AN: So, this probably could've been uploaded sooner, but I kept getting distracted by other things and forgetting to proofread it.

In any case, here it is now.

I'm a little nervous, because this is the most I've ever actually added on to the established canon (which… isn't saying much, but it's significant for me). The one thing I'm really excited about is that the dialogue seems to flow really well, better than anything I've written (to me, at least), and that makes me happy. There are patches of it that still seem a bit rough to me, but overall I'm really pleased with it.

If you read it please let me know what you think!

Enjoy!


58. Drive

Kate: Thanks very much, but you don't know me. And I don't know you.
Harvey: That's exactly why we should have lunch together.
~Overture Films' Last Chance Harvey

XR drummed his fingers against the door, scowling.

He didn't understand why they had to drive to this place. Driving was so slow… Going by jetpack would even be faster. In this tiny car, strapped down in this seat, he felt – confined, hindered somehow.

But this feeling of entrapment amounted to only half his frustration. Being forced into a car had become slightly less unappealing when he'd learned he'd be riding with Mira. Faced with the prospect of spending some time alone with her suddenly made driving seem like a very good idea indeed. Here was the perfect opportunity to talk with her, get to know her better – he'd have her alone for a good hour, at least, he could ask her whatever he wanted.

Twenty minutes down the road neither one of them had said anything.

His frown deepened. This was his big chance to get to know her better, and he couldn't think of one good question. XR crossed his arms forcefully and let out an aggravated sigh. He was blowing this…

"Something wrong?"

He actually jumped in his seat. "Oh – yeah, I was… just thinking."

"Oh? Um, what were you… thinking about?"

He stared at her. She was finally talking – he had to keep this going. Quick, what had he been thinking about… Well, he'd been thinking about how great it was that he'd gotten her alone – no, he couldn't say that, that sounded creepy – but he had to say something "I wanted to ask you… uhh, read any good books lately?"

He mentally smacked himself. So much for deep insightful questions.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Well- actually, yeah, I found this weird novel that turned out to be really interesting."

He gaped at her. Did that- just work? "Oh… yeah? What, umm, what was it about?"

"Well… it was… it's kinda hard to explain." She chewed her lip thoughtfully. "There's this girl who's kind of shunned by society because she has green skin."

He raised his eyebrows. "That's odd." He'd met plenty of green chicks, most of them were quite attractive.

"Yeah, I know… but it was actually really good," she said, shrugging.

"Oh. …Well, uhh… Maybe I'll read it sometime." Yeah, right.

She nodded out the window and there was silence. Again.

Well, he wouldn't let it last this time. He nibbled his lower lip, thinking.

"So… seen any good movies?"

Ugh. He failed at this.

She laughed – at his apparent inability to make actual conversation, he thought, before she said "Last time I went to the movies was with you and Booster, and he cried through most of the second half."

"Oh, yeah," XR said, chuckling as he remembered. The movie had actually been really good; an old film that was way ahead of its time, about a robot who saves a starliner full of organics. It'd been nice to see robots in such prominent roles, especially in such an old film- robots were still sadly underrepresented in the movies. Of course, this hadn't mattered so much to Booster, who had been too caught up in what he'd called the 'pure love' of the two leads. It had actually been kind of funny watching him blubber like that over something that wasn't real. Sure, it'd been a decent story, but XR hadn't felt the need to use up a whole box of tissues.

He blinked out the window. Had it really been that long since he'd gone to the movies? "We should go again sometime," he said absentmindedly.

She turned sharply, eyes wide. "W-we?"

"You, me, and Booster," he clarified dully. But nice to know the idea of being alone with him was so appealing to her. Why had she even agreed to get in the car with him, if it bothered her so much…

"Okay." She nodded, visibly calmer. "Okay, yeah. Maybe we can go next weekend."

"What about this weekend?"

She shook her head. "I can't. I'm going to visit my father. It's his birthday."

"…Oh. Tell him I said happy birthday," he said without thinking.

"Okay," she chuckled. "Can't wait to see his reaction to that one."

XR let the scene play out in his head and snickered. "Yeah… your dad really doesn't like us, does he," he muttered absently, then his eyes widened and he glanced nervously over at Mira… But thankfully she didn't look angry, she just stared out the window and sighed heavily.

