AN: I do not own the titles of any animations...*holds up pants* Just eye burning shoes.
Where Do We Hike"Hand me the map," Minako demanded as she realized that she'd seen that grove of trees twice before.
"What map?" Duo grinned at the girl beside him, but inwardly winced as he felt their connection turn red with her irritation. Minako stared at his open face and felt her ire rise. Counting to ten backwards did not help at all.
"What do you mean, 'what map,' I've been following you for the past half hour thinking you knew where we were going!"
"I never said that I had a map, but I did think that the boat house was east of the barn. I may run and hide . . ." he started.
"But you'll never tell a lie. Yeah, yeah, I know." Minako knew that she was walking a fine line between being angry and being a bitch, but she was just ready for this day to be over! Speaking of over...It was then that she realized that the day was beginning to give over to twilight. The thought of being lost in the dark was enough to take the wind from her sails and Minako sank down onto a nearby log. "That's it, I give in." Blithely, she waved Duo away. "You go on and send the rescue teams back for me. I'm done in." Violet colored mirth rippled through their mind connection as Duo plopped onto the log next to Minako and began to play with her golden strands of hair.
"You really were a goddess in a previous lifetime," he said. "Only divine royalty could give an order while sounding that self-sacrificing." An orange-gold shot of mild indignation tinged with amusement was her only answer. "Watch it, Miss Thang," he teased, "two can play that game." He tweaked their connection with a bit of a naughty thought. Minako tried her hardest to keep a straight face, but the moment her eyes met Duo's she was lost.
"I can't believe you could think that about Ami and Trowa," she gasped between peals of gut busting laughter.
"It's always the quiet ones you have to suspect." By the time their laughter had finally slowed enough for them to think clearly, it was full on dark. When Duo clasped her hand to his, she gently squeezed his in return. "Come on, Mighty Aphrodite. I think I can smell a sea breeze from this direction." The stars began to twinkle over them as they made their way to the beach.
"Hey, Duo."
"Yeah?"
"Why were we going to the boat house in the first place?" Silence. "Duo?"
"It seemed like a good idea at the time," was all he would say. Minako realized that she had been set up, but as she considered the warm hand enfolding hers and the sweet mind coupled to her own, she really didn't mind anymore.
AN: Sorry if this story is wildly OOC, but I never said that this wasn't an Alternate Universe fic. I hope that you are enjoying this story, so please let me know by reviewing! I love the good and the bad, so don't be shy about telling me what you think. Thank you!