Disclaimer: Gundam SEED and all its characters, mecha, worlds and other components belong to someone else. I own a laptop.

A/N: This is (or will be) a loose collection of oneshots and miniseries done for the endless-future LJ community's fic challenge. I chose to work with Set #2's themes for exploring the romantic pairing of Shiho Hahnenfuss and Miguel Ayman. Yes, I know they never met in canon. Yes, I know Miguel is most likely dead. Yes, this is a Very Random Pairing. Feel free to turn back anytime.

Theme 43: 'fortune favors the brave'

A day before the Battle of Boaz, Shiho reflects on her last encounter with a man she once knew.

Fool's Luck

The humming drone of machinery and engines is lulling, an accompaniment to the quiet that pervades the battleship at this hour. Only the patter of footsteps breaks the monotony every now and then.
There is nothing else to do; they are waiting for the enemy, lamps of vigilance lit at the eleventh hour for the unwelcome groom.

She touches her fingertips to the glass and looks out at the abyss beyond.

Space is the worst battlefield you can lose in, he told her once. On Earth, on solid ground, a cockpit hit ain't always fatal; blast shielding, explosion vents out the back. An eject button, and a parachute, if you're fighting in open sky. Swimming, on open sea. Even with a busted spacesuit, or a broken helmet. As long as there's air, you got hope.

But out there? Explosive decompression. Pop. You're screwed.

You're going out there yourself in a few days, she said, tone sharper than intended. What if you…

The unspoken word hung in the air. He had smiled that infuriating smile, patted her lightly on the head.

Won't happen, he replied. Fortune favors the brave.

She had swatted his hand away and frowned, annoyance warring with concern. More like the foolish. And if you're going to trade clichéd quotes, here's another; pride comes before a fall.

He chuckled. That too, that too… But there's truth in it, isn't there?

Just… be careful. Please?

…Can't possibly die with this much to live for, can I. A grin and a salacious wink, eliciting a blush. Then the usual stammered comeback, and his lighthearted teasing once more.

Her fingers leave the cold glass, rubbing at the warm moisture on her face.

'Fortune favors the brave'…

Turning away from the viewport, she inhales slowly, her shoulders sagging with released breath. A palm resting against the sill.

…was it that you didn't have enough of the former, Miguel, or too much of the latter?

The abyss does not answer.