"He's just… worried about the future of his planet."

XR raised an eyebrow. "Aaand… he's afraid we're going to try and conquer it?" he quipped, grinning to himself.

She didn't laugh. "In his mind, you already have."

XR jumped. He turned in his seat, blinking up at her. "What?!"

"My father will agree that joining the Galactic Alliance was a good thing, in many ways. But…" She bit her lip. "Tangeans value their… independence," she said slowly. "They don't believe any outsider should be allowed to tell them what to do. Many of the elders weren't happy with my father when he agreed to join the Alliance. He managed to persuade them that Tangea would be able to retain its monarchy, that the Alliance would protect them, not attempt to rule over them. And Zurg helped convince all of them that maybe otherworld alliances weren't such a bad idea," she added with a sardonic grin. "But now…" She faltered, trailing off and staring out the window.

He didn't want her to stop talking. "Now?" he prompted.

"Now… he's being pressured by the elders about… well, about me."

"About you?"

She nodded grimly. "The elders don't like it that the heir to the throne is so involved in… outworlder affairs." She made a face. "They're worried I'll be… influenced by otherworld politics and try to change the structure of Tangea's government."

He couldn't see what the big deal was. Mira wasn't some evil dictator, what was so dangerous about what she was doing? "Well… what's wrong with change?"

She shook her head. "XR, my people are very tradition-minded. They believe the reason they've survived for centuries – with no help from other planets – is that they've managed to hold onto their beliefs. They're afraid that any change, no matter how small it may be, will have disastrous consequences."

XR sat back in his seat and let out a long, low whistle. Golly… those snobs weren't messing around. "Little paranoid, isn't it?"

She shrugged. "Maybe. I've never understood it, personally. But my father insists it's just normal Tangean thinking."

He blinked. Normal Tangean thinking… "But… you don't think like that."

She was silent for a long time. He glanced over at her- her expression had become very distant.

"No." Her voice sounded oddly hollow.

He flinched. Something about her tone made him uneasy, it just didn't sound like her, it didn't sound right… He squirmed in his seat, trying to think of some way to lighten the mood. "How did you ever get along with those people?" he blurted, then froze, realizingthat technically she was one of those people. Funny how little he actually thought of her that way…

She didn't seem to find anything weird about what he'd said. "It wasn't easy," she answered dully. "The elders were always wary of me, even when I was little, because of… well, because of my mother."

XR stiffened. He had never, ever heard her talk about her mother. It was a very sensitive issue with her; Buzz had asked her about her mother once and she'd gotten so upset with him none of them had ever dared to bring it up again. She'd never mentioned her mother on her own. He squirmed in his seat, torn between curiosity and a desire to hear more about her, and intense fear of making her mad, or having her suddenly clam up.

"Your, umm… your mother?" he asked, trying to keep his tone as light and neutral as possible.

She nodded. "My mother was… well, she was a free spirit. Something the elders didn't exactly appreciate."

He relaxed slightly. She was still talking. This trip was salvageable yet. He nodded encouragingly, trying not to interrupt her train of thought.

To his delight, she kept talking. "As a queen, she was respected. She had a warmth, a caring nature that people recognized as a mark of a good wife, a good… mother." He couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw her shiver slightly. "She always stood behind my father, never tried to assert her own authority… she was quiet and obedient, everything a good wife is supposed to be." She glared out the window and gritted her teeth. He flinched, averting his gaze and twiddling his thumbs absently. "She did everything she was told. And she was loved for it." Her tone softened- her eyes unfocused slightly. "But it was no secret she wanted more."

"More?" he asked before he could stop himself.

Mira nodded. "She felt… confined by palace life. She was incredibly curious about other planets, other cultures. She dreamed of leaving Tangea and exploring new worlds. For any Tangean to think like that would have been highly unusual; for the ruler of their people, it was dangerous."

XR swallowed hard. So her mother was judged for even thinking of leaving the planet. "No wonder they're worried about you."

She nodded. "When I was born, the elders were afraid my mother would have a negative influence on my way of thinking. They tried to stop her from filling me with the same passion for otherworld cultures. But they couldn't," she said forcefully, a fierce note of pride coming into her voice. XR subconsciously sat up straighter. "She made me who I am today. I never would have made it this far if it wasn't for her."

