NOTE: This is derived from the "Swept Away" RP continuity which started in 2007 and has continued in various forms and spinoffs ever since, first on the old Hillbilly Hell forum and presently in Wingnut City. I'm sure it's not the first or only "Humans in the Carsverse" thing that ever came up. So what?
Disclaimer: I don't own nuttin' here with the exception of my own OC's. All things canon in the Cars/Planes 'verse are the property of Disney/Pixar.
It was but a minute's hop from the base to Eightball's LZ, and Blade had done it about nine or ten times over the last month. His approach was careful, but not too hesitant. It was perhaps eight hundred feet from the camp proper, in a clearing surrounded by pines that acted as an effective baffle for the noise and wash. There was a pathway, cleared and graded, along which Blade picked his way, in no great hurry. He really, truly didn't have to be anywhere else sooner than 1400. To hell with it. The "Damned Futile Lodge" can wait.
As he turned around one last bend and a clump of blackberry bushes, Eightball came into view, and the HH-65 women were still in the middle of greeting their friends - not all of whom were on two legs, apparently. Bess and Shasta were just as eager as the humans to welcome the visitors, whining and wriggling with lowered ears and wildly gyrating tails. Blade paused for a few beats, taking this all in. Shasta, the "malusky" jumped up excitedly, bestowing wet kisses on the cheek of the copper-eyed one, while Bess, the little black Kelpie, offered a branch to the one with the two-toned seamist eyes. He raised his 'shades a bit as he saw "Misty Green Eyes" accept, tugging at the other end and growling playfully.
The air boss continued to watch, blinking, as an absurdly mismatched tug-of-war took place, to the great amusement of the other onlookers. Despite the size and strength differential, though, the coastguardswoman kept perfect control over her movements, finally allowing the canine to "win" after a moment or two. While Bess trotted off triumphantly with her "spoils", the misty-eyed one and her companion finally took note of their new observer. First, they and Blade blinked at each other, taking in sight and scent, then there were slightly awkward smiles as they realized that he'd been watching all this time.
A small tug, also in bright USCG colors, zipped around to the nearest one. "Lieutenant, just hold still a sec if you please." He plucked out a fragment of wood that was still lodged in her teeth. Her smile became even more strained as she realized what she'd had in her mouth with HIM there, staring right at it ... with those eyes...
...As blue as Shasta's, just... bigger.
"Sorry, got a little carried away there." she said with a strained laugh. "Uh, thanks, Tad." The two and their attendant turned to face the blue-eyed stranger. The camp boss came forward at last. "Ladies, that's Blade. He's the chief of the park's air attack team." He turned the other way. "Blade, I'd like you to meet Bree and Juno - and Tad here."
"Pleased to meet you all." Blade had recomposed himself, and returned a polite smile as his eyes swept discreetly over the names, ranks and numbers stencilled on their sides - and the muted representations of service ribbons and decorations. Not blushing maidens then, but still fairly young. "We regret that the park is still recovering from last year's fire, but there's still quite a lot to see if you can get any time away from the conference this weekend."
"Indeed. That's why we flew in early." Juno was giving Blade a once-over in turn, once he'd completely come from around the bush. "There's already little purple flowers blooming in the burned-over areas. Didn't think they'd come in so fast."Actually, I didn't think YOU would come in so fast. But I don't mind at all. She moved in a little closer, then turned slightly with a sidelong glance. And yes, you can look at me a little longer.
"That's the wild thyme." Heathyr Lutz spoke up. "It just started blooming."
Bree, recognizing that Juno had gone into "hunt mode" without perhaps consciously realizing it, siezed the opportunity that Heathyr's momentary interjection gave her. "It is kinda amazing how nature just bounces back like that, isn't it? We've already heard a bit about you and your team, from our friends here. They're all good things, though, so you can breathe easy, Chief Ranger."
"Oh, just "Blade", if you don't mind." the air boss requested, but Bree's note of his status already had the desired effect of backing Juno off a bit. Blade reacted by relaxing slightly as Juno pulled out of his space. "Perhaps you can meet the rest of the team later, after our little "rehearsal". We'll be down at the conference for opening ceremonies, and some demos over the next few days."
