AN: It's hard to have a yard sale when all you own are a pair of red house shoes.
What Happens When We Begin
"Could you give us a hand here," Rei asked as she and a blonde man slowly crossed the garden balancing several covered trays of sandwiches. Rei's companion also had a large stereo held by its handle in hand. Makoto and Heero were closest so they hurried forward to lend some aid. Introductions were quickly squared away so the group was able to relax. Duo, when told that they couldn't eat until everyone else showed up, was quick to suggest making use of Quatre's boom box.
"Let's work up an appetite then." The friends moved to the gazebo where the hardwood floor would make for better dancing. At first, the music was only the C.D.'s Quatre had brought. Waltzes and tangos, or at least parodies of them on Minako and Duo's part, were performed with much laughter and clapping.
"Wow, Rei. Your dancing has really improved," gushed Makoto as she and Heero whisked by on their circuit around the floor. Rei blushed and mumbled something about great partners making the difference.
"I don't know about you guys, but I am more for modern dancing," Duo said as he headed for the stereo. With a press of a button the stereo went from C.D. player to FM radio. The braided man quickly tuned into the nearest Top Twenty station and grinned as he grabbed his date's hand. "That's much better!" Minako and Duo broke into a playful bump and grind to the beat of some Pop Diva's latest chart ranking hit. Their exuberance quickly infected the rest of the group and soon everyone was testing out their latest dance moves.
It was lucky for the parched dancers that Ami and the man she introduced as Trowa arrived with two coolers filled with icy cold drinks. "Oh, bless you, Ami! You brought Blue Sky root beer! " The refreshment selection was pretty extensive. Root beer, Coca-Cola, some type of bottled water, a few types of Snapple, and cream sodas were the most popular. The radio now tuned to an easy listening station, everyone retired to the shaded quilt to cool off.
"Heads up!" came a shout from behind the picnickers. Makoto turned just in time to catch a peach that had been flying straight at her head. "Excellent reflexes, as usual!" Usagi giggled as she and her friend strode over, she with a small bag filled with peaches, him with two massive watermelons held tightly to his chest.
"Could someone…take one of these fardling things," the black haired man asked in a slightly strained voice. As Quatre and Trowa helped the tired man, Rei took Usagi aside.
"Why didn't you help him carry those heavy things?"
"Because," Usagi lifted her voice enough to be sure that Wufei heard her, "he insisted that a girl couldn't be of use. I just nodded and let him carry the melons all the way from the market." Makoto snorted as she lifted one of the melons and took it over into the grass. With a quick motion, she ripped the melon open to expose its pink insides. Wufei groaned and accepted the water bottle Heero tossed him. Usagi just giggled again and headed for the food.
"We're all here, so let's eat!"
"Here, here!" Rei handed out the paper plates she brought and announced that it was a self-serve picnic. Sandwiches and chips were grabbed and slices of melon were offered around. For a while, the only noises were quiet crunches, munches, smacks, and slurping as the group happily chowed down on the bountiful picnic. Ami sighed as she tucked into her second piece of pie, this one cherry.
"I can't believe I'm still eating. Usagi, Duo, you are bad influences." The two head gluttons merely groaned from the spots where they had settled down to rest while their over-stuffed stomachs digested in peace. An awake Suki playfully batted at the tip of braid that Duo idly waggled in front of her.
"It doesn't get much better than this, folks."
AN: The gang's all here. Now that I've got them where I want them…hopefully I'll have the next chapter out soon. Thank you for the great reviews. This is my most well received fanfic ever. Till then!