XR turned to stare out the window. An odd emptiness he couldn't quite explain had settled in his chest.

"She sounds like a great person," he said softly.

"The best," Mira answered quietly. She smiled slightly. "She used to tell me stories. She'd tell me all about the otherworlds, how their inhabitants were so brave and strong, and how they could go on all the exciting adventures they wanted to."

XR had a sudden image of Mira as a kid – for some reason she was carrying a fuzzy pink blanket – crawling up into her mother's lap and asking for another story. Mira's mother looked… well, like Mira, only older, and… somehow more like he'd imagine a queen would look. Sort of calm, dignified, all regal – she was pretty. And Mira made a cute kid.

"At the time, of course, I was amazed that she knew so much about places outside of Tangea," Mira went on, that distant smile widening. "Looking back I'm surprised I didn't realize sooner that she made all those stories up. She never left Tangea, not once in her whole life. But the way she told them… she made them all seem real."

He nodded vaguely. "So… she got you excited to see the galaxy."

"Yes. She wanted so much to leave Tangea, to see what else was out there… It was her idea to join the Galactic Alliance."

XR's eyes widened. "But… but I thought your father… didn't he…?"

Mira shook her head. "He's the one who finally agreed to join. But he never wanted to, not in the beginning. My mother was the first one to show actual interest in the idea."

She fell silent again. He couldn't let her stop talking, not now. "What do you mean?" he prodded anxiously.

Mira sighed. "Tangea was one of the last planets in the galaxy to hear about the Alliance. Isolated as it is," she added with a scowl. "By the time word reached us, most of the galaxy had already joined. I'll never forget… how excited my mother was… she thought she'd finally gotten her chance to see the galaxy, to meet otherworlders, to live her dream… She begged my father to join."

"And he… said no." It wasn't a question.

Mira's expression darkened. "He knew the elders disapproved of my mother's 'childish fancies.'" She made air quotes with one hand, frowning. "He knew what the elders really thought of her. They considered her inferior, thought she shouldn't be allowed to have the throne. I think… I think he was afraid they might revolt."

XR stared at her. "But… I thought Tangeans weren't military-minded."

She shook her head. "No, it wouldn't have been like that. My father was afraid the elders might see her as a weakness, that they might decide to give the throne to another family."

XR considered this for a moment. "…They can do that?"

Mira shrugged. "Apparently. We have too many laws anyway, I can't keep up with them." She shook her head, wrinkling her nose. "Anyway… my mother was so eager to learn about different ideologies, my father was afraid she'd try to incorporate them into Tangean law. He was afraid- like every other Tangean- of change. He said no. And the king's word is final." She paused, staring off into the distance. Her voice lowered to a whisper. "She was crushed."

XR wrung his hands in his lap. "They didn't… get along, did they?"

Mira sighed heavily. "Well… no, not at first. My mother never did get over the fact that her husband was chosen for her. But my father… well, he absolutely adored her."

XR blinked. "Even though she was… well, different?"

"Tangeans can discount individuality as much as they want to, but the fact is that even they aren't perfect little copies of each other," she said forcefully. "My father saw great passion, great spirit in my mother, and he loved her for that. He tried, he really did, to make her happy – and I think over time, she started to admire him for who he was. He wasn't what she dreamed, but he truly did care about her. You know?"

Oh, if she only knew. His engine was revving uncomfortably and he squirmed in his seat. "Yeah." He hastily cleared his throat. "So… if- if your father loved her so much, why didn't he just join the Alliance? If it would have made her happy…"

"He thought he was protecting her," Mira sighed sadly. "Uprisings aside, he was afraid she'd be disappointed by what she discovered. He didn't share my mother's romanticized view of outworlders. He accepted the 'normal' way of thinking that any non-Tangean was inferior, savage even. He was afraid that disappointment would crush her spirit – the spirit he admired."

"So, instead he decided to keep her locked up?" XR huffed.

"He thought it was for the best." She sighed heavily. "The ironic thing is it may just have been what ended up…" She stopped suddenly, her eyes widening and her whole body going rigid.

He shivered in the sudden silence. "Ended up… what?"