"Looking forward to it." Bree kept up the patter. "We'll be doing a demo ourselves, and that competition later. This is the first time we've ever been to anything like this. I've heard some are coming all the way from Europe for it."
Blade was appreciative of the breathing space Bree's intervention was affording him. "Well, I'll admit it's the first time for us, too. Nobody would call us "social animals", but we'll do the best that we can." He squared himself up. "So, welcome to Piston Peak, and I hope you enjoy your visit."
"Thank you." Juno smiled. Something in Blade's body language hinted that he'd had more experience in dealing with an excess of female interest, at some point in the past, and he'd reverted to it quickly after the initial moment of rustiness. It didn't surprise her, he was damned good-looking for his age, in top shape, and had a readily palpable presence that the passage of time hadn't dimmed. "And I'm enjoying it already. Like you said, so much to see." She could feel one of Bree's famous slightly reproachful gazes boring a hole in her port side, and would certainly be hearing more about it later, but hell, a girl could dream...
"We're having coffee in a bit." Daryl broke in, "Would be no problem at all to put a bit more on."
"That would be good." Bree nodded. "We've been flying two days, and started out this morning around 0400."
"You're gonna have a long day." Daryl chuckled. He turned to call out to the kitchen, but Dawn was already fetching the steel food-grade buckets they would be using to draw enough water for all that coffee. Dean, Jurgen, Alan and Sylvie were already getting ready to join the others in their assigned tasks for that morning, and would soon be out. No matter what was going on in the rest of the park, they still had their usual work.
From the tent porch, Maeve was watching as she sat and nursed Myfanwy. She had definitely seen THIS coming. To human eyes, Blade was something to see, in that "magnificent creature" sense, like a gryphon surveying the domains about his aerie. To certain women of his kind, that would be magnetic, despite his years.
And Juno, from what she'd observed, was one of those "certain women."
As far as keeping her friend's mind on business was concerned, Bree was going to have her metaphorical hands full.
"Curious? Of course he was. If only he knew what he was possibly letting himself in for." Dawn tied bands around another bundle of brush, to join the pile she and the other members of the work crew were already making on a horse-drawn sledge parked at the trail end. "And you already know about Juno's thing for the "studly older guy" types. She'll be spending the rest of the weekend scheming out how to add Blade's number to her little black book. Assuming he lets her get that close in the first place."
After one week here, Dawn Hurley she figured she had a pretty good handle on the camp's closest neighbors. The air attack team boss had maintained a pleasant, if reserved front as he got further acquainted with the Coast Guard helos. Juno was polite, but definitely focused, requiring Bree to perform a couple of discreet "Earth to Juno" maneuvers. Dawn had left too early to see the end of it, though the sounds of Blade's rotors echoing out a little later told that he had departed for his morning patrol at the usual time.
From atop the brush pile, Dean Haspiell hauled the new bale into place. "OK, so she's got the hots for him. Good luck to her on that. To all appearances, Blade's a friggin' monk. I mean, he's been up here HOW long? You ask Jammer, he can tell you about the first day they met on such-and-such a date way back in '83. Or somewhere around that time. If he's "had any" in the last like, three decades, Jammer of all people would know."
Jurgen, who held the reins, held a finger to his smirking lips. "Shhhh. If the slightest little breeze makes a tree rustle at the north end of this valley, you had better believe that red devil can hear it at the south."
"Thirty years, huh?" Dean whistled as he secured the load. "More than enough time to get to know a place. If a tree falls in the forest, does anybody hear? Blade does."
Dawn wiped her gloves. "Guys? You've, like, seen that bunch he has to be in charge of? Super-senses above and beyond those of the average chopper would be a perequisite for the job."
"I would think." Jurgen shrugged. "They're exactly the sort who dream up all sorts of trouble you could never forbid them to do because you couldn't imagine it in the first place. Who else could survive them?" He clucked to the horses and slapped the reins as Dean jumped off. "Have fun replanting, you crazy kids."
Dawn wiped her forehead as she watched Jurgen drive off, down to the point of the extreme limits of vehicle-friendly terrain where a couple of the smokejumpers were waiting to transfer the load to a trailer and from there to a mulcher. Most of the snags had already been cleared out, now for the seedlings, which had been carefully cultivated from progenitors found within the park's bounds, against the possibility of such disasters as last year's. Three or four hours of this, then grab some lunch and hopefully a shower before she caught a ride down to the lodge airstrip with Sylvie. Their support trailer was already in place, so no bathroom worries and enough food and drink to carry them through to the night. If she HAD to work around a large number of vehicles completely unused to humans, aircraft, relatively predictable and slow-moving on the ground, were the best choice.
