on impulse or just the beauty of the scene, the two went closer to their face as the brunette wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed each other right on the lips. Even though, the boy's way of doing it was a bit forceful, but she didn't care. The couple was now feeling warmth from each other's tender peck. This was truly made a great moment for any romance.

While the two were kissing, they didn't notice that they were being watched by their proprietor's on the Condor. The Storm Hawks just stood there, each with their own expressions. Piper was glad that their friends were having a close relationship, Finn was just readily his camera, Junko was confused over the whole situation, Radarr was watchful, Aerrow was a bit concerned, and Stork was still in his paranoid phase as he quietly yet nervously said, "Oh no, they're mating. It's the end of the world."

"Stork, stop being so paranoid," the leader whispered before adding, "Although, I'm a little concern about them moving a little fast." Even though Emma wasn't part of the team, she was still living with them for now. As such, the red head didn't want her to do something she'll regret later.

The specialist just rolled her eyes and responded, "Come on, Aerrow, I think Emma is a little smarter than that. Besides, she's seems happier with Dick here." The others looked back, still seeing the two Gaians kissing each other. They continued to watch until the tanned girl noticed the sharpshooter and asked, "Finn… What are you doing?"

He just looked at her and answered, "Well, since we have two Gaians kissing each other, I think I should take a picture of this moment for proof and blackmail." Just like Finn, he was always do things that most likely would benefit him in some way. The others just took a few seconds to sink in before doing what they do best to Finn, playfully beating him up and trying to grab the camera.

It wasn't before long the couple noticed and looked at the sky squadron wrestling on the ground. The brunette quickly figured out what they were doing before blushing like mad. She didn't mind that she was seen being kiss; it was showing everyone her emotions up front. Dick was just mad at them for just ruining the moment.

His girlfriend just looked at him and said, "It's getting a little late, Dick. I think I'll be heading for bed." She got up and started to head towards her room, being a little slow to her pace. While walking, she touched her lips and started to think about how intense she felt from it. Of course, she didn't know if it was true or not. 'Dick is truly an amazing guy… Of course, I don't know if my feelings are true or just another crush.'

"You shouldn't have any doubts, kit. I know I love you." Emma heard Dick telepathically say to her. She just stopped and paled. She definitely needed to learn how to block her thoughts from Espers.

Author's Notes:

Okay, so this is based on one-on-one RPs with Hawk-Masters and he really wanted a short story involving this pairing. You guys can also think of this as make-up for my lateness on the FC chapter. I'm still sorry about that.

Anyway, this is like another attempt at writing romance (Two Stories in my Fairy Tales series are kinda romance). I think I did pretty fine, although I still have doubts on this concept of fanfic writing. Of course, this is why the world has critics; in order to tell if someone's work is okay or not.

Anyway, please Read and Review!