Mira didn't answer. She was silent for a very long time and he was just starting to worry that he'd pushed his luck when she finally spoke, in barely more than a whisper. "A few months after we first received news of the Alliance, my mother became very sick. Nothing we tried seemed to help. She hated being sick – she hated anything that held her back – and she tried to fight it, but she just… couldn't." Mira shuddered. "I hated seeing her like that. It didn't seem right… she'd always been so strong, it just didn't seem… fair that an enemy she couldn't even see could overtake her like that."

She stared out the windshield, a haunted look in her eyes. XR shifted uncomfortably. Never having watched someone waste away, he couldn't fathom what she was feeling. "That… must've been… hard," he stammered lamely.

"It was awful," she murmured. She sat back, taking a deep breath. When she spoke again her voice was clearer, stronger. "I begged my father to reconsider his decision. None of our treatments had done anything for my mother, and I was convinced the answer was with the Alliance. Mother had always made the otherworlds sound so wonderful, I was sure one of them would have the cure she needed."

XR gaped at her. "And he still wouldn't join?"

She shook her head. "He told me the Alliance wouldn't save her, it would destroy her. I argued that it was what Mother wanted, and if he loved her he'd at least try to help her." She winced. "He told me that I didn't know what I was talking about, that I was too young to understand. I… said I wasn't too young, and… I understood that he didn't even know how to take care of her."

Her voice trailed off. XR sat back in his seat, staring blankly ahead. So – Mira and her father had always fought like that. He tried to imagine younger Mira so angry. In that context it didn't seem cute, it seemed… sad.

"…Wow." Was all he could say.

"Yeah. He wasn't happy with me after that. At the time I didn't care, I just wanted Mother to be okay. But she wasn't getting better, she was getting worse. Soon I wasn't even allowed to go in to see her anymore. My father tried to assure me everything would be fine."

She was silent once more. It was a very uneasy silence. He shifted his feet, gnawing on his lip. He could tell where this was going, knew without asking what was going to happen next. He didn't need to hear her say it – and yet he didn't want her to stop talking.

"It wasn't fine, was it?" he offered meekly.

She stared out the windshield. Her eyes were all misted over. "I was seven," she whispered.

An odd sort of queasiness came over him. Not like he needed to be sick queasy, more like… an unbearable sadness. It didn't feel nice… and it had to be at least a thousand times worse for her. "Mira, I'm… I'm so sorry…"

She looked over at him. "Oh – it's okay, XR. I don't think I could have done anything differently."

He nodded, wringing his hands in his lap. "Did… you and your father ever make up?"

"Well – it took us both a long time to get over what had happened. I… I blamed him for it and wouldn't talk to him for several weeks. He went back and forth between trying to be overly-nice to get me to talk again and being furious that I was acting so immature. Eventually I think we both just realized there was nothing we could do to change the situation. And we were the only family each other had. Nothing was ever the same, though. My father became extremely over-protective of me… well, he didn't want to lose me too. And as I got older and it became clear that I would be… well, different – not a little different, but different like my mother different – he wasn't pleased. I think he's always afraid something terrible will happen to me."

XR's stomach twisted. "Is that why he hates you being in the rangers so much?"

"Yep. He wants me safe at home, where he can keep an eye on me." She rolled her eyes, then sighed. "I guess I can't really blame him. It's nice that he cares about me. It's just so annoying sometimes. I can take care of myself. But he's always treated me like I can't." She scowled out the windshield.

"So… is that why you snuck out of the palace?"

"Well… I guess that was part of it." She shrugged. "Mostly I was just bored. Listening to the elders ramble on about ancient law was nothing compared to one of my mother's stories. I was fed up with Tangea; I wanted to see the galaxy. But I couldn't exactly leave the planet, so I figured I'd start with Tangea's surface. It was practically a different world, anyway- I didn't know anything about it."

"And- was it everything you hoped it'd be?"

"At first, yeah," she said, smiling fondly in remembrance. "The surface was so different from the palace… everything was mysterious, and beautiful, and…. alive. Everything was so wonderful, I couldn't understand why other Tangeans hated it so much. Nothing seemed dangerous about the surface. …Well, except the Grounders. I can admit they aren't very pleasant. Well, except for Romac."