THE PREVIOUS NIGHT:
Mr. Cheng was in the midst of packing up CPT Parsons' travel chest. Her service and lifetime maintenance documents, papers for the conference, supplements, personal items and any medications, if needed, were included in the contents. The captain herself was getting one last briefing from her superior before departure, and wasn't around to oversee the tug's preparations. The female officers' quarters on the base were relatively alien territory to him, and he was picking carefully through his new charge's belongings, going by a list she'd given before heading off to her meeting. In spite of his orders, he still felt like an unwelcome intruder, rifling through a woman's private things.
At last, he stopped before the medicine/utitilty locker, and peered inside. Nutritional supplements, check. Basic medications, check. Prescription hormonal suppressant, check. That last was a bit of a novelty to him. He piled the items on the list into a plastic container and bundled them over to the slab-sided, olive-drab chest. Mr. Cheng's unease added to his haste, which had its consequences as the open container slid out of his forks two feet short of their intended destination. Groaning in irritation, he stooped and gathered everything that he could see, then plunked the box down among other little boxes in the chest.
What he hadn't noticed or thought of, however, was the bottle of hormonal suppressant, which had rolled beneath him and then out of sight, back under the wall locker.
THE PRESENT:
"Piston Peak Tower to Parsons November Four Three Six Five Seven." a male voice responded to Leigh's inquiry. "You are cleared to land at helipad two-west and proceed to the lodge aircraft reception area at the main gate. Be advised that there are humans in the zone and take extra care in your ground movements."
"Roger." Leigh followed the course laid out for her. The late afternoon was still bright and there was only a light breeze blowing out of the northwest. Her flight had begun in Edmonton at 0300 that morning, with several brief refuelling stops along the way. The wind might not have been an issue for Leigh, but the all the late-spring pollen in the air definitely was, and as she descended below 4000 AGL, it filled her nostrils and intakes and made her insides itch. At this time of the year, it was one more little misery she had to put up with, on top of the unwanted trip and the unfamiliar caretaker. She hoped that she would get at least some "alone time" before she had to go to the conference opening... wash off the pollen, get a bit of sleep... what were the odds of that happening?
In Leigh's main compartment, Mr. Cheng stirred. She could feel him brace for landing, a few seconds before her undercarriage kissed the tarmac. Whatever else could be said about Leigh, no one could fault her landings. Major Siglavy was a lot less delicate in his approach. The tug would have nothing to complain about, of that she was determined. Just as soon as she touched down, Leigh rolled out smartly... then sneezed. It was then that she saw one of the humans she'd been told of.
The first visual impression was of something reed-like, topped with cornsilk of a slightly reddish-gold hue. It had arms, and wore a bright safety vest, and the appendages at the ends of its arms bore marshaller's paddles, moving them out to the sides in military style, or having been trained that way. As it turned, a fair, freckled face came into view, though partially obscured by a billed cap and ear protectors. Leigh did her best to blow the pollen out of her nose so she could get a whiff of this new thing. The marshaller made a sweeping gesture to the right, and a second or two passed before the Agusta cross realized that the signal was meant for her. Leigh's cheeks darkened slightly under the olive paint as she hastened past, allowing lots of space between her and that delicate-looking little creature.
Even after joining the line to reception, Leigh kept looking back . There was one other human, in the distance, marshalling fixed-wing arrivals. They both had small, slender frames and long hair. Must be females, from what she'd already seen on TV and the net. Inside, Mr. Cheng tapped at her hatch pane; she opened it and the little tug hopped out, shading his eyes as he also took in the curious sight for a moment or two, before they reached the reception booth and he presented their reservation documents. Leigh sneezed again as the clerk passed over the suite keys to her aide; he jumped slightly before ushering the captain on to the lodge's large vehicle entrance.
The sneeze was loud enough that Dawn could hear it, all the way back at Helipad Two. Yeah, pollen season. Must really suck to have allergies.