Oh. Right, he'd heard this part before. Romac. Ugh, he really didn't want to hear about her ex-boyfriend. But what else could he do? Struggle for new material for another half hour? It might not be so bad… After all, she'd agreed to go out with him. Obviously he'd done something right. And from what he'd seen and heard, she clearly had very strong feelings for him. Maybe- if he could figure out what had made that relationship so successful… It was worth a try, anyway.

"And, what… what made you, umm… why were you…" He choked on the words.

She raised an eyebrow. "Attracted to him?" she offered.

He cleared his throat anxiously. "Yeah, that."

She bit her lip. "You know, I… I don't know if I feel comfortable talking about this…"

He stared at her. After telling him all about her mother's death, suddenly this was awkward? "C'mon, Mira, I'm really curious!"

Apparently this was not a good thing to say, as she glared over at him. He quickly added "I promise I won't say anything inappropriate, really." And he crossed his heart. …Engine. Whatever. Same thing.

Her eyes narrowed. "Okay, look – one rude comment and that's it, okay?"

He nodded. "Agreed."

She sat back, taking a deep breath. She hesitated for a moment, then started talking, slowly. "Well… right away, there was… there was a spark. It was… new, it was exciting. Romac was the first non-Tangean I'd ever met. He was- so different from everyone I knew. It was… well, it was refreshing. We got along right from the beginning. It was so easy to talk to him, like we'd known each other all our lives. He was such a gentleman, so… well, romantic… and so handsome." She sighed wistfully, and her eyes sort of glazed over as she stared out the windshield.

XR rolled his eyes. What was handsome? Handsome was nothing. It was personality that mattered, really. …Not that he wasn't good-looking, because… well, he was…

"It was exciting, being with Romac." She was talking again. He pulled himself out of his own thoughts to listen. "He was completely free; free from palace walls, from confining rules, from boring, everlasting routine. With him all of Tangea was suddenly open to me. I was living the adventure my mother had always dreamed of."

She paused, chewing on her lip. "But I think… more than anything else, I knew that he was different. He wasn't like the other Grounders, he was smart and well-mannered and… just different. And I was different. Neither of us really fit in with our own people, so it just seemed… right that we'd be together."

XR nodded, shifting his feet awkwardly. Something in her words had struck a chord within him; he couldn't explain why, but that empty feeling was back, and stronger than before.

"Your father didn't think so." It was the only thing he could think to say.

"No, he didn't." Her voice was soft, resigned. "Romac represented everything he feared – everything that, in his mind, had robbed him of his wife. The night he found out about us…" She shivered. "I'd never seen him so angry. Not even when my mother had been sick. It scared me." She trailed off, staring out the windshield.

XR watched her, wringing his hands. "Is that why you… didn't go after him?"

She nodded ever so slightly. "That's why."

He moaned, clutching at his service panel. What would be worse… never knowing the answer to this next question, or getting an answer he didn't want to hear? He chewed on his lip. Finally he decided the worst thing would be for Mira to stop talking.

"Do you… do you think you would, now?"

She bit her lip. For a long time she said nothing. After a while he began to worry that he'd offended her and was starting to think of ways to change the subject…

"I don't know," she finally said. He jumped, blinking up at her. She was staring out the window, her brow furrowed. "Romac was… well, I used to think he was perfect for me. But… now I wonder if a lot of the appeal wasn't just excitement. Before I met him I'd never even been outside the palace walls. He was new, he was different. Now I've been across the galaxy. I've… changed. He's changed. I just… I don't know. I still care about him. Maybe. I'd have to talk to him first. Get to know him again."

He nodded, feeling slightly relieved. That at least was an answer he could handle.

But what could he ask her now? "So… have you, umm… has he been your only, uh…"

"Boyfriend?" she finished, eyebrows raised.

He swallowed hard and nodded. "Yeah, that."

"Yep. Well, unless you want to count Fop." She wrinkled her nose. "Oh, that's another thing I'm not looking forward to. My father keeps trying to shove suitors in my face. As if I'll suddenly be interested in the same guys I've been saying no to for years." XR shuddered. "He just doesn't seem to get that I'm just not attracted to any of them. He seems more concerned about keeping the bloodline pure than my happiness." She shook her head.

XR blinked up at her. "So… you can't see yourself actually… marrying someone your own species?"

She snorted. "Well, when you put it that way, it just sounds weird."

He flinched, worried he might've upset her- but then she turned and grinned at him. He smiled back sheepishly.

"I guess… species just never mattered to me." She shrugged. "I never felt weird or uncomfortable when I was with Romac. He accepted me for what I was, and that was enough. What my father never understood is that inter-species relationships can work. If two people really get along, really care about each other, species shouldn't matter."

XR squirmed against seatbelt. "Yeah." His voice came out kind of shaky and he cleared his throat.

She glanced over at him. "You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, fine." He didn't sound fine, his voice was all high-pitched and squeaky. He cleared his throat again, loudly. If he didn't want this to get very awkward very fast, he needed to keep the conversation focused on her. "So, um… so, your father eventually did join the Alliance."

She watched him carefully for a minute, then nodded. "Yep. Being captured by Zurg isn't something you forget easily." She shivered and he shuddered. That was something they'd both had ample experience in. It wasn't something you soon forgot. "We're just lucky that Buzz was there. He saved my father- he saved my planet. If he hadn't been there… well, I don't want to think about what might have happened."

XR nodded vaguely. "Yep." Buzz was a great guy, alright. Everyone was lucky to have him around. Of course, that was probably why Mira seemed to like him so much. She owed the safety of her whole planet to him.

That still didn't mean he felt like talking about Buzz. He wanted to keep hearing about her story.

"So… why'd you become a space ranger?" She never had to join Star Command, he realized suddenly. Buzz hadn't been recruiting that day, he'd just been in charge of security. Mira'd been able to persuade her father to join the Alliance; Tangea was no longer isolated. Why had she felt the need to go into such a dangerous career? Certainly there were safer ways of seeing the galaxy…

She glanced over at him. "What do you mean? You know the story… Buzz saved my planet…"

He shook his head. "I know what made you become a space ranger. I want to know why you did it."

She didn't answer right away. He was probably not making any sense at all. He glanced up at her- she was frowning slightly, but not like she was upset. More like… she was trying to solve a problem.

"Well… I guess… it seemed like the perfect chance to do something with myself. Something important, something that… well, that mattered. Tangeans only think about what goes on on Tangea. When we became part of the Galactic Alliance, I wanted to serve it somehow. I wanted to protect people… to help people."

"Oh," he said softly. So – this was more than a chance to escape her planet. Much more. "This… this really means a lot to you, doesn't it?"

"Oh, of course. I don't know what I'd do without the Rangers."

And I don't know what I'd do without you ran across his mind and he shook his head. "How'd you convince your father to let you go?"

She sighed heavily. "It wasn't easy. But he was… impressed with the way Buzz dealt with the situation. Buzz helped convince him that not all outworlders meant harm. And… I think he was proud of the way I handled myself. I think… I think he realized I would never be happy with palace life. I almost think – no, it's stupid." She trailed off, her cheeks turning the slightest of pinks.

"What, what?" he urged, leaning forward in his seat.

She bit her lip. "Well… I think it may have been his way of saying he was wrong, and that… he was sorry."

XR stared up at her. That empty feeling was stronger than ever. "That's not stupid," he said softly. No, not stupid at all.

Her blush deepened and for a moment he actually considered, actually thought, what would be the harm in telling her, just letting her know right here and now everything he felt about her…

"Things were… better between us after that."

He shook his head, staring up at her incredulously. "Better?"

He'd risk losing one of his closest friends. That was the harm.

She chuckled. "Yeah, believe it or not. I was finally happy, and I think it made him happy to see that. I mean, yeah, he's not thrilled that I'm running around the galaxy when I could be preparing to take over the throne… But I have to hand it to him, he's never actually tried to get me out of the Rangers. He knows I can't stay a ranger forever and he's just patiently waiting for that day."

XR had the sudden sensation he'd just been kicked in the gut. Hard. "Wh-what d'you mean, you can't stay…?" He trailed off, unable to finish the thought.

She glanced over at him. "Well, someday I'll have to go back to Tangea… I mean, I'm the only heir… it's my responsibility… Unless the elders suddenly decide Tangea doesn't have to stay a monarchy. Which I honestly can't see happening," she muttered dryly, making a face.

There was an odd sort of whirring in his chest. How could he not have made the connection... Well, he supposed some part of him had to have known… But still. He just never thought of her that way. She was never 'Princess Mira' around him, she was just Mira, and that was all she ever had to be. She didn't have to be anything she wasn't, didn't have to feign interest in anything that didn't hold her attention… The thought that she would one day have to return to a life she hated, to be stuck in static palace life, upholding ancient law and practicing traditions she'd never cared for… It made his stomach churn. It just… it just didn't seem right…

"So… so one day you'll just have to go back there? For good?" His engine was starting to rev.

She shrugged. "There's nothing I can do. I don't have a choice, XR."

But… but that wasn't fair! "So you're just going to have to leave us? Just like that?" His voice cracked he whimpered.

She frowned slightly. "Hey, it's not like that, this is something I-" She glanced over at him and froze, her eyes widening slightly. "Hey, are you okay?"

He nodded, but he didn't feel okay, he felt empty and hot and shaky. "Yeah, I-I'm fine, it's just… geez, I'll miss you." He squeezed his eyes shut. He hated that his voice was trembling and that he was choking back tears.

She reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. He froze, gasping shakily.

"Hey… it's okay! Don't be upset, really… That's not gonna be for a long time. Don't worry about it, okay?"

He could only stare back at her, his lower lip trembling slightly. Her voice was so kind and reassuring- she'd never spoken to him like that before. Her hand was soft and warm and he shivered slightly, that simple little touch felt so good… Golly, he'd miss her so much…

She was watching him carefully, giving him a hopeful little smile, and he finally nodded slightly. There was no point in getting all worked up about something over which he had no control. She was here now, and that was what mattered. He'd just have to make the most of the time they had left.

"We're here."

His head snapped up. "What?"

The car slowed to a stop and Mira cut the engine, engulfing them in silence once more.

He sat perfectly still, staring out the windshield. "We- we're here?" It was over? Already?

"Yeah… but listen…" she said slowly, turning around in her seat to face him. "I… I had a nice time. It was… good to talk to you." She paused, grinning coyly. "You can be a good listener after all."

He shrugged. "Well, you're a lot more interesting than one of Buzz's lectures."

She laughed and his heart leapt – it was such a beautiful sound. She leaned back in her seat and tilted her head slightly, looking him over. "We should do this again sometime," she said suddenly, all trace of humor gone from her voice.

He stared back at her. She was – actually offering him this opportunity again? Giving him the chance to be alone with her? To learn more about her? Well, he wasn't about to say no to that. "Yeah, I- I'd really like that," he said, trying to keep his voice as even as possible.

She nodded back at him but said no more. Silence hung heavy in the air between them as she continued to watch him. He blinked, squirming slightly as his engine revved again. He wasn't used to her staring at him like this, it made him feel… exposed, somehow, the way she wouldn't look away… It was quickly making him uncomfortable and he edged toward the door.

"Well, um… we should… probably get inside."

She nodded, biting her lip. He undid his seatbelt and had just started reaching for the door when he felt her hand against his arm.

"XR, wait."

He swallowed hard, turning slowly to see her staring back at him with wide, searching eyes. There was something about the way she looked that was almost… vulnerable, and he shivered.

"What is it?"

"I just… I just wanted to… to tell you, that…" She sighed heavily. "What I told you tonight… it's… well, it's not an easy thing for me, even to think about. The things I told you tonight… I've… I've never been able to tell anyone before."

He gaped at her. She'd actually confided in him – told him things about her no one else knew?

"So, I guess… I guess I just want to thank you for listening. Really." And she smiled down at him.

His heart missed a beat. "I enjoyed it," he said sincerely.

She smiled back at him and his engine nearly melted inside him. She let go of his arm (much to his disappointment) and unbuckled her own seatbelt. "We'd better get inside."

"Yeah, okay." He turned back to the door, slowly. If he could have had his way they wouldn't have to go inside at all. They could stay out here and talk, all night, just the two of them, and he could hear more about her.

But he couldn't have what he wanted (could he ever?) and so he'd just have to wait for the next opportunity to be alone with her.

After all, he consoled himself, it sounded like he'd be getting that chance again soon.


The book is Gregory Maguire's Wicked.

And yes, the movie is WALL-E.

In case you were wondering. X3